Chapter 34
Today was already the sixth day of partner survival. As long as they made it through tonight, they could leave the Leia Continent first thing tomorrow morning.
After returning from the riverside, Yomi noticed that Anxius still did not seem to be in very good condition.
As for Arlo having gained a complete human form, Yomi had watched carefully. Anxius’s reaction had actually been very calm. It was definitely not jealousy—he simply did not care that much.
Could he be overworked?
Thinking carefully about everything Anxius had done these past few days, Yomi gradually began to worry.
Hunting, catching fish, starting fires and cooking, fighting rain dragons… if it had been him, he would already have been exhausted beyond words.
Yomi looked up at the sky. Today was the last day.
At the entrance of the stone cave, facing the sunlight, the three of them finished eating the leftover electric bull from yesterday.
After resting for a while, just as Anxius was preparing to go out hunting, Yomi suddenly said, “Let’s not hunt today, okay?”
Anxius turned back to look at him, puzzled.
Yomi said, “We can leave tomorrow morning. For the time we have left, it’s fine if we just eat some fruit… anyway, it’s the last day. Instead of hunting, wouldn’t it be better to go out and have some fun?”
Naturally, Arlo had no objections. He now possessed a complete human form, but at present his appetite was still very small, so it did not matter even if he did not eat or drink for a day or two.
Whether it was eating with Yomi or playing with Yomi, he liked both very much.
Because of that sentence, Anxius remembered last night and assumed Yomi was not feeling well, so he also stopped planning to go out hunting.
Having successfully steered things in that direction, Yomi guiltily continued, “The scenery near that maze yesterday was really nice, and the mountain spring water was sweet too. Why don’t we go there again today?”
No one objected.
Before leaving, Yomi packed quite a few things. He brought some of the wild fruit from the stone cave and that pair of black wings as well. In the end, he wrapped everything in old clothes from the shelter. Just as he was about to hoist it onto his back, a claw took it away.
Anxius effortlessly took his little bundle, then pulled out yesterday’s vine cart and told him to get on.
Yomi tied the knife at his waist and shook his head with a smile. “I need to exercise more too.”
Seeing that he really did not want to sit, Anxius left the vine cart behind. If Yomi got tired, he could carry him at any time.
By noon they had reached their destination. Arlo found a broad, flat patch of grass and waved at Yomi. “We can picnic here!”
Yomi went over to take a look. As expected of a robot, the place he had found was perfect. It was very close to the shrub maze, sunny, but there were also big trees nearby for shade. A stream was not far away, and the slope of grass opposite them was covered in wildflowers.
Now and then a light breeze blew by. Simply sitting here felt enjoyable. It really was a wonderful place for a picnic.
Yomi was very satisfied. Straightening his back like a tiny team leader, he began assigning tasks: “Louis, Arlo, you two are tall, so go pick fruit from those giant trees. I’ll go look for berries in the shrubs… as long as we don’t go too far apart, we’ll still be able to hear each other if anyone calls out.”
In a place like this, Anxius actually did not want to separate from Yomi. But seeing the way Yomi kept glancing toward the shrubs out of the corner of his eye, his gaze full of anticipation, he thought the other had not finished having fun yesterday… which was true enough. Yesterday, before Yomi had even found his own way out of the maze, he had already been unable to resist causing trouble.
Arlo had already enthusiastically gone off to pick wild fruit in the distance. Robots did not think that much—if he wanted to do something, he simply did it.
Now that it was sunny, Anxius knew for certain there would be no rain dragons here. He brought Yomi to the entrance of the shrub maze, then carefully sniffed around and, after confirming there was no trace of snakes inside, felt somewhat relieved.
Anxius did not go far. He stayed right by the shrubs, gathering wild fruit while occasionally pricking up his ears to listen for movement from Yomi inside.
Yomi had entered with his knife and that pair of black wings. Today, he had only one goal: to hunt a pheasant!
He could not catch the pheasants in the mountains, but the ones here… that might be another story.
When he had played here yesterday, he remembered seeing pheasants in the shrubs.
It was all for the sake of giving his hardworking companion something nourishing. Little pheasant, sorry!
As for some grand battle with a pheasant… that absolutely did not exist. A few seconds later, Yomi took off the knife and began digging dirt with the sheath.
Yes, Yomi’s strategy was to set a trap and wait for the prey to walk right into it.
