Chapter 455 Captive
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
(Romy’s POV)
”Looks like you listened to what I said. ── I’ll take my time to cherish you later.”
Led by the female swordsman who defeated Ms. Shinobu, I entered Bolt’s hideout and was thrown into a separate room away from Ms. Sasha.
(I wonder if Ms. Shinobu is okay…)
She had a terrible wound in her stomach.
The bleeding was excessive.
(It’s all… my fault…)
In a little while… I’ll likely be marked by Bolt with a ‘crotch tattoo.’
And then──
(Once again, I’ll be forced into submission… cemented in place… this time I guess I’ll have to obey him body and soul.)
This is punishment.
A divine retribution for betraying my precious ‘family.’
No matter how terrible it is, I have to willingly accept it.
(I don’t care about myself. But if this keeps going, Ms. Sasha and Ms. Della will…)
Their goal is to expand their influence in this Raetia.
They kidnapped Ms. Sasha and Ms. Della to suck the ‘sweet juice’ from the rapidly developing Raetia.
(Ms. Sasha controls the ‘official economy’ of Raetia; Ms. Della oversees the ‘underground economy’…)
I sit on the makeshift bed placed in the room and think.
Of course, the two won’t yield to Bolt’s threats.
Just──
(They’ll probably force the two to swallow their demands anyway…)
For Bolt and his group, it doesn’t matter whether the two comply or resist.
(In any case, they’ll use ‘slave marks’ or ‘crotch tattoos’ to make them obey…)
Thinking about that, there’s simply no time left.
Even if I try to help somehow, if Bolt finds out, I’ll have to obey them due to the power of the ‘slave mark.’
(I guess there’s nothing I can do…)
I collapsed onto the bed, staring at the ‘Clan’s bracelet’ on my left wrist.
A precious comrade──proof of family.
I’m not a comrade or family anymore, but… I want to cherish this until death.
(Because of this, Mr. Hiroya will undoubtedly come to help!)
Remembering the meaning of the bracelet, I instinctively jumped up from the bed and caressed it on my wrist.
What I need to do now is ‘buy time’.
To avoid getting ‘slave mark’ engraved by Ms. Sasha and Ms. Della, I must convince them not to oppose them.
I knocked on the locked door from the inside to talk to Bolt.
* * *
”What? You’ll cooperate?”
Bolt looked at me suspiciously.
Of course, he’d find it hard to trust me.
”I’ll persuade them to enter a business pact with us.”
Having the ‘slave mark’ on me, I can’t lie to Bolt. However, what I said was ‘the bare minimum truth’. I didn’t lie.
”That’s appreciated, but… what’s the real reason?”
”For me, those people are ‘important’, so I don’t want you to push it.”
That’s also true. But if I’m asked the same thing again──
(‘I don’t want to answer ‘buying time’. So… please don’t ask more…)
”Hmm… well, you can’t lie to me. I’ll trust you.”
When Bolt gestured to the man behind him, the man nodded and led me to the room where they were confined.
* * *
”So… Ms. Romy wants us to contract with that man?”
”More like, I want you to extend the talk on the premise of a contract.”
I was persuading Ms. Sasha, sitting across from me at a simple table set.
”It’s likely those guys will demand ‘business rights transfer’ from me, and an outrageous ‘protection fee’ from Ms. Sasha… Should we accept that?”
Ms. Della, sitting next to Ms. Sasha, looked at me with a stern gaze.
”I want you to talk on the premise of ‘accepting’, so we can buy some time.”
In a low voice, but determined to persuade both of them, I poured my heart into my words.
”If you refuse from the start… both Ms. Sasha and Ms. Della will have the ‘slave mark’ engraved, and you’ll be enslaved to that guy. Maybe even a ‘crotch tattoo’ too…”
At my words, the expressions of the two stiffen.
”That’s… a chilling story…”
”I belong to Mr. Hiroya, after all… I must avoid it even at the cost of my life…”
Ms. Della and Ms. Sasha exchange glances and nod.
