Inside Lilith's personal office, Maruti stood with her hands behind her back, while Lilith sat comfortably in a chair across the table. The atmosphere was tense, reminiscent of a student reporting to a teacher. However, Maruti was there for a different reason—she had come to collect her monthly payment, as stipulated in their contract. This payment was her compensation for fulfilling Kailith's sexual needs, broken down into installments like an EMI.
Last month, Maruti had received a twenty-year longevity essence stone, a rank B Raging Horse essence stone, and a bundle of high-quality potions. The Raging Horse essence stone, though consumable, significantly boosted stamina and libido. As a rank B essence stone, its effects were far more potent than her usual brown skin essence stone.
Despite the benefits, Maruti felt a twinge of annoyance. She believed Lilith was more interested in nurturing a stripper for her daughter's needs than in making her stronger. However, the effects were undeniable, and she had accepted the payment grudgingly.
This month, Maruti was ready to reject any similar offerings. She stood still, her hands behind her back, as Lilith opened a drawer and took out something. The aura of a rank B essence stone filled the room, but it didn't escape, as if something was containing it.
It was a rank B Golden Veins essence stone, the same one Esdeath had been searching for to enhance her ESR talent to an A grade. Maruti understood why there was only one essence stone this month; Golden Veins essence stones were rare and highly valuable.
"Maybe I can trade it with Esdeath, and if she doesn't offer something good in return, I wouldn't mind consuming it myself!" Maruti thought. With her higher natural talent, she could make up for her slightly lower ESR talent.
She raised her hand slightly and approached Lilith, but before she could grab it, Lilith swiftly pulled her hand away.
Maruti felt a moment of frustration, as if she had failed to grab the stone. She stretched across the table to reach for it, but Lilith pulled it even further away. Maruti's lips twitched in irritation as she stopped and looked at Lilith's tiny figure.
"Are you giving me that or not?" Maruti asked, her voice tinged with impatience.
Lilith rolled her eyes and replied, "I'm not!"
Maruti crossed her arms, trying to hold back her irritation as she spoke. "And why is that?" Her voice trembled a little, not from fear, but from the effort to stay polite.
Lilith leaned back in her chair, calm as ever. "I'm paying you for my daughter, yet you're rejecting her advances far too often. That's clearly a violation of our contract." Her tone was soft and casual, as if she were commenting on the weather.
Maruti's lips curled into a small pout. "Quality matters, not quantity," she replied with a small "hmph!" before looking away, refusing to meet Lilith's sharp gaze.
Lilith tilted her head slightly and answered, "And how can I possibly know if you're actually delivering that quality?" Her words came quick and smooth.
"Simple," Maruti scoffed, glancing back with a smirk. "Just join us and see for yourself." Her tone was mocking, half teasing, half daring.
Lilith let out a deep sigh, as if the conversation was more tiring than serious. "I might consider it," she said softly, "but my daughter, who's completely blinded by love, would definitely not like it."
Maruti looked at Lilith with a weird, half-disgusted, half-confused stare, though deep down she knew Lilith was just joking.
Lilith stood up from her seat, her movements calm and graceful. She walked around the table until she was right in front of Maruti. Her silver hair shimmered faintly.
"Unlike humans," Lilith said, her tone firm yet emotionless, "we dragons don't get so self-conscious about these things. Mating, to us, isn't tied to love or shame. It's a duty we fulfill once in our lifetime. When we wish to produce an offspring, we simply do it. There's no need for awkwardness. This is also reduced our chance to Awaken as fallen dragons",
As she finished speaking, she held out the golden veins essence stone to Maruti.
Maruti's eyes softened slightly as she reached out to take it, the golden glow reflecting in her brownish-yellow eyes.
"I'll give you this for now," Lilith continued, her voice dropping into a serious tone. "But if I receive another complaint from Kailith next time, I'll have no choice but to pause your payment."
Her calm yet firm words felt like a quiet threat. Maruti gave a small sigh, knowing she couldn't argue against it.
"I feel like I'm working in a corporate job," she thought bitterly, forcing a smile as she accepted the payment.
But once the stone was safely in her hands, her tone changed again, sharper and more businesslike. "Wouldn't it take years if we keep going at this pace? What about the piece of Fate Essence Stone and the two inheritances you promised me?"
Lilith walked back to her chair and sat down, her expression returning to that same calm look. "The essence stones I've been giving you," she said, flipping through a few papers on her desk, "are from those two inheritances."
Maruti frowned. "That's not what you said before."
Lilith didn't even glance up. "I'm considering giving you the full payment at once," she said flatly. "But before that, I need to find a Rank A Contract Essence Stone. Once it's used, whoever breaks the rules will be punished — no matter if they become an S-rank awakened. That way, I can be certain."
She picked up a pen and started writing again, already lost in her work.
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As evening approached, Maruti finally returned to her personal apartment, her frustration palpable. She kicked the air in irritation as she climbed the stairs, muttering to herself, "You little lolicon, do you think I fear you and your daughter? Like hell I would get scared by you! Just wait till I become an S rank, and I'll show you both!"
She bypassed Ethan's room and arrived at her door. Before she could use her keys, she noticed it was already open. Thinking it might be Brenna, she opened the door and froze in shock.
Inside, Kailith and Arlecchino stood with furious expressions, while Brenna sat on the sofa with a guilty look. Princess Ravenna was on the floor, adding to the chaotic scene. Maruti's eyes widened, and her mind raced.
It only took half an second to realised that she was finally exposed. Running was not an option; she knew Kailith would catch her in seconds.