To successfully catch the pheasant, he had even secretly brought some berries along. After setting the trap, he placed the berries and all the bugs he had dug up over the top of it. As long as the pheasant walked over, it would fall into the pit.
Yomi just needed to rush over and catch it before it could climb back out.
To make the pheasants here lower their guard, Yomi tied that pair of black wings onto his body with thin vines… it counted as a sort of camouflage ghillie suit, after all.
[???]
[What is Teacher Mi doing? Cosplaying as a fallen angel?]
[Obviously he’s setting a trap… Is Mimi planning to use this trap to hunt fallen wild fruit? [thinking]]
[Teacher Mi is being very serious. Did you all forget pheasants showed up here yesterday? Mi is trying to catch a chicken!]
[Uh… he won’t get hurt, right?]
[Am I the only one scared that Mimi might get kidnapped by a pheasant?]
Yomi lay in the grass near the trap, quietly waiting for the pheasant to appear.
He waited and waited, but there was no sign of one at all… Yomi could not sit still anymore. He got up and began searching through the maze, wandering back and forth, and finally, at one of the forks, he heard movement.
He pricked up his ears, crouched down, and parted the leaves to peek.
It really was a pheasant!
The pheasant took a few steps, then looked left and right. Seeing no one nearby, it lowered its head and started pecking at the berries inside.
Yomi was delighted. Holding his breath, he went around the path, then suddenly pounced forward—grab!
Ah, he did not catch it.
The pheasant was too nimble, slipping away incredibly fast.
Afraid it would run off like last time, Yomi hurriedly used the knife to block its path while chasing after it, desperately trying to herd it toward his trap… and by sheer coincidence, the pheasant was frightened by the eagle wings strapped to his body. In its panic, it lost all sense of direction several times and actually blundered right into his trap…
Yomi’s heart pounded wildly with excitement. He hurried over, threw himself down, and pressed over the trap, not daring to move at all. He shouted loudly, “Louis! Arlo! Come quickly—”
The pheasant thrashed and shoved around inside. He got startled several times, but still refused to move away.
This was something he had finally managed to catch with great difficulty!
The instant that shout rang out, Anxius darted in at high speed. Very quickly, he saw Yomi lying on the ground, face covered in dust, twigs and leaves all over his head.
That pair of black wings was still tied to him, several chicken feathers hung from his horns, and his flushed face was red as can be. The moment he saw his companion arrive, he anxiously cried out, “Louis, I caught a pheasant! It’s right underneath!”
The monster came back to himself. One claw scooped Yomi up, and just as the pheasant was about to escape, the other claw grabbed it, making it squawk endlessly.
After all that scrambling around in the shrubs, Yomi had become completely dusty. The moment he saw the pheasant had truly been caught, all that tension finally left him. Smiling, he said, “Great! We’ll have roast chicken for lunch!”
The monster’s pupils trembled slightly as he looked at him, as if he did not understand why he had done all this.
Just a little while ago, he had said they were not going hunting…
“Louis,” Yomi wriggled to get back down to the ground. Now that he had a trophy, he finally had the courage to say this: “These past few days, you’ve been taking care of me the whole time. Now that you’re tired, I’ll take care of you too.”
“…”
The monster blinked slowly. After freezing for a few seconds, he bent over, rubbed against Yomi with those horns of his, and pulled him into his arms. This time, no matter what, he would not let go. Yomi smiled and stood on tiptoe to pat his shoulder, as if to say, Don’t worry.
Arlo only came running over at this point. The moment he saw the scene, he immediately stretched out both hands, wanting to hug Yomi too. “Arlo hug! Let Arlo hug too!”
Naturally, Anxius refused. He took Yomi with him to the nearby stream to wash up.
Arlo followed step by step. After realizing he had absolutely no angle from which to snatch Yomi away into a hug, he simply grabbed Yomi’s hunted pheasant instead and began slaughtering it.
Yomi stood barefoot in the clear-bottomed stream. He washed his own arms while Anxius washed his face and hair. Before long, the dusty Yomi became clean and fair again.
Anxius found a pile of rocks away from the grass and started a fire there. Yomi, full of energy after his happy event of catching a chicken, ran around picking up firewood. By then, Arlo had finished processing the pheasant and also came over.
