Nilou's declaration was truly shocking enough to leave both Yucheng and Ayaka utterly dumbfounded.
What was more, Yucheng was talking with Nilou in the courtyard, and at that moment, Yucheng and Ayaka were not the only ones there. Quite a few staff members from the Inazuma delegation were present too.
The envoys were stunned by Nilou's words. The next instant, they fled the scene at lightning speed, terrified that the Regent would silence them for hearing something they should not have heard.
Still, men were men. This sort of thing was understandable. Besides, Nilou, the graceful dancer who had shone so brilliantly at the Sabzeruz Festival, really was pure and lovely. The Regent certainly had excellent taste. Nothing wrong with that!
Ayaka, however, reacted differently. Amid her shock, she could not help shooting Yucheng a death glare. That smile that never reached her eyes made Yucheng feel as though Ayaka had awakened some rather alarming trait, and the sight left him a little uneasy.
Meanwhile, Nilou, the one responsible for all this, seemed to have exhausted all her courage and strength with that declaration. Her head was lowered, her eyes were closed, and her body trembled slightly, as though she was deeply afraid of what her future held.
As for Nilou's answer, if she had told Yucheng this in private, or if Yucheng had not slept with Ayaka and satisfied his physical needs-if even one of those conditions had been met-Yucheng felt that his easily ignited, explosive body might not have made it through this ordeal.
But now, having just enjoyed Ayaka's tender attentions, Yucheng was in his post-sex state of clarity. Nilou's actions suddenly reminded him of female streamers rewarding their biggest donors in his previous life, and he immediately found the whole thing rather unbearably tacky.
After thinking