By Zephyria Yumin’s trembling lips parted a few times before he managed to force out a voice. No matter how he looked at it, Tae-jun before him was not normal, let alone human.
“N-no way… you.”
“Me what? Ah, did you perhaps catch on to who I am?”
Tae-jun strode forward and stopped right in front of Yumin’s nose. He raised the corners of his mouth as if amused, but his eyes were sharp, and his pupils gleamed with a chilling intensity. What resided within his golden irises was madness. Like a predator whose appetite surged upon smelling the delicious scent of prey. Yumin’s instincts screamed wildly, warning him that a crisis of a lifetime had arrived.
Though he was clearly a carnivore, Yumin had grown up in the countryside and had never actually hunted in the wild, nor had he ever faced a fearsome predator. The strength left his legs, and his hands trembled. Even as he tried to figure out what was happening, his frozen mind refused to work.
Tae-jun was quite pleased with Yumin’s pale face, which looked as though he might burst into tears at any moment. To realize he was prey only when cornered, it was useless to put on such a pathetic expression now. The impregnation was already underway.
The red berry Yumin had eaten was actually a drug that induced rapid estrus. The pill he had previously been tricked into swallowing as cold medicine had improved his constitution to be able to carry the seed of the Bum family, who possessed a special constitution. With just these two things, Yumin’s chances of becoming pregnant had reached 100%, and to make matters worse, he had also frequently taken the tonic prescribed by his cousin, Hyung.
The tonic’s effect was to warm the body and protect the fetus, making it an excellent medicine for someone carrying a child, so Yumin had dug his own grave.
Yumin, who had naively fallen into the trap Tae-jun had so meticulously set, received an overflowing amount of Tae-jun’s semen. There was still some left inside his rear end from where Tae-jun had ejaculated.
“T-Tae-jun… what on earth are you, who are you?”
“Ah. Still haven’t figured it out? Look into my eyes.”
“…Are you a Beastman?”
“Strictly speaking, I’m not just any Beastman, but it’s complicated to explain, so let’s leave it at that. What do my eyes look like?”
The vertical slit pupil explained everything. Yumin felt goosebumps all over his body, as if he had been left out on a winter street.
“Tell me. What do I look like.”
“…A t-tiger… Are you a tiger?”
“Correct.”
“Ack!”
“I thought I was going to go crazy because it took longer than expected, but I finally succeeded in the hunt. Very good.”
As Yumin stumbled backward, Tae-jun quickly pushed him into the bathroom and shoved him against the wall. With nowhere left to run, Yumin’s mind went blank.
A tiger. The ultimate predator, one he should never meet or get involved with. It could easily kill a wildcat like him with a single bite, and its cruel nature was beyond description. When encountering an apex predator, a weak animal like a wildcat had no choice but to flee. If caught, there was a 100% chance of being eaten.
Why had Tae-jun, a tiger, approached Yumin, a wildcat? Yumin could only think of one reason.
‘He approached me to eat me. Because he wanted to taste raw meat from a wild animal!’
The suspicious circumstances flashed through Yumin’s mind. The time Tae-jun had looked at a picture of a wildcat and teased him by saying, ‘You resemble it.’ The time he had taken Yumin, in his Kkayangyi state, to his home (perhaps he had kidnapped him to eat him then too).
What he had mistaken for a relationship in the past were merely the procedures to end up deliciously in Tae-jun’s mouth. Thinking that, Yumin felt so terrified he thought he would suffocate. He had to escape immediately.
“S-sa-.”
He wanted to beg for his life, but his throat felt glued shut, and no sound came out. Yumin’s chin trembled as he gasped for breath. I’m scared, I don’t want to die. That was all he could think. But Tae-jun’s piercing gaze had completely crushed him, both physically and mentally. His legs wouldn’t obey, and he couldn’t move an inch.
“Go Yumin, I finally caught you.”
Tae-jun licked his lower lip with his tongue. He looked like a hungry person licking their lips in anticipation. Yumin’s survival instincts churned out hundreds of ideas. They say there’s always a way out, even when caught in a tiger’s den. He didn’t want to die here, so he had to find a way to escape.
“Just a moment, you must be cold like this.”
He said with a smile. It was the same gentle smile as the usual Tae-jun, but it looked different to Yumin now. Unbeknownst to himself, Yumin felt a shiver run down his spine.
‘Why? It’s not particularly cold right now.’
Yumin had two questions. The warmth remaining in the bathroom meant his body shouldn’t feel cold. Yet, he couldn’t understand why he was getting such an ominous, unpleasant chill.
And then there was the other thing. He couldn’t understand why Tae-jun insisted on bringing clothes. A bathrobe was hanging nearby. Even if he felt cold, he could just put that on.
