Liliana (1)
The elf let out a scream as it plummeted from the World Tree. He was burning like a poorly tended campfire. Miraculously, his nosedive didnât result in any major injuries.
Bringing Alice and Lucy along turned out to be a wise move.
âGo! Alice, Lucy, Lumi!â
ââŚ?â
Alice and Lucy stared at me with the most skeptical eyes, as if to say, âAre you for real?â
âSorry⌠My mana is running low. I canât fight.â
Alice instantly responded, âWhy are you telling us now, you fool?!â
âItâs okay, we got this.â
âGaaarghhhh!â The High Elf, now an earthbound decoration, snatched his bow and sprinted to defend the blazing World Tree.
Elves are nature aficionados; they hold the World Tree dearer than their own existence. Capitalizing on this sentiment, my first course of action would be grilling the World Tree before dealing with the elf to harvest his essence. And if youâre wondering why thereâs an elf and a World Tree in the survival test area⌠Beats me. Thatâs how it was in the original. How would I know?
Pang! Lumiâs shield deflected the approaching arrows, Lucy conjured binding magic, and Alice sprinted aggressively toward the elf.
âIâll take the lead. Watch my back.â Alice pierced through the arrow barrage after signaling the twins to cover her.
The elf, with his gaze cold as ice, rained arrows upon us. The arrows twisted in absurd trajectories and targeted me as I worked on turning the World Tree into a bonfire. He seemed more fixated on me than on Alice, who was advancing with determination.
With Vision Enhancement, I twirled and sidestepped the arrows, all while my mana clung to its last breath. Keeping the blaze alive on the World Tree guzzled down mana like there was no tomorrow, and it was even a struggle to summon Cotton Guard.
âArgghh!â
A breath of relief escaped me as the arrow storm dwindled; credit to Alice, who stuck to the elf like glue while swinging her sword. Meanwhile, Lucy and Lumi had Aliceâs back; they weaved supportive magic from a safe distance.
âWatch out! Roots are coming up from the ground!â
The World Treeâs roots, manipulated by the High Elfâs magic, lunged toward Alice. She luckily heeded my warning as she dodged them with remarkable agility.
âAh! Why are there so many?!â
Lucy and Lumi werenât spared either. Despite the onslaught, the situation felt more like attending a root-themed light show. With the World Tree practically reduced to ashes, its root rampage was dwindling.
âRaaargh!â The elfâs belated scream echoed a desperate awakening, but the ship had sailed. The preemptive strike on the World Tree had set it ablaze long before the battle, reaching a point where the elf struggled to rein it in.
Alice picked up on the elfâs dire predicament and pressed on with the attack, effectively prolonging the skirmish. Her mastery of the blade as she maintained relentless pressure on the elf while effortlessly severing roots, left me impressed, even from my observation point.
Timeâs on our side.
The elf futilely aimed arrows my way, but Alice swiftly nullified its efforts.
After a prolonged interval, the World Tree succumbed entirely to the flames. Its descent echoed loudly as it relinquished its energy. The roots that had menaced us vanished, leaving the elf standing with bow gripped in hand. He gazed blankly at the remnants of the scorched World Tree.
Waiting for about 10 seconds in that state would trigger the awakening of the distressed elf. And killing the awakened elf would yield its essence, but⌠thereâs no need prolong the wait.
I neared the elf, which stood dumbfounded by the burning World Tree, and drove Spiral into its abdomen.
âKakh⌠Agh⌠KraahâŚ!â The elf squirmed, trying to unleash an awakening scream, as my Spiral tore through its body.
âUgh⌠GrossâŚâ
Tearing apart a humanoid monster was truly an unpleasant experience. I turned my back after collecting a gleaming bead near the elfâs heart.
âHey, girls! Itâs over.â I announced our victory with an ear-to-ear grin, but Alice and Lucy werenât sharing the joy.
âAfter burning the tree, it suddenly diedâŚ? Is that an elfâs nature?â
âIt doesnât feel rightâŚâ
âWell done, HoyeonâŚ!â
Directly confronting the elf seemed to make Alice and Lucy a bit uneasy regarding the elfâs peculiar behavior. Still, Lumi took my side, which made me happy.
âThank⌠ughâŚâ
An overwhelming heaviness enveloped my head, and the world around me twirled. Mana depletion was imminent, signaling the impending exhaustion. I glanced at the points and sighed in relief â only around 10 survivors remained.
âThat⌠handle it yourselves.â I pointed at the elf.
Reading the elfâs code would give a significant points of 350. Even though there werenât many survivors left, we couldnât just discard the points. All the students on the mini-map were quite far away, so there shouldnât be any danger now.
âHey, Iâll take a short napâŚâ I took out a tent from the subspace pouch, went inside, closed my eyes, and drifted into sleep.
âWeâll keep watch!â
âH-Hoyeon, are you okay?!â
ââŚâ
âYes⌠pleaseâŚâ
I heard Lucy and Lumiâs worried voices as I slowly fell asleep.
***
âWake up.â
Someone was tapping on my body.
âUghâŚâ As I opened my drowsy eyes, Alice was peering down at me.
âYouâre the last. Watch duty.â
âOhâŚâ
There shouldnât be any danger anyway⌠but itâs better to be sure.
I shook off the drowsiness and got up. Lucy and Lumi were curled up sleeping on either side of me. After tidying up my clothes while admiring the sleeping figures of the twins, I emerged from the tent. Outside, it was already bright daylight.
âGo in and rest. Thanks.â
âYeah.â Alice, unable to hide her fatigue, yawned and entered the tent.
