Villainess is being pampered by her beast husbands-Chapter 431 --

Kaya pulled up a chair and sat across from him, arms crossed, eyes cold.

"Alright, Liam," she said flatly. "Let’s try this again. Who sent you?"

Liam’s smile widened. "No one."

Kaya didn’t blink. "Wrong answer."

"It’s the truth," Liam said smoothly. "I came here on my own. Heard about the vulture beastman who got soft over a Weak woman. Wanted to see if it was true."

Veer stepped closer, looming behind Kaya. "You didn’t come here just to sightsee. You jinxed us. You targeted Sparrow. You caused chaos. Why?"

Liam shrugged as much as he could with his hands tied. "Entertainment, mostly."

Sparrow’s feathers puffed up. "Entertainment? You almost killed me!"

"Almost," Liam said, grin never fading. "But you’re still here, aren’t you?"

Kaya leaned forward, voice dropping low and dangerous. "You’re lying. You didn’t do all this for fun. Someone benefits from this chaos. Someone wanted us distracted, divided, weakened." Her eyes narrowed. "So I’ll ask you one more time—who sent you?"

Liam held her gaze for a long moment, that infuriating smile still in place.

Then, finally, he sighed. "Fine. You want the truth?"

"Yes," Kaya said.

Liam leaned back in his chair, eyes glinting with something dark. "No one sent me. But someone’s been following me. Tracking my jinx. Using it."

The room went very still.

Cutie frowned. "Using it how?"

Liam’s smile turned colder. "My jinx doesn’t just cause bad luck. It attracts people who want to weaponize it. People who can twist misfortune into opportunity." He looked directly at Kaya. "And whoever’s been following me? They’re interested in you now."

Kaya’s jaw tightened. "Who?"

Liam shrugged. "Don’t know. Don’t care. But they’re close. And they’re patient." He tilted his head. "You’ve got bigger problems than me, sweetheart."

Veer’s hands clenched into fists. "You brought them here."

"I brought chaos," Liam corrected. "They brought themselves."

Kaya stood slowly, eyes never leaving Liam’s face. "If you’re lying—"

"I’m not," Liam said. "But even if I was, what are you going to do? Kill me? Lock me back in the box?" His grin widened. "Either way, they’re already here. And they’re watching."

The weight of his words settled over the room like a suffocating blanket.

Kaya turned to look at Veer, Cutie, and Sparrow. Their faces were grim, tension radiating off them in waves.

One month to deal with the tribe.

And now someone else was hunting them too.

Kaya’s hands curled into fists.

"Fine," she said quietly. "Then we deal with both."

Because backing down wasn’t an option.

And if the world wanted to keep throwing problems at her, she’d just keep breaking them one by one.

But then Liam’s expression shifted. The smug smile faded into something else—genuine curiosity, almost fascination. He leaned forward as much as his bindings allowed and looked directly at Kaya.

"Now my turn," he said.

Kaya’s frown deepened. "What?"

Liam tilted his head, studying her like she was a puzzle he couldn’t solve. "How did you survive?"

The room went quiet.

Kaya stared at him. "What are you talking about?"

Liam’s eyes swept over Veer, then Cutie, then Sparrow. "I used a little of my power on them. Tiny fractions. Just enough to tilt things—make accidents happen, create bad luck, push them toward breaking." He paused, then his gaze locked back onto Kaya. "But you? I used about 100% of my power on you."

Kaya’s body went still.

"Yet you’re here," Liam continued, voice dropping lower. "Alive. Walking. Talking. How?"

Veer stepped forward. "What the hell are you saying?"

Liam ignored him, eyes never leaving Kaya’s face. "When I focus my full jinx on someone, they don’t survive. They fall. They break. They die—sometimes fast, sometimes slow, but they always die." His expression twisted into something between confusion and awe. "So what are you? A beastman?" He sniffed the air, frowning. "No. Your scent is wrong. Too weak. Too ordinary. But no one even with beast blood could survive what I threw at you."

Kaya’s jaw tightened, but she didn’t answer.

Liam leaned closer, voice almost a whisper now. "So what are you?"

The silence stretched thick and heavy.

Cutie and Veer exchanged glances. Sparrow’s wings shifted nervously.

Kaya stood there, arms crossed, expression unreadable. Inside, her mind raced. She didn’t know why she survived. Didn’t know if it was luck, stubbornness, or something else entirely. But she wasn’t about to give Liam the satisfaction of seeing her doubt.

Finally, she spoke, voice cold and flat. "Maybe your power isn’t as strong as you think."

Liam’s eyes widened slightly—then he laughed. A real laugh, sharp and disbelieving. "No. No, that’s not it." He shook his head. "You’re lying. Or you don’t know. But there’s something different about you."

Kaya stepped closer until she was standing directly in front of him, looking down with eyes that could cut steel. "Here’s what I know," she said quietly. "I survived. You’re tied up. And if you keep pushing me, I’ll put you back in that box and leave you there until you rot."

Liam’s smile returned, but it was different now—sharper, more dangerous. "You can threaten me all you want, sweetheart. But you can’t hide what you are forever." His voice dropped to a whisper.

Kaya didn’t flinch. Didn’t blink.

But deep down, in a place she’d never admit out loud, his words settled like ice in her chest.

Because he was right.

She didn’t know how she survived.

And that terrified her more than anything else.

...

.

They shoved Liam back into the box and sealed the lid tight.

For a moment, the room held its breath—like everyone was waiting for someone to say something about what Liam had just revealed. About Kaya surviving his full power. About what that meant.

But no one spoke.

Veer turned away first, walking back toward the table where the scattered flowers still sat in messy piles. He picked one up, twirling it between his fingers with a small, almost playful smile tugging at his mouth—like nothing strange had happened at all.

"These are wilting," he said casually, holding up a drooping petal. "Guess I’ll have to pick fresh ones tomorrow."

Kaya stared at him, waiting for the question. Waiting for him to turn around and ask her ’what are you?’ like Liam had.

But Veer just kept sorting through the flowers, humming under his breath.

Cutie stretched his arms overhead and walked toward the small cooking area without a word. "I’m making stew," he announced to no one in particular. "Anyone want extra meat?"

Sparrow didn’t even answer with words. He just shifted—bones cracking, feathers sprouting—and in seconds he was in his bird form, hopping over to the corner where a massive chunk of roasted meat sat on a platter. He tore into it with his beak, ripping off pieces like he hadn’t eaten in days.

Kaya stood there, arms crossed, looking between all three of them.

They were acting ’normal.’

Too normal.

Like Liam hadn’t just told them she’d survived something that should’ve killed her. Like she wasn’t potentially something other than what she appeared to be. Like the question hanging in the air didn’t exist at all.

It should’ve been comforting.

Instead, it made her chest feel tight.