The next order of business was to get the metal components that would move individual threads and compress the weave into a tight cloth. These parts were tiny and wood wasn’t strong enough.
Sulla led me to the smithies out in the lower city, navigating through the Samat labyrinth with practised ease. It took us some time bickering with multiple artisans until we found one that had free time and willingness to craft a bunch of tiny pieces. The name of our manor and promise of a larger order in the future were enough to get us a decent price.
While the artisan didn’t really believe me how many we would actually need later, Sulla didn’t let me argue with him at all. Probably under direct orders from Domina, or maybe under his volition. From what I managed to gather, Sulla’s loyalty to the Manor was unquestionable. In his place, I wouldn’t even think about haggling, yet he did, even though money weren’t his nor would he keep the change.
As we left the workshop behind our backs, the grey muscle-bound elf turned to me and scowled in his usual fashion.
“Kid,” he bit out. “How long are you gonna walk around dressed like this?”
I glanced down at myself. My tunic was in decent shape, I’ve fixed it plenty of times in the last couple of years. The rope holding it was strong and the shirt was hidden anyway. My bare feet were black from the soot of the workshops we’ve just visited, but the weather was warm, it was the beginning of the summer.
He scoffed at my actions. “You aren’t a manual anymore, kid. But a teacher of the manor. You need to dress to represent your position. Or did you think Domina gave you the reward to waste on baubles and snacks?”
I scratched my nose. “I was hoping to do some other projects with it on the side actually.”
“Then a project can wait. Follow me.”
Luckily for my finances, the place Sulla brought me to sold sturdy but not luxurious clothes. With a definite step up from the quality of my current gear. While my fixes held true and weren’t that visible, over the years the fabric got worn out. And some unwashable stains did accumulate. New clothing looked well done and clean, visibly putting me into a new social status.
Sandals were annoying, however. I couldn’t comprehend why someone would wear so many straps around their ankles for the sake of appearing proper.
I did manage to procure a set of glassware: green, cloudy, and expensive. I ordered the ugliest and simplest forms to save on the expenses. I had no plans on drinking or eating out of them, nor present them to my guests. I couldn’t stop and relax right now, expecting my ideas and knowledge to please the Domina enough to simply grant me freedom. There was an uncomfortably unknown chance that all my inventions would only make her keep me forever.
I needed some possible leverage. Machinery was out of the question, I’ve seen the level of technology they have operated by now. Worse, people around me weren’t stupid either. I couldn’t make some mechanical wonder and expect no one to understand the mechanism or at least notice the purpose of my work.
Something was necessary that wasn’t obvious from a glance or even after some scrutiny. Something that needed a completely new way of thought compared to what they currently employed. Like electricity and, especially, electronics with binary logic. That was, frankly, the first major step after the discovery of mechanical tools. Even steam and internal combustion used centuries-proven parts to operate. Levers, wheels, gears and screws.
Something like that would require me years of work and untold amounts of money to make anything even remotely useful. Or a trip to the crash site. The wreck was likely to have some materials or instruments, but I was under more intense scrutiny right now, even if that was to prevent me from spilling secrets not discovering new ones.
That left chemistry and biology. The leading theory in the Emanai was that the matter was made from four elements, bound by the fifth. Magic. Health was likewise attributed to the balance in these five categories.
Suffice to say I was rather confident to remain in obscurity tinkering with chemical reactions or making organic compounds. While poisons and alchemy were known as well, my designs wouldn’t be easily copied nor understood. At the same time, the rudimentary awareness of the potency of these things would grant healthy respect to my tools in the future, in the unlikely chance I would need to employ them.
The glass was a great start, no matter how expensive it currently was. It was inert and easily washable, able to contain chemicals that would gladly eat through the toughest metals. I simply couldn’t wait for Aikerim to set up her own production.
XXX
Upon our return, things set off at yet another breakneck pace. Wrena didn’t waste time and managed to make a tiny model to help her plan the build. And I was dragged in as a helping hand immediately.
Domina was strict about the project security, none of Wrena’s helpers were allowed in so the only other set of hands available was mine. While I had a very faint idea of what most of her tools did, and how to use them properly, I was capable of doing basic tasks while also bouncing ideas about the design back and forth.
