Yes, Lady Funina!

Two forces within him were locked in a fierce battle, and the aftershocks of this battle turned the once warm public bathhouse into a sauna.

Fine beads of sweat appeared on Arecino's forehead, and she could feel her body getting hotter.

Richard noticed this and slowed down the output slightly.

“Don’t worry about me, I can handle it,” Arecino said.

You could even say you kind of like it.

Compared to her previous mild approach, she now prefers something more intense.

In a way, Arecino actually has a bit of a masochistic tendency. When Richard beat her up badly last time, she didn't feel sad or wronged at all. On the contrary, she felt a strange pleasure.

After hearing Arecino's words, Richard did not hesitate for long and readjusted the output power that had been reduced back, but did not increase it any further as she suggested.

It's only making Arecino feel a little uncomfortable right now, but if we add more, it could really cause some damage to her body.

Perhaps due to the two-pronged approach, the black lines on Arecino's arms continued to recede downwards, and in just fifteen minutes, they had faded from the middle of her upper arm to the back of her arm.

However, once it reached the crook of the arm, the dark lines became exceptionally stubborn, perhaps because the crook of the arm had been stained for many years, and that power had seeped into the bone marrow, like a maggot clinging to the bone, difficult to eradicate.

Even if Richard wanted to get rid of it without harming Arecino, he could only rely on his power to gradually infiltrate it.

This greatly reduces efficiency, and the speed becomes much slower than before. At this rate, let alone a year, it would be considered fast if it could be completely eliminated in three or four years.

Moreover, that's assuming the force doesn't continue to spread. If we take into account the outward spread of the other side, the time frame might be even longer.

Not to mention that neither Richard nor Alegino could have worn down this force for three or four years straight, rain or shine.

So we have to think of another way.

"Still not working?" There was no disappointment in Arecino's eyes; she had expected this outcome.

It would be surprising if the problem could be solved easily.

“Forcing it won’t work; we need to think of another way,” Richard said, shaking his head.

“Actually, it wouldn’t matter if I got hurt a little,” Arecino said. “I don’t care about the pain.”

“It’s not a matter of pain. Even if you can endure the pain from my power washing over you, it doesn’t mean your body can withstand it.” Li realized that Arecino was thinking far too simply.

"To give a simple example, imagine you are a patient who urgently needs a blood transfusion, but my blood type does not match yours. If I force a blood transfusion, the consequences will only be worse."

Arecino understood Richard's meaning, and she suddenly asked, "What if I changed my blood type to be the same as yours?"

“How could blood type be changed so easily?” Richard instinctively denied.

But then Arecino said calmly, "Is that so? Then what about Fucarus?"

Arecino knew that at first, Fukaros's power was completely mismatched with Richard's, but now, looking back, her body had practically become Richard's.

Not to mention absorbing power, she could easily handle anything else.

“Fukaros’s situation is different from yours,” Richard explained patiently, indicating that what works for Fukaros may not work for Arecino.

"How will we know if we don't try?" Arecino insisted on her opinion.

Then, as if she understood Richard's concerns, she calmly said, "Don't worry, even if we fail, it's my own fault, and I won't blame you."

“It’s not a question of whether it’s strange or not.” Richard found it difficult to explain. He couldn’t very well tell the other person that he had done this and that to Fukalos before gradually transforming her body into what it is now, could he?

"Why is that? Or is it that only by becoming your woman can one be qualified to receive your power?" Arecino asked.

“Although that’s not the actual situation, you can understand it that way.” Richard thought this would scare Arecino away, but he didn’t expect her to be prepared.

“If that’s the case, I can too.” Arecino said this as if it were a trivial matter.

"What did you say?" Richard wondered if he had misheard.

“I said, I can be your woman too,” Arecino repeated, this time with even greater clarity.

"Wait a minute, something's not right, is it?" Lee realized that there was indeed something wrong with Arecino.

