CL Chapter 12

“I apologize, Your Highness. I will make sure to instruct the head maid to properly punish those maids.”

 

Ferndel had apologized for the humiliation Charlotte had just endured.

 

He was on his way to give Charlotte a tour of Rosa Castle’s exterior layout. Charlotte suddenly stopped and looked at Ferndel.

 

Taken aback by the abrupt halt, Ferndel also stopped and lowered his head.

 

He had expected her to lash out right away, but Charlotte remained silent, and despite his waiting, she didn’t show any sign of speaking.

 

As the awkward silence stretched on, Ferndel cautiously raised his head. Their eyes met, and Charlotte finally spoke.

 

“Are you going to punish every maid who slanders me?”

 

It was a statement difficult to interpret. The primary virtue of a maid, their most basic rule, was to be cautious with their words.

 

For a maid to be caught bad mouthing the future mistress of the house, especially if all of them were doing so,punishing them seemed like the only reasonable action. This wasn’t a matter open to dispute.

 

“It is only right that this should be done.”

 

“If you do that, no maid will want to work at Rosa Castle.”

 

“That…”

 

Ferndel, who had been speaking in terms of principle, found himself at a loss for words.

 

“Never mind.”

 

Charlotte, who had responded indifferently, resumed walking. Ferndel instinctively followed, though his mind was still in turmoil.

 

The princess, it seemed, was always surrounded by rumors. She was notorious for treating those beneath her harshly. 

 

Stories occasionally reached Rosa of how the maids in the seculated villa spent their nights in tears.

 

Yet, those rumors had never been substantiated in the few days Ferndel had been serving as Charlotte’s guide at Rosa Castle. Not once had they shown any evidence, like now.

 

Charlotte seemed to have a rather normal way of thinking. Perhaps it was too early to form an opinion based on just a few days.

 

“…If you continue walking down this path, you’ll come to a lake where hundreds of swans will soon gather. It’s a magnificent sight.”

 

Despite the confusion, Ferndel continued to describe the scenery surrounding Rosa Castle.

 

Charlotte responded with brief nods or occasional glances, signaling that she was listening.

 

“A lake?”

 

It was the first time she had shown interest.

 

“Yes, it’s a vast lake, visible even from the lord’s office.”

 

Ferndel found himself speaking more than usual.

 

“The water is so clear and blue. I think it would be nice for you to visit it for a walk next time.”

 

He couldn’t even understand why he was speaking so much.

 

“The lord also often gazes out at the lake when he’s feeling frustrated…”

 

Then, an abrupt silence fell.

 

…Who was it that was supposed to be cautious with their words?

 

Ferndel sighed silently, slowly closing his lips. After swallowing his words, he finally spoke again.

 

“Now, let me show you the location of the garden pergola. Please, this way.”

 

Ferndel gestured politely. But Charlotte remained standing still. After a brief, awkward cough, Ferndel tried again to guide her.

 

“Is it that frustrating to walk with me?”

 

Charlotte muttered something Ferndel couldn’t quite understand before walking in the opposite direction of where he had been trying to lead her.

 

When he asked where she was going, she didn’t respond. She stopped in front of Leo’s office.

 

“Your Highness, just a moment…”

 

Ferndel, fully aware that he had no real reason to stop her, tried to intervene. But his anxious words and hurried gestures to stop her were in vain.

 

As soon as Charlotte reached for the door handle, her hand froze mid air and dropped.

 

“…..”

 

Ferndel, seeing her lifeless gesture, had no choice but to open the office door. He had forgotten to knock.

 

Charlotte looked up at Ferndel with widened eyes.

 

He quickly avoided her gaze, hoping she wouldn’t ask why he was doing this. He didn’t understand it himself.

 

“…Thank you.”

 

Charlotte said quietly, stepping slowly into the office.

