Chapter 2: 002 You’re Amazing, Baby!

Xie Gewen was indeed awake.

He wasn’t a pet like Ming Ruan thought. He was a human.

A few years ago, people in the Alpha Galaxy inexplicably began exhibiting signs of Therianthropy. Limited research suggested that prolonged overload of negative emotions like stress could trigger it.

But after the change, a person’s condition didn’t improve. It worsened progressively. They would even fall into periodic Rampage, losing human reason and being completely dominated by their beastly instincts.

The mainstream naturally called for rational acceptance of Therianthropy, but they still received a loaded nickname: “Beastmen.”

As the Council Speaker, Xie Gewen knew the truth.

The situation for Beastmen in the Alpha Galaxy wasn’t good. Many paid lip service to the idea that “Beastmen are still people,” but in reality, they avoided them like the plague. Otherwise, Ferocious Beast-type Beastmen wouldn’t be forcibly confined to the Sanatorium Zones.

But right now, this youth showed no disgust or fear. He was crouching in a position that shielded Xie Gewen from the cold wind, wholeheartedly hugging the Medical Device to treat him. Even when he was out of breath, he didn’t stop.

It made one feel…

No.

Xie Gewen’s emotions only flickered for a moment before being suppressed by reason.

The moment a person underwent Therianthropy, their former ‘humanity’ was as good as dead in the eyes of the public. Any further attention or respect they received was solely because of their prior identity.

No one would truly like a Beastman.

Moreover, he’d heard of this newly appointed Executor—Ming Ruan. He was a StarNet Trending regular, and notoriously scandalous.

Xie Gewen thought coldly: Is this just an act for the people in the live-stream?

Enduring contact with a Beastman, using the ‘Executor position’ to whitewash his past and carve out a future path.

If that was his plan, then he was indeed clever.

Xie Gewen sensed the youth get up and reach for him, so he closed his eyes, staying on guard.

Ming Ruan scurried in and out of the house, rummaging through everything until he found a Hoverboard. He pushed, lifted, and shoved, finally managing to roll the Gray Wolf onto it.

The people in the live room watched his actions, a flurry of speculations swiping across the screen.

【How dare he get so close to a Beastman? Ming Ruan really is a psycho.】

【What’s he doing? He’s not planning to just dump Xie Gewen, is he?】

【Even though Beastmen are terrifying, the guy was just injured. Can’t he even rest outside the door for a bit?】

【If he seriously forces the Council Speaker into the Sanatorium Zone’s Simulated Forest, I’m literally going to call and report him!!!】

【The Fake Young Master is just pure evil!!】

However, the next second, the Hoverboard carried the Gray Wolf into the house.

【…】

【…He’s definitely up to something.】

Ming Ruan didn’t know any of this. Ming Ruan just felt for the furry creature.

During his few minutes of rest earlier, he’d asked his boss how to handle the aftermath. He’d assumed that even if the Interstellar Medical Device’s effects were immediate, some professional medical organization would be sent for a check-up. Instead, the boss indicated:

“Don’t worry about it.”

Ming Ruan’s head immediately sprouted question marks.

What the heck, such a large-scale intergalactic pet agency, even simulating wilderness environments, and this was their service attitude?!

Even he, who was usually emotionally stable, was getting a bit angry.

So, he, Ming Ruan, on his very first day of work, right in front of the surveillance camera, defied his boss!

He took the Gray Wolf inside.

The Gray Wolf’s fur was dry and messy, grimy and matted in many places. It clearly hadn’t been living well.

Ming Ruan crouched and touched the icy floor. Without hesitation, he pulled the Plush Cushion off the sofa and laid it on the floor before having the Hoverboard gently set the Gray Wolf down.

After that, he retrieved a series of tools he’d ordered during that brief rest period from the Teleporter in the room.

Some Safety Scissors, some makeshift substitutes for Pet Brushes.

Ming Ruan beamed at the giant ball of fluff before him.

So what if it’s a wolf! A wolf is still a precious baby in this caretaker’s arms!

The wounds were handled by the Medical Device. Now it was his time to shine!

Let’s get to work!

Ming Ruan took off his bloodstained jacket and sat cross-legged beside the Gray Wolf. He first used his hands to gently smooth the wolf’s fur, brushing away some weeds, clods of dirt, and dust.

Slow, gentle, yet grounding—involuntarily lowering one’s guard and allowing one to relax.

After this habitual calming session, Ming Ruan started looking for matted or knotted patches in the fur and snipped them out with the scissors. From the back of the neck to each paw, meticulously, he didn’t miss a single knot, big or small.

He didn’t notice the slightly disordered breathing of the Gray Wolf beneath his hands.

It was comfortable, relaxing.

Xie Gewen had been constantly on guard, yet under Ming Ruan’s care, he couldn’t help but relax, even feeling a wave of drowsiness.

The icy, howling wind was shut outside. Only the warm afternoon sun streamed in gently.

The room was silent, save for the snip snip of Ming Ruan’s scissors and his own soft, even breathing.

