"Seriously, do you think you're the heroine of some melodramatic city romance drama? Breaking up just because you're sick? What kind of move is that?"
December 31, 2019. Golden Arches across from the school.
Jiang Qi remembered a saying: only in hard times do you know who your real friends are. But honestly, no one wants to find out the hard way.
Though it sounds unkind, such friends are often the ones you can't stand the most.
"Look at this. Now I have to spend New Year's Eve with you instead of my boyfriend!"
Across the table, her sharp-tongued roommate glared at Jiang Qi, who sported dark circles from three days of insomnia. Jiang Qi picked up a fry, stared lifelessly outside, and ate it without her favorite ketchup, chewing it like gum.
"I told you, 2D boyfriends don't count."
"Who said they don't count?! I spent 648 yuan on the New Year event to buy my brother two new outfits and interaction cards. He personally said he loves me the most!"
Her roommate slammed the table in protest, then leaned back angrily, frowning at Jiang Qi's haggard face.
"Keep this up, and you'll die sooner than the doctor predicted."
"That's fine too."
"Sigh."
Seeing her like this, the roommate shook her head.
"I think he at least has the right to know... and you shouldn't decide for him, should you?"
"I know he won't give up on me. That's exactly why I have to decide for him. A relationship doomed to have no result will only cause him more pain if it continues."
"Even if you grow old together, that's only fifty years. Five years isn't short. How can you call that no result?"
"What about the forty-five years after that?!"
Facing her roommate's persuasion, Jiang Qi broke down further as she argued.
Knowing she was loved made her want him to forget her sooner. It was agonizing, but there truly was no other way.
Better a short pain than a long one.
"Sigh."
The argument ended fruitlessly again. Knowing she couldn't persuade her, the roommate sighed and repeated the phrase she had said ten thousand times.
"So melodramatic..."
TV drama plots happening in reality?
Too fucking melodramatic.
Deserted Island, Late Night.
Half an hour after Chuck left, Jiang Qi still sat on the bed, staring blankly at the flickering firelight outside.
Chuck's words echoed in her mind, dazing her already numb brain.
But she figured one thing out.
Over the years, she had given up fighting death. But when hope reappeared, even if she dared not believe it, even if relying on the ex she dumped unceremoniously was undignified, even if she had suffered the pain of shattered hope many times...
She still wanted to grasp it.
She didn't want to die at all.
She never truly gave up; the shadow of despair was just too thick, leaving her helpless.
So whether Chuck was comforting her or if this was another hope destined to shatter, she wanted to believe him.
Tears slid down her cheeks, wiped away the next second.
Jiang Qi lay back down, forcing herself to close her eyes.
Just as she hadn't confessed to Chuck back then, she had no face to question him now.
Whatever greeted her in ten days, she would accept it gladly.
Even in the worst case, at least for this final period of her life...
For the first time, she genuinely had hope of living.
...
Ten days was a conservative estimate for Chuck.
After killing the leopard, he completed his final power-up before facing the tiger. Now, only the tiger and the giant bird stood in his way.
Nothing left to hesitate about.
So in reality, five days was enough to prepare for the final boss.
After dinner, Chuck had a brief discussion with Valentina and formulated a preliminary strategy.
Tigers and leopards were both felines but fundamentally different.
The latter was a beast; the former was practically a monster.
Even with superhuman stats and exclusive evolutions, Chuck absolutely didn't want to face it head-on.
A bite from a tiger wasn't comparable to a leopard bite. Even with Kaede's healing bonus, Chuck didn't think he could tank it.
So defensive counterattacks or trading injuries were off the table.
Like switching from an RPG to a Souls game, his three lives became one. No room for error, no respawns.
In this situation, there was only one path.
Abandon tolerance for error completely.
To put it bluntly: wear no armor, focus entirely on offense and escape. Hit and run. Don't give the tiger a chance to attack.
Chuck and Valentina quickly reached a consensus on two points.
First: Binoculars.
Fear comes from the unknown. The tiger's oppressive aura wasn't just its size, but its stealth.
Without room for error, Chuck couldn't let the enemy strike first.
He had to locate the tiger before it located him.
Having made glass, Chuck just needed to improve purity and grind lenses. A simple 3x monocular would greatly extend his detection range.
Second: A powerful, effective ranged weapon.
The reason was simple. Once the tiger was located, he needed to hit it hard while it was unaware.
