??? POV:

“Please….” He whimpered softly.

“Please don’t leave me. I’m scared…. I don’t want to be alone again.”

When I heard his voice, all of my doubts concerning his identity vanished. His eyes were slowly tearing up and his voice was filled with fear – fear that I might leave him.

Like all children, he is just a small child who is afraid of being alone, afraid of being cast away by their family. Just because he looks different from the rest of his siblings, that doesn’t give me the right to cast him away. I looked as his small quivering figure, whose eyes were filled with fear, begging for me not to abandon him. The sight made my heart fill with guilt.

He is not just some random creature that just so happened to be birthed by me, he is my son.

I was ashamed of doubting his identity as my son, even for a minute. I hugged his trembling body in an attempt to calm him down.

“It’s ok, Mommy is here.” I replied soothingly. “Mommy won’t abandon you. You’re my child, and always will be. We’re family, and nobody is going to change that fact.”

His siblings snuggled around him, as if they were agreeing with me. They rubbed their snouts against his fur, as if they were accepting him as part of our family.

Suddenly, a wave us dizziness washed over me, making my vision blurry. My stomach growled, signaling that I was hungry. I looked around the den, in search for any remaining scraps of food that might have been left behind.

Disappointed that I couldn’t find any leftovers, I shifted my hunches and sat down, attempting to force down my hunger.

I was tempted to leave the den to hunt for food. However, I was in no condition to do so. Giving birth to 6 pups had exhausted me mentally and physically. Even if I had the energy to hunt, I would be putting my pups in risk of being attacked by other predators while I was away. With no options available to me, I had no choice but to try and control my hunger.

I could only wish for Ragna to return home quickly.

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Aaron’s POV:

Warm.

That was what I felt when my mother hugged me.

Her warm embrace calmed me down as my muscles lost its tension to the air. My body relaxed as I felt the heat integrate into my body.

“It’s ok, Mommy is here.” She replied soothingly. “Mommy won’t abandon you. You’re my child, and always will be. We’re family, and nobody is going to change that fact.”

Family….

That was something that I thought I had lost when my previous mother abandoned me. The warm embrace from a loving parent, the affection from the one you trust the most, I thought I had lost them all.

However in my second life, I was able to experience what I thought was out of my reach. Unbeknownst to me, I had broken into a smile.

Thank you, Mithra.

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My siblings snuggled around me as they rubbed their snouts against my fur, as if they were welcoming me to the family. In response, I rubbed my snout against theirs’, grateful for the affection shown by my siblings.

Suddenly, I heard a loud growl, startling me. I looked up and noticed that the growl was coming from my mother’s stomach, signaling that she was hungry.

She looked around the den in search for food. Disappointed that she couldn’t find any leftovers, she shifted her hunches and sat down, attempting to control her hunger. Despite her efforts, I could still hear her stomach growling. She must be really hungry after giving birth to us.

I’ve also noticed something else.

Where is my father?

So far, I have only seen my mother, but not my father. I scanned the entire area, hoping to find him, but he was nowhere in sight. I deduced that he was busy hunting for food in order to feed the family. I hope he comes back soon. Mother looks like she is about to starve.

Curious to know what Mother’s stats were, I used the skill [Appraisal] on her.

*Triing*

Name: Alpine Lupinai

Race: Elemental Wolf (Fire)

Status: Tired, Hungry

Bloodline: lupus elementa ignis

Level: 68

HP: 8700/8700

MP: 7500/7500

Str: 74

Agi: 78

Vit: 81

Def: 65

End: 54

Int: 76

Wis: 72

[Passive skills]

[Wolf language] [Advanced Mana Control: Lv 3] [Greater Fire resistance: Lv 8] [Lightning resistance: Lv 4] [Keen smell] [Regeneration: Lv 4] [Advanced hearing Lv 9] [Night vision]

[Active skills]

[Scratch: Lv 10] [Paw swipe: Lv 10] [Roar: Lv 10] [Advanced Fire magic: Lv 7] [Bite: Lv 10] [Fire coat: Lv 10] [Mirage fire: Lv 9] [Berserker: Lv 7] [True sight: Lv 9]

[Affinity]

[Fire affinity: 96%]

[Titles]

[Flame of the forest] [Incinerator] [Flaming terror] [Mother]

When I looked at her status, I was surprised to see a stat which I don’t have. Curious to know what the stat was, I quickly appraised it.

*Triing*

Endurance [End]

This stat increases your pain threshold as well as your stamina.

-Can be obtained by enduring an unpleasant or difficult process or situation without giving way.

-Synergises with the stat [Def]

*Increases one’s defense if endurance is high enough

-Can be increased by leveling up

The endurance stat looked very useful. Not only does it increases one’s pain threshold and stamina, it also increases my defense stat too. I have to find a way to obtain it.

Just when I wanted to use [Appraisal] on my skills which uses I do not know, a large grey wolf entered our cave, startling me.

It was dragging a carcass of a dead deer that was almost as big as him. The deer had a silvery grey coat and sharp ivory colored horns that were stained with blood. It would have been a beautiful beast – if it wasn’t for the fact that it was badly mutilated and dragged across the floor like a sack doll.

I looked inquisitively at the newcomer, wondering who he was when suddenly he shouted,

“Dinner is ready!”