| GB | Are You Two Together? | 17
Huo Duo’er’s words were still on the tip of his tongue when he scratched his neck again. Seeing the persistence in Yu Bai’s eyes, he had no choice but to put him down.
The muddy floor in the room was freezing cold, and Yu Bai’s straw sandals had been left outside. Huo Duo’er regretted putting him down the moment he did, and before Yu Bai could move, he scooped him back up again.
Yu Bai opened his eyes wide and nudged his elbow against the solid chest in front of him.
“Huo Duo’er, I really can walk on my own.”
“The floor is cold.” Huo Duo’er, hearing the muffled softness in Yu Bai’s voice, placed him on the bed and pulled over a sun-dried animal hide blanket to wrap him up.
The scent of sunlight surrounded Yu Bai, warming him instantly. The emotional waves that had just stirred in him were soothed.
His hair was sticking up a bit on top of his head, and he had managed to gather a bit of spirit. But after just being stubborn, he now said nothing to Huo Duo’er.
Huo Duo’er said, “Still sleepy? Take a nap first, I’ll go prepare some food.”
Yu Bai lowered his head in silence.
As his gaze dropped, he suddenly noticed something unusual with the giant’s waist beneath the linen robe.
That was... quite the sight.
Why did it suddenly become like that?
Yu Bai buried his face even lower.
Huo Duo’er looked at the little sub-female’s expression, not fully understanding, but the sight of him made his heart melt.
He didn’t know what to say to coax him.
After quietly watching Yu Bai for a while, Huo Duo’er went out, retrieved the straw sandals that had been left outside, and placed them neatly under the bed before heading out to prepare the food.
Since breakfast had been light, he made a pot of meat soup for lunch.
As soon as Huo Duo’er stepped out to get busy, Yu Bai followed right after.
He circled around to the stove, his eyes not wandering.
“I remember we dried some mushrooms earlier. If we add them to the soup, it’ll taste even better.”
Huo Duo’er replied, “I’ll listen to what Bai says.”
Yu Bai quickly ran into the stone house and rummaged through a corner until he found a few bundles of dried mushrooms.
These were gathered by the old orc during the spring. Thinking about the old orc who had already passed away half a year ago made Yu Bai feel a little sad. But he quickly pulled himself together, took a portion of the dried mushrooms, washed them clean, and added them into the pot to stew together with the meat.
As the sun hung over the treetops, Huo Duo’er carved a long piece of wood and set it up over the fire at a distance to roast.
Then he sat down on a stone not far from the hearth, long legs relaxed under the linen robe. That distracting bulge under the robe had finally settled down.
With a stone knife in hand, he picked out a few branches and sharpened them, then held them over the fire again to test their toughness.
Yu Bai watched for a moment, then moved closer and asked, “Are you heading out again?”
Huo Duo’er replied, “Yeah.”
The fish caught from the river were being kept alive in a stone jar, and there were still a few pieces of smoked meat in the house, but it was clearly not enough to get Yu Bai through the winter comfortably.
The wooden bow left by the old orc didn’t feel right in his hands, so Huo Duo’er was making a new one. Once Yu Bai went down for a nap that afternoon, he planned to head into the mountains to hunt more wild chickens and rabbits, then keep them tied up and raised for a while.
Yu Bai asked, “Into the mountains?”
Huo Duo’er nodded, looking at the sub-female who had come close.
There was only so much prey to catch at the foot of the mountain. Since the midday sun had come out and it was still warm, it was a good time to go deeper into the hills. With some luck, he could bring back more wild animals.
While they were talking, the mushroom meat soup finished cooking. Steam rose thickly from the pot, and the aroma was much richer than the plain broth from earlier.
Yu Bai picked out a few mushrooms and nibbled on them. He ate slowly, eyes fixed on the bow and arrows Huo Duo’er had just finished making.
Suddenly, Yu Bai spoke up: “I want to go hunting with you.”
Huo Duo’er said, “Bai, you stay here.”
Yu Bai put down his soup: “How could I just stay?”
Although he had rescued Huo Duo’er, he’d never expected any kind of repayment in return.
But ever since Huo Duo’er regained his sight, he’d not only helped carry back loads of firewood but also repaired the collapsed wall.
As the days grew colder, Huo Duo’er went out every day, trying to stockpile as much meat as possible.
Yu Bai didn’t know how to hunt, but he didn’t want to just sit around and wait either.
He looked a bit disheartened, eyes drooping, his whole expression wilting: “I can help too.”
Huo Duo’er couldn’t even say the word “no.”
“Bai, let’s go together.”
Yu Bai’s face lit up instantly with a bright smile: “You said so.”
Huo Duo’er: “……”
This little sub-female seemed to have faked looking pitiful just to trick him, but instead of being angry, he actually felt kind of happy about it.
It was just past noon, the warmest part of the day.
There weren’t many insects left in winter, but Yu Bai still insisted on rubbing insect-repelling herbal juice onto his arms and legs. Then he handed the remaining herbs to Huo Duo’er.
Huo Duo’er thought his skin was thick and tough and didn’t really need that stuff.
But when he saw Yu Bai’s face glowing with a bit of liveliness under the sunlight, he didn’t say a word, just calmly and decisively began applying the juice to his own skin.
—
The eastern mountain range near the tribe was quite dense, with lusher vegetation than other areas. At the base of the mountain, wild melons and yams grew in abundance.
