Su Qinglan did not know how the night ended.
All she remembered was the joy, the sizzling meat, the glowing fires, and Bai Ling’s teary smile. Then, when everything was finally quiet, she returned to her cave with her heart feeling lighter than it had in a long time.
Now, as she slowly stirred awake, she let out a small groan. Her entire body felt comfortable, almost too comfortable, and her chest was bubbling with joy.
She yawned, covering her mouth lazily with one hand before blinking open her eyes. The first thing she noticed was the sunlight creeping into the cave from the cracks, painting the stone walls in golden streaks.
Her lips curved faintly.
Morning already...?
Her eyes brightened as she remembered last night. Ah, right... after all that fun, we stayed so late. No wonder I feel like I could sleep another ten hours.
Finally dragging herself up, she sat on her stone bed and stretched her arms high above her head until her bones popped pleasantly.
When she turned her head to the side, her gaze landed on a familiar sight.
The plant.
It lay curled up beside her bed, just as it always did, its leaves drooping in complete slumber.
Su Qinglan narrowed her eyes at it.
"...You lazy bum," she muttered. "I woke up, yawned, stretched, made all this noise... And you didn’t even twitch. How exactly are you going to protect me like this?"
The plant did not move.
It continued sleeping peacefully as if there were no tomorrow.
Su Qinglan crouched down beside it, poking one of its chubby leaves. "Hey, listen. I’m going to be busy today, so when I’m not around, you better guard this cave properly, understood?"
The plant trembled faintly, slowly unfurling one leaf. With an exaggerated little wiggle, it lifted the leaf straight up like a hand and bent it into a neat "Okk" gesture.
Su Qinglan’s lips twitched. "...You can actually do that, but not wake up earlier?"
The plant gave one more lazy shake, then promptly curled back up and went straight to sleep.
Su Qinglan let out a long sigh. "...Hopeless."
Pushing herself off the bed, she decided to get on with her morning duties.
She took a pinch of salt, rubbed it onto a small twig she had cut from a tree yesterday, and began brushing her teeth. She rubbed carefully, up and down, side to side, until her mouth felt clean and her teeth shone brighter than even her face.
After rinsing with water, she splashed her face and patted it dry. A cool freshness spread across her skin.
Turning, she looked around the cave.
Empty. As usual.
Her stomach growled loudly, echoing against the stone walls.
"...Ugh," she muttered, pressing a hand against her belly. It felt as though her stomach had digested every single thing she had eaten last night.
She went to check her supplies. But aside from the leftovers from the barbeque, there was nothing else.
Her lips pressed together in frustration.
She tore off a small piece of meat and chewed it slowly. The flavor was fine, but for breakfast, she wanted something light.
"Meat, meat, meat," she muttered as she chewed. "Is there nothing else to eat in this world?"
She swallowed and sighed.
Last time, she hadn’t been able to find any fruits either. At the feast, there had been none at all.
Strange... This is a whole forest. How could there not be fruits? It doesn’t make sense...
But sitting around grumbling wouldn’t fill her stomach. So she decided to take a walk outside and at least stretch her legs.
The morning sun was already shining warmly, the breeze cool against her face. Birds flew between the trees, and the distant sound of beastmen voices echoed faintly from the tribe grounds.
As she walked, her eyes caught on a small group of females huddled together not far from the caves.
Curious, Su Qinglan headed over.
To her surprise, Bai Ling was among them.
She tilted her head slightly, wondering what they were doing.
But instead of keeping her distance like before, Su Qinglan now walked forward openly. She was no longer shy, no longer afraid of rejection.
And just as she thought...
The females’ eyes lit up the moment they noticed her.
They became excited, their faces brightening, and Su Qinglan felt her heart warm.
Good... It’s not like before anymore. They don’t turn away from me.
She smiled faintly and asked, "What happened? Why are you all gathered here?"
A female with a short stature and a slightly plump build—though still slim compared to Su Qinglan—spoke first. "Qinglan, we are going to the forest to gather."
Su Qinglan blinked. "Gather? What are you planning to gather in the woods?"
Before the short female could answer, Bai Ling stepped closer with her usual energy.
"They want to look for things to eat!" she said quickly, her eyes shining. "Because in just a little while, the rainy season will come. And when it rains for so long, we won’t have enough food. So everyone thought... it’s better to try and collect what we can now."
Su Qinglan’s brows rose slightly.
Rainy season? So food will become scarce...
She nodded slowly, taking the explanation in.
Then, a spark of excitement flickered in her heart.
She had been wondering about this since yesterday, why there were no fruits, no vegetables, and no variety. Maybe now, if she joined them, she could finally find some herself.
"En," she said, smiling. "That’s a good idea. Let’s go together. I also want to go and gather some items."
The females brightened even more at her words.
Bai Ling nearly bounced with joy. "That’s great! With Qinglan-jie, it’ll definitely go well!"
Su Qinglan chuckled, a little embarrassed by the blind trust in those eyes, but at the same time, her heart felt strangely full.
Yes. She would search. And who knew, maybe she would discover something new to change their lives once again.