Arena Twenty-Three: Buried Grudges III

"Ugh..."

The boy groaned in pain as he looked up.

"Oh, you are awake? Even after having such an intense night?"

A masked man stood there in front of the chained boy, speaking in a jolly tone.

"Fuck you..."

The boy cursed, but his unfocused eyes and thin, malnourished body excluded anything but arrogance.

No, it wasn't as if he wasn't being fed. On the contrary, he was given the most expensive and nutritious foods, four times a day.

Yet...

"I was wondering how long it would take for a man to die from ejaculating... Seems like you have broken the record of 40 times a week, Jeffery."

The masked man laughed as he poked the boy's sunken cheeks.

Indeed, he wasn't being tortured conventionally. Instead, he was being forced to have sex with more than twenty women at a time, using powerful drugs to stimulate his sex drive every time he ejaculated.

The power of the drug only increased after each dose. Even a healthy man in his late teens like Jeffery would become weaker as this went on.

"W-why..."

Jeffery asked in a hoarse tone as he saw several more women enter the room.

"Well, we didn't want to do this either. But you killed your legal wife, so we just 'had to' do this."

The masked man, Lord Winchester, said in mock sadness.

"H-how'd..."

"Well, whoever helped you find her was quite cunning. They even removed the evidence thoroughly. But then again, you are forgetting something.

Saying that, Lord Winchester crouched in front of Jeffery. He looked at the boy in the eyes.

"We, the Winchester family, excel in the art of assassination and clean-up. There is no way your crimes can be hidden from us... No, from me."

The words that left his tongue made Jeffery freeze. Then with a smile, Lord Winchester unlocked the shackles.

"Well then, enjoy your time!"

He smiled and turned away, leaving the room.

"W-wait! If you do this to me, the Valentina family will turn into your enemy!"

Jeffery tried for the last time to intimidate Lord Winchester, But...

"Oh? But it was your mother who told me to take 'care' of you."

"W-what?"

Lord Winchester didn't reply to his words. Instead, he left the room, shattering all hopes of Jeffery's survival.

...

"So... Now what?"

I asked Anastasia, who was standing beside me. Both of us were in front of the gate of the academy, waiting for the verification process to end.

I had accepted Roxy's bracelet and had already put it on.

"We still have half a day left."

Anastasia commented as the gate opened. We stepped inside the academy premises.

"Hm... Want to just walk around the campus? We can then eat our lunch at the cafeteria?"

"That sounds nice."

Hearing my idea, the girl smiled. I smiled back.

We then continued walking around the campus area. I had half expected the principal to call us, but she never did. Neither did Grey.

"This is... Peaceful."

Anastasia suddenly muttered as she walked through the trees with me.

"Have you never been to someplace quiet like this?"

I asked, curious. No matter how sheltered a person was, they would at least experience something this simple quite a several times in their life.

"Well... I never had the chance to."

Anastasia whispered as she stopped in place.

Her long hair as it fluttered in the gentle breeze, her porcelain white skin reflected the gentle green of the nature around her... Her graceful posture as she stood there... All felt captivating to me.

It was as if I was being drawn to her. Her beauty and grace were pulling me inside something I didn't know whether I should enter or not.

Then, she turned her head around and looked at me over her shoulder.

"After all, I was always fighting for my life."

These words, so casually said, yet so heartbreaking.

The existence of Anastasia Valentina was so fragile, yet so powerful.

...

"Ugh..."

Jeffery groaned as he lied there on the ground. His breathing was rough, and his whole body was trembling.

He had been, quite literally, sucked dry.

The women soon picked up their clothes and left the room while chattering among themselves.

They were all women who wanted to take a bite out of the nobles' wealth. For that, they were willing to sacrifice everything, let alone something as insignificant as their chastity and freedom.

But while they were planning for their future, Jeffery was being tortured by pleasure.

"Damn those women..."

Jeffery tried to sit up, but couldn't. He felt like his heart was about to burst.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Jeffrey barely managed to pull his head up to look at the person entering.

"You... !"

Jeffery hissed as he saw the person. He instantly recognized the familiar robe.

"Oh, seems like you are still energetic if you can yell at me like that."

The robed person, the same guy who had saved Jeffery before, laughed.

"If you had covered the evidence well, then I wouldn't be here!"

Jeffery yelled in anger, but the robed person just held up his hands as he kept chuckling.

"Woah, stop. I'm sorry for that. I'll let you out of here."

"Huh, hurry up then!"

"Yes, yes."

The robed person unlocked the shackles and threw a spare robe at Jeffery, who quickly hid his naked body.

"Come on, we need to leave."

They turned around and left the room. Not wanting to be left behind, Jeffery quickly followed.

"What about the women?"

He asked, looking around. He was clearly afraid of Lord Winchester finding him.

"We can't do much about them. Unlike your wife, who was just a single person, it's not really possible to murder over 40 women and hide that."

"Tsk."

Jeffery couldn't help but be annoyed. Yet, he couldn't do anything but click his tongue.

Soon, the duo reached a door near the end of the corridor.

"If you go through this door, you'll find yourself in the sewerage. There are two guards there, but with your charm ability, there shouldn't be anything to be worried about."

"But my charm didn't work on those women."

Jeffery complained as he took the key from the person in the robe.

"Ah, well, because that room has been built to stop you, or more specifically, the Valentina family from using their abilities."

"... Why does the Winchester family have such a room?"

Jeffery asked, shocked. If this info was revealed, then friction would start among the great noble families. Which could, at worst, lead to the downfall of the empire.

"Beats me!"

But the robed person just shrugged it off.

"Anyway, here. This is as thanks for not ratting me out."

The person handed over a gun, which Jeffery happily accepted. Even though his charm was irresistible, he still wanted a second measure just to be safe.

"Then, see you."

Jeffery nodded at the person before opening the door and entering the dark pathway.

The door closed behind him, but Jeffery didn't seem to mind it much.

"Well then, I guess I need to go back too."

The robed person muttered before walking away from the door. Before anyone could notice, a criminal was let loose, yet again.