Li Mei's Charm

"Li Mei?!"

The moment I realized who I was dealing with, my guard dropped. I couldn't help it. It was pure spinal reflex — automatic, involuntary.

"Ohoho."

Li Mei laughed and flicked her arm. Three throwing knives came flying and sank deep into my shoulder and side. Caught off guard by her appearance, I neither dodged nor deflected them.

Even accounting for the surprise, those throws were insanely fast. I couldn't react in time. She's good.

I yanked the three blades out of my body and tossed them to the ground.

"Hmm? You didn't even flinch. Doesn't that hurt?"

"This much is nothing."

"There's poison on them, you know? Not a lethal toxin, but by now you should be collapsing…"

My head was spinning a little, but nowhere near enough to put me down. And even that dizziness was fading fast.

Courtesy of Heavenly Demon Physique (S), Heavenly Demon Divine Art (SSS), and Combat Recovery (A). Ordinary poisons didn't work on me.

"Do I look that fragile to you?"

"The opposite. I figured you were strong. I just didn't expect this strong. Impressive."

Li Mei smiled sweetly.

A cascade of notification windows popped up. I looked at Li Mei. Status ailments didn't just appear for no reason. She'd done something to me.

Li Mei was smiling as if she had no idea what I was talking about. Looking at that beautiful face, even the anger that had started to rise simply melted away.

"Your wounds are already healing? Even Combat Recovery (A) shouldn't work that fast."

"I've got other skills. Plus, my stamina's exceptional."

"Oh, please. What does stamina have to do with anything?"

Li Mei laughed as if she couldn't believe what she'd heard. For an assassin who'd just tried to kill me, the atmosphere had gotten strangely relaxed.

"Aren't you curious?"

"About what?"

"Why I'm trying to kill Number 62."

"I am curious. If I ask, will you tell me?"

"No reason not to."

I toyed with my sword hilt, then decided to hear her out. I'd never planned on killing her from the start.

My mind was already working on how best to subdue her.

"…"

I stared at Li Mei.

She crossed her arms, which only made her ample chest more pronounced above her forearms.

"You're curious, aren't you?"

Her voice dripped with coquetry. It was infuriating, but I decided to listen anyway.

Status ailment: Charm? Debuffs this mild barely matter. They stack, sure — but I've got Heavenly Mind.

In this situation, I held an absolute advantage.

"Why are you trying to kill me? I've never made an enemy of the Black Pillar Alliance."

"There's no grudge. This is a form of management."

"Management?"

"Yes. The Forest of Life has one hidden condition. Once challengers accumulate one million Life Points, they gain the right to challenge the Ruler."

"One million Life Points? I only just hit fifty thousand, and the other challengers have even less than me."

"Ah, I left out the word 'cumulative.' I mean one million Life Points accumulated across all challengers so far."

I already knew this from the setting guide. I was just playing along.

"Originally I planned to handle management next time, or the time after that… but Number 62 racked up way more Life Points than expected, so I had to step in today."

"So you kill me, and you get the right to challenge the Ruler."

"Exactly. As the Manager, I'm also a challenger. With Manager privileges, I can enter the Forest of Life whenever I want. The problem is I can't earn Life Points outside of Challenge Time."

"Never letting anyone else claim the right to challenge the Ruler. That's the Manager's role, then."

Even while talking, Li Mei kept shifting her posture in subtle ways, applying Charm — emphasizing her chest, stretching out those pale legs, showing off her slender waist. I watched her little performance with genuine enjoyment. She was so good at seducing men it was hard to believe she was actually a virgin.

I was getting a little hard.

"A challenger who earns the right can attempt the Forest of Life again later. They might come back with a whole party of allies… so I manage them before that happens. Ah — time's up."

"…You resisted Bewitchment? That's impossible!"

"My mental fortitude's a bit on the high side. So — what should I do with you now?"

"W-wait. Can't we finish this with words? There's still time for that."

"If it's a conversation of the body, I'll consider it."

I grinned and started walking toward her. The thought of taking her by force made my cock throb.

Li Mei flung her arm at me again. Knives came flying.

Ting! Ting! Ting!

This wasn't like before, when I'd been caught off guard. I swatted every last blade out of the air. Li Mei spun and fled, tearing down the forest path. She was fast — her Agility stat had to be high.

A game of tag, is it? Fine. I'll play along.

I followed after her with a thoroughly pleased expression. The qipao Li Mei was wearing was essentially a miniskirt. The harder she ran, the more the fabric fluttered, flashing black T-back panties underneath. Her ass was moon-pale, round, and firm.

Whether Charm was a skill or an innate trait, the cooldown was definitely one minute. It stacked, and it was clearly mental-type.

The real question is the activation condition — and I still don't know it. Is it because I'm a man?

Even as I thought it, I dismissed the possibility. If the condition were that easy, the effect would be proportionally weak.

"Stop! Stop chasing me! I give up!"

"I just need to check something. Let me check."

"…Check what?"

"Whether you're a virgin or not!"

"You lunatic!!"

I was running along, eyes locked on Li Mei's T-back-clad ass, when the ground suddenly dropped out from under me. A cold draft from below. Looking down, I saw a pit packed full of sharp spear points.

I cloaked myself in pitch-black Heavenly Demon Qi and hit the bottom. The upward-facing spear blades shattered on impact.

Rrrrk! Clank!

Iron bars slammed shut overhead. I looked at the walls — iron grates had been concealed there all along.

From above, Li Mei peered down at me. Between her thighs, black panties barely covering her sex peeked into view.

