Mika knew exactly what sort of thoughts were going through her mind.

He could read Nadia like a book even without her speaking a word.

And right now, with her showing so much emotion, it was easier than ever to understand what was happening inside her head.

And that was of course that Nadia was going through inner turmoil once again exactly as he had intended.

He also knew that anyone else in his position would think the appropriate move was to confess.

To tell her that he truly loved her as a woman, not just as a mother.

That he wanted to take care of her for the rest of her life, to have children with her, to be with her forever.

It honestly wasn’t a bad idea. After revealing how much he had done for her—Nadia had fallen for him even more.

If he really confessed, she would hesitate. Unlike before, when she had a clear-minded view on the matter, she would struggle. She would waver.

But Mika knew it wasn’t that simple.

Even though the Battle Angels seemed easy to play and toy with them at will—they also had certain limits they would not cross.

They were stubborn about those limits. That was exactly why he had not taken the final step with Fauna yet, despite exploring her body thoroughly.

It was also why he didn’t confess right now.

Even if Nadia hesitated, she would eventually push those thoughts away.

She still had not broken through the final barrier. The one that would make her accept him completely.

So Mika knew it wasn’t the time yet. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

But he didn’t care. He was a patient individual. He could take his time with these matters.

Everything was going perfectly well, exactly according to his plans.

Eventually, Nadia would succumb. He was confident in his ability to make it happen.

The only thing that could throw a spanner in his plans was interference from the eldest Battle Angel.

That had almost completely screwed everything up earlier. For a moment, he had despaired, believing everything was lost.

Luckily, he had sorted out that issue as well.

He couldn’t help but smirk at the thought of how furious the eldest Battle Angel would be if she were watching this scene right now.

Her own son, going around seducing all of her sisters. The thought made him feel quite arrogant.

But the exact millisecond that arrogant thought crossed his mind, a violent, unnatural shiver ran straight down Mika’s spine.

He saw something in the corner of his eye that he couldn’t believe it at first.

He turned...and his blood ran cold.

A small portal had opened—purple and gold, shimmering with familiar energy.

Through it, he could see the same pair of eyes he had seen earlier that day.

The Maiden of Fate and Fortune...was staring right at him!

Her beautiful purple eyes were narrowed, slightly angry, as if she had heard all his thoughts and wanted to beat him up right then and there.

Mika shivered.

He had been joking earlier—thinking that she truly was watching every scene from the background.

He had thought it was just a joke in his mind.

But who would have thought that she actually was watching everything that was going on almost as if she was some kind of voyeur?

But then he realized—he didn’t have to feel scared. She couldn’t do anything about it. Not really.

So he slowly turned his head to look toward her eyes.

And he smirked. A taunting, challenging expression crossed his face.

Seeing this, her eyes narrowed even more. She looked like she wanted to tear him apart or rather spank his ass.

But Mika wasn’t scared. Instead, he wanted to provoke her even more.

His hands, the ones that were holding Nadia slid down her back. Down to her ass.

It was quite swollen and round. Especially since she was sitting in his lap—her butt cheeks spread wide, her body pressed against his.

And right before the eldest sister’s very eyes, he started feeling her up. Groping her ass. Squeezing it. Molding it like soft dough.

Nadia was too overwhelmed with emotion to even notice. She just buried her face in his chest, lost in her own swirling thoughts.

But the eldest Battle Angel could most definitely see.

And she was furious!

Mika could faintly hear her voice, carried through the portal like a whisper on the wind.

"Mika, you brat!...Don’t you dare."

He scoffed and continued to play around with Nadia’s ass—spreading it, cupping it, squeezing it—while watching the eldest sister the whole time.

He was taunting her. Daring her to come and stop him.

He even went further. He sent a voice transmission, just to rub salt in the wound.

"I’ll be playing with your ass like this too, soon."

He paused, letting the words sink in. Then an evil grin spread across his face.

"I also remember that your ass was the fattest in the entire family. Hehe. I wonder just how much meat will be in my hands when I grope it and smack it around."

The Maiden of Fate and Fortune snapped.

A flush spread across her pale cheeks. Her eyes widened, then narrowed, then widened again.

She looked like she didn’t know whether to be furious or mortified.

And finally—she cut off the transmission.

The portal snapped shut.

She had...run away.

Mika watched the empty space where the portal had been, and a satisfied smile curled his lips.

He had won this fight once again.

And while he was rejoicing over how his constant victories, Nadia was going through even more emotional turmoil then before.

This was because she had just realized something horrifying.

Mika had seen her!

He had seen her moaning and whimpering while touching herself. While calling out his name!

She had been so lost in the moment, so overwhelmed by the story he was telling, that she had forgotten about that small detail.

But now it came rushing back with full force.

How was she going to explain herself? There was no denying the obvious sign that she was falling for him.

What other mother would touch herself while thinking about her own son?!

She was terrified that Mika would catch on. That he would realize the truth.

That everything would blow apart.

But Mika, who understood Nadia perfectly, knew exactly what she was thinking.

He decided to give her some leeway. Some breathing room.

He didn’t want her to have a genuine panic attack.

And it wasn’t just that—he also wanted to allow her to forge a completely new path.

