Ferzan died. At dawn on the day of the final rites of remembrance, a crimson memorial was presented to the Emperor, bearing the following message.
As he was pacifying Diara, who was sleeping as usual, a knock came from the door of his room, a crow guarding his quarters. Rahikan had told him not to bother him tonight. He suppressed his irritation at the uninvited visitor and stepped outside. He was greeted by the elder, pale and pale, as if his entire body had been drained of blood.
Ferzan, who had been imprisoned in the sand prison, died last night. To be precise, he was murdered. Since suicide was impossible in Cardion's sand prison, this was a natural inference.
Thin, thread-like sand snakes entangle the prisoners' tongues and bind their limbs like chains of scales. In a place where neither tongue-biting nor head-splitting death was possible, death was always unintentional.
The elders were left speechless by the shocking fact that one of the few remaining members of the imperial family had been murdered, and that too within the palace. On the final day of the memorial service, the nobles who had gathered since dawn to witness the event attended by the Emperor had likely already heard this news, and a council of elders was scheduled to convene immediately after the memorial service concluded.
Rahikan slowly scanned the report he'd received. The somewhat vague and omitted details of the incident vividly illustrated the urgent and chaotic situation at the time the report was written.
There were more than a few off-putting things, but there was one thing that particularly stood out: the testimony of the examiner who examined Ferzan's body.
“He died from a snake bite...”
A scar appeared on the back of the neck, where a snake's fangs had been thrust and pulled out. From the four punctured areas, black and blue spots bloomed like flowers, and the lips were caked with dried bloody vomit. Every part of the chilled corpse pointed to snakebite.
“The snakes in the sand prison probably don’t have any poison.”
“I am sorry, Your Majesty, but this incident was not the work of the Sand Snake.”
The man who had been bowing his head beside Rahikan's soliloquy spoke with a pained expression. He wore a white seal on his left chest, and he was an elder of the Three Houses. Of the eight elders, he was the only one who had long stood by Rahikan.
It was he who, four years ago, rescued Rahikan, who was completely losing his wits, from the clutches of the Princess and the elders and sent him to the battlefield, who occasionally flew birds to report on the situation in the palace during the war of conquest, and who recommended the spell of putting lead in the mouths of the maids serving Diara.
Rahikan looked down at his loyal subject, who had served him since the days before crows, with a strange gaze.
“If it wasn’t the sand snakes, would you say it was my black snakes who did it?”
The Emperor's black snakes never left the Serpent Palace, where they were imprisoned, except on special occasions. The key to the palace rested with him, and without his permission, it was impossible to even open the door, much less let the snakes out.
The Emperor's eyes narrowed in suspicion, and the three elders swallowed repeatedly, remaining silent. They seemed to know something, yet were choosing their words with fear. Rahikan frowned and clicked his tongue.
“Elder. If you hear something, tell me without hesitation.”
If he had kicked him out for making such harsh remarks, he would have killed him long ago. The three elders, who had been hesitating unresponsively to the cold voice, reluctantly opened their mouths.
“That... is actually a snake, but its scales are not black but reddish.”
It is said that several court ladies saw the Red Princess's snake crawling out between the high iron bars of the sand prison in the deep night.
Among the soldiers guarding the prison, not only those with sharp night vision, but also the servants who lit the torches in the corridors and fed the horses, the number of people who saw the red scales climbing the wall reached seven.
In the dim light of the night, the rosy-hued snake, illuminated by the torch, stands out everywhere. At the words of the three elders, a deep shadow fell over Rahikan's eyes.
“Tataram.”
“The three elders are right.”
If the soldier saw it, his crows couldn't have missed it. His question, as if confirming something, was met with the answer he most desperately wanted to hear. Rahikan put down the petition with a confused expression.
“It’s a trap.”
“I think so too, but...”
It was a trap that could have been easily noticed by the Emperor, Tataram, and anyone else who knew the Princess's personality, but the problem was public opinion within the palace.
Rumors, by their very nature, always flow in a provocative and toxic direction. It's dangerous enough that the mad Emperor's condition was cured by the Princess, or that she treats venomous snakes like puppies, but now the death of the Prince who abused her is added to the mix.
No one knew who the red snake that roamed the palace belonged to, so the Princess was now practically branded an open enemy of the royal family.
“And that’s not all, Your Majesty. I’m afraid I have to inform you that rumors are going around that the Red Princess uses black magic.”
To make matters worse, the maid who had burned the Princess's bedding was found charred to death in her own quarters. Her thighs, as thin as a lightning-struck tree, were dotted with jagged marks that could only be traces of black magic.
This is also Helgatria's handiwork. She's diligent, too. A bitter smile appeared on Rahikan's lips.
"It seems they're quite afraid of being trampled to death once the rain stops. Seeing them struggle so much in such a short period of time."
A thousand days and nights. Rahikan had just taught his beautiful snake how to conceive his child.
As expected, she cried, laughed, and then kissed him deeply on the mouth. Her cheek, flushed like a child's, rested against his neck, and her voice, repeating "Rahikan, Rahikan," was wet with tears. The warmth of her cheek had not yet faded.
With a twisted feeling, Rahikan rose from his seat. His crossed legs uncrossed, he reached the floor, and the three elders followed his footsteps, making way for him.
“Helga didn’t do this alone.”
“I think so too.”
The scale of the conspiracy was too vast for it to have been carried out solely by the imprisoned Princess and the elder elders with limited mobility. It was impossible to know how many of the elders who followed the Princess were involved in this conspiracy. The underlying motivation was likely blackmail, or perhaps a twisted feeling of regurgitation from the gold they had received.
“If you want to die with your old master, I will grant you your wish.”
They were rotten flesh that needed to be cut off anyway. It would have been nice if only the Princess and the elder could have been cleanly cut out without any unnecessary bloodshed.
The palace was in shambles because of a single loach, and now, even if they wanted to, they couldn't. Those of the eight elders who sided with the Princess were abandoned. The chill in Rahikan's atmosphere following that brief command caused the faces of the three elders to slump.
"Do you really have to do that? If you hit a few elders, it could escalate into civil war. If you could just have the crows cut out their tongues before the noise gets any louder..."
“Then you must be whispering somewhere I can’t hear.”
“...”
“I will become less and less aware of what is happening in my own castle.”
No matter how capable Azad's crows were, they couldn't monitor every mouth on the palace walls and floor. Trying to cut out all the eyes and tongues, which were as numerous as sand, would inevitably lead to them being sealed.
And so, he lived, blind and deaf, his eyes and ears closed, until one day, he was swept away by a fire he knew nothing about, and lost his life. His father, the former Emperor, lost everything in that very same way.
The night of the fire, Rahikan gritted his teeth, recalling his father's confused gaze. Even after seeing his son, who had rushed to his rescue despite half his back melting away, the Emperor couldn't shake off his suspicions.
A father who did not even breastfeed his child properly for fear that he might harbor ill intentions toward his beautiful wife.
The Emperor, who could not trust anyone and could not even kick out those he suspected, and who relied only on crows, died helplessly like a bird trapped in a cage in this large palace.
Rahikan had no intention of letting that happen. He would let those who were clamoring clamor, and he would neither hide nor retreat. With the head cut off, the noise would naturally die down, so he accepted the cloak the elder offered and draped it around his shoulders.
“Let’s proceed as planned.”
The Sun Festival was about to begin. The three elders bowed their heads behind Rahikan as he left.
“Your Majesty is a little late...”
Diara, who was looking towards the door, let out a small sigh.
“Please sit comfortably, Princess. I have sent word in advance to give you a message when His Majesty arrives.”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
The servant guarding the door would alert her if even the Emperor's shadow appeared. Diara nodded at Matali's dissuasion, saying there was no need to bother looking outside. However, despite her reply, she continued to pace around the doorway.
Matali, who was preparing incense for the altar, called out to Diara once again. "Is there anything you need?" she asked. She merely shook her head, her gaze fixed on one spot as if nailed to a nail. Only then did Matali, sensing something unusual about the Princess, look at her face.
On the final day of the memorial service, Diara had already finished her preparations in the morning. Clad in ceremonial attire and adorned with wing-like gold ornaments, the Princess seemed even calmer and more serene than usual, perhaps because of this.
Her cheeks, which should have been flushed like a flower, were pale, perhaps due to nervousness, but her eyes were dark, which was concerning. It was clear that the Princess's melancholy wasn't solely due to her unfamiliar attire or the impending Sun Festival.
You must be scared.
Matali sighed with a heavy heart. It barely took a moment for news of Ferzan's death to spread throughout the palace. The Prince's death, of unknown cause, shocked and terrified everyone.
Moreover, when Diara first entered the palace, she had been beaten by Ferzan and driven to the brink of death. With both herself and the Prince constantly on the brink of death, it was no surprise that the palace felt unsafe. And indeed, her anxiety was justified.
In the uneasy air that hung in the palace, Matali was well aware of the rumors circulating about Princess Diara. She also knew how absurd rumors could easily kill someone.
“Princess, don’t be so anxious. Of course you are afraid, but...”
Matali approached Diara. She stroked her forehead, smoothing her messy hair, and spoke to her in a gentle voice.
“Matali.”
Diara smiled reluctantly, her expression like she had been caught by the comfort of her maid, who had become as close as a sister.
In times like these, she, as the boss, should remain steadfast. But since there was nothing she could do, she couldn't help but feel anxious. Matali shook her head, her eyes darkening with bitterness.
"No. It's natural for you to be anxious. I would be anxious too."
"Yes."
"But His Majesty is by your side, Princess. Just like you did in the bathtub last time, His Majesty will definitely protect you. And, though I may be humble, I'm also here."
The voice was gentle as she checked the ring on her headdress. However, as Matali continued to console her, a deeper confusion settled over Diara's face. Her delicate eyelids slowly lowered and opened narrowly.
Protecting whom? Who?
"I don't understand what you're talking about, Matali. I'm not like that... I'm His Majesty..."
It was then. "The great desert sun, His Majesty the Emperor, rises." A familiar sound of footsteps accompanied the servant's announcement. Diara's head turned as if pulled by reins, and through the long crack in the doorway, the man she had been waiting for since dawn finally appeared.
“Rahikan!”
“Oh, Lara.”
The woman, who had leapt forward, wrapped her arms around his neck. Rahikan, struck by the force of her flight, took a half-step back and laughed. Even on tiptoe, her heels were still raised high, and she dragged him a few steps. When he bent down, she slammed into the ground.
“It’s a bit of a formal greeting considering it’s only been half a day.”
“You’re late. Half an hour.”
“I see. There are so many annoying people.”
“What’s going on?”
“Well, then, I wonder if I might have been looking away from you for even a moment.”
He held her tightly enough to break her back, then pressed his lips to the nape of her neck and laughed. As Matali, lying face down, crawled away, Diara's hands brushed Rahikan's nape, the back of his ear, his chin, and his cheek, before moving down to his chest.
A steady beat of a heartbeat pounded against her palm. Diara, who had been staring intently at the man's face, which was completely unblemished, finally opened her eyes and let out a long breath.
“Were you jealous that I met another woman?”
“...I was worried. I know it’s stupid, but I haven’t seen a snake since yesterday...”
This was a beast that was usually difficult to separate from, never wanting to leave even for a moment. When Rahikan came, it reluctantly hid its rear, but its tail always wanted to touch her ankles.
Then, suddenly, without a trace, it vanished. Perhaps it had gone into heat and sought a mate, or perhaps it had grown weary of the confines of the castle and retreated back to the desert. She couldn't sleep, consumed by various speculations and worries, until she heard the news of Ferzan's murder, and her heart sank.
“Yeah. You were really worried about the snake.”
“No, that’s not it.”
Diara shook her head. A look of puzzlement crossed his face as he stroked the back of her head. The woman, who had been biting her lip, lowered her head.
“I was worried that something dangerous might have happened to Your Majesty.”
The Prince was dead. The man who had tried to harm her. He was so fearsome that even the mere thought of his face made her spine stiffen. But he was also one of Rahikan's few cousins.
Who could dare harm a Prince imprisoned in the palace? Having never imagined such a horrific event, her shock quickly took a twisted turn.
If Ferzan could get hurt, so could Rahikan. It couldn't be. Even as she forced herself to calm down, negative thoughts kept creeping in.
She could not dare tell him, but the nightmares that often haunted her dreams after she learned of the disappearance of her brothers, her father, and his Queen had been whispering terrible stories to her for a long time.
He could have burned to death. It could have been Rahikan who died that day. Before she ever met him, before she could save him.
No, it's all over. Rahikan is safe. Rahikan is safe. No matter how much she shook her head and screamed, the nightmare that followed her like a persistent ghost would not go away, tormenting her.
She had never thought about why she had such dreams, even though she was suffering so much, but after Ferzan died, she felt like she understood why.
Ten years ago today, a fire broke out in the palace, engulfing the Emperor and his wife. In broad daylight, while everyone was awake, in this very palace where they stood. If something like that happened again, would Rahikan be safe?
Suddenly, the scent of incense brushed her nose, causing her feet to shake.
“Can I come with you too?”
“What’s so fun about a place where you honor the souls of people whose faces you don’t even know?”
“But... if something happens...”
“What have you been talking about?”
As was her habit whenever she found peace, her fingertips traced the back of his neck as if searching for a burnt scar, and were caught in his hand.
“You’re so worried about my well-being. Who could have made my snake so anxious?”
“...Rahikan.”
"Say it."
Her head tilted up as a finger entered under her chin.
“Who would give such a noble piece of advice to attend the Sun Festival and stay by my side as the Emperor?”
His voice was quieter than usual. He was smiling quietly, but behind his sunken eyes lay a sharp, sharp blade.
He was on his way back from the Sun Festival, where the elders and heads of the royal family, including the elders and the heads of the meritorious retainer families, were attending, and he cut short the elders' orders to invite Diara to sit down.
"Being the Emperor's wife, she should be present," said the old woman, who spoke as if she were doing a favor, and her mouth smelled of something awful.
So, the elder summons Diara to a gathering of all the major powers of the empire and pressures her to shift the blame for the Prince's murder.
The plan, so shallow it was difficult to ignore, was foiled by his rebuke, but there's no telling what other dirty tricks they might be up to. Diara shook her head, her expression bewildered, at Rahikan's questioning.
"No, that's not it. I just thought, it's raining heavily today, and the ancestral rites are a big deal, so something could happen... or you might suddenly develop a fever..."
Long eyelashes flickered up and down in front of his nose, above anxious eyes. Rahikan swallowed a bitter laugh as he looked down at the wing-like shadows that appeared and disappeared beneath her pale pink eyes.
He wondered if someone had been scheming with a sly tongue, but from what he heard, it seemed her fears weren't so bad. This affable woman was genuinely concerned about him.
He didn't know what was going through her mind, the size of a chestnut. Or maybe he was just so out of sorts that he was causing concern about this little thing. After all, he was always hunched over like a hungry dog, day and night. It would have been hard to even notice his condition without being quite oblivious.
That's why he wanted to avoid doing anything during the rainy season. He exhaled softly, feeling a sense of relief. Still, who would worry about whom?
"No."
"But."
“I told you not to.”
The finger flicked with a snapping sound, making the space between her eyebrows sting and heat. Ouch. Rahikan, who had been looking down at the frowning face for a moment, straightened his bent back. He brushed back his flowing hair and clicked his tongue.
“And what if the fever rises?”
“Of course...”
“You want me to suckle your breasts in a place where there are so many boys?”
He asked if she would sit on top of him, bare breasts exposed, and suck his cock, just like she did in her office, in front of all the nobles gathered there. Diara, unable to find the words to respond, belatedly closed her mouth.
“It would be fun, though.”
While she was hesitating, Rahikan walked towards the sofa and leaned against it, motioning for her to come over.
“We need to consider the circumstances of those who will lose their eyesight on the spot.”
If everyone goes blind, who will do politics? The laughter was gloomy and without reason.
"You, a perfectly normal person, should tame me. What if you make me a tyrant?"
“But I don’t want Your Majesty to be sick.”
It doesn't matter if he's a tyrant or a madman. As long as he's not suffering. As long as he's safe.
Rahikan watched silently for a moment as her lowered eyelashes fluttered. Just as he wasn't the material for a saintly monarch, Diara certainly wasn't the material for a virtuous Empress.
If you're willing to bite, I'll bite. I told you to put the reins on and muzzle me, but you're pouring sweet wine into a madman's mouth. It's the same for both men and women, ruining each other's habits. The corners of Rahikan's mouth curved lazily.
