Chapter 53

Ha.

Riorem swallowed softly.

The soft mucous membrane that once gently enveloped his shaft was now tightly constricting him.

This kind of pressure — the kind that seemed to demand his release of semen — there was no way

Riorem could resist.

Riorem thrust his hips sharply upward. His instinct perfectly grafted his glans to the womb.

Soon, the flesh buried at the deepest place expelled the semen.

From the perfectly sealed contact point came a fierce gush.

“Hi… hruu… uh.”

The stream striking the womb made Chernea’s thighs tremble.

Riorem continued his long ejaculation, firmly pressing her body down.

Even after reaching climax with the womb being squeezed, Chernea did not awaken.

The fact that her flat lower belly was once again filled with the semen of a despicable man became something only Riorem knew.

Naturally, an even greater sense of self-loathing overwhelmed Riorem than before.

He ended up tormented by self-hatred until morning came.

After completing what he had long carried out.

I suffered from body aches for several days, as if I were a bride who had endured a grueling first night.

I truly didn’t understand why.

Although it had been a while since I last shared my body with a man, I didn’t think it would leave me so bedridden.

Moreover, the pain was strange.

Deep in my lower abdomen, there was a peculiar soreness. It felt close to muscle pain after sleeping all night curled up in a narrow place.

It felt like the imprint of being crushed by something for a long time.

‘Maybe it’s because I troubled too many people over this.’

Between the lingering abdominal pain and the strange satisfaction, I recalled the events of the past few days.

Teumesia came to the bedroom the next day.

Her attitude was calmer than I expected, and above all, she was curious about my intentions.

Why I had deliberately deceived her and set fire to the mansion.

She didn’t even ask about Riorem.

Teumesia must have thought that there was no better way to neutralize

Riorem than the one I used.

‘Though she did get irritated.’

When I said I had planned everything to find out the location and usage of the secret passage, Teumesia was quite annoyed.

Still, thanks to that, we could verify if the remaining servants were trustworthy, right? No one took advantage of the chaotic situation to abduct me or anything.

Only after I added that did she reluctantly accept it.

‘I also confirmed that Teumesia’s attempts to take me away weren’t due to someone’s orders… All in all, it was a satisfactory outcome.’

Of course, I couldn’t completely welcome the changes in Riorem that happened afterward.

I had known from the first day he suckled between my legs that Riorem had no prior sexual experience.

I also knew he had a strong libido since his days in the duchy.

So I expected that Riorem, having just experienced sex for the first time, would obsess over it for a while.

That the frequency would be several times that of an ordinary person.

…But I didn’t expect it to be this much.

Maybe because he was sure I wouldn’t escape from him, or because he was weak to pleasure.

From the moment my body fully recovered, Riorem clung to me desperately.

It was safe to say that during any free moment, he would forcibly insert himself inside me.

I was literally driven by sexual sensation from the moment I opened my eyes until I closed them again.

Thankfully, since I had just been bedridden, I could use my condition as an excuse.

Otherwise, I might not have left the bed even now.

Because my body was wrecked, I had to stop going to the castle to attend Riorem for the time being.

Then my daily routine became almost the same as when I first came to Riorem’s mansion.

There was nothing to do except lie in bed all day and wait for Riorem.

Today too, while spending time that way, a maid suddenly opened the door and entered the bedroom.

It was the very same maid Teumesia had assigned to me at first.

“How are you feeling today, Miss? Is your body still uncomfortable?”

“Except for some stiffness, I’m fine. My fever’s gone down too.”

“Is that so…”

I looked intently at the maid’s face.

She was competent but not exactly friendly.

Yet suddenly she was asking about my condition.

Something was definitely going on.

“What is it? I’m fine, so get to the point.”

“Well…”

The maid took a deep breath as if preparing herself.

“I think you should go to the parlor. A guest has arrived.”

“A guest? Why would I receive a guest?”

“Well…?”

The maid sighed.

“It’s a guest who came to see you, Miss.”

“Me?”

“Yes.”

The maid answered with a clearly reluctant expression.

“Prince Alpheios has arrived.”

The smile that had been hanging on my lips froze in place.

‘Alpheios is here?’

I had considered the possibility that someone might come to this mansion to see me.

For example, an official from the principality checking on my survival, or someone like the Crown Prince of Arete.

But Alpheios was not within my expectations.

I had never even considered the possibility of seeing him outside the royal capital.

Why would that madman come to Castle Dynamis in the first place? Isn’t he practically an enemy of Lord Riorem?

I sat up from the bed.

A maid rushed over to support my shoulders.

“He insisted on seeing me?”

“Yes. He said he would wait in the drawing room until you come out.”

A scoff escaped my lips without my realizing.

It was his way of saying I should come down on my own if I didn’t want him to run into Riorem.

Putting aside the question of why he had come all the way here, I thought I understood why Alpheios was being so forceful.

Since that incident in the palace hallway—when he had almost violated me—I had never once responded to any of his advances.

My master didn’t want it, and frankly, I had no desire to grow close to Alpheios either.

It must have been an infuriating situation for that arrogant man.

‘Still, I expected him to pressure the king of Arete, not show up himself.’

I clicked my tongue.

Seeing that, the maid quietly spoke up.

“Shall I call the other maids to help you dress?”

“Yes. I can’t very well greet a prince in my nightclothes.”

As if she had been waiting for the word, the maid rang the bell in the room.

Soon, all the maids assigned to the second floor gathered.

Perhaps the news of the master’s arch-nemesis suddenly showing up had already spread—everyone’s expressions were somber.

In silence, I began to prepare.

I didn’t plan to dress elaborately.

There was no reason to look pretty for a man who had barged in uninvited.

As soon as I was properly dressed, I left the bedroom.

The maids led me downstairs to the drawing room.

A familiar figure was waiting out front.

The butler, visibly agitated, nodded at me.

“Is it this room?”

“Yes, miss,” he answered with a stiff face. It seemed he was the one who had personally brought Alpheios here.

The drawing room where Alpheios waited was the closest to the dining hall.

Just by the location, it was clear—it was one of the largest and most luxurious rooms in the mansion.

If it were up to Riorem, he wouldn’t have brought Alpheios here.

But as the butler tasked with hosting a noble guest in place of the master, he likely had no choice.

Alpheios probably timed his visit knowing Riorem and his retainers like Teumesia were absent.

‘His rudeness hasn’t changed one bit.’

I swallowed my long-standing irritation and gave the maid a nod.

She knocked on the door for me.

Almost immediately, permission to enter came from the other side.

As the door opened, a wave of floral scent rushed out.

Inside, the smell was even stronger—it felt like stepping into a flower garden.

The source of the fragrance was in Alpheios’s arm.

“Cerni.”

Alpheios rose from the sofa.

He smiled as he offered me an extravagant bouquet.

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it? A gift—for you. I picked only the most dazzling flowers that suit you.”

I reached out to receive the bouquet.

But Alpheios took my hand as if to steal it—and then kissed the back of it.

Only after that whole display did I finally hold the heavy bouquet in my arms.

Perhaps because it contained so many rare flowers, its scent was as strong as perfume.

I expressed my thanks just enough to avoid rudeness, then spoke.

“May I call you Alpheios? Or must I address you as Your Highness?”