 

Dumbfounded, Ferndell stood by the door. Only after Charlotte disappeared inside and the door closed did he realize what he had just done. He pressed his forehead, groaning softly in regret.

 

 

 

 

 

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨♡୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

 

 

 

 

 

Ever since he lost his sight, his other senses had sharpened as if in compensation. His sense of touch had heightened, and so had his hearing.

 

As Leo traced his fingertips over the braille, training himself to read without relying on sight, he sensed a presence outside the door even before he heard it open.

 

It wasn’t difficult to guess who had just stepped into his office.

The rudeness without knocking. Footsteps so light they barely made a sound.

 

A distinct fragrance that chilled the air. Every clue pointed to one person.

 

Charlotte d’Ignator.

 

“Who is it?”

 

Still, he asked the question. There was no need to reveal that he could recognize her by instinct alone.

 

Her steps slowed, then stopped, a little farther than necessary. It was the same as the first time she had set foot in Rosa.

 

“…It’s me.”

 

Had his feigned ignorance wounded her?

 

She wasn’t the type to be easily hurt, yet her voice was so small, so hesitant, that it almost made him think otherwise.

 

Suppressing the unnecessary thought, Leo furrowed his unseen eyes beneath the blindfold and waited for her to speak.

 

After a pause, her voice came again, quieter than before.

 

“Charlotte.”

 

So she thought his silence meant he hadn’t recognized her. A misunderstanding he had no reason to correct.

 

“What brings you here?”

 

He simply got to the point.

 

“…Just.”

 

The words that eventually broke the silence turned his wait into a waste of time.

 

Leo exhaled softly, leaning back in his chair. He crossed his arms, taking a moment to gather his thoughts.

 

It seemed there was something he needed to make clear to this woman.

 

“Come here.”

 

He reached a hand toward her. It didn’t take long before delicate fingers hesitantly brushed against his, as if she thought he was inviting her to dance.

 

“Ah…!”

 

In an instant, Leo caught her and pinned her against the desk.

 

The sudden shift in position, the world flipping upside down, made her body tense.

 

He pressed a firm hand against her stiffened back, holding her down as he lifted the hem of her dress.

 

“W-what are you doing?”

 

“It seems Her Highness is under some kind of misconception.”

 

Charlotte’s body flinched violently. Leo had pulled up her dress to her waist and was roughly tugging at her underwear.

 

“‘Just is not a sufficient reason for a princess and me to meet face to face.”

 

With her lower body fully exposed, Leo’s hands made their way between her legs, engulfing all of her trembling movements.

 

“It’s the office, Leo! The office!”

 

“I am well aware. indeed,the very same office Her Highness entered without permission just moments ago.”

 

“……!”

 

“If your voice carries, who knows who else might come peeking in? If you wish for others to see what even your future husband cannot, then by all means, keep shouting. It makes no difference to me.”

 

Effortlessly seizing control, Leo pressed forward, seeking out the slightest fracture through which he could slip. His hands roamed insistently over Charlotte’s body.

 

“There is one thing you must remember from now on.”

 

He continued speaking in an utterly indifferent tone.

 

“Unless it’s an occasion where we are officially required to be together, Your Highness and I will only meet for this… no matter where that may be.”

 

“Hmph, ah!”

 

Charlotte bit her lip and moaned out loud. It was hard to tell if she was flustered by Leo’s words or aroused.

 

Either way, it didn’t matter to Leo. All he cared about was making sure Charlotte understood this relationship.

 

Charlotte of Ignator was nothing more than a fancy pedigree to Leo Carthenon, someone who’d give him a child in exchange for something. Her role as a traitor ended there.

 

The line had been drawn for her on the day he received the king’s letter asking him to take her as his wife.

 

On the day Leo held a woman for the first time, the day he became a man through that worn-out experience. he had drawn a line again. This meant the line would always be solid. Neither Leo nor Charlotte could ever cross it.

 

“Huh!”

