A Daring Proposal

“Mistress… no, Master,” Seraphina stammered, “Wha-what purification? I-I don’t understand what you’re s-saying…”

“Stop playing dumb, Seraphina! Quickly, give me the [Purification]! ❤”

Iqiyah’s face was pale, her red, gleaming eyes fixed intensely on Seraphina. Within their depths, a heart-shaped gleam pulsed relentlessly, radiating a dazzling pink light.

‘Could that be… the legendary heart-shaped gleam in her eyes!?’

“Um, Mistress,” Levian interjected, perhaps emboldened by her recent training with Seraphina, “I possess an [Epic]-tier purification skill. Please, allow me to try.”

“Ah? No, no, no,” Iqiyah mumbled, licking the corner of her mouth. “I’ve already undergone your purification. Your skill level is too low; it can’t overcome the curse in my body…”

“Only Seraphina can…”

Under Levian’s crestfallen gaze, Iqiyah hunched her body, shuffling step by step towards Seraphina before suddenly collapsing forward.

“Mistress! What’s wrong!?”

Seraphina quickly helped Iqiyah up, who then leaned against her shoulder.

With a strength that belied her apparent frailty, Iqiyah abruptly seized Seraphina’s head, forcing her eyes to meet her own.

Two pairs of identical crimson eyes locked together, so close their noses almost touched. As their humid breaths mingled, the pink glow in Iqiyah’s eyes intensified, and her breathing grew heavier.

“Hurry, Seraphina, please, I beg you~”

The once-noble Blood Clan princess had shed all pretense of dignity, humbling herself before one of her own retainers.

“Grant me [Purification], please! ❤”

Iqiyah’s ash-grey lashes drooped, and the confusion and yearning in her eyes poured forth like a surging flood, engulfing Seraphina’s gaze.

“If you just give me [Purification], I’ll give you anything—wealth, status, honor, pleasure…”

“So, hurry, quickly…”

“But I refuse!”

“!??”

Iqiyah’s eyes widened instantly, staring incredulously at the solemn Seraphina.

“Seraphina, how dare you, how dare you refuse me!?”

“Mistress, it’s not that I don’t want to help you, but if I do, no one in the entire Blood Manor will forgive me.”

‘Lady Iqiyah, you probably have no idea how many people adore you, how obsessed they are with your every move!’

‘They’ve even formed a cult, for crying out loud!’

‘If I let you fall into a coma again… even as their Bishop, they’d tear me to shreds…’

‘Furthermore, as the final BOSS of the Blood Manor and the esteemed young mistress of the Scarlett family, you should be responsible for the entire family, for the entire Blood Manor, shouldn’t you!?’

‘Therefore… at least until the cause of your comas is thoroughly investigated, I absolutely cannot use the [Divine Status Purification] on you again!’

Iqiyah, however, clearly disagreed.

“Ugh, I don’t care, I don’t care! The whole manor listens to me! With me protecting you, who would dare defy you!”

“No! As the Mistress of the Blood Manor, you must be responsible for the entire manor!”

“You, you retainer, how dare you, how dare you disobey your Mistress’s orders! You have immense nerve!”

Iqiyah’s eyes suddenly flared, the pink radiance vanishing, replaced by a dazzling, blood-red glow.

“If you don’t listen to me, I’ll, I’ll…”

‘Oh no, she’s about to unleash her ultimate move.’

Seraphina quickly glanced at Levian.

‘Help! Levian, save me!’

Perhaps she was too dense, failing to grasp Seraphina’s predicament. In response to Seraphina’s desperate gaze, Levian merely frowned slightly, watching her with a worried expression, leaving her to fend for herself.

‘Ugh! It’s over, my life is forfeit!’

Just as Seraphina braced herself for Iqiyah’s wrath, Iqiyah dropped to the ground, rolling and whining like a teenage boy who’d just discovered the joys of hand-drip coffee but was suddenly forced into abstinence.

“Gahhh! I want [Purification]! I want [Purification]! Make me feel good, make me feel good! If you don’t listen to me, I’ll throw a fit!!!”

