An Unsettling Discovery

“It’s almost noon,” Hongye said. “Lord White Emperor said she needs to recover in her room for the next couple of days. You’re free to move around, but don’t disturb her.”

“Free to move around?”

Wasn’t I supposed to avoid contact with the beastfolk? Why the sudden change of plans! he wondered, raising an eyebrow in confusion. She couldn’t figure it out, but decided to simply relax—as long as there was no danger, it didn’t matter.

“Hongye, want to eat together? Eating alone is so lonely—and we can chat.”

“This…”

Huh? Why such a hesitant expression?

“If you’re busy, forget it.”

“It’s not that…”

Hongye looked down to meet Qianwei’s eyes. After a moment of internal struggle, she decided to ignore her mother’s instructions and follow her own desires. “Then I’ll go get my lunch.”

“Okay… just teleport directly into the room. Don’t knock.”

“Okay.”

Qianwei watched Hongye vanish, then she carried her food to the table, closed the door, and lifted the lid. Steam billowed out, carrying a fragrant aroma that made her swallow instinctively.

So fragrant…

The stewed meat was cut into tiny pieces, lean and unrecognizable as any specific animal, accompanied by some kind of beans. She looked at the side, and a familiar feeling arose.

The utensils are chopsticks! Too bad the main staple isn’t rice, he mused. Even though the flatbread was dry, it was still better than that awful compressed biscuit. Not to mention there was meat.

She sat down and waited a few seconds before Hongye teleported into the room with her own lunch. Glancing at it, Qianwei saw it was a different dish.

“Why are the meat pieces in your bowl so big? Let me try some.”

“Huh?”

Qianwei pouted, letting out a subconscious complaint, and raised her chopsticks to take a piece. But her hand stopped mid-air—she realized it might be rude. Still, she shamelessly asked for a taste.

Hongye, holding her tray, froze for a moment, then quickly stepped back half a step.

“…”

Damn, she really doesn’t want me to have a bite… So awkward! he thought.

Qianwei blinked, chopsticks still in the air. They stared at each other for two seconds. Just as she was about to speak, Hongye spoke with some embarrassment.

“Actually, the ingredients are the same… Your portion has smaller pieces because only the choicest parts were selected for human consumption. As for mine… my mother specifically told me not to tell you what the meat is.”

“?”

What does that mean…

A sudden sense of dread welled up. Qianwei recalled what Qiuyue Han had said earlier—the beastfolk apparently had no restrictions on cannibalism. Could the meat in this bowl be…? he worried, his face going pale as his mind veered in that direction.

Fortunately, the large chunks in Hongye’s bowl looked like some kind of small animal. Relieved, she composed herself and asked, “So what is it exactly?”

“It’s our Flame Serpent clan’s staple meat—the Golden Flame Rat.”

Alright, so it’s rat meat!

Qianwei sighed in complete relief. Rat meat sounded terrifying, but he had eaten bamboo rats and the like during his travels on Earth. Ignoring the appearance, it was actually quite tasty.

They specifically told her not to tell me? Is it because humans in this world don’t eat rat?

“The meat in my bowl is processed more roughly, with flame energy attached that has some negative effects on humans. But the effect on Awakeners is minimal. A small amount should be fine. Want a piece?”

“…I’ll pass.”

Watching Hongye pick up a rat leg with her chopsticks, claw still attached, Qianwei decisively shook her head. Even if it’s delicious, presentation matters!

Glad she hadn’t grabbed any, Qianwei picked up a piece of flatbread and changed the subject. “By the way, Hongye, what happened to the Hidden Eagle clan prisoners?”

“Still locked up. Since time is tight, they haven’t been allowed to rest since they were brought in last night.”

How miserable. Tormented all this time?

Disturbing images flooded his mind. Qianwei shook her head quickly, took a bite of bread, then suddenly sensed something wrong. “Wait, what do you mean by ‘time is tight’?”

“Mm, Mother said they’ll be released this afternoon, so there isn’t much time for the clan to take out their frustrations.”

“Release?”

“Yeah…”

Qianwei instinctively thought they would exchange them for the captured Flame Serpent clan members. But it was strange that negotiations had concluded so quickly. Even if one of the prisoners was the Hidden Eagle princess, making such a decision would require internal communication within the clan. The beastfolk territories didn’t have the same advanced communication networks as human lands, and the two clans’ bases were far apart…

It’s a pity. I wanted to play with those two a bit more and teach them a lesson. Letting them off easy… he thought, recalling the two little girls. When he had hypnotized Bai and Buqi earlier, he had asked why they specifically targeted Hongye. Their answer was ambiguous—they really liked her. Hongye was present then, so yesterday she had singled them out for “special treatment.” It was a shame they had special identities; otherwise, they could have been kept as tools…

Lost in thought, Qianwei casually picked up a piece of meat with her chopsticks. Only then did she notice that the tiny chunks, smaller than half a fingernail, had a very strange shape.

Slightly wrinkled, half-cylindrical with a small dent on one side. It looked like some indescribable body part. And on a scale close to human size…

“Uh… what part of the body is this from? Why does it look like this?”

“It’s the exocrine core. One of the few places on the Golden Flame Rat with gentle energy. After all, it’s used for nurturing—the young are too fragile to handle strong flame energy.”

“Huh?”

Wait, this meat is really that thing?! he realized, his expression becoming incredibly complicated. Damn it! I shouldn’t have asked…

Deeply regretful, Qianwei felt a bit nauseous. After a few seconds of silence, she looked at Hongye with a tearful voice. “Can you get me some normal food later…?”

“There aren’t many other edible small animals around here. After I finish selecting the children to send to human society later, I’ll teleport farther away to catch some.”

“Please!”

Qianwei wept with joy. She took another bite of her flatbread and decided she would only eat the bread for this meal—she couldn’t bring herself to eat the meat.

Just then, she noticed a very strange piece of information in Hongye’s words. She immediately frowned. Hmm… Didn’t we already solve the problem? Why are they still selecting children to send to human society?