Adrian remained where he was after Mara left for the water crystal, his gaze drifting across the surrounding fields while she went to fetch the water crystals. In the distance, workers moved between the rows of crops, carrying tools and supplies. It was surprisingly peaceful.
Then something small waddled out from behind a patch of greenery.
Adrian blinked.
It looked like a penguin.
Its coloring was different from the black-and-white penguins back home. Dark feathers covered its back, while the lighter sections were a sandy hue that blended naturally with the landscape. Even so, there was no mistaking the shape.
The creature stopped several meters away and stared at him with round black eyes.
Adrian stared back.
The penguin tilted its head.
Something inside him immediately melted.
"You're kidding..."
The little thing took a cautious step forward.
For the first time since arriving in this world, Adrian felt a spark of hope.
If this place has creatures this cute, maybe it won't be so bad.
Unable to resist, he slowly crouched down.
"Look at you," he murmured. "You're the cutest thing I've seen since getting here."
The penguin continued watching him, looking utterly adorable.
Adrian carefully extended a finger toward its head.
The creature didn't run away. Instead, as his hand drew close, it lunged.
Pain exploded through his finger.
"AAAH!"
He jerked backward instinctively, but the penguin came with him, clamped firmly onto his finger like a living keychain.
"What the hell?!"
He shook his arm, but the penguin only swung back and forth, refusing to let go. As the pain sharpened, Adrian grabbed the bird with his free hand and tried to pry it loose.
The creature bit down harder.
A fresh wave of agony shot through his hand.
"OW! OW! STOP THAT!"
Blood began running down his finger.
Adrian stared at the wound, then at the penguin, which stared back while continuing to chew.
"You are the worst animal I've ever met!"
Ignoring his shouts, the penguin bit even harder.
Every attempt to remove it only made the tiny monster clamp down tighter.
The absurdly cute penguin—fluffy, round, with big innocent eyes—hung from his finger as blood ran steadily down his hand. Its tiny beak had sunk far deeper than something that size had any right to. Every tug sent a fresh bolt of pain shooting up his arm.
"Why are you this strong?!" Adrian hissed.
The creature responded by tightening its grip.
A sharp breath escaped through his teeth as he nearly dropped to one knee. The damned thing wasn't just biting him—it was trying to tear his finger apart.
He grabbed the bird with his free hand and tried forcing its beak open.
The penguin bit down harder.
Pain exploded through his hand so violently that his vision blurred.
"AAAH! STOP THAT!"
Blood dripped onto the dirt.
The tiny monster continued hanging there as if it planned to stay attached for the rest of the day.
At this point, Adrian wasn't just worried about getting bitten.
He was worried about losing the finger entirely.
Then he heard hurried footsteps.
"Adrian?"
Mara's voice carried across the field.
"HELP!"
The older woman rounded the corner carrying a wooden crate and froze at the sight. Her eyes flicked from Adrian's bloody hand to the penguin dangling from it.
Without a word, she dropped the crate and marched forward. She seized Adrian's wrist in one iron grip and clamped her other hand around the creature's neck.
The penguin erupted into frantic thrashing. Its wings flapped wildly and its feet kicked, but it still refused to release its grip.
"Stubborn little bastard," Mara muttered.
She twisted sharply.
A sickening crack echoed across the field.
The penguin's body convulsed once, then went limp. Only after death did its beak finally loosen. The small creature dropped lifelessly into the dirt.
Adrian stumbled backward, clutching his injured hand. Several deep puncture wounds marked his finger, and blood coated most of his palm. The throbbing pain refused to ease.
"You just snapped its neck," he said, stunned.
Mara barely glanced at the corpse.
"It was trying to eat you."
"It was trying to eat my finger!"
"It's all the same."
She grabbed his injured hand and inspected the damage with calm efficiency. After a few seconds, she nodded.
"It'll heal in a few weeks."
Adrian looked down at the dead penguin.
For some reason, it still looked absurdly adorable lying there in the dirt.
