Beauty and the Beasts

Bluepool took out the softest and most tender part of the big fist for An’an. He then placed the rest on a piece of leaf. The little mermen crowded around the fish and ate away happily, looking like an army of ants splitting food.

As for himself, he had filled up his stomach when he was in the sea.

After the little mermen were done eating this fish, their bodies seemed to have grown bigger. All of them lay on their backs to rest, exposing their white bellies. After An’an was done eating, she also leaned against the tree trunk and slept.

Bluepool looked at all the mess, feeling both helpless and sweet. He scooped the little mermen into the leaf that was still stained with blood, put them into the sea, then carried An’an into the tree hole to rest.

When the little mermen were six months old, An’an gave birth a second time. This time around, the number was a lot greater than the first round, and their sizes a lot smaller. There were about 500 of them, about twice the amount of the first pregnancy.

By this time, the little mermen from the first pregnancy had grown to be close to one meter, half of An’an’s height. When they came up to the shore, they were a big bunch and could be used as half a labor force.

“I’ll be heading out. You guys need to watch over the territory well.” Bluepool embraced An’an with a solemn expression as he spoke to the group of little mermen soaking at the bay. “Watch over the fish roes and don’t let them get washed away by the waves. Most importantly, you must protect mommy well.”

He had encountered a little merman last month when he was out hunting. There weren’t any mermen tribes in this area, and the little merman was about the size of theirs. There was a high chance that he was born from one of their fish roes that had drifted away. This was why Bluepool paid extra attention.

He had to make a trip up to the land and harvest cotton flowers as well as other living necessities. It was too dangerous for An’an, a female, to travel such long journeys with him. Therefore, now that the children had grown up, he had An’an stay at home.

The little mermen tensed up their exquisite, flawless, and adorable faces, nodding seriously while saying in unison, “Protect mommy!”

Although the mermen were small, they were very strong when in big groups. It was like how palm-sized piranhas could devour prey a hundred times bigger than themselves. The one-meter-long little mermen could also deal with ordinary male beastmen who had fallen into the water with great ease.

After giving them instructions, Bluepool then spoke with An’an for a while, finding it hard to part with her. He then dived into the sea.

An’an stood by the beach, watching as Bluepool left. Only after a ferocious sea eagle viewed her as prey did the little mermen scrambled to pull her back. They could be said to have carried her back.

Without An’an dragging him down, Bluepool moved very quickly. He could even have the ease of looking around and bringing back some specialties from the land.

When he came back, the second batch of fish roes had hatched, forming a dense school of fish at the bay. The slightly bigger little mermen looked at him as if asking to be praised. Bluepool smiled at them in consolation.

From then on, Bluepool gradually transferred the matters at home onto the little mermen while he placed his focus on An’an.

Ordinary mermen would generally only give birth to one bath of mermen every one or two years. However, An’an’s period came every month, and the number of times she gave birth increased tremendously.

Bluepool didn’t want things to be too tough for her and was afraid that giving birth too frequently might harm her body. Therefore, he planned for one pregnancy every year, or two at most. The pregnancy period was less than two months. After giving birth, she could rest for four months. This should allow her to recover well.

However, with a beauty in his arms, Bluepool always found it hard to hold back. They’d end up with three pregnancies in a year. Thankfully, An’an remained very healthy.

As the number of little mermen grew, they got increasingly stronger. Bluepool started to travel on longer trips and even brought back green crystals.

When the first batch of little mermen turned of age, Bluepool didn’t dare to go out anymore.. He constantly watched over An’an in case the little mermen revolted.