Chapter 36
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 36
Chapter Title: Fleta Lulu - Oral Body Search (2)
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- Sluuuurp.
I tugged Lulu's mouth open a bit more with my left hand.
"……."
Lulu had her eyes squeezed shut, but she didn't show much reaction.
Her eyelids just trembled faintly.
Now my right index finger touched her lower molars.
I ran it straight along her teeth.
They were all adorably petite, matching her small frame.
I could feel her breath on my finger.
Every time I swept over her teeth, the intervals between her breaths grew shorter.
"Eh... uh."
Maybe because of the salty taste from my finger, Lulu's face scrunched up.
There wasn't much I could do since I was doing it barehanded.
Every time I brushed my finger over something, she wriggled and twisted her fingers around it.
Because of that, her lips were starting to press back together.
"Open wider."
- !!!
I grabbed Lulu's jaw with my right hand and pulled it straight down.
Her jaw tensed up at my suddenly forceful attitude.
But there was no helping it.
If she decided to clamp her mouth shut, my finger would snap in two.
I was a bit tense myself in this situation, so I proceeded more aggressively than usual.
In the end, Lulu couldn't resist my strength and opened her mouth wide again.
"……."
"If you try to close your mouth like that again, I'll have to be just as forceful."
"Eh....."
Lulu answered with her mouth still open.
But she seemed displeased with my attitude, narrowing her eyes and glaring at me.
But it didn't matter. She was a merchant with no power to challenge me here, and she'd be leaving with her guild once the quest was done anyway.
"I'll inspect your upper teeth now. Tilt your head back and look at the ceiling."
Lulu slowly followed my instructions, lifting her head.
If she wanted to leave quickly, she'd have to obey me.
Let's both work hard toward our own goals.
I slipped my index finger back into Lulu's mouth to continue the body search.
My finger, now slick with her saliva, slid from one set of molars to the other along her teeth.
Her eyelids trembled again.
Her hands, resting on her tail, gripped it tightly.
The tail, which looked as soft as downy fur, dented under the shape of her hands.
It was tempting enough to make me want to touch it myself.
And finally, as my finger lifted away from her molars...
"Puha...."
Lulu shoved my hand away from her face and let out a big breath.
She wiped the saliva from her face with the clothes draped over her back.
"I... is that done now?"
Lulu pulled her head back as far as possible to distance herself from my hand.
As if she thought I might do something bad again.
But unfortunately, the oral inspection wasn't over yet.
"Not yet. I have to check your tongue too."
"The... underside too? Is that really necessary...."
"Then you can go back."
"……."
In truth, if Lulu turned back now, I wouldn't be able to complete the quest either.
But she had no way of knowing that, so her only choice was clear.
"Ha... fine...."
Lulu grumbled as she turned her head back.
Tears were welling up at the corners of her eyes, as if she might cry any second.
She sniffled.
Her mouth kept twitching in grievance.
It was a heartbreakingly pitiful sight that stirred a man's protective instincts.
If I weren't in this situation, I'd have just let her go.
With her tiny frame and that woeful expression, it almost made me feel like the bad guy.
But though Lulu didn't know it, I was just as desperate as she was.
This was an essential quest for my own freedom.
"Open up again."
"Yes...."
This time, Lulu obediently parted her lips.
Her eyes were squeezed shut in embarrassment, as expected.
"Stick your tongue out just a little."
Lulu obeyed, poking out her tongue slightly.
A cute pink tongue, perfectly dainty.
It felt like looking at a pet's tongue.
I pinched her tongue between my index finger and thumb.
And then.
"Eek!!!"
The fur on Lulu's tail bristled up like a hedgehog's spines.
Her tongue must be sensitive; the tears pooling in her eyes streamed down.
Whether from the pain of my grip or fear, her body trembled.
Startled by her reaction, I let go of her tongue.
She covered her mouth with both hands and glared at me.
"...Did I grab it too hard?"
"……."
Even after my apology, she just kept glaring silently.
I averted my gaze and glanced at the clock.
6:23.
Seven minutes left until the goal.
If Lulu kept glaring like this, it would be fine by me.
But staying put like this felt like the inspection was wrapping up.
Anyone could see it was my mistake, after all.
"Please move your hands."
"...You're adding this too?"
Her eyes looked ready to shoot flames.
Still, I planned to brazen it out.
"I'm sorry, this is my first oral body search. But this is an official assignment..."
"You could let it slide just this once."
This pointless argument only hurt Lulu.
Time was ticking away.
Yet she kept her hands over her mouth, clearly hating the tongue inspection.
It felt oddly strange, though.
Had anyone ever shown this much hostility during a body search?
No one except the Hero, who had no bodily sensations.
Even she became compliant later on...
