The Hunter's True Feelings (1)
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Yuri was wearing something seriously bold. A top so short that her abs, even her ribs, were completely exposed. But the bigger problem was down below.
Her pants clung to her legs, showing off her long, slender lines just like usual, but they hung so daringly low on her hips that it was downright precarious. If I looked from behind, I was pretty sure I'd see the cleft of her ass.
But of course, the biggest problem was the tail.
"What could this be? What could... this be?"
Saying that, Yuri twisted her body ever so slightly. And then, poking out above her belt line—a fox tail!
What the hell was going on at the end of that tail?! Don't tell me it was what I thought it was? It was definitely that, wasn't it?!
I was losing my mind! I was dying of curiosity!
My hands were trembling like an idiot as I opened my mouth.
"Uh, um. Yuri."
"Lady Yuri."
"L-Lady Yuri, is that tail by any chance..."
"This? Just a fashion piece? Why?"
"Ah, no, I mean, for a fashion item it's a bit too... C-Could you by any chance just give me a tiny hint about how the inside is set up..."
"Why should I?"
"Urrgh...."
Th-This was, she wore it to show it off anyway! But now she was playing hard to get?!
But I had no choice but to fall for such an obvious scheme. It was clear there was something inside. This girl's face was slightly flushed, after all. Which meant, as I thought...!
As I trembled, unable to speak, Yuri chuckled softly and gently swayed her hips again.
"What could this be? I don't know either. Well... behave yourself and it's not like I couldn't think about it."
"...."
You goddamn girl!
Having teased me like that, Yuri walked on ahead. The tail attached behind her swayed left and right. I couldn't even begin to guess how she could move it like that.
But that was exactly what set my imagination reeling. If that was what I thought it was, then to prepare for it, Yuri would have cleaned her backside thoroughly...!
This was bad. They say covering things up makes them sexier than showing them, and that saying was hitting the mark right then.
"Yoo-jin?"
A tug at my elbow made me look to the side, where Reni wore an expression of curiosity about what was going on.
"What's wrong?"
"Ah, nothing."
"Are you fond of things like tails? I can't understand it, but... should I try attaching one too?"
Asking with such innocent eyes. Reni had no idea what that was. Though if she did know, there would be an uproar, of course.
"Ah, no. It's fine."
"Then let's hurry. The others must be waiting."
"Ah, wait a moment."
[Post-Nut Clarity]
That damn girl. She had gotten me this worked up first thing in the morning and then just ran off? I'd teach her a lesson.
# # #
"Oh." "Whoa." "Ah..."
Seeing the table, we let out exclamations.
Breakfast was absolutely magnificent. Usually it was only watery soup, hard bread, and pickled vegetables, but today the table was loaded.
Fresh-looking fruits and vegetables, bacon bursting with smoky aroma, sausages so plump they looked ready to burst, soft-looking white bread, a creamy soup giving off a savory smell. And even wine.
"Mm. You've come. Hurry and sit down."
At Ariel's subtle prompting, we quickly took our seats and started working our utensils.
"Oh..."
The grapes were crisp yet sweet, and the sausages were full of juices. I stuffed my mouth full of bacon and asked Ariel.
"What's all this? Quite a feast for breakfast."
Instead of Ariel, who was busy munching, Rebecca, standing beside us, answered for her.
"Yesterday, thanks to Yoo-jin, we were able to secure a considerable amount of money. Therefore, to make up even a little for how poorly we have treated you until now, we prepared this modest meal. However..."
Rebecca trailed off and looked at Yuri.
"Yuri. If it does not suit your taste, we can prepare something else..."
"Ah, no. It's okay. "
I wondered what was up, but Yuri had barely touched the food placed in front of her. She was just nibbling a little at the fruit. Did she have no appetite? But for that, she was staring at it with an expression of immense regret.
Rebecca also looked at Yuri's plate as if it bothered her.
"But..."
"N-no, that is not it. I just thought I should lose some weight. Ha ha. Ahaha."
