Raising Beast Cubs to Find a Husband-Chapter 18: Too Many Alphas.

Outside the shop, the air was crackling with tension.

Lord Rurik Jaeger and General Rajah Khanda had arrived at the same time, their carriages blocking the street. They were currently arguing about parking space.

Archduke Cassian Argentis stepped out of a portal, checking his pocket watch with a sneer. Duke Lucien Crepusci materialized from a shadow, silent as the grave.

"Move your transport, Wolf," Rajah boomed. "I have a Tiger to retrieve." "Make me, Stripes," Rurik snarled.

They reached for the door handle simultaneously. It was a race. Who would get get to the "Miracle Nanny" first? Who would secure her favor for the evening?

Rurik shoved the door open. Rajah tried to squeeze through. Cassian sighed and slipped past them. Lucien ghosted in.

They stepped inside, ready for the noise. Ready for the chaos. Ready to fight for my attention.

They froze.

The shop was silent. Bathed in the dying golden light of the sunset, dust motes dancing in the air like tiny stars.

There was no screaming. No fighting. No flying blocks.

There was just a pile of sleeping children.

And in the center of them, bathed in gold, was Primrose.

Her silver hair was messy, spilling over her shoulders like moonlight. Her apron was stained with flour and chocolate. Her face was soft, unguarded, and peaceful. She looked small. Frail.

But she was surrounded by their children—the Wolf, the Tiger, the Snake, the Panther—who were sleeping around her not like wild beasts, but like a protective wall.

The door chime gave a tiny ting, but no one moved.

Lord Rurik Jaeger felt a strange, sharp ache in his chest. He looked at this "failed" fox-kin, smelling of milk and sugar, holding his son’s paw. He remembered his late wife—beautiful, but cold. Distant. Primrose wasn’t distant. She was right there, in the dirt, in the mess, holding his boy. She is the hearth fire, his wolf instincts whispered. She is the den.

General Rajah Khanda lowered his hand from his sword. He looked at Arjun, asleep without a worry in the world, and then at the woman who had tired him out. He saw strength in her tired shoulders. He saw a partner who could handle the weight of his world. She is peace, his tiger soul rumbled. She is the calm in the storm.

Archduke Cassian Argentis felt his cold blood warm. He looked at Jasper, curled up and safe, and then at the woman who had defied him, lectured him, and saved his brother. He had thought her an asset. A variable. But seeing her now... She is priceless, his snake mind hissed. A treasure that must be hoarded.

Duke Lucien Crepusci didn’t think. He just felt. He looked at Silas, sleeping without fear for the first time, and then at the woman who had unlocked the dark room. She is the light, his panther heart purred. And I will kill anything that tries to put her out.

For a single, suspended moment, the four most powerful men in the empire weren’t rivals. They weren’t enemies.

They were four lonely men, looking at the one woman who made their fractured families whole.

And in that silence, four hearts skipped the exact same beat.

Thump-thump.

Then, a sound broke the spell.

"Shhh!"

Vali cracked one pink eye open. He lifted his head from Arjun’s stomach. He looked at his father, then at the other men.

He put a clawed finger to his lips.

"Quiet," the Demon Cub whispered, his voice fierce and protective. "Prim is sleeping."

Jasper opened one golden eye. "Arjun is drooling. But yes. Silence is required."

Silas just glared at his uncle, daring him to make a sound.

The four men stood there, scolded by their own children.

Rurik let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. A small, rare smile touched his lips.

"Understood," he whispered back.

They didn’t wake her. They didn’t fight. They just stood watch in the twilight, guarding the woman who guarded their hearts.

The sun had fully set when I finally woke up. The shop was dark, lit only by the streetlamps outside casting long shadows across the floor.

I sat up with a gasp, my heart racing. "The cubs!"

I looked around wildly. The rug was empty. The pile of sleeping predators was gone.

Oh god. Did I lose them? Did they eat each other? Did Marquis Grieve take them?

I scrambled to my feet, my hand instinctively reaching for my ladle—and then I saw it.

On the counter, illuminated by a single, glowing Moon-stone lamp (which I definitely didn’t own), was a row of items.

I walked over, my hands trembling slightly.

A heavy, fur-lined cloak with the Jaeger Wolf crest. It smelled like pine and winter storms. Note scrawled on rough parchment: The shop is drafty. Fix the insulation. - R.

A small, heavy box containing a delicate, golden whistle shaped like a tiger. Note in bold, block lettering: Signal Whistle. One blow summons the nearest Crimson Fang patrol. Use it. - Gen. Khanda.

A pristine, cream-colored envelope sealed with green wax. Inside was a cheque. A blank cheque. Note in elegant cursive: For the educational materials. Do not be frugal. Jasper requires the best. - C.A.

There was no note. There was just a single, perfect black rose in a crystal vase. It hadn’t been there before. And when I looked at the shadows in the corner of the room, they seemed to... wave back. Lucien.

I let out a breath I felt like I’d been holding for hours.

They hadn’t just picked up their sons. They had left... tributes. Protections.

My Little Whiskers Daycare wasn’t just a business anymore. It was a fortress, guarded by a Wolf, a Tiger, a Snake, and a Panther.

I touched the soft fur of Rurik’s cloak.

"Well," I whispered to the empty room. "I guess I don’t need to worry about Marquis Grieve breaking down the door tonight."

