Jiang Ying couldn’t see, but she still instinctively closed her eyes because of Su Heng’s words, “Don’t get distracted.”
The instant the device touched her forehead, a wave of warmth transferred from the machine’s surface to her skin. Just like the scorching body heat of a canine beastman, it made her feel lightheaded.
At the same time, the progress bar on the device began to skyrocket.
The sales clerk’s exclamation drowned out the strange sound from Su Heng’s mechanical arm. Before Jiang Ying could even wonder what that noise was, she heard the clerk’s excited voice.
“One hundred percent! My god! This level of compatibility is unheard of, even in the Federation’s public records!”
One hundred percent?
Su Heng concealed the surprise in his eyes.
The core fighting force in the Federal Frontline Army consisted almost entirely of highly compatible human and beastman pairs.
Such pairings maximized a beastman’s abilities on the battlefield.
The key question—why the Federation had suddenly produced so many high-compatibility combat units in the past two years—was precisely what he was here undercover to investigate.
Now, his compatibility rating with the girl before him had actually reached such an extreme peak. Knowing the rotten nature of the Federation’s rulers, there was no way they would ignore this.
This might just be his breakthrough point.
Su Heng looked at Jiang Ying.
She didn’t seem to have anticipated this situation. She was confused at first, and only after a moment did she show surprise.
As her forehead left the device, the values on the instrument rapidly zeroed out.
The unconscious closeness born from her concentration had left a small, shallow red mark on the skin of her forehead.
Everything about her had a fatal attraction.
Without realizing it, Su Heng found himself staring at that red mark for a long time.
“…”
Stop it.
He commanded himself once more, removing the device and forcing himself to distance himself from her again.
Deprived of the heat source on her forehead, Jiang Ying felt a chill. This finally snapped her out of the trance from the mental power test and she began to process the sales clerk’s words.
What did one hundred percent mental power compatibility mean?
Jiang Ying actually wasn’t very clear.
To an ordinary person, it was a number of little use.
But looking at it right now, it was a huge, pleasant surprise—
“Really… This is truly unbelievable!”
The sales clerk’s voice cracked in astonishment. “You can take this beastman home at ninety percent off! Furthermore, you can report the test result to the Federation. After a review, a specialist will test you again. If the result checks out, your mental compatibility data with this beastman will be entered into the Federation’s records! You’ll receive the corresponding honors and a substantial cash reward!”
The sales clerk was a little incoherent, speedily rattling off a long string of words. Jiang Ying only caught a few key terms:
A 90% discount!
A substantial cash reward!
Choosing a pet really was a matter of fate.
This must be the fate she had recognized at first sight.
“Would you like to test your compatibility with the other three beastmen?” the clerk asked again.
By now, Jiang Ying felt that this beastman named “Su Heng” was perfect in every way.
He was destined to be her dog.
So she shook her head: “No, I’ll take him.”
The other beastmen instantly drooped their heads, letting out sounds of grievance.
Su Heng couldn’t spare any attention for the envious looks of his fellows.
After hearing her words, he suddenly felt as if a soft, vulnerable place deep inside him had been struck.
It was an irresistible feeling.
Joy, excitement, the desire to get closer to her… his eyes were full of her.
And just as he was staring intently at her, Jiang Ying fumbled her way over to him and reached out her arms to hug him.
A “hug” was a luxury for Su Heng.
A human’s hug was something he had never even considered.
He also didn’t know that the embrace of a girl whose body temperature was much lower than his own could actually make him feel warmth and such deep emotion.
Under the shock, Su Heng nearly lost his ability to react.
He stood motionless, accepting his body’s honest desire, sinking into her soft embrace.
This kind of self-indulgence was too dangerous.
If it weren’t for the absolute purity in her eyes, he would almost suspect she was someone the Federation had sent to test him.
Su Heng suppressed his hands, which yearned to embrace her back, struggling internally to push her away.
In the end, the rejection never came. He heard the muffled voice of the girl buried against his chest.
“Come home with me?”
Jiang Ying softly called his name, “Is that okay, A Heng?”
After speaking, she released the arms wrapped around him.
His chest immediately felt empty.
But his mind kept replaying the way she addressed him.
Su Heng had never been called so intimately.
He didn’t know how to respond.
“I’ve heard before that you’re supposed to give a dog a nickname that only its owner knows. That way, if the dog gets lost and is picked up by someone else, the owner still has a way to prove it’s their puppy.”
She continued to herself, “I’ve always wanted a puppy of my own, to give him two names. But you already have a name. Calling you by your full name all the time seems too formal.”
“From now on, in public, I’ll just call you A Heng. This way, if you ever get lost, I’ll be the only one who knows your full name, and I can prove I’m your—” she pondered, “—owner?”
“…”
He couldn’t help but look down at her.
So what had disturbed his state of mind was nothing more than a common, unremarkable gesture and a term of address completely devoid of any flirtatious intent.
Just like coaxing a little dog.
It didn’t require any extra thought at all.
Su Heng sighed: “I won’t get lost.”
“You don’t need to use that method to prove our relationship.”
“I only… recognize you.”
Jiang Ying responded with a dazed “Oh,” as if she still couldn’t distinguish the difference between a beastman and a pet puppy.
She even seemed to think his sigh was an expression of dissatisfaction.
So, as she stepped away from him, she seemed to want to coax him a little more and reached out to pat his head. But given their height difference, her raised hand only barely brushed across his shoulder.
