''It's delicious.'' Luna ate a piece of bread, enjoying the warmth of the campfire. Then she narrowed her eyes when she noticed Hector staring at her.
She tilted her head and asked,
''Are you really a pervert?''
Hector shrugged and took a sip of wine, then stared into the campfire, lost in thought.
After that, he glanced toward a small group in the distance—something only he could see thanks to [Eyes of the Predator].
Two men with strange outfits with weird masks. They were demon worshippers.
That meant their lair was located nearby. To be precise, that place was a bloodstone mine inside the dungeon.
Lucky for him, he had finally found one of them. As expected, they always showed up in the most dangerous dungeons.
Because dangerous dungeons had plenty of corpses from fallen people. And corpses provided the nutrients needed to form bloodstone.
He had no idea what the demon cult wanted with bloodstone, simply because he hadn't read the whole novel yet.
Well, he couldn't really blame himself—no one was patient enough to finish that novel anyway.
''Soon, they'll come here.'' Hector smiled faintly as he tossed a dry stick into the campfire. He hoped the fire would be big enough to draw their attention.
He needed them to lead to their mine, since he didn't know where their mine was.
He could choose the method to force those men to guide him to the mine, but that was impossible. The worshippers were extremely loyal to their faith. Even if he killed them, they wouldn't leave a single hint of words behind.
Tricking them was his best choice.
''What kinda plan are you gonna use on me, sly fox?'' Luna asked.
Hector paused for a moment before asking back,
''You already realized it?''
Luna nodded and took another bite of bread.
''There must be a reason you dragged me into this dungeon. Plus, this bread could've had a sleeping pill in it.''
Hector lifted his eyelids slightly in amusement and shrugged. He hadn't expected her to figure it out so quickly.
For sure, she was very smart.
''So, why did you still eat it even when you knew?''
Luna blinked, then spoke, trying to put it into words.
''I wanted to see how clever you are… or… I just thought it'd be interesting.''
''I suppose it's a challenge for me. If I can ruin your plan, I'll be happy… otherwise, I'll learn from the failure.''
Hector rubbed his chin, thrilled. Well, that was exactly the part of her personality he liked.
She wasn't proud, even though she was very smart.
''That's spirit, princess.''
Then he smirked.
''And now, do you see your failure? What kinda lesson did you learn from it?''
Luna narrowed her eyes, then sighed.
''I'm too weak. And I lack real experience.''
The next moment, she hesitated for a while before adding,
''You're right. I have the blessing of God. However, I can't use it.''
For the first time, Hector's eyes glimmered with satisfaction. He smiled quietly, waiting for her to continue.
''I-I fear my blessing… not like I'm afraid of it mentally, but my body feels like it refuses to use it.''
Hector scowled and crossed his arms.
That was a serious problem.
He let out a breath and said,
''Don't worry, princess. I promise you'll use it today.''
''Huh? Really? I doubt that.''
Hector clicked his tongue.
''You have to use it. If not… both of us will die.''
Luna frowned and stammered,
''W-What do you mean?''
But then, her vision began to blur. Soon, she collapsed, passing out.
He stood up and gave Luna one last glance before leaving.
"Hope you won't be shocked when you wake up."
***
"Over there!" A demon worshiper, Males, a male wearing a red mask, pointed toward the campfire.
"Let's go."
Another demon worshiper, Harve, wearing a green mask, said.
"A beautiful girl?" Males licked his lips, staring at Luna lustfully. He shot his companion with a warning look.
"I'll take her first."
Harve stared at Luna for a moment, then clicked his tongue.
"Tch, she's royalty. Just look at the badge on her outfit."
…
"So what? I'll just have a bit of fun with her. It's not a big deal."
Harve scoffed.
"Are you insane? What if she holds a high position in the royal family? Once you soil her, the royals will hunt you down."
"Think bigger." Harve said, his face twisted with greed and perversion.
"If we hand her over to the commander, we'll get a huge reward—and the demon's favor."
"And you…" He glanced at Males. "Maybe he'll even grant you plenty of girls."
Males scowled, then grumbled.
"Fine. Let's take her to the mine."
…
"Did you hear something?" Harve asked, glancing around.
"You. Go check it out."
"Why me?"
"Because I said so. I'm your senior."
Males cursed under his breath but still followed the order. He slowly approached the nearby bushes, where the sound had come from.
"Bastard… I'm going to kill you, then make that girl mine… Just wait…"
But before he could babble another word, a cold slash cut across his throat. In the next instant, a hand clamped over his mouth, stopping any scream. At the same time, the icy tip of a sword pierced straight through his chest.
Staring at the blade drenched in his own blood, the man's eyes widened in panic before his body went limp.
Ting!
[A curse has appeared. Do you want to receive it?]
Name: Trade-off of Lustness
Rank: ★★★
[Description]: For each girl you have sex with, you can use her blessing one time. However, lust is your core. You must mate with animals daily. Otherwise, you will die for sure.
''What the fuck! I don't want it.''
Hector frowned as he looked at the system screen. Certainly, a high-star curse would always come with a massive weakness, even if it granted the user a special ability.
The best choice was to use a low-star curse—its drawbacks were something he could still control.
Just like [Blood of Predator].
Ting!
[A blessing has appeared. Do you want to receive it?]
Name: Sexual Arts
Rank: ★★
[Description]: You're a master at pleasing women in bed. No girl in this world could resist your skills… they'd get addicted to you forever.
''Well, I think...I'll take it.''
About three minutes later, Hector stepped out from the bushes. He was now wearing the dead man's outfit.
He slowly approached Harve, the red mask hanging over his face.
"What the fuck were you doing over there? Harve grumbled. "Don't tell me you were mating with an animal again."
Hector just was silent.
''Anything strange?" Harve sighed and asked.
Hector shook his head.
Harve clicked his tongue.
"Carry her. We're heading back to the mine."