The Whipping Maid of House Calley - Chapter 41

“Get lost.”

But contrary to his words, the hand gripping one of her forearms didn’t loosen. Sheila tried twisting her arm a little, but his grip was too strong for her to pull free.

“Um, if you’d please let go of my arm….”

I’ll get lost. I’ll get lost, so please, just let go of my arm…!

Right when she braced herself to yank her arm away and screamed inwardly for help, Cedric suddenly released her.

Thrown off balance, Sheila staggered and barely caught herself against the wall. Without meaning to, she turned her resentful eyes on Cedric.

What good is being handsome? His personality is trash.

Now that she looked closely, he wasn’t even that handsome. He just had a face that looked like it lacked humanity.

Fortunately, the tears that had been flowing in misery dried up completely. She couldn’t do anything about how red and swollen her eyes were, though.

Sheila gathered herself, straightened her wobbling body, and fixed her clothes. She did it to maintain the proper bearing expected of a maid working in the count’s mansion. But before she could even finish, Cedric walked past her as if he couldn’t care less.

Leaving behind only one sentence: Don’t show up in my sight if you can help it.

From then on, Sheila truly did her best to avoid Cedric’s eyes. She stuck to Judith’s room whenever possible and only walked paths where he was unlikely to appear. Even so, whenever they ran into each other by chance, Cedric always frowned at her.

Sheila had no idea what she’d done wrong. Yes, it might’ve been wrong to crash into the young master while running in the hallway….

Time passed, and she eventually forgot why Judith had beaten her so badly that day. But those two words from Cedric still remained vivid in her memory.

And to think that she and Cedric would end up doing something like that….

Seeing the old memory surface now, as she faced Cedric nearly every day, Sheila felt strangely unsettled.

Honestly, Cedric might not even remember a lowly maid like her at all. He might’ve forgotten that such a thing ever happened with a maid in the first place.

That thought finally calmed her for the first time today. As always, it was best to think of work as simply work. With her thoughts sorted, Sheila ignored Judith’s attitude and finished her duties without issue.

***

Alfonso was completely overwhelmed by the scale and grandeur of the palace, which was far greater than he’d imagined.

Cedric had probably been here several times for royal weddings and various ceremonies, but for Alfonso, this was the first time.

The former count, their grandfather, always favored the firstborn, Cedric. Since Alfonso was born only a year after Cedric, he made a point of emphasizing the difference between the eldest and the second son.

Well, it was no surprise. The previous count valued birth order so much that his own father, Bernard Calley, inherited the title simply because he was born the eldest.

If Bernard hadn’t become the count, Alfonso wouldn’t even have the status of being a second son of the count’s family.

Following the court attendant’s guidance, they walked down a wide corridor lined with famous paintings and luxurious ornaments. At the end of it appeared the reception room where they were to meet the crown prince.

The attendant opened the door and bowed deeply.

At last, the moment of facing the crown prince was right before him.

When Alfonso stepped inside, the crown prince was sitting on a sofa with his chin resting in his hand, studying a board game.

The crown prince, Marquis, who was said to have studied abroad at the same university as Cedric, was a well-built man with a masculine and strikingly attractive face.

Seeing the crown prince unmoving despite Alfonso’s arrival, Alfonso hesitated for a moment before quietly steadying his voice and offering his greeting.

“Alfonso Calley, second son of Count Bernard Calley, greets His Highness the Crown Prince Marquis.”

At Alfonso’s greeting, Marquis waved his hand dismissively. “Cut the formal greetings and sit. I happened to need someone to play with.”

Alfonso found the crown prince’s words somewhat rude. But just as he said, he took a seat across from him at the table.

“Have you ever played Tafl?”

Tafl was a strategic board game similar to chess.

The king started in the very center. If he teamed up with the eight defenders and escaped to any one of the fields at the edge of the board, he won. Conversely, the sixteen attackers won if they captured the king. It was a relatively simple game, known for finishing more quickly than chess.

“Yes, Your Highness. I’ve played it a few times when I was young.”

When Alfonso responded with full politeness, Marquis finally lifted his head and looked at Alfonso with an expression of interest.

“No need for that. Alfonso Calley, I’m practically ball‑buddies with Cedric. Let’s keep things easy.”

Calling Alfonso by name in such a familiar tone, Marquis deliberately glanced around the spacious reception room.

“It’s just the two of us here, isn’t it?”

Marquis grinned playfully. Alfonso forced his eyes into a polite smile in response.

Even if he was his brother’s friend, there was still an unbridgeable gap in status between the crown prince and the second son of a count.

Then again, were you supposed to call someone your ball‑buddy just because you studied abroad together as adults…? Well, they would’ve seen each other at palace events before that, of course.

