The Yellow-Haired Villain in Soaring Phoenix's Novels Also Desires Happiness

“What exactly is wrong with you?”

At such a close distance, there was no way Ariel could miss Muen’s strange behavior.

She immediately shot him a suspicious look.

“Are you hiding something from me?”

“N-no...”

“Really?”

“Of course not.” Muen took a deep breath and continued wearing that handsome smile like absolutely nothing was happening. “We’re sitting face-to-face. What could I possibly hide from you?”

“...That’s true.”

Ariel nodded.

One table. Two people directly across from each other. If she lifted her foot, she could even kick him.

At this distance, what kind of tricks could he possibly pull?

This was not some under-the-bed situation where a single wooden board could divide two completely different worlds, and she was not some outside observer anymore, forever unable to truly enter the story...

Now she was the only participant!

So why had this guy suddenly acted so sneaky just now and lowered his head all of a sudden...

Wait.

Ariel’s brows furrowed sharply as realization struck her. Her little face immediately darkened and she lowered her head to look.

Under the table.

Her carefully groomed little feet were swaying unconsciously back and forth, playful and adorable.

Because the private room was quite warm, Ariel had already taken off her little leather boots and even removed the white socks she never felt comfortable wearing. Her soft bare feet were exposed openly to the air now, like some kind of delicacy hanging from a branch.

And to a particular lifeform known as the blond pig, they naturally possessed overwhelming attraction.

I see now...

Pervert!

A faint blush spread across Ariel’s cheeks as she gave a quiet huff.

Bad guy. Sneaking peeks...

If he wanted to look, couldn’t he just tell her? It wasn’t like she would refuse!

Still...

Being able to attract him felt pretty nice.

At least in this regard, she had beaten those shameless vixens by a whole level!

Her cute bun-like toes curled and relaxed again. Ariel hesitated for a moment, then ultimately decided not to hide them after all, allowing the pervert across from her to continue secretly admiring them.

After all, Young Master Campbell was paying for dinner this time.

Since he was treating her to delicious food, then treating him to some delicious food in return was not impossible either.

Equivalent exchange.

Very fair.

“But you have to behave.”

Ariel warned him seriously.

“For now, you’re only allowed to admire from afar. No touching.”

“Ah? O-of course... I’ll behave. I’m very well-behaved!”

Muen nodded instinctively. Although he had absolutely no idea what kind of mental journey Ariel had just gone through, nor what exactly she meant by “behave,” at least it looked like she still was not suspecting anything.

And honestly, not suspecting him was normal. Who in the world could possibly imagine something like this?!

Using spatial power to secretly eat ice cream?

What kind of bizarre brain circuitry did someone need to combine those two concepts together?

And yet...

When it came to that particular Saintess, Liya’s thought process really did exceed ordinary human standards by a tremendous margin.

“That shameless pervert Saintess...”

Muen ground his teeth.

He had thought he escaped her clutches already, only to get ambushed like this here of all places.

And the worst part was that he had absolutely no way to resist.

Because his important lifeline...

His literal lifeline...

Was currently in the hands of that shameless Saintess.

Forget resisting. He could not even make a sound.

Because...

Ariel was sitting right in front of him.

Absolutely under no circumstances could Ariel discover this.

That was something he had warned Liya about earlier, but it applied equally to himself now.

At the moment, that shameless Saintess was only secretly eating ice cream.

But if Ariel found out, she might yank out the entire ice cream by the root.

...Just imagining it was horrifying.

“Hm? Aren’t you eating?” Ariel asked curiously when Muen remained motionless.

“I am. I’m eating... of course I’m eating.”

Muen picked up the ice cream—

The actual ice cream—

And gave it a few light licks.

But no matter how sweet and delicious the real ice cream tasted, he simply could not focus on it.

Slurp~

Across the table, Ariel extended her little tongue again and continued savoring the delicious dessert before her.

And somewhere else, a certain someone refused to lose either, producing another soft slurping sound audible only to Muen as she greedily enjoyed the exact same “dessert.”

Muen clenched both hands tightly, relying solely on willpower to resist the invasion of that overwhelming pleasure.

Unfortunately, willpower possessed incredible tolerance against pain—

But against another kind of sensation, its endurance was dramatically weaker.

Especially with Ariel sitting directly in front {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} of him, the overwhelming sense of forbidden immorality only intensified everything further. The pleasure invaded faster and deeper, seeming capable of reaching the innermost depths of him with absurd ease.

No.

Muen jolted sharply and forcibly steadied himself.

Hold on!

Muen Campbell, you can do this!

Use that powerful will that let you fight Evil Gods! A little difficulty like this cannot possibly shake you!

Absolutely—

“Hm? This feels a little unsatisfying.”

Meanwhile, Ariel had already grown somewhat dissatisfied with merely licking it little by little like this.

The sweetness and icy chill were certainly wonderful, but after adapting to it, she felt something was still missing.

After thinking for a moment, Ariel did what any ordinary person eating ice cream might naturally do.

She lifted the container and pushed the front end of the ice cream fully into her cherry-red lips!

“Mmph... so big...”

The ice cream was thick enough that even taking only the tip inside proved difficult.

But that difficulty was quickly overshadowed by the deliciousness of the dessert itself.

