After reading the system's description of the Black Sword, Akuto's gaze returned to the people around him.
"Oh, right. I almost forgot."
He glanced at Ena's now-empty hands, and the more he looked, the more it felt wrong.
As expected, it was not just clothes. A sword was part of a girl's charm too.
So in the very next second, a blade appeared in Akuto's hand.
The Disk of Usurpation shimmered with interwoven crystal and black light. Gradually, a sword almost identical to the previous Ame no Murakumo took shape in his grasp.
"Hiss...!" said the girls from Italy.
"As expected of Lord Akuto," said the girls from Italy.
The girls from Japan and Italy reacted quite differently to Akuto recreating Ame no Murakumo.
They could accept Akuto damaging it, or even sealing it away. But taking its Authority and forging it anew was a little too much for their worldview to handle.
...
"I'm not the sort of man who simply takes by force. Since you lost Susanoo's sword, use mine in its place."
With a light laugh, Akuto handed Ena a tachi identical in form to Ame no Murakumo.
The blade carried an even denser divine aura than before, but none of the binding will that had once clung to it.
Ena took the newly forged Ame no Murakumo in a daze. The moment her fingers touched the hilt, her pupils contracted slightly.
She could feel the pure power inside it, as if this divine sword had been made specifically for her. That seamless sense of compatibility made her chest grow hot.
From the standpoint of fate, this blade truly did seem as though it belonged to her by nature.
And from Akuto's own preferences, he simply felt that Ena without Ame no Murakumo would not be right. What kind of person bought an outfit without the matching accessories?
"Well, Ena? Can you feel anything?" Akuto asked with a smile.
"Yes. If I'm not mistaken, the will of Ame no Murakumo has been completely erased," Ena replied softly, running her hand along the blade.
Because of the interference in this world's destiny line, Ame no Murakumo here was somewhat different from the one in the original story.
In the original story, Ame no Murakumo would possess Ena, the Sword Shrine Maiden, using the sword to control the person.
But in this world, there had never been anything like possession from the beginning. Ena's role was to act as a bridge between two realms, allowing Susanoo to grant Ame no Murakumo divine power and permission to act. She had been nothing more than a pure intermediary, and there had never been any issue with that.
Even in battle, out of sheer arrogance, Ame no Murakumo would not choose to let Ena fight for it. It would either imitate the enemy's form and power itself, or directly call upon part of Orochi's strength.
But now, Ena could feel power continuously flowing from Ame no Murakumo into her body.
There was no doubt about it. From this day onward, she would no longer be the shrine maiden who merely attended the sword.
She would be Ame no Murakumo's second master.
Why second?
Because the first was obviously Akuto.
Ena knew her place very clearly. She understood that her ability to wield Ame no Murakumo had been granted entirely through Akuto.
...
"Oh, right."
As if suddenly remembering something, Ena rose on her toes and brushed her soft lips lightly against Akuto's cheek.
The unexpected kiss carried the sweetness of spring water in the mountains and the unique fragrance of a young woman. At the same time, her black hair brushed across Akuto's hand, stirring his thoughts.
It had only been a quick kiss, but the tips of Ena's ears flushed red at once, and she quickly stepped back half a pace.
Clearly, this was different from the original story, where such things had merely been tasks to her. In front of Akuto, Ena truly did harbor a young girl's feelings.
After all, this was a red-rank succubus bloodline. As long as there was something to like, that feeling would inevitably turn into affection for Akuto himself, the one who possessed those traits.
"Thank you for bestowing your sword upon me, my king. This... is how girls express their gratitude, right?"
Her voice was much softer than usual, and ripples shimmered in her brown eyes.
...
Akuto did not answer immediately. Instead, he studied the sword shrine maiden before him with a measured gaze.
Her yellow school uniform outlined the soft curves of her upper body perfectly, and the red tie hung loosely against her chest, rising and falling with her breathing. When his gaze moved lower, the long black stockings beneath her pleated skirt made her legs especially eye-catching.
