198 Request

Recognizing Yun Jin's very distinctive voice, Paul elected to pretend he hadn't noticed her. He knew she would be even more embarrassed if he attempted to catch her, so he slowly pivoted his head from side to side before moving toward where he believed one of the remaining six people to be.

"Oh my..."

Taking advantage of Paul's outstretched hand, Ningguang repositioned herself so that his fingers would come into contact with her right breast. She understood that Paul was trying to help Yun Jin save face, so letting her voice out was completely intentional.

Though his blindfold somewhat obscured them, Paul raised his brows in mock surprise before giving Ningguang's breast a tentative squeeze. She was wearing a bunnysuit that emphasized her cleavage, so his pinky, ring, middle, and index fingers came into contact with her bare, incredibly soft skin.

Giving Yun Jin the time she needed to sneak back to the relative safety of his bed, Paul traced his fingers across the surface of Ningguang's breast as he remarked, "It never ceases to amaze me...how can your breasts be so soft yet maintain such a perfect shape...?"

Adopting a slightly gratified smile, Ningguang replied, "I would like to say it's the result of a tremendous amount of effort on my part, but my status as a Spirit has made things a lot easier. Even if I eat five meals a day or go on a diet for months at a time, my figure remains wholly unaffected. It's a little disconcerting but exceedingly convenient."

"Mmm...I'm certainly not going to complain.."

Amused by Paul's response, a faint yet throaty chuckle emanated from Ningguang's throat. She was half-tempted to remind him that the only reason she, and many others, retained her 'original' appearance was due to his perception of how they 'should' look. In other words, her features remained flawless because that's what Paul expected. Had there been something about her appearance he didn't like, she would have changed similarly to Zhongli, Kay, and, most notably, Qiqi.

Reaching up to grasp Paul's wrist, Ningguang narrowed her eyes as she mused, "Though I certainly wouldn't mind continuing, I believe you have other matters to attend. There are still five of us remaining..."

Nodding his head, Paul retracted his hand and said, "I definitely won't allow you to return to the Strife Zone before we have a chance to spend some time together..."

As she had very similar thoughts on the matter, Ningguang just exhaled another light chuckle before casually orienting Paul in the direction of his next quarry, Lynette. She was perched atop Paul's wardrobe, so he had passed her by during his initial circuit around the room.

Realizing what Ningguang had done, a slight frown formed on Lynette's face. She was aiming to be the last person Paul located, so having her position exposed in such a 'wanton' manner annoyed her more than she would ever vocalize.

Fortunately for Lynette, Paul also realized what Ningguang had done, so, rather than going in the direction she had picked for him, he smiled wryly and decided to head elsewhere. His actions brought the faintest of smiles to Lynette's face, but she quickly regained her frown upon seeing the 'as expected' look on Ningguang's...

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Though it took much longer than he expected, Paul eventually managed to locate Yoimiya, Hina, Yae, and Ei before finishing off the game with his discovery of Lynette. Yoimiya and Hina had kind of cheated by concealing themselves in the bathroom, but even they were easier to locate than Yae and Ei. The former had reverted to her fox form, lazily observing the game from the comfort of a chair. As for Ei, she had erased her presence to the point Paul passed her by more than a dozen times before she gave him a break and allowed some of her sword intent to leak out.

Waiting until Paul had located and correctly identified Lynette, Ningguang clapped her hands together and said, "Congratulations, Master Paul. Not only were you able to locate everyone, but you were also able to identify each of us without so much as a single mistake, a feat as impressive as it is reassuring."

Exhaling a sigh of relief, Paul reached up to remove his blindfold before smiling as he came face to face with Lynette. He had 'identified' her by pulling her close and running his hands up and down her incredibly lithe body while she sat atop his dresser, so their faces were a lot closer than he had visualized.

Having anticipated Paul's reaction, Ningguang waited until he removed his blindfold before adding, "And congratulations to Mademoiselle Lynette for being the last to be discovered. As the penultimate winner of our revised game of hide-and-seek, she is permitted to make a single request of our champion. Make it count~."

Hearing Ningguang's words, Lynette immediately perked up. The look on her face didn't change, but her back became straighter, and her tail began to swish slowly behind her. Unfortunately, not everyone was as enthused about the revelation as she was.

With a severely disproving expression on her face, Kishirika's brow was visibly twitching as she remarked, "This isn't fair. If there were a prize on the line, you should have told us from the start. We would have taken the game a lot more seriously."

Fully expecting a bit of dissent, Ningguang maintained a perfect mask of calm as she replied, "If you knew there was a prize on the line, everyone would have competed to be the last woman standing. Keeping the reveal a secret until the end was the best way to expedite things while keeping the game fair and objective."

Though she couldn't fault Ningguang's logic, Kishirika made her disproval known by clicking her tongue and crossing her arms in defiance. Kishirisu emulated her behavior, but while many others felt the same way, none of the girls from the IOF protested as openly as the two Empresses.

Stumbling directly into the 'trap' Ningguang had set for him, Paul adopted a wry smile and inquired, "I'm more than happy to grant Lynette's request, but, as the victor, don't I get a reward?'

