Crunch, crunch.

As crunching ceased, Lena quickly took another carrot stick from the plate.

Ahh – she pushed the carrot into the rabbit’s wide-open mouth.

“So, Karl.”

Karl was the name of the black rabbit arrogantly lying on Lena’s bed, savoring the carrot. They had just finished introducing themselves and sharing their backgrounds.

“No clan, no parents.”

“Yeah.”

Karl nodded casually. He had been raised by an old woman since childhood until she passed away when he had grown old enough.

The old woman had taught Karl many things, including how to speak so that he could live as a human. But after she passed, he didn’t bother trying to blend in with other humans and simply lived as a rabbit in the forest.

“About marriage….”

“I hadn’t thought about it.”

Karv rolled over, laying on his stomach. The bedsheet was smeared with dust from his black fur. Lena swept the dust off the bed with her hand.

“Then, marry me.”

Karl perked his ears at Lena’s sullen voice. He’d heard the lion’s stories but couldn’t fully grasp them.

All Lena knew was his name. His origin was unknown, and she didn’t even know what his human form looked like, yet they suddenly became companions.

“You…”

“Yes?”

“For you, does it not matter who you marry?”

Lena stared blankly at the black lump in front of her.

Before, she had expected a companion chosen by her father once she reached adulthood, someone who would be beneficial to the clan. If she had met the rabbit back then, she honestly wouldn’t have considered him a suitable mate.

“Well, I suppose so. As long as you understand that I’m a female leader of my clan.”

However, after years of no one wanting Lena, Karl was her last hope. She didn’t have the luxury to consider whether she liked it or not. Lena eagerly nodded her head.

“Of course! I’ll fulfill my duty as a mate.”

“Duty?”

“We must mate diligently to produce many offspring!”

Karl’s expression turned sour at Lena’s statement. Usually, it was hard to read the expressions of animals, but with one look, she could tell his mood had turned sour. Lena flustered, frantically waved the carrot stick in her hands.

“Oops, of course, I’d love to have a lion cub as my successor, but I’ll also adore rabbit babies so they won’t feel neglected. I swear!”

Karl wasn’t bothered about the talk of lions and rabbits. He was simply confused by the discrepancy between what he saw and heard.

In Karl’s world, everyone except himself was either human or animal. Humans covered their bodies even on warm days and only mated in secluded places, discussing such matters with extreme caution.

Rabbits would mate anywhere, but to Karl, they were mere animals so nothing odd. Therefore, Lena in her human form, unashamed of her nakedness or mating was unfamiliar to Karl.

“You’re weird.”

Karl sighed and tapped her br*ast with his fluffy front paw. Lena, now dressed, was unaffected by his touches, simply tilting her head.

“Am I not to your liking?”

Another strange thing was that if she threatened him in lion form, he wouldn’t be able to resist. Yet, Lena was seeking his consent. It was rather naive of her. She might get scammed if she wasn’t careful. Karl extended his mulberry paw.

“Do I have to decide right away?”

“No, no. This week! Within this week.”

There were unlikely other possibilities anyway, except for this rabbit. Even if she managed to snag a male somewhere, their clan would oppose it. Lena planned to do her best to persuade Karl during the given week.

“I’ll think about it.”

Karl uttered blunt words. While he didn’t have any other life plans, it didn’t mean he would outright agree to it without thought.

“Yes, yes! Thank you.”

He couldn’t help but feel a little smug as Lena smiled brightly, even shedding tears. This kind of favor, unlike the rabbits who couldn’t reject him due to their bond, was new to him.

Karl mindlessly tapped Lena’s br*ast with his front paw…ah, it felt pleasantly soft. He really should think about it, maybe.

* * *

Lena had a routine. First, she would wake up early and do morning exercises in lion form. Then she would bathe briefly. Normally, she would head straight to the dining room afterward, but today she went to a bedroom.

Lena opened the door quietly, trying not to make a sound. In the middle of the spacious bed lay a black rabbit. The blanket she had neatly tucked in earlier was once again halfway off the bed.

