Free Web NovelInside the cavern.
The bone spines held up little cards, one after another.
Each time they pressed one, a voice would come out from inside the card.
[Candy]
A gentle female voice pronounced the word clearly and precisely.
Across from the bone spines, Wen Yuzhi sat obediently at a tiny desk that fit his size, both hands still holding a fragment of eggshell as he took small bites, little by little.
After the voice in the card finished reading, he put down the eggshell piece he had gnawed a small corner off of.
Wen Yuzhi opened his mouth and tried hard to force out a sound.
“Gu... tan... ji...”
As soon as his voice fell, the bone spines immediately made a motion like clapping.
Cub is amazing!
Then they pulled out another little card.
[Bone]
While shaking the card, the bone spines also didn’t forget to point their sharp tips at their own bodies.
It was like they were telling the cub that “bone” meant them.
Wen Yuzhi blinked, tilting his head slightly. The moment he opened his mouth, his cheeks—still carrying a bit of baby fat—puffed up faintly.
“Gu... gu... gu...”
That’s right!
It’s “Gu-gu”!
The bone spines automatically slotted the cub’s muddled pronunciation onto the first syllable of “bone,” and they even felt that “Gu-gu” sounded like a really nice nickname.
They called the cub “cub.”
The cub called them “Gu-gu.”
How was that not an intimate way of showing closeness?
The bone spines didn’t hesitate at all as they showered him with all kinds of praise.
Wen Yuzhi got praised so much he felt a little embarrassed.
He still couldn’t pronounce the full sound properly, and yet the bone spines thought the cub was already improving at an incredibly fast pace.
From only being able to say “guji” at the start, to now being able to vaguely pronounce some other words.
Cub was the very best cub they had ever seen!
Seeing the bone spines praise him more and more exaggeratedly, Wen Yuzhi’s cheeks couldn’t help heating up a little. He simply dragged the small wings on his back and went pat pat pat over to Mansendis.
His little desk was set on the silver-haired sovereign’s large desk, taking up only a tiny corner.
On this side, the bone spines were leading Wen Yuzhi as he tried hard to practice pronunciation. On the other side was the area where Mansendis handled affairs.
When Wen Yuzhi came over, though, Mansendis wasn’t busy with work.
The silver-haired sovereign was holding a bundle of yarn and a crochet hook, clumsily crocheting.
From the rough outline, you could vaguely tell what Mansendis was making was a small piece of clothing.
And who it was meant for was almost self-evident.
The cub’s hatching had been too sudden, and there was no clothing in the cavern in anything that small. Mansendis could only try making clothes for the cub himself.
Wen Yuzhi hurried over the whole way. The small wings behind him fluttered twice as well—flying a little, walking a little—wobbling as he扑led himself up to Mansendis’s hand.
That softly landing touch made Mansendis lower his head. He set down what he was holding and, with his fingertip pads, carefully tucked the silver strands that had gotten messed up on the way back behind the cub’s ear.
“Tired from studying?” he asked.
Wen Yuzhi shook his head.
Not tired.
It was just... he wanted to come over and take a look.
As for why, Wen Yuzhi couldn’t say it himself.
He just wanted to come over.
He thought that quite righteously.
Mansendis, though, vaguely knew why.
The Saint Clan didn’t have any precedents to follow, but in the pile of cub-care materials Mond had brought back, there was mention that babies in their early years could very easily lack a sense of security.
They often unconsciously relied on dependable close family elders nearby—especially babies that hatched from eggs. Right after hatching was the clingiest period.
Wen Yuzhi’s situation was a bit special. It was like he had briefly returned to early childhood.
And he probably hadn’t even noticed it himself, but many of his habits were being influenced by the instincts of this period.
Sometimes he would do many things subconsciously—things he normally wouldn’t do.
For example, like right now, staying pressed close to Mansendis’s hand, acting all cozy and cuddly with the silver-haired sovereign.
If it were the previous Wen Yuzhi, no matter what, he would never have done this.
But now, the cub leaned against Mansendis’s hand, resting his snowy-white cheek against the other’s sleeve cuff. Those pale-gold eyes blinked and blinked, obedient to the point of not seeming real.
Very soon, the bone spines that had followed behind also came over.
They even brought the eggshell fragments the cub hadn’t finished eating.
C-cub... you can’t forget to eat!
For egg-born cubs, the eggshell that had hatched them still contained a huge amount of energy. Most cubs would choose to eat the shell after hatching to replenish nutrition.
The Saint Clan was the same.
So at this stage, Wen Yuzhi’s mission was to work hard and eat the eggshell.
You could say that aside from sleeping, almost all of his free time was spent battling his own eggshell.
As soon as the bone spines handed it over, Wen Yuzhi immediately stuffed a piece into his mouth.
Crunch crunch.
Crunch.
Cru—
Not long after, it was gone.
All at once.