"I'd love to do that."
"Then do the next ones."
Lulu kept her hands over her mouth, throwing a tantrum.
"No can do."
A standoff like this worked in my favor.
But for some reason, I wiped the tears streaming down her face with my sleeve.
"Eh?"
Lulu's eyes went wide.
She clearly hadn't expected it.
Honestly, neither had I.
Gazing at Lulu stirred some protective instinct buried deep in my heart.
It was ridiculous—barely able to protect myself, and here I was feeling protective.
But surrounded by strong women, her fragility brought back old memories.
In my past life, I'd been weak for anything small and cute.
"...So, may I continue the inspection?"
"……."
At my gentle tone, Lulu nodded silently.
Her hands returned to her tail.
We couldn't drag out the remaining seven minutes with just arguing.
This much time was plenty to finish the body search.
And I'd bought enough time... Wiping her tears unexpectedly worked.
"Open up. I'll continue."
I'd lost count, but this would probably be the last time.
Just the underside of her tongue and her throat left.
"Stick out your tongue."
Lulu's hands trembled on her tail in fear.
Still, she slowly extended her tongue.
This time, unlike before, I gently lifted it with just the tips of my fingers.
As expected, nothing there.
Still, I checked under her tongue with my left index finger.
Better to be thorough now that we were at it.
And to minimize discomfort, I quickly checked her throat too.
"All done. Oral inspection complete. Moving on to full body."
"……."
Lulu didn't respond.
Instead, like she'd been hypnotized, she stared blankly at my hand.
Her trembling hands on her tail had stopped.
"Shasha?"
"……."
No answer even to her name.
I waved my hand in front of her eyes like a greeting, but she just stared.
What was wrong with her all of a sudden?
"Hey, Shasha, you okay?"
"Don't call me Shasha...."
Lulu's pupils were half-dilated.
She wasn't in her right mind.
She'd denied the name herself.
Did touching her tongue make her lose it?
"Snap out of it, Shasha."
I pinched her cheek to jolt her awake.
This time, she met my eyes, somewhat aware.
But with her cheek pinched, Lulu just sat there blankly.
Drool dripping down.

'What do I do...'
Suddenly, Lulu grabbed my left hand tightly with both of hers.
"......Smell."
"Pardon?"
Smell? Did I stink from not washing all day?
As that thought crossed my mind, Lulu suddenly rubbed her cheek against my left hand.
"……."
She rubbed hard—bottom to top, top to bottom, side to side... vigorously.
The girl who'd been glaring in disgust moments ago—what was this reaction?
"This smell... my smell...."
She scrunched up her sticky rice ball cheeks, rubbing relentlessly against my hand.
"Don't wipe it off...."
Her words came out in little squeaks, like a mouse.
Was she scent-marking me?
Lulu sniffed my hand deeply.
Then rubbed her cheek again.
Repeat.
"……."
I had plenty to say, but I couldn't interrupt.
She was rubbing so earnestly.
And the soft sensation felt nice...
Her palm-sized body kept pressing against me—it was honest, but I wished this moment would last.
How much time passed? This bizarre behavior finally stopped after she'd rubbed both hands thoroughly.
She pushed my hands aside and grabbed the documents on the desk with a smack.
"I gotta go now... See you later."
"My name is Anderson. And the body search isn't done—where do you think you're going?"
She'd even forgotten my name; I was "you" now.
Not that it mattered; Lulu hopped down from the desk even though the body search wasn't over.
"Really? Even like this?"
Lulu flicked away the tail that had been covering her body.
Her figure was now starkly visible.
A white dress so thin it glowed translucently in the light.
Through it, her pale skin and the silhouette of black underwear.
"……."
I had nothing to say. It was all visible without even searching.
No need for a body search, really.
We were checking for hidden items under clothes, but how do you search someone in just underwear?
Lulu spun in a circle like she was proving a point.
The white dress, somewhat dried during the oral inspection, fluttered in the air.
She glanced at my expression, then flashed a seductive smile.
"...Don't wipe off my smell."
With those final words, Lulu headed alone to the entrance.
What kind of trait was that girl?
The women here all had mood swings like bipolar disorder; their personalities flipped too fast.
Thinking too deeply just gave me a headache.
"Oh right, time."
I snapped back and checked the clock.
6:36.
Fortunately, while Lulu was rubbing her cheeks on my hands, we'd passed the target time.
I had no idea why she'd suddenly acted that way, but the plan succeeded, so it was fine.
"Ha...."
I let out a sigh of relief and turned to tidy the desk.
"......What do I do about this."
There, the exact imprint of where Lulu had sat remained.
A bit... too explicit.
…
"Ah, I must be going crazy...."
Fleta Lulu didn't come to her senses until around lunchtime.