'Why did she suddenly drop down to her knees?'
Kai kept his gaze on Carlotta, wondering what could have led to that moment.
All he did was tell her how she would be serving under him from then on out. So why would she drop to her knees like that?
Oh.
Kai's expression turned robotic at the realization.
'Serving me must have been that bad. Gah! My poor chest.'
"Ack!"
Carlotta removed her hand from her face, immediately looking up at Kai as though she had just remembered something.
"Please forgive my rudeness! I got ahead of myself because of my excitement. That is unwarranted if I am to remain by your side. I should always show a class befitting of your name."
She slowly stood to her feet, straightening her gothic dress in the process.
'I mean... I guess?' Kai thought, still unsure.
"Please, tell me whatever it is you would like me to do. I would like to showcase my skills as best as I can."
Kai tilted his head to the side in confusion. Of course, Carlotta did not see this confusion; to her, Kai was still assessing her with a straight, unnerving look on his face, silently judging her worthiness.
'What is with this girl? I don't understand her at all. At least with Lyra, I was able to tell she didn't like me very much initially. This girl is way different. Her emotions are all over the place. Does she want to serve me? Does she not want to serve me?'
Then, a question hinted in his head, a question he would then proceed to ask his new servant.
"Why are you so quick to acknowledge me? For all you know, I might just be lying to you."
As he uttered those words, he could see the somewhat comforting yet strangely unnerving look on her face before she replied.
"Let's see…"
It seemed as though she was searching his eyes for answers.
And when she finally found it, she let it out, her hand placed gently right in front of her chest.
"I always believed in following my heart. And right now, my heart is truly telling me to follow this man standing in front of me, promising me his hand for the taking."
Kai blinked.
'Eh?'
Before they could carry on any longer, the door swung open.
Bang!
Lyra walked into the room, storming in like a warrior looking to go into battle. Her horns seemed to crackle with static mana.
While inside the room, before she even thought to look towards her Master, she turned to face the new summon. She saw a woman just like her—powerful, beautiful, and possessing a Level that rivaled her own.
A frown didn't waste time before showing on Lyra's face as she now somewhat stood right in the center of Kai and the Witch.
"My Lord, please do not get tricked by this woman. I can sense nothing but wicked thoughts coming from her."
At this point, Lyra was pointing an accusing finger directly at Carlotta.
Carlotta, in return, seemed to look confused, and also insulted at the same time.
"..."
Kai chimed in, merely curious to understand what Lyra was trying to say.
"Explain yourself," he let out, looking directly at Lyra.
Lyra, who had been confident a moment ago, already seemed bashful for some reason and could barely avert her gaze away from Kai's exposed chest.
"My Lord. I can read the minds of monsters if their emotions are strong enough, and directed at you in some way. In this case, I was able to read this woman's mind as well—"
"Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait! Stopuuuu~!"
With her cheeks even far redder than Lyra's, Carlotta stretched one of her hands forward, the other stretched to try and cover Lyra's mouth physically.
"I am sorry, I didn't mean to think that! It just happened! I mean, look at my Lord, who wouldn't have the same thought?!"
Lyra was quiet for a while, the redness on her own cheeks not dying down either.
Then—
"She wanted to mate with you, my Lord. She had that nasty thought the very first moment you summoned her."
"Noooooooo!" Carlotta fell back to her knees once more, looking directly at the ground, utterly defeated by the exposure.
'She wants to mate with me?'
For some reason, it never occurred to him.
But looking at the women, they were extremely attractive. At least in his former world, they could easily pose as top models and have a large following just from the way they looked.
And one of them was looking to mate with him? In his human form of all things?
"Haha! Ahahahah!"
Kai laughed out loud, forcing the two summons to look at him, confused and lost.
'If I am pulling two beauties so easily, I must be in my popular era right now. This is good. This is very good. Hmm, yes, I'm not complaining at all.'
Stroking his ego, he placed his hand on Lyra's shoulder to draw her attention, and then had a warm, small smile on his face.
"I don't mind, it's fine. As long as you can prove yourself worthy of being my summon, then you can also boast of having me on the bed with you as your reward."
His voice settled in the girls' minds quicker than the sound could have traveled.
To them, he had just told them if they do a good job, he would take them as consorts. He would reward their loyalty with the ultimate intimacy.
Even the composed Lyra could not get an offer like that and ignore it. She would take it in a heartbeat.
Both girls immediately turned and bowed their heads deeper than ever before.
"Please allow me to prove myself!"
"I shall do my best!"
They both uttered in unison, their voices filled with newfound determination.
Kai was indeed happy to see they were ready to serve him just on the off chance that he would "mate" with them one day. It was exciting.
But then, his mind quickly drifted elsewhere when he suddenly sensed once again that he was being watched from that same corner.
Only this time, it seemed weaker, like it was fleeting. Or perhaps, distracted.
'Looks like they are still trying to get rid of me.'
Sigh.
He turned to look at Lyra.
"Lyra, we are heading out of the dungeon to explore the city outside and gather details of the humans as well. In the meantime, I expect you, Carlotta, to look after the dungeon while I am away. Can I trust you to do that?"
'I mean, that was the whole reason I summoned you anyway.'
Carlotta genuinely felt excited knowing it was the first responsibility she was being handed.
She felt like the first wife taking care of her husband's property while he goes out for work. It was a domestic bliss she had only dreamed of.
"It will be my pleasure, Lord Kai! Please be rest assured that this dungeon will remain standing just as you have left it."
Kai chuckled nervously.
With that settled, despite the fact he still had doubts about putting Carlotta in charge since trusting her was a different issue entirely, he had to move.
That said, if he was going to die anyway, he might as well do the best he can to survive.
....
[A/n]
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