Presenting: The Villian Proposed

Woman-Hating Duke Feels Lust Only For One Aristocratic Lady

 Pixiv - not the actual book cover pic, but it suited perfectly!

This is a novel I am continuing from here: Do Machines Dream of Better

Translations Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3. I had hoped she'd continue

from teasers to full translation but alas no. So I decided to throw my hat in.
Hope everyone enjoys it. As per usual, running commentary - running
through.

Encounter with James

‘Miss, what is your name? I have been watching you for a while and you

don’t seem to be interested in the Duke at all. How come? You’re the only
one, you know; the only woman not trying to attract Duke Magnaria.’

(Zuben: Das special snowflake, ya)

Ah...so I was noticed.

‘Well, that is because I am not interested in the Duke.’

‘So there are such women? I had thought that all women would be aiming

for the Duke’s attention. He has good looks. He’s wealthy and has honours.’

‘I would prefer a man who loves me as I am. I would prefer a man who is
sincere and never lies.’ (Zuben: Ah dreams, can they come true?)
He laughed, ‘You’re amusing. May I have a dance? I would like to chat

with you more.’

He held his hand out to me. I had no reason to refuse, so I placed my hand

in his. Perhaps, he was my destined one. When we reached the dance floor,
we assumed the waltz and began to dance. Surprisingly, he danced very
well and was a good lead. His feet moved lightly.

‘Duke Magnaria seems to have picked a three of the young ladies to dance
with tonight,’ he said, ‘Lady Isabel Bourbon, Lady Muriel Hilsalm and the

Honorable Helmina Quesel. Although, there haven’t been any rumours with
him and these ladies, do you think the Duke will really decide who he is

going to marry amongst them?’

‘It is strange…’ I replied vaguely, what I found strange was this selection. I
had attended a tea party given by Lady Muriel after my arrival in the

kingdom. I wasn’t close to her but I noted her appearance is very neat and
clean. She and Lady Isabelle were close friends, but their admirers divided

the ladies of nobility into two camps because their families were of equal
status. In contrast, the Quesel house is not so famous; they were lower

aristocratic family rather like mine. I don’t know what Helmina looks like
but she was an inconsistent choice. Moreover, it was strange for an elite
man who was said to know his way with women to be choosing a woman to

marry in such a way.

But these three women are very different. Despite thinking it over, I could

not understand his choice.

‘What do you find strange?’ the gentleman asked. I turned to him; eyes the

colour of the clear sea were very close to mine. My ruminations were
interrupted. I had forgotten I was dancing with a gentleman I did not know

and had not been introduced to. Although he had a good looking face, I felt
crowded for a moment. THIS WEB NOVEL WAS MACHINE TRANSLATED BY Zubeneschamali

‘I believe that the Duke Magnaria does not intend to marry anyone of those
women. He would not want to be bound by a single woman.’
‘That is interesting. Do you think that the Duke will overturn the purpose of

this ball and not choose a bride? This grand ball has been created by His
Majesty; if he does not choose a bride, he might lose favour with his

Majesty.’
‘So that is why there is a selection. The Duke Magnaria is a real schemer.
The rumour that he works for the Crown as a tactician must be true. By the

way, you haven’t introduced yourself.’

The gentleman wanted to say something but stopped, I thought it was

because the dance was over. The orchestra readied for the next piece and he
asked for my hand again, so I took it. When the orchestra began, we started

to dance again. But the man drew me close to him, holding my waist he
whispered in my ear,
‘My name is James Nascaria. What is your name?’
Since I was drawn to him so suddenly, my heartbeat thud in my chest. I
replied with a calm that I certainly was not feeling, I resented my lack of

immunity to handsome men

‘I am Miss Julia Hermiata, daughter of Viscount Hermiata.’

Nascaria was not a name I had heard much of, was he a nobleman? (Zuben:
Don’t they have a Debretts in your land) His hands were clean and
manicured so he was not a soldier. A merchant? But there are no ink stains.

If he was a merchant rich enough to be invited to a royal ball, I would know

of him. So, was it a pseudonym? Perhaps he was aiming to fool a simple

country girl and play games; I should be careful. THIS WEB NOVEL WAS MACHINE TRANSLATED

BY Zubeneschamali

‘You’re interesting, Julia. I like you. I can love you for you, Julia.’ James
said.

Wow, so absurd. I can’t believe he just said with a straight face to a person
he just met.

‘Pardon me sir, but you forgot “a man who is sincere and not a liar”. So I
shall excuse myself after this dance. I don’t wish to waste my time.’
But the music had begun, and the dance had started but there will be no

third time. Devoting my limited time to a strange man who is not my

destined one is annoying. (Zuben: These Japanese writers really do love this
‘destined one’ malarkey) As soon as the dance was over, I made an attempt
to leave, but I was drawn back by my arm. I opened my mouth prepared to
remind him of proper etiquette, but James said,

‘Shall we go and meet the Duke Magnaria? I would like to see if things will
happen as Julia predicts. That is, if he can do it - because he is the ultimate

misogynist.’ (Zuben: What an annoying character – not the Duke, this

James person)
Huh…? I had heard he was a consummate womaniser.

James noticed my skeptical expression and laughed.

‘Well, he is womaniser but he is also very distrustful of women especially

when it comes to marrying them. It could be said he hates women in

general. This time…I had thought he had a plan too.’

Is that it? Well, even if he hates women, he seems to the type that was a

slave to his desires; the worst kind of man. I’m glad I did not get chosen by
the Duke. (Zuben: One of these days, there would a character with a ‘wait

and see’ attitude instead of jumping to conclusions)

‘Do you know the Duke personally?’ I asked James.

‘I will reply that with “no comment”, because you have a sharp intuition.’

[Hate]…would it be troublesome if I say I don’t want to go? True I would

be letting go of a true gentleman here, but I wanted to find my fated man,

and get along with him well. But then, I also want to know the true identity

of this James Nascaria person.

So I went about the ball while holding hands with James. He searched

through the various rooms without hesitation, I wondered if he was familiar

with the castle. I got confused further.

It was impossible for a merchant to know this much about the castle layout,

and it appears that he has also met the Duke Magnaria. Who the hell was

this person?

As all these questions crowded my brain, we could not find the Duke.
‘Where has the Duke gone? He should have finished dancing with the girls.

He probably is hiding in a room with one of them, but the chosen woman

has to be finalized.’
Perhaps. But my suspicion was that the Duke will hide himself somewhere

and wait for the time to arrive. THIS WEB NOVEL WAS MACHINE TRANSLATED BY Zubeneschamali

‘Mr Nascaria, I am going to find Helmina. If things have developed as

expected she might be in trouble…’ I wildly pulled my hand from his and
ran round a corner. I hid behind a large pillar so that he may not chase me. I

did not have a good feeling about this man. That might be because my

expectations might be off.

I could not shake the sense of foreboding. After leaving James, I went to

search from the most likely place. It would not be the rest room because
anybody could enter at any moment; it would be a rest area or a secluded

terrace near a garden that didn’t see much traffic.

Presenting: The Villian Proposed
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The chapters are short usually short so depending on length; it will be
published two by two, if the chapters are short, or one at a time, if the

chapter is long.

The Duke of Magnaria:

THIS WEB NOVEL WAS MACHINE TRANSLATED

BY Zubeneschamali

I ran about strange corridors until I reached what looked like the kind of

place I was searching for. The terrace was created to look like a square

garden in a quiet corner of the Palace, here; I heard the voices of ladies.

‘My dear, you are just an impoverished aristocrat, how did you get the Duke

to notice you?’

‘Isn’t it because she told him her feet were sore, and made him take off her
shoes for her without even dancing! I was amazed at how she decided to

use her body because she had no confidence in her face.’

‘Bu…but, His Grace told me I was cute and he liked my face. He feels

comfortable when he’s with me. He said that your eyes were bloodshot and

scary!’
‘What’s that?! The Duke told me I was the most beautiful; he liked a

graceful and modest woman. You should look at yourself in the mirror, you
look like a pig!’

Just as I suspected, to play with ladies’ minds like this, he really is the
worst; all because he wanted to stop all this talk of marriage.
‘Hold on! His Grace says that I’m the sexiest and have the most generous

heart! He told me he would love to see me every day, unlike you ladies;
chopping board girl and pig girl. I would not lose to women like you!’

(Zuben: Generous heart indeed)

Slap!

There was a loud sound of hand on skin. I think someone slapped someone.
What is this? Has this become a brawl over the Duke of Magnaria?!
‘Stop!’

I jumped out to stand before Helmina. She was surrounded by ten other
ladies. Isabel had a red cheek and Muriel was standing across from her.

Isabel’s eyes were ablaze with anger.

‘Do not stop me, Julia! This pig slapped me! Is an impoverished aristocrat

trying to start a fight with the Earl of Bourbon? Then this lady will give you
one!’
‘Isabel, you called me a chopping board woman! You and I are no longer

friends. You and your milking cow breasts!’

Isabel and Muriel raised their hands. Isabel to Helmina. Muriel to Isabel. I

could see Muriel putting a lot of power into her slap. My body moved
reflexively. Suddenly, I felt like both my cheeks went into shock and I feel

to the ground.
‘Stop it!’ I said again.

Everyone gasped and stood shock still at my fall. I managed to pull my

aching body back up and spoke slowly as though I was admonishing
children.

‘The Duke is wavering between a fascinating woman like Isabel, a graceful

woman like Muriel and a relaxing woman like Helmina. So even if you

squabble you will not gain anything. In the moment the Duke was with each
of you, he must have thought you were wonderful women indeed.’
Yes, that’s it…we can’t let that sly Duke Magnaria get his way! (Zuben: Is

it a sin that the man does not want to get married?) The goal was to resolve
it amicably.

‘I wonder if the Duke is all alone right now. What if some other woman
comes and keeps him company while he is lonely? Maybe his Grace’s heart

will be taken by her.’

The three women in question looked startled; one after the other they
quickly left the terrace in search of the Duke. Thinking, perhaps the Duke

was looking for them…

After the entourage ladies followed, leaving me on the terrace.
I breathed a sigh of relief, ‘That went fairly well. They are supposed to be
delicate ladies of depth, but they are surprisingly powerful.’

I looked down at my dishevelled self; I had scrapped my elbow and there

was some blood. As soon as I saw it my pain increased and I was saddened.

At that moment, a familiar voice said from behind me,

‘Who the hell are you interfering with my plan?’

Bargaining in the Palace:

THIS WEB NOVEL WAS MACHINE TRANSLATED BY Zubeneschamali

I turned to find a man glaring at me. The moon was behind him so his

features were in shadow but I could see that he had shining golden hair. I
could feel that he was immensely angry at me. As soon as he saw my face,
his expression turned to one of surprise.

‘You…you’re Julia?’
‘Huh…?’
This situation, whatever I may think; this was the His Grace the Duke of
Magnaria. But I have never been acquainted with him, have I?

‘That is correct. How may I help you?’ I asked. I tried my memory to see if
I recognised him. No I have never had the opportunity to meet the Duke. If

I had seen such a handsome face even once, I would never forget it. Ah
but…his ears…
‘Marius…? You are the misogynistic womaniser Duke of Magnaria; the

worst man?!’

His hair and eye colour were different, but his facial features were the same.
We glared at each other as he said, ‘No. I only think women are beings

lower than dog that unabashedly lie and will betray you at the slightest

opportunity.’

‘Well said. But you are also an enemy of women; confusing those girls with
pretty words that contradict each other inducing them into fighting. It was a

very good plan.’

Using Helmina as a target for Isabel and Muriel who had the ladies of the
nobility divided into camps; she would be bullied and harassed, and would

be unable to think about marriage and that could be used as an excuse.

With society’s top two ladies hostile to one another, they would not be able
to be rational; therefore, there would be an unprecedented fracas between
the two camps. Both sides would cause problems bullying each other

because they were convinced they were the chosen one. They would be
convinced that they would be protected by the Duke. It was a rather devious

and callous plan, wasn’t it?

‘I would never have thought you were a noble. Speaking without shyness to
a gentleman traveller and you can distinguish a Grusk person. But this is a

problem. Because of you, I actually have to choose one of these women;

what are you going to do about it?’

‘My condolences. I personally nominate Isabel for your bride. I feel sorry
for her that she would be married to a man like you. Although, she is just as

bad.’ I replied with a sharp glare. I will not be hurt. The quarrel which was

sold is the principle which was bought (Zuben: ? *shrug) I would not let
such an inhumane person get away with it.

‘Are you looking to quarrel with me? I will not lower myself to argue with

such a woman with low self awareness.’

‘Is that so? You’ve probably only every had a good business woman or

widow opposed to you. But now it is time to pay the piper: Marry Isabel

and have babies happily.’

He suddenly pressed me against the wall, his visage threatening with one
arm blocking an escape. There was a thud and a pain shot through my back.

This is the so-called kabe-don, but the intention is opposite. Blood thirsty
eyes moved closer to my face while he deliberately squeezed my hurt arm

with his other hand.

‘Ow!’ I cried.
‘You know I am a misogynist. You know I am a duke with a great deal of

power in our Kingdom; it would be very easy to crush your family name.

Would you like me to show you?’

That is true; it would be easy to crush a weak house like family, but I did
not want to succumb to this despicable, despotic man.

I glared with all my might and said, ‘How annoying. When I am done with

you, you can tell me which one of us is more dominant, eh?’

I kissed him.

At first, his lips trembled in puzzlement, but he silently accepted my kiss

without refusing. But this is not the first time I have kissed. While courting

with my second fiancé, he kissed me a deeply a lot. It turned out he was

more into men, but we kissed many times. I suppose because he was trying

to respond to me, but nothing happened. But he got turned on by the baker’s

son who visited often. In the end, he went off with the baker’s son and left
me. So I know how to deep kiss (Zuben: An Achievement has been

obtained: Deep Kiss Lv. 99) I forced my tongue between the Duke’s lips. I

collected my saliva and poured it into his mouth and forced him to swallow
it. There was an obscene sound to our kissing. (Zuben: Prerequisite "Japan

why?")
To make the sounds on purpose, I kissed open mouthed, gasping and

stirring up excitement. For some reason, his previous resistance changed

like he was gently giving over to me.

I wasn’t doing such a reckless thing without a plan. Although, I am

interested in sexual things, I am not a lewd woman. I pressed my body

against the Duke’s crotch and I could feel he was ripe. Soon it was hard and

I let go of his lips.

The Duke’s cheeks were stained red to his ears from the excitement, and his

breathing was fast. This ikemen’s aroused face had considerable destructive

power but I managed to recover my senses and keep reason.

‘So your Grace, I wonder what people would think if I screamed now. My

cheeks are red and swollen from the slaps, and there is a bleeding abrasion

on my arm. And there is you, with your crotch engorged. No matter how

much power and honour you have, this isn’t a situation you couldn't escape
from easily.’

‘Julia, you…!’
Teehee😏🙈
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This is it, girls, boys and not-eithers, the moment we've been waiting
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Puzzled Duke

This was it. I was waiting for this moment. I made my threats while gently

stroking the bulge with my hand. If he got withered due to shock, it will

scupper my plan. I stroked him slowly keeping him hard and then leaned in

and licked his neck.

‘Nnn~’ a pleasant sensual groan emerged from the Duke’s lips. For some

reason, my feelings were uplifted hearing that sound. A man who had been

threatening me just a moment ago was drowning in the pleasure I was

giving him and becoming helpless before me. I’ve got his tune. Thinking

about it later, this could have gone horribly wrong, but this festival had

already reached the point of no return. (Zuben: Someone is getting off)

‘Someone will hear you if you moan so loudly. What if people see you like

this, what will you do?’ I teased. I was being mean; this place was far from

the ballroom being used for the ball. Absolutely, no one would be around
here around this time, which was why Isabel chose this place.
I unbuckled his belt, he did not stop me. I exposed his thing to the cold air

of the night. It was the first time I had seen a man’s privates; it was getting
bigger and hotter than I had expected.

I’ve seen the penis of horses many times, but it was the first time I had seen
a human’s. It was rather big for his slender frame and the shape was
different from that of a horse.

‘What would you like me to do?’ I whispered wickedly into his ear. I
flicked his ear with my tongue. I got a rush from this; I wanted this man to

succumb to me. How good would it feel to defeat this powerful man who
was used to being obeyed, was the only thought in my head.

‘Ah~ to ask such a thing…’ he moaned.

How stubborn he was.
I knelt before him and licked the tip of this hot member with my tongue. I

was nineteen and I knew a lot about sex. Or was it more that I was
interested in sexual relations more than girls my age. I hid in my maid,

Hanna’s room and read such books, therefore my knowledge is abundant.

(Zuben: Hmmhm)

I blew my hot breath on it, and teased him with my tongue. I looked up at
the Duke’s face which was distorted in excitement. He had both arms
braced against the wall. It was interesting seeing him like this.

I lapped at his cock many times and gave him a sultry smile,
‘You’re not going to tell me what you want? Shall we end it here?’ I pulled

back and pretended to pull his trousers back up. He averted his gaze from
mine; he looked like he could not bear it any longer. With small voice, he

ground out despite his apparent humiliation,

‘Please…I want you to suck it…’

Wow! 『Ka i ka n! 』
Something pleasant ran down my back. I actually did not plan to do this,
but I could not stop it anymore. I wanted to see more of this man’s beautiful

face being distorted in pleasure.(Zuben: Someone has discovered her S

side)

‘Since I am kind-hearted, I will give you a reward.’ I said and I took his
hard cock in my mouth.
He moaned loudly! He was beside himself with too much pleasure. I

stimulated my saliva and teased the hot skin with my tongue. Both the
mouth and vagina are the same mucosa, because it was necessary to

reproduce what happens in the vagina, (Zuben: Is that so?) I sucked in my

mouth and moved up and down his manhood while my tongue undulated

around him. (Zuben: Deft)

His groans grew louder. Stimulated by his sensual tenor, I increased the
power of my tongue against his stuff.
‘It feels so good! Nnn~ I can’t stand it! I can’t stand it!’ he cried as he
grabbed my head with both hands and held me down as his manhood
trembled and turbid fluid was poured down my throat. I was surprised by

the taste of a man’s semen, but somehow I managed to take it all in my

mouth.

So what to do with this…

I am against swallowing it, but if I spit it out, the person who cleans will
come and find it in the morning. While it is not uncommon for something

like this to happen during balls, I hesitate to be vulgar in a terrace in the

Royal Castle. (Zuben: Now you hesitate?)

The Duke was still breathing roughly, looking down at me. His expression
was cooling down from the excitement. Both hands were still holding my

head, but he began to gently stroke my hair.

What a fool I am for not thinking ahead. I wonder if this guy…will drink it
for me. Well, I have never read of a man drinking it. I wonder what a man

drinks. Well, it is his own stuff, isn’t it? I think it is okay to return it back to
the owner.

I rose and kissed the Duke whose lips were still trembling in the aftermath.
I gently held his head and neck so with both hands so he could not escape. I
entangled my tongue to make sure I was not resisted. (Zuben: Super deft!)
He seemed to realise my intentions and tried to pull away. I took his half
erection into my right hand. He groaned and relaxed. And he took
everything I gave him. Our first kiss tasted sweet but this kiss was beastly -

undercut with the acrid flavour of semen spreading in each other’s mouths.
‘N~n~n~…’

Since the after taste was bad, we rinsed each other’s mouth with saliva. The
Duke once again tried to resist me, but I stroked him and his power left him
quickly. He was at my mercy, swallowing my saliva.

Gradually I was hunched over the Duke kissing him. It looked like his legs

had weakened from the pleasure. He collapsed on the spot. At last we

parted, and our mutual panting dominated the silence of the night.

He was kneeling at my feet with his penis exposed. His beautiful

appearance feverish with pleasure was terribly erotic. A strange sensation

filled me at this sight, and I was drunk on the power and pleasure. I wiped
the liquid at the edge of my lips with my fingers and smiled down at the

Duke, who was still immersed in the reverberation of pleasure that he could

not speak.
‘Will you say thank you the next time we meet? I wonder if you are a

creature below a dog and will try to repay the kindness. Well, I’m not like

you; I am intelligent enough to know what not all men are creatures below
dogs unlike you. I am going to find a nice man tonight. Good night,
Marius.’ With a self-satisfied smile, I left the Duke in a dazed state on the

terrace. (Zuben: Ding ding ding KO! And the winner is: Juliaaaaaaa!)

James' Identity

Once I was away from the terrace, I rushed to find a restroom. My lipstick

had rubbed off, so I took out the pot in my pocket and reapplied it. I tidied

my disordered hair, and took measure of myself in the mirror. My cheeks

were still red from the slaps Muriel and Isabel gave me but they were no
longer swollen. The abrasion on my arm was no longer bleeding. I was

relieved to see that though the dress was a bit dirty it was not torn. But I

wondered if I could meet and connect with my destined man tonight

looking like this.
If it is my man of destiny, he would accept me anyway I came. (Zuben: I

want to know where the coolade she’s drinking comes from so I can go and

stop production.) In any case, I have to work hard until the end of this ball,
or I would not be able to face my mother and father who paid for making

me a new dress.

I reworked and practised my smile, then left the restroom. A shadow

suddenly appeared in front of me when I neared the ball room, blocking me.
‘Julia, how terrible of you to abandon me,’ James said, ‘did you get to meet

the Duke Magnaria?’ he had a mischievous smile on his face. He lightly put

an arm around my shoulder but I pushed away keeping a distance from him.
‘Unfortunately, I did not meet him. My prediction turned out to be wrong; it

looks as though the Duke intends to get married quietly.’

‘That’s strange…that you haven’t met. Because after you returned from the

terrace, the Duke returned to the ball; he had a flustered look on his face
and was calling your name while looking about. I wonder what happened

between the both of you. Also, your hair is a wee bit dishevelled.’

Had James been watching me return from the terrace?

No way?!

Did he see what happened on the terrace?

I was frightened for a moment, but I kept quiet pretending to be calm. Then

I replied, ‘I ended up in the middle of the fight between the ladies. It turned
out alright because of my interference. Say I wonder if you would take your

arm off my shoulders, I don’t want others to misunderstand our

relationship.’

‘I don’t care about being misunderstood. As for you, who are you to the

Duke? An acquaintance? A friend? No it would not be that. It’s the first time
I have seen such an expression on Henry’s face, and he was calling a

woman’s name…no way! Are you his lover?’

He looked at me with curiosity.

‘We became acquainted on a stagecoach into the city, and now there is
added resentment from interfering with his plan to avoid marriage.

Conversely, you seem to have a very close relationship with the Duke. You

also know your way around the castle as well. You did not tell me your real
name, did you? I should have mentioned I don’t enjoy playing with fire.’

He laughed, ‘You interfering with Henry’s plan let me see his embarrassed

expression for the first time. He usually hides what he is thinking behind a

façade. It was a great pleasure. Thank you Julia.’

I sighed and looked up and James. I opened my mouth to say

‘Mr Nascaria, I…’

‘Julia!’ A familiar tenor voice called from behind me. I did not have to turn
to know who it was; the Duke of Magnaria.
After my actions earlier, I did not know what kind of expression I should

have when I spoke to him. I looked at James with a troubled expression on

my face. He put his arm around my waist and said,

‘Henry, just in time, there is a woman I would like to introduce you to. Her
name is Julia Hermiata, my new lady love.’

What?!!

I was so surprised at James’ declaration I gave a strangled cry; how have I

become James’ lover?!

I protested with my eyes against James’ action but he smiled and continued

on.

This man is playing with me!!

The arm around my waist was firm, so I could only twist my upper body to

look at the Duke. I opened my mouth to contradict him, but the Duke had

such an intense aura of anger, I was frightened into stillness with my mouth
hanging open.

Before his threatening attitude, a cold electricity ran my spine from head to

toe. James planted a kiss on my cheek and said,

‘Julia is a lovely woman, and I would like to be married to her as soon as

she agrees, so she isn’t taken by another man but she’s being rather

stubborn. Will you speak to her for me?’

‘Hold on a moment, Mr Nascaria…I am not…’

As I began to clarify matters, the Duke spoke over me ignoring my words.

‘James, this a low woman from an impoverished family. If you decide to

marry such a woman, you will be brought low in society, think it over.’

What? This fellow! Low woman?! What impoverished family! Even though

he was very obedient only a little while ago, now he’s acting all pompous.

My anger boiled over and I glared at him challengingly. I raised my chin

and looked down upon him as he did me and said,

‘Yes, I am the worst woman ever. But I am never going to regret the person

I chose to marry. I promise to yearn for him with all my love and fill
everyday with happiness. It will be better than someone who will marry a

woman despite hating the whole species. I will live a warm life.’ (Zuben:

urgh)
‘What love?!’ he replied, ‘You’re just blinded by his money and status.’

‘I do not know how James Nascaria really is but I already know he is better

then you. James does not attack someone’s weak point on purpose! My love

is very serious and has value. I will only love him once I swear my love.’ I
declared proudly. (Zuben: urgh)

The duke’s glare and been deepening more and more as I spoke. At the last

moment, he looked as though he’d been hurt, but then he spoke with such
anger as though it resonated from the bottom of the earth,
‘Don’t think you can fight me. I can destroy an inconsequential house like
Hermiata without much effort. Remember that.’

(Zuben: Julia’s saccharine nonsense almost made me toss a kitten over a

bridge)
He turned on his heel and left. I stood there like a statue, stunned by the

turn of events. But I soon returned to my senses and wailed,

‘What have I done?’ I put my hands on my head, ‘Whatever shall I do?

What will happen to my family? The Duke looked so angry! His eyes were

so serious! Oh I shouldn’t have said all that…Will he forgive me if I

apologise? Perhaps, I should prostrate myself and apologise as soon as

possible. There has to be some humanity in that misogynist.’

I was in a panic. James held my hands and brought them down while he

moved closer to me. His expression was like that of a naughty child,

‘You don’t have to prostrate yourself. You may not believe it, but you seem
special to the Duke. You don’t have to worry, Julia, I will protect you if you

stay by my side.’
‘What do you mean…?;
He smiled softly as his gaze went to my curly chestnut hair,

‘Nascaria is my mother’s maiden name. My true name is James de

Basseterre. I am the third Prince of the Basseterre Kingdom.’ (Zuben: Dun
Dun doh...?)
Presenting: The Villian Proposed
 Apparently this is a Saber Prototype! Fate Stay 'all things'. Do you know how hard it is to find a blonde anime male that isnt wearing an earring?! Like finding

ambergris on the beach; possible but fucking hard.

9 The Duke’s First Love:

I ran into her on a stagecoach headed for the Kingdom. I abhorred

women…hated them. I had thought that it would be better if they did not

exist in this world. (Zuben: But if they didn’t exist, you would not exist)
Because of this, I had no feelings when I first laid eyes on her.

I tried to treat her as though she did not exist, but the hateful woman kept
staring at me throughout our journey together.
She must be some daughter of a wealthy merchant on the way to the

Kingdom with her maid.

Then again, her appearance was rather excellent. Even though I wasn’t

doing anything, the woman showed interest. It was the worst situation.
‘Miss, you’ve been staring at me for a while now and thinking of
something. May I ask; what are you looking at?’

‘It’s nothing…’
She had answered calmly. She was a liar; I knew she was interested in me. I

found her lie annoying. I wanted her to disappear from this world quickly.
‘What were you thinking…?’

‘Really? Is it alright if I share my thoughts?’

The woman who had been looking at me surreptitiously now looked at me

in a straight-forward manner. Because of her provocative manner, I was

surprised at her directness. For some reason, I was interested in what she
had to say. She asked to guess my profession; this must be a new way

women have devised to pick up gentlemen. I already disliked her just on the
fact she was a woman.

Then she got it right, but also added that I had the title of knight and that I
was carrying twin swords. She also deduced I was a nobleman. I have
performed my work perfectly until now; there was nothing I could not

achieve if once I got down to it. Whatever anyone said, I was the best in the
field. I could not believe I was seen through by this slip of a girl. (Zuben:

She has heroine-itis)

It was the first time that I developed an interest in a woman. She told me

she was going to the kingdom to find her destined man. I thought it would
be hard for an ordinary man to handle such an unconventional woman.
‘I doubt if an ordinary gentleman can handle a lady like you. Where did you

learn such insight?’

She laughed, ‘I am interested in people. It is why I know that there are three
men who have been following the stagecoach since yesterday.’
If what she said was true, it seemed I was being followed, and she also

surmised that they were Grusk. My mission was to find out the extent of
spies that lurked in the royal castle; although I had an idea who the spies

were, I did not know what country they were of.

And now because of a chance meeting, it turns out the spies were Grusk. A
woman who saw my true identity. She was unusual and intelligent for a

woman. She is called Julia. I took a good look at her as if to burn her image
in my mind. (Zuben: Why burning?) She looked very elegant and dignified;

her spine was straight as she sat and her gaze was direct. She reminded me
of an eagle that ruled over the sky.

Julia…
It was the first time in my life I wanted to remember a woman’s name. I
have never been interested in a woman. But it was the same feeling I get for

a man I am interested in. This was not a story of love. I was just interested
in a human being…that is all.

But even after our encounter, Julia did not leave my mind. (Zuben: You did
burn her into it) The more I tried to concentrate on something else, the more
she was there distracting me.
In the meantime, the day of the ball arrived. A ball that his Majesty
organised for me because he was worried that I hadn’t married. I could not
refuse. Oh well, I had a plan in place.

Yet because of some arbitrary woman, my plan was ruined. What kind of
woman are you; do you want to marry me so much?!

‘You… Julia?!’
She had not changed from the last time I saw her, her gaze was still sharp.
How disagreeable, she looked more beautiful now than she did when we

first met. She didn’t realise it was me at first, but soon she figured it,

‘Ma Marius? You’re the womanising woman-hating Duke of Magnaria; the

worst type of man?!’

A woman-hating womaniser; this was the image I had created for myself in

the Kingdom by manipulating gossip. As a Knight of the Kingdom, It

would be bad for people to know that I didn’t even want to be near women.
So this persona was spread around so that troublesome women would not

bother me. I truly hated women; just being touched by a woman would

cause waves of nausea in me. There were only a few people who knew
about this. I don’t know how come Julia knew about it, but I was taken

aback by her calling me the worst type of man, so I replied,

‘No. I only think women are beings lower than dogs that unabashedly lie
and will betray you at the slightest opportunity.’
‘Well said. But you are also an enemy of women; confusing those girls with

pretty words that contradict each other inducing them into fighting. It was a
very good idea.’

I am not surprised she figured my plan, and tried to counter it. Was Julia

doing this to marry me? If that was the case, would she tell the truth?
‘I would never have thought you were a noble. Speaking without shyness to

a gentleman traveller and you can distinguish a Grusk person. But this is a

problem. Because of you, I actually have to choose one of these women;

what are you going to do about it?’

I was hoping to hear her say; choose me. All women like me. But she

insisted I marry Isabel. What is this hurting in my heart that rapidly spread

to my head? Anger coursed through me, and I had gone beyond reason.
Looking down at those violet eyes, I could not see any sweetness or

coyness, like in the eyes of other women. Her gaze told me she had a

serious grudge against me. Now she was telling me to marry Isabel and
make a child.

My body moved unconsciously, before I realised it, I had pushed her

against a wall, clasping her injured arm. I wanted to hurt Julia, I wanted to

hurt her for making me feel like this. That was my driving impulse.
 10 The Duke’s First Experience

‘Ow!’

I was startled by her voice, but I could not stop this black emotion over

taking me. I hated Julia. I wanted to break her with this hand of mine. I
wanted to be the only man she saw at the end.

‘You know I am a misogynist,’ I said, ‘you know I am a duke with a great

deal of power in our Kingdom; it would be very easy to crush your house.

Would you like me to show you?’

She didn’t bow to my threat but glared back at me with intense hatred,

‘How annoying. When I am done with you, you can tell me which one of us

is more dominant, eh?’ she said and then she kissed me. With amazing
dexterity, her warm slimy tongue entered my mouth and entangled with my

tongue. Her warm breath brushed against my cheek, rocking my forelocks.

It was not the first time I had been kissed. When I was a boy, I was

suddenly attached my some nobleman’s daughter, and was robbed of my

lips. (Zuben: Your lips are still there. No one stole it) At that time, I had

already had my dislike for women, hence, I vomited in the girl’s mouth.

That was the memory of my first kiss.

Julia’s kiss was sweet unlike that time. It was soft and it was pleasant.

Julia’s tongue teased my mouth, and she gathered saliva and forced me to

drink it. I could feel the warmth falling slowly down the back of my throat,

and somehow filling my heart. (Zuben: Ew) It was the first time someone
had ever done this to me, I kept taking it in. I could feel that I was losing

my mind, and did not know what to do anymore. I was becoming heady

with the pleasure she was inducing in me. I was drowning in a whirlpool of
desire, then Julia let go. Was it over? But I want you to continue. I want to

taste Julia more. But I didn’t know how to tell her my feelings.

‘So Your Grace, I wonder what people would think if I screamed now. My

cheeks are red and swollen from the slaps, and there is a bleeding abrasion
on my arm. And there is you, with your crotch engorged. No matter how

much power and honour you have, this isn’t a situation you could escape

from easily.’
‘Julia, you…!’
Julia, did you not want me? Was this to humiliate me? Oh…my chest felt

like a sword had pierced it. It hurt…what was this feeling? Why was it so

painful?

Then Julia put her hand on my crotch and began to lick my neck, a moan
slipped out from the pleasure, I was surprised that I could make that sound.

‘Nnnn~,’ what an embarrassing voice, but I could not help my lower body

getting harder. Such a foolish thing. I have never had an erection other than
the natural phenomenon in the morning, because it wilted just by seeing or

thinking of a woman; I did not even masturbate. So it was hard to believe

that Julia’s kiss would cause me to be like this. I had never know it was

such a pleasant thing. Before I knew it, my penis was being taken out of my
trousers, and the hot sensitive head was right before Julia’s cherry coloured

lips. I was surprised by the size, but her hot breath was sprayed on me, and I

felt like I was impatient for something.

‘What would you like me to do?’

Julia was being mean; she seemed to enjoy teasing me. Why are you doing

and saying such things to me? Full of shame, I fell into a dilemma; if I said

nothing, I would not be able to fulfil this desire.

‘Ah~ to ask such a thing…’

Then there was a touch of a hot slick feeling against the head. It didn’t take

me long to know it was Julia’s tongue. Stop playing cat and mouse with
your hot breath and tongue. I had both my hands braced against the wall

looking down on the golden shimmer of her hair gleaming in the moonlight.
It looked like those fascinating purple eyes were inviting me; I could see

her naughty red tongue lapping at me bit by bit.

‘You’re not going to tell me what you want? Shall we end it here?’

She withdrew and pulled my trousers up, but I already surrendered…

Julia…let me recognise my defeat. I could not bear to let it end like this. I

saw Julia’s eyes light up with victory. I turned my gaze away from her and

pleaded,
‘Please…I want you to suck it…’

She gave a pleasant smile, and with a tone as though she was talking to a

child she said, ‘Since I am kind-hearted, I will give you a reward.’ Then she
took my thing into her mouth.

It was the first time I had ever felt pleasure like this; am I going to heaven?!

‘Ah~’

Her technique was amazing, taking all of me into her mouth smoothly,
sucking on me 360 degrees giving me no respite but pleasure. There was no

way to stop the waves of pleasure through me, and my instincts sensed the

ultimate ecstasy approaching

‘It feels so good! Nnn~ I can’t stand it! I can’t stand it!’
I ejaculated in her mouth. My head turned white and I could think of
nothing. I had something soft in my hands that I had grabbed without

thinking. When I came round, I noticed it was Julia’s hair, she rose and

stared at me gently. Slowly, her eyes come close and her cherry lips were
puckered. Then she grabbed my head with both hands and began a deep

kiss. Was she trying to make me drink her saliva again? But instead of her

sweet saliva, she forced a bitter and acrid liquid into my mouth. I realised it
was my cum after most of it was down my throat.

What a humiliation!

I tried to push away from her, but Julia began to stroke my member again,

and I found my strength leaving me.

I cared for nothing. Pride. Status. Honour. I wanted to immerse myself in

this pleasure and melt into it. I stopped resisting and left everything to her.

I was insulted in my mouth; forced to swallow my own emissions. She used

her slender fingers to masturbate me, something I myself had never done. I

collapsed on the spot pulling Julia with me. Regretfully our lips parted, only
our rough panting dominated the silence of the night.
Julia rose slowly before me, she wiped the corner of her lips with her

slender fingers. From her finger tips, a whitish transparent liquid hung as
though drawn from a string, before succumbing to the force of gravity.
With the moon behind her, she gave me a fascinating smile,
‘Will you say thank you the next time we meet? I wonder if you are a
creature below a dog and will try to repay the kindness. Well, I’m not like
you; I am intelligent enough to know what not all men are creatures below

dogs - unlike you. I am going to find a nice man tonight. Good night,
Marius.’
What are you talking about…Julia? I could not think of anything at the

moment. I had only discovered this most pleasant feeling existed in this
world for the first time in my twenty-nine years. Don’t leave me…Julia, I
want you to be by my side.

There was no word for the shock I was feeling. The moon rose slowly, in
my head there was an echo of the last words Julia said to me: I’m going to
find a nice man tonight.

‘Julia!!’
I ran in spite of myself. (Zuben: Is your cock still hanging out?) I didn’t
know what I wanted to tell her when I saw her again, but I wanted to see

her. I wanted her to tell me the names of the emotions that I didn’t
understand that were running through my mind. (Zuben: Lust? Lust?

Love?)
With her image in my brain I ran around the castle looking for her.
When I found her…

She was in the arms of another man.

‘Henry! Just in time. There is a woman I would like to introduce you to.
Her name is Julia Hermiata, my new lady love.’
I saw red. I was angry and embarrassed; after doing such things with me,

she had caught a man right away?!

Her violet eyes that turned to look at me had the same light as before. But

hatred boiled in my soul seeing James’ arm around her. I wanted to hurt her.
That was the only thought in my head,
‘Don’t think you can fight me. I can destroy an inconsequential house like

Hermiata without much effort. Remember that.’

She replied with a haughty look telling me that she would love and
appreciate her chosen one, and promised to fill their everyday with

happiness. Once she swore her love, she will love them forever! (Zuben:
Poor Henry, so much damage taken)
Was she telling me she loved James that much?!

I don’t hate women. I hate Julia. Such a woman should suffer. She should
live a wretched, decaying and pathetic live.
I did not have a name for the dark emotions swirling in my head, for I did

not know it yet. All the feelings I had not experienced in my twenty nine
years seemed to be condensed. I nursed the brutal thoughts like a child. I

did not resist it, but immersed myself in it.

Presenting: The Villian Proposed

Renoir - Oarsmen at the Chatou

11 A Date with James:

Morning in the household of the Earl of Bourbon dawned with fresh

sunshine and the birds singing. I opened heavy eyelids to see Hannah
grasping her handkerchief with a bright red face and her eyes filled with

tears,

‘Miss, you’re amazing. I would never have imagined you would have shot
and fired at a Prince!’

First thing in the morning, sighed.

I had woken up in the finest spring bed. The sheets and covers were silk
linen that slipped when I moved; it felt like they were stroking my skin.

‘Oh Hannah, it is nothing like you imagine. Don’t get your expectations up

because this is just a whim of that person.’

‘But young Miss, even if it is on a whim, it doesn’t matter. I would be

relieved when Miss gets married safely. Please capture Prince James.’
With bright red eyes, Hannah helped me wash and put on a pale yellow

dress with the prerequisite frills. My hair was arranged half up and tied with

a ribbon the same colour of my dress. After a light breakfast, I went to the

sun room to read a book.

There were many books in the Earl’s library, and there were many of them I

wanted to read. But sitting in the solarium, the book I was reading wasn’t
getting absorbed. All I could think of was last night.
James stuck to me all evening, so I had no change to meet any other men.
The Earl and Countess Bourbon had been surprised when they met Prince

James, who escorted me back to their house. But they were overjoyed that

their daughter had been chosen as one of the candidates for the Duke, so

they accepted it easily.

But I know better, Prince James is not in love with me. It is evident in his

eyes; he is obsessed with the Duke. I’m not sure if the sentiment was a form
of love, [1] but I am sure the core of this whole matter is the Duke.

As for the Duke, from his expression last night, he was very angry with me;

which is not surprising. It’s probably the first time he had ever been coerced

into doing those kinds of things by a woman. But it was a punishment on

behalf of women for making them cry. He hated women. He just had to

accept it, I am on the side of all women…but I can’t deny the feeling that I

got overwhelmed with passion that time. Hence, it was necessary to avoid
any damage to the Viscount title of the Hermiata family, so I had to pretend

to be James’ girlfriend in front of the Duke.

