I screwed up! I really screwed up again! Al cursed himself as he rode.
“That doesn’t matter. I’m not chasing after her to fight, I just want to talk to her. Besides, I have a thing or two to say to that bastard for leaving Althos without a word of goodbye!” He was trying to come up with excuses on the fly, but he could already hear Jamka berating him with, “A king shouldn’t rush blindly after his guests!” or something.
“But what else can I do?”
In the end, he decided to not worry about it and deal with the consequences later. The more pressing question was if Sharon and Ranbolg had crossed the border yet. He wanted to catch them before they reached the Freiyan army.
Al arrived at the border with no luck. He changed horses and continued galloping with all his might. After a few minutes, he spotted several horses in the fields ahead, led by a golden-haired man.
“Sharon!” Al shouted, but she didn’t even flinch. “You have some nerve, ignoring me!”
He kicked his horse and tried to catch up to them. He figured they’d also increase their speed, but a couple of soldiers actually stopped by the nearby woods, got off their horses, and waited for Al’s arrival. Ranbolg’s personal guards were smirking a bit further ahead.
“Haah, haah... Prince Ranbolg, don’t you think it’s a bit rude to leave without saying goodbye?” Al didn’t exactly greet him either, but it was payback for their sudden departure.
“Haha. We’re in a neutral zone—a no man’s land, if you will. No jurisdiction can reach us here. Shall we come clean, Your Majesty?” Ranbolg said with a smile, not even acknowledging his rudeness. Regardless, they could at least cut to the chase. Al got off his horse and walked toward the two of them with his arms spread wide open, signaling that he held no hostility.
“In that case, I’ll start. I’ll forgive you for disrespecting me and leaving the country without a word, but I want Sharon back! She’s a precious guest of my country, and a candidate to be my bride!” Al led with the very reason he followed them. Sharon’s body twitched when she heard those words, but she didn’t lift her head or turn around. Ranbolg took a step forward to cover Sharon.
It’s almost as if I’m some sort of demon who came here to kidnap her. Well, I guess I technically am a demon, but that’s not the point.
“Hmm, you’d call this your bride candidate when you’re already surrounded by a harem of beautiful women?”
Ugh. He’s not wrong, but hearing how he refers to Sharon like she’s an object makes me sick.
“What does that have to do with anything? Plus, Sharon loves Althos! Right, Sharon?”
She didn’t say a word. Instead...
“I have to admit, Althos is a very peaceful, comforting place to live, but that’s about it. It’s a great place to play house, but you have to remember that the Divas are much more than mere toys!”
“I’m not toying with them! They’re all precious—” Al cut himself off.
Actually, what are they to me? Clearly, they’re not my toys, even if Ranbolg’s trying to spin it that way, but that’s as far as I can think. I love spending time with them—we fool around and even fight once in a while, but we always help each other out. The time we’ve spent together and the experiences we’ve shared are definitely real.
“Haha! You seem to be all over this thing, Your Majesty! But I wonder, would your feelings be unchanged if you knew its real identity!?” Ranbolg explained with a wide, smug smirk on his face. Al just looked at him in confusion, curious as to what Sharon’s true identity could be. That look only fueled Ranbolg’s confidence.
“It was a slave!” he shouted victoriously, his voice reaching the far edges of the plains.
“Hmm? Yeah, and?”
“You must be utterly sho—Huh?”
Al was almost impressed by his own dumb expression as he casually shrugged off Ranbolg’s earth-shattering revelation.
“What is this!? Why aren’t you shocked!?” Like he’d been hit by his own spell, Ranbolg was completely and utterly stunned.
“Well, she told me about it a while back, but even if she hadn’t, it wouldn’t matter much.” Al told him the truth.
“Hahaha, I see! So you’ve fallen in love with it!”
“Huh!? Where did that—” Al’s face flushed at the sudden assertion.
“It is a Diva in name alone; it doesn’t amount to anything more than a filthy slave!” Those words quickly helped him regain his composure.
“Hey, I know she’s Freiya’s Diva, but isn’t that going too far?” He tried his best to keep his emotions in check, but...
“No, it’s less than a slave! Just by it being present, the army’s morale skyrockets! It’s just a tool to bring glory to our country! A mere doll we call a Diva!” Ranbolg’s ramblings got incrementally more terrible.
Are you for real? I mean, you have to know that Sharon could destroy you only using her pinky, he thought and looked over at Sharon, who was still standing there motionlessly, her gaze fixed on the ground. While Al thought about how strange a sight it was, Ranbolg stepped closer to her.
“Did you know? Lowly tools feel no shame!”
Ranbolg yanked Sharon’s shoulder, and began violently groping her breasts.
“Gh...”
Hearing Sharon stifle a scream and seeing her cheeks flush, Al was ready to spring into action. No matter how painful it was, though, he had to restrain himself.
It’ll be an all-out war if I start anything with him. If only I could manage to get around that. Sharon could do something about this, so why is she taking his abuse!?
Seething with rage, Al stared at Sharon in search of an answer, but he got it from Ranbolg instead.
“Haha. This tool has been programmed through pain and terror. Over and over again from a young age, it was taught to never disobey royalty!”
Al knew she had been a slave, but he had no clue about the torture she’d endured. All the while, Ranbolg seemed to be enjoying himself.
“As such, I can do whatever I want with it!” Saying that, he slid a hand down Sharon’s stomach.
Al couldn’t take it any longer. It wasn’t the right choice for the king of a country, but he couldn’t watch the girl who always pushed on while carrying the burden of her past be bound by fear any longer.
“Let her go, you scum!” he shouted while launching himself toward Ranbolg.
“You really shouldn’t. Anyone who dares to interfere with a couple’s gentle lovemaking shall face the wrath of eight thousand Freiyan soldiers!” Before Al could point out his blatant lie, Ranbolg continued, “Oh, I didn’t mention? We’re going home to get married.”