“Karl.”

Despite Lena’s call, Karl kept snoring loudly. He had said he didn’t like sleeping in the guest room because it made him anxious yet now he was in a deep slumber. Rationalizing that his time living in the forest must have been difficult, Lena gently shook the rabbit to wake him up.

“Karl, wake up. It’s time for breakfast.”

Kral’s ears perked but he only half-opened one eye as if opening both took too much effort. His gaze wandered in the air once before closing again.

“Karl! It’s morning!”

“Noisy.”

Rolling over, Karl crawled toward the pillow. Lena, who couldn’t imagine skipping breakfast, grabbed his fluffy black tail and pulled him back to her.

” Why…why are you doing that…”

Lena wiped the sleepy rabbit’s face with her sleeve. Fortunately, her father had gone to the capital for a few days on the family business. However, everyone else knew that the black rabbit was Lena’s – captured – husband. Wasn’t it a bit awkward to appear so disheveled on the first day?

“I don’t want to eat…”

Pretending not to hear, Lena carried him out of the room. Karl, twisting his body as if annoyed, eventually gave up and sagged.

He would rather sleep in her arms, but once awake, sleep escaped him. With no energy, Karl weakly blinked his eyes. Sniff, sniff. A pleasant smell. Like last night, Lena’s br*asts weren’t just soft but also smelled good

“Good morning, my lady!”

“Good morning, Colon.”

Karl’s ears perked up at the man’s voice. His red eyes swirled in the air. An old man. Hm.

Karl, without realizing he was wary of someone, unconsciously pressed Lena’s soft chest. As usual, Lena calmly stroked the rabbit before leaning down to place him in a chair.

“Why. Why.”

“You have to sit and eat breakfast.”

“I don’t want to. I want to just stay like this.”

Karl hugged Lena’s chest even tighter. From what she had heard, he was older than Lena, but Karl acted like a child. Especially when he was a rabbit that fit comfortably in her arms.

Lena had no choice but to sit down with Karl still held in her arms. She also pulled the freshly prepared vegetable dish placed on the side toward herself.

Emily happened to pass by the dining room and came over upon spotting Lena.

“Is this him?”

“Who are you?”

Karl looked Emily up and down. Though Emily seemed like an ordinary human girl and was a bit smaller than Lena, working in this mansion meant she was likely a shapeshifter. He should not let his guard down just because of their human forms. Karl stiffened warily.

Lena gently stroked Karl’s fur, coaxing him. In a way, she treated him like a young child, but unfortunately, Karl, who had no social skills whatsoever, couldn’t pick up on the cues.

“Say hello to Karl. Karl, this is Emily. She is my close friend.”

Karl awkwardly nodded his head but didn’t let go of his guard against Emily. It seemed like he only saw Lena as approachable. Was it because of his mood, or maybe Lena had proposed to him right from their first meeting?

Emily also felt uncomfortable with Karl. No matter how urgent the situation was, that rabbit seemed lacking. And this black rabbit had no manners at all sitting on the lady’s lap so brazenly.

“Nice to meet you…rabbit sir?”

“Yeah, he finds this form comfortable. Emily, don’t mind him and get back to your work.”

Before Karl could reply, Lena quickly shooed Emily away. To distract Karl from sulking, she gave him a slice of peeled cucumber.

Last night, Lena had asked Karl to show her his human form. But Karl didn’t respond for a long time, and Lena decided not to push it further for now, seeing he seemed uncomfortable. If his human form bothered him so much, his appearance may not meet her expectations.

Lena felt miserable as she was still picky about appearances while struggling to find a male to marry. If she openly showed disappointment, how badly would Karl feel? Lena shook her head and sliced the meat on her plate with one hand.

“I want meat too.”

Karl, who was chewing on the cucumber slice, stretched his head out over the table. Lena pulled him closer to stop him.

“No, you can’t. When taking the form of an animal, you have to restrain from human food.”

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