When a Corporate Slave Guy Reincarnated as a Mob Villain (Slave Trader), He Used His Knowledge of the Game to Raise the Heroines to Be the Strongest, Unintentionally Turning Them Into Yanderes, and Before He Knew It, He Was Completely Breaking the Story - Chapter 35-36

Chapter 35: I Try to Convince the Oblivious Young Lady

By the time I looked behind Natalia, Mylene and the others were already gone.

They had moved far back.

Even so, how could they move so quickly in such a short moment?

But, thank goodness.

At least, the worst-case scenario had been avoided.

However…I ended up using the slave crest on them twice.

This will only…increase their hatred and anger towards me.

“Hah…hah…kill…that woman…”

“Grr…that woman…how dare she…to Linus-sama…”

Even though they are far away now, I can still feel their overwhelming bloodlust from all directions.

I can’t hear clearly, but I can make out some sort of groaning.

Along with that, I can hear wild howls and growls from every direction, as if animals were enraged.

It’s clear that Mylene and the others are even more furious than before.

As expected…using the slave crest must have fanned their anger.

…I wonder if I’ll make it back to the mansion alive…

As these uneasy thoughts swirled in my head, I couldn’t help but feel conflicted.

At that moment, it seemed like Natalia had also noticed something strange around us. She was looking around cautiously.

But…she just tilted her head and said:

“This area truly is dangerous…to think that magical beasts could be this close…”

She had a serious expression, but that was it.

How carefree…

There’s something far more dangerous nearby than magical beasts…

Still, this young lady, Natalia…she seems to be rather oblivious…

Or is it just me, or do the two guards with her look oddly exhausted?

They must always be getting dragged around by this lady.

Having a dense person as their master must be hard on them…

In that regard, I’m good at reading the atmosphere.

I’m not great at communicating, but I’m confident in that skill.

After all, for the past five years, I’ve been surrounded by Alice and these beast girls.

I’ve learned to read their emotions precisely.

Thanks to that, I’ve barely managed to keep their complaints and dissatisfaction at bay, surviving by the skin of my teeth.

Yes…it’s literally a matter of life and death, so I can’t let my guard down for even a moment…

In that sense, even though I didn’t level up, my ability to communicate might have improved significantly.

However…a person’s natural tendencies don’t change.

What I’m bad at will always remain something I’m bad at.

In fact, during these five years, I’ve worn down my nerves countless times…

It feels like my hair is starting to thin out from all the stress…

I instinctively run my hand over the back of my head.

Even after being reincarnated, I might end up living a life without ever having any luck with women…

…Complaining won’t help.

First, I need to deal with this oblivious young lady.

“Um…Lady Natalia…why would someone of your noble stature be in a place like this?”

I knelt on the ground, offering a bow like a loyal servant.

I’ve been good at flattering others ever since my previous life, so this comes naturally to me.

“…Raise your head. Such formalities are unnecessary for me. I’ll be blunt. I came here today to administer justice.”

Natalia glared at me as she spoke words that you rarely hear in real life.

Well, even in a game world, you don’t hear the word “justice” thrown around often.

“…Justice, you say? Forgive me, but I don’t quite understand—”

I lifted my head and tried to put on my best smile as I looked at her…

But before I could finish, Natalia interrupted me.

“That creepy smile is unnecessary. And so are your excuses…”

She cut me off and continued speaking rapidly.

“You are under suspicion. You’ve been raiding nearby villages, plundering, turning helpless girls into slaves, and here…you’ve been engaging in…in…unsavory…”

For some reason, Natalia started to stammer, her face flushing red in embarrassment.

One of the guards next to her hurriedly leaned in and whispered something to her.

“…Lady Natalia…it’s a brothel.”

“I know that! But as a maiden, I cannot bring myself to say such words—i-in any case, I know you’ve been involved in disgraceful acts!”

With that, Natalia dramatically waved her hand as if to reset the conversation and declared:

“Now, surrender peacefully!”

Her expression was one of absolute confidence, as if righteousness itself stood with her.

