Chapter 647: The Melee
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 647: The Melee
"Giggle... so this is what they call the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind."
A flirtatious, silvery laugh cut through the enchanting moans. The Empress, who had been soaring through the clouds of ecstasy, was jolted awake, her eyes snapping open with a gaze as cold as frost.
But before she could move, a pair of soft, slender, porcelain arms wound around her waist. Playful, delicate hands reached upward, cupping her supple, perky, and rounded breasts firmly in their palms.
An enchanting, breathtakingly beautiful face rested lightly on Celicia’s shoulder. The newcomer tilted her head, wantonly admiring the Empress’s sudden shock at being so boldly violated.
"Better to arrive at the right moment than to arrive early, wouldn't you agree, Your Majesty?"
To the side, Liya’s wide, watery eyes were fixed unblinkingly on this erotic tableau. She swallowed hard, thinking to herself that this was indeed the same Senior who had reduced her to such a state in bed last time. Even facing the Empress of the Empire, she didn't show a hint of intimidation.
Muen, pinned beneath them, was equally stunned. He hadn't expected another "master" to join the fray at a time like this. His Senior had made a sudden, dramatic entrance.
Now, where would the outcome of this "great war" lead?
"You!"
Faced with Anna’s frivolous behavior, the Empress’s rage flared instantly. Her terrifying Imperial Authority surged downward, demanding that all things kneel and submit.
But at that exact moment, clear moonlight spilled in from the window. Under its glow, the shadows in the room seemed to come alive, churning like boiling water as they resisted Celicia’s suppression.
"The Moon Authority?"
Celicia let out a cold snort. "You haven't fully digested it yet. Besides, that is only a fragment of the authority. Do you really think you can resist me with such a thing?"
Anna had obtained the Moon Authority earlier than Celicia had mastered her Imperial Authority, but this was the Empire. As the Emperor, Celicia possessed an innate suppression over her subjects.
She had merely been caught off guard. Now that she was prepared, she would make this audacious little wild cat pay the price!
Celicia reached out as if to grasp the air, gathering infinite radiance in her palm. A terrifying aura expanded; in the next heartbeat, she would utterly suppress the one who dared to desecrate the Emperor!
"Mnh..."
But then, a sweet, muffled groan escaped Celicia’s lips.
Her brow furrowed tightly, and her waist suddenly buckled. Her body seemed to lose its balance, and she couldn't hold the radiance in her hand. Instinctively, she pressed her palms against Muen’s chest for support.
Her breath came in short, fragrant gasps, as if she were forcibly suppressing something.
"What... what are you doing?"
Celicia glared with indignant shame at Muen beneath her. At that very moment, Muen had suddenly started acting up, accelerating his movements and sending her flying uncontrollably back toward those ethereal clouds.
Was this bastard intentionally trying to make her lose face?
"No, it’s not me."
Facing the Empress’s deathly pressure, Muen covered his face with a look of bashful innocence.
"My waist is moving on its own!"
"You!"
Celicia gritted her silver teeth, her face like frost. She prepared to summon her authority again to deal with this restless fellow along with the intruder.
But... how could the other predator, so close at hand, let such a golden opportunity slip away?
"I’ve caught your opening!"
Just as the authority wavered, the rolling darkness surged again. Anna’s hands tightened their grip, sinking deep into that soft flesh.
The authority was pried open once more. Celicia couldn't even spare the effort to shake off the hands wreaking havoc on her chest; she tried to focus her mind to regain the initiative.
"Ngh!"
But the guy who claimed his body was "moving on its own" accelerated his pace yet again!
The cracks in her mental focus grew wider. Waves of pleasure washed over the Empress, who still refused to admit defeat. At a time like this, Anna, positioned behind her, certainly wasn't going to stop her assault.
"As expected of Her Majesty, you certainly have quite the assets."
"Let... go!"
"Oh my, oh my. Are we down to verbal threats now? Where did all that majesty from a moment ago go?"
"You... don't let me find an opening..."
"Giggle... compared to your mouth, Your Majesty is quite soft everywhere else."
A flush of excitement rose on Anna’s seductive face. She blew a breath of hot air into Celicia’s ear and suddenly laughed.
"Come, call me 'Big Sister.' If you say it nicely, I might let you go."
