Title: I Finally Have You in My Grasp
Original: やっと君を手にすることが出来たんだ。
Author: みこと かなめ
Link: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n6737da/
Your name had no meaning, but then, at that moment, everything changed. The sequel to “I, I Would Like to Refuse” containing their first meeting and the aftermath.
For Cain, the young noble girl “Charlotte” was nothing more than “the Prime Minister’s daughter.” He was also aware that the Prime Minister was both an extremely loving husband and a devoted father based on the stories his parents told.
A month after the Prime Minister’s beloved wife fell ill, the news was brought upon the royal court one morning during a family breakfast.
“Mari has…” The fork in the King’s… Cain’s Father’s hand fell onto the table with an audible clang. His hands covered his face and his shoulders trembled. Cain could recall that the Prime Minister’s wife, Marielle, was like a childhood friend to his father.
“Your Majesty…” When his mother began weeping as well, Cain hurriedly got up from his chair and wiped her tears with a napkin.
“Thank you… Cain… Oh, Mari… Why…”
Cain made a gesture to the knight at this side. “I wish to sound the funeral toll for Marielle Schering. Is that permissible, Your Majesty?” Though members of the royal family were not allowed to attend the funeral of a vassal’s wife, they are, however, permitted to sound the funeral toll. Hearing the words of his son, Cain, the King silently nodded. That afternoon, the sound of a funeral toll echoed throughout the castle town, announcing the death of the Prime Minister’s wife and mourning her untimely passing.
It took several months before the Prime Minister was able to resume his regular government duties. An acting prime minister had been appointed, but in failing to understand the King’s ways, the administration remained stagnant. Opinions differed as to what the Prime Minister should do, there were those who believed that he should return to office as soon as possible and those who thought that it would be best for him to step down and return to his territory to rest and recuperate.
Citing the detriment his long absence may cause to the country, the Prime Minister sent a personal letter to the King stating that he wishes to “resign as Prime Minister.”However, the King disallowed it. When he learned that the source of the Prime Minister’s concern was his daughter, the King asked for her to be brought to the castle. After some back and forth, the Prime Minister finally relented and returned to his post as prime minister, with his daughter in tow.
When Cain learned of this, he was bitter. The Prime Minister’s abilities were undoubtedly excellent, and it was Cain’s hope that he would continue to support the King as Prime Minister. However, there was already discontentment growing on this matter and there was no guarantee that the added factor of having his daughter with him upon his return wouldn’t be a cause for… For future issues.
However, on this occasion, the aristocrats had no choice but to give in. No one could perform the job better than the present Prime Minister. Cain, not wanting there to be further disgruntlement, decided to favor the next generation—in other words, his own generation.
Favoring not the Schering family, but rather the Tora family, the next most powerful family after them. Fortunately for Cain, he and Jean of the Tora family were of the same age, and if things continue as they were, they would become schoolmates. It wouldn’t do any good for the Schering family to gain more power, either. Discord had to be minimized. Everything had to have a balance. And that continued to be Cain’s belief until this moment.
“Seriously! Cain, where have you been!” Cain was shocked by the voice. This was the stables, a place that his mother, Arely, the Queen, would never visit by herself.
In the morning, Cain was informed that the Prime Minister would be returning to office and introducing his daughter, Charlotte. Though to Cain, it was an annoyance, so he fled.
He had gone out a long ride in the morning and had just returned when his luck ran out and he was caught at the stables. As Cain tried to conjure up an excuse, the most inconceivable words could be heard coming from his mother. “I haven’t seen Charlotte!!!”
“Hah?”
According to Cain’s mother, she had been playing with Charlotte, together with the maidservants. Being the Queen and having duties to attend to, she left the room and left Charlotte with the maidservants. And within an hour, Charlotte had vanished from that room.
Charlotte was brought to bed after she said she was sleepy. A maidservant had stayed with her until she fell asleep before moving to the next room to sew. An hour later, when the maidservant tried to find Charlotte, she was nowhere to be seen, and immediately the Queen was notified… And that sums up the current situation.
“Have you told both the King and the Prime Minister?”
“They’ll get angry, so I don’t wanna.”
“Mother…” Cain sighed at his perpetually childish mother. There was nothing to be gained from butting heads. “Lady Charlotte was on the first floor, on the south side, wasn’t she? Couldn’t she have gone out into the courtyard? There’s a garden in that direction.”
The Queen clapped her hands together and said, “That’s it! That’s what I thought too!” and started sprinting. Her behavior was unbecoming of the Queen of a country, but despite reminders, she forgets almost immediately, apparently.
“Ah! Cain! You search too!!” With an order toward Cain, his mother left.
Cain decided to roam around and search for Lady Charlotte, in the meantime. She couldn’t have gone far… Kids love to play hide-and-seek…
Cain turns his feet to the greenhouse. How was Charlotte able to avoid detection? The answer was simple: hide. Adults tend to think far, but the answer tends to be surprisingly close. The greenhouse was just a short walk from the south-side room on the first floor. She could easily be hidden by the roses.
