“A little… it’s going to hurt.”
After a long while, he finally stopped his movements. She lay limp, only panting heavily. Because her body had been so rigidly tense, she no longer had the strength to resist. He undressed, then slipped one arm under her waist and lifted her up.
Their bodies burned where they touched. Only then did she realize that not only his body but hers as well was drenched in sweat all over.
In the dim light, the man’s back glistened a coppery red. Suddenly, she recalled the time she had snuck into the smithy and watched them cast a golden statue. Would it feel like this to have that thick liquid, boiling in the furnace, poured over her body? It was as if she was melting, immersed in boiling gold that made her whole body seethe.
“Breathe out… long and slow.”
He whispered in a voice so rough it was hard to understand. Her spine shivered at the lips touching her ear. Clinging to the man’s firm forearm, she unconsciously spread her legs. Then, his lower body settled heavily between them.
“Aaah…!”
Before she could even realize what was happening, a dull pain overwhelmed her. Terrified, she thrashed about. The man pressed down on her with his entire body to prevent her escape and bit her lips. His solid chest crushed her breasts, and what had pushed into her body sank even deeper. She dug her nails into his forearm and whimpered.
“I-it hurts… it hurts…”
“It’s because you’re so tight…”
Lukewarm sweat droplets trickled down his nape and fell onto her face. As she unconsciously twisted her body to escape the pain, he trembled faintly and bound her waist tightly with both hands. Deep furrows were etched on his brow as well.
“Please… stay still…”
“I-it hurts… hurts…!”
“Damn it, don’t move… Ugh!”
She could feel the man’s body trembling slightly. She held her breath. He hugged her waist as if it might break, then began to move his body as if he could no longer endure it. She let out a thin moan at the sharp pain.
Every time the man moved, her whole body shook like a wooden boat floating on the river. Her mind gradually turned to mud. What is he going to do to me? She clutched the sheets as if to tear them.
“Damn…”
The man’s shoulders were also rising and falling rapidly. A strange sense of loss overwhelmed her. Maxi’s eyelids fluttered as she blankly stared up at the ceiling. What on earth just happened?
“Why… are you crying?”
Only upon hearing the man’s words did Maxi realize she was crying. As she hurriedly tried to cover her face, she felt a wet tongue crawling over her cheek. She turned her face away. Then, he gripped her face to prevent her from avoiding him and spat out like he was chewing.
“Don’t turn away.”
An intense emotion she couldn’t understand swirled in his black eyes. Goosebumps rose on her back. He pressed his lips to her tear-soaked temples and cheekbones and said.
“Now you’re my wife. There is no turning back whether you like it or not.”
Then, he pulled her hair and forced a kiss on her. She could only accept it helplessly. Again and again, over and over…
That night, she passed out completely and woke up to find that noon had long passed. He had already left with the expedition, and the nursemaid informed her that the priest had confirmed the virgin blood on the bed sheets and announced that the marriage had been successfully consummated. And that this was the standard rite of passage for a marriage.
That was the entirety of what had happened between them. She had lost her virginity, and he had departed for the Lexos Mountains in Duke Croixo’s stead. She could not bring herself to think of them as husband and wife. Even now, facing him like this, it was the same.
She looked up at the man, filled with hostility, with blank eyes. Her father’s voice, threatening harsh punishment if she were abandoned by Riftan Calypse, echoed in her ears, but her lips stuck together like they were glued with paste and wouldn’t part. What should she say? He was just a stranger named her husband.
“Damn it, stop shaking!”
Suddenly, the man raised his voice. She flinched and took a step back from him. He tightened his arm around her even more strongly and closed the distance she had retreated.
“Cut out that look like you’re seeing something disgusting! Do you think I’m some kind of repulsive monster?”
“I, I…”
He roughly swept back his shaggy hair that poked at her eyes and shot her a fierce glare. Her vision went dark. She had to persuade him to reconsider the divorce, but within less than five minutes of reuniting, she had already made him displeased. Her touching lips trembled.
Please, say something. Anything.
“I, I… J-just… Y-you’re making me so n-nervous… I d-don’t know what to s-say…”
Her cheeks burned like they were on fire. She felt tears welling up. She couldn’t burst into childish tears and make him sick of her. She desperately continued her words.
“N-not that I th-think you’re a m-monster… I-I’m j-just n-nervous… Y-yeah… The sh-shaking w-won’t stop…”
Her tongue was even less obedient than usual. She couldn’t even dare to look at his face. From the start, there was no way she, who couldn’t even speak properly, could persuade him.
Maxi bowed her head deeply, her ears turning bright red. It might be better to just keep her mouth shut. A mature woman wouldn’t stammer like a fool and tremble like this. It felt exactly like standing there naked.
“Damn it…”
At the low curse, she hunched her shoulders. Her father was right. There would be no man in the world who would want her as a wife. How could she, like this, dare to ask this man to refuse marriage to the princess?
Overwhelmed by a sense of helplessness, her eyes grew hot. At that moment, something cold touched her cheek. She jolted. A hand clad in the iron gauntlet knights wore was holding her face.
“Open your mouth.”
Maxi blankly stared at the black eyes right in front of her nose, not understanding the situation. Then, the man let out a sigh as if his patience was being tested and slightly lowered her jaw, forcing her mouth open.
Soon, a hot, squishy tongue pushed into her mouth. Maxi was startled and grabbed his arm. The man chewed on her lips and muttered irritably.
“Damn… I should have taken off the armor first…”
She couldn’t come to her senses from the sudden event. He pushed her, who was standing awkwardly, back onto the sofa and sat down with one knee beside her thigh, quickly removing the gauntlet with deft movements.
Long, firm fingers that emerged from the silver glove gently cupped her face. Unconsciously, she clutched at his clothes. He overlapped their lips again and tossed off the glove from the other hand. A hot hand dug into her hair and roughly gripped the back of her head.
His tongue thoroughly explored her teeth, wrapped around hers, and rubbed intensely. Her breath gradually grew short. When her breathing reached its limit and she pushed against his chest, the man set his teeth on her lips.
“Just a little more…”
Her heart sank with a thud at the whining voice. The hot hand impatiently caressed her face and nape, then settled on her chest. As she twisted her body in confusion, he pulled her waist and made her lie down on the sofa. Then, without hesitation, he lifted the hem of her skirt.
“R-Riftan…!”
Having experienced it once before, she immediately realized what his action meant. Maxi looked at the parlor door with bewildered eyes. In broad daylight, in the middle of the parlor where anyone could freely come and go, what kind of behavior was this?
But the man didn’t care at all. As he nibbled on her nape and overlapped their bodies, his hardened body pressed firmly between her legs. She was startled and let out a scream. Every time the man slowly rubbed his body, the protective gear wrapped around his thick thigh brushed against her thigh. Goosebumps rose at the cool metal sensation.
Maxi couldn’t endure the bewilderment any longer and squeezed her eyes shut. At that moment, he suddenly stood up and hurriedly covered her body with his cloak. Only then did she realize that someone was watching them. A man dressed like Riftan stood frozen at the door with a flustered face.
“What the hell are you peeking at like a rat!”
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