Little Family Treasure of the Apocalyptic Boss

Chapter 22: The Goslings

The two, along with the mouse, none were geese by nature, yet they were all huddled closely around the two goose eggs, their expressions more or less revealing nervousness, resembling rookie dads pacing outside the delivery room.

Inside the warm incubator, the cracked white egg moved again.

The little snake sub-beast held his breath, eyes fixed without blinking on the small hole that had opened at the top of the white egg. From there, a yellow gosling slowly emerged.

The gosling was soaked all over, lying weakly in the eggshell, flapping feebly. Its flat beak instinctively opened, emitting a tender “quack” to alert its parents of its birth.

“Hmm… so ugly,” Ye Ze was always critical of things outside the little snake sub-beast. He immediately pursed his lips in disdain.

“Squeak!” The groundhog raised all four feet in agreement!

The little snake sub-beast glared at the two of them, then actively prepared for the hatchling’s daily life.

“Let me think… the instructions say, first, we have to wait for the goslings to adapt to the environment.” The little snake sub-beast carefully picked up the two goslings and moved them to the soft nest that had been prepared in advance. “Once the goslings open their eyes, the first person they see will automatically develop an intimate relationship, up to a maximum of two… Ye Zi, come quickly! The goslings are about to open their eyes!”

The little snake sub-beast looked eagerly at the goslings, waving their hand behind them.

Ye Ze didn’t care much about the so-called “intimate relationship,” anyway, his battles didn’t rely on these animal companions. But seeing the expectant expression on the little snake sub-beast’s face, he obediently stepped forward.

The goslings, defined as combat-class livestock, had extremely strong vitality.

They quickly passed the vulnerable period of infancy and opened their two ink-black eyes. Tilting their small heads, they observed the two faces in front of them.

“Quack, quack.” The goslings flapped their short wings. Stretching their necks, they happily chirped at the little snake sub-beast.

After being dried from the egg fluid, their warm yellow down was fluffy and soft. The sight of these two small, fluffy balls instantly softened the little snake sub-beast’s heart.

“I’ve prepared eggshells for you. Don’t rush, eat slowly.” The little snake sub-beast put the eggshells in a small dish and placed it on the table.

Without waiting for the little snake sub-beast’s invitation, the two goslings immediately jumped out of their cotton-filled nest, agile and nimble. They accurately located their plates, pecking at the food with “thud, thud, thud.”

Watching their lively behavior, the little snake sub-beast’s tail swayed. The soft, fluffy hairs on his head suddenly stood up, and they bounced around energetically several times.

Ye Ze’s gaze had long shifted from the goslings to the little snake sub-beast, and he smiled gently. He reached down, pinching the active fluff in his palm.

“Nuo Nuo, let’s give the two goslings names.”

The little snake sub-beast seemed to enjoy this activity very much.

After naming the groundhog and gaining approval, the round tip of the tail was lifted higher than usual when happy. All day long, unconscious humming filled the air, making it sweet.

Ye Ze enjoyed this state very much.

The groundhog’s fur bristled, and the whole rodent was about to explode with this proposal.

There was always a pretty bad premonition!

The little snake sub-beast blinked their eyes earnestly, thinking hard for a moment. The tail stopped its sliding in an S-shape and lifted up in excitement. Pointing at the gosling with the black-tipped beak on the right, “You’re called Little One.” Then pointing at the gosling with the completely yellow beak on the left, “You’re called Little Two.”

With the little snake sub-beast’s designation, the two goslings’ names, completely devoid of any protest, were settled.

The groundhog: “…”

It’s just the familiar way of naming!

But, why did it feel psychologically balanced?

The groundhog, Grey, scratched its head with its paws, looking bewildered.

However, life did not spare the innocent rodent.

After settling the chicks, the little snake sub-beast quickly remembered the groundhog’s misdeed, poking its forehead to admonish it. “Oh, and you, Grey, can’t bully the younger siblings in the future, understand?”

It didn’t bully!

When it wanted to steal the goose eggs, these two kids hadn’t even been born yet! They’re not siblings, no, they’re not, to begin with!

The groundhog adamantly denied its alleged wrongdoing. But after protesting for a while, it looked up to find that the little snake sub-beast had forgotten about its existence after the education and was already fully focused on playing with the chicks.

The chicks were biological.

While this groundhog was a foster child.

The groundhog squatted in the corner, emitting a resentful aura. Even after growing mushrooms all over its body, still, no one noticed it.

On the contrary, the goslings’ quacks behind it and the Communicator’s laughter became even more cheerful.

