The Ugly Duckling Of The Tiger Tribe-Chapter 288: I’ll pretend I didn’t see this fish man

When I saw Jael, I felt mermaids and mermen may not be all that. He wasn’t as breathtakingly beautiful as I thought he would be.

I first thought it was just because my standards were high. Damar high. If they were going to be regarded as the pearls of the sea, then they needed to at least shimmer as beautifully.

But I was disappointed.

It didn’t matter though, because it made me proud that I had gathered the handsome men for myself already.

But here I was, coming face to face with a merfolk that fit the description, ’Pearl of the sea’.

Seriously, I’m not messing around.

This guy could be taken as a god and... I gulped... He looked even more delicate than Damar.

Even when poisoned, his face did not lose its beauty.

There was something almost fragile in the curve of his face, a quiet grace that made his strength feel unfair.

His beauty was ethereal, softened by the gentle lines of his jaw and the calm, heavy-lidded gaze beneath silver lashes.

He was devastatingly handsome, the kind of beauty that felt carved from moonlight and deep water.

Ah, I could sing his praises on and on and on, and I still wouldn’t be short of words to say.

That grace on his face was unmatched.

While Damar’s beauty has been unrivaled so far, I finally found another beast that could make Damar want to get rid of him in order to remain the number one beauty in my heart.

I pursed my lips. Even his scales looked like they could pass off as shiny diamonds, appearing translucent and reflecting the glow of the slowly rising moon in the night sky.

This man was given both beauty and handsomeness in one frame, having a tanned upper body that looked like it had been carefully sculpted by a god.

He looked like a warrior fashioned by the sea itself—broad-shouldered and powerful, yet crowned with a face too beautiful to be entirely mortal.

I’ll say it again, it’s so unfair how perfect some beings are made. How is it that even when sick and struggling with his life, he retained that grace?

I wanted to stare at him, and forget about everything and this suddenly made me remember that it was a similar act to cheating.

Ah, I quickly turned my head away to prevent myself from falling further into this sinful delight.

My husbands were fighting a war, and here I was, marveling at the beauty of another. It was so wrong of me.

"I... I’ll pretend I didn’t see this fish man," I said to myself, swallowing hard as I forced my gaze away from his face and the line of his collarbone.

I checked under his fin-like ear, which was very soft by the way, thin and very delicate.

There was a bit of slime there so I cleaned it up and took a few paces back, sitting down beside my cubs.

Phew, that was close. I said to myself and looked down at the basket.

Now, it wasn’t just Lyra peering off the basket to look at the fish man.

It would seem like what attracted Lyra over here, though I don’t even know how that’s possible without an explanation, would be the beauty of this man. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

I can’t say that’s the main reason because there’s no way she knew a beautiful man was lying here from all the way back there, unless she aimlessly wandered and arrived there.

But it does confirm one thing,

My babies know when to admire beauty. They definitely take that from me.

But they didn’t stare long as they finally remembered they hadn’t had their little suckle time.

Phina was the first to jump off the basket and reach for my breast.

"You must be hungry, sorry." With all the hustle and bustle, I haven’t had time to feed them, and they probably read the situation just fine and didn’t disturb much.

To think they could hold off sucking for this long. I think I’m the one who’s simply pampering them by giving them breast at the smallest yip.

Raiden occupied the second breast sucking vigorously, pressing his tiny paw on a certain hard place in my breast. A little more than this then it would’ve ached a lot.

The troubles of a nursing mother.

When Phina let go to take a breath, I scooped Lyra up and put her to suck. She obeyed, her lips lashing out more than she normally would. She must’ve been very hungry.

Then, I looked back at the mer folks, wondering what to do with him now.

The water was already cleared to some extent right now, so I could push him back in. Maybe he’ll regain his consciousness then.

"Or maybe he might just drown," I thought, finding the situation funny, but then silence fell. All I heard was the distant noise of the battle that seemed to still be going on, and the small crashes of the wave. I wish it would end soon.

It’s been a while since I got to catch my breath and lounge around for a week.

From the labor, to the moving, to the rainstorm, and then to the whispering valley that forced me to let out the deepest of my secrets... It’s been from one event to another.

But I’m not complaining. This thrill was better than standing backstage at the theater, watching the other students perform while I looked at the role given to me on paper. A tree. With all my talent and good grades, I was given the role of a fucking tree.

How distasteful it was to think of it at this time.

Unlike back then when no one saw me, no one heard me, no one even tried to give me a listening ear... In this place, I was the main character.

I had people who listened, people who talked to me, people who saw my efforts and now I was a freaking queen. Haha.

The way my life turned around is such a fantasy type of shit that I could only ever dream about.

For what reason I was thrust into this world, into the body of Arinya, I will forever continue to be thankful.