“First loser… Raven, you need to dance,” Dora said with a slightly amused tone, watching Raven’s lips twitch violently in response.
“I cannot,” Raven huffed, crossing her arms as if the mere thought of dancing was beneath her.
She had no intention of entertaining them with a performance.
Dora raised an eyebrow, her amusement growing. “I thought we all agreed to the conditions before playing, didn’t we?” she asked, her gaze fixed on Raven.
Raven bit her lips, her expression stubborn, before letting out a small huff. “Hmph,” she scoffed, pushing herself up from the table. With a soft sigh, she smoothed her clothes, mentally preparing herself for whatever nonsense they expected.
Everyone around her grinned, excitement buzzing in the air as they eagerly anticipated the dance—especially Aether, whose curiosity was piqued. He had never seen Raven dance before, and the thought of it fascinated him.
“My sister is actually going to dance for the first time…” Thalia murmured, rubbing her hands together like she was witnessing something truly rare. Her eyes sparkled with anticipation, as if this moment had been long overdue.
Raven took a slow breath, raising her hand with the grace of a swan, and then…
Ssssssshhhhh!
“Thank you,” Raven bowed with a straight face, her forehead slightly damp with sweat.
“….”
Silence filled the room.
Everyone blinked, looking at each other in confusion.
“D-Did you see anything?” Maelona asked in a baffled tone. She had expected some kind of dance, but all she had seen was Raven lifting her hand, a faint sparkling purple glow appearing for a brief moment before she bowed.
Some of the others shared Maelona’s confusion, but a few wore deeper, knowing expressions.
“You… used your power, didn’t you?” Dora narrowed her eyes, her slightly amused tone now mixed with mild annoyance.
“That’s cheating!” Thalia exclaimed, her voice rising in disbelief. “You were supposed to dance, not use speed to escape!!!”
“Well… it’s not like she technically broke the rules…” Aria murmured thoughtfully, tilting her head. She could see through Raven’s clever little trick—it wasn’t cheating per se, but it was definitely playing the game on a technicality.
Raven only smirked, her expression smug yet unreadable. She didn’t need to explain herself. They had asked her to dance, and she did.
It wasn’t her problem if they couldn’t see it.
Her gaze flickered toward Aether, who looked mildly annoyed, as if he was frustrated that he had missed her dance. But then—
/I will show you my dance later~ /
Aether blinked, his expression shifting slightly before he let out a small smile.
Raven gracefully returned to her seat at the table, her demeanor as calm and composed as ever.
Dora snorted, shaking her head before turning her attention to the next target.
Everyone tensed, their gazes darting around as they wondered who was going to be chosen next… and of course, it was Thalia.
“Thalia.”
“Y-Yes?” Thalia stiffened, swallowing hard. Her mind raced, trying to predict what Dora was about to make her do. ‘It’s not like we’ve had any bad blood recently… Right? I mean, I’m her friend… She wouldn’t go too far—’
“It’s hot here… Fan me,” Dora said casually, picking up a long feather and twirling it between her fingers as she leaned back lazily.
Thalia’s lips twitched violently. She clenched her fists for a brief second before exhaling sharply. Meanwhile, Aether barely managed to suppress a laugh, his shoulders shaking from amusement.
‘This fucking bitch!!!’ Thalia screamed internally, gritting her teeth.
Without a word, she stood up, walked over to Dora, and snatched the feather from her hand before starting to fan her.
“Yaaaaa… Don’t stop until I say so,” Dora yawned, stretching her arms in exaggerated comfort.
Thalia’s lips twitched even more violently. Her movements became sharper, more forceful—so much so that, in her imagination, she wasn’t fanning Dora, she was slapping her across the face repeatedly with the feather.
“Did you say something?” Dora asked in an entertained tone, tilting her head slightly.
Thalia sucked in a deep breath, her teeth grinding together. ‘Fucking bitch!’ she thought again, but she bit her tongue, refusing to let the words escape.
Ignoring Thalia’s growing frustration, Dora lazily turned her eyes toward her next target…
Aether flinched. He had a bad feeling about this. What was she going to make him do?
However—
“Aria, do a trick that impresses me,” Dora announced instead, though her gaze lingered on Aether for a few seconds before shifting to Aria.
Aria frowned. “Wait… Shouldn’t Aether be next?” she questioned, giving Dora a pointed look.
Dora only smirked. “Losers have to do what the winner says… And there’s no rule that I have to go in order, is there?” she countered, raising an eyebrow.
Aria let out a sigh, her lips twitching before she relented…. she then considered what kind of trick she could use to impress Dora.
