Amphoreus, in a forest not far from Okhema.
The figures of Lumina and Herta appeared within it.
"Aren't we going back to Okhema? What are we doing here?"
"Praying to Nature to drop a beautiful girl by your side?"
Looking at Okhema not too far away, Herta asked Lumina with some confusion.
"To do something exciting, of course." Hearing this, Lumina initially wanted to answer truthfully, but seeing Herta's cute, confused look with her arms crossed, Lumina swallowed her honest reply.
"Something exciting?" Hearing this, Herta slightly raised an eyebrow, looked her up and down, and asked, "What kind of exciting thing?"
Something exciting. Although Herta had no idea what exactly Lumina meant by something exciting.
But Herta knew that if the "exciting thing" she was talking about was that kind of thing, she definitely wouldn't actually go through with it.
The number One Trash Talker girl in the Cosmos—this was a conclusion personally verified by Madam Herta.
"For example..." Unaware that Herta had already branded her "Cosmos's Number One Trash Talker," Lumina's eyes darted to a large tree not far behind Herta. A mischievous grin spread across her face.
In the split second before Herta could react, Lumina pressed both hands on Herta's shoulders and pushed her entire body backward with a slight push.
Thud!
The next second, accompanied by a faint green light, Herta's back gently bumped against the tree trunk.
Lumina pinned Herta against the trunk, resting one hand on Herta's shoulder and pressing the other against the tree right next to her ear, their bodies almost pressed tightly together.
Looking at Herta, who was still in a daze, Lumina smiled faintly and leaned forward, bringing her face close enough to Herta's that they could feel each other's warmth...
"Huu..." Breathing out a soft puff of warm air onto Herta's face, she smiled and said, "Little Herta, tell me... would you consider this to be exciting?"
At this moment, the posture between the two of them appeared rather intimate.
"Wh... what are you doing?"
As Lumina's warm breath brushed against her face, Herta finally snapped out of her daze from Lumina's sudden move.
Upon realizing the precarious position she was in with Lumina, Herta's heartbeat skyrocketed. Though no blush crept up her cheeks, the ears hidden beneath her hair were already burning crimson.
This distance... was too close.
With their faces practically touching, Herta only needed to tilt her head up slightly for her lips to meet Lumina's...
In this situation, even the formidable Madam Herta's mind was in complete disarray.
Especially... especially when she could so clearly feel the warmth radiating from the body pressed flush against hers...
Feeling the hand resting on her shoulder and the other pinning her against the tree trunk...
Herta felt her body go soft as if she were falling into the clouds, as though she would melt into a puddle in the very next second... It brought her a sense of torment, yet simultaneously felt incredibly comfortable.
In this situation, even though Herta had labeled Lumina as the "Number One Trash-Talker in the Cosmos," she had long since completely forgotten about this label she put on her.
Even knowing Lumina was just running her mouth, even knowing Lumina wouldn't actually go through with that act, Herta couldn't help but feel a blush of shame and a flicker of anticipation...
But that anticipation was destined to be disappointed.
Even as Herta's thoughts descended into utter chaos, this one sentence remained stubbornly anchored in her mind, refusing to be swept away by the turmoil.
Herta's body trembled slightly, yet she made no move to resist.
She lowered her head slightly, daring not to look at Lumina. Her hands hung naturally at her sides, the backs of her hands facing forward, palms back. Her eyelashes quivered, and a hazy, dazed look clouded her purple eyes.
Her breathing grew heavy, each exhale brushing warmly against Lumina's collarbone, causing the smile on Lumina's face to widen even further.
Hmm... Without a doubt, Lumina understood exactly what Herta's behavior implied.
She had thought that Herta was frightened by her sudden actions.
And didn't her rapid and heavy breathing, her constantly trembling body, and her eyes that didn't dare to meet hers directly, prove Lumina's thoughts?
She was scared.
She was extremely scared.
She was afraid of this current move of hers.
To this, Lumina only wanted to say:
Little Herta, the more scared you are, the more excited I get.
