His Breeding Obsession

Author: Nikss

“I don’t know much.”

Hakan unfolded his arms with a stiff expression.

“Alright. I’ll believe there’s not a single lie in your words. Of course. I can’t imagine you lying to me. I’ll trust you. For now, at least.”

His gaze implied that it wouldn’t be fun if any lies were discovered. The Bear Clan leader bowed his head deeply.

As Hakan turned away in irritation, the thick voice of the Bear Clan leader reached his ears.

“Hakan.”

“What?”

A smile formed at the corner of Hakan’s mouth.

‘There it is. He couldn’t hold it in, could he?’

“What are the Avian Clan members doing outside the palace?”

Hakan’s face twisted.

“What do you mean, what are they doing? Don’t you know? All the Avian Clan members are serving as warriors and attendants in the palace army. You know how hard my clan works for you all. Why are you asking this all of a sudden?”

“Hmm. Alright. I’ve asked everything I wanted to. You can go now.”

‘Is that all you have to say?’

Without realizing it, Hakan glanced back and saw the Bear Clan leader burying his head in the honey jar. His face wrinkled with frustration.

He was too annoyed to smooth out his expression.

Leaving the Bear Clan leader’s annex, Hakan fell deep into thought before spreading his wings. His next destination was the annex of the Mermaid Clan leader.

“Hakan is here?!”

The Mermaid Clan leader avoided Hakan’s gaze from the start and dove into the water.

‘Do you think I came here to play games with you?’

Furious, Hakan flew over the bath and grabbed the Mermaid Clan leader by the hair, pulling her up.

“What are you doing?!”

The clan leader’s lover panicked and reached out to touch her head. Hakan floated above the water, arms crossed.

“Playing the protective man, are we?”

At his mocking tone, the man bit his lip and glared at Hakan.

“I’m already on edge, and now some lowly human is making me lose feathers.”

When stressed, Avian Clan members often lose feathers from their wings first. Hakan stroked his densely feathered wings.

The Mermaid Clan leader let out a deep sigh.

“Don’t be like this with him. Why did you come all the way here?”

“That woman, Mirania, came here, didn’t she? Tell me why.”

The Mermaid Clan leader was visibly flustered, “What? She did come, but… she didn’t say much.”

“That’s exactly what I’m asking. What did she say?”

“Just…”

The Mermaid Clan leader rolled her eyes and submerged herself in the water. As her mouth dipped below the surface, bubbles rose.

Hakan’s eyebrows shot up, and the Mermaid Clan leader cautiously brought her lips above the water.

Her floating lips moved slightly.

“She just asked how we’ve been doing lately.”

“What? You know her?”

The Mermaid Clan leader shook her head.

“Then why would she ask that? Are you lying to me?”

Hakan exploded in anger, and the Mermaid Clan leader flailed.

“I’m not lying. It’s the truth.”

To be precise, the Mermaid Clan leader had subtly rephrased Mirania’s question about whether they had any intention of breaking free from their lavish but confined life in the palace to mingle with humans.

She had recently learned that the clan members she had turned her back on—or abandoned—were planning to change the world alongside humans.

When she found out that Hakan’s Avian Clan, the so-called ‘Winged Army,’ was oppressing them, she was furious at Hakan for lying, her hair bristling with anger.

Now that she knew everything, the Mermaid Clan leader was deeply troubled.

Especially after receiving a tearful plea from the person she loved most.

[We can’t just live well ourselves. If we do, the nightmares I have every night will only get worse. My heart isn’t at peace, so even eating the finest delicacies doesn’t bring me happiness.]

Sigh—

Caught in a situation where her heart was still undecided, the Mermaid Clan leader felt it rapidly leaning to one side under Hakan’s rude pressure.

Her face, though visibly uneasy, appeared so natural that it could easily be mistaken for discomfort caused by Hakan’s aggressive demeanor.

In the end, Hakan, unable to find anything suspicious, left the Mermaid Clan leader’s annex in a huff.

‘There’s definitely something going on.’

Surprisingly, the person who could scratch his itch was waiting for him at his mansion.

“What are you doing here?”

Sitting in the reception room was Kenchi, a messenger from the Tiger Clan.

Noticing Hakan’s irritable mood as he sat down, Kenchi cautiously observed him.

“Is something wrong?”

“There’s… something, but I can’t figure out what it is.”

Hakan fiddled with the feathers on the back of his neck before locking eyes with Kenchi.

“By the way, what’s going on? And what’s with your appearance?”

Hakan looked Kenchi up and down, his expression unimpressed.

“Did you get kicked out or something?”

Kenchi flinched.

Hakan, who had only said it offhandedly, widened his eyes.

“Yes…”

Kenchi confirmed in a shrinking voice.

Hakan stared at him silently. Kenchi, reading the pity in his eyes, wished he could disappear.

But soon, a sense of injustice rose within him.

‘Whatever. This is the only place I can turn to now.’

Closing his eyes, Kenchi blurted it all out.

“It wasn’t the lord’s army. The lord doesn’t have a force strong enough to be called an army. Most of the Tiger Clan, except for a few, sided with me.”

