Astreia leaned against the cold wooden door, her heart surging violently.
Her reason warned her to leave at once; the honor of a Knight would never permit such a voyeuristic act.
Yet every faint sound of water from within the door seemed like a Demon’s whisper, transforming into soft feathers that repeatedly teased her already wavering Dao Heart.
Her legs felt as heavy as if filled with lead—she couldn’t move a single step.
In her mind, uncontrollable images surged forth.
In the steamy mist, just how enchanting would Wendy’s already otherworldly handsome face appear?
That skin as fine as mutton-fat jade, adorned with glistening droplets of water slowly sliding down—what kind of seductive scene would that be?
She wanted to see!
Just one look! Just one look!
While Her Highness the Princess’s cheeks burned and her thoughts spun in chaos, a sudden dull thud came from the bathhouse.
Immediately after, there was a stifled cry of pain.
“Ow—”
“Wendy!”
Shock instantly shattered her romantic fantasies, and the Knight’s instinct to protect the weak overrode everything else.
Astreia barely thought—her body acted before her mind, and she crashed straight through the door!
But the sight before her made her breath catch in her throat.
Wendy had collapsed awkwardly by the edge of the pool, his fair knee striking the rough stone steps, already seeping with a startling red.
He had clearly slipped and lost his balance.
His deep blue hair clung wetly to his pale cheeks and neck, with a few dripping strands at the ends.
His peach blossom eyes, glimmering with watery light, were now misted over from the sudden pain, making him look helpless, weak, and pitiful.
But what Her Highness the Princess couldn’t look away from was that barely-covering white towel!
Though the towel did its utmost to fulfill its duty, a broad expanse of skin above was still exposed under the dim light, glowing with a jade-like luster.
Droplets of water traced his well-defined lines, slowly sliding down and disappearing at the towel’s edge, outlining a tantalizing curve.
“Hiss…”
Astreia felt a sudden heat in her nose, almost ready to spout blood on the spot.
The First Beauty of the Valoran Kingdom truly lived up to the title!
This kind of destructive power was even stronger than a siege crossbow!
“I… I’m fine… ah! It hurts, it hurts!”
Seeing Astreia suddenly barge in, a trace of panic flashed instinctively across Wendy’s face, as if he wanted to struggle up from the ground.
But as he moved, it seemed to pull at his twisted ankle, and the pain made him grunt, slumping back down as fine sweat broke out on his forehead.
That cry of pain completely snapped Her Highness the Princess out of her daze.
At this moment, she couldn’t care less about the boundaries between men and women or the rules of Knights.
She rushed forward in three quick steps, scooped Wendy up from the ground with ease, and cradled him in her arms.
The lightness in her arms made her heart tremble.
This Prince looked even more delicate than she had imagined.
Through the thin, damp towel, she could clearly feel the warmth of his body and the slightly rapid beating of his heart.
However, in the next second…
A scent, mixed with cheap soap and a unique fresh fragrance, filled her nose.
The First Princess’s mind went completely blank.
Is… is this what a boy’s scent is like?
At that moment, Wendy crashed solidly into a soft embrace.
He instinctively nuzzled closer, letting out a blissful murmur.
“Astreia…”
It felt so comfortable, he almost wanted to take a bite.
That slightly nasal, low call was like an enchanting spell, instantly striking Astreia’s heart.
A surge of unprecedented protective desire, accompanied by a strange flutter, erupted from deep within her chest!
At the same time, a wisp of dark purple aura, invisible to the naked eye, quietly drifted from Wendy’s body.
Like a living thing, it followed their touching skin and slowly merged into Her Highness the Princess.
Silently, Astreia’s desire to protect Wendy was tinged with a hint of Paranoia.
A strong urge to claim this Prince as her own, not letting anyone else covet him, quietly took root deep in her heart.
Yet the noble upbringing rooted in her soul still made her forcibly turn her face away in the next instant, not daring to look again at the pitiful beauty in her arms. She stammered awkwardly,
“Wendy… you, pull your towel up a bit.”
“Even though it’s night now, just in case… in case someone else sees you like this… it wouldn’t be good…”
Looking at Astreia’s face blushing all the way to her ears, and those emerald eyes darting away, Wendy suddenly understood.
After all, this was a matriarchal world. A man’s chastity and reputation were of utmost importance.
If a man was exposed while bathing or in private, especially if a woman saw what shouldn’t be seen, he would be seen as shameless.
He would be despised and scorned by all.
And the way he wore his towel, in this world’s eyes, was already extremely improper.
“Astreia, I know… but I don’t want to!”
But Wendy couldn’t hold back any longer.
He stretched out his arms, hugging Astreia tightly around the neck, burying his face deep into that broad, warm chest, and then… took a deep breath.
“Snnnff—ah~”
The scent, top grade through the lungs.
It was the complex aroma of daisies dried in the sun, mixed with sweat and a faint trace of iron.
“W-Wendy! Y-you, you…”
Astreia felt as if she’d been thrown into boiling water, her face, neck, and even her ears all flushed crimson.
Her body stiffened, hands and feet at a loss, her words tangled up.
“I feel so safe…”
But Wendy showed no sign of letting go.
His forehead rested under Astreia’s graceful jaw, gently nuzzling.
“Whenever I’m with Astreia, I just relax completely without realizing it. It’s like… it’s like I can treat this place as my home…”
His voice was low and husky, carrying a hint of lazy satisfaction, like a cat.
But Astreia simply couldn’t withstand such intimacy and open dependence.
She felt as if her heart was about to leap out of her chest!
“I-I… I’ll take you to the Infirmary!”
She hurriedly carried Wendy, striding quickly—almost stumbling—towards the bathhouse door.
The “treasure” in her arms was so delicate, so irresistibly lovable.
Astreia couldn’t help but feel a strong illusion: “In this world, only I can protect him.”
At the same time, a shameful thought quietly surfaced—she actually wished the walk from here to the Infirmary could be a little longer, even longer.
That way, she could… rightfully stay close to this peerless beauty for a little more time.
No, no!
What on earth am I thinking…
“Y-Your Highness! What… what are you two doing?!”
Just as the atmosphere reached its peak of ambiguity, almost dripping with sweetness, a completely out-of-place male voice, thick with suppressed fury, suddenly rang out from the end of the corridor.
Secretary Edwin Veid had appeared there at some point, staring fixedly at Astreia holding the nearly half-naked Wendy in her arms.
The handsome face that usually wore a false smile was now twisted with undisguised jealousy and incredulous rage.
“You, as the First Princess of Valoran, actually… actually do such an outrageous thing with this stray dog, in the women soldiers’ Bathhouse?!”
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