While Justine was having the time of her life with Emilia, Noelle and Sam had naturally long since arrived at the prime minister’s residence as well.
And the moment she arrived, Emilia’s older sister immediately rushed to Crystal and Dixie. “Quickly! Tell me where my little baby is!”
Crystal smiled. “Calm down, big sister Sam, she told us she’ll be back soon, so why not enjoy the snacks she prepared in the meantime?”
Sam’s attention was immediately attracted to the fragrant and delicious-looking cupcakes on the table at the center of the hall, and she almost couldn’t believe she hadn’t noticed them earlier.
But even if they were baked by her little sister and probably lovably delicious, Sam still gritted her teeth and tried her best to maintain her sanity. “I-I’m sure it will taste better when everyone is together, r-right? W-Why don’t I go call Emilia first, then?”
Of course, neither of the younger girls budged, and Dixie even gave Sam a disapproving frown. “Since Emily has already made up her mind, why do you still want to go and disturb her?”
Noelle also knew that Justine’s absence at the same time couldn’t be a coincidence either, so she cleared her throat politely. “Ahem, of course we can wait for Emilia, Sam was just a little overexcited, as always.” She smiled at the taller girl’s indignant glare. “Anyway, have either of you seen Justine? I have something to tell her.”
Both Dixie and Crystal gave her a skeptical look, but the gray-haired girl just smiled. She wasn’t lying, after all, though all she really wanted to tell Justine was that she would break both her legs if she tried to jump to places she really shouldn’t.
Of course, with Dixie and Crystal having already reached an agreement with their princess to not let anyone disturb her for a while, the older girls soon realized that although they looked harmless on the surface, Emilia’s classmates-turned-lovers were actually quite ‘compelling’ when they needed to be.
After all, whether it was logical arguments or a contest of raw strength, the combination of Crystal and Dixie was enough to leave even Noelle stumped unless she was willing to resort to extreme measures.
But no matter how helpless she was, the gray-haired girl vowed to never be so pathetic as to really grab a bunch of cupcakes and start munching while complaining to Dixie and Crystal about how little time she’d been able to spend with her little sister recently.
Fortunately, it didn’t take long for Emilia to come back to the hall, thus saving them from developing callouses in their ears from listening to Sam yapping away non-stop.
Emilia wasn’t sure whether Justine was simply unable to cope with the excess energy she acquired from consuming her blood and fluids, or if it was something else, but the older girl had still ended up slipping into a deep, peaceful slumber almost immediately after her intense orgasm.
Unfortunately, Cynthia was also in a similar state at the moment, and Emilia simply couldn’t get a response out of her no matter how she tried.
Thinking about her partner’s strangely long ‘nap’ time after her recent mission completion, the crimson-haired girl couldn’t help but frown. ‘There’s no way that she’s just being petulant and isolating herself more, right? But if Cynthia isn’t just getting lazier, could it be that something is wrong?’
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Bellatrix returned to Phoenix that very evening, though she wasn’t exactly pleased to discover that Emilia was just waiting for her arrival so she could bid her farewell in person and head back to Blue Dawn.
Of course, given how she had failed to completely fulfill her end of the deal that the two made that night, the prime minister was too ashamed to insist on making the little beauty stay.
Plus, although it was impossible to feel the difference based on Emilia’s appearance, Bellatrix could tell from her heart that there was something bothering the younger girl and making her restless to leave.
She could only sigh helplessly as she embraced the little beauty in her arms. “Alright, I’m already happy that you waited for me to return even though you needed to head back.”
The crimson-haired beauty smiled. “I would have stayed a lot longer if I could, honestly, but there are many things I need to take care of, you know?”
Bellatrix rubbed the younger girl’s back soothingly, and despite her better judgment, she couldn’t help but bury her face in the girl’s nape and snuggle intimately. ‘Sorry, Emilia, I know I’m taking advantage of you, but think of it as my last bit of selfishness…’
Her eyes turning slightly darker as she caught a glimpse of the intricate phoenix tattoo on the little beauty’s back through the back of her collar, Bellatrix decided to quickly let go of Emilia before she really lost her mind.
No one knew better than herself just how weak her will really was in front of this girl. Even that night, she’d almost given in to temptation and attacked her, which would have ended up ruining everything they had between them now for just one night’s pleasure.
Bellatrix wasn’t surprised to receive a strange look from the blonde girl behind Emilia, though she pretended not to notice it. She knew very well just how astute this particular friend of the crimson-haired beauty was.
Hopefully, even if that girl had a hunch about her true thoughts, she wouldn’t be certain, or just decide not to reveal such strange conjectures to Emilia, or Bellatrix felt like she might really lose all face in the eyes of the girl she liked.
And as the prime minister of Phoenix, she naturally had to pretend to be calm and collected while watching Emilia’s flight depart, regardless of her tumultuous heart. ‘M-Maybe if I’d been born a decade later… maybe…’
Her friend had also come to bid Emilia farewell, having come to quite like the girl she tattooed, and she couldn’t help but reach out to grasp the usually aloof woman’s shoulder in concern. “Bella… are you alright? You don’t look so good.”
Her expression twisting slightly, Bellatrix turned to the ‘concerned’ woman and gave her an exasperated eyeroll. “… Well, should I say thank you for the compliment?”
Her friend immediately withdrew her ‘support’ scratched the back of her head with an embarrassed grin. “Oops… I’m not good with words, am I?” She coughed. “A-Anyway, tell me… did something happen between the two of you?”
Bellatrix frowned slightly before shaking her head with a disappointed sigh. “What can happen between me and her? If people who had no idea who we are were to spot us together, how many do you think wouldn’t mistake me for her aunt?”
Her friend was clearly not used to seeing Bellatrix be so self-deprecating, though she had no idea how to ‘fix’ her back, and could only rub her nose in embarrassment. “Y-You know that’s not true. No one will think like that. At most, you look like her older sister with some age difference!”
Of course, having seen Sam up close, Bellatrix didn’t believe her friend’s words at all, though she did give her a grateful smile. “Thank you… weird as it is, I felt like I needed that.”
With her roiling emotions from Emilia’s departure soothed for the moment, the prime minister’s thoughts soon turned back to what she had been contemplating before.
Her visit to Oriana this time was really like an undisguised slap to the face, and it was impossible for her to just forget about it and move on.
Moreover, thinking about the annoying little bug that escaped her palm and caused her to lose face in front of the crimson-haired beauty, Bellatrix couldn’t help but grit her teeth angrily. “It seems like just because we usually don’t interfere with other countries’ internal politics, the government of Oriana really thinks Phoenix doesn’t have any claws, huh?”
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