Chapter 100: Incubation
Azure slept with the egg close to him. By the time he woke, the egg was already gone.
He panicked for a while, but as he came out, he saw the egg with Sunnie and the rest. Sunnie had already gotten up early to prepare breakfast for everyone and also something for the egg.
She smiled as she saw Azure walk out. "You can come and join us for breakfast."
Azure sat down with them while they had breakfast.
Sunnie watched them all eat for a while before she announced the news she had learned about that morning.
When she woke up, the system had informed her of another task.
[Ding!]
[Baby Raising System!]
[The egg is about to hatch. Host must take action.]
[For effective hatching, the Host must provide proper incubation for the egg.]
[To do this, the Host must take the egg to the waters and lay with it for the designated period of time before it hatches.]
[Note: The Pearl Clam you received as a reward for birthing the egg will be of great assistance during the incubation period.]
[It can be located in the river body.]
Sunnie couldn’t help but wonder how she was supposed to sit on the egg for it to hatch. She didn’t know how that worked.
But she didn’t bother asking—it was her cub after all. So she had to do something. She accepted the task, which came with a pretty enticing reward.
[Reward: Modern Farming Equipment]
She didn’t know when, but she had a feeling that would be extremely necessary in the future, especially if they wished to expand the tribe and get a stable means of food.
"I’ll be leaving with the cub for some time," Sunnie announced while they ate. Everyone paused and stared at her.
"Leaving? To where?" Azure asked.
"Not far at all. I’m just going to hatch the egg," she explained.
"Oh... that makes sense," Elza agreed, holding her sleeping baby.
"But can’t you do it here?" Little Black asked.
Sunnie shook her head with a smile. "No. It has to be in the water for the egg to have a proper incubation period and hatch properly and healthily."
As she explained, Little Black slowly nodded. "I see... So how long is it going to take?"
Sunnie hesitated. "I don’t really know, but it shouldn’t be long at all. So don’t worry, I’ll be back as soon as possible."
He nodded.
"And where will you be going for that?" Azure asked.
"Since we already have a water body, I figured it would be a good place for it," she explained.
After the discussion, everyone was okay with it. Azure wanted to go with Sunnie, but she explained that it was only for her and the egg. The father didn’t necessarily need to be there.
Azure was disappointed but couldn’t protest. He simply agreed.
Sunnie didn’t need to make any necessary preparations. All she took was the egg, and then she made her way to the river.
They accompanied her to the place. When they arrived, they said their goodbyes before Sunnie and the egg made their way into the water.
Sunnie could breathe in the water with the help of a pill from the system. It had given it to her for assistance.
She carried the egg in her arms as she swam deep into the water. Sunnie could see the huge pearl clam sitting there majestically at a spot. It was open with a comfortable form in its mouth—welcoming and gleaming.
Sunnie had no issues getting used to it as she sat on it. She lay down with the egg by her side and soon dozed off in its mouth.
She held onto the egg, transferring her warmth to it while she slept beside it. Both peacefully rested in its comfortable mouth while water bubbled up from where they lay.
---
The two of them peacefully lay there in each other’s warmth. They didn’t wake up anytime soon as they stayed there. Sunnie didn’t even know when time passed.
She had asked them to take care of their home while she would be briefly away, and they did just that.
They took care of the place, prepared meals, and gathered the necessary things needed for cooking and all.
Azure made sure to do as Sunnie said so she would be proud when she returned. He led most of the activities while others followed. It was his first time being a father, so he was anxious in the process of it all.
But he kept his calm, put on his poker face, and strived to do a good job—at least for Sunnie. And while he did, the others made it easy for him by cooperating. Surprisingly, even Karl.
"I’m just doing it to repay her for healing me," Karl would casually say while joining in on the daily tasks.
Without Sunnie in those few days, the atmosphere felt odd. They were already used to Sunnie leading them and brilliantly setting everything in motion. So at times, they struggled to keep everything in order without her. They had even missed some meals because of it. But they at least tried to keep things in order, especially with Azure taking charge for Sunnie.
Hours went by, and soon it became days. Days without Sunnie. She was still in the water, asleep and unconscious, with the egg warmly in her arms.
At times, Azure would come to visit. He would stay around, staring at her while she peacefully slept with the egg. He would only run his fingers through her face and hair and then leave her to sleep.
Sunnie stayed like that for three days before she finally moved.
---
She felt uncomfortable where she stayed, and suddenly she felt the cold run through her veins. Sunnie felt her feet ache as she struggled to move. She did move, but she felt alone where she lay.
She opened her eyes and casually looked around, only to realize that she was actually alone there. The egg beside her had cracked, and no one was there.