Chapter 84: Causing a Stir (6)
Chapter 84: Causing a Stir (6)
How should one deal with a slave who harbors a rebellious spirit?
Especially one I bought for a staggering sum, who is now thinking of running away—or worse, stabbing me in the back before making a break for it.
‘I have to break her.’
Simply breaking her wouldn't be enough.
I had to crush her spirit with absolute cruelty.
I had to break her so thoroughly that the very thought of escape would never cross her mind again.
—Why are you looking at me like that? You got a problem?
—N-no, sir!
—Then is this the "inside" or the "outside"?
—.......
—Look at this punk. Why aren't you answering? You think you're too good to talk to me?
‘In that sense, those shitty memories actually come in handy at times like this.’
Vile but effective scenarios for asserting authority began to surface in my mind.
‘Do I really have to go full "drill sergeant from hell" on a slave like her?’
I knew all too well how to deal with psychopaths who seized on the tiniest trifles to torment others.
—That woman who came to visit earlier, is she your girlfriend?
—Yes! That is correct!
—You brat... Unfit!
—.......
Knowing it so well only made me feel filthier.
Fortunately, I had a mental support system that kept me grounded; otherwise, I might have snapped long ago.
If I played the part of the unhinged tyrant with Kuro, she would undoubtedly feel miserable, but she wouldn't dare dream of rebellion.
However.
Those who are going to do it, will do it.
Because I knew that better than anyone, I knew Kuro’s inner resolve wouldn't be easily broken.
‘And honestly, acting like a total psycho feels like a chore.’
Ah.
What a pity.
I should have done more research before buying her.
It wasn't like I had to "grin and bear it" just because she was the slave I chose, but what was I even agonizing over?
‘I’ll finish this up, go back to the surface, claim her, and then figure it out.’
Wasn't her body the primary reason I bought her as a slave anyway?
Once I checked out what she was capable of in bed, it wouldn't be too late to think about her other uses.
"Sir Ya-han-nam. We are approaching the 8th-floor boss room."
[Already? That was fast.]
Before we knew it, we had cleared the 6th floor and reached the 8th.
The 8th floor was still teeming with miners excavating magic stones around the Obelisks.
The difference between here and the 1st or 5th floors was that these miners wore light leather armor to protect themselves.
Up to the 5th floor, all you needed was the strength to mine and two legs to run away, but from the 6th floor onward, you needed enough combat prowess to fight back with a pickaxe if necessary.
[Then let us begin our preparations. We will rest on the 8th floor before descending further. Any questions?]
"U-um... Young Lord?"
Ah.
Is this crazy bitch serious?
[Yurdias.]
"Yes, Ya-han-nam."
As soon as I called her name, Yurdias grabbed Kuro by the scruff of her neck and dragged her toward a deserted corridor.
"Ya-han-nam, that was..."
[I’ll leave this to Yurdias for now, Captain.]
Laura looked toward Serica, but Serica also gave a heavy nod of agreement.
And then.
Slap!
"Agh...!!"
"You arrogant brat."
Yurdias struck Kuro.
"I told you repeatedly to be careful before we entered the Infinite Labyrinth, didn't I? Did you forget the safety protocols? Have you lost your mind?"
She didn't slap her face; she struck a sensitive spot that was excruciatingly painful for a woman.
"You dare call him that here? Do you want to die?"
Smack, smack.
"I’m sure I told you that under no circumstances are you to call him anything but 'Ya-han-nam' here."
Yurdias continued to strike Kuro’s breasts.
"Do you have any idea how dangerous it is to use his real name? You didn't know? Don't give me that. I told you a dozen times before we came down. How can you say you didn't know?!"
Because the target area was so large, the sound echoed loudly. Yurdias was treating her exactly like she handled her subordinates in the Thief Guild—it was nothing short of brutal.
Aside from the way her chest jiggled violently with each hit, it was honestly no exaggeration to call it abuse—no, it was abuse.
Actually, no.
This was a justified beatdown.
It was because she had referred to me as "Young Lord."
"Listen well. In this place, he is 'Ya-han-nam.' The Young Lord is currently at Fermaton Castle. Can't you even make that simple distinction?"
"N-no, that's not it...!"
Is this inside the Labyrinth or outside?
I wanted to say it, but I decided to hold back for now.
"It's not? You can distinguish them? Then why did a bitch who knows better let those words slip out of her mouth?"
Even if I didn't break her myself, Yurdias was doing a thorough job of it.
"You just tried to screw over the Knight Order and get us all killed. Right?"
"T-that's absurd!"
"Absurd? Don't make me laugh. Your plan was to let the beasts of the Infinite Labyrinth hear that the Young Lord, the heir of Fermaton, is here, and then trigger a Labyrinth rampage. That was it, wasn't it?"
