Chapter 10 TIKR Vol. 1 Chapter 2 Part 3

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Arl was lying flat on his back on a bed, in a dimly lit room. Prima stood beside him, bustling about with… preparations.

“At first, I wasn’t sure what ‘service’ to offer you,” she said.

The reason Arl couldn’t see what she was doing was because of the warm, damp cloth draped over his eyes. A deep, penetrating heat spread from it, relaxing him.

“Cooking, cleaning, dancing… I am confident that I have polished all my skills to a level befitting your maid. However, I decided this wasn’t the time for those. You seemed so… terribly tired, Master.”

“I mean, yesterday was the most exhausted I’ve been in years, but… um, Prima?”

Arl’s hesitation was understandable. He was half-naked. Prima had led him to the room, and before he could even process what was happening, his shirt was off and he was on the bed.

Prima announced the meaning of all this. “A massage is the best way to relieve fatigue. In other words, a spa treatment.”

A spa treatment. A ritual to heal mind and body. The dim light and the soft scent of flowers in the air were already lulling him toward sleep. It was all very professional… almost intimidatingly so.

“I get that, but you don’t have to go this far—Yipe!“

A strange, high-pitched sound escaped Arl’s lips as a cool, slick sensation slithered across his skin.

“It’s alright,” Prima said softly. “Just leave your body to me.” It was her soft hand, coated in scented oil. Her fingers began to gently, thoroughly, knead the muscles of his arm.

“Th-That tickles…”

“Fufu. That’s just proof of how much tension you’re holding. Please, relax. It will feel better soon, just like… this…”

It was hard to follow her advice, but… gradually… it did start to feel good. This… might actually be nice. I’m getting… sleepy…

“—So please,” Prima’s voice was low, “don’t resist.”

Arl’s body jumped. This was not the pleasant warmth of a hot bath. It was a sharp, intense stimulation that rocked him to his core. Not just pleasure, but ecstasy. A sensation that could only be called rapture.

“P-Prima… that feels… weird…”

“I’m stimulating your special pressure points,” she explained, her voice smooth. “It’s a technique that flushes out all the built-up fatigue… as pleasure. The more tired you are, the more intense it will be. It’s okay. Your mind might go a little blank, but it feels good… doesn’t it?”

“This isn’t… a… ‘little’…!” Arl gasped.

“Ah, Master’s abs are so firm… It would be disrespectful to touch your important places… directly. Not that I wouldn’t, if you asked! I’d be more than happy to! But… I’ll save that for the future. For when I can call you ‘Husband.’“

Arl’s breath came in ragged gasps. He could barely even register Prima’s high-speed rambling. This unknown sensation was overwhelming him. He was trying to endure… endure the tidal wave of pleasure that threatened to send him to heaven and completely destroy his dignity.

“Master…” Prima whispered, right next to his ear.

“Please… let go. Show me the real you. The ‘you’ as a knight is wonderful… but please…”

Her voice was laced with a genuine, heartfelt yearning. “In front of me… you can take off your ‘knight’s armor.’ You can be… just as you are. You don’t have to be strong. You don’t… have to hold back.”

“Nnghhhhh—!”

Arl was in no state to appreciate her earnest plea. He was at his limit. He was about to lose… not his knight’s armor, but his armor of sanity.

Suddenly, an idea! A desperate revelation! He forced his body to move, shifting the blindfold just enough to crack open one eye. His gaze darted to the only place his hope could lie. In the darkest corner of the ceiling… clinging to the shadows like a spider… was the terrifying, bloodshot-eyed visage of his junior knight, Kei.

Her gaze alone was enough to stop his heart. Why the ceiling!? How is she not seen!? He wanted to spend an hour interrogating her on her inhuman stealth skills, but right now… she was his only savior.

Help me! Arl pleaded with his eyes. This is getting bad!

Kei just… gulped. Her eyes screamed back… ‘MORE… I… WANT… TO… SEE… MORE!’

‘This useless kouhai!’

Screaming internally at his useless-at-the-worst-possible-time junior, Arl continued to struggle.

“Master… are you… at your limit?” Prima noticed.

“Y-Yes! This is it! This is me… being ‘real’! I can’t—If I go any further… it won’t be ‘cute’! The… the inner beast will come out!”

“That’s what I want,” Prima whispered. Her voice was thick and syrupy. She licked her lips. “I’m so happy. Show me more. Show me… you, trying so hard…”

“I’m telling you, it won’t be ‘cute’! It’ll be a—”

“Show me.” Her voice cut him off. Her eyes, like a predator’s, locked onto her beloved prey.

“————————!”

Something inside Arl finally snapped. It wasn’t his sanity—his steel-clad reason held out to the very end. Instead, what broke was his consciousness.

All the fatigue from his Knight days, all the stress that had never been healed, was released at once by Prima’s treatment. He passed out.

‘Isn’t this… happening a lot lately?’ was his last thought.

Arl was fast asleep, his mouth slightly open, snoring softly.

“…Fufu. Your sleeping face is so adorable, Master,” Prima said, watching him with pure affection. It was a little disappointing he hadn’t let go, but seeing his iron-clad will was, in its own way, just as cute.

“——Leader. The interrogation is finished.”

Another maid stepped silently into the room. Instantly, Prima’s soft, doting aura vanished, replaced by the sharp focus of a knight commander.

“Report.”

“He resisted, but after we ‘carefully relieved all his body’s tension,’ he… cooperatively… told us everything.” A maid who knows how to heal her master also knows how to… break… her master’s enemies. A ‘maid-style interrogation,’ then.

“We’ll need to verify it, but we have some useful information. We don’t have their main base, but we can now narrow down the Serpents’ operational area.”

Prima took the report and scanned it quickly. “What do you think, Leader?”

“This is legitimate. I know their habits. We can use this to lure them out. I’m moving out. Take care of things here.”

“Are you sure? Shouldn’t you report to the Master first?”

“He’s finally resting. Besides, as long as we have this information, we have the jump on the Guild and the Academy.”

She looked at her sleeping Master. He was so deeply asleep, he must have been truly exhausted. She hoped her service had helped, even a little. But it wasn’t enough. It was nowhere near enough. She gently brushed the hair from his forehead.

“I’ll have good news for you by the time you wake up. Wait for me, Master.”