It took a very long time to clear all the knots. Ming Ruan rolled his aching neck, then picked up the brush. With one hand pressing down the base of the fur and the other brushing inch by inch, he worked until the brush could glide smoothly from head to tail.

Xie Gewen almost couldn’t suppress a shudder.

The tingling, satisfying sensation when the brush swept across his fur was something he’d never experienced.

How long had it been since he’d felt such leisure?

Perhaps since the moment of his Therianthropy. The fall from grace, pressure, confusion, agitation… they followed like shadows.

Or perhaps even earlier.

And all those negative emotions were quietly stripped from his body under Ming Ruan’s brush, stroke by stroke.

Even the StarNet citizens in the live broadcast room felt the same. The comments softened for a rare moment.

However, just as everyone was getting lost in the atmosphere, Ming Ruan pattered away out of the Living Room, found his way to the Bathroom, and drew a pool of water.

Then used the Hoverboard to bring the Gray Wolf to the Bathroom.

The previously drowsy live room viewers instantly reacted as if their tails had been stepped on.

【Ah? A bath? God, that’s so intimate.】

【As expected, the earlier part was just the prelude. This is Ming Ruan’s real goal. Bath-time intimacy with a Beastman—doesn’t he find it disgusting!】

【#CouncilSpeaker #Bathroom #WetLook #SizeDifference #】

【Seriously, his toxic drama-queen persona is unshakable. Almost fell for it.】

【He’s not planning to demand Xie Gewen take responsibility afterward, is he?】

Ming Ruan had tested the water temperature and was nervously trying to move the Gray Wolf.

It was his first time washing a wolf!

He turned his head, meeting the eyes of the Gray Wolf, who was lying perfectly still.

Icy blue was truly beautiful.

…

Ming Ruan’s eyes widened, and he plopped down onto the edge of the pool, slightly intimidated. “You—you’re awake.”

Belatedly, he remembered: the High-Tech Protective Gear the contract said would be provided to employees—he hadn’t found it and put it on yet!

Ming Ruan didn’t dare breathe.

The Gray Wolf easily leaped to its feet. It shook its head, its large, fluffy ears pricking forward. Its icy blue beast eyes stared at Ming Ruan as it walked forward, step by step.

【Almost forgot the Council Speaker was awake just now.】

【Holy crap, the tension! Is this going to be a bloodbath?!】

【…I just remembered the time the Council Speaker executed an Alien Clan spy during a session. Blood splattered all over his white shirt…】

【I can’t watch.】

The youth sat on the edge of the pool, water gently rippling, leaning back involuntarily. His fingers gripped the edge, trembling, knuckles white.

Before him, the Gray Wolf, standing chest-high to the youth, advanced unhurriedly. Its beast eyes were cold and clear, its red tongue licking the fur around its muzzle, as if toying with prey, deliberately slow.

Just as the tension was about to reach its peak!

The Gray Wolf stopped by the pool’s edge. It suddenly sat down, tilted its head, glanced at Ming Ruan, then at the door, as if puzzled why the youth was still sitting there.

In this modern era, water baths implied flirtation and intimacy.

After the previous interaction, Xie Gewen had temporarily set aside the rumors he’d heard, ready to re-evaluate Ming Ruan.

But trying to close the distance this way was clearly not a good choice.

Xie Gewen looked at Ming Ruan with a disapproving gaze.

Under that gaze, a connection suddenly clicked in Ming Ruan’s mind. He asked in surprise, “Ah, do you want to wash yourself?”

After the initial fright, Ming Ruan hadn’t felt the slightest aggression from the Gray Wolf. He gradually relaxed.

Plus, the Gray Wolf’s actions and gaze seemed very rational and human-like. Ming Ruan instinctively slipped into customer-service mode, praising exaggeratedly: “Baby, you’re amazing! You can bathe yourself! So smart! Are you sure you don’t need my help?”

Xie Gewen: “…………”

The air in the Bathroom froze.

One minute later, Ming Ruan left the Bathroom, looking back three times with each step. At one point, he tried to peek through the gap in the door, but the Gray Wolf’s calm stare drove him away.

Ming Ruan wasn’t angry at being stared at. His eyes curved in a good mood, humming softly under his breath, poking around on his Light Brain.

A moment later, he walked over to the Teleporter. Making a few mysterious gestures, he muttered something under his breath.

【What little scheme is he up to now?】

【Why can’t the camera move to the front? So frustrating!】

“Come forth—” Ming Ruan’s voice was sacred and majestic, “tomato!”

The Teleporter just happened to deliver the ingredients Ming Ruan had bought online earlier—the Executor had a dedicated shopping channel for the Sanatorium Zone, so ordering regular daily necessities or ingredients cost nothing.

Like a little diligent squirrel, he carried the ingredients into the kitchen in batches.

Since the Gray Wolf didn’t need his attention, the next task was—dinner time!

【…】

【I have six points to make below…】

【I can’t take it anymore!! I’m an idiot for wasting more time in this live room!!】

Half an hour later.

