Still sitting on the cushion beside her thigh and sniffling, Lily couldn't help herself, mumbling softly under her breath:
“Cordelia at least treated me like a normal, rational person, instead of a free exhibit...”
Vespera twitched at her pet’s whisper, her hand holding the wineglass freezing in midair as one statuesque eyebrow arched high.
“Normally...?” the Demon Queen asked softly, her carmine eyes narrowing.
“Yes!” Lily piped up briskly, resting her little hands on her knees. “She respected my boundaries, covered me with a blanket when I got cold, and asked if I was alright!”
“Cordelia Nocturne?” Vespera repeated in disbelief.
“Yes!”
“That Cordelia?”
“YES!” Lily puffed out her small chest proudly.
Vespera gazed down at her with an exceptionally suspicious, hard stare. In her carmine eyes, a sudden, strange, possessive spark flashed to life.
“Oh... so she took a liking to you...” the Demon Queen purred softly, a note of clear, possessive displeasure creeping into her voice.
“What...?” Lily blinked, bewildered.
“Nothing,” Vespera tossed out shortly, but her hand descended immediately onto the girl's nape, pulling her slightly closer to her thigh as she resumed her meal.
Halfway through the feast, Vespera began to grow bored. Setting her glass back on the tabletop, her gaze settled on the black velvet choker with its small plaque adorning Lily’s neck.
Taking in the sweet bunny and the inscription Royal Pet of the Demon Queen, an idea struck her mind.
“Since you are to officially and legally wear my crest around your neck,” the Demon Queen spoke with gravity, “you must learn the fundamental rules governing my personal pet as soon as possible.”
Lily went rigid on her cushion.
“What rules, Mistress...?”
“We call it Royal Pet Etiquette,” Vespera purred, holding up three slender fingers. “To start, three fundamental regulations will suffice. Rule number one: whenever I summon you with a gesture of my hand, regardless of time or place, you approach me immediately. Rule number two: during private meals, I decide precisely where you sit beside me. And rule number three: if I personally bestow any reward or food upon you, you are obligated to accept it with a smile and politely thank me.”
Lily stared at her with her mouth open.
“That doesn't sound like court etiquette at all, Mistress!” she called out in outrage.
“That sounds like pure, textbook dog training!”
Vespera smiled dazzlingly sweet.
“You are finally coming to fully understand your role, bunny.”
Without wasting a moment, the Demon Queen decided to put theory into practice right away. Pulling at her silk gown with its high side-slits, she exposed her flawless, smooth thigh, shifted slightly in her armchair, and made a brief, summoning gesture in the air with her hand.
“Bunny. Come here,” she commanded softly.
Lily looked at her, then at her cushion, and then back at her carmine eyes.
“Seriously...? Mistress... I just sat down.”
Vespera didn't offer a single word in reply. She simply continued the beckoning gesture with her hand, staring down at her with absolute expectation.
Lily released a long, resigned sigh.
Dragging herself off the soft velvet, she stood on her feet, limping awkwardly on her lacquered heels toward the armchair. The pain in her feet caused by her tensed ankles returned in a fraction of a second, forcing a quiet hiss through the girl's teeth.
Vespera caught the movement in an instant. Her predatory expression vanished abruptly, giving way to plain, calm attentiveness.
“Are those shoes hurting you?” she asked out of nowhere.
“THEY’VE BEEN HURTING ME SINCE I LEFT THE ROOM!” Lily sniffled, flapping her ears.
“I don't know how to walk in these torture instruments!”
“Oh...” Vespera mumbled.
Instead of laughing or mocking her clumsiness, the Demon Queen leaned down without a word. Her slender hands reached for Lily’s ankles - lifting the first foot, she unbuckled the clasp with a swift, gentle motion and removed the lacquered heel.
A moment later, she did the exact same with the other foot, tossing the precious footwear casually onto the marble tabletop.
Lily froze with her mouth agape. The pain evaporated in a split second, and her bare feet, encased in black sheer stockings, stepped onto the soft cushion with immense relief.
A heartbeat later, the Demon Queen seized the girl - now freed from her agony - by the waist and effortlessly lifted her straight onto her lap.
“I had a cushion, though!” Lily blinked in surprise, feeling the warmth of her thighs beneath her rear.
“I changed my mind,” Vespera answered shortly, wrapping an arm around her.
Lily sat leaning against the Demon Queen's chest, taking in her Mistress's overwhelming scent. Vespera fed her further pieces of fruit in silence, their conversation slowly dying down to give way to a calm, steady rhythm of feeding.
Suddenly, Vespera petted her head tenderly, running her fingers behind her fluffy ear, and spoke in an unusually quiet, soft voice:
“You did very well, bunny.”
Lily froze with a piece of pastry in her mouth. She lifted her head, staring at her in disbelief.
“...With what?”
“With your entire first day,” Vespera clarified calmly, gazing into her eyes without a trace of malice.
“You didn't suffer a mental breakdown. You are a good pet, and you didn't mindlessly try to flee from fate. In a fraction of a second, you grasped the mechanics of your System, found a way to empower yourself... and even Cordelia is starting to tolerate you.”
Lily sniffled, striving to conceal a tiny, touched smile.
“Tolerate?! We get along absolutely brilliantly!”
“Let us not exaggerate, pet,” Vespera laughed softly.
Yet the core of the matter hit Lily with immense force: the Demon Queen was genuinely, truly proud and pleased with her new mascot. A wave of warmth surged through Lily’s body, and before her eyes, a notification sparkled once more:
[Mistress Bond: 22 → 23]
Lily began to smile gently and involuntarily, snuggling deeper into her corset.
That dark, touching, and warm moment lasted for exactly five seconds.
Vespera caught that small, sweet smile on the girl's face and the immediate jump in the Mistress Bond counter. Across her voluptuous face, that former, terrifyingly sly, and predatory expression returned in a fraction of a second.
“Which is why...” she purred low, her nails tightening gently on Lily’s hip, “I have decided to grant you a very special reward.”
Lily lifted her head, her eyes sparkling with naive joy.
“Mistress! Really?!”
Yet seeing that staggeringly wicked smile blooming across the Demon Queen's lips, every ounce of joy in Lily’s soul evaporated in the blink of an eye, her ears going stiff with terror.
“...Mistress...?” she forced out, flustered.
Vespera leaned over her, pressing her lips straight against her erect, trembling bunny ear, and whispered in a velvety, terrifyingly sultry voice:
“Yes, my sweet bunny... I believe you’ve earned your very first real lesson in being a Royal Pet today.”