"She must have bartered for a lot of prey. Your father is competing for Clan Leader, so he must stockpile prey to build prestige in the tribe," Miche said.
Loki opened his mouth to say something, but when Miche continued, he swallowed his words.
"However, you can ask your mother to trade for some cold melons for you," she added to Amy. "Fifty pieces of prey is only worth about five bags of rice to her. It's a breeze."
Amy's eyes lit up, but quickly dimmed again. "But I'm scared." She was afraid of seeing that cold gaze in her mother's eyes again.
Miche took her little hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. She said softly, "Don't be afraid. In front of so many people, your mother won't refuse you, otherwise she'll lose face, right?"
Without waiting for Amy to say anything else, Miche led her directly toward the place where Ophelia usually set up her stall.
Although Loki somewhat disapproved of Miche's guilt-tripping, remembering how Ophelia had been defying his orders lately, he didn't stop them. He figured it would be good to teach her a lesson.
When they arrived, they didn't see Ophelia. Instead, they saw a mountain of prey.
"Oh my god, there must be at least three hundred kills here!" Miche's eyes widened in shock.
A middle-aged male selling pottery nearby laughed. "This is a full six hundred kills. As expected, rice is highly valuable."
"Six hundred! Even if all the males in the entire tribe hunted together for a day, they wouldn't bring in six hundred!" Miche's eyes brimmed with greed. She couldn't help but resent Loki, thinking that if he had just coaxed Ophelia into being obedient, all six hundred of those kills would have been hers.
"Exactly! Who knows where that little female got so much rice? She's truly capable. Whoever becomes her mate will probably wake up laughing from their dreams," the male muttered to himself, his face full of envy.
Loki felt a surge of irritation at his words. "Since she's not here, let's go. Amy, be a good girl. We'll trade for some other fruits to eat first. Once I become the Clan Leader, I will definitely let you eat cold melons, okay?"
Three- or four-year-old children were at their most stubborn age; the more they couldn't have something, the more they wanted it. Coupled with all the twisted ideas Miche had been feeding her on a daily basis, Amy stubbornly clung to her desire.
"That male said cold melons are only around in the summer. The rainy season is almost here! If I don't eat them today, I'll have to wait until next year," Amy complained.
"Father, Ophelia isn't here anyway. If we secretly take some of her prey, she won't even know. Besides, what's hers is mine."
Loki frowned. He could ask Ophelia for things with a clear conscience, but resorting to theft put him in a difficult position. Not to mention, with so many people around, he neither wanted nor was willing to lose face like this.
Miche also wanted to taste the cold melons that every little female drooled over. She said softly, "Loki, Amy has a point. Besides, with this much prey, Ophelia won't know if we take a little. She couldn't possibly count all of them.
"If you can get cold melons for the little females in the tribal elders' families, they will definitely support you to be the Clan Leader."
She knew exactly what Loki's weak point was, so she struck right at his deepest desires. Hearing that it would help him become the Clan Leader, the green-eyed male no longer hesitated.
He crouched down and began selecting from the pile. Still feeling somewhat self-conscious, he only picked small and medium-sized catches, constantly reassuring himself that he was merely borrowing them and would pay them back once he became the Clan Leader.
Meanwhile, the middle-aged male nearby noticed their intentions. After asking a tribesman to keep an eye on his pottery, he quietly slipped away in the direction Ophelia had left.
Ophelia was browsing animal hides at a stall when a large hand suddenly clamped onto her shoulder. She turned around vigilantly and recognized the male who had been selling pottery next to her spot.
"Little female, a male named Loki is stealing your prey. You'd better head back and check. If you're too late, they might run off."
Ophelia sneered. She truly ran into him everywhere. What a lingering nightmare.
Soon, Ophelia followed the male back to her stall. Loki was still crouched on the ground, picking and choosing through the pile of prey. Miche, meanwhile, couldn't keep her hands off a sleek, beautiful animal hide, constantly holding it up against her body to see how it looked.
"Amy, do I look pretty in this hide?"
Amy's mind was entirely on the cold melons, so she nodded casually. "If you like it, Miche, I'll ask my mother to make a hide skirt for you."
"You're so sweet to me, Amy." Miche's dark eyes sparkled as she cupped the little female cub's cheeks and kissed her repeatedly.
"What gives you the right to decide what happens to my hides, hm?" a crisp, clear voice rang out.
The onlookers, who were already enjoying the spectacle, immediately pricked up their ears.
"M-Mother." Caught red-handed, Amy lowered her head, her cheeks flushing red.
Miche shielded Amy behind her like a mother hen protecting her chick. "Ophelia, we were just joking around. Don't take it seriously. Amy was just talking; I wouldn't actually take your hides.
"However, the rainy season is almost here. Amy is your little female cub, and since you've gotten so many hides, you really should make her a few new hide skirts. It's been a long time since you made her any new clothes."
Ophelia's expression remained calm as she watched the clownish little female, observing how, in just a few words, Miche had painted her as a mother who didn't care about her daughter.
"So, is that your excuse for stealing my prey?" she asked.
Loki's eyes darkened. "Don't make it sound so ugly, Ophelia. Amy wanted to eat cold melons, and I didn't bring enough prey with me, so I just wanted to borrow some from you.
"Don't worry, I'll pay you back once we return to the tribe."
Seeing how he spoke without the slightest hint of guilt, Ophelia almost believed him. She chuckled. "Then I must have truly misunderstood you. In that case, swear to the Beast God that you will definitely pay back my prey. Otherwise, you will never become the Clan Leader of the Snow Wolf Clan for the rest of your life."
Loki was speechless.
"See? You never intended to pay me back at all, so why say it just to make a fool of yourself?"
Loki's gaze was heavy. "Ophelia, do you really have to make such an ugly scene? Do you really want to see me fail that badly?"
Ophelia was somewhat speechless. She was truly innocent here! Every single time, it was them who insisted on bumping into her and causing trouble. How could they blame her for it?
"If you don't want to lose face, then hurry up and break our mate bond."
Loki almost blurted out an agreement, but remembering his father's warning, he had no choice but to swallow it down. Unable to vent the raging fire in his chest, he could only scoop up Amy with a dark face and quickly stride away.
The surrounding males had already started laughing the moment Loki refused to swear the oath. They had never seen anyone steal from their own mate with such self-righteousness. It was an absolute disgrace to all males.
Amidst the murmuring crowd, Miche also slinked away in disgrace.
Ophelia thanked the middle-aged male, then crouched down to examine the pottery on the ground.
"How do you trade for this pottery?"
"One rabbit for one piece, regardless of size."
The middle-aged male rubbed his hands together and said awkwardly, "Don't be fooled by how thin they are; they're just as durable as stone pots. They can be placed directly over a fire for cooking, and they're very lightweight. Even if you don't use them for cooking, they're great for storing things."
This pottery was actually quite sophisticated. It even featured beautiful patterns that seemed to have been stamped on with real flowers.
The price was also very fair.