Coveted After Becoming a Monster [Quick Transmigration] 16

Chapter 16:

In the end, it was a sudden knock on the door that saved Li An from her predicament.

“Professor Ji, it’s me.”

“The crisis has been averted. I’ve already ordered my men to clean up.”

It was the voice of the leader of the Thirteenth District from earlier in the day.

The little octopus, curled into a ball, stirred. Ji Yulin, who had been looking down at her, let her smile fade, a flicker of annoyance in her eyes, before she quickly returned to her previous expression.

The person outside spoke again, “It was very turbulent just now. I was worried Professor Ji might have been frightened, so I rushed over as soon as things were taken care of over there.”

“Professor, are you alright?”

It must have been the person from before who had noticed something was wrong with her voice but didn’t dare to disturb her, so they had informed this person, who had then come to inquire.

Ji Yulin’s voice was low, as distant as before, “I’m fine.”

The man replied quickly, “As long as you’re alright.”

But the sound of his departing footsteps didn’t come. It was as if he were nailed to the spot outside the door, determined to wait for Ji Yulin to open it.

Ji Yulin’s expression grew colder, but she didn’t tell him to leave.

She pushed herself up from the wall, then picked up her white lab coat and draped it over herself, completely concealing her figure, and even put on a mask.

Li An was well-behaved. She had already climbed onto Ji Yulin’s shoulder and was sitting quietly, motionless, like a glass ornament.

A few minutes later, the door was opened.

The man’s gaze was discreet. After looking her up and down, he said, “The room is a mess right now. Professor, why don’t you come with me to the deck for some fresh air and come back after they’ve cleaned up?”

Ji Yulin nodded in agreement.

The little octopus on her shoulder had no objections. She desperately needed to get out of the room where it was just the two of them and clear her muddled head.

The door closed, and the sound of footsteps followed.

The man talked incessantly. Ji Yulin remained taciturn. Li An wasn’t listening at all, her thoughts elsewhere. It wasn’t until a sea breeze blew by, making her shiver with cold, that she opened her eyes and looked around.

They had reached the deck.

The scene was more gruesome than she had imagined. Even though it was the cleanup stage, some sea beasts were still ramming the ship in a last-ditch effort. There was even a gash on the side of the ship, and many people were busy repairing it. Another group was clearing the remaining mutated beasts. The blood and seawater on the deck were mixed together, and mangled limbs and corpses were piled up haphazardly, emitting a strong, foul odor.

Li An froze. Although it wasn’t the first time she had faced such a scene, she had been in a hurry to escape before and had no time to think. It was only now that she was truly confronting the cruelty of it, and for a moment, she couldn’t look at it calmly.

Ji Yulin noticed her strange behavior but didn’t comfort her as she had before. She turned and walked toward the scene.

The man beside her was surprised and immediately tried to stop her, “Professor Ji, that area hasn’t been cleaned up yet…”

But Ji Yulin paid him no mind, her pace not slowing at all. The man had no choice but to shut up and hurry after her.

Being in the midst of it was even more terrifying.

Some of the sea beasts that were not yet dead were still struggling. Some struggled to crawl toward the edge, trying to escape. Some, with their last bit of strength, lunged at the wounded who were still moaning beside them. Although some people were trying to stop them, most of the manpower was focused on dealing with the sea beasts in the water and repairing the hole in the ship, so they couldn’t spare the attention.

She watched as a strange fish with ferocious teeth bit into a person’s cheek and viciously tore off a piece of flesh.

A heart-wrenching scream rang out.

All eight of the little octopus’s tentacles recoiled, a flicker of fear in her eyes.

The further they walked, the more sea beast corpses there were, until they reached the railing.

“Professor, it’s too dangerous here. We should stay away,” the man couldn’t help but try to stop her again.

Ji Yulin just waved her hand at him, refusing again, and then leaned against the railing. Although it was night, with an octopus’s excellent vision, Li An could see everything clearly.

How can there be so many…

Her eyes couldn’t help but widen. The little octopus, who had been bright red just a moment ago, instantly returned to her original color, and was even a little paler than before.

Her eight tentacles unconsciously tightened, clinging to Ji Yulin, afraid that she would accidentally fall and become food for the snapping, biting beasts.

If I had… jumped in just now…

Li An didn’t dare to think about it.

Ji Yulin remained motionless, as if nailed to the spot, her peripheral vision taking in all of the little octopus’s changes.

She waited for a moment, then tilted her head slightly and touched the little octopus’s chubby head.

Li An dazedly came back to her senses and heard Ji Yulin say in a low voice, “As long as you stay by my side, you will never have to experience this.”

It sounded like words of comfort, but there was no comforting tone to them, deeper than the deep sea in the dark night.

Li An couldn’t help but shiver. Before she could respond, Ji Yulin rubbed her chubby head with her cheek and coaxed, “It’s okay now.”

“If you’re scared, we’ll go back, okay?”

Her voice was as gentle as usual, as if the previous words had just been Li An’s illusion.

The sea breeze was still blowing, the sound of the crashing waves never ceased. The foul odor in the air gradually dissipated, and the noise was gone. Only the chaotic marks on the ship’s body told the story of what had just happened.

With a muffled thud, the door was closed.

The little octopus was still on her shoulder, a bottle of medicine now between her tentacles, held high on her head.