Maruti quickly reached for the golden ring given to her by Xing Liang, intending to teleport away. But just as she activated it, a sharp tail slipped the ring from her grasp, burying it into the wall with a resounding "BAM!" It was Kailith's tail, moving with the speed of a pseudo S rank, placing her right beside Maruti before she could even react.
"I figured out that something was wrong with that ring. You're not escaping this time!" Kailith said, her voice filled with anger.
Over the past month, Maruti had disappeared and reappeared multiple times, and Kailith, being a great stalker, had suspected the golden ring was the key to her vanishings.
Kailith grabbed Maruti by the back and hurled her into the air. "We need to talk!" she declared, her voice echoing with authority.
---
Maruti found herself sitting in the middle of a circle formed by Kailith, Arlecchino, Brenna, and Ravenna. Bruises on her face indicated she had received some beatings before any conversation could begin.
"Fuck! I once joked that I might find one day you have two more girlfriends, and here you are—it actually became true!" Kailith sighed, a mix of frustration and disappointment in her voice. "As a goddess's blessed, you should have foreseen this situation, right?" she asked with a smile, but there was a volcano of emotion behind it.
"Yes, but I didn't know it would be this day!" Maruti replied, not feeling entirely guilty but cautious. She knew Kailith or Arlecchino might do something horrible out of their obsession, so she stayed low.
Brenna had a clearly guilty expression. "I'm sorry, this is all my fault. I misunderstood the situation and forced myself upon her, although she rejected me. I was just too eager!" Brenna said, lowering her head in shame.
"Fuck, I knew she was attracted to her. I should have killed her that day!" Kailith thought, but she immediately suppressed those thoughts.
Currently, both Kailith and Arlecchino were having malicious thoughts, even considering imprisoning Maruti. However, their good side was fighting back against their obsession, creating a stalemate.
Then, Ravenna raised her hand. "But I'm not her girlfriend? I'm her slave, and she is my master!" she said without any shame, as if talking about the weather.
Arlecchino pointed at Ravenna, her face puzzled. "I can't sense any magic of enslavement on her. So why is she acting like that?"
Maruti forced a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of her neck. "Haha… that's a complicated thing," she said, unsure how to explain the strange bond without making everything worse.
Brenna looked from face to face and spoke slowly, voice shaking a little. "So… what should we do now? After coming all this way, I can't just give up on her." Her eyes shone with both fear and stubborn hope. Even though she was the weakest and older than the rest, her voice carried a fierce, honest wish.
Ravenna's chest swelled. She looked straight ahead with a mix of pride and devotion. "I can't live without my master," she said plainly.
"Neither can I," Kailith answered quickly, her tone tight with possession. Her tail curled like a warning behind her.
Arlecchino's expression hardened, and for a moment the room went cold. Then, with a dangerous calm, she raised her hand. "How about a death match? Whoever survives gets Maruti."
Brenna went pale. Her hands trembled so badly her voice came out a whisper. "Are you insane? They won't actually do it, right? Right?" Tears pricked her eyes as the thought of real blood and loss hit her.
Kailith hesitated. The idea stirred something brutal in her—her dragon nature loved strength and challenge—but killing a princess would bring consequences too big to ignore. Arlecchino, however, looked uncaring, as if life and politics were games she could throw away.
Maruti sat in the center, heart thudding. Her mind raced, searching for an answer, a trick, anything to stop this from becoming violent. She could feel the weight of four pairs of eyes on her, and for the first time that day she wished someone else would step in.
Suddenly Arlecchino's face cracked. Her eyes filled with tears and she began to cry in a raw, childish way. "Why did you have to cheat on me?!" she wailed, voice breaking. Maruti realized, with a sinking relief, that the outburst meant Arlecchino had shifted back into her softer side—Alice.
"Someone save me," Maruti thought, half-panicked and half-exhausted. She needed a way out.
A small idea flickered through her mind. She raised her hand, voice trembling just enough to sound sincere. "How about we accept each other and stay peaceful?" she offered. "We can share, or find a way that makes everyone happy."
Kailith snapped back immediately. "Easy for you to say!" she shot, still ready to lash out.
Brenna surprised them. Her stance straightened and she nodded with a shaky smile. "I wouldn't mind sharing," she said. "I don't want to own her alone. I'm happy being part of her life." Her eyes were wet but determined.
Brenna never wanted to have maruti all by herself, She always thought herself as one of her friends with benefit, So she wouldn't mind if this actually became true.
Ravenna closed her eyes and smiled dreamily. "I don't mind either. I'm just glad to have any bit of attention from my master," she murmured, lost in her own devotion.
Maruti felt a warm rush of relief. Her hidden "halo of happiness" was working—Brenna forgetting her guilt and gaining sudden confidence was a proof of that.
Maruti stood and handed Alice a handkerchief, her soft touch wiped the tears away. Then she turned and made a dramatic show of pain and saintly resolve. "If you two still can't agree, fine," she announced, voice trembling with fake sorrow. "I will give myself fully to Goddess Seraphine. I will leave the academy and give up all my things. I'll seek true spirituality and become the head priestess."
The act hit them like a splash of cold water. Their eyes widened in despair. Kailith and Alice both exploded at once, voices full of panic and pleading. "No! Don't even think about it—we agree!" they cried in perfect unison.
Maruti spun back with a bright smile. "Conflict resolved. Yay!" she said, as if a great weight had lifted.
Kailith exhaled and cracked her knuckles, expression softening into something like relief. "Yes," she said, the danger ebbing away. "But before anything else, you should be ready for a few things."