Pfft…
A muffled laugh escaped Liliya’s throat.
She couldn’t hold it in any longer and collapsed backward onto the black bed.
“Haha… Hahahaha! Mew!”
She clutched her stomach, curling into a ball as her entire body trembled with laughter.
She laughed so hard that tears pricked at her eyes, but she didn’t care.
She sprang up from the bed, her body heaving with frantic giggles.
Pointing a finger directly at the figure by the bedside, her voice was shrill and arrogant.
“I hit you! I actually hit you! Mew!”
It felt amazing!
She, Liliya, a prisoner used as a mere toy, had actually managed to leave her mark on the absolute ruler of this world!
It wasn’t a wound, just a single drop of water — a droplet that had unexpectedly condensed during her desperate attack.
But this single drop felt heavier than all the fireballs and ice spikes she had ever unleashed combined!
“Your dress! Your dress is wet! Mew! Hahahaha!”
She pointed at the dark mark slowly spreading across Lucia’s hem.
She rolled around on the bed, her silver hair becoming a tangled mess.
This laughter was her catharsis, her provocation.
Lucia didn’t move.
She kept her head lowered, staring at the damp stain on her skirt.
Liliya’s laughter eventually died down.
She lay flat on the bed, gasping for air as her chest heaved.
She wiped away the tears of mirth and looked up, bracing herself for punishment.
However, Lucia wasn’t angry.
The woman simply stared at her hem in silence.
Then, Liliya witnessed a scene she would never forget.
The tight line of Lucia’s lips twitched.
The corners of her mouth very slowly curved upward.
Bit by bit, the expression grew.
It was a pure smile, devoid of mockery or her usual icy detachment.
There was a sense of genuine pleasure in it.
The smugness on Liliya’s face froze.
‘I’m dead.’
She stared at Lucia’s smile.
Those two words echoed in her mind, sending a chill through her body.
‘This pervert… is smiling?’
She had ruined the woman’s dress, yet instead of getting angry, Lucia was smiling?
And she looked so… happy?
A cold shiver raced from the base of Liliya’s tail to the back of her head.
Her fur stood on end, every fiber of her being screaming of danger.
This was far more terrifying than a sudden outburst of thunderous rage!
“Wh… what are you laughing at? Mew?”
Liliya’s voice was dry.
She scrambled backward using both her hands and feet.
Her body rubbed against the sheets, trying to get as far away from that smile as possible.
“It is nothing.”
Lucia straightened her posture, and the light in the room seemed to dim.
She took a step forward, reaching the edge of the bed.
Her shadow completely enveloped Liliya’s small frame.
The alarming glint of amusement in Lucia’s crimson eyes didn’t fade.
She reached out, her fingertip brushing the damp, dark fabric of her skirt.
Then, to Liliya’s horror, Lucia brought that damp finger to her own lips.
Liliya’s brain felt like it was about to explode.
That gesture…
‘This pervert! What is wrong with her?!’
“Not bad,” Lucia whispered.
The voice burned into Liliya’s ears.
“As a reward for surprising me once again…”
Lucia leaned down.
Her icy fingers pinched Liliya’s chin.
The grip wasn’t heavy, but it was irresistible, forcing the girl to lift her pale little face.
“I have decided to upgrade our game.”
Liliya’s heart skipped a beat.
‘Upgrade… again?’
The “Sensory Link” was already driving her insane.
If it upgraded further… she didn’t dare imagine what would happen.
“Wh… what are you planning now? Mew?”
Her voice shook uncontrollably.
“Since you enjoy…”
Lucia leaned close to her ear.
Her breath brushed against Liliya’s sensitive cat ears.
“…’soaking’ me so much.”
Her voice was incredibly low, each word boring into Liliya’s mind.
“Then next time, we shall play a game… where you can soak my entire body. How does that sound?”
‘My entire body…?’
Those words rippled through Liliya’s limbs, causing her cheeks to turn a deep crimson as countless images flashed through her mind.
Just then —
Knock, knock.
A soft knock came from the door.
“Your Majesty.”
Lilith’s characteristically monotone voice drifted in from outside.
“Urgent military intelligence from the West has arrived. It requires your immediate review.”
The playfulness and pressure radiating from Lucia vanished instantly.
She stood up straight, releasing Liliya’s chin.
When she looked toward the door, the smile on her face and the interest in her eyes had been reined in.
She was the Evernight Monarch once more.
“Understood.”
She gave the stunned Liliya one last look before turning to open the door.
Outside, the Head Maid, Lilith, stood with her head bowed, holding a stack of documents.
As Lucia walked past her, Lilith’s gaze fell upon the dark water stain on the hem of the Monarch’s nightgown.
Her heart sank slightly.
After Lucia left, the door remained open.
Lilith clutched the documents and stepped into the room.
She swept a gaze across the scene.
The bed was a mess, and chaotic fluctuations of magic still lingered in the air.
And the silver-haired culprit was sitting dazed in the middle of the bed.
Her cheeks bore an unnatural flush, and her pupils were vacant, clearly not yet recovered from the shock.
Lilith walked to the bedside, ignored everything else, and began to tidy the bedding.
She folded the quilt into a neat square and smoothed out the wrinkled sheets.
Once finished, she stepped in front of Liliya and bowed slightly.
“Miss, the game has ended. Please return to your own room to rest.”
Her voice was as steady as always.
Liliya was jolted awake by the sound.
Seeing the head maid’s expressionless face, a chill ran down her spine.
‘This woman definitely heard everything I said to that pervert!’
“I… I’m going, mew.”
Liliya scrambled off the bed.
Her bare feet hit the carpet, and she kept her head down, trying to slip past Lilith.
“Miss,” Lilith said behind her.
Liliya froze.
Her footsteps stopped, and she didn’t dare look back.
‘It’s over. Is the head maid going to settle the score now?’
“Your shoes.”
Lilith’s voice remained calm.
Liliya blinked, only then realizing she had been in such a hurry that she’d left her slippers by the bed.
She was about to say, “I’ll get them myself,” when she heard the rustle of fabric.
She carefully tilted her head, peeking from the corner of her eye.
Lilith — a Rank 5 Monarch whose status in the Evernight Palace was second only to the Demon King — actually bent over.
She picked up the small indoor slippers from the bedside, walked over to Liliya, and knelt on one knee to place them at the girl’s feet.
Liliya’s brain stopped working.
‘She… she’s kneeling?’
Liliya could see Lilith’s lowered profile.
A few silver strands of hair fell, obscuring her expression.
But Liliya felt that something was very wrong.
“Th… thank you, mew,” she mumbled.
She quickly shoved her feet into the slippers and ran out of the terrifying bedroom without looking back.
—
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