The Cure for Weakness
I had been healthy since childhood. Not particularly athletic, but at least not frail. After all, I was a proud Korean man who had earned a Grade 1 physical rating for active duty. On top of that, I had never once experienced sleep paralysis in my life……
‘Ah, there was that one time.’
Looking back, even someone as far removed from words like “frail” or “debilitated” as I was had suffered sleep paralysis exactly once. It happened right after my military discharge, during a dream about re-enlisting. Even now, the memory sends a chill down my spine. I woke up in the recruit training center. ‘A sergeant on his final day of service, suddenly a trainee again……’
Back then, just like now when I was possessed by a game, I had thrashed about desperately. Even without realizing it was a dream, my instincts screamed that something had gone horribly wrong. That was why I tried to desert in the dream. I decided to run away during night watch. I wanted nothing more than to escape that hell. But desertion was no easy feat, even in a dream. I don’t remember the details, yet somehow I managed to scale the barbed-wire fence. The moment I did, however, a red-capped instructor appeared behind me like a ghost……
—Thud!
I hadn’t gone far before he caught me. Not by simply grabbing me, either—he had lunged from behind and tackled me to the ground. And then……
For the first time in my life, I experienced sleep paralysis. And it happened during the healthiest period of my life.
‘Damn it, even thinking about it now gives me chills. It was just a dream, but getting pinned by a muscular instructor……’
The military was that terrifying a place. Even four years after my discharge, I still occasionally dreamed of it whenever I let my guard down. Already suffering from untreated military PTSD, being dragged into an academy that felt like the army all over again was pure torture.
—Rustle, rustle……!
Even now, as a servant……
‘My body won’t move?’
I couldn’t move, just like during sleep paralysis. At first I thought I was simply in poor condition. I figured I had caught a severe cold after entering the colder region. But then……
—Squirm, squirm……!
‘W-what? Don’t tell me……?’
When I saw the blanket wriggling, I realized the truth. It wasn’t some intangible force like sleep paralysis or a cold weighing me down. Soft, warm “things” were straddling me.
“Heeheehee—♥”
A coquettish voice echoed from beneath the blanket. Startled, I looked down and saw pink and purple lights flashing.
—Grin……!
They met my gaze at the same time, their eyes curving into crescent moons.
‘Why are these two……?’
It was a smile brimming with mischief. Not only Eros, but Sonya wore the exact same expression. They looked at me with happy smiles. Their gazes were playful, yet carried a hint of affection. What bothered me more than their eyes, however, was the soft, warm sensation below my shoulders. It was fluffy and ticklish. Though my mind was hazy from poor health, the dizzying touch kept transmitting through my skin.
“A-ah, young ladies…? What exactly are you doing there……?”
“Waaah…? Y-you’re already awake?!”
“Heehee♪ See, Sonya? I told you so. I said sharing body heat like this would wake him up right away.”
The two girls reacted to my voice. They poked only their heads out from under the blanket, like kittens perched on a butler’s torso.
—Rub, rub……♡
Under the covers, Sonya and Eros clung to me like leeches, rubbing their entire bodies against mine. At first I had no idea what was happening. I was completely bewildered. Why were they suddenly sticking to me? Was I still dreaming in a half-asleep, half-awake state caused by the status ailment?
‘What the hell……’
I couldn’t just lie still in the face of such an unbelievable sight.
—Slide……!
I moved my barely free fingertips and gently pulled the blanket down……
“Hah…? What do you think you’re doing, you wimp♡ We took our clothes off too, so it’s cold if you pull the blanket down!”
“……?!”
“Look at your eyes going wide just because I said we’re naked. How lewd~♡ Besides, if you’re a patient, you should maintain your body temperature! You really are an idiot.”
