The next few minutes of the carriage ride were spent in tranquil silence.

Neither Reivan nor Elsamina asked for it, but somehow, both agreed to quietly sit next to each other and enjoy their unexpected reunion. Really, the time they were apart wasn’t all that long, but any time apart felt like an eternity. Finally seeing each other again brought them great relief.

And so, they simply spent moments, their hands joined and fingers linked, basking in the happiness of being together with the other half of their heart.

‘Now, if only this blasted magitech carriage would stop trying to use my ass as a basketball.’

Reivan didn’t ride magitech carriages often, but when he did, he hated every second of it. The one he rode with Helen, Jiji, and the Grand Minister earlier in the week was a bit more bearable though.

Between the cars of his old world or the trains adapted into this one, Reivan had little experience riding vehicles that seemed to test the limits of his butt’s durability. Furthermore, he also frequently traveled around instantaneously with Valter or the Sword Star’s help. When he felt like cruising through the skies and watching the kingdom from above, then he could also ride on Zouros.

So really, the somewhat clanky magitech carriage was a metallic cage of torture for Reivan. And if it was bad for him, how much more so for ordinary people?

‘Not like I’ll bitch about it out loud, though.’

Doing so would not only make him look like a whiny little bastard, but it might also cause Elsamina to be unnecessarily guilty even though she wasn’t at fault at all. Within his mind though, he could complain all he wanted.

But for all its disadvantages, Reivan saw one very redeeming quality about magitech carriages.

It shook up and down from time to time — and two things couldn’t help but shake with it.

“Elsa…” Reivan cleared his throat and tried not to think of horny thoughts while looking at her. “Have you ever ridden one of these carriages with anyone?”

“Hmm…?” Elsaminamina languidly hummed in thought as she leaned her head on Reivan’s shoulder, idly playing with his hand. “If you don’t count the driver in the front compartment, then no.”

“That’s good. Don’t ever do so with anyone else. Especially men.”

“I never planned to, but okay…?” She seemed somewhat confused but didn’t ask why. “Anyway, before I forget… someone delivered a verbal message to you.”

Reivan raised a brow as he squeezed her hand lightly. “Who?”

“One of Xanthus’ proteges. Wouldn’t tell me his name. Any idea who that might be?”

“I can think of a few… Anyway, what was the message?”

“He said that Luck seeks Peace. I assume it’s some kind of code. Am I right?”

“Yes…” Reivan smiled to himself. “And it’s very good news.”

The word “Luck” was Reivan’s codename for Clover Salwyn. As for “Peace” that was the codeword for the kingdom’s embassy at the republic’s capital. So the message simply meant that Clover was headed for the capital, and he was still receptive to following the plan.

‘It’s good that he passed. All of my other seeds failed to pass the exam this time.’

Perhaps it was because those “seeds” were only motivated by money or benefits. While Clover was motivated by much more.

In any case, Reivan was glad that his schemes to infiltrate the tower were going so well.

‘Now that one of them has passed… There’s no need for the others. When the fate of nations hangs in the balance, there’s no room for loose ends.’

“Good for you, then.” Elsamina nudged him with her shoulder, breaking him free from his sinister thoughts. She laid her head on his lap and curled up like a cute cat.

“Not gonna ask about it?” Reivan stroked her soft red hair, coiling a few locks around his fingers and letting them slip away.

“If you can’t tell me, then I don’t mind. Your identity, your little private affairs, and even the reason why you’re here… I don’t care.”

“You don’t, huh?”

“Yep. As long as you still love me, that’s all I need.”

The impish grin on her face made it apparent that the line was delivered to get some kind of reaction out of him, but Reivan couldn’t stop his face from burning anyway. He pinched her nose as payback. “Where’d you learn how to talk like that?”

Elsamina giggled, taking his hand and transferring it to her cheek. “One of the girls I’m taking care of has been really into reading romance novels lately, and she can’t stop talking about it during our downtime. I’ve been reading a few myself.”

