Chapter 71: Together (END)

By the time Duogaluo realized those two people had disappeared, it seemed already too late. He had visited the treehouse on the eve of the end of the rainy season, but inside, apart from a few large items, the medicine, weapons, dry food, animal skins, and flint were all gone. Of course, this included the two people who were supposed to be in the house.

At first, Duogaluo was a bit panicked, but he just thought that the two had temporarily moved to another place because of a leaky roof. However, after several days of watching, neither Hamoyin nor Nagu appeared.

They had left.

This was the only explanation for the current situation. Duogaluo had vaguely thought that Hamoyin had lost his motivation for revenge against Azuran because he had almost entirely focused on that understanding girl, valuing her above all else.

Now that it was confirmed, he felt relieved. Why he felt relieved, Duogaluo wasn’t quite sure. He had hoped that Nagu and Hamoyin would stay in the tribe because it was much safer here compared to other places. But those two didn’t seem to think so; they had never considered settling down here for the long term.

Hamoyin had planned to leave once he became human. As for Nagu’s thoughts, Duogaluo wasn’t very clear. He thought that no one would choose the life of a wanderer, where safety and food were not guaranteed. But Nagu seemed very willing to live that kind of life with Hamoyin, which Duogaluo found hard to understand.

Duogaluo wandered around the empty treehouse, then opened the always-closed window to look at the lush green forest outside. After a long time, he sighed deeply, deciding not to think about those two anymore. After all, they had already left, and no matter how much he thought about it, the result wouldn’t change.

Now, he still had to think about how to deal with Azuran. Although he wasn’t completely isolated in the tribe, it was a pity to lose a reliable helper like Hamoyin. At least with Hamoyin, things would have been much easier.

A few days passed, and no one in the tribe noticed that Hamoyin had disappeared. They didn’t care about the movements of that monster, and now everyone was busy preparing for the hunt after the rainy season.

Duogaluo didn’t deliberately mention Hamoyin to them either. He remained silent until the end of the rainy season when Azuran and the other leaders’ team set off for the barren mountains. He and a few others, according to their plan, made no moves at first, just waiting for the monster to appear and then seizing the opportunity to create chaos, letting Azuran die at the hands of the monster. They waited for many days for this opportunity, but the monster always appeared sporadically and was quickly suppressed by the people in front. Duogaluo never had a chance.

Time gradually passed, and the day they would finish clearing the barren mountain area and return to the tribe was approaching. If they failed this time, they would have to wait for the next ritual, and Azuran would sacrifice many more lives.

Duogaluo remained calm, but the others with him grew impatient. They suggested dealing with Azuran at night, insisting that they couldn’t let this deceitful leader return to the tribe. Naturally, Duogaluo rejected their risky proposal.

The plan seemed to be stalling. As Duogaluo was thinking this, he woke up the following day in the camp to find a small piece of animal skin under his elbow. On it, written in black ink, were a few simple words:

“When the sun moves to the left of the highest peak, take your people to the safe cave and hide.”

Duogaluo stared at the piece of animal skin for a long time, wondering if it was possible…?

But hadn’t those two already left?

After today’s patrol began, Duoagluo’s gaze never left the highest stone mountain in the barren mountain area. When the sun moved to the left, it was probably in the afternoon. Should he follow what was written on that small piece of animal skin?

What if it was a trap? He would be leading his men to their deaths.

However, as time approached, Duogaluo still hadn’t figured out a solution because he was truly at a loss in dealing with Azuran. Should he really place his hopes on this suddenly appearing note?

“They went that way.” One of Duogaluo’s men, riding a goat, came up to him. “We are supposed to wait here according to the instructions.”

“No.” Duogaluo, who had been staring at the sun without moving, suddenly said, “Follow me.”

“But…”

“Just listen to me.” Duogaluo shook his head, signaling his men not to say more. Then, leading about a dozen people, he began climbing up the mountain path. There were no caves nearby, but climbing up to avoid the narrow mountain paths below was always safer. They then nestled quietly on the mountain, waiting until the sun finally moved past the stone mountain and appeared on the left. Suddenly, the familiar roar of monsters echoed through the once-quiet barren mountains, and there was more than one.

