"A-Anyways, Dear; I would love to spend some time with you, but m-my parents had asked me to do something, and it's kind of urgent; so sorry, but we'll have to part ways." Said Mada with a seemingly sad smile as he affectionately held Suscila's hand, causing her to look up at him while pouting.
"Must you go, my love? You can't stay for just an hour? For me, please?" Questioned Suscila with a depressed expression as she looked up at Mada, hoping he would change his mind upon seeing her, though that wasn't the case.
"I'm sorry, Dear, but it's very urgent. If I had known you were attending, I would've done it early and not wait until the last minute." Replied Mada with an equally sad smile while looking down at Suscila, though internally, he wanted to dance in joy that his plan was working.
"Haa, I understand, my love, it is unfortunate; however, when you finish, make sure you head directly to my room; we will spend the rest of the day together." Said Suscila with a sigh while giving an understanding nod as she and Mada's hands separated.
"I will try to finish as quickly as possible, but it will still take many hours. I shall see you later, Dear." Remarked Mada with a truly happy smile as he turned around, walking past Kar, who was glaring at him, before quickly turning down a hall, which he sprinted down.
"Yes, Yes, Yes!" Yelled Mada with tears of joy as he ran down the hallway, causing many servants to give him weird looks while Suscila lovingly looked at his fading figure.
"Look at me, dear go, crying tears of joy at my presence while running to finish whatever he must do just so he could spend more time with me; I love you too." Muttered Suscila with a beautiful smile as she placed her hand atop her beating heart while wiping a single tear.
Although I was sad to see my dear leave, it filled me with joy to see how much he loved me; shaking my head, I put my Dear to the back of my mind before shifting my focus back to the royal guard, slightly souring my ecstatic mood.
"Since I'm feeling wonderful, take me to Elif's room; I shall wait for him there." Ordered Suscila as she looked at Mandy, who wryly smiled, though nonetheless, she nodded before walking down the hallway Mada had first appeared from.
"Of course, young mistress Suscila, right this way." Said Mandy with a slight smile as she walked down seemingly identical hallways, but this time, the further they went, the less populated the halls became.
After walking for a few minutes, the royal guard stopped just before a tall door with various purple elven markings; the most prominent was the purple star symbol of the Elven Empire.
"Here we are, His Highness's royal chambers; Her Highness's royal chambers are just further down the hall." Remarked Mandy as she gestured to the purple door before glancing to the silver door further down.
Nodding in response, I watched how the royal guard didn't even bother knocking and instead boldly opened the door, causing me to raise an eyebrow as such a thing could result in one receiving heavy punishments in the Ocean Clan, but I didn't comment on it. Following her, we entered the gorgeous large room, and the first thing I noticed, despite it being slightly larger than mine, was that there was another person inside.
"Who is she?" Asked Suscila curiously as she sat down on a nearby sofa while gesturing at Illumia, who was calmly sitting on the opposite side of the room drinking tea.
"She is Empress Maria's only follower, Battle Maniac Illumia." Said Kar as he looked at Illumia with respect, and although almost unnoticeable, there were slight signs of nervousness.
"I haven't gone by that title in eons; your information is a little outdated. I'm Illumia, Prince Elif's personal attendant and sparing instructor; a pleasure to make your acquaintance again." Said Illumia with a slight smirk before shaking her head and setting down her tea while looking at Kar, Oscar, and finally Suscila.
"Battle Maniac Illumia? I believe I've heard that name mentioned by Father a few times; have you fought against my Father, Fulor, before, Illumia?" Asked Suscila curiously while tapping her chin as she observed Illumia, who was doing the same.
"Fulor? Yes, I do remember fighting against him, a tough and challenging opponent, I say, and I've unfortunately never managed to best him, though the same goes for him." Replied Illumia with a nod, her answer causing Suscila to widen her eyes slightly; how she looked at Illumia now showed respect.
"You must be very talented to have forced a tie with my Father. Besides the Patriarch of the Ocean Clan, I don't know anyone who can beat my Father or anyone who can match him." Stated Suscila with a nod of respect before looking around and suddenly noticed a pile of clothes sprawled on the ground in front of the bathroom door.
