The cup was clearly for giving her water, but the hourglass… what was that for?
Su Ling looked at the two items on the tray, her mind wandering.
Beside her, Sista had already opened the iron cage door and unchained her, but she still held the hemp rope connected to Su Ling’s collar.
Su Ling felt this treatment was deeply humiliating, but the tug on her neck forced her to follow Sista’s lead. She moved forward, exiting the cage in a half-crawling posture, her knees touching the floor of the room.
Su Ling swallowed hard, staring at the clear water in the cup.
Seeing this, Sista gave a soft smile. She elegantly picked up the water cup, her eyes fixed on the captive Su Ling. She slowly approached, her slender hand grasping Su Ling’s chin, forcing her to tilt her head up.
“Do you want to drink? Open your mouth,” the Blood Princess commanded in a cold tone, her voice carrying an irresistible majesty. She exuded her usual aura of a high-and-mighty princess, along with a powerful sense of pressure.
Su Ling trembled and slightly opened her mouth. In an instant, Sista’s lips covered hers, and she widened her eyes in shock at the sudden action.
Her teeth were skillfully pried open, and cool water flowed from the vampire’s mouth into hers. Bit by bit, it was pushed into her oral cavity. The water flowed along their intertwined lips, carrying the unique scent of Sista’s spider lily fragrance.
However, the water flowed too quickly for Su Ling to swallow, and some of it went down the wrong pipe.
“Cough… *cough, cough*…”
She coughed violently, and crystal-clear droplets of water overflowed from the corners of her mouth, trickling down her chin. Sista did not let her go, however. Instead, she deepened the kiss, which carried a hint of bullying. She swirled her tongue wantonly inside Su Ling’s mouth until the girl’s body went limp from a lack of oxygen.
“You make such a fuss just to drink some water.”
Sista finally released her and lightly wiped the water stains from her own lips, her tone teasing.
Su Ling gasped for air, her cheeks flushed a deep crimson from both shame and suffocation. Physiological tears welled in the corners of her eyes. She kept her head lowered, not daring to look directly into Sista’s deep, sea-blue eyes.
“Do you want more?”
“Yes…”
Her thirst forced Su Ling to nod.
“But, Her Highness, can I drink it myself…?”
“No.”
Sista picked up the water cup again, a slight curve appearing at the corners of her mouth.
This time, she took a mouthful of water first, letting the ice-clear liquid linger in her mouth for a moment before slowly pressing her lips against Su Ling’s trembling ones.
The water flowed slowly along the tip of Sista’s nimble tongue. This time, the pace was much slower than before. She lightly teased the inside of Su Ling’s mouth, guiding her to swallow bit by bit.
But just as Su Ling thought she had finally adapted to the rhythm, Sista suddenly increased the speed of the flow.
“Ha… *cough, cough, cough*!”
Su Ling choked again. Crystal-clear water droplets leaked from between their pressed lips, leaving wet streaks on her snow-white neck.
The silver-haired girl panted heavily, her chest heaving violently, and the flush on her cheeks deepened.
Droplets of water still hung from her eyelashes, shimmering faintly under the dim light, making her look pitiable and frail.
Su Ling finally understood. Sista didn’t just want to give her water; she was using the excuse of drinking to force a kiss and bully her.
It seemed that humiliation and interrogation were not enough. Just as the vampire had said, the days of her being toyed with were far from over.
‘My life, has it really come to a dead end?’
As she rested for a moment, Su Ling’s heart sank to rock bottom.
Sista was angry about her leaving the city walls, which was something Su Ling had expected. It was just that she never knew how to face Sista’s heavy, twisted, and somewhat strange affection.
Being kept in Hailuosen Castle by Sista, being taken away to Valivadan by Liel… she seemed to always be drifting with the tide, pushed along by this world.
‘Am I truly helpless in this situation?’ Su Ling felt lost.
“Have you had enough?”
Sista released her, her fingers sliding slowly down along that wet trail. Her gaze meticulously appraised Su Ling’s drenched body.
The cream-colored clothes had become semi-transparent after being soaked with water, clinging to the silver-haired girl’s delicate skin. Starting from her slender neck, crystal water droplets slowly rolled down the hollow of her collarbones, leaving translucent marks across her chest.
Under the wet silk rope, her tender skin was faintly visible. Water droplets rolled down her red sash to her groin, gathering into small streams on her thighs before finally soaking into the hem of her skirt. This outlined her lovely curves, even revealing a faint yellowish tint on the delicate skin of her inner thighs.
The girl’s toes trembled slightly, and her legs unconsciously pressed together, making that wet hem look even more tempting.
Sista admired her masterpiece with satisfaction. She casually picked up the transparent hourglass, toyed with it in her palm for a while, and then placed it in front of Su Ling.
“Her Highness, what is this for?”
Looking at the hourglass, Su Ling couldn’t help but ask out of curiosity.
“You will find out in a moment.”
