[Beep————]
The call ended.
"Mm.....finished?"
Iridia trembled slightly, lifting her misty eyes.
Ye Li nodded.
"No need to hold it in anymore. You can make noise now."
With that, he circled his arms around her supple frame, and began returning to a steady rhythm——
aya!
aya!
aya!
…..
[Beep————]
Crystal shut off her communicator, smiling at Medusa.
"He says everything's fine on his end. Should be resolved soon."
"That's good. Then we can head to the control room."
Medusa also curved her lips slightly, motioning for Blackagar to follow.
Inside, though, her thoughts whispered:
'Crystal really is so easy to fool... if Ye can coax her that simply, then maybe I...'
…..
Tap tap tap....
The three of them crept quietly closer to the central control chamber.
"Ah—Maximus...."
Crystal, hiding in a corner, gasped softly.
Because she saw Maximus emerging from the chamber at that exact moment, with Auran and a full squad of guards at his side.
"I think this is our chance. Let's strike now..." the little princess whispered.
"There are too many people here..."
Medusa twined a strand of wine-red hair around her finger.
"Better to tail them and attack on the way."
Black Bolt's eyes locked onto Maximus, and he nodded in agreement.
…..
"See for yourself—the royal family is weak! They don't even dare reclaim Earth, their ancestral home!"
Maximus bragged to Auran as they walked, unaware of the three shadows trailing behind him....
Peng~!
A blazing fireball suddenly streaked forward, blasting a guard off his feet!
"Enemy attack!" Auran shrieked.
At the same moment, Crystal darted from hiding, sliding forward with icy finesse.
Frost flashed from her hands, freezing several guards in place.
"I'll handle the guards! Medusa, take Auran! Blackagar—catch your brother!"
"Fire! Fire! Protect me!"
Maximus, seeing his brother charge at him, nearly wet himself. He hastily shouted for his guards to hold them off.
Whoosh——!
Crystal whipped up a storm, winds hurling the guards tumbling to the ground.
"Assist me!"
Auran raised her energy gun toward Crystal— but strands of crimson hair coiled silently around it, yanking it away.
"Medusa!"
Auran whipped her head around—only to see the queen herself, hair writhing like serpents.
"Auran, too many lives have been taken by your hand. You must atone!"
Medusa's eyes sharpened.
Her wine-red locks hardened into blades, slashing down toward Auran——
The storm of hair, dense and endless, ensnared her like a cage.
Slice~!
Slice~!
Slice~!
Blood sprayed in a flurry of cuts.
Auran was minced into a crimson mist, dyeing Medusa's hair an even deeper scarlet.
The queen's hand was decisive—no hesitation in unleashing a killing blow.
On the other side,
Black Bolt reached Maximus under his sisters' cover.
"I will not lose!"
Maximus roared in desperation, swinging a fist at his brother.
Slap~
Black Bolt caught it with ease.
Even without his voice, Maximus was no match.
"Heh~"
Maximus, seeing himself subdued, stopped resisting. He smirked bitterly at Blackagar: "You're strong, brother—but so what? Will you kill me? Just like you killed our parents?"
Black Bolt's pupils shrank violently; his mind yanked into painful memories....
Yes—he was strong.
Too strong.
So strong that as a youth awakening to his power, one slip of his voice had accidentally annihilated their parents....
…..
Would he really kill his only brother, his last blood relative, with those same hands?
But—without avenging Gorgon and Triton, how could he face the people?
Black Bolt's heart twisted in turmoil....
Suddenly, Maximus wrenched free of his stunned brother's grip.
Inside, he gloated: 'My dear brother...you're still so easy to control with emotions...'
"What's Black Bolt doing?"
Seeing Boltagon still not making a move, the little princess, busy dispatching the guards, grew anxious.
"As expected, unreliable—failing at the crucial moment, dropping the ball there—an undependable man!"
Medusa, too, frowned deeply.
In her eyes, Black Bolt's score dropped further still.
Though she bore the title of queen, she had little real power in Attilan and wasn't particularly concerned with the populace.
She'd only come this far out of respect for Black Bolt's care for her and Crystal.
And yet now— her would-be king stood there like a fragile child, trapped in his own guilt, stuck in emo silence...
Truly disappointing.....