Chapter 350: Already Winning
The throne room was quiet as Arthur stood near the high window, gazing out at the landscape beyond.
His mind was elsewhere. He thought about what had recently happened, about Margaret, and more.
He knew her well. Their recent confrontation had revealed a lot about her—her nature, her desires, and her pain. He remembered her face during their last encounter—her defiant expression that was tinged with something more.
Margaret had grown up with issues with her parents, and that craving for recognition was deep in her. She always wanted to be the best, to be noticed. It wasn't just pride; it was a need to be acknowledged, to feel seen.
Some might see her as a masochist, but Arthur saw it differently.
The pain response, which Elysium had said was small in this world, was something that affected her mind. When she arrived here, she was pampered, overpowered, and pushed to become formidable.
Yet she hadn't truly felt any real pain until she met Arthur. Because of that, she was both bored and lost in this world—nothing pleased her.
And when that pain finally came, it was quick and intense. Thanks to her ability, she healed just as fast. And that swift recovery made it almost seem like she enjoyed the feeling of being hurt, but it was more complicated than that.
She didn't love the pain itself; it was the feeling of being alive that she sought.
Being damaged, enduring hardship—these made her feel real. Her desires were tangled up in her need for recognition and her need to prove herself.
Arthur didn't like this side of her. It unsettled him. It was dangerous. He didn't want to be the one fueling her strange pleasures. His attention was elsewhere, on more pressing matters.