Mommy Wolf: Raise A Cub, Claimed By His Beast Daddy-Chapter 58: In This Biting Cold (I)

"Jojo. Jojo, wake up."

"Hrmm? Sisi... I’m still sleepy," Jojo muttered in his sleep. He curled up even tighter, adopting a defensive posture like an armadillo, making sure no one could disturb his slumber.

But Sisi couldn’t wait any longer.

After packing everything they had, and failing repeatedly to wake Jojo, she simply picked him up. She wrapped the little wolf cub in a pelt to keep him warm and carried him in her arms.

The sudden movement startled Jojo awake. He opened his eyes and saw Sisi wearing a stern expression as she stared toward the cave entrance.

Jojo followed her gaze and grumbled when he saw the raging snowstorm outside.

"Where are we going, Sisi? It’s too cold..." he whined. "Um... Jojo... Jojo will hunt tomorrow, okay?"

Sisi didn’t answer. She kept staring into the storm, as though bracing herself for the cold that would soon bite into her skin.

Marik finally entered the cave in his tiger form.

"Hop on," he said. "I’ve checked the temperature outside. It’s too cold and dangerous for you to walk, even with boots."

"No, that’s too much for you," Sisi protested. "You’ll have to carry Jojo and me, and our supplies. I-I can walk on my own."

"We don’t have time," Marik replied firmly. "Just hop on. Don’t worry, I’ll tell you if I get too tired."

In truth, he would never tell her to get off. The storm was far too harsh for a fragile human, he wouldn’t feel settled if she had to walk right now.

"Let’s go," he urged. "We really don’t have time, Sisi."

"...Right."

Jojo finally woke up fully when he heard Uncle Marik’s voice. He poked his head out from under the pelt and stared at the tiger beastman.

"Uncle, where are we going?"

"We’re leaving. Now."

"Now?" Jojo blinked. "But... Uncle, it’s still snowing. It’s so cold..."

"Then go back to sleep," Marik snapped impatiently. "There’s a fat evil man coming toward this cave. We can’t stay here."

"Ah, another fat evil man!?" Jojo perked up. "But Jojo already killed the one who hurt Sisi before. Is there another fat evil man we have to fight, Uncle?"

"...We can’t fight this one," Marik said curtly. "Just hold on tight and don’t move around too much. It’s too cold outside."

Jojo obediently curled back into the pelt.

Still, questions swirled in his mind.

This was the first time he had ever seen Uncle Marik so nervous, aside from the time Sisi had been gravely injured.

Jojo glanced up at Sisi and felt even more unsettled.

Usually, Sisi would offer him a reassuring smile whenever he was confused. If she couldn’t explain something, she would comfort him or distract him.

But now, her lips were pressed into a frown as she sat silently on Uncle Tiger’s back.

The moment they stepped out of the cave, the biting cold pierced through Jojo’s thick fur. He shuddered and pressed himself deeper into Sisi’s embrace.

But it also filled him with a sense of distress, because Sisi must be suffering far more than he was.

Sometimes her body trembled, even beneath her thick fur coat. Jojo felt it, but Sisi said nothing, forcing herself to remain calm.

’What’s happening?’ Jojo wondered. ’Why do we have to leave tonight? And why do they look so scared?’

Every time he tried to ask, he was met only with silence.

Sisi felt as though she might faint as the cold was unbearable.

Even with multiple pelts wrapped around her, a single gust of wind sent shivers racing down her spine, making her question her decision to leave in the middle of the night.

But she refused to complain.

They had no time. And Marik was enduring far more than she was.

Besides, she was distressed, because Jojo was still so young. Even with his thick fur, the cold would seep into his bones. So, she hugged him tighter.

The storm made it impossible to see the path ahead, so Sisi placed her trust entirely in Marik’s sense of direction.

Yet, she noticed he wasn’t moving as fast as usual.

"Marik," she called out, breaking the silence, "Can’t we go faster?"

"I can!" Marik shouted over the wind, "But I don’t want you slipping! The snow’s too thick, you’ll fall if I lose my balance!"

His voice grew sharper. "This storm might turn into a blizzard any moment. Hold on tight!"

Sisi nodded and leaned forward, gripping the thick fur on his back to steady herself.

Marik felt her cold breath against the back of his neck. It distracted him for a moment as they had never been this close before, but he shook his head and forced himself to focus.

This journey would be brutal, and he refused to lose his family, not when he was so close to the life he dreamed of.

**

Kael and the eagle beastmen finally reached the cave.

Ignoring Grishaw’s warning, Kael rushed inside, only to find it empty.

Still, there were clear signs that someone had lived there recently: burned logs, animal bones, and a makeshift stone bowl for water.

’A human,’ Kael realized.

No beastman would need such a tool when they could simply drink from a river.

Pelts used for bedding lay scattered about, confirming reports of a tiger, a wolf, and a human living together.

But none of it mattered.

Because the moment Kael stepped inside, his nose caught Jojo’s scent. After raising Jojo from birth, that scent was etched deep into his subconscious.

For the first time in nearly a year, Kael felt something beyond worry or despair.

He felt anger.

He didn’t know what that bastard tiger and the human had done to Jojo, but he was certain they hadn’t treated his son kindly. Especially the tiger, knowing the curse both he and Jojo bore.

Kael picked up several strands of white fur from the bedding and walked back out of the cave.

He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply.

When he opened them again, his focus sharpened.

The trail of them leaving the cave was clear.

Jojo.

The tiger.

The human.

And he began to follow it.