Candlelight.

Red wine.

Flowers.

Steak.

And beautiful classical music.

The setup for a candlelight dinner was always so painfully formulaic, with nothing fresh about it at all.

But perhaps what made countless young women fall hopelessly in love with a scene like this had never been the setup or the novelty in the first place, but the beloved sitting across from them, only inches away, wrapped in soft notes and dim candlelight.

“Young Master...”

An stepped into the romantic dining room, and her gaze did not pause for even a second on any of the carefully arranged decorations. Her eyes went straight to Muen’s handsome face, and in an instant filled with a tenderness as soft as water.

“Come, sit.”

Muen rose with a smile and pulled out her chair like a gentleman.

“Young Master, I...”

“Don’t refuse. Tonight, you’re not my little maid, and you don’t need to wait on me. This is a romantic dinner meant for you and me alone.”

Muen held one of An’s hands in his while the other hooked around her soft waist. Their eyes met only once, and it was as if all the bones had instantly been drawn out of An’s body. Obediently, she let Muen guide her down into the soft chair.

Only after doing that did Muen return to his own seat. He clapped his hands, and the fresh, refined classical tune suddenly changed. The saxophone drifted in, its long notes gentle and lingering, making the atmosphere at the table even more intimate.

“Young Master, where is that little pest?”

Only now did An notice that there were only two places at the table. There was no seat prepared for that pest, and the candlelight gathered like stars around a moon seemed to burn for only the two of them.

“Didn’t I already say it? This is a romantic dinner meant only for you and me.”

Naturally, Muen was not about to answer a question like where Ariel was and walk straight into a trap. He only looked into An’s eyes and spoke each word with heartfelt sincerity.

“Here, there is only you and me. No one else.”

“Young Master...”

Hearing words with not a trace of falsehood in them, the affection in An’s eyes deepened until it seemed as though it might spill over.

“Young Master, am I beautiful right now?”

Now that she had confirmed this was truly a private space meant only for the two of them, An immediately dropped all pretense. Her expression remained as flawless and dignified as ever, elegance and competence carved into her bones.

But her gaze now, her voice now, the gradually heavier and hotter fragrance drifting from her now, all carried a soul-stealing seduction.

It was only a question any girl might ask in a moment like this, but coming from An’s lips, it had a flavor all its own, impossible to describe.

“You are. Very beautiful.”

Muen answered truthfully.

Apparently, An had gotten word from someone who had quietly tipped her off on purpose. She was not wearing her usual maid uniform tonight, but a dark purplish-red gown.

The deep V neckline displayed An’s steep mountains and deep valley to perfection, but the scenery did not end with mountains and ravines. The elegantly defined line of her collarbone, the flawless swanlike neck white as jade, all of it was a rare delight in this world, the kind that made people want to explore further.

“Young Master is handsome too.”

An’s lips curved as she looked at the handsome man reflected in her eyes, now also dressed in formal wear, a man whose every movement could make countless beautiful girls fall under his spell.

And yet what made him so intoxicating, so irresistible, was not this outward appearance at all.

“Young Master is the most handsome of all,” An murmured softly.

Hiss...

Muen suddenly jolted.

It wasn’t because he couldn’t take An’s praise with no upper limit, but because at the same moment she said those words, Muen felt a playful jade foot begin to rub against his calf.

An was propping up her cheek, only gazing at Muen with deep affection. Above the table, not the slightest thing seemed out of place.

But beneath the tablecloth, that long leg perfectly wrapped in black silk had already secretly crossed the line. With the big toe and the other little toes working together with nimble coordination, it was laboriously climbing step by step along Muen’s trouser leg.

Step by step...

until it reached the highest, deepest...

“You’re being too naughty.”

Muen clamped his legs together, forcibly trapping the jade foot before it could reach the last dangerous zone, and said with a straight face,

“We’re eating.”

“Am I?”

