Chapter 128: Unicorns, Bicorns, and the Wolf (1)
Chapter 128: Unicorns, Bicorns, and the Wolf (1)
"This is a bit of a problem..."
The Magic Onahole had been neutralized, but there was no telling when the Magic Tool Maker might try another one of his sleazy tricks. I couldn't exactly spend every waking moment worrying about bumping into someone whenever I walked through a crowd.
On the other hand, staying cooped up inside wasn't an option for a Hero. In the end, the best solution I could come up with was to speed up the progress of wiping out the Villain Association as quickly as possible.
‘But that’s easier said than done.’
I hadn't seen the Hypnotist, Han Yoo-seong, since the Academy incident, and while I often saw traces of the Beast Tamer whenever I cleared Gates, I had never actually met the guy in person.
The problem was that the villains belonging to the Association didn't end with just those two. There was the Doppelganger I met last time, and now this Magic Tool Maker.
‘I should probably assume that all the villains I’ve crossed paths with are executive-level.’
Since the Academy incident, the Villain Association's atrocities had begun to take center stage. That didn't mean villainous crimes had increased exponentially, though. The frequency of crimes remained the same as usual.
However, what bothered me was the recent surge in villains who, upon being arrested, proudly proclaimed their membership in the Villain Association.
Being caught meant they were weak. None of the arrested villains were big shots with executive-level status like the Hypnotist, the Beast Tamer, or the Magic Tool Maker. They all had pathetic abilities, and the scale of their crimes was minuscule.
One might ask what the point was of these weak, trashy villains using the Association's name. But the Hero Association was on high alert, fearing that this could lead to even more villains being recruited. They were even being careful about the name "Villain Association" getting too much media coverage.
‘I don’t have time to waste on trash like them.’
My thoughts were a bit different, though. I didn't care whether the arrested trash screamed the Association's name or not. They didn't understand the leadership or the executives of the Villain Association at all.
The movements of the arrested villains—the ones who seemed like bottom-tier grunts—and the movements of those presumed to be executives were entirely different.
‘There’s a clear disconnect.’
Among the villains in the Association, there were those who just lived however they wanted, and then there were those who moved according to the Association's official objectives. Most of the ones I had encountered belonged to the latter group. Specifically, the ones who were targeting the Operator and ended up getting tangled with me.
‘The Magic Tool Maker who messed with me and the Operator this time, the Beast Tamer who pre-buffs the monsters in the Gates I’m scheduled to visit, and the Hypnotist goes without saying.’
On average, the stronger and more terrifying villains were moving according to the Association's common goal—recruiting the Operator and eliminating Magical Girl Floss. Conversely, the trashy villains with negligible abilities were just busy satisfying their own selfish desires.
Based on this, it was clear that the Villain Association had a distinct hierarchy between the top brass and the bottom feeders. No matter how many villains joined the Association, the number of elites wouldn't increase drastically, which was good news for the Operator and me.
‘I just need to crush all those top-level bastards. Since there are probably some I haven't met yet, maybe there are five or six of them?’
The problem was that even if I wanted to crush them, I had no way of finding them. Well, not no way. If my hunch was right, I might be seeing one of the executives, the Beast Tamer, quite soon.
‘The Gates.’
I had never seen the Beast Tamer in person. However, whenever I entered a Gate to clear out monsters, he always left traces showing he had been there just before I arrived. His method was incredibly petty.
First, he’d hear news of which Gate I was visiting and enter it one step ahead of me. Second, he’d use his abilities—fitting for the name Beast Tamer—to buff the Boss Monster. Third, he’d leisurely escape the Gate, praying that the newly empowered monster would slit my throat.
‘Always right before I get there.’
I’d been hit by this a few times now, but it wasn't a huge burden. Even a monster buffed by the Beast Tamer was still just a monster. I could suppress them without much trouble using my strength.
But now that I was starting to see the Beast Tamer's pattern, I figured I could use it against him.
‘If he’s moving one step ahead because he knows which Gate I’m visiting, can’t I just move two steps ahead?’
It wasn't just wordplay. If I timed it right, it seemed possible. I had nothing to lose by trying, so there was no harm in giving it a shot.
...When I finally meet him, I'm going to beat the living shit out of him.
[Whine...]
"Aw, did our little Rang-i miss his mommy?"
As I lay on my bed brooding, Rang-i—the cub of 'Noe-rang,' the Boss Monster of a Gate I cleared recently—hopped up. I picked him up and set him back down as he naturally tried to crawl between my legs to lick my pussy.
"Rang-i's getting heavy now. It hasn't been that long since I started raising you; did Mommy feed you too well?"
[Woof! Woof!]
"It's not some erotic novel setting where a Magical Girl's pussy juice is so full of energy that you grew up fast by eating it, right? You're just growing fast because you're a monster, right?"
[Growl...]
"Please tell me that's it. Mommy's getting worried..."
