Survival in Another World with My Mistress!, Volume 7, page 3
That’s not the answer I wanted to hear!
Sir Leonard shrugged, his cup filled with mead. “It is, in fact, okay. If you continue on your current course… Actually, you will most assuredly become the prince consort of the new Kingdom of Merinard. That means you should have as many children as you see fit.”
The small table we were sitting at was laden with mead and finely cut dried meats. They were the somewhat expensive kind that valued flavor over preservability.
“Isn’t that going to cause problems concerning the line of succession…?” I imagined a group of siblings waging a bloody war against each other for the crown. I didn’t want to see my own children participate in something so awful.
“You will only be the prince consort. You do not have the blood of the Merinard royal family flowing through your veins, so no matter how many children you father, the only ones that will have the right to succession are those birthed by Princess Sylphyel. You have nothing to fear. However…”
“However…?”
“It will present a major problem if the two of you fail to have a child. It is easier for a human and an elf to have a child compared to the other races, but elves in general do not conceive easily.”
“Are you telling me I need to work harder?”
“That is certainly part of it…but in addition, Princess Sylphyel is not the only person who carries the blood of the former royal family.”
“…Hey. Wait a second.” Was he telling me to have kids with her sisters?
“It is as you suspect. I believe eventually this will come to pass, so you had best prepare yourself now.”
“Whoa, hold on! That’s just going to create succession problems, like we talked about earlier!”
“The other princesses have said that they do not wish to have any succession rights in the new Kingdom of Merinard. However, at the end of the day, they possess the same blood as Princess Sylphyel. In the event that you and Her Majesty fail to have a child, you will have the option to adopt a child you conceived with one of the other princesses. It would be best to have multiple options, especially considering the very existence of Merinard will be on the line.”
“I-I mean, but… Wait a second. I object to the notion that elves don’t get pregnant easily. Serafeeta had four girls.”
“That is true,” he conceded. “Perhaps Lady Serafeeta is simply blessed with a fertile body. However, that does not change the fact that generally speaking, elves struggle to get pregnant. Since Princess Sylphyel is her daughter, perhaps she too might possess the same qualities… However, given recent history, I think it is fair to conclude that that is not the case.”
“Urgh…” I had no way of firing back. It was a fact that Sylphy and I hadn’t conceived a child yet. We weren’t using any sort of contraception, so if she had the same constitution as her mother, she should have been pregnant already. “…Say it ain’t so, Bernie.”
“My name is Leonard. And Kousuke, what did you do to Lady Serafeeta?”
“Huh? Er, nothing.” I found myself caught off guard by the sudden mention of Serafeeta. I hadn’t done anything. Nothing at all. I just comforted her a little is all.
“I have a pretty good eye for things, I’ll have you know. And I can tell she has the look of a woman who is drawn to a man.”
“Oh, shit.”
I had the feeling that was the case, but… No. I’m just being excessively self-conscious is all! Sir Leonard has no clue what he’s talking about! There’s no way that’s true. Definitely not.
Definitely.
“Though I suppose this is far more desirable than when she looked to be on the verge of taking her own life,” Sir Leonard mused. “First it was Her Majesty, then the saint, and now even Lady Serafeeta. Kousuke, are you giving off some sort of scent that draws high-class women to you? The other princesses seem attracted to you as well.”
“I’m not giving off sketchy pheromones, if that’s what you’re implying.” Though I had no clue why spirits, Lime and the others—and even faeries—were so fond of me.
I mean, I’m not giving off sketchy pheromones, right? …Right?!
I opened my menu and started poring over my achievements.
Technician: Satisfied your partner during copulation. Aren’t you good in bed? *Attacks against the opposite sex are increased by 10%.
Lady Killer: Become loved by over 20 members of the opposite sex. Nice boat, baby. *Attacks against the opposite sex are increased by 10%.
Hero: Kill 3,000 humanoids on your own. At this point, you’re more than just a killer, eh? *Allies within 100 meters of your position get an overall 10% power boost. Affinity level more easily increased.
Ladies’ Man: Perform intercourse with over twenty individuals of the opposite sex. Pretty soon, someone’s going to tell you, “How about you just drop dead!” *Raises your attack power against individuals of the opposite sex by 20%.
Dragon Slayer: Kill three dragons by yourself or make them submit. *Raises your attack power against dragons by 15%.
