POLAR BEAR ARC CHAPTER 41

A simple plastic bucket, yet it managed to keep an 800-kilogram polar bear in check.

Had Qiao Qixi not seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn't have believed it. But Otis indeed complied, turning back three times to check, and each time, Qiao saw Otis obediently staying by the bucket.

Qiao couldn't help but chuckle, feeling both amused and warmed inside.

He knew it wasn't the yellow bucket that restrained Otis, but himself.

In the eyes of any animal, hunting is inherently dangerous. It could lead to injuries, bleeding, or even a one-way trip. By hunting alone in front of Otis, Qiao was essentially sending a message: 'I'm going off to face danger on my own, and I might not come back. But you can't follow me, or I'll get mad and ignore you.'

So it was impossible for Otis to feel at ease.

Although Otis appeared calm as he watched the little bear leave, he was likely battling internally—should he risk making Qiao angry by following, or should he let him go and indulge his whim?

In the end, he made no move.

The desire not to upset Qiao must have won out.

Once out of Otis's sight, Qiao felt a pang of guilt. He could almost sense Otis's worry, so he decided to make it quick, hunting swiftly and returning with his catch to reassure the big guy who was surely fretting.

Before heading back, Qiao had considered that Otis might be upset—just your average kind of upset.

But what he didn't expect was that as soon as Otis caught the scent of blood, he would rush over, his eyes slightly red, his entire demeanor radiating worry.

'Uh-oh, this seems more serious than I thought.'

Otis, usually so reserved, rarely displayed significant emotional swings. But as Qiao reflected, it seemed that whenever he did, it was somehow related to him.

'Rawr,' Qiao dropped his prey and dashed over to hug Otis, offering some comfort.

He didn't go for a kiss this time—his mouth and face were still smeared with the blood from hunting a seal.

Yet Otis didn't mind. He gently turned his head and began carefully licking the blood off the now almost fully grown bear. It wasn't until Qiao was thoroughly cleaned that Otis's emotions settled.

Animal emotions can come and go quickly. Seeing that Qiao was safe and sound, Otis then started enjoying the ringed seal on the ground without any hesitation.

Qiao joined him, but at the same time, he thought about how much Otis clearly disapproved of him hunting alone. The resulting emotional stress was not good for his health.

'Fine, I'll just stop stressing out Otis's big heart,' Qiao decided.

In fact, a polar bear's heart is far from small. For a bear of Otis's enormous size, his heart is at least as large as a human head.

From that day on, Qiao behaved himself and no longer went off hunting without Otis.

As a result, Otis's mood was consistently bright and sunny.

He couldn't stand watching Qiao leave his sight to hunt alone, but he could accept them hunting together, where he did the heavy lifting while Qiao observed.

Qiao: 'Pfft, more like a 70-30 split.'

This division of labor worked well—it wasn't too exhausting for Otis, and it kept Qiao's claws sharp.

It felt like they were getting closer to being soulmates, even just a little bit.

During this summer's migration south, Qiao managed to take the lead, having won that privilege from Otis through some shameless wheedling. He was in charge of the entire route, eager to prove that after so many trips back and forth, he had advanced from a novice to at least a bronze-level navigator.

Swimming, unlike hunting, didn't worry Otis. He was always right beside Qiao, ready to step in if anything went wrong.

The drone also captured footage of this year's migration, and oh, what a surprise—Alexander was leading! Quite shocking indeed.

#This Summer, Alexander Leads the Southward Migration#

: Clap, clap, clap! Let's all hope Otis doesn't get led into shark-infested waters.

: [Facepalm] [Facepalm] Seriously? Has Alexander really come this far? He's leading the way?

: Otis must be so doting to entrust such an important task to a slacker like Alexander.

: I still remember the terrifying story from last summer when Alexander led Otis into a wolf den.

: No worries, Otis is right there. He'll correct any mistakes.

: I support this! Alexander should know the route by now. I think Otis did the right thing.

: Otis fans, stop gloating. Alexander is almost five and is only now trying to lead. I wouldn't be bragging if I were you.

Out on the water, Otis, burdened with numerous "crimes," stuck close to the little bear. Whenever Qiao deviated from the route, Otis didn't correct him directly—he simply stopped following.

