Chapter 23
Chapter 23
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: Ulstro Kingdom - Princess Knight (5)
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Clink.
With the sound of Marie setting down her last piece of silverware, the not-so-short mealtime came to an end. And the atmosphere in the dining hall shifted completely.
"Very well, what is on the agenda for the Second Princess today?"
The address of Second Princess rather than Marie signaled that from this moment on, it was official business time.
Now, the three of them were no longer mother and daughters—they were queen and princesses.
"Yes, after breakfast..."
She recited today's schedule fluently. These were the details her maids had informed her of before coming here.
Marie served as a sort of public face for the royal family. Whether in the capital or the provinces, she attended events in an official capacity to lend prestige, strengthened ties with allies, and gathered intelligence on local affairs.
This was originally work for the First Princess, Mercedes. But since her sister was focused on her duties as a knight, Marie had taken on a significant portion of what should have been the elder's responsibilities.
Still, Marie didn't resent or begrudge it. In exchange, she offloaded some of the paperwork she hated onto her sister—that was why Mercedes was always so busy in her office.
"Hm, I see. You're doing well. You'll probably be called here and there quite a bit for the time being. Just hang in there a little longer."
"Yes!"
Marie beamed happily at the queen's words, accompanied by her beautiful smile.
Ever since the martial tournament, a flood of events and obligations had kept her so busy she hadn't even been able to visit Valdes, who had caught her interest. On top of that, she had to smile through the annoying nobles who pestered her.
But her mother's smile and praise melted away her fatigue and stress like snow in spring.
"Now then... First Princess?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"It's already been over a fortnight... What is the latest report on that boy?"
Mercedes flinched, her body tensing for a moment.
The queen had assigned Valdes to her specifically for surveillance. Mercedes was well aware of that. But her conflicted feelings about the boy had caused her to delay the report day after day.
"He..."
"He?"
"...There have been no particular irregularities so far. On the contrary, he's more diligent in his training than most squires—not to mention many knights—and his good personality has earned him widespread praise. He hasn't gone out alone, nor is there any trace of contact with outsiders."
"Hmm..."
The queen pondered Mercedes's report. It had been less than a month, but Valdes was suspiciously clean. He showed none of the common flaws or weaknesses one might expect from a person.
And that very perfection only fueled her suspicions.
"I see. Understood for now. Continue reporting periodically. Submit a written report every fortnight as well."
"Yes."
The suspicion that he might be a demon spy was still just that—a suspicion, lacking even circumstantial evidence.
She did suspect him, but she couldn't dismiss the possibility of his innocence either. Discrimination and prejudice against half-breeds who weren't even full demons was unjust. The queen thought that perhaps the royal investigation itself could prove his innocence.
But what about his connection to the Hero?
In truth, she was more interested in that angle than the spy theory. She had merely emphasized the spy possibility because she couldn't reveal her real reasons to her daughter. But Mercedes's reports didn't provide enough to confirm it.
"......"
The Hero Pedro.
The one and only man she had truly loved.
And the man who had not returned her love.
Even now, she couldn't understand it. Why hadn't he accepted her?
By her own judgment, she was a perfect woman. Radiant golden hair like fine silk, noble and elegant features, a body with perfectly balanced curves—there wasn't a single physical flaw.
Their sexual encounters had only happened twice, carefully timed with magic to induce pregnancy, so her body was practically untouched. She regretted not giving him her virginity, but surely that was within acceptable bounds.
Some friends had even said that a widow was as much of a plus as a virgin.
Of course, she hadn't induced her late husband's death for that reason.
He had been a consort brought in through political marriage, yet he shamelessly used the chaos of war to try and supplant her and dream of becoming king. His family had encouraged rather than restrained him. For the sake of minimal honor, announcing that he had died fighting the Demon Army was more mercy than they deserved—they should be grateful even in the afterlife.
Beyond that, her personality, intellect, status, wealth—nothing was lacking. She was the ideal woman most men could only dream of. Even a man nearing his forties, the former warrior from the Hero's party who was now the king of Ventorino Kingdom and married, had subtly made advances toward her.
'Tch. Thinking about that man sours my mood.'
She quickly shifted her thoughts.
Pedro, just thinking of him lifted her spirits. Helping to kill him had been the greatest mistake of her life. The price for her momentary blindness in rage and despair was a regret that would last forever.
'Still, his age doesn't quite match for linking him to Pedro.'
The biggest sticking point was Valdes's age.
She still vividly remembered that day.
The stage was the flask-shaped peninsula of the Demon Realm and the long stretch of land connecting it to the continent. The third fortress among the five fortresses and three gates built atop it to block demon invasions.
The pretext was a victory celebration banquet.
The Elf Archer, who poisoned food with toxins from the Eternal Forest and coated arrows with them.
The Saintess, whose miracle bound his entire body, requiring years of recovery.
The Dwarf Paladin, who crafted hundreds of traps from precious metals he personally procured.
The Archmage, who laid thousands of magic circles to unleash an unprecedented ultimate spell.
The Warrior, who stabbed his gut with a final blow using forbidden doping drugs.
Everyone except the Beastkin Martial Artist who died mid-war and the deranged Spirit User had contributed, along with many others pooling their strength.
In the end, they completely demolished the massive fortress, turning it into his eternal tomb. Even if he survived the collapse, buried under that much rubble with such wounds, no human could last long without water or food.
Years later, once the continent had stabilized somewhat, they searched the ruins. Though no body was found, she was certain he was dead. It would have been more surprising if a corpse had remained amid those traps.
