"Huff, huff, huff!!"
"I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you."
I ran like a madman through the forest surrounded by trees.
Even as I pushed through all sorts of brush and branches, my speed, enhanced by magic, approached 40 kilometers per hour.
However, the pressure of the terrifying murderous intent aimed at the back of my neck didn't fade in the slightest. It was actually getting closer.
"No! I didn't peek on purpose!"
"Shut your mouth, you adulterous bastard."
She wasn't listening.
Her voice was so cold that I felt like my neck had already been cut.
'Should I subdue her?'
I wasn't sure, but the difference in skill between that woman and me couldn't be that great.
If we were evenly matched, I had the advantage with magic as my hidden card. Plus, I knew several binding spells, so I could subdue her if I wanted to.
But the profession listed in her profile bothered me.
[Name: Cheon Yeohwa
Age: 20
Affiliation: AXZ-174
Profession: Second Princess of the Demonic Cult
Disposition: ??]
'What the hell is the Demonic Cult!'
As you could see from her profile, that woman was the Second Princess of the infamous Demonic Cult.
That meant this was a world within a martial arts novel.
What if I accidentally peeked at the Demonic Cult princess naked, and then subdued her?
'That's him! Kill that lustful bastard!'
'It's the Lord's command! For the honor of the Princess, tear him limb from limb and throw him to the dogs!!'
'Screeeeech!!'
The thought alone sent chills down my spine.
If the other party was righteous, I'd have a chance to explain, but thinking I'd have a chance to explain to crazy Demonic Cult bastards was just wishful thinking.
'Why did my match have to be the daughter of a nationally known gang boss!!'
This was so unfair.
Was it my fault? Was the app maliciously targeting the summon location on purpose?
"Would you just listen to me?!"
She wasn't even answering anymore.
She was just running at me like a serial killer, trying to cut my throat.
'This is driving me crazy, really.'
If I just kept running away, there would be no end.
But subduing her? That was just turning away from the problem in front of me.
"Eeeek?!"
"?!"
Just as I was running around like crazy, unable to come up with a proper solution,
I couldn't help but stop at Cheon Yeohwa's scream from behind.
For a moment, I wondered if this was a trap, but Cheon Yeohwa, who had been chasing after me with the intention to kill… no, with the intent to actually kill me, was collapsed under some strange net.
'What is that?'
Then someone appeared from the nearby bushes.
"Kahaha! I finally caught her!"
"Whoa, I thought she was crazy from afar, but up close, her beauty is no joke?"
"Wow, if we had tried to catch her head-on, some of us would have died, right? How much is this steel net worth? She's already trying to get out."
"We got lucky. I never thought we'd find such a high-quality prize on the way back to the hideout."
I was momentarily stunned by the unexpected situation, but soon, a few men appeared who looked like they were straight out of a bandit movie!
About a dozen of them, roughly?
"You trashy bastards!!"
Wait… those guys clearly threw the net, so why are you cursing at me?
Was this another bit of unfairness I had to endure?
"Boss, look at this woman's skin. She looks like a rich man's daughter, is it okay?"
"Hey, you idiot."
"Eek?!"
"Why would you be afraid of something like that if you're going to be a bandit? We're not Robin Hood. We'll just use her a bit and move the hideout. Who would know?"
Well, that ugly bastard has a huge voice.
Thanks to that, I could hear every word of what he was saying.
So, those guys found me and Cheon Yeohwa chasing each other in the forest? They were captivated by Cheon Yeohwa's appearance and tried to kidnap her, and they succeeded?
'Those guys don't even know if the apple they're putting in their mouths is poisoned.'
If the Demonic Cult in this world is like the ones I know from stories, they'll burn down a few mountains to kill them, even if they move their hideout.
Of course, I'm a kind man who loves nature, so I'm going to make sure that doesn't happen.
"Hey."
The bandits all turned to look at me.
They were saying something, but I didn't really want to listen.
"Well… I don't really have anything to say."
I grabbed the wand I took out of my inventory and pointed it at them.
