The entire banquet hall fell into silence, and the atmosphere beca unbearably awkward after the honored concubine fled in sha.
Everyone was so frightened that so even held their breath, afraid that the slightest sound might anger the Beast King even further.
After all, they had all shared the sa assumption.
They believed the Beast King would inevitably pounce on the concubine and drag her into his den the mont he returned, so they didn’t say anything when Ruela ca into the banquet hall wearing... that.
But reality proved otherwise.
They had underestimated their king’s self-control. From the looks of it, he hadn’t been aroused at all by Ruela’s display. He had been annoyed, irritated, impatient, even disgusted, but arousal was not a word that applied to him.
Jojo was the first to break the silence after Kael finally lowered the hand that had been covering the boy’s eyes.
Ignoring the guards and high-ranking nobles around him, Jojo stared straight at the massive round table in the center of the hall, piled high with food that released an irresistible aroma.
He had never seen so much food in one place before, nor such variety. There were dishes served intentionally raw, alongside beautifully prepared als similar to those humans ate.
"Daddy, can I eat now? I’m really hungry!" Jojo asked eagerly. "And I’m sure Sisi is hungry too!"
"Of course," Kael replied with a small smile as he guided them to the table.
Once he set them down, Jojo imdiately grabbed Sisi’s hand, his eyes sparkling with excitent.
"Sisi, look! They cooked food for you too! Now you can eat with !" Jojo said as he saw many varieties of cooked food; grilled, fried, boiled, even sautéed.
"I can see that," Sisi chuckled as she observed all the food on the table. They were all huge in portion, which made sense because it was a banquet. So she had to remind Jojo, "But rember not to overeat, alright? Being hungry doesn’t an you should stuff yourself. Rember what happened when you ate a whole fawn and still had the roasted mushroom I gave you?"
Jojo imdiately rembered that incident back in their old cave with Uncle Marik.
He ate three hares in the morning, an entire fawn in the afternoon, and then another hare and Sisi’s mushroom in the evening.
He’d ended the day clutching his stomach and crying in pain.
That mory was enough to make him cautious. He nodded solemnly as there was no point in wasting good food by throwing it all up later.
The table was too tall for him, so Jojo asked Sisi to lift him. Once she did, he eagerly pointed at the dishes.
"I want a slice of that, a piece of that, umm... oh! That one too, and that!"
"Alright, alright," Sisi laughed. "You can try everything, but in small portions first."
She carefully served Jojo what he wanted, while also selecting a few cooked dishes for herself.
Sisi found herself quietly fascinated. The beastn living in this kingdom weren’t savages as she had half-expected. They lived comfortably, with refined craftsmanship and practical traditions, without the stifling etiquette that plagued human society.
There were probably so customs she didn’t know yet, but she reminded herself that she was still only a guest. She wasn’t even a beastman to begin with, so she doubted these beastn would be open for a talk later.
Kael watched the two of them with a faint, lingering smile. His arms were crossed, his posture clearly signaling that he didn’t wish to be disturbed.
Yet his attention never left them.
Jojo obediently accepted each bite Sisi offered him, chewing carefully whenever she reminded him to slow down.
Kael realized then just how well Jojo listened to her.
When it had been just the two of them, eating as quick as possible had been necessary. Survival left no room for leisure, any pause could invite an ambush.
But now, seeing his son eat calmly and properly filled Kael with an unfamiliar sense of peace.
Yes, things were different now.
They were no longer running and hiding around the Roc Forest. Jojo was safe, protected, and well-fed because Kael had built an entire kingdom for him.
He could finally give Jojo a proper life—at the cost of accepting his curse again, and severing his bond with his fated mate.
When Kael had been alone in the kingdom, he often wondered if the trade had been worth it.
After all, he could never truly escape his fated mate. Every ti he slept, he dread of her, vividly seeing her face, listening to her voice, only to forget everything else upon waking. All he could rember in the end was her violet eyes, the only way for him to identify his fated mate.
It was an eternal tornt, and sotis he felt that he was foolish to walk the sa dark path he abandoned when Jojo was born.
Yet watching Jojo and Sisi share a al like this, Kael knew the answer.
All his sacrifice had been worth it.
Jojo finished sampling everything he wanted, then finally looked up at his father, who had been silently watching all this ti.
Just as Sisi lifted another spoonful of food, Jojo suddenly spoke.
"Sisi, can you feed Daddy too? He must be hungry after carrying us all night!"
Sisi raised an eyebrow.
Kael stiffened instantly, the smile on his face vanishing. His heart began to beat erratically as he stared at the spoonful of at in her hand.
He should refuse. It would be humiliating, especially coming from this troubleso woman.
Yet no words ca out, because rejecting her felt... wrong.
"Sisi, hurry!" Jojo urged. "Daddy is hungry too!"
Sisi smiled and gently placed the spoon into Jojo’s hand.
"You should feed him instead, Jojo. He’ll be happiest if it’s you."
Jojo’s eyes widened in surprise, just like Kael’s.
They stared at each other for a mont before Jojo finally lifted the spoon.
"Daddy, say aaaah—"
The banquet hall went utterly still.
Every beastman held their breath as the mighty Beast King leaned forward, opened his mouth, and accepted the food from his son.
He chewed slowly.
When he swallowed, Jojo bead, "Daddy, is it good? I gave you my favorite!"
Kael smiled and nodded.
"It’s very good," he said softly. "Thank you, son."
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