The Spoilt Beauty And Her Beasts-Chapter 564: My stomaChapter Cyrus. My stomach hurts

Chapter 564: Chapter 564: My stomach. Cyrus. My stomach hurts

The forest at night was loud.

Crickets sang. Leaves rustled. Some distant beast screamed dramatically, probably complaining about life. And Isabella wanted to scream too. But she kept walking.

Valen walked ahead, sniffing the air occasionally with a serious, hunter-like expression. His ears twitched every time he caught Cyrus’ scent.

Ophelia followed behind Isabella. Meanwhile, Zyran and Kian stalked them from behind like two oversized, sulking shadows.

Honestly, anyone watching this group would assume Isabella had a personal army.

She did not.

She had personal headaches.

They walked for hours. Hours of false hope. Hours of Valen suddenly saying, "I smell him," only to pause again and mutter, "Never mind, that was a tree."

Ophelia almost cried the fourth time he said it.

Zyran almost threw a tree.

Kian stayed silent, proving he truly was the king of brooding.

Isabella?

She was losing her mind.

At one point she stopped walking entirely and grabbed Ophelia’s shoulders.

"Why is he moving so much," Isabella demanded. "Is he trying to escape. Is he running from me. Does he hate me. Is he migrating to another continent."

Ophelia blinked nervously. "I do not know."

Zyran, from the back, muttered, "If someone treated me like that, I would run too."

Isabella picked up a stick and threw it at his head without looking.

It missed by a hair.

Zyran stiffened. Kian snorted quietly.

Ophelia clapped for her in solidarity.

Valen ignored all of them and continued tracking.

Finally, after what felt like walking through three different time zones, Valen slowed down. His posture straightened. His eyes narrowed.

He inhaled deeply.

"He stopped," Valen said.

Isabella froze.

Her heart thumped painfully. Her hands shook so much that Glimora had to grab her arm to steady her. Her stomach twisted with nine emotions at once. Fear, excitement, guilt, hope, dread, love, panic, anxiety, and more guilt.

"Where," Isabella whispered.

Valen nodded toward the left.

"Follow me."

They stepped off the path and walked deeper into the forest. The air turned colder, almost frosty. Isabella noticed the trees began to thin, replaced with stone walls and smaller tunnels. Then they reached a cave entrance.

A very cold cave.

Isabella stared into the darkness.

"Are you sure he is in there," she asked quietly.

Ophelia nodded. "Snakes like the cold. He is probably inside."

Isabella rubbed her face.

"Oh perfect. He is probably in there coiled up like a sad giant cold blooded dramatic noodle. My life is actually cursed."

Zyran raised a brow behind her and muttered, "Then why are you scared."

Isabella whipped around. "Say it again and I will feed you to him."

Zyran looked offended. "Feed me. To that soft hearted noodle."

Valen coughed. "Let us focus."

Ophelia grabbed Isabella’s hands.

"You can do this," she said softly. "I promise you he is not mad. He misses you. So much."

"Really," Isabella whispered.

Ophelia nodded sweetly.

Zyran rolled his eyes. "What is there to be scared of. Just go inside and drag the worm out."

Isabella picked up a pebble and threw it at him again.

It hit him this time.

Zyran glared. Valen smirked. Kian pinched the bridge of his nose. Ophelia tried not to laugh.

Isabella inhaled deeply, exhaled shakily, then stepped inside the cave.

The cold hit her instantly.

A chilling wind crawled up her legs.

The darkness swallowed her vision.

The others stayed outside, giving her space.

Isabella walked slowly, her heartbeat loud in her ears.

"Cyrus," she whispered.

Silence.

She walked further in. Then she froze.

There he was.

A massive, enormous, breathtakingly huge red python lay coiled in the corner of the cave. His scales glowed faintly in the dim light. His body was wrapped almost like he was protecting himself from the world.

Isabella’s breath caught.

He looked... lonely.

Terribly lonely.

Her chest tightened painfully.

She stepped closer. And closer. And closer. She reached a hand out gently, trembling, unsure if she should wake him or run away forever.

Before she could touch him, his eyes snapped open.

Two enormous glowing red eyes.

Isabella’s soul almost exploded out of her body.

The python instantly uncoiled. His massive tail shot out and wrapped around her waist, then her legs, then pulled her toward him in a swift, instinctive movement.

Isabella almost screamed.

"Wait wait wait," she cried. "It is me. It is me. Isabella. You could not have forgotten me, right. I have been away for barely a month."

The python stared at her.

Confused. Disbelieving. Frozen.

Then his upper body shifted.

Bones shifted. Skin shimmered. Light curled around him.

Cyrus appeared. His human form emerged from the coils, long red hair falling over his shoulders, eyes wide, lips parted.

His tail still held her tightly.

Isabella winced. "My stomach. Cyrus. My stomach hurts."

Everything stopped.

Cyrus’ eyes widened fully.

His tail loosened instantly. Panic filled his face. He uncoiled her carefully, gently, delicately, as if she was made of wet flower petals.

Once she was free, he pulled her closer with trembling arms.

His entire body shook. His eyes glossed with tears. His voice came out broken and disbelieving.

"Isabella."

Her breath hitched.

He pressed his face to her neck, inhaling her scent like a starving man. His arms wrapped around her tightly, but not enough to hurt her. Trembling. Holding. Clinging. As if she was going to disappear.

Isabella felt her heart break.

He had cried.

He had been hurting.

He thought she did not want him.

"Cyrus," she whispered.

His tears hit her shoulder.

She touched his hair softly, fingers sliding through the familiar strands.

"If you keep crying," she murmured, voice trembling, "I will cry too."

He choked out a small sound, something between disbelief and relief.

His arms tightened just a little more.

She hugged him back fully now, resting her face against his hair.

"It is okay," she whispered. "I am here. All right. I am here."

Cyrus’ tail coiled around her legs, not trapping, just holding. Protecting. Reassuring himself she was real.

Outside the cave, Zyran gagged loudly.

Ophelia shushed him aggressively.

Kian stared silently with something unreadable in his eyes.

Valen and Ophelia held hands, smiling softly.

But inside the cave, none of that mattered.

It was only Isabella.

Only Cyrus.

Two hearts breaking.

Two hearts finding each other again.

Isabella’s eyes softened as she whispered again.

"I am here."

And Cyrus finally believed her.