The Spoilt Beauty And Her Beasts-Chapter 596: Luca and Asael Like You

Now it was just Shelia and Isabella walking together.

The village was still busy, but there was a small pocket of quiet around them.

Isabella felt a little bored. Her fingers itched for mischief.

Her gaze slid to Shelia.

This girl was similar to Kian in some ways. Straightforward. Strong. Not afraid to speak her mind. But when it came to her own matters, she was strangely slow.

Isabella suddenly remembered something.

Luca and Asael both have a crush on her.

She had noticed their eyes in the past. The way Asael, Kian’s personal guard, always stood a little closer when Shelia was near. The way Luca, the loyal guard, always tried to say something smart when she was around.

Isabella’s lips curled.

"Shelia," she said casually, "you have grown more popular recently."

Shelia blinked. "Popular?"

"Yes. Have you not noticed?" Isabella tilted her head. "Some men are always circling around you."

Shelia frowned a little. "They are guards. Their job is to circle around me and my brother."

Isabella almost laughed out loud.

She held herself back and continued, "I am not talking about those who guard you because you are a princess. I am talking about those who bring you snacks for no reason. Those who always seem to appear when you need something carried."

Shelia looked thoughtful.

"Luca," Isabella said slowly, "is very attentive to you."

"Luca?" Shelia repeated. "He is my brother’s trusted guard. Of course he is attentive. If I fall and break my leg, Kian will cut off his head."

Isabella hummed. "What about Asael?"

Shelia blinked again. "Asael is Kian’s personal Guard, of course he is also protective. He follows him."

So slow.

Isabella sighed in her heart.

"You do not think it is strange?" Isabella asked lazily. "That every time you say you are thirsty, one of them appears with water. Every time you say you are tired, one of them sacrifices his back for you to sit on. When other males look at you too long, one of them glares until that male looks away."

Shelia’s steps slowed.

She thought back to many small moments that she had simply accepted.

Had they always been that obvious?

"Also," Isabella added in a gentle voice, "when you smile, they both look like someone is strangling their hearts, but they still want to see it again."

Shelia stopped walking completely.

Her ears turned red first. Then the color spread to her cheeks.

"You are joking," she said stiffly.

Isabella looked up at the sky. "I do not waste my breath on jokes this long."

Shelia’s heart started beating faster.

Luca and Asael. The two guards she had always treated as people who happened to be near her brother. She had never really thought deeper about their actions.

Now that she thought about it, she realized that they had both treated her too carefully.

Was it really like that?

While she stood there, lost in thoughts, footsteps sounded near them.

Luca walked toward them carrying something in his arms.

He was tall, with strong shoulders and calm eyes. The stripes on his arm showed his rank. His expression was usually serious, but when he saw Isabella, the corners of his mouth softened slightly out of respect.

He walked up to them and bowed his head.

"Isabella," he greeted.

Isabella narrowed her eyes. "Did you finish your patrol already?"

"Yes. I checked the east side twice," Luca replied.

"Good," she said. "If there is a hole in the wall, I will blame you."

His lips twitched. "There will be no hole."

He turned to Shelia and, as if it was the most natural thing in the world, held out a wrap of dried meat in his palm.

"Shelia," he said, "this is from the fresh batch we made today. It tastes better than yesterday’s. You can snack on it."

In the past, Shelia would simply take it without thinking.

She used to believe that as her brother’s guard, he was just being polite. She was the king’s sister, after all.

But after Isabella’s words, she saw the scene differently.

Luca’s fingers were large and rough from training. He held the dried meat carefully as if he was afraid of dropping it.

His eyes seemed calm, but there was a hint of nervousness hidden inside, like a beast waiting to see if it would be accepted or rejected.

Her heart thumped.

He has liked me that long?

She did not know what to do.

Her cheeks puffed slightly, both from embarrassment and the feeling of being caught in something she was not prepared for.

She reached out and took the meat from his hand.

"Thank you," she said, trying to sound normal.

He smiled faintly. "If you want more, I will bring it."

He did not seem to realize that the air between them had changed.

Luca had no idea that Isabella had just poked a sleeping part of Shelia’s heart awake.

Isabella, on the other hand, saw everything clearly.

Knowing that she had started something, she decided it was time to leave.

"I suddenly remembered I have work in the palace," she said lightly. "You two talk slowly."

She walked away with a small mischievous smile curling at her lips.

Luca watched her back and frowned slightly.

What is she planning again?

Shelia nibbled the dried meat with her head lowered. Her thoughts were in a mess.

Do I like him?

She did not know yet.

But she could not deny that her heart had become a little noisier.

...

After leaving them, Isabella headed toward the stone palace.

She did actually have work to do.

Or at least, she tried.

The moment she reached for a basket of dried herbs near the entrance, a hand took it out of her grip.

"I will carry it," Cyrus said.

She moved to drag a small stool to the side. Before her fingers could touch it, Zyran picked her up from behind.

"You do not need a stool," he said. "You can sit on me."

"Put me down you shameless bastard!" Isabella snapped.

He reluctantly lowered her onto a proper chair.

Osiris came in carrying firewood. "What are you trying to move again? You should not touch anything heavier than a stick."

Isabella wanted to scream.

Kian walked in last with several scrolls made of bark.

"You should rest," he said simply.

She glared at the four of them.

"I am not sick."

"You are pregnant," Cyrus replied softly.

"That is worse," Zyran added.

Osiris nodded seriously. "You are carrying more than one life. That is heavier than a rock."

Kian said nothing, but his dark eyes were firm.

In the end, Isabella sat on the chair with her arms crossed, watching four large beastmen move around the room, carrying, sorting, and lifting everything while she was not even allowed to move a stool.

She looked at her round belly.

She looked at the four overprotective idiots.

She took a deep breath.

"Fine," she thought. "This winter, I will just become the village’s most powerful decoration."

Bubu snickered in her mind.

[The most beautiful decoration too.]

She pretended not to hear.

...

The cold grew stronger with each passing day.

Frost appeared more often on the ground in the mornings, and the villagers’ breaths turned into pale white clouds when they spoke.

Outside the village’s main work area, two groups of men lined up.

On one side were the refugee men who had arrived earlier. Some still looked thin, but their faces had more color now. They wore borrowed cloaks from the villagers and slowly blended in with time.

On the other side stood the former poachers.

Their clothes were patched, and several of them still had bandages on their arms or legs. The marks from Isabella’s fan were healing, but the memory of pain remained clear in their eyes.

Now they all held simple tools, not weapons.

Isabella walked up to them.

Kian stood slightly behind her. Cyrus, Zyran, and Osiris were nearby. Several trusted village guards spread along the sides, watching quietly.

"Listen," Isabella said, her voice carrying through the cold air.

"The winter will be harsh. If you want to survive, you work. I do not care where you came from. Today, you are either useful or you are not."

The refugee men straightened their backs.

The poachers swallowed.