1 - Valentina's Paradise

Valentina's Heaven (Paradisus Valentinae)

Written by Yoon Sori

Published by Blacken

* This book is rated for ages 15+.

Prologue

“…You mustn’t fall in love, Valentina.”

Valentina frowned briefly, then quickly blinked. She almost got caught dozing off.

Valentina I, the late Grand Duchess. Her grandmother, who shared her name and violet eyes, was silently looking down at her. Even in her old age, she was incredibly beautiful and dignified, but her cold and strict nature made many fear her.

She had ruled Florida for nearly 20 years before passing the Grand Ducal seat to her son, Giovanni, and retiring to a separate palace.

Valentina was being educated by her grandmother on the basic qualities and etiquette of a ruler. This often included content that was difficult to understand or too awkward to ask about directly.

“The daughters of the Florida Grand Ducal Family must never, ever love a man before marriage.”

“Is there a particular reason for that?”

“The daughters of the Florida Grand Ducal Family have a very small problem in their hearts. It’s a kind of hereditary disease passed down through the daughters.”

Valentina placed her hand on her chest, feeling the thumping sensation, and tilted her head.

“A problem…? I don’t understand. What kind of problem, Grandmother?”

“The daughters of the Grand Ducal Family can only hold one man in their hearts for their entire lives.”

“Only one man?”

“Yes, if you fall in love with a man later and put him in your heart, you won’t be able to put any other man in that heart… until you die, forever.”

Valentina shuddered at the resolute tone of the last words.

“That’s why the daughters of the Grand Ducal Family must never fall in love with a man before marriage. Because it becomes a huge shackle for life.”

Her grandmother’s usually stern voice seemed a little sad that day. So Valentina cautiously asked,

“Then, can’t I just marry that person?”

“Valentina, marriage is not something you can decide on your own. What you can decide is to lock your heart tightly with your own will until marriage.”

That’s right. Marriages of kings and lords are family transactions, so of course, her parents would decide. Valentina nodded and asked again.

“But what if I accidentally fall in love with someone?”

“If you fall in love and marry another man, there will be no room left in your heart for your husband. So, to fulfill your duties as a wife, you will have to trample on your heart and live like a clown, acting a part for the rest of your life. It’s a painful life of walking alone through a desolate and scorching desert.”

Wouldn’t that be more cruel and worse for the husband than for herself? Valentina was worried.

“Isn’t there any way to cure such a bad disease?”

Her grandmother smiled faintly and shook her head.

“But it’s not all bad. If you love your husband and confess to him, ‘Dominus cordis mei (Master of my heart),’ those words turn into a steel chain that binds his heart and yours together. It will never break until the two of you die. That’s why some of the sons-in-law of our family sometimes lose their wives early and suffer for the rest of their lives, eventually going mad and dying.”

It was difficult to understand and scary, but Valentina tried to understand it somehow, tried to remember it, and tried to think of it positively.

“So, remember. You must never fall in love with a man you haven’t married and spent the night with, and you must never confess, ‘You are the Master of my heart.’ Do you understand?”

“Yes, Grandmother.”

Long after, at her last rites, her grandmother confessed the name of the man she had passionately loved all her life. It was not Valentina’s grandfather’s name.

Her grandmother’s desolate and devastated desert ended only when she reached the beach of death.

Ten years later,

Valentina spoke the words she had kept deeply hidden for the sake of the only man she could now safely love—her husband.

“Dominus cordis mei….”

His bright blue eyes widened, and he hugged Valentina tightly. But it was too cold, and her whole body was frozen, so Valentina couldn’t feel anything. Only the pain of her whole body breaking apart.

1-1. Assassination Order on a Former Fiancé

The incident began when a ragged young man hiding in the Training Grounds was grabbed by the knights and dragged out, staggering.

The Training Grounds of Regio Florida Grand Castle were off-limits to outsiders. Those caught loitering were severely beaten and kicked out.

But instead of quietly being kicked out, the damned beggar started spouting a ridiculous name, and things escalated.

“I, I am the Count of Terra Petronia. Please allow me to see Grand Duchess Valentina.”

As soon as the words were spoken, a chilling silence fell, followed by an explosion of laughter from all directions.

“Wahahaha, he’s the Count of Petronia, no less?”

“My, my, what brings such a noble personage all the way here to summon the Grand Duchess?”

Knights and apprentices who had been resting also gathered around him, surrounding him and laughing loudly. Some poked him with the scabbards or the ends of their shields as they laughed.

A knight practicing archery in the distance shook his head and gestured. Judging by the ornate decorations on his helmet, he seemed to be the captain of the knights. He seemed to be saying not to slack off and to scold him roughly and send him away.

But the knights and apprentices had no intention of letting this impudent beggar go so easily. They should pull out his lying tongue or at least break one of his limbs before sending him away.

To make matters worse, the beggar, still being held by the scruff of his neck, stubbornly insisted.

“I am Edeled, the Count of Petronia and the son of the late Duke Edwin of Terra Nebulosa. I came to seek apprentice knight training from the Grand Duchess, but I had an accident in the Black Forest…. Please allow me to see Her Highness.”

