My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger

Damon found himself laughing more than usual.

Even she seemed far less guarded than normal.

Somewhere along the way the conversation stopped feeling like two influential figures discussing important matters.

It became two people simply enjoying each other’s company.

One drink became several.

One hour became many.

At some point neither could remember exactly when they ended up sitting closer together.

Or when personal stories replaced political discussions.

Or when silence stopped being uncomfortable.

The night passed.

Then disappeared entirely.

Damon stared at the ceiling.

Soft morning sunlight filtered through the curtains, bathing the room in a warm golden glow.

His mind felt strangely blank.

For several long seconds he simply lay there.

Then he slowly blinked.

Once.

Twice.

His memories of the previous night felt frustratingly fragmented.

He turned his head slightly.

The events leading to this moment replayed themselves in broken pieces.

A drink.

A laugh.

An argument.

Another drink.

Abellona laughing.

More wine.

Then nothing particularly coherent after that.

Damon continued staring upward.

Completely still.

Completely silent.

His expression slowly became one of profound confusion.

How...

Did this happen?

Yes, the big question wasn’t why he did it.

No, that was far from it.

The question was how.

How did he get here, and why was there a half-asleep princess in his arms?

"What the hell kind of wine was that?"

At the Sixth Class Advancement, forget wine, even poison shouldn’t have been capable of getting him drunk.

So the answer was obvious.

He wasn’t really drunk.

He had simply let the moment take over.

Damon stared at the ceiling for a few seconds before rubbing his face.

That somehow made the situation feel even worse.

They were lying on the floor beneath a blanket.

Not in his home.

Not in hers.

They were in the Ravenscroft Estate.

Of all places.

The maids could walk in at any moment.

The thought sent a chill down his spine.

He immediately reached over and shook Abellona’s shoulder.

"Abellona... Abellona, wake up. Wake up."

She let out a soft groan and shifted closer instead, burying her face against his chest as though searching for a more comfortable pillow.

"Five more minutes."

Damon stared at the princess in disbelief.

Seriously?

Was she crazy?

He was not in the mood for pillow talk.

If this got revealed it would become the scandal of the century.

The Imperial Princess and Damon Grey disappearing together during a gathering was already dangerous enough.

Being discovered like this would be catastrophic.

"Abellona, this is serious."

She responded by tightening her grip around him slightly.

Damon felt a headache coming on.

Then it happened.

Knock.

Knock.

The sound echoed through the room.

Both of them froze.

Abellona’s eyes snapped open instantly.

The sleep vanished from her face.

Her crimson eyes widened as reality came crashing back.

For several seconds neither of them moved.

Neither of them breathed.

The knocking came again.

Knock.

Knock.

"Princess?"

A maid’s voice sounded from outside.

"Are you inside?"

Damon and Abellona slowly turned their heads toward one another.

The same thought passed through both their minds.

They were absolutely doomed.

""Ahhh, what do we do? What do we do?"

Abellona was panicking.

Damon had never seen that expression before.

Never.

He had seen her angry.

Seen her cold.

Seen her determined.

Seen her ready to march into battle.

But panic?

That was new.

The usually composed Princess looked nothing like herself.

Right now she seemed less like the heir of an empire and more like a teenage girl who had brought home a boyfriend her parents absolutely did not approve of.

And honestly?

Damon could see the problem.

He could practically see the headlines already.

For the first time in history, a member of the Imperial Family and the heir of a Great House involved in a secret affair.

The political ramifications alone would be devastating.

It could destabilize alliances.

Inflame rival factions.

Trigger a dozen succession disputes.

They absolutely did not need this while a war was already threatening the world.

Knock.

Knock.

The maids knocked again.

Then the handle slowly turned.

Thank goodness it was locked.

Abellona visibly paled.

A bead of sweat rolled down the side of her face.

Her wide crimson eyes locked onto Damon as though this entire situation was somehow his fault.

Damon pointed at himself.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

Her stare only intensified.

The accusation was clear.

This is your fault.

Damon took a deep breath.

"Alright. Don’t panic."

"I am not panicking."

"You are absolutely panicking."

"I am strategically worrying."

"That’s just panic with noble education."

Another knock echoed through the room.

"Princess?"

The maid sounded more suspicious this time.

Damon rubbed his forehead.

"I hope you understand what we need to do."

Abellona immediately looked horrified.

"We have two options."

"Why do I feel like I’m not going to like either of them?"

"The first option is to kill the maids and leave no witnesses."

Abellona’s jaw dropped.

"What? No! No! How is that even an option? What’s wrong with you?" she whispered furiously.

Damon raised a finger.

"To be fair, eliminating witnesses is a time-tested strategy."

"That is not a strategy!"

"It works surprisingly often."

Abellona looked ready to strangle him.

Outside, the maids knocked once more.

"Princess? Are you alright?"

Damon lowered his voice.

"What? We can’t exactly get dressed and pretend nothing happened. We spent the entire night in here."

Abellona’s face turned bright red.

"Stop talking."

"The smell alone is suspicious."

"Stop talking."

"The maids are at least Second Class Advancement. Their senses are superhuman."

"Damon."

"A normal maid might suspect something."

"Damon."

"These ones will definitely suspect something."

"DAMON."

She slapped a hand over his mouth before he could continue.

Damon merely blinked at her.

"I could teleport out," he whispered against her hand.

Then his expression darkened.

"Except the entire estate has been covered in rune barriers ever since little Godric was kidnapped."

Abellona groaned.

Damon looked toward the window.

Then toward the door.

Then back toward the window.

His expression became strangely solemn.

"Guess we have to kill the maids."

"No."

He placed a hand over his heart.

"Ahh, the things I do for love."

"I said no."

"Fine."

"Good."

"Then we move to option two."

Abellona narrowed her eyes.

The fact there was a second option somehow worried her more.

"What is option two?"

Damon slowly smiled.

The kind of smile that usually preceded disaster.

"We convince them absolutely nothing suspicious happened."

Abellona stared at him.

Then looked down at the blanket.

Then looked at the room.

Then looked back at him.

"Damon."

"Yes?"

"How?"

Damon opened his mouth.

Paused.

Then slowly closed it again.

For the first time since waking up, he genuinely had no answer.

Outside the door, the maids exchanged confused glances.

Inside the room, two of the most powerful people in the Empire sat frozen beneath a blanket.

Neither willing to open the door.

Neither able to explain themselves.

And both rapidly realizing they might have survived dragons, demons, outsiders, and world-ending disasters only to be defeated by a pair of persistent maids.