I Became a Rubber Man (2)
The moment I opened my eyes, the first thing I felt was a searing, unbearable heat.
A pain so intense it felt like my lungs were being torn apart forced a groan from my throat. It took a long time for my blurred vision to finally focus again.
“…Ugh.”
Every joint in my body screamed in protest.
I slowly turned my head and saw several people with icy expressions standing around my bed.
The first to come into sharp focus was the eldest son, Lotos, who swept back his red hair while shooting me a look full of contempt.
Beside him stood the head of the family, Count Brioche, staring down at me with a face as cold as frost.
The atmosphere they created was more than heavy—it felt crushing.
Only then did I notice the man at the foot of the bed, his face pale as death.
“So, what did you say the symptoms were?”
The Count spoke in a low, frigid tone. He looked like he was barely restraining the urge to explode in rage.
The exclusive healer trembled with hunched shoulders as he answered.
“W-well… judging from the excessive state of arousal and abnormal rise in body temperature, it appears he overdosed on an aphrodisiac, My Lord.”
At the word aphrodisiac, the Count’s face hardened like stone.
Lotos looked at me—still panting—and nodded with an expression that clearly said, Of course he did.
“It seems this fellow has caused another incident, Father. After assaulting the maids like that, now he’s overdosed on aphrodisiacs… and was probably trying to call more maids in. Is there any greater disgrace to our family than this?”
Lotos spoke without a trace of brotherly affection. His eyes toward me were still filled with nothing but contempt.
You wouldn’t understand even if I told you.
I didn’t feel the need to explain.
Even if I tried to explain it with blood flow or scientific principles… I doubted they would even comprehend it.
The Count simply stared at me with a look of utter disappointment.
“Tsk.”
…I get it now. Why no one bothered to look for this guy even after he died at the academy.
Just how much of a scumbag had the original Eros been?
“Until he enters the academy, do not let him take a single step outside the estate. I don’t even want to see his face, so have his meals delivered to his room. If I ever catch him disobeying this order and stepping through the front gate of the Count’s residence, I will break his legs—son or not.”
With those words, the Count left the room without a shred of hesitation. Lotos followed right behind him, brushing off his collar as if he had just seen a bug.
Once even the healer had left, only silence remained in the room.
A short while later, the exclusive maid entered, fidgeting anxiously as she watched over my condition.
How much time had passed?
Little by little, strength began returning to my body. As I slowly sat up, the maid cautiously approached and handed me a cold damp cloth.
“…Thank you.”
I took the cloth and wiped my face, offering a bitter smile.
Damn. My body can’t handle it yet.
Pumping blood flow to draw out explosive physical power was fine. As expected, my blood vessels had taken on rubber-like properties, and so had my internal organs.
But the problem was that my body couldn’t endure it.
Then what’s the answer?
I had to build a body that could.
Whether they saw me as a lust-crazed piece of trash addicted to aphrodisiacs or misunderstood me completely didn’t matter.
In fact, the Count’s house arrest had given me the perfect alibi.
Actually, it was perfect.
I had one year until my admission to the academy.
With the goal of forging my body, I devoted every second of that time solely to training.
The first thing I did was endurance training to improve my cardiopulmonary stamina.
Well… I just ran.
Since I didn’t have to worry about my lungs tearing from lack of breath, I ran and ran without stopping. Until I genuinely felt like I was going to die.
I also trained to increase my muscle strength at the same time.
My room was always filled with heat and the smell of sweat, and rough breathing constantly leaked out.
My actions were often interpreted by the maids in a completely different way, and they would always lower their heads in embarrassment whenever they looked at me.
And to properly act out the original Eros’s character, I occasionally made the exclusive maid smell my armpits.
…How should I put it.
This was the part where I truly understood what kind of person the original Eros had been.
The maid would blush furiously. Far from refusing, she would glance around nervously before shyly lifting my arm to allow it.
It wasn’t bad.
To emphasize that I wasn’t all that different from the original Eros’s personality…
I had no choice.
Really, I had no choice but to call her in quite frequently—very frequently—and make the request.
Before I knew it, time had passed, and roughly a year later, I stood in front of the mirror, drenched in sweat.
The man reflected in the mirror was no longer the frail, weak Eros from before.
Thanks to my constitution, I hadn’t developed bulky muscles, but I had built a firm, well-proportioned physique with dense, high-quality muscle.
