For a long time.
On the Queen’s excessively spacious bed, three long and satisfied sighs echoed almost simultaneously.
A subtle, sweet and sticky scent—mixed with sweat and the fragrance of girls—lingered in the air.
Miss Klein and the Little Queen were on either side, like two lazy cats, squeezing Wendy tightly in the middle.
The three of them seemed to have burned out their last ounce of strength, inevitably entering that sacred and empty sage time.
No one spoke.
Silence was the only melody at this moment.
Wendy emptied his mind, feeling like a sponge wrung of every drop of moisture, without even the will to move a finger.
He just wanted to sleep to death and end it all.
However, this peace was quickly broken.
The Little Queen Yekaterina seemed to recover her energy the fastest.
She turned over, her emerald eyes flickering curiously in the dim candlelight as she studied Laxana on the other side.
“Hey…”
A slender index finger gently poked the beautiful back of Miss Klein.
“What is it…”
Laxana’s voice was weak, thick with nasal exhaustion, as if she couldn’t even be bothered to speak.
“I’m curious,”
The Little Queen’s eyes spun, her emerald gaze shining with curiosity.
“Just now! Just now! Even though Prince Wendy didn’t touch you, why is it that every time…um…the frequency at which you enter that state is exactly the same as Wendy?”
Laxana’s body stiffened instantly.
She opened her eyes, staring blankly at the ceiling above, her violet eyes hollow.
Hesitation.
Struggle.
After a moment, she seemed to give up, letting out a long sigh and deciding to spill everything.
“Ah…”
“Since we’re already lying on the same bed, I’ll just say it.”
Miss Klein said in self-defeat.
“Before coming to the Royal Capital, Wendy and I…accidentally got poisoned by something called Thorn Kiss.”
“So, right now…we’re linked in sensation.”
Before she could finish, the Little Queen let out a sharp scream and sat up with a “whoosh!”
“What?!”
She stared in disbelief, her eyes darting back and forth between Wendy and Laxana.
“Thorn Kiss”?! No wonder! No wonder you could sense something was wrong with Wendy and came looking for him…”
Yekaterina’s expression shifted rapidly from shock to sudden understanding, then twisted into a mischievous, playful grin.
“Wait, doesn’t that mean…you two already slept together long ago?!”
Laxana’s cheeks flared up instantly.
She rolled over violently, turning her back to the Little Queen, and shouted in annoyance:
“Is there something wrong with your ears?! Accident! I said it was an accident!”
“Oh~ An accident~”
Yekaterina covered her mouth, letting out a string of silvery laughter filled with unabashed mockery.
“I never expected it. You, with those thick brows and big eyes, got to him even earlier than I, the Queen!”
She leaned in closer, her warm breath brushing against Miss Ke Cain’s ear.
“And now you have the nerve to come over and stop the little game between me and Prince Wendy~”
“This is different!”
Laxana’s face turned crimson, her blood pressure soaring as she straightened her back, glaring angrily at the Little Queen despite her exhaustion.
“I was a victim affected by a curse! And you? You drugged him on purpose and forced him! It’s completely different!”
“Victim?”
Yekaterina laughed even harder, reaching out to poke Laxana’s chest, which rose and fell with anger.
“A victim who can share sensations? Don’t lie to yourself. Can you say you didn’t enjoy it, even a little, just now? At least I was open about it. Unlike some people, who desperately want it inside, but say no outside—so hypocritical!”
“Y-you shameless!”
Laxana trembled all over in fury.
“I did it to save him! I sensed he was in danger, so I rushed over without hesitation! Tyrants like you, who only care about your own pleasure, know nothing about true concern!”
“Concern? Is your idea of concern taking him from me to have him all to yourself?”
Yekaterina refused to back down, her emerald eyes brimming with malice.
“Stop pretending, Laxana. You’re just jealous—jealous that I’m more direct and brave than you. Jealous that I can make him show sides even you haven’t seen!”
“I am not! I just…just feel bad for Astreia! She trusts you so much, yet you do this to her man! How can you face your own sister?!”
Laxana played her final moral card.
“Heh, as if you can face her yourself.”
The Little Queen sneered, curling her lip disdainfully.
“You and I are both cats stealing the cream—neither is nobler than the other. At least I got him by my own skill. And you? You just benefited from a curse!”
“You—!”
Laxana was left speechless, her pretty face flushing purple, chest heaving as she searched in vain for a rebuttal.
Yes, she was jealous.
Jealous to the point of madness!
In the end, unable to out-argue, Miss Klein turned all her anger and grievance toward the culprit pretending to be dead.
“Wendy! You say something!”
She suddenly turned over, throwing herself into the Prince’s arms, pinching his cheeks hard with two fingers as she demanded:
“You tell her yourself—is this shameless, despicable Queen in the right or not?!”
Having just finished his out-of-body contemplation of life, Prince Wendy looked wordlessly at the pouting, teary-eyed Miss Klein in his arms, then at the Little Queen at the edge of the bed, arms crossed and wearing a victor’s smile.
One head, two headaches.
What kind of hellish battlefield is this?!
Finally, after half a minute of silence, Wendy, driven by a powerful survival instinct, made a bold decision.
He took a deep breath, wrapped an arm around each of them, and pulled both tightly to his side.
“At this point, there’s no need for more words.”
His voice was soft, but carried an undeniable finality.
“From today onward, you’re both on this ship with me.”
Feeling the soft warmth of the two bodies in his arms, Wendy spoke solemnly, word by word.
“We must—and can only—keep this a secret from Astreia. Understood?”
“Hmph! Who’s on the same ship with her!”
The two women snorted almost in unison, turning their heads away proudly as if looking at each other for even a second was an insult.
“Don’t even think about it!”
Yet, curiously, neither resisted Wendy’s embrace.
Instead, as if finding the most comfortable pillow, their bodies instinctively snuggled closer to him, as if trying to claim more territory.
Wendy let out a long sigh of relief in his heart.
Settled!
Temporarily…settled!
Left and right in his arms, an overwhelming sense of satisfaction and accomplishment welled up within him.
Though the process was twisted, even breathtaking, the result…wasn’t bad at all?
However, just as Wendy thought tonight’s farce could finally end, he suddenly felt the Little Queen’s restless hand sneaking along his waist…
At the same time, a soft voice, tinged with challenge and mischief, sounded in his ear.
“Since we’re all on your ship now…Prince Wendy, shouldn’t you treat us equally, and let me taste what it’s like when you’re the one taking the initiative~?”
At these words, Laxana, unwilling to be outdone, also turned and glared at Wendy.
“I go first!”