A saintess? She's just a bad woman.

Page 139

Her condescending tone was very uncomfortable; one wouldn't speak to her respectfully unless they needed something from her.

“Your Majesty Zoina, I can… sell the family’s land, antiques, and jewelry… and a few decent properties. There’s always a way.”

“I remember that all those lands and properties were mortgaged to the Capital Bank. The only things that haven’t been mortgaged yet are your family’s ancestral home and the sacred artifact manufacturing techniques passed down through your family for generations.”

"No... those things are absolutely unacceptable!"

The crafts and houses passed down from our ancestors should never be used as bargaining chips at the negotiating table; everyone has something they want to protect.

"There's one last way."

Zoina put down the empty gold-rimmed white porcelain teacup, her wrist trembling, and took out a photo from her storage space.

The main character in the photo is a girl with long pink-white to silver hair and sky-blue eyes. She is dressed in a formal ceremonial outfit and wears a golden crown. She exudes a noble aura and is far from being an ordinary person you would see on the street.

"Your brother's fiancée is really beautiful. If you can get her into my bed, this isn't out of the question. Since you don't want to sell your body, someone has to take your place."

"Are you crazy... She's someone else's fiancée. This is against all propriety!"

"My fiancée isn't married yet. And even if she were, so what?"

As if ignoring Dalia's advice, Zoina continued to describe her plans.

“A lowly princess like me, held hostage in another country and living a precarious life, never knew when I would die under your swords. When I was a child, the other members of the royal family would take their anger out on me whenever they were unhappy, and they would put me in prison for weeks at a time.”

Now that I've finally become the most honored person, able to crush those who used to trample on me, do you think someone like that would still care about etiquette? Let me tell you, I just want to enjoy life to the fullest.

"Regardless of status, etiquette is very important. Besides, she is my brother's wife. I advise you not to be too presumptuous, or you'll get yourself into trouble."

"Take care of yourself first."

Her fingers tapped lightly on the checks on the table, the sound like a death knell, each tap striking Dalia's heart. With her other hand, she set up the hourglass and began the countdown.

The fine silver sand at the top of the hourglass fell through the small hole in the middle and accumulated at the bottom. Two minutes passed in the blink of an eye, and as the last grain of sand fell, Zoina had no more patience to wait.

Without getting a response from Dalia, staying here would only be a waste of time.

"It seems this small check isn't enough to impress Miss Dalia. I'm not worthy. I have other matters to attend to. The young lady from the Capital Bank is waiting for me to accompany her shopping and take the latest steam train for a stroll in the Upper City. Excuse me for now."

Her slender fingers picked up the check, preparing to retract it into her storage space. Her other hand, faster than Zoina's, pressed down on the other end of the check. This action exhausted all her courage and determination, and also meant giving up.

"I promise you... You promised before that I wouldn't have to pay this money back, and there would be no interest. You won't go back on your word, will you?"

"No. If your performance satisfies me, the young lady from the Capital Bank will give you additional capital injections. I don't need to teach you how to do it."

"..."

This battle, fought without bloodshed, ended in a resounding victory for Zoina. Everything was under Zoina's control.

From the moment she became empress, it was like playing a game where all the female characters became cards in the battle team, accompanying the emperor to conquer all sides during the day and continuing their battles with him in their room at night.

To become a scumbag woman who lacks manners, knows no shame, only thinks with her lower body, and keeps countless women's feelings hanging on her, while being pursued by various distinctive female characters?

To be honest, this emperor has always been irresponsible and lacks a sense of duty. He used women's affections to climb to a high position step by step, and in the final stage, he even became the emperor of an empire. How outrageous!

"Okay! I agree."

Across from her, Dalia was filled with mixed emotions. Her hand trembled several times before she finally picked up the check. The number "10000" written in black pen stung her eyes. It was a number that would excite countless people, but it was also the price she was paying for selling herself.

The crucial point is that this money didn't end up in her pocket; it all had to be used to pay off debts and for business operations. It seems she gained nothing and was even manipulated by a very wicked emperor.

A feeling of shame, indignation, and helplessness spread through my heart.

"Now, please show me your sincerity, Miss Dalia."

Zoina sat on the sofa and used magic to lock the room, adding a complex defensive spell. Ordinary people couldn't break it, and even a magician skilled in spells would need some time to do so.

Then, she lifted the hem of her robe and untied the piece of fabric that formed a closed shape by three non-linear line segments connected end to end. The middle of the fabric was a slightly darker color.

All that buildup was for this moment. The girl's legs were slender and long, her skin fair, and at this moment, the line connecting her knees and that indescribable area formed an obtuse angle.

"Now, please put aside your aristocratic airs, kneel between my knees, and serve me with your actions."

239. Guardian Sword

"Curtis, you wouldn't be thinking of...?"