"Where do you have any weight to lose?"
I asked, a whole sausage in my mouth, and Yuri glared at me as if displeased.
"Because of who do you think..."
"What?"
"Forget it!"
That girl, why was she so fussy? Had I made a mistake? But as party leader, I couldn't just let pointless complaints about the food slide. I sternly scolded Yuri.
"Yuri, you're already pretty and slim enough, so there's no need to try and lose weight..."
"Stop spouting nonsense and finish your food."
"..."
Why did she react like that even when I gave her a compliment? Just a moment ago she had been giggling and wagging her ass, but now her mood seemed subtly bad again. What on earth was the problem?
While I chewed my sausage, lost in thought, Ariel and Rebecca whispered about something.
"Mm. Rebecca. That."
"Understood."
Rebecca stepped out briefly, then returned with a silver platter covered with a lid.
Then she gently nudged aside the plate of sausages in front of me and set it down in its place.
Unlike the other wooden dishes, this was a silver plate with quite elegant ornamentation.
Opening the lid, I saw a chunk of meat drenched in bright red sauce. The appetite-stimulating spicy aroma was a bonus.
Was it some kind of gift for me? But why only me?
"What's this?"
To my question, Ariel just shrugged. Rebecca stepped forward to explain instead.
"This is a special meal for Yoo-jin."
"Huh? Why?"
"...Yoo-jin, due to the nature of your ability, do you not need to replenish your Vital Essence? I have heard that you require Sexual Stamina not only for nocturnal activities, but also in daily life and combat situations. If so, it is not something we who receive Yoo-jin's help can simply ignore. Just as we receive help from Yoo-jin, we too must provide the maximum possible assistance in maintaining Yoo-jin's condition. What is most needed for that is managing Yoo-jin's Sexual Stamina. As it happened, there was a suitable item when purchasing ingredients, so I presented it. We were fortunate. It is a rare item not easily obtained. I sincerely hope it suits your palate."
"..."
Rebecca rattled on as if she'd been waiting for the chance.
If you stripped away all the useless talk about help and whatnot and got to the gist, it was something like a virility booster, right? Like eel, oysters, garlic, that sort of thing?
But...
I glared at the plate before me.
The smell was definitely good. The smell, at least. But hearing it called a virility booster made it seem incredibly suspicious. Actually, in the first place, was this even meat?
"Please."
"..."
For some reason, Rebecca seemed to be urging me to eat, and Ariel was also watching me with interest.
...Those girls. They had no expression, but it felt like they were laughing inside. Suspicious. Way too suspicious.
"?!"
Wait, shit, did this thing just twitch?!
"...What is this?"
"As I have already said..."
"No. What is it made from? Tell me the ingredient."
"Hmph. Does it not please you? I fail to understand why you speak in such a manner. Surely you don't think we've prepared something like poison. You and we are bound by a shared fate. Your problems are our problems as well. Do not worry. We would never do anything to harm..."
"No, enough, just tell me what this thing is."
At my growl, Ariel glanced at Rebecca as if she had no choice, and Rebecca answered without batting an eye.
"It is made from the... of a fur seal and a seal..."
"Aagh! Get it away! Get it away right now!"
"Why? Why not try it? It looks fine."
"You think this looks fine?!"
I snatched the lid, covered the plate, and pushed it far away. What the hell were they trying to feed me?! Good lord. Superstitions about virility were no different in this world than in modern society. People might be the same everywhere, but did even this have to be similar?!
"They said it was an expensive ingredient. What a waste."
"If it's a waste, you eat plenty of it!"
Even with my fuming, Ariel seemed unfazed.
"Why won't you eat it? Did you not expend a great amount of Vital Essence yesterday as well? I cannot understand it."
"Like I'd become a test subject for you girls' pranks."
"A prank, you say."
At the word prank, Ariel turned serious.
"It would be a lie to say we had no curiosity. But we did not prepare this merely to satisfy curiosity."
