Chapter 101 - Chapter 100: Remove the Lust Crest!
That Lust Crest did not merely appear painted; it seemed to glow faintly.
A lewd pattern in pink, modeled after a heart mark.
Mika, looking at the Lust Crest before his eyes, felt like grabbing his head.
But he could not leave Heminikki as she was forever.
Mika whispered, squeezing out words with a trembling voice.
"The situation... I have grasped it. That is enough."
So saying, he bowed his head and held it with both hands.
(...You've got to be kidding! Does something this stupid actually exist!!!)
His head felt like it was boiling with anger.
(Who was it! Who cast such a ridiculous curse!?)
If they were before his eyes, he felt like he would instinctively punch them to death.
What kind of curse do you put on a woman of age?
".........Is it difficult, after all?"
Seeing Mika holding his head, the lady let out a voice of disappointment.
The sound of Heminikki sniffing her nose could be heard.
(...If I act unsure, just that will cause these two to suffer.)
Mika sat up his body and corrected his posture.
He reflected fiercely on his own attitude.
"No, there is no problem."
Mika deliberately made a serious face and answered the lady.
And then, he looked straight at Heminikki.
"I need to hear more detailed information and confirm the situation...."
There, he paused for a breath, and inhaled deeply.
"Sooner or later today, at the latest within a few days, I will surely remove the curse."
So, he declared with strength.
Hearing Mika's words that he would surely remove the curse, Heminikki collapsed in tears from relief, and the lady also shed tears of joy.
Normally, one would not believe such empty words.
Still, clinging to and believing those words meant that this mother and daughter were pushed to the brink.
In reality, Mika himself did not have confidence.
He had removed curses residing in "things" until now, but he had never removed a curse residing in a "person".
Or rather, this is the first time he has seen one.
Still, Mika himself made a strong resolve: "I will absolutely remove it!"
He had to dispel the mother and daughter's anxiety even a little, and start removing the curse urgently.
But, as Mika, he first had to hear the circumstances and confirm if removing only the Lust Crest from Heminikki would solve the situation.
Waiting for the two to calm down, Mika began his investigation.
The incident began over a month ago.
It started when the lady's husband, Heminikki's father, acquired this necklace while purchasing antiques.
His father, who runs a trading company dealing in antique art and decorative items, flies around the country for purchases.
There, he found this necklace.
The customers of the trading company, like his father, prefer luxurious and flashy things.
This item seemed good, but the gems used were small, falling outside the customers' preferences.
He decided it would not fetch a good price and removed it from the purchase candidates.
But, he couldn't help but be strangely interested in this necklace.
So, he said he bought it as a souvenir, thinking, "It won't sell, but my wife or daughter might like it."
The lady and daughter preferred calm and composed things, opposite to their father's taste.
So he bought this necklace, but for some reason, the lady showed no interest in it at all.
"Normally, I should have been a bit more interested... But at that time, strangely, no interest arose."
It seemed not to be just a glance at the necklace.
Even when told he bought a necklace as a souvenir, she felt no interest whatsoever.
And, conversely, Heminikki was obsessed with this necklace from the start.
Before even showing the necklace, she hurried her father, "Quickly, quickly," and when she took it in hand, her eyes sparkled.
So, she put it on right there on the spot.
However, from here began the nightmare-like days for this family.
Abnormalities occurred in Heminikki's body.
Her body began to ache every night, and she started seeking men.
When Heminikki noticed the abnormality in her body, she consulted the lady immediately.
At first, the lady ignored it, saying, "It's your imagination," or "It's common for women of your age," but finally, when Heminikki started making eyes at her father even, she understood the seriousness of the situation.
About a week after wearing the necklace, the Lust Crest became a clear pattern.
Until then, even seeing the lower abdomen slowly turning red, she had not noticed it at all.
While talking with Heminikki, the lady learned of the existence of the pattern on the lower abdomen and realized it was clearly a curse.
But, given the nature of the content, she could not easily consult others.
They were not yet engaged, but there were talks of marriage proposals.
If this news leaked, those talks would be broken off.
If strange rumors spread, it would leave a great scar on the daughter's future.
Currently, they have dismissed male servants and are managing the mansion with only female servants, but there is a limit to that.
Considering the possibility of an accident, the father is also avoiding approaching the mansion.
They spend days worrying about what will happen to Heminikki and what will happen to the house if this continues.
After hearing everything, Mika let out a sigh, "Fuu...."
