Chapter 445: Proof of Existence (33)

0% I couldn’t continue, and thankfully, the ‘contract’ didn’t press me any further.

All I could do was let out a sigh and cover my face with both hands.

This is exactly why I didn’t want to talk about it.

While everyone was still trying to figure out how to react, the girl suddenly let out a sound of pure astonishment.

“…Wow.”

Her wide, golden eyes said it all–it was the first time I’d seen her genuinely unsettled.

“That’s seriously creepy… How can you recognize your younger sister’s scent so well? Are you some kind of pervert? Or do you have some fantasy about forbidden love or something?”

“…Shut up!”

Unable to handle the humiliation, I drew my sword in a flash.

I pointed the blade straight at her, but her expression didn’t change at all.

If anything, she just bit back a grin, looking all the more intrigued.

Grinding my teeth, I forced out my question, just as the contract demanded.

“Answer me, like you promised. Where is my younger sister? Don’t tell me you don’t know…”

“Don’t rush me–I was going to tell you anyway.”

Yawning, the girl slowly stood up.

I could sense my companions tensing up behind me. It was only natural, considering no one could predict what she’d do next.

It made sense for everyone to be on high alert.

“Your precious younger sister, well, you see…”

A seductive, almost dangerous smile spread across her face.

With a gentle motion, the girl placed both hands over her chest.

“Ta-da! She’s right here!”

Unsurprisingly, the room fell silent.

My expression twisted in utter misery. So this is what I get for spilling the truth despite my embarrassment?

Just as my companions were on the verge of taking action, having reached the limits of their patience, I snapped, my voice dripping with anger.

“What kind of bullshit–!”

Suddenly, in a flash–

Before I could even finish my sentence, the girl was suddenly right in front of me.

Wearing an eerily bright smile.

“It’s me, Oppa.”

And then–crack!–a fierce pain shot through my instep.

Biting back a scream, I swung my sword in retaliation.

It was a strike so fast and sharp it was hard to believe I could pull it off from such an awkward, unbalanced position. But the girl–who’d just stomped my foot–only spun around, laughing.

She easily slipped right into my arms.

Even then, I couldn’t put up any real resistance. I’d never experienced anything like this before.

My body simply refused to obey my brain.

Awkwardly, the girl began to guide my frozen hands wherever she pleased.

“Ahahahaha! Seriously, you still don’t get it?”

First, she dragged my hand from her collarbone down over her breasts.

My fingers glided over her skin without the slightest resistance. Even when I felt the supple elastic sensation beneath them, I still couldn’t snap out of it.

Regardless, the girl continued to guide my hand over her body.

“See? From these breasts, to my waist, my pelvis… and even to the butt you like so much, Oppa.”

With each body part she named, my hand slid further down her body.

Starting with her hips which were too big to hold in one hand–down to her thighs that were firm, yet soft to the touch.

The more my hand was forced to violate her body, the heavier the girl’s breathing became. By the end, she was panting, squeezing her thighs together.

If this kept up, she’d move my hand even further, all the way to her groin.

Her damp breaths flooded my ears, and I somehow forced out a voice, a voice that barely even came out.

“Stop it…!”

“Haa, haa… You still, you still don’t get it? Hm? Hmmm? That can’t be.”

A strange, feverish light blazed in her golden eyes.

The mix of desire and obsession in her gaze was so intense that madness was the only word for it. Even I was left speechless for a moment.

With a voice so heated it felt like it could melt me, she whispered,

“After all, we came from the same womb, you know.”

It was at that moment.

A bolt of blue lightning erupted before my eyes, searing my vision. The trail of light, heavy with murderous intent, was aimed straight at the girl.

“…Master!”

But the girl simply leaned back and dodged it with ease.

Only then did I finally regain control of my body. I lunged away from the girl in a desperate leap, trying to put as much distance between us as possible.

Her ragged breathing seemed to echo endlessly in my mind.

My head was spinning. Her words felt like they were tearing through every corner of my brain.

What… was that?

She didn’t look like someone who was lying or weaving some scheme. If anything, her emotions were so intense it was almost suffocating.

That’s when my companions, who’d been waiting behind me, finally rushed over to me.

“Ian!”

“Master!”

“Ian Oppa!”

Each calling out to me in their own way, my companions quickly surrounded me, forming a protective circle. As I stood there, leaning on my thigh with a dazed look on my face, Yuren offered an apology in an especially regretful tone.

“Sorry, Ian… We wanted to help, but for a moment, our bodies just wouldn’t move.”

So that’s what happened.

I’d wondered why nobody came to help, but it seemed that was yet another one of the girl’s abilities.

