Chapter 22. Becoming the Hero's First (3)
Chapter 22. Becoming the Hero's First (3)
"Ah...!"
Serika gasped as her hips moved reflexively.
It didn't take long for that voice to shift into the sounds of mating.
-Squelch, squelch.
With every movement of my shaft, she grew wetter and slicker. And the wetter she grew, the more her heated body coiled and clung against me.
"Ah, a-ahh~♥ I-It feels so good... It feels so good, I can't..."
From the moment our lips met as we held each other up,
at first she had left everything to me, but at some point she started moving her own hips.
"Ahh, ah, haa, haaah, a-aaah~ ♥"
Before I knew it, the lead had already reversed completely.
"Dave, does it feel good? Inside me... does it feel good?"
"Y-Yes. It feels so good, really..."
-Squelch, squelch.
The way her hips rocked as she put her weight into it.
The clumsiness I'd felt when she first held my shaft had vanished without a trace.
In her eagerness to press her body more actively against me, her technique already surpassed that of any whore.
I'd underestimated her, thinking her heart was still that of a virgin. But the innate talent she was born with as the Hero applied even to sexual technique — her inner walls tightening around my shaft with ever-increasing mastery.
She was literally the embodiment of everything that could bring a man pleasure.
Now that she had even seized the lead, all I could do was be swept along by her.
"...I like you."
In that state, she wrapped her arms around me and whispered into my ear.
"I like you, Dave."
With sincerity, without a shred of pretense or shame.
The more she repeated those words, the more the pressure building below swelled, and I felt her hips move even faster.
"Is that... you like me as a comrade?"
"No. As one person to another... I like you as a woman."
Ah, yes. This is it.
The moment when — beyond relying on hypnosis with its many limitations, beyond simply taking her body's first time — she gives me the very first of her heart.
By forging that bond, I become a special existence to her...
This is the very foundation for achieving what I truly desire.
By making myself someone special within her heart.
"...I like you, Serika."
So these words now are genuine.
Not a puppet who merely follows orders, but a piece that will move for me of its own volition. There's no reason to dislike her for that.
"I like you, Serika."
Sensing her sincerity, I drove the point home by unreservedly giving her the words she wanted to hear.
"Yes, I like you too, Dave."
"Serika... Serika!!"
The more I called her name, the closer I came to the limit.
To release it, I pulled my hands off her body, pulled my shaft out, and came all over her body.
Plop, plop. The white liquid splattered across her body. Exhausted from the intense act, her body was drenched in sweat.
"......Outside."
A few minutes passed before she finally came to her senses and inspected her own body.
"You... did it outside?"
Her voice carried a complex mix of emotions. There was even a hint of strange disappointment.
As if she'd truly wanted to receive my seed inside her.
"Yes, that would be..."
But it would be problematic, wouldn't it?
She has her duty as the Hero, and I must eventually leave her side.
"......As I thought, you're so kind."
But even that regret seemed to pass in an instant.
As if she thought such regrets could be fulfilled through future acts...
"I want to feel more of that kindness. What about you, Dave?"
Yes, the first time is always the hardest. Having already felt happiness beyond mere pleasure from our act, she would continue to maintain this relationship with me from now on.
As long as I didn't leave her side, it would go on...
"......One thing."
"Before we continue... could you do me one favor?"
From now on, opportunities to hypnotize her would be limited. I would need to reserve my power for other uses — and I would be receiving her genuine feelings more directly.
"What favor?"
So I needed to confirm that her sincerity wasn't just fleeting, but firmly rooted.
The verification I needed wasn't difficult at all.
"Look at me... and smile for me, just once."
"......That's all? You made it sound so serious."
A simple but certain method.
If her feelings for me were shallow, she would dismiss it as trivial and brush it off.
"...Is it hard for you?"
"......No, it's hardly a difficult thing."
Yes, a smile is something that should come naturally.
But to have one asked for in advance — and then deliver it so naturally when the moment comes — that requires genuine feeling behind it.
"Alright, if that can convey my feelings for you... I'd do it as many times as you like."
She smiled warmly and raised her hand.
"I like you, Dave."
The moment I became certain of her heart.
But I felt no particular guilt about it.
At least, from now on, this relationship wouldn't harm either of us.
"......No. Saying 'I like you' wouldn't be enough to express all my feelings for you."
