We had returned to the castle twenty minutes following the completion of the mission, and we had just finished an audience with the King. The whole week had felt as though it had gone by in a blur, and most of the days seemed to have melded together in my memory.
The only relevant things I remembered from our meeting were the points pertaining to me. For instance, once the king’s other cleanup crew got done with the mansion, it was mine to take. I didn’t feel the least bit of remorse in my ill-gotten gains, mostly because anyone that would have had a problem with it was dead by this point.
Another was King Metron’s willingness to fund my activities as an employer. Because we had performed so well with only a handful of people, and one of whom was a Strafe, the King gave me the greenlight to keep Winter in my retinue, and add whoever else I saw fit for the upcoming war game with the Primal Kingdom.
After many hours of listening to it all, I had finally made my way back to my room, where I promptly took a hot shower, brushed my teeth, and had moved on to contemplating my future.
Now lying down in my bed, I parsed through what I had done this past week, all while consulting the three Judgments around me. “Well, you started the week by taking my granddaughter into your service, and then absorbing me into X’s programming.”
Shut up. Don’t respond to my thoughts unless otherwise instructed. Un frowned, but remained silent. X, how is our timetable looking for the creation of our own country?
“Wait, what!?” This time it was Three who chimed in, closing her fan and looking at me in shock. “Since when was that something you wanted to accomplish!?”
Three looked at X, a betrayed expression on her face. “When we met, you told me the only thing he wanted was to make a harem!”
X shrugged, and sat down on my bed to my left. Un was currently standing at the foot of the bed with his arms crossed, and Three was across from X, on my right. “I wasn’t lying… well, not entirely. Master’s endgame isn’t to make a harem, that’s just a byproduct of what will happen when he comes into power. Plus, it will make him seem much more unassuming if he’s driven by lust. With all the flaunting of our powers that happened early on, we’ll need all the strategic advantage that deception can bring.”
I’m reflecting. I thought, and let out a deep sigh. I was drunk off my own power at that point in time, and wasn’t thinking of the consequences that revealing myself could do. Fortunately, it seemed to have worked out for the better, and allowed me to establish myself as a powerful and influential individual in this country.
X nodded, and followed up with, “Precisely. In doing so, we built up the clout necessary to explore the world and meet with Emperors and Kings, while other Judgment users have kept themselves hidden and have nothing in terms of economic or political power.”
“Eh, it just seems to me that you got extremely lucky.” Un said, earning him a frown from X.
Between being lucky and being skilled enough to do something, I’d rather be lucky. Having skill grants you consistency, but luck trumps skill any day of the week.
“An interesting perspective.” Un nodded to himself. “You do realize what value consistency does have though, right?”
Yes, which is why I am trying to learn the skills necessary for my job so that I don’t have to rely on something as flimsy as luck.
Satisfied, Un said, “Then all is well.” Three was still in shock, however, and continued to stare at my face with curiosity in her eyes.
“I don’t get it… why make your own country? What drives you to operate outside of a government, especially when you work so well for them, as you did last night?”
I had to make a conscious effort not to let a frown onto my face at her question. I despise feeling like I have no control over my own life. When I Fell into Ethia, I had no idea just how much I was living on autopilot on Earth. I was always marching to the beat of someone else’s drum, and I felt like such an outcast for it.
“We know.” X spoke, and placed her holographic hand above mine. “We can still see your memories of your time on that planet.”
Un frowned. “Honestly, that place felt more corrupt and greed-driven than even Ethia does, and that’s saying a lot.”
I smiled, and closed my eyes. Being directly superimposed by my brain, however, the figures of Un, Three, and X were still visible to me in the darkness. It was… but that doesn’t necessarily mean that Ethia is better. On Earth, we had democracy present, in which the people held some sort of sway over the government… or at least, we think we do. In Ethia, the monarchs and emperors seem uncontested, save for the universal check of the Judgment System.
“Of course, this system isn’t wholly imperfect, but the collective world has experienced an economic boom due to the power being behind one entity. Plus, with Judgment monitoring the actions of the people who wear the panels, and a list of people who don’t have them applied, the rate of murder has gone down, even if organized crime is still high.” Three sighed after her explanation, and sat down to my right.
If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
In any case, I have way too many things on my plate to deal with right now. On top of the Trials of Damocles, I also have to worry about whatever it is that Starlord Alexstasia is planning after the Trials, not to mention the war game with the Primal Kingdom coming up. In addition, I have to worry about the political climate of the Metron Kingdom, and clean up the tumorous growths that hold power here.
I sat up and opened my eyes, looking around at the three AIs. On top of that, I now have multiple personalities in my head that only I, and a handful of other people can hear. I honestly feel like I have dissociative identity disorder when I talk to you all.
Un let out a throaty laugh and clapped a hand on my back, which passed right through my body and came out my chest. “Huh?” He retracted his hand, and looked at it as he opened and closed the holographic appendage.
