Why he needed her, he didn’t answer. Instead, he blocked her lips so she couldn’t say anything more. It was Raphael’s lips.

Lips that were always used to scoff at people. She didn’t know his lips that often curled in arrogance could be this hot. The moment their lips touched, her whole body heated up as if it had been burned.

“Ah…….”

Amelia was startled by the sight of his golden eyes, which usually sent shivers down her spine, now blurred with pleasure. She had never imagined seeing him like this. Was the person kissing her really Raphael Lloyd Siegfried?

No, she was confused if this situation was even real.

“Huh, uh…….”

She had never kissed him before, but she thought Raphael’s kisses would be dry and cold. However, contrary to her expectations, the tongue that entered her mouth was unrestrained. She didn’t know what to do with his tongue that wildly tangled and rubbed inside hers.

Even if she wanted to run away, she couldn’t escape from their messily entangled tongues. Instead, she was helplessly defeated by his thick tongue that deeply sucked hers in. Each time they intertwined their tongue, a wet sound flowed out. Was kissing originally such a lewd act?

“Huh, th…… that’s enough.”

The lack of oxygen made her head dizzy and her vision flicker. All she could see was Raphael’s long eyelashes and his devilishly handsome face. The strange sensations tormenting her palate and mucous membranes continued. The squelchy sound ringing in her ears gradually made her lose consciousness. She couldn’t tell why her body was weakening.

Whether it was because she couldn’t breathe or because of his hot tongue relentlessly attacking her.

“Haah…….”

“…….”

Just when her vision was turning white and she was losing consciousness, the lips that seemed inseparable finally parted. The lewd sounds filling the balcony also stopped.

“Huh, ha…….”

As soon as Raphael’s lips left hers, Amelia gasped for air roughly. Nobility’s dignity? There was none of that. She needed to quickly supply oxygen to her lungs to survive. Her legs would have collapsed if he hadn’t been holding her; they were that weak. Contrary to her, Raphael seemed perfectly fine.

“Why…….”

Unlike her who was still gasping for breath, Raphael still looked relaxed. If it weren’t for his wildly flickering golden eyes, she wouldn’t have noticed he was agitated at all. Naturally, she thought kisses wouldn’t be urgent or leisurely with him since she had never seen him act desperately about anything.

However, contrary to her expectations, their kiss was too hot and urgent. As if she was the only person in the world for him, he aggressively pursued her with his tongue and lips.

“That’s why I told you.”

“What…….”

“Don’t provoke me.”

Don’t provoke me……? Amelia instinctively tried to avoid Raphael’s gaze that seemed like it would devour her at any moment. If it hadn’t been for his fingers gripping her chin. The way he gripped her chin was unusually forceful, not to mention his rough touch pressing down on her lips.

Indeed, it was her misunderstanding thinking he was always like this. He was in a very excited state right now.

“You asked me why I needed you.”

Her body started trembling for a different reason than before.

“Does this answer your question?”

The saliva glistening at the corner of his mouth warned her to get away from this place immediately.

***

What allowed her to escape from him were some oblivious couples. If it hadn’t been for them, who knows what might have happened. His gaze was truly on the verge of devouring her, like a predator ready for the hunt.

In front of Raphael, she was nothing more than a rabbit in front of a lion, unable to even resist and just getting bitten on the neck.

“……This won’t do.”

All she could do was run away with all her might as if it were the only way to survive. In reality, it wasn’t much different. She spent all her energy avoiding him throughout the party. She even pretended to sleep with her eyes tightly shut on the way back to the Grand Duke’s mansion.

The biggest problem was having to share a room with him. In the end, she chose to keep her eyes closed continuously.

“Mother?”

“…….”

“Mother!”

Next to her, Leonel’s voice woke her up out of concern, but she pretended not to hear. If she opened her eyes, she would have to face Raphael again…, and that was too frightening. It was really true that he physically desired her. It was a big difference from just suspecting it based on circumstantial evidence.

She couldn’t believe that she had even kissed him. And it wasn’t just any kiss; it was a very deep one. If it had been just a simple peck, it wouldn’t have been this serious. Moreover, she knew he was someone who could easily go beyond that.

“I’ll carry her inside.”

“Father will…?”

“Who else would do it?”

Amelia’s body twitched at Raphael’s words. Should she just wake up…? No, if she woke up here, who knows what might happen when she’s alone with him in the room. At least he wouldn’t bother someone who is asleep.

“……”

“Because it looks like someone doesn’t want to wake up.”

He realized that she was pretending to be asleep. Yet, Raphael didn’t wake her or speak to her. He just quietly laid her on the bed and left the room. She couldn’t open her eyes because she was nervous that he might come back.

But he didn’t return to the room until morning. It was the first day Raphael hadn’t slept with her.

“Your Highness?”

“……”

“Aren’t you going to the party today?”

Despite Ann and Jane coming to wake her up from the morning, Amelia stayed quietly in bed without getting up.

Did that man run away?

Except for the days he hadn’t returned to the castle, there had never been a day they didn’t share a room. Even that was only for a single day when he slept in Leonel’s room. But yesterday, Raphael didn’t enter the room despite being in the castle.

“Your Highness……?”

“I’m not going.”

It was unreasonable to attend throughout the entirety of Founding Festival anyway. Truth be told, she became afraid of going to the party as it was. Her hope that one could have silver hair and purple eyes even if not from the imperial family had vanished, and who knows when the emperor or other imperial family members might approach.

“Above all……”

Dancing with Raphael again was troubling. After what happened last night, she became reluctant to be close to him. Precisely, she wanted to avoid even seeing his face. She didn’t know what to do if such an event happened again.

“I didn’t hate it.”

That was the problem. She couldn’t believe she didn’t hate kissing Raphael Lloyd Siegfried. How could she enjoy a kiss with that terrifying man? She must be out of her mind.

“It’s all because I haven’t met men properly.”

Because she hadn’t properly met other men before……, she was simply enchanted by his handsome appearance. His face was indeed the most handsome. That was an undeniable fact.

“And…… he was good at it.”

Annoyingly, he was incredibly good at kissing. He’s not someone who lives only by kissing but his skill was excessively proficient. As if kissing someone was very familiar to him.

“Does he have a hidden woman?”

She knew best that there wasn’t such a thing…… but seeing his reaction yesterday, she couldn’t let go of her suspicion.

The most curious thing was why he kissed her. Can one kiss someone they don’t love? And it wasn’t just a simple pressing of lips.

Knock knock.

She was startled by the knocking sound while she had sent away the maids and was lying down. She had clearly told everyone not to come……

“Leonel……?”

Then, the person outside the door must be Leonel.

“You, right now is not the time to sleep, is it?”

It was a remark chiding her for pretending to sleep last night. Even though he was the one who didn’t return to the room. Despite being the one who pushed the nonsensical rule that having separate rooms were absolutely not allowed.

“So, we don’t have to strictly follow the rule that we must share a room?”

“……That’s not it.”

“Then why didn’t you come in yesterday?”

She started getting angry at his arbitrary answers. She hated herself for being swayed by him, starting from the kiss he initiated on his own accord.

“Ah, you don’t say a word at night anyway. You’re probably afraid of even touching me.”

Amelia tried to mock him with a sneer until she faced his stiff expression.

“Do you really not know why I do that at night?”