Chapter 285

Volume 3 Chapter 71 – The Scar

“Ahh…”

My mouth was wide open.

I no longer had the heart to take another bite of the fruit in my hands.

All I could feel was my heartbeat suddenly accelerating, as if thousands of horses were galloping through my chest, their heavy hooves trampling my small and helpless heart, making it hard for me to breathe. Moments later, a clear thought flashed in my mind: I’ve been tricked.

The beauty in front of me, who was undressing, had said something so casually that it felt like lightning had struck my brain, causing my thoughts to race. I quickly replayed every moment from when I met Victoria to now.

Then, I suddenly realized how foolish and naive I had been, obediently falling into the carefully laid trap by Victoria. Or perhaps, it was just a haphazard setup for me.

The most terrifying thing about this woman is her ability to read people’s minds.

Maybe she had already silently analyzed my psychological state since the moment she noticed me hesitating at the door. She knew I had something important to tell her but found it hard to speak up. Perhaps she even guessed the reason for my predicament was related to what I had learned last night—she would have known that too from my behavior in the gazebo.

Next came the first trap.

Psychological warfare: an easy condition becomes more acceptable when contrasted with a harsher one.

Victoria clearly understood my concerns. She first told me the condition she thought I would find hardest to accept: ‘no guest room.’ She knew that after my suspicions last night, I would be on high alert. Seeing my rising emotions, she immediately explained the reason and offered a much gentler solution: ‘sleep in the study.’

That wasn’t enough.

This woman played a much higher-level game. She even questioned me, “What are you thinking?” Hearing those words made me doubt myself severely. My psychological defenses were already at their lowest, and coupled with fear… I followed her into the mansion without hesitation.

The maid named Sharman was an accomplice.

Looking back, when Victoria instructed her to clean the study, I saw the maid hesitate… She must have known Victoria well and understood the mansion better than Victoria did. She probably knew there was no bed to move or that the queen didn’t really want to do such a thing… Yet, she agreed without hesitation and added a considerate reminder: ‘the water is ready.’

I guess Victoria’s second trap formed in my mind at that exact moment.

She lured me into her bedroom, saying the study wasn’t ready… If it wasn’t ready, couldn’t I rest in the large living room? Why did she insist on going to the bedroom?!

Perhaps she had long realized it would be difficult to make a reasonable excuse. To be safe, she instructed the maid to bring a bottle of wine. This clearly meant: ‘I’m going to drink in my room, come stop me,’ serving as a backup plan.

Unfortunately, my simple mind and blind trust made it unnecessary for her to use any further tactics.

I lost everything in this moment.

I lost because I was honest and open, while she meticulously planned and maneuvered at every step. I lost because of blind trust in others, while she employed high-level psychological tactics!

I lost because… the one deceiving me was Victoria. I trusted her blindly because I knew she would never hurt me.

But I underestimated this woman’s malicious intentions.

She indeed wouldn’t hurt me.

But she was truly shameless, she wanted me!

So after entering the bedroom, the second trap awaited me, the final decisive move.

She told me to take a bath.

Of course, taking a bath means undressing.

Now, my dress has been taken by the maid. I’m completely exposed.

And Victoria finally revealed her true colors, bluntly telling me there’s no bed, and that I should sleep with her. She didn’t even bother to hide it anymore because she knows I can’t escape her grasp.

As long as Victoria wants to, she could let me spend a naked, beautiful night like this.

I was too foolish.

So I deserved to become a lamb ready for slaughter, at the mercy of Victoria, unless I was willing to jump out the window and stage a scene like ‘The Night of the Exposed Maiden in the Royal City.’

…Thinking about this won’t help.

I was done for.

The situation was urgent.

Victoria must be very happy right now.

I glared at her with anger and humiliation.

But the blonde woman didn’t care at all. While I was thinking about all sorts of things just now, she had already untied the sash and removed the waistband. The fiery red dress slid down her slender figure and was kicked away by her foot. Her golden hair fell loose and was swept back over her shoulder.

In the misty haze, Victoria took a white, clean foot and stepped down the steps of the bathtub, one step, two steps… She unbuttoned her corset, one button, two buttons… My face was stiff, and I could hear my breathing becoming more and more rapid due to extreme tension.

“Vi-Victoria…”

My words were disjointed, my voice trembling.

“Hmm.” She responded indifferently.

Unconsciously, I leaned towards the corner of the bathtub, curling up my body as much as possible: “Wh-What are you doing…”

I was clearly used to seeing girls’ bodies. I had seen my own body before, and I had bathed with my mother at Santel Castle. Later, when I went to the Royal Academy, I spent time with Sarah and the others.

Living together, I have seen all kinds of figures, from slender to plump, but never have I felt so tense or had my heart race like this.

I was in a panic, completely at a loss.

Never before had I felt such a way.

Before… whether at Schentel Castle or the Royal Academy, whether facing Carlos or my mother or anyone else, whenever there were things I didn’t want to do, things that made me unhappy, I always found a way out. I would either act cute or pretend to be pitiful, maybe even lie a little bit, and most of the time, I could avoid them. I was quite skilled at these small tricks.

But here with Victoria, all these little schemes were useless. I knew that her sharp eyes could see right through my clumsy attempts, and she might even turn the tables on me.

I had no idea what to do…

Seeing Victoria unbutton her last shirt button, I felt my face burning. I awkwardly shifted my gaze, staring at the rippling water, my hands moving aimlessly under the surface, my face full of confusion.

“Bathing.”

A clear female voice was right next to me.

She didn’t make up any excuses; she simply stated what she was about to do, leaving me speechless.

But I had to struggle somehow… What should I do?

My eyes darted around.

“Oh! Suddenly remembered, the terrace window at home isn’t closed…” I tried to calm myself down, lifting my head to give her a smile, “Victoria, you, you ask the maid to—”

I stopped mid-sentence, the smile freezing on my face.

I saw Victoria throw her tight-fitting dress aside, revealing a nearly perfect body, as if carved by an artist, completely exposed to my view.

Graceful and delicate, with skin like jade.

Her slender and flexible waist, her captivating collarbones. Her exquisite appearance and figure, almost the most enviable golden ratio. Her flat, smooth lower abdomen, her long legs as smooth as snow-white lotus roots, everything else… before I could take it all in, they were already submerged in the water.

That was nearly perfect, something every woman would envy.

If only those scars could be ignored, the word “nearly” would be superfluous.

Unfortunately, there were no ifs.

Several scars of different lengths crisscrossed Victoria’s clean, white body. On her lower abdomen, side waist, right shoulder, left arm, and even parts of her thighs submerged in the water, I could vaguely see two more.

These scars looked like they were from a long time ago. Faint red marks that completely ruined the flawless beauty of her skin, with one particularly terrifying one near the center of her left chest. Though it was the smallest, it was a through-and-through wound. I don’t understand human anatomy, so I can’t estimate how close it is to her heart, and I dare not imagine.

All I know is that this woman, called the Queen, has been on the brink of death many times.

“Am I ugly?”

Victoria met my gaze.

She slowly sank her body into the water, her golden eyes indifferent yet serene.