I Abandoned My Beast Cubs for the Protagonist... Oops?-Chapter 59: The Draconic Contract

Before Bai Yue could even blink, a blinding flash of golden light erupted from Cāng Yáo’s outstretched hand. The light shot across the clearing like a physical tether, slamming directly into Bai Yue’s chest.

"Ack!" Bai Yue stumbled backward, clutching her sternum.

The light didn’t burn, but it felt heavy.

It wrapped around her left wrist, solidifying into a glowing golden runic band before sinking directly into her skin, leaving behind a faint, shimmering tattoo.

Cāng Yáo raised her own wrist, revealing a matching, glowing mark.

[BEEP! CRITICAL ALERT! ⚠]

The Goddess Tiān-Mìng’s system violently materialized in front of Bai Yue’s face, flashing an aggressive, blood-red warning screen.

[Soul-Bound Draconic Contract Initiated!]

[Terms: Win = Dragon Eviction. Lose = Forfeit Fox Lord Husband.]

[Status: Feral Mama, what have you done?! This is legally binding across all celestial realms! You just bet your husband!]

"I know what I did, you useless floating rectangle!" Bai Yue hissed at the holographic screen, swatting it away.

Cāng Jì, still buried under a pile of chewing panther cubs, let out a wail of despair.

"You foolish, impulsive little female! Do you know what you just agreed to?! Draconic wagers are enforced by the very fabric of the universe! If you try to back out, the magic will turn your bones to jelly!"

"Oh, stop being so dramatic, brother," Cāng Yáo sighed, inspecting her perfectly manicured nails. "She won’t have time to back out. The task will be concluded by tonight."

Bai Yue swallowed the massive lump of regret forming in her throat. She stood up straighter, trying to project a confidence she did not feel.

"Alright, Sparkles. What’s the task? Do I have to climb a mountain? Fight a bear? Clean your ridiculous golden pavilion?"

"Please. I wouldn’t let your muddy hands anywhere near my jade," Cāng Yáo scoffed. She slowly descended the remaining steps, until she was standing just a few feet away from Bai Yue.

The Dragon Princess looked around the primitive village, her nose wrinkling in profound disgust.

"My brother claims you are the only one here who knows how to properly prepare food. He claims your ’cooking’ is the only thing keeping him from starving in this squalid dirt-pit."

Cāng Yáo’s golden eyes snapped back to Bai Yue.

"Here is your task, little mud-rat. Tonight, at the center fire, you will prepare a meal. And you will serve it to me." Cāng Yáo smiled. "If I spit it out, which I will, because I have dined on celestial ambrosia and starlight nectar, you lose the Fox Lord. But..."

She paused, leaning in close. "...If you can prepare a dish with these primitive, filthy ingredients that actually makes me, a First Generation Dragon, willingly ask for a second bite.I will concede. I will pack up my pavilion, and I will leave."

Bai Yue blinked.

She blinked again.

A cooking battle? The ancient, celestial, all-powerful Dragon Princess had just challenged her... to a cooking battle?

Bai Yue was a modern woman who used to binge-watch competitive cooking shows at 3:00 AM while stress-eating entire cartons of raspberries.

She had successfully recreated viral spicy street food recipes in her tiny apartment kitchen. She had survived entirely on MSG, sheer willpower, and an air fryer for four years of college.

A grin began to spread across Bai Yue’s face.

"A second bite?" Bai Yue confirmed, her voice eerily calm. "That’s the rule? If you ask for a second bite, I keep my mate, and you leave my lawn?"

"I will swear it on my immortal soul," Cāng Yáo declared proudly. "But do not get your hopes up, female. I once rejected a feast prepared by the Emperor of the Southern Seas because the salt was harvested on a Tuesday."

"What is going on here?"

Bai Yue spun around. Emerging from the treeline were Mo Xiao and Zhāo Yàn. The Panther Alpha had a massive, freshly hunted wild boar slung effortlessly over one broad shoulder.

Zhāo Yàn was walking elegantly beside him, his arms full of wild herbs and sweet tubers.

Zhāo Yàn’s casual, relaxed demeanor vanished the instant his crimson eyes landed on Bai Yue.

He dropped the tubers, crossed the clearing, and appeared directly by her side. His eyes narrowed, instantly locking onto the faintly glowing golden rune on her wrist.

