Chapter 28
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 28
Chapter Title: Pursuit and Search (6)
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Beastkin.
A race possessing traits of both humans and animals. In this world, not only humans and beastkin lived together, but also elves, dwarves, and various other races.
That was the setting from my previous life's game.
According to that game, beastkin were the second most populous race after humans.
The term "beastkin" encompassed numerous animal tribes, so it was only natural.
Even among beastkin, there were countless tribes numbering in the hundreds. I'd heard that the cat tribe was an extremely rare one even among them.
'In the game, they were defeated in a war against other beastkin 500 years ago.'
I didn't know which beastkin tribe had defeated the cat tribe, but after suffering a crushing defeat in that ancient war, only a scant hundred or so cat tribesmen had survived, or so the lore went.
Speculation about their enemies abounded, but there was no solid evidence.
The dog tribe and wolf tribe were prime suspects, but nothing concrete. Besides, few people memorized the settings like I did or debated them passionately.
The surviving cat tribe had settled deep in the forests, carving out hidden villages to live out of sight from others.
The protagonist from the game had heard the rumors and scoured the continent in search of the cat tribe for some beast sex, but ultimately failed to find a trace and gave up—or so the setting stated.
Yet here was one of those rare races.
This was no small stroke of luck.
Truth be told, since the devastating defeat was 500 years ago, if they'd diligently bred and stably grown their village, their numbers might have multiplied many times over by now.
Still, a rare species was a rare species. I never imagined I'd get to see one up close.
Ever since becoming a tentacle monster, my already voracious libido and desires had intensified even further. For a pervert like me who loved naughty things, sex with a cat-eared race?
'No way I can hold back.'
While peeking at "Yuri's" status, I nurtured my desire to ravish her. I'd already run mental simulations of violating her in all sorts of ways over 300 times.
"......"
Yuri flinched.
As if reading my mind, she suddenly distanced herself from me. She approached Rosa and whispered softly to her.
"......Thick lust is emanating from that monster."
"Huh? L-Lust, you say?"
"Yeah. It wants to violate us."
What? She can sense that too?
I was astonished, but a glance at her status revealed the reason.
The skill called Cat Intuition.
Yuri possessed a skill. Among its descriptions was the ability to faintly detect an opponent's desires—that must be how she knew.
'Looks like all cat tribe members have this skill.'
Of course, it could just be her good fortune, but it made more sense as a racial trait.
I couldn't confirm it yet, but such curiosities would naturally resolve once I violated Yuri and turned her into my female.
While I pondered, Rosa and Yuri conferred.
"It wants to violate us...... What do we do? Don't tell me Amy and Piona also fell to that monster......!"
Yuri nodded at Rosa's words.
"Probably. No way they escaped it."
Yuri gazed at me with chilling eyes.
"We have to kill it. Lust that intense...... I've never sensed anything like it. Even if we flee, it'll chase us. That thing...... is pure lust incarnate."
She knows me so well. Spot-on description.
"Hoo, cover me...... I'll take the front."
"Uh, yeah!"
Whoosh!
Yuri entrusted her back to Rosa and charged straight at me.
Her eyes burned with icy killing intent and unyielding resolve to slay me.
The moment she realized I wanted to ravish her, she'd cranked her wariness to maximum.
'Fast.'
Yuri, presumed to be a B-Class Adventurer, displayed speed on another level from C-Class Adventurers.
No, this wasn't even ordinary B-Class speed. I'd seen it in her status, but her stats rivaled the lowest tier of A-Class.
Among B-Class, she was undoubtedly top-tier.
In an instant, I extended three thorn tentacles to halt her charge.
Thorn tentacles that killed men in one strike. Their power was proven.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
But Yuri's speed surpassed the thorn tentacles.
With minimal motion, she batted them aside, dodged all incoming basic tentacles, and closed in on my main body.
Splat!
'Ugh.'
An unbelievably swift strike.
Her sword sliced into my body.
My first wound. Not deep, but definite damage to my tentacle flesh.
No pain. But it felt unpleasant.
The sensation of something cutting my body wasn't pleasant at all.
Swoosh!
I thrust out thorn tentacles again to seize Yuri, who had delved deep.
If I could just bind her, victory was mine.
I blocked her retreat with basic and thorn tentacles, but Yuri evaded every one with acrobatic maneuvers, slipping free unscathed.
Whoosh!
"Whoa......"
Rosa gaped in admiration at the sight.
Yuri's movements were like a dance. Beautiful. Graceful.
"......"
Meanwhile, Yuri—who had landed a solid hit with her dazzling display—frowned. Her expression grew graver.
"No time to gawk. That monster...... took no damage......"
"Huh?"
"The spot I cut. It regenerated in seconds."
It wasn't no damage. Her sword had definitely sliced me. I'd just consumed stored nutrients to regenerate immediately.
But Yuri wasn't entirely wrong.
Healing that sword wound had barely dented my reserves.
I could take 100 more such attacks from her and keep regenerating.
"Th-Then what do we......"
Despair clouded Rosa's face at the words. Yuri glared at me coolly before speaking.
"It probably...... has a weakness."
"A weakness?"
"Yeah. Something like slicing faster than it can regen, or severing all tentacles. Otherwise, that level of regeneration doesn't make sense. Problem is, we don't know the conditions......"
Neither was correct, but Yuri's insight was sharp. I did have a weakness: destruction of the core inside my body meant death.
