Noble Academy's Mob Character: Reborn as the Campus Heartthrob - Chapter 64

Chapter 64: Beast World 9

Qi Yuan couldn’t believe it.

His hands trembled. “Why did he go missing?” he demanded, needing an explanation.

Zuo Yu observed Qi Yuan’s intense reaction, realizing he wasn’t as indifferent to He Zhou as he seemed.

Though not close to He Zhou, Zuo Yu felt a pang of regret at the tribe losing such a powerful warrior, but it wasn’t deep grief.

In their tribe, hunting parties ventured out daily to sustain the community, and male casualties were common. Having grown accustomed to life and death, Zuo Yu couldn’t muster much emotional response to He Zhou’s disappearance.

Instead of sorrow, he felt mainly curiosity.

If Qi Yuan truly cared for He Zhou, why hadn’t he accepted him?

In their tribe, when a male and female showed even the slightest mutual interest, they would typically form a Mate Bond.

Zuo Yu had never chosen a mate because he couldn’t find a male he connected with. Fortunately, his Mate Fathers didn’t pressure him, likely waiting until they could no longer provide for him before urging him to settle down.

He knew he was different, and he knew Qi Yuan was different too.

Now, he realized that their differences weren’t the same kind; they were unique in their own ways.

“In the end, the Blue Bird Tribe’s Chieftain resisted to his dying breath, dragging He Zhou with him as they plunged off the cliff.”

“Beneath the cliff flowed a great river. They say the current swept them away. The Chieftain sent search parties, but after a full day of searching, they found nothing.”

Qi Yuan’s fist clenched involuntarily. He murmured, “How could this happen?”

He knew he shouldn’t let the people in his Dreamscape affect him so deeply—after all, they weren’t real. Yet he couldn’t control his emotions.

Zuo Yu watched Qi Yuan with concern. “Qi Yuan, why don’t you move in with me?”

“He Zhou’s cave is on the edge of the Tribe, surrounded by Male residences. You’re a Female living alone with no Male protector. It would be safer if you stayed with me.”

Although the Males in the Tribe were generally decent, what if Males from another Tribe broke in and found Qi Yuan alone, snatching him away?

Zuo Yu wasn’t being paranoid; such incidents had occurred before. His Mate Father had warned him not to wander alone in the Tribe.

Qi Yuan listened intently but felt torn.

He gazed at Zuo Yu, his lips moving slightly, but no words came out.

Just then, Xu Fu’s voice rang out from outside the cave:

“Qi Yuan! Qi Yuan! Come out here!”

Qi Yuan let out a sigh of relief and exchanged a knowing glance with Zuo Yu. With unspoken agreement, they dropped their earlier conversation and went outside together to see what Xu Fu wanted.

Xu Fu’s face was expressionless, but a clear smile twinkled in his eyes.

“Come with me, Qi Yuan,” he said. “We won a major victory in the war, and because of my contributions, they’ve assigned me a house. It’s quite spacious—more than enough room for both of us.”

“I heard He Zhou has gone missing. I can’t bear the thought of you living alone. Pack your things quickly.”

Xu Fu had never liked He Zhou. He still remembered how He Zhou had treated him on his very first day in this world—utterly exhausted both physically and mentally, nearly scared to death, and almost worked to death. How could he not resent He Zhou?

Qi Yuan, on the other hand, was different in Xu Fu’s eyes. As fellow transmigrators who had known each other before, they were friends, viewed through a rosy lens.

Moreover, Qi Yuan was human, just like him, with no physical strength. Given the overwhelming power of the Beastmen, Xu Fu saw Qi Yuan as a damsel in distress, forcibly taken by the Black Python, unable to resist—a poor, helpless soul.

Hearing this, Zuo Yu bristled with displeasure.

“First come, first served, right?” Zuo Yu clung to Qi Yuan’s arm, pleading sweetly, “Qi Yuan~ I invited you first.”

Xu Fu narrowed his eyes, as if he’d met his match. He lunged forward and seized Qi Yuan’s other arm. “Qi Yuan and I have known each other for years. Of course it’s more comfortable for old friends to live together.”

His words seemed directed at Zuo Yu rather than Qi Yuan.

Zuo Yu pouted unhappily, finding it difficult to refute. If it were up to him, he would definitely choose to live with someone familiar. Though he and Qi Yuan hadn’t known each other long, Zuo Yu believed friendship shouldn’t be measured by time, especially when it came to soulmates. Their bond, he felt, could rival Xu Fu’s “many years,” but this was just his opinion; the reality was their short acquaintance, which he couldn’t deny.

Damn it! He gritted his teeth in frustration.

In the end, Xu Fu emerged victorious.

Actually, the main reason was that Qi Yuan had adjusted his mindset. He realized he was too influenced by He Zhou and decided it was time to move out and live with Xu Fu.

No one in the Tribe gossiped about it.

When a male died or went missing, it was perfectly normal for the female to leave.

Even if the female immediately sought another male to form a Mate Bond with, no one would bat an eye.

With his pack slung over his shoulder, Qi Yuan arrived at Xu Fu’s home—another cave, this one with two rooms carved deeper into the rock.

He dropped his bag in the empty chamber. The animal hide Xu Fu had specially laid on the stone bed felt comfortable enough, but not as plush as the one He Zhou had prepared.

Qi Yuan shook his head, trying to shake off the longing.

When people are left alone with their thoughts, their minds tend to wander aimlessly. Xu Fu was no exception, gazing wistfully at the sky.

Qi Yuan stood beside him.

“Qi Yuan, I want to go home!” Xu Fu said.

“I miss my computer so much! My games! My big bed!”

“That bed cost me thousands of yuan—brand new!”

“Now it feels like a dream, so close yet utterly out of reach.”

His expression was grave, but it crumbled the moment he spotted someone approaching in the distance.

“What the hell is that?” he muttered.

You Qinghe was slowly dragging a prey at least four times his size toward them.

Beside them, Zuo Yu, who had been squatting on the ground since the beginning, listening to Xu Fu’s incomprehensible ramblings and idly plucking at the grass, watched the scene unfold with a dramatic shift in his expression—a hint of amusement creeping in.

Tsk, tsk, tsk.

You Qinghe is so eager, isn’t he?

Just as he was pondering this, Xu Fu, still standing stiffly ahead, said with unexpected seriousness, “Is he trying to show off to us? Hunting such a massive beast?”

Zuo Yu: “………”

He was truly speechless, choked by disbelief.

Does this guy even know common sense?

To call a perfectly normal courtship display bragging is just… unparalleled.

And even if he were trying to brag, why show off to a female? Shouldn’t he be impressing males?

“Don’t talk nonsense,” Zuo Yu said, exasperated. “You Qinghe is courting someone.”

Xu Fu exclaimed in surprise, “What? Courting?”

“Who’s he courting?”

“Definitely not me,” Zuo Yu replied.

Xu Fu chimed in, “I don’t think it’s me either.”

Qi Yuan glanced at them both, thinking, If it’s not either of you, then it must be me.

As You Qinghe drew closer, the three of them finally saw what prey he was dragging.

It was a massive black bear, its head smashed as if by a single punch, a gruesome mess of blood and gore.

Qi Yuan stared at You Qinghe with complex emotions. He could sense that You Qinghe’s target was him.

You Qinghe’s ears, hidden beneath his hair, flushed slightly red. His bright eyes sparkled with a hint of anticipation.

Ever since learning of He Zhou’s disappearance, You Qinghe had felt his chance had finally arrived.

He stopped before Qi Yuan and dropped the bear. The massive carcass crashed to the ground with a violent thud, sending dust billowing into the air.