[TWS] Chapter 267 – Setting Things Straight (Patreon)

After regaining enough strength, Silvia stepped away from Asterios and beckoned him to follow her. He watched her dazzling back and supple butt as she sauntered towards a door, different from the one they had entered her chamber through. As if being more than sure that he was looking, she cast him a quick peek with a gentle smirk over her shoulder, intentionally setting her bare feet on the wooden floor just the way to emphasize her delicious bottom.

Asterios smiled back at her sexy tease and quickly moved closer, embracing Silvia from behind. He placed a loving peck on her cheek while reaching forward to open the way into what turned out to be a small, charming bathroom. His other hand grazed her soft tummy while she lay her own palm over it, enjoying their brief moment of affectionate closeness.

“It’s really such a wonderful feeling having a man by your side,” Silvia whispered with a delicate sigh. “I can sense how much you care about me through your gentle touch.”

“I don’t think I’m the only one, right?” He gazed into her enchanting, amber eyes.

A more apparent smile blossomed on Silvia’s lips as she turned around and pressed them into Ast’s, at the same time, pushing her soft breasts into his chest.

“No, you aren’t,” she whispered and let him hug her tenderly.

They walked deeper into the princess’ personal bathing chamber and quickly jumped into the big, royal bathtub. Silvia turned the tap on and they started quickly washing each other without waiting for the tub to fill up. They would both love to just melt in hot water in each other’s arms to relax a little, but they didn’t exactly have the time for it.

The cleaning process took them only a few minutes and they were back in a presentable state in a flash. All the traces of their recent scuffle were dealt with, maybe except for the few spots of red skin over Silvia’s back, coming from the somewhat rough time she had experienced while pressed into the mirror. But, she wanted those to remain as no one would see them anyway, so Asterios playfully kissed each spot to help it heal, evoking a faint chuckle from the scarlet-haired princess.

She dried them off with her amber flames, enveloping them both with pleasant heat, and they materialized their clothes through their respective energies. Silvia was slowly getting used to it and practicing Aura Materialization that way was great training. The durability of her spiritual clothing couldn’t yet match Ast’s, but she was proud of it nevertheless. The only piece she still kept from her old outfit was the chestplate, which she put on with Ast’s help before they left her bedchamber.

Nodding at each other, they set off to return to their friends, walking through the castle’s hallways hand in hand. However, they soon switched into an even more intimate hold and Silvia linked elbows with Asterios, leaning into his side and letting him lead them both. She really enjoyed small gestures like that as they were something she had always wondered how they would feel.

Soon, they returned to the lounge where the king and the other women had stayed behind and slipped inside to the quiet sounds of a casual chat between them. Miria was the first person to notice their arrival and the cheerful panthergirl beamed at them happily. Silvia and Asterios had no doubts that she knew what they had been up to, and the same would apply to all his other mates too. But, it wasn’t like it bothered the duo in any way.

“Took you long enough.” Welrond grunted with a growing smirk.

“Sorry, Dad. We took the chance to take a quick bath. Asterios insisted on caring for my hair properly so we finished later than I assumed we would,” Silvia explained with a half-lie, finding it a bit too embarrassing to admit that they had shared a much more intimate moment than that.

The king’s gaze met Ast’s and a faint glimmer could be spotted in his royal eyes. Asterios clearly recognized it as a knowing glint, but also partially pride. She’s a real piece of art, isn’t she? Welrond’s gaze seemed to say, not blaming Asterios for taking his time to admire that said masterpiece. It made Asterios chuckle quietly while he shook his head.

“Oh, well. Thanks to that, we managed to talk a bit about everything.” The king nodded to himself and turned back to the girls sitting in front of him.

“We decided to fill your father in on the details of our journey and what we have learned,” Tina said as she directed her noble, blue eyes at the princess.

“It was fun listening to your adventures and misadventures.” Welrond laughed softly. “I’m still finding it hard to believe that you can turn into a full Dragon. I’m sorry, Silvia, but that part has unfortunately overshadowed your own transformation a little bit.”