An’s little face was innocent as she lightly bit the silver fork between her red lips, unbearably alluring. “I’m being very obedient.”

Under the table, another jade foot came drifting over, still advancing toward the same target.

“You’re still trying?”

Muen reached out and grabbed it in one hand. Feeling that astonishing softness and smoothness, he said viciously,

“Are you forcing me to change the menu?”

“Do you want to eat it?”

An blinked. The silver fork popped free from her red lips with a soft little sound. “If it’s Young Master... you can.”

“...”

Muen’s breathing instantly roughened, his blood surging. An’s jade foot did not even need to keep going any farther. It was already only a hair away from the target.

Truth be told, when An was alone with him, she was more uninhibited and more proactive than anyone else. He hardly even needed to guide her. The initiative of an excellent maid alone was enough to lead him toward a paradise beyond words.

But Muen still forced that wicked fire down for the time being.

“Be good. This kind of reserved performance isn’t for a moment like this. Save it for a scene better suited to it.”

Muen picked up his wineglass. “Let’s drink to this moment first, all right?”

On the wall behind An, the clock ticked steadily.

After their glasses touched, Muen took advantage of the moment An tilted her head back and drained the red wine in one go to dart a glance at the clock.

—According to his calculations, Ariel, who wouldn’t know how to use the ducal residence’s complicated bath system, would need at least another forty minutes to reach the battlefield. Add in the time for getting dressed and doing her hair, and it would probably take even longer. So as long as this battle ended quickly enough, there was plenty of time.

A confident gleam flashed through Muen’s eyes. It seemed everything was progressing exactly as he had planned.

It was nothing more than time management. After surviving so many hellscapes already, he was long since perfectly at ease with this sort of—

“Young Master!”

But at that moment, Noah came hurrying in, looking flustered, and whispered something into Muen’s ear.

“What?”

Muen’s eyes widened. “That fast?”

...

...

“Damn it, how the hell do you use this thing?”

At the ducal residence, in the bathhouse.

At the edge of a massive bath large enough for seven or eight beautiful girls to bathe together, Ariel was scratching her head furiously in front of several mechanical knobs.

Just as Muen had predicted, Ariel, who had grown up heating water and bathing in wooden tubs, had never seen the ducal residence’s automatic hot water system in her life. Without anyone there to help her, she had absolutely no idea how to use it.

First she turned the knob toward the blue zone on the left. Water poured from the mouth of the stone lion with a rush, cold as if it had just been drawn straight from a deep well.

Too cold. No way she could bathe in that.

So she turned the knob toward the red zone on the right. The water immediately became warm...

but a little too warm. Ariel tested it lightly with her fingertips and discovered that the only difference between this “hot water” and boiling water was that it hadn’t quite started bubbling yet.

“What kind of stupid thing is this?”

Ariel muttered in irritation,

“The left side’s too cold, the right side’s too hot... how am I supposed to bathe like this?”

Did she have to treat it like cracking a safe, adjusting the knob over and over until she found the exact center point?

And after that, was she supposed to wait for the water flowing out of the stone lion to slowly, leisurely fill a bath this huge?

What kind of joke was this? It was just a bath. Why did it have to be so complicated?

...

Muen’s calculations had actually been correct. If Ariel wanted to fully master the ducal residence’s bath system and then enjoy a nice soak, it really would have been impossible without one or two hours.

But in his desperation to resolve this crisis, he had forgotten one very important thing.

That was, aside from when she was dazzled by beautiful girls and romance... Ariel was usually smart as hell.

“Isn’t it just warm water?”

Ariel’s mouth tilted. “Wouldn’t magic be way faster?”

As she spoke, magic surged. Guided by water magic, a large amount of clean water gathered inside the bathhouse and quickly filled the entire pool.

Then Ariel lowered one hand into the water, which was still icy cold for the moment, and said softly,

“Burn.”

