Chapter 106

The crystal-clear lake surface was covered with lush green leaves, while the water grass at the bottom swayed like a soft brush with the waves, resembling a velvety carpet. Could there be huge fish slowly gliding through the dense water grass, seemingly unconcerned about predators invading the lake bed?

Even if the predator was standing at the shore.

"Not rowing?" Titus eagerly held the oar in his hand, but Cloudy was squatting on the ground, roasting the small fish they had just caught together. The savory smell of the fish cooking acted as a barrier, blocking out Titus's voice.

"Cloudy—" Titus drawled, holding the oar behind her, moving it back and forth. "I've made a fire for you, it's time to row!"

"I want to finish eating first." Cloudy pointed to the fish she carefully roasted. This fish, regardless of its size and texture, suited her taste very well. It was a bit of a shame that she didn't bring any spices with her today, so they had to enjoy the natural flavor of the fish. "Don't worry, it'll be ready soon."

Titus halted his impatient steps, looking down at Cloudy's head. Not long ago, the two of them had been battling the lake fish by swimming around in the lake. Cloudy's hair tips were still dripping with water, and the wet hair stuck to her scalp, making her head look small enough to be eaten in one bite. "…Do you need help?"

"No, Titus, sit next to me. Do you want some fish?" Cloudy skillfully turned the fish over again, then nudged Titus, who obediently sat beside her. "This fish is definitely delicious."

"…Cloudy eats." Titus seemed a bit puzzled.

He felt that something was off recently. Ever since Cloudy returned from living on the cliff for a while, she had become gentler towards him. Very, very gentle. Although the previous Cloudy had been kind to him, there was always a thoughtful expression when helping him, indicating she found him troublesome or foolish.

However, Cloudy would help him while still showing disdain... it was quite amusing. Titus didn't understand why Cloudy behaved this way; perhaps in her settlement, disdain could also be a form of affection.

Many of Cloudy's behaviors seemed peculiar to Titus. He had interacted with people from other settlements, but they were more or less similar to his own people. Like beasts in the rainforest, they all seemed the same to Titus, divided only into fierce beasts and ordinary ones.

Cloudy wasn't a "beast." She had no aggression but could survive on her own. Like something wandering in the woods... like something glowing in the night... Titus couldn't quite figure it out, but holding onto this thing made him feel warm and intrigued.

He still remembered the first time Cloudy saw him, those fearful eyes filled with deep terror, like a small prey animal facing a predator. The second time he saw that fearful look was during the rainy season.

It was when he felt uncomfortable, vaguely...
It seems like I've met Cloudy for the first time again, with a deep sense of fear in Cloudy's eyes.

Titus sometimes tries to figure out his feelings towards Cloudy, comparing them to those of his own kind... Cloudy's emotions are more complex or unpredictable than those of others. She can be happy while being angry with him, and she can feel angry or happy upon seeing him when she's sad. He believes this is Cloudy's way of expressing "liking," a custom in Cloudy's settlement that he enjoys.

But what's been happening recently? Is Cloudy's change in attitude towards him also a custom?

For example, he's in a rush to row the boat, but Cloudy is busy grilling fish. Previously, Cloudy might have spoken loudly to him, saying she'll finish the fish before going. Now, Cloudy's voice is soft... this tone makes him not want to argue anymore. Why? Why has her way of speaking become gentle...

The change was probably noticed when he helped her with the worms. Cloudy dislikes worms, even though she always appears calm, Titus can tell. Whenever a worm appears in front of her, her shoulders tense up involuntarily, and her gaze locks onto the worm, he noticed this from the beginning. Although she can eat them, she's very picky... she won't eat the ones that look scary, have a strong smell, or long, worm-like creatures. She only likes sweet worm eggs and smaller, cleaner-looking worms.

Before, Cloudy would eat worms with him with a look of disgust, but now she watches him eat them with a smile. It's different. Even during playtime, when playing "chess," Cloudy is gentler and doesn't pinch his nose to tell him he made a wrong move.

Regarding physical contact, previously she found him too warm, kicking and punching at night to avoid him holding her, and the first thing in the morning was struggling to get away from his arms. But now, Cloudy enjoys holding his hand or linking arms, sometimes even hanging onto his neck directly, and at night she might place her legs on his stomach.

Titus is surprised by these changes, but he really likes them. He enjoys hearing Cloudy's gentle voice and her initiative to come over and link arms.

What Titus doesn't know is that Cloudy isn't doing this on purpose. She simply feels less irritated due to the slightly lower temperature, making her mood less restless. Especially now that everything is going smoothly, her mindset naturally relaxes, leading to some instinctual changes. Titus is important to her, so she becomes more patient.

