Chapter 61.4 – Chauffeur

Jorah's eyes go wide with abject terror, his feet kicking on the ground below him as he's held up by his neck. 

"C-Can't...gasps..." (Jorah)

The effect is immediate. Those around Jorah jump back with surprised yelps, Elira's and Dargo's eyes widen in shock, and Zakariah immediately takes a step towards me with his hands raised placatingly, his voice nearly frantic. 

"L-Lord Mizuki, I beg of you! I'm not sure what my Father did, but please, give me a chance to solve it peacefully!" (Zakariah)

Under other circumstances, this would have earned Zakariah my respect – his decisiveness, his bravery, his level-headed words, and his desire to protect his idiot of a father. However, now I don't even spare him a glance...I'm in no state for negotiating. Not only did Jorah seemingly spread my secrets and potentially put Alto and maybe others close to me in danger, but his actions might have jeopardized my arrangement with Azazel. 

Just how much has the security of the MMC been compromised? How many people has he implicated at a level that I may be forced to kill them later? Should I kill them now, before the information spreads too far and becomes problematic on a larger scale? Can I even track them all down, or will I be forced to watch this spiral?

I feel my heart palpitate at how rapidly the situation is slipping out of my control. Are the actions of this one idiot really going to be the undoing of everything I've been trying to prevent? Because if so...if I'm really going to be forced to spill blood...

I might as well start with his.

My demeanor grows even colder, and I have to fight the urge to snap his neck on the spot. 

"Who are the people you hired, Jorah? I want names, locations, details...right now. If you lie to me, I'll kill you. If you refuse to answer, I'll kill you. If you can't answer to my satisfaction...I'll still kill you. Actually, I might just kill you regardless. Threatening me was stupid enough, but you can't fathom what you may have just set in motion. The number of people that may die..." (Mizuki)

Jorah's struggling intensifies as a deathly, stunned silence settles over the others present. His eyes are locked with mine, bloodshot with terror, as his hands fruitlessly claw at my arms. 

"I don't...gasps...know...gasps...names..." (Jorah)

I have to bite down my impulse to swear. Fine...so be it. If he doesn't know anything, then I'll do what I can. I'll speak with everyone who's met with him since the meeting yesterday and methodically track down whoever I can. Then, I'll remove all the Elven Kingdom MMCs outside Eden for good measure. It's not ideal, but it's salvageable. As for Jorah himself...

My expression darkens. 

"So you're useless, huh? That's too bad for you..." (Mizuki)

I prepare to tighten my grip, but...

"Mizuki, wait! Don't kill him!" (Ilina)

I cast her a look that's equal parts surprised and questioning, and see her walking towards me slowly with a thoughtful expression. 

"Why?" (Mizuki)

My tone is measured as I study her carefully, and she seems to relax seeing my hesitation. She places her hand on the arm I'm holding Jorah with, and she swaps to a slightly warmer voice. 

"Because something feels off about this, and because it's me asking. I know what you're thinking – what you're worried about – and if you're right, I won't stop you. But...let's make sure we have a bit more information before you do something you can't take back. Let him go so he can explain himself...please." (Ilina)

I stare at her in conflicted silence for several moments. Her grey eyes merely study me hopefully as the quiet deepens. Eventually, I take a deep breath and release Jorah. Seeing me drop him, Ilina relaxes substantially and gives me a small, appreciative smile. 

Jorah falls back onto the ground and begins gasping for air desperately, sliding away from me with a fearful gaze as he rubs his neck. I purse my lips disapprovingly at him. 

"Alright Jorah...explain what the hell you were thinking with this nonsense. And tell me how you contacted these people, what information you shared with them, and what exactly your instructions were." (Mizuki)

He doesn't even hesitate.

"I-It's like I've said before! I just want to expedite the process of having you father some powerful elves! Is that so bad!? I sent my maid out into the city yesterday after the meeting to contact them, and I only told them what you look like and where to find you. They were supp-" (Jorah)

I give him a bewildered glare, exasperation leaking into my voice as I cut him off. 

"This again!? How the hell does sending me threatening letters lead to me fathering more children!?" (Mizuki)

Jorah's expression quickly becomes confused. 

"Letters? Why are prostitutes sending you letters?" (Jorah)

I blink repeatedly. 

"Prostitutes?" (Mizuki)

Jorah and I stare at one another in awkward silence, until Zakariah interrupts in an embarrassed voice. 

"Father, did you...hire prostitutes? To lure Mizuki into impregnating them?" (Zakariah)

Jorah opens his mouth to reply, but he's cut off by a sharp intake of breath by Ilina. Glancing at her, I see that she's pinching the bridge of her nose in frustration. After a couple seconds, she opens her eyes and speaks with a cold, calm tone. 

"Jorah...you said 'hundreds' earlier. Are you telling me that you hired hundreds of hookers to try and seduce my husband? That's what you thought you were admitting to?" (Ilina)

Jorah shakes his head emphatically. 

"Of course not, Princess! Can you even imagine!? No, I just had my underling spread a bounty among all the courtesans in the kingdom, starting with Avalon – the first woman to have Mizuki's child gets a platinum coin annual salary for twenty years and a free house in my capital city! Much more cost effective, right?" (Jorah)

Ilina stares at Jorah in complete silence for several moments. Then, she turns to me and nods.

"Okay, Mizuki, I think we have all the information we need. You can kill him now." (Ilina)

Jorah's eyes dart between the two of us and he chuckles nervously. 

"Ah, Princess, I'm afraid I'm not accustomed to your sense of humor..." (Jorah)

Nina giggles nearby, but her emotions are strangely devoid of amusement. 