With a boom, flames erupted in the water. Vast steam filled the bathhouse, only to vanish again with the scorching airflow.

Ariel kept releasing Divine Favor flames while feeling out the temperature. The moment she felt it was about right, she immediately stopped, then dropped her already naked body straight into the bath.

“Ha... that feels good.”

Tilting her head back, Ariel happily soaked in the water.

The whole process had taken less than three minutes.

Of course, Ariel wasn’t the type to lounge in the bath for long either. So once her body had warmed up, she hummed to herself and quickly washed the grime from her body.

...

...

“That fast?”

Hearing that Ariel had already finished bathing and was currently outside getting dressed, Muen felt his heart contract violently.

The clock on the wall moved with perfect precision, telling Muen that he had not lost track of time because of that heated exchange with An just now. Ariel truly had finished her bath forty minutes early.

This wasn’t just an issue of margin of error anymore. Muen had misjudged the situation from the start!

The time difference did not exist at all. Ariel had taken only a little more than ten minutes longer than An, and once she came out of the bath and realized he was nowhere to be found, then followed the trail all the way here...

The moment she saw this scene, where An had something she didn’t, even thinking with her knees, Ariel would explode on the spot with one-thousand-percent certainty!

What happened next wouldn’t even be called a hellscape anymore...

It would be hell itself.

The enraged soaring phoenix heroine would go on a total slaughter, leaving blood running through the entire ducal residence!

That was not a picture Muen wanted to see.

“Hm? What are you two talking about?”

Seeing how anxious Noah was, An’s willow brows drew together slightly, suspicion flickering in her eyes.

“It’s nothing.”

Muen was only startled for an instant before his expression returned to normal.

What kind of storm had he not weathered before? Something on this level... he could still handle.

He waved Noah away, signaling for her to leave. If that girl stayed here under this kind of pressure, there was too much risk she would let something slip. As for himself, he laced his fingers together and said in a feigned tone of concern,

“It’s just that a small unexpected issue came up, so I was a little surprised. That’s all.”

“What small issue?”

An asked nervously, “Can I help?”

“It’s nothing. It’s just that that bastard Pink Bear shattered his knees kneeling on durians and is now on the verge of death, so he can’t handle state affairs for the moment. And right now, a shipment of military supplies going to the front through Campbell channels happens to need someone to make a decision.”

“In other words?”

“I’m sorry.”

Muen grabbed An’s little hand and said with a pained look,

“Even though I also can’t bear to interrupt this candlelight dinner, the situation is urgent and concerns the front. That shipment can’t wait. So I may have to leave for twenty minutes for the time being. Wait for me here like a good girl, all right?”

...

...

Candlelight.

Red wine.

Flowers.

Steak.

And beautiful classical music.

When Ariel pushed the door open and saw all of this, she almost thought she had traveled through time and returned to the moment earlier when An had laid a death trap for her.

There was just one difference.

This time, the seat across the table was not empty. The handsome blond man was sitting there properly, and the affectionate gaze that came chasing toward her the moment the door opened instantly made her heart race.

“Y-you were waiting for me?”

Ariel unconsciously rubbed at the hem of her dress with her fingers, cheeks faintly pink as she looked away.

All the little unhappiness from her fight with An a moment ago seemed to vanish completely in the face of this wonderful atmosphere.

“Of course.”

Muen’s smile was clean, his tone natural, as if he had been waiting there from the very beginning.

“Otherwise, what other reason would I have for sitting here?”

“Where’s that slutty maid?”

Ariel craned her head to look around.

“She’s not here?”

“At a time like this, don’t talk about anyone else. This moment, this place, belongs only to the two of us.”

As always, Muen gave Ariel no chance to steer the conversation somewhere dangerous.

He quickly got up and lightly wrapped an arm around Ariel’s waist, guiding her into the seat.

Ariel twisted a little in token protest against Muen’s sudden intimacy, but did not make any real effort to resist.

