Seven Cubs, Seven Fathers, Zero Days Off novel Chapter 45

Chapter 45: Chapter 45: Her Children, Not One Less.

Shen Yue had held her breath and dived to the bottom of the deep pond. She searched all around, but found nothing.

A wave of disappointment washed over her. She was running out of air, so she had no choice but to head back to the surface.

But halfway up, her leg suddenly cramped. Water instantly flooded her mouth and nose.

Horror seized her as the suffocating sensation spread from her sinuses to her brain.

She watched herself sink deeper and deeper, the surface receding into the distance. As the oxygen in her lungs dwindled, her heart sank along with her body.

But the sound of her children crying from the bank reached her ears with perfect clarity.

She stared straight up at the surface, where the light filtered through.

’No.’

’I can’t give up.’

’I can’t die here.’

’The children are still waiting for me. I still have to find Qibao.’

’Not a single one can be missing.’

An overwhelming will to live surged through her, as if unlocking her body’s hidden potential.

Suddenly, feeling returned to her legs, and she kicked with all her might, swimming for the surface.

But just then, the water around her swirled, and before she could react,

a pair of small, cool hands grabbed her sleeve tightly.

She froze. Turning her head, she met a pair of timid, ice-blue eyes.

She had a small, porcelain-pink face with delicate, exquisite features. She was so cute and refined she seemed sculpted, unreal in her beauty.

For a moment, Shen Yue thought her eyes were playing tricks on her.

Especially her long, blue, seaweed-like hair, which glowed faintly underwater. Her butterfly-shaped, ice-blue ear fins held a pinkish luster, emitting a pearlescent light that seemed to illuminate the murky depths.

Looking down, Shen Yue gasped.

A vibrant, multicolored fishtail—short and adorable—swished back and forth. It wasn’t very strong, so its movements only created small, dazzling ripples in the water.

’This must be the most beautiful Elf nature has ever created.’

It took Shen Yue two seconds to process this. Her eyes instantly reddened as she looked at the Little Mermaid gripping her sleeve.

The instinctive bond between mother and daughter struck her heart with overwhelming force.

’This... this is my Little Qi.’

’I can’t believe it. My Little Qi has actually hatched!’

’And she’s such an adorable, beautiful Little Mermaid.’

’And a daughter, at that!’

’I was in the right place. I found her.’

’Thank goodness I didn’t give up.’

’I haven’t lost her.’

Overjoyed, she wrapped her arms around the small body and swam for the surface.

The little one clung to her like a child who had found her mother, her eyes welling with an icy-blue light.

Her nose was red, and she looked like she was about to cry, her tail fin frozen in place.

Just as they were about to break the surface, the little one’s tail fin slapped the water. The splash propelled Shen Yue the rest of the way up.

The moment Shen Yue surfaced, she barely had time to gasp for air before pulling the Little Mermaid into a tight embrace.

The feeling of recovering something she had lost... she had experienced it twice in a single day.

Her heart kept clenching.

"Little Qi, female mother’s Little Qi, female mother finally found you!!"

Shen Yue burst into tears.

The Little Mermaid pressed close in her embrace, tears welling in her beautiful eyes.

’Such a soft, sweet little girl. So tiny, so delicate... I’m afraid she’ll melt if I hold her in my palm...’

The Little Mermaid’s voice was soft and quiet:

"female mother, Little Qi found female mother. Little Qi was scared all alone underwater."

Hearing this, Shen Yue’s heart ached as if a piece of it had been carved out.

’This adorable, pink, lovely daughter in my arms... and I let her get frightened on the very first day she hatched.’

’I feel so guilty. I failed to protect her. She’s also the only child whose hatching I didn’t get to witness firsthand.’

’When the other babies hatched, the first thing they saw was me.’

’But Little Qi... how terrified she must have been.’

’Hatching all alone, hiding at the bottom of the water in that dark place, unable to see her female mother... she must have felt so heartbroken.’

She hugged her tightly: 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

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