Prologue

“…My goodness.”

In the deep of night, the newlywed Serena gathered her courage and stood before the full-length mirror.  

The woman in the mirror was dressed in a slip so sheer that her bare skin was visible. The unfamiliar attire made her widen her eyes as she stepped closer to the mirror.  

Through the slip, as thin as a dragonfly’s wing, her transparent skin showed through.  

Her ample cleavage was plainly revealed, and the thin ribbon fastened around her chest looked as if it might snap at any moment.  

The underwear below was also barely held by a slender lace string, so fragile that it seemed it would tear apart with the slightest force from a man.

“……”

Serena covered her mouth with her fair, slender hand.  

No matter how many times she looked, the racy slip she had worn for the first time in her life was shocking.  

Serena, the only daughter of the Grand Duke of the North, was as upright as her taciturn father. The boldest outfit she had ever worn was an off-shoulder dress at the victory ball.  

And yet, she found the courage because of her husband, Johannes Fermel.

“Still, this is too much….”

Serena murmured, fiddling with the lace covering her chest.  

Her husband, whom she had married through a political alliance, was someone she had secretly loved since girlhood. Yet, when she was wed to him by the Emperor’s command, she felt more pain than joy.  

She feared that his loyalty had forced him into this marriage against his will.  

So Serena resolved not to yearn for his affection.  

He must already be troubled by this forced union—how could she demand the same feelings from him? Serena only intended to fulfill the marital duties expected of any noblewoman.  

However, even after a week of marriage, her husband had not consummated their union.  

Her cousin Leah advised her not to wait and to take the initiative, gifting her a pile of provocative lingerie.

‘He’ll… hate me, thinking I’m a wanton woman.’

Her husband had never been involved in a single scandal his entire life.  

He was so noble that he would surely despise such a sight.  

The thought of her beloved husband frowning at her made Serena’s heart sting.

‘…I should hurry and change before he comes.’

Biting her red lips, she pulled at the ribbon in front of her chest.  

Her gentle husband always slept in the same bed at night, even though they hadn’t shared their bodies. She had to change quickly before he returned from washing up.  

But before Serena could fully untie the ribbon, she heard the door open.

“Madame, I’m coming in.”

A tall man suddenly entered the couple’s bedroom. As the man’s green eyes met Serena’s blue ones in the air, both of them froze at once.

“…Madame?”

The one to break the silence first was the man, Johannes.

“D-darling, I can explain! This is….”

Serena hurriedly tried to cover herself with her long hair. But she didn’t realize that her pink-blonde hair, cascading down her chest, only accentuated her curves even more beautifully.  

Johannes stared at his wife with intense eyes.  

It was as if he was trying to determine whether this was reality or a dream. Mistaking his gaze for contempt, Serena folded her hands over her chest.  

Unbeknownst to her, that pitiful gesture only drew his gaze even more.  

She curled herself up like a small, timid animal, trying to hide as much of herself as possible. Johannes, however, ignored all that and strode right up to her.

“Darling….”

Serena called out to him plaintively, trying to clear up the misunderstanding.  

She didn’t dare wish to be loved by him. But at the very least, she didn’t want to be despised.  

Suddenly, Johannes placed his hand on Serena’s cheek. Her skin was as delicate and soft as cream, molding to the veins and strength of his hand.  

Her husband’s strong hand was truly warm and gentle.

“…Is this a dream?”

Johannes murmured in a low voice, almost to himself.  

As if possessed, he gazed at Serena’s face, then slipped his thick thumb into her red lips.

“Darling, ah-!”

Serena let out a startled sound.  

But Johannes didn’t seem to hear it. All his attention was on the warm, moist sensation enveloping his thumb.  

Her mouth was just as warm and soft as he’d imagined. As he stirred her tender mouth and brushed her red tongue, sweet saliva trickled down Serena’s lips.  

He became so lost in the sweetness that he couldn’t tell if this was a dream or reality.  

Just as he unconsciously tried to draw everything inside her mouth, he caught sight of her beautiful blue eyes brimming with tears.

“Madame, I’m sorry.”

The moment he saw Serena’s tears, he snapped back to reality. He quickly wiped her lips with his hand and gently brushed away the teardrops before they could fall.

“I wondered if this was real… I won’t do such a thing again.”

He meant that he wouldn’t touch her without her permission, but Serena took it differently.

‘Does that mean this will never happen again?’

Serena’s heart plummeted.

“Then why are you dressed like this…?”

The tips of Johannes’s ears turned bright red. He tried to avert his gaze, but he couldn’t easily tear his eyes away from his wife’s beautiful figure.

