Trapped in the Beastworld Breeder System (BL)-Chapter 22: Will you be mine?

Chapter 22: Will you be mine?
"Thank you," the wolf man said, his face still holding amazement and disbelief.
Lucien asked again, his voice softer this time, "I know that you saved me, and I’m very grateful for that."
"I mean... I’m supposed to be dead by now. I’m sure even my dad thinks I’m dead, and my brother would be delighted. But... what are you?"
Aries looked at the prince, and he realized that the question just asked might be the most important answer he had been seeking all along.
He sighed and said, "I don’t understand. What do you mean, ’what are you’? What could I possibly be?"
Aries watched as the wolf man’s expression tightened. Lucien’s gaze scanned him from head to toe, intense and unyielding, while Aries returned the same scrutiny, though inwardly annoyed that he could do little more than meet the prince’s gaze.
Lucien finally spoke, his voice calm but firm, "What exactly is it about me that warrants such a look?"
He gestured toward himself as he asked, and just then Aries noticed the truth. He gasped loudly.
"Fuck..." The breath seemed to catch in his throat as he instinctively touched his head, only to realize—no ears were there. His tail, too, was gone.
He froze, understanding immediately. He had been seated before the prince without his beast disguise. The secret he had kept for so long was now fully exposed. Lucien now knew exactly what he had been hiding, and he couldn’t deny it.
Aries wiped the sweat off his face with the back of his palm, anxiety rolling over him. He sighed heavily, his eyes darting toward the wolf man again.
Lucien’s tone softened, reassuring but earnest. "Look... don’t worry. Don’t stress yourself about this. Just tell me truthfully what you are. Dispel my confusion, and everything will be alright. I don’t wish to harm you."
Aries exhaled slowly at the words. It wasn’t that he doubted Lucien’s intentions; it was just that the beast disguise hadn’t wasted time before. It had betrayed him once, and the thought that it could betray him again even before the tiger king was infuriating. What a bother.
He raised his head, meeting the wolf man’s steady gaze. Aries sighed again, his voice low, tinged with cautious frustration. "Is it that you don’t know at all... or that you choose not to know?"
Lucien blinked, confused. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, with the high position you possess, you should be quite aware of what I might be. I’m human, does that ring a bell?"
"A human?" the wolf prince repeated after Aries, and Aries couldn’t help but sigh at the echo.
"Humans, you say?" The wolf prince continued slowly. "Is it that you are not a beastkin?" He seemed to be piecing things together, his voice carrying a hint of growing reasoning.
"Something like that," Aries replied calmly.
The wolfman looked at him for a moment, then fell silent.
The wolf prince seemed to drift into a trance for a few minutes as the room suddenly grew quiet. Aries used those few moments to analyze his situation carefully.
It seems the prince is quite ignorant about anything related to humans, so merely saying that won’t give him much information, he thought. His gaze lingered on the brooding wolfman. And from the looks of it... his eyes narrowed slightly, he might be the one the escape protocol refers to. If I want him to assist me, shouldn’t I be behaving properly?
[Finally, Host.]
The system’s voice chimed in, startling Aries slightly. Finally what? he asked inwardly.
[I thought you would never notice that the way you’ve been acting could disrupt things. Explain things to him, perhaps more gently and less rudely, and you could leave this territory intact, just as you want. There are many beastlords you’ll need to come in contact with during your stay in this beastworld, and not all of them will have the patience of a wolf prince. I’m sure you’ve already had your fair share of that. This wolf claims you as his mate, why not use that to your advantage?]
Aries wasn’t one to take what didn’t belong to him, nor was he someone who liked lying just to gain something. But what the system said began to make sense to him painfully so. Something shifted in his thoughts, something he would never have considered before.
That’s true... he mused. He mentioned something about a wolf and a mate. Was he referring to me? If I tell him a few things he doesn’t know, he might actually assist me.
When Aries lifted his head and met the wolf prince’s gaze again, he smiled, soft, calculated, and just a little deceitful.
