Rebirth With The Beast_11
Chapter 58 continued...
Tang Yu gritted his teeth, holding back his anger, but when Ruisha accused him for the fourth time in a pitiful tone, he finally exploded. He violently threw the beast hide to the ground.
So what if it’s just a beast hide? I don’t believe that if I throw it away, you can do anything to me!
After throwing it, Tang Yu felt like an idiot. Even a fool could see that Ruisha was deliberately picking a fight, but Tang Yu, knowing it was a trap, still couldn’t help but fall for it. He really didn’t like this kind of omega—all they did was cry and act like the whole world was against them.
Ruisha burst into tears again, claiming that these beast hides were precious gifts prepared for her by the Winged Leopard Tribe, each one invaluable. She also accused Tang Yu of rejecting her because she was an outsider.
Author’s Note: Ruisha’s appearance is meant to assist, not to torment Tang Yu or cause trouble. Ruisha isn’t the worst; he’s just a fool, meant to provoke Tang Yu, who is stubborn and suffers for his pride.
The one who truly deserves torment is the omega who hurt Ian. Do you still remember how Ian was mistreated because he tried to save an omega?
Chapter 59
"You—do you like Jares too? Because I have that kind of relationship with Jares, are you holding a grudge against me? I’m really sorry. You can have anything, even those beast hides. I can give them all to you. But not Jares. He’s the only one who has ever made my heart race. I can’t give him to you. I’m really, really sorry."
Tang Yu looked coldly at Jares, then gave a bitter smile. "Ruisha, you’ve got it all wrong. If you’re treating me as a rival, you’re dead wrong. Because he’s never liked me, and I won’t like him either."
What Tang Yu really wanted to say was: Because he’s never liked me, and even if I liked him, it wouldn’t do any good. But his strong pride kept him from uttering those vulnerable words.
Jares was the first orc Tang Yu had met in this world, and the first one to help him escape his predicament. Tang Yu wasn’t sure if it was love, because he had never truly loved anyone before. He just knew he didn’t want to see Jares with someone else—it made his heart ache. He wanted to throw a tantrum like he did in his past life, but he couldn’t. This wasn’t the Tang family, where he could do as he pleased.
By evening, the rain outside had grown heavier again.
In the afternoon, Su Yi had helped Dino build a small pet house and set up a simple hammock in Eli’s room. After finishing, he noticed the heavy rain outside. The family had dinner, and Su Yi wanted to get a good night’s sleep. As he lay in bed, he suddenly wondered where Tang Yu was staying tonight. Remembering how Tang Yu had defended Mino earlier, he must have gotten close to Mino by now. Maybe he was already staying at Mino’s place.
Thinking this, Su Yi felt at ease. Although they were both reborn from the same world, they weren’t close, and Tang Yu was clever—he wouldn’t get into trouble.
The next morning, Mino came knocking. Su Yi only then learned about Ruisha changing rooms the day before. Mino had assumed Tang Yu would come to Su Yi’s place and hadn’t taken Tang Yu’s words about staying in a cave seriously. Who would have thought Tang Yu wouldn’t come to Su Yi’s?
Su Yi didn’t really care, but Tang Yu was from the same world as him—the only person in this world he could talk to about their past. Su Yi sighed, holding a large leaf as a makeshift umbrella, and headed toward the valley’s caves.
Su Yi and Mino searched and finally found Tang Yu in the third cave. He was still asleep, curled up under a tattered beast hide, shivering slightly from the cold.
Rainwater had seeped into the cave, making the ground damp and muddy. Su Yi thought of Ruisha, an outsider omega who was pampered and doted on, and then looked at Tang Yu shivering under the beast hide. His heart suddenly felt heavy. He kicked Tang Yu’s body. "Get up. Aren’t you from the Tang family of Beijing? Have you no shame?"
Tang Yu groggily opened his eyes, his face pale. He mumbled, "What can I do? Jares’ place isn’t my home. What can I compete with?"
