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Ray watched the woman who had fallen asleep beside him on the bed, then took out a cigarette and lit it.
The dress she had been wearing had long since become a rag. It was obvious what the maid tasked with discarding it would think. His own clothes were in no better state.
The woman, possessing sensitive skin, had struggled with her back rubbing against the carpeted floor. He had practically hauled her into the bedroom, only to do it again, leaving the bed in a mess.
It was only after taking a drag of the cigarette that his mind finally cleared.
It was ten o'clock at night, meaning they had been rolling around for well over four hours. Truly a leisurely pace.
He wasn't in his right mind.
The desire he thought would be resolved after one time had instead grown to an uncontrollable level, tormenting him.
Since that night, whether in his study, the parliament, or even the Royal Palace, the image of the woman crying out beneath him surfaced from time to time.
It would have been easier to endure when he didn't know, but now that he had seen it clearly, once Rose's image was drawn in his mind, his body boiled with an irresistible urge.
The sleepless nights that followed because he couldn't release it left him exhausted.
Ray knew it well.
The moment he entered that piano room, he had already succumbed to a trivial physiological desire.
Since he didn't think he could resist even after seeing the woman's face, he had essentially entered the room intending to do it.
However, what he hadn't realized was that he lacked the self-control to even bring the woman to the bedroom.
Out of irritation with himself, Ray flicked the ash away irritably.
He hadn't even had the presence of mind to go to the bedroom right next door. He lacked even that much rationality.
In the piano room with the wide-open windows, on top of the piano, on the carpet—it was a terrifying desire, to the point where he felt he had to embrace her immediately. He wasn't some street thug.
Exhaling murky smoke, Ray glanced down at his soundly sleeping wife. He could tell just by looking at her face. His desire had not yet died down.
A hollow laugh escaped him at the absurdity of it.
“...Why were you so angry?”
Ray remembered how angry he had been the day he first held her.
Neither the old councilmen who did nothing but spout nonsense, nor even Avery, had ever made him this angry.
Only this woman made him angry and stripped him of his composure.
The feeling of losing himself like that was terrible.
Yet, what was even more ridiculous was the fact that the moment he first embraced Rose that day, that anger vanished completely.
The anger was forgotten, replaced by the immense satisfaction and sense of victory that came from the fact that only he could see her in such a disheveled state.
Crazy bastard.
Ray muttered the curse as if spitting it out.
How terrifying and dangerous were the thoughts he had and the emotions he felt while stealing glances at the profile of the woman playing the piano?
The absurd thought that it would be fine to spend eternity like this.
He was afraid of himself for finding such useless time comfortable.
Even if he were told to do nothing productive and simply spend his time listening to her play the piano, gazing at her delicate face, and listening to the sounds she made under him, he felt he could do it.
Exchanging meaningless jokes with no nutritional value, speaking his mind without filter, laughing as he pleased, being faithful to his desires, showing his raw side without hesitation, and so...
Terrified by his own thoughts once again, Ray roughly wiped his face. This was not his way of life.
Lighting another cigarette, Ray took a deep breath.
No matter how he thought about it, this was simply due to being in heat.
It was his first time experiencing such a thing. He might have gone slightly mad from the novelty of the sensation.
He just had to keep embracing her until it was resolved. Everything has a period of adaptation, and eventually, a period of boredom. Always.
But...
Was wanting to see the woman smile also within the realm of sexual desire?
Ray forcibly erased the fleeting question as he flicked the ash.
Lest he lose his mind and start thinking all sorts of things.
Another shortened cigarette was discarded into the ashtray, which was already piled high with ash.
* * *
Invited by the Monarch for tea, Ray almost let out a hollow laugh when he saw the Prime Minister sitting beside the King with an uncomfortable expression, but he managed to hold it back.
From the looks of it, the Prime Minister had come to whine and pester the King, and Queen Catherine, tired of such things, seemed to have called Ray to handle it instead.
Ray had a rough idea of why the Prime Minister had sought out the King.
The strike in Marilyn City, which had been temporarily suspended, had resumed yesterday.