Realizing he was off course, the embarrassed Alexander quickly swam back to realign himself.

Forgetting the route wasn't really Qiao's fault. Despite having made the journey several times, his human-influenced thought process meant he doubted his memory, hesitated, and suffered from decision paralysis.

Wild polar bears don't have these issues. They trust their judgment implicitly and rarely make mistakes.

Returning to Otis's side, Qiao wasn't met with mockery. Instead, Otis nuzzled the slightly downcast bear, encouraging him to set out again.

Qiao nuzzled back, though what really dampened his spirits was that pesky drone. He glanced up at it longingly, wishing he could send it back to where it came from, but knowing he couldn't.

The little bear, who could be both sweet and spiteful, silently pleaded, 'Please delete the footage of me getting lost, I beg you.'

Unfortunately, his humble plea didn't earn him any sympathy from the staff. His performance during this migration was reviewed over and over again.

The most outrageous part? The footage of Alexander getting lost and Otis correcting him was coldly edited together.

Eight mistakes in total, condensed into a five-minute video.

Soon after, this video became Alexander's most-viewed piece of work.

Qiao Qixi: 'You guys are messed up.'

Otis, ever calm and unbothered, seemed unconcerned by the little bear's eight mistakes.

Even after they reached shore, Qiao felt that Otis's gaze while grooming him was full of praise.

Qiao Qixi's feelings were mixed.

'Is Otis not comparing him to anyone else, or is there really no other cub to show just how lacking his own is?'

But the migration was over, and Qiao decided not to dwell on his poor first attempt.

There would be other chances.

'Now the question is, will Otis let me lead again next time?' The little bear thought shyly. 'Even though I got lost eight times, I'm still up for trying again.'

This was Alexander's fourth summer in the Arctic, and he was starting to get the hang of it. As he grew, he knew what to expect.

In the past three years, there was at least some good news.

According to precise human data, the Arctic climate hadn't worsened. It had stayed almost the same for the past three years.

The extent of sea ice hadn't decreased any further, though it hadn't increased either.

This was good news for all the animals that rely on sea ice to survive.

The fact that it hadn't worsened further was a blessing amidst the misfortune, though the living conditions for polar bears remained harsh.

Aside from that lucky first year when they came across a beached whale shortly after coming ashore, the following two years were tough for the little bear and Otis. They were often hungry, but not to the point of physical harm.

They had encountered polar bears collapsing from hunger along their journey—pitiful sights that struck deep, but there was nothing they could do but pass by.

Their own lives were never in danger.

Otis had found a steady summering spot over the past two years that met their basic needs.

The little wooden cabin Qiao always thought about? They hadn't visited it in the last two years. The reason was simple—the owner of that cabin had gotten wise.

After that first break-in by polar bears, they never left extra food in the cabin again.

Of course, the cabin owner likely didn't know the culprits were two polar bears—it could easily have been humans.

After all, even the liquor was consumed down to the last drop.

It seemed like the work of a despicable human thief, a wretched drunkard who wouldn't even leave behind a scrap of dried fish.

It was unfortunate that they couldn't raid the cabin again.

Qiao Qixi had grumbled about it for a while—humans were so clever, and it was such a pity they couldn't get their paws on those delicious canned fruits.

As a polar bear who hadn't tasted anything sweet in a long time, Qiao even dreamed of candy, crying in his sleep from craving it. He guessed Otis also wanted something sweet.

Well, that was easy. Bees tend to build their nests in familiar old places.

At over 1,000 pounds, Qiao had plans to visit those old spots he'd gathered over the years to collect some honey. There were four or five such spots.

It was harvest time this summer.

In the wild, it wasn't just Qiao Qixi, with his human-influenced thoughts, who did this. Animals had highly efficient memory systems, associating events and feelings with specific locations.

For example, they wouldn't return to a place where they had been injured before.

But they would revisit places with good food, again and again.

Otis wasn't a bear with a sweet tooth. If he lived alone, he probably wouldn't bother going into the woods to raid beehives.

It just wasn't in Otis's nature.

Of course, he didn't have to do it now. When the little bear got his spoils, he would bring them back to share with Otis.

The two polar bears would enjoy the sweet taste and, inevitably, spend some time grooming each other.