I walked to the Little Whiskers Daycare the next morning, humming a tune. I had a plan for the day: finger painting, a nap, and maybe testing a new Savory Muffin recipe for Arjun’s metabolism.

I turned the corner onto my street.

I stopped.

My humble little shop... was gone.

Well, the building was there. But it was currently being besieged.

Surrounding my tiny storefront were... A squad of Crimson Fang soldiers in full plate armor, standing at attention. A cluster of Argentis House mages, weaving shimmering privacy wards into the air. A pack of massive Dire Wolves, sitting in a defensive perimeter, growling at anyone who walked past. And... were those shadows moving on the roof?

Oh, for the love of...

I marched up to the front door. A wolf guard tried to stop me.

"Halt! This area is under the protection of Marquis—"

"I own the building!" I snapped. "Move!"

I threw open the door (which was new, heavy oak, and reinforced with iron).

The inside of my shop was unrecognizable.

My cozy, mismatched rugs? Gone. Replaced by plush, expensive, stain-resistant velvet. My rickety chairs? Gone. Replaced by ergonomic, child-sized thrones. My simple lighting? Gone. There was a crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling. In a daycare.

And standing in the middle of the room, arguing, were the Four B.A.D.s.

"The chandelier is a hazard, you snake!" Rajah shouted, gesturing wildly. "Arjun will swing from it! We need rope ladders!"

"It is crystal, you brute," Cassian scoffed, dusting off a table. "It provides proper illumination for reading. Unlike your... jungle gym monstrosity."

"It promotes core strength!" Rajah defended.

"It takes up the entire floor," Rurik growled. He was currently hammering something into the wall. "We need floor space for combat drills."

"It is a nursery, not an arena," Lucien’s voice drifted from a dark corner. He had installed heavy, light-blocking curtains. "It requires... serenity."

"It requires oxygen!" Rurik barked. "Open a window, Crepusci!"

I stood in the doorway, clutching my basket of ingredients. My eye twitched.

"What..." I said, my voice dangerously low, "...have you done to my shop?"

The four men froze. They turned to look at me. They looked like toddlers caught with their hands in the cookie jar. Very large, very dangerous toddlers.

"Lady Primrose," Cassian stepped forward smoothly. "We were simply... upgrading the facilities. The previous conditions were... lacking."

"I replaced the door," Rurik grunted, patting the heavy oak. "The old one was weak. This one is reinforced with steel."

"I installed a perimeter!" Rajah beamed. "And a climbing wall! Arjun needs verticality!"

"I added... soundproofing," Lucien whispered.

I looked at the chandelier. I looked at the climbing wall. I looked at the blackout curtains.

"Get out," I said.

"Pardon?" Cassian blinked.

"GET OUT!" I yelled, pointing at the door with a leek I pulled from my basket. "This is a daycare! Not a fortress! Not a palace! Not a gym! You are scaring the neighbors! Take your armies, take your wolves, and take your... your chandelier... OUT!"

The men looked at each other.

"But... security," Rurik tried.

"I can handle my own security!" I snapped. "I cannot handle you four turning my business into a measuring contest! The cubs will be here in ten minutes! If this place isn’t back to normal—minus the dangerous glass death-trap on the ceiling—I am feeding all your sons broccoli for a week!"

The threat was effective.

"Not the broccoli," Rajah whispered, terrified. "Arjun will riot."

"Fine," Rurik grumbled. "Wolf-guard, retreat to the alley!"

"Mages, disperse," Cassian sighed.

"Shadows... fade," Lucien murmured.

They spent the next ten minutes frantically un-doing their "improvements." Rajah hauled the climbing wall out the back. Cassian grudgingly lowered the chandelier (with magic). Rurik swept up the sawdust.

By the time Luna arrived with Clover, the shop looked mostly normal. Except for the reinforced door and the very expensive rug.

"Morning, Prim!" Luna chirped, then paused. She looked at the four sweaty, disheveled noblemen standing by the wall. "Um... is everything okay?"

"Fine," I said, glaring at the B.A.D.s. "The Maintenance Crew was just leaving."

I turned to the dads. "Your sons are due. Bring them in. And then... go do your jobs. You’re hovering."

Rurik huffed. "Hmph. Ungrateful fox." But he didn’t look angry. He looked... amused.

"See you at pick-up," Rajah grinned, wiping sweat from his brow. "I expect a full report on the snacks."

As they filed out, leaving the cubs behind, I slumped against the counter.

Jasper walked over and poked my leg. "You yelled at the Archduke," he observed.

"He deserved it," I said.

"Agreed," Jasper nodded. "The chandelier was tacky."

Vali ran up, sniffing the new rug. "This is soft! Can I bite it?"

"No!"

I looked around my shop. It was safe. It was fortified. And I had four of the most powerful men in the empire wrapped around my little finger (or terrified of my broccoli threats).

I smiled. The Bad End was feeling further and further away.

But I had forgotten one thing. In an Otome game, when your affection points get too high with everyone...

...the Jealous Rival Events trigger.

The bell jingled. But it wasn’t a parent.

It was a courier from the Palace. A real one.

"Lady Primrose Thistle?" the courier asked, looking down his nose at me. "An invitation. From Her Imperial Highness, Princess Leonora."

My blood ran cold.

The Lioness Princess. The Easy Mode Herione. The one whose event I had stolen.