”So… we should buy time by negotiating the conditions, right?”
At Ms. Sasha’s question, I nod as well.
”Mr. Hiroya will definitely come to help. Until then, let’s hang in there…”
Then, the door to the room was thrown open violently.
”Have you finished persuading, Romy?”
Bolt appeared, bringing along Baron Wal and Giacomo.
”Yeah. You handle the negotiations from here.”
I stood up and distanced myself from Ms. Sasha and Ms. Della.
”Hey!”
”──Ah!”
Just as I was about to leave the room, I was suddenly grabbed by the arm and pulled close by Bolt.
”Mmm─!”
──Nchu… Slurp…
”Pff!? Stop it!”
I was forcibly embraced, and my lips were taken.
Regrettably, I could say that with words, but… my body could not refuse.
”This is a reward. ──Honestly, having such strong desires isn’t bad, but… I still prefer obedient women.”
Saying that, Bolt’s hand crawled down to my lower abdomen.
”Once the job’s done… I’ll carve something nice here for you.”
Grinning lewdly, Bolt released me.
* * *
(Della’s POV)
”What’s this… Is it actually going well…?”
A swordsman standing next to the man named Bolt let out a disappointed voice.
This man was the one who brought me here.
* * *
(Sir Shinji told me to isolate myself in my room…)
Just when I thought the door to the room opened, a sudden sharp pain shot through my abdomen… I immediately lost consciousness.
And when I woke up, I was here.
(That fleeting moment was… undoubtedly the work of an S-rank…)
And the man who executed it.
I had seen him many times at the cafeteria and inn where I worked in the Royal Capital.
(Giacomo Rultz… Due to his bad conduct, he was disqualified from being a hero candidate… And this corrupt man repeated his misdeeds and was expelled from the Royal Capital.)
* * *
”Don’t worry. My wishes have not yet been fulfilled. ──Honestly… Julio’s Behest, what a blunder.”
A noble-looking man complained with an unhappy tone.
This was Wal Weidenreich, the vice-captain of the knight order.
I believe he was elevated from knight to Baron.
(This man is the mastermind… No…)
This man is just a petty villain.
He cannot manipulate the ‘Hazel Family’ that Bolt belongs to.
(I, too… have not seen the underside of Raetia for nothing…)
Even though I have permission, I run a brōtḥel privately.
I’ve been keeping an eye on those trying to take over this business.
I gather various information from travelers and adventurers visiting the ‘Chick Gathering Inn.’
Several times, I’ve received invitations and threats from the ‘underworld family of the Royal Capital.’
Each time, I’ve hired adventurers I was close with during my time in the Royal Capital and the assassin Marty Kesselring, who is in this village as a thief, to deal with the trouble.
(If only Marty were here…)
He should be flying around on Sir Shinji’s secret mission.
Still, looking at Baron Wal, I could easily deduce the mastermind behind this incident.
(Marquis Bernard Bausnerun… a key figure of the current royal faction…)
The Marquis is plotting to eliminate Sir Shinji.
He likely intends to economically seize Raetia and take it from Sir Shinji.
”Julio has probably been killed… He’s quite careless. Still──’Famière’s’ strength shouldn’t be underestimated.”
Giacomo’s low, murmuring voice brings me back to reality.
”Rebecca said the female guard she faced was quite formidable. ──Are you okay? If they come back to reclaim them…”
”Don’t worry. In fact, I hope for that.”
Giacomo replies emotionlessly to Bolt’s question.
I found his tone strangely unsettling.
”Now then… let’s get to business. You don’t have to accept all our demands.”
”…What do you mean by that?”
Ms. Sasha, who seems unaccustomed to such situations, bravely asks back.
”In that case… it will only increase our enjoyment…”
Bolt wears a lewd grin.
Both Ms. Sasha and I shuddered at the sheer discomfort of it.
(It seems there’s no room to prolong the conversation… Still, somehow…)
I began to speak.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
Leave a Reply