Ming Ruan expertly flipped skewers on an interstellar-style barbecue grill. There were meat and vegetable skewers. The perfectly marbled meat, sizzling over the fire, glistened with oil. Yellow pineapple chunks lost their tartness under the heat, leaving only mouthwatering sweetness. The overbearing aroma of meat mixed with the scent of nearby mushrooms and vegetables, making mouths water uncontrollably.

He took the prepared seasoning, brushing half the skewers with sauce and sprinkling the other half with a dry rub. Crunchy nuts, chili powder, and cumin mixed with the meat fat, competing fiercely with the rich, savory fragrance of the sauce nearby.

【Hello, let me reintroduce myself: I’m an idiot.】

【Holy crap!! He can cook!! Mama, wuwu, why does it have to be Ming Ruan!! I’m so conflicted.】

Ming Ruan lowered his head for a taste, very satisfied with the texture of these replicated interstellar ingredients.

He simply stood there and started eating.

Enthusiastically demolishing more than half of what was on the grill. Suddenly, he turned his head alertly.

A silver-white wolf was sitting a few steps away, simply watching him.

Watching the skewers in his hand.

Ming Ruan: “…”

Ming Ruan quietly swallowed the unchewed mouthful with difficulty.

Xie Gewen had been drawn by the pervasive, irresistible aroma.

Of course, he hadn’t intended to stare at someone else’s food. It was very rude.

Xie Gewen himself didn’t realize the gaze he was directing at those skewers was practically dripping with longing.

“So that’s your real color!”

The youth’s clean voice, full of admiration, sounded right by his ear.

Xie Gewen jolted back to reality, his pair of Colorpoint ears flattening back against his head in surprise.

“But you can’t eat this.” Ming Ruan stood up, moving his half-eaten skewer farther away.

The gentleness in Xie Gewen’s eyes rapidly receded, replaced instantly by ice.

Can’t eat. He knew that.

The moment a person underwent Therianthropy, they were worlds apart from humans. Once-habitual foods would now cause anything from fur loss to vomiting to death.

They could only, as blood-drinking, flesh-eating fierce beasts, abandon their human thoughts and bury their heads in the carcasses of prey…

Xie Gewen could never forget the first time after his transformation, forcing himself to eat. The body’s undeniable craving, and the psychological revulsion.

For many days, he would eat endlessly, vomit endlessly.

Until he was completely numb.

Xie Gewen’s heart began to sink uncontrollably, sinking into that mire of the past.

But then came the youth’s light voice: “But I saved some unseasoned ones for you!”

Ming Ruan laboriously lifted a huge handful of giant skewers, waving them before Xie Gewen’s eyes. “I don’t know if you’ll like it.”

He moved the grill to the floor and simply sat down cross-legged himself.

Xie Gewen was stunned.

He watched the youth pat the floor beside him, beckoning, “Come on~” while offering a skewer to his mouth.

The meat had been carefully washed of surface grime and blood, cut into neat cubes, and skewered. A small Berry was tucked between several chunks of meat.

The meat was still raw.

Needlessly interspersed with Berries.

Skewering them just made it more inconvenient for a Beast to eat.

The rational Xie Gewen coolly listed these pointless efforts.

His claws unconsciously pressed hard into the floor, scratching the floorboards.

Yet deep inside, it was as if something was stirring, trying to break through that mire, struggling towards the light.

The youth treated him this way.

As if, right at this moment, he wasn’t some Beastman.

But like he used to be, a ‘person.’

He paused for a long, long time. Just as Ming Ruan was about to withdraw his hand, Xie Gewen slowly opened his mouth, taking care not to show his fangs, and bit onto the skewer extended toward him.

Ming Ruan pulled the stick out with a sweep!

The meat was successfully stripped off!

“Oh my god!! Baby, you’re so skilled!” Ming Ruan immediately praised loudly, as if the Gray Wolf had solved some age-old problem.

Xie Gewen: “…”

After the meal, Ming Ruan kept waiting for a message to know whether the boss intended to keep the Gray Wolf under observation for the night, or release him directly back into the Outdoor Area.

He never expected that the Gray Wolf, who had maintained such a sense of distance and restraint, would, after dinner, voluntarily walk to the cushion laid out on the floor in the Living Room and lie down.

Meaning he was staying the night?

Ah.

A sense of pride welled up in Ming Ruan.

It seemed the wolf liked him after all!

Xie Gewen feigned sleep with his eyes closed for a long, long time, until all movement in Ming Ruan’s bedroom completely ceased.

In the darkness, the Gray Wolf opened its glowing eyes. It stood up, effortlessly passed the main door’s identity verification, and walked outside.

The Gray Wolf’s gait was steady, its muscles rippling with each movement. It no longer showed any sign of the severe injury from midday.

Outside the door, a tall, blurry figure stood in the shadows.

The person raised a hand clad in black leather gloves, adjusting the brim of his cap. On the cap, a golden badge reflected the moonlight.