Chapter 439: The Correct Way to Use Plant Magic (4)

“Kuhuk…!”

Mud tentacles wrapped around the upper part of my arm, as if trying to swallow my hand.

The pressure from the tight grip, so tight I couldn’t move a single finger, caused one of my hands to be helplessly sucked into that woman’s mud tentacles.

Being instantly immobilized was fatal, but in a way, this was also an opportunity.

I conjured plant magic on the mass of mud that had come close enough to take root.

From the end of Do Yehee’s summoned creature, the stem of the plant I created instantly shot out.

-Chwaaak!

“……?!”

Seeing my plant magic suddenly burst from the mud tentacles, she wore a flustered expression for the first time in a while.

She probably intended to restrain my limbs with the mud tentacles from the start, but thanks to that, she inadvertently created the distance I needed to use plant magic.

The plant stem extending from the summoned creature then snaked along the mud tentacles, rooting itself and reaching towards Do Yehee.

“Oh no…!”

Realizing the situation had turned unfavorable, Do Yehee immediately abandoned the tentacle binding my hand.

While plant magic wasn’t particularly useful elsewhere, it certainly held a complete advantage over earth and water magic.

There was no magic more effective than this for countering her earth magic.

“……”

Do Yehee cautiously eyed the plant magic I’d created, subtly retracting her mud tentacles backward.

Towards her, I asked deliberately in a sarcastic tone.

“You said you just came to talk? Do rich heiresses call fighting each other inside the house a ‘talk’?”

“The moment you said you wouldn’t betray Sihee, the conversation ended. This is the next stage.”

“So, since talking wouldn’t work, the next stage is restraint and threats using force?”

“No. It’s a process to verify whether you are truly qualified to remain by Sihee’s side.”

“That’s hilarious. Why the hell are you the one deciding that?”

“…Because if it isn’t me, someone else has to do it.”

As soon as the conversation ended, the mud tentacles stretched towards me again.

Seeing them become much faster and heavier blows than before, I could vaguely guess that the objective had changed from the previous attacks.

If Do Yehee’s previous attacks were aimed at binding my limbs with those summoned creatures,

this time, I felt a stronger intent to subdue me through more violent means.

“If you had just stayed still… I said I wouldn’t hurt you, but….”

“……”

“Now that I know you can use plant magic, I can’t hold back anymore.”

Simultaneously, five or six masses of mud tentacles flew towards my body.

In the confined space, I blocked the charging summoned creatures as much as possible using my spear and shield.

From the mud masses that fell on the floor, I conjured tendrils of plant magic.

Amidst such fierce combat, one mud mass approached my face at close range.

Barely managing to dodge, I narrowly avoided the mud mass, brushing past it.

-Chwaaak!

“……!”

…If I had been hit directly in the face by mistake, it might have been a bit dangerous.

Aside from the impact, having my vision blocked would be a fatal weakness.

While narrowly dodging that crazy bitch’s attacks and trying to find a way to subdue her,

suddenly, Do Yehee’s summoned creatures, which had been fiercely charging at me, began to stop moving.

“Ma……n……?”

The red-haired woman muttered a confused word upon seeing my face.

The moment she saw the unidentified mask lying at my feet, I could immediately deduce why she muttered those words.

It was presumed to have fallen a moment ago when a mud mass grazed my face.

Well, by now, being discovered as a man by that woman was a minor issue, I thought…

For some reason, as soon as Do Yehee confirmed I was a man, she muttered to herself with a bewildered expression.

“I-I’m a man…? B-but male Hunters are definitely affiliated with companies…. I-I only heard they were recovery-type Hunters…”

I didn’t know why she stopped attacking, but regardless, this was an opportunity.

It was the perfect chance to subdue Do Yehee, who was confused after discovering my identity.

Above Do Yehee’s suspended tentacles, my plant magic bloomed into multiple strands simultaneously.

Subduing Do Yehee, who was distracted mid-battle, wasn’t difficult.

-Kkwaaak!

“……!!”

-Cheolkkeok.

She realized belatedly that her limbs were bound by my vine restraints, but it was already too late to react.

I locked the front door so she couldn’t bring her intellect from outside to fight anymore.

Ultimately, the second round of the duel, which began without warning, concluded with Do Yehee’s limbs bound by the vine restraints.

“……”

Do Yehee’s gaze darted around nervously, her expression one of trouble.

To draw her attention, I nervously tightened the vine restraints binding her arms and legs even further.

-Kkwaaak.

“Ugh, urk…”

“Hey, Do Yehee.”

