Proof of Devotion
It had been quite a while. Under the dim glow of the lamp, I admired Rika's body. It was magnificent, though in a completely different way from Carmel's. The definition of her muscles was starkly visible, a testament to her life as a warrior. However, she had been staying here for quite some time now. Compared to when I first saw her, Rika's body had acquired a touch of softness here and there.
I placed my hand on her abdomen. Still, she's incredibly firm. Perhaps she felt that way because she was so tense. I could feel the rigid strain in her limbs and her abdominal muscles. She seemed terrified. Bound by the men who had entered her room, blindfolded, and forced to yield her body to an unknown stranger. I decided it would be best to keep the fact that I was her familiar Princess Sera a secret just a little longer.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, I reached down toward Rika's lower body. The red underwear she wore, tailored to the tastes of a brothel, was incredibly erotic. I hooked my fingers into the waistband of her panties and slowly began to pull them down. "Mmph, mmmph!" She resisted violently. But with her limbs bound tightly, even someone of Rika's strength was utterly helpless. The bed rattled precariously, but... the restraints, secured with leather and chains, were exceptionally sturdy. Strong enough that even a grown man could not break them by brute force alone.
Bound as she was, it was impossible to pull them all the way down without cutting them. I picked up the knife prepared nearby and sliced through the sides of her panties. Rika's exposed, defenseless pussy was still completely dry. I pried her open wide with my fingers. Rika tensed her body once more, thrashing violently. "Mmph...! Mph...!" But no matter how much she struggled, there was no escaping this. She was merely providing me with a magnificent spectacle, writhing in sheer humiliation with her sex laid bare.
First, there was something I needed to verify. I peered deeply into Rika's parted folds. Hmm, good. It seems there was no breach of contract. Though she was being temporarily 'stored' here, Rika was not a prostitute. I was already paying the owner far more than any standard service fee. I only checked just in case. With looks like Rika's, she could have made a fortune with even a bit of luck. Fortunately, my inspection showed no signs of violation. For both of their sakes. If the owner had been a man who prioritized greed over his promise... he probably would no longer exist within this kingdom.
There were certainly no traces of a man inside Rika. Yet, she wasn't entirely pristine either. This is definitely... I gently stroked up Rika's body, leaning close to her ear. Then, I whispered, "Were you frightened, Rika? It's me. Princess Sera."
The straining chains suddenly went still. Hearing my voice, Rika seemed to find some relief. Once I removed her gag, she asked in a dazed voice, "Princess Sera...? Why are you doing this..."
"I apologize for using such forceful methods. But I have something to ask you. An extremely urgent situation has arisen."
"An urgent situation...?"
"Yes. My mother, Carmel, has collapsed. We suspect the cause is a curse."
"W-what...?" Rika's breathing grew ragged. Caressing her supple abs, I said, "We don't know yet who cursed Mother or why... but the curse belongs to your tribe. In other words, you might be involved in some way."
"I-I know nothing...! Why would I ever harm Lady Carmel... Even while I was left alone, I always... only thought of her..."
"Yes. I'm sure you would say that. But I cannot simply take you at your word. Besides, even if you aren't directly involved, you might still know something."
My finger lightly traced down near Rika's sternum. The rise and fall of her ribs with her heavy breathing was distinct. "N-no... It really wasn't me... And I know nothing! My subordinates and I are from a different tribe. We are those who value physical strength over shamanism..."
I stripped away the very last piece of clothing clinging to Rika's body. Lightly kneading her breasts, which maintained a remarkable presence even as she lay flat, I questioned her again. "You were Mother's closest confidante. I've never seen her trust anyone else so deeply. And yet, you claim you truly knew nothing? Not even that Mother was harboring the cursed Mistylia?"
"M-Mistylia...? Is that the source of the curse...?"
Hmm. The word 'Mistylia' itself means mistletoe in the language of the northern tribes. It isn't surprising that she recognizes it.
"Yes. Hmm, you certainly act as though you know absolutely nothing."
