By this time, the bottle of potion had already turned to ash in his hands, the remnants scattering away in the wind. Noah couldn't help but feel a pang of regret—it seemed like such a waste of resources. He had spent numerous coins on this one-time-use potion, yet he couldn't even cim the vial.

  "Ah, what a waste," Noah sighed, shaking his head.

  But thinking about his newly acquired third eye, he continued to test its abilities with renewed vigor while pyfully spshing the surface of the water with his feet.

  Noah looked around, noticing details he had previously missed. According to his findings Clubs (?) represented flora, enabling him to discern intricate details about pnts and their properties; Diamonds (?) symbolized minerals, allowing him to identify valuable ores; Hearts (?) denoted fauna, granting him insights into animals' health, behavior, and characteristics; and Spades (?) corresponded to people, providing him with the ability to read emotions, intentions, and even hidden truths.

  "Isn't this skill too OP? But then again, it is the eye of a Great Sage..." he muttered to himself, contempting.

  After living in the apocalypse for more than 5 years, he understood well the saying that nothing in this world comes without a cost. This power 【The Great Sage’s Third Eye】 is indeed formidable, capable of appraising, analyzing, and understanding the world in ways that seem almost magical. However, Noah couldn't shake off the feeling that such abilities must come with a price.

  Unbeknownst to him, a beast lurked beneath the surface, silently observing the little female from deep within the river's cool embrace. Hidden among the rocks and swirling currents, it curiously watched as the beautiful little female pyfully spshed the river's surface with his dainty feet.

  His long, glossy bck hair cascaded down his back like fine silk, catching the sunlight in a sheen of deep, lustrous bck. Each strand seemed to dance with the breeze, framing a face of exquisite features.

  His iris, as red as blood, shimmered like bloody Ruby, reflected the river's serene surface as he gazed thoughtfully at the water. For a fleeting moment, the beast felt as though their eyes had met, causing its breath to be caught in its throat in anticipation.

  There was a pair of sleek, bck horns sweeping back from either side of his head, curving inwards gracefully at the end. Alongside these horns, a pair of bck goat ears peeked through his long, bck hair, blending seamlessly with his lustrous strands, their tips twitching subtly at the soft sounds of the forest.

  There was a serene tranquility about him as he hummed a soft melody, enhanced by the melodic sound of the river and the occasional rustle of leaves overhead. Each gentle sound he made seemed to evoke a subtle response from the river as if acknowledging his presence.

  As Noah continued to pyfully spsh the river's surface with his feet, something smooth and firm brushed against the sole of his foot, sending a shiver of surprise up his spine. Startled, he instinctively recoiled, his senses instantly on high alert, as his arms windmilled in an attempt to regain bance. However, the slippery rock covered in moss betrayed him, and he felt himself slipping down.

  Just as the panic set in, a strong force halted his fall. A rge, furry paw surged from the water with surprising agility and wrapped around his waist. Noah's heart pounded loudly as he blinked away the shock. Slowly following up the furry brown paw, he came face to face with a bear.

  A massive, brown bear.

  Noah had once heard that bears are one of the rgest nd mammals and that adult Kodiak brown bears were the rgest of their kind, standing up to 10 feet tall when on their hind legs and weighing up to 1,500 pounds. Yet, as it towered above him, he was sure that this bear was rger than 10 feet.

  His breath caught in his throat as he stared into the beast's eyes. For a tense moment, neither moved. His mind raced through all the survival instincts he had learned over the years, but nothing came to mind: ...Should he run? Py dead? Charm it with his beauty?

  The bear's deep auburn eyes looked at the pretty little female in his arms with fascination. The bear's drenched fur glistened in the sunlight, its breath puffed out in heavy, deep grunts.

  "Ahh! Noah is going to get eaten! Help!"

  A scream was heard from behind, snapping the duo out of their staring contest. Noah inwardly cursed at the offender: Will shrieking like a banshee help him!? It's more likely that the scare will startle the beast into spping him with those massive paws!

  The bear’s head turned slowly towards the sound of the scream. He took the opportunity to slowly inch his hand towards his belt, where he had a small bone dagger. His fingers brushed the hilt, and he tried to grip it without drawing attention.

