Since everyone has an idea what a demon is, we didn't discuss Asmodeus further for now.
Everyone except Leon and Alpha is present and right now, I'm sitting on Lion's lap again.
He nuzzled me all over my neck while murmuring curses towards Subus.
Despite the seriousness of the situation, the rest of the pack snickered upon hearing what Lion was murmuring about.
Of course, all they could do was snicker, because if they made fun of him, Lion would murder them in the blink of an eye.
Dad looked at Lion in amusement, ridiculing him for being an airhead despite being a magic user and maybe he enjoyed Subus sucking him...
Dad! Stop it!
Lion froze instantly and his face turned into a deep, deep shade of red...
Too deep for me not to react.
What the...
HE DIDN'T DENY IT?!
But he told me back then that he thought it was me!
I stood up without a word, but he immediately pulled me down onto his lap and tightened his embrace around me.
He nuzzled my shoulders, murmured that it wasn't true at all. He said he was just in shock by Dad's statement and wasn't thinking straight back then because he was too depressed about me rejecting him...
Is he trying to pass the buck to me?!
The rest of the pack looked at us with interest, while Dad enjoyed the scene as if he were watching a drama on television.
I told everyone my side of the story and no, I just wanted to be by myself back then... I had just suffered a traumatic experience, for goodness' sake!
And I thought we had already talked about what happened and mended the misunderstandings back then, before we mated!
Now I'm in a bad mood!
Lion became anxious and tried to apologize, telling me that I'm right and that he was just being nostalgic about what...
Nostalgic?! Who gets nostalgic about that?!
Although he tried to hold me, I squirmed against him, freeing myself from his embrace and sat beside Dad for safety and comfort.
Lion tried to approach me, asking for forgiveness for his stupidity and his foot-in-the-mouth moment, while I simply tried to ignore him.
If he wants nostalgia, he can have all the time he needs!
Dad chuckled and shook his head at the ridiculousness of our little drama, while Lion was on his knees trying to pacify me, apologizing so much that he even apologized for little things I had already forgotten.
THAT STUPID MEMORY OF HIS!
DOES HE NOT UNDERSTAND THAT I HAVE ALREADY MOVED ON FROM EVERYTHING?!
I crossed my arms and much to his dismay, I did not look at him and acted as if he weren't there.
I know it was childish of me, but somehow I feel like I'm easily irritated, no matter how ridiculous it is.
...
Sly facepalmed as he murmured about Lion doing something stupid and how he should have kept his mouth shut.
As for Orm, he had a mysterious grin on his face while looking at Lion, though he didn't say anything.
To my surprise, Ghost sighed and suggested that Lion not say any more unnecessary things or it would make things worse than they should be. A simple apology would suffice.
That was really mature of him.
He turned to me and smiled gently while telling me that Lion was just being anxious and wasn't saying it on...
Despite Ghost trying to calm the situation, Lion added another unnecessary apology about something that happened a long time ago. Something I had already forgotten, yet never received an apology for.
Now it's Ghost's turn to facepalm. He tells Lion that he is on his own now and that he's washing his hands of the mud Lion is in.
....
Lion is on time-out.
Seeing that the drama was starting to get out of hand, Dad sternly told Lion to sit as far away from me as possible, or else.
Lion's shoulders slumped as he went back to his seat, looking so pitiful that I felt sorry for him.
Anyway, Dad told us that we were wasting too much time on unnecessary things outside of the meeting and he tried to put things back on track by continuing the discussion about Subus.
He asked Ghost if it was true that they had met Subus at the Developmental Center, making Ghost look surprised, as he didn't expect Dad to know about that.
Of course, Dad ended up explaining to them what happened earlier, when they weren't allowed to enter the room.
Now, everyone had an embarrassed look on their face while trying not to look at Dad, realizing he must have seen a lot of intimate stuff that...
Dad chuckled as he reassured them that he wouldn't tell anyone unnecessary stuff unless I allowed him to.
Good.
Or I will swallow his phylactery, even if it kills me.
Ghost told us that Subus was at the Developmental Center at that time and that everyone knew her back then.
Wait. I forgot about that fact. So, if Subus had already existed back then, then it was the pixie who was just a bit older than me.
Based on Ghost's story, Subus was using the form that I saw her in a long time ago, when I was recovering from the ordeal I suffered at the hands of the High Council.
There's not much to learn about her, sadly, though she kept examining the new arrivals meticulously.
Ah. She was looking for an individual that the Demon Lord might need.
Dad sighed, having clearly thought the same thing. He complained that they had no morals at all, arguing that they even used individuals who were not yet mature, unlike him of course.
That's still dreadful, Dad!
.....
Dad warned me that he might discuss some sensitive stuff and that I'm welcome to leave if it gets too much.
