Chapter 1. Hypocrisy (6)
Grabbing the chin of the woman who was practically nestled in his arms, he stared straight at Eckart and whispered.
“The lower hole is a bit… well, but how about I lend you this instead…?”
The Grand Duke’s hand that had been gripping her chin forced the woman’s mouth open and inserted his fingers inside. Surprised by the sudden touch of fingers, he pressed down on her moving tongue, and her mouth quickly became wet. His fingers and the woman’s lips grew moist.
The Grand Duke pressed his nose to her cheek, inhaled, and spoke to Eckart again.
“How is it? It’s not as tight as the lower hole, but it’s wonderfully soft and wet—quite ecstatic. The sucking power is quite good too, and the throat goes deep inside, so it would easily toy with something like yours.”
The Grand Duke slowly withdrew his finger that had been playing with her tongue from inside her mouth. Eckart didn’t miss watching the glistening finger, the soaked interior of her mouth, and the transparent saliva flowing down her chin.
The Grand Duke sucked his wet finger clean and pushed the woman’s back.
“Give the virgin knight an unforgettable first time, Ronen.”
The woman called Ronen hesitated before slowly beginning to approach Eckart. Her gait seemed somehow uneasy. Her staggering movement was so precarious that Eckart almost reflexively reached out his hand, his body trembling.
Soon, such things became unimportant. Looking up at Ronen’s face, which was lewdly provocative unlike the modest dress that covered all her private parts, nothing else around him caught his eye.
Her flushed cheeks that couldn’t be hidden even by the mesh lace, her hazy eyes, and even her lips that had quickly swollen red from the earlier act. Eckart, who had been watching her approach in a daze, only came to his senses when she knelt before him and bolted upright from his seat.
“…This joke has gone too far.”
With those words spat out like he was chewing them, Eckart left his seat with unhesitating steps. Ardwino, who belatedly grasped the situation, tried to get up to follow him, but was held back by Hakan and stopped with a troubled expression.
Just before leaving the room, Eckart looked at the two men and said:
“I will pray for your sins.”
After he went out into the corridor, Grand Duke Canis burst into laughter as if thoroughly amused. Only Hakan and Ardwino, who hadn’t understood how the situation was unfolding due to focusing on the conversation, looked back and forth between Grand Duke Canis and Ronen, and the door through which Eckart had left, with bewildered faces.
Ronen wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand and returned to his seat. Grand Duke Canis spoke to Ardwino.
“Your friend seems quite flustered. Is it because he’s seeing such a beautiful person for the first time? Or because he felt lust toward such a person?”
“…The commander is not that kind of person.”
“Right. Well, let’s say that’s true.”
“But I can’t deny that this is the first time seeing someone so beautiful. I was actually shocked too. To think such a beautiful man exists in this world…”
“Oh. Sir Ardwino. Did you already know it was a man, not a woman?”
At Hakan’s sudden interjection, Ardwino answered with an incredulous expression.
“Of course not. No matter how beautiful, the body shape is different. While there are occasionally women that tall, the bone structure itself is different. There’s nothing feminine about it at all.”
Though there were obvious efforts to hide the body lines, there was nothing to be done about the broad, angular shoulders, the straight waistline that couldn’t be perfectly narrowed like a woman’s even with a corset, or the prominent bone joints.
Hakan made an admiring sound at his perceptiveness.
“Of course that’s true, but just looking at the face, most women can’t even compare. Since he’s wearing a dress today, I thought there might be some misunderstanding.”
“Anyone who makes such a mistake would be either foolishly naive or have poor eyesight, or both.”
At Ardwino’s blunt words, Hakan burst into laughter. He had been acting as if he’d forgotten about his partner’s existence for quite some time now. He seemed to be thoroughly enjoying his conversation with Ardwino.
Ardwino, who had spoken so decisively, suddenly muttered as if something had occurred to him.
“Ah… Come to think of it… I know someone like that.”
“Hm?”
Ardwino had no intention of answering and quietly looked at the door through which Eckart had left.
***
Whatever had upset Grand Duke Canis’s mood, he sent only Ronen back in the carriage.
Ronen, who boarded the carriage without complaint, leaned his head against the backrest with a tired face. The unfamiliar wig and hair ornaments were uncomfortable. He wanted to quickly return and throw off all these stuffy and cumbersome clothes and the wig. How on earth do women wear such clothes?
This wasn’t his first time wearing a dress. There were clients with peculiar tastes among his customers. No, almost all of them had one or two strange hobbies or inclinations. Playing dress-up with him like a doll was rather on the cute side, so he would obediently go along with it—it would be faster to find clothing styles he hadn’t tried than ones he had.
