The Ugly Duckling Of The Tiger Tribe

Chapter 427: We seek… settlement

As I turned back toward the main gates, the scouts signaled.

"Queen! They are here."

"Already?"

"Yes, the Leopard immigrants have reached the inner courtyard."

So, I’ve been thinking of accepting more citizens into our great kingdom. But we can’t just accept anyone who comes to our doorstep without a proper screening.

Because they might have hidden objectives, I make sure we know why they are here and if they are willing to cooperate with our laws. Just last month, we had the Jaguar beastmen migrating over to our side because of an erosion that destroyed their settlement.

They are beastmen with skin as dark as a jaguar’s flesh, but eyes as green as Damar, and they are honestly very pretty. They’d work well as models if they were in the 21st century.

The males from all over have eyes on their females, but the females aren’t that easy to please. They aren’t prideful, but they seem to have high standards. Well, the males in their tribe are of high standard too, so I can only tell why.

Anyway, that’s that. Now, it was time to take in the Leopards. I hope we can get herbivore immigrants next, but I see the problem if there aren’t any. It’s not easy to travel this far since they could be attacked and eaten on the way.

So we have to be the ones to bring them here. I’ll see to that later once I get word that there are herbivores that can work the farms still stuck in their little villages.

I adjusted my top and let out a sigh. Let’s just get this over with.

The Leopards were led in, looking much like the Stormhole tribe had two months ago: ragged, starving, and blinking at the stone pillars as if they’d stumbled into a god’s realm.

But my focus shifted when I heard the frantic pitter-patter of feet.

"Mama! Mama! Look! Spotted kitties!"

Raiden and Phina came charging out of the palace, Raiden nearly tripping over a loose stone in his excitement, but Phina was there to offer her support.

Those two were really close. Not like they weren’t close to Lyra, but she had her own schedule, you see.

Lyra was right behind them, but she wasn’t running; she was marching. At nearly nine months, she had already mastered the ’Queen Mother’ walk.

"Stay back, Raiden," Lyra commanded, her little voice surprisingly stern. "New kitties need to bow first."

"Oh, for heaven’s sake," I muttered, but I couldn’t hide my grin.

Yeah, and at nearly nine months, my babies have established their vocabulary like they were five, growing at such a fast rate that someone from my world would have problems believing they hadn’t clocked one year yet.

Their limbs were straight, they were adept at using shoes, they were already talking like smart asses, and Lyra will dethrone me soon.

The thought made me grin even wider. Yup, those were my kids.

Then came the sheep helper girls, carrying my little troublemakers. Kaito and Marina were only two months old, but they were already a handful. Just like the triplets, they have super-fast growth.

And because they had been born in human form, they were way faster when it came to crawling. How is it possible for babies that were just two months old to crawl already?

It’s never going to make sense to me.

But Thalor did say that the mer folks grow very fast because there are dangerous things in the water. And also, they rarely cry.

It’s a relief, actually. Because if they were like newborns always wailing, I’d have had a concussion due to the stress, and my queen duties included.

And then, one might wonder why I consider them a handful if they didn’t cry often.

Well, they already had their naming ceremony last week, but you know what? They can’t help but be terrorists around anyone who wasn’t Lyra. They bite. And I’m not saying they have teeth yet, but there’s something about their mouth that gets your skin prickly in their mouths.

Even I was on the receiving end of the scrutiny. I was the leader of their enemies, it seemed. Sigh. They were adorable, but how did I raise those brats?

So Lyra is in charge of watching and playing with her younger ones with the two female sheep’s supervision. That’s why I said she has other schedules.

They are only nice to me when they need their hourly milk.

Anyway, back to business. As the Leopards approached, the twins’ tiger-gold eyes locked onto the newcomers with an intensity that made the lead Leopard male flinch, and he didn’t even know why.

Their purple hair was a wild halo around their heads, and Marina let out a tiny, melodic coo that sounded suspiciously like a hunting siren call.

"Welcome to the West Way," I said, diverting the attention from my little troublemakers. I stood tall as the Leopards dropped to their knees, their eyes darting from my purple-haired sea-heirs to the fierce guards patrolling the walls.

"We seek... settlement," the head Leopard stammered. "We heard the Queen of the West Way welcomes those who work."

"I do," I said, my voice warming just a fraction. "As long as you are useful, there is always a place here for you in the West Way. But remember this: the predator and the prey live together here. We build, we do not tear down. If you can handle that, there is a place for you. If not..." I pointed at the forest they had come from. "The forest is that way."

The leopards bowed their heads and said,

"We come from nothing. If you can give us purpose and a roof over our heads, we will abide by your rules and use our strengths to assist the growth of this kingdom." He said, and I smiled triumphantly.

"Good. Then, you are more than welcome."

The West Way was growing. It was chaotic, loud, and full of beastmen who still didn’t quite understand how a coin worked, but as I looked at the new houses and the children playing near the fountain, I knew one thing for sure.

The vipers were gone, and all that remains is the peace we crave to keep.