“But…”

“Some strange guys showed up and did this to me. Especially the man—he was so terrifying, I couldn’t even fight back and just ran. They’re not humans. Beastfolk… and clearly from a powerful predator clan.”

Kenchi trembled. Only then did Hakan’s face turn serious.

“Beast folk? Powerful beast folk? Did tigers or lions come down or something?”

Tigers. Lions. They were undeniably at the top of the interspecies food chain, but their numbers were so rare, and most resided on the First Continent, making encounters with them uncommon.

“That… could be possible.”

“A man you couldn’t even lay a hand on… Who else was there? Was he also a beast folk from a predator clan?”

If this were true, how should he process this information?

As Hakan sank into thought, Kenchi’s uncertain voice pierced his ears.

“I’m not sure if she was beast-folk or human, but her appearance was strikingly beautiful, and her… unique coloring made it clear she wasn’t human. Silver hair and golden eyes. If she’s beast folk, she must be from a clan I’ve never heard of…”

Hakan’s ears perked up.

“What did you just say?”

“Huh?”

Hakan lowered his hand from his face. His blazing eyes startled Kenchi, who stammered in response. Hakan snapped.

“What did you just say?!”

“Uh, silver hair and golden eyes. She was… quite beautiful.”

Terrified, Kenchi stumbled over his words. Hakan clenched his fist and slammed it on the table.

Bang!

“Mirania!”

“I-I think that was her name, too.”

“So she was there! She kicked you out and sided with the lord? She took the humans’ side?”

Hakan’s relentless, almost crazed questioning made Kenchi nod vigorously.

“Yes, yes. That’s right. She kicked me out and sided with the humans. She helped them regain their status… Oh! And the Resistance was there too. They were also present.”

“The Avian Clan army must have stopped on the man’s orders, and the rest of the humans escaped, right?”

“How did you know?”

Kenchi’s eyes widened, and Hakan twisted his lips into a smile.

Now he understood. Finally, finally, he understood.

“It’s her. She’s the problem. The problem was her all along.”

“Huh? What do you mean…”

Ignoring Kenchi, Hakan roughly rubbed at the feathers on his skin, as if trying to tear them out.

A mix of despair, excitement, and relief made every feather on his body stand on end.

‘I’ve found it. The culprit who planted useless thoughts in my leader’s mind.’

She was the root of all this trouble. The cause of this unpleasant change had been growing stranger and stranger.

Hakan seized the thread of the mystery he had been grasping at—what she wanted—without hesitation.

‘She’s helping the humans. Ridiculous. Humans are a race that can’t coexist with us.’

[Handle it yourself.]

Hakan bit down hard on his beak-like protruding lip until it nearly bled.

‘There’s no going back to how things were.’

The shaft of the feather he had been rubbing snapped in two.

The hesitation that had lingered in Hakan’s mind, like a stubborn nail, was gone.

All that remained was a vile and secretive plan.

💫

Grecan’s damp breath brushed against Mirania’s ear.

Mirania blinked, and Grecan stared at her intently.

“Kiss me.”

Was it because the lighting was dim?

His gaze felt slightly lonely as he looked at her.

‘How can he be so shameless?’

Flustered, she pressed her lips together tightly.

‘Did he figure something out?’

Grecan, who claimed to know her better than she knew herself, might have realized something.

Mirania swallowed nervously, her cheeks flushing red at Grecan’s bold request.

‘It’s just a kiss… It should be fine.’

Why did she feel so flustered?

“Ahem, what are you suddenly talking about?”

“You’ve been meeting with humans to see how they’re doing, haven’t you? I feel uneasy. Cheer me up.”

“…Come here.”

Grecan paused for a moment, as if trying to understand the meaning behind her words.

After a moment, he slowly tilted his face closer. His well-shaped, pink lips drew near.

Their lips met.

Contrary to their appealing color, Grecan’s lips were slightly dry. But they were soft and warm.

Mirania’s lips were moist and tender.

Whether it was unexpected or not, their lips seemed to match well.

Grecan started by gently sucking on her lower lip. Though he had initiated the kiss, he didn’t recklessly push his tongue in.

He moved slowly, as if savoring every small moment of this act of touching lips.

After thoroughly wetting her lower lip, he slipped his tongue inside, exploring the warm and soft interior of Mirania’s mouth.

The word ‘exploration’ fit perfectly, Mirania thought, as she swallowed a moan rising from her throat at the slow, deliberate movement of his tongue sweeping the inside of her cheek.

‘Is kissing something you’re born knowing how to do?’

If being good at kissing meant making the other person focus and heating their mind, then Grecan was quite skilled.

When their lips parted and their breaths mingled at close range, Mirania sighed.

“You seem good at kissing.”

As she muttered this, Grecan blinked.

A charming smile spread across his face.

“I’m glad you think so. I thought my heart was going to burst because I like you so much.”

Grecan, who had been quietly watching her, suddenly blurted out.

“Your face is red, Mirania.”

“What?”

Startled, Mirania brought her hand to her cheek. When she glared at Grecan, his face began to redden belatedly.

‘You’re the one who’s red,’ she wanted to say, but he flopped down beside her.