Episode 41. Lucy Route Strategy (4) (Revised)

Thump.

I pushed the sight of Lucy shaking her hips in a flipped frog pose out of my vision for now.

Thump.

My heart was pounding. A sign that [Combat Sense] was activating.

“…Did you plan this from the start? You fucking bastard.”

“You’re the fucking bastard. You filthy piece of shit.”

Felix’s crotch still had an unsightly thing dangling.

“To interfere with the best moment of my life, I’ll kill you as painfully as possible!”

• You should probably run. It has two horns, and both are fully grown. You won’t be able to handle it.

A demon’s horn count is determined by its mana quantity. Two large horns mean it’s on par with an active B-class hunter.

Common sense dictated that a cadet couldn’t possibly win against such a power difference.

“We won’t know until we try.”

My combat power can’t be judged solely by mana quantity.

[Combat Sense], [Awakening], and [Mana Sensitivity]

These three, though not outwardly visible, dramatically boost my combat abilities.

And currently, visible through my [Awakening], Felix’s mana is incredibly depleted.

He probably used a significant amount of mana once to cast the barrier, and again to get Lucy so aroused.

I judged that it was manageable at this level.

———————-

『Sub Quest Transmitted.』

[Operation: Rescue Lucy!]

You have confronted the demon who kidnapped Lucy.

Defeat Felix and rescue Lucy!

• Reward: All stats +1, Significant increase in Lucy’s Favorability, Full HP and MP recovery.

———————-

The system window appeared before my eyes.

Seeing the rewards really motivated me.

Grind! Crackle!

Felix’s face contorted.

With a chilling sound, the handsome blonde boy’s body began to grow slightly.

• Yo, fuck. The mana I feel has doubled!

“…It’s fine.”

“Grrr… I’ll tear you limb from limb. Don’t even think about dying comfortably.”

Felix’s once handsome face contorted into a disgusting visage, like a mix of an orc and a goblin.

His petite frame, small for a male, swelled until he was about twice my height.

Felix, now fully transformed into his demonic form after unleashing his power, began glaring at me while drooling.

Thump.

Combat Sense intensified further. I wasn’t nervous. I judged it was still manageable.

Although Felix’s mana had more than doubled, that doping effect was temporary.

“Grrr…!”

Felix was burning his own life force.

He must have been furious about his time with Lucy being interrupted, going all out from the start.

Felix exuded killing intent, as if he could rip me apart at any moment.

“5 minutes. No, I just need to hold on for 4 minutes.”

• …He’s definitely in an abnormal berserk state. I want to help, but… would it even make a difference?

“Just stay put.”

Actually, my mana pool is below average. My combat power relies solely on my special privileges and divine powers.

So, I don’t really know how weak Liliana is, given her mana is lower than mine.

She probably wouldn’t be much help in a fight.

Then again, expecting a money-printing machine, who isn’t even a succubus, to fight is asking too much.

“I-I’ll finish this. In an instant.”

Felix seemed unable to control his strength, stuttering as he directed his momentum towards me.

I activated my mana as well, preparing for combat.

Crackle!

Soon, Felix squeezed the mana from his body and kicked off the ground, charging at me.

Felix instantly closed the distance and swung a mana-infused fist at me.

KWAANG!

PAANG!

Reacting to his speed, I quickly deployed Cotton Guard, and was sent flying, encased in the spherical shield, crashing into the wall.

“Fuck… That hurt like hell.”

The shield surrounding me, Cotton Guard, was incredibly sturdy, as expected of a unique skill.

I could tell just by looking at Felix’s left fist, which had been twisted into an impossible angle upon impact with Cotton Guard.

However, I hadn’t accounted for the sheer physical force.

“Kuhk.”

My chest felt incredibly painful, like my ribs were broken. The metallic taste in my mouth suggested internal injuries too.

“Kuaaak!”

Felix let out a monstrous roar and forcibly straightened his fist, bent at over 90 degrees.

He must have been using mana to forcibly hold together shattered bones and tissues, further increasing his mana consumption.

Felix seemed to be losing his grip on sanity, charging at me again with bloodshot eyes and drool dripping.

