The Etiquette of Control

The next morning, in the reception hall.

“Watch closely, for I shall only demonstrate once. First, stand straight, with your entire body slightly tensed…”

Seraphina, for her part, was entirely supportive of this etiquette training.

“Lift your head, just enough to feel the tip of your nose gently rise. Then, chest out, exuding confidence in your figure…”

After all, her ultimate goal was to utterly conquer Iqiyah and become the true mistress of this mansion.

“You can’t even puff out your chest? Come, watch carefully, I’ll demonstrate again. Shoulders back and relaxed…”

If one was to become the mistress, then one must possess the bearing of a mistress, mustn’t they?

“Your backside, just a slight clench is all that’s needed. You must showcase the curve of your hips, but without making those soft mounds appear overly prominent…”

Unfortunately, however…

“Didn’t I say not to stick your backside out so high? This is my final demonstration…”

Seraphina, it seemed, was simply not cut out to be a noble, not in her very bones.

“I said just a slight clench of your backside, are you some kind of bird?”

Iqiyah delivered a sharp slap, landing squarely on Seraphina’s backside, which was jutting out rather high, causing a ripple.

“Well, I’ll be. It’s actually soft when you hit it…” Kneading her reddened, stinging palm, Iqiyah glared plaintively at Seraphina, who was struggling to maintain her posture. “You truly are uniquely gifted, aren’t you!”

“Oh, you flatter me, you flatter me…”

“Stop messing around! Watch my demonstration properly!”

Suppressing her inner fury, Iqiyah gritted her teeth, smoothed down her clothing, and took a stance beside Seraphina.

“First, stand firm, with your entire body slightly tensed. Then, lift your head, chest out, shoulders back, and gen—tly—lift your hips…”

Like a graceful swan, Iqiyah gently closed her eyes. Though it was merely a simple act of lifting her head and puffing her chest, an innate elegance radiated from her every movement.

However… perhaps Iqiyah’s everyday posture was much the same, for Seraphina narrowed her eyes and observed Iqiyah’s body for a good long while.

She grasped not a single iota of the posture’s essence, but her eyes, at least, had their fill.

‘Gulp. Heaven help me, even though I’ve lost my manhood, if I could tame such a beautiful maiden, I’d willingly live in a villa and become a lord!’

“Well, have you learned it this time?”

Having completed the demonstration, Iqiyah let out a long breath, turned gracefully towards Seraphina, and opened her eyes. Then…

Then she saw Seraphina’s utterly dazed expression, fingers in her mouth, drooling.

“…Alright, I suppose you haven’t learned it.”

Iqiyah, utterly resigned, slumped onto the sofa behind her. Like a self-doubting old father, she propped her hands on her forehead, gazing at the floor, her eyes devoid of any spark.

Even her voice had grown faint and listless.

“No, no, no, I’ve learned it, I’ve learned it!”

Seeing Iqiyah’s despairing expression, Seraphina instantly panicked.

“Really?”

Iqiyah lifted her eyes, staring coldly at Seraphina. “Since you say so, then let’s see you try.”

A subtle unease stirred within Seraphina as she met Iqiyah’s skeptical gaze.

Yet, she felt confident. After all, she had only really struggled with her backside before. She just needed to be careful, watching Iqiyah’s eyes as she slowly, gradually lifted her hips.

She was sure she could do it this time.

With that thought, Seraphina turned, presenting her side profile to Iqiyah.

Just as she stood firm, about to puff out her chest and lift her head—

“Let me be blunt. If you don’t do well this time… I will punish you severely.”

Unbeknownst to Seraphina, Iqiyah on the sofa had suddenly shifted her posture. She was now sprawled out, arms spread across the backrest, her nose tilted upwards, eyeing Seraphina—who was about to “perform”—with a sidelong glance.

She looked precisely like a big-shot gangster, ready to throw money around, awaiting the performance of a dancer before him, lacking only a pair of sunglasses.

“Seraphina, you haven’t… forgotten what I said last night, have you?”

She tilted her head, as if adjusting a pair of nonexistent glasses, then widened her crimson eyes, raising those dreadful scarlet pupils to fixate on the familiar figure in the black dress before her.

That hypnotic gaze struck Seraphina like a bolt of lightning, causing her entire body to tremble and goosebumps to instantly erupt across her skin.

“As long as you obediently follow my instructions, I won’t be too harsh on you.”