Because of this, I had to put aside my dream of finding my destined man in

the Kingdom for the time being. (Zuben: It was rather improbable) until the

Duke got into a better mood and forgave me. Hopefully Prince James could

introduce me to a good man later, since he is a Prince of the Basseterre

Kingdom.
Even so, the sight of the angry Duke made me scared from the bottom of

my heart. It was the first time I realised when beauty got angry, it was a
terrible form. Let’s not make him angry again. And because of my

interference, the Duke was being forced to date these three women. He had
to decide on one of them within three months; that was the edict from the
King. The Duke must be very angry with me now, because I caused him to

have to interact and marry a woman, and he hated women. I could only
imagine what suffering he was going through, thinking this way; I could not

help but feel like I had done something bad.

But was it a case of a man who only liked men having to marry a woman?

Or was it like a man marrying a man but can only love a woman? In any
case, the fact that he is being put in a situation where he could not refuse
was rather painful. If I was told I had to marry a woman; I would just faint

and get myself to a church quick sharpish and become a nun.

How could I get the Duke out of this predicament and at the same time find

my true love? (Zuben: Oh the irony)

I fell deep into my thoughts.

‘What’s wrong, my dear? There are wrinkles between your eyes, my

princess.’
I jumped at the voice. I saw James’ face in front of mine. As usual he had a

gentle smile on his face but his gaze was also puzzled. He was very well
dressed today. He took my hand and kissed it with perfect manners. I was

surprised by his sudden appearance. I had been indulging in my thoughts in

this luxurious garden created with by the greatly skilled gardener employed

by the Earl.
‘Prince James! Why are you here?’

‘How cold! Isn’t it good for me to come and see my beloved? Well, I like
cute Julia, you’re so charming.’
I stared at him coldly; you only need to pretend to by my suitor in front of

the duke.
But James did not care about my coldness, he shook his head and his

chestnut hair swayed fluffily. He took my hands gently like they were
precious and said,
‘Come, let’s go for a ride, I would show you something entertaining.’

‘No thanks, I have a previous appointment today-‘

‘Oh! Miss! I wonder what kind of place the Prince wants to take you!

We’ve been looking forward to it!’ Hannah said over me, pushing out of the
bushes.

She really wanted me to marry James.

I had noticed she was hiding there earlier, since the leaves of the bushes
were swaying strangely. I had never thought she would show up in such a

dramatic way. I’m sure James would be shocked…Huh?

He still had gentle smile on his face, not only that he was having an eye to
eye conversation with Hannah. What was going on here?
‘Hannah is a very nice lady. She told me a lot of things as she brought me

here. So thanks to her, I love you even more. No matter where I look, I
could not find a woman like you.’ He said as he took my hands and pulled

me out of my seat.
I looked back at Hannah in trepidation, she had a doya[2] face on; very
pleased with herself. Before I knew it I was out of the house and boarding a

luxurious carriage without a by your leave!

12 James’ Plot

The Prince’s carriage was made with polished oak. The workmanship was
precise and delicate, with gold accents around the corners, doors and
windows. It was so spacious six people could sit comfortably. So why did
he have to sit so close holding my hand? I looked at Prince James beside
me.

He was watching me and our eyes met. The colour of his eyes was truly
beautiful; like the blue-green of the sea in summer tinged with indigo, they

seemed to draw me in.

Perhaps he has gained a lot of wisdom in his life, which was why he had
such a gentle character; always with a smile, and a calm aura around him.

In the vague position of the third Prince of Basseterre, he was being kept

hostage in a friendly nation, so it was a necessity for him to play a harmless

man. Currently, the first and second Princes of Basseterre were contesting

the throne, but Prince James could not take any side. So here he was; a

slender elegant fascinating man who looked like he was not thinking of

anything on the surface. Even with his kindly face, his thoughts were
hidden.

‘Is Prince James close with the Duke of Magnaria? You call each other by

name.’
‘Yes. I have been in the Bosch Kingdom since I was seven. Henry often

came to the castle to play. It is a twenty year friendship. So you could say I

know him better than anyone else.’

...this, I wonder if he is probing to see whether I know the Duke, which

would be strange. He knows very well I know nothing about the Duke; so
why does he need me?

‘Then can you tell me about the Duke? I want to know why he turned to

hostile to me.’
Well, mostly because I sexually harassed him, and forced him to drink my

saliva and his own emissions. But James didn’t know that, but I wanted to

suss out James’ real intentions by seeing how he answered the question.

James laughed out loud.

‘Do you really not know, Julia? Poor Henry, he has become so pitiful but

interesting, don’t you think? How amusing.’ (Zuben: Hmmm, does he

know…?)
I don’t know at all…

“Pitiful but interesting”?!

What are you trying to say? No matter how much more I asked James
would not let me interrogate him, so I had to give up my pursuit of his

motives. I guess he was a man who could not be coerced regardless of his

appearance. In the meantime, we chatted about mundane things as we rode

the carriage. It took twenty minutes to reach our destination.

It was Vondel Park, which was a very popular spot for the nobility to be

seen because it was close to the royal castle. It was also a popular place to
come to on a date. It had been beautifully landscaped, a veritable rainbow

of flowers and plants have been cultivated here. It was treated like a mini-

green city. There was also a large lake for boating. Today the weather was
fine, so it was a perfect day for a date.

I had heard about the park back home, but I had never been here before so

my heart was excited like a child.

James took my hand and helped me alight from the carriage onto a carpet of
flowers as far as the eyes could see. Geraniums, clematis, begonias…I took

in the beautiful scenery that displayed the colours and scents that existed all

over the world. (Zuben: That’s a lot)

‘Beautiful…lovely…!’ I exclaimed left and right.

The walkways amongst the flowers were paved with obsidian tiles (Zuben:

expensive and fragile.). It was a park created for the nobility, no expense

was spared; that much was evident. No more words came from me as I
moved along spellbound by the sight. But I caught a sight that just blew me

away. I immediately ran to the promenade near where delicate star shaped

flowers had been cultivated,

‘These are Angraecum!’ I exclaimed, ‘They are very rare. They were made

famous because they helped Darwin prove his theory! They are

characteristically star-shaped. How amazing, it is the first time I’ve seen so

many blooming!’ (Zuben: What is with this ham-fisted lecture? They are
real flowers btw and did no such thing with Darwin in our reality actually

Darwin used his theory of evolution to hypothesise what kind of polinator

this flowers would have, see Jeff's comment below)

James had a look of confusion, but he immediately returned to his smiling

countenance as he came to stand near me,

‘Julia is different. I would never have imagined a noble’s daughter would

know the name of such a minor flower or even about Darwinian Theory.’

‘Oh! Pardon me, Prince James. I just got so excited…’ I said feeling

contrite. I had run leaving behind my escort. It was rather discourteous and
unbecoming of a noble miss. But I never would have dreamed I would see

angraecum here.

I turned to James; he did not look like he was angry with me. Contrary to
that, he looked at me with his usual indulgent smile, but he pulled my arm

and started walking me deeper into the park,

‘We can admire the flowers later. We are here to witness something a lot

more interesting.’ He said with a mischievous smile. We walked through a

dense copse of trees out into a grassy field and beyond that, the lake. A

number of small boats were already sailing, each bearing gaily dressed

pairs. It looked like flowers were blooming on the lake, it was a beautiful
sight.
‘Julia, come quickly.’ James called. He was at the pier renting a boat. He

paid the pier-master money and got on. I saw James put a finger on his lip,

instructing him not to speak to me.

I got into the small boat with James’ assistance, and sat at one end. The sun
was now high, and the light reflecting off the surface of the water was

dazzling. I opened my parasol that Hannah had made be bring, shading

mine and James’ eyes as he rowed. He gave me his thanks and after that the
only sound was of James’ oars cutting the water.

James brought us downwind of another boat moving with the wind. I

adjusted my parasol so that the occupants of the other boat did not see my

face. It looked like James wanted us to eavesdrop on the people on the other
boat. James was a Prince, was it alright to be doing such a thing? Yet, I was

also interested, so I went along with James and listened while hiding under

the parasol.

[1] その感情が私の２番目の婿養子候補だった彼のような愛の形なの
かどうかは分からないが、
[2] doya-gao:

More on Angraecum and Darwin's Moth; a reminder that one's knowledge

is not all encompassing and to read shit properly.
Presenting: The Villian Proposed

Newton - Pinterest
 13 The Duke and Miss Helmina:

‘Your Grace, I know I’m a bit fat with such a face but I will make effort to

keep your Grace relaxed. I will always make you happy and laugh. I will

never raise my voice. And if you ask me to lose weight, I will show you the
results of my efforts soon.’

‘Miss Helmina, I don’t need peace of mind, so I don’t need you to make

effort. You do not have to suppress your own emotions; laugh when you
want to laugh, be angry when you want to be angry. I do not care if you’re

fat or thin. I have no interest in you either way.’

I realised James’ purpose for being here; the boat we were following had
Duke Magnaria and Helmina on it. The Duke must choose a fiancée from

amongst the three girls within three months, but it was rather fast work to

be on a date the day after the ball. Nevertheless, the Duke does not seem to

understand the persistence of women, they will have a lot to say even if he

refused.
‘But your Grace, please do not say that. Helmina will be sad and tears will

come out.’ There was a long sob from Miss Helmina; it made me

uncomfortable.
Was it alright to be eaves-dropping on then like this? I looked to James, but
he put a finger against his lips and told me to be quiet.

‘Crying will not change my mind.’ Duke Magnaria said coldly, ‘I don’t like

you and I can assure you I will never come to like you.’

Wow…harsh! But I suppose it was better to be harsh than let her keep any

expectations.

‘But I…I heard of a noble hobby of the Duke’s today, and I have dressed in
the manner for your satisfaction. Will you please take a look? I will do

anything for you, your Grace. This is proof of my determination; please do

not throw me away!’ (Zuben: I dread to think.)

I wanted to see what kind dress she had word, so I gingerly took a look

through the lace of the parasol, but she was blocked by the Duke. Suddenly,

the Duke keeled over and dropped into the boat. The oar that he had been

holding fell into the lake and floated off.

‘Duke Magnaria!’ I shouted instinctively, forgetting I was supposed to be

eavesdropping. I dropped my parasol, revealing our presence to Helmina.

She was looking rather red in the face. James rowed closer to their boat and

I immediately got into their boat to see the Duke’s condition. He was blue

with his eyes half open. His face was clammy and he looked convulsive and

he was hyperventilating.
‘Henry,’ I called. He focused on me, ‘Are you fingers or toes numb?’
He nodded frantically. I had read about this; hyperventilation syndrome.

‘Henry,’ I called firmly, ‘Look at me. Follow my breathing, alright? It’s

okay. It’s okay.’ I took long deep breaths in and out and he followed me as

instructed. Soon his complexion came back to normal and he gradually

recovered.
‘It looks as though he has recovered. But just in case, the Duke should be

looked at by a doctor. James, could you take his Grace back to shore? Miss
Helmina and I will wait here for you to come back and get us.'

With all of us working together, we got the Duke into the second boat. Once
that was done, I sat on the across from Miss Helmina. Just before he rowed

away, James took my hand and looked at me with his eyes shining,
‘Don’t worry, I will be back shortly. Stay here with Miss Helmina.’ He said.
(Zuben: She aint going nowhere without no oars)

‘We’ll be fine. The weather is nice and we won’t get lost even if we get
moved by the wind, so please take the Duke.’

After James left with the Duke, I exchanged pleasantries with a red-faced
Miss Helmina but she suddenly wailed and began to cry,

‘The Duke dislikes me! I had heard the Duke had a hobby so I dressed like
this.’ Helmina said as she pulled her button-down dress apart widely to
reveal red ropes digging into her fleshy body. She did have pretty skin. The

ropes were tied around her breast and across her torso and I could not help
but imagine where the rope led to. Thi-was this the thing that those people

with special taste are willing to do: the tortoise shell binding?! Did this
mean the Duke is a Sadist?! (Zuben: You know the answer to that better

than anyone, dear)

I stared at Helmina in shock, and she began to cry even louder.

‘What shall I do? I thought I could finally elevate our barony! My father
will scold me for this. Out residence is so old, but we can’t even pay for
repairs. What do I do?!’ she cried some more.

Her make-up was becoming ruined and her plump face was looking worse
by the minute. I plucked out my handkerchief and wiped away the smudged

part of her make up.

‘Helmina, don’t cry. I think that a person who thinks of her family like you
is sincere. Maybe a man who is a bit older, more kind and tolerant, will suit

you. The Duke is not that person. There is no one with a cute smile like
Helmina, there will be someone who would appreciate your charms

someday. I had three fiancés, and they ran away.’ (Zuben: Look into my
eyes, on the count of three, forget about my Duke...)

‘Eh~? Three fiancés? Moreover, they ran away?’ Helmina exclaimed. She
suddenly stopped wailing like it was the end of the world and looked at me
with compassionate eyes. I felt like a fool, I had been so desperate to
comfort her, I ended up making myself look foolish. But, the duke was not
only a womaniser, he was also into S&M. Was I an M, then? (Zuben: Ha!)
Helmina wiped her tears and looked up at the clear blue sky. A bird flew

over us.
‘I will withdraw from the marriage candidacy.’ She said finally, ‘This

binding hurts terribly and I do not like pain. I can’t marry the duke.’
I felt relieved for some reason. Perhaps it was the pangs of conscience from
forcing the misogynistic Duke into this situation. Though it may not be

possible for the Duke to refuse his Majesty’s edict, but if all three ladies
turned him down, the King would let the matter rest.

As promised, James returned with a spare oar. He boarded the boat, and the
space became smaller. Although I could row, I wondered how a noble lady

would row in a dignified manner, as I tried to sit next to Helmina.

‘Julia, sit in front of me. The boat will be better balanced.’ James said.
Thinking on it more, I looked at Helmina; although she was petite, she was

heavy-set. It made more sense to sit near James. While I was hesitating,
James parted his legs and made me sit between them. James face was over

my ear and his breath was over my ear and cheek. Was my neck suddenly
hot because of the sun? My head was soon filed with the scent of his
cologne.

‘Julia…’ He suddenly called my name in my ear. I jumped unconsciously.

‘Ho!’ My ears were burning out of embarrassment. Helmina’s teasing look
was most painful. I tried to be as calm as possible,
‘What…what is it James?

‘Huhuu, you are amazing. Henry’s seizure occurred as expected, but he is

calm now thanks to you.’

An expected seizure? I had read hyperventilation syndrome was related to

stress. I wonder if that dastardly man was under some kind of stress. That
would be funny.

14 Appealing to the Duke

After we arrived ashore, we went to look in on the Duke who was resting in

the park management cabin. Helmina was a bit lost but she eventually
decided to come along to inform the duke of her withdrawal and apologise

to him.
We were guided through the copse of trees by James, we came to an large

area with planted shrubbery and large statues placed between them. Beyond

that was the cabin. I caught a glimpse of a statue by a famous sculptor but
could only gnash my teeth as we entered the cabin. Although it was a cabin,

it was rather spacious with many doors past the main entry.

We entered a room where the Duke was reclining on the bed. I was afraid

he would still be angry with me because of my actions so I hid behind

James. The Duke seemed to be looking a bit tense despite his reclining.

Looking at him, one would think he had a deadline. James behaved like his

bright and frivolous self. He held his arms out wide and said loudly,
‘Henry! You seem to have improved a lot. I was surprised, I never thought I

would meet you here of all places!’

‘Don’t lie, James, you guys were following me.’ He replied with a smile full
of laughter.

Oh…he was alright. I thought to make a minimum of greetings in

accordance with courtesy but Helmina beat me. She appeared from around

James and put her hands on the bed as though she was trying to get in the
bed with the Duke,

‘Um…Duke Magnaria…I want to sincerely thank your Grace…’

‘Hold it right there! Do not come any closer!’ The Duke shrieked. (Zuben:

Can you imagine a big handsome man shrieking?)

The Duke drew the sheet up against himself, trying to block Helmina’s
advance with it. His face was pale and his voice was trembling and

stuttered. But Helmina kept trying without paying attention to his

discomfort.

‘But your Grace, I….!

‘I have to leave! I feel awful!’ he shouted as his patience reached the limit.

He jumped out of bed and ran out of the room. Although my mind was slow

to catch up with the sudden development, I must follow that person who has
fled. I turned to James who was also stunned by the events,

‘James! Look after Helmina. I’ll go after the Duke!’

‘Julia?!!’

I chased after the Duke, who had run out barefoot without any thought as to
his image. As expected of the Kingdom’s foremost knight, his speed is

beyond imagination. I lost sight of him as soon as he rounded a sculpture. I

was out of breath.

‘Impossible…’

A knight, I certainly could not catch up with him. Not in delicate heels

anyway.
I sat down and leaned on the sculpture to catch my breath. I looked up and

the sky and closed my eyes. This area didn’t seem to be frequented by a lot
of visitors so my rough breathing dominated the space. The sunshine was

rather dazzling; I could see it even when my eyes were closed. But it was

rather pleasant to sit on the grass and relax.

How long have I been dozing?

The dazzling light penetrating my eyelids suddenly turned dark. I opened

my eyes in surprise to find a familiar beautiful face looking down at me. He

was sweaty with his golden hair hanging over his face. He didn’t have his
coat on, because he had been in bed in the park management cabin. The

buttons of his shirt were undone, so I could see his sturdy abdominal

muscles.
‘Duke Magnaria…’

The Duke blushed as he spoke with indignation, ‘That woman…she made

me touch her breast directly. I can still feel her skin on my hand…I am

unable to forget. I feel disgusted!’ As he spoke he kept striking his hand

against the sculpture till the skin tore and began to bleed. I quickly sat up

and held on to his hand, and said with a pleading voice,

‘Your Grace, please stop it or you will not be able to hold a sword.’
At my plea, the Duke lost momentum. He looked to me with his eyes

pleading, looking like an abandoned kitten, he said,

‘Julia. Please let me touch your breasts. The bad feeling remains in my

fingers.’

His entreaty was ardent and his eyes were pleading and sorrowful.

My eyes became points, ‘Huh?!’ (Zuben: She was shocked and flagger
basted**)
Presenting: The Villian Proposed
Jon Paul - Pinterest
 15 The Duke is Puzzling:

What are you talking out, this person? You said you hated women, right? I
guess he must hate women physiologically and physically. So this touching;

was it like a woman who was touched up by a molester and then goes home

and gets her lover to touch her all over to erase the disgusting sensation? So

was it alright with any woman that was not Helmina?

While I pondered, both embarrassed and dumbfounded, the duke pleaded

again, his eyes staring at my chest.

‘Please, Julia…’

‘But hold on, I am James’ lover.’

Yes, to the Duke I am in a love relationship with James. I should not forget

this. I let go of the hand that I held in mine and tried to leave, but he got a

hold of my hand. My strength could not compete.

‘Do you really like James? Do you really believe he is your fated one?’
‘That…’

‘You don’t like me, yet you touched me without consent? Isn’t it the same

as a woman who comes to me seeking my wealth?’

‘But…but this and that are not the same things?’

‘This is why I hate women,’ he growled suddenly angry, ‘They see men as

their possessions. They want to exploit a man’s possessions and take it for
themselves. They take everything they are given for granted.’ (Zuben: The

same could be said about men towards women.)

My unyielding character was stimulated, I could not let this go while being
made to look a fool.

‘Wait a moment. I am a woman who returns what she borrows properly. I

admit I had fun playing with you, so in return, you can play with me. I will

not have any debts.’

With that said, I cast a surreptitious glance around to make sure there was

no one wandering by. We were considerably hidden by the large pedestal of

the large statue and surrounded by hedges. So we were in a blind spot, well
hidden from public eyes. So I settled the duke and myself under the shadow

of the sculpture. We both sat at the same height so our eyes were level. The
duke’s breathing had become faster and more excited. But I was also aware

my heart was pounding like a relentless hammer.

I had forgotten about the arresting power of the Duke’s handsome face

when he was aroused. He stared hotly at my hands as though he was

enthralled by a spell. A tension wrapped around us like gentle cotton. I
slowly moved my hands up to my dress and gradually began to lower it.

The duke was holding his breath.

The visualised cleavage seen gradually deepened as I pulled my dress

further down, till I reached the peaks. The dress got caught and stopped. I
tugged harder, and it came down enough to see all of my cleavage at last

but it got suck. I was now for all intents and purposes, topless.
The Duke was humming with tension. It seems his limits had been reached

for he was panting again. My bulge of my chest seemed to make their

appearance with a bounce; my nipples had been caught in the cloth, so that
when they popped through, the two soft swells bounced up and down and

swayed. (Zuben: Boing!)

The Duke was lunged at me, and put his lips on my chest.

‘Ah!’ I cried out as he sucked on my pink nipple on one side while playing
with the fullness on the other side. He licked and sucked on my sensitive
nipples, rolling it with his tongue. A jolt of pleasure rushed to the top of my

head, and I could not help the moan of pleasure,

‘A a~a-…fū n… fūn~’

His attack with his tongue became stronger hearing my moaning. My nipple
was wrapped in his tongue and sucked…licked… 『Kuchi ~yu kuchi 』…I

could hear the liquid sound of saliva being involved. I got intoxicated with
pleasure and looked down at the Duke. His eyes were closed as he
desperately sucked on my breasts. The way he was sucking me was as

though he wanted to eat me up; he looked like a ravenous beast.

The pleasure mounted and I moaned. Before I knew it I was holding the
head of the Duke against my breast. He noticed and stopped, then he let my
nipple out of his mouth. The pink bud was wet enough to sprinkle saliva,

and it glimmered in the light of the insistent sun, yet it was tender.
The Duke unbuckled his belt and undid the button of his trousers, it must be

that his own throbbing flesh was rubbing against his trousers and it was
uncomfortable. It appeared engorged and throbbing as he knelt before me. I
swallowed instinctively as I gazed at the aesthetic creature like an eccentric

pet. (Zuben: Someone has become thirsty) Now I understand why the
ladies of the Kingdom are crazy about the Duke’s charms. He was not only

beautiful but he also had a kind of restrained sex appeal; such a unique
charm was irresistible.

‘Julia…’ the Duke’s voice trembled with excitement. There was a little plea
in his voice; I knew what he wanted, but it was too much to take orders
from him.

‘What is it…? Dear Duke Magnaria, you only asked to touch my breasts…’
I replied the my best smile.

He winced and turned away from me, before he turned back as said,
‘I am allowed to play with your breasts? Then I will have to be satisfied
with that. I want you to call me Henry like you did earlier.’

I had called his name when he had the seizure to make him feel secure.
‘Julia…’ He called my name like it was the most important thing. The tenor
of his voice was low and sweet and the sweetness made me feel dizzy for a
moment. Before me was a golden haired Eros burning my with the heat of

his gaze from behind that fall of his hair. My heart went 『kyun』(Zuben:
so is everyone’s) Sensitive to the movement of my hands, his chest muscles

hitched. There was a certain satisfaction I was gaining from giving the
Duke, who was also said to be the Treasure of the Kingdom, pleasure.
Thrilling euphoria crawled up my spine.

‘Henry, I will not under your control like any other lady.’ As I spoke I held

his injured right hand and licked the wound with the tip of my tongue. His
little finger was most injured, so I liked it carefully. As I licked his finger

from bottom to top, I held Henry’s gaze. Henry’s other hand was moving up

and down his erection.

‘Julia…Julia…I hate you…Oh I hate you…Nnn~’ He spoke with adoring

eyes, his face was red, and it sounded as though he was telling me he loved

me instead. As we gazed at each other, his eyes became more unfocussed

and I could tell his pleasure was mounting.

How cute…what a cute man…

‘Henry…’ I muttered his name monotonously. He overlapped his lips on

mine and we began to kiss hungrily. Then we pulled apart. We did this over
and over; each time my full breasts hit Henry’s hard pectorals and then

parted. Even though the contact was brief, the sensuality increased.
‘Julia…’ he groaned. I could sense the end was approaching from the look

in his eyes. I bent over and took him in my mouth; the head was so

engorged I wondered if it would fit in my mouth. I don’t know why I did it,
but I thought it was wasteful to let his emission go like that.

‘Julia…Nn~ you feel so good…’

It was acrid and bitter just like the last time. I took it all in, and slowly let

go after licking and sucking all around the head. As I looked up, our eyes
met,

‘Ah Julia...you can let me drink it again…Julia…’ While immersed in the

aftershock of the highest pleasure, Henry called my name with heated eyes.
I opened my mouth and showed him the contents. With a sultry smile, I

closed my mouth and moved my tongue swallowing the cloudy heat. Just

imagining the thick sperm slowly flowing down my throat, my crotch

throbbed.

‘I told you that I will not be under your control.’ I said with a teasing smile.

Henry suddenly pulled me to him and hugged me. My face was pressed

against his chest, I could feel the hardness of his muscles I had been aching
to touch, with my cheek. Henry bowed over me and kissed my neck,

‘Julia…’
‘Ah~’ A kiss on the neck was more pleasant than I had imagined, I moaned

unexpectedly. His warm breath felt so good on my neck. Suddenly, when I

was enjoying the happy feeling I got from being surrounded by the scent of
Henry’s chest, he pushed me away from him. I looked at him in disbelief,

‘Julia…you…’

‘Wh- what is it?’ I asked bewildered, not understanding the reason for the

sudden reversal of attitude,

‘I still hate you,’ he spat, ‘I wish you would disappear from my sight!’

(Zuben: This round to Henry)

16 Confused Julia

Unlike before when he was in the throes of passion, the Duke held his head

in his hands and said those words in a low tone full of hated. Even though
we had both been simmering in heat just a moment ago…I could not

understand why he suddenly changed and completely rejected me.

It made me feel as though I had fallen from heaven to hell. (Zuben: Well tit

for tat…oh! There seems to be a relevant double entendre in there.)

‘You’re horrible! Why would you say such a thing all of the sudden?! Is it

because I didn’t want to you touch me. If you hate me that much, please

leave me alone. I also hate you!’

I fixed my dress and rose, fuming. There was no excuse for such

unreasonable behaviour. My legs were trembling from so much anger.

(Zuben: I think you’ll find that it was the long seiza sitting)

It was the first time I had experienced such humiliation. (Zuben: Well…)
Duke Magnaria was the world’s worst man!

I glared fiercely at the Duke and said, ‘I have returned my debt, so do not

mind me anymore!’ And turned on my heel and ran away without looking
back.

I did not look where I was going. I passed by lovers visiting the park, and

entered the rose garden. Because I had been running in heels, my feet began

to hurt so I found a nearby bench and to take a rest.

Contrary to the sunny day, my mood was dark and in a mess. I could hear

the cheerful chirping of birds around me, telling of the early arrival of

summer, and there was a lovely scent of roses. I looked at the various roses
around me as my mood evened out.
Yes, let’s think calmly and rationally; the Duke begged me to tryst with him

with the intention of hurting me from the start. He must have thought that

no woman would be able to resist his charm, so he could lift me up and

knock me back to hell. It was the worst man to have his fun then hurt me
just because I am a woman and he was disgusted with me. (Zuben: You did

do the same to him)

And the audacity to ask to touch the precious chest of an unmarried lady,
how preposterous! It was deserving of murder. (Zuben: You weren’t

thinking that at the time) If he hadn’t begged me with eyes that looked like

he was about to die, I would not have given him any mercy.

He should just marry Isabel or Muriel and be miserable for the rest of his
life!

I cursed the Duke in as many ways as I could imagine.

Still, I wanted to put the whole saga behind me, but I regret getting into
trouble with the Duke more than anything else. I rose from my seat trying

not to think about it any longer.

‘I’m in a park I would never have come to without James with great effort. I

should enjoy it and make nice memories of being in the capital.’ I said to
myself. I took a deep cleansing breath. I began to stroll towards the park’s

exit, admiring the colourful roses and other flowers as I went by.
I didn’t want to go back to the cabin, because I would likely encounter the

Duke again, so I went to the gates to find the carriage. James would
probably come looking for me soon, so being in the carriage was best.

As expected, fifteen minutes after I got into the carriage, James returned. I

looked behind him to make sure the Duke was not there and let out a sigh of

relief. I did not want to see that man’s face again. After James confirmed I
was alright, he made a moue of annoyance. It was my first time seeing him

with this expression, so I was a bit surprised.

‘Julia, do you know I how much I have been worried about you? You
suddenly ran off, and Henry did not return quickly either. And when he did

he was in a bad mood. What the hell were you doing?’

I could not say. I really could not say it. Doing such a thing with the Duke, I
could not say it even if my mouth was torn apart. But I have definitely done

a bad thing to James.

I looked contrite and apologised to him, ‘I’m sorry to have worried you,

Prince James. I regret my actions.’

James took a seat across from me and instructed the coachman to set off,

turned back to me and said in his usual tone,

‘You don’t have to worry so much. I was only worried about you. I wish
you would stop being so formal and polite. I want to talk comfortably with
you just like when we were dealing with Henry’s seizure. What did you do
today that I would have to forgive?’

But, was that alright? Even if you are asked to speak comfortably, the other

person is a Prince. At that time is was an emergency, but now we were

calm, it was an extremely high hurdle climb.

‘I will deal with it…’ I replied vaguely. James put a finger under my chin,

and turned my face so I was looking at him.

‘Julia, did something happen with Henry after that? You know I’ve known

Henry since we were seven, and I have never seen him with that kind of

expression. I don’t think it has nothing to do with you.’ He talked while

looking directly into my eyes; his eyes were like daggers. As usual, his
smile was kind but I could see he was trying to read my expression. I kept

my face neutral and answered,

‘Well, there was nothing in particular. The Duke seems to dislike me as he

had before. He even said I should disappear from his sight…that he never

wanted to see me again. So I don’t want to ever meet him again. Prince
James, could we stop pretending to be lovers?’
The Duke should not be thinking about erasing my family title and line, I

ought to have paid the price. The role of lady-love to the third prince of
Basseterre is too much for me.
‘But that would be a problem, Julia because I love you. I don’t want you to
leave; you are my destiny.’ He said very enthusiastically, but my heart was
not moved; I would not fall for such thin lines. (Zuben: Only ones said with

heat in their eyes?)

‘…please stop trying to act, James-sama. You may like me but it is nothing
more than that. I think it is the Duke Magnaria you’re obsessed with. There

is nothing going on between him and me so we don’t need to play this

charade any longer.’
‘You’ve deduced my feelings, Julia. But you know what’s funny, you can

understand people so well but you have a blockade when it relates to you.
Yes, I have a lot of fun watching what happens between you and Henry. Do
you know what kind of expression he had when he realised that you were in

the park near him today?’

‘Did he have a hateful expression? He’s the worst, I heard that he is into
S&M! He hates women, so he had turned his hate into a perversion where

he can make himself happy by making a woman scream and cry.’

James clutched his stomach and bellowed with laughter.

I recollected the words I just spoke, and could not find anything that was
funny about it. (Zuben: Oh Julia…)
‘Oh Julia, you’re good.’ He said still chuckling, ‘I do really like you. You

are so amusing. You’re the first woman not to fall for Henry’s charm.’
(Zuben: I would not say that)
He continued to laugh loudly as the carriage pulled up to the Bourbon town
house. Feeling peeved, I alighted from the carriage myself with a flounce of

my dress without waiting for Prince James to assist me.

I turned to him and said in a clipped but polite manner, ‘I had a very nice

time, Prince James. Thank you for taking me to the park today, it was a very
interesting experience. But such high-faluting things would be wasted on
someone as cheap as I, so you do not need to invite me out any-more. The

Duke does not seem to be interested in crushing my house any longer. So

there is no need for further contact between us. I pray for your happiness.’
Without waiting for James’ reply, I went into the house. James should not

come to see me any longer. I was still angry about the Duke’s behaviour
today. It was bad manners to catch someone with sweet candy and then stab
and release.

‘I never want to see him again!’ I growled as I stomped to my room.

I did not realise that after saying this, I would meet the Duke again and our
relationship would change. I knew nothing.
Zuben:
Boy, this two are like kindling. Put them together and they start a fire!
Presenting: The Villian Proposed

Wallpaper

17 Julia goes to the Central Ward:

Since then, James still came to visit me at the Bourbon house and invited

me out. I did not want to be seen with him, so I refused him. Yet, James did
not mind my cold attitude; he continued to visit the Bourbon house

regularly. Because of this, a rumour started going around about the status-

gap love between the Third Prince of Basseterre and the Ideal Poor Lady.
The Earl and Countess were wide-eyed in surprise by the development.

Isabel made sarcastic comments. It was not hard to imagine that if Isabel

was not remaining amongst the Duke’s bridal candidates; she would not be
so sanguine.

Anyway, now it was nigh impossible to meet my destined man in the

capital.
James had visited yesterday, so he probably would not come today. He was

very popular amongst Society. He had a wide range of friends and

acquaintances and he would introduce me as his beloved woman. Ah, so

annoying. I knew his aim. Currently in the Basseterre kingdom, the first and

second Princes were in contest for the throne. He was not interested in

going with either side, so he was creating a smokescreen, using his pretend

courtship with me to make him look like a frivolous Prince, therefore, he

would not be used politically.

But today was mine.
‘Hannah, today we will be going to the central market. The monthly fair is
being held today, so prepare plain clothes for me to wear.’

Aside from finding my destined man, we were also in the capital for

another reason. Dairy farming was the biggest commerce in Hermiata, but

there wasn’t much money in it. So I wondered if we could sell something

that could be classed as a speciality product made from our milk. I came up

with caramel. Caramel could be made using only sugar and milk; it kept
well for long, so it could be transported from our remote county to other

places without trouble. The caramel was made from the milk of the

Kaliminaco cows that were native to Hermiata country; the milk has a rich

and deep taste, if I could say so myself, but it is rather tasty. I was

convinced that if the caramel was recognised in the capital city’s central

ward market, it would soon be well known throughout the Kingdom.

I wore a simple inconspicuous beige dress. Hannah wore a white shirt over
a blue skirt. However you look at it, we look like nice town girls on a day

out. It did not look good for an aristocratic miss to be seen selling things. If

we put on a fancy cloak over our simple clothes, no one would notice. The

staff in the Bourbon house did not care what we did.

We took the Bourbon carriage to a nearby ward, we told the coachman to

wait for us there while we took off our fancy cloaks and took an omnibus
carriage headed for the central ward. We each carried a small basket full of
caramel. The carriage was full of passengers sitting on benches attached

along the long sides of the carriage, and we rattled and shook on the journey
to the central ward. It was quite uncomfortable to be pressed on both sides.

‘Miss, I heard that Helmina dropped out of candidacy for Duke Magnaria’s
marriage.’ Hannah whispered in my ear, ‘Now, the Duke has been seen
around town with Lady Muriel. I heard they seem to be very close and

compatible, and meet each other everyday. It may already be decided.’

‘Is that so…Muriel was the exemplary aristocratic lady, she would be a

perfect match for the Duke. 'No wonder Isabel was in a bad mood this
morning, I was harassed so much.’

Muriel’s true nature was a far cry from an exemplary lady, but the Duke
also hid his true nature. They both were well matched. It would be perfect if
they would get married quickly! (Zuben: hmmhm)

I felt a frisson of fear whenever I recalled the Duke’s feverish gaze at

Vondel Park; his beautiful eyes looking down at me as he rested his arms on

the statue and leaned over me, his soft golden hair hanging between us
tickling my cheek. His blue eyes were slightly narrowed, but stared at me

as though he would devour me, as though he was looking at his beloved…

however, it was all an act.
While I was deep in my thoughts, the omnibus arrived at the Market Square

of the Central Ward. Most of the passengers alighted there. I got off the bus
amidst the crowd and looked up to see a different world. The expanse of

the square was surrounded by tall buildings with amazing architecture.

There were lots of market stalls in the square and close roads. It was filled

with people. It was the first time I had seen so many people.
‘Oh my…~’ I gasped unconsciously. My mouth was agape as I took it all in.

An old man who had been on the carriage with us laughed at me, his beard
shook as he did.
‘Sweetheart, is this your first time in the central ward? Welcome, this is the

centre of the Kingdom of Bosch; Central Ward Myseln.’

There were so many people, and I got bolstered by their liveliness. I got

pulled along by the trailers running through the crowd, I managed to get
swept in a human wave without knowing where it was going, but it was
impossible to stop, so I made sure I pulled Hanna along with me.

Everything I saw was new and fresh. Watching the glimpses of the citizen’s
lives as we went by; a lady who was engrossed in bargaining, a fishmonger

shouting at a cat who had just stolen his fish, a girl who was selling flowers.
Even the dogs sleeping under the shade of a building was fresh. Everything

sparkled like treasure.

This was Myseln! I could not believe I was surrounded by the three great
powers. I was in the district called the centre of trade and politics. A noble’s
daughter had probably never stepped foot here before; it was exciting to see
the centre of civic life. (Zuben: Oh look at the peasants. Wave!)
‘Milady! Where are we going?!’ Hannah asked a bit harried. She was

clutching the basket close to her chest so she would not drop it, her face
was blue and she was out of breath.

‘I’m your little sister Julia! Hannah, let's get into that alley between those
buildings and think about our strategy.’
We managed to escape from the crowd and entered the narrow alley

between buildings to catch our breath. After confirming the caramels were
intact, I said to Hannah who was looking a bit sweaty and peaked, ‘It’s a

sunny day today, they are going to melt if we dally, we should find shops
that will be willing to sell them. Should we try shops on the main street?’

18 Hannah’s encounter:

We walked up and down the main street’s cafés and sweet shops. We were

mostly turned away, but then we found a shop that would take three dozen
caramels. The third shop that accepted out caramels was a small but fancy
café off the main street. The proprietress was called Hilda and she liked the
taste of the caramel, she told us she would put it on her menu

experimentally.
‘Thank you so much!’ I said, ‘I am confident of it’s taste; it is very popular

back home in the Hermiata county. ‘

‘Eh…back home?’ Hilda asked puzzled. It looked like Hilda was confused
about my wording. It would be a bit of an issue if there were rumours that a

noble miss came to the market to sell caramels.

‘Ah…that’s my home town; Uchino. Yes, Miss Hilda, I’m hungry. Could
we have lunch here?’

‘Of course you can. Will your sister be eating with you? I recommend the

sandwiches for lunch.’ Hilda replied laughing as she patted her large

tummy.
‘Oh yes please,’ Hannah said, ‘I’m a bit shaky and I’m starving.’

Hannah’s face was pale and she looked a bit sweaty, I bet she must be

crowd-drunk. (Zuben: Dunno, there must be an English equivalent but I

can’t think of it) Back in Hermiata, there were more cows than there were

humans. It was the first time she had seen many humans, so it was

understandable that she was shaken. At the rear of the shop, the chairs and
tables were rustic style. There were cute vases with dried flowers dotted
about the place. When we sat down, Hannah seemed to feel even worse.

She put a handkerchief over her mouth and her face looked a little green.
Hilda took one look at her, she shouted towards the kitchen.

‘Thomas! Bring some water with mint in it. The lady looks like she got

crowd drunk.’
‘I’m sorry to trouble you,’ Hannah said with the handkerchief over her

mouth.

‘I’m sorry. Hannah-nee, I should have noticed earlier. Are you alright?’ I

said apologetically as I rubbed her back. I’m really stupid, (Zuben: no truer
words have been spoken), I was immersing myself in the sights and I did

not notice Hannah’s condition. A young man appeared and placed a glass of

water with mint leaves on our table.

‘Are you alright?’ he asked with kindly concern, ‘If you don’t mind, you

can rest here for a while, the noon time rush is over.’

He was a tall young man with dark brown hair and light brown eyes. He
had a refreshing but calm and mature aura. I wonder if he was a café’s cook.

He had a black apron around his waist. The moment Hannah looked up to

say thank you. I could feel a charge in the atmosphere between them. There

was a blush to Hannah’s cheeks and the young man also seemed nervous
unable to meet Hannah’s eyes.
‘Oh, thank you,’ she said, ‘But mi- Julia, I can’t let you go around the shops

by yourself.’

‘What are you talking about? I only need to find one more shop; I’ll be fine
by myself. I’ll come back as soon as I am done, so don’t worry about me.’

I could not stop now. I’m always in Hannah’s care; I wanted to be useful to

her when she needed me.

Thomas chuckled and smiled encouragingly, ‘If your younger sister says it’s
alright, why don’t you take advantage?’

His face was a bit pink. Hannah seems to have fallen for him as well, when

she saw his humble smile, she thanked him with a shy voice,
‘Thank you…um I’m Hannah. You’re Thomas, aren’t you? Hilda had called

you that…’

As she spoke, their gaze met; they immediately blushed and looked away

from each other. They were so easy to read. Hilda watched from afar with
warm eyes.

