I decided to leave my bed.

Lying there any longer felt pointless.

My eyes had been shut for who knows how long, and yet sleep refused to come. It was the kind of stubborn wakefulness that made you more aware of your own breathing, your own thoughts, as well as your own frustration. Trying harder just made it worse, like forcing something that clearly wasn't going to happen. At some point, it stopped being about rest and started feeling like a waste of time.

Since I couldn't sleep, there was no reason to keep pretending that I could.

That was why I chose to get up, pushing the covers aside and sitting at the edge of the bed for a moment before standing. The floor felt slightly cold against my feet. Fresh air sounded like a better idea than suffocating in my own thoughts, so I decided to step out.

The castle tonight felt… unusually quiet.

Quiet in a way that almost felt unnatural, like the silence itself was listening. Then again, it made sense. Based on my own sense of time, it had to be well past midnight. Maybe an hour or two more, and the sun would start creeping up again. Most people would be asleep at this hour, deep in their dreams, completely unaware of how still everything felt.

Still, it was strange.

Even though my body felt tired, my mind refused to settle. It was like something was keeping me awake, though I couldn't quite tell what. There wasn't any clear reason as well as no obvious cause. Just that lingering feeling that sleep wasn't an option tonight.

With nothing else to do, I started walking through the castle hallways.

My footsteps were soft, echoing faintly against the stone walls. The air was cool, carrying that faint scent of the night that always seemed to seep into old buildings. Each step felt slow, almost careful, like I didn't want to disturb the silence too much.

That was when I heard it.

A sound.

Something I probably wasn't meant to hear.

It came from Myrcella's room. More specifically, the royal chamber. The King's room. Even though I had become the King's wife and had even taken on the role of a temporary ruler of Milham, I had never actually slept in that room myself.

I slowed down as I approached.

The door was slightly open. Just a small gap. Barely noticeable unless you were paying attention. Enough for sound to slip through, though. If it had been fully closed, I wouldn't have heard anything at all.

"NNhhaa…~ Ahhh… It feels so good…~ I'm melting from pleasure… Nnhahaaaaa…~~!!!"

The sound hit me all at once.

It was loud enough to be clear, but soft enough to feel private.

And it was Myrcella's voice.

Right now, she and Leon were probably… doing it.

The thought alone made my face heat up instantly. It was embarrassing, even just thinking about it.

Still, it was natural.

They were both adults, in a relationship. Nothing strange about that. If anything, it was expected. And from what I had seen, Leon seemed like a decent man. Someone reliable. Someone who could stand beside her properly.

I should leave.

That was the reasonable thing to do. Just walk away and give them their privacy.

I was about to do exactly that, but then another sound stopped me.

"Nnhaa…~ It's inside me now…~ Nnghhh…!"

I froze.

That voice…

That wasn't Myrcella.

That sounded like the Commander.

"Nnhhaa…~ Ah, ahhhnghh…! Ah…! Ah, amazing… It feels good…~ Nghhh, ahhhngh, ahhh…!"

There was no mistaking it now. She was moaning, her voice trembling slightly, filled with something I couldn't ignore.

Before I could even process that properly, another voice joined in.

"Ahhh… Leon…~ Ahhhngh, ahhh…! Ahhnnnghhh…~"

Another woman.

At that point, curiosity got the better of me.

It wasn't even a decision anymore. My body moved on its own as I leaned closer to the door, careful not to make any noise. Slowly, I brought my eye to the small gap, peeking inside.

Despite my age, despite having two children, I had never actually experienced anything like this myself.

The only knowledge I had about sex came from lessons I was given before marrying the King. Techniques, explanations, things I was supposed to understand as his future wife. In the end, it all turned out to be useless, since nothing ever happened between us. Still, the knowledge stayed, even if it was only theoretical.

But what I saw now…

The moment I looked inside, my hand instinctively flew to my mouth, covering it as my eyes widened.

"You really are amazing, Leon. Doing all three of us at once, and you're not even tired. How many rounds have we done already?" Myrcella said, her voice filled with admiration, almost playful.

She was above the other two women, who were beneath her, while Leon was behind them, moving continuously without stopping.

His penis moved in a steady rhythm, going in and out of the woman at the bottom. At the same time, his fingers worked through the Commander, while his tongue moved against Myrcella.

It was overwhelming to take in all at once.

This wasn't something I had been taught. Nothing even close to this had ever been mentioned in my lessons. It felt excessive, almost unreal, like something that didn't belong in the kind of knowledge I had received.

I blinked.

Once.

Twice.

Just to make sure I wasn't imagining it.

But it didn't change.

I was really seeing them having sex.

I swallowed without thinking, my throat suddenly dry.

For some reason, I couldn't look away.

It wasn't something I would normally see. It was new and completely unfamiliar. And somehow, that made it hard to turn away. My body started to feel warm, a slow heat spreading through me in a way I didn't quite understand.

I kept watching.

My thighs pressed together without me realizing it at first, my breathing becoming heavier as I stayed there, frozen in place.

What am I doing?

The thought came, but it didn't stop me.

This was my daughter's private moment. I shouldn't be here. I shouldn't be watching something like this. It wasn't right.

And yet, my eyes stayed fixed on the scene.

Seeing Leon move the way he did, thrusting into all three of them, something stirred inside me. Something unfamiliar, something I hadn't felt before, slowly waking up.

It was confusing.

And very uncomfortable.

And yet, impossible to ignore.

Time passed without me noticing how long I had been standing there.

Eventually, I forced myself to step back.

My body felt tense as I pulled away from the door, my hand still near my mouth as if that would somehow erase what I had just seen.

Then I turned and hurried off, my steps quick, almost clumsy.

I ran like a dog with its tail tucked between its legs, trying to put distance between myself and that room as fast as possible.