Arthur is really shocked by Margaret's bold move; seeing her suck his saliva from her fingers in that naughty way is the most sensual thing he has ever seen in his two lives. Aria has a unique charm that is naturally seductive, and the same can be said about Nyx, but both do not try to act in a different way, unlike Margaret is doing now. Her beauty goes up several levels in his perception, and he can't take his eyes off her pink lips, wet with his saliva...
Nyx, seeing that scene, can't help but get upset and jealous.
'If you don't close your mouth, your jaw will really fall to the floor!' She exclaims in his mind.
Arthur knows he is wrong; no matter how he tries to see it, letting another girl stick her fingers in his mouth, steal his saliva, and then drink it in front of him and his fiancée, cannot be right.
'I didn't want this!' He says to Nyx.
'I saw everything; you opened your mouth for her!' She responds.
'I wanted the mango!'
'I know you want her mango!'
'No! I only want your mango!'
Arthur tries to be sincere, but his words leave Nyx embarrassed.
'What kind of conversation is this... you can't talk like this after giving an indirect kiss to another girl in front of me...' Her tone is a mixture of shyness and frustration.
'But... I...' Arthur has no way to defend himself; it's his fault for lowering his guard in front of Margaret.
'How was I supposed to know she could do something like that with my mother so close?' He wonders.
Meanwhile, Margaret's situation isn't any better. She may be enjoying the sweet and incredible taste of Arthur's saliva, her expression showing her delight, but inside her mind, she's actually freaking out. 'I can't believe I did that!! That was crazy; he's going to hate me now!!'
'He may think I'm a dirty girl... damn it!! Why couldn't I hold back???' But I wanted to taste his mouth so badly... AAAAAHHHH!!!'
Margaret is so focused on her thoughts that it takes her a while to notice Arthur's expressions as he gazes at her.
'Wait... he doesn't seem upset?' All she sees is curiosity and surprise in Arthur's eyes. 'Maybe he liked it... yeah, he likes me, hahahah!!!'
While Arthur has to deal with the jealous Nyx in his mind, Margaret is very happy with his reactions. Aria doesn't take long to notice that something is wrong, and she turns around, but Margaret and Arthur quickly try to feign calmness.
"Mmmm, this mango is really delicious!" Margaret smiles as she licks her fingertips.
Arthur can't get the thought of her savoring his saliva from his mind; it makes him excited in many ways. "Yeah... delicious... The mango, I mean, the mango!"
"Hmm..." Aria has no idea what just happened, but she can see Arthur's guilty expression, and it makes her sure that something happened. But since she has no proof, there's no actual culprit, so she smiles friendly at Margaret. "Take some more mangoes; we can make juice."
"Yes, Ma'am!" Margaret quickly does as Aria says and grabs more mangos to make juice.
She tries to concentrate on her task, but occasionally, she casts a quick glance at Arthur, making him remember her naughty move again. He does not try to avoid the looks of the cute, naughty girl, even if he runs the risk of making Nyx a little angry.
Arthur does not plan to do anything to Margaret, but having her around makes the atmosphere more pleasant, and he wants to enjoy such a moment. Half an hour later, the lunch is ready, a real banquet thanks to Margaret's help.
Everyone sits at the table to eat all those delicious foods and talk about casual things, mainly about the village and its people.
Margaret sits on the opposite side of Arthur and keeps casting naughty glances at him whenever Aria is not looking, but there comes a time when she talks about the village being safe during the last week, but that she heard some distant howls last night, which left her concerned.
"There should be the wolves in the forest," Aria comments.
The forest that surrounds the village is a barren expanse, so it is not uncommon for wolves and other beasts to approach the village to hunt the farmers' herds, but since Draven always took care of it, this has not been an issue in the past. However, since he left a week ago, they have started to become more active.
Margaret and other people from the village saw Draven follow the road that leads out of the village on a horse, but they just thought he was going to make a wider round. Now, however, Margaret can see that Aria and Draven seem to have separated, so she is concerned about the safety of the village. The poor girl does not ask Aria and Arthur for help, but her pleading eyes make it clear that she is scared.
"I can take care of some wolves," Arthur does not like to see Margaret scared and really wants to help her.
"Hmm..." Aria shakes her head. "A little practice might be good, but not now; it's better if we keep focused on your cultivation."
"But we can't let the farmers suffer because of wolves when I can easily take care of them," Arthur insists, making Margaret like him even more.
