The Sealing Stone
The quest to uncover "Elder Lich Hegellina Krenkel's Sealed Laboratory" wasn't merely a prerequisite for unlocking a high-level dungeon; it also served as an affection event for Lampon Pashtra.
Simply bringing her along and clearing the dungeon yielded a massive spike in her affection gauge. Considering that clearing the dungeon was already mandatory, getting a heroine bundled into the bargain made it feel practically like a complimentary romance quest.
"Lord Alzen. Aren't you staring a bit too intently?"
"Honestly, how could anyone not look? You're staring too."
"...Admittedly, it does command one's gaze."
Back in the game, the moment players hit the level requirement, almost everyone scrambled to clear this chained questline first. It was notoriously long and tedious, forcing you to swallow a mountain of unpalatable frustration near the end, but the sheer majesty of that colossal bust and voluptuous backside made every bit of misery well worth the trouble.
Besides, Lampon Pashtra's combat performance wasn't half bad either. Passing her up felt like an outright loss. While it was true she couldn't quite rival the primary heroine candidates in raw output, her unique skill more than made up for any shortcomings.
"Whoa! They're huge!"
"Just what on earth do you have to eat to get this big?"
"I wanna touch them too!"
"Ah, ahhn...! W-Wait...!"
At that very moment, those immense mounds of flesh had been reduced to playthings, kneaded at the whims of curious little hands. Despite the relatively thick, oversized tunic draped over her frame, the rippling contours beneath were so vivid that looking away was an exercise in futility.
Damn, I'm so jealous... And I really want to know what they feel like.
Could I casually slip in there and take a squeeze myself?
"...This is the first time I have ever felt such a crushing sense of defeat regarding my own figure. It is a rather unfamiliar sensation," Rebecca muttered from the side.
To be fair, Rebecca's figure was nothing to scoff at in any normal setting. It was simply that Lampon Pashtra's proportions defied all mortal standards. It was as though the entirety of male carnal desire and shadowy, unfiltered fantasy had been distilled and sculpted into human form.
That made her all the more fascinating. Her face was merely pleasant and handsome, yet the moment your gaze drifted even an inch lower, the sheer visual violence seized your senses, stoking an impulsive, intoxicating heat deep within your gut.
"Hmm..."
Tearing my eyes away from her chest and hips with considerable effort, I took in her entire physique, and the reason for her allure became immediately apparent.
"...Oh."
I hadn't fully registered it before, but she was surprisingly tall. She stood a bit taller even than Nemeth, the tallest and leanest woman in our retinue aside from myself, bringing the crown of her head level with my eyes. That commanding height allowed her to effortlessly carry those absurd, provocative curves in perfect harmony.
In other words, there was none of the awkward top-heaviness one might expect. None at all. It was another kind of perfection altogether—the polar opposite of slender beauty.
"The more I look, the more incredible it gets..."
"U-Um, isn't it a bit rude to stare so openly at a woman's body...?"
Belatedly noticing my scrutiny, Pashtra crossed her arms over her chest, her face flushing crimson. Naturally, a bust of that magnitude couldn't be concealed by a pair of forearms; the gesture merely squished the soft mounds into an even more lewd and provocative shape.
Guh...
I genuinely wanted to touch them, if only to satisfy my curiosity. Wasn't there some way?
I tilted back my bottle and chugged, attempting to drown the throbbing heat surging from my gut.
"...Men really are all the same. What's so great about a lump of fat like that anyway?"
Cacciola, who was clinging tightly to my side and undoubtedly feeling every single involuntary reaction my body was having, struck right at the heart of the matter. I kept my mouth shut. I had no defense.
Worse, I couldn't even offer a rational explanation for why I was so drawn to it. What was I supposed to do when my eyes tracked her on pure instinct? My spiritual cultivation was far too shallow to rein in such primal urges.
Muriel, Rebecca, and Wendy fixed me with icy glares, but I studiously ignored them, tipping the bottle back once more.
Reaching the first Sealing Stone indicated by the staff didn't take very long. Or perhaps it did, considering we spent half a day cooped up inside the carriage. It was hard to tell.
Unlike our previous journey in a rough baggage wagon, this carriage was so absurdly comfortable that my perception of time was warped. Back then, a few hours on the road left every muscle bruised and stiff, but here, the ride was so smooth you barely felt the motion. Zoning out for a bit made hours vanish in an instant.
"Is that the Sealing Stone you mentioned, Lord Alzen?"
At Muriel's prompt, I nodded.
Roughly two hundred meters ahead, a massive boulder stood inexplicably embedded in the middle of the barren wasteland.
"Lampon Pashtra. Look over there."
"Eek?! W-What is it?!"
Pulling Pashtra toward the carriage window, I casually slung an arm around her shoulder and pointed toward the rock.
