22 (Not) A Gummy Worm!

After a short explanation of what was public about Victor's 'supernatural' powers, Granberia held her eyes closed and her arms crossed, much calmer than before. A deep exhale escaped from her lips before she nodded. "I understand. That kind of explains how he pulled those weapons and that drug from nowhere… But there is still one thing that I wish to ask."

She observed Victor with narrowed eyes. Luka and Alice had been doing the explanation, while Victor was more focused on his invisible system. He had already obtained his hourly income very recently, and together with the extra 30 thousands and the money he already possessed, he had reached 53'590 Gold Coins.

Instead of upgrading his money-making system again, he directly bought the Optimal Finesse for the Skill List, turning back to 3'590.

Now that he has an ability, he can't neglect it. And because it requires real-time training, he didn't want to show that he can utilize telekinesis to everyone else, especially with some unique people watching him from places. It will be his little Ace… Now that he bought the Optimal Finesse, he finally understands how to utilize Telekinesis in the most efficient way.

By that, it doesn't mean that Victor knows the deep secrets of telekinetic arts. What he knows is how to 'turn on his ability' without using unnecessary force. Optimal Finesse is different from Ability Mastery.

Normally, one would train to utilize a new ability. For example, in a RPG game, when you switch classes, you will have to analyze what each skill does and think about different combos that could work together with the passives(if there are any).

However, by holding Optimal Finesse, it is like going to youtube to directly see the best combos available for that one class instead of doing it by yourself. As for Ability Mastery, a similar but also different ability, that is like 'creating' skill trees for each corresponding skill, all ending in countless applications for that said skill.

Unfortunately, Ability Mastery costs 5 times more than the total price of his skills, which would be 250'000 Gold Coins in this case, and it also won't update itself when new skills join the list.

Ability Mastery and Optimal Finesse, although act similar, they are completely different. Optimal Finesse targets the level of mental affinity between the user and his skills. For a comparison, his skills are the key for a door somewhere within his mind. Optimal Finesse simply brings that door in front of him.

As for Ability Mastery, it targets one's knowledge of the said skill; it is like scanning an entire building to understand all of it, and then come back 5 years forward to see that it is completely rebuilt. While Optimal Finesse targets every active skill he has and will have, Ability Mastery only works with the current ones he has now… Or so their descriptions told him.

Sensing Granberia's gaze, Victor looked back at her and raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"You don't have any energy signature." Granberia replied with a suspicious expression, and Victor shrugged back.

"I sincerely have no idea of what you are talking about." Victor replied with a shrug.

Granberia stared at him in silence for a dozen of seconds before she glanced at Alice, and she simply shook her head, as if telling her that she also doesn't have any answer. A sigh escaped from her mouth as she shook her head. "Whatever… I still can't believe this is actually happening."

"Don't even tell me about it." Victor commented as he stretched his back. "I was just fucking around by myself a less than 10 days ago, and here I am…"

"Hmm." Granberia let a disinterested hum before she looked at Luka. "So, I heard you are the leader of this group…"

"Y-Yes…" Luka replied with a stuttering voice once the Heavenly Knight brought her attention to him. His attitude made Granberia sigh in exasperation.

"Without the Heroine, you people are pathetic… You are a coward who clearly has no experience fighting…" She shifted her gaze on Victor and continued. "The other is almost the same but with a weaponized rudeness…" Then she looked a bit below, setting her exasperated gaze on Penny. "And the third is a simple monster child! Was this really how you people wanted to reach Hellgondo?!"

"Hey, I was forced to go with you all; don't even think about counting me in this weird adventure!" Victor commented, but Granberia gave a simple rebuke.

"Just shut up for a moment. I swear this is getting so asinine…" Granberia grumbled as she shook her head. "Let's keep moving, I'm going to snap if I don't get distracted."

Luka quickly nodded, but before he could open his mouth, Alice had stopped him with her own words. "Speaking of cowardice… Hey, Luka."