At first listen, last night’s words might have sounded like a guarantee of her safety. But Seraphina knew better; it was merely a relatively gentle threat—

“If you don’t behave… I’ll utterly dominate you!”

‘Ugh, ahhh…’

The mere thought of Iqiyah’s control over her from last night made Seraphina tremble involuntarily.

The sensation of that electric current, shooting through her entire body and stimulating every sensitive nerve the moment the blood essence necklace touched her forehead… she absolutely did not want to experience it a second time.

Of course, what was even more terrifying was the feeling of her body being arbitrarily manipulated. In Seraphina’s eyes, that was far more dreadful than being entangled by a hundred tentacles!

Filled with a profound fear of losing control over her body, Seraphina meticulously guided her every movement.

‘Phew… the rhythm’s off, start over, start over.’

‘Stand firm, slightly tense, head up, chest out…’

“Hiss…”

With only the hiss of air passing through her teeth, Seraphina’s body instantly froze in place, daring not to make another move.

“You’re puffing your chest out so high… are you about to perform Swan Lake?”

“Ugh… that was just a mistake…”

Hearing Iqiyah’s reprimand, Seraphina hastily lowered the prominent peaks of her chest.

‘Phew, phew. I must be too nervous, to make such a small mistake. I must be careful, extremely careful…’

Only after confirming Iqiyah had no further reaction did Seraphina relax, proceeding cautiously to the next step.

‘Shoulders back…’

“Hmm?”

“Your shoulders are so limp. Have they grown bones inside them yet?”

“Ugh, I’m sorry!”

Although Seraphina’s shoulders were already quite straight, she exerted all her strength to make them even more rigid.

This instantly reminded her of her military training in her previous life, and that raw, green instructor from boot camp.

Seraphina remembered the instructor so vividly because he possessed a peculiar, almost coin-minting-like hobby: deliberately finding fault.

To put it plainly, even if you performed perfectly, he would intentionally claim you hadn’t, using it as an excuse to punish and satisfy his perverse desire for power.

‘Wait… speaking of which…’

Seraphina secretly glanced at Iqiyah, who was sprawled on the sofa, watching the “performance.” A bead of cold sweat trickled down her forehead.

‘This woman, she couldn’t possibly be doing this on purpose too, could she!?’

Filled with suspicion towards Iqiyah, Seraphina cleared her throat, then subtly swayed her body.

“Tsk, tsk…”

Sure enough, before Seraphina could even lift her hips, Iqiyah’s voice of reproach rang out.

“Don’t you think your backside is sticking out a little too much?”

‘Heh heh, she took the bait.’

Hearing Iqiyah’s deliberate provocation, Seraphina swiftly turned her head to face her.

“Lady Iqiyah, my backside just now… it didn’t move an inch, you know!”

Seraphina offered a small smile, gently arching her waist to demonstrate to Iqiyah.

“Could it be that you… are simply trying to make things difficult for me?”

“…”

Faced with Seraphina’s question, Iqiyah did not answer immediately. She simply lowered her head, concealing her face in shadow.

‘Uh… she couldn’t be getting sad already, could she?’

Seraphina’s heart fluttered with unease, watching Iqiyah’s silence.

Although she wished to expose Iqiyah’s ploy, it didn’t mean she wanted to hurt her. After all, she still cherished…

“So what if I am?”

Before Seraphina could even finish feeling pity, Iqiyah suddenly snapped her head up, revealing a wicked, enchanting smile.

“Since you’ve figured it out, I see no need to continue this act!”

Before her words had even faded, Iqiyah sprang up from the sofa. Without waiting for Seraphina to react, she lunged and tackled her to the ground.

“I just wanted an excuse to utterly control you, what are you going to do about it ❤”

Gaping at Iqiyah’s flushed, eager face above her, a face like that of a love-struck devotee, Seraphina knew there was no escape now.

“Help! A forced melon isn’t sweet, Lady Iqiyah, please reconsider!”

“Heh heh, I’m a willful person, and I happen to enjoy forced melons ❤”

Gazing down at Seraphina, who was flushed and teary-eyed beneath her, Iqiyah delicately licked her lips, as if savoring a delicious meal.

“Mmm… that expression, I absolutely adore it!”

Disregarding Seraphina’s desperate struggles beneath her, Iqiyah pulled out the familiar ruby from her pocket, aimed it at Seraphina’s forehead, and pressed it down—