Chapter 34: Encounter (2)
"You... you can use abilities too?"
She tilted her fierce gaze as she spoke to me, her face etched with a hollow, defeated expression as if she'd been robbed of something essential.
"Nah. I wouldn't call it an ability. My accuracy with magic is so trash that it's not even worth mentioning."
It wasn't like I'd picked up a sword for no reason.
"Watch this."
I smoothly manipulated the panel and summoned a training dummy into the simulation room.
Crackle.
I gathered electricity into my right hand and hurled it straight at the dummy.
The current surged forward, closing in on the dummy, but it veered sideways at the last second and slammed into the floor uselessly.
Just as I'd suspected.
It wasn't like I'd abandoned the option of being a mage or a shooter and picked up a sword as a support weapon for nothing.
Since I couldn't hit anything anyway, I had to swing a sword and cause chaos while I was at it.
"Why can't you hit it? You control it so well."
She gave me a suspicious look.
I shrugged and answered her.
"I already told you. Magic is trash, so I use a sword."
Contrary to the name Jeong Jojun, which suggested precision, my aim was complete garbage.
"Really?"
She let out a small sigh of relief.
Yeah, even I would feel wronged if I could use magic perfectly while swinging a sword.
"So... will you teach me?"
She hesitated for a moment before answering my question.
"Sure, teach me. I don't need perfect accuracy. As long as I can control it, that's enough."
I smiled and extended my right hand.
"My name's Jeong Jojun. Nice to meet you."
"I'm Cheonghwa. I don't know why you're helping, but please take care of me too."
Cheonghwa took my right hand and replied.
My gaze naturally drifted toward the tattoo on her right wrist.
What the hell is that?
A brand-new black triangle tattoo shaped like seven flames.
"Ah, this?"
She noticed my stare and frowned.
"Before I enrolled, I was just a normal electricity mage. But after the tattoo appeared, my electricity turned black and I can't control it anymore."
Wait, is this awakening?
In this world, even non-players undergo "awakening" like a job change.
Awakening causes a massive leap in power and can even change existing abilities.
A first-year awakening this fast?
"This damn black electricity is uncontrollable and too powerful. It hurts people around me."
She scowled, her fierce eyes narrowing as she spoke.
When I looked closer at her face, I saw scratches everywhere.
Her arms, sleeves rolled up from training, were covered in band-aids.
Probably the biggest injury was from herself.
I had to teach her quickly so she could control it.
"For now, trust me and try using your ability."
My method of teaching Cheonghwa was simple.
When her ability went out of control, I would grab it and let her feel the proper flow.
"You mean... when I use my ability, you'll grab it and teach me?"
Whoa? How did she know?
Seeing my surprised face, she gave me a bitter smile.
"The homeroom teacher who got hurt today had the same ability as me. He said the same thing."
So the teacher I blasted away used the same method.
But I was different.
"It's fine. Just try it."
I confidently patted my chest with one hand.
I was a Spirit Master who'd already reached mid-level growth.
Since I was from the nature element, I couldn't possibly fail to control it.
"Really?"
She glanced at me doubtfully.
"I said trust me and use it."
"...Alright then."
Cheonghwa stretched out one arm, furrowed her brows, and concentrated.
Crackle.
Black electricity surged from her shoulder.
It flowed smoothly from her shoulder down her arm to her wrist.
But then—
Crack! Crackle!
The black current suddenly amplified violently and shot out wildly from her wrist.
Now!
I focused on the black electricity wrapped around her wrist with Spirit Qi.
Crackle! Crackle!
I poured more Spirit Qi into it, trying to contain the growing black current.
Eh?
Why wasn't it working?
No matter how hard I concentrated, I couldn't even sense part of that black current.
"Insane!"
The black current had grown even larger than when I'd blasted her earlier.
Cheonghwa stared at me with a bewildered expression.
Crackle—!
The surging current suddenly shrank back.
As if it had crouched down to jump forward.
This was dangerous.
'Spirit Step.'
I kicked off the ground and instantly appeared behind her, grabbing her wrist.
