The Origin's Trial
"Aaaahhhhaaaaahhh~~~!!"
Back on the second floor, Lilith buried her face in a pillow and let out a muffled scream.
She simply could not find the courage to face anyone — not after remembering what Kaisent's clones had done to her.
It was a blessing she had managed to restore her cock while Kaisent was unconscious. Otherwise it would have been too raw and painful even to touch.
I'm insane! Insane! Completely insane!!
But what truly mortified her was that every time the clones tormented her cock, the pain had gradually given way to pleasure.
She had felt agony so intense she had nearly been reverse-summoned — killed — yet at some point the pleasure had surpassed the pain, so overwhelming that her mind had nearly shattered, leaving her half-convinced the reverse-summon itself might come from pure ecstasy.
Forced to experience male and female pleasure at once, and reduced to a premature ejaculator every time her cock was abused, she could no longer last even five seconds.
Even after my manhood was put through that... what I felt first wasn't fear, but anticipation...!
If she kept living with Kaisent and ended up in that situation again, she could not even begin to imagine what would become of her.
Throb— Throb—
"Kh...!"
The moment the memory of the clones' torment resurfaced, her cock began to throb with a subtle, maddening itch.
She reverse-summoned her armor, and her cock sprang free — rock-hard, the tip aching, twitching with need.
That pleasure again...
Her Demon King of Lust blood left her with little patience when it came to desire. She grabbed her own cock.
"...Huh?"
Unlike when the clones had roughly seized her, gripping it herself produced no sensation at all.
Shlick-shlick-shlick—
She stroked up and down, but still felt nothing.
"W-Why!?"
When the clones had jerked her off, she had not lasted ten seconds!
She clenched it with both hands and pumped hard, but no matter how hard she tried, there was no hint of climax building.
"Hah. Hah. What the hell? Why!?"
Only after working herself into ragged breathing did Lilith realize something was wrong, her face going blank with bewilderment.
Have I become a body that can no longer be satisfied by masturbation...?
Thump—!
"Hahk!"
The moment she pictured Kaisent's many clones — cruel smiles on their faces as they swarmed her — her cock pulsed hard and a wave of climax-sensation hit her.
Overwhelming lust followed, and the desire to offer her cock to Kaisent consumed her mind.
"Nnh... ahhhnnn...!"
Then the Demon King of Lust's blood she had been suppressing awakened. Her armor writhed like a living creature, transforming until her back was completely exposed.
Her skin flushed pink, and black bat-like wings burst free and unfurled.
"Hahk! Hahk! Hoooh! N-No...! Not... now... I don't... want this...!"
Desperately rejecting the Demon King of Lust's blood, she forced her skin back to normal, the wings retracting into her body as her armor returned to its original form.
If this keeps up, I'll truly end up... with that boy... Aydan...
Still harboring a secret she had not told Kaisent, Lilith clung to the hope that Aydan might come to this world even now.
"There is only one rule. Use everything you have to fight until the other declares surrender."
"Y-Yes..."
My whole body is prickling! Ugh... why...
Having woken at lunchtime, Kaisent and his party had barely finished cleaning the room when word came that Akina was summoning him — and he had no choice but to head to the sparring grounds.
Lillian and the others had wanted to come along, but the knight delivering the order warned that Kaisent alone was to appear.
Arriving alone as instructed, Kaisent confirmed he was in decent condition — only to be forced into a sparring match by Akina's sudden demand.
"Then I shall begin. A word of warning beforehand."
Fully armed as if marching to war, spear in hand, Akina drew out her fighting spirit.
"If you do not fight with everything you have, you will die."
"!!"
KRAAAAAASH!!
She twisted her spear and thrust. A ferociously spinning shockwave blasted forth, tearing open a crater large enough for two adults to lie in where Kaisent had been standing.
Th-Th-That was close!!
Had he not dodged in a panic, he would have taken that monstrous shockwave head-on. He screamed inwardly.
"Hup!"
Then Akina closed in at high speed, spear gripped in one hand, stabbing in rapid succession like a light rapier.
BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG!
The problem was that each successive strike generated shockwaves powerful enough to rip up the ground and punch through walls.
Already, one side of the training hall was riddled with holes from these attacks alone.
I'm actually going to die!
A clean hit meant death. Even a graze would tear off chunks of flesh.
Kaisent teleported behind her in a flash. When she fixed him with a frigid glare, he bit back the urge to cry and forced words out.
