The City of Peach Fire - Archduke Niberia's Visit
Niberia, the Archduke, looked at me with an expression of love at first sight, then his knights behind him gaped in unison. At that moment, a knight's head resembling a red ogre suddenly poked out from the window. "Eek...! That's that terrifying... the Empire's Second Sword, 'Riku-jak'?!
Riku-jak was a fearsome knight, a half-ogre over three meters tall. Naturally, Puyor's house was far too small for him to enter. Slurp, sluuuurp—anyway, right now I was facing the Empire's most powerful figure, the one also infamous for his extreme womanizing... the disgusting quartet of black knights and the Archduke himself. To survive, I had to rack my brain desperately! Otherwise, the Archduke would surely violate me tonight...
"Ugh... Please, think of something! Think! The optimal move that won't get me killed!"
After frantically searching my mind at lightning speed, I recalled a girl from a blind date once. That night, I'd gone in hoping for a home run, but ended up staying as her platonic female friend because I wanted to protect her. What was her name again... 'Juhani'? Unusual name. Anyway, thinking about her traits... if I could make the Archduke feel the same way she did... then like the saying goes, even if the sky falls there's always a way out. Maybe I could survive tonight safely?
Creaaak. Finally, the Archduke opened the door and entered with his knights. I widened my eyes and clapped my hands together. Then, shamelessly putting on a nasal, coquettish voice to flatter him, I said, "Kyaa~ Who is it~?!"
The Archduke's eyes sparkled as if he were about to faint. "O-oh... Oh...!! Oh...!!!!!"
"Seira, who's here?" At that moment, Puyor rushed out of the kitchen clutching her apron. Upon seeing the imposing knights, she immediately dropped to her knees with the apron. "E-egads! I greet the noble lords!"
Then, a massive knight with a splendid black beard at the Archduke's side spoke. "Ahem! Do you know who this is?" With his northern barbarian looks and black beard, he was Reif Beard, one of the Empire's top ten swords. Damn, why his name had to mean 'rape' I don't know, but if that infamous lecher Reif Beard was here, then the other one had to be Isaac Wilton, leader of the Black Star Knights. Four of the Empire's First Swords were gathered as the Archduke's most trusted four-man squad. The Archduke Niberia himself was one of the Empire's First Swords. In other words, a man holding half the Empire's military power had come to this tiny village with his strongest knight order.
"E-excuse me, but who might you be...?" From Puyor's perspective, hearing their names would make it no surprise if she dropped dead on the spot. In every village they visited, anyone who caught their eye even once and was deemed an eyesore would see their entire bloodline wiped out instantly.
"This is none other than the famous Archduke Niberia himself!" "E-eh, eh, eh, eh, mother...!!" Puyor's face hardened instantly, then she prostrated herself flat to survive, as if begging for forgiveness despite having done nothing wrong.
At that moment, I had to make a decision. Looking back, it seemed a bit insane, but at the time it was my desperate struggle to live! "Uung?? Archduke, I like youuu...?!" "Hiiik! Kugh!"
Whoosh, whoooooosh—!! In an instant, Niberia bled so profusely it was as if he'd drawn the Empire's number one blood sword, splattering the floor. "Archduke, Your Highness!!!! Are you all right?!" "Oh, preserve your jade body!!!" The Black Star Knights who fussed over him also drew their blood swords, turning the surroundings into a sea of blood. Niberia glared at me with hawk-like eyes and slowly backed away. "K-kugh. Just seeing your gaze today feels like my heart will stop. Haa, haa... I-I'll come again tomorrow!"
Heh, success! I thought I'd only bought one more day, but I'd even fulfilled the promotion condition.
Congratulations! You have completed the event required for the 6th awakening.
Clear Condition: Make every group member nearby get a nosebleed! < 2/ 2> ※Physical attacks not allowed.
How stingy. The clear condition that had been written as 「??」 only revealed itself after success. Soon, the next awakening message appeared.
Congratulations! Your appearance stat has exceeded 5 million, allowing you to undergo the 6th awakening as a 'Legendary Beauty'.
You have awakened as the 'Lesser Goddess of Beauty'!
+ + +
[Job: Lesser Goddess of Beauty]
[Job Awakening Stage: 'Beauty' series, 6th awakening]
[Job Unique Skill: Queen's Command]
[Description: When an enemy whose level is 10 times lower than yours falls under charm, you may issue training commands to that creature.]
+ + +
Urgh, those bastards... giving me a skill like this?! Because the quest for the 6th job was hidden behind 「??」 using such stingy methods, I'd been certain the skill reward would be amazing. But it turned out the 'Beauty' series jobs were clearly the most useless in the world. 'Of course, if my skill level exceeded 1000 like the gods, it might be used in an overpowered way.' Any creature below one-tenth my level would move according to my will! So at level 1000, everything up to level 100 would obey me absolutely. But Seira's level was honestly level 1, same as other starting characters. Moreover, I was in a situation where I didn't know when the Archduke would barge in and violate me again. In the midst of all that, I'd obtained a single useless skill that couldn't be used.
"Huu, I absolutely won't get taken...!" To do that, I had to somehow meet up again with that world's biggest idiot dragon 'Dragonai,' who had suddenly lost his memories of me. If he saw 'me' again... wouldn't he regain his memories and try to protect me? If that happened, everything would be fine. With Dragonai's tremendous power, I could easily power-level, and as long as the Elemental Dragons didn't unite and cause a historical upheaval, I could be guaranteed safety for life. 'Haa, the problem is how to convey this fact to Dragonai.'
Just then, through the flowerbed outside the window, I saw a caterpillar crawling toward its destination. "...... Insects don't have levels, so will this skill work?"
[Job Unique Skill, 'Queen's Command' has activated!]
The caterpillar that had been squeezing through the window sill gap suddenly stopped and turned its head toward me. Then, like a loyal subject awaiting the queen's command, it stood upright on two legs and snapped to attention with a salute. "...Even a caterpillar knows how to stand at attention. Anyway, caterpillar. Could you go to Dragonai and tell him I'm being held in Puran Village?"
Nod, nod— Surprisingly, the caterpillar nodded repeatedly, bending its body in half as if it understood. "Haa, I didn't expect this skill to actually work."
But just then— among the onlookers who had been peeking out the window after a long time, gaping at me, a massive red ogre-like figure appeared. Riku-jak, that bastard. Stalker bastard! Always loitering by the window! At that moment— Crack!!! The guy crushed the caterpillar that had been about to begin its long journey to Yugna Mountain where Dragonai was, following my command, with his finger. Then he put it on his own tongue and glared at me from outside the window. "Hehe, miss... the miss who's newly coming to our Archduke's palace... you're so prettyyy!! Kuhelhelhelherehelhel!!" 'Ah. Creepy as hell. Crazy bastard.' I really, absolutely would not marry into that den of lunatics!
* * *
Was there no way...?! Some kind of countermeasure... Originally, on the first day Seira met the Archduke, she should have been violated right there on the spot in front of all his subordinates while her mother-in-law 'Puyor' watched in horror. But I had changed the story. Just like that, maybe there was some other way... While thinking this, on the second day, the front door opened with a creepy hinge sound. Creaaak— And Isaac Wilton, leader of the Black Star Knights, spoke to Village Chief Puyor with an emotionless face. "Chief! I have something to say. Come out." At that moment, I stepped forward and spread both arms.