[PRIMARY MISSION]
Conquer Luna, the assassin maid sent to kill you.
[OBJECTIVE]
Earn her loyalty, affection, or submission before she fulfills her mission.
[TIME LIMIT]
None (mission persists until completion).
[FAILURE CONDITION]
Death by assassination.
[REWARD]
To be determined upon successful completion.
[HINT TRIGGERED: Opportunity detected.]
Use this chance to unsettle Luna, make her blush, flustered, or emotionally reactive.
[BONUS OBJECTIVE UNLOCKED]
Cause Luna to display visible affection or embarrassment within the next interaction.
[REWARD]
To be determined upon successful completion.
I stared at the door. Help me... change?
My brain short-circuited for a solid three seconds. This was it. The classic "maid helps young master dress" trope. In a normal novel, this would be fanservice. In my current situation? This was a test.
If I said yes, she'd come in. Close proximity. Alone. Perfect setup for her to finish the job if she decided I was onto her.
If I said no, I'd look suspicious. The original Kael would've demanded her service without hesitation. He was an entitled piece of shit who treated servants like furniture.
And now, on top of surviving an assassin, I apparently had to make her blush. Great. I'd definitely need to step up my game.
I took a breath.
"Come in."
The door opened smoothly. Luna stepped in, the faint rustle of her skirts slicing through the silence. Her expression was unreadable, but her eyes flicked briefly toward my throat, just for a second. The same spot where her dagger had been aimed minutes ago.
She approached with measured grace, stopping just short of arm's reach. "Shall I assist, my lord?"
Up close, her perfume was subtle, something like cold jasmine and steel. And there was tension in her posture, like a coiled spring waiting for a signal.
"...You may," I said after a pause, voice even. "Start from the beginning."
Her brow furrowed slightly. "The beginning, my lord?"
I gestured lazily to my bare chest. "Undress me. Then dress me properly. You said you'd help, didn't you?"
For a moment, her brow furrowed. as if weighing whether this was another test or a command. Then she nodded, keeping her tone even. "As you wish, my lord."
Her eyes flickered downward, just for an instant, before snapping back to my face, the faintest tension tightening her jaw.
Without a word, she stepped close. Her fingers brushed my shoulder as she reached for the clasp of my tunic. Cold skin. Warm hands. The cloth slid off my arms, pooling at our feet. She folded it once, twice, and set it aside.
Then, without pause, her hands moved lower. The faint sound of fabric loosening filled the silence. No tremor. No hesitation. Only routine precision.
I almost smirked. Even now, she was perfectly composed.
No blush. No glance. No sign of weakness.
So I decided to test that composure.
"Wait," I said, as she turned toward the wardrobe. "I'll be changing everything."
She paused. "Everything… my lord?"
Her tone stayed neutral, but the brief flicker in her eyes gave her away.
"Everything," I repeated, letting the word linger. "I'd hate to stain the academy's fine uniform with yesterday's… dirt."
Her gaze faltered, just for a breath, before she schooled her expression. "Then I will prepare new garments."
She took a step toward the wardrobe, but I stopped her. "Wait."
Luna paused, tension rippling through her shoulders. "I also need to change my... undergarments," I said, keeping my voice level. "You said you'd assist."
The silence that followed was deafening. Luna turned slowly, and for the first time since I'd met her, I saw genuine shock flicker across those amber eyes. Her lips parted slightly, then pressed into a thin line. "My lord," she began carefully, "that's not typically—"
"You offered to help me change," I interrupted, letting a hint of the original Kael's arrogance seep into my tone. "Or was that just empty words?"
I was gambling. Hard. Testing her limits, pushing boundaries to see how far her mission required her to play along. If she refused, it would confirm she had lines she wouldn't cross. If she agreed...
Well. That would tell me something else entirely.
Luna's jaw worked silently. I could practically see the calculations running behind her eyes, mission parameters, acceptable risks, escape routes.
Then, with the mechanical precision of someone who'd locked all emotion away, she lowered herself into a crouch before me.
"As you wish, my lord." Her hands moved to the waistband of my silk underwear, fingers hooking lightly into the fabric. The air between us felt electric, charged with something that definitely wasn't just magical energy.
And then she froze, her face was on the level where she could see the outline of semi- erect dragon
Her eyes widened fractionally. Her professional mask cracked. A flush of crimson bloomed across her pale cheeks, spreading down her neck, and for a heartbeat she just... stared.
Her hand, still gripping the fabric, trembled.
"I—" she started, voice strangled.
[DING!]
[CONQUEST PROGRESS: LUNA SHADOWMERE]
[BOND LEVEL: FLUSTERED → 15%]
[STATUS EFFECT: EMBARRASSED (First time seeing a man)]
Oh. Oh.
The system's notification confirmed what I'd just figured out. Luna wasn't some experienced seductress. She was an assassin, yes, but beneath all that training was just a girl who'd probably never been this close to a half-naked man before.
Suddenly, I felt like an asshole.
"That's enough," I said quickly, stepping back. "You can go. I'll handle the rest myself."
Luna blinked, snapping out of her daze. The crimson on her cheeks deepened to scarlet. She shot to her feet so fast she nearly stumbled, and for someone who'd been holding a dagger to my throat twenty minutes ago, she looked absolutely mortified.
"I— Yes, my lord. I apologize for my— I'll just—" She was backing toward the door, words tumbling out in a completely un-assassin-like manner. "I'll wait outside. Please summon me when you're— I mean— I'll—"
She fled. The door clicked shut behind her, and I was left standing there in my underwear, half-dressed, watching the space where a trained killer had just been reduced to a blushing mess.
Somehow, that felt… good. Dangerous, but good.
I could get used to this.
[CONQUEST PROGRESS UPDATE]
[LUNA SHADOWMERE: 15% → 18%]
[NEW STATUS: CONFUSED (Why did he stop?)]
[HINT: Showing restraint when she expected exploitation has increased her curiosity. Continue defying her expectations.]
[REWARD AVAILABLE]
I let out a long breath, running a hand through my hair.
"Yeah," I muttered to the empty room. "This is going to be a lot harder than the system thinks."
But as I finished dressing myself, I couldn't help the small smile that tugged at my lips.
Because for the first time since waking up in this world, I'd seen Luna as more than just a mission objective or a plot device.
She was real. Human. Vulnerable.
And maybe, just maybe, I could actually pull this off.