Night came quickly in the Dictatorship, and in the blink of an eye Samantha found herself staring out the window only to find that the sun was no longer out.
'We've been cooped up in here ever since we came back in the morning. All the logistics between our cities.... analyzing the information we obtained from our subordinates.... and most importantly, working to ensure that the city expansion goes well.'
Samantha let out a long sigh.
She had come a long way from her day to day as a model student.
No longer was she obsessed with the way she appeared.
While she did still enjoy being in the spotlight, she knew that there were things far more important than that.
'Well, at least that slave owner is gone from this world. And all the people of that city, for that matter, who sat back and watched as it happened.'
Samantha's face writhed in disgust as she remembered the malnourished faces of those children that Coran had taken on.
'She got what she deserved.'
Samantha slightly smiled as she watched the many lizardmen and others walking through the streets.
'It's a haven.... this place is a haven for our subordinates.'
This innocent smile soon became wicked.
'And a hell for those who would even try to harm them.'
A knock was heard from the door, and Trevor replied immediately, his voice booming with power.
"Enter."
The door creaked open to reveal a female humanoid spider, covered in bandages from head to toe.
Her four eyes seemed to smirk with a chaotic pleasure as she witnessed the four antiheroes, who were currently stationed in their rightful positions- the throne room.
'As it should be.... their excellencies should never have to leave those thrones....', Samantha heard Berith think as she walked through the room, coming forward and bowing before them, her bandages draping to the floor.
"Your excellencies, I have come because you called upon me. Has the time finally come for you to grant me with a mission? Or is there another matter which needs to be tended to?"
Samantha made her way over to her throne, sitting down quietly as Trevor sat up with a smirk.
"Berith. Things are going to become quite hectic tomorrow where your brother is. I want to station you there as a form of insurance. It is not that your brother is not capable.... not in the least. As a matter of fact, I can say with the utmost confidence that there is absolutely no need to station you to assist him, and that he can take care of things on his own. However.... I feel that this task is better suited for yourself."
A creepy smile drew itself across the face of the bloodthirsty spiderling as she remained bowing before her ultimate masters.
"I am grateful, your excellencies. Being of use to you is my one and only desire in life. Anything beyond that is merely a secondary benefit."
"Ah.... I wanna go too.... but we're gonna be busy tomorrow. We already have an appointment to attend.", Ashley complained in a dull tone.
"I will do everything I can to defend the property of your excellencies, and eliminate all who dare to defy your sacred flag."
With a demonic smile, Garett stood up from his seat.
"Heh heh.... sounds good. Why don't we send her off then, Theo?"
"Indeed.", Trevor replied as he waved his hand, and the spiderling disappeared in front of the eyes of the four.
Trevor looked over to the table, grabbing the queen piece and fiddling with it in his hands.
"Her personality may be an issue when it comes to subjugation..... but it is perfect for when it comes to elimination."
----
Oscar found himself in the Capital of the Empire, refreshed.
'I've done it.... I've visited every brothel in the entire capital. If only I had the time to try every single woman.... but....'
Thinking back to the words of the Emperor, Oscar understood that he couldn't afford to stay here in the Empire forever.
'Sigh.... I suppose I won't be able to explore the Empire much more than this. But I will return soon, and then I will travel to every city.... every corner of this country, and I will have every woman on this earth fall for me.'
As Oscar walked through the alleyways of the Capital, with the clothing of a middle class man and the posture of a wandering traveler, he bid his farewell to this sweet town.
'There is much to do, however things are progressing nicely. If I can stand behind the Empire and take over the other countries of the world, I will be one step closer to obtaining my goal.'
A lecherous grin came across the face of Oscar.
'World domination? Becoming the leader of all four countries? I'll be honest, I could care less about those things. Power? Status? These are merely means to achieve my goal. These abilities I've been gifted with.... they are strange indeed, but they have allowed me to live a carefree life even when things do go wrong.'
Oscar caught the eye of a young woman who was walking with her boyfriend in the streets.
'Oh, she looks like a nice one.'