A hand reached out and grabbed her wrist. Diara, gently pulled, was trapped between his thighs.
“If you’re that worried, let me go in advance.”
“In advance?”
His fingertips, sweeping up from her chin, lingered on her earlobe. He teased it as if he were teasing her nipple, then pulled the back of her head and kissed her cheek.
“It’s not that hot yet, so it’s okay to put it in the vagina.”
“Huh...”
“I’ll do the cooking, so you just have to eat well.”
Before entering the sun ritual, how about erecting your cock and draining the cum inside it? You don't even need to take off your clothes. Just pull down your underwear, and I'll insert it and shake it. All you have to do is hold on tight. The voice flowing into her ear was thick.
Was he joking or serious? Of course, it was true that the fever subsided for a while after ejaculation, but... As Diara hesitated, confused, Rahikan pressed his lips against hers and asked, "Do you not like it?" The questioning lips were too seductive to be a joke.
"Well, then you need to set it up quickly. No, you'll set it up quickly, but you need to ejaculate quickly..."
“There are a lot of orders.”
There was only time for a cup or two of tea before the ceremony began. He'd have to change his clothes before then, and someone would be coming to summon him soon. Knowing how long it usually took him to get his act together, she was anxious.
Glancing at the tightly closed door, she groped between his legs with one hand. A heavy lump was felt on the inside of his thigh. She has to start with her mouth.
Diara knelt, took out the man's serpent-like penis, and held it in her hand. She bit down on the glans, which tasted both pungent and slightly tingly, and massaged the testicles with her hand. The hardening, like a core growing from within, filled her mouth.
It felt like a slick liquid was already leaking from the urethra, rubbing against the roof of her mouth. She instinctively swallowed, but a hand, sweeping from her eyes, came down and pushed her chin.
It means that you have stopped now and that you should come up now.
“You really have to finish this quickly.”
“That depends on what you do.”
She seemed to be the only one feeling impatient, but despite the urging, he simply smiled leisurely, clutching her buttocks. A dry spit dribbled down her cheek as his fingers dug into the crease of her buttocks.
He must be trying to unclog her hole. She knew it now, even without asking. As if by habit, she relaxed her stomach and waited for the finger to enter, and the man's erect penis tapped just below her navel.
The soft labia majora parted as the fingers entered, spreading the flesh beneath her buttocks. It felt as if her body was lifting slightly. Something heavy and hot surged up her leg, pushing deep inside.
“Ah, uh, ahhh...?”
What had entered was not a finger, but a ripe, red-hot penis. Diara's eyes widened. His grasp grasped her struggling arms, one in each hand. The thing that had penetrated her hole, which she hadn't been able to widen, reached the entrance to her uterus in an instant.
Jaws, a high, raised chin dizzyingly rolls over his vision. Her upper body falls over on its own, her arms taut like bowstrings, and her bulge clings tightly to his crotch.
Diara cried, shaking her buttocks as her hips pounded like a stake.
“Hhhh, ah, ah, ahhh!”
As always, she expected him to expand her first with his fingers. But then, so suddenly, so urgently. The confusion and shock were fleeting, but a crushing pleasure struck her stomach, crushing everything.
The hole that was growing wider as the penis was thrusting in felt like it was going to tear apart. Aang! Aang! Aang! Aang! Short, interrupted moans poured out in time with the rhythm of her movements.
It was a sexual encounter, without foreplay or kissing, solely for the man's pleasure. The sight of the woman's tightly secured vagina being unilaterally thrust upon was pitiful and obscene. He laughed as he watched her face, which had instantly turned bright red, crumple into a mess.
“Can you take it slow? Then I won’t be able to finish on time.”
“Ugh, ugh, ugh!”
“Ah, ah! Ah, ah!”
"I'll finish it soon, so bear with it, even if it's difficult." Even as he soothed her with a gentle voice, the pillar, moving back and forth at an unbelievable speed, mercilessly stabbed deep inside her.
It felt like being hit in the stomach with a club-like force. Beneath her rapidly fluttering labia majora, her labia minora, stretched taut and ready to tear, felt hot as if they were about to melt. Even as she trembled her wide-open vagina before his eyes, she didn't even have time to feel embarrassed.
A ceaseless stream of moans filled her mouth. A heavy climax hit her lower abdomen with a crash, sending goosebumps down her entire body. Sweat flowed down her arched back, past her tailbone, and coolly soaked her throbbing anus.
“That, that, Maaaahak...!”
The sound of her sobbing, her limbs trembling, made it seem as if she was about to gasp for breath. Rahikan frowned and laughed, looking down at the clear drool dripping from her chin, which was thrown back. "At this rate, I'll kill the baby before I even ejaculate," he thought.
“What did you do and how much did you do to make it a joke?”
“Ah, uh, uh, uh...”
“So how can I finish it so quickly? Huh?”
The storm-like movements behind the clicking of his tongue slowed as if by magic. His tongue, smiling, approached, leisurely licking the lower lip he'd bitten until it bled. Diara, who was weeping with a wail of sorrow, clung to his lips in a desperate attempt.
She sucked his tongue, whimpering. Beads of tears hung from the corners of her crinkled eyes. Her hazy, dilated pupils signaled that she had already experienced a full orgasm. The vibrations traveled through her clenched, trembling vagina, all the way to his cock.
Rahikan slowly moved his tongue deeper into her panting mouth, as if riding a horse.
“Stop being a slut. I’ll only poke you thirty times, so just bear with it.”
“Oh, yeah, no, yeah, yeah.”
“You don’t like thirty times? Isn’t that enough?”
“Yeah, that’s a lie, isn’t it?”
Even though he was kissing her lips gently, his face was terrified.
It wasn't just one or two days that she was being harassed all night long, even though she was told she only been hit ten times. If ten times were like that, what would thirty be like? Rahikan smiled, watching as disbelief welled up in her tear-filled eyes.
It's because she can't trust her husband like this.
As he laughed, shaking his waist, Diara shook her butt and cried.
“If it sounds like a lie, then at least count the numbers.”
“Ah, ah.”
“Here, here, every time you press like this, it counts one. How many times do you have to do it to get it?”
Diara groaned, her waist twisting as the questioning voice, thrusting deep within her, pierced her. "Kuk, kuk," she pressed, then lifted it again in one swift thrust, her movements targeting only the weakest points, which were vicious.
"Rahikaan," his name flowed like honey between her wet, excited lips. Unaware that he was deliberately teasing her, all she could do was whimper and call out the name of the man who was tormenting her.
With her red pussy like a flower, she sucked the dick and said, "Rahikaan" with her watery eyes.
Wasn't this a desperate plea, a desperate plea, to be tormented more? The man's lips, distorted with sadism, bit into the woman's cheek.
“Let’s get started.”
The commanding voice, licking under her eyes, was sharp. She knew that if she persisted any longer, she would only end up making things harder for herself.
Rahikan never tolerated jer tantrums, not in bed. As she spent more time with him, the more she was pestered, the more she grew accustomed to accepting them with resignation.
“Huh, one, two, ugh, three, three...”
Every time the vagina was poked, the number went up by one.
Her spread legs trembled against his thighs. With both hands gripped like handles and his cock lodged in her hole, there was nothing she could do. She couldn't wiggle her hips or pull away.
The hot, flowing fluid made her anus wet. The squeaking sound of her hole widening as she strained her buttocks to tighten them was loud.
The sound of her inner walls, perfectly shaped to the man's shape, expanding and contracting as she sucked him. The counting sound, speeding up and slowing down, repeated to match the obscene sound.
Twenty-eight, twenty-nine. And finally, the sound of "Thirty...!" shattered into pieces as his waist shook violently. At the same time, the melted Diara collapsed onto his shoulder.
“Ha... good job.”
The woman's face flushed as she nuzzled his neck, her forehead agape. Her face was like that of a bewitching beast, or perhaps an idiot whose only knowledge was lust. He thrust his tongue into her bare mouth and lay Diara down on the sofa.
“Good job. You’re pretty.”
“Ugh... Ahh, ahhh...”
Slippery saliva flowed down his thick tongue. Gulp, gulp. Diara reached behind his neck, drinking in what he spat out. She gathered her lax thighs, wrapped them around his pelvis, and crossed her ankles behind his buttocks.
It was the motion of a female pushing for ejaculation. Rahikan slowly moved his hips, looking down at her eyes, clouded with pleasure. Even thirty times was not enough for him.
The body, boiling hot as if on fire, seemed as if it would melt inside the woman.
“Can I give it to you?”
“Yes, yes, yes.”
She clenched her jaw and pressed her lower abdomen together, saying, "Yes, yes," as he asked. Every time his cock was thrust into the needle-like hole, she growled, feeling her heart being squeezed along with it.
“If you want to end it, you have to stop sucking. How can I end it when you keep squeezing me like this, and it’s so regrettable?”
“No, yeah, no...”
“Well, look at that—your lower mouth's got a dick in it, doing this and that.”
The chin resting on his cheek urged him to look down. The sight of the glistening, wet shaft between his lower abdomen and half-wetted beneath his mound was so obscene it made his head spin.
“This inner wall is so plump and swollen..."
“Ugh, ugh...”
He slowly thrust the long, drawn-out object diagonally upwards, making it more visible. The interlocking parts twitched painfully. Diara moaned as the hot, throbbing flesh creaked against the hard object.
She, too, felt a pang of regret for not wanting more. Her body, soaked in pleasure and rusted, felt as heavy as lead. She twisted her hips, pressing them against his lower abdomen, and he leaned in, pressing himself against her.
A hot tongue licked her earlobe and poked her ear hole. The sofa creaked as she moved her body upwards, keeping her groin pressed against it.
Ah, it feels so good. She could die from it. She thrust in and out, thrusting in all the way, shaking lightly. Her blurred vision spun.
True to his words, her body, accustomed to the man, not only opened and swallowed him as he moved, but even bit and whimpered. With each thrust, her waist met his thrusts, and the occasional curse and moan sent shivers down her spine.
Just keep doing this ten more times, no, twenty more times...
“Ask for more, Lara.”
As if reading her throbbing desire, Rahikan whispered in a cracked voice.
“My vagina is so hot and itchy, I can’t stand it anymore, so please play with me some more. Yes?”
The seductive voice, as he sucked on her earlobe and thrust his tongue into her swollen lips, sounded almost like a purr.
“Act like a bitch in heat. Ask me to fuck you a hundred more times, no, two hundred more times.”
The man's whispering breath was dizzyingly sweet. The subtle scent of sweat and his heat enveloped her body like a blanket. The strange smell lingering in the damp room paralyzed her mind and made her lower abdomen ache. It almost made her nod.
A bell rang in the distance. If it hadn't been the warning sound of an impending ritual, she would have done just that. Diara, who had been clinging to his face, licking her lips, suddenly came to her senses and turned away.
“No, no, no.”
The hand that had been stroking and holding his soft black hair hurriedly cupped the man's cheek. He absentmindedly pushed her chin, then raised his eyebrows, asking, "No?" Her face, once again clinging to his, was filled with a sad expression.
“Stop it, yes? You can do it again later... if you do it again...”
"Later."
“Yeah, after you get back.”
The voice whispering, "Let's continue after we get back," was urgent. He wondered if she knew what she was saying.
Having received a satisfactory answer, he pretended to be extremely tolerant and smiled narrowly, pretending to have no choice but to accept his wife's persuasion.
"There's nothing I can do. Then you'll widen the hole so I can insert it as soon as the door opens. I'll check it when I get back."
“Yeah, yes. I’ll do that. I’ll expand it.”
Her thighs, wide open as if to say it, wrapped around his waist. She twisted her pelvis, her lips quivering, and then her hand, trembling, finally slid down to the inside of her thigh.
Next to the hole where the penis was inserted, the plump labia majora were pressed open by the finger. The corners of her eyes, filled with tears, curved into crescent shapes.
“Here, like this. I’ll wait like this...”
A sound, either a curse or a laugh, escaped his lips. He hugged her tightly, his back buckling.
Aang, ang, ang, the moans that had been rapidly rising turned into ah, ah, ah, the groans of a hoe, and soon stopped abruptly. Diara completely gave out beneath him, feeling the gushing sensation pounding inside her stomach.
Her panting heart beat like a small bird beneath the man's chest. The semen flowing in, gurgling, filled her body with warmth.
Diara, who had been lying there for a while, waiting for him to finish, lifted her heavy eyelids abruptly. It hadn't even been a moment since she'd called him, "Rahikan," and she heard a resounding "eum" a couple of times. He bit the corner of her eye.
“ ..It hurts.”
The man, with his eyes half-open, finally sees her. The woman's face, also languid and relaxed, smiles faintly before his nose.
“I’ll take care of your clothes.”
As was often the case with Queens of the kingdom, dressing the Emperor Rahikan was always Diara's responsibility. Because he woke up at the crack of dawn, she would always undress him, rarely dressing him. Or, to be honest, she never did.
“I told you not to. What are you going to do with your arms shaking?”
“No, I can. I really want to.”
This is the first important event since becoming his woman.
As it was a memorial service, he had simply changed from his flashy formal attire to a dark-colored top with a few decorations and gold accessories. Still, she couldn't help but feel nervous. Diarra insisted on making up for her past failures, and Rahikan tried to dissuade her a couple more times before finally letting her have her way.
Her heart pounded as he looked around, wondering if there was a wrinkle in the Emperor's robes, which were as sharp as a blade. Rahikan, who had been sitting leisurely with his legs crossed, gazing down at her, turned to see her leaning back, her eyes closed.
It was his habit to tease her by touching her body while touching her clothes one way or another.
Diara stared blankly up at the man's face, which had become so quiet it was impossible to tell whether he was resting or asleep. The shadows cast over his still face seemed to have deepened.
Come to think of it, he left before the night fell last night, too.
As the rainy season deepened, there were more and more nights when he'd go out and not return until daylight. She couldn't figure out what was going on, but whenever she tried to find him, he'd burrow in like a starved man, and it was clear he wasn't doing it on purpose.
Because there are a lot of annoying people.
The weight of those words, always spoken as if they were jokes, felt heavy once again. How exhausting it must be. A pang of pain welled up in her heart, but she quickly pushed it away.
Diara, holding her breath so as not to make a sound, approached him. As he approached, a heavy scent of wine wafted from him.
No, it was more like the smell of Rahikan than wine. A pungent musk, the scent of liquor, the scent of desert sand, and the subtle, heat-tinged scent of sweat all came together to create a sensuous male scent. A male scent more seductive than any perfume.
In that comforting warmth, the rhythmic sound of a man's breathing gently soothed her thorny heart. With each tap, tap, each unfastening of the garment that wrapped him, Diara felt the anxiety that had been gnawing at her like a hedgehog's was being cut away, and she slowly caught her breath.
A familiar sight emerged beneath the unbuttoned shirt. Diara took in the scars covering his shoulders and sides, the burn scar extending to the right nape of his neck, each one etched into her eyes. The wounds covering the massive man's body mirrored the footsteps Rahikan had walked.
Despite countless dangers, he ultimately survived. Even on the battlefield, where arrows rained down, and in the flames that engulfed the palace.
So he'll be fine. Rahikan is so strong and beautiful. Everyone calls him the living embodiment of the sun.
“Rahikan.”
Finally, a cloak, falling diagonally from his shins to his waist, was draped around his shoulders. The sound of a gold clasp snapping beneath his chin slowly raised his eyelids.
Rahikan smiled quietly, his eyes as cold as ever, as if he had only closed them for a moment.
“Are you done?”
“Yes. Now you have to see if it works... Ah.”
Diara, who had been standing with her hand on his shoulder, was dragged down onto Rahikan's chest.
“I don’t have to look. Someone put it on for me.”
"Yes...."
"Great job."
Her hot breath covered her lips as she tilted her head back, her elbows held. The kiss she received as a reward was sweet, different from the one she'd experienced during intercourse.
As she bit his thick tongue and breathed in the saliva he was pouring into her, she felt her heart, which had been pounding anxiously, begin to calm down as if it were a lie.
“It’ll be over soon. Just wait quietly, and I’ll come get you right away.”
“Yeah.”
“While you wait, think about what you would like as a wedding gift.”
It will be a wedding of unparalleled splendor and beauty in the history of the empire. Golden-haired camels, a thousand peacocks, iridescent silk, gold, silver, and rubies will flow like rivers, and the palace gates will be constantly crowded day and night with distinguished guests eager to greet the new mistress of the empire.
