Layla was on the floor, kneeling before Electra. She looked ashamed as she avoided eye contact.
Electra smacked her head with a pillow, shaking her head in disbelief and disappointment. "I don't believe it! You're a newbie, but you can't be that stupid!" She yelled.
Layla looked down at her thighs. "Sorry-"
"A sorry won't just magically cut all your problems of your sorry ass, blackhead!" Electra pinched the bridge of her nose.
"Go easy on her, Electra! In my opinion, she didn't do anything wrong, and the nobles will understand her." Orion, who was sitting on the bed, spoke up.
Layla smiled to herself as she heard him stand up for her even tho she was wrong.
Electra scowled. "Shut the fuck up, okay, hatchling?" She rolled her eyes. "You are saying that because you two just sucked into each other!"
"But if you want to help her so much, then we'll go back to the castle with her, and you will personally apologize to Lady Elaine Caer and The Queen~" She smirked.
Layla turned her head around and looked up at Orion, pleading for him to accept with tears in her eyes.
Orion shrugged. "Well, that's the least I can do to compensate for what I have done to her..." He said, still disappointed in himself.
Layla smiled widely and launched herself into his arms. "Thank you!" she wiped her tears. You don't know how much embarrassment you are saving me from! I mean... I would die!"
Orion softly patted her on the head.
Electra watched them in disgust, her eye twitching. "Okay, okay! Stop! Pause! I don't want to see that overexaggerated love!" She stuck her tongue out, preventing herself from puking.
Layla got off the bed and stepped up closer to Electra, pressing her chest against hers. "What? Jealous~?" She smirked.
Electra scowled and turned her head away from her. "Go the hell, brat."
Orion chuckled as he watched Layla tease Electra. He then noticed that Electra had a weird-looking ring with a white gem on her finger.
"What is this ring, Electra?" He pointed at her finger.
Layla looked down at Electra's hands. Seeing the ring, her eyes glistened with jealousy.
"Oh? This?" Electra pulled her hand out to Layla's face. "I got this from my old friend. It was an apology gift for something he did to the team a long time ago."
Layla raised her eyebrows curiously. "Fenric, right? What did he do? He seemed to be happy when he was thinking about the party the three of you formed together."
Orion got off the bed and walked up to them, looking at the ring closely.
"Is this a magical device? Like the ones we've seen in the Bleeding Crown Tournament?" He asked.
"Yep~!" Electra grabbed Orion's hand, and the gem started glowing softly.
Orion twitched. He couldn't describe what he was feeling, but it felt like his life itself was being sucked out of his body.
Layla grabbed his arm and tucked it in between her breasts. "Don't suck his life out of him! As his lover, I am the only one who can do that!"
"This one can store mana!" Completely ignoring Layla, Electra yelled, a wide smile on her face.
For the first time in his life, Orion looked down at Layla's chest, but not platonically, but with attraction.
"S-Shit! That's what I've been worrying about! I can't look at her in that way! She's way too kind for this!"
"Like it~?" Layla whispered, standing on her toes with a smile on her face.
Electra was too fascinated with the ring to give a care about them teasing each other.
Orion sighed. "Ahh! It might sound stupid, but I wish you had found out about my lies earlier!"
Layla nodded, grabbing the wrist of his left arm and kissing his cheek. "Maybe, just maybe you would never lose your hand..." She leaned in closer. "But it's not too late to lose something else~"
He shook his head. "Sacrifices need to be made. Even if I had to do it again, I would go through all the pain and save Bellatrix because deep inside, she's a kind soul."
Layla puffed out her cheeks, pouting. "There shouldn't be anyone other than me in your head, after all, I will be your wife one day, no?"
Electra grabbed their heads. "Okay love retards. Stop being so sappy to each other. It's already late, and you two should get a good amount of sleep because the first thing we'll do in the morning is go to the castle."
Layla looked at the bed, then at Orion. Her cheeks reddened as countless possibilities ran through her mind.
"A-Ahaha... haha..." She laughed awkwardly.
Electra smirked and poked Layla's nose teasingly. "What's wrong? You have always been sleeping with him, not to mention that you were always naked."
Orion looked at Electra, smacking her head. "It's kinda different now..."
Layla nodded nervously, not being able to utter a single word.
Electra groaned, shaking her head as she walked towards the door. "Just bound, you idiots. As an adventurer, you will never know what tomorrow will bring, so make the most of the night~"
Then she left the room, leaving them alone.
Layla looked up into Orion's eyes. "Ahem... Yes... It's different now." She said softly, and a portal appeared above her. It passed through her body, replacing her clothes with a nightgown.
