"How do I test him?"
Melina leaned forward, her curiosity sharp.
Lansseax's slender finger rose.
"Later, take off your clothes and hug him. Don't worry—I won't peek."
Melina's face burned red.
"Pah! Shameless!"
"What's shameless about it? You're ready to die with him, yet you cling to dignity?"
The dragon woman spread her hands, her tone dismissive.
Melina faltered. Logically, the dragon was right, but something felt off.
Lansseax leaned closer, her voice dropping to a whisper.
"Here's some advice: Throne isn't giving everything for you alone. You're not the only one who feels this way. Hesitation is defeat. This chance won't come again."
Melina blinked, confused.
Then Lansseax slapped her forehead.
"Ah, I remember now. You're Marika's daughter, tied to the Lunar Princess and Millicent. Tsk, tsk, tsk. That boy's on a path to sweep up every woman of the Golden Lineage. If he becomes Elden Lord, there's your mother too. Marika's a beauty. When that happens, how will you address—"
Melina lunged, blade in hand, teeth clenched. She wanted to silence that foul-mouthed dragon for good.
Lansseax laughed, dodging with ease. "Hahaha! I'm off to study 'Human Transformation.' Better hurry!"
She darted out of the cave, her laughter echoing as she left Melina seething at the entrance.
Melina gripped her blade tighter, her breath ragged. Even as a spirit, her blood boiled. Stinky dragon! Stinky dragon! She slashed a rock at the entrance, venting her fury. But Lansseax's words clung to her mind like a curse. How am I tied to Ranni? And if Throne becomes Elden Lord, he'll marry my mother. What would I even call her then?
A blurry image formed in her mind: her mother, herself, Ranni, and Throne sprawled on a large bed. She shook her head violently. Pah! Why am I thinking like that stinky dragon? Throne isn't even planning to become Elden Lord!
She forced the thought away, glancing at Throne's sleeping form. Lansseax's earlier words resurfaced: Throne isn't just giving his all for you, and you aren't the only one with such feelings for him.
"Hesitation is defeat?"
Millicent's earnest teachings and Lansseax's provocations merged into one scene: Throne, wreathed in black flames, charging toward her fate on the snowy mountain peak.
I... I must repay him. At... at least I can do this.
Melina felt like a puppet, her body moving against her will. She tiptoed forward, silent as a shadow. Her fingers fumbled with the knot of her cloak. Whoosh—It fell to the ground, revealing the black and white dress beneath.
Her control slipped further. Her gaze grew distant, her breath quickened. She stepped closer to the man sitting cross-legged. Her figure, already striking, seemed more pronounced under gravity's pull.
She hesitated, then extended a trembling hand to her chest. Pop—
The restraint was released.
Melina took another deep breath, slowly extending her trembling right hand to touch the side of Throne's face, while her other hand was placed on her chest again. Her chest heaved more violently with her increasingly rapid breathing. Just as she was about to jump out entirely, Melina, who was half-undressed, froze and lifted her head stiffly.
She saw a few azure particles, and then saw the particles rapidly condense into a human form. It was a woman with long, dark hair and snow-white skin, wearing an elegant court dress. She stood straight, a pair of azure eyes staring right at her. The gaze was pure, indifferent, and filled with intense curiosity.
Melina stiffly raised her head, the woman reflected in her amber eyes, their gazes meeting—
Time froze right there.
Woo—
On the Consecrated Snowfield, a fierce cold wind blew. A bonfire was lit in the cave, which should have provided some warmth in the winter, but at this moment, it was so cold that even time seemed to have frozen. The bonfire flickered, illuminating the cave and the two frozen figures. Melina stood like a statue, one hand on the side of Throne's face, the other pressed against her chest.
She stared at the woman, and the woman stared at her, both feeling their breathing and thoughts frozen together. Who is this? Who am I? And what am I doing? A dense block of wood's brain crashed, and cognitive confusion actually occurred. The woman in front moved; she slowly raised her hand, pinched her own chin, pondered for a moment, and made a gesture of invitation:
"Please, continue."
