The beastmen wished they could immediately transform into their beast forms to show off their firm and sturdy bodies. Right at this moment, the adorable round-faced sub-beast burst out laughing, a sound as clear as wind chimes.
Cael covered his mouth, laughing as he said: "Haha, Zale, you look so silly!"
Zale froze for a few seconds, unable to believe his ears, hesitated for a while, and then asked tentatively: "Cael?"
Cael wiped away the tears that had welled up from laughing, and nodded:
"Yes, it's me."
Almost instantly, Zale stepped forward and embraced his future mate, pressing Cael's head against his chest while glaring at the surrounding beastmen with eyes that had turned into beast eyes. Do you see clearly now? This is my mate, stop staring at him!
The surrounding beastmen sighed in regret, but their target was still the beautiful sub-beast standing alone in the middle of the courtyard. The group began to move closer. Elian was a bit frightened, his hands clutched in front of his chest as he panicked and searched around. Where was Silas? Where is he?
Silas, unaware that the beauty was thinking of him, sat lazily on a rock, looking up at the crescent moon in the distant sky. He had waited all evening without seeing a glimpse of Elian; perhaps Elian didn't want to attend today's gathering.
It made sense; if Elian came here and saw Theron trying to win over Rylan, Elian would certainly be heartbroken. Because his thoughts were consumed by Elian, Silas had absolutely no idea what was happening on the other side, nor did he know that his lonely figure had now entered Elian's sight.
Elian clenched his hands tight, mustered all his courage to break away from the surrounding beastmen, and walked toward Silas. The beastmen behind him still wouldn't give up and trailed after him.
"Brother Silas..."
The call, as soft as a mosquito's buzz, reached Silas's ears. He lazily half-opened his eyes and looked down, seeing a sub-beast trailing a tail of males, looking up at him.
"Brother... Brother Silas..." Elian tried to call out once more, his voice carrying a bit of nervousness and anticipation, his hands twisted tightly together over his chest.
If Silas hadn't heard clearly the first time and thus hadn't recognized the person, this second time he heard distinctly. Jumping down from the rock and approaching the beautiful sub-beast, the familiar berry scent wafted around his nose, and seeing the jaguar ears pinned back due to tension, Silas vaguely guessed the identity of the person:
"Are you... Elian?"
Instantly, the crowd erupted into murmurs, and even Theron, who was staring at Elian, couldn't help but be stunned. This sub-beast was Elian? Was this a joke? That ugly kid who was always sullen had absolutely nothing to do with this beautiful sub-beast in front of them, alright?
"Mm..." Elian confirmed in a small voice, then tightly gripped the hem of his animal-skin skirt, looked up at Silas, and said, trembling slightly: "I... I feel a bit hungry..."
As he spoke, he gently bit his lower lip. His pale lips, bitten, turned a rosy red, appearing even more plump and alluring under the firelight. Silas stood there looking at him for a long time, completely showing no intention of replying. Elian's face stung slightly, and tears began to well up, about to fall.
At this moment, the beastmen behind them were both distressed and angry. Yohu quickly ran forward:
"Elian, my meat is done grilling. If you're hungry, you can eat mine."
"Get lost!" A wild buffalo beastman bumped Yohu away with his rear and smiled at Elian: "My grilled meat has berries added to it, it's very fragrant. Eat my meat."
The beastmen scrambled to offer Elian meat, but Elian only stared intently at Silas, tears about to form into drops and fall. Was Kaelen wrong? Silas completely paid him no attention. The surrounding beastmen clustered around to please him only because he had become beautiful today; before, they wouldn't even spare him a glance. What did he need them for?
Feeling wronged, Elian lowered his head, and tears finally fell uncontrollably. His tail and ears also drooped, following their owner's despondent mood.
Silas's heart ached terribly; his hand resting on his hip clenched and unclenched. Finally, he gritted his teeth as if deciding to gamble on something, and his deep, raspy voice sounded in Elian's ears:
"I haven't grilled meat yet. I only have one arm, so my movements are inconvenient, and the meat I grill isn't tasty..."
