A flying boat glided steadily through the open skies, leaving behind the shimmering borders of the Dragon King Territory. The sunlight reflected off its runic sails, scattering light like waves across the clouds.

At the helm stood Yumina, her hands gripping the controls as the wind ruffled her hair. The airship’s faint hum mixed with the sound of the breeze rushing past its hull.

It was a spacious vessel, crafted not for war but for comfort — elegant carvings etched along its sides, faintly glowing arrays engraved into its structure. Inside, the others rested in a large cabin, each preoccupied with their own thoughts.

Yumina exhaled softly, her expression thoughtful as she kept her eyes on the horizon. "You know why people rarely use flying boats for long journeys over the sea?" she asked, half speaking to herself.

Myrtle, standing beside her with her arms folded, tilted her head. "Because of the risk?"

"Exactly," Yumina said with a sigh. "It’s dangerous. The further you go, the thinner the air and the more unstable the mana currents get. And if the boat runs out of fuel in the middle of nowhere... it’s over. You just fall straight into the ocean. No second chances."

Myrtle chuckled softly. "Don’t worry. Tyla’s rich. She said confidently that we’ll never run out of Prana Stones."

"Only she could say something that outrageous," Yumina replied, shaking her head with a grin. "Does she have an entire Prana Ore mine hidden inside her pocket dimension or something?"

"I wouldn’t be surprised," Myrtle said, smiling faintly. "Knowing her, she probably does."

They both laughed quietly, the tension of travel melting for a brief moment as the clouds rolled lazily beneath them. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

---

Inside the cabin, the atmosphere was peaceful — the air faintly scented with tea and the soft hum of mana arrays.

Tyla sat across from Lanny, while Zuzia lounged a few meters away, absentmindedly manipulating the miniature floating fountains within her pocket dimension.

Tyla leaned forward slightly. "So... you’re unable to express emotions?" she asked, surprised.

Lanny nodded, her face calm and expressionless. "Yes. I can feel emotions, but I can’t show them naturally. I just copy other people’s expressions to blend in. It’s... like pretending to smile when everyone else does."

Tyla blinked, then smiled softly. "You mimic really well," she said, reaching over to pat Lanny’s head.

"I feel warm when you do that," Lanny said in her usual neutral tone. "I want to smile... but my face won’t listen."

The words carried a strange sadness despite her blank delivery. Tyla’s hand lingered for a moment before she withdrew it.

"Tell me something," Tyla said gently. "When you say you can’t show emotions, do you still feel them?"

"Yes," Lanny replied. "Every heartbeat. Every warmth. I feel it all. I just can’t let it out."

Tyla’s expression softened. "Then that must be lonely."

Lanny looked down, her voice quieter. "It is. I just mimic emotions, so that I won’t be the odd one in the group."

Tyla exhaled slowly, leaning back in her seat. "You poor thing."

Lanny tilted her head slightly. "See? That tone right there — warmth, sympathy. I can recognize it. I just... can’t copy it honestly."

"Then how do we break the curse?" Tyla asked.

Lanny looked straight at her, her eyes unblinking. "We have to have sexual intercourse."

Tyla froze. "...Sorry, what?"

"Sexual intercourse," Lanny repeated, her tone as steady as ever. "You. Me."

She pointed first at Tyla, then at herself, before — without hesitation — making a circle with one hand and moving her finger from the other hand in and out of it in demonstration.

Tyla’s brain short-circuited. "Wait— Lanny! Don’t just—! Don’t you feel – "

Lanny tilted her head. "Don’t I feel embarrassed saying that?" she asked rhetorically. "Yes. I’m totally blushing right now. But due to the curse, I can’t show it."

Tyla pressed a palm to her forehead. "Okay, okay... let’s slow down and explain properly, please."

Lanny nodded calmly. "This Cursed Mask is the reason I can’t express my emotions. I’ve had it since I was a child. A scholar from my previous world studied it and said the mask has ways to reverse emotion."

"Reverse?" Tyla repeated, intrigued despite herself.

"Yes," Lanny continued. "It means if I feel sad, it forces me to feel joy. If I want to cry, it makes me laugh. If I’m angry, it makes me gentle. Everything I truly feel gets turned inside out. The only way to undo the curse... is to act against the mask’s reversal and fulfill the original emotion through physical or emotional contact."

She paused, her tone flat but her words deliberate. "The scholar tried different methods — laughter therapy, pain triggers, emotional resonance — none worked."

