chapter 51……………………………….
—Piiit, piiit!
The creature writhed beneath me.
The cold, composed attitude it had shown earlier was nowhere to be found; it couldn’t even speak anymore, looking exactly like an animal in heat.
Perhaps this was what the excitement of deviant criminals who can’t control their urges feels like—about the same as this thing right now.
But as the vaginal walls tightened and squeezed, rocking its hips on its own, annoyingly enough it felt very good, and my own hips began to move on their own.
—Where are you guys? I definitely heard something around here. Did I imagine it?
Mao’s voice came from outside the bushes and trees.
Rustle, rustle—the sound of foliage being disturbed came from not far away.
She’s getting closer.
While my lower body grew hotter, my mind was turning blank, unable to figure out what to do.
—Hii—hurry, give me your seed. Hurry. Ah! Hngh!
The harpy clung to my body with her wings, rocking herself as if masturbating.
Overwhelmed by her unexpected strength, I reflexively thrust deep inside her and pulled out again, repeating the motion.
At this point, I’ll just finish quickly!
I moved my hips using every ounce of strength and agility I had.
—Ha! Haa… ngh! Y-you’re too fast!
Overcome by the movements produced by a legendary beast’s level-13 stats, Salome lost herself and clung tightly to me.
As if trying to keep me from escaping, she wrapped her legs around my hips and squeezed my whole body like a snare.
—Inside… do it inside…!
It became harder to move, but fortunately my hips could still move freely.
Gathering all my mental and physical strength, I aimed to pour myself deep inside her narrow passage.
“Piiit, piiit! Pirrrt!” Salome kept making loud noises.
Afraid we’d be discovered, I covered her mouth with my forepaw so she couldn’t make even a small sound.
—Shh, be quiet!
To anyone who glanced at us, it might have looked like a ferocious beast assaulting a woman.
To defend myself, though, this was consensual—and even if I’d been careless touching her tail feathers, Salome had been blatantly seducing me first, so it wasn’t my fault.
—Salome! Where are you? Are you with the kid I brought? Taking a stroll in the garden or something?
The rustling footsteps drew closer.
My arousal peaked, my lower body so taut it felt like I’d climax any second.
Damn it, why isn’t it happening?
Perhaps because of the tension, even though I’d passed the peak, my release was delayed.
I’m not excited enough. I need more—more!
In my anxiety, I thrust with all my might into the harpy’s body.
To raise the tension even further, I covered Salome’s mouth with one hand and roughly kneaded her large breasts with the other.
—Mm…! Nngh…!
She tried to cry out, but my forepaw blocked her, leaving her to make only foolish muffled sounds.
—Mm!
Whether from the intense pleasure or something else, Salome twisted her body and fluttered her wings.
This really looks like I’m forcing her.
That thought sent a shiver of eerie pleasure and domination up my spine.
To pin down a female so she couldn’t move or even cry out, and to move purely on instinct—what a luxury.
I had become a bold male.
Perhaps the alpha at the top of the species.
The instinct to grow, multiply, and ultimately spread one’s seed to all females seemed to awaken fully within me.
You’re mine now.
I sharpened the claw that had been on her chest and slashed diagonally from her right breast down past her navel.
Her insides spasmed, gripping me so tightly it almost hurt.
—Mm, nngh!
The three shallow claw marks swelled, then healed almost immediately.
They heal incredibly fast.
They weren’t deep to begin with, and harpies must have exceptional regenerative ability.
On Salome’s bronze-colored skin, faint three-lined scars remained across her chest and lower abdomen.
I smiled in satisfaction as I looked at them.
Without anyone telling me, I instinctively knew it was a beast’s territorial mark on its female.
For humans, it might be like a wedding ring or marriage certificate.
Not that I had any intention of marrying her or starting a family.
I was just excited and got carried away.
—Salome, are you here? Maybe the rain’s messing with my sense of smell. Are you playing hide-and-seek?
As Mao’s voice drew closer, my hips sped up to their maximum, almost digging into Salome’s body.
The option of stopping had long since vanished from my mind.
All that remained was the thought of finishing inside the female and impregnating her.
—Mm, h-hurry…!
Freed from my hand, Salome urged me on.
As the sound of grass being stepped on came closer, her body tightened until it was almost painfully snug.
Flash.
A bright light flared before my eyes—probably lightning nearby.
Then came a thunderclap that seemed to rise from the planet’s axis itself, echoing through the demonic realm and the world.
Startled by the sound—or perhaps by the continued pleasure of being thrust so deeply—Salome’s body arched like a bow and spasmed.
—Pii…!
Her scream was swallowed by the thunder.
Unable to resist any longer, I released deep inside the harpy’s body in time with her convulsions.
—Oh, there you are. What were you two doing? You got close that fast?
A huge feline face suddenly pushed through the bushes.
I hurriedly pulled away from Salome.
Still aroused, I crouched awkwardly to hide myself.