One where she wouldn’t have to hold her emotions in so tightly. One where she could finally show her feelings without fear.

So just as Nadia was wondering if she could somehow find Charlotte and make Mika misremember what he had seen—to convince him it was all a dream, or some kind of trick—Mika started speaking.

His voice was gentle. Warm.

"I’m so glad, Nadia."

She stiffened.

"I’m so glad that you’ve also realized what was exactly happening."

He chuckled softly as he went on to say,

"It would have been so awkward and weird if I was the only one who knew."

He hugged her tighter.

"I’m just so glad that you’re smart enough to pick up on what happened."

Nadia perked up in surprise. She didn’t understand what he was talking about.

Slowly, she pulled back just enough to look at him.

Her instincts told her not to directly ask what he meant. Instead, she said, in a suggestive tone.

"You mean—"

Mika immediately picked up on it. He smiled.

"Of course. It’s the fact that you figured out everything I was doing from the very beginning."

Nadia’s eyes widened.

"You went along with it without so much as a blink of surprise and I’m so glad it went smoothly because of that!"

Hearing this, Nadia didn’t know what to say.

After all, she had no idea what Mika was doing all along.

She had only figured it out moments ago, when he explained everything. But she wasn’t going to say that.

Mika continued, a resigned look in his eyes.

"Of course, you probably didn’t have the entire picture. You were confused—I could see that."

"But I’m pretty sure you had some level of thought into it, some idea of what was going on, didn’t you?"

The moment Nadia heard this, she felt as if she had seen a lifeline right before her eyes. She grabbed onto it with both hands.

"Uh, yes! Yes, I knew—I knew somewhat of it! Not the entire thing, but I think I had a rough idea."

Mika placed a hand over his heart in relief.

"Ah, yes. I knew it. I knew you would definitely understand what was going on."

He looked at her directly.

"After all, the reactions you showed throughout the process were perfectly fitted to the situation I was creating. You understood the assignment completely."

Nadia’s mind raced. "The reactions?"

Mika spread his arms, then reached out and gently pinched her cheeks.

"I’m talking about the reactions you showed on your face. The whole time I was doing those things to you, you kept blushing. You had a limpid look in your eyes. Almost as if you were a girl in love."

Nadia blushed on the spot, feeling caught.

"But of course." Mika continued, shaking his head. "Normally you wouldn’t have such a reaction. If your son was doing such things to you, you should have been scared. Terrified. Horrified, even."

Nadia felt guilty, because she definitely should have felt all those things. But she hadn’t.

Mika’s expression turned happy.

"So that just means that you found out early on what I was doing. And you decided to go along with it. To get into the act."

He nodded approvingly.

"If you also played along, we’d be able to evoke even more emotions. It would be completely against the natural order—and that’s exactly what we needed."

He gestured at her.

"And you played your part perfectly."

Nadia’s eyes widened with understanding. She saw where he was going with this.

"Whether it was the way you looked at me with such loving, affectionate eyes the whole time I did those things to you—"

Nadia looked away in embarrassment, because those feelings had been genuinely true.

She truly did love her son as a man.

"Or the way you couldn’t help but feel restless and kept fidgeting with your hands and feet whenever you were next to me."

She felt even more guilty, realizing that was because she had been genuinely giddy and nervous, almost like a schoolgirl sitting next to her crush.

"Or even the way you smiled and responded when I kissed you."

Her face flushed even deeper.

"You kissed me back. Just like any lover would. No normal mother would allow all those things to happen."

He spread his hands.

"That just means you played along too and played your role perfectly."

Nadia nodded mechanically, her face a perfect blank mask.

Inside...she was dying!

She had thought the whole time that her minor reactions were not noticeable at all.

That he had been too focused on his own actions to pay attention to hers.

But he had noticed everything.

And now he had taken it in a completely different direction—attributing her genuine, shameful feelings to a deliberate act of cooperation.

But..she was not going to correct him.

This was the perfect excuse. The perfect escape hatch!

Mika was giving her everything on a silver platter—a way to explain away her behavior, to maintain her dignity, to pretend that she had been in control the whole time.

She would take it.

"And of course." Mika added, and her heart stopped. "The way you were touching yourself while calling out my name earlier as well. That was also an excellent act."

She shivered all over.

"I know it must have been so awkward and embarrassing, but as I expected of you, Nadia—"

He clapped his hands together, like she had just won an award.

"—you truly put on an amazing performance. You gave it your all for the sake of the greater good."

Nadia quickly pushed herself forward, seizing the opportunity.

"O-Of course, Mika!" Her voice was dutiful, controlled. "My son was doing his utmost best to help, so I thought I should also help you out as well."

"So, it’s exactly as you said!" She nodded firmly. "I was also going along with this act. T-There’s nothing else."

Normally, Nadia would have been able to spot the discrepancies right away.

There was something strange about how Mika kept insisting on this story. There were so many things about what he said that simply did not add up, almost as if he was pushing his own agenda.

But right now, Nadia didn’t think about any of that.

Instead, she saw a way to escape the crushing embarrassment of what she had done, of everything Mika had witnessed.

So, she didn’t push it away. She grabbed onto it like a drowning woman clutching a floating plank in the middle of the ocean.

And she wasn’t going to let go.