Ch.10Chapter 10. Lin Is Mine!!!!!!!

# Though she was betrayed, if asked what was best about the Hero’s party, Lucy would undoubtedly say it was that the members weren’t promiscuous.

Lucy had seen many parties fall apart due to romantic entanglements—at worst, women behaving loosely or men stealing others’ partners, leading to infighting and bloodshed. When the Hero’s party formed, she desperately hoped the members would have conservative views on relationships.

Fortunately, they did. The party members were wholesome and focused on their mission to defeat the Demon Lord. Rainfold, being male, was no concern, and the porter… though not particularly memorable, seemed to spend his days meticulously managing inventory and planning tasks.

Lucy’s concerns weren’t unfounded. She was the fourth Hero in human history and the first to successfully defeat a Demon Lord.

The second Hero had been framed by a male thief in his party who seduced all the female members—the Saint, Mage, Archer, and Warrior. The Mage had been the Hero’s lover. After having the Hero executed, they formed families with the thief and lived well for three generations.

The Goddess, who had waited for humans to discover and punish this injustice themselves, became furious and descended upon the religious nation. She blinded and deafened the prostrating clergy, declaring they had no need for eyes that wouldn’t see truth or ears that only heard what they wanted.

She appointed the second Hero’s sister as the new Pope and commanded her to expose all sins. The Saint, already blinded and deafened by divine punishment, confessed everything. The Goddess personally sealed the Saint’s lower body and tore apart her ample breasts before sending her to the kingdom.

When the third-generation descendants tried to cover up their grandparents’ crimes—the Mage had become Queen and later Regent—the Goddess decided to exterminate humanity. She flooded the entire kingdom and gave the Hero’s sister her brother’s holy sword to fish out the sinners and skewer them to death.

The thief fled to demon territory and begged the Demon Lord for sanctuary. But the terrified Demon Lord personally tied him to a carriage wheel and sent him to the religious nation. By the time he arrived, his limbs had been completely worn away.

History warns those with a mission never to be sexually promiscuous, lest the Goddess come to punish them personally.

The kingdom was destroyed, and an empire rose in its place. The Goddess had intended to eliminate humanity entirely, but relented when the Hero’s sister tore her clothes and poured sand on her head, begging for forgiveness. The Goddess swore never to flood humanity again—though she added that if provoked, she would use fire next time.

Why this lengthy digression? Because Lin was currently feeling his life threatened by a different type of chastity issue.

“Oh my, your face looks fine!”

“Oppa~ Come here. I’ll treat you well.”

“Who do you want? Elf? Beast-kin? Come choose, okay?”

Whoever designed this map had inexplicably placed a red-light district right in the middle of the linear city.

Lin’s head throbbed and sweat gathered on his stomach. Lucy was breathing heavily under his thick clothes, hearing the prostitutes’ solicitations. He feared the Hero’s magical power might burst forth at any moment—if it did, Lin’s body would certainly explode. Lucy was trying her best to control herself.

‘I’m not cold at all. Rather, I’m hot,’ Lin seriously considered not buying cold-weather gear. But except for his abdomen, the rest of his body was being lashed by the biting wind.

“Oh, oppa, look at the goosebumps on your hands. Cold? Come in for a cup of tea. I’ll give you something to drink. What would you like?”

“No, no, no, no. I’m just passing by.”

“Something about your eyes looks sincere—you seem different from other men.”

“As you can see from my stomach, I’m sick.”

“Yes, I know. I heard from the guard it’s your constitution? Then it’s not even a disease. I’ll treat you well.”

This guard—Lin had even paid him, yet he was spreading information. He probably came to the brothel himself and shared Lin’s story to look impressive, surely adding that Lin was an easy mark. The prices these prostitutes were quoting were ridiculously high.

“Just go away.”

“Ha! Who does he think he is? Are you impotent?”

See that? When firmly rejected, their attitude immediately changed. Despite the barrage of insults, Lin remained unfazed.

“It was like this in the Hero’s party too.”

After shaking off the persistent prostitutes and reaching the end of the alley, Lin muttered to himself out of habit, then quickly covered his mouth. Though not visible, Lucy was hidden inside his clothes.