Creator of Death: Have 10,000 or more individuals murdered by weapons you created. Welcome, stranger…! *Raises the abilities of the weapons you craft by 10%.
Royal Killer: Draw the affections of three or more women of high birth. J-just kill me and be done with it! *Raises your attack power against high birth individuals of the opposite sex by 30%.
Madame Killer: Draw the affections of five women twenty-plus years older than yourself. You’re such a naughty boy! *Raises your attack power against women twenty-plus years older than you.
I didn’t recognize some of these achievements, but if the “attack power” they all referenced was meant in a romantic fashion, then didn’t this mean my effectiveness against Serafeeta was at, like, 100 percent or something?
The Hero achievement didn’t specify how much easier it was to raise affection, which meant that it might have multiplied my stats instead. In fact, it was possible that they all worked that way. All of these abilities were playing loosey goosey with their wording.
I decided to ignore the comments attached to them all. That was for the best.
In any case, if these achievements were all operating the way I suspected they were, then it meant that I could make a woman fall for me just by being a little kind or chatting with them, regardless of what my intentions were…
Someone get me the admin! This is a huge bug! If I unlock any other achievements like this, there’ll be no turning back!
“Okay, maybe you’re right about the pheromone thing.”
“I sincerely hope that scent of yours does not rub off on me,” Sir Leonard said, standing up and putting some distance between us.
“It’s not actually a scent!” I protested. “I swear! Don’t make it sound like I smell bad! You’re gonna hurt my feelings!”
“Bah ha ha ha, I was merely joking! Though things will be quite exhausting for you moving forward. Try to hang in there. At this point, there is no avoiding a life as a studhorse, Kousuke.”
“I really didn’t want to hear that…”
“You might as well enjoy yourself. You will be surrounded by beautiful women, what is there not to like? Consider how less popular men might feel if they heard you. They might even try to take your life.”
“Hah hah hah… Good luck to you too, Sir Leonard.”
I know all about your situation. The squad due to arrive soon is full of widows who are head over heels for you. You can act like romance isn’t your problem, but it won’t stay that way for long!
“I-I’m protecting the honor of my late wife,” he insisted.
“Face the facts, pal. You’re a nobleman with territory to your name. Not producing an heir just ain’t gonna happen. Good luck!”
“B-but I…”
“Good luck, my good fellow! I’ve got your back! Hell, I’ll even give you some medicine to help you out!”
You’re not getting away from me!
Chapter 2:
Nevertheless, Reality Refuses to Wait
“SO, WHAT’S THIS ALL ABOUT?”
Melty offered me a pained smile. “Hrm, well… Probably something like self-hatred? Or maybe she’s just sulking. The poor woman has nowhere to place her emotions right now.”
I’d pushed a whole bunch of quality aphrodisiacs onto Sir Leonard, then went back to Sylphy in my room…only to find her digging her head into a mountain of pillows, her ass up in the air. She’d even managed to fall asleep like that or something—she wasn’t moving at all.
“Does this have something to do with me?”
I had a really good hunch as to why she was acting like this: There was the whole Elen thing, and also the stuff with her sisters. If Sir Leonard was saying that stuff to me, then it was far too likely that all this had been discussed even before it reached my ears. Everything probably started from Doriada.
“There is no point in hiding things any further, so I’ll just give you the truth,” said Melty. “You are right. In the end, Sylphy is… We’re all pushing things onto you.”
“Things never quite work out the way you want them to,” I sighed.
“Indeed. But it is what it is, and you’ll have to deal with that. Good luck.”
“Haaah… I suppose I should start with digging out our princess here.”
“Allow me to help.”
And so the two of us dug the sulking future Queen of Merinard out from the mountain of pillows. She kept on stubbornly smooshing her face into one of the pillows without letting go, but whatever. We ended up carrying Sylphy to bed, then lying on both sides of her as she curled up into a ball and slept.
I gazed at her, face down in her pillow. “Man, I wish she’d lean on me a bit more, especially when she’s feeling down in the dumps like this,” I said with a pained smile.
“She’s in a rough spot,” said Melty. “It all makes sense given both of your positions, but it can’t be easy sending you off to other women.”
“Mm, yeah, I bet… If I were in her position, I don’t know if I’d be able to stand it all.” Just thinking about it was enough to nearly destroy me. It was incredible that Sylphy was holding up as well as she was, quite frankly.
“I know it’s supposed to be a show of honor for a man to wed many women, but for the wife, it’s a real struggle. Less time to spend with the man you love.”
