The Strongest Daughter-In-Law Of The Black Lion Family [EN]: Chapter 169

#169.

“They say there’s a powerful beastkin living in Hebel. They say he’s the only one there who can maintain human form.”

Just how strong must this beastkin be to stay in Hebel?

Back then, Hebel was a place beastkins avoided.

Without transforming, entry was impossible. Moreover, the use of pheromones wasn’t free in beast form.

Yet, a beastkin living there? He must be eccentric.

Basil, already considered an eccentric, crazy lion on the continent, became curious.

He decided to go meet this oddball.

Any other beastkin would have been horrified. No sane beastkin on the continent would willingly enter a place where they couldn’t even maintain human form.

Basil went without hesitation. He just wanted to see who it was, but instead, he found a beautiful woman living there.

A woman brazenly walking around Hebel in human form.

‘How is she able to maintain human form?’

She was a beastkin, but she could transform into a human. Basil had tried to follow her example once but nearly died, so he never attempted it again.

As rumored, she was clearly a powerful beastkin. Basil began to observe her in secret.

She didn’t do much. She would wake up, wash, eat some fruit, and then take a nap.

Occasionally, she would talk to an unfamiliar man, and that’s when he learned her name was ‘Larien.’

Watching Larien became his daily routine, until one day, he was accidentally discovered.

“A bl, black lion.”

Larien, seeing a black lion for the first time, stepped back. Seeing this, he instinctively lunged—

“Eek!”

“Thud!”

He was soundly beaten and knocked unconscious.

That experience was a shock to Basil.

He had been knocked out by the strike of a seemingly fragile beastkin.

Later, he found out she thought he was trying to eat her.

He growled, as if to say, ‘Who do you think I am, a beggar?’ but she misunderstood and threw food at him, leaving him dumbfounded.

It was a problem caused by a lack of communication. Of course, he couldn’t be bothered to explain.

After that, Larien seemed to be looking for him, but he deliberately avoided her. He felt it was too dangerous to get close. Yet, he subtly roamed around her.

This contradictory behavior was almost instinctual. He was unconsciously drawn to her but didn’t immediately recognize these feelings because it was the first time he had felt them.

Around that time, a woman came to him.

“You’ve been coming in and out of Hebel frequently. Are you perhaps here to see Larien?”

Basil’s eyes lit up at the mention of Larien. It was the first time he had met a beastkin who knew her.

“You know her?”

“Of course. I’m Larien’s sister.”

She introduced herself as Larien’s twin sister and said that Larien was trapped in Hebel.

A divine beast had imprisoned her.

“I want to get my sister out of Hebel.”

“If what you say is true, then this divine beast is quite strong. How do you plan to get her out?”

“That’s….”

* * *

Ebensev’s method was quite bizarre. Larien had a kind heart and couldn’t ignore injured beastkins or animals.

So, to win her favor, he had to pretend to be hurt.

From that day on, Basil deliberately appeared before Larien injured.

“I thought you had left Hebel. So, you were still here.”

Larien looked bewildered, as if remembering their previous encounter. After all, what sane beastkin would want to stay in Hebel for long?

But Basil considered himself somewhat crazy. Hebel, with this interesting woman, was more fun than the boring outside world.

“You’re that bl, black lion, right?”

Her cautious appearance from a distance was amusing.

She had knocked him out cold, but now she was acting weak.

He couldn’t understand why she was so scared when she was the one who had kicked him unconscious.

As he stood there indifferently, Larien crept closer. Then, she began to confess.

“I’m sorry about that time. I was so surprised that I used my pheromones without thinking.”

No wonder it hurt so much.

Basil frowned and growled. She poked his side with a twig and asked.

“Why are you limping?”

“Grrr.”

“Oh, sorry. Don’t be angry. I’m just a little scared of wild animals. Sorry if it hurt.”

Larien put down the twig and carefully approached, touching the affected area.

The pain from his deliberately twisted leg disappeared instantly.

Surprised, he widened his eyes, and Larien said.

“Ta-da, this is a peace offering.”

Then, she cautiously reached out and stroked his back. It was as if that was her real goal, and the healing was just an excuse.

Basil remained still, and she seemed to gain courage, her hand moving towards his tail. But he couldn’t allow it.

“Krr—!”

“Eek, s, s, sorry! I didn’t mean to!”

Startled by Basil’s roar, she quickly withdrew her hand and giggled.

“Actually, your fur reminds me of my sister, so I couldn’t help but look.”

Sister, the woman who had told him about Larien’s situation.

As soon as the word sister came out, Larien’s face turned gloomy. Seeing this, Basil unconsciously licked her cheek and then stepped back in surprise.

Larien’s golden eyes stared directly at Basil.

“Are you comforting me right now?”

“……”

“Then, just once, let me touch your tail……”

At Larien’s words, Basil ran away. It wasn’t just that he didn’t want to give up his tail, but he was also embarrassed by his own impulsive behavior.

But inevitably, Basil sought out Larien. It was as if by habit, he always found himself by her side.

Later, he visited Hebel every day to see Larien. They always met in the same place, even without making plans.

Larien liked to stroke Basil’s fur.

“You have such beautiful fur. Do you have a name?”

At her question, he carefully wrote his name with his paw—

“That’s too long. I’ll call you Bobby.”

She shortened his name arbitrarily because it was too long.

‘Why did she even ask for his name then?’

Basil, who had suddenly become Bobby, didn’t dislike it. If anyone else had done it, he would have bitten them, but it was okay when Larien did it.

“I’m Larien. Call me Lari for short.”

It seemed shortening names applied to her as well. Not that they could call each other’s names in beast form anyway.

And so, the two met almost every day at their designated spot.

As Ebensev had said, Larien was so kind that she healed his injuries every time. Just when he thought it was a bit foolish.

“You don’t have to get hurt to come anymore. Just come, Bobby.”

“!”

“You look surprised that I know. Well, it’s just that a big, strong, and handsome black lion like you doesn’t seem like he’d get beaten up anywhere.”

For some reason, his heart tickled at the words big, strong, and handsome black lion. It felt like someone was gently scratching his chest with foxtail grass.

He was purring without realizing it when he felt a sinister touch.

Slap—!

Larien, who had been slapped on the hand for trying to touch his tail, muttered with a dejected face.

“You’re so stingy.”

“Grrr……”

“Okay, I’ll add the adjective ‘handsome.’ So, just once!”

He didn’t know why she was so obsessed with his tail, but it was very troubling. So, Basil took the trouble to write with his paw.

[No tail.]

“Why?”

[It’s a sensitive area.]

He thought she would understand with that.

Larien tilted her head and asked again.

“Why is it sensitive?”

[……I don’t know.]

Basil gave up on trying to explain and turned away.

But Larien was a persistent beastkin. She wiggled closer to Basil, who had turned his back, and stuck her face in front of him.

“You’re just saying no, right?”

“Thud.”

He tried to push her face away with his paw, but instead, his paw was grabbed.

Larien threatened him with a somewhat scary face.

“Answer me, cotton ball.”

But it only made Basil angrier.