“Alright. Let’s try this again.”
I quietly took a deep breath.
The moment I tensed every muscle in my chest with both hands and then released the power—
Thump! Thump! Thump!
My heartbeat accelerated in an instant. Blood surged through my entire body, circulating with explosive energy.
My skin flushed red and heat rose from me, but I no longer felt any pain or mental haze.
Instead, my body felt so light it was almost difficult to control.
It was then.
Along with a knock, the exclusive maid entered the room carrying fresh towels and water.
She froze the moment she saw me standing half-naked in front of the mirror.
Then she scanned me up and down with a strangely heated gaze.
Unable to hide her flushed cheeks, the maid placed the towel on the table.
Just before turning to leave the room, she muttered in a voice so soft it was barely audible.
“Haa… You haven’t called for me lately…”
Her murmur, laced with clear disappointment, continued until the door closed behind her.
I wiped the sweat from my face with the towel and let out a light chuckle.
If it had been the original Eros, he would have lived a life of complete debauchery. And that path would have led straight to a confirmed death route.
I made another firm resolution not to die a meaningless death again, set the towel down, and turned my gaze toward the window.
“Right. Time to get going, then.”
I had to avoid the death flags, help the hero, and prevent the world from being destroyed. There was still so much I needed to do. My heart raced with anticipation.
A few days later, the front of the Count’s residence was bustling with countless people moving about in a flurry of activity.
I was just beginning to feel the excitement of a new beginning as I watched them when—
“Can’t you pull yourself together and get in the carriage already!”
The thunderous roar from behind made me flinch and spin around.
There stood Lotos, striding toward me with his usual arrogant posture, glaring with a fierce expression.
“I’m getting in now.”
Lotos didn’t even seem interested in listening. He roughly blocked my path and began threatening me in a low voice.
“I can’t just send you off alone, so I’ve prepared a maid for the carriage.”
“…Yes, thank you.”
“I know exactly what you’ve been doing holed up in your room for the past year.”
“Pardon?”
“You were obviously planning to go to the academy and try something with the young noble ladies.”
“…No, that’s not—”
“I’ve prepared a woman you’ll like. She was originally a prisoner who should have been executed, but Father has specially assigned her as your exclusive maid and guard.”
Lotos still wore a face full of dissatisfaction.
If you hate it that much, couldn’t you have just sent a letter?
“Tsk. I don’t even know what I have to do to keep an eye on one worthless scoundrel.”
I’m standing right here, you know.
“Don’t even think about laying a hand on any noble young ladies with that filthy lust of yours.”
“…Haha.”
“So vent it all on her. She’s been imprinted, so no matter what you do to her, no matter what you make her do all night long, she cannot refuse. Understood?”
“Hahahaha. Wow, really…”
“You didn’t seriously think we’d send someone like you—who can’t even handle basic daily life—off alone, did you?”
Just what did this man think of me?
In short, that was it.
They would attach someone who could serve as a prisoner, guard, and servant all at once. And I was to release everything onto her.
“So while you’re at the academy, don’t cause any unnecessary trouble. Stay quiet as a dead mouse. Do you understand?”
He looked me up and down with cold eyes.
“We can keep your behavior under control here, but the academy is beyond our family’s reach. If you act the same way there and tarnish the name of Brioche…”
Lotos gripped the hilt of the sword at his waist tightly. Then, in a voice brimming with confidence, he continued.
“Then I will personally correct your habits. Remember that well.”
With those final words, he turned and walked away, his cloak fluttering behind him.
I simply watched his retreating figure and silently bid him farewell.
When I opened the carriage door and stepped inside, the woman Lotos had mentioned was already seated there.
The moment our eyes met—hers looking at me with both arms bound in restraints—
The instant her face entered my vision.
“…Huh?”
An idiotic sound slipped out before I could stop it.
It felt like my heart had dropped to the floor.
Ash-gray hair. Dull, unfocused red eyes.
No matter how much this world was the setting of a romantic fantasy adult game, no matter how insane the world was…
There was no way this character should be in this position, looking like this.
“…Wait, why are you—”
A stunned murmur escaped between my lips.
The girl looking up at me with lifeless eyes, wrists locked in handcuffs—
She was Lise, one of the hero’s heroines at the academy. One of the main heroines.
…Just what the hell had happened here?