Mao Mao’s leg had pierced Cheng Xi just above her knee.
In just half an hour, the black lines had already climbed above her abdomen, though they hadn’t reached her heart yet.
He pulled her torn clothes closed and sighed in relief.
‘Thank goodness I made it in time.’
“Mao Mao, get over here!” His voice was chillingly sharp.
Terrified, Mao Mao’s spider body couldn’t stop trembling.
It crawled over, quivering, its heart filled with terror.
Its survival instinct screamed at it to flee, but under its master’s powerful pressure, it didn’t dare to move a muscle, resignedly awaiting its punishment.
Hotte was a Combat Level 9 warrior, and the aura he emitted when angry was terrifying.
Standing to the side, Mary and Mani didn’t dare say another word.
Their shoulders shook as they trembled in fear.
Hotte knocked Mao Mao over with a single slap.
A dagger suddenly appeared in his hand.
He pried open Mao Mao’s mouth with his other hand and thrust the dagger inside.
The spider shrieked ceaselessly in pain.
But it didn’t dare close its mouth and bite.
Mao Mao was in agony.
It took him only about ten seconds to collect a few drops of the spider’s dark green essence blood.
He filled a syringe with it and injected it into the spot where Cheng Xi had been pierced.
The antidote for Mao Mao’s venom was its own essence blood.
The slight paralysis it caused was nothing to him, but he never expected it would nearly kill this human.
Looking at the human’s tightly shut eyes and her small, deathly pale face, Hotte wasn’t sure if he was annoyed at his own carelessness, or feeling something else entirely…
As for Mao Mao, having had its blood drawn, it became visibly listless.
It lay limply on the floor.
Hotte picked up the unconscious Cheng Xi.
He glanced at the spider on the floor and, with a furious kick, sent Mao Mao flying six or seven meters into the air before it crashed heavily onto the second-floor corridor!
“If there’s a next time, I’ll chop off all eight of your legs!”
Mao Mao whimpered in pain, scrambled into the elevator, and scurried back to its nest.
‘From that moment on, I knew I was no match for Master’s new pet.
In the future, I’ll only be bullied by the new favorite.
*Sob, sob…*’
Mary and Mani exchanged an anxious glance, then prostrated themselves in terror to admit their fault.
“We’re sorry, my lord. We failed to take good care of Cheng Xi…”
Hotte gave them a cool glance.
“Get up. I was the one who overlooked how fragile humans are. When the butler returns, you will take over his duties. I’ll give you two days to familiarize yourselves with all of humanity’s traits. From now on, you will be exclusively responsible for Cheng Xi’s care.”
“Yes, my lord! We will do our utmost to take good care of Cheng Xi!”
They were dying for the chance to care for her.
For commoners, owning a precious human pet was a status symbol they could show off.
Even though the human pet wasn’t theirs, being able to care for her up close was good enough.
‘Because we weren’t able to evolve into a perfect humanoid form, just being able to look at a perfectly-formed human is a treat.’
~·~·~
When Cheng Xi next awoke, it was two days later.
She groggily opened her eyes.
For a moment, her vision wouldn’t focus.
Her limbs felt distinctly weak, like she’d been under general anesthesia and the effects hadn’t completely worn off yet.
She blinked, and as her consciousness slowly returned, she realized she was lying in bed—in her Alien master’s huge bed!
Cheng Xi’s mind went blank for a second.
Just as she was trying to recall what had happened, she heard the door open, and a tall, imposing figure walked in.
She couldn’t tell if it was morning or noon.
Golden light streamed into the room, silhouetting the tall man as if he were walking out of the sun itself.
She instinctively narrowed her eyes, her gaze fixing on his deep-set features.
‘Is this the first time I’ve ever dared to look directly at my Alien master?’
He had a pair of dazzling, sharp golden eyes that radiated an inhuman wildness.
He had a high-bridged nose and sharp facial lines.
The occasional curl of his lips hinted at a domineering and untamable nature.
His slightly messy, thick black hair seemed to glisten like obsidian.
‘Though we both have black hair, we’re completely different.
Mine is soft, while his…
His hair must be prickly to the touch,’ Cheng Xi thought.
‘This Alien is actually very handsome, but the terrifying pressure he gives off completely overshadows his looks.’
A single glance from him felt like being targeted by a ferocious beast, making you want to do nothing but run.
In her daze, a searingly hot hand rested on her forehead.
“Why is your body still so cold?”
“…” The voice, delivered by the translator, instantly snapped the dazed Cheng Xi back to her senses.
She looked away and twitched her lips.
‘If my body temperature were the same as yours,’ she thought, ‘even if the fever didn’t kill me, it would cook my brain!’
“How are you feeling now?
The poison has been cleared from your system.
Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere else?”
“…” She remembered.
She’d been stabbed by that giant spider!
‘So I didn’t die from the poison?’ For a moment, she didn’t know whether to feel regret or relief.
She should have been happy that she didn’t die, but the thought of having to live day in and day out with a venomous spider and at the mercy of the Alien’s moods made her feel like this kind of life was pointless.
Coupled with her current lack of strength, Cheng Xi didn’t want to talk. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
She silently turned over, her back facing him.
Hotte: “…” *Hm?*
‘Turning over without a word…
is she giving me the silent treatment, or is she still feeling unwell?’
“Turn around.”
Cheng Xi didn’t move.
Instead, she pulled the thin blanket over her head, bundling herself up completely.
“…” Hotte’s brow furrowed.
He could see now she was throwing a fit.
He pressed his tongue against the roof of his mouth.
‘The little pet is actually sulking at me?’
‘Do I really have to coax her?’
‘You probably couldn’t find a better-tempered master on all of Rabbit Star.
No pet has ever dared to give its master such an attitude!’
Hotte scoffed.
‘This little thing doesn’t know what’s good for her.’
Still, his tone softened slightly.
“This was Mao Mao’s fault.
Once you’ve recovered, I’ll let you take it out on him.
I’ll make Mao Mao lie still and let you do whatever you want to him, how about that?”
“…” ‘Of course it’s not “how about that”!’ Cheng Xi thought.
She was annoyed, inexplicably so.
She knew that defying the Alien would lead to a bad end, but she just didn’t want to talk.
She even had the urge to just let it all go to hell.
‘I’m just a disobedient pet.
Humans don’t yield.
So whatever!’
The human remained silent.
Hotte’s brow knitted tightly.
‘She’s only been here a few days and she’s already throwing such a tantrum.
What’s she going to be like in the future?’
His gaze gradually turned icy.
“I’m going to count to three. Get up!”
The deep, cold reprimand made Cheng Xi’s heart tremble.
She bit her lip, her hands unconsciously tightening their grip on the blanket.
“One!”
Hotte stood by the bed, his gaze dark as he stared at the lump under the covers.
During the pause, he considered what kind of punishment would be appropriate for such a fragile yet disobedient pet.
“Two!”
Hotte narrowed his eyes dangerously.
‘Very good.
The first person to ever dare defy me has appeared.’