Harem King's Collection: Turning Beastkins Into Desperate Wives!-Chapter 67: Emotional Baggage

Prince Tyfin was having difficulty getting any real rest, he didn’t show it around his knights, but he was extremely uncertain about everything that had been laid on his shoulders.

However, as the only beast he was boarding with was the estranged Alice, who had been still sleeping the entire time they had been at the village so far, the young lion was finally able to let his concerns out, speaking to the dreaming beast as the only audience for his confession.

"I’m terrified, Alice..." The prince took a heavy breath in, pausing in the silence to be sure the cat didn’t stir. The prince continued his rant, knowing he could now safely vent it here.

"Tomorrow, I may find out if I’m going to have to be a king yet... A king an entire world away from his throne. How am I to lead my people, when I can’t even speak with them? When I can’t reassure them... How will I be remembered, as a king that wasn’t there for his kingdom’s darkest hour? What if there is no kingdom left... I know that’s not too likely, but we just don’t know..."

Prince Tyfin shuddered as his dark confession spewed forth uncontrollably from him, laying his weary head into his hands.

"And that demon... What madness is that monster? You destroyed it, we all watched... There was no way you missed it’s heart, no matter where it may have hidden it... General Rixator gave his life to sink his axe in its chest, and it was like it didn’t even feel it! What are we hoping to do against something like that? How can we even hope to fight it?

"After what it did to you... I just... I don’t know if we can. It even crumbled Aster’s shield last time... Could it do that all along? I thought we had a way to fight it back at least, but we don’t! I CAN’T DO SHIT ABOUT IT... THAT MONSTER PROBABLY KILLED MY FATHER, AND I CAN’T DO A THING ABOUT IT..."

The lion quieted down after he felt his voice crack up. The prince let his tone drop to a near sob.

"I can’t do anything by myself... Sure, I know the basics of combat training, but I’m barely average with any blade, unlike my mother, who was one of the most skilled warriors our kingdom had ever seen... I’m too afraid to use my father’s bloodskill. Too afraid I’ll end up like him...

"I can understand almost nothing of the language of the gods, so any real magic, too, is out of my reach... All I can do is just use my mother’s bloodskill... All I can do is lend a little strength to the ones that have to fight for me... I am not fit to be king, Alice... Alora deserves a stronger king..."

The prince curled up a bit tighter on his bed, pulling into himself, wishing they were here with him... They would know how to make this better... They would tell him what he needed to do...

But he wasn’t even sure if they were alive, or if they had fallen in the battle at the arena. Prince Tyfin was deeply missing the one his heart belonged to, when suddenly, the young lion heard a long, heartfelt howl in the distance.

Despite how heavy he was feeling, it actually brought a smirk to the beast as he scoffed to himself.

"Well... At least those two are finally happy... Good for them."

The young lion leaned his head back then, attempting to finally rest now that his heart felt just a bit lighter by the wolf’s declaration of his love for the human.

Maybe they could all get through this after all, united together, all the species that shared this world... Those two really did give the prince hope that it could really be possible someday.

The young king clung to that hope to keep his own heavy heart afloat, forced to rely on the strength of his knights yet again.

___

Captain Rixator shoved another two loaves of bread into the small satchel he had borrowed from the orcs. The bull had a tendency to eat more when he was alone, so he made sure to pack a little extra along with a few gourds of water he had tied to the sack.

The bull easily shouldered the load and stepped outside of his abode. The bovine huffed once through his nose, his breath steaming up into the chilly night air.

The beast gruffly chimed to himself, keeping his voice low for a change since his soldiers weren’t around.

"Good. I should make steady progress in the night... Beats that hot ass sun."

The bull turned his head high, looking to the stars for guidance. He recognized a few constellations and used them to gauge his direction, applying their position to that of the sun earlier so he could map his way back.

Another quiet voice answered from the shadows, but the beast recognized the speaker immediately.

"Honestly, Captain, you really do have to learn some patience eventually... I know the prince asked to do some scouting, but I don’t think he meant for you to skip out on sleep to do it."

Mollis stepped forward, coming in to focus under the light of the moon as she finished her chastising. The captain only smiled at his longtime friend before answering in his quiet voice. Mollis knew the real Rix, so there was no need to keep up the loud façade when they were alone.

"Yeah, I know, but I would rather rest during the worst of the heat and report back tomorrow under the shade of the night. My fur may not be as thick as yours, but it doesn’t mean I can’t overheat out here."

Mollis said nothing and only paced over to the bull, gently laying a hand on his thick arm while she softly spoke up to the towering hunk of muscle.

"Just make sure you make it back to me alive, Carcer."

Mollis knew the bull had feelings for her, something he had long since confessed to the cute rabbit. Rix wanted a wife and a family someday, but despite the rabbits declaration about having little interest in starting one, he had fallen for her regardless.

The captain didn’t mind the rejection. After all, it didn’t stop them from being good friends. Mollis understood Rix in a way not many could, and the bull would do anything for such a close friend, even allow the rabbit to call him by his first name, as long as they were in private that is.

"Ha!" The bull snorted, "You know you can’t get rid of me that easily, Mollis. As if I would ever dare to not return to my prince before my mission ends."

The rabbit giggled, nodding up at her captain.

"I know. I just have a bad feeling, is all... I’ve had a bad feeling for a few days now... Ever since..." The rabbit trailed off, and she averted her gaze solemnly before turning back to the bovine.

"Captain, there’s something I need to tell you about Aster... Something he still doesn’t know... Something I expect only his brother Cortist really knows about..."

The bull silenced the rabbit with a firm hand on her little shoulders, smiling down at her.

"I know, you like him, right? You know I just want you to be happy, Mollis... After everything you’ve endured... But I think Aschefell may have beat you to the goal."

The bovine tried to smile at his friend, but the rabbit only took a step back, shaking her head.

"No, well... Yes, but that’s not what I mean... There’s something else... something that makes me wor-"

As if right on queue, a loud, lustful howl sounded into the night air around the pair, distracting the rabbit, making her turn to face the source.

Mollis rapidly tapped her paw on the ground three times in quick succession and furrowed her brow in a sigh at the realization.

"Well shit... she beat me to it... Good for them, though, but that wolf has another thing coming if she thinks I’m giving up that easily."

The bovine chuckled behind the mage, speaking the warning more to himself than the rabbit.

"You’d best watch yourself, Aschefell. Mollis always gets what she wants one way or another..."

The rabbit spun quickly, gleaming at the bull with a sense of pride.

"I sure do!"

The captain snorted again before he answered.

"That was NOT a compliment... What did you need to tell me about the panther’s son? Something bothering you? Do I need to punish one of my soldiers?" freewebnσvel.cѳm

The mage glanced back over her shoulder where she had just heard the she-wolf, and the human finally lay claim to one another. She couldn’t find it in herself to speak it anymore. Not yet.

"It’s nothing like that... We will talk when you get back, Captain. Just come back to me first, so I don’t have to tear through this desert to come find you... No other orders until then."

The bull huffed and stomped a hoof, giving the rabbit a mock salute as he gruffly answered

"Yes, my Lady!"

***

Author’s note: A heartfelt thanks to everyone who’s been reading along, and even to those who gave it a try before moving on. I genuinely appreciate you taking the time. Your continued support means the world to me, so please keep it coming as we dive deeper into this tale.

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