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TWO days ago, I had been minding my own business in the royal palace. I had recently moved in, as the prince had wanted me to be in residence by the time our engagement was announced.
Then, suddenly, Lord Keunt had appeared, grabbing me and dragging me off into a hidden alcove. Thus cornered, I’d had no choice but to ward him off as he attempted to forcibly kiss me.
“You fancy me, don’t you?” he’d said in a husky voice. His heavy breath had rasped over my face as he grasped my hips, kneading them in his hands. “Isn’t that right, priestess? So, come on, just let me kiss you.”
“Wh-Wherever did you get that idea?!” I’d stammered in horror, only just managing to stop myself from screaming.
Lord Keunt had only stared at me, his eyes feverish with excitement. “Oh,” he’d drawled, “I’ve known for quite some time that you have feelings for me.”
The only response I could summon to this statement was a blank stare. Well, I’d thought, that’s certainly not a reality I’m living in.
“When we were on the front lines, I never truly viewed you as a viable prospect, perhaps because of your unusual power. But seeing you as you are now, clothed in such a fine dress…well, it made me think it would be a waste if I didn’t reconsider.”
So it was my dress that provoked him…? I’d thought, the color leaching from my skin.
Normally, I would have been safe from an attack like this, since my saintly garments were bespelled with a special defense mechanism that warded off lust. This provided me with a safeguard against anyone who’d been driven into heat by my powers. But that day when Lord Keunt had cornered me, I’d been bereft of such protections, as I had been commanded by a lady-in-waiting to leave them behind.
“You’ll be perfectly safe here in the royal palace,” she’d told me in a condescending tone. “So really, I must insist you remove that drab, unpleasantly fish-scented sack at once.”
Faced with her demands, I’d had no choice but to remove my saintly apparel, though it had left me feeling completely and utterly naked. Ever since, I’d been focusing intently on keeping my powers as a priestess dormant, doing my very best to avoid inducing even a hint of lust in myself or anyone else. And yet, in the end, it appeared that my efforts had ultimately failed.
A shiver had chased down my spine as Lord Keunt leaned closer and closer to me, his breath coming in labored pants against my face. “Holy woman…” he’d moaned. “So this is what the crown prince’s woman does to a man…”
I’d realized, then, that Lord Keunt must have set his sights on me from the very beginning. His actions in that moment had certainly been enough to reveal him as a deviant. And no normal one, either—it appeared that not only was he willing to commit a crime as inexcusable as assault, but he was also even brazen enough to do so in the royal palace.
Was it any wonder that such a man would react in this way, when confronted with a maiden strolling the grounds in a dress that exposed her decolletage as outrageously as mine had? Of course not—I had no doubt that any such maiden would have found herself in the same position I had: pulled unceremoniously into a darkened alcove, caught up in the unsavory clutches of the fiend who had been lying in wait for her. No doubt that fiend would have acted the same as Lord Keunt, intently ogling the trapped maiden’s breasts as he tried to steal kisses from her without her consent.
And all it had taken for me to end up in such a disastrous situation was to be separated from my guard for a few short seconds. But perchance that had also been part of Lord Keunt’s strategy.
“Lord Keunt,” I had said firmly, “please, stop this. You must be aware that at the ball taking place a few days hence, I will become His Royal Highness’s fiancée! I beg of you, think not only of the prince’s honor, but of your family’s as well. Think of the honor of the duchy of Strelizzi, which you are destined to inherit! Please, won’t you put a stop to this unbecoming behavior before you sully any of their names?!”
“I-I’ll have you know that adultery and orgies are quite the norm in the royal family,” the lord had huffed in my ear, breath still coming in gasps.
“That may well be true, but I most certainly do not care for such things!” I had snapped in return.
“Come now, priestess,” Lord Keunt had drawled, “I was under the impression your marriage to the prince was one of convenience. Certainly something so simple as a kiss wouldn’t jeopardize your position.”
In lieu of a response, I’d glanced around frantically for my guard, who was still nowhere to be found. I hadn’t known what to do; I couldn’t have possibly struck down a distinguished personage like a duke’s son with magic, even if I was defending myself.
As I’d waffled in indecision, Lord Keunt had sunk his hand into my hair, jerking me roughly toward him. His lips had grown alarmingly close to mine.
There had been nothing else for it—I lifted both my hands and lightly pushed him away.
But even this slight rejection had been enough to enrage him.
He’d stared at me for a moment, clearly dumbfounded by my resistance, before the anger had hit him, and his face flushed a deep, furious red.
“You wench!” he’d snarled. “You dare to reject my kiss in such a fashion?! You dare to make a fool of me?! You have some nerve for a commoner! I’ll make you pay for this, mark my words!”
He’d stormed away, then, making quite the grand production of himself. His angry footsteps had clacked loudly against the flooring.
“Oh, dear…” I’d sighed, watching him go.