When the Villains Unite - Chapter 18. Marriage (1)

“Rose, are you tired? Should we stop at an inn?”

“…No… It’s fine to just sleep here…”

Currently, I’m in a carriage headed to the Vidos estate with the Orca brothers. It hasn’t even been a week since I brought up the idea of traveling to Belhark, and here we are, leaving the mansion behind.

If the Empire is situated in the northern part of the continent, the Vidos estate lies along the southern coast. To get there, we’d need to cross three mountains. Driving the carriage non-stop, it would take five days to arrive. However, we decided to take a week to make the journey.

The reason for this leisurely pace was my suggestion: to refrain from using magic as much as possible and enjoy the charm of traveling the old-fashioned way. Belhark agreed to my idea without much comment.

Spending all day in the carriage left my body fatigued. I leaned against Damian’s shoulder, quietly listening to their cheerful chatter.

“The Emperor’s judgment in appointing someone like you as Captain of the Imperial Knights is seriously questionable.”

“Sis said I’m the only one fit for the position. Are you insulting Sis now, hyung?”

Most of their conversations were lighthearted squabbles like this. Even though their relationship had improved, they continued to engage in these petty power struggles.

Before I knew it, I had quietly closed my eyes. Even though the surroundings were noisy, closing my eyes gave me a strange sense of inner peace.

“Of course not. I’m going to marry Rose, Damian. You don’t even come close to my level.”

“What?! Marry her? Says who?! Sis, what’s this about?”

“…Didn’t we… all agree to get married together… last time…?”

When I nodded while keeping my eyes closed, Damian froze in shock. But at my mention of “all together,” he tilted his head in confusion.

“Rose, under Imperial law, you can only marry one person. Don’t you remember you promised to marry me last time?”

“…Huh…?”

“Stop making things up, Your Grace. Sis, I’ll treat you so well! Marry me, okay?”

At Damian’s words, a vein visibly bulged on Belhark’s forehead.

Honestly, keeping up with conversations while half-asleep wasn’t easy. I’d respond to what they said, but 80% of the time, I didn’t even know what I was talking about.

“Hah… Are you really going to marry this bratty pervert, Rose?”

“Who’s the one that looks normal on the outside but is full of perverted thoughts inside?”

I let their bickering wash over me. I felt like I was moments away from drifting into sleep.

They turned toward me when I mumbled, and both spoke at the same time.

“Who are you going to marry, Rose? Choose right now…”

“Huh…?”

“……”

“…The father… of my firstborn…?”

Oh, leave me alone already, you idiots…!

I mumbled a half-hearted reply as I closed my eyes, brushing them off. Their silence that followed was like a lullaby, and I quickly fell asleep.

But I never imagined that the words I mumbled in my half-asleep state would later cause such a huge stir.

We spent our days energetically exploring the Vidos estate, which was impressive for people who had stayed cooped up in the mansion for so long. Today, we were strolling along the beach—the pride of the Vidos territory.

The breeze blew past us, ruffling Belhark’s and Damian’s clothing, revealing glimpses of their skin.

Since the Vidos estate enjoyed perpetual summer, the locals dressed in light, often revealing outfits. And, well, there was certainly nothing wrong with that from a visual perspective—hehehe…

But for some reason, seeing other tourists ogling them annoyed me.

Regardless of my jealousy, the two of them had been fussing over me, trying to cover my waist and neck with cloth to shield me from the sun. But after I got irritated from the heat, we compromised at just covering my waist. This left my upper body somewhat exposed, revealing about half of my chest.

When you’re at the beach, of course, you have to get in the water!

Entranced by the sight of the shimmering blue sea, I dashed across the sandy shore without a second thought.

“Sis! You’re going to fall!”

“Rose, wait! Stop for a second!”

As if I was going to listen to them!

Ignoring their warnings, I kept running toward the water. Just then, someone grabbed my arm tightly, causing me to lose my footing. My body tilted toward the waves, and before I knew it, both I and the person holding me tumbled into the sea.

Belhark reacted swiftly, shifting his body to keep me from falling too hard, using his arm strength to lift me out of the water. Damian quickly stepped in to help steady me.

Belhark, however, ended up fully submerged in the water, his clothes soaked through.

Standing there, my eyes widened as I stared at his now-drenched, muscular frame. It was like looking at a masterpiece of art.

I swallowed hard at the sight of him. But it seemed I wasn’t the only one who noticed—cheers erupted from the surrounding crowd.

Stop looking! He’s my man!

“Sis, um… maybe since there are so many people here, how about we save the water play for back at the estate?”

“Oh… Oh, yeah. That sounds like a good idea.”

“I’ll go prepare the carriage.”

Belhark shook the water from his hair and stood in front of me. Flustered, I removed the cloth he had wrapped around my waist earlier that morning and instead draped it over his shoulders.