"What do you mean?"
"Is the source of your ability not Vital Essence? What do you intend to do if your Vital Essence runs dry? "
"My Vital Essence recovers naturally?"
Ariel crossed her arms and spoke in a lecturing tone.
"In normal circumstances, that would be fine. But do you have a separate method to instantly replenish Vital Essence in an emergency?"
"..."
"A mage could drink a mana potion, and a warrior could use a priest's Holy Magic or a potion that temporarily increases stamina. But are those items not useless for you? If your Vital Essence is completely depleted in an emergency, what will you do then?"
Honestly, I'd never thought about it.
Until now, I'd never had a situation where my Vital Essence bottomed out. But if I used Vital Essence as a combat ability outside of sex, a day might come when my Vital Essence ran out, just as Ariel said.
Rrggh.... Now that I thought about it, it was a troubling problem.
Ariel continued.
"At any rate, it seems best to find a way to replenish your Vital Essence. If this kind of food is not to your liking, we won't prepare it, but you should at least investigate it yourself..."
"No, forget it. I'll eat it."
I glared at the food in front of me.
I could feel all eyes focusing on me. What on earth did that taste like? Well, broadly speaking, it was a chunk of meat, so the taste might not be that different. Still, it was a matter of feeling...
"Ah."
Yuri sighed as if sad to see it go. I put the whole plate into my inventory.
"...I'll eat it later."
"Hmph. Let me know if it has an effect—whether the absolute value of your Vital Essence increases or your expended Vital Essence is restored. It may provide a clue to how your ability works."
"Yeah. Got it...."
Ariel's words dripped with the emotion of disappointment at not being able to see me eat it right before her eyes. Damn girl. Or wait, was I just feeling that? Did I have a persecution complex?!
I was sighing at the thought of eating that when Rebecca suddenly spoke.
"Yoo-jin. "
"What."
"Firstly, please return the dish. It is an important family heirloom, so I will transfer it to another plate for you. And it seems you should eat it within two days so it does not spoil. Please, do keep this in mind."
"..."
These damn girls. They were really trying to get me to eat it one way or another! I was struck speechless, incredulous, when Yuri suddenly opened her mouth.
"Wait. I kept quiet because what I was hearing didn't make sense, but what on earth does 'using Vital Essence' mean?"
Lacking the energy to answer, I looked at Ariel, and Ariel explained in my place.
"It is simple. This fellow does not use Divine Power or mana when employing his unique abilities. He has a new ability he uses entirely on his own. As it relates to sexual activity, we are calling it Vital Essence for convenience."
"What? Not mana?"
"That is correct....Come to think of it, I forgot to tell you all. Since this fellow's ability is not ordinary magic, interpreting the act known as amplification will likely take a bit more..."
"Wait, wait."
Yuri cut Ariel off and glared at me.
"You... So that's why Mana Detection did not catch you the day before yesterday...! You tricked me again!"
"Tricked you my ass."
I scolded her in a tone of disbelief.
"I never once used my ability on you guys as promised, right? You had no choice but to lose. You were already plenty lewd, so there was no need for me to use my ability... Gak! Kek!"
A grape suddenly came flying right at my throat and I choked on it. And the perpetrator of this situation shifted her target to Reni.
"Reni! You're not bothered at all?! He tricked us again!"
Reni took a sip of tea and spoke leisurely.
"Yes, I am not bothered at all."
"What....?"
Reni continued with a gentle smile.
"I am fine. Because I know Yoo-jin would never lie to me. So, whatever Yoo-jin does, whatever he becomes, I can accept it all. Because Yoo-jin promised me...!"
"..."
Yuri had an incredulous expression. Yeah. Shocking, was it? I was shocked too. For Reni to become this confident. She wasn't just Reni, she'd become Super Reni! In a single night!
"Uh... Huh? Wh-What's that?!"
Yuri shot to her feet and pointed a finger at Reni. A sparkling ring gleamed on the finger she was pointing with.