Tyla leaned forward slightly. "So how do you know what will?"

Lanny met her gaze without hesitation. "Because this time, we’re going to use the same method. We are going to do that kind of things, Lust is also an emotion."

Tyla blinked, momentarily speechless.

"Yes," Lanny continued evenly.

Tyla rubbed her temples with a sigh. "Right... so you’re saying if we, um—do that—you might actually regain your emotions?"

"Yes," Lanny replied. "If you accept me completely, the mask will no longer be able to distort what I feel."

Tyla’s eyes narrowed slightly. "But doesn’t that mean that during the emotion reversal, you’ll feel disgust toward me?"

"I’ll resist you," Lanny said without hesitation. "But don’t stop."

For a while, neither spoke. The only sound was the gentle hum of the flying boat’s engines. Zuzia, who had been pretending not to listen, peeked at them with wide, curious eyes.

Finally, Tyla exhaled, leaning back in her seat. "You know," she muttered, half to herself, "even though I’ve lost my memories, I’m pretty sure this might still be the weirdest situation I’ve ever been in."

Lanny gave a small nod, her tone calm and composed. "That’s fair."

Tyla studied her closely, noticing the flawless stillness in her expression — not a twitch, not a hint of embarrassment or affection showing through. Yet beneath that perfect mask, there was something unmistakably fragile.

Even if her face couldn’t show it, Tyla could feel it in the air between them — that quiet, trembling vulnerability of someone who longed to feel human again.

Tyla gave a faint smile. "We’ll find a way. Maybe there’s another path besides... well, that."

But Lanny shook her head calmly. "If there were another way, the scholar would’ve already found it."

Tyla frowned, tapping her chin. "Can’t we just do something creative? Like... when you feel like crying, we use laughing gas to make you laugh instead?"

"Emotions shouldn’t be forced," Lanny replied flatly.

Tyla sighed. "Then how does this whole ’lust route’ even work? I thought we were supposed to use aphrodisiacs or something—make you feel lust, then reverse it using that mask’s power."

"No," Lanny said firmly. "We’re not forcing anything." Her gaze softened, though her expression remained still. "It will work... because it’s you."

That caught Tyla off guard. "Me?"

Lanny nodded slowly. "From the moment you saved me... I knew it had to be you."

Tyla blinked, completely thrown. "Wait, hold on—what?"

"Yes," Lanny continued in her usual calm voice, every word clear and unwavering. "From that moment, I fell in love with you."

Silence filled the cabin. Even Zuzia, who had been busy playing with her floating fountains, froze mid-motion, her wide eyes darting between the two.

Lanny sat perfectly still, as if her confession hadn’t just shifted the air itself. "And yes," she added matter-of-factly, "I’m blushing right now."

Tyla buried her face in her hands, groaning softly. " I am definitely a certified playboy..."

Zuzia snorted from across the room, trying not to laugh, while Lanny simply tilted her head, "Another Mate added..."

"For what it’s worth," Lanny said, still expressionless, "I’m being completely serious."

Tyla peeked through her fingers, half exasperated, half amused. "Yeah, that’s what scares me."

"Don’t worry," Lanny said softly. "I already learned a lot about you from the beautiful sisters on the White Pearl. I won’t ask you to take responsibility. If you help me, I’ll stay by your side— just like they do."

Before Tyla could respond, Zuzia leaned over with her usual mischievous grin. "Oh... so it’s mating time now?" she teased. "Should I prep the pocket dimension pearl?" she winked playfully, "— you can turn back into Tyler, and we’ll make it a two-on-one match."

Tyla groaned and lightly bonked Zuzia on the head.

Then she turned back toward Lanny, who remained calm and unmoving, her silver hair gently brushing her shoulders.

"Well," Tyla said awkwardly, scratching her cheek, "I don’t really mind helping you... but shouldn’t we at least wait? You know, for the right time or something?"

Lanny shook her head slowly. "I don’t mind," she replied, her tone steady. "Even if we start now..."

Her hands moved toward her collar, and she began to slip her robe from her shoulders, revealing one of her breast.

Tyla’s eyes widened as she quickly reached out, placing a hand over Lanny’s to stop her. "Whoa, wait—seriously! You’re so bold!" she said, exasperated.

Lanny blinked once, her expression still blank. "No," she said flatly, "I’m actually blushing bloody red right now."