  But the bear’s attention was back on him in the blink of an eye, and it growled softly. Noah froze, his heart pounding even harder. He knew that sudden movements could provoke an attack. Instead, he tried to focus on staying calm and breathing steadily.

  To his surprise, the bear didn’t seem aggressive, for now. The massive creature sniffed the air, its nose twitching as it took in Noah’s scent. He held his breath, praying that the bear wouldn’t decide he smelled like lunch.

  Another shout came from the direction of the scream. “Noah! Are you okay?” It was the bunny girl, Elis, her voice trembling with fear.

  The bear growled again, a deep rumbling sound that vibrated through its chest to Noah's. He could feel the power in those growls, the raw strength of the animal holding him on full dispy.

  “Elis, stay back!” Noah shouted, his voice shaking. “Don’t come any closer!”

  He could hear several footsteps halting near him, and he could only hope they would listen. The st thing he needed was for the people behind him to agitate the beast any further.

  The bear, however, seemed in no hurry to attack. Instead, it slowly lowered him to the rock he was sitting on before, but it did not withdraw its paws. Its massive form radiated a surprising gentleness. Noah cautiously eased his muscles, trying to convey non-threatening intentions.

  As the seconds ticked by, Noah's racing heartbeat gradually steadied. He tentatively extended a hand towards the bear, palm up. The bear regarded him with unwavering attention, its nostrils fring as it sniffed the air between them.

  The bear, for its part, seemed to sense Noah's tentative attempt at peace. With a gentle rumble deep in its chest, it leaned forward slightly, closing the distance between them. Its warm breath brushed against his outstretched hand, followed by a soft, curious lick. The touch of its tongue sent a shiver down his spine, causing goosebumps to rise on his skin.

  Relief flooded through Noah as he realized that this bear, despite its fearsome appearance, harbored no malice towards him. The bear watched him for a moment longer before slowly backing away.

  Noah's vision had been completely blocked by the giant beast, allowing him to see nothing else. Now that the bear had retreated, his vision finally widened, fully taking in the majestic creature before him. Its dark brown fur shimmered like embers in the dappled sunlight, filtered through the trees like spotlights on a stage. On its head, just behind its ears, it had a pair of wide deer antlers.

  Noah was so mesmerized by its appearance that he failed to notice a giant silver wolf that was almost as tall as a car staring at them from the other side of the river!

  When the wolf noticed Noah looking in its direction, it happily wagged its tail and raised its head to howl at the sky. After a while, he felt the sky suddenly darken, and he couldn’t help but look up at the sky. What he saw left him stunned.

  More than a dozen huge figures spread their wings and flew in the sky, slowly coming closer and closer. The leading figure was a giant white tiger, its fur glowing in the sun's setting rays, followed by a giant snake more than 20 meters in length, which slithered through the air in an almost hypnotic fashion. Behind them, a massive elephant with enormous wings fpped steadily, each beat of its wings making him worry if they could withstand its body weight, afraid it might fall and cause an earthquake.

  As Noah watched those flying jackals, leopards, and wolves slowly approach, he felt a tremor in the earth beneath his feet. The ground shook rhythmically, gradually nearing.

  From the dense forest on the other side, emerged a towering creature, a majestic stag with robust, intricate antlers that seemed to touch the heavens. Its eyes glowed with wisdom, and its movements were graceful despite its massive size. Behind it, more and more animals emerged with abnormally huge sizes and hybrid features.

  Returning his attention to the bear, Noah suddenly realized it was shrinking. He watched in amazement as the 3.5-meter-tall bear transformed into a 1.9-meter-tall handsome man. The transformation was seamless—fur receding to reveal smooth skin, and antlers retracting into his skull.

  The man appeared to be in his mid-20s. He had healthy wheat-colored skin, thick eyebrows, and righteous features. His long brown fur turned into spiky orange-brown hair that reached his waist, giving him a wild, untamed charm. In particur, his sharp phoenix eyes were slightly drooping, curbing his sharpness and giving him a gentle aura.

