The female’s face went ashen with pain, and tears welled in her eyes. Startled, Xi immediately let go of her hand and tossed the sharp object into the river.
His blue eyes grew misty. His heart aching, he took her hand and gently blew on the wound. "Ah Jin, don’t cry, don’t cry. I’ll blow on it, and it’ll stop hurting~"
The faint, snake-like pattern on the wound, which had been barely visible before, didn’t fade. Instead, upon absorbing her blood, it grew even more brilliant and red, as if it had a life of its own, wrapping around her with aggressive tightness.
’He’d been too reckless.’
He’d seen the females of his tribe break mate contracts this way before. That’s why, in his desperation, he had resorted to such an extreme method.
Self-blame and regret flooded his mind. Seeing her small face scrunched up in pain, Xi grew so distraught he was on the verge of tears.
’Females are such delicate creatures; they can’t bear the slightest pain or hardship. Will Ah Jin hate me for being so reckless today?’
"I’m fine."
An Jin bit her lip until it was pale. After a moment, she shook her head, gently lowered his hand, and said softly, "I’m really okay now. Let me cook you that fish I owed you from yesterday."
But Xi shook his head and quickly stopped her. He dove into the river, retrieved a piece of light, thin gauze from the bottom, wrapped it around her wound, and gently tied it in a knot.
Shark Sha was breathable and light with a cool texture, making it perfect for bandaging wounds.
...
An Jin looked at the bandage tied in a neat bow around her wound, and the unease in her heart intensified. With a sigh, she finally turned to gather some rocks from under a tree, intending to build a simple stove by the river.
Xi, who had been staring intently at her wound, saw what she was doing and quickly interjected, "Let me do it, Ah Jin! You’re a female, you can’t be doing rough work like this!"
With a flick of his fishtail, he was off. A moment later, he struggled back to the shore, cradling several large, heavy rocks. His small face was flushed red from the effort.
The rocks were soaking wet and still dripping.
Their bottoms were even covered in moss.
An Jin rubbed her temples. ’Trying to start a fire with these rocks... we’d probably be here for a lifetime and still not get a flame.’
Frustrated, Xi tossed the rocks back into the water.
By the time she finished building the stove, Xi had caught two large, plump fish. He watched her movements, secretly memorizing them, and soon, they had cleaned the fish together.
The fish was cut into three pieces and put into the pot to simmer along with coarse salt and the mushrooms and red dates they had gathered earlier.
The waiting seemed to stretch on forever. Before the aroma of fish began to fill the air, An Jin pulled out a slightly dull beast-bone needle and a piece of hide. Sitting by the river, she began to sew with intense concentration.
The hide was coarse and tough.
With her slender limbs, she didn’t have much strength. She struggled with it for what felt like an eternity, but only managed to pierce a few holes.
"Let me help you, Ah Jin~"
Xi offered to take over. He reached into the river and pulled out a sharp, slender fish bone. Taking the tough hide from An Jin, he held it up to the light to examine it. "Ah Jin, what are you trying to make? Just give me a rough idea."
"Do you really know how?"
An Jin was skeptical.
The Little Merfolk looked so delicate, as if he’d been pampered his whole life. He didn’t seem like the type who would know how to do manual labor.
But his eyes curved into crescents and his crimson lips curled into a smile. He let out a lazy little huff. "You’re not allowed to underestimate Xi!"
Without a moment’s delay, he placed the hide on a rock at the bank. His slender fingers picked up the bone needle, and then he plucked a long strand of his own blue hair and began to sew with it.
As Xi listened to An Jin’s description, his mind rapidly processed the information.
An Jin wanted to make a pair of shoes—something that didn’t exist in this world.