"W-W-Wait a moment! At least tell me why!"
"Why?"
"Yes! A reason! Suddenly fighting Lady Akina?! At the very least, tell me why we have to fight!"
Seeing that Kaisent only fled and showed no will to fight, she considered something briefly before answering.
"Very well. One should know the reason before one dies."
"Eh...? Be...fore I die...?"
"The knights who witnessed your battle reported it. That you fought a man called Blood Zen, learned his techniques on the spot, grew explosively, and became strong enough to kill him."
Akina let killing intent bleed into her fighting spirit.
"That someone your age killed a warrior comparable to Origin is something that cannot — and must not — exist. Your rate of growth has exceeded my expectations. If a heterogeneous being gains such power, there is no telling what they might do."
"I-I would never think of such a—!"
"Do not worry. I will preserve your honor by saying you died from unexpected aftereffects of Blood Zen's underhanded schemes."
"......!"
"And I will dispose of Princess Lillian as well, so you will not lack for company on the road."
"Kh... hnnngh...!"
Kaisent, who had trusted and believed in Akina so deeply, broke into tears from the shock of betrayal.
"For reference, a magical barrier is erected over this training ground. Escape by teleportation is impossib—"
"Shut up."
"!!"
Wiping his tears, Kaisent silenced her with a face no one had ever seen from him before — a face steeped in murderous rage.
"I... regarded you as my benefactor...! I truly... respected you!!"
KRAAAAAAA——!!
Betrayed fury, comparable to what he had unleashed against Blood Zen, poured from Kaisent as he released his power in a violent surge.
His Helix Flow is warping the scenery around him...!
The Helix Flow was so powerful that the landscape distorted around Kaisent. Akina tensed, realizing she could not even begin to gauge the scale of the talent hidden within this child.
PAPAPAPAT!
Recognizing Akina as an enemy, Kaisent created clones and moved them into positions to surround her.
The clones emerged bearing the weapons Blood Zen had used, and whether they unconsciously received their original's will or not, every face was twisted with rage.
The Kaisents wrapped in Helix Flow closed the encirclement as one and charged.
"Haaaaah!"
But rather than break free or defend, Akina slammed her spear down hard and released a ferocious shockwave.
The clones armored in Helix Flow could not withstand it. Their bodies tore apart and vanished.
Where's the real one?
When the real Kaisent's presence vanished, Akina quickly spread her energy sense.
Above!
The moment she looked up, an energy blade sheathed in Sword Gang shot toward her head.
She spun her spear to bat the blade aside and moved to counter — only for something to tangle around her legs.
Thick vines coiled around her limbs, but she simply lifted her leg high and tore the tough vines apart with ease.
But that slight opening was exactly what Kaisent had been waiting for.
Landing at a distance, he pulled a bow from his dimensional warehouse and unleashed a barrage of mana arrows enchanted with cold, electricity, flame, and more.
Sun Fire! Whirlwind! Fireball!
Simultaneously casting spells designed to create synergistic effects, he sent scorching flames riding hot winds to engulf everything around Akina.
WHOOOOSH!
But Akina spun her spear, gathering the spells into one place with a powerful mana-charged gale, then swung her spear in a great arc.
"Ugh!"
Kaisent hastily teleported skyward, groaning as the ground was destroyed and blackened by the gale and his own magic.
She's too solid!
Ranged attacks could not pierce Akina's defenses.
Ultimately, to break through that defense, he would have to close in and strike with Deadly Impact.
If I die, Lillian is next! I have to win!
If he kept running, he would tire first.
His body, exposed to Akina's fighting spirit, was already tense — mind and body exhausting rapidly.
One chance!
Kaisent wrapped himself in Helix Flow, teleported above Akina's head, loosed a single mana arrow skyward, and discarded the bow.
Confirming she was thrusting her spear upward, he teleported again and successfully got behind her.
But this, too, was a feint.
Figuring a warrior of Akina's caliber would naturally counter even this, Kaisent teleported once more to her side — and witnessed her driving her spear shaft backward, blasting a powerful shockwave behind her.
"HRAAAAAH!!"
Finally seizing his chance, Kaisent formed a sword and went for her side — only for Akina to take her first sidestep in the opposite direction, dodging.
In that instant, the mana arrow he had fired skyward for no apparent reason slammed into the ground behind the dodging Akina and spawned a clone.
"Kh!?"
The clone wrapped itself in Helix Flow and drove a sword into her back.
KRAAAANG!