One pheasant might have been enough for three humans, but Yomi’s two companions now were both giant Snarans. He had originally been planning to use the same trick again and go back into the shrubs to display his chicken-catching skills once more, but Anxius, seeing right through his thoughts, stopped him. “There’s still wild fruit. It’s enough.”
Only then did Yomi sit down.
Once the pheasant was roasted, Anxius wrapped it in giant tree leaves and brought it over to the picnic spot.
Spread over the grass was a huge piece of old clothing. On top of it were wild fruits in all kinds of colors, the roast chicken torn into countless pieces, and several lingzhi fruits that Anxius had specially found for Yomi.
…At a time like this, it would have been perfect if there had been wine! Although before transmigrating, Yomi had not actually drunk much, somehow beautiful surroundings plus good food always seemed to go especially well with wine.
Yomi bit into a chicken leg, crisp outside and tender inside. As he glanced sideways at Anxius and Arlo and saw that both of them were eating too, his heart felt wonderfully full.
This was a pheasant he had hunted himself. It smelled so good!
“Eat more!” Yomi said with a grin, his mouth shiny with grease. “If it’s not enough, I’ll go catch another one.”
Anxius / Arlo: “…”
[Wuwuwu Teacher Mi actually really succeeded. Although the final image of him pressing down the pheasant kind of looked like mutual destruction…]
[What mutual destruction? The pheasant is already inside Mimi’s stomach now. No matter how hard the process was, Mimi still won! The victor is king—rounding up, Mimi is the king of the Leia Continent!]
[I knew it. Teacher Mi was just conserving his strength before. Once he makes a move, chicken dies!]
[No, even if Teacher Mi doesn’t make a move, the chicken would die, the electric bull would die, even the rain dragon would die. It’s settled—Teacher Mi is the true apex predator of the Leia Continent!]
[Yesterday wild fruit, today wild chicken—who even dares imagine tomorrow. Even a wild man would have to beg Teacher Mi for mercy. Once Teacher Mi takes action, he can conquer all of Leia!]
[…]
After finishing the roast chicken and wild fruit, the three of them lay on the grass again, enjoying the scenery in utter contentment. When the sun was not so fierce anymore, they packed up and started heading back.
On the way back, Yomi, now utterly exhausted, walked more and more slowly. This time Anxius did not listen to him and simply picked him up to continue the journey.
When they were still halfway from the stone cave, footsteps suddenly sounded in the distance.
They sounded like human footsteps.
All three stopped at once.
Yomi also froze and looked in the direction of the sound… there could not possibly be wild men here, right?
Of course there were no wild men. Before long, a distinct figure appeared up ahead. The moment both sides saw each other, they all visibly froze.
It was Jinwen, looking somewhat bedraggled.
Because Yomi was small, the first things Jinwen noticed were Anxius and Arlo. After the initial shock, he instinctively ran over. Only when he got close did he finally notice Yomi being carried in Anxius’s arms. He was startled, then quickly held himself back and hurriedly looked toward Arlo, who was closest to him. “Have any of you seen a robot? The one called Arlo. I have no idea where he ran off to…”
Arlo: “…”
Seeing that this man was not speaking, Jinwen looked again at Anxius and Yomi. “You haven’t seen him either?”
Yomi pointed at Arlo.
Following his finger, Jinwen glanced at the man and frowned in confusion. “Is this a cameraman? Strange, we didn’t have a cameraman on our side… Don’t worry, I found you by my own ability, so I’m not breaking the rules. It’s fine.”
Yomi: “…”
Arlo: “…”
[I’m dying. What kind of eyesight does Jinwen have? Arlo is right in front of him!]
[You can’t really blame Jinwen. He doesn’t know the robot has a human form now, so of course he wouldn’t assume the suddenly-appearing human is Arlo.]
[I’m laughing so hard. Is this really not the show’s arranged effect?]
After a stretch of very strange silence—
Jinwen said, “What’s wrong with you all? Sigh, surviving here really is exhausting, but we only need to endure one more night.” He looked at Yomi. Although he was very reluctant to leave the little guy in front of him, he also could not just ignore his missing partner, so he waved and was about to continue searching.
Yomi kept pointing at Arlo. “This is Arlo. He now has a complete human form.”
Jinwen: “…Huh?”
A few minutes later.
Jinwen stroked his chin and circled Arlo while looking him up and down. “Alright, he really is a person. The arm characteristics match up… so, are you coming back with me? If you’re afraid of dampness, I can hang you in a tree.”
