Chapter 154 The Awakening
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
It was me… Luruna.
Something’s… off. It’s been quite a while since we came to serve our Lord, and yet—none of us have been taken to his bed. Not even once.
We all came here ready for it. Ready to offer ourselves if it meant protecting our parents’ and our kin’s interests. We’d steeled ourselves for that from the start. But Lord never ordered us to give him bedchamber service [T/N: “yotogi,” traditional term for attendants serving their lord sexually at night]. Not once.
At first, because he never even tried, we started wondering—was he… incapable down there? Maybe he preferred men? But… no. We’d caught him sneaking glances at our breasts and hips more than once, and once he even stared way too long at the cook Ms. Vanya’s enormous chest. So… definitely not that.
And then—worse—we ended up joining that strike the others started. Yes, that strike. Before even one of us had been taken as Lord’s woman.
Th-that’s not what it looks like, Lord!! We only joined because… because if we didn’t, our comrades might never help us when we’re in trouble later! It wasn’t to insult you, or to rebel, or anything like that, really!
…Of course, none of that would ever reach him. And maybe because of the strike, or maybe just because fate liked to laugh at us—he went and built an Automaton for cleaning the bath. Out of the newest Golem Technology. Like it was nothing.
Please stop, Lord! Please don’t! What are you planning to do to us, building something that’ll steal our jobs?!
He said it was just because “bath cleaning is hard work,” like he was being kind, but I knew better. Soon he’d toss us all out. He’d fire us. Dismiss us without ever even touching us. Do you have any idea how humiliating that would be?!
So… there’s only one path left. Tonight—I’ll march into Lord’s room myself!!
* * *
I was just about to sleep when there was a knock at my door. It was Luruna. I let her in, still not sure why she’d come, and she just sat down and asked, “Why won’t you take any of us as your women?”
…Honestly, she had a point.
In this otherworld, it wasn’t unusual at all for employers to have physical relationships with their maids or attendants. In fact, men in positions of power, like lords, could even assault their female servants and wouldn’t be blamed—instead, people would accuse the woman, say she had tempted him on purpose, call her a shameless slut trying to sell herself.
It was awful by my old world’s standards, but even in so-called advanced countries, people used to excuse that sort of thing not all that long ago. And there were still places—parts of the Middle East, parts of Africa—where people thought like that even now. So maybe… maybe I was the strange one here, for holding onto the values of my old world.
…Ah. I’d drifted off-topic.
The reason I hadn’t taken Luruna or the others as concubines was simple. In this world, taking a woman’s virginity meant you were expected to care for her—for life. That was the rule. Even if she had consented, even if you were her lord, if you took her and then didn’t provide for her, people would call you a disgrace. A man unfit to rule.
Here, like in my world’s medieval era, lords were expected to rush to the front lines when ordered, to be honorable and brave, clever and reliable, never late paying their soldiers, and even to sell off their own possessions if it meant feeding the poor. They were supposed to eat and drink like nobles too—hearty appetites showed strength.
So if you couldn’t afford to raise the children that might come from bedding a woman, you had no right to touch her in the first place. Not as a lord. Not as any man.
That was why I hadn’t laid a hand on Luruna or the others. Not until my finances were solid enough. (Okay, and because Sashima was always watching like a hawk…)
But now? Now my finances were finally strong. The yogurt-like drink I’d made—fermented from lactic acid bacteria found on Cornelian Cherry-like leaves in the morning mist, cultured in seaweed agar, and brewed in enamel tanks—was selling like crazy.
And ever since we’d figured out how to extract sugar from those beets I’d sent people searching for, we could even make it sweet. Even Sasami and Cocoa liked it now. (Although… it was starting to cause cavities, so spreading the idea of toothbrushing had become a new headache. But that was another problem entirely.)
The point is—I could support them now. If I wanted to take Luruna as mine, there was nothing stopping me anymore.
The only risk was Sashima glaring at me afterward. But honestly, if I didn’t gain experience with women before marrying a noble wife someday, I’d probably be laughed at. And hey, like the saying from Japan goes: “Not eating the meal set in front of you is a man’s shame,” right?
And then Luruna, tears glimmering in her eyes, looked up at me and whispered, “Or… am I not good enough for you?”
No. I couldn’t humiliate her. Not after she’d come this far. Not when she was looking at me like that. This wasn’t about desire. It was about being a gentleman. Yes. That was it. Totally.
”Okay,” I said at last, pulling her gently into my arms. “If you’re really sure… I’m happy, Luruna.”
Her eyes went wide. “Eh? You’ll really take me? I… I thought, since you made that bath-cleaning Automaton, we were already useless to you…” she murmured, leaning into my chest.
So I laid her down on the bed.
When I reached for her clothes, she flushed and mumbled, “Lord… please turn off the light… I’m embarrassed.”
Absolutely not. I wanted to see all of her, every part of her, in the light. “You’re beautiful,” I whispered as I kissed her bare skin, letting the words carry the mood as I explored her with my hands.
Her body was… breathtaking. Balanced and soft, yet her full breasts and round hips made her look all the more tempting.
As she grew ready, I steadied my breath, gripped her waist, and entered. She winced at first, but as the pain faded, her body began to move with mine—and soon I lost myself completely, spilling deep inside her warmth.
Each time we joined, her body changed. The tightness that had once guarded her like a blooming bud softened, melted, until her flesh clung to me as if begging for more. It was… incredible. So incredible that my mind even started wandering to Rilina and Nanari, wondering what they might feel like. Disgraceful thoughts. Shameful.
But I couldn’t help it. That first night with Luruna was too perfect.
By the time our third round ended, she was fast asleep, worn out and peaceful beside me. And as I stared at the ceiling in the quiet, slipping into saint mode, I thought, (What am I even thinking…? I’m such a disgrace as a person…)
…Of course, by the next day, that “shame” had evaporated completely.
And naturally, when Ayumu later caught himself grinning like an idiot while remembering the night, and Hiyori Sashima spotted his dopey lovesick face, she immediately shot him a look full of suspicion. Always trying so hard, yet somehow always tripping at the very end—that was Ayumu. Hopeless, adorable, and kind of pathetic.
Notes:
• Sashima – Family name of Hiyori. A quiet, caring girl from the library committee, empathetic toward Sanai. She followed as a Barrier Technique Adept.
• Hiyori Sashima – A quiet, caring girl from the library committee, empathetic toward Sanai.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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