I quickly put a portion of the sandwiches Thomas made for us in the basket,

and left the café. I did not want to interrupt the love route going on in the
café. As I walked down a shopping street by the river, I came across

someone who should not exist here. I tried rubbing my eyes to make sure I

was not seeing things. Piercing black eyes and glossy black hair, he was

wearing a white shirt over beige trousers and black boots. He looked like an
everyday guy in town, but it was definitely him. He was talking closely to

the man next to him, and he was laughing cheerfully.

So he could make a face like that, even though he is always so unfriendly

with me. But his smiling face is nice…Useless! Useless Julia! Have you

forgotten what he did to you?! He is the lowest guy with a handsome face.
(Zuben: Don't forget to wipe your drool)

I pretended not to notice Marius and just passed by. I stiffened as he went

by me. He seemed to have not noticed me as he walked by with his friend.

‘Huff! The nerve of that man! He did not even notice me. After doing all
that with me!’ (Zuben: I thought you didn’t want to see him again…<.<)

While embracing the hurt I felt, I badmouthed the Duke as much as I could.

It did not make me feel better, so I put it out of my mind and got on with
what I need to do. I did not want to waste my time. I eventually found a

shop where I could sell the rest of the caramel.

‘Yay, victory! But if I return too soon it would be bad for Hannah, so let’s

do more sight-seeing and return. It is rare to come to the capital and visit
the central ward after I return home to Hermiata.’

With my empty basket, I felt relieved that all the caramel was gone. I

walked around and found a fashionable shop with a happy face and
browsed around the store. It is indeed here in the central ward that the head
of fashion trends began. There were so many interesting things, and it was

fun to see them. I found a rabbit hair clip in the shop,

‘How cute…’

It was a cheap looking thing, not made of high quality materials, but it’s
design was very cute and attractive. I was wondering if I should buy it or

not, but being a noble lady, the motif would look childish and the material

was too cheap. I was at a loss at what to do, so I put it back. I left the shop
and walked down the street; there were lots of stalls and shops so I got

absorbed looking at each one carefully.

‘Julia?! Is that you, Julia?’

Someone called my name from behind and placed a hand on my shoulder. I

turned around to find an unexpected person standing behind me. I would

never have thought I would have met him here of all places. I stared in

shock at him. I could not hide the upsurge of trepidation on seeing him.
Presenting: The Villian Proposed
 Cover of Brazen by Margo Magure - Pinterest

19 Marius and the Bedroom:

‘Bre-brennan…is that you? How come you’re here?’ I said cheerfully trying

to hide my nervousness.
Brennan Humir, my third fiancée; he had been a civil servant in a big town

but he was fired and arrested after I revealed his crimes. He was supposed

to be in prison.
‘Julia! Because of you, my life became foolish!’
He grabbed his gray hair that had grown in his absence. He grabbed my arm

tightly, I looked up at him to see there was madness floating in his eyes. He

forcibly dragged me off; even if I tried to fight him off I would not be able

to get free from his tremendous strength.

‘Stop it, Brennan! Why are you here?’

Instead of answering the question, he dragged me into an allegorical alley

and pushed me against the wall. I could not believe such a big city had such
a path that people did not come through.

‘Ah!’
‘I escaped from jail. There is a back entrance that the military police did not
oversee properly. I paid money to escape. Thanks to that, I do not have to

serve my sentence!’

My body was petrified before the bare malice. I could not do anything, I

was just trembling, I could barely speak.

‘But then I saw Julia and I thought my luck has not totally run out! I

thought to thank you: Marrying you was a chance to enter the nobility, but
you destroyed everything!’

His eyes were bloodshot and filled with madness; he was serious. He really

wanted to take revenge.

I tried to calm down and gauge the situation; I would have to push Brennan

off me to escape, but I am in a dead end of a narrow alley. Even though he

was a civilian, Brennan was a pretty big man. I would not be able to free

myself with force. Even if I wanted to shout for help, nobody was passing
by this unique alley. Even if someone does pass, I could not guarantee that

they would help. As expected, I could only depend on myself to escape. Just

then, I heard a low tenor call my name.

‘Julia…?’

Marius appeared at the entrance of the alley leaning on a corner of the wall.

While Brennan did not let go, he pulled me with him to turn to the intruder.
On my part, I was relieved, I could finally shout for help. I could not hide

my surprise at his presence, but I shouted,

‘Help! Marius!’

Marius stared at Brennan.

‘Did you come to save Julia? I will not give up revenge so easily! You have
better leave before you get injured!’ As he said that Brennan took a knife

from his jacket. I still was relieved. Marius was a Knight against a civilian
with a knife, it would be easy to win. But he said something crazy,

‘Oh? You can take revenge you want, I will not stop you. I don’t mind
letting you continue, I’m just here to watch.'

‘Haaaah?!’
I shouted loudly; what was this guy saying? Where is the man who would
help a lady in this situation?!

‘Wait a moment!’ I said suddenly angry, ‘It doesn’t matter how much you
dislike me, aren’t you a gentleman?! You’re supposed to help, why are there

options not to help?’

Marius came closer to me and said with a low growl, staring at me with

angry eyes,
‘I hate you. All I have thought about this past two weeks is you. It’s like I
have gone crazy. If this man is going to get revenge for me, I will watch

him do it. I will let him get his revenge.’

‘This is funny. This is absolutely hilarious; your shitty logic unfolds! It’s

bad enough that you treat me inconsiderately, but to behave so coldly and
leave me like this; you’re a true misogynist!’

‘That’s wrong, you were inconsiderate first! That’s why I’m freaking out!
All I think about is you every goddamned day. You’re driving me insane!’

‘Yeah right! You who is seen about town everyday with Muriel, I’d say it
would be better if your stretched out your own nose!’ (Zuben: are you
saying if he misses you, he should be bedridden writing sonnets to you? I

thought you didn’t like him?)

‘Well, you’re seeing James everyday as well! Why him, of all people?’

‘Because James is inviting himself over without permission, you, on the

other hand, are inviting Muriel out, and flirting, just the two of you,
everyday! There is a big difference to me!’

We had somehow forgotten Brennan’s presence in our argument. An angry

Brennan swung his knife in between us and shouted,

‘Hey shut up! Hey you, if you don’t want to get in the way, just stay there
and watch while I rape her. After that I do not want to see her face again.

You can go ahead after me, but I don’t think I can keep my sanity any
longer!’
Brennan put his hand on the ribbon holding my dress. The ribbon was

around my neck and tied at the front, once it was open my breasts would be
exposed. Brennan’s face approached mine as he pulled off the ribbon.
He wanted to kiss me! I tried to turn my face away, trying to avoid the
shining purple lips getting closer to mine, but I could not resist because he

held my chin. His bad breath hung over me, making disgusted chills run
down my spine!

‘No…!’ I protested just before our lips touched. Marius shouted as if woken
up by my protest,
‘Wait! I will do it!’ he said as he suddenly grabbed Brennan’s head and

pushed him away with one hand, before his lips overlapped mine. As his
soft lips gently touched mine, a nostalgic sweet scent spread in my mouth.

Then his hot luscious tongue entangled with mine. We devoured each
other’s saliva as if to confirm each other’s existence. Moans of sensuality

emerged from feeling so good.

‘This bastard! You came to save Julia after all!’
Brennan who was pressed against the wall by Marius tried to use his knife

against Marius, but Marius grabbed his wrist and twisted it making him
drop with knife and kicked Brennan in the belly, all without even looking at

Brennan. Brennan screamed as he fell to the ground and lost consciousness.

The shock of kicking Brennan broke the kiss, our lips separated for a
moment. The ribbon that had been unravelled loosened and the dress fell

open and down as if it was blown by the wind. My smooth elastic skin was
exposed, and the valley of my chest was visible. My breasts were barely
covered and they jiggled lightly, (Zuben: who describes their skin own skin
as smooth and elastic?)

‘Ah!’ I held my dress up in a panic so that Marius would not see, but he
held my hands apart to stop me. His low tenor echoed in the alley, there was

resonance of a ruler you could not disobey,

‘I will take revenge this way; so do not hide your body. Show yourself to
me, or is it because James has left kiss marks on you that you can’t show

me?’

‘No, I don’t understand what you’re talking about. Why are you angry with
me now? Shouldn’t it be the other way round? I should be the one angry.’

‘No! Show me! Do you know how I have suffered this past two weeks? I

can’t put up with this feeling any longer. Show me your body, I can’t take it

anymore!’
His floppy black hair and smouldering black eyes were different from the

usual Duke, but his voice was the same. The same as that afternoon at the

park. Staring at him with his flushed cheeks and his gaze that would not
meet mine, I felt drawn to him and began to feel strange,

‘I’m not doing any such thing! Isn’t it Muriel you like? Ask her to do it!’

‘She can’t do it…it’s impossible with any one but Julia. Please don’t give
your body to James, don’t look at any other man…don’t make me crazy any
more…’

What was Marius saying? This was like a confession of love no matter how
you hear it. Does Marius- Does the Duke love me? Or was he trying to trick

me and hurt me again?

Before I could answer, the heavens opened and it began to pour with rain.
The weather had been so good, but now the sky was covered in dark heavy

clouds. I hadn’t noticed because I had been distracted by Brennan.

Marius looked up at the sky, and suddenly released me, but he immediately

carried me in his arms. I held my dress together.

‘Julia, let’s get somewhere dry. It would not be good to stay here.’

No. I think it is dangerous enough to be with you! I cried out in my mind.

My cheeks were flushed and my eyes were bright with excitement looking
at Marius who was breathing heavily as he carried me off and ran. Looking

at his face from below, he was neat, elegant and beautiful. I could not help

but notice the way the rain drops hung on his long lashes before they fell
away. As we ran, Marius would sometimes weaken the power of his hold as

if he was going to drop me, making me grab his shirt to hold on tight. He

kept doing it while having a fascinating smile on his face like he was

having fun.
This person was being deliberate!
We went through the alley way and got on the street I had seen him earlier,

but Marius did not slow down. He ran down the street into another, down an

unfamiliar boulevard and entered an unfamiliar house.

‘Where are you taking me? Whose house it this?’

‘This is Marius’ house. Don’t worry there is no one here but you and I.’

That is what makes me worried. I do not want to fall into the S&M woman-

hating Duke of Magnaria’s clutches!

He carried me up the stairs to the second floor and we entered a bedroom.

There was a single bed, a desk and wardrobe. I was wet from the rain and

soaked through to my skin. The thin fabric of my dress stuck to my skin

making me feel uncomfortable. But I was worried about what was going to

happen now that Marius had me in his bedroom. I looked up at him in terror

(Zuben: Or in anticipation?), but my eyes were blurred with water from the

rain, I could not see him properly. He threw me into the bed.
‘Kii!!’ I exclaimed as my body sank into the bed. The water got knocked off

due to the impact, and I could see him clearly. (Zuben: I can see clearly now

the rain has gone…). He was dripping wet. He scrapped back his wet hair
with his hand and two attractive eyes appeared. There were water droplets

on his soft lips. He was panting from the exertion. He looked very sensual. I

was suddenly breathless. I gulped at his mesmerising beautiful appearance.

Ah~ an Ikemen’s wet look; such destructive power. I would like to know

which girl could resist this.

For a moment I was stunned lying on the bed with my arms propping me

up, mesmerised by Marius. The Marius rose to full height and said,

‘Julia, take of your clothes and let me see your body.’ (Zuben: Give me your
body)

So I returned to myself.

Perhaps Marius was trying to seduce me and strip me naked, taking my

purity (Zuben: Ha!) and then throw me away for revenge! It could have
been dangerous! Once again, I have been misled by his beauty.

I looked around the room surreptitiously with keeping alert; there was a

leather belt hanging over the chair and a string on the desk that led to a red
ball on the floor. Mobilising my book knowledge, a horrible hypothesis was

established; the Duke has a S&M hobby!

Maybe he is going to tie me up with the cord, and put the ball in my mouth

and beat me with the leather belt before robbing me of my purity! (Zuben:
Facepalm)

As I thought about what was in store for me, I could feel the blood draining

away.
Marius stood at the foot of the bed dripping with rain water. His cheeks

were flushed, and I could tell he was really sexually excited. I looked down
and could see his erection straining against his trousers. He was so hard you

could see the shape insistently through the thick material of his trousers.

‘Julia, please. Every night I try to imagine your naked body and I can’t

sleep. If I could just see the real thing, I’m sure I could finally rest.
Please…’

Oh no! The Duke has gone erratic!

20 Marius in the Bedroom.

Tie him up! I have to tie him up before he gets me! (Zuben: Excuses.

Excuses)

In this situation, it was best to take a high handed attitude, so I sat up on the
bed and folded my arms and said, ‘I understand, I will show you my

nakedness in return for your assistance today. But you need to be naked first

or it would not be fair.’ I had to be as arrogant to Marius as possible.

‘Me…? I wonder why…Julia isn’t interested in me or is it that you actually

like me?’
‘I’ve decided to hate you! I am not your slave that you can ask to be naked

as you like. If you want me naked, take of your clothes right now. Or you
won’t get to see me nude.’

Rain water ran down his face from his slick wet hair. His expression was

pained. For a moment there, that expression was too much. I was safe on

the bed, otherwise, if I had been standing I would certainly have collapsed
from weakened knees.

I patted my chest to calm myself while watching Marius’ hesitant

movements. Outside the rain poured against the window in a hard and
steady tattoo. The room was dim although it was still early afternoon. As

the rain hit the window, it became hard to distinguish whether the rapid beat

was my heart or the rain.

Marius raised his hands to the buttons of his shirt reluctantly. Was it

bashfully? He looked down as he unbuttoned his shirt one by one. It looked

like it was hard to unbutton because it was wet from the rain. His cheeks

were dyed vermilion; was it from sexual excitement or shame? As his

fingers undid the buttons, Marius’ skin was exposed; his Adam's apple, his

clavicle; I could remember its hardness, then came his well developed

pectoral muscles, and the dents of this abdominal muscles appeared. His
abdominal muscles were moving up and down in rapidly along with his

intensified breathing.
A small groan leaked out of his well formed lips from embarrassment. On
my part, I was revived watching a handsome Duke slowly take off his

clothes as I have commanded while he was enduring the humiliation.

What a lewd sight. This was what moe was all about. I want to see his
disturbed expression more!

When Marius finished with the buttons, he was about to shrug off the wet

shirt but I shouted unexpectedly,

‘Wait! Leave your shirt as is, please take off your trousers and underwear. It

looks like your thing is straining against your trousers, it hurts to look at it.’

To be perfectly honest, I wasn’t being altruistic. The beautiful wet shirt

clinging to his skin look had considerable impact. This was more visually
striking that being naked. (Zuben: Let him catch a cold to be visually

striking…)

Marius was obedient to my commands. His intimidating attitude seems to

have taken a holiday and now he obeyed my orders like a well trained dog.

My heart beat rose sharply as he blushed and did as I bid.

Amazing! So amazing! What beautiful flesh; there is no excess muscle or
fat. Everything is just right and so fascinating.

While I was immersed in Marius’ sex appeal, he took of his shoes and
removed his belt. Next was the trouser button. Since he was so engorged
just under the button seemed to have jammed in its button hole. He
attempted undoing it but because of his wet hands he could not grasp the
metal button. I soon lost patience and decided to do it for him,
‘What a useless person, I’ll take it off,' I said.

I sat up on the bed in front of Marius; his trouser button was now under my
chest. My wet cold hand hit his skin as I tried to undo his buttons and could
see his muscles tense. How cute…

I succeeded in undoing the top button. Slowly, I unbuttoned down his front
placket. Sometimes my fingers brushed against his fevered thing, and he
shook his hips seeking something.

‘Nn…Julia…!’
I realised Marius had called my name passionately, and he grasped both my
arms painfully. I followed his sight and realised that he could see my

breasts; my nipples were suddenly erect from being stared at and protruding
and my areola could be seen through the wet dress.
‘Ah…’ I exclaimed as Marius tried to take off my wet dress roughly.

‘No! You must be naked first.’

‘But Julia, we must be equal. I took off my shirt now it’s your turn. Your

nipples are erect, they are as good as naked. Are you excited to see me
naked, Julia?’
‘No…don’t say such things!’
But it’s true; I was excited seeing him naked. It was shameful but true. To
be honest, I had the urge to just pull off his trousers and underwear at the
same time, just to see what he looked like fully naked. I was afraid of

myself because I had a hard time holding back this desire. I shuddered at
the power of the beauty of a wet Ikemen; it was a deadly weapon. (Zuben:

yes, the power of a wet ikemen, not your lust)

So I proposed a compromise, ‘I know; you can take my dress off, but you
have to do it from behind me.’

If we did this, he would not be able to notice my embarrassed appearance,

and I would not go crazy and drag down Marius’ trousers. Instead I thought
about how I should tie Marius up. What kind of binding should I use? I

don’t know how to do the tortoise shell but tying up his forearms behind his
back…I smiled at my delusions as I turned my back to Marius. To give him
easy access I pulled my hair from my neck and put it over my shoulder;

there was a gulp behind me. There was warm breath to my neck and it
tickled.
He put his arms around me and opened the upper part of my dress wide. My

breasts were feeling fuller, trembling as though they had been waiting for
freedom from the wet cloth. I could not see Marius’ expression but I could

hear his breathing get faster, it started to make me excited somehow. I

concentrated in the large hands moving grazing the bottom swells of my
chest, so I did not notice the warm hard stuff hitting my butt for a time.
Finally it looked as though he understood how the dress worked. After

fumbling around, he found the ribbon around my waist and tried to unravel
it. For some reason, our bodies drew closer together, and Marius fit
perfectly behind me. He was so close I could feel the shape of his

abdominal muscles with my back.

With Marius’ body heat surrounding my back and his arms moving around

the front of me, there was a warm pleasant wave coming from the lower
belly, I moaned unexpectedly,
‘Ah~…’

Marius could not seem to unravel the knot, he kept doing it the wrong way.
(Zuben: All his blood has flown south for the afternoon). His muscular arms
sometimes brushed against my sensitive breasts increasing the sensuality,

I sighed. I don’t know what changed Marius’ mind, but he stopped trying to
untie the ribbon and instead cupped my breasts with his big hands. I steeled
myself waiting for him to massage them quickly, but Marius held my

breasts gently in his hands and did not move.

There was only silence between us. The sound of the rain increasing its
ferocity on the glass was the only sound in the room. I did not know how

long it was before Marius’s index finger moved a little and touched my
nipple that had become ultimately sensitive from the wait. Even with just
that simple touch, the pleasure that shot through me was thrilling and

intense.
‘Fu ah~…’
Listening to my moan of pleasure, Marius’ hand began to move slowly and

caressed my breasts. It was agonisingly slow, but it was so much more

sensual that being wildly fondled. I immersed myself in a sense of elation
as though I was flying in the sky.

‘Julia…’
I replied with a moan of pleasure.

My body became warm, I could not tell whether it was me or Marius. He

strengthened the power of his hold. Holding me against his body tightly,
deeply, as though he was trying to bind me to his chest. I suddenly wanted

him, I turned and put my arms around his neck. Both our lips were close
enough to touch, desperately seeking, yet after a little touch we would part.
We put our tongues out to each other for a taste, and entangled that way. He

pinched my nipples between his index and middle fingers and twisted and
pulled. He began to rub his hot hard thing at my butt violently. He
strengthened the power pressing me further, soon we were bent forward.

For a moment I thought my breast were being held tightly, were released
and the tension was released in my body.
I wondered why.
I escaped from the now weakened arms and turned to look at him. His black
hair was messy, his cheeks were flushed and his breathing was rough. He
was staring at me with smouldering eyes. His shirt was blown apart and

fluttered as he panted. Because his placket was open, his underpants were
visible, and I was convinced I could see the essential part wet with
something that was not rain.

‘You came all by yourself, bad boy! Your trousers will get dirty. Let’s take
them off quickly so I can have a look.’ (Zuben: Someone lost the battle...)
‘…Julia…’ Marius called my name in that small but sensual low tenor.
Presenting: The Villian Proposed
Pinterest

21 with Marius in the Bedroom:

‘Do I really have to take it off…but Julia’s clothes are still on?’
I looked at Marius who was trying to put up a modest resistance while

blushing to the maximum with extreme bashfulness. His features were

sharp and daunting, but his expression was like a puppy looking up at his

owner with watery eyes. The moe factor increased!

Even though he is older than me by ten years, it did not feel like I was with

an older man. How cute…I wanted to bully him more. (Zuben: So this
S&M business...)

After some silence, I decided to take off my shoes. I bent over and grabbed

the heels of my shoes and took them off. I rose and put my hands on my

waist with a self satisfied smile on my face. (Zuben: This isn’t strip poker)

‘I’ve taken something off. The next one is you.’

Marius looked like he wanted to protest but he seemed to decide against it.

He made a face as though he gave up and whipped off his trousers. The
lower half of his body appeared. The muscles of his thighs are tight and

larger than I would have imagined from his trousers. They stretched down

his body for a long time. His body was like a statue, I took it all in like I

was starving. The mass between his legs had regained form. It insisted on

making its existence known through the thin cloth of his underwear.

I have seen his thing twice, but when it was concealed like this the contents
are inevitable and the way things have gone, I was interested in what
happened after he had reached once.

‘Now it’s your turn…’

Hic! That’s right. If I do not take anything off Marius would not take off

his. But if I should take my dress off all that will be left are my thin panties.
And since we were drenched with rain, everything would be seen through
like this dress. What should I do?

After some thought, I realised the undies would have to go. Even if I take it
off, my things would not be readily visible through my dress. But then I

pulled my dress up to take my thin scant panties down, Marius shouted,

‘Wait! Julia, are you taking that off? Alright, wait a moment, my mind is not

ready. Just let me take a deep breath to prepare…’ (Zuben: How could you
not guess this guy is a virgin?)
He put his hands up to cover his face. I could see he was even more bright

red. He was clearly agitated, but this was Marius someone who had
abundant experience with women, yet he looked like he was very happy the

moment he realised he was going to see me naked. But his heated gaze was
as though he wanted to devour me.

Wait! Isn’t it a little embarrassing to say things like “let me prepare my

heart; do it slowly”? Even with Muriel, I suppose this must be because it
was the secret part of a maiden he has never seen. Although I was trying not
think about it deeply, he would see it while I was taking my panties off

wouldn’t he?
‘Right preparations are done. You can take it off now.’

Marius was looking at me with his smouldering gaze as usual without

looking elsewhere even for a moment. I also got lost in them for a while,

but then made up my mind. The sight of us must be very strange.

A blonde girl whose hands were hanging on her panties, her rain drenched
dress opened with her breasts hanging out and her dress riding up. And

before her, was a beautiful man wearing only his underwear and a damp
shirt clinging to his muscles. Moreover, the thing in his pants had expanded

to its limits and was standing up creating a tent in his pants.

I slowly pulled down my panties, and I noticed something unusual. When I
pulled down my underwear mid thigh, I realised what I had assumed was

my panties being wet with rain was not just that. I saw a clear viscous fluid
drawn from my secret part to my panties. In addition the fluid was dripping

down my leg now that my panties were no longer holding it up. At once, I
was filled with shameful embarrassment, my face turned red. The idea that

Marius would have possibly noticed came to mind, I turned away from him
in shame. My tension and shame filled my head and my eyes filled with
tears. This is the first time that I had ever cried out of embarrassment. What

was this?! I am so embarrassed. It was like evidence of a period. How long

ago did I reach? Did he realise I had gotten so wet? Marius must think I am
a lewd woman. What should I do?! (Zuben: What would 007 do? Jump on
the dude!)

‘Unn~…’
I chewed on my bottom lip and pushed down my body; the love juice was

secreted and it flowed to my undies down my thigh, I could feel it running

down my skin. If I took my undies off would it run down to my ankle?
Marius would definitely know.

I didn’t know what to do, so I was stuck with my undies half way down my
legs. Marius came close and held my shoulders, (Zuben: Girl you be

wasting time)
‘Are you alright? Is something wrong?’

I was too embarrassed to let him see my face. Marius looked at me and
remained silent, then he gently carried me and tossed me on the bed, and
ripped off my panties,

‘No!’ I cried out in a strange voice. Marius parted my legs forcibly and
stared. His understanding could not catch up with the sight,

‘How amazing! You’re so wet…and it is still flowing out like it won’t

stop…’
‘Don’t look it me, Marius! Don’t!’
He grabbed my ankles and parted them widely as he gazed and my secret
part excitedly. Perhaps what he said was true, I could feel the warm liquid
trickling out continuously from inside. With Marius just looking at me, the

liquid was overflowing down my bum and wetting the sheet.

‘You smell so sweet, Julia. Your place is pink and cutely shaped, it looks so

inviting. What would it taste like if I lick it?’

‘No, don’t lick – hya~!’
Suddenly Marius was sinking his head between my legs and I could feel a

warm fever crawling around my folds. Marius’ warm breath was sprayed

directly against my thigh, the pleasure mounted. Rather than being

embarrassed that I was being licked in my secret place, a sensation seeped

from the centre of my body that has not tasted this kind of pleasure before. I

began to pant and my muscles tensed as though waiting for something.

Marius licked me everywhere, inviting more love juice, sometimes licking

it sometimes drinking it. An obscene sound echoed over the rain in the

bedroom. The feeling of immorality and shame increased further. (Zuben:

My dear I think that ship has sailed a long time ago)

‘Julia, do you feel good? Your love juice is overflowing; I think I’m going

to drown in it. I would never have imagined you tasted so sweet like this…

Julia…’
‘Ya~ it's embarrassing! Don’t say it!’ (Zuben: Can dish it out but can’t take

it, tut tut)

As Marius’ merciless tongue and lips attacked me, I could sense my core

getting paralysed gradually. The pleasure pushed up my back like

electricity, and I let myself sink into the whirlpools of pleasure that pounded
me like waves, I moaned loudly. I could not suppress my hips from

bouncing naturally as the pleasure pierced through my head. I realised tears

had come from my eyes and fell down the edges.

I was panting. I couldn’t think after the culmination of my first ecstasy. I

was immersed in the reverberation of pleasure. Suddenly Marius’s face was

in front of mine. He was smiling and looking at me with gentle eyes,

‘Are you alright? Did you feel good?’ he asked. But he did not wait for my
reply before he opened my dress wide and kissed my full breasts till the

nipples were red, and left rose petals all over my pale skin. He left gentle

kisses on the soft bulges as though they were something important he loved.
His soft kisses trailed down my skin. Soon I was soaked in a pleasant

sensation like cotton candy, my head and body became fluffy as though I

was floating on a cloud. Before I realised it, Marius had taken off his

underwear and his hot hard thing was pressed against my wet core.
 22 Marius in the Bedroom

‘No! Don’t put it in!’ I protested and pushed him off. He had been trying to

enter me as I thought. But he had such a lonesome expression and he

pouted,
‘Julia…please…I want to be inside you. I want you to be mine. I don’t care

about anything else. I just want you. I don’t need anyone else.’

I wondered why he spoke as though he really loved me. I could not bear it

if he was acting and planning on betraying me again. Did Henry really love
me or did he just want to hurt me? (Zuben: What is love? Baby don’t hurt

me no more)
I looked at him; his breathing was intense and his gaze was deep. Even if I

observed and analysed, I could not find an answer. I did not understand

what he was thinking at all.

‘No. Are you going to marry Muriel or Isabel? Because this isn’t right. We

lost our heads because of the rain. We’re making a mistake. Let’s just forget

about this, you’re to pick a bride in two months, you should not be dallying

with another woman.’

‘Dallying? No, I’m not dallying. As for Muriel, I have received a formal

letter of withdrawal from candidacy. She refused to marry me.’

‘Really? But even so, there is still Isabel.’

‘I know, but I will make sure she drops out too. Julia, I want you to be

mine…love me.’ (Zuben: Love me love me. Say that you love me)

It was hard to know how to react to Marius’ serious expression. Perhaps…

he did love me. This filled my chest with warmth. If he says that he truly
loves me, then I can trust his thoughts. (Zuben: playing romantic violins)

‘Hey Marius, Duke Magnaria, do you love me?’

Marius looked at my thoughtfully. Then it looked as though a conclusion

appeared in his mind, because he looked hot again. He put his fingers

through my wet hair and ran them through as he said,

‘To be truthful, I do not know what love is. All I know is that, I can’t hold

any other woman but you. You’re the only one I want to hold like this from

the bottom of my heart.’

(Zuben: record scratch)

I was confused by the answer, my feeling of elation dropped like a lead

balloon. If this was the case, the Duke only loved my body. He does not

know why, but he is obsessed with me because he can't touch any other
woman but me.

‘This is far from a confession of love; it just sounds like all you want to do

is sleep with me.’

Suddenly the Duke expression changed, and he pushed me down and lay
over me so his face was close to mine. He was raised on his elbows. His

wet hair fell forward and rain water dropped onto me.

‘That is wrong. There really is no one but you. You have to believe me,
Julia.’

‘Isn’t that what a two timing man always says. How can I trust you?’ I said

turning away from him.

‘It is true that Muriel has declined to be my bride. It was because I tried to
touch her breast but then felt sick and threw up on her.’

I glared at him. What a nerve touching other women while looking for my

love?
‘You touched Muriel’s breast, not just mine! What sort of person are you?’

His face flushed as he protested, ‘I just wanted to know! I wanted

experiment to see if I could do it or it was only Julia. I only touched her a

little. But all I know is I only want to do this kind of thing with Julia.’

‘So you asked to touch her and you threw up, but that isn’t a good reason to

drop out.’
‘Well…there was more…’

Muriel became rather distraught about the vomit on her, so she raced to the

bathroom and washed for two hours. But then, she returned and tried to
seduce the duke, naked. Henry took one look at her and was hit by his

hyperventilation syndrome. Seeing the duke suddenly breathing strangely

and turning blue, Muriel called for help forgetting she was naked. Of
course, this brought witnesses to see Muriel naked on top of the clothed

Duke. Imagining Muriel’s feelings at the time, I felt a little sorry for her but

I had suspected from that this upright lady of society was just a mask

Muriel put on. Once there was a promising man in the vicinity, she would
pull out her weapons.

But I said, ‘Do you think I would trust that crap? It isn’t possible that

Muriel, a famous upright lady of society, would attack a gentleman - naked.

I’m not going to be a tool to treat your spirit. Please do not look down on

me because I am a poor viscount’s daughter.’

He may be telling the truth, but as I wanted him to love me, I was also
getting angry with him for not saying it out loud. I wanted to know that he

loved me. (Zuben: Someone is greedy)

Even if he says that he did just want to hold me just because I was the only
one he could; all of this was just sex! I wonder why he would not whisper

sweet nothings of love! I will make him say he love me. (Zuben: Very little

happens how one imagines it)

‘That is not true, I do… cherish you,…Julia.’

Although, it was not an absolute declaration of love, he blushed and turned

away. The Duke had said it with the most embarrassed expression. I lost my

patience. I held his face him my hands and forced him to look at me and I
took his surprised gasp in a kiss. I penetrated his mouth with my tongue and

violated him. I traced his mouth and teeth with my tongue and entangled

each other’s saliva.

I slowly release his lips and a thread of saliva with high viscosity hung

between us. (Zuben: You would think I would tire of ruining your
enjoyment of the sexy times to say "Oh Japan", nope nope I don’t.)
He moaned as he leaned back. I pinched around the waist of the Duke

between his legs and he half turned. As soon as he turned, I climbed on top
of him. I lifted my dress, sat where I wanted to be, and covered us with my
dress. I sat on the duke’s hard penis with my wet pussy directly on him.
I put my weight on it so he would not enter me by chance and began to
move pressing myself against the Duke’s hardened length. Both my hands
were braced on his abdominal muscles so my cleavage was emphasised as

they were sandwiched between my arms. As I swayed back and forth, my

breasts swayed greatly and their vibrations were transmitted down my
navel.

Everytime I pushed forward, my sensitive bud hit the recess of Henry’s

thing; I felt really good too. Still, after rubbing him for a little while I
stopped and looked down at Henry and asked arrogantly,

‘Henry, Duke of Magnaria, do you love me?’

Marius stared at me, his beautiful dark eyes watery from pent up pleasure,
‘Ah~…I love you. Oh Julia…please, I can’t stand it any longer.’ His said in

a small voice. His usual tenor was trembling.

‘No, say it properly.’ I rejected his half-hearted confession rudely. Marius’
thing trembled against me for a moment then calmed.

‘Ha~ Ha~ I…Julia ha~ I love you.’

‘This is your last chance, if you don’t say it properly, I will go home and I

will never see you again.’ I said as I licked my finger and used the wet digit
to tease the hardened protrusions on his chest. I made it wet with my saliva
and traced circles around the tiny nipple. His chest twitched and his face
distorted with pleasure. I desperately wanted him to tell me he loved me by
any means,
‘Julia…I…the Duke of Magnaria loves you, Julia.’

I was very happy so I gave him a smile of pleasure and I resumed rocking
back and forth. If anything, I was pursuing my own pleasure, but Marius;

seemed to be getting the highest pleasure than expected. He was more

excited and inflamed than usual. He put his hands on my waist and stared at
me hotly. He kept calling my name over and over like he had lost his mind.

‘Julia! Julia! I love you. I love you, Julia!’

My love juice flowed abundantly from the intense pleasure, soaking the
Duke’s manhood. Our fluids mixed and the sounds of our joining filled the

room. With that the pleasure mounted, and I began to feel uplifted to the
extent that I could not understand,
‘Ha~ Ha~ It feels so good! Ah~’

『Guchi ~ya guchi ~yuji ~yubo~』

‘Julia…I love you…Julia!’
His cock began to throb greatly as I reached my peak of pleasure and we

climaxed at the same time,

‘Hi ~ya~a~a~an! A a n!!’

‘Julia…I’m coming. Ahn~’

I collapsed onto Marius’ hard chest panting heavily. The hard pectorals hurt
my cheek. My head rose up and down with his rapid rate of breathing. I

didn’t know if it was rain or sweat but his skin stuck to mine where we
touched.
I tugged on his wet shirt demanding a hug, Henry seemed read my mind

and he brought both his arms around me and hugged me gently. I relaxed
and closed my eyes cocooned between Henry’s arms and his hard chest. I

certainly felt his love in this moment as the sound of the heavy rain
pounded against the window so loudly that even the beating of our hearts
could not be heard.
Presenting: The Villian Proposed
Pinterest
Happy New Year, girls, boys and not-eithers.

23 Marius and the Bedroom:

He loved me.

A smile spread across my face as he hugged me tightly in his strong arms.

(Zuben: I thought you didn’t like him)

He said, ‘I will definitely do something about Isabel, so don’t see James

before then.’
‘That is impossible, even I refuse him James does his own thing. He doesn’t

really like me; he is more obsessed with you. Anyway, it is strange that you

can meet Isabel and I can’t meet James. You have to sort out your

relationships with other women before you talk to me about anything. I

don’t plan on promising anything. ‘

The Duke pushed his face into my hair and breathed in deeply a few times

to inhale the scent. Against my wet and cold hair, it was pleasantly warm.
In turn, I kissed between his pectorals, and his muscles reacted with a

『pikuri』, a tremor transmitted through his body; such a cute guy.

‘You’re really different from other women; I thought they liked to make

promises.’ (Zuben: it goes both ways, yo)

‘Well, you are also different from other men; I don’t understand how you

think at all. I still doubt that you love me.’

We laughed together. I don’t know how long we laid there hugging and
resting on each other. But the rain gradually abated and I saw that the sun

was now low through the window.

‘Oh no! I have to go!’ I cried, ‘Hannah is waiting for me, she would be so

worried!’
I jumped out of bed and found my panties which were rolled up in one

corner of the bed and put them on right away. It was still damp with rain
and my love juice, but I could not think of going out without them on. I sat
on the bed to put on my shoes and fixed the ribbons that closed my dress.

The Duke watched me put myself together then he stroked my arm,

‘Julia…’ he called, ‘are you leaving already? When will we meet again?’

The lonesome sound of his voice made me turn to look at him, his
expression was sad. I laid down beside him on my side and gave him a

sultry smile as I said,

‘Well, I don’t know. Are you going to come and take me out sometime,
Your Grace?’
He blushed, and drew closer asking for a kiss. Just before his lips reached

mine, I moved out of the way and whispered,

‘We’ll meet again when next we meet. For now, I have to go.’

The Duke gave me a look of betrayal before he got out of bed. He picked up
a grey throw from the bed post and wound it tightly around me. He didn’t

put on his trousers, so his nether-regions were exposed as he gave a self-

satisfied look at the throw he put around me.
The throw was woven grey wool; it was thick and didn’t look like anything

a lady would own, no matter what you think. When I tried to decline, the
Duke gave me an imperious look,

‘This is not the time to be worrying about extraneous things; a lady has to
be aware of her appearance. Do you understand? Your clothes are still wet,
your body is visible.’

I looked down at myself and saw he was right. The wet beige dress clung to
my skin showing my pink nipples clearly.

‘Ah, you’re right. I’ll loan this then.’

I pulled the throw over my shoulders as the Duke put on his underwear and

trousers. Although, I thought it looked like he was getting hard again. He

wound the throw again, not just draping it over my shoulder, but winding it
tightly so I felt like ham. (Zuben: A pig in a blanket?)
‘I think this is overkill.’ I said to him. But his hands were over my head and
I heard something snap. I hastily reached up to feel something like a hair
accessory,

‘What is this, your Grace?’

‘It’s Henry, Julia. It looked like you wanted this back at the accessory store.

You always look so mature, but you like this kind of childish things.’
I pouted and turned from him. He had suddenly changed from the man who
was feverently expressing his love for me to the usual unfriendly Duke.

(Zuben: So childish!) I was thoroughly peeved by the sight of him. How

dishonest could he be?

‘Do you mean you were near at the time? That you knew I was there when I
crossed the bridge and walked down the road by the river?’

I had thought he had appeared in a timely manner when I was about to be

attacked by Brennan. He must have been following me. (Zuben: Like a
lovesick puppy)

‘Yes. Though, you were dressed simply, I immediately recognised your

scent. I also noted you were carrying caramel in your basket, which you

sold to one of the shops. Is this why you are in the Central Ward?’
Scent…what kind of scent was it?! He didn’t mean I was smelly, right?’
‘Yes, I was thinking that I could make the caramel a speciality product of

the Hermiata territory. Since I was at the capital, I thought I should do

something. Rather than come in heavily, this kind of town girl look is easier
for people to deal with, isn’t it?’
I lifted the hem of my dress and twirled around. The Duke suddenly

squeaked and blushed, and held his hand over his mouth. I wonder if I
looked strange, his hand was trembling. It certainly wasn’t the kind of

behaviour a nineteen year old lady should be doing. I immediately regretted

it, and cast my eyes down.
‘You should absolutely not do that in front of anyone but me! Although, it is

alright because you’re with me, but are you truly a lady of nobility?’

Sure enough, he had thought the same as I feared. I got annoyed with him
for saying it, and quickly left the room, headed for the door. As I took a step

down the stairs the Duke called out to me,

‘Julia, won’t you look at me? You’re just leaving without goodbye.’ (Zuben:

she really likes to misunderstand him)

‘Isn’t it natural?’ I answered without looking at him, ‘It has stopped raining,

and I owe you for rescuing me, but I have to leave quickly. Do you want to

be spending more time with an immature woman who doesn’t behave like a
noble lady? Goodbye, your Grace.’

As I tried to continue onwards, I felt his powerful arms around me and he

lifted me off the step.

‘Eh!’
He buried his face in the crook of my neck. But I felt this was a very

unstable position we were in.

‘Your Grace, put me down. It’s rather scary. What are you doing?!’

But the Duke remained silent, hugging me for a while before he said

quietly, ‘Just stay a bit longer, I don’t like seeing you upset.’
I wanted to see what kind of face he was making. His eyes were closed

tightly and his cheeks were flushed. I could not tell whether he was angry or

sad. Did the Duke really love me? Although, he was a flagrant womaniser, I

wonder if he didn’t want any other woman but me. Maybe it was all a
clever lie to ensnare a woman who wasn’t immediately charmed by him.

(Zuben: What a dumbass)

I really didn’t understand the Duke’s actions, so I was full of anxiety. The
Duke hugged me for a while, then he gently lowered me back down. He

walked me back to Hilda’s café without a word between us and left. But, I

could not stop thinking about the lonely puppy expression on his face as he
left.

Evening had now fallen, Hannah who had been waiting anxiously for me

was terribly angry with me. I lied that I took shelter in the shade of some

trees, but because I was distracted I lost my caramel basket. It looked like it
was closing time for the café, Hannah’s admonishments echoed in the calm

chic atmosphere. Hilda wiped my body with a towel.

‘I’m sorry, onee-chan; I will not do it again.’ I apologised hanging my head.

Hannah seemed to have been pretty worried about me. Her eyes were red

and swollen from crying. Twenty minutes passed before Hannah got a hold
of a handkerchief to wipe her face. She grasped my hand and said still

upset,

‘Julia, really…! Thomas had to run around searching for you in the rain.’

