Chapter 354: Lollipop
"Oh, Coco!" Arabel exclaimed when she saw the little fox. She took a step towards her, but Coco instinctively retreated, holding in her paws the Ghost Mask that she stole from Erza's treasury and brought at her master's request.
Coco was in the room from the beginning.
At Idan's request, she couldn't do anything until Arabel took control of her body. That's why she saw everything that happened here in detail.
When she saw how her mistress's hair and eyes were completely dyed in the color she knew, Coco froze in fear, remembering her past. Witnessing what the mistress had done to the young dragon only increased her fear.
Coco began to tremble and, hiding behind the Ghost Mask she was holding in her paws, tried to hide behind it.
Arabel, noticing Coco's fear, sighed heavily.
She was well aware that after the second ascension trial, when she acquired the Energy of Madness, her relationship with the little fox began to deteriorate. With her sudden attacks, Arabel began to frighten Coco, and the girl, feeling this, began to get closer to Idan, moving away from her.
Arabel didn't want to scare Coco. She sought to improve her attitude towards her and convince her that in her right mind she would never harm her.
To calm the little girl down, Arabel decided to buy a package of Сoco favorite candies. However, remembering that they now have more than enough System Points, which appeared solely due to the merits of the little girl, Arabel changed her mind and chose another gift.
"System, show me other sweets, but not too expensive," Arabel asked, and a window with a list of treats immediately appeared in front of her.
After quickly going through the list, Arabel chose not the most expensive, but still quite attractive lollipop, which cost 25 System Points apiece.
Before that, they always bought the same package of candies for 100 System Points, where there were 10 pieces.
"Coco, — Arabel called to the fox cub, and the fox glanced out from behind the Ghost Mask and looked at her intently.
"Look what I have!" exclaimed Arabel enthusiastically, holding up a round lollipop.
Noticing something new and, judging by the smell, delicious, Coco was seriously worried, but did not rush. She looked at Arabel cautiously.
"Come here, Coco," Arabel said with a smile, handing her a lollipop. Coco fought the temptation for a bit, but in the end, she couldn't resist and, holding the Ghost Mask in her paws, took small steps towards Arabel, without taking her eyes off the lollipop.
As soon as Coco approached, she handed the Ghost Mask to Arabel, thus completing Idan's task. Arabel, having taken the Mask, immediately sent it to the vault along with the Sphere of Secret Concealment, at the same time leaving a message to Idan on the "Lovers' Plate".
"Wait, Coco!" Arabel managed to exclaim, noticing how the fox cub, having picked up a lollipop, was already preparing to take a bite of it.
"This is a completely different candy, Coco. You can't bite her, you'll get toothache," Arabel corrected with concern. "You should lick it with your tongue."
At first, Coco was afraid of the hostess's sudden intervention, but after listening carefully to all her words, she first looked at Arabel in bewilderment. However, realizing what she meant, she stuck out her tongue and gently licked the lollipop.
Coco's eyes shone with delight, and a joyful smile appeared on her face when she felt the new taste that she liked so much. The new sweet that the hostess offered her turned out to be much tastier than her old favorite candies.
Coco, following Arabel's instructions, enthusiastically began to lick a lollipop, not noticing anything around her and completely immersed in the world of sweet dreams.
Arabel, seeing how Coco's mood had changed, was delighted. Picking up the baby in her arms, she went to the bed, sat down and, pressing her to her knees, began to gently stroke her.
"I hope Dan doesn't get mad at me for distracting a little girl," Arabel whispered, watching as Coco's attention was completely focused on the lollipop.
***
After receiving Arabel's last message, Idan tried to stay calm and wait. However, the more time passed, and there was no news from Arabel, he began to get nervous and worried.
"Come on, Belle, why is it taking so long?" thought Idan, waiting.
Without the Sphere of Secret Concealment, he had no way to hide from the gazes of the other awakened and captives. So he sat with his eyes closed, trying not to show his excitement.
From time to time, he used his Soul Force to check the condition of the "Lovers' Plate". And once again, when he was examining the interior of the storage, he noticed the appearance of a naked young man with long black hair and two horns on his head.
Idan immediately realized who it was, but seeing this dude like this, he almost lost control of himself. He only calmed down when he saw a pool of blood appear between the young man's legs.
"What the hell!"
When he realized the cause of the bleeding, he instinctively clutched his groin, and it seemed to him that for a moment he felt the pain that this unfortunate man was experiencing.
Idan, looking at the heir of the Dark Beast Territory, felt a shiver run through his body.
"Belle realizes that she has made enemies of us in the face of the leaders of the Dark Beast Territory, doesn't she?" he thought, without taking his eyes off the heir.
They planned to kidnap this heir to use him as a hostage in case of unforeseen circumstances. However, they did not intend to harm him. They were well aware that if this had happened, they would have become sworn enemies of his parents.
But now, seeing the condition of the heir, Idan realized that perhaps they had already become mortal enemies of his family.
Then, his attention was attracted by the appearance of a Ghost Mask and a Sphere of Secret Concealment in the vault. Almost at the same time, he received a signal about an unread message on the Lovers' Plate.
{MBG: Everything was successful! I caught him. Coco also successfully stole and brought back your Ghost Mask.}
After reading the message, Idan breathed a sigh of relief, completely calming down.
"Does Belle think that chopping off the heir's third leg and making his parents our enemies is a success?" thought Idan.
Then he sighed, as if giving up, and calmed down. Standing up, he pulled out a Sphere of Secret Concealment with a wave of his hand, which completely enveloped the space inside the cage, hiding everything that was happening inside.
"It's time to act," Idan said, removing the slave's collar from around his neck.