Chapter 229: Beast Husbands And Their Difficulties

Xavier nodded when he heard this.

"That’s how it should be. Stone Pots and stone bowls aren’t exactly convenient to use."

Ace glanced sideways at Xavier and gave him a contemptuous look.

This thieving snake really was shameless.

He had changed his attitude in the blink of an eye.

That definitely hadn’t been what he was saying earlier.

But then Xavier’s next words made Ace’s opinion of him rise slightly.

As expected of Xavier.

Only this guy would have the courage to ask such a question.

Ace almost admired him for it.

"Kaelira, I heard you went to the Dragon Tribe to eat today. Was the food good?"

Xavier’s information network was frighteningly efficient.

Sora had only just finished eating and left the Dragon Tribe, yet somehow he already knew.

However, Sora knew Xavier’s personality well.

He wasn’t the sort of person who would ask an unnecessary question without having another purpose behind it.

She raised her eyelids and looked at him.

"Just say what you really want to ask. And why were all of you gathered here earlier? Were you deliberately following me?"

She didn’t believe for a second that all of them had coincidentally appeared in the same place.

Especially Ace.

The moment he opened his mouth earlier, she had already sensed that something wasn’t right.

Having been exposed so directly, Xavier didn’t seem embarrassed at all.

The thinner-skinned Ryan, however, looked slightly nervous.

"It’s... it’s nothing. We just happened to see you come here, and then we saw Nick Wilde, so..."

"So you suspected I was cheating on you?"

Sora cut him off and swept her eyes across the group.

These men really spent far too much time overthinking everything.

Perhaps they had too much free time.

It looked like she needed to find more work for them.

Xavier narrowed his eyes when he saw Sora change the subject.

"Although we were wrong to follow you, you also didn’t tell us what you were doing."

"What I was doing?"

Sora looked puzzled.

"What did I do that I didn’t tell you?"

She was genuinely confused.

Then, from the corner of her eye, she noticed Lucas’s shifting gaze.

Suddenly, everything clicked.

"Oh, I see!"

Sora’s expression changed.

"I was wondering why you were all acting so strangely today. So you found out about that!"

She shook her head.

"I was planning to tell you tonight anyway."

The group remained silent.

Sora sighed.

"Since you already know, there’s no point hiding it. Drake has indeed entered into a covenant with me. He is now my Guardian."

She paused before continuing.

"And I’ve decided to accept responsibility for their Tribe and become their Chief."

The moment she finished speaking, Ace’s expression changed.

"Kaelira, shouldn’t you have discussed something this important with us first?"

His voice carried a trace of anger.

"Do you even consider us your Beast Husbands?"

Sora’s eyebrows lifted.

"Discuss what? The Chief position or the Guardian?"

"You know perfectly well what I’m talking about."

Lucas huffed.

Sora’s expression darkened slightly.

Had it really been that long since she had reminded these men where the boundaries were?

They were beginning to act as though they had the right to control every decision she made.

Did she really need to explain everything she did to them?

Admittedly, she probably should have mentioned the Guardian matter earlier.

But it wasn’t as though she had deliberately hidden it.

She simply hadn’t had the opportunity yet.

Seeing that Sora’s expression was becoming unpleasant, Lukan immediately stepped in.

"The two of them didn’t mean it that way."

His voice was gentle and calm.

"They’re simply worried about you. The dragons appeared so suddenly, and we don’t know much about their background."

He looked at Sora sincerely.

"If you think they’re trustworthy and want to become their Chief, we have no objection."

A faint smile appeared on his face.

"Besides, I believe you’ll do a good job."

Lukan’s words were like gentle spring rain.

They immediately eased the tension in Sora’s chest.

Her expression softened.

"This all happened too suddenly. I didn’t expect Drake to swear an oath to the Sky God so quickly and form a covenant with me."

She sighed.

"Before I knew it, he had already become my Guardian."

Damien nodded.

"He has a Rank Six Beast Rank. So having him become your Guardian isn’t necessarily a bad thing."

His expression became serious.

"But you should still be more cautious if something like this happens again."

Sora blinked.

Rank Six?

She had known Drake was strong, but she hadn’t expected him to have reached Rank Six.

Wouldn’t that make him stronger than most of her current Beast Husbands?

Sora nodded.

"I understand. I’ll be more careful next time."

Then she looked around at the group.

"Since I’ve already accepted the position of Chief, you should all be a little nicer to them."

Lucas and Ace immediately looked unhappy.

"You’ve only been their Chief for how long?"

Ace folded his arms.

"And you’re already protecting them?"

Lucas also looked displeased.

Sora smiled.

"This is my Tribe."

She tilted her head.

"That means it’s your Tribe too, since you’re my Beast Husbands."

Her smile became more pronounced.

"Isn’t that enough reason to treat them a little better?"

Ace and Lucas exchanged glances.

Their expressions softened considerably.

