Chapter 549: At My Whim

Robin's breathing began to become unstable.

Robin tried to struggle, but the tubes tightened even more.

Robin could feel them pressed against her skin, could feel that strange temperature seeping through the clothes, causing a fine layer of goosebumps all over her body.

Ailixiya looked at her expression, and the smile at the corner of her mouth deepened.

"What's wrong? Uncomfortable? I actually feel quite comfortable—warm, soft, like being held by something."

Robin opened her eyes and glared at her, the fury in her gaze almost burning out.

But the tubes were still moving.

Robin's heart fluttered.

That warm, slick sensation stirred an indescribable weird feeling in her heart.

No pain.

But...

Very strange.

Extremely strange.

Ailixiya stood up and walked to her again.

This time, she didn't make a move, just stood there, looking down at her from above.

In those crimson eyes was a cat‑catching‑mouse kind of playfulness.

"You know, you look especially cute like that."

"You're furious to death, yet you can do nothing, only let me manipulate you."

"But don't worry, you won't be bound forever."

She continued, "That would be so boring."

Robin's gaze became wary.

What does this woman want to do now?

Ailixiya raised her hand, and green specks of light flickered at her fingertips.

The specks jumped on her fingertips like fireflies, emitting an eerie glow.

They multiplied and brightened, eventually merging into a slender stream of light that flowed between her fingers.

"Do you know what this is?"

Robin stared at the green light, saying nothing.

Ailixiya didn't expect an answer, and spoke to herself:

"My ability is related to Corrosion."

She walked to the coffee table and pressed the green light onto a glass cup.

The green light instantly spread, covering the entire cup.

The cup's surface began to writhe and deform, flowing down like a melted candle.

Seconds later, the once‑delicate glass cup turned into a grotesque object with no discernible original shape.

Robin's pupils contracted slightly.

Ailixiya turned around, looked at her, and the smile on her face turned dangerous.

"Both organic life and inorganic matter cannot escape."

She walked to Robin's front, and the green‑glowing finger lightly tapped Robin's shoulder.

Robin's body jolted sharply!

The green light didn't penetrate her body, only lingered on her skin's surface, but the feeling of being watched sent a chill down her back.

"Spirit, Memory, consciousness, the same."

Ailixiya's voice was light and gentle, but each word pierced Robin's heart like an Ice Cone.

"Hypnosis, brainwashing, mind control—play however you like."

With each word spoken, Robin's complexion grew paler.

"Your Noble Phantasm is strong, I know. But as long as your mouth is blocked, you can't use anything."

Ailixiya's finger traced circles in the air, "And as long as I wish, I can slowly Corrode your consciousness, turning you into a—"

She paused, and the corner of her mouth curled into a malicious arc.

"Good bird."

Robin's body began to tremble.

Not from cold.

It's fear.

"Forever the good bird, never thinking of escape, never thinking of resistance, only obeying me alone."

Ailixiya's voice grew softer and gentler, like coaxing a child to sleep, "Whatever I tell you to do, you do. Whatever I tell you to sing, you sing. I tell you—"

She reached out, gently brushing her hand across Robin's face.

The gesture was exceedingly gentle, as if caressing a fragile treasure.

But Robin only felt a bone‑deep chill.

"How about it?"

Ailixiya tilted her head, and those crimson eyes were full of amusement, "Looking forward?"

Robin glared at her, the fury in her gaze already replaced by fear.

Yet she did not cry.

She just stared intently at the woman before her.

Ailixiya satisfiedly admired that flash of fear, and then—

Ailixiya suddenly laughed.

That smile was as malicious as a child whose prank had succeeded.

"Just kidding~?"

Ailixiya stepped back, hands clasped behind her, tilted her head and looked at Robin.

"Scared you?"

Robin stared at Ailixiya, its gaze as if it could tear her apart.

But undeniably—

In that instant just now, Ailixiya was truly frightened.

Ailixiya returned to the sofa, crossed her legs again, picked up another grape and popped it into her mouth.

"But, it's not entirely a lie."

She chewed the grape and said indistinctly:

"I really can do those things. It's just that I don't want to right now."

She looked at Robin, a flash of maliciously amused satisfaction passing through her crimson eyes.

"Because watching you look so scared, hateful, and helpless is more fun than anything."

Robin closed its eyes and no longer looked at Ailixiya.

But Ailixiya could feel those tubes wrapped around her body beginning to move anew.

One tube slid to her side at the waist, gently caressing there.

Another tube slipped into her fingertips, interlocking with all ten of her fingers.

Robin's breathing grew rapid.

Ailixiya wanted to struggle, to resist, to do something—

But she could do nothing.

She could only hang there, wrapped by those warm tubes, watched by those crimson eyes, tormented by that omnipresent eerie sensation.

Ailixiya rested her cheek on her hand, admiring the scene.

Truly—

So interesting.

The room's door was pushed open.

Ailixiya heard the noise and turned her head.

In the same instant, the black tubes coiled around Robin darted like startled snakes, re-covering its eyes and blocking its ears.

Vision and hearing were stripped away again, and Robin could only feel those warm tubes pressing back into place.

Robin bit the blockage in its mouth and silently noted in its mind—another new person had arrived.

Huo Huo stood at the doorway.

Her appearance… was a bit disheveled.

Her ash‑green hair was a mess, a few strands stuck to her forehead, her clothes were covered with dust and leaves, and the hem of her skirt bore a tear from something.

Most absurdly, one of her shoes was missing for who knows how long, so she stood there barefoot, her foot covered in black ash.

She looked as if she had just crawled out of a junk heap.

Her complexion was darker than usual, and those claw‑shaped green eyes read "I'm extremely annoyed right now" in big letters.

Ailixiya blinked, stood up, and a sweet smile instantly appeared on her face.

"Oh, Xiao Huo Huo is back? How was your day? Did you encounter anything interesting—"

"Why can't the Command Spell call you?"

Huo Huo interrupted her, her voice cold as ice shards.

Ailixiya's smile froze for an instant.

"I've summoned it over ten times."

Huo Huo walked into the room, each step heavy, "Where the hell have you been?"

Ailixiya: "…"

(Doomed.)