Sista answered expressionlessly. Su Ling’s intuition told her this wasn’t anything good. She didn’t dare ask further, lowering her head as damp strands of hair stuck to her cheeks and neck.
“Speaking of which, Her Highness seemed to stay at this castle last night… Are you not going back to Hailuosen?”
“Hmph,” Sista said. “If there is nothing urgent, I will be staying here for the next few days.”
“Why…?”
“Because you are here.”
“Ah…”
Sista’s red lips parted slightly, and the remaining water on the corners of her mouth shimmered.
“Besides, staying there isn’t doing me any favors right now.”
“After that assassin attacked Nori, the Capital has been in an uproar. Coincidentally, news came from the Northern Territory that the Count and the Rebels have joined forces to revolt. People everywhere are panic-stricken now.”
“Liel executed the palace guards for failing to prevent the assassin, but the method was too extreme. Everyone from top to bottom is living in fear. So, I simply left Hailuosen and came out on my own.”
‘The Rebels…’
Liel’s face appeared in Su Ling’s mind. Ever since their last separation, she hadn’t received any news about Liel for a long time.
‘I wonder how he is doing now? Looking at the current situation, things should be going smoothly, right?’
“They are all acting recklessly…” Suddenly, Su Ling heard Sista muttering to herself in a very low voice.
“If the person in that position wasn’t Liel, but me… everything wouldn’t have become this messy.”
Su Ling was somewhat surprised. She didn’t expect Sista to suddenly say something like that in front of her.
‘That’s a thought about usurping the throne! Has Sista always wanted to fight for Liel’s power?’
But in Su Ling’s impression, Sista had always been very indifferent toward the power struggles of the kingdom and didn’t have much ambition. To avoid Liel’s suspicion, she had locked herself in her study for a long time, not even attending the social tea parties of the Noble Faction.
If one had to say it, all that woman’s desires seemed to be focused on Su Ling alone.
“Does Her Highness… want to become the next King?”
“What are you thinking? I wouldn’t do that,” Sista quickly responded to her words.
“It’s not out of some fake sentiment or fear of trouble. Usurping the throne means war, which would only make the situation in the Kingdom of Ansels more desperate. It would worsen the living conditions of the lower-class humans and sub-humans, and ultimately affect the entire country’s economic development.”
“I am the Second Princess of this country. Even if I don’t hold actual power, I bear the responsibility for the long-term peace and stability of this nation. I won’t do anything detrimental to the Kingdom of Ansels.”
Su Ling fell silent. She knew Sista had always taken her identity and status seriously. Beneath the Blood Princess’s cold exterior was a constant concern for the fate of her family and country.
“I understand, Her Highness.”
Just then, a strange sensation came from her lower abdomen. Su Ling realized something was wrong with her body.
‘Ugh… I drank too much water just now, and suddenly I feel like…’
Su Ling’s white, jade-like legs unconsciously crossed. A dull ache came from her lower abdomen. She looked around carefully, only to find that there were no facilities for her to relieve herself in this underground room.
Sista noticed her anomaly, and a playful smile curled the corners of her mouth.
“What? You look like you’re in pain.”
She was asking, but her gaze clearly showed she already knew what was happening. Sista leaned back in her chair, crossed her long, beautiful legs, and pulled Su Ling toward her with the rope.
“Um… Her Highness, I want to… go…”
Su Ling was forced forward a step, the collar around her neck making a slight clinking sound. Her watery eyes looked at Sista pleadingly.
“I want to go to the bathroom…”
Finally, unable to bear the pressure below, she spoke those words with a flushed face.
“You are not allowed to go. This is today’s punishment.”
However, the request was coldly rejected by the Blood Princess. The black-haired woman picked up the glass hourglass, lightly set it on the floor, and then narrowed her eyes, looking at Su Ling with deep meaning.
The fine golden sand inside the bottle began to flow down with her movement, gathering into a thin line.
“Come here, sit on my lap,” she said, lifting her black long skirt to reveal her well-shaped, somewhat overly pale thighs.
“And then stay there for me, until the hourglass finishes its timing.”
“Wh… what?!”
‘So the hourglass was meant for that!’
Su Ling’s face changed instantly. ‘What kind of punishment is this! To use such a method… you woman are too much of a pervert!’
“Her Highness, this really won’t work—”
Her heart was anxious, and she tried to regain some dignity for herself. But the Blood Princess frowned, and the smile from a moment ago instantly turned cold, forcing Su Ling to fall silent immediately.
“You still dare to bargain with me? The punishment is doubled.”
Sista countered. She smoothed her skirt, grabbed Su Ling’s shoulder with one hand to force the girl upright, and reached out with the other hand to pull down the silver-haired girl’s underwear.
Su Ling instantly lost the garment that maintained her modesty, feeling a chill on her skin. Beneath the light skirt, her body was now completely bare.
A sense of shame immediately occupied her mind.
“Just like that, sit on my lap. No resisting, and no struggling.”
The commanding voice came again, leaving her no chance to retreat.