It took a little while as the lady seemed to find it hard to speak concretely, but he heard the general circumstances.
Well, I understand it is hard to say to Mika who looks like a child, but this is work too.
He heard quite detailed stories.
It was bad luck, but he learned they were not cursed by a malicious person, so he felt a momentary relief.
And the silver lining was that Heminikki consulted the lady immediately.
Heminikki's self-control must have been strong too.
She removed male servants from the mansion before mistakes occurred and kept the father away from the mansion.
It was a terrible curse, but it was truly good that it did not reach an irreversible situation.
"You handle various things at the trading company, right? Didn't you notice the curse?"
That was what Mika found most strange.
Did he not accompany someone with the [Appraisal] skill for purchases?
"The master has a keen eye, and we had a dedicated appraiser accompany us. But it seems they did not notice the curse at all."
After being consulted by the lady that the daughter's condition was strange, the father thought of various causes.
So, upon checking the necklace again, he finally noticed the curse.
(Does a curse lie dormant...?)
It lies dormant and manifests when something acts as a trigger.
Moreover, Heminikki showed interest in the necklace even before seeing it, while the lady showed no interest at all.
Did the curse select its target?
(The father also removed it from purchase candidates, yet said he was strangely interested...)
It seems to have an effect completely different from curses he has handled so far.
Moreover, although the necklace's curse was removed, it seems Heminikki's Lust Crest remains.
(Did the curse transfer to Heminikki? Was the necklace just the dregs of the curse?)
There are many things he does not understand.
But, what he must do now is clear.
Then, he should start with that first.
Mika stood up and moved next to Heminikki.
"Can you lend me your hand?"
So saying, he touched her hand and sent magic power.
(...I can feel the existence of the curse itself. ...But, this is----.)
Far.
He felt that.
If Heminikki herself had become a cursed object, he should be able to remove the curse normally by touching her hand or hair.
But, it seems it is not like that.
How to say it, it is like trying to pick up a bean with chopsticks one meter long.
Removing the curse requires delicate manipulation of magic power, but with this, it seems such manipulation is impossible.
"Excuse me. I will touch your stomach a little."
Mika said one word and touched Heminikki's stomach through her clothes.
Just about where the Lust Crest was.
(...Just one thin layer of clothing separates it, and it is like this. It is not impossible to do, but...)
There is a frustration like doing fine work while wearing gloves.
(What I should consider first is removing the curse as soon as possible. Then, there is no point in hesitating.)
Mika told Heminikki to change into clothes that make it easy to expose her stomach.
At that time, he asked the lady to examine Heminikki's whole body well.
He asked her not to miss even the slightest thing, if there were any abnormalities other than the Lust Crest.
"As expected, it seems there is nothing special outside the stomach."
"Is that so? Then, excuse me, can you let me see the pattern on the stomach? Even if I can see a little bit, it is fine."
Hearing the lady's report returning with Heminikki who had finished changing, Mika allowed himself to touch the Lust Crest directly.
The moment he touched it gently, Mika's left hand stiffened due to the intensity of the curse's waves.
(Is it really this different between touching directly and separating by one piece of cloth? I hadn't noticed this until now.)
Until now, he had put cursed objects in his pocket and felt the curse vaguely coming through, but the difference in sensation when trying to remove the curse was on a completely different level.
As expected, he must touch it directly with his hand.
But, if so----.
"This will work. I can remove the curse."
Mika again conveyed this firmly to the two.
At those words, the two seemed to be overwhelmed again and teared up.
And,
"Please, I beg of you."
So, they bowed their heads politely.
Mika went to Heminikki's private room and had her lie on the bed.
He placed a chair next to the bed, sat down, and reached his hand toward Heminikki's stomach.
He adjusted Heminikki's sleeping position so it was within Mika's reach and had a table prepared.
He also received a pen and paper, and now everything was ready.
"It is okay if you move a little, but please do not let go of my hand."
He thinks it must be hard not to be able to turn over, but he does not say do not move at all.
He set simple rules, such as calling out to Mika before moving significantly, and immediately started removing the curse.
Just in case, Mika decided to write down the procedure, just like when he was removing curses with a puzzle sensation before.
Recently, he had been going with the flow, removing curses quickly like a time attack, but this time he is taking a precaution.
When removing curses with usual "curse-type" requests, even if interrupted for some reason, he could just start over next week.
