Antyny was seeming more and more stressed lately. Janessa suspected it had something to do with his repeated losses against the Royalist forces. Her and Greta's information allowed the Royalists to gain more and more ground. Initially, the Royalists only held the Eastern Hills, where Anya came from and the Royalist forces were based. But now, they held more and more territory. Half the kingdom was under Royalist control now.
Antyny had to be feeling the pressure.
One day, Antyny came into the harem. Immediately, his concubines threw themselves at him, begging to be fucked. But Antyny ignored them all and went straight to Janessa, who was sexily reading a book on a couch. She looked up at him through a curtain of her red hair. Antyny tucked it behind her ear.
"Janessa, my favorite, come."
"Come? Come where?" Janessa asked.
"I have a diplomatic meeting. I need you there to help." Janessa's eyes widened. Help at a diplomatic meeting? That was far outside the bounds of a concubine. Concubines were for pleasure only. Even having her there for moral support would be beyond her role. Either Antyny was truly in a dire place mentally or he was planning on "promoting" her to a higher role, such as Queen.
"If my Kings commands me, there I will be," she said. Antyny smiled at her. "I have not the clothes appropriate for a diplomatic meeting, though..."
"Do not worry. I have that arranged for." Antyny took Janessa's hand and pulled her off the couch. Janessa made eye contact with Greta, who was sucking a guard's cock, as she left. Greta nodded, visibly pleased by Antyny's trust in Janessa. Then her eyes closed as the guard shoved his cock deeper down her throat. She moaned in pleasure. Janessa had a feeling that Greta was enjoying being a concubine a bit too much. It might be difficult to persuade Greta to become a guard again after Janessa took the kingdom back.
Antyny brought Janessa out of the harem and down the hall, ushering her into a small ante room where ladies-in-waiting were standing by holding clothes, brushes, and makeup. In less than five minutes, they did their job. Janessa emerged from the room wearing a shimmery but opaque golden crop top, pants of a similar design, and a golden mesh veil that covered her entire face. She wasn't sure why the ladies-in-waiting had bothered to do her makeup if her face was going to be covered. But at least her hair was done much nicer than Janessa had been able to do herself. It was partially in complex braids, partially drifting down her back like clouds. Antyny looked at her with undeniable lust.
"After this meeting, my beauty, we will fuck in the Royal Suite," he whispered to her. A chill ran down Janessa's spine. Concubines did not fuck in the Royal Suite. Antyny had bigger plans for her than being in a harem.
Antyny held out his arm. Janessa took it. They made their way through the Palace, Janessa finding herself unable to not walk in a sexy way. Her body was designed for one thing and one thing only, it seemed. Antyny pushed open a door to a large meeting room. Janessa recognized the men and woman sitting at the table. They were all members of different kingdoms' royal families. Most of them near, but a few far. Antyny leaned his head to whisper into Janessa's ear.
"Charm the spouses. Our kingdom needs their assistance, and we both know where most of the real power lies." He smiled at Janessa. Janessa bowed her head. She glided to the back of the room, where the spouses of the royal families were gathered. Only one was a man; his wife ruled a matriarchal kingdom. The other were women, and clearly unhappy to see a concubine in their midst.
"Why did you bring a whore from your harem here?" demanded one of the Kings at the table as Antyny took a seat.
"It is customary to bring a spouse to meetings such as this. Janessa, the head of my harem and favorite concubine, is the closest I have to a spouse. I ensured that she was properly covered to denote her lesser status."
"This is unconventional," said a Crown Prince that Janessa remembered playing ball with as children. He sighed. "But this entire meeting is, given that it is being held by a King that stole the throne from the previous ruling family." The people at the table murmured in agreement.
"This kingdom was being run into the ground. I am saving it."
"Then why are you losing control of it?" asked a third-born Prince.
"Tell me, concubine, what is your name?" a voice asked Janessa, preventing her from hearing Antyny's response. Janessa turned. She vaguely recognized the Princess before her as one that her father had suggested might be a good match, back when she was Prince Jasper. Janessa bowed.
"Janessa."
"Mistress Janessa, I welcome you." The Princess frowned at the other spouses. "Though my peers do not wish to." Janessa laughed softly.
"This is a welcome I am not unused to."
"Still." The Princess gestured to two nearby chairs. "Please. Let us sit and chat. I must admit, I am curious about your life, and how you came to be a concubine."
"Oh! Uh, yes." Janessa sat on one of the chairs, silently cursing the fact that she had never come up with a backstory for her identity. She'd spent how many days in the harem doing nothing? The Princess sat on the other chair, smiling at Janessa.
"So! Tell me!" the Princess chirped cheerfully. Janessa swallowed. She'd take all the ways Antyny had made her his over this. But she had to keep up appearances.