“Is that so… Well, tell her I said thanks.”

“Will do.”

“Anyway.” Reivan smiled and massaged her cheeks, enjoying the soft and smooth sensation on his fingertips. “What have you been up to since we last saw each other?”

“Nothing much…” Elsamina replied in a lazy droll. “Just the usual stress, I suppose? Oh, and my lower back has been hurting lately…”

“Did you already run out of my special medicine?”

She shook her head with a troubled groan. “I’ve seen how incredible those were. It feels way too wasteful to use medicine that can bring someone back from the brink of death just to relieve some back pain.”

“Hey…” Reivan frowned while playfully tugging at her ear. “I gave you a bunch so you could use them. Don’t just squirrel them away for a rainy day.”

“But what if we run out?”

Reivan chuckled. “We’ll never run out. Trust me. So just use them whenever you feel any pain again.”

“Okay, fine…” Elsamina fell into silence for a moment, the fingers interlocked with his squirming all the while. “It’s probably just because I’m getting old.”

“You’re thirty-one. That’s not old.”

“It is for some people.”

Reivan rolled his eyes. “Go tell a veteran knight or a retired peacekeeper that you’re old. Watch them laugh at you.”

“There’s always a higher mountain, as they say.” She giggled before falling into silence as she seemingly inspected his profile. “Anyway, what have you been up to? Actually, you seem a bit tired. Maybe we should stop by at a hotel to rest?”

“I’m fine, I’m fine…” Reivan shook his head and brushed it off with a smile. “I have a strong body, remember?”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. I’ve just been looking at too many letters and numbers and wrinkly old people. Now that I can see you again, my eyes have been healed.”

“Oh, stop…” Elsamina reached up and lightly flicked his nose.

“Lower back pain can’t be all you’ve been tackling all this time.” Reivan smirked knowingly. “Surely, Arkhan’s capital has more to offer.”

“You’d be surprised…” Elsamina rolled her eyes before she seemingly remembered something. “Oh, I have a story.”

“Don’t keep me hanging, then.”

“You know the second prince of Aizen, right?”

Reivan held in his laughter. “Yes, I know him. He showed up in the papers a few times these past few years. Silvery-gray hair. Golden yellow eyes. Tall, too.”

“Yep, that one.” Elsamina pointed a finger at him before her face morphed into one that made her seem like she’d eaten something horrid. “He actually came here about a week ago as the head of Aizen’s diplomatic party.”

“Oh, yeah… What about him?”

“I rarely met him even when I was back in the kingdom since he’s apparently more of a military man. So in hopes of making connections and also gauging the prince's temperament, I pulled some strings to be included in the welcome party’s guest list.”

“Uh-huh. Impressive.”

“It was tough since even though Ouroboros is big and I’m its acting head, on the outside, I’m only the head of a small number of semi-successful businesses.”

“That’s right. We can’t have too many people knowing about you, after all.”

“Right. Actually, I wanted to have some of our other executives attend, but I wanted to come personally.” Elsamina sighed. “And I regret it dearly.”

“Oh? How come?”

“Because the prince was a giant pervert.” Elsamina shook her head in disgust. “I’ve never felt such a lecherous gaze pointed at me before. Not even from you.”

Reivan hummed in thought and tried to hold back his desire to laugh. “Really? Did he say anything?”

“No, but I could see it in his eyes, you know? I could feel his eyes on my skin. I’m really good at sensing these things.”

“Oh, I know.”

“Seriously, it was like I was completely naked in his eyes! Like I was getting screwed in every angle possible, you know? Disgusting. The royal family is doomed if the current king is anything like the second prince.”

‘I can’t wait to tell her my true identity just before we get married… It’s going to be hilarious.’

“Now, now…” Reivan lovingly stroked his lover’s beautiful hair while consoling her. “I’m sure he’s not that bad… Maybe he just hasn’t seen anyone as beautiful as you? I still remember the first time I saw you.”

