Chapter 235: A Misplaced and False Happiness

Laxana didn’t sleep a wink all night.

Or rather, she had never truly rested.

When the first rays of dawn slipped through the curtain crack and cast a sliver of light across the carpet, she was still in a state of extreme, fractured disorientation.

Her body was sore and stiff from being tense all night, but her mind was buzzing with excitement from that spell manuscript.

She didn’t know when that woman named Xi Ya had left.

Like a gust of wind, she came without a trace and left without a shadow.

“Mmm…”

A lazy moan came from beside her.

Laxana jolted and whipped her head around.

Wendy was on the sofa, her eyelashes fluttering a few times before she slowly opened her eyes.

Laxana’s heart leapt into her throat.

‘Here it comes!’

‘Will the memory alteration magic actually work?’

Wendy tilted her head, her gaze lingering on the unfamiliar ceiling for a few seconds before settling on Laxana, who was sitting nearby, visibly restless.

Their eyes met.

Laxana was so nervous her palms were sweating.

Wendy stared at her, stunned for a moment.

Then, in those deep blue eyes, confusion quickly faded, replaced by an indescribably complex emotion.

There was admiration, nostalgia, shyness, but most of all, an inescapable deep affection.

As if she had experienced it all firsthand.

The scenes from last night automatically surfaced in her mind, vivid enough to be unsettling.

All the memories belonging to Xi Ya were now perfectly grafted onto Laxana.

The Prince looked at the blonde young lady before her, and the corners of her mouth uncontrollably curled up.

Boom!

“You worked hard last night, Nana.”

Laxana felt as if struck by lightning, her entire body freezing instantly.

Nana?

He… he actually called me Nana?

Was the memory altered that thoroughly?

This woman…

Xi Ya’s magic was truly that powerful!

She not only tampered with Wendy’s memories but even transplanted that kind of genuine intimacy!

Shame, astonishment, and even a trace of a secret delight Laxana herself didn’t acknowledge—all kinds of emotions churned wildly inside her.

Watching Wendy extend her hand, the young lady instinctively wanted to step back.

But her body refused to obey.

Seeing that she didn’t move, Wendy simply pushed herself up from the sofa.

She was still wearing that silk bathrobe. After a night’s sleep, its already loose lapels had opened even wider, revealing large swaths of beautifully toned chest and delicate collarbones.

The Prince stepped closer and naturally opened her arms, as if to give the “heroine” before her a big hug.

Laxana recoiled as if shocked, jumping back a step.

“You…”

But the moment she retreated, the heart that had been hanging due to tension and embarrassment suddenly settled firmly back in place, and her legs even went weak uncontrollably.

Wendy didn’t mind that the hug missed and just tilted her head, looking at the young lady with amusement, the affection in her eyes deepening.

“What’s wrong? Embarrassed now that it’s daylight?”

She savored the memory of the exquisite touch of those jade-like legs, and before Laxana could react, she took the initiative to walk over and plop down on the sofa beside her.

Then…

She casually laid her head down.

On Laxana’s lap.

!!!

Laxana’s body instantly stiffened like a washboard fresh out of an icehouse.

Soft, warm jade? Not here.

Calm and composed? Even less likely!

The young lady just wanted to scream right now!

But Wendy was completely unaware and even rubbed against her with enjoyment.

Hmm?

The feeling… seemed off?

The lap pillow in her memory was soft, springy, a gentle paradise where you could completely sink in.

But this one now…

How come it’s so hard?

The Prince opened her eyes in confusion, looked up at Laxana’s pretty face, which was barely holding itself together, and asked softly:

“Nana, are you… a little nervous?”

“I, I am not!”

Laxana practically squeezed those words out through gritted teeth.

How could she not be nervous!

Her mind was full of the “scenes” she had “seen” yesterday.

Wendy had used this very position, pillowed on Xi Ya’s lap, and that woman had…

Just thinking about it made the skin on her thighs feel like it was burning.

“I still want…”

Wendy closed her eyes, savoring the lingering passion from last night, and murmured unconsciously.

“Want… want what?”

Laxana’s voice trembled.

“I want you to touch my face, just like last night.”

Wendy’s voice was thick with deep attachment.

Touch… her face?

Laxana looked at that handsome face so close, held her breath as if about to go into battle, and tremblingly raised her hand.

‘Have to imitate Xi Ya’s manner…’

‘Be gentle…’

‘Be gentle…’

She tried hard to recall Xi Ya’s movements, then stiffly and slowly covered her face with her hand.

Smack.

A crisp, light slap.

The intended gentle caress, due to poor control of force, turned into a solid smack.

The air froze instantly.

Wendy was stunned.

