“Ah.”

A red handprint was left on the white skin.

“Haha.”

Kaelid let out an excited laugh. He hit her br*ast hard with his hand once more.

“Heek…….”

A groan escaped her lips. Without hesitation, a large hand hit her br*ast. Even the soft flesh shaking and colliding together was painful.

There was a crackling sound as skin rubbed against skin. Another handprint was engraved on top of the first.

Reina screamed and cried as the hand hit her swollen flesh again. The man’s mad laughter drowned out her voice.

Was it from the shock? Or did she perhaps feel a little pleasure from the sensation in her v*gina? Her n*pples hardened and turned bright red from the intense touch.

Reina twisted in pain, feeling as though she was being torn apart. However, she didn’t have time to react. The man who had covered one of her br*asts in handprints raised his other hand.

“That, that…….”

Despite her crying and pleading, he didn’t stop. She heard the sound of a click again. The tender flesh at the tip of her br*ast hurt so much that it felt as if it was going to tear.

“Stop?”

Kaelid laughed at her. Then she repeatedly hit her br*ast. The two reddened lumps of flesh collided roughly. Her br*asts were swollen and purple from the impact, causing her unbearable pain from even the slightest movement.

Tears filled Reina’s eyelashes. She wrapped her trembling arms around her shaking chest. It was an effort to try to relieve the pain, but her already reddened skin screamed at the slightest touch.

“Spread your arms.”

The man commanded in a low voice. He had long since stopped moving his waist, either because he found it more exciting to cause her pain than to stimulate her v*gina or because he was too exhausted.

She could feel his p*nis, still tightly filling her dry flesh, twitching and reacting with each violent thr*st.

Reina’s body trembled. She had never experienced such raw violence before. In the face of instinctive fear, she couldn’t even think about it. As she slowly lowered her arms, sobbing, he hit her br*ast hard with his palm again.

“Ah!”

She groaned sharply, as if her skin were being torn apart. The man, who had been quietly looking at her badly damaged br*ast, grabbed her purple flesh with his hand.

“Ugh, ugh…”

The swollen flesh rose between her long fingers. Kaelid tightened his grip, groaning languidly as he moved his waist again.

A pain like salt being rubbed into her very core spread through her stomach. Reina turned her head. The nosebleed had stopped at some point. Her face was sticky with blood.

The wound inside her cheek still tasted of fish. She blinked blankly. She had no thoughts; her mind was filled with fear.

She felt the man’s hand grab her thigh and his p*nis touch her v*gina. Her br*asts swayed with each tremor of her body.

The pain was so intense that she felt like screaming, but she couldn’t make a sound.

“Ah…”

A faint m*an of pain escaped from between her lips. Her whole body ached. She couldn’t tell if the liquid soaking her cheeks was blood or tears.

“Ha, hoo… Ugh.”

The man was moaning with excitement, hitting her body so hard that it made a thudding sound.

All Reina could hear was a gasp. He pushed down on her spread thighs and *jaculated inside her.

“Ugh, ugh. Haa…….”

She could feel her insides being saturated. The s*men touching her inflamed, swollen mucous membranes was painful.

She shut her eyes tightly. Her slender fingertips trembled slightly. She desperately wanted it to end, but she knew that Kaelid wouldn’t let her go this time.

His calloused fingertips pressed down hard on her swollen n*pples.

“Ugh!”

A sob escaped her, as if her delicate flesh were being ripped off. Her whole body shrank in fear, and her stomach tightened. She could feel his p*nis swelling inside her again.

She could feel it stirring her slightly s*men-soaked insides. Each movement made her whole body tremble with pain.

Reina closed her eyes and prayed that this moment would end.

***

“Miss, are you okay?”

“…….”

“Of course you’re not okay.”

Rose murmured with a weary sigh.

Reina stared silently at her reflection in the mirror. The swelling had gone down slightly, but one of her cheeks was still a vivid shade of purple. The marks on her br*ast were too dark and too many to be hidden by thin fabric.

“I told you this would happen.”

The maid muttered, sighing again as she gently applied ointment.

“Nhg…”

Reina flinched, instinctively pulling her hand back and hunching her shoulders. The moment the medicine touched her injured n*pple, she was hit by a wave of pain. Even the slightest touch of fabric against her swollen br*ast was unbearable.

“You should’ve just apologized, if you had…”

“I didn’t want to.”