—Salome? Why are you lying there? What are you doing? It’s raining. You’ll catch a chill lying on the cold ground.
Mao poked Salome’s cheek.
Having reached an overwhelming climax, Salome lay there as if unconscious, unable to move even a finger—or feather.
—M-miss…
—What’s going on? Did you two do something behind my back? Maybe…
Mao’s eyes narrowed with a low growl.
Thinking I’d been caught, I averted my gaze—when Mao suddenly brightened.
—You were playing hunting games without me! Harpy Salome’s different from sparrow Pepe—she gets caught easily. They say if you bite the nape, all the strength drains out.
—Ah… yeah. We played a little.
I nodded with an awkward smile.
Thankfully, Mao was duller than I’d expected.
To look at Salome panting and trembling and think it was just a game—maybe she really knew nothing about sex.
Which, for me, was fortunate.
After an intense release, entering a post-clarity state like Socrates himself, I coolly assessed my situation.
I’d killed a magpie, eaten treasured produce from the garden, devoured valuables Lao-Hu cherished, and even slept with what might have been a servant or subordinate.
The conclusion was obvious: escape immediately and don’t look back.
—Uh, Mao… I don’t need any reward. I should head home now—
—Anyway, we looked everywhere for you! Dad wants to see you! He said to bring you right away!
Mao hopped around excitedly.
At the words “Dad wants to see you,” my heart dropped to my feet.
—Your father… the owner of those teeth I saw earlier?
—You don’t have to be scared. I told him you saved me! He says he’ll give you a big reward! Salome, come too.
Mao licked Salome’s face affectionately.
Salome barely managed to speak.
—N-no, miss… my back’s gone out, I can’t get up… I need to lie here and… recover…
—You’ve been working too hard. You said you haven’t felt well lately, and you even did Johann the magpie’s share of work. Hmm… well, can’t be helped. Let’s go.
Mao bit onto me and hoisted me onto her back.
Then she bounded off, practically kidnapping me.
Yeah… I had a feeling it’d turn out like this. I need to revise the plan.
I’d already met two of the forest’s elusive rulers.
Surviving after seeing them was said to be incredible luck among the beasts.
Meeting one more now probably wouldn’t change much.
If they were likely to become enemies when I went after the World Tree’s fruit anyway, meeting them beforehand might not be so bad.
I saved his daughter—he won’t treat me badly right away. I’ll use this situation as best I can.
*
—Hey! When are we getting there?!
No matter how much I shouted, Mao kept bounding forward.
—Hey! Is it still far?!
I tapped her head with my paw, and she finally answered.
—Just a bit more. We’re almost there!
We’d already been running fast for over ten minutes, yet there was no sign of stopping.
At that speed, we’d come several—maybe over ten—kilometers from the garden.
How is the distance from the garden to Lao-Hu’s place this far?
In movies and dramas, rich estates often require driving from the garden gate to the house.
Maybe it was like that—though this felt excessive.
She looks like a cat, but size-wise she’s closer to a tiger.
I recalled a National Geographic documentary.
A healthy adult tiger’s daily range is about 20 km—meaning it needs around 400 square kilometers of territory.
Even Mao, clearly a child, was as big as a Siberian tiger.
Her father Lao-Hu must be unimaginably huge.
To him, even 400 square kilometers might be small.
Then again, what was the point of these calculations?
I was heading to meet the western ruler who divided the endless World Tree forest into quarters.
According to Leaf and the witch Eve, Lao-Hu was the strongest contender among the four forest lords, closest to the World Tree’s fruit.
Maybe to beings like them, this vast land was nothing more than a “garden.”
And I was happy living in a coffin-like stone hut just the other day…
Any pride I’d felt from learning I was a legendary beast deflated instantly.
Even here, the gap between rich and poor is endless.
In a lawless wild like this, the disparity would only be worse.
If rules existed, they’d be nothing but “might makes right” and “survival of the fittest.”
—Hey, slow down a bit.
—Motion sickness again? Want me to lick your back?
—No, just slow down.
Mao reduced her speed slightly—still faster than I could run.
But at least it gave me more time before meeting Lao-Hu.
I have to survive, no matter what. It’s not the strong who survive—those who survive are strong.
I rapidly planned how to act and what might happen.
Old sayings about keeping one’s wits even in a tiger’s den came to mind.
This life’s different from when I was human. I have claws to climb upward. There’s a ladder to rise in rank!
I flexed my claws, bolstering my confidence.
Staying positive in any situation was key to survival.
—We’re here. Dad! I brought him!
Mao set me down before a massive cave entrance and shouted inside.
From the darkness, enormous eyes and white fangs gleamed.
【So you’re the white beast who saved Mao.】
A booming voice echoed directly in my head, like thunder.
【I thank you for saving my daughter, but I cannot casually give her to a young man of unknown origin. Do you believe yourself worthy of that qualification?】
—What?
Polite speech slipped out instinctively.
—G-give me… your daughter?
