Chapter 75: Under the stars

The room was pitch black. His first instinct was to get his handgun, but when he felt something warm and moist pushing against his lips, and something soft and squishy against his chest, his hand froze.

++”A-Aaron! Analysis, now!”++

++”An unknown fragrance it’s impregnating your clothes. Seems to be perfume… Insufficient data.”++

++”Is that the best you could get?!”++

“Amelia?” he asked to the darkness before the door was slammed shut.

When she turned the lights on, Alan darted his eyes from her lacy black bra, barely able to contain her stacked bosom, to an alluring garter belt circling her hips. Black stockings seemed to imprison her thighs.

“Clara told me how you saved me from falling to my death, so I wanted to thank you…” Amelia began with a malicious gleam in her eyes.

She’s saying that while looking like a villainess! A sexy villainess…

“Y-You’re welcome! I’m glad I made it in time,” an increasingly nervous Alan responded, leaning against the wall.

Amelia strolled to him. The sound of her high heels echoed through the room. “I’ve also been watching Clara’s stream of what happened after I left, over and over again, and… The way you managed the situation…”

“I-I watched it too, and yes, I know! I can’t believe we managed to get through all that on our own! But we all know you were the real MVP of that–”

“You’re not listening,” she said in a disgusted tone of voice, raising her chin as if she was talking to someone inferior. “You really acted as a leader, huh? I can’t believe you really had it in you… Weakling.”

She then pushed him to the bed and shredded his t-shirt.

“Whoah, you’re strong!”

“Come on, Alan! Get this thing off! I’m going to eat you!”

Amelia impatiently ripped his pants open, all done while laughing wickedly, in a way that reminded him of Serenity.

++”That nightmare I had the other day became reality!”++

++”What kind of nightmare was it, Alan? If you tell me the details, maybe we come up with a strategy to–“++

++”What I mean is that she’s not being her usual self! Is she possessed too?!”++

++”Analyzing: Insufficient data! But I’m detecting that your heart rate has increased significantly. Some of the blood pressure it’s even going to your–“++

++”S-Shut up, you, useless partner!”++

Amelia sat on his lap, licking her lips and perfectly recreating Alan’s ‘Succubus Dream’ to a T, before a beeping sound invaded the room.

“What’s that?” he asked, noticing an expression of horror on her face.

“The ABB!” she cried before getting paralyzed.

“Amelia? Are you oka–?”

+++++This is the Anti-Bad Behavior System!++++

A festive, girly voice was heard as a red screen appeared in front of Alan’s face.

**Where have I heard that before? Oh, right! Jane Andersen mentioned it before. But why now?**

++++We have detected a non-consensual sexual advance by ‘Amelia Laflamme’ toward ‘Alan Warden’, today, July 19, at 10:15 pm.++++

Amelia’s eyes looked watery and in pain.

“WAIT, WHAT?!!”

++++If you accept, we will send a Moderator to apprehend – ‘Amelia Laflamme’ immediately. If this is a mistake and you are not being pressured or forced into this situation, please, tell us that you are willingly–++++

“It is a mistake, absolutely! This is totally consensual! I like it rough, you know what I mean?!”

+++User’s response received! Thanks for your cooperation. We apologize for the inconvenience this may have caused you and your partner. Have fun!+++

As soon as the system window disappeared, Amelia gasped for air, grabbing her neck.

“That was weird… and brutal,” he commented, as she started sobbing.

“I… I fucking ruined it…”

“What? No! Of course not! You were just showing me how passionate you can–”

“I’m so sorry!”

Her long, silky red hair flew above her neck when she jumped out of the bed and tore down the door. A second after, a fire explosion illuminated the corridor, indicating that someone had seen her in her underwear and had paid the price.

***

**

*

“There you are,” Alan said, climbing to the rooftop of the Moonlight’s Inn. “You really like high places, huh? Just like a cat.”

Fully dressed, Amelia was sitting while hugging her legs. “A stupid cat,” she wept, hiding her face.

Alan sat beside her and sighed loudly, looking at the sky. “Remember when we sat here the other night and admired a clear night just like this? Which reminds me…” He pulled something out of his inventory and shook it close to Amelia’s ear, sounding liquid.

“What is it?”

“A bottle of wine, courtesy of Miss Cosmica. She says that Actives are always giving her gifts, so she has a full box of these. It’s not Rosé, but I thought we could…”

“Okay, I’ll take a sip… But don’t look at my face!”

“All right, I won’t.”

He turned his gaze away so Amelia could snatch the bottle and take a long gulp.

“Too sweet for my taste, but it tastes good.”

“Free things always taste good.”

That brief moment of silence gave Alan the opportunity to reflect on the relationship he had with the girl sitting next to him. From the first time they met at the Shooting Stars’ PVP arena, to the moment she offered her help.

**Her attitude toward me radically changed after she learn what I’ve been doing outside this whole time. And now, two weeks later, something crazy like this happened…**

Alan glanced at her gloomy expression, before meeting her glare. “I told you not to look at me,” she said gruffly.

“Oh, come on. You look cute.”

Amelia opened her eyes wide and quickly hid her embarrassment by gulping wine.

“Shut up, Ghost. Although I jokingly asked you once to compliment me every five minutes… after what happened down there, I…” She pursed her lips, looking at her own hand, resting on a roof tile, inches away from his. “Don’t overheat your weakling little brain thinking too hard about what happened tonight, okay? It was something I did on a whim and will never happen again. Understood?”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it. Just like that kiss you gave me while you were on your blue form. It’s okay, Amelia, I’ll think nothing more of it.”

