Chapter 65: Sorting Things Out
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 65: Sorting Things Out
If the Night Garden, a place of darkness and mazes, was a venue for secret love affairs, the daytime garden was a bright space perfect for a family outing.
Perhaps it was because of the child splashing his hands in the fountain.
“Hee hee hee.”
“Oh, Young Lord! You’ll get your clothes all wet!”
As water splashed, the nanny who had been watching hurried over to wipe him dry. The child, finding something immensely amusing, beamed from ear to ear.
It was a pastoral scene.
“Your son takes after his mother completely.”
I spoke without taking my eyes off the child. I was sitting on a long bench facing the fountain, with Josephine beside me.
“It’s a relief, isn’t it? To be honest, the men of the Rasino family aren’t exactly handsome.”
The seductress who once tempted me with a playful smile was now gazing at her son, her face filled with an overwhelming, helpless love.
A mother.
The image of a mother smiling warmly at her playful son superimposed itself over a memory from my past.
I, too, had a moment like this once. A time when I was held in my mother’s warm embrace, laughing brightly, oblivious to the hardships of the world.
But my mother’s face was a blur. Was it because twenty years had passed since her death? All I could clearly remember was the sight of her brilliant, shining golden hair fluttering in the wind.
“What brings you here? Seeing you with your son, I doubt you came looking for me because you missed a man’s company…”
Segerik’s room and Josephine’s were at opposite ends of the residence. It wasn’t easy to run into each other in the hallway in front of Segerik’s room without a specific reason.
“Surely you’ve noticed that things have been taking a strange turn lately?”
“My head has certainly been buzzing.”
“So you know. That Segerik didn’t object in the slightest when the Baron said he would give Eusebia to Count Broua.”
Josephine glanced at me, likely trying to gauge how much I knew.
“I had a rough idea.”
“And you still serve Segerik?”
Josephine was slowly revealing her true colors. She had come to recruit me.
The Baron deciding on Segerik as his successor was a major blow to me, but it would have been an even greater one for Ailgar.
“Would Sir Ailgar have been any different? Since neither of them can give me Eusebia, I have no choice but to pick the one who offers me the greater benefit, excluding that.”
I dangled some bait, hinting that I might be willing to switch sides if they could deliver Eusebia to me.
“And that’s Segerik?”
“The Baron has already made his decision. He just hasn’t announced it yet.”
Josephine bit her lip. If Ailgar and Joang Conrad were planning a rebellion, they could easily offer me Eusebia as bait.
Could it be that they were planning to admit defeat so meekly? Ailgar, the man who had colluded with the enemy when cornered? To be certain, I decided to probe Josephine.
“For someone who came to recruit me, aren’t you a little unprepared?”
Josephine pouted. For a married woman with a child, she was trying to act cute. It suited her, though, as she was young and well-maintained.
“What can I do when I have no cards to play? It’s not like offering you my body would work as it does with other scoundrels. And it’s not as if I can give you Eusebia, either.”
Was she unaware of the rebellion Ailgar and Joang Conrad were plotting? Even though she was their daughter and wife? She scoffed.
“It was a ridiculous idea from the start. My father and my husband both grind their teeth at the mention of your name, so how could they recruit you? They probably just wanted to exclude me. Hmph, did they think I wouldn’t know?”
“Are you on bad terms with them?”
“The people in my husband’s family become endlessly cold to those who have outlived their usefulness. My father is the same. You’ve experienced it yourself.”
Josephine genuinely seemed to be in the dark. It didn’t feel like she was trying to deceive me. If she wanted to win me over, now would be the time to offer up some kind of benefit.
“You’ve outlived your usefulness?”
“And whose fault is that? Really, my husband’s attitude changed completely after that day. He won’t even speak to me! It’s gotten to the point where he only discusses important matters when I’m not around.”
“That day” referred to when Ailgar had caught us as I was leaving Josephine’s room after we had been together.
