✦ ✦ ✦
“…Let’s do this. Let’s postpone the wedding.”
When Alto said that, Viviana was taken by surprise. The Alto she knew was polite and kind, yet very rational and logical.
Though Viviana was so angry she threw a dildo in frustration, she hadn’t properly spoken a single word to Alto all this time, and that was for this very reason.
He never did anything unnecessary, whether in words or actions.
He definitely thought a fiancée whining to break off the engagement was ‘something unnecessary’ to him, so she never expected him to try and hold her back.
Viviana lightly slapped her slightly flushed cheeks with both hands. It was to steady her heart, which was unknowingly leaning more and more toward the positive side.
‘He answers like that now, but by nightfall, he will probably change his words anyway. If I act even a little assertively, won’t he say it’s indecent or something and run away?’
Thinking of the nights she had spent so far, a wave of gloom washed over Viviana again, and her shoulders slumped.
‘Maybe I should have just broken off the engagement quickly before the Duke returned. Regardless of any negotiation or anything.’
The Fortuna ducal house was truly unbearable. She felt that if she could just run away immediately, she wouldn’t mind leaving empty-handed with nothing at all.
However, there was one remark that softened Viviana’s intense aversion.
[It suits you well. It looks light and cool, so it fits perfectly with the current season.]
It was the compliment Alto blurted out upon seeing her outfit.
‘I didn’t know he was the kind of man who could say something like that.’
She had always thought he only said what was necessary, but he was someone who could also give compliments in a straightforward tone. Feeling a bit saddened by his unfamiliar praise, Viviana suddenly found herself reflecting on herself.
‘Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever properly conveyed my opinions to him. The first and last time I told him I was dissatisfied with our intimacy was then.’
Maybe she should have said something once before throwing the dildo and getting angry. That their sex life was really dull.
‘No, that’s not it. What we’re about to do today is exactly that conversation. Let’s not waste time regretting the past we can’t undo. Luckily, I’ve come back to before I died.’
Unlike before, Viviana slapped her own cheeks to encourage herself. This time, she might actually be able to change their dull sex life. If she could properly explain to Alto what sex was and how other couples did it…
Having thought that far, Viviana began biting her nails in anxiety. Setting aside time to talk was good, but the problem was the content of that conversation.
‘What even is sexual compatibility in the first place?! Everything I know, I learned from Larissa!’
What Larissa taught her was how to have more satisfying masturbation, not how to have a harmonious sex life with her husband!
‘Should I just tell him to do it like when I was poking with the dildo? That doesn’t seem right…’
Viviana, who had been anxiously pacing back and forth while biting her nails, wore a determined expression.
‘Alto said he would come to my bedroom tonight. Before that, I should study too.’
Having returned to her room, Viviana was still at a loss when her personal maid, Leta, called out to her in a puzzled voice.
“My lady, what’s wrong? Shall I bring you some light refreshments?”
Viviana wasn’t exactly sure what she meant by that, but it seemed like a gesture meant to calm her mind with some warm tea. However, there was no time to stay still. Viviana quickly opened the door and spoke as she stepped out.
“Let’s go to the library.”
The Fortuna estate had two places piled with books: one was the library, and the other was the study that Alto used like an office.
Viviana headed straight for the library. She planned to find and read even a manual on sexual relations.
‘There are so many books. Surely one of them is there.’
She had left with confidence, but once she actually got to the library, she couldn’t help but be disappointed.
‘Nothing. Seriously, not a single book. It’s honestly depressing.’
Whether the Duke’s puritanical obsession had reached the library or not, there wasn’t even a single storybook where a man and woman appeared together, let alone anything involving sex.
Leta anxiously observed Viviana, who was sulking and hunched over, then carefully began to speak.
"Just what exactly are you looking for, my lady?"
"Books about relationships between men and women! Aren’t there any like that?"
"W-what? D-don’t say such dangerous things! What if the Duke hears you?!"
She jumped up, trying to cover Viviana’s mouth, but Viviana pushed Leta’s hand away and answered even louder.
"So what? The Duke’s not at the mansion right now. I’m an adult, too. What harm could come from reading books like that?"
"B-but still... the Duke strictly forbade it..."
As expected, it was that old man’s doing.