“It’s… the curse I have to bear after accepting one of the Princesses of Hell inside my body. Belphegoria, The Demoness of Inventions,” Amelia explained grimly, looking at her own hand as if it was not hers. “In exchange for power, it sometimes takes over my will, and makes me do things… Dirty things…”

“For real?! Sounds cool and super dark at the same time!” Alan’s bewildered expression also showed a glimpse of innocent excitement, that made Amelia almost drop her act.

“Y-Yes!” She replied, looking away. “It’s all true. So watch out in case she may want to… make another move in the near future…”

“A demoness, you said? Like… a succubus?”

“T-That’s right! Those are the ones that feed on men’s w-w-wet dreams, right?! So now you know why it kind of influences me to do things like that!”

Aaron quickly interjected: ++”Alan, I have no data regarding the subject. According to my knowledge, there is no correlation between Animas and User’s sudden changes of behavior.”++

Alan narrowed his eyes at her, making her blush. “She’s inside of you, you say? Are you talking about something like this?” Alan pointed to his side, where the embodiment of his Unique Talent materialized out of thin air.

The little being wearing a yellow hazmat suit waved at her. “Helloo, I’m Aaron, nice to meet you!”

Amelia’s mouth dropped before she jumped over Alan to take a closer look at the little spirit. “An Anima?! Is that yours?! When and where did you get him?!”

“He came to me in a time of need.” Alan’s voice sounded muffled for his whole face was buried beneath her chest. She moved aside, shaking her face.

“That’s impossible! Animas don’t come out of nowhere. Do you know how hard it was to get my Belphy?”

“Belphy? Where have I heard that before? Oh, right! She introduced herself as your assistant. She was a great asset to our team! Can you show her to me again, please? I’d love to say thanks to her!”

“You don’t have to treat her like a regular person, dummy,” Amelia murmured, as a lanky feminine silhouette, covered by a veil from head to toe, appeared behind Amelia.

“Whoah, so tall! Has she been there the whole time!”

“She was in her incorporeal form, just like yours, idiot.”

“Thank you so much for helping us out in the last battle, you were super helpful!”

“What did I say?! She won’t answer you. Gosh, you’re so weird. And whatever! You don’t have to tell me where you get yours.”

“I’m telling you the truth,” Alan muttered before a realization made him frown. “Wait, you said you watched Clara’s stream, right?”

“What about it?”

“You must have watched the exact moment Aaron appeared then. Just before combating the Affected.”

Amelia looked him in the eyes, mirroring his expression. “Nuh-uh. I rewatched the entire thing like three times by now, and your Anima never shows up. Unless Clara forgot to hit recording when it happened. Her stream is filled with abrupt cuts and muted parts after all, very amateurish, so that may be the reason.”

After deciding that they should leave the topic for another time, they climbed down off the rooftop and went to get dinner.

Walking through the remodeled streets and watching the new, improved buildings was surreal.

**Just two weeks ago, this place looked like a barely habitable place, perfect for people like me to hide in. But now…** He waved back to a couple of Slime people passing by and chuckled after realizing that the female walked just like Amelia.

“You haven’t told me yet. Why did you decide to help me? What changed? From the moment you shielded me from that dragon’s beam of death, back in Londorus…”

She exhaled deeply before replying: “Remember when you told me you distrusted me, thinking that Marco Souza might have sent me to play with you?”

“I apologize. I don’t think that anymore.”

“It’s okay. It was understandable for you to think I was still loyal to him. To answer your question, let me tell you what my father once said: ‘To truly know a person, one must watch how they act under pressure or at their lowest. It’s when their true nature comes to light’.”

“He sounds like a very wise man.”

“Yes, he is. Or was… You know how troublesome that is,” she said, grabbing his hand and making him stop. The bright lights of the many restaurant advertisements illuminated their faces, as both look into each other’s eyes. “That’s what differentiates you from Marco Souza. When rejected from the guild he helped build, he retaliated out of spite, and let bitterness take control of him. But you… Despite everything you’ve lost, you haven’t stopped moving forward. Heck, if I was this ship’s captain, I’d also choose you for this mission.”

“If I was the captain, I’d get more help. Like a lot.”

She shrugged, smiling. “You have me, don’t you?”

“Yeah, but because of me, you’ve also become the enemy’s target! That’s the main reason I left Astrid’s–!”

“Quiet,” she whispered, stepping forward. “Or I’ll get mad at you.”

“Come on, don’t burn the recently rebuilt town, okay?”

She chuckled as she ran strands of hair away from his forehead. “Too bad the ABB interrupted us, eh? I could have shown you a little taste of paradise.”

“Sorry for activating it, but you really caught me by surprise! I was really freaked out, huh?”

“Yes, I noticed you were shaking like crazy! It truly turned me on.” She opened her eyes wide in shock. “I can’t believe I said that out loud…”

This was not the Amelia Laflamme he was used to interacting with.

**Is it my imagination, or is she acting more girly than usual?** He asked himself, feeling tickles in his stomach. **I mean, she has always been feminine, but… **

That realization, along with an excruciating internal debate, made him shut his eyes as he mustered the courage to say, “Sorry, Amelia, but I’ll be honest with you. I… don’t think I—What I mean is, if the ABB hadn’t interfered, I don’t think I would’ve been able to—”

“I already know.” She cut him off with a smirk. “You’re still hung up on her, aren’t you?”

Alan blinked, caught off guard. “I can’t help it.” He shrugged, looking sheepish. “Are you mad at me? Am I that helpless?”

“It’s actually kinda cute. In a painfully annoying way. But do you really think I’m gonna cry myself to sleep over it? Please. I’ve got better things to do. Whatever. This topic is boring me already, so, for the time being… pizza?”

He chuckled. “Pizza sounds great.”

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