Mage Manual

Chapter 1723: Chapter 1274: Tender Moments

As the evening breeze lifted the curtains, pale red moonlight streamed through the window, illuminating the gold and white tuxedo on the carpet.

Ash gulped down half a bottle of water, holding the bottle to Sonia’s lips and feeding her small sips. After she finished, he placed it on the bedside table. Unlike Ash, Sonia’s wedding dress still barely clung to her body, and she was adjusting her bustier when Ash slipped under the covers. The Sword Maiden shrank back like a kitten, nervously staring at Ash, making him feel a pang of guilt.

He hesitated for a moment, tentatively asking, "Are you satisfied with this birthday gift?"

"Satisfied." Sonia quickly replied, curling up and burying herself against his chest, speaking with some frustration, "I realized there’s such a huge difference between the Supreme of Magic and the Five-Winged Demigod... I planned for two hours, but didn’t expect you to not waste even a minute..."

Ash chuckled, holding her in his arms. His heart was filled with peace and joy, and compared to the ecstasy of moments before, this sweet, tender moment felt all the more precious. Simply hugging the person in his arms felt like embracing the whole world. All worries seemed insignificant, even the act of living became beautiful.

"Eight minutes left," Sonia softly said, "After eight minutes, my exclusive time ends, and it’s Diya’s turn."

"Forget about it."

Sonia lifted her head, her gaze meeting Ash’s serious eyes.

"I’ll tell them, it doesn’t count as you reneging." Ash rubbed his face against the Sword Maiden’s cheek like a cat, whispering, "Let’s just stay like this until tomorrow."

Sonia fumbled under the covers, pouting and humming, "Aren’t you still full of spirit?"

"It shows I’ve completely fallen for your charm." Ash blinked, "It’s all your fault I’m like this, you have to take responsibility!"

Sonia let out a small laugh, tracing her finger over Ash’s collarbone, speaking with a complex tone, "I don’t want to share you either... but this is the fairest way."

"Huh?" Ash widened his eyes, his forehead touching Sonia’s, asking in a confused tone, "You don’t have a fever, do you? What nonsense are you talking about? The Sword Maiden I know never talks about fairness, where did you learn such a bad habit? I need to treat you..."

They playfully squabbled under the covers for a moment before Sonia slapped away Ash’s restless hand, grumbling, "Of course I don’t talk about fairness to others, but they’re not just anyone else."

"If my relationship with them were poor, ordinary, or just casual friends, I wouldn’t care about their feelings, but they’re our Shared Life teammates... we’ve cultivated together, fled together, fought angels together, and lived together for so long..."

She spoke softly, "They all genuinely love you... even Vishi... if they demand the love they deserve, can I really ignore past friendships and turn against them? Even if we have to fight, it should be after the decisive battle, internal conflict now would betray all the suffering and efforts we’ve endured so far."

"Especially since they just nominated me as the leader, now I don’t know how to treat them."

"If you were a loyal dog man, willing to reject them, I could at least apologize to them with peace of mind. But you’re like a little trumpet crawling out of a trash can, you like whoever likes you, refusing to disappoint anyone, fairly liking everyone... Now that I’ve had the first taste, you have no reason to refuse their tasting. Instead of watching you all sneak around angrily, I’d rather propose a solution that satisfies everyone."

Sonia lightly bit her lip, gently punching Ash’s chest, speaking with resentment, "I picked up the bad habit of fairness from you, this little trumpet!"

Ash didn’t dare refute at all, his voice even softened, "Even if things must be fair, does it have to be concentrated tonight? We could give everyone a day—"

"Are you saying you’ll be in the room with the Witch doing what we just did, while I can only listen outside?" Sonia stared directly at Ash, her fingers silently clutching his back, nails already embedded in flesh, just a bit of force could leave scratches on his soul body, "Simply imagining such a scene makes it hard for me to control myself."

Ash said nothing, only gazed at Sonia with a very puzzled look—you’re already losing control outside the room, wouldn’t you wipe out the world inside the room?

"Not just for one day, even for one night, one hour, one minute, I won’t allow anyone else to have exclusive time with you." Sonia held him tightly, gritting her teeth as she declared ownership, "Only I have the right to have you!"

"Although watching in the room would still make me angry, I’d have a sense of... defiling pleasure." Her tone revealed a kind of dark feeling Ash couldn’t imagine, "In their most precious first night, they don’t even have the chance to be alone with you, they must get my permission, accept my jurisdiction... from that point forward... only I can have the best, they’re all left with only what I’ve had... Is it strange that I think this way?"

Ash’s fingers softly stroked her silky hair, nodding, "Not a little, it’s very strange... Thank you for becoming so strange for me."

"As long as you know." Sonia drew circles on his collarbone, "You don’t want me to have regrets, I don’t want you to have regrets... Aren’t you always hoping for such a Miracle? Fulfill four wishes in one go."

Ash blushed a bit, his thoughts exposed, he could only resort to kissing the Sword Maiden again.

After a moment of intimacy, Sonia suddenly said, "Now there’s another reason you must achieve four accomplishments tonight."

"What reason?"

"I can’t quite explain, but after feeling your hottest tenderness, I think my feelings for you seem... even heavier." Sonia tightly embraced Ash, her body slightly trembling, "Even if I suddenly go crazy tomorrow and hate them to the bone, I wouldn’t be surprised."

"While I’m in a good mood tonight, before I become even stranger, you have to quickly fulfill their love and satisfy everyone’s Heart’s Desire. Otherwise, I might, I don’t know what I might do—"

"It’s alright."

Ash held onto the Sword Maiden’s smooth snow-shoulder, seriously saying, "Don’t hold back, don’t be afraid, all those flood-creature-like emotions in your heart, just let me bear them."

"No matter how much you hate me, I love you deeply."

Sonia stared blankly at him, her watery big eyes revealing helpless grievance, "You always bully me this way... I was the one who fell... it’s all your fault..."

"I’m tired, I don’t want to cling to you." Sonia pushed him away, taking the Miracle Bracelet from the bedside table, "I’ll call the Witch in."

"Then I’ll take a bath first—"

Ash had just sat up, only to be pushed back onto the bed by Sonia with force, her ruby-red eyes stared deeply at Ash, speaking slowly, word by word, "You cannot."

Ash held his breath, pondering again without knowing which minefield he’d trespassed, tentatively asking, "Why, why?"

"You’re not allowed to bathe, you’ll stay exactly like this tonight." Sonia’s face flushed with a peculiar redness, "Only I can open the seal to the new you, only I leave marks on you and then it’s their turn, they can only play with what I’ve played, eat what I’ve eaten... the best you always belongs only to me."

Seeing Sonia’s mouth slightly lift, her face showing a complex twisted smile, although Ash remained hopelessly thinking such a Sword Maiden was adorable, he was also somewhat scared by her mutual destruction desire.

"Alright," Ash obediently said, "but hasn’t it reached midnight yet?"

Sonia glanced at the time, suddenly stunned, "It’s already 12:09 AM."

The two exchanged a glance, Ash smiled slightly, and Sonia’s expression softened. When she contacted the Witch, the connection was immediately established, with Diya’s nervous voice coming through, "S-Sword Maiden?"

"Come in."