Chapter 91

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When Frey said she would come along, I accepted without much objection.

I had a feeling this would happen. After all, the protagonist’s peril often serves as an opportunity for the main heroine to shine. If the situation had been different, I might have let Alice (Frey) go on her own.

But this isn’t just any situation. It’s too dangerous. As Alice’s guardian (not really), I couldn’t let her walk into such danger. I’d rather be torn limb from limb myself. And no, I have no ulterior motives here.

The rift is a tear in the fabric of reality.

In empty air, cracks spread like a broken glass window, shattering with a loud crash.

Initially, the rift is too small for anything but weak monsters to pass through. But as time goes on, the spatial fissure widens.

Once it reaches a certain size, powerful monsters start to emerge.

We were at that stage now.

Normally, this process would take considerable time, but the rapid expansion of the rift was likely due to Astaroth’s interference.

■■■■■■■■■■■────!!!

A monstrous being, nearly 4 meters tall, roared ferociously.

Its thick hide, yellowed skin, and savage nature were evident in its menacing appearance. Wielding a tree uprooted like a club, it swung with brutal force.

A grotesque giant clad in a crude loincloth.

A mid rank monster. A barbarian.

Or more commonly known, an ogre.

This was no comparison to the green dwarves we had fought earlier. Those were monsters so weak that even non-Golden Generation students could handle them with ease. But mid rank monsters were an entirely different story. They were too much for students to deal with; this was where active heroes came in.

Moreover, ogres were immensely strong, and getting too close to one could easily lead to being crushed to death.

“Ugh, how annoying.”

Of course, none of that mattered to Frey.

With a single attack, she reduced the ogre to nothing but a smoldering stump, its legs the only remnants. Clicking her tongue in irritation, Frey picked up her pace. I glanced at her in admiration, unable to hide my awe.

Frey really is strong. Incredibly so. To annihilate a mid rank monster in an instant…

Lucia could manage it too—eventually. It would take more time, sure, and people might misunderstand because she gets beaten up every day, but Lucia is also part of the Golden Generation! She’s strong too! She could handle mid rank monsters, though it would take her much longer. After all, her super regeneration is better suited for prolonged battles.

It was fortunate that Frey had come along. Otherwise, we’d have wasted too much time in unnecessary fights.

Eugene’s growth rate is extraordinary, but so is Frey’s. We’re still just first-years, and it’s barely been a month since the semester began. At this stage, Frey should have struggled a little against mid rank monsters…

But instead of going all out, she incinerated them like swatting away flies. At this pace, her growth rivals Eugene’s. Ugh, I need to work harder to keep up.

Come to think of it, I haven’t been training (self-harming) much lately because I’ve been spending so much time with Alice.

I’ve been holding back to avoid Alice noticing. I can’t let her smell blood, so all I can manage is twisting my fingers. The best I can do is secretly dislocating my shoulder in the bathroom. That’s not proper training.

Waiting for Eugene and Alice to grow closer is too optimistic. How long will that take? A day? A week? A month?

…No, this won’t do. I need to figure something out. Holding back too much has only made the urge build up.

Alice’s cuteness can only distract me so much. I’m itching all over, and it’s driving me crazy.

It’s not just a joke—it’s genuinely unbearable. My chest feels like it’s on fire, and my body is burning up.

My sensitive skin tingles at the slightest stimulus. Even cold water can’t cool down the fever.

My head feels foggy, and the throbbing only gets worse. When I go to bed early, I inevitably wake up in the middle of the night. Every time I see Alice sleeping peacefully, countless thoughts whirl around my mind. Once, I even grabbed her tiny, delicate wrist and placed it against my neck.

I’m not an idiot. I know what’s wrong with me.

Frustration. Yes, I’m frustrated.

To put it bluntly, I’m in heat.

I’m a depraved pervert…

No, it’s not my fault. It’s Alice’s fault!

…No, Alice is innocent. She’s a good girl…

Ugh… then is it my fault for having this unnecessarily lewd body?

A body that builds up desire so easily, a body that goes into heat if it isn’t released periodically.

That’s it. It’s not Lucia’s fault. It’s just her nature.

So, I need to regularly release my desires.

I’ve been satisfying those urges through self-harm, but since I couldn’t do that, my frustration has been piling up.

It’s getting to the point where it feels as suffocating as when I was addicted to Regina’s drugs.

Do you get what I’m saying?

If I can’t hurt myself, I want to… relieve myself.

I feel like I’ll end up writhing on the floor like an animal in heat.

