Tale of Discovery

Chapter 308: Business in the Arena (4/4)

"Stay on guard; I will begin now," I state before abruptly appearing behind Jeanne and slamming my palm into her back.

Unable to react in time, my palm contacts her back and results in her sliding forward a few meters.

Oh? She was able to take the attack with such ease? Usually, such an attack and the force used would've made my opponent's feet leave the ground, yet Jeanne simply slid across the ground and nothing more.

From the looks of it, she didn't take much damage and isn't feeling any pain either.

Taking in a deep breath, I proceed to create a fancy-looking white rapier and point the tip at Jeanne.

The next moment, I dash forth and appear right in front of her before attempting to pierce her right shoulder with the rapier.

This time, she reacts appropriately by barely dodging the rapier and counters by throwing a punch at my chest.

Having decided to be on the offensive, I refrain from using any of my abilities for defense, but instead, I channel Holy Essence into the rapier and release it hastily, resulting in Jeanne getting propelled back a little.

Alright, I've already got the gist of her endurance, speed, and reaction speed. Now, the only thing left to figure out from her general capabilities is her defense.

As such, I utilize Blink to create some distance between us before raising my right arm and channeling a significant amount of Holy Essence into it.

Seeming to sense something, Jeanne's expression changes as she fixes her banner into the ground and begins praying.

[Oh Lord, bless this subject to overcome the ineluctable hurdle.]

Uh I don't know how to feel about attacking someone who is praying to me for protection.

It's odd, to say the least.

Shaking my head, I release all the energy channeled into my arm in one go and use Light Manipulation to abruptly split it into four beams once they've gotten close to her.

My reason for doing this is simple - see whether Jeanne's defense is strong all around her or only in one direction.

Surprisingly, despite her being attack in four different directions, Jeanne remains unperturbed as she stands her ground while gripping her banner and chanting a prayer.

Following this, a bright light shines from within her body before expanding and forming a golden barrier around her.

Immediately after this, the four beams of light contact the barrier, resulting in an odd phenomenon taking place.

As if a vacuum has appeared around Jeanne, the four beams of energy get 'sucked' into nothingness.

Perplexed about this turn of events, I focus my sight on where the energy seemingly disappeared to, only to notice remnants of it leading to Jeanne's body.

No way Did she absorb it? Could this lass be immune to Holy Essence? Or is it all forms of 'light' attacks in general?

Either way, this is something that I should definitely look into, for all I know, she could be the natural bane of certain potential enemies that might appear in the future.

With that thought swirling in my mind, I set my sight on Jeanne and prepare to rush at her with the intention of competing in close-quarter combat.

--

"Spectacular," I say as I stretch my arms upward, "Your capabilities exceeded my expectations."

As a response to my praise, the exhausted Jeanne remains on her knees as she gasps for air.

It sure took me a long damn time to get her tired. Her vitality is sure something else. It far exceeds that of the Devils and most others I've fought before.

"Still," I say in a troubled tone, "This isn't enough. I have yet to see how powerful your attacks are and whether if it's more useful against multiple enemies or a single one."

Hearing my words, Jeanne's expression turns solemn as she closes her eyes, most likely intending to pray.

"Wait," I say, causing her to open her eyes, "Were you planning to pray for more energy, err, strength?"

"Yes," she responds in a weakened tone, seemingly still affected by exhaustion.

"In that case, there is a much quicker method of restoring your body to prime condition."

A curious glint shines within Jeanne's eyes as she gazes at me keenly.

"Here," I utter as I approach her and crouch in front of her.

"If I recall correctly, you aforesaid that you dedicate your body to me, right?"

"Yes, My Lord. All of me belongs to you. Make use of me as you deem fit, for there is no greater honor than serving you."

"In that case, close your eyes," I state with a slight grin.

Once Jeanne does as I ordered her to, I close whatever distance is left between us before casually pressing my lips against hers.

Surprisingly, not only does she not react in any apparent manner to my actions, but she separates her lips, allowing me to insert my tongue inside her mouth.

Naturally, I am not doing this with the intention of playing around, but to replenish her energy and examine her status while I am at it.

As such, I channel Holy Essence into my tongue before having it gradually conducted over to her.

------------

Name: Jeanne D'Arc

Age: 19(0)

Race: ????

Str: 46 | Agi: 33 | Dex: 45

Int: 50 | Def: 53 | Vit: 55

Abilities:-

La Pucelle -|- Divine Union -|- Revelation -|- Holy Servant (Passive) -|- Magic Resistance (Passive) -|- ???? -|- ????

Utilities:-

Luminosite Eternelle

------------

What the

I sure wasn't expecting something this. From what I know, I can presume that I'm only able to 'see' everything clearly once I tier up Analyze.