"What do you really want?" Su Yi was referring to Jares. Tang Yu understood and licked his dry lips. "I don’t know. I’m not as open-minded as you. I can’t stand having sand in my eyes."
Yes, Tang Yu couldn’t stand any "sand" in his eyes. Growing up in such a family, his personality had become different from others. He was naturally suspicious, afraid of being taken advantage of. He liked to play dumb, but in reality, he saw things more clearly than anyone. He had high standards for his lovers, so if Jares didn’t show any affection for him, Tang Yu would choose to wait and see. In his view, the heart was precious—if he gave it away recklessly, what would be left of him?
Mino listened beside them, completely confused. He really didn’t understand what they were talking about.
"Then get up and come to my place first," Su Yi said, pulling Mino outside.
Tang Yu didn’t move. He hadn’t slept well all night—the cave was cold, and sleeping on the ground was uncomfortable. Tang Yu groggily sensed someone entering and thought Su Yi had returned. Afraid of being hit, he quickly propped himself up.
Because of lack of sleep and getting up too suddenly, Tang Yu’s vision darkened, and he almost fell. Fortunately, his foundation was strong enough to steady himself. When he saw who it was, his already pale face turned even whiter.
Tang Yu had never considered himself a petty person, but at that moment, he really was. He thought of how Ruisha had almost fainted yesterday and how Jares had held her. Then he thought of how he had almost fallen just now, and Jares hadn’t even reached out to help him.
It really was different when someone liked you and when they didn’t.
"What do you want?" Tang Yu asked, annoyed.
"Didn’t you want to go back to the Winged Wolf Tribe before?" Jares looked at him expressionlessly, his dark eyes filled with indescribable emotions.
Tang Yu’s eyes widened in disbelief. "Are you trying to drive me away? Jares, do I disgust you that much?"
Tang Yu’s voice rose in anger, his pale face flushed with embarrassment.
Jares hadn’t expected such a strong reaction from Tang Yu. He furrowed his sharp brows and said, "Didn’t you ask me to take you before?"
"I don’t want to go now. Is that not allowed?" Tang Yu said without thinking.
Jares’ intense gaze fixed on him, and he immediately replied, "Why?"
Tang Yu was getting angry. "Does it matter to you if I stay here? I’m not stopping you from flirting, so why do you care if I leave or not?"
Jares sighed almost imperceptibly, looking at Tang Yu, whose face was red and neck tense. "You like me."
Tang Yu almost jumped. Weren’t they arguing? Why could Jares say those four words so calmly?
"Are you crazy? How long have we known each other? And don’t be so narcissistic. I’m not some Ruisha who falls in love at first sight. And whether I leave or not is none of your business. Even if I do leave, I’ll find someone else to help me. So please, don’t bother me." Tang Yu pushed Jares, wanting him to disappear. But he overestimated his strength—Jares didn’t budge an inch.
Tang Yu had no choice but to say, "Fine, you like it here, so stay. I won’t keep you company."
Tang Yu tried to walk past Jares out of the cave, but Jares reached out and pulled him back. Tang Yu felt his body tilt backward and was caught in Jares’ arms.
Author’s Note: Little angels, are you turning dark?
Chapter 60
"What do you want?" Tang Yu was so angry his eyes were wide, and the two beauty marks under his eyes looked like red teardrops.
"You like me," Jares repeated. He knew Tang Yu liked him but didn’t understand why he was so angry.
This time, Tang Yu didn’t explode or shout. Instead, he slightly turned his head away, not wanting to look into Jares’ eyes. Because he felt that if he kept looking, he would admit that he really did like this infuriating man.
"Since you know he likes you, isn’t it a bit much to hold another omega?" The speaker was Su Yi, who had returned. He stood at the cave entrance, watching the two inside quarreling. Actually, when Jares had entered earlier, Su Yi and Mino had seen him. Su Yi had thought that after Jares went in, the two would come out sweetly. Instead, all he heard was Tang Yu’s angry voice, with no response from Jares for a long time.
