Baby System: I'm the Beast World's Only Hope!-Chapter 40: Episode : Vorn’s Fight with Kaelen.

The Wolf King strode into the clearing, carrying an entire elk across his shoulders.

He was shirtless, despite the cold. His skin, once pale and gaunt, was now flushed with health. The hollows of his cheeks had filled in, making him look less like a skull and more like a god.

If he looked just handsome, now he really looked more carved by the gods. The fuck?

Roxy gulped, pressing her thighs to stop the ache between her legs. Kaelen was tanned and looking so hot with sweat dripping down his body; his back was broad.

His muscles, fueled by Roxy’s intense diet of steak, potatoes, and protein shakes, were popping.

He dropped the elk near the fire pit and looked straight at Roxy. He stared at her with that intense, hungry look that made her thighs clench.

He walked over to her, wiping sweat from his chest.

"I caught the biggest one," Kaelen announced, puffing out his chest. "For you."

"Good boy," Roxy teased, handing him a towel she had stocked up for all twenty houses. "But did you take your vitamins?"

"I took the orange squares," Kaelen confirmed. He stepped onto the porch, towering over her. "I feel pumped."

"That’s called energy, Kaelen," Roxy said, patting his arm. It felt like rock, and she gulped, imagining all the naughty things he could do to her. "You’ve been running on empty for so long you forgot what a full tank feels like."

He grabbed her hand, pressing it against his chest. His heart was beating strong and steady, a powerful rhythm.

"I am strong," he rasped, leaning down until his lips brushed her ear. "Strong enough to fill you. Tonight?"

Roxy swallowed hard. The [System Analysis] floated over his head.

[Target: Kaelen (Wolf King)]

[Health: 85% (Recovering)]

[Sperm Count: Rising... Moderate.]

[Conception Probability: 40%]

It was getting better. But it wasn’t a guarantee yet.

And Roxy didn’t want to go through another session just to get a failure notification. She wanted a sure thing.

"Not tonight, Wolfy," Roxy whispered, pushing him back gently. "You still have a lot of work to do. Give it a few more days."

Kaelen growled, a sound of pure frustration, but he nodded. He trusted her. If she said wait, he would wait. But the look in his eyes promised that when the wait was over, he wasn’t going to be gentle.

And that didn’t go unnoticed to Roxy.

She was also preparing herself by exercising every morning and eating good food.

***

Dinner that night was a spectacle.

Roxy had prepared a [Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup] using ingredients from her inventory and the wild birds the pack had caught. It was rich, thick, and loaded with heavy cream and butter.

The pack gathered around the fire, their bowls full. The sound of slurping and contented sighs filled the air.

Except for one spot.

Vorn sat at the edge of the firelight, gnawing on a raw, stringy piece of rabbit he had caught himself. He watched the others eating the "soft food" with disgust. He would never agree to Roxy’s words.

He was the only one who looked out of place because of his own stubbornness. Even his own mate looked healthier and beautiful every time he saw her, and despite how many times he mated with her, she wouldn’t conceive.

But he was still not budging. Because he believed in the concept of starving pulls out a resolute pack.

"Look at them," Vorn muttered to the young wolf next to him. "Fat. Slow. They will not be able to run when the dragons come."

Roxy heard him. She heard everything. She scoffed.

Always the stubborn ones.

She ladled a massive portion of soup into a bowl and walked over to him. "Vorn," she said, holding it out. "Just try it. It has rosemary."

Vorn looked at the bowl. It smelled delicious. His stomach roared in protest against the rabbit. But his pride was a stubborn thing.

He slapped the bowl out of her hand. It crashed to the ground, splashing hot soup over Roxy’s slippers.

Roxy gasped, stepping back and thanking the heavens it didn’t touch her.

Or she would have committed murder.

The entire clearing went dead silent. Kaelen was on his feet in a second, a roar ripping from his throat. "VORN!"

He shifted, his human form exploding into the massive Silver Wolf. He lunged across the fire, tackling Vorn to the ground. Jaws snapped. Vorn shifted too, a smaller, darker wolf, but he was fast.

They rolled in the dirt, snarling and biting.

Roxy watched them. She knew that if she didn’t stop this now, Kaelen might end up killing Vorn, losing their own. This was a fight for power.

She knew that Vorn was biting back because if he won, it would prove to the rest of the pack that they didn’t need to fatten up.

But the result was already clear as day.

"Stop!" Roxy shouted. "Kaelen! Down!"

Kaelen froze, his jaws clamped around Vorn’s throat. He looked at Roxy, waiting for the order to kill. Vorn was pinned, whining, his defiance crumbling under the Alpha’s sheer power.

"Let him up," Roxy commanded quietly.

Kaelen released him and shifted back, standing naked and furious in the firelight. "He dishonors Luna!"

Roxy looked at Vorn, who shifted back into his human form. He was panting, bleeding from a scratch on his shoulder. He looked humiliated.

"I don’t need you to kill him, Kaelen," Roxy said, her voice cold. She looked Vorn dead in the eye. "He’s punishing himself enough."

She pointed to Vorn’s ribs, still visible through his skin. Then she pointed to Kaelen, who looked like a Greek statue.

"Look at your King, Vorn. Look at how strong he is getting. And then look at yourself."

She stepped closer, ignoring the spilled soup.

"You’re holding onto the old ways because you’re scared," she said softly. "You think suffering proves you’re worthy. But look around. My way isn’t making them soft. It’s making them alive."

She turned and walked back to the cabin.

"Clean up this mess, Vorn. And if you get hungry later... the pot is still full."

She left him there, staring at the spilled soup, his stomach growling louder than his pride.

[Ding!]

[Mission Update: The Fattening]

[Progress: 80%]

[Next Step: The Alpha is Ripe..]