“…And you’re one of the women I’m making feel bad…”
“I’m fine,” Melty insisted. “My little sister’s stuff is my stuff, even if we’re not really related.”
“Who are you, Jaian?”
Their relationship really was something of a mystery to me. They were technically in a lord-and-retainer sort of situation, but in private, Melty behaved a lot like Sylphy’s older sister. Given how long they’d probably been together, I’m sure they’d been through a lot.
“Anyway, today I’ll be playing with you, since Sylphy’s too busy sulking.”
“Why does it sound like I’m just a toy…?” I smirked painfully and shot a look at Melty where she was lying on the other side of Sylphy…but she wasn’t there anymore.
Before I could even blink, I felt a tiny gust of wind blow past me, then quickly realized that Melty was embracing me from behind.
What happened…? Man, she uses her insane physical abilities for the most pointless stuff.
“Hrm, but you know, I wouldn’t mind if you made me your plaything every now and then,” she hummed. “It is so very mysterious how at ease I feel when I’m close to you like this. I wonder why that is?”
“Beats me… Anyway, you wanna be my plaything? What does that even mean?”
I could never match her physically, so I always ended up in a passive position.
“How about this? Today, we’ll go at your pace, and you can do whatever you want to me. Now come here,” Melty said before moving away from my back and pulling at my shirt with her fingertips.
Come here? And then what? I thought as I rolled toward Melty to face her.
“Weren’t we trying to make Sylphy feel better because she’s down in the dumps? Isn’t this kind of devious?”
“It’s her fault for being so wishy-washy and getting sad instead of just letting you dote on her. Now come here, Kousuke. Strip me down as you see fit and have a taste,” Melty said with an alluring smile as she exposed her chest.
Grrr…
No matter how hard I tried to resist, I couldn’t look away.
“Aren’t you going to touch me?” she pressed.
“I mean, shouldn’t we be focusing on Sylphy right now?”
“She’s acting like a toddler, so just leave her be. Now come and play with me. You can have your way.”
Melty was basically entirely exposed at this point, her melties laid bare.
Boing.
Her tender pair of hills jiggled freely. Although she was lying down on her back, they somehow maintained their form. What was this magic? Was this what it meant to be an overlord?
“Come here, Kousuke. Here are your favorite breasts!”
“S-stop it! You know I can’t say no to that!”
With an aroused smile on her face, Melty shook her body, making the pink tips of her twin peaks jiggle at me.
Ah… They’re drawing me in… I can’t resist…
“…”
Incapable of resisting the gravitational pull of her giant mountains, I moved closer, only to feel something tug on my clothes.
I turned around and found Sylphy shooting me a resentful glare, her arm stretched out toward me and grabbing at my clothes. “…You traitor.”
“Stop taking it out on Kousuke,” Melty scolded her. “He tried to give you his time, and instead you closed yourself up.”
Before I could even realize it, Melty had gently but firmly grabbed my wrist. If she pulled me with such force, she would literally rip my arm off.
Please stop.
“If you like breasts so much, have your way with mine!” Sylphy scoffed. “Unlike Melty’s drooping tits, mine are still nice and firm.” She sat up energetically, and with one hand still gripping my clothes, she used her other to take her top off, freeing her chest.
Okay, yes, her breasts were incredible.
“How very rude. As you can see, my breasts aren’t droopy in the least! Right, Kousuke?”
Melty sat up as well, intentionally bouncing her breasts as much as she could. How could I possibly choose between the two of them? There was no inferiority or superiority when it came to breasts. Big, small… They were all deserving of respect. I wanted the two women here to understand that.
So please, calm down! I’m begging you! Gaaah!
***
Now that we’d beaten the Holy Kingdom’s army back, it would take some time before they returned home and their government could react to what had transpired here. The Liberation Army had to use that time to lay the groundwork to get the new Kingdom of Merinard up and running. The problem was that taking over an entire nation—or I guess in this case, reclaiming a nation—was no easy task.
Huh? What happened with the booby battle between Sylphy and Melty? Well, I’ve decided not to talk about that anymore. I just want you all to know that I nearly suffocated for the first time in ages. War… Nothing good can come out of war… But understand that it was awesome. I can say that much for certain.
Now, let’s get back to business.