Perhaps Tae-jun had another agenda, that was Yumin’s conclusion in that brief moment.
“I-it’s okay.”
“Okay? You look cold.”
As Tae-jun said that, he reached out towards Yumin’s cheek. Yumin flinched and tried to pull back, but Tae-jun was faster. Tae-jun’s large, long fingers touched Yumin’s cheek. Then, he slowly began to stroke Yumin’s face.
“T-Tae-jun?”
Yumin stammered without realizing it. Tae-jun continued to stroke Yumin’s cheek in silence. Then, he spoke in a low, calm voice.
“You have to listen, Yumin. You can’t catch a cold.”
“A cold……”
“Yes. You are at a very important stage right now. You can’t get sick at a time like this.”
“Really…?”
Yumin couldn’t understand what Tae-jun was saying. He understood that Tae-jun was worried he might catch a cold. But what he added next was strange. An important stage. Was there a time when one especially shouldn’t catch a cold?
Yumin, troubled by Tae-jun’s words, tried to ask him again. But things didn’t go as Yumin wished. Just then, the phone rang in the bedroom.
“Who is it? One moment.”
Tae-jun frowned slightly, removed his hand from Yumin’s face, and headed towards the bedroom. Only then could Yumin breathe a sigh of relief.
From afar, he could hear Tae-jun answering the phone. It seemed to be a close acquaintance, as Tae-jun was speaking in a casual tone. Yumin tried to calm his trembling body and eavesdropped on Tae-jun’s call.
Yumin would never normally eavesdrop on someone’s conversation. But now, enveloped in an inexplicable, ominous aura, every small clue was important.
“Ah, it’s going well.”
At those words, Yumin’s ears perked up. For some reason, it felt like he was talking about him. And Yumin’s guess was correct.
“Yumin is fine. Yes, his condition is good.”
‘It was about me after all!’
Yumin was startled. But what followed was even more shocking.
“Yumin’s physical condition is the most important. That’s right. I’ve used up all the medicine I received last time. I wish you could send more.”
A scream was about to escape, but Yumin managed to swallow it. Judging from the context of the conversation, Tae-jun had undoubtedly given Yumin some kind of drug. Yumin’s suspicion was turning into certainty.
“Ah, I can’t hear well. Just a moment.”
Saying that, Tae-jun stepped out of the bedroom. As the distance increased, Yumin could no longer hear the content of Tae-jun’s conversation.
‘No way. Tae-jun gave me strange medicine?’
Yumin, still standing by the bathroom door, felt his heart pounding like crazy. He hoped it wasn’t true, but Yumin’s guess seemed correct.
Yumin hastily ran out of the bathroom. He couldn’t see Tae-jun, but he could guess roughly where he was. The living room was right outside the bedroom. The living room was not an open-plan structure but divided by a partition wall. With that thought, Yumin abandoned his hesitation and decided to act.
‘I can do it. I just need to run fast.’
He took a deep breath and gathered strength in his entire body. He had to win within seconds. He had to run like hell before Tae-jun noticed and chased him.
Yumin focused his mind. He couldn’t delay any longer. He had to transform into a wildcat immediately and escape from here.
One, two, three.
The next moment, with a pop, Yumin transformed into a small wildcat. It was fortunate that he wasn’t wearing clothes, so he didn’t have to fumble through a pile of them. As soon as he transformed into a wildcat, Yumin ran towards the living room without hesitation.
The soft pads on his paws muffled his footsteps. Yumin ran wildly, shouting “Run for your life!” in his mind. Even so, he glanced sideways and saw Tae-jun talking on the phone, looking out the window, seemingly unaware that Yumin had come out into the living room. Considering it a blessing from his ancestors, Yumin headed for the entrance.
‘Should I have opened the door in human form and then transformed?’
Regret flashed through his mind for a brief moment, but it was too late. Yumin jumped with all his might towards the door lock and then used his weight to pull down the doorknob.
Beep beep-.
The sound of the door opening echoed in the living room. Yumin practically head-butted the front door to create space and then bolted outside.
“Go Yumin?”
From a distance, he heard Tae-jun’s footsteps running, having sensed something was wrong, but Yumin ran desperately. Fortunately, he managed to get out of the building before being caught. Without even a moment to sigh in relief, Yumin ran towards the forest.
“Haa, haa…”
Yumin gasped for breath. Having exhausted himself from running, his head spun and felt dizzy even as he huddled in place. His throat was parched, making it difficult to swallow.
‘Still, I succeeded in escaping.’
The only comfort he could find was that he had safely escaped from Tae-jun. Tae-jun would be searching for him by now. But he wouldn’t know that Yumin had escaped by transforming into a wildcat. If so, the method and scope of the search would inevitably differ.