  The man crouched before him, looking at him gently with those deep auburn eyes of his. "Are you alright?" the man asked, his voice deep and resonant, very pleasant to listen to.

  But before he could respond, Noah felt something brush against his calf. Gncing down, he froze. The man, now fully transformed, crouched before him, completely naked. The rge object hanging between his legs shook, brushing against his calf. There was an immediate reaction.

  Noah's face flushed a bright pink. "You-you-you!" he stammered, unable to find the words. His mind raced, overwhelmed by the sudden embarrassing situation.

  The man looked down, realizing the source of Noah's embarrassment. His eyes widened slightly, and a blush spread across his own cheeks. "Oh! I-I am sorry," he said, trying to cover himself with his hands and quickly scooting back to the edge of the rock, directly jumping back into the water with a rge 'spsh', covering half his body in the water. "I didn't mean to... I mean, I didn't realize..."

  Noah took a deep breath, trying to regain his composure. "It-it's... It's fine," he managed to say, though his voice was still shaky. "Just that, um, maybe put something on?" he said that, but couldn’t help looking there before retracting his gaze as if he had been burned.

  'Ah! Ah! Ah! Oh my! Look at those broad shoulders! That thick male dog's waist! Those eight-pack abs! Those plump and estic man boobs! Even the...um...ding-dong below is impressive! Ah! And coupled with that manly face! Ahhh! If this isn't the perfect boyfriend material, then I don't know what is, ah!' Noah's thoughts raced uncontrolbly.

  On the other side, as the two groups of wandering beastmen transformed and assembled at the edge of the river, they looked at the other side with excitement, jumping and howling.

  “Roaaar~”

  A few of the younger ones, not missing a chance to tease, called out to the bear beastman, with grins on their faces. The bear shot them a dirty gre, but the amusement in his eyes betrayed him. He couldn’t help the way his gaze kept drifting back to the beautiful female. The teasing grew louder, but the rowdy crowd quickly quieted down when the leading white tiger and the majestic stag emerged from their ranks. The white tiger, young but with a face carved from stone, let out a low growl that silenced the crowd.

  “Enough,” he commanded, his voice firm. Beside him, the stag, now transformed into an old man with a hunched back, his wrinkled face painted with red markings, nodded calmly. The elder exuded a quiet, old wisdom as he caressed his long white beard, tied at the end with grass.

  The white tiger then looked at Kieren in the water and jerked his head, signaling him to return. Reluctantly, Kieren gave the beautiful female one st lingering gnce, then waded back to his side of the river.

  The white tiger and the stag crossed the river slowly, their eyes sharp as they approached the Green Tree tribe. On the opposite bank, the males of the Green Tree tribe were tense and wary, their eyes fixed on the approaching figures. They knew the deal—no one from the pack of wandering beastmen, other than the chief and the elder, would cross into their nd. Yet the tension in the air was thick, and every muscle in their bodies was coiled, ready for anything.

  Cho Cho, the only warrior of the Green Tree tribe, stepped forward with a swagger, his broad chest puffed out and his eyes filled with contempt towards the wandering beastmen, as he stepped forward to greet the visitors.

  “Come on, then,” Cho Cho grunted, his expression filled with greed as he led the two Beastmen into an animal-skin tent. In actuality, it was no more than 3 rough-hewn logs driven into the ground and draped with a patchwork of animal skins, but it served its purpose as a meeting pce.

  Once inside, Cho Cho didn’t waste time with pleasantries. He got straight to the point, his voice rough and demanding. "I am not going to talk about how one of your people almost vioted our agreement,” he growled, his tone dripping with disdain. "The exchange terms have changed. We now want 5 Gnu and 3 kilograms of salt per female."

  The white tiger’s brows furrowed, his expression darkening at the btant attempt to extort more from them, but before he could speak, the stag croaked out a reply, his voice raspy.“Wasn’t it 3 Gnu and 2 kilograms of salt per female, we had previously agreed upon? You can’t just go ahead and change things like that! It's unreasonable!" The old man said, his words ced with irritation.

  Cho Cho smirked, crossing his arms over his chest, showing no remorse for his audacity.“That’s the new deal. Take it or leave it. We don’t care,” he replied smugly, leaning back as if the decision had already been made.