The groundhog stood up with a gloomy face, rushed out of the cave, and dug the soil in the field. After turning over the soil, it ran back to the little snake sub-beast.

The essence of combat: if you can’t beat them, join them!

…By the way, were the chicks always this obedient and adorable?

Ye Ze watched the human comedy unfolding in the cave. He turned his head and laughed again.

But this time, no angry groundhog glared at him.

The groundhog was a magnanimous groundhog. It would definitely not argue too much with this solitary guy.

“Nuo Nuo,” Ye Ze’s eyes contained a smile as he gently called the little snake sub-beast’s name, “you’ve been busy for a long time. It’s time for dinner.”

“Okay!” Without hesitation, the little snake sub-beast put the goslings back into the nest and patted their heads. “Be good. Nuo Nuo is going to cook, and I’ll come back to play with you later.”

“Quack!” The goslings obediently nestled together in the nest, shoulder to shoulder. By the way, they used their mouths to pull the groundhog, who was still dazed beside them, to move it, making room for it to wait.

The aura of the World Spirit was most favored by the creatures. After one afternoon, the two goslings had already regarded the groundhog as their good companion.

The groundhog, feeling a bit sore on its rear end, muttered to itself, “…”

Alright. It understood. It was a goose now. Maybe it would rank a bit higher in the future as a family member.

With a wooden expression, the groundhog squeezed into the goslings’ nest.

It felt like it had more presence here.

In various ways.

“Ah! So Grey likes Little One and Little Two so much?” The little snake sub-beast looked surprised as they watched the groundhog run into someone else’s nest. They patted the groundhog’s head affectionately. “Get along well. Tomorrow, I’ll make a bigger nest for you all, so Grey can live and play with Little One and Little Two. Isn’t that great?”

…You go away! [Groundhog screaming]

The two goslings grew very fast.

In just a few days after hatching, they had already shed their down feathers. They had also grown to be as tall as the groundhog when standing, reaching adult knee height.

Compared to domestic geese, the two livestock geese looked more like swans. Their newly grown white feathers were glossy and smooth. When they spread their wings, the future beauty was already evident.

But if anyone dared to underestimate them, they would definitely suffer.

Through intentional cultivation by Ye Ze, the two livestock geese had at least reached the level of third-tier Ability Users, equivalent to the strength of Beast Warriors.

Their teeth were sharp and sturdy, their wings sharp as knives, and their webbed feet were strong and powerful. They were absolute formidable warriors.

Near the remote Black Snake Tribe, they were already capable of serving as bodyguards for the little snake sub-beast.

With the addition of a certain groundhog whose strength was still unknown but clearly able to easily control the land, Ye Ze could rest assured leaving for further places.

—As winter approached, the temperature dropped sharply, with many animals entering hibernation, becoming rarely seen, and most plants withering away, leaving nothing for the little snake sub-beast to gather.

Recently, Ye Ze had been going out alone. Therefore, it was essential to ensure the safety and protection of the little snake sub-beast at home.

Even so, Ye Ze still consciously limited his time outside to half a day. Every day, he would return to the cave on time to have meals with the little snake sub-beast. Like other Beastmen, situations where he would spend the night outdoors due to traveling far away would never happen.

Gradually, from the initial anxiousness when bidding farewell to Ye Ze, the little snake sub-beast had transformed into someone who could work and labor with three little tails even if Ye Ze was away. When waiting for Ye Ze’s return, there would be steaming hot meals or a pot of warm tea.

Just like in peacetime, a warm family life.

Ye Ze lowered his gaze, looking at the little snake sub-beast wrapped in a furry coat, unable to suppress his smile.

Today, when he went out, he spotted the trace of a merchant caravan in the spirit stone monitoring system. Thinking about how the little snake sub-beast had been longing for the caravan, he came back early.

A surprise in their daily life.

Not only would it dispel the shadows brought by the tribe, but it would also make the little snake sub-beast happy.

At such times, he found himself looking forward to it as well.

The groundhog following behind the little snake sub-beast seemed to sense something, turning its head to look at him. After standing still for a few seconds, it returned to the ground, using all four limbs to swiftly catch up with the little snake sub-beast entering the warehouse.

As the top-tier Ability User, Ye Ze didn’t feel cold in winter. But he still held a warm cup of tea in his hands, tightly and affectionately, drawing warmth from it.

Just like a fierce beast shedding all its ferocity, revealing its softest belly, eagerly awaiting the arrival of its tamer.