"Excuse me, I'm looking for the nearest post office. Could you guide me to it?"
Oscar asked the couple who were walking hand in hand, likely on some sort of date.
"Ah, go three blocks down this road and make a left turn.", the man said.
The woman nodded in agreement.
"Ah, thank you so much! Could I ask your names so that perhaps I could one day repay you for this kindness?", Oscar asked while almost licking his lips.
"Oh, there is no need for that. All I did was tell you how to get there. That's all.", the man replied with a smile as he continued walking.
"No, no!! Please, I insist. Even if it was trivial to you, how many people have I passed by asking the same thing who have either ignored me or told me to get lost? Please, just allow me your name. That is all."
The man shrugged his shoulders.
"Hurkus Chalestar."
"My good friend Hurkus, I will someday repay you for this. I hope you don't forget my face when that day comes!"
Oscar walked away with a sneer grin.
[Properties: Hurkus]
[/pathfind]
[Calculating the path which entity Hurkus is currently taking. Solution found. Path is displayed.]
[/create object- gasoline tank]
[/setcoordinates]
The two turned the corner into an alleyway and as they did so, Oscar quickly set up a trap for the two of them.
On a windowsill, he planted a tank of gasoline such that it was about to fall, and as it did so it splattered all over the surroundings in the alleyway.
"Oi... that's dangerous. What is the person living up there thinking, leaving these things on their windowsills like that where they could fall at any time....", Hurkus thought out loud as he shielded the woman from the spreading liquid.
This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
However, in doing so he was covered in the gasoline.
Sniffing his clothes, Hurkus made a disgusted face.
"What is this stuff? It isn't alcohol, that's for sure.... what the hell is going on here?"
[/delete entity: Gasoline]
[/setcoordinates]
Oscar removed even the slightest drops of gasoline from the woman, leaving the man completely soaked.
[/create entity: flame]
[/setcoordinates: Hurkus]
The man, Hurkus, was lit into a bursting ball of fire in an instant as the flames seemed to explosively erupt across him.
"Agh!!!! Help!!!!! W-water!!!! Get me some water!!!!!"
Hurkus screamed out for help, and the woman he was with, terrified, backed away.
"H-help!! Somebody help!!!", she screamed.
However, the flames were now spreading not only from Hurkus, but now onto the buildings in the surrounding area.
Oscar ran up to the woman and grabbed her hand.
"We have to get away from here!!! The fire is spreading!!!"
The woman looked back to Hurkus whose skin was now charred, yet he kept burning.
He fell to the ground, reaching out his hand desperately.
"H.... help.... me..."
The fire spread quickly, and a piece of wood fell from one of the balconies, aflame.
"We have to escape or we will be caught up as well!!", Oscar shouted.
With this, the woman- teary eyed at seeing her lover dying right in front of her, went with Oscar, escaping the scene.
"I'm sorry.....", she screamed, leaving the man as he burned to death.
The two ran away into another alley where Oscar showed a bitter face- one of remorse.
"I'm sorry to have to make you decide like that. I was merely trying to save you-"
Before Oscar even had time to explain, the woman clung to him.
Tears flowed from her eyes, and she didn't speak a word.
Oscar merely put his hand to her back, hugging her tightly.
"No... I should be the one thanking you.... you saved me as well.... if it weren't for you, I would have stayed behind and been caught up in the fire myself..... it is because of you that I still have my life.... I owe my very life to you, Sir. You said before that you would pay him back for helping you.... and I am certain that he would be happy to know that you saved me."
The woman cried as she placed her head into the chest of Oscar, who held her tightly.
As the woman put her head into the chest of Oscar, he sneered victoriously.
'They're so easy.'
"But what was that!? His entire body was covered in flames in an instant!!! I've never seen a fire spread so fast before!!", the woman cried.
"I.... I don't know what that was....", Oscar lied. "It was certainly something out of this world. Perhaps some sort of magic?"
"I... hope not.... if it was, then that would mean there was someone out for my boyfriend...."