"You... in your dreams!"
"What’s wrong with that? You should be calling me 'Sister' anyway, shouldn't you?"
"Shut up!"
"Is that so? It seems this 'Sister' needs to teach her junior a lesson."
Anna’s hands began to move with expert fluidity.
A gentle press, a slow knead, a slide, and then a flick.
In an instant, those hands were like those of a master virtuoso on a stringed instrument, exercising flexibility and precision to the absolute limit. Even Liya, who had deep musical accomplishments, couldn't help but stare with wide, sparkling eyes.
So impressive!
"Wh-ugh!"
"How is it? I learned all of this from a certain bad man. You should have experienced it yourself by now."
"With just this level... you're delusional..."
"Really? Then how about this? Your Majesty hasn't experienced this before, has she?"
"...You... I... will never..."
"Still won't give in? Then how about this?"
Anna became increasingly excited as she played, her movements becoming so fast they almost left afterimages.
Celicia’s waist went from curled to slowly straightening. Finally, her pale arches tensed, and her beautiful eyes turned upward, as if looking toward a world far beyond the clouds.
"...Eeya!"
A decadent, beautiful sound, far surpassing anything before, finally spilled uncontrollably from those pink lips.
"Eeya?"
Anna blinked and stopped her movements.
"Eeya?"
Muen peeked through the gaps in his fingers.
"Eeya?"
Liya shifted her body, only to find that the restraints on her had automatically dissolved because Celicia was too distracted to maintain them.
"Oh my, oh my."
Anna tapped her lip, looking at this unexpected delight, and couldn't help but giggle.
"Your Majesty’s reaction... is actually quite adorable~"
"..."
The air fell into an eerie silence. Muen silently closed his eyes again.
A rich, rosy blush began to spread across Celicia’s cold, elegant face, even turning her earlobes crimson.
"You..."
Shame and rage flared as Celicia spun around abruptly. Ignoring the fact that she was still joined with Muen and having no time to use her authority, she lunged directly at Anna.
But having just lost her strength, how could she be a match for Anna in her peak state? Instead, she was held fast, only able to use some movements derived from sword techniques to tear at the other woman's clothes in a fit of pique.
The two women became a tangled mess of limbs, torn fabric flying, a scene of radiant spring beauty that was incredibly erotic.
Liya, having just escaped her bonds, approached with a face full of bashful excitement.
"Me too! I’m here for revenge!"
Having been forcibly silenced for so long, Liya finally joined the fray.
However, she didn't directly intervene in the war between the women. Instead, she went to one end of the bed and, under Muen’s bewildered gaze, sat directly on his face.
"I... I can't hold back anymore. Muen, help me first," Liya whispered bashfully, shifting her weight.
"..."
At that moment, feeling the encroaching sensation of suffocation, the anger Muen had been suppressing finally became uncontrollable.
You all just do whatever you want! What do you take me, Muen Campbell, for? A tool for your pleasure?
This is the final straw! Faced with such blatant bullying, I must resist!
Yes, resist fiercely! Give these people who don't take me seriously a lesson they'll never forget!
A few minutes later...
"Mnh, yes, right there... Muen, you're so amazing..."
*
"What? Her Majesty isn't here?"
That night, outside the rest area specifically prepared by the Academy for the Empress, Ariel frowned at the female Royal Knight before her.
"But it's so late. Where could Her Majesty have gone?"
She looked up at the sky. The clear, bright moon hung in the heavens like the eyes of a lover.
But the sight of that solitary moon hanging there felt so lonely.
Just like her current, solitary self.
"I do not know," the female knight replied mechanically.
"Her Majesty has not returned here since the competition ended this afternoon. I am merely standing guard as per protocol; I do not know Her Majesty’s whereabouts."
"Oh, I see. Thank you."
Ariel was disappointed, but she had no choice but to leave.
To share the joy of victory at the first opportunity—and for her grand plan to raise favorability and "steal the corner"—Ariel had rushed to find Celicia as soon as the nurses had left.
But... she hadn't found her.
"Where could she be at this hour?" Ariel pondered, rubbing her chin.
"They said she hasn't been back since the match ended... She couldn't have gone to visit Muen Campbell, could she?!" Ariel’s gaze sharpened as this unrealistic thought popped into her head.
