Deep affection knows no origin; remember the polar bear's love for you.

Chapter 51 Argument and End

The male bear was a skilled swimmer and soon caught up with Guo Mi from the shore.

He remained silent, simply following her closely.

Guo Mi knew he was sulking again because of her "differential treatment," but she couldn't let Caesar touch the bear.

This can only be blamed on the fact that he showed murderous intent towards the bear from the very beginning, and moreover, he has a strong personality, unlike Slok who is timid and harmless.

Once the male bear decides to kill, she won't be able to stop him.

The two bears remained silently in the water. After swimming for a while, Caesar suddenly began to paddle more vigorously, splashing water into Guo Mi's eyes with his paws, sending a chill through her.

Guo Mi immediately closed her eyes and persevered for a while. Seeing that Caesar had no intention of resting, she also became angry.

They swam silently toward the shore.

Caesar noticed her movements and then saw her tightly closed eyes. His splashing motion froze, a look of helplessness flashing in his eyes. Finally, he quietly followed her ashore.

Guo Mi sat by the lake with her eyes closed for a while before she could barely open them and found the male bear sitting opposite her with its head down, its paws scratching at the snow on the ground.

She ignored him.

A moment later, a furry paw silently landed on her back, followed by a bump.

Guo Mi, enraged, roared to the side:

"Stay away from me!"

Then he stood up and moved two steps to the side.

Caesar's raised claws froze in mid-air before he awkwardly lowered them, his dark eyes filled with confusion and grievance.

Guo Mi felt a little regretful after she vented her anger.

It wasn't that she was being overly kind or afraid of offending Caesar, but rather that she was blinded by anger and forgot that animals cannot be judged by human standards.

For people, such contact that exceeds social distancing is offensive and impolite.

Physical contact between animals can have many meanings, but unless they are in an adversarial relationship, such physical contact usually means goodwill, or it may be a compromise or apology.

Guo Mi opened her mouth, and the male bear was already shrouded in gloom, his eyes looking at her with melancholy and resentment.

Just then, Slok came running over, a fish in his mouth—one of the three besides the ones Guo Mi had given him—and asked, his words slightly mumbled:
"Can I have this?"

After spending the last few days with him, Guo Mi has come to understand that Slok is just a cub that never grows up, greedy for food and playful.

He spent the afternoon playing with the little bear again today. In the past, she would have agreed, but now Caesar is angry because of her "differential treatment".

Guo Mi hesitated.

However, Slok was used to being able to eat simply by asking, and he was already lying on the spot, eating heartily.

Suddenly, a cold laugh came from the side. Guo Mi looked up and saw that Caesar had already turned and left.

Guo Mi was unsure whether she should chase after him. After all, if Caesar got angry, he might never bother her again, and this was a good opportunity to get the little bear out of danger.

It is also a good opportunity for her to remove any destabilizing factors.

But Caesar was slowly changing during this time. He restrained his malice towards the little bear and simply stayed by her side.

If he doesn't bite the bear, Guo Mi thinks he'll be a somewhat domineering and annoying friend, but one with no bad intentions.

Unfortunately, it was precisely on that crucial point that Caesar consistently gave her ambiguous answers regarding the little bear's safety, along with occasional displays of malice.

After much deliberation, Guo Mi still did not chase after them.

Animals always do as they please. A mother bear with cubs should stay away from the male bear. This is a life experience passed down through generations of polar bears.

Even though she was originally human, she is now just a bear who has just arrived. Rather than believing that Caesar will never change, Gomi believes that she should trust the life experience left by the ancestors of this race.

Seeing Caesar leave, Slok didn't understand what had happened, so he quickly followed after him with the fish in his mouth.

Guo Mi watched the two bears disappear, feeling relieved but also a little empty.

She took this as the end of a friendship.

Only after confirming it was safe did she call the two bear cubs out to come out and learn to fish and swim with her, teaching them as much survival knowledge as possible.

Then, as usual, he took the two little ones back to the cave in the evening.

This time, however, Caesar was not following behind.

The two little ones were quite happy; with Caesar gone, they could run around Guo Mi and playfully fight with each other.

The little bear's panting and playful antics dispelled the regret in Guo Mi's heart caused by the loss of a friendship. She stood there watching the two little furballs roll around in a ball, and for once, she ran after them.

