Ichiko pat Yumi on the back, snapping the petite brown-haired woman out of her daze.
“We’re finally here.” She pointed at the shop. “Clare’s an old friend of mine. She doesn’t know I’m a Stone Maiden though. I hadn’t called her in like a year.” She glanced at the…café. “I guess she’s a normie now. Come on.”
“Normie? Don’t say such terrible things,” Emi said.
Ichiko pushed open the door, leading the group inside. Of course Emi and Megu started bickering, prompting Ichiko to snap at them to shut up. Yumi seemed to start a tiny “I have to go to the bathroom” dance. The arch priest considered asking for her.
“Excuse me,” she said to the silver-haired girl at the register. “Is Clare here?”
“She’s in the back,” the silver-haired girl said. “I’ll go check.”
Ichiko felt strong magical power emanating from that one. The same applied for other staff, though not as strong. They were…magical girls.
She turned and caught something that set her blood to a boil—even made her heart weep. First, Naomi was also a childhood friend of hers and Clare’s. Rumors of her leaving the city after her parents died in a car accident spread among their circle. What made her angry was the boy seated in front of her.
She saw his attempted sleight-of-hand—to put something in the green-haired girl’s coffee and then insist on her drinking it to “energize her brain.” Ichiko marched over there and swiped the cup in time.
“YOU SCUM!” Her backhand hurled the young man into the wall. “You piece of rotten shit. To put something in her drink—and boldly in front of witnesses. Emi, call the police.”
Clare emerged to the scene, took one whiff of the coffee, then set a dark glare at the downed boy.
“Openly committing crimes,” she said softly. “No amount of connections will get you out of jail. Agent Ling will make sure of that.”
Ichiko turned and finally hugged her old friend. Then rushed over to Naomi to spread the love. It took only a second for the green-haired girl to remember her.
“Ichiko? Is it really you?”
“I’m back,” Ichiko said softly.
**
Ring City, Terravon of the Zextral Continent…
In front of Clyde’s house…
As Clyde boarded the bus, he could not help but feel this was going to be an easy, relaxing three days. No quests, no burdens, no monsters until they arrived to Alon. He wasn’t sure what to think of some wizard gang.
[System prepares to end your career.]
[AHAHAHAHAHA. ]
[Quest line: *Road trip ! These set of quests are mandatory and cannot be refused. Failing will result in penalties so deadly harsh that the system decided to protect your fragile little mind by not unveiling them. However, you would have to be literally stupid, blind, and deaf to fail them. Reward: a various amount of EXP and possible items per quest completion.]
[You will be notified when it is time to complete the first quest. Until then, you may relax, desu.]
Clyde frowned, a little baffled at the system prompt. Few things surprised him these days, but quests during a freaking bus trip. Come the fuck on! This evil, sadistic system…
The charter bus….no, the Billionaire’s bus looked amazing. Tinted windows with curtains, a luxurious interior with couches for seats that folded into comfortable beds, TVs for each seat, tables, a bar area in the back, carpeted floor, four AC’s, changing areas, a kitchen with a microwave—and so much more. This was basically a billion-dollar tour bus.
“Holy shit,” Clyde heard Seth say from behind. Clyde found a nice spot all the way in the back and relaxed. Hinako had already started the vehicle, grumbling about the forced training from Chika’s servants. Tetra and Sophia muttered angrily too, knowing they were next in the rotation. Maki was confined to the front of the bus until given permission by Yuki otherwise or cleaning.
The young man, though hogging up an entire couch, felt the women approach, eager to claim their spot. Eventually they came to a compromise on their own. As the leader of Team Stone, he’d sit by himself—unless of course Clyde invited them or they wanted to talk about a legitimate problem. Natalia raised her hand to make a false claim, but Tear gave it a swat.
“No lying or you’ll be punished,” Tear said.
Natalia pouted.
Neko boldly laid at Clyde’s feet, purring and rubbing her head against his leg.
“What the hell are you doing, cat?” Alice said, Gin smile on her face. Anger aura stirred up around her.
