I nodded slowly as I considered things. Carmine was my slave, and we had both had times where we were close and times when we were apart. I had the Charm Up ability as well as Harem Master, Slave Master, and Affinities for both. Simply put, it was very easy for a girl to fall in love with me. It was something I had been conscious about for some time.
I had always been worried that the women in my life didn’t have genuine feelings for me. I had told myself things like a person couldn’t control their looks, and if a woman more easily fell in love with something because they were attractive, how did that differ any more than Charm Up? Slave Affinity? At least, when it came to Lydia, Miki, Celeste, Shao, and Terra… I knew their feelings were genuine. They had stood on a stage and shown me they had genuine feelings for me.
As for Eliana, she was a princess, and wouldn’t be so easily swayed by something like Charm Up. She likely had her means of resisting such a cheap trick. Thus, I also knew her feelings for me were genuine. That’s perhaps why I felt comfortable getting closer to Eliana compared to anyone else.
When it came to Astria and Elaya, they were powerful creatures, and I was too worried about keeping them under control to even think about something like love. However, when it came to Carmine, Salicia, and even Raissa… I wasn’t so quick to say that what we had was love. I was their Master, and they were my slaves. There could be love there, and attraction, and desire, but that didn’t mean it was at the same level as with the other girls.
So, when Carmine was suddenly inflicted with such an overcoming feeling of love, I could understand how it was embarrassing and didn’t match how she felt. Once we left this safe room, those feelings might surge back up again. Where I had some kind of strange control over my karma thanks to my new job, Carmine could only suppress hers. It’d be like a disease with flare-ups, except it’d be emotional flareups that caused her to act more like a princess in love with her knight, than Carmine.
At least it wouldn’t get to a level where she’d forget her name or something. As a Paladin, there is no way the curse could infect her so strongly. However, from the moment we leave the safe room, her emotional state will be having a tug-a-war with the dungeon curse until we ultimately leave.
“I meant what I said though.” I found myself grabbing Carmine and pulling her to me. “You’re my woman, and I won’t let any other man have you.”
I kissed Carmine. With those thoughts, I hoped to keep her grounded. She gasped as our kiss broke off, but she didn’t collapse against me as the princess might. Instead, she looked at me with a cocked head as if seeing something interesting.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Master, if I may say something. I’m not the only one who has changed. Your personality is a bit different too!”