It seemed Josephine had lost Ailgar’s trust because of that incident. I thought allowing her to be with other men would serve as a moderate stimulus for him, but the effect was greater than I’d expected.
Josephine stretched her legs out. Her fine, white feet, hidden by her dress, came into view. Her toes wiggled playfully.
She continued speaking.
“Actually, I was a little happy. That was the first time my husband got angry after finding out I’d been with another man. Maybe the reason I slept with so many men without hesitation was because I wanted him to get angry. To confirm the love of a husband who is impassive about everything.”
Josephine’s eyes trembled with a distant look. Of course, I found it absurd. Suddenly justifying her infidelity and playing the tragic heroine?
“So, did you confirm it?”
“If I had, I wouldn’t be in this mess, would I? I deliberately created the same situation, but his attitude went right back to how it was before.”
“It wouldn’t have been the exact same situation. The leading man would have been different.”
I subtly slid my hand under her dress skirt. No sooner had I felt her smooth, soft thigh than Josephine clamped her hand over mine on top of her skirt, holding it still.
“The child… the child can see…!”
“We’re pressed close together, and your full skirt will hide us. The boy seems preoccupied with playing, and the nanny can’t take her eyes off him.”
“Still…”
Her reaction was the complete opposite of when she had been the one to seduce me. That made it all the more stimulating.
Gulp.
After glancing over to confirm my words were true, the strength in Josephine’s hand gradually faded. It seemed her role as the tragic heroine was over.
“But wasn’t it a loveless marriage?”
I spoke while keeping my gaze on the child and the nanny. The hand inside Josephine’s skirt was now kneading her thigh as if it were dough.
The strength returned to Josephine’s hand clutching her skirt. The crumpled fabric looked just like her face.
“A w-woman lives on love.”
“Indeed. Seeing you leaking your juices in front of your child, I suppose that must be true.”
My fingertips, which had slipped toward her inner thigh, felt moisture. We were still quite a distance from her sex, yet the area was already soaked.
An amount like this couldn’t have been produced in a short time. I continued speaking to Josephine, who was biting her lower lip and holding back.
“When did you go into heat?”
“I… I don’t know…”
“Parents are a mirror for their children. And yet you lie in front of your son? It makes me question your qualifications as a mother. You’ll have to be punished.”
“What, heuk…!”
Her face flushed, Josephine suddenly grabbed my arm. My hand, which had been stroking her inner thigh, had just touched her underwear.
“Let go of my arm. Someone might see that my hand is under your skirt.”
“Th-then you can just take your hand out…”
“Is that what you really want?”
Before she could answer, I caressed her through the fabric of her underwear. I must have brushed against a sensitive spot, because Josephine’s hips jolted.
“Hhhhp…!”
Just as Josephine let out a suppressed moan, the child spoke.
“Mama…?”
Hearing his mother’s voice, the child started to turn around. Startled, Josephine’s body went rigid.
“Young Lord. Look, a fish.”
The nanny intervened at the perfect moment. Her eyes met mine for a fleeting second before she quickly looked away, a clear sign she knew what we were doing.
“Where? Huh?”
As the child’s attention was diverted, Josephine lowered her head and let out a deep sigh. But it was too soon to be relieved.
“Eup…!”
My hand, which had paused for a moment, slipped inside her underwear. Her eyes, looking up at me, were trembling violently.
“W-we’ll get caught if you keep this up…”
“The nanny seems to know already.”
“Ahh…”
“What does it matter? Your scandals are famous enough that she’ll just assume. Besides, aren’t you curious if your husband will get angry again?”
It was the perfect moment for her to fall back into the role of the tragic heroine. I boldly pulled her onto my lap and, under the cover of her skirt, pushed my cock into her cunt.
“Hhhheup…!”
Josephine let out a louder moan, but thankfully, the nanny was keeping the child’s attention. I’d have to reward her handsomely later.
