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Chapter 5 – Part 1

“Uhh, ungh! Haaaangggh!”

Her red lips opened and she let out an unfamiliar sound as a hard column thrusted back and forth between her entrance. The gasping man let out a low-pitched groan and moved his hips.

She struggled and grabbed the sheets, hoping that she could leave, but she couldn’t escape at all. This was not the encounter she wanted. The pillar of flesh going back and forth did not belong to her fiance. While suffering from a sense of immorality, she rejoiced in the man’s member. Her stiff body softened, and her entrance recognized the man and overflowed with fluids as if drooling.

“I, I don’t want it! No!”

“Uggh!”

The man groaned like a wild beast and moved his waist even faster. The feeling of tightness between her lower part and the intense pleasure that came at the moment the man moved his waist made her squirm without even being able to bite her lip. Tears streamed down her cheeks.

“Hnnngg!”

“What a pretty moan.”

At the end of the pleasure, the man smiled while stroking the tears on her cheeks as she lay helplessly. She closed her eyes.

* * * 

Amelia woke up. She thought of the dream she had just had. Those days when she opened her body to accept a man and eventually moaned at the pleasure. She gripped the sheets and shook her head to shake off her dream.

But, perhaps because of the excitement of her dreams, her nipples stood erect over her thin nightgown. Her lower half also seemed wet. Amelia changed into new underwear the maid had brought.

Yesterday was the worst day. Natalia blackmailed her with Colin.

However, she heard from Rose that they were given a mansion. It was a good thing that Colin was nearby, but she was worried about what they would do with him.

Was it because she didn’t have a good night’s sleep? Her mind went blank. For a moment she squatted down and hugged her knees.

Come to think of it, the Emperor wasn’t here. Didn’t he come in yesterday? No matter how busy he was, he always hugged her and slept next to her.

Thinking so, she realized that she was feeling insecure and sighed. What would she do if she already felt this kind of emotion for the Emperor’s actions? The Emperor had many things to do as an Emperor.

And she heard that the Empress was usually also busy at this festival, but why was she left alone? Was it because she’s not married yet? She wanted to help, too. Or, no, was she trying too hard?

If she did nothing, her position would be shaken. Was this their consideration of her or an exclusion of her?

Unable to draw a conclusion, Amelia frowned sadly. She quietly held her breath and decided to wait for the time to pass. Her emotional ups and downs have intensified since ‘that day’ six years ago.

When her family tormented her, it became a habit to stay still in her deep depression, and became accustomed to waiting for the time to pass. This time, she waited blankly for time to pass once more, but when Rose brought some water for her to wash her face with, she had no choice but to get up.

“What time is it?”

“It is noon.”

“I see.”

“Are you in a bad mood?”

“When was I ever in a good mood?”

Unknowingly, she said this as if she was sulking. Rose asked, looking at her silently.

“Is it because His Majesty didn’t bring you to the ceremony?”

“Huh?”

She was startled by Rose’s sharp question, and her eyes widened.

“Does His Majesty know? Did I act so obviously?”

“No, no, Miss. I can tell because I’m always beside you. Rest assured.”

Rose’s words reassured her.

“His Majesty must be doing this for the Miss.”

“Really?”

“Of course. When the Imperial Palace is open, the Miss will be exposed to the public eye. There was the case with the Empress Dowager last time, there was the case with the Butler family lady yesterday, and His Majesty would really, really, hate it if you’d have to go through that.”

“…Does His Majesty like me?”

When asked that question, Rose’s expression changed to that of absurdity.

“Is it not obvious?”

Always with a smile on his face that was in love with her and trying to do anything for her. Literally, it would be right to say that the Emperor truly loved her. But she didn’t know why he did, so how could she believe it? She didn’t believe in “love at first sight”.

As her expression did not relax, Rose spoke cautiously.

“Miss, if you’re so depressed, why don’t you get ready?”

“Huh?”

“His Majesty said you can go anywhere. Doesn’t that mean that if the Miss is ready, you can be with His Majesty?”

“That…”

At Rose’s words, she hesitated. She was persuasive. If she wasn’t supposed to go to him, there would have been an order.

“Can I participate in the ordinance of atonement?”

“Sure. It’s a ceremony in which Her Majesty the Empress and His Majesty the Emperor soak their bodies. The Miss will soon become His Majesty the Empress, so you can go.”

