Were those sounds coming from next door…?
Or was it just his imagination?
His sleepiness gradually receded. Sajyou Izaya sat up and got out of bed, planning to follow the sounds and see what was happening.
However, the instant his feet touched the ground, the suppressed sweet voice from next door suddenly cut off.
And before Sajyou Izaya could react, a special "Charm" spell quietly descended upon him.
In almost a heartbeat, the exhaustion in his body surged into his mind. His legs gave out, and he slumped back onto the bed as a heavy drowsiness pressed down on his eyelids.
Right as they were about to close, he vaguely saw a sensual, graceful figure.
She approached one step at a time. In those golden eyes of hers, there seemed to be a hint of yearning.
Still half-caught in a dream, Sajyou Izaya had no time to think.
In the very next instant, the boy had fallen into a deep, unbroken sleep.
The night wind blew quietly as the pink-haired woman appeared in his room as silently as a ghost.
Compared to usual, her dress was a bit rumpled. She fixed her confused, complicated gaze on the youth's pale, delicate sleeping face.
At first she held her breath and listened. When she was sure that he was truly asleep, her heart started to pound wildly.
In essence, the Empathy magecraft Izaya used was a spell that let him use his own emotions to "assimilate" others.
Just now, when he had probed Koyanskaya's spirit world with a strand of spiritual power, he hadn't only purified her grudges—he had also let her clearly sense his emotions.
That burning affection was, without a doubt, the deadliest of poisons to a Beast who had only just touched this world…
It was also the very thing that made her aware of what "love" was.
She didn't know how to express this love, but instinctively, she wanted to make him hers.
Koyanskaya walked to the bedside, staring intently at the sleeping boy. A strange brilliance flickered in her beautiful eyes.
She lay down sideways on the bed, slowly wrapping her arms around him and pulling him into a gentle embrace, burying his face entirely into her bosom.
At first, it was only a soft hug, but gradually, the pressure of her arms increased. She squeezed him so tightly that his whole body rubbed against hers.
In his sleep, he felt a faint body scent and a warm, soft sensation. It made his entire body feel slightly dizzy, and his breathing gradually quickened from the subtle suffocation.
But Koyanskaya still wasn't satisfied. She took the sleeping boy's hand in hers and guided it to curl around her waist, as if begging him to hold her tighter.
"Izaya-kun…"
"Izaya-kun…"
Her red lips parted ever so slightly, letting out a series of pleasant syllables as her body tensed, then slowly relaxed.
All the while, her clear, bright eyes never left the face of the still-sleeping boy.
Then, all of a sudden, a blush rose on her cheeks. She jerked upright as if startled and turned to leave.
But just as she walked to the doorway, she suddenly stopped and glanced back.
The boy was still sleeping soundly on the soft bed. On the ground beside the bed, the wooden floor was faintly reflective under the moonlight, dampened by the moisture that had seeped through in the middle of the night.
She frowned slightly, raised a hand, and used magecraft to evaporate away those traces of water. Only then did she hastily flee the scene.
...
[The next day, you feel like you slept extraordinarily well last night—and had a sweet dream where your hands felt strangely slick and well-lubricated…]
[There are no living things on this scorched earth, but the humidity at night is extremely heavy. Perhaps last night's thick fog seeped into your room as well…]
[As usual, you don't overthink it. During the day, you continue to purify the grudges of this land and offer Koyanskaya the purest energy you can. At night, you accept her instruction in magecraft, constantly honing yourself.]
[As your Empathy magecraft improves, you start trying to enter her spiritual world directly and purify the complex grudges tangled within her body.]
[Unlike before, she is no longer as hostile as she once was. For some reason, though, she frequently avoids meeting your eyes. Whenever you unintentionally mention anything that happened while you were asleep last night, she's seized by guilt and quickly looks away.]
[However, when she notices your gaze lingering on her body for too long, she secretly feels pleased—and will even imitate the spiritual-base model to strike more mature and alluring poses just for you.]
...
That afternoon, Sajyou Izaya was, as always, purifying the grudges of this land and converting them into pure energy that Koyanskaya could directly absorb.
But when he handed her this energy, he couldn't help but glance at her several times.
Sensing the youth's gaze lingering on her face for quite a while, Koyanskaya's cheeks unconsciously turned a faint shade of red. She looked slightly uncomfortable.
"Why do you keep staring at me?"