Did he not learn his lesson even after shattering his fist?

He probably thought his attack worked since I took damage, but that was just due to lack of combat experience.

I thought being completely enclosed in a sphere would keep me safe.

But now that I realized he was only attacking from one direction, dealing with him became easier.

I focused my mana in the direction Felix was coming from, turning Cotton Guard into a solid wall.

KWAANG!

Naturally, the result was as expected.

Felix’s fist snapped backward and shattered completely, while I remained unharmed.

“Kyaaaak!”

Felix vanished from my sight in an instant.

Whoosh!

I heard the sound of wind. Felix was circling me rapidly.

He seemed to be trying some psychological warfare, but my eyesight is pretty good.

Felix’s speed increased steadily. As if betting everything on this attack, the mana within his body was rapidly depleting.

Even on the verge of death, he was still a demon with two horns. The power from the doping, fueled by almost all his life force, was a speed even I would struggle to handle.

Speed naturally comes with power.

No matter how sturdy Cotton Guard was, I had already expended considerable mana.

I couldn’t guarantee I could block it 100% if we collided directly.

I abandoned the shield and relaxed my body.

Then, I focused more mana into [Awakening] to track Felix’s presence.

Slowly, I accelerated the mana along my body’s circuits.

Thanks to [Combat Sense], I could accelerate much more skillfully than during training.

Vroom-

The flow of mana rapidly circulating through my body infected the space around me.

Felix, perhaps realizing I was up to something suspicious, stopped circling and charged at me.

BOOM!

A sonic boom erupted momentarily, and the ground Felix stood on sank from the shockwave.

Felix was approaching me like a bullet. By the time I registered his presence, he was right in front of me.

I saw Felix’s hands closing in, aiming to grab my neck.

But the space was already under my control.

Transferring the acceleration of the mana circulating in my body to the space itself, I flowed around Felix’s attack like water.

Felix seemed flustered when I, who was just before his eyes, disappeared, looking around.

KWAANG!

Using [Acceleration], I instantly appeared behind Felix and unleashed magic.

“Kuaaak!”

I poured almost all my remaining mana into it.

An immense flame engulfed Felix’s body and ignited.

“Haa. Haa. Haa.”

My body weakened. I slowly stepped back, watching the burning Felix.

I did it.

It was my first real fight, but I challenged it because victory was possible, and therefore, I won.

• Did, did you finish him?

“Don’t say things like that, Kuhk….”

From within the flames, Felix grabbed my neck with burning eyes.

“Kuhp. Hck.”

He should have been dead any second now, yet Felix didn’t loosen his grip on my neck, seemingly determined to take me with him.

Fuck. I let my guard down.

I should have finished him completely, but lacking experience in killing, I didn’t consider that.

“Kueuk.”

Scorching heat radiated from Felix’s mangled, near-destroyed hand onto me.

Felix slowly opened his mouth.

Saliva dripped, and his rotten-smelling mouth drew closer to my face.

Since he had no hands, was he planning to chew off my head with his mouth?

My mind raced frantically to break free from the situation, but I couldn’t find a solution.

I had used far too much mana just moments ago to finish Felix.

Just as Felix’s mouth was about to touch my hair,

PUNG!

With a sound, Felix, who had been lunging at me, froze, and the grip on my neck weakened.

“It only lasts 3 seconds! Kill him!”

Liliana, having reverted from her transformation, shouted while slumped on the ground.

It took less than a second to grasp the situation.

I had to finish Felix within the remaining time.

I scraped together every last bit of mana I thought was gone.

There was barely a handful of mana left within my body.

It was hard to even manifest a single proper spell.

But there was no more time to ponder. Even now, Felix was struggling to break free from the enchantment.

In that desperate moment, seeing Felix’s mouth open to devour me, I thought of a method.

Naturally, the inside of the body is weaker than the outside.

Recalling that thought, I focused my mana into my middle finger.

The feeling of mana exhaustion I experienced when I first met Lucy washed over me.

However, [Combat Sense] and [Clear Mind] forcibly awakened me, preventing me from collapsing.