"Did Electra teach you how to do that?" Orion said in surprise, amazed by her skill.
Layla nodded and slowly wrapped her arms around his waist. "I have always dreamt about sleeping together... as a couple... but never thought it'd happen."
"Yeah... It still feels kinda weird..." He smiled at her.
Layla pushed him onto the bed, giving him a soft, short kiss on the lips. Her cheeks reddened. "I... I am happy..."
Electra was on the roof, looking down at Bellatrix, who was watching Orion and Layla, so invested in what's gonna happen that she didn't even notice her.
"What are you doing, Bellatrix?" Electra asked coldly. "A daughter would never watch her father in such an intimate moment."
Bellatrix didn't even look at her, she just nodded softly. "I know... I'm just curious whether Master will have sex with that girl. She's beautiful."
Electra sighed. "No, they won't. Just look at them. Layla might be really persistent when it comes to him, but in her own way, she probably thinks that a relationship ends on a kiss." She scowled and pulled her ear playfully. "Wait a second! How do you even know what sex is? You are so young!"
Bellatrix squeaked in pain and turned around. "What are you expecting from me, Electra?! I was raised in the underground! I have seen prostitutes, sex slaves, rape victims, everything you can imagine."
Electra rolled her eyes. "Well, never mind!"
Then, the light in the room was blown away.
Electra sat down next to Bellatrix. "It seems that your little show is over."
Bellatrix nodded, a confused look on her face. "Who is that girl anyway? I have never seen her before," She paused, frowning. "And she is way too clingy to Master!"
Electra sighed, bumping her with her shoulder playfully. "It's kinda hard to explain as it's way too complicated, mainly due to them being young and stupid, but she is the girl who was with him for his entire life." She rolled her eyes. "Well, now that they have finally revealed the most obvious chemistry to each other, they can be referred to as a 'couple, or 'lovers'."
"So... She is my mistress...?" Bellatrix asked in confusion.
Electra nodded. "If you really want to go with that Master-Servant dynamic of yours, then yeah, she is your mistress."
Bellatrix hesitated, but she hugged Electra tightly. "That won't change anything, r-right?"
Electra looked down at her. At first, she scowled, but her expression softened and she patted her on the head. "Nope. Hatchling wouldn't ever reject anyone he cares about, or literally anyone in need."
Bellatrix leaned into her hand, a smile on her face. "No." She shook her head. "I wasn't talking about Father. I was talking about you, Mother."
Electra's cheeks flushed furiously. She felt her heart speed up. "No..."
"I can still be your... Mother..." She looked away, flustered.
Bellatrix clung to her side like a tick. "I'm happy." She whispered.
Electra's instincts were telling her to throw the girl away, but she didn't, holding her even closer.
Electra closed her eyes, recalling the days when her family was happy and lively.
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There were two silhouettes in a small kitchen, one was a woman, and the other was a man.
"...I don't remember what they looked like, but I still remember how happy I was with them..."
A younger Electra, probably in her early teens, ran into the kitchen. She was holding a dead fish in her hand as she tugged a man's hand.
"Daddy, daddy! Look, look!" She held out the fish towards the man's face, a wide, excited smile on her face.
The man smiled softly. "Oh? What is it you got here, Electra?" He took the fish from her, patting her head. "Where did you get such a fine fish, huh?" He asked kindly.
Electra huffed proudly, crossing her arms. "I caught it! Alone! With no help at all!"
The woman who was cooking something glanced at the fish and looked at Electra, a smirk on her face.
She walked over to her and crouched down to her level, pinching her cheek softly. "Oh? Isn't my little Electra such an amazing girl~? Being able to do something like that for her Mommy and Daddy! It's so sweet~!" The woman said and kissed her on the forehead.
Electra was smiling in contentment.
"Mommy and Daddy were not perfect. In fact, they were the opposites of themselves. To this day, I don't understand how they got together."
"Daddy was the kindest person I have ever known. He couldn't reject any offer and always helped everyone, even when they didn't need it."
"On the other hand, Mommy was not even slightly good. She was evil, we all knew that, but we all loved her for who she was."
"In a way, Mommy and Daddy filled out each other's gaps, and without a doubt, loved all of us with all their hearts."
Electra's nose wiggled as she smelled something good in the air. "Mommy, mommy!? What are you cooking today?!" She asked with anticipation.
The woman smiled widely and looked over at the pot. "Curry."
Suddenly, a loud wave of baby crying came from the cradle, which was in the kitchen's corner.
The woman walked back to the pot, making sure that nothing went wrong. "Can you take your baby sister to me, Electra~?"
"Aight!" Electra headed to the cradle and carefully picked up the baby, hugging it softly.
