Clumsy Beast, Keep Your Paws Off - Chapter 194

Chapter 194: Chapter 194: Su Qinglan’s First Rain
Su Qinglan woke up because something cold brushed against her cheek.

She flinched, instinctively tugging the fur blanket over her face as a shiver ran through her. The air around her felt chilly, like someone had opened a window straight into winter. She burrowed deeper into the furs with a small groan, trying to pull the warmth back around her body.

But then…pitter…patter…pitter…patter…

Her eyelids twitched. The gentle tapping sound was unfamiliar. Strange but persistent enough to ruin her sleep entirely.

“Is it… raining?”

She cracked one eye open, still halfway lost in the fog of sleep. The shadows inside the cave were soft and dim, but outside… outside looked oddly gray and gloomy.

Slowly, she pushed herself upright. Her hair was a complete mess, her limbs still heavy with sleep, but she immediately noticed something strange…she wasn’t naked anymore. Someone had dressed her warmly.

She was even covered with two layers of hides wrapped around her like a cocoon. So she wouldn’t catch the chill.

She sighed, a warm bloom of affection rising in her chest.

“It must be those three. Of course.”

Life really was too blissful sometimes. Being spoiled was… strangely addictive.

But the moment she looked around, she froze.

Where was everyone?

Last night the cave had been overflowing with beastmen. Warm, clingy, jealous, ridiculous beastmen who had all piled around her like oversized, possessive animals guarding their treasure.

Now… the stone bed was empty.

She blinked, rubbing her eyes as if maybe she was imagining it.

“Where did all of them go…?” she muttered under her breath.

The furs still held their warmth, but her mates were nowhere in sight.

Curiosity tugged her out of her drowsiness. She got up, stretching her stiff arms, wincing lightly as all the kissing, hugging, biting, and chaos from last night made her muscles complain. Then she padded toward the cave entrance.

The moment she stepped near the opening, the world stunned her.

The forest outside was washed in silver. Rain fell gently through the early morning mist, turning leaves glossy and dark. Everything smelled clean…fresh earth, wet bark, and the soft scent of distant flowers. A thin fog curled lazily over the ground, drifting like smoke over the green.

The apocalypse had never shown her something like this.

She stepped closer, mesmerized. Her breath caught in her throat.

Rain here was beautiful and so pure.

So different from the blood-red downpours she had grown up dreading.

The cold breeze brushed over her skin, lifting goosebumps along her arms. She hesitated for just a second before stretching out her hand into the open air. Cool droplets hit her palm; it was soft, light, and almost ticklish.

“It really… is raining,” she whispered.

But something else nudged at her.

“But why now? It should’ve been three or four more days before the rainy season. Is this a small shower before the real one?”

She didn’t dwell on it. Not when everything outside looked like a dream.

Then her eyes caught movement.

A dark shape far across the clearing… moving steadily through the drifting rain.

A tiger.

Even in the mist, she recognized him instantly…the broad shoulders, powerful stride, and those gold eyes locked straight on her.

Hu Yan.

He cut through the rain like he owned the whole forest. By the time he reached the cave entrance, water dripped from his fur in long streams. He shook himself once, and the droplets exploded everywhere in a violent spray.

Su Qinglan stepped back with a tiny yelp.

“Hu Yan, what are you doing…!”

Before she could take another retreating step, the huge tiger shrank, shifted, and twisted smoothly until Hu Yan stood before her in his human form, dripping and looking entirely unbothered by the cold.

He didn’t waste a breath.

He grabbed a thick warm hide, wrapped it firmly around her shoulders, and immediately pulled her into his arms. His embrace was warm and strong, his palms spreading over her back as if he needed to confirm she was truly awake.

“Lan Lan is awake,” he murmured, relief softening every line of his face.

She blinked up at him, a little flustered. “Good morning…”

But Hu Yan’s eyes… God, his eyes.

They were practically overflowing with affection. Raw, unfiltered, almost painful in its intensity. He looked at her like she hung the moon. Like she was the only thing he had ever cared about in his entire life.

Before she could react, he leaned down and kissed her cheeks…first the left, then the right. Gentle, warm, a little possessive.

“It’s chilly. Come inside,” he said, already scooping her up as if she weighed nothing.

“Hu Yan…! I can walk!” She protested weakly.

He ignored her completely.

Inside the cave, he set her down carefully and immediately got to work… helping her brush her teeth and washing her face with warm water. His movements were precise, tender, and completely focused on her comfort.

Only when she sat down did he bring her a steaming bowl of food.

The moment the scent hit her, Su Qinglan’s stomach growled loudly.

Ah. Right. She didn’t eat dinner last night.

Hu Yan’s eyes filled with guilt instantly as he realized he was the culprit. So he immediately urged her to eat the food before it was cold.

Hu Yan watched her finish the bowl with the focus of a man guarding a sacred treasure. And the moment she swallowed the last bite, he was already leaning in, lifting another piece of roasted meat toward her lips.

Su Qinglan stared at him.

“What are you doing?”

“Feeding you,” he answered simply.

“I’m full.”

Hu Yan calmly pushed the meat closer. “Eat more.”

She blinked at him, then glared. “Hu Yan, if I eat more, I won’t even be able to walk!”

“Then I will carry you,” he replied without hesitation.

Her eye twitched. “That is not the point!”

He ignored her, scooping another bite of meat like an overprotective mother bird. “Lan Lan needs to replenish her strength. She is so weak. After all the mating, a female must eat more so she can recover her energy.”

Su Qinglan froze.

Her face went blank.

Absolutely blank.

Then, very slowly, her cheeks began to burn a bright pink.

“… Are you saying,” she asked in a dangerously calm voice, “that I have weak stamina?”

Hu Yan didn’t even think. He immediately nodded. Like the world’s biggest fool.

Her whole expression darkened. “You beast.”

But Hu Yan actually laughed at her words. The soft, deep kind of laugh that rumbled from his chest. Before she could smack him with the empty bowl, he snagged her around the waist and pulled her effortlessly into his lap.

“Let go!” she snapped, raising her little fists to hit him.

He easily caught both her hands in one palm, holding them above her waist as if she weighed nothing. She wriggled like an angry kitten, her hair falling across her cheeks, her eyes blazing with offended dignity.

“You…! You think I have weak stamina?” she hissed, trying to break free.

Hu Yan’s arms tightened around her, warm and unmovable. “Mn.”

Her eyes widened with fury. “Just wait! I’ll show you how much stamina I have!”

He nodded again stupidly, completely mesmerized by her cuteness.

As if he was agreeing to whatever challenge she wanted to throw at him.

She tried to hit him again, but he held her down with embarrassing ease. Her kicks didn’t move him an inch. Her struggles only made him hug her tighter, his big hands bracing her waist and back so she wouldn’t fall.

She glared at him like a furious, fluffy kitten…small, adorable, and absolutely no threat to him whatsoever.

Hu Yan only smiled, brushing his thumb across her lips tenderly.

“Mn. I will wait,” he murmured, voice low and full of affection.