The World Is Mine For The Taking

"The next thing is..." I said, my voice low and thoughtful, fingers absentmindedly toying with the edge of the goblet in front of me.

"It's your father, the King, huh?" Leon replied, casually leaning back in his seat, though his eyes held a sharp edge of understanding.

I nodded, exhaling slowly. "Yes. My father... he wants to throw me at the feet of the Emperor. He probably thinks that by doing so, he can extend his own influence a little longer. I guess even he fears the Emperor's shadow looming over us. So, he's looking for a way to forge an alliance, by chaining the two countries together through marriage."

I narrowed my eyes slightly, my voice laced with disdain.

"But I can smell a ploy when it's shoved under my nose. The Empire doesn't want peace or unity. They want control. They want to sink their claws into Milham and turn it into nothing more than a puppet state. Something they can manipulate from behind the curtain, while pretending we still have sovereignty."

I locked my gaze with his, my expression serious.

"But with you beside me..." I paused. "With you, we could steer things our way. We could persuade my father to name you as my fiancé instead of him. Right now, nothing's finalized since there was no documents and no formal seal. The engagement is just talk. But that won't last long. I know him. He'll push it into permanence soon enough."

A breath passed between us.

"We're heading to the royal castle," I said. "But before we do—"

I leaned in, my eyes softening into something more playful and more sultry.

"I want to think of a way... a way that'll convince him—utterly and completely—that I should be with you, not the Emperor," I said slowly.

Leon's gaze flickered with intrigue. "And what exactly do you propose?"

I hummed softly, then crossed my legs under the table. The motion was fluid.

It was casual on the surface, yet laced with intention.

As my leg shifted, my foot grazed against his beneath the table. The touch was light and subtle... but it was there. And deliberate.

I leaned my elbow against the table's surface and propped my chin atop my hand, watching him from under half-lidded eyes.

"Why don't you suggest something?" I asked with a teasing smile, and at the same time, I let my foot move, trailing slowly along his leg. From his ankle, up past his shin... the ball of my foot brushing deliberately upward until it reached his knee.

My toe lingered there.

"I want to see what kind of man it takes to make Professor Gabrielle swoon. Or seduce Professor Rose. Or charm Princess Titania, Princess Trill, and even Miss Yr," I said. "I want to know what you're truly capable of."

He gave me a small, unreadable smile. "I'm not sure you can handle that, Princess."

My eyes narrowed slightly, but I let out a soft, amused laugh.

"Oh? Are you saying I'm just a naive little royal who can't handle something as basic as you?" I leaned in. "My, my~. I didn't expect to hear such a deeply annoying statement."

He chuckled. "I'm just saying… I don't think you'd be able to manage."

"Fufufu…" A soft, feminine chuckle escaped my lips as I rose from my seat. "Well then…"

I stepped toward him, my eyes never leaving his.

"Let's test that theory," I whispered.

And then I kissed him.

It was slow at first with my lips brushing against his with the barest contact, the warmth of his breath mixing with mine. It wasn't my first kiss. Well, not technically. I'd kissed my mother and some of my cousins before, but those had been empty of this electric undercurrent.

Those were affectionate. Familial.

However, this...

This one came from a different place. From deep in my chest, from somewhere beneath the surface.

A place that wanted, that desired, that craved something more.

When I pulled away, the world felt a little different. My heart beat in my ears.

"How was that?" I asked, letting a coy smile tug at my lips.

He looked at me with a cool confidence and replied, "It wasn't that complicated of a kiss."

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Then why don't you show me?"

"Gladly."

Before I could brace myself, he leaned forward—

And this time, his tongue slipped into my mouth.

My eyes widened in stunned surprise.

What...? His tongue was in my mouth.

It was moving with purpose, exploring, gliding along the insides of my cheeks, tracing the roof of my mouth and the ridges of my teeth.

It was intrusive. Intimate. And overwhelming, at the same time.