At present, the Holy Kingdom’s army was in charge of maintaining public order within the borders, alongside a garrison of troops they’d put together from the people who lived here. According to what we heard, this garrison maintained the law and order in the towns and cities, and outside of those regions, on roads and the like, the Holy Kingdom’s forces took care of things. Or at least that was the case for the majority of the situations we heard about.
In terms of governing and rule, if the lords and governors were humans and swore loyalty to the Holy Kingdom, vowing to become believers of Adolism, they were allowed to continue their rule. In cases where the lords and governors were demi-humans or humans who refused to pledge loyalty, their areas were razed to the ground and the rulers were replaced with high-ranking Adolist faithful.
The human nobles with massive amounts of territory typically pledged loyalty to the Holy Kingdom and were allowed to continue governing under the supervision of a high-ranking clergyman. Demi-human nobles either had their entire families wiped out, or they disappeared.
Our first order of business was to get in touch with the remaining local rulers and have them pledge allegiance to the new Kingdom of Merinard. We would also need to offer them an under-the-table payoff after careful consideration. In the worst-case scenario, we could just say “the biggest merit to submission is that we don’t destroy you,” but I wasn’t sure what Sylphy was planning.
In order to be a fully formed nation, at the bare minimum you had to offer the citizens safety and guarantee they wouldn’t go hungry. Regardless of the particulars, you couldn’t just use violence to eliminate the current governing system then say, “Hey, all fixed now!” Or at least that’s how I felt about things.
If you took the way this world worked into account, it was actually the case that those with power were able to rule over others. On a personal level, however, I wanted to take a more measured approach.
“Our most pressing business right now is tending to the golem communicator information network, the harpy security network, and our defense network composed of our highly mobile airboards, huh…?” Sylphy mused. “We need to recruit more troops who can maintain public order, and if bandits and monsters are running amok, we have to take care of them too. There is a ton of work to be done.”
“We also need to reexamine the locations of fortresses and strongholds and consider repositioning them more efficiently,” said Melty. She turned to Ira. “Have you finished development on the new wide-range golem communicator?”
“Mm. We’re done developing communications equipment capable of processing multiple transmissions at once. If we combine that with the magic amplifiers that can broaden our communications range, we should be able to create a communications network that can cover a wide area… However, in order to mass-produce all of this in a short period of time, we’ll need Kousuke’s help. Making the cores takes time.”
Sir Leonard shrugged, his cup filled with mead. “It is, in fact, okay. If you continue on your current course… Actually, you will most assuredly become the prince consort of the new Kingdom of Merinard. That means you should have as many children as you see fit.”
The small table we were sitting at was laden with mead and finely cut dried meats. They were the somewhat expensive kind that valued flavor over preservability.
“Isn’t that going to cause problems concerning the line of succession…?” I imagined a group of siblings waging a bloody war against each other for the crown. I didn’t want to see my own children participate in something so awful.
“You will only be the prince consort. You do not have the blood of the Merinard royal family flowing through your veins, so no matter how many children you father, the only ones that will have the right to succession are those birthed by Princess Sylphyel. You have nothing to fear. However…”
“However…?”
“It will present a major problem if the two of you fail to have a child. It is easier for a human and an elf to have a child compared to the other races, but elves in general do not conceive easily.”
“Are you telling me I need to work harder?”
“That is certainly part of it…but in addition, Princess Sylphyel is not the only person who carries the blood of the former royal family.”
“…Hey. Wait a second.” Was he telling me to have kids with her sisters?
“It is as you suspect. I believe eventually this will come to pass, so you had best prepare yourself now.”
“Whoa, hold on! That’s just going to create succession problems, like we talked about earlier!”
“The other princesses have said that they do not wish to have any succession rights in the new Kingdom of Merinard. However, at the end of the day, they possess the same blood as Princess Sylphyel. In the event that you and Her Majesty fail to have a child, you will have the option to adopt a child you conceived with one of the other princesses. It would be best to have multiple options, especially considering the very existence of Merinard will be on the line.”
“I-I mean, but… Wait a second. I object to the notion that elves don’t get pregnant easily. Serafeeta had four girls.”
“That is true,” he conceded. “Perhaps Lady Serafeeta is simply blessed with a fertile body. However, that does not change the fact that generally speaking, elves struggle to get pregnant. Since Princess Sylphyel is her daughter, perhaps she too might possess the same qualities… However, given recent history, I think it is fair to conclude that that is not the case.”