Lumina secretly chuckled in her heart.
Then, she continued to lean her head closer.
Only, instead of moving straight ahead, she tilted to the side, leaning right next to Herta's ear. Breathing a puff of hot air into it, she continued, "Say, Little Herta."
"Didn't you say earlier to let me take off your clothes?"
"Then, let's do it right here."
With that said, without waiting for Herta to make any reply, Lumina took the hand resting on Herta's shoulder and gently caressed her neck.
"Mmm..." Feeling the unprecedentedly wonderful sensation coming from her palm, even Lumina couldn't help but feel her mind wander with desire.
(Herta's current clothes are not the ones in her Character Portrait.)
Her body stiffened, but to complete this action, Lumina could only suppress the feeling, her hands gradually moving down to land on Herta's collar.
Her movements were a bit clumsy, and she struggled to undo it for a long time.
It was obvious that Lumina was also a bit nervous.
"Why isn't Herta resisting?"
Seeing Herta's complete lack of intention to resist, Lumina steeled her heart, gritted her teeth, and decisively undid the buttons on Herta's chest.
In the next second, a patch of black hidden under the clothes caught Lumina's eyes.
Seeing that Herta still had no reaction, Lumina undid another.
Still no reaction, Lumina undid yet another.
As Lumina continued to unbutton the clothes, Herta's body, previously wrapped tightly beneath, was completely revealed to Lumina's eyes.
Her small chest was bound by a black garment, and her fair, smooth, entirely fat-free stomach made Lumina unable to resist pressing her palm against it.
"Mmm..."
Feeling the ticklish sensation on her stomach, Herta let out a soft moan.
But even so, she still showed no intention of putting up a fight.
"..."
What exactly is Herta trying to do?
It has already come to this, so why isn't she resisting?
Lumina felt extremely puzzled by this.
At the same time, an unknown surge of anger rose in her heart.
Fine, not going to resist, huh.
Then let's see if you still won't resist when I strip you completely naked right out here in the wild in broad daylight!
Lumina made up her mind, deciding to teach this girl Herta a lesson.
Steeling her heart, she directly lifted the black
But the thought that backing down in this situation would definitely result in Herta ruthlessly mocking her later...
Therefore, Lumina found an excuse for herself.
An excuse that would allow her to continue.
With this in mind, Lumina stared intently at what was in front of her.
She didn't just lay her hand there, but let it slowly slide down along the belly.
"Mnn..."
As the owner of the body, experiencing Lumina's action,
Herta knew exactly what Lumina was trying to do.
Her soft body suddenly flinched, but she still offered no resistance.
It was as if she were fulfilling her previous words, allowing Lumina to do whatever she wanted without putting up any fight.
"Phew..."
Seeing this, Lumina hesitated no longer. Her hand slipped past the barrier of the skirt...
Step... step... step...
"!"
But just as Lumina was about to continue, the clear sound of footsteps reached her ears.
Someone was coming!
Realizing this, Lumina snapped back to reality, her mind instantly clearing.
She hastily pulled her hand back and redressed Herta at lightning speed.
Of course, during this process, Lumina still gave in to her inner urges and acted them out on Herta.
She gave Herta a little squeeze...
So soft, so comfortable.
With just that single touch, Lumina started to fall in love with the feeling...
But... but this was not the time to be thinking about that.
Although Lumina's strength was more than enough to easily cast Invisibility on both of them.
Lumina didn't want to do that.
Because she was already looking for a way out... with her mind now completely clear, it took Lumina only a split second to abandon the thought of teasing Herta.
Therefore, the sound of those approaching footsteps actually did Lumina a huge favor.
Otherwise, given the circumstances just now, she might have actually stayed right here and... and completely... stripped Herta naked...
"Wh... why... did you... s-stop?" Sensing Lumina's movements come to a halt, Herta's soft, emotion-filled voice drifted into Lumina's ears.
It almost rekindled the thoughts she had just managed to suppress...
