18: You're jealous? That's to be expected.

"What's the damn use of liking someone!" Fiona gritted her teeth.

True, Tu Nan raised an eyebrow slightly.

She hadn't expected this woman to have such an Advanced realization.

Liking someone was indeed useless, but the resources it brought were very real. Otherwise, what was Fiona so jealous about?

Fiona turned her gaze to Gray, signaling him to speak for her, but she only saw her brother's eyes still sneakily fixed on Tu Nan, his expression thoughtful.

Her brother couldn't possibly believe the nonsense this Foster Mother was making up, could he?

Twins? In her dreams!

"Brother! Brother!" Fiona reluctantly gave Gray a kick.

Gray snapped back from his momentary distraction and spoke to Li in a pleasant tone.

"So she's from the Central Breeding Farm. No wonder you value her so much."

"Then again, heroes have always had a weakness for beauties, hahahaha."

After saying this, Gray sat back in the large chair at the front of the hall and sighed deeply.

"Since Li is unwilling to take Fiona's dowry, I'll just have to pay that sum for her..."

"Don't you agree, Kun Bu?"

Gray spoke with a smile to his deputy, Kun Bu, who was sitting nearby.

Tu Nan watched everything unfold quietly.

Gray certainly had some skill; with just a few words, he had twisted Li's rejection of Fiona.

Li's rescue of Fiona now appeared as if he had done it because he wanted a reward from Gray.

But the truth was, Li hadn't thought that far ahead at all.

"How much money is it?" Li asked.

Gray chuckled. "Would I ever shortchange you even a penny?"

"Ask anyone who follows me, Gray 'Grey Wolf' Hoffman—have the rewards I promised ever been lacking?"

He asked the crowd.

Everyone beat their chests and showered their boss with all sorts of flattery.

Tu Nan guessed that among everyone standing in the hall, Li might be the only one who actually believed Gray.

Since returning from this mission, Gray's attitude toward Li was one of absolute determination to win him over. He must have witnessed Li's effectiveness firsthand in that chaos.

As for Fiona?

She had probably been fed a lot of nonsense by her brother, or perhaps she was attracted to the strong Male Beast who saved her on the battlefield—who knew.

But in any case, they were all trying to snatch away Tu Nan's man—her precious resource.

Had they asked for her opinion?

Tu Nan sneered; they were dreaming.

Just wait and see; she would never let them succeed.

Everything seemed settled. Li gave an impatient greeting and pulled Tu Nan out of the hall.

Sand Scorpion eggs or a Black-Scaled Snake... he mused that he had to get one or the other today to give Tu Nan some nourishment.

Don't think he hadn't noticed that this Female Beast's gait was quite awkward.

She must still be injured; extra nourishment couldn't hurt.

The two hadn't gone far from the hall when Gaia caught up from behind.

"Li, wait for me. Are you going hunting later?"

"The Patrol Army might be patrolling the sands... I heard Kun Bu and the others talking about it this morning. They've canceled hunting for the next few days, saying they're switching to full defense."

Li replied indifferently, "The sands are vast. If I find a dune by myself, I won't stand out. They won't catch me."

Gaia hesitated, looking like he wanted to say more.

Tu Nan smiled slightly. She had just been planning to make a move on Gaia, and here he was, approaching her on his own.

Looking closely, Gaia wasn't as old as she had initially thought.

His blue eyes still held the clarity unique to young people, but that full beard completely buried this Male Beast's features, effectively disguising a young man as middle-aged.

He wouldn't have chased after them just to say those few words.

So, what was his real purpose?

Tu Nan hugged Li's arm, shaking it gently, and asked, "Is the dune you're going to far away?"

"It's a bit of a distance... why?"

Li didn't understand the meaning behind her question.

"Are you always alone? Don't you need a teammate?"

Tu Nan noticed that as soon as the word 'teammate' came out, Gaia's dog ears immediately perked up, and the tail behind him began to wag slightly.

So... that was it. He wanted to team up with Li.

"Nuisances. They can't keep up with me."

Li looked down on everyone equally; Gaia's tail instantly drooped.

Tu Nan found it amusing.

The so-called schemes of these beastmen on the Frontier Star were as transparent as an open book to her.

Her eyes darted around, and her soft, boneless hand brushed against Li's arm with a light touch, her eyes filled with deep concern.

"But I'm so worried about you being out there alone..."

She felt apologetic about her status as a Foster Mother.

"I really want to help you—keep watch or help drag the prey back, anything to save you a bit of effort."

Her tone shifted. "I know I can't do it. But if someone followed you to assist, wouldn't it be a bit easier for you?"

She signaled toward Gaia with her eyes.

Gaia blinked, suddenly understanding.

He suddenly realized this Foster Mother was speaking up for him and immediately voiced his stance loudly.

"Me! That's right! I'll carry water and prey for you! I can even act as bait! After I transform, those scorpions and things love me most; they're always chasing after me!"

He thumped his chest loudly, looking quite proud of being a favorite prey of the Sand Scorpions.

Tu Nan almost couldn't hide her smile. This Dog Beastman... really was quite like a dog.

She needed an extra set of obedient ears and a pair of hands to share her burden when necessary, no matter who it was... Only then did Li carefully size up Gaia.

Actually, when hunting Sand Scorpions before, Gaia had occasionally lent a hand, though Li didn't need it. But indeed, this Dog Beastman wasn't too much in the way.

Besides... Tu Nan was right; there was basically no signal in the sands. If he had to watch over prey overnight, sending someone back to notify her first would keep this Female Beast from worrying too much.

So he nodded.

"Let's go. We're heading to the Northlands this afternoon; I want to see if there are any Sand Scorpion eggs."

The Black-Scaled Snake would have to wait; he wasn't sure if this Dog Beastman could hide his presence, so he still needed to test Gaia.

"! No problem! I'll go prepare the supplies then."

"A trip there means we won't be back until midnight, right? I have rations, I'll bring my own medical kit, and I'll pack extra flares."

Li nodded inwardly.

These things were indeed necessary for an eight-hour Sand Scorpion hunt in the Northlands... This Gaia at least had decent logistical skills.

Gaia ran off excitedly. After a few steps, he scurried back and gave a serious bow.

"Thank you! I'll do a good job."

Tu Nan found Gaia quite interesting; this "thank you" was directed at her.

And this bow was also toward her.

It was just that because she was in Li's arms, it looked like it could be toward either of them.

Li, for instance, didn't notice anything amiss and instead became increasingly satisfied with Gaia's tact.

On this side, Tu Nan helped Li put together a very basic team; on the other side, after Li and the others left, Gray dismissed everyone else and began whispering with Fiona again.

The subject of their conversation was, of course, Li, who had just rejected Fiona's marriage proposal.

Although Li hadn't even realized there was a marriage proposal.