“Nyyaaan, don’t mind me,” Neko said. Ruri grabbed the catgirl by the tail, tossing her out of the way.
“I’ve been waiting all day for petting,” the hellhound snapped.
“I want petting,” Matsume and Kanako said simultaneously.
“Why, Kanako?” Airi said.
“Because it looks fun and feels good,” the genie said.
Alice sighed.
“The trip hadn’t even started, so get to your seats.”
Ruri stuck her tongue out at her friend.
“No way, petting now. I’ve been way too patient lately.”
Both women had a glare off until Alice sighed.
“No more than one hour. Then let my Clyde rest.”
“Don’t I get a saying in this?” Clyde said. Ruri snuggled into him.
“Now-now, don’t waste my hour.”
The moment his hand caressed Ruri’s head, she let out a soft moan.
“I think my switch was flipped,” she said softly, blushing.
Episode 55 (Part 4)
[Adventure quest: During the Winter break, you must travel to the nation of Alon to give your blessing to the princess. Neko must be present. Her sister is an optional addition but will increase the rewards. Beware of the wizard gang around this area. The troubling bunch may be the least of your problems if the Gargoyles are still around.]
Ako’s presence increased rewards….
Clyde spared a glance at his increased Omen’s sphere count. Somehow, it was absorbed into him after the elder dragon bit the dust.
[You will need 1 more Omen’s sphere to gain the next bonus.]
[Unknown benefits gained from the Omen’s sphere.]
[-Free points: 175.
-Wanted rep Harpy clan: 5/5.
-Omen’s spheres (some call them orbs): 8 of 25 . (2 of 5 super)
-Sato Academy Crafting Permission.
-* World Star Fragments* : 1/7.
- Faith level 20. Faith points: 10.
-Chaotic energy: 1. ]
How long was this harpy hate going to last? Also, this turned out to be the first time the menu revealed a finite number of Omen’s spheres. Twenty-five…That drastically raised their value. In the entirety of this world, a mere two dozen powerful objects were sought after by demon lords.
As the bus pushed forward, officially starting the journey to Alon’s Nation Seat, Clyde took in Ruri’s huskier breathing. The main lights shut off and the glow of laptops, TV’s, smartphones or tablets, a handheld video game or two, even a desk lamp took place of them. Ming and Chika were at the desks. Ming seemed to be drawing something. Chika, surprisingly not studying, rummaged through a bag, a familiar shine in her eyes. The young man gulped, doing his best not to think on it. He recalled the time Alice chased him with large clamps—each chomp demonstrating supernatural strength. An item from Chika’s Bag of Tools.
A system notification pulled Clyde out of the memory.
[Heheheehehehe .]
Clyde felt his heart drop. How did it come to being at the system’s mercy?
[Quest: Road Trip. Stage 1. You must satisfy Ruri without actual intercourse. Reward: EXP, unknown. Keep in mind that disturbing your neighbors is your loss of dignity and leadership image, desu. Alice will be angry enough to forcefully end her time with you. Time left: 45 minutes.]
Clyde wanted to facepalm, but focused on the blushing hellhound monster girl. Short white hair, wolf ears and tail, she was adorable. He r
eached for a button on the side of his chair, one which would enable a privacy curtain and automatically unfold the couch into a bed. A prompt flashed into his mind’s eye.
[You cannot access the privacy buttons at this time.]
Clyde gulped. If Ruri moaned, the entire bus would turn in his direction, opinions of him dropping to the floor like dead flies.
[Time remaining: 44 minutes…]
[Talent. Main character stuff: Head pat.]
Clyde massaged Ruri’s head gently and methodically. He took notice of no one paying attention to him thanks to the darkened cabin. Something within the young man seemed to snap or maybe the tower below rose as arousal bloomed to full effect. He felt himself smirk.
“Keep as quiet as possible,” Clyde whispered to Ruri. “I’m going to make you feel good.”
“You’re already patting perfectly,” she whispered back.