"You're mistaken, elf, I don't sense any deceit in her words, and I can't say I disagree with my little sister-wife's sentiments either. Trying to find mistresses for my husband is fine. But if some elven flesh toy actually had Mizuki's child under such disrespectful circumstances...I think I might burn you and everything you cherish to ash." (Nina)

Several people around the group pale, including Jorah and Zakariah, but there's a bark of laughter from Helena. 

"Hah! You know, I think that's the most impressive stud fee I've ever seen, Mizuki! Even my best horse only goes for a single gold. Twenty platinums...well, that's practically a badge of honor. Hahahahahaha!" (Helena)

Helena continues to cackle uproariously while the others watch with mixed emotions. The situation may have rapidly changed, but not everyone is as morally flexible and unhinged as Helena seems to be. I was seconds away from actually killing Jorah, and the severity of that shows in the several scared and/or bewildered faces around me. 

The one exception seems to be Ilina, who is still glancing between Jorah and me expectantly, her face twisted in a scowl. Clearly, she's still waiting on me to carry through on my original intentions. Elira seems to notice this as well and walks towards us quickly. 

"Ilina...dear...err, perhaps it's best if we de-escalate the situation now. Obviously, Jorah's actions were...regrettable, but I don't think they warrant death." (Elira)

Ilina frowns.

"Says the woman who doesn't have to worry about about hundreds of shameless women empowered to lust after her husband in perpetuity, all because of Jorah's actions. Or more likely, thousands of them, once the more opportunistic commoners get wind of this...bounty." (Ilina)

Elira clears her throat nervously.

"Ehem...well, I'm not saying Jorah doesn't deserve consequences, but I think this brief altercation with Mizuki has probably been punishment enough for him." (Elira)

Ilina glares at her mother with an unwilling expression in response. Meanwhile, I'm still absorbing the change in circumstances. I return my attention to Jorah. 

"So...you didn't tell anyone about me being from another world, and you don't know anything about a letter being sent to me?" (Mizuki)

Jorah gives me a bewildered but fearful look. 

"No? If I could tell them about you being a Nephilim, do you think I would have to pay so much to incentivize them? Honestly, I was worried about having enough takers...there aren't many elves who'd put a price on carrying a human's child. If you weren't planning to reveal your status in a week, I wouldn't even have risked the hit to my reputation. As it was, I sent my maid to limit my association with the bounty." (Jorah)

I stare at him blankly. 

[He's being truthful, Mizuki. I'm sorry if I gave you the wrong idea...I wasn't expecting such a reaction from you.] (Nina)

I blink repeatedly at the sudden input from her. 

Why did I react so violently? I can't exactly call him innocent, but I almost killed Jorah. If I'd gone through with that...

I feel a shudder run through my body.

Looking back, I didn't have definitive evidence of his guilt before I acted...that's not like me. Has this letter shaken me more than I thought? Am I going to start seeing enemies everywhere? 

I look at Ilina, preparing to thank her for intervening, but Dargo interrupts my thoughts with a cautious tone. 

"Ah, Mizuki...I think we're all curious about what...misunderstanding, guided your actions. You mentioned a threatening letter. Do you mind elaborating?" (Dargo)

Many curious gazes lock on me, and I purse my lips thoughtfully. After a moment, I shake my head. 

"Sorry for the scare, but...no. I'm no longer convinced that situation has anything to do with the elves. Until that changes, it's not something I want to discuss. I apologize though, Jorah, for the misunderstanding and how I handled it. In light of that, I'm willing to let bygones be bygones with this whole hooker bounty situation." (Mizuki)

I see Ilina snap her head towards me at the last statement, and I can practically feel the dissatisfaction in her glare. I hurriedly elaborate.

"But, err...I'd recommend calling them off soon, Jorah. Obviously, I won't be taking any other lovers anyway, and I can't control how my wives will react if you don't fix this." (Mizuki)

Ilina snorts derisively.

"Don't bother, Mizuki. I don't think this is the kind of thing you can walk back, even if I trusted Jorah to do so. I'll just have to make sure either Nina or I are always with you when you're in the Kingdom." (Ilina)

Ilina grabs onto my arm so that it's pressed against her chest, and gives a scowl to the nobles. Several of them raise their eyebrows at the scene. A small smirk finds its way to my face, and I'm about to joke that I should thank Jorah, but then I remember my promise to Cara last night. She specifically requested I visit her without an 'entourage'...

I give Ilina a nervous smile. 

"Hey, Ilina...about that..." (Mizuki)

I give Ilina a quick recap of my promise to Cara, vehemently avoiding the use of the word 'date'. Ilina's eyes narrow at me dangerously as her grip on my arm tightens, and a cold sweat starts to form on my neck.

"So...you promised to go on a date with her every week..." (Ilina)

My pupils constrict.

"N-No! It's ju-" (Mizuki)

Ilina's grip tightens again.

"Two." (Ilina)

I blink.

"What?" (Mizuki)

Ilina purses her lips.

"I want you to take me on two dates every week...romantic ones, starting immediately." (Ilina)

I give her a hesitant look. 

"What about us being seen in public together? Aren't we supposed to keep things under wraps until after your people know I'm a Nephilim?" (Mizuki)

Ilina gives me a cold smile. 

"That didn't seem to be a concern for you with Cara...figure it out." (Ilina)

I glance around at the nobles and royals helplessly, expecting them to take issue with this. But surprisingly, they're all engrossed in different aspects of the palace landscaping.