After all, it was only a drop of blood a day—nothing that would truly harm her. Emma didn't respond to Silas' warning. Instead, she suddenly remembered what he had mentioned earlier. "Silas, you said Lucien brought you back and asked me to take care of you. When did that happen? I've never even seen him." At the mention of Lucien's name, Silas didn't know whether to pity the poor prince or call him unlucky. "He's actually—" Before he could finish, his expression changed abruptly. His body went limp, collapsing straight into Emma's arms. "Silas!" she gasped, catching him. "Silas, what's wrong? Silas!" "Ms. Tibarn! Ms. Tibarn, wake up!" Corvin's urgent voice suddenly echoed in her ear. Emma's eyes flew open. Silas was gone. In his place stood Corvin—freshly transformed into his human form, not even clothed yet. "Corvin… you're healed?" she said in shock, then quickly looked around. "Did you see Silas?" "Silas?" Corvin looked confused. "No, Ms. Tibarn, I didn't see anyone named Silas. You were having a nightmare, though. You kept calling for something—something like 'siren.'" A dream? Emma blinked in disbelief. That whole thing was a dream? But it felt so real… "Ms. Tibarn, are you all right?" Corvin waved his hand in front of her face when she didn't answer. Emma shook her head quickly, forcing herself to focus. "I'm fine. Just a bad dream." Relieved, Corvin grinned, his golden eyes gleaming. "That's good! Ms. Tibarn, I've fully recovered now, so we can bond!" Before she could react, he grabbed her hand and pressed it against his bare, firm abdomen.It took Emma a second to realize he wasn't wearing anything. "Ms. Tibarn, see? My abs are way better than Edric's," he said proudly. The moment he'd regained his strength, he hadn't even bothered to dress—just ran straight to her. That night on the floor, he'd overheard her saying she liked touching Edric's abs, and he hadn't forgotten. Emma looked at his earnest face, utterly unable to find the words to refuse him. She nodded solemnly. "Yes, they're… defined. Well defined." Corvin's eyes lit up like a child receiving praise. Overjoyed, he immediately leaned forward to tackle her onto the bed. "Since you like me, Ms. Tibarn, let's bond right now!" Ever since discovering he had a huntress, he'd studied everything he could about bonding during his free time. If he hadn't been too weak before, he would've come to her long ago."Corvin, wait—hold on!" Emma pushed against his chest, quickly yanking the blanket up to wrap around him. "Calm down!" He froze, staring at the blanket and then at her, ears drooping. Was I… rejected? The thought made his eyes sting. She doesn't want me? She doesn't like me? "Ms. Tibarn, are you rejecting me?" His voice cracked. "You don't want to bond with me? You don't like me?" Tugging the blanket away, he revealed his fluffy beast ears, tilting his head toward her. "What about now?" He knew she loved petting his ears when he'd been too weak to move. Surely this would work. Surely she'd want him. The soft, velvety feel beneath her fingertips made Emma instinctively squeeze them gently. Good lord… whoever said geeks can't flirt has clearly never met him. Corvin frowned when she didn't answer right away. Determined, he showed his trump card—his fluffy tail. The thick, soft tail wrapped around Emma's waist as he knelt before her, eyes full of hope. "Ms. Tibarn, do you like this?" She liked it when Edric wrapped his tail around her, he thought anxiously. Mine's not smooth like his snake tail, but maybe she'll like it anyway. "I like it," Emma admitted helplessly. Who wouldn't? Her words made Corvin's entire face light up. Without hesitation, he lunged, pinning her down on the bed. "Then let's bond now, Ms. Tibarn! Don't worry, I studied a lot about this—I'll take good care of you! Come on, Ms. Tibarn, let's start!" "Corvin, wait!" Emma panicked, pushing against him. "I know you're excited, but just give me a second—" As she raised her hand, her lightcore slipped from her wrist and rolled across the bed. It buzzed once, then flickered to life—projecting Edric's image right beside them. "Emma, I forgot to tell you—" Edric's voice cut off the instant he saw the scene.On the bed, Emma wore a thin nightdress, one strap dangling loosely off her arm. Corvin's tail was wrapped tightly around her waist, his bare chest pressed against her as she braced a hand against him. For a long moment, no one said a word—even the air between them seemed to freeze.