"... After that, we finally managed to acquire your present, Elif, which was only a few hours ago, and then we headed directly back home." Said Marcus calmly with a bittersweet smile as he looked at Elif and Elaine before glancing at Maria, who, despite being shameless, couldn't help but look away.
"No offense, Mother, but I think it would've been quicker if Dad and I went instead of you, and I'm much more of a liability." Remarked Elaine with a slight smile as she snuggled up on Elif's lap before looking at Maria, who merely groaned but didn't reply.
"Yes, Mother, you're a little too overbearing, if I will add, which I have no problem with. I love you just the way you are, Mother, but it's not the best attitude to have when trying to negotiate with people." Added Elif with a forced smile while glancing at Maria before looking at Marcus in pity, who just grabbed his head and sighed.
"Hmph, I don't want to hear that from your mouth, Elif; with your pride, you can easily be much more overbearing than me; you have no right to lecture me on how to speak to people." Replied Maria with a huff and a light blush of embarrassment as she glared at Elif, who defensively raised his hand.
"Well, to be fair, Mother, I had to have learned it from someone; it wasn't Father, nor was it my Grandfather or Grandmother, and it couldn't have been Elaine. So that only leaves you left." Remarked Elif softly as he positioned Elaine, who was sitting on his lap, until he was somewhat hiding behind her.
"He's got you there, Dear." Commented Marcus with a slight smirk, causing Maria to shift her focus to him.
"You also shouldn't be speaking, Marcus; if it weren't for you agreeing to their negotiation, we wouldn't have been in half of those situations!" Yelled Maria in slight anger while eyeing Marcus, who, despite rarely ever arguing back, couldn't contain himself this time as he glared back at her.
"Yeah, I was forced to agree to their negotiations because someone thought it would be a good idea to force their way into the encampment instead of, I don't know, talking first! I swear, Maria, I don't think you've changed one bit since you became the Empress; you're still the same: hot-headed, overbearing, problem-creating Elder Sister!" Yelled Marcus angrily with a livid expression, his voice spreading throughout the entire royal estate as he slammed his fist on the throne, causing the whole palace to shake.
"Tch, so what if I am!? I bet you prefer if I was that emotionless, Claudine, don't you!?" Exclaimed Maria as she glared at Marcus, who flinched and went silent at the mention of Claudine.
Hearing what Mother said, both Elaine and I looked at each other with widened eyes, the two of us thinking the exact same thing.
'Father had an affair!?' Thought Elif and Elaine in disbelief before looking at Maria and Marcus, who had both gone silent.
"Who is this Claudine?" Asked Elif softly as he and Elaine glanced between Maria and Marcus.
"N-No one." Said Maria with an uncomfortable expression as she looked at Marcus, biting her lip before looking away.
"Mother, you can't expect to bring up such a sensitive topic and not tell us." Remarked Elaine as she eyed Maria, who sighed in defeat before gesturing to Marcus, whose face seemed to hold no emotion whatsoever.
Glancing at Father, just as I was about to ask him about this Claudine, he started speaking on his own violation.
"Haa, it happened when your Mother and I were younger; as I was a few years younger than Maria, I was just arriving at the Realm sect, the center area of the OverRealm, if you will call it as such. Obviously, at that time, I was already a man, and I hadn't seen Maria for several months, so my libido was at an all-time high; however, while searching for Maria, I learned she was greatly injured and was being hunted by the current Sect Master of the Immortal Demon Sect, Claudine Akuma." Stated Marcus with an intense frown and a hardened gaze while tapping his knee.
"Of course, when I learned of such news, I raced after Maria, hoping to help her, and while doing so, I got word of a trap not too far off from the Realm specifically made to capture Maria. So, like a hot-blooded fool, I ran right towards the trap, ambushing everyone there, and after a long, grueling fight, I managed to win, only for myself to be ambushed by Claudine, who was supposed to be chasing Maria, but because of my eagerness to assist her, I didn't bother further checking the information; otherwise, I would've learned the trap wasn't meant for Maria but was instead for me. With Claudine and her followers surrounding me, and given my exhausted and grievously injured state, I figured I was certainly dead; well, let's just say that Succubus Claudine had other plans." Added Marcus with an ugly expression as he vividly remembered what he had experienced.
