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I let go of her neck, running my tongue over the white blood trickling from the twin fang marks before they healed, leaving her skin as flawless as before.

When I looked up, her hazy green eyes met mine, her lips parted, breathless.

Her hair sprawled across the silk pillows, wild and untamed.

I kissed her neck again, trailing lower until my lips found the hard peak of her nipple through the green lace of her bra.

She moaned as I nibbled and sucked through the fabric, her body arching into me. My hands roamed lower, cupping the perfect curves of her ass, pulling her against my aching length. A slow grin spread across her lips as she pressed up against me, feeling the heat between us.

Somewhere between the feverish kisses and the taste of her blood on my tongue, I had shrugged off my robe and let it fall to the floor.

My control slipped further as I bit down on the lace of her bra and tore it apart with my fangs, baring her soft, peach-hued breasts to my hungry gaze.

I took one swollen bud into my mouth, sucking deeply, feeling her tremble beneath me.

Her back arched, her fingers tangled in my hair, and her moans filled the room.

I stripped away her shorts with one sharp tug, then pressed my fingers against the slick heat of her core, teasing the swollen bud between her folds through the damp silk of her panties.

Her body shuddered at the touch, hips rolling against my hand, desperate for more.

I didn't make her wait. With one final tear, the thin fabric was gone, and I slid two fingers deep inside her, feeling her wetness coat my skin as she clenched around me.

Her cry echoed in my ears as she came apart, her hands gripping my shoulders, her legs locking around my waist. Waves of pleasure pulsed through her as she writhed beneath me, lost in the ecstasy I had given her.

I withdrew my fingers and replaced them with the thick, aching head of my cock, pressing against her entrance. She gasped, her body still trembling from her release.

"Sensitive," she moaned, her voice breathy.

I leaned in, capturing her lips in a deep, claiming kiss. "And I love every second of it," I whispered.

With a slow, deliberate thrust, I pushed inside her, stretching her, filling her inch by inch. Her wet heat clenched around me, pulling me deeper, and when I was fully buried inside her, we both let out a shuddering breath.

I started to move, and she met every thrust with desperate, eager movements of her own. The rhythm between us built into something frantic, unrelenting, our bodies colliding in a symphony of gasps, moans, and whispered curses.

She shattered again and again beneath me, her walls tightening around my cock, milking me, driving me to the edge. I lost count of how many times I pushed her into bliss—how many times she shuddered, cried out, trembled in my arms. And still, I didn't stop.

Her nails raked down my back, her cries dissolving into whimpers as I thrust harder, deeper, until pleasure finally crashed over me like a tidal wave. With a guttural groan, I buried myself inside her one last time, spilling deep into her as my body tensed and shuddered.

For long moments, we lay there, our bodies tangled, slick with sweat and satisfaction. Her chest rose and fell against mine, her breath warm against my skin. Neither of us spoke. There was no need.

I pressed a lingering kiss to her temple before pulling her closer. She let out a small, contented sigh, and together, we drifted into the quiet aftermath and deep sleep.

I woke up after a while. She was still sleeping beside me, her body warm in my arms, my cock nestled perfectly between the curves of her toned ass.

Leaning in, I kissed the crook of her neck, inhaling the faint scent of sweat, sex, and her symbolic sweetness. My body felt rested, but a dull fatigue still weighed on my mind—a quiet exhaustion that had nothing to do with lack of sleep.

I pushed the thought aside as her eyes fluttered open. Greenish-white orbs met mine, soft and hazy with lingering sleep, a small smile curving her lips.

The sun was beginning to set. We had stayed like this for an entire day.

"Don't you have to train today?" I teased, my teeth grazing her earlobe.

"I do," she murmured.

"I don't see you moving, though."

She sighed and, instead of answering, turned to face me, wrapping her arms around my neck. Holding me close.

"I'm fine," I whispered, trailing my fingers down her back.

"I know," she said, though there was something unspoken in her voice.

I studied her for a moment. "Something's troubling you."

She didn't reply.

"You're close to your true awakening, aren't you?" I could feel the condensed essence inside her, an energy coiling around her like a force waiting to be unleashed.

She nodded.

"Good."

Her gaze flickered, and after a moment of hesitation, she finally spoke. "It will be dangerous after you become Crown Prince."

I exhaled slowly. "How so?" I asked, pulling back just enough to kiss her temple before meeting her eyes.

"You'll be officially involved in dealings with the other grand houses. You'll have real authority," she said, voice quiet but steady.

She wasn't wrong. Once I was crowned, I would no longer be just the prince of House Aestherisin—I would be next in line for the throne, fully entrenched in the web of politics and power struggles that governed the great houses.

But instead of dread, a slow excitement curled in my chest. Life had begun to feel monotonous, even with all its pleasures. This... this would be interesting.

"Don't worry," I said, brushing a stray lock of hair from her face. "No one will dare touch the Crown Prince of House Aestherisin without consequence. It would mean war."

She didn't look fully reassured, but she nodded.

We stayed like that for a while, wrapped in silence, before I finally lifted her into my arms and carried her to the washroom.

I set her into the warm water of the tub, slipping in beside her. Steam curled around us as we washed each other, hands roaming, teasing, igniting another round of slow, consuming passion.

By the time we stepped out, breathless and sated once more, I handed her a silver robe—one nearly identical to the one I wore—to replace the clothes I had torn from her body.

She kissed me softly before leaving, murmuring her goodbye.

Once she was gone, I exhaled and turned my focus inward.

It was time to begin my refinement again.