The woman looked up to Oscar with pleading eyes.
"I'm sure he would not want you to be lost and alone without him. Why don't I escort you home for the night?"
"W-would you do that for me?"
With a kind smile, Oscar nodded.
"Of course. Ah, but first I would like to get to the post office if you don't mind. I have an important message to deliver, after all."
The two walked off, and Oscar grinned internally at the great success.
'My powers... they make everything so easy. Reality itself isn't a match for me. With this, I will dominate the world in order to achieve my true goal.'
As the two walked, the woman seemed to cling to Oscar, apparently lonely and in a vulnerable state.
'My true goal.... that is, to make every woman in the world a member of my own personal harem.'
----
Berith arrived in front of a large building- one which was currently covered in spiderwebs and honeyless hexed combs.
'Ah, so this is their new little nest. That girl... she must be having a lot of fun with my brother out here all alone. Keh keh..... I guess I'll mess with her a little more while I'm here.'
Right now, the city was enveloped in darkness. Many of the homes had been smashed up. Windows were broken, doors had been ripped open, and overall the city was in a state which said 'something happened here recently.'
Furthermore, not a single soul wandered the streets.
'I wonder just where all the snacks are? Er... I mean, my nephews and nieces. Right. They're now the slaves of their excellencies, so I can't eat them. After all, if a slave were to eat the food off their masters plate, that would be a crime worthy of death.'
Berith wiped a bit of drool from her fangs with the bandages drooping from her arms before she opened the door without knocking.
'I wonder what's going on in here? Maybe I'll just sneak up and surprise them.'
Entering the home mischievously, Berith crackled to herself as she lifted her insectoid arm to her mouth.
'Keh keh keh....'
However, when she ascended the stairway, entering the room which was likely the bedroom of the two, she found an empty room with a weblike hammock similar to the one they had created in the Dictatorship.
'Ah, looks like they aren't here. I guess I'll look around town.'
Berith made her way into the town, looking around at the buildings.
Almost all of them were lifeless and empty, but as she walked through the town she eventually came to a place which had lights and music blaring.
There was the sound of a harp and a man singing some bard tunes, accompanied by the laughter of many children and a few other people.
'Oh? It looks like I've found the party. Time to crash it.'
Berith made her way over to the bar, opening the door which had been smashed in already.
"Auntie is here to consume you- no, I mean.... to consume the food I smell in here!! Where is it?"
Looking around, Berith saw Coran and Alicia sitting next to another while sipping drinks, and children hanging all over the place from webs, swinging around like monkeys.
One man was in the corner singing and playing the harp which he held, and three other human adults along with a few other older children were sitting on couches near Coran and Alicia chatting it up.
'Ah, this is something Coran must have learned from their excellencies. The proper way to celebrate.'
The attention of the room turned onto Berith as she entered, and the face of Alicia went pale as she saw her.
"S-sister? What are you doing he-"
"Did you just call me sister? Acting like you're my brother's wife already, eh?", Berith stated as she walked casually in between many playing children, grabbing some up as she walked and placing them in her arms and on her back and head.
"Yay!"
"Auntie is here to play!"
"I love you auntie!! You're a lot more fun than mom! I love mom too tho..."
Berith smiled devilishly as she carried the children, bouncing them up and down.
"Whatever you say kids. Maybe I'll create a jungle gym or something for you later, something that her excellency suggested for you."
"Yay!!"
Meanwhile, Alicia seemed to be flustered at Berith's bold statement, unsure how to react.
"Er.... um.... well... that....."
"Haha!! Alrighty then. I'll call you 'sister' as well. But if that's the case, doesn't that mean it's official? Hey, you all hear that!? It's official!! My loser of a brother who couldn't even find and kill his own prey when we were younger has finally gotten a woman!! But even then, it's one that he enslaved cause he couldn't find one otherwise!! HAHA!!"
Coran had an awkward look on his face, unsure how to react, and Alicia was too shocked and confused to respond.
"Hey hey, stop talking about my past in front of everyone. Why don't you sit down and have a drink too, sister?"