“This was prepared especially for me? How tacky.”

Ariel looked around. She had already seen a similar arrangement once, but that same setup arranged by a different person held a different meaning for her after all.

Her mouth was dismissive, but her eyes were bright.

“Tacky has its advantages too. Tacky means your feelings can be conveyed more clearly, doesn’t it?”

Muen smiled.

“Think about it. If I put an abstract sculpture here, and the subject of that sculpture was I love you, would you be able to feel what I was trying to say?”

“No. I don’t understand sculpture at all.”

Ariel answered as if that were only natural.

But after she answered, she finally realized the confession hidden in those words, and immediately felt both embarrassed and annoyed. She lightly kicked him.

“Sweet talker!”

“That isn’t sweet talk. It’s just my true feelings slipping out by accident.”

Muen caught the foot Ariel kicked at him with one hand, though the corner of his eye twitched faintly.

Didn’t these two completely hate each other? So why were their methods of attack so similar, always aiming below the belt?

Ariel was not wearing black stockings, and she had no habit of wearing those flashy little accessories either. But her bare foot was equally soft and smooth, and equally pleasant to touch.

“Pervert!”

Ariel huffed, but did not pull her foot free from Muen’s hand.

“This isn’t perversion. It’s me expressing how much I like you. Every part of you is like this.”

The moment he said that, before Ariel could angrily kick at him again, Muen had already let go and quickly sat back down.

He couldn’t let that sort of intimacy go any further for now. If he lost himself in it later, it would be hard to get away cleanly.

“Here, try this.”

Muen tapped the silver plate in front of Ariel with one finger.

To deal with Ariel, food was still the best weapon.

This time, the plate didn’t hold the demon sheep meat An had specially prepared earlier, but a real steak marbled with beautiful lines.

“South Weir prairie beef. Some of the best top-tier beef on the continent. I had it prepared especially for you.”

Muen teased, “Ever since you came to the ducal residence, the quality of our meals has been rising in a straight line.”

“Really?”

Sure enough, the moment Muen said that, Ariel immediately showed enormous interest.

Just how delicious could the continent’s best beef possibly be?

With that thought in mind, Ariel moved knife and fork, blending her crisp swordsmanship into the motion. In the blink of an eye, she had cut it into more than a dozen pieces.

But just as she lightly speared one piece and was about to lift it to her mouth to savor it...

she looked up and saw that Muen had not touched his food at all. He was only watching her with a smile.

After hesitating for 0.05 seconds, Ariel held the fork out toward Muen, turned her head away, and said, “Here.”

“Hm?”

Muen looked puzzled. “What’s this?”

“I’m feeding you!”

A flush of embarrassment spread across Ariel’s cheeks. “Can’t you even tell? You’re so dumb!”

“...Feeding me?”

That Ariel, who loved food so much, was feeding him first before eating it herself?

“Well, take it as an apology for earlier, for destroying so much of your stuff. Of course, I was paying attention at the time. I only destroyed a few unimportant things! And if you think that’s not enough, you can just deduct it from the hundred million I owe you.”

“...”

Unimportant... Father would be heartbroken if he heard that. Those “unimportant things” were all his favorites...

Even so, Muen still gave her a gentle smile.

“Don’t worry about it. The Campbell family has too much money and property for that little bit to really hurt.”

“Then are you eating it or not?!”

Ariel stamped her foot, the embarrassment on her face growing thicker.

“I’m eating it, I’m eating it!”

Before Ariel could explode into a full fluff-out, Muen bit down on the piece of steak on her fork in one gulp. Instantly, the rich fragrance of the fat filled his entire nose, while the firm yet juicy texture lingered irresistibly.

And even more irresistible than that was the brightness in the girl’s eyes at that moment.

“Ah...”

After feeding him, Ariel shut her eyes and leaned her little head forward on her own initiative.

Muen stared blankly for a moment before realizing Ariel wanted him to feed her too.