But unfortunately, the ‘self-proclaimed Count and son of a Duke’ was showing only the typical appearance of a starving wanderer instead of a noble young man. Instead of a cloak embroidered with the family crest or an outer garment made of fine cloth, he was wearing a tattered tunic and a dirty cloak that farmers would wear. His dark hair, reaching down to his shoulder blades, was stiff and matted with dirt and grease, and his grimy face was gaunt like the son of a serf who had been starving for a long time.

Of course, there was no sign of a banner or escort knights. His only companion was a gray dog that looked like a dirty ball of fur.

Woof, woof, bark, bark!

His only companion barked at the armed knights, trying to protect his master. But his valor didn’t last long. He was kicked away by the knights and fell to the ground, whimpering in a dying voice. He shouted in an enraged voice.

“What are you doing! I am formally requesting an audience with Grand Duchess Valentina.”

“Oh, he’s persistent. Where did he dare to call Her Highness’s name so casually? Hey! Is the Grand Duchess your friend?”

Chief Aide Lord Ricardo grabbed the man’s hair and grinned in his face.

“Hey, oh noble Count. Did you pick up somewhere that the Grand Duchess is the most beautiful woman on the continent? So you were peeking from behind the trees like a rat? There are a million nobodies who get their legs broken and get kicked out every year, a million! You know?”

The man whose hair was being pulled shut his eyes tightly and closed his mouth. Other mercenary knights and apprentice knights joined in, poking him with their spears and laughing at him.

“You should have sold a more plausible name. You ignorant bastard, did you think we were ignorant country bumpkins who didn’t even know Terra Nebulosa or Petronia?”

Then the beggar twisted his lips and spat out,

“Fine, I won’t talk to ignorant country bumpkins like you anymore. Call your master.”

“You crazy bastard!”

As soon as the words were spoken, Ricardo slapped him across the cheek with his gauntleted hand. The man, who was already staggering and unable to walk properly, was knocked to the ground and couldn’t get up. Ricardo swung his spear at the fallen body. The dog blocked his master, barking madly, and the master hugged the dog and lay down. Thwack, thwack, thwack, crack! The spear began to fall mercilessly on his back. Instead of the screams they had expected, only the dog in his arms howled in agony.

Thwack.

Suddenly, the knights’ laughter stopped. An arrow with a long tail was stuck in the tree where they were gathered, quivering right above their heads.

Crack, crack, crack!

Three more arrows were embedded side by side around it, and leaves fell on them. Damn it! The knights quickly bent their knees and lowered their posture, and Ricardo, who had been beating the beggar, stopped with his spear raised.

A group of people approached, and a cold, dignified female voice flowed from between the helmet of the slender knight at the head of the group.

“I told you to leave him alone and let him go.”

The people who had gathered quickly bowed their heads and stepped back. The knight came to the chief aide and slapped his face fiercely.

“This is the punishment for disobeying orders, Lord Ricardo.”

The knight looked at the knights and apprentice knights gathered around and said in a cold voice.

“Are you knights, who are supposed to protect the weak, trying to beat a powerless and pitiful commoner to death in front of me?”

Then Lord Ricardo stepped forward and shouted.

“But the wandering beggar dared to impersonate a high-ranking noble! It would be a great disgrace to send him back like this!”

“Being deceived by a con artist may be a momentary disgrace, but it’s nothing compared to the aftermath of beating and driving away a nobleman in distress. Think of a way to verify the truth before beating him to death! If you lack intelligence, at least have the virtue of obedience!”

The scolding voice was razor-sharp. Ricardo belatedly apologized and bowed his head.

“…I, we, made a mistake. Please forgive us.”

The knight clicked his tongue as if displeased, then knelt in front of the man lying on the ground, took off his helmet, and said politely.

“I am Valentina, the Grand Duchess of Regio Florida. How are you feeling?”

The man, who had been gritting his teeth to suppress his groans, barely raised his head and looked up at Valentina. Clear and transparent violet eyes, a dazzlingly white and beautiful face, and silver-tinged blonde hair scattered over the plate armor covering her shoulders, diffusely reflecting the midday sun.

Blink, blink, blink.

He frowned as if he were facing the sun head-on, then suddenly blushed and turned his head to the side. His back seemed to stiffen again. Valentina supported him and said,

“I apologize for my subordinates’ rudeness. Can you get up?”

“…Let go, I can get up on my own.”

When Valentina let go, he swallowed a short groan and barely got to his feet.

As the knights had said, his appearance was a mess. Looking at his disheveled hair like a magpie’s nest and his tattered, grime-encrusted outer garments, he could only be seen as a ‘wandering beggar,’ as Ricardo had said. He bit his lip and turned his body to the side to tidy his hair and attire, but it was no use.

The knights were dying to laugh, but they had to clench their jaws and endure because the Grand Duchess was watching with a stern face.

He belatedly bowed his head in front of the Grand Duchess and paid his respects politely.

“Edeled, Count of Terra Petronia and son of the late Duke Edwin of Terra Nebulosa, greets the noble Dominella of Regio Florida.”