Clatter clatter clatter~~~~~ munch munch~~~~ gurgle!!
Clatter clatter clatter clatter...
Clutching the wooden bowl and spoon, Mu Zhou shoveled food into his mouth like crazy.
He’d never imagined he could eat this much.
Slurp~~~~~~~~ haaa~
He happily drained the last of the broth, then reached forward and tipped the empty bowl, signaling for another serving.
Tammu took the bowl with a numb expression, ladled more vegetable soup from the big pot over the fire, and handed it back to Mu Zhou.
At the same time, he glanced at the pot that was already scraped clean at the bottom, and hurriedly whispered to the people beside him to add more ingredients.
Mu Zhou had completely given up on his image. Let his image go to hell.
No one who’d spent years hovering between starvation and chewing on roots could stay calm in front of food like this.
And… this otherworldly veggie stew, something like potatoes and cabbage, actually fit his taste surprisingly well.
So he’d only eaten… just a tiny little bit more than usual.
All around him, people were packed in layers, inside and out. No one else moved their chopsticks.
They just stared blankly as he finished bowl after bowl by himself.
The moment he’d stepped into this village, his now insanely sharp nose had dragged him straight to this big pot.
Mu Zhou’s stance was:
Anyone who dared drag him away could go have a good look at that mountain of corpses and sea of blood at the village entrance instead.
Slurp~~~~~~~~ haaa~
He took another long sip.
Lifting the bowl again, he swept a sidelong glance over the crowd.
When he saw the young boys with flushed faces, clearly wanting to stare but too scared to, he shifted his butt slightly backward on the ground, feeling seriously creeped out.
This world doesn’t have… some kind of weird custom, right…?
The thought sent a chill down his spine.
No, no, no, focus. I’m looking for…
His gaze searched through the people.
Finally, he spotted the little girl standing alone at the very back, head lowered.
She sensitively felt someone watching her, so she raised her head.
Her clear blue eyes met Mu Zhou’s.
That pure gaze made Mu Zhou’s heart pound wildly again.
He didn’t understand why this kept happening to him.
His hand stopped mid‑motion, whole body dazed for a moment.
Tammu might be a rough man, but he was still the clan chief.
He’d been watching Mu Zhou closely the whole time.
Following Mu Zhou’s line of sight, he thought for a moment, then waved toward the back of the crowd and called out:
“Talisa!”
The little girl whose name was called flinched like a frightened small animal, her tiny body giving a sharp tremor.
As the crowd parted around her, she looked even more lonely.
She glanced helplessly left and right, but no help came.
So she moved her thin little legs and shuffled forward.
When she reached them, she curled her hands against her chest and lowered her head slightly, peeking carefully at Mu Zhou with a hint of pleading in her eyes.
He could even feel that her small body was trembling.
Watching this, Tammu’s mind was racing.
Someone who could single‑handedly hold off over a hundred Cataclysmic Beasts—power like that wasn’t unheard of, as far as he knew.
But anyone with such strength was usually a noble figure who could protect an entire domain.
Leaving aside why such a person had appeared here of all places…
He studied Mu Zhou’s worn‑out cloak and that rusty, cheap weapon.
He’d heard that people like this always had strange quirks or eccentric personalities.
And then… he recalled what he’d seen under that hood.
Judging from that shocking beauty and the apparent age on the surface, the odds of Mu Zhou being human weren’t high.
He really couldn’t guess what was going through Mu Zhou’s mind.
All he could do was try to explain:
“Um… honored strong one, this child’s name is Talisa.
Her parents were members of our clan, but they both passed away when she was still very young.
By our clan’s tradition, the whole tribe raises such a child together until she comes of age.”
Here, Tammu hesitated for a beat.
“Has she… offended you in some way? She’s still an ignorant child. I… I’ll send her away at once.”
He started forward, intending to pull Talisa aside.
Mu Zhou didn’t fully understand everything Tammu was saying, but as he watched the frail little body tremble harder with each word, watched those big, talkative eyes well up with mist and a hint of apology…
He slowly reached out his hand and placed it on Talisa’s head.
He gently stroked her soft hair, rubbing it lightly.
“Mmwu…! L‑Lord…?”
A soft, sugary voice full of confusion slipped from Talisa’s lips.
Waaah~ she’s so cute~ I really wanna raise one!!!
Right now, Mu Zhou actually had a stomach full of things he wanted to say,
but unfortunately, he could only play the mute…
So he gave the little girl in front of him a smile instead.
Whoosh—Talisa’s face turned visibly red in an instant.
She murmured under her breath, barely audible: “So beautiful…”
Because Mu Zhou wore a hood, only Talisa—thanks to her height—could see that stunning smile.
…!!!
Staring at that bright‑red, adorable face, Mu Zhou completely lost it.
He yanked Talisa into his arms and hugged her tight, rubbing his cheek against her soft one while happily rocking her left and right.
“Mmwu!! M‑m… L‑Lord…!”
Talisa flailed her arms in a panic, utterly overwhelmed.
Seeing this scene, Tammu halted mid‑step and secretly let out a breath of relief.
“So he… likes children, unexpectedly…”
Though Talisa was raised by the tribe according to tradition, she was still very young and a girl at that.
Inevitably, people saw her as a burden.
Most villagers only tossed her food from time to time.
Even he himself had to think for a second to recall her name.
But regardless, she was still one of his people.
He didn’t want to see her hurt.
Just now, when he tried to pull her away, that had been his way of protecting her.
A villager came over and whispered something into Tammu’s ear.
Tammu nodded slightly to show he understood.
By now, Talisa had calmed down.
Her tiny body stopped shaking, and she stayed quietly in Mu Zhou’s arms without resisting.
She just tilted her small head up, staring at him in confusion, swaying along as he rocked her side to side…
Tammu walked over, bent his upper body, and said respectfully:
“Honored strong one, your resting place is ready…
It’s a bit simple. I hope you won’t mind.”
Oh, I understood that one. They’re telling me to go sleep.
Mu Zhou looked up at the sky that was gradually darkening.
So it was already this late, huh.
He turned to glance at the big pot that was empty again.
Honestly, he felt like he could still eat a little more…
Forget it. To avoid looking too weird… better just behave and go to bed.
They brought him to what looked like the largest house in the village.
He slid the door open. Inside was spacious and tidy, the wooden floor giving off a faint, clean scent.
Someone had clearly put a lot of effort into preparing it.
The interior was separated into two sections.
One side of the floor was covered with thick mats.
In the other room sat a huge wooden tub, filled with steaming hot water.
Yeah, that had to be for bathing.
Huh? Why didn’t they prepare a change of clothes for me…
Mu Zhou thought of his old, ragged cloak that he’d worn for who knew how long.
He had no idea…
Tammu had assumed he had some kind of strange fetish, so he hadn’t dared to ask anything.
After a quick inspection, Mu Zhou was fairly satisfied.
He turned back and gave Tammu and the villagers clustered behind him a small nod.
Tammu’s expression was a bit complicated as he helped close the door for him.
Well… I’d say that went pretty smoothly, for our first day of contact…
Mu Zhou headed toward the big wooden tub in the other room, ready to have a good bath and relax.
That was when he realized something was off…
There was still… something in his arms.
Huh?
He lowered his head.
What greeted him was a pair of big, blue eyes, blinking up at him.
Talisa was very well‑behaved, lying quietly against his chest without moving at all—
so much so that he’d only just now noticed she was still there…
