"So, why are we in the Royal Dungeon, Father? You are not going to imprison us here for the rest of eternity, are you? Is it because you're jealous of my beauty? Haa, I knew I was too beautiful; not even my Father could withstand his own jealousy." Said Elif with a raised eyebrow as he walked beside Illumia, whose butt he gently groped while they followed behind Marcus.
"I should extend your punishment merely for that nonsense you just spouted; no offense, Elif, but I prefer looking more masculine." Said Marcus with a slightly annoyed expression as he glanced at Elif, who looked androgynous even by Elven standards, causing him to proudly smirk.
"Hmph, you're just envious; you won't look as beautiful in a dress as you would in a suit. After all, my beauty can't be contained by my masculinity; I even have pictures to prove my femininity can defeat any woman." Stated Elif proudly with a faint smile as he summoned a crystal ball from his dimension ring, only for Marcus to wave his hand and force it back into his ring.
"I've only come across one other man who was proud of his femininity, though that was only because he was interested in men, and particularly me. However, I do not want to see my son in women's clothes." Remarked Marcus with a sigh as he rubbed his face while shaking his head, his words causing Illumia to suppress a chuckle, reminiscing his misfortune.
"Well, you're surely missing out; I look absolutely fabulous. If I could duplicate myself, I'd surely make love with my copy." Stated Elif with a faint smile as he placed his hands behind his back, following behind Marcus without an ounce of shame.
"I'd give up half my life span to witness that." Muttered Illumia softly as she glanced at Elif, who winked at her, causing her to lick her lips.
"So, how long has this been present? Your relationship, I mean." Asked Marcus in curiosity as he glanced between Elif and Illumia, who both furrowed their brows before slightly distancing themselves.
"Relationship, Your Majesty? I am confused about what you're referring to." Asked Illumia in slight confusion as she tilted her head while gazing at Marcus before looking at Elif, who nodded in agreement.
"Yes, you do not think I would be interested in Illumia like such, do you, Father? You should already know I'm not exactly a fan of women with such large breasts; it's wholly unnecessary." Added Elif lightly as he glanced at Marcus while reaching forth and boldly grabbing Illumia's breasts, only to shake his head in displeasure.
"Hmm, I hope you two don't think I'm stupid; you never mentioned Elaine, Elif, and also, lying to your Emperor is punishable by eternal death, Illumia." Said Marcus lightly as he turned down the left hall of the Royal dungeon, which was dimly lit, providing only enough light to see the halls, leaving the cages shrouded in darkness.
With Father having found out, Illumia and I opted to remain silent as he entered the Royal dungeon, though the awkward silence that consumed us was bound to be broken.
"So, have you informed Elaine?" Added Marcus with a raised eyebrow, his words causing Elif and Illumia to flinch while the two remained silent.
"Hmm, I see." Muttered Marcus softly as he rubbed his chin while walking down the stairs, heading deeper into the royal dungeon, which housed some of the Empire's most infamous and notorious criminals.
"Since that's the case, you've got three options from now. One— You end this relationship immediately, and I promise not to disclose such information to anyone, including Elaine and Maria. Two— You inform Elaine about your relationship. Lastly, three— If neither of you make a decision by the next time Elaine returns home, I'll tell her myself. This isn't up for discussion, Elif; this is an ultimatum. Either be a man and tell Elaine, or continue to act like a pompous playboy." Declared Marcus solemnly as he stopped walking, only to narrow his eyes at Elif while Illumia awkwardly stood beside him.
"Hmph didn't need to be rude about it, Father." Said Elif with an annoyed expression as he stared at Marcus while folding his arms, prompting him to continue walking down the halls.
"But you're not disagreeing with me, are you?" Said Marcus lightly, his words further irritating Elif, who grunted before averting his gaze.
"For the record, Father, I've been trying to end it for the past several months…" Said Elif lightly as he side-glanced Marcus, only for Illumia to slightly widen her eyes.
"So that's why you've been seemingly keeping your distance from Sarah and I." Said Illumia with widened eyes, only for her to instantly shut her mouth while Elif glared at her.
"Ho, Sarah as well? Well, that clears things up as to why you'd go through so much for that girl. Though I will say I quite like her bubbly personality, so I'm happy to see she survived." Remarked Marcus lightly with a raised eyebrow as he folded his arms while Elif smacked the back of Illumia's head.