—Rather, it was precisely because of that thickness that its flavor could so easily reach every hidden corner of her mouth.

And she was not finished yet.

“Sluurp...”

Ariel lowered her head again and went a little deeper, her tongue continuously licking the ice cream while trying to melt the frozen outer layer so that more sweet liquid could gradually blend together with her saliva.

Savoring it this way elevated the dessert’s flavor to an entirely new level...

“Hsss!”

Before the ice cream even melted much, Muen suddenly threw himself backward against the chair, head tilted slightly upward toward the ceiling as he inhaled sharply!

“What’s wrong with you now?”

Ariel lifted her head, her gaze growing even stranger.

Were her feet really that attractive?

Did they seriously provoke this much reaction from him?

“N-nothing, really nothing! It’s just... the ice cream... the ice cream is too delicious!”

Muen waved his hands frantically, his breathing noticeably uneven now.

“Really...”

The ice cream was definitely delicious, but it was still just dessert.

Could it really make someone react this intensely?

Hmph.

This ice cream clearly was not the same ice cream.

Besides, he had barely even eaten it yet. What nonsense was he babbling about?

Could just looking at it really excite him this much?

Pervert!

Ariel stopped caring.

If the pervert wanted to continue “tasting” from afar, then let him.

She was going to properly enjoy the real ice cream herself.

She needed to finish it in one go already. There were plenty more desserts waiting afterward!

So once more—

She took it into her mouth.

The front end of the ice cream consisted of frozen fruit juice, making it exceptionally smooth. Whether tongue or lips brushed across it, every touch glided effortlessly.

Ariel’s little tongue licked across the surface, and soon juice began trickling down. She naturally curled her tongue and drew the liquid into her mouth.

Although she lacked deep understanding of many expensive ingredients, Ariel could still tell this was not made from a single fruit juice. It was a blend of many different fruits, even mixed with milk, giving it both sweetness and a rich creamy texture.

And faintly hidden within it was another unusual flavor she could not quite identify.

She only knew that whatever it was, it brought immense enjoyment to both her sense of taste and smell.

After carefully savoring the front portion of the ice cream, Ariel continued deeper.

The middle layer consisted of finely crushed nuts covering a thick shell of dark chocolate. As her lips brushed across it, she could distinctly feel the rough texture.

But she did not dislike it.

On the contrary, it let her appreciate the layers of the dessert even more clearly.

Whoever created this ice cream was obviously a master confectioner who thoroughly understood the kind of chemical reaction produced when crushed nuts and chocolate blended together.

And placing that section in the middle clearly meant the confectioner never intended for her to simply bite through it in one mouthful.

No.

She was meant to carefully feel it with her lips, savor it with her tongue, even coordinate it together with the tip of the ice cream itself. Only then could the full flavor truly be experienced.

Sweetness and bitterness.

Smoothness and roughness.

Everything intertwined together.

But...

“This still isn’t enough.”

If those sensations were all there was, Ariel admitted it was certainly a very good dessert.

But it absolutely did not deserve the level of recommendation it had received!

There had to be something more.

Somewhere deeper inside this ice cream—

At its mysterious core—

Something else had to be hidden there.

Something worthy of being called its essence!

Ariel continued pressing deeper inward.

She could already vaguely sense something.

Excitement surged through her.

Even the table in front of her seemed to tremble slightly alongside her growing enthusiasm.

But Ariel had no spare attention to care why the table was shaking.

Her focus was entirely on the delicious ice cream so close between her soft lips.

Pssh.

Suddenly, something burst out.

“So hot...”

Ariel froze for a moment.

Then immense delight exploded across her face.

“It’s cream!”

Hot cream!

The exterior of the ice cream was freezing cold, delivering an extreme chill—

Yet hidden deep inside its center was rich, burning-hot cream!

Cold and heat!

Hardness and softness!

Sweetness and richness!

This ultimate contrast, this extreme opposition—

That was the true essence of this dessert!

Amazing!

“Gulp... gulp...”

A huge amount of cream suddenly flooded into her throat, forcing Ariel to swallow hard just to avoid wasting any of it.

Yet not only did she not complain, she could not stop the satisfied expression spreading across her face.

Wonderful.

Absolutely wonderful.

This was what truly excellent dessert should be like!

This was real deliciousness!

Being able to taste such a unique and unforgettable dessert made her unbelievably happy!

“You agree too, right, Muen?”

“...”

“Hm? Muen?”

Receiving no response to her joy, Ariel blinked and finally looked toward the man seated across from her.

Only to see Muen slumped weakly in his chair, staring blankly at the ceiling.

He remained silent for a long time.

Yet on that handsome face appeared an oddly familiar expression of transcendence, as though he had detached himself from the mortal world entirely.

His body seemed to still be here—

But his soul had long since drifted somewhere far away.

“The way you look right now... could it be...”

Seeing Muen’s current state, Ariel frowned as realization suddenly flashed through her eyes with all the brilliance of someone who had understood everything.

“This ice cream is really that delicious to you?”

“...”

Muen continued staring silently at the pale ceiling.

Only the corners of his mouth slowly twitched upward into the exhausted smile of a salted fish.

Heh.

Yeah.

For a certain someone—

That ice cream must have tasted incredible.

After all...

Someone had already eaten to their heart’s content.