I Became the Villainess, But My Beast Husbands Can Hear My Mind?!

In other tribes, beastwomen were free to become warriors or hunters. But for some reason, in the Vixeria Tribe—or more accurately, under Loba’s rule—he disliked it when beastwomen took on roles that required strength or intelligence.

Loba didn’t completely isolate the beastwomen like an extreme sexist would, but still, the way he believed women couldn’t handle physical work was simply ridiculous.

Because of that mindset, the only tasks beastwomen here were allowed to do were things like fetching water from the river or cleaning the settlement. It made no sense, because in this world, beastwomen were just as strong as beastmen.

It seemed Loba wasn’t a supporter of gender equality. He even often viewed his wife as someone beneath him. In fact, he was the only beastman in the Vixeria Tribe who refused to let his wife have a harem, because he believed his wife was his personal property.

Yes, he had really said that once. And ironically, a man that was sexist ended up having a daughter... and the result was as tragic as expected.

”Of course, Leader,” Commander Marlow said with a smile. He likely also thought it was ridiculous not to include beastwomen, especially since some of the best warriors in other tribes were women. ”I’ll let everyone know.”

Once Roxanna had nothing else left to discuss with Commander Marlow, she finally stepped out of the functional hut, only to find her husbands already waiting for her.

Well... not all of them.

Only Luan—of course, still clingy—and Azul were there. The others seemed to still be busy roasting meat for everyone, or helping the elders return to their huts.

”Why did you take so long?” Luan asked right away as Roxanna walked toward them. ”You were in there almost two hours. I nearly thought Commander Marlow had done something awful to you.”

”Hey! What kind of accusation is that?!” Commander Marlow shouted from afar after overhearing him.

Roxanna quickly turned and bowed several times. ”I’m so sorry. My Luan isn’t feeling well, so he’s not thinking clearly. I promise he didn’t mean to insult you.”

Commander Marlow only let out a rough sigh, but he didn’t argue any further, especially after seeing how sincerely she apologized.

As soon as he left, Roxanna lightly smacked Luan’s arm a few times. ”You can’t just accuse people like that! What if they get offended and start hating you?”

Luan looked at her for a moment... then said, completely serious, ”Then I’ll hate them too.”

Roxanna smacked his arm again, though not hard, because she could never bring herself to hit her husbands the way the old Roxanna once had.

”Luan, we all have to live together peacefully,” she said softly. ”Don’t go creating enemies for no reason. I mean it. From now on, before you speak, think first about whether your words might hurt someone.”

”But how am I supposed to know how others will feel?” Luan asked honestly.

Before Roxanna could reply, Azul spoke instead. ”Ask yourself first,” he said calmly. ”If someone said those same words to you, how would you feel?”

Luan fell silent for a moment, and finally he said, ”Alright, I won’t speak carelessly anymore.”

Roxanna gave him a gentle smile and tiptoed so she could pat Luan’s head. ”That’s great.”

[I don’t actually want to force my husbands to change who they are,] Roxanna thought. [But still... learning to be a better person is important. And Luan really needs to learn how to control his mouth.]

[Until then...] Roxanna sighed. [I don’t think I will choose him tomorrow if he wants to become commander.]

Just as she had told Commander Marlow earlier, this wasn’t only about strength, but also wisdom and other aspects.

Luan did have the potential to be a great leader, but his ego was still too strong, and that could easily cause problems among the warriors.

”And Roxanna... I won’t participate in the commander’s tournament tomorrow,” Luan suddenly said.

Roxanna widened her eyes slightly. Even though she hadn’t planned to choose Luan, she still didn’t expect him to not participate.

Could he be acting like this because of the Guardian Blessing? She probably needed to deactivate that ability!

”Why?!” she asked in surprise, and even Azul looked just as shocked as she was.

Luan shrugged. ”I just don’t want to.”

Roxanna didn’t respond right away because she couldn’t believe that he truly didn’t want it.

Could it be... that he sensed she wouldn’t choose him tomorrow?!

Luan, who had been silently stared at by Roxanna, finally sighed and admitted, ”Honestly, I don’t really like being in charge of a lot of people.”

[What? Really?] Roxanna wondered in her mind. Even though she didn’t say anything out loud, her expression already showed her thoughts. [He often competes with Azul and Calen, so I thought he also liked being a leader.]

Luan frowned slightly, because to him, being a leader and competing with his dumb-dumb fellow husbands were two completely different things.

”I’m better at being an observer,” Luan said. ”Besides... I don’t think I can be as good as my brother.”

”Why are you comparing yourself to your brother like that?” Roxanna asked gently. ”Like I said yesterday, Luan is Luan. You don’t have to try to be someone else.”

Not long after, he curved his lips into a small smile. ”I know, but still... I just don’t think I’m ready to follow his path.”

Azul then spoke up. ”Well, if he really doesn’t want to, then we shouldn’t force him.” He paused. ”At least that means we have one less competitor.”

Luan clicked his tongue. ”But at least I won’t embarrass myself if I fail in that tournament.”

”Don’t say that,” Roxanna replied right away, then turned her face toward Azul. ”Whether you make it to the end or lose early, it still matters. It’s still something to be proud of.”

She gently took Azul and Luan’s hands. ”As long as you enjoy what you do, that’s more than enough,” she said with a warm smile. ”You don’t have to be afraid of falling. It’s simply part of living. So, my dear husbands, you can choose any path you want, and I will continue to support you!”