Without sleep, one realizes just how long the night can be.
Both Ansel and Seraphina had experienced such lengthy nights, the former accustomed to it through daily training and studying, and the latter through countless times of lying in ambush for prey until daybreak.
Now, in this cell, Ansel, who had brought a book, had no intention of sleeping, while the cold, dark, moldy, and foul-smelling cell made it difficult for Seraphina to fall asleep.
Thus, the two of them seemingly coexisted peacefully, one sitting by the bed and the other curled up in the corner, waiting for the twelve-hour punishment to pass.
However, Ansel was well aware of Seraphina's complex emotions at the moment, merely calculating the time while reading and thinking.
His acceptance of the same punishment as Seraphina was not a pretense; it was indeed a rule he had set for himself. But at the same time... the small discipline and punishment he had prepared for her were, of course, real.
After all, there was no conflict between the two.
"Seraphina," Ansel gently turned a page of the book, "Do you still remember the reward I promised you?"
The girl in the corner, upon hearing Ansel call her name, immediately perked up her ears, which were half-hidden under her fine hair. When Ansel mentioned the word "reward," she quickly recalled it after a brief moment of confusion.
"...Reward? You mean punishment, right?"
Seraphina didn't have much resistance now. In terms of learning, she couldn't deny the broader perspectives and ideas Ansel had opened up for her. If it weren't for him, she would have died that night.
No, wait! If it weren't for him, she wouldn't have been beaten in the first place!
Thinking of this, the girl turned her head away with a huff, staring at the wall.
"We'll talk about that later."
Ansel temporarily closed the book, looking at Seraphina with a gentle smile, "I just want to ask you if you remember what reward I promised you?"
"How could I forget that!"
Ansel's punishments and rewards always hit Seraphina's weak spots. The girl replied irritably, "You said you'd let me return to the village and provide me with free training materials for seven days!"
Ansel observed the young wolf lady curled up in the corner, her black velvet cloak giving her a fluffy appearance. Her slightly annoyed yet not quite resentful expression, akin to a sulking demeanor, made her look quite adorable.
The young Hydral cleared his throat, grinning playfully, "What if I said I'd give you that reward?"
"..."
Seraphina turned her head somewhat foolishly, her puffed-up cheeks facing Ansel, looking rather dazed.
"You... what did you say?" It took her a long time to exclaim incredulously, "Are you serious?"
Ansel raised an eyebrow, "Do I often joke with you?"
"But... no, that's not right. Why are you being so nice to me out of the blue?"
Seraphina stared at Ansel with extreme caution, "Are you plotting something again? Planning to do something while I'm not around?"
The handsome young noble couldn't help but chuckle, "If I wanted to do something while you were here, what could you do about it, Miss Seraphina?"
Teasing the proud and haughty female wolf until her face turned red always brought Ansel great pleasure. He continued with a smile, "As for the reason, it's because of what you did today."
"Today... what I did?"
Seraphina pointed at herself, "You said I caused trouble, and you still want to reward me?"
"I mean, your subsequent response."
Ansel spoke leisurely, "You insisted on being severely punished according to the law, and during this process, I not only didn't protect you but also voluntarily accepted the same punishment as you."
He propped his chin on his hand, legs crossed, and smiled with narrowed eyes, "The jailers are all witnesses."
"I suppose my reputation will rise another notch tomorrow morning."
"My dear Seraphina..." the great deceiver Hydral tilted his head, "You've given me such a wonderful opportunity, how could I not reward you?"
"You, you!"
The young wolf sprang to her feet, the chains clattering loudly. Enraged, she shouted, "You said you came in here for me!"
"But I did come in here for you; that's just an incidental result."
Ansel's eyebrows arched slightly, his expression somewhat playful, "What's the matter, Seraphina? Can't accept that the reason I'm suffering is not because of you?"
Not fully understanding the meaning of his words, Seraphina replied without thinking, "Nonsense! I don't want to be used by you! You clearly said you wouldn't lie to me!"
This time, it was Ansel's turn to be taken aback. He looked at Seraphina's angry pretty face for two or three seconds, and then, very rarely, a pure smile appeared on his face, one that represented nothing but happiness—though it only lasted for an instant.
"Of course," the young man's voice softened, "I won't deceive you, Seraphina, I promise."
"...That's more like it."
