"Let me do it!" An unfamiliar voice suddenly echoed, stunning the four.
They looked around and found the snow haired wolf beastman.
"It's you!" Lily was slightly surprised and cast Berry a look.
Berry shook her head immediately.
"I... I want to help," the wolf beastman stammered, staring straight into Lily's eyes.
Lily's heart skipped a beat. "Calm down... calm down, you've seen many handsome men before, just calm" she thought. "Aren't you used for exchang for goods? Why are you here?" she inquired.
"I am here for you!" the wolf beastman responded immediately, locking his gaze with hers as if he wanted to enter her soul through her eyes.
Lily felt struck by lightning. "What... what's going on here? Even after masking my beauty, I still can't escape this?" she wondered.
"Don't you think you're being willful?" Angus's cold voice resonated.
The wolf beastman glanced at Angus, and his brows knitted together. "Just because you are her mate doesn't mean you can decide for her!" His eyes turned cold instantly, and a chilling aura filled the air.
Angus was so enraged that he was ready to fight, but Lily immediately stepped in between them. "Is there a need to fight? Let's maintain peace, okay?" she stated.
Berry continued laughing inwardly, while Liam wore a dark expression on his face.
"Sister!" the wolf beastman walked closer to Lily and held her hand. "What a soft hand!" he exclaimed inwardly, unable to help but place her hand on his face, savoring the warmth.
Lily's heart began pounding immediately. "Damn! It's trouble for a man to be too handsome; even I find it hard to resist this temptation," she thought.
"Sister, you can call me Malik," the wolf beastman said softly, looking at Lily with a seductive gaze.
"Jezz!" Lily screamed inwardly, and soon she felt a trickle of blood from her nose.
"Ah! Angel! You are bleeding!" Liam exclaimed in alarm, quickly dragging Lily toward him and cleaning her nose with worry evident on his face.
"What have you done to her?!" Angus shouted angrily, unable to control himself any longer. He lost his composure and transformed completely into a giant snake.
This sudden turn of events caught everyone's attention, and they gathered to watch the scene.
Malik didn't care about the crowd or his safety; he was worried about Lily. "Sister, are you alright?" his panicked voice echoed.
Angus didn't wait a second longer and lunged forward, attempting to swallow Malik whole.
"Angus, stop!" Lily shouted, managing to halt him in time. He looked at her, hissing, clearly displeased.
"This has nothing to do with him! It's normal to have a nosebleed, okay? Look, it stopped already; I'm not hurt!"
Angus hissed again, obviously unconvinced, his deadly aura continued to spread.
"Sister!" Malik called out, wanting to reach for Lily but was wrapped tightly by Angus' tail, squeezing him with clear intentions to break all his bones.
Malik felt pain but didn't scream. "Sister... before I die, I want you to know that I like you, and I want to be your mate," he stammered, looking into Lily's eyes with unmistakable sincerity.
Lily's eyes widened, and her heart raced even faster. "Why am I feeling like this about Malik?" She thought and look at the fierce Angus. "release him Angus!" she shouted.
"He clearly hurt you just now, yet you still want me to leave him? Besides, he's too weak—unworthy to be your mate if you intend to accept him." Angus transformed into his human form and scolded her.
Lily's heart raced. "Whether I want to accept him or not is not up to you to decide! Just let him go!"
Angus turned a deaf ear to her plea.
Lily looked at Malik, who appeared ready to lose consciousness at any moment, and gritted her teeth. "If you don't let him go, I... I will disown you!" she threatened.
Angus merely cast her a glance.
"Damn! What was with that gaze, huh! It was as if he was asking me if I can do it!" Lily thought. "Fine... you know I can't, right?... No problem. You go ahead... go ahead and kill him, but let me tell you this, if you kill him, don't bother to show your face in front of me ever again! I have Liam with me anyway," she threatened. "Let's see if you dare not leave him, humph!" she added in her thoughts.
Liam was beaming with joy upon hearing Lily's words. "Beauty relies on me! Hey, snake, kill him! Kill him immediately, then I will have my beauty for myself, haha!" he thought.
Hearing the seriousness in Lily's threat, Angus immediately released Malik.
Liam's happiness vanished immediately. "Why did you act contrary to my expectations?" he lamented inwardly.
Lily rushed to Malik. "Are you alright?" she asked, lifting his head off the ground and placing it on her shoulder.
