Ella's Arousing Nightmares
“Haa… haa…”
Atop the bed, a petite woman gasped for breath. Sweat-dampened strands of light brown hair clung to her cheeks, and even her pale face had flushed a deep red.
It had been several months since Ella relocated her residence to the eastern capital. Ever since the day she peeped on those two beasts in the act, she had been plagued by erotic dreams almost every single night. It wasn’t as if some long-extinct incubus had appeared to curse her with them. The scene she had witnessed that day remained vivid before her eyes—like a vicious nightmare that refused to fade.
“Tsk!”
Ella clicked her tongue sharply and sat up. The moon still hung in the black sky. By the hour, it was around dawn.
I’m going crazy.
The moment she rose from the bed she headed straight for the cupboard, snatching up a bottle of liquor that sat there. It was the common beer sold across the continent. Beer and wine—those were the two main categories of drink on the continent, though the varieties within them were quite numerous. Of them all, Ella preferred the beer brewed in the north. Being the beer of her homeland, it suited her palate perfectly.
“Hoo…!”
She drained half the murky bottle in one go and let out a long sigh. The savory yet bitter taste lingering on her tongue seemed to ease her unease just a little.
I’m really going crazy.
Why, though? She had certainly felt crushing defeat and despair that day, but it shouldn’t have dragged on this long. Today, as always, that unresolved frustration pressed down on Ella’s flat chest. Because of it she hadn’t managed to close her eyes even once until the sun rose.
I’m gonna die of exhaustion.
Ella downed another beer and headed downstairs to the workshop. It was smaller in scale than the forge she had worked at before, but it put her mind at ease. It was a space that belonged solely to her. Of course she still trained other craftsmen as the kingdom required, but not every day.
Clang!
The clear ring of iron filled her ears, and the searing flames licked at her skin. Sweat poured from her entire body, washing away the alcohol and anxiety that had built up inside her. Her body was exhausted, yet strangely her skill at hammering iron only kept improving—far beyond what it had been when she was in perfect condition.
“Pardon the intrusion.”
In the middle of shaping a piece of iron with her hammer, someone knocked on the workshop door. It was a man with an unfamiliar face, bearing word that he had come from the royal palace. The once-dark sky had brightened with soft sunlight.
“The palace?”
Ella wiped her forehead with the towel around her neck as she asked.
“Yes. You have been ordered to present yourself at the palace today.”
“Tsk. Fine. I’ll get ready right away.”
“Very well. I shall wait outside.”
So it was someone from the palace. Ella clicked her tongue lightly and returned to her room. She could hardly show up at the royal palace in these clothes, let alone soaked in sweat. She used a purification spell to strip away the sweat and grime, then selected a clean set of black clothes—one of the garments Beatrix herself had bestowed upon her. After changing and climbing into the carriage, she soon found herself stepping into the office.
“Come in. Sit there.”
Beatrix, seated at the desk, indicated a seat with a glance. Ella obediently took the chair opposite her. Because of her small stature even when seated, she had to tilt her head slightly upward.
“What business brings you to summon me at this early hour?”
Ella’s tone was as blunt as ever, yet her voice trembled faintly. The fear she felt toward Beatrix had still not fully vanished.
“Nothing special. Just checking how you’re doing. I already sent the reward through someone else, after all.”
“That’s only natural. It’s not as if the monarch of a nation needs to go out of her way for something like that.”
Ella laughed as if it were no big deal.
“True enough.”
Beatrix gave a small nod, as if acknowledging the point.
“So why did you call for me? From what I heard, nothing particular has happened.”
“You’re right. I just wanted to make sure you were still in one piece. You’re a craftsman who came to me, so I ought to look after you a little.”
“Ah… is that so? I’m honored.”
She had seemed completely uninterested in anyone else, yet… Ella’s reply came out halfhearted. She couldn’t help tilting her head inwardly. Beatrix, as if she had expected exactly that reaction, said nothing more. It was purely obligatory; there was no sincerity behind it. Even so, “obligatory” did not mean she would brush it off carelessly.
“Your complexion looks terrible. Are you sick?”
“Hm? Do I look that bad?”
Ella’s eyes blinked in genuine surprise. She hadn’t thought she had grown so haggard that others would notice—especially not when the words came from the mouth of the tyrant herself.
“Yeah. Dark circles under your eyes, too. If you’re not sick, then something’s eating at you. Spit it out.”
She even cut straight to the heart of the matter without hesitation. Ella’s expression twisted with fluster.
Why does it have to be the person involved who asks…
In her eyes, Albert and Beatrix were both monsters of the same breed. Not merely because they were tyrants who treated human lives lightly and possessed the power to do so. It was because Beatrix had swallowed that enormous cock down to the root and still looked overjoyed. And Albert, who had rammed a cock capable of destroying a woman into her without restraint, was just as terrifying. She couldn’t simply stay silent and move on. Nor could she lie. Beatrix would see through it for certain.
Ella clicked her tongue, fell silent for a moment, then slowly opened her mouth.
“Tsk. It’s pathetic, but… I’ve been having nightmares ever since that day.”
“That day?”
“The night I peeped on that man’s… activities.”
“Ah… that. But why would that be a nightmare?”
Beatrix tilted her head in puzzlement. She knew Ella feared Albert’s cock, but she hadn’t expected her to regard it as a nightmare.
“I don’t know. I’m just scared. It’s pathetic, really.”
Ella let out a short, self-mocking laugh. The gaze she fixed on Beatrix trembled faintly.