“Hoo…”
Yumin let out a deep sigh. He couldn’t understand how things had gone so wrong. They had come on a trip to spend a sweet, intimate time together before Tae-jun’s birthday, but looking at his current situation, it was like he was filming a survival movie.
Tears welled up in Yumin’s eyes. Escaping from Tae-jun. The situation itself made no sense. A kind, gentlemanly, and sometimes wild lover. Yumin had felt inexpressible happiness with Tae-jun. Although the bedroom positions had turned out differently than expected, he honestly liked that too. Through Tae-jun, Yumin had felt many things, and he had been happy and joyful.
Now, it had all become the past.
“Sniffle.”
Yumin raised a small paw to wipe his tears. But no matter how much he wiped, the tears kept flowing. In the end, Yumin couldn’t hold back and burst into tears. Even so, he had to cover his mouth and sob, afraid Tae-jun might find him.
“Hoo…”
After shedding tears for a while, his mind seemed to return to some semblance of reason. Dark clouds had gathered, and rain began to fall. It was a downpour, unlike the rain earlier in the day. He was frustrated that even the weather seemed to be against him, but there was nothing he could do.
Yumin hid deeper in the forest. The shade of the trees offered some protection from the rain. But he couldn’t avoid getting his fur wet. The outer fur repelled some of the rain, but if he continued to get wet, his undercoat would soak through. That would lower his body temperature and make him heavy, making it difficult to keep running.
‘What should I do? I can’t just keep hiding like this.’
Yumin was conflicted. His wild instincts warned him of danger. He could potentially die from hypothermia.
After contemplating, he made up his mind. Rather than hiding in the forest and dying from weakness, he decided it was better to take a risk. Yumin straightened his crouched body and stepped onto the muddy path.
How long had it been? After walking for a long time on tired paws, Yumin reached the side of the national highway. The forest path, which seemed to stretch on forever, ended, and the road used by humans appeared, making him almost collapse with relief.
But it wasn’t over yet. To get as far away from Tae-jun as possible, he had to hitch a ride somehow. However, he couldn’t transform into a human like this. If a naked young man appeared in the middle of the night, anyone would be terrified and run away. Or, it might be better if it ended with just that. He could be reported to the police and arrested for indecent exposure.
As Yumin was agonizing, a car approached from a distance and stopped.
‘What is it?’
Yumin cautiously approached the car and observed the situation. A man got out of the driver’s seat and ran towards the trunk. Whatever the reason, he seemed to be in a hurry to retrieve something.
‘That’s it!’
The man, rummaging through the trunk in the darkness, found what he needed and was about to close the trunk lid. That brief moment was Yumin’s only chance. Yumin didn’t hesitate and threw himself towards the car.
And just before the trunk lid closed, Yumin barely managed to hide inside. It was fortunate that Yumin was small and agile. If he had been a second later, he would have been thrown out, or in the worst-case scenario, his body would have been caught in the trunk lid.
As the trunk lid closed, darkness enveloped him instantly. There was no faint light, so Yumin had to dilate his pupils as much as possible. The trunk was stuffy and damp, but it was much better than wandering aimlessly through the forest path.
Yumin curled up and closed his eyes. He didn’t know where this car was going, but he wanted to get as far away from Tae-jun as possible.
“Damn it, where did he go? Where did he go!”
Tae-jun searched the house from top to bottom. In the short time he was on the phone, Yumin had vanished without a trace. He searched every room, even opening closets, but Yumin was nowhere to be found. Even Yumin’s clothes and luggage from Seoul were still there. Yumin had simply disappeared like a ghost.
“Haa… Why, of all things?”
Was it because he revealed he was a tiger? Yes, it was understandable that he would be shocked. But Yumin didn’t run away the moment he saw his eyes. He thought that if they talked calmly, Yumin would accept his special identity as a tiger.
Honestly, it didn’t matter if he didn’t accept it. A tiger cub would be born and grow in Yumin’s belly, and then he would inevitably become his mate anyway.
‘He must have been momentarily flustered. But he’s not alone, so I can’t let him wander outside. The mountains are rugged, what if he gets hurt? I have to bring him back immediately.’
Tae-jun gnawed on his lips, narrowing his eyes. He put on his outer clothes and pushed open the double-layered door, revealing a large tiger scroll hidden behind it.
When he had just become an adult, he had trained here. He had experienced his first heat but had no intention of mating, so he came here to calm his mind and prayed to the Tiger God.
He had prayed for help to quell his heat, as he had no intention of playing with his cock until he met someone who drove him wild… but not anymore. He wanted to capture Yumin quickly, spread his ass, and do that. Who knows, if he ejaculated again now, they might have twins.