When Klaus and his mother returned to the room, he noticed that Danny and his other male friends were not there. This made him smile slightly. Clearly, his friends were men of culture. He looked around the room, his smile lingering. Then his eyes landed on Hanna.
As soon as they did, memories of a young woman who had ignited her soul to buy time for his mother and him when they were being chased by the ten masked figures flooded back. That young woman looked just like Hanna, though a bit more mature.
But she still looked like Hanna. In his memories as Fruity, he learned that this woman had been his mother’s close friend, protector, and even his babysitter. They had been very close.
Her name back then was Haniva, and she used a bow, just like Hanna. Klaus recalled how close they had all been—him, his mother, and Haniva. He knew Haniva never loved anyone besides his mother and had been deeply loyal. So, seeing someone who looked just like her standing there stirred emotions in Klaus that he never thought possible.
Without hesitation, Klaus walked over to Hanna and, without saying a word, hugged her tightly. It was a warm hug that caught everyone off guard. Even Hanna was taken aback, but Klaus didn’t bother explaining.
“Thank you for everything,” he whispered into her ear. Hanna’s body shuddered at his words, for reasons she didn’t fully understand.
Breaking away from the hug, Klaus looked between his mother and Hanna. “Mom, from today onward, Hanna is my big sister. I want you to shower her with love—the kind that only a mother gives to her children.”
Hanna’s body shuddered again, and then, as if a dam had burst, tears began flowing down her face. She didn’t know why, but Klaus’s words made her feel something she hadn’t felt in a long time—genuine love.
“It’s alright, Hanna. You’re part of my family now. My mother will be your mother, as it should be,” Klaus said gently. His mother looked at him for a few moments before smiling. She, too, had felt a strange but strong attachment to Hanna the first time she saw her. She was happy to welcome her as family.
Hanna is an orphan. Her parents had died when she was just seven, so being included in a family now meant everything to her. Klaus’s mother came over and hugged her. Seeing how overwhelmed Hanna was by her tears, she led her away to a quieter room, leaving Klaus alone with the other women.
“Well, ladies, who’s going first? Or should we do this together?” Klaus asked with an amused smile, glancing around the room at the remaining damsels.
There were seven heaven-defying beauties in the room, each one staring at Klaus with unreadable expressions. Well, except for the War Goddess—he could tell she was holding herself back from smacking him on the back of the head.
His body was actively healing, and the wound on his shoulder had already stopped hurting. One of the passive skills he had awakened, [Overlord Healing], made sure of that. As long as he had spiritual energy, even a damaged heart could heal.
With his overwhelming star qi, the process was accelerated. He was healing incredibly fast now. The star qi is several times stronger than the Spiritual qi, so the process was going on quicker than he expected.
“Big sister, if you keep looking at me like that, I might get the wrong idea, you know,” Klaus said, turning to Miriam.
“Tsk,” she chuckled, standing up. Perhaps she stood too quickly, as the two mountains on her chest jiggled slightly. Klaus smiled at the sight, but his amusement was cut short when he felt four eyes lock onto him from behind. Ohema and Lucy were making their presence known.
“Uh, big sister, where are you going?” Klaus asked with a shrug.
“I’m hungry, so I’m going to cook,” Miriam replied casually.
‘Can she even cook? Damn, wouldn’t it be nice to see her in just an apron?’ Klaus’s mind wandered to some rather dirty thoughts, but before he could say anything, Miriam dashed out of the room, her face red with embarrassment.
“Suddenly, I’m hungry too,” Anna said, standing up. She glanced at Lily, Nia, and Asha, who also rose with amused expressions that said they were hungry as well. Anna giggled as she led them away, the others following her.
‘This girl is both adorable and shameless,’ Klaus thought to himself. Memories of the gentle Ice Princess from his past surfaced in his mind, and he sighed before turning his attention to Ohema and Lucy, who were both deliberately avoiding his gaze.
“Ladies,” Klaus began with a playful grin, “I suddenly feel like bathing, and since I can’t raise my hand, I’ll trouble these two fairies to bathe me.” His grin widened as he looked at Ohema and Lucy.
Ohema glanced at Lucy and then at Klaus. Suddenly, she stood up and said, “I just remembered Auntie needs me for something. I’ll be taking my leave now, so I’ll leave Sister Lucy to help this bastard with his bath.” She gave Lucy a faint smile before walking out.
As she passed Klaus, Ohema whispered something to him, making him chuckle. Lucy watched her go, unable to shake the thought, ‘Did this b*tch just throw me under the bus?’
She turned to Klaus, who was smiling at her. “You’re a Saint now, huh?” Klaus teased.
Lucy nodded, but her mind was elsewhere. ‘Why am I nervous? It’s just a bath…’
‘Oh my, I’m going to see him naked.’
‘Am I supposed to be naked too?’
‘Oh no, this is bad. This is very bad.’
‘Why am I overthinking this? I can just run away, and he can’t catch me.’
Lucy glanced at Klaus, who seemed to hear every chaotic thought running through her mind. Her heart raced as she caught him staring at her.
“Don’t overthink it, Lucy,” Klaus said calmly. “It’s just a bath. You’re my woman now, and I respect your boundaries. So don’t worry—I won’t do anything you don’t want me to.” His words soothed her, even as her mind struggled to calm down.
“Okay,” Lucy replied softly. She stood from the bed and led Klaus to the bathroom. Her heart raced like she was in a marathon, but she did her best to appear calm.
The last time she spent the night with Klaus, she had woken up the next morning holding something rather hot, long, and thick in her arms. That morning, she had been so flustered that when she left, her cheeks were as pink as the color pink itself.
It was her first time experiencing something like that, and for the past few weeks at the academy, every morning when she woke up, the memory resurfaced, making her blush again and again. It was overwhelming.
Now, as she prepared to take the next step—from touching through clothes to seeing him naked—Lucy felt like she was on the verge of losing her composure. Her mind was flooded with nervous excitement, and the idea of seeing him bare only made it harder to stay calm.
Back inside the bathroom, Klaus looked at Lucy with a look that seemed to say, ‘You’re handling everything yourself, missy.’
Lucy appeared to understand. She gently began removing the bandage from Klaus’s chest. The wound had healed, but the mark remained. It would take a few days to fully disappear. As she looked at his abs, she silently gulped.
With a deep breath, Lucy reached for his shorts. Like peeling a delicate flower, she carefully began to remove them. Suddenly, his pants came off, and when the “weapon of mass destruction” appeared, Lucy’s heartbeat nearly stopped. She swallowed hard, her nerves on edge as she stared in shock.