Chapter 14 Part 3

His sweet voice settled around my ears, rich as if it were dripping with honey. Yet, the touch lifting the heavy fabric of my skirt was far from sweet.

The sunlight pouring into the drawing room proved it was still midday, showing no signs of fading. Because of this light, I could see his expressions and movements clearer than ever. He knew I was watching him, yet he made no attempt to hide the lingering desire in his gaze.

One of my legs, weakened by pleasure, slipped off the sofa. Ten’s face held a smile, and positioned above me, he burrowed his head beneath the spread of my skirt, fully revealing what lay underneath.

“Ah… Ahhh…”

The sensation of hot, moist flesh licking below was vivid. The occasional warm breath added to it. His pliable tongue pressed and swirled around the cl*t, teasing the sensitive nerves.

With both his hands gripping my waist, I was deprived of any chance to escape. The sounds of wet flesh rubbing echoed in my ears. I couldn’t hold back the moans that leaked out.

Ten relentlessly coaxed my pleasure. I felt as if he had usurped control of my body. All I could do was receive the pleasure he offered, moaning and crying out in response.

In the torrent of sensations he unleashed, I clutched at the sofa, trying not to be swept away. Or perhaps, it was more the fear of floating away into oblivion that had me desperately searching for something to hold onto.

When my blurred vision managed to look down at him, our eyes met by chance. Why did his face, soaked in desire, seem almost holy? The sunlight bathing his features made him look stunning, enchantingly beautiful to anyone who beheld him. And when he deliberately moved his tongue, it wasn’t just the tactile pleasure that overwhelmed me—it was also a visual delight that consumed my mind.

The ease of moments ago seemed like a mere jest as Ten began to drive me further into fervor. My hips twitched as if wanting to escape the epicenter of pleasure, moving even more violently. Yet, Ten’s grip was so overpoweringly firm that I had no choice but to surrender my body entirely to the sensations he evoked.

His meticulously built tower of *rousal felt primed to explode instinctively. My arms bent as they clung to the sofa, my entire body twitching in anticipation of the imminent onslaught of sensations. The wave about to crash over me was unimaginably vast. Caught between fear and ecstasy, I shuddered, tears nearly escaping, but Ten didn’t stop.

Ah, all my nerves, honed to peak pleasure, blazed white-hot. The fire Ten had kindled scorched every corner of my body, burning away what little restraint I had left.

“Ah, aaaah…!!”

I couldn’t even feel my body trembling uncontrollably anymore. The sensation was so intense that it whitewashed my mind, burying me under its weight.

As I floundered in the aftermath of the *rgasm, Ten sat up and playfully licked his lips. He noticed my gaze and deliberately seduced me with his actions. His overt gestures brought back memories of what had just transpired. As I blushed and averted my gaze, Ten lazily smiled, like a predator sated with its feast.

His uniform, tailored to fit him perfectly, unapologetically showcased his bulging front. Startled, I darted my eyes around as he adjusted my underwear and smoothed out my skirts.

“Why…?” It was a question of why he hadn’t gone all the way. His *rousal was so evident, yet here he was, fixing my clothes.

“You didn’t take any contraception.”

“That’s true, but…”

Right, I wouldn’t have anticipated this situation to take contraception in advance. I should feel grateful for his consideration first, but oddly, I felt a sense of loss more acutely. Worried about revealing too much, I averted my gaze.

“But Ten, you…”

“…If we go any further, I’m not sure I can hold back.”

Unlike me, caught off-guard, Ten seemed content with how far we’d gone, smiling refreshingly.

“Canerva Grey will be sending a maid soon; please go freshen up. I’ll have a new dress prepared for you.”

“…How far had you planned this?”

His composed response left me dumbstruck, but as I glared, he pretended to ignore my reaction and checked my attire again.

“Once you return to the drawing room, we can all have a conversation, including Canerva Grey.”

“Alright.”

The maid knocked, ending any further questioning. Despite leaving the drawing room following the maid, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was just a pawn in Ten’s hands.

“Looks like you two had a good talk.”

Returning to the drawing room, I was greeted by Canerva Grey’s sly smile, causing my cheeks, which had just cooled, to flush again. Knowing Ten wasn’t one to share details, the scenario of us having called a maid to visit the bathroom seemed all too telling.

