Chapter 47: Ryan Enters Sora’s House

After rinsing with the water, Sora felt that her face was much fresher and her skin much smoother. If Ryan hadn’t suddenly appeared, she would have covered her entire body with Black Phoenix fruit leaves for a full whitening treatment.

Unlike Sora, who was enjoying herself, the tribe was in an uproar.

"Wait... did I just see Ryan go into Kaelira’s house?"

"No way! I saw it too!"

"He even took a couple of her beast-skin skirts."

"He took her skirts? What would he need those for?"

"Maybe to wash them? Lukan often helps Kaelira wash her skirts, but Ryan doesn’t seem like the type."

"Exactly. Lukan has a gentle personality, so it’s not surprising that he’d help her. But Ryan? Impossible."

"I swear, you two are so inexperienced," another beastman said with a knowing smile. "When a male helps a female bring her skirts, it usually means only one thing."

"What do you mean?"

The two looked confused.

"It means they just finished doing that, and she’s changing clothes. My husband always brings me a clean beast-skin skirt afterward."

A nearby female blinked in surprise.

"Wait... are you saying Ryan and Kaelira have consummated their relationship?"

"It has to be. Otherwise, why would he suddenly be carrying her skirts in broad daylight?"

"That actually makes sense."

Several females nodded in agreement.

Not far away, Serena was fetching water. When she overheard the conversation, her expression darkened.

Ryan and Kaelira... together?

Impossible.

How could someone like Ryan possibly like her?

The last time he’d been affected by the Charm Fruit, he had still refused Kaelira. There was no way he would willingly help her now.

She must have used some kind of trick.

Serena clenched her fists.

She couldn’t afford to sit back any longer. If this continued, Kaelira would eventually win back all of her beast husbands.

Her eyes filled with malice.

Meanwhile, Ryan had only intended to retrieve Kaelira’s beast-skin skirts and return them as quickly as possible.

Unfortunately, as soon as he stepped out of her house, he ran into several tribe members.

Left with no choice, he carried the skirts openly in front of everyone.

The more straightforward he acted, the fewer rumors people would spread. If he had secretly used his abilities to leave unnoticed, the gossip would have been far worse.

By the time he returned to the hot spring, Sora had already come ashore.

She was crouching while wrapped in her beast-skin skirt, apparently occupied with something.

Nothing about the scene seemed inappropriate, and Ryan quietly relaxed.

Otherwise...

Seeing her in such an embarrassing state immediately after discovering she was on her period would have been awkward for both of them.

In reality, Sora was crouching simply to slow the bleeding.

She gathered some dry grass and started a small fire.

Once the fire burned out, she could collect the ashes to use inside her homemade menstrual cloth.

According to ancient records she’d read during the apocalypse, plant ash had absorbent and mildly antibacterial properties, and women in ancient times had used it to manage menstruation.

She trusted the wisdom passed down through generations.

As she worked, Ryan watched her from a distance before shaking his head.

He tossed the folded beast-skin skirts toward her.

"Your things."

Sora caught them easily.

Her eyes curved into a bright smile.

He had brought everything she requested.

"Thank you, Ryan."

"You’re the best."

The first sentence was sincere.

The second slipped out without thinking.

Ryan shivered slightly upon hearing it.

Without another word, he turned and walked away.

It was best to keep his distance from a female in heat.

Besides...

"Thank you."

"You’re the best."

Those were words Kaelira had never said before.

She had always taken everything for granted, ordering others around without showing appreciation.

After Ryan left, Sora dismantled two of her beast-skin skirts.

She only owned five in total.

One had already been cut apart to make two simple undergarments.

One was the one she was currently wearing.

One had been washed.

That left only these final two.

After cutting them up, she would have only two skirts remaining.

She needed to make more beast-skin skirts soon, or she’d have nothing left to wear.

Fortunately, tanning leather was something many females in the tribe knew how to do.

She could ask for help later.

By then, the grass had burned into fine gray ash.

She waited for it to cool before collecting it.

While waiting, she began sewing the menstrual cloth.

It resembled a sanitary pad from the apocalypse, except the cotton filling had been replaced with fine plant ash.

Using a bone needle and fish-gut thread, she carefully stitched the pieces together.

After what felt like a long time, the first menstrual cloth was finally finished.

The ashes had cooled enough.

