Late at night.
"Ugh, I still can't figure this thing out."
Alistair tossed and turned in bed. He picked up the "Ring" he'd borrowed from Sakura Miyajima. It looked identical to the one he had absorbed—the same color, size, and weight—but it lacked that strange, eerie "aura."
"Maybe it's just a common accessory? Am I just out of the loop?" Alistair wondered. Back at school, Nina and the others seemed interested in it. Maybe aesthetic tastes were just different here.
Ping!
His phone lit up. "Who's texting this late? Grandpa?"
Alistair checked the message. Only his eccentric grandfather would pull something like this—sending him to the countryside to find something while dodging a mysterious "person." His grandfather was like a professional riddler.
"Huh? It's Shima Izuki. She..."
Alistair looked at the name. His memories of her felt fragmented, like scenes from a movie he'd watched a long time ago. He could remember the events, but they lacked the "weight" of personal experience.
Thud!
Before he could read the text, a sharp pain shot through his kidney.
"FUCK! Who hit my kidney?!"
Alistair clutched his back. [The World] materialized instantly. Through the Stand's eyes, Alistair saw his attacker.
A succubus? Is this the one who attacked me before, drained me dry, and wiped my memory?
The creature was stunningly curvaceous, wearing a purple bikini-like outfit. She had pale skin, small bat-like wings, and two curved horns protruding from her long purple hair. She was pointing a finger at him, looking shocked.
"Strange. Why didn't it work? And what is that iron-man thing?"
Riri Manabe was baffled. Last time, she'd put Alistair into a trance instantly. Why was he conscious now? And his internal "Mystery" levels were much higher. Did she have the wrong guy? No, the face was the same.
Whatever. He's just a novice. I'll just use more mana.
Riri didn't want to think too hard. She unleashed half her mana into a Charm spell. She'd managed to slip away from that mother-daughter duo who were being hunted by something "ancient." This prime prey was all hers. She could already imagine the fun she'd have with him.
Alistair, meanwhile, was annoyed. She was hitting him with mental attacks, but since he was at full power and bolstered by his evolution, they were useless. Every "Charm" spell was being converted into physical damage by [The World]. It didn't control him, but it hurt like hell—specifically in the kidneys. Thank god for the Horse Talisman's healing, or he'd be crippled.
"Alright, now... take off your pants and lie on the bed. Mistress Riri is going to take good care of you~" Riri walked toward him, confident that no human could resist a spell fueled by half her mana. She mistook Alistair's wide-eyed stare for a struggle against her irresistible charm.
Alistair stood up and took off his pants. He was wearing boxers underneath, so he wasn't "exposed" yet. Then, he balled up the trousers and threw them directly at Riri's face.
She was so close that she couldn't dodge. The fabric wrapped around her head.
"You bastard! You dare throw your clothes at my head?!" she shrieked, deciding she was going to drain every last drop from him tonight.
She ripped the pants off her face, expecting to see a lust-filled slave. Instead, she saw a massive, golden fist.
BOOM!
The punch sent her flying across the room. she slammed into the wall and crumpled to the floor. Agony flared in her mind. How? To resist that much mana, he'd need to be as strong as her. And with Mystery returning, her spells should be stronger. How could a human become this powerful in just a few days?
Riri curled into a ball, clutching her face.
"Dumbass. Is your head so full of cock that you thought I was controlled just because I wasn't moving?" Alistair stood over her, mocking her. [The World] loomed behind him, ready to finish her.
Alistair was a pervert, sure, but he had standards. He'd played with Anna, but that was just physical. He had feelings for Mina, Kasumi, and Nanami—real girls. He wasn't going to waste emotion on a parasite like this. He liked "used cars" if they were MILFs, but supernatural predators were a different story.
THUD!
[The World] stomped down, but Riri turned into a burst of flame, scattering across the room. The Stand's foot cracked the floor.
A getaway? Alistair watched the hundreds of tiny flames fly toward the window. [The World] was a brawler, not a ghost-catcher. If she escaped, he'd have to use [The Hunt] to track her down.
But the flames suddenly coalesced at the window, returning to her physical form.
Damn! Not enough mana!
Riri looked pale. She'd used too much on the charms and the healing. She didn't have enough juice left to maintain her fire-form. She tried to climb onto the windowsill to fly away—her wings didn't need much mana—but she wasn't fast enough.
"ZA WARUDO!"
DOOM!
The world turned grey. Time stopped.
"Get back here!" Alistair had [The World] grab Riri by the neck and hurl her back into the corner. Three seconds. Plenty of time.
Time resumed. Riri slammed into the floor, her body screaming in pain.
"Now... are you still planning on running?"