Bai Lian hurriedly led Su Yaoyao to the garden outside the banquet hall, with Reg and Pani following close behind.

When Bai Lian stopped, Su Yaoyao was panting, her chest heaving.

After catching her breath, she finally looked up, her gaze sweeping over her three Beast Husbands in the moonlight. Her voice was tinged with suspicion as she probed, "The lights in the hall just now... was that your doing?"

For a moment, the air seemed to freeze. Bai Lian and Reg exchanged a glance, both choosing to remain silent. Only Pani nodded.

Pani’s voice was full of grievance and resentment. "His Majesty went too far, stealing Yaoyao’s first dance. I’ve been waiting for so long just to have the first dance with you."

Reg crossed his arms, his face a mask of displeasure, and chimed in, "And he held Yaoyao so tightly, refusing to let go for even a second. It was like he was claiming you as his and his alone, treating us as if we weren’t even there!"

A flicker of displeasure crossed Bai Lian’s eyes, and his voice was low. "He almost kissed you." As he spoke, he slowly raised his hand, his fingertips gently brushing against Su Yaoyao’s lips. "These lips... only we are allowed to touch them."

Su Yaoyao’s cheeks instantly flushed crimson, like ripe apples, and they felt scorching hot.

Recalling that near-spark from a moment ago, her thoughts were a tangled mess. She truly had no idea what to do.

Reg narrowed his eyes, his gaze resentful. "He’s His Majesty, after all. We can’t openly confront him, so this was the only way we could get you out of there. Otherwise, who knows what else he might have done."

"Is Yaoyao going to punish us? Or... did Yaoyao actually want to kiss His Majesty?" The rims of Pani’s eyes grew red. "His Majesty is handsome and powerful. Yaoyao, you... you’re not falling for him, are you?"

As soon as he said it, the three men’s gazes fell upon Su Yaoyao all at once, intense as searchlights.

Caught off guard by the sudden, interrogating stares, Su Yaoyao was at a complete loss. She waved her hands frantically, speaking in a rush, "No, no, no! Not at all! I was completely stunned at that moment, I wasn’t thinking about anything else!"

Changing the subject, not wanting to miss the opportunity, Bai Lian took a step forward and held out his hand, palm up, his expression full of anticipation and longing. "Yaoyao, dance with us. We all want to dance with you so much."

Something stirred in the softest part of Su Yaoyao’s heart. She never wanted to play favorites, and it felt right that a romantic dance should be shared with her Beast Husbands. She nodded firmly in agreement.

A gentle smile touched Bai Lian’s lips. He softly took Su Yaoyao’s hand, his other hand resting securely on the small of her back. His movements were gentle yet firm as he guided her into a slow dance.

A soft breeze stirred, causing strands of their hair to intertwine.

Bai Lian’s gaze never left Su Yaoyao as he said with deep emotion, "Yaoyao, your beauty makes the moonlight itself seem dull. In my heart, you are my entire world. Without you, none of this means anything."

His gaze was filled with such deep affection and longing, as if nothing else in the world existed—only she was his everything.

Su Yaoyao looked at him, moved, and replied softly, "Leon, you’re my whole world too. Having you by my side makes me feel so safe."

With a light twirl, Su Yaoyao was passed to her next partner. Reg eagerly pulled her into his embrace, his arm wrapping tightly around her waist. His eyes burned with a fiery passion as he murmured,

"Dancing with you... this is the happiest moment of my life. I wish time would just stop right now. From now on, you have to dance every dance with me, okay?"

His gaze was fixed on Su Yaoyao’s face, and every time their eyes met, it felt like a jolt of electricity, making her heart beat uncontrollably faster.

Her cheeks slightly flushed, Su Yaoyao smiled and agreed, "Okay. From now on, I’ll dance every dance with you."

After another graceful twirl, Pani steadily caught her.

His face was alight with pure joy, his eyes sparkling like stars in the night sky.

He said excitedly as they danced, "Yaoyao, meeting you makes me feel like the luckiest Beastman in the world! No matter where you go from now on, you have to take me with you, okay?"

He held her hand tightly, as if afraid she would disappear the moment he let go.

Su Yaoyao smiled and nodded, saying gently, "Of course. I’ll take my little tag-along with me wherever I go."

As the music drew to a close, Su Yaoyao found herself back in Bai Lian’s arms.

Bai Lian’s eyes were full of deep affection and longing. He lowered his head slightly and leaned in slowly toward Su Yaoyao.

Su Yaoyao’s cheeks were burning, and her heart pounded like a drum. She tilted her head up slightly and closed her eyes, awaiting the touch that was about to come.

Bai Lian’s lips gently met hers. The kiss was tender yet profound, filled with endless longing and affection.

Su Yaoyao’s face grew even redder. Her hands rested lightly on Bai Lian’s shoulders as she found herself kissing him back.

The watery moonlight spilled over them, freezing the beautiful scene in time.

Lost in the kiss, Bai Lian suddenly felt a searing gaze burning into him like fire.

He slowly lifted his gaze, following the stare to find Augustine standing on the balcony.

Augustine’s eyes were filled with jealousy and resentment. His hands were clenched into tight fists, his knuckles white from the force.

Instead of stopping, Bai Lian, as if in deliberate provocation, deepened the kiss.

He pulled Su Yaoyao tighter against him, as if staking his claim on her for Augustine to see.

Caught in the intense atmosphere, Su Yaoyao felt as if her heart would leap from her chest. She was completely lost in the complex, charged situation, unable to pull away.

Augustine stood on the balcony, staring intently at the couple kissing intimately in the garden. An icy aura radiated from him. The wine glass in his hand creaked under the pressure before it finally shattered in his palm.

"Your Majesty..." a nearby guard ventured cautiously, sensing his master’s fury and hoping to break the suffocatingly tense atmosphere.

Augustine paid him no mind. His gaze remained fixed on Bai Lian and Su Yaoyao.

His mind replayed the wonderful moments of his dance with Su Yaoyao, and that almost-kiss, so close and yet so cruelly interrupted.

Jealousy, like a venomous snake, gnawed viciously at his heart.

Finally, he took a deep breath, forcing down his rage, and strode away from the balcony.

His heavy footsteps echoed in the empty corridor, each one landing with enough force to vent the resentment and fury in his heart into the floor. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"To my chambers," Augustine’s voice was low and cold, devoid of any warmth. "I am not to be disturbed."