Thanks to Murmur, I’ve managed to hold out for now, but I need to come up with a solution. If it gets too bad, I’ll sneak out at night while Alice is asleep. It’s a temporary fix, but better than nothing.

Shaking my head, I dismissed unnecessary thoughts and focused on the task at hand.

Finding Eugene’s location wasn’t hard.

The heat that had momentarily subsided flared up again as the sounds of explosions and clashing weapons rang out. Eugene was definitely there.

On the way, we encountered a few monsters, but Frey’s heat rays reduced them all to dust, allowing us to reach our destination without delay.

“Huh?”

As I caught sight of Eugene’s back and hurried toward him, a peculiar sight came into view.

Dismembered corpses.

Frey frowned at the unpleasant scene. Thankfully, they weren’t human. Humans don’t have scales or green skin.

Multiple lizard-headed monsters lay dead, sliced apart. The cuts were clean, but there were no signs of burns, so Eugene couldn’t have killed them.

I rummaged through the corpses and picked up a sturdy-looking spear.

Among these lower ranked monsters, one lizardman stood out—it was stronger than the others, likely mid rank.

This particular one wore crude armor, unlike the others, who were clad in ragged cloth.

Its blood-soaked spear seemed decent enough. It had a good grip and might work against upper-rank monsters if used properly.

“Lucia?!”

As I wiped the blood off the spear I had just picked up, Eugene called my name.

Thank goodness—Eugene was completely unharmed, standing there looking as lively as ever.

I felt a wave of relief wash over me, and a bright smile spread across my face.

“Eugene!”

Raising the unexpectedly acquired spear high above my head, I called out confidently,
“I came to help!”

How much help I’d actually be, though… I wasn’t so sure myself.

That thought lingered as I turned my gaze to the monster Eugene was facing.

The moment I saw it, I realized exactly who—or rather, what—had shredded the Lizardmen earlier.

A helmet adorned with horns like those of a mountain goat.
Eyes glowing a bloody red.
Armor as dark as a moonless night.
Chains wrapped tightly around its right arm.

And above all, the overwhelming presence it exuded.

The aura it radiated was like a dagger pressing against the nape of your neck—sharp and suffocating.

There was no mistaking it: this was a high rank monster.

Honestly, it made sense. If Eugene were struggling, it had to be against something of this caliber.

But the dark, armor-clad knight standing before us wasn’t just any high rank monster.

It was the Black Knight.

A named monster.

Known also as the Death Knight, this creature had left a striking impression in the novel.

…This was a problem.

An enormous problem.

What rotten luck. Out of all the monsters we could’ve encountered, it had to be the Black Knight.

‘Lucia is at a critical disadvantage against this one.’

The Death Knight wasn’t just a menacing presence now—it was at its weakest.

That midnight-black armor wasn’t designed to protect it from attacks. Quite the opposite, in fact: it was a sealing mechanism, suppressing the Knight’s immense power.

Once it took enough damage, the armor would shatter, and it’s true strength would be unleashed.

But its most fearsome aspect wasn’t its raw power or even its sealed strength—it was the sword it wielded.

The longsword, cloaked in a deathly aura, inflicted wounds that resisted healing and exacerbated over time.

In short, it was cursed. A demonic blade that rendered healing virtually impossible.

And that made it my natural enemy.

Though I could still recover from injuries inflicted by the sword, it required immense effort and energy, even for minor wounds.

In the novel, Lucia’s encounter with the Black Knight had been a disaster. Her limbs were severed, and the curse prevented her from regenerating them. She was left crawling on the ground, her head and torso dragging along like fallen leaves.

She had flailed her remaining stump-like appendages in desperation, trying to rise, but it was futile.

All she could do was stare, helpless and disbelieving, as the Black Knight approached her to deliver the final blow.

With a swift slash, it severed her head.

Her head had rolled away like trash, bouncing and tumbling across the dirt.

Thud. Thud.

‘…Heh, heheh~♡’

I stifled a laugh that bubbled up unbidden.

The words I’d read in the novel resurfaced as vivid, almost tangible images.

A chill ran down my spine. My entire body tingled with goosebumps.

I swear, it’s just because I’m scared.

I’m absolutely not… excited or anything!

…Okay, maybe a little.

Just a tiny bit.

Really, that’s all.

Lucia can rise to the occasion when it matters most.

I mean, who would indulge in personal fantasies at a critical moment like this?

…Right?

Author Note

A/N (Author’s note):
Lucia doesn’t seem to know what she’s done.

Please understand, she’s still a good girl, isn’t she?

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
Hopefully he drops dead fast, translating monster language is a pain!

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