The Ugly Duckling Of The Tiger Tribe-Chapter 149: Do I look like I’m in danger to you?

I looked from the trembling, wide-eyed boy to the adults, who were shivering so hard I thought their bones might rattle. They were like a flock of prey that had walked straight into a dragon’s den—a flock of very fluffy-eared, terrified prey.

So, rabbits lived on this side of the world, huh? It was no wonder the greenery was so lush and well-kept.

"Please," the boy whimpered, pressing his face flat against the dirt, his long ears drooping in total submission. "Don’t eat us, Mr. Snake."

I looked at them quietly, a part of me feeling a strange mix of pity and disbelief. They had followed a snake’s trail all this way without a shred of caution.

Just look at them—anyone could hear their teeth chattering and their bones rattling. You’d think they had a grand plan for what to do when they finally caught up to a dangerous predator, but they didn’t. They just recklessly followed the trail.

What were they going to do if Damar had been a wild snake beastman who didn’t mind having a family of rabbits for dessert?

I needed to clear their doubts before their hearts gave out from pure terror. I squatted in front of them, and though the adults tried to shield the boy, it wasn’t exactly an effective defense.

"Don’t worry, I won’t bite," I said, trying to keep my voice gentle. "First things first: why did you follow Damar—I mean, my mate’s trail?"

"Y-your mate?" They looked at me in pure disbelief, then glanced up at Damar.

Damar was just at the side, arms folded across his chest, his emerald eyes peering into their very souls. One look was enough to send them into a fresh fit of shivers, and they looked away immediately.

"How... how can you take a snakeman as your mate? It’s dangerous!"

I felt a flash of irritation. I didn’t expect a warm welcome, but dissing my mate to my face made my blood simmer. I frowned, my gaze turning serious.

"Do I look like I’m in danger to you?" I asked. "What’s wrong with having a snakeman as my mate?"

"B-but..."

I saw the confusion and hesitation in their eyes. It looked like they held the same prejudices as every other beastman I’d ever met. Well, it didn’t matter.

"You’re the ones in danger here for following my mate and sneaking up on us while we were sleeping," I explained, leaning in a little closer. "So, you’ll have to give me one reason why I shouldn’t consider you more dangerous than my ’snakeman’ husband. And..." I gave them a sharp glare. "It better be good."

The boy shivered and buried his face in the dirt. "This female is scary," he mumbled to himself.

"Excuse me," one of the adults spoke up, his nose twitching frantically. "Is it true... that this snake beastman is your mate?"

"I just said that," I replied flatly. "As well as the snow tiger behind me. They are both my mates."

He looked even more uncertain now, glancing between Damar’s silver elegance and Fenric’s massive, muscular frame. Finally, he summoned the courage to speak again.

"Then... does that mean he is tame?"

I narrowed my eyes. The wording was rude, but I suppose it was the only way they could wrap their heads around it.

"Yes. He’s not a wild beastman who goes on a killing spree just because he’s a predator," I explained.

The rabbit man nodded, his anxiety fading slightly, though he didn’t let his guard down. Even if we weren’t ’wild,’ there were still three powerful beastmen before them. They could never outrun my boys.

"Enough of that." I stood up, straightening my back and looking down at them. "Now tell me. Why did you follow Damar’s trail here?"

The eldest rabbit took a shaky breath. He explained that they hadn’t come to fight, but to confirm if a predator had indeed crossed into their lands. The young boy had seen Damar earlier, and they wanted to be sure he wasn’t raising a false alarm before they alerted the whole village.

"And now that you’ve confirmed there is indeed a predator?" I asked, crossing my arms. "What are you going to do now?"

The rabbit man lowered his head, cold sweat rolling down his chin as the thought of them not leaving there alive after the words he was about to say. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

"We have nothing to do but alert the others so they know not to cross your path. We are a peaceful tribe. We only wish to stay hidden."

I looked at the adult being so humble. He must be scared out of his wits.

"Well, lucky you. We don’t plan on doing anything to you," I assured him, glancing back at our small fire. "We were just passing through, anyway, so we aren’t looking for a fight."

The rabbits looked at each other, a flicker of hope appearing in their eyes.

But then I noticed the eldest rabbit’s eyes drift toward the edge of the clearing. He was staring at the pile of discarded feathers shimmering under the moonlight. His face didn’t just show sadness—it was filled with a sudden, crushing worry that made his ears droop slightly.

"What’s wrong?" I asked, my voice softening. "Is it the feathers?"

The rabbit-man flinched, his ears twitching upright as he tried to pull his gaze away.

"It... it is nothing. They are just feathers."

But something told me it was more than that. He was looking at the feathers like they were something precious.

"I had planned to use the feathers as a nice decoration on the top I was still sewing," I said. "Does it symbolize anything here?"

"No, it... It doesn’t."

Then why was he so fidgety?

Something was definitely up. Just looking at how much he was sweating now, I could tell it was a more serious matter than I knew of.

"Please do not concern yourself." He said, bowing his head one more time. "It was but a tribal matter. We will manage."

"Manage? You’re shaking so hard your knees are knocking," I said, stepping closer. I didn’t want to be a bully, but I knew that look. That was the look of someone staring down a disaster they couldn’t stop. "Talk to me. There’s no way to solve a problem by keeping it to yourself. If it has something to do with those fowls then we are already involved."