"Yes?" Luka looked at Alice in curiosity before Alice unsheathed the sword near her pouch for the first time ever since she entered the party group. The sword that was sheathed in her own sheath was quite revolting, much to everyone's surprise.

The weapon barely had the shape of a sword inside all of those irregular dark masses of rocky sculptures that took the form of countless angels suffering and screaming as they were hugging the sword's edge. On the surface of the blade there were also five bloody eyes pulsating as they set their gazes on Luka in particular, giving him goosebumps both due to the sword's figure and the living eyes within the said sword.

"AHHHH!!" Penny hid her face within Victor's chest and began to cry, while Victor caressed her head to comfort her.

"W-What the fuck that thing?!" Luka screeched in horror as he saw the sword on Alice's hands.

"Oh Goddess…" Eva muttered under her breath as she stared at the sword with a terrified expression.

The only one that didn't have the same reaction was Granberia, although she was still surprised that Alice took the sword out in the first place. Meanwhile, Alice spun the sword vertically and caught its blade.

"Catch." After saying that, she threw the sword at Luka, who instinctively caught it. And yet, once his thoughts caught up with his body motion, he yelped in surprise and let the sword fall past his hands.

"What are you doing?" Alice asked with a raised eyebrow. "Pick that sword."

"No way!" Luka replied with a terrified voice.

Granberia blinked in surprise and looked at Alice. "Are you sure about this, my lord? That sword…"

"It's fine, swordplay was your shtick all along, not mine." Alice casually replied. "Besides, I doubt this journey will last more than a few battles without that."

"But he works for Ilias!" Granberia told Alice, making the latter snort.

"If I knew what I was doing, do you think I would still be here going along with these people?"

"..."

Granberia sighed and didn't say anything else. If Alice had everything under control, then she would trust her lord's words and do nothing. The Monster Lord defeated her during the coronation ceremony, and still kept her alive and let her join her ranks. If she didn't follow Alice, who else would?

"But why?!" Meanwhile, Luka complained to Alice regarding the sword, making Alice scoff at him.

"I had noticed that you can't really leave any fatal mark on your enemy, and because you are fearful of killing Monsters, you unconsciously limit yourself. Whenever a monster tries to assault you, you carry yourself in a reserved manner. Although Victor is the same as you… I wouldn't trust him with one of my many underwear, not to talk about a special item like that."

"Special…? I see how it looks 'special', but… I could just buy something like a club…" Luka commented, prompting Alice to glare at him.

"How dare you compare that sword to a simple club?! Get that weapon right now!"

"Yes!" Luka quickly picked up the sword, and all of a sudden it began to release a high-pitched demonic screeching sound, making everyone but Alice and Granberia scream.

"Waaaaah!!" Penny began to cry loudly at the eldritch scream coming from the blade, while Victor, although he had expected the existence of that sword, didn't expect it would be so terrifying. The one who received the greatest emotional trauma was Luka, who was holding the sword with shaking arms.

"W… What is this…?" Luka's voice turned into a dog whimper as he stared at the sword in shock.

"That sword is called Angel Halo, and because it's a one-on-a-kind magic sword, it's very valuable. It will be better for your journey if you use that sword instead of your glorified toothpick."

"No way!" Luka replied with a yell. "This thing looks like its very existence is to bring trouble at the Church and blame it to the wielder! Who was the moron who even designed this abomination?!"

'If only you knew, Luka…' Victor sighed when he heard his words. "Luka, just take it."

"Even you?!" Luka looked at Victor in shock and immediately twisted his head left and right. "Na-ah, no! Absolutely no! I'm not going to use this demonspawn!"

"But it even has the angels you love so much embedded on it!" Alice spoke with a fake smile on her face and a cutesy voice. "I thought you would like this gift, since apparently I never do anything for this group."

After processing her words, Luka immediately shot a glare at Victor. He clearly remembered Victor complaining about Alice not helping at all and leeching off from them yesterday, and now he---an innocent---has to receive the bad end of the quarrel.

