Chapter 1
The once peaceful Astrofel family was thrown into complete chaos overnight.
An unprecedented incident had occurred.
It all began with a mysterious egg of unknown origin.
It was absurdly small and looked somewhat defective—then suddenly, chirp—chirp, a baby bird broke out of it.
No one knew how it had ended up mixed among the eggs meant to become heirs.
Baon, who had been in charge of managing the eggs this time, was sweating nervously.
“Could it be… that someone placed it there as food for the newborn young masters?”
“Do you want to be thrown in as food?”
“I misspoke.”
Baon quickly corrected himself and stepped back. The man before him was more than capable of doing exactly that.
Kaide Astrofel.
He was the head of the Astrofel family, leading the entire clan from the front.
A man who possessed overwhelming power in his manifested form, along with a cruel and violent temperament to match—more than anyone else in the clan.
His ominous aura, along with his black hair and red eyes, were the very symbol of the Astrofel family.
He probably wouldn’t actually throw Baon in as food—but Baon knew that if he didn’t behave, he wouldn’t even be able to collect his bones afterward.
Clearing his throat, Baon continued.
“I checked for any pheromones from a guardian, but there were no such traces.”
“Was it abandoned?”
“That’s a possibility. Otherwise…”
Perhaps the guardian could no longer care for it.
Either way, it wasn’t good news for a newborn chick.
It meant it had nowhere to return to.
“It seems its slow development was due to not properly absorbing pheromones.”
“I see.”
“What shall we do?”
Baon asked how to handle the chick.
Kaide looked into the basket on the desk.
Even as they were discussing its fate, the chick had tucked its beak under its wing and was sleeping soundly, curled up in a ball.
It was completely carefree.
Unaware of what awaited it.
For a newborn, having no guardian meant death.
In another family, it might be protected until adulthood—but not here.
The Astrofel family strictly followed the law of the jungle: survival of the fittest.
Weak beings were not welcomed.
“Throw it outside the territory somewhere.”
“Understood.”
As expected, Baon picked up the basket to carry out the order.
At that moment, a small head suddenly popped up from inside.
“Chirp?”
The chick had woken up.
Tilting its head as if trying to understand the situation, it awkwardly flapped its small, chubby wings that didn’t yet work properly.
Then it noticed its own wings—and panicked in shock.
Kaide frowned.
“The egg was small. Looks like its brain has problems too.”
“…Still, it’s quite cute.”
“Don’t talk nonsense.”
“Are you really going to throw it away?”
At that moment, the chick suddenly froze.
It was as if it understood their conversation.
If it had been born a snake, it wouldn’t have been strange—but as a bird, it was unusual.
Still, it seemed it hadn’t completely failed to absorb pheromones in the egg.
It appeared to understand the clan’s language to some extent.
Baon’s eyes gleamed with interest.
“Then I’ll throw it away.”
“Chirp!”
“It’s the head of the family’s order.”
“Chirp! Chirp!”
Without taking his eyes off the chick, Baon spoke flatly, as if reading from a script.
Each time, the chick reacted frantically, flapping its wings.
Baon observed it closely once more.
As expected.
Faintly, he could sense a pheromone—and surprisingly, it carried Kaide’s signature.
“I can sense your pheromones, my lord.”
“I know.”
“…Even so, will you still abandon it? If it’s thrown outside, it’ll be torn apart immediately.”
“You’re not suggesting we raise it in my family, are you?”
A dark, oppressive pheromone rippled outward.
Overwhelmed by the poisonous aura, Baon stepped back awkwardly.
“Chirp… chirp…”
The chick trembled in fear at Kaide’s pheromones.
Seeing it burrow into the blanket, crying in terror, Kaide paused and withdrew his aura.
“Chirp… chirp…”
The chick cried pitifully, desperately looking for someone.
Kaide pressed his forehead.
It was a well-known fact: a newborn would recognize the one who supplied it with pheromones at birth as its guardian.
Even though it was afraid, the chick kept crying while looking at him.
Their eyes met.
Clicking his tongue, Kaide waved his hand dismissively.
“Do as you please, Baon.”
What on earth is going on?
I still couldn’t believe what had happened to me.
Was I dreaming?
I rubbed my eyes, but nothing changed.
How… am I alive?
Originally, I had been a young beastkin living alone, hidden in a small territory in the east.
I didn’t even know what I was—only that I could walk on four legs and had a tail.
No one had ever told me.
Because I had no guardian.
It wasn’t unusual for a young beastkin to live alone in the east.
The strong families constantly fought over territory, and bloodshed was common.
Barely surviving day by day, my last memory was being chased by a terrifying beast.
I had been certain I would die.
And yet… here I was, alive.
And when I opened my eyes—
I was a bird.
A bird?
I’m a bird?
In shock, I tried to cover my eyes—but saw my small, chubby wings instead.
“Chirp!!”
No way!
I shook my head violently.
At first, I thought maybe I was mistaken—but no matter how I looked at it, they were wings.
Trying to escape reality, I buried my face into the blanket.
The soft texture almost distracted me—but I snapped back to my senses.
What is going on?
Anxiety crept in as I looked around.
No one was explaining anything.
And then—
“You’re not suggesting we raise it in my family, are you?”
Even if I’m a bird… calling me “it” is too much.
Hmph.
I sighed and flopped down.
Too much had happened in such a short time.
I had just woken up, and I was already exhausted.
Sway… sway…
Letting my body rock with the basket, I looked at the man called Baon.
Where is he taking me?
He’s not really going to throw me outside the territory… right?
In this body, I can’t survive alone.
To be alone again right after being born…
It made me feel miserable.
Looks like I’m alone in this life too.
As if noticing my gaze, Baon’s pale blue eyes met mine.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Chirp. Chirp. Chirp…”
“I have no idea what you’re saying.”
“Chirp chirp! Chirp!”
“If others find out there’s a bird here, someone might come to eat you. A snake, perhaps…”
Gasp!
I covered my beak with my tiny wings.
Curling up, I looked around anxiously—then Baon suddenly leaned his face close to the basket.
“No matter how I look at it, it’s fascinating. That you understand speech.”
His blue pupils narrowed vertically.
I shut my eyes tightly.
Oh no… he really is a snake.
I’m a bird… and Baon is a snake.
I had heard that snakes were natural predators of birds—my feathers stood on end.
“I was joking.”
“Chirp…?”
“It wouldn’t even be a mouthful.”
Baon said lightly.
I sighed in relief.
Becoming a bird really made everything feel… bird-like.
Now I had to worry about being eaten by a snake right after being born.
What a pitiful situation.
While staring gloomily at the bottom of the basket, Baon suddenly stopped walking.
“This will be your home from now on. Since the lord has permitted it, it should be fine.”