"Are you alright?" the prince asked. Just a few minutes of brooding seemed enough to completely change a human’s mood. It surprised him, especially since they had both remained in the same positions the entire time the change happened.
"I’m good," Aries said, maintaining his smile. Then he added, "But I’m also not good. Why do you ask?"
The wolf in the prince growled faintly at those second words. His mate wasn’t feeling well. What could possibly be wrong? The thought settled heavily in the prince’s heart—it was a matter of importance.
To wolves, their mates were their lives. And especially to Lucien, who had been said to be wolfless and was therefore seen as inferior within the kingdom. Reaching the tiger kingdom and finding someone who made his heart beat so fast it felt as though life had only just begun filled him with happiness. For the first time, his existence seemed to gain meaning.
When he discovered that the one who stirred his heart wasn’t a tiger man, he felt even more relieved. There was a chance, however small that this person was another kind of being rather than their sworn enemy.
So hearing Aries say he was human was both surprising and confusing. Lucien had never even heard the word before.
"And now your mood..." he said quietly. "Do you care to tell me what is wrong with you?"
"Yes, I will," Aries replied. "Not only that, I’ll even tell you how I got here, and a few other things as well."
"Good," Lucien said, straightening slightly. "I’m all ears."
Aries began to recount how he came to the beastworld, carefully making a few tweaks to the truth. According to his version, he had lost his memories and suddenly found himself on a battlefield, where he was taken captive shortly after, and the rest followed.
"So the tiger king’s archivist said you are human?" Lucien asked.
"Yes," Aries answered simply.
"Alright," the wolf prince said. He stepped closer, and Aries instinctively took a step back.
What does he want? Aries went on alert, weighing both possibilities. The wolf prince might truly be the one referred to by the escape protocol, or he could just be a random pervert. Aries stayed as careful as possible. He really didn’t want his ass drilled.
Lucien noticed how uncomfortable Aries became whenever he so much as moved his hand. He sighed softly.
"I’m sorry about the torture you faced at the hands of the tiger king," he said sincerely.
"Thank you," Aries replied.
"So, as it appears," Lucien continued, "the tiger king’s treasure was you. He was looking for a human and was being discreet about it."
Lucien paused, then asked, "How were you able to heal me? Is that also because you’re human?"
"I guess so," Aries said plainly.
"Cool... cool," Lucien murmured.
"What are your plans now, then?" he asked after a moment.
"Or," he added thoughtfully, "let’s exchange some information first. As you know, I’m the second prince of the wolf kingdom. My name is Lucien. And you?"
"I’m Aries," he said. "That’s all I know about myself."
"That’s a start," Lucien nodded.
"And for my plans..." Aries hesitated. "I’m not sure. But you said I’m your mate..."
Lucien’s eyes lit up instantly, his expression bright and hopeful as he looked at him. Aries continued carefully, "What does that even mean?"
Lucien was more than happy to explain.
"Basically, it means we’re soulmates. I’ve never been with a man before, but I don’t mind being with one if he’s my mate. I’ll learn. It means I’ll always protect and love you, because you are the one meant for me. Do you feel that way too?"
"No."
The blunt answer fell heavily between them. The room grew silent, and Lucien simply stared at Aries, unmoving.
Awkwardly, Aries added, "But I can learn to be one."
He hesitated, then quickly followed up, "I’m still a minor, so that might be why I don’t know yet. I’m seventeen, so I can’t really tell if I’m your mate or not. Don’t you think?"
Shit. Why did I say no? Was I trying to ruin my escape route? Aries nearly face-palmed as he berated himself internally.
But then Lucien’s mood shifted, and a smile slowly spread across his face.
"I’m surprised," Lucien said. "I thought as much. Since you’ve never encountered a wolf before, or been one, it makes sense. Yes, until you turn eighteen, you can’t truly know who your mate is. I’m willing to wait with you until then."
He moved closer again, and this time Aries didn’t flinch. He stayed where he was. Their hands brushed together as Lucien spoke softly,
"Why don’t you follow me back to the wolf kingdom and be mine?"