Chapter 160: Revenge
Chapter 160: Revenge
In the end, Kate and Pots never came down to the restaurant by the time Guwon’s party had finished their meal.
Perhaps Kate was really pouncing on Pots, intent on getting some morning relief.
A useless effort, though.
Pots would just end up shriveled and drained by morning.
Putting them out of his mind for now, Guwon headed for the cave he had discovered yesterday.
Now that he knew it was a two-way passage, there was no need to hesitate. Relying on the light Diana created with her magic, the party descended cautiously.
Diana’s spell shone brightly enough to hurt your eyes if you stared directly at it, but it still wasn’t enough to illuminate the entire cavern. Our field of vision was significantly narrower than it was outside.
Perhaps because of that, Leia had no particular reaction even after we entered the cave, but Sara gasped the moment she set foot inside.
“This is… definitely too many.”
“Right? What kind of eggs are…”
“No. Not the eggs. The bugs.”
Guwon froze for a moment, not immediately understanding what Sara had said.
Then, he felt a cold sweat trickle down his back.
Come to think of it, unlike yesterday, the surroundings felt strangely noisy.
Sounds like skittering and rustling—the sounds of insects crawling—came from all directions.
Straining my eyes, I looked around. I couldn't see them clearly, but dark, shadowy figures were moving swiftly.
“Son of a bitch!”
Without a second thought, Guwon activated Holy Ground Proclamation at its maximum range and charged forward.
At the same moment, countless insects swarmed toward him.
When they were just a few meters away, Guwon could finally identify them.
They were ants, each about a meter long.
Before they could clash with Guwon, his party members behind him began their own attacks.
Sara fired her arrows, and Leia cast buffs on everyone. Even Diana, who had mostly been observing battles recently, decided it was time to help and launched a spell.
Despite their efforts, a considerable number of ants reached Guwon and attacked.
Sara’s arrows were better suited for taking down enemies one by one rather than dealing with large groups, so it couldn’t be helped.
Normally, Diana’s magic was the most reliable against such large numbers, but for some reason, her spells weren’t as powerful as usual today.
Was it because she was using magic while also maintaining the light orb above? Or was she worried the cave might collapse?
Whatever the reason, with Diana only able to take down a few monsters at a time, I had no choice but to step up.
Guwon activated Saint’s Touch on his hands and feet, striking down the creatures swarming him from all sides.
They collapsed helplessly with just a graze from Saint’s Touch, but there were simply too many of them to finish off.
In the end, Guwon’s life force was depleting faster than he could eliminate them all.
Dammit. At this rate…
“Sara!”
Guwon pulled a mosquito’s tail from his inventory and threw it toward Sara with all his might.
In the heat of the moment, I’d thrown it with my full strength, but Sara caught the powerfully thrown tail magnificently. Impressive, even in this gloom.
After checking what she had caught, Sara seemed to immediately understand my intention and opened a passage.
“Sara, Leia, then Diana!”
Since I was drawing the aggro of all the monsters, it wouldn’t be a problem for them to escape. I’ll just hold on a little longer until they’re all out.
However, due to the poor visibility, Diana didn’t go through and instead shouted from the entrance of the passage.
“Guwon! You come too!”
At Diana’s shout, Guwon immediately ran with everything he had.
The ants naturally charged after him, but thanks to Diana’s covering fire, Guwon managed to reach the passage entrance a step ahead of them.
He didn’t stop there. Without breaking his stride, he scooped Diana up into his arms and kept running.
Held in Guwon’s arms, Diana seemed somewhat pleased, even as she fired magic behind them.
She murmured with a flushed face.
“This brings back old memories.”
Is she talking about when we were hunting goblins? She’s so carefree.
As soon as Guwon exited the passage, it began to close.
A few ants had followed him close to the exit, but they were buried as the passage sealed shut.
“Ugh. I’m dead.”
After confirming the passage was closed, Guwon collapsed onto the floor.
My life force was completely, utterly drained, without a single drop left.
