Tyranny of Steel

Itami kneeled on a cushion within the interior of her largest warship. Her long snow white hair flowed behind her back and was styled elegantly. For the sake of this meeting, she had dressed in a blood-red silk saree. As a woman, she enjoyed dressing up for special occasions, especially diplomatic visits, where she often wore the fashion of the culture she was negotiating with.

On a normal day, the young empress would simply tie back her hair into a ponytail and dress in men ’s clothing. If she was being honest with herself, she simply preferred the practicality of the clothing that the opposite sex wore. It was because of this utilitarian taste that many of the men under her command considered her beauty to be lacking.

It was not that Itami wasn ’t beautiful when she put no effort into her looks; it was simply that men found her cross-dressing and her lack of cosmetics to be undesirable. After introducing modern makeup to the Japanese Empire, the women of Japan had reached a new level of attractiveness.

Thus, when compared to other pretty women in Japan who always wore makeup and kimonos, she was commonly seen as a second-rate beauty. However, on the rare occasion that Itami actually put effort into her appearance, she rapidly transformed into the most gorgeous woman in the room.

That beauty was once more on full display as she waited patiently for her ship to reach the shores of the Bengal Empire. After all, Itami had found that having a pretty face always led to her negations ending in her favor.

In her experience, Men were foolish creatures, who at the first sight of a pretty face, and a nice pair of tits would make any sacrifice just for a chance to sleep with the woman they belonged to. Luckily for Itami, she was blessed with both assets, making negotiations with foreign rulers an easy endeavor.