Beauty and the Beasts

Bai Qingqing asked in turn if there wasn’t the concept of spousal relationships in the world she was in, yet everyone was paired up?

“Meow—”

Just then, the leopard cubs inside the animal skin bag let out purrs to let their mother know they were hungry.

No longer in the mood to argue with the tiger beastman, Bai Qingqing bent over, patted the animal skin bag, and said in a gentle tone, “Babies, be good. Just wait a little longer.”

Following that, she said to Curtis, “Let’s go.”

Curtis was about to leave when the tiger beastman hugging Becky called out to them. “Hold on. Thanks for saving Becky. If you don’t have anywhere to live, come and stay in our village.”

“Ford!”

The other tiger beastmen instantly roared in disagreement.

“She has a feral beast as a mate. What are we to do if they end up attracting other feral beasts?” asked the tiger beastman in human form. Clearly, he still stood by his belief that it was a feral beast that had abducted Becky.

Ford said, “It’s just a snake beastman without any animal stripes. Is there a need to be scared of him?”

The tiger beastmen took another look at Curtis, and this time they fell silent.

Bai Qingqing covered her mouth to hide a chuckle, then raised her head at Curtis and winked at him.

Although Curtis was expressionless, the impatience in his eyes had grown more intense.

It was Bai Qingqing’s original intention to settle down in a village, anyway. Hence, she naturally agreed now that they were extended an invitation. She said with a smile, “Thank you for your kindness, then.”

This time, Bai Qingqing didn’t disguise her true appearance. Even with a cold countenance, one found it difficult to tear his gaze away from her. Now that she revealed a smile, even Ford—whose heart already belonged to someone else—was momentarily dazed.

Very quickly, though, he snapped out of his trance and said to his companions, “I’ll bring Becky and them into the village. You guys continue to guard the territory.”

The tiger beastmen roared in response before dispersing.

This tiger tribe’s village occupied quite a sizable territory, yet they all lived in the tree holes. The instant they entered, several heads peeked out from within the tree holes.

According to Ford’s introduction, including Becky, there were a total of twenty-three females and more than three hundred males.

Becky had just come of age this year. Previously, she did have a male, and they lived in a tree hole by themselves. However, on the night she was abducted, her spouse was killed and that tree hole had since remained vacant.

Without the protection of males now, Becky naturally had to move elsewhere. Hence, Ford arranged for Bai Qingqing to stay in her tree hole.

The tree hole was five meters above the ground. The leopard cubs were so famished that they let out random roars. Bai Qingqing hurriedly asked Curtis to send her into the cave, and she then fed them in a corner.

The snake beastman’s arrival alarmed the entire village. With the tiger beastmen all running over to take a look, Bai Qingqing could sense the ground tremble inside the tree hole.

“No need to be nervous, everyone. They’re the ones who rescued Becky. That’s why I brought them into our village.”

Ford’s explanation calmed down the beastmen quite significantly. A female’s voice stood out above the din and entered Bai Qingqing’s ears.

“Becky, my baby.”

Bai Qingqing wrapped her body with a piece of animal skin and stuck out her head. She saw a middle-aged female dashing to Becky’s side. From the looks of it, that should be Becky’s mother.

Becky, who had been in a daze all along, suddenly raised her head upon hearing that voice with a clear gaze.

Bai Qingqing had thought that it was motherly love that had snapped Becky out of her dazed state. She was just feeling happy for Becky when unexpectedly, the next moment Becky slapped the middle-aged female’s hand away.

“Get lost!”

Becky let out a shrill scream as she hid into Ford’s arms. She suddenly burst into tears, and Bai Qingqing heard more pain in her sobs this time than previously.

“Becky?” The middle-aged female froze on the spot.

Ford held Becky tightly and gently patted her back as he coaxed her softly. “Everything’s fine now. Now that you’re back, no one will hurt you again. She’s your mother, don’t be scared.”

Becky raised her head before Ford’s chest and stared at the middle-aged female with bitter hatred in her eyes. “It’s her! It was her mate that abducted me!”