The first thing she felt was the warmth of his breath.

It was difficult to reconcile this with the fact that these were the same lips that had spoken such cold, merciless words.

His kiss was relentless.

Fierce.

Burning.

Overwhelming.

Gayu was too stunned to react as his lips claimed hers, and she could not even bring herself to close her mouth. The intensity of it left her breathless.

Instinctively, she twisted her small body in an attempt to pull away.

But it was useless.

The man’s arms showed no intention of letting her go.

She was completely vulnerable before him.

Every time she turned her face away from his heated breath, her body brushed against his, stopping her from creating any real distance between them.

“Mmph!”

He claimed her lips relentlessly, stealing the breath she was fighting so hard to catch.

His desire was so overwhelming that it felt as though he intended to consume her entirely.

A searing heat swept through her, leaving every muscle in her body tense and robbing her of her ability to think clearly.

With nowhere else to turn, she gripped his collar tightly with her slender hand.

Beneath him, her fragile body trembled helplessly.

There was nothing she could do.

It felt as though his heat had seeped into her, spreading from her throat to her heart.

A strange fear took hold of her.

She was afraid that this overwhelming warmth would consume her entirely.

“Ha…”

The man slowly dragged his tongue along her teeth and bit and sucked at her lips, savoring their taste.

While his lips continued to overwhelm her senses, the hand holding her began to move.

The moment she felt it slide from her waist and move upwards, her body jerked in alarm.

Then his large hand closed around her chest.

There was not the slightest hint of gentleness in his grip.

“Hngh!”

The moment she arched her back beneath his grip, she felt a sharp pain, followed by an odd shiver spreading across her body.

She could barely breathe.

One of his large hands remained wrapped around her br*ast while he kissed her again.

A heat gathered in her throat, filling her from the inside before dispersing, only to gather again moments later.

How many times had it happened?

She no longer knew.

Then, just when she felt as though he would steal her breath forever, he finally released her lips.

Only then did Gayu release the breath she had been holding so desperately.

A hand slid behind her head.

Slowly, the cloth covering her eyes was untied.

Light flooded her vision with almost painful intensity.

“It has been a long time, Miss Gahee.”

The voice she had longed for more than anything filled her ears as her eyes slowly adjusted to the brightness.

And then—a smile.

The smile she knew all too well filled her wide eyes.

For one brief, merciless instant.

“I never imagined we would meet again like this.”

The beautiful man’s glistening lips curved slowly upwards.

The warmth that had once softened the corners of his eyes had vanished.

His black eyes, which had always looked at her with warmth, were now filled with coldness as dark and hard as obsidian.

“Why are you…?”

Gayu asked in a hoarse whisper, her pale lips barely able to form the words.

It would be a lie to say that she hadn’t hoped.

Yet now that she was truly facing him, countless questions flooded her mind.

‘Why you?’

Clearly, she had been informed that the head of the Garyong Merchant Guild had purchased her services for the evening.

Unless…

It was only now that Gayu realized that something was terribly wrong.

Her eyes trembled as though they might shatter.

Meeting her shaken gaze directly, Jeha smiled lazily.

“Ah, my introduction is terribly overdue.”

His smile widened.

“I am Wi Jeha, the Grand Master of the Garyong Merchant Guild, Miss Gahee.”

Upon hearing his answer, Gayu slowly closed her eyes.

How foolish of her to cling so desperately to nothing but a voice!

No.

It was terrifying.

And yet, at the same time, she felt a tremor of relief.

Because she had found him.

Shamelessly.

Even though she knew she shouldn’t have felt that way.

She clenched her teeth tightly.

Cold tears slipped silently down her cheeks.

She didn’t even understand why she was crying.

She could not tell whether they were caused by fear, sorrow, relief, or something else entirely.

But to the man standing before her, they seemed to carry only one meaning.

“Why?”

His voice had gone completely cold.

“Is it still so horrifying to think that someone as lowly as me desires you?”

His gaze remained fixed on her.

“But what should I do? I haven’t even begun yet.”

Gayu’s damp eyelashes trembled.

An indescribable pain shook her heart.

Her entire body shivered as though she had been submerged in icy water.

Then his voice cut through her like a blade.

“I can’t say I never desired you.”

His eyes darkened.

“No. Every night I saw you in that bookstore, I wanted you so badly it drove me mad.”

His lips curved into a bitter smile.

“I desired you over and over again. In my mind, it must have happened thousands of times.”

A scream threatened to escape her throat.

Gayu bit down hard on her lip.

His fingers forced her mouth open immediately.

There was no gentleness in his touch.

Not even a trace.

“So now I’m going to find out for real.”

His gaze swept over her.

“I’ve always wondered how that precious body of yours would respond.”

Their eyes met as he spoke with mocking amusement.

For a moment, something flickered within them.