Cain opened the door slowly so as not to make any noise. As he walked along the paved pathway as passed by the central crimson-rose garden, his eyes caught the sight of something yellow. When Cain turned his eyes toward it, he saw a mass of yellow.
Upon closer inspection, Cain could see that it was soft, wavy golden hair. Hair long enough to touch the ground.
“Wh…o?” The yellow mass turned around.
And Cain’s heart skipped a beat.
The gold blob was a small girl with big purple eyes and tears streaming down her face, and there was only one little girl in this castle, and that was Charlotte Schering. “Mommy used to, always, read, books to me, during naptime…”
Charlotte did her best to explain, but she hit a block and choked on her words. Cain, who had never dealt with a little girl before, was a little perplexed as to what to do, but patiently, he comforted Charlotte and managed to stop her tears. However, when Cain inquired about the picture book she had in her hand, once again, Charlotte began crying.
Charlotte was holding a picture book that her mother used to read to her every time she went to bed. She wanted someone to read it to her during naptime today, but not how to ask, Charlotte pretended to be asleep. But, thinking that she was asleep, the maidservant instead left the room.
Charlotte was left alone, and lonely in an unfamiliar environment, she ran out of her room.
The assumption shouldn’t be made that at five years old, she would be able to sleep alone, Cain thought. Charlotte had just lost her mother, and her father was gutted with grief. Perhaps there was some element of selfishness. Cain gently stroked Charlotte’s hair and reached for the picture book that Charlotte was holding. When Charlotte was unsure what to do, Cain smiled and whispered, “Lend me the book.” and shyly, Charlotte held out her picture book to Cain.
“Once upon a time—”
Cain was quietly reading the picture book. Charlotte stared at Cain idly and began listening attentively. When Cain finished reading, Charlotte was peacefully asleep with a relieved look on her face. Her small right hand clutched the edge of his clothes and his chest tightened at the sight of the defenseless being before him.
‘She’s cute, I want to protect her, let me stay by her side forever’―If a meaning could be given to these emotions, it would be “love.” From that day forward, Cain began setting aside time in between studies to play with Charlotte and cherished her dearly. Charlotte, in-kind, began calling Cain “Big Brother” adoringly. As Charlotte slowly regained her liveliness and grew to be more beautiful, worries that she would leave started to grow. When his subtle attempts to keep other men away weren’t enough to quell his anxiety, he threatened the Prime Minister and… Requested that he agree to him taking her as his bride. And in this way, he laid the groundwork.
That little bud would soon become as lovely and beautiful as a rose in full bloom. It was a time that Cain was eagerly waiting for.
As Cain came of age, the issue of selecting the Crown Prince’s consort arose. When the present king… Cain’s father had failed to accept a single marriage proposal when approached by both domestic and foreign figures, the council decided to choose a bride for him. The result was a blitzkrieg marriage to the Queen and the creation of a formal “Political Marriage Procedure” by the council. Ultimately, it was a nuisance if anything else. Due to these formal procedures, Cain had several arranged marriages with noble ladies recommended by the council, a clear attempt by the council to meddle with the selection process. Moreover, Cain had been informed by Jean Tora, the next prime ministerial candidate, and his close confidant, that Charlotte would be excluded from the candidates. In the end, the two of them barged into the assembly to forcibly include her as one of the candidates, declaring that Cain would select his own bride at the ball.
However, Charlotte was nowhere to be seen at the ball, and the next day Charlotte spoke words he never expected to hear.
“I… Prince Cain, I would like to refuse…”
For a moment, Cain couldn’t understand what had happened. Charlotte’s cute mouth was telling him how she wasn’t good enough for him. But it wasn’t like that at all, he knew how hard Charlotte had worked on her etiquette, her study of foreign languages, and about the immense effect she puts into the things she does. He hated that she was talking down to herself. As the Crown Prince’s Princess Consort, all she truly needed to do was stay by his side and love him—
“Oh, Prince Cain, I’m sorry. I accidentally woke you up.”
As she spoke, a shawl was draped softly over his head. In front of him was Charlotte, his wife of one month.
Cain was taking a rest in the usual rose greenhouse, and then the next thing he knows, he had fallen asleep. Perhaps it was a dream that the roses had shown Cain, but it was a very nostalgic dream. They were seven and five years old, respectively, when they met for the first time in this greenhouse. Ten years had passed since then, and although they were still young in terms of age, Cain’s sense that Charlotte was finally in his grasp was strong.
“No… Thank you, Charl… Come closer, please.”
When Cain opened his arms to her, Charlotte fell into them without question despite her reddened face. Even though it was a common thing they did, Charlotte would look embarrassed every time. And that was cute and adorable. “Huhu, Prince Cain.”
