"To think that even Imu-sama personally provided me with such protection... I'm truly flattered."
Carl deliberately emphasized the title "Imu-sama."
Lily curled her lips, then let out a faint laugh.
"At this point, there's no need for you to mock me anymore. In the end, it was all my own doing."
Carl held Lily tightly in his arms, his large hand roaming across her body. Yet Lily acted as though she felt nothing, simply leaning quietly against his chest.
"At least it's better than those days of being imprisoned among the flowers, isn't it?"
"Of course. You think I really liked spending all my days shut in with those flowers?"
"Actually, the moment I suspected you might be a woman... I thought exactly that."
"Hehe... At first, I treated those flowers as a kind of comfort. But gradually, in my eyes, they became like countless mocking faces. Possessing supreme power, and yet trapped in such a tiny garden."
"Typical weakness of the D bloodline. For you to have endured this long is already impressive."
"The D bloodline... Hah. Before long, it will be nothing more than a symbol — a single letter. No one will remember what it once stood for."
"Oh? Do you intend to revive the D family?"
Lily shot Carl a beautiful glare and snapped,
"You're already pretending you don't know me when your pants aren't even off yet? Who was it that helped you take down the so-called head of the D family?"
Carl kissed her forehead with a grin.
"That idiot Joy Boy could be called the head of the D family? Please. I'd say you're the real leader."
Lily froze at those words, then nodded seriously.
"You're right. Joy Boy was an idiot who could never become a leader. Like you said, all he ever did was play childish games."
"That fool's soul has completely scattered, not even ashes left behind. Everything is finished."
As he spoke, Carl's movements grew more intense. Lily, who had been suppressing herself, finally couldn't hold back. A flush spread across her cheeks, her breathing became quick, and she pressed down firmly on Carl's hand to stop him.
That only left Carl puzzled.
Huh? He had gone this far already... how could she still resist? Was his technique rusty?
But from her expression, it didn't seem like that. Clearly, she was just as moved.
Unwilling to give up, Carl tried to continue, but Lily gripped his hand tightly and said urgently,
"W-wait! I still have something important to tell you..."
Carl smirked wickedly.
"Something important? Right now, this is the important thing I want to do! Let's take care of it first."
With that, Carl spread Lily's arms wide, pinning her into the shape of a cross. Lily tried to speak again, but her words were drowned beneath Carl's lips, reduced to muffled sounds of "mmph, mmph..."
As Carl fully pressed down, Lily seemed to resign herself, giving up resistance. Instead, she wrapped her arms tightly around his waist and murmured with a breathy complaint,
"Didn't you just say you'd never bully me again..."
"How could this possibly be called bullying?"
"Mmm... Enough talk! Did you even eat today?"
"...?"
...
Several hours later, in the grand hall, the women sat around the dining table, chattering endlessly. Yet if one looked closely, their gazes would occasionally drift toward the upstairs chambers — toward Lily's room.
Only Lucia sat calmly at the left-hand seat beside the head of the table. Finally, Jinny, seated across from her, couldn't hold back and asked,
"Lucia, shouldn't we call Carl down for dinner?"
Lucia raised her eyes toward the second floor. Outside Lily's room, a faint violet glow shimmered — Lily's soundproof barrier.
"It's been over five hours already... just how fierce is the battle in there..."
Lucia thought to herself, her cheeks faintly tinged pink.
"Lucia? Lucia? What are you thinking about?"
Jinny's voice snapped her out of her drifting thoughts. She looked up and found that everyone else at the table was staring at her as well.
As the one with the highest standing in this palace besides Carl himself, Lucia quickly regained her composure. She cleared her throat and said,
"There's no need. Both Young Master and Lily's constitutions are... strong. They likely won't be coming out tonight. Let's eat first. I've already arranged people in the kitchen to remain on duty. If Young Master feels hungry in the middle of the night, I'll have food prepared immediately."
With that, Lucia speared a piece of grape pudding and set it onto Sugar's plate.
"Lucia-sama is the best!" Sugar chimed sweetly, before stuffing the entire piece of pudding into her mouth, her cheeks puffing out adorably.
On the other side, Shirahoshi clapped her hands with laughter.
"Sugar-san, you look just like a goldfish!"
Mouth full of pudding, Sugar tried to protest, words muffled and garbled.
"Mmhhmm... I'm a mermaid, not a goldfish!"
Only Monet, her elder sister who had grown up with her, understood what she meant. She chuckled and translated for Shirahoshi.
Shirahoshi blinked and said innocently,
"But I really am a mermaid! Carl-sama always tells me so!"
Sugar: "..."
The scene drew soft laughter from the women at the table.
Kalifa, meanwhile, hid her own blush behind a laugh, though her eyes kept darting upstairs.
"As expected of that man... Even compared to Alpha, I still..."
At the thought, Kalifa's cheeks reddened further.
Robin, puzzled, tilted her head and asked,
"Kalifa, have you been drinking? Why is your face so red?"
Kalifa stiffened, then quickly picked up her glass and drained half in one gulp.
"Y-yes! That's right! The wine here is really excellent, hahaha..."
Robin tilted her head again, eyes narrowing at her. Kalifa felt a bead of cold sweat slip down her temple. Could Robin have noticed something? Impossible. No one had overheard her call with her father... right?
But as a former agent, Kalifa's nerves were made of steel. She adjusted swiftly, smiling as she asked,
"Would you like to share a drink?"
Robin accepted warmly.
Just when Kalifa thought the moment had passed, Robin leaned in close and whispered,
"Kalifa... you have a sister named Alpha, don't you?"
"..."