“Chief, Chief!” The people around him began to panic. “Is something happening over there?”

Duogaluo didn’t answer. After a moment of silence, he suddenly started laughing and shaking his head. “I don’t know. We’ll just wait here.”

Amidst the roars, there were clearly sounds of distress signals. Duogaluo heard them but remained unmoved. The team he led consisted of men from his own village, with only two or three from Azuran’s side.

The two or three who heard the distress signals reacted strongly. “Chief! We need to go help the Great Chief!”

Duogaluo turned his head to look at them, then signaled to his men. In the next moment, Azuran’s men were pushed off the cliff. From that height, there was no chance of survival.

“We’ll go out once the commotion dies down.” Duogaluo squatted down against the rock wall behind him. As he thought, he started laughing again. Since Hamoyin had come, he wondered if Nagu was nearby too. Knowing Hamoyin, he wouldn’t let Nagu stay far from him.

He hadn’t expected those two to keep their promise. This was the second time Hamoyin had saved him.

Duogaluo sighed and stopped thinking about other things, simply waiting for the situation to end with gratitude towards Hamoyin. It wasn’t until the sun began to move away from the peak that the sounds from below gradually subsided. Duogaluo and his men quickly packed up and headed to the site of the conflict. Unsurprisingly, the place was covered in blood and severed limbs, but there were also many monster corpses. Duogaluo wasn’t sure if Azuran’s men killed them or if Hamoyin had cleaned up afterward. He believed it was more likely the latter, as most of the monsters had been killed with a single blow.

“…What a pity.”

Duogaluo searched through the bodies for a long time before finding Azuran crushed under another corpse. Half of his body had been bitten off, and his face still showed anger and fear. “The Great Chief sacrificed himself in this purge.”

No one else spoke, but there was a faint sense of relief. After confirming Azuran’s death, Duogaluo looked around, but there was nothing else besides rocks and dry grass in the crevices.

“I heard the monsters’ roars… Are you okay?” Nagu looked at Hamoyin, who was covered in blood, as he moved the stones at the cave entrance to come in and get her. “Is everything taken care of?”

Hamoyin nodded and took Nagu’s hand. “I’ve settled things with them.”

“I thought you wouldn’t care about Duogaluo anymore.” Nagu handed Hamoyin a water bag. They had indeed left human territory for a long time but hadn’t gone far. Hamoyin had been wandering with her in the grasslands, close to the barren mountains. “Were they all unharmed?”

“No.” Hamoyin opened the water bag, poured some water on his face, and washed off the blood. “Now we can leave. Where to?”

When talking about happy things, his tail, which had grown back to its original form, would slowly sway behind him and finally wrap around Nagu’s arm, rubbing affectionately. “You often talk about the sea. Shall we go to a place where we can see the sea first?”

“Sure!” Nagu took a few steps to lean against Hamoyin, and the two of them walked out of the cave together, snuggling close. “Let’s go to the seaside first, and then… then I want to see other places too. What do you think? But won’t it be cold by the sea?”

“I don’t know, I’ve never been there.”

“Staying in the rainforest for so long, I’ve almost forgotten what cold feels like… It’s sunny every day. Oh, right! Can’t you stay in cold places? Then maybe we shouldn’t go to the seaside. Let’s find another warm place to live.”

“I’m not a lizard, nor a snake.”

“But won’t places with too much water make you uncomfortable?”

“No.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“Okay then.”

Nagu shook Hamoyin’s arm, her face showing a smile that could be described as content. “Then let’s go there together now.”

He returned her smile with his. “En.”

Chapter 72: Extra

After three days, they finally managed to cross the flat area filled with swamps.

Nagu didn’t want to recall how she and Hamoyin had struggled in those stinky mud pits for three days. Initially, Hamoyin had tied a small raft with wood, but as they moved further from the center of the swamp, the edges became too shallow and dry for the raft to be useful. So, starting from yesterday, they waded through the mud on foot.

Hamoyin, with his lower body covered in scales, wasn’t afraid of the disgusting bugs hidden in the muddy water. Nagu, on the other hand, got several red bumps on her butt and legs from bites. When Hamoyin noticed, he carried her on his shoulders. It was an unpleasant process, covered in mud, but worth mentioning that Nagu finally saw an animal she could name correctly after being here for so long, besides the big gray rats, snakes, and spiders!