It felt like something foreign had entered me. Not physically in a sense, but emotionally. The sudden intimacy sent a shiver down my spine. I felt my toes curl, my eyes rolling up instinctively as a heat bloomed in the pit of my stomach.

After a few long seconds, we parted.

A thick, glistening string of saliva still connected our lips. It stretched between us, trembling in the air, before it finally snapped.

My lips were parted. My breath was heavy. My face felt hot and unsteady, like it was melting under the weight of everything I was feeling.

"Haaa~... Haaa~..." I gasped, catching my breath. I blinked, dazed, then moved without thinking. I climbed onto his lap, straddling him, face to face.

"Fufufu… Is this what it feels like to be one of your women?" I asked him with a sultry, lopsided smile, my voice breathy and drunk on the kiss.

"I don't know," he said casually. "I've never been one of my women. But it probably is."

I narrowed my eyes and scoffed, though the smile never left my face. "What a cheeky man you are…"

And then, without waiting, I leaned in again.

This time, our tongues met eagerly. They were twisting and gliding in rhythm.

I could feel something stirring beneath my underwear.

A damp, tingling warmth had started to spread.

It was soft at first, then steadily growing wetter with each passing second.

It clung uncomfortably to my skin, making me subtly squirm in place.

But even that discomfort didn't feel entirely bad. No, it felt... strange.

There was this heat... this intense, consuming heat blooming deep within me, curling up from my belly, rising into my chest, and flooding through my limbs like molten honey.

It wasn't pain. It wasn't nervousness.

It was something I had never felt before.

It was lust.

And it was burning through me.

My body felt like it was being lit from within.

My skin flushed. My breath came shallow and fast. Every inch of me ached to be touched, to be held, to be claimed.

And in that overwhelming wave of longing, the only thing that filled my mind… was him.

Leon.

All I could think about was him and the undeniable need growing inside me. I wanted to be close to him. Closer than I had ever been with anyone before. So close that nothing existed between us.

"Teach me how to become your woman," I whispered, my voice trembling ever so slightly as I looked up into his eyes the moment we pulled apart.

He stared at me with quiet intensity, then nodded.

"All right then," he said.

With that, he rose, strong arms lifting me effortlessly off the ground. He held me like I weighed nothing at all, carrying me in that firm yet gentle embrace as he moved toward the bed.

My heart beat faster, pounding against my ribcage so loud I swore he could hear it.

I tilted my head up, gazing at his face from where I lay in his arms. The feeling of being so small in his grasp sent a thrill through my spine.

Then, as we reached the bed, his hand moved.

He started from the base of my foot, his fingers grazing over the soft skin of my ankle. Then they traced upward, moving beneath the edge of my skirt. His hand traveled along my calf, then glided over the smooth skin of my inner thigh.

That one touch which was light as a feather, sent a sharp, electric shiver running through my body.

It was the very first time someone had ever touched me there.

And instead of fear or revulsion…

I felt something else.

Something that made my breath hitch and my legs tense.

It felt good. So good that my whole body trembled.

I didn't want it to stop.

I wanted more. So much more.

"I wore a dress today… because I didn't know what to wear for something like this," I admitted, cheeks burning as I avoided his gaze. "I am wearing something underneath though, so maybe that could help?"

He gave me that familiar grin, amused and intrigued. "Well, now I really want to know," he said. "Pretty sure I've never undressed a princess in a dress before."

I laughed softly, the sound a little shaky but genuine. "Not even Princess Titania?"

"She never wore a dress," he replied.

"Fufufu… Then I'm glad I'm your first," I whispered, lips curling into a smile of my own.

And just like that, his hands moved again.

He started undoing my dress, inch by inch.

I felt every movement, every shift of fabric as it slid off my shoulders, cascading down my body like flowing water. The silky material brushed against my skin, sending tiny waves of sensation trailing behind it.

With every inch of fabric that left my body, I felt more exposed and more seen.

Until finally, I was there... lying before him with nothing but my corset, my panties, and the garter belt that wrapped around my waist, its straps snaking down my thighs and locking them gently into place.