King??
Queen??
Is there something wrong with what you said, or something wrong with my ears?
"Did you just say 'Queen'?"
"The 'Queen' you mentioned isn't the 'Queen' I understand, right?"
"Ah, I know!"
"It must be a unique cultural term here, where you call someone commonly understood as a 'Guard,' 'Attendant,' or 'House Pet' a 'Queen,' right?"
Weston broke out in a cold sweat.
Slive giggled shyly and waved his hand.
"No, the 'Queen' I meant is exactly the 'Queen' you understand!"
"The King's wife, his lifelong companion, the person who sleeps in the same bed and does that and that kind of thing!"
This middle-aged man, who looked over forty, greasy, vulgar, and sported a small mustache, actually displayed the shy expression of a young maiden!!
Weston completely lost it.
The rage that had built up since he discovered the darkness of this place, up until Joey and Mavis were successively controlled, strangely vanished completely at this moment.
In its place was an endless sense of absurdity.
Wait, wait, wait—
You must be kidding me!
Could this guy, who looks and sounds almost exactly like Ichiya, actually be a woman?!
Could something this ridiculous really exist in the world?!
Weston turned his head, casting an incredulous and bewildered look toward Reiya.
Even if this guy were a woman, could this face really attract the favor of a middle-aged man?!
Just how crazy is this world?!!!
After a long while, Weston finally calmed his shock slightly and looked at Reiya.
"So, you're a woman?!"
"I am a man!"
I knew it was a wom—
"Ehhhhh??!!!"
The shock this statement delivered to Weston was ten thousand times stronger than the word "Queen" had been moments ago!!!
"Then, are you a woman?"
Holding a sliver of hope, Weston turned his head back to Slive.
But the moment he said it, he realized he must be insane.
No matter how you look at that face, it couldn't possibly belong to a woman!
Sure enough, Slive shook his head.
"I am also a man!"
Thank goodness, thank goodness—
At least one thing was within the scope of his comprehension.
Weston let out a sigh of relief.
But the next second, he felt he might have relaxed too soon.
"You are both men, then—"
Weston stared at Reiya, his face filled with shock.
Noticing the gaze directed at him, Reiya, who was restrained by chains, instantly blushed with shyness and subconsciously averted his eyes.
Why are you blushing, you bubble teapot?!!
So, this is why you haven't explained why you weren't controlled all this time?!
Thinking about it carefully, this reason truly must be difficult to admit—
Immediately afterward, Weston looked at Slive, his face still full of shock.
Oh no!
He not only likes men, but his taste is so heavy that he can even accept someone like Reiya!!
Then me—
This is bad!
Things just got much worse!
As if seeing through Weston's thoughts, Slive preempted him with a cold snort.
"Brat, don't even think about it!"
"I have no interest in brats like you!"
"Only a mature, steady, and handsome man like Reiya is qualified to be my Queen!!"
"With your level of looks, you can only be a Guard Captain at most!"
Weston: ...
He should be relieved that this vulgar uncle wasn't interested in him, yet why couldn't he feel happy? Why was there a faint sense of dissatisfaction?
After all, what Slive said made it sound like he had lost to Reiya in a beauty contest!
His mood suddenly became strange and complicated!
"Alright, brat!"
"The fun and games are pretty much over!"
Slive stopped talking, stepped in front of Weston, spread his hands forward, and activated the Human Subordination magic.
"From now on, you will obediently become my subordinate!!"
"Haa!!"
Instantly, Weston felt a strange magical power invading his consciousness.
He quickly focused his mind and resisted the power, but the opponent's magic was still slowly consuming him.
"Damn it, damn it all—!!!"
A few breaths later, Weston completely stopped struggling.
Seeing this, Slive let out a long sigh of relief, then turned and walked toward Reiya. Ignoring the latter's terrified gaze, he reached out and touched his rough face.
"It's all over!"
"Now, it's just the two of us here again!"
"My dearest Queen Consort—"
As soon as the words fell, a sudden change occurred!
A thick beam of concentrated magic pierced Slive's chest from behind and shot straight up into the sky!
"Cough, cough—Agh—"
Slive spat out a mouthful of blood. In his horror, his eyes shifted backward and saw a familiar face.
It was Weston, who should have been bound in chains and made his slave!
"You! How could you—??"
"Is it an Illusion?"
"No, an Illusion couldn't deceive my senses—"
"The feeling of successfully 'enslaving' you moments ago was real—!!"
Weston's expression was calm: "You can turn around and take a good look."
Slive struggled to turn his head, and his eyes suddenly widened.
Because behind him, there were actually two Westons!
One was still bound by chains, unable to move.
The other stood behind him, having pierced his chest with magic.
Slive's gaze was fixed intently on the bound Weston.
Two seconds later, he finally figured out the reason.
"It's a Thought Projection?!"
"You used a Thought Projection to separate the 'enslaved' personality?!"
"Correct answer!"
Weston was inspired to use the Thought Projection to separate negative status effects by the original work.
During the 100-Year Quest, Jellal once used this move to separate his 'evil side,' which was the personality of Siegrain, using a Thought Projection, allowing his main body to continue fighting unaffected by the opponent's magic.
"How could this.... How could this happen—"
Thud!
Slive spat out his last word of defiance, then lost all strength and his body crashed onto the cold stone floor.
He died.
With Slive's death, the effect of Human Subordination also vanished.
Mavis was the first to regain consciousness. After realizing the situation, she immediately withdrew her magic.
Soon, Joey also woke up.
After the two of them, the other members of the tribe, those poor wretches controlled and enslaved by Slive's magic, all regained their freedom.
"This, this is—"
"I'm free?!"
"This is great!! We finally don't have to endure that pervert's enslavement anymore!!"
"Wahhh, I want to go home!"
Everyone wept tears of joy, simultaneously recounting the tragic experiences they suffered while controlled and dreaming about their lives after leaving this place.