The next morning.
Gong Qu pushed away a jade like leg resting on his face and got out of bed.
He reached out to his side but, as expected, Keqing was no longer there.
So, he crawled to the other side of the bed and gently patted Ying's cheek. "You little lazy cat, time to get up."
Ying opened her eyes halfway and glanced at him, mumbling a soft protest before turning her back and curling up like a little caterpillar.
Seeing the array of red marks and love bites on her body, Gong Qu let out a small cough.
"Cough… you go ahead and sleep. I'll head downstairs for a bit."
Their first night sharing a blanket hadn't been as idyllic as he'd imagined.
Ying, after being thoroughly "worn out," had become particularly clingy, clinging to Gong Qu all night like a barnacle. Even peeling her off felt like an impossible task.
Every time Gong Qu finally drifted off, he'd be woken by her restless tossing and turning, she even managed to nearly kick him in the mouth at one point.
He definitely didn't buy the innocent act she put on; that girl was always pulling underhanded tricks when she couldn't win a fair fight.
If it hadn't been for Keqing speaking up on her behalf, Gong Qu would've long since pulled her over his lap for a good, hard spanking.
After getting dressed in a sleek black outfit in the Liyue style, Gong Qu headed downstairs to the living room.
…
Keqing and Lisa were already having morning tea and chatting. At the sound of his footsteps, they both looked up.
"Morning, Ah Qu," Keqing said with a smile.
"Morning. What are you two talking about?"
Keqing looked at Lisa with eyes full of admiration.
"Lisa is amazing. She managed to decipher the reinforcement runes overnight and used elemental power to bolster the magical shield."
"That fast? I never doubted your abilities, Lisa, but… did you not sleep at all?"
Gong Qu noticed the dark circles under Lisa's eyes and offered to massage the hard-working witch's temples. "Didn't you always say that staying up late is a lady's worst enemy? How about going back for some beauty sleep? After all, that fire dragon isn't likely to go anywhere soon."
Lisa closed her eyes, gradually reclining against Gong Qu's lap. "Mmm, yes… right there. I just couldn't sleep in a new place, so I ended up diving into some new spells."
A lie!
Last night, after returning to her room, Lisa had been too fired up to sleep.
To calm herself down, she had no choice but to bury herself in studying new magic.
"I see… well, how about heading back to rest? My Dendro element can soothe the mind and help people drift into dreams."
"Since when did you become a Dendro Archon…? Ugh, never mind, let's just do it. No need to call me for lunch."
Lisa let out a half-hearted complaint.
Gong Qu stopped his massage and scooped Lisa up in a princess carry.
Lisa naturally wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Ah Qing, I'll take Lisa back to her room to rest. Ying's not feeling great today either. How about we delay the fire dragon hunt for a bit?"
Keqing, who was struggling to keep her eyes open as she pored over a magic tome, nodded in agreement. "No problem. But personally, I think the sooner we deal with that dragon, the better. Its power is strong, but with the four of us, we can definitely handle it."
"You're not wrong, but half of our fighting strength isn't at its peak. Let them rest, and we'll figure it out later."
Last night had been Ying's first time. The unusual circumstances, coupled with her own inability to moderate herself, meant that after some initial pain, she was completely swept up in pleasure.
The result? Ying now had a nasty debuff: Agility down by over 40%.
As for Lisa, she'd pulled an all-nighter.
For a mage, exhaustion was a deadly weakness. Sometimes, plans simply couldn't keep up with reality, let that fire dragon live a few more days.
Gong Qu and Keqing continued their casual chat.
Nestled in Gong Qu's arms, Lisa's thoughts were anything but calm. She inhaled his heady masculine scent, and the emptiness that hadn't been fully filled last night began to well up again.
Keqing, oblivious to Lisa's internal struggle, was suggesting a simple lunch for now and a big dinner once everyone had recovered.
Gong Qu could sense some of what Lisa was feeling. His expression grew slightly awkward.
Not wanting Keqing to see Lisa's dignified image as a top-tier mage crumble, he quickly wrapped up the conversation and carried Lisa upstairs.
…
Lisa was surprisingly light for her height.
Though her broad shoulders gave her a statuesque presence, "voluptuous" was the first word that came to mind, under her clothes, Gong Qu could clearly feel the smooth lines of her slender frame.
Completely different from Keqing or Ying.
Keqing, with her long hours and late nights, had initially had dry, split ends and a slightly more robust skin texture, a testament to her warrior's life rather than that of a pampered lady.
But after a month of tender care and Dendro element nourishment, she had regained the youthful glow of her sixteen-year-old self, even though she was already in her twenties.
Ying was a different story altogether.
She didn't even seem human.
No matter how badly she was hurt or how much she suffered, she would always return to that perfectly balanced form, soft where she should be soft, lean where she should be lean, as if the Creator had sculpted her with meticulous care.
Each of the three girls had their own unique appeal.
Ying had an otherworldly allure, a sense of not belonging to this world; Keqing was tight and strong, a promising future ahead; and Lisa was the classic image of a frail, yet sensuous literary beauty.
…
"Are you thinking weird thoughts right now?" Lisa suddenly asked halfway up the stairs.
"That depends on how you define 'weird,'" Gong Qu replied candidly. After all, was it so wrong for a healthy man to be a little… distracted by a beautiful girl in his arms?
"Of the three of us, who do you think is the most comfortable to hold?" Lisa teased, her voice playful.
"Do you want the truth or a lie?" Gong Qu raised an eyebrow.
"A witch and lies go hand in hand. Let's start with the lie," Lisa said, a mischievous glint in her eyes.
"Then it's you, Lisa. You're the most comfortable."
Lisa's lips curled into a smile.
If the lie was so pleasing, what about the truth?
The air suddenly seemed to crackle with static.
"And the truth?" she pressed, her smile dangerous.
Gong Qu didn't answer. Instead, he lowered his head, found her lips, and bit down gently like savoring a cherry.
A few minutes later, they parted, a thin line of saliva still connecting their mouths.
"How's that for an answer?" he asked softly.
"That's not an answer at all!" Lisa huffed, half annoyed and half amused.
"Not enough? Then let's do it again."
A few minutes more passed.
Lisa's eyes turned hazy.
Just as she started tugging at Gong Qu's clothes, a gentle green glow slid from his mouth down her throat, then spread through her digestive system, turning into countless tiny lights that merged with her body.
The first place it touched was her brain.
In just a few seconds, the exhaustion of a sleepless night washed over her.
Her body slackened, her breathing slowed, and she drifted off to sleep right there.
Gong Qu carefully laid Lisa on the bed, pulling the blanket up around her shoulders.
Finally, he kissed her lightly on the forehead.
"Sleep well, my dear witch."
Author's Note:
Hey everyone,
I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for reading and supporting my story so far. It truly means a lot to me.
Lately, it's been tough. The market is getting quiet, and the motivation to keep going is slipping. But I really want to finish this story not just for myself, but for all of you who've followed it until now.
If you've been enjoying the journey, I humbly ask for your support. Even just one Power Stone from each of you would help so much. It's not just about numbers, it's about knowing someone out there is cheering for this story to continue.
Your small support gives me big motivation. Let's reach the end of this journey together. 💙
With gratitude,
—MrBehringer
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