Playing Chess

Aina furrowed her delicate brows slightly, her fingertips hovering over the chessboard as she feigned deep thought.

Finally, as if completely letting go, her brows relaxed. She sighed with a touch of helplessness and shook her head. "Xia Lun, I lost. You're too good."

Liyana: ...

Liyana's chess skills were actually not bad. In the adventurer's tavern, playing chess and cards were common pastimes, often accompanied by a crowd of onlookers cheering and jeering. Having lived for so long and watched so many chess matches, Liyana had naturally picked up a thing or two...

So, of course, she could tell exactly how much Aina was letting him win... Was that even playing chess? That was clearly stripping herself naked and delivering herself right into Xia Lun's mouth.

When playing against her, Aina was definitely not at this level.

Back then, Aina's every move was as precise as interlocking gears, her defensive barriers impenetrable, and her attacks fierce and cunning, making Liyana feel she was completely invincible.

Xia Lun's chess skills were indeed quite poor; just as he had said, he only knew the general rules.

Normally, it would be impossible for him to beat Aina. His few moves should have been full of flaws and utterly vulnerable before her.

It was Aina who, from the very beginning of the match, used calculations as delicate as a spider's web to gently guide the clueless Xia Lun. She seemingly inadvertently neutralized his clumsy attacks while quietly leaving openings where he was likely to make mistakes.

She had woven a gentle net, allowing Xia Lun's pieces to be drawn in, piercing accurately and flawlessly into her already wide-open, defenseless core territory.

"Oh! Mr. Xia Lun is so amazing," Mo Lini exclaimed in admiration.

She was also a terrible chess player. All she knew was that even when she and Liyana teamed up, they couldn't beat Aina. Yet facing Xia Lun's sweeping offensive, Aina had no way to resist, and her pieces were swiftly devoured.

Xia Lun wasn't stupid; he naturally knew Aina was letting him win.

What was more, beneath the table where no one was looking, the restless bare feet of Aina, who sat opposite him, were gently rubbing against his calves through the thin fabric of his clothes. She even playfully pinched the soft flesh of his leg with her toes, carrying a hint of ambiguous teasing.

Xia Lun did not tense his muscles to flick Aina's toes away either.

"Alright, you guys keep playing," Xia Lun said with a smile as he slowly stood up. The slight confusion he had felt earlier regarding his own strength was now much relieved after the chess match.

"Don't run away, Xia Lun. Let me play a round with you..." Liyana immediately couldn't sit still.

"Let Mida or Musen play with you," Aina also stood up from the sofa, naturally hooking her arm around Xia Lun's and decisively rejecting Liyana's request.

Xia Lun seemed to be in a bad mood and needed her to comfort him.

"It's getting late, we're going back to our room first... Mida, don't play too late."

"Understood, Mother," Mida replied, looking at the chessboard with eager anticipation.

"Hmm... Mida? You'll play with me?" Liyana's attention was indeed diverted.

Even though she was a Demon Lord... Mida still looked like nothing more than a child and probably wouldn't be a match for her.

It would be a good chance to avenge the grudge of being pelted with snowballs on the snowy peak earlier.

Liyana revealed an evil smile.

...

Xia Lun and Aina returned to their room.

The moment the door closed, scarlet bat wings unfurled like a blooming curtain. Aina hugged Xia Lun's waist from behind, lifting him into the air like a predator, and landed lightly on the soft, large bed, immediately pressing herself firmly on top of him.

"Aina..." Xia Lun's voice carried a trace of helplessness, but mostly indulgence.

Aina didn't reply; instead, she kissed Xia Lun's lips somewhat domineeringly, while her hands deftly went to undo the constraints of his clothes.

Xia Lun did not stop her. It was rare for the Demon Lord to actually learn how to take off clothes.

But Aina seemed to feel this was still too slow, and a glint of blood-red light flashed in her scarlet pupils.

The surrounding space rippled slightly, like water skimming across a surface.

Xia Lun's clothes vanished into thin air, instantly stripped away by spatial magic, before slowly drifting down to the floor nearby.

"Mmph—"

Slowly lying against Xia Lun's chest, her ear listening to his beating heart, Aina showed a look of deep satisfaction, like a lazy cat that had found the most comfortable source of warmth.

At the same time, a blood-red dress wrapped around her graceful body without warning. The red velvet gown made her skin look as white as snow, glowing with a pearl-like luster in the dim room.

Xia Lun was slightly taken aback.

"Does it look good?" Aina propped up her upper body, interlacing her fingers with Xia Lun's. She tilted her head slightly, her dress spreading out beautifully, perfectly obscuring his view and leaving only suggestive, undulating contours.

"Very beautiful," Xia Lun praised. The vibrant red formed a striking visual contrast with her snow-white skin and silver hair, accentuating the demonic allure belonging to a Demon Lord to the absolute extreme.

Wearing clothes... this was indeed an unprecedented experience, making the current Aina look exceptionally different.

It made Aina look much more elegant and proper than usual.

"As long as you like it," Aina chuckled lightly. But in the next second, her brows furrowed imperceptibly, then relaxed again, melting into an even deeper smile and charm.

"If you behave and listen to me from now on... Xia Lun, I can wear whatever you want me to," Aina leaned down and stroked Xia Lun's cheek. "I noticed you seem quite interested in maids? When we went home earlier, your eyes were constantly darting towards the maids in my house."

"I wasn't looking at them!" Xia Lun retorted.

"Of course I know," Aina's voice carried an all-knowing understanding as she tapped Xia Lun's chest with her fingertip. "You weren't looking at their faces... You were just fantasizing about what it would look like if it were me... wearing that black-and-white, prim and proper dress, bowing to you in submission..."

"Cough... you misunderstood, Aina," Xia Lun tried to act tough, but his eyes wandered involuntarily.

"I am a Demon Lord, yet you actually fantasize about me wearing the clothes of a servant? How bold of you, Xia Lun." A cold glint flashed in Aina's eyes, and her tone suddenly turned icy. "I have my dignity too."

"Uh..." Xia Lun was momentarily speechless.

Aina's fingertips slid from his cheek to his jaw, gently lifting his face and forcing him to look directly into her red eyes. "So you must answer me honestly, do you want to see it?"

Xia Lun looked at the face before him, a blend of majesty, allure, and a hint of jealousy, and his Adam's apple bobbed. "Yes."

The ice in Aina's eyes melted instantly, turning into a pool of spring water, before she gave Xia Lun's lower lip a punishing little bite.

"Hmph, I did bring one of those outfits with me," Aina said coquettishly. "It depends on your performance tonight."