Iris leaned on a rosy sofa. Her white loose-sleeved cloak draped over the backrest, flowed to the seat, and clung to her figure. She drooped her head low, her eyes narrowed into weary slits. She swayed to her side, where Secain sat still, not to disturb her mistress’s much-needed rest.

As her head touched Secain, Iris jerked herself up. Her eyes snapped open, though the murky fatigue lingered in them. Her pupils contracted as she looked at the rest of the people watching her, smiling, chuckling.

“Mistress, you don’t have to force yourself,” Secain said. “Please use me as you see fit.”

“How could I rest . . . in the middle of a meeting?” Iris straightened her back. She leaned forwards and reached for a freshly prepared drink. She swallowed all at once. Its spicy grape flavour burned her throat, clashing with her drowsiness. “Please don’t worry about me. I’m . . . listening.”

Parmin perked up, but she dared not rise from her sofa. Her hands, interlocked with Morbi’s, bound her to her seat. She could only tend to her Iris with her gaze while pleading to her Morbi with her trembling body.

Morbi merely beamed at Iris, paying no attention to her Parmin.

The other Monster Girls, bartendresses and waitresses, carefully walked in and refilled the drinks. They deliberately slowed their motion, giving their all to appear their best in front of their most admired.

A firm knock on the door interrupted the display of bashful charms. The nearest Monster Girl walked to it, took a deep breath to regulate her expression, and opened the door.

She peeped at the guest. Her eyes lay on a thin sky-blue veil, behind which lay a pair of gentle pupils. The vastitude contained within them overwhelmed her. Her cheeks flushed, and she stepped to the side.

Vindette entered the room. She grasped the Monster Girl’s chin and stroked her blushing face. Her fingertips grazed the sensitive flesh and, before that girl could let out a pleasuring cry, drew away.

“Is there any punishment for the late attendees?” Vindette said.

Parmin’s eyes gleamed. “There is one, Lady Vindette!”

Vindette tilted her head and tapped her lips. “Pray tell, Little Parmin. Will it make your Morbi jealous?”

“You mustn’t joke about that—” Parmin let out a cute shriek. Morbi turned to stare at her and pinched her hands. “I only want you to take care of our Iris. No other . . . hidden intention.”

As Parmin desperately begged for Morbi’s forgiveness, Vindette stepped forward. Her figure collapsed into a stream of cold mist. Another puff of milky cloud condensed beside Iris, morphing into the carefree Vindette.

She seated herself beside her youngest friend, her face leaning close enough to feel those racing emotions.

“You’ve exhausted so thoroughly your vitality.” Vindette closed her eyes. “I gazed away for one moment, and you’ve experienced so much. Dear Iris, does it hurt?”

Iris tensed up. Her hands, resting on her lap, trembled. Against her effort, flickers of the past flashed on her irises. She took a deep breath, exhaled, and finally raised her head. A smile emerged on her face, decorating her graceful expression.

Lady Vindette . . . didn’t try to ask about what happened. She instead asked about how it hurt Iris. That question . . . she could answer.

“It’s . . . painful,” Iris said. “But whenever I felt like giving up, I’d recall you all. Your presences guarantee my success.”

“That’s our Iris, always looking for opportunities amidst crises. However, your method, it might have been too reckless.”

The senior members, as well as Secain and Lorient, nodded. Their cutest Iris had many secrets she couldn’t share, and she also had multiple cards hidden behind her mischievous demeanour. But these reasons couldn’t dispel their worry.

Iris rose from her seat. She carefully detached herself from Secain and placed her hands on her chest. She grabbed the collar of her dress, pulled it down her shoulders, and slid it downwards. Keeping her face lowered, she let her hair fall and conceal her bashful eyes.

The other Monster Girls, especially the maids and waitresses, held their breaths. They resisted their urges to stare, but they still peeked. Iris’s charms, rumoured to be comparable to the Court Founder, they wished to experience it too.

