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Lilith slowly awoke from her dream.

The sun was currently at its peak and its strongest. It blazed down upon the glazed tiles of the roof, unleashing a wave of intense heat that caused distortions in the air.

Despite the scorching heat, Lilith remained unfazed. Even so, the sun still heated up her cheeks until they were rosy red like a pair of freshly ripened apples in autumn.

The sun was known for inducing lethargy in people. Lilith could barely open her eyes. They were unfocused and her brain was still a little foggy. For one moment, she even felt like she was floating and drifting in a sea of shimmering gold.

“Ugh… Mom has left already?”

Lilith sat up and shook her head in an attempt to dispel her drowsiness, while absentmindedly feeling the spot beside her.

Save for a pillow that had a cartoon version of herself embroidered on it and the lingering scent of her mother, there was no one else around.

“Sheesh, how irresponsible of Mom to leave me so abruptly after dropping an information bomb on me.”

Lilith scratched her head and continued muttering, “She could have at least given me some tools to protect myself. As the Dragon Queen, she must have that kind of stuff in her possession.”

She got up and stretched. Although it was noon, the breeze was still quite cool.

“Never mind, I don’t need those tools to survive anyway. If Mom didn’t give them to me, that means she believes in my abilities.”

Putting the pillow away, Lilith turned to leave.

Today was the day she was due to leave with Lesiah. There was much to do, so she had no time to waste.

“There you are, Lilith,” Lesiah called out from behind. “I’ve been searching for you everywhere. What have you been up to?”

“Well, I came to take a break. How’s your preparation going?” Lilith responded lazily.

“I’m ready to leave as soon as you are ready, Lilith… Huuuuuuuuh?!!!”

Lesiah suddenly let out an adorable squeal of surprise, as if she had witnessed something incredible.

Lilith turned around to look at her with a puzzled expression.

“What’s wrong with you?”

“I-I-I…” Lesiah stammered with a red face and quickly averted her gaze.

Lilith could not be certain if she was imagining it, but she thought she saw white steam rising from the top of Lesiah’s head.

“I’m fine, but Lilith, you…”
“Me? What’s wrong with me?”

All she did was take a nap on the roof and have a deep conversation with her mother. Was that something to be so surprised about?

Lesiah reached out with a trembling finger and pointed at Lilith’s body…

“Lilith… you… This is… too…”

Lilith scratched her head in confusion. Did her bad sleeping posture mess up her clothes?

Even if it did, did Lesiah have to make such a big fuss about it? She had pretty much seen every inch of her skin anyway.

Lilith lowered her head to adjust her clothes.

It was then…

“HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUH?!!!”

She let out a scream that was even louder than Lesiah’s.

T-That’s strange… Why am I wearing that maid-nurse-bunny girl dress that Mom showed me before? No matter from which angle I look at it, it’s truly an offending piece of clothing!

Did Mom put it on me?

No need to guess, it was definitely her! She was the only one with such a nasty fetish. How the heck did she manage to put such an intricate outfit on me without waking me? Did she have some sort of invincible sewing technique like Gulch?

No wonder the air had felt so cool despite it being midday. So this was the reason!

“Wait, Lesiah, I can explain…” Lilith desperately tried to save what little dignity she had left. “This dress is…”

“N-No… you don’t have to explain.”

As a noble princess, Lesiah had never encountered such extreme attire that was only popular among a very niche circle. It was no surprise that she was shocked to the core the moment she laid eyes on that dress, which had been magically altered by the Dragon Queen herself.

“I’m just surprised that Lilith has such a fetish, but I’ll try to understand it!”

Lesiah slowly lowered her hands that were covering her blushing face and forced herself to look straight at Lilith. Her cheeks grew redder by the second, but she remained determined and said, “Yes, I’m sure I’ll come to understand it!”

“You don’t have to understand something like that!!!”
“Even if I can’t understand it, I’ll still try to get used to it.”
“I’m telling you that it’s not necessary!”

Lilith wanted to cry. She felt like something important within herself had just shattered in front of Lesiah.

“Forget it, I’m too lazy to explain anymore.”

Lilith waved her hand weakly, feeling drained already even though she had not done anything today.