Crocodiles!!

They were exactly like the ones she remembered, walking around on four legs. This discovery brought tears to Nagu’s eyes, feeling like she had met an old friend. However, when Hamoyin caught a crocodile and smashed its head to roast it, Nagu also tearfully ate her old friend.

The crocodile skin was peeled off and tied into a bundle.

“Are we heading in the right direction?” Nagu, carrying her bag, stood on a small hill and looked towards the vast grassland. After leaving the swamp, they entered such an open area. The wind and the grass underfoot were still damp as if it had rained recently.

“Yes.” Hamoyin, sitting beside her, was somewhat exhausted from three days of continuous travel. Besides being covered in dried mud, the weather hadn’t been good, with the sun always hidden by clouds, making him uncomfortable.

Nagu knew Hamoyin must be physically drained. She told him and then ran down the hill to scout around. After half an hour, she ran back to Hamoyin. “I found a grassy hollow over there with some clean rainwater.”

Hamoyin weakly responded without moving.

Then Nagu spun away like the wind and returned after ten minutes. “I set up a fire and a pot to cook dried meat by the grassy hollow. Let’s go there. You can lie by the water, and I’ll help you wash off the mud.”

Hamoyin’s tail twitched slightly in the green grass behind him. He slowly stood up and followed Nagu down the hill towards the small water hollow.

“Lie down here.” The hollow was about two meters wide and half an arm deep. If they don’t use it now, it might dry up soon. Nagu patted the grass beside the hollow, urging Hamoyin to hurry.

Covered in mud, Hamoyin obediently lay down next to Nagu, his tail flapping around before resting on Nagu’s arm.

“How long will it take us to cross this grassland? Will we reach the seaside after this?” Nagu held Hamoyin’s dirty tail, using an empty wooden bowl to scoop water and wash it. To ensure there was no sand or small stones between the scales, she would check each one after rinsing.

“It should take a long time.” Hamoyin squinted his eyes, lying on the grass, his body occasionally shivering. “We can stay here for a while.”

“But there doesn’t seem to be much shelter on the grassland.” Nagu started scrubbing the tip of his tail with both hands. “It would be troublesome if it rains.”

Hamoyin murmured, his tail restlessly trying to wrap around Nagu’s wrist.

“Wait a minute.” Nagu grabbed the tip of Hamoyin’s tail like a fish. “It’s not clean yet.”

“Oh.”

After cleaning his entire tail, Nagu started working on his back. The scales on his back were larger and slightly looser than those on his tail and legs, so much mud had gotten trapped underneath. Cleaning required lifting each scale to wash underneath. Hamoyin thoroughly enjoyed this occasional scale cleaning. The ticklish feeling when Nagu’s fingers touched under the scales made him very comfortable. He lay on the ground, dozing off and occasionally flicking his tail. Eventually, his tail wrapped around Nagu’s waist.

“Are you going to sleep now?” Nagu scooped up water and splashed it all over Hamoyin’s back. “We haven’t eaten yet. Eat first, then sleep?”

“You feed me.” Hamoyin was so lazy that he didn’t even open his eyes.

The sky, which had just rained, unexpectedly cleared up a bit, and the faint sunlight made Hamoyin not want to move at all.

So, after finishing washing Hamoyin, Nagu dutifully fed him the cooked food, spoonful by spoonful. As they ate, the sun grew stronger, and it became a bit warm. But this suited them just fine. After eating, Nagu lay down beside Hamoyin, basking in the sun and dozing off.

“If we’re going to stay here…” Half-asleep, Nagu felt Hamoyin’s arm around her waist. “Should we set up a tent or something?”

Hamoyin nuzzled his head against Nagu’s. “We’ll talk about it later.”

Nagu yawned and turned to snuggle into Hamoyin’s arms. “Okay.”

The two of them began a short nap by the small water hollow on the grassland.

Author’s Note:

At this moment, a mouse quietly passed by.

Hamoyin: !(suddenly lifts head)

Mouse: !!

Nagu: What… (drowsy)

Hamoyin: Nothing, just a mouse running by.

Nagu: Oh… (falls back asleep)

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