Boobie-Boobie Bunny Girl (2)
Honestly, I still wasn't sure exactly what had been done to me.
All my brain could process was that the Heavenly Demon's two legs had coiled around my arm from wrist to shoulder—and that the finished technique looked extremely familiar.
Even an ordinary person would have heard the name at least once.
The Heavenly Demon had locked me in an armbar.
"Hold on—aren't you supposed to be the Heavenly Demon? Boxing and punching I can accept, but isn't an armbar a little beneath your dignity?"
"That sounds like something those righteous-sect grandpas would say. Where is there dignity in a brawl?"
"Naryeotagon and all that—doesn't your industry call that kind of thing embarrassing?"
"Ha! What defeat could possibly be more precious than victory? That is nothing but a loser's excuse!"
Of course I agreed with that part.
I agreed, but—!
This time I really wished she would just feel the difference in power and surrender already.
If her resistance got too violent, I would actually have to break one or two things.
I could win whenever I wanted; the hard part was subduing her without injuries.
Whether she sensed that or not, the Heavenly Demon flashed a completely open, carefree laugh—genuine joy bubbling up from somewhere deep.
"Ahahahaha! Magnificent! How can a body that looks so delicate contain the strength of a heavenly host? Even this seat, who has walked the path of Asura, has never seen the like!"
Her technique had landed beautifully. I would bet that even most professionals would struggle to match the perfect counter she had just pulled off.
Part of it was that I was a beginner, but her skill was clearly top-tier.
Yet between us lay a gulf of raw power that no technique could bridge.
No matter how hard the Heavenly Demon strained, she could not break my wrist. Meanwhile I could lift her entire body with one arm alone. Flinging the woman clinging to me across the ground would have been trivial.
"Not yet! Do you think this seat will fall from something so trivial?!"
The problem was that this Heavenly Demon was far too tenacious.
When we first met she had put on every air and graces imaginable; the moment the fight turned against her, she stopped caring about means or methods.
"That last move was pure dirty play!"
"I cannot understand why you are angry. You have earned this seat's recognition—should you not rather rejoice?"
"I am not rejoicing at all!"
"Even so, it cannot be helped. This seat is the one who will one day shatter the heavens—the demon the sky itself fears, the heaven of the lowly! I can never lose!"
After that grand declaration the Heavenly Demon opened her palm. Countless grains of sand and dust burst forth.
Yes. She had scooped sand from the ground and flung it.
I had seen her pick it up earlier, so I simply closed my eyes and blocked it.
The dirty tricks did not end there.
"Come to think of it, we have not even exchanged names. This seat is the Demon Cult Master of the Hundred-Thousand Great Mountains—Pacheonhui. What is your name?"
"Lee Hasol. E-rank Hunter."
"So in this Haedong land the strongest under heaven is called E-rank. One more question, then: is that shameless outfit of yours a personal preference?"
"Nooooo—!"
Mental attack.
"Finally got you, you concept-obsessed—"
"Did you desire this seat's garments so badly? They say vehement denial is affirmation. As expected, true nature reveals itself in action. Shameless creature."
"I said no!"
Strip-and-escape plus psychological warfare.
At this point heat was finally rising in my chest as well.
Throughout the fight the Heavenly Demon's attacks had landed on me more than once. Even if they did no real damage, getting hit never felt good. Every time she wriggled free with some cheap trick, my irritation climbed another notch.
Even someone as mild as me had to get angry eventually.
Worse, the longer this dragged on, the worse it was for me. If the Heavenly Demon managed to escape, a kill order could actually be issued. If I failed, Jeong Chae-rim's life would be in danger.
"Please just surrender! You're going to die!"
"In a life-or-death duel that is only natural. So you, too, fear death."
"No—you're the one who's going to die!"
Words were useless.
…I really had not wanted to go this far.
But now there was no other choice.
I swallowed my pride and shouted at the top of my lungs.
"Now, Alliance Leader! Show the power of the Murim Alliance!"
"What?! You treacherous—!"
Right now Jeong Chae-rim was not merely mentally ill; she was contaminated by an anomaly. And anomalies, in the end, were severe concept addicts. If she claimed to be the Heavenly Demon, she had to cling to that identity to the very end. The title "Murim Alliance Leader" triggered an instinctive reaction deep in her psyche.
While the Heavenly Demon's mind blanked out, I succeeded in forcing a full-body hug—squeezing so tightly that flesh pressed against flesh and she could not even thrash.
"Let—let go!"
"Don't wanna."
Even a Heavenly Demon had limits when stuck in a mediocre body. In the end I smothered every last bit of resistance. The moment I injected the sedative I had received from the Hunter Management Bureau, the Heavenly Demon's eyes fluttered shut.
