The Sand Bride - Chapter 58

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With the gentle sound of flowing water, a cool breeze caressed her nape.

Esther sat perched on a chair, swinging her legs. The chair, carved from precious stone, was hard, yet warmed by the sunlight, it somehow gave her a comfortable feeling. Even as she swung her legs like a child on a picnic, Esther couldn’t stop constantly surveying her surroundings.

It had been so long since she’d been outside. Karzhen had taken her out before, but she had immediately boarded a carriage upon leaving her room, so this was her first time being outside, bathed in sunlight, like this.

The royal garden of Gharyam, unlike those of the southeastern nations, wasn’t composed of abundant greenery and vibrant flowers, but instead featured magnificent sculptures carved from rare stones, ponds, waterways, and fountains symbolizing privilege, and a few exquisite flowering plants that subtly adorned the spaces between them.

If one wished to see more flowers and trees, one could go to the greenhouse provided on one side, but that greenhouse had become a hushed and avoided place since Hemor, the eldest daughter, committed suicide.

Of course, Esther didn’t even know such a greenhouse existed; she merely stayed there because Karzhen had permitted her to meet Bianca there.

Two days prior, unable to endure it any longer, Esther had openly asked about her father’s letters. Karzhen, with a stern face, told her that he was very busy right now and didn’t have time to play delivery boy. His tone was brusque.

“How about you ask him while you’re in bed?”

A servant, who was drying Esther’s drooping hair, softly offered advice.

“In bed?”

“It’s Sayar’s most pleasurable time.”

Esther asked back with a bewildered expression, then, upon the servant’s reply, she finally understood.

Her eyes reddened, but if the number of letters from her father could increase by just one more, it seemed worth doing anything. She decided to follow the servant’s advice.

‘Ha…….’

That night, as Karzhen, who, as always, freely caressed Esther’s body, rubbed his c**k against her p***y.

“Hnggh……!”

As Karzhen’s large c**k approached her sensitive crotch, Esther hesitated for a long time, then, as if making up her mind, she squeezed her eyes shut and wrapped her legs around Karzhen’s waist. Then, she lifted her a*s and ground her p***y against the veiny shaft of his c**k.

At her bold response, Karzhen stared at Esther with surprised eyes for a moment before hastily adjusting his position. But before his head could push into her, Esther unwrapped her legs from his waist and twisted her lower body to the side.

Karzhen’s c**k slid inside her inner thigh and slipped out. Karzhen groaned lowly. Between Esther’s clasped legs, her swollen p***y and its parted slit were visible.

Karzhen, thinking she was feigning a shy protest, casually tried to push between her legs, but Esther, who had been fully lying down, abruptly sat up. At this, Karzhen growled in a low tone, his frustration about to burst.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“If you get the letter…….”

Esther, intimidated by Karzhen’s reprimand, stammered on.

“Then I’ll…… do it.”

“What?”

At her words, which seemed deliberately aimed at extorting a letter just before insertion, Karzhen’s face went blank for a moment.

“Are you trying to give me a pillow talk bribe right now?”

Esther blushed but didn’t open her clasped legs. Karzhen raised an eyebrow and looked down at Esther with eyes that seemed to behold the most outrageous thing in the world. Esther turned her face away.

“This really…….”

Karzhen tried to act composed, but his mouth was parched with impatience. His d**k was already stiff and throbbing.

He could have taken her by force if he wanted to. He could have simply gripped her ankles, which were easily held in one hand, and spread her legs wide. But for some reason, Karzhen found himself reluctant to do so. He wanted Esther’s limbs to cling tightly to his body rather than dangle like a rag doll.

Esther, sensing Karzhen’s inner conflict, offered her own compromise.

“Or…… at least tell me how my father is.”

“What exactly do you want to hear……?”

“Has Father recovered a lot? When can he fully recover……?”

Karzhen felt uncomfortable meeting Esther’s intense gaze. Esther was looking at him with eyes so clear it was hard to believe she had been writhing so wantonly beneath him just moments ago.

To tell the truth, Esther’s father was beyond hope. Karzhen hadn’t given Esther letters recently not because he didn’t want to, but because there were no letters to deliver.

The last time he checked, a report had simply come in that Esther’s father was already dying and lacked the strength to write letters. But if he told her the truth, Esther would surely not only refuse to open her legs but would also faint from crying and insist on seeing her father.

“Your father is doing well.”

Karzhen casually uttered a lie.

“I just haven’t been able to bring the letters because I’m busy. So, if you ask for letters one more time, I’ll stop all medicine and doctors.”

“Yes, yes……! I—I won’t do that anymore…….”

And he cut off any further words. At his almost threatening reprimand, Esther hastily nodded and fell silent. But even with such a blunt and harsh reply, Esther felt a sense of relief and loosened the grip on her clasped legs.

When the answer she so desperately wanted to believe came, she placed blind faith in Karzhen’s words.

Seeing Esther, who seemed to naively believe his words, Karzhen felt a strange emotion he never expected to have in his life. It was a pang of conscience.

However, as Esther hesitated and slightly parted her legs, the fingernail-sized pang of conscience easily vanished, and Karzhen, as if making up for lost time, eagerly mounted Esther.