Chapter 18
Ejnar’s mouth claimed Elfreda’s with a relentless force, his tongue tangling with hers until her lungs burned for air.
She struggled to find a rhythm to her breathing, her fingers instinctively bunching the fabric of his attire as she clung to him.
The quiet click of a belt being unfastened followed a soft, low sound from her throat. He pressed his body against hers, the immediate contact convincing Ejnar that any further preparation was unnecessary. A silent, knowing curve touched his lips.
“Aht…!”
He gripped her waist firmly, hoisting her upward as he drove into her.
Pinned between the unyielding wall and his powerful frame, the disparity in their sizes meant Elfreda absorbed the full weight of every thrust. Her features tightened with the strain of the impact. Though she hadn’t intended to, she hooked her arms around his neck and pulled herself forward, a gesture he accepted with total indifference.
“Hah… huhp!”
A gasp escaped her as she held onto him, but she clamped her lips shut the moment she remembered their location. Terror gripped her—the thought of a passerby catching them made her shove her hand over her own mouth in a frantic attempt at silence.
Ejnar, however, seemed to find her panic entertaining. He leaned in, his voice a low vibration against her ear.
“Take your hand away.”
“Uht, but…!”
“I have a solution.”
His tone carried a gentle, persuasive warmth that made her waver. Eventually, Elfreda lowered her hand.
“Ung… Uhp!”
He immediately sealed her lips with a kiss.
As their mouths remained locked, the fire in her lower body and the muffled cries in her chest refused to subside. Every sound she made was swallowed by Ejnar’s mouth. The sheer force of his presence left her lightheaded, and she could do nothing but endure the crushing sensation of his passion.
At some point, as if her legs were getting in his way, he hitched them up around his middle. Elfreda’s eyes widened in shock at the shift, but he remained focused and detached. The friction between their joined bodies only grew more intense.
Overwhelmed by the brazenness of the position, she squeezed her eyes shut.
It was a futile effort. Deprived of sight, her other senses sharpened to a painful degree. She became hyper-aware of the slick, relentless heat and the power of Ejnar’s movements as he pushed inside her again and again.
The raw physical reality of it drowned out every other thought.
It felt as though she was being entirely consumed by him.
Suddenly, the tempo of his movements surged. Elfreda realized the end was near, her heart a messy knot of relief and anxiety. She was grateful they hadn’t been caught, yet she dreaded the moment he would simply straighten his clothes and walk away, leaving her hollow.
If she had to weigh the two, the fear of his abandonment weighed heavier. A small whimper escaped her, but he didn’t slow down, surging forward one last time.
“Hah…”
The peak of the encounter left her drained, and she slumped against Ejnar’s chest. The realization of what they had done—here in the royal audience chamber where the Makaeri diplomat had stood moments ago—was so scandalous that her mind went completely numb.
Ejnar, by contrast, was perfectly steady as he supported her. Elfreda felt that slipping into unconsciousness would be a mercy compared to the reality of being left behind in this room.
He wasn’t as heartless as she feared, though.
Once he finished, he acted as if the encounter had never occurred. He adjusted his clothing with such precision that he looked entirely untouched by the passion of the last few minutes. To Elfreda, whose mind was still a whirlwind of emotion, his composure was almost haunting.
Even in her daze, one specific worry refused to fade.
“…What if Princess Serina never agrees to apologize?”
She spoke softly, still resting in his hold.
“What is your plan then?”
“We shall see.”
The dismissive answer made her feel as though her question had been a waste of breath. He clearly hadn’t bothered to plan for that outcome, confident that Makaeri would eventually fold. The strategists of the Empire, who preferred conquest without bloodshed, wouldn’t let a princess’s pride stand in their way.
Yet, he found it peculiar that she was worried about such things. To him, it sounded like a naive inquiry from a supposed ally, almost as if she were probing for a weakness. The thought grated on him.
When he spoke again, his voice had a sharp edge.
“Whatever makes you think she won’t give in?”
“She is… incredibly headstrong…”
Elfreda’s voice trailed off. She took a breath before finally voicing the question that truly haunted her.
“…If it comes to that, will you strip me of my title?”
“….”
Ejnar offered no reply. Her future as Queen wasn’t a question he could answer based on a single incident. While the thought of removing her had crossed his mind before, the timing of such a move depended entirely on how the political winds shifted.
The matter remained undecided.
His silence told Elfreda everything she needed to know. She had always known her position was precarious, but having it confirmed in this moment left a hollow, bitter feeling in her chest.
—Crash!
A glass sailed past the Makaeri diplomat, shattering into a thousand glittering shards against the stone wall.
The envoy, who had come straight from his meeting with Ejnar to the guest quarters, stared at the remains of the glass and swallowed hard. A scream, every bit as sharp as the broken crystal, tore through the air.
“Have you lost your mind?!”
Serina was shaking with rage, her eyes flashing with total incomprehension.
“You expect me to beg forgiveness from that woman, Elfreda? I have done nothing wrong!”
“Of course, Your Highness, you are blameless…”
The diplomat stammered, desperate to de-escalate her temper.
The Empress had spoiled her firstborn child to the point of ruin; this arrogant, explosive behavior was the natural result. He knew he had to soothe her first before he could even hope to reason with her.
“But diplomacy isn’t always about the truth. The Emperor simply wishes to prevent our ties with Machi from deteriorating further.”
“Why is my father so concerned with this pathetic little kingdom? Why don’t we just crush them and be done with it?”
The envoy was stunned by her flippant attitude toward the horrors of war, but he quickly masked his shock with a practiced, calm smile.
“The Empire of Makaeri could certainly do so. However, the Emperor has his reasons for this approach. Please, just close your eyes and offer the apology…”
“No! I refuse!”
Serina shrieked, cutting him off. Her blatant defiance left the diplomat reeling.
“If I stay here and refuse to budge, Father will eventually come and get me.”
‘Good heavens! This is exactly why I dreaded this assignment!’
She understood nothing of the stakes. The envoy wanted to abandon the mission entirely, but he couldn’t forget his wife and children waiting for him back home.
He took a long breath and shifted his strategy to one of humble pleading.
“A single word from you could prevent the deaths of thousands in a bloody war. Think of what a noble act that would be. It is the burden of your royal blood to make such sacrifices…”
“I said no!”
“….”
Fine. Rot here then. I’m going home.
The retort burned on his tongue, but saying it would likely mean his execution before he even reached the border.
What was he supposed to do?
His mind raced for an exit strategy when a memory suddenly surfaced.
‘Wait. I almost forgot…!’
The Emperor had provided him with a silk pouch, intended only for the most desperate circumstances. He pulled it out quickly. Inside was a lone slip of paper.
‘Let’s see what this says…’
There were only two lines written on the note. As the envoy read them, his face went pale with shock. Serina, noticing his sudden change in demeanor, looked at him with narrow eyes.
“What is that?”
“…A message from your father, the Emperor.”
The diplomat’s voice was suddenly much steadier.
“Perhaps Your Highness should see for yourself.”
“Give it here.”
Serina snatched the paper away. But as her eyes scanned the lines, the color drained from her face, and her expression turned to stone.