Failed to manage my expression, Canerva offered me a seat with a pleased smile. As Canerva took the spot next to Ten, Ten’s face crumpled.

“Why is he sitting here?”

“I understand you want to sit by the lady, but this is squeezing me out.”

“Ha ha…”

Caught between their childish banter, I awkwardly laughed, and sensing my discomfort, they both shut up at once.

“The lady is giving us a look, Your Highness.”

“Can’t you see the look telling you to shut up?”

“…So, are you seeing my cues or not?”

The two seemed quite close in their exchange. But time was pressing on, so I sent Ten a silent gesture. He paused briefly, then turned to Kanerva with a serious expression.

“Can you keep today’s conversation confidential?”

“…Needless to say, but you do remember my oath of loyalty to you, right?”

Ignoring Canerva’s response lightly, Ten turned to look at me, the intent clear. I nodded in return. The moment I resolved to come here, I had decided to support him, whatever his choices, as he had done before.

“I heard from Canerva about what happened in the empire after I left.”

“Yes, I got the brief when I visited the mansion.”

“His Highness also told me that he had seen the Emperor alone and then organized the delegation afterward.”

“More precisely, it was because I had seen the Emperor that day that I came to Rohan.”

Ten lowered his gaze with a somber expression, staring at his teacup with such an intense focus that it felt chilling. The atmosphere around him grew so heavy that I instinctively clasped my hands together.

“The day I visited the palace, the Emperor didn’t give me an answer. I had to accept it as a rejection of my request, but it was so frustrating that I forced… I opened the door to his chamber, and… the Emperor was in no state to scold me.”

“Not in a good state means…?”

“…”

“…He seemed to be under a spell, spending most of the day in bed. At first, I suspected poison, but that condition couldn’t be explained by poison. A man who rises at midnight to handle documents and then lies down again, never once opening his eyes throughout these actions.”

…Magic? Unlike my startled reaction, Canerva Grey exclaimed in a voice filled with horror.

“Magic on the Emperor? Who would do such a thing…”

“The most suspicious was the chamberlain. He has been the one preventing me from having private audiences with the Emperor. So, I investigated him and managed to expose his backers.”

“Already? So, is everything settled now?”

Ten shook his head with a bitter expression. A thought crossed my mind at that moment. Ten had joined the diplomatic mission as a ‘prince,’ a label that had stuck because he hadn’t been acknowledged by the Emperor.

“So, the magic hasn’t been lifted.”

“We’ve tried various methods, but Endeavor is even more anti-magic than Rohan. That’s why Endeavor doesn’t even have a royal mage.”

“That’s why you came to Rohan. It’s one of the countries that nominally maintains a royal mage.”

However, the still troubled expression on his face suggested that the meeting with the royal mage had not gone well.

“Even in Rohan, the sentiment against mages is strong. They don’t want mages standing out. The palace mages, if you really want to know, are just a system for collecting noble offspring. They haven’t even learned to properly use magic. Meeting them only made it clearer that finding a way to lift the magic is even more remote.”

“Then wouldn’t it be better to seek help from the mage tower?”

“The mage tower…?”

At the mention of a familiar term, I muttered absentmindedly, but the two seemed too absorbed in their conversation to hear me.

“I’ve tried to make contact with the mages of the mage tower, but it hasn’t been easy. I’m still gathering information, but we haven’t even seen a glimpse of their robes.”

“…Most people shun them, so they won’t show themselves easily.”

“…Could a mage from the mage tower help?”

My query, which seemed to touch on something pertinent, made both Canerva and Ten turn their gaze towards me. Canerva’s shocked expression was somewhat burdensome, but Ten’s desperate look was so poignant it was touching. If I had known sooner, perhaps he wouldn’t have had to suffer so much.

“Do you have a connection to the mage tower?”

“Could it be through Tornado…?”

At Ten’s murmuring, I nodded affirmatively. It might have seemed obvious. If even Ten, a prince of a nation, found it difficult to contact them, it would be even rarer for someone like me, a mere lady, to encounter them.

Unlike Ten, who seemed to accept this, Canerva’s face was still dotted with question marks, as if today’s discussion had been shockingly out of the ordinary for him. Since sitting down, I hadn’t seen him manage his expressions well.

“Tornado is actually a place that protects children with the potential for mana. Only a very few know this, but since you are Ten’s closest aide, I trust you enough to tell you.”

“That’s…!”