"Of course," Aria comments with a confident expression. "That's why I'm going to put some protective seals around the village; they will keep beasts away and even kill hostile invaders."
"You can do that??" Arthur is surprised.
Aria nods. "I should have done this a long time ago, but Draven needed things to keep his mind busy, people to protect so he could feel like a hero and feed his ego..."
'Damn!' Arthur can't help but feel disappointed in his father for needing such a thing. 'What is wrong with him??'
Margaret is also very confused. She and all the farmers always saw Draven as an honorable hero, but now she doesn't know what to think. "Did he let us be in danger just to save us?"
Aria notices the shock of the poor girl and gives her a gentle look. "Please, dear, don't mention the last part to anyone. I'm going to talk to everyone and put the seals around the village; it will keep everyone safe."
"Sure!" Margaret nods several times; she is very happy because Aria is going to help the village, so she doesn't mind keeping quiet about it.
"Good," Aria smiles and turns her attention back to Arthur. "And you keep focusing on your training; it makes no sense to go around swinging your sword like your father does."
Arthur doesn't feel like his father, he doesn't have altruistic desires in his heart and the idea of protecting the people of the village has always been something he wanted to do because of his father and to keep his perfect family. Even when he killed those bandits, his main thought was to prevent them from hurting Margaret, and if he could prevent those guys from hurting other girls like her, it would be a bonus.
And it is precisely because of such feelings that he now wants to keep the village protected, to keep Margaret safe because she is his friend and he likes her. So, his mother's magic seals are perfect as he can continue cultivating in peace, knowing that she is safe.
"Yes, Mom," He nods to Aria.
Hearing that, Margaret can't help but be curious about Arthur's training. "What is this cultivation like? I've always wanted to see it..."
That is a clear attempt to watch Arthur train, which doesn't please Aria much as that could distract him from his cultivation. On the other hand, Aria has never seen Arthur get close to another person in the village; Margaret is literally his first friend, and it's evident that he likes her, even if it's not romantically yet. So, she doesn't want to push Arthur's only friend away, even if that friend is a young adult lady clearly trying to get his affection.
'I didn't expect being a mother to be so difficult…' She sighs as she thinks. She then gives a curious look to Arthur, who is also looking at her with a similar expression. "What do you think, darling?"
"Hmm..." Arthur looks at Margaret, and her eyes are shining with expectation, which makes him not want to reject the poor girl.
'But what if she keeps doing such naughty things…' He can't get the scene of her drinking his saliva out of his mind. 'Everything has a limit; I don't know if I can resist her…'
Margaret is definitely not an experienced woman, but she is very smart and starts to understand how Arthur's mind and body work. She just needs to put on her sad puppy expression again to make him feel bad.
"I guess it's okay if it's just for today..." He ends up agreeing, and as Nyx doesn't complain in his mind, it seems she also feels sorry for Margaret's sad expression.
"Really???" Margaret shows a beautiful smile and almost jumps over the table to hug Arthur.
He just smiles in return, happy to see her so excited. Aria also smiles, but her expression is more curious due to the incredible devotion Margaret shows for Arthur. 'This girl won't give up…'
The group finishes lunch and eats the candies that Margaret brought as dessert. Aria notices how much Arthur enjoys everything that girl cooks, so she thinks about asking for some culinary tips. Eve returns to studying, leaving Aria and Margaret to follow Arthur to the backyard, where they start to watch his training.
Margaret always wondered what cultivation would be like; after all, everyone always hears about the techniques that nobles and people with high potential use to become powerful. Seeing Arthur shirtless, performing martial movements on the lawn while his divinely muscular body sweats glistening drops that she feels like licking, she feels like she is seeing the most fantastic thing in her lifetime.
"This is so beautiful..." She gets so emotional watching Arthur that she almost starts to cry. Aria, beside her, can't blame Margaret for enjoying the show that much; after all, she herself enjoys it much more than she should. They watch Arthur in silence for a full hour. They could go on for more hours just watching him, but Margaret can't prevent a desire from growing in her heart.
In fact, that desire arose on the night her arm got grabbed by the bandit, due to the helplessness she felt. She loved being saved by Arthur and enjoyed feeling protected by him, but what she really desires is to be able to stand by his side.
Not as a weak girl who needs to be saved by him all the time, but as a strong and independent woman who chooses to be by his side and can help him instead of just being a burden to carry along.
"Lady Aria..." Margaret looks at her with her eyes full of determination. "Can I cultivate, too?"