I assured him that I want to learn as much as I'm allowed to, despite it being uncomfortable.
By then, Leon and Alpha had returned, with Alpha looking subdued.
We didn't ask any questions about where they went because Leon looked like he would bite someone's head off if anyone dared to ask.
When Dad discussed the false reality I experienced back then, my mind suddenly went into vacation mode, as if I were trying not to remind myself of the horrible things I've experienced.
I can still hear bits and pieces of it, with Leon exclaiming in horror that it's quite amazing I managed to survive with my sanity intact despite having gone through at least two times while suffering from a traumatic experience.
My mind was wandering, lost in thoughts of new recipes I wanted to cook for everyone, when I heard Dad hesitantly discussing the reason why I was thrown into the dungeon back then by some of the High Council members after I was...
Several voices protested to Dad, saying that it was too much to discuss this part as it might trigger my trauma again and...
I looked at them and told them calmly that I'm alright. If it helps with their investigation, I don't mind them discussing it and they can carry on...
I'm alright. I really am all right.
But I'm ashamed of what happened despite having moved on.
Strange.
While I was lost in my own thoughts, I could feel someone placing a blanket around me, gently carrying me in their arms and placing me on their lap.
When I looked up, it was Lion.
Oh.
I'm still mad at him.
Still, I felt comfort. Despite my annoyance, I snuggled against him while his embrace tightened, his gentle kisses covering my head and neck.
He kept whispering in my ear that it's alright and that he's here with me, while I felt Sly nuzzling my back.
Really...
I'm fine.
Why are they acting like this?
I actually like it, though.
Oh...
Why is my face wet?
Sly tenderly wiped something from my face, too tender despite his shaking hands.
Why are they shaking?
Is he alright?
Ah.
I'm getting distracted. I should listen to Dad.
...
The reason I was thrown in the dungeon is that, while I was unconscious, my body was forced to copulate with all sorts of... creatures, beings, beasts... They were planning to get me pregnant to create another...
But to make a long story short, I didn't get pregnant, despite them using all sorts of spells that destroyed my body back then.
Since it all happened within a short amount of time...
Ah.
I'm tired.
....
Dad told us that the high-leveled members of the High Council are demons or have demon blood. The ones that Lion and the others killed back then were just the low-leveled ones and also, after the investigation made by Dad's underlings, it turned out that they have a lot of secret hideouts.
He warned us to be careful as they might be in disguise, just like Orm's father.
When I let out a huge yawn, Lion cradled me in his arms. He whispered that I could sleep, assuring me he would hold me while he continued to listen to the meeting...
Dad interrupted him, saying he was stopping the meeting because we all needed rest and it wasn't good to overwhelm me.
I closed my eyes as Dad told everyone that I'm starting to lose my mind because of paranoia as a result of someone taking advantage of my trauma and...
I didn't hear anything else as I fell asleep.
...
Where am I?
When I woke up, I was lying on a huge bed, surrounded by the pack, in a strange room.
But somehow, I knew that we were still inside the castle.
Heh.
Lion made a room where we can all sleep together.
I can see that the pack decorated it according to each of their tastes. The room looks chaotic but somehow I'm fond of it.
Of course, everyone was sleeping in their own designated positions and they looked troubled despite sleeping deeply.
Silently, I stood up and left the bed to examine my surroundings.
To my surprise, it seems that Lion made another bathroom connected to this room.
How many bathrooms does this castle have?!
It seems Lion had the time of his life renovating and expanding the castle, as he can definitely afford it now that the consequences of his stupidity have been resolved.
When I went inside the bathroom...
Oohhh.. so fancy!
All sorts of extravacant decorations, carpets and curtains are all around and little, exotic-looking flowers are everywhere and..
Is that a fountain in the middle of the pool?
In my excitement, I took off my clothes and went inside the...
Ahhhh..
The pool is sooo warm!
There's also a miniature waterfall where I can wash my hair easily!
Now, where is that potion I usually use for washing...
Uh..
I didn't know that there were a lot of products used for washing the hair.
An entire cabinet is dedicated solely to hair care, most of which belongs to me.
Another cabinet is for body...
It would take years.. YEARS.. to finish everything inside all the cabinets.
I wonder where they put the towels.
After trying to open all the cabinets, I finally found the one that contained towels and robes.
To my amusement, everything was color-coded and neatly arranged.
Purplish-blue: Obviously mine, as the pack associated that color with me after learning the flower with the same name has that exact shade.
Dark blue: It's Lion's. Duh.
Green: Obviously Orm's.
Gold: Who else but Sly's?
Red: It doesn't take a genius to guess who. Ghost's, of course!
Black: It's Alpha's.
And a couple of plain white ones.
What makes it funnier and endearing, though a bit much, each of the color-coded robes has the symbol of my mating mark on it.
Except for Ghost's and the white ones.
