Predatory Marriage

Predatory Marriage — Chapter 229.
Warning (3)

Translator: Atlas / Editor: Regan

Cerdina could not sleep.
In the deep night, she sat in her room dressed in a fine nightgown, drinking wine.
As her ladies-in-waiting were asleep, she poured it herself, a clear glass filled with wine, red as blood.
Usually she would drink slowly and savor the scent of the wine, but tonight, she drank it down quickly.

She wanted to get drunk, but in spite of the alcohol, her mind was clear.

Cerdina stood up and set the glass on the table.
Walking to the other side of the large room, she drew back the curtains and pushed the windows open, taking a seat on the window sill.
In the quiet, serene night, she gazed on the royal palace with cold eyes.

She had Estia in the palm of her hand, but it was not enough.
Her ambition did not end with one small kingdom.

Blain’s wedding would be her chance to begin expanding to other countries.
She would overthrow them one by one until the whole continent was beneath her feet…so long as Blain played his part.

But Blain was not acting as she had expected.

Leah, Leah, Leah…

Cerdina repeated the name nervously.
If that girl were obedient, then Blain would stay calm.
The wedding would be a triumph.
The barbarians might be a bit of a nuisance, but in the end they would accomplish nothing.

I’m a god now.

Cerdina smiled, enjoying the cool night breeze.
But after a moment, she frowned.

“I don’t remember inviting anyone,” she sighed, and turned her head with a faint smile.
“Why has the King of Kurkan come to visit me at this time of the night?”

A tall shape had appeared in the room behind her, and as the clouds cleared, the moonlight fell onto a man who had blended with the darkness like he was a shadow himself.
His expressionless face was as cold as steel.

Cerdina had expected to meet him before the wedding, but this visit was a surprise.
He looked the same as he had when he first visited Estia.
That same arrogant gaze.
Cerdina licked her lips.

“A man entering a woman’s bedroom at night can only mean one thing…” Slowly, she spread her legs, and her nightgown shifted to expose her thighs.
“I’ve never had fantasies of mating with beasts, but as you’re a king, I suppose I’ll try it once.”

Ishakan said nothing.
Slowly, he approached the smiling Cerdina, and all at once there was an explosion of pain in her cheek and the ringing noise of a slap.

“……!”

Her head smacked into the window frame, and the noise echoed in the silent room.
Her cheek felt like it was on fire, but she didn’t even have time to react before Ishakan raised his hand again and struck her other cheek, knocking her to the floor.

“Ahhh!!!”

Cerdina didn’t have time to experience that pain before there was another one as his large hand grabbed her by the hair, lifted, and shook her hard.
Cerdina raked him with her nails, but could do nothing against his tough skin.

But after that initial terror, Cerdina got a hold of herself.
She was acting as if she was a normal human being, an insect who could do nothing.
But she was not.
Belatedly, she remembered her power, and black smoke whirled around her, splitting into threads and rushing at Ishakan.
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Nothing happened.
The black smoke passed through his body without touching him.
Her jaw dropped.

“Why…?”

Ishakan only gave a twisted smile.
She was shocked.
She hadn’t felt so helpless since she became a sorceress.

“……”

Cerdina gritted her teeth.
The black smoke billowed out thickly, filling the entire room, and powerful gusts swept through, knocking objects over.
But as the objects shattered and sheared through the air, there wasn’t a scratch on the man.

The wind died down.
The black smoke dispersed.

She could not believe it.
Cerdina looked at him with trembling eyes, and he lifted her effortlessly by the hair until her feet were dangling and she cried out in pain, feeling as if her scalp might tear loose.
If she struggled, she might lose all her hair.
Cerdina screamed in pain but didn’t dare to move.

“Listen.” The beast glared at her with golden eyes, and her mouth shut automatically.
“I have left you in peace because it is necessary.”

His warning was cold and clear.

“Do not anger me again.”