Fat and Ugly Villainess Wins Back Her Five Beast Husband

This was the first time Xavier had ever approached her so directly.

Clearly, it had taken considerable mental preparation.

Ever since tasting her cooking, especially the fried eggs and beggar’s chicken from the day before, he had found ordinary food increasingly difficult to eat. The cold, fishy eggs he usually consumed now seemed unbearably bland.

Sharing half of his eggs in exchange for another meal seemed like a fair trade.

Sora glanced at him before returning to her work.

”I can’t make fried eggs right now.”

Xavier stiffened.

”You don’t want to cook for me?”

Normally, Sora would have jumped at any opportunity to please him. Her indifference caught him completely off guard.

Sora shook her head.

”I’m not being stingy. I just don’t have any castor oil.”

Understanding dawned on Xavier’s face.

He had seen her use that oil before. After looking around and finding none, he reluctantly began withdrawing his hand.

Before he could leave, Sora called out casually.

”What’s the rush? If I can’t make fried eggs, I can make something else.”

Xavier paused.

”Something else?”

Despite his confusion, he obediently extended the eggs again.

Sora couldn’t help smiling.

Who would have thought a snake beastman would be such a foodie?

”You can have soft-boiled eggs.”

Xavier had no idea what soft-boiled eggs were, but if Sora was making them, he was willing to try.

”Fine.”

Since they were cooking together, Sora immediately put him to work.

Without looking up, she pointed toward a nearby tree.

”Go pick one of those fruits—the same kind as the one I’m using. We’ll need it to cook the eggs.”

Xavier frowned slightly.

Being ordered around by felt strange.

But gathering a fruit wasn’t difficult, and he’d already helped her collect banana leaves before.

Without complaint, he walked over and plucked one down.

Meanwhile, hidden among the trees nearby, another figure watched the entire exchange in disbelief.

Lucas.

He stared as Xavier obediently followed Sora’s instructions.

Since when had Xavier become so cooperative?

Xavier tossed the fruit onto the ground before glancing toward the woods.

”Come out.”

”Stop hiding.”

Sora looked up in confusion.

Moments later, a tall figure emerged from the trees.

Lucas.

She blinked.

”You’re here too?”

Then a suspicious look crossed her face.

”Don’t tell me you came for food as well.”

The forest fell silent.

Elsewhere in the tribe, Serena was busy working.

She glanced around carefully.

Most of the beastmen had already left to hunt, while the females were occupied washing clothes.

Finding herself alone, Serena quietly approached Sora’s fur blanket.

From her pouch, she produced the juice of a charm fruit and poured it onto the blanket.

A malicious smile spread across her face.

”This time,” she muttered, ”you won’t escape.”

The moment Sora asked her question, Xavier turned toward Lucas in confusion.

Wasn’t Lucas the one who disliked Kaelira the most?

Then why was he hiding in the forest secretly watching her?

Lucas rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

Truthfully, he’d overheard Kaelira’s argument with Lyra earlier.

When he learned she planned to cook breakfast, curiosity had gotten the better of him.

Yesterday’s beggar’s chicken had been unforgettable.

Just thinking about it made his mouth water.

Unable to resist, he’d followed her, hoping to secretly learn how she cooked.

What he hadn’t expected was finding Xavier already there—bringing eggs and even helping her gather ingredients.

The sight was so shocking that he’d forgotten to conceal himself.

Now that he’d been exposed, denying anything would be pointless.

Sora quickly understood.

He wanted food but was too embarrassed to ask.

Trying to have it both ways.

Fortunately, she’d made enough for everyone.

”If you want to eat, that’s fine,” she said. ”I’m making extra corn porridge anyway.”

Lucas’s eyes brightened.

Then Sora continued.

”But you need to agree to one condition.”

His expression instantly darkened.

For a moment, he considered leaving.

Yesterday’s food had nearly made him forget Kaelira’s previous obsession with forcing herself onto her husbands.

There was no way he’d agree to sleep with her for a meal.