Only the author knows whether it was intentional or not, but Malik stylishly shifted his head off Lily's shoulder and placed it on her breast. "Sis... Sister, please let me hold you like this," he stammered, holding Lily's hand while sending a provocative gaze at Angus.
"He's hiding his strength!" Angus's eyes widened in realization, and he gritted his teeth. "Taking advantage of my mate!" His voice was deep as he took a step forward with the intention of beating Malik up.
"What do you think you want to do, Angus?" Lily immediately hugged Malik protectively. "You need to stop! Okay, Me having a nosebleed really has nothing to do with him," she asserted.
Lily was so close to Malik that their scents blended just by inhaling Lily's fragrance. "She smells like morning flowers, what a perfect female," he thought, closing his eyes and inhaling more of her fresh scent. "She's just too soft," he thought, stylishly hugging her.
Angus saw every move Malik made, and his anger rose even more. "Why is your heart so soft, just like your body? He's clearly taking advantage of you," he thought, gritting his teeth together.
The innocent Lily didn't realize she had been taken advantage of and showed a worried expression. "Berry, help me check him!" she looked at Berry.
Berry sighed and moved closer to Malik. Just as she was about to touch him, Malik's eyes suddenly flashed danger, stunning Berry and forcing her to retreat immediately.
"What happened, Berry?" Lily asked in worry.
He..." Before Berry could finish her statement, she was shot another glance by Malik. Nervously, she could only smile dryly. "His... his condition is worse. I... I can't take care of him, but maybe you can." she quickly stated. But just as she finished her words, she suddenly felt a chilling gaze behind her. "I'm done... her snake mate..." she cried inwardly.
Lily was dumbfounded. "I don't know anything about healing," she admitted worriedly.
"Err...." Berry was nervous and cast a glance at Angus, whose gaze was dark and frightening. "How am I going to escape this mess unscathed? Both of them are so powerful," she thought.
"You tell me something, Berry," Lily urged.
"Err..." Berry stammered. "Just ask him; he knows better than I do," she replied.
Lily bit her lower lip and cast Angus a deadly glare.
Angus avoided her gaze immediately.
"Ma... Malik, tell me how to treat you, okay? I will definitely try my best."
"Sister..." Malik looked at Lily with a dying gaze. "I just want to be your mate, that's all. If you agree, I will heal myself immediately, but if you don't, I would rather die," he professed.
"I..." Lily bit her lower lip. "He gets hurt because of me. Accepting him means I apologize to him right. Also, having one more handsome husband is not a loss for me," she thought. "Fine, I accept you, okay? Can you start healing now?" she inquired.
Malik smiled charmingly. "Thank you," he murmured.
"You heal yourself first... don't be too excited," Lily scolded.
"I'm fine now," Malik declared, ready and in good health.
"Huh!" Lily was dumbfounded.
Malik stood up and stretched, the sound of bones fixing could be heard loud and clear, stunning Lily. "I'm healthy now," he beamed.
Lily was completely speechless. "Just like that!" she thought, and looked at Berry. "Didn't you say his condition was critical?" she questioned.
Berry nodded.
"Forget it... I can't go back on my promise, can I?" she thought. "You... you sure you are fine now?"
Malik nodded.
"Angus, shouldn't you apologize to him?" Lily asserted.
"I don't apologize," Angus responded almost immediately.
"You..."
"My mate, I should know your name right," Malik interjected swiftly.
Lily smiled. "Call me Angel," she replied.
"Angel..." Malik repeated, silently committing the name to memory. "I will get the sticks ready now," he declared and dashed off immediately.
Lily was suddenly lifted by Angus, who pulled her close. "You shouldn't trust people easily, your heart is too soft" he admonished.
Lily folded her arms and pouted. "You can lecture me now, but you didn't even listen to me when I was telling you to let go of him earlier!"
Angus stared at Lily for a long moment. "Sorry," his low murmur echoed.
"Yo... I think someone just said he does not apologize," Lily rolled her eyes and scoffed.
"I only apologize to you, no one else."
Lily looked at Angus before sighing. "Forget it; we will settle this later. Let's handle today's business first," she remarked.
...
Hiding behind a large tree near the market was a masked man with two little horns on his head. He seemed to have witnessed the scene with Lily and her mates and quickly rushed away.
Angus's gaze fixed on the huge tree, and a light frown appeared on his face.
A: (Lily's Thought: it's not that my heart is too soft, it's just that this is the world where sincerity hold place)