The city lights blurred into long streaks of color as I sped down the avenue on my Harley. My mind, however, was a chaotic mess, completely out of sync with the smooth rumble of the engine beneath me. I was on my way to Miss Lily Harrison's house. My teacher. The woman I had publicly proposed to. The woman who had, against all logic, accepted.
I was nervous. My palms felt slick against the handlebars. You can't just show up empty-handed, a voice in my head—which sounded suspiciously like my mom—chided me. I pulled over at a small, fancy-looking shop and bought a bouquet of deep red roses and a box of expensive-looking chocolates. It felt like a ridiculously cliché gesture, but it was better than nothing.
I was still in my school uniform. There hadn't been time to go home and change, and now, heading towards what was supposed to be a date with the most elegant woman I knew, I felt like a kid playing dress-up in his dad's office.
As I got back on the road, I tried to organize the tangled mess of my thoughts. "System," I muttered under my breath, "I have a few questions."
'Proceed, Host.'
"First, Anna. In the fight, when Lina and Joey cornered her, why didn't her passive skill, [Phobic Resonance], activate? It could have saved her and Qasim a lot of trouble."
'The skill is not instantaneous, Host,' the System explained. 'It requires a significant amount of time to build up the resonance, and the target must also be in a state of extreme fear for it to trigger effectively. The encounter was too brief and too sudden.'
That made a grim kind of sense. I felt a fresh pang of guilt about Qasim. I'd been hard on him, kicking him out of the guild. But there was no other choice. His fear was a virus, and it was starting to demoralize everyone else. Sometimes, a king has to make hard decisions.
"And now I have to handle a date with Miss Harrison," I groaned, the nervousness returning full force. "How am I supposed to do that?"
'Host, you possess the skills [Casanova] and [Incubus], and the passive ability [Min] the System replied, its tone dripping with what I could only describe as digital exasperation. 'And you are still worried about how you will handle a single date? Come on, Host. Become a man.'
"Your words are not exactly reassuring," I shot back. "And I just left Isabel hanging. What is she going to think? I'll have to compensate for that tonight."
My problems were stacking up, a mountain of romantic entanglements and guild politics. I needed a win. "Okay, System. Enough with the life coaching. Show me what I got for the 'Rival' side mission."
A glowing screen popped into my vision, and my mood instantly brightened.
'Host, you have successfully completed the side quest: Rival. First, congratulations! As your first reward, a permanent group privilege has been unlocked.'
"Group privilege?"
'Yes. From this moment on, your own stats will increase by 100%. The stats of all current and future members of your Harem will increase by 80%. And the stats of all current and future members of your Elites will increase by 50%.'
A wave of regret washed over me. "Oh, shit. I should have made Tiffany and Anna official members earlier. I wasn't able to increase their stats."
'I am so annoyed by your habit of interrupting me before I complete my words,' the System retorted sharply. 'The stat increment is a privilege of joining your reign. This means if any woman joins your Harem in the future, her stats will receive an immediate 80% spike. The same 50% spike applies to any man who joins your Elites.'
My regret was instantly replaced by a surge of pure, unadulterated ecstasy. This was a game-changer. This was how I would build an army.
'Okay, listen,' the System continued, 'Next, you have received one Random Skill Voucher and two Random Passive Skill vouchers. For your courageous decision, you will also receive a new superpower: [King's Edict]
. This superpower consumes 30 Mana. It is an amazing skill. If you use it and command someone to do something, they will obey, provided their Mentality stat is lower than yours. That is the only condition.'
My jaw dropped. A mind-control ability.
'You will also receive one active skill: [Mark for the Hunt]. You can designate a single enemy as the "Prey." For the next 10 minutes, all attacks made by you and your guild members against the Prey will deal 25% more damage and have a higher chance of being a critical hit. This skill has a 1-hour cooldown.'
'And one passive skill: [King′s Aura]
. A constant aura of authority emanates from you. Allies within its radius feel a boost in morale and receive a slight increase to their Strength and Mentality stats. Enemies within the aura feel a sense of pressure and intimidation, causing a slight decrease in their Agility and Mentality. The effect intensifies based on your own Mentality stat.'
'Finally, you have accumulated 1100 Prayer Coins and 1500 Fear Coins.'
The sheer scale of the rewards was staggering. A superpower, two new skills, vouchers, and a mountain of coins. The risk had been immense, but the payoff was legendary.
In the heat of my excitement, I almost missed my turn. I had arrived. Miss Harrison lived in a massive, ultra-modern apartment building in the city center of Grand Metropolis. It screamed money and prestige. I parked my bike, took a deep breath, and headed inside.
The elevator ride to the top floor felt like an eternity. I stood in front of her door, my heart pounding a frantic rhythm against my ribs. I rang the doorbell.
The door swung open, and I was enchanted.
She stood there, a vision of elegance that was a world away from the "Demon Queen" of Northwood High. Her turquoise eyes and golden hair, which was neatly styled into a sophisticated bun, seemed to sparkle in the soft light of her apartment. Her face was a delicate canvas of conflicting emotions—urgency, awkwardness, and a deep, undeniable embarrassment. She was wearing a beautiful, beige shoulder-strap maxi dress that flowed around her perfect figure, accented by a thin golden necklace that rested against her fair skin. She looked… out of this world.
She put so much effort into this, a voice in my head whispered. A fresh wave of regret washed over me for showing up in my school uniform.
She spoke first, her voice soft and shy, like a maiden's. "Good evening, Adam. You… you came."
"Good evening, Miss Harrison," I replied, my own voice a little rough. "I'm fine." My brain-to-mouth filter seemed to have short-circuited. I'm fine? That's the best you've got?