“I will build a castle for you. Shall I plant red roses in this castle, as white and beautiful as the morning star?”
Between their ceaseless kisses, passionate words of courtship flowed like sweet wine. Diara, who had been listening to him in a drunken, hazy state, saw a sparkle in his eyes.
“After the meal, let’s go on an outing to the oasis.”
“Oasis? The place we stopped by last time?”
Diara's eyes lit up as she recalled the puddle she'd encountered on her way to the capital, mirroring the sky like a mirror. "Good?" he asked, and a fervent nod answered. Rahikan smiled.
"After a long rain, flowers bloom even in the desert. It's a spectacular sight that can only be seen once every few years, for a few days, even during the rainy season."
It's spring in the desert, after a long, rainy season. Seeds sprout in the sand, soaked with the rain, and the barren sand dunes are covered in red flowers.
Four years ago, on the day he first set out for battle, the entire desert was ablaze with red and blue. Diara's face lit up as he added that this year, with plenty of rain, they would be able to see it.
"Thank you, Rahikan. Just hearing you say it makes me feel like I'm dreaming."
He pressed his lips over hers, looking down at her blinking eyelids as if in ecstasy.
“What do you mean by this much?”
And the thank you was given after receiving the gift. The smile was extremely affectionate.
“I’ll be back.
Behind the voices of their lips touching and greeting each other, the final bell tolled from afar. The soft, spreading sound seemed to echo in his mind. Her reply, "Goodbye," lingered in his mind.
On the final day of the memorial service, the Sun Festival, a celebration of the royal family ascending to heaven, finally opened, praying for the thick curtain of the rainy season to lift.
During the Sun Festival, everyone in the Cardion Empire was required to stop what they were doing and spend time in prayer and silence at home.
Even those residing in the palace were granted a rare respite. From heads of departments to nameless servants, they dressed in their finest attire and enjoyed a quiet time of incense burning in their respective places.
Diara was lost in thought as she watched the incense rise in a thin curve.
She expected the atmosphere to be solemn and somber, as it was a ritual offering, but surprisingly, the palace was filled with a more peaceful atmosphere than ever. The low, steady sounds of prayer, the bell tolling that signaled the start of the ritual, and the sound of the pouring rain filling the air sounded like harmonious music.
Perhaps because she knows it will stop soon, the pouring rain doesn't seem unpleasant today.
What will the oasis look like, covered in flowers, after this rain?
Diara smiled quietly, recalling the desert spring. The words he had said before leaving lingered in her heart, leaving her mouth with a sweetness like a sweet candy.
Rahikan said that at that time, colorful birds would fly in from faraway places.
At those words, Rahikan's eyes lit up, and he smiled and offered to catch a bird for her. He would catch the most beautiful and dazzling bird in the world, and from its wings he would make an ornament to match her red hair.
And he said he would lie down in a field of flowers and embrace her. In the star-studded night, in the setting sun. In the ridges bathed in dawn light, in the waters of a hot midday.
The man's eyes were filled with passion as he whispered to her that he would embrace her every single day and night, without fail. Whenever she gazed upon him, his golden eyes reflecting her, Diara felt dizzy, as if suffering from heatstroke.
She wishes Rahikan would come back soon.
Diara looked at the burning incense wick and prayed in her heart.
May he return safely. Please protect him. Protect him so his wounds don't worsen. Her prayers to the countless suns that have now become stars in the desert rose like thin smoke.
The seventh bell rang to announce that the Sun Festival was the last in line.
Diara's head snapped toward the sound of the door opening. Without warning, Matali rushed in through the open door. Her heart dropped to the floor at the sight of the maid's pale lips.
“Princess! Ah, Princess!”
Matali, who had discovered Diara, cried out with a nearly delirious expression. One of her shoes had come off, leaving her bare foot.
Before Diara could even react, a hand flew towards her and grabbed her wrist.
“Ugh, Matali.”
The hand of the maid who dared to touch the Princess felt as cold as ice. Matali never touched Diara like this. She was momentarily taken aback by Diara's appearance, as if she had become someone else. A black cloth fluttered and fell over Diara's head.
“Put this on first.”
“Why, ah, why are you doing this? Wait a minute....”
"The Royal Guards are coming. You need to flee immediately. You'll need to change your clothes, but there's no time, so you need to cover your hair... Aah!"
Matali, who had been hastily fixing her hair, trying to hide her rosy locks, let out a short scream. Her palm had been pricked by the sharp hair ornament.
Startled, Diara quickly examined her palm. "Are you okay?" Matali didn't answer, but instead trembled and finally burst into tears.
“Ugh, ugh... What should I do with this? Now we are all dead.”
“Matali, what on earth are you talking about?”
Diara couldn't understand a word of the ramblings. However, Matali, who was always calm, had never lost her composure like this before, and she instinctively knew something very serious was happening.
The Royal Guard? Running away.
The face of a man walking toward her, his golden armor flashing, flashed before her eyes. The Prince, who had taunted not only her but even Rahikan, was clearly the leader of the Imperial Guard. Was that man up to something? But Ferzan had died last night.
Or not...
Her heart pounded with anticipation. Could it be a rebellion? Rebellion. Just hearing that word sent chills down her spine, and her hands and feet felt cold as if the blood had drained from her body.
Diara grabbed Matali's shoulder tightly.
“Matali, calm down and tell me. Where is His Majesty now?”
Where is Rahikan now?
Despite the questioning, Matali only flinched and sobbed. "I have to run away, I have to run away." The words, mixed with her sobs, kept her circling the same spot, unable to move an inch forward.
Diara abruptly rose from her seat. Whether it was a rebellion or not, something terrible had undoubtedly occurred. As this certainty grew, the thought of finding Rahikan surged through her mind. Having entered the Sun Palace, he should now be at the very top of the palace.
But her steps were blocked before she could even leave the room.
“It’s here!”
Beyond the shattered door, the clash of armor was deafening. The swords of the soldiers lined up like a wall, all pointed at the woman standing there, motionless.
"Diara Illaf. Red Princess of Feldif. You are under arrest for treason."
Treason?
She raised her head blankly, and Matali, who had rushed over, collapsed onto her lap. "Princess, Princess." Diara watched with slow eyes as the long blade, suspended above her sobbing, trembled.
The man shouting at her wasn't Ferzan. As she stared blankly at the face of the unknown man, indiscriminate words flowed into his head.
Black magic. Traitor. Feldif's spy.
Amidst the unintelligible words, what caught her eye was a long spear displayed proudly behind the soldier's back.
Her red snake was entwined on the cool blade. A severed snake head with scales the same color as her hair, like a red rose.
And what it had in its mouth was a torn collar and the radiant sun seal. It was the Rahikan symbol she had personally placed beneath his chin. Blood dripped from the man's crimson, soaking wet.
Diara Illaf was accused of plotting to assassinate the Emperor...
The soldier's last words dripped like red blood. The ground shook. Her vision collapsed.
The carriage's wheels rattled terribly as it barreled through the torrential rain. Even with the torches lit, visibility was dim, making it impossible to gauge the passage of time. The flickering torchlight left a long trail behind the carriage as it raced across the red sand.
"Princess!"
As Diara woke up, Matali, who had been crouching next to her, hurried over.
"You're awake. Ah, thank goodness." Diara muttered, her bangs damp with cold sweat brushing back, her voice audible as a sigh. Pushing back the spout of the water bottle that was approaching her lips, Diara looked around.
“This is...”
“Be careful. You have to get up slowly.”
Matali helped her to her feet by supporting her.
“You suddenly fell and hit your head.”
Her voice was hoarse, filled with worry, but the confusion of moments before had vanished. Diara, suppressing her rumbling stomach, tried to understand the situation. Her temples ached, as if they were about to shatter, as if the rumor of her head being hit hard was true.
"Matali. Where are you taking me? Where the hell am I?"
"Don't worry. It's okay now, Princess. We're out of the gates, so we'll be safe."
Only after she'd left the castle did she notice the surrounding scenery. The inside of the carriage, pitch-black as if covered in ink, felt unfamiliar. She hadn't been dragged away by the Imperial Guard soldiers who had come to capture her.
“What the heck...”
Through the cracks in her shattered memories, she recalled the scene of the soldier's head slowly tilting and falling to the floor as he aimed his sword at her.
The red snake impaled on the spear, and Rahikan's collar was bitten by its jaws. The sight of bright red blood dripping from the torn collar. And the ground beneath her feet was crumbling in that scene.
The fragmented memories are slowly finding their place. The breathing hole that had barely opened is now tightly shut again, leaving no room for water to leak out.
Where is Rahikan now?
Diara, panting, slowly scanned her surroundings. Even though she knew he wasn't there, her face, which swept around the carriage, looked like someone half-conscious.
Before her throat was cut, the soldier had clearly stated she was under arrest for treason. More precisely, for plotting to assassinate the Emperor. For plotting to assassinate the Emperor. No, not plotting, but for assassinating the Emperor? Before she could even recall which, her entire body began to tremble.
“Stop the carriage. Your Majesty, I... I must see Your Majesty...”
She couldn't tell where the carriage was heading as it raced through the desert. She didn't even know why she was here when she should be by his side. Stop the carriage. We must go to Rahikan. Her trembling hands reached for the window, but an old man's voice grabbed her wrist and pulled her away.
“Calm down, Princess. His Majesty is safe.”
The voice of the hooded man sounded familiar. Diara, seeing the shining white seal on the dark green cloak, barely opened her parched lips.
“Elder.”
Although they had never spoken before, Diara knew who the old man was. She remembered seeing him conversing with Rahikan several times, sometimes in his study, sometimes in the castle hallways.
The three elders, who had been staring at Diara with a blank expression, bowed silently in greeting. A beat later, they added an explanation, seemingly understanding her confusion.
“His Majesty is safe.”
“...”
"His Majesty sent a crow immediately after the incident. We are now escorting the Princess to safety by His Majesty's order."
Diara sank to the floor at the news that Rahikan was safe.
“Musa, you said.”
“Yes.”
The dull clatter of horse hooves echoed through the half-open window. The sight of men in black masks and robes running through the pouring rain was eerie. They were the Emperor's personal guard, known collectively as the Crows.
The elders and crows who follow him are all here. What are all those who should be guarding Rahikan doing here? Where is he, who is said to be safe? Diara bit the inside of her lip, suppressing the confusion and anxiety that clenched her throat.
“Where is His Majesty now?”
“He is in the palace. The royal doctors must be examining His Majesty by now.”
The royal doctors had heard that something was wrong. The news of his safety had calmed her heart, which had barely begun to calm down, and it had become chilling again.
“Someone tried to harm His Majesty.”
Her trembling lips were crushed. Unaware of the blood rising from her lips, the woman's hand visibly trembled as she bit her lip.
The elder sighed deeply as he watched her, frozen white as a corpse. Her face looked as if it would crumble to pieces at the slightest touch. Her eyes looked as if she might die at any moment. How could a woman like her use black magic?
“Yes. I am sorry, His Majesty has fallen into a trap set by someone using black magic.”
“...”
“But it’s not something serious enough to worry about. He has shining eyes.”
The voice announcing the situation was somber. A thunderous crack, as if splitting the sky, struck the carriage and passed by.
The elder said that Rahikan had been bitten by a snake. It happened during the final rites of the Sun Festival.
Rahikan, dressed in formal attire, stood before a giant snake statue, spilling his blood on the red sand.
With Ferzan dead and Helgatria, the sole royal family member, still under arrest, the royal throne, with its draped curtains, sat empty. The bleak hall was packed with eight elders, including the head elder, and over a hundred high-ranking nobles. And amidst them, something slid through the gaps between the feet of the standing figures.
A giant red snake, as tall as a tree, swam through the vast hall like flowing water. Strangely, none of the countless people lined up there noticed the presence of this terrifying intruder.
Soon, the ceremonial blade emitted a bright blue light in Rahikan's hand. Blood spurted from his cut palm, dripping onto the crimson sand, and a commotion spread through the room. But it was already too late.
The viper leaped up, sinking its fangs precisely into the Emperor's nape. The tip of the angled blade pierced the floor. The moment Rahikan fell to his knees, the three elders standing below leaped to his side.
The body, coiling around the nape of his neck, wrapped itself tightly around the man's lower back. Wrapped in a monstrous, giant red snake, Rahikan appeared to be devoured from head to toe.
It was then that the body of the three elders, frantically trying to remove the snake, froze stiff. A faint laughter, like a laugh, could be heard through the red scales. Thinking it was a hallucination, he raised his gaze and saw the corners of a twisted mouth.
Two words of command fell into the ears of the elder, who was lost in thought.
"Lara, take her far away."
A sharp, murderous aura rippled across the man's completely subdued voice. What hung in his bloodshot eyes was not death, but the shadow of madness. Those eyes, reflecting illusions rather than reality, were clearly a spectral gaze, and the three elders involuntarily took a step back.
As the crows escorting the Emperor covered his surroundings in pitch black, blocking his vision, the elders and nobles gathered in the hall screamed in panic.
It's the Red Princess's spell! The Princess of Feldif has murdered the Emperor!
A shout shook the vast hall like thunder. The Royal Guards capture the Princess immediately! The sight of the elders, seizing the opportunity, rising to their feet, and inciting the terrified crowd, resembled a scene from a well-crafted play.
Why would you do something so reckless?
The three elders, having finished their recollections, questioned this. They had a snake bite the Emperor to frame the Princess for treason.
Having artificially broken the snake's protection, he couldn't even fathom what would happen next. But one thing he could be certain of was that a bloody storm was brewing.
While the elder continued his explanation, Diara looked out the window at the rain falling all the time.
“So, His Majesty is currently collapsed in the palace?”
“...”
Instead of an answer, the sound of falling rain made the heavy silence even more gloomy. Diara, who had been looking toward the palace through the thick raindrops, finally opened her parched mouth.
“Please send me back.”
“No.”
"I'm not suggesting we go back together. Neither Matali nor the elder needs to go back. Please let me go. I need to stay by His Majesty's side."
“I’m sorry, but that won’t do either.”
“Why?”
“Because the current palace is not safe for the Princess.”
From the beginning, their goal was Diara's life, not the Emperor's. Even if they managed to escape once, they couldn't hope for the same luck the second time. Helgatria was certain to use any means necessary to force the Princess, who was recaptured, to her death.
And Rahikan was in no condition to look after anyone right now.
“I hate to tell you this, but His Majesty, your presence is not safe right now.”
Frankly, when the Princess returned to the Emperor, it was more likely that it would be Rahikan himself who would harm her. The Emperor, consumed by madness, was blind to anything.
The three elders shuddered at the thunderous roar that sounded as if it would destroy the carriage.
Suddenly, the nightmarish day from four years ago flashed before his eyes. The day when record-breaking rainfall poured down for the first time since the Great Fire. The day when blood poured down like rain behind the Emperor, who had no crows.
Rahikan, entangled in the red snake, had the same eyes as before. The eyes of a madman who saw all living things as prey to be torn to pieces. Had he taken even one more step toward him, intending to tear the snake away, he, too, might have been decapitated on the spot.
"His Majesty has finally ordered the Princess to be sent to a safe place. From now on, I will protect the Princess."
Lara, take her far away.
The order Rahikan left him just before he collapsed contained the meaning of keeping Diara away from not only Helga but also himself.
“Elder, but then, who will protect Rahikan?”
Those who harmed Rahikan remain in the palace. Those who framed her for treason and brought him down with their despicable schemes now smile beside him.
The elder, who understood the Princess's question, averted his gaze as if in pain.
“...His Majesty is the only one who survived in the pit of fire.”
Diara stared intently at the old man's face, which was dripping with cold sweat.
“Alone?”
"I know it may sound disloyal, but he's not as fragile as you might fear, Princess. Besides, the opposition is merely engaged in a power struggle..."
They don't intend to truly murder Rahikan. He's the only surviving Cardion, possessing a shining eye. His blood is the empire's treasure. At worst, they'll just pour incense and poison until his mind is paralyzed, just like before.
"If His Majesty comes to his senses, there will be another chance. For now, returning to the palace would only make me a sacrifice to the Princess."
So, we must take a step back and plan for the future. Diara's mouth tightened as the elder continued his explanation, seemingly apologetic. Her wavering green eyes sank to the floor, then slowly rose again.
