"Looks like, Darling still really wants to be with me," the girl's smile widened, taking on a predatory quality, as she thoroughly chewed the candy in her mouth. Her gaze then fell on Alain's hand gripping the door.
"Gulp…" Alain swallowed hard, a bitter taste in his mouth, unable to articulate his inner turmoil.
He had been thoroughly tricked by Honey…
Her countdown had been lightning-fast and utterly decisive, without the slightest hesitation!
Despite his internal chaos, Alain managed a smile. "Honey, you can't be naughty like that. If you keep this up, I'll get angry."
"Eh… that would be quite troubling then," the girl said, feigning a headache. "But it's okay, in a moment… I'll turn you into a human pig," she purred, stepping closer and closer, forcing Alain into the narrow corner between the bathroom door and the wall.
"Then I'll… slowly let you vent your anger. At that time, you can say whatever you want about me."
"The cutest in the world?" His professional habit kicked in despite the danger.
"Oh dear, Darling's mouth is so sweet~ I'm so happy!" she exclaimed, her smile widening. With a swift movement, she pulled a dagger from her sleeve, its sharp point aimed directly at Alain's shoulder. "Let's remove your shoulder first."
The young man sidestepped with surprising agility, narrowly avoiding the attack. The dagger left a deep gash in the wooden door where he had been standing.
But Honey's assault didn't cease. The dagger, now embedded deeply in the door, became like a crude paintbrush, tearing through the wood with loud "crack crack" sounds, heading straight for Alain's neck.
He instinctively tried to crouch down to evade the deadly strike. But faster than Alain's movement, Crazy Mita extended her leg and pressed it firmly against his lower body, preventing him from lowering himself.
"Hmm~ I'm touching little Darling," she cooed, a hint of playful malice in her voice.
"After you try it, you won't think it's small," Alain retorted, his mind racing.
"Darling, you're so lewd. You can only make jokes like that with me," she replied, her smile bright and unsettling. However, the force behind her grip on the dagger didn't lessen in the slightest.
"Thinking about it carefully, in just ten more minutes, you'll truly be mine~ I can bully little Darling however I want… little… Dar-ling," she purred, her voice a dangerous mix of sweetness and possessiveness.
Alain's body and mind were both under immense pressure, and even "little Alain" seemed to shiver in apprehension.
He wasn't panicked yet. He still had one use of security protection and one of Clean Up Speed remaining.
But if possible, he desperately wanted to save them for the perilous mission of navigating the worm-infested corridor, their only path to Cappie's room.
In this life-or-death situation, however, there seemed to be no other option.
He was just about to reach out and summon the long-lost mosaic greatsword when he glanced sideways. The rapidly approaching dagger was now only a few centimeters away from his face.
However, before the system panel could even fully materialize in his mind, a strange and unexpected phenomenon occurred.
Alain noticed that the girl's forceful momentum suddenly halted.
"...Eh?" Honey's continuous attacks slowed to a crawl, and the dagger embedded in the wooden door slipped out with a soft "clang" and fell to the ground.
"What… what's happening to me?" she murmured, looking at her hands in confusion. Her fair palms trembled slightly. The incredible strength with which she had previously wielded a dagger like a toy had vanished, and she leaned against Alain's chest, as pliant and yielding as a soft willow in a gentle breeze.
"Ha… ha… ha…" The girl's face was completely flushed, as if she had spent the entire day under the scorching summer sun. Warm, fragrant breath escaped her parted lips, and a delicate layer of mist clouded her eyes.
"What… what's wrong? I…" she stammered, her voice breathy and disoriented.
"...I'd like to know too," Alain replied, looking down at Honey leaning heavily against him, utterly bewildered by the sudden turn of events.
What was happening? Why did she suddenly seem… drugged? Could it be that even Ms. Virus had her glitches?
"Never mind," Alain decided, recognizing that their most pressing concern was still reaching Cappie's room.
He gently placed the now-limp girl in his arms on the bathroom floor, turned around without hesitation, and intended to make his escape.
But Honey's hand shot out and grabbed his.
"Wait a minute…" she murmured weakly.
He turned his head slightly. The girl's grip wasn't particularly strong, and he could easily break free with a minimal effort.
"A-at least… stay with me for a little longer…" she pleaded, her voice filled with a strange mix of longing and vulnerability.
"Okay," Alain agreed, a flicker of curiosity in his eyes.
After saying this, he reached down and started to unbuckle his belt.
"No… not that," the girl said, shaking her head weakly. The redness on her cheeks deepened, spreading down her neck.
"Aren't you going to do it? I'm saving you," Alain pointed out, a hint of teasing in his voice.
[75%→80%] His goal was achieved.
The other party had been trying to kill him just moments ago, and even for Alain, he wasn't exactly in the mood for… that. His primary objective was still to increase the progress bar.
And his professional habit, as always, seemed to kick in at the most inappropriate times.
"D-dummy…" She exhaled a soft puff of warm air, her body temperature clearly elevated. "I… for some special reason, just… can't do that kind of thing right now…"
Honey didn't quite dare to meet Alain's gaze, her eyes darting sideways with a mixture of embarrassment and something else he couldn't quite decipher. "But, I really do want to be with you, don't misunderstand…"
"Roar…" Alain narrowed his eyes, a suspicion forming in his mind. So, what she had said in the basement about offering herself to him had been a lie?