Hahaha!
It's so cringey yet endearing!
Especially mine, as someone designed my very own mark, which is an iris flower.
But oh wow... the material used to make the robes and the towels.. is so, so soft and...
I can hear someone asking me if I liked it.
What the?!
I cried out in surprise, which caused Lion to immediately carry me in his arms. He kissed my face and neck all over, apologizing for...
He didn't manage to finish his sentence because I kissed him softly, as if I wasn't mad at him earlier.
Of course, he instantly reciprocated by kissing me back intensely, forgetting for a moment that we aren't inside our own bathroom.
But something reminded us of that fact.
It's something unexpected, but I've been anticipating it for a long time.
We were passionately kissing as he positioned me facing him, carrying me while licking my neck and moving down toward my chest. With my arms wrapped around his neck, his pants fell to the floor. Just as he was about to thrust, I felt something wet and warm running down my legs...
OH MY GOSH! OF ALL TIMES!
I pushed Lion away, much to his dismay, as he hadn't realized why I was pushing him away until he saw the blood.
I haven't seen him move fast, though his face looks calm about it.
He placed me gently on the floor and removed the rest of his clothes, helping me clean myself. Much to my embarrassment, the rest of the pack entered just then.
I want to disappear from humiliation.
Of course, they panicked instantly, as they must have forgotten that they are already familiar with me having my menstruation. Since the last time I had it was a long time ago, it's no surprise they forgot.
But they did a great job taking care of me, as I could hardly move because of the pain.
It's weird, as the pain is quite intense, unlike what I experienced a long time ago.
I must see Puma and Puoma about it.
...
Puma and Puoma shooed everyone out of the shared bedroom, finally leaving the three of us alone.
Puma had a grin on her face, noting that Khamsin might be a good addition to my harem.
Nonchalantly, I told her what Khamsin had said, expecting her to stop teasing me. Instead, with a mischievous look in her eyes, she told me that I could still...
Oh, stop it!
She complained about why I didn't have a mating mark with Ghost yet, then grumbled that Ghost was taking so long she might have another set of offspring before he could do it.
Ignoring her mother, Puoma asked what else besides the cramps I had been experiencing and if I had diligently taken a daily drop of the...
A drop?!
But I've been taking three drops daily!
She looked horrified at my confession, though her expression changed when I told her everything else I'd experienced, including the increased sensitivity and the fact I'd had... consecutive intimacy.. with my mates... and it would last for a long time... much longer than usual...
At this point, Puoma straightened up and glared at her mother, telling her to control her expressions or she would send her outside to join the rest.
Puma had been grinning and looking excited at my confession, commenting on all sorts of stuff, until Puoma got irritated because she couldn't concentrate.
After telling her everything, Puoma looked pleased and told me to continue with the drops, adding that if I wanted to, I could increase the amount to four drops instead.
No thanks.
And no, Puma. I'm not answering any of your questions.
And yes, Sly is still the best at using his mouth and tongue, at both ends...
Upon hearing it, Puma squealed in excitement and Puoma did as well.
Okay fine! I'll share a bit of info...
Lion could write his own... book.. about the positions he initiates.. they are very, very pleasing...
Alpha is unpredictable.. which keeps you guessing in an exciting way...
And Orm is... a god at teasing you.. and it makes you crave even more..
Enough!! That's all!!
Thankfully, what I shared satisfied Puma and Puoma to the point that they didn't ask any more questions but just continued to giggle randomly, even after they left the room.
Wait.
Are they aware that it's only Lion that I...
Nevermind.
Let them think what they want.
...
Everyone fussed over me, including Dad, Leon and surprisingly Ten as well, as he had declared himself my slave for eternity, much to Dad's amusement.
The bed was extremely warm because Khamsin had piled his feathers on it. Ghost made several comforting soups and drinks, using ingredients suggested by Puma to help alleviate the pain.
Orm is busy making all sorts of salves to help relieve the aches and pains in my body, since it turned out I was allergic to an unknown ingredient in the one Puoma gave me.
Alpha and Khamsin went out earlier to shop for the ingredients needed for my meals and salves. Leon accompanied them after noticing that the bandages I use for my menstrual blood are running out fast.
I'm bleeding too much!
As for Sly, he is currently massaging my body while Lion continues to fuss over me, asking me every now and then what else I need.
Nothing as of the moment.
Seeing that I was a bit lethargic, he settled down beside me and snuggled against me while Sly asked him to massage my legs as he was busy massaging my back.
Ahh.. I feel sooo..
Uh, Dad? Why do you keep staring at me?
Dad looked fascinated by the scene, murmuring all sorts of things as if he hadn't seen a female on her...
Oh.
I forgot that he has no experience being with females...
Hahaha!
Due to my condition, we ended up having the meeting inside the shared bedroom.