Julian watched the faint, gentle smile on Lachlan’s face, his own gilt-gold eyes narrowing slightly.

Lachlan’s smile was like snowmelt in early spring, steeped in an emotion that made Julian’s heart tremble. He had never seen such a look in any male’s eyes—so soft yet so stubborn, as if his very soul was willingly bound to his partner.

Julian abruptly looked away, his brilliant golden hair hiding his constricting pupils.

’This kind of partnership feels so foreign,’ he thought, ’yet also... inexplicably enviable.’

In truth, he was very popular in the Goldeagle Tribe. He was not oblivious to the scorching gazes of the females.

During the tribe’s bonfire festivals, females would "accidentally" drop flower garlands at his feet. When he went out hunting, they would press sweet fruits into his hands. A female’s affection for a male was always fiery and direct at the start.

But ever since his brother met with disaster and disappeared without a trace, the full weight of the tribe had fallen on his shoulders alone.

Furthermore, whenever a female showed interest, he would remember his brother’s broken Feather Wings, dripping with blood, never to return to the sky. The pain his brother had endured was like a giant boulder hanging over his head.

To him, a deadly danger lurked behind every female.

Better to soar alone than to form a Contract with a female and be trapped for life.

He had never once considered forming a Contract with a female.

The scene from the tribal trading gathering involuntarily surfaced in his mind: Evangeline, in order to protect a Fallen Beastman, had not hesitated to confront all the tribes of Norfell. He hadn’t paid it much mind at the time, but thinking back on it now, the memory was remarkably clear.

He couldn’t quite describe the feeling he’d had when she walked toward the raging mountain fire without a hint of hesitation, never looking back.

He suddenly realized that this female genuinely wanted to protect her partners. It wasn’t an act, nor was it pretense.

Lachlan had said it too: his female always protected her partners, shielding them behind her.

’A female like Evangeline... you probably couldn’t find another one like her on the entire Beastman Continent.’

With that thought, Julian’s gaze fell upon the unconscious Drake.

’Perhaps when he wakes up, he really will be able to embrace a new beginning.’

"With Eva here, Drake will be fine."

Lachlan sensed the turmoil in Julian’s emotions and offered a soothing remark in his cool, clear voice, a remark laced with unquestionable certainty.

As soon as he spoke, he strode forward to catch up with Evangeline. Mottled light and shadow swept across his sharp, clean features, tinting his usually cold expression with a rare gentleness.

Julian lowered his gaze and followed the group toward Blackwater Swamp.

The sights along the way were shocking.

The once-lush jungle was now a vast expanse of scorched, blackened earth.

Ash covered the cracked ground everywhere. The occasional remains of a Wild Beast were horrific, carbonized husks that had been touched by lava. The slightest touch would reduce them to dust, leaving behind nothing but a pile of cinders.

As the wind blew, it stirred up the flying ash. The entire jungle seemed to be suffused with an aura of death, letting out a silent whimper.

The group had been tense on their way there; on their return, their mood was even heavier.

*

「Blackwater Swamp.」

Several males helped build a new bamboo loft for Julian and Drake.

Julian had a Gold Attribute, and after he reinforced the bamboo loft, it took on a hard, metallic quality, looking all the more sturdy.

The night they returned, Evangeline stayed with Danton.

Firstly, his Waterside Bamboo Loft had just been completed. Secondly, the little merling in her belly was making a fuss. Whenever it couldn’t sense its father’s scent, it would tumble about restlessly inside her, like Nezha churning up the sea.

Evangeline lay on the bamboo bed, and Danton gathered her into his arms, placing a palm against her stomach. Only then did the restless little life inside gradually calm down.

"How long is the gestation period for Merfolk?" Evangeline asked curiously, looking down at her slightly rounded belly.

On the Beastman Continent, gestation periods varied greatly among the different races. But judging from Danton’s humanoid beast form, she feared it wouldn’t be short.

Danton looked down at her, his silver-blue eyelashes casting a soft shadow beneath his eyes. "When the Cold Season arrives and the first snow falls, our cub will be born."

"The Cold Season?" Evangeline was surprised, her fingertips twirling a lock of Danton’s azure hair. "The rainy season just ended, and now it’s hunting season. Does that mean we have to wait a long time for him to be born?"

Danton hummed in affirmation, his palm covering her belly, feeling the faint yet tenacious pulse of life within. He placed a gentle kiss in Evangeline’s hair. "The Mer Clan’s young are born with the ability to hunt. They are the most precious gift the Deep Sea gives us."

Evangeline nodded softly and wrapped her arms around Danton’s lean waist, burying her face in the cool crook of his neck.

She murmured, "I wonder if it’ll be a little male or a little female."

Danton tightened his arms, pulling her closer. "It doesn’t matter. As long as you’re the one giving birth to them, I’ll love them."

He held Evangeline tightly, a strange warmth surging in his chest at the thought of a tiny new life soon arriving—a life that would flap its tender tail fins in the crook of his arm as he led it into the Deep Sea for its first hunt.

’I never thought I would experience such a warm and peaceful day.’

Evangeline rested against Danton’s chest, listening to the steady, strong beat of his heart as she slowly closed her eyes.

His unique, crisp scent made her feel completely at peace.

Just as Evangeline was drifting off to sleep, a faint ripple from her storage space snapped her awake.

"What’s wrong?" Danton sensed her stir and immediately propped himself up, a wary, cold light glinting in his pale blue eyes.

Evangeline didn’t answer. She just sat up, and with a flick of her wrist, the rainbow-colored eggshell appeared in her hand.

A fine crack had appeared on the eggshell’s once-smooth surface.

Danton’s body tensed instantly, his pale blue pupils contracting sharply.

He cautiously touched the crack with his fingertip, his voice slightly unsteady. "Is it... about to hatch?"

"Looks like it." Evangeline blinked, placing the eggshell on the soft mattress of the bamboo bed.

She took out some Spiritual Medicine, dissolved it into a liquid, and let it slowly seep into the eggshell. The familiar process made the little one inside even more active.

More and more cracks spread across the eggshell like a spiderweb. Rainbow light flowed through them, and with a series of CRACKLING sounds, the shell broke apart completely.

Evangeline stared at the little creature before her, a hint of novelty in her slender eyes.

It was a child as fair and tender as a snowball. Translucent fluid still clung to its chubby, lotus-root-like arms. Perhaps because it had often absorbed Spiritual Medicine in the egg, the little one’s face was fair and delicate, not at all wrinkled like a typical newborn cub.

He was a little male, a very beautiful little male.

He had a full forehead and a face like a pink, carved piece of jade. His hair was very black, his eyelashes long. His eyes were still closed, so their color was a mystery. The bridge of his nose had a perfect, elegant curve, and his small, rosy mouth was slightly agape, letting out a sound like a kitten’s meow.

Evangeline reached out and tapped the little one’s nose. ’You can tell he’s The Everwake’s child at a glance.’

Besides his features, the butterfly marking on his cheek was almost identical to The Everwake’s.

However, on The Everwake’s face, this colorful butterfly marking had a demonic, bewitching beauty that hinted at a soul-stealing danger. But on the cub’s soft little cheek, it was merely an adornment that added a touch of lively charm.