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I woke up to the sound of birds outside. I tried to sit up immediately, but when I felt the weight on my stomach, I glanced down to find Lumi lying on top of me.

"Oh, right…."

Only then did I feel the sensation of her pussy gripping my cock.

"Ugh…."

As I began to rise, Lumi also seemed to snap out of her sleep.

"Haaah… Hoyeon, good morning… Mm…"

"Lumi, let\'s do it once and then get up." I grabbed her ass as she tried to get up.

"Oh, y-yes…" Blushing, Lumi pressed against me again.

I\'ve often fantasized about having morning sex before the morning wood subsides, and now it\'s happening.

As soon as I got consent, I thrust my hips.

"Ah, hmmph…!"

***

After the sex, I realized my body was drained of mana. Probably because I maintained the Rune Barrier all night. Seeing the unstable barrier, it seemed like it flickered on and off throughout the night… Luckily, no major issues occurred.

Note to self: I need to clean up properly before sleeping.

Lumi was still quivering on the blanket, her butt lifted.

Did I get a bit too carried away?

I dropped the barrier and took a look around. No changes from last night. I headed to the stream and splashed water on my face for a refreshing start. Lumi, walked over like a zombie, joined in, washing up and stretching.

"Good morning."

"Hoyeon… good morning."

After exchanging late-morning greetings, I did some stretching to loosen up.

★ Heroine Status Window

[Lumi]

[Affection: 92] (+0.3)

[Lust: 46]

[Appetite: 78]

[Fatigue: 55]

Current Status: Hungry… but suggesting breakfast first might be awkward. I wonder when Hoyeon will decide to eat.

Maybe she had a good night\'s sleep; fatigue had significantly dropped. Surprisingly, her appetite was higher, probably because the calories from eggs and chocolate bars were outweighed by the ones burnt through sex.

"Lumi, I\'m feeling a bit hungry here. How about grabbing some breakfast?"

"Yes. Sounds good…"

I was feeling a bit famished myself, so we decided to start the day with a shared breakfast. Opting for something light, we skipped the greasy options and settled for beef porridge and seasoned veggies.

"Hoyeon, really, thank you…"

"No problem at all. I got plenty. I was planning to take care of you two anyway. So, where to next?"

"I\'m off to find Lucy. I want to be with her."

"Sure, let\'s go together. I\'ll tag along."

"No, I want to try doing things on my own this time."

I thought of joining her since there wasn\'t much else to do, but her unexpected response left me thinking,

Wait, am I being rejected?

"Oh, really?"

"Yes. We talked before starting. We\'re coordinating just the two of us. We\'ll do our best."

"Ah…"

Finally, they\'re syncing up. Giving them space might be a growth opportunity; I shouldn\'t intervene too much.

"Alright, just grab some food if you need."

"It\'s okay. we\'ll manage."

"Quit it. I insist, so just take it." I ignored Lumi\'s protests and summoned some food from my subspace pouch – mostly lightweight but calorie-packed. I forcefully handed it to her in a plastic bag.

"Oh, thanks…"

"It\'s fine since I bought it for you two."

"We\'ll eat it well."

After enduring a day on this island, Lumi understood the struggle to secure food. Even if supplies dwindled from today onward, I aimed to compensate for her effort. With the food lasting for several days, gratitude would likely increase after that.

"Take care. I\'ve shared the location info, so if you ever need to escape again, run my way."

"Yes!" Lumi waved goodbye and headed into the forest with brisk steps. It was incredible to see how much she\'d grown from her timid self. Although there was some concern, I couldn\'t always be there to help. Occasionally, mistakes would lead to growth.

Once she vanished from sight, I tidied up the tent. Time to meditate and replenish my mana in a quiet spot. Luckily, I found a small cave in the rocky hill yesterday.

I can do it there.

Rustle, shuffle.

However, just as I finished tidying up the tent, I felt a strange presence from behind, and I turned my head.

"Alice?"

Alice, looking somewhat uneasy, was wobbling toward me.

★ Heroine Status Window

[Alice]

[Affection: 30]

[Lust: 57]

[Appetite: 85]

[Fatigue: 90]

Current Status: Need… manastones… starving…

Fatigue hitting 90 and an appetite craving attention at 85… Seems like she\'s in a dire situation. With lust at 57, is she perhaps contemplating a mating ritual before facing death?

"Alice, what\'s happening? Let\'s eat some food first."

First things first, this girl seems to be running low on nutrients.

"You… Manastones… Just spare me some…"

"What?" That was quite an abrupt statement without any pleasant exchange.

Why is she hitting me up for manastones? She has her own stash for emergencies.

"I\'ve got food but no manastones. Why would I bring them around for the test?"

"I know everything. You brought them with you."

"No, I didn\'t."

Why the assumption? Do I look like a manastone dealer or something? Sure, I went on a shopping spree for useless stuff, but why would I lug around manastones?

"Listen

…

I know everything. I\'m aware of your innate mana deficiency, your intimate relations with Lumi, Saint Baek Ahyeong, and Professor Im Sol. I also know you\'re playing house with a girl in secret. Don\'t worry, I won\'t start a gossip if you help me a bit in this test."

What? I\'ve no idea what she\'s talking about with mana deficiency, and she knows about my relationships? How on earth did she figure it out? I\'ve been as discreet as possible… And if she\'s onto my thing with Professor Im Sol and breaking into her lab, it means she\'s done some serious snooping.

Looks like she\'s got a high-ranking ally. Professor Im Sol might be a big deal in magic society, but she\'s still a twenty-something. The real powerhouses have decades of experience, and at this early stage in the story, Im Sol is far from being at their level.

I never expected someone of that caliber to be in the mix… I should\'ve been more careful.