"Why... why have I become like this?" Hastily pushing those thoughts away, Lumina muttered to herself in deep confusion.
She had never acted like this before.
So why did she... do that to Herta just now?
Initially, Lumina had only wanted to tease Herta a little.
But unexpectedly, she ended up taking it that far...
Even now, Lumina could still feel the lingering warmth on her palm...
"Huu..."
Taking a deep breath and sensing the owner of the approaching footsteps getting closer and closer to them, Lumina temporarily set her doubts aside.
She pulled away, allowing Herta's flushed cheeks to gradually return to normal.
Seeing this, Lumina warned her, "Someone is coming."
Herta stiffened at those words.
She quickly lowered her head to check her clothes, letting out a sigh of relief when she confirmed that nothing was disheveled or exposed.
After doing all this, Herta looked up, gazing at Lumina with a somewhat complicated expression.
Those actions just now were simply too bold for Herta... It was something Herta had never even thought of, and something Herta had never done before.
But...
But... Herta didn't dislike it.
She could even say she liked it a little... especially when Lumina's palm touched her skin.
That feeling... was a feeling Herta had never experienced before.
It was also the most comfortable feeling Herta had ever felt and experienced in her entire life...
Herta was somewhat left wanting more, somewhat... wanting to do it again.
However...
"If it feels this comfortable just being passive, what if I take the initiative...?"
Herta muttered in her heart.
She began to look forward to it, anticipating what a wonderful feeling it would be if she were the one taking the initiative.
"Lumina..."
Herta softly called out Lumina's name in her heart, an inexplicable gleam flashing in her eyes.
-
"Eh?"
In a forest not far from Okhema.
A pink-haired girl with twin tails, protected by several guards beside her, arrived at the location of Lumina and Herta. Looking at the two appearing before her, she let out a confused sound and stared blankly for a moment.
It seemed she completely hadn't expected to actually see two people in the wilderness outside Okhema City.
Of course, the pink-haired girl dared even less to think about what had just happened to the two...
"Miss Hyacine, please be careful."
Although the two in front of them were exceptionally beautiful and didn't look like they had any malicious intent, as guards, they still needed to be as cautious as possible.
But caution aside, in front of two beautiful girls with such transcendent appearances, no one would point their weapons at them without confirming their specific motives.
Therefore, these guards merely spoke up to warn her and did not make any defensive or offensive hostile actions.
"Mm, it's fine. They don't look like bad people." The twin-tailed pink-haired girl named Hyacine shook her head, softly stopping the guards' actions.
She signaled the guards to scatter, then took a step forward.
Arriving in front of Lumina and Herta, she placed a hand on her chest, revealed an extremely natural and friendly smile, and introduced herself: "Hello there, you two pretty big sisters."
"I am a teaching assistant from the Grove of Epiphany, and also a Physician of the Twilight Courtyard, Hyacine."
"It's very nice to meet you."
Hyacine's brisk voice reached the two of them, letting them clearly feel the young girl's vivacity.
"..." Herta looked at Hyacine's hand placed over her chest. The scene from just a moment ago flashed in her mind, and in an instant, her ears hidden beneath her hair turned bright red.
She lowered her head slightly to prevent outsiders from seeing her embarrassing state.
Ever since experiencing that incident just now, those abnormal thoughts had been periodically echoing in Herta's mind.
No matter how Herta tried to shift her attention, she could not dispel the thoughts in her head.
"..."
Herta secretly stole a glance at Lumina, then quickly averted her eyes.
Perhaps...
The so-called antidote could be found on the "poisoner" themselves?
As long as... Lumina... it could be resolved.
As long as... Lumina, the "poison" Herta had suffered in her heart would naturally be cured, wouldn't it?
As for whether it might not be cured at all, but rather cause the toxicity to intensify...
Perhaps, there was that possibility too.
But whichever it was, Herta still wanted...
As for whether it would not only fail to resolve it, but instead exacerbate the toxicity...
Perhaps, that's also a possibility.
But whichever it is, Herta wants it...