Seeing that he was still unwilling, Alice sighed in exasperation and spoke with a serious tone. "Listen up, idiot. This magic sword was created by melting a total of 666 angels and using them as a forging material. Because of that, their Holy Energy and their grudges were hammered into the sword as well, and it self-developed a terrifying curse against anything that can be considered 'living'. It is capable of devouring the energy of whatever it slashes, making it hard for the opponent to maintain their form."

"I… What?" Luka blinked in surprise as he stared at Alice, trying to understand her words.

"*Sigh* You moron… If you beat a Monster, they won't be able to hold their form. Their Dark Energy gets eaten away and they will return to their original counterpart."

"...?" Alice had the urge of pinching her eyebrows together when she saw that Luka didn't understand what she said.

Victor sighed and simplified it even further. "Luka." Once he was sure that he attracted Luka's attention, he continued. "The sword doesn't hurt Monsters, and if you attack them enough times, they will be rendered harmless. The only one who has a real chance to get hurt is you in the middle of all this."

"...So it's like a club?"

Victor took a deep breath and looked both at Alice and Granberia, the people who know more about the sword in this party after him. "Oh my God, can someone between you two draw this idiot a picture?"

Alice approached Victor with an exasperated face and picked up Penny from Victor's lap, before she pushed her closer to Luka. "Attack her with Angel Halo."

"WAHHH!!" Penny started to cry louder once she was placed in front of the eldritch sword, and Luka looked surprised at Alice's request.

"What?! No! She is only a child!"

"It's fine! Even a scratch is fine! Just try to cut her skin!"

"..." Luka hesitantly looked at Angel Halo before he turned his gaze on Penny, whose arm was being held down by Alice. With an ugly frown, Luka gently placed Angel Halo over Penny's arm and applied a bit of pressure.

There wasn't any obvious change in Penny's crying expression while Luka pulled the sword away, and was taken aback when he saw a misty black substance coming out from the spot that Luka had touched and slowly entered in the sword.

Luka tried to rub the 'wound' he caused with a finger, but he didn't feel any irregularity, much to his surprise. It was like there was no scratch.

"The sword won't be able to hurt anyone, and if you can absorb enough energy from your enemy, they will be rendered harmless and unable to attack you again. I would have shown you how it worked with Penny here as a target, but… There's actually an eager volunteer coming up, so I'm going to hide somewhere." Alice said before she, Granberia, Penny, and Eva vanished at the same time, leaving Luka and Victor alone.

"Eh? What-!?" Just as Luka asked some moments after Alice and everyone else vanished, the ground began to violently shake and the dirt in front of them started to swell and lift up, before a shadow quickly extended from the pile of soil and topped over both Luka and Victor.

Her body was very thin and there was no visible appendage. The shadow was merely made up of a long body and a haired head on top of it, like some kind of totem.

As Victor and Luka's visions quickly focused on the assaulter, they realized that it was a giant earthworm with the width of a human body, along with human breasts, shoulders, and head popping out from where the earthworm's head should come out from.

Victor had to thank whatever deity was seeing him that there was only one monster this time…

Suddenly, Victor's wheelchair was pulled backwards and lifted up. Because he wasn't ready at all, Victor fell on the ground with a yelp and looked behind him, seeing an earthworm's tail coiled around his wheelchair.

*Crunch!* The tail surprisingly crushed the wheelchair into a bent piece of scrap.

Okay, who was it? Which ass of a deity thought it was a good idea to bring more than one earthworm here? Ilias? The first Alice?

As the tail let go of the broken wheelchair, it was once again buried on the ground as another head emerged from the dirt before it directly slithered out of the ground, staying with her entire length of 8 meters under the sun. The second Earthworm Girl looked around with a curious expression and said. "...Strange, I thought there were five people."

After making sure that no one else was nearby, the black-haired earthworm set her gaze down on Victor with a tiny smug smile on her face. She licked her lips as she slithered closer to Victor.