  The stag, exacerbated by Cho Cho’s shameless attitude, was about to retort but was cut off by the white tiger’s hand on his shoulder. The young chief’s eyes were cold, but he knew the importance of what they were trading for. Females were rare and precious; the Green Tree tribe offering them even five was a big deal, so much so that when the patriarch of the Green Tree tribe had initially made him that offer, he suspected that they were making a fool out of them, especially given their status as drifter beastmen. In comparison, a few more beasts were a small price to pay.

  “We’ve only brought the exact amount of salt as agreed upon,” the white tiger said, his voice low. “But we’re willing to offer six Gnu instead. That’s it. You take it, or we go.”

  Cho Cho’s roguish grin faded, his face twisting in frustration. He’d hoped he could squeeze more out of them, but the white tiger wasn’t backing down. Looking at the four stripes on the white tiger's shoulder, Cho Cho begrudgingly nodded, his face sour. “Fine,” he spat, clearly unhappy, but knew better than to push his luck further with a level 4 Beast warrior.

  The white tiger’s gaze remained unflinching as he gave a single nod to seal the deal. The trade was set, but as they exited the tent, everyone could feel the tension still hanging in the air.

  After concluding the negotiations, the young chief and elder returned to their side of the river. The moment they stepped onto the riverbank, the white tiger chief, Bai Lei1, named meaning white thunder, wasted no time barking out orders to his people. Some immediately started hauling the already prepared Gnus across the river, while others, without a hint of compint, set off into the dense forest to hunt more and fulfill their end of the agreement.

  Meanwhile, Kieren was stuck in a tug-of-war in his own mind.

  Part of him itched to join the hunting party and maybe bring back a prize kill—a gift, something special to impress that pretty female across the river, something that might catch his eye. But another part of him couldn't keep his eyes from drifting to the other side.

  Kieren's deep auburn eyes kept straying back to the other side, where Noah was, busy calming down Elis and the two other females huddled around him from the sudden appearance of a so-called 'scary wandering beastman'.

  Kieren felt his heart race as if a little bear was pounding on it with a wooden club when his eyes met Noah's from a distance.

  Caught in his thoughts, he muttered under his breath, his eyes still locked on Noah. "Should I stay or go? Damn it..."

  Suddenly, one of the older wandering beastmen, noticing Kieren’s hesitation, smirked and cpped him on the back. "What's wrong, Kieren? Got your heart stuck on that pretty one over there?" he teased, his voice carrying a low, rumbling chuckle. "Go on, go hunt if you're so itchy. Or you gonna just stare all day?"

  Kieren grunted, half-annoyed, half-embarrassed. “Shut it, old man. I can do both.”

  The older beastman ughed, shaking his head. "Ah, young blood... Always torn between showing off and standing guard." His ughter trailed off as he joined the hunting party, leaving Kieren standing there, wrestling with his decision.

  Kieren took a deep breath, his gaze shifting from the treeline where the others had disappeared, to the riverbank, back to the female. For now, he decided, he’d stay. He’d keep watch. He’d make sure no harm came to the one who had sparked something in him. The hunt could wait—just a little longer.

  On the other side of the river, Noah was still trying to quiet the selfish sobs of the three females who had tched onto him. Elis, the loudest of them all, was sniffling into his shoulder, her face twisted in dramatic fear. "Noah, that one over there—he was looking at me like he wanted to eat me! I don't want to be eaten!"

  The other two were no better. They clung to him like burrs on fur, wailing loudly. "What if they come over here? What if they take us? Oh, Noah, please don't let them—"

  Noah, while usually patient, was reaching his limit. His hands patted their backs awkwardly, trying to soothe them, but his thoughts were far from kind. 'If only I could stuff their mouths with some animal fur to shut them up.' He looked over their heads toward the river, catching Kieren’s eyes for a moment. The bear beastman was still staring, his gaze unwavering and intense.

  "Listen," Noah said finally, his voice firm but trying to stay gentle. "No one's going to eat you, okay? We're part of a trade. The five of us are being exchanged for salt and meat. Do you understand what that means?"

