Chapter 3: Wear This and Pledge Your Loyalty |
At these words, the girl opposite tensed up immediately.
Suppressing her voice, she widened her eyes and exclaimed, "What did you say?!" Had she and her sister just escaped from the tiger's den only to fall into the wolf's mouth?
[Loyalty: -30%]
Jonas paused for a moment, muttering to himself, "Black Toxin disease. As the illness progresses, the body gradually weakens, muscles atrophy, and eventually rot sets in. It requires expensive medication combined with light magic for long-term treatment. Even nobles avoid those afflicted by it."
After speaking, Jonas stepped closer and crouched before Olivia, saying, "A young girl suffering from such a disease must feel utterly hopeless..."
Olivia glared at the man before her. "What do you want with her?" Everyone knew Jonas's nature. If he set his sights on someone, the consequences were predictable. Thinking this, Olivia secretly reached for a stick near her foot.
Jonas spoke slowly, "It's not about what I want to do to her. Even if I do nothing, your sister will meet a miserable end. Without money for treatment, suffering from Black Toxin disease is akin to the most excruciating torture in the world."
Hearing this, the girl's breath caught. Anger flared in her eyes. Having her pain points callously exposed naturally provoked fury. But beyond the anger lay despair—what could she possibly do?
"Don't look at me like that. I'm not the one who caused this. In fact, I just saved you, didn't I? Otherwise, your sister would fare even worse in those merchants' hands."
"How long do you plan to keep deluding yourself? You don't actually believe those few doses of medicine can save your sister, do you?" After these words, silence lingered for a long while.
Olivia pressed her lips together, a sense of powerlessness washing over her. He was right... Even if he did nothing, what favorable outcome could people like them expect? And he had just saved her, after all.
[Loyalty: 0%]
Seeing the loyalty meter rise, Jonas couldn't help but smile. Changing mindsets was crucial—otherwise, without loyalty, bringing back a potential rebel would spell disaster.
After a long pause, Olivia finally spoke, "What do you want?" She understood clearly—the other party was the sole heir to the lordship, likely to inherit these lands eventually. Compared to an Albino like herself, Jonas existed in a completely different world... She couldn't fathom what he might want from someone like her.
If he desired her body, he could simply knock her out and take her. Why bother with all this talk?
As she pondered, Jonas suddenly declared, "I can save your sister."
The words stunned the girl opposite. "Huh? You... what did you say? Wait! You're just a minor noble from a small territory—where would you find a mage to heal my sister?"
"No need for you to worry about that. But in these parts, I'm among the few most qualified to make such an offer. At the very least, I can prevent your sister's condition from worsening."
Olivia clenched her fists. She knew the medicine for Black Toxin disease was exorbitantly expensive. "You'd use medicine for an Albino?"
"Of course! But it all depends on you."
"Depends on me? What... what exactly do you want me to do?" She knew these nobles never made losing deals. Saving her sister's life would undoubtedly cost her own—perhaps something even worse. A faint unease rose within her. Yet thinking of her suffering sister, she steeled herself. This seemed like the only chance to save her...
Observing the girl's expression, Jonas curled his lips. Then from behind his back, he produced a faintly glowing silver collar.
Seeing the collar, Olivia grew deeply unsettled. "You—"
"This is a magical collar nobles use to control slaves. Wearing it means I control your life and death." He raised the wristband on his hand, then pointed at Olivia's neck. "I want you to wear this and pledge your loyalty to me."
...
Staring at the magical collar, Olivia bit her lip. She... she should have known. "I... can't..." Before she could finish, Jonas interrupted, holding up three fingers.
"I'm not negotiating—just giving you a choice. The opportunity comes only once. Next time, I won't help you." "Three... two..."
"I'll wear it!" Olivia gritted her teeth. Speaking those words filled her with shame and humiliation. In a sense, she was abandoning her dignity and freedom. But for people like them, what dignity or freedom existed to begin with?
Olivia stood frozen. Without another word, Jonas stepped behind her, his slender fingers brushing past her snow-white hair as he fastened the collar around her neck.
*Click—*
The strange sensation made Olivia uncomfortable, eliciting a soft gasp. A storm of emotions surged within—resentment, anger, despair... even some peculiar sense of shame.
"Is this enough?" she asked.
Jonas waved a hand. "Of course not. Making you wear this collar only prevents you from escaping or harming me."
"What more do you want?"
"Not just that, Miss Olivia. You seem to have forgotten something I said earlier. From now on, I need you to pledge your loyalty to me. Our future together will be bright." With that, Jonas stood and extended his right hand in an exceedingly gentlemanly gesture—offering to help Olivia up.
[Loyalty: 10%]
[Ability Return Multiplier: 2x]
When one's life rests in another's hands, loyalty naturally increases. First the stick, then the carrot—a capitalist's classic tactic. And judging by the system, it seemed quite effective.
...
Olivia stared blankly at the person before her. Her lips parted, but no words emerged. He wanted her loyalty? The collar around her neck imposed slight physical restraint and immense psychological pressure. She knew this vile noble was forcing her to declare allegiance—to demand absolute obedience.
Instantly, the humiliation intensified, her neck flushing red up to her ears. But what choice did she have? Let her sister die while she remained a hunted outcast? Her gaze fell upon the hand extended before her, faint light glinting off it.
Pledge her loyalty? As if possessed, she tilted her head slightly and lightly licked his palm.
*Slick~*