Chapter 12

When Mike woke up again, he saw the deep red canopy and the golden bedposts.

This was Vincent's room.

The curtains were drawn, and it was unclear whether it was night or day. The candlelight barely flickered, and there was no breeze at all. Mike struggled to sit up, feeling dizzy and overheated, with his clothes soaked in sweat.

He looked down at himself and found he was wearing an extremely thin nightgown, almost too sheer to be called clothing. It seemed to be made of some lace and sheer fabric, reminiscent of a lady's veil or the hem of a dress. Mike lifted the covers and discovered it was quite long, like a woman's morning robe.

There were no pants.

Mike had no idea how long he had slept, but he still felt exhausted and didn't want to go back to sleep. He stood up; his body seemed to have been cleaned, but the sweat made him feel sticky and uncomfortable. He walked to the window and drew back the heavy curtains. The sunlight was too bright, hurting his eyes. Mike turned his head, squinting, and felt tears uncontrollably fall.

Someone suddenly knocked on the door outside.

"Who is it?" Mike asked warily.

"Mr. Roshar, it's me, Lacey."

Lacey was one of the maids of the Duke's household. Whenever Mike and Vincent had their trysts, the room was always left in a mess, something the servants couldn't ignore. Vincent didn't allow Mike to be too close to the male servants, so it was always a few maids who came to tidy up and serve.

Mike had met Lacey several times. She was a tall girl with brown hair, dark eyes, and skin, looking more like a farm girl than a maid. Mike wanted to let her in directly but realized he was in disarray, so he loudly asked about her purpose.

"The master sent me to bring you some things."

Mike sat back on the bed, covering himself with the quilt. Lacey brought in tea and pastries but no clothes. Mike asked her to prepare some hot water, as he wanted to clean himself.

Lacey withdrew again.

Mike ate a little without much appetite, feeling everything was tasteless. He opened the wardrobe to change his clothes, only to find it filled with thin women's clothing. He took a step back. This wasn't due to discovering any hidden secrets of Vincent's; Mike remembered that Vincent's wardrobe hadn't looked like this before.

This must have been done while he was unconscious.

A sudden sense of panic filled Mike's heart. He stepped back a few paces, then rushed to the wardrobe and began searching through it. Inside, there were corsets, morning gowns, and garters, many items he didn't recognize. Each piece was exquisite, some even encrusted with pearls and gems.

A terrifying thought crept into Mike's mind. He stopped and leaned against the wardrobe, breathing heavily. Then he stood up and walked to the door, trying the handle.

It was locked.

Now, he could only wait for Lacey to come back.

However, Mike didn't get any definite information from Lacey.

He requested clothes, and Lacey said everything in the wardrobe was at his disposal. He asked to see Vincent, and Lacey said the master was not at home.

Mike pressed his lips together, looking seriously at Lacey. The maid remained unflustered, respectful, and unyielding.

"The master will return soon. Please wait patiently."

"And if I want to leave?"

"I'm sorry."

But Mike didn't feel any apology from her.

He sent Lacey away. After cleaning himself briefly, he chose a relatively thicker piece of clothing from the wardrobe. It was a dark-colored robe, made of silk, which felt smooth and carried an ambiguous coolness when wrapped around him.

Silk was an expensive material, mostly produced in the East and rarely seen in Hope Town. Here, ladies' morning gowns were mostly made of cotton and linen, and even during the social season, their dresses rarely used silk. Due to the high cost of making formal dresses, Susan and others often only ordered simple ready-made clothes from tailors and then sewed on intricate lace themselves.

Although such practices seemed extremely impoverished for nobles, many young and poor ladies had few other choices.

Mike touched the fabric on his body, gaining a new understanding of the Duke's wealth.

Wealth, status, a handsome face, and a deep, pleasing voice when speaking sweet words.

These created a perfect illusion that made ladies flock to Vincent. Thus, even now, Mike did not feel much humiliation or fear of being imprisoned. After all, nobles were always hypocritical.

It was more real than those empty, rumored affections.

But Mike had no interest in this aristocratic game.

He stayed calmly in the room. If he needed anything, he rang the bell, and a maid would naturally come to serve him. Although he was not allowed to leave, a respected gentleman could not disappear for long without anyone noticing. Therefore, Vincent couldn't keep him locked up forever.

On the second evening, Vincent pushed open the door to the room. He seemed to have just returned from outside, carrying the heat of the day with him. His shirt was soaked with sweat, and he looked more like a young farmer than a noble. When he saw Mike, his eyes suddenly lit up. He quickly walked over to Mike, scooped him up, and lifted him high, as if he were a little girl.

Mike swallowed his scream, keeping it lodged in his throat.

"You're so beautiful..." The young man lifted him onto the table, his fingers sliding up the empty hem into the space between his legs."Like the serpent in Eden, teaching them about shame and sin."

The scent emanating from him was intense, a mix of sweat and perfume that could only be described as unpleasant, reminiscent of animals in heat, a primal, masculine smell. He loomed over Mike, his scorching palms pressed against Mike's flesh, almost burning him. His eyes were so blue, so bright, staring deeply, fixated, as if they could see right through Mike's heart.

He was an incredibly charismatic man.

A strong sense of being controlled swept over Mike, yet it didn't disgust him. He wants me. The thought appeared in Mike's mind, proud and self-satisfied. He even couldn't help but arch his back, letting Vincent touch him deeper, harder.

Desire had been ignited, calmness abandoned. This w s original sin, yet also a gift.