“X makes that look a lot easier than it actually is. Oh well.” This time, the AI gingerly floated an arm around my shoulders. It would have been a nice gesture, had the lower half of his body not been submerged into the bed.
“Luckily for you, I have something to take your mind off of your troubles, for the moment.” I was curious as Un pointed to my door, at which point, a knock made me jump in my bed.
God damn it, Atlas. If this is another prank, I’ll have X delete your personality programming and replace it with her own.
Un grinned, but said nothing and gestured towards the door one more time. I sighed and said, “Come in.”
There was no noise for a moment, but slowly, the door opened, and in walked a seemingly embarrassed Winter Strafe. To my surprise, she was still wearing her skin-tight suit from our mission earlier. She was also carrying a pale grey tote bag.
“Hi, Winter.” I glanced back and forth between Un and Winter, trying to figure out if I really did need to follow up on my promise to delete him, when Winter spoke up.
“Hi, Joshua. You said yes then?” I looked back at her, then at Un. Winter seemed to put two and two together, and sighed.
“Founder, you’re such a giant tool.” He cackled and floated around behind Winter, who now had a mild frown on her face.
“Dear granddaughter, something such as what you wanted to ask should be said face-to-face, not through the mouth of another.” Winter frowned deeper, but apparently couldn’t argue with what Un had just said.
She turned to face me, and brushed her white hair out of her eyes. “If it’s alright with you, could you dismiss the Judgments so we can talk in private?”
I eyed her up and down, and nodded. X, please take Un and Three with you back into my subspace. Please give us privacy until I recall you.
X bowed to me and said, “With pleasure, Master.” She pointed to Three, who dissipated instantly. She then turned to Un, who had a nervous look on his face.
“Don’t be rash now, X. I brought this about, at least let me be present to see the fruits of my labor!” With a snap of her fingers, X made Un’s form cease to exist. She bowed to the two of us before disappearing herself, leaving just Winter and I alone in the palace suite.
“Ugh, the Founder is such a creep that it’s not even funny.” Winter chuckled to herself, and avoided looking me in the eyes.
I patted a spot next to me on the bed, and Winter took her seat with mild reluctance. “So, Winter, what did you want to talk about?”
She sighed deeply and finally looked at me. “I’ve heard from Lucina and Akahime that you helped them destress when it came to a sexual outlet. Is that true?”
I could have lied and denied it, but there was no point. Not that it mattered if Winter knew, either, because her ability to do anything about it now was next to nothing. When she signed her contract, she gave up any rights to go to the media about anything.
“Yes, it’s true. Why?” I asked, and surprisingly, a smile lit up on her face. She opened the tote bag, and pulled out a litany of items, spreading them on my bed.
“Good! I wasn’t sure if you could help or not, but Lucina and Lilian both vouched for your ability to do so.” I sighed internally. Did those two just see me as a rampant sex machine?
“Truth be told, I usually do this by myself after a mission where I kill people. It helps relieve some of the stress.” She picked up a white collar and fastened it to her neck before attaching a long, red leash.
She then took a pair of attachable dog ears, and settled them onto her head. “Pet play?” I asked curiously, and she smiled.
“With a hint of exhibitionism.” She completed, taking my sonic knife off of the nightstand and using it to cut holes for her perky breasts to slip through. “Can you help me get into these?” She placed four restraints in front of me, which were meant to transform her elbows and knees into her new ‘paws.’
I got to work, while Winter continued to speak to me. “I was planning to do it by myself again tonight, but the Founder suggested getting you involved. This way, if I get caught, it won’t reflect poorly on the Strafe name, but instead be attributed to one of your many fetishes.”
I rolled my eyes, and soon enough, Winter was on her elbows and knees, crawling on the floor. “This feels great.” She smiled seductively, looking up at me. “Only a couple more pieces to go.”
I used my sonic knife to make a hole in the bottom of her suit, and stuck the tail butt plug deep inside her. She gasped as I shoved it in one go, and the tool slid inside easily.
“Well, we know which one is your favorite now.” Winter looked at the floor, but I knelt down and forced her head up by grabbing her hair.
“Come on, don’t get embarrassed now.” I took the silicon dog mouth, and inspected it. It looked like a dog’s maw, only with a small dildo attached on the base of it.
“Oh, I get it. Get it ready for yourself.” Still holding Winter by her white hair, I guided her to slide her tongue up and down the phallic object before inserting it into her mouth, and inching it slowly into her throat. I attached the straps around the back of her head, and the dog look was finally completed.
“I take that back, I now know which two are your favorites.” I took Winter’s leash and led her to the door. I opened it, expecting to get to look around for a bit, but I was met with Lilian’s gaze instead.
He looked down at Winter, then back to me, and smiled. “Well, I had something to discuss with you, but it can wait until tomorrow.”
He looked down at the former mercenary, and crouched so they were eye to eye. “I told you that Master Joshua could help. You look like you’re really enjoying yourself right now.”
He walked away, and Winter let out a muffled moan, swinging her hips from side to side. “Well,” I said, “Shall we continue our walk, girl?”