"No, no, no..." She immediately dismissed the idea.
"Setting aside the likelihood, even if Celicia really went there, why wouldn't she be back by now? It's not like she’d spend the night in Muen Campbell’s hospital room!"
"It seems she really is just busy with something. I shouldn't disturb her."
After all, she was the Empress of the Empire; she could be busy with state affairs at any moment.
Having reached this frustrating conclusion, Ariel could only temporarily give up her plan to get closer during the quiet of the night. She walked dejectedly toward her own room.
But as she passed through the corridor of the ward...
"Ow... who's there?"
Because of her foul mood, she hadn't been paying attention to her surroundings. She tripped over something and nearly fell. Ariel spun around sharply, looking warily into the darkness.
Or rather, at the leg sticking out from the darkness.
"Eh? What’s this?"
Ariel frowned, her eyes narrowing. Following the leg upward, she finally saw a female knight lying in the shadows of the corridor.
"Strange. Why would a knight be lying in a place like this? And this uniform..."
Ariel’s heart skipped a beat as she realized. This uniform belonged to... Celicia’s Royal Guard!
Why would one of Celicia’s Royal Guards be here, and why was she unconscious?
Ariel leaned down for a quick check. She found that the female knight hadn't fallen asleep out of laziness; there was a clear aura of mana on her.
She had been ambushed and hit with a Sleep Magic spell!
An ill omen surged in Ariel’s heart. For Celicia’s guard to be collapsed here at night... could she be in danger too?
Ariel scanned the surroundings quickly but found nothing unusual. Finally, her attention landed on the door of the hospital room in front of her.
It was a room almost identical to the one she had stayed in. The door had a small observation window for doctors, but one had to get close to see inside.
The door looked ordinary.
But with that bad premonition, Ariel’s senses fully expanded. Even before she got close, she felt that behind this door, several terrifying powers were intertwined!
So intense, yet almost undetectable from the outside. It was hard to imagine the terrifying level of power clashing within!
"No way... Celicia..."
Ariel’s heart was in her throat. She approached with extreme caution, then stood on her tiptoes to look through the observation window.
And then... she saw that intense "melee."
*
Inside the room.
The melee had long since entered a new stage.
The "Yellow Hair" who had endured humiliation for so long finally rose up in strength after the various parties had fought to exhaustion. He seized the initiative, no longer allowing himself to be "bullied."
Thus, the scene was no longer a war between the Empress, the Sword Bearer, and the Saintess, but rather...
Muen was caressing a nearly limp Celicia with one hand while sharing a passionate kiss with Anna. Meanwhile, Ariel’s best friend, Liya, was positioned there, rising and falling...
"Wh-what?"
Ariel’s eyes widened, the erotic scene reflected in her pupils. She murmured in instinctive disbelief.
It was familiar.
So hauntingly familiar.
She had seen Liya and the Senior named Anna in the room during her last observation.
But this time...
"Why is Celicia also..."
Ariel couldn't understand.
Celicia was so proud, so cold, like a snow lotus that could only be admired from afar and never defiled. But she... why would she submit to a mere "Yellow Hair," and why would she participate in such an absurd game?
In an instant, it was as if the sound of a shattering crystal palace echoed in her mind. The beautiful dream drifted away, and a sharp pain stabbed at Ariel’s chest.
It wasn't just the shock of seeing this scene; it was the grief and indignation of realizing that all her hard work and effort had been in vain.
Celicia had long since thrown herself into Muen Campbell’s arms!
Ariel had won the competition, but in the end, the one who truly won was the blonde bastard.
"Damn it..."
Ariel gritted her teeth so hard they nearly broke. Her fingers clawed at the doorframe, wishing she could just burst in and beat that guy to death...
But in the end, she didn't.
Because she knew that even if she killed him, she couldn't win back the hearts of the girls who had already strayed.
*
The people in the room were still lost in their absurdity. Because Celicia had developed the habit of leaving a seal to isolate sound and presence after Ariel’s last sudden intrusion, they didn't notice Ariel outside.
Ariel originally wanted to leave immediately, but for some reason, she stayed for a while. As she etched every frame of the scene into her mind, her hand unconsciously reached beneath her skirt...
"That cursed Muen Campbell..."