Coo-coo-coo—
Night had fallen deep, and from the vast, dense forest came the cries of unknown beasts.
Beside the silently burning campfire, from within two pre-prepared tents made of animal hides, came the sound of even breathing.
Travelers did not need to keep watch at night. Whether it was the Abyssal Hunters, whose senses were greatly enhanced, the Old Hunters of Yharnam, accustomed to the roars of Strange Beast, or the Adaklis people, who grew up in the jungle, all were extremely sensitive to any danger, and waking up to fight was an instantaneous matter.
However, perhaps it was due to the exceptionally delicious pot of meat stew that night that all three of them slept very soundly.
Indeed, Goki was no state banquet chef; the food he made always tasted like ordinary home cooking, and it was good if there were no strange flavors. But the tiger meat stewed that night was exceptionally tasty.
There were several pounds of meat in the pot, and the three of them slurped it all down, even drinking the broth clean. Even Gavial, a girl who grew up in the Rainforest, said she had never tasted anything like it.
Goki and Gavial discussed it for a long time and finally agreed that it might be a chemical reaction between the seasonings Goki brought from outside and the few edible mushrooms Gavial found in the Rainforest.
Skadi, meanwhile, quietly drank her soup without a word. Although her small face remained cold, Goki knew she was exceptionally happy.
Of course, Skadi ate the most at this meal—her strength wasn't generated out of thin air. Without the high-energy ingredients of Aegir, she could only increase her food intake.
"Kind Hunter, you are in an abnormal state. Wake up quickly."
"Hm?"
The Nona Hunter's voice came from his mind, and Goki immediately opened his eyes, waking up from the tent.
The simple small tent was pitch black, but then, Goki felt a sharp pain.
"Ah, my ribs are broken again."
Feeling the intense pain coming from various parts of his body, and seeing the small hand, covered by a black jacket, wrapped around him from behind to his front, Goki couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
Having traveled with Skadi for two months, every single one of Goki's more than two hundred bones had been broken at least once.
Even his pelvis had been shattered—of course, not from sitting, but from Skadi rolling over and, with her long and graceful leg, smashing it directly.
When awake, Skadi had self-control over her strength and wouldn't turn into a man-made wrecking ball. But once asleep, she had no way to control that strength, which was why she had always slept alone in the past.
Fortunately, Goki was an Old Hunter; he could heal even if his butt was hung on a tree. Otherwise, he would never have dared to sleep with Skadi. By now, he had basically adapted to this pain.
Isn't there a saying that if you shoot yourself twice a day, your body will become immune to bullets? Goki felt he was almost immune to Skadi's embrace.
Well, no, that's not possible.
"When will I truly experience a comminuted pelvic fracture and a ruptured tunica albuginea... Never mind, it's still too early."
Covering Skadi's small hand with his large one, Goki sighed softly.
He didn't know if it was due to the Aegir people's lack of emotional education, or simply that Skadi didn't understand, but the Little Orca had no comprehension of male-female romance and was completely clueless about love.
Originally, when changing clothes, Skadi would somewhat hide from Goki. But later, as they became familiar, she didn't even bother to hide. If Goki hadn't been a true gentleman, he would probably have seen everything by now.
And now, Skadi's feelings for Goki were more like... imprinting?
Chicks recognize the first creature they see as their mother, and Skadi had become dependent on Goki, whom she saw when she first came ashore.
Although Kal'tsit was Goki's wife, discussing love with Skadi now would be completely taking advantage of a child who understood nothing.
How to put it, it felt like a Genji plan. Goki was a pervert, not a deviant, so he couldn't do such a thing.
"Later, I'll slowly teach Skadi these things. How many people in the world can truly understand love?"
Skadi had learned many things about Terra these past few days, but Goki hadn't taught her much about love.
However, Goki enjoyed the feeling of watching Skadi grow day by day—this was probably fatherly love?
Hopefully, it wouldn't turn into a father-daughter relationship in the end... wouldn't that be even more stimulating?
"No, what am I even thinking—"
For some reason, after waking up, Goki's thoughts became somewhat chaotic, and he started to overthink very quickly.
