The Ugly Duckling Of The Tiger Tribe-Chapter 219: Arinya-sama

The squirrel man blinked and then raised his head. I don’t know how he knew—since my stomach wasn’t that big to begin with and I was wearing a coat too—but his eyes stayed on my belly, as if his eyes had been opened to the unknown.

"You are heavy," he said and I tilted my head. Whichever way he’d like to explain it.

"Well, yes," I said.

His gaze traveled from my belly to the troller behind us. He looked back at my husbands, who were still looking very much like they wanted to clear the ’vermin’ out, and he gulped.

Their half-beast form was always intimidating to the lesser creatures, not to mention their full beast form.

I didn’t want to be seen as a cruel conqueror. If they were animals without intelligence, then it was a different case, but this guy had never harmed a fellow beastman as the Martens did, and they did not look detestable, so I wanted to hit him.

He reminded me of the rabbits, if anything.

So, I turned to Noah and Damar,

"Noah, Fenric, you can change back," I commanded softly. "And don’t forget to put on your clothes. It’s freezing." But they did not move, as I was trying to make sense of my words right now. "You’re terrifying them."

Fenric transformed back, having figured out what I was planning, and tried to talk me out of it.

"They’re in our spot, Ari," he grumbled.

I tossed him his set of clothes and boots and he accepted them, though one boot fell as his mind was split between what I was doing and what he wanted to do.

"It was their spot first," I countered. I looked at Noah with a blank gaze. "Well?"

He transformed back, shrugging his shoulders.

"Whatever you say."

I tossed him back his clothes, and he caught them, not letting a single thing fall, and he snarled at Fenric, showing off even now, but Fenric didn’t even pay attention to his taunt.

I turned back at the squirrel beastman.

"There’s plenty of room in this cave. If you let us stay by the entrance to keep the wind out, you can keep your nest in the back. And if you don’t like that idea, we can stay in the back while you stay in the front, what do you think?"

He still looked hesitant and then I cleared my throat, throwing out the perfect bait.

"Ahem, we might even have some scraps of fat or dried meat to share if you’re interested."

The mention of sharing food made the squirrel’s ears perk up instantly. Survival in winter was hard for their kind, and the idea of being under the protection of a Tiger, a Wolf, and a Snake—rather than being their dinner—was a deal he couldn’t refuse.

But he couldn’t be sure.

He looked at Damar, his heart thumping in terror and then he looked away.

Snakes were a squirrel’s worst match. So to be under the same roof with one... He couldn’t help but worry.

"You... you would let us stay?" the squirrel asked, his tail twitching tentatively.

"As long as you don’t touch our stuff," I said with a wink.

The squirrel man’s throat bobbed as he gulped harder this time, his eyes darting between my smile and the three standing behind me. He wasn’t stupid. He was a survivor. He knew that ’no’ wasn’t an option on the menu today.

It looked like we were giving it a choice, but in fact, there was no choice other than a ’yes’ or ’very well’.

His belief was solid. Predators killed without hesitation.

If he refused, these predators wouldn’t just turn around and walk back into the blizzard; they would walk over his corpse to claim the dry stone.

By agreeing, he was gambling on my kindness and a safe winter. By refusing, he was guaranteeing his own end. In a world where might made right, he was currently at the bottom of a very steep mountain.

"We... we accept your mercy, Great Female," he whispered, pressing his forehead back to the cool floor. "The back of the cave is deep. It is safe from the wind and quiet. We will stay there and not bother your... pack."

"Good choice," I said, offering him a genuine, warm smile to try to stop his shivering. "I’m Arinya. And don’t worry—as long as you stay on your side of the line, you’re under our protection for the period we’re here. Nothing is getting past these three to get to you."

The squirrel looked up, a glimmer of hope fighting through the terror. The idea of having a Snow Tiger, a Great Wolf, and a Silver Serpent as bodyguards instead of executioners was a concept he was clearly struggling to process.

But it was a concept that meant he might just survive the winter and not become a wandering predator’s meal.

"Thank you, Arinya-Sama," he breathed and I blinked.

"Arinya-sama?"

What? Was the squirrel Japanese or something?

I couldn’t even ask why he referred to me as sama and not just Ms. But he scurried back into the shadows, his two companions following him like lightning, their bushy tails vanishing into the darkness of the rear tunnels.

"Arinya-Sama?" Noah chuckled, shoving his fingers through his hair to get every bit of snow out of the way. "I like the sound of that. Maybe I should start calling you that too."

"Don’t you dare," I hissed at him, though I couldn’t hide my smirk. "Alright, you guys. Let’s transform this cold rock into a place we can call home."

It wasn’t much, but it was a steady shelter, enough to keep the cold out. We just need to block the entrance with the empty troller and nail the tenth fabric to cover it up.

We don’t know how long we’ll be here for, but for the duration, it was better to be as warm as possible.

"Fenric, get the troller unloaded. Damar, I need a fire pit dug right here near the entrance—far enough in to be dry, but close enough for the smoke to escape." He nodded. "And Noah, check the perimeter for any secondary entrances we need to block. We can’t have an intruder sneaking up on us in our sleep."

"It sounds like a cool job but it’s just asking me to scout, isn’t it?" He grumbled and I grinned.

"Well, you are the scout after all."