Kamisama Shop de Cheat no Kaori

Interlude 5. Her Monologue Part 2

When I came to, I was completely naked.

Checking my body in disbelief, I found no signs of assault, though there were marks from ropes.

As I stood up, some scantily clad women appeared. They led me to a bath. It was a magnificent bathing facility, out of place in the wilderness. The large tub, made of blocks, was filled with steaming hot water, larger than my own room.

The area was also covered with lush green plants that don’t naturally grow here. How much money does it take to maintain this?

I couldn’t help but laugh at myself for thinking about money even in this situation.

Come to think of it, the bath Akira made was a good size for one person. As I soaked in this luxurious bath I was forcibly put into, I thought of trying Akira’s bath next time, then bitterly smiled, realizing it might never happen.

At the very least, my body would be defiled.

By that pig king, mercilessly. I never imagined the pig emperor could be so foolish. A king ruling a nation acting based on personal emotions…

If it were just his attitude until now, he might have been seen as a king who couldn’t rid himself of his bad habits regarding women, a respite from his hectic duties. But the pig wanted my body more than the country.

If I were captured as a criminal, it would be understandable, but that’s not the case.

Dressed in a thin negligee they provided, I was convinced.

That pig is nothing but a fool who knows no self-restraint.

I made up my mind.

Even if Sea Dragon’s uprising failed, I would maintain this position and eventually slit that pig’s throat. Even if my body were defiled, I vowed to kill him.

The maids led me to a tastelessly decorated room. A large, gaudy bed surrounded by unnecessarily flashy furnishings. These expensive decorations should be apologized to.

How much national tax is being used on such a place that can’t even host a state guest? It’s lamentable.

The maids forcibly placed me on the bed, telling me to wait there. I had to resign myself.

If I resisted poorly, I didn’t know what kind of treatment I’d receive.

I needed to stay alive and keep him off guard, or the dream of slitting his throat would be unattainable.

After a while, the pig appeared. Naked like an animal. I averted my eyes from his hideous body.

“…Hmph. Looking away from me, are you? For a harlot, you have some nerve.”

A maid who entered the room with the pig placed something on the table. A quick glance revealed a large plate piled high with potatoes. It was the potato butter Akira had brought. Was he planning to eat all that alone?

“Umm… Delicious! I don’t like that man, but I’ll give him credit for bringing this potato butter!”

He ate with his hands, truly like an animal.

“If you want some, beg on your knees.”

Does he think his favorite food is everyone’s favorite?

Even if it were, who would feel like eating after seeing such filthy eating habits?

He is truly an irredeemable pig. Not that I was interested anyway.

At that moment, there was a small tremor and a strange low-frequency sound. Like a large rock hitting a wall.

“What was that?”

He stopped eating and looked up.

“I don’t know, but shouldn’t we check?”

These were my first words to the pig.

“Hmph. It’s probably just some training. They’re probably using the large weapons for the buffalo.”

The pig, his mood spoiled, called a maid over. He spent several minutes licking the maid’s face and caressing her body before ordering her to bring wine.

If he liked the maid so much, he shouldn’t have captured me.

As the pig was engrossed with the maid, the sound and vibration repeated several times, but the pig showed no interest. No messenger came to report an emergency, so it might indeed have been training.

I fleetingly hoped that Sea Dragon might have come to rescue me, but that hope seemed in vain. There was a luxurious glass window a bit away from the bed, and peeking through it might reveal something, but the situation didn’t allow for that.

After the maid left the room crying, another maid brought the wine shortly after.

Just as before, the pig licked her face for several minutes. The sight of him sticking out his tongue and making her drink his saliva almost made me vomit. He would likely do the same to me.

I suddenly felt I couldn’t endure this.

After thoroughly enjoying the maid’s body, he handed me a glass of wine.

“Drink.”

I glanced sideways at it, focusing only on the wine glass to avoid seeing the pig’s body.

“…”

“This is my mercy. Alcohol will dull the pain a bit.”

After a moment’s hesitation, I grabbed it and drank it all at once. The taste was unexpectedly smooth, clearly a top-grade wine.

I recalled importing some fine wine once. It was around 4.5 million yen per bottle.

A maid refilled my empty glass. One glass must cost about 500,000 yen. Without hesitation, I drank it down. I thought I couldn’t handle this without numbing myself.

Seeing the pig smirk annoyed me. I will definitely kill him with my own hands. Until then, I must endure.

When I decided to save Akira, I had resolved to be defiled by this pig. Remembering that made it a bit easier.

The pig nibbled on potato butter while sipping the high-grade wine.

Slowly, the wine and potato butter were consumed.

The sight of him greedily eating the potatoes, making noises, and covering his hands and mouth with butter, was worse than calling him a pig.

After eating his fill, he wiped the grease off with a towel, then grinned creepily and started crawling towards me. Truly a disgusting creature.

Seeing me only turn my face away, he seemed unnecessarily pleased and came closer. His thick tongue, dripping with saliva, was about to invade my face.

At that moment, Akira appeared.

Then, things progressed rapidly.

Akira saved me.

Held by Akira, I finally recognized my fear.

I hated it. I really hated being held by that pig.

I didn’t want to die. I was scared of never seeing you again.

I strongly realized my feelings. I want to be with you.

The name of the new nation was decided as the Economic Free City-State Tessa, giving my heart closure. Though, in terms of busyness, the real work was just beginning.