"There. Good work. Now just sleep like this and wake up later."
"Base… and lewd… creature…"
"You little—"
Profanity is not befitting of the Bunny Girl of Justice!
In truth, Regression/Possession/Reincarnation Syndrome was not a particularly powerful anomaly.
The real problem was that it had latched onto Jeong Chae-rim—an elite athlete—and specifically onto the martial-arts-novel concept of the "Heavenly Demon."
Ordinarily it was a low-grade anomaly that only barely targeted low-rank awakeners. Mental contamination was a power highly valued even in the anomaly industry, and something on the level of Regression/Possession/Reincarnation Syndrome simply could not maintain permanent mental pollution.
Therefore, when Jeong Chae-rim woke again, she naturally returned to her right mind.
"…I'm sorry. I caused a great deal of trouble."
Of course, that alone did not make everything fine.
Jeong Chae-rim was an adult. And adults sometimes had to bear responsibilities they never wanted.
"It's all right. Mental contamination by an anomaly constitutes grounds for exclusion of criminal liability under the criminal code. You will not face criminal charges over this incident."
"Ah, is that so? That's a relief."
"Civil lawsuits, however, are a different matter. I recommend you retain a lawyer."
"…"
I felt as though I had just watched one person's hope vanish. Light had returned to her eyes a moment ago; a single sentence snuffed it out.
In a trembling voice Jeong Chae-rim asked,
"W-what kind of rampage… did I go on?"
"There are roughly three major incidents."
According to the Hunter Management Bureau staff, the rampage of Heavenly Demon Jeong Chae-rim went as follows.
One. She had entered a fortune-teller's house at the foot of the mountain and smashed the place to pieces. The complainant reported her laughing, "That shaman claims to capture strange powers and gods? The great sword school's legacy has fallen to the ground!" Every carefully collected piece of porcelain had been shattered.
Two. She had assaulted the hunters who responded to the report. Fortunately the Bureau decided to handle this side with some discretion. A somewhat sad fact: many government field agents were currently fulfilling their military service obligations. Making a big issue of it would only exhaust everyone involved…
Three. She had humiliated the monks of a temple. The great Heavenly Demon had declared: "You baldies of Shaolin, lick this seat's toes! Do so and I shall gift you a forest of wine and meat! Kyahahaha!" Then she had committed unspeakable outrages against the monks. Just hearing it, you could feel the monks' fury radiating through the air. Even I could not defend her on this one.
The silver lining, if any, was this:
"If you come in person, offer a sincere apology, and help with temple work for about a month, they say they will not press the matter."
"I'll do it! I'll apologize! Of course I have to apologize! I'm good at cleaning and laundry too!"
"Yes. We'll convey that."
The monks' hearts were as broad as the sea. Fortunately Jeong Chae-rim had cleared two of the three hurdles.
The remaining one, however, had no alternative.
"Regarding the fortune-teller's house, compensation will be demanded. Their livelihood is at stake as well."
"Yes…"
That one was pure, unavoidable restitution. The exact amount would be decided in court, but responsibility itself could not be escaped.
And the reason I was sitting through all this aftermath with her was simple: I had a clear purpose.
"You look like you're in quite a bit of trouble."
"Well, what can you do? Even if it feels unfair, I was the one who did it. I also owe you a great deal, Hunter. Thank you for helping me."
"I just did my job. Anyway—do you need money?"
"W-well, yes… I have no income and I'm broke, that's true. But borrowing money from someone who already helped me feels… as a person, a little wrong, I guess…"
Oh. She was far more clear-headed than I had expected.
How did someone like this end up like that?
Tsk tsk.
"I'm not just going to lend it to you."
"Then…?"
"You probably don't remember, but when the Heavenly Demon fought me she used a boxing base. That felt more like Chae-rim's technique than the Heavenly Demon's. Am I right?"
"Probably… yes."
Not long ago, inside the Daon Mart urban legend, I had made myself a promise: once I got out, I would definitely learn martial arts.
I had been looking around for a suitable place, and after fighting her myself I was certain—Jeong Chae-rim was the real deal.
At this point I no longer felt embarrassed showing up in a bunny-girl outfit, and her skill was trustworthy. Wouldn't she make the perfect teacher?
"I really don't know the first thing about martial arts. In exchange for helping you this time, I'd like you to teach me a little, Chae-rim."
"So… you want one-on-one coaching?"
"Yes. That would be it."
Fortunately Jeong Chae-rim's hesitation did not last long. The woman who had been the Heavenly Demon only a few hours earlier seized my hand firmly.
"It would be my honor, customer!"