Knowing Lucy felt deep guilt about how she had treated him in the past, his slip of the tongue was critical. Sure enough, Lucy’s sensitive hearing caught it.

The anger and jealousy that had been rising moments ago vanished, quickly replaced by guilt. Damn it, why did he feel like crying when he wasn’t the one who had done wrong?

Lucy disliked the hamster-wheel pattern of her emotions. Determined not to hinder Lin, she tried to calm herself.

She steadied her breathing, closed her eyes, and made her ears more sensitive. According to Lin, there was a demon in Epfalterga. While a succubus was among the weaker demons, it was still a demon. Succubi manipulated human lust and, though weak, could cast intricate black magic—making them quite troublesome when active.

In the Hero’s party, Saint Arsil and Hero Lucy were the most sensitive to demonic energy. A succubus would most likely be in the red-light district, but they couldn’t be certain.

Yet the more she listened, the more she only heard Lin’s breathing and footsteps. Just knowing they were Lin’s made Lucy’s expression soften and her mouth water.

Arsil would have said she was crazy, but Lucy stubbornly believed Lin was her destined partner.

“A man is rare at this hour. Especially someone as frail as you.”

The voice was deep and husky. Unable to see outside, Lucy almost mistook it for a man’s voice.

“I came to buy cold-weather gear.”

“The frigid mountain range is quite a challenging woman to conquer for someone with a protruding belly.”

Lin and Lucy sighed simultaneously. Their information was exposed everywhere they went.

In the DLC, Epfalterga was a lively place despite having few people. Unlike now, there was decent traffic, and locals and explorers knew and looked after each other. For some reason, the streets were deserted, and there was heightened wariness and curiosity toward outsiders.

“Does the mountain range judge by appearance?”

“It judges your body. That mountain range has particularly strong yin energy—even well-endowed men shrink the moment they enter.”

The proprietor’s tone had something sticky in it, and Lucy was now certain this was a woman. A very hungry woman at that.

From the voice, Lucy deduced she was muscular and voluptuous. She focused on reading the aura, thinking “surely not”—succubi had high self-esteem regarding their appearance and sexual appeal. Such a matronly succubus couldn’t possibly exist.

“And I never said I was going to the mountain range.”

“Ha! Your denial lacks effort. You don’t seem very resolute either. Is that why you bypassed the red-light district?”

“It’s cold. Just show me the fur coats.”

“Hmph, there are gloves and coats piled over there. Choose for yourself.”

The shop wasn’t very large. Weapons were on one side, cold-weather gear and miscellaneous items on the other.

Lin approached the shelf piled with winter gear. ‘Look at all this dust,’ he thought, noting how long the inventory had been sitting there. He selected two appropriately sized items along with gloves, then turned toward the weapons section.

“What? Planning to buy equipment too?”

The tone suggested, “Someone like you?” Ignoring the sarcasm, Lin stood before a suit of armor displayed in the corner—a full plate mail from helmet to boots, with a sun-like emblem on the chest.

“How much is this?”

“The armor? Quite expensive.”

“No, this emblem. How much?”

“The emblem? What for? Besides, how would you take it? It’s just a design painted on the armor.”

“Want to make a bet? If I can take just this emblem, it’s free. If I fail, I’ll pay double the armor’s price.”

“Go ahead and try if you can.”

Shrugging, Lin pulled out a scroll he had prepared. Though blank, skill scrolls had special magical properties—they could absorb skill principles or magic circles upon contact to create new skill scrolls.

Anyone who’s played RPGs knows: when you enter a space full of miscellaneous items, you click on everything. You never know where hidden items might be. Most players suffer from a compulsive collection disorder. This was just one of many places Lin had discovered through countless clicks.

“Huh?”

*Fizzzzzzz*

Ignoring the proprietor’s surprised exclamation, Lin placed the empty scroll against the emblem. Sparks began to jump faintly, transferring to the scroll and crackling as they formed a magic circle.

The scroll didn’t take long to complete. For all the flashy effects, it wasn’t a particularly outstanding skill.

[Common: Embrace of Warmth]

But it was extremely useful at this moment. It was the skill he had used for Lucy when escaping the river.

In the game, it was just a passive survival skill, hence its common grade, but in reality, few things were as excellent. With this skill, all cold-related status effects could be completely defended against.