“What?”

Seraphina was dumbfounded.

‘Are you saying… you only want me to give you [Purification] simply because it feels good?’

‘Just for pleasure, you’d fall into a coma for an entire day?’

‘Just for pleasure, you’d choose to neglect the entire manor?’

Seraphina’s brow furrowed, her expression darkening. She suddenly understood the cold, stern look Levian had given her earlier, and swiftly put it into practice.

“No amount of tantrums will work, Mistress. Please, stand up.”

“Guh… Seraphina, don’t look at me like I’m trash!!!”

Perhaps because she was desperate for Seraphina’s help, Iqiyah dared not voice any objection to Seraphina’s insolence, even beginning to actively show weakness.

“Seraphina, what do I have to do for you to give me [Purification]?”

She scrambled up from the floor, albeit clumsily… no, not quite, but instead dropped to her knees with a thud before Seraphina, clutching her sleeve and sobbing:

“Anything I can do, I’m willing to do!”

Watching Iqiyah kneeling and pleading before her, Seraphina found the sight utterly absurd.

‘The esteemed young mistress of the Scarlett family, the final BOSS of the Blood Manor that countless human adventurers painstakingly sought to conquer, was now prostrate at my feet.’

A refreshing sensation washed over Seraphina. She was instantly overcome by an unparalleled sense of superiority, which swelled within her, gradually making her head spin and her blood surge.

In a daze, a daring idea sparked in her mind.

“Lady Iqiyah, with what degree of resolve did you utter those words?”

“Eh?”

“What if I told you to hand over the entire Blood Manor to me… would you agree?”

“Eh?”

Now it was Iqiyah’s turn to be dumbfounded. She had never imagined that this retainer before her would actually dare to overstep her authority to such an extent.

For a moment, a colossal rage filled Iqiyah’s heart. This fury made her muscles tremble uncontrollably, and her eyes rapidly flashed with a brilliant red light.

But… at the same time, another possibility, represented by this very anger, swelled within her, gradually growing as vast as her rage.

‘If I truly handed over the manor… would Seraphina really give me [Purification]?’

At this thought, Iqiyah couldn’t help but let out a soft hum.

Meanwhile, Seraphina also snapped back to reality. Faced with her incredibly presumptuous statement from mere seconds ago, she now had only one thought:

‘Oh no, oh no, I’ve caused huge trouble. If I don’t fix this, I might actually die.’

‘I need to push the blame away immediately, before Iqiyah fully reacts.’

“The phrase ‘anything I’m willing to do’ carries such significant weight, Lady Iqiyah.”

Unbeknownst to herself, she had already stopped calling Iqiyah “Mistress,” instead adopting a more equal address: “Lady Iqiyah.”

“Please, do not speak of things you cannot accomplish. Even as the young mistress above all others, you should learn to take responsibility…”

“I will!”

“…”

The air instantly solidified around them as Iqiyah’s words fell. Even the simulated stars outside the window seemed to halt their rotation.

Everything was so silent, so hollow. Besides the crackling of candles, only one exceptionally clear sound could be heard: Iqiyah nervously swallowing.

An absolute chill settled upon Seraphina. Cold, fear, and belated dread made her hairs stand on end; a tremendous sense of danger caused her skin to prickle, and her breathing became uncontrollably erratic.

‘Is this person… truly alright in the head?’

‘They say reality defies logic, but… this is utterly illogical!’

‘No, no, no! Her remaining rationality hammered violently in Seraphina’s mind, stimulating her already frayed nerves—’

‘She absolutely cannot agree to this!’

‘She must refuse her forcefully! Otherwise, it will only bring endless trouble!’

With a resolve to face death, Seraphina mustered her courage and forcefully flung Iqiyah’s hand away.

“Lady Iqiyah, you are utterly self-absorbed.”

Striving to steady her voice, which trembled slightly from tension, Seraphina cast a cold glare at her unruly Mistress, then turned and walked away amidst Iqiyah’s desperate gaze.