“N-no…but I haven’t done anything like that—”

“Silence! Look around you! There are only women in this area! Look at their faces…at those eyes…do you still wish to make excuses?”

Natalia turned her head to glance around.

There, from a distance, the beast girls, full of rage, were glaring at us with hatred in their eyes.

—

Chapter 36: I Never Wanted to Be a Slave Trader

“Did you think I wouldn’t notice their stares? The looks those girls are giving…I understand without them saying a word. They were made into slaves by you…forced to endure shameful things as women…bound by slave crests, unable to resist, filled with regret…”

Natalia said this, glaring sharply at me, and then continued,

“I, Natalia Malaseus, as a protector of justice within my domain, can no longer overlook this!”

With those words, she once again pointed her sword at me.

“P-please wait…I, well…”

I stammered, struggling to come up with some excuse as I desperately wracked my brain for a way out.

Malaseus…That’s the name of the small kingdom I belong to.

Could Natalia be royalty? A princess?

Why would a member of the royal family come all the way to this remote town…?

In the game, there was no mention of a princess from the Malaseus Kingdom.

But now that I think about it, there was some detail in the game’s lore about the princess of Malaseus being married off to an imperial royal, making it a vassal state…

It was such a tiny detail in the fanbook, I barely remembered it.

In any case, for some reason, the princess of the Malaseus Kingdom had heard rumors about me, a slave trader, and made the effort to come to this town alone…That’s what this seems to be.

But this is a real problem…

Even if it’s a small kingdom, opposing royalty means someone in my position, a slave trader, would end up in jail…no, probably executed.

This world doesn’t have the luxury of fair trials.

I had hoped to smooth things over with a few clever words and make her leave, but Natalia’s attitude made it clear that wasn’t going to work.

Usually, slipping a little money to the guards would make most problems go away, but…

It seems Natalia won’t be bribed so easily.

On top of that, most of what she’s saying is true.

I haven’t been forcing the beast girls into prostitution.

That part is wrong.

But aside from that, Natalia is right about everything else.

I have forced the girls to take on guild jobs, or work as mercenaries.

And I’ve bound them with slave crests, ignoring their will.

It’s also true that they resent me deeply.

The murderous intent I’ve been feeling is proof of that.

By now, half of that rage isn’t even aimed at Natalia anymore—it’s directed at me.

So, yes, if you look at it objectively, Natalia is clearly in the right.

But…the world doesn’t operate on simple good versus evil like in novels or movies.

Even villains have their reasons.

I didn’t become a slave trader because I wanted to.

I would have loved to live a decent, honest life.

Believe it or not, I’ve tried hard.

I wanted to use my knowledge from the game to level up, become strong enough to live on my own.

But…my abilities never improved. No, I never leveled up at all.

Maybe…slave traders have some kind of level cap.

So, while Alice, Mylene, and the beast girls continued leveling up, I remained stuck at my starting stats.

The only thing that improved was my ability to survive this harsh world by honing my communication skills.

That stress—the price I paid—has left me physically scarred and with thinning hair.

And…here I am now.

In the end, without any real skills or anyone to rely on, the only role left for me in this world is that of a slave trader.

In that sense, it’s no different from my previous life.

Born into bad luck, with no supportive family or remarkable abilities, I was stuck living as a corporate drone…

And just like back then, complaining won’t make anyone listen, nor will it change the situation.

That, too, is the same as my previous life.

Natalia won’t listen either.

Which means…I’ll have to do what I always do…

“Um, Lady Natalia, this conversation is rather awkward to have here. Would you be so kind as to follow me to my estate?”

Yes…delaying the problem is my only option for now.

“Hmph…I won’t fall for such an obvious attempt to buy time—”

“Well…Lady Natalia, there’s no harm, is there? We have time, and this isn’t exactly the best place to discuss such matters.”

“Exactly, Lady Natalia. It wouldn’t hurt to at least hear him out…”

The guards exchanged glances, subtly signaling their approval of my suggestion.

It seems the guards are the usual type that can be swayed with a little money.

The real problem is Natalia…

“Sigh…very well. I will listen to your explanation at your estate,”

Natalia grudgingly nodded her head in agreement.