The little silver head bobbed and bobbed, then with a soft plop leaned against Mansendis’s hand. His eyes closed, and he fell asleep right there.
The bone spines immediately found a small blanket and covered the cub.
Mansendis lightened his movements, finishing the last few stitches as much as possible without disturbing the cub.
Just like that, a small piece of clothing was done.
But it was obvious that the one who made it wasn’t skilled. The stitches were rough, and they even sat a bit crooked.
Mm... it was an ugly little outfit.
Even though Mansendis had never been picky about clothing, the moment he saw this small outfit he had crocheted with his own hands, he fell into silence.
It really did look a little... bad.
He thought about how Wen Yuzhi normally dressed like a little prince, then looked at the outfit in front of him...
If the cub wore it...
The cub would cry, wouldn’t he?
The bone spines didn’t dare make a sound at the side.
Sometimes silence was the best answer.
There was only one thing: if you made cub cry, you absolutely had to soothe him.
“......”
The silver-haired sovereign—who didn’t even blink when killing on the battlefield—fell silent for a long while before choosing to hide the ugly little outfit away and crochet another one from scratch.
Clearly, compared to crocheting clothes, he was more afraid the cub would drop tears.
That feeling—both heartache and panicked helplessness—was something Mansendis hadn’t even felt this flustered by when he had been hurriedly pushed onto the throne.
His child was still so small, so soft. Even when he held him in his palm, he was still afraid of hurting him. And he didn’t even know what kind of comforting would be best.
If he could, he didn’t want to see the cub crying again.
Thinking of that, Mansendis picked up the crochet hook and yarn again. He pressed his lips together, the silver-haired sovereign’s expression focused and serious.
......
Wen Yuzhi woke up again.
His bed had turned back into a small basket.
The bone spines were taking him to bask in the sun near the cavern entrance.
No wonder he’d slept so warmly all over...
Wen Yuzhi stretched lazily. He flipped the small quilt off himself, then noticed there was also a new piece of clothing placed in the corner of the basket.
It was also a small robe style.
That kind of cut made it convenient for a cub to put on and take off, and more importantly, it wasn’t that complicated to crochet.
Wen Yuzhi tried it. Once he put it on, it fit just right.
“Guji!”
He felt a little surprised and delighted.
Hearing the sound the cub made, the bone spines—lying outside the basket—knew the cub had woken up. They immediately straightened and craned their tips over.
Wen Yuzhi tugged at the clothing on his body and gestured at them with “guji” a few times.
“Gu... jing, jing...”
In his urgency, Wen Yuzhi subconsciously called out a complete syllable.
The bone spines didn’t ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) even have time to feel happy before they heard the cub keep shouting “jing.”
Jing?
Did the cub want a mirror?
The bone spines hurriedly found a metal plate to use as a mirror.
The smooth surface of the plate clearly reflected the cub’s figure.
This was also Wen Yuzhi’s first time seeing his own shrunken appearance in full.
So small, really.
The him in front of him was probably only about the size of an adult man’s palm. His arms and legs had become thin and slender, and the robe’s length just reached his ankles and wrists.
There were even two small slits thoughtfully opened on the back so the small wings could come out.
K-kind of amazing?
Wen Yuzhi still wasn’t very used to the extra pair of wings on his back.
But he was already learning to slowly adapt.
Wobbling as he controlled them, he flew out of the little basket. Looking at the sunlight shining in from outside, he unconsciously drifted closer and closer to the cave entrance.
Only at this point did Wen Yuzhi realize the cavern they lived in was set into a steep cliff wall.
Above was a towering sheer cliff, below was boiling, rolling pool water, and their cavern was wedged in the middle.
Wen Yuzhi felt like this place was strangely familiar, like he had seen it somewhere before.
And when he saw the high platform in the middle of the blood pool, he remembered all at once.
The footage Mond had shown him before—this place was almost exactly the same as that scene.
“This is the King’s Pool.”
Mansendis’s voice came from behind.
Wen Yuzhi turned his head. The silver-haired sovereign lifted him up with one hand and set him on his shoulder.
His field of view jumped higher instantly, and what he could see widened.
The pool below went from a limited corner to the whole thing in view.
Wen Yuzhi immediately widened his eyes in shock.
Seeing it with his own eyes felt completely different from seeing it in footage.
The boiling, rolling golden pool water was like blazing molten lava. It continuously scoured the surrounding rock walls, and the splashing waves were like sparks flying in all directions.
And the black rocks exposed all around were even more like rough scales, packed tightly together, winding and jagged. From far away, it looked exactly like the spine of a colossal beast. freewebnoveℓ.com
When this entire scene fully unfolded before his eyes, a vast, ancient feeling rushed at him head-on.
Wen Yuzhi stared down without blinking.
Seeing that he was curious, Mansendis explained, “The King’s Pool has been here since the Saint Clan first existed. Every king’s blood is born here.”
Those who survived hatched successfully. Those who died were culled and became nourishment.
