I Enslaved The Goddess Who Summoned Me

Chapter 799: Yukihime Wants to be useful

Yukihime sat beside Nathan on a wooden bench near the edge of the village, her posture as graceful as ever despite the simple setting. Evening had settled over the forest, painting the paths and rooftops in soft shades of gold and shadow. Around them, the village remained busy. Shinobi moved quietly between houses, finalizing supplies and exchanging reports before leaving for their assigned routes.

For a while, Yukihime watched them in silence.

Then she turned her dark eyes toward Nathan.

“Would it not be easier to simply go there and kill him, Nathan sama?”

Nathan glanced at her. “Kill Norihiro, you mean?”

Yukihime smiled.

“Kill all your enemies, Nathan sama.”

Her smile was beautiful enough to make most men forget how to breathe.

Yet the words behind it were cold.

She spoke of death as easily as another person might speak of rain. There was no hesitation in her voice, no guilt, and no uncertainty. To Yukihime, Nathan’s enemies were simply obstacles that needed to be removed. If he gave the word, she would walk into Minami Kyoto alone and leave nothing standing between him and Norihiro.

It should have been frightening.

Instead, Nathan found it strangely fitting.

Yukihime’s devotion was not soft or fragile. It was absolute. She cared for him deeply, but she also carried the heart of a warrior who had lived through centuries of battle and bloodshed. In that way, she reminded him of Medea, Charybdis, and Scylla.

Women who could be gentle with the people they loved.

And merciless toward anyone who threatened them.

“As much as I would like to kill him,” Nathan said, “I cannot do that yet.”

Yukihime’s smile faded a little.

Her eyes darkened with quiet disappointment.

“Is it because of that woman?” she asked.

Nathan knew exactly who she meant.

“Shiina?”

Yukihime nodded.

Nathan leaned back slightly, his gaze drifting toward the forest path ahead.

“No. Shiina is not the reason.”

He paused before continuing.

“I have already made my decision. She knows I am going after Norihiro, and she knows I will kill him if that is what it takes to stop him.”

Yukihime lowered her eyes for a moment.

“You care for her,” she said softly.

There was a faint sulk in her voice that made Nathan exhale through his nose.

It was difficult to deny.

He had spent a night with Shiina. They had fought beside each other, trusted one another for a short time, and spoken more honestly than either of them probably should have. To claim he felt nothing would be a lie.

And Nathan did not want to lie to Yukihime.

“It is complicated,” he said.

Yukihime stayed quiet.

Nathan turned toward her, lifting one hand to gently touch beneath her chin. He tilted her face upward until her dark eyes met his.

“But you matter more to me than she does,” he said seriously. “Do you understand?”

For a second, Yukihime only looked at him.

Then a small smile returned to her lips.

She leaned into his hand, closing her fingers around his arm as though she wanted to make certain he would not pull away.

“As long as I am with you, Nathan-sama, everything is good,” she said. “I will do anything you ask of me.”

Nathan’s expression softened.

“I know.”

Yukihime had never hidden what she felt. She did not play games with him. She did not demand promises he could not give or try to bind him with jealousy. Even when it hurt her, she only wanted to remain by his side and be useful to him.

That loyalty meant more to Nathan than he could easily explain.

“But killing Norihiro now would not solve the larger problem,” he continued. “Even if we entered Minami Kyoto and took his head tonight, the South would blame Kaguya. They would blame the shinobi. They would think the capital sent someone to murder their Daimyo.”

Yukihime listened, though the faint displeasure in her eyes remained.

“And I am certain Norihiro expects me to come after him,” Nathan added. “He has been preparing something. Mitsuhide’s shrine proved that much. If I walk straight into his city, I may be walking directly into the trap he has spent years building.”

Yukihime looked toward the darkening trees.

“If that is what you wish, I will wait,” she said. “But I would still rather kill him.”

Nathan gave a faint smile.

“You will have plenty of enemies to kill.”

Yukihime’s eyes returned to him.

“Especially Urakami,” Nathan said.