He vaguely sensed that his state was a bit off, but he couldn't say why.
The next second, a faint call sounded behind Goki.
"Mm—Goki, it's hot."
Skadi's voice was very soft, and unlike her usual cool and crisp tone, it was somewhat... seductive?
"What's wrong—where does it hurt? I'll go find some medicine."
Noticing Skadi's abnormality, Goki then realized that the small hand he was holding was burning hot, which seemed very unusual.
He immediately turned around and looked at the Little Orca with concern.
Skadi had already thrown off her blanket, her eyes hazy as she looked at Goki.
Her seemingly delicate, yet bulletproof, small face was no longer its usual pale white, but instead showed an inviting pink hue, like a freshly ripened peach.
Of course, not just her face, but Skadi's exposed forearms also had an unnatural pinkish glow.
"Goki, I feel a bit off, dizzy..."
Skadi's gaze wavered, and her small hand was no longer as lethal as when she was asleep. Instead, she gently clutched Goki's hand, seemingly craving the coolness of his skin.
The Little Orca felt as if there was a burning fire in her lower abdomen, and her whole body became hot and unbearable. It was as if a mollusk was crawling all over her body, making her feel itchy.
"My body is also, a bit itchy. Am I sick...?"
Accompanied by her soft, sweet voice, her moist red lips slightly parted, and Skadi breathed humid air onto Goki's face.
"Eh... wait, I'll find some fever medicine."
Seeing that Little Goki was about to lose control, Goki quickly sat up, piling the blanket between his thighs while searching through the bag beside him—the physiological reactions would still happen, but he couldn't let Skadi see them.
Abyssal Hunters do not have special immunity to terrestrial diseases; the previous acclimatization issues were proof of that.
Now, suddenly going from the desert into the Rainforest, there might still be some problems—no, that's not right.
Goki looked at his arm and found that although it was still cold, it also seemed a bit red.
Turning back, he glanced at the Little Orca on the bed, watching her instinctively rub the pale skin between her thighs. Goki realized that her symptoms didn't look like a fever, but rather... poisoning?
Goki often got poisoned in Yharnam. Chronic and acute poisons, each capable of killing a person. But thanks to this, his immunity to toxins was also higher than that of ordinary people.
"Nona Doll, this is a toxin, right? Give me an antidote."
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"Of course, kind Hunter, your body is under the influence of a negative status effect—but you must not take advantage of others."
"Of course not! What kind of person do you take me for?!"
Although Goki's tactic against monsters was always righteous ASS-stabbing, he would certainly not take advantage of a girl's illness to cause any serious trouble.
The next second, the blood echoes collected from defeating that beast were instantly spent, and a packet of white pills wrapped in paper appeared in Goki's hand.
"Antidote. Small pills that neutralize toxins. Used to treat the beastly scourge, a troublesome disease that destroyed Old Yharnam long ago. These pills only have a temporary effect in slowing symptoms; the spread of monsters cannot be stopped."
Although it said it inhibited the beastly scourge, in reality, this medicine had an inhibitory effect on various toxins—don't ask, just know that Yharnam's medical science was the best in the world! Don't discuss the actual effects of Zenith medical technology!
Without hesitation, Goki popped a white pill into his mouth.
The therapeutic effect was immediate; almost instantly, Goki felt his ears clear and his eyes brighten, and his mind became much clearer.
"If everyone has this symptom, it means we ate something bad. Skadi, it's time for medicine—eh, Gavial? How are you?"
Before he could finish speaking, as soon as he turned around, Goki suddenly noticed the handsome green-haired big sister standing at the tent entrance, staring intently at him. Her golden eyes reflected the firelight, shining exceptionally brightly.
And in her trembling hand, she was holding a small pink mushroom.
"Phew, Skadi, this mushroom, you didn't manage to put it all in the pot earlier, did you?"
Gavial, also flushed with an unnatural redness, was breathing a bit rapidly. Her usual calm and handsome expression was gone, replaced by a hint of urgency.
