Inside the side hall, the lights were still softly glowing.
The room was in slight disarray. A corset, red dress, and other articles were strewn across the floor—some even torn. The air was thick with a strange, lingering scent.
The curtains had long been drawn. Queen Medusa lay sideways, resting on Chen Mo's arm. Her cheeks were flushed, dotted with fine beads of sweat.
Her complexion was exceptionally rosy.
What Chen Mo couldn't see was the state of his own back—scratched and marked by Queen Medusa's nails, a trail of claw-like injuries across his skin.
Her long, silky hair was draped over his chest, damp with sweat and clinging to him.
She seemed lost in thought, then suddenly bit down hard on his shoulder—no hesitation, full force.
Chen Mo immediately grimaced in pain.
The hand that had been lovingly caressing her instantly recoiled.
"W-What was that for? That really hurt!" Chen Mo hissed, sucking in a cold breath.
"I just wanted you to feel the pain you gave me. You weren't exactly being gentle earlier, were you?" Queen Medusa's voice was as frosty as ever, showing no hint of the gentleness one might expect after such intimacy.
Your Majesty... do you even realize you practically ran me over like a carriage?
"How about I massage it for you?" Chen Mo suddenly offered.
"You dare." Queen Medusa gave him a fierce glare, then buried her delicate face in his chest. In a cold, almost whisper-like voice that only the two of them could hear, she said:
"I've already given everything to you. If you ever betray me, you'd better watch your head."
"Betray you? How could I?" Chen Mo kissed her lightly on the forehead. On that point, he was confident enough to give a promise.
But what he didn't know was... Queen Medusa's definition of "betrayal" was far more absolute than his.
With Chen Mo's vow, Queen Medusa seemed to relax a little. She looked up at him, her tone a bit gentler than before. "Still hurting?"
Chen Mo shook his head. After that, everything else felt meaningless.
"Then go to sleep," she murmured, closing her phoenix-like eyes. She pulled one of his arms under her head and drifted off.
"Mm. Good night," Chen Mo whispered, shutting his eyes as well.
But sleep didn't come.
The first thing he did was bind their soul-partner connection.
They'd already done the deed—if he didn't bind now and something happened later, it could be problematic.
As for the "choice" Queen Medusa had mentioned... Chen Mo had no intention of giving up on Die.
His plan was simple: stay hidden under Queen Medusa's nose, maintain his relationship with Die in secret, and reap the benefits along the way.
Once his strength surpassed theirs, he'd take control of the situation.
By then, even if Queen Medusa wanted to take his head, she wouldn't be able to.
And he'd make sure she stayed by his side—forever.
Queen Medusa, don't even dream of escaping from my grasp.
For now though, best to keep a low profile.
The Golden Crow rose in the east.
Morning light filtered in, washing away the candlelight.
On the bed, Chen Mo and Queen Medusa were still locked in a tight embrace, neither having awakened.
Normally, Queen Medusa would've returned to her own chambers by this hour. But last night had been... rather intense.
She hadn't woken up this morning.
Just then, someone knocked on the door.
Die was quite well-mannered. Even though she and Chen Mo had already confirmed their relationship, she didn't barge in. Instead, she respectfully knocked first.
As for why she came so early—well, she was trying to beat her sister to it. She wanted to have a proper conversation with Chen Mo... and maybe do a little something more as a couple.
Hearing the knock, Chen Mo instantly shot awake.
Yue Nu knew Queen Medusa was in his room, so she wouldn't come knocking unless instructed.
That only left one possibility—Die.
Sure enough, when the knock went unanswered, Die's voice rang out:
"Chen Mo, are you awake? I'm coming in~"
She was giving him a heads-up. And considering their relationship, it wouldn't be considered rude.
"Ah—Die! I just woke up, hold on, I'm not dressed yet!"
Panicked, Chen Mo quickly shook Queen Medusa awake. "Wake up, Your Majesty—Die is here!"
After a couple of nudges, Queen Medusa groggily opened her eyes. When she heard his words, her pupils instantly contracted in alarm.
Even though she had intended to come clean to her sister, now that it was really happening—in his bed, no less—she couldn't help but panic.
After all... she had stolen her sister's man.
Even if she wanted to confess, doing it was unthinkable. She needed to prepare.
Seeing Queen Medusa in a panic made Chen Mo even more frantic. "Out the window!"
She clenched her teeth. That was the only option.
She climbed off the bed, but the moment her feet hit the floor, she gasped in pain and stumbled, barely catching herself. She quickly covered her mouth with her hand and shot Chen Mo a glare.
It screamed, This is all your fault!
When Queen Medusa let out that painful gasp, Chen Mo immediately yelled even louder, trying to drown out her voice.
Outside, Die heard his shout and grew concerned. She thought his old injuries had flared up again.
"Chen Mo, what's wrong? I'm coming in!"
In a desperate rush, Queen Medusa grabbed her clothes from the floor and hastily wrapped herself up before flying straight out the window.
"...Hey, your corset—" Chen Mo looked at the red corset left behind and called after her.
At that moment, the door opened.
Chen Mo had no choice but to quickly lean over and grab the corset.
Die walking in and seeing this scene:
Chen Mo, half-covered by a blanket from the waist down, bare-chested, leaning off the bed to pick up a red corset from the floor.
"You—what are you doing?" he stammered, hastily pulling back under the covers, clutching the corset.
Die didn't answer right away. Instead, she narrowed her eyes and asked in a suspicious tone,
"What's that in your hand?"
"Where'd it come from?" Her voice trembled slightly.
"Ah—I bought it!" Chen Mo's brain spun into overdrive. Then he decided to sacrifice his own innocence and added, "I was going to give it to you as a gift, but last night I wasn't feeling well, so..."
He gave her a look—You get what I mean.
Die's face turned bright red. She pouted, "You rascal."
"I'll wash it before I give it to you," Chen Mo said, storing the corset into his spatial ring.
"Hmph. I don't want it anymore." Her face was burning. Then she asked, "Why did you yell earlier?"
"I dropped it, and I didn't want you to see it, so I panicked a little..."
"Bad man." She huffed, but ultimately chose to believe his explanation. Although... the room did smell kinda strange.
Chen Mo let out a silent sigh of relief.
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