Ch 161: Interlude 4: Biting the bullet.

Relaxing in his bath, Noah sighed as he browsed the news on internet. As expected, all the medias were going apeshit over his intervention in the Middle-East, and videos of himself and his girls in action were on every news sites.

The message he had posted using his brand-new account on the biggest social media, warning other countries that the same thing would happen to them if they ever committed genocide and asking the UN to send a peacekeeping force to take over, had done nothing to calm things down. Nor was his second message, inviting every nation to send a representative to Tokyo at the end of the month to sign a declaration formally acknowledging Noah's (and his subordinates) authority as superseding any national law or authority. And warning that nations refusing to sign it would experience repeated changes of leadership until they did.

After what happened in the Middle-East, Everyone was now aware of what Noah meant by 'change of leadership', and had both the will and ability to make this threat a reality.

According to Yui and Hikari, who were monitoring a large number of social medias and forums, the perception of Noah as a conman was quickly shifting into that of a demon.

Because of course the nation they had blindly supported for decades couldn't be the bad guys, ongoing genocide or not, so Noah had to be the evil one.

At least in the western nations. Noah was getting crazy popular in the Middle-East nations and Africa.

The Japanese government, with Noah's approval, had given every other world leader a phone number where they could try to reach Noah, and Asuna, Lizel and Tomo were currently busy acting as Noah's secretaries, answering the phone calls of presidents and prime ministers from all over the world to note their protests, answer their questions if they could, or politely tell them to go pound sand.

But the message the girls gave them was clear: Noah wouldn't back down, and they could acknowledge Lilith and her Champion's authority over them, or go into retirement, or be retired from life.

Noah knew he would be hated by billions of people over this, but this was an unavoidable step toward starting the reforms, and letting his girls overturn the judgements of local judges whenever someone wrongly sentenced called for their help.

A notification appeared in his field of vision.

[Bombs have been dropped over the castle. ETA 56 seconds. Defenses activated. Activate offensive counter-measures? YES/NO.]

Under the message was a visual of the four large bombs falling toward his castle, as well as another of the plane that had dropped them, an American stealth bomber.

Noah sighed again as he activated the offensive counter-measures, whatever they were, and a thin beam of purple light erupted from one of the castle's spires, cutting the bomber in half.

As the bombs kept falling, Noah wondered what the hell were they thinking. Did they perhaps think that they might manage to kill him if they caught him off guard? Or were the Americans so used to be able to throw their weight around without consequences that they couldn't entertain the idea that their usual tactics wouldn't work anymore?

The bombs exploded against the energy shield that appeared above the castle. Their fragments slid along the shield's surface until they hit the ground around the outer wall, where they were absorbed by the castle.

Noah was pleased that he and his girls wouldn't have to clean the mess and watched as the plane's fragments crashed in the forest ten kilometers from there, not killing any innocent.

He took his smartphone to call Kikuoka and inform him of the crash. After that, he had a president to interrogate, and likely kill.

…

Miki opened her eyes, confused by her surroundings. Her last memory was that of being bound spreadeagled to the bed, her head stuck inside a leather discipline helmet sealing most of her senses, and she had been so exhausted that she had fallen asleep minutes after the chastity belt's torment stopped.

But this place didn't make sense. She could see her home in Tokyo's suburbs, but last time she checked, that home wasn't isolated in the middle of a grassy plain.

"…Have I been drugged?" she muttered aloud. This was the only explanation that made sense to her.

"No. Your body is still asleep in the basement." said a voice she recognized.

Noah was sitting on a large sofa, in the middle of the plain.

"This is a representation of the inside of your soul, which I call your soul space."

"… Like a dream?" Frowned Miki.

"Sort of. But I am the one who control what happens in that place."

As if to illustrate that point, Miki's outfit, an office lady's business suit, changed to the leather bodysuit she wore when she and Katsumi tried to infiltrate his castle, and she found herself floating, landing beside Noah on the sofa.

Seeing an opportunity, Miki balled her right fist and tried to hit Noah's throat hard enough to crush his windpipe. But her movement suddenly stopped before she could reach him, as if she had stuck her hand in jelly.

"Don't try that again. It's rude, you know?" smiled Noah.

"Says the man who changed my clothes without permission and forced me to sit here. Ever heard of consent? It's written C.O.N.S.E.N.T."

Noah chuckled and nodded.

"I have a peculiar relationship with that word. As you have no doubt noticed by now. And I would be the first to acknowledge that some of what I do is wrong and evil. I'm still going to do it anyway, and hope my good actions are enough to keep my karma balance in the black. Do you want something to drink?"