The voice was calm and rational, yet these words entered Melina's ears, making her shudder as if electrocuted, and she instantly came back to her senses. She jumped back instantly as if scalded by boiling water, landing on the ground. She hurriedly fastened her second button, but felt something was wrong halfway through, and even more frantically drew her short blade.
"Who, who are you!?"
The suddenly appearing woman had almost scared her to death. If she were an enemy, she would already be dead; if she weren't an enemy... That seemed even worse??? The woman blinked, tilted her head, and looked at Melina, "My name is Sellen. Hasn't this foolish apprentice mentioned me to you?"
Oh, Sellen, his teacher... Wait, his teacher!!
Melina nodded blankly at first, then her eyes widened, revealing an expression of utter horror. It's that Sellen—the Sellen that Millicent and I discussed giving a show of force to. And then, at our first meeting, she sees me... Melina was frantic.
Even as a dense block of wood, she now just wanted to rush out of the cave, cross the snowfield, jump off the mountain range, and then freestyle swim across the endless Sea of Fog to get beyond the borders. It's over, it's over. I can't stay in The Lands Between anymore; I need to find a new place to live. Melina's face flushed red.
She turned around quickly, but before she could run two steps, her wrist was caught.
"What are you running for?"
Sellen didn't understand; she shouldn't have leaked any killing intent.
"I, I, I..."
Melina didn't know how to answer, or rather, the current situation had already exceeded her cognitive limits. Apologize? Why should I? Pretend nothing happened? But how can I cover this up?
An honest person suddenly encountering such a situation completely lost her footing. When her brain reached its limit, all that was left was a blank expression, as if her soul had left her body and traveled to the vast starry sky. This is Melina; she doesn't look very smart, does she? Sellen frowned slightly. In Elphael, she had heard Throne emphasize this girl.
Now that she saw her, she was indeed very dense, so she simply let go of her hand.
"You are Melina?"
"Yes, Miss Sellen, hello."
Melina was expressionless, her tone devoid of fluctuation, having completely let herself go.
"Seeing is truly believing. You're bolder than I imagined."
Sellen's gaze dipped, lingering on the exposed curve.
"And by human standards—your body is quite beautiful."
The words struck like lightning. Melina's hands flew to her buttons, fumbling them shut with uncharacteristic speed. Her soul slammed back into her body. Damn it. What now? This is mortifying. She wanted to vanish, to dig a hole a hundred meters deep and bury herself in it. But digging wasn't an option. She swallowed her humiliation and forced the words out.
"Miss Sellen, let me explain. What just happened—"
"No need. I don't care what you intended."
Sellen took a step back, leaning against the cave wall. Her fingers pinched her chin thoughtfully.
"Proceed. Don't mind me." Melina's head snapped up. Cruel. Wasn't this enough? But Sellen's azure eyes held no anger, no malice—only an intense curiosity. She's serious. Melina remembered Throne's warning: "My teacher's eccentric. Be careful."
This wasn't eccentricity. This was madness. Melina's thoughts spiraled, plunging her into a second daze. Sellen raised an eyebrow.
"Is my presence inhibiting you? Shame, perhaps?"
Obviously. And I'm too rattled to function. Melina screamed internally. She expected Sellen to leave. Instead, the woman reached behind her back, fingers working at the buttons of her own dress.
"I'll join you. That should ease your embarrassment, no?"
Wait. What? Did I hear that right? My brain must be broken. Melina stared, dumbstruck, as Sellen's dress slipped down, revealing her collarbone and pale skin. Instinct took over. Melina lunged forward, yanking the fabric back up.
"What are you doing? Has possessiveness overridden your shame?"
Sellen's gaze remained cool, though Melina couldn't meet it.