"Die."
[Chain Flame Circle]
A streak of flame shot out of the magic circle at the speed of light, piercing through their bodies.
"Aaaaaargh!?!!"
"Aaaargh!!!"
"H-Hot!!!?"
The screams of the bandits, suddenly burned by fire, echoed throughout the forest.
The ones with flames all over their bodies rolled on the ground, running around trying to put out the fire, but once the fire started, it only burned more fiercely, using their bodies as firewood.
Soon, the bandits were burned to a crisp and scattered on the ground like garbage.
They lasted quite a while for bandits.
And surprisingly, they were still alive.
"Ugh, ugh…"
"Eek, eeh…"
"Krrraaa…"
Even though their whole bodies were charred black, they were still alive. Was this the mystery of the human body?
I lowered the power in case Cheon Yeohwa got hit, and I guess that's why.
I turned my gaze away from the now-mysterious men. If they suffered in that state for a while before dying, it would be enough to soothe the souls of the victims who had been harmed by them.
It was a bit of a dirty voice, but I could put up with it.
"Just wait a bit, I'll get you out of there soon."
I carefully freed Cheon Yeohwa from the steel net, making sure she wasn't hurt.
I thought it would be cheap because the bandits were using it, but surprisingly, it was heavier than I expected.
Even if I had been caught in it, I don't think I could have gotten out easily.
"Are you okay?"
Cheon Yeohwa, freed from the steel net, was staring at me with a strange expression.
Tch, she knows I'm handsome.
"…Why."
"Huh?"
"Why did you save me?"
"Do you want to go back in?"
I pretended to lift the steel net, and she took a step back. I sighed.
I was already upset about almost getting stabbed, and now she's asking why I saved her.
"Am I supposed to just watch a woman get dragged away and raped by bandits right in front of me?"
"…I see, you didn't want someone else taking what you already laid claim to. How lustful of you."
"Oh, come on…!"
This woman, she's impossible.
"Why am I lustful?"
"Didn't you steal a glimpse of a woman's naked body?"
"That was a misunderstanding! I have a girlfriend who's prettier than you! Why would I risk my life to peek at a woman with a sword taking a bath!"
"Oh? That's something I can't easily ignore."
Cheon Yeohwa suddenly swept back her wet bangs and gave me a provocative smile.
"There's no way there's a woman more beautiful than I in this world. It's laughable that men try to save their pathetic pride."
"…"
If you only looked at her skin, which was so transparent that it seemed to shine, her ruby-red eyes, and her body clinging tightly to her wet clothes, it was clear that she was a stunning beauty on par with Iris.
And her chest too.
'It was amazing earlier.'
Not as big as Iris's, but almost.
"Judging by your lack of an answer, I suppose it was just empty bravado."
Her strangely triumphant voice grated on me.
I admitted that Cheon Yeohwa was as pretty as Iris, but she wasn't prettier.
I wanted to snap back, 'What nonsense are you talking about? My girlfriend is obviously prettier,' but the situation wasn't right.
I'm scared of the Demonic Cult.
"Anyway, I'm sorry for peeking, but it wasn't intentional, okay? It was an accident that neither of us wanted, so how about we just let it go?"
"Not allowed. You dared to peek at the naked body of a maiden who isn't even married yet, and you think you can just let it go?"
"…What do you want?"
This was a wretched and miserable moment where the gap between the powerful and the weak was clear.
No, the app is weird for summoning me here. How is this my fault?
Honestly, if it wasn't for the fact that she was the princess of the Demonic Cult and my match, I would have just subdued her, apologized, and then either stuck with her or run away, but I can't, and I'm so frustrated.
"How strange."
"…What."
Her voice was mixed with a strange smile, and my anxiety grew.
"You wish to beg for my mercy and save your life, is that not what you desire? Then it is your duty to decide what you will offer as the price for your life. How shameless of you to act like a lustful fiend?"
Wow…
How strange? I hadn't even met her that long ago, and we hadn't even exchanged many words, but I somehow knew how nasty that woman's personality was.