Nearby, the bees still buzzed around the bush, but Qiao wasn't afraid of getting stung anymore.

The grown-up him had skin too thick for bees to penetrate.

Sticky honey was bound to get on his mouth, chest, and paws, but as Otis groomed him, he naturally moved down to Qiao's lower abdomen.

Qiao promptly kicked Otis's face away with a paw.

'What are you doing?'

Otis backed off, knowing that the little bear was no longer so little. If he got kicked now, it would hurt a bit.

Qiao noticed this and sighed. He remembered that before he turned three, even if he sprinted full speed into Otis, Otis wouldn't have cared.

'Ha, scared now?'

Still a bit playful, the little bear stood up and leaned against Otis.

He wrapped his arms around Otis's neck and roared in a standard polar bear duel challenge between males.

Otis: '...'

Otis squinted and licked his beloved's face, a look of fondness in his eyes.

Qiao found it boring to roar on his own. After a few moves, he got tired and climbed down from Otis to rest.

After resting in the shade for a while, the two polar bears slowly continued on their way.

Not long after, Otis brought the little bear back to the stone house to teach him one final lesson: Hibernating.

This was standard adult polar bear practice.

Every summer, they could find a place to hide and refrain from eating, drinking, or even defecating.

For the past few summers, even the researchers knew that Otis had never stopped hunting.

That was because Qiao was still young and needed regular nutrition to survive the summer.

But now Alexander was grown, and the treatment wasn't as good as before.

'???'

Qiao thought their next stop would be to hunt belugas.

'Rawr rawr!' Qiao nudged Otis, wondering why they were skipping the beluga hunt.

He had hoped to redeem himself after his navigation failure by showcasing his prowess in hunting belugas.

But without a beluga hunt, how could he make up for the embarrassment at the research station?

'Rawr rawr!' The over-1,000-pound ball of fluff cozied up to Otis, pleading to hunt belugas. He wanted to go, he wanted to go, he wanted to go.

Otis was jostled from side to side, his back pressing tightly against a large rock. Suddenly, with a 'crack', a stone wedged in a crevice outside was knocked loose by their movements.

Qiao froze, realizing that with his current size, wrestling with Otis wasn't just roughhousing anymore—it was more like shaking the earth.

He decided to tone it down.

'Rawr rawr,' the little bear shamelessly continued to nuzzle Otis's neck and chest.

Otis tried to hold him, though he couldn't fully wrap his arms around him anymore, but the affection in his expression was clear.

'Roar...'

Otis gave a half-hearted growl, warning the little bear to settle down and sleep.

'Rawr rawr,' but I want to hunt belugas, make up for my failures—it's not time to hibernate yet!

Qiao tried every way to express that he didn't want to be tucked into the stone house to sleep just yet.

Let's go out and play.

Let's catch some belugas.

Otis was too lazy, a bear who preferred to pick up kelp in bundles from the roadside.

Otis pressed his broad paw down on the whining little bear's head, holding it to his chest just like he used to lull him to sleep when he was younger.

He licked his ears.

Lick, lick, bite.

Feeling content.

After nearly half an hour of this one-sided conversation—or rather, Otis pretending not to understand—Qiao finally accepted that Otis wasn't going to take him beluga hunting.

'Then why are we even sleeping together? Isn't it too hot?'

Qiao sensibly rolled to the other side to sleep.

But because the stone house was small, even if he slept against the wall, he was still close to Otis.

Otis cautiously moved closer, finding a comfortable spot, and happily snuggled up to Qiao to drift off to sleep.

Ever since he took in the little bear, Otis hadn't had a deep sleep in years.

It was the same as when a mother loses sleep after having a child.

Now that his cub had finally grown up, Otis wanted a good, deep sleep.

How do you master the art of deep sleep?

Qiao clearly wasn't very experienced with it. When he woke up, only a few hours had passed.

Otis was still asleep, and he was sleeping deeply.

At least he didn't snore.

Bored, Qiao scratched his paws, unable to go out to play or catch belugas. So he tried to go back to sleep.

Deep sleep, deep sleep, deep sleep.

He really admired polar bears; they could sleep for a month if they wanted to.

'Sigh,' the little bear opened his round eyes and couldn't resist getting up. He sneaked out and caught two fish to snack on before returning to sleep again.