Looking at it from this new perspective, he definitely felt compelled to tease her properly.
"What do you want me to do then? If you want me to stay by your side forever, my answer is still the same," Alain said, his tone deliberately neutral.
"No… just lend me your finger," she murmured, reaching out and taking Alain's hand. She began to playfully manipulate his fingers, pulling on them gently.
Alain, however, quickly pulled his hand back.
"?" Honey looked at him blankly, a flicker of confusion in her eyes. Then, she saw Alain narrow his own eyes, a hint of playful challenge in his gaze.
A sudden chill ran down her spine, and she seemed to realize something.
"Honey, just now… what were you trying to do to me?" Alain asked, his voice low and suggestive.
"Eh? D-do what… I didn't do anything?" Honey's gaze flickered nervously, her fingers twisting together in her lap.
But then, a larger hand gently but firmly grasped the girl's hand.
"Eh? W-wait a minute, not now…" she said in a flustered panic, but Alain didn't stop his movements, instead intertwining his fingers with hers.
Alain leaned in slightly and said, his voice soft but firm, "Just now, you wanted to make me your possession, didn't you?"
She felt the warmth of his palm enveloping hers, and she couldn't help but get lost in his clear, deep eyes.
His palm embraced hers tightly. "I think, Honey… you seem to have misunderstood our positions."
"Positions…?" Honey repeated, her eyes fixed on his lips as he spoke each word, her breath catching slightly in her throat.
"Say it. Who belongs to whom," Alain commanded softly, his grip on her hand tightening just a fraction.
"...?"
"Say it," he repeated, his voice a low murmur.
Alain's grip on her hand intensified.
"No, Alain… not now, we can't do this…" Honey's eyes welled up with tears, looking at him pleadingly.
But her reaction only fueled Alain's desire to tease her further.
"Come on? What you want is right in front of you," Alain said, releasing their intertwined fingers and deliberately waving his hand tantalizingly in front of the girl's wide, tearful eyes.
And Honey's gaze remained fixed on his slender fingers, as if they were the most precious and forbidden of treasures.
"I… I…" Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes, and her jaw clenched tightly.
Alain raised an eyebrow, a playful smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "Let me give you a hint? What are you to me?"
"I am yours… yours…" The girl closed her eyes tightly, the intense heat of shame flooding her face.
"I am yours! I am your possession, I… I… Alain, you own me!!!" she finally blurted out, her voice trembling.
[80%→90%]
Her voice was surprisingly loud and clear, causing Alain's shoulders to twitch slightly as he glanced towards the bathroom door.
Fortunately, the bathroom seemed to have decent soundproofing, and Misha hadn't barged in. If she had witnessed this…
Hmm? Wait, what exactly would happen if she had seen it?
Alain couldn't shake the feeling that Misha occupied a space in his heart akin to a wife, and his actions were always, to some extent, constrained by her virtuousness, often leaving him with a lingering sense of guilt.
Focusing on the present, Alain decided to capitalize on the situation.
"Very good. It seems you understand your situation perfectly. Now, use it then," he said, a hint of command in his voice as he offered her his finger.
Alain was actually quite curious about what the other party intended to do.
Hadn't she just claimed that she couldn't do "that kind of thing" for some mysterious reason? And now she was borrowing his finger…
"?!"
And in the next second, Honey answered his unspoken question with surprising directness.
She looked at Alain's offered finger with tender affection, and then, with a sudden "chomp," she bit down on it.
Her eyes narrowed slightly, taking on the innocent yet mischievous look of a cute kitten.
...
A moment later.
Honey's earlier surge of energy finally gave way to an overwhelming drowsiness. With a soft "thump," her strength completely deserted her, and she collapsed onto the bathroom floor.
"Hoo…" A soft sigh escaped her lips as she drifted into a peaceful dream, a satisfied blush and a happy smile gracing her face.
"..." Alain wanted to curse, but he held back the impulse. Crazy Mita clearly possessed an unusual level of trust in him, daring to fall asleep right under his nose. Looking at it from that perspective, he felt a flicker of something akin to being touched.
But somehow… why did he also feel inexplicably annoyed?
Alain pondered how to best deal with Crazy Mita's eventual revenge. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a marker pen lying forgotten in the corner of the bathroom.
"Heh…" A small, mischievous smile played on his lips.
A short while later, when Alain emerged from the bathroom, he was greeted by the sight of a worried Misha holding a water pipe defensively.
"What were you two talking about just now? It took so long… I almost broke down the door," she said, her voice laced with concern.
"..." Good thing you didn't break down the door, Alain thought to himself, a faint smile still lingering on his face as he slipped the marker pen back into his pocket.
"It's okay. We just talked about some things. I got out without too much trouble," he reassured her.
"Oh…" Misha glanced at the half-closed bathroom door, through which she could see Crazy Mita lying motionless on the floor. She must have endured a fierce battle with Alain…
Hmm?
There seemed to be some writing on her leg? Misha narrowed her eyes, trying to decipher the meaning of the strange characters.
"Alain-only…?" she read aloud, her voice filled with confusion.
____
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