Chapter 10. Princess Catherine (1)
Princess Catherine (1)
Count Lucian's prestige upon arriving in the royal capital pierced the heavens.
For his merit in rescuing the kingdom's priestess Sophia from the clutches of pirates, the king personally praised him as the "Shield of the Kingdom" and bestowed upon him vast treasures of gold and jewels.
"Priestess Sophia lost her divine power due to the shock of that incident. She has requested retirement to recuperate in my territory."
Lucian's report was flawless. Sophia had officially relinquished her title as planned and entered under the Eckhart family's protection (effectively ownership) without raising any suspicion. Everything was proceeding according to his design.
Yet behind the splendid reception, Lucian's mind remained uneasy.
'I must find the key to my salvation here.'
[The Next Day]
In the deepest recesses of the Royal Library, the Forbidden Book Section.
In this place barred to ordinary citizens, Count Lucian and his maid I-seo were engrossed in their search.
Amidst the musty scent of aged paper and dust, I-seo's eyes sparkled as she combed through mountains of ancient texts.
"Have you found anything?"
Lucian asked impatiently. His crimson eyes were hollow from days without sleep.
I-seo carefully unrolled a piece of weathered parchment.
"My lord... This document mentions symptoms similar to 'Mana Overload.' It's from the imperial medical records of the Ancient Empire."
"Read it."
Clearing her throat, I-seo began translating the ancient script.
"Those born with a vessel too small for their innate mana... shall suffer agony as if their blood boils and vessels burst. This is both divine blessing and curse."
"Is there a cure? Any method of suppression?"
As I-seo read further, her face flushed and she hesitated.
"......"
"Why did you stop? Continue."
"It's just... the content is somewhat..."
Under Lucian's urging, I-seo continued in a voice that grew increasingly faint.
"To cool the overflowing yang energy... only the bodily fluids of a yin-aligned woman provide the answer. Excess mana must be expelled through regular coupling, channeled into semen... The greater the frequency and number of partners, the longer the lifespan may be extended."
"Ha...!"
Lucian let out a hollow laugh.
His fist came down hard on the desk.
BANG!
"So in the end... I'm to live like a beast in perpetual rut? There's no cure—just fucking countless women to prolong my life?!"
His rage was devastating.
He had no desire to become a pleasure-seeking libertine. Yet even ancient wisdom decreed that copulation was his only path to survival.
Watching Lucian's tormented back, I-seo felt profound pity.
His relentless pursuit of women wasn't depravity—it was desperate survival instinct.
Leaving the library empty-handed.
At the end of the long corridor, a man in resplendent court attire approached.
Blond hair and blue eyes—the perfect noble at first glance, but with the cold gaze of a serpent.
The Second Prince, Kaelus.
"Oh my, if it isn't the hero of the kingdom, Count Lucian?"
Kaelus advanced with a genteel smile that carried hidden thorns.
"Your Highness."
As Lucian bowed, Kaelus patted his shoulder.
"Impressive. Rescuing even the priestess. I hear your territory overflows with beauties? Adding the priestess to your collection now?"
"You misunderstand. She merely stays temporarily with nowhere else to go."
"Is that so? Everyone knows of your... 'overflowing vitality.'"
Kaelus's gaze fell upon I-seo standing behind Lucian. His eyes roved over her exotic beauty before curling into a sly smile.
"Not even your maids are ordinary. Your greed knows no bounds."
"You flatter me."
"Father seems quite fond of you. So much that he's eager to match you with my sister, Princess Catherine. Even though you're already engaged to Lady Rachel."
There it was.
The root of Kaelus's hostility.
The king sought to bind the militarily powerful Eckhart family to royal blood by wedding his daughter Catherine to Lucian—even if it meant breaking his existing engagement to Rachel.
For the Second Prince eyeing the throne, Lucian's formidable strength fully aligning with the First Prince's faction would be disastrous.
"Lady Rachel alone is more than enough for me. A princess would be far beyond my station..."
Though Lucian drew the line, Kaelus leaned in to whisper:
"Watch yourself, Count. Reach for too much... and you might burst. How long do you think your filthy blood will remain a secret?"
"...!!"
Lucian's gaze turned razor-sharp.
Kaelus seemed to know something about the "blood"—the curse upon his lineage. Proof he was colluding with Belial.
Belial was the ancient dark mage who had sent assassins after Lucian's body. Little was known about him, but his desire for Lucian's mana was certain.
"I appreciate the advice, Your Highness."
Lucian replied calmly and turned away. But I-seo saw it—the faint tremble in his tightly clenched fist.
The palace was resplendent, but beneath lay a swamp more treacherous than any battlefield, teeming with venomous snakes.
And at its center waited another woman who desired Lucian—Princess Catherine.
[Noon Banquet]
Seizing an opportunity, Lucian approached the king.
"Your Majesty, regarding the promised reinstatement of the Victoria family—"
"Ah, that. Let's discuss it later. Today is for celebration, no?"
The king weaseled out of the topic and nudged Lucian forward.
"More importantly, my daughter Catherine has much to say to you. Take a boat on the lake—enjoy some private time together."
