Chapter 126. But Her Pussy's Still Third Rate~♥
Well, of course.
I was already reeling from the shock myself, so what difference would there be for the two of them?
"Ah, um...."
Heira let out a quiet sigh as she watched the scene unfolding before her.
The face that had been desperately crying out to me as "Master" not long ago was now settled back into its usual calm composure.
That expression remained unchanged even as she watched Berdia shaking her hips atop me.
"It looks like Berdia must have liked you an awful lot, Dave."
Maybe it was because she hadn't known Berdia very long?
There was a discernible effort in Heira's cautious voice, a desire to put a positive spin on all of this somehow.
"That she did. Heh."
On the other hand, Ymir, who had known her for ages, let out a derisive snort of disbelief.
She seemed to be straining to accept the situation any way she could, but her pale complexion and the way her breath kept hitching gave her away. She hid her mouth behind her hand.
"Guess you really do live and learn. Who would've thought our proud lady knight was actually a hopeless slut who freezes up the moment she gets a cock stuffed in her."
A hopeless... slut.
I wanted to deny that sneer, so harsh I could barely stand to hear it spoken aloud, but looking at Berdia sprawled out on the bed after our long session... that impulse promptly evaporated.
"Ehe, hngh...♥"
A cum-splattered body stretched out on the bed.
Even with the hypnosis already lifted, the lingering haze of pleasure was still visible in the clouded eyes looking up at me.
"I-It feels good, s-so, so good...♥"
Yeah, she had genuinely enjoyed it with me.
As if to prove those confessions she'd made to me before weren't lies... No.
No, no way. This was just too much, no matter how you looked at it.
If this was really the truth, then what the hell was all that resolve I'd staked my life on to conquer her even about?
"Good for you, Dave~ You get to be loved firsthand by one of the Ten Strongest of the Continent~"
A buoyant voice cut in just as I was trying to flee from reality.
I turned my gaze and saw Ymir watching the whole thing, sitting in a relaxed pose by now.
Unlike me, who was failing to process it rationally, she seemed to have already decided to just accept the situation.
"D-Don't talk nonsense. Th-This is just because I must have messed something up somehow...."
"It's fine, it's fine~ It's not like we'd raise a fuss just because you add one more girl to the mix. Don't be so scared, just take it easy. Relax."
Ymir spoke as if it were nothing and reached out to stroke the back of Heira's head.
Seeming to use that gesture to regain her own composure, Heira did not refuse the touch. She simply turned her head to look at Ymir and asked in return.
"So from now on, is Berdia going to be with us, too?"
"Who knows. We'd need a solid answer to be sure, but looking at that mess over there, it seems pretty definite."
Damn it. Why is she accepting this so calmly?
I was about to say something in response to that reaction, but only for a moment.
"Hah, hah~"
Berdia had pulled herself upright on the bed and was now crawling toward me, bracing herself on trembling arms.
"M-Master, a-a little more, with me...♥"
The moment she recovered even a little stamina, she closed the distance between us.
Had she still not been satisfied, even after that intense session?
"...Sigh. Story of my life."
I debated how to handle her outlandish persistence, but in the end, I couldn't push her away. Instead, I pulled her into my arms and took the time to soothe her by patting her back.
And here I'd been so tense, expecting one of the Ten Strongest of the Continent.
Why is every single woman I get involved with like this, honestly?
***
After going along with her like that until she was fully satisfied.
I sat down with Berdia, who had finally come to her senses, and explained everything that had happened and why I had done it.
She was back to her usual cool and resolute self, as if asking when she'd ever declared herself a slave.
"In short, you needed a justification to take Serika into the territory of the Demon King's Army and sought to draw me in."
"Yes, I figured your opinion, Lady Berdia, would be enough to persuade the Royal House of Arhen."
"......A pragmatic choice."
That was Berdia's reply after hearing the whole story.
I'd braced myself for her to fly into a rage, seeing as she had her wits back and the hypnosis was lifted. But Berdia was actually voicing approval of my judgment.
"Indeed, Serika's condition couldn't be healed even with my power, so handing her over to other clerics likely wouldn't improve matters. In such a situation, entrusting her to a human well-versed in the power of the demonic race is not an incorrect call."
"I'm glad you see it positively."
"I must. It concerns Serika, of all people. Of course, the part about you rising as the new leader of the Anti-Human Coalition is surprising, but... since your betrayal of Garbonia will soon put you at odds with the Demon King's Army as well, you won't be in a position to show us unconditional hostility, am I right?"
"......That's correct."
A judgment that considered not just Serika's safety but also the circumstances of the man who had toyed with her.
Her coldness, her ability to separate public from private matters, was a disposition not easily attained by anyone other than a warrior who had survived countless brutal melees.
"Besides, Dave, you must have a fair bit of knowledge about the territory of the demonic race?"
"Well, yes. One of the main specialties of the organization I belong to is intelligence gathering, so we have far more information than what humanity has been able to acquire."
"Then I must accept your proposal all the more. While I do have concerns about Serika's poor condition, I am also not fond of the idea of returning her to the royal house where her freedoms would not be guaranteed."