As Noah spoke, a glass of orange soda appeared in his hand, and he started drinking.

"No thanks… So, what are we doing in this place? Is it the good cop, bad cop routine? Suzu treating me like a thing, and you being all friendly?"

"I understand why you would think that, but no. I'm exploiting a particular feature of being able to visit other people's soul space. I could spend a few days here, and it would be only a few hours in real life. And I want a bit of a break. It's been a busy day."

"A busy day?" Miki could tell that Noah wanted her to ask about it, and she was all in favor of letting him speak. He might let something important slip.

Noah materialized the stack of papers he had used as reference and gave it to Miki. It didn't take her long to understand what this huge list corresponded to.

"All the people on that list are now dead. As is the president of the United States, for having sent a stealth bomber to drop bombs on my castle. I personally killed well over four thousand people today. Which is why I want a day or two of rest, to put that behind me."

"That's insane…" muttered Miki as she tried to imagine the implications. She finally admitted that Noah really had supernatural abilities. how could she not, after everything she experienced since she went over his garden wall? But killing over four thousand in a day, with most of them being soldiers…

"I had known from the start that it would come down to this, eventually. You can't reform the world with just words and good will and curing cancer patients. You can only reform it by pressing a sword against the throats of those who make the decisions. The carnage today is a message they can't just ignore. It is the proof that I can, and will, kill them if they try to roadblock me. Or start wars."

"…I can follow your logic, but I don't share it. And why my soul space, and not the ones of your girls?"

"I will visit my girls' space soon. I'm only staying a few hours in yours at most. What is your real name?"

"…"

Her silence only made Noah smile.

"If you don't answer, I'll ask Suzu to intensify the bondage and the edging. She could add a chastity bra, for example. And I don't mean an inert one."

"…Miki."

"Thanks. So, Miki, what do you think of Suzu's way of dealing with you?"

"…Are you going to report what I say to her? Is this some trick to give her an excuse to torture me?"

"No. I'll be honest and say that I do not really care about how long it takes for you and your colleague to break. One week, one month, more, that is your choice. I am too busy right now in the real world, between dealing with the world leaders and my own faction's internal workings, not to mention me having another world in my purview. I'm mostly asking you to get feedback and some conversation going, and I do not think you'll volunteer anything about yourself at this point."

"You got that right." sighed Miki.

"…It's cruel and inhumane, but you already know that. And I'm worried about my health. The severe bondage carries risks of nerve damage, or cutting off the blood's circulation and forming blood clots."

"No risk. I have taken that into account when imbuing this stuff with magic. It even has a slight regenerative ability to keep you healthy. Have you noticed that you don't grow numb or sore, no matter how much you are stimulated?"

Miki nodded. She had wondered about that.

"But do you think it will work on a trained spy like you?"

"…"

"You silence is loud and clear." nodded Noah as he took a sip. He then created a Slave Contract and gave it to Miki.

"The terms of that contract are magically enforced upon signature with a drop of blood. Once you sign this, I won't have to be worried about you betraying us."

"Why show this to me?" asked Miki, both angry and afraid.

"Because we both know that you will eventually break and sign it. Just do yourself a favor and surrender quickly, while your mind and personality are still relatively intact. I'd rather have an obedient and spunky maid who isn't afraid to tell me when I'm wrong, than one who will have become little more than a sex-obsessed slut."

"I have managed to avoid that with my girls so far, and I'd like to keep it that way."

Miki stared at him for a while, then at the contract. She went over everything she knew about Noah, and her spy training, trying to find something he could exploit. Noah seemed lost in thoughts himself, content to just sit by as he stared at his drink, occasionally taking a sip from it.

"What about me being a… murderer? Suzu made it clear that she was treating us this harshly because of it, but you suddenly don't seem to care."

"…You killed people because it was part of your job as a spy, right? Not because you enjoyed it?"

"Of course not. I'm not a fucking psycho… I killed two people, a scientist and a guard… and I avoided mirrors for a while after I did."

"Yes. Complete destruction of the slave's personality is in order if the person in question enjoys killing, or has done it a lot and feels nothing about it. That's what the Bad Gril treatment is all about. Because I can't entrust that kind of power and authority to fucking psychos, as you said. But, thinking back, I doubt whoever sent you would keep psychos on their payroll. If you have at least some remorse over killing innocents, I can work with that. It will be more productive to have you compensate for those lives you took by making you save lives rather that locking you up or crushing your mind."