The words were firm, her voice steady—her first since regaining consciousness.

Rose let out another sigh.

“Then maybe you wouldn’t be like this.”

“Let him do what he wants.”

“My lady…”

Her voice trembled.

She clamped her mouth shut again and eased herself back onto the bed, every motion setting off fresh waves of pain—as if her entire body had been beaten.

Reina released a long, shaky breath.

“Rose, if Pipi comes by, please turn him away. Tell him I’m feeling unwell.”

“Even if I do that today, what about tomorrow? Or the day after?”

She had a point. Avoiding him for a single day solved nothing. And the moment he heard she was ill, Zephion would barge in without hesitation.

A dull throb spread behind Reina’s eyes; she wished she could stop thinking altogether. Even if the boy never saw the marks on her br*ast, one look at her face would tell him what had happened.

‘It’s still too soon for him to start hating.’

He had many months before he came of age. She knew he already loathed Kaelid deep down, but giving that hatred free rein was another matter. If Zephion began showing it openly, Kaelid would never let it stand.

And Eldan—hadn’t he already tried to kill Zephion? There was no proof, but every sign pointed toward him. Kaelid still had no idea his father had sensed the boy’s true identity; that was the only reason he had been “lenient” so far.

‘My head hurts.’

Reina squeezed her eyes shut. Rose stepped forward and pulled the blanket over her. The light touch of the fabric against her br*ast almost made her cry out, but she held it in.

“You know he’ll find out sooner or later.”

“…I know.”

“I’ll do my best to speak with Zephion.”

“Thank you.”

If only there were a potion that could heal her in a single day. With that stray thought, Reina let her muscles loosen and drifted into a tenuous sleep.

She had no idea how much time had passed when the clamor in the corridor tugged her back to consciousness.

“…”

The room was well insulated, yet voices seeped in through the slim gap beneath the door—so loud she could imagine the scene outside.

“Just let me see her for a moment!”

“No! She needs complete rest today. Go back.”

“That bastard must have done something to her, didn’t he?”

“Don’t. Go back, Zephion.”

“Don’t stop me, Rose. Move.”

“Zephion!”

She could hear everything they were saying. Then she heard the sound of a scuffle. Rose let out a shriek, and the door burst open. Zephion stormed in, looking furious, and their eyes met.

She could feel his gaze slowly tracing over Reina’s face. His rage-filled expression turned blank for a moment, then twisted again in pain.

“I’m going to kill him.”

“Zephion!”

Rose clung to the child’s arm as he turned to leave.

“Pipi.”

Even though a woman was using all her strength to hold him back, Zephion walked out of the room as if nothing was in his way.

“Come here, Pipi.”

“……”

“Come here.”

Reina whispered the words like a sigh. The child who had stopped in his tracks slowly turned around. Rose let out a breath of relief and released his arm. Zephion, his face darkened and sunken, slowly approached the bedside.

“I mean it. I’m going to kill him.”

His voice was like a growl, every word bitten out.

“No.”

A large hand gently caressed her uninjured cheek. Reina let out a long sigh.

“No, Pipi.”

“Do you love him?”

His face twisted in anguish.

“Do you actually love someone who would hit you like this?”

“No.”

She frowned slightly. That one word seemed to ease Zephion’s expression a bit.

“Hold it in, Pipi.”

“Reina.”

“You’re still too yo—”

“You’re still too young.”

“And I’m supposed to just stand by and watch the woman I love… go through something like this?”

“Because you’re young.”

“That’s all you ever say—that I’m young.”

“And don’t say you love me, either.”

“Why not?”

“……”

“Because I’m young?”

“Yes.”

Zephion clenched his jaw tightly and let out a sigh that sounded almost like a groan before burying his face in the bed.

“I love you.”

Reina turned away from him instead of answering.

“I’m sorry.”

His low voice trembled.

“I’m sorry, Reina.”

What exactly was he apologizing for? For what happened yesterday? For getting in the way of her marriage to Duke Kinanas, which led to Kaelid finding out everything and turning violent? Or… was it for saying he loved her?

Reina slowly ran her fingers through the boy’s hair as he lay with his face buried in the bed.

“I’m sorry. I was wrong.”

His voice grew quieter. His broad shoulders trembled faintly. He was trying to hold back his sobs.

Feeling Zephion’s body grow warmer against her, Reina slowly closed her eyes.