The tops of the stockings hugged the middle of her thighs, pressing slightly into the soft flesh there. Light filtered through the thin material, revealing hints of pale skin beneath. When she stood with her legs together, the narrow strip between skirt and stockings appeared and disappeared in a teasing way.
Then Akuto reached out and lightly tapped the top of one stocking with his fingertip, immediately feeling her muscles tense.
"You seem a little nervous, Ena."
He laughed softly. Through her school shoes, he could even tell her toes had curled from the tension.
"Yes. I didn't expect Your Majesty to be this much to my liking, so... I am a little nervous."
Akuto had to admit that Ena's shy, unguarded look was incredibly tempting.
If Shizuka had not still been standing nearby, he truly would have wanted to take things further.
But taking Shizuka's feelings into account, Akuto restrained himself.
"By the way, Ena. Don't you call Susanoo your grandfather?"
Ena's eyes widened slightly, then she gave a look of realization.
"My king, Lord Susanoo is not actually my blood relative. I am only the shrine maiden who assists him in maintaining Ame no Murakumo's subordinate god state."
Akuto narrowed his eyes, his fingers lightly brushing her delicate wrist.
The touch made Ena shiver faintly, but her gaze remained clear.
"A woman follows her husband after marriage. That is only natural. Besides... Your Majesty is much gentler than that willful old lord."
Ena lifted her face with a bright smile.
Clearly, having grown up in the mountains, Ena possessed a strong animal instinct. She was the sort who lived naturally by the rule of the strong prevailing over the weak.
"Interesting answer. But Ena, don't you think your way of thanking me is a little perfunctory?"
Akuto let go of her wrist and slid his hand to her thigh. Even through the stocking, he could feel the warmth there, and Ena drew in a sharp breath.
He deliberately brushed the edge of the stocking with his knuckles and watched her face flush with embarrassment.
"From today on, these legs and these feet will run for my will."
His hand moved along the line of her leg to the back of her knee, rubbing there lightly.
Ena bit her lower lip and lowered her head, her lashes trembling as they cast shadows over her face. But when she looked up again, her eyes were clear and resolute.
"Yes. It is my honor to serve you, my king. From this day on, you are the master to whom I pledge my life."
Ena stepped back and sank to one knee, raising Ame no Murakumo with both hands above her head in a formal gesture of loyalty.
"My sword and my body both belong to my king."
Ordinarily, Ena neither liked nor excelled at this sort of oath-giving ritual. But she had discovered that being looked at by Akuto was one thing, while being touched by him made her body react far too strongly.
...
To avoid embarrassing herself in front of everyone, she decided to put some distance between them. Otherwise, she feared her legs might give out entirely.
At the same time, openly showing resistance in front of everyone would have been inappropriate, so she simply let the moment flow naturally into a formal vow of loyalty, using it to cover both her shyness and the weakness in her legs.
Now, with one knee on the cold ground and the black stocking stretched over it, she was finally able to steady herself.
...
Akuto also noticed that something was off about Ena, but he said nothing. He merely accepted her loyalty, then further strengthened Ame no Murakumo for her.
After giving her smooth black hair an approving pat, his gaze shifted to Kaoru, who had been standing quietly to the side all this time.
The heiress in her tailored suit pressed her red lips together slightly, clearly still struggling to adapt to the difference between the current Akuto and the one she had known before.
"Kaoru. Have you organized the leads I asked for?"
Akuto idly toyed with a strand of Ena's hair as he glanced at Kaoru in a casual, almost absent-minded way.
The moment his eyes landed on her, Kaoru's graceful figure inside that fitted suit trembled slightly. In an instant, countless possibilities flashed through her mind as she tried to interpret the meaning behind that gaze.
While Kaoru had been gathering information, Akuto had also been quietly taking in her appearance.
Today she wore a sharply tailored dark gray suit, with a delicate butterfly brooch pinned at the collar of her silk blouse.
Yet beneath the extremely conservative, masculine-cut trousers, she was wearing sheer black stockings.
In other words, hidden stockings beneath slacks.
Normally, she would never dress this way.
The fact that she had today made the reason obvious. She had prepared in advance for what might happen.
(End of Chapter)
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