“I’m going to do more than that,” he said, slipping his hand into her shirt. He massaged small breasts. Then he went lower and lower until his fingers plunged inside the sea of wetness.
She let out a small gasp, but made no noise. The young man began his work, ignoring the massive boner that pressed against the back of Ruri’s head. She looked up.
“Shall we?” the hellhound said softly
“Not now,” he whispered. “I told you, I’m going to make you feel good.”
“But it would feel better inside of me,” Ruri whispered, clenching against his fingers. She was basically fucking his fingers at that point. The young man shook his head.
“We can’t risk getting caught,” he said. “Besides, doing this in secret is kind of fun.”
Ruri grinned.
“In that case.” The hellhound pulled out Clyde’s member, licked, and stroked. He clenched his teeth, the sensation catching him off guard. He sped up, causing the volume of the hellhound’s breathing to increase. Fortunately, she calmed when he slowed.
Time passed as the duo pleased each other.
[Time remaining: 10 minutes. Warning, Alice is beginning to lose interest in her tablet. She’s thinking about her future as a mother.]
Ten minutes was basically the same as one minute—the young man knew he’d have to go all or nothing. And this…felt exciting.
Smirking, he whispered,
“You’re so cute, Ruri. Let’s finish this.”
Covering her mouth, he sped up his fingering to the max, amazed that his right hand didn’t cramp at this point. Maybe a certain private activity he did on Earth helped in this case. Ruri bucked. Clyde felt a bead of sweat drop, because he knew at the moment, she almost let out a large song.
With just a minute to spare on the clock, the hellhound finally climaxed all over his hand. She quivered, laying limp across his lap. The young man used that opportunity to reign the raging boner back into his pants. He could see Airi heading toward them, Alice following.
Thinking quickly, Clyde looked around and noticed the blankets stacked in a cubby on his left. He snatched one, covering both Ruri and his raging boner.
He took a moment to appreciate the hellhound’s athletic and soft body. The princess of a clan and powerful member of Team Stone, the young man couldn’t help but wonder why she refused to go home. Not that he wanted her to. He hoped to see a ring around her finger one day. Sure, the idea of making them all his wives seemed ambitious, ridiculous, and against the societal norms he grew up with, but this wasn’t Earth. He wasn’t bound to the human rules anymore. The women made the conscious choice of accepting his proposal. The power increasing ordeal was the system almost over-rewarding him for choosing to not be a tool of his old society. And in Satovia, no one preached self-righteous garbage to him.
Of course, never in his life did Clyde expected to end up with a harem nor asked for it. However, many people were given responsibilities or duties they didn’t exactly ask for. That person could make a choice, to make the best of their situation or give up, living a life of just wishing.
[What deep thoughts to generate after leering at the body of an innocent hellhound princess. Ecchi. You have unlocked a path toward a new source of power. Cosmic energy. Wait for the system to prompt you the quest line. The first pre-step to that is to REALLY get to know Ruri. And not just sexually. You will also need to strengthen the friendship between she and Alice. The system will not force you into something as ridiculous as a threesome, but it is still there as an option.]
Oh what the bloody hell, System , he thought. Pushing away the system’s annoying invasion into his sex life, Clyde reeled at the excitement of learning a new source of power. He was glad that the system didn’t immediately jump him on this quest line. He needed to get a better understand of Ki and its true purpose first. Why bother with Ki if he could simply use magic? There had to be a reason why the magic system was divided like this.
[Ki, chakra, negative ki, psychic energy, deitic power, cosmic energy, and unknown sources of supernatural power.]
[Quest completed. Road trip stage 1. You weren’t told to make her climax, just satisfy her, in which head pats would’ve done fine within thirty minutes. Tsk. Tsk. Someone’s quite horny. For going above and beyond, you will receive bonus EXP and one of your party members will be gifted with a random potion! Good job!]
[Congratulations, you have reached levels 140-145. Stats increased! You have learned Tier 1 skill: Giga Lava Cannon. Does colossal fire and magma damage. Chances to inflict burns will depend on your foe’s resistance to fire. The lava explodes upon impact and can have uses outside of battle .]