To humanity, the officers of the Demon King's Army are enemies to be purged — and even within that same army, I can't regard everyone in my own camp as an ally.
Now that our goals align and our true feelings match, even if it began by violating her body, in the end this relationship would not seem bad to her.
"I love you."
The time she'd spend with me, who will help her with her duty as the Hero.
Even if that process were filled with falsehoods...
"I love you, Dave~♡"
To her, at least...
it would surely be happiness.
***
After that, Serika and Dave repeatedly spent time entwining their bodies together.
The high-class inn where they'd first done it became unaffordable, so they switched to cheap lodgings, but that was of no concern to either Serika or Dave.
All that mattered were each other's bodies and the feelings they held for one another.
Whatever else could be said, the act of joining their bodies must have deepened the bond between them.
"Have the two of you been getting along well?"
After those happy days, the time came for Serika to return to her original mission.
Naturally, Dave was there as well.
As they walked hand in hand toward the tavern, a fully armed holy knight greeted the two as if she had been waiting.
"Ah, yes. Berdia, you've returned safely as well?"
"Yes, I was able to finish my business sooner than expected."
Berdia. One of the continent's Ten Greats, and the one who would serve as the vanguard and healer for the hero party Serika would lead.
"It seems the two of you have grown quite close since I last saw you."
When she voiced her impression of Dave and Serika, Serika laughed brightly and responded right away.
"Yes, we've gotten closer. We've even dropped formal speech with each other now. Isn't that right, Dave?"
"......."
"...Dave?"
Dave remained silent, hesitating.
Turning around in puzzlement, Serika saw Dave blushing and covering his face with his hand.
"Uh, um. Yeah, Serika. We've gotten closer, but..."
"Then why...?"
"......The hand."
"Huh?"
Serika stared blankly. Then she looked at their clasped hands, but she couldn't understand why he was embarrassed.
It was no different from usual, so why was he acting like this?
"Serika."
The moment she registered Berdia's presence again, the question was instantly answered, and Serika let out a silly 'Eeek!?' and began flailing awkwardly on the spot.
"Ah, no, this is, that is...!! A little while ago I almost tripped, so Dave caught me, and, well, th-th-that's why...!!"
"......It seems you've grown even closer than I imagined."
"Ah, yes, that's right! I've just gotten so comfortable around Dave. Ahahaha!"
Serika exaggerated her reaction to somehow hide her true feelings.
Then she glanced over at Dave and saw him clear his throat and give her a meaningful look.
'You haven't forgotten we decided to keep this a secret, have you?'
'O-Of course I remember.'
Over the course of a few days, the two had developed into lovers.
But for now, they decided to keep it a secret. A known couple in the party would not look good to the public, and more importantly, it would interfere with her mission as the Hero.
"......Well, as long as you're getting along, that's fine."
And fortunately, Berdia seemed willing to let it slide without much thought.
She might have been skeptical seeing them hold hands for so long, but did that mean she trusted Dave that much?
"Anyway, Berdia, who is that behind you?"
The relief was short-lived;
Dave soon looked at the person seated beside her and asked, and Berdia turned to introduce her.
"Ah, now that you mention it, I forgot to introduce her. This is Yumir, a mage invited from the Magic Tower for the party's upcoming operations."
"......Yumir?"
Startled.
The moment Serika heard Dave repeat that name, her body flinched before she even realized it.
Yumir...
Serika knew that name.
"If it's Yumir, do you mean the one I know?"
No, it was a name anyone familiar with the news would know.
"Yes, you know of her, I take it."
"Ah, yes... The youngest Archmage from the Magic Tower, right?"
Black Crystal Yumir.
With exceptional talent, preposterous insight, and a relentless dedication to research, she was the one who had devised laws that overturned the magical world.
Acknowledged for her achievements, she received the title of Archmage barely after reaching adulthood, and further, was selected as a member of the hero party.
Because the Hero herself gradually grows stronger, the party's general policy is to select talented individuals of similar age.
"Oh, it's been a while, Yumir. Have you been well?"
But when she reunited with the one who would grow alongside her, what Serika felt was extreme unease...
And a subtle anxiety she hadn't felt the last time they met.
And no wonder.
-Jiggle.
Those breasts, which her own could never hope to match,
were jiggling so noticeably right in front of Dave the moment she turned.