With the brief hug, Leonard refused to let go.
Instead, his arms tightened around Tessa until she felt like her bones were about to crack. Her face turned red from the pressure, and she had no choice but to tap his arm lightly.
"One more squeeze and I'm going to fall down dead right now."
Tessa didn't bother sugarcoating her words.
Leonard immediately froze.
His eyes widened in alarm before he quickly released her and took several steps back as though he had committed a terrible crime.
"I apologize," he said awkwardly. "Hugging is not really something I'm familiar with. It... does something to me that I can't explain."
Tessa blinked.
For some reason, she found his reaction adorable.
Most beastmen she had encountered were straightforward and wild. They acted first and thought later.
Leonard was different.
Despite being an enormous snake beastman with enough strength to crush boulders, he behaved with an odd gentleness that constantly surprised her.
