Ventorino Kingdom - Downfall or Capture (5)
Katarina had finally finished agonizing over it.
Truthfully, no matter how long she had wrestled with the decision, the outcome had been more or less fixed from the start.
The queen was already hopelessly in love with Valdes. So hopelessly, in fact, that even with a husband at her side, she could no longer rein that affection in.
The only question left was how far she could bring herself to lower her iron pride. That stubborn pride was Katarina’s last psychological wall, the one her foolish husband Marc had only strengthened through his childish power games.
Valdes intended to smash that wall completely.
Into dust.
"What… did you say?"
Katarina asked again.
It wasn’t that she hadn’t heard him, nor that she failed to understand. It was simply that what Valdes had just said to her face was so absurd that she could hardly believe it.
About thirty minutes earlier, the queen had summoned Valdes to her bedroom through her personal maid. It was late, but that hardly mattered. In fact, night was better for calling someone in.
The guards stationed throughout the royal castle were fewest then, and so were the servants, who functioned as the eyes and ears of the royal family and the nobility. For security and order’s sake, there was never truly a time when everyone slept. That made this hour, when the corridors were at their emptiest, the best choice.
Valdes arrived at the queen’s quarters at the maid’s summons with his usual unhurried composure.
Once, he had come there almost every day. This time, however, it had been several days since his last visit.
"How is Katarina?"
"Pardon? Ah, well…"
He casually addressed the maid by name as if he outranked her, but she showed no reaction. Of all people, she understood the relationship between him and the queen. She knew exactly how important Valdes was to Katarina.
"Recently, she’s been… very uneasy."
"Hmm. I see."
He nodded.
As he suspected, that was the answer. What remained was to confirm it with his own eyes.
The maid skillfully led him past the guards and the other servants, guiding him all the way to the door of the queen’s bedroom.
"We’re here."
"Mm. Good work."
"Yes. Then I’ll be taking my leave…"
"Ah, wait—"
"Yes?"
"…No, never mind."
"Ah… yes, understood."
Valdes stopped the maid just as she was about to return to her post, but after a moment he only shook his head and sent her away.
It should be fine. There’s no way things would line up that perfectly.
The reason he had called the maid over in the first place was to give one instruction: if Alfonso came, under no circumstances was she to let him in. But then he dismissed the thought. No matter how much of a complete mama’s boy the prince was, would he really come seeking comfort from his mother over heartbreak? Even if he was just a teenage boy, the image of a prince crying in his mother’s room at night over his first love—or sleeping with her—felt wrong on so many levels.
Valdes had no idea Alfonso wasn’t coming here because of heartbreak at all.
He faced forward and knocked. Soon, Katarina’s voice came from inside.
"Come in."
"I’m coming in."
When he opened the door, there she was as always: Katarina, wearing a suggestive, provocative nightdress. Tonight, instead of sitting on the bed, she was perched on a chair with her legs crossed.
Her cold, set expression and posture should have given off the imposing dignity of a queen, but her outfit was so shamelessly revealing that it ruined the effect. Besides, Valdes was no longer at the stage where he would feel intimidated by something like that.
"Why did you call me?"
"……"
She had meant to seize the initiative, but the moment she looked at his face, she realized she had failed. Katarina let out a long sigh first.
"Haa… do you really need to ask?"
"Hmm. I’m not sure I do."
At his infuriatingly brazen expression and attitude, Katarina’s brow twitched. She had tried to take control of the conversation, but Valdes only made her more irritated.
"If it’s about Clara… then do you understand?"
"Clara? Ah. Well, I think I get it."
"You do? Thank goodness…"
"But what does that have to do with me?"
"What…?"
Katarina’s eyes widened.
"Isn’t it obvious? Clara isn’t some little child. It’s ridiculous for her mother to meddle in everything."
"…Ha! That girl is a princess of this kingdom. She even has a fiancé!"
"A fiancé, huh? Then, Katarina. What about you?"
"…Huh?"
Valdes began walking toward her. One step at a time. Very slowly. Yet those slow footsteps filled Katarina with a crushing pressure. A chill she couldn’t explain ran through her body until she was trembling faintly all over.
"You’re the queen of this country, and you have a husband."