They didn’t actually have any grudge against the dragons.

They had only been hostile because they didn’t want unfamiliar Beastmen getting too close to Sora.

But now that Sora had put it that way, they couldn’t exactly argue.

"Got it," the two muttered reluctantly.

Sora’s lips curved upward.

See?

These Beast Husbands simply needed to be handled properly.

Give them a little reassurance, stroke their egos, and suddenly they became obedient.

With the matter settled, Sora turned her attention to something else.

"Perfect. Since all of you are here, help me with something."

Ace immediately stepped forward.

"What is it? I’m the best at helping."

Lucas refused to lose.

"Me too! I can help with plenty of things."

Ryan nodded calmly.

"I can help as well."

Xavier crossed his arms.

"Count me in."

Sora stared at the four men scrambling to prove themselves and almost laughed.

"There’s no need to rush. Everyone will have something to do."

She picked up a wooden stick and crouched down.

Then she began drawing on the ground.

The Beast Husbands immediately gathered around her.

After a few strokes, a large circular shape appeared in the dirt.

Ryan stared at it curiously.

"Is this a table?"

Sora shook her head.

"No. It’s a Stone Mortar."

She pointed toward the drawing.

"Who among you has the strongest claws? Find me a large rock and hollow it out. Then bring me a heavy wooden pole."

The moment she finished speaking, Ace disappeared.

He moved so quickly that only a cloud of dust remained behind.

A short while later, he returned carrying an enormous, smooth stone.

"Kaelira, is this one suitable?"

Sora examined it.

The shape was roughly what she needed.

"Yes."

Ace grinned.

"Then leave this to me!"

His palm transformed, and a powerful gust of wind struck the stone.

Boom!

Fragments of stone flew outward.

Under Ace’s powerful attack, a circular depression gradually formed in the center.

Sora examined it carefully and nodded.

"That’s good."

Then she remembered something.

"Although the inside has been hollowed out, it still needs to be polished."

Lucas immediately stepped forward.

"I can handle that."

Sora nodded.

"Then the two of you make several more. I need them for processing the rice."

She had thought about this problem for a long time.

A proper rice-milling machine was impossible for her to construct at the moment.

So, for now, she could only rely on Stone Mortars to remove the husks from the rice.

It was troublesome, but she had plenty of Beastmen with supernatural abilities.

They could compensate for the lack of proper tools with brute strength.

The moment the others heard that wooden poles were needed, Damien and Ryan rushed toward the forest.

Lukan also found another suitable rock and began hollowing out another Stone Mortar.

Everyone immediately became busy.

With their combined strength, it didn’t take long before seven Stone Mortars had been completed.

Sora looked at the finished mortars with satisfaction.

"Good."

She brought over the rice ears and placed them inside one of the mortars.

Then she picked up the wooden pole.

"Watch carefully."

She placed the end of the pole inside the mortar and began pounding the rice.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

"The purpose is to crush away the outer husks without destroying the rice inside."

She demonstrated the movement carefully.

"Like this."

The Beastmen watched closely.

Once they understood what she was doing, they immediately began copying her movements.

Soon, the area was filled with rhythmic pounding.

Thump!

Thump!

Thump!

Everyone worked enthusiastically.

Just as Sora was about to check their progress, a familiar voice came from behind.

"Kaelira, let me help you!"

She turned around.

Nick Wilde was walking toward her.

Sora had barely opened her mouth when a powerful gust suddenly swept down from above.

A figure descended through the air.

A hand reached toward the Stone Mortar.

"Chief, let me help."

Sora froze.

Drake had arrived.

Nick Wilde’s eyes met Drake’s.

The atmosphere instantly changed.

Neither man said anything.

But the invisible tension between them was unmistakable.

It was as though sparks were flying through the air.

Sora pursed her lips.

Why did it have to become like this again?

Before she could say anything, three more figures appeared.

Ace.

Lucas.

Xavier.

The three immediately surrounded Nick Wilde and Drake.

"What are you two doing here?"

Ace’s tone was hostile.

Lucas stared at them suspiciously.

Xavier’s eyes narrowed.

Drake completely ignored them.

His gaze remained fixed on Sora.

"Chief."

Nick Wilde also looked directly at her.

" Kaelira."

Their voices sounded almost simultaneously.

Sora felt a headache coming on.

Before she could speak, Ace, Lucas, and Xavier turned toward her.

Their expressions were unusually fierce.

"Not allowed!"

Sora stared at them.

"What?"

The three men pointed accusingly toward the two newcomers.

"No!"

"No helping alone!"

"Absolutely not!"

Sora pressed her fingers against her forehead.

She suddenly regretted asking them for help.

She had only wanted to process some rice.

Somehow, she had turned the simple task into another battlefield between her Beast Husbands.

The backyard was on fire after all.

And judging from the expressions of the men standing around her, the battle had only just begun.