“What’s that—”

Moen didn’t even have a chance to ask the question before he heard the creature’s gleeful shout.

“Ah—Master! I’ve found you!”

“Huh? And Mr. Moen is here too.”

“Perfect! Both of you… accept my love!”

The sound of howling wind erupted. Shadows swallowed everything.

An enormous mutated limb, as thick as the trunk of a massive tree, descended from above.

It enveloped not only Ann, but also Moen, trapping them both beneath its ghastly shade.

“Watch out!”

Ann’s anxious cry broke through the tension in the air.

The metallic sphere at her back disassembled in an instant and reassembled above her and Moen, forging a triangular metallic structure to shield them.

The metallic pillars barely withstood the crushing blow of the grotesque limb, visibly strained and trembling. Sharp, creaking noises rang out, as if the structure could snap at any moment.

Ann grit her teeth, veins bulging on her forehead. The slight bend in her knees revealed how taxing it was to absorb the impact of the attack.

“Young Master, run!”

“Run?”

Moen still seemed stunned. He glanced upwards at the revolting creature.

Moreover, when the monster had callde him “Mr. Moen” earlier, he had noticed something disturbing among the hundreds of faces protruding grotesquely from its body. At the center of its abdomen was a face he found hauntingly familiar.

“—Aluka, that’s Aluka.”

What’s going on?

How could this have happened in just a few hours of separation? Why had Aluka turned into… this?

Even some hyper-evolved mutant creatures wouldn’t undergo such a rapid transformation!

Was she rinsing rice with nuclear waste water every day? Even if someone were basking in radiation like fluorescent light, such grotesque mutations shouldn’t be possible!

“There’s no time to explain. Young Master, go!”

Ann took a deep breath and declared, “I’ll hold her off.”

“If I leave, what about you?”

“No need to worry.” Ann smiled faintly. “I am a blessed one.”

The metallic structure around her began to shift and reform, creating a fortified metal wall that shielded them from the creature’s stabs.

“As you can see, when I can fully unleash my power, I’m actually incredibly strong. This monster is no match for me.”

“Really?”

Moen’s gaze rested on the metallic wall.

Though the attacks had indeed been intercepted, the wall itself bore massive dents, looking as if it might collapse at any moment. The sheer power of the monster’s attacks was evident.

“Of course, I wouldn’t lie to you, Young Master.”

Ann willed the metallic wall to repair itself. She masked the exhaustion flickering in her eyes with a smile.

“Just go, Young Master. Once I’ve taken care of it, I’ll come after you. And don’t worry—I’ll still catch you and bring you back with me.”

“This isn’t a baseless threat, you know.”

“Is that so? Looks like I really should leave first then. I’d hate to end up locked up by you again.”

Moen nodded gently, turned, and started walking away.

Ann watched his retreating figure, momentarily dazed. She suddenly let out a self-deprecating chuckle.

This is fine.

As long as the Young Master could escape, it was fine—

“Do you think I’d actually do that?”

“Eh?”

Under Ann’s shocked gaze, Moen suddenly turned and strode back toward her without hesitation.

“You don’t even know how to lie. As a personal maid, you’ve really failed at your job, Ann.”

“What? Wh-what are you—”

Flustered and utterly out of character, Ann squeaked in alarm as Moen swept her up in his arms without warning.

“Young M-Master, you…”

A blush crept across Ann’s face as she wriggled in his hold, attempting to break free.

Only for Moen to plant a firm smack on her buttocks.

“Don’t move.”

Instantly, the red hue on Ann’s face spread like spilled paint, flushing her cheeks an intense shade of crimson.

“If running, then we’ll be running together.”

“But… why?”

If they were escaping, why did he choose to carry her like a princess?

“Why, you ask? Obviously, it’s—”

Moen chuckled lightly.

The view darkened again.

An even more grotesque and massive limb struck downward.

But amidst a whirlwind of flying debris and dust, Moen’s figure was nowhere to be seen.

Shadow Step!

When Moen appeared again, he was already ten meters away.

A perfect evasion!

“When it comes to escaping, I’m a professional.”

Moen spoke shamelessly, though he looked utterly focused. His movements were fluid as he dodged and weaved to avoid the creature’s onslaught.

The monster’s enormous size now proved to be a disadvantage. Despite its countless limbs lashing out ferociously, they only hindered each other’s attacks, leaving it to watch helplessly as Moen widened the distance between them.

Ann’s eyes widened slightly.

In her sight, the Young Master was still the same Young Master.

Yet somehow, he seemed a little… different from before. Something about him had changed.

It was precisely this change that caused Ann—who once believed her heart was so full of “love” that it had no space left for other emotions—to feel just, once again, fluttered a little.

…

“No—”

“Master! Mr. Moen!”

“Please! Don’t go!”

“Accept my—LOVE!”

The monster roared furiously, sending wave after wave of its nightmarish appendages to rain down like a torrential storm.

Moen took a deep breath.

“Ann, brace yourself.”

“Huh?”

Ann snapped out of her daze.

She saw Moen’s expression grow serious as he shouted—

“Hold your breath!”

“Eh?”

For a fraction of a second, Ann froze before realizing Moen had leapt high into the air.

In front of him, a shimmering stream meandered, its surface reflecting scales of sunlight like a fish’s skin.

Splash!

Moen carried Ann as he dove into the water.

The grotesque limbs followed, diving in after them.

Yet, given the loss of visibility underwater, the limbs flailed wildly, churning the river into a chaotic, muddy mess.

In the water, Moen moved like a fish, agile and swift. His movements seemed even more fluid here than on land.

Swim Proficiency Lv. 6!

You have no idea what it means to have spent an entire day and night honing my skills in the water!

Caught up in his internal gloating, Moen suddenly felt a sensation wrapping snugly around his neck—a pair of arms, slippery and smooth like water snakes.

He didn’t even get a second to appreciate the soft texture before those arms clamped down tightly.

Huh? Ann?

Panicking, his vision already dimming, Moen glanced downward.

Ann’s eyes were wide with terror as she clawed despairingly at her surroundings, submerged in a clear state of drowning.

Oh, right.

He’d forgotten.

Ann couldn’t swim.

“Seriously. Always so competent, yet when it counts, why do you always screw up?”

Thinking this to himself, Moen could only smile wryly.

Lowering his head, he pressed his lips to hers.

Transferring air.

…

Behind a riverbank rock a few hundred meters downstream, Moen clambered onto the shore with Ann in his arms.

Ann collapsed onto the wet ground, coughing violently as she expelled the water she’d inhaled. Moen, meanwhile, leaned back against the rock, breathing heavily.

Carrying someone—especially someone totally unskilled in swimming—while evading through water was truly exhausting.

But the good news: they’d made it out.

Far upriver, the grotesque monstrosity was still aimlessly thrashing the water with its appendages, its futile motions resembling a kid trying to spear fish with a stick. It didn’t seem a smart one.

Thank goodness for that. Things would’ve gotten much harder otherwise.

Moen inhaled deeply, glancing toward Ann, who seemed unharmed aside from her slightly flushed cheeks.

“So, Ann. What actually happened back there?”