It must be because she was out in the sun for too long.

Lesiah hesitated for a moment before firmly saying, “Don’t worry, Lilith, your secret is safe with me.”

“This is not a secret!”

Moreover, how many people would believe such a thing if they did not witness it firsthand? After all, who would wear such disgraceful clothing for their own amusement in broad daylight?

“Excuse me, Princess Lesiah, there is…”

The voice abruptly halted, causing a sinking feeling in the pit of Lilith’s stomach.

Lilith turned her head around stiffly, only to see the maid whom Lesiah called Miss Sheila. She was staring at Lilith with a surprised expression.

“I-I’m… terribly sorry, Your Highness. I was not aware that your friend had a strange hobby of wearing such an outfit on the roof in broad daylight. Please forgive my intrusion!”

“Wait!”

Lilith reached out and tried to stop her from leaving.

Yet Sheila’s longstanding professionalism as the head of maidservants told her the appropriate response to handle such a situation.

“I shall take my leave then.”

Deliberately ignoring Lilith’s presence entirely, Sheila activated her saint-level skill and vanished in just a flash.

Lilith was left alone with her trembling outstretched arm in the chilly wind.

◆◇◆◇◆◇◆

The Dragon Queen leisurely strolled through a golden space, moving at a slow pace as if she were walking in her own garden in the backyard.

With each step, ripples emerged in the space around her, spreading outward like water ripples and eventually dissipating when they hit a golden door.

Rather than the strange golden surroundings, the Dragon Queen’s attention was on something in her palm.

It was a spectrum stone that was projecting several clear images.

The images were of Lilith. More precisely, they were images of her in the world’s cutest outfit that the Dragon Queen had put on her after making her fall asleep with some little tricks, posing in all sorts of adorable poses and some embarrassing ones.

Of course, Lilith knew nothing about this. Had she known about this, she would undoubtedly destroy these embarrassing photos, even if it meant risking her life.

After looking at the final image, the Dragon Queen looked like a desert traveler who had stumbled upon an oasis. She took a deep breath as an intoxicated look appeared on her face.

“As expected of my lovely daughter. I already feel like I’m back in my prime just by looking at images of her.”

The Dragon Queen then tossed away the large skull she was holding in her other hand. It dropped into that huge “mountain of skulls” under her feet, rolling along the slope for nearly half a minute before coming to a halt at the “foot” of the mountain.

The mountain was made up entirely of the same skull.

“Now that my energy is replenished, it’s time to take care of some business.”

The Dragon Queen stepped into the air and walked up to the golden door. She lifted her arm and with a light press of her hand, the door cracked open with a loud creak.

The Dragon Queen stepped through the door, the corner of her mouth lifted into a cold smile.

“Well done, little vermin. I would love to find out just how many incarnations you have.”

◆◇◆◇◆◇◆

Lilith was grunting while changing her clothes in Lesiah’s chamber.

“I see. So Lilith’s mother came to visit?”
“Yes, I’m glad you get it, Lesiah!”

Lesiah mustered an awkward but polite smile.

“Actually, I don’t quite understand what your mother’s visit has to do with that outfit you were wearing just now. Isn’t it even stranger to be wearing that outfit just because your mom is visiting?”

Lilith snapped impatiently, “Like I said, my mom tricked me into wearing this! I have no desire to wear this at all!”
“I see, I see… I understand now.”
“You don’t look like you understand!”

Not only did she wear such clothes, but she was also seen by others.

That kind of thing… That kind of thing was…

Ugh… the more she thought about it, the more depressed she felt.

“Ahem.”

Lesiah looked away, cleared her throat and recomposed herself before redirecting the conversation.

“By the way, where are the people who will be assisting Leniah? This is a significant matter and I would love to personally meet them beforehand.”

Lilith shot one last glare at Lesiah before pouting and said, “Right, they’re already here. Look over there.”

Suddenly, the space in front of Lesiah rippled like water. Two figures then materialized before her. One was tall and the other was shorter.

The taller one was none other than Green Emperor, who had been previously whisked away. The person beside him was forced to kneel on the ground because he was all tied up, and he was someone that Lesiah never expected to see here.