25. Morning Workout***

"What are you doing?" Dereck whispered in her ears. He was lying on the bed, spooning Cecilia into his arm. His consciousness returned to his body as he felt Cecilia's soft asset rubbing against his sloppy member.

"It is already morning, my lord."

"Oh!"

"They came."

"Who?"

"The maid said that Lord Count had asked you to meet him as soon as you woke up. So, I was trying to wake you up."

"Are you sure you don't want to wake my little brother up first?"

"I wouldn't dare."

"Then what are you doing?" 

Dereck started to rub his semi-hard meat against her ass, making her giggle. "My lord prefers to do that first thing in the morning every single day. Since my lord is in a rush, I thought this concubine could help my lord get ready faster."

"I never knew that my lady had such a noble intention." She could feel Dereck's lips sucking on her earlobes as his shaft tried to squeeze itself between her thighs. 

She was completely submissive. She slightly shifted her legs, allowing his now-hard shaft to slip through the gap between her thighs. Holding his meat tenderly, Cecilia caressed its tip before leading it into her entrance.

On the other hand, the outer lips were still puffy from last night's party. The mark of their union could still be seen on her thighs and the bedsheets, and she could still feel the lingering stickyness in her love canal.

All that wetness just helped his meat gently glide into her hole. She was well aware of what to expect after spending every other night in Dereck's bed after returning to the capital.

"Mmmm…" Yet she couldn't stop herself from moaning as she was stretched from the inside out. 

"Does it hurt?"

"Hmmhuu…" She shook her head as she put her hand on her lower abdomen. Even if she wasn't sure if it was possible or not, she could somehow feel the outline of the shape of his meat, even from outside.

"My lord…" She called as he gently pulled his waist away before slowly pushing his things in. "I think I love you."

"Huh!" Her abrupt shift in subject matter caused him to freeze.

"Please don't misunderstand. My Lord had already entranced me as soon as I set my eyes on him. I could never forget the day my lord saved me from that man."

"I can't blame that man. After all, without him, I wouldn't have such a beautiful lady between my arms."

"My lord…" Her voice was full of dissatisfaction as she tried to move away from him. Even if she did it, her waist was still pressed against his.

"Don't be angry, my lady." Dereck kissed her neck before changing the topic, "Why does my lady fall in love with me again?"

"I love my Lord more in the morning than at night."

"Sorry?"

"Even though he becomes a mischievous beast in the afternoon, my lord is very mild-mannered first thing in the morning. The morning lord cares about me, but the night lord only lusts for my body."

"Hahaha…" Dereck couldn't help laughing, as there was no lie in her words. "Then, how about it? You can climb onto my bed after I fall asleep. This way, I can gently love my lady the first thing in the morning."

"How can I do that? They won't let me enter my lord's room in the middle of the night."

"I will order them. You can enter my room anytime you want."

"Really?" 

"Why wouldn't I?"

"You promise."

"I promise… but what if I lose control in the middle of the night."

"How? You will be sleeping…"

"You wouldn't understand. It is you who turns me into a naughty beast." Dereck's palm was already resting on her mound. He didn't hesitate to squeeze them a little. "Whenever I am in your presence, I feel like I lose control. You are my Achilles' heel."

Although she was confused about who Achilles was, she grasped the meaning of his words. Despite this, she adjusted her waist, nearly allowing his meat to escape from her hole: "You are lying. You will just forget about me as soon as your concubine arrives."

Dereck turned her around and positioned himself between her legs. Being in a missionary position, she had no way to escape. 

"I told you you could come into my room whenever you wanted. If I happen to forget about this beautiful woman, you can remind me by coming in here."

By simply saying it, he inserted his flesh into her sleeve. As the warm, slimy fluid gradually spread inside her abdomen, Cecilia encircled his neck, drew him closer, and kissed him.

Even if the morning exercise was over, they lay there in each other's embrace, and someone knocked at his door again.

"My lord, may I come in?" It was a maid. After coming back from the dukedom, Veronica had increased the number of young maids in his courtyard. He had no problem understanding the reason.

"Come in." 

The maid entered his room. She was the oldest of the bunch and became the head of his courtyard after Veronica replaced the older maid.

"My lord, a messenger had come from the main courtyard. The Lord asked for your presence as soon as possible."

"Why?" Why his father was rushing around was a mystery to Dereck. Still, he got out of bed. The maid helped him to freshen up and get ready.

"Let her sleep a little more. Tell others she could enter my bed chamber any time she wants."

The messenger guided him to the room where his father was waiting. Even from the outside of the room, Dereck could hear the count being very respectful towards the person visiting him.

The guard announced his presence as he entered. He greeted both of them before taking their seats.

"You must be the famous young master of the longhorn house."