"……"
The married queen opened and closed her mouth.
He wasn’t wrong. That only made it more absurd—and more maddening.
"You can cheat on me with a boy young enough to be your son, but your daughter can’t? Isn’t that a bit too much?"
"N-no, I…"
"You know as well as I do how hard it is for a married couple to have grievances with each other."
"Wh-what are you talking about? Clara and Lloyd love each other so much."
"Hmm. Do they really, even now?"
"W-what?"
"And besides… you don’t even know Clara’s true self, do you? Not as your daughter, not as a princess. …As a woman."
"……"
What on earth was he talking about? What exactly did he know?
No, what had Valdes done to her daughter?
There was no proof, but Katarina was somehow convinced. Clara had been changed by no one other than Valdes. Whether that was the true self he had drawn out of her or a false self he had fabricated, it didn’t matter. Either way, she believed his influence had been overwhelming.
And that infuriated Katarina beyond words.
At Valdes. And at her daughter, Clara.
"Hah, but…"
Before she could force more words out, Valdes had already come close enough to extend a finger and stop her lips.
"Enough."
"…?"
"Let’s stop with all that useless talk."
"…What?"
"Say what you really came here for."
"……"
The blue of her eyes wavered.
That look in Valdes’s eyes, as if he knew everything—more precisely, everything about her. That gaze, piercing through her chest and straight into her heart, was as chilling as it was familiar. Katarina found it terrifying, and yet at the same time, thrilling. Pleasing.
Yes.
What she really wanted was similar to that, but also somehow different.
"……"
"……"
A brief silence.
"…Why…"
The queen’s lips parted at last.
"Why… haven’t you been coming to me lately…?"
Her voice trembled, damp with feeling.
"Why… only Clara, and not me… that girl alone…"
She trailed off, then shut her mouth again.
Even Katarina herself was startled by how this had turned out. She certainly hadn’t intended to bare her heart this openly. And yet, for some reason, she had ended up spilling her true feelings to him.
"Haa."
She let out a small breath and squeezed her eyes shut. Since things had come to this anyway, she decided to go straight for it. It didn’t seem like excuses would work. Then there was only one thing left: a frontal assault. She had never been the type to use that as her first resort, but now she had no other choice.
"Valdes. You said you loved me. Not me as the queen. Me as Katarina… you said you loved me… didn’t you?"
"That’s right."
"Then why…"
"But still."
Valdes paused, unhurried and relaxed.
"Does that mean I have to love you back?"
"…Huh? What? Wh-what do you mean…?"
"Katarina. You love me, don’t you?"
"……Yes. I, I do… Valdes, I love you…"
She didn’t actually want to say it. If she admitted it, she felt like she’d never be able to escape him. She felt like she’d never be able to give him up. But she couldn’t exactly say she didn’t love him now, after showing him all of this. Was one simple confession really that hard?
Yet Valdes’s next words shook her.
"Then what about your husband?"
"……What?"
"Your husband. The king. Marc."
"……"
Katarina saw Valdes smile wickedly. It was the smile of a villain, one who mocked and toyed with women. And yet even that made Katarina think he looked handsome.
"How about it? Do you love him?"
She couldn’t answer right away.
It was a trap.
A perfect trap.
What was she supposed to say here?
If she said yes, she would be endorsing Valdes’s conduct.
If she said no, then she would be admitting that her husband meant nothing to her, that Valdes came first, that she was the worst kind of married queen—a woman who had betrayed her husband.
Of course, in the latter case, only Valdes would hear it anyway. So she could just say it to him. She only had to give him no excuse to wriggle out of it. Yet her lips wouldn’t move.
Why was that?
There were many reasons.
Above all, the biggest reason was that she still loved her husband, Marc. They had been married for decades. Even if he was a fool, even if he was absent, she didn’t want to lie about that.
……
Did she really?
Her lower abdomen throbbed.
Thud. Thud-thud.
The mark on her lower abdomen, the Betrayal Mark carved above her womb, began to glow little by little. The debauched excitement born from it spread through Katarina’s entire body. And then she understood.
"How is it, Katarina? You… what do you think of your husband?"
"……. Ha. Haha. Hahahaha…"
She laughed.
No.
She no longer loved him.
