Chapter 113: A Fearful Hei Yao!
"Ayao, when did you come back last night? I wanted to wait for you, but while waiting... I fell asleep. I was really worried about you."
"Wait, your wound..." Si Lu noticed the wound on his tail, and her eyes immediately reddened.
At the moment, Hei Yao had the upper half of his body in human form, while his lower half was still a snaketail. The wound on his tail extended across its entire length, already stitched up, but still looked terrifying.
The wound was nearly two meters long.
Si Lu's eyes grew even redder as she stared at it.
A single tear dropped down.
It landed on Hei Yao's hand, and seeing the little female shedding tears over his wound, his heart shattered.
"Don't cry; I'm fine. Look, I'm still alive and well. This wound may look scary, but it's not that serious."
"Lu Lu, please stop crying. If you keep crying, my heart will shatter; it's already in so much pain."
Hei Yao anxiously spoke, flustered, unsure what to do. He just knew he couldn't bear to see her cry.
He feared seeing her in tears.
Naturally, he couldn't bear her sorrow either.
Watching her cry made his heart ache more than the wound.
Damn it! It's all his fault; his wound made her cry.
"Ugh, Ayao, does the wound still hurt? What happened last night? How did you get such a serious injury?" Si Lu sniffled and asked, her tear-filled eyes looking at him as she wrinkled her little face.
Her vulnerable, pitiful appearance tugged at Hei Yao's heart. He immediately pulled her into his arms, hugging her tightly.
"It's fine, really; I'm okay. Please don't cry, alright?" Hei Yao's heart ached.
Seeing her like this, he felt unbearable.
"No, I want to know. I have to know how you got hurt so badly." Si Lu's teary eyes carried a firm resolve.
She needed to know.
She had to know.
"Yesterday, while we were hunting, we encountered three demonic beasts. You know how vicious and brutal they are. When they saw us, they attacked. We were in the middle of hunting as well."
"At one point, a beast lunged at Song Zhan's neck. When I saw that, I quickly blocked it, and its teeth sank into my tail. I struggled, flung my tail, and the beast's teeth slashed a wound—this wound."
"Don't worry, I'm really fine."
"If I hadn't blocked that strike, Song Zhan would've had his neck bitten off and died. I know you care about each of your beast husbands, so I couldn't just let them die."
"If Song Zhan had died, you would've cried; you would've been heartbroken. I couldn't stand to see you sad. So please don't cry anymore; I'm truly okay. Just a few days of rest, and I'll be fine." Hei Yao cupped Si Lu's face, bringing his lips to her tear-streaked eyes, gently kissing away the tears.
He tasted the saltiness—bitterness.
Tears shed for him.
And he felt honored!
"Ugh…" Si Lu heard Hei Yao's words and immediately threw herself into his arms, crying even harder.
It was all her fault!
All her fault!
She hadn't realized how deeply Hei Yao cared for her or how much he thought about her.
Indeed, if Song Zhan had died, she would have been heartbroken, devastated, and cried. But Hei Yao was no different! If any of them were injured, in danger, or died, she would be just as devastated.
Si Lu hadn't realized how deep Hei Yao's love for her was.
He was once a carefree and untamed wandering beast, but after meeting her, he willingly became her beast husband. Not only that, but he was willing to sacrifice himself for her other husbands.
This kind of love made Si Lu's heart ache and filled her with guilt.
By Hei Yao's nature, he wasn't obligated to do these things. But he did it all for her, to spare her sorrow and tears.
He truly loved her, even loving what she loved.
Because she cared about them, he started to care as well.
He was so good to her—did she really deserve it?
No, she didn't deserve it!
Because this was the beast world!
She couldn't give him a lifelong commitment of love for one person; she couldn't love only him, and she couldn't be with only him.
At that moment, Si Lu truly felt she was not a good person.
Not only Hei Yao, but all of her beast husbands were so good to her.
But she wasn't good!
"Ayao, I'm sorry; I'm the one who's wrong. You should be a free and carefree snake beast. Because of me, your life was disrupted, and now you've suffered such a severe injury."
"You once lived a carefree life in the forest, so free and relaxed. But because of me, you've shoulder responsibilities and burdens that weren't yours to bear. Not just you, all of them too."
"I was wrong."
"I dragged you all down!" Si Lu sobbed; her voice choked with sorrow.
Her tone was low, and the brightness that once shone in her confident eyes had dimmed, turning gray.
Her entire presence felt different, heavy with gloom.
Seeing her like this, Hei Yao was terrified!
This version of Si Lu was someone he had never seen before.
And he didn't want to see her like this.
Because of his injury, Si Lu had taken such a heavy blow.
Hei Yao was scared!
He was truly scared of Si Lu's current state.
Not just fear, but terror!
This Si Lu was like a fragile doll, ready to break at any moment.
"Lu Lu, listen to me, pull yourself together!"
"What you're saying isn't true; you know that, right?" Hei Yao gripped her shoulders, his voice urgent.
"This isn't your fault. It's not like that. Meeting you, becoming your beast husband, it's the best decision I've ever made in my life!"
"Being your mate makes me incredibly happy, content, and fulfilled. Look at me, look into my eyes—I love you, I adore you. To me, you are my life, my hope!"
"We're all like this; we're your mates, your beast husbands. It's our duty and responsibility to care for and protect you!"
"Maybe without you, I'd be more free than I am now. But that kind of freedom would be meaningless because I'd have no one to love, nothing to cherish. After meeting you, I've experienced so many things—things that have become my most precious memories and feelings."
"You need to stay strong. I'm fine, so you can't fall apart, Lu Lu!"