"Thank you for your praise. However, I think my eldest brother is the person who is entitled to that kind of praise."

"Oh!" His white eyebrow jumped up a little, looking at Dereck. "You are correct. Daniel was one of the brightest students who came out of my academy in this generation."

Even if Dereck couldn't see the prompt above his head, that one word was enough to reveal this older man's identity.

Perhaps only two individuals in the realm could rightfully claim the royal academy as their own. The first is the land's rightful ruler, and the second is the head instructor at the royal academy.

Theo Von Enric.

Besides being the royal academy's headmaster, he had another identity—the magic tower master. Because of this, he had never received a nobility title. The first tower master established it as the rule.

The dukes of the kingdom were required to treat this man with the utmost respect. He holds another title: the strongest mage in the country.

The count couldn't hold it any longer as he feared that his son might make some mistake, "Show your respect. The esteemed guest is Theo Von Enric, the headmaster of the royal academy."

"Dereck Longhorn, the third son of Count Longhorn, respects the tower master."

"Oh! You are aware of my identity." Theo ran his finger through his beard as he spoke.

"There is no way that this ignorant one, who is taking the first steps in mana theory, could fail to recognize the great mage of the kingdom."

"First step? You think becoming a four-circled mage at your age, even before entering the academy, is just the first step?" Theo laughed out loud. "Do you know how many people fail to take that first step in their lives?"

"Please forgive my ignorance." Dereck promptly apologized. "I have learned what my master has taught me."

"Your master? Bono?" Theo laughed again. "Do you know how many students he instructed over his lifetime? 100 may be more. But only one of his students had ever become a four-circle mage. That is you."

"Maybe I was lucky."

"Maybe. But I think there is another reason for that." 

Dereck was expecting him to say something else, but he didn't. Instead, he took out a letter and handed it to him.

"I must congratulate the count. Two of your sons will be part of the first class of the batch."

The first class was like the one with the best students. There were three ways to join it. Only the prince and princess could join. The second way is to go through the entrance test. Only the best of the best could enter the class. And the last one is special recruitment.

The count was about to say something. Theo didn't give him the chance, "I want to talk to him in private."

The words were simple, yet they carried the weight of an order. Dereck's father didn't care. The edges of his lips had already reached his ears as he hurriedly left the room.

"Water, wind, and there is something else." His face turned somber as he tried to see through Dereck.

Dereck knew that an eight-circled mage would find out his secret no matter what. As the only mage with nine circles in history, this man should count as an exceptional mage.

"That third element. It looks like a mix of both of your elements, yet it neither had the fluidity of water nor the presence of air."

Dereck couldn't help but be surprised, as he was being read like an open book. After learning in so many worlds, Dereck had no problem combining two elements. 

Dereck was not sure if it was due to his actual body or something else entirely, but everybody he had used on those missions had been compatible with either water or wind, in some cases for both.

He managed to merge the two components around the 600th mission. After all, he had mastered all the necessary information about mana by that point.

Thus, he could merge them so long as the laws of that world did not limit him. And this world wasn't an exception.

"Surprisingly, it had the hardness of earth…" He paused as he squirted his eyes towards Dereck. It was like he could see some prompt above Dereck's head, just like Dereck. "It feels similar but has an opposite effect to fire…"

From his expression, Dereck could see he realized it. Before he could say it out loud, a transparent ice ball appeared on Dereck's hand.

"Become my disciple."

"Sorry?" Out of all of the words he was expecting, this was not one of them.

"I was 23 when I achieved elemental evolution. Other than the greatest mage of our world, Lord Shen Long, no one has ever attained elemental evolution at such a young age."

"Okay?"

"You are not understanding…"

"I will be your disciple." 

"Huh!?" This time, Theo wasn't expecting his words.

However, Dereck's logic was simple. He wanted to spend more time in this world. Even if he wasn't willing, he was kind of getting addicted to the use of his new organ.

Most importantly, he was able to enjoy a carefree life because he was not under any pressure to finish the mission.

"If you become my disciple, you have to join the magic tower. And if you join the magic tower, you won't be able to inherit any noble title in this life."

'That is why I am doing it.' Dereck decided not to say it out loud.

He decided to look into his destiny after learning he would die in his early twenties, but he discovered that Daniel had ordered his death because he was afraid Dereck would challenge him for the title. 

Dereck knew his weakness better than anyone else. And the fact that he was the father of his child didn't sit well with him in the long term.

As joining the magic title would eradicate such a possibility, Dereck didn't hesitate.

"I think my brother is better suited for the job."

"Good. I like you more." Theo walked towards him and put his hand on his shoulders, saying, "You might feel a little dizzy. Bear with it."

And they vanished, leaving the empty room behind.