Whatever love she had once had for her husband had already been thrown away.
She had only been lying to herself. Was it because she felt guilty toward him? No, that wasn’t it.
It was because this way was more arousing.
Loving her husband while having an affair with Valdes—
It was so thrilling, so wonderful.
That was the truth.
"……Yes, that’s right… I still love my husband too… ♡"
"Exactly. Then… that means I can play with Clara, too, right?"
"…Yes, you can… Just… with me too…"
An indecent, taboo affair… no one else knew about it… only the two of them knew… a delightful little secret…
…Do it for me ♥
She spread her arms wide and embraced him. He didn’t avoid her. On the contrary, as if pleased with her, he sat down facing her and placed one hand on her head to stroke her hair. Katarina did not pull away. She enjoyed the touch of the man she truly loved.
"Hnn, mm… ahh… ♡"
An affair with a boy young enough to be her son had become far too enjoyable.
To be called into her bedroom at night and cling to each other like this.
A secret, obscene affair that the kingdom’s citizens, the nobility, and even their own family knew nothing about.
The area between her legs grew wet.
"Haa, mm… Valdes, Valdes… ♡"
Katarina hugged him harder and harder. Then she rubbed her body—still clad only in her nightdress—against his. Even though he was only a few years older than her own son, Valdes’s body was hard and solid. He had the body of a seasoned knight. It made her think, for a moment, of her husband’s body from long ago.
"Mmm… ahhh… ♥"
Thinking of her family made her body tremble even more. It was because of the dizzying excitement.
Her foolish husband, who had cheated so shamelessly and still believed she would continue to love him.
Her daughter, already welcoming another man without even knowing she had a predecessor waiting in line.
…And her son, who was so frustrating in comparison that she wanted to sigh.
All of it only fed her arousal.
She felt no guilt. After all, how could they know? How could anyone know what was happening in her bedroom, or what fantasies were taking shape inside her head? So it was fine. If nobody found out, it wasn’t a crime. Just like Marc had once allowed an entire dynasty to be wiped out.
Her body quivering with excitement, Katarina could no longer hold back and lunged for Valdes’s lips. Or rather, tried to.
"Wait."
"…?"
There was no mistaking it—when she pressed herself against him, his own arousal had risen as well. Naturally, she assumed he would welcome the kiss, but for some reason he held out a hand and leaned back.
"We’re not done settling accounts yet."
"Huh, wha…?"
"You dragged me all the way here over something so pointless. You should pay for that."
"P-pay? What do you mean…?"
Katarina shot him a protesting look, but Valdes didn’t budge.
In fact, he turned the blame on her.
"I took risks and made plenty of attempts to get you, Katarina. All for love."
"Y-yes… you did…"
Even now, it was still hard to believe.
He had suddenly kissed her, pressed at her lower belly, and on some days had even slipped into her bedroom in secret just to suck on her breasts. Any one of those acts, if her feelings had changed or if anyone had found out, would have been a capital offense not nearly severe enough to describe it. Valdes had done all of it under the banner of love, and all of it had succeeded.
"And that’s how I won your love. So… shouldn’t Katarina do something in return?"
"……"
She pressed her lips together tightly.
What a cruel man he was, tormenting her like this.
On this continent, there were only two kingdoms, and one of them was ruled by a queen. In practice, that made her the only queen-consort on the continent. Even if polygamy was legal, there was no chance Marc would take on another queen.
He had won the love of a woman with such a precious position.
He hadn’t been satisfied with that, and had even touched her daughter.
And now he wanted even more.
"Ah… a-alright."
Still, Katarina was already prepared.
She was only a little disappointed that she couldn’t seize the initiative.
And she was excited.
Just as Valdes had said before.
She wanted someone beneath her in status—yet still strong enough, and attractive enough—to dominate her and wrap her around his finger. Maybe she hadn’t been able to admit it in the past, but now she did.
And in this moment, Katarina was more aroused than ever.
She rose from the chair and trudged over to the bed, slowly lifting her undergarments aside.
"Haa… V-Valdes… p-please, I, I beg you… please, give it to this Ventorino Kingdom queen, Katarina, who is getting so excited over this affair… P-put your c-cock in me… ♥"
She was even saying things no one had told her to say.