Su Yi didn’t want to bother with quarreling couples, but seeing Tang Yu’s pale face, he couldn’t help but speak up.
Jares’ dark eyes flashed with understanding, then he pulled Tang Yu out. Tang Yu stumbled along, looking very disheveled.
"Jares, what’s gotten into you?" Tang Yu struggled desperately, but Jares acted as if he didn’t hear, continuing to pull him forward.
Mino tugged at Su Yi’s hand and whispered, "Are they going to fight?"
Su Yi chuckled at the question. "What’s going on in that little head of yours?"
Mino smiled embarrassedly and wrinkled his nose. "Don’t you think they look like they’re going to fight? Dirsen is always so careful with me, afraid of hurting me."
"Let them be. Let’s go check on those injured orcs."
Su Yi finished speaking and walked toward Ian’s house.
In the future, their valley would become allies with the Winged Leopard Tribe. To show goodwill, Su Yi still needed to check on them. And that troublesome omega—this wasn’t his Winged Leopard Tribe, so he couldn’t let him bring his bad habits here to throw his weight around.
Tang Yu was pulled so hard he almost fell, and his wrist hurt.
He pouted and swung his other hand at Jares. Jares caught Tang Yu’s hand and suddenly lifted him up. Tang Yu lost his footing, and all his weight fell on his small wrist, making his eyes tear up from the pain.
Jares noticed Tang Yu’s pale face and quickly wrapped his other arm around Tang Yu’s waist, lifting him entirely.
Tang Yu’s pale face flushed red. Although he was gay, being carried like a child on someone’s shoulder was something he couldn’t bear.
Jares looked at Tang Yu’s red wrist and suddenly brought it to his mouth. Tang Yu, blushing, quickly pulled his hand back, but even with his fast reflexes, he still felt a slight sting where Jares had marked him.
Tang Yu’s eyes trembled slightly, a mix of anger and grievance. "This place is really barbaric. You say I like you after just a few meetings? You’re being unreasonable!"
Jares looked up at Tang Yu and coldly said, "Tang Yu, like is like, dislike is dislike. And you—if you don’t like me, don’t do things that make me misunderstand. If you like me but pretend you don’t, I’ll make you understand the cruel consequences of not being honest."
Tang Yu couldn’t help but shrink his neck. Was Jares threatening him?
"Do you like me?" Tang Yu couldn’t help but ask. This was a question he really cared about.
Jares’ dark eyes flickered, then he turned his head away and nodded slightly.
Tang Yu hadn’t expected him to nod. For a moment, his heart was filled with mixed emotions. So Jares did like him, but why hadn’t he felt it at all?
People who are liked always have the upper hand, right?
After learning that Jares liked him, Tang Yu was no longer afraid of Jares. He glared and questioned him, "You like me, but you hold other omegas? You like me, but you’re so rough with me? And if you like me, can’t you show that I’m different from others?"
Jares gave a bitter smile, thinking to himself: So it really is, as Su Yi said, because I held another omega?
"Hey, what are you smiling at? What’s so funny? I’m interrogating you! Straighten up your attitude!" Tang Yu reached out to pinch Jares’ face, intending to retaliate fiercely, but his collar was suddenly grabbed, and he was pulled down. A mixed-race face suddenly loomed large before his eyes. Tang Yu quickly closed his eyes and felt his lips being kissed.
Jares’ kiss was surprisingly gentle.
He just lightly pressed against Tang Yu’s lips, neither deepening the kiss nor pulling away. Tang Yu instinctively wanted to retreat but felt his neck being held, and a shallow breath seemed to pierce his heart in an instant. They breathed each other’s air, and Tang Yu could even hear their heartbeats.