I retrieved a black box from the corner of the room. I hadn't brought it myself; I had instructed the owner to prepare it earlier. The items inside were meant for specialized play within the brothel. Nipple clamps, whips, candles, handcuffs, dildos of various sizes... It was filled with things whose designs would terrify any ordinary woman. I picked one of them up and whispered in Rika's ear.
"Fufu, Rika. I know your loyalty well. But as long as the curse that harmed my precious mother exists, I cannot simply overlook this without a thorough verification process."
"A... verification process...?"
"Yes. It might hurt a little, and it might provoke your shame. But this, too, is a process to prove your loyalty to Lady Carmel. I trust that you, Rika, will endure it with strength."
"To prove my loyalty... I, I understand..."
Under the influence of the Hypnotic Incense, Rika easily accepted my words as absolute truth. With this, no matter how harsh the sexual torture, she would endure it with all her heart and soul. Wearing a sinister smile, I clamped the nipple clamps onto Rika's breast.
"Ngh...!"
A choked groan escaped her lips. The pain in such a highly sensitive area, dense with nerves that could never be hardened through training, seemed difficult even for Rika to bear.
"Now, this side too."
"Ngh..."
When I clamped the other side, her groan was relatively quieter. Knowing what kind of pain to expect and its intensity seemed to make it easier to endure. Panting heavily with the painful-looking devices attached to both breasts, Rika looked incredibly erotic. Every time I intentionally nudged the clamps, she swallowed her groans. It ruthlessly stimulated the dark desires within me. Leaning close to her ear once more, I whispered:
"Does it hurt? Of course it does. But Rika, think of your pain as the very proof of your feelings for Carmel. If you look at it that way, this pain won't feel so bad."
"Ngh... even this pain... is for Lady Carmel..."
During my previous visit, I had engraved into Rika's mind the notion that pleasure was for Carmel's sake. Now, I intended to take it a step further, suggesting that pain, too, was for Carmel.
"Fufu..."
This time, I picked up a whip. It wasn't a standard whip, but a riding crop with a flat, paddle-like end—or rather, a plaything modeled after one. I swung it, striking Rika's thighs.
Smack! Smack! Smack!
"Ngh, ah..."
Her reaction was faint compared to the nipples. As expected, she was highly resilient to this kind of pain. In that case, how about here?
I swung the crop, striking her innermost thigh, right against her pussy.
Smack!
"Ngh-aaaaah!"
Her reaction was violent. Her thighs tensed completely, and the chains strained taut. Without letting up, I aimed for the thighs right next to her sex and swung again.
"Haah... ngh...! Ah...! Mmph, ngh...!"
Perhaps because the impact on her pussy had been so deeply engraved, her reactions to the surrounding blows were exquisite. Her groin, rapidly flushing with vivid red marks, thoroughly satisfied my sadistic desires. But I wasn't the only one enjoying this. Moisture was gradually seeping from between Rika's legs.
"Fufut..."
To Rika, both pain and pleasure were now entirely for Carmel's sake. Under such a premise, if I engraved pain and pleasure together... the boundary between the two would eventually blur. I lightly poked Rika's pussy with the tip of the crop. Keeping it there, I began to stimulate her slowly, with rough, unrefined movements.
"Ngh... ah..."
She was already well-accustomed to pleasure. It was hardly surprising. When I inspected her earlier, I had realized that Rika had pleasured herself countless times. The Hypnotic Incense had reshaped the very foundation of her thoughts far faster and more powerfully than I had anticipated. Lonely days in a brothel where no one visited. Rika had likely endured those long hours by comforting herself, repeating over and over that it was all for Carmel. Thus, this current pain—this intense stimulation under the guise of pain—might actually feel incredibly fresh to her.
I raised the crop high and brought it down directly onto her pussy.
"Ah-haaaaaahn!"
A loud cry, completely unsuppressed and hovering on the border of agony and ecstasy, echoed through the room.