"That stone is a testament to your ancestor's glorious deeds."
"...That rock is?"
"Yeah. It's one of the sealing stones used to bind an ancient, monstrous Elder Lich and his entire dungeon back during the mythic era."
"...!" Her expression grew solemn as she sank into quiet thought. "I see... So that staff was an artifact designed to reveal the locations of these sealing stones."
"Exactly. In a way, that stone belongs to you, seeing as your ancestors left it behind."
"No. I have not the slightest intention of claiming ownership."
"Really? Good girl."
"A-A good girl...? Um, was that a compliment? T-Thank you..."
Blushing shyly, she fidgeted in place.
Jiggle, bounce.
...I'm losing my mind.
I wanted to keep things serious if possible, but with that gargantuan chest demanding my attention at every shift in posture, it was simply impossible. This wouldn't do. If I didn't scratch this itch somehow, it was going to plague me the entire trip.
"Lampon Pashtra. Can I ask a favor?"
"Y-Yes? A favor? What kind of favor?"
"Let me feel your breasts. Just once."
"...Excuse me?"
She stared at me in disbelief, and for a fleeting second, a glint of sheer disdain flickered in her eyes.
"...So you're just another helpless man after all."
"Can't deny that."
"Do you... really want to touch them that badly?"
"Yeah. Incredibly badly. No matter what."
"T-That much? Um, well... I suppose... I already knew my chest and hips tend to stir up lust in men..."
Muttering as if rationalizing it to herself, she peeked at me with flushed cheeks, her expression a mix of bashfulness and hesitation, before timidly pressing closer against my side.
"B-But only for a little bit, okay...?"
Wait, she's actually allowing it?
I was momentarily caught off guard. Honestly, I'd thrown the request out with full readiness to back off if she refused. Seeing her cave so easily made me genuinely worried about her judgment.
"Thanks. Really."
Still, concern was concern, and permission was permission. I wasn't about to waste it.
Grab!
Dropping the arm around her shoulder, I brought my other hand up and clamped down on both breasts at once—slipping my hands straight past the collar of her clothes onto bare skin.
"Hyaah...?! W-Wait! Directly against the skin...?!"
"Oh, ohhh...!"
They were impossibly soft, yet possessed a rich, clinging density and a taut, elastic rebound. An utterly addictive, supreme texture. If given the choice, I could spend the rest of my life kneading them.
"Nnnh, ah, aahhh...!"
Every time I pressed in with the full breadth of my palms and dug my fingers into the yielding flesh, an airy gasp slipped past her lips. Her ample hips twitched involuntarily, grinding backward against my groin. Her backside was so vast that pressing against it felt like sinking into a feather bed.
"Does it feel good?"
As I slotted my rock-hard member into the cleft of her buttocks and nudged forward, she gasped in shock, her pelvis instinctively canting upward—almost as if begging to be taken.
Squeeze!
"Ahyeeeh?! W-Wait... pinching there like that... ahhhnnn...!"
Matching the scale of her breasts, her pronounced, vivid pink areolae and prominent nipples responded intensely as I applied firm pressure. She jumped slightly, her features melting into a dazed expression as drool began to pool at the corner of her lips.
Her radiating body heat, the sudden rush of sweet feminine scent, and the raw friction against my groin sent my senses soaring, fanning the flames of predatory instinct. Ah, so this was true bliss. I was so glad to be alive.
"Incredible... Hey, Pashtra. Do you let other men touch you like this too?"
"Hnghh, d-don't whisper in my ear...! A-And you're the first man who's ever touched my chest, you know...?!"
"Is that so? Glad to hear it."
"Nnh, aht...! U-Um, how long are you going to keep squeezing...?! Please stop...!"
"Just a little more."
"Aah, aahn...! Ahhh...!"
I had no idea how long I kept at it, but suddenly she rose up onto her tiptoes, arching her back sharply. Her thighs locked tight, trembling with violent spasms.
"Eheeek...?!"
"Wait, did you just come from having your chest touched?"
"Haah, haaah... C-Come...? What is that...?"
"That sensation you just felt. That's what it means."
"Aahhn...! Y-Yes, I came...!"
With teary, glistening eyes and lips flushed a deeper red, her breathless declaration was the very picture of a female in heat.
"...Man, that's dangerous."
If I kept going, I was liable to cross a line I couldn't walk back from. Reluctantly, I pulled my hands away, savoring the residual warmth and softness clinging to my palms.
Clearing my throat, I turned back to the rest of the carriage.
"...What're you looking at?"
The younger girls hadn't fully grasped what had just transpired and seemed largely unbothered, but the older women in the group were glaring at me with half-lidded, razor-sharp eyes. Ignoring their judgment, I pressed forward.
"Ahem. At any rate... there's bound to be a guardian, so it's your turn to step up. Muriel, Rebecca."
