'I'm surprised Fate didn't do anything to stop any of these,' Thirteen mused as he observed Roland and Princess Laventia from a distance. He had no idea whether their relationship would be short-lived or whether the Hero would take it seriously. Either way, it was none of Thirteen's business. If Roland took Princess Laventia seriously, then that was one problem crossed off the list. Thirteen would no longer have to worry about the Hero being heartbroken once he discovered that the Saintess of his dreams was already Zion's woman. As for Derek, Thirteen was half-tempted to feed him laxatives to wipe the smugness off his face right away instead of waiting for at least a day or two. The teenage boy then tapped a few keys on his communicator and talked to the Field Marshal of the Central Government, Tristan. "Mission accomplished, Sir," Thirteen reported. "We will proceed with the procedures from the city of Velmusa. The operation will start at noon two days from now. Please, prepare everything by then." "Understood," Tristan replied. "Good work, Zion." Thirteen nodded before cutting off the connection. Nautilus would arrive at the location that he had specified within a day. Once it was in position, it would serve as Thirteen's main striker, using its main cannons as the finisher for the operation. Since they needed to ensure that the Azothralls would be destroyed with one hit, with no hope of regeneration, the output of the energy blast would be raised to the maximum. It would definitely overheat the main cannons, but it would still allow Thirteen to unleash a beam attack that was only slightly weaker than Athena's Solar Beam. 'We will only have two to three shots at most,' Thirteen thought. 'One of those shots must be aimed at the golden Azothrall.' The leader of the Azothralls was the greatest threat on the battlefield. Unless it was completely annihilated, Thirteen wouldn't be able to feel any relief in this operation. While Thirteen was observing Roland and Princess Laventia, Princess Xynalia was observing him from afar. Even after talking with the teenage boy, the Succubus Princess still didn't understand why Zion was unaffected by the charms of the succubus race. Princess Laventia had told her that Zion wasn't an ordinary Wanderer. Back then, she didn't believe it. But after experiencing that several hours ago, she had to admit that she had underestimated the Supreme Strategist of the alliance. 'Where is he going now?' Princess Xynalia thought as she followed Zion back to the guest room that was assigned to him. Seeing Zion enter his room, she waited for a few minutes before knocking on his door. Since there was no one else with the teenage boy, she thought that this was the perfect chance to continue their conversation. However, no matter how many times she knocked, no answer came from the other side. Using her authority as the owner of the residence, the succubus princess used her magic to open the lock of the door and entered the room. "Zion, there is something that we need to talk abou—" Princess Xynalia froze when she saw the teenage boy kissing someone on the couch. The two lovers then glanced in her direction, making the succubus princess' eyes widen in shock. The one whom Zion was kissing was none other than Princess Aracelle, who had been missing since the Azothralls attacked the city of Velmusa. According to the teenage boy, he was hiding the princess to prevent the Azothralls from knowing her location. The two princesses locked gazes with each other. One was surprised, while the other looked in amusement. "W-What… how?" Princess Xynalia stuttered. Thirteen glanced at the succubus princess before making a gesture for her to sit on the chair. "Do you need something from me, Princess?" Thirteen asked. "I…" Princess Xynalia was still in a state of shock because she didn't know how Princess Aracelle had suddenly appeared inside Zion's room. Suddenly, a thought appeared inside her head, making her feel emboldened. "What is your relationship with Princess Aracelle?" Princess Xynalia asked. "She's my lover," Thirteen answered without batting an eye. "Lover?!" Princess Xynalia gasped. "A-Are you insane?! House Pavareth will never allow it. They will not allo—" "Whether they allow it or not is none of your business," Princess Aracelle interjected coolly. "If you have nothing to say, please get out. I want to spend some quality time with Zion." Princess Xynalia didn't know what to think because the proud and arrogant princess didn't even wait for her reply before taking the initiative to kiss the teenage boy, who didn't resist. He even wrapped his arms around Princess Aracelle as he kissed her back, showing an expression that Princess Xynalia was seeing for the first time. As a succubus, she was well aware that the two weren't doing an act in front of her. The love in Princess Aracelle's eyes was real, and although Zion's actions were not as passionate, he was at least gentle in his actions, showing how much he cared for the jewel of House Pavareth. "Does your brother know about your relationship with him?" Princess Xynalia asked. "Yes," Princess Aracelle replied. "We came clean as soon as Zion came here the first time." "And he agreed to it?" Princess Xynalia asked in disbelief. Princess Aracelle nodded and even pulled Zion closer to her, kissing his forehead. "If you have nothing important to say, can you leave us now?" Princess Aracelle said coldly. The succubus princess gave Zion a glance, but the latter's head was buried on Princess Aracelle's chest, making her subconsciously clench her fist. She left the room without another word. Shock, disbelief, unwillingness, and disappointment flashed across her face. Knowing that she might not be in the right state of mind, Princess Xynalia headed back to her room in order to regain her composure. Now, she could understand a bit as to why her and her subordinate's charm didn't work on Zion. He already had someone more beautiful and more perfect than her as a lover. "I'm sorry, " Thirteen said, hugging Princess Aracelle a little tighter. "You did the right thing." Princess Aracelle hugged him back. "If you don't deal with this now, another girl will subconsciously find herself in your harem. Just like what happened to me." The teenage boy wanted to refute her words, but he decided to just leave it be. He didn't choose to have a harem, but he didn't reject the girls who had wished to stay with him for life. He was very tempted to ask Vincent for some advice about relationships. But for some reason, he felt that doing that wasn't the best idea. "But are you sure you don't want to make her part of your inner circle?" Princess Aracelle asked. "The Kingdom of Velmoria has always taken a neutral stance in everything. Making her yours will allow you to have a pawn in a very high plac—ahhh!" Thirteen lightly bit on something, making the princess gasp. "I don't like the term pawn or cannon fodder," Thirteen said. "Don't use those words again. You are not my pawn, Aracelle. Don't devalue yourself." The teenage boy bit her a second time. But this time, it was more tender, making the princess sigh as she hugged him tighter. "I understand," Princess Aracelle replied. "I will not use those words again. But are you really sure about this? You can still change your mind. I can help you convince her." "She doesn't need to become my lover to be part of my inner circle," Thirteen answered. "This is the reason why I asked you to come here. I wanted her to see our relationship." "And make her give up, right?" Princess Aracelle inquired. "Yes." Thirteen nodded. Princess Aracelle didn't say anything, but she sighed internally. Thirteen was smart, and he could create strategies that could turn the tide of battles to his favor. However, there was one thing that even the smartest person in Pangea didn't know fully. It was the heart of a lady. He thought that revealing his relationship with Princess Aracelle would make Princess Xynalia or any other lady give up on him. He never considered the option that this could also work in reverse, making them think that they had a chance to be with him. 'You might have made a slight blunder, Zion,' Princess Aracelle thought. 'Instead of pushing Princess Xynalia away, you might have given her hope instead. Still, that isn't a bad thing. It just shows how capable you are.' Unlike Princess Laventia, who fell in love with Roland because of his good looks, Princess Aracelle fell in love with Zion because of his cruelty, cunning, boldness, and courage. She would not exchange her beloved for all the treasures in the world. For her, Zion was the true treasure, and his worth was simply priceless.