“Urgh…” I had no way of firing back. It was a fact that Sylphy and I hadn’t conceived a child yet. We weren’t using any sort of contraception, so if she had the same constitution as her mother, she should have been pregnant already. “…Say it ain’t so, Bernie.”
“My name is Leonard. And Kousuke, what did you do to Lady Serafeeta?”
“Huh? Er, nothing.” I found myself caught off guard by the sudden mention of Serafeeta. I hadn’t done anything. Nothing at all. I just comforted her a little is all.
“I have a pretty good eye for things, I’ll have you know. And I can tell she has the look of a woman who is drawn to a man.”
“Oh, shit.”
I had the feeling that was the case, but… No. I’m just being excessively self-conscious is all! Sir Leonard has no clue what he’s talking about! There’s no way that’s true. Definitely not.
Definitely.
“Though I suppose this is far more desirable than when she looked to be on the verge of taking her own life,” Sir Leonard mused. “First it was Her Majesty, then the saint, and now even Lady Serafeeta. Kousuke, are you giving off some sort of scent that draws high-class women to you? The other princesses seem attracted to you as well.”
“I’m not giving off sketchy pheromones, if that’s what you’re implying.” Though I had no clue why spirits, Lime and the others—and even faeries—were so fond of me.
I mean, I’m not giving off sketchy pheromones, right? …Right?!
I opened my menu and started poring over my achievements.
Technician: Satisfied your partner during copulation. Aren’t you good in bed? *Attacks against the opposite sex are increased by 10%.
Lady Killer: Become loved by over 20 members of the opposite sex. Nice boat, baby. *Attacks against the opposite sex are increased by 10%.
Hero: Kill 3,000 humanoids on your own. At this point, you’re more than just a killer, eh? *Allies within 100 meters of your position get an overall 10% power boost. Affinity level more easily increased.
Ladies’ Man: Perform intercourse with over twenty individuals of the opposite sex. Pretty soon, someone’s going to tell you, “How about you just drop dead!” *Raises your attack power against individuals of the opposite sex by 20%.
Dragon Slayer: Kill three dragons by yourself or make them submit. *Raises your attack power against dragons by 15%.
Creator of Death: Have 10,000 or more individuals murdered by weapons you created. Welcome, stranger…! *Raises the abilities of the weapons you craft by 10%.
Royal Killer: Draw the affections of three or more women of high birth. J-just kill me and be done with it! *Raises your attack power against high birth individuals of the opposite sex by 30%.
Madame Killer: Draw the affections of five women twenty-plus years older than yourself. You’re such a naughty boy! *Raises your attack power against women twenty-plus years older than you.
I didn’t recognize some of these achievements, but if the “attack power” they all referenced was meant in a romantic fashion, then didn’t this mean my effectiveness against Serafeeta was at, like, 100 percent or something?
The Hero achievement didn’t specify how much easier it was to raise affection, which meant that it might have multiplied my stats instead. In fact, it was possible that they all worked that way. All of these abilities were playing loosey goosey with their wording.
I decided to ignore the comments attached to them all. That was for the best.
In any case, if these achievements were all operating the way I suspected they were, then it meant that I could make a woman fall for me just by being a little kind or chatting with them, regardless of what my intentions were…
Someone get me the admin! This is a huge bug! If I unlock any other achievements like this, there’ll be no turning back!
“Okay, maybe you’re right about the pheromone thing.”
“I sincerely hope that scent of yours does not rub off on me,” Sir Leonard said, standing up and putting some distance between us.
“It’s not actually a scent!” I protested. “I swear! Don’t make it sound like I smell bad! You’re gonna hurt my feelings!”
“Bah ha ha ha, I was merely joking! Though things will be quite exhausting for you moving forward. Try to hang in there. At this point, there is no avoiding a life as a studhorse, Kousuke.”
“I really didn’t want to hear that…”
“You might as well enjoy yourself. You will be surrounded by beautiful women, what is there not to like? Consider how less popular men might feel if they heard you. They might even try to take your life.”
“Hah hah hah… Good luck to you too, Sir Leonard.”
I know all about your situation. The squad due to arrive soon is full of widows who are head over heels for you. You can act like romance isn’t your problem, but it won’t stay that way for long!
“I-I’m protecting the honor of my late wife,” he insisted.
“Face the facts, pal. You’re a nobleman with territory to your name. Not producing an heir just ain’t gonna happen. Good luck!”