"Understood."
"At your command."
Despite the frosty glares they leveled at me, Muriel and Rebecca drew their weapons without hesitation, prompting the others to gather around.
"Are the two of them enough?" Arpe asked, tilting her head.
"No? What are you talking about? You guys need to help too."
"Then why did you only call on those two?"
"Isn't it obvious? Nazareth Nemeth and Wendy aren't people I can just order around on a whim."
"...Why not?"
"What do you mean, why not?"
"I was under the impression that Lord Alzen was the leader of this party. Was I mistaken? Besides, I hardly expected you of all people to be so considerate of such boundaries."
"Are you implying I lack basic common sense?"
"I wouldn't phrase it so harshly... but very well. From this moment on, take command as our leader. You are free to direct both myself and Nemeth as you see fit."
"Oh? Well, if you insist..."
Glancing at Nemeth, I saw her nod with a resolute expression. Wendy, naturally, was already poised for orders.
"Alright, then—"
"Orabeoni! I can fight too!"
"Huh?"
Turning around, I saw Vivian with her sword already drawn, her eyes sparkling with an intense, competitive fire as she practically puffed steam from her nostrils. Reflexively, I took a step back and hid behind Muriel, shaking my head.
"...Vivian. It's too dangerous for you. Just watch from here."
"What?! No! I can fight, I really can!"
In a rare display of stubbornness, her face practically blazed with a desperate need for recognition. She clearly wanted nothing more than to prove her prowess before my eyes. Thinking about it, treating this as an early taste of real combat might not be the worst idea.
"Hmm... Fine. On one condition."
"What is it?"
"You only fight under the protection of Cecilia's and Arpe's buffs."
"Mmh... I really wanted to prove myself with my own strength..."
"Non-negotiable."
"I guess I have no choice... Okay! I'll do it!"
Ruffling the determined girl's hair, I glanced toward Cecilia and Arpe.
"I'll need buffs, please. Not just for Vivian, but for everyone."
"Understood."
"Leave it to me."
"Arpe. There's no need to use Forced Awakening."
"...I didn't expect you to know the name of my technique. Very well, as you wish."
Shortly thereafter, Cecilia's soft prayers and Arpe's melodious voice wove through the air, draping Muriel, Rebecca, Nemeth, Wendy, and Vivian in a faint, shimmering light.
"Hmm..."
Our party composition was absurdly skewed toward front-line melee fighters. We were sorely lacking ranged physical damage or offensive mages.
"Sister. Any interest in joining the fray?" I called toward Weller.
"None whatsoever. You have more than enough hands without me, don't you?"
"Fair point. Tsk..."
Taking a swig of liquor, I hopped down from the carriage and strode forward.
"Lord Alzen? Where are you going?"
"Where else? To lay down some initial damage."
"Pardon...?"
Flashing a grin at a bewildered Arpe as she hurried after me, I turned to Muriel, who held the barbarian staff.
"Muriel. Plant that staff into the rock."
"May I throw it?"
"Go ahead."
"Understood."
Fwip!
Hurled with the vicious momentum of a heavy javelin, the staff streaked through the air and embedded itself deep into the stone.
Immediately afterward—
AWOOOOOOOOOOO—!!
A deafening howl shook the very atmosphere, sweeping across the barren plains. From the shimmering air materialized an enormous wolf cloaked in silver fur.
A brilliant, sacred radiance draped its entire form. An oppressive, domineering aura weighed heavily upon all who looked upon it, and its eyes held the deep, luminous spark of keen intelligence. One glance was enough to tell this was no ordinary beast.
"Lord Alzen. That wolf...?"
"An incorporeal divine beast conjured through ancient holy arts. It's weaker than a genuine divine beast, but it's still roughly on par with a Sword Master. Don't let your guard down."
"...A mere guardian of a sealing stone is at the Master level?"
"If you can't even get past this, you wouldn't stand a chance against the Elder Lich anyway. Just get ready."
"Ah, yes..."
While Arpe pulled several instruments from her dimensional storage and prepared her accompaniment, the front-liners drew their weapons and took up vigilant stances against the silver wolf.
"Alright, let's begin. I'm going to land the first strike and immediately fall back, so move in the moment I do."
"Understood."
"Yes, My Lord."
"Orabeoni! Watch me!"
Hearing Vivian's bright, spirited voice ring out among the hardened warriors brought an involuntary smile to my face, but I quickly composed myself and channeled my focus into the Absolute Ring Set. If I appeared to take combat lightly, she might pick up bad habits.
"Whew... Here goes."
The moment my focus locked in, the crimson gem of the Absolute Taunt Ring flared with a sharp, piercing light.
ROOOOOAAAR!
Its eyes instantly rolling back in blind, bloodthirsty fury, the massive wolf lunged straight toward me, abandoning all reason.