This required a true long-range weapon with power and reach.
Javelins were good, but human strength had limits.
With his current tech level, building such a weapon was entirely feasible.
Fear comes from the unknown and insufficient firepower.
Solve these two, and the King of the Taiga would be nothing special.
Of course, Chuck had a conservative third step.
Escape.
Locate the tiger, shoot it, and run regardless of the effect. Wait, return, and confirm the kill later.
For this, he might need to clear an escape path in the jungle outskirts, just like with the boar. Valentina could hide in a tree as backup.
This was the prototype of Chuck's plan. A three-step strategy, accurately summarized as:
"Hit and Run" Tactics!
...
Three steps meant taking them one by one.
Before starting, Chuck needed to finish tasks at hand.
After the usual morning routine—sparring with Valentina, breakfast—the women busied themselves without direction.
Julia and Janet managed their facilities. Kaede and Valentina chopped wood. The Gu mother and daughter handled chores. Kaoru fished at the pier.
Jiang Qi listened to Chuck, resting in her room after breakfast. As expected, she fell asleep, proving her condition required bed rest.
The island harem ran smoothly without Chuck's supervision, allowing him to focus.
Yesterday's sugarcane and mulberry juice had been stored in his inventory to prevent spoilage. Processing them was urgent.
Mulberry wine was simple. Pour juice and pulp into jars, dilute slightly with water, leave 20% headspace, seal with palm leaves and string, poke holes for gas release, and leave in the cave to ferment.
Chuck got four jars, about fifty pounds of juice. After fermentation, he'd get two buckets of low-alcohol mulberry wine.
The process would take one to two weeks. Good wine takes time.
Calculating the timeline, it would likely be ready when he defeated the tiger and cured Jiang Qi—perfect for celebration.
These mulberries came from three harvests over two weeks. Meaning, brewing could happen every half month, yielding four jars. A steady supply...
Not bad at all.
Drunken sex would surely be more exhilarating.
Mulberries done. Next was the troublesome sugarcane juice.
Chuck knew making modern white sugar was impossible. His goal was syrup, or ideally, coarse sugar blocks for storage.
Sugarcane sugar making was similar to salt making: boil it.
Due to lower water content and juicer loss, he got less than thirty pounds of juice—just enough for one iron wok.
Chuck poured it in and lit the fire. The upgraded stove provided stable heat, reducing burning risk.
But having made caramel before, Chuck knew burning was always a risk, especially as syrup concentrated.
Finding the sweet spot between burning and concentration was key. Fire control determined if he got syrup or blocks.
Naturally, Chuck found a helper for this task.
"Hubby... do I just stir this into sugar?"
In front of the stove, the voluptuous, fleshy mature beauty wore only an apron. Her snowy buttocks and thick thighs were bare. Holding a ladle, she asked tremblingly with her back to Chuck.
Her fleshy hips swayed slightly, sandwiching Chuck's hot dragon. Her dense forest was already slick.
A mature woman is most charming when having sex or cooking. Combining the two was enough to make any man hard as iron.
Naked Apron. Chuck had wanted to try this for a long time.
Standing behind her, smelling her rich feminine scent, he smiled and kissed her white back.
"That's right. You stir the sugar, I'll stir you."
With that, the dragon skillfully slid between her fleshy cheeks, finding the wet depth and thrusting in dominantly.
"OHHH HOOOO HOOOO—"
Yitong, wearing flip-flops, stood on tiptoe instantly. Her rosy heels and fleshy calves trembled. Her upper body leaned forward, soft belly bulging. One hand grabbed the stove edge messily, her heavy breasts shaking violently under the apron.
Rolling her eyes back, face flushed, she turned with a seductive, pleading look.
"Hubby... like this, I can't cook the sugar properly..."
"Don't worry, I'll go slow. If you do well, I'll grant you a wish tonight."
Hearing this, hearts appeared in Yitong's eyes.
"Re... really? I, I'll do my best."
Witnessing Julia, Valentina, and even her daughter being treated roughly over the past two days, Yitong's masochism had gone out of control. She dreamed of receiving the same treatment.
But Chuck only gave her passionate sex every night. While satisfying, it left her M-desire empty.
He hadn't treated her like a dog in a while.
She wanted it badly but couldn't ask given his busy schedule and numerous women.
Now, finally, a chance to be satisfied. As a thorough masochist bitch, how could she let it slip?