There was no more elegance in all the lands than the Human Kingdom's grand castle, wherein seated was the princess who swore to do everything in her power to protect the world from the vile, tendril laden fiends that feasted on the virginity of the surrounding village's young maidens.
And today, it would be the fair silver knight, Claire, who would be given a quest to venture deep into the bowels of the corrupted lands, where surely, she would not be taken advantage of, and become yet another plot point of some kind of sick harem orgy porno-thing.
"Ah, Claire! Today is the day you embark on your mighty quest." Princess Ange, Queen Regnant of the Human Kingdom gently spoke from her throne. The royal halls were littered with faceless guards clad in dull iron, almost like a narcissistic army of clones for the princess, each one of them entirely identical. Said princess herself was the star, of course. An intricate circlet was donned over her shoulder-length pink hair that matched her eyes. Her body was a bit scant, with just a summery dress under a massive draping blanket-cape-thing that seemed ridiculous to Claire.
Clare continued to walk towards the princess, but unlike all the knights previous to her who had left on mighty quests with no return, she did not share their enthusiastic demeanor for this whole ritual of self-fellation. Instead, Claire's expression was pensive and serious as she slowly approached Princess Agne, dressed in her typical JRPG knight gear: modest and expected above the waist, but a wholly out of place skirt and thigh-high socks below.
"Wake up on the wrong side of the bed, Claire?" commented Agne, taking in her cold comportment without worry. "Well, it matters not. Fair Claire, your quest is—"
"I'm not going on a quest, my lady." Claire said, interrupting her. A mutter of whispers swept through the chamber, as all the knights and nobles stopped whatever they were doing to watch the two women converse. Claire continued, her voice rising slightly.
"I know what's going on here! I really do! Fifteen years now, we've sent knights out — female knights only, might I add — and they never return."
The silence was booming, and for the first time in many years, the warm, cozy and welcoming smile of Agne was wiped clean from her face. Her lips flattened, and her mouth became a straight line as the princess responded with measured words.
"I... didn't take you as so disgruntled. Yes, many have fallen to the clutches of evil, but I forbid us to speak of this dark side of heroism... Your adventure will be your own, and you are your own chaste maiden who can avoid perils, no?" Claire sighed, rolling her eyes dramatically, at least somewhat envious of the queen's talent in socially engineering all these pawns around her.
"No," Claire declared, refusing to yield to the princess' soft, manipulative hand. "I think it's a little deeper than that. Look at what I'm wearing. I'm a knight who has been plucked from youth, trained to fight the darkness, and on the day my big quest begins, I don't even get full armor. Oh no sir! Instead, I am forced into some miniskirt and thigh high socks."
Claire raised her arms dramatically, now addressing the entire room of sleeping slaves to the courtly system.
"Look at me! I am being treated like a sex object! This has to be some kind of sicko's fantasy, and the princess is at the very least a clear champion to this horrific plot! WAKE UP!" She was a tempest of emotion, years of doubt and independent study being brought to its head at the very beating heart of human civilization. Everything seemed to be a farce now, as if her whole reality, this world she lived in, was just nothing more than an absurd porn game.
Looking back to the princess, all previous warmness had left her, revealing the cold, calculating conniver beneath. "You won't be going on any quest after all. Guards, take this conspiracist to the dungeons! I hope you're happy, Clare, because now you'll just rot away in a cell!"
***
Claire had previously only known the beauty of the human kingdom, but now she would learn just how ugly it could be. Down the spiraling staircase she had been dragged, her armor and titles stripped, before being thrown in a stone cell. She, nor most outside the upper-crusty, even knew the kingdom had a 'dungeon', and its emptiness proved there was little use for it. Everyone was complicit in what the princess was doing, so there wasn't much need. She had earned her cell, and it came with a feeling of odd rebellious satisfaction.
A single guard stood outside her cell, who she took as a talking mate. After all, if someone just listened to what she had to say,