Mommy Wolf: Raise A Cub, Claimed By His Beast Daddy-Chapter 47: A Concubine (I)

Vestor jolted in surprise, almost letting out a hoot-hoot sound, a signature of his beastman lineage.

"M-My King, you shouldn’t do that."

"Why not?"

"Your kingdom is not stable yet. If you leave Rantel Hill now, there may be an insurgency. I’ve noticed several leaders of other beastman tribes eyeing your position, believing they could defeat you and take over the Kingdom of Beastmen while you are not at your strongest," Vestor advised.

Rather than listening to the owl’s rambling, Kael replied arrogantly, "They can try. I don’t care if someone else takes control of the kingdom while I’m away. I’ll simply take it back by force once I return."

Vestor wiped cold sweat from his brow as he heard such words from his king.

Of course, Kael wasn’t wrong. The new Beast King was so powerful that no other beastman truly dared to challenge him.

They could try, but it would mean certain death.

Still, leaving a newly established kingdom without a ruler would spell disaster, and Vestor knew better than to allow that.

Seeing the owl’s troubled expression, Kael added, "I’ll appoint the strongest warrior in the kingdom as a stand-in. It won’t take long before I return anyway."

"That won’t work, My King. If he is weaker than you, the other tribes won’t give him the same respect they give you. You need to appoint... a queen," Vestor said, dropping the bomb.

"A queen?" Kael frowned. "You want me to mate?"

"No—! Not at all, My King," Vestor hurriedly clarified. According to rumors within the kingdom, the Beast King already had a fated mate who bore him a wolf cub, but she had died, and Kael had never marked another female since, nor did he ever take a concubine to solve his physical urges.

"I’ve heard that you already have a fated mate. But since she’s not here, you can appoint a concubine as a figurehead for now," Vestor suggested. "Though a female may not be as strong as a male, appointing one as a figurehead would be beneficial. Other tribe leaders would feel ashamed to challenge a female to a death battle, and she wouldn’t be able to seize real power either. It’s a win-win situation, My King."

"Hm... what you said actually makes sense," Kael muttered. "It’s good that you offered an alternative. I would’ve told you to abdicate or die, if you were forcing me to mate. And yes, I already have a fated mate."

’—And she’s as good as dead,’ Kael added silently.

If fate had truly bound them together, then everything Kael owned would have belonged to his fated mate as well. But since their bond had been severed and since he didn’t even know who she was, where she was, or what she looked like—it was better to appoint a concubine as a temporary "queen."

Besides, she would only be a figurehead. What harm could she possibly bring to the kingdom?

Vestor let out a quiet sigh of relief. At least his king was not completely unreasonable. With this arrangement, the kingdom’s sovereignty could be maintained.

Then another question arose.

"Who will you appoint as your concubine, My King?" Vestor asked.

"I haven’t thought about it. You can choose her yourself. I have no intention of taking her to bed, so it doesn’t matter," Kael replied carelessly.

"That won’t do, My King. Your decision is what we follow, not mine," Vestor said firmly. "Why not go down and choose one yourself? Many young female wolves have been stealing glances toward your cave, hoping to catch your attention."

As a species that worshipped strength, female beastmen were unconventional when it came to mating. It didn’t matter if they became concubines, so long as they could bear the offspring of a powerful beastman, they were more than willing.

And Kael was young, vigorous, and—most importantly—dashingly handsome.

The number of female beastmen gathering in the valley below his hill grew by the day, some even belonging to entirely different species.

Yet Kael remained unmoved.

The Beast King simply fulfilled his duties; conquering, ruling, and then resting in his den. As if he possessed neither physical urges nor any desire to mate, despite his stallion-like body.

Remembering the flock of females below, Kael scowled.

He had never liked attention in the first place, let alone attention from female beastmen whom he considered to be full of foolish, flowery ideas of romance.

Now that he had Jojo, he had no reason to mate. All he needed to do was raise his son and teach him how to become a proper beastman.

Unfortunately, since he had to choose a concubine, he would need to go down and see them.

"Fine. Let’s go down and—"

"M-My King!"

Kael and Vestor turned simultaneously toward the voice.

A young female beastman stood at the entrance to the cave. She had reddish wolf ears and a matching tail, likely at the cusp between her teenage years and adulthood—the age considered the peak of beauty among beastmen.

She had long red hair, a pair of emerald eyes, and freckles scattered across her cheeks and nose, lending her an undeniably adorable appearance.

Yes, adorable and refreshing, at least in Vestor’s eyes. One glance was enough for the wise owl to recognize her as a beauty few could ignore.

Yet when he looked at the Beast King, expecting even a flicker of interest, he saw nothing but puzzlement on Kael’s face, as though the girl’s charm was completely lost on him.

Meanwhile, Kael was simply confused as to why a random woman had appeared at his private cave unannounced.

The Beast King’s cave sat at the summit of Rantel Hill, an arduous climb unless one had strong wings or extraordinary physical strength.

This girl clearly had neither. Judging by how exhausted she looked, it must’ve taken a great deal of her strength just to reach him.

"Who are you, and why are you here?" Kael asked coldly. "This is my private domain, as you should know."