Come to think of it, the Beast Tamer was also Rang-i's enemy. It was the Beast Tamer who had messed with Noe-rang. Thinking about that made him seem even more despicable.
‘...Well, technically, I’m the one who beat Noe-rang to a pulp and took him down.’
But if you think about it, the Beast Tamer buffed Noe-rang, which is why I was deployed in the first place. If it had been an unbuffed Noe-rang, he might never have had to see me or be defeated by me.
"There, there. Next time I go to a Gate, you're coming with me. We have to avenge your father."
[Woof! Woof woof!]
"Ahng♡ I told you not to lick my pussy, so now you're licking my nipples... anyway, I take it that's a yes?"
A few days after making that promise to Rang-i, I was assigned an A-Rank Gate clearing mission.
*
"Two of them?"
"Yes, they say it's a rare dungeon where two Boss Monsters appear."
I tilted my head at the Association Chairman's words. Not one, but two bosses. However, after hearing the reconnaissance team's findings, the theme of the Gate started to make sense.
"A Unicorn and a Bicorn. They say both appear simultaneously."
"Heh."
A Unicorn. A legendary animal usually depicted as a white horse with a single horn on its forehead. It's so famous from various media that practically everyone knows what it is.
The Bicorn, however, is a bit less famous. It also has horns, but while a Unicorn usually has one, a Bicorn has two. And while a Unicorn is depicted as a white horse, a Bicorn is often shown as a black horse.
The problem was that these two weren't just ordinary horses with horns. Since it was an A-Rank Gate, they’d be weaker than me anyway, so putting their power aside, the specific traits of the Unicorn and Bicorn were very concerning.
"Um... if those two are together, it's definitely that, right?"
"So you know?"
Unicorns love virgins. Conversely, Bicorns are friendly toward non-virgins.
I didn't want to admit it, but if I entered that Gate, the Bicorn would probably approach me, snorting happily. The Unicorn, on the other hand, would run away in horror.
‘Just imagining it makes me sad...’
I could deal with the Unicorn running away. I’d have to chase it down and clear it anyway. But I had to avoid a scene where the Unicorn fled from me being caught on camera or seen by others.
"I definitely have to go alone this time."
"You could go with other Heroes, so why is that?"
"You know why. I'm a Magical Girl; I have to maintain my image."
"I suppose so. We can't have the world finding out that our Magical Girl Floss—voted the #1 Hero most admired by schoolgirls—is actually a total slut non-virgin Hero that Unicorns recoil from and Bicorns go crazy for."
"......"
The consequences of doing whatever I felt like without thinking about the future were hitting me now. I couldn't turn back now that I had already learned the pleasures of being a female, but the shame was mine to bear.
"Anyway, I'm going alone, so just know that."
It wasn't just about protecting children's dreams. I had to maintain the image of Magical Girl Floss being pure, bold, and strong-willed so that it would feel even more erotic when I eventually entered Female Mode and got fucked.
"But are you really okay going alone? This is your first time in a dungeon with two Boss Monsters."
"...I think I'll be fine, but if you're that worried, I'll bring a companion."
"A companion?"
I nodded, thinking of the large dog... no, the wolf, 'Rang-i,' who would be scratching his belly at home.
"Well... do as you wish. I'll schedule the Gate entry for three days from now. You'll be contacted separately, so just head to the Gate as usual..."
"No. Move it up. Not three days—two, or even one day from now is fine."
"Really? What about time to prepare?"
"What do I need to prepare besides my own body? I want to catch the Beast Tamer this time."
The Association Chairman also knew that the Beast Tamer always appeared one step ahead of me. Perhaps he had expected me to make such a proposal, as he readily agreed.
"I'll release information to the media saying the clearing is scheduled for three days from now. But you'll enter in a day and a half. I'll keep it top secret so it doesn't leak to the Villain Association. Will that work?"
"Perfect."
"I'll have to intentionally reduce the Gate security personnel so the Beast Tamer can enter easily. Floss, I really hope you catch him. Those bastards have been causing quite a lot of trouble lately."
"Just trust me. Guys like that aren't even a match for my fists."
As I thumped my large chest, the Chairman looked at me with trust that quickly turned into suspicion.
"This time, I'd appreciate it if you could... hold back on that 'defeat play' thing a little."
"...I won't! Do you think I can't tell when it's appropriate and when it's not? Honestly!"
Actually, I wasn't particularly confident as I said it. Could I really refrain this time?
Regardless, a day and a half later, I entered the Gate a bit earlier than the publicly announced time. I was accompanied by Rang-i, who had sharpened his teeth to avenge his father by hunting the Beast Tamer.
As soon as I entered the Gate, I came face-to-face with a masked man. A mysterious man who was gently stroking the white mane and the dull eyes of the horned white horse—the Unicorn.
Even without a status window like the Operator, I could identify him.
"...It's you, isn't it?"
I finally found him. The Beast Tamer.