Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Parker had great culinary talent. Although he randomly added the seasonings, the meat he grilled didnât seem inferior to that which Bai Qingqing grilled yesterday. Bai Qingqing also ate a little, while Parker ate up everything else.
After eating meat for several consecutive meals, Bai Qingqing was getting sick of it. Just then, she saw Eve walking out of the village, so she hurriedly said to Parker, âIâm going over to Eve.â
Glancing at Eve, Parker supposed Bai Qingqing wouldnât dare run away anymore and felt that it would be good for her to follow Eve around and familiarize herself with the village. Hence, he consented. âJust donât go too far away.â
As Eveâs males werenât around, Parker felt embarrassed to tag along.
âGot it.â Bai Qingqing still remembered about the homeless beasts and certainly didnât have the guts to leave by herself. After waving goodbye, she walked towards Eve.
Eve, who was holding a small rattan basket under her arms, greeted Bai Qingqing cheerfully upon seeing her. âQingqing.â
Bai Qingqing returned the smile. Seeing the three little kittens in the basket Eve was holding, she asked, âEh? Are these the kittens youâre rearing?â
She had previously thought that Eve was carrying this basket to pick wild fruits and vegetables.
âPff!â Eve sputtered with laughter. She raised her basket and teased the âlittle kittensâ inside and said, âTheyâre not cats, theyâre the cubs I gave birth to.â
Bai Qingqingâs expression turned stiff. Dumbfounded, her lips parted as she gazed towards the basket, and only then realized the light patterns on their bodies were leopard printsâthey were of about the same size as a grown cat, but if one were to look carefully he would see that they were still very tender. Those little cubs were making growling sounds in soft and babyish tones.
Bai Qingqing kept away the shock on her face and said, âHur hur... Iâve never seen leopard cubs. Sorry about that.â
âItâs alright. Leopard cubs look rather like cats in their infant days. Itâs little wonder that youâre mistaken.â Eve couldnât help smiling as she walked out of the valley. She said, âTheyâre two months old now. They have weaned off breastfeeding and are incredibly mischievous. There isnât enough space in the village for them to run about, and itâs easy for them to run into the rivers. I had no choice but to bring them to the grassland outside the village while the sun isnât too glaring for them to expend their energies.â
Although Bai Qingqing nodded her head in agreement, she was thinking âf*ckâ inwardly.
Beastmen are indeed beasts! Two months and theyâve weaned off breastfeeding! I wonder what theyâll look like when they transform into humans? Will I get to see a bunch of babies running about maniacally?
Gosh, that image...
âErr... will they transform into humans?â Bai Qingqing asked curiously.
Eve gave Bai Qingqing a weird look. âMale beastmen only transform into humans when they come of age. How come you donât even know this?â
Bai Qingqingâs heart tightened. Before she could think of an explanation though, she heard Eve say, âYour family protects you too well, donât they? They donât let you go out ever?â
As Bai Qingqing had fair skin, Eve had all along thought she was a cherished female raised in captivity by a large tribe. She had heard that those kinds of females didnât get to leave the house easily, and it was normal for them to lack common knowledge.
Bai Qingqing nodded her head repeatedly and played along. âMm, my family doesnât allow me to interact with males and I donât have any brothers either, so I didnât know about this.â
âNo wonder. Females are in their human form right from when theyâre born. Since youâve never seen a male cub, itâs normal for you to think this way.â Eve merely felt that Bai Qingqing was pure and innocent like a child. At the thought of the goofy things she said, she couldnât resist laughing. âIn the future, you can come and ask me if thereâs anything you donât understand.
Ah, so females are in their human form when theyâre born. Bai Qingqing secretly made a mental note of this. She had never seen a female transform form, and Parker had never asked her to do that as well. That means females only have one formâthe human form?
âOkay.â Bai Qingqing pondered a moment, then asked conservatively, âAre there fewer females than males in every tribe?â
Eve sighed helplessly. âYeah. Exactly because there are too few females, thatâs why the beastmen population isnât able to grow. We can only try our best to not let our population shrink.â