Elsamina stared at him as if he'd grown three heads before she shrugged. “Okay, maybe I exaggerated. You were nothing like him though. You were way cuter — secretly sneaking glances while trying to maintain eye contact…”

“I told you to stop talking about that...” Reivan pinched her lips together and cleared his throat, causing her shoulders to shake in laughter. "Don't call me cute."

“You’re much more bold now though. It’s like you’re not even trying to hide it anymore.”

“Ugh… You said you like it when I ogle you!”

“I do like it, so don't stop. Anyway…” Elsamina sat up next to him and slapped his thigh. “Are you sure you don’t want to head to a hotel to rest? You really do look a bit tired.”

“I said I’m fine.”

“Really?”

“Really.” Reivan took her hand and squeezed. He had just reunited with her, so why in the world would he sleep? “Have you eaten yet?”

“Not yet.”

“And you still have somewhere to go, right?”

“Just a few places… Since you suddenly arrived, I was going to cancel them though.”

“Don’t.” Reivan shook his head. “Let’s catch a meal and I’ll wait until all your appointments are done.”

“Hmm… are you sure?”

“Yep. I don’t want to interrupt anything.”

Elsamina silently looked him in the eyes for a few moments before sighing. “I guess this is my fault for trying to be subtle...”

“What?”

“Honey.”

Reivan unconsciously sat up a bit straighter. “Yeah?”

“You’re probably going to be romantically involved with plenty of other women, so remember this basic fact.” Elasmina put a finger up and seemed not unlike a teacher as she scolded him in a kind tone. “If a woman — anyone, really — keeps trying to take you somewhere, it’s probably because they want to go there with you.”

“Okay…” Reivan nodded along. “I knew that.”

“Well, you could’ve fooled me…” she muttered under her breath before continuing. “Anyway, where have I tried to invite you repeatedly since earlier?”

“Uh…" He paused for a moment to dig through recent memory. "A hotel, I guess?”

“Yes. Very good. Now, what do we normally do at hotels?”

“We…” The answer was so obvious that Reivan unconsciously thought that it was wrong. “We cuddle? We, uhm... We also eat and discuss important matters...”

Elsamina rolled her eyes. “You’re not wrong. But what else?”

“We… We make love…”

“There we go. Okay. Now, put all of those together. I’ve been repeatedly trying to go to a hotel with you, and for us, a hotel is where we have sex because it gets boring to do it at the same place all the time. We also don’t have to clean up too much.”

“Right…”

“So with all that information…” Elsamina looked at him inquiringly. “What do you think I want to do right now?”

“... You want to fuck?”

“Very good. You got it right.”

Elsamina gave his cheek a light pat before pulling a piece of rope hanging from the carriage’s ceiling. A small slab of metal slid aside, revealing an opening at the front that gave them a view of someone’s back. “Sillah.”

“Yes, Mistress?” The female driver answered without looking back, seemingly busy manipulating the carriage’s control inside a different compartment.

“Please head to the nearest hotel. And kindly signal the carriages with the other guards behind us to return to our branch headquarters here in Arkhana.”

“What about your security, Mistress?”

Elsamina threw an inquiring glance at Reivan. “Well, honey? She asked about my security.”

Reivan still felt stunned from earlier but he quickly replied with confidence. “Don’t worry. I’ll protect her with my life.”

“There you have it, Sillah.” Elsamina giggled. “The nearest hotel, please. The good and expensive kind.”

“Right away, Mistress.”

Elsamina thanked the driver-slash-bodyguard before pulling on the rope again, causing the opening to shut tight with a metallic clank. “There we go. It seems things are a lot easier when I’m upfront.”

Reivan’s hands felt incredibly clammy as he thought of something to say to break the ice. “Uh…”

“I don’t think I was like this from the start…” Elsamina suddenly began, placing her hand on his thigh. It steadily inched closer to his crotch and made his spine tingle. “But at some point, I became the type of person whose only stress relief is making love. And I've been very stressed lately.”

