[R18] King's Domination
Chapter 35: The Dark Voice and the Light of the Lover Maid

Chapter 35: The Dark Voice and the Light of the Lover Maid

As I left the brothel, a wave of exhaustion hit me, along with a pang of guilt. Even though it was necessary, had I gone too far with Laika, who was just a cheeky young girl? Was what I did any different from the vile acts of a pimp or a gangster?

Until moments ago, I hadn’t felt this guilt at all. It meant the effects of my "Psychopath" skill had worn off.

I desperately told myself, "There was no other way," "This is another world," "Laika enjoyed it," and "Lucia praised me," trying to suppress the guilt.

Still, I was shocked to discover I had such a talent. Like with Iris, I felt like I was uncovering a hidden side of myself at this age.

(Iris... wait a second!)

I checked my status.

My level had gone up by three. Or rather, considering all the intense sex I had with Lucia and Laika, should I say it only went up by three? It seemed compatibility played a big role in leveling up. As expected, Reina was like a Metal Slime for me.

The real issue was my skills.

[Skill "Womanizer" acquired]

As I feared, I’d gained a strange skill again. "Womanizer" was practically a dead word. I hadn’t heard it in years.

[Womanizer: By charming women, their affection toward you increases.]

The skill description was straightforward. Apparently, "woman" refers to females, and "charming" is shorthand for winning them over, derived from some old phrase.

Also, my Psychopath skill had also leveled up to 2.

[Psychopath (Level 2): You feel less guilt. You can be even more ruthless than at Level 1.]

(So basically my cruelty has increased, huh?)

Naturally, my kindness stat dropped by seven. It’s now at 35. If this keeps up, will it hit zero or go negative at some point? I can’t predict what kind of bad effects that might have on my mindset.

Thankfully, the Psychopath skill can be toggled on or off, so I’ll keep it off for now.

(...Or maybe the people of this country want the psychopathic version of me?)

They probably want a strong man. Even if he’s a psychopath or in the wrong, isn’t a strong man what they’re after? Like how German women fanatically supported that giga cha.... I mean dictator.

Suddenly, I thought of Princess Ellis.

She always comforted me and gave me sharp advice in times like this. As a politician, she’s far more experienced than me.

(I need to report to her anyway.)

The sun was already setting. It was Reina’s birthday, and I wanted to buy her a present, but work came first.

As a corporate slave, I’d been drilled with the "HRL" mentality, report, communicate, consult, so I headed to the royal castle.

---

"Unfortunately, Lord Seiou, the princess is dining with an ambassador from a neighboring country," said Officer Miya, greeting me in Princess Ellis’s place.

Of course, a princess would have official duties. She might even be promoting luxury underwear or body soap during the dinner. She’s faithfully carrying out the tasks I assigned her.

Giving up on getting advice, I gave Officer Miya a brief report.

"I’ve heard about your great deeds today, Lord Seiou. That was really impressive," she said.

"Hmm... So how did things go with Morris?" I asked.

Miya had visited Morris with a large supply of body soap.

"He was very courteous. He said, ’To send Officer Miya as an envoy, Lord Seiou has risen far in just one day. Splendid.’"

Hmm. I sensed a hint of sarcasm, but it seemed I’d achieved my goal of boosting my authority.

"He also said, ’I have something to give you as thanks, so come by anytime.’"

"Got it. Send a messenger to arrange a visit when I have time."

"Understood."

"By the way, what did you think of Morris?"

"Well, I’d heard he was a cunning, greedy, and lustful merchant, so I was cautious. But when I spoke to him, he seemed like a kind old man. Honestly, I was surprised."

I see. That’s how he appeared to Miya. Well, that guy’s a pervert who only gets off on Iris’s cuckolding fantasies, so in a way, he’s the least harmful man in the world to other women....

"Also, Princess Ellis asked me to give you this," Miya said, taking a jewelry box from her subordinate and opening it in front of me.

Inside was a vividly cut stone, glowing like a sunset. It was a garnet.

"What’s this?"

"A reward for your accomplishments today. Please accept it, Lord Seiou."

"They had something like this?"

"It’s the last gem the princess owns."

"If it’s like that then I can’t accept something so valuable."

"Please take it. If the country prospers, gems like this will pour in as tributes. Besides, today is a special day for someone important, isn’t it?"

Special? Oh, she must mean Reina’s birthday.

I looked at the garnet again. Its vibrant red seemed perfect for Reina.

"It’s almost embarrassing that it’s not a more expensive gem. ’After all, our country is in glorious decline,’" Miya said, mimicking Princess Ellis’s catchphrase so well that I couldn’t help but laugh. Miya smiled back, a rare playful moment for the serious officer.

Maybe because I’d been making progress, Miya’s attitude felt much softer.

For some reason, I got the feeling that if I tried to charm her now, she might even say yes. Is this what it means to succeed at work, unlocking a fun life like this?

"I’ll accept it gratefully. Tell the princess I said thanks."

"Yes. But she’d probably say, ’I’m the one who’s grateful.’ In just a day and a bit since you arrived, Lord Seiou, everything has changed."

At least they seemed to appreciate my efforts.

"I’d like to turn this gem into a ring for Reina."

"That’s a great idea. But we don’t know Reina’s ring size, do we?"

True. I only met her yesterday.

(Wait a second...)

I activated my Kink Scan and pulled up Reina’s status.

The data was from this morning, so there was no image, just text. But there was a section for her fingers. Focusing, I could read her ring size.

"Don’t worry, I know her size."

"You even know that? Impressive, Lord Seiou," Miya said, clearly surprised. I was shocked myself.

"Is there a ring craftsman?"