"No...! I never thought of such a thing!"
Of course she hadn't.
That idea had only come from my own paranoid "What if I get screwed over?" worries.
No one had actually put such a plan into action yet.
‘But who knows now.’
I had essentially given her the method.
In a classic "villain explaining how to defeat them" move, I had inadvertently taught Kuro exactly how to trap us.
‘But if she does, it gives me a justification.’
If Kuro actually blurted those words out?
Then I would have my opportunity.
A morally and logically sound opportunity to dispose of her.
A golden chance to put this woman named Kuro to "proper" use.
I would have the perfect justification to "utilize" a woman who tried to kill me and my knights.
"Is it alright to leave them be like that?"
[Why do you ask, Captain?]
Laura approached me with a worried voice as I watched Yurdias’s "education" from a distance.
"I’m afraid this will only breed more resentment."
[When you break someone like that, one of two things happens. They either realize they can't keep fighting and start crawling, or they decide to go all out and rebel.]
If she truly accepted her status as a slave, she would bow her head regardless of any unfair treatment.
If she harbored rebellion in her heart, she would betray us whether we treated her kindly or cruelly.
[You have to maintain strict discipline with slaves. Listen well, Captain. Slaves are people whose way of thinking is completely different from ours.]
Look at her even now.
Despite being targeted relentlessly on her chest, the light of defiance remained in Kuro’s eyes.
‘Maybe I shouldn't have told her to only hit the breasts.’
The incident with Amy had left me with a bit of trauma regarding slapping faces, so I had told her to hit the breasts instead.
[You have to break their spirit completely. By any means necessary.]
"But looking at her now, it doesn't seem to be working. What do you think, Serica?"
"...Perhaps because she’s a former adventurer, her eyes certainly don't look like those of a slave."
However, this was starting to look a bit ridiculous.
"Sir Ya-han-nam. How about we just cut something off?"
[Would that be enough to finally erase her will to resist?]
"Yes. Right now, it feels... a bit weak. You're inflicting pain, but the location is just..."
[I see. Lesson learned.]
It seemed focusing the attacks on the breasts wasn't very effective.
It clearly hurt, but it was too ambiguous to truly break her spirit.
[Yurdias. I’ll take over from here.]
"Ah, yes."
After getting Yurdias to step aside, I reached out and grabbed Kuro’s horns.
Grip.
"H-hieek...!"
[Listen carefully. I don't like variables. I won't have my Knight Order falling into a crisis because of a slave I bought for a fortune. Do you understand?]
"Y-yes...!!"
I gripped her horns and shook her head back and forth.
Kuro nodded with tearful eyes, and I roughly grabbed her reddened breasts.
‘It’s a shame I can't feel the texture through this.’
"Agh...!"
As the Living Armor’s steel gauntlets clamped down on her chest, Kuro let out a sharp scream.
Unlike the way I held Laura’s breasts, I squeezed and pulled with a violent, crushing grip.
[Prove that your worth extends beyond just these tits. When we return to the surface, I’ll choose between the two of you. I’ll see whether the black cow works better or the white cow does.]
She should get the message after a warning like that.
[Make sure you're worth the price I paid for you. Got it?]
* * *
"Why the hell did I buy that?"
Seeing Kuro’s face, still full of defiance, made my irritation flare.
"Mother. How should I handle slaves like that?"
"Hmm.... Shouldn't you just kill them cleanly?"
Truly the Middle Ages.
In an era of strict social classes, slaves were hardly considered human.
"Um, may I offer a humble opinion?"
"Head Maid? Speak."
"A slave like that deserves death, but I am concerned the Kingdom might make an issue of it."
"Hmm."
I understood.
I understood exactly what she meant.
‘If I kill a slave, the Kingdom will throw a fit about how slaves are people too, or some such nonsense.’
That was exactly the nuance.
In that case, I couldn't just kill her; I’d have to quietly "dispose" of her within the Infinite Labyrinth...
"Dammit, why did I buy..."
Ah.
The reason came back to me.
Of all the virgin slaves Charlotte had shown me, why did I buy those two "cows"?
It wasn't because I wanted to play with breast milk.
What I wanted was...
"The horns."
"Pardon?"
"Ssshp."
Looking at Astarotte in front of me, I had always felt a lingering sense of missed opportunity.
And looking at Laura in her bunny girl outfit, I felt that same regret.
‘I want to grab those horns with both hands and shove my cock into her mouth.’
#horn.
A fantasy sex act impossible in reality.
"...Ssshp."
Before I killed her, I definitely had to do a horn-grab blowjob.
Of course.
That was assuming she proved herself worth the money I spent to buy her.