What rose in her wake after the tears had dried was a quiet rage. What are you talking about? Are you asking me to once again hand him over to the very people who forced him into such agony?
“Please send me back.”
"Princess."
“Send me back. Please send me back.”
No one protects him. Not on the day the palace burned, not even now, when a poisonous snake, possessed by a spell, bit his neck. No one cares about his suffering. Even those who claim to be his allies truly seek only the bloodline to continue the royal lineage, not Rahikan's safety.
If he hadn't had such bright eyes, if it had been his eyes, not his back, that burned that day, Rahikan would have been abandoned long ago. Like her. Like her father had abandoned her.
Don't run away.
The dark clouds gathering over the carriage seemed to echo with his voice. "Don't run away, Lara. Don't run away from me."
His threat to cut off her hands and feet if she ran away was a plea for her to stay by his side. And she willingly nodded, knowing he was dangerous.
So, leaving him now would be a betrayal. She couldn't run away and leave Rahikan in such a terrible place where no one loved him.
“It’s raining. You must be feeling feverish again by now.”
She couldn't leave him alone in this rain. Her face, drenched by the rain pouring through the open window, ordered the carriage to turn around.
“Please let me go. I will return to the Emperor’s side.”
The Red Princess of Feldif, who had committed treason and fled, returned. Fearing that the Emperor's body, steeped in venom and the boiling heat, might not be able to withstand the venom, the three elders ultimately sent the Princess away.
Diara threatened to jump off the wagon if it wasn't turned around. She would jump from the moving carriage and return, even if it meant going barefoot.
No matter how serious the crime of disobeying the Emperor's orders was, it was lighter than risking her life, so the elder, unable to resist Diara's threats, chose to send her away.
Helgatria looked down at Diara, who had walked in on her own two feet, and laughed hysterically. The woman, forced to her knees, was soaking wet, like a drowned rat.
“Ahahaha! They say you’re crazy in love, and indeed.”
The mockery intensified at the request to send her to Rahikan. She worried that she'd be thrown in prison the moment she arrived, but those worries were in vain. The Princess, seated at the head of the table, looked down at Diara with a look of genuine excitement.
"Yes, go to your love and tell him that it wasn't your fault. Did you come back to complain like that?"
“...”
"With those slutty lips, clear your name of this unjust accusation. Trying to flirt? Maybe the love-crazed Emperor will believe you."
Diara remained silent in the face of repeated taunts. Helgatria's thoughts were wrong, but she didn't want to say it out loud. Her heart was too...
Diara's eyelids fluttered open as her chest throbbed.
Her red snake bit him. The one gift she had obtained through much pressure and coercion had pushed him over the edge. Whether it was intentional or not, it no longer mattered.
Rahikan will never forgive her.
A heinous crime, incomparable to spilling blood on a bed. It would be strange if such a crime were committed without being hated.
She thought the world was crumbling, but her feet felt firm. The fear of losing Rahikan's love felt light and airy in the face of the fear of possibly losing him. It was a fear so light and foolish it was laughable.
So it's okay.
Diara consoled herself, ignoring her trembling heart.
She knew this would happen someday.
Her wishes always came true in the opposite direction. Diara knew that the more desperately she wished for something, the worse it often turned out. Wishing for his love was just one of them. If she hadn't wanted the red snake, she would have wanted it in the white castle he promised to build, or in the flower-filled oasis.
So, she didn't regret the castle named after her or the flower-covered oasis. The only thing she regretted was not being able to have a child with Rahikan. That was the only thing she longed for until the very end.
That's okay, though.
Diara blinked her lowered eyelids.
Rahikan was alive, in pain, but still within her reach.
She received a love she couldn't repay in a lifetime, so what more could she ask for? All she wanted was to close her eyes by his side. No matter what, she wanted to end her days by his side.
“His Majesty is suffering from a fever. And my body is like a medicine that reduces fever.”
So please. Diara lowered her gaze and placed both hands neatly on her knees.
“Please let me use my body until the rain stops.”
Her lips were pale, her face pale, like a frail woman's. Her expression seemed as if she might die at any moment, and her voice trembled with every word. It was difficult to keep from bursting into tears, but the words that came out of her mouth were incredibly bold.
Ha! A breathtaking laugh burst from Helgatria's mouth.
"So, you're saying I can kill you after the rain stops? You're saying I can take off your beautiful skin and make clothes for myself?" To this question, Diara simply replied "yes" and showed no other reaction.
Was it a sense of unfounded loyalty, or simply stupidity? Helgatria's lips twisted in a strange smirk. Everyone in the palace called her a monster, but was this strange, unreadable behavior the reason?
“Your Highness, I hope you don’t intend to grant that woman’s request?”
The elder who had insisted that the Red Princess should be beheaded as soon as she entered showed signs of impatience at the sight of Helgatria struggling.
“Shh, be quiet. I’m just trying to figure out what to do.”
What should I do with this woman?
Knock knock knock. Her fingernails were busy tapping on the armrest.
All evidence was already wiped clean by the time Rahikan collapsed. Even if they were to overturn Helgatria's mansion and rip open her stomach right now, they wouldn't be able to find even the slightest trace of black magic.
All who entered the Sun Festival saw the Princess's snake bite the Emperor's neck. The deaths of Ferzan and the maid. All the remaining traces, too, were aimed at the woman's neck, not hers.
The blade, painstakingly placed over months, at the cost of her only brother, now encircled her neck like a noose. Even the Emperor, no matter how great, could not free her from such meticulously crafted evidence of treason.
Still, Helgatria couldn't seem to relax. It was because of Rahikan's love for women.
If he were truly blinded by love, then instead of striking the woman who had committed treason, he might have chosen to cut off the hands of all those who had brought forth evidence.
The Emperors of Cardion often displayed a strange obsession with their mates, who had their seals on them. If she killed herself, he might end up resenting her.
Damn it. This is a headache. Helga bit her lip.
That girl should have died from the flesh of a failed sorcery.
If things had gone as planned, the moment Rahikan cut off the snake's head, the woman should have vomited blood and died in her chambers. Before she was even arrested for treason, before Rahikan's crows swooped into her quarters, the Princess should have been left behind, a blackened corpse of a black magician.
But she never thought that the Emperor would actually be bitten by a snake.
She couldn't figure out what was going on in his mind, and she kept feeling anxious. There was no way that crazy guy couldn't stop a single snake... Helga, who was spitting out curses, suddenly had a flash of light in her eyes.
Yes, Rahikan was a madman. So now was another chance. One last chance to deal with the woman without getting a drop of blood on her hands.
Drunk on poison and fever, Rahikan was unrecognizable now. Just like that day four years ago. Back then, he had killed not only the doctors who had brought him the medicine, but also every single one of the palace servants with black hair and gray eyes. It was none other than Helgatria, for resembling her.
“Send a bathtub full of ice to the Emperor’s chambers.”
“Your Highness, the Princess!”
Helgatria smiled, ignoring the worried cries of the elder.
“Then take off the woman’s clothes, let her hair down, tie chains around her ankles, and make her crawl on all fours.”
Then, it would look like a snake crawling towards him. Even if he had let his guard down the first time and given in, he wouldn't make the same mistake the second time. Rahikan would never forgive the red snake that bit his neck.
Long, waist-length hair covered her pure white body in a crimson glow. Helgatria's eyes widened in satisfaction as the hair, as fine and glossy as a spider's web, shimmered like scales.
The woman truly looked like a red snake. Now everything is ready. Rahikan will take care of the rest.
Diara, lying on all fours, was shoved into the Emperor's chambers. The newly arrived court doctors, aware of the Emperor's deep-seated aversion to doctors, tossed her like a piece of meat into a cage filled with wild beasts and fled in a panic. The sound of the door locking was heard from outside.
Beyond the dark curtain, a man's silhouette was faintly visible. In the tomb-like silence of the room, the pungent smell of incense, medicine, and blood of unknown origin lingered.
Cold.
White breath spread between the pale lips.
She was shivering from the ice bucket she just stepped into. Chained to the floor, elbows on the ground, she felt like she first met him.
Azad Rahikan. The great red sun of the desert. She had spent three days and nights in tears, thinking about meeting him. He will kill me. The days when she had pressed her forehead against her father's feet and pleaded seemed like a distant memory.
As she recalled that time, a faint smile appeared on her cold lips.
How foolish she was back then. Back then, she really thought Rahikan was immortal.
That first breathtaking eye contact, that first kiss that tasted like salty tears. The sky spinning behind the carriage, the warm sand rippling in the oasis. The moment she swore to herself in the bathtub that she would be his, all these things felt like distant, warm dreams.
She couldn't have been happier.
In those days, she was lost in the joy of his touch, his affection, the feeling of melting in his embrace. The self she never known existed, and the self she was now, looked at each other with a strangeness, as if they were two completely different people. It was all thanks to Rahikan.
So where should we go if we leave him?
Diara leaned toward him. Her forehead touched the high bed. A hand reached out from behind the curtain, grabbed her neck, and pulled her inward in an instant.
Red hair tumbled and was sucked into the black curtain. The clanking, clanking sound of chains being pulled sounded like bones breaking.
Fortunately, the woman's moan was brief. A mixture of relief and guilt flashed across the faces of the doctors listening outside the door, then faded.
The rain that had been pouring down all night showed no sign of letting up until the next day. The morning was as dark as midnight. The elder woke with a strange feeling. As if he'd just had a terrible nightmare, goosebumps covered his body, making it feel as if it were sandpaper.
And soon his nightmare became reality with the appearance of a servant running towards him, pale and pale.
Elder, Your Highness, the Princess, Your Highness, the Princess! Before the servant could finish speaking, the elder's footsteps faltered and stopped where he had rushed.
From inside the Empress's study, the room Rahikan had given the Princess, a sound like a girl's laughter could be heard. She giggled, covered her mouth, and rolled on the floor, squeaking. The sound was the sound of snakes' scales rubbing against each other and their tails quivering.
“Elder, what should we do about this? Inside, the Emperor... Her Highness the Princess...”
One of the elders following Helga greeted him, panting. The elder, seeing the tail poking out through the tightly closed door, gritted his teeth.
He shook off the elder's arm, trying to dissuade him, and forced open the heavy door. A horrific sight revealed itself beyond the door, which was as heavy as a rock.
The long, black waist of a beast flows from ceiling to floor, filling every crevice between the walls on all sides. Like a raging pool, it is a swarm of thousands of snakes. The Emperor's Black Serpent.
The Serpent Palace has opened. The Emperor has come to his senses.
“Your Highness... Your Highness, the Princess!”
As the elder searched for Helgatria, a thin, white branch caught his eye. Poking out from the surging black waves was none other than the Princess's hand. Five gold-covered claws swayed, their movements unmistakably resembling the gestures of a dead person.
The hair on his body stood on end. Amidst the screams of fear, the palace servants gripped the palace servants; the enraged elder clenched his fists.
“What the hell is this! This is, Her Highness, the only remaining Princess in the empire!”
Although they belonged to the same royal family, Ferzan and Helgatria were completely different cases. Helgatria was the last Princess of the Cardion Imperial House, the only woman capable of bearing the Emperor's seed.
She must meet Rahikan. Even if he's not in his right mind, he's still capable of ending the empire. Even the Emperor couldn't do something like this. His steps were quick as he ran to the Emperor's quarters.
The palace doctors, who had been lying face down on the floor all night, monitoring the Emperor's movements, suddenly backed away at the sight of him. They were worse than worms. What had they done to let things get to this point? The sight of them, like insects on drugs, made his blood boil. The elder threw open the door like a madman.
"Your Majesty!"
But his momentum ended there.
In the Emperor's chamber, the curtains drawn, the smell of burning torches wafted. The elder, facing the man sitting upright in the dim light, froze in place.
The Emperor's eyes were a dark, dark green. Released from the serpent's protection, they still shone brightly. Their wide, round pupils, surrounded by thin, golden rims, resembled the sun during an eclipse.
Eyes like those of the first King who subdued the first serpent. In a time before crows or the eight elders, there lived the primordial god of war, who, with a single long sword, stained the white desert with the blood of tens of thousands and ultimately established an empire upon it.
The elder, overwhelmed by the momentum, took a step back without realizing it. So distraught was he that for a moment, he couldn't even remember why he was there.
The next thing his lips, which had been blankly grinning, found a sound. When he saw the woman in Rahikan's arms, he couldn't stop the despair from seeping out of his sagging lips.
“That’s ridiculous.”
"This is ridiculous." The elder muttered again, oblivious to what he was saying. "This is ridiculous. This is ridiculous. There's no way the woman could be alive."
“It’s strange.”
It was more like a monologue than an answer.
Rahikan didn't even glance at the elder. His drowsy gaze was fixed on the woman splayed across his legs. He stroked her soft, rosy hair, his voice low and quiet as if nothing else existed in the world.
“It’s rare for something to disobey me to have such a long life.”
He laughed silently, looking at the hair flowing between his fingers.
Even if you scare them into running away, if you can, and then let them loose, even if you put them in a carriage and chase them away, they always come back. He liked that timid, stubborn nature from the beginning.
Perhaps that's why, even when he saw the red thing rushing toward him, he couldn't lift a finger. It wasn't magic. It was a chronic, slight illusion. Or perhaps it was just a simple delusion.
The shiny scales looked like her long hair, and even though he knew it was trying to kill him, he gave his neck to its red maw.
Only after the bite on the back of his neck did he finally burst into laughter. It was the foolishness of someone who knew it was a trap but couldn't escape. Even with a knife in her hand, he couldn't resist her, let alone anything that resembled her.
Snake venom gushed through the perforated blood vessels. The shackles that had been rigged for a thousand days to make their way were suddenly torn apart like a bolt of lightning. The elder, who hadn't anticipated the spell's success, cried out in panic from afar.
The Red Princess has murdered the Emperor! Capture the Princess!
The sight of the enemies running around busily in the receding consciousness looked like a scene from a crude comedy.
"It would have been better if Lara had killed me herself. I would have gladly offered my head in that case."
He would have gladly fallen into her trap if she had wanted. He could have simply placed a knife in her hand, without resorting to such crude and cumbersome tactics.
What else could it be? He was crazy in love.
Suddenly, a story from a faraway land he once heard on the wind came to mind. It was about a man who fell in love with an enemy woman, had his hair cut off, his eyes gouged out, and became a slave. He died spinning a horse-drawn spinning wheel his entire life.
If his enemies had been just a little bit more clever, the man's story would soon have become the story of Rahikan. If his snakes had been just a little more cunning, so it would have been.
The woman who had held him all night, theor skins pressed against each other, still felt cool. Looking down at her eyes, which pulsed like those of a small bird, he recalled the ecstatic night before.
Her lips, frozen as ice, clumsily collided with his hot ones. Saliva, sweet and salty, mixed with tears, flowed in quickly.
He drank greedily, drank again, and again, until his simmering lust threatened to explode, and he poured everything she had poured into him. Like a snake sucking its own tail, their interlocking, undulating lines of contact never seemed to part.
“This way, I can’t scold you for disobeying me. Right?”
It was he who had told her to do whatever she wanted in the first place. So who could blame her now? The elder remained silent in response to the question, which was asked without knowing who it was. To be precise, it would be more accurate to say he couldn't respond.
A thin line ran down the man's wrinkled chin. The sound of his head sliding diagonally and hitting the floor was dull.
“Three elders.”
"Your Majesty."
Your Majesty, I deserve to die.
The three elders, who had been standing behind him the entire time, the elder's head was cut off, fell flat on the floor, their wrinkled foreheads touching the Emperor's feet. It was their sin to disobey the order to send the Princess away and return her to his side.
The sin of prioritizing the safety of her lord over the Emperor's orders was grave. Blood poured from the elder's neck like a fountain, drenching the crowns of the three elders. Had the Princess been wrong, she too would have met the same fate.
“Postpone your decision until after the rain stops.”
“I am ashamed, Your Majesty!”
"There's much work to do, so I won't behead you immediately," the three elders cried out, eyes tightly shut at the Emperor's generous disposition. A blanket was draped over the sleeping Princess.
He has to clean up. Before the rain stops. Before spring comes. Before the serpent, sleeping like a flower, opens its eyes, he has to wash the palace clean.
Now was the time to think only about that. Rahikan picked up his outer garment. Every brush against the fabric made his poisoned veins boil. A fiery murderous intent surged through his body, like the day he first set foot on the desert.
The serpent's protection, thin as a blade, screamed for revenge. This rage would not cease until all those who killed the snake and betrayed the King's trust were gone.