“What has my Charl been doing today?”
“I had Countess Ember and others over for a tea party, and studied”
As the Crown Prince’s consort, Charlotte worked hard despite her inexperience, and she was well received by the ladies for her diligence.
Though they had been talking to each other about their day, Cain couldn’t resist Charlotte’s sweet scent any longer. When he gently stroked Charlotte’s décolleté area, Charlotte displayed a slight reaction. Taking that reaction as approval, Cain kissed Charlotte on the mouth.
In this rose greenhouse was a sofa for rest. It was a particularly large sofa and just the right size for two people to lie down on. Charlotte loved the greenhouse and often took naps there, so Cain had it custom-made. For Charlotte, it may have been a place to rest, but for Cain, it was a place to make love.
“Ah—! Prince Cain! No!”
Charlotte tried to wriggle away from the pleasure, but Cain’s hand prevented her from escaping. And almost as a form of punishment, Cain sucked Charlotte’s honey pot even harder.
“Noooo!!” Charlotte jumped up and went listless. Her eyes dripped with tears and her breathing was ragged.
“Cute. How many times have you come? Can you tell me?” Cain looked up from her honey pot, let out a slight chuckle, and spoke teasingly of Charlotte’s state.
“I… I don’t know…”
“’You won’t tell me? Then I’ll tell you…”
Without warning, Cain’s other half penetrated deep into the depths of the honey pot he had just sunk his head into.
“Ah, ah, ahhh—!”
“…It’s now three times, okay, Charl?” Cain moved in small increments, creating squelch noises in the process.
“I’m not ready… No!” Charlotte’s porcelain skin turned a slightly pink hue and tears welled up in her rounded eyes. Oh, how cute she, Cain thought. It was because of how cute she was that he wanted to tease her.
Lifting Charlotte’s body, Cain switched positions.
“Huah!” Charlotte moaned involuntarily when the connection between them deepened from the change in position. With Cain below her, he looked up toward Charlotte.
“Char, can you move?”
“Y-Yes.” Charlotte placed her hands on Cain’s chest and slowly began to move. With each little movement, Charlotte’s face was pained by the pleasure. “Ha…ahhh.” When Cain’s fingers gave Charlotte’s little secret bud a slight pinch, Charlotte climaxed moments too soon and collapsed onto Cain’s chest in a heap.
“Prince C-Cain… I… I’m sorry…”
It wasn’t just physiological tears; Charlotte was bursting into physical tears.
“Charl? What’s the matter?”
“I… I… I came a bunch.”
When Charlotte started sobbing, Cain’s mind stalled for a moment to think, but the second it was back, he only had one thought.
—How can someone possibly be this cute?
Cain couldn’t help but laugh at how out of sync they were when Charlotte apologized. As a man, it was his joy to have made her feel that good. The way her long golden hair stuck to her skin because of her sweat only exasperated his male parts. The stud inside Charlotte exerted its pressure against her as it swelled to the point of bursting.
“Hgh? It’s gotten bigger?”
Being told that made Cain embarrassed… It was the type of thing that would unknowingly provoke a man. How could he control himself when that was said to him? Charl didn’t understand the games between men and women and felt innocent guilt. While there was no one who would dare lay hands on the Crown Prince’s consort, it certainly wasn’t a bad idea to tell Jean and strengthen their personal situation.
“Prince Cain…”
“It makes me happy when you feel good, Charl. If anything, I want you to cum. Charl’s cute face is one that I wish I could see forever…” Cain thrust his hips up as he stroked her hair.
“Aahhhnnn!” Charlotte tried to pull her hips back to escape the pleasure, but Cain’s hands held her butt in place. Frustrated, Cain pinned Charlotte down, slamming his hips mercilessly and letting his hot heat burst inside her. As she slumped forth, Cain held Charlotte and forced himself deeper and deeper inside her.
“My cute Charl… We’ll always be together.”
Charlotte tried to leave Cain once. Now, after the marriage, she was the Crown Prince’s Princess Consort in both name and reality. However, anxiety would sometimes suddenly strike Cain when they were apart. Cain would wonder whether Charlotte was truly inside the castle, or if she would say she refused the marriage and leave the castle like before.
Cain understood that it was a ridiculous fantasy. Members of royalty were not allowed to divorce unless there were special circumstances. Charlotte would not be able to leave the castle. But despite all that, he worried.
The one time he felt reassured was when he was holding a sleeping Charlotte inside his arms.
As he gently ran his hand through Charlotte’s hair, Cain began muttering to himself. With the little strength she had, Charlotte couldn’t take more than a single embrace. Cain did feel guilt for his harsh treatment, but he couldn’t stop. After making love, he loved to stroke Charlotte’s hair while holding her in his arms. Because, after all—
“By doing this… It truly feels that I finally have you in my grasp.”
Thanks for the sequel!
Thanks!