Chapter 135: Little Bear Tesha

Faced with such a clingy little bear, Shani didn’t have the heart to resist. In fact, snuggling the fluffy little creature made all her remaining aches melt away.

Cradling the little bear in her arms, Shani was reminded of the little panther back at the academy.

’It’ll be so cute when they meet! I just hope Nyx doesn’t swat its new sibling,’ Shani thought, chuckling to herself at the mental image.

Aster chuckled as well, though for a completely different reason.

His heart felt as light and fluffy as cotton as he took in the adorable sight, the little bear was precious, and so was its mother.

Propped up against the pillows in a half-reclining position, Shani looked down at her baby beast. A stray lock of hair fell across her face.

Without a word, Aster reached out and gently tucked the strand behind her ear.

Shani’s hand, midway through stroking the baby beast, froze. Aster instantly realized he had been overly familiar. He quickly pulled back his hand and cleared his throat awkwardly.

When they were children, moments like this happened all the time. Even as they grew into teenagers, such gestures had felt completely natural.

But with a baby beast nestled between them now, a strange spark flickered in the air.

"Get some rest, Shan." Aster hurriedly scooped their baby beast from Shani’s arms and scrambled out of the room as if chased by a ghost.

Shani couldn’t bring herself to say anything, feeling the awkward tension just as acutely. Rolling over, she went back to sleep.

Shani woke up the next morning feeling sticky from sweating through the night. Fortunately, her fever had broken and her headache had dulled significantly.

Stepping out of her room, she found Aster already busily preparing porridge and soup in the kitchen.

"Just sit over there for now," Aster instructed.

Shani settled onto the sofa, her eyes scanning her surroundings. The Artificial Egg was no longer on the table, and the little bear was nowhere to be seen.

"Still sleeping in my room," Aster said, as if reading her mind as she looked around. He added, "I used Nyx’s bed for now. I’ll buy a new one tomorrow."

Shani suddenly remembered that she needed to set up two baby beast beds in the apartment. Nyx would surely visit here eventually.

"Ngee-woo! Ngee-woo!" The faint chirps of the little bear drifted out from Aster’s room, signaling that it was awake.

Shani immediately went to retrieve her fluffy baby beast, scooping it up affectionately. The little bear nuzzled against her, making Shani feel slightly self-conscious since her skin was still sticky with sweat.

She tried to pull the little bear away slightly, but with surprisingly stubborn strength in its tiny paws, it clung tightly to her shirt.

Unable to resist those teary, round eyes, Shani gave up and held it close.

Only after Aster finished making breakfast and served the porridge and soup in front of Shani did he scoop up the little bear, whether it liked it or not. "Mother needs to eat."

"Ngee... woo," the little bear whined softly, its tone filled with gentle resignation.

’My clingy little bear, how am I supposed to leave it for an entire week?!’ Shani lamented internally, but she had no choice. Her schedule at the academy was overwhelmingly packed.

Shani could only watch as her sulky little bear nestled into Aster’s arms. Even while pouting, it was still as clingy as ever.

"Oh right, do you have a name for it?" Shani asked, recalling the most important detail.

Aster gave a slow nod. He bit his lower lip before whispering, "Te... sha."

"Tesha? That’s a cute name! I like it," Shani responded instantly, causing Aster to let out a sigh of relief.

"Tesha, then. I’ll take it back to the bedroom first." Aster stood up immediately and retreated before Shani could ask about the name’s meaning.

He wouldn’t dare admit that ’Tesha’ was derived from Aster and Shani. It felt too much like parents naming their child. To the inexperienced Aster, such a gesture felt intensely intimate.

Shani hadn’t actually thought to pry into the name’s origin anyway. She was still feeling a bit down knowing Tesha wouldn’t be growing up alongside her the way Nyx was.

After finishing her meal, Shani moved to wash her bowl, but Aster, almost telepathically, stepped out of his room and took the bowl from her hands. "You need to rest, Shan."

Shani flopped back onto the sofa.

"Oh right, Uncle Toby called asking to have dinner with you. The factory is almost ready for its first trial production run." Aster glanced over at Shani while scrubbing the bowl.

"Tonight? I have to head back to the academy. There’s a club meeting."

Aster’s hands paused. He turned to face her. "You’re going back to the academy today? But you’re still sick."

"I’m already feeling much better, Aster. Just tell Uncle Toby I can’t make it, alright?" Shani replied quickly.

Aster looked down, feeling a bit crestfallen. "I already turned him down because you were sick."

"If you’ve already used that excuse, then it’s fine," Shani replied, pretending not to notice his dejected expression.

"Oh, remember when I mentioned buying a store? I’m serious about it. I want us to buy one." Shani suddenly remembered the important topic.

Aster raised his head, his face now brimming with curiosity.

Shani continued explaining, "I want this shop to feature Mortis Company products, especially Red Worm Jelly, as its main inventory, but the shop itself won’t belong to the company. It will belong to the two of us."

"The two of us?" Aster looked at her in confusion.

"Yes. I’ll provide the capital, and you’ll run the shop. But you won’t just be a shopkeeper or manager, you’ll own shares too. So besides a salary, you’ll also earn dividends."

Aster shook his head vigorously. "That’s completely unfair to you."

"If you feel it’s unfair not putting up money, we can write an IOU. I’ll front the initial capital, and you can pay me back gradually."

...