With Guo Mi joining them, the two bear cubs became even more playful, rolling around in the snow. Finally, one climbed onto Guo Mi's back, while the other snuggled close to her. The three bears then returned to their den together. ...

In the middle of the night, Guo Mi was half asleep when a familiar smell entered her nostrils, followed by the dull sound of a bear's paw falling on the snow.

Guo Mi suddenly opened her eyes, a hint of surprise flashing across them.

This time she waited for a long time but did not hear that unique snoring sound. After hesitating for a moment, curiosity still prompted her to stick her head out to explore the outside of the cave.

As soon as I peeked out, I met a pair of dark eyes.

Caesar stood at the cave entrance, his fur ruffled by the wind, waiting for who knows how long.

Guo Mi hesitated for a moment, but in the end she still climbed out of the cave and walked forward for a while.

Caesar followed silently behind.

When they reached a place far from the cave entrance, Guo Mi stopped, and Caesar did not speak.

After another long silence, Guo Mi finally sighed and asked:
"Why are you here again?"

Caesar seemed dissatisfied with her words, and said coolly:

Don't you want me to come back?

Guo Mi knew he was still angry from the afternoon, and she couldn't be bothered to dwell on his mention of "coming back." She didn't want to escalate the conflict with him further.

"No."

Caesar took a step forward; his shoulder height far exceeded that of Guo Mi. His physical advantage, coupled with his overwhelming rage, silently oppressed Guo Mi.

"Why did you let Slok touch the bear cub and even give him food?"

Guo Mi was somewhat puzzled. Not touching the bear was an agreement between her and Caesar, but Slok did not have such an agreement.

As for sharing food, there haven't been enough fish since Slok arrived, so Caesar would take him hunting. Sometimes they would bring back seals, and sometimes other prey, which would be shared with Guo Mi.

So, in return, Guo Mi would share the fish with them, and Caesar received no less than Slok, and perhaps even more.

As for the three fish caught during the day, that was the reward agreed upon by Guo Mi and Slok.

He spent time with the two little bears, which gradually made Fishbone more cheerful and bold. Guo Mi would give him a few fish.

These fish are just snacks for male bears, and only a bear with a personality like Slok would be interested in them.

Guo Mi's strange gaze fell on Caesar, making the male bear somewhat embarrassed.

After all, Caesar could think of the same thing she could think of. He knew it was absurd to use this reason to get angry with Guo Mi, but he was just unhappy.

He could clearly sense that Guo Mi treated him differently than she treated Slok.

She could play with the two bear cubs with Slok, but he could only watch from afar and was not allowed to get close.

Slok can whine and beg Guo Mi for fish, and Guo Mi will give it to him.

But he used to act cute with Guo Mi, and Guo Mi would always pat him with her paws!
The male bear, increasingly agitated, immediately continued his accusations:
"He acts cute with you, and you give him food, so why can't I?"

Guo Mi was stunned, her lips twitching:

“Caesar, Slok’s tantrums are only when he hasn’t done anything wrong. That’s called tantrums. Every time you roll around in the snow, it’s after you’ve done something wrong. That’s called throwing a tantrum.”

It's too complicated; the male bear simply can't understand it. He growled:

"He's a male bear too, but you let him near the bear cubs too!"

The problem has returned to square one, and Guo Mi has reached her breaking point:
"That's because if you get close to the bear cubs, you might bite them to death, but Slok won't!"

As soon as she finished speaking, both bears fell silent.

They both knew in their hearts that Guo Mi was right. Caesar wasn't sure if he would suddenly have the urge to bite the bear cub. For polar bears, this was perfectly normal; it would be abnormal if they didn't kill the cub.

But Slok is an abnormal polar bear.

All the male polar bears in the Arctic say they will kill any cubs they encounter, and they all do it, except for one bear, Slok.

He was inherently incapable of biting his own kind. No matter how convincingly he acted, Caesar knew that he had never killed a polar bear, not even a helpless cub.

The scar on his nose was left by the bear cub, who is now an adult.

Caesar said nothing more and walked in another direction. As he was leaving, he stopped, turned back and looked at Guo Mi deeply before disappearing into the night.

Guo Mi took a deep breath. She thought, this should be the end. It's finally over.

(End of this chapter)