But, this time, if it becomes completely from the beginning, the suffering of this family will be prolonged.
So, even if he is forced to interrupt, he decided to leave the procedure even if efficiency drops slightly, so he can reach the same stage again.
So, he proceeded smoothly with the removal, and several hours passed.
He ate lunch normally, went to the toilet, and resumed removing the curse.
The curse returns to its original state after a night passes, but it does not return immediately just because he let go of his hand.
After resuming, the lady watched Mika, who placed his hand on Heminikki's stomach and stayed still without moving, from a slightly distant place.
The lady said, "I cannot be alone with my daughter in this state," so she has been witnessing since the removal started.
Mika also thought, "Please do, as long as you do not interfere by talking."
A maid from the mansion was always present, and two people were monitoring Mika.
He had progressed quite a bit with the removal, but he did not know how much longer it would take or the progress.
It was not something that could be confirmed by eye, so he could not grasp the whole picture.
Several more hours passed, and they took a break.
Several more hours passed, and they ate dinner.
Already, the procedure sheet had progressed to the middle of the third page.
Honestly, this was the first time he had encountered such a complex curse.
Still, the removal was progressing surely, and if so, it would be removed eventually.
Thinking that, he silently continued working on the removal.
He crossed his legs as usual, rested his chin on his hand, and closed his eyes.
While concentrating his consciousness and interfering with the curse, Heminikki's left hand, which was placed on Mika's stomach, was suddenly grabbed.
(Hm?)
Looking to see what it was, Heminikki was holding Mika's hand.
"What is wrong?"
"Hehe...."
But, Heminikki did not answer Mika's question, only smiling.
Noticing the strangeness of Heminikki's condition, he tried to pull his hand away, but could not release the hand that was gripping tightly.
On the contrary, Heminikki pulled Mika closer with a strength not thought to come from a woman, and hugged him.
"Hehe~ I~ caught~ you~."
"Heminikki-san!?"
Heminikki's cheerful voice could be heard near his ear.
"Even though you have a cute face, you are properly a boy~. A~ nice smell~."
Hiding her face in Mika's head, Heminikki sniffed and sniffed.
Mika also buried his face in Heminikki's plump chest, dizzy from the sweet scent.
He was hugged with an unbelievable strong force and could not move.
(Damn, I let my guard down! I didn't even use [Physical Enhancement]!)
Thinking he would not be attacked by monsters or demon beasts, neglecting [Physical Enhancement] was a fatal mistake.
He knew from the investigation that the curse's influence would affect Heminikki at night, regardless of the day.
"Heminikki! What are you doing!"
"Miss!"
The lady and the maid rushed to stop Heminikki, but were kicked away.
"Tch! 'Absorb'. Great God of Fire, the seed of creation. Its mighty divine offspring, surging...! ...Fuga fuga fuga!"
Mika chanted to manifest [Physical Enhancement], but was suddenly grabbed by the head and buried his face in her chest mid-chant.
He was chanting, but whatever he said became only "fuga fuga".
"Fuga fuga, fuga fuga fuga fuga, fuga fuga fuga fuga fuga fuga fuga fuga fuga fuga."
"Oh. You shouldn't be talking in such a place~. It tickles~."
But, Mika continued chanting without caring.
Because the magic power inside Mika was moving due to the chanting.
Mika's magic can be manifested even if not pronounced as sound, as long as he recognizes the magic name being spoken.
Then, what about [God's Miracle]?
"Fuga fuga fuga fuga, fuga fuga fuga fuga fuga fuga fuga fuga fuga fuga, fuga fuga fuga fuga!"
At the same time as Mika finished his chanting, his magic power was stolen in bulk, and at that moment, a strong heat haze appeared.
Startled by the sudden strong heat haze, he forcibly released Heminikki's arms and quickly flipped over.
So, he applied a chokehold from behind Heminikki.
"W-What are you doing!?"
"Let go of the Miss!"
The lady and the maid poked Mika, who seemed to be strangling Heminikki's neck, with their hands.
Of course, that did not work at all on Mika, whose [Physical Enhancement] was quadrupled.
But, Heminikki scratched Mika's arms and face with force, causing bleeding in various places.
She grabbed his hair and pulled with all her might, and he could feel it pulling out one by one.
(What the heck!? My long-time friend!)
Even at a time like this, the phrase "Hair is a long-time friend" from an old TV commercial floated in his mind.