Was it because of the situation—in broad daylight, in front of her child and nanny? Josephine’s cunt was tighter than before. Her juices flowed out like crazy.
Unsatisfied, I reached a hand into her skirt and toyed with her clitoris.
“Haaaa…”
As if she had already reached her climax, Josephine’s body trembled like she’d been electrocuted. Her suppressed, excited breaths were unbearably lewd.
Before long, Josephine had forgotten where she was and who was in front of her, pressing herself tightly against me and grinding her hips.
Savoring the gentle pleasure, I resumed our interrupted conversation.
“Did Sir Joang not help you?”
“My f-father is the same, heuk, he sees me as a tool to achieve his goals.”
“What about the Baroness or Eusebia? You’d think they’d be more understanding, being women.”
Josephine shook her head. It was hard to tell if it was an answer to my question or an attempt to endure the pleasure.
“Heung… My mother-in-law hates me. She must know my true nature.”
“And Eusebia?”
“W-well, naughty older sisters are always popular with naive little girls.”
It was the answer I had hoped for. In a way, I felt sorry for her.
“So in the end, you have no one on your side.”
“Don’t pity me. I have Dien. When Dien grows up, they’ll both regret this.”
Josephine looked up at me, the corners of her eyes lifting. But when I gave a slight thrust of my hips, her expression quickly melted into one steeped in pleasure.
“It won’t be easy.”
“Heut… What do you mean by that…?”
“Do you believe Sir Ailgar will pass his position down to Dien?”
“Of course not. Humans are fickle; their minds change in an instant. Even if my husband wins the succession competition and inherits the title, the real power will remain with my father.”
She meant she would make Ailgar her puppet. In fact, that plan was already in motion. Wasn’t he powerless to do anything even when his wife openly brought other men into their bedroom?
“Don’t underestimate your husband.”
Josephine, who had been twisting her body and grinding her hips, suddenly froze.
“What do you mean by that…?”
Taking over, I began to thrust my hips gently as I spoke.
“No man would name a child of uncertain parentage as his successor.”
“Heup… I was careful about contraception.”
“And how can anyone believe that? The words of a wife who ignores her wedding vows and spreads her legs for countless men.”
I slowly picked up the pace as I continued.
“Once Ailgar becomes the Baron, he will no longer need Joang’s help. He’ll have the justification, and he’ll slowly strip away the real power. He may have already started.”
“Are you… trying to sow discord…?”
“See for yourself. He has an illegitimate son. A son who is likely receiving all the love he has never once shown you or your son. Let’s continue this conversation after you’ve confirmed whether my words are true.”
“You’ll regret it if you’re lying to me.”
Josephine, who had been glaring at me sharply, suddenly stiffened. My hand, which was gripping her breast, had become visible over the low neckline of her dress.
Using her breasts like handles, I thrust my hips upward again and again. The obscene, filthy sound of slick flesh slapping against flesh echoed without filter.
“And what will you do if it’s the truth?”
“Heeuk..! A-are you crazy? We’ll really get caught at this rate, heut…!”
Flustered, she grew restless. Perhaps because of that, her cunt tightened immensely. The nanny was desperately trying to hold the child’s attention, but it seemed she was reaching her limit.
I paid it no mind, thrusting my hips even harder as I whispered.
“I will do anything to obtain Eusebia. How far are you willing to go for your son?”
“Hahp… A m-mother’s love is endless. And I am a mother.”
As if to prove her sincerity, Josephine suppressed her pleasure and made her declaration. But her resolve didn’t last long.
“Mama…?”
The child had finally turned to look at his mother.
In that instant, all the strength drained from Josephine’s body, and she collapsed. Naturally, my cock, still joined with her, plunged deeper into her cunt.
“...!”
Josephine bit her lip hard enough to draw blood, holding back her orgasm. But her utterly disheveled face made it obvious what she was doing.