Help, I'm in Another World and All the Men Are So Hot! [BL]-Chapter 208: Damien’s Unpredictable Bonds and Magical Experiments

Chapter 208: Damien’s Unpredictable Bonds and Magical Experiments

"Hey, hold on! I never pressured them into anything like that," Damien retorted.

He had explicitly told Zima that their arrangement wouldn’t change regardless of such things, and as for Ithnan and the others... well, their feelings had been so blatantly obvious that he couldn’t just ignore them.

"Of course not," Theo agreed. "Even if the laws protecting those kinds of slaves aren’t fully functional, there are still protections. If something inappropriate had truly happened, I would have helped them escape."

Apparently, taking advantage of slaves for non-designated purposes was considered a crime.

By all rights, Damien thought grimly, he was already a criminal.

If Zima or Ithnan decided to press charges, there’d be no way for him to win. That said, if a slave in such a scenario escaped and claimed victim status, they could be elevated to third-class citizens, which was considered an opportunity of sorts.

This potential risk often made masters hesitant to even approach their slaves in ways that might be misconstrued.

"The real issue," Theo continued, "is that their position as slaves created a baseline where they’re conditioned to think, ’It’s only natural that Damien has other lovers besides me.’ Of course, a lot of this also has to do with their individual personalities and past experiences."

Zima seemed to enjoy intimacy, Damien admitted, but a part of it felt like a form of gratitude.

His casual, almost sports-like approach to seduction was undeniably alluring.

Due to his natural charm, Damien seemed to be popular with the mansion’s staff, regardless of gender. However, Zima had insisted that he was devoted solely to Damien.

Ithnan and the others didn’t appear overly concerned about their status as slaves. They treated Damien like a savior and openly declared their willingness to give their lives for him. Damien wished they could live a little more freely and without such heavy burdens. Still, the fact that they seemed to be enjoying their lives was his only consolation.

"With those six now part of the group, the direction things were headed has become irreversible," Theo remarked. "Now that so many people treat Damien as shared treasure, it’ll be hard for anyone to join this... Damien harem without accepting the current dynamic."

Although he felt a twinge of discomfort about Sitta and Tis’a being included in the count, Damien decided against correcting the assumption—explaining it would be too embarrassing.

"Well, with all this blatant infidelity, it’s unlikely anyone would even consider getting close to me," Damien said with a sheepish smile.

Theo responded with a wry smile of her own. "That’s not necessarily true. Someone like you, Damien, well... you’re often seen in a, let’s say, provocative light. Besides, it’s common for people to be attracted to someone precisely because they’re seen as desirable by others."

"Oh, yeah, I guess back in school, people who were rumored to be players always seemed to attract even more attention. But in the end, isn’t that because they still have something inherently attractive about them?"

Or, well, maybe some people just wanted a quick fling, he thought to himself.

In Damien’s case... Well, he decided he’d deal with that when the time came.

"With you, it’s not just your looks," Theo explained. "There are moments when you make people feel like they have to take care of you. It’s something that really hits home for some of us—including me."

"Wait, I give off that kind of needy vibe?" Damien asked, stunned.

Even Elyon and Ithnan nodded in agreement, clearly sharing the sentiment.

"Oh man, that’s a bit of a shock," Damien muttered. He hadn’t realized it and figured he’d better work on changing that.

"Speaking of which, Ithnan, did you actually understand what Theo was talking about?"

"Most defInitely Understand," Ithnan replied, his speech fragmented but clear. "Master sometimes looks... lonely."

"Well, yeah, I mean, as someone from another world, that’s bound to happen," Damien admitted. There were moments when he remembered Earth and felt a pang of homesickness.

Before he could dwell on it, though, Ithnan placed a hand on Damien’s head, Theo squeezed his hand comfortingly, and Elyon pushed the plate of tea snacks in front of him.

"H-Huh?" Damien stammered, startled by their sudden gestures of concern.

"Ah! Master is flirting again over there!"

"Ithnan is hogging all the attention. Not fair!"

The younger members of the group noticed the commotion and hurried over, complaining playfully.

Soon, Damien was surrounded by his lovers, and the once-quiet room grew lively and chaotic until their post-meal break was over.

It had been noisy—but it was fun.

...

The afternoon marked the return of Damien’s long-delayed "human experimentation time."

Due to the previous experiment’s catastrophic failure and the subsequent embezzlement scandal, the progress had been stalled for quite some time. Now, it seemed results were urgently needed.

Since the experiment’s mishap and the embezzlement couldn’t be disclosed publicly, Theo had mentioned that it was as though they’d been slacking off. Thus, they were revisiting the magic experiment that had shown some progress despite the disaster it caused last time.

However, the magic experiment tower they had used previously was still in ruins from that incident. How would they proceed without it?

"For that, we’ve decided to enlist the Teacher’s help," Theo explained.

Ah, so that’s why Elyon was here today, Damien realized.

"With the Teacher here, even if something unexpected occurs like last time, we can rest assured. His offer to assist is invaluable," Theo added.

"I too have a vested interest in your magical power," Elyon declared, sitting with an air of authority. "This is a fine opportunity to conduct a thorough investigation."

Finding Elyon’s proud demeanor adorable, Damien couldn’t help but give him a light pat on the head.

"So, I understand why Elyon is here, but what about the fact that the experiment tower is gone? How are we dealing with that?"

"Ha! With me here, there’s no need for such primitive facilities," Elyon replied smugly. "Now, let’s begin by casting a basic barrier for safety."