“Ughhh…”

“You said you wouldn’t let it slide next time, but it seems I won again.”

“Ugh, ugh…”

Do Yehee groaned in pain as the restraints tightened around her limbs, desperately avoiding my gaze.

First, I needed to make her look me directly in the eye.

I had to properly interrogate this damn bitch for barging into my house and making such a mess.

-Jjaak!

“……!!”

To turn her head, which was tilted to the left, I forcefully slapped Do Yehee’s cheek with my right hand.

Overcome by the impact, Do Yehee’s head snapped completely in the opposite direction.

“Hey, Do Yehee. You fucking bitch.”

“Y-your foul mouth needs… correction…”

-Jjaak!

“……!!”

My slap sent her flying to the other side, silencing Do Yehee’s nonsensical mumbling.

Now with both cheeks flushed with heat, I turned her head towards me.

“If you had truly just talked and left quietly, I might have considered forgiving you once.”

“……”

“Last time, I thought what I did to you was pretty harsh too. So, I could have overlooked your rudeness in following me and barging into my house, just this once.”

“……”

“But this is unacceptable, you fucking bitch.”

-Peoeok!

“………!!”

The moment I finished speaking, my right fist landed squarely in her abdomen.

My fist suddenly striking her solar plexus caused Do Yehee’s expression to contort visibly in pain.

Staring at her face, gasping for breath in pain, I made her explain the situation so far.

“No matter how I think about it, I don’t understand.”

“Kuh… W-what… are you talking about?”

“Your sudden act of worrying about Sihee, babbling about my qualifications and whatnot – I just can’t understand it.”

“I-I told you earlier… S-someone has to do it…”

“So? Why do you have to do it?”

Looking directly into Do Yehee’s eyes, I asked her the biggest question on my mind.

“You’re the one who’s taken all sorts of people and connections from Sihee until now, so why are you suddenly pretending to care about your little sister? I just can’t wrap my head around it.”

“…T-taking people… away… Y-you’re saying strange things…”

“Why play dumb? Do you even know how much Sihee hates you? I heard you’ve stolen Sihee’s first party members multiple times from the foundation?”

“I-I have never… taken ‘people’… from Sihee…”

“What?”

“All I took from that child were ‘beasts’ aiming for Sihee and the Dokyung Group’s power… or ‘bad toys’ that weren’t good for Sihee’s emotional well-being…”

“……”

Do Yehee continued to spout incomprehensible nonsense.

Her unusually talkative and muttering attitude since confirming I was a man, along with other things, meant there were more than a few lingering questions about this woman.

To make her spit out the real truth, I punched her solar plexus once more.

-Peoeok!

“Kk, kkeuhhh……!!”

“Don’t try to fool me with strange lies. I’m only barely holding back now because you’re connected to Sihee. Otherwise, I would have turned your body into rags by now.”

“I-it’s not a lie…. I-I have proof…?”

“Proof?”

“I-if my goal was truly to take people from Sihee…. I would have taken Nari first from that child…”

“Nari?”

“…Ah, n-not Nari, it was Eunbyul…. Y-you don’t need to worry about what I just said…”

Well, even if this woman tried to gloss over it, I already knew the truth.

I had already learned through her lust management Hunter information that Eunbyul was Geum Nari, the third daughter of the Geumhyang Group.

Seeing that Sihee hadn’t even told me, it seemed she was hiding it as much as possible for some reason.

This woman, Do Yehee, seemed to already know about that part.

“A-anyway…. Y-you need behavioral correction…”

“……”

“I highly appreciate that you didn’t yield to my proposal and unhesitatingly chose Sihee…. And that you can sacrifice your own honor for Sihee…”

“……”

“Y-your foul mouth and v-violent behavior…! It negatively affects Sihee’s emotional well-being~! Therefore, you need to receive behavioral correction…!”

-Peoeok!

“…………!!”

…Seriously, no matter how much I tried to hold back, I just couldn’t.

Talking about negatively affecting emotional well-being and needing correction right in front of me.

After punching Do Yehee’s solar plexus again as she mumbled nonsense, I immediately used the Lust Scope to check her list of sexual fetishes.

I figured this bitch, not me, needed her head corrected, so I thought it might help even a little.

As soon as I checked Do Yehee’s list of sexual fetishes using the Lust Scope, an incredulous exclamation burst from my lips.

『Sexual Fetishes: Younger Sister, Sisterly Love, Obsession, Devotion, Androphobia』

“……What?”

Because one particularly strange item on this woman’s list of sexual fetishes was something I absolutely couldn’t overlook.