Kir: The Genius Cat Who Sought a Strong Male
Kir, Kir. Born into the Ashen Claw Tribe, one of the clans of the Beastkin Union, she had grown up basking in her parents' love. Her father was a renowned general in his youth, and her mother had a history as an adventurer. Unlike others, Kir was blessed with exceptional talent from birth. Leveraging the flexible bodies common to cat beastkin for combat, and possessing senses even sharper than the already keen instincts of beastkin, she was hailed as a genius within her tribe. But it didn't stop there—having inherited her beautiful mother's looks, her appearance gradually transformed into that of a cute yet stunning beauty as the days passed.
"Father! Give me your daughter!"
"Mother. Give me Kir. I have the confidence to make her happy!"
"Your daughter. Give me your mother... Gahk!!"
Perhaps because of that. From the age of 16, when beastkin were recognized as adults, marriage proposals poured in endlessly for Kir. In beastkin culture, where the strong were highly revered, it was common for those with outstanding talents to pair off with each other. But Kir rejected them all.
"I don't like you guys!"
The suitors vying for her were all highly regarded among beastkin for their talents, yet none satisfied Kir.
Hmm... They all seem kinda weak.
Was it because she possessed superior talent? Instinctively sizing up the men who courted her, Kir evaluated their future potential and strength. Unbeknownst even to her parents who trained her, Kir's true gift was the ability to wield mana purely through instinct, without any formal training. Beastkin, born with animalistic natures, were instinctively drawn to stronger mates. Kir, with her exceptional talent, felt no attraction to any male in the tribe. She had an instinctive certainty that she would one day surpass them all.
Of course, even with that pull toward the strong ingrained in beastkin instincts, personal tastes varied, so many ignored it to find their partners... But for Kir, whose instincts were amplified by her talent, they burned even fiercer. She simply trained under her mother without seeking a mate. Not even realizing the extent of her own abilities, she couldn't understand why no men appealed to her.
Then one day.
"Uncle Palmor. What's that?"
"Huh? This? Books I bought from the humans' Terra Kingdom... Wanna read 'em?"
While learning hiding techniques and scouting methods from her mother daily, she stumbled upon books brought by a village merchant. They opened up a world beyond the tribe she'd never left since birth.
"Whoa... So cool."
Varied races beyond the beastkin she saw every day. Priests and holy knights serving gods. Tales of adventurers active across the continent. Stories of evil god cultists lurking on the continent and the adventures of those who defeated them. Especially the parts Kir loved: heroes toppling wicked evil god followers.
I wanna go out and adventure too.
Reading those books sparked an adventurous spirit in her heart. But fear of leaving her birthplace and reluctance to abandon her parents kept it suppressed...
"Peace? Where you goin'?"
"G-Gah! Kir, it's you...?"
One night, while secretly practicing her hidden 'ability'—kept even from her parents—she ran into her friend sneaking out of the village. Peace, a young cat beastkin male with a travel bundle, looked around suspiciously before sighing in relief at the sight of her.
"I'm... leavin' this cramped village! I wanna see the wide world and have tons of experiences!"
"...!!"
Words mirroring exactly what Kir had been feeling lately. Unbeknownst to her, many hot-blooded young beastkin yearned for the outside world and set out like this. Adults even viewed such 'runaways'—or rather, departures—as something everyone did in their youth, brushing it off lightly. Even Kir's parents had snuck out in their younger days.
"I'm not the only one..."
"You too, Kir...?"
Unlike herself, who'd been suppressing her wanderlust, seeing her friend boldly leaving shook Kir deeply. Her buried desire exploded, her heart pounding.
"...K-Kir! Then... wanna come with me? Truth is, I've always liked y— Whoa, wait!"
The youth, mustering courage for one last confession, got shot down. Heart racing with excitement, Kir hurried home. Over the next few days, her adventurous urge only grew stronger.
And finally.
-Sneak. Sneak.
Like her friend, she packed light and slipped out of the tribe secretly.
"Where you off to?"
"Eek!!"
Her mother, who had anticipated it, caught her immediately.
"M-Mom, this is..."
"Come back safe."
"...Mom?"
But instead of stopping her, her mother handed over a hefty pouch of travel funds and encouraged her.
"Actually, your dad and I talked about it long ago. Your talent's too great to waste in our tribe."
Kir's parents were also her teachers, and they'd long sensed their daughter's extraordinary gifts. They understood her frustration at being stifled in the narrow tribe.
"Come back safe."
"...Yeah!!"
Knowing from their own youth that boiling beastkin blood couldn't be suppressed, her mother sent her off to see the wide world. With one bit of advice too.
"Oh, and daughter?"
"Yeah?"
"If you find a hot stud... guy out there... snag him good?"
Advice for her daughter, still mateless in the tribe.