"Well, better for me!"

"Get the fuck away from me, you limbless tomboy-lookin' ass!" Victor tried to crawl away from the incoming Earthworm, and his yell attracted Luka's attention.

"Victor?!" Luka shouted in panic before the other Earthworm Girl used that opportunity to coil around his body. "Ack!"

"I'll coil around you and squeeze!" Following her words, the Earthworm Girl tightened her coil around Luka, enticing a yelp from him.

"Does my sticky body feel good?" The Earthworm Girl sensually whispered on Luka's ear before she stuck her tongue within his ear-hole, making Luka's body twitch at the unexpected pleasure.

"L-Let me go… Ah!" The slimy mucus covering the Earthworm Girl also entered through Luka's clothes before his nerves suddenly registered a much greater stimulation than before.

"H-Hey! The leg hurts, for fuck's sake! If you want to suck my dick that much, at least don't touch my broken leg!" At the other side, Victor was shouting at the other Earthworm Girl. Unlike Luka, he really didn't mind handing out his semen, although this oversized earthworm wasn't part of the group of monsters he would be willing to feed, but the least they could do was try to inflict as little pain as possible.

"Oops, sorry…" The Earthworm Girl apologized before she moved at Victor's right side instead, avoiding the left leg. Her leg slipped below Victor's body as he pushed himself away from the tail trying to slip away from her coiling attempts.

As he had mentioned just a moment ago, he wouldn't mind giving his seed to monsters. However, that was a favorable outcome only if the monster in question looked cute or anything. An Earthworm Girl? Fuck no!

"Come here, you little pest…!" The Earthworm Girl muttered as Victor used her mucus at his advantage to slip through her tail. However, when Victor stood with his back straight up, suddenly, her tail bolted around Victor and coiled right around his waist, below his armpits.

"Shit!" Victor cursed before he was brought closer to the Earthworm Girl. He hoped to stall for enough time, but that would be too much to ask against this kind of opponent…

Meanwhile, Luka successfully managed to struggle out of his Earthworm Girl's bindings by repeatedly stabbing Angel Halo through her slippery body. At first, Luka was a bit hesitant and distracted with the pleasure that the Earthworm Girl was giving him by playing with his ear.

However, soon he gave himself courage with his thoughts and tried to stab the Earthworm Girl. Unfortunately, the mucus and her soft body made it hard for him to place a well-done stab through her slimy flesh.

But the surprise of getting her body scratched even when no blood came out took her by surprise. The Earthworm Girl let go of Luka's body and looked at the injured part of her body, where her innate Dark Energy was flowing out and slowly being absorbed by Luka's weapon.

"W-What's this?! My power is… draining?" She looked at Luka and observed his sword, before she recoiled in disgust. "Ugh… What is that thing?!"

Luka's already red face turned darker from the embarrassment of holding Angel Halo. Anyway, although he managed to get free from the Earthworm Girl's coiling grasp, he still has to defeat her and rescue Victor from the other Earthworm Girl. Besides, his body is still covered in mucus, and he currently had a small throbbing erection poking out from his slightly lowered pants---by the Earthworm Girl's courtesy.

If he accidentally orgasms by the Earthworm Girl's technique, it will be over. He will surrender with both his body and his mind if he reaches Critical Ecstasy with a Monster Girl… And now that his sensitivity greatly increased, it will be hard to keep fighting for long. Luka quickly brought up his pants again, covering his member, and stared hard against his enemy.

If he gets distracted, it's game over…

"Here! Have plenty of mucus!" The Earthworm Girl said before she swung her tail at Luka's direction, letting her mucus fly across the sky and reach Luka. He yelped in surprise at her choice of attack before he crossed his arms in defense, letting her mucus land on his sleeves.

A certain thought quickly appeared in his mind as he pushed his arms aside and saw the Earthworm Girl dashing at his direction. The distance and her speed was too much for him to even think about counter-attacking her, so he merely dodged her tackle.

