Karad breathed roughly into Chohee’s ear while running his hands from her chest down to her stomach. Every time he squeezed her soft br*asts, his c*ck felt ready to burst, and the urge to cl*max surged through him.

“You’re mine. No matter what you do, you won’t escape from me.”

Karad whispered while moving his hips fluidly.

“If you obediently agree to become my concubine, I’ll spare you from being kicked out of the empire. Instead, you’ll serve me by sucking my c*ck whether in my office or anywhere else.”

Chohee silently closed her eyes. Then she half-lifted her eyelids. But only lewd m*ans poured from her plump lips. Karad wished Chohee would answer him at times like this, but she only arched her waist fluidly and tightened her p*ssy around him.

“Well, if you don’t want to… I can’t help it. But soon you’ll agree to become my concubine. Claes and Lars will abandon you. There’s no point regretting it then. If you don’t become my concubine, I’ll throw you out right after you give birth to the child.”

Chohee thought of Claes at Karad’s words. However, she suppressed the anxiety that rose when she remembered Lars’s words. Meanwhile, Karad didn’t stop thrusting and rotated his c*ck inside her. Then he whispered while fondling her buttocks.

“Don’t just trust Claes. And let me teach you something. As of yesterday, they’ve narrowed down all the candidates to become Claes’s official Crown Princess Consort. Now he has the choice. He can pick from among this empire’s high-ranking noble daughters, excluding only you.”

“Mmnngh…!”

Chohee wanted to hit Karad who was slapping her buttocks. But Karad didn’t seem like he would let her, and he would probably say even crueler things than now. So she looked up at him with a sad face, then turned her head away and closed her eyes completely.

But that expression touched Karad’s nerves. Seeing her face like that, Karad felt joy close to ecstasy. He was truly delighted thinking that Claes, whom he always considered pathetic, had brought her pure disappointment.

“And he told me this: ‘Karad. I haven’t given up the thought of making Chohee my wife. But the one I’ll officially welcome as empress will be chosen from among this empire’s high-ranking noble daughters. If someone who can’t share state affairs with me becomes empress, this empire will collapse.'”

Chohee’s heart felt like it was tearing apart. Why on earth did Claes teach Karad her name? Faced with this unbelievable reality, Chohee completely collapsed. Lars had said she shouldn’t believe most of what Karad said, but when Karad whispered like this with small truths mixed in, she couldn’t distinguish what was real.

Eventually, tears began streaming down from Chohee’s eyes. When she started sobbing, Karad laughed gleefully. The joy of hurting her seemed to become one of Karad’s pleasures. 

Thinking that Claes, who always seemed to look down on him, would be hurt by her rejection made him feel like he could fly.

“Now that you know the truth, become my concubine.”

‘No. No matter what happens, I’ll never go to someone who only hurts me like this.’

And resentment toward Claes and Lars, who wouldn’t tell her the truth about how the situation was unfolding, floated up in her heart.

She didn’t want to believe Karad’s words, but… Even though Karad spoke unpleasantly, he didn’t tell lies that could be easily exposed. Because of this, his lies cleverly disguised themselves as truth and clouded Chohee’s vision.

Her heart felt like it would tear apart. However, Karad thr*st his c*ck into sobbing Chohee’s p*ssy dozens of times. And by the time he was about to *jaculate fully, Chohee had already cl*maxed several times.

“Think carefully. About what’s beneficial. Don’t come to your senses after Claes abandons you soon. Grab the advantageous rope beforehand.”

“…Ah.”

“I know you can speak. Don’t just pretend to be mute and answer me. Hm?”

Chohee buried her face in the bed, crying reluctantly. The sight of her delicate shoulders shaking every time she sniffled was truly pitiful. But that sight also stimulated his c*ck, so it immediately hardened inside her again.

“Fine. If you really don’t want to, there’s nothing I can do. Just give birth to the child and get kicked out of the empire, or live as a concubine hidden in the back room.”

Karad spat out cruel words while continuing to thr*st his hips.

Chohee couldn’t speak properly because of the pain in her chest mixed with pleasure. She also couldn’t carelessly speak to Claes. If she spoke and Claes answered, that could also be considered lovers’ behavior, and the emperor might strip Claes of his crown prince position.

“Hng. Aah, mmmm, aaah!”

Chohee cried while continuing to writhe. Even while sobbing, pleasure dominated her entire body. But inside her chest was filled only with anguish.

‘I don’t want to remain a Breeding Vessel like this…’

Even if Claes had no choice but to decide on official Crown Princess Consorts, she didn’t want to see or hear news of it. Therefore, Chohee made up her mind.

