Clumsy Beast, Keep Your Paws Off-Chapter 384: Stuffed Like Little Dumplings

Meanwhile, the commotion had woken the other two.

Xiao Er opened one eye and surveyed the scene. He saw his older brother being treated like that by a tiny female.

Xiao Er, being the clever one, immediately decided he wanted no part of this. He didn’t even move a muscle; he simply closed his eyes and stayed perfectly still, pretending to be a piece of the scenery.

If I don’t move, the monster won’t see me, he seemed to think.

However, Xiao San was not that wise. He poked his little head out from under the edge of the blanket, his nose twitching. He wanted to see what was making that funny giggling sound.

Unfortunately, the "little demon" girl had a very wide field of vision.

She spotted the movement. Her eyes lit up with even more greed. Abandoning the struggling Xiao Yi for a moment, she dove toward the blanket.

Xiao San shuddered. He felt a wave of "ill intention" coming his way. He tried to dive back under the covers, but it was too late. Two chubby hands snatched him up by the middle.

"Eat?" the girl wondered aloud, looking at the sleek Xiao San. She lifted him toward her open mouth, her eyes wide as if she were about to take a bite of a delicious noodle.

"Rowrrr!"

Xiao Yi, finally free, didn’t run away. Seeing his youngest brother in "mortal danger" of being chewed on, he jumped back into the fray.

He didn’t bite the girl, but he carefully placed his mouth over her hand, using his teeth to gently pry her fingers open without scratching her skin.

He stood between her and Xiao San, huffing indignantly. ’You can squeeze me, but you are NOT allowed to eat my brother!’

Su Qinglan leaned against the cave wall, clutching her stomach as she laughed. "Oh, Lan Yue, I think they’ve found a very energetic babysitter."

Lan Yue was also giggling. "She’s definitely a handful. Look at poor Xiao Yi’s face!"

"Let them play for a bit," Su Qinglan said, wiping a tear of mirth from her eye. "It’s good for them to socialize. Besides, we have food to prepare."

The two women turned their attention back to the fire. Su Qinglan picked up the flat stone she had found and scrubbed it clean with some water. She balanced it carefully over the hot embers of the fire, creating a makeshift griddle.

As the stone began to hiss and heat up, Su Qinglan took the fresh meat and sliced it into thin, even strips using a sharp piece of flint Lan Yue had provided.

She then took the wild "onions" and the spicy roots they had gathered. She crushed the roots to release their juices and rubbed them into the meat.

Soon, the cave began to fill with an aroma that was entirely foreign to the mermaid tribe.

It wasn’t the smell of plain, boiled fish or raw, bloody flesh. It was the scent of searing protein, the sharp, mouth-watering tang of wild herbs, and the caramelized sweetness of the onions hitting the hot stone.

The sizzle was like music. Tsss...

The effect on the "nursery" at the back of the cave was instantaneous.

The little girl stopped trying to ride Xiao Yi. Her nose wrinkled, and she turned her head toward the fire, a string of silver drool appearing at the corner of her mouth.

Xiao Er, who had been "playing dead," suddenly "resurrected." His head snapped up, his eyes fixed on the cooking stone.

Xiao San stopped shivering and began to crawl towards her.

And Xiao Yi? The proud warrior-cub who had been "pretending to be dead" from embarrassment just moments ago? He was the first one to break. He scrambled over the girl’s lap, ignoring her attempts to grab him again, and dashed toward Su Qinglan’s feet.

Within seconds, Su Qinglan was surrounded.

The little girl waddled over and sat down right next to Su Qinglan, looking up with big, pleading eyes.

The three cubs formed a semi-circle around the fire, sitting as straight and tall as little soldiers, their eyes tracking every movement of Su Qinglan’s hand.

"Oh? I thought you were busy playing," Su Qinglan teased, flipping a piece of meat.

"Hungry!" the little girl chirped, patting her stomach.

The cubs let out a synchronized whine. Even the dignified Xiao Yi let out a small, pathetic ’yip’ that translated roughly to, ’Mother, please, have mercy on your starving sons.’

Su Qinglan smiled, the warmth of the fire reflecting in her eyes. "Patience, little ones. Good things come to those who wait."

"Almost ready," she murmured, glancing down.

Su Qinglan carefully blew on the first few pieces to cool them down. She didn’t have plates, so she used large, clean green leaves as makeshift platters.

"Here you go, little one," she said, handing the first leaf to the toddler.

The girl didn’t hesitate. She grabbed a piece of meat with her tiny fingers and stuffed it into her mouth. Her eyes widened, her cheeks puffed out like a hamster’s, and she let out a muffled moan of pure bliss. She didn’t even wait to swallow before reaching for the next piece.

Then came the cubs. Xiao Yi, despite his previous "tough guy" act, practically vibrated with excitement. Xiao Er ate with calculated precision, savoring every drop of juice, while Xiao San simply gulped his portions down as if he hadn’t eaten in a week.

Lan Yue joined in too, her eyes lighting up as she tasted the seasoned meat. "Sister Qinglan... I don’t know how you do it. This is just meat and stones, but it tastes like a feast!"

An hour later, the atmosphere in the cave had shifted from frantic energy to heavy, sleepy contentment.

The "pan" was scraped clean. The pile of wild herbs was gone. Even the bones had been licked until they shone.

The three cubs were no longer sitting upright; they had collapsed where they ate.

Xiao Yi was lying on his back, his pink belly protruding like a small balloon, his paws twitching in a food-induced dream. Xiao Er had rested his chin on his brother’s flank, too full to move.