The Price of Surrendering in a Duel
The Price of Surrendering in a Duel
"Ugh, ugh...?"
Jerad finally gave me a command.
No matter how much I twisted my body, clearly unwilling to perform the action—
-*Ding!*
[Currently obeying command!]
-*Ding!*
[Currently obeying command!]
—only these messages appeared repeatedly, and I couldn't move my body.
My slowly moving hand eventually began to grasp the pleats of my skirt.
Could my actions really be forced?
Perhaps the world was playing a trick on me.
Numerous thoughts swirled in my head, but no matter how much I wanted to stop, I couldn't.
Then, my gaze suddenly lifted, and I saw dozens of pairs of eyes staring at me.
And in their eyes, anticipation and excitement were uniformly brimming.
'............N-no.'
Even if I enjoyed exposure, this wasn't what I wanted.
To lift my skirt myself and expose my underwear in front of dozens of people watching me like this.
"............Ugh."
I had thought I had somewhat adapted to the reeking gazes filled with men's lust.
At some point, feeling their stares no longer felt so disgusting.
But for some reason, right now, I felt so humiliated and ashamed that my body trembled under the men's gazes.
It felt as if my entire body had become sensitive, twitching whenever their gazes touched me, and I realized my body wasn't normal.
My body tingled as if I were showering in men's lust, and the dopamine starting to release from my brain began to dizzy my head.
But the Status Window didn't wait for me.
Even if I wanted to stall for a little more time, my body began to act compulsively.
-*Rustle.*
".....Ohh."
"C-cough."
"Wow....."
In the end, I finally lifted my skirt.
Enough to clearly reveal the underwear I was wearing today.
The female students' reactions were uniformly pitiful, sending sympathetic glances as if I were a woman who had suffered terribly at Jerad's hands.
The male students, meanwhile, all began to stare intently at my crotch, between my underwear.
"............Haa, haa."
I feel like I'm going crazy.
I want to pull down my underwear right now and furiously masturbate—
'.....No. This isn't what I'm thinking.....'
My thoroughly pickled brain kept interfering with my thoughts.
It was as if there was another self inside my head.
And that self was enjoying this situation with immense delight.
"Kuhuhu, that's not the underwear you usually wear."
As Jerad said, I wasn't wearing the Valley Madame brand underwear I always wore.
I was wearing plain underwear with lace decorations covering a large area.
The reason was that I had worn it to at least reduce his pleasure, in preparation for when Jerad might do something lewd to me during the last class.
'.....Damn it, I should've worn pretty underwear instead.....'
If I had known this would happen, I would have at least worn something a little pretty, even if not underwear made by Valley Madame.
It's even more humiliating to show off such rustic underwear.
"Ahem, ahem. Young Master Reinhardt, it's about time to stop now............"
Just then, the Professor, who had been watching us and finally couldn't bear it any longer, spoke to Jerad.
'............Ugh!'
After all, wasn't that Professor also enjoying the sight of me?
At that thought, I hastily scanned the gazes of the surrounding students.
Humiliation.
Perhaps this word was the most fitting for the situation.
All the men looking at me had their lower halves bulging, and they made no attempt to hide their lust for me.
Their gazes clearly showed what kind of look they had for me, and what they wanted to do to me.
But conversely, I couldn't control holding up my skirt or covering my body.
If it was insulting, it was insulting, and if it was humiliating, it was humiliating.
But for some reason, it didn't feel that bad.
I didn't know exactly what this feeling was yet, but deep inside, I felt something dizzying.
Just like that time, when I masturbated in the bathroom while my classmates were asking if I was okay.
"Haa, haa....."
I unknowingly opened my tightly closed eyes again.
And I began to look around at the male students' gazes, which were sweeping over my body.
It was then that my gaze met Lady Ehiton's.
Her quite flustered eyes, which had initially glared at Jerad, soon turned towards me.
I couldn't ignore her shocked gaze, as if she hadn't expected me to humble myself like this, as if she had been betrayed by me.
