Kyon was finishing the delicious meat stew in his room when he heard the door creak open. He recognized the quiet, barely perceptible footsteps.
Kyon instinctively felt that Juno’s appearance promised him trouble. The girl was one of a kind. When he focused on her, the whole world faded and lost colors. She bewitched him... Bitch! It was unfair that gods endowed her with so charming beauty. A merciless demon in the guise of an angel! The contrast added a certain piquancy, though.
Juno hesitantly walked inside, nervously wrapping a curl of golden hair on her finger. Strangely enough, she didn’t come to the servant to set him up or destroy him. This time, she came to him because she wanted to get stronger. Juno got over herself and swallowed her usual arrogance to get what she wanted. She desperately wanted her long-cherished dream to come true, but she would never have it without energy and talent.
Kyon nearly choked on the last spoonful of stew and smiled wryly instead of a greeting:
«So?»
The little beauty closed her eyes, framed with a fringe of long captivating eyelashes. Then she opened them, her full lips parted hesitantly:
«Tell me, master. Can you really clean the keys?» - Juno’s voice caressed his ears like a spring breeze. Her behavior had radically changed.
Kyon winced. Juno was a talented actress! She was pretending to be sincere and innocent so well... She didn’t sound phony, not a bit. But his common sense insisted that the cunning little devil was up to something again.
«I can. Let’s cut the crap.»
Juno understood the wicked servant better now. If he said something, most likely, it was true. The ill-fated night when Kyon became her master, he promised he wouldn’t deflower her, and he didn’t. He said he would beat her if he won fair and square, and he did. She hoped he wasn’t lying this time, either.
Juno took a deep breath, summoning up her courage. It’s was humiliating for her even to imagine being a student of this jerk, especially taking into account the difference in their origin. However, she couldn’t deny that he moved and reacted in the battle better and faster than her.
Juno, the slave, straightened her short gray skirt, knelt slowly before the boy who looked at her as if she was his property, and said reverently:
«I swear to be an obedient and obliging student. I promise never to resist you in any way and fully acknowledge your power over me. In exchange, you will regularly encourage me for good behavior and never defame my dignity, which means you will never harass or torture without a good reason.»
Juno finished her tirade that got rather arrogant at the end. She got up and looked eagerly at the “master,” expecting his words of approval and consent but ...
She only heard Kyon’s booming scornful laughter:
«You're in no position to dictate your terms, stupid fool. You're my toy! I will do with you whatever I want and when I see fit. Now swear your allegiance as befits a truly submissive slave or get the fuck out of here and stay pathetic mediocrity for the rest of your miserable days.»
«B-but... It’s…» – Juno started thinking, her head hung down. The servant was too uncompromising... It was unfair! She couldn’t get anything from him but had to give him everything he wanted. It had to be exactly the opposite way!
Juno couldn’t believe the arrogant boy had the divine ability. On the other hand, if the slave had deceived her, she wouldn’t be obliged to keep her oath to a liar. Besides… Did the vows given to insignificant slaves have any value?
Juno looked firmly at Kyon and knelt again.
«Dear sir…»
He impatiently interrupted her:
«From now on, call me your master!»
Juno pressed her lips into a thin line of irritation but quickly came to her senses and said:
«Master, I swear to be your obedient, obliging student and never resist your power over me. I will be very grateful if you give me the service you promised in exchange for my good behavior.»
«I did not promise you any service. I said that I would probably do it. On the whole, I accept your oath. Well done. From now on, I’m your master.» - He patted her head condescendingly as if she was his obedient puppy.
Juno rose to her feet, looking offended but said nothing.
«Here’s your first important task. Show me the treasury of your family. I'm interested in powerful defense items. The more of them, the better.»
«You... you...» - Juno cooled off just in time. It was a great chance to prove the slave’s divine ability! Even 1% of the key purity costs the entire treasury and even more for Juno, the self-absorbed bitch. The benefits outweighed the cost. The boy would get his way, anyway. He always did. He always took from her whatever he wanted. It’s a sin to miss her chance to become a super genius resisting his first request.
