"Really?! That would be great. I've always wanted one; Stella always talked about how good massage therapists are, and now I think so too."
"But won't there be a problem with you taking me with you? I mean, it might look suspicious and all that... Can anyone just walk into the palace?"
I already had a plan, but there were still things to do before I could put it into practice. One of them was figuring out how to get the doppelganger I would create to accompany Amy, so I offered to be her personal massage therapist.
But I had to ask her that: she might not have any problems, but it's a royal palace and an important place; I don't think just anyone can enter.
And depending on the level of security, they might detect that I was a doppelganger. In that case, I would have no choice but to postpone it or find another way.
"Ah! That's true... hmm, I don't know... ah! Wait a minute, there! ay!!"
"...Amy, you can open your eyes and refrain from walking with your eyes closed from now on, if possible."
She suddenly got up from the bathtub, got out, and walked aimlessly because her eyes were closed. I guess it's because she was wearing a mask, but it didn't cover her eyes, so there was no problem since I put it on her a while ago.
"So I can open them... that will make it easier."
"Yes, obviously it will."
Sometimes not seeing everything is also good.
Yes... and again she gave me a glorious view of her sexy body with her wet yukata clinging to her skin.
I felt that many details became clearer, giving her an even more lustful touch when she was completely naked.
Hmmm, but what is she planning to do? She's not going to the castle to ask, is she?
I watched what she was doing and she went to the dressing rooms, where her belongings were. But contrary to what I thought, she seemed to be looking for something and finally took out what looked like a fist-sized sapphire, a gem that would be priceless in my world.
But I felt that it was something magical, and I was not mistaken: she did something and it glowed for a moment.
[Huh!? Mother, what's going on?]
"Yes, dear, I wanted to ask you: if I bring a massage therapist to the palace, what do I have to do?"
[Huh? Massage therapist? Is it a man or a woman? If it's a man, you can't."
A female voice began to come out of the gem. From what I understood, it must have been one of her three daughters—she had triplets—which I found curious.
"Oh, dear, I'm not stupid, I know that. I already confirmed that it's a woman."
[Huh?... Wait, where are you?]
"Outside. I was walking around town and came across a massage parlor where Iris works, and after talking to her, she says she wants to follow me and become my personal massage therapist."
[What!? Did you tell her your status? Where are you? It's dangerous! I'll make a call and...]
"Calm down, I would never say I'm a queen. I don't share with anyone when I go out."
Hey, I heard that… Wait!, did I just ask directly how to get into the palace? Ugh, I let my guard down.
I really feel like with her, my guard is down to the point that I didn't even notice I had made a mistake. But hey, it's her, so I guess it doesn't matter. There's a reason she's such a nice person.
The good thing is that, unlike her, her daughter seems to have a good head on her shoulders. Although, from what I heard, they can't help her in her precarious situation since they're at the academy.
[Haah~ mother, you don't feel any danger, do you?]
"No, my friends tell me there's nothing wrong."
[...And I guess they were the ones who helped you escape again, right?]
"Yes, I was a little sad and they helped me."
[Haah~ I really don't understand how you do it... Mom, I'm really worried about you.]
"I worry about you too, sweetie. Are you okay? Is anyone doing bad things to you?"
Hmm... that wasn't the point. No, I'm not going to get into that conversation; I'd better just listen.
[No, my sister hits anyone who comes near her. Today she almost killed someone who- no, that's not important. You said she was a massage therapist, did you make sure she was evaluated with a real evaluation stone?]
"Ah! Hmm... yes."
[Haah... well, if she's not, it will come out. Okay, it's just a profession that goes up to rank two. As long as she's a woman, the palace allows up to ten people with professions with rank three potential. Unless it's a very suspicious profession, it won't be a big problem.]
"Oh, then I can bring her with me! You know, she's also my friend now, even from our previous life."
[...In two weeks, the academy vacation begins, so I can confirm how trustworthy that new friend is—wait, she exists, right? Are we talking about a person that everyone can see, not one of those imaginary friends of yours?]
"눈_눈, I think so... hmm, and my other friends exist too..."
At that moment, she began to stare at me intently, as if she were trying to verify something. For my part, I wondered what they meant earlier by "friends," since I thought I didn't have any. But now, from what I heard, I was overcome with an even greater sense of sorrow and sadness.
ಥ_ಥ Amy, I will be your real friend; eventually, you won't need imaginary friends anymore.
[Hmm, if she really exists, give her a letter with your seal on it. You don't need to write anything. And when she leaves, make sure you're inside. And if that masseuse is real and she's a woman, they'll call you and just say you want to make her your masseuse. You have every right to do so.]
