Chapter 24
(Tonight is my only chance... If I'm going to do it, it has to be tonight...!)
On the night Reina arrived at the Duke Laurel family estate, Zabel Laurel, the duke's eldest son and Reina's brother-in-law, quietly slipped out of his room.
He carefully walked down the hallway, making sure his footsteps made no sound.
(I wanted to persuade her gently to stay if possible... but Carrot kept getting in the way so I couldn't get close...!)
Zabel had been trying to get Reina to stay at the Duke Laurel family estate so he could court her and make her his wife.
However, during dinner, after dinner, and even during bath time, his younger sister Carrot was always by Reina's side, leaving him no chance to talk to her.
Even though she had been fuming, saying things like 'I can't accept a Saint from a commoner background!' before meeting Reina, when did she get so attached to her sister-in-law?
(If it's come to this... then I have no choice but to force myself on her tonight and make her mine...!)
Zabel was currently heading toward the guest room where Reina was staying, intending to sneak into her bed.
Just to be clear... Zabel is usually well-mannered and gentlemanly. He's not the type to assault a woman on a whim.
The reason Zabel was about to do something so outrageous was because he was overwhelmed by Reina's otherworldly beauty... and because she was planning to leave for the Grand Shrine as early as tomorrow.
(Once she's in the Grand Shrine, meeting her will be difficult. And once she starts attending the academy, she'll have even less time to return to the estate. If I want to make her mine, I have to settle this tonight...!)
That was what Zabel thought... and in truth, he wasn't entirely wrong.
While Zabel was one of the romanceable characters in the game... he wasn't a student at the academy and only appeared on the outskirts of the scenario.
His only redeeming feature was his looks, and he had been added as a romanceable character through downloadable content.
If Zabel wanted to make Reina his, his only option was to create a fait accompli.
(Forgive me, Reina. And Carrot. Father, Mother... please forgive your foolish son...)
Zabel was driven mad by lust... but at his core, he was a good person.
He felt resistance toward the act of assaulting a woman, and he was conflicted about disappointing the parents and sister who trusted him.
Above all, the guilt of defiling the pure and innocent Reina through violence was immeasurable.
And yet, Zabel still wanted to make Reina his.
He couldn't stand the thought of her belonging to anyone else.
He had fallen so hard for Reina at first sight that if he couldn't have her, he wanted to pluck her away with his own hands.
(............This is it.)
Holding his breath, he arrived at one of the guest rooms. It was the room Reina had been lent.
No light leaked through the gap in the door. When he listened closely, he could hear faint breathing.
"............"
Zabel gulped and gripped the doorknob with trembling hands.
He slowly opened the door and stepped into the dark, silent room.
(First, cover her mouth, pin down her arms and legs, and then let things flow from there...)
His heart pounded like a bell from the tension.
Unfamiliar with such things, the man crept slowly toward the bed.
(I-It's fine. The book said it only hurts at first. So...!)
"I'm sorry. Reina...!"
He aimed carefully and reached out toward the bed.
And then... his palm touched something soft.
It was smooth like high-quality silk, yet squishy like it was stuffed with cotton.
It felt just like grabbing a plushie.
'Meow'
"............Huh?"
The 'Reina' he thought he'd grabbed let out a sound.
A sound just like a cat's meow.
"Fuguh..."
In the next moment, a powerful blow struck Zabel right in the groin.
It was an impact like being kicked by a horse.
Zabel experienced a pain unlike anything he'd ever felt before and passed out on the spot.
"W-What is the meaning of this?"
The next day, the maid who came to wake Reina found Zabel Laurel lying naked on the floor of the room.
Zabel was face-down with his butt sticking up toward the ceiling, surrounded by the shredded remains of his clothes, as if they'd been torn apart by sharp blades.
'Meow'
And... sitting contentedly on the bed was a large cat plushie.