Chapter 55

“Then is there anything that would change just because I say it?”

“It doesn’t necessarily have to change.”

“Then you must also understand that if nothing changes, it’s more comfortable not to say anything at all. Ah… But I suppose His Highness the Crown Prince wouldn’t understand, since just your words can change everything.”

“Lady Astri.”

“I hope you understand that I endure only because I have no other choice. Sometimes, Your Highness, you speak as though you really know me.”

“…I thought I did.”

“Pardon?”

“This argument isn’t worth continuing. Let’s stop.”

Bianca nodded.

Talking to the Crown Prince now would only leave both of them wounded. She was the one who had been wronged, but she felt like she already understood why he was angry without even needing to ask.

“Are you upset because Young Lord Kavert touched me?”

“…What?”

“You want someone untouched by anyone else, right? But now that someone else has laid hands on me, of course, you’re displeased. Isn’t that why you ordered the water to be drawn?”

To her, there wasn’t much difference between Young Lord Kavert and Dexter. He, too, had always acted according to his own desires.

“And Your Highness, it’s not as if I didn’t try.”

She clenched her fists tightly.

“So don’t speak as if you know everything.”

It wasn’t that she hadn’t tried. She had never even been given the environment in which she could try. All she ever did was endure and comply. And not once did she think that was something to be ashamed of.

“…Are you going to keep staring like that?”

“And if I am?”

“There’s nothing in this world you can’t have, Your Highness. So if you want even the shame of a lowly woman like me, then I suppose there’s nothing I can do.”

Bianca stepped into the warm bath, and the clothes she had been wearing fell silently to the floor.

“What matters to me is where exactly that bastard laid his hands on you.”

He stepped toward the bathtub.

She raised her eyes to him, shielding her body with her hands.

As Dexter untied his cravat and shrugged off his jacket, his fingers moved down his shirt, undoing the buttons one by one. His smooth, chiseled muscles moved like a sculpture in motion. With every breath he took and every piece of clothing removed, his chest swelled. Every contour and ridge of his body was laid bare.

“Bianca Astri.”

He lifted her chin, tilting her face toward him. At some point, he had closed the distance between them. His movements were so familiar that Bianca found herself in his grasp before she could even react.

“Did he touch you here?”

“Nngh, no.”

“What about here?”

“He didn’t touch me.”

The truth was, she didn’t remember, and she didn’t want to. She squeezed her eyes shut and gave vague answers. Wherever he may have touched her, she didn’t want those memories.

All Bianca wanted was to forget.

“Did that bastard lick your lips?”

“Hngh, no…”

His fingers grazed her lips with a roughness that made her flinch. Bianca pushed his hand away as he tried to slip a finger into her mouth.

“…Haa.”

Even as she gasped for breath, her trembling chest wouldn’t calm. Why was he tormenting her like this?

“The young lord didn’t touch or even come near my lips.”

“Then why does his scent linger all over you like this?”

“What…”

“You don’t even notice another man’s scent clinging to you, do you?”

Dexter tilted his head and buried his face in her neck. He drew in a breath, then gripped the nape of her neck tightly with his hand.

“Nngh!“

The sharp sensation of his mouth sucking on her neck made a moan slip out. As if that wasn’t enough, he sank his teeth into her neck.

“…That hurts!”

“Tsk.”

He let out a low click of his tongue. Then, as if even that wasn’t enough, his hand moved downward, beneath her chest.

“H-He didn’t touch me there…!”

“I know.”

“….?”

Bianca’s eyes widened in confusion. Had she heard him wrong? If he knew, then why was he still moving lower?

She struggled and reached for his shoulder, but her wet hands slid right off. His breath ghosted across her skin, sending a shiver through her.

Deep down, she already knew she wouldn’t be able to stop him.

Dexter had likely anticipated this moment ever since the young Lord Kavert first tried to touch her. She couldn’t keep letting herself be controlled by him. Like he said himself, if he had already licked and sucked her body all over, what difference did this make?

“He never touched my chest. As you saw, he tore my clothes before he could.”

Bianca guided Dexter’s hand to her chest. As long as he didn’t leave a mark, it would be okay. Maybe the easiest way to get through this was just to go along with what he wanted.

“…Please be gentle. I don’t like it this way.”

Dexter’s eyes dropped to the hand clutching her chest. His face twisted in disbelief, as though he couldn’t believe what he had just heard.