Chapter 252: Contracting the Sixth Beast Husband 2

The moment Damien’s words fell, the atmosphere inside Salt Well Cave practically erupted like a volcano.

Ace’s fingers cracked as he slowly clenched his fists.

His dark eyes swept coldly toward Damien.

"Your body hasn’t even recovered yet, and you’re already thinking about this? Can your body even handle it?"

The warning in his voice was unmistakable.

Lucas’s gaze also landed on Damien, sharp enough to feel like a blade.

For a moment, the entire cave seemed filled with the smell of gunpowder.

Lukan’s expression remained as calm as ever. No one could tell what he was thinking, and he didn’t say a word.

Ryan, meanwhile, looked almost indifferent.

After everything Damien had said and done recently, Ryan seemed to have become completely immune to his shameless remarks.

Nick Wilde stood to the side, quietly watching Sora.

There was a faint expectation in his eyes.

This wasn’t the first time Damien had asked Sora to form a Contract Totem with him.

But this time was different.

This time, Sora had a reason she could hardly ignore.

Damien had saved her life.

The previous times Damien had brought up the Contract Totem, Sora had always been able to find some excuse to refuse.

She could say she wasn’t ready.

She could say she needed to think about it.

She could say she had other things to deal with.

But now?

How could she refuse after Damien had taken the attack meant for her?

Sora lowered her eyes slightly.

It wasn’t simply because Damien had feelings for her.

If he didn’t care about her, why would he have thrown himself into danger for someone who wasn’t even related to him?

Why would he have willingly taken the Phoenix Token attack?

He could have protected himself.

Instead, he had protected her.

And that had nearly cost him his life.

Taking another step back, Sora had always refused to form a Contract Totem because she wanted to protect her own life.

But yesterday, Damien had literally protected her life with his own body.

Both sides of the matter came down to the same thing.

Survival.

Sora couldn’t find a convincing reason to reject him anymore.

Still, there was something inside her that felt uneasy.

Damien’s behavior reminded her somewhat of those old stories where someone would perform a huge favor and then use that favor to demand something in return.

But in the Beast World, perhaps this wasn’t considered strange at all.

Sora pressed her lips together.

She was just about to answer when Xavier, who had remained silent until then, suddenly spoke.

"Kaelira."

His voice was surprisingly calm.

"Form the Contract."

Everyone looked at him.

Xavier continued,

"It’s good to have him by your side."

"..."

Sora froze.

For a moment, she couldn’t believe what she had just heard.

Those words had actually come from Xavier’s mouth?

"Stinky snake, what are you saying?"

Ace’s eyes widened.

"You actually agreed?"

His expression was one of complete disbelief.

Lucas was equally shocked.

"You don’t have a fever, do you?"

He raised his hand and reached toward Xavier’s forehead.

How had this stinky snake suddenly become so generous?

Lucas hadn’t forgotten what had happened when Damien had previously been on Night Guarding duty.

Back then, Xavier had even taken him and Ace away to interfere with Damien’s time with Sora.

Yet today, Xavier was actually the one persuading Sora to form a Contract Totem with Damien.

Was the snake’s brain damaged?

Xavier slapped Lucas’s hand away.

"There is no question of agreeing or disagreeing."

His voice remained flat.

"Originally, when Kaelira chooses to Contract a Beast Husband, we have no reason to stop her."

Ace stared at him suspiciously.

"No, no, no."

He narrowed his eyes.

"Tell me why you’ve suddenly become so generous."

Ace glanced at Damien.

"Did this Black Bear give you some kind of benefit?"

"Or does he have some dirt on you?"

He genuinely couldn’t understand Xavier’s behavior.

Everyone knew how possessive the purple snake usually was.

Normally, if anyone stayed too close to Sora for even a little too long, Xavier’s tail would immediately sweep over.

Yet today, not only was he refusing to interfere, he was actively encouraging Sora to Contract Damien.

That was completely abnormal.

Damien blinked his dark eyes.

He met Ace’s suspicious gaze and suddenly grinned.

"I’m a good Beastman."

"I didn’t bribe him, and I don’t have any dirt on him."

"Maybe it’s because my character is so good that Xavier is willing to speak for me."

"Good character?"

Ace rolled his eyes.

"Yours?"

It was already fortunate enough if Damien wasn’t deliberately stirring up trouble.

Damien smiled without shame.

Xavier glanced at him.

"I’m not saying good things about you."

"I simply think you’re capable and suitable for Kaelira."

Although Xavier was the one suggesting it, there was still no warmth in his expression when he looked at Damien.

But beneath his calm exterior, his heart felt as though it were being twisted by a knife.

No Beast Husband wanted to share his Female.

Not one.

But Sora Contracting Damien really would be beneficial for her.

This Black Bear had never revealed his true strength in front of them.

However, Xavier had been watching him closely.