"Oh, it's that easy! Thank you, dear. I won't bother you anymore. Say hello and give your sisters a kiss from me."
[Yes, mother, and try to avoid escaping from the palace. If they ever find out, it could be a bad situation.]
With that last statement from the other party, the gem stopped shining and the voice was no longer heard.
She turned to me happily; her innocent face of pure happiness is truly food for my soul, along with her damp yukata clinging to her sinful body.
"Good news! I can take you with me, we can be together!"
Good, that was good. Apparently, as long as I'm a woman and don't have a high-potential profession, I can enter without any tedious screening. Okay, now I can do this.
With the biggest problem solved, it was time to put all my anger and sadness aside. I have to focus on Amy and put a stigma on her.
I have to make my sweet and gentle Amy, who loves her husband with great longing and passion, direct all that towards me, at any cost.
This is no longer just for the mission and our survival; it's also for her.
Amy, forgive me for what I'm about to do, but it's necessary. I'll give you all the love your husband didn't give you.
"Wow, that's great, Amy! Now we can be together. But you know, I haven't shown you my true abilities yet."
"No? But it really felt good, my shoulders feel lighter."
"Oh, that was just a prelude. Besides, I haven't given you the winning tips yet for your friend to seduce and bring her husband to his knees."
"..."
"Huh? What's wrong, Amy?"
"I-I lied... my f-friend was me. I-I didn't mean to, but I can't keep lying."
"Wait, wait! Don't cry... it's okay, I understand. You know, between friends, the occasional lie is okay. It's also something you need to know: a seductive and capable woman always has more than one secret."
Ugh... those tears are bad for my mental health. I obviously knew she was lying, but now I know she thought she was really deceiving me. I definitely have to protect and guide this innocent and cute creature.
"Really? You're not angry? You're not going to break off our friendship or refuse to come with me!"
"Nah, those are small things, unimportant. Between friends we can forgive each other for many things, even if they're very bad. Come on, I'll give you a full body massage."
..
.
System, upgrade the tub; buy the cheapest hot tub upgrade.
Okay, now it was starting. I had already prepared everything and even spent 40 Myrr on an upgrade. The system also had a section for local upgrades, which I also memorized.
I had already asked around, and although these things are rare, they are not impossible to find in this world. I bought it because I felt it was something important for what I was going to do.
Now I knew Amy's real situation, but nothing had changed for her: she still loved her husband, and there was no thought in her mind of cheating on him or the temptation to start a relationship with someone else.
__________________
Emotional: 31%
Carnal: 8%
Rational: 23%
_________________
Oh, while I wasn't looking, it grew a lot, and I haven't even started yet!
Amy is someone who is very lacking in love, and I understand why it went up so much. But, at the end of the day, this is something done to start a relationship; and no matter how much chemistry there is, it won't go beyond a certain point, since friendship can't exceed that limit.
And I already understand that she's not someone with good taste like me; the carnal part went up only because her first impression of me was that I was someone hot or sexy, nothing more, nothing less.
At that percentage, there's no real consistent desire... but that will change.
"Ah! The water is moving!"
"Yes, Amy, this is a magical device that stirs the water; it's called a hydro-massage and it will help me make you feel even better."
Now that I knew her a little better, the idea of having her husband under her thumb didn't seem like something she would think about.
I wonder where she got that from, but anyway, it helps me move forward with this.
I approached her from the side and began to slide my hands over her shoulders. I took one of her arms and began to massage it; it wasn't to stimulate her and awaken her desire and lust, it was more focused on the senses.
It made any reception of stimuli of any kind more pronounced.
"Oh! Yes... first of all, you have to be very clear about something, and it's absolutely important!"
"W-what is it?"
At that moment, I looked her straight in the eyes, as if to show her that I was very serious. She looked at me, but she seemed unable to bear it, and finally lowered her gaze a little, her face slightly flushed.
Huehue... how cute.
"Sex isn't just for making babies."
"Huh!?"
"Look me in the eyes and repeat after me."
"Ah... eh!? Y-yes."
I had to make this very clear to her and rid her of her mental immaturity regarding these matters.
"Sex isn't just for making babies."
"Sex isn't just for making babies!"
"It's also one of the highest expressions of love."
"Huh!? Really!"
"Repeat!"
"Aj! Yes, it's one of the highest expressions of love."
"Well, keep that in mind from now on."
"Y-yes, but what you said is true!"
"Yes, now then... it seems you didn't know anything about that, right? Then we have to start from scratch. Amy, have you ever heard of masturbation...?"