S-Rank Harem: I Became My Character with Extra Control Skill

Following the usual protocol in the presence of a king, the four outsiders knelt before the throne showing reverence. The rustle of their thick clothes and the thud of their knees hitting the stone floor echoed clearly in the silent place.

Alicia stepped in front of the guests with elegant strides. She positioned herself to one side of the group, maintaining a very firm posture before her king.

She directed her gaze upward to look Ryan in the eyes for a brief second. It was a very subtle gesture that no one else in the room noticed. A slight and beautiful smile formed on her face upon seeing him sitting there, before she regained her usual serious expression.

”Starting from the right, this person is Delia,” Alicia announced with a strong and professional tone of voice.

She extended her arm, directing her hand to point to the first woman kneeling in the row.

”Heroine from the kingdom of Varvylon, S-Class,” Alicia informed everyone present.

”And by her side is Alina, also from Varvylon, S-Class heroine,” she said, pointing to the two women consecutively.

’Of all the people he could bring here, I never imagined it would be exactly that pair.’

He observed them in silence from his throne, showing a completely neutral expression on his face. Ryan kept his hands resting on the stone armrests, maintaining an imposing image in front of his old acquaintances.

Both women remained kneeling on the carpet. Their faces were very tense as they kept their gazes fixed on the floor of the hall.

They clenched their fists at their sides tightly. They looked clearly uncomfortable having to pay homage and lower their heads in this place. They remembered perfectly what their first encounter with Ryan’s group had been like.

Alicia continued with the introductions. She swept her hand in the air, pointing to the young blond man next to the heroines.

”We also have William,” the beastwoman introduced very formally. ”Hero from the nation of Lunar Veil, also S-Class.”

’Although William is not actually S-Class. But, that girl... who the hell is she.’

Ryan thought, quickly diverting his attention from the blond hero. He ended up focusing on the other woman accompanying them at the far left end of the row.

’I feel like I’ve seen her somewhere before... how strange,’ Ryan thought, trying to remember as he observed the hair and posture of the girl keeping her head down.

”Iris, A-rank adventurer, from the dwarven kingdom of Ezker,” Alicia said, finishing the introduction of the last member of the visiting group.

’But she isn’t a dwarf...’ Ryan thought, noticing her height and physical build, which did not match that race at all.

’Could it be that she’s the girl I met in the dwarven city a while ago?’ Ryan asked himself in his mind, trying to remember the face of the adventurer from that day.

With all the identities revealed, Alicia took a step back. She stood firmly in front of the kneeling group and raised her voice a little more.

”Adventurers,” Alicia spoke, making her voice echo through the high stone walls. ”You are in the presence of the demon king Ryan. Sovereign and ruler of the nation of Kowarre.”

The outsiders remained still in their place. No one dared to move while the assistant finished speaking.

A deep silence filled the throne room for a few long seconds. The weight of the gazes of all the Stygians fell upon the four kneeling humans.

”Shit, it really is Ryan,” Delia muttered suddenly, breaking the tense silence of the room.

The heroine of Varvylon did not lift her head from the carpet, but her voice sounded laden with much contempt and frustration.

”Why do we have to kneel before that scum?” Delia complained through gritted teeth.

Although she tried to speak in a low voice, in that quiet hall, every person in the room could hear her without any problem.

’Still with that attitude, huh,’ Ryan thought upon hearing the heroine’s clear insult echo in the air. ’I suppose I’ll have to teach them a less...’

But before Ryan finished deciding on an appropriate punishment in his head, something moved quickly by his side.

Helen, like a swift flash, had already disappeared from his side next to the throne. The sound of her boots pushing off the stone floor was the only thing left behind.

The guests’ reaction did not wait upon feeling the imminent danger. A magical barrier immediately appeared in front of Delia to protect her from the frontal attack. And a second barrier appeared right after, creating a very bright double shield in front of the kneeling heroine’s face.