“Hmm… Do not move,” Aria instructed after a few moments.
A quiet hush fell over the room.
Aria summoned her bow, fingers tightening around it before she pulled back the string in one swift motion. Without hesitation, she fired an arrow—not just at Dora, but at everyone.
Ssssshhhiiii
The arrows sliced through the air, passing so close to their ears that they could feel the wind of their movement.
Tuk
“That’s not the trick,” Aria muttered, seeing the unimpressed look on Dora’s face.
Just then, the arrows that had initially passed them suddenly changed trajectory, ricocheting off the walls at sharp angles. Within seconds, they shot back toward the group.
But—just like before—not a single arrow hit them. Every single one narrowly missed, grazing past them by mere centimeters before ricocheting again and again…
Ssssshhhhhhiii
Tuk
Ssssshhhiiii
Tuk
The arrows moved in a precise, calculated pattern, touching every corner of the grand hall. Yet, despite their speed and unpredictability, not a single one ever struck anyone in the group.
But that wasn’t the most shocking part. Dora’s eyes widened slightly when she realized that the arrows were accelerating—moving faster and faster with each ricochet, without losing control.
Dora’s gaze sharpened as she focused. She could see the slow-motion movement of the arrows, nearly crossing each other mid-air but never colliding. Not even once. It was like an intricate, high-level performance of absolute precision and mastery.
Even a butterfly that was lazily hovering in the middle of the chaos remained untouched.
It wasn’t random.
It wasn’t reckless.
Each arrow passed within a hair’s breadth of their faces, close enough to stir their breath, to make their skin tingle from the sheer velocity, yet none of them ever so much as nicked a strand of hair.
Then, as if guided by an unseen force, the arrows began to accelerate.
Faster.
Sharper.
Deadlier.
They wove around each other, splitting and reforming like shifting stars, the very space between them warping under their supernatural speed. And yet—despite their impossible velocity, not a single arrow touched another. They never collided, never veered off course.
Then, all at once—
THUD!
The arrows converged into a single point, clashing against each other with a brilliant explosion of sparks before scattering in perfect synchronization—each one embedding itself into the table in front of the group.
Silence.
No one spoke. No one even breathed.
Then—
Clap…
Clap…
One by one, slow, astonished applause filled the hall, their eyes still locked onto the golden glow that lingered in the air.
Dora leaned back, exhaling in amusement.
“Good…” she murmured, her lips curling into a smirk. “You’ve definitely grown stronger, Aria. That level of mastery… even I wouldn’t have expected that.”
Even Aether couldn’t hide the look of genuine admiration on his face. His lips parted slightly as if he wanted to say something, but he simply shook his head, conceding to the sheer brilliance of what he had just witnessed.
Aria exhaled softly, lowering her bow as a proud smirk played on her lips.
“Next…” Dora moved to her next target… Aeth—
“Liora.”
“Tsk.” Everyone clicked their tongues in unison.
Dora giggled, seeing their frustrated expressions. ‘What do they want me to do?’ she wondered before shaking her head. Then, she turned to Liora, who seemed strangely unfazed.
She wasn’t even trying to resist or avoid it. It was as if she had already expected this to happen, as if she was prepared for anything.
Trick… she had plenty of those!
Fan… she could handle that easily!
Dance… heck, she could dance with her husband without hesitation!
She could be feared by anythin—
“Liora”
“Tell the truth… what do you really think about your Aether?” Dora asked, her tone carrying a teasing sharpness, her eyes twinkling with mischief.
Liora blinked, caught off guard. “W-What exactly are you asking?” she stammered, her heart suddenly picking up speed.
Aether smiled inwardly, noticing how Liora’s cheeks began turning red. She was flustered—clearly caught off guard by the direct question.
Dora smirked, leaning forward slightly. “You know exactly what I mean… don’t you?”
Liora hesitated, her gaze flickering toward Aether, who was looking at her with his usual warm smile. That gaze of his only made her more nervous. Her face grew even hotter, her hands clenching slightly at her sides, “I-I think I have some work to do… so bye~” she blurted out in panic before instantly shifting into her wolf form and making a run for it.
But she forgot one thing—who the real winner was here.
Dora didn’t even bat an eye before vanishing from her seat. In the blink of an eye, she caught the fleeing wolf with ease—like a cat catching a mouse—and tossed her effortlessly onto the table.
“No one should escape… we all agreed to this, right?” Dora grinned, a wicked glint in her eyes.
Liora groaned, shifting back into her human form. She gritted her teeth, feeling utterly trapped. It wasn’t like she didn’t want to say it. That wasn’t the problem. It was just…
She was shy.