“I-Is that so…?”

“Yep. I can’t get off by myself, sadly. It's not the same. Asking for help from other women also doesn’t cut it. Obviously, other men are never an option.” Elsamina then outright slipped her hands through his shirt and began to molest him without restraint. “So really, I can only do it with you, Honey. And I’m pretty sure you turned me into this.”

“I remember doing no such thing…”

Reivan didn’t resist her advances of course, and he’d been looking forward to such a development since the moment he found out she was in the same city. Naturally, he didn’t stop her when she straddled him either, the hems of her dress robes hiking up to reveal her snow-white legs.

Elsamina draped her arms around his head and pulled him in close for a deep kiss, where tongues intertwined and they no longer knew whose saliva was in their mouths. Only when she ran out of breath did she pull away, eyes alight with desire.

“Honey…”

Reivan looked up, steadily feeling his blood boil. “Yeah?”

“It’s all your fault,“ Elsamina whispered, her breath tickling his ear.

“R-really…?”

“Yes. So take responsibility.”

‘I wholeheartedly accept!’

Reivan couldn’t say anything in response on account of suddenly having her tongue inside his mouth, but he was very much up to the task.

 

---

 

“Ugh… It hurts…”

“There, there… I told you we should’ve slowed down a little…”

In the best room in some high-class hotel in Arkhana, the naked Reivan rubbed the naked Elsamina’s back and took out a healing pill. He held it against her lips, and she seemed to have some remnant lust in her system, for she devoured both the pill and his fingers, sucking on them like she would a certain other part of his body.

“Better?” Reivan asked as he pulled his fingers out of her mouth, too worried about her to get turned on by how lewd it felt.

“Mhm.” Elsamina nodded, looking slightly apologetic. “Sorry. I didn’t think my back would act up just from this...”

“It’s okay. I don’t mind.”

‘Well, now I can say that I’ve fucked someone hard enough that I blew their back out. I don’t know if I can be proud of it though…’

Their desire for each other had caused their enthusiasm to go through the roof. But Elsamina’s body couldn’t take as much as it used to. After only an hour — a period of time much lower than how much they spent lovemaking in the past — they were forced to an abrupt halt when Elsamina’s screams of pleasure turned into those of agony.

It was such a surprise that Reivan’s son immediately softened up as a result. He even went into full alert, thinking something had attacked them while they were getting busy.

“I really am getting old, huh?” Elsamina’s shoulders drooped and she cradled her face in her palms. “I can’t believe it came this early for me…”

“Bullshit.” Reivan hastily tried to comfort his distressed lover, taking her into his arms. “It’s my fault. I think I just went a bit too rough.”

“No, you didn’t. You were a lot rougher when you were younger. Especially on our first time. You’re a saint compared to how you were back then.”

“Uh…” he was momentarily lost, unsure if he had the right to refuse her accusation.

“And I could take it just fine back then… Which is exactly the point.” Elsamina sighed. “I always knew age would catch up to me, but who knew it’d strike this early…?”

“D-Don’t mind it too much.” Reivan cursed his lack of intelligence for coming up with things to say. “Maybe you just lack exercise? You sit around too much because of your work…”

“But it’s always been like that. Even when I was in Aizen. I've rarely exercised...”

“That’s true…” Reivan racked his brain for a counter, and surprisingly, inspiration really did strike. “Then it must be those blasted magitech carriages. You ride them a lot, right? That must be it.”

The silence in the room hung in the air for what felt like an eternity before Elsamina looked up with a hopeful gaze. “You really think so?”

“Of course.” Reivan nodded solemnly. “You’re still young. And prettier than ever, too. There’s no way your back has deteriorated to such an extent on its own… The magitech carriages are obviously at fault.”

“That actually makes sense…”

“Right? Trust me.”

