Moments later, a crowd of beastmen had gathered around the scent of her cooking like hypnotized puppies drawn by magic.
They came from every direction—lean wolves, tired foxes, wary cats, even a pair of bears trying to pretend they were not interested while clearly drooling.
One of them leaned close enough for her to hear and whispered cautiously,
"Is... a bite allowed?"
It was a male cat with anxious eyes and flattened ears.
Tessa turned to him and nodded like a sweet, generous angel.
"Why wouldn't it be allowed?"
But behind that saintly smile was the mind of a merchant.
Taste first. Fall in love with her meal second. Pay later.
A flawless strategy.
The cat male accepted a skewer piece with shaking fingers, but before he could eat, a female cat rushed forward first and stole the first bite.
The moment the meat touched her tongue, her eyes widened dramatically.
