“Knock, knock—”
“Knock, knock, knock—”
“Your Majesty, Princess, I apologize for the intrusion.”
As the dawn of a new day barely broke, Fei Yi lightly tapped on the door.
From the sound of it, she clearly had urgent business.
Bai Ning’s eyelashes fluttered slightly.
Disturbed by the noise, she slowly opened her eyes.
Beside her, Bai Li’s brow twitched as well.
Seeing this, Bai Ning carefully released her arms from around him.
She gently pulled the sheet up, covering Bai Li’s head completely, hoping he could sleep a little longer without being disturbed.
Then, dressed in her nightgown, Bai Ning tiptoed out of the room.
“What is it, Fei Yi?”
“It was only 5:00 AM.”
Bai Ning knew that unless it was a matter of life and death, the woman would never report to her at this hour.
“Your Majesty, an urgent report has arrived from the pass. Lady Ziya from the neighboring country has arrived for a visit. I have come to ask for your instructions: shall I grant her passage?”
“Let her through immediately… That little girl, she arrived at 5:00 AM? Is she really that impatient…?”
“As you command, Your Majesty. I will see to the arrangements at once.”
“Ah…”
Bai Ning let out a soft yawn, feeling thick waves of exhaustion.
‘I should go back to sleep… In a little while, I won’t be able to hold Bai Li for three months. I need to hurry and hug him a bit more.’
She had just pushed the door open to return to the room when she saw Bai Li sitting on the bed with his arms crossed, looking resentful.
“Huh? Bai Li, why are you awake?”
“You have the nerve to ask! Why did you pull the blanket over my head? Were you trying to smother your own father to death!”
“Oh… I just didn’t want the noise to wake you…”
“Forget it. Why are we up so early? Look outside; it might not even be 6:00 AM yet.”
“Since you’re awake, I’ll tell you straight… Ziya is already on her way here.”
“What? Right now?”
“Yeah. It looks like she traveled through the night just to pick you up as early as possible.”
“That little girl…”
Thinking of how Ziya had rushed through the night just to secure more time together, Bai Li felt a mixture of heartache and warmth.
“Bai Ning, hurry up and change your clothes!”
“Why change? Can’t we sleep a little longer…?”
“Sleep your head! Ziya is coming from so far away. As the ruler of a nation, you have to go out and welcome her, don’t you? Even if you are close sisters, you can’t neglect proper etiquette.”
“How annoying… I originally wanted to sleep more… (Actually, I just wanted to hold Bai Li longer.)”
“If you really want to sleep, wait until you help me get dressed. I need to go to the kitchen now to prepare the soufflé Ziya loves most.”
“Fine, fine. I can’t sleep without you by my side anyway…”
Bai Ning could only obey, stepping forward to help Bai Li dress.
On the other side, after being granted passage, the carriage from the Succubus Kingdom was racing toward the Royal Palace without pause.
“Inside the carriage…”
“Rongrong! Quick, check for me. Is my makeup smeared? Do I need a touch-up?”
“Rest assured, Your Majesty. This natural look I did for you is perfectly beautiful. Not a bit of it is smeared; no touch-up is needed at all.”
“Mhm… Rongrong, do you think my perfume smells good enough?”
“It’s just right. It’s a pleasant, fresh scent, not piercing at all.”
“Right… Check one more time. How do I look right now?”
“Very beautiful. You look a bit cuter than usual, and you’ve added a rare touch of feminine charm.”
“Fe-Feminine charm… I hope Father will like it…”
Along the way, Rongrong was kept busy by Ziya’s non-stop questions.
One thing was gradually becoming clear to her—
Her Queen’s feelings for that human man had long since exceeded the typical bond between a father and daughter.
That nervous, restless behavior didn’t look like someone going to see a relative; she looked like a young girl about to reunite with her sweetheart.
‘Lü Erlu, oh Lü Erlu, you must absolutely never let down the Queen’s heavy heart.’
Though this relationship was certainly unexpected.
But the Queen was a Succubus, after all.
Perhaps such a passionate and special love was the most heart-stirring kind.
Meanwhile, light smoke was already rising from the Royal Palace Kitchen.
Bai Li rummaged through the cabinets but couldn’t find what he wanted.
He let out a helpless sigh.
“…Bai Ning, does your entire Vampire race not have a single egg?”
Bai Ning tilted her head sheepishly.
“There’s nothing I can do, daughter! We Vampires don’t really eat eggs… I already tried my best to gather sugar, flour, and milk.”
“I told you I’m not your daugh—”
Before Bai Li could finish his sentence, he saw Bai Ning frantically signaling him with her eyes.
Her eyes seemed to say: ‘Pops! Fei Yi doesn’t matter, but there are other maids and servants here right now. Give me some face!’
Bai Li’s lip twitched, but in the end, he couldn’t bring himself to expose her.
“Humph… Understood, Empress Mother.”
“Good girl.”
Bai Ning immediately accepted the title with a beaming smile.
“Sigh, what am I going to do without eggs…”
Bai Li frowned slightly.
‘I’ll just have to use magic to whip up a dense milk foam to replace it. I hope Ziya won’t mind.’
“Daughter, I want some too!”
Bai Ning suddenly leaned in, her tone carrying a hint of coquettish softness.
She wrapped her arms gently around Bai Li’s waist, rubbing her cheek against his shoulder, and whispered into his ear.
“It’s been so long since I’ve eaten the soufflé Pops makes…”
“Alright, alright, there’s enough for you too.”
Bai Li gave a helpless, doting smile.
“Honestly, haven’t you eaten enough of my cooking lately? Ziya only gets to eat it once in a blue moon.”
Bai Ning spoke gloomily, her voice hiding a trace of imperceptible loss.
“But three months from now, the one who will get to eat Pops’ cooking every day… will be her.”
Her words made Bai Li’s heart soften.
It was true; their parting was imminent.
These three months would pass in the blink of an eye.
‘Then… I should put my heart into it and cook for them one last time.’
Bai Li took a deep breath, a gentle light shimmering in his eyes.
“So what if there were no eggs?”
This level of care had already surpassed all the ingredients in the world.
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