I too was getting angry, but because Hannah was crying, I could only
apologise. Thomas gave me a lifeline,

‘Hannah, your sister is now reflecting on her actions. Its okay if you stop

being angry with her. I’m alright; I only got a little wet.’ He said while
wiping his hair with a towel, ‘Julia is also alright. Why don’t you two have

dinner with us?’

He put a gentle hand on Hannah shoulder. Hannah blushed as she turned to

him.
‘But Thomas, you worried about Julia…! It is really kind of you to offer us

dinner, but we should get back before it gets dark…’

Caught in the middle of their sweet atmosphere, I could see there were
really getting along with each other. They had begun to call each other

without formality. I blushed feeling a bit happy-a bit awkward as I watched

Hannah and Thomas talk. I wanted Hannah to be happy; she had remained

single while worrying about me and my three failed engagements. For her, I
really wanted to find a man to marry before returning to Hermiata. That

person…maybe…I wish he were the Duke (Zuben: Can’t inherit the lands
though or can he?). I wondered if he really liked me. I had been convinced

in the moment, but now I had become lost. (Zuben: Wilful ignorance)

24 The Duke’s Dilemma:

I have been frustrated of late. There has been no notification from the King

Quecles about declining the ladies. And there was that woman…with her
gleaming hair like ripened wheat and determined amethyst eyes. A woman I

did not understand…Julia.

She was always glaring at me and always hostile to me. She was the first
woman to not behave as I want her to. She doesn’t desire me as I do her.

Yet, I get hard thinking about her, her sweet smell, the feel of her lips. The

first woman I have ever been aroused by…the only one.

I was enthralled by her white breasts like peaches. When I touched them
gently, they filled my hands immediately. I had feared their fragility as I
held them but when I let go, they returned to their original form

immediately with an inviting jiggle.

I was finally mesmerised by the body of a woman like other men spoke

about. Remembering her kneeling before me, with her dress pooled around
her, I was aroused even though I was at work. The taste passionate honey

from those cherry lips was hard to forget.

‘Your Grace, is something the matter? I am sure you haven’t been with any
woman of late, that being said it is better to slow down on the kinky play.

You may kill yourself if you overdo it.’ My subordinate joked. He was a

little man with dark brown hair and a cheerful grin; he had come up to my

desk to collect some documents. Outwardly, he looked like a mediocre

aristocrat, but hidden in his sleeves were daggers, and his cufflinks were

vials of poison. He was a spy; one of my excellent men.

‘You,’ I said ‘you spread rumours that I had into S&M. Thank you for the
inconvenience, Percy. I deduce that is why the number of ladies trying to

get my attention has decreased of late.’

I was reading through reports in my office in the Castle. They were the

results of the interrogation of the Grusk men that had been captured. They
were true professionals; they had taken self-harm over giving up the

information no matter what kind of interrogation methods I tried.

‘Yes, well – now, no one would think it strange if you had a knife, or ropes

or a handcuff lying around from work. It is also good excuse to use for
when you are mysteriously away. Although, it will be impossible when you

get married. But then, will you get married your Grace?’

Our offices were situated in the higher floors of the castle. It was a room

with no windows, so that no one could eavesdrop. There was no more

furniture than necessary so that there were no hiding places. There were

also two bare desks and hard wooden chairs.

It had nearly come to ten years since I joined the Kingdom’s National
intelligence department. Although, my status as Duke afforded me this

position, I have never regretted my choice. With my personal achievements

and my status, I had the privilege of choosing my own team of elite spies.
Percy was the best of them; my right hand man. (Zuben: Your Grace, this is

boring. We really only care about how much you want to shag Julia. Percy

could be your third leg for all it matters.)

‘Percy, what would you do if you noticed a love bite on the neck of a
woman you wanted to kiss?’ I asked casually while pretending to

thoroughly study through the documents in front of me. I did not want to let

on that I had no experience with women. I sat in a way that I could hide
behind the papers.
‘A hickey on the neck? I would be angry; she’s obviously having an affair.
Ah your Grace, have you been dallying with another’s woman. I suppose a

handsome man such as yourself has the courage to flirt with an attached

lady.’
‘I don’t know how to act when I am before her. She is very different, her

guts are excellent – she could outsmart me. She is very independent and

outspoken. I do not like her.’ I said vehemently. I tore the documents in my

hand in my agitation which Percy noted. I hadn’t even noticed I was doing

it. But Percy looked embarrassed for me and turned away,

‘That…rather sounds like you’re falling in love. Your Grace is

unexpectedly pure to have fallen in love with a woman who does not like
you.’ He paused, ‘Did you realise that this is the first time the seven years

that I have worked for you that the topic of women has come up? We’re

always talking about bad guys.’

My consciousness prickled…Was I in love with Julia?

Could that be the case? Incredible. That would explain why she was always
on my mind, the impact and excitement I got when I saw her body. I always
wanted more. I wanted to know what was going on under her clothes. I

wanted to make her enchanting limbs mine.

‘Your grace…while I understand that you may love this woman deeply,
could you stop getting erections while we are alone? What would Gordon
think should he see us? Your S&M rumour will get compounded with a
homosexual one.’
I looked down to see that I was sexually excited. It was the first time in my

twenty nine years that I was sporting an erection outside of the natural
morning phenomenon. It has been like this since the day I met Julia. And
my member now grew to an unusual size. However, it was inconvenient if it

behaved like this too much. I should try not to think of Julia. I decided to
concentrate on my work.
‘I am certain the Grusk spies were trying to kill me, I must be making

things inconvenient for them. Their modus operandi is to penetrate enemy

territory and try to destabilise and take over the country from within. Their
next target seems to be our Kingdom of Bosch.’

Percy’s expression grew grave as he said, ‘It becomes difficult because it is

hard to distinguish the Grusk from our people. We did not suspect that they
had infiltrated the palace. Their strategies are also long term. Even so, your

Grace was able to notice them. These men have worked in the castle for
fourteen years!’ He was well aware of the danger a Grusk incursion held.

That was because Julia had noticed them. If I could get Julia to help, she
could assist us in ferreting out the spies in the Palace. But there was a
possibility she could get hurt. Imagining Julia getting hurt, my heart felt

like it would stop. Did it mean I had fallen in love? I don’t know.
I had visited and taken Muriel out a few times. The rumour was that I was
seeing her everyday – perhaps it was Muriel that was spreading the rumour.
I wondered if she is trying to discourage Isabel. I hated conniving women

the most.
And there was the rumour that James was seeing Julia everyday. It made me

feel like my insides were boiling over and my chest felt like it was gripped
in a painful vice. Percy told me this was Jealousy. How amusing, I suppose
I liked Julia after all.

But was Julia dallying with James like she does with me? Imagining her full
lips panting and moaning with James’ thing in her mouth…I punched the
wall beside me making the plaster crack and crumble to the floor. I injured

myself and my knuckles hurt but the pain in my chest superseded it.
Perhaps I have been ill for a long time – and it was just that Julia happened
to be there when I was cured. Therefore, I should be aroused with a woman

that was not Julia.

Before I realised it, my carriage was coming to a stop at the Hirsalm town
house. As soon as I alighted from my carriage, Muriel herself came to greet

me with a graceful smile. We sat to tea for a bit, and then I was invited to
view the Count’s collection of swords.

When Muriel and I were alone in the collection room, I asked to touch her
breasts. She seemed embarrassed at the start, but soon opened her dress to
reveal her breasts. She looked up at me and invited me to touch her with a
seductive expression on her face. I was beginning to feel ill at that point but

I was determined to experiment and name the feelings I had for Julia. I
touched her; there certainly seemed to be no difference between her
softness and Julia’s but aversion pooled in my abdomen and crawled

through my body. Although the result was staggering, it was definite. I

could only be aroused by Julia.

I don’t know what made her different from other women, but I could not
help the need to touch her when I saw her. I wanted to see all of her. I
wondered how she would feel under her clothes. I also wanted to know

what a woman’s privates looked like. Gordon had told me that it was
shaped like petals to invite men. I could not imagine what it was like to
have petals between your legs (Zuben: Well you could push your testicles

up...) . I was told that women felt good when a man touched and sucked the
petals and the bud hidden within.
‘Would Julia really have such a place?’
 25 The Duke Becomes Aware of His Love:

Two weeks passed and I was having troubled days, I saw Julia walking
around the Central Ward. She was dressed simply to look like a town girl,
but she is definitely a lady. There was no way I would not know it was her.

I immediately followed her. She was carrying a basket of caramel looking

for a shop that would sell it. She has a cute smile on her lovely little mouth.
She quickly found a shop who would take them. Her basket was empty, so

she started looking around the shops with a radiant face. Watching Julia
ahead of me, I did not know how to call out to her. When I tried to speak,
my legs trembled and my body did not move.

She had been looking at a hair accessory. I went into the shop after she left
to have a look at it; I was frightened by the idea that Julia who was
temperamental and aggressive like a cat in heat would like this cute rabbit

hair ornament. With that kind of character, she says she likes rabbits?
‘Ah how cute. Is it for your lover?’ the shop assistant said to me when they

saw me holding on the hair clip for a long time, ‘That’s a very popular item;
it is the last one.’
‘Lover? I do not have such a person.’ I said vehemently and returned the

clip to its place on the shelf. Another man was waiting for it. No. I stopped
him and took it to the assistant to buy it. The assistant gave me a friendly
smile as he took the money from me. My face was heated. It looked like I
was really buying it for Julia.

‘Would you like me to wrap it as a gift? Shall I use a pink ribbon? The lady
will be delighted.’
‘No, it is not a gift. Please, leave it as it is.’

The assistant gave me my change and I shoved it with the hair clip into my
pocket.
I went back out to the street, and looked around for Julia. I saw a strange

man was dragging her into an alley. I followed and realised she was about
to be attacked.
‘Julia…’ I called involuntarily. She stared at me with an expression of

relief. She asked for my help – she was relying in me. The thought made me
so happy I could have flown to heaven. But then I caught sight of red marks

on her neck and saw red. Had she shown her sensuous body to James?!
Perhaps under her clothes was evidence of James’ greed on her body…
I found myself saying coldly, ‘Oh? You can take revenge you want, I will

not stop you. I’m just here to watch, I don’t mind letting you continue.’
‘Haaaah?!’
I did not understand why I was always aggressive to Julia when I saw her.

But I knew if I wasn’t, I would not be able to help myself and would have a
sloppy love-struck expression instead. I could not afford to show that to
someone who did not care for me. My expression was grim and unyielding.

While we were arguing, the man tried to kiss her. I did not care about Julia
so it did not matter what she did with other men, yet, my body moved
unconsciously and I pushed the man away from her. I took her lips.

For the past two weeks, all I dreamt about was Julia and these soft lips that
drove me crazy. Her sweet flavour spread through my mouth and warmed
by body. I lost my head kissing her soft lips.

Then it started to rain. I carried her to my hideout. I wanted to lock her

away there; there was little chance of being disturbed. I did not want to let
her go until I saw all of her. I put her on my bed. Her rain drenched body

was sensual, and I forgot to breathe looking at her. (Zuben: He didn’t even
realise he’s beaten the fool up)
As usual, I was afraid of her direct gaze. Yet, though I felt afraid, I had

longed for her this past two weeks. She was all that filled my head.
‘Julia, take off your clothes and let me see your body.’ I said to her.

That’s right…I did not like Julia. But the fact I was obsessed with a woman
I disliked could only mean my body was biologically interested in her. If I
could study and understand every nook and cranny of her, I should be able

to sleep without wondering what she looked like naked.

But Julia said she would not strip unless I did. Was Julia did not seem
interested at all. Maybe she really did not like me?

‘I’ve decided to hate you! I am not your slave that you can ask to be naked
as you like. If you want me naked, take of your clothes right now. Or you

won’t get to see me nude.’

It was not the first time Julia has told me she did not like me, but I never
imagined I would be so shocked by it. My chest hurt like it was a gripped in

a vice.
As I took of my clothes, she watched me like a cat that was hunting her
prey. Her eyes had a fascinating glow like the moon at night. When it took

me too long to undo my trousers, she bossily told me I was too slow and she
would help. Her long white fingers undid the buttons one by one as though
enchanted. Her fingers grazed my thing sometimes as she went down,

sending waves of pleasure through my waist.

My gaze moved from her fingers to her body, and noticed her thin dress was
stuck to her skin and I could clearly see her breasts. Because of the rain, her

skin had a dewy appearance. As she warmed up, the scent of rain and her
own sweet scent filled my senses and my consciousness went wrong.

I moaned her name.

Julia stopped just when I thought I was going to tear the dress off her body.
She agreed to take off hers and permitted me to take it off from behind her.
Julia presented her back to me. I stared down the line of her neck to her pert

bottom. Her golden hair, darker from the rain, was swept from her neck to
her chest. It stuck to her skin. Her neck was so arousing and I gulped
suppressing the urge to suck on her neck, and put my arms around her.

I tried to untie the ribbon tied around her waist, but because I was in a
hurry, I pulled it from the wrong arm and the ribbon tightened rather than

unravelled. I was suddenly aware that Julia was trembling against me.
She gave a small mewl.
Was it that Julia felt good? Did I arouse her too?

I let go of the ribbon and cupped her breasts in my hands. I held them
gently feeling the weight of them. A warm feeling swelled up from the
middle of my body, penetrating my brain. It was soft and pleasant. After

enjoying that feeling, I put more strength in my touch and rubbed her
breasts. Julia began to moan sensuously.
Julia was aroused by me. The heat of her skin made my pleasure to mount

as her body adhered to mine. Julia turned and boldly asked me to kiss her. I
wanted to respond but I also wanted to enjoy the feeling of the softness of
her back against me. She stretched out her tongue.

I touched her tongue with mine as I massaged her breasts. I pushed my

swollen crotch against her indent of her back, and the pleasure built up.
‘Ah~ Ah~ Julia…’
‘Ahn~…’
While tasting Julia, I received the best pleasure.
‘Julia…’ I whined.

Julia took off the upper part of her dress. She had a smug expression as she
took off her shoes. While she did this her breasts drooped. I was surprised
to see the way the size and shape changed. I sucked in my breath. I never

thought that they could change shape so much.

‘I’ve taken mine off, you’re next…’
That was funny; it was absurd to count shoes. But if I protested, she may

leave. I had no choice but to take off my trousers. Because they were wet, it
was hard to take off, but I managed to take it off.

Next was Julia. I had thought she would take of her dress, but she watched
me silently then reached for her underwear. Her underwear! Julia’s privates
would be completely visible when she took it off. I flinched at her actions, I

hadn’t expected it.

‘Wait! Julia, are you taking that off? Ok, wait a moment, my mind is not
ready. Just let me take a deep breath to prepare…’

Julia, who had started to take off her underwear, blushed slowly and paused
with her undies half-way down. Something seemed to have occurred,
because she became strange. Her eyes were full of tears, and her full breasts

shook with her dismay.

‘Are you alright? Is something wrong?’ I asked seeing the tears hanging
from the corners of her eyes. I picked her up and threw Julia into bed -

pulled apart her legs to see what happened. I looked into her secret place.
Seeing for the first time, it was a like a blooming rose dewed with rain; a
small pink flower with transparent fluid wetting the surface of the petals.

The fluid flowed fast spilling between her legs. It was inviting, begging to
be licked. The sweet fragrance drew me in, my tongue sunk between the
petals and I sucked. I felt like a bee gorging on a flower’s nectar. Her nectar

was sweet and musky…the fragrance indescribable. I instinctively realised

this was the scent of woman inviting a man.
As I sipped her honey, her body bounced and stiffened. I realised that this

was a woman’s orgasm. I made her reach her peak. I became greedy filled
with a desire to conquer; I could take it no longer I wanted to be inside her.

‘No! Don’t put it in!’ she protested at the moment I wanted to achieve my
aim. I could not stand it; this was not fair! I want you only see me! I want
you to love only me and stay by my side for the rest of my life!

But then she asked me how I felt about her. She asked if I loved her. But I
don’t understand such a thing. It was the answer I wanted to know the most;
did I love Julia? Was this ferocious irrationality I felt near her love?

I told her that she was the only woman who aroused me. That was all I
knew for sure. But she grabbed my head and kissed me wildly with a fierce
smile on her face. Her kiss made me lose my logic. She wrapped her legs

around me and somehow flipped us over so she was on top of me. I was
amazed by her physical ability; I must be at least twice as heavy as she is.
(Zuben: Is she only 30kg?) She must be very familiar with the structure of a

body to be able to do that with ease. As I was admiring her prowess, she
pressed her slick, wet self against mine. A sound I did not expect came out
of my mouth,

‘Ahn~’ What a pleasant sensation. Julia’s mouth felt good, but this
experience was beyond my expectations. Her petals grazed against me
increasing the sensuality.

‘Henry, Duke Magnaria, do you love me?’

Oh…
I was defeated. Julia…I like you. I love you. I have never met such an

unpredictable woman before. There was no other woman like her. No other
woman who could make me feel like this.

Maybe I fell in love with her the moment I met her on that stagecoach to the
capital. Her alluring face, her challenging eyes, her kitten like
expressions…they were all mine! I did not want her to show it to anyone

else.
‘Julia…I…Henry, Duke of Magnaria loves you!’
I kept crying out my love for her as the pleasure I have never tasted before

mounted. I said it over and over as though to confirm it. It was enough to be
aware that this was love.

I love Julia.

Zuben: At least once a chapter I want to reach in and slap Julia.

 Presenting: The Villian Proposed

Here's a lovely painting of a blooming lily pond. Could not find who to attribute it to.

Hope everyone has been alright. It was Blue Monday yesterday, supposedly

the most depressing day of the year - so far from christmas so far from
payday. I was fine. I know it is hard for a lot of people out there, try be

good to yourself and others, the world is a better place with you in it. Enjoy
the read.

26 The Isabel Situation:

Hannah and I left the café and took the omnibus back to the town we had
left the horse carriage. We returned to the Bourbon mansion before dark.

That evening, I could think of nothing but the Duke. I do not even know
what I ate for dinner. I took a warm bath because I had been drenched by

the rain and went to bed, but my mind was abuzz and I could not get to

sleep easily.

I wondered what attitude the Duke would take when next he saw me. I

could not believe he would go back to his cold attitude after he told me he

loved me that many times. I mean, why would he buy me the hair clip if he
didn’t like me? I could not understand the motives behind the Duke’s

behaviour at all.
I held the rabbit hair clip in my hand while trying to sleep. The long night
wore on.

The morning came, and I rose out of bed wearily. I hadn’t slept well. I

washed and Hanna dressed me seriously. Since she did not know I was now

entangled with the Duke, she was excited about James’ customary visit. She

put me in a light purple dress, carefully applied my makeup and dressed my

hair.

This morning, Hanna was in particularly good mood. I knew why, but it

was fun to tease her and ask,

‘Thomas seems like a nice fellow, and Hilda is also very kind, don’t you

think, Hannah?’

Hannah’s hand shook a bit as she dressed my hair. She began to speak as

though she wasn’t bothered, but I could detect a slight nervousness to her
voice,

‘Ah well, Miss, he is a very nice person and he is very calm as though his

mind was wide like the sea.’ (Zuben: Similes are so funny, in English when

someone is 'like the sea' it usually means that their temperament changes

with no warning, here it means he seems like an open minded dude)

‘Well well, such a nice man. Maybe sometime soon, we can go to the
central ward again and visit the café for a break.’
‘Ah…but…yes Miss.’ Hannah replied shyly in a high pitched voice. After

teasing Hanna for a bit, I turned my mind to how I would persuade James to
let me be. I did not like him like that and neither did he feel the same for

me; it was annoying to be staying together like that. I don’t care about
promises with the Duke, but to meet other good men, I needed to turn
James down.

Sure enough, after breakfast, the butler appeared to announce James’

arrival. He was waiting in the drawing room as usual.

I touch the polished banisters with the tip of my fingers as I went down the
densely carpeted stairs one deliberate step at a time. I reached the ground

floor and walked down the beautifully decorated and maintained corridor, to
the room where the heavy door was held open by a footman.
As soon as I walked in, James rose and came up to me with a broad smile

on his face, ‘Oh Julia, you are looking beautiful today as always, I want to
eat you!’

For the past two weeks, James appeared every other day just after I finished
my breakfast. I greeted him with a bright expression. But as I entered the

room, I realised there was someone else there.

This drawing room was one of the many luxuriously decorated rooms in the
house of Earl Bourbon. The furniture had been made by the Kingdom’s

foremost craftsmen. The sofa was made of the finest material and
cushioning so fine one loathed to sit upon it, but once seated one loathed

getting up. A large bouquet of flowers sat in a fine vase added a burst of
colour to the already elegant room,

‘Julia, I came with my friend. You also know him; this is Henry, Duke of
Magnaria. He came along because he was coming to see Lady Isabel.’

‘Henry Magnaria, at your service, Miss Julia, I am honoured to see you

again.’ Henry came up and bowed over my hand. He had a smile on his
face, his golden hair fell over his face, and his blue eyes twinkled like

sapphires. I was stupefied, my heart was captured.

Wh-who was this refreshingly handsome man?!

The Duke I knew was always angry and glaring or cold…or aroused. I
could not hide the surprise I felt at this version of him I had never seen
before. This must be why he is said to be the beauty of the Kingdom. Such a

destructive power! I feared my maiden’s heart would fall out!

‘Duke Magnaria, I am Julia Hermiata. I am honoured to make your

acquaintance.’
I greeted him as prettily as possible. Our eyes met and I suddenly

remembered his Marius version with his wet shirt open lying on the bed. I
became embarrassed and deflected my eyes.
‘Henry, she’s my angel, don’t use that foul-grade sex appeal of yours on her

anyhow. You’re embarrassing Julia. Julia is mine, so don’t touch.’ James

said as he put his hands on my waist and drew me away from Henry. Henry
looked at his hands on my waist, and in extraordinary killing intent filled
the room.

Could the Duke be jealous of James? I didn’t feel bad but I could not tell
James about the happenings of yesterday afternoon. Henry really needed to

rein himself in, or James will figure out that there is something between us.
He had really good intuition. I tried to signal Henry with my eyes, but he
did not take notice at all. The killing intent gradually increased. I had no

idea what to do in this situation. I could not move because James was
holding me tightly. (Zuben: Stoking the fires)

Just when I was thinking I would need to elbow James in the crotch to
appease the duke, a shrill voice echoed in the drawing room,

‘You Grace! You came to see me, I’m so happy!’ Isabel cried as she ran up
to the Duke and embraced him. I wonder if the Duke had intended to visit
today. Isabel was wearing a silk vermilion dress which showed off the

wealth of her family. Her hair had been brushed till it shone like a piece of
the sun, her porcelain skin was lustrous against the vibrant colour of her

dress. (Zuben: Nobody sent you to have only purple in your wardrobe, dear)
In the wake of her arrival, a perfume of fragrant roses followed.
Isabel boasted a sensual body coupled with a doll like face. Any man would

be attracted to her and fall in love at first sight.

Isabel hopped up and down to emphasise the temptation of her large breasts
as she said in a sweet voice, ‘I had been waiting for you to come to me. I
was sure you would part ways with Helmina and Muriel because the first

time we danced you told me I was the most attractive woman in the world.’
That was true; she was the most attractive woman in the world. But, those

were not words I cared for. He had told Isabel such a thing without
blinking. He was truly a womaniser. After all, his words of love were a lie.
(Zuben: *facepalm. Forgetting pertinent details must be very convenient,

Julia)

As I watched the Duke have fun with Isabel, James crept closer and placed
his chin on my shoulder and blew air into my ear. I jumped and made

strange yip.

‘Hmm, shall we go leave? We would be in the way.’ He said to me, then to

the Duke, he said, ‘Henry, allow Lady Isabel to show you about the garden.
The Bourbon rose garden is famous for its cultured roses.’

‘Where should we go, Julia’? I don’t care as long as I am with you.’ James

said and he gave me a loud peck on the cheek. I felt like that was
intentional. From the corner of my eye, I saw the Duke shiver.
 27 The Duke’s Jealousy:

‘James, shall we have some tea? I brought along delicious caramel made in
our territory, I would be pleased if you would try it.’ I said sweetly. It was

not good for my mental health James being this close to me. I escaped from

James’ arms and put a distance between us. I turned to the Duke, Isabel was
standing beside him with both arms wrapped around his arm, rubbing her

breasts against him.

‘My dear Duke, let us go to the garden. There is a very romantic gazebo in

our rose garden with comfortable seats to rest. We can have tea and sweets.’
The Duke was giving me surreptitious glances as Isabel spoke. His cheeks

were red, but he was also excited in response to Isabel’s sex appeal. I had

never heard of Isabel brewing tea, she was obviously alluding to something
else. The sweets were probably Isabel herself. (Zuben: Rather than the

Duke’s Jealousy, it should be Julia’s jealousy!)

Unlike Muriel, Isabel is the kind of person who would immediately use her
sex appeal in her strategy. She was bold, and tried to be refreshing rather

than simpering. With the Duke being a legendary womaniser, she was
exploiting that established fact. (Zuben: This is why you shouldn’t have

weird arse rumours about yourself going around. The person you like might

end up being an idiot)

The Duke was staring at Isabel with a rather dazed expression. Although, he

had told me he would get Isabel to refuse him, I could not see any glimpse

of a plan to that effect. Quite the opposite, Isabel was smiling at the Duke,

and he was smiling gently at her! This low-down dirty lying rat! (Zuben:
See? Idiot.)

I turned to James, ‘James, shall we go? There is a lovely terrace over-

looking the fountain, shall we have tea there?’

I was irritated. I placed my hand on James’ arm as I spoke to him. James

placed his hand over mine. The butler, who had been standing silently in a

corner of the room, went to order a maid and foot man to set a table on the

terrace.
‘Wait, please!’ The Duke said loudly suddenly stopping James and I. Isabel

looked at him puzzled. The Duke gave a cough to cover his faux pas. He

smiled at me and James,

‘I also would like to partake in Miss Julia’s caramel, may we join you? I

would like to know how Miss Julia captured James’ heart.’

I could tell there was a hidden meaning to what he was saying. He was

implying that I had tempted James.

I entwined my fingers with James and smiled at Henry, ‘Your Grace, it was

very easy; I simply told him I was not interested in attracting the Duke.
Rather to the contrary, I don’t like such weak people. That is what attracted

James.’

Henry narrowed his eyes and a beautiful smile.

‘Is that so? That’s a shame. Since, you don’t like me, is James the man you

like? You seem to be very familiar, calling his name without his title.’

This duke does like to poke you in the details. Well, certainly before-hand I

called him Prince James or Sir James, but he’s now James. It’s not like
could help it, he came over every other day and was with me all day. It was

natural to become more intimate. (Zuben: It’s an arbitrary detail to poke at,

though)
‘That is correct. James is the first man to be close to me when I came to the

kingdom. He understands me the most.’ I replied. I wanted to beat him. I

smiled, intimating that I had a closer relationship to James. I could not

forgive myself for believing this womaniser’s sweet words.

Henry regained his usual cold demeanour and asked with a voice that

resonated to my bones, ‘Is James so good, Julia?’

The change in Henry was so sudden, I stiffened. Even Isabel who had been
clinging to him, let go in amazement. The butler, who had been watching

the show, stepped back against a table rattling it.

A tense air flowed between us. As it mounted, a light-hearted voice said,

‘Yes, because Julia loves me. Let’s go to the terrace together. I love

caramel.’

‘That’s correct. Come along, Isabel, your Grace. It is a lovely day today, the
terrace would be lovely.’

I could only thank James’ frivolity as we went to the terrace with him as my

escort. Of course, Isabel took the Duke’s hand and walked next to him. The
gentle morning sunshine shone through the large windows, casting dark

shadows.

We arrived at the terrace overlooking the fountain. The fountain was long

and rectangular. Pink and white water blossoms bloomed over the surface
of the water. The sunlight shone through the jets and droplets of the

fountain, making the atmosphere glimmer. The large marble terrace near it

had been set up with a table and seating for four of us.
‘How wonderful, I love the view of the garden from here the most.’ I said in

an enthralled voice, looking at the beautifully cultivated garden. There had

been a rain shower last night and the sun had not dried up the droplets from

the flowers, giving the garden a fragile beauty like a Monet painting.
We sat around the table. Isabel drew her chair closer to the Duke than

necessary, and the Duke spoke to her with his kindly expression. The

feeling of excitement I had for the garden withered. The Duke’s attitude
towards me was even colder, even when I spoke he did not look me in the

eyes. (Zuben: Girl, you got issues. You just told him you liked someone
else!)
Presenting: The Villian Proposed

Virginia Neilson

28 James, Seriously.
I survived the tea, but I could not stand watching the Duke flirt with Isabel

any longer, so I invited James to take a walk with me in the garden. I did
not turn to look at Henry as we left, but I knew he was absorbed in Isabel. I

went down the terrace with James and hurried into the hedge maze with

James.
‘Do you like Henry, Julia?’ James, who had been silently following me,

asked suddenly. He smoothed his light brown hair that had been disarrayed

in the breeze with one hand, and put his thumb in his trouser pocket. Before
his restless eyes, my aggrieved mind relaxed unexpectedly.

‘Hnn…James is really easy to understand.’

‘I am easy to understand? This is the first time you’ve ever said such a
thing.’

‘Yes, you’re very intelligent and calculative. You give the air of a light-
hearted frivolous gentleman, but really are a fast thinker with considerable

knowledge. You can use a sword, but haven’t held one for years. I am sure

you’re still able to defend yourself. I think the reason you are hanging

around me is because you want to rumble about society, isn’t that so?’

(Zuben: Way to divert the question, Julia. Bravo!)

‘Why would I do such a thing?’

‘You’re putting on the air of an idiot prince who is chasing a poor woman,

because you don’t want to be dragged into the competition for the throne
between your elder brothers. Or is it that you have been asked already and
you’re trying to evade?’

He sighed and gave a smile.

‘Dear Julia. Yes, both sides invited me to join then, but I have no mind to

support either of them. The reason is there is a woman who I sincerely love

in this country. Clever Julia, here is a question: What happened with Henry

yesterday?’
He leaned over me watching my expression. I tried to steel myself so he

didn’t read me, but it looked like it was too late. James smiled as he put his

arms around me and pushed me into the hedge. The trimmed branches

poked my back and hurt.

‘So something did happen? Did you two do it by any chance? Henry would

have been very skilful because he puts his all in everything he does. It’s the

first time I have seen him so happy. I wonder if it felt good for him inside
Julia. Can I test it?’

I was shocked at the drastic change from James’ usual gentlemanly

behaviour. He was suddenly using obnoxious words; I did not know what to

do. I was confused.

‘Not at all, I did nothing like that with the Duke. This is a

misunderstanding!’ (Zuben: Well, not exactly…) As I hurriedly denied it,

James drew nearer till our foreheads were touching. I could not look
directly in his eyes, so I turned away. His breath tickled my ear as the

breeze tickled the braches and made them rustle. It was impossible to think
calmly,

‘But you have a love bite on your neck. Who did it?’
Damn it, did Marius leave a hickey?! How far did this horrible man want to
take me down?! The worst man! (Zuben: It was a mutual satisfaction

situation, stop pretending you were under duress)

I tried to cover my neck with my hand, but I heard James chuckle evilly as

he grabbed my hand and hot pain seared the crook of my neck. It didn’t take
long to recognise James’ lips on my skin, like a vampire, he bit my neck

and placed a hot kiss on the bite.

‘Ouch James! Stop it!’ I tried to push James off me, but he did not budge.
He raised his head from my shoulder and looked at me cold piercing eyes,

‘I am very worried about what is going on between you and Henry. I don’t
want to see you get hurt by trusting him. Yet, still I like you a lot.’

‘There isn’t…n!’ Before I could formulate a response, James forcibly kissed

me. He pushed his thigh between my legs and pressed my body against the

hedge. I couldn’t resist him. He pressed his lips against mine over and over.
I didn’t want this to continue, I kept my mouth as tightly closed as possible,
but James’ finger pushed into my mouth and pulled my jaw open. His soft
hot tongue soon followed. I felt saliva running from my mouth but I could

do nothing about it. James was pouring saliva with his kisses.
No! I could not let this continue. I will be had by James if I should let it

continue on.
I bit him. James let out a sharp shout and released my lips. He looked at his

finger and sighed, my tooth marks stood out in relief as blood began to ooze
out of the cuts. The bleeding was emphasised because his finger was wet
with saliva.

James narrowed his eyes as he said, ‘Julia, you’re a disobedient child. I do

not like children who disobey me.’ And he licked the blood from his

fingers. I did not miss the crazed light in his eyes.

I glared at him in return, ‘Even if you say such a thing, I do not find you
scary at all. I am not going to be at your mercy. I am not in a relationship

with the Duke, but I am not going to be in a relationship with you either. I
need a good man who can inherit the Viscount title, so I can’t continue to

play with you.’

‘Yes…yes. That is a problem. But I think I want you more than I thought,

Julia. Can’t I be the one to inherit? I’ll give you happiness and drown you
with love for the rest of your life.’ (Zuben: I will smother you with the
pillow of my love)
James spoke in his usual gentle frivolous tone but there was something
wrong. I noticed his discomfort and looked closer, had his hands clenched
into fists the whole time. I realised his nails were digging into his palms and

blood was oozing. (Zuben: What a drama queen. But come, how do these
characters always seem to dig their own nails into their palms. Whenever I

try it, my nails just bend, my palms be tough)

‘James! What are you doing to yourself?’ I cried.
I grabbed his hand and forced him to open up. The blood oozed as I looked

and ran down his hand. I quickly plucked my handkerchief out and tried to
stop the bleeding.

‘It’s alright James, the bleeding will stop soon.’ I said trying to soothe him.
(Zuben: He did it to himself, he did)

I saw to the bleeding and looked up at James. He had gone pale and looked
down at me with sad eyes. Suddenly his cold body was falling over me. I
could not hold him up with my strength alone so we collapsed to the

ground.
‘James!’

29 James’ Awareness
 (Zuben: Everyone seems to be aware except for the main character)
I suddenly found myself in a difficult situation. Luckily, the lead gardener’s
son passed by and I was able to call for help. He got the footmen, and they

helped carry James back into the house to a guest room. We called a doctor,
who came quite quickly to look at James. He declared aside from the

wounds in his hands, he was alright. The cause for the collapse was fatigue.
I sent a foot man to search for Henry and Isabel to inform them of what
happened to James, but they were not to be found. I suppose they were in

the romantic gazebo deep in the garden by now and they were probably

busy doing bad things (Zuben: It wasn’t a bad thing when you were doing
it) It seems that when the Duke said he could only be aroused by me, it was

a lie. It must be a technique he used to catch women. It was a pity I was

nearly captured by such a man.

A pain seared inside my chest.

‘Julia…’

‘James, are you awake?’

He opened his eyes and looked about in surprise. He was in the Bourbon
guest suite for their most distinguished guests.

‘What happened, Julia? I remember walking in the garden with you…but

nothing else.’ (Zuben: How convenient)

I saw confusion in the usually confident blue-green eyes. I wonder if he had

truly forgotten that he had forcibly kissed me. It looked as though he was
truly tired. I suppose I would not be able understand the pressure he was

under as the third Prince of Basseterre staying in a country that was not his

own.
‘We’re in one of the Earl’s guestrooms. You suddenly collapsed while we

were walking in the garden. The doctor said it was fatigue.’

James sat up and then looked down at his hand. My hand was held in his. I

had been hoping he would wake up soon. I wriggled my toes – it was very
likely I would not make it in time.

‘Were you with me all the while…?’

‘Even when I tried to let go, you would not let me go. I wonder if you
would release me now. I can’t take it anymore…’

James looked away from me with an expression of distress and said,

‘Julia…I have been terrible to you...’

Cold sweat seeped out of my forehead, ‘Let me go this instant. Any longer

and I will not be able to make it to the bathroom!’ I shouted loudly. I could

not stand holding it for much more.

James understood and released my hand from his tightly clench one. I
rushed to the bathroom. Sure, I should be more dignified about it as a lady,

but compared to not making it in time, it would be better to lose a little face.
I relieved myself and washed up. I returned to the room. James was out of

bed, dressed and waiting for me.

‘Are you alright?’ I asked.

He turned to me with a gentle expression.

‘Yes. I am sorry I was holding your hand so tightly; I had been having a bad

dream. Fearful things were chasing me in the dark.’ (Zuben: Please feel

sorry for me and love me)

‘Oh dear, that sounds like a horrible dream. But James, maybe you’re very

stressed out because you have been trying so hard to pretend everything

was alright. Now you have reached your limit and your head was about to
explode.’ (Zuben: Such a delicate constitution he has)

I went up to him and held his hands. He looked at me strangely, as though I

was talking gibberish, but I pulled him with me and I continued,

‘I will show you away to relieve your stress, dear Prince.’

I dragged put his arm through mine like a Prince escorting a Princess, and

gave him a smile. We left the room, went down the corridor and grand

staircase, and out of the house. We went deep into the garden past all the
cultivated land into a wild park land. James looked about uneasily as I

stepped without hesitation over the tree roots and rocks.

‘Julia, how do know your way around? Would you know the way back?’ he

asked.
‘Don’t worry,’ I said, ‘Hermiata has lost of wild forest such as this, so I

know my way around. I have been here many times. We won’t get lost.
Anyway, here we are.’

I referred to a clearing in the forest. There were tall trees around letting

little sunlight through. The earth in the clearing had holes in it, looking like
moles had destroyed the pristine earth; it was rather unsightly.

I let go of James and walked up to a tree and stuck my hand into a hollow in

the tree, ‘It should be in here…’

I pulled out a small garden trowel. James eyes became dots. I pulled up the
hem of my dress and found a clear place to kneel and began to dig into the

earth with the trowel. When I dug a hole to my satisfaction, I turned and

smiled at James who was watching me in amazement,

‘Right, so watch this, James.’ I said.

I took a deep breath, and bent over the hole. With my exhalation I let out

my anger and grievances, and shouted ‘You idiot Duke! Lying about not

being able to sleep with other woman! Go ahead and marry Isabel and be
exploited for the rest of your life!’ (Zuben: 1. You’re an idiot. 2. Didn’t you

tell James there was nothing between you and the Duke?)

When I finished and put seeds into the hole and covered it with the dug up
earth. I turned to James and handed him the trowel. He silently received it

with trembling hands. At first he looked about in a confused manner but he

soon found space and began to dig gently. But he as he got into it, he

became faster; soon, his hole was bigger than anyone I have dug. He put

aside the trowel and bent over his hole, and shouted, ‘I am not a tool for

your political machinations. I am not a tool to be used just for your

convenience! That kind of country needs to perish! I hope your internal

organs get eaten by maggots and you die miserably! Miserable!’

James got so excited he dug many holes and shouted lots. It looked as
though he had accumulated a lot of stress. After he was done, he gave a

happy tired sigh and began to try to fill his holes but I stopped him. This

was a stress dissipation method I devised, it was not finished yet. I handed

him a pouch,
‘James, put these seeds in. It will be perfect now.’

I helped him put the seeds in and we filled the holes back. The evidence

was a mounds of soil dotted about the place.

‘These are strawberry seeds. They should grow well in the soil here. By

next spring, we should be able to enjoy picking strawberries. This is our

anger and grievance; they will be purified and become something new and

good. And the fruit will feed the birds in this forest.’
‘But Julia, you’ve only been in the city a month but there are lots of

mounds.’ James said looking around him. There were about twenty holes.
‘Can you imagine what Isabel’s attitude towards me was because you

visited so often? She was mean, mocking, just plain despicable! Not only to
me, but to Hannah as well. That’s why I have been coming here almost

everyday for the last two weeks.’

James burst out laughing, ‘You can’t be serious, almost every day?!’

‘My father and Hannah don’t know about it so, keep it secret. I have been
using this method to relieve my stress since I was seven. My backyard at

home became a strawberry field. I make jam with the fruit – it’s very

delicious.’
James laughed even harder.

Author’s note: Finally James’ realises he love for Julia, but his love is very
heavy and paranoid. But he has Julia on his mind. But the Duke is a

formidable opponent!

30 James’ feelings
James held his stomach and laughed. He laughed so hard and so long, I was
beginning to get annoyed with him. I had just taught him my biggest secret

– what kind of attitude was this!

James noticed I was getting angry and wiped away his tears of mirth. He
looked at me and continued to chuckle, but his expression was back to his

usual mischievous self, but unlike before, it was very natural and likable.

Maybe this was James’ true self.

‘You’re very funny, Julia. I can see why Henry is attracted to you.’ (Zuben:

it’s not because she’s funny)

Suddenly reminded of the Duke, I remembered that he and Isabel were

somewhere in the house doing god know what. My bad mood returned and
I yelled, ‘Don’t talk about the Duke. I was an idiot for trusting such a man!’