She got embarrassed more easily than anyone under normal circumstances, and yet at times like this she still gathered her courage... so cute.

The corner of Muen’s mouth curved upward. He cut off a piece of steak and placed it into Ariel’s cherry lips.

“Is it good?”

“Mhm!”

After tasting the legendary top-grade beef, Ariel’s whole body unconsciously curled in on itself, while both feet kicked wildly with force. Only after she hit some critical point did her whole body suddenly stretch back out.

“It’s so good!”

“Then eat more. If nothing else, the ducal residence certainly doesn’t lack ingredients.”

“Mhm, mhm! I’m not going to be polite with a bastard like you. I’m going to eat you into poverty!”

Ariel happily waved her fork. “Come on, now it’s my turn to feed you.”

“All right...”

And so, in that cheerful atmosphere, the two of them happily began their little mutual feeding play.

Time flew by. If no outsider interrupted, that kind of happiness might have lasted for a very long time...

Unfortunately...

“Ahem, ahem!”

A cough deliberately pitched strangely came from outside the door, and Muen was jolted awake from his soft, gentle paradise.

No, wait!

Now was not the time to get lost in this.

Muen looked at the clock and realized that in that short span, twenty minutes had almost already passed!

“What is it?”

Ariel was still enjoying the food. Her happiness really was that simple. The plates piled beside her were already stacked ridiculously high.

Of course, half of that had Muen’s contribution mixed into it as well.

“I’m sorry, Ariel. That bastard Pink Bear shattered his knees kneeling on durians and is now on the verge of death, so he can’t handle state affairs for the moment. And right now, a shipment of military supplies going to the front through Campbell channels happens to need someone to make a decision, so...”

Muen held Ariel’s little hand and said painfully,

“I may have to leave for a little while.”

“Huh?”

“It won’t be long, just twenty minutes. You have to wait for me here. Absolutely do not run around!”

“Really?”

Ariel looked a little puzzled, but still nodded.

“Fine, then go.”

...

...

At the exact moment the hand on the clock passed the last second of those twenty minutes, Muen finally rushed back into the original dining room just in time.

And the instant he pushed open the door, a figure was /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ already winding itself around him, greedily taking in his scent.

“You were gone too long...”

An kissed the corner of Muen’s mouth. “I was getting impatient.”

“Haha... sorry. It’s all Pink Bear’s fault. He’s such a bastard.”

Muen laughed dryly.

But An, who had just been kissing him, suddenly frowned. “Why do you smell like steak?”

“Ah...”

Muen’s brain spun at high speed, and he immediately answered,

“That... I got too hungry on the way, so I ate a little in advance. That’s right, exactly that. I’ve been too tired today. I still haven’t properly eaten a real meal yet!”

“Really?”

A flicker of heartache passed through An’s eyes.

“Come.”

She pulled Muen over to the table and made him sit down, while she herself sat in his lap and picked up a plate.

“Young Master, open your mouth. I’ll feed you.”

“Huh?”

Muen froze. In his mind, he suddenly saw again the great stack of empty plates he and Ariel had cleaned out together in those short twenty minutes.

For Ariel, that amount of food was nothing worth mentioning. But for him, it was already enough to leave him full!

“What’s wrong?”

An frowned slightly. “Young Master doesn’t like being fed by me?”

“No, I like it too much...”

Muen answered reflexively.

“That’s wonderful, then.”

An directly speared the whole steak with her fork. Just when Muen thought she was going to feed it to him in one bold piece...

An suddenly opened her mouth, tore off one bite herself, then leaned in toward him like that.

The meaning needed no explanation.

“You wicked maid.”

Even with his stomach already heavy with food, Muen was hardly some iron-willed official. How could he possibly withstand a temptation like that? He immediately bent down and captured both the meat and An’s lips together.

...

...

“Ahem, ahem!”

