That night, she was sleeping soundly, cuddling her little Cotton Candy, when she suddenly felt an intense, crushing weight pressing down on her chest. She could barely breathe. Her fragile little body couldn't handle the pressure, and she let out a soft, uncomfortable whimper in her sleep.
The crushing weight instantly vanished, and her breathing finally returned to normal.
When she woke up the next morning, Nian Yan had completely forgotten all about that weird, groggy midnight experience. She also totally missed the guilty little glances the white kitten kept sneaking at her.
After finishing her breakfast, Lu Zan went to the Imperial Military Academy to report for duty, while Nian Yan quietly snuck out with Cotton Candy in her arms to get her pet registered.
Since her transmigration, this was her very first time going out alone and her first time taking public transport. She looked around cautiously, fascinated by every little thing.
Little did she know, her mere presence was causing absolute shock waves among the crowd. After all, seeing a female on a cheap public shuttle was even more unbelievable than running into royalty. And when they noticed the little fluff ball in her arms, the crowd collectively gasped.
"Oh my god, this poor female is actually out here all alone with her cub. What on earth has she been through?"
Unless all of her mates had died in some tragic accident, they couldn't think of any other explanation. A few bold males even stepped up, eagerly offering to take care of her and her little one. Nian Yan just looked completely lost, politely turning them down one by one. But to the onlookers, she just looked like she was trying to stay strong, which only made their hearts ache even more for her.
Before long, a news headline popped up. Widowed Female Raises Cub Alone, Forced to Ride Public Transport in Tragic Hardship. It was plastered all over the Star Network. The article was full of absolute nonsense, accompanied by a single, super blurry photo. In the picture, the petite female's face was hidden as she gently looked down, coaxing her cub.
When the empress saw the news, her eyes instantly locked onto the little cub in the female's arms. She rushed over to the emperor, who was busy with state affairs, and begged him to check if it was Konglin.
The emperor took a closer look. "He really does look like him." But he quickly shook his head with a bitter smile. "When that boy heard we were throwing a bridal ball for him, he fought it tooth and nail. Why on earth would he suddenly run off to live with some random female? Besides, he would never just willingly shift into his juvenile form."
As the crown prince of the Empire, Tan Konglin had always been fiercely proud since he was a child. He hated being in his juvenile form because it made him look weak. He completely despised it, unless he was critically injured.
"And the little kitten in this photo looks perfectly healthy."
The empress felt a heavy wave of disappointment. Deep down, she knew it, too. This couldn't possibly be Konglin. He wasn't the clingy type at all. But she was just so desperately worried. Ever since Tan Konglin lost control and vanished, his whereabouts had been completely unknown. Right now, she had to grasp at whatever straws she could find.
She ordered someone to contact the editor-in-chief of that news outlet.
Meanwhile, Nian Yan never could have guessed that just taking her pet out to get registered would land her right on the front page of the tabloids. When Felix messaged her, proudly declaring that he had already taken care of the creep who took the secret photos and spread the fake news, she was frantically searching for her little cutie, completely beside herself.
Just a few minutes ago, Nian Yan had placed the little kitten into the checkup machine at the pet registry. But before the door could even close, he had bolted out of there like a flash of lightning.
Little did she know, this specific scanner didn't just check for health issues. It could easily tell the difference between a real beastman and a normal pet. Even though His Royal Highness was in a feral state, his survival instincts were still razor sharp.
Poor Nian Yan, though, just assumed Cotton Candy had gotten scared and run off. She swore to herself that once she found him, they were going straight home. As for the checkup and registration, that could wait.
Thank goodness, the moment she walked out the front doors of the registry, Cotton Candy suddenly popped out of nowhere. Nian Yan was absolutely overjoyed. Without hesitating, she splurged on a big bag of dried fish to comfort the poor little guy's traumatized soul.
Figuring it would be pretty boring to just sit around at home all day, she decided to drop by and pay Lu Zan a visit. Technically, outsiders weren't allowed to just wander into the military academy, but for females, they made exceptions.
Nian Yan followed the route on her holopad. As she was cutting across a massive training ground, she saw a huge crowd gathered. Everywhere she looked, there were tall, strapping young cadets. The air was practically thick with testosterone.
She was going to take a detour, but out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a familiar figure in the central combat ring. It was that black mamba, Xia Jili.
The two fighters in the ring were trading blows incredibly fast, but it was obvious Xia Jili had the upper hand. Nian Yan stepped up and tapped the man next to her on the shoulder, asking what the match was all about.
The cadet turned around, and the second he got a good look at her, he jumped out of his skin. "A female!"
In an instant, the entire training ground erupted into absolute chaos. Everyone instantly forgot about the match, shoving and pushing just to catch a glimpse of the female's face.
It couldn't be helped. The absurdly skewed gender ratio meant that so many males would go their whole lives without ever being graced by a female's attention. As they got older, they would eventually accept this harsh reality. But these cadets were young, hot-blooded, and at the absolute peak of their mating instincts.
Nian Yan was like a helpless little bunny dropped straight into a wolf den. Surrounded by a pack of starving wolves with glowing green eyes, she felt incredibly small, fragile, and utterly defenseless. Even when her little white cat poked its head out, growling fiercely at the crowd in warning, it did absolutely nothing to deter the cadets, who were completely drunk on the presence of a beautiful female. They refused to back off, trying desperately to push their way even closer to her.
The fight in the ring had already ended, but not a single soul was paying attention. Only Nian Yan, her eyes darting around nervously, happened to glance up at the stage.
Her eyes locked right onto Xia Jili.
The moment their gazes met, the young man's eyes went wide in shock, and he started frantically fixing his messy clothes.