This life force stuff… using it until it’s completely gone is pretty exhausting.
It wasn't a physical exhaustion, but more of a mental one. It was a difficult sensation to describe in words.
At least my health hadn’t dropped much, thanks to Leia’s continuous healing. I guess I should be thankful for that.
“Guwon-ssi!”
Worried, Leia rushed over to Guwon the moment he lay down.
She really is an angel. If I show a little weakness, will she give me a lap pillow like before?
No. I shouldn’t let my desires get the best of me. Acting weak will only make my angel worry more. In times like this, I need to be a man and reassure her.
“Don’t worry, Leia. It’s just my mana… Mmph.”
But what Leia did when she rushed over wasn’t to offer a lap pillow.
It was a deep, passionate kiss.
“Wait?!” “What?!”
I could hear Sara and Diana gasp from behind me, but I was the most surprised of all.
Leia. I get that you're feeling emotional after we overcame that crisis, but this is a little bold, don't you think? Not that I’m complaining, of course.
And she didn’t stop there.
She extended her long, slender tongue, licking and probing at the seam of my lips before pushing inside, seeking out my own tongue and tangling with it.
“Mmm. Slurp. Hah.”
At her incredible tongue-work, Sara and Diana seemed to have lost their words, staring blankly at our kiss.
At first, Guwon had been simply enjoying it, but now, a sense of unease crept in.
This was too bold, no matter how you looked at it. And more importantly, her technique was too incredible.
This kind of tongue-work was a technique Leia could never pull off in her right mind. Not unless she was a Gumiho.
When Guwon glanced at his health gauge, he saw that it was, as expected, decreasing.
The reason for this was obvious. She had been continuously affected by his Holy Ground Proclamation.
Fortunately, since last night had been Leia’s turn, it seemed she hadn’t fully transformed into a Gumiho; only a faint light emanated from her eyes.
Reaching down, I felt around her backside. There was only one tail. It seemed it hadn’t reached the point of fully materializing yet.
As Guwon’s hand touched her tail, it joyfully wrapped itself around his arm.
Perhaps because her Gumiho instincts were active, even a simple act like this felt incredibly seductive.
But enjoying this state was dangerous. Mainly for my life force.
Without the effect of Healing Sex, my life force was being unilaterally absorbed, and my health was steadily ticking down.
I can’t die like this after just barely surviving a crisis.
“Leia. Mmph. My… life force.”
As Guwon managed to force the words out between their constantly moving lips, Leia flinched back in surprise, pulling away from him.
Simultaneously, the faint light leaking from her eyes completely vanished.
It seemed that spending the night together had allowed her to regain her senses quickly.
“Uh, ah, um…”
Leia’s gaze darted from Guwon to Sara and Diana, who were still staring blankly, before fixing on the ground.
Her body trembled as if she wanted to flee this very instant, but Leia forced her gaze back to Guwon.
Then, she reached out and stroked his chest.
“You two, what in the world are you doing!”
Finally seeming to snap out of her stupor, Diana shouted loudly.
“H-Healing…”
Leia’s tail trembled in surprise, but she didn’t remove her hand from Guwon’s chest.
Come to think of it, my health was rising again.
She’s prioritizing my healing even in a situation like this. She really is an angel.
“Just now! Are you going to claim you were healing him with a kiss!”
Diana, who seemed genuinely furious, screamed at the top of her lungs.
“Diana, calm down. I can explain everything.”
“I’m sure you can! You were enjoying it too, grabbing Miss Leia’s rear end!”
“No, that was to check her tail…”
“Hasn’t Miss Leia had a tail for more than a day or two!”
This was hopeless. Diana was so lost in her anger that she was in no state to have a conversation.
It was Sara who calmed Diana’s fury.
“…Diana. Let’s at least hear him out.”
Judging by her expression, she was just as engulfed in the flames of anger, but thankfully, Sara’s personality grew colder when she was mad, so it seemed a sliver of reason remained.
“So, you see…”
But when I tried to explain, the words caught in my throat.