A tiny tremor.

It was gone almost as soon as it had appeared.

Then a cold smile spread across his crimson lips.

“It’s rather amusing, isn’t it?”

His voice was soft.

“On the very day you were supposed to become queen, that precious body is being sold for money and handed over to the man you consider beneath you.”

It was only then that Gayu realized.

Today was supposed to be the day of the royal wedding.

Had everything gone according to plan, she would have become the old king’s queen by now.

Beneath the fear that had consumed her for so long, another emotion began to stir.

Something she could not name.

As she gazed into those dark, gleaming eyes, tears welled up once more.

A faint smile touched her pale, bloodless lips.

It was so fragile that it was barely visible.

But he never saw it.

He was too busy claiming her lips, deliberately avoiding her gaze.

Unlike before, when unfamiliar sensations had left her confused and overwhelmed, this time Gayu offered no resistance. Her lips parted helplessly beneath his insistence.

She remained silent, unable to utter a single sound.

Yet the intensity of the moment was difficult to endure.

The overwhelming heat of his touch left her breathless and unable to think clearly.

As her chest rose and fell desperately in an attempt to catch her breath, he tightened his possessive grip around her, drawing a sharp gasp from her lips.

There was no gentleness in his touch.

It reflected the bitterness consuming him.

“Ah—!”

The pressure of his fingers sent a sharp jolt through her.

If it had been pain alone, she might have been able to endure it.

But mixed with it was something unfamiliar — something she neither understood nor knew how to resist — and that was far more difficult to bear.

Perhaps irritated by her helpless squirming under his rough handling, he caught her arm and draped it around his neck.

Her bare, slender arm came to rest against the heat of his body.

Drawing her fully into his embrace, Jeha held her tightly with one arm while continuing to kiss her with desperate intensity, leaving her breathless.

Then his free hand slowly drifted lower.

It slid past her slender waist and traced the smooth, firm curve of her thigh.

As soon as his hand moved between her legs, Gayu instinctively pressed her knees together and arched her back.

The unfamiliar sensation overwhelmed her completely, preceding any thought with an instinctive reaction.

“Hngh… stop…”

“Open them.”

“…”

“Stop pretending to be noble.”

His voice was as cold as a winter wind.

“Wasn’t it a young man you wanted all along? Isn’t that why you played with me?”

Upon hearing those merciless words, Gayu’s face turned deathly pale.

She slowly forced her tense legs apart.

The moment she did so, he seized the remaining fabric and tore it away.

The sound of the cloth tearing echoed through her ears like thunder.

Before she could adjust to being completely exposed, a hot, unyielding hand invaded the space between her thighs.

“Ah—!”

Her unprepared body cried out in protest.

But Jeha did not stop.

As though he had sworn to himself that he would show her no mercy, not even once.

“D*mn it.”

Jeha let out a low, rough, tightly restrained curse as he continued to look at her.

He shook his head sharply as though struggling against something deeply frustrating, then looked down once more.

The image of Gayu trembling in his grasp like a small bird trapped in a predator’s hands was reflected in his dark, crimson-lit eyes.

The sight of the woman he had desired for so long — the flush on her lips, her vulnerable form — sent a deep ache coursing through him.

Her swollen, damp lips, the result of his relentless kissing, were enough to unravel his composure with a single glance.

No.

The truth was that he had lost control the moment he stepped into the room and saw her.

The thin fabric draped over her could barely be called clothing.

From that instant, the heat had taken hold of him.

Completely.

It was inescapable.

He ground his teeth together, fighting to suppress the overwhelming desire threatening to consume him.

Then he began to trace his hands over her body.

Slowly.

Deliberately.

Yet with such intense yearning that it bordered on obsession.

The softness of her skin.

The sweetness of her scent.

Every part of her was intoxicating and fed the relentless hunger straining against the last of his self-control.

Unable to resist any longer, he lowered his head and pressed his lips against her pale skin.

A soft cry escaped Gayu.

To his ears, it sounded almost like a sob.

Hearing it made him tighten his embrace.

As he buried himself in her scent, his hand drifted lower once more.

The moment his touch moved to a more intimate part of her body, Gayu twisted away instinctively.

But she was no match for him.

The more she struggled, the tighter his grip became.

The softness of her skin.

The warmth beneath his touch.

The intoxicating sensation travelled through his fingertips and spread relentlessly throughout his body.

This alone was enough to shake his composure.

His thoughts spun further and further out of control.

The anger he felt towards her had not disappeared.

It was still there.

But it was no longer the strongest force driving him.

The fierce desire surging through him was far more difficult to resist.

As this desire threatened to shatter the last of his restraint, Jeha lowered his head once more.

The softness of her skin against his lips took his breath away.

For a brief moment, he closed his eyes.

The overwhelming sensation lingered, fueling the storm that raged within him.