Chapter 397: Clear arrangements
Rory watched them all bickering over who got to hold Terry, and she couldn’t help but burst out laughing.
With so many daddies doting on him, her little Terry was bound to grow up happy and healthy, surrounded by endless love and laughter. The household was definitely going to be a lot noisier from now on.
Rory turned her head to look at Yuel beside her. "Terry is your cub, you know. Are you just going to stand there and watch instead of going over to hold him?"
Yuel shook his head helplessly. "I’d love to, Rory, but do you honestly think I can out-muscle that crowd?"
With that, Yuel slipped his arm around Rory’s waist. "It’s fine. If they’re going to steal my cub, I’ll just steal their female master."
Rory: "..." This man is really something...
Yuel glanced over at Terry, who was having the time of his life, and whispered softly into Rory’s ear, "Let them babysit. Come on, I’ll take you for a walk."
Still holding her waist, Yuel began leading Rory away.
Vangar noticed them leaving and was about to follow, but Terry—who was currently cradled in Paros’s arms—saw him and immediately reached his tiny hands out toward him. "Daddy Vangar, Terry wants a hug!"
Seeing those little hands reaching for him, Vangar quickly took the boy into his arms.
But Terry wasn’t done yet. He turned around and badgered Vincent and Xarion to go bid on a gemstone he had his eye on, and then tasked Jasper and Wen with fetching him some beast cores.
Having just shifted into his human form, he needed the energy.
While absorbing the power, Terry claimed he felt a bit under the weather, successfully roping Lian into staying by his side as well. Even Paros and Nix weren’t spared; Terry had them completely at his beck and call.
Only when he saw his biological father successfully spirit his mother away out of sight did Terry finally relax and focus on absorbing the beast cores.
He knew that fox, Lian, was incompetent. There was no way that guy could have erased his inherited memories.
Besides, his father’s worries were completely unfounded. Not only had Terry inherited his father’s memories, but he had also inherited his mother’s memories and human emotions.
His father’s memories were admittedly dark and cruel. But because he possessed his mother’s memories and her human capacity for empathy, he was far better at regulating his own psyche.
There was absolutely no risk of him becoming dark and twisted. He knew right from wrong, understood exactly what he was doing, and knew which lines could and couldn’t be crossed. In fact, he was even better at controlling his emotions than his father was.
He just couldn’t tell his father any of this. His mother’s memories were a secret.
Meanwhile, Yuel led Rory away. Seeing that Vincent and the others hadn’t followed them, he smiled and said, "Rory, there are plenty of good treasures in the back storehouse. Let me take you to pick a few out."
Rory had been meaning to ask him about this. "Yuel, don’t tell me your businesses are all... a bit sketchy?" If they weren’t under-the-table black markets, they were red-light district operations.
Yuel’s voice lost a bit of its confidence. "Not all of them. Just the majority. I do have a few legitimate businesses."
Rory: "..." Way to admit it’s the majority.
As Yuel guided her toward the storehouse, he explained, "It’s just that these kinds of industries generate cash the fastest. But don’t worry, Rory. Even though this is an auction house, everything here is strictly legal and above board."
They reached a quiet hallway. Seeing that no one else was around, Rory suddenly pinned Yuel against the wall. She pinched his chin, looking at him with a half-smile.
"What are you so nervous about? Are you afraid that if I see you auctioning off sub-females and males, I’ll think you’re a bad person? And then think you’re just a wicked vine and stop liking you?"
Yuel looked at her intently, gently shaking his head. "I know you wouldn’t. But I still don’t want you to misunderstand." He wanted to appear as perfect as possible in front of her.
Yuel’s gaze was so intense and unblinking that Rory began to feel a little self-conscious. She released his chin and opened her mouth to change the subject, but in a sudden flash of movement, Yuel pulled her right into his embrace.
His arms wrapped tightly around her waist, locking her securely against his chest. His warm breath brushed against the shell of her ear.
"Rory," Yuel’s voice was deep and husky, laced with a long-suppressed longing. "Terry... is already grown up."
Here is the continuation of the translation, polished to maintain the smooth, engaging, and atmospheric flow of the story.
Originally, Yuel thought he would genuinely have to wait another three years. He never expected to regain his freedom so soon.
"I know," Rory said. Fearing that someone might walk by, she gave him a light nudge. "Let go of me first."
"No, you don’t know." Instead of stepping back, Yuel tightened his arms around her. His eyes burned with intense desire as he stared down at her face. "Tonight was supposed to be my turn anyway."
He had already given up his chance during the day. But now, it was night. For the rest of the evening, she belonged to him.
"Calm down a bit," Rory muttered, glancing anxiously to the left and right. "We’re in the middle of a hallway." Anyone could come walking by at any second.
Yuel leaned down, stealing a tender kiss from her lips. "Then let’s head to the storehouse... where you can take your time... picking things out."
The moment the words left his mouth, he swept Rory up into his arms, turned, and swiftly slipped into a concealed room.
The second they stepped inside, Rory was nearly blinded by the dazzling array of gemstones. But before she could even get a clear look at what treasures lay within, thick vines burst through the floorboards, pinning her securely to a chair.
Yuel leaned over, softly nibbling on her earlobe. "Rory, I’ve sealed the room with my vines. No one can get in now."
At her feet, the vines sprouted fresh, tender green shoots, lightly brushing against her ankles and sending a faint, ticklish shiver up her spine.
"Yuel, I’m still pregnant with a cub," Rory reminded him, trying to sound stern.
"I know." Yuel’s breathing was already uneven. He dropped to one knee before her, his thumb gently tracing her cheek. "I told you before—I’m not an animal."
Rory pursed her lips. Looking at him right now, she thought he looked exactly like an animal.
An hour later, back at the front of the venue.
Having finished absorbing the energy from the beast cores, Terry let out a satisfied little burp and nestled contentedly into Paros’s chest. "Daddy, I’m full."
He was part vine and still very young, so he couldn’t eat solid food yet. The energy from the beast cores served as his meals.
Lian stared at the five completely drained Tier-6 beast cores and let out a low whistle. "He just shifted into human form and he’s already absorbing Tier-6 cores." This level of talent was practically breaking the laws of nature.
Is this truly what happens when a human and a beastman have a child? A cub whose genes are pushed to absolute perfection?
If that was the case, then just as the Beast God had prophesied... would the next Beast God be born among Rory’s children? Would it be this little guy? Or would it be the little firebird currently resting in Rory’s belly?
"Terry, I won the bid for the gemstone you wanted." Vincent walked over and placed a raw, brilliant blue gemstone into Terry’s little stroller.
Terry glanced at it. The color of this gemstone looked exactly like the blue of Earth. If he had it crafted into the shape of the blue planet and gifted it to his mother, she would absolutely love it.
"Thank you, Daddy!" Terry chirped, asking Nix to keep the stone safe for him for the time being. Since he didn’t have a spatial ring of his own yet, he couldn’t store it himself.
"Where did Rory and Yuel go?" Nix asked as he stowed the gemstone away, scanning their surroundings. There was still no sign of either Rory or Yuel. It had already been an hour—how were they not back yet?
Xarion replied nonchalantly, "This auction house belongs to Yuel. He probably took our female master to the storehouse to pick out some treasures."
"What?! This auction house belongs to Yuel?" Nix’s jaw dropped in shock. "Xarion, why didn’t you tell me sooner?!"
He had spotted several energy stones up for auction earlier that he desperately wanted, but they had all been snatched up by other bidders. If he had known this place belonged to Yuel, he could have just asked him for them directly!