The deeper they walked into the clan, the more Lin Yue realized how different this place truly was.
There were no beds, no stools, no neatly built houses like in his old world. Everything was simple and rough. Beastmen wore clothes made from animal skins, leaves, and woven fibers, styled in strange but almost anime-like designs. Some were decorated with feathers, bones, or sharp teeth.
Along the open paths, many beastmen were trading.
There were no coins.
Only exchange.
Someone traded dried meat for animal-skin clothes. Others exchanged colorful spices for strange-looking herbs. Some stalls displayed raw meat—fresh, bloody, still warm—while others sold dried plants said to be medicines.
Lin Yue watched quietly, his fingers curling slightly.
You can buy anything… but only if you have something to exchange.
This world ran purely on strength and resources.
As the sun slowly lowered, painting the sky in deep orange and crimson, Feng Lihan finally led Lin Yue away from the clan center.
"We're going back," he said.
Lin Yue nodded, already feeling tired. His body wasn't used to walking barefoot on rough stone and forest ground for so long, but he didn't complain.
By the time they reached the cave, night had fully fallen.
Inside, Lin Yue lay down on the stone floor, exhaustion pulling him into sleep almost instantly.
—
Pain.
A sharp, burning pain jolted Lin Yue awake.
He gasped softly, instinctively pulling his foot back.
Blood.
His bare foot was scraped and bleeding, the skin torn open from the long walk earlier.
Before he could react, a shadow loomed over him.
Feng Lihan was already kneeling in front of him, his expression dark and shocked.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Feng Lihan demanded, his voice low and tight.
Lin Yue froze. "I… I didn't think it was serious…"
Feng Lihan's eyes fell on the blood staining the stone floor.
His jaw clenched.
Without another word, he reached down and lifted Lin Yue straight into his arms.
Lin Yue let out a small, startled sound. "F-Feng Lihan—!"
"Don't move."
With a powerful beat of wings, Feng Lihan flew out of the cave, landing moments later on a large, flat stone near the forest.
He carefully set Lin Yue down, crouching in front of him.
"You rabbits are too fragile," he muttered, frustration clear in his voice.
Feng Lihan quickly disappeared into the forest and returned with bamboo and soft plant fibers. With practiced movements, he split the bamboo, shaping it carefully, smoothing the edges with his claws.
Lin Yue watched in silence.
Before long, a simple pair of bamboo slippers took shape—light, sturdy, and perfectly sized.
Feng Lihan tied them gently onto Lin Yue's feet, his movements surprisingly careful.
"You will wear these from now on," he said firmly. "No more walking barefoot."
Lin Yue stared down at the slippers, his chest tightening for reasons he didn't understand.
"…Thank you," he whispered.
Feng Lihan didn't answer right away. His gaze lingered on Lin Yue's injured foot, then slowly lifted to his face.
"Next time," he said quietly, "you tell me immediately."
Lin Yue nodded.
In this dangerous, unfamiliar world—
being protected like this felt both frightening… and impossibly warm.
His first time someone care him.
And Feng Lihan, watching Lin Yue clutch the bamboo slippers as if they were something precious, realized something unsettling.