episode_0018

Tick-tock.

In front of me, a sizzling plate of katsudon was placed. While I could have chosen the rice bowl, I preferred tonkatsu, so that’s what I went for.

“Squeak?”

The piglets we rescued from the village chief’s house asked what it was, but I had no idea.

“I investigated and found out that everyone in the village near the chief’s house heard about Nade’s terminal horse. It’s the demon lord’s terminal horse…”

The scruffy man who introduced himself as the chief of the guard muttered with a melancholic expression he couldn’t hide.

“Could the village idol really be involved with the demon lord…?”

Suddenly wiping his forehead with his hand, he sighed. Admittedly, Nade was cute. But was this reaction a bit too much? I couldn’t help but wonder.

“To say this after defeating him is strange, but what kind of person was he normally?”

“…To put it simply, he was both straightforward and complicated.”

Straightforward yet complicated. Now that I think about it, this gentleman wasn’t a chief of the guard but a sphinx?

Boom!

There was a commotion outside the interrogation room. Occasionally, words like “enemy” or “retribution” could be heard.

And then, crash! The door to the interrogation room shattered.

“We found you! Nezyong’s enemy!”

“…Holy shield.”

Seeing the fully armed guard bursting through the door, I quietly cast Holy Shield. There was no need to ask who Nezyong was.

“This guy!”

“You die first, you old geezer!”

The chief of the guard stood up, banging on the table. And the target of the deranged guard also changed. The current chief of the guard was unarmed. It seemed urgent for reinforcements.

“Bless!”

“…Thank you!”

After receiving my buff, the chief of the guard expressed gratitude and punched towards the guard’s helmet.

Crash!

The sound of fireworks erupted from the punch.

The metal helmet crumpled, blood splattering from within. And the guard hit by the chief’s punch flew off in the direction he came from.

“What were the others doing that they couldn’t stop this lunatic! He’s a high-ranking officer!!!”

“Understood!”

“Speak louder!!!”

“Understood, aaargh!!!”

Seeing the disciplined soldiers, I felt PTSD creeping in, but thankfully, remembering I was a woman now helped me shake off the PTSD.

Drip.

“Oh, I’m bleeding?”

“…This is not a big issue.”

Although the chief of the guard said so, his right hand was oozing a stream of blood rather than droplets due to the crushed flesh.

“Looks like you have many problems. Give me your hand.”

“No, I…”

I hesitated, then grabbed the chief of the guard’s hand and cast Heal. Even though he had received a buff, crushing a metal helmet bare-handed had significant recoil, risking tetanus or nerve damage.

—Phenomenon of excessive kindness.

“What nonsense is this? People should help each other.”

—????? System error! What about Azazel and goblin kids?

“People should help each other.”

—YOU FUCKING RACIST.

Ignoring the gibberish status window, I focused on the healing.

“All done.”

As soon as the healing was complete, I lightly patted the chief of the guard’s shoulder. He clenched and unclenched his healed hand. And at that moment…

Whoosh♡

—Sperm modification, conception complete. Orc triplets.

“Oops♡”

At an incredible timing, I got impregnated by an orc’s sperm, blushing and shaking my head.

“Are you okay?”

“…Yes, I’m fine. I’m injured, and today was exhausting.”

Looking at the nun trembling all over, the chief of the guard recalled what she had been through today.

She had stopped by this village to wash away the fatigue of her arduous journey, only to be attacked by the demon lord’s forces. Moreover, defeating three orcs and remnants of the demon lord in her injured state was a tough task even for well-trained soldiers.

“I will take you to a good inn. Since the village chief is acting that way, I will go through the proper meeting tomorrow.”

“Thank you for your consideration. By the way, what’s your name?”

“Malcolm.”

“I see. And I’ll just eat this now since it would be a waste to leave it.”

That’s how I devoured two bowls of katsudon before heading to the inn.

***

“Ahh~”

Rustle!

I roughly stripped off the torn nun’s habit, leaving me naked to enjoy the comfortable bed and blanket enveloping my body.

I had half-expected the texture of the bed in the village chief’s house, but as expected, the inn’s bed also had a spring mattress.

“The innkeeper takes care of the pigs, so there’s no need to worry, but the problem is…”

I’m pregnant again. Damn it, within a day, I got impregnated by two out of the three erotic monsters.

Of course, I’m not despairing. I’ve already given birth before, and doing so brings in money and a damn good feeling of euphoria.