"Mm? Yes, it was so delicious, right! I specifically picked it up."
Although a bit muddled, Skadi still nodded, openly admitting it to Gavial.
"I knew it—do you know, this is something only married men and women in the tribe use? Medically speaking, it's a potent stimulant! It's an aphrodisiac..."
Although usually carefree, Gavial herself was a bit shy with such vocabulary, her tail behind her constantly thumping the ground.
"And it also has a mild neurotoxin. Now we're all high, and it'll take at least until tomorrow morning to recover... Oh, you didn't know, I should have taught you earlier, it's my fault."
Looking at Skadi's naive little face, Gavial sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose—this child was truly clueless.
"But, but the food was still delicious, and Goki, he's so cool. I just need to hug him to sleep."
But even so, Skadi didn't feel she had done anything wrong. Instead, she reached out her hands to Goki for a hug, looking as if she'd dare to do it again next time.
"Huh? Not learning your lesson, are you? Alright, today I'll show you the dangers of eating pink mushrooms!"
Seeing Skadi's stubborn look, the dizzy Gavial also lost her temper. She stepped forward, pulled Goki—who was about to give them both pills to end this farce—and hugged him tightly.
"Whoa! You're a bit cool, you're cooler than the Adaklis people!"
Feeling the coldness of Goki's body temperature in her arms, Gavial laughed in surprise amidst her daze, wrapping her large tail around Goki.
"Since you said it's fine, then your Goki is mine to use as an ice pack!"
Grinning at Skadi, Gavial pulled Goki onto the bed, and in front of her, wrapped her arms around Goki's chest, patting it a few times vigorously.
"Oh, quite solid, aren't you~~"
Her hand strength was equally uncontrolled; Goki's newly set, still unhealed ribs were broken again.
"Uh, the medicine—cough, cough."
Goki's body jolted, and the pills scattered on the bed.
Gavial hugged him tightly from behind; the good figure hidden beneath the mercenary outfit was clearly felt by Goki's back—not only was she wrapped around him, but she was wrapped very tightly, at least a six-star CUP.
"What medicine do we need? This mushroom is generally harmless; we'll just metabolize it ourselves—ha, it really is cool."
Similarly, Gavial's large tail was wrapped around Goki's thigh. The fine, smooth texture of her scales was a charm that no human could fully appreciate.
The moment he touched that tail, Goki knew he was going to be a fan of big tails.
The current Gavial was like a crocodile basking in the sun on a riverbank at sunrise to restore its body temperature, completely pressed against Goki—of course, now she was seeking to cool down.
If she were still conscious, she would never do this, but alas... she drank the pink mushroom soup.
"Eh, no, no, too close, too close!"
Skadi, who had already entered a vulnerable state, immediately panicked when she saw Goki being hugged by the big crocodile. Her ruby-like eyes were full of urgency, and her usually indifferent expression suddenly became tearful and pitiful.
This was what she disliked most!
Enduring the heat in her body, Skadi, like a beached Orca, slowly wriggled her body on the bed, moving closer to Goki.
"Goki is, mine, mine... Anyway, he's mine!"
Originally, Skadi only wanted to say that Goki was her good friend, but after thinking it over, she still didn't say it, but this sentence sounded even more lethal!
At these words, even Goki, who had originally wanted to struggle and give them both medicine, stopped moving.
The next second, a huge pressure suddenly came from in front of Goki.
"I want to hug Goki too—phew, it's so cool."
Pouting her small mouth, Skadi also moved closer to Goki, extending her slender hands and wrapping them around Goki's neck, burying his head into the massive and towering underwater peaks covered by her black jacket.
Is this the power of mammals! Although the reptile behind him wasn't bad, it was still a bit lacking!
"Ha... never mind, let's just leave it at that."
Goki sighed, and the antidote in his hand rolled away.
Tonight, he was destined to have a soft, hot, and comfortable sleep.
As for the awkward situation between the three of them afterward, that would be a matter to consider later.
"Goki, your gun is pressing against me, can you put it away?"
"Oh, wait, I'll straighten it and adjust the Dao of the balls."
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