Unfortunately, he had stumbled backwards and fell on his butt, which the Earthworm Girl took in her advantage to dash at his direction once more. In panic, Luka quickly scrambled to his knees and set his sword in front of the Earthworm Girl, with the edge facing her direction.

He was thinking about something half-way through this fight, and it was Victor's words before they started the journey, on the night before the baptism day. He had said that there wasn't a need to swing his sword, and simply lay his edge against his opponent.

Although Alice had added that this was basically half of what a real slash was, Victor's words sounded quite reasonable at this moment. The Earthworm Girl was by no means powerful, she merely had her slippery body at her advantage: No scales, no fur, no armor… Only flesh that could be easily cut apart.

"Shit!" Seeing that Luka changed his defensive stance into one of counter-attack, the Earthworm Girl panicked and got hit from her right shoulder all the way down to the first meter/section of her tail, slicing off a large part of her body. Even if her body was slippery, her human-like features were much more solid, and thus the slippery effect her mucus possessed had a weaker effect around the human side of her body.

It was fortunate for Luka that he has Angel Halo instead of a normal sword. Even if part of the Earthworm Girl's body was sliced apart like a tomato, if it was merely a physical injury then it could be easily recovered in the future. However, with Angel Halo, he could also weaken the Earthworm Girl depending on how much damage he inflicts on her.

However, the good and bad always came by holding hands. Because he had pulled that stunt of a counter-attack without the necessary strength, Luka's trembling arms felt really numb at the moment. He could hardly lift his sword now… And yet, he got up and glared at the Earthworm Girl. "Come if you want! See what will happen!"

The Earthworm Girl took deep breaths and glanced at the other side, where the Earthworm Girl had Victor coiled around her body, with his arms stuffed inside her binding. She already lowered Victor's pants and was currently using the hole within the tip of her long tail to have sex with him.

Just like Luka, he was also covered from mucus, and his sensitivity greatly increased. Even if he didn't want this, he was forced into a state of pleasure by the Earthworm Girl. He could easily get free with his Telekinesis, and even kill her if he so wanted.

However, not only he didn't want to show his Telekinesis yet, but he also didn't have any intention of committing murder, no matter how sassy he sounds like to other people.

"Beatrice! I need help over here!" The Earthworm Girl that Luka was facing suddenly called out, attracting Victor's Earthworm Girl's, Beatrice's, attention to her.

"Huh? Can you please wait? I'm almost getting done here!" Beatrice replied as she squeezed Victor's dick within her hole. "Come on, cum inside me…"

"Hngh…!" Victor tried to hold it back, but it was completely useless as he came within the Earthworm Girl's hole, unleashing his two-days worth of cum inside.

"That's it~ Feed my tight hole just like that…" As Critical Ecstasy always worked, in the moment Victor came inside her, she used this moment to inject a tiny bit of her Dark Energy inside his body so that he would 'surrender with both his body and his mind'.

Just as she had expected, Victor visibly relaxed within her coil, and she loosened her grasp before turning at the other Earthworm Girl's direction.

"Here I come-!?" Just as Beatrice warned the other monster, a wave of flames suddenly assaulted her side, making her yelp in surprise. She looked behind and saw Victor grinning at her, with a lighter and a deodorant spray on his hands.

"Bitch, you thought I was done!"

"W-What?!" Beatrice was surprised at Victor's clear mind even after attaining Critical Ecstasy. Wasn't he supposed to collapse on the ground with a tired expression? Why is he still fighting back?!

Victor had only 3'590 Gold Coins, and it would take a long time before he received the next batch. He could have bought a gun, but he would have certainly hesitated using it against a weaker foe like this monster, and he knew that. Also, he needs to have a real marksmanship skill before he can be confident in using a gun from a long range.

