Trapped in the Beastworld Breeder System (BL)-Chapter 27: Sprouting Seed Stage

’How can they know that it’s the Tiger King who wounded him and not me? And when will this beast veil effect wear off?’

Aries’ consciousness had returned, but pain still assaulted his brain. He now lay on the bed where he had been placed, struggling to come to terms with everything.

The wolves seemed kinder than the tigers. Unlike the Tiger King’s people, who had tortured him the moment they suspected him of being aligned with the wolves, these ones had done the opposite. Here, his injury, an injury they themselves had inflicted in panic, had been treated, and he had been given a bed to rest on.

’System, what exactly is going on?’ Aries asked internally. He needed someone or something to arrange his thoughts properly.

[Just as you thought, Host. You are now in the wolf territory, and they have assumed you to be a tiger beast. The injury was inflicted out of panic, and you have since been laid to rest.]

’I’m sure I already know all of that,’ Aries replied, irritation seeping into his thoughts, ’especially since you’ve just confirmed what I already figured out. What I need to know is why I’m not being healed automatically like I always am.’

[That is because Host is extremely low on CE, so automatic healing cannot be initiated as you are not on the verge of death. The current CE can only do little to nothing. However, Host can complete tasks in order to obtain CE and be healed.]

’Fucking System!’ Aries cursed silently. ’Are you okay in your brain at all?’

[Yes, Host. I am functioning normally.]

’Then why won’t you do your job and heal me without these damn CEs?’

[Well, Host, the injury is not critical, so you can endure it for a while. However, if you wish to offset the lingering pain, you will require more CE, which you currently do not possess.]

The System paused briefly before continuing.

[And by the way, congratulations on updating the System.]

[System Stage: Sprouting Seed Stage Reached.]

[500 CE threshold reached.]

[Multiple tasks now available.]

[Inventory successfully updated.]

[Ding! System Alert!

Convince the wolf beasts that you are not a tiger spy.

Time limit: 12 hours.

Reward: 100 CE.

Difficulty: Very Easy.]

’I take back my words,’ Aries thought, ’You aren’t greedy at all. This task is ridiculously easy, isn’t it? All I have to do is wait for my beast veil to wear off, and they’ll believe me.’

[You are correct, Host.]

’By the way,’ Aries added, his thoughts shifting suddenly, ’how is the Wolf Prince?’

[I cannot say for certain, Host. However, his current meters are as follows:]

[Wolf Prince Compatibility Meter Measured.]

[Lucien.]

[Love Meter — 30.]

[Fury Meter — 50.]

[The Wolf Prince(s) is one of the Lords who will not cause you much trouble if you remain loyal. The primary concern lies within his Fury Meter. However, since you are the source of that fluctuation, resolving it should be relatively easy. Additionally, as you have already discovered, you are his self-proclaimed mate. This makes it easier to increase the Love Meter—just ensure you do not trigger the Fury Meter in the process.]

Soon, Aries felt a presence standing before him. A voice entered his ears, firm and commanding.

"Open your eyes. We know you’re awake."

Aries slowly opened his eyes, revealing a wolfman standing before him. The man had a sturdy chest covered by a thin layer of clothing, with thick, furry ears perched atop his head. His sharp gaze swept over Aries from head to toe, and Aries swallowed hard under the scrutiny.

One or two things were about to happen—at least, that’s what his instincts told him. And somehow, Aries believed the outcome wouldn’t be a good one. Torture, perhaps?

But then the man spoke again, his tone unexpectedly calm.

"Are you acquainted with my brother?"

"Huh?" Aries blinked, confusion flooding his expression. His brother? he thought. Whose brother—

Is he referring to Lucien?

Thoughts raced through Aries’ mind as he tried to reason out what the man before him meant, but no matter how he turned it over, clarity refused to come.

Then the man spoke again, his tone measured.

"Or are you his captive?"

"Do you hate him?"

What are these questions? Aries was utterly confused.

"I know that you are a tiger beast—" the man began.

Those words made Aries’ ears twitch immediately. That was a lie. Before Aries could react, the man abruptly stopped speaking, and Aries looked at him oddly.