  The females quieted slightly, their tear-streaked faces still filled with fear but now tinged with confusion. One of them sniffled, looking up at Noah with wide eyes. "But... why? What do they want with us?"

  Noah resisted the urge to roll his eyes at this stupid question. “It’s pretty simple. They need more people in their pack. Females are rare and valuable. They’ll want you for… well, mating. But you’ll be treated well if you behave. They wouldn’t waste resources on anyone they didn’t pn to keep alive.”

  His blunt words caused some of the females to gasp, but it had the intended effect. At least they were listening now.

  One of the females, slightly braver than the rest, spoke up with a shaky voice, “So, they... won’t kill us?”

  Noah sighed. "No, they won’t. If they wanted you dead, they wouldn’t have bothered with a trade."

  Another round of sobs started to bubble up, but Noah quickly cut in, “Enough! Pull yourselves together."

  He let out a breath. “Just follow my lead, and you’ll be fine.” 'Hopefully,' he added silently, already exhausted by the emotional rollercoaster of dealing with them.

  His words seemed to work a little. The sobs softened into hiccups and mutterings, though Elis still sniffled a bit too dramatically for Noah's liking. He gnced back across the river, his eyes meeting Kieren's once again. There was something in that stare, something that made Noah’s heart skip a beat before he quickly looked away.

  Grace, who had been silently observing the commotion, suddenly stepped forward. In this primitive world, it was rare to see someone who was genuinely clean, yet Grace somehow managed to be an exception. A fresh, clean scent of jasmine clung to him—a stark contrast to the usual earthy musk of the tribe. His hair was smooth and glossy, clearly well cared for—a stark contrast to the rough, unkempt appearance of those around him, which was almost unheard of in an era where even basic hygiene was difficult to maintain. Most barely had the means to keep dirt off themselves, let alone indulge in hair care.

  In this regard, Grace was quite the oddball. His eccentric personality, combined with his near-obsessive cleanliness, made him stand out like a sore thumb. Most of the other females avoided him, finding his habits strange and off-putting. It wasn’t unlike how they had treated the original owner of his body, though for different reasons. Grace's fastidious nature had marked him as 'different', and 'different' was always a reason to be pushed to the margins. That was why Grace was here, being traded off like this.

  With his waist-length bck hair swaying around him like a dark curtain, Grace abruptly strode up to Noah with a 'whoosh'. From his perspective, the tall and lean female’s appearance was reminiscent of Sadako from those old horror movies—a thought that sent an involuntary shiver down his spine.

  "Oi, you," Grace said, combing his long fingers through his hair.

  Noah, caught off guard by the sudden approach and the intense gleam in Grace’s bck eyes, yelped in surprise. "Ha?!"

  Grace ignored Noah's startled reaction and reached out, picking up a lock of his hair from his shoulder. He twirled it around his fingers, examining it closely. "How did you make your hair like this?" he asked him, his tone somewhere between accusation and awe.

  "Huh...?" Noah replied, his brain still catching up to what was happening. Before he could say more, Grace interrupted him, his voice filled with a mix of fascination and disbelief.

  “Look at this—smooth and silky. Even the tips are smooth... no frizz, no breakage,” Grace muttered, almost to himself as he continued to examine the hair with an intensity that made him feel like he was under a microscope. "Do you know how hard it is to find hair like this around here? Mine takes hours to look this good, and you... You just have it naturally?”

  Noah blinked, finally finding his voice. “Uh, I just... washed it with soap and... maybe a bit of oil?” he answered hesitantly, still not quite sure how to handle the situation.

  When Noah first transmigrated into the body of the original owner, he was horrified to find that the man hadn’t bathed in several days. In the Green Tree tribe, water was incredibly precious—fetching it required venturing into the mountain forest to a small ke surrounded by ferocious, powerful dinosaurs. The males would risk their lives transporting the water back, and it was usually just enough for everyone to quench their thirst. After the original owner’s father, who was also the tribe's witch doctor, had died, and without any male partners to fetch water for him, he could only receive his share every twenty days. The original owner dared not use water to wash himself since it would be too wasteful.