 

Finally finding a gap, Leo pushed his fingers inside her. After waiting like a starving man for a long time, his hand started getting soaked wet as if she was ready to swallow him.

 

His thrusting movements subsided appropriately. She was such an easy woman it was almost laughable.

 

Every moment he had saved up, treating it like treasure, was now pointless.

 

He had treasured her like a rare gem when she was nothing more than an ordinary grain of sand. 

 

And he never realized just how easily she’d slip through his fingers… Until it was too late. He had unlearned something he thought he would never forget.

 

“Ha, ngh……!”

 

Without warning, his penis replaced his finger. Charlotte bit her lip to stop from screaming.

 

No matter how thick and hard Leo’s wrist was, it couldn’t compare to the fully erect, throbbing column of flesh that had taken its place.

 

The walls of her entrance, which had been stretched by three fingers, were now overwhelmed by Leo’s size. All her preparation had been in vain.

 

“Ah! Ahhh!”

 

Despite this obvious mismatch, Leo didn’t show any consideration as he pulled back and thrust in roughly, like a wild animal that had never learned self-control.

 

“Haaah, mmm! Mmm!”

 

With each unfiltered movement, Charlotte felt like prey caught in a hunter’s jaws, helpless against the onslaught.

 

“Haa! Ngh!”

 

The pain felt like his stomach was about to burst; it would come and go, followed by waves of pleasure that threatened to knock him off balance just as he was about to regain his composure.

 

“Mmm… Ah! Ah!”

 

Especially when his penis completely slipped out before thrusting back in, his mind would go dark for a moment before slowly returning to normal.

 

“Hmm…”

 

After experiencing this sensation several times, his legs lost their strength and began to wobble.

 

“Haa, try to stand straight”

 

Leo said, breathing heavily as his preferred position crumbled. With the blunt end of his erection still resting against Charlotte’s opening, she couldn’t even get a brief respite.

 

“Ugh…”

 

The more he tried to keep his legs upright, the shakier they became.

 

“Ah!”

 

In a clumsy move, Leo pulled his whole body out, then lifted one of Charlotte’s legs onto the table.

 

Leo’s fingertip traced the raw, stark opening before him. Apparently satisfied with his inspection, he once again positioned himself at the entrance.

 

The foreign presence within her began to move rapidly back and forth, utterly mad. Though Leo had merely changed his angle slightly, the depth of his thrusts suddenly shifted.

 

Even the slightest change in pressure against her previously untouched spot left her breathless. Now, if she were to reach the same area a fraction more, she felt she might lose consciousness altogether.

 

“Haah, ugh! Aaah!”

 

Despite her valiant efforts to silence herself, labored breaths escaped her lips uncontrollably.

 

As her body bucked beneath him, Charlotte’s mindless hips flailed from side to side. Her hands, caught up in the frenzy, flew across the desk surface, scattering everything in their path.

 

She clutched at objects only to release them moments later, the friction of her palms sliding over the table sending papers flying.

 

Something landed with a thud on the floor.

 

But Charlotte, caught in the throes of ecstasy, was utterly oblivious to the chaos she had wrought. In her altered state, she lacked the presence of mind to even register what had transpired.

 

As if the commotion had nothing to do with him, Leo concentrated solely on his work.

 

As his movements quickened his breaths came in short, hot bursts against my neck. 

 

The blazing heat made her hair stand on end, her body trembled at its limit. A deep roar escaped from above her.

 

“Ugh…!”

 

The sensation of something rapidly filling her up from deep inside felt overwhelming. Without thinking, Charlotte tightened her grip on whatever she had in her hands.

 

It was only when she turned her head in guilt, realizing she had damaged something of Leo’s that she noticed the scattered pages were from a book.

 

She did not realize it was Braille until Leo dismissed her, marking the end of her usefulness.

 

As her fingertips traced the unfamiliar raised letters, a cold shock washed over her, as if she had been doused in cold water.