I thought I heard some disappointed sighs from the crowd nearby, but I ignored them as we headed toward the carriage together.

When I returned to the estate’s mansion, I found myself facing a dilemma—or perhaps, more of a playful quandary.

It suddenly struck me that in the two weeks since the trip began, I hadn’t shared any intimacy with the Orca brothers. Not once.

Amazing that I managed to hold out this long.

They must have intentionally restrained themselves to let me fully enjoy the trip. Not that they needed to…

Spending time tussling with them over the years had helped me build some stamina of my own. Maybe it was time to put the sightseeing on hold for tonight and indulge in a passionate evening with the brothers. Hehehe.

But my mischievous thoughts were quickly interrupted.

As the Orca brothers had recently entered politics, the newly elected lord of the Vidos estate personally welcomed us and led us to the largest mansion in the area.

The buildings, painted in shades of blue, blended harmoniously with the surrounding forest. Unlike the grandeur of a typical ducal residence, this mansion exuded a refreshing, coastal charm.

As soon as the mansion’s housekeeper finished preparing the pool, which we had requested in advance, the three of us wasted no time jumping in.

Since swimsuits weren’t a thing in this era, we entered the water in the same light, revealing outfits we had worn at the beach earlier. Naturally, our wet clothes clung to our bodies, leaving little to the imagination.

By now, I was used to showing my body to the Orca brothers, so I thought nothing of it and simply enjoyed swimming. But strangely, they both stood there frozen, making no move to join in. Were they holding themselves back too?

Noticing their gazes brimming with suppressed desire for the first time in what felt like ages, I decided to tease them a little.

With deliberate intent, I moved closer to them, pressing my now-soaked chest provocatively against their arms. Claiming I couldn’t swim, I clung to their necks, brushing against sensitive areas as if by accident.

While they initially played along with the water games, their faces quickly grew tense as my touch lingered. Soon, they began awkwardly pushing me toward each other, trying to escape the situation.

What the heck are they doing?

Before I could make sense of it, Belhark shoved me toward Damian, who caught me as if it was second nature. Confused and annoyed, I barely had time to react before I found myself being tossed back and forth between them.

Their strength was ridiculous—despite the distance between them, I was easily flung from one to the other, like a beach ball being passed over the waves.

At some point, the playful tossing turned into an impromptu game. Now they were just using me as a toy in their impromptu waterball match, leaving me utterly helpless as I got carried along with their antics.

“Ugh…!”

These crazy idiots…!

As I was once again thrown into Belhark’s arms, I clung tightly to his waist. Shooting him a tired and annoyed glare, I saw the carefree amusement on his face shift slightly as he realized his misstep.

Pushing my wet bangs back, I turned away with a clearly sulky expression and left the pool.

Was I the only one here who wanted to connect physically after all this time? Did I overestimate them, assuming they’d come at me like wild animals if I gave the slightest hint? Maybe I was the fool.

Ignoring their voices calling after me, I headed straight for the mansion.

“Ugh, how humiliating.”

Come to think of it, I’ve refused them before, but they’ve never denied me when I initiated things. Even earlier, when they were tossing me around, I noticed the way their muscles tensed and twitched whenever our skin brushed. It was as if they were suppressing their desires.

Why, though?

What reason could they possibly have for holding back now?

Since reconciling with them, we’d shared passionate nights several times—more intense and heated than before. So why, now that we were away from the prying eyes of the Empire, were they keeping things so chaste, stopping at just a kiss?

Seething with renewed frustration, I finished my shower and vigorously dried myself off with a towel. Tossing my change of clothes carelessly onto a nearby chair, I stepped out of the bathroom with only a towel loosely draped around my chest.

And there they were—the Orca brothers, just as I had expected.

Without sparing them a glance, I turned to grab the thin dress hanging on the back of a chair and slipped it over my still-damp body.

“Sis, are you mad…?”

“No? Not at all.”

Do I look like the kind of person who’d pout just because my attempt to seduce them failed?

Despite my words, the sharp glare I shot their way couldn’t have been more obvious.

“…Liar.”

Yeah, it’s a lie. So what?

Scoffing at his remark, I turned to leave the room. Or at least, I tried to.

Before I could take a step, an invisible force yanked me back, and I once again found myself in someone’s arms.

Of course, it was Belhark.

The promise of not using magic seemed to have completely slipped his mind, as he conveniently broke it whenever things didn’t go his way. My brows furrowed deeply at his blatant misuse of power.

“What the hell are you—mmph…!”

My words of protest were swallowed as his lips claimed mine.

The sudden kiss left me momentarily stunned, but as his skilled tongue danced against mine, I couldn’t help but melt into it.

The dampness of my hair disappeared in an instant, dried completely by his magic. Well, I suppose that was convenient.