She casually brushed aside a lock of hair that had fallen over her forehead and tucked it behind her ear. Her voice unconsciously dropped, and her shy posture distracted Izaya a little.
"It's nothing. I was just… thinking about something."
Sajyou Izaya quickly smiled and shook his head.
"What is it?" Koyanskaya asked, interest piqued.
"I feel like I had a strange dream last night…"
"Cough—!"
She suddenly coughed in embarrassment. Her sultry, passionate face became even more alluring as she hurriedly changed the subject.
"Ahem. Alright, next we're going to absorb more of this land's grudges. Use your Empathy magecraft to probe my spirit world and help me absorb them."
With the evolution of his Empathy magecraft, Sajyou Izaya could now help Koyanskaya purify the grudges as she absorbed them—transforming them into "delicious" ingredients in the process.
...
[Since last night, you feel like this woman has completely let down her guard around you. She often takes the initiative to hold your hand, or intentionally—or unintentionally—presses your face into her chest. When she teaches you, she claims that the closer you are, the faster the flow of mana.]
[You're not sure whether she's being serious or spouting nonsense, but when you're purifying the grudges in her body, you don't dare get distracted and can't afford to overthink things.]
[Yet gradually, she's no longer satisfied with just that. Her slender white fingers will scratch lightly across your chest when she embraces you. When she speaks, she lowers her head, bringing her sensual red lips close to your ear and breathing out a sweet fragrance.]
[You need to concentrate when purifying grudges, but her intimate gestures—and even the subtle body scent drifting out from her dress and skirt—make it nearly impossible to stay calm. Sometimes you can't even maintain your Empathy magecraft properly.]
[However, whenever you look up at her in annoyance, you suddenly notice the overflowing tenderness and affection in her beautiful eyes. The pink-tinted love in her gaze instantly melts away all the irritation in your heart.]
[She often hugs you closely, burying your face in her chest while you perform magecraft right then and there. She calls it "training to boost your concentration and speed up your mana output."]
[Of course you understand what she really means. You're still in your growth phase, and your strength and endurance are far too low. If you face a powerful Beast-class monster head-on now, a rash attack would only get you eaten and torn to shreds.]
[So you throw yourself into training even more furiously, purifying the grudges of this land day after day. You hope that one day, you'll truly become the ruler of this land—and be able to pin down and "bully" this teasing woman.]
[She might be teasing you every day, but from morning to night, you're also constantly purifying grudges for her… No one knows what the future will bring. You only have one thought in your heart—that is, to raise her into a true "Beast of Pleasure," and then protect her for your entire life.]
[Yet perhaps someone wasn't used to being fed like a faithful dog, or perhaps your ever-increasing efficiency at purification finally pushed another Beast past her limit, because late that night, a beast-like roar echoed across the Siberian region.]
"Raaa—!!!"
The beast's roar that pierced through the night sky instantly cut off the conversation between the two people in the tent, who had been engaged in their usual purification ritual.
Sajyou Izaya looked up in the direction outside the tent and said quietly:
"What was that sound just now…"
The smile that had been hanging on Koyanskaya's face disappeared. She spoke in a calm voice.
"That's… another me. Looks like she finally can't hold back anymore."
The light and dark sides of the Beast of Pleasure were independent "individuals." In truth, the two were ideologically opposed, not allies.
The Light Koyanskaya inherited the part related to "human civilization." She embodied the resentment of trophy animals, pets, experimental subjects, weapons used by humans—for all animals used as mere "toys."
By contrast, the Dark Koyanskaya inherited the part relating to "the wildness of nature." She was more primitive and cruel, utterly rejecting all of human civilization, seeking to build a "Beast Kingdom" and stamp humankind completely underfoot.
Light and Darkness each despised the other. Light viewed Darkness as a hideous animal that only knew how to destroy with its claws and fangs, utterly lacking any sense of beauty. Darkness viewed Light as a "traitor" tainted and corrupted by human civilization.
Though both were special existences born of grudges, their forms were independent and unrelated.
In that case, why had Koyanskaya suddenly gone "mad"?
As Izaya pondered that question and stepped out of the tent, an incomparably massive figure crashed down from the end of the night sky!
The ground shook violently. A terrifying pressure, boundless as the sea, instantly filled the entire space. Izaya's body tensed involuntarily.
Robot-like, he slowly raised his head—only to see a colossal body that blotted out the sky and sun.
She opened those hideous, monstrous eyes, which were filled with extreme rage and hatred as they glared down from another world at this lone human.
…