Reeza’s breaths came in ragged coughs, each one a battle against the pain coursing through her body. The fierce determination that once blazed in her eyes now flickered like a dying ember, subdued by the agony of her wounds.
“Fine!” Casimir spat, his garment hanging loosely off his shoulders as he pressed his broad foot against her face. “Since it’s come to this, I’ll reveal the truth: right from the start, I never had any intention of setting you, your pitiful mother, or the slaves free.”
Reeza’s eyes shot open in shock, and Casimir licked his lips in amusement, relishing her devastated expression like an age-old wine. But this was just the beginning; he intended to consume every ounce of her despair until he was mindlessly drunk.
“It was quite admirable,” Casimir began, his tone dripping with condescension, “the way you tirelessly amassed gold to free your mother, all while turning a blind eye to the suffering of countless others in need. But have you ever paused to ponder where your hard-earned gold was being funneled?” He grinned like a mischievous child, reveling in her mounting apprehension.
“…It was being used to finance covert operations,” he elaborated, a twisted grin spreading across his face, “operations dedicated to the abduction and enslavement of more of your beloved people. Can you picture it? The sheer terror as their homes are pillaged and set ablaze; fathers, brothers, and sons being butchered in front of their families; children being torn from the arms of their wailing mothers.”
Reeza’s eyes quivered violently, betraying the integrity of her sanity.
“And the construction site next door?” Casimir added gleefully, “It’s a brothel to put all your people to work. Oh, and let’s not forget about your darling mother. She’s a petite and attractive woman, much like yourself. With such alluring looks, it would have been a shame to let her rot away in a prison cell. So, I’ve been using her as a bargaining chip to attract investors,” he admitted with a laugh.
“YOU BASTARD!” Reeza squirmed in outrage, desperately attempting to free her arms painfully pinned behind her back.
She yearned for an opportunity. Just a split second—that was all the time she needed to sink her teeth into him and tear him apart. But she couldn’t move a muscle. Frustration bubbled up within her until it overflowed, and, finally, she began wailing, her sorrowful cries piercing the heart of the other Florian girl in the room.
“Yes! Yes! That’s it!” Casimir shook in excitement, his cheeks flushed, his bulge returning. “Seeing that face on a strong and rebellious woman like yourself! It…It’s simply exquisite! All that waiting was well worth it!”
Casimir knelt down, his hands replacing Ranger’s with a predatory grace. His wet tongue hovered mere inches from Reeza’s ear as he whispered, “Once I’ve had my fill of you,” his breath was hot against her skin, sending shivers down her spine, “I’ll present you to those noble pigs, so you can join your whore of a mother.”
While the man prolonged her torment, a lone henchman appeared outside the dwelling and bowed respectfully. Ranger slowly approached him, a frown creasing his forehead as his subordinate replayed urgent news in a low whisper.
“I’ll be stepping out for a moment,” Ranger informed Casimir calmly. “There’s a pressing matter I need to address.”
Casimir ignored him, too caught up in his desires to care. Ranger clicked his tongue discreetly before taking his leave.
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“If you willingly offer yourself to me,” Casimir whispered, his large nose nuzzling into Reeza’s hair as he took a deep sniff, “I might consider granting you a position as one of my personal attendants. All you have to do is obey. What do you say?”
Reeza stopped squirming, presumably a signal of her surrender. Honestly, Casimir was a tad disappointed that she didn’t put up more of a fight, but he cautiously released her tiny hands and turned her over onto her back.
When he spied the defiant gleam in her teary eyes, his blood started churning again, and a wide grin stretched his thick lips. Casimir couldn’t resist the urge as he gently cupped her flushed and tear-stained face, his large thumb tracing the small curve of her unpainted lips.
Then Reeza bared her teeth.
CHOMP!
With a sharp intake of breath, she closed her small mouth around that filthy finger with all her might. Casimir let out a shrill cry, his face contorting in agony before morphing into a mask of rage.
With a firm grip on the side of her face, he lifted her off the ground and viciously slammed her onto the small table, sending splintered wood flying in all directions.
Reeza gasped as pain shot through her body like fireworks, forcing her teeth to release their grip. Before she could catch her breath, Casimir charged in like a mindless Minotaur and a brutal kick to the stomach sent her hurtling across the room.
The terrified attendant cowered in fear as Casimir ripped off his garment and strode menacingly towards Reeza, his throbbing member concealed by an overhanging belly.
With a dominating presence, he positioned himself on top her, reminiscent of an orc straddling a helpless Horned Rabbit. With rough hands, he hungrily tore away her attire, exposing a length of cloth tightly wound around her modest chest, and a small pair of panties hid her femininity from his voracious gaze.
Reeza cried out in horror, writhing desperately beneath the horny swine.
“I’ll show you the fate that awaits slaves who dare to defy me,” Casimir declared with a perverse grin, clenching his stubby fingers into tight fists.
PSSHH!
***
PINGG!
A golden coin spun multiple times in the air, catching the faint glow of the mana crystals before landing in the palm of a hooded figure garbed in black. A smile spread across his lips as he examined the intricate inscriptions on the shiny metal.
“Took you long enough,” he murmured as two unfamiliar faces entered the chamber. “I was getting sick of waiting.”
DING!
[Vesper | Lvl 37 | Assassin]
Daisuke’s features tightened, his brow furrowing as memories of the man flashed through his mind—the merciless beating and verbal abuse, and the humiliation of being spat on and robbed of his coin purse.
“So you knew your friends were being ground into dust and you didn’t think to rush to their aid?” Daisuke accused bitterly.
Petula remained silent, her breath held in anticipation as she lingered cautiously in the background. Her eyes darted up and down, anxiously following the fluid motion of the coin flipping through the air. With each rotation, her apprehension mounted until the hooded figure snatched it at eye level, making her heart skip a beat.
“Friends?” he chuckled, standing up from the edge of a fountain and squaring his shoulders. “Shinobi are lone wolves first and comrades second,” he scoffed. “The mission always takes precedence, so your comrades often end up sacrificed for that cause. Why bother making friends who will just become pawns in the next mission?”
“Then, at some point, won’t it be your turn to be used as a sacrificial pawn?”
Vesper sneered, clearly displeased by the notion. “No one’s quick enough to catch me off guard or bring me down.”
Daisuke shrugged casually. “Well, if that’s what helps you sleep at night,” he murmured, observing as Vesper secured the coin in a pouch at his hip. “By the way, I really appreciate you holding onto my coin purse until I could retrieve it,” he remarked with a dark grin. “Almost thought none of you sorry bastards had a shred of conscience.”
“And I thought you would’ve fled town after the thrashing you took,” Vesper returned mockingly. “Yet here you are, generously delivering more coin like an idiot. You’re as stupid as they come.”
As they traded barbed remarks, both warriors inched closer, tension crackling in the air between them.
“Enough chit-chat,” Daisuke scoffed in a chilling tone behind his mask. “Let’s just go to the part where I kill you.”
Vesper spat to the side, an obvious indication of what he thought of his adversary’s threat. “At least try to make this entertaining.”