As evening approached…
In the flower shop's second-floor living room, Ron, Mia, and Eileen were seated around the sofa.
The coffee table was completely covered in freshly played elemental cards.
Eileen held the last three cards in her hand, glaring at Mia, who was giggling mischievously and approaching with a marker pen.
With a gleeful grin, Mia plopped down beside Eileen, grabbing her now colorfully scribbled face with one hand, and lifting the pen with the other, eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Hehehe… where should I draw this time?"
"What would be fun to draw next~?"
Mia blinked her wide, innocent eyes and tilted her head, giggling like a mischievous imp.
Eileen wore a serious expression, holding herself like a martyr facing her fate. She tilted her head slightly and said flatly, "Just get it over with. Don't drag it out."
Mia stopped teasing and, dramatically licking her lips, brought the pen down with focused intensity.
Eileen tightly shut her eyes, her entire body trembling slightly from the ticklish sensation on her cheek.
Five seconds later…
Eileen twitched an eyebrow and muttered through gritted teeth, "Why does it take you so long to draw one stroke?"
"Ah!" Mia jumped in surprise, accidentally lifting her pen, causing the line to break. "Don't talk! You made me mess up!"
Eileen opened her eyes and, seeing Mia about to keep drawing, leaned back and pushed her away. "We agreed—only one stroke per round! No cheating!"
Mia puffed her cheeks and looked at the half-finished piglet doodled on Eileen's forehead. Turning toward Ron with pleading eyes, she scooted close and said sweetly, "Big brother Ronnn~."
"Okay, okay! Fine!" Ron threw up his hands. "You can have my turn."
Beaming, Mia happily scooted back over and clamped Eileen's dainty chin with exaggerated drama.
Ron, sitting to the side, glanced at Eileen's helpless expression and couldn't bear to look. He turned his head away with a chuckle.
A few seconds later, a pink, cartoonish piglet joined the growing zoo on Eileen's face.
Satisfied, Mia capped her marker and sat back down, admiring her masterpiece from a distance with a proud nod.
Eileen, face red and brows furrowed, buried herself in reshuffling the cards with determination.
Her embarrassment had turned her normally pale face slightly flushed.
Earlier, after deciding to stay for dinner, Mia and Eileen had been invited upstairs to pass the time.
The shop was quite spacious, but it couldn't compare to the royal palace.
Mia's curiosity was satisfied with a quick walkthrough.
Ron, realizing dinner was still a ways off, brought out a set of elemental cards to entertain them.
Mia had been delighted right away, clearly interested.
Eileen, on the other hand, was indifferent at first—thinking it was just a silly little game.
Even when Ron added a "punishment" rule for the loser, she didn't take it seriously.
Since Mia was a princess—and Ron's little sister—neither Ron nor Eileen dared to actually draw anything harsh when she lost. Just a light stroke here and there.
As the host, Ron received similarly mild treatment.
Eileen, however, wasn't so lucky.
While Ron felt too awkward to draw on her, Mia had no such reservations. Being so close to Eileen, she gleefully turned her into a walking artboard.
After over an hour of playing, Eileen's face now sported a whole animal kingdom: pigs, turtles, and other doodles all over.
What began as a game turned into a serious battle. Eileen, who started nonchalantly, was now utterly determined to win every round.
Ron, meanwhile, kept a relaxed, amused attitude throughout.
Watching the girls get so into it made him more confident in the future success of the elemental card project.
He already knew Mia was playful and mischievous.
Even when they weren't particularly close, she had always felt comfortable clinging to his arm and acting spoiled, even back in the palace.
Even Emperor André III—usually strict with his sons—was often charmed into laughter by Mia's antics.
Adored by her father, doted on by her seven older brothers, and sought after by nobles far and wide, hoping for royal ties, Mia was beloved by all—even the common folk admired their approachable princess.
So Ron wasn't surprised she turned out the way she did.
It was Eileen who had surprised him more.
He had expected her to be a refined and elegant noble lady—especially since she was Mia's etiquette tutor.
But the longer they played, the more that polished image cracked.
Now she looked more like a fiery, stubborn teen locked in a fierce battle of wits.