  But for Noah, the clean freak city boy, who even in the apocalypse would bathe every week even if zombies were knocking on his door, this was unbearable. So, since he was leaving the tribe anyway, Noah had used up every st drop of water avaible to scrub himself clean.

  Since washing without any body wash or soap was hardly satisfying, Noah had to get creative. He couldn’t bear to have just pin water and dirt smearing together on his skin. So he used the animal fat kept by the witch doctor, oil he extracted from olive-like fruits, and pnt and wood ash mixed with water, he crafted his own soap. For scent, he added hydrangea petals, which gave him a pleasant honey-vanil smell.

  Noah knew from the beginning that pretending to be the original owner wasn’t an option. Their personalities were worlds apart, and he didn’t have enough information about the original owner's mannerisms to keep up a convincing act. Staying in the tribe would only make his odd behavior more noticeable, so when the opportunity to be traded arose, he took it. Still, to think his secret as a transmigrator might be exposed over something as silly as hair care—that was almost ughable.

  Grace’s eyes narrowed slightly, a look of contemption crossing his face. “Soap? Oil? Tell me more!” he demanded, leaning in closer.

  Noah couldn’t help but chuckle nervously at Grace’s serious expression. “It’s nothing special, really. Just some animal fat, some oils from the fruits I found, and pnt ash... mix it all up with water, and there you go—soap.”

  Grace’s eyes widened slightly, clearly fascinated. "Hmm… I want to try it," he decred, his intensity not wavering. "And that smell—how do you get it so... nice?"

  “Well, I added some flowers to it—hydrangeas. You just throw some petals in while you make the soap, and it keeps the smell,” Noah expined, trying to simplify the process for him.

  Grace’s eyes lit up like he’d discovered some ancient treasure. “Hydrangeas... interesting... Very interesting...” he murmured to himself. He released Noah's hair, letting it fall back into pce, and took a step back, nodding to himself. “You must show me how you do it. I need to try it myself.”

  Noah, caught off guard by Grace’s enthusiasm, realized something important: Grace, with his peculiar obsession for cleanliness, was like a natural deterrent for the annoying females who kept rubbing their snotty noses on him. Every time they approached, Grace’s almost manic way of muttering to himself and his eccentricity seemed to send them running in the opposite direction.

  Noah decided right then and there that Grace was going to be his new bestie. Not only was Grace cleaner than most people he had encountered in this primitive world, but his very presence seemed to repel those females, so he wouldn't have to deal with them.

  However, before Noah could speak, a commotion erupted from across the river. The wandering beastmen who had gone out for hunting had returned surprisingly fast, shouting and hooting loudly in excitement. The noise quickly drew everyone's attention.

  Cho Cho watched them like a hawk as the wandering beastmen, their bodies covered in smears of blood from the freshly hunted Gnus, moved efficiently, hauling the carcasses across the river. His posture was tense, his muscles coiled, ready for any sign of trouble. As the st of the Gnus was transported to their side, the drifters retreated back across the river, maintaining a cautious distance. Both sides were tense, they knew that any misstep could turn deadly.

  When the exchange was finally done, Cho Cho’s eyes met those of Bai Lei and the elder stag on the opposite bank. Peace was but a fragile thing. Cho Cho raised his chin slightly and gave a curt nod, acknowledging the completion of the deal. The tension seemed to ease, if only slightly.

  With a wave of his hand, Cho Cho beckoned to the females. His expression softened just a fraction, though it was still hard and uncompromising. The females, their faces pale and eyes wide with anxiety, hesitated for a moment. They clutched their small, tattered animal skin bags close to their chests, filled with the few possessions they were allowed to bring.

  Cho Cho eyed them with a flicker of pity, his lips pressing into a thin line. These females were not warriors; they were not prepared for the harshness of life beyond the tribe’s borders. Their hands trembled as they picked up their meager belongings, knowing that they were being sent off to an uncertain fate. To be traded like goods to the wandering beastmen was a grim reality, but it was also a necessity for the tribe’s survival.