"You resisted Bewitchment again? You really are something. For someone who falls for Charm so easily…"

Li Mei sounded thoroughly fed up.

So Bewitchment triggers every five stacks of Charm.

I grabbed the iron bars. They were solid.

"Did you set this up?"

"No. I don't know much about traps. He prepared them."

Li Mei pointed to the side. A man stumbled into view — eyes unfocused, grinning like an idiot. One of the four challengers who'd fled from me earlier.

"Hehehehe… I did everything just as Lady Li Mei wanted…! A reward! Please give me a reward!"

"Of course. Go bash your head against that tree over there until you die."

"Thank you, Lady Li Mei!!"

A moment later came a heavy thud. He'd actually smashed his skull against a tree and died.

The man had not been in his right mind.

"Is that what Bewitchment does to people?"

"Yes. He took Charm fifteen times and Bewitchment three times. Get hit by Bewitchment once and you become my loyal slave for half a day. Take it three times and you'll throw your life away for me without a second thought. Most men can't resist Bewitchment at all… Number 62, you're remarkable."

"What's the condition for Charm?"

"Feeling sexual attraction toward me."

"So that's why a virgin dresses like that?"

"This qipao is an extraordinary piece of clothing. Over ninety percent of men feel sexual attraction just from looking at me. Makes applying Charm ridiculously easy."

"The other ten percent are the surprising ones."

"Turns out they were gay."

One in ten men being gay. Horrifying.

Regardless, Li Mei's ability was outstanding. She was a man's natural predator.

"Killing that guy earlier was a mistake. You don't actually think something this pathetic can stop me, do you?"

Crrrk.

I put my strength into it and shattered the iron bars. They weren't ordinary metal — my hands stung. Li Mei gave a bitter smile and prepared to run.

"It's fine. That trap specialist already did his job."

It didn't take long to understand what she meant.

The traps had already been laid all around us.

"Tch."

I clicked my tongue in irritation. Even I didn't have infinite stamina. I'd just finished fighting the maggot monsters and was already worn out. And more than anything, Li Mei made it nearly impossible to focus on the traps. Every time she ran, that fluttering skirt hem, those bouncing braless breasts — I couldn't tear my eyes off her.

BOOM!

Caught in an explosion trap, cracked over the head by a falling tree, dropped into a pit — I triggered more than twenty traps in total. But eventually even the traps ran out. There was a limit to how many they'd prepared.

"Oh, come on! You've been hit by Bewitchment five times! How is your mind still intact?!"

"Because my mental fortitude isn't ordinary."

"This is so annoying!"

Li Mei kept running. Fear was starting to seep into the eyes she cast back at me. She was tiring too as the minutes dragged on. Her body was soaked in sweat, and the pink qipao clung wetly enough to show the skin beneath.

Pink nipples!

I was drenched in sweat myself, of course. I suppressed the urge to use Complete Recovery. I wanted to take her in this state — just like this.

Exhausted, we were both slower than when we'd started.

"Ugh, seriously! How long are you going to chase me? I give up! You should give up too, Number 62!"

"I'm not giving up!"

Something appeared to interfere with my pursuit. A small monster with a rabbit's body and a lizard's face. Every creature that tried to slow me down while I chased her met the same fate. I kicked the rabbit-monster into a tree, and it died on impact.

A middling item.

Luck was the hardest stat to raise, and the amplification only lasted ten minutes.

My ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Luck is at 49 right now. Should I try it and see what happens?

I was still holding the talisman, mulling it over, when I noticed how much distance had opened up between me and Li Mei and took off in a hurry. Too much gap to be leisurely about it.

"Stop… just stop already!"

"If you'd just let yourself get caught, this would be over."

"If I stop, you'll rape me!!"

"Heh. I'm never stopping. Let's see how long you can keep running from me."

"Time's up! Aren't you going back?!"

"My target is you!"

"Why did I have to run into a psycho like this…"

Li Mei's voice cracked with tears. I had no intention of going easy on her for it. I wiped the sweat from my brow with the back of my hand and kept running. She was just as soaked.

The debuffs were massive.

The worst of them was the fifteen-second immobilization. Up ahead, Li Mei sat on a rock with a faint smile, taking a rest. So she could see these notifications too.

Good thing she's exhausted as well. Otherwise she would've shaken me off completely.

The notification about high Luck resisting Charm's effects had vanished. That was only natural — Charm was stacked a hundred and fifteen times.

Would higher Luck change anything? I could use Complete Recovery… ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠but…

I really wanted to try the Luck talisman.

If I want to, I might as well.

Ten times Luck.

With my Luck at 49, that meant 490 for the next ten minutes.

If this had been Strength or Agility, it would have been an absurd boost… but this was Luck.

…Nothing's happening. No — too early to say. Li Mei could trip while running.

Fifteen seconds passed and I could move again. Li Mei fled, and I chased. Thirty seconds went by without her falling once.

Damn it. Luck! What the hell are you doing?! Help me already!!

One minute was almost up.

Charm would trigger again.

And once more, I'd be frozen for fifteen seconds.

"This is the last one. This will be the end of it."

Li Mei grinned even as she ran, a throwing knife in her hand. Before, she'd been too frantic to notice the pattern — but not this time.

…I'll use Complete Recovery the moment I get close.

I still had one absolute trump card.

"Kyaaaaaah! Th-that's impossible!!"

Li Mei screamed and froze in place. She looked at me with a melting expression — her gaze sticky with desire, her cheeks flushed scarlet.

"Hnnngh… Number 62… I love youuu."

Li Mei spread her arms and came toward me.

What the hell is this now.