╔═══ Author's note ════╗
Thank you for 50 coins worth of gifts! An extra chapter goal reached. ☆
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"You don't like cubs, Little Miss?" Baron asked.
I glanced at the deer cubs, who were peeking from under the blankets, listening to us. "I...I like them...from far away."
He laughed again, and picked me up, "Then let's get away from them and go check on what Dearest is doing outside."
He seemed excited to see what she was up to, with the way he sighed and the corners of his lips kept turning up. The more he sighed, the more he melted, squishing me in his embrace as if I was the only thing that could ground him.
When it came to Madam, I melted too. My eyes could be replaced with stars and my heart with a flower. I bloomed whenever she did the simplest of things, and glowed whenever she looked my way.
A silly little sheep I was, going against her wishes (to not like her) again and again. I wouldn't have dared before, but now I found myself doing it constantly. The feeling was too good to let go of, and I wanted to be silly a little longer.
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Tiger females were fierce fighters, but the wolf cubs were even scarier. They transformed into their beast forms, standing twice as tall as the tigers, who were also in their beast forms.
Madam was leaning against Moyu's shoulder, flicking her finger at any beast that came too close. The force of her flicks was enough to make them fly away and crash into the trees. It was as if the tigers were truly flies, and she was just swatting them.
The deer beastmen were stupefied while Baron seemed unimpressed, maybe because he was used to this kind of chaos. He took me closer toward Madam and Moyu.
Madam was leaning her head on his shoulder, her eyes closed. Was she...sleeping? Was she flicking tigers in her sleep? I glanced at Moyu, and he had a small blush on his face, enjoying her closeness.
"I was wondering, should we introduce Little Miss to our world?" Baron asked, startling Madam awake, "Something tells me she has no clue what she could possibly do to please us. The females there might give her some ideas."
"A female sharing her males with another female will not be looked kindly upon," Moyu replied a bit disapprovingly, "People will look down on our spouse even more than they already do if they knew we took in another female."
Moyu cared the most about their public image, which I found interesting. I thought it didn't matter since they were so powerful, but it seemed like they still had to abide by the rules of society.
What I didn't understand was others looking down on Madam. I thought their world loved females.
"Mm, she should see the options available to her," Madam said. She then stood straight and rubbed her neck. Yes, the simplest things like stretching after a nap looked powerful when Madam did it. "How about it, Buttercup?"
She turned to me, her chin up, her aura so strong, I couldn't help but nod.
Baron hugged me closer, "You are right. She is too precious to be stuck with already mated males," and spun me from right to left, my legs moving in the opposite direction of the spin, "I feel bad for forcing ourselves into her life."
Moyu nodded, "Let's not repeat the same mistake again."
I blinked the stars away, trying to understand what they meant. They were feeling guilty for keeping me? Why? It was their right to do so. Didn't they buy me?
The cloud of confusion must have shown on my face, because Madam took it upon herself to explain, "We are not getting rid of you, just giving you an option to leave if you don't like it here. We are not kicking you out."
Wasn't it the same as not wanting me anymore? I was already here, and they were offering me to leave. It was confusing. I thought they would let me stay for a long time. I must have misunderstood again.
I lowered my head, "I'm sorry," rubbing away the tiredness from my eyes.
Must have been the sleepiness. I should have been entertaining them instead of making them feel bad.
"Whatever we say, she will twist it into a bad thing," Moyu said, and Baron sighed, agreeing with him.
"Sleep. We will wake you up when we get there." Baron's arms moved to my legs and back, cradling me in them.
It was a sudden decision to go on another trip, and they began walking, leaving the fighting tiger beastmen behind. The deer watched us leave, bowing their heads in gratitude for chasing away the tigers.
Despite madam spoiling the cubs against Baron's wishes, I thought she spoiled her mates even more. Baron's worries about them not finding mates were being considered as we left them in a world with a surplus of unmated females.
"I love you," his whisper in Madam's ear as he passed her was so quiet I almost didn't catch it. So soft, so full of emotions, and so sincere. I felt like I was not supposed to hear it, that it wasn't meant for my ears.
Madam chuckled, "Not enough. Be louder."
"..." Baron huffed, speeding up his steps, his head buried in my hair.
Moyu followed behind us, chuckling at Baron's shyness. Madam just glanced at him and he immediately shut his mouth, looking away. A victim of Madam's eyes, he didn't stand a chance.
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I woke up inside a clam shell. The shell was so big, I could lie down in it and it would still have room for another person. It was comfortable, and the fabric was the smoothest I ever felt. It was like sleeping on a cloud. I never slept on a cloud, but this must be how it felt.
The room was illuminated by glowing pearls on the ceiling. Spacious enough to hold more than ten of the shells. Salt air filled the space, mixing with the fresh scent of flowers.
Colorful plants and corals decorated the shelves, and the stone walls looked like they were made out of water, polished to perfection.
There were no windows, just a large gate-like door at the entrance. I slipped off the shell, and my feet touched the sand below. I squished my toes in it, enjoying the sensation.
The table next to the shell had a basin of water, a cup, and plates of food. All my favorites. Berries, nuts, fresh fruits, veggies, and lots of buttercup flowers, freshly picked.
"Little Miss," a voice called from the entrance and I turned around to see Gold. He wore a translucent robe, which didn't hide much of his upper body, and his lower body was covered in a long skirt-like pants.
He looked a bit different, imposing on his own without the owners around. Distant. There was no smile on his lips, his face was relaxed into a neutral expression, like a sea creature that was about to snap at you.
I automatically bowed my head, a reflex from meeting a high rank beastman.