As Ayame gracefully led the way toward the private carriages, Haruto cast a sideways glance at the young woman walking nervously beside him.
"So, what do you say, my dear Kajika?" he murmured softly, his voice carrying a warm, teasing undertone.
Kajika's face flushed a brilliant, burning crimson.
Unable to meet his intense gaze, she could only offer a shy, hesitant nod in agreement.
Before she could process her own racing heartbeat further, Haruto effortlessly scooped her up into his arms, bridal-style, making her gasp in sudden, flustered surprise as she instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Ayame, lead the way," Haruto commanded smoothly.
"Understood, Haruto-sama!" Ayame responded eagerly, bowing her head with a bright, devoted smile before turning to guide them down the iron corridor.
As the small group departed, the remaining passengers crowded together, watching them leave with hushed murmurs of profound awe and envy.
"Goodness... Kajika actually caught the lord's attention. To think she's been chosen..." a middle-aged woman whispered, clutching her hands to her chest in disbelief.
"Well, it's hardly a surprise," a nearby passenger replied, nodding sagely.
"She has always been kind-hearted and gentle. It's only natural a divine figure would favor someone so pure."
"I only wish my little girl could be half as fortunate," another man sighed wistfully, shaking his head.
"She's still just a child, but perhaps one day..."
A heavy, deadpan silence fell over the group.
"...Just how old is your daughter?"
"Six."
"...What in the world is wrong with you?"
Inside the meticulously curated, private carriage reserved exclusively for him, a quiet, tense nervousness hung in the air.
Kajika stood stiffly near the entrance, her hands nervously clutching the fabric of her skirt as she tried to process her new reality.
While Ayame busily attended to final preparations in the adjacent alcove, Haruto calmly seated himself on the plush velvet lounge, gently pulling the trembling girl down to rest across his lap.
He studied her flushed, wide-eyed expression with steady amusement.
Deciding to bypass any beating around the bush, he spoke directly.
"You risked everything and bartered your own body just to save that boy, Ikoma. You must have deep romantic feelings for him, right?"
"W-what?! No, absolutely not!" Kajika frantically shook her head, her hands flying up in a defensive gesture.
"Ikoma is just a dear friend—nothing more! I don't feel that way about him at all. Please believe me, my lord!"
Haruto chuckled softly, entirely unfazed by her panic.
"Relax. I believe you."
He wasn't particularly invested in picking apart her platonic relationships, knowing full well that by the end of this transaction, her entire world—and her devotion—would belong entirely to him.
His fingers lifted, gently stroking the soft contour of her cheek.
The touch made Kajika instantly freeze, her breath catching in her throat as her heart hammered wildly against her ribs, overwhelmed by his suffocatingly close presence.
"Still," Haruto continued, his tone softening into something more probing, "you didn't go to such desperate lengths purely for a friend, did you? Tell me... what is it that you truly desire?"
His voice was quiet yet unyielding, carrying a magnetic weight that made it feel as though he could already read the deepest corners of her mind.
Trembling under his gaze, Kajika finally forced herself to look up, meeting his deep eyes with a sudden surge of raw honesty.
"I want to be like Ayame-sama... I want to serve you, my lord, and gain the true strength to protect the people I care about. I'm tired of feeling helpless. I don't ever want to be a burden again!"
She had watched in awe as Ayame and others wielded incredible power while she remained trapped in the background, unable to change a thing.
The bitter taste of her own weakness had plagued her for too long; now, she was ready to shed it, no matter the cost.
Right as the words left her lips, an ethereal chime rang out across her field of vision:
[Ding! Kajika has issued a trade request!]
[Trade Objective]: To gain true strength.
Haruto slowly withdrew his hand from her cheek.
For a brief, agonizing second, Kajika felt a pang of cold dread—had she failed? Had her ambition displeased him? Had she been rejected outright?
Then, a faint, confident smile touched Haruto's lips.
"Very well. I will grant you that chance." He gestured slightly, inviting her closer.
Her heart leaped into her throat. She had been accepted.
[Ding! Your trade request has been accepted!]
[Trade Terms]: Unlimited use of her body.
"!!!"
Her breath hitched.
.A brief flash of hesitation crossed her face as the heavy reality of the terms settled in, but it vanished almost instantly.
Knowing the path she had chosen, she swallowed her lingering fears and accepted the trade without a second thought.
[Ding! Trade initiated!]
Trembling from head to toe, Kajika dropped gracefully to her knees before Haruto.
With hesitant, shaking fingers, she reached up and untied the ribbon holding back her hair, letting her locks tumble down her shoulders.
Her gaze flickered with a mixture of nervous surrender and fierce resolve as she leaned forward, fully accepting her new place.
Suddenly, a secondary system prompt flickered into view before her:
[Ding! Would you like to start a live broadcast?]
Her eyes widened in shock as she processed the prompt.
After a fleeting moment of internal panic and a desperate struggle of pride, she made her choice: Start the broadcast.
As the live stream feed flickered to life across the dimensional chat network, Haruto's eyes gleamed with dark, absolute satisfaction.
The chat group interface blinked into full opacity across the dimensions, projecting the live stream directly into the private carriage.
Inside the train car, the atmosphere shifted instantly from sacred to intensely carnal.
Haruto sat back against the velvet cushions, his dark eyes watching with cool authority as Kajika knelt before him.
The initial hesitation in her eyes had melted away, replaced by a feverish, desperate need to prove her worth and earn the power she craved.
With shaking hands, she reached up, sliding the heavy clasp from her hair until her locks fell in soft disarray across her shoulders.
She swallowed hard, her throat bobbing, before leaning forward.
"My lord..." she whispered, her voice trembling with a mix of fear and mounting arousal.
Without waiting further, she reached out and unfastened Haruto's belt, her fingers clumsy yet eager as she freed him from his trousers.
The heavy, thick weight of him sprang free, hot and throbbing in the cool air of the carriage.
Kajika's breath hitched.
She had never seen anything so intimidating, yet the primal heat radiating from him sent a violent shiver straight down her spine.
She opened her mouth, pressing her lips softly against the tip before taking him in.
The sheer size of him forced her jaw wide, a wet gasp escaping her nose as she accommodated his length.
She began to bob her head, sliding up and down in a rhythmic, uncoordinated motion, her tongue swirling hungrily around the base while saliva pooled at the corners of her lips.
Squelch... slurp...
The explicit, wet sounds filled the private car, amplified by the silent broadcast looping across the chat screens for all the members to witness.
******
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