As soon as the emblem transferred, the shop felt chilly. Quickly securing the scroll before the proprietor could change her mind, Lin brought the fur coat and gloves to the counter.

“How much?”

The proprietor wasn’t easily swayed. Eyeing Lin suspiciously, she spread her fingers.

“Five gold coins.”

“…That’s absurd. Pay gold coins for a few miscellaneous items?”

“Six gold coins.”

“Hey now.”

“Ten gold coins.”

“…You’re not good at negotiating, are you?”

“Don’t have the money?”

He did.

But paying such an amount would immediately spread rumors in this tiny town, and many would target his purse.

“Cut me some slack. These days the Demon Lord is so active that everyone’s gone to the battlefield and no one comes here. It’s a recession.”

“That’s not my problem, and I don’t have the money. Let’s end our transaction here.”

Without hesitation, Lin returned the items to their places. Whether his tactic would work or not, he couldn’t pay that much.

However, as he grabbed the doorknob, the proprietor pushed his arm aside and blocked the exit. Lin realized it had recently become very difficult to simply open a door and leave.

“You didn’t think you could leave quietly after showing such a talent?”

“It wasn’t talent, it was a transaction.”

“Now that I look at you, you speak quite intellectually.”

“Intellectual? You use difficult words.”

“And looking closer, your forearms have quite some muscle.”

Lin’s forearms were covered by sleeves but were quite thick even for a man.

“Your thighs look quite firm too. You must be very strong. Especially for thrusting.”

The proprietor grabbed Lin’s arm and groped his thigh.

“Listen, proprietor.”

“Your thighs really are firm!”

“Self-deprecation isn’t my hobby, but I have an unremarkable face and a protruding belly due to my condition. I’m not your type, so please let me go.”

“My type is someone intelligent like you.”

Her manner of speech changed. The gruff voice had become shrill and coquettish.

“At first, I wanted men with bodies strong enough to survive extreme cold, but mmm~ eating the same thing every day gets boring. A smart man is a delicacy here. If you don’t have some strange disease, I can overlook minor flaws.”

The muscles gradually drained from the proprietor’s once-masculine body.

“What kind of woman do you prefer?”

Her sun-tanned skin transformed to snow-white.

“Women with large breasts? Women with wide hips?”

Her firm, muscular chest gradually took on a rounded, soft curve, eventually becoming heavy breasts that slightly sagged with weight.

“What kind of play would you like to try with a woman of your preference?”

Her waist became slender, revealing an irresistible feminine line, though her hips remained the same.

“How about ravishing me until I’m pregnant? And then pouring your lust onto my pregnant belly? Completely conquering and staining my lower parts as yours? How about it? Only I recognize the true value of you as a man, after all the dismissal you’ve faced?”

A sweet scent pricked his nose—the succubus’s seduction skill. The fragrance reduced cognitive and judgment abilities, making one succumb to carnal desires through simple temptation.

“This chest, these hips, if you want, this mouth and even the back… they’re all yours.”

No ordinary mental strength could withstand this.

“You know, I like both top and bottom. Fill whichever you want first.”

But our porter Lin was immune to mental attacks and debuffs, thanks to the Goddess’s intervention.

“Then let’s fairly go for the middle.”

“The middle?”

He decided on a frontal breakthrough. There was no other option since she was blocking the exit.

“Lucy!”

“Lucy?”

As the succubus repeated the name in confusion, Lin lifted his layered tops. There was Lucy, emitting red magical power even more intense than a demon’s.

“Uh…?”

“Hey.”

Lucy glared with fierce, glowing eyes. Lin freed her arms from the bundle.

“You shameless bitch.”

Unfortunately for the succubus, she had approached close enough that their noses almost touched in her attempt to seduce Lin.

“Lin is…”

Lucy concentrated magical power at the tips of her arms and twisted her body.

“What is this?!”

The succubus, belatedly understanding the situation, tried to back away, but—

“MINE!!!”

She couldn’t escape the Hero’s swift and heavy blow, fueled by extreme jealousy.

*CRASH!!!*

Even without arms and legs, a Hero was still a Hero. With a single strike, the succubus was sent flying through her own shop entrance, shattering it.