Chapter 278: Back at the Embassy

On the carriage ride back I told Rudolf and Lily that Her Majesty the Queen would grant us a reward of five thousand gold coins. Rudolf went speechless, then burst into tears. A grown man, sobbing his heart out inside the carriage. Lily and I recoiled a little at the sight. Still, the fact that Rudolf would cry this hard told me just how heavily those debts had been weighing on him.

After crying himself out, Rudolf sat on the floor of the cramped carriage and bowed his head to me. Even on that narrow floor he folded his huge body down and sat.

"Lord Robin, thank you. I never dreamed the debts would be paid off this quickly... I had heard the wager was overwhelmingly against you. I thought the same. I never imagined you could win... Lord Robin, I could not bring myself to believe in Lily’s power. If I had known it would turn out like this, I wish I had at least bet ten gold coins myself... but I did not even have the leeway to spare ten gold coins..."

Rudolf looked ready to keep rambling, so I cut in.

"Rudolf, I get what you want to say. Tomorrow, once the gold comes in, go around and pay off the debts. If I come with you it would only make things awkward. Count von Kirchhoff in particular put a sizable sum on the line and lost it all. You can even tack on about a hundred gold coins when you repay him."

Rudolf’s eyes went wide at my words.

"Lord Robin, how generous!?"

"Well, yes, but we wrecked the count’s residence until it was barely recognizable. Handing over a little extra should be fine."

"That gentleman may look that way on the surface, but the seating fees collected from the spectators were apparently a considerable sum as well. For House Kirchhoff, it may not have been that grave a blow."

"Is that so? But Count von Kirchhoff lost to me. Wouldn’t that have ruined his face?"

"Apparently not quite. I heard someone say that, as far as Count von Kirchhoff is concerned, it was Division Head Hütter’s hired force that lost, not House Kirchhoff itself."

"I see... so his face was not ruined after all? Fine if that’s the case, but what a convenient interpretation."

"Still, the Duke of Vélez and the others who lost spectacularly on the wager will have a hard time. I hear some people even borrowed money to bet on Count von Kirchhoff."

"What!?"

Throwing borrowed money into a gamble. I could not understand that mindset. And how did Rudolf even know the Duke of Vélez had bet a fortune on Count von Kirchhoff instead of on me!?

Anyway, there was one more thing I had to discuss with Rudolf.

"His Majesty the King said today’s affair was very entertaining."

"That is wonderful."

"Yeah, that part is fine, but then he told me to show him again."

"What..."

Rudolf went speechless.

"What am I supposed to do?"

"I do not think it is feasible to ask it of you, Robbie, as a foreigner."

Lily spoke up as Rudolf and I sat at a loss. She was right, of course.

"You should consult someone from this country."

Obvious, but I would not have thought of it if she had not said it.

"Right. Tomorrow, when I see Her Majesty the Queen, I will ask her."

I thought that settled it, but Lily did not.

"You will be seeing Her Majesty tomorrow?"

"Yeah. I am supposed to receive the reward."

"My, then you cannot rest easy tonight. We have to prepare for tomorrow!"

Lily’s face went sharp and businesslike. Prepare what, exactly? Rudolf said nothing. Silence is golden. After a fight like that, I could not even rest properly. What kind of ordeal was this going to be? I would not call three shots in a row instant work, but the idea was I would just produce the stuff and then I could rest, right?

When we returned to the embassy, the staff were all awake and waiting. Given that their master had been fighting for his life, that was only natural, but it still made me happy that they had worried, waited, and then celebrated the victory. Rudolf’s wife, Carla, spoke for everyone.

"Lord Robin, congratulations! I am so glad you came home the winner."

If I had come back a loser, it would have been a bitter homecoming. Winning really had been the right call.

"It is late, so go to bed as you are. Tomorrow I will receive a celebratory gift from Her Majesty, so I can pass a little bonus around to everyone."

A cheer went up at that. Whatever the amount, getting money is always a joy.

"Lord Robin, a bath has been prepared. Would you like to wash off the sweat?"

Carla said that, so I answered,

"Ah, thank you. I will get in right away."

and headed straight for the bath. Typical of Carla’s attentiveness, she had already gotten it ready.

I was taking off my armor in the changing room when Lily came in still in her own armor, carrying my change of clothes. She had to be filthy too, right? Normally I would have expected Carla to bring the clothes, but Lily said,

"I will help you."

and deftly assisted me in removing the armor.

The smell of Lily’s sweat hit my nose. She was sweating too, and fairly dirty. The bath was mine alone, so no matter how long I took, I would not inconvenience anyone. Which meant that once the clothes came off, we were going to end up doing it.

Once she had stripped me completely, my thing stood up tall right in front of her. Without the slightest hesitation Lily took hold of it.

"My, how lively."

she said, looking pleased. She had not even taken off her armor yet, and already my son was in high spirits.

When Lily removed her armor, what was underneath was, of course, those unusual trousers. The trousers were fairly baggy. There was no such thing as women’s pants here (an unwritten rule said women ought to wear skirts), so Lily was wearing men’s trousers. The top was a man’s garment reused as well, so her chest strained against it.

She turned away so I would not see and started undoing her buttons. I wrapped my arms around her from behind. Of course I also pressed my son hard against her ass.

"We must not. I am dirty."

That was what Lily said, but did that mean it would be fine if she were not dirty?

Lily knew as well as I did that words like that meant nothing in a situation like this. I slid a hand around her belly and loosened her belt. She gave her ass a little wiggle, putting on a token show of refusal. I unfastened the belt and yanked her trousers down in one go. A white rear (rear fit better than ass here) was hidden by a white string thong. Hidden was a strong word. The underwear covered very little, and the upper half of her cleft was bare.

"We must not. I am dirty!"

Lily’s tone was weak. I did not even need to loosen the string. The underwear slid right down, and a flesh-colored slit peeked out, a sharp contrast against that white rear. Ahh, how sensual. My body already knew exactly where to put what. A scent rose. A fierce smell mixed with sweat, different from usual. There was her rear, and below it her lips were twitching. Honey was dripping from them.

"This kind of thing... we must not..."

Lily put up a token resistance. But she kept her rear turned toward me and did not change her posture.

"It is fine, Lily. Today is special."

Today is special. What a convenient phrase. All Lily needed was some explanation she could offer her own sense of morals. Because her rear was waiting. When I set the head against her entrance, the tip grew thoroughly wet, and her lower lips opened and closed, twitching. Hurry, hurry, they said, speaking her true feelings in defiance of her pretext.

"I understand... just for today."

How many "just for todays" there had already been, I did not know. Right now I pushed in. There was no resistance as I sank deep.

"Ah!"

Lily arched and cried out. The sensation of being wrapped made me shudder. She still had not taken anything else off. Her upper body was still clothed, her trousers bunched at her feet. The string thong had stopped at her knees. That only made it more arousing. Only Lily’s white rear looked out of place. When I pulled out and pushed back in, her inner lips came with me, then I shoved in again. My dark, glistening thing sinking into that white rear. Wet, filthy sounds echoed through the changing room. Lily clapped a hand over her mouth to keep from making noise. When I sped up my thrusts, her knees gave out and she dropped to all fours. Strength left her arms as well, and she pressed her face to the floor.

From between the fingers over her mouth came

"Uh, uh, uh"

as Lily climbed higher.

"Robbie, please! I am coming! Together! Ahhh!"

she cried out. Her rear trembled and her insides convulsed. I spilled the fluid I had been holding back to bursting, shooting it into Lily.