The girl muttered as she sat back down. She seemed to be only annoyed that Ansel might have lied to her, not dwelling on the fact that Ansel had used her to boost his reputation.
In the young wolf's simple and naive mind, Ansel's actions were not hypocritical.
— She still felt nauseous from that damned gruel! The fact that he could eat it without changing his expression was inhuman! This was far beyond just enduring a little hardship.
"So..." Seraphina, resting her chin on her knees, sneaked a glance at Ansel, "I can go back anytime?"
"As soon as possible," Ansel replied, "There are some arrangements for you afterward."
"Then I'll leave tomorrow."
The impetuous Seraphina didn't hesitate, "Make sure you have the supplies ready for me."
Ansel nodded, his smile growing brighter, which also made Seraphina feel a hint of danger.
"Now, let's talk about the 'punishment'."
"..." The girl's cheerful expression instantly froze. She looked at Ansel, then at the sleeping man in the cell across from them, "Here, in this place?"
"You're leaving tomorrow, aren't you?"
"I..."
Seraphina bit her lip, her voice weak, "Tomorrow, later tomorrow is fine too."
"But I think now is perfect," Ansel smiled at her, "What do you think I'm going to do, Seraphina?"
"You... you're not allowed to do what you did last time, and the time before that!"
Panicking under his suggestive gaze, Seraphina blurted out, "I-I-It's fine if it's just you, but I don't want anyone else to see! Absolutely not!"
"If... if there's anyone else besides you! I'll fight you right now!"
With her face flushed red, the young wolf girl howled, looking as if she was ready to perish together with Ansel.
Ansel stared at her tense expression, silently meeting her gaze.
"Miss Seraphina," he suddenly said, "Are you perhaps looking forward to me doing something very unhealthy to you?"
"What do you mean, looking forward to!"
Seraphina was furious, stomping her feet on the spot, "You're clearly only capable of doing that kind of thing!"
"But I never said I was going to do that kind of thing," Ansel propped his chin on his hand, the corners of his mouth turning up as he asked, "Why would you immediately think of that, Seraphina?"
The snake with a belly full of mischief laughed heartily, "Isn't that... a different kind of expectation?"
The young wolf trembled with anger while feeling weak from recalling the previous two punishments.
Being stripped naked, rubbed and pressed with a strange whip; being injected with a drug that rendered her immobile, manipulated like a doll...
Expecting... expecting what! How could that be possible! Hydral, that bastard, is just talking nonsense again!
Sensing that Seraphina's rage was reaching its breaking point, Ansel quickly interrupted her thoughts, "Don't worry, it's just a simple matter."
Saying this, he reached out a hand towards Seraphina.
"Come here," Ansel said.
Seraphina first cautiously glanced at the scepter set aside, then carefully stared at Ansel's palm, fearing there might be something strange there. After about four or five seconds, she cautiously approached.
"What... what are you doing?"
"Squat down."
"…?"
Although Seraphina was puzzled, she did as she was told.
"Place your chin..." Ansel, looking down at Seraphina with a smile, said, "on my palm."
"…"
Silent Seraphina, considering whether or not to strangle Ansel with her shackles right now, gritted her teeth and said word by word, "Do you think I... haven't raised a DOG before?!"
"It's just a simple action," Ansel looked at Seraphina with great surprise, "Or do you want me to do something special?"
Faced with those magnificent sea-blue eyes, Seraphina's thoughts of the "discipline" she might face made her lose much of her defiance.
Squatting down, she closed her eyes, stiffly stretched her neck, and slowly, slowly placed her chin on Ansel's palm.
The young man's slender fingers and palm pressed against her chin, the warm and delicate touch feeling especially vivid with her eyes closed. The subtle rubbing of her chin and even her throat made Seraphina's body want to resist, yet also feel somewhat weak.
From Ansel's perspective, the arrogant and unrestrained beautiful she-wolf now had her cheeks flushed, her ears soaked in red, and under her casually elegant short hair, her charming and delicate face appeared exceptionally captivating.
The trembling long eyelashes due to nervousness, the hot breath exhaled due to embarrassment, and the tightly bitten rosy lips... At this moment, Seraphina was a truly enchanting beautiful girl.
"This punishment is not limited to this," Ansel felt the delicate touch in his palm, appreciating Seraphina's rare tenderness, and laughed contentedly.
"Starting today, for the next month, whenever you are by my side, when I make this gesture, you must come over and place your chin on my palm."