Elian jerked his head up, and with a choked, nasal voice, he said:
"I'll do it with you. I have meat seasoning, and I know how to watch the fire, so... the meat will be delicious..."
Since Elian had spoken to this extent, Silas couldn't bear to hurt him anymore. He reached out his remaining arm and embraced Elian, pressing Elian into his chest, his eyes also glistening with moisture:
"Thank you for choosing me."
The beastmen simultaneously let out groans of disappointment and dejectedly slung their arms around each other's shoulders as they returned to their spots. The sub-beasts they desired all already had someone in their hearts. Unless they were as excellent and outstanding as warrior beastmen, these ordinary beastmen would probably have to be single their entire lives.
"What are you doing hiding here?"
Kaelen, who was hiding behind a distant tree watching the scene, was nearly scared half to death by the sudden voice behind him. He turned his head and glared at the culprit. Sane shrugged, pretending he didn't mean it:
"You're injured, so why are you out here? You've never cared about these things before, right?"
Kaelen waved a hand, ignoring Sane, and focused entirely on Elian. Only after seeing Silas embrace Elian did Kaelen breathe a sigh of relief. He straightened up slightly, pushed the obstructing Sane aside, and "limped" toward his own home.
His shoulder was suddenly grabbed, then released, and then his whole body suddenly felt light. By the time Kaelen regained his composure, he realized he was already being carried princess-style by Sane. He punched Sane hard in the chest, glaring at him, and signaled for Sane to put him down.
Sane completely ignored him and forcefully carried him back.
This scene happened to fall into the eyes of Rylan, who was looking for Sane. A flash of hatred appeared in Rylan's eyes.
Fine, it's Kaelen again!
That cursed thing dared to steal his Sane!
Rylan hated Kaelen so much he wished he could eat him alive right then and there. He turned back to his spot, sitting with his friends, enjoying the attentiveness of the young beastmen in the tribe, but he refused to accept grilled meat from anyone.
Rylan lowered his eyes slightly and whispered a few words into his friend Orion's ear. Orion listened, narrowed his eyes slightly, and then nodded.
Kaelen, who was having a glaring contest with Sane, suddenly felt a chill down his spine. He shuddered slightly. Sane, thinking Kaelen was cold, held him tighter and quickened his pace; in a flash, they arrived at Kaelen's cave.
Looking at the cold stove, Sane looked down and asked Kaelen in his arms:
"You haven't eaten dinner yet?"
Kaelen shook his head. He had planned to go see his two friends first, and then come back to eat something simple. After all, there was so much magic beast meat today, randomly grilling a small piece would be enough to get full.
Sane looked at him, very displeased, his reproaching gaze like a father looking at a child, making Kaelen feel guilty. But then he regained his senses—why should he feel guilty? How he ate and when he ate was his freedom; what right did this stinking snake have to reprimand him?
Kaelen pouted in displeasure. Sane sat him down on the animal-skin rug in front of the low table and started a fire to grill meat. When Kaelen received the grilled meat from Sane's hand and took two bites, he suddenly froze. Today was the tribe's late autumn gathering day. For any sub-beast without a mate to receive grilled meat from a beastman who also lacked a mate, it meant accepting that beastman's proposal. Now, sitting in his own cave, eating meat grilled by Sane, it seemed a bit... ambiguous, didn't it?
"What's wrong? Is it not good?"
Seeing Kaelen take two bites and then stop eating, Sane couldn't help but be confused. Kaelen snapped out of it and hurriedly shook his head. What was he thinking? This stinking snake certainly wouldn't think of it that way.
Sane indeed hadn't thought of it. It wasn't until he helped Kaelen finish eating, helped tuck him into bed, and walked halfway home that his steps halted. He had grilled meat for a sub-beast to eat on the day of the gathering; although it wasn't in the center of the tribe and not witnessed by everyone, the meaning wasn't much different.
Sane felt a slight tickle in his throat and coughed softly. His feet, which were just about to head toward the center of the tribe to gather with his brothers, now reversed direction, turning back toward the place he had just left.
He had lost out on a mate proposal; if he didn't extract some benefit from that sub-beast, he truly wouldn't be satisfied!