He could tell that Damien was definitely stronger than he appeared.

At the very least, his Beast Rank was probably six or higher.

And then there was the Phoenix Token.

Damien had spoken about that terrifying technique almost casually.

But Xavier knew how powerful it was.

If the Phoenix Token had struck him directly, he might not have been able to withstand many attacks.

Yet Damien had dodged it and protected Sora.

That alone proved how powerful he was.

If someone like that became an enemy because of jealousy, the consequences could be troublesome.

Instead of allowing love to turn into hatred and eventually creating another powerful enemy, it was better to bring him into the family.

At least then, Damien could help protect Sora.

Xavier didn’t want to share Sora.

But who told him that his own strength wasn’t enough?

A qualified Beast Husband should be able to protect his Female.

He had failed to protect Sora yesterday.

That was unacceptable to him.

Sora stared at Xavier in silence.

She had never expected the most possessive person among them to one day be the one encouraging her to Contract Damien.

Normally, whenever she got even slightly too close to Lukan, Xavier would find some way to make up for it afterward.

But today...

Sora genuinely didn’t know what to say.

Xavier looked at her.

His purple eyes were unusually calm and encouraging, as though telling her not to worry.

Sora’s heart moved slightly.

He wasn’t joking.

He really meant it.

Seeing that Xavier had made up his mind, Ace and Lucas crossed their arms.

Then they shook their heads together.

"You may agree," Ace said.

"But we don’t."

Xavier glanced at them.

"What right do you have to disagree?"

His voice remained calm.

"Kaelira almost died yesterday."

"What did the two of you do?"

Silence.

Ace and Lucas instantly shut their mouths.

Neither could answer.

If Damien hadn’t noticed what was happening and chased after Sora in time, they might not even be standing here discussing this.

They might have lost her.

There was no way around that fact.

Xavier’s words left them with no position from which to argue.

As for Damien’s strength, they couldn’t deny it either.

He wasn’t weaker than them.

In terms of combat ability, he was on equal footing with them, if not stronger.

As for his appearance...

There was nothing to complain about there either.

After thinking about everything carefully, the two of them could only accept the reality in front of them.

Ace lowered his eyes.

"Kaelira, go ahead and Contract him."

"I have no problem with it either."

Lucas’s face turned slightly red.

He looked somewhat embarrassed.

"I apologize for what I just said."

"I have no objection either."

He paused.

"Besides, he’s already participated in Night Guarding."

With Xavier, Ace, and Lucas all agreeing, Sora suddenly realized something.

Could she really Contract Damien now?

The reason she had been afraid to Contract him before was because she worried that forming a Contract Totem with another Beast Husband would affect the favorability points of her other capture targets.

If their favorability decreased, it could interfere with her conquest mission.

But now the situation was different.

They had agreed themselves.

If the Beast Husbands weren’t opposed to Damien joining them, perhaps their favorability wouldn’t decrease.

Sora’s eyes slowly brightened.

Could this be a loophole in the system?

She had always treated the system’s rules as absolute.

But now she realized that perhaps there were loopholes.

And if there were loopholes...

Then they could potentially be used.

For the first time in several days, Sora felt an unprecedented sense of relief.

It was as though the invisible pressure the system had placed on her had suddenly been broken.

Still, there were five Beast Husbands involved.

She had received approval from three of them.

But there were still two more.

Sora turned her attention toward Ryan and Lukan.

Lukan looked at her with gentle eyes.

"I agree as well."

His voice was mild.

"Yesterday’s matter was all thanks to Damien."

Ryan also nodded.

"I have no objection."

"If it weren’t for him yesterday, we wouldn’t be seeing you right now."

Sora looked at all five of them.

No one objected.

No one tried to stop her.

After receiving everyone’s approval, Sora finally turned toward Damien.

She looked at him for a few moments.

Then she slowly spoke.

"Then... I agree too."

For one second, Damien was completely still.

Then his eyes lit up.

His entire face seemed to brighten.

"I’m so happy!"

He immediately looked at Sora with a wide grin.

"Kaelira has agreed to form a Contract Totem with me!"

Then he turned toward the others.

"Now, the six of you turn around."

His expression became shamelessly pleased.

"Don’t delay Kaelira and me from doing our business."

"..."

Sora stared at him.

She instantly regretted her decision.

Why had she agreed so quickly?

She should have known.

The moment Damien received permission, he would immediately become unbearable.

The other five Beast Husbands also froze.

Their expressions were almost identical.

Was it too late to regret their decision now?

Nick Wilde’s mouth twitched.

He looked at Damien’s smug expression and couldn’t help thinking that this guy was really enjoying himself.

What was he so proud of?

Sooner or later, Nick Wilde believed, he would have his own day too.

As for Damien, he was already completely immersed in his happiness.

After so many attempts, the sixth Beast Husband Contract was finally within reach.

And this time, no one was stopping him.