"Do you understand, my dear Seraphina?"
Seraphina suddenly opened her eyes, her watery eyes filled with anger, her sharp canine teeth itching to bite Ansel's palm, "Don't push your luck!"
"Push my luck? Didn't you forget how I initially made a deal with you?"
Ansel applied slight pressure, gripping Seraphina's chin but still maintaining a caressing motion, "You were supposed to let me intervene less than three times, and what did you do? You not only failed to do anything, but you also made me provide you with more detailed explanations and guidance... Seraphina, ask yourself, is my punishment too much?"
"…" Seraphina still gritted her teeth, staring fiercely at Ansel.
"…Alright, I'll compromise."
Saying this, the mischievous Ansel's mouth curved up ever so slightly, "I promise not to do this in the presence of a third person. Is that acceptable?"
After a long, long silence.
"…You promised me, don't lie to me."
The girl averted her gaze, her voice becoming somewhat weak.
"Of course, I promise." Ansel smiled softly and withdrew his hand.
Seraphina breathed a sigh of relief, then immediately retreated, quickly shrinking back into the corner that gave her a negligible sense of security.
Ahhh! Hydral, that guy, was too dangerous! It's better to have less contact with him before getting stronger!
Thinking this, Seraphina, with the thought of "I definitely won't talk to that guy again," forced herself to fall asleep.
Ansel, watching the girl close her eyes, smiled even more brilliantly.
Everything he had revealed to Seraphina about coming here was true.
It's just that... there were some things Seraphina hadn't asked or thought about, obviously forgetting Master Ansel's guidance.
—For example, since the cell had prepared such poor-quality food.
Why... would they kindly provide a large bucket of water?
*
This was the third time Seraphina had woken up from her sleep.
She clenched her teeth, not letting Ansel notice her discomfort, and tried to suppress the swelling sensation in her lower abdomen.
D-Damn it, I've drank too much water trying to force that lump of food down!
The girl, who had lost track of time, didn't know how many times she had forced herself to resist this physiological reaction and fall back asleep, but apparently... after not having, ahem, relieved herself all day, and having drunk such a large bucket of water, even her strong body was reaching its breaking point.
Although it sounded ridiculous for an extraordinary being to be unable to hold her bladder, this was quite normal for the uneducated Miss Seraphina. Her control over her body hadn't reached the point where she could even cancel out the need to urinate.
Just wait for the time to be up, just wait for the time to be up... Seraphina hypnotized herself countless times, but all she got was an increasingly uncontrollable swelling sensation.
Seraphina Marlowe, faced the biggest crisis of her life—wetting herself in front of the person she hated the most, in a shared room, with no place to hide.
At this moment, the devil's voice suddenly rang out:
"Seraphina, have you been shivering all this time? Are you cold?"
The girl was startled into a shudder, almost losing control. She immediately tensed her buttocks and legs, panicking, "Don't talk to me!"
"…Hmm?" Ansel, hearing this, put down his book and stood up, looking very surprised as he walked towards Seraphina, "But you don't seem quite right... You shouldn't be afraid of the cold, so why are you shivering?"
"I... I'm not... I'm not... Don't come any closer!" Seraphina's voice had a hint of a sob, "Get away from me! Stay away!"
Slowly approaching Seraphina, Ansel's gaze fell on the tense muscles of the girl's buttocks and legs. After a brief silence, he squinted and smiled, "But you seem to be enduring quite a bit of discomfort, don't you?"
"I... am... not!"
The tension caused Seraphina's defenses to weaken further, and she could even vaguely feel the sensation of warm wetness, making her want to slam her head against the wall.
"I can offer you some help, Seraphina."
Ansel considerately handed her a silk handkerchief, which was naturally slapped away.
"You... you get out now!" The girl shouted with a red face, "That's the biggest help you can give me!"
"That won't do," Ansel said matter-of-factly, "I'm here to accept punishment. There's no reason for me to leave the cell at will."
Seraphina was silent for a while, then suddenly reached out behind her.
"Give it to me!" She tried to suppress the sob in her voice.
"What?"
"The handkerchief just now, give it to me!"
The girl suddenly turned her head, her eyes red and swollen, staring fiercely at Ansel, looking like a child trying hard to make herself look fierce.
"Anyway, you've seen everything, even pinched my tongue, do you think I would care about this kind of thing! I'm not that weak! If you want to watch, just watch, pervert!"