"No, Miss Sellen, is your mind—" Melina cut herself off. What could she even say? Sellen was clearly unwell.
"Don't judge a Primeval Sorcerer, a seeker of truth, by ordinary standards."
Right. She's definitely unwell. Melina relaxed slightly. She understood now. Sellen wasn't toying with her or testing her. The woman was simply... unhinged. Who argues with someone like that?
"Stop this, Miss Sellen. You clearly don't understand. Stop meddling and put your clothes on."
"You say... I don't understand?" Sellen's head snapped around, her eyes flashing dangerously. As a scholar of profound knowledge, how could she tolerate such an insult from... a block of wood?
"What you're doing is beyond reason. What normal person acts like this?"
"Don't judge me by ordinary standards."
"But Throne's standards are ordinary."
Sellen froze, her words catching in her throat. She hadn't anticipated Melina's sharp retort. Her gaze shifted to the man sitting cross-legged in the corner.
"Apprentice, explain your moral standards."
Throne had woken the moment Sellen arrived, curious to see how this first meeting would unfold. Sparks flying? Expected. But this—this was wildfire. By the time he thought to intervene, it was too late. With Sellen's "proceed," how could he possibly step in? He hadn't expected sparks to fly, but the scale of it was beyond comprehension. Later, when Sellen's eccentric side flared up, Throne wanted to bury his head in the ground.
Yet, a strange anticipation held him back, making it impossible to defend Melina. Should he just lie there and let them both jump on him? Melina's already about to explode; I need to stay calm. He didn't dare open his eyes right away.
Melina had already endured one social death. If she realized he'd been pretending to sleep and suffered a second, who knew what chaos would follow? So, he stretched lazily, rubbed his eyes, and looked over with feigned drowsiness.
"Teacher, when did you get here? What's going on?"
Melina was seething, only to notice she was clutching the dress, her hands pressed against Sellen's chest. Worse, she'd unconsciously pushed down.
"Stop touching. Yours are bigger than mine," Sellen said flatly, her cheeks faintly flushed from the physical reaction. Melina jerked her hands back, utterly speechless. She couldn't fathom how Sellen's brain worked to produce such a response.
If Lansseax was tricky, Sellen was on another level entirely. The bonfire flickered, casting shadows as the three stared at each other. The silence stretched, thick and unyielding. Finally, Melina, battered by back-to-back humiliations, cracked.
"I—I'm going to hunt for dinner."
"In this frozen wasteland? Where?"
Throne blurted out.
"None of your business! Whether you were asleep or not, forget everything that happened today!"
Melina shot him a glare and bolted without looking back. Throne stood frozen, touching his nose. Melina and Ranni were definitely sisters—both experts at bullying those closest to them. If you've got the guts, go pick a fight with Sellen. He glanced helplessly at her.
"Teacher, you really picked the worst time to show up."
"True. If I'd arrived ten minutes later, it would've been far more entertaining," Sellen mused, her eyes narrowing with mild irritation.
"Ten minutes later? That would've been a disaster. I couldn't stand you lurking around, conducting some observational experiment. I'm not sure I could've held back."
Sellen fastened the buttons on the back of her dress, her tone casual.
"Wouldn't that have been even better?"
Throne stared, then shook his head with a wry smile. She was, as always, his teacher—effortlessly leaving him at a loss. He didn't dare provoke her further, so he stood, twisting his neck until it cracked.
"What do you think of Melina?"
"Interesting, but her sense of shame is excessive."
"She's a bit dense, but she's essentially an ordinary person. Please don't provoke her in the future."
"Fine. I'll try to accommodate her moral standards. After all, she's a fascinating subject for observation."
Sellen's bluntness left Throne uneasy. After a long pause, he gave up and changed the subject.
"Where's Millicent?"
"Behind. I sensed firelight and came to investigate first. Follow me."
Sellen remembered the swordswoman, her form beginning to blur as she moved.