“B-but I…”
“Good luck, my good fellow! I’ve got your back! Hell, I’ll even give you some medicine to help you out!”
You’re not getting away from me!
Chapter 2:
Nevertheless, Reality Refuses to Wait
“SO, WHAT’S THIS ALL ABOUT?”
Melty offered me a pained smile. “Hrm, well… Probably something like self-hatred? Or maybe she’s just sulking. The poor woman has nowhere to place her emotions right now.”
I’d pushed a whole bunch of quality aphrodisiacs onto Sir Leonard, then went back to Sylphy in my room…only to find her digging her head into a mountain of pillows, her ass up in the air. She’d even managed to fall asleep like that or something—she wasn’t moving at all.
“Does this have something to do with me?”
I had a really good hunch as to why she was acting like this: There was the whole Elen thing, and also the stuff with her sisters. If Sir Leonard was saying that stuff to me, then it was far too likely that all this had been discussed even before it reached my ears. Everything probably started from Doriada.
“There is no point in hiding things any further, so I’ll just give you the truth,” said Melty. “You are right. In the end, Sylphy is… We’re all pushing things onto you.”
“Things never quite work out the way you want them to,” I sighed.
“Indeed. But it is what it is, and you’ll have to deal with that. Good luck.”
“Haaah… I suppose I should start with digging out our princess here.”
“Allow me to help.”
And so the two of us dug the sulking future Queen of Merinard out from the mountain of pillows. She kept on stubbornly smooshing her face into one of the pillows without letting go, but whatever. We ended up carrying Sylphy to bed, then lying on both sides of her as she curled up into a ball and slept.
I gazed at her, face down in her pillow. “Man, I wish she’d lean on me a bit more, especially when she’s feeling down in the dumps like this,” I said with a pained smile.
“She’s in a rough spot,” said Melty. “It all makes sense given both of your positions, but it can’t be easy sending you off to other women.”
“Mm, yeah, I bet… If I were in her position, I don’t know if I’d be able to stand it all.” Just thinking about it was enough to nearly destroy me. It was incredible that Sylphy was holding up as well as she was, quite frankly.
“I know it’s supposed to be a show of honor for a man to wed many women, but for the wife, it’s a real struggle. Less time to spend with the man you love.”
“…And you’re one of the women I’m making feel bad…”
“I’m fine,” Melty insisted. “My little sister’s stuff is my stuff, even if we’re not really related.”
“Who are you, Jaian?”
Their relationship really was something of a mystery to me. They were technically in a lord-and-retainer sort of situation, but in private, Melty behaved a lot like Sylphy’s older sister. Given how long they’d probably been together, I’m sure they’d been through a lot.
“Anyway, today I’ll be playing with you, since Sylphy’s too busy sulking.”
“Why does it sound like I’m just a toy…?” I smirked painfully and shot a look at Melty where she was lying on the other side of Sylphy…but she wasn’t there anymore.
Before I could even blink, I felt a tiny gust of wind blow past me, then quickly realized that Melty was embracing me from behind.
What happened…? Man, she uses her insane physical abilities for the most pointless stuff.
“Hrm, but you know, I wouldn’t mind if you made me your plaything every now and then,” she hummed. “It is so very mysterious how at ease I feel when I’m close to you like this. I wonder why that is?”
“Beats me… Anyway, you wanna be my plaything? What does that even mean?”
I could never match her physically, so I always ended up in a passive position.
“How about this? Today, we’ll go at your pace, and you can do whatever you want to me. Now come here,” Melty said before moving away from my back and pulling at my shirt with her fingertips.
Come here? And then what? I thought as I rolled toward Melty to face her.
“Weren’t we trying to make Sylphy feel better because she’s down in the dumps? Isn’t this kind of devious?”
“It’s her fault for being so wishy-washy and getting sad instead of just letting you dote on her. Now come here, Kousuke. Strip me down as you see fit and have a taste,” Melty said with an alluring smile as she exposed her chest.
Grrr…
No matter how hard I tried to resist, I couldn’t look away.
“Aren’t you going to touch me?” she pressed.
“I mean, shouldn’t we be focusing on Sylphy right now?”
“She’s acting like a toddler, so just leave her be. Now come and play with me. You can have your way.”
Melty was basically entirely exposed at this point, her melties laid bare.
Boing.
Her tender pair of hills jiggled freely. Although she was lying down on her back, they somehow maintained their form. What was this magic? Was this what it meant to be an overlord?