Secain tensed up. Her cheeks puffed as she averted her gaze. She disliked those eyes caressing her mistress. She wanted to rush to stand in front of her, to protect her from all others.

But such was her mistress’s enigmatic wish; she could never go against it.

As the room heated up, Iris smiled. The last string tied around her back loosened, and her dress came loose, flowing down her body, gliding along her abdomen, down to her thighs, slipping to her feet.

Light befell her skin. Its pale, snow-like shade melted into a deep, reflective blue membrane. Her sensitive flesh returned to its original form, her inner slime swirling inside her empty body.

“How tempting,” Vindette said. “You’re much more lascivious than what your manner suggests.”

Iris feinted an innocent smile. She swept her gaze across the room, passing the embarrassed Monster Girls who realised Iris had teased them. Her heart bloomed, though she suppressed her emotions from leaking to her face.

“As you said, Lady Vindette, my action is thoughtless.” Iris drew her hand to her abdomen, where her Shadow Heart Core stayed. “I merely wish to . . . lighten the mood, and also show you what happened.”

Vindette narrowed her eyes. “My eyes are on you, Iris, and everyone within this room.”

Parmin held her breath. Whenever Lady Vindette revealed her solemn aura, everyone must abide by her commands. Iris’s secret would never leak out of this private longue.

While the air froze, Iris pierced her fingertips through her membrane. Her fingers wrapped around her Shadow Heart Core, grazing it. A ticklish sensation permeated her soul. She, although shivering, endured it as she pulled The Core out of her body. Her azure slime dripped from it, soaking her dress and sofa and carpet.

The waitresses grasped. For Slime Girls, their Cores were their most intimate, most precious part. The Cores were the souls, the hearts, the origins inseparable from themselves.

Any Slime Girls whose Cores left their bodies would become unstable. They would dissolve and reform around their Cores.

Iris blinked before the thought drowned her. She forgot the implication of her acts, but, glimpsing at the senior members’ amused expressions, her heart raced.

“Although I’m a Slime Girl, I . . . do not possess a Core, at least not a traditional one,” she said.

“Our Iris has always been special,” Parmin said.

“Please don’t interrupt me, Lady Parmin, or Lady Morbi might reproach you.” Iris giggled. She clenched her right hand, which held her Shadow Heart Core. Mystical black tendrils rose from its surface. “What I possess . . . is Lady Lilith’s inheritance, Shadow Heart Core.”

Pale clouds flooded the private longue and formed soft yet firm walls, which barred the windows and doors. Cold air whirled, coursing along the sofas, gliding the tables, and blowing at the flickering lanterns. At the centre of it all, Vindette raised her hand, positioning it in front of Iris’s Shadow Heart Core.

Her palm perfectly hid Shadow Heart Core from all but Iris herself. Not even Secain, sitting beside Iris, could see through this mirage of mist and whiteness.

“You shouldn’t have carelessly revealed your core, Iris,” Vindette said. Her unassailable veil quivered. “The mythical Shadow Heart Core, one of Lilith’s True Inheritances, it possesses the seductive power that even us Corrupted Ones cannot resist. Just a gaze is enough to make one Fall.”

Iris bobbed her head. The shadowy tendrils receded inside The Core, and the dark power rising from its surface subsided. “I . . . this is the first time I’ve heard of such a property. How . . . strong is its influence?”

Was her behaviour . . . her personality a result of this all-permeating power?

Vindette tilted her head. Her gaze landed on The Core and reflected off towards Iris’s still expression. Within that pair of golden eyes was a hint of uncertainty.

“If The Core has a hold over you, you would’ve already amassed a dark harem devoted to you and you alone.” Vindette glanced at Secain, who, trying to meet her gaze, shivered under the immense pressure. “Your little maid would’ve already become one of us, perhaps even something more Corrupted than us.”

