Leveling Up by Seducing Milfs-Chapter 228. Choosing Courage

Rick looked more closely at the vials and saw that they had labels written in the flowing script of the ocean dweller language. He couldn’t read all of them, but some had symbols that most people would understand.

"W-What the... fuck...?" Rick couldn’t believe what he just read immediately caught his gooner mind.

Rick asked, "Are these... aphrodisiacs?" His face turned red.

"Among other things," Nerissa said, her cheeks turning blue like those of an ocean dweller. "Stamina boosters, fertility controls, sensitivity boosters, pleasure boosters."

"The royal family has been able to use alchemical methods to make their intimate experiences better since the beginning of our empire."

Rick’s thoughts went right to the night before with Myrissa. "Wait a minute... Did she use some of this...?"

"Maybe that’s why she... aggghhhh! Fuck! I can’t think about that when I’m with her mother right now!" Rex thought to himself. "It feels wrong!"

Nerissa kept talking, not seeming to notice that he was panicking inside. "I wanted to show you this because you are my co-ruler and Spirit Bond partner, so you have full access to these resources."

"In Ocean dweller culture, physical intimacy is sacred and should be celebrated and improved."

"We don’t feel the same shame about talking about sexual enhancement that surface cultures do."

Rick was able to say, "That’s... uh... very open-minded."

"We live for centuries. Without variety and improvement, physical relationships would become stale."

"These essences help keep passion alive across lifetimes." Nerissa picked up a vial with a pale blue liquid that looked like it was glowing from within. "This one, for example, makes you three times more sensitive and gives you a lot more stamina."

"Royal partners usually drink it before bonding ceremonies."

Rick’s body was reacting to this conversation in ways that he was trying very hard to control. Nerissa, the woman he was Spirit Bonded to but hadn’t yet been intimate with, was talking in a very clinical way about the different magical aphrodisiacs she had access to.

Rick asked, "Why are you... showing me this now?"

Nerissa put down the vial and turned to face him completely. Her face looked open and vulnerable, which reminded Rick of how they looked when they first made their Spirit Bond.

"I’m just... done being afraid, I guess? I’m also done holding back because I’m afraid of getting hurt again or making mistakes."

She moved closer and put her hand on Rick’s cheek. "I want to be with you... completely..."

"I don’t want to wait until I’ve dealt with all my trauma and feel ready... I want to be with you now, today."

"Because life is short, even if you live for centuries, and I’ve already wasted fifty years being emotionally dead."

Rick’s breath stopped. "Nerissa... I don’t want you to feel rushed."

"We can wait as long as you need until you’re fully ready for that."

"I know... And that’s why I don’t want to wait any longer..."

"You’ve shown patience, understanding, and willingness to allow me to proceed at my own pace. But my pace has been based on fear, not wisdom. So I’m choosing courage instead."

"Are you sure?" Rick looked into her eyes for any sign of doubt or hesitation.

"I’ve been through a lot with you... I’ve faced gods and monsters, ruled an empire through many crises, and survived betrayal that broke my heart."

"If I’m not sure about this now, I’ll never be sure about anything."

Rick hugged her and felt her body relax against his. "Then we’ll do this together..."

"Whenever you’re ready, there’s no need to rush, because true love develops slowly over time."

"Tonight," Nerissa said with a lot of force. "After dinner... in my private chambers..."

"I’ll get everything ready and use whatever essences feel right..." Nerissa’s voice starts to get lower. "Then... we’ll finally make our Spirit Bond official in the way we both deserve."

Rick screamed in his mind. "YESTERDAY I JUST FUCKED HER DAUGHTER, AND TODAY I’M GOING TO FUCK THE MOTHER!?"

"But... I’m honestly curious about what the essence is going to do to me..." Rick then had something come to his mind. "Wait... does this mean that her ex-husband used this...?"

"If I think about it again... that means he probably had a small dick." Rick then smirks. "Oh yeah, can’t fucking wait to show my cock to her just to make sure she’s mine fully!"

...

The rest of the day went by in a pleasant haze. They went to more places in Meridia, saw the new Guardians patrol the waters around the city, and sat quietly in the coral gardens watching glowing fish swim through the water.

Rick felt more and more excited as time went on. There was more than just physical desire, though.

But he knew that tonight would bring him and Nerissa closer in important ways. Spirit Bonds were strong, but finishing them off made them even stronger.

They had dinner with some of Nerissa’s kids, but not all three hundred of them, since that would have been too many people for one meal.

There were about twenty of Thalor and Myrissa’s siblings there as well. The mood was warm and friendly, and everyone was clearly delighted to see their mother truly happy for the first time in decades.

During the meal, Rick looked at Myrissa a few times. She smiled at him knowingly, but she didn’t say anything that stressed that things had changed between them.

She could keep her secret.

Rick left the table after dinner to get ready in his room. He thought a bath would be good for him because it would wash away the day’s events and give him time to get ready for what was coming.

The bath in his room was big enough for him to float in and be the right temperature, thanks to magic he didn’t fully understand. Rick let out a grateful sigh as he sank into it, letting the warm water relax muscles he didn’t know were tense.

He had just closed his eyes and was resting his head on the edge of the bath when he heard the door to his room open and close quietly.

Rick’s eyes shot open, and his heart nearly ceased.

Nerissa stood in the doorway to the bathing area, with only a towel around her body. Her short hair, which she usually wore in complicated styles fit for an empress, was loose and a little wet, as if she had already been in water.

She looked scared but resolute, like someone who had made a choice and was going to stick with it.

"I-I know I said tonight... in my chambers," Nerissa said, her voice soft and a little shaky. "But waiting felt wrong for me..."

"It was like I was making it into something so important that the actual event could never live up to my hopes..."

She walked deeper into the room, and the smooth floor didn’t make any noise when she stepped on it. "So I thought I’d just come to you..."

"Be spontaneous... Don’t think too much..."

Rick realized he was staring and quickly looked away, even though that seemed silly since he knew what was going to happen. "Are you sure, Nerissa...?"

"We can still wait if you need more time."

"I’m sure," she said, now standing at the edge of the bath. "Eight hundred years of overthinking taught me that certainty is an illusion..."

"I could wait another fifty years and still not feel ’ready.’ So I’m choosing to act despite my fear, trusting that what we have is strong enough to survive any awkwardness or mistakes."

Rick felt his breath catch in anticipation as her hands moved to the towel’s fastening.

"Can I... join you?" Nerissa asked. Even though she was an eight-hundred-year-old empress who had ruled an empire for centuries, she sounded young and vulnerable.

"Ah shit... here goes nothing then..." Rick was able to find his voice, which was rough with emotion and desire. "Always!"

"Y-You’re always welcome!"