Crackle! Crackle!
The moment I grabbed her wrist, the black electricity went berserk, bursting out and sticking to my hand.
It hurt like hell, but that didn't matter right now.
I read the flow of the wildly thrashing current.
I sensed every spark shooting in all directions.
I guided her wrist along the current's flow.
Pop! Bang!
Sparks flew everywhere as black electricity shot out.
Since it was thrashing too wildly, some hit her body, but I quickly blocked it with my bare hand.
Crackle—
It took several long seconds.
Finally, after handling everything, only a tiny bit of black current remained at her fingertips.
"Haa..."
That was way too close to a disaster.
"Yah... yah!"
With a sigh of relief at having succeeded, I called out to Cheonghwa.
"Why?"
Why was she yelling at me?
I'd worked so hard to stop it.
When I glanced up, Cheonghwa was right in front of me.
Eh? Had she gotten this close?
Her fierce eyes were distorted with panic.
Up close, she looked even prettier.
"Move!"
Cheonghwa blushed and shouted.
Whoa?
Only then did I realize.
While I was blocking the current and guiding her, one hand had grabbed her wrist and the other had touched her body to stop the electricity that had splashed on her.
She flinched.
Unconsciously, my fingers twitched where they'd touched her body.
It felt soft and like a narrow gap?
"Yah!"
Cheonghwa jerked her head forward and slammed it into my forehead with a loud thud.
"Kuh!"
The massive impact sent my body flying off hers.
"Where did you touch?!"
She yelled and covered the spot with her hand.
Probably the area I'd been touching.
And that spot was...
Oh my.
It was her pussy.
The softness I'd felt was her labia, and the gap was the space between her thighs.
So yeah, I was wrong.
"I'm sorry!"
When in doubt, three seconds of apology was the rule.
I immediately bowed to her and apologized.
"You... you!"
Impressed by my quick apology, she puffed out her chest but couldn't say anything.
Yeah, it wasn't intentional.
Cheonghwa stared at the arm I'd used to block the current, then muttered "Fine, whatever" and forgave me.
Despite her fierce appearance, she was actually kind.
Yeah!
"You really are the same."
After brushing off my knees and standing up, Cheonghwa muttered with a bitter expression.
That simple sentence carried a lot of emotion.
The feelings of those who had given up and despaired after countless attempts.
"So you're giving up?"
She must have tried hard.
The band-aids stuck to her body proved it.
But if she gave up now, all that effort would be wasted.
"You think so?"
She asked me weakly.
She'd become too weak to rely on others.
"Don't."
I declared firmly.
"No one got hurt during the practice earlier. Let's try harder."
"What are you talking about? You have wounds on your arm."
Cheonghwa looked at me incredulously and pointed at my wrist.
"This?"
I grinned and swept my fingers over the scratches on my wrist.
"These aren't wounds for a guy. They're just tattoos."
She flinched.
Her eyes trembled.
"I'll keep helping you. So don't give up."
I told her sincerely.
It might have been directed at my past self.
If that past me had been helped by someone, would things have been different?
But in the end, this game saved me, so it was fine.
And right now, she was someone I could help.
"You..."
Cheonghwa bit her words and shivered.
After staring at me for a while, she muttered, "You're really something."
"Yeah."
"Even though I have nothing to offer you, you're helping me?"
"Of course."
Despite her fierce appearance and rough speech, she was actually a warm woman.
Her very existence was already a help. What more could I want?
Maybe later I'd do it once, but then Alice would scold me.
While I was lost in thought, Cheonghwa shouted at me.
"Great! Then I'll really make you my slave! Prepare yourself, Jeong Jojun!"
Calling my name and burning with passion, I laughed and replied.
"Then! I'll make you my slave until you can't take it anymore!"
Given her appearance and personality, this positive attitude was much better than being down.
Cheonghwa.
It suited her name perfectly.
* * *
"Haaam~"
A yawn slipped out of me.
It was morning class time.
The theory class analyzing the demon's habits and patterns.