"Are those Elif's clothes?" Added Suscila skeptically with a slight frown as she pointed toward Elif's clothes, causing Illumia to nod.
"Yes, his Highness can sometimes be flirtatious, young mistress Suscila." Said Illumia with a slight smirk, thinking of ways to tease Elif before Suscila.
"Yes, I've heard rumors of his infamous flirting habits, along with a few other popular things, such as his love for lightning cherries and his overbearing pride." Remarked Suscila with a nod, causing Illumia and even Mandy to nod in agreement.
Just when it looked like Illumia was about to say something, the door to the bath opened up, followed by a slender dark arm emerging from the dense steam as it grabbed the clothes on the ground before concealing himself back into the smoke and closing the door. Silently waiting, a few moments later, the door was opened once more, though this time, instead of just an arm, I got to view Elif in the flesh with his long silver hair, chiseled body, lithe figure, and mesmerizing purple eyes.
'No, No, No! You can't betray your Dear just because you saw someone a little more handsome! You're better than that!' Thought Suscila with a slight blush as she slapped her cheeks, keeping herself faithful, though it was proving difficult the longer she stared at Elif.
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'Ahh, that felt wonderful; even when it's the day before my birthday, Illumia still pushes me hard.' Mused Elif with a slight shake of his head as he waved his hand, tying his wet silver hair into a ponytail while his streaking purple hair hung over his face.
Exiting the bath, I saw three people I'd never seen before; one was a young man wearing knight armor and holding a halberd, and the other was an older man wearing what looked like a battle attire butler suit, kind of something like Maxim wears, and lastly, the beautiful woman in front who was holding her face while blushing.
'Heh, my charms are truly boundless.' Thought Elif as he winked at Suscila, not even realizing who she was while she blushed in response.
"Ho, what're you doing here, Mandy? Did you come here for your dear Prince?" Remarked Elif with a mischievous smirk as he neared Mandy and picked her up before throwing her onto his bed, only to mount her while holding her hands down.
"Y-Your Highness, y-you've got i-important guests." Said Mandy with a noticeable blush as she looked away while Elif's face neared her.
"Oh, I know, I can see them, but I'm currently interested in you, my lovely guard." Declared Elif as he grabbed Mandy's chin lightly, forcing her to look directly at his face.
"Maybe if you're a good girl during my birthday celebration, I'll give you a special present." Added Elif sensually as he whispered into Mandy's ear, causing her blush to deepen as fantasies about Elif popped into her mind.
Seeing Mandy nod, I smirked, and while I was about to continue teasing her, someone cleared their throat, clearly trying to garner my attention, which worked as I stopped flirting with Mandy and looked to my right, only to glance at the three guests, or more specifically the lightly blushing girl.
"Yes, what do you want? Can't you see I'm doing something?" Asked Elif with a slight frown as he eyed Suscila, who was giving him a disapproving look that he couldn't care less about.
"Is flirting with your personal guard more important than tending to your guests?" Asked Suscila with a frown as she stared at Elif's face; although she found him utterly gorgeous, she already disliked him
"Hmm, well, it depends, really; who are you?" Replied Elif curiously while not having moved from his mounted position, leaving an awkward Mandy.
"I'm Suscila Alarin, the descendant of the Immortal Ocean Clan and niece of the Patriarch." Declared Suscila with a prideful expression as she stood up and flaunted herself, though when she looked back at Elif, he was flirting with Mandy again, pissing her off.
"So, how about giving me a little kiss, Mandy? I'll keep it a secret." Asked Elif with a smirk as he released Mandy's chin, prompting her to hesitantly kiss his cheek, causing her cheeks to take on a deep red tint.
"Heh, you know, if you had gone for the lips, I wouldn't have minded." Said Elif with a mischievous smirk as he trailed his fingers across Mandy's lips before sucking on his finger, causing her pounding heart to nearly stop from overstimulation.