‘You’re no help at all. It’s all your fault that your grandson’s engagement is being broken off.’
Thinking that, Viviana pouted. Leta fidgeted nervously with her fingers, as if trying to read the mood. Then, in a very quiet voice, she whispered.
"A-actually, there is a romance novel we secretly pass around among ourselves."
“What?!”
Viviana’s ears perked up, and she grabbed Leta’s hands with both of hers.
“What is it? Does it have that kind of content? Explicitly?”
"Y-yes. It’s all the rage these days. The most famous author in the capital right now is Mister Arthur, and he’s so popular that there was even a reading session hosted by Her Majesty the Empress herself at the royal palace."
"Arthur? Isn’t he a male author? But he writes romance novels?"
"Oh, what does an author’s gender have to do with the novel? Author Arthur is very popular because he delicately portrays the male protagonist’s emotional changes."
“I see.”
A romance novel written by a man? To Viviana, who only knew Alto as a man, it was something she simply couldn’t imagine. Leta, her freckled cheeks burning bright red, cleared her throat awkwardly.
"Of course… ahem. Of course, the author’s strengths aren’t limited to just that…"
"Really? What other strengths does he have?"
"W-well, you’ll understand once you read it! Just read it!"
What on earth could be his strengths to make Leta that shy about it?
‘Well, I guess it must be something naughty.’
Thinking that nonchalantly, Viviana flashed a bright smile.
"Then hurry up and lend it to me, Leta."
✦ ✦ ✦
Back in her room, Viviana stood there with her mouth wide open, practically drooling.
‘No way. Seriously. What is this?’
It was all thanks to the novel Leta had lent her.
—My thoughts could go no further. A slick tongue languidly licked along the narrow crease between my legs.
It was a place I never imagined another’s tongue would ever touch. A sharp cry escaped from my lips.
“Ahng!”
A sharply pointed tongue kept poking and prodding between them. I twisted my body and cried out in ecstasy.
"Wait…wait a moment. That’s dirty. Don’t lick there."
Blushing, I tensed my buttocks. Then, Wolf’s large hand gripped my thigh firmly.
“Spread them.”
His voice was harshly low and hoarse. It was less like a human voice and more like the growl of a beast.
With no strength to resist him, I swallowed my shame and reluctantly spread my legs.
The story was even more explicit and risqué than Leta had let on. Viviana couldn’t tear her eyes from the book, grumbling to herself inwardly the whole time.
‘Leta, you naughty thing! You’ve been reading something this fun all by yourself?’
The male lead told the heroine to spread her legs, then buried his face between her thighs. At that part, Viviana’s face turned tomato red, and she snapped the book shut.
‘My goodness, licking there.’
Her heart was pounding. She needed to calm herself before she could read any further.
Viviana took a deep breath, but her face only grew redder. Soon, she covered her flushed face with her palms.
‘I can’t. I absolutely can’t. If Alto did something like that, I might pass out from shock.’
From the start, the idea of the neat and composed Alto burying his face between her legs was simply unimaginable. Viviana tried a few times to imagine the situation, but sighed in annoyance.
‘She’s having such a wild and fun time, and what about me?’
Even if it was just a novel, she was actually jealous of the protagonist’s better sex life. As Viviana tried to calm her pounding heart, there was a soft knock at the door. Leta peeked her head inside.
“…My lady, it’s time for dinner now.”
“Leta.”
‘I was waiting for you!’
Viviana grabbed Leta’s arm and asked, practically nagging her.
“Where on earth do you even buy books like this?”
“Have you already finished reading it?”
“I’m only halfway through! But seriously, where can you buy something like this?”
“You can buy it at any bookstore in the busy part of town. I told you earlier; it’s all the rage these days, you know?”
To think something like this was popular. Everyone in the world had been reading something this interesting, except for her.
Viviana shuddered with a sense of betrayal. Unaware of her feelings, Leta’s eyes sparkled as she eagerly went on about the novel.
“Isn’t it fun? It’s even more interesting because the male lead is a werewolf.”
“A werewolf? So he’s not just a regular man?”
Up to the part she had read, he was just a normal human. Viviana tilted her head in confusion. But Leta, thrilled to have met a newcomer to the genre, chattered away about things Viviana hadn’t even asked.