Arlo only looked at Yomi. “Arlo follows Yomi.”
Jinwen had been waiting for exactly those words! He first put on a regretful expression, then sighed as though he had no choice. “We are partners, and the mission ends tomorrow anyway. I suppose I can reluctantly stay here with you all for the night.”
Anxius gave him a cold glance.
But he said nothing. It was the last day. As long as there was no threat to Yomi, he was too lazy to clash with anyone else.
Yomi had even less objection. He had heard from Arlo where their cave was, and it was very far away. There was really no need to walk all that distance back. One more person would still fit in the stone cave, and making do for one night was no problem at all.
That afternoon, the four of them returned to the stone cave. Jinwen was very excited. He was incredibly curious about the little guy’s living place these past few days, and had already decided he would spend the rest period after the end of the first installment watching replay recordings.
The first thing to catch his attention was the capsule house. It was simply too cute—he could not even begin to imagine how adorable the little guy must have looked living inside it!
Eh? What was with this tablecloth? Egg Demolition Expert? Ahhh, what exactly had happened? Once he got back, he absolutely had to watch the replays while eating!
Since it was the last day, Anxius showed Jinwen a rare degree of tolerance, though in truth all of his attention was on Yomi.
Back when Yomi caught the pheasant, Anxius had already understood what he was thinking. It was not that Yomi did not want to eat meat—he had just thought Anxius was tired and wanted him to rest.
Anxius was not tired at all. He was planning to go catch fish so that on Yomi’s last night here, he could eat his fill.
When Jinwen heard he was going to catch fish, he immediately insisted on helping too. Catching fish was one of his strong points! He had finally found the little guy through his own ability, so he could not let people look down on him!
Now that tall robot Arlo was here, and rain dragons would not appear, Anxius left Yomi in the stone cave. Even then, before leaving, he still did not forget to tell him that if anything happened, he should hide in the capsule first.
Yomi and Arlo stayed in the cave waiting for them. By the time the evening glow appeared, Anxius and Jinwen had returned.
They brought back fish large and small, as well as many fresh wild fruits. Besides that, Anxius had even found bamboo and crudely made several cups.
[So before this, you just couldn’t find bamboo, huh? Scheming monster!]
[Wuwuwu the little milk pot no longer gets to be used as a cup. I demand justice for the little milk pot!]
Night was about to fall, and the fire in front of the stone cave was burning brightly.
The four of them sat around it, each busy with the grilled fish in front of them, while Yomi kept staring at the little milk pot of fish soup, making sure it would not boil over.
Most of the time it was Arlo and Yomi talking. Jinwen occasionally cut in a few times, while Anxius focused on grilling fish. The atmosphere was not especially lively, but it was very comfortable.
This time the grilled fish was also drizzled with sour wild fruit juice, and it tasted excellent. Halfway through eating, Yomi unconsciously lifted his bamboo cup and clinked it with Anxius’s.
The monster looked at him once, then lightly tapped his own cup against Yomi’s. After that, Yomi went one by one to clink cups with the other two as well. Since they were only drinking boiled water, he did not know what to say, so he just gave a silly smile or two, drank his water, and went back to eating the fish.
The coals crackled and hissed. The nighttime temperature was low, and eating in front of the fire felt wonderfully warm. Four people—not too many, not too few—not lively enough to be noisy, but not lonely either. It felt like a little family camping here together.
Once he had eaten his fill, Yomi still could not bear to leave the fire. Hugging his knees, he chatted with Arlo.
What he asked about was how it felt before and after gaining a complete human form. He was curious, and that curiosity stirred up longing too. This kind of topic was something he could talk about with Arlo for an entire day.
As they talked, he quietly rubbed the ground with his palm, feeling that his body was still no different from before.
Yomi had not awakened any special ability. That was obvious. But he could not really call himself regretful or miserable. He knew very well that the odds of that kind of thing happening were already very low. If it really had happened, it would only have meant he was lucky.
But even if he would never change, he did not regret making this trip at all. He had seen different scenery, and he had even gotten to witness dinosaurs that had long since gone extinct in his original world… all in all, it counted as an incredibly worthwhile all-expenses-paid journey!
It grew late. It was time to sleep.