As he was pacifying Diara, who was sleeping as usual, a knock came from the door of his room, a crow guarding his quarters. Rahikan had told him not to bother him tonight. He suppressed his irritation at the uninvited visitor and stepped outside. He was greeted by the elder, pale and pale, as if his entire body had been drained of blood.
Ferzan, who had been imprisoned in the sand prison, died last night. To be precise, he was murdered. Since suicide was impossible in Cardion's sand prison, this was a natural inference.
Thin, thread-like sand snakes entangle the prisoners' tongues and bind their limbs like chains of scales. In a place where neither tongue-biting nor head-splitting death was possible, death was always unintentional.
The elders were left speechless by the shocking fact that one of the few remaining members of the imperial family had been murdered, and that too within the palace. On the final day of the memorial service, the nobles who had gathered since dawn to witness the event attended by the Emperor had likely already heard this news, and a council of elders was scheduled to convene immediately after the memorial service concluded.
Rahikan slowly scanned the report he'd received. The somewhat vague and omitted details of the incident vividly illustrated the urgent and chaotic situation at the time the report was written.
There were more than a few off-putting things, but there was one thing that particularly stood out: the testimony of the examiner who examined Ferzan's body.
“He died from a snake bite...”
A scar appeared on the back of the neck, where a snake's fangs had been thrust and pulled out. From the four punctured areas, black and blue spots bloomed like flowers, and the lips were caked with dried bloody vomit. Every part of the chilled corpse pointed to snakebite.
“The snakes in the sand prison probably don’t have any poison.”
“I am sorry, Your Majesty, but this incident was not the work of the Sand Snake.”
The man who had been bowing his head beside Rahikan's soliloquy spoke with a pained expression. He wore a white seal on his left chest, and he was an elder of the Three Houses. Of the eight elders, he was the only one who had long stood by Rahikan.
It was he who, four years ago, rescued Rahikan, who was completely losing his wits, from the clutches of the Princess and the elders and sent him to the battlefield, who occasionally flew birds to report on the situation in the palace during the war of conquest, and who recommended the spell of putting lead in the mouths of the maids serving Diara.
Rahikan looked down at his loyal subject, who had served him since the days before crows, with a strange gaze.
“If it wasn’t the sand snakes, would you say it was my black snakes who did it?”
The Emperor's black snakes never left the Serpent Palace, where they were imprisoned, except on special occasions. The key to the palace rested with him, and without his permission, it was impossible to even open the door, much less let the snakes out.
The Emperor's eyes narrowed in suspicion, and the three elders swallowed repeatedly, remaining silent. They seemed to know something, yet were choosing their words with fear. Rahikan frowned and clicked his tongue.
“Elder. If you hear something, tell me without hesitation.”
If he had kicked him out for making such harsh remarks, he would have killed him long ago. The three elders, who had been hesitating unresponsively to the cold voice, reluctantly opened their mouths.
“That... is actually a snake, but its scales are not black but reddish.”
It is said that several court ladies saw the Red Princess's snake crawling out between the high iron bars of the sand prison in the deep night.
Among the soldiers guarding the prison, not only those with sharp night vision, but also the servants who lit the torches in the corridors and fed the horses, the number of people who saw the red scales climbing the wall reached seven.
In the dim light of the night, the rosy-hued snake, illuminated by the torch, stands out everywhere. At the words of the three elders, a deep shadow fell over Rahikan's eyes.
“Tataram.”
“The three elders are right.”
If the soldier saw it, his crows couldn't have missed it. His question, as if confirming something, was met with the answer he most desperately wanted to hear. Rahikan put down the petition with a confused expression.
“It’s a trap.”
“I think so too, but...”
It was a trap that could have been easily noticed by the Emperor, Tataram, and anyone else who knew the Princess's personality, but the problem was public opinion within the palace.
Rumors, by their very nature, always flow in a provocative and toxic direction. It's dangerous enough that the mad Emperor's condition was cured by the Princess, or that she treats venomous snakes like puppies, but now the death of the Prince who abused her is added to the mix.
No one knew who the red snake that roamed the palace belonged to, so the Princess was now practically branded an open enemy of the royal family.
“And that’s not all, Your Majesty. I’m afraid I have to inform you that rumors are going around that the Red Princess uses black magic.”
To make matters worse, the maid who had burned the Princess's bedding was found charred to death in her own quarters. Her thighs, as thin as a lightning-struck tree, were dotted with jagged marks that could only be traces of black magic.
This is also Helgatria's handiwork. She's diligent, too. A bitter smile appeared on Rahikan's lips.
"It seems they're quite afraid of being trampled to death once the rain stops. Seeing them struggle so much in such a short period of time."
A thousand days and nights. Rahikan had just taught his beautiful snake how to conceive his child.
As expected, she cried, laughed, and then kissed him deeply on the mouth. Her cheek, flushed like a child's, rested against his neck, and her voice, repeating "Rahikan, Rahikan," was wet with tears. The warmth of her cheek had not yet faded.
With a twisted feeling, Rahikan rose from his seat. His crossed legs uncrossed, he reached the floor, and the three elders followed his footsteps, making way for him.
“Helga didn’t do this alone.”
“I think so too.”
The scale of the conspiracy was too vast for it to have been carried out solely by the imprisoned Princess and the elder elders with limited mobility. It was impossible to know how many of the elders who followed the Princess were involved in this conspiracy. The underlying motivation was likely blackmail, or perhaps a twisted feeling of regurgitation from the gold they had received.
“If you want to die with your old master, I will grant you your wish.”
They were rotten flesh that needed to be cut off anyway. It would have been nice if only the Princess and the elder could have been cleanly cut out without any unnecessary bloodshed.
The palace was in shambles because of a single loach, and now, even if they wanted to, they couldn't. Those of the eight elders who sided with the Princess were abandoned. The chill in Rahikan's atmosphere following that brief command caused the faces of the three elders to slump.
"Do you really have to do that? If you hit a few elders, it could escalate into civil war. If you could just have the crows cut out their tongues before the noise gets any louder..."
“Then you must be whispering somewhere I can’t hear.”
“...”
“I will become less and less aware of what is happening in my own castle.”
No matter how capable Azad's crows were, they couldn't monitor every mouth on the palace walls and floor. Trying to cut out all the eyes and tongues, which were as numerous as sand, would inevitably lead to them being sealed.
And so, he lived, blind and deaf, his eyes and ears closed, until one day, he was swept away by a fire he knew nothing about, and lost his life. His father, the former Emperor, lost everything in that very same way.
The night of the fire, Rahikan gritted his teeth, recalling his father's confused gaze. Even after seeing his son, who had rushed to his rescue despite half his back melting away, the Emperor couldn't shake off his suspicions.
A father who did not even breastfeed his child properly for fear that he might harbor ill intentions toward his beautiful wife.
The Emperor, who could not trust anyone and could not even kick out those he suspected, and who relied only on crows, died helplessly like a bird trapped in a cage in this large palace.
Rahikan had no intention of letting that happen. He would let those who were clamoring clamor, and he would neither hide nor retreat. With the head cut off, the noise would naturally die down, so he accepted the cloak the elder offered and draped it around his shoulders.
“Let’s proceed as planned.”
The Sun Festival was about to begin. The three elders bowed their heads behind Rahikan as he left.
***
“Your Majesty is a little late...”
Diara, who was looking towards the door, let out a small sigh.
“Please sit comfortably, Princess. I have sent word in advance to give you a message when His Majesty arrives.”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
The servant guarding the door would alert her if even the Emperor's shadow appeared. Diara nodded at Matali's dissuasion, saying there was no need to bother looking outside. However, despite her reply, she continued to pace around the doorway.
Matali, who was preparing incense for the altar, called out to Diara once again. "Is there anything you need?" she asked. She merely shook her head, her gaze fixed on one spot as if nailed to a nail. Only then did Matali, sensing something unusual about the Princess, look at her face.
On the final day of the memorial service, Diara had already finished her preparations in the morning. Clad in ceremonial attire and adorned with wing-like gold ornaments, the Princess seemed even calmer and more serene than usual, perhaps because of this.
Her cheeks, which should have been flushed like a flower, were pale, perhaps due to nervousness, but her eyes were dark, which was concerning. It was clear that the Princess's melancholy wasn't solely due to her unfamiliar attire or the impending Sun Festival.
You must be scared.
Matali sighed with a heavy heart. It barely took a moment for news of Ferzan's death to spread throughout the palace. The Prince's death, of unknown cause, shocked and terrified everyone.
Moreover, when Diara first entered the palace, she had been beaten by Ferzan and driven to the brink of death. With both herself and the Prince constantly on the brink of death, it was no surprise that the palace felt unsafe. And indeed, her anxiety was justified.
In the uneasy air that hung in the palace, Matali was well aware of the rumors circulating about Princess Diara. She also knew how absurd rumors could easily kill someone.
“Princess, don’t be so anxious. Of course you are afraid, but...”
Matali approached Diara. She stroked her forehead, smoothing her messy hair, and spoke to her in a gentle voice.
“Matali.”
Diara smiled reluctantly, her expression like she had been caught by the comfort of her maid, who had become as close as a sister.
In times like these, she, as the boss, should remain steadfast. But since there was nothing she could do, she couldn't help but feel anxious. Matali shook her head, her eyes darkening with bitterness.
"No. It's natural for you to be anxious. I would be anxious too."
"Yes."
"But His Majesty is by your side, Princess. Just like you did in the bathtub last time, His Majesty will definitely protect you. And, though I may be humble, I'm also here."
The voice was gentle as she checked the ring on her headdress. However, as Matali continued to console her, a deeper confusion settled over Diara's face. Her delicate eyelids slowly lowered and opened narrowly.
Protecting whom? Who?
"I don't understand what you're talking about, Matali. I'm not like that... I'm His Majesty..."
It was then. "The great desert sun, His Majesty the Emperor, rises." A familiar sound of footsteps accompanied the servant's announcement. Diara's head turned as if pulled by reins, and through the long crack in the doorway, the man she had been waiting for since dawn finally appeared.
“Rahikan!”
“Oh, Lara.”
The woman, who had leapt forward, wrapped her arms around his neck. Rahikan, struck by the force of her flight, took a half-step back and laughed. Even on tiptoe, her heels were still raised high, and she dragged him a few steps. When he bent down, she slammed into the ground.
“It’s a bit of a formal greeting considering it’s only been half a day.”
“You’re late. Half an hour.”
“I see. There are so many annoying people.”
“What’s going on?”
“Well, then, I wonder if I might have been looking away from you for even a moment.”
He held her tightly enough to break her back, then pressed his lips to the nape of her neck and laughed. As Matali, lying face down, crawled away, Diara's hands brushed Rahikan's nape, the back of his ear, his chin, and his cheek, before moving down to his chest.
A steady beat of a heartbeat pounded against her palm. Diara, who had been staring intently at the man's face, which was completely unblemished, finally opened her eyes and let out a long breath.
“Were you jealous that I met another woman?”
“...I was worried. I know it’s stupid, but I haven’t seen a snake since yesterday...”
This was a beast that was usually difficult to separate from, never wanting to leave even for a moment. When Rahikan came, it reluctantly hid its rear, but its tail always wanted to touch her ankles.
Then, suddenly, without a trace, it vanished. Perhaps it had gone into heat and sought a mate, or perhaps it had grown weary of the confines of the castle and retreated back to the desert. She couldn't sleep, consumed by various speculations and worries, until she heard the news of Ferzan's murder, and her heart sank.
“Yeah. You were really worried about the snake.”
“No, that’s not it.”
Diara shook her head. A look of puzzlement crossed his face as he stroked the back of her head. The woman, who had been biting her lip, lowered her head.
“I was worried that something dangerous might have happened to Your Majesty.”
The Prince was dead. The man who had tried to harm her. He was so fearsome that even the mere thought of his face made her spine stiffen. But he was also one of Rahikan's few cousins.
Who could dare harm a Prince imprisoned in the palace? Having never imagined such a horrific event, her shock quickly took a twisted turn.
If Ferzan could get hurt, so could Rahikan. It couldn't be. Even as she forced herself to calm down, negative thoughts kept creeping in.
She could not dare tell him, but the nightmares that often haunted her dreams after she learned of the disappearance of her brothers, her father, and his Queen had been whispering terrible stories to her for a long time.
He could have burned to death. It could have been Rahikan who died that day. Before she ever met him, before she could save him.
No, it's all over. Rahikan is safe. Rahikan is safe. No matter how much she shook her head and screamed, the nightmare that followed her like a persistent ghost would not go away, tormenting her.
She had never thought about why she had such dreams, even though she was suffering so much, but after Ferzan died, she felt like she understood why.
Ten years ago today, a fire broke out in the palace, engulfing the Emperor and his wife. In broad daylight, while everyone was awake, in this very palace where they stood. If something like that happened again, would Rahikan be safe?
Suddenly, the scent of incense brushed her nose, causing her feet to shake.
“Can I come with you too?”
“What’s so fun about a place where you honor the souls of people whose faces you don’t even know?”
“But... if something happens...”
“What have you been talking about?”
As was her habit whenever she found peace, her fingertips traced the back of his neck as if searching for a burnt scar, and were caught in his hand.
“You’re so worried about my well-being. Who could have made my snake so anxious?”
“...Rahikan.”
"Say it."
Her head tilted up as a finger entered under her chin.
“Who would give such a noble piece of advice to attend the Sun Festival and stay by my side as the Emperor?”
His voice was quieter than usual. He was smiling quietly, but behind his sunken eyes lay a sharp, sharp blade.
He was on his way back from the Sun Festival, where the elders and heads of the royal family, including the elders and the heads of the meritorious retainer families, were attending, and he cut short the elders' orders to invite Diara to sit down.
"Being the Emperor's wife, she should be present," said the old woman, who spoke as if she were doing a favor, and her mouth smelled of something awful.
So, the elder summons Diara to a gathering of all the major powers of the empire and pressures her to shift the blame for the Prince's murder.
The plan, so shallow it was difficult to ignore, was foiled by his rebuke, but there's no telling what other dirty tricks they might be up to. Diara shook her head, her expression bewildered, at Rahikan's questioning.
"No, that's not it. I just thought, it's raining heavily today, and the ancestral rites are a big deal, so something could happen... or you might suddenly develop a fever..."
Long eyelashes flickered up and down in front of his nose, above anxious eyes. Rahikan swallowed a bitter laugh as he looked down at the wing-like shadows that appeared and disappeared beneath her pale pink eyes.
He wondered if someone had been scheming with a sly tongue, but from what he heard, it seemed her fears weren't so bad. This affable woman was genuinely concerned about him.
He didn't know what was going through her mind, the size of a chestnut. Or maybe he was just so out of sorts that he was causing concern about this little thing. After all, he was always hunched over like a hungry dog, day and night. It would have been hard to even notice his condition without being quite oblivious.
That's why he wanted to avoid doing anything during the rainy season. He exhaled softly, feeling a sense of relief. Still, who would worry about whom?
"No."
"But."
“I told you not to.”
The finger flicked with a snapping sound, making the space between her eyebrows sting and heat. Ouch. Rahikan, who had been looking down at the frowning face for a moment, straightened his bent back. He brushed back his flowing hair and clicked his tongue.
“And what if the fever rises?”
“Of course...”
“You want me to suckle your breasts in a place where there are so many boys?”
He asked if she would sit on top of him, bare breasts exposed, and suck his cock, just like she did in her office, in front of all the nobles gathered there. Diara, unable to find the words to respond, belatedly closed her mouth.
“It would be fun, though.”
While she was hesitating, Rahikan walked towards the sofa and leaned against it, motioning for her to come over.
“We need to consider the circumstances of those who will lose their eyesight on the spot.”
If everyone goes blind, who will do politics? The laughter was gloomy and without reason.
"You, a perfectly normal person, should tame me. What if you make me a tyrant?"
“But I don’t want Your Majesty to be sick.”
It doesn't matter if he's a tyrant or a madman. As long as he's not suffering. As long as he's safe.
Rahikan watched silently for a moment as her lowered eyelashes fluttered. Just as he wasn't the material for a saintly monarch, Diara certainly wasn't the material for a virtuous Empress.
If you're willing to bite, I'll bite. I told you to put the reins on and muzzle me, but you're pouring sweet wine into a madman's mouth. It's the same for both men and women, ruining each other's habits. The corners of Rahikan's mouth curved lazily.