I would only help with the nation’s establishment, then leave the rest to Bachar or Brow. But I must do what’s necessary for that.

And so, the nearly all-nighter work began.

First, I had to hand over work to my mother.

At that time, I had to directly ask her about the lighter.

“…I see. So this is a lighter. It certainly seems like an artifact.”

My mother, Fruina, played with the lighter, lighting and extinguishing it.

“If you keep it on for too long, you’ll get burned.”

“…It seems you’ve already experimented with it.”

“Yes… I was warned it was dangerous. But I think Akira foresaw this. He even told me about the liquid inside.”

“I see. Akira must have seen through your curiosity and business sense, Cherina.”

“That may be true.”

Mother lights a cigarette and places the lighter on the table, switching to a fan.

Even from her daughter’s perspective, the elegance that belies her age is somewhat terrifying.

“So, you want me to do something about this,” she says.

She exhales with a sigh, and the smoke gracefully forms rings, disappearing into the air.

“Yes. After procuring them, I realized they’re difficult to handle. I consider it a blunder.”

“But do you understand why you didn’t notice, Cherina?”

“Huh?”

What do you mean?

Is there something else besides my mistake in judgment?

“You trusted Akira more than you think. You wanted to support him.”

“Huh…”

Really? Did I already have such awareness of him back then? I think I simply judged it as profitable.

“Normally, Cherina, you handle new items with caution. You wouldn’t make rash decisions without consulting Melvin or Dowro. My eyes don’t deceive me. Cherina, you fell for Akira at first sight.”

“No way… His appearance… isn’t that impressive.”

“Women don’t fall for men based on appearance.”

“Then what is it?”

I’ve never heard such a thing before.

“It’s about scent. Women discern men by their scent.”

“…We’re not talking about dogs here.”

“Hehehe… You probably won’t get it yet, being so young. No matter how handsome or ideal his personality is, a gentleman whose scent doesn’t suit you won’t work out.”

“Is that from your own experience?”

“Well, I’ve had my share of experiences when I was young.”

If nothing happened with such looks, that would be odd.

“Even if the scent didn’t match, you’d get used to it if you were together for a long time.”

“That’s naive, Cherina. That’s not how it works…”

“I can’t believe it…”

“Well, this is something you can’t just talk about… But women are naturally drawn to men with money or handsome looks. However, it’s not like only the wealthy or beautiful can get married in this world, right?”

“Well, yeah.”

“Women instinctively attracted to men whose scent matches theirs. Conversely, if they like the scent, they won’t care much about the person’s appearance.”

“…Although there are levels of appearance that one cannot tolerate.”

“Of course. If you have enough money, appearance, or status to suppress that instinct, women suppress their instincts and marry men with their reason.”

“Isn’t that contradictory?”

“No? It’s absolutely true.”

It seems like I was deceived halfway through…

But what was the main topic of this conversation in the first place?

“Mother, about the lighter…”

“Yes, yes… I’ll take care of it.”

Mother responds with a sigh.

“Thank you.”

“Don’t worry. I might as well sell it as an artifact.”

“Huh?”

That’s… a reverse way of thinking.

“Yes, since we conquered the royal castle, we found a hidden room that was likely made just after the Great Midar Collapse, and from there, a large number of these items came out… I think that setting works fine.”

“I don’t think it’s bad, but… won’t it be suspicious?”

“It doesn’t matter if it looks suspicious. The temptation of acquiring an artifact is greater.”

I see. As expected of mother. The idea of selling it as an artifact if it’s mistaken for one is brilliant. I need to learn from this.

“Understood. I’ll leave it to you, Mother.”

“Yes. But more importantly, it’s about Akira.”

Why does she bring the topic back again?

“Do you not want to go with Akira?”

“…”

I don’t understand what she’s saying.

Reluctantly, I became the interim representative of Tessa, and after that, I had to return to work at the Veliero Company.

Where did this conversation come from?

“Oh, everyone in town is gossiping about it. Cherina and Akira getting married.”

“That’s just gossip.”

“Is it? I think it’s hitting a good point.”

“That’s just how ordinary citizens are.”

I sigh.

Marriage with Akira… That’s impossible.

“What don’t you like about him?”

“I don’t like him… First of all, he has things to do.”

“Yes. Then why not go together? Just leave the work to Blow and Bacharl.”

Certainly, I have feelings of wanting to leave everything about the country to Blow and Bacharl.

“Do you have feelings of wanting to be with him?”

“…He’s someone who can’t love women.”

Yes.

For some reason, Akira doesn’t trust women. It looks like a kind of phobia. There’s no way Akira would like me.

“Oh, did you make an effort to be loved?”

“Huh?”

That word passed through my brain once and then returned, lingering in my ears. I almost missed the weight of that lightly spoken phrase.

An effort to be loved?

I was shocked by those words.

“Cherina was just loved. So you’re not used to the feeling of loving someone. It takes various efforts. Learn from Count Lettel. He earns favor for not giving up on being loved.”

I was speechless. I couldn’t continue.

“That face knows what you need. The conversation is over. I’ll take care of the rest, so you can leave.”

I left the room. Surely, my walk was like mistaking a ghost. I returned to my room in a daze and unconsciously sat in a chair.

Effort to be loved.

I understood it for the first time when it was pointed out. Certainly, I have never done such a thing because I was just loved. Now I finally understand that it was something special.

So.

I should make an effort.

I wrote down what I should do in a “note” bundle of standardized sales-use Japanese paper already wrapped.