Chapter 4 - A Prison Without Bars
After a hellish night, the morning sunlight filtered through her eyelids as she forced them open.
Blinking her dry, gritty eyes, she barely managed to regain consciousness.
Her entire body ached as if she had been beaten, and the pain in her lower body, in particular, was beyond imagination.
"Ugh..."
Along with a tearing pain, there was a sticky heat and an unbearable itch.
Those unpleasant sensations forcibly dragged back the memories of last night.
The memory of riding on top of Kyle, grinding her hips on her own.
The image of herself arching her back and crying out in ecstasy just to swallow his cock even deeper.
“More... deeper... Kyle! Cum inside me! Fill me up again! Fill my womb to the brim!”
Every detail came back so vividly that her face flushed crimson.
Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she looked around. The room was empty.
Her body had been washed clean, and the bedsheets had been replaced with fresh ones.
As if last night had never happened, Kyle had thoroughly erased every trace of his assault.
It’s hot... It feels so strange...
Unconsciously, her hand drifted down between her thighs.
Slide... squelch!
The moment her fingers brushed against herself, a sharp shiver shot up her spine.
Her swollen petals, battered from last night's abuse, reacted with extreme sensitivity to the slightest touch.
"Ah... yes!"
As her fingertips rubbed her wet clitoris, the sensations of last night flooded her mind once more.
Kyle's rough touch, his beastly panting, and the sensation of his hard cock impaling her pussy felt so vivid, as if still engraved on her skin.
"I'm insane... I've gone mad..."
She hurriedly pulled her hand away and yanked the blanket over her head.
Right, that wasn't of my own free will. It was because of the aphrodisiac Kyle forced down my throat. The drug was just too potent, so I lost my mind and acted like a beast. I didn't want this!
She desperately tried to rationalize it, but the heat lingering between her thighs remained, and that reality was unbearably humiliating.
If only she had resisted to the very end, she could at least hold her head high as a victim.
Overwhelmed by an insufferable sense of misery, tears finally burst forth.
The helplessness of becoming a woman overnight, the horrific betrayal of Kyle whom she had trusted as a friend, and the crushing sense of betrayal from her female comrades who had been sleeping with him behind her back.
A despair as if she had been abandoned entirely alone in the world wrapped around her entire body.
"How... how could they do this to me..."
Her past days of throwing her body on the line for the party as their tanker flashed before her eyes like a kaleidoscope.
It felt as though all her devotion had been reduced to a mere laughingstock.
"Ugh... huff... sob..."
She curled up, hugging her knees, and wept silently for a long time.
How long had she cried? By the time her tears ran dry, she stared blankly at the ceiling and thought:
What do I do now? Should I run away? Yes, I have to escape. I can't stay by that beast's side any longer. But... where can I even go with this body?
It was then.
Click.
The door opened, and a familiar face walked in. It was Kyle. He greeted her with an incredibly nonchalant expression, as if absolutely nothing had happened.
"Did you sleep well, Leon? How is your body feeling?"
The moment she saw his shameless face, something snapped inside her head. A raging anger surged.
"You... you bastard...!"
Just as she was about to scream in fury, familiar faces appeared behind Kyle. It was Ella, Luna, and Sera.
The three women entered the room, wearing worried expressions.
"Leon, how are you feeling? You looked so sick..."
Ella was the first to speak.
She placed a hand on Leon's forehead, her eyes filled with hypocritical concern.
The touch made Leon's skin crawl, and she wanted to pull away, but she couldn't.
"Don't worry, Sir Leon. We'll finish the quest quickly and come back. Please get some rest until then."
Sera took her hand with an innocent smile.
Behind that pure face, the ugly image of her thrashing around with Kyle overlapped, making Leon feel physically sick.
Luna also spoke with her usual blunt expression.
"It won't take more than a few days. Don't get any funny ideas, and just stay put."
These hypocritical bitches! You all knew, didn't you?! You laughed at me while sleeping with Kyle! Acting all innocent and pretending to be my comrades in front of me, while behind my back you're nothing but cheap whores selling your bodies!
She wanted to expose the truth right then and there—that the devil smiling so kindly in front of them had raped her last night.
This bastard violated me! He drugged me with aphrodisiacs and treated me like a beast! The guy you all trust is actually a rapist!
But she couldn't open her mouth.
What if I tell them? Kyle will just laugh and deny it. These women are already Kyle's playthings. They'll definitely take his side and treat me like a lunatic. In the end, I'll be the only one kicked out of the party. Left all alone with this fragile body, without money, weapons, or strength... what could I possibly do?
The despair of reality bound her tongue. She had no choice but to nod.
"Yeah... I get it. Be careful out there."
The weak, fragile voice that slipped from her lips made her loathe herself.
The three women smiled, seemingly relieved.
"We've asked the innkeeper to prepare your meals and some spare clothes. Make sure you don't skip any meals."
"Yes, we'll be back soon."
One by one, the women left the room.
Kyle, the last one remaining, approached with a smirk.
The moment their comrades vanished, he showed his true colors once more. Leaning in close, Kyle whispered softly against her ear.
"What a shame. I wanted to play with you more. But I have to maintain my public image, don't I?"
"……."
"I'll finish the rest when I get back. Take good care of your body until then."
As Leon trembled in humiliation, Kyle chuckled and licked her earlobe.
"Why are you shaking? Don't tell me you actually hated it? Last night, you clung to me as if you'd die without my cock."
"Th-that... was because of the drug..."
"Because of the drug? Haha! Don't make me laugh. Is that why you greedily swallowed down my cum?"
"Shut up... please..."