'Sigh, suddenly reminiscing like this... I guess this is what getting old feels like.'
"...Ha. Your Majesty. Your Majesty?"
Beatrice snapped out of her reverie at the sound of Mercedes calling her.
"Oh, dear. Sorry about that. I got lost in thought for a moment."
"No, it's fine. What were you thinking about so deeply...?"
"Hehe, just some old memories."
Brushing it off lightly, she looked at the First Princess. Her daughter's face was filled with worry for her beloved mother. Utterly adorable.
But she remembered the expression Mercedes had worn when Valdes was mentioned moments ago. It was unmistakably the face of a woman in love—not a princess, not a knight, not a daughter.
No chance she had misread it. After all, she had worn the same face every time she thought of Pedro.
'Sigh, is it because the boy reeks of Pedro? We're mother and daughter, but she doesn't need to take after me in this...'
She couldn't help but worry.
Suspicions of being a demon spy, suspicions of ties to Hero Pedro, and now her eldest daughter's first love. He had become someone impossible to overlook, no matter one's position.
'Can't leave it solely to Mercedes. Looks like... I'll have to investigate myself.'
Queen Beatrice.
Made her irreversible decision.
Squelch, squelch, squelch.
"Hngh! Hnngh, haah, haah, hnghaaa!!"
Around the time the three women in the palace were holding their meeting, Valdes was working his hips against Elza in a secluded corner of the training grounds.
Elza, hands braced against the wall, ass thrust out, desperately shaking her hips—it made her look just like a bitch in heat. And by now, even she couldn't deny it.
"Feels good training together like this?"
"Haak, yes, hnk! So, so good! Hnght, instead of sword training, haht, sex training, haaang!!"
This was morning training time after breakfast. Unlike the dawn sessions, morning training was largely self-directed. People paired off on their own for spars and to hone their martial skills.
So even if the two of them snuck off to fuck in a corner like this, there was almost no risk of getting caught. If anyone came looking, Glet would spot them from her watch nearby and warn them. Thanks to that, they could indulge freely.
"Hnght, this is your reward for doing what I told you so well."
"Th-thank... nghht, you! Haaang!"
Valdes had woken before anyone else this dawn, just like always, and visited her. Then he gave Elza a single command.
She had agonized over it just like Glet had, but her choice was the same. Even if it meant betraying Mercedes, she couldn't give up Valdes. Or more precisely, the pleasure he gave her.
"Ah, ah, aah...! Hnght...!"
He caressed her firm abs. His hand trailed downward along the ridges of muscle. It caught on her lewd tattoo, oozing sticky mana.
'Jumped straight to stage 2 when I engraved it. Now at stage 3. As expected, the prior conquest speeds up the progression.'
To Elza, who nodded obediently with the face of a pleasure-hunting female, he bestowed the Lewd Tattoo Magic as proof of ownership.
The same obedience tattoo he had given the black mage Bilma. The most straightforward one, perfect for mindless engraving.
He added a slight modification. Since squires spent a lot of time around others, it only manifested when she was sexually aroused. Elza got horny at random times anyway, but he trusted her to control herself.
If not, she wouldn't get pleasure from him anymore.
"Haht...! Hnngh, hup, ...hnghaaa♡"
His command had been to wake Mercedes and plant one of his items in her bed. Elza had faithfully carried it out, using the excuse of loose bed decorations to tuck a small sachet inside.
"Do the last one properly too."
"Nghaaht, haat, hnngh...! Y-yes, yesss!"
And placing another sachet in the office completed her mission. The bedroom was good, but the office saw plenty of time too, so it was a deliberate choice.
The sachet's effect was subtle on its own—nothing anyone around the princess would notice. But combined with his full-body stimulating massage and Charm Magic, it was a different story.
He planned to visit Mercedes under the pretense of a massage today as well, but he expected she'd endure some tough hours until then.
Thinking how much more fun the massage would be now, he thrust his hips hard.
"Eut, nnght, nngiiiit...!!"
Elza, hypersensitive from the glowing pink lewd tattoo, let out an ugly moan as she climaxed.
Squirt, squiiirt, sqiiiirt!!
"Ah, aaaah, nghaaa! Ahngh, hiiiik...!!"
Lewd tide gushed from her pussy, soaking downward. Her pants and underwear, pulled to her knees, darkened with her juices.
"Aah, aaahat♡ Ah, eut... I'm cumming, your bitch Elza... cummiiinggg...♥♥ Ngguuuuh♥"
He'd focused on Glet lately and neglected her, so she went off spectacularly in under ten minutes. A pure cry of ecstasy, free of any stray thoughts.
Valdes paused briefly, gazing down at her back as she trembled and rode the waves of climax. Then he yanked her hair to check her face.
"Auh, eut, uha, hhaaaak...♥"
Her sloppily melted face proved she had lost all reason.
With a smirk, he released her hair and smacked her ass with a sharp crack.
"Hiiiit!!"
"When did I say you could cum?"
"Hauk, hnght, haaat, s-sorr...y..."
He resumed thrusting, balancing it with a palm print on the other cheek. Her pussy clenched hard around his cock with the slap.
"You gonna make your master do all the work?"
"Aut, uek, uhat, uk, ng, uk..."
Not sure if she fully comprehended, but her pussy started contracting and relaxing in sync with his thrusts—ears were open, at least. Or maybe just a reflexive response from the spanking.
Either way, it didn't matter. Both meant she was well-trained.
The secret tryst in the training grounds corner ended only after Elza came four more times and cleaned his slick cock—coated in semen and her fluids—with her mouth.