‘That is correct.’ James replied his expression suddenly serious, ‘Let go of

Henry and marry me. Of course, there is the issue of succession of Hermiata
Viscount title, but I am willing to take it on. And we can give birth to sons,

so it would solve the problem of continuity, wouldn’t it? I am willing to

cooperate with you in that.’ (Zuben: Like it is easy to pop out sons)
He took my hand and gazed into my eyes. He looked like he was very

serious. The way he was now, he would not lie. I could not look away from
him.
‘But James…’
If he really liked me, it might be good to accept his suit. Yet, I could not say
he was the best candidate for a fiancé, he was quite the schemer. But I did
not doubt that he would take on the mantle of Viscount Hermiata. If I hadn’t

met Henry Magnaria, I would have answered yes without hesitation. Now, I
am at a loss on how to answer.
After being toyed with by that playboy duke, the envisioned future with

James by my side did not seem bad. He even wanted to marry me knowing
my personality.
‘Henry is useless, he is not dependable. His manhood doesn’t work. He has

been alive for twenty nine years and has never been aroused by a woman.
He has a deep distrust of the female sex.’ (Zuben: Hmmm, I don’t think that
statement will swing things in your favour James)

‘Huh? Hold on a moment. That…’

A gust of wind blew, the fluttering of leaves filled the quiet forest. My hair
and purple dress got swept in the wind’s wake as fallen leaves blew around

us. As the leaves shook, the pattern of sunlight changed around us. (Zuben:
The Japanese wind of realisation. How long will it last…?)

James brought my hand to his lips and kissed it. He looked at me with
heated eyes, but at this moment, it wasn’t James’ proposal but the Duke’s
matter running in my head.
Did…did the Duke really not have lovers? But I have seen him get erect
with my own eyes time and time again.
‘He does not even comfort himself because he barely gets erect either. Even

if you marry Henry, you will not be able to have a child. In such a case, the
Hermiata title will revert to the crown. Is that what you want?’

So had Henry really been telling the truth? Did he only react to me?
Listening to James, I found that my heart that had been dyed in jealousy
was now refreshingly clear like the sky after rain. The Duke had not been

lying. Yesterday, and before that, from the moment we met at the Royal
ball, Henry’s had always been incredibly big. It seemed he had shown me a
truly special thing.

‘Henry…’ I sighed his name in spite of myself.

Suddenly, James’ expression changed into a scary one. He grasped my hand
tightly and pulled me to him.

‘Julia, Henry is useless. I have only you. I’ll give you everything Henry
cannot. I promise, you will never regret it! And you will save me from the
darkness. You will hold my hands and help me out of the darkness!’

(Zuben:hmmmm)
He held me so tightly against his chest, it was painful. I could not breathe

properly, so I tried to tap him lightly so he could let me go

‘James…it’s too tight…’
‘Julia, don’t refuse me. I want you to accept me as I am.’
Just as I thought he was letting me go, because he held me away from him,

he suddenly pulled me back and kicked up a storm of kissing. My head

went pure white in the moment. I could not escape because he held my neck
fast. He kissed me deeply over and over, exchanging saliva, making harsh

sounds.
I wanted to refuse but my lips were occupied I could not mount a protest.

James hand slid up my waist and came to my bust. He was seriously trying
to get me. If I did not do something, I may be forced like last time.
‘James…stop…’

Since I kept resisting, James pulled away a little, ‘Julia…I love you. You’re
the only one who understands me. I want to make you mine alone!’
The usual light-heartedness was gone from his eyes; it looked like he had

been possessed. I had never seen him this way before; I could not hide my
surprise. He had a look of helpless desperation tinged with madness. I was
afraid. James looked at me as though his soul was being torn apart.

My chest hurt, but this was not the right thing.

‘James, I like Henry. I’m sorry but I’m not the only one who understands
you, Henry cares for you…’

‘Stop it! I do not want to hear his name from your lips. He abandoned me!’
Before I could reply, James returned to kissing me. Unlike the intensity

before, this was a gentle kiss. Our lips touched and exchanged heat. When
we stopped for air, James licked my lips with his tongue like he did not
want to let go of the taste.

I felt James’ hot breath on my skin and somehow started to feel good. I
began to drown in his sweet kiss, but I managed to regain calmness to pull
away,

‘James,’ I said between pants, ‘we should not do this…’

But something changed in James and he embraced me even tighter.

‘What’s wrong, James?’

‘Quiet, Julia!’

Index 🃜 Next
Presenting: The Villian Proposed

Do you know how hard it is to find two handsome bishounen against each other with swords or even punching? All I got was Fate/Stay bullshit or Yugi-oh 😞

31 The Internal Conflict of Basseterre:

James attention was on the forest in front of me. I soon realised someone

was there but James put me behind him to protect me. Was it someone
dangerous?

I became tense.

‘I’m sorry, Julia. It looks like I have got you caught in my trouble. No
wonder, you have been sending people to scope out the land, eh dear

brother Edward?’

James hand tightened around my waist belying his agitated state. I peeked
to see a man step out of the shadow of an oak tree. He had blue-green eyes

and chestnut hair. (Zuben: Japan, family members don’t have to look

exactly the same, ya know) He looked very similar to James. He wore

simple clothes under a cloak, but his shoes were high quality. From just that

I could deduce, this man was probably…

The man laughed, ‘James, as you are calling me brother, I assume you have

made a decision. Your time is up, and I can wait no longer. If she is so

important to you, you can bring her along to Basseterre with you. It would

be nice for you to have a positive wife. Although, her status is too low, we

can take care of her depending on your reply.’

The man called Edward had a dirty smirk on his face as he pulled his sword
from his sheath and pointed it at James. The sharp blade of the sword
gleamed in the half light of the forest. James’ gaze was directed at him,
barely looking at the sword pointed at him.

‘Edward, no matter how many times you come to negotiate, I do not want

to side with either you or George. I have no patriotic feelings for Basseterre,

you both can carry on fighting for throne with my blessing.’

‘Unfortunately, I need the connections you have cultivated in this country to

win against George and become King. But if you don’t want to comply
willingly, I will have to use my last resort. I don’t like to hurt women but it

cannot be helped.’

With a signal, five armed men appeared behind Edward. In that moment,

James stepped forward and in a swift move twisted the sword out of

Edward’s hand, and used the hilt to bash the side of Edward's neck.

‘Argh, James! You still defy me!’

‘Julia, run!’ James shouted.

I took the opportunity to make a break for it, I would only be used as a

hostage if I stayed. James would be kept alive, since they wanted to use

him. As soon as I ran ahead, there was a henchman behind me. Once I

noticed him, it was too late as he covered my face with a handkerchief

doused with strange medicine. The last thing I thought of was the Duke’s

angry face glaring at me.

I wonder if he would be annoyed with me again, I thought as I sank into the

darkness.

‘Urgh…I feel awful…’ I moaned when I woke up. I closed and opened my
eyes to try and suppress the feeling of nausea.

‘Julia! Are you alright? Does your head hurt?’ James asked frantically.
Oh good. I wasn’t alone.

Edward must be the second Prince of Basseterre. He must want to use

James as a tool to move as he desired.
‘I just feel a little sick.’ I replied.

I opened my eyes and observed our surroundings. I was on the floor with
both hands tied behind my back. My body was sore. James was tied to a

pillar a few metres away from me. I wonder if he put up a fierce resistance
for there were ugly bruises and cuts on his face. His lip was cut and swollen
and there was dried up blood on his chin.

‘Where are we? Do you know what they are going to do with us?’ I asked. I
could see a dirty window near the ceiling of the dimly lit room. We must be

in a basement; there was no door only a staircase going up. The room also
had a thick musty smell that made my nausea worsen.

‘They maybe waiting for sunset, so they can move us to Basseterre. He has
taken you as a hostage so I can do what he wants. But it’s okay, do not
worry, I will protect you with my left.’ James said with a pained smile.
He made me rather anxious.

‘So you’re being taken to Basseterre where you will be forced to support
Edward so that he can take the throne. You shouldn’t give up like that.’

‘Why not? I don’t care about Basseterre. Why shouldn’t I help Edward
dethrone George? As long as you’re safe, I don’t care what I have to do.’

While he was talking, I manoeuvred myself to a sitting position and

searched about for a glass conveniently left behind. I spotted glass that
would suit my purposes, and shuffled over to it. I managed to grab one and

began to try to cut my ties.

‘No. You can’t do that. Edward’s friends are Grusk. With their help he

would be able to overthrow George. And should he gain the throne, the
Kingdom of Basseterre will be annexed by the Grusk. And then they will
turn their gaze to our Bosch.’ I replied haltingly.

‘Julia? What are you doing?’

James must have noticed the expression of pained concentration on my

face. I tried to school my features as I answered lightly, ‘I’m trying to cut

the ropes. It will take some time. Listen, I am a nobleman’s daughter; I have

been prepared for death from the moment I was born. Luckily, it isn’t a
necessity since Bosch is so peaceful. I don’t want to be used as a weakness.’
(Zuben: I dunno if the writer is trying to make her sound strong, but she

sounds obnoxious here. “I’m prepared for death. Go me!”) I didn’t want
James to worry but it was also to convince myself, this did not hurt. I have
not been injured yet.
‘You’re the first noblewoman that I know who is prepared for death. But

Julia are you alright?’

‘Hmm. I just cut my fingers and it hurts. It feels more painful than death.

These ropes are so hard to cut. They really didn’t spare me. I am a weak
girl.’
‘I can see blood! Julia, you should stop!’ James shouted with a pained

expression. But I ignored him. If he could see it, then there must be a lot of
blood. The pain suddenly hit me, but I was not going to stop. I didn’t want

to be the tool that ruined the peace in Basseterre.’

I concentrated on cutting the ropes, speeding up the rubbing of the glass

against the fibres. Finally, I was free. Looking at the wounds on my hands, I
was aghast, but I tried not to study them closely and ran to set James free.
‘Julia…you were injured because of me.’ He said as I freed him. He held

me, I could feel his body trembling. Was he worried about me that much? I
knew it could not be the case, but I became a little afraid. He looked at the

cuts on my hands, and took out his handkerchief to wrap around the left
hand where the injury was severe.
‘Let’s find a way to escape. I wonder if that window is sealed…no, the grid

is hooked. We should be able to push it out. The Duke should be looking for
us by now. I’m sure he will come to help.’
‘Henry will not come to help me. It is for you. Henry abandoned me that
time five years ago. Though we’re on friendly terms as countries, it is a

moderate risk to be friends with the Prince of Basseterre. Henry is very

capable; I would only be dragging him down.’

‘James come over and bend over,’ I said to him under the window, ‘What
happened five years ago?’
I got on James’ back and tried to open the window. I thought about the fact

that I was stepping on a Prince’s back, but it was a matter of emergency, he

would have to forgive me. The heels of my shoes shouldn’t not be too
painful, they were wide. Besides, I read in some book that men liked to be

stepped on by women in heels, there shouldn’t be a problem.

‘Five years ago, I was suspected of trying to overthrow the Bosch

Kingdom. I found out later that it was the work of the anti-Basseterre
faction in Bosch, but after that, Henry no longer came to see me as much as

he used to.’

‘Is that why you feel abandoned? Is that why you tried to be close to me?
James, don’t look up otherwise you’ll see under my skirts. To me, the Duke

cherishes you like a younger brother.’

The window easily pushed open, but there were was a sturdy grate covering
the opening; metal wires twisted and criss-crossed around wooden bars. It
would be hard for me to pull it open. But I yanked on them anyway.

‘At the start, I approached you because you were a woman that Henry
seemed to consider special, but now it is different. I like you, Julia.’

The rods successfully dislocated from their roots in the wall. I kept doing it

until there was wide enough a gap to sneak out from there.
I chuckled, ‘Saying those things under these circumstances…Here we are!

The last grate is off. We can escape.’

32 Julia’s Battle:

There was a bang. It was the sound of the door opening at the top of the

stairs. I exchanged a look with James. Light beamed down the stairs from
the top and it was occluded by a shadow. James who had been bent over,

rose and pushed me through the window by my butt.

‘Julia, save yourself. Edward will not lay a hand on me.’

‘But James, that’s impossible! Don’t look up! Don’t touch there!’ (Zuben: Is

this the time Julia?)

James lifted me and pushed me out of the window. My head and arms were

pushed out, I had no choice but to grab into the cobble stones and pull
myself out. I was in narrow gap between buildings behind an alley. The

large wall before me rose up to the sky with no windows. I turned back to

the basement window,

‘James!’

Although, it was dark, I could see James had a relieved smile on his face.

‘Julia, I’m happy I could help you escape, but I will stay. You need to get

away quickly.’
Although, I didn’t want to leave him, it was prudent to escape and think

about the situation. Becoming emotional does not gain anything. Although,

I detested myself that makes such cold judgement in whatever circumstance

I was in. (Zuben: Bahahahahah!)

‘Understood! Don’t be unreasonable, I will return with help soon!’

The henchmen reached the floor and saw I had escaped, he shouted for his

colleague. It was only a matter of time before I was trapped in the alley. I
ran off, and broke out of the alley. It was evening so the light was getting

dim, but I noticed I was at a familiar junction.

This was where Brennan had attacked me. We must be in the Central ward.
I remembered my way from there, so I ran on without stopping trying to use

my memory. I have to get to his place quickly!

‘Gotcha!’ a male voice said behind me as my ankle was grabbed. I fell. I

had been chased by one of the henchmen and he had thrown a bola[1] that
tangled around my ankles. My knees began to bleed but I didn’t feel it at

all, the fear of being captured again was greater.

‘Someone! Help!’ I shouted. I hoped someone would hear me, and come

and help.

‘Someone! Please help!’ I cried as I untangled the bolas from my legs and
got up. I did not want to be captured, but the weapon in my hand was all

that I had. I could use it at as a club. I grit my teeth ready for a fight. But the

man chasing me suddenly collapsed.

‘Eh?’
Blood seeped out of the body spreading along the cracks in the paving

stones. There was someone behind me, I turned,

‘Yes. Bullseye! I had suspected these guys were hiding in the heart of the
central ward. But that was dangerous, my lady. We’re you going to confront

the man with that weapon? Aren’t you being reckless? That man was a

professional.’

It was a man I didn’t know. He looked young, in the late twenties probably.
He had a modest forgettable appearance, but there was a sense of

incongruity with his appearance and his gleeful violence. I became wary. I

could not trust that this man had appeared here by chance.
‘Who are you?’
‘Are you the lady making our Commander upset? You’re plainer than I

imagined. If you know where the Prince is, tell me. I have been tasked to

rescue you and the Prince.’

After thinking about it, I decided to tell the man where James was being
held. From his tone, he must be here to rescue us. With his skill at defeating

the Grusk assailants, he seemed very good at his job. Before we set off, I

searched through the dead chaser’s body and found something of interest
and put it in my pocket. We ran back the way I came and soon found the

place James was being held. I decided to warn him, there were six Grusk

henchmen with many weapons.

‘We should be careful, there are at least five Grusk henchmen here. I will
create a distraction while you attack them.’

The man gave me a strange look, and then he said, ‘Lady, mayhap you’re

thinking that you will be going inside to fight with me, but that is not going
to happen. You should return to the city and get protection. Should

something happen to you, the Commander will have my head.’

‘I’m not your lady, my name is Julia. Please let’s help James as soon as

possible. Otherwise, I will go in alone!’

I pushed the door in and quickly hid behind the door. As expected, the first

henchman appeared sword in hand. I pushed the door hard, knocking him

against the door jamb. He fell, and then I bashed his head with the door
several times to make sure he was stunned. The man who helped me stared

at me in shocked silence. Just then, there was a noise from inside the house,
I quickly picked up the sword and we entered together.

‘There are four more henchmen and the second Prince of Basseterre…’

I peered around looking for hidden enemies. I turned around to see the man

strangling the fallen henchmen. He turned to me and grinned,

‘I’m Gordon. Try not to get injured; otherwise the Commander will kill

me.’

‘Don’t be a drag. I’m not reckless as to go alone.’

‘I wouldn’t dare accuse you of being reckless. I have signalled the rest of

the team, they should be here soon.’

Che! What a fussy man. He could only be the subordinate of the Duke. I
dared not look around to take stock. Gordon held a finger to his lips and

pointed upstairs. He must have heard footsteps. He gave me a scary face to

make me stay. I reluctantly watched him go up the stairs. There were soon

sounds of a scuffle and the clash of swords echoing in the dark house. I
could not do anything but watch.

While I was waiting, a large man appeared at the entrance. I remember his

face; he was one of the Grusk men who had abducted us earlier. Perhaps he
went shopping. He was agitated on seeing his fellow dead at the doorway.

His eyes were bulging and bloodshot, his body was trembling in anger.
‘You! How dare you do this to Alec!’ He bellowed.
This is bad! This is very bad! It is true that I did that to Alec, but he should

not use violence at women and children.

I ran to a small room dodging the blows of the giant as I went. I locked
myself in. It looked like a store room with food stuffs arranged on the

shelves. I took one of the items I had stolen out of my pocket and put it on a

shelf and took down a can. It was a smoke bomb; it is thrown at the enemy
and they should lose consciousness. I should need to try and hold my breath

for two minutes and at least stay two metres away. That would be hard in

this room, and I didn’t know how to use it.

The door was being banged; the giant was trying to break the door down,
‘Woman! Open up! I will kill you!’

There was a loud crash as the door came down and the giant came in. He

had an angry violent smile on his face. I hadn’t finalised an escape plan. As
though he wanted to enjoy my fear, he held in dagger in his hand and

slowly entered licking his lips.

‘Hey, that’s a foul! It will hurt!’
‘You’ll be fine. I’ll make sure to stab you where you’ll die before you feel

anything.’
That might be the heart or brain. Would he chose my heart? But it may be
possible to stab the brain from the point under the neck. I really hated that I
could think so calmly about the implications of the man’s words.
I had no choice I had to carry out my hasty plan and play that it would
work. I threw the smoke bombs. Smoke filled the room. Thinking about the

size of the man it should be soon, but maybe because he is so large that it
wasn’t working quickly.
‘Are you ready to die, woman?’

‘I wonder if you could wait a little more…like three minutes?’

I was hunted to a corner of the room and had no escape. I gave him my best
smile. Finally the smoke bombs worked and just as he reached me, the giant

fell onto the shelves near us. Food stuff fell on him and the cacophony
resonated in the small space.
‘Oh! I am saved…’

I was truly amazed. But the earlier fear and adrenaline made my legs jelly
as I tried to stand up. I could only collapse on the floor and lean against the
wall.

At that moment, I heard a voice calling my name,

‘Julia!’ (Zuben: Juli, Juli, Julay! Ah~ah~ah~ah~ah~ahhhhhh~!)
Zuben: Julia kicks ass, takes names, annoys me but still way better than
being a wet blanket, waiting to be saved. I'm not sure about the 'noble-
woman prepared for death aspect' - it just seems rather incongruous, maybe
I mistranslated?

Off to find a threesome.

Presenting: The Villian Proposed

Oh Mexican standoff I wish I was hard...

33 Action Julia
Shortly after I heard my name called, a head of shimmering blonde hair

appeared. The Duke entered the room with anxious expression on his face.
He pulled me into his arms and I was surrounding by his familiar scent. I

wanted to close my eyes and enjoy the feeling, but I remembered,

‘Henry, we need to leave. This room is full of sleeping gas, you’ll be

knocked out.’

Henry looked around and figured out what had happened seeing the big

man laid out on the floor. He lifted me in his arms, held his breath as he
brought me out. A man wearing a similar coat to Henry was waiting sword

in hand, there was the sound of clashing swords upstairs.

‘Put me down, Henry! Is James safe?’ I pushed myself off Henry and
stepped down trying to go upstairs.

‘Wait, Julia. My men are securing the second floor.’

‘But!’

I had to comply; his word in this situation was law. I felt uncomfortable not

seeing James safe. I could not get the sad and lonely expression he had

when I left him earlier out of my mind. I bit my bottom lip anxiously.

‘Julia, you should go with Percy back to the Earl’s manor. We will do our

work and we can’t have woman in the way.’

I glared at him as he was glaring at me. I was angry.
‘No! I will stay here and confirm James is safe. I left James alone and ran. I
will not return to the mansion without knowing he is alright. You would do

the same if it were you!’ (Zuben: Where has the cool head gone?)

Henry did not look at me, but over my head at the man called Percy. It

seemed his anger had reached its peak.

‘Miss Julia, please calm down. I am Percy. I understand your feelings but it

is dangerous here for a non-combatant. You will threaten the Prince’s safety.
Please, let me take you back to the Earl’s mansion.’

‘So you think I am threatening James’ safety?!’ I said arrogantly, folding my

arms across my chest, ‘If I am so weak, how did I take out two of the Grusk

kidnappers? But you’re so worried about it that you came with so few

people?’

Percy’s brown eyes looked agitated; he had not expected a delicate noble

lady to refute him. He was ten years too early to win against me. I smiled
triumphantly.

The second floor grew silent, and Gordon and two other men came down

the stairs.

‘The second floor has been secured, Commander, but no sign of the Prince.’

Gordon reported. He had a gash on his head that was bleeding profusely.

(Zuben: If only Julia would tell them that he is in the basement, not in the
second floor rather than arguing unnecessarily)
Just then, two other men were back tracking from searching the rest of the

ground floor.
‘Your Grace, we have found the Prince but…’

They turned back to where they came from and two princes stood in the
corridor. (Zuben: Princes princes, who adore you ♪) Edward stood behind
James with a sword to James neck. When James caught sight of me, he took

on a pained expression,
‘Julia, why are you here?’ he cried.

‘James, I’m alright.’ I don’t know if it could be said that I was alright in this
situation, but I was wanted to calm him down. The situation was tense:

there were seven spies including His Grace who I was standing behind.
(Zuben: Is Henry 007?)
‘You are the dogs of the Bosch,’ Edward said arrogantly, ‘I wonder if the

Duke of Magnaria commands these watchdogs. Pretending all these years,

tricking your friend for more than twenty years, to raise your career. You

are truly elite indeed, Duke. I respect you.’

‘Henry, I didn’t know you were a spy. Did you use me after all? I thought

you were my true friend.’ James said looking hurt. (Zuben: Boohoo, cry a
river)
But Henry replied, his face and tone expressionless, ‘Do not listen to this

traitor. There is evidence that he had been colluding with the Grusk. We will
take him in and deport him to Basseterre where he will be dealt with.’

Edward responded immediately, ‘You men are merely subjects of Bosch.

Do you think you will be able to arrest a Prince of Basseterre, a friendly

nation, without repercussions! I am of royal blood! James is my brother! I

have come to take him back with me to Basseterre. This is a matter of the

royal family; you cannot get in the way.’

In his agitation, he drew the blade closer to James’ neck drawing a thin line
of blood.

Henry ignored Edward, and said to James harshly, ‘James, get a hold of
yourself. You can take the sword from him.’

‘I was sent to Bosch as a hostage at the age of seven. No one would care for
me. No one would be a true friend. But you were the only one who would
support me and my heart. But you were just a spy to watch me. I believed in

you, Henry!’ James said tearfully. (Zuben: What a wet blanket)

These men are stupid. I came out from behind the Duke and stood between

him and James.

‘Stop it both of you!’ I said without thinking, ‘Henry, you’re not explaining

yourself properly. James, stop wallowing in self pity. I had thought you
were cooler than this. I think Henry became a spy to protect you, not to spy
on you. Isn’t that right, Henry? But you haven’t ever told James that.

Because of this, James had become confused. Both of you please reflect.’
I tried to inject some logic into the situation. (Zuben: Hah! Logic from the
least logical person)
‘Hey! Don’t come closer! How is there such a reason! I don’t want to hurt

you, but if you leave me no choice I will. Do you want to die?!’

‘No, I don’t want to die! But how will you stab me from behind James? If

you stand there like that, you would not be able to attack me. I’m sure I will
be able to evade your blade.’
I moved to Edward’s left where it would be impossible for him to harm

James when he tried to stab me. He could not believe a lowly woman like
herself would talk against a Prince like him. He was trembling in anger with

a pale face,
‘Woman! Who do you think you are talking to?!’ Edward fell into anger and

pushed James away, as he raised his sword at me. I could see it coming.
When anger reaches its peak, humans cannot judge calmly and will move
rashly. I predicted that Edward would not thrust but swing, in that case, it

would be easy to evade.

Just as I was about to evade, I was yanked back out of the way. I fell

backwards looking up at the ceiling. There was a scream and Henry’s face
appeared, he looked like he was about to cry. I turned to the where the voice
came from and saw Edward screaming in pain with a dagger in his right

shoulder. Henry had yanked me back and thrown a dagger at Edward. I was
lying in Henry’s arms and he grabbed my shoulder painfully while he
glared at Edward.
‘Prince Edward, I was forced to react because you moved to hurt a Lady of

our Kingdom. This was legal use of force as a knight of the Bosch
Kingdom. I will write a report detailing this.’

‘Henry…’ James called as he rose, ignoring Edward, ‘Is it as Julia said? Did
you really become a spy to protect me?’
Henry shied away from James hopeful gaze as he said, ‘I could not bear for

you to be framed by others again after that incident. So I thought I should

be able to stop something like that happening again beforehand if I became

in intelligence officer.’

I could see a ruddy glow on Henry’s impassive face. Are these people older

than me? Why are they so clumsy and awkward?’

‘Does this look like the face of a man who has used you?’
James laughed, ‘That’s true Julia, you’re right. It seems I have

misunderstood Henry.’

That was good, I am glad they could resolve the misunderstanding. I gave a
sigh of relief. It was rather embarrassing to see the Duke’s bashful face. I

gave a small laugh.

‘What’s so funny, Julia?’ He said in his usual dignified voice

‘Nothing.’ I replied, seeing Henry become expressionless again.
Percy came up to the Duke and saluted,

‘Your Grace.’
‘Percy, take Prince Edward and Prince James back to the royal castle for

treatment. Mark, Michael and Keith stay here and investigate the house.

Matt and David are with the police carriage, they can take the surviving
Grusk to the holding cell; we will interrogate them tomorrow. I will see to

Julia’s injuries and send her back to the Earl’s mansion. We will send a

detail report to the powers later but Percy, you can give a rough draft.’

‘Wait a moment,’ James protested, ‘I am also worried about Julia. She was
caught up in this because of me. She got cut by glass trying to escape; she

probably has fragments in the wounds. We have to treat her quickly.’

‘Whoa! Wait a moment. I’m fine, I can take care of myself. I’m not
bleeding severely, the wounds are mild. If you would just send me back to

the Earl, I will manage with Hannah.’

‘No!’ Both men said at the same time.

I couldn’t disobey both of them; they were a Prince and Duke. How could a

poor viscount’s daughter compete?

So I was carried by the Duke to Marius’ safe house while enduring the

warm glances Henry’s subordinates were giving me.

🂬
 34 Between a Prince and a Duke:

I was brought directly to the bathroom and lowered to floor gently. Because

of the Duke and James’ height the room felt confined,

‘Ah, what are you doing? I’m not going to get undressed in front of you!’ I

was wary of any weird ideas the both of them might have. I suspect they

would want me to get naked so that they could confirm the extent of my

injuries. Yes, the Duke has already seen me naked, but not James.
‘I don’t know what thoughts you have in your head, Julia,’ Henry said, ‘but

your knees have been injured, if we don’t clean the wounds, you will likely

get an infection. I can wipe it with a wet towel. I will do it gently, it that
alright?’

‘No, it’s-ah!’ The pain in my knees increased just by imagining it. It was

throbbing and hurting, and I wanted to be spared more pain. (Zuben: Hmm,
I thought she was cool headed in any situation)

‘Why don’t you clean the injury yourself and then I will put on bandages

after.’ Henry said with a quiet smile at me. His soft golden hair shook a

little. Staring at the handsome face, I forgot about the pain.

Even so, why is the Duke looking down on me? Was it my imagination that

I was the dominant one? (Zuben: Well he is taller than you)

‘Julia,’ James cut in, ‘I will help you if it hurts. You should gently wash the

wounds,’ his expression was gentle, but his face was red, black and blue
with injuries.

‘James, I think you should handle your own injuries. His Grace can help

me.’
‘Yes, you go elsewhere. I will look after Julia.’ Henry said as he embraced

my shoulders.

James grabbed hold of my waist. Being sandwiched between the two large

men in the small bathroom felt claustrophobic,

‘No way would I allow that. I will go crazy leaving you with Julia. I will

take care of her and you need to report to the Castle quickly.’

(Zuben: Look if there isn’t going to be a sexy near sex threesome resulting
from a competition on how can treat her better - all of you are annoying)

Since we were at a stalemate, I pushed them both away and pulled my dress

above my knee, the Duke cried out in dismay,

‘Julia, are you getting undressed to take a bath?!’

‘What on earth are you talking about? If I don’t pull my dress up, how will I

wash the wounds? Turn away, both of you!’

After making sure they weren’t peeking, I raised my skirts and gingerly
stepped into the bath. It wasn’t deep, (Zuben: it’s a bath) it was refreshing to

have the cool water on my skin. I looked at the window and could only see
darkness. The light of the candle Henry had lit was reflected on the window

illuminating me.

I looked awful. I could not imagine I looked anything like a decorous noble

lady. My hair ribbon had since been lost, my hair hung down tangled and
limp; I looked like ghost. The front of my dress was mud stained, and so

was my face. How embarrassing to have been seen in such a state! I decided

to clean my face. I winced as I put my hands in the water. The worst injuries
were on my wrists and knees; I was just bruised everywhere else. For a

time, it was just the sound of water being splashed about in the bathroom. I

glanced at the two, they were obediently turned away. I gave a sigh and

both of their shoulder twitched. I decided to sink into the water. But when I
did this, the scabs on my hands and knees came off and the wounds started

bleeding, it soon became a gory sight in the bath.

‘Ah!’ I exclaimed, the two men turned to see the bleeding. They both
grabbed towels; Henry tended to my hands and James to my knees.

‘No, the towels will get stained.’

‘That’s not the most important thing right now; how did you get so

injured?’
‘Julia, I am so sorry,’ James said piteously, ‘you got these injuries trying to

help me.’
I was assaulted from both ends my Henry and James in the narrow

bathroom. James was at my legs with a towel to stop the bleeding from my
knees; his breath hit my thighs increasing my awareness of him. (Zuben:

Why is he so close to your thighs? ¬.¬)

Henry was holding the towel around my wrists and I became aware of his

muscled arms under his clothes, which reminded me of that rainy afternoon
and soon I face was heated up to my ears.

This…what kind of situation is this…?!! (Zuben: Hmmm…? A threesome?)

I was suddenly confused and felt faint. Suddenly I was falling back into the
tub with a loud splash.

‘Ky!!!’

My mind cleared with the immersion in cold water. I was shocked at being
drenched from head to toe.

‘Julia!!’ Both men cried.

I looked at them and they both had been splashed,

‘Oh no! What to do! I am so sorry I got you gentlemen wet.’ I said half
crying.

The two of them had anxious expressions on their faces. Then James took

off his shirt. He handed the shirt to me leaving his upper body was bare. I
was surprised to see that James had a surprisingly muscular body than it

seemed from looking at him clothed.

‘You can use this Julia. I will get Hannah to bring a change of clothes for
you tomorrow.’

What did Henry think of this? But then, he started to take his shirt off.

(Zuben: Two numbskulls…)

‘Wait.’ I cried, ‘Your Grace, you are going to the Castle, you can’t go there

without a shirt! Don’t worry, I will borrow James’.’

I shuddered as I envisioned the Duke walking down the castle hallways

without a shirt on. I could not let him do such a thing or his female fans will

multiply.

‘It’s alright; I have spare shirts in the house. Please wear this shirt, Julia.’

‘Then, why don’t get me a spare shirt rather than making me wear the one
you have on?’

I thought I was making a perfectly logical decision but the both looked

down at me with depressed faces. I was immersed in the tub with my butt,
my arms and feet were barely out of the tub. I was still bleeding.

‘You Grace, why don’t you go and fetch the shirt. James, please help me out
of here, using my hands hurt.’
‘Alright, my princess.’ James said gleefully. He grabbed my sides and lifted

me high like a child. Water poured out of my dress into the bathtub.
‘James. James. Put me down, it’s too high!’
‘You’re so light, Julia. I could hold you up like this forever. Actually, that
doesn’t sound like a bad idea.’
‘I don’t want that. Put me down.’

While James was teasing me, Henry returned with the clean shirt. He glared
at James and tried to steal me from James.
‘Just a moment!’ I said authoritatively, ‘Put me down, I will do it myself. If

I don’t get bandaged soon, I might bleed to death. Both of you get out! I
will dress myself.’
My voice echoed in the bathroom almost hurting my own ears. But I did not

feel like going along with their pranks anymore. Once they were out, I shut
the door and took off my dress and underwear. I dried my wet hair and
body. It was a good thing I was an impoverished lady, I could take care of

myself, it just took a bit longer because I had hurt my hands. I put on the
shirt Henry gave him, and I could smell him. I felt embarrassed, but it kind
of felt like I was being hugged by Henry somehow. (Zuben: Did he give

you a dirty shirt?)

I put my soiled things in a corner of the bathroom. I will collect them

tomorrow. No matter what, I could not return to the Manor with a soiled
dress. I would have unfathomable rumours circulating around me, and that
would not be good. The bleeding had stopped when I emerged from the

bathroom with only a shirt on. The two men were standing in the corridor,
they both turned with smiles on their faces as the door opened, shocking
me.
‘Oh you startled me! Were the both of you waiting for me?’

‘We were worried you might faint, ‘ James said, then he took on a smirk,
‘You look very attractive in that shirt, Julia.’

‘Er…don’t stare at me so. I am ashamed to have so much of my legs

exposed.’ I said timidly as I tried to pull down the shirt a little lower.
(Zuben: Why bother, it’s not like it’s going to grow)

Henry brought over a bed sheet and wrapped me up like a ghost.

‘It is taboo for a lady to show her ankles in public.’ He said sternly, ‘But it
can’t be helped in this outfit.’

Even though, he had been smiling broadly just a moment ago, he had
returned to his usual stern face again. This person who has touched my
breasts as he liked, why was he bothered about my ankles?! (Zuben:

Another man is in the room)

I wanted to retort, but James was there, so I swallowed my anger.
The two of them took care of my wounds, as they did so I began to feel

very sleepy. I wondered if it was the after effect of the compound I had been
drugged with.

‘You’re sleepy but it’s still eight ‘o’ clock, aren’t you hungry?’
‘Please let me sleep. Tonight isn’t…’
I fell into the Duke’s arms as he had been bandaging my wrists. I could hear
them talking but I was soon deeply asleep.
Presenting: The Villian Proposed

Pixiv
 35 Henry:

‘Did she fall asleep?’ James asked, ‘She is tired from the strains of the day.

I will look after her. Henry, you need to go to the Castle to report. She will

be safe near me.’

Julia had fallen asleep defencelessly in my arms. I wrapped the sheet

around her properly and took her up to the bedroom and laid her on the bed.

Her golden wheat hair was still wet and stuck to her cheek; I gently stroked
her cheek with my finger. She gave a small moan and turned over. The
moment she turned, a silken white thigh was exposed. She was in my shirt,

looking rather sensual. The memory of that rainy afternoon awakened…

‘Henry…’

James’ voice returned me to reality. I didn’t want him to see Julia like this,

so I covered her with the coverlet so her face was half hidden.

‘I will look after Julia, you have to go and report to the King. After I send
Julia home tomorrow, I will come to the King and give my report. I don’t

think I can quietly withdraw from this situation. I also have to go and see

George.’
That was true, I couldn’t leave it all to Percy, but I did not want to leave
James here alone with Julia while I was at the Castle. Even though she had

been injured, she still slept innocently without care like a child.

What was she dreaming of, I wondered. I could feel the corner of my lips

rise in a smile.

I turned to James and said, ‘I will be back as soon as I finish. Look after

Julia until then.’

There was a feeling of being hooked back, but after watching Julia’s

sleeping face for a short time. I headed for the castle.

In the carriage, I recalled the events of the day…

At the Bourbon garden, after Julia and James slipped away, I immediately

wanted to follow but Isabel held me fast. I managed to endure the nausea

that was caused by the choking scent of her perfume and the exposed

abominations on her chest.

‘Your Grace,’ she said in her irritating breathy voice as she pushed her

breasts against my arm, ‘I am prepared for you today. I do not mind if you

embrace me. Please be free with me, you can do whatever you want.’

It was the worst, I could feel the nausea rising. It was difficult to endure.

It was hard for me to remain a gentleman to a woman. I scoffed and roughly

pulled my arm from her grip. She stared in shock at my change.

‘I do not want to spend time with you any longer. I am neither sincere nor a

gentleman. Even if I marry you, I would not remain faithful. I have no

interest in producing an heir. When I die, my title and wealth will be left to

my nephew. Are you still willing to marry me?’

‘But…but, you had said you liked me the most at the royal ball.’
She looked at me with an expression of insincere piteousness; she just

looked worse and worse each passing moment. It just reconfirmed that Julia
was special to me.

‘I was lying. I was enjoying watching young well bred ladies like you
getting thrilled by my words. You are like parasites that pick up on men

based on their appearance and rank. You are like hungry mites. Get away
from me.’
‘But I truly adore you, your Grace. You just have to be by my side.’ She

said tearfully.
I diverted my gaze because I found her irritating to look at. I didn’t even

want to hear her sobbing.

‘Stop crying. It is annoying. My intention today was to let you know I had

no desire to marry you. It would be better for you to decline rather than I jilt
you. I can find you a nice gentleman that will suit you.’
‘I will not give up on you, my Duke. Besides, it’s already too late…’

‘What do you mean?’

‘You have already drunk it. We cannot turn back anymore.’

I was suddenly hit with a wave of dizziness and my fingertips became

numb.

Isabel noticed and her formerly piteous face distorted into a smile. She had
drugged my tea. My head spun and I began to lose consciousness.

It had been too late.

Isabel was not the first person to try and drug me.
Women like her were hyenas waiting for a moment of weakness to pounce,

and I had encountered them many times. It was why I was very cautious
about eating outside of my home. Most sleeping pills did not work on me

because I had worked on building immunity, but this afternoon, I had been
distracted by Julia and James, and I had not been concentrating.
‘Isabel! You!’

I wanted to kill her.

I extended my hand to strangle her, but caught air instead.

At that moment, everything went black.

...
When I woke, I was on a canopied bed. My head was sore. I looked around

and noted a naked Isabel sleeping next to me as expected. Perhaps we were

at the resting gazebo behind the rose garden as she had described. She woke
up and smiled with a blush,
‘Your Grace, it was like a dream that you sought me so fiercely.’ She began
in her breathy tone of voice trying to clamber on to me, naked, ‘Although it
was my first time, I would never have thought it would be so pleasurable. I

could only rejoice, my Duke.’ (Zuben: First time? Yeah right)

I leapt out of her way quickly.

‘Do you think I would let you coerce me, Isabel? You think you can get me
aroused with a drug? You are trying to turn a Duke, and in turn the Royal
Family into your enemy? Your father will know of this.’

Isabel covered her face and began to cry. I stared at her as though I was
watching a crude farce.

‘Your Grace, you’ve taken the purity of a young lady but you aren’t going
to take responsibility? There is proof!’ She cried as she whipped off the

covers to show the red stain. Isabel’s expression was triumphant as she said,
‘Your Grace, it is well known that you are a womaniser, no one would
doubt you took my virginity. I didn’t just make you unconscious; the drug

has an aphrodisiac effect as well.’ (Zuben: Japan and their aphrodisiacs)

‘I never did anything to you, Lady! Such bloodstains could be fabricated, so

it cannot be used as evidence. I honestly detest women like you. I will

report this to the Earl of Bourbon!’
This was the truth, whether or not I’d been drugged, I could not be aroused

by any woman other than Julia.

I put on my clothes that had been strewn all over the floor, coldly
dismissing Isabel. She began to wail,
‘You can’t do that! I will tell my father that you took my virginity and fled.

I will marry you!’

I wonder if she thought I would be deceived by such a lie. She was a foolish

woman. She mustn’t have thought deeply about what she would do if she
was denied. I finished dressing at the left the room, in a corner of the ante-
room I spied the butler and a maid; they must have helped Isabel.

I shook with anger, but went in search of Julia. By the time I returned to the

manor, it was evening. I headed for the manor to speak to the Earl Bourbon.
At the house, I was informed that James and Julia had disappeared but they

had not used a carriage.

I tried to judge the situation calmly even though my expression was dark. I

decided to investigate; there were only two routes that two people could
take out of the Earl’s estate without being seen. I found James’ button on a

barely used path in the Earl’s grove.