“No, I have to leave again for a little while.”

That painful yet blissful stretch of time did not last long. Twenty minutes seemed to pass in the blink of an eye.

“You’re leaving again?”

“There’s no helping it. Pink Bear is too much of a bastard. This time it’ll be twenty... no, ten minutes. This time, ten minutes. Wait for me like a good girl.”

“...All right.”

An rose from Muen’s lap and turned back into that obedient, good little maid again.

But as she watched Muen’s back hurrying away, her eyes flickered, thoughtful.

...

...

“I’m back!”

“You took forever!”

“Sorry, I got delayed a little.”

“Hmph. Since dinner was good, I’ll forgive you. Let’s keep going.”

“Huh? Again?”

Muen rubbed at his belly, which already felt like it was about to burst, and said bitterly, “Can we switch to some other kind of game?”

Ariel looked puzzled. “What do you want to play?”

...

...

“Ahem, ahem!”

Halfway through a new kissing game, Muen was forced to pull away from Ariel.

“I’m sorry, I need to leave for a little while again.”

“You’re leaving again?”

“It’s all Pink Bear’s fault! Wait for me twenty... no, ten minutes. I’ll be right back in ten!”

Muen hurried off again.

...

...

“I’m back!”

“Young Master, I’ve been waiting forever.”

“It’s all Pink Bear’s fault. Come on, let’s stop playing feeding play and try something new...”

...

“Ahem, ahem!”

“I’m sorry...”

...

“I’m back!”

“So slow. I’m already full.”

“It wasn’t that slow... let’s keep going!”

...

“Ahem, ahem!”

“I’m sorry...”

...

“I’m back!”

...

“Ahem, ahem!”

“I’m sorry...”

...

“I’m back...”

...

“Ahem, ahem!”

“I’m sorry...”

...

“I... I’m back...”

After who knew how many trips back and forth, Muen collapsed into a chair, panting heavily, his whole body sunk into a state of total dead-eyed despair.

Damn it.

In all those TV dramas from his previous life, those masters of time management could handle seven or eight girls at once without a problem. So why was it that with him, just two was already pushing him this close to collapse?

Was it really because he had made one mistake in the beginning, and now every step after that had gone wrong too?

A lesson. A lesson to carve into his bones. In this hellscape full of danger at every step, even the slightest wrong move could bring about an eternal doom from which there was no return.

After lamenting for a bit, Muen pulled himself together again. After all, for him, this one-against-two dinner was not over yet. He had not fallen to that truly miserable ending... not yet.

“Come on, An, let’s continue. Where were we just now?”

Muen stood up, ready to continue the little game from before and smooth over An’s suspicions.

But...

“An?”

A voice cold as snow stabbed like a knife straight into Muen’s soul.

Muen slowly lifted his stiff neck and saw Ariel, her face dark as iron, saying frostily,

“You called me An?”

“...”

Shit!

Muen felt all the blood in his body start flowing backward, surging straight into his head. He had run back and forth too many times now, and his brain had become scrambled. He had mixed up the order!

He had actually made such a low-level mistake!

“Ariel, listen to my explanation. I only said the wrong name just now. The name I really meant to say was—” Muen hurried to patch things up.

“Oh~ so you just said the wrong name.”

Ariel suddenly let out a long, meaningful sound.

“That’s right, that’s right.”

“But you didn’t say the wrong name at all... Young Master.”

“Huh?”

In Muen’s stunned gaze, the “Ariel” before him gradually began to change. As the distortion of light faded, she became An.

No—that was An to begin with. She had only used magic to turn herself into Ariel’s appearance!

“An... when did you learn magic?” Muen swallowed hard.

“Recently.”

An looked at her own hands, as though still unfamiliar with using magic in this way.

“I originally wanted it to be a surprise for Young Master. It seems Young Master beat me to it instead.”

“...An, listen to me explain.”

