WBWB | Chapter 40

His desire to bury himself within her overwhelmed him after he’d covered her delicate skin with a flurry of bite marks. He pulled her legs together and pressed them against her stomach. He lowered himself onto her, his gaze devouring her.

Seeing her eyes tremble with fear and a flicker of anticipation, he slowly pushed inside. Her eyes widened, her mouth opened, a moan escaping her lips. 

Warm, wet, slick flesh clung to him. 

He gritted his teeth.

And he moved. Wanting to savor this feeling for as long as possible. But the moment her arms wrapped around his neck, all of his rational thought fled. He lost himself in the escalating pleasure, not caring if he might break her, driving towards the peak.

How long did he plunge into her depths? 

The woman, who had wrapped her arms around his neck, thrashed like a drowning person beneath him, leaving scratches on his back and shoulders. She sobbed, begging him to stop, that she couldn’t take it anymore, that she was going to die… She even bit his shoulder.

But he felt no pain. The pleasure that flooded his senses was far more intense, too absolute. He moved his hips, thrusting deeper and deeper inside her, consumed by a raw, violent pleasure unlike anything he’d ever experienced before.

With each thrust, her insides clenched and spasmed around him. Each time he withdrew, they tightened around him, as if reluctant to let him go. He knew she had reached her peak several times, her body trembling like a wingless insect, her mouth open in a silent scream, but he couldn’t stop.

Even after he reached his own climax, his desire remained unquenched. It was the backlash of long-suppressed desires. As his body collapsed on top of hers, her struggles ceased, her strength drained away. She must have thought it was finally over.

But for him, it was just the beginning. He pulled out and turned her onto her stomach, his hand holding her hips. He then buried his face in her sweat-dampened shoulder, her hair disheveled, and began his second assault.

As he pushed inside again, her body yielded to him, soft and compliant. Everything was blissful, almost too good to be true.

And then he woke up. Gasping for air, his heart hammering against his ribs. Even with his eyes open, he couldn’t distinguish between dream and reality for a long time.

His consciousness slowly returned, not to the world of dreams, but to the familiar darkness of his bedroom. Fully awake, he slowly sat up and pulled back the blanket that was covering him.

In fact, he didn’t need to look or touch to know. He could feel the dampness in his trousers. As he climaxed inside her repeatedly in his dream, he had also climaxed in reality.

“…”

He remained frozen for a long time, dumbfounded.

‘Huh…’

He wasn’t an adolescent boy anymore.

However, a man’s body, once it reaches a certain point, naturally seeks release. And so, ever since his first wet dream, he had been taking care of those needs himself regularly. But that didn’t mean he was completely ignorant about women. 

After he became the heir in place of his brother, his parents had sent several “instructors” to his bedroom. It was a precautionary measure to educate him about the opposite sex and prevent any mishaps due to ignorance.

He had initially resisted, but he eventually gave up after hearing, “His Grace has sent me to attend to you, young master.” But he had never actively sought out women on his own after that. Even when pleasuring himself, he rarely indulged in fantasies. He simply moved his hand to relieved himself whenever his body demanded it.

‘But lately…’

As he grasped his hardened member, he couldn’t help but picture her. The curve of her ear, the nape of her neck, the soft skin exposed by the low neckline of her dress, her sparkling eyes, her straight nose, her full lips.

He had been deliberately avoiding it lately. Not out of guilt, but out of an instinctive sense, warning him of danger.

‘I feel like I’ll want everything. If I go any further, I’ll lose not only my judgment but also my control.’

He didn’t want to end up like his father or brother.

But now she was appearing even in his dreams, vividly. He could only ran a hand over his face.

What the dream showed him was clear.

He wanted her desperately, both body and soul. Conversations and dinners were no longer enough. If he didn’t find a way to somehow quench this thirst, he would eventually do something even more reckless than in his dreams.

In the darkness, he felt himself reaching his limit.

* * *

The initially awkward and uncomfortable conversations with the Duke gradually became easier, the tension easing.

Truthfully, I, too, had been starved.

Starving for intellectual conversation with an adult. Of course, I had Lady Ana to talk to, but she was still a child, despite being sweet and lovely. And surprisingly, truly surprisingly, the Duke was a decent person to talk to. He listened attentively and also shared his own stories.

‘Perhaps he also needed someone to talk to?’

The conversations, initially filled with strained attempts to fill the silence, gradually became more natural, and I became comfortable sharing even trivial details about my life. Stories of my childhood, my parents, my sister, my grandparents.

He, in turn, would occasionally offer glimpses into his own life, as if trusting me with them.

‘Well, I can’t exactly spread his stories around. Perhaps I’m the perfect conversational partner.’

Maybe it’s because, despite being both nobles, our ranks were different, and the gap between his life and mine was like heaven and earth. He had endured a loveless, austere childhood, and the brother he had at least grown attached to left this mansion for some unknown reason after reaching adulthood. 

Ever since then, he had been completely alone. Without a wife or even a common mistress.

‘Is he content with this life?’

The more I learned about him, the more curious I became. And at the same time, I wondered if he intended to continue living like this.

‘Without any social interaction, without a wife or children, only spending his summers at war, his winters reading, and the rest of his time working? Is that even possible? Does he truly find it enjoyable and fulfilling?’

My curiosity grew so strong that I even asked him directly once.

“Your Grace… are you content with your current life?”

“What do you mean?”

“This mansion is very large, comparable to the royal palace. His Majesty filled the palace with courtiers and hosted banquets every day without fail. He also granted other nobles the right to host events. But during my stay here, I’ve noticed that Your Grace rarely interacts with other nobles around you, doesn’t host any gatherings… and doesn’t seem interested in marriage. What I’m trying to ask is, aren’t you lonely?”

“I interact with my soldiers every morning.”

He shrugged.

“Do you think those who host daily banquets at the royal palace aren’t lonely? I believe they’re the loneliest of all. Ostentation is often a sign of deficiency.”

“…”

“I’m very satisfied with my life. And now… I have you here, dining with me, don’t I?”

I see, I nodded inwardly.

‘He’s a man who isn’t lonely even when alone.’

This was enough for him.

‘He’s as strong as steel, inside and out.’

To me, someone who craved love and connection, he seemed… extraordinary.

‘How great would it be if I could be as strong as him?’

But I wasn’t. I needed my family, I needed love.

‘To be free, needing no one… ah, but that would be too lonely…’

I found myself pondering his words more and more often. I didn’t know when it started, but I began looking forward to our weekly dinners. 

I enjoyed our brief conversations, and I… I started missing him.