楼上的上瘾女士

Isabella met his lascivious look with a mocking smile.

Kirill looking at her with lust was hardly anything new.

The fact that their families have practically been enemies and complete opposites for as long as any one of them and their ancestors could remember did not make Isabella look any less attractive to the Ex-duke.

And in all honesty, Kirill would have to be blind to not admit to Isabella's beauty to whom the statement 'aging with grace' was a gross understatement.

Even among the VIPs in the box, there was more than a small number stealing glances at her and the high peak of ample flesh and perky orbs on her chest.

"Lustful as usual, I see" Isabella said with what was best interpreted as a good-natured smile while her son, Devon frowned by her side.

"Ah, you know me. I wouldn't be the perfect embodiment of my Doxon bloodline if I did not always admire the wonderful nature of your very existence" Kirill said.

Isabella chuckled as she said, 

"Sweet words..."

While holding her tongue on how there was already someone else who was an even more 'perfect' embodiment of the Doxon Bloodline.

Kirill was feeling pleased with himself when the Dane Patroness' good-natured smile became a smirk of disdain and she continued from where she had left off in her statement, 

"Just hope it doesn't become the reason you keel over and die any time from now. After all, I highly doubt your old heart can handle all your -mmm Ah what's the word, oh yes- Debauchery." She said and while Kirill remained smiling, it was clear from his visage that her words annoyed him.

"You know, I've always loved how sharp your tongue is. I do feel it could be put to better uses..." Kirill began but was quickly interrupted by a frowning Devon,

"Watch it!" The Dane monster said.

Kirill furrowed his brows, 

"Oh, am I about to experience the wrath of the 'Dane monster'. Ah, what a silly little nickname. To me, you are still a child and If you annoy me, I will discipline you" he said and there was such authority in his voice that many in the VIP box wondered why Devon had not flinched.

Instead, the Dane monster stepped up to Kirill, 

"I'd like to see you try" he said.

Maybe it was stupid and arrogant.

Maybe Devon could not back up his confident stance...

... But that was hardly of any consequence when those observing the standoff of sorts knew that the two families' history was not the type that would allow Devon Dane to not stand up to Kirill Doxon.

Isabella sighed.

While she might have just been playing along so as to keep the conflict between the Danes and the Doxons as active as ever in a bid to not arouse the suspicion of certain others, she knew Devon's reaction was completely honest.

Even with the possibility of an alliance between the two families, Devon's hatred of the Doxons, born of his Bloodline's righteous indignation of all things the Doxon stood for, remained.

Kirill sneered but said nothing or at least, he said nothing until someone decided to mediate what was tensing up to become explosive.

"Please, can we be a bit more civil? Today is not about us but about the young generation. The future of our glorious Empire" said a sexy lady in revealing clothes whose black eyes sparkled with how much she enjoyed the tense atmosphere.

And the stares she was getting of course.

For beautiful as Isabella was, she could not compare to the sultry dressing of Elsa Evgeny whose natural beauty and seductiveness only served to be enhanced by her dressing to match Doxon Customs.

Especially not with the Dane Patroness' conservative dressing.

"Elsa, how are you, dear girl?" Kirill said with a smile and stood up from his seat to be hugged by Elsa who replied, 

"I'm great, uncle Kirill" 

Isabella and Devon took their seats not far from Kirill and even closer to the Silva party.

Isabella sat with a light smile.

Devon sat with his frown ever-present.

When Kirill and Elsa separated a second later, the most honored of all those in the VIP box finally made their appearance.

The Imperial family.

Led by a beautiful and tall woman with a gown more endowed than any of the consorts, Including the only one of them close to her status (the mother of the first prince).

She was the Empress of the Haron continent, Harlyn Haron.

Maybe it was the air around her that was evident of the authority she wielded, but the Empress seemed unparalleled in all aspects.

Including and not exclusively, Beauty.

In all honesty, even though there were consorts in the Emperor's inner court who would privately take pride in being more beautiful than her, whether it was an accepted fact or a personal opinion, in privacy was where those thoughts were bound to remain.

They could not and would not let it be heard by anyone else.

No one knew exactly how powerful the Empress was but there was a rumor that she was already a Six-star Cosmic saint and had comprehended up to three Ordinances.

Whether there was an Abstract Ordinance among the Ordinances she had comprehended or they were all elemental was still unknown.

Long before she was Empress, which many said forced her into the Emperor's shadow, Harlyn was an expendable branch member of the Haron family and like most members of the branch family, she was more or less destined to be mediocre.

Especially in her case where she was said to barely have Haron blood within her. 

A 'fact' that was supported by the fact that her eyes were of a lighter green hue than even other branch family members but if there was one thing Harlyn had other than her impressive talent, it was the hunger to study.

Through which she amassed a plethora of knowledge. All of which she used in her quest for strength.

She emerged as a hidden gem, a 'genius' but her discovery only got her a marriage to the then Crown prince Amador Haron.

Anyway, Harlyn was not here just to represent the Emperor, who was not going to be attending the exams personally, she was there as the head of the Royal Academy.

As the Principal.

Behind the Empress was Andrea Dreg and behind her were the four consorts who Harlyn had personally invited to join her in the VIP box along with Andrea's son, the first prince, Creten Haron.

An alumnus of the Royal Academy.

Everyone in the VIP box rose from their seats as a sign of respect for the Empress with quite a number of them bowing.

Harlyn acknowledged the most important and worthy of her attention among them, which was mostly the patrons, with nods and regal smiles before she took her seat.

Only when she was seated did everyone else return to their seats.

In fact, an announcer had made it known that the Empress was present and on her feet so that everyone in the Coliseum stood up in respect.

Including Marla, Rita, Karmen, Lillian, and Olivia who were seated in the stands eagerly awaiting the start of the exam and their Man and master's moment to shine more brightly than any (in Marla's words) snotty-nosed brat in the young generation.