Lady Ehiton probably thought something like this:
Why was I going this far just for a chance to duel Jerad?
For what reason did I have to endure such humiliation as a woman?
And this is just a guess, but perhaps she was engulfed in shock, wondering why I didn't ask her for help instead of obeying Jerad's command.
After all, Lady Ehiton had said it last time.
If I ever needed help, I should definitely tell her.
That she was very discreet.
Despite her saying all that, I was just obeying Jerad's ridiculous commands, so wouldn't the bond between Lady Ehiton and me be shattered?
Honestly, even if Lady Ehiton broke off our friendship right now, I wouldn't have much to say.
Because it was I who had driven a wedge into her trust and our bond.
—*Slide.*
'.....Ah, it's done.'
And only now, as if the obedience time for [Battle Defeat Mode] had ended, my hand could slowly lower my skirt.
But what does it matter now?
What was done was done.
'............It's okay. As long as Master doesn't find out.....'
As long as it doesn't reach Master's ears.
"Ahem, ahem! Let's continue with the next duel!"
The Professor, trying to somehow defuse the chaotic atmosphere, made the students move to lighten the mood.
I had to hurry and apologize to Lady Ehiton.
So I came down from the dueling arena and went to where the students were waiting.
Then, all the students' gazes began to turn towards me.
Ignoring their stares as best I could, I went to find Lady Ehiton.
"L-Lady Ehiton—"
But—
—*Slap!*
My hand, which was trying to stop her, was pushed away.
Startled, I hastily looked up at her, and Lady Ehiton was staring at me with an emotionless gaze.
She seemed to be saying:
'Don't talk to me.'
That clearly meant she wanted to distance herself from me, and for some reason, I couldn't defy that meaning.
"............Ah."
Indeed. If I were in her shoes and someone had shattered the bond we had built, I would have acted the same way.
No, it was even more remarkable that she didn't curse at me or say harsh words.
Conversely, Lady Ehiton was holding back her anger towards me, and at the same time, giving me a chance.
She was being considerate, allowing me to quietly leave first without any harm being done.
I wasn't so foolish as to understand that meaning and then try to make excuses to change her mind.
"I-I'm sorry..... No. My apologies, Lady Ehiton....."
She probably wouldn't want to exchange words with me anymore.
I apologized to her with the utmost respect, as if I were someone meeting her for the first time.
As a commoner by status, merely speaking informally to a noble could constitute a [Noble Insult Crime].
I conveyed my apologies to Lady Ehiton and completely left the dueling arena.
I didn't want to cry or seek comfort over something like this.
Still, just one thing—
"............We were friends, weren't we?"
Even if our relationship was a bit ambiguous, we had gone to dessert cafes together.
Even though we primarily used formal speech with each other, we talked enough to feel a sense of trust and bond.
And such a relationship would be socially called 'friendship'.
The fact that I had lost the first friend I made in this world after Mari was a bit bitter.
But conversely, there was a small comfort.
If I were to see the ending of this game and return to my original world.
It would be like abandoning the people left behind here.
Perhaps it would be better not to form deep relationships.
............Although that thought crossed my mind, the people in this world weren't simply programmed NPCs.
Losing a friend stung quite a bit.
"On a day like this, I should call a friend and have some gukbap with soju............"
Recalling two or three friends from my original world, I returned to the dormitory.
'But would those guys come out if I asked them to?'
If I told them I'd buy all the gukbap, soju, and suyuk, they'd appear like ghosts, but
"If I suggested splitting the bill, they probably wouldn't come. Pffft....."
Of course, there were still many classes left today, but I wasn't in the mood to attend all of them.
Wouldn't it be acceptable to skip class today?
It felt like a college student taking a self-declared day off because they broke up with their girlfriend............,
I needed at least one day to compose myself.
After all, I was the one who would see the ending, and I was the one who would return to my original world.
It might sound like an excuse, but managing one's mental state is very important, you see.