“...Okay.” Elsamina’s expression brightened a little and she lightly pecked Reivan on the cheek. “Anyway, the pain’s gone, but it was so painful that I don’t really think I’m up for more fun today. Sorry…”

Reivan shrugged. “I don’t mind. Your scream scared the man right out of me.”

“Oh my god. Was it really that loud?”

“Yeah. I thought you were dying or something. I was about ready to pull out a real sword and start swinging it around.”

“I am so sorry…”

Reivan laughed to lighten the mood before rolling over to the middle of their bed. “Cuddles?”

“Okay.” Elsamina nodded before following, using Reivan’s arm as a pillow. Her lover used his other hand to re-explore her body, but she made no attempts to stop him, only giggling at the ticklish sensation. “You obviously haven’t had enough, judging by your very naughty hand.”

“Ah, it does that on its own sometimes. Don’t mind it too much.” Reivan, as the big spoon, gently massaged her massive rack while taking in the relaxing aroma of her somewhat sweaty hair.

‘This woman’s body is a national treasure!’

Really, he couldn’t have enough no matter how many times he’d touched her. Maybe he would never have enough. Or maybe it was just because he loved her that he liked touching her so much?

‘Well, I definitely didn’t feel as happy with all those other girls…’

Elsamina and Helen aside, Reivan had quite an impressive body count by normal standards after hanging out in The Serpent’s Haven — where all the liberated sex slaves practically threw themselves at him when they were bored.

And even though their companionship made him feel good, it was difficult to say if it made him happy.

When he was with his lover though, he felt happy and fulfilled even when they weren’t particularly doing anything.

‘Man, love is great. Would have been great if I knew about it earlier.’

Reivan closed his eyes and held her closer, unintentionally causing Elsamina’s plump peaches to eat up the snake in his loins. He didn’t pull away though, and neither did she.

Elsa sighed before turning around to face him, her mounds pressing against his chest. “I knew you weren’t satisfied yet.”

“I can’t help it. Who told you to be so sexy?”

“If you want, we can just have a few girls come up here to finish you off. This hotel probably caters to that kind of request.”

Reivan frowned. “You don’t mind?”

Elsa shook her head. “I don’t mind.”

For a few moments, Reivan inspected his lovely fiance's face for any signs of falsehood but sighed when he couldn't find any. And in any case, the lack of notification from his ability was enough proof.

‘...She’s not lying.’

Feeling slightly annoyed, Reivan tried to bring up something he’d been wondering for a long time. “Elsa.”

“Hm?”

“You know… I… I don’t like the idea of you being with other men.”

Elsa raised a brow. “Be with them in what sense? Just talking?”

“Like, in a romantic sense. Or in a physical sense, if you know what I mean.”

“Huh?” Elsamina squinted in confusion. “Why would I? Don’t I already have you?”

“Well, yeah.” Reivan nodded, then continued. “But you don’t feel anything when I’m with other women, right…?”

“Oh. I see where this is going…” Elsamina smiled and placed a hand on his cheek. “You think I don’t love you as much because I don’t mind sharing?”

“...I wouldn’t go as far as to say that… But I’m slightly concerned with how little you seem to care. And you’re even strangely encouraging at times.”

Even Reivan’s physical relationships with the women of The Serpent’s Haven were initially something partly arranged by her. At first, it just seemed as if she was tolerating it. But at some point, it became apparent that she actually invited them into his arms.

Well, the girls themselves were quite willing, but they never would have pounced on him if they never got the go-ahead from their eldest sister.

“Well, you have a point…” Elsamina chuckled. “But you see, from the very start, I understood certain things about our relationship.”

“Like what?”

“Like my mortality. And that one day, I’ll leave you behind.”

Reivan’s throat tightened as if an invisible hand was strangling him. “That’s…”

Elsamina shrugged. “You’ll live to be at least two hundred years old. While it would already be incredibly fortunate for an ordinary person like me to reach seventy. That means you’ll be spending a lot of time without me.”