“S-Sir? Is my body temperature warm enough…? I’m sorry for being from the Ice Clan……. I wanted to make you warmer……”
Through the slightly lowered blanket, the hatchlings came into view. Especially the pure white skin without a single thread of clothing. I blinked several times in shock, but this was no dream or illusion. Their vivid bare skin spread out before me like a panorama.
‘It’s already shocking enough that I’m sharing a blanket with these two, but now they’re embracing me naked……? What on earth is going on?’
Looking a little lower, I realized I was also completely naked. As expected, even my underwear had been removed. In the corner, our clothes were neatly folded. They must have undressed me while I was unconscious. All to share body heat like this.
“Cough—?! W-what exactly is going on here? Cough, ack……!”
The unexpected sight made me cough dryly. I tried to get up immediately, but my body refused to obey. Only a cracked voice and ragged breathing escaped.
‘I can’t move at all……’
It seemed my body had no strength because of the weakness status. I could barely move my lips.
“Stay still, patient—♡ As expected of a wimp, your stamina is as quick to finish as everything else…♡ Aren’t you too weak, teacher?”
Eros’s lips twitched as she mocked me thoroughly. If I could, I would have flicked her forehead right now. Calling a healthy young man quick to finish?
“Huh? Eros, what does ‘quick to finish’ mean?”
“Aah? You’re the top student in the second year, yet you don’t know a word like that? I never expected such a pathetic side from you.”
“It’s because I’ve never heard it before. Anyway, it’s a bad word, right?!”
Sonya latched onto the strange term with curiosity and academic zeal.
“Hmm, it’s hard to explain with words, so since we’re already like this, maybe I should show you directly what it means♥?”
Eros grinned mischievously and reached under the blanket. Her hand touched my thigh and began to move.
—Slide, stroke, stroke……
Eros’s slender fingers gently caressed my lower abdomen and thighs, hidden from Sonya, who was tilting her head in confusion.
“Cough, cough—! P-please stop the teasing already……?!”
“Kukuku♡ You’re embarrassed after all?”
“B-by the way, Miss Sonya? What exactly happened? And what about the demonic beast?”
I hurriedly changed the subject. I deliberately directed the question at Sonya. If this continued, I felt like I would be completely at Eros’s mercy.
“…Ah! You don’t have to worry, Sir. I’ve set up a barrier around the watchtower, so it’s safe for now—!”
“Th-then you shook it off?”
“We haven’t completely shaken it off yet… but we should be safe for a while.”
“Don’t let your guard down too much, though~? It’s still prowling around the watchtower—!”
Fortunately, both responded to my question. Even Eros stopped her mischievous hand movements and chimed in.
“So you barely managed to escape with your lives?”
“That’s right. But then you suddenly collapsed……”
“That’s right…! Do you know how worried we were?! Wimp! Idiot! Quick-finisher!”
“Eros…! Why do you keep saying that?!”
“What does it matter? Thanks to whom did you regain consciousness? If it weren’t for the method I suggested, you’d be a cold undead by now.”
“Huh? Don’t tell me that means……”
“Exactly! Thanks to this Eros’s crisis-management skills, you survived, so worship me properly—?!”
—Squeeze……!
With those words, Eros pressed her entire body even closer.
“Aah? Teacher’s body temperature dropped again……?!”
Not to be outdone, Sonya clung even tighter. At the same time, her soft, rounded chest pressed against my side. The warm mounds squished against my abdomen, delivering an intense sensation.
“Cough……!”
All I could do was cough dryly at this absurd situation. They were clinging to my debilitated, groaning body and forcibly transferring heat and vitality……
‘Still, it really is warm. Sonya’s side feels a bit lukewarm, though……’
My body was definitely warmer than before. I could feel vitality returning to every part of me. Warmth was rising even to my hands and feet, which had been as cold as if I had poor circulation. It was a rather ridiculous emergency measure, but it was the best option available right now. Thanks to Eros, I had overcome one crisis.
‘If I stay like this, won’t I make a full recovery?’
—Flash!