The fact that the other party brought him to a private room probably means there's more to it than meets the eye.

"It's just what you think. Want to give it a try?"

"How to try?"

"Let's play a role-playing game. You've played Yellow Mail before, right?"

Curtis is treating Santa Karina like an ancient relic. After all, she lived more than 500 years ago, so it's normal for young people to treat her differently.

"You're underestimating me."

Saint Karina raised an eyebrow. Huang You, she hadn't played a hundred games, but she had played a few, and she understood the concept.

“That makes things simple. Now, I will play the role of the emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, and you will play the role of the slave I bought, serving me.”

Curtis gave orders directly, as if it were her right.

Hearing this, Saint Karina's fists clenched. She wanted to give Curtis a good talking to, wondering how he could be so self-righteous.

However, considering the other person's delicate feelings, she didn't want to discourage her. Besides, in the role-playing game, she was the one overthrowing the other; once they were in bed, wouldn't Saint Karina be the one to call the shots?

So, in a private room at a DayBucks coffee shop, the two of them began to simulate what they had just done.

Anyway, the waiters wouldn't just barge in, and all the food they ordered was served.

The game's background story, titled "Strive to Procreate in the Yellow Mail World: The Eastern Roman Emperor and Her Slave Girls," features a rather cumbersome title. Saint Karina and Curtis play the roles of the characters.

They got into character quickly; the environmental simulation could be done with magic.

And so the plot unfolds—

The imperial palace in Constantinople, Eastern Roman Empire, the emperor's sleeping quarters.

Today is a pivotal day. Curtis Diodosius, the master of this magnificent yet somewhat decaying chamber, has decided to undertake a crucial mission in his life.

Having become the ruler of an ancient empire, she had never truly experienced the pleasures of womanhood. Every time she was about to get to the point and start having sex with the person she wanted, some unexpected event would interrupt her, causing her plans to fall apart midway.

For example, a foreign envoy might suddenly arrive, a minister might have important matters to discuss, or a maid might urge her to have dinner. She almost made it into the pleasant hall.

The emperor of the empire has never touched a woman in his entire life. Wouldn't people laugh themselves to death if they told them?

"I...I'm going to start."

She smiled, her hands trembling with excitement.

Lying on a luxurious bed covered with pale gold sheets was a human woman with an expressionless face, long white hair, and sapphire blue eyes. She was dressed in the Emperor's New Clothes and stared at Curtis with a slightly indifferent gaze.

“Your Majesty, you’ve already ‘started’ many times. If you don’t hurry up and get started, the messenger might burst in again and order you to take a lit candle to your study to review official documents until the next morning.”

"So eager, St. Karina? Your heart is beating so fast..."

“I’m sorry, that was your heartbeat. I’m calm because I know my purpose is to let His Majesty vent. Given that your previous 113 attempts have failed, I hope this time we can succeed and finish quickly to avoid any unexpected situations.”

The human female slave did not intentionally treat her emperor and master coldly. She had been facial paralysis since birth and was bought by Curtis from a female slave trader. The two had been together day and night for several years and had a reason to cross the final line.

By the way, this emperor is hilarious. He's still a virgin and hasn't had any sexual relations with any woman.

"Don't rush, you'll soon experience the Emperor's favor. You are absolutely the luckiest woman in all of Eastern Rome, and tonight will be a night you'll never forget."

After making a "pre-war declaration," Curtis quickly removed the superfluous and meaningless woven fiber assembly from his body, climbed onto the bed in the most primal form of human birth, and extended his claws toward Saint Karina.

The slave girl had learned how to serve her masters since childhood and knew how to please them. She embraced the young emperor, who had been on the throne for less than half a year, wrapped her arms around the back of his neck, and kissed his lips as she had failed 113 times before.

This is the 114th attempt. It is said that 114 is a very special number. If it fails this time, it may have to wait until the 514th attempt.

Who can tolerate 513 failures? No, absolutely not.

The kiss went smoothly. There were no annoying footsteps outside the door. She ate until she was seven-tenths full at dinner, and the maids were sent outside the bedchamber. All official documents had been approved. The emperor had eliminated any factors that might interfere with their union and was about to step onto the path to the supreme heaven.

However, Curtis was the one being pressed down, and his heart rate became increasingly rapid, and his breathing rate increased.

She recalled her past experiences.

When Curtis actually met Santa Karina, he had to re-examine his previous narrow-minded ideas. The expressionless girl was also amazing; with a face that never showed any emotion, she did all sorts of indescribable things, emphasizing the novelty brought by extreme contrast.

"Your Majesty, it will be painful at first, please try to bear it. This is all to break the strange curse on you. The Irish fortune teller's divination was very accurate; she even knew that you would need intimate contact with women to alleviate the symptoms..."

Santa Karina moved her wrist forward slightly. Curtis appeared calm on the surface, but inside he was incredibly nervous, his mind blank, and his body taut like a fully drawn bow.

