A Peculiar Scent
"Wanna take a bite?"
"Uh... so you're saying that spirit stone was actually Undine's...?"
She always sniffed my scent first and came running to greet me, or wagged her tail to see me off whenever I headed out somewhere. But right now, I'd caught her slinking off somewhere in what looked like total disarray. I'd brought Plang along—what the hell had they been up to? Beads of sweat dotted Tier's forehead, mixing with her silver hair to give it a shimmering glow.
How much did she mess around with my scent to numb her nose this bad...?
Remembering how she'd jumped in shock when she spotted me earlier, I pictured Tier playing with my cum until her sense of smell went completely dead. My lips twitched into a smirk.
"Yeah. It's a long story, but basically, it wasn't Daphne—it was Undine who was the mom."
"Nang!"
No sooner had I finished than Nangkangi, who'd been riding atop Undine's head while following me around, chirped energetically. Tier loved tank tops and other breezy outfits, so anyone catching a first glimpse of her could tell from her sculpted physique that she was no ordinary powerhouse brimming with talent. Sure enough, Nangkangi struck the cutest pose it could manage, raising its front legs high to show off.
From its first encounter with Park Jisu, it had learned not to let its guard down based on appearances alone—and to always approach others with caution. As the father of this little bugger, I felt a quiet swell of pride, a faint smile tugging at my lips.
Look at that. Even Tier was gearing up to smack her down... heh heh.
Tier's right arm, stiff as a board at first, gradually relaxed as she watched Nangkangi dance like a crab, legs clicking away in perfect sync. I stifled a chuckle. Even if wolf beastkin adored their family and pack above all, family discipline was a whole other matter, right?
The way her brows furrowed and her nose twitched the instant she laid eyes on it—plus that subtle baring of teeth—she'd clearly been on edge. In this household, it looked like I wouldn't have much child-rearing to do myself. A mix of relief and wistfulness washed over me, but knowing the kids' education would be strict filled me with visions of a solid future. I nodded to myself.
No deadbeats in our family lineage, that's for damn sure.
As a lion with a pride full of lionesses, it was bittersweet that I'd never deal with young studs rebelling or staging uprisings.
"Oh... this one's a spirit? Makes sense if it's Undine's kid—nothing but spirits fit... but the scent's really unique...?"
"Huh? What kinda smell?"
Nangkangi flinched, as if traumatized by the chance of getting slapped by a stranger, and tried to back away from Tier's approaching sniff. But Undine's gentle petting calmed it down; it shivered for a moment before toddling forward to meet her.
"The kid smells like... se... semen? Haha."
Tier hemmed and hawed, unable to scold outright since it was my kid—and Undine's daughter, like a little sister to her own friend. She shot me an awkward glance, ruffled her hair wildly to reset her expression, then pressed her nose right to Nangkangi.
For canine beastkin with hyper senses, blatantly sniffing someone was rude as hell. But given my suspicions, and that this was Undine's daughter—now clearly my child too—Tier, ever the head wife, probably saw Nangkangi as hers as well. She ignored the etiquette entirely, burying her nose in deep for a good long whiff before furrowing her brow.
"That's weird..."
"What's up?"
"...Nangkangi, right? How many people are connected to this one? Boss."
Tier's question came out of left field. I wondered if there was some other wrinkle with Daphne, or maybe even Wand had some weird influence, so I answered carefully.
"Me, Daphne, and Undine are the closest ties... Wonder if Wand had any effect?"
"Wand?... Oh, ah! No, Boss, that's got nothing to do with it—don't even think about it."
Tier's face flushed red as she waved her hands frantically. She looked downright flustered, like the idea of Wand being involved in creating this was absurd.
"Alright? Anyway, if Wand's out, then it's just those three, like I said."
"Still weird... One... person? One beast? Feels like there's more..."
She mumbled under her breath, pinching her nose and tilting her head adorably. I nearly burst out laughing—until "one beast" sparked something in my mind.
Wait, is it picking up the scent from that massive egg-laying bastard?
Two key factors in Nangkangi's birth: the spirit stone from cracking open Wand and Undine's cum heist, and the S-rank gate subjugation that happened while I was in Japan on business with that stone. The first seemed unrelated to this issue, so probably not. But the second? Tier's head-tilt nailed it spot-on. I mulled it over quietly.
I filtered the mana through my whole body back then—absorbed some myself, passed the excess to Nangkangi... but maybe something else got transferred too?
The thing had kept whispering psychically while I took it down, and this nagging doubt now had irritation bubbling up unbidden. I glanced at Nangkangi, but it just cocked its head innocently, playing dumb like it had no clue. With a heavy sigh, I waved it off to Tier like it was no big deal.
"I've got a rough idea, so don't worry. Fed it some elixir? Potion? Something like that once—probably related. The looks fit too..."
"Ah...! If you know, Boss, then no problem. Hehe."
Once I confirmed I had it handled, Tier dropped the scent issue instantly. Her absolute obedience to my every word brought a smile to my face—mood lifted right up. Daphne and Plang had been getting plenty of my time lately, so maybe it was time for some one-on-one with Tier.
"Tier, you free anytime soon?"
"Huh?"
"You know how I took the guild master's request and climbed the Tower a bit back?"
"Yeah. Told us to use the time to get stronger, right?"
Her ears perked up, tail swishing lazily. I couldn't resist petting her head as I continued.
"Mission accomplished, obviously. And with my abilities, I brought out a wyvern corpse intact."
"Grrr... yeah...?"
"You know how boss monster parts from the Tower are worth a fortune just to name? I hauled the whole damn thing out, so word's probably gonna leak to the Empire or kingdom soon. Wanna tag along then? Like my executive secretary or something."
Tier shook her head vigorously—no refusal or dislike in her from the start—then leaned in close, pressing her ample chest against me, way more hyped about the wyvern than some public event.
"C-can I see it too, Boss?"
"Huh? Sure, no issue... but why?"
"It's a wyvern, Boss! Strongest monster popping up in the Tower right now!"
For a country-bumpkin wolf girl who'd come to the city dreaming of adventurer life, this was too juicy to sit out. Her excitement cracked me up; I nodded.
"Yeah. Daphne and Plang seem busy, so let's show my girl first?"
"Whoa..."
Her eyes sparkled like a rags-to-riches chick crushing on a rich heir. I'd noticed before, but in this medieval world, a woman's biggest turn-on for a man's appeal was raw power. Those gazes from my beastkin ladies had blood rushing south before I knew it.
Whew... spend too long here, and I'll turn into a total airhead in some future or sci-fi world.
Dazed by her misty-eyed stare, I pulled Tier into my arms and stroked her waist without thinking. Shaking my head to clear the stray thoughts, I started walking to grant her wish.
"Bet there's tons of meat. Wanna grill up some wyvern steak, just us?"
"Y-yeah!"
She nestled into my chest, her size belying how perfectly she fit. Real men rock the bald dome—national rule. Heh heh.