The issue is.

“It’s too quick to be almost full-term. Hey, status bar, how much time until people notice my bloated belly?”

—10 hours. Full term is 24 hours. However, this figure is based on the current conditions and will shorten progressively as metamorphosis progresses.

Metamorphosis.

Another darned word from the game.

Although it was somewhat related to my uterus dropping and mundane, I decided to inquire about it.

“Explain.”

—Metamorphosis: A mutation that occurs when a female is excessively exposed to copulation, impregnation, and childbirth. Achieving 100% results in transcending biological functions and maintaining youth until the day life stops to leave offspring.

“…What the hell?”

In other words, one maintains youth until achieving enlightenment. In a game, one might overlook such settings, but this is undeniably a real world. There can’t be no downsides to such amusing laws.

“Are there any downsides? Like a shortened lifespan?”

—There is no reduction in lifespan. Instead, the progression speed of metamorphosis is dire. Moreover, over 50% experience severe cell degradation during the process, making it nearly impossible even with adequate management. Hence, using magic to halt metamorphosis at 49% is a popular method.

It’s contradictory.

It’s akin to diligently taking herbal medicine and red ginseng for health while working overtime seven days a week.

Suddenly, I became curious. Could metamorphosis apply to me as well…?

“Hey, perhaps…”

—User’s metamorphosis progress rate: 10%

10%.

In gacha terms, it’s quite high, but considering other possibilities, it’s low.

But in my case, 10%?

“I’m just a day in, though?”

—Metamorphosis inference in progress. Too many uncertain factors.

“What benefits does it bring me?”

While it’s good to receive objective information, I wish there were some benefits for me.

—Addendum: Magical contamination rate is 0%. According to Hypothesis 1, metamorphosis appears to have occurred due to magical influence.

—Trait: Influence of Yin energy, Mother of Ten Thousand Beings, and the ability to digest anything.

In short, it seems that the magical contamination rate has somewhat reduced the metamorphosis progress rate. Is it beneficial? I’m not sure.

—Moreover, it’s possible to delay fetal growth by setting up Yin energy interference.

“Initiate the third one immediately.”

—Receipt confirmed. Yin energy interference. Operation commencing. Fertilized egg implantation completed. Time limit: 72 hours.

This provided me with an additional 82 hours.

Upon hearing this good news, drowsiness began to overwhelm my body lying on the bed.

“Ahhhh.”

Sleep is something organisms engage in when they feel secure. Even if this is different outside, here, it’s strictly within the mind and the confines of an inn.

“Still, wake me up if someone comes.”

—This system is based on the user’s cognitive abilities. Therefore, it will awaken the consciousness if the user vaguely realizes it.

***

“Who’s this bitch?”

“Yeah. Haha, look at this bastard. You can tell who she is without even seeing her face.”

In a dark room, two shadows looked down at Serena as she slept. The peculiar thing was that their eyes were shining in the darkness.

“Indeed, cat’s eyes. But what about the innkeeper?”

“No problem. We confirmed he’s sleeping soundly, even snoring. That gentleman won’t wake up unless a glass shatters right in front of his nose.”

The two shadows chuckled softly, removed their pants, and pulled out a dagger. However, what came out of the pants was somewhat unimpressive, and like an empty cart making noise, they grimaced unpleasantly.

“Oh, you even checked on the innkeeper? What about the patrolling guards?”

“Huh? Of course, they’re…”

Thud!

The man who was answering couldn’t continue his words due to the pain he felt in his abdomen. Realizing it wasn’t his companion speaking, he knew it was futile as consciousness drifted away.

“Thud!”

Before the remaining unwelcome guest could react, a punch landed in their abdomen, rendering them powerless. The shadow then checked Serena’s face illuminated by moonlight to see if she was sleeping well.

“My, you work hard. Isn’t it time to clock out?”

“…Overtime. Seems like I meddled for no reason.”

The shadow, Malcolm, scratched his head as he replied. Serena was awake. She could have easily dealt with these intruders, but she had become a victim of her own curiosity.

“Hehe, still, thank you. I didn’t want to wake up and fight.”

“Is that so? See you in the morning then.”

“Yes, see you in the morning.”

Malcolm said this, dragging the two lumps away before closing the door. Serena, feeling that the world wasn’t all that bad and warming up to Malcolm, fell back asleep.