CHAPTER 222: CHAPTER 222: SIMPLE COMPETITION

"Little fox." The monkey had an expressive face, which showed how disappointed and shocked it was by Zerra’s declaration. Other cubs also seemed to disagree with her.

"You came with us, so you should be on our team. Why are you picking him over us?" The koala cub pointed at little Cassias with dissatisfaction.

Zerra let out a sigh inwardly. Now, she had to pacify this group of mischievous cubs.

"I am not that good at picking berries." She held up her little paws. The pink pads were smeared with some soil. "Look, my paws are small."

Unbeknownst to all of them, who were busy arguing, even Zerra didn’t catch a fleeing smile on little Cassias’ face. It took her very long until the cubs were finally convinced.

"Just think about it. If you win against him and me, it means you are all very awesome! Because there’s an additional member on his team. Even if you don’t win, isn’t that because he has a helper? It’s not his own effort he is winning," she coaxed.

The cubs’ logic was already skewed from the start. One little Cassias against so many of them. Even if it was just a playful competition, it was still not fair.

She didn’t even need to use her hypnotic ability, and they were already showing signs of being swayed by her words.

The monkey pondered her words. It felt that something was wrong with the way she worded them, but her reasoning still made sense.

So, they all finally agreed to let her be on Cassias’ team.

She heaved a sigh of relief and jumped toward Cassias’ side. Now, she could examine his flawless little face more clearly. It was just that... the atmosphere felt somewhat awkward.

This version of Cassias was too quiet.

Clearing her throat, she greeted him, waving her paw. "Hi, I will help you to pick as many berries as possible!"

Little Cassias glanced at her and then looked away.

Her mouth twitched, but she wasn’t disheartened. He didn’t refuse her or knock her a few meters away like he did to the other cubs, so it meant that he had accepted her, right?

"If I win this, leave me alone just as you have agreed before." He spoke with a hint of irritation. "Don’t ever come to harass me again."

The cubs exchanged glances with each other, their innocent eyes held puzzlement. "Why do you always play alone, stinky cub? It’s not fun to play by yourself."

He didn’t answer. Instead, he walked over to the shrubs of berries and declared, "Let’s start. Don’t waste time."

And thus, the matter was dropped. The cubs didn’t want to fall behind, and because they had anticipated this revenge for so long, they were really excited. Soon, they forgot about the topic.

Zerra jumped toward little Cassias’ side. Her legs were short, so it took her a while to arrive at his side. Why did she feel she had shrunk a bit? Or was it merely her imagination?

"You hold the basket. I will help pick the berries." That was what Zerra had said to him, however...

She found out it wasn’t easy to pick the fruit with her paws at all. Some minutes had passed, and she always ended up crushing the fruit in her hand.

Now, on top of the dirt smear, her paws had been stained with the colors of red and purple. She looked like a baby trying to learn how to pick fruit. Her excitement had turned into embarrassment now.

She even forgot her paws had been stained, so when she covered her face with them, her snow-white fur quickly changed color. In no time, she was smeared all over! She really wanted to find a hole and bury herself there.

Unexpectedly, when she turned to her teammate, he didn’t seem annoyed. "You are just a cub. You might not be used to using your paws yet."

She pursed her lips, a little dissatisfied. Especially when she heard his next words. "Just take it easy. If you want to crush the berries, do it."

Was he making fun of her? She tilted her head. The coldness on his face seemed to dissipate a bit, but his words were still rather arrogant. "I can win by myself. There’s no need for your help."

She snorted and looked away. The wild berry picking competition lasted for an hour.

Soon, both sides met again to determine the winner of the competition. Zerra was a little ashamed. She was a little unreconciled because of his words, so she tried to pick the berries with her paws.

No berries left her hand intact, unfortunately. On top of that, her entire fur had become red and purple. Even the cubs almost didn’t recognize her.

"What is this thing? Stinky cub, did you get yourself another helper? Where is our little fox?" The monkey demanded.

The shame in Zerra’s heart was overflowing.

Little Cassias snorted and pointed to her. "Take a look carefully and open your eyes."

The cubs sniffed, and only then did they recognize Zerra based on her smell. She was their little fox!

"I am busy, so decide the winner quickly!" He was quick to change the topic, muttering impatiently.

The cubs began to compare the two baskets. They all fell silent when they noticed that Cassias’ basket had more berries than theirs. They lost again!

Zerra sighed inwardly. How could they not lose when, most of the time, the cubs spent their time fighting instead of picking the fruit? They fought who would carry the basket!

"How can this be?" The monkey sounded shocked and disappointed. It turned to Cassias. "How about–"

Cassias was quick to cut him off. "Fulfill the agreement. Don’t disturb me anymore."

The monkey was instantly annoyed. "Fine! Let’s leave this stinky cub. He is so annoying!"

Others agreed with the monkey. They snatched their fruit basket, sending an unhappy look toward Cassias. However, no one attacked him out of anger–they were still pretty civilized.

"Let’s go, little fox. The stinky cub wants all of us to leave."

Just as the monkey was about to grab her, someone else was faster. Little Cassias did it first. He sneered at the monkey. "The little fox will stay here with me."

The atmosphere became tense.