Chapter 3: First Shock

Even though I still couldn't move my body freely, I finally realized that this body has a Passive-Aggressive Form. It means that, even though I am a female, my Passive Form has features similar to the Passive Form of males. It was an isolated case, and no other case was known throughout the history of the world of beastmen. Another thing that puzzled everyone was that I was the only known Winged Lion and was born by a Lion couple—because a Winged Lion belongs to a separate race.

There were rumors after my egg hatched saying that my mother secretly mated and formed an informal relationship with an unknown Winged Lion male from an unknown tribe behind my father's back. Even so, despite the rumors, my father trusted my mother and believed in her because a mark they called an insignia shows up on the male's chest once he impregnates a female until the egg hatches. It indicates the condition of the little Hatchling inside the egg.

Only males have the ability to transfer the energy needed to hatch an egg. The transmission of energy to an egg was called incubation.

My father nurtured my egg from the first day until the day I hatched, so he was sure that I was his daughter. He named me Ari even before my egg hatched.

My previous name, "Arhi," was a name meaning "gorgeous," while the name "Ari" given by Father Lev was usually given to males, meaning "Lion of God." I had no idea why he gave me a male name despite knowing that I was female. Even so, I love it since it is similar to my name from my previous life, despite the difference in meaning.

Similar to my father, I have platinum-silver hair, a pair of white lion ears, a lion tail, and a pair of amber-colored eyes. No one can dispute the similarities between our physical appearances in my Passive-Aggressive Form and my father's Passive Form, except for my white wings.

One time, my father accompanied the group that was tasked with hunting for food, so the other male partner of my mom, Dov, was left in the house to help my mother with the chores. He also helped my mother take care of me since I was not placed in the nursery due to my odd appearance.

However, an inevitable thing happened during my father's absence. After my mom fed me milk, she asked her male partner to carry me so that she could prepare for my bath and my clothing. He carefully held me in his arms, despite the dislike that was clearly shown in his expression. I was sure he disliked me despite the care he was showing since I was only a few days old. I also disliked him because I hate males except for Father Lev, who has a personality similar to that of my father in my previous life.

Despite my dislike of him, I had no power to retaliate since I couldn't control my body properly yet because I was technically a newborn baby. Unfortunately, I felt like my stomach flipped over the moment my skin touched his body, and I threw up all the milk that I drank on his tanned pectorals, which made his expression change from dislike to extreme disgust. I then started to feel like something overwhelming was choking me until I lost consciousness. I can faintly hear my mom and her male spouse's panicked voices as they called the elders for help.

After the elder healer named Lony confirmed that I was indeed allergic to males not related by blood, I was isolated indefinitely until they could figure out a cure for my illness. I was treated like a plague patient and was only allowed to be taken care of by the female elders and my parents. Everyone was so puzzled by the negative reaction I showed to any physical contact with all males, excluding my father and my siblings.

My mother started to become indifferent to me after that incident, and my parents started to drift apart. I wasn't even sure if the reason was my illness or another issue that happened to overlap with the incident. They were still officially married, but they no longer talked to one another unless necessary.

Despite receiving love from my father and the elder healer, I was sad about the setup. Even though my mother was allowed to take care of me, I was gradually abandoned, especially after two more male siblings hatched from their eggs a few months later: Arthur, a Bear Hatchling, and Sarff, a Snake Hatchling. Another pair of younger siblings were born a year later, but they didn't let me see them—I didn't even know their names.

Most of the members of the tribe despised my existence and looked at me like a wasted piece of meat just because of my unique appearance. I was constantly alienated and bullied, even by young adults.

I wanted to scream in their faces at that time. However, what came out of my mouth while crying in frustration was, "Ak uh ada uhhas [F*ck you, motherf**ers]!"

I was almost thrown outside the tribe after multiple debates if it were not for my father being the Alpha.

"Teh at eehas [Take this]!" I mumbled while raising my middle finger in the air.

My father loved me dearly and did his best not to be suppressed by the other males to protect his position and me. I also tried my best to adapt rapidly to survive and prepare for any unavoidable circumstances.

As soon as I turned five years old, I was able to hide my ears, wings, and tail, making me look more normal, and I was finally allowed to step outside the healer's house. My father crafted a few pairs of leather gloves, cloaks, and a mask for me to wear. It helped me tremendously in dealing with my special condition.

Due to the cloak, leather gloves, and mask crafted by my father, I was able to live like a normal beastman and was able to handle unavoidable physical contact with males, especially when playing and doing chores.

At the age of six, I learned how to sew and make my own clothes, despite so many failed attempts since I was not used to the tools available in this world. My father brought me all the best pelts he got from every hunt, so I was able to sew my own long-sleeve shirts, skirts, and fitted pants when I turned seven. Though the output didn't look similar to the clothes I used to wear in my previous life, it looked shabbier and more primitive.

My father brought me all the best pelts he got from every hunting trip, so I was able to sew my own long-sleeve shirts, skirts, and fitted pants when I turned seven. Though the output didn't look similar to the clothes I used to wear in my previous life, it looked shabbier and more primitive.