Yomi returned to the capsule and rolled around a few times, unable to fall asleep. The people outside also seemed unable to sleep. They all kept turning over restlessly.
Yomi wanted to chat, but he did not know what to talk about, so he rested his head on his arm and softly hummed a song.
He sang Auld Lang Syne. Back before the college entrance exam had ended, he often sang it together with his classmates:
“How can we forget old friends, how can our hearts not hold them dear, how can old friends ever be forgotten… may friendship last forever…”
“We once wandered day after day… upon the green hills of our hometown… we too once endured hardship… drifting and roaming far and wide…”
Tomorrow they would leave this place. He felt this song was very fitting for the moment.
The moment the singing reached them, the three figures outside the capsule all stiffened.
Arlo had an extremely fast learning ability. After hearing it once, he immediately began to imitate him and sing along.
The Snarans had never heard this song before, but that did not stop them from finding it beautiful.
The monster gazed fixedly at the figure inside the capsule, motionless as he listened quietly.
Jinwen wanted to speak several times, but he was afraid of interrupting the song, so he endured it and kept his mouth shut. Only after Yomi finished singing did he clap hard. “That was amazing! Did you compose it yourself?”
“No,” Yomi quickly shook his head. “It’s… it’s a song from my hometown.”
That former world truly was his hometown.
[A heavenly voice. I’m going to cry listening to this!]
[Added to my study plan. One day I’ll sing this at the school talent show!]
[Song god Yomi! Who can rival him!]
[Ahhh, how does every industry somehow have Yomi in it? A few days ago I went to apprentice under a cooking master and joined a fan group, and the group announcement was actually about aspiring to become an egg chef god like Teacher Mi. I thought he was some new rising star in that field, and then I searched him and found this show instead…]
[Hahaha yesterday I even saw a son making the family cat learn from Mimi’s videos so it could work and earn money. The cat got so mad it smacked him twice]
…
The moment Yomi finished singing that song, the stone cave turned lively. Arlo and Jinwen asked him to keep singing. Anxius said nothing, only kept looking at him.
Yomi did not actually know many songs, and he was too embarrassed to continue singing. But after singing like that, his mind had become lively, and he was now completely unable to sleep. He poked his head out of the capsule and grinned. “You all can’t sleep either? Then how about… we stay up all night playing cards?”
“There are cards too? Then what are we waiting for?” Jinwen immediately raised both hands in support!
Before long, all four of them were up.
After lighting a fire, they sat around Yomi’s little stone table and played cards, while Yomi used the old foam box from his former partner as a card holder.
Once people started playing cards, they forgot the time. Before they knew it, it was three in the morning.
Now and then, laughter drifted out of the stone cave. At first Yomi was laughing too, but gradually his laughter disappeared.
While Arlo was shuffling the cards, Yomi let out a few yawns and started nodding off like a pecking chick. Not long after, his head tilted, rested against Anxius’s wing, and he fell asleep.
At that moment, Jinwen came back after boiling water. He crouched down to pour Yomi some, but in the blink of an eye, he saw the monster lift Yomi up and carry him into the capsule house inside.
“He fell asleep?” Jinwen said in surprise.
Anxius did not answer. He merely looked at them both once, then lay down in front of the capsule to guard it, closing his eyes to rest.
Arlo put down the playing cards and said softly, “Yomi is asleep. Arlo will sleep too.”
Jinwen, however, was still quite energetic. He wanted to sneak over and peek at the little one’s sleeping posture, but before he could get close, the monster blocked his view. Turning back, the monster gave him a look that clearly was not to be trifled with.
Jinwen sulkily returned to his own spot and lay down.
No matter. There were so many days of livestream recordings—more than enough for him to watch!
The fire was put out, and the stone cave sank back into darkness.
After noticing that the guests had fallen asleep, the camera slowly moved away toward the beautiful night sky outside the cave.
[Does it really end tomorrow morning? I’m so reluctant, wuwuwu]
[This is only the first installment! Teacher Mi will still be with us for many more installments!]
[I hope you have a sweet dream, little sweetheart of the Leia Continent]
…
At seven-thirty the next morning, the production team’s aircraft appeared not far from each group’s temporary shelter.
Yomi was still sleeping groggily. He had only gone to sleep in the middle of the night, so he could not wake naturally at dawn. When he heard the aircraft, he thought it was just the wind of the Leia Continent, turned over, and continued sleeping.