“Since you’ve played before, there’s no need for an explanation. Alfonso, continue the game as the attacker. I was playing alone, and the attacker is in a slightly more favorable position, so I’ll let you take over.”

And just like that, Alfonso ended up playing a board game with the crown prince on their very first meeting.

“Most people prefer chess, but I find simple games like this more fun. They’re more intuitive, more primal, you could say.”

Seeing Alfonso still stiff and unable to relax despite being told to take it easy, Marquis added, “And just so you know, don’t go easy on me just because I’m the crown prince.”

“I’ll do my best, Your Highness.”

Against all expectations, the match lasted thirty full minutes.

As Marquis said, the attacker had a more advantageous layout, so even after Alfonso took over the board, he barely managed to fend him off before ultimately allowing the king to escape. Marquis won.

“Not a bad game.”

Alfonso, drenched in cold sweat for thirty minutes straight, finally let out a sigh of relief inwardly.

“Cedric used to beat me all the time, you know. And he did it knowing full well I was the crown prince.”

Despite saying there was no need to show mercy to the crown prince, Marquis looked extremely pleased with himself for winning. Alfonso felt his effort of humoring him had paid off.

“You and Cedric are a year apart in age, right?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Marquis studied Alfonso’s polite response with interest.

“Is Cedric the same way at home too?”

“If by that you mean annoyingly arrogant, then yes.”

At Alfonso’s answer, Marquis burst into hearty laughter.

“Guess brothers really do resemble each other.”

Alfonso had heard that many times. Even though the vibe they gave off was different, they were both tall, good‑looking, and carried themselves with the kind of lofty dignity that could almost seem arrogant. There were definitely more similarities than differences.

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

Although Alfonso didn’t particularly like being compared to his brother, he answered politely.

Marquis smirked and said, “Of course, you look far nobler than he does.”

“…?”

Alfonso immediately pictured Cedric. Anyone could see that Cedric possessed the most aristocratic bearing. Even if there was a natural degree of rivalry between brothers, Alfonso wasn’t the type to let emotion blind him to an objective fact.

Was there some other side of Cedric he didn’t know about?

For the first time in his life, Alfonso felt that suspicion.

“I’ve taken an interest in you. Let’s talk a bit more. Follow me.”

Marquis rose from his seat.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Alfonso set aside his thoughts and quickly followed the crown prince.

***

Under the flickering yellow glow of the gas lamp, Cedric stood with an aristocratic posture, carefully selecting items.

He was choosing which of the tools filling the punishment room he would use. The real training would begin now.

When it came to ‘training,’ Cedric was confident. His time spent abroad in club activities had not been wasted.

Club Elaina was a closed circle that not just anyone could enter. Without solid connections, no one could even approach this secretive club, though Cedric had no difficulty joining.

There, people with similar inclinations to Cedric gathered. A gathering of those with unusual sexual preferences.

Common people might laugh at it, but despite appearances, the club had a long history and tradition.

As long as humanity existed, sexuality existed, and beyond the ordinary acts of “caressing” and “penetration” between men and women, there had always been variants who felt sexual excitement in other realms.

Of course, Club Elaina didn’t accept just any deviant.

Even if their numbers were small, the varieties of such deviants were extremely wide. Setting aside moral issues regarding the different kinds of fetishes, there were categories improper for operating as a formal “club.”

In the end, Elaina’s members were narrowed down to those with tendencies of Bondage, Discipline, Dominance, Submission, Sadism, or Masochism.

Thus, they were referred to collectively as BDSM.

In Elaina, founded long ago by those with BDSM tendencies, status and social class meant nothing. Only the dynamic between partners determined hierarchy.

In other words, during the exploration phase—before choosing a partner—anyone, regardless of birth or rank, could stand as an equal.

Within that club, Cedric ruled like a king.

Given Cedric’s superior looks and brilliant mind, the fact that he’d taken the dominant role was merely a formality. Anyone with masochistic tendencies wanted to be Cedric’s partner at least once.

So Cedric had never doubted his own training skills for even a moment.

Which was why spending two whole hours pounding Sheila senseless had been an unfamiliar experience even for Cedric.

Even if he cleanly admitted to himself that he felt lust for the maid, he’d never imagined he would lose his composure and thrust into her to that extent.

‘Like a retard….’

Well, thanks to that, his lower body did feel relieved. And now that he’d had a taste, he was confident he wouldn’t lose control like that again.

After examining the items one by one, Cedric selected a few usable tools and set them on top of the dresser. Then he turned off the gas lamp and left the room.

Today was the day of lessons again, after two days.