Taming the Beast World with a Frying Pan-Chapter 146: With Friends like These

Vex laughed, the sound bright and mocking in the tense silence.

"Oh, Vara," he chided, shaking his head as if dealing with a petulant child. "You are entirely too nosy. It is unbecoming."

"Threatening war just because I refuse to show you my mate? That is petty," Vex jeered, his voice dripping with condescension. "And honestly? It is simply just very pathetic."

He tutted softly. "And to answer the question I know is burning a hole in that jealous little mind of yours—yes. My mate is prettier than you. By a million times. It really isn’t even a competition."

Vara’s face turned a violent shade of beet red, her mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. She was trembling with a mix of embarrassment and murderous rage.

But before she could scream, the mountain of muscle behind her stepped forward.

"Turn around, Fox." 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

The voice was low, laced with malice and a promise of extreme violence.

"Or I will make you turn around."

Ren froze against Vex’s chest. ’Who is that?’ she wondered, her heart skipping a beat. The voice sounded terrifying—heavy, rough, and soaked in cruelty. She didn’t remember anyone sounding that scary in the White Tiger Clan.

At first, Ren thought maybe he was Vara’s new bodyguard. But then, the gears in her fever-addled brain clicked into place.

’Wait...’ Ren realized. ’This Beast World is likely misogynistic. The females don’t lead. They might be prized for breeding, but they’d never rule. Vara couldn’t hold the throne alone. She would need a King. A king she can control!’

Her eyes widened as the horrifying truth dawned on her.

’That scheming witch drove Kael to madness intentionally! It was her plan all along to get rid of him and rule the clan herself!’

The realization hit Ren like a slap to the face. The injustice of it, the cruelty—it incinerated her fear.

Anger, hot and white, overpowered her common sense.

"You bitch!" Ren shrieked.

She pushed away from Vex with all her strength, catching him off guard. She stumbled out of his protective embrace and pointed a shaking finger at Vara.

"You plotted against him!" Ren yelled, her voice raspy but full of venom. "You are nothing but a dirty traitor! A low-budget soap opera villain with bad hair!"

"Shit," Vex cursed under his breath. He reached for her, but he wasn’t able to stop her in time.

Ren’s tirade was just getting started, but her breath hitched in her throat, cutting her words off instantly.

She finally properly noticed him.

Looming behind Vara was a giant. A mass of scarred muscle and a head of dark hair. He had one good eye that glowed with a dull yellow light. The other was a mess of ruin. He looked terrifying—like a nightmare birthed from the deepest, darkest pits of Ren’s imagination.

Vara’s face, initially twisted in surprise, slowly morphed into pure, malicious glee as she recognized the disheveled mammal.

"Well, well, is that who I think it is?" Vara breathed, a wicked smile stretching across her face.

Vex moved instantly. He stepped between them, using his three large, bushy tails to force Ren behind his back.

Vara laughed, a high, tinkling sound that grated on Ren’s nerves.

"Is that Kael’s pet?" Vara asked, looking at Vex with amusement. "Is that your ’mate,’ Vex?"

She clapped her hands together, delighted.

"Oh, this is perfect," Vara sneered. "So, the Snake King finally got bored of the mammal and traded her to the fox? This is hilarious! She must be barren. Broken. Unable to breed. No King wants a mate who can’t give birth to his young."

Vara looked at Ren with pitying disgust. "You are even more pathetic than I thought. Syris must have come to the forest to make the trade with Vex. And since he was here..."

Vara’s eyes brightened with glee as she put the puzzle together in her mind. "He must have taken Kael earlier to torment him. To play with him before killing him. It makes perfect sense."

Ren wasn’t even listening to Vara anymore. She was focused entirely on the terrifying beastman who was staring at her with his one good eye.

Carik looked at her like she was a snack. Not in a sexual way, but in a literal, culinary way. He looked every bit like he wanted to rip her to pieces and then feed on the carnage left behind, that would be her bloody and torn-apart body.

Ren was genuinely afraid. Terrified, even. Her knees knocked together.

She hesitantly tore her gaze away from his terrifying face to look down. She gulped.

There was blood on the ground. And there was blood on the beastman.

’The blood on his wounded eye is fresh,’ Ren noted, her stomach churning. ’It looks nasty.’

Hope flared in her chest. ’Kael must have fought this thing. He took out its eye!’

Based on what Vara said, Ren was happy to know that Kael was still alive, even if he was wounded. But the relief was short-lived.

’If Syris took him...’ Ren thought, panic rising. ’The Rite of the Severed Fang! He’ll finish him off!’

She regretted moving from the safety of Vex’s embrace. She wasn’t thinking.

’We are so dead,’ Ren despaired. ’And maybe Kael is about to be too.’

She looked up at Vex.

The Fox Shaman stood tall, his posture relaxed. He looked calm—a stark contrast to the panic and fear set in Ren’s features.

Vara smirked, folding her arms. "I am feeling generous today," she announced. "Vex, you have helped me many times in the past, despite your annoyance. I will allow you to leave. Out of courtesy."

She pointed a manicured claw at Ren.

"But the pet stays."

Ren’s heart thumped hard in her chest. Thud. Thud. Thud.

The silence stretched on after Vara’s offer. The wind rustled the leaves, sounding like whispering ghosts.

Ren’s face paled even more. ’Is he considering it?’ she thought frantically. ’Is he actually going to leave me here with these monsters?’

She looked at his profile, but she couldn’t read his face. It was a blank, beautiful mask.

Slowly, Vex turned to her. He reached out and clutched her shoulders, his grip firm. A small, unreadable smile played on his lips.

"Little Rose," he said softly. "Do you trust me?"

Ren was breathing heavily, sniffling as she stared into his vibrant orange eyes. They didn’t betray a single thing. Not a plan, not a reassurance, nothing.

Ren’s response was immediate and honest.

"No."

Vex’s smile widened.

"Awesome."

Then, without warning, he shoved her hard.

Ren stumbled forward, propelled by his strength, right into the open space between him and Vara.

"She is all yours!" Vex yelled cheerfully.

Ren stood in shock, her arms flailing for balance. She watched, mouth agape, as Vex spun around and dashed away into the forest, leaving her to the mercy of Vara and her new King.

Ren couldn’t even comprehend what just happened. Her brain short-circuited. ’Did he just... did he just throw me to the wolves? Literally? To save himself?!’

Vara laughed, a cruel, triumphant sound. She walked up to Ren, stopping just inches away. In her hand, she held a jagged, medium-sized rock she had picked up.

A smirk twisted her lips as she looked down at the trembling female.

"An unwanted mate who cannot breed," Vara jeered, her eyes gleaming with malice. "Of course, he ran. Of course, they all abandon you. You are useless."

Just as Ren turned, Vara brought the rock down hard on her head.

The world exploded into white stars, then instantly faded to black. Ren crumbled to the ground, unconscious.