Laxana was stunned too.

After a few seconds, Wendy suddenly burst out laughing, her chest vibrating with mirth.

“Nana, you’re still so adorable.”

She caught the hand still frozen against her cheek and said softly:

“Even your way of showing affection is so unique.”

She actually thought it was a romantic gesture!

Flustered and humiliated by the laughter, Laxana’s pretty face flushed bright red as she struggled to pull her hand back.

But Wendy held on tighter.

She pulled the young lady’s hand down and slowly pressed it against her own left chest.

Underneath her palm was warm skin and a steady, powerful heartbeat.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

That scorching heat, that sensation of life pulsing, surged through the palm and, through the Empathic Link, bounced back onto Laxana with double the intensity.

The young lady felt a rush of heat shoot from the soles of her feet straight to her crown, the tips of her ears reddening to the point where they could bleed.

“See? It’s beating so fast.”

The Prince whispered softly:

“Whenever I’m close to you, it gets like this.”

Upon hearing this, Laxana completely gave up resistance, feeling as though she was drowning in this false sweetness.

Seeming satisfied with her reaction, Wendy pulled the young lady up from the sofa and led her to the desk without a word.

“Our work from last night still has a bit left. Let’s continue.”

She pointed to the half-written sheepskin parchment on the desk.

Then, under Laxana’s horrified gaze, she first sat down on the chair and patted her own lap.

“Come on.”

“Your turn. Get on.”

Laxana’s mind went blank, and she nearly fainted on the spot.

First thing in the morning…

This, this is way too stimulating!

“No, no way!”

She backed away repeatedly.

“Why not?”

Wendy looked completely innocent.

“Wasn’t that how it was last night? You held me, and only then could I write so smoothly.”

She paused and added:

“Today, I’ll hold you. The effect should be the same.”

Laxana couldn’t think anymore.

Under Wendy’s expectant and encouraging gaze, she finally closed her eyes, wore an expression of one about to face death, and shuffled over step by step.

Then…

She plopped down.

Hiss—

Wendy’s body tensed.

Unlike Xi Ya’s effortless, detached teasing, this was completely different.

The young lady was as tense as a steel rod. Her sitting posture was incredibly awkward, with almost all her body weight pressing down on a strange point.

This clumsy, skill-less posture created an even more direct, more intense pressure.

Even more lethal than the tender embrace from last night!

She picked up the quill on the desk, trying to focus on writing.

But the scent lingering at the tip of her nose was the faint fragrance of violet flowers from Laxana.

In her arms, she felt that astonishing plumpness and tension.

Crack.

A crisp sound.

The quill in her hand snapped again.

A torrent of emotional fluctuation surged through the contact, instantly flooding Laxana’s entire body.

“Ah!”

The young lady shrieked, as if scalded, and sprang up from Wendy’s lap, turning to flee.

“Don’t run!”

Wendy was quick and embraced her from behind.

In the struggle, a thick notebook clutched tightly to Laxana’s chest fell to the floor with a thump.

The notebook flipped open.

Ancient and obscure magic inscriptions shimmered with a mysterious aura in the morning light.

“What’s this?”

Wendy curiously bent down to pick it up.

“Such a strong mana fluctuation.”

“Don’t look!”

Laxana, like a cat with its tail stepped on, frantically turned around, snatched it back, and hugged it tightly to her chest.

“Don’t look!”

Seeing Wendy’s puzzled expression, her mind raced, and she hastily concocted an excuse:

“It’s… it’s a magic recipe I prepared for you, to strengthen your body! Yes, a recipe!”

Just then.

Creak—

From outside the Secret Chamber came the sound of the heavy library door being pushed open.

Both of their bodies stiffened simultaneously.

It was getting late. Class was about to start!

They frantically began tidying their disheveled clothes and hair, trying to cover up all traces of their “crime.”

When they were ready to leave this room thick with an ambiguous atmosphere, Wendy naturally reached out and took Laxana’s hand.

Her palm was warm and dry, filled with a reassuring strength.

Laxana looked down at their intertwined hands, then up at Wendy’s eyes brimming with love and trust, but inside, she felt an icy chill.

She knew she had been fitted with a sweet lock.

Not only did she have to keep this shocking secret, but she also had to sink deeper and deeper into this false persona of “tenderness and care.”

It seemed she had…

jumped into a sweet trap with no way back.

Forced to taste every ounce of guilt and secret delight brought by this emotion that didn’t belong to her.

And in a corner she couldn’t see.

Within the shadow outside the Reading Room window.

A seductive phantom, nearly blending into the morning light, was enjoying the exquisite drama she had personally directed.

A playful smirk curled at the corners of her violet-red lips…