I followed a carriage’s rut until it stopped. Perhaps they changed to a new

carriage. Whoever had kidnapped James must be quite skilled, they came

fully prepared. The must be waiting for dark to continue moving.

I returned to the Castle and took my men out to investigate from where the
carriage stopped. Choosing three likely wards, I sent teams there. I could
only wait for their report. On my horse at the crossroads to the three wards,

I waited. It was the most frustrating time of my life.

‘Is the kidnapped lady the woman you like, your Grace?’ Percy asked while

we waited, ‘Your complexion is blue. Is Prince James your love rival? I see.

He is a strong rival. Was it the prince that gave her the hickey? Oh, is that a
pulsing vein?’

I became so angry from the waiting an aura of slaughter was emanating for

me.

‘Percy, if you wish to continue, I hope you are prepared to die.’

Percy paled. Even my horse shifted in fright. I was irritated like never

before; the last time I saw Julia she had been angry with me.

At this moment, I felt that I could throw my life away in return for her.
One of my scouts returned, they had found Julia, though she was a little

hurt, she was safe. I patted my chest, and ran my horse to the Central Ward

with Percy close behind.

When we reached the hideout, I was greeted by the sight of one of the

assailants collapsed on the floor at the door. I could hear a female voice

replying a booming male one off to the side. Was that Julia? Why was she

still here?!
I moved without thinking, as I reached the room there was a loud bang that

shook the building a little.

‘Julia!’ I shouted.

I looked inside to find her sitting on the floor against the wall in a corner of

the room, with a terrified looked on her pale face. I ran over and hugged her
trembling body.

Thank goodness! She was safe! Thank God!

I needed to get her out of here. Julia had set a trap for to defeat the giant

sprawled on the floor. I was rather impressed by her cleverness. As soon as

we got out, Julia began to call for James. If I had not stopped her, she would

have gone to the second floor where there was a fight raging on. Did she

like James this much? Thinking back, Julia had told me that she hated me a
few times, never once had she said she liked me. Dark emotions turned

inside and grew. Jealousy filled my mind; I did not think I could stay

rational looking at her face.

Gordon came down from the second floor and reported that James was not
there. Just then, the men who had been searching the ground floor came

back followed by Edward holding James hostage with a sword to his neck.

I didn’t want Julia here; she might end up in danger. As Edward said, we
could not do anything to him. He and James were not subjects of Bosch.

Did I have no choice but to watch as James was used as a bargaining chip?

But then Julia unexpectedly came out from behind me and began provoking

Edward. It was clear she was trying to make him let go of James and attack
her. Even if he was the Prince of another country, if he attacked a weak

young lady of Bosch, I would be justified in using force to stop him. Even
though I knew this, I did not want Julia in danger. Just thinking of it made

my heart cold.

Edward took the bait and attacked her; I immediately threw the dagger in
my hand at him while at the same time pulling Julia to the safety of my

arms. With her so close to me, my cold heart gradually warmed. (Zuben:

You’ve got it baad ♬)

I never wanted to experience a moment like this again.

Julia…you’re the only one – I love you absolutely. (Zuben: If only your

love wasn’t such a dense one)

36 I Spent the Night with Two Men:

(Zuben: Not in an even remotely exciting way¬.¬ Why they could not have

a "who can pleasure Julia the most competition" I do not know)

I awoke to the dazzling light of the morning with the birds singing from out

of the window. I was surprised to see that James and Henry were sleeping

on either side of me. No matter how I thought about it, I could not fathom

why these two men were sleeping on either side of me. It couldn’t to be that
that was only one bed in such a big house. So why were three of us sleeping

in one narrow bed?!

They were lying on either side of me, on their sides facing me, so they were
both breathing into my ears. Their bodies were closely touching mine from

head to toe; must be why I slept so comfortably. But, how am I going to get

out of this situation now; climb over James or Henry?

I turned to Henry, and got entranced by his perfect handsome features; his
soft well shaped lips, his straight nose. Even though he was so enchantingly

handsome when he was smiling, he only ever showed me his stern and

angry face.
A hand came over my waist and turned me to face James, who should be

have been fast asleep.

‘Good morning, Julia,’ he whispered, ‘I’m happy to be waking up next to

you. How do you feel? Would you like to eat?’

He drew closer to me, so that his face was close to mine; his lips were

nearly touching mine (Zuben: Back off, she ain’t yours) His light brown
hair fell over his sleepy face, he was also very pretty. His bruises had

slightly subsided, remaining slightly reddish but not swollen. I was relieved.
‘Why are you both sleeping beside me, aren’t there any other beds?’

‘There are, but James was sleeping beside you on my return from the

Castle. I was not allowing a young unmarried man and woman to sleep

together alone, so I decided to stay and chaperone.’ Henry said crankily

from behind me.

He was also awake.

We greeted each other, and I was able to get up and wash up in the
bathroom.

Since there was no change of clothes, I went down to the living area in the

shirt and bedsheet. Breakfast was ready; bread, some heated canned soup
and water. I quickly ate it; I was famished. I hadn’t eaten anything since our

tea party yesterday morning, I felt like I was about to die from the hunger.

James and Henry were dressed in formal clothes already. Henry must have

got them when he went to the Castle last night. James was wearing a crisp
white shirt under grey morning three-piece suit. The Duke was wearing a

strange dark high collared suit; I wondered whether it was his Knight

uniform or not.
The two of them were sitting side by side in the morning light looking

amazingly cool. I felt like I was tarnishing the cool atmosphere in my ghost
bedsheet.
When we finished breakfast, the Duke presented me with a dress.

‘The dress size should be fine; unfortunately I could not prepare any under-

things. But, you should be able to manage until you return to the Bourbon
Manor. While I get the carriage, please get dressed.’

‘Where is it from?’ I asked a bit nervously. Once glance told me it was an

expensive dress. It was very pretty, cream with lots of beading and
trimmings.

Henry shrugged as though it was no big deal as he replied, ‘It’s the Queen’s.

It was made before she was married, so she said you don’t have to return it.’

What?! The Queen’s?!

James chuckled at my shocked expression,

‘The Queen is Henry’s aunt. She always complains that Henry doesn’t come

to visit her, especially after he became such a misogynist. Didn’t you know,
Julia?’

‘I hadn’t been interested in the Duke of Magnaria at all, so I did not think to
look into his family history. I knew there was a royal connection, but I
didn’t realise it was as immediate as the Queen.’ (Zuben: Say things like

this and you wonder why he gets annoyed with you)

I had not realised he was of such a noble line. Not only that, he was very
handsome; it made sense for women to flock to him, even if he disliked
women and had a terrible mouth.
It would be rude to return the dress back to the Queen, so I decided to send
a thank you letter to her later.

I quickly returned to the bedroom and changed. If fitted well, like it was
tailored for me. The drape of the dress was beautiful, I stood in front of the
mirror admiring myself but it was ruined by my bandaged hands.

‘I won’t be able to go out until the injuries are healed.’ I said to myself. If I
had no choice, I suppose I could wear gloves, but otherwise, stay in the
manor.

I looked back at the room. It was the one I spent the rainy afternoon with
the Duke.
James had said Henry did not feel lust for a woman, but I had thought his

confession was true at the time (Zuben: Only three days ago) But when I
see his cold manner, I felt like it had all been a mistake, I could not imagine
it.

James had proposed to me, but to be honest, I could not tell if he had been
serious or joking. And currently, the situation with the royal family and

Kingdom of Basseterre was unstable. It was not realistic to be tied to him in

anyway.
If I was asked if I loved James, I could only say no. Not as a lover. Even as

a friend, he required considerable energy and patience to keep up with him

and his troublesome twisted character.
I was soon to be twenty, and I would like to marry a man who could save
my family’s finances at once if possible. It would be better to not get any

more involved with these two men anymore. The difference between us was
too vast.

For an impoverished aristocratic daughter from a remote province, the third

son of some aristocrat would suit me better. (Zuben: But you don’t have an
eye for good men. Instead of clinging like a barnacle to the one that fell on

your lap, your pride is holding you back)

I made my decision before the mirror.
The carriage came, and I left the house. James did not let my hand go until I

was seated on the carriage, but Henry had his usual cold visage and did not
look me in the eyes as I left.
Presenting: The Villian Proposed
 Sizh

37 Julia’s Heartbreak:

When I returned to the mansion, I quickly changed my clothes and went to

apologise to the Earl for worrying them, but he was absent. I was told he
had gone out since last night but had not returned. I spoke with the

Countess and headed to my room.

On the corridor, I met Isabel standing there, waiting. I wondered if she had
come to deride me again. I stopped before her and waited for her tirade

while being vigilant. Shoring oneself up was the only way to stand Isabel’s

sarcasm. Once, I retorted, and she hid Hannah’s clothes from her. She

would never retaliate directly; I hated her.

She was dressed opulently and stood with her arms folded across her chest,

with an expression of triumphant confidence on her face.

‘Oh Julia, I heard you and James had been kidnapped. I am so happy you

are safe and well, but it’s too bad about your hands; you won’t be able to

attend the tea party this afternoon. There is an important announcement I

wanted to tell everyone.

‘The tea party you have with the other ladies? Unfortunately, I will not be
able to attend. What is the important announcement? Might you tell me,

since I will not be there?’

I could tell she wanted to brag about something, so I asked her obediently. I

would be released from this torture once that was done.

‘The Duke and I are getting married!’ She announced, ‘We made love so

long, I didn’t know that James collapsed. I am sorry about that.’

‘Marriage? The Duke of Magnaria and you…?’ I asked incredulously. I

could not hide the surprise.

The Duke had said he would do something about Isabel, but how come they

were suddenly getting married?!

‘Yes. Father has been out and about trying to get our wedding plans going

as soon as possible. It’s very embarrassing, I’m sure you understand.’

There was only one reason an aristocratic daughter rushed to the altar; it
could only mean that they have had that kind of relationship and they were

trying to tie the knot before the pregnancy starts to show.

My expression went dark; that was why the Earl was not at home, and why

he had been cold to me. (Zuben: Face-palm)

‘So, please join us at our wedding. I have to go, let’s have tea next time,

alright?’
She left, but I did not notice.
My mind could not catch up with what was going on. My head was filled

with images of Henry and Isabel together; when did they begin this
relationship? Since when has Henry be deceiving me. I could not think.

My mind was dazed, and I forgot where I was.

When I realised it, I was sitting on the opulent carpet crying.
‘Oh. I can’t wipe my face with bandaged hands.’ I said in a daze.

I closed my eyes.
I realised I liked Henry more than I had thought. But it was too late. I

wallowed in my sorrow thinking about the future.

I had to be strong. I escaped three engagements; I could get over this one. I

was sad right now but something new would come along and occupy my
mind. (Zuben: Numpty)
I rose and decided what to do next.

I returned to my room.
🂽

‘Hannah, I know we are supposed to stay here for another six weeks but I
want to go home.’ I said to Hannah as I was writing my thank you letter to

the Queen, ‘But if we went home right away, you won’t be able to see
Thomas anymore.’
‘Are you alright, Miss? You must be traumatised from the kidnapping. Did

they…?!!!’ She fired at me her face turning blue.

‘No! Not at all! I am still intact. Do not have strange thoughts!’

She must realised something had happened since I had been looking
forward to spending so much time in the Kingdom. She really understood

me. I could not tell her I had been fooled by that Duke and almost got
robbed of my virginity.

‘Did it not work out with his highness, James?’

‘James proposed but I don’t want to marry him. I think that marrying
royalty would be such a heavy responsibility. If I remained here, James

would not let me find a good man. And I can’t go anywhere with my
injuries, I can’t even join a tea party. That’s why I want to go home.’

‘You were proposed to?! By the Prince! And you refused!! Miss!!!’
She really was blue now, I feared she was going to faint. But, Hannah has
been my maid for years, she was strong, she immediately took a deep breath

and looked at me seriously waiting for me to continue,

‘But, I don’t want you to lose your fateful encounter.’ I gave her a

conspiratory look as I said, ‘How about if we stay in the Central Ward, and
not tell anyone.’

‘Please don’t attempt such a reckless thing. Don’t worry about me; let’s go
back home to Hermiata. If we look patiently, we will find a nice man for
you soon enough.’
‘Come now, Hannah. Let’s find a nice inn to stay in the Central Ward; most
inns cost 100gira a night for two. Father gave us money we haven’t used
and if we need more we can just sell the emerald necklace.’

‘How do you know how much a night at an inn costs, Miss? Nevertheless,
no! If it became known that you were staying in the Central Ward with the

commoners, your reputation will be tarnished!’

‘Then we can disguise ourselves, you can be my elder sister like the last
time. With this injury, I can't socialise in polite society, so we can go to the

Central Ward and use to the time to promote our Hermiata caramel! No one
would miss an impoverished aristocrat like me.’

‘Miss!’
Once the plan was out, the wheels were turning about how to go about it. As

I planned with Hannah, I thought I would be fine. So what if I had been

deceived by that Duke.
So when the Earl returned, I spoke to him. I should be able to move to

Central Ward, Myseln in a few days. Since James might want to visit me, I
decided to fob him off with a letter informing him I was ill. Fortunately, he

was too busy dealing with the fall-out from the incident, that he could only
send me a letter full of saccharine words and a large bouquet.
When it was time, I would stay in Myseln as a young lady from out of town

for a month and a half.

 🂼

38 Myseln:

‘Hannah, there is still time until our next shipment arrives at the inn, why

don’t we go into town? Let’s go to Hilda’s café and have lunch.’

Hannah and I had been staying at the inn for two weeks. I was posing as a

young lady who came from a small town in Hermiata. Lying to get here had

been troublesome, but we managed.

I told the Earl I would like to go and recuperate at a health spa because of

my kidnapping ordeal. So I asked him to keep most of my personal

belongings, and have it sent to Hermiata because I would be going home

directly from the spa. Hannah would go to the Manor for any letters from
home. The caramel I was selling was directly from a farmer who I was

friends with, it had nothing to do with the Manor, so father will not find out

I am staying in the town. (Zuben: Convenient)

I sent letters to James and the Duke. I told James not visit me because he

would disturb my mind, and I was going to a health spa, and I also turned

down his proposal. I was likely to be pursued should I return home. I

wanted to be in an environment where I could not think about the Duke.

(Zuben: And the central ward is it?) I was at a loss as to what to write to the
Duke, I wanted to let him know I didn’t want to see him again, but not

directly. Eventually, my letter was filled with sarcastic sentences, I was very

proud of my workmanship. With this, I will not meet the Duke again.
🂽

I became absorbed in life in the Central ward. The Rupen Inn had only five

rooms, Hannah and I rented one of them. My hands were in bandages for a

while, but soon I could take them off and wear light gloves. The scabs
eventually peeled off and the scars began to heal.

‘Julia, Hannah, are you going out for lunch?’ Our hostess, Shirley asked

from behind us, ‘I’ve finished cleaning, so may I go with you to the
Montbull café?’

Shirley was a lovely girl with curly light brown hair and impressive hazel

eyes. She had round cheeks and a dimple when she smiled. She was the
only daughter of the couple who owned the inn. She was seventeen years of

age. She regarded me as an elder sister, perhaps she had been longing for

one. Or perhaps, it was because I beat up a swindler who tried to con money

from the inn on my first night here. (Zuben: Of course you did)
I didn’t mind it. I liked the feeling of being an older sister.
‘Sure, Shirley, let’s go together. Meals are more fun with more people.’ I

said.

‘Lovely. Please wait while I tell mother.’ She replied with a happy smile
and she rushed off to look for her mother, Ann.

She was an adorable girl, very dependable and pure.

‘Shirley, please take care. We have time, so don’t rush.’ I called after her.

My new experiences were very fresh and exciting. I was enjoying my time
as an ordinary commoner. There were many things to learn and do, and I

was gaining an understanding of the lives of the ordinary people that I

would never have as a noble lady.

Every day was fun.

Since Hannah can meet with Thomas every day, she laughed a lot more. It

seemed to be true that women in love did change. I wondered whether I

would be like that when I met my future lover. (Zuben: No.) The Duke’s
face appeared in my mind. I quickly waved it away; why did I have to

remember that hateful face? Just the memory made me angry.

I never wanted to see that dark duck? of misfortune ever again. Even if he
attempted to find me using his network of spies, he would not be able to. I

doubt he would imagine that I was staying in the Myseln.

I had cut my hair and dyed it brown. When I go back home, I would tie it up

until it grew back again.

But selling caramel was risky. The Duke knew I was trying to sell caramel,

and it seems likely he would try to look for me using that as an avenue.
After lunch at Hilda’s, Shirley and I decided to take a walk to the market.

The vibrant Market Square had become my favourite place. Even though it

wasn’t market day, there were many white canvas stalls in the square; it was
crowded with customers. I watched the people come and go for a bit, then

headed up to say hello to a fruit seller I had become acquainted with,

‘Hello, Julia, Shirley, just got this batch of apples. Here have one each and

one for your sister, Julia.’

‘Thank you, Ms Susanna. Where is Jolie?’

Susanna’s stall always had the sweet scent of fresh fruit around it. She

always shared her fruit with us, so in turn I walked her dog, Jolie, a very
smart young border collie. I was really looking forward to walking the dog

because; I could not do such a thing in Hermiata. Though, there were dogs,

they were usually wild, so you really couldn’t take one a walk. Jolie was

usually sitting or lying beside Susanna’s stall, and barked happily whenever
he heard me come by.

‘A regular customer took him for a walk today. I think they’ll be back soon.

Please wait a bit, I’m sure Jolie would love to see you, Miss Julia.’
‘Really, how delightful!’

Shirley gave a small laugh behind her hand, ‘Julia, you really like Jolie.’
Just as I was about to reply, there was a bark and something heavy jumped

on my back almost knocking me over.

‘Jolie! Calm down!’

There was a replying bark.

Jolie had jumped unto my back, and he was breathing excitedly. As soon as

I turned around, Jolie was licking my face.

‘Oh! Jolie!’
‘Julia, are you alright?’ Shirley asked anxiously. I nodded and looked over

Jolie at the person who had walked Jolie today. The person was familiar, his

face was flushed and his eyes surveyed the surroundings. He was wearing

rather fine clothes for an ordinary person. But when his eyes landed on
Shirley, he looked like he lost his soul.

This was Percy! Percy, one of the Duke’s subordinates, who I met at the

Grust hideout. How come he’s here! I stiffened as my heart began to beat
faster, and tried somehow not let him see me.

‘Luke, thank you so much for walking Jolie,’ Susanna said cheerfully, ‘You

haven’t been around for a while, are you back in town for while?’

Percy, who was known to Susanna as Luke, did not reply. He was gazing
longingly at Shirley. Many passers-by passed between them, but they were

stuck in a world of two.

‘How cute, I thought you were an angel. What is your name, Miss?’ He

asked Shirley.
At first, I thought that he had been tasked with the Duke to find me, but I

soon realised I worried for nothing. Percy had eyes for nothing other than

Shirley. It was clear he had fallen for her at first sight. Anyway, while he

was not aware of my true identity, it was better to leave as soon as possible.
I suddenly regretted not taking on a pseudonym, but I didn’t because of

Hannah and Thomas. (Zuben: There must be many Julias in the world) If

they searched for a woman named Julia who injured her hands, they would
soon find her.

I turned to Susanna watching Percy and Shirley with a warm look on her

face.
‘Susanna, Shirley, I’ll get going. I see you later, alright?’

‘Hmm? Sister, I will come too.’ Shirley answered. Percy returned to sanity,

and placed his hand on my shoulder with a desperate plea,

‘Are you her sister? My name is Luke, I’m not a suspicious person. Is her
name Shirley? What a lovely name. Where do you live?’

His eyes met mine, he could see my face, but there no sign of recognition.

‘Luke is a travelling peddler; he stops at my store when he is in Myseln. He

is trustworthy, so you don’t have to worry.’ Susanna said on his behalf.

(Zuben: Hmmm)
Susanna, this person is really a royal spy! “Luke” is a pseudonym! He’s a
liar, he is not trust-worthy at all! But I could not day that out loud. Working

for the Royals is an elite job; Shirley would not see it as a bad thing if she

liked him.
‘Sister, I am not a bad man. I have fallen in love at first sight! I will make

Shirley happy.’ Percy said with heightened excitement in his eyes.

I am not your sister! Why are you saying things that imply a proposal?
Shirley replied quietly, ‘Mr. Luke, my sister is afraid. She would be

troubled hearing something like that from a man she didn’t know well.’

Percy’s expression fell like it was the end of the world, and dropped his

hand from my shoulder. He turned to Shirley and said, ‘I am so sorry,

Shirley. I just got carried away because you were so beautiful. I am amazed

and overwhelmed. Please understand I would like to marry you.’

Shirley shyly dropped her gaze as she blushed from his confession. It must
be the first time she had received such a burning love confession.

‘If that is true, then I will think about it. I will let my sister judge if you
would be a good person for me.’
Eh?! Why do I have to judge?!

Percy, Shirley, Susanna and the people passing by were all staring at me; I
wanted a hole to open up there and swallow me. So I took a deep breath and
said,
‘If you’re really serious about Shirley, come back in a month’s time. You
say you fell in love at first sight? If you still like Shirley in a month, you
can start courting. Would that be fine?’

I came up with a good plan! In a month, I would have returned to Hermiata.

It didn’t matter; Shirley could get along with Percy and marry him if she
wanted to.

‘I understand, Sister! I will show you my integrity and determination!’

Other people had been listening to our conversation (Zuben: Busybodies).
When Percy accepted, the crowd cheered and applauded. Jolie got excited

by the excitement and began to bark and wag his shaggy black and white
tail.

Zuben: I don't understand why she did not go and find him to confront him.
It just seemed so out of character not to, or is that just me?
Presenting: The Villian Proposed
 Pixiv - Axle

39 Percy’s Passion:

Yesterday, I unexpectedly met Percy; it was nerve-racking, but I managed to

get through it undiscovered. If I really thought about it, the Duke should not

be searching for me since he was marrying Isabel.

‘Good Morning, Miss Julia, would you like help with anything? I can do

anything pretty well.’ I jumped at the masculine voice. It was Percy, dressed

neatly, standing just inside the door of the room at the back of the inn we
had commandeered for use. We had just got a delivery of caramel and I was

repackaging them with Hannah.

I don’t understand. Why is this guy here so early in the morning?! He

promised to come back in a month’s time yesterday! What exactly

happened here?

Percy had asked Susanna about me and Shirley and he had been told about
Hannah as well. Although, he now knew my name, he did not realise I was

the Julia. That meant my disguise must be pretty good.

‘Personally,’ he began, ‘I think Shirley is simply embarrassed. So even

though, she wants your approval, I think it will be alright. I will endure not
meeting Shirley for a month, but in the meantime, I want you to get to know

me.’
They had only just met, barely had a conversation: where did the
confidence that Shirley liked him come from? He is as idiotic as his boss,

but I was sure to have trouble keeping up with him; I had to do something
about this.

As I finished packaging, Percy collected the caramel in my hand,

‘I will take this for you. I know Shirley and I have only just met, but my

feelings are genuine. The moment I saw her, everything changed,

everything is different. I know it isn’t logical, but that's the thing about
falling in love.’

‘I understand that it doesn’t matter what time it takes to love someone, but
you don’t have to try to impress me. I can’t raise any objections if you are

sincere about Shirley and she likes you as well. So don't bother with me,
and wait your month quietly.’

‘But I also want to get to know you, Miss Julia. Shirley likes you, so I want
to get to know everything and everyone she likes. But I can see why Shirley
calls you sister. You came to Myseln to sell and promote your region’s local
sweets, didn’t you? I admire that go-getting attitude. Are all women named

Julia like that?’

I would be troubled if you ask me such a thing. I am both of them. I

remained silent as we went out to deliver the caramel. Percy and I walked
side by side,

‘You have the same name as a bossy woman I met recently. She is wealthier
than you, but she had great ability and judgement, I thought it was a pity
she was a woman. Somehow, she disappeared. If she is caught by my boss,

she will have a hard time.’

His last sentence piqued my interest, so I tried to casually ask Percy more

details,
‘What could she have done? I wonder if Julia is really her name.’
‘No. It’s my boss’ privacy, so I can’t say more.’

You have slipped so far, there isn’t privacy anymore, break your mouth
quickly! (Zuben: Cool headed Julia)

‘Hmm, I’m not sure which kind of men Shirley likes, but I can introduce
other men to her while you’re waiting. Modest, delicate…’

‘Come on! I understand. But this is a secret.’

It seemed my petty threat worked.
‘My boss is a very capable man. He does difficult work with a calm

disposition. But he fell in love with a woman who decided to be with

someone else. When he got the parting letter from her, a big hole opened in
the wall of our office. ‘
‘A-a hole?! Why?’

‘Well, when he first read the letter, he was statue still for a few minutes, but
then he got up shouted her name and punched the wall next to him. And that

wall isn’t easy to break like that. He must have been very angry.’
I wondered if that letter had any elements that could make him that angry.
Certainly there were a few sarcastic phrases, but the letter was mostly

thanking him. I wasn’t overtly rude; I just asked that we never see each
other again. Was that it?

‘Well, she disappeared after writing the letter; she had said in it that she
never wanted to see him again. But the boss has been searching for her

since then, without rest. It’s gone from pure love to pure horror. It is the
first time I have seen the boss so desperate. If you love someone so much,
that love can become hate.’

‘Why is he so angry? Did he like the woman that much? Couldn’t he just
marry another woman?’

‘No such thing. The boss is very handsome; so many women try to coerce
him into marrying them. That lady is the first woman I have seen close to
the boss. Although, there are lots of rumours of him being a philanderer, I

think it is a lie. I personally thought that my boss was homosexual and just
used the rumours of womanising to mislead people. But it looked like he
loves this woman passionately, so I realised that I was wrong.’
It was strange that the Duke’s subordinate denied any talks about marriage

with Isabel. I wonder what it meant. No matter how much Isabel rushed
ahead, it was hard to carry out a lie like this. (Zuben: It's like she doesn't

know what kind of person her cousin is)

‘If you come across that woman, Mr Luke, will you catch her and hand her
over to your boss?’

‘Lord no! I will tell her to get away; I don’t know what my boss will do to

her if he found her in his current state. I did not think he loved her so much.
She’s really something to run away despite being loved by our very

esteemed boss. It’s a good thing that she isn’t carried away by his

handsomeness. The person she likes is pretty handsome too.’

I watched Percy laugh, while my head was spinning.

I did not understand why the Duke was desperately looking for me after

being mad at the letter. (Zuben: selective hearing) I hadn’t realised that the

marriage with Isabel was not going to happen when I left the Bourbon
Manor. In any case, I am was Myseln because I did not want to be involved

with him anymore, but if he was looking for me, it would not be long before

he found me. I wondered how to escape.

First, Percy and I finished the deliveries. Then I found a quiet street and

dragged Percy into a corner. And got up in his face. Percy looked at me in
shock at my actions. It must have looked like I was trying to attack him.

‘Dear Mr Luke, I know your name is really Mr Percy. If you don’t want me

to expose your true identity to Shirley, you will help me. I really don’t want
to see his Grace again, but as long as I’m here in Myseln, I will be found. If

you hide me, he won’t find me. If you help me, I will encourage Shirley to

date you, in a month. How about it? Do we have a deal?’

‘Ho-hold on! You’re the Julia?!’ Percy shouted.

40 Julia in the Night:

I dragged Percy to a nearby café to discuss the plan. We took seats at the

back of the café to be inconspicuous and ordered the strawberry tea that had
become popular in the city. (Zuben: does anyone in this stories attempt not

to eat some popular confection?)

Percy was living at the Magnaria Manor; he did not have his own abode. He
was usually transient except when he was staying at the Manor,

‘I am a single man that barely returns home from work. There has been no

need to have my own place…but you’re really the Duke’s Julia. I would

never have guessed.’ (Zuben: If she laid low, she never would have been
found)

Percy held his head in his hands. I had wanted to hideout at Percy’s place,

but I suppose that was out of the question. It would be dangerous to be

alone, but I couldn't take Hannah with me because she had to deliver the

caramel. And Hannah would never allow me to just go somewhere without

her in the first place.

Dammit. I can’t believe I would have to give up the freedom of being in the
city because of the Duke. It hadn’t even been for long either.

But, it was the Duke that is in the wrong. Why should I have to run about?

‘Fine! I have to see the Duke before he catches me and tell him not to look
for me anymore.’

‘Ju-Julia, are you serious? This person is the Duke of Magnaria!’

‘Is he a bear? He’s only human, and besides you say he hasn’t been

sleeping, but he would still return to his house at night. It would be easy to
catch him in the moment of weakness and talk quietly. I have a lot of things

I want to say to him.’

‘I don’t see where it is easy …’

After a bit of persuasive threatening, he accepted helping me sneak into the

Duke’s Manor. Once I parted from Percy, I went to a shop to buy something
to tie up the Duke with.

That night, once Hannah was snoring softly, I crept out of our room with

my gear and rushed to the place I was meeting Percy. He was waiting with a

carriage a few streets away. The night was very dark and it was hard to see
even with the pale moonlight.

‘Are you really going through with it, Miss Julia?’

‘Obviously. The preparations are complete; attacking is the best defence.

Let’s get going. It is far from Myseln?’

‘But, when you meet him, please don’t tell him I helped you or I will be

killed before I can meet Shirley again.’ Percy said with a deep shudder.

He drove the carriage for about twenty minutes when we came to a white
boundary wall. Was this the wall surrounding the Duke’s abode, I

wondered. I couldn’t hide my surprise as the wall went on and on before the

gate was visible. Maintenance must be difficult. This was real wealth. It
was wasteful that only the Duke and Percy lived in this huge mansion.

(Zuben: The servants don’t matter, I guess)

The portico was a long way from the main gate. When we reached it, the

butler, housekeeper and a several maids were waiting for us. The butler

noticed my presence,

‘She’s my informant. You don’t have to worry about her identity, I work
with her.’

The staff must know about their master’s work, as soon as the key word

was said, the butler relaxed and Percy took me to his room while I waited
for the Duke.

‘I don’t know when his Grace will return. Last night it was about 2 ‘o’

clock. Are you really going to wait?’

‘Hmm, it would probably be better to wait in the Duke’s rooms. If I stayed

here, I would not know if he has gone to sleep or not, and he may lock his

door. I will go and lie in wait in his rooms.’

‘That isn’t want I meant, but I know I can’t stop you.’

I took off my shoes and crept out of Percy’s room down the halls to the

Duke’s room. The servants' quarters looked to be in a separate building, so I

didn’t have to be overtly cautious, but I was sure the butler would be

waiting for his master’s return.

The doors to the Duke’s chambers were solid wood with delicate carving

work; I thought that it suited the owner of the room. I gingerly opened the

heavy door and slipped in. Inside, I was impressed by the prestige of the
room, there were no candles, but the moon shone though the high windows

into the dark room creating a striking picture. (Zuben: Did it sparkle in the
moonlight?)

The décor looked like it had been beautifully put together by a master down

to the vases. I sat at the foot of the huge bed in the shadows; I certainly

would not be noticed here when the Duke arrived.

As I sat there, the Duke’s scent surrounded me, reminding me of that rainy

afternoon. It felt like so long ago. While immersed in the memories, I began

to feel drowsy. I pinched my cheeks to keep me awake.

I woke to the loud sound of the door opening. Henry had returned. I heard

tired footsteps coming towards the bed, and the springs squeaked as he sat

and lay down.

I stiffened and held my breath, Henry, the Duke, the dreadful Duke who

tried to trick me. That most hateful Duke was right beside me! My heart

began to beat faster and my breathing sped up. I tried to calm down, so the

Duke would not hear me. He felt far away despite me being close enough to
hear his breathing.

This Duke, who was a member of the royal family, a brilliant gentleman,

should not have come across a woman like me. It would have suited him
more to be with a wealthy noble lady like Isabel. So why was he searching
for me so…I could not think of an answer. (Zuben: If you were as smart as
you think you are, we would not be here rolling our eyes)

I waited till I heard his breathing become deep and regular. My butt ached

from sitting on the floor so long, but I ignored it and rose to a crouch. I
carefully took out the rope out of my bag and rose fully upright.

I looked down at him, he was still handsome; his long lashes twinkled

against his neat face reminding me of the morning we were last together. As
I sat on the bed the springs made noise, at that moment, Henry opened his

eyes and called my name,

‘Julia…’
Presenting: The Villian Proposed
Sizh - Pixiv
 41 Lonely Passion:

Had he noticed?!
I stopped mid-motion and held my breath, but the Duke stared directly at

me. Time passed slowly with us staring at each other,

‘Julia…’ he called quietly. He may think this was a dream; I gave him a

gentle smile. I couldn’t afford him finding out it was really me and catching

me.

‘Henry, close your eyes,’ I whispered softly as I approached him, ‘have a

good dream.’

‘I don’t want to close my eyes, to be able to see you…I wanted to see you

so badly, Julia.’

How did he know it was me? My hair colour and its length were different; I

was in simple town clothes. How could he tell?

‘Shhhh…don’t say any more.’

I hid the bindings behind me as I leaned over Henry. Our lips were close

enough and he kissed me deeply. I felt like I was attacked by his scent from

inside. I frantically pulled back so I could take a cleansing breath. Henry lay

back against his pillow, his soft golden hair spread out with his sleepy

sapphire blue eyes staring up at me.

I guided the rope through a hole in the ornate lattice headboard above

Henry’s head, and then I took his hands above his head and tied them
together. Once he was secure, I clambered on top of him and straddled him

and laughed in his face.

‘Your Grace, you should not be able to move at this moment. So, since you
were looking for me, I have come to see you.’

He gave a puzzled look, ‘Julia?!’

‘Duke Magnaria, did you not understand my letter? I told you I never

wanted to see you again.’

He realised it wasn’t a dream, and he was suddenly awake. He tried to move

his hands but they had been tied fast to the headboard. He stared at me in
frustration.
‘Julia, how come you’re here? Why have you been hiding from me?'

‘Stop looking for me! I never want to see you again. I just came here to tell
you this. It is really annoying to hear that you have been searching for me.

So I need you to swear never to look for me again. If you do, I will release
you.’

Henry shook his head and gave sad smile, then his expression became
serious as he said, ‘I will never promise such a thing. You told me you
would wait for me, was it a lie?’
‘I do not remember making any promise with you. Originally, we had

nothing to do with each other; you should marry Isabel and I will marry a
man who can inherit my family name. It’s easy. I was never interested in

you. Let us go back to that. This is my wish.’ (Zuben: Aunty, you were the
one who got involved in his business in the first place.)

‘So are you going to marry, James? Do you love him?’

‘James has nothing to do with it. You need to leave me in peace.
Impoverished nobles have their pride as well. I’m going now. Goodbye,

your Grace. Be well.’

‘No! Wait, Julia!’

Just as I was about to get off the Duke, he somehow used his body to turn
me over so I was now under him, although his hands were still tied above
his head.

‘You will never escape me. I have decided to never let go of you the
moment I see you again, and then you came to me yourself. I will keep you

here in my manor forever. That is the only thing you need to talk about.’
What a horrible thing to say! Why am I still being threatened even though

he is the one with his hands tied? (Zuben: Is he an ordinary nincompoop?)

‘Hold on a moment! How dare you threa-‘
He kissed me before I could finish my sentence. A sense of nostalgia filled

me as he kissed me over and over.

‘How you feel doesn’t matter anymore. You can try to run with all your
might; I will chase you forever. I will never give up on you.’
‘That’s…preposterous!’

I could not move at all, he pressed me down and continued to kiss me

deeply. His kissed were filled with his passion and rage, which for some

reason, made me begin to cry. The tears I had thought had been exhausted
were flowing again and filling my eyes. When he noticed my tears, Henry
pulled away,

‘I hate you…I hate you so much…’ I sobbed.

I cried feeling sorry for myself. Tears fell one after the other down my face

to the sheets beneath me.

‘Julia…please don’t cry. I never want to see you cry. I just want you to stay

by my side.’
I didn’t reply but continued to sob. He put his face against mine and rubbed.
I realised because his hands were tied, he was trying to wipe my tears with

his face. My tears made his face wet, and soon I did not know which one of
us was crying.

Why did he behave like he loved me? But did he behave like this to just
me? I’m sure he had done the same to other women. (Zuben: Oh for fuck
sake!)

‘Stop it already. Don’t disturb my heart anymore.’

‘Do I? Do I disturb your heart? Does that mean you care for me? Please tell
me you care. Please tell me you love me, Julia.’
Our cheeks were against each other, so I could not see his face as he said

these words. I could only feel a slight tremor in his voice and here the pain
in his whisper. (Zuben: But no, he’s a no-good dirty rat, right?)

‘No, I don’t care for you!’ I replied, ‘I absolutely hate you! It would be nice
if you just marry Lady Isabel and leave me be!’ (Zuben: Julia, you
arsehole!)

‘Julia, do you think that it does not hurt me when you say things like this.

Have you ever thought for one moment how I feel when you say you hate
me?’

I pushed him away from me, my face was still wet, but water dropped from

the end of his chin onto my eyebrow as if Henry was crying.

‘Julia…’ he pleaded.
I turned away from him; I did not want to be fooled by him. I did not want

to be affected by the pain in his voice.

I looked at the darkness outside the window and remained silent. After a
while, Henry lifted himself off me and I escaped from him quickly. As I got

off I heard him ask quietly from behind me,

‘Is there any possibility that you care for me?’

‘No.’ I replied without turning. I could not see because my eyes were filled

with tears. I searched for the bag I had brought with me; rummaging
around, I found a small pair of scissors which I put into the Duke’s open

hand.

‘Use this to cut the binding. Be careful, if you cut your hands, they take
long to heal because you have to use your hands.’ I spoke without looking

at his face.

‘Have your injuries healed?’He asked.

‘Physical injuries get better day by day, but injuries of the heart don’t heal
so easily. Goodbye, your Grace. It was unexpectedly fun.’

I crossed the room, opened the door, stepped out and closed it, without

looking back.

42 Return to Hermiata:

I returned to Percy’s room without getting caught. He hadn’t slept for fear

so the door opened the moment I reached his door. He was surprised to see
me crying but he gave me a reproachful look, before he went to prepare the

carriage to take me back to the inn. It was in the wee hours when I reached
the inn, Percy bid me goodnight and returned. I used the key I had

borrowed from Shirley to enter the inn through the back-door and crept up

to our room. I dived into my bed so as not to make a lot of noise. Hannah
had not noticed my absence, she was still fast asleep. I lay on my bed

unable to sleep, my heart hurt from my first and last heartbreak.

‘It’s alright,’ I told myself, ‘Lots of people have gotten over heartbreak in

the past. No one ever died of a broken heart. I will be alright. I…will be…
alright…’

I muttered over and over again.

(Zuben: Imagine being the cause of your own heart break because you have
selective hearing and selective reasoning)

Time flowed quickly. The sales of caramel in Myseln was successful, we

had established a few steady customers. Even if there were customers that
would stop buying when we left Myseln, we still had a enough contacts that

would ensure business would flourish. That being said, I still wanted

someone to stay in Myseln to be the face of Hermiata caramel here. I

wanted Hannah to stay and be this person. I spoke to her about it a week

before we were due to leave for Hermiata. But she was a bit reluctant,

‘You want me to stay here and sell the caramel? But who would look after

you, Miss? Not everyone can care for a strange Miss as you.’
‘Pardon me, I will reflect on my character. From now on I will try to act

like an exemplary lady and live gracefully. I have to start looking for a
husband in earnest before I turn twenty. So Hannah, you have to become

your important person’s bride with peace of mind.’

Hannah blushed as we packaged the recent shipment of caramel.

‘No, Miss, I have decided that I would not marry until you did.’

Did she had any idea how she looked right now?

‘It’s alright, worst comes to worst, I can always marry James.’

‘Why is marrying a Prince “worst comes to worst”? I really don’t

understand you sometimes.’ Hannah said with some exasperation.

‘I don’t know what your values are, but I want you to be happy! You being

here is also useful; we will have a base from which to launch Hermiata
speciality products from. Don’t you think that will be good? Stay here, be

with Thomas. And if things don’t go well, I can always re-hire you as my

maid.’

‘Miss…I’m not sure if I should be happy or sad, but your care has been
transmitted. Thank you.’ She said tearfully embracing me.

I was deeply affected by our impending parting; Hannah had been my maid

since I was a little girl. Still I enjoyed the carefree like of a town girl for one
more week and had a sentimental farewell with Hannah. Shirley cried a lot

on the day I was leaving, it was a bit distressing,

‘Oh Shirley, I have something to tell you,’ I said taking her aside, ‘I’m

really a minor aristocrat from a very rural province, Hermiata. I’m sorry I

hid it from you.’ I didn’t want to lie to her anymore since she had been

asking to be my sister (Zuben: <.<)

‘But I will be coming back and I will be staying here again, alright.’