It was already past noon. Probably, the three of them took turns doing the camp rotation for a long time to ensure my sleep.
âGood girls. Iâve raised my heroines well.â
I pulled out the essence of the elf from my pocket.
[Elfâs Essence]
? Grade: High
? Essence of mana collected by the High Elf to protect the World Tree.
? Increases charm when absorbed and becomes more handsome.
The effect of the Elfâs Essence is charm increase.
Charm is a stat not even present in the status window. And the part about becoming more handsome might seem useless at first glance, but it changes with the protagonist buff. Basically, charm refers to having a good-looking face. The higher it goes, the more handsome the face becomes. But what if you were already at the pinnacle of handsomeness before your charm increased?
Not just reasonably good-looking, but rather an absurdly unrealistic face that would break if touched. For example⌠like me. If such a handsome person increases their charm, what happens is that other aspects become more good-looking. First is the body. The shape of the body becomes beautiful and ideal. Second is the internal structure of the body. Blood vessels, mana circuits, organs, etc., all transform efficiently.
âWait⌠If Alice consumes this, would it cure her mana deficiency?â
In the original game, it was consumed automatically. Of course, even if it can cure her, Iâm going to eat it anyway. Alice will have to be treated later.
âI should absorb it outside.â
This isnât a game, I canât just consume it during an exam. To absorb it slowly at home after the exam, I put the Elfâs Essence back into the subspace pouch.
***
[Special Exam Ended. Teleportation to the Academy will commence shortly.]
Sunday night, 10 PM. Finally, the special exam madness is over. While the primary target was the elfâs essence, I managed to level up my rapport with Alice, yielding some satisfactory results. The grades are not revealed yet, but with a substantial point lead, Iâm likely the front-runner. Alice, on the other hand, appears to be easing up on the grade stress. My guess is sheâs diverting her attention to sorting out her mana deficiency.
âYes, Sebastian. I need to find a mana masseurâŚâ The moment the exam concluded, Alice fervently engaged in a phone call in one corner of the classroom. The rest of the students were strewn across desks. Those who got eliminated early were apparently stuck in the academyâs accommodations until the exam wrapped up.
âHaa⌠Itâs finally over. My dorm bed is officially my new hangout starting now.â Lucy, sprawled out, wore an exhaustion-induced expression.
âAre you skipping festival strolls, Lucy?â
âUgh⌠Festival sounds fun, but Hoyeon, what about you?â
âMe? HmmâŚâ
To be honest, I havenât really mapped out my festival agenda. Iâm leaning towards kicking back in the dorm to recharge a bit⌠though there are a handful of people I should catch up with. On another note, Iâve got a duel with the vice president during the festival. It totally slipped my mind amidst the survival shenanigans. It was set for the festivalâs kickoff⌠but whenâs that again? And, of course, I need to check in on Liliana. Fingers crossed sheâs been keeping up with her meals.
In came Professor Kim Jinhyuk, our homeroom teacher. The students, who had been lying down like zombies, gradually rose at the sound of his confident footsteps.
âYou all seem well. Exams are wrapped up. Itâs getting late, so dorm-dwellers, make your way back. Enjoy the festival starting tomorrow. Thatâs all.â
Heâs quite casual about handling things.
Of course, since the medical check is done, there shouldnât be any issues⌠but I feel somewhat uneasy. Other students, like zombies, murmured complaints and left the classroom.
âTime for me to catch some rest too⌠See you later, Lumi.â
âYes! See you during the festival, Hoyeon.â
âGot it. Iâll be in touch.â
Lumi provided support to the weary Lucy and departed. Following suit, I headed towards Alice who was engrossed in a call.
âYeah, Iâll leave it to you, Sebastian.â
It seems her call just ended.
âAlice, good job.â
âYou too. You were a big help this time.â
âFind a good mana masseur⌠and if you have any questions, feel free to ask anytime.â
âSure.â
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After saying my goodbyes to Alice, I made my way in the direction of the dorm. The question lingered: when would she make contact? Not right away, I presumed. Sheâd probably test out a couple of masseurs first.
The dorm route, at this hour past 10 PM, is shrouded in darkness.
âWow⌠Iâve got a ton of messages.â
Iâll have to take a relaxed look after a quick rest. I just messaged Liliana that Iâm on my way.
âHow did her streams go⌠and did she manage to grab a meal by herself?â
Ding! Returning to the dorm after a week, everything was as it was. However, strangely, it was quiet, andâŚ
âHaahâŚ! HaahâŚ!â
Squishy sounds and low moans echoed from the room.
ââŚâ
I slowly approached the room and opened the door.
âHaarghâŚ! NghâŚ!â
The room looked like a tornado had hit it. Instant food packages lay scattered with torn-open packaging. A coke can, cap ripped off, fizzing out uncontrollably. The bed resembled a soaked sponge, drenched with water. And there she wasâa perverted succubus writhing with a tail inserted into her moist entrance.
âLilianaâŚ?â
What on earth is this scene? Sheâs⌠I canât tell if sheâs come to her senses.
âMasterâŚâ
âLiliana!â I hurried to her as she fought to find her voice and wrapped her in a hug. It wasnât about missing meals; she was in the throes of heat.
âIâm sorry, I never thought⌠Liliana?â
âHaa⌠HaaâŚâ
I heard small chuckle from my arms. Feeling something odd, I gently pushed Liliana away and assessed the situation.
âMaster⌠Itâs all because of youâŚâ Liliana, who was trembling, now looked at me with a smile.
Thud!
Sensing an impending fear coursing through my body, something struck my head hard, and I lost consciousness.