«Follow me, master.» - Juno stood up and left the room.
After the accident with the lightning that nearly killed Kyon, he decided to find a way to protect himself in the future. No matter what it was, an accident or wrath of heaven, some caution wouldn’t hurt. An additional element at the beginning of his development would bring him much benefit and dramatically improve the quality of his energy. He had already mastered the element of darkness. It was time to develop the element of light. He wanted to combine them into a spatial attribute and create formations that worked at a distance. He intended to engage the science and come up with something unique, gaining a significant advantage over others.
To the Kyon’s utter astonishment, Juno went to the storeroom... She opened the secret passage and went downstairs to the library.
If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
«…» - Kyon finally understood why the pathetic library was hidden so well. It was a distraction from the treasury inside!
Juno’s eyes flashed with defiance. She put her wrist to an unremarkable stone in the wall. Kyon could hear screeching when a secret passage formed under the ground.
Kyon wondered. - {A secret passage in the hidden room... Not bad at all.}
The way to the treasury of the great family looked inappropriate, like a damp cave of thousand years old.
{Catacombs ...} - Kyon thoughtfully raised an eyebrow.
When he was still in the mine, bald Borya told him that they extracted resources in the mountains for two reasons. Firstly, it was due to the high content of energy in the air and, therefore, spiritual crystals. Secondly, the ancient catacombs had existed in the mountains long before the Stone family arrived. They rebuilt them into the mine. It made sense to Kyon. He must have appeared in the cave of this world for a reason.
And there it was, back to catacombs... Perhaps they were the reason why the estate was built here. The historical books of the Stones told that the mansion had been erected in this place due to the high concentration of energy in the air. It was reasonable, but there was not a single word about the catacombs... Kyon was standing in front of the ancient cave. Thousand-year-old footsteps made it clear that it had existed long before the Stones. Was this place the reason the patriarch’s mansion was built here?
Juno and Kyon walked in the tunnel about a hundred meters when they saw a spacious room carved in stone. A few light crystals lit up the long rows of shelves and display cases where various objects were arranged: cloudy stones, weapons, outfits, bracelets, rings and much more. There was a cloudy green stone next to each object. It played the role of a flyer with basic information about the item.
The stones that contained formations were called nephrite in this world.
Kyon's eyes widened in surprise. A spacious room, fully stocked with miscellaneous items and treasures! He had found a fortune!
Juno turned around. «Ma-master, if you infuse the nephrite with pure energy, you will know everything about the item. If you want beautiful weapons, take them from the shelves. If you are interested in shiny shields or expensive spacial rings, they are over there. The money is in the safe, but if you take it, you will reveal yourself.»
«Do you think I came here to get rich?»
Juno turned away and pursed her lips. Of course, she thought that the servant wanted to take something valuable. Otherwise, what was he doing there?
«You don’t have to answer.» - Кyon lost any interest in the girl. He picked up the first green cloudy stone he saw and infused the formation inside it with some pure energy. A vague fog formed above the stone. Kyon took a deep breath and it reached his consciousness. The information appeared right in his mind: “A spatial bracelet of 6 cubic meters.”
Kyon grinned and picked up another stone. “A pair of greaves, enchanted to resist fire...”,“A sword that transforms the fiery attribute into the blazing technique of a thousand fireflies. The technique involves... ","This device estimates the level of development in a group of up to ten people, superior phase inclusive... ","A formation of concealment. It hides you from spiritual scanning of the practitioners up to the peak of the Noble phase inclusive."
Kyon took the item of concealment and put it on his wrist without any doubt in his actions. He shouldn’t draw too much attention to his extraordinary pace of development... Why not faking his stage of development by pretending he wasn’t improving at all? Unlike the trick with lowering the development, items of concealment could really hide the soul.
Kyon continued to explore the treasury: “One-time formation that snaps into action once infused with pure energy. It creates a powerful stream of flame to incinerate the flesh of your opponents. It can break the defense up to the middle of the advanced phase.”