There was no grounds for refusal. Attendants were already preparing the boats at the king's signal.
Suppressing a sigh, Lucian headed to the dock where Princess Catherine waited.
Two small boats glided across the tranquil lake.
The leading boat carried Lucian and Princess Catherine, while the trailing escort vessel held Lucian's guard captain and secretary-maid I-seo.
I-seo felt uneasy.
The stone-faced guard captain seated across from her was as silent as a boulder.
Known as Count Lucian's shadow, this loyal warrior's gruff demeanor and indifferent eyes deterred I-seo from even attempting conversation.
Only the sounds of oars and parting water filled the awkward silence.
"Ohoho, Count. Lovely weather, isn't it?"
Princess Catherine's laughter carried from the boat ahead.
Upon reaching the lake's center, Lucian's boat halted. Surrounded by lotus leaves that obscured visibility, it was a secluded spot.
"Let's... rest here awhile."
Catherine's voice had taken a strange, sultry tone.
"Count Lucian..."
Catherine was a renowned beauty.
Raven hair like melted night sky, shyly flushed cheeks, and voluptuous curves no dress could conceal.
With trembling hands, she took Lucian's hand.
"Rumors don't matter... I've adored you since childhood.
After mother passed, when I felt so alone... you always comforted me and played with me."
Whenever business brought Lucian to the royal palace, he would visit the princess to talk.
Though his topics—warfare, territory management—hardly interested most girls her age, Catherine would listen wide-eyed.
"Now I'm grown. If time passes like this, I'll be married off to some foreign prince I barely know. But I...
Count, please... become engaged to me. Father has already consented."
A princess's confession. Any other noble would have prostrated himself in gratitude, but Lucian was conflicted.
Wedding the princess would end his libertine lifestyle.
Yet refusal would earn the resentment of Catherine—who'd been like a younger sister—and ruin his rapport with the king.
"Your Highness, you honor me beyond measure. But my circumstances are... complicated for an immediate decision. However..."
Without hesitation, Lucian pulled Catherine close by the waist and captured her red lips.
"Mmph?!"
Catherine's eyes flew wide.
The king doted on his daughter so excessively that she'd barely seen the world beyond palace walls.
Kisses existed only in fairy tales—distant, sweet imaginings of knights and princesses.
But the fairy tales lied about bells ringing when lips met.
A real first kiss was far rougher—hot, breath-stealing, verging on violent invasion.
Lucian's lips burned.
As he sucked both her upper and lower lips, Catherine's tightly sealed mouth parted helplessly.
"Hahh...!"
Seizing the opening, Lucian's thick, rough tongue stormed into her mouth.
The princess's oral sanctum—a warm, narrow sanctuary never before breached—was ruthlessly violated by the man's tongue.
Lucian's tongue moved with serpentine flexibility and beastly greed.
It traced the even rows of her teeth, scraped the tender flesh of her palate.
Startled, Catherine tried retracting her tongue, but Lucian caught the fleeing muscle and entwined it.
Schlurp, schuuuck, smack.
The lewd, unmistakable sounds echoed in her ears.
Catherine's mind went blank.
My tongue... is mixing with the Count's. My saliva is being drunk by him, his saliva is entering me.
The pungent musk of masculinity. A strange sweetness in the exchanged fluids.
When Lucian tilted his head to thrust deeper, Catherine's throat convulsed.
Yet it wasn't revulsion—but electric tremors rising from her core.
'Ah... Count... Lucian...'
Unconsciously, Catherine fisted Lucian's collar.
Her legs threatened to give way.
Her mind whispered to stop, but her heart pounded madly.
He's sucking my lips. He's drinking my breath.
The man I've yearned for, even dreamed of, now desires me.
Slurp, smack, lick. Schlick.
"Mmm..."
Lucian nibbled her lips and tickled beneath her tongue.
Tears welled in Catherine's eyes—not from sorrow, but overwhelming emotion.
'So this... is a kiss.'
Not mere lip contact.
It was branding.
As Lucian's saliva slid down her throat to soak her stomach, Catherine realized:
The shell of "princess" binding her was shattering, replaced by a new identity—"Lucian's woman."
'Now... there's no turning back.'
Royal decorum, her father's commands—none mattered.
This man ravishing my lips is my prince.
With trembling hands, Catherine embraced Lucian's neck. Shyly, she extended her tongue to meet his.
"Mmm... schlurp..."
At her initiative, Lucian growled low.
Their tongues tangled, saliva threading between them.
The boat rocked to the rhythm of their fervent breaths.
To Lucian,
the fact that the once innocent, adorable princess
had now bloomed into such a luscious woman for him
was an intoxicating thrill beyond belief.
Without breaking the kiss, Lucian breathed hotly into the dazed princess's ear:
"How sweet you are, Princess."
At those words, Catherine blushed like a schoolgirl receiving her first confession.
"Catherine... I want to hold you. But taking you fully now might cost me my head. So I have a proposal."
"A... proposal?"
"There are ways for men and women to share deep intimacy... without taking your maidenhead."