"Speaking of which, why hasn’t Professor Scarlett come back yet? I see the other students who went to catch crabs have all returned."

Lucy suddenly looked towards the pond with doubt.

Her words reminded Andrew, who had been focused on grilling the meat.

Someone had been coming over intermittently to ask him why his grilled meat wasn’t as good and to ask for pointers, making him feel like a barbecue master. He hadn’t even noticed that nearly an hour had passed.

"Yeah! The Scar has been gone for quite a while, why is she still in the pond?" Andrew felt a bit worried.

Of course, he wasn’t worried about Professor Scarlett’s safety; in this country, there probably weren’t any creatures that could harm his Professor Scarlett.

"I’ll go take a look. Help me grill this batch of meat, and then share it with everyone. Don’t burn it."

"Okay."

Andrew handed the tongs to Lucy and then hurried towards the pond.

At that moment, Scarlett was bending over, raising her arm, staring intently at a crab. Suddenly, she struck out, instantly grabbing the crab with lightning speed.

After catching it, she patted the large crab in her hand, "Where do you think you’re running? You’ll be the first one eaten later."

Scarlett’s voice was quite soft, and Andrew only vaguely heard it.

Seeing that Scarlett seemed to be having a good time, he almost felt reluctant to disturb her.

"Scar, haven’t you caught enough yet?"

Andrew’s voice reached Scarlett’s ears, and only then did she turn around, "I think that’s about it. I just gave a few crabs to others, so I caught a few more."

Scarlett’s voice returned to its usual cool tone, unlike the happy murmurs she made while catching crabs.

She picked up the bamboo basket filled with crabs and returned to the shore. Her originally smooth, fair calves and feet were now covered in mud.

Scarlett put her feet back into the pond and shook them, washing off the mud before slipping them into her plastic slippers.

"Huh? Scar, where did you get the slippers?"

"Bought them. At that small pavilion by the pond, three dollars a pair."

Scarlett pointed towards the pavilion as she spoke.

But those plastic slippers weren’t even worth a single dollar, and now they were being sold for five. Only Scarlett wouldn’t find that expensive and bought them directly.

"Help me carry the shoes. We’re going back."

Scarlett, carrying a bamboo basket full of spoils, walked towards the camp, her steps noticeably lighter.

Andrew quickly tucked away Scarlett’s pink socks, picked up her white sports shoes, and hurried to follow her.

Back by the tent, Scarlett was hungry and immediately started eating the grilled meat Andrew had saved for her. Lucy finished making the last batch of grilled meat and then went to play with the others.

Andrew washed his hands, took the bamboo basket, and prepared to clean the crabs.

"So many?" Andrew exclaimed, looking at the basket full to the brim.

He didn’t have the knack for catching crabs. He had once been pinched on the finger by a crab, which hurt so much he jumped around wildly. Now, he cleaned them very carefully.

"There are plenty; we can share some with the other students later."

"Okay."

After cleaning for a while, Andrew suddenly pulled out a crab that had been smashed flat. Its shell was completely caved in and broken, and the crab roe inside had spilled out.

"Scar, what happened to this crab?" Andrew held up the flattened crab and asked Scarlett.

"When I was about to grab this crab in the pond, it pinched my finger. When it hurt, I instinctively punched it directly, and this is what happened."

"..."

In the pond, with the water cushioning the blow, one punch turned the crab into a pancake...

If Professor Scarlett landed a full-power punch, wouldn’t the result be pieces scattered everywhere?

Since there was no pot, Andrew had no choice but to char-grill the crab, but the taste was mediocre. The others tried a few other grilling methods, but none tasted very good either.

Fortunately, they had the grilled meat to fall back on. After eating their fill, those with energy continued to play, but most people chose to retreat into their tents for a nap.

After returning the rented grill, Andrew also prepared to go back to his tent to rest.

He happened to see Scarlett rubbing the ring finger on her right hand that had been pinched by the crab.

The wound wasn’t big, but it seemed a bit itchy. After rubbing it, Scarlett opened her small mouth and sucked on the wound.

It was like a small cat returning from a hunt, quietly tending to its injury.

"Scar, don’t use your mouth! It might get infected."

Andrew sat down next to Scarlett and took his backpack over.