The bitterness Tang Yu had felt over the past few months in this world was inexplicably drawn out by this gentle kiss. His nose tingled, and tears rushed out. Why hadn’t this guy appeared earlier? When he was almost—when he woke up like Su Yi, with Xinor by his side, how wonderful would that have been?
Jares slowly pulled away and held Tang Yu in his arms.
"Why are you crying?" Jares asked in a low voice.
Tang Yu wrapped his arms around Jares’ neck, loving this sense of security that came from Jares. He took deep breaths, holding Jares’ hands tightly.
"Jares, why didn’t you come to me sooner?" Tang Yu’s voice was tearful, his eyes red.
Jares recalled Tang Yu’s earlier words—how he had been captured by orcs and almost harmed, living alone in the forest in fear. Jares reached out and ruffled Tang Yu’s hair, whispering to him, "I’m sorry, I came too late."
When Tang Yu pulled Jares back to Ian’s place with a smile, he saw Su Yi and Mino helping the injured orcs check their wounds. Tang Yu was about to go help when Jares pulled him back.
Tang Yu turned around in confusion. "What’s wrong?"
Jares’ face was still expressionless, his voice cold. "I don’t want you touching them."
Tang Yu, upon hearing this, couldn’t help but blush again, grumbling, "Why are you so petty?" Although he was complaining angrily, inside, he was delighted. He hadn’t expected Jares to be so adorable.
Su Yi coughed and pointed at the two lovey-dovey figures. "Get over here and help!"
Chapter 61
Hearing that Jers was back, Resa hobbled out of the room. He was about to tell Jers he was bored to death when he saw Jers with his head lowered, listening to Tang Yu. The two of them were so close it was nothing like their quarrel yesterday—like they’d turned into different people.
Resa’s eyes reddened with jealousy, and he headed toward them in a huff. Passing behind Su Yi, he didn’t notice Su Yi’s leg stretched back and stumbled over it. Su Yi had his head down, stitching up a beastman’s wounded foot; he hadn’t realized someone had come up behind him—let alone that he’d trip them.
Su Yi handed the needle and thread to Mino so he could practice closing the wound. Mino took them, nervous and cautious, and began imitating Su Yi’s stitches.
Resa hadn’t expected any of this. He sat there, dazed for a beat—then remembered to start crying.
What Su Yi disliked most was a grown man crying like a little girl. Resa might be a “female,” but what Su Yi saw was still a big man. Frowning, he said, “Watch where you’re going when you walk.”
Resa hadn’t expected Su Yi not to apologize, and to scold him instead. It was clearly Su Yi who tripped him—so why was this “female” glaring at him so sternly? His grievance deepened; his mouth puckered and the tears came harder. Ian felt a twinge of sympathy and started over to help Resa up, but Su Yi stopped him with a look.
“How old are you?” Su Yi squatted and asked Resa.
Resa thought this “female” was truly strange—asking his age at a time like this?
“I’m an adult,” Resa said.
Su Yi nodded knowingly. “Oh, so young. No wonder you don’t know how to behave.”
Pfft! Tang Yu burst out laughing. The way Su Yi stated it as if it were obvious—while putting someone down—was too funny.
Resa got angry, crying as he accused Su Yi, “How can you be like this? You tripped me and now you’re blaming me? Is this how the ill-omened beastmen raise their females? I thought you were different from the other ill-omened ones, but you’re just the same.”
Su Yi grabbed Resa and said sharply, “Wrong. I was raised in a tribe just like yours—nothing to do with ill-omened beastmen. If you don’t know how to speak, I don’t mind teaching you.”
Resa yelped from the pain and let out a piercing scream, as if Su Yi hadn’t just tugged him but dug his fingers in cruelly.
“You barbarians! I’ll tell Ed—you’re bullying me while he’s gone! Don’t think that just because I’m a female I’ll let you push me around!”