Silvia showed a gentle smile and shook her head. “Don’t worry about it, Dad. You can’t compare those things. Our case is much less unique. You will be able to do the same in no time. I know it.”

Asterios brought them closer and they sat down next to each other, right between Grea and Bryn. “So, what’s the plan regarding the request?”

“As I said, we are going to use that invitation as an opportunity to tighten our relations. Since you are the one being requested, Tina will accompany you as the captain of her squad if you will allow for this. We will give them a day or two to revise the diplomatic code of conduct and they will be good to go. You are welcome to join the lectures and practice too, of course.” The king smiled at the Summoner girl.

She took a curious peek at Asterios and received a confident nod in response. A big smile curled up her charming lips at the thought of her first real mission. It was even better that they didn’t have to separate for her to take part in it. It was such a perfect, dream-like opportunity.

“I would love to!” Tina made a respectful bow.

“Great. That part is settled, then.” Welrond clasped his hands. “It will take a moment to send an official response to the elves anyway. Plus, I will toss a notice to the Committee of Glimmervale too since this involves their lord. We do have to uphold all the official decorum. People knowing what is happening will raise awareness about this friendly trip. The more rumors the better, honestly.”

“Does that mean we will have to travel by carriage?” Miria tilted her head curiously as her cute ears twitched. “I would love to run there. And Master has already made Umbra imprint on their place to get us there fast too.”

“No, there’s no need to go that far.” The king waved his hand in dismissal. “Since the Royal Division will be the one escorting you, it would be inefficient. I’d say you can either transport them with you or fly all together. Whatever suits you best.”

“I think flying is the best option,” Silvia chimed in. “It will be both ceremonial and decently fast. People will definitely notice and we will get there in no time.”

“No doubt about that.” Grea snorted. “You can intentionally pick a route that passes through as many settlements as possible. It’s always a huge event when someone spots the Royal Division heading somewhere in a formation. I’m sure it’s known to the elves too. Plus, you can start off in Glimmervale, showing how much the kingdom respects Asterios.”

“Professor is right.” Tina nodded excitedly. “Seeing Asterios take off with the Royal Division as his escort would fill them with even more awe. No one would think that they came there just for the princess but specifically for him.”

“Speaking of which, how are things around the capital since that night?” Asterios asked.

Welrond furrowed his brows briefly and quickly understood the subject of his question.

“Everything is going according to the plan, meaning great.” The king grinned at him and Silvia. “The mysterious mask worked well. Many people began researching you much deeper based on what you said and your name. Most have certainly made the connection with your achievements already, or confirmed their guesses from the ball. The latter were the first ones to offer their support to the idea of the two of you getting closer. I bet you could even find their people in Glimmervale at this point.”

“I’m sure there are some who aren’t as happy about such a prospect.” Selene showed a sly smile.

Welrond chuckled at the fox lady. “Definitely, but everyone saw what happens when one tries to go against your precious master. The news has already spread far, much further than just through the capital. No one is going to show their displeasure or try anything openly. Which doesn’t mean that there aren’t any people who would wish for that relationship to fail.”

“Thanks to your bold display, we won’t face that much opposition. But, there are plenty of smart people who might try to scheme things behind the scene. That’s just how the nobles are.” Silvia sighed softly and Asterios placed his hand on her thigh, bringing up a delicate smile onto her sweet lips.

“Does that mean this has become official now?” Grea raised a brow at the king.

“You can say that, to some extent.” He nodded, showing a quick grin at his daughter. “You are free to show your affection to each other in public and official settings as much as you want. Naturally, it would be best not to go too far, but you don’t need to hide it anymore.”

“Yay!” Miria cheered joyfully and lunged at Silvia over Bryn, hugging the princess from the front as she rubbed their cheeks together. “Did you hear that, Silvia? You can now snuggle with Master even more!”

Silvia’s quiet chuckle joined the panthergirl’s happy giggles as she let Miria rub herself into her. It certainly was a good reason to celebrate. Everyone could tell that their royal friend had actually been holding herself back a tiny bit whenever they were taking care of the more important, official business in Ast’s world. Now, she didn’t have to worry about appearances any longer.

