Chapter 5 - Refreshing Bath
Chapter 5 of "Clumsy Beast, Keep Your Paws Off" opens introducing characters: The voice had gone from chipper to urgent in the space of a heartbeat, the... Find out more!
The voice had gone from chipper to urgent in the space of a heartbeat, the kind of tone a shopkeeper used when they saw their only paying customer walking toward the door.
She raised one brow, unimpressed. "Mm-hm. Let me guess, youâre about to tell me that all I have to do is sign my soul away, save your little world from extinction, and in return, Iâll get a free set of steak knives."
Su Qinglan blinked slowly. "So... Youâre saying, in exchange for me saving the world, youâll give me soap?"
Xuyu sounded genuinely distressed.
She tilted her head, considering. It sounded far too generous.
In the apocalypse, anyone who claimed to give "only rewards, no punishments" was either lying, delusional, or about to drug you and steal your boots. "Alright," she said slowly, dragging the word out like she was testing its weight.
"But what happens if I still refuse?"
The voice, so energetic moments ago, faltered.
"Meaning Iâll be dead for real."
The systemâs voice dipped low, almost mournful.
Su Qinglan stared at the rippling surface of the river, water running down her chin, the cool current swirling against her legs. She wasnât stupid.
She knew blackmail when she saw it, even if it was gift-wrapped in politeness and the promise of "no punishments." But as far as threats went, "help us or you go back to being a corpse" was a pretty airtight one.
She sighed heavily. "Alright, Xuyu. Just donât test my patience."
Xuyu chirped, sounding like a salesman who had just closed the biggest deal of the year.
"Fine. But give me the newbie supply pack first. I want to rub the dirt off me. Itâs disgusting."
Soon, Su Qinglan saw the screen in front of her change, showing a new heading: Storage Space. Inside were three neat little cells, each displaying a clear image...one bar of soap, one bottle of shampoo, and one folded towel, and in the lower right corner of each icon, a small notation marked "x1," which she assumed was there to indicate the quantity available.
Su Qinglan nodded, and in the next second, a shampoo bottle appeared in her hand. She was delighted to see that it was a big bottleâenough to last her for months. Smiling, she squeezed a generous amount into her palm before working it into her hair.
She began scrubbing her messy, tangled hair, but to her shock, the foam vanished in seconds. Su Qinglan cursed under her breath.
She rinsed her hair and repeated the process several times. Only then did she finally uncover her hairâs real colorâa beautiful ginger shade, the kind of shade that looked like the child of a warm sunset and an autumn leaf...not too orange, not too red, just an easy, flattering mix that would have made even a stylist in the modern world pause and nod in approval.
She stared for a long moment, fingers combing through the now-smooth strands, and muttered, half admiringly, half accusingly, "The original owner was really a piece of work... ruining such good hair like this."
Next, she took out the soap and began scrubbing her body. So much dirt came off that the river around her started turning black. And not to mention the beautiful fishes, who have gone into hiding.
Su Qinglan: "..."
Thankfully, the river water was flowing, so the filth was quickly washed away. After cleaning herself thoroughly, Su Qinglan felt refreshed and lighter, even. It was as if she had shed a huge burden.
Humming a cheerful tune, she reached for the dry animal hide to wear, but the thought of putting it on disgusted her. Still, she had no other choice. She couldnât possibly run naked around the tribe, could she? The thought made her shudder, and she reluctantly put it on.
Even though it was the largest piece she had, it still felt small on her body. Thatâs when she realized an even bigger problem: that she didnât have any underwear at all. ThÉŞs chapter is updatá´d by novelhall.com
Searching through the original Su Qinglanâs memories, she found no recollection of ever wearing it, nor did anyone in the tribe seem to discuss it.
"Ah... the first thing I have to do is make myself a set of underwear," she muttered. because she would not survive walking around with nothing between herself and rough animal hide for long.
Just as she was about to return to her cave, she heard frantic shouting on the way.
"Itâs bad! Something bad happened! Our warriors were injured by a evil ferocious beast! Theyâre all bleeding!"