. . .
Leaving her tribe, Kir lived a turbulent life. After twists and turns, she reached the human nation of Terra Kingdom, passing border guards who wearily accepted beastkin. Advised that beastkin like her should become adventurers, she did just that. Her sharp senses and parental combat training propelled her to D-rank swiftly. She befriended other beastkin in similar straits.
"Kir. You're a lone wolf, so why not head to a proper big adventurer guild branch instead of this backwater? They treat loners like you as valuable assets."
"What's a lone wolf?"
"...Uh. Well..."
Following advice from a friend she'd grown close to, she headed to Rivil, Terra Kingdom's second-largest adventurer guild hub. The capital was biggest, but too far and expensive, so Rivil it was.
Arriving was fine, but her money ran dry right then, leaving Kir starving.
With her skills, any quest would've earned quick cash, but she lacked the energy even for that.
"...You alright there, miss?"
Luckily, she met a wolf beastkin who fed her. His name: Rikar. The nosy, kind Rikar shared all about Rivil, and they kept meeting, building friendship. In the process, the fresh 16-year-old girl matured into a 20-year-old maiden.
One day.
Rikar returned safely from his D-rank promotion exam.
"Uncle Rikar! You okay?"
"Kir! It's you. Know what happened to me this time?"
Hearing he was awake, she rushed over first, catching the story before any gag order—his sewer encounter with a necromancer, teaming with new allies to defeat him.
"Whoaaa...."
"Yeah. Right when I collapsed from exhaustion, I saw it clear as day. Yuseong picking up his fallen comrade's sword and stabbing the necromancer through the heart...!!"
Actually, no sword pickup, and it was a skull-crush, not heart-stab... But Rikar, saved by Yuseong from death's door, praised him effusively, saliva flying.
His exaggerated tale morphed into a fairy-tale epic of a protagonist slaying evil minions.
So cool...!!
Listening, Kir's eyes sparkled. It sounded just like the adventure tales that inspired her to leave home. Curiosity bloomed for this Yuseong, acting like a book hero.
What kinda guy is he? Black hair, yeah. Height... around Uncle Rikar's, so about this tall? Build...
Growing curiosity led her to imagine the protagonist endlessly, overlaying Rikar's descriptions of Yuseong. Fantasizing daily built an unwitting inner closeness to the unseen man.
One day.
"Kir! Heard the news? Dungeon popped up near Rivil!"
Rikar proposed partying to raid it. Grateful for his past meal, she agreed readily. Thus.
"Huh? Uncle Rikar. Who's the guy next to ya?"
She finally met him.
"Hiya! Name's Kir! Cat beastkin, as ya see!"
"Uh... Hi. I'm Yuseong."
The man Rikar had praised endlessly.
And at the same time.
-Thump.
...Huh?
Her body, which had instinctively dismissed every suitor as 'boring,' reacted faintly to Yuseong.
. . .
What followed was as known. Entering the dungeon with Yuseong and Rikar, she stumbled into a hidden chamber, grabbed items, and faced a variant ogre.
Eeeek...!!
More perilous than any crisis since leaving the village. Legs trembling in fear, she desperately worked the exit.
Meanwhile, Rikar and Yuseong fought the giant ogre alone.
-Grrr rumble! Boom!!
Trembling, Kir unlocked the secret door's mechanism amid the roars.
This should do it...!!
Finally cracking it, she rushed to call them—
-Krunch!!!
".....!!"
Whatever happened, Yuseong tumbled limply from the ogre's hand, half its head torn off.
"Hyaa!!"
Saving him just in time, she sighed in relief—then instinctively sensed danger, shoving Yuseong aside to take the hit.
Ughhh!!
Like when enhancing her hearing, she tensed her body, channeling mana instinctively for protection, avoiding fatal injury.
Somehow spared, as she staggered up, she saw Yuseong hurl the black iron sword, exploding the ogre's remaining head.
...Whoa.
Awakening in crisis to fell the foe—like a fairy-tale scene, just as Rikar described.
-Thud! Thud!
...Ugh. Huh?
Then, as Yuseong powered up further with another Gula use, her beastkin instincts reacted.
The inner closeness she'd nurtured, the instinctive pull to this strong male. All swirling emotions crashed together.
"...A strong male...."
For the first time, her womanly... her female beast's instincts bloomed.
. . .
And now.
"Yuseong...?"
Gazing at the sleeping Yuseong beside her, Kir wagged her tail, rubbing her body gently against his. Like marking territory, imprinting her scent on him.
"Nyaaar...."
Though undetectable to him, days without proper washing had built up Yuseong's manly musk, tickling her nose.
"...Hnya... ♥"
A potent male scent. One perfectly stimulating her instincts—a robust, virile one.
-...Squish ♥
She felt her lower parts growing wet.