"…I must declare that I'm not interested—"
"Shut up!"
Ansel obediently didn't tease Seraphina any further, as even the slightest provocation would cause her to explode on the spot.
After handing her the handkerchief, Ansel returned to the bed, casting his gaze at the man in the cell across from them who had been constantly cursing at Seraphina when he was awake.
The young man touched his scepter, and the mysterious Gleipnir transformed into a black-edged serpent, slowly slithering towards him.
Seraphina's concern about her embarrassing appearance during discipline being seen by others was completely unnecessary.
How could Ansel possibly let others... peek at this pleasure that belonged solely to him?
A nearly lethal dose of sleeping potion was injected into the prisoner's body through the tip of the blade whip, enough to keep him asleep for three days and nights.
After doing all this, Ansel smiled and retracted Gleipnir, sitting on the bed, waiting for Seraphina's next move.
And then... something happened that he hadn't anticipated.
"H-Hydral! Come here!"
"…Hmm?"
Crouching in the corner, Seraphina's voice trembled, "Don't hmm, come here! I... I can't... I can't..."
Her voice was squeezed from her throat, even weaker than a cat's meow:
"I can't... take off... my pants."
Seraphina, with her hands shackled, couldn't take off her tight leather pants, but she could break the chains.
The reason she didn't do so... was naturally because Ansel's "realization" had provoked her deadly pride.
[Hydral could seriously accept the punishment and swallow that lump of garbage, how could I break the shackles just because I can't hold my bladder?]
Of course, the most fundamental reason was only one.
Seraphina was less resistant to Ansel than she had thought.
And this was something Ansel hadn't expected either.
The young Hydral was silent for a moment, then laughed softly and replied, "Alright, I'll help you."
He walked over to Seraphina, placing his palm on the girl's back.
Miss young wolf jolted, suddenly panicking and shouting, "S-Stop touching me! Hurry up!"
"Panicking isn't a wise choice at this moment, Seraphina."
Ansel, with his sadistic heart gradually rising, teased and laughed. His palm slowly moved down, touching Seraphina's slender waist, reaching the waistband of her trousers, and his fingertips slipped into the gap between her clothes and skin.
"Yi!"
Seraphina let out a short, sharp cry from her throat, her body trembling, "Hydral, I... I will never forgive you, never!"
Ansel remained silent, and even the usually calm him felt a burning flame in his chest. He exhaled slowly, his index and middle fingers delving deeper, pressing into the crevice between the two full mounds.
"HYDRAL!!!"
With Seraphina's scream, Ansel finally managed to restrain the surging dark desire within him and casually removed the young lady's trousers.
Almost instantaneously, he heard the pattering sound of water.
"Hydral... sob... I... I'll kill you... I must kill you..."
Compared to her previous ferocious and brutal declarations, Seraphina's voice was now so weak that it couldn't be any weaker. She clenched her teeth, sobbing, her body almost curling up, evoking sympathy and pity in anyone.
—Except for Ansel of Hydral.
For at that moment, he stretched his palm to Seraphina's cheek and hooked his hand.
The malicious devil's voice resounded behind the girl.
"Do you remember what I said, Seraphina?"
"You... you..."
"Don't be angry, Seraphina, don't be angry."
Ansel squatted down, chuckling softly in Seraphina's ear, "You said it yourself, after being treated like that by me, how could you not accept such a trivial matter, right?"
"How long..." Seraphina, trembling all over, wiped her eyes forcefully and stared intently at Ansel, "How long do you intend to humiliate me!"
Ansel looked into her eyes and sighed deeply.
"I don't know, Seraphina, I don't know."
"You should know me. At this time, I should be respecting you, winning you over... but I don't know why, I did this, I did something completely different from my usual style."
He suddenly leaned close to Seraphina's neck and whispered, "You made me lose control, Seraphina."
"...You, don't say such strange things at such a strange time, you pervert, lecher, rogue, go to hell, psycho, bastard! Ahhhhhh!"
"I'm just telling the truth."
Ansel quickly returned to normal, smiling and shaking his hand, "So, have you forgotten what I said?"
"Hydral... sooner or later, one day, I will return the humiliation I suffered a hundredfold!"
In the end, the blushing she-wolf pressed her chin against Ansel's palm.
The sound of water continued to patter.