That earned a more genuine smile from her.

Urakami was only a piece in Nathan’s design. Proud, ambitious, and too eager to claim glory, the samurai leader had walked willingly into a role he did not understand. He believed he would lead an army south, defeat Norihiro, and return to the Akamine Clan covered in honor.

Nathan intended to let him believe that for a little while.

Urakami would march against Minami Kyoto. Norihiro would be drawn out to face him. Their soldiers would clash, and the people of the South would see samurai steel brought against their own Daimyo.

Then Norihiro would die.

The story would be simple.

Urakami and the samurai had killed the man who claimed to protect the South.

At first, Urakami would receive his glory. He would believe he had won. He would stand in front of the people and expect their fear to become obedience.

But that glory would turn into hatred.

Minami Kyoto would see him as the foreign force that brought war to their home and killed their leader. And when the shinobi stepped forward to resist the samurai, to defend the city and remove the man responsible for Norihiro’s death, they would no longer be seen as hunted assassins.

They would be seen as heroes.

The people who had saved the South from the invaders.

Nathan looked at Yukihime.

“When the time comes, Urakami will have his moment,” he said. “Then we take it away from him.”

Yukihime smiled slowly.

“I would like that.”

Nathan let out a quiet breath of amusement.

“I thought you might.”

For a moment, they sat without speaking.

The sounds of the village reached them softly. A child called for someone near the cooking fires. A horse shifted and stamped a hoof against the dirt. Somewhere farther away, a shinobi gave a low whistle, and another answered from the trees.

The forest was calm.

But it was the calm that came before a storm.

Nathan looked at Yukihime again.

“When all of this is over, I want you to meet some women.”

Yukihime blinked.

Her expression became guarded almost immediately.

“Women?”

“Yes.”

“A group of women?”

Nathan nodded.

“They are strong, trustworthy, and loyal. I trust them to protect our family and fight beside me when I need them.”

Yukihime listened carefully, though her fingers tightened almost imperceptibly around Nathan’s arm.

“I want you among them,” he said.

For a moment, her jealousy disappeared beneath surprise.

“Among them?”

“Yes.”

Nathan’s thoughts went to the Devil Knights.

Medea, Charybdis, and Scylla.

They were more than powerful fighters. They were the people he trusted to act when he could not be there himself. Each of them was dangerous in her own way, fiercely protective, and willing to do whatever was necessary for those they considered theirs.

Yukihime belonged beside them.

She had the strength. The discipline. The loyalty. And beneath her calm exterior, she carried the same ruthless instinct they all possessed when it came to protecting the people they loved.

Nathan wanted her to have a place in that group.

Not as an outsider.

Not as someone he kept apart.

But as one of the women who would stand closest to him and help protect the family he wanted to build.

Yukihime looked down briefly, considering his words.

“Will I have to work with them?” she asked.

“Yes.”

“And they are close to you?”

“They are.”

Her expression tightened again, though she tried to hide it.

Nathan noticed.

“They are important to me,” he said honestly. “Just as you are important to me.”

Yukihime looked back at him.

“And they will accept me?”

“They will.”

Nathan sounded certain, though he knew it might not happen immediately.

Medea, Charybdis, and Scylla considered one another sisters. Their bond had been forged through shared danger, trust, and years of standing together. Yukihime’s arrival could feel like an intrusion at first, especially to women who were fiercely protective of their place at Nathan’s side.

But Nathan trusted them.

And he trusted Yukihime.

She would not be intimidated by their strength or their closeness. She had lived for a thousand years. She had stood before enemies who could destroy entire armies. She had no reason to shrink before anyone.

More importantly, she would prove herself through action.

That was the language people like Medea, Scylla, Charybdis, and Yukihime understood best.

Yukihime’s gaze remained thoughtful.

Then, slowly, her expression softened.

“If they are people you trust,” she said, “then I will try to get along with them.”

Nathan smiled faintly.

“That is all I ask.”

Yukihime leaned closer, resting her head lightly against his shoulder.