Epoch 3

Epoch 3: The Hot and Cold Twin Brothers.

Hou can't stop looking at the sub-beast beside him. He is the most beautiful sub-beast he has ever seen, much more beautiful than his mother.

His eyes glow as bright as the stars, his skin is white as snow, his soft black hair sways from the wind and emits a fragrant scent, and he is also wearing clothes he hasn't seen before. The sub-beast beside him looks like a deity described in a folktale.

Just looking at him makes his heart beat fast.

Unfortunately, he accidentally scared the sub-beast earlier.

Hou, together with the other beasts, will start patrolling around the tribe when he smells a sweet scent and hears a small movement behind the bushes.

He immediately signaled to them to keep quiet, and he slowly walked around the tree to check. He didn't expect that the one hiding was a sub-beast, and he almost scared him to death.

Until now, the sub-beast would peek at him and start trembling.

'Am I that scary?!' He sighed.

He tried to talk to the sub-beast after he calmed down, but he was ignored. But when Cai asked the sub-beast to follow them to the tribe, he nodded.

It makes him disheartened, but he won't let the opportunity pass to make a good impression on the sub-beast.

That's why he ordered the other beasts to start patrolling without him, because he would personally escort the beautiful sub-beast back to the tribe.

Under the resentful eyes of his men, he happily guides the sub-beast.

___________.

'Ude!!!! Ahhhhhh!!!'

[Calm down, Tang Tang!]

'How can I calm down? There is a handsome man beside me! Ahhhh, so handsome!! That face.. AHHHHHH!!'

[ತ⁠_⁠ತ]

'Look at those arms! those abs! those mermaid lines!!! Ahhh, choke me, daddy!!'

[Do you want me to choke you myself?!]

'Tsss.. You're a kill joy!'

Tang Tang peeks again at the man walking beside him.

The man is so tall, he thinks he is more than 195cm. With his height of 175cm, he even needs to look up just to see the man's face.

The man's long black hair is tied up. He has a sharp eyebrow, phoenix-shaped eyes that match his golden pupil, an aquiline nose, and thin lips.

'Ahhh, so handsome!'

[...]

He really is much more handsome than those models and actors on TV and in magazines.

Plus those muscular arms, broad shoulders, and toned chest.

'So hot!'

[...]

The only hindrance is the small piece of cloth covering it down there.

'I really want to take it off!'

[So shameless, Tang Tang!!]

He sighed and tried to calm himself. He doesn't want to scare the handsome beast.

'Anyway, Ude, what did you do earlier? After you returned, I started to understand their language.'

It is so embarrassing. Earlier, the man said something to him, but he couldn't even respond.

[After scanning the tribe information, I recorded their language, analyzed it, and sent it to your brain.]

'Ohh. It's like an auto-translation! How about me? Can I speak their language now?'

[Yes! After deciphering the structure of their words, I incorporate it into your previous language for you to understand it easily.]

[You can now use it freely and, at the same time, switch from the Gaia dialect to Earth's language. Try it!]

'Okay!'

He cleared his throat first and then asked the man beside him. "What is your name?"

Hou was stunned when he heard the soft and melodious voice of the sub-beast.

"Can I know your name?" Tang Tang asked again when the man didn't answer, as if it were frozen in place.

'Hey Ude! Can't he understand me? Why is he not answering?'

[I don't know Tang Tang. I am sure you are now speaking the Gaia dialect.]

"Hello!" Tang Tang waved in front of the man.

"H-Hou.. Hou, that's my name," he said after a few seconds.

"Nice to meet you, Hou! I'm Tang Tang." He clasps the man's big hand and shakes it happily.

'Ahhh.. Even his fingers are long!'

[...]

"T-Tang Tang.."

"Yes?"

"N-nice to meet you too."

Tang Tang smiled.

When he sees that Hou is still not moving, he slightly pulls the man's hand to walk again in the tribe's direction.

'You're awesome, Ude!'

[ᕦ⁠ʕ⁠ ⁠•⁠ᴥ⁠•⁠ʔ⁠ᕤ]

Hou still can't believe that Tang Tang talked to him and even held his hand.

'He is not scared of me anymore?'

'His smile is so beautiful!'

'His hand is so soft!'

They never talked again after that, but the atmosphere between them became harmonious.

