Villainess is being pampered by her beast husbands-Chapter 417 --.

"You saw Sparrow living a better life than you," Kaya said, eyes cold. "You got jealous." She leaned closer, her voice dropping. "So you wanted to harm him. You guided those bastards to the hotel because you thought I’d hand Sparrow over, and you’d get everything you want."

Liam’s lips parted. His eyes went wet fast, like a switch.

"That’s not—" he choked, a tear slipping down his cheek. "That’s not true—"

Kaya’s hand slammed his head down again.

THUD.

"Do you really think," she said, "you’d use your jinx power here and I wouldn’t notice?"

The whole cave froze.

Veer’s eyes widened. Cutie’s posture stiffened. Sparrow’s feathers lifted like he’d been hit by wind.

"What?" Sparrow breathed.

Liam went still too—just for a fraction. Like his body forgot how to act for a second.

Kaya caught it.

"From the moment you started speaking," she said, voice sharp, "from the moment you lowered your eyes and started shaking like a sad puppy—I saw it." Her nails tightened at his scalp. "You damn bastard. You think you’re a master actor?"

Liam groaned as she pressed his face harder to the table.

"How dare you sit in front of me," Kaya hissed, "and curse my people." Her eyes flicked toward Sparrow, then snapped back to Liam. "You dared to put jinx on Sparrow?"

Sparrow went rigid. His beak opened, then closed again, like his brain couldn’t pick a sound.

"I—" he started. "I didn’t—"

Kaya didn’t even look at him. She was already moving.

She grabbed Liam by the collar and flung him.

His body hit the rock wall with a brutal smack and slid down, coughing. Liam wasn’t a full-grown vulture warrior; he was in that teenage body, same as Sparrow. Kaya could handle him—especially now.

Liam tried to push himself up.

Kaya was on him in two strides.

She snatched a ribbon from the table—one of the spare ones meant for wedding decorations—and yanked it tight over his eyes. Liam thrashed, but she tied the knot hard, fast, no softness in it.

"Stop—!" he gasped, fighting blind.

Kaya grabbed his wrists, tied them. Then his ankles. Quick, practiced knots, like she’d done worse on battlefields. She hauled him up just enough to slam him back into the wall again.

This time his head cracked the stone.

Blood ran freely now, warm and slick, trailing down his temple.

Kaya stepped back half a pace and stared at him, breathing steady.

"You’re smart," she said, voice flat. "Too smart. You hide poison under pity."

Liam’s chest heaved. His mouth twitched.

Then—out of nowhere—a laugh bubbled out of him.

Soft at first. Broken.

Then louder.

"Ha... ha... ha..."

The sound was wrong in the cave. Not funny. Not normal. Like someone laughing because there was nothing else left.

Veer’s jaw clenched. Cutie’s eyes narrowed, calculating. Sparrow looked sick, confused, furious—all at once.

Kaya didn’t move.

She just watched him, eyes dead calm, like she was waiting for the real Liam to finally crawl out from behind that pretty face.

Liam’s laughter thinned into breath. He tilted his blindfolded head toward Kaya’s voice.

"Wow," he rasped, still smiling. "So it’s not just luck with you." He swallowed, then added, almost impressed, "You’re something else."

He shifted his bound hands as if testing the rope.

"And you think you caught me," he whispered. "Fine." His smile widened, ugly now. "Then ask the right question."

Kaya’s gaze sharpened.

"Who taught you to jinx," she said slowly, "and who sent you after Sparrow?"

Liam’s laughter came again—short, sharp.

"Now," he said, "we’re finally talking."

Liam’s head lolled against the rock, blindfold digging into his skin. Blood dripped down his temple, warm and slow. Even tied up, he still had that stupidly pretty face—like the gods had a sick sense of humor.

He lifted his chin toward Kaya’s voice.

His smile was faint, but his eyes—behind the ribbon—felt sharp.

"...Before that," he rasped, breathing uneven, "tell me something."

Kaya didn’t move. Her face was flat, but the air around her was tight.

"How did you find it?" Liam asked, tired and tense, like the question mattered more than the pain. "How did you know I was doing it?"

Kaya’s mouth twitched into something that wasn’t a smile.

She stepped closer, crouched so her face was level with his, and her voice came out cold and clear.

"Next time you want to curse someone," she said, "pick a person with real bad luck."

She leaned in a little, eyes burning.

"Do you really think I’m an idiot?"

Liam went still.

Kaya’s gaze didn’t leave him.

"From the moment we escaped the capital," she continued, "I knew you were behind it. Things were too neat. Too timed." Her tone sharpened. "You kept lowering your eyes like you were innocent. You kept speaking slow like you were harmless. But your luck kept trying to bite the same people again and again."

Veer shifted behind her, jaw tight, like he wanted to step in but didn’t dare interrupt. Cutie’s eyes stayed on Liam’s bound hands, reading him like a threat. Sparrow looked like he was both furious and afraid to hear the answer.

Liam’s lips parted.

Then he froze.

And then—he laughed.

It started low, rough, like it hurt his ribs. Then it grew, crazier, spilling out of him like he’d been holding it back for years.

"Ha... ha..." he breathed, shaking his head weakly. "Oh God..."

Kaya didn’t blink. She just watched, patient and merciless.

Liam’s laughter finally thinned into a broken exhale.

"Now I understand," he murmured, voice almost soft, almost honest.

He tilted his blindfolded face toward her again, like he could ’see’ her anyway.

"Why I was pulled toward you."

Liam didn’t stop talking even with his eyes tied. That was the thing about him—mouth full of bravado, like words could cut ropes.

"How about a deal?" he said, voice rough but teasing. "Throw that damn cousin of mine out and accept me as your mate, i am more handsome than him anyway."