"If you behave like you did yesterday, I'll pamper you every day. I'll let you suck the cock you loved so much to your heart's content, so wait quietly. After all, you can't live without my stuff anyway, right?"
Leon couldn't offer a single retort to Kyle's humiliating taunts.
Kyle smirked coldly and continued.
"And don't get any stupid ideas. It's impossible for you to leave this city with that body. You'll either end up as monster bait, or get caught by some nasty thugs and raped. Spreading your legs for me is by far your safest bet."
After hammering home the brutal reality, Kyle forced his lips onto hers.
"Mmph...!"
After tangling his tongue with hers and thoroughly ravaging her mouth, Kyle pulled back and smacked his lips with a satisfied look.
"Wait for me obediently, my pretty little bitch."
With a smug smile, Kyle closed the door and left.
The moment Kyle stepped out, she furiously wiped her lips.
I have to escape... I must...
But Kyle's words echoed in her ears.
And don't get any stupid ideas. It's impossible for you to leave this town with that body. You'll either end up as monster bait, or get caught by some nasty thugs and raped.
She looked down at her slender arms and legs. Slumping onto the bed, she realized her situation—trapped in a prison without bars—and let out a silent scream.
Damn it... Damn it! Why is this only happening to me?! What did I do wrong?! My only crime was dedicating my life to my comrades!
Left all alone in the empty room, she hugged her knees and turned her gaze toward the window.
Her reflection in the glass pane was beyond unfamiliar; it was surreal.
Wavy, silver-blue hair, eyes that looked as if they held stardust, red lips that seemed ready to burst at the slightest touch, and voluptuous curves that even her loose dress couldn't hide.
With the cold, analytical eyes of a former veteran adventurer, she evaluated herself objectively.
She is... too beautiful.
It wasn't self-praise. It wasn't just a matter of being pretty.
It was an ethereal beauty that would make every single passerby turn their head.
Perhaps due to last night's lovemaking, her current appearance even exuded an inexplicable, overflowing sensuality.
Stepping outside with this kind of appearance, in a fragile body that can't even lift a single shield? That's nothing short of suicide. No, dying might actually be better.
She shuddered. She knew the ways of this world better than anyone.
An era of savagery where might makes right and the law of the jungle rules. For a powerless woman, this world was a living hell.
Right... I've seen it happen so many times.
The atrocities she had witnessed countless times during her life as an adventurer flashed through her mind.
What happened to female adventurers who got separated from their parties and dragged away by hordes of goblins or orcs.
She remembered vividly how noble ladies captured by bandits were degraded into playthings and sold off in the market squares.
Even inside cities deemed safe, one could never let their guard down.
Back-alley thugs routinely kidnapped defenseless women to sell to brothels, and spiking drinks in ordinary taverns to commit rape was a commonplace occurrence.
Until now, because she had protected her comrades since their days as novice adventurers, Ella, Sera, and Luna had been spared from such a grim fate.
She had taken pride in being the wall that shielded them.
But now, that wall had crumbled, and the strength to protect had vanished.
The moment she opened this door and stepped out, she would become nothing but prey.
Wandering around alone... is like walking into a wolf's den reeking of blood. It's practically advertising, 'Come and eat me.'
She looked down at her pale, slender arms.
She couldn't even hold a weapon. How could she handle the countless threats waiting outside?
Escape? Impossible.
Running away? A pipe dream.
Then what was the remaining option?
Waiting here quietly. Holding her breath until Kyle returned, and when he did, spreading her legs once more to become his plaything.
No... I'd rather die than do that...
But wouldn't being abused by Kyle be safer than going outside, getting raped by strangers, and sold around? At least Kyle would keep her fed and sheltered, wouldn't he?
The moment that horrific compromise crossed her mind, a wave of intense nausea surged.
"Ugh... blegh..."
She felt gastric juices rising in her throat.
To think like such a loser after only a single day... was her mind growing weak, or was her body instinctively craving a male?
She clutched her head, writhing in agony.
Though this room had neither iron bars nor guards, it was currently a prison far more solid and terrifying than any dungeon.
"What should I do... What on earth do you want me to do..."
She asked the empty air, but the only response was her own pitiful echo.
It was then.
Slipping through her despair, that strange, sticky whisper echoed in her ears once more.
If you desire strength...
Accept essence.
"Wh-who's there?!"
She shouted at the empty air, swinging her fist.
"Show yourself! Who are you?!"
She slammed her fist straight into the wall.
Crack!
Though the wooden paneling was old and worn, the solid wood shattered helplessly under her single punch.
"Huh...?"
She looked down at her hand.
She hadn't suddenly become incredibly powerful, but she could feel a strength distinctly different from yesterday.
With trembling eyes, she stared at the massive shield resting in the corner of the room.
No way...
She cautiously approached the shield. Taking a deep breath, she gripped the handle tightly.
"Nnnngh!"
She lifted the shield with all her might.
Creak.
The shield, which hadn't budged an inch yesterday, rose from the floor.
One, two, three seconds.
Thud!
Though she had to set it down almost immediately, she panted heavily, now absolutely certain.
"Haa... haa... It's real... My strength has increased..."
She shouted into the empty room.
"How did this happen?! This strength... how do I get more of it?! Answer me!"
Then, as if waiting for this exact moment, the whisper echoed again.
Obtain...
The essence of men.
She could feel it with absolute certainty.
The voice was echoing from deep within her. And she instinctively understood what "essence" meant.
"Who the hell are you?! Why are you inside me?! Did you make me like this?!"
She screamed at the top of her lungs, but the whisper, as if its energy had been depleted, did not return.
Looking back and forth between the broken wall, her own hand, and the massive shield, she fell into deep, agonizing thought.