Cold sweat soaked through the pajamas, merging the skin with the soft synthetic fur.
But this merging was not a smooth and dry contact — it was sticky and disgusting.
Collins moved slightly, and when he slightly opened his eyes, what he saw was a gaze full of doting affection, a gentle emotion that wrapped him in eyes as clear as soap bubbles.
Those eyes were as clear as a mirror, engraving Collins’ appearance into the window of her soul.
At this moment, in her eyes, there was only him.
“Awake?”
Victoria’s voice was soft, so soft it seemed as if it could be squeezed into droplets.
Collins’ pale lips moved slightly, and he clearly saw the corners of his mouth, reflected in Victoria’s eyes, curl into a bitter smile.
“Is it already morning?”
A light chuckle came, and Victoria’s breath brushed against Collins’ face.
Collins held his breath, trying hard not to inhale her scent.
That scent — the scent of a demon.
But even if he held his breath, even if he refused to share the air with a demon, even if he closed his eyes to avoid the demon’s temptation — that whisper from the depths of his soul still lingered near his ears.
“It’s already morning. And I’m hungry too.”
In a capricious and indulgent tone, Victoria — who appeared to be a twenty-year-old girl in her prime — spoke with a voice mature yet occasionally childlike, as if whining to her parents.
If it were an ordinary child being spoiled, that would be fine.
But Collins knew — when this terrifying woman acted spoiled, she definitely had a purpose.
Victoria kissed Collins, and when she pulled away, she said with a smile,
“Now, your whole body is covered with my scent.”
“Even your lips are filled with my breath.”
“……”
“Ah, I forgot. It’s morning. You must be hungry. I’ll go make breakfast for you. You’ll definitely love it.”
Finally letting go of Collins, Victoria — dressed only in simple underwear — bounced downstairs.
Collins got up from bed, took a deep breath, and lay back down again.
“What time is it?”
His hand reached toward the ceiling, fingers curling as if trying to grab something — but in the end, he grasped nothing.
A voice full of self-mockery leaked from Collins’ nose bit by bit.
He knew — now was the only time he still had any freedom, the only time he could think of a plan.
His feet were tied.
His hands were bound to the chair.
Even his head was fixed against the backrest.
Other than being able to move his lips, Collins had lost control of every part of his body.
Victoria placed a medium-rare fried egg in front of him, then pushed a salad and a fish pancake beside it.
Collins shook his head at the fish pancake.
“I don’t eat fish.”
Victoria wagged her finger.
“No no no, eating fish is good for your health. Besides, I made this myself. If you don’t eat it, I’ll be really sad.”
Collins closed his mouth, expressing his decision with silence.
“Sigh, why are you such a disobedient child? Do I really have to think of another way?”
Victoria forcefully stuffed the fish into Collins’ mouth.
Her palm pressed against his jaw, giving him no room to resist or even swallow properly.
Fighting his disgust toward the fish, Collins had no choice but to force it down.
Feeding play over, Victoria giggled.
Her eyes fixated on Collins, emotions rippling beneath her calm gaze, occasionally revealing sharp edges that gave Collins goosebumps.
“Now, maybe we can have a proper talk.”
Collins suppressed his rage and spoke, word by word, expressing his thoughts.
Victoria’s fingernail traced down Collins’ cheek.
Her intoxicated expression left no room for compromise.
“Love is such a beautiful emotion. It doesn’t need the other person’s response. It doesn’t need their feelings to burn brightly. As long as I’m happy, as long as I’m satisfied, nothing else matters.”
“You’re committing a crime.”
Collins roared.
He had been imprisoned by Victoria.
For a whole week, he had been confined in a house where no one would come to save him, with this damned woman.
He wanted to leave — to escape this hell.
Victoria hugged the furious Collins, whispering into his ear.
“Love is great, sacred. It doesn’t care about the recipient’s reaction, doesn’t need their response. I can fully immerse myself in the joy of giving.”
“Love is accepting everything about the one you love — your anger, your pain, your struggle, your sorrow.”
“I want to have you. I want you. I want to hold you forever.”
“In your eyes, there should only be me. On your body, only my scent.”
“You must eat the food I prepare. You must sleep in my bed.”
“I want everything about you — your body, your spirit, your thoughts.”
“If you don’t want to give it, that’s okay. I’ll take it myself.”
“This — is my love.”
“Go to hell, you pervert.”
Collins trembled with fury.
Victoria smiled sincerely.
Even in such rage, the object of her love was still just as charming.
“If I die, I’ll take you with me — my love.”
Rustling sounds echoed.
Pale fingers traced magic synthesis circuits, constructing magic nodes one by one, organizing and integrating massive amounts of magical energy pathways.
It was a fourth-tier magical circuit, combining five different elemental powers.
A basic magic array could only calm single elements.
Add one more element, and the difficulty increased by an order of magnitude.
Basic single-element circuits could be used by apprentices.
Two-element composite circuits required novice mages.
Three or more elements demanded intermediate-level mages.
A five-element magical circuit was a highly difficult subject — even among intermediate mages, few could do it.
Across the entire Royaltes Magic Academy, only one person among all students could accomplish this.
The chief of both the Rune and Magic Array departments — Collins.
Even so, the most talented student, who had dethroned the former top students of both departments in just one year, looked hesitant as he worked on the fourth-tier circuit.
His every motion revealed difficulty and uncertainty.
“Miss.”
The bodyguards beside Elena had waited too long.
They were getting impatient, and reminded the noble lady at their side that time was not something they could waste — especially not on someone like that.
“You all leave.”
The bodyguards stepped away from the doorway.
Elena watched as Collins built a basic 3D mathematical model with his fingers, embedding five forces into space, and finally formed a visible 3D magical structure.
Even someone as arrogant as she was couldn’t help but admit — this was genius.
At sixteen, he was a fourth-tier mage.
Only half a year into enrollment, he had already achieved an intermediate mage’s rank.
And most importantly, the blood in his veins — was of her family.
The Crimson Bloodline, a legacy from a legendary mage a thousand years ago.
There was no one more suitable than this man.
“I want you to marry me.”
The voice was straightforward, blatant, and undisguised.
Elena heard the sound of Collins’ rationality shattering.
The best evidence — the nearly complete fourth-tier magical circuit cracked and collapsed with a horrible screech.
The protective device before Collins emitted a white light.
Magic experiments were prone to accidents.
No matter the department, labs spared no expense on safety gear.
The white-glowing device was said to be so expensive that average workers could only dream of it.
Its value matched its function.
Under the light, the chaotic five-element energy — which could have reduced Collins to ash — gradually stabilized.
When the energy met the absorption threshold, the device sucked it all in.
It glowed in five colors — working hard to digest the power.
Until it was done, Collins didn’t dare test his circuit again.
And he had no excuse left to ignore the woman beside him.
Collins didn’t dare look at Elena.
He only said, “By blood relation, you’re my cousin.”
“Haven’t there been enough close-relative marriages in the family?”
“To preserve blood purity, as long as it’s not direct lineage, a generation apart is already acceptable.”
“You’re two years older than me.”
Collins heard a snort of disdain.
His cousin — flawless beyond description — seemed completely unimpressed by his excuses.
She didn’t even bother to respond.