Noah stopped talking, and Miki returned to her contemplation. She supposed that when Noah spoke of 'that kind of power' and for her to 'save lives', he referred to his declaration during the press conference that the girls he had introduced shared some of his abilities.

…He was right, she finally admitted to herself. He had her dead to rights, and he knew it. So why risk damage to her very personality if she could avoid it?

Besides, if she could be the 'spunky maid' he wanted, there might be a chance for her to negotiate a better place for herself or the UK, while not quite going against the terms of the contract.

"You win." said Miki with a heavy sigh. "I'll sign that damn contract. Since it's clear I can't escape it, I should bite the bullet and make things as good as I can for myself."

"Excellent." smiled Noah. "I will ask Suzu tomorrow morning to give you an opportunity to sign the contract. Once you do, Suzu, and possibly other girls as well, will teach you how to actually enjoy being a sex slave. Your experience will become much closer to consensual BDSM. And once your loyalty toward me reaches a certain threshold, you will gain some of my abilities and help us make the world a better place."

"A more chaotic place, it seems, from your actions."

"For now, yes. But just think about the chilling effect my actions are having on all the world's dictators and warmongers. On the criminals who will think twice when they realize that the press conference wasn't a hoax after all, that Karma is a thing, and that they will not escape judgement in the afterlife. Think about that, and tell me it isn't worth it."

Miki didn't answer, and Noah disappeared. Seconds later, her vision started going dark, and she felt an irresistible desire to sleep.

…

Takina opened her eyes and looked around. Seeing her Gundam kneeling beside her house, it only took her a second to realize where she was.

"Noah?"

"I'm here." said Noah as he appeared in front of her.

"How are you doing, Takina? You're adapting well to life in the Island, as far as I'm aware."

"Yes. Everyone is kind to me, and a made a number of friends. But I don't think you brought me here simply to ask me that."

"I didn't. I have some good news and bad news, Takina."

"What's the bad news?"

"Due to some unforeseen circumstances, the time I had given you to adapt to life in the island I coming to an end. Starting now, I will start making you mine. I know you still don't much like the idea, but that's how it is."

"Unforeseen circumstances?" frowned Takina. She knew this moment would come, but she had hoped for a few more weeks before it would happen.

"That's the good news. Akeno had been rewarded with a special ticket for her achievements, and she intends to use it on you. In the very near future, you will go over to that world to help her. You will be reunited with Chisato far sooner than anticipated."

"Oh… that's…" Takina's heart accelerated wildly at the perspective of meeting one of her two lovers again.

"Akeno isn't saying anything to Chisato for now. She wants your arrival to be a surprise."

"I'm very grateful that she decided to use that ticket on me." smiled Takina. Then her smile faded a bit. Before she could meet Chisato again, there was a huge hurdle she needed to cross.

"So… what happens now?"

"Before we start, I want you to tell me if there is anything that can make the experience more comfortable for you. Do you have any fetish, or scene you would want to experience?"

"…I don't suppose you'd accept disguising yourself as a girl?"

"Sorry, that one is out of the question."

"I do not have any particular preference."

"Okay. I'll improvise and adapt according to your reactions. But you already gave me a few ideas."

Noah created a black leather blindfold.

"For a while, I will blindfold you and avoid speaking. You can try to pretend you are with a girl, then."

Takina nodded and let him slip the blindfold over her eyes. She felt herself being lifted in his arms and carried inside the house to her room.

Noah laid her on the bed and started running his hands over her body through her clothes. He made sure to keep his touch delicate.

Takina tried hard to imagine it was Chisato or Aria who was touching her, but couldn't just yet. She had to admit that Noah's hands didn't feel as repulsive as she had expected but were on the contrary quite pleasant. He must be using that Hands of Nirvana skill Chisato and some of the girls in the island had mentioned.

After a few minutes of experiencing pleasant sensations from those hands, Takina managed to forget they belonged to a man. Not quite forget, but overlap Aria's image over Noah's.

…

As Noah started removing Takina's clothes, he pondered on how to train this beautiful lesbian to become a submissive slave that wouldn't mind having sex with him, and as he checked on the list of available curses offered by Corruption, he found one that would suit his purpose.

The Step on Me curse was meant to cause the Thrall to develop a fetish for degradation play and humiliation.

With this, Takina would still be a lesbian, but she also would become aroused whenever Noah started playing with her. Because what could be more degrading to her than to become a man's plaything?

And while Soul Contracts couldn't be signed inside the Soul Space, Corruption worked just fine.