I materialized the mana. Using a single finger as a medium, I created a sharp spike.

My target was to pierce through Felix’s mouth and penetrate his brain.

The sharpest attack possible with my remaining mana.

Just as Felix completely broke free from the enchantment and widened his eyes momentarily to assess the situation.

CRUNCH!

With a grotesque sound, the sharp spike protruded from the back of Felix’s head.

Simultaneously, all strength left me, and I collapsed backward with a thud.

“Haa, haa, haa….”

I didn’t even have the strength to wiggle a finger.

As I fell, the finger I had used to stab Felix retracted, but a hole had already been made in Felix’s head.

Felix remained standing exactly as he was when the enchantment wore off.

If Felix were to move now, it would mean death for me, Liliana, and Lucy.

However, the fatigue in my body suddenly vanished as if washed away, and the breath that had been catching in my throat became even.

That meant…

『Quest Complete!』

“Hck!”

“Kyaak!”

Vitality surged through my entire body.

I sprang up from my position as if dead, startling Liliana, who had been slumped on the ground.

“Thanks to you, I finished him. Liliana. Thank you for your help.”

“L-Look, I’m saying this just in case you misunderstand! I was waiting for my chance until the very last moment. Don’t misunderstand, okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, thanks.”

Felix died standing upright.

It was the first time I had killed someone.

Of course, he was a demon with a grotesque form, but I had seen him as a person before.

It was a strange feeling, but I didn’t feel particularly sad.

“Ah, wait a second. Now is not the time.”

I ran over to Lucy, who had been neglected since earlier.

Lucy no longer had the strength to shake her hips, trembling violently every few seconds as she secreted fluids.

The area around Lucy’s groin had become practically a puddle, making squelching sounds every time she trembled.

“Hyeet, eee….”

Squelch squelch

This looks like a serious problem.

“Hmm, if this continues, she’ll go mad soon, won’t she?”

“What?”

“I can tell just by looking. She seems to have been hit with a potent arousal spell, and being tied up prevents her from releasing it, driving her mad.”

Indeed, just as Liliana said, Lucy was trembling with her eyes rolled back.

Since my HP and MP had recovered, I released the mana ropes.

However, Lucy seemed too weak even to pleasure herself, sticking out her tongue and just squirming.

“Can you reverse the arousal spell? With your magic skills, it should be possible. Just like how you dispelled the barrier.”

“Just a moment.”

As I prepared to reverse the spell, a status window appeared before my eyes.

★ Heroine Status Window

[Lucy]

• [ Favorability: 35 ]

• [ Lust: 97 ]

• [ Appetite: 35 ]

• [ Fatigue: 75 ]

Current Status: Abnormal Status (Arousal) The progression of the abnormal status is already too high. Reversing the spell now carries a high risk of leaving after-effects on her body. Injecting semen into the uterus is the most effective solution. At this time, she will develop strong feelings of favorability towards the man who first impregnates her.

“What the hell.”

Usually, the status window only appeared when I thought about it, but now it popped up regardless of my will.

There was no [Current Status] section, and whatever it was, it didn’t seem harmful to me.

“No. Reversing the arousal spell now will cause after-effects.”

I calmly explained the situation to Liliana.

“What? How do you know that?”

“I can tell just by looking.”

I had defeated Felix, but now Lucy was in danger.

There was no time to hesitate. Every second counted, so without even taking off my shirt, I just took off my pants.

“Hey, hey! I told you to reverse the spell, why are you taking off your pants!”

“No, I told you, you can’t reverse it right now?!”

“Why not?! I saw you dispel the barrier; you could undo this kind of magic in 10 seconds!”

“I’m telling you, it’ll leave after-effects!”

“You’d steal your own sister’s car and run off for this lust…!”

What the hell is she talking about? Fuck.

I couldn’t explain the status window, it was frustrating.

There’s really no other choice. Lucy needs semen injected into her uterus immediately.

It’s the only way.

“Lucy, I’m sorry. Please bear with me for a little longer.”

“Hngh. Heek. Ahk. Hiiieeeuk.”

Squelch squelch

Only the sound of Lucy’s fluid puddle echoed in the basement.