Pleasing the Master
I headed straight for the table.
I lifted the hem of my skirt and draped it over the sharp edge, covering it completely.
Then I let my imagination take over.
“Master… ah, ngh, Master…”
It felt as if he had slipped beneath my skirt.
Imagining him teasing me from below, I slowly began to roll my hips.
“Haa… mmm…”
The friction against the hard corner sent tremors racing through my entire body.
The harder I pressed my palm to the table and rubbed my aching flesh against the edge, the sharper the tingling grew in my lower belly, the hotter the flush of heat that swelled inside me.
So much more than that vulgar, empty-headed country woman ever could.
“I… I could please you so much better, Master… haaang!”
Reason was already being devoured by pleasure.
In the obscene fantasy that Master had seized my thighs and was greedily licking upward, the rhythm of my hips grew faster and faster.
Squish.
The corner grew slick with wetness. My once-tidy hair fell into disarray, and my moans turned wet and shameless.
The peak was almost upon me.
My waist pitched forward, my toes curled tight, and my mind began to bleach white—right at that instant.
Thud. Thud.
Footsteps echoed down the corridor and came to an abrupt halt right outside my door.
Knock, knock.
“Iris, are you in your room?”
“….!”
The pleasure vanished as though someone had dumped ice water over my head. Extreme terror and panic swallowed me whole.
“M-Master?! J-just a moment, please!”
I scrambled away from the table and stared into the vanity mirror.
Bangs plastered to my forehead with sweat, cheeks blazing crimson, eyes hazy with lust.
It was the worst possible state.
I wanted to change, but the damned dress was far too complicated to remove quickly by myself. There was no time.
“Huu…”
I forced my pounding heart to calm and took several rough breaths. Then I tensed every facial muscle, layering the most neutral, rigid, expressionless mask I could manage over my features.
My underwear, soaked from indulging myself, clung unpleasantly, but this was in front of Master now.
I locked my trembling knees, gripped the doorknob, and turned it slowly.
Click.
When the door opened and I stepped inside, I couldn’t help but pause.
“Huh?”
Iris, who normally refused anything but her uniform or light armor, was wearing a noblewoman’s dress with a voluminous skirt. The mature, ornate style somehow resembled the one Marina nuna had worn.
Her expression remained as indifferent as ever, yet her collarbones and the nape of her neck were faintly flushed. Her chest rose and fell in a subtly irregular rhythm.
A strangely sweet yet damp scent lingered in the room.
“Planning to go out somewhere?”
At my question, Iris answered in a stiff, forced voice.
“…No, sir. I simply… tried it on once.”
“Really? It suits you well.”
“…Thank you.”
Plop.
‘Hm?’
Suddenly I heard the faint sound of a droplet hitting the floor. It was tiny, but my sensitive ears caught it clearly.
“Huh? What’s that water sound…”
When I tilted my head, Iris’s skirt twitched. A faint blush crept across her normally pale cheeks.
Worried, I stepped closer and laid my hand on her forehead.
“Iris, are you unwell? You feel feverish.”
Huh? What is this? Just one forehead touch and energy surges like that? It rose 0.05% just now!
‘All that from a single touch to the forehead?’
While I blinked in confusion, Iris caught my hand and gently pulled it down.
Her eyes stayed perfectly calm, but the very end of her voice trembled almost imperceptibly.
“Master. I apologize, but… could you please step outside for a moment while I change?”
“Understood. If you’re feeling ill, don’t hide it. Tell me.”
“I am not in pain.”
After confirming she had returned to her usual tone, I left the room.
—Something feels off. Don’t you think she’s hiding something?
“It’s definitely different from her usual self, but I have no intention of meddling in her private life. Drop it.”
—That’s not what I mean! Just listen to me for once.
I let Lia’s whining voice slide in one ear and returned to my room on the second floor, sinking onto the sofa.
Knock, knock.
“Come in.”
The door opened and butler Norman stepped inside.
“I apologize for disturbing your rest, Master.”
“What is it at this hour?”
“An invitation has arrived for you, Master.”
What Norman offered with both hands was a luxurious black envelope embellished with lavish gold leaf.
“It is from the Golden Scales, the greatest trading company on the continent.”
I opened the envelope and read the contents. It was indeed an invitation from the continent’s top merchant guild. The newly appointed head was formally inviting me.
Great Hero who has brought peace to the continent,
This inadequate one has taken office as the new head of the Golden Scales. I humbly beg the honor of greeting you in person. Should you deign to grace us with your presence, it would be the highest honor for our house.
— The Golden Scales
‘It’s been a while. Might as well go see some familiar faces.’
