Bonus Story:
Hypothetical Good Ending, Catalina’s Route
MY FIRST KISS EVER WAS WITH NONE OTHER than the queen of Villendorf, Ina-Catalina Maria Villendorf. I truly fell in love with the queen of an enemy nation; I’d met her during peace negotiations. As a reward for securing the peace treaty, Queen Liesenlotte gave me a very handsome reward. I was genuinely grateful for the large sum of money.
Princess Anastasia, who succeeded the crown, and Duke Astarte also supported my fief. At the very least, my hard work and achievements in Anhalt were ultimately worth it. I was grateful to them all. As Faust von Polidoro, I held love for my mother and swore to protect my fief and my people with all my might, and I had no intention of betraying Anhalt. However, even so, my heart drifted toward the queen of Villendorf.
“Faust, I long to hear your voice,” the queen wrote. “I want to lock your tongue with mine, and I yearn to feel your skin. I want you to always stay by my side. This Coldhearted Queen can no longer live without the warmth from your body. Both Reckenbell and you have poured hot lead, boiling from your love, into the hollow vessel that is Catalina. I must have you take responsibility for what you’ve done to me.”
Every month, Catalina would send me candid and passionate letters that professed her love, and I had to respond in kind. It was embarrassing to admit, but I’d never exchanged letters with a woman before, and thus I had no knowledge or skill in that field. Still, I was able to clearly understand that Catalina was truly in love with me. If that was the case, I had to do my utmost not to upset her; I assayed with my clumsy manners and strived to weave eloquent sentences and string together flowery words that made my letters sound almost lyrical. As our exchange went on, I gradually fell genuinely in love with her.
Writing love letters was a type of magic. It was a devilish deed that was akin to a contract, making one fall in love with another.
“I’ve fallen victim to a forbidden love,” I said. “Wait, have I really?”
My love with the queen didn’t actually go against the path of chivalry. I was a subject of Anhalt, and it wasn’t frowned upon to have amicable ties with Villendorf, even if they were a potential enemy kingdom. My contract with the royal family of Anhalt wasn’t a stringent one; nowhere did it say that a loyal retainer was prohibited from serving two masters. In fact, it was rather common for knights to have titles in several different nations. It wasn’t considered unjust for a knight to travel around the world in search of a capable master. Knights weren’t just allowed to serve multiple masters over the course of their lifetimes—it was quite normal for a knight to belong to different nations and serve two masters at once.
At times, that knight could refrain from engaging in a clash between the two nations, or even act as a mediator. Hence, there was no real issue if the lord of House Polidoro served Queen Liesenlotte of Anhalt and Queen Catalina of Villendorf. A knight was neither a bureaucrat nor a Noble of the Robe; it was absurd to expect a knight to display absolute loyalty to only one nation. The most important thing to a feudal lord was their land, and everything else hinged on profit for their people. If anyone dared to accuse such a knight of disloyalty, they were an idiot who was barking up the wrong tree.
“She did say she didn’t mind even if we never became a lawfully wedded couple,” I muttered.
I knew that my intimate relationship with Catalina didn’t touch upon any taboos in this world. Since gender roles were switched, it was fairly common for men to be shared amongst several women. Men were allowed to sleep with many women, but above all, I had made a contract with Villendorf when I negotiated the peace. My superhuman blood would be passed down when I planted my seed in Catalina. No one had the right to mock me.
If both royal families wished to marry me, that was something to be genuinely celebrated. No one had the right to disparage House Polidoro. If they dared to do so, they’d be slaughtered by both Anhalt’s and Villendorf’s royals.
“I know that there isn’t a problem with this,” I said. “Or rather, society would see it as no problem so far. But if I were to officially become engaged to Catalina, I’d naturally lean toward Villendorf.”
I knew that. I knew that very well. As our positions, feelings, love, and yearning for each other were conveyed over these letters, my heart began to flutter and throb. That was the issue. I had my debt to Anhalt, but I was no longer a man who could point my blade at Villendorf, at Catalina. I could never bring myself to do so.
I’ll be honest with myself. I love Ina-Catalina Maria Villendorf from the bottom of my heart. Her eyes melted me to my very core and drew me in with no way out. I began to consider officially marrying Catalina. I wasn’t going to abandon my loyalty to Anhalt, but I didn’t mind joining Villendorf officially as Catalina’s prince consort.
Her silky red hair, a characteristic of the royal family, and her perfect, almost manufactured appearance reminded me of Galatea—the woman of ivory who was brought to life in a Greek myth. Her skin was smooth and supple to the touch. Her appearance wasn’t all that was enticing. She’d finally grasped the meaning of those rosebuds—of the love that Claudia von Reckenbell, a heroic woman of valiance, had poured into her. When she’d gripped those roses and cried like a child, my heart was already in her grasp.