When Wendy came to his senses, the bone-chilling cold had already faded.
He found that he was no longer in that icy secret room, but lying on a velvet bed large enough for four or five people.
The sheets beneath him were top-grade silk, the slippery texture clinging to every inch of his skin.
The door was blocked by a wooden screen painted with the Royal Hunting Screen, and within his sight were a luxurious wardrobe inlaid with gold leaf, a long couch covered in white animal fur, and a giant floor mirror polished to a brilliant shine.
He didn’t know what time it was, and could only see through the gap in the hollowed-out curtains that it was still pitch-black outside—still deep night.
“Li-Lina, isn’t that enough?”
The Prince’s voice was hoarse, and he felt a coldness on his wrists.
Turning his head, he saw that both his hands were tightly fastened to the carved bedposts by two pairs of translucent Ice Shackles.
“Princess Astreia and the others could come back at any moment! Let me go now! If she sees this, it’ll be a disaster!”
However, the Little Queen acted as if she hadn’t heard his plea, walking unhurriedly toward the screen.
“Don’t think too much. Right now, you belong to me~”
She glanced back with a gentle smile, her voice soft and beautiful.
“You didn’t seem to like that dress earlier. I’ll go change—I’ll be back soon.”
“No! You don’t understand.”
Despair crept into Wendy’s voice.
Because of that damned Empathic Link, Laxana had undoubtedly experienced everything he had just gone through.
The piercing cold, the tickling on his soles, the overwhelming stimulation…
Astreia was beside her.
With Laxana’s intelligence, she must have already guessed that someone else in the Royal Palace was tormenting him with ice!
The two were surely rushing back at top speed right now!
If they caught him in the act—
Wendy didn’t dare think further.
If Astreia found out he had this kind of relationship with her own younger sister, would she completely fall, unable to ever regain her sanity, and become a fully awakened Witch?
But none of these words could be spoken!
After all, in the Little Queen’s understanding, he was only her sister’s man.
She had no idea about the mess between him and Laxana.
If his connection with Laxana was exposed, it would trigger another bomb!
At this moment, the Prince was trapped in a dead end.
Meanwhile, behind the screen, the Little Queen even began humming a cheerful tune, seemingly oblivious to his anxiety and completely unconcerned.
Wendy felt like his head was about to explode.
Swoosh—
With a light sound, the ice-blue dress the Little Queen had been wearing was tossed casually onto the top of the screen.
Immediately after, came the faint rustle of fabric.
Now!
Seizing the chance, Wendy struggled violently.
He tensed every muscle, even bracing his feet against the bedposts to try and break free from the restraints on his wrists.
“Clang! Clang!”
The Ice Shackles clashed with the bedposts, making a dull sound.
But the cold restraints were far stronger than he imagined.
Aside from making his wrists sore, there was not a hint of them breaking.
“Hey!”
A light cry came from behind the screen, as if she had heard his movements.
The Little Queen quickly emerged.
Seeing Wendy’s disheveled state, she first widened her eyes in amusement, then stretched out a slender index finger and wagged it at him.
“Don’t even think about escaping!”
When she confirmed Wendy couldn’t break free at all, her dissatisfaction melted into a gentle smile.
“Come on, take a good look at me—how do I look? Do you like it?”
“Hiss—!”
Wendy instinctively looked up, gasping as his struggles halted.
Yekaterina had changed into a striking black outfit, like a dominatrix queen stepping out of a nightclub.
The upper body was a bikini-like style, but the front was covered in large swathes of see-through mesh, perfectly outlining her developing figure.
Her slender arms were adorned with black mid-finger sleeves, making her appear even more delicate and sexy.
As for the lower body…
She wore matching mesh stockings and a pair of black, restrictive high-heeled boots, the complicated straps winding from her ankles up past her knees.
The boots gleamed seductively under the candlelight, every step landing like a strike on his heart!
Gulp.
Wendy swallowed hard, his eyes glued to those long boots, unable to look away.
Seeing the Prince so entranced, the Little Queen’s lips curled into a triumphant smile.
She strode to the bedside, the crisp sound of her heels tapping the floor sharp and lethal.
“Hehehe, I noticed before—you always secretly stared at Laxana’s legs in those long boots. I didn’t expect you to like it this much.”
She leaned down, her warm breath brushing against Wendy’s ear.
“Such a perverted Prince!”
“But, I like it~”
The seductive laugh made Wendy’s heart tremble.
I’m doomed.
She had him completely at her mercy.
He forced himself to turn away from the emerald eyes so close to his own, speaking dryly.
“Don’t—don’t go any further. You’re still too young. At least… at least wait until you’re as grown as Astreia before I could feel anything.”
“Oh? Is that so?”
The Little Queen straightened up, folding her arms in satisfaction.
This movement made the view under the mesh top even more impossible to ignore, leaving Wendy parched.
“Th-That’s right! I absolutely! Absolutely would never be interested in a little brat like you!”
Wendy practically shouted, though he wasn’t sure if he was trying to convince her or himself.
The Little Queen saw through his guilty tone, but didn’t call him out on it.
Instead, she changed the subject, sighing softly.
“Do you know how hard it is to be a Queen?”
“It’s not just about being a puppet, like I said before.”
“There are also countless responsibilities I can’t avoid.”
“Even when I just turned eighteen, everyone kept telling me I had to find a suitable man and produce heirs as soon as possible, blah blah blah…”
“Sometimes…”
“Hey! Your Queen is talking to you!”
Halfway through her words, she noticed Wendy’s gaze drifting again, clearly searching for a chance to escape.
Whoosh!
A sharp sound sliced through the air—a translucent Ice Spike shot past Wendy’s ear and buried itself into the headboard behind him!
The next moment, a cold little hand clamped onto the Prince’s neck!
“Listen to me with respect!”
Yekaterina leaned down, her emerald eyes now devoid of any smile, burning only with fury.
“Otherwise, the next Ice Spike will take your life! Understand?!”
The murderous aura instantly made Wendy’s hair stand on end.
At the same time, the suffocating grip tightened—she was serious!
She really would kill him!
Staring at the razor-sharp ice blade so close, feeling the pressure constricting his throat, Wendy realized that in her bones, this Little Queen was cut from the same cloth as Astreia in Witch mode—if not even more domineering and cruel.
“Long story short, sometimes those people aren’t wrong.”
Seeing Wendy finally behave, the Little Queen released him.
She straightened, casually picked up a Feather Pen from the bedside table, twirling it between her fingers as her tone returned to a blend of shyness and authority.
“Sometimes, I also want someone to satisfy my… needs.”
As she spoke, she sat down by the bed, and from somewhere produced a sparkling Ice Dagger, pressing its sharp blade lightly against Wendy’s handsome face.
“Prince Wendy, you’ll help me, won’t you?”
Her words were gentle, but the threat was all too clear.
But Wendy just stubbornly turned his head, clamping his lips shut in silence.
The Little Queen leaned even closer, her hot, girlish scent nearly smothering him.
“Relax, I’ll be… much gentler than my sister~”
“Ugh…”
The icy blade pressed a little harder, tracing a thin line of blood on his cheek.
“I—I get it. I’ll help you. I’ll cooperate… but only this once!”
In the end, caught between humiliation and resistance, Wendy chose partial surrender.
“Afterward, you must let me go immediately! Laxana and the others are surely already on their way back!”
At these words, Yekaterina’s face finally regained that sweet, playful smile.
She put away the dagger, reached out a warm finger to wipe the blood from Wendy’s cheek, then placed it in her mouth, her eyes curving like crescent moons.
“Alright~”
“Then… let’s not waste any more time!”