To explain this situation, I’d have to explain everything from the conditions that turn Leia into a Gumiho to her characteristics when she transforms.
Her Gumiho form was something the devout Leia found difficult to accept, so she had only ever revealed it to the High Priestess.
It wasn’t something Guwon could just casually reveal.
“What is it? Can’t you explain?”
If this keeps up, Sara’s going to explode too. Is this what they call being caught between a rock and a hard place?
As Guwon struggled for an answer, Leia’s soft hand gently enveloped his.
“It’s okay, Guwon-ssi. If it’s Sara-ssi and Diana-ssi.”
Whether it was out of a sense of responsibility for causing this situation or because of the trust she had built with Sara and Diana, that’s what Leia said.
Guwon glanced at Leia, nodded, and then began to explain.
Leia was vulnerable to sexual stimulation, and if she received a certain amount, she would lose her reason and become a Gumiho. As a Gumiho, she becomes focused solely on absorbing life force.
Just now, Leia had been under the effects of Holy Ground Proclamation for a long time, causing her to briefly lose her senses and become a partial Gumiho.
Guwon had touched her rear to check if her tails had increased.
It seemed that because last night was Leia’s turn and her life force had been sufficiently replenished, it had ended with just a kiss to absorb life force.
As Guwon explained, the expressions on Sara’s and Diana’s faces subtly changed.
“Wait. What exactly happens when she becomes ‘focused solely on absorbing life force’?”
Of all the things to be curious about, it’s that?
“Well, that… you know? She becomes sexy. With advanced techniques like before… well, that sort of thing.”
At Guwon’s answer, Sara and Diana’s expressions grew even more serious.
“So, that means…”
“Hey, that’s enough. You get it now, right?”
Diana looked like she wanted to ask more, but Guwon cut her off.
If I say any more, Leia’s face next to me is going to explode.
Diana glanced at Leia’s face and nodded, looking dissatisfied but resigned.
Thank goodness. We managed to get through that crisis.
Both Sara and Diana had complicated expressions, but since Leia hadn’t done this willingly, they couldn’t say anything more.
When it came down to it, they were fundamentally understanding and kind people.
“Anyway, we’ve found a great hunting spot. We can hunt like this, and when our mana recovers, we go back in and hunt again. It’s just like hunting in the goblin or orc habitats on the 1st floor, right? No, it might be even better since it’s easier to escape.”
“…I suppose so. As long as you’re more careful with your Holy Ground Proclamation.”
“Yeah. Sorry. It was just so sudden before. From now on, I’ll only use it within a range that doesn’t reach Leia.”
“…It’s not just Miss Leia you need to avoid. You need to keep us out of its range as well,” Diana said in a strained voice, as if holding something back.
…Huh? Come to think of it, all three of them are blushing furiously.
I thought Sara and Diana were red with anger, and Leia with embarrassment. But seeing this reaction, could it be…
Now that I thought about it, the effect of the Holy Ground was strong enough to bring out a faint trace of Leia’s Gumiho nature.
There was no way Sara and Diana, who were also affected by the Holy Ground, could be completely fine.
Leia hadn’t engaged in any direct acts either, so while her Gumiho state had subsided, her slight frustration likely hadn’t been resolved.
Sara seemed the most composed of the three, with only a blush on her face. But Leia, who was constitutionally sensitive, was subtly rubbing her thighs together, unable to sit still.
Diana’s reaction was particularly severe. Not only was she rubbing her thighs, but the movement was growing faster and more intense. A moment ago, with one incident after another, she hadn’t had time to process it, but now that things had settled down, she was likely starting to grasp her own situation.
Namely, that she was now aroused out in the open.
“Um… should I use Saint’s Touch to help you out here?”
“Are you an idiot?!”
Yeah, I was just throwing that out there.
If I actually did that, Diana would go into a full-blown heat, and Leia might turn back into a Gumiho.
For now, Guwon decided to hoist up Diana, who seemed to be in the most danger, and head straight back to the inn.