A hand reached out and grabbed her wrist. Diara, gently pulled, was trapped between his thighs.
“If you’re that worried, let me go in advance.”
“In advance?”
His fingertips, sweeping up from her chin, lingered on her earlobe. He teased it as if he were teasing her nipple, then pulled the back of her head and kissed her cheek.
“It’s not that hot yet, so it’s okay to put it in the vagina.”
“Huh...”
“I’ll do the cooking, so you just have to eat well.”
Before entering the sun ritual, how about erecting your cock and draining the cum inside it? You don't even need to take off your clothes. Just pull down your underwear, and I'll insert it and shake it. All you have to do is hold on tight. The voice flowing into her ear was thick.
Was he joking or serious? Of course, it was true that the fever subsided for a while after ejaculation, but... As Diara hesitated, confused, Rahikan pressed his lips against hers and asked, "Do you not like it?" The questioning lips were too seductive to be a joke.
"Well, then you need to set it up quickly. No, you'll set it up quickly, but you need to ejaculate quickly..."
“There are a lot of orders.”
There was only time for a cup or two of tea before the ceremony began. He'd have to change his clothes before then, and someone would be coming to summon him soon. Knowing how long it usually took him to get his act together, she was anxious.
Glancing at the tightly closed door, she groped between his legs with one hand. A heavy lump was felt on the inside of his thigh. She has to start with her mouth.
Diara knelt, took out the man's serpent-like penis, and held it in her hand. She bit down on the glans, which tasted both pungent and slightly tingly, and massaged the testicles with her hand. The hardening, like a core growing from within, filled her mouth.
It felt like a slick liquid was already leaking from the urethra, rubbing against the roof of her mouth. She instinctively swallowed, but a hand, sweeping from her eyes, came down and pushed her chin.
It means that you have stopped now and that you should come up now.
“You really have to finish this quickly.”
“That depends on what you do.”
She seemed to be the only one feeling impatient, but despite the urging, he simply smiled leisurely, clutching her buttocks. A dry spit dribbled down her cheek as his fingers dug into the crease of her buttocks.
He must be trying to unclog her hole. She knew it now, even without asking. As if by habit, she relaxed her stomach and waited for the finger to enter, and the man's erect penis tapped just below her navel.
The soft labia majora parted as the fingers entered, spreading the flesh beneath her buttocks. It felt as if her body was lifting slightly. Something heavy and hot surged up her leg, pushing deep inside.
“Ah, uh, ahhh...?”
What had entered was not a finger, but a ripe, red-hot penis. Diara's eyes widened. His grasp grasped her struggling arms, one in each hand. The thing that had penetrated her hole, which she hadn't been able to widen, reached the entrance to her uterus in an instant.
Jaws, a high, raised chin dizzyingly rolls over his vision. Her upper body falls over on its own, her arms taut like bowstrings, and her bulge clings tightly to his crotch.
Diara cried, shaking her buttocks as her hips pounded like a stake.
“Hhhh, ah, ah, ahhh!”
As always, she expected him to expand her first with his fingers. But then, so suddenly, so urgently. The confusion and shock were fleeting, but a crushing pleasure struck her stomach, crushing everything.
The hole that was growing wider as the penis was thrusting in felt like it was going to tear apart. Aang! Aang! Aang! Aang! Short, interrupted moans poured out in time with the rhythm of her movements.
It was a sexual encounter, without foreplay or kissing, solely for the man's pleasure. The sight of the woman's tightly secured vagina being unilaterally thrust upon was pitiful and obscene. He laughed as he watched her face, which had instantly turned bright red, crumple into a mess.
“Can you take it slow? Then I won’t be able to finish on time.”
“Ugh, ugh, ugh!”
“You're the one who said to use it when needed. You have to endure, even if it's hard.”
"I'll finish it soon, so bear with it, even if it's difficult." Even as he soothed her with a gentle voice, the pillar, moving back and forth at an unbelievable speed, mercilessly stabbed deep inside her.
It felt like being hit in the stomach with a club-like force. Beneath her rapidly fluttering labia majora, her labia minora, stretched taut and ready to tear, felt hot as if they were about to melt. Even as she trembled her wide-open vagina before his eyes, she didn't even have time to feel embarrassed.
A ceaseless stream of moans filled her mouth. A heavy climax hit her lower abdomen with a crash, sending goosebumps down her entire body. Sweat flowed down her arched back, past her tailbone, and coolly soaked her throbbing anus.
“That, that, Maaaahak...!”
The sound of her sobbing, her limbs trembling, made it seem as if she was about to gasp for breath. Rahikan frowned and laughed, looking down at the clear drool dripping from her chin, which was thrown back. "At this rate, I'll kill the baby before I even ejaculate," he thought.
“What did you do and how much did you do to make it a joke?”
“Ah, uh, uh, uh...”
“So how can I finish it so quickly? Huh?”
The storm-like movements behind the clicking of his tongue slowed as if by magic. His tongue, smiling, approached, leisurely licking the lower lip he'd bitten until it bled. Diara, who was weeping with a wail of sorrow, clung to his lips in a desperate attempt.
She sucked his tongue, whimpering. Beads of tears hung from the corners of her crinkled eyes. Her hazy, dilated pupils signaled that she had already experienced a full orgasm. The vibrations traveled through her clenched, trembling vagina, all the way to his cock.
Rahikan slowly moved his tongue deeper into her panting mouth, as if riding a horse.
“Stop being a slut. I’ll only poke you thirty times, so just bear with it.”
“Oh, yeah, no, yeah, yeah.”
“You don’t like thirty times? Isn’t that enough?”
“Yeah, that’s a lie, isn’t it?”
Even though he was kissing her lips gently, his face was terrified.
It wasn't just one or two days that she was being harassed all night long, even though she was told she only been hit ten times. If ten times were like that, what would thirty be like? Rahikan smiled, watching as disbelief welled up in her tear-filled eyes.
It's because she can't trust her husband like this.
As he laughed, shaking his waist, Diara shook her butt and cried.
“If it sounds like a lie, then at least count the numbers.”
“Ah, ah.”
“Here, here, every time you press like this, it counts one. How many times do you have to do it to get it?”
Diara groaned, her waist twisting as the questioning voice, thrusting deep within her, pierced her. "Kuk, kuk," she pressed, then lifted it again in one swift thrust, her movements targeting only the weakest points, which were vicious.
"Rahikaan," his name flowed like honey between her wet, excited lips. Unaware that he was deliberately teasing her, all she could do was whimper and call out the name of the man who was tormenting her.
With her red pussy like a flower, she sucked the dick and said, "Rahikaan" with her watery eyes.
Wasn't this a desperate plea, a desperate plea, to be tormented more? The man's lips, distorted with sadism, bit into the woman's cheek.
“Let’s get started.”
The commanding voice, licking under her eyes, was sharp. She knew that if she persisted any longer, she would only end up making things harder for herself.
Rahikan never tolerated jer tantrums, not in bed. As she spent more time with him, the more she was pestered, the more she grew accustomed to accepting them with resignation.
“Huh, one, two, ugh, three, three...”
Every time the vagina was poked, the number went up by one.
Every time her sagging upper body tried to fall backward, he yanked her arms as if grabbing hold. Thud, thud—the inside, driven by the recoil, clenched tightly, and water seeped out in drips from where they were locked together.
The hot, flowing fluid made her anus wet. The squeaking sound of her hole widening as she strained her buttocks to tighten them was loud.
The sound of her inner walls, perfectly shaped to the man's shape, expanding and contracting as she sucked him. The counting sound, speeding up and slowing down, repeated to match the obscene sound.
Twenty-eight, twenty-nine. And finally, the sound of "Thirty...!" shattered into pieces as his waist shook violently. At the same time, the melted Diara collapsed onto his shoulder.
“Ha... good job.”
The woman's face flushed as she nuzzled his neck, her forehead agape. Her face was like that of a bewitching beast, or perhaps an idiot whose only knowledge was lust. He thrust his tongue into her bare mouth and lay Diara down on the sofa.
“Good job. You’re pretty.”
“Ugh... Ahh, ahhh...”
Slippery saliva flowed down his thick tongue. Gulp, gulp. Diara reached behind his neck, drinking in what he spat out. She gathered her lax thighs, wrapped them around his pelvis, and crossed her ankles behind his buttocks.
It was the motion of a female pushing for ejaculation. Rahikan slowly moved his hips, looking down at her eyes, clouded with pleasure. Even thirty times was not enough for him.
The body, boiling hot as if on fire, seemed as if it would melt inside the woman.
“Can I give it to you?”
“Yes, yes, yes.”
She clenched her jaw and pressed her lower abdomen together, saying, "Yes, yes," as he asked. Every time his cock was thrust into the needle-like hole, she growled, feeling her heart being squeezed along with it.
“If you want to end it, you have to stop sucking. How can I end it when you keep squeezing me like this, and it’s so regrettable?”
“No, yeah, no...”
“Well, look at that—your lower mouth's got a dick in it, doing this and that.”
The chin resting on his cheek urged him to look down. The sight of the glistening, wet shaft between his lower abdomen and half-wetted beneath his mound was so obscene it made his head spin.
“This inner wall is so plump and swollen..."
“Ugh, ugh...”
“You're whining like you want me to shove it in harder.”
She, too, felt a pang of regret for not wanting more. Her body, soaked in pleasure and rusted, felt as heavy as lead. She twisted her hips, pressing them against his lower abdomen, and he leaned in, pressing himself against her.
A hot tongue licked her earlobe and poked her ear hole. The sofa creaked as she moved her body upwards, keeping her groin pressed against it.
Ah, it feels so good. She could die from it. She thrust in and out, thrusting in all the way, shaking lightly. Her blurred vision spun.
True to his words, her body, accustomed to the man, not only opened and swallowed him as he moved, but even bit and whimpered. With each thrust, her waist met his thrusts, and the occasional curse and moan sent shivers down her spine.
Just keep doing this ten more times, no, twenty more times...
“Ask for more, Lara.”
As if reading her throbbing desire, Rahikan whispered in a cracked voice.
“My vagina is so hot and itchy, I can’t stand it anymore, so please play with me some more. Yes?”
The seductive voice, as he sucked on her earlobe and thrust his tongue into her swollen lips, sounded almost like a purr.
“Act like a bitch in heat. Ask me to fuck you a hundred more times, no, two hundred more times.”
The man's whispering breath was dizzyingly sweet. The subtle scent of sweat and his heat enveloped her body like a blanket. The strange smell lingering in the damp room paralyzed her mind and made her lower abdomen ache. It almost made her nod.
A bell rang in the distance. If it hadn't been the warning sound of an impending ritual, she would have done just that. Diara, who had been clinging to his face, licking her lips, suddenly came to her senses and turned away.
“No, no, no.”
The hand that had been stroking and holding his soft black hair hurriedly cupped the man's cheek. He absentmindedly pushed her chin, then raised his eyebrows, asking, "No?" Her face, once again clinging to his, was filled with a sad expression.
“Stop it, yes? You can do it again later... if you do it again...”
"Later."
“Yeah, after you get back.”
The voice whispering, "Let's continue after we get back," was urgent. He wondered if she knew what she was saying.
Her face, fluttering with coquetry as she licked her lips in apparent urgency, felt hot enough to burst at the slightest touch. The sound of her grinding her pussy against his crotch, her soft moans, sounded like desperate pleas for mercy.
"There's nothing I can do. Then you'll widen the hole so I can insert it as soon as the door opens. I'll check it when I get back."
“Yeah, yes. I’ll do that. I’ll expand it.”
Her thighs, wide open as if to say it, wrapped around his waist. She twisted her pelvis, her lips quivering, and then her hand, trembling, finally slid down to the inside of her thigh.
Next to the hole where the penis was inserted, the plump labia majora were pressed open by the finger. The corners of her eyes, filled with tears, curved into crescent shapes.
“Here, like this. I’ll wait like this...”
A sound, either a curse or a laugh, escaped his lips. He hugged her tightly, his back buckling.
Aang, ang, ang, the moans that had been rapidly rising turned into ah, ah, ah, the groans of a hoe, and soon stopped abruptly. Diara completely gave out beneath him, feeling the gushing sensation pounding inside her stomach.
Her panting heart beat like a small bird beneath the man's chest. The semen flowing in, gurgling, filled her body with warmth.
Diara, who had been lying there for a while, waiting for him to finish, lifted her heavy eyelids abruptly. It hadn't even been a moment since she'd called him, "Rahikan," and she heard a resounding "eum" a couple of times. He bit the corner of her eye.
“ ..It hurts.”
The man, with his eyes half-open, finally sees her. The woman's face, also languid and relaxed, smiles faintly before his nose.
“I’ll take care of your clothes.”
As was often the case with Queens of the kingdom, dressing the Emperor Rahikan was always Diara's responsibility. Because he woke up at the crack of dawn, she would always undress him, rarely dressing him. Or, to be honest, she never did.
“I told you not to. What are you going to do with your arms shaking?”
“No, I can. I really want to.”
This is the first important event since becoming his woman.
As it was a memorial service, he had simply changed from his flashy formal attire to a dark-colored top with a few decorations and gold accessories. Still, she couldn't help but feel nervous. Diarra insisted on making up for her past failures, and Rahikan tried to dissuade her a couple more times before finally letting her have her way.
Her heart pounded as he looked around, wondering if there was a wrinkle in the Emperor's robes, which were as sharp as a blade. Rahikan, who had been sitting leisurely with his legs crossed, gazing down at her, turned to see her leaning back, her eyes closed.
It was his habit to tease her by touching her body while touching her clothes one way or another.
Diara stared blankly up at the man's face, which had become so quiet it was impossible to tell whether he was resting or asleep. The shadows cast over his still face seemed to have deepened.
Come to think of it, he left before the night fell last night, too.
As the rainy season deepened, there were more and more nights when he'd go out and not return until daylight. She couldn't figure out what was going on, but whenever she tried to find him, he'd burrow in like a starved man, and it was clear he wasn't doing it on purpose.
Because there are a lot of annoying people.
The weight of those words, always spoken as if they were jokes, felt heavy once again. How exhausting it must be. A pang of pain welled up in her heart, but she quickly pushed it away.
Diara, holding her breath so as not to make a sound, approached him. As he approached, a heavy scent of wine wafted from him.
No, it was more like the smell of Rahikan than wine. A pungent musk, the scent of liquor, the scent of desert sand, and the subtle, heat-tinged scent of sweat all came together to create a sensuous male scent. A male scent more seductive than any perfume.
In that comforting warmth, the rhythmic sound of a man's breathing gently soothed her thorny heart. With each tap, tap, each unfastening of the garment that wrapped him, Diara felt the anxiety that had been gnawing at her like a hedgehog's was being cut away, and she slowly caught her breath.
A familiar sight emerged beneath the unbuttoned shirt. Diara took in the scars covering his shoulders and sides, the burn scar extending to the right nape of his neck, each one etched into her eyes. The wounds covering the massive man's body mirrored the footsteps Rahikan had walked.
Despite countless dangers, he ultimately survived. Even on the battlefield, where arrows rained down, and in the flames that engulfed the palace.
So he'll be fine. Rahikan is so strong and beautiful. Everyone calls him the living embodiment of the sun.
“Rahikan.”
Finally, a cloak, falling diagonally from his shins to his waist, was draped around his shoulders. The sound of a gold clasp snapping beneath his chin slowly raised his eyelids.
Rahikan smiled quietly, his eyes as cold as ever, as if he had only closed them for a moment.
“Are you done?”
“Yes. Now you have to see if it works... Ah.”
Diara, who had been standing with her hand on his shoulder, was dragged down onto Rahikan's chest.
“I don’t have to look. Someone put it on for me.”
"Yes...."
"Great job."
Her hot breath covered her lips as she tilted her head back, her elbows held. The kiss she received as a reward was sweet, different from the one she'd experienced during intercourse.
As she bit his thick tongue and breathed in the saliva he was pouring into her, she felt her heart, which had been pounding anxiously, begin to calm down as if it were a lie.
“It’ll be over soon. Just wait quietly, and I’ll come get you right away.”
“Yeah.”
“While you wait, think about what you would like as a wedding gift.”
It will be a wedding of unparalleled splendor and beauty in the history of the empire. Golden-haired camels, a thousand peacocks, iridescent silk, gold, silver, and rubies will flow like rivers, and the palace gates will be constantly crowded day and night with distinguished guests eager to greet the new mistress of the empire.
