Primordial Villain with a Slave Harem

Chapter 1460  Bathing With Three Oriental Babes

The tension bled out of him in layers. His shoulders sank, his spine relaxed, and the constant edge he carried through every corridor and battlefield dulled.

Ayame's reaction was immediate, and for once, there was no smugness in her smile, no teasing curve to her lips. She leaned into him naturally with her head resting against his shoulder as if that was where it had always belonged, her body fitting into the space beneath his arm without pretense.

"That's better," she whispered quietly, her voice turning much gentler than before. "You looked like you were about to fall apart standing there."

Hanae watched the two of them for a moment before speaking. Her voice shifted away from theatrics into a measured and sincere tune. "Rest and recovery are part of proper training. Training smart is what will let you succeed in the long and eventful life that awaits you. Working hard is simply not enough." She gestured lightly at the spring around them. "Even in this domain, where the body mends itself instantly, the mind does not operate by the same rules. You have been pushing yourself relentlessly."

Her gaze settled on Quinlan with unsettling insight sparkling behind those wise eyes of hers.

"I was told you spent nearly two weeks being beaten and broken by Dragnar, only to follow that with repeated assassinations at Kiryssa's hands. Pain teaches, yes, but without rest, those lessons fail to anchor themselves. If you do not allow yourself time to breathe, my teachings will slide right out of your head."

Quinlan opened his eyes slowly as he felt the truth of her words settling in alongside the warmth.

"…You're right." His body was already proving her point. "I feel like I could melt right here."

The thought alone was dangerously appealing.

Ayame shifted then, turning slightly to wrap her arms around him in a tight, earnest hug that saw her cheek brushing against his chest as she spoke.

"I'd argue it's been more than three weeks of endless hardships. Your battle with Nyxara was anything but relaxing, after all."

"Hehe~ Maybe I did work you a bit hard…" Nyxara's voice purred in his mind, instantly filed away to irrelevance as Quinlan ignored her.

Ayame tilted her head up to look at him. Her expression was stripped of playfulness, crystal-blue eyes steady and warm as they met his.

"I might joke a lot," she murmured with her thumb brushing lightly against his side beneath the water. "I tease, and I provoke, and I pretend." Her voice lowered just a touch. "But I want you to know this." A pause came.

Her eyes shone with nothing but utmost sincerity.

"I'm really proud of you, Quin. My arrogant primordial lover is way too amazing."

His smile came easily as he looked back at her.

"The feeling is mutual. Seeing all of you push yourselves the way you do… It's what kept me moving forward."

Hanae clasped both hands together at her chest, then her eyes shone as she leaned forward, letting out a soft, dramatic sigh.

"Oh, to be young and in love…!" she exclaimed, clearly delighted. "Truly, the greatest indulgence of all."

Quinlan turned his head with one brow lifting as his gaze shifted toward the overly pleased primordial.

"Speaking of love… Is this actually fine for you to be doing this?"

Hanae blinked at him, clearly puzzled. "Fine?" she echoed. "Doing what?"

"Bathing like this," Quinlan replied evenly while gesturing at his naked body. "With your students, one of whom happens to be a man now."

Her eyes widened a fraction, then softened as understanding finally caught up. "Ah."

He continued without pressing. "I don't know if you primordials have developed some questionable tendencies over your long lives, but I would be anything but pleased if one of my wives decided to relax naked in a pool with another man."

Hanae was quiet for a moment, steam drifting between them as she tilted her head in thought. Then her lips curved into a gentle smile.

"Zen is not my husband. I am… how was the phrase again?" She hummed lightly. "Free-spirited. Though I would rather like the idea of someday meeting my knight in shining armor."

Her eyes lifted to his then, wide and playful, lashes dipping a thousand times in utmost theatrics.

Quinlan snorted softly. "Stop playing around."

A light laugh escaped her, the act dropping away as easily as it had appeared. "What a boring boy you are, Quinlan Elysiar. Maybe my womanly charm has truly lost some effectiveness…?"

Her tone softened as she continued, not even waiting for him to respond. "But I was not joking about the first part. Zen and I are nothing more than sparring partners these days. We have been locked within this domain for an absurd length of time, and we made a pact long ago not to let our blades grow dull. So we fight. Constantly."

She leaned back against the stone, expression thoughtful rather than dramatic now.

"As for love…" she trailed off, then shrugged lightly. "I can't even remember if I ever felt like that toward him, but what I do know for certain is that I have known him for billions of years. At some point, passion cools into something else. Familiarity. Trust. The sort of bond that feels closer to family than romance." Her gaze returned to Quinlan. "I hope you'll somehow manage to maintain the spark, no matter how long your life ends up being."

Ayame listened quietly, still tucked against Quinlan's side, her fingers idly tracing small, absent shapes against his abs beneath the water. There was no tension in her posture, only ease.

"That makes sense," Quinlan said after a moment. "And I'm grateful for your words. I'm not worried, however. My heart is simply too big to stop loving these wonderful girls."

Hanae smiled, genuinely this time. "That's the correct answer."

Then she scoffed, truly displeased. "You've only just been born, but you already make a better partner than most of the cynical male primordials…" Ayame's arms tightened around him, possessive to the utmost, her chin lifting as she turned her head just enough to look past Quinlan toward Hanae.

"You should stop making advances on your descendant's lover unless you actually mean it. In which case, I might be willing to negotiate the terms, such as the quality and number of katanas you'd give me in exchange for letting you pursue my man." Her lips curved. "But if you keep jesting and making suggestions, the two of us will have serious problems."

"Oho?" Hanae chuckled, clearly delighted rather than offended, her eyes glinting with interest. "Is that a threat my ears picked up? How do you plan to make good on those words, little lady?"

Ayame smiled sweetly. "I'll become stronger than you and beat you to a pulp."

For a heartbeat, the steam seemed to thicken.

Hanae's grin sharpened, the playful warmth draining into something colder, more combative. "Is that so…?"

Ayame nodded. "That is so."

Hanae tilted her head, studying her descendant with open appraisal. "But you cannot even compare to your older sister."

"She's like twenty times my age," Ayame shot back without missing a beat.

"…" Black Fang growled, sinking a fraction deeper into the water, clearly unimpressed with the entire exchange.

Hanae's grin widened further, satisfied, predatory, and amused all at once.

Quinlan said nothing, letting the heat seep into his bones as the women hissed and postured around him, the tension strangely comforting in its own way, his eyes closing as he allowed himself to simply exist, the exhaustion finally loosening its grip while the bath did its quiet work.

Training began not long after.

Hanae's lessons were nothing like Kiryssa's cruelty or Dragnar's overwhelming force, instead focusing on precision, posture, and intent, each movement stripped down to its purpose until every step, every draw, every cut carried meaning rather than brute effort. Her guidance was relentless but clean, correcting angles, timing, and breath until Quinlan felt significantly more proficient with handling his saber than ever before.

She also taught him patience, not as hesitation but as control, the calm required to strike exactly once and end a fight before it truly began, and under her watchful eye, he learned to truly feel the difference between swinging a weapon and wielding one.

Time passed quickly.

When the final lesson concluded and the last correction was given, it was time to leave the realm behind and return home.