“There’s no need. I think I already understand Young Master’s little game. Splitting your attention between two people... as expected of Young Master. You really are amazing.”

An sighed from the bottom of her heart.

Of course she would sigh. Young Master really was amazing, and Young Master wasn’t the one at fault. The only one at fault was...

“Heh. Speak of the pest, and the pest appears.”

An suddenly turned her head.

Bang!

The door to the room was kicked open, and Ariel stood there in the doorway, her face dark as still water.

This time it was the real Ariel. No deception at all.

Because only she could give off such sharp killing intent.

“Ariel, how did you...” Muen stared blankly again.

“Heh heh, do you really think I’m stupid? Did you think I wouldn’t notice something this obviously suspicious?”

Ariel folded her arms across her chest and sneered.

Behind her, Noah, tied up into a little caterpillar, wriggled with difficulty and rasped out one hoarse “I’m sorry, Young Master” before immediately scrambling away, afraid of being caught in the storm that was clearly about to break.

As a weak, helpless little maid, she had already done her best...

“It’s over...”

Seeing that scene, Muen’s mind buzzed. A tragic sense of my life ends here instantly welled up in his heart.

He had never even successfully pulled off his time management plan once before it capsized completely.

He was the shame of the pure-love world, the disgrace of the scumbag world!

If he was already this pathetic with only two people, then what was he supposed to do later when there were more...?

“I’m very sorry... This is all my fault. Punish me however you want...”

Muen collapsed back into his chair, looking like a salted fish fully resigned to lying flat and getting screwed.

“Hm? Why would I punish Young Master?”

But An gently stroked Muen’s face.

“In this matter, Young Master is clearly not the one at fault. Young Master only wanted to give us love. What fault could Young Master possibly have?”

“Exactly!”

Ariel nodded.

“Muen, you’re awful too, but you’re obviously not the most awful one here! The most awful one is...”

As she spoke, the two of them looked at each other again.

Lightning flashed. Sparks flew.

A freezing killing intent spread through the room once more, making the candles tremble and the flowers begin to wither.

“I already let you off once during the day, and you still came to seduce my Young Master.”

Iron condensed into a scythe in An’s hand.

“A pest is a pest. Shameless to the very end!”

“Heh, I return those words exactly as they are!”

Ariel let out a mocking laugh and drew Heavenly Fire.

“The shameless one is a degenerate maid like you!”

Boom!

Invisible pressure collided, fiercer this time than it had been during the day. The entire ducal residence seemed to shake under the surging force!

“Wait—”

Muen’s face suddenly changed.

“You can’t fight! Don’t fight anymore! If you keep fighting, this ducal residence really is going to be torn apart!”

“Don’t worry, Young Master. I’ll spend the rest of my life repaying all the damage afterward.”

An’s face was full of determination.

“So will I.”

Ariel refused to back down in the slightest.

“If that hundred million isn’t enough to pay you back... I’ll work hard and earn the rest, even if I have to eat black bread for ten more years!”

“Your determination is moving, but that’s not the problem here!”

Muen tried to stop them, but the two of them had clearly entered a state where they could no longer hear a human word. Their power kept climbing, as if at any second they would rise into the air and fight three hundred rounds over the ruins of the ducal residence.

Unable to even get a word in edgewise, Muen’s vision went black. It was as if he could see Father, still thousands of miles away, appearing before him, patting his shoulder kindly with a smile and saying:

“My good son, this ducal residence, the symbol of the Campbell family, is mine for now, but in the end it’ll be yours. As the last bit of family fortune our Campbell house can rely on, you absolutely must protect it well...”

Protect it well...

Protect it well...

Protect it well...

Father’s teaching and the cry of the ducal residence intertwined in Muen’s ears, and the anger welling up inside him finally rose past the point he could bear!

“That’s enough!”

Muen suddenly opened his eyes.

“Both of you, stop!”

