The Kindness Trap
"Haah… haah…."
The temporary commander's office, after the violent storm had swept through.
A fishy, thick scent of chestnut blossoms pooled in the narrow space like a dense fog.
On the bed, Pomen, who had collapsed on top of me, breathed heavily and rubbed her face against my chest.
Her pink hair, drenched in sweat and love juices from the intense sex, clung to my skin, providing a sticky and strange sensation.
"Haah… did you like it?"
Pomen asked, lifting her head.
Her eyes, soaked in the lingering afterglow of pleasure, were hazily unfocused.
A languid satisfaction, characteristic of a female who had been thoroughly loved, spread across her face.
"Yeah."
"Really?"
"Yeah. It was great."
As I nodded in response, Pomen stuck out her tongue and began to lick the space between my collarbone and chest muscles.
It was a persistent and sticky caress, as if she were savoring a delicious piece of candy.
"That tickles, Pomen."
"Heehee... But… the Commander's body tastes so good."
Giggling, Pomen stealthily reached her hand downward.
Her long fingers began to knead and fiddle with my cock, which had gone limp and slack.
"So, Commander."
Pomen asked casually while playing with my cock.
"You're aiming for the one with the twin-tails, right?"
"Yeah. She looked like she'd be easier to manipulate."
"Hmm…. Well, the one who looks like the leader seems completely stiff. Just like our Arva. Still, they're ECHOs, so wouldn't they moan and beg for it once you actually plow them?"
That was entirely possible.
The problem was that there was also a probability of a bullet hole being drilled into my head.
"So, how are you planning to seduce her?"
"For now, I'm thinking of pretending to be kind to gather information. Things like the situation in Ark 86 or the movements of the Astral. As you know, we don't have much information about the outside."
"Kindness, huh…."
At my words, Pomen chuckled with a strange expression.
"What a scary operation."
"Scary?"
"Of course. Because the Commander's kindness is destructive. I fell for that kindness and became the Commander's bitch, didn't I?"
Is that so?
Thinking back to that time, I feel like if I had just asked her to spread her legs once, she would have done it immediately….
But I couldn't say that out loud.
Instead, I stroked Pomen's head as she nestled in my arms.
"The humans of this world are all trash. Always hitting and cursing…. ECHOs are living beings with emotions, yet they don't hesitate to use and discard them. What happens when someone who's only been treated like that meets a kind human like the Commander?"
"What happens?"
"They fall head over heels, just like me. They lose their minds. Their body, heart, and the core of their heart become filled with the Commander."
Giggling, Pomen swept her tongue across my chest again, and her palm began to manipulate my rod more explicitly.
I could feel the cooled heat stirring once more under her soft stimulation.
"So, when are you going to start the operation in earnest?"
"Starting tonight. We don't know when the situation might change urgently."
"I guess so. Then, before you go, one more time…"
Just as Pomen nodded at my answer and was about to climb on top of me in earnest—
A shadow slid through the gap of the locked door.
[Pooh...]
"…Eh?"
It was Podic.
And with her characteristic expressionless face, she stared blankly down at Pomen and me entangled on the bed.
To be precise, she was staring intently at my cock, which was becoming hard again in Pomen's hand.
"Hey, since when is it okay to just walk in without knocking?"
Pomen shouted in surprise, but Podic ignored her, strode forward, and suddenly thrust her face between my legs.
"This is mine!"
Pomen reflexively gave Podic a light bonk on the head.
[Poohhh—!]
Podic let out a low cry as if she were being treated unfairly.
Then, along with her face, she stuck out her tongue—bleeeh... It was a gesture like a large dog pestering its owner for a tasty treat.
"No, go away! The Commander is in his refractory period!"
[Po! Poohhh—!]
Pomen tried desperately to defend my dick, but she couldn't overcome the strength of Podic pushing in with her body.
Eventually….
[Pooh-op! Pooh—!]
Podic claimed my cock.
An alien and intense irrumatio, a feeling like cold jelly yet lukewarm at the same time, invaded my senses.
Podic's skill, sucking with such force that her cheeks hollowed out as if she were trying to pull out my very soul, was a vacuum cleaner of a different dimension.
"Ugh, seriously…. She's just needlessly strong."
Having finally lost my cock, Pomen pouted her lips and, as if giving up, collapsed back onto my chest.
Then, she lunged at my lips, mixing her tongue with mine roughly.
"……."
Pomen on top, Podic below.
Tonight, before I could even start a favorability event with Sherpa, I felt like my waist was going to snap first.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
💬Pathfinder Squad Tactical Connection Link - Encrypted Channel.
[Compass: Sherpa, respond. What's the situation at the quarters?]
Along with a crackle of noise, the leader's voice echoed in her ear.
Sherpa looked around in surprise.
A bed with a fluffy mattress and cotton sheets—things she couldn't even glimpse in Ark 86.
Unable to bring herself to lie on it, Sherpa, who had been crouching on the floor, hurriedly connected the communication.
[Sherpa: N-No problems—! B-But, Leader.]
[Compass: ???]
[Sherpa: Here… there's heating coming from the floor. And there's a bed…. It's okay to use this, right?]
[Compass: Probably.]
[Sherpa: Are you… lying on the bed too, Leader?]
[Compass: …No. I'm going to lie down after reviewing the current situation.]
At the leader's words, Sherpa let out a short sigh of relief.
As expected, it was good that I didn't lie down yet. It would be bad if I just lay down and got criticized for it.