"C'mon! I dare you to move! See if I won't turn you into a grilled insect!" Victor tried to bluff his way out. Meanwhile, seeing that Victor was still alright, Luka decided to take a deep breath and use this small moment to recover enough strength to launch another attack. Although Luka's arms were numb, he still could recover, unlike the Earthworm Girl whose sliced-off wound was covered in a dark substance that was slowly emitting miasma.

"My… energy…" The Earthworm Girl muttered as she realized that her energy reserves were getting too low. She had to end this; if she is defeated, then Beatrice won't have any choice but to retreat because of the two human threats. Since when did normal travelers become stronger than Heroes these days?!

"Ugh…!" The weakened Earthworm Girl tried to give herself a last push, but Luka was already rushing at her. He dragged Angel Halo behind his back, with his fingers tightly holding on the hilt, before he quickly arrived in front of her.

Luka was short, and the Earthworm Girl standing up was still taller than most people. Even at such a close distance, Luka had plenty of space he could swing his sword through. Using that to his advantage, he brought up in front of the sun the first real sword skill he had ever learned with Alice in their first night camp.

"I got you now! Demon Decapitation!" To give himself a greater mental push, he yelled off the name of the technique before he tightly grasped the hilt of the sword with his right hand and grasped his wrist with his left hand.

Then, with a painful movement, Luka pulled his right wrist in front of him, dragging the sword in a cutting motion in front of him. Surprisingly, the strength of the technique let Luka, a normal person with a negligible quantity of physical training, cut through the powerful body of a monster with a single slice.

The Earthworm Girl stared at Luka with shock filling her eyes as her upper body fell on the ground. And yet, just as she tried to struggle like the Earthworm that she was, she finally lost the small drops of Dark Energy she possessed and a magic seal was forcefully placed on her body. Both her upper and lower body glowed and turned in white particles, before they all focused on a tiny spot in the dirt that created a natural-sized earthworm with no visible monster characteristics.

Luka took deep breaths out of tiredness as he looked down on where the light vanished off, noticing a wriggling worm having a short seizure before it dug down on the ground in panic.

"M-Mimi?!" Beatrice panicked once she noticed that Mimi, Luka's Earthworm Girl, magically disappeared. Another short burst of fire from Victor incited a surprised yelp from her as she backed away from Victor.

Her eyes slowly moved towards Luka, who was tired and was clasping his right shoulder in pain. Demon Decapitation was a rather violent technique that uses the back muscles as you pull your dominant arm back while you are swinging.

Because Luka is still a newbie at using this technique, he is only able to use his shoulder muscles and couldn't use his back at the right moment, causing the pain to focus on his right shoulder and the technique's original power to weaken. However, even so, it was still strong enough to cut apart an Earthworm Girl!

It was for that reason that Luka was clutching his right shoulder and gritting his teeth. The pain of almost dislocating his shoulder was very painful, atrociously painful…

However, there was still more to do!

Luka slowly turned his head around and glared at Beatrice in determination before he took deep breaths as he turned his body around.

"G… Go on… C-Come at me…!" Luka threatened Beatrice, who had in mind the idea of using Luka as a hostage against Victor. She gritted her teeth from the shame of losing against mere humans, but she couldn't let herself get angry. No… It was time to retreat.

"Fuck you, all of you." She cursed before she thrusted her head back inside the dirt and started to dig a tunnel in it, hiding in the ground once again. Her retreat was a clear sign of their victory, and after a dozen seconds, Luka landed on the ground with his butt and let go of Angel Halo.

"Ugh…" He painfully grunted as he finally began to rest. Meanwhile, just as they had disappeared, the rest of the party appeared around the area again. Alice let go of Penny as she quickly rushed to Luka in panic.

"Luka! Are you hurt?!" Penny shouted with a worried tone, and Luka merely smiled at her as if nothing bad was happening right now.

"I'm fine, I just feel a bit weak… Some rest will do some good for me."

Meanwhile, Eva and Granberia were approaching Victor. Granberia merely looked at Victor and Luka with a more interested expression while Eva helped Victor get up on his feet, using herself as a support.

