Chapter 184: Feeding
[Ding!]
[Congratulations Host!]
[You’ve successfully delivered your second cub! A bear cub.]
[Reward: +10,000 heart coins! + Necessary baby equipment for free at the system store.]
[Bear Husband’s Affection Level has reached its peak!]
[Azure = 99%]
Sunnie sighed as she said, "It’s never one hundred percent. How’s someone supposed to break that, though?" She shook her head and slowly got up to her feet.
[Ding!]
[Baby Raising System Alert]
[New Task alert]
[Host, feed your cub its first meal!]
[Reward: +1,000 heart coins]
[Punishment: Ultimate disturbance from cub]
Sunnie blinked. She looked outside; it was already night, and she had given birth earlier that day. So the cub hadn’t eaten since morning?
She was worried as she made her way to the exit. Just then, Elza and Zuna were making their way into the cave with her medication soup.
"Oh, you’re already awake," Zuna smiled at the sight of her. "How are you feeling?"
"Don’t you think you should get more rest?" Elza asked.
Sunnie shook her head with a smile. "No need. I’ve already rested enough. I’ll eat with you all outside," she expressed.
They didn’t object at all. They agreed and brought her meal outside for her to eat with everyone.
As soon as Sunnie stepped out, they all stared at her.
"You’re awake!" Little Black rushed to her side. "How are you feeling?"
She smiled as she shook her head. "I’m doing fine." Sunnie looked up at where Luka sat with the cub.
It was clear that he was trying to feed the cub, but the cub wasn’t eating anything at all. Ronan didn’t seem interested in having anything. As soon as he saw Sunnie, his eyes lit up with excitement as he stared at her. Ronan stretched out his hands to Sunnie, who came to sit down beside them.
"Mama, Ronan is not eating at all," Maren quickly reported. She had been sitting close to them all this while, observing as Luka tried feeding Ronan in every possible way, but Ronan simply kept looking away.
"Maybe he’s not hungry yet," Azure shrugged.
"He hasn’t eaten anything today. It’s not normal for a cub. He should eat something at least," Elza suggested as the other women nodded.
"Well, at least look on the bright side. He didn’t inherit the dangerous eating habit from his father," Eris said with a shrug as Luka cast him a cold glare.
"Shut up," Luka snapped.
"Mama, take Ronan from Papa Luka and feed him so he can eat something," Maren suggested.
Sunnie smiled as she carried Ronan, who happily came into her grip. She ran her finger over his cheeks, smiling at him. "What’s wrong? Why aren’t you eating?"
She tried as well. Sunnie attempted to feed him some of the soup they had made for him—one that wasn’t too hard to swallow or even hot at all, one suitable for a cub like him, one that little bears would like.
But even after all she tried, the little cub still wouldn’t eat anything. He kept moving his head while staring up and down as though he was looking for something.
Sunnie was confused now and wondered why he wasn’t eating. How was she supposed to feed her little one if she didn’t know what was wrong? At that moment, it wasn’t about the task anymore but rather about her little one.
But then, Maren, who was staring at them, casually said, "Give him the milk you gave me before. I don’t think you’ve given him any."
At that moment, Sunnie and the women understood what she meant. The men didn’t necessarily understand, except Eris and Zayn, who stared at little Maren.
The women stared at each other and then at Sunnie.
"...."
Sunnie stared down at Maren as she let out a smile. "Well, look at you. Aren’t you being the smart elder sister now? Huh?"
She guessed that was something else to try—breastfeeding Ronan. When Maren was little, she had rarely wanted to be breastfed at all. She had preferred normal meals rather than breastfeeding, so Sunnie didn’t necessarily remember breastfeeding Ronan since she wasn’t used to that.
But now she realized her oversight. She carried Ronan in her arms and excused herself.
Sunnie went inside and breastfed the little one. She was surprised at how fast he had reacted. The bear cub happily sucked on her nipple, eagerly drinking the generous milk that came with it. He took his time, greedily sucking and enjoying every second of it.
Sunnie was relieved that he was at least having something.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations Host on successfully feeding your bear cub for the first time!]
[First meal successful]
[Reward: + 1,000 heart coins]
Sunnie was relieved.
Minutes passed before she was done breastfeeding. Ronan wasn’t having any more, so she guessed he was satisfied. She came out with the cub and sat down with the rest.
Everyone stared eagerly as she joined them.
"So? Did it work?" Luka was anxious. Sunnie smiled at him with a nod. He was relieved that the cub had finally eaten something.
While they sat around the fire that night, they proceeded with their meal while talking. Sunnie and Luka ate, while Ronan, who was in Sunnie’s arms, kept staring at the two of them as they ate.
He firmly stared at their mouths while they chewed. When Maren noticed first, she said, "Mama, I think Ronan is hungry. Feed him."
Sunnie stared at the little one, who was still looking at her mouth. "Are you hungry?"
Ronan said nothing. He lay there staring at her.
"I doubt he can have this. He’s still a little baby and can’t eat meat like this," she insisted firmly.
"Give him some soup, then," Azure suggested as Sunnie brought some soup for him. She didn’t think he would have it since he had already eaten. But to their surprise, the bear cub effortlessly gulped down the bowl of soup and stared at them as though he hadn’t had anything yet.
"...."