Chapter 50: Unboxing
[You have gained one minute of intermission time with Scathach and Medb.]
[You brought Murasaki Shikibu to the hallway of Enma-tei.]
Bam!
Eikou's hand slammed firmly against the wall corner, creating a trapping posture that blocked Murasaki Shikibu's way of escape.
A perfect kabedon had been executed.
"Eikou, you… what are you…"
Murasaki Shikibu's face flushed crimson as she looked up at him, stammering, completely lost for words.
It was hard to believe that the same woman who had boldly posted provocative lines online could turn so timid in real life.
"Alright then, K-ko,"
Eikou said with a cold, serious tone,
"There's no one else here now, so let's have an honest talk for once. You go first — do you have anything you want to say to me?"
"Uuu… I am so sorry for having done such disrespectful things to you…"
Murasaki Shikibu's face flushed bright red from embarrassment, her eyes glistening with tears, her expression so cute it looked like she might cry. Then, she held out a bank card with both hands.
"Please… take this…"
"What's this?" Eikou was taken aback.
"This is the royalty I earned from writing Eigu — about three million QP in total. It's all yours…"
How the hell did she make that much money writing an erotic novel!? I risked my life fighting through a Singularity and barely made tens of thousands of QP!
This academy city doesn't even have that many people — who the hell is reading her stuff? Don't tell me every Heroic Spirit on the Throne of Heroes bought a copy!?
"No, I didn't mean for you to give me that kind of thing." Eikou wiped cold sweat from his forehead.
"Ah, I knew it, it couldn't be that simple…"
Murasaki Shikibu's beautiful face turned even redder, a seductive blush spreading as she hugged her soft chest with both arms.
"Using my body to atone must be the only way to make you forgive me, right? Please don't expose the truth about K-ko… Whatever you want to do to me, I won't resist. Just… please be gentle!"
Her imagination as a writer was way too wild! I haven't even said a word, and she's already handing me money and throwing herself into my arms! I just wanted to ask her for help!
Eikou felt something was seriously off about this ambiguous atmosphere.
Not to mention, the other party was a mature and alluring Servant — how the hell did this turn into one of those scenes where a young man blackmails a proper married woman into submission!?
Why does it always turn out like this whenever I'm with married Servants…
He sighed helplessly.
"Alright, Kaoruko, close your eyes… and lean your face a little closer."
"Y-yes…"
She swallowed nervously, then slowly closed her eyes, gently bringing her soft, pink lips closer.
Eikou flicked her forehead with his finger.
"Ah!"
Murasaki Shikibu let out a small, startled cry.
"Alright, that's your punishment," Eikou said. "Let's call everything before this even."
"Eh…?"
"Relax, I'm not the type to blackmail a woman and force her to obey. I just want to give you a bit of advice."
He shrugged, continuing,
"Rather than teaming up with Medb, it'd be smarter to cooperate with me. With her personality, she'd probably kick you off the wagon the moment you got on. But if you work with me…"
To add weight to his words, Eikou wrapped his arm around her slender waist.
Compared to her voluptuous chest that looked ready to burst out of her clothes, her waist was so slim he could easily encircle it with one hand — a body perfectly sculpted with all the right curves.
They were so close now that his chest was nearly touching her soft, heaving breasts.
"From now on, we can accomplish a lot more together — and I don't mind if you keep writing either."
Anyway, saying a few sweet words first never hurt — he could always twist the meaning later.
Her beautiful eyes sparkled. "I understand now… this is the difference between being allowed one full meal and being allowed to eat every day, isn't it?"
Why "one full meal," huh!? What the hell are you imagining, I don't have anything for you to eat!
"In other words, if Kaoruko agrees to help you…"
Murasaki Shikibu looked at him with burning eyes, pressing on:
"In my writing, I wouldn't just be allowed to keep creating — I could also rely on you for research for romantic scenes, right? Like going on dates to gather inspiration…?"
"? I didn't expect you to be that kind of opportunistic woman!"
"Uwaaa…"
Murasaki Shikibu was so embarrassed she looked like she was about to cry.
"No, I just… I was only… thinking about reference material for writing…" — her face turned bright red as she mumbled an explanation, "If I could observe your charm up close with my own eyes… maybe I could discover a new source of inspiration I've never reached before. Please!"
Seeing her cover her face, flustered yet earnestly trying to explain herself, Eikou felt like she had struck right at his weak spot.
Alright then, as long as it wasn't too unreasonable, it should be fine.
"…Alright." He nodded in agreement.
"Really, wonderful!"
Murasaki Shikibu immediately brightened up, taking out that same bank card again.
"Thank you so much, Eikou!"
She smiled radiantly, holding the card out toward him.
"So why do you still keep trying to give me money? I seriously don't understand, what kind of transaction are you even trying to make with me here?"
"It's fine, just take it. I won't tell Morgan..."
"???"
[You hesitated for a long time, but in the end, you still didn't accept the money.]
[Murasaki Shikibu seemed slightly disappointed, her face showing an expression of unfulfilled desire.]
[If you had accepted it, you might have gotten involved in a very troublesome relationship...]
[...]
[Murasaki Shikibu has betrayed the enemy faction and joined your side. The two of you have become doubles partners in the ping pong match.]
[After "opening her secret box," you instead came to understand each other better. From now on, if you ever run short on money, you can even work part-time helping Murasaki Shikibu write stories.]
[You promised to help Murasaki Shikibu collect reference material, so you'll probably need to account for her requests in your upcoming schedule.]
[From Murasaki Shikibu, you have acquired a new skill: "Curse Art E."]
["Curse Art E": During battle, you can temporarily seal the opponent's Noble Phantasm. In daily life, it also has many mysterious uses.]
[You can feel the deep affection Murasaki Shikibu holds for you.]
[In just one minute, you conquered Murasaki Shikibu, even snatching away a married woman from the enemy's hands — truly impressive. The 'Lancelot' within you grows ever stronger; you're becoming increasingly adept at handling "married women."]
[Your skill "Disaster With Women EX" has been upgraded to "Disaster With Women (Married Woman) EX."]
["Disaster With Women (Married Woman) EX": You become more prone to being entangled in social troubles caused by women, while gaining an advantage in checks involving women. If the opponent once had a family or lover in history or legend, your checks become even more favorable. This is a passive skill, easily triggered in environments with many women, and its activation rate increases dramatically in the presence of "married women."]
"Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!"
Amazing, there's even a "married woman bonus" — isn't this the very skill Tristan has always dreamed of!
"But I'm supposed to be a pure-love warrior..."
Eikou clutched his head and shouted:
"No, I… I will never become Lancelot!!!"
...
Note: 'Lancelot' has become a concept, LOL~.