"Are you okay, Victor? Nothing wrong?" Eva asked, and Victor nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's a shame that the wheelchair broke… I don't even have enough money to buy another…"

"Bullshit, I gave you 30'000 Gold Coins just now!" Granberia commented with an annoyed expression, and Victor shrugged.

"I already used that… to upgrade my source of income. In the next hour, I should have enough money to buy an even better wheelchair." Victor replied with a small lie to conceal the real usage of his money, making Granberia sigh.

She shook her head while Eva continued to ask. "Are you sure? You should have Critical Ecstasy now…?"

"Oh, was it about that?" Victor asked with a raised eyebrow, and Eva nodded. Victor snorted as a smile came to his face. "An orgasm isn't enough to stop me."

"..." Granberia was observing Luka from here, as an unconvinced expression appeared on her face. Victor noticed that and curiously asked.

"Something's wrong?"

"Not at all, I simply didn't expect that little coward to know Demon Decapitation… I guess that my lord must have taken the role of his teacher."

"Oh yeah." Victor nodded. "His swordplay was complete crap before, so Alice took pity on him and decided to teach him the basics."

"...Yeah, that sounds about right." Granberia commented. A sigh escaped from her mouth as she continued. "Anyway, I would never have thought of seeing that little guy keeping such a large backbone. Normal people wouldn't even think about pulling off a half-assed Demon Decapitation with their full strength; after all, people are afraid of pain. And yet, not only he pulled that off, he also gritted his teeth through the pain and tried to go against the second Earthworm Girl. You two would be gone if she didn't buy those bluffs of yours."

"Well, that's how we can deal with this stuff at the moment. We are only humans, not supermen. Heinrich is a special case, but even he received the help of the Four Spirits to defeat Black Alice." Victor commented, making both Eva and Granberia raise an eyebrow at him, with the latter taking the initiative.

"I'm surprised you know of the Four Spirits. That kind of story isn't supposed to be known to any simple human."

"Not to sound arrogant, but do I look simple to you?" With a sarcastic expression, Victor asked Granberia, making her sigh again.

"...Anyway, even if Heinrich required help from the Four Spirits, it was still something he managed to control, and thus it is a power that belongs to him. No matter what it is, as long as it is under your control, you have free use of it in any battle.

Techniques, tricks, external assistance, secrets… Only idiots think that they don't belong to the opponent's overall strength. In fact, you also did a good job by keeping up your bluffs, and your resistance to Critical Ecstasy will grant you a large edge against a large majority of monsters. Although you will have to work more on your arm strength and fix that leg of yours."

"Whatever you say, you cultivator wannabe." Victor commented before he glanced at Eva. "Let's get closer to the others."

Eva nodded and helped Victor get closer to the rest of the group, leaving behind Granberia with a raised eyebrow.

"...Culti-what?" There was no answer coming back to her, so she simply shrugged that as an inside joke that only Victor knows of and followed after them.

At the other side, Alice was staring down on Luka with her arms crossed. "So, do you finally understand how Angel Halo works? The monster from before turned into a small worm after she lost her Dark Energy, completely harmless."

"The sword is still ugly, though…" Penny commented as she warily observed Angel Halo from behind Alice's snake tail.

"Penny, Alice…" Luka muttered, unconsciously glancing at Angel Halo. Even though it looked like something that the devil itself would forge for fun, it was indeed a huge help for his journey. Now he doesn't have to worry about holding back! The part where it can severely affect monsters with a great resilience like the Earthworm Girl is another bonus.

"...Hmm…" Luka nodded at Alice's question. "I get it now… Still, the transformation thing is kind of sad…"

"It's better than dying." Alice commented with a shrug. "She's still a monster, so even with that appearance, she won't die easily. If she gets assistance from other more powerful monsters, she will recover the Dark Energy she has lost and return to her original form."