She managed to convince me to make the widest possible loom too. Apparently, current looms were limited in width by the weaver arm length and wider fabrics required a helper’s hand and a lot more time. Exactly what my design ignored with the flying shuttle. While I was still thinking in terms of time, a bonk to the head and a mention that Domina would be more impressed by visible result rather than promises made me change my mind on the spot.
Fortunately for me, my lessons with Domina’s daughter, Anaise, hasn’t started yet. Obviously, Domina was planning something and also wanted me to concentrate on the loom for now. As such my days went on with me spending most of the mornings with Irje and Yeva, and the rest of the day with Wrena working.
Irje finished much earlier than I did, but since she wasn’t permitted to help us either she ended up spending her time lounging in my bed until I’ve arrived. Clearly, that was ‘all for my sake’ and ‘to make sure my blankets stay warm for me’. I nodded along with her arguments, smiling, and added a few suggestions myself. Now she would try different positions of ‘keeping my bed warm’ when I came in, just so she can figure out which one was the most ‘effective’.
She also turned into a sloth every morning. Trying to pull her out of my bed was a nearly futile effort until she had gotten her morning treat.
I truly had a cat now, and I was spoiling her more and more.
“You know.” I mused as I settled in front of her in the afternoon, pulling my shirt off my tired body. “I’ve been thinking lately.”
“About what?” Irje hummed as she tried to scuttle closer to me. Tonight she went with a spread open invitation that was impossible to resist against even on worst days.
I slid backwards keeping us apart, making her growl. My dick plopped down right on top of her mound. “Soon we will be done with the loom.” I dragged my answer.
“Aaaaand?” She drawled sarcastically, her arms reaching downward.
I shook my head. My, how impatient.
Smacking her hands away I continued, “I was thinking it will be a perfect time to spend more time with you.”
That put a pleased smile on her face, but her attempts to get me in didn’t stop. Instead, she started gyrating her hips in an effort to catch the tip and slid it inside.
“Good,” I murmured, making her understand that is what I wanted for her to do. I pressed it down, increasing pressure on her sensitive spots.
Irje moaned and sped up her pace, only to realize that I wasn’t putting it in either.
I ignored her furious glare and the rapid movements of her body, enjoying the wet sensations of her lips sliding along my shaft. Her core subjecting the entire length of my dick to the waves of heat moving up and down.
“I want to teach you.” I smiled, unperturbed. “Letters, numbers, anything that you still don't know. And then more.” I frowned for a second. “Maybe teach Yeva some math as well. It would be beneficial for both of you.”
I could feel something in the air. Like a gentle breeze, a tiny shuffle of the sheets pulling closer.
A whine of a sexy but neglected assistant.
“Oh, I shouldn’t neglect such a beauty, right?” I said with fake realization.
My musings brought forth furious nods from Irje.
“Well then. Allow me to correct my mistake.” I pushed it in, slipping into her entrance. “And make up for it,” I murmured leaning closer to her face.
She moaned into my kiss, her folds hugging my shaft just as tight as her arms held my body close.
XXX
I woke up to an old and familiar feeling. Lately, I would wake up within Irje’s embrace, as she cuddled into me, seeking warmth. The softness of her breasts surrounding my face and her toned legs wrapped around mine turned it into a blissful experience. Even though it took time and experience to untangle myself and get away from the cuddlecat.
Today my body felt the touch of fresh air. My arms loose. Irje wasn’t in my embrace but the moist feeling of the tongue on my shaft made her location very obvious.
She was surprisingly gentle today too. Very delicate. Usually, by this time, her lips would be around my shaft and balls deep.
I laid still, faking sleep, enjoying her new approach.
Gently, almost as if afraid, her tiny fingers wrapped around my dick, trying to jerk it. Her movements jerky and unsure.
Wait.
I sat up startled, eyes wide. Making Yeva yelp from surprise.
I sat there in silence, suddenly feeling tired.
Then I closed my eyes and let my head fall down. The pillow silencing my usual thump dedicated for this exact reason.
“Irje.”
“Yeeees?” Came an amused response.
“What the fuck are you doing?
Reminds of the story of King Basil ( real person) who went from slave to king
yeah, sometimes the reality can be stranger than fiction.