“I honestly thought I would never see a day someone successfully courts my daughter.” A reminiscing smile blossomed on Welrond’s contented face. “I’m really happy you two have proven me wrong.”

“Thank you for everything, Dad.” Silvia managed to dig herself out of Miria’s excited hug. “You could have matched me with many nobles but you always kept them away instead.”

“Don’t mention it.” He waved his hand at her. “Your mother would have never allowed anyone to approach you without her approval. Since she couldn’t do that anymore, it was obvious that I had to take that responsibility upon myself.”

A brief silence fell onto the room. Not the extremely uncomfortable one, but more like filled with wordless appreciation and a generally good atmosphere. Welrond cleared his throat after it started dragging out a little bit.

“In any way, we all have things to do. I would like to borrow Umbra’s power to transfer Tina’s squad to Glimmervale after they are done revising since it takes a while for them to reach the town through normal means. There’s no need to delay things when we have the capability of making things quick. The queen will certainly appreciate our swift arrival right after receiving the response,” he suggested.

“Fine by me.” Asterios nodded. “Shall we get going, then? We certainly should speak about this with our elf friends. And I have one more entity to chat with before we leave Glimmervale again.”

All the girls stood up alongside him and Silvia turned to look at Tina. “Would you maybe like to stay? You can start the practice with your unit right away. I could accompany you for the duration of the training so that you don’t feel anxious around the castle.”

Tina pondered for a moment before glancing up at Asterios.

“Are you really going to look at me for permission every time?” He chuckled.

A rosy shade covered her smooth cheeks as she smiled shyly. “Right. I think that’s a great idea. I should get to know them a little more too.”

“It’s settled, then. We can sleep together in my chambers during the night, and you can join your subordinates during the day. I’ll be there to help you with anything too.” The princess stepped closer to her and took hold of Tina’s petite hand.

“I’ll let Camille know that you will be missing for a while, then. She will definitely worry,” Asterios said.

Silvia and Tina smiled at each other and turned to him. Leaning forward, they both left an affectionate peck on his cheeks before heading out of the lounge side by side. Miria and Bryn waved at them as they left.

The king sighed blissfully. “It’s great that she has managed to find so many close friends. Looking for anyone worthy amongst her peers was equally as tiring as trying to find a suitable candidate for her partner.”

“We all love Silvia as much as Master does,” the fox lady stated with a fond smile.

“Yep!” Miria nodded enthusiastically.

“I’m glad to hear that.” Welrond chuckled lightly. “Now, I don’t intend to hold you here any longer. We will be in touch. Thank you for everything. Can’t believe I have advanced so suddenly…”

He started muttering to himself while walking to the doors too. Asterios shared a glance with everyone and started transferring himself back to Glimmervale. A moment later, he reappeared in the master bedroom of his own castle. A crimson gate opened right away and his four mates stepped into the spacious chamber.

“What do we do now, Master?” Miria asked as she bounced in front of him, brimming with curiosity.

“Perhaps we should talk about that bath you have taken just recently.” Grea snickered impishly, running a finger over the edge of his chin. “I feel a little bit… neglected.”

“Sometimes I wonder if you don’t have beastfolk blood in your veins. Your urges are even greater than ours.” Selene shook her head, but her bushy tail grazed Ast’s chest as she stood by his side.

As for Bryn, she just remained a little further away with a lovely blush, watching the three girls act so frivolously with Asterios. He smirked gently and went past all of them to wrap his arms around her waist and pull the dazzling Valkyrie into a loving kiss.

“Don’t be greedy, Grea. With how much you attack me, you will soon catch up to Miria, and she’s had a huge headstart on you,” he said, evoking a giggle from his feline mate. “We won’t get anything done if all we do is mate all the time.”

“Fine.” The demon lady huffed, crossing her arms under her chest, clearly to emphasize her breasts even more. “I’m calling dibs on the next morning blowjob, though.”

The other girls chuckled, including Bryn.

