Morning light seeped through the fabric of the tents like scattered golden leaves.
"Mmnya..." Alita smacked her pink little lips, turned over, and went back to sleep.
"Wuuu… wuuu…"
Crystalia hugged her flushed knees, sitting there sobbing softly, pitifully sniffling.
"What now…?" Ye Li was speechless for once. This was the first time he had actually made a girl cry afterward.
"Yesterday… yesterday…"
The little princess whimpered with grievance, "Yesterday you tricked me when my head wasn't clear, you made me do all those shameful things with you… inside such a tiny tent… I am the princess of Attilan! How could you treat me like that…"
It wasn't unreasonable for her to be upset.
Yesterday, Ye Li had taken advantage of her muddled state and practically opened every boundary she had…
"Sorry, but you're just too cute, Princess…"
Ye Li thick-skinnedly brushed it off, thinking to himself,
'You Inhumans, three grown men bullying an Earth woman—me taking one princess isn't over the line, is it?'
"Hmph~"
Crystalia gave a soft pout. Though his praise made her heart sweet, her mouth still protested, "Don't think a few nice words will get you off the hook… hurry and find the rest of my clansmen."
Tearful but determined, the princess was truly willing to sacrifice everything just to find her people.
Ye Li helped her stand and promised firmly, "No problem. The sun's up—we'll head out right away."
…..
In the other tent—
"Ohhh…"
Jane stirred awake, rubbing her temples.
Looking around at the bull-hoofed one, the green-skinned one, and the tattooed bald one beside her… she compared this to her colorful past escapades. Honestly, this night had been very stimulating.
The only regret was that the shy, handsome man never came…
Seems he really was too bashful.
Rustle, rustle—
The tent's occupants woke one by one, greeting each other.
"Morning. I need to soak in water soon, I feel like I'm drying out." Triton said, hurrying out.
Gorgon rubbed his head, laughing, "What a night! Earth women are so passionate."
Jane's full lips curved, teasing, "And your big black hooves are very strong~"
Karnak dressed slowly, still serious, worrying aloud, "We are members of Attilan's royal house. Doing something this absurd… if Crystal finds out…"
"She's just a little girl, she wouldn't understand."
Jane soothed him, "Just say I wasn't feeling well yesterday and you were taking care of me."
Karnak nodded reluctantly. It was the only excuse.
…..
Shuffle—
Fully dressed, Karnak lifted the tent flap.
The moment he stepped out, he found himself face to face with the princess, being helped out of the neighboring tent by Ye Li…
"..."
"..."
The two royals locked eyes in silence.
At last, Crystalia blushed crimson and stammered, "I wasn't feeling well yesterday… Mr. Ye was kind and took care of me, don't misunderstand…"
Karnak: "..." (Should I believe this… or not…?)
Luckily, at that moment—
BANG!!
A gunshot shattered the awkwardness.
Whirr~ whirr~ whirr~
The bullet spun through the air, aimed straight for Karnak's tattooed face.
His eyes sharpened, analyzing the bullet's angle and force. He raised his palm like a blade, slicing toward it!
Karnak had trained from childhood in an Inhuman monastery, honing the ability to calculate and analyze his surroundings.
This was no Terrigen Mist power, but a skill he'd cultivated—mastery over his body, surpassing even Captain America's precision.
Earlier, his head injury dulled him, but now, with his recovery nearly complete and endorphins still buzzing from last night, his mind was hyper-sharp.
It wasn't impossible for him to do this.
But skill was still only skill—it lacked the certainty of true superpowers.
The bullet split, its path diverted into a stray shot—
FWIP!
Jane, just crawling out of the tent, widened her eyes for a brief instant before the stray round pierced her heart.
The bold, open-minded illegal grower collapsed lifelessly on the spot…
Whether Karnak did it on purpose or not—no one could tell.