‘So he doesn’t dislike it?’

Serena’s fallen heart floated back up.  

She had thought her husband would despise her, yet he was the one blushing.  

Gaining confidence, Serena confessed honestly.

“It’s already been a week since we married… Yet we still haven’t spent our wedding night.”

“…Madame?”

Johannes looked down at his tiny wife in surprise. The beautiful wife, exuding a sweet scent, moved even closer to him.  

Her ample chest pressed against his abs, softly squishing.

“Though ours was a political marriage, I still wanted to fulfill my duties as your wife. But why haven’t we spent our wedding night, even after all this time?”

“Madame, that’s—”

So tense was she that she didn’t even hear her husband calling her.

“Is it because I lack feminine charm?”

Serena bit her lip and lowered her head.

“Haa— What are you saying? Do you know how much… I’ve wanted to hold you?”

Johannes embraced his endlessly gentle wife. The sweet scent filled his senses, and his member, already aroused, swelled painfully.  

She could never imagine that, every night, he relieved his desires alone in the bath, thinking only of her.

“D-darling?”

Serena’s eyes widened at the sudden contact.  

She could feel her husband’s body, packed with hard muscle. And below, she felt something thick and intimidating pressing against her stomach.  

The moment she realized what it was, she looked up at Johannes.  

His eyes were tinged red, as if he were suppressing something. He spoke with a low, strained voice.

“If you misunderstood because of me, I’m sorry. I was only worried about your health.”

His green eyes were filled with concern.

“My health?”

“Yes. Didn’t you have a severe fever on the day we married? It’s only been a week, so you can’t be fully recovered yet.”

“I never even thought of that.”

On their wedding day, she had suffered a fever from worry. But she’d recovered in a single day thanks to Johannes’s devoted care.  

With his attentive nursing day and night, she was now even healthier than before the wedding.

“I’m sorry, darling. I didn’t realize…”

Instead of answering, Johannes hugged his wife tightly.  

Had he ever held her this tightly before? Her soft chest was crushed against Johannes’s hard muscles.  

The unfamiliar sensation made Serena twist her body slightly. Though it was out of embarrassment, her husband showed no sign of letting go.

“Serena, I’m happy. I never thought the day would come when you’d try to seduce me. This lingerie—”

Johannes flicked the lace string covering Serena’s lower half.  

The faint stimulation made her hips tremble, and Serena let out an involuntary, strange moan.

“Darling, ah…!”

“Did you wear this just to beg me to hold you?”

Serena, her face burning red, gave a small nod.

Johannes swallowed a sigh thick with desire.

He had resolved to wait at least a month until she was completely recovered.  

But how many men could resist when the woman they’d loved all their life begged so sweetly?  

Something snapped in Johannes’s mind.  

As soon as he had her permission, he stole his wife’s sweet lips.

“Mmm!”

Startled by the sudden kiss, Serena parted her lips.  

His hot lips pressed against her plump ones, leaving no gap. Not satisfied, he tapped at Serena’s clenched teeth with his long tongue.  

Surprised by the small movement, Serena opened her lips wider, and he instantly slipped his thick tongue deep inside.

“Dar—! Mmm!”

The powerful suction that stole even her breath left Serena startled. Before she could run out of air, he released her lips.

‘This is strange….’

The kiss had been on her lips, yet somehow, she felt a tingling below her navel.  

Feeling this odd sensation for the first time in her life, Serena blinked her unfocused eyes open. ‘That place’ was not just tingling now—it felt as though a current was running through it.  

Perhaps noticing this change, Johannes carefully untied the strings of her underwear below.  

Then, a sticky, viscous fluid clinging to the lace of her underwear drew a silvery thread as it dripped to the floor. Johannes looked at all of it with deeply sunken eyes.  

He immediately rubbed her soaked entrance gently.  

His long, firm index finger quickly grew slick with her essence. Johannes spread the slippery moisture widely over her entrance, teasing her gently around it.

“When did you get so wet?”

“Ahng…!”

Serena’s eyes flew wide open at the unfamiliar pleasure.  

Stars burst before her eyes, and her husband’s hand felt as hot as a heated iron rod.  

Johannes took his hand away from her entrance. Before Serena could even feel regret at the loss of his touch, he lifted her up and carried her to the bed.  

Lying together on the bed, the two finally began their belated wedding night. Though it was a bit late, their bodies seemed determined to make up for lost time, unwilling to part.  

Serena, accepting her passionate husband, fell all night into a swamp of pleasure.  

Even if their marriage had been forced, at least now, she wished to be loved.