The Creature Keeper - chapter 44

Tang Rou pulled her hair out of his mouth, utterly confused.

“Why are you suddenly so afraid?”

The young man had lost her hair, his lips pressed into a thin line, wet eyelashes clinging with droplets, fluttering like a butterfly’s wings, truly looking as if he’d been frightened out of his wits.

Tang Rou felt a strange sense of guilt under his gaze, and helplessly patted the top of his head. “Alright, it’s fine, don’t be afraid, don’t be scared, nothing’s wrong. Can you let me down first?”

But as she spoke, his expression turned aggrieved again.

As if letting her go was some enormous injury.

He said, “No.”

Then he pressed his head against her neck, his face buried in her collarbone through the thin fabric, the warmth of his body making him tense and tremble again.

“No, don’t go.”

His gaze was a little dazed, yet he stared unblinkingly at the pale blue veins beneath Tang Rou’s neck, feeling the flow of blood and her pulse-a dangerous aura, like a predator watching its prey.

The water’s surface rippled, splashes falling to the ground, the chaotic currents tormenting his taut body, his pale face a mixture of cold and burning heat.

The semi-transparent tentacles were graceful and smooth, restraining the fragile, slender human.

He secretly bit her hair again.

Tang Rou, exasperated, pulled her hair out of his mouth again and again, until the ends were damp.

These creatures’ mouths were very clean, with no odor, but having her hair bitten still felt unpleasant.

She couldn’t help but laugh and cry, putting on a stern face. “Don’t bite me again!”

The Little Octopus started to look sad.

He muttered, “Thin…”

“What?”

“Rou, too thin, not good.”

The tentacles lifted her up, and Tang Rou cried out, clutching his arm unsteadily, realizing he was weighing her up and down as if measuring her weight. His dark green eyes grew more melancholy. “Light, Rou is very light, not good.”

Then, as if making a decision, his thick lashes cast shallow fan-like shadows beneath his eyes, rising and falling with his breath.

“For you…”

He extended a tentacle to her face, full of sincerity.

Tang Rou didn’t understand. “What do you mean?”

“Eat…”

Tang Rou clearly saw her own reflection in his clear dark green eyes, mouth slightly open, utterly stunned.

He moved the tentacle closer to her lips, averting his gaze as if he didn’t dare look at her. “Eat it…”

??

Things suddenly took a horrifying turn.

Tang Rou shoved him hard, but his tentacles entangled her, her dangling toes not even touching the ground. Fortunately, she was always sitting on his arm, so she wasn’t tired.

Her retreat and resistance made the Little Octopus freeze, his dark green eyes once again showing a wounded look, helpless like a pet abandoned by its owner. “You don’t want it?”

As if suffering some enormous grievance.

Tang Rou was full of question marks in her mind, but outwardly she still acted like a good parent willing to discuss psychological issues with a child.

She probed, “Do you know what ‘eat’ means?”

The young man nodded.

If he weren’t so innocent and pitiful, Tang Rou would have thought he was flirting.

“Eat you? Is that the kind of ‘eat’ you mean?” She pointed to the takeout box in the trash can. “Like eating the little wontons, eat you like that?”

The young man nodded again, his eyes tinged with anticipation.

“Why?” Tang Rou couldn’t help but use a sinister tone to scare him. “If I eat you, you’ll die.”

As she leaned forward to speak, the young man’s lashes trembled uneasily again, this time looking even more shy.
“It… will grow back…”

Does he mean the tentacles can regenerate?

Not exactly stupid.

Tang Rou continued to scare him. “Then what if I want to eat you all up? You’d be gone, dead for real.”

The young man froze, then asked, “All gone… then… can’t see Rou… anymore?”

“If I eat you all up, you won’t see me again.” Tang Rou nodded, her tone chilling. “If you want me to eat you, then I’ll eat all of you-braised, steamed, stir-fried. If I can’t finish, I’ll freeze the rest and eat it slowly.”

Those eyes widened slightly, and in the next second, he suddenly hugged Tang Rou tightly, his body trembling.

Tang Rou was squeezed so tightly she could barely breathe. She pounded his arm and couldn’t help but cough.

The Little Octopus hurriedly let her go, looking regretful, the tips of his tentacles drooping.

Pressing his lips together, his lashes trembled as if he was struggling with some inner thought.

He looked up, asking sincerely, “Rou, do you… want to eat all of me?”

Tang Rou reflected on herself for a moment-she felt that this question was quite suggestive.

Something was wrong with her thinking. She felt tainted.

She knew that what the Little Octopus meant by “eat” was not what she was thinking. He was just a pure child, hatched less than three years ago.

But even if he was a child, it didn’t stop Tang Rou from feeling mischievous. After all, Number 17 was acting very out of character today, and quite disobedient.

She nodded, and said very seriously, “If you want me to eat you, then I’ll eat all of you-the kind where you die.”

This time, he didn’t hesitate. He looked straight into her eyes and nodded. “Okay.”

“Okay?” Tang Rou was surprised. “You’d die, you know.”

He still said, “Okay.” Looking completely willing.

Now Tang Rou was confused.

At this moment, she still didn’t realize what it meant in the natural world when a male animal willingly lets a female eat him.

He was a highly intelligent being, possessing a human appearance and infinitely dangerous potential. Tang Rou always subconsciously treated him as a simple, harmless kindred, forgetting that such a kindred still possessed certain instinctive gifts.

“You’re not just trying to repay me for those wontons, are you?” She eyed him suspiciously.

The Little Octopus clearly didn’t understand.

But he could guess that Tang Rou had misunderstood him. This misunderstanding made him deeply sad, as if his sincere feelings had been ignored by her.

The tentacles urgently wrapped around her again, pulling her close, and he started repeating, “Rou, I… Rou…”

He wanted to explain, to express his burning emotions, to let her feel his intense and profound love. But his vocabulary and language system were lacking, making it hard for him to fully describe his feelings.

He pressed close to her, expressing his overwhelming affection through physical touch.

Tang Rou was startled, struggling in a panic. “Stop it, let go…”

Splash-

In Number 17’s abnormal state, Tang Rou was pulled down into the pool by him, drenched from head to toe.

“Number 17!”

She was thoroughly angry. “What is wrong with you?”

The Cultivation Chamber wasn’t very deep. His tentacles supported her, dragging her above the water. Tang Rou coughed, glaring at him. “Have I been spoiling you too much lately? Or do you not want to stay in my lab anymore? Should I find you a new Feeder?”

“Rou!”

His pupils suddenly contracted, unable to hide the panic and anger in his eyes.

Tang Rou slapped away the tentacles trying to wrap around her. “Don’t touch me!”

That cold tone was like a bucket of cold water. The young man’s meager anger was instantly extinguished, turning into a pleading murmur. “Rou…”