I Became the Villainess, But My Beast Husbands Can Hear My Mind?!-Chapter 76: Who Will Lead the Warriors? (Not Me… Maybe Me.)

Roxanna hadn’t counted how many huts were in the settlement, but there were around thirty people gathered there. It was probably because the warriors were represented by their commander, and the elderly were still asleep and hadn’t heard the noise outside.

They gathered in the functional hut, a building meant for discussions or special events. However, since Loba rarely—perhaps never—listened to his people’s complaints, this building had become useless.

It was even located near the black hut at the very back of the settlement. Still, at least it hadn’t been destroyed by the demon bears.

"That’s everything you need to know," Zeir said after giving a long explanation about Loba, the evil Roxanna, and the real one.

Even Roxanna didn’t understand how he managed to explain everything in such a clear timeline, as if those lies had truly happened in the past.

Thanks to Zeir, the explanation went smoothly and was easy to understand. However, what Roxanna didn’t expect was that all of them—without exception—started crying like babies.

Even Commander Marlow, who had always acted tough and strong, suddenly burst into tears, something Roxanna had never imagined she would ever see.

"I was a fool!" Commander Marlow hit his own chest, as if he wanted to break his ribs. "When you asked me to protect this settlement, I should never have doubted you! I was truly a fool!"

Before Commander Marlow could hit his chest again, Roxanna rushed toward him. "No, no, it wasn’t your fault! My sister and I have identical faces, and even my husbands said our voices sound almost the same. So of course you couldn’t tell us apart!"

Commander Marlow finally stopped hitting his chest for a moment, then suddenly bowed down in front of her and slammed his forehead onto the floor so hard that Roxanna thought he might actually crack his skull.

"Even so! The warriors and I once shouted at you and spoke harshly!" he said firmly. "Please forgive our harsh behavior, Leader!"

Roxanna sighed softly. She couldn’t help thinking he was even more dramatic than the soap operas she watched in her previous life.

"I already forgive you, Commander," she said gently. "Please, stand up."

When Marlow stood up again, his forehead was bleeding, but before Roxanna could say anything, the bleeding had already stopped.

At least his healing ability was just as impressive as his dramatic personality.

"Leader, you may have forgiven me, but I still can’t forgive myself for not being able to tell two different people apart," Marlow said. "A commander should never make such a careless mistake. That’s why, from today onward, I will step down from this position!"

Roxanna widened her eyes, and so did the other residents in the functional hut. "What?" She froze for a moment, then took a deep breath and said, "You don’t need to do that. I truly understand why you couldn’t tell me apart from my sister."

Now Roxanna actually felt guilty for lying like this. She hadn’t expected Commander Marlow to go as far as resigning from his position.

"It’s not only about that, Leader," he continued. "It shows that my eyes are already failing me. How can I lead the warriors like this?"

[For heaven’s sake, his eyes are perfectly fine,] Roxanna thought. [And if he resigns... then who will lead the warriors? One of my husbands?]

Calen and Azul quietly smiled, while Zeir remained calm as always. Even so, they all shared the same thought: I can definitely do better than the others.

Even though Roxanna couldn’t read their minds, she could tell just from the look in their eyes that her husbands were thinking about competing for that position.

[But if one of them becomes the commander, he’ll hardly ever come home, right? That’s kind of sad... one of them will almost never sleep beside me anymore.]

Because of that thought, all of her husbands quickly decided they did not want to be the commander.

[But still... that position sounds so cool and heroic,] she thought again. [Whoever becomes the commander... I’ll probably melt every time I see him doing something impressive while leading the warriors.]

And just like that, all of her husbands changed their minds again and wanted to be the commander.

Still, it was a difficult decision.

It was so hard that her husbands couldn’t even decide whether they wanted to look cool or simply sleep beside her every night. Honestly, they wanted both.

But to become a commander, they first had to prove they were worthy of the title. One way to do that was through a tournament, and whoever won would become the commander.

Sometimes, tournaments were also held just to train the warriors and sharpen their skills. But sadly, Roxanna’s husbands had never joined those events before, because the evil Roxanna used to prefer making them suffer instead.

Only Luan had ever been forced to fight a very strong opponent. Surprisingly, he won, even though he ended up badly injured.

"Being a commander isn’t only about not making mistakes," Zeir suddenly said. His voice was firm, but still gentle. "The most important thing a commander must have is the desire to protect others. And I can see that you still have that, Commander Marlow."

"I believe you are still the best person to lead the warriors," Zeir continued calmly. "You haven’t lost your strength, and more importantly, you haven’t lost your heart." 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

[Ah, I thought Zeir wanted that position, but instead he encouraged Commander Marlow to keep it,] Roxanna thought, her eyes filled with admiration.

It was true that Zeir had once considered taking the role. But he also believed that Commander Marlow was still strong enough to continue leading. Because of that, he didn’t want anyone to make a rushed or emotional decision.

Meanwhile, Azul and Calen quietly clicked their tongues in frustration. Of course Zeir had to look cool again, and now Roxanna was clearly impressed by him. Still, they couldn’t really blame him. Out of all of them, Zeir was the calmest and had the best natural leadership.

"I appreciate your words, Zeir," Commander Marlow said, meeting his gaze. "But I’ve already made up my mind. Besides... my time is almost over."