Baam!

Dorian threw himself flat on his back onto the bed, letting out a deep, shuddering sigh to finally relieve himself of the stress that had been piling up inside him.

At the side of the room, Maria stood with a straight face, her back resting against the wall, her arms folded rather loosely.

Seraphina, on the other hand, was kneeling on the ground, already helping with pulling off Dorian's shoes, while Lili was in her bat form at the window, keeping watch over the people walking right outside.

'Honestly, I thought the only thing I'd be doing at the capital was getting my Duke title. Where are all these sudden side quests coming from?'

He arched his brows a bit, feeling Seraphina's hand as she pulled his shoe off.

'Execution, eh? In both this life and my former, I have never seen someone get executed in front of me. I expected this to happen, but I didn't think I would have to be there to watch. I mean, what the hell does it have to do with me?'

"Lord Dorian!" Maria suddenly called out. "Is there something on your mind? You've been lying there saying nothing."

"Take it easy, Maria. You worry too much. Darling is probably just exhausted from all the journeying we have been doing," Seraphina chimed in, now using her magic to gradually restore Dorian's stamina.

"Right. I didn't think of that," Maria responded back, then pushed herself off the wall and took slow steps towards the bed.

Dorian, on the other hand, had already opened his eyes and could see Maria's face right above his.

Her silver hair fell onto the bed beside him, a few strands caressing his cheeks.

As always, Maria had that serious expression on her face, so he could not exactly read what was going on in her mind at that moment.

Before he knew it, she had pulled even closer, kissing him on the lips.

In that moment, Dorian noticed Maria had a deep shade of red on her face, proof that despite her stoic look, she could still feel embarrassment.

Of course, Seraphina smiled; it was the only way she could react, given that Maria didn't do this all too often.

After kissing him to her heart's content, she pulled away slowly, her now-warm gaze staring directly back at him.

"D-did that help?" she asked, shyly looking to the side before looking back at him.

"What was that?" Dorian chuckled. "Did Seraphina put you up to this?"

Maria's face flushed. She quickly lowered herself and planted her face on the bed.

"I knew it was a bad idea," she mumbled.

Seraphina and Dorian laughed a bit.

"No, I was joking. It did help." Dorian sat upright, with Seraphina seated on the other side.

"If I ever make light of your kiss again, you have permission to kill me."

Maria slightly raised her head from the bed. "I wouldn't do that, even if my life was on the line."

'She takes things way too seriously. I guess that's a knight for you,' Dorian smiled a bit before looking away.

'Ciel and Celes are busy learning about something called the Dragon Master Dance from Exlor. The same battle said to grant the winner the title of god. Despite how many times I mentioned not wanting it, it seems they are still curious, so I'll let them do their thing.'

He paused. 'The other issue now is…'

"Her Majesty invited you to her room. What do you think she wants to discuss?"

'This issue.' Dorian's face turned purple.

The bright smile on Seraphina's face as she asked that question was enough to make him feel a bit frightened.

"I- I don't know either. Probably something to do with the Duke title I requested, who knows."

"Hmmm~..." Seraphina pulled closer. "Maria, is it just me, or has our husband here gotten awfully close with the Quee—King!"

Dorian didn't bother looking at Maria; instead, he closed his eyes and faced the door.

"You think?" Maria spoke with innocence etched on her face. "If that were the case, it wouldn't be a shock for Her Majesty to want Lord Dorian as her husband. She is the King, and he is, well, him."

Dorian sighed. Her response could have been so much worse.

"Oh, I tend to forget Darling is that Dragon Monarch or whatever. Making a King bow to you is unheard of. This man of mine is going to make me worry any time he speaks to powerful women now!" Seraphina covered her face with her palm.

This caused Dorian to sigh once again. He wasn't exactly good with women, but even he knew a thing or two about what to do in a moment like this.

Dorian suddenly placed his hand on her shoulder, his face etched with seriousness as he spoke, watching Seraphina's eyes sparkle at the thought of him wanting to kiss her as Maria had done a few moments ago.

"I won't marry anyone you all don't want me to. At the end of the day, I want you and Maria to be happy. Your happiness comes first, above all else."

Though it was only for a brief moment, Dorian could tell Seraphina's eyes glowed a pink light before she closed them and hugged him, her head resting on his shoulder.

"I am truly the luckiest woman on earth," she whispered, speaking out loud right after.

"But if Her Majesty asks for your hand in marriage, the logical thing to do is to accept. It would help you in the long run. I might be jealous, but I also want what's best for you. Maria and I feel the same way."

Dorian smiled. "Good girls."

He grabbed Maria's hand, and with a single toss, pulled her onto the bed while also pushing Seraphina right next to her.

The very next moment, they were both on their backs, cleavage clear as day to him, holding each other's hands with their legs raised and thighs exposed.

Dorian positioned himself at the center, a grin appearing as he grabbed Maria's left breast and Seraphina's ass. "You asked for this."

Lili's cheeks turned red, but she couldn't help but turn around to take a peek.

…

The next morning.

Dorian was seated at the edge of the bed, shirtless, while sipping water from the cup a maid had brought him the night before.

On the ground in front of him was Lili, petting Flare while looking at her master.

"Eh? What does Master want to do with that?" she asked, pointing at the orb resting on Dorian's lap.

"It's a communication orb, one linked back to the barony. Actually, it has been ringing for some days now. I just never had the chance to actually pick it up. Now is as good a time as any; it's ringing again."

Dorian held the blinking orb close.

"Ahem, isn't today supposed to be when the execution takes place?" Lili asked, one finger resting on her cheek.

Dorian smiled at her.

"I doubt this call will take a whole day." With that said, he wondered who would be trying to speak to him. Two people came to mind, and both would probably be pissed at the fact he hadn't called them back.

Gulping down his saliva, Dorian pressed his finger on the body of the orb, transferring a good amount of mana to it.

Normally, it would take quite some time before he got a feedback, but this time, the image popped up faster than normal, as though the person was holding the orb all day, expecting the call to come in.

The first thing Dorian saw was Killa, her mask dangerously close to the orb.

"Hello? Is this thing working? Uhm, Milady, how do I operate this thing? I can't tell the front from the back."

Dorian chuckled nervously. 'Should I even say something?'

"Ah—I got it." Rather than seeing Killa's face pressed against the screen, he saw Ishtar, seated on the bed with a giant bottle of alcohol in her hand.

"If it isn't my husband, finally remembering he has a wife back here."

'Has she been drinking?'

"How are you doing? You look... different?"

"Husband, that doesn't answer my indirect question. Why are you just now checking back on me, despite how many times I called to make sure you were safe?" Ishtar had a creepy smile on her face, so much so that even the pixels could not fully capture it.

"S-sorry about that. I had a lot to do here and lost track of many things. If it makes you feel better, once I am back at the barony, I'll take you out on a vacation, just the two of us."

"Really?!" Ishtar's face lit up like a lit match, her smile wide. "You promise?!"

"My lady, you said you wouldn't forgive him no matter what he does," Killa spoke from behind the screen.

Rather than getting any actual response, all Killa got was the sound of small, happy giggles leaving Ishtar's mouth.

Dorian let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. He'd narrowly avoided that landmine.

"I'll be back as soon as I can," he added, trying to sound as sincere as possible.

"You'd better!" Ishtar said, her voice bright again. "I'll be waiting! Don't you dare look at that King-woman too much! Bye!"

The orb went dark. Dorian sighed, placing it on the nightstand. The first crisis of the day was handled.

"Now," he said, standing up and stretching. "Time for the main event."

The following day, it was just as Revina had said: the execution.

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