I Became the Villainess, But My Beast Husbands Can Hear My Mind?!

Chapter 283: The Phoenix’s Blood

"Cyrus!" Roxanna shouted the moment she spotted him sitting alone in front of the burned farm. "What are you doing here?"

Cyrus slowly lifted his head at the sound of her voice. The orange light of the setting sun fell across his face, making his red hair look brighter than usual.

For a moment, he simply stared at her without saying anything.

The area around him was a complete mess. Burned wood, ash, and broken stones were scattered everywhere. Even a child could tell how much hard work they had put into taking care of the farm, only for everything to end up destroyed like this.

"I was checking the damage," he finally answered quietly.

But Roxanna immediately frowned. "By yourself?"

Cyrus lowered his gaze again before lowly replying, "I just wanted to look at it alone."

Roxanna’s chest tightened a little after hearing that.

She slowly walked closer to him, carefully stepping over the burned pieces of wood scattered across the ground. The closer she got, the stronger the smell of smoke became.

"You should be resting," she said softly when she finally stopped beside him. "Your injuries haven’t even fully healed yet."

"They’re fine."

"That’s definitely not true." She paused for a moment before adding more gently, "Your physical wounds may have healed, but your mind still needs rest too."

Cyrus listened to her in silence, looking like he had no interest in continuing the conversation.

"It’s nothing, really," he said quietly. "You should go back to the others. They probably need you."

Even though Cyrus wanted her to leave, Roxanna was sure that if she left him alone right now, she would regret it for the rest of her life.

Even though Cyrus wanted her to leave, Roxanna knew that if she walked away and left him alone right now, she would regret it for the rest of her life.

"No," Roxanna said firmly. "I’m not needed there right now. Everyone has already taken care of the problems. That’s why I came to you."

The two of them slowly walked side by side along the path.

Neither of them walked very far. They only wandered around the nearby area because they didn’t want to run into anyone else.

"I know you and the others don’t blame me for what happened to the Vixeria Settlement, but still..." Cyrus paused, his amber eyes filled with guilt as he looked at the burned crops. "Those eagles probably wouldn’t have burned this settlement if I hadn’t stayed here."

Roxanna immediately grabbed his hand, forcing him to stop walking.

"Those eagles probably still would have burned this place even if you weren’t here," she said firmly. "They’re evil, so they enjoy destroying other people’s settlements."

Cyrus looked down at their joined hands in silence.

The warmth of Roxanna’s hand felt comforting against his skin, but the guilt in his chest still refused to disappear so easily.

"They came because of me," he said quietly. "Falcoln wanted me back."

"And?" Roxanna asked right away. "Does that suddenly make everything your fault?"

Cyrus frowned slightly.

Roxanna tightened her grip on his hand before continuing, "The Sky Tribe has been enslaving people and attacking others long before you escaped from them. Even if you willingly went back, do you seriously think they would suddenly become kind people?"

Both of them already knew the answer. Even if Cyrus returned to Falcoln’s hands, the eagle beastmen would still burn down the Vixeria Tribe for "fun."

"No," Cyrus finally admitted. "They would never become good people."

Roxanna nodded. "Exactly. So whatever happened to the Vixeria Settlement happened because of those bastards, not because of you being here."

For a while, neither of them spoke again.

But suddenly, Roxanna felt a painful cramp in her stomach.

"Why don’t we sit down here for a moment?" she suggested softly.

She led him toward a large boulder so they could lean against it while sitting down.

The ground was dirty and covered in ash, but Roxanna didn’t care anymore. Right now, all she wanted to do was sit down and rest.

"What’s wrong?" Cyrus immediately placed his hand on top of Roxanna’s swollen stomach. "Are you alright?"

Roxanna took several deep breaths, trying to calm her body and steady her nerves.

"It’s alright," she said softly. "I think our child is just scared."

The moment those words left her mouth, Cyrus’ expression immediately changed.

His amber eyes softened as he stared at her stomach, and the guilt inside them slowly turned into worry instead.