"I-I'm sorry, your Highness." Said Illumia as she lowered her head in shame, prompting Elif to scoff in frustration while shaking his head.
"Hmph, I assume the ultimatum also applies to Sarah, Father?" "Oh, of course." Said Elif and Marcus, respectively, as the former clicked his tongue.
Grumbling in annoyance and frustration at both Illumia and Father, I silently mulled over his words since to be honest, I sort of needed this; I had tried to slowly end things, but that wasn't turning out to be all that effective. However, I will not allow Father to tell Elaine himself; that's simply stupid and cowardly; while I would like to claim I'm neither, I haven't been proving myself to be all that intelligent lately.
'Which leaves only one option. Haa, good, I need to tell her I hate lying to Elaine.' Thought Elif wryly as he rubbed his head, only to heave a sigh afterward.
"Can you take us to floor thirteen?" Asked Elif lightly, his words causing Marcus to raise an eyebrow before nodding.
Once we arrived at the staircase, we used the teleporter to the left of it since that was the only way to enter the dungeon's last three floors: floors eleven, twelve, and thirteen.
After the Qi bubble enveloped us, I sensed a faint shift in the fabric of space, something Elaine probably would've easily noticed, but immediately afterward, the bubble receded back into the teleportation pad while I stepped off, leading the way as I knew exactly where I was going.
On the last three floors, there were no cells or cages; simply, doors made entirely of dark emerald prevented any noise from entering or exiting; otherwise, this whole floor would be filled with screams of agony.
Arriving at the fifteenth door on the left, I placed my hand on it, causing a faint glow to emit as it was promptly opened.
"I'll be quick." Said Elif lightly as he glanced at Marcus and Illumia while closing the door.
"So, between Elif and Maria, who would you say you love more?" Asked Marcus with a raised eyebrow as he glanced at Illumia, who shrugged her shoulders.
"I-I don't know." Muttered Illumia softly, causing Marcus to nod before smirking.
"You know, if it were before, I wouldn't have minded one bit to have a three-some with you and Maria; of course, it's too late now as Elif has claimed you for himself. However, you should've revealed your feelings to Maria; I had told you myself that I wouldn't mind if you and Maria had a relationship." Remarked Marcus with a faint chuckle as he playfully nudged Illumia's arm, who softly chuckled before shaking her head with a sigh.
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"Ahh, it's always a pleasure to see you at work, Prince Elif." Said the Vice-warden as he faintly bowed while gazing at Elif in awe and respect.
"It's also a pleasure to relieve some of my anger onto him as well." Said Elif softly with a faint smile as he glanced at the demon chained to the ground with a completely lifeless and indifferent expression.
Kicking the demon in the face, I turned around and exited the room, leaving the Vice-warden to continue his torturing duties after I had just finished.
"Oh, so much for quick; you wasted nearly an hour." Said Marcus lightly as he folded his arms and eyed Elif, who awkwardly coughed.
"He brings a lot of bad memories, sorry." "Yeah, yeah, I know. Let us return to the fourth floor." Said Elif and Marcus, respectively, as the latter nodded in understanding before turning around and approaching the staircase in the distance.
Now that I was in a better mood, I hummed to myself while we teleported back to the fourth floor, where we found an empty cage, which Illumia and I entered.
"This is a special room; a powerful illusion formation has been engraved into walls, floor, and ceiling. It will simulate life without your body or soul actually aging." Explained Marcus as he closed the door while Elif and Illumia sat on the bed beside each other.
"So, how long will this punishment of ours last?" Asked Elif with a raised eyebrow as he placed Illumia on his lap, gently playing with her breasts while she suppressed her moans.
"Heh, Ten thousand years. Good luck." Said Marcus with a faint smirk as he infused his Qi into the door, causing the room Elif and Illumia were in to glow brightly.
Widening my eyes at Father's words, I was about to plead my case, but before I could stand up, I was suddenly hit with a powerful wave of drowsiness, and I wasn't alone as Illumia looked ready to collapse as well.
Knowing I could do nothing, I embraced Illumia before falling onto the bed with her in my arms; the two of us fell into a very deep sleep while an illusion was the next thing we saw when we opened our eyes.