Her fair arms rose and fell like those of an artist playing the piano. Curtis was the sole audience member of this "performance," quietly enjoying the gentle and soothing prelude.

The most exciting part is yet to come, and it's definitely worth savoring.

"Why are you... so skilled at this..."

His hands gripped the sheets, the smooth, golden fabric crumpled under his slender fingers. His toes curled, and a mysterious sensation coursed through his spine, sending a tingling, electric shock through him. The air temperature and humidity rose sharply, and his thoughts were about to reach the blissful shores of pleasure.

"That's what my former master taught me."

The slave girl's answer seemed casual, but her attention was entirely focused on Curtis. She was confident that she could "play" this nocturnal sonata under the dim light, fulfilling the emperor's long-cherished wish.

How could things possibly go so smoothly?

Just when Curtis thought he could finally realize his dream and break the curse of "intercourse will always fail" through the most straightforward human impulse, familiar footsteps came from outside the door again.

The footsteps were hurried, mixed with some noise coming from further away.

The noise interrupted the increasingly enjoyable "performance." Saint Karina, looking alert, put on her clothes, got out of bed, and went barefoot to the door, pressing her sexy ears against it to listen.

Her hearing is more sensitive than that of ordinary humans; using her special auditory abilities, she can hear sounds from hundreds or even thousands of meters away.

"No way, it's 10 p.m...."

Curtis looked annoyed and pulled the thin blanket over his body.

In fact, the darkness is an effect created by magic; the reality is that it is broad daylight outside.

The noise that interrupted their sacred rituals came from the female guards on night patrol. By nightfall, only women remained on guard near the sleeping quarters, with no male creatures present.

The guard stopped at the door, his tone anxious.

"Your Majesty... Your Majesty, something has happened... outside..."

She had run as fast as she could when she arrived, and she could barely speak in a steady tone, so her words came out in broken sentences.

"Speak slower."

Just as Curtis picked up his clothes from the carpet and was about to put them on, the guards outside burst the door open as if the sky had fallen. Curtis knew he wouldn't get things done tonight, and his face turned grim.

"what's up?"

"The Ottoman army... is... is preparing to break through the outermost city wall defenses... the garrison troops are about to collapse... please flee the palace as soon as possible!"

"Huh? It's not April Fool's Day, are you kidding me?"

The guards, their faces haggard and their voices hoarse, repeated the devastating news to the young monarch once more. In the distance, the sky was illuminated by orange-red flames, as bright as day. The tranquil night was utterly shattered by the uninvited guests, and the slumbering imperial city was forced to awaken.

"Your Majesty, Constantinople... is really going to fall to the Ottomans!"

In reality, this guard was a waiter at the DayBucks café, a café employee, and she didn't address him as "Your Majesty," but rather as "Miss."

The sky rumbled and the earth trembled. It seemed as if the earth was about to be split in two by the commotion in the sky and those terrifying lightning bolts, but there was no storm, nor was it raining.

...Which direction is it?

The palace!

Even if Curtis was slow to react, he could still smell the danger in the air.

In fact, from the windows of the second-floor private rooms, one could see that the ground was shaking, the once bright and cheerful stalls were all destroyed, some stalls were set on fire, and waste was scattered everywhere on the ground.

The pretty lanterns were torn into piles, and the colorful flags lay crumpled on the ground. They looked dirty and tattered, with several footprints on them, as if they had been trampled on in the chaos.

The streets were in chaos, filled with explosions and all sorts of noises—not the sounds of joyful celebration, but the chaotic din of calamity. Nearby, Saint Karina could see thick vines growing haphazardly from the cracks in the ground, forcing their way through and flying wildly in all directions.

These sprawling, terrifying vines are attacking storefronts and residences, while others are entangled in stalls that still stand, their owners long gone, presumably far away. The entangled stalls are being deformed by the immense force of the vines.

The billboard for the taiyaki restaurant that St. Karina hadn't yet tried was smashed flat and crushed to pieces. It wasn't the same place she'd seen at the goldfish scooping tank, but a different one. However, this place, once filled with joy and laughter, was now ruined.

That's not the worst.

In fact, the nearby vines had damaged the stalls, and the stall owners must have only had time to grab their most valuable items before rushing to the nearest building for refuge. Further away, in the open square, the vines had also trapped many ordinary people. Regardless of gender, they were all trapped in the vines, screaming, wailing, or cursing, while others appeared unconscious, as if they were asleep.

Saint Karina didn't want to contemplate the worst possibility—that the unconscious person was dead. She preferred the assumption that they were asleep, or that the toxins on the vines had a paralyzing or drowsy effect, rather than being poisoned.

"What is this..."

Curtis was stunned. Her mouth dropped open, her expression frozen, and she stared at the horrific scene before her.