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

The mission rewards were too good to pass up, and Roxanna knew this was also the perfect chance to become a better hunter.

Without wasting another second, she said, ”I’m only good at shooting with a bow. But I want to learn how to track prey through the forest.” She looked at the other women with eager eyes. ”Can you teach me?”

Carla was the first to nod. ”Of course! Let’s head to the forest right now!”

For the first time since returning to the Vixeria Settlement, Roxanna smiled from the bottom of her heart. ”I’ll go get my bow!”

She hurried back into the hut and grabbed her magical bow. After quickly fixing her hair, she rushed outside again. She jumped down from the porch, her fluffy fox tail swaying happily behind her as she jogged toward the waiting women.

”Let’s go!” Roxanna said enthusiastically.

To be honest, she thought it was kind of strange that she had suddenly regained the energy to do something other than lie around. But it seemed that having female friends was what boosted her spirits.

As she passed through the settlement gate, she spotted Luan standing guard. She immediately waved at him.

”Luan! I’m going out for a while! Tell Cyrus I’ll bring back some tiger meat for him to cook!”

Luan, who had been lazily leaning against the gate, immediately straightened his back. ”Do you want me to come with you?! Where are you going?!” he shouted from afar as Roxanna kept walking without any intention of stopping.

She giggled and turned around, walking backward so she could keep looking at him. ”No! This is a girls’ day! You’re not invited!”

Her last sentence made Luan feel a little attacked. However, seeing that his wife looked genuinely happy after several days of sadness, Luan eventually waved back at her. ”Take care!”

He knew that Carla and the other females going with Roxanna were strong, so he wasn’t too worried about it.

No, he lied.

He was still worried.

The moment Roxanna was almost out of sight, Luan quietly shifted into a black cat. His soft paws made no sound as he slipped through the trees, easily keeping up with the group while staying hidden.

There was no way Roxanna would notice she was being followed.

On the other hand, Roxanna couldn’t help but keep staring at Carla’s stone axe. It looked large and heavy, yet Carla carried it so easily, as if it were made of cork instead of stone.

”How long did it take you to get used to carrying something like that?” Roxanna asked without thinking.

Carla looked at her in confusion. ”What do you mean?”

Roxanna blinked several times before looking back at Carla with a curious expression. ”I mean... the axe looks so heavy. If it were me, I think it would take a long time to get used to carrying it.”

Carla suddenly burst into laughter. ”You’re adorable.” She lightly patted the axe resting on her shoulder. ”We don’t need much time to get used to this. It really isn’t that heavy.”

Roxanna gasped in surprise. ”Really?! Do you think I can carry it too?”

Carla shrugged with an easy smile. ”Why not?”

Roxanna immediately held out both hands, her eyes shining with excitement. ”Can I try?”

”Of course,” Carla replied with a nod.

Carla carefully lifted the stone axe off her shoulder and placed it into Roxanna’s waiting hands.

The moment Roxanna grabbed the handle, her eyes widened. ”Ugh?!”

The axe dropped so fast that her arms were pulled down with it. She nearly slammed face-first into the ground as the heavy stone head crashed toward the earth.

Fortunately, Carla reacted in time. She quickly caught the axe before it could crush Roxanna’s hands.

”Hahaha!” Carla laughed so hard that she had to hold her stomach. ”You couldn’t even lift it!”

Roxanna’s face instantly turned red with embarrassment. ”I-I wasn’t ready...”

Still smiling, Carla rested the axe back on her shoulder. ”You need to build some muscle first,” she said. ”And eat more. You’re a little too skinny.”

Roxanna blinked. Skinny?

She instinctively looked down at herself. [But I gained a few pounds because of the pregnancy...]

Unfortunately, the extra weight wasn’t visible at all. To everyone else, Roxanna looked exactly the same as before.

Another woman, Neria, chuckled. ”Carla’s right. You don’t have enough strength yet.”

”So... what should I do?” Roxanna asked honestly. ”I can’t suddenly become strong overnight.”

Kaela smiled. ”Start with simple things. Exercise outside every day.”

”You can climb trees,” Neria suggested.

”Or carry heavy things around the settlement,” Carla added. ”Firewood, large baskets, water jars... Anything with some weight.”

”The more you use your muscles, the stronger you’ll become.”

Roxanna listened carefully, nodding after every suggestion.

[I really have to make sure my husbands don’t spoil me too much!] she thought. [If they’re always the ones carrying everything heavy, I’ll never become stronger.]

Roxanna smiled awkwardly and scratched her cheek. ”My husbands... they always do everything for me.”

The women exchanged knowing looks before bursting into laughter.

”Oh, we noticed,” Neria said with a grin.

”Whenever you’re around, they act like you’re made of glass,” Kaela added.

Carla nodded in agreement. ”They don’t even let you carry a basket.”

Roxanna let out a helpless laugh. ”They just love me too much.”

”Then it’s time to change that,” Carla said with a smile. ”Next time they try to carry something for you, refuse.”

”Or just grab it and run,” Neria joked.

Everyone laughed and Roxanna laughed along with them before nodding firmly. ”I’ll do that.”

The women continued walking deeper into the forest, chatting and laughing along the way. For the first time in days, Roxanna felt the heavy weight in her heart slowly disappear.

”Alright, stop. Look,” Carla said.

She crouched beside a patch of soft earth and pointed at several marks on the ground. She asked Roxanna, ”What do you see?”

Roxanna leaned closer. She stared at the dirt for several seconds before shaking her head. ”Nothing?”

The other women chuckled. Carla smiled patiently. ”These are tiger tracks.”