Chapter 256: Beastmen Are Wild Beasts After All

Danton followed her gaze to the drastically changed sea, a somber look clouding his light blue eyes.

He squeezed Evangeline’s hand and said softly, "We can hold on for now."

Leaving Norfell to venture beyond the Triangle Sea was an opportunity to find a new home. However, Marine Beastmen couldn’t survive long without seawater. For now, they could still collect some and mix it with snowmelt to ease their people’s desperate need for it, but Danton feared that during the long trek, far from any ocean, his people wouldn’t survive long enough to reach the Triangle Sea.

Evangeline leaned against Danton’s shoulder, her eyes on the water. "Don’t worry," she said softly. "I have a way."

Danton shuddered and held Evangeline tighter. "As the Clan Leader of the Mer Clan, I’ve never actually done anything for my people," he said with a wry smile. "If you weren’t here, I don’t know what the Mer Clan would be facing, let alone what would have become of me."

A faint smile touched Evangeline’s lips as she wrapped her arms around Danton’s waist. "I told you I came to save you all."

Danton rested his chin on the crown of Evangeline’s head, his fair, slender hands holding her waist. "Eva, thank you."

Evangeline blinked, looking up at Danton’s exquisitely handsome face. "We’ve already had a cub together, and you’re still being so formal with me? Your people are my people. I’ll get them safely to the Triangle Sea and find them a new home."

The atmosphere was harmonious for a moment, but it was shattered when Thorne came looking for them.

Without a word, he scooped Evangeline out of Danton’s arms, bent down, and rested his chin on her shoulder. "I’ve been rushed off my feet over there," he whined, "and you two are over here getting cozy..."

He drew out his words, tightening his arms around her like a child. "I want some too!"

As he spoke, a flash of displeasure crossed Thorne’s dark green eyes, and he looked up to shoot Danton a fierce glare.

’This time, the cub has to be mine. No one is stealing this one from me!’

’This Danton... he looks all gentle and understanding, but he’s the most opportunistic of them all. A cub was just born, and he’s already trying for another one?’

Danton met Thorne’s possessive glare completely unprovoked. Instead, his lips curved into a smile, his light blue eyes filled with a gentle light. "Eva has been busy these past few days. She should get more rest."

At this, Thorne’s brow furrowed. But thinking about how exhausted Evangeline had truly been for the past two days, he reluctantly nodded.

Evangeline pretended not to notice the tension between the two men. "We head to Blackwater Swamp tomorrow," she announced.

Danton and Thorne exchanged a look, their expressions turning grave.

The path to the Triangle Sea would inevitably lead them through Blackwater Swamp, which was also where Thorne had arranged to meet Elias Moretti.

*

The next day, Evangeline rose early and collected a large amount of seawater into her dimensional space.

Marine Beastmen couldn’t live without seawater. She not only stored enough for the Mer Clan but also thought of Coral Cetus.

With the Marine Beastmen facing disaster, the Mysticeti Tribe surely couldn’t have escaped unharmed. However, the day the sea flames had erupted was too chaotic, and Evangeline hadn’t had a chance to look for Coral Cetus. The other girl hadn’t used the Conch to call her either, apparently not wanting to be a burden.

Before leaving, Evangeline took out the Conch and sent a message to Coral Cetus, inviting her to travel with them beyond the Triangle Sea.

This was a decision that affected an entire tribe, not something Coral Cetus could decide on her own. They agreed to meet in person to discuss the matter in detail.

When Evangeline saw Coral Cetus again, she realized the girl was pregnant.

The once innocent and carefree pink-haired girl now had a burgeoning belly, with Stellan and Buck standing protectively by her side.

Stellan breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing his fellow clan members safe and sound.

"Eva!" The moment she saw Evangeline, Coral Cetus rushed forward and threw her arms around her.

Her sudden movement made Stellan and Buck turn pale with fright. Evangeline quickly steadied her. "Be careful."

Although Coral Cetus looked pale, she flashed a grin and said breezily, "It’s fine! I’m from the Great Fish Clan, not like those delicate, soft females! Don’t worry, Eva, I’ll deliver this cub safely. It’s just..."

She trailed off, but the sorrow in her eyes said the rest.

Their home was gone. Any Tideborn cub born in a time like this was bound to have a hard life.

"Don’t be afraid." Evangeline gently patted her shoulder and looked up at the approaching leader of the Mysticeti Tribe, Quinn Cetus.

The once gentle and refined leader looked much more haggard, a clear sign of the immense troubles the sea flame eruption had caused him.

"Witch," Quinn Cetus said, stepping forward and bowing politely to Evangeline.

Evangeline shook her head. "There’s no need for such formalities, Leader," she said calmly. "I trust Coral Cetus has relayed my message clearly, but I must ask again: is Leader Quinn Cetus willing to journey with the Mer Clan beyond the Triangle Sea?"

Even though he had already heard the recent rumors from Norfell, hearing it directly from Evangeline’s lips still made him tense up.

In the minds of both Terrestrial and Marine Beastmen, the Triangle Sea was a sacred, forbidden land.

Quinn Cetus’s brow tightened. He pursed his lips and said, "Witch, you know as well as I do that Marine Beastmen cannot survive long without seawater. Right now, the sea is boiling away. We cannot travel through the water to reach the Triangle Sea, which means we must go on foot. But the bitter Cold Season, the lack of food, and the scarcity of seawater are all immense problems for us Marine Beastmen. The Mer Clan..."

He looked at Danton, perplexed. ’As the leader of the Mer Clan, has he not considered these issues at all?’

Evangeline nodded. "I understand your concerns, Leader. I can solve the problem of the seawater, but you will have to overcome the blizzards of the Cold Season yourselves. As for food, we won’t be able to offer much help. But you must realize that the seawater is constantly evaporating. The sea level is falling. One day, it might disappear completely. When that day comes, are the Marine Beastmen in Norfell just going to wait to die?"

Her expression was serene, her tone even and without any emotional inflection.

’She had only invited the Mysticeti Tribe because of Coral Cetus and Stellan. One was her friend, and the other was a member of the Mer Clan. She couldn’t just abandon the Mysticeti Tribe because of them, which meant she naturally had to take more into account.’

’However, simply bringing them along was the most she could do. Providing food or worrying about keeping them warm was not her responsibility. At the very least, though, their safety on the journey would be assured.’

’After all, all the land-based tribes were grappling with the fact that Norfell was no longer a viable place to live.’

’Then, the various alliances of Terrestrial Beastman tribes would form a powerful force.’

’These people could be extreme. If food became scarce during the migration, their first targets would be the Marine Beastmen, who were incredibly vulnerable on land. They could slaughter fellow Beastmen, and as long as they didn’t consume the Beast Crystals, they wouldn’t turn into Fallen Beastmen.’

’The question was, when you were starving, and a fresh Beastman corpse lay before you... would you eat it?’

’Beastmen were, at their core, just Wild Beasts.’

She didn’t voice these thoughts. If Quinn Cetus couldn’t even foresee this possibility, there was no point in them traveling together.

Quinn Cetus’s hands, hanging at his sides, clenched into tight fists. Evangeline’s words were harsh, but they were the truth.

’If the sea flames could not be extinguished, the ocean would eventually boil away completely. When that happened, how were Beastmen like them, who depended on the sea to live, supposed to survive?’

’Finding a new path forward was now a matter of utmost urgency.’

’Most importantly, Evangeline, as a witch, had a way to provide them with seawater!’