Su Yu’s body went rigid.
Her voice trembled as she asked, “M-Mating period?”
Only then did she remember a specific detail from the book’s setting.
Beastmen, both male and female, have mating periods, and spring is the peak season for them.
Their beastly instincts drive an urgent desire to mate and produce offspring of their own bloodline.
She wasn’t experiencing a mating period because she was already pregnant.
But Shengqing was a male Beastman, so of course he had one.
So right now, he was…
In heat?!
Shengqing raised an eyebrow.
His jade-like fingers gripped her chin, his eyes dark and menacing.
“That’s right.
I saved you and have taken care of you for so many days.
Shouldn’t you repay me?”
He paused, then added with mock kindness, “Don’t worry, my Beast Mark is still intact.
My body is clean.
I can give you my Beast Mark, let it nourish your body, and be your Beast Husband.”
“You’re so fragile.
A single Beast Husband could never support you.”
Shengqing sneered, his tone laced with contempt.
“Not to mention, that Beast Husband of yours is completely useless.
Not only did he fail to protect you, but you’ve been missing for nearly five Sun Days, and he still hasn’t come looking for you.”
“If it weren’t for me, you would’ve been carried off by that Stray Beast to bear his cubs.”
‘He couldn’t stand that idiot any longer.’
‘There was a female right here in the cave.’
‘Yet every day, he endured the torment of his mating period, choosing to run out in the middle of the night to kill Wild Beasts and soak in cold water rather than lay a single finger on her.’
‘He knew that idiot liked her.’
‘If you like someone, you should possess them.’
‘If he couldn’t bring himself to do it, then he would.’
‘In any case, once the Beast Mark was given, the female would be his.
She wouldn’t be able to get rid of him for the rest of her life.’
No matter how slow Su Yu was, she understood that Shengqing was acting very strangely today.
More importantly, with her current frail constitution, she had no way of escaping if he decided to force himself on her.
Su Yu felt like crying but had no tears.
She never imagined that the gentle and attentive person from the past few days would suddenly change so completely.
But the thought of a split personality didn’t cross her mind; she just assumed his drastic change in temperament was due to the influence of his mating period.
Su Yu swallowed hard and tried to feebly resist.
“No, Shengqing, I’m carrying a cub.
We can’t…
we can’t do that sort of thing.”
Her voice shaking, she tried to coax him, “Wait until after I’ve given birth, and then I’ll mate with you, okay?”
She had to placate Shengqing first, buy some time, and find a chance to escape.
A male in his mating period could easily lose his senses.
For her own safety and the safety of her cub, she couldn’t stay here.
Besides, even if she had considered becoming mates with Shengqing, it wouldn’t be under these circumstances, in this kind of situation.
Not to mention she didn’t truly like Shengqing yet; she only had a favorable impression of him.
Shengqing: “It’s fine.
Carrying a cub doesn’t prevent us from becoming mates.”
Shengqing lowered his gaze to her flat, soft abdomen and gently caressed it.
“My Beast Mark can even nourish the cub in your belly.”
Su Yu: “…”
She tried a different tactic out of desperation.
“But I’m fragile and difficult to care for.
If you become my Beast Husband, your life will be very hard, very hard, very hard.”
Su Yu deliberately repeated the phrase “very hard” three times, hoping Shengqing would realize the difficulty and back down.
After all, males always looked for females who were sturdy and good for bearing children.
Fragile and high-maintenance females would only make them shrink back in hesitation.
Shengqing’s lips twisted into a smile.
“You are indeed fragile and difficult to care for.
I’ve seen that for myself these past few days.”
You won’t drink water unless it’s boiled, won’t eat meat unless it’s fully cooked, and if it’s overcooked, you complain it hurts your teeth.
You won’t eat sour fruits, either.
Just like a cub that hasn’t even left the nest.
Su Yu flushed with embarrassment and seized the opportunity to persuade him.
“So don’t throw away your entire life for a moment of pleasure.”
Shengqing watched the little female trying so hard to paint herself in a bad light.
A flicker of amusement crossed his dark eyes as he said slowly, “But no matter how difficult you are, I’ve managed to take good care of you these past few days.
I can keep taking care of you for a lifetime.”
“Besides, females are so precious.
Now that I’ve finally gotten one, I have no intention of letting you go and becoming a lonely old bachelor for the rest of my life.”
Su Yu: “…”
She was at her breaking point.
‘It didn’t matter what she said; he was determined to make her his mate today, wasn’t he?’
Su Yu’s eyes turned red.
She couldn’t hold back anymore and let out a WAIL, crying from fear and sorrow.
“Shengqing, don’t be like this.
I really don’t want things to go that far with you.”
‘I really don’t want my savior to become a rapist.’
Watching the little female cry, Shengqing remained outwardly unmoved.
He was even thinking to himself, ‘She’s quite pretty when she cries.’
‘She’ll probably look even better crying later.’
“What are you crying for?
Gaining a powerful Beast Husband, isn’t that a good thing for you females?” Shengqing slowly and deliberately lifted her Beast Skin Skirt.
In despair, Su Yu screamed, “Not for me!”
‘Who the hell wants to live with a rapist?!’
Shengqing “kindly” patted her head.
“It’s alright.
In the future, you’ll see this as a good thing.”
Su Yu gave up, squeezing her eyes shut and repeatedly comforting herself.
‘Forget it, forget it.
Just pretend it’s a mosquito bite.’
‘Besides, I can use him to complete Mission Three.
No matter how I look at it, I won’t be at a loss.’
That’s what her rational mind was telling her, but emotionally, Su Yu still couldn’t accept it.
Tears streamed down her face, and her crying was enough to soften even Shengqing’s iron-hard heart.
A hint of hesitation appeared on his face.
But that very hesitation caused his expression to twist into a ferocious grimace for a moment.
Shengqing’s brow furrowed.
He reluctantly closed his eyes.
When he opened them again, the chilling aura around him had vanished, replaced by his usual gentle demeanor.
When Shengqing saw Su Yu crying despairingly on the stone bed, his heart shattered with pain.
He scrambled forward, wanting to hold and comfort her.
“Yu Yu, it’s me.
Don’t be afraid.
I won’t hurt you.”
His sudden approach made Su Yu cry out in alarm, her body instinctively shrinking away from him.
Shengqing froze in place.
A deep pain flashed in his eyes as he slowly backed away, forcing himself to soften his tone.
“Yu Yu, it’s okay now.
I won’t…
I won’t do anything to you.”
“Don’t be afraid of me.”
During his last hunt, Shengqing had encountered several Wandering Beastmen.
He was seriously injured while killing them, and combined with the torment of his mating period, he had collapsed by the water’s edge.
He had thought the other him inside his body wouldn’t wake up so quickly this time.
He usually didn’t awaken from his hibernation until halfway through spring.
But he never expected that this time, he would wake up so suddenly and so early.
He had even taken control of his body and nearly forced himself on Su Yu.
If he hadn’t desperately fought to regain control, he couldn’t bear to imagine how deeply he would have hurt Su Yu.
Shengqing’s heart was filled with regret, sorrow, and guilt.
He stammered out in anguish, “I’m sorry…”
‘I should have sent Su Yu back to the Liaoshui Tribe sooner.’
‘I shouldn’t have been so greedy and deliberately kept her here for so many days.’
Right now, the Wild Beasts outside weren’t the most dangerous thing for Su Yu.
The most dangerous person…
was him.
Hearing Shengqing’s apology, Su Yu, who had cried herself into a daze, suddenly felt even more wronged.
She sobbed, “Who apologizes while they’re still hurting you?”
She broke down completely.
“Just get it over with, can’t you?”