Su Qinglan stood frozen for only a few minutes. Just a few.
And then...
BOOM.
She snapped.
Her lungs expanded, and she unleashed every single curse word she had ever learned in her entire life. And when those ran out, she started inventing new ones.
"You rotten, useless, broken-down, scammy calculator of a system—!" she shrieked in her mind. "You parasite! You leech! You bug in the code of the universe! You... you digital cockroach!!"
She wanted to stomp her foot so hard.
Xuyu made a weak noise.
[B-beep...beep. Host, the connection is not good—]
"DON’T YOU DARE!" Su Qinglan’s fury roared through her skull. "If you dare cut out on me right now, you’ll be dead meat! Forget about your mission! Forget about this world! Let it vanish in dust for all I care!"
Her eyes blazed like fire as she hissed, "You’re not the only one who knows how to disappear when it’s time to work. I can vanish too! Let’s see who wins in the end!"
There was silence.
And then, instantly...
[Ah, host, the connection has been restored!]
Su Qinglan nearly foamed at the mouth.
She clenched her fists so tight she could almost hear her bones creak. If she could drag this system out of her head right now, she would have punched it, kicked it, and thrown it straight off a cliff.
Her chest heaved. She forced herself to breathe in and out, calming down just enough to form words instead of curses.
"Fine," she ground out, "I’ll give you one last chance. Explain this to me. What the actual hell is going on? Why are you dropping beast-husbands on me like candy? First Han Jue, now Rong Ye...what next, huh?!"
She huffed angrily, her face flushing. "What am I supposed to expect in the future? An anaconda?!"
Her voice cracked. "What am I, a damn zookeeper? Collecting animals for my harem?!"
Xuyu perked up immediately.
[Oh, host! If you also wanted an anaconda, you should’ve told me earlier. I could’ve found one for you. If you want any beast at all, just say the word...]
"XUYU! That’s not the point!!" Su Qinglan nearly blew a blood vessel. "I’m asking you WHY I suddenly have so many beast-husbands! Explain it to me right now!"
The system gave a little cough.
[Host, calm down. They are your nominal beast-husbands.]
Su Qinglan froze. "Nominal...?"
[Yes. They were selected by none other than your father.]
"My... father?"
[Correct. He chose powerful beastmen to protect you and ensure your survival. They are already acknowledged as your beast-husbands, but they refused to mate with the original owner. So the bond is not... complete. That is why they are technically your beast-husbands.]
Su Qinglan’s mouth fell open.
Her brain stuttered. "Wait—wait wait wait. You’re telling me... All of them are already my beast husbands?!"
[Correct.]
Her jaw twitched.
The image of all those smug, beautiful beastmen flashed through her mind, and her blood boiled even hotter.
She sucked in a sharp breath. "...Fine. Tell me the truth. Are there more?!"
There was a pause.
Then Xuyu’s voice came back, solemn and dramatic.
[Host, I swear on your very life, there are no more.]
Su Qinglan’s eyebrow twitched so violently it almost flew off her face.
"...Don’t you dare swear on me, you lying system," she hissed. "I don’t want to die early because of your fake oaths."
Her chest heaved as she clutched her head.
Su Qinglan suddenly snapped out of her daze when she felt something warm and heavy settle gently on her shoulder.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABEL
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Clumsy Beast, Keep Your Paws Off