Slave B manga
Rakuin no Monshou
yeva girl! u went directly for the meat! that was unexpected!
they know what they want. What can i say?
I really enjoy how the story is developing, and the writing flows very well, it is captivating.
The theme of freedom shows its head here and there, and that is the most intriguing thing for me, how it will be developed, besides other good points of the story.
I got the feeling that the protagonist, till now, had and still has the goal to achieve freedom, even if that means to leave the two girls behind. All the submissive act towards his "superiors" was just that, a clear act. And the end goal is freedom from the domina and everyone. Now I think, that he will accept to live in this golden cage(that he himself mentioned a few chapters back), and the reason to that will be women (catgirls, foxgirls, etc. a hard choice indeed...), so I think he will willingly bind himself with the metaphorical shackles in the form of women. The Domina's daughter, will be the next one to bind him to the domina, and make himself accept living in this golden cage.
Well, to have a harem of fluffy waifus and live in a golden cage or freedom. A hard choice.
Anyway, thank you for posting your work here, and I hope my pessimistic mind is wrong(Is it pessimism if the result is composed of fluffy waifus ?).
I definitely don't want an idealistic approach to the situation. Freedom has a lot of inherent drawbacks for him at this stage and blindly trying to break the golden bars will do him more harm than good. And he slowly learns and understands the intricacies of his position. But more of that will be explored in the further chapters.
And don't worry your mind isn't pessimistic - I would say it is more realistic. Many a man would choose to spend their years surrounded by women and with a cushy job but with a demanding boss.
Thanks for the chapter ???
There was an uncomfortably unknown chance that all my inventions would only make her keep me forever.
Finally realized all he was doing was making himself a more valuable puppet, hmm? Feels like it's a bit late to have this thought with as much as he's already done in regards to this. I mean, he was even dictated how he needed to spend his "reward."
Well, there was also his ass on the line as he was bought as a pleasure slave for Domina's husbands, some eagerness to please was also expected.
Seems like that in every single webnovel I've read in this style as soon as the protagonist gets a waifu soon he'll be teaching her how to do everything that he can do in some attempt by the author to "keep them useful". Granted this case is a bit different since he's not teaching them how to use OP magicks and stuff.
I hope that the author will approach this realistically. Meaning that the two don't by sheer chance turn out to be extremely intelligent students and fast learners but instead learn like two adults with no history of education whatsoever thorough their childhood and teenage years.
When it comes to isekai Mushoku Tensei is the only one that I've read that did this in a believable way when Rudeus taught Eris and Ghyslaine to read and do some basic math.
Each of them will have different paths.
But I will not make them stupid either. I've intentionally researched the intelligence and knowledge in a historical setting exactly for that. And I've found that many underestimate the knowledge and ingenuity of our ancestors. They weren't dumb, merely lacking the foundations we have right now. Similarly, with math - they might not know the numbers but they are likely to count numbers faster than the average person today - especially because we became reliant on technology to do so.
Give them proper tools and they could easily put two and two together. Just like showing a cheat sheet for a question and then asking the same question afterwards again - suddenly that extra push - that small glance of understanding that it is possible and how - is more than enough to overcome the issue yourself.
People of the past developed intelligence in a different way than we currently do. They relied on memory retention to maintain the necessary knowledge in their minds, while we rely on our ability to parse data to find what we are looking for.
@Snusmumriken I had a long ass reply written for this but my fat thumbs went and accidentally pressed the previous page button(bane of the phone commentators) so it's gone now so I'll keep this short
I'm quite aware that people who lived in the past weren't stupid. If they were the modern world would be pretty different. What I was trying to stress is that it's quite hard for a grown person to learn to read and etc. compared to children simply due to how our brains work and authors usually have a hard time portraying this in a believable manner.
It's just a thing that personally ticks me off, especially in the more realistic stories, so pay it no mind if you want. After all, too much realism is not necessarily a good thing. On the topic for an example there are several different factors that affect one's learning ability like starvation during the childhood and etc.
@bananaflyman Yes, but I also circumvent realism with ambiguity. But most of their most immediate knowledge would be rather applied. and new languages and alphabets would take even longer.
Thanks for the chapter!
Where was irje?
The next chapter will tell~
Threesome?
Thanks for the chapter.