Since I already knew every demon's pattern, it was unbearably boring.
The homeroom teacher, with dark circles under his eyes, glared at me sharply, but soon sighed and continued the lesson.
After I'd ignored the class so many times before, he'd stopped asking me questions.
Boring.
I naturally turned to look at Alice sitting beside me.
Alice with her cat-like eyes and bouncy twin tails was adorable.
Hehe
Just staring at her made the boredom vanish.
Feeling my gaze, she tilted her head cutely and looked at me.
Au, so cute.
Like a cat, she blinked and met my eyes, then focused back on the lesson.
While staring silently at Alice, a bad thought crossed my mind.
I secretly stroked her thigh.
The feel of her black stockings, slippery yet elastic, traveled up my hand.
"?!"
Alice jumped in surprise and stared at me.
I gave her a lewd look and slid my hand a little further under her skirt.
"J-Jojun!"
She called my name softly, but my hand had already reached the hidden spot on her thigh.
I savored the slippery, soft, and fantastic sensation while stroking.
"Uuu?!"
Alice trembled from my touch.
Her blushing cheeks and eyes full of reproach—"Why are you doing this?"—were truly artistic.
It was strange that I wasn't getting hard from such a melancholic expression.
"Huu?!"
I poked the soft mound inside Alice's thighs with my finger.
It was an addictive sensation.
"You...!"
Alice stared at me intensely, then reached for my pants.
Eh?
I hadn't expected that.
Alice quietly slipped her hand into my pants and grabbed my cock.
"Hah!"
I barely held back my moan.
Looking at my face, Alice gave me a cheeky smile and began stroking my cock with light movements.
Twirl. Twirl.
Her index finger circled my glans while the rest rubbed my shaft.
Alice was this lewd!
I couldn't lose.
I gently massaged her mound and circled my finger around her likely clit position.
Heart-pounding chicken game.
Alice and I had begun our life-or-death game of pleasuring each other.
"Hey, kids... here."
The teacher, muttering in front of the blackboard, was writing something but didn't even glance our way.
And this seat was right next to the window in the back row, where it was hard to be noticed.
We were quietly pleasuring each other's genitals without making a sound.
It was so arousing!
Swish. Swish.
Alice's pleasant touch made pre-cum ooze out, and she spread it over my glans with her index finger, rubbing even more.
I was pleasuring Alice's pussy as best I could, so her pussy was getting wet too.
"Ugh!"
Alice smiled smugly while watching me hold back my moans.
It was a smile that already predicted victory.
Yeah, this match was already decided.
My defeat, damn it.
The culprit of this defeat was the stockings I liked when I'd stroked her thighs earlier.
Since her clit was protected by stockings and panties, it was weaker than Alice's hand directly stroking my cock.
"Ugh!"
I unconsciously felt my limit approaching and pulled back my waist.
Alice gave me a lewd smile and rubbed my glans with her palm.
"A... Alice!"
She was going to make me cum.
I signaled her to stop, but...
Looking at Alice's face full of excitement, I thought I might go all the way.
Press.
Alice's soft palm wrapped around my glans.
With that thrilling sensation, I couldn't hold back and came.
Burst! Bubble!
Semen poured into her hand.
Too much semen overflowed and spilled onto my pants and groin.
But there was a good skill for this.
'Spirit Qi.'
I neatly blew away the semen.
It evaporated with a whoosh, spreading a night-blooming jasmine scent for a moment, but I quickly dispersed it with the wind spirit.
Alice felt the semen disappear from her hand and looked at me gratefully, then secretly pulled her hand out of my pants.
Did Alice predict that I used Spirit Qi?
Even at the end, it was a perfect defeat for me.
"Ah, right, kids."
When Alice and I both pulled our hands away at the perfect timing and admitted defeat, the teacher suddenly remembered something, stopped writing on the blackboard, and turned to us.
"The date for the counter-competition has been set."
Ah, it's finally starting?
I'd been wondering when it would begin.
The event-heavy scenario chapter three had announced its start at just the right timing.