I Abandoned My Beast Cubs for the Protagonist... Oops?-Chapter 36: Monkey Cuddles

"THIS IS NOT SAFE!" Bai Yue shrieked as she plummeted through the air for the third time in ten minutes.

A young male monkey caught her at the last second, his tail wrapped around a vine, and swung her back up to the work platform with a laugh. "It’s totally safe! We haven’t lost anyone permanently in at least... oh... two weeks?"

"TWO WEEKS?!"

"What? That’s a good record!"

The "maintenance" turned out to be a chaotic, terrifying process where young male monkeys tested the strength of the vines by jumping on them, using anything and anyone as "test weights."

And apparently, Bai Yue was the perfect test weight.

"Again!" a monkey called from above. "Throw her higher this time!"

"NO!" Bai Yue yelled. "No higher! I’m fine with the current height! Which is ZERO! ON THE GROUND!"

But her protests were ignored as she was tossed from vine to vine, each monkey testing the strength and flexibility of their aerial highways by seeing if they could catch and throw the screaming female.

Cāng Jì, standing on a relatively stable platform with his arms crossed, watched with barely-concealed amusement. "This is karma, star-thief. This is what you deserve for stealing my stone."

"I HATE YOU!" Bai Yue screamed as she was caught and thrown again.

"I know!"

After what felt like an eternity of being used as a living stress-test, Bai Yue was finally allowed to collapse on a platform, her legs shaking and her hair a complete disaster. The monkeys had moved on to weaving new safety nets under the higher nurseries, which at least didn’t involve throwing her through the air.

She watched as they worked, their movements quick espite the playful banter. They wove thick vines together in patterns, creating nets that were surprisingly sturdy when tested.

"You have to admit," Cāng Jì said, sitting down beside her with his now-dry robes back on, "they are skilled."

"They’re insane," Bai Yue muttered.

"That too."

By the time the maintenance was finished, the sun had climbed to its peak, beating down through the canopy with oppressive heat. The air grew thick and heavy, and even the energetic monkeys began to slow their movements.

Hóu Wáng appeared on their platform, wiping sweat from his brow. "Afternoon rest time!" he announced. "Too hot to work. We nap now."

"Nap?" Bai Yue perked up. "That sounds amazing. I’m exhausted."

"Excellent!" The Monkey King grinned. "Follow me to the Cuddle-Puddle!"

"The... what?"

"The Cuddle-Puddle!" Hóu Xián appeared, bouncing excitedly. "It’s tradition! When the sun is too hot, we conserve energy by piling together in the shade! Bonds the tribe! Very cozy!"

Cāng Jì’s eye began to twitch. "No. Absolutely not. I am not ’cuddling’ with anyone."

"Oh, you’re cuddling," Hóu Wáng said cheerfully. "Or the trial ends here and you never get your stone back!"

The Dragon Prince opened his mouth, closed it, opened it again, and then let out a sound of pure despair. "I want to die."

They were led to a massive, shaded platform beneath the thickest branches of an ancient Iron-Wood tree. The platform was covered in soft moss and dried grass, and already, dozens of monkeys were gathering, yawning and stretching.

"You, dragon!" Hóu Wáng pointed at Cāng Jì. "You’re the biggest and sturdiest. You’re the bottom pillow!"

"I AM NOT A PILLOW!"

"Lie down or no stone!"

Cāng Jì looked at Bai Yue with an expression of such profound betrayal that she actually felt guilty. But he did lie down, flat on his back, his arms rigid at his sides and his face set in a mask of suffering.

Immediately, monkeys began to pile on top of him. First the larger adults, using his torso and legs as cushions. Then the younger ones, tucking themselves into whatever spaces remained. They draped over him like a living blanket, their tails and limbs tangling together in a massive, furry heap.

"No, no, no, no," Cāng Jì was muttering under his breath. "This is not happening. This is a nightmare. I am asleep in my palace and this is a terrible dream brought on by eating too much spiced wine—"

"You too, cursed female!" a monkey called, pointing at Bai Yue. "Into the puddle!"

Before she could protest, she was pulled into the mass of warm, furry bodies, ending up wedged somewhere in the middle of the pile. A monkey’s tail was draped over her shoulder. Someone’s foot was near her ear. And there was definitely fur in her mouth no matter how much she tried to avoid it.

"This is my life now," she whispered to no one in particular. "This is how I die. Suffocated by monkey cuddles."

From somewhere below, buried under approximately fifteen monkeys, she heard Cāng Jì’s muffled voice: "If we survive this, star-thief, I am raising your debt to two stones."

Despite the heat, the fur, the absolute absurdity of the situation, Bai Yue started to laugh. It bubbled up from her chest, helpless giggles that she couldn’t contain even as a young monkey shifted and accidentally elbowed her in the ribs.

"Are you laughing?!" Cāng Jì’s outraged voice drifted up from the bottom of the pile. "We are being CRUSHED and you are LAUGHING?!"

"I can’t help it!" Bai Yue wheezed. "This is insane! We’re in a monkey cuddle-puddle! A CUDDLE-PUDDLE!"

A few of the monkeys joined in her laughter, their bodies shaking and making the whole pile wobble.

And then, from the very bottom, crushed under the weight of an entire tribe, serving as an unwilling pillow for creatures he had sworn eternal hatred against, Cāng Jì began to laugh too.

It started as a strangled sound, like he was trying to hold it in. But then it burst out, full and genuine, echoing through the canopy.

The Dragon Prince was laughing.

The monkeys immediately started cheering, bouncing up and down on the pile and making it even worse.

"The dragon laughs! The dragon laughs! The trial is working!"

"Grandfather! Grandfather! He’s learning humility!"

"Quick, someone write this down! History is being made!"

"I STILL HATE ALL OF YOU!" Cāng Jì yelled, but he was still laughing, his body shaking beneath the pile.

Bai Yue closed her eyes, a smile on her face despite the fur in her mouth and the monkey foot by her ear.

[DING! ☆]

[Trial One Progress: 45% Complete!]

[Cāng Jì’s Dignity: -12000% (New Low!)]

[Unexpected Bonus: Dragon Prince Actually Laughed! +500 Humility Points!]

[Bai Yue’s Fur-in-Mouth Status: Critical]

[Days Remaining: 10]

[Soul Itch: Still 3% - You’re doing great, raccoon!]