Tamed Monster - Chapter 103

The Emperor hadn’t personally hunted monsters in some time, so he wasn’t entirely sure. But whenever he looked at the Duke these days, he couldn’t help recalling those moments—when he used to torture monsters.

Most of the monsters he interrogated were already helpless by the time they were brought before him—limbs severed, bodies bound, stripped of any ability to struggle.

That absolute contrast between their despair and the Duke’s usual composure should have made them incomparable, and yet… whenever he spoke with Lancart, he couldn’t shake the feeling that the two had something fundamentally similar about them.

“Don’t you have something for me?”

That shameless, as-if-he-was-owed tone—yes, that was exactly it. Cruel, flippant, savoring pain even as he inflicted it, and always ready to steal someone’s breath away the moment an opportunity came.

The order to kill the leader of the swamp monsters and bring back proof. That command had come from the Emperor himself. But even he hadn’t truly expected Lancart to succeed.

Strength in numbers didn’t matter. You could fire a thousand poisoned arrows, but if none of them landed, it meant nothing.

A head monster wasn’t called the head monster for nothing.

The Duke had memorized the maps and information he’d been given, and he had entered the swamp with some advantages. But even so, who would have imagined he’d actually return after taking down a monster of that caliber?

And then—thump—he’d casually thrown the severed arm at the Emperor’s feet like a discarded package.

“It was a great struggle to catch it.”

Those were the sort of light, offhanded complaints he made. For someone who claimed to have injured his arm, he looked perfectly fine. Even the Duke’s woman seemed unharmed. In fact, she didn’t appear to have so much as a scratch.

“He really is something. Almost seems more competent after turning into an imbecile. Aside from that foul mouth of his…”

Wandering the vast palace, the Emperor finally halted in front of a corridor with a fountain. A handmaid in a thin negligee who had been drawing water glanced back at him and flinched. He had noticed her stealing glances at him earlier, acting shy only now.

Myers gave a crooked smile and ordered:

“Strip.”

There was no one else in the hallway. Just the Emperor and the handmaid. But this palace was a maze, a place where dozens, even hundreds passed through at any moment.

If she bared herself here, it would be a disaster—for both of them.

The Emperor’s dignity would suffer, and the handmaid’s reputation would be utterly ruined. She might be a handmaid, but she was still a noblewoman—albeit one far below his rank. And she already had someone she loved.

She hesitated, stammering an “Ah…” Myers tilted his head, a silent warning hidden in his lazy posture. Once she still refused, he didn’t hesitate. He strode toward her and yanked down the thin strap clinging to her shoulder.

“Ah!”

“Shh. Do you want to summon an audience?”

Chuckling, he pulled off the flimsy negligee in one swift motion, baring her completely.

It was the previous Emperor’s decree that palace maids wore such vulgar clothing. The previous Emperor was no less of a womanizer. Myers had never bothered to change it. This was the second time today he found something to be grateful for in his late father. Twice in one day—almost impressive.

“N-No, please don’t… don’t do this.”

“Hm? Don’t? Why not?”

He already had his face buried against the curve of her neck, his fingers kneading her b*****s. In principle, palace maids were all virgins. Some lied about it, slipping through the screening process, but most truly were. He knew.

“I… I already love someone, Your Majesty…”

“Hah. A funny joke. You’re in love? With who? Someone in this palace?”

Myers snorted. Who she loved meant nothing to him. Why had she chosen to work in the main palace of all places? Didn’t she know what he did to maids whenever the mood struck him? Or was she new, unaware of the rules?

He nipped at the handmaid’s ear, demanding to know.

“Who?”

“Ah! It—It’s a secret. I can’t say…”

She dared refuse a direct imperial command. Twice.

At this point, even Myers could not let that stand.