Harem-Powered Kingdom Building: Empire of Carnal Sin

"Sigh."

Hiro observed Tara sighing repeatedly as they made their way back to the camp together.

The Goddess Statue was nowhere to be seen in the area. The presence of those hobgoblin monsters confirmed it wasn't nearby.

"Sigh."

How many times was she planning to sigh?

"What's with you? Depression is contagious, you know."

Tara shot Hiro an unamused glare.

"Well, My Lord, I deeply apologize for the audacity of being sad."

Whoops, it seems like her mood worsened.

"…Those hobgoblins were Level 23 and 24, you know. There's no reason to feel down about not defeating them. Trust me, you'll easily handle monsters like that in the future."

Those words did make Tara feel slightly better.

"I hope you're right…"

But she was still sad overall. Comparing herself to Hiro, who had been only Level 1, was far from pleasant. He clearly possessed a higher rarity class—something she had always longed for.

Hiro decided to give her some space to process her thoughts. They took a slightly different route back to camp, as Hiro wanted to familiarize himself with the terrain.

As they walked silently along the riverside, they spotted a goblin drinking from the water.

Tara instinctively used Monster Appraisal on it. The goblin was Level 15.

"Go fight it."

Hearing Hiro's voice from her right, she lowered her head, speaking in a subdued tone.

"I can't, My Lord. Please, kill it yourself."

The last fight had shattered Tara's spirit. A 9-level gap at this early stage felt insurmountable for her. She wasn't even willing to attempt it.

"You misunderstood me. That was a command."

His words made her lift her head in surprise. Hiro's face was unusually cold.

"I won't interfere this time. I have no use for useless people in my realm. You will fight that goblin and kill it, or you'll die trying."

He didn't wait for her response.

"HEY! Stupid goblin! Look over here!" he shouted.

The goblin's attention shifted toward him as he stepped far enough away to ensure it would focus entirely on Tara.

Tara stared at Hiro, her mouth agape in disbelief. Now that she had been thrust into the fray, she had no choice but to fight. The goblin was already charging at her, its club raised.

Still dazed, she attempted to block the goblin's first swing. However, it altered the trajectory mid-air, targeting her hands instead.

'Oh shit!' Tara's mind registered the incoming blow, but her body wasn't fast enough to react. She wondered briefly—would Hiro interfere?

No. The attack landed squarely, and it hurt. However, for some reason, the pain was less intense than she had anticipated.

'Maybe it's because the goblin awkwardly changed the trajectory?' she thought.

Regardless, she realized Hiro truly wasn't going to step in. Surviving the hit boosted her confidence slightly, and she began fighting the goblin in earnest.

Meanwhile, Hiro observed quietly from a distance.

The reason the young hobgoblin's attack hadn't seriously injured Tara was that Hiro had subtly used Ultimate Force Telekinesis on its weapon to reduce the impact.

'Using it on moving objects I'm not directly controlling is pretty challenging,' he admitted to himself.

It was a task that required Hiro's full concentration.

As the fight progressed, Hiro found himself intervening several times. At times, he subtly disrupted the goblin's weapon, while at others, he directly tampered with its movements—a more costly maneuver.

He did this carefully, ensuring Tara wouldn't realize what he was doing. A despondent Tara wasn't fun.

After about two grueling minutes, Tara managed to win the fight with considerable effort.

[You've gained 90 XP for killing a Level 15 Hobgoblin.]

Hiro's status screen displayed a glowing notification.

Meanwhile, Tara screamed in joy, "I leveled up! My Lord, I killed it and leveled up!"

She even jumped twice in sheer excitement.

'Looks like the XP was shared between us since we technically killed it together,' Hiro analyzed.

When she approached him, brimming with happiness, he said, "Not bad. There's still hope for you, it seems. Perhaps you'll have a place in my army as we march across the lands in the future."

Those words made Tara ecstatic. Tears streamed down her face as she bowed deeply to Hiro. "Thank you, My Lord!"

She wasn't thanking him for the prospect of having a place in his army. Despite Hiro's best efforts, Tara couldn't shake off a vague suspicion about what had transpired during the fight.

Though she couldn't pinpoint how, she had a strong feeling her Lord had somehow influenced the fight. The words he spoke only reinforced the notion that he genuinely cared for her.

'He did it because he didn't want me to feel sad,' she realized. The gesture deeply moved her, bringing tears to her eyes.

Hiro gently patted her head.

'You can always repay this favor with your body,' he thought jokingly but kept the remark to himself.

Tara's body, though not as curvy as her mother's, had a captivating allure that grew the longer he admired it.

The gentle curve of her back leading to her perky butt was undeniably attractive, and her high ponytail was just begging to be pulled in the heat of passion.

Tara found Hiro's touch deeply comforting. She realized her own father had never offered her such comfort.

"My Lord, there's something I'd like to talk to you about."

Tara had been wanting to bring this up since they left camp, but the stiff atmosphere had kept her from doing so.

The head pat ceased as she lifted her head.

"Speak."

"It's about my mother. Did you… do something to her in the tent, My Lord?"

Hiro's lips curved into a faint smile. Tara clearly wasn't naïve.

'She must've noticed because of how oddly Furina was behaving around her,' he guessed.

"I definitely did 'something' to her… I taught her how to set up a tent," he teased.

Tara stomped her foot on the ground in a cute display of frustration.

"I'm being serious! Did you do anything… i-indecent?"

She turned her head to the side, avoiding eye contact, as a faint blush spread across her face. The sway of her ponytail behind her tempted Hiro to take her right then and there, but he held himself back.

"There's nothing indecent about making out," Hiro admitted matter-of-factly.

He might've kept this a secret from Bob, but he saw no issue in telling Tara.

He continued, "And don't make it seem like I forced your mother into something. When you interrupted us, your mother wanted it just as much as I did."

"No way!" Tara blurted out, her voice filled with disbelief.

Hiro smiled silently, letting her process the revelation on her own.

After cycling through denial and reluctant acceptance, she finally said, "Can you not fool around with my mom, please?"

"And why would I do that?" Hiro asked. "Your mother is very beautiful, you know? As a woman, she's incredibly desirable."

"But she's already married to my father!" Tara protested.

"So…? I don't think you understand, Tara. I'm not a good person to begin with. Things like that don't matter to me," he said, stepping closer to her.

Tara had formed a misconception about Hiro after he helped her with the hobgoblin. Hearing those words forced her to reevaluate her perception of him.

She realized convincing him with straightforward logic would be impossible—she held no authority over him.

After a moment of thought, she decided to bargain.

"What if I accept your earlier offer? You need someone to satisfy your lust, right? If I become your maid, will you leave my mother alone?"