"What the hell is going on? This makes zero sense..."
Late into the night, Cyan—who had been granted a private room as part of his special treatment—lay staring at the ceiling, muttering in a state of utter confusion.
He pushed himself up from the bed and began to methodically sift through his memories, trying to make sense of the situation.
(This request was supposed to be about gathering ingredients while killing Magic Armor Beasts in the forest, right? So why have the enemies already been wiped out?)
According to the knowledge Cyan possessed, that was exactly how the event was scripted to play out. If the Magic Armor Beasts that served as the primary obstacles vanished, the whole thing would be reduced to a mundane grocery run.
Stranger still, the sub-quest to find the Runaway Boy was the only objective that remained active. This half-baked state of affairs, where the monsters were gone but the side mission lingered, was completely baffling.
(Why did the script change? What caused this? I haven't got the slightest clue...)
He was at a total loss. This was the very definition of an incomprehensible situation. He had already consulted with Egos to ensure he wasn't misremembering, and the older man had confirmed that his understanding of the event matched Cyan's perfectly.
Eventually, Cyan decided to stop stressing over the discrepancy. It didn't matter anymore. He cut his analysis short and shifted his focus to the coming day.
"Our goal is to reclaim Melt and Anhel from Scum Yugo. To pull him away from those two, I’ll have to make good use of Vice President-kun..."
The only reason they had traveled to this backwater village was to claim the Popular Heroines, Melt and Anhel, for themselves. His original plan involved baiting the Magic Armor Beasts into attacking Yugo and leaving him broken and retired, but with the monsters gone, he would have to find another way.
At the very least, he had to keep Yugo away from the girls. Cyan figured the key was to highlight their own superior qualities while keeping the competition at a distance. His thoughts then drifted to his partner in this scheme, Egos, and he let out a scoff of derision.
"Still, that bastard Egos actually wants Melt? I’m glad we aren't targeting the same girl, but the idea of a guy in his late thirties going after a high schooler is just plain creepy."
There were two heroines to target, and two men to claim them. Naturally, they had to divide the spoils. While Cyan had his sights set on Anhel, Egos wanted Melt, so the distribution had been settled without an argument—but it was still skin-crawling to think about.
Compared to Anhel, Melt was more childish and had a much stronger "high school girl" vibe. Egos was clearly choosing her based purely on his own fetish. A man in his late thirties following nothing but his base instincts to direct his lust toward a girl that young—even if Anhel was technically the same age—was, quite frankly, repulsive.
Of course, while Cyan was busy mocking his accomplice, he had no idea that Egos looked down on him as a "lecherous brat who can only think about a woman's tits and ass."
They were two of a kind in that regard. In a twisted way, that made them a perfect match, though certainly not for any virtuous reason.
As Cyan sat there refining his plan to seduce his target character, a sound interrupted the silence.
"Hm? Who is it? At this hour..."
The sound of a soft knock echoed through the room. Cyan checked the time. It was well past midnight—almost the start of a new day.
The other students staying at the inn should have been fast asleep. He assumed it was just Egos coming over to obsess over tomorrow's plans, so he stood up and pulled the door open with a look of mild annoyance.
"Look, what do you want at this—!?"
Cyan had expected to see Egos, but as he opened the door, he froze. His jaw dropped, and the words died in his throat.
The visitor standing in the hallway let out a low, spine-tinglingly seductive giggle.
"Heh... hehehehe..."
"A-Ann? What are you doing here? And why are you dressed like—!?"
Standing before him was the very popular character he desired: Anhel Amber.
But she wasn't just standing there. She was completely, stark naked, flaunting her unclad body for him to see. His eyes were helplessly drawn to her ample chest and the generous curve of her hips, which were on full display. Cyan swallowed hard, his throat suddenly dry.
Anhel gave him a lewd, knowing smile and spoke softly.
"Would you... mind letting me into your room?"
"Y-Yeah... of course!"
This was definitely that, wasn't it? Questioning his own luck, Cyan nodded frantically and ushered her inside.
As soon as she stepped into the room, Anhel reached out and killed the lights. Her smile seemed to sharpen in the darkness as she gazed at him.
"S-So... why me? Why did you come here?"
"Are you really going to make me say it? You're such a cruel man..."
He could hear her lick her lips in the gloom. A fire ignited in Cyan's chest, and he gasped as he felt the soft weight of her body press against him. Then, she leaned in and whispered in his ear.
"I came here... so you could hold me..."
Hearing her sweet, heated breath against his skin, Cyan reached the absolute pinnacle of happiness.