Coveted After Becoming a Monster [Quick Transmigration] 8

Chapter 8:

The clouds were thick, the wind had died down, and the birds in the treetops had stopped singing. The sea was calm now, with only a few shimmering reflections of light, faintly revealing a dark shape submerged in the water.

The regular clothes had been swapped for a diving suit again. The small knife, tied to the end of a wooden stick, had become the simplest of hunting tools.

Ji Yulin didn’t rush to find prey. Instead, she floated quietly among the coral reefs.

After a short wait, the water rippled in the distance. First, a peach-pink little octopus was seen swimming at high speed, and only then did she notice the silverfish in hot pursuit behind it.

It was some kind of mutated species, about the size of an adult’s forearm, long and slender with a mouth full of sharp teeth. In contrast to the cute octopus in front, it looked extremely ferocious.

Although her opponent looked terrifying, it was clearly not as cunning or agile as the little octopus, knowing only how to give chase.

The little octopus, on the other hand, used the coral reefs to dodge left and right. Sometimes, she would press herself flat against the reef, mimicking its appearance. When the strange fish caught up, it would look here and there but couldn’t find the little octopus. Just as it was growing puzzled, the lurking little octopus would suddenly leap out from behind, and with a flick of a tentacle, slap it right on its tail.

The strange fish jolted in fright, churning up white waves all around. By the time it recovered, the little octopus had already swum far ahead, enraging the fish into a frenzied pursuit.

Its tail, throbbing with a dull ache, beat against the water. The distance between them shrank. Just as it was about to reach the little octopus, it opened its ferocious mouth wide and lunged forward to bite.

But just then, the little octopus, who had already slowed down, turned around and made a face at it.

The strange fish froze. Before it could stop its momentum, a cold light flashed. A simple spear pierced through the water, swiftly impaling the fish and pinning it to the seabed.

The sand churned, obscuring the view. Before it could settle, the little octopus had pulled out the fish, spear and all. Like a hunting dog wagging its tail, she dragged the prize to Ji Yulin.

Looking at Ji Yulin’s hand, she was already holding a fish with a similar wound. Together with the one the little octopus was dragging, it was enough to fully satiate both human and octopus.

Therefore, Ji Yulin made a gesture, signaling that it was time to leave.

The little octopus opposite her clearly hadn’t had enough fun. Her round eyes darted around, and she pretended not to understand.

Ji Yulin didn’t indulge her this time. She patted the little octopus’s head and then pointed upward again.

Now there was no pretending. Li An waved her tentacles to show she understood, looked back reluctantly for one last glance at a fish in the distance, and then slowly followed behind Ji Yulin.

Seeing how slow she was, Ji Yulin simply stopped, waited for her to swim over, and then scooped the little octopus into her hand. Her other hand held both the wooden stick and the fish, and she swam upward using only her legs.

Half an hour later, a fire was lit again in the same spot. The gutted fish was skewered on a wooden stick and stuck in the sand by the fire, already slightly dried from the heat.

On the other side, the little octopus was perched on a green coconut, her eyes fixed intently on Ji Yulin.

The small knife had been cleaned and was now as nimble as a scalpel in Ji Yulin’s hands. With a few swift movements, the other fish was completely dissected.

Then, Ji Yulin cut the fish meat into thin strips, rinsed them in the now-cool water, and placed them on a small plate made of a green leaf. The long-awaited little octopus eagerly hooked a piece with a tentacle and took a big bite.

Although the preparation was simple, there was not a hint of fishiness. Instead, it tasted like the rich, fatty flavor of salmon. Most importantly, unlike the coconut pieces from before, it finally gave Li An a sense of fullness.

The little octopus ate in a hurry, not forgetting to tug at Ji Yulin with a tentacle, urging her to hurry up.

The other woman had at least eaten coconut juice and flesh. Li An had been truly hungry for two days.