“What’s wrong with it? It’s just a matter between men and women. If you’re worried about your chastity, you can rest assured. I’m clean, and I can guarantee that I won’t have any contact with any other men besides you.” Arecino spoke about the topic of ‘dedication’ as if it were business.

Richard was a little confused by Arecino's train of thought. Weren't they talking about suppressing bloodlines? How did it suddenly veer into this kind of thing?

"I'm sorry, but I can't possibly agree to something like this so hastily." Richard took a deep breath, as if to say, "What kind of person do you take me for?"

He, Li, is not a lustful man. Although you, Arecino, are somewhat attractive, it doesn't mean that Li will accept you casually.

"I'm not that kind of person."

“Whatever…” Arecino seemed to understand something, glanced at Richard, and then grabbed his hand and pressed it to her chest.

"You don't seem to be resisting at all."

Despite the foreign object in her chest, Arecino's face remained expressionless. The blush on her cheeks was entirely due to the struggle between the two forces within her body, and had little to do with Richard's claws.

Although it was indeed very soft, Richard still resisted the immense attraction and tried to pull his hand back.

However, Arecino also raised her hand to stop Richard from doing so.

Everyone saw it; she was the one who wouldn't let me leave!

“This is coercion,” Richard said righteously.

Arecino looked at Richard, who was acting like he had gotten a good deal but was still being ungrateful, and didn't argue with him. She just assumed that Richard had forced her to do it.

"Do you remember when we first talked?" Arecino suddenly asked, then continued on her own:

"Back then you told me, 'If you don't like it, why spend your limited time observing spiders?'"

I remember asking you a question back then, 'So you like me too?' and your answer was... yes."

Arecino stared intently at the man before her, her red lips parting slightly as she asked, "Does it still count now?"

How could that possibly count? Besides, the "like" we talked about back then and the "like" we talk about now are completely different things, okay?

Richard isn't a pervert; he wouldn't have those kinds of thoughts about a six-year-old girl. In fact, Richard's preferences have always leaned towards mature and charming women; he likes older, more sophisticated women.

“These are not the same thing; you were just a child then,” Richard explained. He meant the affection one has for a cub, not the affection one has for a mate.

“Now I’m all grown up,” Arecino said earnestly, “and…”

She glanced at Richard's large hand pressed against her chest. "You're not trying to shirk responsibility, are you?"

Although Arecino doesn't care about this, it doesn't mean she's a frivolous woman. In fact, up until now, apart from Richard, she hasn't had any intimate contact with any man, not even holding hands.

If a member of the opposite sex touches Arecino's hand, that person is likely to die.

“Didn’t you pull my hand up and press it against me yourself?” Li realized that Arecino was forcing him to buy her something.

“With your abilities, do you think I would force you to do something you don’t want to do?” Arecino retorted.

...That seems to be true.

"So, have you thought it through?" Arecino pressed on.

Li realized that this was still too sudden, and he had to consider the feelings of Funina and the others.

“You don’t need to worry about Furina and the others. If you feel it’s inappropriate, I can keep it a secret for you and not tell anyone about us.” Arecino said as if she had already thought it through. “You can think of our relationship as a secret affair. I don’t care about the official title.”

Arecino genuinely doesn't care about titles or status; she values ​​tangible benefits more than superficial things.

“You…” Richard seemed to want to say something more, but Arecino was getting impatient.

If she's still hesitating after all this, that would be rather impolite.

"why me?"

Richard noticed Arecino's impatience, but he still asked.

Why is he?

Chapter 225 Arecino (Part 1)

Why is he?

This is the question Richard most wants to ask, but of course, the answer Richard wants is not the reason for sleeping with him.

Rather, it's about what psychology led Arecino to want to become his woman.

Was it out of gratitude for saving Clementine back then? Or was it admiration for the strong?

In short, regardless of whether you call him pretentious or say he got the better deal but is still acting innocent, he wouldn't accept the other party if he didn't understand these things.