But perhaps because it was special clothing, or perhaps due to the characteristics of the place, these clothes felt particularly suffocating. The shackles on both ankles probably played a solid part in that. Ronen slightly lifted the dress hem and fingered the metal that pressed into his flesh.
A chain slightly over a hand’s span in length connected both ankles to prevent him from taking wide strides. To keep him from running away again. Since he already had a history of being caught after several escape attempts, considering the Grand Duke’s temperament, this was a fairly reasonable compromise.
If an opportunity arose, he would run away again without hesitation… Ronen removed his mask and closed his eyes with a deep sigh. Through multiple experiences, he now knew the truth—that such an opportunity would never come.
Perhaps it would be faster to pray for his life to be taken quickly. As Ronen was thinking this, a calm voice filled his mind.
“I will pray for your sins.”
The prostitutes of this place were those pointed at as destined to fall into hell without even a chance for repentance on the final day of judgment. It was the first time someone had said they would pray for such a prostitute. And it wasn’t just anyone—”he” had said he would pray for him.
Even after more than ten years had passed, thinking of him who was still so kind made his heart clench as if someone had grasped it. All sorts of complex emotions gathered hotly. Among them was mixed some joy that had been forgotten long ago.
“Eckart.”
When he called out the name he had only just learned, emotions that had been buried deep for a long time burst out all at once. They flowed uncontrollably.
Ronen had recognized him at first sight. Though he had doubted his own eyes since he hadn’t expected to meet him in such a place, it was only for a moment. Soon he couldn’t help but be elated. He had held a glimmer of hope that he might still be alive, but who would have thought he’d return as a hero who led the war to victory? He still couldn’t believe it. It felt like a dream.
A man resembling a quiet winter night when even the moon wasn’t bright. His deep blue eyes visible between the thick black hair covering his neck and long bangs were vividly clear as if painted. His unwavering gaze that seemed like it had never once wavered, and his resolute lips. His sun-tanned skin and the strong body trained for over ten years further emphasized his sharp atmosphere.
Grand Duke Canis had seemed completely uninterested, but thanks to Hakan continuously talking about him as if brainwashing, he had overheard quite a bit about Eckart. Despite his young age when he went to war, as a mere knight he had distinguished himself considerably and managed to save the lives of many comrades even in that chaos, eventually quickly rising to the rank of vice-commander—he was a born warrior.
When the commander-in-chief was injured too severely to continue fighting and retired, he was promoted to captain and commander of the Holy Knights, receiving direct orders from the Pope to lead battles. Having ended an 11-year drawn-out war in just 2 years, he was truly worthy of being called a knight sent by God.
Perhaps that’s why he was called God’s Sword by allies and the Angel of Death by enemies. Countless lives fell to God’s embrace by the sword he wielded, leaving only blood-soaked earth behind…
He tried to imagine Eckart mounted on horseback, wielding his sword. His silver armor would be dyed completely red along with the red cloth symbolizing the Papal Court, and with each swing of his arm, enemies would fall while he sat mounted in the center, looking down at his surroundings with eyes like the deep sea, without the slightest disturbance.
As if mocking himself for thinking that small boy’s head would be easily crushed among the horse hooves amidst the arrows falling like rain and swords thrusting from everywhere, he had grown beautifully and returned victorious. To this place.
“…God’s protection was with him.”
Probably from the moment he was born, God had always been with him. Ronen muttered in a strange voice.
He was truly relieved. He was proud as if it were his own achievement. He was happy to see him again. He was thrilled that the small boy had grown up and returned like this.
He thought he had forgotten all this time. Though he would occasionally recall that childish appearance from memory, he hadn’t hoped for or expected to meet again like this. It seemed he had been waiting rather fondly, like a woman who had sent her lover to war.
In reality, it wasn’t much of a connection. Perhaps he might not even remember. He had merely extended his hand a few times meaninglessly, yet perhaps only he had placed great significance on it.
As he tried to compose himself despite being elated unlike his usual self, the carriage suddenly stopped. Ronen opened his eyes.
“What’s the matter?”
Even though it was a carriage for him alone, since it was completely enclosed on all sides, he couldn’t see the situation outside. Someone knocked on the window at his voice. When he drew back the curtain, a soldier with a troubled expression informed him of the situation.
“I apologize. The road is blocked. We’ll depart again shortly.”
There was a commotion. He could also hear the coachman roughly telling someone to hurry up and clear it. Looking through the window, a cargo cart had overturned and was cluttering the road. Since it was the festival period and everyone was out on the streets, despite the cold weather, people were apparently doing business day and night. A shabby-looking old woman who hadn’t even properly put on an overcoat was hurriedly moving her goods.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
