"How long are you going to keep pretending, Ms. Arlyne?" Eli's voice broke the silence, his attention shifting to Arlyne as he changed his target.
Since he failed before, he wanted to give it another shot.
Now that Pearl had fallen asleep... or rather, pretended to do so.
"Hehe..." Arlyne, who had been feigning sleep, awkwardly chuckled as she slowly lifted her head from Eli's lap, settling beside him. She hugged her knees, her gaze fixed on the dancing flames that seemed to ripple like water.
"We haven't talked much, right?" Eli observed, stealing a glance at her.
Arlyne nodded in agreement, "Yes, ever since the training program, our conversations have been sparse," she confirmed.
"Hmm..." Eli pondered inwardly, 'That's a predicament, what should I do to let her speak more...hmm?' contemplating how to encourage Arlyne to open up more.
Suddenly, Arlyne broke the silence with a serious question, her gaze fixed on Eli,
"You..."
"Yes?" Eli's eyes showed little hope.
"What kind of favour do my Highnesses owe you?" she inquired, her tone carrying a hint of urgency.
Eli shook his head regretfully. "I'm sorry, but that's between the Twin siblings and me," he replied cryptically.
Arlyne's eyes narrowed slightly, her expression turning serious as she issued a warning. "You may not be aware, but Her Majesty, the Queen of Chola Kingdom, is fiercely protective of her daughters. If you were to repeat the same stunt as that day...
Even the Vampire Queen wouldn't be able to save you" she cautioned, her voice laced with a dangerous edge.
"Hmm?" Eli raised an eyebrow in surprise, intrigued by Arlyne's warning.
'Even Adriana struggles to defy their mother... Interesting,' Eli noted to himself silently. Aloud, he reassured Arlyne, "Don't worry, I simply seek connections with low nobles and other mercenaries in their kingdom... for my pitiful product sales"
Arlyne scrutinized Eli's expression, searching for any signs of deception, but to her frustration, his emotions remained concealed behind a mask of neutrality.
With a huff and a resigned sigh, Arlyne finally shrugged her shoulders, unable to discern Eli's true intentions.
After a few minutes of contemplation, Arlyne finally gathered the courage to ask the question that had been weighing on her mind. "So, do you think it was King Carter who traped you?" she inquired, her voice tinged with uncertainty.
Eli glanced at her, understanding the direction of her question. Instead of answering directly, he countered with his own query, "Do you love Theo?" he asked, his gaze steady as he studied her reaction.
"I mean, whether you're a concubine or not, as long as there's love, it shouldn't matter, right?" Eli questioned, his gaze fixed on Arlyne.
"...W-Well..." Arlyne's eyes trembled with emotion before she lowered her head, unable to meet Eli's gaze.
Eli frowned, noticing her hesitation. He couldn't help but wonder if Arlyne's intentions were solely focused on her feelings for Theo or if there were other underlying motivations at play.... Queen's Position?
He wondered.
However, Eli refrained from jumping to conclusions. Instead, he opted to leave the matter unresolved, believing it was better to avoid making assumptions.... Sometimes Assumptions were dangerous!!
"Did you also think I'm just after his crown?" Arlyne suddenly asked, her voice tinged with pain as her body trembled.
The pain he had been seeing from her...
"Sigh..." Eli sighed inwardly, grappling with the realization that he had inadvertently caused her further distress while attempting to manipulate her for his own purposes.
"!!!" Meanwhile, Arlyne flinched when she felt warm, big hands ruffling her hair gently.
With teary eyes, she looked up at Eli, who was smiling gently, radiating a warmth that seemed to envelop her in comfort and acceptance.... Like a gentle mother.
'Don't cry,' Arlyne admonished herself, her voice trembling as she spoke, "Y-You know, when I c-confessed to him, it wasn't the rejection that broke my heart... It was his words. The words that still haunt me...." she admitted, her voice quavering with emotion.
Eli listened attentively, his expression softening as Arlyne continued,
"H-He said he'd rather marry a girl than an ugly, muscle woman like me, and that there'd be no one in this world who would love a m-muscle w-woman like m-me!"
Arlyne's voice trembled, her body shaking as if she were forcing herself to relive those painful memories.
"M-Muscle woman?" Eli furrowed his brow, casting a glance at Arlyne's petite figure, 'She was small as cute rabbi---Fuck!!' His thoughts were interrupted, however, when he witnessed a sudden pulsation in her body, her skin turning slightly red before her muscles bulged.
She looked like a 'She Hulk,' except she wasn't overly green or overly red – just pale red skin with a She Hulk-like physique.
Arlyne's horrified expression mirrored Eli's shock as she posed the question,
"N-Now look at me... D-Do I look like a girl?"
Eli froze for a moment, his mind reeling from the unexpected transformation before snapping back to reality at Arlyne's question. Unconsciously, he blurted out,
"Damn, girl! Your body is fucking sexy HOOOTTT!!!"
Someone raised inside.....