"Sure, whatever you say brother. Anyways, I came here for a reason. Orders from their excellencies. They said that tomorrow was gonna be a big day for this city, and that my presence would act as insurance to prevent anything from going south."
Coran became serious at hearing this.
"I see.... then, I am glad you'll be here sister."
Niri and Patrick who were sitting next to one another looked back and forth between the two in disbelief.
"C-Coran!? This is your sister!?"
"She looks so similar.... wow...."
Veronica merely smiled, extending her hand towards Berith.
"Ah, if you're the sister of this creature, then I'm sure we'll get along well. I am Veronica, betrayer of humanity. Nice to meet you."
Berith chuckled.
"I like you, woman. You're the type who can get things done. You got a fire in your eyes.... like you're ready to destroy anyone by ripping the rug out from underneath them. I'll let you know tho. You won't be able to rip it out from under us."
Veronica laughed lightly at this response.
"I only rip the rug out from monsters. And your brother clearly isn't one."
----
After a long night, Claire woke in the bed of the guest bedroom.
"Ah.... I guess I fell asleep. I didn't get drunk. Hm? Actually, now that I think about it.... when I was living a simulated life I would get drunk really easily, but when I drank that drink just earlier, I wasn't really affected by it."
"Well duh. After all, I'm a badass who can handle her liquor.", Clarice snapped.
"Is that so? But I was the one who drank it, so wouldn't I have gotten drunk?"
"How could you get drunk when you got even a piece of me in you? Things are different from the last world, not to mention the fact that those memories don't actually exist."
Claire looked up to realize that the door to her room was open, and standing outside of it were the two kids- Mori and Lisa.
"Why are you staring at her like that, Mori? She just woke up! Give her some privacy!!", Lisa shouted while slapping the back of his head.
"Yeah well I didn't mean to stare or anything but I was walking by and she started talking to herself. I couldn't help but get weirded out.", Mori responded while rubbing his head.
"Yeah, I mean I completely agree.... she's super weird, but you shouldn't say that in front of her!!", Lisa reprimanded. "Pretend you didn't hear that, ok C? Or do I have to call you your eminence now?"
Claire's heart was bombarded by a series of emotions but she eventually settled on relief.
It seemed that these two were back to normal.
Even though Claire's heart was cut deep by being called a weirdo, she found herself laughing joyfully.
"Hahaha!! I'm glad that you guys can joke about me like that!!"
"Well I mean.... it would be pretty weird to start treating you differently just because you had some other side of you, right? So me and Lisa decided to treat you just like we did before. Unless you don't want us to?"
"No no!! I want you to!!! Please do so!!! Just... not when we're in public, ok? I kinda have to keep up an image as a dictator and all.... ah!! Speaking of which, I have a job to do today!! My colleagues are going to show up in the arena and they are probably going to....."
Claire remembered back to the many situations she had seen when the antiheroes were at the head of a large group, giving speeches and ordering around subordinates.
"Geh..... they're probably going to scare the shit out of everyone....."
"Just like you did yesterday?", Lisa said, adding fuel to the fire.
"Yes!! Exactly like that!! Wait, why are you roasting me so much!?"
"Well, you said to act like before.", Lisa said with a smile.
'I'm truly relieved... she looks perfectly fine, completely unlike yesterday. I guess she was able to sleep it off as if it was a bad dream. I'm sure some trauma still remains but for now she seems like she'll be ok....'
Claire got up from the bed and stood up proudly, putting her hands to her hips.
Her angelic wings seemed to pop into place, fluttering back and forth behind her, and her halo seemed to glow with power.
"It's time to begin!! From this point on, everyone is going to be working hard to find the best possible solution to all our problems!! We'll take back the sky for the people of this city!!!"
"Um... you look really dorky, C."
"Extremely dorky."
The two giggled to themselves as Claire breathed out heavily, letting out a 'pfft'.
"Ah... this is going to be a long day... well, I suppose we should get going. After all, I probably shouldn't be late to my own inauguration."
----