She nodded, her hazel eyes full of tears, and hugged me.

‘As for Luke, you can date him if you like, but do it with your eyes open. If
you like him, marry him, but only if you are confident that you will both

think of each other even when times are hard.’

She nodded against my chest.

‘Sister, please come and see me again. I will be waiting for you.’ She said
tearfully.

I said goodbye to the people I had met, asked Hilda and Thomas to look

after Hannah. With that, my life as a commoner ended. I returned home.

I restored my hair colour, wore my own clothes, and I hired a woman to

accompany me on my long journey back on the stage coach. On the

journey, I recalled how I met Marius. I had no idea, the sharp-eyed man

would be the famous Duke of Magnaria.

Percy told me, the Duke stopped looking for me after our meeting. He must

be preparing for his marriage to Isabelle now. The invitation may come to
us in Hermiata, as we are relatives, but I will refuse to go due to illness. I

have not forgotten Henry, so I cannot genuinely congratulate them.

When will I forget him? When will I stop remembering?

We passed many towns and soon the towns and villages were separated by

wider and wider countryside, soon we reached Hermiata. I had hit with a

sense of nostalgia from the familiar sights and scents. I felt like I had been
in a dream.

After three long days of travel, I arrived home to my father, mother and

familiar servants that I had not seen in what felt like an age, who were
waiting to greet me. But there was a familiar face I was so shocked to see,

so shocked my heart stopped.

‘Hello Julia, it’s been forty-eight days and five hours since we last met. I
am glad I finally get to see you. ‘

‘James! What are you doing here?’ I cried out in shock.

But he tossed his hair, and had a mischievous glint in his blue-green eyes.

Zuben: Do you think Julia has inferiority complex to/for Henry? Could it be
that she can't believe such an outstanding guy could actually truly love her?
That's why she would rather run around in stupid circles. Or is this just
denseness for drama sake?!
Presenting: The Villian Proposed
Pinterest
 43 Julia Entangled:

My family and servants hugged me with happy faces on my arrival, but

they watched nervously as James embraced me. My father nearly fainted

from the sight. I saw him go blue from the corner of my eye.

He was already shocked by the letter from the Prince of Basseterre that

arrived a few days before the Prince himself. And now said prince was

embracing his unworthy daughter who had lost three fiancés!

‘I was going crazy not being able to see you. But I waited patiently,
compliment me.’ (Zuben: ah so needy, gives me the heeb-jeebs)

He grinned like a dog who wanted his master’s love and approval. My

mother blushed as she watched us, while my father was still pale. I had no

choice but to laugh adoringly at James. James had pursued me to Hermiata

on his own carriage and arrived an hour before I did. I later heard from

Hans, our butler, that there had been quite some trouble preparing rooms for
the Prince and his entourage. It was rare for such an esteemed guest to come

to such a frontier.

As I lay in my familiar bed resting from my journey, I was flummoxed that

the Prince of Basseterre had chased me from the Capital all the way to the

frontier.
 The next day, we sat for tea in my drawing room to escape the curious

eyes of my household. My home’s décor and furnishings paled in

comparison to the Bourbon Manor. Here, the once elegant wallpaper was

peeling off from age. The stucco had cracked in places...In anticipation of
James’ arrival, my father had ordered the worn and torn tapestries to be
dusted and patched to minimise their miserable state, but this caused weird

wrinkles and breaks and made the unnaturalness of it all more obvious. It
was so vastly different from the Bourbon manor, I hoped that he would take

one look at the dilapidation and give up on me…but from what I know of
his character, he would not. Yet, it might be interesting.

James was fascinated by our table set; it seemed he had never come across
such a simple presentation. But James turned to be the kind of person that
was attracted to something different. He touched the china many times and

clinked the silver against sturdy porcelain fascinated by the sound. Once he
was satisfied, he turned to me.

‘Did you think you could turn down my proposal with such a letter?’ He
began smugly, ‘I was shocked that you were returning to Hermiata.

Nevertheless, the situation with Edward has been resolved, and here we can
talk slowly without any disturbance.’
‘Hold on a moment, James, I refused your proposal. Many times.’
‘Yes, you were concerned about the difference in status. There is no need to

worry, I have gotten permission from George, and he gave his blessing
granted I support him. Next is to get permission from your parents, but I

think the reply would be good. I wonder how they would take a son-in-law
with a large dowry.’

I was taking a sip of my tea when James said his final sentence, I choked. I
held my handkerchief to my mouth to cough. James was supporting George
in exchange for permission to marry me?! How could he make such a trade

for something so trivial? Didn’t the future of Basseterre hang on the

balance?!

James rose from his seat and knelt before my chair. He patted my back. His
eyes were smiling, but they held a carnivorous light; like a hunter beholding
his prey. I appear to be the prey in this case.

‘Are you alright, Julia?’ he asked solicitously, ‘Were you delirious with
happiness? I told you, you could not get away from me, but since you tried,

I had to fill the outer moat. I knew this kind of hand would be most
effective to catch you.’

‘Just…a-‘
‘I spoke to the King and Queen of Bosch; this marriage would be a union
between our countries. It strengthen the political relations between Bosch

and Basseterre. And it would not be a bad thing for the Hermiata Viscount
for a royal of Basseterre to enter the family tree. Let’s make lots of children
together, Julia.’ (Zuben: Like making lots of children with your brother)
‘James, just wait a minute, I need to gather my thoughts.’

I turned away from him trying to decipher what was going on. No matter
how I thought about it, James had me well and truly. I felt like a rabbit on

the verge of falling into a trap. With a paranoid sticky hunter nearby, there
was no where left to escape except to get entangled.
I knew he was a great tactician, but I never thought he would go so far to

have me. I find that I had been naïve to think that his clingy ardour would
fade in the month apart.

James lightly chuckled as he took my hands. He ran his finger along my

palm while staring into my eyes,

‘I noticed that you have cut your hair. And the wounds…it looks like there
is still some scarring. I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you.’ His tone was full of
sadness and filled me with some warmth.

He held my hand against his lips and licked the scars.

He gave me a bright smile and asked, ‘So when shall we get married? The

Queen has given permission to use the Castle for the wedding. You don’t
have to worry about the cost of the wedding. Now that Edward has been
imprisoned, all his wealth and holdings have been transferred to me. I want
you to wear the most beautiful wedding dress. I’m sure you would look
breathtaking.’
Everything was developing too rapidly for me,

‘But James, I have someone…I like…’

Although, it ended with my heart broken, I didn’t think it was fair to James

or any other man to be with them while I still felt this way. So I had been
deceived by Henry. I had heard later on that Henry fled after taking Isabel’s
virginity. The Earl Bourbon went to the King to demand the Duke take

responsibility, which is why Henry could only marry Isabel. If the Duke

was marrying Isabel, there was no reason not to marry James. It would not
be bad to live here with my father and mother. As long as I stayed here in

Hermiata, I would never have to see the Duke again.

‘I only see you, Julia. I don’t dally with other women like Henry. I swear to

love you and make you happy, even if you still like Henry I don’t care.
Rather, I’m sure you will come to love me as well.’

‘James…’

He rose while kneeling and pushed his face against mine so our foreheads
and noses were touching. Because he was still lower than me I was slightly

bowed over him,

‘I like feeling your body temperature the most; your warmth will warm my
heart again. Forty eight days apart was too long. Let me stay here for a little
while,’

He had his eyes closed with an expression of ultimate relaxation. His deep
affection was sweet and touched me more than his words of love…

although, I felt as though I did not like the overlapping of our bodies. Even

though his head was only slightly warm against mine, I felt closer to James
than if it were a full hug.

I realised James really loved me and did not want to let me go anymore. I

began to think it might be good to forget everything and let myself be

surrounded by his gentle yet intense affection as though I was being

swaddled tightly in soft cotton. (Zuben: even if the cotton is soft it will still

be uncomfortable)

‘James, it will be difficult to be married to me, are you sure about this?’
‘I know. You’re the kind of woman who escaped and came back to help me,

incapacitating two Grusk men. You incited Edward to let me go and attack

you. Even if I search all over the world, I would not find another like you. I
want you to save me from the darkness; I want you to marry me.’ (Zuben:

Save yourself! - Camp Henry*)

He held my hand tightly, his eyes were still closed. I realised his hands were

trembling lightly.
I took a deep breath, sat up and leaned over again. I looked at James who

had opened his eyes,

‘Very well, James. I will accept your proposal.’

44 Julia is Getting Married?:

From then on, James did a good job of doing things appropriately. First,

he spoke to my parents; my mother approved as expected, but my father

was sceptical, and made many attempts to assure himself of James’

seriousness many times.

‘I’m sorry,’ my father said, ‘I find it hard to believe that his Highness would
be willing to marry Julia and take on our family name. Isn’t there a little

hesitation? Julia is certainly a beautiful girl, good natured and proud. But

even as a father, I can’t imagine you would fall in love with her at first
sight. Couldn’t you be a bit more patient before you settle on the idea of

marriage?’

James and I were standing side by side, he was clutching my hand but he

laughed as he replied, ‘I agree, I didn’t fall in love with her at first sight.
But as time went on, I realised she understood me the most and I understand

her well too. I love how different she is, I also like the parts of her that are

still shrouded in mystery.’

Mother made a cry of excitement at James’ heated confession. She looked

happy at the thought of a man who had ardent affection for her daughter and
was willing to marry into the family,

‘Isn’t it wonderful, Julia? I’m so happy for you. Thank you for loving our

daughter, James.’ (Zuben: What will they do about Henry?)

My mother had fallen for James’ pleasant young man visage. My father

reluctantly accepted it, because of James’ well put together speech.

I turned to look at James; he looked down at me and smiled. I did not have

the crazy upsurge of yearning I had with Henry, but with James the feelings
were more relaxed and fun. There is a glimpse of obsession in James, but he

wasn’t totally hopeless. If I was prepared to bear his heavy affection, our

relationship will last. I will have to understand his fragile parts as well.
‘Julia, open your mouth…’ he commanded.

‘Hmm…’

I was stunned as James kissed me hard. After our reunion a few days ago, as

soon as we were alone, James immediately wanted to kiss me. As I opened

my mouth, he inserted his tongue twisting it around mine. He kissed me

making me swallow his saliva as though he wanted to confirm I was his

over and over.

We were in the garden behind our house, hidden behind hedges. Our garden

was mostly a maze of hedges, which were easier to manage than flowers.
This had become of James’ favourite places. James seemed to like our

Hermiata lifestyle. He had surprisingly adapted to life here quickly, and had

begun to get along with the servants of the house. Now he knew more than I

knew about the private lives of our servants. But it was only to me he would
show the darkness of his heart.

‘Julia, can I hold your hand before I sleep tonight again? When I do, I don’t

have nightmares.’
He put his head on my shoulder looking like a spoiled child.

‘Alright. Shall I sing a lullaby as well?’ I replied as I put my hand on his

back and patted him lightly. He took deep breaths as though he was

relaxing, he wriggled as though he wanted to be stroked more. It was a

complex sensation to be accustomed to the idea of treating one’s fiancé as

though you are taming a wild animal.

‘Yes, that would be nice. Your voice feels so good I want to reach into the
back of your throat and lick you. I imagine it would taste deliciously sweet.’

(Zuben: are there people in the world who like this kind of thing? What am

I saying? Of course there are!)

‘Um...hm…!’
He kissed me without waiting for my reply. It was open mouthed and his

tongue squirrelled down my mouth towards my throat, stirring my mouth as

he searched. (Zuben: Choke her, why don’t you?) It went on so long, it

stopped being a kiss, and our mouths were dampened with saliva.
‘Julia,’ he panted, ‘you’re such a child…making such a mess.’ He sucked

on the skin around my jaw were saliva had dripped down.

‘Eh…I think it is your drool. I don’t kiss like that.’ I replied embarrassed

putting my hand against my lips. (Zuben: Is this deliberately unsexy or am I

not just feeling it?)

James smiled like a cat that had got the cream.

‘You only need to think of me like that. I will make all the preparations for
our wedding. Your wedding dress will be the most beautiful in the

Kingdom. Before we get married, you will have to go with me to Basseterre

to meet George, and we have to report to the King and Queen of Bosch as
well. And tell Henry.’

‘His Grace…?’

Yes, the Duke and James were close friends it was impossible never to meet

again.
‘Do you not want to see Henry? Are you worried?’

My expression must have been anxious. But I replied quietly my gaze on

the hands on my shoulder, ‘No it’s not that. I’m just worried I would look
like a light skirt marrying you. With your friendship, he might be opposed

to us marrying.’
‘It’s alright, if he is, we can run away together. You will not be a noble. I
will not be a Prince.’ He spoke lightly, but when I looked at him I could see

the ghost of the Duke.

‘Yes? We can sell caramel together. You can help promote the brand and
make a variety of products and sell our product all around the world.’

‘Can we take over the world with caramel? Such a role may be appropriate

for a Prince in name only who has been used as a chess piece since he was a
child.’ He said as he rubbed his cheek against my hair. I reached up and

batted him on his head lightly,

‘Don’t be fool; no one is obsessed with your identity. First and foremost,

you are James with a distorted personality; the position of Prince is an

attachment. You grew up to be a national treasure class evil guy; you just

need to use your status to your advantage.’

‘I see, the prince is not me, but I am the Prince. Julia has an interesting way
of thinking.’ (Zuben: Sure if you say so)

‘What do you want? What kind of person do you want to be? That, you
need to think about, James.’
‘I know…five years ago, the group that tried to use me for their ends

abandoned me. They and the people that looked down on me in the
aftermath, I want to line them up and make them kneel in cow dung to beg
for forgiveness. Fortunately, Hermiata has cow dung.’ He said with a
malicious grin, then immediately returned to his gentle smile. The strange
switch made chills run down my spine.
Despite my discomfiture, I replied, ‘Is that what you want? Sounds like a

fun plan. Know your enemy, look for their weaknesses and attack them
thoroughly. But, it is important to remember your exit strategy because
people fight hard when they are cornered. ‘

One could not let such an obsessive paranoid man loose. He needs to be
taught moderation and where the limits are. James suddenly carried me in
his arms, lifting me so high my jaw was hovering over his shoulders.

‘Julia, you always laugh and accept me. I love that about you. I wish you
could live here in my arms forever…it looks like I am being disturbed at
such a time. Hans[1], what is going on?’

‘Huh?’
‘Prince James, Miss, I’m sorry to intrude but there is a bit of an emergency.’
Hans was the butler but also father’s friend. For him to come and look for

us in this maze, was it very important?

‘There is an urgent missive from the royal castle; the message said a

carriage was being sent to fetch you to come to the castle. The carriage will
arrive in four hours. I thought it would be best to let you know so you
would be prepared.’
James held me tight so I could not turn to look at Hans. I asked him to let
me down but he would not.
‘That’s unfortunate. They knew I was coming to see Julia for a while.’

I tried to push off James but he would not budge, he seemed to have no
regard at being seen in this position by Hans. I could not speak up due to

embarrassment.
‘Actually, the carriage isn’t for you, Prince James, but for the Miss. The
Queen wants to see her.’

‘What?!’ I twisted myself unnaturally to look at Hans in shock.

[1] Continuity error: Hans and Boris: In chapter 43, Hans was the butler, in

this chapter his name has changed to Boris, I have chosen to use Hans as his
name appeared first; unless I’m making some kind of error here.
Presenting: The Villian Proposed
Chris Cocozza
 45 To the Royal Castle:

In a flurry, the servants packed as I got ready for another journey back to

the capital. We waited in one of our sitting rooms for the royal carriage to

arrive. Although our house was poor, the rooms of the manor were very
large. I sat on a long bench that barely took up room.

Since I was going to the castle to see the Queen, James would be

accompanying me. In addition, we would announce our engagement. I was

relieved to hear he was coming with me, because I would be too anxious to

meet the Queen by myself.

‘But why would the Queen want to see me?’ I asked James as we waited,

‘Do you think she is against the marriage? I mean, a poor noble marrying a
prince; she might be thinking it is inappropriate.’

‘It could not be that, Queen Eleanor was delighted when I informed her I

wanted to marry you.’ James replied soothingly, ‘Although I want everyone

to know we are getting married, I was hoping to enjoy more quiet times

with you.’

He put his head on my shoulder then nuzzled me sweetly. Since I accepted

his proposal, he had intensified his closeness each passing day. He behaved

like a spoiled child so it wasn’t too bad. But the warm gaze of the servants

was a bit uncomfortable. I just had to keep reminding myself that to be with
him I had to endure such embarrassment. Looking at James’ satisfied face,

it was strange I was so accepting.

‘Do you think she wants me to return the white dress the Duke loaned me?’

I asked after a short silence.

‘No. While the dress is expensive, I don’t believe the Queen is attached to it
at all. There is no way she wants it returned.’

‘Is that so…?’ I replied as I ruffled his soft maroon coloured hair. James sat
up, lifted me and placed me upon his lap.

‘James! What are you doing?’

‘The bench is hard; I don’t want your bottom to hurt. And this way, I can

feel you closely. We won’t be able to do this at the castle; just say you’re
unwell and refuse to go. We can remain here and I can hug you like this
forever.’ He said as he nuzzled my hair, it felt pleasant.

‘I am not declining the Queen’s invitation; it will be the first time for me to
meet Queen Eleanor! I wasn’t able to meet her at the royal ball.’

‘I’m also a royal prince, though. But you’ve never seen me as a prince.’
That was true. From the first moment we met, I was more wary of his

insidious and cunning smiles that flashed behind his frivolous demeanour. I
only saw him as a watchful person rather than a prince. After that, he
wanted things he couldn’t have, and I could only see him as a child that was
in danger of shattering. I did not forget he was a Prince, it just was not

sacred.
‘Thank you James, the Queen is simply a human being. It would be rude to

be needlessly afraid. But really James, you can’t behave like this in public.
The seat is cushioned.’

‘That isn’t what I meant but I am being your cushion. If I could, I will be
your dress; that way we could always be together.’ (Zuben: Leaving the
living furniture implications aside, she isn’t going to wear one dress all-day

every day. Although, James could be a convenient seat for her where ever
she goes)

He moved from my hair to my neck and began to kiss me there. The

sensation of his soft lips and hot breath made me feel strange.
‘I will have to wash you and hang you out to dry when you get dirty. You

can’t come in until you dry.’ I said with a giggle, ‘James, that’s ticklish.’
‘What a brilliant idea; it would be fun to be naked and washed by Julia.

Let’s try it sometime.’ He replied hotly against my neck. (Zuben: Y’all

could have tried it that night, not so long ago, but this is not that kind of

book orz)
I leapt off James’ lap just as one of the maids came to inform us that the
carriage had arrived. I wondered how the conversation went so side-tracked
as we left the room. Anyway, it wasn’t good for us to be seen holding each
other so much, I am more than embarrassed.
My parents and servants saw us off as we got on the royal carriage. The

carriage was luxurious and escorted by royal guard. Unlike the stage coach,
there was very little shaking and the horses went quite fast. On the sides,

the Bosch Royal emblem was emblazoned allowing us priority where ever
we went. The interior was crafted and decorated to exquisite detail. I could
only admire the beauty. Sitting in such lovely surroundings excited me.

James gave me as fond smile as he watched my giddy expression.

In truth, I found James’ affection for me overpowering. He was always

looking at me. I could see he was moved by my words and actions. It

looked like the attachment and love he had for the Duke had been

transferred to me.
‘James, how do you feel about the Duke Magnaria?’ I asked. I had been
thinking about this, and now was a good opportunity to understand more.

James was sitting on the other side of the carriage; he reached over and
grabbed my hand as he asked, ‘Are you jealous, Julia? I am so happy;

you’re the first person who had ever been jealous for me. Do you want to
know my feelings for Henry?’
His grip on my hand tightened as he stared straight at me. My heart was

ringing as he said, ‘Henry is the one and only important person in my life. I
want Henry to only look at me for the rest of our lives. Actually…it is the
same way I feel about you.’
‘Oh? Do you like his Grace in that sense too?’

‘I love him, but not in that way. But if it was necessary to do that to keep
him by my side, I would, but I didn’t have that option because Henry’s

didn’t function. But you’re a woman, so I’m glad I have nothing to worry
about.’ He said with a grin.
I smiled in return even though I thought his reply was a bit disturbing.

‘I love Henry, and I love Julia as well. It is impossible to have Henry all to

me, but you’re different. At first, my purpose was to observe the woman
Henry was interested in so I never expected to fall in love like this.’

Watching James talk so naturally, I laughed and said, ‘You’re really simple

and cute.’

‘After saying such things, I don’t understand why you would laugh and call
me cute, but I like that too. If I had Henry and you by my side, I have need

for nothing more.’ He said wistfully, tearful even though he was smiling.

James had been starved of his parents’ love since he was a child. Even
though he looked for it, it was never given to him. So the idea of parental

love became twisted. (Zuben: To anyone who gives him attention)

I pulled James to me as I slid to the end of the seat. I made him lay down
his head on my lap and gently patted his head. James was very tall so even
in the expansive royal carriage he was a bit cramped in this position. But he

would have to bear with it.

‘You’ve been a good boy,’ I said softly, ‘it’s alright. You’re also important

to the Duke. Think about it; he shouldn’t be able to be a spy as Duke. His

choice must have been opposed by all those around him. But he chose to do
so for you; to protect you from political machinations. I care for you a lot to

the extent that I thought it was okay for me to lose my hands.’

‘Julia, I can hear something…oh…I hear the sounds of your stomach…

oh…this feels nice.’

‘That’s the bread I ate for lunch. Just close your eyes.’

I gently stroked his head for time and then I said, ‘James, I cannot marry

you. Let’s cancel this engagement.’

46 Julia's Thoughts:

‘Why do you say that?’ James looked up at me in astonishment.

‘My thought is that, your feelings for me and the Duke are originally
intended for your parents. You want a love that is free of judgment, and my
feelings for you are far from those of a lover. I want to take care of you and

spoil you, like a mother thinks of a child.’ (Zuben: boy, she can be so

conceited)
‘No, it’s nothing like that,’ he protested, ‘I don’t agree.’

He clung to my waist; he looked like a child kneading his mother and he

looked adorable. He didn’t behave like a grown man of twenty four.

‘James, I can’t marry you, but we can still be friends; close friends.
Sometimes, I can hold your hand to help you sleep, or we can dig holes in

the backyard together, but we cannot marry. You can’t marry your mother,

can you?’
‘I don’t see you as my mother! I love you.’

‘James, I love Henry. Even if he married Lady Isabel, I love him. I have no

choice but to wait until this feeling fades-’

James shot up and pushed me over into the seat. He had both hands on my
shoulders. Looking up at him, I saw tears in his eyes. The tears fell and wet

my cheeks.

‘I do not want this! I will take you here and now. Would you still define our
relationship as mother and son after that?’ James said vehemently as he

tried to take off my clothes.

I did not try to stop him but stared at him gravely, ‘Even if that happens, I

would not love you that way. I will treat you as my best friend for the rest
of our lives. James, even if you are abandoned by the whole world, I will

always be by your side - I promise.’

We stared at each other; I saw no light of madness in his eyes. He had been

searching for love for a long time. I reached up and stroked his cheek.

‘You’re my precious friend,’ I said, ‘don’t make me kneel in cow dung and
beg forgiveness.’

James laughed through his tears,

‘Don’t worry; I won’t cause your family to wander the streets. But I’m sure

you already have an escape route, don’t you, Julia? I will let you go.’
‘Thank you, James. I love you.’

‘I love you too, Julia.’ (Zuben: Easy peasy contrivey, conveniently)

We stayed that way for a while, staring at each other. The repetitive sound
of the carriage wheel filled the silence as we travelled on. It was like the

sound of the heart...and for a moment it felt like we were in our mother’s

womb. (Zuben: Carriage womb. Carriage mommy. What kind of horse on

road sounds like a heartbeat?)

🂬
We spent the night at the residence of a rich noble arranged by the royal

retinue. The next day, we were speedily on our way back to the capital. It

took a day and a half to reach the city from Hermiata. Though, I had seen it

three months ago, my heart still leapt that the sight of the grandeur and
beauty of the royal castle.

When we arrived, I was taken to the suite I would be staying in while I was

in the castle. Shortly after, the Queen’s chamberlain came to inform me that
I would be dining with the King and Queen at supper. I was so thankful that

James came with me, or I would have died of nervousness. James had his

own residence in the East Palace, a little away from the Royal Palace, so he

returned there and was joining us for dinner.

In addition to the maid that came with me from Hermiata, I was provided

with three other maids, and was totally spoilt. Before dinner, I was bathed

and massaged with rose oils then I took a long nap.

For dinner, I was dressed in a yellow evening gown and my hair was put up

and decorated with fresh flowers. By the time they were done with me, it

looked like a different person in the mirror.

During the meal, the King asked about my future with James, but I didn’t
know how to explain. James laughed at my silence before he informed the

King and Queen that I had declined his proposal. The discussion moved on,
and James and his Majesty had pleasant conversation. Perhaps, this visit

was only about interest in James’ chosen fiancée.

After dinner, Queen Eleanor who had not spoken much during the meal,

informed me she would like to speak to me, separately. I could not imagine

what she wanted to speak to me about. I could only think it was about the

dress, which had been carefully cleaned and packed and brought with me. It
was safe to return it at any moment.

I tried to keep calm as the Queen’s chamberlain quietly guided me to a

small tasteful room where the Queen was waiting. She smiled gently as I
entered. Offered me a seat and the servants withdrew.

Despite her age, she was in her late forties, Queen Eleanor had a youthful

face, and her lovely silver hair shone. She had a mild smile on her face as
she said, ‘You were one of the women invited to the ball for Henry’s bride.

But I am concerned that you were not only trying to capture Henry but

James as well. Despite it all, Henry was taken with you.’

I quickly tried to correct the misunderstanding,

‘Your Majesty, that is not the case. I wasn’t chosen by Duke Magnaria. And

I heard that the Duke was marrying Lady Isabel.’

The Duke chose to marry Isabel; things with me were just for fun.
‘Lady Isabel? Oh...that clever little madam of the Bourbon? Her father has

admitted that it was all a deception. It is impossible for Henry to attack a

woman in the first place. Did you believe all that, Julia?’ (Zuben: Yes, cos
she’s a first class moron)

I stiffened in surprise at what the Queen had said. A cold sensation washed

over me.
‘Bu-but…’

‘I don’t know about the rumours out there, but Henry, unbelievably, had

never kissed anyone till he was twenty nine. His butler came to see me to
tell me that, although my nephew looks normal on a day to day, he barely

sleeps at night and all he does is call your name over and over again. I am

very worried about my nephew.’

‘But…’
The rumours of his womanising were rampant but to have never kissed

anyone?! So that night, that night at the royal ball was the first time he had

been kissed?! And it was me! And I forced him to drink my saliva!!
I thought I was going to fall off my perch on the seat from shock, but I

managed to keep my body steady.

But now I realised all the weird inconsistencies fit; the hyperventilation
syndrome, the nausea he had claimed, was as a result of stress from being

near a woman.
‘Henry changed since that night of the party to find his bride. I was
delighted to see that there were three women he liked, but it turned out not
to be the case. Why didn’t he choose you at the party?’
‘At the time,’ I hesitantly answered, ‘I was not interested in the Duke, so I
stood at the back of the line so he didn’t even see my face.’

‘But Julia, Henry seems to love you very deeply. Henry is my cute nephew
left in my care by my sister and her husband after they died. Although I
think it is wrong to interfere, I was worried that it would all be too late after

you went back to Hermiata, and James was going to propose to you. Henry
is such a clumsy child, you see.’
I would have never thought that the Duke loved me alone. I wonder why he

was never kind to me when if he loved me.

‘But he never told me anything. Whenever we met, he was always offish
and cold. I would never have thought he loved me.’

(Zuben: Hey, someone is telling porkies)

‘Henry has always been a handsome person; because of this he has no good
memories of women. Maybe, he didn’t know how to deal with it. He is so

clumsy; maybe you are his first love.’

‘His first love…?’

‘To me, James is a lovely child, but I could not afford to show him any care
because of his position. Do you understand? So it would have been nice if
you loved James and chose him. Yet, you turned down his proposal. Why?’
When we last met, the Duke told me he love me and would never let me go,
but I...I said awful things to him,
‘I...have said bad things to his Grace…’

I suddenly realised I was crying. Thinking of that night in his bedroom, my

heart tightened and the tears began to fall.

‘Oh Julia,’ Queen Eleanor said softly, proffering a handkerchief, ‘I didn’t

intend to make you cry. You mean you also love Henry? Such foolish
children; fooling each other. This is what it leads to.’

‘I love Duke Magnaria...from the first moment we met…’ I could not hold
back my honest feelings because my heart was warmly filling with my love
for Henry.

‘Alright, let’s call Henry to the castle in the morning. It is rather late now. It
would be best to solve the misunderstanding.’
‘Your Majesty, pardon me, but I would rather go now. Could you kindly call

a carriage for me?’

I couldn’t wait another moment, I wanted to see Henry. I wanted to tell him
how I felt.

Eleanor laughed, ‘You’re a funny girl. Very well, I will fetch the fastest
carriage. However it turns out, do come back.’

I rushed to my room and got a cloak, without any ado, got on the carriage
and was off to the Duke’s home. It was not far from the palace, we should
be there soon. Though it wasn’t that late, it was still rather late to be
visiting.

A carriage with the royal emblem was allowed through the main gate
without issue. The butler that met me and Percy the last time came to meet
me. He didn’t seem to notice that my hair colour was different.

When I told him my name, he lifted his face and his expression collapsed.
He led me to a drawing room and left to fetch the Duke. I sat in the chair

waiting patiently and nervously.

The butler returned and said told me, ‘I’m sorry, Miss Julia. His Grace does
not wish to see you.’

‘He said he doesn’t want to see me?’

‘I’m sorry, Miss Julia.’
‘I understand. May I sit here for a bit; I rushed out of the Castle after dinner

so I am a little tired.’
The competent butler seemed to get my meaning for he said, ‘That will be
fine, ma’am. The door is open.’ and he left.

I waited in the drawing room for a little while before venturing out. I
headed to his bedroom. The butler must have cleared the way, for I reached
the big doors to his room without encountering anyone.

I took a deep breath and entered. The room was in darkness. There was a
shadow of someone sitting on the bed with their back to the door. The moon
appeared and cast a long forlorn shadow on the bed.

‘Michael, has Julia left safely?’ He asked.

I silently approached the bed and raised my hand to touch his shoulder, but
he grabbed and twisted my hand and flipped me onto the bed and squeezed

my neck with his other hand.

I cried out.
‘Julia! You didn’t leave?’

Looking up at him, I could see his was a little gaunt in the light of the
moon, but I could not read his expression in the shadows.

‘Why have you come here again? Aren’t you engaged to James? Did you
come to ask for my blessing?’ He shouted in anger
He must have thought that was why I came. That was why he didn’t want to

see me.
‘Henry, release me! I came to talk to you.’
‘I have nothing more to say to you. I do not want to hear anything from you

either.’
‘Alright...then kiss me.’
I still could not see his expression, but I could tell he was surprised because

the hands that held me down shook.

‘You don’t want to talk, you don’t want to listen. Then just kiss me.’
I closed my eyes and parted my lips - inviting him. I did not know who long
it took, but time flowed slowly. Suddenly I was released and I felt a warm
weight on my body and his lips covered mine. All my senses were

concentrating on the sensation of his kiss, the pleasure flashed from my

head to my toes. Our kiss felt so good, it felt like I was drowning. But I
pulled myself together and turned my face.

‘That’s enough. Now move away from me.’

‘I refuse.’ He replied petulantly, remaining on top of me.
‘Henry, get off. I can’t breathe.’

‘Once I get up, you will leave. So I want to kiss you till you go.’ The tone
of his voice made my heart sore. I was frustrated by his dishonestly.
(Zuben: Oh really?)

‘Alright, let’s sit up first.’

He rose off me slowly pulling me with him. Finally I could see his face in

the light of the moon. He looked a little haunted, but he looked at me

without avoiding my gaze. His soft golden hair was lit in the moon, and his
blue sapphire eyes were deep like the sea.

He looked like he was still in the work clothes. His outer jacket was left on
but it was open. The first three buttons were open on his shirt. Looking at
his beautiful visage, I could not believe such a gorgeous man loved me and

wanted me so much. The desire to know how much was a bur in my head.
(Zuben: Julia and her pride)
Presenting: The Villian Proposed
 Cover for Brazen by Margo Magure - Pinterest

47 In the Duke’s bedroom 1:

‘Go back quickly, James will be waiting.’ he said finally. Contrary to his

words, his eyes filled with tears that glimmered in the moonlight.

‘Alright, I will return to the Castle.’ I got off the bed and slowly walked up
to the doors. I placed my hand on the handle and turned it, before I pulled

the door open; I turned back to the room and said,

‘I wanted to tell you, I have called off my engagement with James, so you
don’t need to give us your blessing. Goodbye, your Grace.’

I knew he would have turned to hear me, I had thought I would make it out

of the door and be able to run down the hall, but I underestimated the

physical power of a Knight.

‘Julia!’ He shouted.

Before I could throw the door wide, he was behind me with his hand on the

door. I’m certain he leapt up to me. He was breathing hard over me; I could

feel his heat on my back. He stood very close to me. Instead of speaking, he

dropped little kisses on the back of my neck and then his hands were all

over me.
‘No, don’t! We are at the door ahn~’
‘I am not letting you say anything anymore! You were the one who came

here. You were wrong! I am not going to stop. Do you know how much I

have suffered, not being able to see you?’ He growled.

His breathing was rising, I could sense his mounting excitement as his eyes

filled with heat. I had no choice but to leave myself to him as he held both

wrists in one hand and ripped my clothes off with the other. I tried to resist
but he held me tightly. He had gone wild, his hands were everywhere, and

kept saying my name over and over,

‘Julia! Julia! Julia I love you…’

I never imagined he would be so aroused. He seemed to have lost his sanity

and was not listening to me. He tore at my clothes, soon I was naked. Even

when I tried to resist, he tightened his hold with his large body close to

mine. As he mindlessly caressed my body, a sharp pain shot up from my

crotch,

‘Ouch! Stop it! Ow! Ow!’

I looked down, relieved to see that Henry just had his finger there. I had

feared that he was entering me like this. Henry seemed to have woken up,

because he paused in his movements.

I turned around and slapped him. The sound resonated in the room.
‘I told you to stop, it hurt!’
He held a hand to the slapped cheek with an apologetic expression he said,

‘I’m sorry Julia. I couldn’t help myself.’

I took off my drawers and my shoes, and stood fully nude before him.

‘No you are not forgiven. You need to be punished - sit on the bed.’
I picked up my drawers that had been dropped on the floor, when I rose;
Henry was smiling joyfully, even though tears were falling from his eyes. I

smiled back at him.

‘I can’t trust that you will not be up to mischief, so I am going to tie you

up.’
He was really dangerous. It was true that he had never made love to a

woman before. If I left it to Henry’s uncontrolled feelings, I will be taken

wildly. Even if it was Henry, I wanted my first time to be taken slowly and
romantically.

I tied his hands behind his back with my drawers. He had unbuttoned his
trousers; his towering figure was making its presence known. I felt abashed

being naked so I pulled a thin silk sheet to cover me.

‘Do you really love me, Henry? Why were you always so mean to me?’ I

asked as I pushed up against him and slid down his body between his legs.
My breasts had swollen and my nipples brushed against his body as slid
down, he panted sweetly,

‘Because you show your skin to other men…’ (Zuben: What skin? When?)
What a fool; was it because he was jealous? He was such a clumsy man.

I pushed away from him and pulled his underpants down with a finger, and
his cock sprung out as though it demanded air. It shook in its liberation, and

then stood rigid. It must have been embarrassing for Henry for he blushed
and tightened his legs around me.

‘No, Henry, open your legs. I can’t see properly.’

‘Well...my trousers are in the way…’
His face was red and his glowing blue eyes trembled with humiliation. I

pulled down his trousers and pants at the same time, and he relaxed with his
legs wide open on either side of me. He was trembling a little as he reached

the ultimate embarrassment.

‘Much better…’ I said.
Satisfied with his position, I covered myself with the sheet and lowered my

head over him. Since Henry could not see what I was doing, I could study it
carefully. It was a strange shape and colour, and it changed shape over time.

It was very interesting because there is nothing in women that change shape
and size.

After staring at it for a little while, I put my tongue out on the bag under the
stem. As soon as I did so, Henry jerked in response. I continued to lick that
area and I began to hear him panting. I started to use my fingers and tongue

as though I was playing with a toy. By his jerky movements and breathing, I
understood where and what he reacted to. I filled my mouth with saliva so
everytime I released my tongue a silver thread flowed out of my mouth and
down the meat rod.

‘Julia, take off the sheet...let me see you...oh’

I heard his plaintive plea, but ignored him and continued to lick and suck

anything that made him harden even more, using my tongue and lips.
‘Ah~ Julia…’ His lips started to rock as he got more and more excited. The
feeling of the silk rubbing against his skin as I sucked him up doubling his

pleasure. He came. I immediately covered his head to drink up the liquid

heat of passion.

I uncovered my head and rose. My mouth was filled his saliva and his acrid
heat and it stains my lips. I wiped the liquid off with my index finger as I

swallowed it. Henry watched my throat move as I swallowed, he mimicked

me. And then he smiled.
The fluid ran down my finger to my wrist and stopped.

Henry’s face was flushed from his release, his eyes were narrowed and he
was still panting. He was very sensual and arresting.

‘Julia, I want you. I want to see all of you and have everything.’
‘Tell me, my Duke, what do you want to see?’
‘I would like to rip off those sheets, part your legs to see how wet you are.

But I can’t use my hands.’

That...was quite the hurdle being a virgin. (Zuben: Say what? But you
just...) I was abashed even though he’s already seen me there once. I have
never compared myself so others so I don’t know if my privates looked

weird.
But since, Henry was also a virgin; mine would be the first woman’s bits

he’d ever seen. It would work in my favour, since he would not know what
is strange.
‘No, it’s too shameful, I can’t do it. I think it is wet enough.’

That was true, just the sight of this erotic Duke made my crotch ache and

wet. I knew it was pretty drenched without touching it. I had only sucked on
him; I would not have thought I would get wet from that.

‘You tied me up, made me open my crotch and undressed me. It was

humiliating. You should also have to do it; so we can be fair.’

Uh- he got me there. The word ‘fair’ really shook my self-esteem. But it
was true; I did do that to him.

So I got on the other side of the bed from Henry and lay down with my legs

facing him. I turned my gaze to the window. I couldn’t bear to look at

Henry’s face out of embarrassment, thinking about what was going to

happen next.

‘Open your legs, Julia,’ he commanded.

He was tied up, but somehow I was the one being ordered. Even if I thought

it was odd, I parted my legs.

I turned back to him a little, to see what he was doing. I noticed that his

cock that had just released his desire was already standing up again

reaching for the sky. If he just looked at my body and felt lust, I could not
really protest. I put my hands on my thighs and parted my legs wide. I could

feel the love juice drip down just from between my legs from him just

watching me.

Why didn’t he say anything? Was he mesmerised because I was so wet? I

faced him anxiously. He narrowed his eyes and said as he leaned forward,

‘I’m sorry, I can’t stand it…’

48 In the Duke’s Bedroom 2

Henry raised his body and dived into my crotch despite his tied arms.

‘Ah~’

Pleasure rushed up my body as his hot tongue licked my crotch. As his hot
breath hit my thigh, the sensation of pressure penetrated my toes. The bed
creaked as I rocked against his face.

‘Ah~ stop, it’s embarrassing…’

The obscene sound of love juice being sucked filled my ears, yet the
pleasure mounted - probably because of the embarrassment. My hands

found themselves in Henry’s golden hair as he licked me up and down.

‘Ah~ stop~ It feels too good~’

My body bowed and trembled as pleasure mounted and dyed my mind

white. I was intoxicated with the lingering sensation, and I could only hear

my intense breathing. When I settle down, I opened my eyes to see Henry

over me, his eyes heated with excitement.

‘Julia, I want to be inside you, I can’t bear it anymore.’

‘Alright, come on…’ I said opening my arms on invite him. He pushed his

hot tip against me. It felt thick, hot and pulsing pushing into the place where

love juice was overflowing from,

‘Oh oh~’

The narrow path felt ached as it was pushed open, but the pleasure I felt

exuded the ache and I lifted my waist to meet him. But it wasn’t going in so
easily,

‘Julia, you’re so tight. I can’t use my hands, because you tied me up. Hold

my hips to push me in.’

‘Even if you say that...ah~ I can’t do any more than this.’

It wasn’t going in because I was a bit too far up from him. But when I tried

to hold Henry’s firm muscled hips, but I reared back due to discomfort.
‘I can’t do it like this. Julia, take off the restraint. I want to be inside you.’