“I’ll take the one after that, then,” she whispered with a note of shyness in her voice and pecked Ast’s lips before stepping away.

He smiled, brushing his fingers through her beautiful feathers, and turned around. “We should speak with Venuzathor. I don’t want him to think that I’m intentionally delaying fulfilling my promise after becoming capable of upholding it. Before that, I’ll get in touch with Camille. We can meet at his spot if you would like.”

“Can’t we just go together?” Miria’s ears flopped down a little.

Selene linked their elbows. “Come on. Let’s take a tour of food stalls and pick something delicious for Master to eat. A man needs some alone time once in a while. Has your mother not taught you that?”

The panthergirl’s cheeks glowed bright red and it was clear that she’d been taught about a different type of alone time. But, no one saw the need to correct her, and Miria was escorted out by the other women, leaving Asterios alone in the room. Of course, they had all shared a quick kiss before that.

He brought out the magical bell and called for Yuumi. Asterios partially expected her to show up with Camille, but Silvia’s maid didn’t show up this time. His adorable attendant quickly stopped in front of him with a bright smile and a soft blush.

“What can I do for you, Ast?” she asked.

“I would like to speak with Camille. Do you know where she is?” he replied.

“Of course. Follow me.” She nodded politely and began guiding him.

After a few minutes, they ended up in one of the servant areas in the castle. Everyone they passed showed a bit of surprise at Ast’s presence but they curtsied properly and busied themselves with their usual tasks. Soon, Yuumi spotted the person they were looking for and bowed to Asterios, leaving him to give them some privacy.

The young maid noticed his approach and faced Asterios with her usual, cool, and unamused expression. Still, she didn’t show him any direct disrespect, perhaps excluding her lack of greeting.

“I won’t take too much of your time,” Asterios began. “I only wanted to let you know that Silvia will be away for a day or two so that you don’t have to worry after suddenly not seeing her around us.”

Camille squinted at him skeptically, crossing her arms over her chest. All the mannerisms of the young maid, pretty much the same age as her mistress, showed that she was quite doubtful, and certainly not too happy.

He sighed. “Look, I didn’t hide her away somewhere or anything. She’s back in the capital to take care of some formalities, of her own volition. Tina is with her, upholding her duties as a member of the Royal Division. It’s just easier for them to stay around.”

Still, Camille looked at him with the same gaze.

“You know what? Maybe you would like to join them? We aren’t in desperate need of your help here and Silvia would definitely appreciate having her personal maid by her side while they are there. What do you say?” Asterios raised a brow at her but there was no response for a while. “You know I’m serious about this, Camille. Or else the king would have gotten rid of me long ago. Is there really a need to keep it up like this?”

She seemed to ponder over his words for a moment, squinting at him again.

“Follow me,” Camille replied shortly with a controlled, cold tone.

She didn’t give him any time to respond, turning around immediately after, so Asterios sighed inwardly and decided to humor the young lady for Silvia’s sake. It wasn’t like he didn’t know where she was coming from with her wariness, but it was really a little bit too much.

Camille stopped in front of a simple, wooden door, one of many in the corridor, and opened it, walking inside. He went after her and closed it behind him, finding the maid already standing on the other side of the small room, right in front of the wide window covering most of the wall. There was a plain, dark, round coffee table in the middle, a matching sofa behind it, facing the window, a bed in the far corner, a desk in the other one, and a few bookcases on the sides.

“Sit,” she commanded.

Asterios listened and plopped himself down on the sofa. She brought out some kind of a small plaque and he noticed traces of mana activating it. The spell imbued in it felt very familiar to him and he instantly recognized it as something similar to Alcove of Serenity. Placing it on the coffee table, the young maid moved closer.

“I have to ascertain that only the adequate candidate ends up with Silvia. And I do not mean by some bullshit royal or bloodline standards,” she said with a serious tone, dropping all her housemaid etiquette completely. “She is young. Girls her age are easily misled by emo—”

“You are not much older tha—” Asterios began to comment but she cut him off by raising a hand so he paused.