While thinking such foolish things, Mika did not loosen his hands, and soon Heminikki's resistance weakened.
And, her arms fell weakly onto the bed.
"Haa... That was dangerous."
Mika relaxed his strength and got up.
The lady glared at such Mika with eyes full of anger, trembling.
"I didn't kill him! I will heal him immediately!"
He declared by thrusting his palm out sharply, and immediately used [Heal] on Heminikki.
Heminikki, who had been stretching with a pained expression, became like she was just sleeping, and the lady slumped down weakly.
"I will also cast it on the two of you just in case."
So, he used [Heal] on the lady and the maid as well.
Finally, he retrieved the hair of Mika that Heminikki was still holding and placed it on his head.
And, casting [Heal] with a glimmer of hope.
[Heal] is a very excellent method of treatment and recovery, but it does not grow back limbs that are missing.
But, if cut off or torn apart, if the detached part exists, it can be attached.
Mika's long-time friend also has a possibility of being together again by doing this.
Also, [Heal] cannot heal old wounds.
If a bone is fractured and bent and healed together, it will not be corrected.
This is the reason Diego retired as an adventurer due to a leg injury, and the reason scars remain on his face.
Mika also healed a full-body fracture with healing magic, but if there were parts that were misaligned and healed, [Heal] would not fix them.
"Excuse me, please quickly bring me some ribbons... no, some long cloths. If not, clothes are fine, I will use Heminikki-san's clothes."
Mika told the maid to prepare cloths to bind Heminikki.
"I do not know if she is being controlled by the curse, but Heminikki-san is different from usual now, isn't she?"
"E, yes...."
"So, excuse me, I will restrain Heminikki-san. There is no guarantee that something like what happened before will not happen again, nor that I can subdue her properly next time."
When Mika said that, the lady nodded with an expression as if enduring pain.
It could be taken as "Maybe she will escape next time?" or "Maybe I will kill her next time?".
Well, either way is fine.
The point is just that permission to keep her from moving is obtained.
So, using a sash-like thing brought by the maid, he bound Heminikki's limbs.
Mika resumed the removal as is, and after a while, Heminikki woke up.
Since she had struggled terribly, the lady and the maid held her down, and Mika concentrated on the removal.
Heminikki had transformed so much that she was unrecognizable as the same woman from the daytime.
She invited Mika with a parade of even more vulgar words like "Rape me," "Put it in," "I'll make you feel good," and so on.
Even though she is a young lady, why does she know such words? Such indecent invitation phrases kept popping out, surprising him a bit.
Is this also the influence of the curse?
Heminikki until last night only had her body aching, but it seems the restraint broke due to the influence of Mika, an opposite-sex individual, being nearby.
Mika did not particularly care and silently concentrated on the removal, but the lady and the maid were greatly shocked, holding Heminikki down while shedding tears.
And, just before dawn----.
Fluff...
"A...."
The curse, unable to maintain its cursed state, scattered into mist.
At that moment, Heminikki, who had been raging terribly until then, lost consciousness.
Mika let out a big sigh, "Haa...", and relaxed his shoulders.
"It is finished."
"E...?"
Mika called out to the lady, but it seemed she did not understand what he meant.
The lady shed tears at her daughter who had changed so much, and even when her tears dried up, she desperately held her down.
"I was able to remove the curse. It is okay now."
When Mika offered a tired smile, the lady finally seemed to understand and slumped down to sit.
The maid also seemed to have exhausted her strength and collapsed heavily.
Mika confirmed that the Lust Crest on Heminikki's lower abdomen had disappeared, and then untied the sash binding her limbs.
Because she had struggled with force while bound, the areas were red and bleeding from rubbing.
He used [Heal] on Heminikki for treatment, and also used [Heal] on the lady and the maid.
And, he used it on himself just in case.
He sat down on the chair with a thud and leaned his back heavily against the backrest.
(Finally, it is over...)
He was tired.
There was only that one word.
Just one gold coin for a day or two.
If one heard only that, some might say what an easy business it is.
But, he thought it was work worthy of that reward.
(Special requests are tough, aren't they...)
Thinking such things, Mika fell asleep without realizing it.
And, when he woke up, he was lying in the guest room of the mansion, and it was evening.
Unauthorized overnight stay at the dormitory, unauthorized absence from the academy.
Naturally, both the dormitory and the academy were extremely angry.
"I think I should file an overnight stay report next time for special requests."
He reflected on that.