Iris nodded. She was still herself. No one could control her . . . all those actions were hers. She . . . willingly seduced her partners?

As Iris’s Shadow Heart Core receded its power, Vindette drew back her hand. Everyone else carefully examined The Core, whose deep blue shade resembled a pocket dimension containing the vast depth of an endless ocean.

Without Iris’s intentionally exposing her power, The Core appeared ordinary, a mere gemstone.

Secain reached for The Core and caressed it. Iris shivered; her blue slime slightly pinkened. Although she regained control as quickly as she lost it, her reaction couldn’t escape other senior members.

Parmin smirked, but Morbi leaned on her, pressed their lips together, and bit Parmin’s tongue. Parmin’s scream, delightful moan, muffled within the cloud-filled longue.

As everyone marvelled at Shadow Heart Core, Secain lowered her head. Her eyes, once filled with awe for such a mystical treasure, dimmed as a heavy fog churned within them.

“Mistress, why . . . did you tell us your secret?” she said.

Mistress would never reveal more than necessary. She loved to surprise her people, but she was also guilty of hiding her pain, hiding her pressure. If this grave matter was what she revealed, what could she be hiding?

“I’ve been too selfish, too self-absorbed. Since you all wish to help me, it’s only fair that you know the extent of danger you’ll be facing.”

“We’ve been dancing with The Churches since the moment we shattered our shackles,” Parmin said. “Lady Lilith’s True Inheritance will aid us in our path; you’ve brought nothing but surprises for us, Iris.”

“The Churches . . . they look down on us, but . . .” Iris took a deep breath. On her neck, a milky insignia, the shape of a flickering star, flashes its holy radiance. “We’ve never seen their true depth. The Saintess of Pure Mind, if she wishes so, could take me away forever.”

Vindette narrowed her eyes. She drew her hands to Iris’s waist and held onto her lightly. “Iris, when you overcome your limit, did you do it under The Saintess’s watch?”

Iris froze. Although nothing appeared in her calm look, Vindette still felt the stiffness radiating throughout Iris’s slimy figure. Vindette tightened her arms around Iris’s waist and pulled her in.

Surprised, Iris let out a soft cry, but she didn’t resist. Her body fell onto Vindette’s lap, her head resting beneath Vindette’s mature gaze. She averted her eyes, her ears tensing.

“How did you know?” Iris said. “I’ve met her, talked to her, and listened to her prayer.”

“And yet you walk away the victor.”

“Her all-encompassing kindness allows it.”

“You should’ve repaid her with an affectionate kiss,” Parmin said. “I wouldn’t doubt your ability to Corrupt even The Saintess of Pure Mind.”

“Be careful, Parmin. A Legendary can sense when her name is uttered, her presence discussed,” Vindette said. “I cannot be sure if The Founder’s Domain can hide your words.”

Parmin, her face pale, sealed her mouth shut. She turned to her emotionless Morbi and nuzzled her as if she were a little girl terrified of the night. Morbi, shaking her head, hugged her scared Parmin, stroking her hair.

Vindette then returned her attention to Iris. “The Saintess must’ve known of your Shadow Heart Core. Do you need us to send you away?”

Iris beamed as she rose from Vindette’s lap. “I betted against her, and I’ve won. She would no longer interfere with my life, unless my actions threat the good of the world.”

Since Iris mentioned not the detail, none would ask her. All understood her implicit plea.

Secain tilted her head. “Then, Mistress, now that you’ve revealed to us your most precious treasure, what do you want us to do with it?”

Using Shadow Heart Core, one could enter the mystical inheritance ground, Shadow Plane. Here, Lilith hid countless of her treasures and legacies, which only those chosen by The Core and The Fragments could have.

With Shadow Heart Core, The Court would gain an unbelievably immense resource point, an entire Plane for themselves.

Iris placed her right hand on Secain’s cheek. “Of course, The Core will greatly benefit The Court. My greatest treasure isn’t it, but you all.”