episode_0037

The dusk arrived after the sun had set.

For a small estate like Bayoren Manor, the dinner spread was quite lavish.

Soft buttered bread that seemed to melt at first bite, tender meat drizzled with a savory sauce, various types of yogurt and cheese to complement the meal.

With appetizing ingredients like these paired with Bayoren’s specialty tangerine honey wine, it wouldn’t be difficult to understand the concept of happiness.

“Since it’s a special brew made by my mother, it’s even more precious. I will gratefully partake.”

“…”

However, it was only Cael who truly felt that happiness. He devoured the abundant meal almost savagely.

Fortunately, he refrained from provoking Darrin during the meal. Overwhelmed with emotion due to the drink his mother had specially prepared for him, he seemed preoccupied.

Yet, despite trying to ignore everything, it seemed impossible as persistent glances were sent his way intermittently. Darrin found her son’s gaze burdensome, which made it hard for her to digest her meal. Thus, she merely picked at her dinner with a bowl of soup.

“I’m such a hopeless woman.”

Seeing her son’s smile as he happily received the homemade wine brought her joy, but even as it reached this point, she felt exasperated by her own lingering affection towards her son.

After finishing the meal, Darrin bid a brief farewell to the servants and returned to the Lady’s chamber. According to the servants, Alred had left after receiving orders from the Lord.

Well then, Darrin sighed in frustration at her son’s persistence, shaking her head.

It seemed pointless to continue being angry.

– Thud.

After taking a brief rest, Darrin sat before the mirror and began to adorn her face. It wasn’t an elaborate makeover; just a light application of lip gloss, a touch of blush, and slowly smoothing out her disheveled crimson hair to mimic the appearance of a proper lady.

While she could have enlisted the help of Emma and the maids, Darrin usually preferred to do her own makeup unless it was a special occasion.

Once she finished her simple preparations, she gazed at her reflection in the mirror.

“Indeed, I am quite different from my peers…”

Reflected in the mirror was the face of a girl who hadn’t lost her beauty despite the passage of time. The servants, the guests, and even her husband treated Darrin like a young maiden, both in appearance and personality, unchanged by the years.

Her husband, Lord Bayoren, found her peculiar. It seemed that as she aged, she only appeared to grow younger.

Darrin used to dismiss her husband’s words as mere flattery, until the recent banquet.

“…”

But upon scrutinizing her appearance in the mirror after many years, she objectively looked no older than a late teenager.

“Damn it…”

Her red lips parted, whispering under her breath. Once known for her kind words and thoughts, lately, her disappointment had grown so immense that curses threatened to spill forth.

Contemplating whether to slap her own face as she had done to her son earlier, she hesitated, gently lowering her trembling hand. She feared her son’s potential anger if she were to act impulsively.

When she had slapped Cael moments ago, he had shot her a displeased look. Not because he was upset about his own swollen cheek, but because he didn’t like the idea of the hands of the woman he admired being bruised.

Kael clearly wants to possess me from head to toe. Thick lips and slender hands reflected in the mirror. Even his pumpkin-colored eyes were not mine.

“Hahaha…”

From a noble lady to her son’s possession…

Who is this pitiful and miserable woman? Ah! It’s me… There doesn’t seem to be a corner to escape, so what should I do?

Darine carefully pondered the words her son had said behind the shed.

“If you feel like it, could you at least put on some makeup? I want to experience something like ‘a woman dressing up for me’ at least once.”

“I have placed the medicine on the table. Not a poison, just a simple contraceptive pill. It has no side effects, so please take it as you wish.”

And finally,

“Do not bathe today under any circumstances.”

“…Crazy woman.”

Darine spat curses towards her own face reflected in the mirror, more despicable than her son who desired her.

The fact that she dressed up to please her son.

Taking contraceptive pills as if accepting her son’s advances.

Deliberately not bathing to seduce her son with her scent.

All of these seemed like a series of preparatory steps for a bitch to seduce a male, hence the hatred towards this weak woman who was crumbling more than the son who desired her.

She managed to hold back tears while gritting her teeth. Lately, tears flowed unexpectedly frequently. Why should a woman who had borne two children cry so pathetically?

Just let it be. Just let it be! She didn’t want to go crazy at this point, after enduring such difficult times for her children. Over such trivial matters…

Although the proposals were somewhat forced by her son, ultimately, it was herself who accepted them out of fear of retaliation. Darine felt self-loathing, wondering if she was a woman who crumbled so easily.

But if even her most precious son pushed her this far, it was natural for a mother to find it hard to keep her composure.