After a brief pause, the man corrected himself. "Or... you aren’t a tiger beast. So, what are you?" 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

"And how did you come to that conclusion?" Aries was tempted to ask aloud, but he held the question back.

"I guessed," the man replied simply.

He dragged a chair closer, the legs scraping softly against the floor, then sat down and leaned toward the bed where Aries lay.

"I saved you from the guards who had taken you," the man continued calmly, "and who were fully prepared to torture you until you spoke. Instead, here you are with me being questioned gently. So I advise you to prove yourself useful. Otherwise, we may have to do things the same way the wolf guards would."

He wasn’t lying.

Aries knew far too well what he had suffered at the hands of the Tiger King, and he had no desire to experience anything similar under the wolves. Whoever this man was, Aries understood that his survival depended on cooperating.

Which meant going along with whatever the blue-eyed man, who had just claimed to be Lucien’s brother, wanted from him.

"I want to believe that my brother is holding you as a war captive," the man said thoughtfully, watching Aries closely. "And that you hate him. He’s the one who inflicted these injuries on you, isn’t he?"

Aries kept his expression carefully blank, though his thoughts were in turmoil.

What injuries?

Then his mind clicked, realization dawning with horror.

’Don’t tell me he thinks the Tiger King’s slap marks and punches came from Lucien.’

’Oh... God. What a misunderstanding.’

The proclaimed brother didn’t stop there.

"And I suppose you hate him," the man continued, his voice growing colder, "and would wish for him to suffer the same way you did."

’Where exactly is this going?’ Aries wondered, unease crawling up his spine.

"You should work together with me if you want your revenge," the man pressed on. "In fact, work with me, and you won’t see him walk the surface of this world again."

That—

That made Aries’ breath hitch.

Why was this man trying to kill his own brother?

Aries had never imagined that Lucien lived in a world where even his own blood plotted against him.

He swallowed hard, digesting the weight of the words before finally speaking.

"If I understand you correctly," Aries said carefully, "you want me to kill Lucien for you. Is that right?"

The unknown man nodded.

Aries was utterly stunned.

Their discussion didn’t linger after that. The man stood, straightening his clothes before saying, "I’ll come back for you. By then, I hope you’ve made your decision. What you choose will determine your fate."

With that, he left the room.

Aries stared up at the ceiling for a long while. Eventually, he sighed and muttered, "System, tell me about where I am."

[Analyzing Host whereabouts.]

[Ding!]

[Host is currently located within the Wolf territory, inside the palace, in one of the manors belonging to the Third Prince of the Wolf Kingdom—Prince Kenzie.]

"Oh..." Aries breathed.

"So he is a prince. Truly Lucien’s brother." He paused, then added, "Any information on why he would want to kill his own brother?"

[The Wolf Kingdom, despite the Second Prince being calm-hearted and solely interested in finding a mate, has long been riddled with political instability and clan-based enmity. Therefore, it is not unusual for a brother to openly seek to use an outsider as an assassin.]

"That’s fucked up," Aries muttered, sighing deeply.

He struggled to sit up, grunting as pain flared in his arrow-injured hand. When he finally managed it, he let out another tired breath.

"Alright," he said after a moment. "Tell me about the beast veil. How long before it wears off? And how can I remove it completely?"

[Host’s beast veil has approximately two hours remaining before it naturally deactivates.]

[However, Host must cancel the contract signed with your former handler in order to permanently remove the beast veil.]

Aries cracked his neck as he absorbed the information. The irritation grew with each passing second, but there was nothing he could do about it for now.

"Anyway," he muttered, "I’ve got no CE, so I guess I really do have to complete this task and see how things play out."

With that, Aries lay back on the bed. Pain pulsed in his injured hand, coming and going in waves.

Then—

The door creaked open.

Aries turned his head just in time to see the wicked brother, at least, that was how Aries had come to think of him, step back into the room. Seeing Aries still on the bed, the man calmly took the same chair he had used earlier and sat down.

He folded his arms and asked, his voice steady,

"So... what’s your decision?"