“I will build a castle for you. Shall I plant red roses in this castle, as white and beautiful as the morning star?”
Between their ceaseless kisses, passionate words of courtship flowed like sweet wine. Diara, who had been listening to him in a drunken, hazy state, saw a sparkle in his eyes.
“After the meal, let’s go on an outing to the oasis.”
“Oasis? The place we stopped by last time?”
Diara's eyes lit up as she recalled the puddle she'd encountered on her way to the capital, mirroring the sky like a mirror. "Good?" he asked, and a fervent nod answered. Rahikan smiled.
"After a long rain, flowers bloom even in the desert. It's a spectacular sight that can only be seen once every few years, for a few days, even during the rainy season."
It's spring in the desert, after a long, rainy season. Seeds sprout in the sand, soaked with the rain, and the barren sand dunes are covered in red flowers.
Four years ago, on the day he first set out for battle, the entire desert was ablaze with red and blue. Diara's face lit up as he added that this year, with plenty of rain, they would be able to see it.
"Thank you, Rahikan. Just hearing you say it makes me feel like I'm dreaming."
He pressed his lips over hers, looking down at her blinking eyelids as if in ecstasy.
“What do you mean by this much?”
And the thank you was given after receiving the gift. The smile was extremely affectionate.
“I’ll be back.
Behind the voices of their lips touching and greeting each other, the final bell tolled from afar. The soft, spreading sound seemed to echo in his mind. Her reply, "Goodbye," lingered in his mind.
***
On the final day of the memorial service, the Sun Festival, a celebration of the royal family ascending to heaven, finally opened, praying for the thick curtain of the rainy season to lift.
During the Sun Festival, everyone in the Cardion Empire was required to stop what they were doing and spend time in prayer and silence at home.
Even those residing in the palace were granted a rare respite. From heads of departments to nameless servants, they dressed in their finest attire and enjoyed a quiet time of incense burning in their respective places.
Diara was lost in thought as she watched the incense rise in a thin curve.
She expected the atmosphere to be solemn and somber, as it was a ritual offering, but surprisingly, the palace was filled with a more peaceful atmosphere than ever. The low, steady sounds of prayer, the bell tolling that signaled the start of the ritual, and the sound of the pouring rain filling the air sounded like harmonious music.
Perhaps because she knows it will stop soon, the pouring rain doesn't seem unpleasant today.
What will the oasis look like, covered in flowers, after this rain?
Diara smiled quietly, recalling the desert spring. The words he had said before leaving lingered in her heart, leaving her mouth with a sweetness like a sweet candy.
Rahikan said that at that time, colorful birds would fly in from faraway places.
At those words, Rahikan's eyes lit up, and he smiled and offered to catch a bird for her. He would catch the most beautiful and dazzling bird in the world, and from its wings he would make an ornament to match her red hair.
And he said he would lie down in a field of flowers and embrace her. In the star-studded night, in the setting sun. In the ridges bathed in dawn light, in the waters of a hot midday.
The man's eyes were filled with passion as he whispered to her that he would embrace her every single day and night, without fail. Whenever she gazed upon him, his golden eyes reflecting her, Diara felt dizzy, as if suffering from heatstroke.
She wishes Rahikan would come back soon.
Diara looked at the burning incense wick and prayed in her heart.
May he return safely. Please protect him. Protect him so his wounds don't worsen. Her prayers to the countless suns that have now become stars in the desert rose like thin smoke.
The seventh bell rang to announce that the Sun Festival was the last in line.
Diara's head snapped toward the sound of the door opening. Without warning, Matali rushed in through the open door. Her heart dropped to the floor at the sight of the maid's pale lips.
“Princess! Ah, Princess!”
Matali, who had discovered Diara, cried out with a nearly delirious expression. One of her shoes had come off, leaving her bare foot.
Before Diara could even react, a hand flew towards her and grabbed her wrist.
“Ugh, Matali.”
The hand of the maid who dared to touch the Princess felt as cold as ice. Matali never touched Diara like this. She was momentarily taken aback by Diara's appearance, as if she had become someone else. A black cloth fluttered and fell over Diara's head.
“Put this on first.”
“Why, ah, why are you doing this? Wait a minute....”
"The Royal Guards are coming. You need to flee immediately. You'll need to change your clothes, but there's no time, so you need to cover your hair... Aah!"
Matali, who had been hastily fixing her hair, trying to hide her rosy locks, let out a short scream. Her palm had been pricked by the sharp hair ornament.
Startled, Diara quickly examined her palm. "Are you okay?" Matali didn't answer, but instead trembled and finally burst into tears.
“Ugh, ugh... What should I do with this? Now we are all dead.”
“Matali, what on earth are you talking about?”
Diara couldn't understand a word of the ramblings. However, Matali, who was always calm, had never lost her composure like this before, and she instinctively knew something very serious was happening.
The Royal Guard? Running away.
The face of a man walking toward her, his golden armor flashing, flashed before her eyes. The Prince, who had taunted not only her but even Rahikan, was clearly the leader of the Imperial Guard. Was that man up to something? But Ferzan had died last night.
Or not...
Her heart pounded with anticipation. Could it be a rebellion? Rebellion. Just hearing that word sent chills down her spine, and her hands and feet felt cold as if the blood had drained from her body.
Diara grabbed Matali's shoulder tightly.
“Matali, calm down and tell me. Where is His Majesty now?”
Where is Rahikan now?
Despite the questioning, Matali only flinched and sobbed. "I have to run away, I have to run away." The words, mixed with her sobs, kept her circling the same spot, unable to move an inch forward.
Diara abruptly rose from her seat. Whether it was a rebellion or not, something terrible had undoubtedly occurred. As this certainty grew, the thought of finding Rahikan surged through her mind. Having entered the Sun Palace, he should now be at the very top of the palace.
But her steps were blocked before she could even leave the room.
“It’s here!”
Beyond the shattered door, the clash of armor was deafening. The swords of the soldiers lined up like a wall, all pointed at the woman standing there, motionless.
"Diara Illaf. Red Princess of Feldif. You are under arrest for treason."
Treason?
She raised her head blankly, and Matali, who had rushed over, collapsed onto her lap. "Princess, Princess." Diara watched with slow eyes as the long blade, suspended above her sobbing, trembled.
The man shouting at her wasn't Ferzan. As she stared blankly at the face of the unknown man, indiscriminate words flowed into his head.
Black magic. Traitor. Feldif's spy.
Amidst the unintelligible words, what caught her eye was a long spear displayed proudly behind the soldier's back.
Her red snake was entwined on the cool blade. A severed snake head with scales the same color as her hair, like a red rose.
And what it had in its mouth was a torn collar and the radiant sun seal. It was the Rahikan symbol she had personally placed beneath his chin. Blood dripped from the man's crimson, soaking wet.
Diara Illaf was accused of plotting to assassinate the Emperor...
The soldier's last words dripped like red blood. The ground shook. Her vision collapsed.
***
The carriage's wheels rattled terribly as it barreled through the torrential rain. Even with the torches lit, visibility was dim, making it impossible to gauge the passage of time. The flickering torchlight left a long trail behind the carriage as it raced across the red sand.
"Princess!"
As Diara woke up, Matali, who had been crouching next to her, hurried over.
"You're awake. Ah, thank goodness." Diara muttered, her bangs damp with cold sweat brushing back, her voice audible as a sigh. Pushing back the spout of the water bottle that was approaching her lips, Diara looked around.
“This is...”
“Be careful. You have to get up slowly.”
Matali helped her to her feet by supporting her.
“You suddenly fell and hit your head.”
Her voice was hoarse, filled with worry, but the confusion of moments before had vanished. Diara, suppressing her rumbling stomach, tried to understand the situation. Her temples ached, as if they were about to shatter, as if the rumor of her head being hit hard was true.
"Matali. Where are you taking me? Where the hell am I?"
"Don't worry. It's okay now, Princess. We're out of the gates, so we'll be safe."
Only after she'd left the castle did she notice the surrounding scenery. The inside of the carriage, pitch-black as if covered in ink, felt unfamiliar. She hadn't been dragged away by the Imperial Guard soldiers who had come to capture her.
“What the heck...”
Through the cracks in her shattered memories, she recalled the scene of the soldier's head slowly tilting and falling to the floor as he aimed his sword at her.
The red snake impaled on the spear, and Rahikan's collar was bitten by its jaws. The sight of bright red blood dripping from the torn collar. And the ground beneath her feet was crumbling in that scene.
The fragmented memories are slowly finding their place. The breathing hole that had barely opened is now tightly shut again, leaving no room for water to leak out.
Where is Rahikan now?
Diara, panting, slowly scanned her surroundings. Even though she knew he wasn't there, her face, which swept around the carriage, looked like someone half-conscious.
Before her throat was cut, the soldier had clearly stated she was under arrest for treason. More precisely, for plotting to assassinate the Emperor. For plotting to assassinate the Emperor. No, not plotting, but for assassinating the Emperor? Before she could even recall which, her entire body began to tremble.
“Stop the carriage. Your Majesty, I... I must see Your Majesty...”
She couldn't tell where the carriage was heading as it raced through the desert. She didn't even know why she was here when she should be by his side. Stop the carriage. We must go to Rahikan. Her trembling hands reached for the window, but an old man's voice grabbed her wrist and pulled her away.
“Calm down, Princess. His Majesty is safe.”
The voice of the hooded man sounded familiar. Diara, seeing the shining white seal on the dark green cloak, barely opened her parched lips.
“Elder.”
Although they had never spoken before, Diara knew who the old man was. She remembered seeing him conversing with Rahikan several times, sometimes in his study, sometimes in the castle hallways.
The three elders, who had been staring at Diara with a blank expression, bowed silently in greeting. A beat later, they added an explanation, seemingly understanding her confusion.
“His Majesty is safe.”
“...”
"His Majesty sent a crow immediately after the incident. We are now escorting the Princess to safety by His Majesty's order."
Diara sank to the floor at the news that Rahikan was safe.
“Musa, you said.”
“Yes.”
The dull clatter of horse hooves echoed through the half-open window. The sight of men in black masks and robes running through the pouring rain was eerie. They were the Emperor's personal guard, known collectively as the Crows.
The elders and crows who follow him are all here. What are all those who should be guarding Rahikan doing here? Where is he, who is said to be safe? Diara bit the inside of her lip, suppressing the confusion and anxiety that clenched her throat.
“Where is His Majesty now?”
“He is in the palace. The royal doctors must be examining His Majesty by now.”
The royal doctors had heard that something was wrong. The news of his safety had calmed her heart, which had barely begun to calm down, and it had become chilling again.
“Someone tried to harm His Majesty.”
Her trembling lips were crushed. Unaware of the blood rising from her lips, the woman's hand visibly trembled as she bit her lip.
The elder sighed deeply as he watched her, frozen white as a corpse. Her face looked as if it would crumble to pieces at the slightest touch. Her eyes looked as if she might die at any moment. How could a woman like her use black magic?
“Yes. I am sorry, His Majesty has fallen into a trap set by someone using black magic.”
“...”
“But it’s not something serious enough to worry about. He has shining eyes.”
The voice announcing the situation was somber. A thunderous crack, as if splitting the sky, struck the carriage and passed by.
The elder said that Rahikan had been bitten by a snake. It happened during the final rites of the Sun Festival.
Rahikan, dressed in formal attire, stood before a giant snake statue, spilling his blood on the red sand.
With Ferzan dead and Helgatria, the sole royal family member, still under arrest, the royal throne, with its draped curtains, sat empty. The bleak hall was packed with eight elders, including the head elder, and over a hundred high-ranking nobles. And amidst them, something slid through the gaps between the feet of the standing figures.
A giant red snake, as tall as a tree, swam through the vast hall like flowing water. Strangely, none of the countless people lined up there noticed the presence of this terrifying intruder.
Soon, the ceremonial blade emitted a bright blue light in Rahikan's hand. Blood spurted from his cut palm, dripping onto the crimson sand, and a commotion spread through the room. But it was already too late.
The viper leaped up, sinking its fangs precisely into the Emperor's nape. The tip of the angled blade pierced the floor. The moment Rahikan fell to his knees, the three elders standing below leaped to his side.
The body, coiling around the nape of his neck, wrapped itself tightly around the man's lower back. Wrapped in a monstrous, giant red snake, Rahikan appeared to be devoured from head to toe.
It was then that the body of the three elders, frantically trying to remove the snake, froze stiff. A faint laughter, like a laugh, could be heard through the red scales. Thinking it was a hallucination, he raised his gaze and saw the corners of a twisted mouth.
Two words of command fell into the ears of the elder, who was lost in thought.
"Lara, take her far away."
A sharp, murderous aura rippled across the man's completely subdued voice. What hung in his bloodshot eyes was not death, but the shadow of madness. Those eyes, reflecting illusions rather than reality, were clearly a spectral gaze, and the three elders involuntarily took a step back.
As the crows escorting the Emperor covered his surroundings in pitch black, blocking his vision, the elders and nobles gathered in the hall screamed in panic.
It's the Red Princess's spell! The Princess of Feldif has murdered the Emperor!
A shout shook the vast hall like thunder. The Royal Guards capture the Princess immediately! The sight of the elders, seizing the opportunity, rising to their feet, and inciting the terrified crowd, resembled a scene from a well-crafted play.
Why would you do something so reckless?
The three elders, having finished their recollections, questioned this. They had a snake bite the Emperor to frame the Princess for treason.
Having artificially broken the snake's protection, he couldn't even fathom what would happen next. But one thing he could be certain of was that a bloody storm was brewing.
While the elder continued his explanation, Diara looked out the window at the rain falling all the time.
“So, His Majesty is currently collapsed in the palace?”
“...”
Instead of an answer, the sound of falling rain made the heavy silence even more gloomy. Diara, who had been looking toward the palace through the thick raindrops, finally opened her parched mouth.
“Please send me back.”
“No.”
"I'm not suggesting we go back together. Neither Matali nor the elder needs to go back. Please let me go. I need to stay by His Majesty's side."
“I’m sorry, but that won’t do either.”
“Why?”
“Because the current palace is not safe for the Princess.”
From the beginning, their goal was Diara's life, not the Emperor's. Even if they managed to escape once, they couldn't hope for the same luck the second time. Helgatria was certain to use any means necessary to force the Princess, who was recaptured, to her death.
And Rahikan was in no condition to look after anyone right now.
“I hate to tell you this, but His Majesty, your presence is not safe right now.”
Frankly, when the Princess returned to the Emperor, it was more likely that it would be Rahikan himself who would harm her. The Emperor, consumed by madness, was blind to anything.
The three elders shuddered at the thunderous roar that sounded as if it would destroy the carriage.
Suddenly, the nightmarish day from four years ago flashed before his eyes. The day when record-breaking rainfall poured down for the first time since the Great Fire. The day when blood poured down like rain behind the Emperor, who had no crows.
Rahikan, entangled in the red snake, had the same eyes as before. The eyes of a madman who saw all living things as prey to be torn to pieces. Had he taken even one more step toward him, intending to tear the snake away, he, too, might have been decapitated on the spot.
"His Majesty has finally ordered the Princess to be sent to a safe place. From now on, I will protect the Princess."
Lara, take her far away.
The order Rahikan left him just before he collapsed contained the meaning of keeping Diara away from not only Helga but also himself.
“Elder, but then, who will protect Rahikan?”
Those who harmed Rahikan remain in the palace. Those who framed her for treason and brought him down with their despicable schemes now smile beside him.
The elder, who understood the Princess's question, averted his gaze as if in pain.
“...His Majesty is the only one who survived in the pit of fire.”
Diara stared intently at the old man's face, which was dripping with cold sweat.
“Alone?”
"I know it may sound disloyal, but he's not as fragile as you might fear, Princess. Besides, the opposition is merely engaged in a power struggle..."
They don't intend to truly murder Rahikan. He's the only surviving Cardion, possessing a shining eye. His blood is the empire's treasure. At worst, they'll just pour incense and poison until his mind is paralyzed, just like before.
"If His Majesty comes to his senses, there will be another chance. For now, returning to the palace would only make me a sacrifice to the Princess."
So, we must take a step back and plan for the future. Diara's mouth tightened as the elder continued his explanation, seemingly apologetic. Her wavering green eyes sank to the floor, then slowly rose again.
What rose in her wake after the tears had dried was a quiet rage. What are you talking about? Are you asking me to once again hand him over to the very people who forced him into such agony?
