Monarch Alcazar, Private Dining Room.
"Urbyne ribeye, medium rare served with a dollop of glazed lime sauce. A side of sautéed mushrooms topped with butter. Venison fried with onions and leek. Scrambled egg with radish. Cooked to your liking your majesty, your highness," The chef introduced the dishes briefly,"My descriptions do not do these dishes justice. Only through the taste can one experience the true flavour. Please."
"Mm. Splendid cuisine as always Ferdinand. You may leave." A generous portion of each dish, enough to feed two sat before me upon a square mahogany table draped in cloth. Charlie sat beside me, the king opposite us. The table itself could sit three on each side. Nothing too spectacular.
"Then, Artemis, please do try the cuisine of us Rhodians. I hope it suits your palate."
"I'm not a very fussy or picky eater, your majesty. I've eaten oranges with the peel without complaint so I'm sure that such marvellously prepared dishes will definitely prove nothing less than delectable." I spoke truthfully. Back in on the Eternal Front where Conglomerate Forces focused attacks on against the Diversion Powers formed by Communistic states, resources like food was rare, if any. Every part of every meal was treasured, disgusting or not.
Remembering basic etiquette when eating at fine dining restaurants, I didn't eat like I usually did back in the village, instead making effort to mind my manners. The food was good. Really fucking good.
"So, Charlotte, why don't you tell me how you two met?"
"I got bored and set up a casino remember?"
"Oh, that. What about it?"
"I met her there when she was rank what was it, 5?"
I nodded,"4th of May, almost three years back. I was rank 5, you were rank 7."
"Three years?" The king looked surprised,"This much progress in three years? Just how in the world did you jump eight ranks in three years?"
"It's a complicated story, really."
"I have time. I'm interested." So, we spent the next hour recounting the past two-three years of our lives to the king.
"...And here we are now." The king, surprisingly, wasn't a stone block who only listened. He was rather entertaining in his own right, his dry sarcasm and wit was a breath of fresh air.
"I must say, Artemis, this imprint of immortality eh, how do I put this..." I saw hesitation in the man's eyes. He clearly wanted one but was too shy to ask.
"I can procure another if your majesty wants one." I humoured the man, finding myself liking him for this air of humility.
"You're too nice Arty, you should ask for something in return!" Charlie hollered,"My dad's loaded. He should give you something in return!"
"How quickly you've turned sides. What a loving and filial daughter I have," The king commented dryly as he agreed,"But you're right, I should give something in return. Is there any burning desire I could fulfil?"
I had something in mind. It wasn't power, imprints or anything but something far more important to me. To be honest, he was probably the only one who could fulfil this request I had. But I had to be sure. I needed to be sure,"Your majesty, might I have a day to mull over this? As for the imprint, I will have it ready by tomorrow. I simply need a few ingredients I hope you can provide to make it."
———
The Princess' Royal Quarters. Twilight.
Charlie's bedroom was not what I expected it to be. Located on the ground floor, within it was a soft bed enough for two people to sleep in, comfy pillows, silk sheets. On the dressers sat a few worn down dolls, stuff Charlie probably played with when she was younger. Nothing displayed this sprightly nature of hers. Really, everything in her room screamed that she was just another generic doll-obsessed girl.
The room was painted a light shade of green, prim and proper, neat and tidy,"Welcome to my room I guess. Oh, do take off your shoes. It's clean here."
"It's less grand than I expected of you." I muttered, sitting down on the pressed sheets. They were very recently cleaned, regularly at that. It seemed the king still kept her room properly maintained despite her absence.
"That's because you haven't seen my secret base yet." She flashed a mysterious smile as she pushed a small button concealed beside the bed. I had thought it was one of those storage beds but this one had a smooth slide which led down. It was made out of some material which resembled silicon but smoother and more frictionless.
I raised a brow at this,"Is this your lair?"
Pressing a button under her bed, a layer of fire covered the slide, seemingly burning away all the dust, a puff of hot air shot from the walls, leaving the chiselled stone glossed. Several lights lit up, illuminating the path down followed the faint sound of water sloshing.
"C'mon! You won't regret it!" Charlie stepped down eagerly, tugging at my hand, urging me down the slide. Curious, I slid down.
[Welcome to the Paradise Grotto.]
A soft voice called out as I found myself in an expansive room. At the rightmost corner at the far end was a bar stocked with wines of all kinds, a stationary puppet reminiscent of Charlie's design stood, waiting to serve. The floor itself was made of some soft putty-like material, which felt rather comfortable to walk on. It was like a carpet of sorts.
To the left of it was the bathroom. On the right side, a much larger water bed sat. On the left of the room was probably the work area, several workbenches filled with materials of all kinds, designs on yellowed paper and half-made puppets strewn about the place.
But the most eye-catching of the bunch was the pool. Smack dab in the middle of the entire place was a gigantic pool filled with pinkish liquid.
"Welcome, Arty, to my personal grotto. The main attraction depends on the occasion really. But it's usually the Libidine Pool. How about it, wanna have a dip?"
"Sure." I was planning to shower anyway, a little relaxing couldn't hurt. Changing to swimwear Charlie had picked out when we had decided to head to the beach, I found her in the pool already.
Seeing her eyes on me, I couldn't help but feel a little bashful. The swimwear was a black less showy bikini two-piece, not leaving much to the imagination,"W-Wuh-What're you looking at?"
I hugged my chest, cursing at myself internally for losing all my courage at the most important of times where I desperately needed it.
Dipping my toe into the water, I found it mildly warm. The liquid itself was a little more viscous, not quite as thick as homey but not as runny as water.
Satisfied with the temperature, I sank in, sitting on the elevated part which hugged the walls of the circular pool. I let out a relaxed sigh, my muscles immediately loosened, mind wiped of all worries and anxieties.
Charlie sashayed her way towards me, her vivacity entrapping me, my eyes wandering about her body as this unreliable mind of mine indulged in a pinch of apodyopsis, cheeks burning up,"I'm looking at my stunning girlfriend of course," She whispered, a sly grin on her face as her arms grabbed the wall of the pool on either side of me, preventing me from escaping,"You look stunning in that by the way."
I felt like a mouse.
Trapped in a corner with no escape.
Facing a terrifying cat.
And the scariest part?
I liked it.