Beast Chapter 3

Chapter 3. Arcan

Freya walked toward the banquet hall, looking around the relatively quiet surroundings.

“I’m late, is that okay?”

“That’s why I’m late too.”

“I knew that you’re the best to me.”

“……That’s pointless.”

“Hey, who’s the guest coming today?”

“You don’t know anything about that? Oh, by the way, I think I saw a new carriage coming into the castle for the first time this morning?”

A carriage he has never seen before? One can usually tell who entered the castle gates by the family crest or something like that, but Leo doesn’t know.

Just as Freya was about to open her mouth with a puzzled expression, someone came running from far away, shouting loudly.

“Sister! Brother!!”

“……Everin?”

The one who ran and hugged Freya was the 4th prince, Everin had recently come of age. Stumbling for a moment because Everin suddenly hugged her, she looked down at her younger brother.

“Surprise. What’s going on?”

“Eve, what are you doing here? It’s dangerous, and to do so in front of everyone below you?”

Fortunately, Leo scolded and pulled Everin, but he was stubborn. Everin held Freya as if he couldn’t hear Leo’s voice. He was standing firmly on the ground with both feet, and spoke like a child.

“You’re going to the banquet hall, right?! I’ll go with you!”

Freya pretended to pat Everin’s head and quietly let it fall.

“Why didn’t you go first?”

“I waited for you, big sister.”

Leo sighed deeply as if he knew it, shaking his head. Freya patted Everin on the head. 

“I made two people wait. Shall we go?” 

So the two of them, now three, walked toward their destination. 

After walking for a while, the banquet hall beyond the magnificent gate was already right in front of them. 

“Tell them that we are here.” 

The gatekeeper shouted loudly at Everin’s command. 

“Their Highnesses the Princess, the Third Prince, and the Fourth Prince have arrived!” 

Freya muttered to herself as she looked at the slowly opening door. 

‘Who on earth are the guests? They seem to be royalty from another country……. Hmm.’ 

That was the moment the door opened while she thought that. 

‘……Tree?’ 

The unfamiliar scent of the forest, which she smelled through the gap in the opening door, wafted past her nose. Freya wrinkled her nose. However, instead of raising her head to find the source of the scent, she had no choice but to stiffen her body.

“Heuk….”

“Freya! Step back!”

Huh, wolf??

Three wolves with their tails up were looking at this way with shining eyes.

Why are there beasts in the palace…? Freya, who had only seen wolves’ skins, was surprised at the sight of them raising their paws with shining eyes. She dropped her fan.

Even at the chilling sound of Leo drawing his sword, the large beasts stood still and stared at this way.

“Put your swords away.”

A cold, unfamiliar voice rang out.

Only then did Freya raise her gaze, fixed on the wolves.

There were three men in fancy attire sitting there. One of whom she had never seen before, and a man wearing glasses and looking tough, seemed to put his hand on the wolves’ heads. He began to gently stroke them.

“These children are not just wolves, they are the servants of Arcan. If you raise your sword, I will consider you to have raised your sword against Arcan.” 

A-Arcan?

Freya stood there dumbfounded, swallowing the question inside her.

‘Why is Arcan here?’

***

Arcan. A non-human beastman, a descendant of wolves.

The long war that took place during the reign of the former emperor ended, and a peace treaty was made during the reign of her father. Now they are maintaining friendly relations. However, Terdona had been fighting them until just before that, so the relationship between the two was not good.

Among the beastmen of the beast family, Arcan was especially famous for being the most unfriendly to humans.

Even though they made a peace treaty, everyone knows that they are still full of hatred and conflict towards each other.

‘But why are those Arcans here…..?’

Freya sat silently and looked around at the men across from her.

“The beasts are arrogantly threatening us on our land.”

“Says the one who made the knights trip over our beasts.”

The moment she entered the room, the Emperor and the royal representative of Arcan were fighting with bloodshot eyes. It took a long time to figure out the situation, but Freya was able to hear the situation from the second prince who had arrived first.

“Slave traders who were secretly operating in Tedrona have been kidnapping Arcan’s children and selling them to foreign countries for the past 20 years.”

Freya was shocked after hearing the story.

This could easily break the peace agreement that was barely made.

‘Uh, uhm…. What’s going on?’

In addition, Arcan held the highest rank among the beastmen, along with the lion tribe Kanion and the panther tribe Pelium.

‘In this situation, unless they come forward and threaten to break the peace agreement, we have to listen to them.’

As a princess, Freya sat at the table, feeling the weight of this matter. She looked back and forth between the royal family and Arcan’s people.

‘But… He definitely looks a little different from a human.’

His dark brown skin, his eyes that were long and slitted, and his sharp fangs that were visible whenever he opened his mouth. His dangling earrings and necklace sparkled, and his clothes that were loose enough to show his chest kept catching her attention.

Freya paused and stared at the sight for a moment, as if she were entranced.

‘I heard Arcan can turn into a wolf. Is that true?’

“Our leader doesn’t want to make a big deal out of this. But he can’t just sit by and watch Arcan’s children being kidnapped.”

Regardless of her feelings, she listened to them.

At least on the outside, she looked like a princess without a single flaw, so the royal representative continued to speak.

“Isn’t the peace treaty already broken? Why should we continue our exchanges with Terdona, who sells our children?” 

“Stop beating around the bush and get to the point.” 

He laughed as if he had been waiting for the Emperor’s words. 

“So our elder leaders said that we must go to war.” 

The word war instantly chilled the air. The frozen atmosphere in the reception room shook dangerously. 

“But our leader is a gentle man. I have a proposal for you that will allow you to end this situation without bloodshed.”

He looked around at the royal family and spoke preemptively, gritting his teeth before anyone else could speak.

“If you send the princess of Terdona as our next leader’s partner, he will not say anything more about this incident.”

The man with glasses looked back at her.

Only then did Freya, who had been sitting quietly, take a deep breath. However, before she could finish her thoughts, Everin jumped up from her seat.

“Who are the savage wolves demanding right now!”

“Did you call us savage wolves just now?”

Freya, who was distracted by the prospect of a fight, grabbed the end of Everin’s clothes and pulled them down.

“Urk, Sister.”

Everin, who seemed about to say more, hesitated at Freya’s touch. He eventually sat down again. However, Everin was the only one. 

It wasn’t something that could be stopped. As soon as Everin sat down, Crown Prince Alexandro slammed the table and stood up. Known for being gentle, he was the type who couldn’t be stopped once he got angry. Yet he suppressed his anger and spoke with emphasis, saying each word. 

“Are you going to take the princess of Terdona as your concubine or hostage?” 

“Unfortunately not. Unlike you digusting people, we only choose one partner for our entire lives. She is the official companion of the next leader.” 

What they were trying to say was clear. If they don’t want to go to war, hand over the princess as proof that they won’t do anything useless anymore. 

It was common for people to strengthen their bonds through marriage in agreements or deals. To put it simply, it was a political marriage. 

“I hope the princess knows what choice is best for her country.” 

“Who are you threatening right now!” 

Freya remained unmoved by the constant shouting from all around, lost in thought.

In fact, marriage was an unnecessary element to Freya.

‘That’s right. To be honest, being tied down by the bondage of marriage at a young age and having to see each other for the rest of my life is horrible.’

Even putting aside the question of whether the other person could satisfy her, what if the person she’s marrying is someone with a potbelly? 

What if his face is so ugly that it’s hard to look at with both eyes open…? What if his dick is small…?

When Freya heard the story that there was a man whose dick was the size of a finger. Like in some horror story, she gave up all thoughts of marriage.