The warm autumn sunlight seeped through the light cream-colored curtains. The bed, tinged with the gentle afternoon light, felt cozy, but Litania could not feel that comfort.

‘Am I going crazy?’

She shivered, clutching the blanket with hands that barely had strength.

Something seemed terribly wrong. This couldn’t be right.

The marital relationship she knew wasn’t supposed to be like this.

Because.

“It wasn’t like this the first time we did it!”

“Back then, I was just holding back as much as I could, afraid you might run away.”

On their first wedding anniversary a year ago, when they first became one, Orbis was certainly passionate but also gentle. It felt like being engulfed by hot waves.

She thought he was a man she could handle.

But she was wrong.

“You deceived me!”

“Isn’t a certain degree of pretense necessary even in front of the one you love?”

“I didn’t know you’d be such a beast!”

“Even a dragon is nothing more than a beast by nature. You misunderstood, so it’s unfair to blame me.”

Litania struggled to raise her unsteady body and glared at her shamelessly brazen husband.

She was sprawled on the bed, barely covered in nightclothes, while Orbis sat properly dressed in the wingchair by the window, legs crossed.

“Really… You’re being so ungentlemanly.”

“If you’re referring to last night’s events, I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“How can this be taken as a compliment?”

Litania tried to sit up angrily, but her vision spun, and she collapsed back onto the bed.

They say everything gets easier after the first time, but apparently that didn’t apply to marital relations.

Her husband’s gentle and devoted demeanor during their first experience was all a lie. If she had known he was the type of man to engage in such scandalous acts in bed, she would have never…

‘I wouldn’t have… not married him.’

But she would have postponed the consummation.

Until she was thoroughly prepared in body and mind.

“Litania, are you alright?”

Orbis approached her side and asked in a rather concerned voice.

How dare he, when this was all his fault. Litania felt wronged by her husband’s deceptive attitude of causing harm and then offering comfort.

“I’m dizzy…”

“You’ve sweated a lot. You need to replenish your fluids.”

Orbis gently lifted Litania’s shoulders and tilted a cup of water to her lips.

Gulp.

As the lukewarm water went down her throat, her hazy vision finally cleared.

“I didn’t think I sweated that much…”

“Hmm. You lost more of other fluids.”

“How can you say such shameless things in broad daylight!”

Orbis burst out laughing at Litania’s reaction, her face flushing as she shouted.

Seeing her husband’s handsome face laughing with shaking shoulders, Litania wasn’t sure whether to be angry or to admire him.

“You’re too much, really…”

“I’m sorry, Litania. I was wrong.”

Orbis kissed her eyes and the bridge of her nose, whispering sweetly as Litania’s reddened face twitched.

“I was overwhelmed with joy at being able to be with you again.”

“…”

It was the world’s greatest mystery how this man with his meltingly affectionate smile could be the same person as last night’s brutal beast.

Orbis gently caressed Litania’s body as she pouted her lips, and asked,

“Did it hurt a lot?”

“It wasn’t… painful.”

“Then did you enjoy it?”

“…How can you be so shameless!”

Litania pushed away her husband’s approaching lips and escaped his embrace, getting off the bed.

But her legs wouldn’t support her properly, and she ended up slumping to the floor.

Orbis extended his hand towards Litania, who sat frozen with wide eyes.

“Shall I help you up?”

“I can get up on my own!”

Stubbornly, Litania grabbed the bedpost and stood up with a groan.

Her legs trembled slightly, but this time she managed to stand without collapsing.

As she looked at her husband with a triumphant expression, about to say something, she felt a large hand supporting her lower back.

“O-Orbis?”

“Your muscles are tense.”

With those words, his long fingertips began to move.

Litania let out a small gasp and tensed up, causing the pressure on her hips to increase slightly.

“Um, Orbis. This is…”

“It’s not too severe, so it should loosen up quickly.”

As his warm hands gently massaged her lower back from both sides, a slight tingling pain arose and quickly disappeared.

Litania’s hands had somehow come to rest on Orbis’s arms.

“You don’t need to do this yourself.”

“If not me, who would you have do it?”