Then would her sins be washed away? Amelia thought to herself. Wouldn’t it be great if she had something so convenient?

Amelia hesitated for a moment, then grabbed her skirt.

“It doesn’t really matter if I go, right?”

“I am sure.”

At Rose’s words, she nodded.

* * * 

People in pure white clothing stood at the basement of the Imperial Palace, near a well filled with holy water.

Carlos saw the face of a woman among them, and the woman in colorful clothes looked back at Carlos with a soft expression on her face.

She was a saint who was later discovered by the high priest because the oracle’s interpretation was wrong. As a result, much controversy arose over the authenticity of the Saint, and in the end, it was revealed that the woman previously designated as a Saint was a false saint, and she was expelled from the temple.

“Greetings, Your Majesty.”

As the Saint greeted him with a graceful smile, Carlos raised the corners of his lips as well. He did not like the Saint—he could see it in her face, that ambition much like his mother’s.

‘Besides, how does one know if she’s a real saint or not?’

With that thought, Carlos looked at his brother, who was standing in front of him. Claude kept his head down, but Carlos gave his brother a smile that didn’t reach his eyes then looked at the people standing behind them. The nobles of the country were gathered here.

From Carlos’s point of view, no, from the point of view of the “Emperor”, this ceremony was really sh*t. In front of all the nobles, he would have to take off his clothes and put on white clothes, go inside and soak for a while before coming out.

Carlos smiled coldly as he looked at the faces looking at him with a displeased expression. With this, the sin of taking in an immoral wife named Amelia would be washed away, and the temple will have no objection to this marriage.

The Emperor looked at the Empress Dowager and raised the corners of his lips. The Empress Dowager also smiled brightly. She had a confident smile. He knew what that face meant, as though things were going the way she wanted them to. But whatever it was, it didn’t matter. Carlos thought so and began to undress.

But at that moment.

A door that could not be opened, opened and Amelia entered. She’s the one who should never be in this position.

* * * 

People turned their attention towards her. Amelia took a deep breath at the gaze and walked towards Carlos.

The Chamber of Atonement in the basement of the Imperial Palace, opened once every 10 years, was splendid and beautiful just by its appearance in the dim light. In the middle, there was an artificial spring, just like a bathhouse, in which holy water with light was shimmering with a soft light.

Carlos, who was standing in front of the fountain, looked at Amelia with a hard expression. He seemed a little perplexed.

He knew this would happen, and she had sent a message ahead of time, but why didn’t she get a response? She looked around her with a puzzled expression. And when she saw the Grand Duke smiling, her doubts were amplified.

“Your Majesty.”

He smiled at Amelia, and he asked in a voice inaudible to others.

“Why are you here?”

Amelia guessed something was wrong, but Amelia’s thoughts turned to ​​Rose who was waiting outside. She couldn’t let her get punished.

“Your Majesty, I came here because I wanted to participate in the ordinance of atonement.”

“Why are you participating in the ordinance of atonement?”

“That’s it, because I want to wash away my sins.”

Then Carlos frowned and said,

“I must have made a mistake, I thought you would know even if I didn’t tell you. You are not yet the Empress, and there is no need for you to participate in this ceremony.”

“…….”

Amelia noticed that the Emperor was angry. Was she too presumptuous? Her face turned blue.

“Since you’re already here, if you go back, you’ll get caught up in the same rumors again.”

The Emperor grunted, gritting his teeth. Only then did she realize that she had troubled the Emperor.

Her face flushed red. Then, she heard a woman’s voice.

“What’s going on?”

“…….”

A woman in a white dress approached her. It was the Saint. When Amelia saw the saint, whom she had only listened to in the midst of her shame, she was mesmerized.

“You’re here on time. Please stay with Miss Laszlo.”

“Aren’t you planning to perform the ordinance of atonement with this person? If Miss Laszlo performed the ordinance of atonement she would be more proud.”

“Miss Laszlo is not yet the Empress.”

——

Translator’s note:
We missed pointing this out, but the characters in this book are related to our other book Be Facinated. Or to be exact, both MLs, Carlos (this book’s ML) and Claude (Be Fascinated’s ML) are brothers.

Another trivia, the author of the two books wrote Moon Tilts West too~