Chapter 151
Chapter 151
Translation: godsn
With the arrival of Emperor Kazen's envoy and the handover of the strait to Valdina, the Claudio family was released.
Both Valdina and the Kazen Empire had succeeded in pushing through their respective demands within reasonable limits.
The betrothal ceremony with the Fourth Imperial Princess was also concluded without a hitch.
Samon had clearly survived. He barely suppressed the urge to burst into laughter.
'I did it! Pelleus! You and your oh-so-great sister pulled all those schemes, yet you still couldn't kill me! I won!'
And before long, his cousins would be pounding the ground in regret, realizing they should never have let Samon live.
Samon turned his body toward the Fourth Princess.
Toward his future wife—foolish, cruel, yet wielding immense power—who had saved his life in its entirety.
"Your Highness... I am grateful. You cannot possibly know how moved I am to become your husband."
He forced the widest smile he could muster.
Though he had already revealed his true colors, weren't they about to become husband and wife?
Having already succeeded once in crawling into the princess's bed, Samon was confident he could melt her frozen heart.
'All women are the same. If you treat them tenderly, they'll eventually break down their walls and fall for you.'
But the moment Samon reached out his hand—thwack—a sharp sound rang out.
"Ghk—!"
Unable to hold back, the princess had grabbed a knight's scabbard beside her and struck him down.
With a sharp pain shooting through his waist, Samon crumpled to the floor.
"How dare a filthy rat like you lay hands on me! You're not even worth the dirt beneath my feet, yet you've ruined my life!"
Lost in the joy of having safely escaped Valdina, he had overlooked how the princess had been treating him all this time.
Her murderous eyes looked as if they wanted to strip the flesh from his bones.
'I'd kill him right now if I could.'
The Fourth Princess suppressed the violent impulse rising in her as she stared at Samon's stunned face.
"At the very least, shouldn't Your Highness make him suffer too?"
That characteristically calm voice, capable of turning one's stomach, surfaced in her memory.
On the day the agreement between the two nations was finalized, the Princess of Valdina had sought out the Fourth Princess.
"Fourth Princess, congratulations on your betrothal."
"Are you mocking me now?!"
"Of course not. I only feel pity. A married couple shares each other's burdens, after all. Now, Your Highness will have to shoulder Samon's infamy as well."
The Princess of Valdina was brimming with vitality.
Unlike herself, who had endured nothing but hardship since arriving in Valdina, the princess's translucent skin and clear eyes overflowed with freshness.
As she bit her lip, struggling to suppress the jealousy welling up inside her, the princess continued.
"How pitiful. Your Highness has lost so much, yet Samon has gained nothing but benefits from this betrothal. If anything, his misfortune has turned into luck."
"That's enough of your taunts! Right now, I could— Haa..."
The Fourth Princess swallowed her rage-filled breath.
The princess was right.
She had become entangled with that wretch, losing both her reputation and her future as heir, while Samon Claudio had grown wings instead.
Her father's envoy had pressured her into accepting the betrothal with Samon, leaving her no room to resist.
Even her mother, the East Imperial Consort, had sent a letter warning of the emperor's fury and pleading with her not to act recklessly anymore.
'If I kill that bastard now, Father will never forgive me.'
It was enough to drive her mad. No matter how much she screamed into the night, the resentment festering inside her refused to subside.
As if reading her thoughts, Medeia pointed out softly,
"Your Highness. You don't have to endure unconditionally. There are many ways to achieve one's goals in this world."
The Fourth Princess glared at Medeia. Suspicion and wariness were thick in the princess's eyes.
"Ha! Do you think I don't know you're trying to use my hand to kill that bastard?"
"I won't deny that I want Claudio gone. But are you saying Your Highness doesn't feel the same?"
The Fourth Imperial Princess couldn't deny Medeia's smiling counter-question.
Perhaps she truly wanted—maybe even more than the princess—to kill that bastard.
"His Majesty the Emperor of Kazen said it doesn't matter how Samon remains alive, as long as he does."
As if reading the princess's thoughts, Medeia continued,
"The ducal house has already fallen, and Samon himself has been demoted to commoner status. Moreover, with that cunning mind of his, he dared to corner Your Highness the Fourth Imperial Princess. Who would dare criticize if Your Highness, in your justified anger, were to vent just a little?"
"......"
"Your Highness wouldn't be taking his life—merely delivering a small measure of suffering. Shouldn't Samon endure at least as much pain as you have?"
Medeia's gaze flickered briefly over the knights behind the Fourth Princess before she gave a slight bow.
"You have the tools, the capability to handle the aftermath—yet Your Highness is far too kind-hearted."
"......"
"Ah, but these are just my idle musings. Please don't pay them too much mind. Then, I shall take my leave."
After Medeia departed, the Fourth Princess, left alone, pondered deeply.
Even her long-standing grudge against Medeia seemed to blur in the face of the true culprit—Samon.
That's right. As long as he doesn't die, what does it matter?
Her father needed Samon alive to replace the King of Valdina.
It's not like His Majesty ever intended to keep Claudio around anyway.
There was no way that incompetent, talentless wretch would be given another chance. In that case...
"Bring me a whip. One soaked in water."
"Pardon?"
The princess's guard knight hesitated.
"What are you standing around for?! Tell the warden—Angelique is coming right now."
From that day onward, the Fourth Princess vented her fury on Samon to her heart's content.
Whenever the knights restrained Samon's arms to prevent resistance, the princess meticulously struck only below his face.
Thus, no one ever knew he was being subjected to such merciless violence.
"Bring holy water and heal him. My precious fiancé, Young Master Claudio, has fainted."
The cycle of Samon being whipped unconscious, healed, then beaten again bordered on outright torture.
Even on the day of their betrothal ceremony, it was no different.
"Your Highness, now that things have come to this... perhaps we could let bygones be bygones and—"
Samon's desperate attempts to mend their relationship not only failed to reach the princess—they only stoked her fury further.
"Let bygones be bygones? You think a backwater like this could ever be forgotten so easily? What I lost was an empire! Me! Because I was shackled by a wretch like you! I lost the throne!"
"Ugh—!"
Overcome with rage, the princess swung the whip wildly.
That throne—you never stood a chance of claiming it in the first place!
Samon hadn't expected the Fourth Princess to show him any mercy, even in front of everyone.
But what tormented him more than the physical pain was having to endure this humiliation—being beaten like a dog in full view of everyone.
"......"
The Regent flinched at the princess's unrestrained violence, shrinking back as if fearing he might be next. Surprisingly, it was Catherine who stepped forward bravely.
"Stop! Stop it! My son!"
She rushed forward, shielding Samon's shoulders with her own body, then screamed at the princess.
"Your Highness! Samon is now your husband! How can you do this?! Does the Kazen imperial family have no laws?!"
"Now the dogs are barking in packs. Discipline them all."
With an icy expression, the princess ordered the knights. After a brief hesitation, the beating resumed.
"No! Stop! Aaah—!"
Catherine, still clutching Samon, was forced to endure the lash alongside him.
"Y-Your Highness... With so many eyes watching, perhaps it would be better to continue this later...?"
Count Laju, who couldn't bear to see his lover harmed, attempted to dissuade the princess—though he had no such concern for Samon, the Regent's son.
SLAP—!
But his courage proved futile as the Fourth Princess struck him across the face without hesitation.
"Shut up and step aside."