“Come here, Kousuke. Here are your favorite breasts!”
“S-stop it! You know I can’t say no to that!”
With an aroused smile on her face, Melty shook her body, making the pink tips of her twin peaks jiggle at me.
Ah… They’re drawing me in… I can’t resist…
“…”
Incapable of resisting the gravitational pull of her giant mountains, I moved closer, only to feel something tug on my clothes.
I turned around and found Sylphy shooting me a resentful glare, her arm stretched out toward me and grabbing at my clothes. “…You traitor.”
“Stop taking it out on Kousuke,” Melty scolded her. “He tried to give you his time, and instead you closed yourself up.”
Before I could even realize it, Melty had gently but firmly grabbed my wrist. If she pulled me with such force, she would literally rip my arm off.
Please stop.
“If you like breasts so much, have your way with mine!” Sylphy scoffed. “Unlike Melty’s drooping tits, mine are still nice and firm.” She sat up energetically, and with one hand still gripping my clothes, she used her other to take her top off, freeing her chest.
Okay, yes, her breasts were incredible.
“How very rude. As you can see, my breasts aren’t droopy in the least! Right, Kousuke?”
Melty sat up as well, intentionally bouncing her breasts as much as she could. How could I possibly choose between the two of them? There was no inferiority or superiority when it came to breasts. Big, small… They were all deserving of respect. I wanted the two women here to understand that.
So please, calm down! I’m begging you! Gaaah!
***
Now that we’d beaten the Holy Kingdom’s army back, it would take some time before they returned home and their government could react to what had transpired here. The Liberation Army had to use that time to lay the groundwork to get the new Kingdom of Merinard up and running. The problem was that taking over an entire nation—or I guess in this case, reclaiming a nation—was no easy task.
Huh? What happened with the booby battle between Sylphy and Melty? Well, I’ve decided not to talk about that anymore. I just want you all to know that I nearly suffocated for the first time in ages. War… Nothing good can come out of war… But understand that it was awesome. I can say that much for certain.
Now, let’s get back to business.
At present, the Holy Kingdom’s army was in charge of maintaining public order within the borders, alongside a garrison of troops they’d put together from the people who lived here. According to what we heard, this garrison maintained the law and order in the towns and cities, and outside of those regions, on roads and the like, the Holy Kingdom’s forces took care of things. Or at least that was the case for the majority of the situations we heard about.
In terms of governing and rule, if the lords and governors were humans and swore loyalty to the Holy Kingdom, vowing to become believers of Adolism, they were allowed to continue their rule. In cases where the lords and governors were demi-humans or humans who refused to pledge loyalty, their areas were razed to the ground and the rulers were replaced with high-ranking Adolist faithful.
The human nobles with massive amounts of territory typically pledged loyalty to the Holy Kingdom and were allowed to continue governing under the supervision of a high-ranking clergyman. Demi-human nobles either had their entire families wiped out, or they disappeared.
Our first order of business was to get in touch with the remaining local rulers and have them pledge allegiance to the new Kingdom of Merinard. We would also need to offer them an under-the-table payoff after careful consideration. In the worst-case scenario, we could just say “the biggest merit to submission is that we don’t destroy you,” but I wasn’t sure what Sylphy was planning.
In order to be a fully formed nation, at the bare minimum you had to offer the citizens safety and guarantee they wouldn’t go hungry. Regardless of the particulars, you couldn’t just use violence to eliminate the current governing system then say, “Hey, all fixed now!” Or at least that’s how I felt about things.
If you took the way this world worked into account, it was actually the case that those with power were able to rule over others. On a personal level, however, I wanted to take a more measured approach.
“Our most pressing business right now is tending to the golem communicator information network, the harpy security network, and our defense network composed of our highly mobile airboards, huh…?” Sylphy mused. “We need to recruit more troops who can maintain public order, and if bandits and monsters are running amok, we have to take care of them too. There is a ton of work to be done.”
“We also need to reexamine the locations of fortresses and strongholds and consider repositioning them more efficiently,” said Melty. She turned to Ira. “Have you finished development on the new wide-range golem communicator?”
“Mm. We’re done developing communications equipment capable of processing multiple transmissions at once. If we combine that with the magic amplifiers that can broaden our communications range, we should be able to create a communications network that can cover a wide area… However, in order to mass-produce all of this in a short period of time, we’ll need Kousuke’s help. Making the cores takes time.”
