The little cub’s arrival brightened up the home considerably. Lu Xia hadn’t gone out for the past few days, choosing to stay home and recuperate. Doctor Eugene examined both her and the cub, and they were both in perfect health.

The results for the little cub’s gene fusion degree came in. Just as they expected, he had a 100% pure Beastification Gene. This meant that once the cub learned to control his transformation, he would be able to achieve a perfect beastification, having perfectly inherited Graces’s Black Dragon Gene.

Partial beastification would only be one of his forms.

The moment he received the test report, Doctor Eugene was beyond excited. "So it’s true! A cub born through natural conception can evolve perfectly. My hypothesis was right all along—natural conception is the only way to pass on these genes."

Unfortunately, even though he now knew the truth, natural conception remained an impossibility.

Lu Xia was also delighted with the results. Although she had anticipated it, she was still overjoyed to have it confirmed.

Graces finished his three-day patrol, completed the handover at the First Military District, and rushed back immediately. The first thing he did upon walking through the door wasn’t to see the cub. He went straight to Lu Xia and looked her over from head to toe. His anxious expression left Lu Xia torn between laughter and tears. "Why are you looking at me like that? Is something wrong?"

The words had barely left her lips when Graces pulled her into an embrace. "I’m sorry. I wasn’t by your side when you needed me most. You had to give birth to our cub all by yourself. You must have been terrified, weren’t you?" 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

"I wasn’t terrified, just a little nervous. There were some tense moments, but no real danger. Besides, I wasn’t alone—Smelian was with me, and everything went very smoothly. It’s not your fault, anyway. Neither of us expected the cub to decide to arrive then. Don’t blame yourself, Graces. I don’t blame you."

Of course, he knew Lu Xia didn’t blame him, but he couldn’t help but blame himself. He held her in silence, as if it was the only way to soothe his heart and quell the lingering fear.

Lu Xia patted Graces’s shoulder. "Alright now, don’t dwell on it. You haven’t seen the cub yet, have you? Go take a look. And while you’re at it, you should think of a name for him. I’ve given him a nickname, but you can choose his formal name."

"What’s his nickname?" Graces asked.

"Pu Tao," Lu Xia said, a smile blooming on her face. "The little cub’s eyes are so big, dark, and bright, just like blackcurrants."

"Pu Tao." Graces obviously hadn’t expected Lu Xia to give the little cub such a nickname, but he found it cute. "For his formal name, I was thinking Lu Qi. He would take your surname. Is that all right?"

Graces felt a wave of apprehension as he asked, worried Lu Xia might refuse. After all, the cub was not female.

By rights, he should have taken his father’s surname.

Lu Xia seemed a little surprised, but she didn’t refuse. "If you think it’s a good name, that’s fine. I have no objection."

Graces smiled. "He’ll like the name."

By sharing his mother’s surname, when Pu Tao grew up, his name alone would let everyone know that his mother had placed great hopes in him.

Lu Xia hadn’t thought that far ahead, but seeing Graces so happy, it wasn’t difficult for her to understand his intentions.

In truth, she would never mistreat her own child, regardless of whether he took her surname. He was, after all, the child she had carried for ten months, her own flesh and blood.

"Go on and see him. He’s being well taken care of." Lu Xia took Graces’s arm and led him to the nursery they had prepared in the next room.

The little cub was currently being held and fed by the hired Breeding Master.

Seeing them enter, the Breeding Master rose respectfully. "Madam, Sir."

Graces gazed at the soft, fair-skinned little cub cradled in the master’s arms, his own dark eyes filled with tenderness. This was his and Lu Xia’s child.

In him flowed both his and Lu Xia’s blood—a living bond that tied them together.

"Can I hold him for a moment?" Graces couldn’t help but want to feel what it was like. The Breeding Master didn’t refuse, smiling as he said, "Don’t be so tense. Just relax. That’s right, just like that."

While instructing Graces on how to hold a cub, the master placed Little Pu Tao into his arms. Little Pu Tao wasn’t shy at all. He had just finished his milk and was still smacking his lips, as if savoring the taste.

He didn’t seem to mind the change of arms in the slightest, simply staring up at Graces with wide eyes, as if committing him to memory.

The tiny creature in his arms was so impossibly soft, it felt as though the slightest bit of excess force could shatter him.

Graces’s body went rigid. He didn’t dare make the slightest unnecessary move, looking far more nervous than Little Pu Tao himself.

But the aura surrounding him was gentle.

Father and son stared at each other in silence for a moment before Little Pu Tao broke the spell, suddenly letting out a laugh aimed at Graces.

"Looks like your son likes you after all," Lu Xia teased from the side. She reached out and patted Graces’s shoulder encouragingly. "Don’t be so nervous. You’re doing great."

Graces turned his head to look at her, his eyes filled with an overwhelming tenderness.

At that moment, his heart swelled with emotion. ’If it weren’t for Lu Xia, I never would have had the chance to experience what it feels like to be a father.’

’Lu Xia gave me all of this.’

After handing Little Pu Tao back to the Breeding Master, Lu Xia and Graces left the nursery. On their way downstairs to the dining room, she began to plan. "We need to find time to get Little Pu Tao’s identity registered. Also, I haven’t notified Duke Leslie yet, so you should do that. Then, when Little Pu Tao is a month old, we’ll hold a full-moon celebration for him. What do you think?"

She didn’t know if full-moon celebrations were customary here for cubs, but she wanted to hold one for her own.

Listening to her thoughtful arrangements, Graces felt happy for Little Pu Tao. "I’ll follow your lead. I’ll be the one to speak with Duke Leslie."

"Good." By the time she spoke, they had arrived at the dining room. Smelian saw that Graces was back and gave him a nod, saying nothing more.

’Judging by the way Graces’s whole aura had softened, he must have seen Little Pu Tao already.’

’Yes, no matter how formidable a male is, they always become gentle when they see a cub of their own bloodline. It’s instinct.’

Sensing Smelian’s gaze, Graces nodded at him. After sitting down, he took the initiative to speak. "Thank you, for everything."

"There’s no need for thanks. It’s my responsibility to care for the Duke as well." He didn’t need Graces’s gratitude. As one of Duke Lu Xia’s husbands, his duty was the same as Graces’s.

Graces understood the meaning behind his words and simply nodded without further comment. Protecting Lu Xia was indeed Smelian’s responsibility as well; he wasn’t wrong about that.

Therefore, he wouldn’t argue with Smelian on this point.

Later that evening, Graces sent a voice call request to Duke Leslie. As soon as the call connected, before Duke Leslie could even ask why he was calling, Graces blurted out, "Mother, I’m a Male Father. When you have time, you should come to Duke Lu Xia’s Mansion to see my male child. His name is Lu Qi, and his nickname is Pu Tao."