The greatest relief was that she, like me, did not consider everyone within the Human Alliance to be an ally.
If anything, having been with them for so long, she probably understood their flaws more clearly than anyone.
Perhaps that was why she'd never entrusted Serika to them in the first place and instead started her as a fledgling adventurer under their own guidance.
"Ymir and Heira also seem cooperative toward you, so at least there won't be immediate harm to the party. Even excluding your personal reasons, the Anti-Human Coalition you lead will have its own demands of the party, so I think the best course for now is to act together in the spirit of a temporary alliance."
"Yes, right. Thank you for viewing even that much favorably, but...."
Yeah. In the end, Berdia not only looked generously upon my decision but was even going so far as to express a desire to cooperate from her side.
To the point I started thinking that if I had known her true feelings, I wouldn't have needed to do all that.
"But, um... Lady Berdia. Are you really alright?"
When I voiced that lingering doubt out of concern, she kept her chin resting on her hand and returned the question.
Without meeting my eyes.
"Alright about what, exactly?"
"That is..."
I was briefly stuck on how to answer her level tone.
"Master~ Please, please fuck this lewd pussy with your cock~♥"
At the voice suddenly sounding from behind me, Berdia's expression crumpled violently, and her gaze shot toward a single source.
Toward Ymir, who was perched on the edge of the bed where the act had taken place, smirking triumphantly at Berdia.
"......Ymir."
"Ha! Who do you think you are! I am a knight sworn to protect humanity, the Shrine Maiden of the God of War, and one chosen as a pillar of the Ten Strongest of Humanity for my recognized might~"
"Could you be quiet for a moment? I am discussing important matters with Dave right now...."
"But her pussy's third-rate~♥"
"I never said such a thing!!"
Berdia finally snapped and yelled.
The composure she had maintained until just a moment ago shattered in an instant. Ymir cackled and began inching backward from the spot.
"Oh dear, the lewd slutty knight who declared herself a slave the moment she got dicked is angry~ Oh, I'm so scared~!"
"G-Grk...!!"
Berdia clenched her fists in frustration but still couldn't bring herself to lunge at her.
Her face, burning bright red, showed that the calm she'd kept up was nothing but the result of sheer endurance.
Well, of course. With all her memories fully intact, there's no way she could just shrug off having done those things.
"Berdia, are you okay?"
Heira asked cautiously.
Unlike Ymir, who was having far too much fun openly mocking her, Heira showed genuine concern for Berdia.
"...I am fine. What happened earlier was nothing."
Perhaps unable to show her anger in the face of that?
Berdia, having finally succeeded in reining herself in, let out a deep breath. Heira then looked up at her carefully and followed up with a question.
"Really?"
With a gaze so pure and utterly devoid of malice.
"......Ngh."
Berdia couldn't bear to meet that gaze and ended up hanging her head.
A pained sigh leaked from her mouth as if she felt a pang of conscience, but Heira didn't try to scold her.
"It's okay, Berdia."
Instead, Heira drew a faint smile as if trying to console her.
"I don't know much about human culture, but I don't think it's strange to become absorbed in intercourse with a man."
"I-Is that so?"
"Mm, because I like laying with Dave, too."
Her nod clearly came from a place of heartfelt sympathy.
Seeing that, Berdia's expression softened, and the color began to slowly return to her face.
"Yes, surely that must be... it?"
In that moment of recovering a bit of her battered self-esteem.
"Indeed, Heira, as you say, no one can call me strange. It's only natural for anyone to be immersed in the pleasure once they begin the act for the first time...."
"...Hm?"
Heira suddenly tilted her head.
Berdia, catching that gesture, stiffened up again and stared at Heira.
"Wh-What is that reaction. Did your first experience not elicit the same reaction as mine?"
"Ah, um. It took a bit longer for me. At first, it hurt so much that I cried... so Dave had to soothe me, you know?"
"It... hurt?"
"Ymir, did it not hurt for you?"
Berdia wore a look of total incomprehension. Ignoring Berdia, Heira asked Ymir a pure question. Ymir just snorted and shrugged.
"For me, 'dirty rage' was more like it than pain. It's fine now, but back then, if I'd only had control of my body, I would've burned him right down to the marrow, honestly."
Right, Ymir's initial disgust had been tremendously strong.
The reason she'd responded with a degree of enjoyment during our first time was because I had conditioned her while simultaneously manipulating her sensitivity.
Considering Heira and Serika also possessed exceptional bodily senses and adaptability, the way Berdia had transformed was truly an astonishing surprise to me.
I'd say without exaggeration that she was the fastest of all the women I've held so far....
"......Th-Then, I..."
But Berdia herself would feel that realization more acutely than I did.
"I... during my very first time, I writhed so vulgarly..."
The moment her trembling hands began to cover her face, which was brimming with shame.
The sound of sobbing that came from beneath them starkly showed that she, too, was nothing more than a mere woman.
"Auh, ahh...!!"
No matter how strong and noble a knight she might be.
When pushed this far, in the end, she was nothing but a fragile existence that could only crumble.