"Right before I was about to impregnate her, I had a moment of clarity, and using that chance, I summoned a talisman and teleported away. Though even so, it doesn't change the fact that I had done it with another woman besides Maria." Said Marcus, and while his face looked angry yet calm, he had crushed his throne armrest underneath his powerful grip.
"Dear, stop blaming yourself; it wasn't your fault; if anything, it was mine; you merely got caught up in my stupid adventures because of my hot-headed and overbearing personality. If I had acted more calmly, none of this would've happened." Said Maria with a pained expression as she rested her hand atop Marcus's hand, soothing his anger just a tad bit.
"Maybe you're right, Maria, but if I were calmer, I would've realized the trap wasn't meant for you, and I could've avoided that entire thing." Replied Marcus calmly as he looked at Maria, who seemed to be deeply contemplating something before suddenly gritting her teeth and standing up.
"I'm sorry for being your overbearing, hot-headed, lazy elder sister. But it's been eons since then, and I won't let you feel guilty any longer." Declared Maria solemnly as she bowed to Marcus, surprising him, though before he could open his mouth, she walked forward and passionately kissed him.
"I'm sorry I brought Claudine up, Dear; I don't blame you at all for what happened; I just hate the fact that I hadn't been able to kill her, and I'm projecting my anger onto you like I always do when I can't accept being at fault." Added Maria lightly as she retracted her lips from Marcus's and sat on his lap.
"Now, this is rare; my Elder Sister apologizing?" Remarked Marcus with a slight smile as he held Maria in his lap, though his words earned him a light smack from her.
"You better savor it; another one won't happen until Elaine and Elif ascend to the throne." Replied Maria with a blush on her cheeks as she snuggled into Marcus's embrace.
"Heh, Thanks for what you said; I've always felt guilty about what happened with Claudine, and the fact you never brought it up only made me think you blamed me for what happened." Stated Marcus with a small smile as she leaned down and kissed Maria, who gladly reciprocated.
"Now then, speaking of Elif and Elaine, I'm in the mood for some twins, Marcus." Said Maria with a sensual voice as she kissed Marcus's neck while reaching down and grabbing his crotch.
"If you're going to continue, please do it somewhere else!" Said Elif with eyes of disgust as he looked at Maria and Marcus while covering Elaine's vision.
"Heh, well, we still got some time until it's Elif's birthday; let's make Elaine an older sister." Remarked Marcus with a smirk as he pinched Maria's nipples through her royal attire before the two suddenly vanished from the throne room.
"Urgh, utterly disgusting." Muttered Elif as he looked at Marcus's throne, shivering in disgust as he imagined Maria moaning in pleasure.
Shaking my head, trying to get rid of such vomit-inducing memories, I looked down at Elaine sitting in my lap and noticed she was emitting a great deal of killing intent.
"Um, Elaine, I know Father had an affair, but it was against his will; I don't think you should be that angry." Remarked Elif in slight confusion as he affectionately rubbed Elaine's head, causing her killing intent to slowly dissipate.
"Eh, sorry brother, I wasn't mad at Father; I was angry at this Claudine woman; she forced Father to do such terrible things against this will. As revenge, I'll make sure to kill every Succubus alive so such a thing can never happen again." Declared Elaine with a monstrous expression and a crazy, sadistic smile, while her eyes radiated an unbelievable amount of madness, as if her eyes themselves held the terrifying abyss within them.
Raising an eyebrow, I leaned forward and looked at Elaine, only to see her charming smile, adorable cheeks, and stunning silver eyes; kissing her, I returned to leaning back in my seat while hugging her lithe body.
"I understand, but I don't think you need to kill every Succubus; that might be a little over the top." Said Elif lightly as he looked at Elaine, earning him a slight chuckle but no words.
'HEHEHE; HAHAHAHAHA No OnE TOuChEs bROTheR!' Thought Elaine, the madness within her growing to unspeakable levels as she looked at every woman in the throne room as someone she needed to kill, causing every one of them to subconsciously shiver in fear.