“Please send me back.”
"Princess."
“Send me back. Please send me back.”
No one protects him. Not on the day the palace burned, not even now, when a poisonous snake, possessed by a spell, bit his neck. No one cares about his suffering. Even those who claim to be his allies truly seek only the bloodline to continue the royal lineage, not Rahikan's safety.
If he hadn't had such bright eyes, if it had been his eyes, not his back, that burned that day, Rahikan would have been abandoned long ago. Like her. Like her father had abandoned her.
Don't run away.
The dark clouds gathering over the carriage seemed to echo with his voice. "Don't run away, Lara. Don't run away from me."
His threat to cut off her hands and feet if she ran away was a plea for her to stay by his side. And she willingly nodded, knowing he was dangerous.
So, leaving him now would be a betrayal. She couldn't run away and leave Rahikan in such a terrible place where no one loved him.
“It’s raining. You must be feeling feverish again by now.”
She couldn't leave him alone in this rain. Her face, drenched by the rain pouring through the open window, ordered the carriage to turn around.
“Please let me go. I will return to the Emperor’s side.”
***
The Red Princess of Feldif, who had committed treason and fled, returned. Fearing that the Emperor's body, steeped in venom and the boiling heat, might not be able to withstand the venom, the three elders ultimately sent the Princess away.
Diara threatened to jump off the wagon if it wasn't turned around. She would jump from the moving carriage and return, even if it meant going barefoot.
No matter how serious the crime of disobeying the Emperor's orders was, it was lighter than risking her life, so the elder, unable to resist Diara's threats, chose to send her away.
Helgatria looked down at Diara, who had walked in on her own two feet, and laughed hysterically. The woman, forced to her knees, was soaking wet, like a drowned rat.
“Ahahaha! They say you’re crazy in love, and indeed.”
The mockery intensified at the request to send her to Rahikan. She worried that she'd be thrown in prison the moment she arrived, but those worries were in vain. The Princess, seated at the head of the table, looked down at Diara with a look of genuine excitement.
"Yes, go to your love and tell him that it wasn't your fault. Did you come back to complain like that?"
“...”
"With those slutty lips, clear your name of this unjust accusation. Trying to flirt? Maybe the love-crazed Emperor will believe you."
Diara remained silent in the face of repeated taunts. Helgatria's thoughts were wrong, but she didn't want to say it out loud. Her heart was too...
Diara's eyelids fluttered open as her chest throbbed.
Her red snake bit him. The one gift she had obtained through much pressure and coercion had pushed him over the edge. Whether it was intentional or not, it no longer mattered.
Rahikan will never forgive her.
A heinous crime, incomparable to spilling blood on a bed. It would be strange if such a crime were committed without being hated.
She thought the world was crumbling, but her feet felt firm. The fear of losing Rahikan's love felt light and airy in the face of the fear of possibly losing him. It was a fear so light and foolish it was laughable.
So it's okay.
Diara consoled herself, ignoring her trembling heart.
She knew this would happen someday.
Her wishes always came true in the opposite direction. Diara knew that the more desperately she wished for something, the worse it often turned out. Wishing for his love was just one of them. If she hadn't wanted the red snake, she would have wanted it in the white castle he promised to build, or in the flower-filled oasis.
So, she didn't regret the castle named after her or the flower-covered oasis. The only thing she regretted was not being able to have a child with Rahikan. That was the only thing she longed for until the very end.
That's okay, though.
Diara blinked her lowered eyelids.
Rahikan was alive, in pain, but still within her reach.
She received a love she couldn't repay in a lifetime, so what more could she ask for? All she wanted was to close her eyes by his side. No matter what, she wanted to end her days by his side.
“His Majesty is suffering from a fever. And my body is like a medicine that reduces fever.”
So please. Diara lowered her gaze and placed both hands neatly on her knees.
“Please let me use my body until the rain stops.”
Her lips were pale, her face pale, like a frail woman's. Her expression seemed as if she might die at any moment, and her voice trembled with every word. It was difficult to keep from bursting into tears, but the words that came out of her mouth were incredibly bold.
Ha! A breathtaking laugh burst from Helgatria's mouth.
"So, you're saying I can kill you after the rain stops? You're saying I can take off your beautiful skin and make clothes for myself?" To this question, Diara simply replied "yes" and showed no other reaction.
Was it a sense of unfounded loyalty, or simply stupidity? Helgatria's lips twisted in a strange smirk. Everyone in the palace called her a monster, but was this strange, unreadable behavior the reason?
“Your Highness, I hope you don’t intend to grant that woman’s request?”
The elder who had insisted that the Red Princess should be beheaded as soon as she entered showed signs of impatience at the sight of Helgatria struggling.
“Shh, be quiet. I’m just trying to figure out what to do.”
What should I do with this woman?
Knock knock knock. Her fingernails were busy tapping on the armrest.
All evidence was already wiped clean by the time Rahikan collapsed. Even if they were to overturn Helgatria's mansion and rip open her stomach right now, they wouldn't be able to find even the slightest trace of black magic.
All who entered the Sun Festival saw the Princess's snake bite the Emperor's neck. The deaths of Ferzan and the maid. All the remaining traces, too, were aimed at the woman's neck, not hers.
The blade, painstakingly placed over months, at the cost of her only brother, now encircled her neck like a noose. Even the Emperor, no matter how great, could not free her from such meticulously crafted evidence of treason.
Still, Helgatria couldn't seem to relax. It was because of Rahikan's love for women.
If he were truly blinded by love, then instead of striking the woman who had committed treason, he might have chosen to cut off the hands of all those who had brought forth evidence.
The Emperors of Cardion often displayed a strange obsession with their mates, who had their seals on them. If she killed herself, he might end up resenting her.
Damn it. This is a headache. Helga bit her lip.
That girl should have died from the flesh of a failed sorcery.
If things had gone as planned, the moment Rahikan cut off the snake's head, the woman should have vomited blood and died in her chambers. Before she was even arrested for treason, before Rahikan's crows swooped into her quarters, the Princess should have been left behind, a blackened corpse of a black magician.
But she never thought that the Emperor would actually be bitten by a snake.
She couldn't figure out what was going on in his mind, and she kept feeling anxious. There was no way that crazy guy couldn't stop a single snake... Helga, who was spitting out curses, suddenly had a flash of light in her eyes.
Yes, Rahikan was a madman. So now was another chance. One last chance to deal with the woman without getting a drop of blood on her hands.
Drunk on poison and fever, Rahikan was unrecognizable now. Just like that day four years ago. Back then, he had killed not only the doctors who had brought him the medicine, but also every single one of the palace servants with black hair and gray eyes. It was none other than Helgatria, for resembling her.
“Send a bathtub full of ice to the Emperor’s chambers.”
“Your Highness, the Princess!”
Helgatria smiled, ignoring the worried cries of the elder.
“Then take off the woman’s clothes, let her hair down, tie chains around her ankles, and make her crawl on all fours.”
Then, it would look like a snake crawling towards him. Even if he had let his guard down the first time and given in, he wouldn't make the same mistake the second time. Rahikan would never forgive the red snake that bit his neck.
Long, waist-length hair covered her pure white body in a crimson glow. Helgatria's eyes widened in satisfaction as the hair, as fine and glossy as a spider's web, shimmered like scales.
The woman truly looked like a red snake. Now everything is ready. Rahikan will take care of the rest.
***
Diara, lying on all fours, was shoved into the Emperor's chambers. The newly arrived court doctors, aware of the Emperor's deep-seated aversion to doctors, tossed her like a piece of meat into a cage filled with wild beasts and fled in a panic. The sound of the door locking was heard from outside.
Beyond the dark curtain, a man's silhouette was faintly visible. In the tomb-like silence of the room, the pungent smell of incense, medicine, and blood of unknown origin lingered.
Cold.
White breath spread between the pale lips.
She was shivering from the ice bucket she just stepped into. Chained to the floor, elbows on the ground, she felt like she first met him.
Azad Rahikan. The great red sun of the desert. She had spent three days and nights in tears, thinking about meeting him. He will kill me. The days when she had pressed her forehead against her father's feet and pleaded seemed like a distant memory.
As she recalled that time, a faint smile appeared on her cold lips.
How foolish she was back then. Back then, she really thought Rahikan was immortal.
That first breathtaking eye contact, that first kiss that tasted like salty tears. The sky spinning behind the carriage, the warm sand rippling in the oasis. The moment she swore to herself in the bathtub that she would be his, all these things felt like distant, warm dreams.
She couldn't have been happier.
In those days, she was lost in the joy of his touch, his affection, the feeling of melting in his embrace. The self she never known existed, and the self she was now, looked at each other with a strangeness, as if they were two completely different people. It was all thanks to Rahikan.
So where should we go if we leave him?
Diara leaned toward him. Her forehead touched the high bed. A hand reached out from behind the curtain, grabbed her neck, and pulled her inward in an instant.
Red hair tumbled and was sucked into the black curtain. The clanking, clanking sound of chains being pulled sounded like bones breaking.
Fortunately, the woman's moan was brief. A mixture of relief and guilt flashed across the faces of the doctors listening outside the door, then faded.
***
The rain that had been pouring down all night showed no sign of letting up until the next day. The morning was as dark as midnight. The elder woke with a strange feeling. As if he'd just had a terrible nightmare, goosebumps covered his body, making it feel as if it were sandpaper.
And soon his nightmare became reality with the appearance of a servant running towards him, pale and pale.
Elder, Your Highness, the Princess, Your Highness, the Princess! Before the servant could finish speaking, the elder's footsteps faltered and stopped where he had rushed.
From inside the Empress's study, the room Rahikan had given the Princess, a sound like a girl's laughter could be heard. She giggled, covered her mouth, and rolled on the floor, squeaking. The sound was the sound of snakes' scales rubbing against each other and their tails quivering.
“Elder, what should we do about this? Inside, the Emperor... Her Highness the Princess...”
One of the elders following Helga greeted him, panting. The elder, seeing the tail poking out through the tightly closed door, gritted his teeth.
He shook off the elder's arm, trying to dissuade him, and forced open the heavy door. A horrific sight revealed itself beyond the door, which was as heavy as a rock.
The long, black waist of a beast flows from ceiling to floor, filling every crevice between the walls on all sides. Like a raging pool, it is a swarm of thousands of snakes. The Emperor's Black Serpent.
The Serpent Palace has opened. The Emperor has come to his senses.
“Your Highness... Your Highness, the Princess!”
As the elder searched for Helgatria, a thin, white branch caught his eye. Poking out from the surging black waves was none other than the Princess's hand. Five gold-covered claws swayed, their movements unmistakably resembling the gestures of a dead person.
The hair on his body stood on end. Amidst the screams of fear, the palace servants gripped the palace servants; the enraged elder clenched his fists.
“What the hell is this! This is, Her Highness, the only remaining Princess in the empire!”
Although they belonged to the same royal family, Ferzan and Helgatria were completely different cases. Helgatria was the last Princess of the Cardion Imperial House, the only woman capable of bearing the Emperor's seed.
She must meet Rahikan. Even if he's not in his right mind, he's still capable of ending the empire. Even the Emperor couldn't do something like this. His steps were quick as he ran to the Emperor's quarters.
The palace doctors, who had been lying face down on the floor all night, monitoring the Emperor's movements, suddenly backed away at the sight of him. They were worse than worms. What had they done to let things get to this point? The sight of them, like insects on drugs, made his blood boil. The elder threw open the door like a madman.
"Your Majesty!"
But his momentum ended there.
In the Emperor's chamber, the curtains drawn, the smell of burning torches wafted. The elder, facing the man sitting upright in the dim light, froze in place.
The Emperor's eyes were a dark, dark green. Released from the serpent's protection, they still shone brightly. Their wide, round pupils, surrounded by thin, golden rims, resembled the sun during an eclipse.
Eyes like those of the first King who subdued the first serpent. In a time before crows or the eight elders, there lived the primordial god of war, who, with a single long sword, stained the white desert with the blood of tens of thousands and ultimately established an empire upon it.
The elder, overwhelmed by the momentum, took a step back without realizing it. So distraught was he that for a moment, he couldn't even remember why he was there.
The next thing his lips, which had been blankly grinning, found a sound. When he saw the woman in Rahikan's arms, he couldn't stop the despair from seeping out of his sagging lips.
“That’s ridiculous.”
"This is ridiculous." The elder muttered again, oblivious to what he was saying. "This is ridiculous. This is ridiculous. There's no way the woman could be alive."
“It’s strange.”
It was more like a monologue than an answer.
Rahikan didn't even glance at the elder. His drowsy gaze was fixed on the woman splayed across his legs. He stroked her soft, rosy hair, his voice low and quiet as if nothing else existed in the world.
“It’s rare for something to disobey me to have such a long life.”
He laughed silently, looking at the hair flowing between his fingers.
Even if you scare them into running away, if you can, and then let them loose, even if you put them in a carriage and chase them away, they always come back. He liked that timid, stubborn nature from the beginning.
Perhaps that's why, even when he saw the red thing rushing toward him, he couldn't lift a finger. It wasn't magic. It was a chronic, slight illusion. Or perhaps it was just a simple delusion.
The shiny scales looked like her long hair, and even though he knew it was trying to kill him, he gave his neck to its red maw.
Only after the bite on the back of his neck did he finally burst into laughter. It was the foolishness of someone who knew it was a trap but couldn't escape. Even with a knife in her hand, he couldn't resist her, let alone anything that resembled her.
Snake venom gushed through the perforated blood vessels. The shackles that had been rigged for a thousand days to make their way were suddenly torn apart like a bolt of lightning. The elder, who hadn't anticipated the spell's success, cried out in panic from afar.
The Red Princess has murdered the Emperor! Capture the Princess!
The sight of the enemies running around busily in the receding consciousness looked like a scene from a crude comedy.
"It would have been better if Lara had killed me herself. I would have gladly offered my head in that case."
He would have gladly fallen into her trap if she had wanted. He could have simply placed a knife in her hand, without resorting to such crude and cumbersome tactics.
What else could it be? He was crazy in love.
Suddenly, a story from a faraway land he once heard on the wind came to mind. It was about a man who fell in love with an enemy woman, had his hair cut off, his eyes gouged out, and became a slave. He died spinning a horse-drawn spinning wheel his entire life.
If his enemies had been just a little bit more clever, the man's story would soon have become the story of Rahikan. If his snakes had been just a little more cunning, so it would have been.
The woman who had held him all night, theor skins pressed against each other, still felt cool. Looking down at her eyes, which pulsed like those of a small bird, he recalled the ecstatic night before.
Her lips, frozen as ice, clumsily collided with his hot ones. Saliva, sweet and salty, mixed with tears, flowed in quickly.
He drank greedily, drank again, and again, until his simmering lust threatened to explode, and he poured everything she had poured into him. Like a snake sucking its own tail, their interlocking, undulating lines of contact never seemed to part.
“This way, I can’t scold you for disobeying me. Right?”
It was he who had told her to do whatever she wanted in the first place. So who could blame her now? The elder remained silent in response to the question, which was asked without knowing who it was. To be precise, it would be more accurate to say he couldn't respond.
A thin line ran down the man's wrinkled chin. The sound of his head sliding diagonally and hitting the floor was dull.
“Three elders.”
"Your Majesty."
Your Majesty, I deserve to die.
The three elders, who had been standing behind him the entire time, the elder's head was cut off, fell flat on the floor, their wrinkled foreheads touching the Emperor's feet. It was their sin to disobey the order to send the Princess away and return her to his side.
The sin of prioritizing the safety of her lord over the Emperor's orders was grave. Blood poured from the elder's neck like a fountain, drenching the crowns of the three elders. Had the Princess been wrong, she too would have met the same fate.
“Postpone your decision until after the rain stops.”
“I am ashamed, Your Majesty!”
"There's much work to do, so I won't behead you immediately," the three elders cried out, eyes tightly shut at the Emperor's generous disposition. A blanket was draped over the sleeping Princess.
He has to clean up. Before the rain stops. Before spring comes. Before the serpent, sleeping like a flower, opens its eyes, he has to wash the palace clean.
Now was the time to think only about that. Rahikan picked up his outer garment. Every brush against the fabric made his poisoned veins boil. A fiery murderous intent surged through his body, like the day he first set foot on the desert.
The serpent's protection, thin as a blade, screamed for revenge. This rage would not cease until all those who killed the snake and betrayed the King's trust were gone.
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