“My goodness, these days, ordinary male leads aren’t popular. Beastmen, demon lords — those kinds of non-human male leads are all the rage.”
“Non-human? You mean male leads who aren’t human are popular? They call it a beastman, but it’s really just an animal."
“That taboo element is what makes it exciting!”
As a beginner, Viviana frowned in confusion, not understanding Leta’s words. Realising this late, Leta quickly added a polite comment to ease the mood.
“I-I guess I started you off with something a little too intense for a beginner like you. I’ll pick something milder next time...”
“No! I enjoyed reading it too! I’m just surprised, that’s all.”
Worried that Leta might take the book away before she finished, Viviana quickly added something. Then, holding her chin, she nodded thoughtfully and murmured to herself.
“I see. So that’s what they call a non-human male lead.”
“Non-human male lead… non-human male lead…”
Viviana muttered as if studying for a test. Watching her, Leta quietly started promoting the genre again.
“…Would you like to read another one?”
“Yes! I’d love to read it. Please. Or, if it’s too much trouble, I can give you money and you could buy one for me?”
“Oh, I’m just borrowing the ones the other maids already bought, so it’s no big deal. You should try reading some others, and once you find your taste, it’d be best if you go pick out your own.”
“My taste...”
Just the thought of reading another book made Viviana’s heart race. Her cheeks flushed with excitement as she quietly asked Leta.
“Do other girls read a lot of these kinds of novels, too?”
“At the very back of the book, there’s a small slip of paper with the names of everyone who’s borrowed it. It’s to prevent lending it out to the same person twice.”
“Ah, I see.”
Well, if there were multiple copies, it made sense since someone might end up reading the same one again.
Viviana discreetly turned to the back of the book. Just as Leta had said, there was a borrowing log. And it stretched on endlessly.
"Just how many people read it? Are you saying every maid in this mansion read it?!"
It meant that the only ones who had suffered because of that senile old man’s narrow-minded views on men and women were her and Alto.
‘I want to tell Alto to read this novel right away. He’d be so shocked he’d turn bright red.’
Just imagining Alto blushing made her laugh for no reason. Knowing how proper he was, he would probably freeze up completely and try to pretend he hadn’t seen it.
While Viviana was lost in her thoughts and quietly giggling, Leta asked hesitantly.
"Um… my lady, is the sudden interest in romance novels somehow related to the argument you had with the young master yesterday?"
"Ar-argument? No, it’s nothing like that."
If word reached the Duke that Viviana and Alto had fought, that old man might come rushing back before things in the territory were even properly settled.
‘I guess it’s okay to say this much. I don’t feel right about lying all the time anyway.’
Viviana twirled a strand of her hair around her index finger.
"...But it’s true that we talked about something related. As you know, we’re about to get married, yet we barely know anything about each other."
Leta’s eyes welled up with tears at those words.
"Honestly, my lady, I think it’s a good thing. Even people from a hundred years ago were probably less strict about abstinence than you."
“W-was I really that bad?”
"That’s right. These days, most people think things like kissing and other physical affection before marriage are perfectly normal. But you haven’t even held the young master’s hand yet, have you, my lady?"
“N-no, th-that’s…”
Come to think of it, Viviana had never held Alto’s hand before their marriage. Even afterwards, it was the same. Apart from official escort duties, there had been no real physical contact between them.
“...”
Taking Viviana’s silence as agreement, Leta frowned and said:
“Goodness, even kids these days don’t date like that. If you keep being so distant and then suddenly have to share a bedroom as a married couple, how are you supposed to handle the awkwardness? Honestly, I even wondered if either of you actually knows how babies are made.”
"I-I do know how they’re made."
The problem was that all she really knew was, quite literally, how to make a baby. Every time Viviana climbed onto bed on their conjugal nights, she felt like a sacrifice being laid upon an altar.
Still, seeing someone on the verge of tears for her sake wasn’t unpleasant. Viviana gave a sincere smile and expressed her thanks.
“I see. Thank you for worrying about me, Leta.”
Leta wiped away her tears with her index finger and forced a smile as she guided Viviana.
“It’s time to eat now. The young master will be waiting.”
“Let’s hurry and go.”
Viviana followed behind Leta.
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