To not bother the maiden too much, I separate my lips from hers once I have transferred enough energy over.

"You may open your eyes," I say as I get up.

Doing as I tell her to, Jeanne opens her eyes and lifts her hand to her mouth, touching her lips with the tip of her fingers.

"How do you feel?" I question with a small smile.

"I don't know," she responds in an uncertain tone, "It's like... I have reborn."

Hey, hey, now. Reborn? Just from a kiss? Well, yes, it wasn't just any ordinary kiss, but one endued with my Essence Energy. Even so, feeling like you've 'reborn' from just that is too much, no?

"Forget that," I say as I let out a sigh, "We can continue sparring now, right?"

"Yes," she replies in a firm tone before picking up her banner and getting up on her feet.

---

{Binary Factor detected.}

Awakened by AI's voice in my head, I keep my eyes shut as I use Clairvoyance to check the state of the house.

After a quick scan, I find everyone sleeping in their rooms apart from Jeanne, Tohka, and Yoshino.

The latter trio is in my room, with Tohka and Yoshino both lying beside me, while Jeanne is sleeping on a rather comfy futon I created for her as per her request.

Having seen that there is nothing out of the norm within the house, I use Clairvoyance to check outside, only to find a certain black-haired girl wearing a red dress sitting on the roof, gazing at the sky.

Why is she here? I believe our arrangement was in a few days from now? Well, she must have some business with me if she appeared here.

Deciding that it's in my best interest to meet her, I get out of the bed cautiously to prevent the duo sleeping beside me from waking up.

With that done, I prepare to leave the house, but before I can do so, Jeanne raises her head from her pillow and looks over at me.

Currently, the maiden is dressed in nightwear that I had created for her earlier. The said sleepwear consists of pale pink pajamas with small white figures all over them.

The thing is, right now, for some reason, three of the torso's buttons have been undone, giving me a clear view of Jeanne's cleavage.

That, coupled with the slightly sleepy expression on her face gives me an odd vibe that I find tempting

Shaking such thoughts away from my head, I look into Jeanne's eyes before raising my right arm and pressing my finger against my lips.

Fortunately, my intention in doing so is conveyed properly as she gawks at me for a few seconds before setting her head back on the pillow.

Seeing this, a gentle smile forms on my lips as I soundlessly approach her futon and crouch down beside it.

Like this, I take a moment to gaze at her sleeping face before leaning forth and giving her a peck on the cheek.

Hah~ This girl Ever since I summoned her, there was this odd connection that I felt between us. It was less noticeable back then, but now, it has become much more evident.

Whenever I look at her, I feel like I am looking at my own daughter, tempting me to push her down and take her then and there.

This is the reason I am troubled by her 'devotion', as it gets in the way of us properly seeing each other from the same level.

If I were to compare her to someone else, it would be Origami. That girl is similar to Jeanne in the regard that she would do everything I tell her to, for the most part, that is.

But, Jeanne is different. There don't seem to be any exceptions and limits to what I can order her to do.

Shaking my head, I decide that I will deliberate over this matter some other time as I directly use Teleportation to appear beside Kurumi.

"You're late," Kurumi remarks as she continues to gaze at the night sky.

Raising my head, I mimic her by gazing at the stars as I reply, "I got a little caught up in my thoughts.

"Never mind that, why are you here?"

"Oh, Shido, no need to rush," she responds as she turns her head to face me, "My purpose for visiting you is to call you over."

"To your base?"

"Indeed. I believe you should head over as soon as possible."

Frowning at her words, I say, "Did something happen?"

"You will see when you get there. Don't dally any longer, go."

"Alright," I respond before using Teleportation to appear in Kurumi's base.

Using my senses, I look around a little before I find something that startles me.

Knowing that I have no time to waste, I hastily dash over to the room in which Kurumi and Ellen are and barge in.

Following this, I utilize Corporikinesis to check the unconscious Ellen's body out before appearing in front of her and pressing my arm against her chest.

Focusing on her insides, I use Corporikinesis to 'open paths' within her, which, as a result, guides the chaotic energy spreading within her toward the only limb she has left.

Once I've made every speck of the weird energy is contained in her arm, I proceed to use Destruction to destroy everything from her arm to her the tip of her fingers.

Releasing a small sigh, I sit down on the sofa that her body is resting on as I use Healing Factor to heal her up completely.

"Oho?" a curious voice escapes from Kurumi's lips.

"Don't worry," I say, "I know what I'm doing."

Having said that, I use Corporikinesis once more and have a good look inside her now-completely recovered body.

After a short while, I find what I was looking for and proceed to 'tweak' the innards of the still-unconscious lady's body a little.