Raising Beast Cubs to Find a Husband novel Chapter 84

Chapter 84: The Forest of Living Stone and The Fox of Legend

The carriage ride to the Obsidian Estate was not a leisurely Sunday drive. It was a descent into a nightmare, punctuated by moments of extreme violence and questionable parenting advice.

The Blackwood Forest lived up to its name. The trees were ancient, their bark as black as coal, twisting into shapes that looked uncomfortably like screaming faces. The canopy was so thick it blotted out the sun, plunging the road into an eternal twilight.

"This place has bad feng shui," Primrose muttered, clutching her seat as the carriage bounced over a root the size of a python.

"It is fortified with territorial wards," Archduke Cassian observed, looking out the window with clinical interest. "And... ah. Here come the welcome committee."

SCREEEECH.

The carriage slammed to a halt. The horses screamed.

From the tree line, shadows detached themselves. But they weren’t shadows. They were grey, winged, and made of solid rock.

Gargoyles.

A dozen of them swooped down, their stone claws screeching against the roof of the carriage.

"Lunch time!" Lord Rurik roared happily. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

He didn’t open the door. He kicked it off its hinges.

The Wolf Warlord launched himself out of the moving carriage, tackling a gargoyle in mid-air.

CRUNCH.

He punched the stone beast so hard it exploded into gravel.

"Rurik!" Primrose yelled, leaning out. "Don’t eat the gravel! It’s bad for your digestion!"

"It adds texture!" Rurik shouted back, catching another gargoyle by the tail and swinging it like a flail into a tree.

General Rajah stepped out next. He didn’t roar. He simply drew his saber. The steel flashed in the dim light.

Swish. Swish. Click.

Three gargoyles diving toward him fell to the ground, sliced neatly in half before they even touched the dirt. Rajah flicked a speck of dust off his coat, looking bored.

"Sloppy craftsmanship," Rajah critiqued. "These golems are slow."

Suddenly, a massive gargoyle—twice the size of the others—landed on the roof of the carriage, directly above Primrose. Its stone jaws opened, dripping with mossy saliva.

Primrose froze. She reached for her smoke bombs.

POOF.

A cloud of black smoke erupted—not from her bag, but from the air itself.

Duke Lucien materialized on the roof, crouching behind the beast. He didn’t use a weapon. He simply placed a gloved hand on the gargoyle’s neck.

Dark, purple energy flashed.

The gargoyle crumbled into dust instantly, blowing away in the wind.

Lucien dusted off his hands and dropped down beside Primrose. "Pardon the debris, my lady."

"You guys show off too much," Primrose sighed, though her heart was pounding.

"We are merely clearing the path," Cassian said from inside the carriage, not having looked up from his glowing crystal slate once.

He traced a rune on the glass-like surface, and the numbers rearranged themselves. "According to my arithmancy calculations, we have eliminated 84% of the external defenses. The main gate is one mile ahead."

The Warlords climbed back in—Rurik carrying a gargoyle head as a souvenir ("For Vali!").

"That was terrifying," Primrose breathed.

"That was a warm-up," Rajah corrected, sheathing his sword. "Now. Let us see if the Lion has teeth, or just stone toys."

The Obsidian Estate was a fortress of black stone, rising out of the forest like a jagged tooth. It radiated a cold, oppressive energy that made the hair on Primrose’s arms stand up.

The iron gates were shut. A magical barrier shimmered in front of them, glowing with a hostile red light.

The carriage stopped. The Warlords stepped out, radiating enough mana to challenge the barrier itself.

"Open the gate!" Rajah roared, his voice amplified by magic. "By order of the Warlord Council!"

The air shimmered. A voice—hollow, magical, and undeniably Lord Bastion’s—echoed from the walls.

The Warlords have no jurisdiction here. This is private land.

"You are harboring a Void threat!" Cassian shouted, his monocle flashing. "Open the gate, Bastion, or we will dismantle it brick by brick."

If you attempt to breach, Bastion’s voice replied, devoid of emotion, the estate will self-destruct. I will bring the roof down on my own head before I let an army in.

Rajah growled, his hand going to his sword. "He is bluffing."

I have nothing left to lose, General, Bastion returned coldly. Try me.

Silence stretched. The threat hung heavy in the air.

Then, the voice spoke again. Softer.

However... I will speak to the Tutor. Alone.

"Absolutely not," Rurik barked. "He wants a hostage."

"I am not going in as a hostage," Primrose said, stepping forward. She adjusted her satchel. "I’m going in as a negotiator."

"Primrose," Rajah grabbed her arm gently. "He is unstable. He burned his wife’s belongings. He abandoned his child. He is desperate. Do not go in there without steel."

Primrose looked up at the Tiger. She saw the genuine fear in his eyes.

"I have steel," she smiled, tapping the Repulsion Necklace Cassian gave her. "And I have you guys outside. If I’m not out in an hour... then you can kick the door down."

Rajah hesitated. He looked at the others. Lucien gave a microscopic nod.

"One hour," Rajah growled. "Not a minute more."

Primrose walked to the gate. The red barrier flickered and parted, just wide enough for a small, tail-less woman to slip through.

The heavy iron gates clanged shut behind her.

The inside of the estate was freezing. It wasn’t the magical cold of the Void; it was the physical cold of a house that hadn’t had a fire lit in months. Dust motes danced in the shafts of grey light filtering through the high windows.

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