After leaving the deck, Ji Yulin had gone to find a doctor. Li An didn’t know how they tested in this world. She only saw the other person take out some kind of instrument, scan Ji Yulin with it, and then conclude that she had a fracture in her forearm. Then they prescribed a bottle of strange medicine, the very one the little octopus was now balancing on her head.

Actually, the doctor was very nervous. When he saw that Ji Yulin was injured, he was even more worried than he was for the other patients with broken legs and arms. He proposed several treatment plans in a row, but Ji Yulin’s expression was calm. After refusing, she just took the bottle of medicine and left, heading straight back to her room.

“We’re back now. Can you give me the medicine?” Ji Yulin tilted her head slightly, her voice helpless.

The little octopus, who had snatched the medicine bottle the moment they left and wouldn’t let Ji Yulin hold anything, stubbornly shook her head.

No, I’ll hold it.

After being able to communicate, Li An could finally express her thoughts accurately, not giving someone the chance to pretend to misunderstand.

Ji Yulin looked up at the bottle, which was bigger than the little octopus, then at the little octopus, who was struggling to hold onto her shoulder with her other tentacles to keep her balance. She almost regretted not taking a smaller bottle, or applying the medicine in the medical room instead of dragging it out until now.

But it was useless to think about that now. She could only quicken her pace, reaching the chair in a few steps. She tried to take the medicine bottle again, and was again refused by the little octopus.

This time, the reason the little octopus gave was that she wanted to apply the medicine for her.

Ji Yulin paused for a moment, her gaze fixed on the little octopus. Without saying much, she obediently took off her clothes.

It was just her forearm, but she took off her entire shirt.

The view was still excellent, and with the addition of a few red marks, it was even more stunning.

But the little octopus’s mind was completely on Ji Yulin’s injury. Guilt and nervousness were mixed together, and she didn’t even glance away for a second.

Her azure eyes were filled with concentration. She pressed the spray nozzle with a tentacle until the entire forearm was carefully coated, then stopped, unconsciously nodding with satisfaction.

Ji Yulin’s gaze was fixed on her, her thoughts unreadable, her eyes filled with complex emotions. She pressed her lips together before saying, “I’m going to take a shower.”

Although she had already washed, she had rolled on the floor just now. If it weren’t for taking the little octopus out, she would have already stepped back into the bathroom.

Hearing this, the little octopus was clearly stunned. She looked at Ji Yulin’s forearm, then up at Ji Yulin, and then extended a tentacle to touch her fingertip.

Shower?

Medicine?

If it was washed off by water, wouldn’t all the medicine she had just painstakingly sprayed be useless?

“I’ll apply it again after the shower,” Ji Yulin replied.

That could work, I guess? But I don’t know why she has to spray it twice.

The little octopus nodded dazedly.

Ji Yulin gave her a deep look, said nothing more, and simply picked up the little octopus and placed her on the bathroom counter.

The little octopus, knowing that she had tried to run away while Ji Yulin was showering, didn’t resist. She even obediently climbed into a cup, pulled a towel over her head, and waved at Ji Yulin.

The meaning was: Human, go take your shower. Little octopus will be very good.

Ji Yulin remained silent, her aura inexplicably oppressive. She stared at Li An for a long time before the sound of water started.

Perhaps too much had happened tonight. Li An was a little tired and didn’t let her mind wander as she had before. After all, she had done worse things. The title of “well-behaved” was long gone. Now, just covering her eyes and listening to the sound of water didn’t make her feel too shy.

She waited for a long time and even started to feel drowsy. Her eyelids struggled a few times before drooping completely shut.

After an unknown amount of time, she was gently lifted by Ji Yulin.

Still remembering the matter of applying the medicine, she forced herself to stay awake, applied another layer of medicine for Ji Yulin, and then buried her head in Ji Yulin’s palm.

Human, sleep.

Sleepy.

Ji Yulin didn’t answer, just poked her head and suddenly said, “So what is our relationship now?”

If Li An were still awake, she would have surely remembered that this was the question she had asked Ji Yulin before but had not received an answer to.

But she was drowsy now, and only subconsciously felt that this question was very important.

Her slow brain couldn’t turn, and Ji Yulin poked her head again.

The little octopus, who was about to pass out from sleepiness, struggled to open her eyes. She saw the red mole on Ji Yulin’s fingertip again, her gaze unfocused, on the verge of falling asleep several times.

“Hmm?”

A soft puff of air, faintly urging.

The little octopus was so sleepy that she couldn’t even muster the energy to be grumpy. She struggled to lift her head, which felt like a lead ball, and looked up at the person who wouldn’t let her go.

She couldn’t see much anymore. Her pupils shifted for a long time without finding a focal point. She could only see a pair of gentle eyes, like a pond in autumn, a shimmering pool that only reflected the little octopus’s image.

Not knowing what she was thinking, Li An dazedly mumbled, “Mama…”

Mama, sleepy.

Want to sleep.

The little octopus buried herself in the soft pillow, pressing a small hollow into the silk fabric. Her eight always-mischievous tentacles were now obediently curled up, and in a moment, she fell into a deep sleep.

The person sat by the bed, her gentle eyes still fixed on her. After a long time, she slowly said, “Good night, baby.”

The room was plunged into darkness. There were no more noises tonight. The wind was calm, the waves were still, and it was a night of sweet dreams.