But I had no intention of dying to her.
I had too much I wanted to do in this world.
Becoming a tentacle monster, I'd decided to embrace this body and its desires. Whether instinctual or not, turning pretty women into my exclusive females and having sex with them felt incredible.
I'd keep adding to their numbers. I'd claim every beauty on the continent as mine. That was my goal.
'And revenge on the goddess who sent me here.'
Embracing the tentacle body didn't negate revenge.
Even if this tentacle life satisfied me more than my Earth one, the goddess kidnapping me from my comfortable existence and dumping me here was outrageous.
My revenge? Pinning her body with countless tentacles and thrusting genital tentacles into her pussy to my heart's content.
'Not sure if it's feasible.'
Anyway. I couldn't die before achieving my dreams and revenge.
Yuri's agility: 61.
Impressive, but she was human—er, beastkin. Cat tribe, but still only two hands and two feet.
Me? I could wield 23 tentacles. Eight combat tentacles, plus eight basic ones, for 16 in battle.
Eight times her limbs. Far more attack combinations possible.
'Just stay calm.'
Before her thoughts hit my true weakness, I lashed out with one tentacle.
Boom!
Aimed at her position, but it only smashed the ground.
Swish!
Yuri spun gracefully, evading, then kicked off the earth with momentum, charging me.
I blocked her path with a blunt tentacle, surrounded her with basic ones, and launched a thorn tentacle head-on at max acceleration.
Clang!
But Yuri parried the thorn and dodged the encircling basics with dance-like flair.
She landed lightly on a basic tentacle stabbing from behind, using it as a springboard to leap at me.
Seeming to think she'd figured me out, her moves grew bolder.
But my tentacles weren't done. I summoned more basics from within, firing them at her, while recovering the initial ones to strike from behind again.
Clang, clang-clang! Clang!
"......Tch."
Overwhelmed by the sudden influx, Yuri frantically swung her gladius to bat them away.
No matter how many she deflected, the onslaught continued, stalling her advance.
Watching, I realized: she wasn't bolder. She was getting hasty.
Desperate to pile on damage and seize control, her parries screamed impatience.
Impatience poisons battle.
Swoosh!
I crossed and fired thorn tentacles. The blunt one smashed down from above, pressing her from all sides.
Yuri advanced a step, twisting the thorns' paths, then rolled to evade the blunt.
Basics from blind spots? She slashed them with flashy swordplay.
Then, I unleashed max-power magic bullets via mana tentacles.
"......!?"
Unaware I could use magic, her eyes widened. She twisted desperately, barely dodging.
In the process, her hood tore raggedly.
"Y-Yuri......!"
Rosa cried out in worry, then gasped wide-eyed at the two cat ears atop Yuri's head.
Humans and beastkin didn't mingle.
Beastkin innately surpassed humans in physical prowess, mana potential, and unique racial abilities.
Jealous humans had discriminated against them since ancient times.
For over 1,000 years, humans and beastkin had lived at odds, with humans periodically indoctrinating the masses that beastkin were enemies.
Of course, good humans existed—those who treated beastkin equally or visited their lands for.
But beastkin, scarred by humans, executed such well-meaning intruders in their territories. Humans prejudiced against beastkin seized the chance, penning malicious, exaggerated articles to stoke hatred.
Thus, wounds between the races festered deeply.
Rosa seemed shocked at Yuri being beastkin but quickly schooled her face to neutrality, resuming crossbow fire to cover her.
Rosa apparently harbored no prejudice against beastkin.
Yet even if Rosa didn't, Yuri was shaken by her identity's exposure.
Her lovely eyes quivered faintly.
She forced composure, feigning nonchalance in her attacks, but the moment I saw her pupils shake, I knew victory was mine.
Swoosh!
The facts—no damage on me, my intensifying assaults, her beastkin reveal—had plainly rattled Yuri.
The mystical grace in her movements was fading.
'No, wait......'
But soon, I realized I was wrong.
Her movements hadn't dulled. She still danced with magical beauty.
It wasn't her decline—it was me adapting to combat.
'I can see it.'
Her movements.
Once inscrutable as a mystic dance, each motion now became predictable.
My tentacles pressed Yuri far harder than before.
"......Ngh!"
I lacked combat experience.
Fights with Elrine's escort and with Piona and Amy—that was it, two scraps.
In those, instinct had guided me, and I'd marveled at the tentacle monster's battle talent.
But no. I'd been like someone awestruck by the beach, blind to ocean depths.
Fighting Yuri, I grew in real time. The tentacle monster's genius instincts and growth rate in battle led me.
Swoosh! Swish!
Yuri held out awhile longer, but limits came.
About 30 seconds after adapting? She allowed my first hit.
Splat!
"Kgh......!"
A thorn tentacle grazed her right side. Not deep, but blood sprayed, and my paralyzing venom seeped in.
Victory sealed.
Even left alone, the venom would constrict her, but I had no patience for delay.
In battle, once momentum shifts, the snowball grows uncontrollably.
After the first opening, Yuri soon exposed another. I seized it, whipping a basic tentacle to coil her body.
"Kyaa......!"
A scream unfit for her hitherto calm demeanor.
I bound her with four basics, immobilizing her, then reeled her in.
Yuri struggled with grunts to escape, but futile.
Her pupils shook unprecedentedly.
Her perked cat ears drooped limply.
Finally caught her.