“What’s even funnier is that every time I have those nightmares, I go into heat. I clearly feel terror, yet I get aroused. How ridiculous is that?”
“It is contradictory.”
“Isn’t it funny?”
“No. Why would it be?”
Why would that be funny? Beatrix’s eyes blinked as if she truly didn’t understand.
“…Never mind.”
Any ordinary person would have found it hilarious. A bitter smile tugged at Ella’s lips.
“Anyway, if that’s your problem, I suppose I should do something about it.”
“Do something? How?”
Ella tilted her head, completely at a loss.
“If you see it often enough, it’ll get better.”
The moment Beatrix delivered that answer, Ella’s eyes went wide.
Clunk.
While the winter wind battered the carriage door without rest, Albert asked, his face full of concern.
“Are you sure you’re really all right?”
“Yeah. There’s truly nothing wrong with me.”
She had simply wanted to visit a hot spring so badly that she had used recuperation as a pretext and boarded the carriage days ago. Albert already knew Beatrix was up to something, yet he still kept asking out of worry—for the umpteenth time. If anyone else had done this, she would have found it tiresome. But watching Albert fuss over her endlessly, Beatrix smiled softly.
She really does look fine.
Only after countless questions did Albert finally let out a sigh of relief and relax. He had been worried sick that she might actually be unwell.
Seeing how worried I get… I really do love her.
Albert felt anew just how much he loved Beatrix.
“But why a hot spring, of all things?”
“Kristia once said winter hot springs are wonderful. But going all the way west would be far too long a journey, wouldn’t it?”
Besides, if they went west they would have to share him with Kristia. Beatrix hid her sly thoughts and answered blandly.
“That’s true.”
There was no need to enter another monarch’s territory just for recuperation. Albert nodded in agreement.
“But what about the others? I feel bad resting when it’s only the two of us…”
Albert sighed, worrying about the knights following them. They would have to climb a mountain without knowing how long they would stay. The hardship would be considerable.
“Just let them rest moderately. If need be, they can sleep in the place where the bandits used to be.”
“There?”
Albert half-closed his eyes, looking thoroughly reluctant. He hadn’t seen it himself, but it was the place where necks and blood had supposedly sprayed everywhere. Sleeping there felt like it would bring bad luck.
He really doesn’t like the idea.
There was no need to be so considerate of subordinates. Beatrix thought Albert’s kindness was excessive, yet she didn’t voice it. He was growing firmer in some ways, but this was still Albert.
“If you don’t like it, I’ll pay for them to stay in the viscount’s territory. Switching shifts every few days instead of by the hour should be fine. The few hours it takes to climb the mountain won’t be a problem either.”
“Ah… that would work.”
Better than staying in that blood-soaked cave, or pitching tents and camping outside. The thought that Beatrix could simply fly them up crossed his mind, but that would be overstepping. Albert sorted out his tangled thoughts and turned his gaze out the window. Small white snowflakes were falling.
“I hope it doesn’t snow too much this year either.”
Back in Gangwon Province and other front-line areas, the snow had fallen so heavily they called it garbage. Albert recalled the old days and sighed with a weary expression. The eastern kingdom got only light snow, which wasn’t bad. The roads still turned muddy, of course, but compared to other regions it was nothing.
“It will. It always has.”
Beatrix shifted her gaze to the window as well and answered briefly. To her eyes, snow and rain were simply parts of nature—neither romantic nor tiresome the way other monarchs felt.
Several more days passed, and the carriage carrying Beatrix and Albert finally reached its destination: the former den of human-trafficking bandits, a mountain with a hot spring near its peak. Beatrix supported Albert as they slowly alighted from the carriage. Several knights who had dismounted stood in a line before them.
“Albert and I will be staying up on the mountain for a while.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
When Beatrix spoke, the knights answered with impassive faces. They had clearly expected as much.
“Divide into two groups. One group will camp near us; the other will stay within the viscount’s territory. You’ll rotate every three days.”
Excluding travel time, that effectively gave them two full days of rest. It was far more comfortable than remaining on high alert day and night—even if they had to climb up and down the mountain.
“Yes, understood.”
Thus the knights’ expressions and voices brightened. It was far easier than rolling on the ground every day until they were gasping for breath. When Beatrix lifted herself into the air, Albert’s body naturally rose with her, along with the packs containing their tent and provisions.
“Once the groups are decided, come up at your leisure.”
There were no signs of people, and nothing dangerous would happen. After Beatrix finished speaking and soared higher, the knights’ eyes gleamed.
“Let’s just split roughly in half for now.”
When a senior knight proposed it, the knights divided themselves smoothly. Everyone was on good terms, so there was no hesitation in forming groups. Whoever ended up with whom made little difference. The senior knight glanced around and spoke.
“As you all know, Her Majesty didn’t come all this way because she’s truly ill. She just wants some private time with the Consort.”
I think so too.
The knights answered with expressions and nods instead of words. The longer the senior knight spoke, the redder their cheeks grew.
“In other words, they’re going to fuck like crazy. Keep that firmly in mind, and don’t cross any lines.”
“Yes. Understood.”
The knights answered in low, short, thick voices. Excitement was fine, but they must not overstep. Still, listening to the sounds and jerking off a little should be acceptable.
Damn. Should’ve brought a wooden dildo at least.
One knight sighed, picturing a wooden cock, while the senior knight raised a hand.
“All right. My group is Group One; the rest are Group Two. We’ll decide who goes first with rock-paper-scissors. Someone step forward.”
The knights of Group Two eyed one another, then eventually sent out a representative. It wasn’t anything particularly important, so there was no tension.