"Doesn’t saliva contain lysozyme? It can disinfect."

"That won’t do. It’s safer to disinfect with alcohol first."

Andrew finished speaking, took out alcohol swabs and a band-aid from his backpack, pulled Scarlett’s hand in front of him, and carefully wiped the wound for her.

"You actually brought these things?"

"My sister studies medicine, after all. I usually keep simple medical supplies on hand. Since we were going on an outing, I brought them along."

Scarlett chuckled upon hearing this, "Heh, I didn’t expect you, this Little Fellow, who is usually lazy, to be quite meticulous when it matters."

"I’m lazy on a daily basis because a person’s energy is finite. I need to focus my energy on important things, which is why I look so lackadaisical normally."

Scarlett listened, glanced at Andrew while suppressing a laugh, "Excuses. Then why do I maintain focus most of the time? You’re clearly just lazy."

"Scar, you’re different; you are inherently more powerful."

"Hmph, specious reasoning."

As Andrew spoke, he took a band-aid and wrapped up the wound on Scarlett’s ring finger.

Scarlett held up her right hand, looked at it closely, and said with a smile, "It looks quite like a ring."

When Andrew heard this, he suggested, "Scar, why don’t we also buy a pair of rings to wear on our right ring fingers? A ring on the right ring finger signifies being in the honeymoon phase of a relationship."

"No."

Scarlett haughtily refused.

"Why not?"

"Guess."

Scarlett gave a mysterious smile, then turned and crawled into her sleeping bag.

Andrew leaned over with a playful grin. "I can’t guess."

"If you can’t guess, then forget it," Scarlett replied, crossing her arms.

"Then can I have a kiss?" he asked, eyes sparkling with mischief.

"No. You will not stop after just kissing."

"I promise, I’ll just do one kiss. Just one... a kiss on the cheek."

As Andrew spoke, he leaned his face closer to hers.

Scarlett quickly blocked her cheek with her hand. "No. This is outside, not at home."

"No one will see us in the tent," he whispered, his voice low and coaxing.

Scarlett sighed, clearly conflicted, but after a few seconds she lowered her hand. "Ok fine."

The moment she gave permission, Andrew didn’t waste any time. He leaned in and pressed his lips gently against her cheek. The kiss was soft at first, warm and lingering. Scarlett closed her eyes, expecting it to end there.

But Andrew didn’t pull away.

Instead, he slowly moved his lips from her cheek toward the corner of her mouth. Scarlett’s breath hitched.

"Andrew..." she warned softly, but there was no real force behind it.

He kissed the corner of her lips, then boldly captured her mouth in a full kiss. It started gentle, but quickly deepened. His hand came up to cup her face as he tilted his head, kissing her more passionately. Scarlett made a small sound of protest, but her lips parted anyway, allowing his tongue to slip inside.

The kiss grew heated. Andrew’s other hand slid to her waist, pulling her closer inside the small tent. The sleeping bags rustled beneath them as he pressed her down gently onto her back. Scarlett’s hands came up to his chest, half pushing, half pulling him closer.

Outside, the faint sounds of other students laughing and talking around their own tents drifted through the night air. The forest was alive with the chirping of insects and the occasional rustle of leaves, but inside their tent, the world felt small and private.

Andrew broke the kiss only to trail his lips down her neck, sucking lightly on her sensitive skin. Scarlett tilted her head back, biting her lower lip to suppress a moan.

"You said... just one kiss..." she breathed, her voice shaky.

"I lied," Andrew whispered against her neck, his hand sliding under the hem of her shirt, caressing the smooth skin of her stomach. "I can’t stop with just one."

Scarlett’s fingers threaded through his hair, torn between pushing him away and pulling him closer. The tent felt warmer, the air thicker. Andrew’s body pressed against hers, his growing arousal evident as he kissed her again, deeper this time, his tongue exploring her mouth with clear hunger.

Outside, someone laughed loudly near another tent, reminding them they weren’t completely alone. Scarlett tensed for a moment, but Andrew didn’t stop. He kissed her harder, as if trying to drown out the world beyond the thin fabric of their tent.

His hand moved higher under her shirt, cupping her breast through her bra. Scarlett gasped into his mouth, her body arching slightly against him.