Devilish lights danced in Kyon’s eyes when he studied the cloudy stones with formations inside. He knew perfectly well that there existed not only defensive but also attacking formations. Both of them were mostly disposable. Even a weak practitioner could easily destroy a more powerful opponent with just a pocketful of disposable formations. Simply put, you borrow the power you do not possess for one blow, in rare cases for two. Attacking formations were not widespread. They required a colossal amount of resources — the keys. Besides the power in the formations was less than that of the practitioner who had created them.
Kyon took the next nephrite: “When activated, it covers the body of the wearer with an ether barrier that can block attacks up to the beginning of the advanced phase.”
{Here it is!} - Kyon started to study disposable protective formations. Some of them created a stone shield, others formed a shield of water, air or pure energy, but the most common was the usual ether barrier.
The time flew by, but Kyon continued exploring the treasury.
When he saw something useful, he appropriated it at once. He had quite a collection of valuable items his spatial ring. They gave him a sense of confidence. He had replenished his arsenal with the item of concealment, a lot of defensive formations, several attacking formations (unfortunately, they weren’t as numerous as he wished). In the end, he took a long sword and high-quality throwing needles. He had armed himself so well that even Dinah would find it stupid to fight against the barriers. Kyon wished he had found all this before Yegorka scorched his face. The asshole might have disappeared off the face of the earth if only Kyon had activated a couple of attacking formations.
Kyon nodded, pleased with himself. It was time to master the element of light. Protective formations would hold the powerful lightning from heaven above. He was going to be fine even if it was 30 times more powerful than the previous time.
When Kyon turned around, he saw Juno sniffling quietly. She was leaning against the wall, sitting on the cold floor. Her head tilted aside, her eyes closed, her legs slightly spread apart. The short skirt could barely hide her special place...
Apparently, Juno didn't want to leave the servant alone in the treasury. She watched him to the bitter end, i.e., until she fell asleep. Now this remarkable creature was freezing her ass on the cold floor, so close to drooling in her sleep.
Kyon approached her with a wistful expression on his face. He didn’t mind leaving her here, but something unusually unpleasant was itching in his chest, leaving him restless...
Kyon did his best not to wake her up when he slightly lifted her skirt and saw her panties. Then he realized what it was all about. The pretty girl attracted him like hell. His young body was at the age when he could easily lose his head over a girl. The little angel was driving him crazy.
Kyon resolutely picked up her light, warm body and headed for the exit from the treasury. It was already three in the morning, so he wasn't afraid to be discovered. He went upstairs, pressed Juno’s wrist to the circle and entered the opened door.
Kyon gently pulled her sandals off, admiring her bare feet. They were so tender, small and cute! Then he laid her on the bed, looked at her peaceful face capable of charming any heart and unwittingly tucked a lock of her silky hair behind her little ear.
The feeling of hatred and desire mixed up in something intoxicating and exciting. Once again, he was convinced that it was the right decision to purify her keys instead of killing her.
{Hmm... I wonder what she will be like in a few years. Will she conquer the hearts of the kings and emperors with just one look? Maybe I should take advantage of her irresistible beauty as a debt?} – The obsessive thoughts haunted him.
Kyon looked just below her nose, impulsively moved forward and kissed her soft, pink lips... It was impossible to tear himself from them. They tasted so sweet. Her smell drove him mad. His heart started beating furiously. His sex-deprived mind and body were simmering with a mixture of anger and lust. He was insane with desire, so eager to surrender to his craving, but if the nymphet woke up, she would turn into a rag doll. It was too soon. Kyon wasn’t ready to break her mind, and Juno was not ready for sexual pressure. She didn’t take the servant as her equal. Besides, according to Juno, her grandfather scanned her body every time she hugged him. A weird patriarch...
Juno was waking up, her eyebrows frowning. With great difficulty, Kyon pulled himself from her charming lips and cleared her pure energy key by another 10%. It would help her believe and obey him completely. Then he left her room with a disappointed sigh. It was time to master the element of light!