The Proposal and the Promise

Using that voice as a guide, they made their way to the mouth of a cave—Uncle Varek's den—and there they reunited with him.

Perhaps Uncle Varek was happy to see Rafayel appear, because he approached them immediately.

However, Rafayel still wasn't quite used to that enormous body, so he instinctively shifted to stand slightly behind Kael.

Kael immediately spoke up. "Uncle… is it true that you asked Raffy to become your mate?"

In response, Uncle Varek answered without a hint of guilt or hesitation, "Yeah, I said it. So what?"

Kael tried to reason with him, "…I won't deny your judgment, Uncle, but isn't that too heavy a burden for Raffy? I honestly don't think a human could meet our… needs. And Rafayel hasn't even turned adult yet."

Rafayel watched as Kael tried his best to persuade the bearman on his behalf.

However, Uncle Varek replied with another question: "Then, would it be acceptable if he were an adult?"