“My old friend mentioned he wanted to see my godson,” the King said slyly, as if this were not a political meeting at all.
Judging by the Prime Minister's face, he didn't seem to have wanted to see Ray at all, but Ray played along with the King's lie.
“Our Duke Crawford, how much do you think the Orturan people love me?” the King asked, holding a teacup.
“How high do you think my popularity is?”
“The people of Orturan are those who would go to the battlefield for Your Majesty,” Ray answered formally to the ambiguous question.
In reality, the Orturan people did love the King.
Having ascended the throne at a young age, the Monarch had weathered all sorts of storms for nearly fifty years. Simply by living a long life, she had become a steadfast symbol of Orturan.
“That is touching, but since protecting their territory is also good for themselves, I cannot say it is solely for me.”
With a cold smile, the King took a sip of tea and let out a small, satisfied exclamation.
“The Prime Minister thinks that if I go to Marilyn and give a speech of encouragement, the strike will stop.”
Since Avery had failed completely to resolve the strike, the best he could come up with was mobilizing the King.
The Prime Minister's idea was blatant and pathetic, but Ray fully understood why he had thought of it.
The Orturan people had always been weak when it came to the Royal Family.
While the kings of neighboring countries suffered all sorts of hardships, King Catherine had been able to spend her life as a monarch with dignity and authority.
Rather, the fact that she alone remained steadfast on this continent had become a point of pride for Orturan.
“Your Majesty. As I mentioned before, I am not asking for a blatant speech telling them to return to work, but rather to create a suitable event and go there, and then...”
“Do you think my popularity is at that level, Duke?”
The King interrupted the Prime Minister and looked at Ray.
“I’m not so sure. If the Orturan people loved me that much, why would I be under the constitution? They would have allowed me to be above it.”
However, the King was a deeply political person and knew when to keep a low profile.
Since she had gained her current popularity through such conduct, she would want to avoid such blatant and burdensome expressions of will.
She had become even more sensitive after seeing the miserable ends of the kings of neighboring countries.
“If they loved their monarch that much, why would they change the law to make me so cautious about expressing a single opinion to the Prime Minister or a Minister?”
This meeting was essentially a prompt for Ray to provide a solution. To quickly reach an agreement with the Prime Minister and resolve it so that she wouldn't have to step forward personally.
Ray actually thought this was for the best.
Everything became tedious when it went through Avery; if he could settle things at the level of the King and the Prime Minister, he had no reason to refuse.
“Duke, you once negotiated with the unions when you worked briefly in the Ministry of Internal Affairs after the war. Is there truly no other way than for me to step in? No, do you even think that would work in the first place?”
“I can still resolve the Marilyn situation if I am tasked with it.”
There are only two ways to resolve a strike.
Crush it with force, or grant the requests.
If the former continued to fail, it was time to choose the latter.
“However, I will do it my way. Is that acceptable?”
“Does the method matter now? If things continue like this, all of Marilyn is likely to flip to the progressive party in the next general election,” the Prime Minister grumbled, having been silent until now. He usually maintained a detached attitude, but it seemed he was finally starting to worry about the election.
He wouldn't want to remain as an incompetent leader who suffered a crushing defeat in the general election.
“Calvert!”
The King frowned and called her friend.
“The progressive party is also my precious party. Watch your tongue. 'Flip'? Is the progressive party some other country? I didn't create this meeting to take your side. It's to resolve the affairs of the state. Try to act in a non-partisan manner.”
“...My apologies, Your Majesty,” the Prime Minister apologized after adjusting his posture.
“If you grant me one condition, I can handle it immediately.”
“What is it?” the Prime Minister asked with a suspicious look.
“I intend to sign a new diplomatic treaty with Antakawa, Planto, and Ladan.”
“Something like that is for you, as the Foreign Minister, to handle.”
“I intend to proceed unofficially without leaving documents, so I would prefer it if you did not inform Duke Avery separately. It is possible as long as I have the consent of the King and the Prime Minister, is it not?”
“No, what kind of secret pact are you trying to make?”
“I intend to tell Ladan to hand over the islands to Cuetra.”
No matter how he thought about it, this was the only way.
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