She looked at me with an expression of pure anticipation, and I remembered the gifts in my hand. "Miss Lily," I said, the words tumbling out, genuine and un rehearsed. "You look… stunning. Absolutely gorgeous and elegant. I don't think there's a word in the dictionary that could do you justice."
She put a hand to her mouth, a soft gasp escaping her lips. "Enough, Adam." Her entire face flushed a brilliant red, a blush that made her even more beautiful. My own cheeks felt hot.
I held out the flowers and the chocolates. "I'm sorry," I said, feeling my own embarrassment. "I know it's not much, and… I'm sorry for coming dressed like this. I didn't have time to change."
She looked at me with a wave of sympathy, her earlier awkwardness melting away into a warm, gentle smile. "Don't be silly, Adam. You came on time, that's what's important. And these are lovely. Thank you. I really love chocolate." Her smile was so genuine, so unguarded, that it seemed to erase all the stress and tension that had been coiled in my gut.
She invited me inside. Her apartment was as luxurious and huge as I had imagined, with a breathtaking panoramic view of the city lights twinkling below. "Miss Lily, do you live alone here?" I asked, looking around in awe.
"Yes," she replied, her voice calm, though I could hear a faint note of melancholy in it. "My parents live in our family house. I'm alone here."
When she said that, I felt a strange hint of sadness for her. The atmosphere between us suddenly shifted, becoming more intimate. We sat down at her dining table, which was already set with an array of delicious-looking dishes that smelled incredible.
"I made all of these," she said as we started to eat, a hint of pride in her voice. "I hope you like it."
I was genuinely impressed. The "Demon Queen" could cook like a master chef. "It's amazing, Lily," I said, using her first name without thinking. It felt right. "I'm more than impressed. You're full of surprises."
She was delighted, her face lighting up at the praise. After a few minutes of comfortable silence, she looked at me, her expression serious. "Adam, I want to know… what do you like about me?"
The question was direct, but it didn't feel like an interrogation. It felt… vulnerable. I decided to press my advantage, but not with cheap tricks. I activated my skills,
Casanova
and
Incubus
, not to manipulate her, but to give me the courage to say what I was truly feeling.
"Lily," I said, my voice a little deeper, a little more intense. "I can see how much you've been lonely. I see the mask you wear at school, the 'Demon Queen' everyone is so afraid of. But that's not you. Not the real you. The real you is the woman who puts this much care into making a meal for someone. The woman who gets flustered by a simple compliment." I reached across the table and gently took her hand. "I like that you're strong. But I also like the part of you that's lonely. I want to compensate for that loneliness. I want to support you. I really, really like your smile when you think no one is watching."
Before I could continue, she spoke, her voice filled with a raw, heartfelt emotion that stunned me. "You are seriously a sweet talker. You are such a nice man. I am… I am really in love with you."
I was confused. This was happening too fast. "Lily, why do you think you love me?"
She took a deep breath, as if gathering her courage. "Adam, if I tell you honestly, I come from a very strict and conservative family. My whole life, I've been surrounded by girls. Some men tried to propose to me, but nobody… nobody had the sincerity that I saw in your eyes. It wasn't just a prank, was it? You saw something in me. You saw that I was lonely. That's why I like you. And I think… if this was just a moment of attraction, an emotional impulse… we can find that out if we spend more time together."
She stood up and came towards me. She held out her hand. "Let's dance," she said, her voice a soft invitation. "Let's find our chemistry."
"I… I don't know how to dance," I admitted, feeling a fresh wave of embarrassment.
"It's okay, Adam," she said, her smile gentle and reassuring. "Just follow my lead."
She pulled me to my feet and led me to the open space in her living room. She put on some soft, slow music. And then, we started to dance. I don't know how to explain it. My body, which should have been clumsy and awkward, moved on its own. My body moved with a grace I didn't know I possessed. The stat boosts... they weren't just for fighting. My feet found the rhythm, my arms knew where to go. I was dancing gracefully, my steps elegant, my movements fluid. Our chemistry was instantaneous, perfect. We were natural.
I looked down into her turquoise eyes, and the world seemed to melt away. I leaned in and kissed her. It was a loving, smooth, generous kiss. She didn't defend. She didn't resist. She leaned into it, her body molding against mine.
When the kiss finally ended, we were both breathless. She was blushing, her eyes shining. "I think… I think you should go back home now," she whispered.
"Yeah, you're right, Lily," I said, my own voice a little shaky.
As I was about to leave, she held my hand one last time. "Our compatibility is perfect," she said, her voice filled with a newfound certainty. "Now, I just need to wait for your graduation."
I looked into her eyes, into the innocence and hope that I saw there. "I promise, Lily," I said, my voice firm and sincere. "I will protect that smile."
The words shot through her. A look of pure, unadulterated joy washed over her face. "Okay," she whispered. "Bye."
I walked out of her apartment and into the cool night air, the feeling of her lips still tingling on mine.
(Lily's Perspective)
OMG! Adam, my student, is so manly. I am deeply in love. I even let him kiss me. I was totally defenseless. If I hadn't interrupted the moment, I am damn sure that the moment would have been escalated. I definitely think we would be a perfect couple. Aww! What am I thinking? He praised me for my cooking. He was staring at my body, and I didn't feel disgusted. I was delighted. It's a new feeling.
The whole night passed in a blur of restless tossing and turning, my mind replaying every second of our date, every touch, every word. I was a mess, but it was the most wonderful, exhilarating mess I had ever been in.
(End of Lily's Perspective)