His blue eyes slowly deepened with a subtle resonance.

Realizing that she was still in a state of undress in his eyes, Litania hurriedly averted her gaze and covered herself.

“Don’t hide, Litania.”

“I’m embarrassed.”

“You don’t need to be embarrassed in front of me.”

“But…”

“You’re beautiful in any form.”

The voice flowing into her ears was tinged with heat. Litania’s eyes wandered here and there before finally closing.

The moist sigh tickling her nape slid downward.

It was then that a knock was heard from beyond the door.

“Lady Litania. I’ve brought tea.”

It was Snow’s voice.

“…”

“…Ah.”

Litania stiffened, her eyes wide open in surprise.

Orbis frowned, looking quite displeased, then sighed and rose to approach the door.

“The situation isn’t good right now, so I’ll send him away.”

“No! Don’t!”

“No?”

She had nearly been swept away by the mood and was about to engage in relations again.

‘The sun is high in the sky! Are you crazy!’

This is dangerous. At this rate, she might not be able to leave the bedroom until tomorrow.

“L-Let him in. I need to drink tea!”

“…You want to show that fellow your current state?”

“T-This. If I put on clothes.”

As Litania stammered, adjusting the fallen strap of her chemise, Orbis brought a long silk robe hanging on the wall and draped it over her shoulders, tying the ribbon.

“I’d prefer if you didn’t show such a state to other men.”

“Do you think Snow is a beast like you?”

“…”

“No. Well, rabbits are technically beasts, but… not like you!”

“Of course not. If he were like me, he wouldn’t be able to keep his life in this dragon castle.”

Saying something quite menacing, Orbis tidied Litania’s hair and walked back to the door.

As he opened the door, Snow bowed to Orbis and scurried in, placing the tray on the table.

“Lady Litania, this is herbal tea that Rico dried. It’s good for fatigue recovery.”

“Mm, thank you.”

Litania quickly checked the mirror.

‘Thank goodness. It doesn’t show.’

The robe and her hair completely covered her neck and upper chest. Small movements wouldn’t reveal any embarrassing marks.

Finally relieved, she pulled back the canopy and sat on the sofa.

“Since it’s before a meal, would you prefer it brewed lighter?”

Litania nodded.

At first, when their eyes met, her face flushed, feeling as if her embarrassing situation had been exposed, but perhaps because Snow was so nonchalant in serving the tea, her embarrassment soon subsided.

“Thank you, Snow. Orbis, you can leave now too.”

“You’re not offering me tea? How cold of you.”

“Who do you think is responsible for my coldness?”

As Litania looked up with a sulky face, Orbis, who had been standing with his arms crossed and head tilted, straightened up with a small sigh.

“Don’t skip meals. I’ll go to the dining room first.”

“Alright.”

As Orbis left, the bedroom door closed by itself. It was then that Snow’s expression, which had remained calm while serving tea, immediately twisted.

“The master did bad things, didn’t he?”

“Pfft.”

Litania nearly spat out her tea as the boy immediately hit the mark.

“W-What do you mean by bad things?”

“He tormented you all night, didn’t he? He should have been considerate since you have a weak constitution.”

“Ah, um, well.”

“It’s wrong for the master to disrespect Lady Litania and act forcefully. You should firmly point that out.”

“No, well…”

“If it’s difficult for you to say it directly, shall I go and tell him on your behalf? That he must never do anything to trouble Lady Litania again.”

Litania jumped up, afraid that Snow might leap up and rush out to scold Orbis.

“It’s fine, Snow! You don’t need to do that.”

“But wrong things must be corrected, right?”

“It’s not exactly wrong, is it?”

“You skipped dinner last night and breakfast this morning. You must have been in a lot of pain, right?”

“I wasn’t in pain. Rather, it felt good…”

“Pardon?”

Realizing what she had said from Snow’s reaction, Litania hurriedly changed the subject and sipped her tea.

“The tea smells nice. Rico must have cultivated the herbs well.”

In truth, she couldn’t really tell if the aroma was good. Snow’s gaze from beside her was too piercing.

“…Lady Litania.”

“Y-Yes?”

“Did I perhaps interrupt something?”