No matter how good this place looked, they were outsiders and mere ECHOs.
It would be a disaster if they acted out of line and got scolded.
She decided to wait until the mass-produced ECHOs, the C-008s who were sharing the quarters, returned and then follow their lead.
[Compass: This Ark is a bit strange.]
[Sherpa: Uh… it feels like heaven to me? Bread and fruit…. It's my first time eating them, and they were so delicious. I wish Zero and Bait could have eaten them too….]
[Compass: …Still, don't let your guard down, Sherpa. Human kindness always comes with a price.]
[Sherpa: Yes, yes. I understand.]
When the link was cut, a heavy silence returned.
Sherpa hugged her knees.
The leader was always right. Humans are not beings to be trusted.
But….
The broad back that had effortlessly lifted her heavy backpack.
The gentle hand that, instead of getting angry when she accidentally screamed in surprise, pushed a water bottle toward her, saying she might have indigestion.
The warmth of the Fleet Commander of Ark 69, which she was experiencing for the first time, kept blurring Compass's warning.
Clang—!
It was then. The door to the quarters opened, and a boisterous noise flooded in from outside.
[Yeah—! Finally, a break! Wasn't today's work really intense?]
[Still, the Commander even provided special meals. Did you try the strawberries?]
[Ah... they were seriously delicious. They just melted in my mouth. The bread too.]
[Madeline said she'd bake bagels next time. Do you guys know what a bagel is?]
Sherpa held her breath and eavesdropped on the conversation of the mass-produced ECHOs returning to the quarters.
It was shocking.
In her common sense, mass-produced ECHOs were either emotionless machines or disposable tools with dead eyes due to excessive work and abuse.
But the ECHOs here were different.
Their expressions were alive, and their voices were vibrant. Above all, they were looking forward to tomorrow.
And a moment later, a creaking sound reached Sherpa's ears.
[Kuh! I'm telling you, the beds in our Ark are the best!]
[Ah... So comfortable. The fatigue is just melting away.]
[I'm showering first! Anyone want to join?]
[Me! Me—!]
She heard everyone naturally using the beds.
Only then did Sherpa gather her courage and stealthily head toward the bathroom.
After warming her body under the shower where warm water poured out, she hesitated before carefully lying down on the fluffy bed.
"Ah……."
The tension snapped, and it felt as if her body were melting.
The leader had told her this Ark was strange and to be cautious, but the touch of the soft blanket and the cozy air made her lose any sense of how to even maintain a guard.
"It would be really great if I could live in a place like this…"
Then she wouldn't have to carry heavy loads every day, listen to curses, and tremble in fear of not knowing when she might die.
How much time had passed?
[Uh, eh?!]
[Salute!]
[Salute—!]
Sherpa, who had fallen fast asleep, hurriedly sat up at the sound of loud salutes coming from outside the door.
It seemed a high-ranking official of the Ark had visited.
[Sorry to disturb your rest. Is everyone comfortable?]
[Yes—! It's great!]
[Lena said two people need to go north tomorrow. For now, the duty there…….]
A familiar male voice.
It was definitely the Commander she had met today.
In the Commander's voice when dealing with the mass-produced ECHOs, there was no trace of authority or violence.
It was while Sherpa was gulping and feeling nervous.
Knock, knock.
A quiet knocking sound echoed on the door.
"Ye, yes!"
Sherpa opened the door in a start.
"Can I come in?"
"Ye, yes! Y-You can!"
The door opened, and the Commander stepped inside.
In a situation where it felt like her heart would burst out of her mouth, Sherpa reflexively hunched her shoulders.
Could he have come to scold her for resting too comfortably?
She wasn't part of Ark 69, and she hadn't worked like the mass-produced ECHOs.
"I seem to have interrupted your rest."
However, contrary to her expectations, the voice she heard was soft.
Then, he glanced around the room and gave a faint smile, seeing the rumpled bed sheets and her damp hair.
"I'm glad to see you were resting well."
"Ah, th-th-that…. I-I'm sorry. I, I just used the bed without…"
"Hmm? I don't think there's anything to be sorry for. They were placed there specifically for you to use them."
With those words, the Commander stepped closer.
Sherpa instinctively flinched and tried to step back before stopping.
The Commander passed by Sherpa, picked up a water bottle on the table, poured water into a cup, and handed it to her.
"Don't be nervous. Wet your throat first."
"Th-Th-Thank you."
Looking at Sherpa, who took the cup with trembling hands, the Commander spoke softly.
"It might be a bit noisy, but it's not a bad place to stay."
"Huh? Yes. I-It's o-okay, it's fine. It's good, it's really good."
"Is that so? That's a relief. Anyway, our Ark is a bit different from where you were. We don't hit ECHOs, and we don't treat them as disposables."
"Ah…!"
"I hate that kind of thing. ECHOs are all cute and lovely. So as long as you're here, don't worry about others and get plenty of rest."
"Yes……."
At the Commander's words, Sherpa unconsciously swallowed hard.
Then, the Commander reached out and gave Sherpa's head a light pat.
"Well then, I'll be going now."
With that, the Commander immediately turned around and left the room.
In Sherpa’s hand, who was staring at the closed door, was the water cup that still held a lingering warmth.
"Cute… and lovely? Me? ECHOs? Ah, aaah…."
Compass's warning had long since vanished from her memory.
Over Sherpa's instantly crumbled guard, an unknown surge of emotion and heart-fluttering excitement was filling up.