Anxius had only dozed for a little over an hour before waking up. He wanted to pack up Yomi’s things ahead of time. He wrapped up all the little trinkets Yomi had picked up in old clothes—those were Yomi’s souvenirs.
Not long after, the people from the production team came over laughing, with all kinds of machinery sounds and human voices mingling together. Yomi’s consciousness gradually woke.
He knew the production team was approaching. Logically, he should have gotten up early, done a bit of washing, and prepared himself. The habits of his past eighteen years gave him a deep instinct not to receive guests in a shabby state. But no matter how anxious he felt, he simply could not get up.
Yomi felt that his body was incredibly heavy, like when he used to experience sleep paralysis. He was clearly conscious, but he just could not control his body. It felt miserable.
A soft murmur came from his mouth. Soon, a black shadow appeared above him. He knew that was Anxius.
A claw was gently shaking him, seemingly calling his name as well. Yomi struggled to pry open his eyes, and sure enough, he saw the monster’s face.
The monster’s voice was very blurry, and he could not hear it clearly.
Very soon, the other party picked him up and used a damp handkerchief to wipe his face.
Yomi endured the discomfort in his body and tried to stand up, but as soon as he moved his hand, all his strength vanished again.
At last, he clearly heard Anxius say, “Don’t move. We’re going to see a doctor right away.”
His voice was taut, as though Yomi had frightened him.
Before entering the stone cave, Kurt raised a microphone to the camera and said, “This time, everyone went through quite a lot of hardship, but fortunately every group completed the survival mission! The cooperation and friendship between different partners were truly unforgettable… however, Prince Joseph was injured and has just been sent to the hospital; Mark seems to have caught a cold…”
He was about to keep talking when a black shadow suddenly appeared in front of the cave!
…It was Louis! Kurt froze, then he and the staff tried to step forward and ask what was happening, but before they could get close, those enormous wings unceremoniously swept them far away!
The monster charged toward the aircraft that was meant to transport the guests away, looking extremely anxious.
“Yomi? Is Yomi the one in his arms?!” The other staff members wanted to go over and take a look too, but the moment they stepped forward, the intimidating gust released by the monster’s presence frightened them senseless.
“It is Yomi. Louis is taking care of him…” Kurt steadied himself in a daze and noticed that the camera was still rolling, so he quickly composed his expression. “Everyone, Yomi also seems to be sick, so our aircraft will first take him for emergency treatment… for now, let’s go see how Jinwen and Arlo are doing…”
At the cave entrance, the two tall figures who wanted to go check on Yomi’s condition were blocked tightly by the staff.
Anxius had already carried Yomi into the aircraft, but then suddenly remembered all those little souvenirs Yomi had especially picked out to keep. He ran back to the stone cave again. Even when the staff asked if he needed help, it was as if he could not see anyone at all. He simply gathered up the capsule and all those little items in one rush.
After leaving the Leia Continent, the aircraft landed in a nearby open area, where a starship that Karl had specially arranged was waiting.
The moment they boarded the starship, Karl immediately called over the personal doctor to examine Yomi. He assumed Yomi had a cold or a fever, or maybe an upset stomach. After all, with the crown prince watching over him, at the very least Yomi could not have gotten food poisoning.
Yet after the doctor examined him from head to toe, his expression turned blank. Finally, pale-faced, he shook his head. “His temperature is normal, and the patient does not report pain anywhere. At the moment, I can’t detect any problem… there are no instruments here. Once we reach His Highness’s estate, we’ll run another examination with proper equipment.”
Anxius anxiously carried Yomi to the bed and anxiously waited for the starship to reach its destination.
At that moment, his mind was filled entirely with the image from that night—Yomi shrinking smaller and smaller until he had almost disappeared…
Anxius’s pupils trembled slightly. He bent down deeply and held the little person tightly in his arms.
An hour later, the starship finally came to a stop above the open grounds of the estate.
Karl was already sweating with anxiety. He rushed toward the lounge to remind the crown prince that they could get off now, but before he could speak, the sight before him left him too stunned to say a word.
…Yomi was gone! And in the crown prince’s arms, there was now a little white lamb sleeping with its eyes half closed.
Anxius lowered his head, his eyes red. “Mimi?”
Half-asleep, the little lamb lazily kicked its hooves and let out a soft baa.
