Reclaimed by the Empire Ten Years Early

Yu Zhao died of illness on a construction site. When he opened his eyes again, he had transmigrated into a space-opera novel, as a three-year-old mixed-blood mermaid cub who still couldn't take on his beast form.

In this era, people gained supernatural abilities by reverting to their ancestral beast forms. He was still a stuttering little kid who couldn't even sing to soothe mental surges. Yu Zhao was used to being a useless little thing no one wanted, and secretly sneaking sips of milk from the communal bowls every day.

His only worry was that ten years later, his beast form would suddenly emerge and reveal his identity. Then he would be offered up as a medicinal ingredient to the tyrant of the Sikor Empire, his villainous father.

Yu Zhao could only take advantage of the chaos when the powerful came to choose mermaid cubs and escape.

Bad news: he failed, and the crown prince of an enemy nation took a liking to him!

Even worse news: Crown Prince Reno didn't mind that he couldn't transform or sing, but wanted to pluck out his eyeballs and keep them as gemstones...

Terrified, Yu Zhao nearly pooped all over the floor before suddenly transforming with a poof into a fluffy cotton ball of a Samoyed (crossed out), a pure-white wolf cub!

Everyone knows that only the mad royal family of the Sikor Empire possesses the bloodline of the ice wolf, and Sikor and Reno have been enemies for generations.

Yu Zhao (eyes closed): ...Would you look at that, two dead ends tangled together.

*

The Sikor Empire claims him ten years ahead of schedule, and the plot is already underway. The villainous tyrant already has a bunch of little villain sons, and Yu Zhao is destined to become a medicinal ingredient.

His last hope is that it won't hurt too much. He's afraid of pain. He doesn't want to go through that kind of agony again...

The supreme king of the Sikor Empire, the blood-soaked lord who killed his father and brother, the most brutal ruler in the history of the mad royal family, the tyrant villain who nearly destroyed the world in the book, falls to his knees and hugs him, crying so hard his face contorts. The two-meter-tall ice wolf with crimson eyes cries until he's a giant ball of fluff. "Awooo!!!"

Yu Zhao, squeezed so tightly he can barely breathe: "?"

...Could this tyrant be the kind of tyrant who loves hugs?

Before long, the notorious young heirs to the mad emperor, the triplets who slaughter one another and go out of their way to get themselves killed while targeting the protagonist's group in the book, also turn into fluffy balls of various sizes and squeeze in. "Awooo!!!!"

Yu Zhao, wrapped in layers upon layers of thick fur and unable to breathe at all: "???!"

...Is this some new succession tactic, smothering him while they have the chance?

*

Yu Zhao awakens the one-of-a-kind Light Healing ability, and Crown Prince Reno, who also suffers from mental surges, sets his sights on him again.

The refined boy with golden hair and golden eyes wears a white silk robe. Looking every bit like a holy child of light, he's completely different from before. He takes Yu Zhao's chubby little hand and bends down to place a solemn, sacred kiss upon it.

"I'm sorry. That rude demon last time must have frightened you terribly."

Yu Zhao: Huh?

"Actually, I'm a lowly illegitimate child. I was lucky enough to become the crown prince after manifesting a dragon form. My life became even harder after my older brother took the throne. My mother tried to kill me many times to curry favor with him... As a result, I developed severe dissociative identity disorder..."

Yu Zhao covers his mouth with his tender little hand. "...Oh m-my gosh, is that r-really true?"

The blond boy bursts out laughing. "Of course not. I'm the only child of the late emperor and empress. Come on, turn into a dog so I can squeeze those chubby little paw pads."

Yu Zhao is so angry his fur stands on end. No treatment! Absolutely no treatment!!

Also, he's not a Samoyed. He's an ice wolf!!!

Later, the little hero gathers his courage and whips the dragon, making the dragon enjoy it immensely.

*I'm the kind of author whose inspiration runs wild. I have to revise every idea dozens of times as inspiration strikes, so there's a good chance things will change before I start posting. Please don't send me nutrient solutions or big tips just yet, okay~

Theme: Love makes us better people