  Five wandering males remained behind on the Little Rock tribe's side, keeping a watchful eye on the proceedings. The females gnced back at their tribe's men for the st time, their eyes filled with a mixture of fear and resignation. There was no turning back now. As they trudged forward toward the five males, their steps were slow and hesitant, the weight of leaving the only home they'd ever known, however harsh, evident in every step.

  Cho Cho’s gaze hardened again, his brief pity repced by the cold practicality of a warrior who understood the cost of survival. He barked out in a gruff and commanding voice, "Move quickly. No time to waste."

  The females flinched at his tone but obeyed, their steps still hesitant. One by one, they moved toward the pack, clutching their bags tightly.

  Among the wandering beastmen waiting was Kieren. Unlike the other females, the pretty goat female didn’t seem hesitant or reluctant. He stood tall, his eyes checking out Kieren. A little spark of something flickered in his chest—hope, excitement, maybe even a bit of nervousness. The big bear of a man straightened up, his massive shoulders squared, and took a deep breath. His heart pounded like a drum in his chest as he decided to make his move.

  Stepping forward, he tried to project confidence, but his eyes betrayed him. "Hey, um, do you... Do you want to maybe... ride on my back?" Kieren stammered, his deep voice surprisingly soft for such a big man. His cheeks flushed a deep shade of red, his embarrassment clear as he stumbled over his words. For a warrior with such a rugged build, he looked almost endearingly bashful.

  It was oddly charming—how someone so massive and strong could be so awkward and shy. Perhaps it was precisely because he was a bear that made him seem this way, rough around the edges, but with a softness that peeked through. His rge hands fidgeted nervously at his sides, and his eyes, usually fierce and focused, were now wide and hopeful as they searched the female's face for a response.

  Despite his size, Kieren seemed almost... adorable, his earnestness shining through his rough exterior.

  “Okay…” Noah replied, his voice soft but tinged with a hint of amusement. He hadn’t expected the big, burly bear to be so bashful. The single word was enough to make Kieren’s face brighten, his blush deepening to a shade that almost matched his auburn eyes as a broad grin spread across his face.

  Without another word, Kieren transformed into his bear form. For a moment, Noah just stared, taking in the sight. The huge bear’s thick fur was dark brown and shimmered like embers in the light, and his eyes, still the same shade of auburn, watched Noah with a hopeful gleam.

  The rge bear nudged Noah with his snout, the gesture surprisingly gentle and careful despite his size. His eyes seemed to plead as if saying, Hop on!

  Noah adjusted the makeshift clothes he wore: a long piece of brown animal fur tied at his hip with a secure knot, and a patchwork top cobbled together from random leather scraps and more animal fur. After his reviving shower st night, there was no way he was going to put on someone else’s old, dirty clothes.

  His needlework skills weren't the best, and at the time, 001 hadn’t been activated to assist him, so it had taken him nearly the whole night to stitch together this outfit without messing it up too much. The seams were uneven, and the stitching was amateurish at best, but it held together. For now.

  However, while he had managed to make himself some clothes, he hadn’t managed to craft anything resembling underwear.

  The only thing keeping his more sensitive areas from dangling around under his makeshift skirt was a particurly rge fig leaf tied with vines—an impromptu, temporary solution that barely did the job.

  Riding a bear…

  Noah was a little hesitant.

  One wrong move and his makeshift fig-leaf undergarment could easily shift out of pce, leaving him in a rather compromising situation. He shifted nervously, gncing down at Kieren, who was waiting expectantly, his big, bear eyes filled with a mixture of hope and excitement.

  "Well, here goes nothing," Noah muttered to himself, taking a deep breath. Carefully, he climbed onto Kieren's back, feeling the thick, warm fur beneath his fingers. He settled in as best he could, doing his utmost to maintain his bance and keep everything… contained.

  The moment he was secure, Kieren let out a soft rumble, something like a contented purr.

  "Just… keep it steady, big guy," Noah whispered, gripping the fur tightly and hoping his makeshift attire would hold up to the ride.

  He stood still for a moment.

  Kieren, sensing Noah's apprehension, stayed perfectly still, his bear form incredibly patient, making sure he was comfortable, before crossing the river. The gentle sway and rhythmic movement were surprisingly calming, and Noah found himself starting to rex.

  Sun_Mo