Until they arrived at the center of the tribe, Hou didn't let go of Tang Tang's hand; he even slightly tightened his hold when he noticed that all the beasts were eyeing Tang Tang, afraid that someone would take the sub-beast from him.

When they arrived in front of the biggest tent, a man came out of it.

Hou immediately hid Tang Tang behind him.

"Is Father inside?"

"Yes."

When Tang Tang heard the other man's cold voice, he peeked from Hou's back. Just to find an equally handsome man.

The man looks like Hou, but with silver hair and blue eyes.

'Ahhh, two handsome men! They both fit my aesthetic.'

[...] Ude is wondering if there is any cure for his host's shamelessness.

When Xue noticed the sub-beast behind Hou, he was stunned. But he immediately composed himself and averted his eyes.

Hou gritted his teeth when he saw Tang Tang looking at his brother with sparkling eyes.

'Will Tang Tang like his brother more?'

Everyone always likes his twin brother more; even his father and mother prefer Xue to him. Because he is smarter, stronger, and more reliable.

Xue's silver hair and blue eyes only appear every 1000 years. It is proof that he is a descendant of the first patriarch. That is why he is already set as the next chieftain.

They were always compared to everything.

The thought of Tang Tang liking his brother more makes him feel resentful. Hou unconsciously tightens his hold on Tang Tang.

"Ah!" Tang Tang gasped.

It startled the two men. Hou immediately let go of his hand.

"T-Tang Tang, I'm sorry.."

Tang Tang rubs his numb hand. 'I thought my fingers would fall off.'

When he looked up, he was greeted by the worried expressions of the two.

He wants to laugh at their reaction but decides to act as a damsel in distress.

He forced a smile and said, "It's fine."

[...] Ude is now questioning if he can change hosts.

Xue notices that everyone's attention is on them, or, to be exact, on the sub-beast in front of them. "Bring him inside first. Both Father and Mother are present."

Hou gently holds Tang Tang's shoulder and guides him inside the tent.

'Where are my dominant Alphas? Why does it feel like Hou will cry if I say I am in pain right now?'

[I told you that sub-beasts are treated like treasures on the Gaia Continent. And based on my observation, Hou's reaction from the first time he saw you until now led to one conclusion.]

'What?'

[He likes you.]

'Oh! Is that a big deal? I like him too. I always like handsome men.'

[Good Luck Tang Tang ಠ⁠◡⁠ಠ]

______________

In front of him is a middle-aged man; he has a scar across his left eye. His body is also full of deep and shallow scars. Other than the cloth on his lower body, a three-horned monster's hide is on his head like a crown, down to his back like a cape, and the monster's front paw is hanging from his shoulder.

'So Intimidating!'

Beside him is a beautiful and gentle-looking man wearing white fur, adorned with different colored crystals. His temperament is like that of a scholar.

"Tang Tang, these are my father and mother. My father is the chieftain, and my mother is the clan witch," Hou enthusiastically said.

"My name is Lia, and this is my husband, Bei," Lia said as he patted his dazed husband.

"Ahem, I am Bei, the Chieftain of the Winged Tiger Tribe."

The Winged Tiger Tribe is one of the five large tribes on the Gaia Continent. As per Ude, the Winged Tiger Tribe is also known as the strongest tribe.

He thought that he really lucked out. Tang Tang is ready to accept any tribe just to pass the day and complete the quest. He didn't expect that the first tribe he would find would be one of the largest and strongest.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Tang Tang." He slightly bowed upon greeting them to show respect.

"I'm Xue, Hou's twin brother," Xue said flatly.

'Oh! So they're twins.'

"Hello." Tang Tang was about to offer his hand to Xue when it was stopped by Hou.

"No one is asking," Hou murmurs.

'Are the two of them in dispute?' Tang Tang looks at the two men, puzzled.

"Don't mind them, Tang Tang, let's sit and talk," Lia said, gesturing towards the corner that is full of monsters skin and fur.

Tang Tang followed Lia.

Bei and Lia sit in front of him; Hou sits on his right side, while Xue is on his left.

"What are you doing here?" Hou asked angrily.

"Meeting," Xue said without any emotion.

"You are not needed!"

"Don't mind me."

Tang Tang wants to laugh at the antics of the two men.

The two of them are polar opposites. The one is hot and the other is cold; their names really suit them.

He will believe that Xue doesn't have any interest in him. If he stops stealing glances,

'Is this the legendary gap moe?'

Now he is really looking forward to staying with this tribe.