This tearing feeling was probably from the hymen. If I released Henry, he

will forcibly push his hips and I would be defeated violently. Isn’t that like
torture? (Zuben: Is it really?)

I shook my head; I wasn’t going to release him. If it was going to be broken

anyway, I thought it would be better to do it slowly while adjusting to it.

‘Henry, lie down. I will do it myself.’

I pushed him over, so his was on his back and straddled his hips. I sat over

his cock, inserting him into me with my weight. But it didn’t advance, I

tried several times, my love tunnel was wet with love juice, it dripped down
the sheets filling the room with a sweet scent.

‘Julia, I feel so good! Ah~ no! It’s going to come before I get inside

completely.’

The bed squeaked as we moved over the obscene sounds of the mucous.
‘Hold on, Henry. Nnn, I’ll have to put up with it next time….’

‘I can’t Julia, I’ve never felt so good in my life.’

I could see Henry’s expression, he was climbing to the peak of pleasure. I

was determined to get him in; I tried to use my weight to get it in at once,

but Henry peaked just at that moment,

‘You came inside me, Henry!’ I screamed in despair. What would happen in

this case? His offspring have been poured inside me. Though, he hadn’t

gone all the way in, I could still get pregnant.

I glared at him in accusation, while Henry turned his face away from my
accusing eyes. His cheeks were flushed with excitement with no sense of

recrimination.

I was still sitting on him; I could see the white fluid dripping from between
my legs. Henry stared at it, his breathing getting faster as he got excited

again.

‘Oh don’t look…’

I immediately covered my privates with my hands, but it was too late. He’d
already seen it.

‘It looked rather sensual. I couldn’t get into you, but my seeds have been

poured into you. Next time, I want to put it in deep into you. Will you get
me hard again?’

I turned to look at him, his dick was getting smaller.

‘I don’t know how to do that.’ I replied. (Zuben: What? But you just...!)

‘If that’s the case, take the ties off. I want to touch you everywhere. I want
to make you feel even better.

‘No, you will force it in if I set you free. It’s my first time, so I can’t do it. I

don’t know if such a big thing will fit inside me. Aren’t you too big? If you
force it in, I will probably die.’

‘I don’t know, because it is my first time. I thought you were ready because
you were wet. I could try and loosen you with my fingers, but I need to be

free.’

‘I know, I’ll do it myself and use more fingers as I get loose.’

I sat up on my knees, with one hand to brace myself on Henry abdomen and
the other hand in fingered myself. I could hear squelching as I inserted my

finger. (Zuben: DIY disvirgining!)

‘Ah~ nn~’
I realised that it might not be impossible for Henry’s big thing to enter me,

there was a sensation of pressure around my finger as I pushed it in. I

stirred my finger around and spread it slowly, but then the palm of my hand
brushed against the sensitive nubbin and I cried out in pleasure,

‘Ahn~’

I fell back immersed in the unexpected sensation. I looked up to see Henry

rising, moving both arms from behind him.

‘How could I stand being shown something like this?’
Presenting: The Villian Proposed

Albert Slark - Pinterest

49 In the Duke’s Bedroom:

I could not move because my legs were pinned under me.

Then he used the drawers that had been binding him to tie me up.
‘He- Henry, what are you going to do?’

Henry was sitting astride me as he took off his outer coat and shirt. He

smiled at me as he became fully naked. The moonlight struck his body

emphasizing the contours of his muscles. Henry’s golden hair was now

tousled; it shifted as he looked down on me with his eyes ablaze. He was so

beautiful; I could only gape at him,

‘You have been teasing me all this while; now it is my turn to play with

you. Choose; do you want me to insert it slowly or at once?’

‘But Henry, you aren’t ready...yet.’ as I said that, I realised that his desire
was towering again.

‘It’s a feature I haven’t used in twenty nine years, don’t worry, I think I can
do it again and again. Even if you can’t stand it any longer, I likely would

not be able to stop. I’m going to make you think about me from now on…’

He placed his hand on my breast but did not move, he asked, ‘Tell me what

you want; where does it feel the best?’

‘No, I’m not saying anything. You’re an idiot.’

‘That’s okay; I’ll just ask your body. Your body is honest. More and more
sweet honey is coming from your pussy.’
He lay over on top of me and our skin adhered to one another because of
sweat. His warm tongue was run all over my body; from my neck...to my

collarbone...around my breasts...Even though it felt like he was everywhere,

I could tell he was avoiding the sensitive parts. I wanted him to lick my

nipples, but he absolutely avoided it

‘Henry...ah~ you’re being mean~’ I was uncomfortable, but I couldn’t

understand why. I shifted my hips against him.

Henry raise his face and grinned at me, ‘I can’t know what you want unless

you tell me.’

He was such a petty man; this was payback for him.

‘Ahn~’ I cried, I could not stand it. I close my eyes and said, ‘Quickly, I

want you to lick them. I want you to lick my nipples.’ I was ashamed. I

didn’t know if I was my face was heated from shame or pleasure.

‘Very honest, Julia.’

My nipple was immediately taken into his mouth and rolled around his

tongue, while he pinched opposite nipple. His other hand was between my

legs fingering me.

I could not help but moan loudly as my waist rocked against his hand. My

lower body became numb, and I could no longer make any excuses.

Henry asked again, ‘In one go or slowly?’

‘Ah~ slowly~’
I was so absorbed in the pleasure I couldn’t open my eyes. I had no mind to

choose logically,
Then his thick meat stick was pressed against me, penetrating me. Slowly

he advanced then he stopped and held my waist in both hands,

‘Julia, open your eyes and look at me.’
I reluctantly opened my eyes to look at Henry, his sapphire eyes were

twinkling but he had the look of intense concentration. Then he smiled and
pushed his hips inward.

I cried out but I had no choice but to bear the pain.

Tears flowed and travelled down my cheek. When I thought the intense

pressure and heat had hit my lower abdomen, I was brought back to reality
by the sound of Henry’s satisfied voice,
‘I am all the way inside you…’

I wanted to look at him more, but he immediately kissed me so much I lost

my head again. He kissed my cheek again and again,

‘Julia, you feel so good, so warm. I love you, Julia. I love you.’
He whispered this over and over many times. Even though there was a dull

pain in my lower abdomen, I had nothing to complain about,

‘I love you, Henry.’ I said without thinking. Henry pushed away from me
and stared in surprise.

‘Did I say something strange?’ I asked him.

‘No. This is the first time...you told me you love me...the first time.’

He looked so happy. I wanted to touch him, but I couldn’t because my

hands were tied. The frustration made me shift, I felt Henry twitch inside

me.
‘I can’t stand it anymore. I’m going to move. Please bear with it.’

‘Eh! Ah~…not good!’ I cried as he suddenly grabbed my hips and began to

thrust his carnal mass in and out of me. It was uncomfortable at the start,
but over time, the discomfort gave way to a different kind of pleasure.

The sound of our skin colliding, the sound of love juice being stirred, our
panting all came together in an immoral combination. The bed squeaked

with each thrust like a wild animal.

We looked into each other’s eyes without looking away, even though our
bodies were violently intertwined and messed up. There were no words

needed between us anymore.

I climaxed first, and my vaginal walls tightened around Henry. In response,

Henry climaxed unleashing his desire deep inside me. It was strange to
know what he came in response to me and how deep he was inside of me.

We both cried out our orgasm confirming each other’s love.

A drop of sweat fell on my cheek from Henry’s sweat-drenched forehead.
Henry…
Our bodies were damp with sex and sweat. My hair stuck to my cheek, but I
could not use my hands to brush it away. I tried to lift my hands but they
would not work. Henry brushed the hair away as he caressed my face,

‘Henry, take this off.’

‘No, it’s not over yet. I could never have imagined how good it would feel

inside you. Could you put up with me one more time?’

No way! I thought I could feel something inside of me, but I thought it was
because I just lost my virginity, I didn’t realise he was still there. Moreover,

it was gradually getting bigger. How could it be?

‘Henry…’ I wanted to refuse him, but he looked at me, his eyes pleading

with an apologetic but cheeky smile on his face,

‘Please, put up with me one more time.’

I could not refuse him and his sapphire blue eyes. He had a charm I could
not defy. This beautiful beast was hankering after my body; it made me feel
like I could do anything.

‘Alright, just one more time.’ I told him.

I could not refuse him after all. Perhaps my fate had been sealed from that

very first night on the secluded terrace when I forcibly kissed him.
Henry continued without pulling out. Taking me in various positions, at the
end I lost consciousness after the fourth round and sank into bed.

When I woke, the wide ceiling that had been dark was now bathed in light.
I turned to find Henry staring at me with a smile on his face.
I tried to move but everything hurt. I could not get up.
‘Good morning, Julia. Are you awake?’ he greeted with a wonderful smile.

(Zuben: No I’m practising being alive)

He sat up and supported my back with his strong arm and put me into a

sitting position. I had been cleaned up and wearing a large blue silk robe.
There mustn’t be a woman’s dressing gown in the mansion. This was a
man’s and the sleeves were too long.

‘What time is it? How long have I been asleep?!’

The scenery outside the window was terrifying; it was evening!

Did it mean I slept from last night till this evening?!

‘I have to get up,’ I cried, ‘I have to get back to the palace...the Queen.’

‘Oh don’t worry. Aunt Eleanor knows that you’ll be staying here from now

on. She has sent your luggage over. Everyone knows, so we are getting
married right away. As I said, I have no intention of letting you out of this

manor.’ he said with a happy self-satisfied smile. I did not mind it, but

Father did not know I wasn’t marrying James any longer. If a missive
should arrive, requesting my hand in marriage from a Duke, I fear his heart

would stop.

‘Henry, you’re being selfish!’

‘You may be pregnant already. You can’t be allowed to go where ever you

want. You need my permission to leave the house, and you will meet James
only in my presence.’

He was already dictating my movements as if I had been cheating. (Zuben:

His yandere is showing)

‘I’m sorry to disappoint you, but my period is due in a few days, so it is

unlikely that I would be pregnant. In addition, I do not take kindly to my

movements being restricted and monitored by someone who I’m not even

engaged to. I go where I want to go!’

‘Can you move right now?’

I could not even move a leg. Whose fault was it?! How many times could a

man go?!
It turned out to be six times last night. He recovered four times without

pulling out!

‘But if your period is coming soon, we have to do it now or I won’t be able

to for a week!’ he said as he tried to take the robe off. I desperately held the

gown closed;

‘I need to eat. I’m starving! And we’ve done it so much even though it was

my first time. I’ll die if it was anymore than this!’ I cried. I really didn’t
want to be killed like this. I don’t want such a disappointing cause of death

on my epitaph
Henry laughed, ‘I’m just joking, I’m not too outrageous. I’ve got your meal

right here. Open your mouth.’

He fed me, and the wine, he passed from his mouth to mine.
When I complained about it he laughed and replied, ‘There was no reason

to get the wine glass dirty, and I can’t just pour it on a plate for you to

drink.’

This manipulative Duke! What sort of reason was that?!

Once I got better, I vowed to get back at him!

50 James is Pleased:

‘Your Grace, Prince James is here to see you. Would you like to see him?’

Just after I had been fed in that humiliating manner and was now full, the
butler knocked the door of the bedroom and peered in. He took the scene of

me in bed with only Henry’s robe on with a small calm smile.

I must be the first woman who his master had brought home in twenty nine

years. And the woman had been ensconced in his bedroom for most of a
day, unable to escape. As the Duke’s butler, he must be happy about the

future successor that was probably in the offing.

I did not know who cleaned up the devastation last night - the torn dress,
the damp sheets...Even if Henry had done most of the clean up, someone

else was going to do the washing. Imagining the spectacle, I wanted to wail

and bury my head in the bedding.

‘Julia,’ James called bursting out from behind the butler, ‘you were here,
after all! You promised to hold my hand until I slept. Although, I am happy

you came to see Henry.’

He had a warm smile on his face.

The butler jumped in surprise, he had not known that James had followed

him. His usual mask slipped with a spasm of his cheek.

James came up to the bed and sat. He reached for my hands, but Henry who

had been sitting on a chair next to the bed grabbed his wrist to stop him.
James grinned and grabbed both our hands,

‘Have you missed me, Henry? It’s alright. I love Julia too, just as much as I

love you, Henry. So there’s no need to worry. But…why is Julia in your

bedroom? And that dressing gown is yours.’
It was obvious at a glance what had happened last night. The butler was

also smiling in understanding. My cheeks flushed red, and I turned away

from James,

‘James, I know that you love Julia, but she is mine so no touching her
without my permission.’

He put his free arm around my shoulder while warding James off.

James seemed to have turned his suspicions into convictions seeing Henry
being possessive.

‘Huh....Henry, did you and Julia make love? Are you able to use it?’

Oh crap! To James, Henry is someone he wanted in anyway he could

possess him. If he knew Henry wasn’t impotent, he might force himself on

Henry!

‘Oh...well...James. The thing is…’ I tried to think of an excuse. But James

beamed in delight and hugged both Henry and I.

‘You did! Then you can have children! When Julia told me she liked you

Henry, I had been worried you would not be able to perform, so I thought it

was better for me to be with Julia. I wanted a child from the two people I

love the most.’

‘But...that time, you said Henry was useless.’

Just before we were kidnapped in the Bourbon forest, James had said so.

Even if he loved us both, the fact we were getting married would make him
think that it meant that he would lose us both. I had thought I would have to

spend a lot of time persuading him that this was not going to be true. But
how has it turned out this way?!

‘Because, at the time, I thought Henry had abandoned me. And I wanted

you to choose me. But now, I love both of you, so don’t hesitate to have lots

of children with Henry and we can raise them together.’

Seeing James say this joyfully, I felt like an idiot and was hit with a sense of

weakness. But I suppose I could think of James as our cute child.

‘Oh James, thank you so much for saying so.’ I said, and hugged him back.
Henry, on the other hand, was dissatisfied.

‘James, that is absolutely strange. Why would you be raising my children

with me? It’s weird no matter how you look at it.’

I could feel James’ shoulder hitch under the palm of my hand at Henry’s

words. He was likely to get angry at Henry who was not honest.

‘It’s a good thing, Henry. It’s best for children to be raised by everyone.

James can be our children’s godparent. I’m sure you also care about James,
like a brother?’

Henry merely nodded and blushed, turning his face away from us. His care

for James can be seen clearly, but it was just that Henry was not very good
at expressing himself.

James and I burst out laughing.

In that moment, Michael, the butler, came forward and bowed,
‘I hope I would be permitted in assisting with raising the children, Miss

Julia, your Grace.’

As the butler to a Duke, his status was higher than mine. But he was so
overcome with happiness, and emotion that he bowed to me; someone who

wasn’t even formally engaged to the Duke.

But I wonder how many nights I would have to spend with Henry to have a
child. While the act is pleasant and I can feel Henry’s love, it won’t do to be

done so many times.

I decided to work out how to handle Henry. (Zuben: Maybe one of these

days, Julia would realise one doesn't have to win everything)

Presenting: The Villian Proposed
51 James:
I was sold to the country of Bosch at the age of five. My kingdom,
Basseterre, was a newly created country that was established fifty years

prior. A large vein of a scarce but valuable ore had been discovered,

enhancing the country’s prosperity. But the Basseterre military was not

powerful enough to ward off incumbent invaders, so by selling me to

Bosch, a military powerhouse, Basseterre succeeded in warding off threats

from other nations.

Because of this, Bosch received a large tribute every year. My position was

nothing more than a banner to show the other countries that Bosch and

Basseterre had a solid connection. My thoughts were not taken into account.

Neither did I expect them to be. Conversely, it was feared that I would show

talent in studies or swordsmanship, so I gave up trying to be good at

anything.

I soon realised that the adults spoke about me in the shadows, and their
children who overheard this began to look down on me as a fool. Soon, I

began to question the purpose of my life.

Until I met Henry.

He was twelve, and he had just graduated from school as one of the top

students. In the next year, he was going to enter the academy to become a

knight. Moreover, he was the Queen’s nephew. I hated him at first sight; I
even wanted to kill him.
At the time, I had begun killing stray cats out of boredom cursing my cruel

reality.
That day we met, I had been trying to bury a cat I had just killed in the back

garden to hide the evidence, when Henry found me.

“What are you doing?”
I jumped at the sound of his voice. I thought he was going to accuse me,

seeing the corpse in my hands.

I knew him well because he was famous. I had thought he would try to

punish me under his good sense of justice. No one would really do anything
about it, I merely would be the topic of backbiting as usual. I bit my lips so

hard, they began to bleed.

“Hey are you alright? You’re bleeding from your mouth. Did you like the
cat that much? I suppose I should help you find somewhere to bury it.”

He pulled my hand and led me into the forest to bury the cat. He mustn’t
know I was Prince Basseterre, I thought, if he did, he wouldn’t want to get

involved with me. No adult will chastise me for what I had done. There was
no need for my existence; I was just a decorative vase. No one cared what a

vase did.
Henry found somewhere he thought was suitable: A prince should not have
to dig the soil by hand, neither should a future Duke. There was no way he
should want to do such an unpleasant thing. When I just stood there looking

at him he said,
“Have you never done this before, James? That’s alright, I’ll do it.”

He rolled up the sleeves of his fine shirt and looked for a sturdy stick, and
began to dig dexterously. I watched him in surprise.

“You know who I am.” I said

“Yes, but we’ve never spoken. I’m Henry.” He replied holding his muddy
hand out to me.

I didn’t want to take the dirty hand, so I ignored him.

“Why aren’t you naming your house?”

He looked at me expressionlessly and returned to digging.

“Didn’t I say I am Henry?”
No. All the nobles boast their family names with pride. They gave their

family names first, even if they never gave their given name. It was strange
to see the heir to the strongest Dukedom, Magnaria, not giving his family

name.
“Hey, the hole is done,” Henry announced, “put it in. Then, it can

assimilate into the soil and return to this world again.”

I put the dead cat in as he asked and he covered the body with the soil. As
he did this, he said to me, “Humans are the same. Family name is useless;

whether you’re a noble or commoner, you will die and dry out in the soil
just like this. So I’m sorry, I am not going to announce my family name. I do
what I want with my own power. And you; is this fun?”
Did he realise I had killed the cat? Is that why he had taken me to the

forest? If he was going to preach at me, I had no intention of listening. I did

not want to hear any bossy lecturing,

“It’s fun. This is the hobby of the Prince of Basseterre from whom nothing is
expected.’
Henry looked at me for a while not saying anything.

Then he replied, “You may be too addicted to your family name. Let’s find a
new hobby for you. There are still two months before I have to go to the

Academy; we can come here everyday and play together.”

“What do you mean, like chess? Hunting?” I asked. Wasn’t he going to

preach? What was he trying to do?

“No,” he replied, “I play in the woods. It’s interesting, there is lots to see;
from insects to birds. And bring your sword, I’ll teach you swordplay.”

“I will not! I will never! There is no use in waiting for me!” I protested.
Despite my protest, I played in the woods everyday with Henry from that

day on. We swam in the river, went fishing, played with swords.
In this country where everyone was afraid of me, Henry was not. He smiled
at me and allowed me to experience various things. I realised that Henry did

not see me as a Prince; he had called me by my name from the very start. I
spent the days he wasn’t with me thinking about him; my head was full of
Henry. (Zuben: Henry saved Bosch from a future serial killer.)
Then I began to hear that he did not like women.

He had been harassed a lot by women when he was younger, one even tried
to undress him without his consent. He had been given chocolates by

another woman and she had put her hair in it. Another time, he woke up in
the middle of the night to find a naked woman in bed with him. His dislike
of them was decisive.

“I hate women,” he told me one day while he was roasting the fish we had

caught, “just one approaching makes me feel nauseous. I really don’t know
how many times I vomited from women coming close. It’s good that you’re a

guy, James.”

I smiled as I ate the cooked fish, my heart pounding. It was then I realised

my feelings. So I decided; I will never leave Henry’s side.

So I began to work on Henry so that he would never like women. I

manipulated women into seducing Henry. With each attempt, Henry’s

distaste for women accelerated, so that there came a time that if a women
touched him, he hyperventilated. I wanted to ensure that he would not get

married and always have time for me. (Zuben: It's guy love but just one

guyyyyy)
I fantasised about Henry living in my manor with me, when he was off.
But then incident occurred: I was accused of being part of a conspiracy

trying to stage a coup to overthrow Bosch. I was nineteen. Luckily, my

innocence was proven. But Henry did not come to see me as often.

Whenever I asked what he was up to, his replies were always vague. I

didn’t remember who said it, but I was told that Henry had been told to stop
associating with me, because I was of no advantage to him.

Did Henry really feel that way? No, I could not believe that. I had to believe

in Henry, otherwise, I would lose my mind. For me, Henry was the only one

I could not afford to lose.

Then the invitation to the ball arrived. To find a bride for the Duke

Magnaria, the King was holding a ball inviting all the marriageable ladies

of the kingdom.
I crushed the invitation in my fist; I absolutely must not allow this to

happen.

Henry, I did not need you to tell me you love me, I just want you by my
side forever. It was you who taught me what true friendship was. I need

nothing but you.

On the night of the ball, I met a woman: A woman who was not interested

in Henry, for the first time. And the first time Henry called a woman’s name
with so much feeling, the first one he chased after; Julia.
Julia, you might be surprised, but I think I loved you from the moment I

spoke to you. To me, you are the same as Henry. You did not see me was a

Prince. There had been no one to shout at me or chastise me.

I confessed to you because I wanted to make you happy. But I also love

Henry; I could not take his beloved woman from him.

And Julia, you told me you were my best friend. You told me you will

always be on my side even if the world turned their back on me. This was
what I wanted the most.

That is enough for me.

Presenting: The Villian Proposed
 Jon Paul - Pinterest

52 In the Garden:

After a night of uninterrupted sleep, I was able to walk. It felt rather

strange, Henry became worried and wanted to see what was going on, but I

refused resolutely. I sort of felt like something was stuck between my legs.

I think it was partly Henry’s fault.

When I arrived at the breakfast room, Percy was there. He was very

surprised when Henry introduced me as his fiancée. James also stayed over,

so he was at breakfast with a smile on his face, making Percy even more

confused.
Of course, he had thought that James was my lover.

I had thought about asking him about Shirley. We were supposed to

exchange letters, but since I suddenly returned to the Capital, I wouldn’t

have any news from her.

I also returned to the castle to see the Queen. I wanted to apologise for not

returning the night before and to let her know that Henry and I were
engaged. Of course, Henry and James accompanied me. Queen Eleanor
seemed to have guessed what happened between Henry and I that night; the

realisation made me red with embarrassment.

Henry and James got into planning the wedding, even more so than me.

(Zuben: Isn't it funny how the men in Asian novels are into planning their
weddings?) So I decided to leave it all to both of them. I had no choice but
to introduce Hermiata caramel to our guests. The engagement ball was to

come first; I didn’t understand why those two were so excited about the
wedding.

It wasn't as though I was not interested in the wedding preparations, it’s just
that I never thought I would be marrying Henry; it was all so sudden. There

was the fact that we had done the deed before marriage, and Henry was so
happy. I did not know how to tell him I wanted to spend some together
more sedately before getting married.

I listened out for rumours about the Bourbons; they had reparated a
considerable amount of territory to the royal family in atonement for

disparaging the Duke’s name. Yet, they seemed pleased that I, who was
related to the Earl of Bourbon, was becoming the Duke’s bride and maybe

their punishment may be lessened. I hadn’t been able to speak to Isabel, but
then she most probably would have been derisive.
Since I was marrying the Duke of Magnaria, I would be living in the royal

capital and would be able to see Hannah in Myseln, so that was good.
I definitely could not give up the privilege of seeing Henry’s sleeping face

every morning for anyone.

His handsome face was relaxed and defenceless, and his mouth was partly

open; I had a strong urge to lock him in the room, tie him up and attack
him. I did not realise I had such a side to me. I could not do it right now, but

a plan was cooking in my mind.

I had not neglected to prepare for it, even though we hadn’t made love since
that night; it had been physically impossible. And then my bleeding started

and that added another week, so it made a total of ten days we had not been
together like that.

Tonight, I made James return to his house, or else, he would sneak into our
bedroom and try to sleep with us (Zuben: LOL, James is such a weirdo).
Recently, he seemed to have had a breakthrough, because, with us, he was

more faithful to his desires and did not try to hide his emotions. That was
not to say his paranoia was gone, but that he was more open about it. But I

felt I should endure it until the child he desired came.

That evening, I asked the maids to wash my body carefully, and rub in

scented oils. After that, I slipped on a light pink off shoulder night dress I
had prepared for tonight. Under it I wore red lacy undies that were secured
with red ribbons. Put on some light make-up and I tied my hair up with a

red ribbon as well. Now I was all set.

I had asked Henry to meet me in the greenhouse conservatory. It was a
garden in full bloom, there were birds tweeting amongst the trees and
shrubs. I felt like I was in fantasy world as I walked through. The air was

humid and thick with the scent of flowers. The variety of flowers in the
conservatory was diverse; rare tropical flowers bloomed here despite

Bosch’s temperate climate.

In the middle of the indoor garden was a small fountain with upholstered
sofas around it.

I heard a noise and turned to see a beautiful spectacle; it did not get old,
even though I saw him like this in the morning. The Duke in his black spy

high collared coat was standing behind me.

‘You’re wearing it like I asked, your Grace, you look great.’

I sat on the rim of the fountain and sensually crossed my leg. I put my
elbow on my knee and put my chin in my hand watching him. My heart was
pounding in anticipation.

The only sound was of the waterfall behind me, and Henry’s excited
breathing.

For the past ten days, I noticed that he had been leaving bed and going to
the bathroom in the middle of the night, because we hadn’t been able to do
anything despite sleeping in the same bed.
Henry, realising that that was about to change, was tightening his trousers
with his mass of desire,
‘Julia…’ he called, trying to reach for me, but I stopped him with a finger.

‘No, your Grace,’

I glanced at the fan shaped sofa before me and ordered him to sit there. At

first he looked puzzled, but he obediently sat down. The sofa wasn’t far
from where I sat so our knees were only a couple of centimetres apart.
‘I am annoyed with you. Why did you do it so many times on the first

night? Normally, it should only be done once, not until the woman loses her

mind.’ (Zuben: How do you know it should only be done once, Julia?)
‘I’m sorry Julia, but it felt so good inside of you. I couldn’t help myself.’ he

said contritely. He bowed his head as if he was truly reflecting on his

actions.

It was nice to see the Commander of the Elite Knights, who was respected
by his men, bowing his head like a scolded child. I was filled with a sense

of superiority that I am the only one who could see him like this.

‘But from now on, I can’t do it like that to make a baby. That’s why I have
thought about it, you must come at least five times before entering me.’

‘Julia...no!’ he said looking up at me in sorrow. Perhaps, he could guess

what I was about to make him do. The fists on his thighs were tightened.
‘Let’s start my showing yourself here.’
‘I can’t! I can’t do such a thing where you can see me.’

‘You can’t?’ I replied folding my arms under my breasts pushing them up,
‘When you get out of bed every night, you’re not alone. You don’t know if

it will feel better if I watch you than when you do it alone. Of course I am

going to help because I am going to be your good wife.’

I had read that when a man can be seduced by a glimpse of something that

he doesn’t see.

I found that Henry with his coat and shirt unbuttoned showing a little bit of

his pectoral was very erotic.

I parted my legs and the night dress rode up. He could see my red lace

panties. My lipstick was applied to be obvious but not vulgar. I slowly

opened my mouth and licked my lips. I deprived him of reason in one

sentence,

‘It will be a shame if you won’t show me; we won’t be able to do anything

tonight.’
I gave him a joyful smile. The area was lit by many candles on a candelabra

and the light of the moon.

I put my finger against my lips.

Then, even though he was embarrassed, he began to unbutton his trousers

one by one.
His cock was soon exposed and it sprung out of his under-things gaining

firmness. Such a ferocious looking thing was incongruous to Henry’s

delicate beauty. Looking at him, I salivated. Though, I had not touched him
and he had not touched me, I could feel my crotch tighten remembering his

unique scent.

He grasped his throbbing flesh and his cheeks were dyes red. He asked

again to check if I was serious,

‘Do you really want me to do it alone?’

I smiled at the faint hope in his question. I could help but this was

punishment.
‘Yes, my Duke.’

He looked betrayed and his expression clouded. But he did as he was told

and began to move his hand up and down his shaft and his eyes closed. He

must still feel my gaze with his eyes closed.

Clear fluid dripped from the engorged bulbous head and flowed down the

hard shaft. I moved unconsciously and tried to stop the fluid by using my

finger to stem the flow from the hold. Henry opened his eyes and looked
down at me, panting.

I pressed the tip of my thumb into the hole on top of the sensitive head, but

such effort was worthless because the clear fluid poured out running down

my hand and wrist. (Zuben: A dubious fountain.)

‘Ah~ I can’t…’ as he said that, the juice of desire spouted from the end of

his hot mass. I suppose he was now used to doing this, because he was able
to scoop the milky fluid into the palm of his hand.

‘Julia,’ he panted still in the throes of the aftermath, ‘I can’t do this four

more times. Please let me inside you.’ he begged.

I looked at him with hooded eyes, my expression filled with satisfaction

that I made him so submissive. I rose and straddled him, and took his left

hand filled with his cloudy fluid and licked it all up not leaving a drop.

53 In the Garden:

Even though I had only been licking his hand, it did not take long for Henry

to be hard again. I could see his big thing below me, throbbing. I raised my

arms and untied the ribbon holding my hair, and grasped his arms, and tied
him up.
‘Julia, what is this?’

His excitement had increased in proportion to the distance between us. His

face was ruddy down to his neck and the gap in his collar. His scent in

conjunction with the scent of his liquid of passion was a heady mix. It made
me hot between my legs, but I kept tone calm so that he would not realise

my lust.

‘It’s better to tie you up because I don’t know what you will do should I
allow you to be free.’

‘Such a flimsy ribbon, I can just rip it apart.’

My breasts were right in his face. Wrapped in a thin nightwear, the shape

was clear underneath cloth as my breasts swayed as I moved. His gaze

followed them each time, and his excitement fuelled mine.

‘Is that so?’ I replied, ‘If you do, you can forget tonight. We shall just sleep

together in bed. I love you.’

He understood what I was trying to say.

But I blushed for the first time today. Before he could counter my threat I

kissed him. It was a violent kiss like the first time we kissed. I made him

swallow my saliva, our tongues entangled violently. His fierce breathing

fluttered my hair.

He refused to let my lips go, but I had to pull away to calm down, I was

about to become drowsy with lust. I was so aroused that I could have
inserted him into me. I wanted him deep inside my body to feel his passion.

I could feel his presence under my crotch and it aroused me. How would it
feel?

‘Julia, I can’t...I am reaching my limit. Please, I want you.’

His sapphire blue eyes appealed to me, they were filled with tears.

Seeing Henry tied up like this was such an indecent temptation, he looked
so sensual. If he continued begging me, I will soon capitulate. So I quickly

turned away.

I didn’t want to surrender yet, I wanted to taste Henry more, and I only had
a little more time. This time, I would help.

I started to undo his jacket button, once that was one, I moved started to

undo the buttons of his fine shirt. His broad chest began to be exposed
behind the flaps of his shirt. I could not hold the desire to kiss him. I kissed

his chest, his skin tasted a little of sweat, and I could see that his nipples

were hard.

I used my lips and tongue to gently lick his nipples and the valley between
his chest muscles. I was leaning close enough to him that my nipples were

rubbing against his abdominal muscles. My sensitive tips felt good rubbing

against his firm muscles.

‘This time, I will use my hand,’ I said sultrily as I grasped his meat stick.
I stroked him my palm, or just my fingers. Sometimes my touch was soft
and sometimes it was firm, his hot cock increased its mass to ferocious.

‘Hmm, do does this feel?’ I asked. I was using my whole body to give him

pleasure; I wanted to hear how he felt directly from his mouth.

But he all he could muster was panting. I strengthened my caresses to make

him speak,

‘A ā ~a~a! Julia, I feel so good.' he managed to say.

It looked like his second peak was coming as soon as he said this. I felt his

hot meat stick throb and flex in my hand before hot liquid dripped out over

my hand. I looked at him with a blissful smile. His body was relaxed and

his expression was ecstatic.

A sense of accomplishment that I dominated all of him filled my heart.

‘Oh no, your Grace, you have stained your uniform. Don’t worry, next time,

I will do it with my mouth.’

I stepped off him and got between his legs. After his orgasms, he lost

power. I took his cock in my mouth and this unique scent spread in my
mouth; his scent, the smell of his sweat, and a mixture of other masculine
scents.

‘Oh Julia, don’t do it just now. I’m so sensitive,’ he pleaded.

He tried to close his legs, but my head and shoulders impeded him. But his
thigh muscles were still tense.
As soon as I rolled him around with my tongue, he hardened and filled my
mouth. He got so big my jaw began to hurt; I somehow entangled him in
my tongue.

‘Oh Julia, it’s so good.’

His pleasure increased as I caressed him with my mouth many times, but I
let go when I felt like he was reaching the peak. My saliva mixed with his

body fluids and the thick mucus connected to my lips in beaded stings.
After several experiences, I began to roughly understand the timing of his
peak. When once again, I stopped before he reached, he looked at me with a

pained expression, but his face was ruddy,

‘Julia…’ his voice was pitiful and trembling. In that word, his tone was
filled with accusation, despair and entreaty.

‘Henry, do you love me? Can you tell me you love me before everyone at
the next ball? If you don’t agree to declare that I am your beloved woman, I
will stop here.’

‘I cannot say such an embarrassing thing,’ he protested, ‘A man who

professes such a thing is, well, not a man. You don’t say such things out

loud even if you feel them inside.’ (Zuben: Oh Henry)

‘Is that so?’ I replied rising from between his legs, ‘Well then, good night,
Henry. Sweet dreams.’

I turned and was about to walk away, but he stopped me.

‘Wait, Julia! You can’t just leave me like this! I’ll do it, but just once. So
please…finish me.’
Hearing his answer I was heady with my victory.

Rather than to him, I turned to the fountain from which water sprayed like
mist around us,

‘Tell me what you want. What do you want from me?’

He was not good at expressing himself. When I think about it, I have never
heard him tell me sweet words except when he was sexually aroused. So

why was it not possible to say it now that he was fully excited, was it his
male pride or was it because he was puzzled by his first experience in
twenty nine years?

With my back to him I lowered my night dress and exposed my torso. He

could only see my bare back but I heard him gulp over the sound of the
fountain.

‘I love this game but I can’t play it anymore. Please…’

It was unbearable because I wanted to see his pleasing expression.
I turned around as I crossed my arms over my breasts and straddled him

again. I kissed his forehead and looked into his eyes. His expression was
pleading, my heart squeezed full of my love for him.

But Henry licked my neck, it was so sudden, I moaned out loud.

He lowered his face and pushed my arms away, and began to lick my
breasts. It felt so good. This was the first time I had felt like this from just

being licked. I wonder if it was because of this situation.

My panties were wet, and my lower abdomen became hot and ached. I
wanted him.

I moaned, drunk on the pleasure. But then I could see that the ribbon I had
tied was unravelling. It would be over if he was released. I quickly

tightened it. Henry also noticed this and his expression of humiliation
changed to one of satisfaction,
‘Julia, do you want me? You don’t have to hold back…’

It was too late, he had noticed, but I took his lips and kissed him long and
hard. This was punishment for him; I could not afford to lose. I didn’t know
why, but it had become a game in which we were trying to make the other

surrender.
As we kissed, Henry’s tongue pushed back at mine and entered my mouth,
entangling with mine. I did not notice that I felt so good from the kiss that

felt I had been licked to the back of my throat.

I was pulled back to reality by his triumphant voice,
‘You’re drooling; did our kiss feel that good?’

No, it can’t be another night with four shots without pulling out. He’s the
one not going to be able to stand this night!
I glared at him in mock anger, caught the hem of my night dress in my

mouth and untied my panties. My underwear was stuck to me because I was

so wet. I pulled it off and my love juice dripped down over his pelvis.
‘Ha~ Julia~’

Henry had succumbed to my temptation again. Even if I had taken off my

underwear, I had no intention of letting him into me yet. I sat upon him and
rubbed my secret part over his hardness.

The slick sound of my love juice as I rubbed against him filled our ears.
Henry closed his eyes and threw his head back, lost in the pleasure. I

grabbed onto his collar for leverage and slid up and down against him. I
pulled him close and licked his ear where he was weak.
When I pressed my sensitive bud against the recess on his cock, it felt so

good. I rubbed it there many times, drawing out my own pleasure. I could
only hear intense breathing, I could not decide if it was me or the Duke. The
electricity that was mounting shot through me from head to toe. I felt warm

in my belly like I had climaxed.

I rubbed my body against his so I could feel him against me as we tasted the
best ecstasy.

I fell on him weakly while trying to catch my breath.

‘Julia…’
‘Hmm?’
‘Meeting you that night was the happiest moment of my life.’ He told me
with a smile. His golden hair was mussed. His expression was filled with
happiness and it filled my heart with warmth. I could not find the words to

reply when he suddenly said in a firm tone, like he had been think about
this in his mind all night,
‘What if this ribbon doesn’t come off?’

‘Huh?’ I asked sluggishly.

With a predatory smile, Henry put his arms around me. I hurriedly turned to
run away but he pushed me down so I ended up on my knees against the

fountain. My torso was pressed against the rim and Henry was all over me.
I heard him rip apart my clothes with his teeth.
‘Henry, it was expensive. I can’t wear it again!’

‘Don’t worry, my love, I will buy you how ever many you want later. I have
been patient but now I have reached my limit. I want you so much I can’t

stand it. It has become unbearable.’

Suddenly he pushed his hot hard cock into me from behind. I was surprised
I could accept his thickness in my narrow part without any discomfort.

Unlike the last time, there was only pleasure as he pushed into me.
‘Oh~ no~ ahh~’
‘Hn~ so good. I feel so good inside you Julia~’
He thrust into me hard and fast; the slapping of our skin could be heard over
the water fall. When Henry held me tightly against him, I felt like we were

melting into each other.

‘Ah~ more, more, more~’ I cried out losing myself to passion.
‘Julia, I love you.’

The moon was reflected on the water of the fountain, its image rippled as
water poured into the basin. While watching it, I was lost myself in the
great pleasure and affection. I melted into the whirlpool of pleasure, happily

drowning in it.

54 Epilogue: Confession
Many lavishly dressed men and women chatted amicably in the luxurious
ballroom. The decor was elaborately crafted, crystal chandeliers of high

clarity twinkled as they lit the room,

The Royal orchestra played as gentlemen and ladies danced around the

dance floor. It was my first royal ball as the fiancée of the Duke of
Magnaria.
The tale of my engagement to Henry spread through society like wildfire.

Many people were visiting my parents’ manor to congratulate them. It was

really a testament to the power of the Magnaria Duchy.
I was congratulated by influential aristocrats who had never deigned to

speak to me before. It became rather tiresome. But I could not hide my

surprise at the difference between my Henry and the socialising Duke of
Magnaria chatting with other aristocrats next to me. (Zuben: Are you going

to start crying that you don't 'match' now?)

This has been his life from the get go, while I had only been surrounded by
servants from my childhood. His life had been very different from mine,

who only had to deal with cows more than with people.
‘Julia, come this way.’ Henry said.

He called me to an area where there were not so many people. Did he see
that I looked tired? Either way, I was glad to be out of the main body of the
crowd. I don’t hate people, but I found it tiring to talk so much.
Henry stared lovingly at me. He had never looked at me like that in public.

Surprised I looked at him the same way instinctively.

Then Henry knelt before me on one knee with a hand on his chest as though
he was going to swear the Knight’s allegiance.

When people saw him do that, they stopped and stared.

He took my right and hand dropped a kiss on the back, his cheeks were pink

with embarrassment but he looked at me without turning away, his hand

was shaking was he held mine hard,
‘Julia Hermiata, you’re the woman I love the most in the world. I swear, my

heart is yours forever.’

There were gasps of admiration and awe at the sight of the Duke professing
his love.

The Duke of Magnaria, who rarely showed any expression, who went about
his business calmly, was kneeling before his young lady, and professing
words of utmost loyalty and love before the throng.

He must be putting all his energy into it. I noticed that his kneeling legs
were all wobbly and all wrong. I smiled involuntarily. What a cute man, he
remembered his promise to me from that night.

I held his hand in mine and gave him a wide smile,

‘My Duke, I love you too. I swear I will keep you tied for the rest of our
lives.’
An applause rose from the crowd at that. People were surprised by Henry’s
unusual behaviour. Henry had noted the strange words in my reply.
His ears turned red and he touched his unconsciously wrist as he rose.

I looked at him with a smile full of joy.

THE END

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