"Let\'s… eat first and then talk. Your condition isn\'t looking good." I pulled out some smoked pork belly. Eating something greasy on an empty stomach might not be the wisest choice, but I didn\'t need to cater to someone who came to threaten me.

"Here, take your time eating."

"…"

Alice began picking up the meat I offered with chopsticks, one piece at a time. I wondered what had happened to her.

Alice wasn\'t originally cut from this cloth. Representing the archetype of a prideful character, she\'s a girl who easily succumbs and weakens when faced with pressure. In fact, not too long ago, I witnessed this side of her emerging as her affection level suddenly soared, and she became unusually kind.

But what spurred this transformation? Is it because of the abundance of women around me? Am I trash in her eyes?

Not exactly. Surprisingly, Alice is tolerant when it comes to a harem. She\'s raised by a mother who forgives her husband\'s infidelity due to his abilities, despite him being a colossal scumbag. And while the original game only has a pure love route, Alice has lines like this:

[It\'s only natural for a capable bee to be desired by the other bees. I can permit everything. However, don\'t forget that I am the queen bee.]

In essence, she doesn\'t mind if you have abilities, and I\'ve been diligently showcasing my skills. With this level of accomplishment, it\'s nonsensical for me to be considered lacking in abilities. So, what\'s the missing piece?

Affection.

She doesn\'t like me. Once she starts developing feelings for me, other girls will be allowed into the equation. Firstly, I need to boost the currently dwindling affection. And I must establish a clear hierarchical relationship. If I\'m the flower, Alice is the bee. The dynamics with Alice should involve her coming to me, not the reverse. It\'s preferable to be transparent about relationships with women from the outset. Every story requires a heroine of this sort.

Addressing Alice, who was gradually concluding her meal, I remarked, "I got this meat on sale at the mart. Is it tasty?"

"Yeah…"

"Good to hear. Well, anything tastes good when you\'re hungry, right?"

"You\'re genuinely bizarre… I came here to threaten you. Why do you persist in acting friendly?" Alice set down her chopsticks and regarded me with an air of peculiarity.

"Haha!" I deliberately released a hearty chuckle. Her expression tightened slightly.

"Alice, are you planning to spread rumors? Go ahead, try it. This isn\'t your home country; it\'s Korea."

"…"

"Both Saint Baek Ahyeong and Professor Im Sol willingly sought me out. There\'s a complex hidden contract and understanding among us that you\'re unaware of. Moreover, even if it becomes public, do you think the media will side with you or me? Once you graduate from the Academy, you\'ll return to France, but I\'ll stay in Korea."

It\'s the natural order of things. Upon graduation, Alice will become a force in another country, while I, upon graduating, will become a representative hunter for Korea. There\'s no need to ponder whose side to take in Korea.

The authenticity of the words doesn\'t matter at all; people will believe whatever articles the media churns out. Of course, if Alice happens to expose the truth, it could throw a wrench in my plans to conquer heroines. Dealing with a strong adversary like Alice, who\'s also a heroine, is not the ideal scenario, but the catch is, she has no clue about any of this.

If there were no specific conditions requiring me to win over a certain woman, the damage to me would be minimal. If things don\'t pan out, I can meet other women. I have that ability. Alice is sharp, she\'ll understand my words.

"That… does that even make sense?"

"Alice, you\'re the one who did the background check on me, so why are you getting upset? I\'m just trying to help out a friend. That\'s it. There\'s some logic in what I\'m saying, you know."

"You\'re not after my body…?"

"Apologies, but if I were, you\'d know it by now. I mean, you\'re currently running on empty in the mana department. What can you do?"

That slipped out as a slightly threatening statement.

Alice fell silent at my words.

"I\'m not going to prey on someone who seems like a national figure. And, apologies again, no manastones in my luggage. Frankly, I\'m in the dark about this mana deficiency mix-up. What did you mean by that?"

I can\'t blur the entire truth with a fact that I don\'t even know. It might unnecessarily complicate matters if my bluff gets exposed.

"Fine… I\'ll tell you. I have an innate mana deficiency. I naturally know a lot about mana deficiencies."

To confess this with her own mouth… she must be desperate.

"And you… You purchased top-grade manastones, which are entirely useless for an academy student, you receive regular treatments from Baek Ahyeong, and your mana quantity is rather low compared to your magical skills. How else do you explain it if not a mana deficiency?"

"…"

Alice, delivering her lines with precision and intent, seemed genuinely on edge. It\'s as if she believed that unless she didn\'t find my weakness, I wouldn\'t help her with the test.

★ Heroine Status Window

[Alice]

[Affection: 31]

[Lust: 55]

[Appetite: 43]

[Fatigue: 87]

Current Status: He\'s definitely lying…! I must hear the truth!

At this level, I could probably sell a bluff…?

Currently, she seemed to have difficulty thinking rationally due to high fatigue. It was a big mistake for the usually meticulous and thorough Alice to reveal such information.

I roughly understood. Unlike in the original work, Alice misunderstood that I have a mana deficiency, causing her affection to sharply rise, and she became kind to me. However, after discovering my relationships, her affection plummeted again.

Now, how to boost her affection again? Naturally, I need to focus on the mana deficiency.

I kept the words flowing while managing my expression, "Haa… Yeah, that\'s right. I had a mana deficiency."

"Had…?" Alice didn\'t miss a beat as I spoke casually.

"Yeah, I recently got it treated." As I spoke, I absorbed mana from the surroundings. The magical current zoomed through my mana circuit, filling me up in an instant.

"How, how is this possible…?"

Filling mana from the atmosphere without manastones is something that a mana deficiency can never do.

"As you can see, I got my mana deficiency treated. And… I know the treatment method too."

Alice widened her eyes at my revelation.