Chapter 211: The Red-Haired Butcher

When Ren finally returned to the clearing, her damp hair tied up and her face scrubbed clean of all questionable fluids, she stopped in her tracks.

The clearing was noticeably emptier.

Syris and Viper were gone.

Kael was just finishing dragging the massive elk carcass into the center of the clearing all by himself, his muscles straining beautifully under his tan skin.

Ren’s heart dropped into her stomach. ’Did he leave?’ she panicked internally. ’Did post-nut clarity hit him the second I walked away?’

Kael dropped the elk’s antlers and looked up. He immediately saw the sheer, spiraling panic written all over her face.

“The Snake said he will send the guard for you tomorrow,” Kael grunted, wiping a bead of sweat from his brow. “He didn’t abandon you. He just complained about the heat and slithered off.”

’Though I wish he did abandon her,’ Kael added bitterly in his own thoughts.

He stared at the spot where Syris had been standing. Kael wondered, if Snake Kings inherited harems of females, why did Syris need his Ren? Why couldn’t the reptile just go play in his swamp with his own kind?

Kael swallowed his bitter displeasure. Complaining would only upset Ren. And looking on the bright side, at least he wouldn’t have to mate with Ren while the Snake was right there breathing down his neck. The scent of the snake on her made his stomach turn.

Ren exhaled a long breath, though she was still frowning.

’Why did he leave so hurriedly?’ Ren wondered, chewing her bottom lip. ’I was supposed to leave with him to care for him! Who is going to nurse him? I guess he has servants for that. Maybe a snake doctor?’

Her brain paused.

’Wait. Do beastmen go to doctors or veterinarians?’

Ren went tumbling down the rabbit hole of beast world healthcare for a solid ten seconds before she aggressively slapped both her cheeks.

Smack!

“Focus, Ren,” she muttered to herself. She sighed, looking at the giant elk. “Well, that is two fewer pairs of hands to help with the stew.”

“Do not worry,” Kael said immediately, puffing out his broad chest. “I will help with everything. You do not need the Snake.”

Ren looked at the eager Tiger and smiled. Her annoyance melted away.

“I hope you are a quick learner, Kael,” Ren purred slightly, her eyes twinkling with mischief. “Good students get rewards.”

Kael’s furry ears twitched violently at the top of his head. Rewards. The word echoed in his mind, conjuring up vivid, highly inappropriate images. Suddenly, he was ready to butcher a hundred elks if it meant getting a good praise from his mate.

Ren looked up at the sky. The sun was already beginning to set, casting long, fiery shadows across the forest floor.

“We don’t have enough time to simmer a proper stew today,” Ren decided, shaking her head. “A good stew needs time to develop flavor. I’m going to make it early tomorrow morning. But we need to start prepping tonight.”

She opened her System Shop interface.

[Current Balance: 45,500 XP]

[Total Grocery Cost: 150 XP. Cauldron Cost: 500 XP.] [New Balance: 44,850 XP]

The massive black cauldron materialized on the grass with a heavy thud, making Kael jump back. The ingredients went straight into her digital inventory to keep them fresh.

“What we need to do before nightfall is butcher the elk and get rid of the excess,” Ren instructed, pulling a gleaming, razor-sharp chef’s knife from her inventory.

What followed was a masterclass in anatomy and blade work.

Ren approached the massive beast. She knew exactly how to break down game meat.

She moved with surgical precision. While Kael held the heavy limbs in place, Ren’s knife danced. She slid the blade flawlessly between the joints, separating the quarters without shattering a single bone. She peeled back the silver skin, trimming the fat and sinew with rapid, flicking motions of her wrist.

She was so skilled, so acutely aware of the angles and the tension of the meat, that she only got blood on her hands. Not a single drop splashed or spilled onto her leaf skirt or her chest. She was a culinary ninja.

As soon as a massive chunk of pristine, ruby-red meat was freed, Ren sent it straight into her System Inventory.

Kael watched, completely mesmerized. Entire haunches of meat were vanishing into thin air.

“The Goddess gave you an amazing ability,” Kael commented in awe, his golden eyes wide. “To hide food in the invisible realm… it is true divine power.”

[System: Gasps He called me a Goddess! Oh my, tell him I said thank you! Tell him he’s my favorite husband!]

Ren rolled her eyes, shaking her head to dismiss Kael’s reverent words. “It’s really not that great, Kael. It’s basically just a magical backpack.”

By the time the sun began to dip below the horizon, all the good meat was safely stored away, leaving behind a massive pile of bones, guts, and hide.

“Kael,” Ren said, wiping her bloody hands on a large leaf. “I need you to dispose of the excess. Take it far away so we can’t smell it when it begins to rot, and so it doesn’t attract any hungry beasts in the forest too while we sleep.”

Kael looked at the heavy pile of gore, then back at Ren. He frowned.

“Will you be okay by yourself?” he asked, his protective instincts flaring.

Ren nodded confidently. “Yes. I’ll be fine.”

She added in her thoughts, ’I won’t be by myself anyway.’ Ren couldn’t see him, but she could feel it. The heavy, piercing gaze of the Golden Eagle. Altair was out there. She could feel him staring at her. She had had the feeling for a while now, a prickling sensation on the back of her neck that made her feel nervous.

Kael wasn’t entirely convinced. “If you are in danger, climb the tree and wait for me to come. If you aren’t in the cave, I will check the tree first.”

“I will. Be careful,” Ren told him gently.

Kael hoisted the massive pile of bloody excess into his arms. The blood immediately smeared all over his naked upper body and his bare, muscular thighs, making him look like a terrifying, feral god of war as he marched off into the darkening woods.

Ren watched him leave until he disappeared into the brush.

She turned and walked back to the waterhole. The evening air was growing cool, the crickets starting their nightly symphony.

Ren pulled a fresh bar of soap from her inventory, knelt by the water’s edge, and began to aggressively scrub the dried elk blood off her hands.

’System,’ Ren asked, watching the suds wash away into the water. ’The meat will be okay in the inventory, right? It won’t spoil?’

[System: Time is frozen inside the inventory space, Host. The meat will remain as fresh as the second you butchered it.]

“Perfect,” Ren sighed in relief, shaking the water from her hands.

She started to stand up.

Suddenly, a cold, scaly, multi-colored chameleon lizard darted out from the reeds and scrambled rapidly straight up Ren’s bare leg.

“AHHHHHHH!” Ren screamed.

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