After celebrating their newfound comfortable and highly efficient method of cultivation, the Reina trio quickly grew worried.
"Uesugi was afraid before that he wouldn't be able to control himself and might injure or even kill a girl during intercourse," Reina worried. "Now that he knows the opposite is true—that it actually increases his strength—what then…"
"It'll be impossible to keep his power-boosting abilities a secret for long."
Ruri Kurumizaka nodded in agreement. Based on his previous behavior, Caleb was anything but a man of morals. He refused them earlier only out of concern for hurting others—a limited moral boundary, to say the least. If they knew Caleb was simply afraid of being killed himself, they'd realize he was nothing but a scumbag.
"It shouldn't spread that quickly."
Yukina Sasaki had the highest strength and had the most sex with Caleb, so her experience was the deepest. "The increase in strength isn't drastic, and the stronger you are, the smaller the boost. We were at it for almost sixteen hours straight, and combined with Reina's careful observation, we could clearly confirm Uesugi's fluids help increase power."
"That makes sense."
"Then we'll keep it a secret for now, for as long as we can. In the meantime, we need to try and drain Uesugi dry."
They didn't expect to keep the secret forever. Reina's Eye of Insight was a decent talent, but it wasn't top-tier. If her novice-level ability could spot Caleb's unique trait, other, stronger individuals or those with better sensory abilities would inevitably figure it out.
The three girls quickly reached an agreement, their alluring faces flushed with excitement.
Caleb, unaware that the trio was treating him as a private, human EXP book, was busy thinking about how to further increase his strength.
First, he needed to find a way to enter the supernatural faction (the 'ura-gakuen') and begin learning magic openly. Talents were the foundation and potential, making the path easier and increasing the limit, but magic power and spells were the things that truly boosted combat effectiveness.
Second, he needed to quickly scout and approach women with outstanding talents. With some luck, a single talent or skill could double the fighting power of his current self, who had one foot in the supernatural world.
Finally, he needed to overcome the crises caused by the Cuckold-Bait template. While ensuring his own safety, he would use the template's characteristic of bringing girls to him to 'collect' all the available women. If they had a talent, great. If not... he wouldn't lose anything either.
Monday morning.
Under the familiar cherry tree, the familiar blond devil blocked Caleb's path.
"Brat, you clearly haven't listened to a word I said," the blond's face was grim, his fists clenched.
Things were different now. After a moment of panic, Caleb quickly calmed down.
"You really can't blame me. Sasaki and the others forced me, and I couldn't resist."
"Heh, couldn't resist? I think you just didn't want to resist."
The blond had been watching for days, but the Reina trio was so eager to drain Caleb that they had been practically glued to him. Over the entire weekend, the four had stayed at Ruri's house and never once left.
Finally, persistence paid off; the blond had managed to catch Caleb alone today.
Caleb shrugged, looking innocent. "Actually, they invited me again today, but I haven't been home for a few days, and I was worried about my family, so I turned them down."
This only angered the blond more.
I just don't get it, the blond thought. How could someone as amazing as Reina look at this expressionless ordinary guy? She even dragged her best friends along to throw themselves at him. And why didn't they take me with them?
Unable to confront his "boss," the blond decided to make this dullard suffer, hoping he'd leave on his own, just like before.
Acting on the thought, a cold light flashed in the blond's eyes. He reached out to drag Caleb towards the nearby grove.
Caleb shifted his weight, easily dodging the attack.
"Huh?"
Missing his target, doubt flashed in the blond's eyes, and he accelerated his attack speed.
This was Caleb's first proper fight, and he didn't dare be careless. On one hand, he was worried about the Cuckold-Bait template suddenly throwing a curveball. Fortunately, the template didn't seem to actively strengthen the blond or weaken his own fighting power.
Eye of Insight combined with Physical Vitality instantly brought his fighting power to its peak.
Despite his vigilance, Caleb took two punches. However, the previously terrifying blows now only felt mildly painful.
Once he adapted to his opponent's attack rhythm, Caleb delivered an uppercut that sent the blond spinning on the spot.
Just as he prepared to land the finishing blow and take revenge for the previous beatings, Caleb noticed something odd.
The blond's strength was indeed mediocre, probably weaker than Yukina; at least his internal magic power was unimpressive. But the blond might actually be a cross-dresser.
Through the Eye of Insight, Caleb easily saw through the blond's disguise. The figure was slender, and the features, though intentionally sharpened, still held a trace of softness. Most tellingly, there was no Adam's apple, and a white binder was clearly visible across the chest.
"I knew it… I wasn't feeling any killing intent."
Caleb hadn't gone for the kill, not just because he feared the later consequences, but because although the blond talked tough, he had never shown true malice in their several encounters. Under the full-power Eye of Insight, Caleb even noticed that the blond seemed to be holding back, as if afraid of genuinely injuring him.
"Tsk, so it's a tomboy."
Caleb dropped his plan to land the finishing blow and asked curiously, "As a female blond, why are you always looking for trouble with me instead of trying to force me like Reina Hamada?"
"Hmph, I hate stinking men more than anything!"
Seeing her disguise discovered, Yuki Shinohara (formerly篠村悠希) no longer concealed herself. She was a minor celebrity at Kuoh Academy. She wasn't bad-looking and had a good figure, but she preferred to cross-dress and constantly chased after girls—a classic lesbian. If Caleb hadn't been avoiding all trouble like the plague and kept his head down, he would have realized this sooner.
Confirming her gender lifted Caleb's spirits. Not only was his life no longer in danger, but his 'cuckold' worries were also gone.
"This isn't the best place to talk. How about we find somewhere else?"
Seeing the crowd of onlookers growing, Caleb buried the hatchet, actively taking Yuki's hand and helping her up.
Yuki's face darkened. She coldly snorted, slapped Caleb's hand away, and walked off the school grounds. Being beaten after trying to start trouble was humiliating enough, but his lecherous expression only increased her disgust.
Caleb didn't mind and shamelessly followed her. He was currently looking for new women to 'cultivate' with for talents, and here was one being delivered right to his doorstep. Why would he let her go?
Besides, he still hadn't retaliated for all the previous bullying!