The study was as silent as a grave.
Lilia froze on the bed.
The blood in her veins felt like ice.
The taste of rust still lingered in her mouth—Lucia’s blood.
She watched the woman, watched her stick out the tip of her tongue.
Little by little, she licked away the beads of blood seeping from the wound on her lower lip—the bite Lilia had given her.
The movement lacked any trace of warmth.
Instead, it radiated an indescribable, sinister energy.
Lilia’s scalp tingled with numbness.
That pervert… after being bitten…
She seems… even more excited?
“The taste…”
Lucia finally spoke, her voice raspy.
It carried a strange sense of satisfaction.
“Not bad.”
She looked up, her red pupils swirling with a fanaticism Lilia had never seen before.
It wasn’t anger, let alone murderous intent.
It was the excitement of a hunter who had captured her most desired prey, discovering its deepest, fiercest side.
The string in Lilia’s mind snapped with a crack.
It was over.
This wasn’t how the script was written.
She had bitten the King of this world.
Shouldn’t this moody tyrant have torn her to shreds on the spot? Why did this woman look like… she was enjoying it?
Could it be… she actually likes this?
This absurd thought sent a shiver deep into Lilia’s heart.
A chill seeped out from her very bones.
This woman’s mind was something she couldn’t even begin to fathom.
“You…”
Lilia’s lips trembled, unable to squeeze out another word.
Lucia stood up from the bedside, making no further move to approach her.
She simply watched Lilia quietly, watching her shrink into the corner of the bed, trembling all over.
Then, Lucia laughed.
It wasn’t the playful, calculating laugh from before.
It was a pure, heartfelt laugh that could almost be described as happy.
“Heh… hehe…”
The crisp laughter echoed in the empty room.
It struck Lilia’s eardrums, terrifying her more than any angry outburst ever could.
It was over; she was truly insane.
This realization instantly drained the tragic sense of fighting to the death that had just risen in Lilia’s heart.
All that remained was boundless terror.
She understood now.
In the eyes of this pervert, all her struggles—all her resistance—were just a meticulously designed drama.
And the desperate bite she had just delivered was nothing more than a bit of spicy seasoning added to a boring play.
Not only had she failed to hurt the other woman at all…
She had… unlocked some terrible new way to be played with.
“You’re truly a… hopeless lunatic, meow…”
Lilia’s voice shook beyond recognition.
“Thank you for the compliment.”
Lucia accepted the title with pleasure.
She paced to the window, her back turned to Lilia.
The moonlight outlined her perfect profile.
It was cold, devoid of any human warmth.
“As a reward for the surprise you just gave me…”
She paused and turned around, her red eyes glowing terrifyingly in the darkness.
“I have decided to start our next ‘game’ ahead of schedule.”
Lilia’s heart constricted suddenly, nearly stopping altogether.
Again?
Whenever she heard the word “game” now, her stomach churned.
“I don’t want to play! Meow!”
She screamed.
“This time, it’s not up to you.”
Lucia snapped her fingers lightly.
Lilia felt her limbs suddenly cease to belong to her.
An invisible force manipulated her, making her climb out of bed and walk to the center of the room on weak legs.
Then, with a thud, she knelt down involuntarily.
“What on earth do you want? Meow!”
She lifted her head, staring at Lucia with all her strength.
“Don’t be in such a hurry.”
Lucia walked over to her and crouched down, meeting her eyes.
“Before the game starts, you have to change into suitable ‘equipment’.”
As she spoke, she snapped her fingers again.
The air above the nearby side table distorted slightly.
A silver tray covered with a black cloth appeared out of thin air.
Lilia’s heart sank straight to the bottom.
She would never forget this scene as long as she lived.
What would it be… this time?
“Go on. Unveil it yourself.”
Lucia’s tone left no room for argument.
Lilia knelt in place, her body stiff, refusing to move for the life of her.
“Hmm?”
Lucia let out a dangerous hum from her nose.
Lilia trembled violently.
She gritted her teeth and crawled up from the floor in humiliation.
Dragging her heavy steps, she moved to the table.
Her hands shook so hard she could barely pinch the fabric.
Forget it.
She closed her eyes.
She was dead either way, so what was one more moment of shame? Steeling herself, she yanked the black cloth away!
The item on the tray left her stunned.
It was a… very ordinary black collar.
It was leather, quite narrow, and the only decoration on it was a small silver ring.
Aside from that, there was nothing else.
It was so simple it was almost plain.
That’s it?
Lilia blinked, almost thinking she had seen it wrong.
When did this pervert undergo a change in personality?
“Do you like it?”
Lucia’s voice rang behind her like a ghost.
“I designed it specifically for you—the ‘Contract Ring’.”
“The Contract… Ring? Meow?”
Lilia picked up the collar; it felt icy to the touch.
Aside from the extremely high quality of the material, it was no different from an ordinary dog collar.
“Put it on.”
“I’ll do it myself! Meow!”
Lilia interjected quickly, trying to grasp the last shred of her dignity by doing it herself.
“No.”
Lucia took the collar from her hand.
She moved behind her.
“This time, I want to put it on you personally.”
Icy fingertips touched the back of Lilia’s neck, sending a wave of goosebumps across her skin.
Her body froze, and she could clearly feel Lucia slowly wrapping the leather collar around her neck, unhurriedly.
And then—
“Click.”
A very soft metallic snapping sound.
The collar was locked.
The very moment the collar snapped shut, a wave of intense pain exploded from her neck!
“Ah—!”
Lilia let out a shrill scream, her entire body collapsing to the floor.
It wasn’t physical pain.
A massive surge of magic followed the collar, brutally piercing through her mental barriers and branding itself directly into the depths of her soul!
Her mind went blank.
An incredibly complex rune, filled with absolute order and majesty, was forcibly branded onto her.
It was Lucia’s mark!
Her soul, her thoughts, her everything—at this moment, they were forcibly labeled as “property.”
She could feel a distorted and profound connection being established between herself and Lucia.
Through this connection, all her thoughts and emotions were completely exposed to the other woman, with nowhere left to hide.
“Now…”
Lucia crouched down.
She admired Lilia, who was curled up in pain on the ground, a look of satisfied completion on her face.
She reached out and gently stroked Lilia’s sweat-drenched hair.
Lilia twitched in pain, lacking even the strength to dodge.
Just as she felt her consciousness was about to be torn apart by the agony of the soul-branding, a voice rang out directly in her mind without any warning.
The voice was cold and playful—it was Lucia’s voice.
“Now, we are truly ‘connected in heart and mind,’ my little pet.”