This time, he was lucky.

In the stone house by the sea, both polar bears fell into a deep sleep, no longer stirring.

Their location remained stationary, which caught the attention of the research station.

They sent a small drone to check things out.

The drone circled their territory stealthily, gathering enough information to confirm the situation.

It turned out Otis and Alexander were just sleeping.

#Alexander's First Summer of Deep Sleep#

: He never hibernated in the summer before. What happened this year? Is the food situation really that bad?

The headline quickly sparked concern.

: No, this is normal polar bear behavior. As long as they have enough fat reserves, there's nothing to worry about.

: Haha, maybe Otis is just being lazy and doesn't want to work hard to find food for Alexander in the summer.

; He's all grown up now; the treatment is different. Poor Alexander.

Qiao thought it was fine to sleep with Otis; they had enough fat reserves to last.

The limited food on land could be left for the other bears—they couldn't catch it anyway.

He wondered who was occupying the river mouth where the belugas were this year.

What about the little female bear they met two years ago? How was she doing now?

Years of living in the Arctic had enriched Qiao's dreams.

Now, he rarely dreamed of humans. Instead, Otis appeared more frequently.

There's a saying: 'One day in heaven, one year on earth. One nap for a polar bear, one month on Earth.'

Time quietly passed as they slept.

That's not to say they never woke up during their deep sleep.

Otis woke up twice, checked to see that the little bear was still asleep and that there was no threat around, then licked his head and continued sleeping.

It was the same as a mother with a child—having a cub made all the difference, even in the deepest sleep, one nerve was always on alert for the child.

When they first went to sleep, the weather was hot, so the two polar bears didn't snuggle too close. But as time passed and the polar night set in, the temperature dropped.

They instinctively huddled together.

Otis hugged Qiao from behind, and even though Qiao was grown, he still felt soft to hold.

Oh, that's because of all the fat.

A happy Qiao woke up to find it was dark outside.

The stars twinkled in the sky, blinking down at him.

Still groggy, Qiao remembered his earlier ambitions—something about taking on the responsibility of leading the return journey.

He poked his head outside and saw thick fog over the water.

'Yikes, that's too scary.'

'Forget it, if I give up fast enough, failure won't catch up with me.'

But then a voice inside said, 'You can do it, little bear.'

Feeling like he could do it, the little bear kicked Otis awake.

'Rawr...'

'It's about to snow, shall we head home?'

Otis lazily glanced outside, then pulled the covers over his head and went back to sleep.

Qiao translated his boyfriend's response: 'But it hasn't snowed yet.'

'Fine, fine, you sleep a little longer.'

While his boyfriend slept in, Qiao grabbed his bucket and headed to the sea.

The little yellow bucket had traveled far and wide with the two polar bears over the years, and it was still in great shape—top-notch quality.

Qiao filled the bucket with fish, enough to fill it to the brim, and proudly carried it back to the stone house.

It was a surprise gift for his boyfriend when he woke up from hibernation. He hoped Otis would like it.

The smell of fish reached Otis's nose, and he opened his eyes, stretching as he came outside.

When he saw the bucket full of fish Qiao had caught, he stared at it for a long time, as if asking, 'Is this for me? Really?'

His dumbfounded expression was beyond adorable.

Qiao Qixi: 'Yep, yep, yep~'

'It's for you, go ahead and eat one.'

After a month of sleep, both bears were starving. Otis couldn't possibly not want to eat, but instead of diving into the bucket of fish, he pounced on Qiao, rolling happily in the sand.

It seemed that after waking up, the most important thing wasn't food, but cuddling with the little bear.

Qiao Qixi could clearly feel Otis's enthusiasm.

Afterward, the fish still didn't get eaten.

Otis calmed down and began carefully grooming the little bear, who had just come out of the sea.

His fur was wet and needed attention, especially the delicate areas like his eyes, which hadn't been groomed in over a month.

Otis meticulously tended to all of Qiao's delicate spots.

When everything was done and there was nothing else to do, Otis finally seemed satisfied as he looked at the bucket of fish. He gingerly picked one out and started eating it.

Qiao watched, his heart full of joy.

'Rawr~' The little bear thought softly, 'See, Otis? I'm just as strong as you. So, please be at ease when I go hunting alone.'