This time, she let out a genuinely confused, silly-sounding voice with an expression that said she had no idea what I meant. I understood the feeling. I myself thought What the hell am I saying?
A curtain of silence fell between us. But it was blown away by a loud roar.
The figure sprinting at full speed, kicking up dust, was a girl. With shining golden hair in a ponytail, she wore a white and gold-decorated cheongsam. She had silver gauntlets and greaves on her limbs, and light silver armor on her shoulders and chest.
The slits on both sides of the cheongsam went all the way up to her waist. Normally her underwear would be visible, but she was wearing spats underneath.
Instead of tying the ribbon in her hair, she wore it like a headband. She looked like a mix of a cute magical girl and a valiant fantasy martial artist.
"Senpaaai! Le... Saber-senpaaaai! Are you okay!? I heard you were in trouble, so this Haga—— I mean, Sacred Knuckle has come to help!"
Sacred Knuckle appeared with a splash-like sound, her gauntlets glowing with light.
Her gaze was fixed straight on me, filled with shining hostility.
Of course. It would be strange to greet a Monster Villain covered head to toe in tentacles amicably.
But this was perfect.
I smiled. Without looking away from Knuckle, who raised her fists with a puzzled expression, I gestured with my chin toward the half-naked Saber.
"...Good thing your comrade arrived. Hey, Sacred Knuckle, right? Hurry up and take Saber and get out of here. Leaving her dressed like that is bad."
"Haa? What the hell are you—— Uwaa, Senpai, what is this? A-are you o... kyaaah!? What is this, it’s super slimy!?"
Knuckle rushed over to Saber in concern and screamed at the feeling of my parka.
Confirming that her attention was diverted, I released two tentacles into the air.
I wrapped them around a utility pole and launched myself with the momentum, escaping the scene in one go with three-dimensional movement.
"Knuckle, I’m fine! More importantly, that Monster Villain——"
"Eh? Aah!? W-wait, my debut battle was supposed to——!?"
The pained cry grew distant.
The Sacred. The supreme prey — the girls.
I wondered why I was doing this.
The impulses that had tormented me just minutes ago were definitely screaming at me to go back and violate them immediately.
But for some reason, those impulses had shrunk to the point where I could ignore them.
"——Haha."
And—— why was this?
This might be the most refreshed I had felt since awakening my previous-life memories.
Perceiving something inside my body making creak sounds, I laughed.
In my mind floated Saber’s face — the slightly silly, dumbfounded expression she made when I said something unexpected.
If I could see such a rare face, then becoming inhuman wasn’t such a bad thing after all, I thought.
◇
————Battles between the Sacred and Monster Villains were not uncommon in themselves.
But for another Monster Villain to suddenly intervene — and even save a Sacred — was an unexpected development for everyone.
Yes, for everyone.
The Poison Monster Villain who had tried to violate Saber, the Sacred themselves, and the onlookers.
And—— for the man standing on the rooftop of a building as well.
"...What was that? I don’t understand it."
There stood a man in black clothing.
With long white hair swaying in the wind, he recalled the battle that had taken place below with his crimson eyes.
The Poison Monster Villain who had immobilized Saber by taking onlookers hostage,
And above all—— the tentacle Monster Villain who had saved Saber and defeated the Poison Monster Villain.
Both were completely outside his expectations.
The foolish softness that allowed her to fall into a disadvantage just from having powerless humans taken hostage — and the existence of the tentacle Monster Villain who, despite blooming his Seed of Desire, had protected a Sacred.
"Well, it’s fine. I’ve learned what I needed to know. From now on, it’s no longer unexpected."
He muttered, twisting his mouth into a grin.
In response to his exhilaration, the tribal tattoo on his crushed right eye and cheek glowed darkly.
His name was Alter.
Alter Native.
A mage directly under the queen who ruled the other world Lemora — and the protagonist of the game series known as Sacred.
The Diabolic known as the Black-and-White Demon King laughed, laughed, and laughed as he devised schemes to ravage the Sacred with his intellect.
"Sacred—— I will definitely obtain you all. In order to drag that queen down from her throne."
To seize both other worlds and Earth — to obtain everything, he began to move.
The illusion of beloved heroines of justice was over.
Just like the Sacred Princess he had once cornered, he would ravage them.
——At this moment, he unconsciously judged the tentacle Monster Villain to be no significant threat.
It was common for those who had only recently become Monster Villains to still retain human rationality for a few days — but no matter how they struggled, it was only a matter of days. No matter how much they endured or resisted, they could not defy their desires.
Even if, by some means, he was maintaining his rationality, it didn’t matter. What could mere tentacles possibly do?
It wasn’t arrogance — it was a judgment based on experience: That is not a threat.
Whether that judgment was correct or not—— no one knew yet.