"Okay, let's see what I can actually buy." I focused on the [Skill Category].
I scrolled through the combat passives first mostly stuff about mana stability and reaction speed. Then I hit [Mana Efficiency]. Since I was an Ice Mage now, this was crucial. Ice was all about precision, about controlling the temperature and structure of the frost. Without efficiency, I'd probably just end up accidentally freezing my own blood.
Then, I found it. The most important skill in my arsenal.
[Expression Suppression]
I tapped it, and the three tiers expanded before my eyes.
[Expression Suppression Tier 1]
▸ Minor control over facial muscles. Can prevent obvious smirks or frowns.
"Pathetic," I muttered. "That wouldn't even stop me from looking like a pervert if someone touched my waist."
[Expression Suppression Tier 2]
▸ Significant control over emotional leakage. Can maintain a 'calm' facade during mild stress. Suppresses minor involuntary physical tells (blushing, fidgeting). Under too long stimulation the skill stops working.
"Better, but still dangerous. If someone actually gets handsy, I'm going to turn into a tomato in front of everyone."
[Expression Suppression Tier 3]
▸ Effect: Suppresses all visible emotional and physiological stress responses. Facial expression remains neutral under all circumstances. Flushing, trembling, vocal stress, and involuntary physical reactions are suppressed at the surface level. Break under climax.
▸ FOR EVERY TIER: Internal state is NOT affected. The user experiences all sensations and emotional responses normally. They simply do not show.
I stared at that last line. "So... I could be getting absolutely wrecked, my insides could be melting, my heart could be pounding out of my chest like a jackhammer, and I'd still look like I'm waiting for a bus."
A shiver ran down my spine. It was terrifying. The idea of being a passenger in my own body feeling everything but showing nothing was unnerving. But it was also the only way to survive. If I could maintain that mask, I could manipulate the Conquerors, I could stand in the middle of a scandal, and I could gather intelligence without anyone knowing I was anything more than the cold, untouchable Ellen Frost.
"But I'd still feel it all," I whispered, a strange tightness in my chest. "The system doesn't lie. I'd be screaming on the inside while my face stays as cold as my ice."
I shivered again, then immediately cursed myself. Stop thinking about the sensations, Ellen. Focus.
Out of a morbid, self destructive curiosity the kind that usually gets people killed I clicked on the [Eroge Skill Category].
"Let's see how bad this gets."
The screen flickered, revealing a list that felt like something pulled straight from the deepest, darkest corners of an adult forum. The descriptions weren't just suggestive; they were clinically explicit, designed to turn a human being into a more effective instrument of pleasure.
[ EROGE SKILLS PREVIEW ]
▸ SENSORY ENHANCEMENT:
▸ [Heightened Nerve Endings]: Increases pleasure reception by 20%.
▸ [Arousal Acceleration]: Lowers the threshold required for physical response.
▸ STAMINA & CAPACITY:
▸ [Endless Core]: Increases physical endurance during prolonged sexual activity.
▸ [Elasticity Mastery]: Enhances the body's ability to accommodate larger sizes without discomfort.
▸ RECEPTION MODIFIERS:
▸ [Orgasmic Volatility]: Increases the frequency and intensity of involuntary climax.
▸ [Liquid Production]: Increases natural lubrication and arousal fluids.
"Jesus Christ," I breathed, my fingers hovering over the imaginary interface. "This isn't a skill tree. This is a fucking equipment loadout for a pornstar."
The descriptions were brutally honest. The system didn't sugarcoat anything. If I bought Heightened Nerve Endings, I wasn't just getting 'better at feeling good'; I was actively making myself more vulnerable. I was lowering my own defenses. Every touch would hit harder, every sensation would be sharper, more overwhelming. It would make me more valuable to a Conqueror, but it would also make the 'Third Rate Sensitivity' trait ten times more dangerous.
"It's a trap, Ellen. A perfect, glittering trap." I closed the menu immediately, feeling a flush of heat creep up my neck that had nothing to do with mana and everything to do with pure, unadulterated shame. "The system wants me to optimize myself for my own destruction."