“I suppose that’s… true.”

“Right? I already get so lonely just from being away for a week or two. Just thinking about how lonely you’ll get keeps me up at night.” Elsamina gently stroked his hair, a melancholic smile on her face. “I don’t want to put you through something like that.”

Reivan stared deeply into her emerald green eyes, ruminating on her words. He had also thought about the inequality of their lifespans. Even if Reivan didn’t become an Ascendant, just unlocking his qi already meant he would live for at least two centuries if he didn’t get killed in battle.

And if he did ascend, he would spend an eternity without her.

Of course, that would hardly stop him from loving her.

“Honey.” Elsamina gave him a light kiss before pinching his cheek. “Promise me.”

Reivan grabbed her hand before she could pull it away, pressing it to his face. “I promise.”

“I haven’t even told you yet…”

“I’ll do it anyway.”

“You’re so stupid.” She giggled before burying her face into his chest. “Promise me that when I’m gone, you’ll remember the good things first. Not just the fact that I’m not with you anymore.”

Reivan muttered to himself while combing her luscious red locks with his fingers. “The good things, huh…”

“Yep. Like how pretty my eyes are.”

“Well, they are pretty.”

“Or how nice I smell.”

“That’s true.”

“How you like it when I stroke your hair. And how the sound of my laughter makes you feel. That kind of thing.”

“Or how your forehead creases when you’re thinking about something hard.”

Elsamina frowned, touching her forehead. “Does it?”

“It does. I think it’s cute.” Reivan took her hand away and kissed the spot she’d touched.

“Weirdo…” she muttered while looking at him with doubt. After a moment though, an impish smile crossed her lips. “I know something else I want you to always remember about me.”

“Yeah? What is it?”

“How good my mouth is.”

Reivan’s eyes widened before he started laughing. He took her deeper into his arms and made her feel his desire on her stomach. “If you want me to remember, you should remind me often, don’t you think?”

“You scoundrel.” Elsamina’s eyes narrowed, and from the glint in her eyes, Reivan knew her lust had been reignited. “Anyway, the reason why I don’t mind sharing has something to do with that.”

“I don’t really care about that anymore…” Reivan grinned and attacked her neck with his lips. “I’m more concerned about my raging erection and what you’re going to do about it. It’s actually starting to get lonely from lack of attention.”

She moaned in pleasure, urging him to continue by hooking an arm around his head to prevent his escape — not that he wanted to escape at all. All while her other hand addressed his other head. “If you have lots of women around you… Ahh… You’ll be less lonely. And… right there, I like it there…... Ah, wh-where was I…?"

Reivan stopped producing hickeys on her neck when he saw about six of them. "Something about how you like it there," he said, as he admired his work.

"Oh, right... Wait, no. That's not it. Be serious."

"I am serious."

'Just not at about this conversation.'

Reivan shoved his face between two soft mountains and got to work.

"I..." Elsamina struggled to stay on track despite whatever he was making her feel, speaking through ragged breaths. "I read this... romance story where an Ascendant and his maid fall in love... and the Ascendant remained faithful even centuries after she died…”

Reivan was barely listening at this point, taking a small bit of her flesh between his lips and sucking in deep, marking his territory. His fingers voraciously sank into her butt before one of his hands sought to pleasure her in other ways.

Elsamina’s panting grew rougher as her hand’s jerking movements intensified. “I think… that’s stupid. I don’t want you to be lonely forever… So I want to make sure you’re used to having lots of… companions.”

“Elsa, I love you, but I think you should shut up and we'll talk about this later.”

Although he felt moved by her words, he wasn’t really in the mood to discuss such matters anymore. He wanted to focus his full attention on what they were about to do. So he pinned her under him and stuck a few of his fingers in her mouth to shut her up, smiling when he felt her tongue start to molest them. From the way her emerald green eyes stared up at him eagerly, he knew that he'd made the right choice.

“Don't worry. I'll be more careful this time.”