That somehow made everything worse.
"That thing nearly took my finger off."
Mara snorted.
"It was just a newborn."
Adrian stared at her.
"...A newborn?"
"Adults are bigger."
A cold feeling settled in his stomach.
He slowly raised his injured hand, wincing as the movement sent fresh pain throbbing through the punctured finger.
"So... are the adults nicer, at least?"
Mara gave him a flat look, as if he had just asked whether fire was hot.
"If your definition of 'nice' is attacking in packs and eating humans, then yes. They're very nice."
Adrian closed his mouth with an audible click.
He lowered his gaze to the deep puncture wounds still oozing blood. The pain was a sharp, constant reminder.
Right.
Note to self: never go near these penguins again.
Meanwhile, Mara bent down, picked up the wooden crate she had dropped earlier, and adjusted it under one arm, then from other hand pic up the penguin like a chicken.
"We should head back," she said. "Once we get home, we'll clean and bandage your hand. After that, you can start filling the water crystals."
Adrian stared at her for a moment.
That was it?
No discussion about the murderous penguin.
No concern about nearly losing a finger.
Just bandage the hand and get back to work.
As Mara started walking, Adrian followed a few steps behind, unable to stop himself from feeling slightly irritated.
As they walked back toward the farm, Adrian quietly raised his injured hand where Mara couldn't see it and activated a small amount of healing magic.
Warmth spread through the damaged flesh almost immediately.
The throbbing pain began to fade, and the torn tissue slowly repaired itself. He allowed the spell to work only long enough to heal the worst of the injury before stopping.
The wounds were still visible.
The finger still looked injured.
But it no longer felt like it was on the verge of falling off.
Good enough.
If she discovered he could heal injuries on top of producing water, she would probably find even more ways to keep him busy.
For now, keeping his healing ability a secret seemed like the safer option.
By the time they returned to the house, Elena and Lina were already waiting outside.
Adrian immediately noticed the change. The sports bra and shorts Elena had been wearing earlier had been replaced by a local dress similar to Lina's. The style was simple, but it suited her surprisingly well. The light fabric followed her figure while still looking practical enough for everyday life in the village.
The moment Elena saw him, some strange instinct seemed to kick in. Her eyes immediately landed on his injured hand, and before Adrian could say anything, she was already in front of him, grabbing his wrist and pulling it closer.
"What happened?" she asked, staring at the bite marks.
Mara continued walking toward the house as if nothing unusual had happened.
"He put his finger in a penguin's mouth."
Elena slowly turned her head.
"He what?"
Mara shrugged.
"The penguin bit him. I killed it. Now we need to clean the wound."
With that explanation delivered, she simply continued inside.
Adrian watched her go.
Somehow hearing the entire incident summarized like that made him feel even more stupid.
Elena looked back at him.
"You actually did that?"
"...I thought it was friendly."
Lina immediately covered her mouth.
Unfortunately, she failed to stop the laugh completely.
A small snort escaped anyway.
Elena stared at him for several seconds before letting out a long sigh.
"That might be the dumbest injury I've ever seen."
Then her expression suddenly changed.
"Why didn't you—"
Before she could finish, Adrian's uninjured hand shot forward and covered her mouth.
Silence fell instantly.
Lina blinked.
Mara paused halfway through the doorway.
Even Elena looked startled by his reaction.
"Mmph."
Adrian stared directly into her eyes.
"Mmph."
A few awkward seconds passed before Elena finally nodded as if understanding what he wants.
Only then did Adrian remove his hand.
"...Sorry," she muttered quietly.
Thankfully, neither Lina nor Mara seemed to understand what she had nearly revealed.
Adrian had no intention of giving them time to think about it.
"Let's just clean the wound and use some bandages."
Without waiting for further questions, he headed inside.
Elena followed immediately behind him, keeping unusually quiet this time.
Authors note: I hope nobody have forgetting that I supposed to be writing this light novel with the goal of completing my first book by end of this year so every advice would help to make it a better product.