With her wine-red hair tied up, Eileen dealt a fresh hand.
Seventeen cards per player, with three face down in the center.
"Landlord!" Eileen declared with confidence as she sorted her hand, clearly pleased with her draw.
Ron looked at his own hand and winced.
3 4 4 4 5 5 6 6 6 8 8 8 9 9 J J K
…Yeah. Beautiful.
"Pass."
He was clearly just here for the ride this round.
"Landlord!" Mia chirped, matching Eileen's energy. She must've had good cards, too.
If Ron's strongest card was just a K, then of course the other two had better hands…
He looked down again and resisted the urge to complain.
If Eileen hadn't just learned the game today, he might have suspected she was cheating.
Now it was time for Eileen to decide whether to challenge Mia.
She'd been bold before, but seeing Mia's confident smile made her hesitate.
Eileen definitely didn't want to lose again.
She peeked at her hand:
4 5 5 6 7 7 7 7 9 Q Q Q Q K K 2 Joker
Not bad.
A little heavy on single cards, but with two bomb sets—four 7s and four Queens—she felt fairly secure.
If the three center cards included a small joker or a 2, she could probably dominate.
But if they were all low cards… it might backfire.
Eileen's face twisted with indecision.
"Mmm? What's wrong, Eileen?" Mia asked, holding her cards like a fan over her face, her eyes sparkling innocently.
"Aww, I've got so many triple sets! I'm counting on those center cards for a bomb~."
"Come on, let me be the landlord~ Big brother Ron is super good! Teaming with him would be easier, right?"
"If you lose again… I'll have no choice but to start drawing on your neck. Your face is already full!"
Eileen gritted her teeth.
"Landlord!" she snapped, and grabbed the three face-down cards.
9 8 K
Her smile froze.
Now her hand was:
4 5 5 6 7 7 7 7 8 9 9 Q Q Q Q K K K 2 Joker
The extra K gave her three of a kind, but overall, not much of an upgrade.
She hadn't drawn the small Joker—Elemental God Ailemont—so it must be with someone else.
Judging by Mia's earlier confidence, she probably had it.
"Landlord starts!" Mia chirped.
"I know," Eileen replied, holding back a sigh as she studied her options.
After a long pause, she played: 4 5 6 7 8 —a straight.
Ron looked at his hand. "...Pass."
Mia slapped down: Four 10s! —a bomb.
Ron raised an eyebrow. "Whoa. Going all out, huh?"
Mia giggled and tilted her head at Eileen.
Eileen scowled, considering her hand:
7 7 7 7 9 9 Q Q Q Q K K K 2 Joker
She already used part of a bomb on the street, and using another one now would leave her with nothing to counter later.
Still… Mia's hand seemed too strong. If she let this go, Mia might steamroll the game.
With a sigh of resignation, Eileen threw down four Queens.
"Bomb."
Ron didn't even glance down this time. "Pass."
Now Mia's turn.
She smiled sweetly and tossed down: four Aces!
Ron burst out laughing as Eileen's expression turned stormy.
"Still holding out, Eileen?" Mia teased.
Eileen took a deep breath. It wasn't over yet.
Mia had played two bombs already—surely she was running low.
"I pass," Eileen said.
Ron: "Pass."
Mia looked at her hand: 3 3 3 J J 2 2 2 small joker.
With a quick calculation, she played 3 3 3 J.
Eileen perked up and countered with 7 7 7 5, leaving her with:
9 9 K K K 2 Joker
Her chances were looking up.
Even if 7 7 7 5 got beaten, she still had K K K 2 in reserve.
Now it was Ron's turn.
He played 8 8 8 3, feeling triumphant just to be participating.
Finally, a play that mattered!
Eileen let out a relieved breath—until she looked at Mia again.
Mia, still grinning, played: 2 2 2 J.
"One card left~!" she sang.
Eileen stared at her hand: 9 9 K K K 2 Joker.
There was no way to block that last card…
"Arghhh!! Darn it! One more round!"
"Not until I finish drawing~."
"It's time to eat! Go wash your face first."
"Done? Then let's go wash u—"
"Nooope~ You lost, Eileen! Accept your fate! Don't run! Come back here!"