On a whim, I summoned the system window.
Status Effect: Weakness
Time until Dragon Heart (Light Attribute) reactivation: 4 hours 53 minutes.
Contrary to my hopes, I was still afflicted with weakness. I could speak and move a little now, but it didn’t seem to be a fundamental cure. It was truly nothing more than emergency first aid.
—Cough, cough……!
No wonder the coughing continued. My head spun as if I were drunk. My body refused to move as I wished. Normally I could have easily pushed away two second-year students smaller than me, but now I had no strength at all.
—Rustle, rustle……!
“Oh~? No matter how good it feels to be pinned under us, it’s troublesome if you keep trying to move like that—♡ Patients should quietly receive nursing care~?”
Damn it, that’s not it……
“Th-that’s right—! Please entrust your body to us, Sir…! We’ll take good care of you!”
In the meantime, Sonya was so pure it was adorable. Still, her enthusiasm was a bit much. If we kept pressing our naked bodies together like this, I would be in danger too.
“Ahem…! Young ladies? I truly appreciate your dedication on my behalf……. Cough! But this doesn’t seem like a simple cold.”
“What? If it’s not a cold, then what……?”
“Don’t exaggerate, wimp teacher♡ You’re trying to push us away with that lie, aren’t you—”
—Squeeze♡
“…Heehee, no way—♥”
I tried to make an urgent escape with words, but Eros paid no attention and pressed even harder with her chest. Her breasts half-swallowed my forearm. The soft, yielding sensation delivered a blissful pressure. But I couldn’t remain lost in this dizzying happiness forever. If I stayed like this, the symptoms of weakness might worsen.
“It’s not a lie. Earlier, I think I was grazed by a magic bullet in the side while in the air……”
“Hah? Is that true—? I didn’t see any wounds when I looked earlier……?!”
“Whaaat…?! Why are you only saying that now, you wimp—!”
“You haven’t given me a chance to speak since earlier. Cough—! More importantly, if you hug me that tightly… I-I can’t breathe……”
—Slide……!
When I answered in a voice that sounded like I was dying, Eros finally released the pressure. Thanks to that, I could finally breathe a little easier. I had almost expelled what little body heat I had left through my lower body for no reason. Still, it was warm, so I felt like I would survive. Normally I would have told them to get off immediately. But right now, I clearly needed warmth. Besides, the coziness and softness created by their warm skin was quite addictive. It was too blissful a feeling to actively reject.
“Tch, by the way, Sonya? What should we do? When I saw teacher’s body earlier, I didn’t notice any wounds……”
“If it’s a human body, even a light graze could cause internal injuries. If that’s the case……”
Sonya suddenly trailed off with a serious expression.
“…The first-aid medicine in the watchtower won’t be enough? If we leave it like this, it could really become dangerous. What should we do?”
“Hmph—! If it’s something like that, don’t worry and just trust this Eros—!”
“Huh? What do you mean? Is there another good method?”
“What? Sonya, did you forget? I’m from the Love Clan!?”
“A-ah? I have no idea what you mean……”
“Sonya, you dummy! You thought my ability was only charm, but that would be a huge mistake!”
Even while I closed my eyes and savored their warm body heat, the chatter showed no sign of stopping. The two hatchlings were having an enthusiastic discussion inside my embrace, worrying about my well-being.
‘Even though my body feels terrible……. It’s quite reassuring.’
The fact that they were genuinely worried about me brought a smile to my face. That aside, what was Eros planning to do for me?
“Aah? Eros, don’t tell me……!?”
“Hohoho…♥ Breeder teacher? Consider it an honor.”
“…What? What do you mean all of a sudden?”
“If you were hit by a demonic beast, there’s no helping it. I wanted to take things slowly, but…… This level of symptom will be cured in one go with my kiss—♥”
“??????”
Was she joking right now? I didn’t mishear, did I? I wasn’t some Sleeping Beauty……