The wounded beastman, jolted awake by Resa’s shriek, looked over in confusion. Seeing his tribesman awake, Resa staggered into his arms, tears streaming as if he’d suffered some massive wrong.
“They—they bullied me, Meta—boo hoo—while Ed was away they ganged up on me!” Resa sobbed so hard he could barely breathe. The beastman sat up at once, pulled Resa to him, and looked around warily.
Su Yi had never feared much in his life—neither gangs nor killers nor desperadoes—but he dreaded only one thing: a fishwife. And Resa right now was a prettied-up fishwife. The only improvement over a back-alley shrew was that his crying fit at least looked nice.
The injured beastman’s expression darkened; his gaze swept among them with a simmering anger. If he didn’t know they were the ones who’d saved him, Su Yi had no doubt he’d have jumped up and started a fight.
Annoyance prickled in Su Yi. He hated trouble. If not for Ed’s sake, he wouldn’t give these brainless types the time of day.
“What is all this racket?” A deep, authoritative voice cracked through the commotion, and Resa’s wailing cut off like a stuck record.
Taylor shot Resa a look, clearly irritated. “If staying here makes you feel so wronged, you can move into the caves in the valley.”
The winged leopard beastman’s face was ugly, but he was injured—and they were his rescuers—so he couldn’t snap back. He glanced at Resa and sighed. “When Ed returns, we’ll take you back to the tribe.”
Back home, no one would dare bully Resa.
At last, silence. Everyone let out a breath.
Seeing the situation settled, Su Yi turned to go—only to walk straight into a chest. He bristled, ready to scold, then looked up into Xinuo’s dazzlingly handsome face.
“What’s the rush?” Xinuo took Su Yi’s hand and pinched his nose with the other.
“I was just thinking of coming to find you—and then you appeared,” Su Yi said, tugging Xinuo toward the door, missing the shocked look on Resa’s face.
Though Xinuo had shown up yesterday, Resa hadn’t seen him—this was his first time. He hadn’t expected that hateful Su Yi to have such a breathtaking partner. For a moment, when Xinuo stepped inside, Resa thought his eyes were playing tricks on him. That blinding white hair and that stunning face put every beastman in their winged leopard clan to shame.
Resa shot Tang Yu a glare and bit his lip as he watched Su Yi leave. Those two “females” had really struck a golden vein—one landed an extraordinary face, the other a superior bloodline. Either way, they’d end up with the most handsome or the strongest mate.
Tang Yu also pulled Jers outside. Seeing Su Yi and Xinuo heading out of the valley, he trotted after them. “Where are you going?”
Su Yi, huffing as he clambered onto Xinuo’s back, glanced at Tang Yu. “Checking the traps and taking a little spin outside.”
Tang Yu immediately wanted to come; he’d been cooped up for days. “Jers, let’s go hunting too.”
Jers looked at Su Yi. When Su Yi first arrived he’d had empty hands; now he had a basket and weapons. Jers assumed Xinuo had brought them and didn’t think more of it.
Su Yi felt prickles under Jers’s gaze. Don’t tell me he’s eyeing my basket? Not for himself, surely, but for Tang Yu.
With a helpless sigh, Su Yi slid off the basket, took out the dagger inside, and handed the basket to Tang Yu.
Tang Yu grinned and thanked him like an idiot, unaware Su Yi had only given in under Jers’s oppressive stare—not out of generosity.
Su Yi snorted to himself. If Jers hadn’t helped his family before, he wouldn’t have handed it over so cheaply.
Chapter 62
Delighted to be heading out, Tang Yu dashed back inside to borrow a leather sack from Ian. He’d originally planned to return to the winged wolf tribe and hadn’t thought about gathering provisions. Now it was different—he had a “household” to consider. Jers had never run one, so if Tang Yu didn’t want to go hungry, he had to handle everything himself. When he came out with the sack, Su Yi and Xinuo had already gone.
“Hey? What are you running for? Like I’m gonna freeload off you,” he muttered.