Nodding her head in affirmation, Ningguang casually revealed, "Of course. We agreed beforehand that you would be entitled to petition each of us for a request so long as you didn't make any mistakes. Inversely, had you misidentified anyone, they would be allowed to shadow you for upwards of three weeks, a single day for each person you identified correctly. That way, you would have plenty of time to memorize their shape and scent..."

Swallowing the bait dangling in front of him, Paul's expression became serious as he stated, "Then the solution is simple. I'm already working hard to make my dream a reality. Beyond that, my only wish is that the people I care about are happy, healthy, and safe. To that end, I would rather hear each of your requests than make selfish ones of my own. I mean, just look around. I'm surrounded by beautiful and capable women willing to put on performances and don sexy outfits just to celebrate my birthday. If I met a guy who wasn't satisfied after all of this, I would feel obligated to crack their head open to see what the fuck was wrong with their brain..."

Though Paul's final remark was a little distasteful, his impromptu speech brought smiles to the faces of nearly every woman present. Even Kishirika and Kishirisu were no exception, but, unlike the others, their smiles held a trace of chagrin as they cast narrowed, sidelong glances at Ningguang.

Prompted by the looks on everyone else's faces, Paul adopted a smile of his own as he proclaimed, "Then that's that. My request is that each of you makes a request of me. In Lynette's case, she gets two. Just try and keep your requests reasonable...I intend to do my best, but I'm ultimately just one man..."

Nodding her head in both approval and affirmation, Ningguang mused, "We'll keep that in mind." before focusing on gaze on Lynette and adding, "As for the order, we'll start with Lynette, then those preparing to return to the Strife Zone, and finally everyone who will be remaining behind. I trust there are no objections?"

Understanding there was no point in arguing, even Kishirika and Kishirisu remained silent in response to Ningguang's words. Upon seeing this, the ivory-haired prodigy supplied a supplemental nod before redirecting her gaze to Lynette, silently encouraging her to kick things off.

While she wasn't a genuinely shy person, Lynette wasn't comfortable with making her wishes and desires known to others. Thus, instead of voicing her request aloud, she gestured for Paul to lean closer, whispering into his ear, "Please forgive my sister..."

Surprised by the request, Paul's eyes briefly widened. He didn't consider himself the type to hold grudges, so he wasn't entirely sure what Lynette meant by asking him to forgive her sister. If anything, Lyney was the one that was hostile toward him...

Instead of thinking too deeply about the request, Paul nodded his head and replied, "Sure. No problem."

As if a heavy burden had been removed from her slender frame, a faint yet relieved sigh escaped Lynette's throat. She often felt guilty about how far apart she and Lyney had grown, so Paul's willingness to forgive was the same as giving her permission to try and mend things between them.

Feeling warm, light, and a little fluttery, an uncharacteristically expressive smile bloomed across Lynette's face as she narrowed her eyes and asked, "Can I make my second request now?"

Nodding his head, Paul leaned in to hear what Lynette had to say, his eyes progressively rounder as she narrated, "Once I make up with my sister, I want to try lying on top or underneath her as you take turns doing each of us. I want her to stare into my eyes as I call your name, and I want to see her face as you force her to do the same..."

As he generally did Lynette from behind, her preferred position, Paul was surprised to hear her asking to change things up. She hated being on her back, but here she was asking him to effectively go to town on her sister while she lay beneath her. It was a little unorthodox, but he only hesitated for a brief moment nodding his head and responding, "Sure...just keep in mind that I don't enjoy forcing people against their will. If Lyney doesn't consent, you'll have to come up with a different request..."

Confident she could get her sister to agree, Lynette narrowed her eyes in delight as she practically purred, "Just leave it to me..." before planting a brief yet meaningful kiss on Paul's cheek. Then, with noticeably reddened cheeks, she extricated herself from Paul's embrace, descended from the dresser, and swiftly made her exit...

Though he was a little taken aback by Lynette's sudden departure, Paul had long grown accustomed to her cat-like behavior. Instead of fretting over it, he adopted a wry smile and turned to the sizeable group of girls awaiting their turn, asking, "Who's next...?"

As the second to last to be discovered, Ei would ordinarily be the next in line. However, as she rarely separated from Paul, Ningguang took the initiative to suggest, "I believe Lady Jin, Director Tao, and Miss Yanfei are the most suitable candidates. After them, it should be Miss Hina, Shenhe, Yunyun, and myself."

Since everyone mentioned would be departing within the next 3-5 days, no one protested Ningguang's suggestion. As a result, Yun Jin reluctantly stepped forward, emulating Lynette by instructing Paul to bend down so she could speak directly into his ear. However, before revealing her actual request, she said, "Don't act shocked or surprised by my request..."

Though he was briefly confused, Paul quickly understood the reason for Yun Jin's caution when she made her request. Unfortunately, while he did his best to maintain a blank expression, the extremity of Yun Jin's request forced an awkward smile onto his face. After all, it wasn't every day one of his lovers solicited him to sneak into their room and 'attack' them while they slept...

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