The latter’s eyes held no predatory malice; instead, they revealed a kind of…
anticipation?
It was as if he were saying: Eat up, this is for you!
Seeing that the little fox was still hesitating, the somewhat impatient Lore used his wet nose to gently nudge the sashimi fish forward, pushing it closer to the little fox, within reach of her paws.
This action made the little fox completely understand—this massive Zinogre seemingly really had no ill intent.
She was, for the moment, safe.
The instinct to survive overcame everything.
She hesitated no longer, pounced forward, and wolfed down the entire piece of sashimi fish, even chewing and swallowing the fish bones, eating quickly and eagerly; she was clearly starving.
Watching the little fox feast, Lore smiled with satisfaction in his heart.
He did not continue to stay in place and exert pressure; instead, he turned around and returned to the side of Luna and Mother Zinogre, blending back into that warm “furry fortress.”
He knew that building trust required patience.
What was most important now was giving this little one enough space and time to adapt.
For now, the little fox was not in a panic, and there was no need to worry.
Outside the den, the heavy rain continued to pour; inside the den, the little fox’s heart was still filled with fear.
She curled up in the corner, keeping as much distance as possible from the Zinogre family, but her bright, intelligent eyes would occasionally steal glances at Lore, secretly observing his every move.
Lore also caught the little one’s unease from the corner of his eye.
He maintained a relaxed and calm posture, even deliberately letting out a big yawn, revealing teeth that weren’t sharp, wanting to use this posture to tell her:
“Look, we are safe; we won’t hurt you.”
The little fox seemed to slowly receive this silent message.
She began to lower her head cautiously, grooming her somewhat messy fur.
In the process of licking, she was surprised to find that her soaked fur was actually quite dry and still retained a strange, scent belonging to the Zinogre.
Her little brain seemed to figure it out: it was this massive Zinogre who had saved her in the heavy rain and helped her dry her body.
What touched her even more was that when she licked the wound on her hind leg, she discovered those medicinal herbs that had been carefully applied, carrying a bitter, herbal scent.
She raised her head again and looked toward the Zinogre lying in the distance, seemingly resting with his eyes closed.
The light flickering in her intelligent eyes gradually shifted from pure fear to a hint of indescribable gratitude.
Sensing the gaze from the corner, Lore turned his head slightly, just in time to meet the little fox’s eyes.
The little creature, like a startled fawn, immediately lowered her head, pretending to be focused on grooming her fur, but the slightly trembling tips of her ears and her occasional stealthy glances betrayed her shyness and unease.
The night passed without further incident, with only the sound of the rain and their breathing intertwined.
The next day at noon, the heavy rain that had lasted for a day and a night finally began to ease, turning from a downpour into a light, drizzling rain.
The air was still heavy with moisture, but visibility and the ability for scents to spread had recovered significantly.
Lore rose from the warm embrace of the two female Zinogres, stretched his somewhat stiff limbs, and prepared to go out to forage.
Although Luna gently wrapped her tail around his hind leg, letting out a whimpering sound of reluctance to signal that he didn’t need to rush and that the rain hadn’t completely stopped.
But the sense of urgency within Lore to become stronger as quickly as possible, as well as the desire to explore the surrounding environment and search for more sources of experience, drove him to decide to set off.
Seeing that Lore was preparing to go out, the Jade-Faced Golden Nine-Tailed Fox curled up in the corner immediately perked up her ears and straightened her body.
She carefully observed the other two female Zinogres, who seemed to have no interest in her, and after confirming it was safe, she actually followed Lore quickly, sneaking out of the cave.
Lore was a bit surprised; he had assumed the little fox would take the opportunity to escape.
After all, it was still raining outside, food was hard to find, and leaving the relatively safe den at this time was not a wise move.
Just as he was about to turn back to see which direction the little one was heading, he discovered that she hadn’t fled far.
Instead, she was nimbly hiding behind a large tree not far from the cave entrance, poking out half her little head, seemingly just wanting to follow him while maintaining this distance.
Seeing this, Lore understood in his heart and stopped paying deliberate attention to her, letting this little tail follow him quietly.
He knew that building bonds takes time and distance, both physically and psychologically.
Because the heavy rain had just ceased, Lore surmised that the water level of the stream should have risen sharply, and perhaps quite a few fish would have been washed ashore or gathered in new puddles.
The facts were indeed as he expected; in a new puddle formed downstream by the collected rainwater, he saw quite a few sashimi fish gathering near the surface to breathe.
This time, he did not use the energy-consuming [Thunder]; he only mobilized the basic lightning power within his body.
A faint, pale-blue arc of electricity flashed across the surface of the water, and several fat sashimi fish floated up, belly-up.
This way, he wouldn’t scare the little fox watching from afar, and it also saved his stamina.
Lore waded into the water and carried the fish to the bank.
Catching a glimpse of the tiny figure hiding behind the tree out of the corner of his eye, he didn’t hesitate to take the fattest sashimi fish, nudge it gently with his nose, and toss it precisely in the direction where the little fox was hiding.
Seeing the fish suddenly fly before her eyes, the Jade-Faced Golden Nine-Tailed Fox was startled and took a half-step back in vigilance.
But quickly, remembering Lore’s kindness over the past few days, she jumped out from behind the tree.
While keeping her eyes fixed tightly on Lore, she began to chew quickly and eagerly, the tip of her tail swaying gently and unconsciously.
On the way back to the den, Lore noticed that the little fox was still following behind, but this time, the distance she kept was noticeably closer than before.
She even occasionally ran boldly to Lore’s side and front, looked back at him, and then quickly ran away.
“Sure enough, if you want to build a good relationship with these wild little creatures, you have to take it step by step and slowly win their trust with patience and food.”
Lore thought to himself with a sense of accomplishment.
Maybe it’s not a big deal now… maybe it will be later.
“And If you’re enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!”