Orcs didn’t eat meat every single day, so the local females or sub-female often came to dig up ingredients. Large melons and yams were usually filling enough on their own.
Huo Duo’er planned to take Yu Bai to that eastern mountain. If there were other orcs gathering food at the foot of the mountain, he would leave Yu Bai there.
After hearing Huo Duo’er’s plan, Yu Bai looked like he wanted to say something but ended up swallowing his words.
There was nothing wrong with Huo Duo’er’s thinking. After all, Yu Bai had no hunting experience and might just end up dragging him down.
Staying at the foot of the mountain to dig for wild melons and yams while waiting for Huo Duo’er to return sounded reasonable enough.
Once they had everything settled, the two set out. It took a fair bit of walking to get from the tribe to the eastern mountain range.
Yu Bai tried his best to keep up with Huo Duo’er’s pace, but not long after leaving the tribe, his breathing became uneven.
Huo Duo’er stopped and reached out to pick him up.
Yu Bai was startled. “Huo Duo’er!”
He squinted his eyes, the sunlight casting a hazy glow all around, making everything feel a little unreal.
Huo Duo’er said, “I’ll put you down when we get to the foot of the mountain. Save your strength for now.”
Yu Bai: “……”
He had absolutely no way to argue with that.
Huo Duo’er had put it bluntly, but he wasn’t wrong.
Given Yu Bai’s stamina, just walking to the foot of the mountain would use up most of his energy. With Huo Duo’er carrying him, he could at least conserve his strength for foraging.
Yu Bai retracted the fingers that had been ready to poke at the other’s neck, his eyes blinking with slight awkwardness.
“…But you don’t have to carry me like this.”
Huo Duo’er acted like he didn’t hear him. With the bow in his right hand, the tattooed arm beneath held Yu Bai securely, steadily carrying his butt and thigh.
All the way to the eastern mountain ridge, Huo Duo’er’s expression didn’t change, and his breathing remained even.
Yu Bai felt impressed, and couldn't help but feel a bit envious too.
From afar, he saw a few sub-females gathered in groups, digging around for food. He lightly scratched at Huo Duo’er’s shoulder and whispered, “Put me down now.”
Huo Duo’er set him gently on the ground. “Wait here for me here.”
Yu Bai picked up his basket and took out the small, well-used hand hoe inside.
“Mhm!”
Yu Bai’s expression, in Huo Duo’er’s eyes, was just so obedient and beautiful that he couldn’t help but look at him a few more times.
“I’ll come get you soon.”
Yu Bai said with a smile, “Hurry into the mountains and be careful.”
Once Huo Duo’er had headed up the mountain, Yu Bai started digging at the soil with his hoe.
The sun was rising higher, and after some movement, his body warmed up a little too.
Yu Bai focused on unearthing wild potatoes, when a few nearby sub-females came over, circling around him.
They were clearly curious. After all, the giant tribe was a particularly powerful orc race.
“Are you together with that male orc?”
Yu Bai lifted his head, a beat late, and only then realized what “together” meant in this context.
He shook his head to deny it.
“But… he carried you all the way here. No male orc does that for a female around here.”
Even the smallest of orc cubs, as long as they weren’t sick, always walked on their own.
In their eyes, Huo Duo’er’s care for Yu Bai was almost more attentive than how he treated their own cubs.
The sub-females chattered amongst themselves, and Yu Bai wanted to explain, but no words would come out right. In the end, he simply retreated to a quieter corner to continue digging.
Before evening, the temperature at the foot of the mountain began to drop.
The nearby orcs, who had been foraging, started packing up. Yu Bai sat on a stone, holding half a basket of wild potatoes and melons, waiting.
Huo Duo’er descended from the mountain, his gaze scanning the area before locking onto the familiar figure.
“Bai.”
At the sound of his voice, Yu Bai looked up and saw that Huo Duo’er’s right hand was holding several tied wild chickens and rabbits.
“You caught so many?”
Huo Duo’er walked over, casually switching the wild animals to his other hand and taking the half-filled basket of melons and potatoes, all without any effort.
“It’s time to head back.”
Yu Bai nodded.
He had been digging wild melons and potatoes all afternoon, and his arms were sore, his waist and legs aching.
Just as he was about to get up, his waist tightened, and suddenly there was an additional arm around him.
Huo Duo’er’s left hand scooped him up, lifting him easily by the waist and supporting his buttocks as he stood.
Yu Bai jumped in surprise, instinctively grabbing onto Huo Duo’er’s shoulder. Then, remembering something, he quickly turned to glance back.
The sub-females who had left in groups were watching them quietly, their eyes filled with envy.
His face flushed with heat. “N-No need to carry me, I can walk.”
Huo Duo’er raised an eyebrow, puzzled. “Bai, haven’t you been working for so long? Aren’t you tired?”
He added, “We did the same thing when we came here.”
Huo Duo’er’s tone was as usual, his expression focused. Clearly, he wasn’t joking, he was treating this matter seriously.
Yu Bai fell silent. “……”
Huo Duo’er didn’t mind at all, and Yu Bai knew he shouldn’t care too much about other people’s gazes.
He hesitated for a moment before asking, “I-I’m not heavy, am I?”
Huo Duo’er’s response was straightforward, his hand giving a firm press on his buttocks, his expression still focused and steady.
“There’s not enough meat. Eat more in the future.”
Yu Bai’s eyelid twitched. That answer was way too blunt...
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