Luka hummed in confirmation and replied. "I see… I hope she reflects on her actions in the meantime."

Some silent seconds passed before Alice rebuked. "...Rather than reflect, her hatred will probably just increase."

"..." A sigh escaped from Luka as he lifted Angel Halo with his left arm and slowly got up on his feet. Unfortunately, his sheath couldn't fit this sword, so he could only carry it in his hands for now. "...By the way, what would happen if I used this sword on a human? Of course, I don't want to do that…"

"I don't know how it will end, but judging by how the sword works, a single sword strike on them will immediately turn them into weak people who can't even manage to move a finger, just like it would happen during a moment of Critical Ecstasy." Alice casually replied.

"Hmm… Thank you, Alice. With this, I can fight without holding back." After thinking a bit, Luka gratefully thanked Alice, who simply shrugged back.

"That's true, you are much better when there are no mental chains holding you back from releasing your full strength. Although, more practice will certainly be more beneficial, lest you want to be crippled like that guy over there." Alice jabbed a thumb at Victor, who simply extended a middle finger towards her back. Granberia blinked in surprise at how Victor just casually flipped off her lord, while Luka hid a chuckle behind his left wrist.

Alice turned her head around, just to see Granberia grasping Victor's collar and shaking him back and forth in anger while Eva was trying to separate them. She shrugged, not seeing anything bad going on, and turned towards Luka.

"Anyway, back to the main argument, I suggest we should be heading to Happiness Village first. The owner of the Sutherland Inn mentioned something about the absence of manpower around that place."

"Oh, that's right… It sounded like something happened there." Luka once again remembered the mission he was handed over from the owner of the hotel. "Well, let's go in there first. Ugh…"

He tried to massage his right shoulder that still hurted him like a bitch, and turned towards the others. "Guys, we will leave now!"

Granberia let go of Victor's collar, and Victor was being caught by Eva. She carried him in a princess carry posture since there was no wheelchair where he could sit, and it would be too slow if she simply supported him shoulder by shoulder. Meanwhile, Victor glared at Granberia.

"That crazy bitch…!"

"Calm down, she isn't like Alice. Don't even think of pissing her off, she will hit you without a second thought." Eva told him before she and Victor followed everyone else towards the east, to Happiness Village.

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Victor Luis' (future) Trivia Book: Earthworm Girl

Earthworm Girls are part of the Land-Dwelling Species, monsters that don't belong in a precise group that lives on the land. Just as the name suggests, they possess a slimy body that takes the shape of a giant earthworm. Wild Earthworm Girls are known to come above ground to attack men when they're hungry.

Feeding primarily on semen, they are able to both absorb it through their skin and to directly suck it out with their tails, which is also used to excrete, and reproduce. Their basic attack pattern is to wrap their bodies around their catch and seal off their movements as they feed. Depending on the way they catch their prey, the latter won't have any chance of escape.

They naturally release slimy mucus from their skin, both from their earthworm side and their human side. It is tough to grab them, unless you have either massive arms or sharp claws. Because of that property, even though your arms are still free, you can hardly hurt her. Using a sword can bring the same result unless you are lucky enough to get a spot with less mucus on it.

If you can resist for long enough, the light of the sun can also dry the mucus of the Earthworm Girl, making it easier to injure her. However, to counter that, their mucus has natural stimulants that can cause the prey to get many times more sensitive than before once they touch the skin.

If you are fighting one, you will have to be careful. Even though they aren't focused on their other senses because they didn't turn as blind as moles, they are able to feel the vibration of the ground. It doesn't matter if you go behind them, they will be able to find you; of course, flying people can bypass such a thing.

Unexpectedly, they are omnivores. However, they prefer to eat vegetables rather than meat. After all, it is easier for them to dig through a farm to catch cabbages rather than kill animals and other prey to devour them. Even though that might seem a possibility, there wasn't any notice of an Earthworm Girl killing someone or something to devour them.

Just like other slimy monsters, they are weak to lightning in particular.