Chase Shaw figured Zoe Pierce knew exactly how to sweet-talk people.

The most ordinary words, when spoken by her, could make his heart race.

Chase Shaw squeezed her hand, leading her away from the crowd and down a smaller path toward their destination.

On a winding staircase, a few small squirrels were nibbling on something, a charming sight against a wall completely covered in vines and flowers.

Zoe Pierce’s gaze lingered on the squirrels for a moment longer.

"They’re all fake," Chase Shaw explained. "Mechanical squirrels. They only run around this specific area."

’No wonder,’ Zoe thought.

The squirrels had seemed a little too well-behaved. It just went to show how advanced technology had become, making it hard to tell what was real and what wasn’t.

She followed Chase Shaw to the top of the stairs, and then they took a long elevator ride.

Finally, they arrived at their destination.

It was a lavishly decorated restaurant. Chase Shaw went ahead to verify their reservation, and a robot host greeted them and led them forward.

The space grew more open as they walked, and soon they arrived at a large door. The robot input a string of commands, and the door slid open.

’This doesn’t feel like we’re going out to eat,’ Zoe thought. ’It’s more like we’re infiltrating a secret base.’

But the moment she stepped through the doorway, Zoe Pierce knew she was wrong.

A gentle breeze wafted by, carrying a rich floral fragrance.

’This is supposed to be a restaurant,’ Zoe thought, ’but it looks more like a beautiful greenhouse.’

The floor was paved with crystal, and all around them were vibrant flowers of every color. The design was Rococo, with water flowing gently in a misty, man-made stream.

’It’s beautiful.’

Zoe Pierce reached out and touched a violet-blue hydrangea. Tulips of every color bloomed at her feet, and butterflies flitted through the air.

Chase Shaw followed quietly behind Zoe, watching her stunned expression.

After a long moment, Zoe retracted her hand and sat down in the spot that had been specially prepared.

Here, apart from the babbling of the stream, there was only the faint chirping of insects.

It was so quiet.

Yet it felt completely different from the forests they had stayed in before. Those places were deep and tranquil, but also held a fear of the unknown.

Here, there was only beauty to be enjoyed.

"I really like it here," Zoe heard Chase say. "I like quiet places. This is a good spot for a nap."

No noisy crowds, just the scent of grass, earth, and flowers.

Zoe ventured a question. "So... is this place yours?"

Sure enough, she saw Chase nod.

’Damned rich kid.’

’It made sense when she thought about it,’ she mused. ’The Mecha business is one of the most profitable industries out there. With all that money, of course they’d be buying up property.’

Land on The Capital Star was worth its weight in gold—Zoe knew that firsthand from her family’s business. A plot this large, not far from the main urban center, must have cost an astronomical sum.

She shot Chase a look of complicated jealousy.

Chase didn’t understand why Zoe was suddenly looking at him like that, with a complicated expression he couldn’t quite decipher. Was it envy, or something else?

"What is it?"

Zoe picked up her glass and took a sip. "Nothing. I just think it’s beautiful."

’The working-class spirit from her past life had just flared up for a moment, that was all.’

"I just registered your access permissions," Chase said bluntly. "Next time you want to come, you can just come on your own."

Zoe murmured her thanks.

Chase used his Intelligent Brain to adjust her lounge chair. Their seats were very close; reclining like this, without the armrests between them, it would feel as if they were lying together.

"So, back outside... was it bothering you?"

’It must be because of his spirit sea,’ she thought. Chase had always seemed to prefer the quiet. From the very first time they met, he had been trying to sleep with his head down. Since then, she’d learned he hated loud, noisy places.

Chase turned on his side to face Zoe. "No, it wasn’t."

When they were holding hands, he had clearly felt her using her spiritual power.

It had smoothed over the turbulent parts of his spirit sea, making it calm and docile, completely erasing his vexing irritation.

Besides, his eyes had been only on her.

He hadn’t noticed anything else.

"Are you bored?" Chase had no experience with this, so he’d just searched his Intelligent Brain for fun places to go. When Mt. Paeron came up, he had naturally thought of this spot where he often spent his time.

But he wasn’t much of a talker, so he could only sit beside her quietly, watching her enjoy herself.

Even now, having brought Zoe here, he wasn’t sure if she actually liked it.

Zoe tilted her head back, her gaze drifting up toward the ceiling, which was almost too high to see. "Not at all. Life is hectic enough as it is. It’s nice to just do nothing."

It was a stolen moment of leisure.

The friendship tournament was looming. They were truly just stealing a small moment of rest in the brief time they had.

’Being lazy, just lying around, wasting time.’

Eating food they both liked, listening to each other talk, doing nothing in particular.

’This is what falling in love is, isn’t it?’

After a moment of thought, she sat up, glancing at the width of his lounge chair.

"What is it?" he asked.

Zoe got up, walked around her own chair to his, and looked down at him. "Got room for one more?"

Chase froze, his gray eyes deepening. He silently shifted over, making space for her.

Zoe’s knee pressed down, and then her entire body settled into the crook of Chase’s arm. The once-spacious lounge chair suddenly felt a little crowded.

But Chase was once again savoring the feeling of holding Zoe in his arms.

Even the fine, downy hairs on Zoe’s face were clearly visible.

So close it made him want to do something.

Remembering the light kiss she had initiated, Chase tilted his head toward her.

They were so close that Zoe was keenly aware of his slightest movement.

Tilting her head up slightly, she saw his handsome face drawing near.

He approached with caution, his eyelashes fluttering, afraid of being too forward.

Zoe didn’t move, watching as he drew closer and closer, until his lips slowly met hers.

He kissed her until the pale pink of her lips deepened into a ripe, lustrous red.

Their breaths mingled.

Her hand unconsciously clenched his collar. He shifted from lying on his side to a half-kneeling position over her.

Bracing his hands on the top of the chair, he cast a shadow over her. Backlit, his expression was completely unreadable as he slowly, deliberately, lowered his head again and again.

She tried to wrap her arms around his neck, but he caught her wrists, pinning them above her head. Her waist arched against the chair back, forming a graceful curve.

He captured both of her wrists in one hand, using his free hand to brace himself beside her cheek and tilt her chin up.

She felt completely under his control, unable to resist.

’She started this,’ Chase thought. He couldn’t hold back; it was only natural.

In the bright, vibrant greenhouse, with the sound of babbling water all around, two figures were entwined on a single lounge chair.

The woman’s jaw was tight, her chin tilted up, pulling the fair, slender line of her neck taut.

A swallow moved in her throat.

Occasionally, a few soft, stifled breaths could be heard.

The man’s palm caressed the side of her neck.

He was cheating, using his spiritual power to bind her wrists. This freed both his hands, one to grasp her waist, the other to stroke the skin of her neck.

His kiss was an invasion, a plunder, utterly relentless.

He seemed determined to wring out every last breath, every last drop of sweetness from her.