Chapter 38
Sal was furious when he heard Leah and the others urging Nina to take more beast husbands. He let out a low, threatening hiss at them: Shut up. The little female’s beast husband can only be me.
If they hadn’t been females, he would’ve already leapt at them and slashed them with his claws.
He was already annoyed enough by all those males bringing prey to curry favor—now these females were actually encouraging Nina to accept them.
If his crystal core hadn’t been damaged, if his strength hadn’t yet recovered, how could he be forced to endure this, watching helplessly as those males crowded around her?
Just wait until he recovered. None of them would ever be allowed to appear in front of his little female again. Whoever dared—he’d wipe them out.
“Nina, your little cat is so fierce!” Minnie was the first to complain. “Look, it’s hissing at me p>
Nina patted the little cat’s face. “No being rude to guests p>
Sal snorted unhappily, turned his head away, and stopped hissing.
Minnie stuck her tongue out at him. Serves you right—got smacked, didn’t you?
“Haha, your little cat is pretty obedient,” Leah laughed. “Can you let me pet it p>
Nina looked down. Sal shot her a look that clearly said, If you let her touch me, I’ll claw her to death.
Nina coughed lightly. “He’s a bit shy. Maybe another day p>
Leah looked a little disappointed, then returned to the previous topic. “Nina, you really don’t plan to choose one or two from those males? There’s one named Yun—his strength isn’t bad p>
“Mm. I haven’t seen anyone I like yet p>
Nina had thought about finding a couple of beast husbands in the tribe so she could settle down more easily. But after what happened at the sacrificial ceremony, she no longer wanted to stay in this tribe long-term.
Besides, she wasn’t sure if Mino had spoiled her standards—after seeing him, none of the other males stirred any feelings in her at all.
Even back in the modern world, she’d never lacked suitors. But she’d always felt insecure and was a bit of a looks-oriented person, so she’d never met anyone truly suitable.
Here, she knew she should find one or two beast husbands sooner rather than later—but she didn’t want to settle.
“That’s fine,” Leah said with a smile. “We can come help you take care of the babies in the future. I don’t have any yet anyway—I’m free p>
“I can help too. I really like little cubs,” Bibi added.
“Me too,” Minnie said.
“Mm, thank you,” Nina replied warmly.
She was genuinely happy. They were the first group of female friends she’d made in the beast world.
After chatting for a while longer, their beast husbands came to call them back for a meal.
“Nina, we’ll head back first. We’ll come find you to play next time,” Leah said.
“Okay, come again next time p>
“Mm, bye p>
Nina waved goodbye as they left—taking the horned beast with them.
Meanwhile, Aji was kneeling in front of Miye.
“Mother, please let me go find Nina,” Aji begged.
He’d heard that many males had gone to give Nina prey today. He was anxious—afraid that if he didn’t act soon, he’d lose his chance forever.
“No. You can’t go,” Miye refused flatly.
“Why?” Aji couldn’t understand. “You used to dislike her because she was ugly, but now she’s not ugly at all. Why won’t you let me go even now p>
“She’s too beautiful,” Miye said coldly. “That’s exactly why she’s not suitable for you p>
Whether influenced by Dora or something else, Miye felt Nina was an unsettled female—one she didn’t want her son involved with.
She worried that if Aji bonded with Nina, he’d have eyes only for her and stop caring about his mother. Worse, she wouldn’t be able to control him anymore.
What she wanted now was for Aji to find a gentle, easy-to-control female—so he could continue providing for her wholeheartedly in the future.
She didn’t have many children or many beast husbands. If she wanted a better life, she needed her offspring to support her together.
In the beast world, males generally stopped supporting their birth families once they formed their own households. Even if their birth families needed help, they had to obtain the female partner’s permission to send resources back.
As for Dora, Miye no longer wanted Aji involved with her either. The shaman had said Dora would suffer divine punishment—Miye didn’t want to be dragged down with her. She’d only tried to matchmake them before because they were friends and Dora had many beast husbands.
“Why isn’t she suitable?” Aji pleaded. “Mother, I truly like Nina. Please fulfill my wish p>
“She’s not a female you can handle,” Miye said. “Stop thinking about her. If you don’t like Dora, you can look for Leah or Minnie instead p>
Leah was the chief’s female cub—she lacked nothing. Minnie was simple-minded and easier to control.
“Mother, I won’t look for them,” Aji said firmly. “I only like Nina. If you don’t agree, I’ll go find her myself. I’ll complete the tasks you gave me at another time p>
He stood up and walked toward the door.
“Stop right there!” Miye shouted angrily. “Are you trying to anger your mother to death? If you dare step out that door—if you dare go find Nina—you won’t be my child anymore. I’ll treat it as if I raised you for nothing p>
She clutched her chest, looking as if she were in terrible pain.
Miye knew Aji was extremely filial. He wouldn’t ignore her, nor would he disregard her health.
Aji stopped. His fists clenched as he listened to her pained groans. He turned back, worry flashing through his eyes, and finally went to her side. “Mother… are you alright p>
Miye snorted. “I’ll be fine if you don’t anger me. Go hunt a wild boar for me p>
Aji left in low spirits.
On Nina’s side, the atmosphere was warm and peaceful. They were enjoying a fragrant lunch together.
Having made new friends today, Nina was in a great mood and ate more than usual.
Once she was full, she picked up a piece of meat with her chopsticks and fed it to the little cat.
“Here, have some of your favorite cooked pork p>
Sal obediently opened his mouth, bit down on the meat, and chewed slowly, looking utterly satisfied.
These days, he deliberately ate slowly, waiting for Nina to finish so she’d feed him. He loved food she fed him by hand—it always tasted better than when he ate by himself.
Whenever Nina felt like it, she’d feed him. Whatever she gave, he ate—no fuss at all. Sometimes she deliberately teased him by feeding vegetables he didn’t like, such as cabbage or carrots. He’d frown, but still eat them.
Nina realized the little cat was becoming more and more well-behaved.
Mino watched from the side, feeling increasingly sour.
Sigh. A dignified beastman living worse than a “wild cat p>
After lunch, Nina wanted to weave another carrying basket. The previous one had been used for catching fish and wasn’t suitable for the babies. She’d woven another afterward but used it for storing items. Now she wanted one specifically for the cubs.
With her earlier experience, she was quite skilled at it now.
Mino helped her from the side, while Sal curled up beside her.