"Did the battle affect the baby?" he asked gently.

Roxanna softly shook her head. "I don’t know. Maybe the loud sounds and stress frightened them a little."

Cyrus kept his hand on her stomach, careful and hesitant, almost like he was afraid he might hurt her.

For a moment, neither of them spoke. The evening breeze quietly passed through the ruined settlement, carrying the scent of ash and burned wood around them.

"It’s alright... you’re fine..." Cyrus slowly bent down and rested his head against Roxanna’s stomach. Then he softly hummed the lullaby his mother used to sing to him, hoping it would calm the baby.

Almost magically, Roxanna started feeling more relaxed as well. She could even feel the baby’s heartbeat slowly becoming calmer.

"You can calm your child’s nerves, and yet you can’t calm yourself." Roxanna gently reached out and caressed his face as he slowly rested his head on her lap.

"Cyrus," she said softly, her voice filled with warmth, "whatever is happening right now, I’m just glad you’re safe. Like Luan said before, a burned settlement can always be rebuilt, but people who die can’t be brought back."

She paused briefly before adding with a small smile, "Well... in your case, maybe that statement doesn’t fully apply."

Both of them chuckled, then Cyrus finally admitted in a low voice, "But I know some people think I’m dangerous."

Roxanna immediately replied, "Don’t worry. I won’t let bad rumors about you spread so easily."

Only then did Cyrus slowly sit up properly again. He looked at Roxanna quietly for a moment before finally speaking.

"You know..." he said softly, "now that I’ve realized my blood can improve other people’s health, I’ve been thinking..."

He paused briefly before continuing. "Why don’t you drink it too?"

Roxanna blinked in surprise. "What?"

"I know you already have a strong healing ability," Cyrus continued, his voice calm and serious, "but my blood can make someone immune to poison. It might also help reduce the strain your healing power puts on your body."

Roxanna wanted to reject the idea immediately because drinking someone’s blood sounded strange no matter how she thought about it.

But after a few moments of silence, she finally asked quietly, "Do you think... our child’s immunity would also become stronger if I drank your blood?"

Cyrus looked at her for a moment before answering honestly. "I think so."

Roxanna lowered her gaze toward her stomach, clearly thinking seriously about it now.

"Then... let’s do it," she finally said softly.

"Alright." Cyrus nodded calmly. "I think you only need to drink a little, but you should probably do this at least once a month."

Before Roxanna could respond, Cyrus suddenly tilted his head to the side, exposing his neck to her without hesitation.

Roxanna immediately blinked in confusion. "You want me... to bite your neck?"

Cyrus gave a small shrug. "You have sharp fangs, so I’m sure you can do it."

"But maybe I can do it on your hand instead!" Roxanna quickly said, clearly trying to avoid biting his neck.

After all, she wasn’t a damn vampire!

"The blood comes out more easily if you bite my neck," Cyrus argued calmly. "So it would probably be better if you bit my neck instead of my hand."

Roxanna tilted her head slightly, looking confused. "Ah? Really?"

Cyrus nodded without looking embarrassed at all. "The skin there is thinner," he explained calmly. "It’s easier."

For some reason, Roxanna was almost certain he had just made that excuse up on the spot. But somehow... she still ended up believing him enough to go along with it anyway.

Slowly, Roxanna leaned closer to him. One of her hands gently held the side of his face as she carefully turned his head to the side. Then, after hesitating for a brief second, she finally bit down on his neck.

Cyrus let out a soft hiss, but instead of looking like he was in pain, his expression strangely softened, almost like he actually liked it.

That reaction immediately made Roxanna feel even more embarrassed.

The blood that touched her tongue felt warm and slightly sweet. Not overly sweet, but enough to make it easier for her to drink without feeling uncomfortable.

Roxanna only drank a small amount before quickly pulling away from him.

The moment she realized what she had just done, her face instantly turned red.

"This is so weird," she muttered while covering her mouth in embarrassment.

Meanwhile, Cyrus slowly touched the bite mark on his neck before looking at her. "Did it taste bad?"