"Why," Zhāo Yàn hissed as he glared at the Dragon Princess, "does my mate smell like soul-binding magic and draconic interference? What did you do to her, lizard?"

"Do not growl at me, Fox," Cāng Yáo smirked, unfazed by his tone. "Your little mud-rat brought this upon herself. She accepted a wager of her own free will."

Zhāo Yàn turned his head, his crimson eyes locking onto Bai Yue. The deadly aura instantly softened, replaced by concern. "Bai Yue? What did you do?"

"I....uh..." Bai Yue suddenly felt incredibly small.

How do you casually tell an ancient, powerful Beastman Lord that you just used him as casino chips in a petty argument?

"She bet you, Fox Lord!" Cāng Jì tattled loudly from his spot in the dirt, desperately trying to pry A-Li off. "They made a soul-contract! If she cannot make my sister ask for seconds at dinner tonight, she has to publicly renounce her claim on you, and you become my sister’s eternal pet!"

Mo Xiao dropped the massive wild boar with a loud THUD.

The Panther Alpha stared at Bai Yue, his amber eyes wide with sheer disbelief. "You.....you bet the Lord of the Eastern Hills in a cooking contest?"

Bai Yue cringed, pulling her shoulders up to her ears. "It was a tactical decision! She was blowing up the neighbors!"

She squeezed her eyes shut, fully preparing for Zhāo Yàn to explode. He was a proud, powerful Lord. He had a massive ego. He was going to be absolutely furious that a weak human female had gambled his freedom away like a cheap trinket.

"I’m sorry," Bai Yue babbled quickly. "I know it was stupid! I just got so angry, and she was looking at you like you were a piece of meat, and I just—"

"You bet me."

Bai Yue cracked one eye open.

Zhāo Yàn wasn’t angry. He wasn’t furious.

The Fox Lord was staring at her, his crimson eyes completely blown out. A dark flush of pleasure was spreading across his high cheekbones.

"You were so fiercely jealous......that you locked yourself into a celestial death-pact just to keep her hands off me?" Zhāo Yàn breathed out, stepping closer to her.

"Um," Bai Yue squeaked, her back hitting the wooden frame of her hut.

Zhāo Yàn completely ignored the glaring Dragon Princess, the dumbfounded Panther Alpha, and the wailing Dragon Prince. He reached out, his large hands gripping her waist and hauling her against his chest.

"You are magnificent," Zhāo Yàn purred. He buried his face in the crook of her neck, inhaling her scent deeply. "I have never wanted to mate with you so badly."

"Zhāo Yàn!" Bai Yue shrieked, her face exploding into a violent blush as she pushed at his shoulders.

"Stop it! We are in public! And my soul is literally on the line!"

"Let her have my soul too," Zhāo Yàn mumbled against her skin, his tails wrapping tightly around her legs. "I don’t care. You claimed me. You are fighting a dragon for me. If you ask me to, I will slaughter this entire village right now just to see you look at me like that again."

"Okay, that’s enough!" Bai Yue gasped, finally shoving his face away, though he refused to release her waist.

"This is nauseating," Cāng Yáo sneered, turning her back in disgust.

"You have until sundown, little human. Prepare your pathetic mud-pies. I look forward to collecting my prize."

With a swish of her silks, the Dragon Princess retreated into her blinding golden pavilion.

Mo Xiao rubbed his temples, letting out a long, exhausted sigh. "Bai Yue. Please tell me you have a plan to defeat a creature who eats stars for breakfast."

Bai Yue took a deep breath. She looked at the fresh wild boar Mo Xiao had dropped. She looked at the wild herbs and tubers Zhāo Yàn had brought.

"Mo Xiao," Bai Yue ordered, her eyes shining with determination. "I need you to butcher that boar immediately. Save all the fat. And I need every single spicy fire-pepper you have hoarded in your storage hut."

Mo Xiao blinked. "The fire-peppers? Bai Yue, those are used to strip paint off weapons. They are completely inedible."

"Perfect," Bai Yue grinned fiercely. "Sparkles wants a meal she’ll never forget? I’m going to introduce her draconic tastebuds to the absolute, unforgiving glory of a modern, extra-spicy Sichuan Mala Hot Pot. We’re going to burn her ego right out of her mouth."