They were trying to convince Byron that he was in danger, that soon or later a tyrannical evil queen might come for him, but instead of being scared, his mind started conjuring stupid questions.
Questions like, 'Seventy four? But they were sixty nine when I counted them back in the throne room? Oh! I didn't include Alcippe and Penthesilea. That makes them seventy one then. Where are those other three?'
But then again, was it stupid to feel bad that the number had changed from a meme-famous 69 to some seventy garbage?
"Oh! Don't be so sad," said the Queen, her voice a bit altered and exaggerated as if she was talking to a toddler. "We won't hand you over just like that."
This brought Byron's mind out of the pool of his thoughts, and a smile appeared on his face.
"I'm not sad! Just thinking!"
"You shouldn't stress yourself with this! All these are still speculations. We don't know for sure what Hippolyta is going to do. So, why don't you finish your meal and have some rest? You promised us an orgy afterwards, remember?"
Byron nodded at her and did as she suggested.
By now, Alcippe was done eating. She rose to her feet and told the girls on one of the tables behind to follow her.
They came back with a bed and its bedding and placed them on the raised platform.
Byron looked at them with a thoughtful expression, earning him an explanation from Penthesilea.
"That's where you're going to sleep."
He turned to look at her, racking his brains for a reply. Was he supposed to be happy about it? He wondered after he noticed the joy with which she said it with.
Sure, there was a waterfall falling behind the platform, countless types of crystals casting a colorful hue on it to make it look splendid and good to sleep on, but he could still hear the noise the water made as it hit the stones.
'It will be cold and noisy,' he concluded.
There were several hearths in which fires were lit, but he doubted the heat would reach the podium.
"Wouldn't it be so cold?" he asked.
For the first time, Penthesilea burst out laughing. "Wait! Did you think we would let you sleep alone? Look at how lustful these girls are looking at you. Hehe! We will take turns cuddling you."
Once again, Byron's mind was aroused. But he still had some doubts.
"And they're going to fight for who cuddles me first and once they start, fight to remain there when their time is up. How am I supposed to sleep while all that drama goes down?"
Penthesilea leant towards him, so close enough that her lips almost touched his, then said, "Not when Alcippe and I are around. Also, these are my girls. They're different from the barbarians who assaulted you back in the valley."
That was a valid point. Byron's worries subsided.
"I'm full!" he exclaimed, as if it was some kind of achievement.
The girls scrambled to their feet and cheered as they escorted him to the bed.
Some of them exited the hall, and Byron observed as they came back with what seemed to be thick but soft mats.
The podium was wide enough for all of them to fit their mats there.
He could see sheets, pillows and baskets in which there were gadgets he deemed stange.
He would later learn that those gadgets contained oil to be used as lubricant, soft clothes they used as wipes, human bone-like shiny things they used as a dildo and many more.
There was already a huge harp on the left side of the podium closer to the edge, with a chair in front of it.
That's where the Queen led Byron.
"Let me play for you as they finish preparations," she said to him and he nodded.
This was literally ancient times, the reason why Byron never expected the soft notes and the lovely flow that created a touchy tune to his ears as Penthesilea fondled the harp's strings.
"Wonderful!" he exclaimed.
she smiled at him. "I'm glad you like it."
"It's beautiful! By the way, have you always known how to play the harp, or you..."
She interrupted him, finishing the sentence for him. "I taught myself after Hera's curse. It helped me kill time."
Soon, Alcippe approached them holding a green gown in her hands and asked, "Should I bathe you first?"
"No, please!"
They burst out laughing due to the urgency with which he refused it.
"I thought you would be different from other men," she said as she wrapped him into the gown. "Why do you men hate water?"
Byron was now approaching the huge bed.
"It's not hate."
"Then what?"
"Fear!"
Another laughter echoed around the hall.
There were already 2 girls on the bed, both voluptuous with an hourglass figure, black hair and pretty much everything about them was the same, including being naked.
"They're twins," explained Alcippe as Byron climbed the bed to lie between the two naked beauties.
Alcippe and other girls helped the twins wrap their arms around him and a white sheet was pulled over the trio.
The girls seemed to be already asleep, which both amazed and confused Byron.
They were also so hot that if he wasn't wearing the gown, his skin would never have endured it for long.
"They're not asleep," explained Alcippe. "They're sick from excessive lust. We don't know exactly what causes this condition, but most of the times it attacks virgins or those who failed to orgasm during the Breeze Ritual."
"By the Breeze Ritual, you mean masturbation, right?"
She had mentioned this back in the valley, and Byron was curious to know if it meant what he guessed.
Alcippe looked at him and didn't say anything about what he had asked. Instead, she told him to close his eyes and sleep.
He took her ignoring him for a yes and then closed his eyes, but of course he wasn't going to sleep right away.
He had some important matters to tend to first.
The system.
It was time to summon its panel and see what it had in store for him.
As for the others, Queen Penthesilea was still playing the harp, a melody that was more like a lullaby than anything else, Alcippe was massaging Byron's head to help him fall asleep, and other girls were playing with themselves.
They would approach the bed and touch him, go back to their mats and pleasure themselves.
Everything was still too crazy to be real.