“It doesn’t matter. But that’s precisely why I know what it’s like. Having a crush on someone can go multiple ways while obscuring a young girl’s vision, making her blind to many things.”

What she did next, surprised Asterios more than just a bit. Camille climbed onto his lap while firmly holding his gaze, crossing her legs over his. He raised his face to follow hers, ignoring the sudden closeness of the pretty girl straddling him out of the blue for now.

She then started fiddling with her outfit and he realized that Camille was undressing in front of him. Not dropping eye contact for even a fraction of a second, she slowly got rid of all the laces holding her top and let it slide down her figure. Her bare shoulders entered the edge of Ast’s vision as his eyes remained still too.

He kept staring back at her with a blank, neutral expression as she skilfully shed every single piece of clothing on top of him. Just to emphasize that there was nothing more in the way, Camille pulled up her thin, black panties hanging down from her extended finger, hovering it next to their faces.

After she discarded them, the two of them remained in their staring contest for a while. Camille moved in the meantime, a little to the front, back, the sides, or up and down. Ast’s eyes stubbornly followed hers no matter how far she angled her body. Soon, she brought her face extremely close and rested a hand on his chest.

But, when Asterios felt the other one on his crotch, he grabbed her wrist in a flash.

“Too far,” he said coldly. “I was thinking of going along with this in case it was some kind of a test, but you are taking it way too far.”

The entire time, Asterios didn’t move his gaze, and he spotted a faint trace of panic in Camille’s eyes. She flinched lightly but tried her best to keep up her cold and serious mask.

“So, which one is it?” he asked firmly. “What do you take me for exactly?”

“A womanizer,” she replied confidently, making him snort. “A bastard collecting women like dolls from a shop display with his unnatural charm.”

“For fuck’s sake… Why haven’t I charmed you then? It would have made everything so much easier.” Asterios glared at her. “You’ve seen them yourself. Do you think they are all brainwashed? Or maybe they are just madly in love?”

She didn’t respond.

“This is tiring.” He sighed and snapped his fingers.

Camille’s eyes widened as crimson flames suddenly flared around her knees and she shuddered as they rolled up her body, closing them abruptly. But, she didn’t feel anything more than a pleasant warmth wash over her, which disappeared after a second, so she carefully opened them again, finding herself back in her maid uniform.

“Get off me,” Asterios ordered her. “I made this with my spiritual energy so change back later or it might disappear after I move far away.”

She obediently stepped back, moving to stand on the other side of the table.

“Before we begin this, let me just be clear that you definitely are a beautiful woman and I can tell this much without having to stare at your tits. But, I’m not interested in you. I’m not interested in girls for their bodies. Would the first part ever change? I don’t know. You would have to ask Silvia and the others first,” he continued. “Now, let’s get this done with. What does your adequate candidate need?”

“Real feelings,” she replied.

“Dismissed.” Asterios waved his hand. “I would give my life for her at any time. And I don’t mean just death. What else can be further?”

“Being able to protect her from anything,” Camille said.

“Dismissed.” He snorted. “You definitely ran a background check on me. That should be enough. I killed a Dragon if that will help. Technically, two. She witnessed both events.”

Her eyes widened slightly before she quickly took a hold of her reactions.

“Will you continue to bring up pointless arguments which you already know the answers for?” Asterios glared at her with a bit more intensity.

“Time. And attention,” she answered without wavering. “You have five other women in your harem. You can’t possibly take care of them equally. Favorites in such arrangements are bound to appear. If she won’t end up one, she will be hurt more and more as you give her less and less of your physical affection. She will be hurt as much when she notices that you are favoring her too because that’s the person that she is.”

“Oh, she gets plenty of my physical affection, I can assure you of that. In fact, we’ve shared a quite lovely moment about half an hour ago. Just the two of us so that we could focus fully on each other,” he replied.

“What?” Camille’s mouth slightly fell open in quite adorable way.

“You can confirm it yourself if you want. Someone needs to clean up her personal bedchamber anyway. And replace the damaged dresser.” He smiled softly. “But, don’t worry. No one was hurt. I would never do anything to her that would cause her any pain. And Silvia is a strong girl. Much tougher than some wood.”

