With her straightforward nature, Li Sushang couldn't hide her emotions, making her slight irritation evident to Zeke.
Despite her chronological age placing her as a patriarchal figure, Zeke viewed her akin to the girls he had personally raised, his eyes softening affectionately.
"I'll take care of things here; you can go do what you wish."
"Eh? Is it okay?"
"When it comes to consciousness domains, apart from Fu Hua and Su being at the pinnacle, Otto and I are next in line. To be honest, even with your mastery as the Sword Goddess, your expertise in this field falls short compared to mine, so there's nothing to worry about."
"No! What I mean is, Kiana aside - considering her status as either empress or consort - but the other one asleep here is your mother-in-law! As a grown man, watching over them alone like this, isn't it... kind of inappropriate?"
Li Sushang innocently blinked, presenting an unexpected perspective that left Zeke momentarily speechless.
"What kind of nonsense is this?"
"It's not nonsense! Even I know, as humans, there are certain boundaries we should respect!"
"Get lost."
"All righty then, Your Majesty knows best! This humble servant takes his leave immediately!"
Seeing Zeke's face darken visibly, Li Sushang shrank back, swiftly jogging out of the room.
'Remember, when he gets that stormy look, it means he's about to beat someone up. During such times, run fast! Trust me; neither Shi nor Old Antique can save you if you don't!'
Recalling Senti's serious and earnest advice from their previous conversation about Zeke, Li Sushang picked up speed even more upon exiting, dashing like the wind, fearing any delay would result in a painful beating.
"Tsk!"
After Li Sushang left, Zeke let out an annoyed click of his tongue. He then took Kiana's hand, focusing on events unfolding within the consciousness domain.
"Let go! I said let go!"
"Nope..."
In a pristine white room, Kiana's eyes were lifeless, resembling one salty tuna or a stubborn adhesive plaster, as she clung tightly to Sirin's waist.
Sirin could no longer maintain her icy queenly demeanor; her face now brimmed with frustration as she tugged and pulled at Kiana, even yanking her hair. Yet despite all her efforts, she couldn't dislodge this soft, clingy paramecium from herself.
"You forced my hand!" Veins bulged on Sirin's forehead as the Lance of Subspace materialized in her hand, swiftly aiming for Kiana's head.
Crack!
With a sharp noise, the tip of the Lance of Subspace...
"...broke?"
Sirin's expression turned somewhat dumbfounded.
The corner of Kiana's mouth curled up, but due to her deadpan, hopeless gaze, it amplified the mocking nature of her smile.
"I'm the Sword Goddess, you know? In the consciousness domain, how do you expect to match me? Are you joking?"
Silence fell momentarily.
Then, both internally and visibly, Sirin completely lost it, veins popping profusely across her face.
"Fucking hell!!"
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Sirin casually vented her refined and courteous thoughts before unleashing a flurry of strikes with the Lance of Subspace on Kiana—slashes, stabs, all manner of attacks—but to no avail.
Unfazed, Kiana stood like an unyielding rock, clinging tightly to Sirin without resistance yet sustaining no harm either.
"Kiana, Sirin, are you two over there? Mom hears your voices."
Cecilia's mature and gentle voice echoed from nearby.
Still sporting deadpan eyes, Kiana lazily responded, "Hey, Mom, we're right here, come this way~"
"Shut up!"
"Aiya, just have a proper chat with Mom already. Haven't you noticed after all these days? She's determined to resolve our issues! I've been exhausting myself daily just suppressing your defiance and keeping the mental domain open for Mom—it's draining. Let's get it over with sooner rather than later!"
"I swear to ****!" Sirin eloquently expressed her opinion.
In truth, she didn't want to sound so unqueenly; it lacked grace and sophistication. However, Kiana's relentless pestering had pushed Sirin past her limits countless times, making her gradually accustomed to responding with heartfelt but blunt retorts.
Sensing Cecilia's approach, the Herrscher of the Void's expression shifted rapidly before she simply ignored Kiana's relentless pestering. With great effort, she opened a space singularity, intending to drag Kiana deeper within her consciousness.
For months, Sirin had been doing just that.
What did it matter if Cecilia was coming? As if a foolish human could genuinely persuade her—what a joke!
"Huff...huff...huff..."
Descending even further into her consciousness, Sirin finally gave in and collapsed onto one knee, panting heavily.
Whether it was trying to shake off Kiana or forcing open dimensional portals under Kiana's suppression, both exertions took a massive toll on Sirin. All she wanted now was to lie down and catch her breath—but this damn paramecium shamelessly clung around her waist as usual!
"Let go of me! Huff...huff...huff..."
"Nope~"
"Aren't you fucking tired yet?!"
"I'm absolutely exhausted, okay?! But Mom won't give up. Rather than enduring this torment every day for who knows how long, I'd rather push through now and help her resolve the issue sooner."
Kiana lay on the ground, clinging to Sirin's waist. Despite her body feeling limp like a ragged cloth from sheer exhaustion, her grip remained unyielding. She sighed tiredly.
Opening one's mental domain daily for someone—no matter if it's their beloved and respected mother—is simply not sustainable over time!
After pondering briefly, Kiana suggested, "Oh right, do you have any instant noodles? Get me a recommended flavor; I'll take just a few bites, and maybe then I can relax a bit."
"Get lost!"
"Don't be so stingy. You know our situation well enough—we're practically sharing everything now, aren't we?"
"I...I'm too worn out to argue with you." Sirin initially wanted to let loose a torrent of colorful language but found herself utterly drained, managing only a feeble response.
The two equally exhausted beings locked eyes, remaining silent.
Then, a pack of instant noodles appeared in Sirin's hand—but instead of giving it to Kiana, she shakily began eating it herself.
Unfortunately, after months of relentless pursuit and turmoil, even her favorite instant noodles tasted bland to Sirin. Mechanically chewing, she could no longer experience the joy they once brought her.
Kiana's nose twitched as she caught the scent of the noodles, drooling slightly, "( ゚¬ ゚) Wow! How heartless, hogging all that food!"
"Huh? You don't know where we stand? Don't get too friendly with me!"
"Let's put past matters aside for now. We're both facing the same predicament, enduring so much hardship together. Can't you empathize just a little, feel any sympathy for our shared struggles?"
"Get lost! You deserve it!" Sirin glared at Kiana, her golden eyes gleaming with satisfaction as the corners of her lips involuntarily curled upwards.
There's a saying: even if your situation is dire, discovering that your arch-nemesis is far worse off can make life seem less unbearable.
"Slap!"
In the real world, Zeke smacked his forehead, feeling exhausted by this ongoing situation that seemed to make no progress.
Although Kiana and Cecilia insisted on resolving it themselves, Zeke decided he could no longer stand idly by; otherwise, this feud would never end.
After all, for days now, Kiana had been too preoccupied to engage deeply with him!
Determined, Zeke slowly directed a thread of consciousness energy into Kiana's mental domain.