We, the “Princess Harem,” found ourselves in our first serious predicament since our formation.
Until now, I had managed to avoid most dangers based on my past life experiences, but it seemed my assumptions were too lenient this time.
While en route to Imman, a town on the old border, Holy Spirit Serena detected an abnormal miasma on the road leading to the hills. Upon investigating, we found numerous corpses scattered around.
And then, while I was examining the bodies, a mysterious man suddenly appeared and launched a surprise attack. Ly and Liliana, who were waiting near the carriage, were abducted.
It seemed both Ly and Liliana had been knocked unconscious.
Mai was chasing after the man, who fled with Ly and Liliana held under each arm. Swan Hilda and Dietlinde, who rushed back to the carriage with me, hastily pursued them.
Elise was with us when we took off, but perhaps due to her lack of exercise, she dropped out midway and was on her knees.
It seems Elise, who has a gluttonous appetite, really needs to be forced into a diet.
Meanwhile, I checked on Freya, Kirika, Edele, and Eria, who had collapsed on the ground. Fortunately, they had only been struck on the neck and abdomen, causing them to lose consciousness.
Just in case, I cast “Healing Magic” to mend their bruises.
“Hal-sama, Hal-samaaa! Please! Save Ly-sama and Liliana-sama!!”
Tirna, noticing my return, clung to my back and sobbed.
Despite the dire emergency, Tirna’s breasts pressed against my back, sending a pleasant sensation.
It seemed Tirna had truly grown.
Astarotte, who returned with me, was calming an excited Shera and tending to Freya and the others.
Holy Spirit Serena seemed to be flying near Swan Hilda, but the three Vampire sisters who always followed me around were nowhere to be seen.
Given that the enemy appeared to be a former colleague, a Demon, they were probably hiding until summoned.
The fact that Kirika, the Summoner, was down was a headache.
In such an emergency, it was uncertain if anyone other than Kirika could control their summoned beings.
“Alicia, what happened?”
“Hal… well, you see, when we were on watch near the carriage—”
I was asking Alicia about the situation when the mysterious man attacked.
The attack by the mysterious man unfolded as follows:
As Alicia and the others were gathered near the carriage, keeping watch, a man suddenly burst from the grass by the roadside. He quickly knocked Freya and the others unconscious and then fled with Ly and Liliana, who he seemed to have taken a particular liking to.
At that moment, only Mai managed to land even a single blow. The other Party Members were unable to react.
Meanwhile, Alicia, Shera, and Tirna were spared from being knocked out due to their positions and a stroke of luck.
As he fled, the man shouted, “Behold! Our supreme god Barberu! I offer these magnificent sacrifices!”
I didn’t hear the shout, but I presumed it was drowned out by Tirna and the others’ screams.
What in the world is happening? To suddenly be thrust onto a stage where Demons are plotting and scheming.
If this continues, Ly and Liliana will be sacrificed.
Ly and Liliana both have important missions ahead of them, and they are precious bodies.
They shouldn’t die here.
If anything happens to them, “Bess-chan’s” plan will go down the drain.
I have to rescue them, no matter what.
“Damn it! I let my guard down. I’ll go chase after Mai and the others.”
I decided to retrieve Elise on the way and head for the summit of the hill in question.
“Hal-sama, take me with you! I can’t believe I was caught off guard! I’ll repay this favor threefold, with interest!!”
Turning around, I saw Shera, who had calmed down, transform into “Sister Shera” and stomp her foot.
It seemed Shera had narrowly escaped the attacker’s grasp but was in a state of tunnel vision due to her excitement.
Sister Shera grinned, pulling up the corners of her mouth.
It was a rather wicked smile.
“I’m sorry, Shera, but please protect Alicia and the others.”
“Damn, I guess I have no choice!”
Sister Shera reluctantly accepted my instructions.
“Haa… haa… Hal-sama, I… haa… will stay here too.”
Elise had returned at some point.
Elise looked like she was about to collapse from hyperventilation.
“Alright, Elise, I’m leaving this place to you. I’ll go check on the situation over there.”
“Understood, leave it to me.”
Elise seemed to have calmed down somewhat.
“Ah, that’s right. Elise, don’t you think you need to go on a diet?”
“……”
At my words, Elise’s face turned beet red in silence.
Her usual spirited demeanor was subdued, and she looked incredibly cute.
However, I shouldn’t look down at her plump stomach.
Furthermore, as she was likely to be employed as the “Sealed Maiden Princess,” the Magic Reservoir within her was nearly full.
For this reason, she was also excluded from the night-duty rotation.
It was because attempting to hold her in this state would excessively stimulate lust and lead to rape.
“Hal, good luck!”
“Thank you, Alicia.”
“Do it for me too!”
“I know, Shera.”
“Please take command without worrying about things here.”
“Understood, Elise.”
“Hal-sama, please, please rescue Ly-sama and Liliana-sama.”
“I understand, Tirna.”
“The enemy appears to be some kind of Demon, so please be careful.”
“I know, Astarotte. Please don’t worry, as Elise and Shera will remain here. I’m off.”
Alicia, Sister Shera, Elise, Tirna, and Astarotte saw me off as I ran.
Looking ahead, all I could see was the upward sloping road.
There was no sign of those who had gone ahead.
The woods on either side of the road had few large trees, with only low shrubs sparsely growing. However, the dense undergrowth provided good concealment for the bodies.
As I inhaled, I felt a faint scent of death and decay.
This was likely because I now knew that numerous bodies lay scattered within the woods.
“Climbing this uphill slope seems tough.”
A weak complaint escaped my lips.
However, Alicia and the others were watching, so I couldn’t stop.
To think I’d have to show my manliness here…
This was a scene where I had to make an effort to display a man’s honor.