A third force suddenly rammed between the two of them. With not the slightest trace of tenderness, it blasted apart their clashing pressure on the spot.

Sensing that Muen was serious this time, An immediately put her scythe away and stood obediently in place, while Ariel shrank her neck a little and muttered,

“W-why are you yelling? It’s all because you’re such a scumbag anyway...”

“Yes, I’m a scumbag!”

Muen admitted it openly, then slammed his hand on the table and shouted:

“But do you know why I did all this?”

“?”

An and Ariel exchanged a glance, then both shook their heads.

“It was to make the two of you get along peacefully! Understand? Get along peacefully! My original plan was to stop you two from constantly treating each other like rivals first, then slowly help you learn to get along properly instead of always wanting to fight... But now it seems that method is completely useless.”

Muen looked at the candlelight dinner on the table.

“In the end, I really am no good at this kind of thing. I did it this badly... But since you two refuse to get along peacefully, then I can only use a rougher method to force you to get along peacefully!”

“Force?”

Confusion flashed through both An’s and Ariel’s eyes. After all, they still had no idea how Muen, who had always been so patient and gentle with them, was planning to be rough...

“Mmph!”

And then, the very next moment, they found out.

Muen suddenly pulled An into his arms and kissed her on the lips.

An’s beautiful eyes widened. She was only startled for a brief moment before Muen stirred her up, and she began actively tangling with him in return.

Muen kissed her, then abruptly pushed her down onto the cold floor. Straightening up above her, he said coldly,

“You disobedient little maid. Let’s see if I don’t punish you properly.”

“Hah... Young Master, punish me. I was disobedient...”

An’s eyes were already beginning to blur as she panted roughly. Her legs suddenly wound around Muen’s waist. Even knowing that the punishment ahead would be like a violent storm, she still welcomed it with all her heart.

Muen suddenly gave a cold laugh.

“But something like this isn’t punishment for you. It’s a reward.”

“...”

An’s face changed slightly.

Click.

Before she realized it, both her hands had already been pinned above her head. Along with a cold metallic sensation, An saw shackles gleaming with a metallic sheen tighten around her wrists, securing her firmly to one of the dining table’s legs.

She struggled hard a few times, only to realize that she could not use even a trace of strength. And those shackles did not seem to be made of steel at all.

“Give up. These are shackles used in Black Prison specifically for the highest-level prisoners. They suppress battle aura and magic. Right now, you’re nothing more than an ordinary girl.”

Muen reached out, caught hold of An’s sash, and gave it a light tug. In an instant, her gown fell away like butterfly wings spreading open.

Her lovely body flushed with little patches of red, yet there was only the cold air touching it.

An twisted her waist, seeking Muen’s caress, but found only emptiness.

“You’ll stay here... and watch obediently.”

After doing that, Muen abruptly turned and looked at Ariel.

Meanwhile, Ariel had already been trying to quietly sneak toward the door.

“Haha... um... I think I suddenly remembered something, so I’m leaving first. You two have fun...”

“You think you can run?”

Muen wrapped an arm around her waist in one move and whispered in her ear,

“Now that we’ve come this far, do you really think you’re getting away?”

“N-no... wait... let go of me! Pervert! Bastard! Damned Muen Campbell!”

Ariel’s lovely face paled as she began struggling violently.

But after only a few teasing strokes over her sensitive spots, Muen had already managed to turn every bit of her resistance weak and helpless.

Bang.

In one smooth motion, Muen pressed her down onto the table and attacked even more fiercely, quickly leaving her clothes in disarray.

“L-let go of me!”

“I’m not letting go.”

Muen gradually lowered his body over hers.

“You say you don’t want this, but you’ve been looking forward to it all along, haven’t you?”

“I have not...!” Ariel flushed bright red and refused to yield.

“Really?”

Muen raised the hand that had just been teasing her and deliberately held it up in the candlelight.

“Look. You’re already wet, you little bitch in heat.”