Faust strode forward and entered the living room. He discovered that the villa, which was supposed to be inhabited only by himself and Selena, now hosted a guest.
It was an exceptionally charming and mature figure, seated gracefully on the armchair by the fireplace.
Her long black hair, illuminated by the firelight, was tied into a high ponytail behind her head, cascading down like a waterfall.
Beneath a black crown, her breathtakingly beautiful face seemed untainted by the mundane world. Her lips were pressed together slightly, and as her clear silver eyes turned to look at her "daughter," all the cold indifference that had kept others at a distance softened into sorrow.
Faust took one look, and his pupils shrank instantly.
Good heavens, full-body black tights! Noble, proud, and ethereal!
There was the bodycon dress, the open-sided exposure of her chest, and the rich, undeniable sense of motherhood hidden deep within her gaze!
The elements were practically complete.
The Queen of Midwinter and Selena had faces that were nearly identical—both possessing a flawless, exquisite perfection that transcended human cognition.
However, in terms of temperament and figure, they were worlds apart.
If Selena’s beauty was the first divine breeze of early spring, the eternal feminine grace...
Then the Queen of Midwinter’s beauty was a melancholic water lily in a river valley, the ripe forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden.
There was no objective superiority between them; it was purely a matter of personal aesthetic preference. But if the Prince of Qingxi had to judge, Selena was more "business-professional," while the Queen of Midwinter was more "active-wear."
Faust didn't want to be rude, but he truly felt like shoving every mystery trait he had into this situation!
The mystery trait of the 【monarch of greed】 had gone unsatisfied for a long time. He had barely managed to suppress it, but being suddenly struck by such beauty—which hit the prince's specific tastes perfectly—sent his mind into a violent tremor.
Damn you, Supreme Bone! Are you trying to kill your master by going berserk right now?!
Do not look up! Kneel down for me!
The prince quickly shook off the rising desire and refocused his attention. He placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, assuming a defensive stance.
This was no time to be thinking with his lower half. The key issue now was... why was the Queen of Midwinter appearing here?
"Mother, why are you here?"
Selena asked the very question that confused Faust.
The Queen of Midwinter placed her hands, clad in finger-looped black silk gloves, onto her skirt and said calmly, "Of course I can be here. 【Mountain Father】 is the property of the Midwinter princesses. Before you ever came to this base, I spent my childhood here."
"Moreover, I am a 【high warlock】. Entering this place silently is not difficult for me."
A 【high warlock】!
Hearing that term, Faust completely tossed aside his flirtatious thoughts, his expression turning solemn.
That wasn't a title one could just claim lightly. Only a 【warlock】 of the 【hero】 rank could be called a 【high warlock】.
Although a grail knight was also a hero, they were completely different from a high warlock.
This was because the path of a 【warlock】 was extremely special; the achievements it required were not physical deeds, but research and exploration.
Only by achieving peak research in schools such as "spells," "curses," "blessings," or "barriers" could one be promoted to a 【high warlock】.
Even Faust’s royal sister, Yusewood, had not become a high warlock. She had reached the bottleneck long ago but was stuck in the phase of accumulating knowledge.
But once one promoted to a 【high warlock】, it meant they possessed an incredibly exaggerated array of specialized techniques.
Perhaps in a direct one-on-one confrontation, they might not seem different from other "heroes," or might even be slightly weaker.
However, many would rather face multiple "heroes" in an open fight than face a single high warlock.
Ordinary paths usually had one or two mystery traits at most, with a limited number of special abilities.
But a high warlock didn't care about such limits. They had countless methods: evocation, teleportation, construction, mental influence, telekinesis... they had everything.
If necessary, it wasn't impossible for them to weave a corresponding spell on the fly.
Faust could only describe it as "lite-cheating doesn't count as cheating."
A high warlock who knew the layout could indeed enter as if walking into an empty field, appearing before the defenseless pair.
Faust couldn't help but smile bitterly. "From the look of it, my hard work blocking the grail knights these past few days was completely meaningless. If you wished it, Your Majesty, you could have ended this standoff at any time."
The Queen of Midwinter shifted her gaze to the prince and suddenly said, "Lola."
"Hmm?"
"My name is Lola. Just call me Lola."
Lola said pensively, "Prince from a foreign land, you are not a subject of Midwinter. You need not address me as Queen."
'Wait, why is the rhetoric of mother and daughter exactly the same? Do they both dislike me using honorifics that much?'
Lola continued, "During this time, I have been watching you. Selena... my child, my other half. I have never seen you so happy as you are when spending time with this prince."
The tall, curvaceous Queen placed her hands over her heart, pressing against the fullness that seemed to defy gravity. "So, the secret lay here all along. Are you immersed in love...?"
"Mother! I am not!"
Selena grew anxious. She had never admitted to enjoying love.
Otherwise... wouldn't that be like confessing first? Wouldn't that be admitting defeat to Faust?
However, Lola ignored her daughter's protest and brought up another matter. "The curse... the curse that has lingered for countless ages will completely dissipate in this generation."
"What?"
Selena’s beautiful eyes widened upon hearing this. "Mother, what are you talking about? Although we do want to end the curse, we haven't even started acting on it yet."
The Queen of Midwinter, whose temperament was incredibly high-class while her figure was incredibly provocative, stood up and slowly shook her head. "I am certain. Although I have no solution for the dragon's curse, as a high warlock, I have some understanding of curses. I can clearly sense that the curse has begun to dissipate, and it is precisely because of your actions."
The black-haired girl crossed her arms. "Oh? If that's true, isn't it a good thing?"
"Yes, it would be a perfectly happy ending."
Lola smiled slightly. Her smile was more reserved and maternal than Selena's.
The Queen produced an apple from somewhere; its vivid red color was utterly out of place in the room, strikingly eye-catching.
She placed the apple on the table. "Now there is only one step left, and that is to complete... the final cycle, to thoroughly end Midwinter's thousand years of suffering."
Snow White sensed something was wrong and furrowed her brows. "Mother, what do you mean?"
Lola sighed, revealing her true intent. "Back then, I never thought of killing my mother. But when I handed a fallen apple to her, she... died because of it."
"It was then I realized that if the curse intends to drive us to matricide, it will use every means to achieve it. Even a simple apple, the moment it changes hands, becomes a bone-eroding poison."
"So, Selena, hand this apple to me and end the curse."
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