[You have started learning Ki passive, Telepath level 1. Gold Ki. You can direct your thoughts and speak to anyone within the same city. Increase the level to increase range. This skill is highly dependent on having the Range crest. To obtain, you need Range at 3, Composure at 2, Vigor at 2, and Nature at 2.]
Clyde sighed. To learn Telepath, the young man would have to bang Kanako, Kiko, Airi, and Matsume at least once more. Doable. He could take them on a fun date—
[Or the system could assist you. Hehehehe.]
No, go away you evil system , Clyde internally snapped.
[So ungrateful. Fine, fine, desu, but the road to completing the quest still have a way to go. Make sure you pay attention to the training in which Naoko and Natalia will provide. Teehee, it will get quite…touchy feely—physical.]
What the hell did that mean? Clyde wondered. He thought about how Genkai trained Yusuke in Yuyu Hakusho and cringed. Please don’t be that .
“Your time’s up, Ruri,” Alice said. “I’ve got to talk with my Clyde about something.”
“Is it about your pregnancy?” Airi blabbed, gaining the attention of the entire bus. Ruri and Alice nearly fell backward. Tetra flipped the lights on.
Sweat trickled from the back of Clyde’s head.
“How did you…” Alice started to say, but stopped at Airi’s evil grin. Yuki and Tear sighed, shaking their heads.
Harumi glared at the young man. He smiled sheepishly.
“Come on, fess up,” Airi said. “I’m highly attuned to nature and can feel the slightest shimmer of new life within the creation process.”
“But only after a day…” Alice’s voice trailed off as she blushed heavily.
Tear began to take pictures.
“She’s so cute! My cousin’s expecting, everyone.”
“Clyde, you…” Seth sighed. “Never mind. Congratulations.”
The young man felt a rush of embarrassed heat cross his face. Airi continued to smile, oblivious to the spotlight she threw Clyde and Alice in.
Harumi walked over and hugged the half-demoness.
“I guess my little one will have someone to play with.”
Tear’s camera went nuts. Clyde could’ve sworn the succubus had a nosebleed.
**
Lot City, Yaponiya…
Inside Clare’s breakroom…
Arch priestess Ichiko fell backward, eyes teary. Her sky-blue hair covered her face as she wallowed in despair. S
he had failed. She let down the world, let down the maidens, let down herself. UGH! It was all because of that stupid redhood. REALLY. One job! He had one job!
“I can’t believe we came all this way!” Ichiko whined, “And he’s seriously gone.”
Emi cried, holding the arch priestess’s right arm.
“Yippee, Emi’s crying, big surprise,” Megu deadpanned sarcastically.
“And you’re on the couch, lounging around as usual,” Jae said to Megu, no emotion within her voice. She took another bite of her crispy donut.
“What’s that supposed to mean, sloth,” Megu snapped. She sighed. “Yumi’s taking an awfully long time in the bathroom. She must be taking a shit.”
“I’m not!” Yumi said, blushing as she stepped into the room. Ichiko found that hard to believe since the young woman looked quite relieved. She’d avoid going into the bathroom for at least half an hour.
Clare returned to the room, Naomi following.
“Alright, calm down, yes Clyde left on a trip with his team, but I have his phone number.” She fixed a blank stare on Ichiko. “But first…Why didn’t you tell me you somehow became a Stone Maiden?”
Ichiko blushed.
“I was summoned for an undisclosed duty some time ago by Grandmother. She put me through the most horrible training ever for years. Afterwards, they made me Archpriest and soon, I was living together with a bunch of other girls. Put in charge of them. We were allowed to visit our friends and loved ones once a year. Well, the others were. Grandmother lived across the street and forbid me to see mother and father. My parents were allowed to visit, but really, what can you expect of them? Despite being allowed to visit whenever, I’ve only saw them once every two years or so.” Ichiko sucked in a small breath and let it out.
The Anime Trope System: Stone vs. Viper, #11 a LitRPG [Alice Edition] (ATS) Page 4