And with Deadly Impact added, she staggered hard — and Kaisent poured on consecutive attacks into that opening.
"Ugh! Oof!"
Attacked from front and back by the clone, unable to cover both sides at once, Akina began to crumble.
Gaining a slight breathing room, Kaisent created another clone and attacked from three sides, thoroughly breaking her down.
Chak!
With Akina completely collapsed onto one knee and three Kaisents' blades at her throat, she spoke with a serene face.
"What are you waiting for? You've won. Kill me here and the fortress will fall into chaos."
No matter how strong, a cut throat meant the end.
But even with the chance to kill her in hand, Kaisent wavered with hesitation.
His first teacher had been Dang Seol-yeong, but their time together had been too short to learn much.
In a sense, his true master had been Akina.
Useful magic and techniques, knowledge of this world...
That was why Kaisent respected her as his teacher.
"I... can't... I can't do it...! Hic! Waaaaaahhh!!"
Unable to take the life of the master and benefactor he so respected, Kaisent finally burst into tears.
"I don't care about the world or any of that! As long as the people I know can live happily, that's enough for me! But! Wh-Why! Waaaaaah!"
Unable to contain his grief, Kaisent dropped to his knees and wailed. Akina looked at him and smiled.
"I'm relieved."
"Sniff... What?"
"You're exactly as I thought you were. I'm truly relieved."
"What do you mean..."
"I suppose I should thank you for the first time, Charlize."
"Eh?"
At the name of Charlize — who should have departed with the Guardian Order — a familiar voice came from behind Kaisent.
"Hehe. Now you know whose side to take, don't you?"
"Mm. Thanks to this, my resolve to protect this child has only grown firmer."
-Just as I thought. I sensed something different from Lady Akina's usual manner, and it seems my prediction was correct.-
Hastily turning, he found Charlize, Merencia, and Patisha, who had been hidden by invisibility magic.
Artemis, who for some reason had offered Kaisent no advice, reacted as though she had roughly anticipated this situation.
"Sorry, little one~ But Akina's heart was wavering, so this was the only way to firmly bring her to your side~"
"And, ahem... not only Mother, but we also confirmed that you're not a danger."
Patisha was satisfied — seeing him wail even when he could have killed her mother had confirmed his kind nature, one that thought first of gratitude even amid the shock of a benefactor's betrayal.
"Yes... Kaisent really was a good child after all."
Even Merencia, back to her usual slightly awkward and gentle way of speaking now that no other knights were present.
With Akina — the supreme ruler of this place — and her next-in-line successors all believing in Kaisent, other knights could emphasize the danger of his being a heterogeneous being all they liked without shaking them.
"...So we don't have to fight anymore...?"
"That's right. Forgive me for deceiving you."
"Th-Thank goodness...! I'm really so glad...!"
Rather than anger or embarrassment at being tricked, Kaisent was purely overjoyed that Akina's malice had been a lie.
"But this much, I must make absolutely clear."
"Yes?"
In an instant, Akina spun her spear and rose so fast the clones were shredded — the spear tip leveled at Kaisent's brow in a blink.
Wh... wh... when!? I couldn't even see it properly!
He only registered the sequence of the clones being torn apart and the spear tip aimed at his forehead after it was already there. Cold sweat broke out.
"I heard that when you fought the one called Blood Zen, several strokes of fortune were in play."
The trap to imprison Charlize. The barrier to prevent Kaisent's party from escaping. Patisha's seal.
All of these consumed considerable power, so by the time Blood Zen fought Kaisent, he had already expended significant resources.
Moreover, having witnessed Kaisent fighting even while burning his Innate Qi, Charlize could tell that Blood Zen had avoided confronting opponents stronger than himself.
"This is the true power of an Origin. Blood Zen may have been a warrior who reached the Origin realm, but keep in mind that he had expended considerable strength and was barely clinging to the threshold."
"Y-Yes...!"
Attacks that had been difficult to match one-on-one earlier were now even faster.
Had Kaisent tried to kill Akina, the disappointed woman would have immediately driven her spear through his throat.
"You've grown much stronger. Truly impressive."
"Sniff... Lady Akina..."
With everything over and relief flooding him, Kaisent clung to Akina, sniffling and whining like a child.
"I was so... so scared that you'd come to hate me..."
"I am sorry. I will never do something like this again."
Having gained the confidence to protect Kaisent no matter what anyone said — thanks to Charlize — Akina gently stroked his soft hair.