She clearly didn’t know what to say.

Asterios raised a brow at her. “I love Silvia and I want the best for her. She isn’t trapped, caged, or captured. She is free to go at any time. Your concerns about time, attention, and love are valid, but maybe by human standards. Even if it takes me the entire day and night, I will make sure that every single one of my mates is satisfied with the number of our interactions, be it talking, cuddling, kissing, or just existing. And in the more passionate way too. I can go on for days, and I don’t mean to just boast.”

“By what standards, then?” Camille asked a little softer.

“Do you know the story about a princess locked in a castle that’s guarded by a Dragon, getting rescued by a valiant knight?” He stood up.

She nodded faintly.

“I’m not the hero,” Asterios stated, starting to leak some of his aura as he walked up to her.

Her eyes turning even wider, Camille took a step back. Thick, crimson energy swirled around Asterios as his eyes glimmered with power. Red scales materialized over his skin visible above his collar, climbing up his neck. His wings, tail, and horns showed up too.

Camille was frozen when he finally stopped right in front of her face, having to raise hers to meet his fierce gaze since she was shorter. She swallowed heavily, still trying her best to appear serious and firm.

“You are a precious person to Silvia, equal to her sister, or even her mother. That means you are precious to me too. I want you to accept me, and I don’t mean to intimidate you into doing that, but I won’t sit idly if you are going to actively undermine her happiness by trying to convince Silvia that her feelings aren’t real,” he spoke slowly and firmly, but with a gentle, caring tone. “Are you going to keep doing that?”

He gazed deep into her pretty eyes for a few seconds and started withdrawing his energy to make it easier for Camille to speak, even though he wasn’t oppressing her with it as he had said. Still, seeing him return back to normal made the young maid clearly more relaxed.

“Are you alright?” Asterios asked with a trace of concern in his voice.

She swallowed once more and nodded hesitantly. “Yeah… I’m good… Just a little…”

Her legs wobbled and Asterios quickly caught her waist before she fell. He brought Camille to the sofa and seated her by his side.

“I’m sorry if that was a bit too much,” Asterios apologized but his tone was still firm.

She shook her head. “It’s fine. I might have been a bit too thick-headed, perhaps. I really don’t mean ill. It’s as you said. Silvia is like a sister to me. We grew up together from when we were like four or so. With so much scum trying to lay their hands on her, I really wanted her to find an actual good man. I was a bit surprised at how fast she fell for you. And you already had so many women at that time, even going after more while you two were traveling. It was just… worrying.”

“I understand. I’m very glad she has such a perfect guardian sister. But enough is enough. I think we have both proven to you that this is real, haven’t we?” He caressed her thigh.

Camille sighed heavily. “I guess so. I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. I don’t expect you to suddenly forget all your worries. Just be a bit more open. Spend some more time with the girls. Trust a bit more in what Silvia says. She really worries a lot about you and I can tell that it eats her from the inside that you can’t be on friendly terms with me. You are like a mother figure to her. She needs you to accept the person she loves,” Asterios explained softly.

“I’ll try.” She glanced his way with a much more gentle expression.

“Good. Now, can you move properly?” He smiled and she nodded. “Let’s get you into that castle, then.”

They stood up together and Asterios waited for a moment so that Camille could regather her bearings and change back into her actual clothes. When she was ready, they plunged into the shadows. He felt her fingers clench tightly around his arm as they waited in the ominous darkness, stroking her hand in a reassuring manner. Soon, they reappeared in Silvia’s room and Camille took a deep breath.

She might have possibly inhaled something peculiar as her eyes instantly shot to the broken wardrobe. Her brows rose to her hairline as she examined the damaged mirror and all the very apparent stains over and underneath it. Asterios smiled awkwardly as she glanced back at him, shrugging lightly.

He didn’t wait for her comment and returned to Glimmervale, showing up at the main market.

“Alright. It’s time I get my ass kicked.” He chuckled and looked up at the resting Dracodon.