Awakening to Treachery and Desire

“Queen… Queen…”

The voice was incredibly soft.

Like a midnight murmur, it carried a hint of emotional huskiness, clearly calling to her, yet simultaneously seeming unwilling to startle her awake.

Ophelia kept her eyes tightly shut, offering no reply.

She dared not answer, for the recent touch had sent an inexplicable tremor through her heart; feeling awkward herself, and fearing Marta would also feel awkward, she simply continued to feign sleep.

‘Should I just pretend I know nothing?’

‘Marta surely didn’t mean it, did she?’

‘But what *was* that feeling… a tingling numbness all over… my body turned to jelly…’

“Queen.”

This time, the voice was impossibly close.

Marta’s breath was right beside her ear, a soft exhalation caressing Ophelia’s earlobe, like poison, like an abyss, like honey-drenched sweetness.

Ophelia’s body grew increasingly strange.

Her entire body felt weak, as if yearning for something; the strength with which she held Emily dissipated, and her full weight collapsed into Marta’s embrace.

“So you *were* asleep…”

Marta’s voice was completely different from before.

The room was dim. Ophelia kept her eyes tightly shut, daring not to look back. With her vision lost, as that husky voice resounded in her ear, emotions brewed and fermented within her heart, and time in the darkness stretched into infinity.

Voice and emotion swirled into a vortex.

The more she resisted, the more comfortable she felt.

Marta’s voice was husky, much like the ‘Onee-san voice’ (TL Note: A Japanese term referring to the voice of an older sister figure, often characterized by a mature, alluring, and sometimes dominant tone) from her previous life. Yet, unlike those emotionless ‘Onee-san voices,’ this one carried a captivating allure that threatened to ensnare her.

“From this moment—”

The Affection Value soared. Marta’s score, originally a green “95,” now turned to “101.” The number glowed red.

Concurrently, Marta’s voice grew even more husky.

“—I can no longer turn back.”

Marta’s hands were positioned, one above and one below.

Ophelia instinctively recoiled in fear, though she couldn’t pinpoint what exactly she was afraid of.

‘The sensation throughout my body was truly bizarre.’

‘Don’t do this—’

“What are you doing?”

A frigid voice emanated from in front of them.

The voice belonged to Emily.

Marta’s movements instantly ceased.

Silence, darkness, and the lingering tingling sensation clung to her skin.

“Am I to understand that you are defiling the Queen?”

In the darkness, Emily seemed to have risen from the bed, and the warmth of Marta behind her vanished, replaced instead by the clear clang of a sword from behind.

‘Were they… confronting each other?’

The scene brightened slightly. Ophelia secretly opened her eyes. The lamp had been switched on, revealing Emily with a tightly furrowed brow, exuding an imposing aura.

She quickly shut her eyes after only a fleeting glance.

A cold breeze swept in. Her clothes remained in their disheveled state, but the wind, rather than dispelling the lingering sensations, only made Ophelia savor them more deeply.

“Do you not intend to refute?” Emily’s voice still cut through the air.

“There is nothing to refute.” This was Marta’s voice.

“I will not be dishonest in facing my desires, Miss Emily. I have fallen.”

“Indeed, I harbor improper thoughts towards the Queen. She is the light of my life, the fire of my desires, my sin, my very soul. At this point, there is no need for me to deny it; I truly possess sacrilegious intentions. However, I will not, because of these blasphemous thoughts, do anything detrimental to the Queen.”

‘What, what, what, what *is* this, Marta!? Is this a confession!? But aren’t you supposed to like the male lead!? What does this even mean!’

Ophelia’s thoughts instantly spiraled into disarray.

Her heart was a tangled mess.

She called out to the system, but it offered no reply. ‘If it’s reached 101, will I be unable to return…?’

Marta’s voice pulled her thoughts back to reality.

“If—”

The clear ring of a sword, a sound that sliced through the air.

“If your interests merely align with the Queen’s, and you harbor no sacrilegious thoughts toward her as I do, then you should understand that someone like me is the best pawn. You wouldn’t want to eliminate me, would you?”

Silence ensued.

After a moment, Emily’s quiet inhalations and exhalations could be heard.

“Indeed, that’s correct. You’re right. My current relationship with the Queen is merely one of aligned interests, and my reliance on her is akin to that of a friend.”

‘Now that’s more like it!’

‘Marta, what’s wrong with you? You should be liking boys!’

“Then let us coexist amicably, shall we? There’s no need for your eyes to be filled with such murderous intent. Our interests are aligned now, and I can still be quite useful to you.”

“Very well, Miss. Though I have fallen, I swear on my knight’s honor that I will do nothing detrimental to the Queen’s interests. Furthermore, if you maintain your current stance, I will harbor no murderous intent towards you. How does that sound?”

“So, we have an agreement?” This was Emily’s voice.

“Good.” Marta replied.

“May I continue then?”

“Continue what?” Emily’s voice grew vehement.

“I am still here! You speak of the correctness of your actions. I might tolerate what just happened, but do you truly expect me to perpetually condone your blasphemy!?”

“If I were to tolerate it, wouldn’t you then question my loyalty?”

Silence fell once more.

“It seems you have a point.” Marta replied after a moment. “My apologies. I’ll go wash my face with cold water to calm down.”

Then, silence descended upon the room.

The bed jolted violently, as if a significant weight had been placed upon it.

Subsequently, Ophelia’s clothes were abruptly and completely thrown open.

Having just had her undergarments removed by Marta, Ophelia’s upper body was now entirely bare. Emily immediately buried her head into her, then took a greedy, deep breath.

‘What are *you* doing now, Emily!?’

“So soft, so fragrant… Hehe… I truly love this feeling…”

‘???’

Emily seemed to lift her head after burying it for a moment. Before Ophelia could even inwardly relax, a whisper once again reached her ear, accompanied by a breath as delicate as orchids. Unlike Marta’s heavy exhalations, this was a light, sprightly sigh.

“You’re awake, aren’t you, Queen?”

These words startled Ophelia, sending a shiver through her. Unable to resist, she opened her eyes, meeting Emily’s deep violet gaze directly.