"There’s a royal jeweler in the castle town. They’re really trustworthy for this kind of thing."

"Then I’ll head there. Thanks for the ring, bye!"

With that, I quickly left the castle.

---

---

The sun had already set, but a royal jeweler should take my request anyways. After all, I’m Seiou, tasked with rebuilding this kingdom.

Or so I thought.

"A request from the Freesia royal family? Can it wait until tomorrow?" said the jeweler, a muscular man with a crew cut who looked nothing like someone handling precious gems. He brushed me off with obvious annoyance.

I’d come at closing time, so I was partly to blame, but his attitude was no way to treat a customer, especially a royal one at that....

"Please, I need it done urgently."

"Look, the Freesia royal family’s unpaid debts are piling up high already," he said, exasperated. So the kingdom’s debts reached even here... Damn it....

"Forget the kingdom. This is my personal request. I’ll pay you as you make the ring, so please make the ring urgently."

Using the kingdom’s name was an eternal mistake. This declining nation was just dragging me down.

"It’s just setting the gem in an existing ring, so it’s simple. So come back tomorrow."

"Can’t you finish it today, it’s urgent?"

"Look, we’re already closing. Can’t you see?" he said, carrying a box of gems to the back.

I’d been riding high after conquering the brothel women and being treated kindly by Miya. But this jeweler shattered my petty pride.

I’m the one in charge of rebuilding Freesia, but to this merchant, I’m just some lackey from a broke kingdom.

The reality hit me hard. I’d gotten a bit full of myself.

There’s no choice. I’d leave the gem and come back with Reina tomorrow. I gave up and started walking home alone. The sense of omnipotence I’d felt at the brothel was now gone.

Maybe I should keep the Psychopath skill on all the time. When it’s active, I don’t feel guilt and feel like I can do anything. I could probably use Laika, who’s under my control, to sway this jeweler.

(No, that’s something I shouldn’t do as a human. Besides, even if I got the ring that way, Reina wouldn’t be happy.)

As I told myself this, another voice in my head asked, "Is that really true?" It was a dark, heavy voice I’d never heard before.

"Stop pretending to be good. What’s the difference between using Psychopath to rebuild a brothel and using those women to get a ring?"

The voice continued, and it pissed me off.

"Why not just use your skills to enslave Reina too? Then you wouldn’t need to worry about a ring for her anyways."

(Stop, stop.)

"If you enslave her, you could strip away her purity and dignity, make her live naked in your mansion, like some street dog."

(Shut up.)

"Why is it okay to enslave Laika but not Reina? Because she’s a virgin?"

(Stop it, stop it already!)

"You should’ve done the same to women in your old world. You know, being a nice guy always just gets you used. Shouldn’t you have aimed to be a strong man, even a psychopath? The one who was wrong wasn’t your sisters, it was you all the way."

(Ugh...)

That last line from my inner voice stabbed me in the chest. It hit a sore spot. Or maybe it hurt because it was me.

I took a deep breath to silence the voice. No need to think about this now. I was almost home and could see Reina. That’s all I should focus on right now.

(I want to see Reina.)

I felt awful. Was it a backlash from using Psychopath, or from forcing myself on Laika and establishing dominance? Or was I just exhausted after using too much magic?

Probably none of those. It was that dark voice telling me to "dominate" that pierced my heart like an arrow.

My heart felt parched, a sensation I’d never experienced.

I just wanted to see Reina as soon as possible. With that thought, I quickened my pace and opened the mansion door.

"Welcome back, Master!" Reina greeted me with an innocent smile, dressed in an apron maid outfit. What I did at the brothel should count as a betrayal to her. Enslaving women with pleasure is something a human shouldn’t do.

Yet Reina’s innocent smile made her look like a radiant fairy.

"...I’m back," I managed to say something.

"You kept your promise and hurried back! Thank you," she said, assuming I’d rushed home for dinner since I was out of breath. The table was set with delicious-looking food.

"Look, look! Does this maid outfit suit me? I shortened a spare skirt. It’s Freesia’s first ever miniskirt!" she said, playfully lifting the hem of her knee-length skirt, revealing her pale, beautiful thighs.

*Thump!*

My heart pounded loudly. Was it my Seiou job’s influence? Despite everything I did at the brothel, I felt a burning, powerful desire in my whole body.

Wordlessly, I grabbed Reina’s shoulders and hugged her tightly.

"Eek... Master?" she squeaked cutely.

I wanted to push her down and pour all my lust into her. I didn’t know if it would quench my heart’s thirst, but I couldn’t think of anything else for now.

"The food’ll get cold," she said.

I could ignore dinner. I could deal with it later. Reina would understand if I pushed her down. Even if I took her roughly, she’d accept me with her body. I was sure of it.

"Everyone brought delicious dishes for my birthday. We have to eat them," she said.

(Birthday?!)

Right, today was Reina’s birthday.

Her gentle words freed me from my dark, twisted desires. It felt like finding a ray of light in the darkness.

"...Really?" I asked.

"Yup! The sewing workshop folks brought all kinds of dishes and taught me their recipes so I can cook for you."

I couldn’t disrespect their kindness. It felt similar to what could heal my parched heart.

"...Can we do it plenty later?"

"Uh, yeah, sure."

"It’ll be way more embarrassing than last night."

"If it’s something I can do..."

"It might go all night. You okay with that?"

"I’ll... try my best. But for now, let’s eat?"

I finally let go of Reina’s shoulders. I didn’t mean to make demands, I just wanted to lean on her kindness a little, I just wanted to depend on something for a while.....

But Reina, taking me seriously, muttered, "Phew, I’ll need to schedule naps starting tomorrow."