Gradually, fatigue set in, and my running speed decreased, but the end of the uphill climb was still a little further off.
“Haa… haa… I finally made it… haa… I’m out of shape too.”
The uphill climb to the summit of the hill was arduous even for me, and I finally arrived, gasping for breath.
As I caught my breath, I witnessed an unusual sight.
“Wh-what is this… evil…”
In the open space at the summit of the hill, a bizarre tower had been erected. It was clearly meant for worshiping some sort of evil god or Demon, as an offering.
In other words, the object that looked like a tower was a “Head Mound,” a pile of severed heads.
Upon closer inspection, the heads of young girls, barely past puberty, stared at me with vacant, milky-white eyes, as if resenting me.
Their laxly hanging tongues were covered in blood, and their heads were smeared with dried blood from the severed necks of the heads piled above them.
Among them, I saw the heads of what must have been beautiful girls in life.
What a blasphemous act of barbarity.
Beautiful girls are treasures that the Human Race should protect…
Next to them, the severed head of a man who looked like a warrior with a magnificent beard was piled, and on top of him was the head of a boy about my age.
Heads were piled up in this manner, and the weapons they had likely used were stuck into the ground around the area, forming a fence and designating a forbidden zone.
Behind them, two crucifixion platforms were prepared, and Ly and Liliana were lying beneath them.
The enemies were the man who had attacked our carriage and abducted Ly and Liliana, and two women.
The man, with his side-swept, romance-gray hair, initially appeared butler-like and was a handsome middle-aged man. However, he was tall with a muscular physique.
His face was that of a handsome man with a cynical, alluring gaze. No, perhaps “distinguished middle-aged gentleman” would be more fitting.
And facing him were Mai and Dietlinde.
“You scoundrel! Return Ly and Liliana at once!”
“N! Return them!!”
“I merely followed my master’s orders. Those beautiful girls are already ours. If you wish to take them back, defeat me first.”
“Then we shall take them back by force. Let’s go, Mai!”
“N.”
“Is negotiation impossible? In that case, you shall become the rust of my Serpent Spear!”
*Fwoosh, clang, clink, fwooshfwoosh, clank, clink.*
Mai gripped a short sword in her left hand in a reverse grip. Dietlinde held the rapier hanging from her waist in her right hand.
The man, on the other hand, held a “Serpent Spear,” a spear with a wavy blade, which he carried on his back, preventing the two from easily approaching him.
Naturally, a spear has a longer reach.
“…He’s skilled. There’s no opening. Spears are cowardly.”
“That’s right! My Serpent Spear is capable of much more than this!”
“…Hm… hmm…”
“My rapier and Mai’s short sword cannot get close.”
With skillful footwork and accomplished technique, the man wielded the Serpent Spear as if it were an extension of his limbs.
He was clearly a seasoned fighter.
He would sweep from a low position and then suddenly thrust forward.
The tip of the Serpent Spear moved with unpredictable agility, keeping Mai and Dietlinde at bay.
Occasionally, Mai would take out a kunai from her chest, grip it in her right hand, and throw it, but the man easily knocked it aside.
Dietlinde also unleashed fireballs and arrows with fire spirit magic, but he dodged them with swift movements.
At this point, there was nothing to do but wait for the man to tire.
Of the two women, the one in front was a young girl.
However, she held two blades in her hands and was keeping Swan Hilda at bay.
The blades appeared to be Jian, with red tassels attached to the hilts.
The girl outmaneuvered Swan Hilda with graceful footwork and swordplay, as if performing a sword dance.
Of course, this was only a fleeting advantage that could easily be overturned if Swan Hilda went on the offensive.
The girl’s outfit was an Eastern-style dress made with abundant use of vibrant fabrics like red, blue, and yellow. The skirt portion had deep slits, making it easy to move.
However, due to these slits, her alluring bare legs occasionally peeked out.
The chest of her attire was embroidered with a white tiger, giving it a luxurious impression.
However, based on the garment’s construction, wouldn’t the fabric on the chest be detachable?
If that part of the fabric were removed, her breasts would be completely exposed!
“I will not forgive anyone who gets in my way. However, to think the final prize is such a meager woman, and her weapon is merely a common longsword! Hurry up and be defeated, and be of use to me!”
“What are you saying! More importantly, release my companions!”
“You only have a sharp tongue, don’t you? Ku ku ku. Die!”
“Really, you never listen.”
The girl, by spinning herself, ravaged the surrounding space like a top with blades attached.
The tips of the blades cut through the air, creating a whistling sound as they whizzed by, and the red tassels attached to the hilts danced gracefully as well.
Sometimes she would slash with both Jian held side-by-side, and the tips of their swords drew complex cutting lines, keeping Swan Hilda at bay.
It’s painful to see her looking down on Swan Hilda, who is a Valkyrie of the Lower God Clan, considering her true identity.
Not recognizing the person she is facing is truly terrifying ignorance.
Although Swan Hilda was posing as a mere rookie adventurer, anyone with keen intuition should have sensed something.
In the background, a beauty with her lustrous black hair tied up in a bun and wearing a court lady-like outfit with an impossibly large bust was stripping Ly’s clothes and tying her to the crucifixion platform.
And now, she was starting to undress Liliana!
“Hey! You, the Demon-breasted woman! Release Ly and Liliana!!”
I couldn’t help but call out to the alluring, demon-breasted mature beauty who was undressing Liliana in the back.
“Are you… talking… about… meeeeee? I’m… very busy… right now… Please don’t bother meeeeee.”
Somehow, despite her splendid appearance, her tone was regrettable.
And from my past life memories, I knew that women like her had a personality that didn’t listen to others.
Thank you for reading.
Episode 41-3 Maidens of Divine Offerings ③ is scheduled for release on March 14th at 0:00.