I leaned back, staring at the wall, trying to regain some semblance of dignity. My mind was racing. I couldn't afford to buy these things not yet. I needed to save every single SP for combat, for mana control, for survival. The Eroge skills were a temptation designed to lure me into Source A, to turn me into the very thing I was trying to avoid.
But I also knew how this worked. In this world, temptation wasn't just a choice; it was a currency.
"Okay," I said, my voice dropping to a determined whisper. "First step: figure out where I am, what day it is, and how to get to the Academy without being recognized as some random girl who wandered into a dormitory. Second step: start looking for my first target. If I'm going to be the architect of this corruption, I need to know which domino falls first."
I stood up, my legs feeling a little more stable despite the unfamiliar weight of my hips. I needed to dress, I needed to move, and most importantly, I needed to start being Ellen Frost. The cold, untouchable Ice Beauty. Even if I had to lie to myself every single second of the day to keep it up.
I peeled off my nightclothes, fighting a losing battle against my own reflection.
"God. Fucking God..." I kept whispering, trying to look anywhere but at the mirror. Which was impossible, because the mirror was huge and my body was everywhere.
Because here's the thing. Could you really blame me? I was a young, virgin student in my absolute physical prime! In my prime! My entire previous life's romantic experience consisted of exactly zero dates and a very committed relationship with my right hand. Of course my brain was going haywire looking at an SS rank beauty with G cups and an ass that could probably be registered as a weapon!
And the beauty stat. Right. In this world, Beauty was a hidden stat, ranked in letters just like combat ranks G to SSS. In this eroge, where every heroine was designed to be eye candy, the floor was basically C. But SS? SS rank beauty was a trait possessed by exactly two people in the entire game. And one of them was currently standing butt naked in front of a mirror, blushing like an idiot at herself.
"More problems," I muttered. "But, uh. Definitely a gift for the eye."
With the shaky hands of a bomb disposal technician, I reached for the uniform hanging in the closet, keeping my arms strictly in "transport mode" no touching, no squeezing, no exploring. I had already caught my thighs rubbing against each other in a way that suggested this body was already warmed up and ready to betray me. Not today, body. Not today.
The first hurdle was the underwear.
The bra went on after two minutes of wrestling with clasps I had never operated in my life, the cups doing their absolute best against an unreasonable workload. Then the panties.
I held them up.
Thin. Black. String construction. A thong.
"Why the fuck did you only have thongs, original Ellen?!" I groaned, blushing furiously at the concept of fabric there. "Who walks around an Academy full of superpowered teenagers in this?! Were you planning your own downfall from day one?!"
I put them on anyway. They barely fulfilled their legal definition of underwear. I tried not to think about the string. I failed immediately.
The Ertenaria Academy uniform itself was actually classic and dignified a crisp mix of black and white. Blazer, white shirt, pleated skirt. On a normal person: elegant. On my proportions: a crime. The shirt strained across my chest, the skirt sat on hips like it was auditioning, and every glance in the mirror made me more self conscious of this heavenly body than anything else. There were also thin black tights included in the set.
"Nah. No hell I'm wearing something specifically engineered to make me more aware of my own skin." I tossed them aside like they were radioactive. "Bare legs or death."
The reason for all this effort? My cellphone a sleek thing I had spent ten minutes figuring out confirmed the date.
Orientation Day.
Which meant I wasn't stupid enough to wander this wild, Gate infested world as a free agent. The Academy was safety. Structure. A fortress with a curriculum. I would take the moderate safety, thank you very much.
I stepped into the skirt, pulled it up, pivoted on one foot and
My heel caught the edge of the discarded tights.
"Hiii !"
A shriek that absolutely, unmistakably betrayed the forty year old male sounding panic of my past life erupted from my throat as my ass hit the floor with a whump. The G cup disaster bounced once. I lay there, starfished on the carpet, staring at the ceiling.
"Ow. Great. Killed by my own underwear. The World Eater won't even need to show up "
Ding.
A bright chime rang directly inside my skull.
[ A one time Unique Skill selection is available. This offer will not repeat. Choose carefully. ]