Jers glanced at the sky. It was foggy and a fine drizzle was falling. He looked Tang Yu up and down; Tang Yu clearly wasn’t as sturdy as Su Yi. Su Yi could get rained on without falling ill—Tang Yu, maybe not.
“We’ve got food. No rush.” He tried to reason with Tang Yu, but Tang Yu knew exactly what he was thinking and said, lips pouting, “But I want to go.”
In the end, Tang Yu threw a hide over himself like a rain cape, and Jers took him out of the valley.
Su Yi and Xinuo did a circuit of the traps and found a red-eye beast in one of them. Su Yi didn’t haul it out; instead he had Xinuo carry him for a scout around. Flying east for a bit, they spotted a pack of spine-lizards chasing something. There were about fourteen or fifteen. Su Yi had Xinuo drop him on a big tree; he meant to bag the whole pack. Spine-lizards were carnivores, smaller than other beasts but with delicious meat.
As soon as Xinuo surged into the pack, he realized they were chasing a half-grown beastman. He flicked his tail, sending a spine-lizard flying. From the tree, Su Yi could see the youth too.
If it were just him, Xinuo wouldn’t have been bothered by a dozen-odd spine-lizards. But minding another person tied his hands.
Su Yi drew his hand-crossbow and shot the nearest spine-lizard, taking it clean through the eye and skull. He was lining up another shot when a vast shadow passed overhead and a voice sounded from above.
“Captain Su, that’s not very brotherly—how come you’ve got such a nice weapon and didn’t give me one?”
It was Tang Yu, arriving close behind.
Su Yi looked up to a dragon circling overhead. He’d seen Jers’s beast form before, but it still gave him a jolt.
Tang Yu was peering down, a hide thrown over his shoulders.
Xinuo sensed Jers coming and slipped nimbly aside as the dragon swooped. The pack scattered in a panic, tripping over each other in a slapstick retreat.
Tang Yu’s face flushed with excitement. He hugged Jers’s neck and shouted, “Jers—there’s one! Grab it!” Jers wasn’t really there to hunt so much as to give Tang Yu a roller-coaster ride. He snatched one spine-lizard and hurled it into another, and in no time a dozen carcasses littered the ground while Tang Yu whooped with glee.
Xinuo ignored the aerial show and shifted back to human beneath Su Yi’s tree. Su Yi waved and jumped down; Xinuo caught him steady.
“Is Tang Yu here to steal our business?” Su Yi joked as they walked toward the battlefield.
They checked the downed lizards and finished off any still kicking.
“Miriel?” a voice said abruptly. Su Yi froze mid-motion and turned toward the speaker— the beastman the spine-lizards had been chasing.
He looked seventeen or eighteen. He couldn’t transform because of his injury and had been forced to run. His features were delicate—like a high-school boy.
He stared at Su Yi in shock. Su Yi searched his mind for anything useful and thought the face looked vaguely familiar. Seeing Su Yi’s confusion, the youth pointed to himself. “Miriel, I’m ….”
The name—two syllables—rattled around in Su Yi’s head, familiar yet unrecalled. He’d felt nothing special a moment ago, but now, trying to drag up Miriel’s past in earnest, he found much of it a blur.
Maybe, subconsciously, he’d written those memories off as not his, so his body had started discarding the useless bits. Maybe this … was one of those bits.
“When you disappeared, Miriel, our whole tribe was in chaos. I went looking with my brothers, but no matter how long we searched, we couldn’t find you.” … took a step closer—then noticed the tall, handsome, white-haired beastman standing behind Miriel—Su Yi.
Xinuo’s heterochromatic eyes fixed on the youth, cold.
He rarely looked this threatening. This youth might be someone from Su Yi’s old tribe; Xinuo instinctively didn’t want them to reconnect. Without realizing it, he’d gone on alert. The usually gentle eyes were now like a viper sighting prey.
