Help! I transmigrated to a Beast World-Chapter 43: It’s Not Snuggling (and Other Lies I Tell My System)

Chapter 43: It’s Not Snuggling (and Other Lies I Tell My System)

Kiss him??

Uh, you dumb system!!! Always trying to get her into trouble!

Xin Yi ignored the system’s commentary and focused on the noodle king at her front.

"I said STUPID! Yes! Stupid emerald eyes!"

"Hmm." Qing Lin looked disappointed. "You said stupid emerald eyes. Emerald is a precious stone, Xin Yi. That’s a compliment. Telling me you like something about my body makes me happy."

"It’s NOT—" She threw her hands up. "Fine! FINE! I’m going to the river! And you are going to WAIT HERE!"

She tried to march past him with as much dignity as a person with bird’s nest hair could muster. His hand shot out, catching her wrist, gently this time.

"Wait."

She turned, and the look on her face was somewhere between exasperation and something that made his cold blood heat.

"What?"

"I’ll take you to the river. I want us to go together," he said quietly. "It’s not safe for you to wander alone. This is not like my territory. There are.....things in the water that aren’t friendly."

"Things? What things?"

"Big things. Hungry things. Things that haven’t learned about soap yet."

Eh? Xin Yi shuddered. "Hmmm, you make a good point. Fine. But you’re staying on the bank! No watching! No lurking! No—"

"I understand." He released her wrist, but not before his thumb traced a small circle on her pulse point. "I want you, Xin Yi. More than I’ve wanted anything in a very long time. And I’m going to show you why I’m the best choice. Don’t think I have forgotten about that."

Xin Yi’s mouth opened to respond, but no sound came out.

Before she could recover, he scooped her up into his arms, one arm under her knees, the other supporting her back.

"HEY!" She immediately bonked him on the head with her fist. "OW! Put me down!"

"Ow," Qing Lin said flatly, though it clearly didn’t hurt him at all. "Why did you hit me like that, Xin Yi?"

"Because I can WALK! I have TWO working legs! See?!" She kicked them for emphasis.

"I know you can walk." He started moving toward the door, completely ignoring her squirming. "But I don’t want your feet to hurt. The path to the river has sharp stones."

Xin Yi’s face, which had just started to cool down, went red again. "I—that’s—you can’t just say thoughtful things and expect me to—"

"Expect you to what?" He glanced down at her, squinting his eyes.

She huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "...Fine. You can carry me. But ONLY because of the sharp stones! Not because I like it!"

[DING! ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)]

[She DEFINITELY likes it! Look at that blush! Look at how she stopped struggling!]

[Snake King is smooth! I’m changing my ship preference! Sorry, Panther! ☆]

I said I DON’T like it! Xin Yi screamed internally, though she made no move to escape his arms.

They emerged from the guest chamber into the misty morning light. The Black Water village was already awake, serpent beastmen moving about their daily tasks, preparing for hunts, tending to the strange bioluminescent plants.

Every. Single. One. Stopped and stared.

At their guest, and the close friend of their king.

Carrying a small, flustered pink female.

"Oh my god," Xin Yi whispered, burying her face against Qing Lin’s chest. "Everyone is staring at us."

"Let them," Qing Lin said simply, his arms tightening around her possessively. "They should know you’re under my protection."

"Protection?! This looks like KIDNAPPING!"

"Kidnapping would involve you screaming and struggling."

"I AM struggling!"

"No, you’re hiding your face in my chest. That’s called snuggling."

"IT IS NOT—" She lifted her head to glare at him and immediately made eye contact with at least fifteen serpent warriors who were definitely smirking at her.

She went back to hiding.

They reached the river, and Qing Lin finally set her down on a smooth, mossy bank.

"There," he said. "The water is clean. And I’ll be..." He gestured to a large boulder about twenty feet away. "...over there. With my back turned. Being respectful, like you said. I won’t see anything."

Xin Yi eyed him suspiciously. "Really?"

"Really."

"No peeking?"

"No peeking."

"No lurking in the bushes?"

"No lurking."

"No shifting into snake form and swimming up behind me?"

His lips twitched. "That’s.....very specific, pink skin."

"Just promise!"

"I promise, Xin Yi. You have my word." He turned and walked toward the boulder, settling into a seated position with his back to the river.

Xin Yi watched him for a long moment, then sighed. "Finally. Hmm, system, I need my stuff. I also want to take a look at my stats so far."

[DING! (◕‿◕✿)]

[Accessing Dimensional Storage!]

[Current Inventory Status:]

- System Points: 2,490 (you’ve been busy!)

- Dimensional Storage Space: 10 Cubic Meters

- Items Available:

• 1x Tiger Claw (Emergency Use)

• 1x Set of Knitting Needles

• 50x Seasoning Packets (49 remaining, you used one!)

• 27x Bars of Lavender Soap

• 15x Bars of Citrus Soap

• 8x Bars of "Oops All Lye" (FAILED BATCH—DO NOT USE)

• 1x Bottle of 2-in-1 Shampoo/Conditioner (Peppermint!)

• 3x Clean Tunics (Deer Hide)

• 1x Embarrassingly Large Collection of Romantic Tension

[Also! Friendly Reminder: You still have the MASSIVE quest to bring civilization to the entire Beast World! No pressure though! ☆]

Xin Yi let out a long sigh. "Haaaaaaaah..." She had completely forgotten about that.

"What’s wrong?" Qing Lin called from the boulder, still keeping his back turned.

"Nothing! It’s just......existential dread! Not that you even know what that means."

She pulled out one of the lavender soap bars and the magical bottle of shampoo. The moment her fingers touched the plastic bottle, she almost cried.

Modern packaging. I never thought I’d miss you so much.

She glanced at Qing Lin’s back one more time, confirmed he wasn’t moving, and quickly stripped off her tunic.

The water was cool but not cold, perfect for washing away the swamp humidity and the general stickiness of sleeping in a tropical climate.

She waded in up to her waist and started scrubbing.

[DING! (•̀ᴗ•́)و]

[PSA: You have now spent 47 days in the Beast World without proper plumbing!]

[Your adaptation score is: Surprisingly High!]

[Your dignity score is: Questionable!]

[Your chances of going home: We don’t talk about that! ☆]

"Can we NOT talk about going home right now?!" Xin Yi hissed under her breath. "I’m naked in a swamp river! Let me have this moment of peace!"

[Fine, fine! I’ll shut up!]

[...for now.]

[But seriously, you should teach the snake people here plumbing eventually. Indoor bathrooms would change EVERYTHING.]

Xin Yi paused mid-scrub. "...System. No."

[But Host—]

"I said NO. I am NOT teaching these particular people advanced architecture. Building an actual functional sewage system would take YEARS!"

[Hmmmm.....if you insist...]

[But I’m just saying, a nice hot bath would really help with all that romantic tension you’ve been accumulating. Just like back in the panther abode. I sure—]

"SYSTEM!"

From his boulder, Qing Lin’s ears twitched. "Are you alright?"

"FINE!"

"Hmm."

Xin Yi dunked her head under the water, scrubbing the shampoo through her disaster hair. It felt amazing. Like a little piece of civilization in the middle of this prehistoric chaos.

She was just rising back up, water streaming down her face, when she felt something on her back.

Something crawling.

Moving.

With legs.