Raising Beast Cubs to Find a Husband-Chapter 19: The Lioness in the Garden

I stared at the royal invitation. The paper was so thick it could probably stop a knife.

Her Imperial Highness, Princess Leonora. The "Easy Mode" Heroine. The Golden Girl. The one who was supposed to have the harem I was currently accidentally building.

My Hard Mode brain started flashing red alert lights.

Why does she want to meet me?

Did she know I stole her event with the thugs? Did she know I was "hoarding" the Capture Targets? Was she going to exile me? Behead me? Challenge me to a duel?

"I..." I swallowed hard, looking at the snooty courier. "I will attend, of course."

I turned to Luna. "Luna, you’re in charge. Do not let Vali eat the new rug. Do not let Jasper insult Vali’s intelligence. If Silas starts staring at a wall, give him a cookie."

"But Prim!" Luna whispered, looking terrified. "The Palace? That’s... that’s the Lion’s Den! Literally!"

"I know," I grimaced, untying my apron. "If I’m not back by dinner... tell the Dads they can have their chandelier back."

The Imperial Palace was ridiculous. It made the Argentis estate look like a shack. It was all white marble, gold spires, and guards who looked like they ate rocks for breakfast.

I was led into the Royal Gardens—a sprawling maze of exotic flowers and manicured hedges.

Sitting at a white iron tea table, bathed in sunlight, was Princess Leonora.

She was blinding. She had cascading golden-blonde hair, warm, sparkling hazel eyes, and rounded, fluffy lion ears that twitched with regal grace. She was wearing a dress that probably cost more than my entire life’s earnings.

She was the definition of a Main Character.

"Lady Primrose Thistle," she said. Her voice wasn’t angry. It was... curious. And a little tight. "Please. Sit."

I sat. I felt like a field mouse having tea with a sun-god.

"Your Highness," I said, dipping my head. "To what do I owe the... honor?"

Princess Leonora picked up a teacup. Her claws, perfectly manicured, clicked against the china.

"Rumors," she said softly, "are a dangerous thing in the capital. They say a ’failed’ Fox-kin has opened a shop in the common district."

I tensed. Here it comes. The know your place speech.

"They say," she continued, her hazel eyes locking onto mine, "that the Wolf Marquis, the Snake Archduke, the Panther Duke, and... General Khanda... visit this shop every day."

She said the last name differently. Her voice dipped. Her cheeks turned a tiny, faint shade of pink.

Wait.

My Gamer Brain paused. I replayed the audio.

General Khanda.

She didn’t emphasize the Archduke (the richest). She didn’t emphasize the Duke (the most mysterious). She emphasized the Tiger.

Oh my god, I realized. She doesn’t care about the harem. She has a crush on the Jock.

It made perfect sense. A Lioness and a Tiger. The two big cats of the empire. It was a match made in biological heaven.

"They... do visit," I said carefully. "To drop off their children. I run a daycare, Your Highness."

"I know what it is," Leonora said, leaning forward. The regal mask slipped, revealing a frustrated teenage girl underneath. "But why? General Khanda... he is a man of war. He effectively lives at the barracks. He has never taken an interest in... domestic matters. Yet my spies tell me he was seen laughing at your shop. He was seen carrying... melons."

She looked at me, her hazel eyes searching mine.

"What magic did you use?" she whispered. "Is it a charm? A fox-fire spell? Pheromones?"

I almost laughed. "Your Highness, I don’t have pheromones. I don’t have a tail."

"Then how?" she demanded, sounding almost desperate. "I have tried to invite him to balls. He says he is ’busy.’ I have sent him gifts. He returns them. How did you get him to... to bring you fruit?"

I looked at the most powerful woman in the empire. She wasn’t my rival. She was just a girl who couldn’t figure out how to flirt with a dense, gym-obsessed single dad.

I relaxed. I leaned back in my chair.

"It’s not magic, Princess," I said, a small smile playing on my lips. "And it’s not pheromones."

"Then what is it?"

"Protein," I said.

Leonora blinked. "Pro... teen?"

"General Khanda is a simple man," I explained, channeling my inner therapist. "He loves his son, he loves his country, and he loves efficient fuel. He didn’t come to my shop because I’m charming. He came because I figured out how to stop his son from vibrating through walls."

Leonora looked stunned. "His son... little Arjun? The one who broke a vase in the throne room?"

"The very same. Arjun was hyperactive. I fed him dense, slow-release energy balls. Now he naps. The General is grateful because he can finally hear himself think."

I leaned forward, lowering my voice to a conspiratorial whisper.

"You want to get the General’s attention, Your Highness?"

Leonora nodded eagerly, her lion ears twitching.

"Stop inviting him to balls. He hates standing around in formal wear. It makes him itchy."

"It does?" she gasped.

"Yes. Instead," I said, my Top Chef brain devising a menu, "invite him to a ’Military Strategy Lunch.’ Serve Spicy Fire-Roasted Lamb—he loves spice, it reminds him of the southern campaigns—and a heavy, dark ale. Do not talk about politics. Talk about... sword hilts. Or burpees."

Leonora looked at me like I had just handed her the keys to the universe.

"Spicy lamb," she murmured, pulling a small notebook out of her dress pocket and scribbling furiously. "Sword hilts. Burpees."

She looked up, her hazel eyes shining. "You... you are not trying to marry him?"

"Oh, god no," I said honestly. "He’s very loud."

The Princess let out a breath, her shoulders relaxing. The Rival Event flag dissolved into thin air.

"You are... not what I expected, Lady Primrose," she said, a genuine smile gracing her face. "I thought you were a seductress. But you are... a strategist."

"I’m a cook, Your Highness. We’re very practical."

"We are going to be friends," Leonora decided, snapping her notebook shut. "I will need that lamb recipe. And in return..."

She glanced at my simple dress, then at my tail-less back.

"If anyone gives you trouble in the capital," she said, her voice regaining its royal weight, "you tell them you are the personal culinary advisor to the Princess Imperial. That should silence the wagging tongues."

I blinked.

I had gone in expecting an execution. I was walking out with a royal pardon and the ultimate trump card.

Five cubs. Four B.A.D.s. And now... One Princess.

"Thank you, Your Highness," I said, standing up. "I’ll write down that recipe for you."

I walked out of the palace gardens feeling lighter than air.

The Hard Mode route was weird. Everyone thought I was playing 4D Chess, trying to seduce the empire.

In reality, I was just handing out snacks and relationship advice.

But as I walked toward the gate, I realized something. I had the Wolf, the Tiger, the Snake, the Panther, and the Princess.

I still didn’t have the Merman. I don’t even know how I would find him.

And unlike the others, he wasn’t going to walk into my shop. I needed to trigger his event.

I looked toward the distant, sparkling ocean.

Hold on, Prince Orion, I thought. The soup is coming.