"You think yourself powerful," she continued, her voice like honey dripping into a deep well. "And perhaps you are, in your way. But power comes in many forms."

Her fingers traced the nape of my neck, sending involuntary shivers down my spine. The invisible force holding me remained unyielding, yet somehow I could feel every nerve ending in my body responding to her touch with heightened sensitivity.

"You know," she whispered, her lips brushing against my ear, "there's a certain beauty in powerlessness. In surrender."

The word hung in the air between us, heavy with implication. Her fingertips danced across my collarbone, each touch deliberate, exploratory, as if mapping territories she intended to claim.

"Look at you now," Selene continued, moving back to face me. "Bound by nothing but my will. No chains, no ropes—just the simple fact that I don't wish you to move." Her golden eyes caught the dim light, reflecting it back like twin moons. "Completely at my mercy. Utterly powerless."

I met her gaze steadily, refusing to look away despite the invisible weight pressing against my limbs. The room around us seemed to shift and breathe, shadows stretching longer in the corners, light dimming to the soft amber glow of distant stars. The air itself felt charged, heavy with the scent of night-blooming flowers and something else—something metallic and sharp, like the taste of blood on the tongue.

"Is that what you think?" I managed to say, my voice steady despite the pressure constricting my chest. "That I'm powerless?"

Selene's smile widened, revealing teeth that seemed too white, too sharp in the half-light. Her golden eyes caught what little illumination remained in the room, reflecting it back with an inner fire that no human eyes could possess.

"Aren't you?" she whispered, trailing a finger down my cheek. The touch left a path of heat like a star dragging across the night sky. "You cannot move. Cannot rise. Cannot touch me unless I permit it."

The air around us thickened, heavy with the scent of night-blooming jasmine and something older, wilder—like petrichor from the first rain that ever fell on earth. The walls of the room seemed to breathe, expanding and contracting with slow, deliberate rhythm. In

Ihatedit.

The weight pressing down on me. The invisible force keeping me still. The smug amusement in her golden eyes as if she had alreadywon.

No.

I don't bow toanyone.

Not to gods. Not to higher beings.

Not to her.

I clenched my jaw, forcing my focus inward.

This weight—thisforce—it wasn't physical. It wasn't pushing down on my muscles, my bones.

It was on mymind.

On mysoul.

And if that was the case—

Then it meantnothing.

Because when it came to mywill, I refused to kneel.

Imoved.

The moment I did, I felt it—Selene's invisible holdshatterlike glass breaking under sheer force ofdefiance.

Before she could react, before she could pull back, I grabbed her—

One firm motion, my hands grasping her waist—

And then Ipulled her onto my lap.

"Kyaa!"

A small, startled exclamation left her lips as she wassuddenlyrepositioned, her body pressed flush against mine.

Her golden eyes widened, genuine surprise flashing across her face.

She hadnotexpected that.

I smirked, tilting my head slightly, bringing my mouth right next to her ear.

"Now what?"

I whispered the words low, slow, deliberate—letting themsettleagainst her skin.

I felt the shiver that ran down her spine.

Her fingers twitched slightly against my chest, as if caught between instinct and intrigue.

Then—

"You—!"

Her voice held the sharpness of both outrage and disbelief.

"A meremortaldares—!"

She moved to pin me down, to reclaim the dominance she had just lost, but—

"You talk too much."

Before she could finish, before she couldfight back, I grasped the back of her nape—

Andkissed her.

Hard.

Forceful.Claiming.

No hesitation. No restraint.

If she wanted to play this game—

Then I would make damn sure sheknewwho she was playing with.

Her lips—soft, impossibly so, like the finest silk, yet warm, pliant.

But they weren't moving like before.

The slow, deliberate, teasing control she had moments ago?Gone.

She had expected to be the one leading. She had expected me to stay frozen beneath her touch, reacting,following.

She hadn't expectedthis.

And I couldtastethat hesitation.

So I took advantage of it.

Iforcedmy way deeper, parting her lips without giving her a moment to adjust, my tongue invading her mouth withdeliberatepressure.

"Mmmh—!"

A muffled moan escaped her, vibrating against my lips the moment my tongue brushed against her teeth.

I smirked against her mouth.

'Goddess or not... it appears that, when touched by a man to your liking, this reaction is inevitable.'

Her fingers curled slightly against my chest, her nails pressing faintly into the fabric of my shirt.

But this kiss—

This kiss wasn't just affectingher.

I could feel it—heatflooding my veins, something dark,primalclawing at the edges of my control.

I wanted more.

I wanted todevourher.

And for the first time, I realized—

This wasn't doingmeany favors, either.

"Mhmmm....."

The moment my hands moved—almost on their own—I knew.

I wanted her.

Not just tokissher.

I wanted tofeelher, toclaimher, to touch every inch of the woman before me—the woman who looked as if she belongedabovethis world, yet washere, in my lap, her breath mixing with mine.

My right hand slid against her side, fingers pressing against the curve of her waist just above her hip.

The fabric of her dress—smooth, impossibly fine, like woven moonlight—was almost weightless against my skin. But beneath it—

Warmth.

Her body, her flesh—firmyet yielding, sculpted to perfection. Like touching something divine, yet undeniablyreal.

My other hand moved lower, down the elegant arch of her back, past the silk-like texture of her dress—

And then Igraspedher.

Her ass, full yet firm, shaped as if it had been crafted by a sculptor obsessed with perfection. My fingers sank into the soft yet toned flesh, my grip tightening before I evenrealizedwhat I was doing.

A sharp breath escaped her.

And fuck—

The sensation.

Heat burned through my fingertips, spread through my palms, up my arms—likefirecoiling through my veins.

She waswarm, impossibly so, yet her body was smooth, sleek, with a softness that was utterlyirresistible.

My breath hitched.

I waslosing my mind.

Because this woman—thisgoddess—wasrealbeneath my touch.

And Iwantedher.

Desperately.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com