‘I’ll escape the empire and go to Heritail Kingdom. If he truly cherishes me, when he comes to get me, I’ll go with him. But if he doesn’t and continues hiding the truth from me, I’ll… run away from him.’

At this moment, she couldn’t resent Claes more.

All she wanted was for him to tell her the truth…

‘If he continues not telling me, I will…’

Without properly knowing what Chohee had decided, Karad wore a cruel smile.

The gap between them drew parallel lines that could never meet.

* * *

Three days later.

It was a dark night without even moonlight.

Chohee looked down at her transparent hands. The invisibility scroll Lars had brought was made by a High Circle Mage of 6th circle or above, usable within the Imperial Palace.

‘Magic from mages below 5th circle can’t even be cast in the Imperial Palace… Being able to slip out this easily is catching them off guard.’

Chohee took a breath and shifted her gaze to her bed. The bed was empty, but this was the right answer since she had decided to disguise it like she had gone to another world.

“Huu…”

When a quiet breath escaped, Chohee covered her mouth. The disadvantage of this invisibility scroll was that it couldn’t reduce sound. If the knights guarding her room door heard her, chaos would break out in the Imperial Palace.

‘They said Tower Master Gilliam’s scrolls are really hard to obtain, so those who could get this would be narrowed down to the three princes. Then Lars would be in immediate trouble…’

Let’s be careful.

Stroking her tightening chest, Chohee looked down at another gift Lars had given her – clothing. The flare skirt that barely covered her knees was something only commoners wore, but thanks to that, she wouldn’t stand out once she left the Imperial Palace.

‘My black hair would take time to bleach right away, so I’ll have to hide it with the hood…’

She would change her hair color immediately upon reaching Heritail Kingdom. Chohee calmed her anxious heart with deep breaths. Then she took off her shoes and tiptoed out to the terrace wearing only socks.

Like always, there was no one guarding the terrace. Chohee climbed down using the rope she had made invisible at the same time, just like she had scouted beforehand. When invisibility scrolls were used at the same time, items held at that moment could be seen.

‘Huu… I’m all the way down.’

She needed to put on shoes since bugs on the grass might bite her feet. The flat shoes in the subspace pouch Lars had given her were almost as comfortable as sneakers. Probably because they were made by a craftsman’s hands.

“I’m really worried. When His Majesty the Emperor passes away, won’t Her Majesty the Empress and Duke Serow immediately become flags broken by the headwind?”

“It can’t be helped. It’s natural for power structures to change during succession… When the right time comes, we too must side with Crown Prince Claes. Right now we’re doing what Her Majesty the Empress and Duke Serow ordered, but since we don’t know when His Majesty the Emperor will pass away, we must treat Elysia well so we don’t become enemies with her.”

‘There are people approaching guard duty with such thoughts too… It wasn’t just following Claes’s orders…’

Chohee quietly waited for them to pass by. When the knights walking to change shifts disappeared inside the annex gate, she began walking stealthily.

Her throat was parched. Once she was completely away from the knights, Chohee soon began running. She wanted to escape from the Imperial Palace that imprisoned her as quickly as possible. However, when people appeared before her, she immediately stopped walking.

“The moon is so bright today that we’d spot intruders immediately.”

“Ah, definitely. Times like this are easiest for guard duty.”

After letting the knights chatting pass by, Chohee again walked toward the Imperial Palace entrance. Because of the light rain that had fallen at night, the grass was wet and her footsteps made almost no sound.

“It’s shift change time, so why are they so late? Geez. Let’s go get them, Heinz.”

“Yeah. Del. Let’s go.”

When the knights guarding the Imperial Palace entrance left their posts, Chohee didn’t miss the opportunity and passed through the gap in the open door. The wet pavement hid her footsteps, so she could easily pass through even in flat shoes.

After walking dozens of steps, strength suddenly drained from her body. To think she could escape from the Imperial Palace that had imprisoned her so easily.

‘Really amazing…’

She wanted to express such gratitude for Lars’s cleverness.

‘Moreover, Lars understood that I would suffer if I continued staying in the Imperial Palace…’

Her heart pounded loudly.

If that kind man were before her now, she would have hugged him tightly. A gentle smile bloomed on Chohee’s lips. But unfortunately, there was no one present who could see that beautiful smile.

‘If Lars comes to get me in Heritail Kingdom… I’ll hug him tightly the moment I first meet him. I’ll make Lars happy that way.’

Chohee took a deep breath and began walking again. Her body, with tension released, staggered and complained of difficulty, but if the invisibility wore off in such a late-night outskirt area, she might get involved in unpleasant incidents.

‘According to the introduction, the stagecoach called “Brown Carriage” in the capital’s outskirts is the fastest transportation to Saraum Village. I need to go before it gets too late and I miss it…’