Chapter 3

"You…"

Felix hesitated, his handsome face tinged with sympathy.

Among the beastmen, he was unusual—one of the rare few who preferred human ways of living, and thus he knew a little about our kind. Yet even so, he had never imagined that human society, so advanced and prosperous, could still leave someone to live as miserably as I had.

He couldn't understand my parents.

Even in the great beastman clans, where offspring were numerous and favoritism existed, they followed the law of the wild—survival of the fittest. Favoring the weak over the strong was something unseen and unheard of.

Humans truly were strange.

From the look in his eyes, I understood what he wanted to say. I smiled.

"The past doesn't matter anymore. What matters is that every day from now on, away from that house, will only get better."

Felix nodded, half comprehending.

After we registered our marriage, he suddenly reached out and clasped my hand.

"Honey."

The word rang out with such force that it didn't even make me blush—if anything, it felt like he was about to raise a cup of wine and swear brotherhood with me.

But what he said next made me want to throw my arms around him and kiss him.

"I have homes in three different cities. Wherever you want to live, we'll live there. If you prefer the city, then we'll stay in the city. But if you don't…" He gritted his teeth. "Back home, I still own an entire mountain. Though for you humans, it might feel a little… high up."

My eyes lit up instantly.

"The mountain! Let's live on the mountain!"

"Ah?"

Felix scratched his head in confusion.

"I thought humans all preferred apartments and high-rises. That's why I bought those city homes. Won't you find mountain life uncomfortable? No food delivery service out there, though… there is Wi-Fi."

I shook my head quickly. "No, not at all! I'd love it. Sell those city homes—we'll live on the mountain together. After all, in the city it's all towers and concrete. You wouldn't even be able to fly."

In the previous life, when he flew out searching for food, collapsing debris from the flooded city had crushed his wings. And for a hawk, a broken wing was no different from being crippled.

At my words—clumsy, but still a kind of concern—Felix blinked, startled.

"Alright then. We'll live on the mountain. And one day, when the chance comes, I'll take you flying."

The image sent a shiver down my spine.

"Mm… let's leave that for later."

Instead, I led him back to my family home.

There wasn't much there that truly belonged to me. But I had bought plenty of little things with my own earnings, and I wasn't about to let that family take them for free.

Most importantly, my grandmother—the only one who had ever cherished me—had sewn me a little doll before she passed away. She left it in my room. I had to take it with me.

But when I brought Felix to the house and keyed in the passcode, the lock refused to open. I tried several times, to no avail.

In the short time we'd been gone to collect our marriage certificate, they had actually changed the code.

Fury surged through me. I pounded on the door.

"Open up! Open the door!"

I could hear voices inside—proof that they were home—yet not a single one of them came to answer.

It was obvious. They were ignoring me on purpose.