Seeing the look on his face, Sora immediately understood his misunderstanding.

She rolled her eyes.

”Relax. It has nothing to do with your body.”

Lucas looked embarrassed.

Then he asked cautiously,

”What do you want?”

Sora pointed toward the unfinished houses visible near the tribe.

”I want to build a house.”

She folded her arms.

”You just need to help me find people willing to build it.”

Ever since arriving in this world, she’d seen tribe members constructing simple cave-style homes.

She wanted one of her own.

If she had her own place to live, she wouldn’t have to rely on those troublesome beastmen to guard her every night.

With walls, a door, and a fire burning inside, she could keep herself safe. Besides, even though she now lived in a primitive society, she was still a woman. There would inevitably be days when she felt unwell and sleeping out in the open would be especially uncomfortable.

Lucas was surprised by her request.

He never expected Kaelira to take the initiative to build a house.

Gathering wood wasn’t difficult for him, but one thing bothered him.

Why did Xavier get off so easily?

All he’d done was bring a few eggs, yet he was getting a delicious breakfast.

That hardly seemed fair.

”I don’t mind helping gather wood,” Lucas said, crossing his arms. ”But Xavier only brought some eggs and still gets to eat. Isn’t that unfair? If that’s the case, I can bring eggs too.”

Xavier let out a soft snort.

”Who told you not to arrive earlier?”

Sora nodded thoughtfully.

Lucas had a point.

She had only promised Xavier soft-boiled eggs because he’d brought the ingredients. If he wanted anything beyond that, he would have to contribute just like Lucas.

Hearing that, Lucas immediately looked much more satisfied and shot Xavier a smug look.

At first, Sora hadn’t thought much about it, but after considering Lucas’s argument, she realized she needed to establish some boundaries. If these two discovered they could exchange a few eggs for free meals every day, she’d end up working herself to death.

Xavier froze for a moment.

Then his gaze landed on the golden corn kernels Sora was pouring into the makeshift pot.

After a brief internal struggle, he relented.

”Fine. But the eggs I brought aren’t for Lucas.”

Sora nodded.

”Naturally. They’re yours. Whatever we make from them belongs to us.”

The moment she said that, Lucas’s proud expression collapsed.

Xavier folded his arms, clearly pleased.

Nothing could be done about it.

After all, he was the one who had brought eggs.

With the matter settled, Sora returned to cooking.

Most of the corn kernels had already been removed from the cobs. She poured water from the nearby pool into the stone stove she’d built and set the improvised pot over the fire.

Meanwhile, she filled the fruit shell Xavier had gathered with water and placed it over a second fire to boil.

As she waited, she sharpened several branches with her stone knife and skewered peeled corn onto them.

Handing them over, she instructed the two beastmen,

”Hold these over the fire and turn them regularly. If you leave them too long on one side, they’ll burn.”

Neither complained.

They obediently took the corn and began roasting it.

Only then did Lucas finally understand why Xavier had been helping so willingly.

It felt surprisingly natural.

After all, if doing a little work meant eating delicious food sooner, what was the problem?

Soon, both men were focused on roasting corn while Sora stirred the porridge to keep it from sticking.

When the corn porridge was nearly finished, she carefully lowered the eggs into the boiling water.

Counting silently in her head, she waited exactly six minutes before removing them and cooling them in water.

Next, she cleaned several fruit shells and turned them into makeshift bowls.

After peeling the eggs, she seasoned them with salt and herbs she’d collected earlier.

The result wasn’t perfect without soy sauce, but it was still far better than eating wild fruit.

Xavier’s eyes widened when he saw the soft, golden egg yolk.

He had never imagined eggs could be prepared like this.

Quickly fashioning a pair of chopsticks from branches, he picked up a piece and tasted it.

The texture was silky and tender.

Delicious.

Seeing Xavier’s reaction, Lucas stared in disbelief.

Unfortunately, Xavier had no intention of sharing.

He happily continued eating by himself.