Chapter: 194
The temperature inside the tent seemed to drop even more. Jess maintained a soft smile as she addressed the stiffening male Beastmen, who were gradually averting their gazes.
“So, what are you going to do?”
“W-Well…”
Their bodies trembled at the thought of Jess’s merciless touch, which only ever stopped short of killing them. Just as they were about to reflexively submit, Lian’s comfortable face nestled in Jess’s arms came into their view.
“I challenge you! I demand a duel…!”
Crushed under overwhelming fear, a repressed pride surged forth, and the words tumbled out of his mouth.
“If I defeat that guy, please give me a chance to be the Commander’s mate!”
The warmth in Jess’s expression vanished, replaced by a cold demeanor that felt as frigid as the snowstorm outside. But the Hyena Beastman managed to convey his thoughts, despite quivering at Jess’s frosty glare.
He sweated profusely yet wore a bright smile.
‘If you see me easily wipe the floor with that weakling, I’m sure the Commander will accept me as her mate!’
In his mind, he vividly imagined Lian sprawling on the floor while Jess clung to him with a lovesick expression.
Lost in his delusions, his eyes drifted upward, and his expression softened. Thanks to the gag filter, he sported the ugliest face he had ever made, though he was blissfully unaware.
The other two Beastmen couldn’t hide their excitement and slowly lifted their droopy tails. Jess swiftly extinguished the hopes of the eager male Beastmen with just one sentence.
“Why bother? I’m the Commander here.”
“…!”
As simple as that.
Who could possibly stop an emperor with the power to crush all nobility if he wanted to elevate a woman of lowly status to empress?
For the Beastmen, Jess was as formidable as a polymorphed dragon emperor. There was nothing they could do about welcoming Lian, who looked so weak. No, there shouldn’t be.
‘…I might… die.’
Only then did the male Beastmen realize what sort of terrible act they were committing.
They raised their voices in dissatisfaction with Jess’s declaration of Lian as her ‘partner,’ and despite her question of “So?” giving them a chance to escape, they babbled foolishly.
Ignoring her words was tantamount to demanding her position as Commander. The only ones who could ignore a commander’s orders were the new commanders empowered by strength.
The Beastmen’s tails slunk between their legs, and their ears drooped as they trembled. As though gravity was pressing down on their shoulders, their bodies gradually lowered until they were kneeling, heads bowed deeply. They started to assume a humiliating posture as if they wanted to bury their foreheads in the ground.
While Jess pondered whether to dispatch the beastmen before her like a cat eyeing its prey, Lian tentatively raised a hand.
“Uh… if it’s alright…”
“Hmm?”
Jess turned towards Lian, her expression softening as if her face could melt. Her eyes sparkled with affection as she scratched her cheek with the hand that had lifted Lian, making him feel even ticklish after seeing her previously ferocious face.
‘She can make that expression too, huh?’
She exuded an incredibly sexy aura that made his face flush with heat, leading him to hurriedly continue speaking.
“In the Beastmen’s world, they explore each other through strength, right? So while a life-or-death duel is out of the question, wouldn’t a sparring match be acceptable…?”
Acknowledging their challenge, the droopy-eared male Beastmen perked up, and the female Beastmen in the corners, who had been watching for fun, looked on with astonished expressions.
“But… are you sure it’s okay?”
Jess cautiously poked Lian’s cheek with her finger, whispering a question laden with meaning: were they sure it was alright since he wasn’t in his original body? Lian smiled softly and replied.
“In the Beastmen’s world, we have to follow their rules.”
“You don’t have to follow them if it’s too hard. Here, I’m the strongest!”
“Jess is like family to me… so I want to get used to my family’s culture.”
He tossed around the term ‘family’ casually, meaning ‘siblings’ as usual, but then Jess’s mention of ‘mate’ made him freeze momentarily, causing him to stutter.
‘Should I clarify I meant it like an older brother and a younger sister…? Ugh… But if I say that, I’ll be outright rejecting Jess’s confession! But if I won’t accept it… I have Noah…’
His thoughts spiraled, transitioning from “No means no!” to “But I don’t feel that strongly against her…”
The scene from the Snow Mountain cave lingered in his mind as his cheeks burned with embarrassment. He found himself in a confusing situation where he started seeing someone he only viewed as a ‘little sister’ as a ‘girl’ and developing feelings for her.
While Lian’s mini self was having a panic-induced dance party of “What should I do? What should I do?”, Jess’s eyes sparkled with joy and her cheeks flushed beautifully.
“Hehe.”
“Huh?”
She displayed a charming smile, one only for Lian, before giving his cheek a light peck. Lian’s mind came to a complete standstill.
“Uh…”
“Gah…”
In a moment where Jess, a paragon of charisma, acted like a well-trained puppy, showering him with affection, the male Beastmen ground their teeth. They looked like they might break their fangs from jealousy.
‘I will definitely win! I’ll win and claim that spot for myself!’
“Gah… I’m jealous… so jealous… but if I win, that spot will be mine.”
‘I’ll secure that position…’
In mutual agreement, a life-or-death duel — or rather, a spar — was set. Thanks to the eagerness burning strongly, a sparring location was ready within ten minutes.
*
On a white clearing where hardened snow felt no different from the ground, several Beastmen were rolling around. Before them stood Lian, holding his sword with a calm expression.
The Hyena Beastman who had requested to duel first was tossed around just ten seconds in, blinking sleepily as he struggled to focus on Lian.
“How… do you have such… skills… ugh…!”
He couldn’t finish his sentence before collapsing into a heap. Lian, watching them, scratched his cheek with empty hands.
‘So, it has come to this.’
In the gag world, there exists the fatal rule that working hard doesn’t properly increase your stats. Conversely, there’s a rule where consistently putting in moderate effort can help you grow to world-class levels. (Of course, depending on the situation, rules can change wildly, leading to various cases.)
To use his Magic Sword more efficiently, Lian had often practiced swordsmanship whenever he had the chance. What seemed like ‘Is that really enough?’ level of practice showed insane efficiency daily thanks to the gag filter, and as a result, he could now handle most opponents without his Magic Sword.
However, it wasn’t to the extent of wiping out Beastmen.
The only reason he could crush them was because of a certain power that allowed him to gaze into the Demon Lord and understand her deepest essence. This power had synchronized him with the Magic Sword all the way from before it was detached until now.
He hadn’t grown strong just by wielding the Magic Sword, but he was at a level where he could easily dispatch those who were at the edge of the ‘powerful’ in the Dark Fantasy world.
On top of that, a half-functioning gag filter activated, coupled with an unidentifiable power that allowed him to see everything about others.
The gag filter could ensnare his opponents’ legs or create ‘afterimages’ every time Lian sprinted, while the untraceable power gave him warnings about where and how attacks would come.
It was a battle where not winning was practically impossible.
“Wow… they say you shouldn’t judge humans by their appearance, and it’s true.”
“Just as expected, the Commander’s choice of partner is something else.”
“Wait?! That was the Commander’s partner? I was trying to sneak a peek…”
When the gag filter worked properly, it felt like the enemies were self-destructing, but now, with it only halfway functioning, the fight appeared somewhat believable. Thanks to that, the watching Beastmen looked at Lian as a remarkably skilled swordsman.
It was only natural that for Beastmen, who valued strength above all, Lian became appealing. The number of female Beastmen sending him curious glances increased, despite hearing he was the Commander’s partner.
The impact of Lian wiping out all the strong males in the group had been vastly powerful.
“Grr…”
Among those sensitive to the gazes was Jess, the leader of the pack.
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