A chill ran through the youth. He recognized the white-haired beastman as one of the ill-omened. Was Miriel abducted by him? he thought. Is he denying me because he’s afraid of angering the ill-omened one?
He tensed, retreating a step under that oppressive aura. He hadn’t come of age yet and couldn’t possibly match the white-haired one. He started thinking about how to get away and then come back to rescue Miriel.
“You’ve got the wrong person. I’m not Miriel—I’m Su Yi,” Su Yi said, deciding to deny, deny, deny. He had no intention of going back to Miriel’s tribe. The youth hadn’t expected that. Convinced Su Yi was being coerced, he pressed on: “Miriel, you were young when you left. I’ve grown these past years, so it’s fine if you don’t remember me—but you should remember my older brothers, right?”
Chapter 63
Su Yi only had patience for babies and for Xinuo. Being peppered with questions like this had him losing his temper.
“Miriel, Miriel—how about I’m Miri-el.” He waved him off. “You’ve really got the wrong guy.” He turned toward the pile of game.
The youth moved to follow—only to find someone suddenly blocking his path.
Xinuo, face like frost, looked down at him, pale lips pressed into a line. He didn’t speak, but the warning in his eyes was clear.
The youth felt a cold ripple. In his mind’s eye he saw a venom-laced beast pupil fixed on him.
Jers and Tang Yu landed and came over to divvy up the kills.
Counting them revealed thirteen spine-lizards. Su Yi didn’t take advantage: since Jers had done most of the work this round, he took five and left the rest to Tang Yu. But Tang Yu didn’t have Su Yi’s storage space, and stashing such a haul would be a problem.
When Su Yi had picked out his five, the youth who’d called him Miriel had vanished.
They dragged the lizards to the big river by the valley—the same river that ran through it. While they dressed the game, Tang Yu’s eyes burned with envy at the modern knife. He wasn’t stupid; between the basket Su Yi had handed him and the fresh one and the hand-crossbow that followed, he’d begun to suspect something. But with two native beastmen present, it wasn’t the time to ask.
Su Yi didn’t plan to hide it from Tang Yu anyway. Given his smarts, it was only a matter of time. He’d never imagined there were other transmigrators here, so he hadn’t hidden his weapons or knives from the valley folk—and he’d even given Mino one. Tang Yu would see it sooner or later. Since he couldn’t hide it, Su Yi couldn’t be bothered to pretend in front of him.
His skinning skills had gotten downright impressive.
Once they’d finished processing the game, Su Yi took them to look over the traps by the valley. He’d made them obvious on purpose—he didn’t want some reckless beastman stumbling into one.
Back in the valley, Jers moved himself and Tang Yu into a cave. Resa had taken over Jers’s room, and Jers wasn’t going to throw a “female” out. More importantly, Ian’s place was packed with beastmen, and Jers didn’t want Tang Yu around them every day.
He picked a cave three-plus meters up the cliff—cleaner and drier than the one Tang Yu had used before. He fetched his meager belongings, carried dry grass from the kitchen, and laid softer hides on top.
He planned to build a house during the rainy season. It wasn’t ideal, but to give Tang Yu a warm home for winter, even the habitually lazy Jers had to rally.
Though Tang Yu had been here months, he’d been a pampered young master before and had some quirks—like hating bugs. To keep them off at night, he gathered lots of insect-repelling herbs from the valley, crushed them to powder with a stone, and dusted the whole cave. By the time he finished, it was fully dark.
Ian brought dinner over. To thank him, Tang Yu gave him one of the spine-lizards.
Compared to Tang Yu’s situation, Su Yi was swamped the moment he got home—the two kids glued to him—so cooking fell to Xinuo. Little Yilai recounted how he’d gotten tangled in the hammock and, sniffling, said he didn’t want it anymore. Su Yi coaxed him, explaining it was for after he learned to take human form. Dino’s room, by contrast, was much tidier. In the corner was Little Little’s little home—yes, the pet squirrel-thing was named “Little Little.” For all that Dino was a little leopard, he secretly loved cute critters.