Once, twice, leaving her scent on his shoulder.
A gesture similar to marking.
Su Heng knew she didn’t mean it that way.
What baffled him was that the action of head-patting—something he normally found both offensive and something he resisted—was something he now felt he could actually accept.
Even.
Once he realized she really enjoyed doing it and became even happier afterward, he began to anticipate her patting him again.
Touching him more.
The genes domesticated by humans flowed in the body of a canine beastman.
This was the first time Su Heng recognized this fact so clearly.
The instant her fingertips left him, he even felt a surge of disappointment.
And when she added a “Good doggy,” that disappointment instantly vanished without a trace.
“So, are you willing to come home with me?”
She asked once more, without a hint of impatience.
But I’m not… a dog.
Su Heng wanted to retort, but the words reached his lips and ultimately became a muffled “Mm” caught in his throat.
Receiving his confirmation, visible delight spread across Jiang Ying’s face.
She turned her head toward the sales clerk again and repeated, “I’ll take him.”
Seeing their high mental compatibility level, the clerk had no reason to stop it.
Their current interaction was a bit strange, but having witnessed all kinds of “quirks” between customers, the clerk was unflappable.
She led the other three beastmen away and efficiently prepared two copies of the contract, handing them to Jiang Ying and Su Heng respectively.
“Once the contract is signed, the employment relationship begins immediately. Contracts signed at the Beastman Occupation Reception Center are all equal relationships. If either party violates the terms, the other party may terminate the contract at any time. Before signing, please read the contract’s precautions carefully.”
Speech-to-text reading was too inefficient. The contract provided by the Occupation Reception Center for the visually impaired was in a braille version.
Jiang Ying stroked her fingertips over the raised dots, quickly reading the content.
The contract specifically emphasized the equal relationship between the contracting parties.
Beastmen encompassed many races; the human employer should make a sincere effort to understand them.
She carefully read Su Heng’s data.
Primary Gene: Blue Bay Shepherd Dog
A fusion of German Shepherd and wolfdog lineage. Beyond intelligence and loyalty, it possesses a wild charm.
Beastmen of this race have high loyalty, stable temperaments, and possess both vigilance and friendliness. They are suitable for work as family companion beastmen.
Secondary Gene: Black Panther
One of the top predator genes among beastmen.
Beastmen of this race have a strong territorial instinct and typically display intense aggression toward creatures that trespass in their territory.
Their superior explosive power, speed, and environmental adaptability give them naturally powerful combat abilities. They typically serve as members of the beastman army, exerting the pinnacle of their capabilities on the battlefield.
Not recommended for work as a family companion beastman.
Safety Assessment
Because genetic instability is exponentially amplified in beastmen, those fused with multiple genes have a higher probability of entering a Berserk state and losing their humanity.
Therefore, a comprehensive safety assessment has been conducted.
Assessment results:
This beastman meets all safety standards.
Possesses high obedience. No obvious manifestation of genetic instability has been observed.
Meets the requirements for a family companion beastman.
Precautions
As the primary gene is canine, it is recommended that the employer study canine training knowledge to cultivate a good human-dog relationship with this type of beastman.
Additionally, a beastman’s work requires a balance of work and rest.
The Blue Bay Shepherd and Black Panther genes dictate a need for a significant amount of daily exercise. The employer should provide the beastman with time for both exercise and rest.
…
One moment suitable, the next unsuitable. It made Jiang Ying a bit dizzy.
But since the final outcome was acceptable and her own perception hadn’t sensed any problem, this doggy should still be quite easy to get along with.
The balance of work and rest was easy too; she basically stayed at home. When she didn’t need the little dog, he could fully move about freely.
As for exercise, Jiang Ying wasn’t quite sure.
Was she supposed to walk him, like a little dog?
Or did he prefer some other kind of sport?
But those weren’t issues.
The issue was…
Jiang Ying looked toward the next precaution.
Requires special attention: Due to the special anatomy of canine beastmen, engagement in intercourse will involve knotting and cannot be stopped midway.
The previous sentence was about exercise. How did it suddenly jump to this? And, th-this… was that “intercourse” in the way she understood it?
Beastmen and humans weren’t even the same race, how could something like that be?
This completely trampled over ethics and challenged societal norms!
She would absolutely never harbor such thoughts!
Also…
Jiang Ying raised her head in confusion: “What is knotting?”
An eerie silence fell over the reception room.
The sales clerk hadn’t expected her to voice the awkward content in the contract aloud. She wanted to explain, but the beastman whose presence made her fearful and nervous was right there beside them, and she simply couldn’t say it.
And Su Heng was clearly just as shocked by the precaution on his contract.
The Beastman Occupation Reception Center actually wrote that kind of thing.
Not having anticipated this, Su Heng’s expression was rather grim.
The recent rise of the Pro-Beastman Faction had forced the Federation to abolish the laws prohibiting humans and beastmen from becoming partners or having sexual relations. This led a segment of the population to begin seeking thrills, and a trend of dating beastmen rose among them.
However, under the current situation where beastmen’s status had somewhat improved, the relationship between the two sides hadn’t gotten better, but instead grew more and more distorted.
Su Heng scorned such behavior.
And he absolutely would not, could not ever have such intentions toward the girl before him.
“Our contract only contains the agreement for guide work. It includes no other content. You can completely disregard this precaution.”
Su Heng spoke up seriously, his voice solemn as he pledged.
“Because it—”
“will absolutely never happen between us.”