But Helen’s bare fist did not stop at all. Her arm advanced with force and managed to pierce through both magical barriers as if they were mere sheets of paper. The sound of magical glass shattering echoed throughout the room. The swordswoman’s blow connected directly with its target.

And the last thing anyone saw was Delia’s body flying uncontrollably through the air of the throne room. The impact sent her flying back several meters above the carpet. She ended up crashing through the heavy entrance door, shattering it to pieces with her back.

The pieces of wood flew out into the outer hallway. The noise of the destruction echoed through the castle walls.

Following the loud noise of the broken door, a muffled whimper was heard in the center of the room. It was a quick, fear-laden sound that came directly from Alina and Iris.

An enormous bloodlust was intensified over them.

Both women cowered in their place on the carpet. They were surprised by the brutality and terrifying speed of the blow their companion had just received.

”That fool,” William commented without changing his kneeling posture and without looking toward the destroyed door behind him.

The blond hero did not show any kind of surprise or concern over the sudden attack.

”I told her to be respectful at all times,” William added, blaming Delia for her own loose mouth in front of the king of this place.

Helen remained standing in the spot where Delia had previously been. She slowly lowered her fist and coldly looked at the rest of the outsiders who were still on the floor.

”I warned you,” Helen claimed, raising her voice so everyone present could hear her well.

”If you moved a single muscle to offend my lord Ryan, I would make you pay,” the swordswoman said with a very hard look towards Alina and William. ”Was that not made clear?”

Hearing that strong threat, Alina and Iris reacted immediately. Both nodded their heads several times and very quickly. They remained bowed towards the floor, not daring to lift their gazes to the girl who had just destroyed the magical barriers with a single blow.

’In fact, you did comment on that before they entered the hall,’ Ryan thought from his seat, remembering Helen’s words minutes ago.

’But you didn’t say it to them, and now you’re complaining that they didn’t heed your warning?’

Ryan slowly brought both hands to his face. He ended up covering his own lips with his fingers while resting on his elbows.

Certainly, this whole strange situation seemed very funny to him. Helen’s lie to justify her outburst of anger was very spontaneous and convenient.

But he didn’t want to show any expression of amusement in front of the outsiders. Ryan kept his hands on his face to hide the small smile that threatened to come out.

’I was planning on teaching her a lesson myself,’ Ryan thought, lowering his hands to return to his initial neutral posture. ’But I think that will be enough punishment for now.’

Ryan raised and extended his right hand in front of him. It was a silent and clear signal for each of the girls in his group to stay right where they stood.

He noticed from their tense postures that everyone in the room had thought of attacking Delia the very instant they heard the insult. Only Helen acted much faster than the rest of the Stygians. Seeing their king’s raised hand, the other girls stopped their intention to attack.

But, Ryan put that whole matter of the insult and the broken door aside. There was a detail during the sudden commotion that caught his full attention.

What seemed very strange to him was that, exactly at the moment Helen attacked Delia, the girl named Iris seemed to emit an unusual energy. It was a very subtle sensation that reached him. Ryan focused on the kneeling woman, trying to analyze what he had just felt in the air.

It was definitely not a sensation akin to a magical attack or the preparation of a defensive spell.

But rather, it felt like a small sign of life. As if a very weak heart had beaten for a brief second near her.

That strange perception led Ryan to think of a new possibility regarding the group in front of him.

He came to the quick conclusion that there were not four people kneeling on his carpet. He thought that in reality, five adventurers were the outsiders who had entered the hall.

With that suspicion in mind, Ryan narrowed his eyes and began to inspect the physical space around Iris. He looked for any visual trace near her clothes.

He looked for flaws in the light, shadows out of place, or some disturbance in the air of the room. But, even inspecting the area closely, he couldn’t notice anything strange.

That small and mysterious presence, as soon as it appeared from the surprise of Helen’s blow, disappeared in that same way without leaving any trace to be tracked.