“But it’s frightening…”

Darine faced for the first time the “uncompassionate son” in front of her. She couldn’t even withstand a few seconds properly in front of a son who had turned into a complete beast. And she realized once again. Kael was a monster suppressing immense greed on a daily basis.

Perhaps, if she continued to ignore her son’s desires, she might end up having intercourse in the central hall where servants roamed. This wasn’t a delusion but a reality she instinctively felt when faced with the predatory gaze of a beast looking at her.

This kind of pressure and persistence was something she had never felt even towards her husband. Now, Darine found her son more terrifying and dreadful than lovable and cute. Yet, her love for her son did not diminish, making her agonize relentlessly.

Waiting aimlessly for time to pass didn’t seem like the right answer.

What would improve by tomorrow, or the day after that?

Even if her husband returned.

Even if her second son, Piree, returned.

How could she confess this vile incest to her family?

Ignoring it and accepting her son? That was unreasonable too. It would be a complete betrayal of her husband and daughter.

She was hurting as if she had been wounded by her son.

In turn, she would hurt her family.

‘What should I do, how, how… Aaargh!!!’

As the woman sat at the vanity, rolling her feet in agony, reliving the pain multiple times.

“…”

All the users had left, and a suffocating silence descended.

Darin, despite losing strength in various ways, resisted the encroaching fear. And once again, she urgently made a vow.

Today, it seems like her son is very angry, so she decided to just accept it. After all, he wouldn’t listen to her anyway.

Starting tomorrow, she would take a little break. Over the next few days and nights, she would somehow persuade her son.

And if even that persuasion didn’t work, then…

“Mother.”

Darin turned her head at the deep voice, her muscles tensing. Even though she hadn’t heard the sound of the window opening, he was already standing right in front of her. Despite his massive build, his ability to move without a sound was extraordinary.

Kaell, taken aback, looked at the woman blinking with a vacant expression. In a way, his figure resembled that of an inexperienced boy smitten by a mysterious lady.

Clad in a thin, red negligee with light makeup, the figure of unrequited love was so captivating that one would want to possess her even at the cost of a kingdom.

“You look incredibly beautiful.”

The man with an ecstatic expression whispered in a husky voice. His eyes held not only admiration but also the profound satisfaction of finally obtaining a long-desired treasure.

The son’s usually cold eyes, akin to the depths of the sea, now sparkled with admiration, softening his demeanor.

Darin gazed at her son in bewilderment. What was it about this woman that made him look at her with such poignant eyes? And as for today’s attire, compared to how other young ladies dressed up for dates, it fell short even of a fresh bloom.

She soon felt a pang of sadness. Her son was so easily swayed by a woman he loved, why did it have to be her of all people?

The elderly man approached the mother slowly. His gaze was fixed precisely on the girl’s lips. Illuminated by moonlight, her glistening lips seemed moist enough to absorb anything.

“You’ve applied lipstick.”

With affection, Darin blushed as her cheek met the warmth of her son’s gentle touch on her lower lip.

“…Do you like it that much?”

After hesitating several times, Darin finally managed to utter the question, prompting Kaell’s eyes to widen in surprise. Shortly after, the man smiled broadly and sincerely replied.

“Yes, more than anything in this world.”

This wasn’t merely praising the woman’s appearance. It conveyed the appreciation for the mother’s kindness in bothering to put on makeup for him, understanding his feelings.

How could Darin, his mother, not understand his sentiments?

Memories of the boy from his childhood occasionally surfaced in the features of the beastly face. Darin’s heart was gradually weakening.

“…”

Darin blinked at her son once again, wanting to grasp even a faint trace of the young boy. Yes, she wanted to feel the presence of the tiny angel she had fallen in love with.

“The one filling this man’s heart is none other than you, Mother.”

Tender yet somewhat tiresome, the man’s confession lingered in the woman’s ears.

“So I hope your heart is filled with me as well.”

It carried a dual meaning. Though spoken in the bedroom, it likely held a peculiar significance. The morning erection was about to burst forth; it was becoming quite embarrassing now.

Blushing, Darin lowered her head. It signified acceptance and readiness to embrace him. If her son was struggling with lovesickness, even this might need to be resolved by the mother.

The woman who had lost the opportunity of choice paused for a moment. She set aside right and wrong. Resisting now would only bring suffering in various ways. For her. And even for her son.

Swoosh— The man pushed aside the woman’s negligee and pushed her down. Darin convulsed but did not resist.

Her white thighs spread apart, the shallow bushes below them, tinged with a pink hue like that of a maiden, swelled thickly.

The man buried his face where the woman’s musky scent lingered.

“I will love only you forever,” he said.

Darin held hands with the son who was about to stab her in the chest.

And then, slowly closing her eyes.

She wrapped her legs around the beast’s waist.