Chapter 231: The Bed That Can Do a Backflip!
Golden sunlight pierced the thin mist, spilling onto the palace's marble floor in a soft, warm glow.
Directly ahead, a magnificent palace stood upon a high platform. Its massive stone pillars were carved with totems of the Feathered Serpent, and the golden roof tiles gleamed. From the eaves, bronze wind chimes sang in the breeze, their sound ethereal and distant.
Ryohei Tanaka looked out at the layers of mountains, coiling like a great dragon. The nearby peaks were a lush, vivid green, while those in the distance were shrouded in mist.
"This is my little place here. Does Ryohei-kun want a tour?"
Before he could answer, Lucoa linked her arm with his, enthusiastically pulling him inside. "Come on, I'll show you my bedroom. My bed can do a backflip, you know."
"..." Ryohei figured she was just making a joke. He deadpanned, "What kind of unholy bed is that? And what's the point of a backflipping bed? Does it... add to the experience or something?"
"Exactly! It can add all sorts of... strange... experiences!" Lucoa giggled.
"Lady Lucoa!"
Just then, a maid with a cool expression and a pair of horns on her head approached. She bowed deeply to Lucoa, then swept her calm gaze over Ryohei.
"Claire, you're just in time." Lucoa took a list from her spatial storage and handed it to the maid. "Please collect the items on this list. No matter how much you find, you must be back before 4 PM."
"Understood." The maid, Claire, took the list, glanced at it, and then transformed into a black Western dragon, flapping her wings and flying away.
"What did you ask her to collect?" Ryohei asked, his gaze returning to Lucoa.
"Ingredients for desserts, of course. Isn't that why Ryohei-kun came?" Lucoa tilted her head, looking at the man whose arm she held.
"Is that right? Is that my only purpose?" Ryohei gave her a strange look. "I thought I was here for a grand adventure in another world, to gather some ingredients along the way, and to turn the day's experiences into inspiration... That was my purpose, wasn't it?"
He narrowed his eyes at her. "Did you just completely cut out my grand adventure?"
Lucoa laughed, covering her mouth with a pale hand. "Is that why you came? In that case, how about you just sit back and let me do all the work?"
She held up a slender finger. Before Ryohei could reply, she let go of his arm, made her hands into claws, and said playfully, "If you really want a grand adventure... you can be the prey, and I'll be the hunter. I promise it will be very exciting!"
"Of course," she added, "once you're caught... Ryohei-kun will have to obediently accept his punishment!"
"What kind of adventure is that? You're just messing with me!" Ryohei said. Unable to resist, he shifted and gave her bottom a swat.
Lucoa immediately skipped away on her long, shapely legs. She spun around, hands behind her back, and grinned. "Ryohei-kun is so hard to please!"
"Is that my fault?" he shot back, rolling his eyes.
...
"We're here. This is it."
Lucoa stopped in front of a heavy, carved and gilded door. Her fingers closed around the handle, and with a soft click, she pushed it open.
"Please, come in." She stepped aside, gesturing him inside.
His interest piqued, Ryohei walked in.
The moment he saw the bedroom, his eyes widened in shock. "It's... huge!"
And incredibly luxurious.
Just inside the door was a lounge area. A minimalist dark coffee table sat on a plush carpet, flanked by low, comfortable leather sofas. A massive crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling, refracting the sunlight. Opposite the sofas, three floor-to-ceiling windows, their curtains pulled wide, offered a view of the lush scenery outside.
To the right was an open study. A two-meter-long desk gleamed, and behind it, a built-in bookshelf stretched to the ceiling, crammed with books—some of which even pulsed with a faint, magical light.
To the left, a wall and another door separated the sleeping area. Through the open doorway, Ryohei could see a frosted glass door, which he assumed led to the bathroom.
At a glance, this single master suite was larger than his entire villa in Meguro.
Click.
Lucoa closed the door and locked it. She turned, crossing her arms. "For a human form, this room is quite large, I suppose."
"...So why did you lock the door?" Ryohei asked, giving her a very strange look.
"Oho~? What does Ryohei-kun think I'm going to do?" Lucoa hummed, her usually closed left eye drifting open.
The temperature in the room seemed to rise.
It was the classic "you-know-my-pretense-and-I-know-your-intentions" standoff... except the roles were completely reversed.
"..." Ryohei dropped the act. He put a hand on his hip. "You said your bed could do a backflip. Where is it? I want to see."
"This way."
Lucoa gave him a bewitching smile and pointed to the left, leading the way. She was, in fact, fully intending to give him a show. For her, making a bed do a backflip was no trouble at all.
...
And then, Ryohei saw the bed that "could do a backflip."
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