"The baby was quite annoying, but I still loved her as much as I loved Mommy, Daddy, and everyone else."
Electra walked towards her mother. Each step she took was calculated and cautious, making sure that there was no possibility of her baby sister getting hurt.
"We are here!" Electra said.
The woman took her baby into her arms. She looked down at it as it reached its tiny hands towards her chest. "Oh~" She looked at the man. "Darling? Can you watch the curry? The baby seems to be hungry~"
"Sure." The man walked over to the pot, changing his wife.
Electra watched as her mother breastfed the baby, but she got bored almost instantly.
She looked at her father. "Daddy! I want to watch you cook!"
The man picked her up, setting her on his shoulders to give her a good view. "Here you go."
The woman giggled, caressing the baby's hair as it sucked her breast. "Oh~! Don't suck all the milk out, you little demon~!" She sighed. "I swear... None of your sisters were as hungry as you when they were your age~!"
"Maybe she will suck all your beauty and energy out and leave you looking like a withered fruit~?" The man teased as he stirred the curry with a wooden spoon.
"You better pray for me not to suck all your energy out tonight, darling~" She chuckled.
"Back then, I didn't understand what they were talking about. I actually didn't really care, thinking that it was something about my Daddy feeding the baby, but as I got older, I realized how often they made such dirty jokes in our presence."
"That's probably the reason why one of my sisters had become so lustful when she grew up."
Electra watched the curry, her mouth watering up. Her stomach grumbled and she wrapped her arms around the man's neck. "Daddy, I'm hungry!"
The man patted her hair. "Don't worry, Electra. A couple more minutes and your Daddy will set the table, okay?"
The baby leaned away from the woman's breast. It burped softly and let out a couple of satisfied sounds.
"Finally full, sweetie~?" The woman tickled the baby softly while carrying it towards the cradle.
Electra hopped off her father's shoulders and ran up to her mother, clinging to her leg as she placed the baby in the cradle.
"Mommy! I want a hug!" She said cheerfully, holding her arms out for the woman to pick her up.
The woman smiled softly and picked her up. "Are you happy now, sweetie~?"
Electra nodded, clinging to the woman. Her eyes flicked between the baby and the woman.
"Mommy, mommy? Why does Ca-Ca look so much like you? She has the same eye and hair color!" Electra smiled curiously.
The woman pinched her ear softly. "You little rascal, stop calling your baby sister like that~!" The woman smirked.
Electra squeaked, but she couldn't help but giggle mischievously. "Haha! Tell me! Tell me!"
The woman patted her on the head, looking down at the baby with nothing but love. "I have a certain limit to how many children I can give birth to. The limit is seven, meaning that this little bean will always be the youngest out of all of you."
Electra reached her hand towards the baby, wanting to caress its short hair. "Youngest... sister..." She whispered and looked up at her mother. "I need to protect my baby sister, right?"
The woman patted Electra's head again. "That's right, sweetie. You see, the more babies I give birth to, the more they are like me, and this means that this little peaceful child will grow up to be a problematic and very mean girl when I or Daddy won't be around anymore." She kissed Electra's forehead. "That's why you need to protect her, sweetie."
Electra's eyes flicked between her mother and father. "As the third child, I am more Daddy than Mommy, right?"
The woman nodded. "Yes, but don't worry, maybe not as much as Mommy, but Daddy is an amazing person!"
The father laughed loudly. "I am way more amazing than you, honey~!" He yelled.
The woman looked over at him with a smug smirk on her face. "Well, maybe in the bed, yes. But remember that if you weren't, you wouldn't ever make someone as godly as me, your beautiful wife, no~?" She teased.
The man nodded. "Mhm! You are right!"
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Electra leaned in towards Bellatrix's forehead, giving her a soft kiss there.
Bellatrix's cheeks reddened as she looked up at her in confusion. "E-Electra?" She asked, her voice shaky and flustered.
"All the sins I've committed... all the innocent people I have killed... all the dreams I have shattered..." She paused, looking into Bellatrix's eyes and smiling softly. "Orion is right... I can still change... And I want to atone for these sins..."
"H-Huh? What are you talking about?" Bellatrix asked.
"My mother was an amazing, loving person to us, and I failed her, I lost what she wanted me to protect... But now... I want to start redeeming myself by being as good a mother to you as she was to me, okay, sweetie?" Her heart was beating slowly, her eyes lit up after being empty for almost too long.
Bellatrix teared up and buried her face into Electra's cloak. The truth is that she was waiting for someone to tell her something like that. She didn't want to be recognized, not to be praised, not to be saved. She just wanted to be loved.