She filled the cloth with the ash before sewing it closed.

Each beast-skin skirt produced two cloth pads.

Using the remaining material, she made a total of four for easy replacement.

After making sure no one was nearby, Sora quickly changed into one.

At last...

She finally felt safe again.

When Xavier arrived at the outdoor kitchen, the place was unusually quiet.

Instead of seeing Sora preparing dinner as usual, all he found was a pile of slowly smoking cypress branches.

He turned toward Ace.

"Where is she?"

Ace replied indifferently,

"I don’t know. It was already like this when I got here."

A short while later, Lucas arrived.

After his usual glance toward the stove, he frowned.

"Are we... not having dinner today?"

Xavier shot him an annoyed glare.

Edited Text (with name replacements applied)

Name replacements used:

Su Luo / Su Luolo / Su Luluo → Sora

Xiao Yi / Shiao Yi / Shia Yi / Shiao Ye → Xavier

Emo Shien / Emo Shen / Emo Shin → Ace

Luan Ting / Wanting → Lukan

Sunun Wan Wan / Wanwan → Serena

Lana → Lyra

Su Yang → Martin

Su Xiao → Mark

Nantu / Nanu → Ryan

Fu Feng / Fuong / Fu Foam → Lucas

"Don’t jinx it."

Ace shot Lucas an annoyed look.

He had already grown accustomed to Sora’s cooking and found everything else difficult to eat.

Lucas shrugged.

"I’m not making this up. Everyone in the tribe is talking about how Ryan went to Sora’s house today and took her beast-skin skirts. After something like that, she probably won’t have time to come back and cook for us."

Just then, Lukan arrived at the outdoor kitchen. He glanced at the stove and noticed Sora was nowhere to be seen.

"Stop looking," Ace said coolly. "She’s busy today. Ryan took her beast-skin skirts."

Lukan pressed his lips together, about to say something, when Sora finally returned from the distance.

Even with the makeshift menstrual cloth, the heavy flow still made her uncomfortable. She walked much more slowly than usual.

The four men immediately noticed something was different.

Ace narrowed his lazy eyes as he observed her unusual gait.

Xavier frowned when he saw her struggling to squat down and lift the cooking pot.

Lucas caught a faint scent on the breeze, and his expression immediately darkened.

Lukan also noticed that Sora’s pace was much slower than normal.

Fortunately, this body didn’t suffer from menstrual cramps. However, after spending so much time crouching down to sew the menstrual cloth, Sora was exhausted and had no intention of preparing an elaborate dinner.

Instead, she made a simple northeastern-style mixed vegetable dish and cooked a batch of corn cakes.

Looking at the plain meal, Ace said thoughtfully,

"I heard that you and Ryan have finally consummated your relationship."

"Don’t jinx it."

Ace shot Lucas an annoyed look.

He had already grown accustomed to Sora’s cooking and found everything else difficult to eat.

Lucas shrugged.

"I’m not making this up. Everyone in the tribe is talking about how Ryan went to Kaelira’s house today and took her beast-skin skirts. After something like that, she probably won’t have time to come back and cook for us."

Just then, Lukan arrived at the outdoor kitchen. He glanced at the stove and noticed Sora was nowhere to be seen.

"Stop looking," Ace said coolly. "She’s busy today. Ryan took her beast-skin skirts."

Lukan pressed his lips together, about to say something, when Sora finally returned from the distance.

Even with the makeshift menstrual cloth, the heavy flow still made her uncomfortable. She walked much more slowly than usual.

The four men immediately noticed something was different.

Ace narrowed his lazy eyes as he observed her unusual gait.

Xavier frowned when he saw her struggling to squat down and lift the cooking pot.

Lucas caught a faint scent on the breeze, and his expression immediately darkened.

Lukan also noticed that Sora’s pace was much slower than normal.

Fortunately, this body didn’t suffer from menstrual cramps. However, after spending so much time crouching down to sew the menstrual cloth, Sora was exhausted and had no intention of preparing an elaborate dinner.

Instead, she made a simple northeastern-style mixed vegetable dish and cooked a batch of corn cakes.

Looking at the plain meal, Ace said thoughtfully,

"I heard that you and Ryan have finally consummated your relationship."

The moment those words left his mouth, all four pairs of eyes turned toward Sora.