**
The next day, while eating breakfast, I mentioned the invitation to Marina nuna sitting across from me.
“Nuna, the Golden Scales is throwing a grand banquet in a few days. Want to come with me? There’ll be plenty of delicious food.”
At my suggestion, Nuna’s fork froze in midair. Her face filled with panic rather than joy.
“Sian… I’m truly sorry. I still haven’t properly learned noble etiquette, and I don’t know how to dance. I’m afraid I’d only embarrass you if I followed you to such an extravagant event…”
“Don’t worry about other people’s eyes. No one would dare say anything to you. If anyone does, just call me immediately.”
“Even so… I’m too self-conscious.”
Forcing someone who clearly disliked the idea would be poor manners.
I nodded and turned to my disciple, who was eating in silence.
“Iris, you’ll have to accompany me then. You can go, right?”
“Understood, Master.”
A few days later, the luxurious carriage carrying me and Iris rolled smoothly toward the inner ward at the heart of the capital.
When we arrived at the Golden Scales’ banquet hall, the gatekeepers moved to block us until I showed the gold-embossed invitation through the window. Their eyes widened and they quickly signaled inside.
We stepped down from the carriage and entered the lavishly decorated lobby, but the main hall was still relatively quiet.
“Looks like those heavy-assed nobles haven’t shown up yet.”
As I muttered, Iris, standing half a step behind me, answered calmly.
“On the contrary, it is fortunate. You will be spared pointless pleasantries that would only tire you, Master.”
We walked farther inside together when—
“Uhahaha! Look who it is! If it isn’t A-rank mercenary Sian!”
A massive man with a hearty demeanor. He was the vice guild master of the adventurers’ guild.
“It’s been a while. You’re early.”
“Haha, those of us who handle real work have to arrive early, make our faces known, and snatch whatever crumbs we can.”
“You never change.”
Despite his appearance, he was exactly as he claimed—an administrator, the backer who had created my false identity, and essentially my informant.
The vice guild master shook my hand lightly and whispered under his breath.
“I hear the new trading company head prepared this party with serious intent. Rumor says they plan to quietly scout for someone skilled enough to open the treasure vault left behind by the first head five hundred years ago.”
‘Interesting.’
—If it’s from five hundred years ago, even I might have heard of it.
“Iris, have you heard anything?”
“I have not. This is the first I have heard of the banquet as well, Master.”
“Then I’ll see you later.”
Having given me useful information, the vice guild master left to greet others.
“Hey! Why are you standing in the middle of the walkway… Wait, isn’t that Sian?”
At the familiar husky voice I turned to find a muscular dwarf holding a beer mug the size of his own head.
It was old man Smith, representative of the blacksmith union that supplied weapons to the Golden Scales. Beside him stood another dwarf in an extravagant silk suit with an oiled beard, eyeing me up and down with a peculiar gaze.
“It’s been a while, old man. Still living for beer?”
“I live loving beer every single day. But can’t you do something about that sword? The hero who saved the world walking around with a thing like that? People will talk, you idiot!”
“Well… I’ve grown so used to the Holy Sword that ordinary blades don’t feel any different anymore.”
“Sigh.”
Old man Smith had wanted to gift me a sword, but apparently lacked the confidence to craft anything better than the Holy Sword.
Once Smith stepped back, the suited dwarf beside him offered a gold-embossed business card.
He was the central banker who controlled the kingdom’s financial arteries.
“A pleasure to meet you, great Hero! Seeing you in person, you seem even more extraordinary. I am the president of the central bank.”
“Likewise.”
The banker scanned me with the eyes of a man staring at a walking lump of gold.
“I understand maintaining the Garden of Salvation costs a considerable sum, Hero. Would you consider launching a ‘Hero-Recommended Special Fund’ or a ‘Holy Sword Guaranteed Investment Product’? We would split profits six to four—quite generously, I assure you!”
“I’m not particularly interested. Any other business?”
“Please, Hero, just hear me out…”
Just as the banker began his persistent sales pitch—
“Do not tire Master.”
At Iris’s icy glare the banker’s mustache quivered and he hastily retreated a step. I felt a surge of pride at how well I had trained my disciple.
“My apologies.”
“Sian, drop by my forge sometime. It won’t match the Holy Sword, but it’ll be better than that hunk of metal.”
“I’ll visit with my disciples one day.”
As Smith and the banker returned to their seats with visible reluctance, more time passed. Finally the entrance grew noisy.
The heavy-bottomed nobles had begun to arrive, splendid in ornate formal wear and lavish dresses.
Northern Front Legion Commander, Marquis Valerius, and Lady Michelle are entering!