Chapter 550 - 550: Desire

In an unknown room, a high-grade Magic Stone lamp shone like crystal, dispelling the darkness.

Chloe closed the door and gently laid the boy on the bed.

"Just wait a little longer, nya~"

Chloe gazed at the sleeping boy, the corners of her lips curling upward.

There had been a minor hitch along the way. Syr had sensed that something was wrong, and when Chloe attacked, Bell had seemed to react, almost as if he had deliberately allowed the dagger to strike him.

But regardless, everything was proceeding according to plan.

Under the combined effects of the poison and healing potion, the boy's wound lasted only a moment before healing completely.

Now, he was simply unconscious.

Chloe had plenty of time to satisfy her desires.

She switched on the stove-like Magic Stone device, filling the room with warmth and driving away the night's chill.

As if she were in her own home, Chloe methodically removed her tavern uniform, opened the wardrobe, and took out a set of expensive jet-black lingerie.

By the time the room had warmed to a blissfully comfortable temperature, Chloe had finished changing.

Her black tail swayed as she climbed onto the bed, gazing affectionately at the boy.

"Just in case, I should tie you up, nya... But the night is long, so there shouldn't be any harm in letting me have a little taste first, nya~"

Chloe gently caressed the boy's body. Her tail, as nimble as a third hand, slowly coiled around his leg.

Their breaths mingled within the intimate space between them.

The balance between reason and desire tipped ever so slightly.

"Your clothes are in the way, nya..."

Chloe began pulling off the boy's pants.

At that moment, Bell opened his eyes.

"..."

Scarlet eyes met emerald ones, exchanging a mixture of awkwardness and resignation.

In Bell's eyes, the catperson girl was dressed in a thin silk nightgown. Its translucent fabric did nothing to conceal the contours of her body, and her flawless white skin contrasted with the thick, patterned black lingerie beneath. Like the look in Chloe's eyes, the sight seemed designed to tempt humanity's most primal desires.

Chloe blinked. Within moments, her beautiful cheeks had turned crimson.

"Nya-nya-nya?! W-w-why are you awake, nya?!!!"

The catperson girl's startled cry echoed through the room. Judging by the sound, the walls appeared to have been specially treated, giving the room excellent soundproofing.

But that was hardly the point.

The two of them were now mere inches apart.

Chloe's right hand rested on the boy's lower body. His casual pants had already been removed, leaving only one final layer of defense.

Even Bell had not expected to find himself in this situation.

"Chloe-san, the poison on your dagger doesn't work on me."

Bell honestly explained what had happened.

He was wearing the teardrop-shaped pendant Syr had given him, and his [Abnormal Resistance] even surpassed that of a first-tier adventurer.

Bell had noticed something strange about Chloe long ago. He had deliberately pretended to be unconscious because he wanted to see what she intended to do.

"Nya?!"

Chloe finally grasped the situation.

The odd sensation she had felt the instant she drove in the dagger had come from the boy deliberately cooperating with her.

"Chloe-san, what are you trying to do?"

Bell got straight to the point.

Out of the corner of his eye, he surveyed the room. The warm, spacious interior was furnished with decorations and Magic Stone devices that reflected a girl's peculiar tastes.

Black formed the room's primary color scheme, broken up by white accents bearing Bell's portrait.

Besides the cartoonish, hand-drawn pictures, the poster released when Bell leveled up hung in the most prominent spot. A closer look revealed detailed information such as his height and weight, along with personal notes ending in question marks beside certain special body parts.

No matter how one looked at it, the room was unmistakably Chloe's.

Bell was not alarmed by the pictures of himself. Instead, he looked at the catperson girl before him, seeking an answer.

"I failed, nya... I failed, nya... I failed, nya..."

Chloe repeated the same words in a trembling murmur.

Her plan had failed.

The boy had remained fully conscious the entire time.

It took Chloe only a second to overcome the shame that had suddenly surged through her. In its place came a flood of guilt.

She had not wanted things to turn out this way.

If the boy had remained unconscious, Chloe would not have needed to resort to force.

"I'm sorry, nya!"

Moving with the agility of a kitten, Chloe quickly sprang away and grabbed the sturdy rope lying on the table.

"Let's play."

With a micro-incantation, the catperson girl cast her Magic.

"Feles Cruz!"

In the blink of an eye, two phantoms appeared beside Chloe.

Holding identical ropes, they lunged toward the boy from different directions.

Though the phantoms created by her phantom magic had no physical form, they were enough to confuse Bell and buy Chloe time to attack.

"Awaken." Bell chanted his Magic at the same moment.

He had no intention of drawing his dagger to defend himself, nor did he want to hurt the catperson girl.

Although Chloe had often behaved like a shameless seductress toward Bell and earned punishment from Syr and the others with her provocative remarks, she had never done anything particularly extreme in private.

Bell wanted to know what the catperson girl was truly thinking.

"Hear now, the love song played upon the tower of purity."

Bell twisted aside, evading Chloe's lunge.

As expected, it was merely a phantom with no ability to attack.

Just as the catperson girl closed in, Bell completed his incantation.

"Divine Light • Voyage (Argo's Ship)."

In an instant, figures of Bell filled the entire room.

"Nya?! That's cheating, nya!"

As Chloe stared at the white-haired boy's face, the rope in her hand faltered for a split second.

The room had been remodeled entirely according to her tastes. Now that it was filled with several phantoms of the boy, the final piece of the puzzle Chloe had always sought finally fell into place within her heart.

"Chloe-san, please tell me how you truly feel."

With the aid of his phantom magic, Bell easily evaded the rope.

Blending in among the phantoms, he voiced what he had observed.

"The bedding is made of warm, comfortable velvet. From the sofa to the large bed, everything here was chosen for comfort. This is another home for you, isn't it, Chloe-san? You've dressed up so beautifully, but what exactly are you trying to do? If there's something you're having trouble saying, you can tell me."

Clad in her thin nightgown, Chloe moved around the room, her black tail and ears swaying constantly.

Unlike in the past, she did not lose her will to fight. Rope in hand, she continued searching for the real Bell.

Finally, because Bell had made no attempt to fight back, Chloe managed to pounce on him.

"I'm sorry, nya! I don't know how to confess my feelings. I just want to do that kind of thing with you, nya!"

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