Ten o’clock in the morning.
An awkward point in time. The morning light had long since shed its gentle glow, becoming bright and somewhat glaring—neither early nor late.
Merlin’s eyelashes fluttered. She slowly opened her eyes, trying to force her heavy body to move.
Her sky-blue eyes were veiled with a mist, their usual clear and crystalline gaze now somewhat unfocused.
It should have been a perfect morning, one that would relax both body and mind. But a heavy, sore discomfort firmly gripped her.
Her waist and lower abdomen ached dully, her throat was dry, and a chill seeped from her limbs.
Merlin tried to prop herself up on her arms, wanting to rise as usual and greet the new day—if only to open the door for Ophelia.
But the moment Merlin left the bed, a violent wave of dizziness struck, forcing her to slump back weakly.
“Mm…” The girl frowned slightly, a moan escaping her pale lips.
What was this feeling? Her waist felt so sore it seemed no longer her own, as if it had been roughly folded, while a burning pain crawled along her nerve endings.
Even after an intense workout, when her whole body ached the next day, her waist had never felt this fiery.
Just then—
Creak—
The heavy wooden door was pushed open without ceremony, the sound of the hinges breaking the deathly silence in the room.
A tall, graceful figure stood in the doorway, backlit by the bright light outside, her curves outlined by the halo.
Ophelia didn’t pay Merlin any attention. She only instructed Orino to make breakfast and remember to wake Merlin up. Earlier, just after dawn, Ophelia had left for class.
“Still not getting up?”
‘Anyway, she’ll have to go back to class in a few days. She can’t sleep in much longer, so just let the baby sleep for now.’
Ophelia stepped into the room, her gaze falling on the figure curled up under the covers.
Merlin’s blue-gradient hair was fanned out carelessly on the pillow, refracting light in the morning glow—a stark contrast to her pale, small face.
Today, Ophelia wore a daring black V-neck mini dress and high heels.
Ophelia had originally thought that by the time she came back, Merlin would be dutifully eating breakfast. But what happened?
When she came back from class, Merlin still hadn’t gotten up.
As soon as Ophelia came home, she saw Orino pacing anxiously outside the door.
She said that Merlin absolutely refused to get up and had finally thrown a tantrum and locked the door.
Ophelia knew something was wrong the moment she heard that.
In all the time she and Merlin had lived together, Merlin had never slept in or thrown a fit over being lazy.
Something was definitely off.
Ophelia walked to the bedside, the heels of her high heels clicking to a stop.
She reached out a slender finger and gently poked the hot, soft little cheek.
“Merlin…?”
The touch was scalding. Merlin seemed completely unconscious, only swaying her head left and right with the pressure, dazed.
‘Mm… today’s Ophelia is so mature.’ Merlin thought with her hazy, sleepy mind.
The faint perfume emanating from Ophelia, mixed with the distinctive aura of a mature woman, made her feel both reassured and inferior.
Would she herself become such a woman in the future? Would she ever have the chance to reach Ophelia’s level of maturity?
Seeing Merlin’s unfocused gaze and lack of proper response, Ophelia frowned and strode quickly to the edge of the bed.
Click!
A sharp, clear sound of a high heel echoed.
Ophelia leaned down slightly, her amethyst-like hair falling beside Merlin’s face.
Her amethyst eyes were sharp as knives, now slightly narrowed as she examined Merlin’s abnormal flush and weakness.
“Did you not sleep well last night?”
Merlin was silent for a long time before slowly nodding, her voice hoarse: “I’ll get up now.”
Squirming under the covers, she trembled a little and whispered her request: “Mom, can you step out first?”
‘Why should I step out?’
Since gentle didn’t work, she’d use force. Ophelia didn’t hesitate.
Merlin instinctively tried to grab the corner of the blanket for a small resistance, but against Ophelia’s strength, it was like an ant trying to shake a tree.
Ophelia directly threw back the covers—even though—
The covers were mercilessly yanked away, and cold air rushed in. After all, as soon as she entered the room, she had smelled a faint trace of blood.
Merlin gasped, mortified and wanting to hide the red stain.
“Hey! What are you doing! You jerk!”
“Would you like to see for yourself?”
Ophelia’s commanding aura completely enveloped the sickly girl.
“Do you hear me?”
Ophelia commanded word by word, her warm breath brushing against Merlin’s cheek.
“You’re not going anywhere today.”
“Mm… Anyway, get up first. It’s not sanitary like this. I’ll help you change clothes first.”
Merlin sank into the pillow, looking up at Ophelia, who was insistent on holding her down. Finally, she blinked weakly in compromise.
Ophelia gave a light snort and straightened up a little, but her long legs in sheer black stockings still stood rooted by the bed.
‘Still not getting up?’
Merlin pulled the blanket up to the tip of her nose, leaving only her wet eyes exposed, her voice soft enough to drip water.
“I… I’m shy.”
“What’s there to be shy about? Isn’t this a rite of passage for every girl? You’re fifteen—I thought you were going to be a baby forever.”
“Don’t! There’s nothing to celebrate!”
“But I think it should be celebrated. After all, our Merlin—for various reasons—came to it quite late, didn’t she?”
Merlin stared at the red, sticky mess in her underwear.
Even though Ophelia spoke lightly, as if she didn’t care at all, she cared! A lot!
Having to get out of this red mess in front of Mom, and then change clothes under her gaze… so embarrassing!
Merlin felt she might as well just evaporate on the spot. She really would die of shame. Right now, Merlin was like a hot kettle about to boil over, steam practically shooting from the top of her head.
Seeing her daughter’s face as red as a hot kettle, Ophelia didn’t really mind, but to preserve a teenage girl’s fragile dignity, she decided to give a little face.
“Fine.”
Ophelia turned around, the heels of her shoes rotating on the floor.
“Orino and I will wait outside. Just change your clothes. Don’t touch the sheets—I’m afraid you’ll make things worse with your clumsy hands.”
The crisp sound of heels faded, and the door was considerately closed.
Only then did Merlin breathe a sigh of relief. She called out toward the door, half-angry, half-cute:
“I know—”
Did not see that coming