Everyone’s eyes turned to the girl again.

The girl, who’d been leaning back, finally straightened up. By then, her eyes were clouded over with deep boredom.

“Ugh, how noisy… Maybe you all just haven’t had proper training?”

Senior Elsie looked more agitated than I’d ever seen her.

It was only natural for her to be angry–a woman whose identity was a complete mystery clung to the man she had a crush on.

Unable to contain her anger, Senior Elsie shook with rage and spat out questions.

“Hey, you! Who the hell are you? Were you raised by wolves or something?! What kind of messed-up bitch tries to put her hands on someone else’s fiance–?!”

“…Me?”

And just as I thought I saw a smirk play across the girl’s lips–

Senior Elsie was already flying through the air.

Even calling it a surprise attack didn’t quite do it justice. It happened so fast that neither I nor Yuren nor Celine could react in time.

Before anyone realized it, a blood-red whip had wrapped itself around Senior Elsie’s waist.

The girl’s hand moved with practiced ease, skillfully controlling the whip of mana.

Like a spinning top’s string, the mana thread coiled around Senior Elsie unraveled at lightning speed. In the blink of an eye, she was spinning helplessly through the air, unable to resist.

Then came a fierce strike.

With a deafening crash, the blood-red whip–now taut like a steel wire–slammed into Senior Elsie’s body.

There was no way her small frame could withstand that kind of force. Without even managing a scream, her body bounced across the floor several times before crashing into a corner.

Chunks of shattered rock clattered to the ground in her wake.

A blow strong enough to pulverize stone–just witnessing it sent chills down my spine.

Finally snapping back to my senses, I shouted in shock.

“Senior Elsie!”

But the girl who’d caused this whole mess didn’t seem fazed at all. In fact, she was even humming to herself.

“The world’s greatest dog trainer!”

“Ian, grab Senior Rinella! We’re getting out of here!”

Yuren shouted, pushing off the ground.

Saying that, he charged straight for the girl with the blood-red whip. While Senior Elsie and I were still trying to get back on our feet, Yuren was buying us time.

But he didn’t get far.

Clang!

Her fighting style felt oddly familiar.

It reminded me of Mitram–of the way she fought when she possessed the princess’s head maid.

But this girl’s power was on a completely different level.

Unable to withstand the whip’s momentum, Yuren was flung back like a rubber ball. Achoked groan escaped his lips.

“Kugh”

“A Saintess who will save those led astray by lies…!”

At that moment, Celine was quick to react.

From the moment Yuren charged in, Celine was already right behind him. Thanks to her shorter stature, she dodged the whip and quickly closed in on the girl.

Then, she slammed her weapon down with all her might.

A thunderous boom tore through the air–a sound like the world itself twisting out of shape. From the epicenter, a shockwave erupted, and chaotic winds were whipping through the area.

And that made it all feel even more surreal.

Celine’s battle axe was trembling. While it should have continued downard, the girl’s slender hand had stopped it.

No, it wasn’t just her bare hand–a blood-red whip was coiled over it.

While Celine was too stunned to even speak, the girl pivoted her foot, twisted her hips, and drove a clean, solid kick into her side.

Celine’s body tore through the air before crashing into the wall. The dull thud that followed seemed to echo her pain.

“A peddler who buys the wishes of the talentless!”

I had no choice but to stop in my tracks–just as I was about to run to help Senior Elsie.

Everyone had already been taken down.

If I tried to help anyone now, I’d be next. All I could do was grit my teeth and hold my ground.

Meanwhile, the girl approached me with light deliberate steps, bathed in blood-red light.

Even in the dark, her golden eyes gleamed with a vivid light. A sly crescent-moon like smile played across her lips.

“Please, call me ‘Greed’… Or, if you’d rather, you can call me ‘Ria Percus.'”

Winking, the girl added playfully,

“But it’s only you who can call me that, Oppa. ”

I grew even more confused.

No, that wasn’t true. Deep down, I already knew. There was a suspicion that had been gnawing at the back of my mind for a while now.

After all, I didn’t have just one younger sister.

Driven by fear, anxiety, and dread, I kept moistening my parched lips.

No.

This can’t be happening. It absolutely shouldn’t be happening.

In the end, I couldn’t hold it in and ended up blurting out a single word.

“…Ria?”

At that, the girl broke into the brightest smile.

“Correct! It’s me, Ria–the one who loves you more than anyone else, Oppa!”

Her eyes flashed–filled with hatred and resentment.

“…Not some fake, but your ‘real’ younger sister.”

And with that, my mind went completely blank.