Ji Yulin didn’t respond verbally, but the movements of her hands quickened, and in a few moments, the octopus’s small bowl was piled high.

Li An couldn’t stop eating. Two tentacles were helping to stuff fish meat into her mouth, while the others were also busy. Even the severed tentacle was held up, swaying gently with pleasure.

By the time Li An stopped, only the fish’s skeleton was left.

The well-fed little octopus stretched out comfortably. Only then did she notice a strange sensation in her body, as if something warm was flowing through her.

Li An blinked, surprised and bewildered.

Her reluctance to leave the water earlier wasn’t just because she was playful. In that chase, she had become more proficient with her current body.

But proficiency was just proficiency; her body hadn’t changed at all.

But now, after eating the strange fish, she could actually feel her body growing a little. Although the change was minuscule, it at least showed that the little octopus could grow by eating these things.

Additionally, the severed tentacle, which hadn’t shown any change since she ran out of Ji Yulin’s prepared solution, was now beginning to heal at a slow pace.

The little octopus was so happy she danced with joy. She immediately gestured to Ji Yulin for a long time, indicating that she wanted to eat more and that after Ji Yulin had eaten her fill, they should go back into the water to catch fish.

Ji Yulin understood but didn’t agree, simply watching the little octopus make a fuss for a while.

When the grilled fish was cooked and she looked back, the little octopus had already curled into a ball, fast asleep.

**

When Li An woke up, it was already night.

She groggily opened her eyes and stared blankly for three seconds before recognizing that she was in a cave. But why was she in a cave?

The fire in front of her was still burning, crackling softly. The not-so-large cave was filled with the smell of charcoal.

A tentacle unconsciously lifted and scratched her round head. Then, she heard Ji Yulin’s gentle voice.

“Awake?”

The little octopus blinked and looked up at the sound, seeing Ji Yulin looking down at her. In the firelight, her cool features were softened, and her eyes reflected the little octopus’s dazed appearance.

“Silly,” Ji Yulin chided helplessly when she didn’t react for a long time. She reached out and poked her head, then said, “Did you sleep yourself stupid?”

She couldn’t admit to that. Li An’s eyes widened, and she immediately pushed Ji Yulin’s finger away with a tentacle, then formed a question mark.

“What are you trying to ask?” For the first time, Ji Yulin didn’t understand her.

It wasn’t really Ji Yulin’s fault. Without any context, to just look up and ask ‘why’ would be difficult for even the most familiar person to decipher. But perhaps it was the grumpiness of waking up. Li An, who had grown accustomed to easy communication, now felt a strange annoyance. She patted Ji Yulin’s leg to show her displeasure.

Fortunately, Ji Yulin was good-tempered and didn’t accuse her of being unreasonable. She just said, “What do you want to ask?”

Before Li An could gesture, she continued, “After you fell asleep, I put you in my pocket and went to explore the forest. That’s when I found this cave.”

“The temperature on the island drops significantly at night. We need a place to shelter from the wind and rain.”

She knew Ji Yulin knew what she wanted to ask.

The little octopus huffed and patted Ji Yulin’s leg again, still expressing her dissatisfaction.

Ji Yulin good-naturedly didn’t mind and said, “Did you sleep well?”

At the mention of this, Li An’s head finally cleared a bit. Only then did she realize she had been sleeping on Ji Yulin’s lap. The creature who had just been throwing a tantrum couldn’t help but feel a little guilty. Her gaze darted left and right, and she saw something by Ji Yulin’s hand.

This is…

Ji Yulin followed her gaze and then asked, “Want to try them on?”

Try what on?

Li An unconsciously formed a question mark again. Looking at the small boxes woven from green leaves and thin thread, her confusion deepened.

Seeing her motionless, Ji Yulin simply picked one up and personally slipped it onto Li An’s tentacle. It was a perfect fit, not too big and not too small.

Only then did Li An understand that these were shoes Ji Yulin had made for her.