Generation after generation, it had always been like that. Gradually, the pool water below turned gold.
As for the black rocks, they had existed even longer than the Saint Clan. You would probably have to trace them all the way back to the time when the universe was still a chaotic void.
Wen Yuzhi listened, completely captivated, not expecting Mansendis at the side to suddenly ask him, “Do you want to go down and take a look?”
“Gu...?”
Go down?
Wen Yuzhi froze for a moment.
But the silver-haired sovereign’s tone was calm. “We’re about to leave here and return to the palace. If you’re interested, I’ll take you down to look.”
Appropriately satisfying a cub’s curiosity was also very necessary.
Mansendis was also trying to learn how to be a qualified parent.
Want to go down?
If it were the old Wen Yuzhi, he would have said no. After all, any willful request was a right only children with parents behind them were qualified to have.
And he had to reduce trouble as much as possible, so he wouldn’t end up becoming annoying.
So he had long since gotten used to hiding what he truly wanted. No matter how much he wanted to do something, he would keep it clenched inside.
But this time—
Wen Yuzhi looked at Mansendis. Mansendis was looking at him too.
The silver-haired sovereign had a pair of icy eyes.
From the outside, those golden vertical pupils carried an extremely strong nonhuman feeling—like the eyes only a predator would have. Even the light reflected in the pupils was cold and indifferent.
Yet at the same time, the gaze he used to look at the cub was calm and tolerant.
Before, Wen Yuzhi had only felt afraid. Most of the time he didn’t even dare lift his head to meet those eyes directly.
But this time, when the other looked down at him—
Wen Yuzhi felt like he wasn’t that afraid anymore.
He even felt an impulse to be willful just once.
So Mansendis saw the cub sitting on his shoulder lightly nod his head.
He wanted to go down.
That little tuft of hair that stuck up bobbed and bobbed too, as if it was also trying hard to express those words: want to go down.
Mansendis didn’t speak.
But the very next moment, right in front of the cub, he returned to his true form.
A towering silver giant beast appeared on the spot.
By the time Wen Yuzhi reacted, he was already standing on top of the beast’s head.
Now this line of sight couldn’t even be described as “high” anymore. He felt like he was standing atop a lofty mountain.
And this still wasn’t Mansendis’s largest state.
If he no longer suppressed his power, the silver giant beast’s body could even cover the entire palace.
But even so, Wen Yuzhi already felt it was huge. Compared to the other, his current size was an ant against an elephant.
Standing on top of the other’s head, all Wen Yuzhi could think was—
Would he also become that big in the future?
Thinking that he too could be that mighty and domineering, flying through the sky, Wen Yuzhi couldn’t help feeling excited deep down.
If he could have a body that big, then he could protect Mond and the others in reverse, right?!
Thinking that, Wen Yuzhi’s mind instantly pictured a huge him, with huge wings, while Mansendis and Mond and the others were all sheltered under those huge wings.
K-kind of... not bad?
Mansendis still didn’t know the cub on his head had already started imagining the future.
The silver giant beast spread his wings and carried the cub away from the cavern mouth, flying down below.
The howling wind rushed past his ears.
Wen Yuzhi hid behind the corner of a horn on the silver giant beast’s head. Most of the wind was blocked, and only some gentler wind cut past his ears.
Mansendis flew very slowly.
But in Wen Yuzhi’s eyes, that speed was still very, very fast.
Almost in the blink of an eye, they drew near that pool.
The scorching heat swept up instantly. At this moment, Wen Yuzhi heard the fierce wind, heard the surging water, and also seemed to hear a low-frequency vibration coming from deep underground—like someone whispering softly.
Countless sounds wove together.
The sharp, intense sensation made Wen Yuzhi’s eyes widen without him even realizing it.
He used to often hear Wen Che and Madam Jilanya talk about stories from their adventures.
They would talk about high mountains, talk about the deep sea, talk about the vast, boundless starry sky.
Every time they spoke of those things, Wen Che and Madam Jilanya’s eyes always seemed to shine.
They loved adventure, and they loved exploring every different landscape.
Infected by them, Wen Yuzhi would also imagine that brilliant, colorful world.
But after his parents died, that world’s door shut completely in his face.
Later, he went to Omega school. The school wouldn’t talk about these things either. The school only taught them how to build a good family.
As for exploring?
That wasn’t something an elegant noble Omega should do.
Wen Yuzhi once thought he would never have a chance to touch those things again.
Yet he never expected it—what he thought he’d never get another chance at, came true at this moment. freēwēbηovel.c૦m
When the golden pool water slammed into the rock wall again—
The silver giant beast flew past at exactly that instant.
Wen Yuzhi couldn’t help spreading his hand.
He watched the splashing golden rain land in his palm.
A tiny little droplet.
Looking at it, Wen Yuzhi felt like he was holding onto the small dream he once had.
—So good.
