The dragon's harem

Hathfield froze for a second. She stared at Arad’s face with shaking hands and couldn’t even relax when he smiled and told her to. At this moment, she didn’t care that she pissed herself in front of everyone or that her dress had become translucent from sweat. Just... what was Arad going to do now?

Arad himself, when having, his human soul, had a pretty decent temper compared to other dragons. You could spit on his face, and he’d be more confused than angry.

”So... it’s the court mage? I’ll pay them a quick visit.” Arad stood and looked down at Hathfield with a smile. ”Don’t worry, I’ll track the problem to the source, so they won’t be harmed if they just bought or sourced it out. You should get yourself cleaned up.” Arad looked at the window and the night sky outside.

”Ah... It’s a beautiful moon outside, such a majestic night.” He smiled, ”I’m itching for a walk.”

Arad’s eyes flashed purple for a moment, and he disappeared like a ghost, leaving everyone else there. Hathfield was still stunned, and everyone was silent for a long while before Cerilla moved. ”Li, I guess your court wizard is done for. If they really are behind this.” She then turned her gaze toward Hathfield. ”Don’t worry, if Arad really wanted you dead, your insides would be smeared on the walls. He has an easier way of getting information from people than asking, so if he didn’t use those on you, you’re in the clear.”

Dalla clapped her hands. ”Wake up, everyone. What are you standing stunned for?. Get to work before Arad comes back.” She glared at all of the maids. ”Get moving.”

The maids blinked, and then they all turned toward her, still half-awake and half-shocked. One of them finally spoke. ”Yeah... Lady Hathfield is going to be fine?”

”She won’t be fine for long if Arad comes back to her piss-drenched ass. Get moving. Otherwise, turn around, and I’ll give you a love tap for motivation.”

The maids immediately got moving, fearing that they’d end up crying like Kolara was. They picked Hathfield up and took her to the bath immediately. The other maids moved as well. Kolara’s maids carried her to her room, and Molana sheepishly followed her maids out as well.

Seeing them leave, Dalla turned toward Rey and Ray. ”Can you two inform Hathfield and Molana? I’ll go and speak with Kolara.” The two maids nodded, and everyone headed to their jobs.

Rey walked into the bath where the maids were busy bathing Hathfield, and the moment she approached the changing room’s door, the two maids standing guard there stopped her.

”Lady Hathfield is taking a bath. She’ll be out in a few minutes.” One of the maids spoke, and Rey just looked at her with a smile. ”I know. Now move.” Seeing her smile, the two maids relentlessly opened the door.”

Inside, two maids sat in the changing room, wearing only their underwear, and they gasped the moment they saw Rey walk in. ”What are...” One of them gasped, and the other threw her hand up and covered her mouth before she could finish speaking. After what their Lady Hathfield had caused, the last thing they wanted was to start trouble with Arad or his people.

”How can we help you?” The maid asked with a sweaty face, and Rey smiled. ”Don’t be afraid. I’m not here to hurt you. In fact, I have some good news.” She patted one of them on the shoulder. ”Arad is taking all of you in, even Hathfield. But since it’s not official yet, I expect you to be quite obedient unless you want that reversed.”

The maids froze for a moment and then their eyes lit up. ”Wait! Really?” The two maids in their underwear jumped, and the two who stood guard hugged each other.

Rey closed her eyes for a second, and then crossed her arms. ”But that isn’t official yet, and even when it is, I do expect you to be quite obedient. If I say jump, you ask how high.”

The maids all nodded, and Rey smiled. ”Then follow me.” She walked past them, grabbed the shower door, and pulled it open. Inside, she could see six naked maids scrubbing Hathfield’s body while two were washing her dress.

The maids inside gasped and jumped to cover Hathfield, but she pushed them away, and looked at Rey. ”What... did Lord Arad say?”

”Nothing yet. Haven’t come back. But we’re taking all of you in, so I came to inform you of a few rules that you must follow, unless you want the Queens to tear you to pieces.”

Hathfield gulped, and Rey pointed down with her finger. ”Sit down, all of you.” Immediately, Hathfield and her maids dropped to the ground. ”You aren’t officially accepted yet, so behave and be obedient until you’re fully ranked. When you get officially ranked, you can move more freely. This is to ensure your safety.”

Hathfield lifted her hand. ”Lady Rey, we will be obedient, but do you mind asking what danger we are facing? What will hurt our ’Safety’?” Hearing that question, Rey smiled. ”That’s a smart question.”

She bent down and looked at Hathfield directly in the eyes. ”Some of the Emperor’s wives are powerful creatures that you don’t want to offend, even as a member of the imperial court. No one will kill you, but in a moment, you could get really hurt. Just imagine Dalla having a bad day, and she asks you to move, and you arrogantly ignore or even taunt her... The other will save you, but what use is saving you when you have already eaten several slaps?”

Rey smiled. ”And I’ll let you in on a little secret. What some of His Majesty’s other wives could do to you on impulse is far more horrifying. I, for once, would rather have Dalla slap me day and night than anger someone like Queen Eris or, gods forbid, Queen Merlin.”

She stood. ”Now, I want you all cleaned, maids as well. Waxing is better; if you don’t have it, then shaving is enough. Also, I want your rear ends flushed clean enough that you can drink from them, and speaking of drinking, make sure to drink a lot of water and stay hydrated.”

Mathilde and the maids looked at each other. ”All... the maids?” And Rey nodded. ”Yes, and I’ll test you every now and then until you’re used to staying clean. The test is simple: I’ll pick any of you at random times, fill your back ends with water, and then have you drink that water. So stay clean if you don’t want to suffer.”

She patted one of the maids on the shoulder. ”Don’t worry, I won’t make you drink it if it comes out relatively clean. I’ll force you down if you get lazy. I can’t have you causing a mess with the Emperor after all.” She stood and crossed her arms. ”Then, behave with the Emperor.”

She lifted her closed fist, and then opened one finger. ”You’re free to try seducing him however you want. But you’re never allowed to make the first move. An example would be you wearing a short skirt on purpose and cleaning the floor in front of him, or even begging one of the queens to take you with her to his bed. But... you can’t just jump at the emperor. Only the Queens are allowed to do that.”

She then opened her second finger. ”You can reject orders, but you must give a reasonable reason, and not feeling like doing the task is also a valid reason, unless it’s your job. For example, you’re a cook maid, and the emperor himself asked you to clean the floor; you can simply refuse and say it’s not your job.”

She then opened her third finger. ”If the emperor or someone of a higher rank than you insists, then you’re forced to obey. In the previous example, if the emperor insisted, then obey. This rarely happens, but account for it.”

She then opened her forth finger, ”The Emperor can go after whoever he wants, whenever and however he wants. If he asked to to strip and dance, you do it. That’s why all maids have be ready 24/7.”

She then opened her last finger. ”The last rule is the most important. The Ranks are from highest to lowest: Emperor Arad himself, then the Queens, then the Concubines, then the Mistresses, then the Maids, then the Servants. Before getting ranked, all of you are counted below the Servants, so keep that in mind. There are those who aren’t accounted for in this ranking but are still part of the imperial courts, people like the Spirit Queens. I don’t need to tell you how bad it is to say no to Zephyr or Nar, so be smart about it.”

She then waved her hand to them and left. ”I wish you luck.”

A luck that the Court Wizard wasn’t going to have any of.