It wasn’t easy for her to say these things.
It was complicated.
She loved Aether. She showed it in her own way—when she slept with him, when she touched him, when she clung to him in quiet moments.
But saying it out loud…
That felt even worse than being stripped bare in front of everyone.
“Come on… we don’t have all night. Just spit it out already,” Dora pressed, her tone laced with amusement.
Aether remained silent, simply watching her. He didn’t rush her, didn’t push her. He just waited—his gaze steady, patient.
Liora could feel the heat burning through her skin. Her heart pounded in her chest, her tail curling slightly behind her as she hesitated. Her voice was barely above a whisper.
“I… I… like how he is,” she finally muttered, her tail giving a small, nervous wag.
Dora raised an eyebrow. “How he is? That’s too vague. We need details,” she prodded, clearly enjoying this.
Aether let out a quiet chuckle, watching the scene unfold.
Liora sucked in a breath, her fingers fidgeting slightly. She averted her gaze from Aether, struggling to find the right words. “He is… kind of not a bad guy. He is… love—”
“Say it while looking at us,” Dora interrupted, her tone indifferent, but her smirk betrayed her amusement.
Liora clenched her jaw, gathering every ounce of her courage before finally forcing herself to look at them.
Aria, who had been watching silently, scoffed. “You can easily talk about how you’re going to fuck him, how you’ll ride him senseless, but this is what you struggle with? I don’t understand how he even likes you.”
Liora bit her lip hard.
She was trying, damn it!
Aether’s smile softened. He was about to step in, noticing that Liora looked increasingly uncomfortable, but before he could say anything—
“I… I love him.”
The words slipped out before she could stop them.
“Hmm?” Dora’s smirk widened, her eyes gleaming with satisfaction.
Liora’s fingers clenched into fists as she took a shaky breath. She knew she had to say more, and for once… she didn’t want to hold back.
“He is… the first man who ever looked into my eyes without fear,” she said, her voice trembling slightly. “The first man who treated me as his equal. He never judged me, never looked down on me, never had any hidden agenda when he approached me. He just… saw me. For who I was. And I—” she paused, swallowing hard, “—I didn’t know how much I needed that.”
Aether’s eyes widened slightly, surprised by her words.
Liora’s breath hitched, but she kept going.
“He is… kind. Gentle. A good man… But also strong in ways that I can’t even explain.
He shows his love without hesitation, without fear. The way he takes care of me, the way he teaches me things, the way he learns from me in return… He always shares his thoughts, always asks for my opinion—even when I know I’m not the best person for strategy or planning, he still values what I have to say.” Her voice quivered, and her eyes glistened slightly. “And that makes me… really h-happy.”
She exhaled shakily before continuing.
“He is a good husband. And most of all…” her voice cracked slightly, “…he is a good father.”
Everyone stilled.
Liora’s lips trembled as she spoke, “Kaelen… he’s not his blood son. He didn’t have to do anything for him. He didn’t have to accept him… But he did. He took care of Kaelen as if he were his own. He treats him with so much love, so much warmth… and not because he has to, but because that’s the kind of man he is. A good man. A good father.”
She bit her lip, her eyes turning glossy as emotions swelled inside her. “He loves me… he loves us… too much. And I… I don’t think I have anything I can give in return that would ever be enough. But all I know is that I want to stay by his side—no matter what happens. Even after death… I just want to be with him.”
Silence.
A stunned, heavy silence.
Dora, who had been expecting just a flustered, half-hearted confession, was caught completely off guard by the raw, heartfelt words.
Aether blinked, his mind processing every word she had just said. He hadn’t expected that. He truly hadn’t. He could only stare at her, his heart feeling… strange. Warm.
‘Good man, good husband… good father…’
He let out a slow breath.
The atmosphere had shifted.
Liora, feeling the weight of the silence pressing down on her, coughed awkwardly. “A-Anyway… on to the next one,” she muttered, waving her hand as if to brush off what just happened.
But the feeling lingered.
Everyone felt a little weird after hearing that. A strange mix of emotions settled in their chests. Happiness… and something else.
Jealousy?
They didn’t understand why. After all, they all had the same husband.
But maybe… it was the way Liora had expressed it. The way she had poured her heart out.
Dora cleared her throat, breaking the lingering tension. “Alright then… on to the next one,” she announced. Then, her lips curled into a grin.
“Maelona… it’s your turn.”
Everyone expected that…
“Do a love confession to Aether… from the bottom of your heart.”
…. No one expected that!!
Aether blinked.
Dora winked~