At bedtime, Xinuo held Su Yi in his arms and didn’t mention the youth from earlier. That didn’t mean he didn’t care. Su Yi, not wanting him to feel uneasy, decided to talk it through.
“Xinuo, that kid—I really don’t remember him. Don’t worry about it, okay? Remember what I told you before? I want to forget the past and just be with you. I’m not some great achiever—I only want the four of us to live well. I’ve never thought of going back to that tribe. How could that place compare to what we have here?”
Listening, Xinuo couldn’t help a soft laugh. He understood what Su Yi was doing—reassuring him. He dipped his head and kissed Su Yi’s forehead, pale lashes fluttering in an addictive arc.
“I know,” he said. He knew—and his heart melted into a warm pool because of it.
“Know what?” Su Yi rubbed his forehead and looked up at the perfection of Xinuo’s brows and eyes.
Their gazes locked like magnets snapping together. In Xinuo’s clear eyes, there was only Su Yi.
He leaned close, breathing in that unique scent of Su Yi’s “female” body, and half-lidded his eyes. “I know you like me,” he said softly.
Su Yi wanted to lean back; he was afraid he’d lose control and ruin the heart-to-heart. But Xinuo didn’t give him the chance. With a quiet sigh, his cool skin pressed to Su Yi’s heat. Su Yi blushed, eyes half-closed, and met Xinuo’s approaching lips.
Between those light kisses, Su Yi heard him say, “I’ll believe you—even if one day you don’t believe yourself, I’ll believe you.”
While things were warm and sweet for Su Yi, Tang Yu’s night was less rosy.
This was his and Jers’s first night alone.
Tang Yu lay on the hides with his eyes closed, lashes trembling with nerves. By the firelight, Jers watched the little head poking out of the bedding and couldn’t help a smile. If Tang Yu hadn’t been pretending to sleep, he might have witnessed a rare thaw in the iceberg.
Jers walked over but didn’t lie down; he stood there looking at Tang Yu’s exposed face.
Under that gaze, Tang Yu was miserable. What is he doing? Why isn’t he coming over? And it’s not like I—like I want him close. He just didn’t like people staring while he tried to sleep, that’s all.
He held out as long as he could, then snapped. He shot upright, ready to bark something—then caught sight of Jers’s striking face looming above and wisely shut his mouth. It was night; best not to provoke the local boss.
Author’s Note:
Mini skit:
Daytime:
Tang Yu is bathing. Jers guards the riverbank, eyes locked on Tang Yu’s naked body.
Tang Yu, flailing: “What are you staring at? I’ve got the same thing you do down there!”
Night:
Jers flips the furs with a flourish. “Come. Let’s make a cub.”
Tang Yu, teary: “Uh, Jers, let’s talk this out. Your primitive mindset is misguided. There are plenty of meaningful things to do besides making cubs.”
Jers: “Like?”
Tang Yu’s eyes light up. “Like…we pull up the covers and count the stars!”
Jers sweeps a big hand—overturns Tang Yu.
Chapter 64
Jers reached a hand toward Tang Yu. His hands were beautiful—strong and long-fingered, the kind that look built to do things. Every nail was full and smooth; every knuckle stood out cleanly. A phrase popped into Tang Yu’s mind: jade bones ringing like metal. He’d been a poor student and didn’t know if the phrasing was right—he just thought Jers’s hands were really good-looking.
Jers still didn’t speak; he simply extended his hand again.
This time, Tang Yu got it. He scooted up and hesitantly laid his hand in Jers’s. Compared to Jers’s, his was much smaller—annoyingly so for Tang Yu’s male pride. The moment their fingertips touched, Tang Yu’s eyes trembled—and in them appeared Jers’s face, slowly drawing near.
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