The nerves in the little octopus’s tentacles were sensitive. She hadn’t felt it much in the water, but whenever she walked on the sand, the rough texture became particularly clear and abrasive.

But she had been busy before, so Li An hadn’t paid much attention, thinking she could just endure it.

Besides, since Ji Yulin had woken up, she had either been carried around in her jar, held, or placed on Ji Yulin’s shoulder, rarely having a chance to touch the ground. So she had long forgotten about it. But Ji Yulin had quietly noticed and remembered.

Li An didn’t know how to respond. She could only stare blankly as Ji Yulin put them on for her, one by one.

They weren’t anything extravagant. The thread used to tie them was even unraveled from the hem of Ji Yulin’s shirt. Three thick leaves were layered together, not even looking like a box, yet they were called shoes. Their only virtue was probably that they fit, snugly and thickly on the tips of her tentacles.

“We won’t put one on this one for now. I’ll make you another one when it’s fully healed,” Ji Yulin said.

Her warm fingertips brushed against the tentacle. Under the pretext of putting on the shoe, every place she touched tingled with a dense itch.

The little octopus wanted to curl into a ball again, but her whole body was frozen, as if nailed to the ground, unable to move. She could only stare blankly at the other woman.

Ji Yulin seemed not to notice her strange behavior. She patted the octopus’s head and said, “I still need to make a hat. You’ll have to wait a little longer.”

Li An nodded dumbly. Only after agreeing did she realize what Ji Yulin had said. She looked up and saw the other woman picking up the needle and thread again, continuing to sew the half-finished product.

Because the cave was extremely dark, even with the fire for light, it was very dim. So Ji Yulin had to move closer to the fire. The rolled-up sleeves of her shirt revealed her forearms, her pale skin flushed red from the heat and tinged with the faint smell of charcoal. It reminded Li An of their accidental touch before. The tingling hadn’t faded, and now a searing heat rose, as if she too had taken on the smell of charcoal.

Now I’ve really become a sizzling octopus.

The thought suddenly occurred to Li An. The comical idea drove away the unknown, overflowing emotions. She shook her head and then crawled toward Ji Yulin.

A tentacle hooked the corner of her shirt, then climbed upward, and in a few movements, she was on the other woman’s shoulder.

Ji Yulin didn’t stop her. Her gaze seemed to be fixed on the half-finished hat, but the movements of her hands were slow. She didn’t start the next step for a long time. Only after Li An had settled down did she speak unhurriedly, “Be careful, don’t fall off again.”

The use of the word ‘again’ was clever. Li An was suddenly reminded of the day’s events. The sizzling octopus was instantly half-cooked. Unable to cover Ji Yulin’s mouth, she simply used a tentacle to cover her left ear.

Plugging one’s ears while stealing a bell was a better strategy than this.

Ji Yulin seemed to smile. She didn’t tease her anymore and continued with her work.

The little octopus, after calming down for a while, grew bored and lowered her head to watch her weave the hat.

Using the small knife, she had carved a crude wooden needle and tied a thin cloth to it. She poked small holes in the leaves, slowly sewing the scattered leaves into a regular shape. Even just watching was interesting.

But Li An wasn’t watching closely. Her attention was on the slender index finger. A centimeter-long cut was glaring. It must have been from when Ji Yulin was carving the wooden needle and accidentally cut herself.

The firelight reflected in her gem-like eyes. The little octopus flattened herself into a pancake, completely stuck to Ji Yulin’s shoulder.

Human, Octopus is getting a little reluctant to leave you now.

After an unknown amount of time, the hat was finally finished. She placed it on the little octopus’s head and tucked the crude wooden needle into one of her tentacles.

Then, she heard Ji Yulin say with a smile, “Captain Octopus the Pirate, good night.”

Her random waving during the day had been remembered, and a toy had been specially made for her to play with.

The little octopus rubbed her head against the other woman’s neck in a silent response.

“Good night, Ji Yulin.”