Well, at least psychologically, I'm against it.

Even if Arecino uses despicable means to get his body, she can never get his heart!

"...Because you're my only female friend?" Arecino said after thinking for a moment.

Richard slowly typed a question mark. Although he was somewhat gratified to be considered a friend by Arecino, was it a bit too much to want to have a deeper conversation with her just because of that...?

“Just kidding,” Arecino said.

Richard glanced at Arecino, whose lips were only slightly upturned, and thought to himself, "Your expression doesn't look like you're joking."

“On one hand, it’s because I need you to help me suppress the power within me, and on the other hand…” Arecino glanced at Richard’s face, “You’re quite handsome.”

"Good-looking?" Richard couldn't remember when Arecino had become so superficial. If she only had feelings for him because he was good-looking, then she wouldn't have liked Spider in the first place.

Although there are no cats or dogs in the Hearth House, there are still some beautiful monsters. Raising a slime is better than raising a spider.

"Hmm? Still not acceptable? Then let me come up with another reason." Arecino thought about it seriously. "Never mind, I can't think of anything. I just want to possess you, or be possessed by you."

As they spoke, Arecino leaned forward and pinned Richard down from the front, straddling him.

She gently tossed her long hair, then reached out and untied the ponytail at the back of her head. Her snow-white hair, mixed with black and red strands, cascaded down to her waist like a waterfall.

Arecino's body was unlike anyone else Richard had ever seen. Apart from her unusual arms, her muscles were perfectly coordinated, with no excess fat and exceptionally smooth muscle lines, giving her a natural beauty.

This kind of beauty has actually appeared on Richard's body as well. If Claudia saw it, she would probably be unable to move again.

“You won’t win my heart this way,” Richard said stubbornly.

"It doesn't matter." Arecino thought Richard might have some serious illness, but what could she do since she was the one who made the choice?

And you know what, looking down at Richard like that, a strange feeling welled up in Arecino's heart.

It gave her an urge to ravage the other person.

Seeing Richard's hand, which he had seemingly placed on her crotch without any instruction, Arecino wore a half-smile.

Is this what you mean by not being able to win your heart?

Richard felt that his hands couldn't represent his heart; this only meant that his hands had their own thoughts, not that they represented him as a person...

Okay, he's stopped pretending. Things have come to this point; if he keeps pretending, it'll just seem hypocritical.

Any normal man, faced with this situation, wouldn't care about feelings. If you can remain unmoved, then it's a question of whether you're capable or not.

Is Richard up to the task?

That will definitely work!

Nobody is better than him.

"You seem quite skilled at this?" Arecino noticed that Richard's hand placement was very deliberate.

He didn't hold her at her most sensitive spot, but instead gently placed his hand on the junction of her waist and hips.

The advantage of doing this is that it can stabilize the center of gravity of the personnel above during further contact, while also protecting the personnel below from deviating from the trajectory.

Richard ignored Arecino, who was just making conversation. If he, a seasoned veteran, wasn't proficient in this kind of thing, then all his previous training would have been for nothing.

This pose might be unfamiliar to Arecino, but Richard has practiced it countless times.

Arecino didn't mind Richard's lack of response. She leaned down, pressing herself close to Richard, and asked, "What should we do next, teacher?"

“Teacher…” Richard’s cheek twitched; he hadn’t heard that title in ages.

You should know that even back when he was at the House of Hearths, Arecino never called him "teacher".

Now, in this setting and environment, he's calling him "teacher."

You'll only call me "teacher" if you're on his back, right?

Richard had a strange sense of familiarity, as if he used to give Fukaros and the others similar buffs when they played together.

Clarinde is the investigator, Yae no Miko is the pet, and Fukaros is the boss...

So Arecino is a student?

"Hmm? You seem to really like that title." Arecino raised an eyebrow; after she called him "teacher," she could clearly feel Richard's body becoming even more excited.