That's her husband

On the whole way to Z City, she keeps teasing Sin Jeong-Hyuk.

The more she touches him, the more he looks uncomfortable and the more she wants to do it.

She wishes that she could touch his other places but No Shi Won is here. When No Shi Won ends the call, she ceases her actions and pulls her hand back.

Mister lets out a relieved sigh.

"My cousin is coming to Z City." No Shi Won puts his phone inside his inner pocket of the coat. He eyes her solemnly. "She's a female shapeshifter. You can ask her any question. She can help you more than I can."

Another female shape-shifter like her? Chang Seol blinks her eyes. That's interesting. How many shapeshifters are there? "Did she also get heat spells?"

"Yes." No Shi Won scrunches his nose. "Nearly all shifters get uncontrollable heat spells until they reach certain stability. For males, it starts during the puberty period. By the time males reach the age of twenty, they can control themselves even if the heat spell occurs. The females… well, they have it harder than the males."

"How is it hard?" Sin Jeong-Hyuk questions him, worried. Heat spells are already problematic for Chicken. If it was someone else who met her during the heat spells, she would have been… He doesn't even want to think about it.

"The first twenty years of their lives are somewhat peaceful." No Shi Won explains to him, "After their first change, heat spells happen quite frequently. They also release pheromones to attract men. Once they have their first child, they start gaining some control."

Just like Chang Seol, his cousin denied marriage. She chose to pursue her dreams. It's only been a few months since she reached a certain degree of stability.

"Is your cousin not passive one then?" Chang Seol asks him curiously.

"She changed for the first time at the age of twenty." No Shi Won replies, "First three years were extremely difficult for her. But she's a stubborn one. Then again, she's not a full shape-shifter."

"What do you mean?" Chang Seol frowns at him. "There are half-shapeshifters."

"Actually, she also turns into a composite creature like you do." No Shi Won goes on. "A composite creature has traits of two creatures. For you, it's a dragon and a chicken. In her case, it's a human and a snake. She's a lamia. Her upper half body is human. So, she found ways to appear in public while disguising her lower half."

Chang Seol is envious. A human upper half is better than a chicken upper half. Why is she the way she is?

"Our family usually have lamia or basilisks." No Shi Won tells her softly, "Your ancestors were dragons of different breeds. You are the first cockatrice in your bloodline."

It takes a moment for her to digest the information. Isn't she the freak of her family? Why was she born like this?

"You should reveal the truth to your family," No Shi Won utters as the car comes to a halt. "We have arrived at the sharehouse. My cousin should be here already. You can ask her about disguises, heat spells, and anything else… well, you should be careful about the pheromones. It's best if you consummate your marriage quickly. If you manage to mark your mate, your pheromones will only work on him."

"..."

Chang Seol glances at Sin Jeong-Hyuk. Mister avoids her gaze, head slightly tilted to his right as he opens the car door in a hurry.

He quickly makes his way to the share-house as if he's trying to get away from something dangerous.

"Did I say something wrong?" No Shi Won creases his forehead. "Why is he acting awkward?"

"He prefers privacy." Chang Seol gets out of the car. "I want to meet your cousin and ask her about heat spells."

Does she like doing it with Mister because of heat spells? Is it something more? So if she tries to kiss someone else, it should be fine, right? Mister smells better though.

With many thoughts revolving in her head, Chang Seol heads toward the share-house with No Shi Won trailing after her.

There's a red car parked in front of the share-house.

"She is here already," No Shi Won mutters as he enters the building.

***

As soon as Sin Jeong-Hyuk enters the share-house, he heads for the bathroom to take a cold bath, grumbling about a certain chicken while questioning what is wrong with him.

'

"Jeong-Hyuk."

He halts in his track and looks at Yeon-Sik. His friend is seated on the couch. Yeon-Sik's brows are pulled together and there's an awkward smile that signals him that something is wrong.

Jeong-Hyuk follows his gaze. Sitting on the corner chair near the window, the woman is watching him calmly with her upturned brown eyes. Her auburn hair is loose, falling over her black jacket. She removes her leg over her other leg and stands up with her hands in her pockets.

It's been a year since he has seen her face to face. There's hardly any change in her.

"Oppa." She gives him a weak smile. "It's been a while."

He seems to have frozen on his spot, unable to utter a single word. Scrutinizing her face with his eyes, he wonders why she is here.

Just then, the door opens and Chang Seol steps inside the house with No Shi Won right behind her.

"Noona."

Sin Jeong-Hyuk widens his eyes when No Shi Won walks to Oh Ji Ye and gives a half-hug to her. Oh Ji Ye pats No Shi Won lightly. Her brown eyes turn toward Chang Seol who is standing beside Sin Jeong-Hyuk.

Noticing her gaze, No Shi Won glances at Chang Seol, raising his hand to gesture at Chang Seol and Sin Jeong-Hyuk. His voice is polite. "Noona, I told you about Chang Seol. That's her husband."