Even though Titus is warm, what's more important to Cloudy now than rejecting his body heat is the intimate and happy touch that makes her feel close, like holding hands or linking arms, which are the gestures that bring her the most happiness. Particularly when sitting by the lake in good weather, grilling fish and looking at the clear lake...

"I'm in a good mood," Titus says, reaching out to poke her cheek and giving it a few pinches.
"Her wet hair... 'I used to think Cloudy couldn't live in a settlement. But now Cloudy is in a good mood.'

'Good for me too, she'll grab my wrist.' He lowered his head and rubbed Cloudy's head with his forehead. 'Less fire.'

Cloudy couldn't help but glance at the savage, couldn't help but think to herself... When did she really get angry with Titus? Except for sometimes when she couldn't help but want to scold him loudly, and when Titus ruined the romantic atmosphere in daily life, she would also get annoyed, and when she showed an overly happy expression while eating bugs, it would make her feel irritated, and when she looked around during chess wanting to end the game quickly...

'............'

Oh no, upon careful thought, she seemed to really get angry with Titus often, even though Titus is very obedient! And he's only nineteen... The movement of grilling fish stiffened, Cloudy's sidelong glance turned into a guilty stare: 'I... I'm not angry.'

'Angry, Cloudy likes to get angry.'

'I don't like it!!'

'Yes! That's it! Yell at me!' Titus saw Cloudy grimacing and immediately started laughing along. He enjoyed hearing Cloudy angrily shout, 'I'm very angry, Cloudy likes to get angry at me.'

If she continued to shout loudly, she would fall into the savage's trap, so Cloudy immediately closed her mouth. She couldn't ruin the excellent primitive camping atmosphere with her own shouting: 'The fish is ready to eat.' She brought the fish to Titus's mouth and waved it a few times.

Then, just as Titus was about to bite, she quickly withdrew the fish, holding it high and far away: 'Titus said he doesn't want to eat, so we can't eat now.'

'Why?!'

As the savage reached out to grab it, Cloudy stood up holding the fish, starting to run wildly to the side: 'I won't give it to you to eat!'

But after running about several tens of meters, she realized something was wrong because Titus hadn't followed. She turned in confusion to look at the savage still sitting motionless by the campfire, watching her: 'Why aren't you coming to catch me?'

'I can't outrun me, let Cloudy run for a while first.' Titus pointed to an open space across the lake. 'Run over there, I'll come after you, Cloudy.'

Hearing the rising voice, Cloudy thought that sometimes she unconsciously raised her voice and spoke as if she were angry. It wasn't entirely her fault; these local savages indeed said things that could slightly raise one's blood pressure.

Seeing Cloudy not moving, Titus felt smug. His ears perked up: 'If you don't run, come back, we'll eat together.'

Eat together?!

Before Titus could react, Cloudy pulled the whole fish off the stick. Since it was a big bone fish, she used her hands to rub off the most tender meat from both sides of the belly, kneading it into a big lump and stuffing it into her mouth.

'...!' Titus tried to figure out what Cloudy was doing."
Time was running out. By the time he rushed to the scene, only the fish head and some meat clinging to large bones remained. The person in front of him had cheeks bulging as if they were about to burst.

"Bad! Trying to provoke me!!" The angry wild man, without a second thought, reached out and pinched Cloudy's cheek. His mouth naturally and swiftly moved closer, tightly sealing Cloudy's lips, then he began to forcefully squeeze her cheek, causing the fish she had painstakingly held onto to burst out... and into Titus's mouth.

In an instant, her mind exploded. She grabbed Titus's ears as if they were bicycle handlebars, making muffled sounds of disgust in her throat.

What on earth is happening here?

Cloudy, seeing stars, tried to step back, but the wild man firmly held the back of her head with his other hand. The fish meat in his mouth turned into a mush and overflowed from the corner of his lips.

Here, by this lake, was the grave of their relationship. Titus personally dug the soil, and the coffin was made of fish bones... Cloudy never imagined that their first lip contact would be in such a childish play, and the most painful part was that Titus had no idea what a "kiss" was; to him, it was just a mouth-to-mouth struggle for food.

Cloudy couldn't help but spit out all the fish meat, releasing Titus's shoulders and starting to pound him forcefully. "It's not like this!!" she cried out in her native language. Why did she always end up being outsmarted by Titus whenever she tried to scheme against him recently? It was too painful. Was her modern intellect no match for Titus anymore?

As the modern person felt the pain of kissing fish meat, the wild man was basking in his own glory. He roughly lifted Cloudy from the ground and placed her on his shoulder. "Fish, eaten! We row the boat!"

"No more rowing!!"

"Yes!"