Is this telepathy?
"Then can I give you anything?"
"Of course, but it is my decision whether to grant you mercy in exchange for your offering, or to offer you my blade."
Why are you suddenly cleaning your sword?
'Ugh…'
I sighed inwardly, while thinking about what I had in my inventory and what I had packed in my bag.
What do I have that a woman would want?
I couldn't just give her something mediocre and be done with it. My opponent was the daughter of the leader of a crazy cult in most stories, a cult that could stand against the entire righteous martial arts world alone.
I didn't know why such a woman was bathing in this forest, but I had to give her something that a rich man's daughter would like, which made me indecisive.
'…Would this work?'
Most of the food I packed as rations was relatively high in calories. Of course, I could end the match if I ran out of food, but what if I couldn't?
Hopefully that wouldn't happen, but it was good to be prepared, so I had prepared mostly emergency rations.
And chocolate was a good emergency ration because it was relatively nutritious among snacks and contained a lot of fat.
"Here."
"This is…?"
What I handed her was a chocolate bar I bought from a convenience store.
Just a plain, unremarkable chocolate bar.
"How strangely shaped… it doesn't seem to be a jewel… the rustling packaging is interesting? I certainly have never seen anything like this before. Is this something from the barbarians?"
Hey, hey. You can't just call my ancestors barbarians…
Of course, the origin of cocoa wasn't Korean, but this was made in Korea.
I was stunned by this sudden talk about ancestors.
"Not barbarians, but the Eastern Land."
"The Eastern Land? Ah, you must be referring to the country across the eastern sea. Then aren't you barbarians?"
"Hey…!"
I wasn't a particularly patriotic guy, but I couldn't tolerate my roots being treated as barbarians.
I don't care if you insult Korea.
But I can't stand being called a descendant of barbarians.
"Huhu, you're lustful, but you cherish your homeland, it seems."
"What the… ha, don't talk nonsense and just eat it."
"Eat it? Are you saying this black lump is food?"
"What else would it be, an elixir?"
I don't have any elixirs, and I want to eat one myself.
Actually, I wanted to buy an elixir as soon as I saved up some money. But they're not cheap, so I can't afford to buy one.
'…Wait a minute? This is a martial arts world, so there should be elixirs.'
I suddenly felt a desire to become a divine thief and spread my name throughout this world.
It might be easier than I thought if there were no CCTVs or psychometry users.
'How much money could I get if I sold elixirs I didn't need at an auction??'
I could see a vision of my future self, opening a (very expensive) bottle of wine in a penthouse.
"Haa…"
What woke me up from my bright future fantasy was a sensual moan.
Cheon Yeohwa already had an empty chocolate wrapper neatly folded in her hand.
"The black, pill-like food you gave me looked a bit off, but the taste is excellent. It's sweeter and more intense than any other confection I've ever eaten."
Cheon Yeohwa's face was dangerous after eating the chocolate.
The combination of her slightly unfocused eyes and the reddish blush on her pale skin elevated her beauty by several levels.
How can she eat a convenience store chocolate bar like it's a R-rated pictorial?
"But you called me lustful. Is it okay to just eat something a lustful person gives you?"
"I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I'm immune to poison. Besides, I'm always welcome to such sweet aphrodisiacs."
Wait, what… is the princess of the Demonic Cult immune to all poisons?
"So, do you have any more?"
"What?"
"Surely you weren't trying to atone for the great crime of glimpsing my naked body with just one?"
How can she be so shameless??
But she's so pretty that I can forgive her.
Still, I didn't want to just give it to her because I was upset that she had falsely accused an innocent, law-abiding citizen of being a perverted creep.
"I don't have any."
"That's a lie. How many cunning people do you think I've met? At least they tried to hide their intentions. But you don't even try."
"I'm not lying."
"Surely, you're not sulking because I called you lustful? Huhu, what a narrow-minded man."
"…"
Can't you just change my match?
[Tip. Fate is precious and cannot be exchanged for anything]
Damn it…