There was only one reason: aside from Eiji, whom she considered to be on the same level as her, Erica and the other women there were, at the very least, not ordinary humans.
Even Arianna, who had received a boost from the Master-Servant contract, possessed magical energy dozens of times greater than that of an ordinary human.
Because of that, Luo Hao didn't mind them staring at her face.
Even Eiji's lecherous gaze… Luo Hao tolerated it for the sake of the purpose for which she had come to see him, and also because he had killed the rival she had long hated, Marquis Voban.
That at least proved he could speak on equal terms with her. As for just how high his level was as a god from another universe? She'd have to find that out for herself.
Even so, Luo Hao didn't think she was inferior to the man in front of her.
[This woman seems arrogant, our King. She needs to be taught a lesson so she'll know that you're her future husband.]
'Leme, I agree with what you said.'
Eiji knew that, contrary to the attitude Luo Hao was currently showing on the surface, she was a very arrogant woman who thought she was on a higher level than everyone else.
That's intriguing.
Conquering her would give him great satisfaction.
"So, why did you come here? I heard that not long ago, you were looking for me, too." But before that, he would make small talk with her first.
He also said, "Is it because I beat up your disciple too hard before? You might not know this, but he was the one who picked a fight with me first."
Eiji also added something to make Luo Hao look even worse: "He even dared to stare at Erica and my women with greed in his eyes. I was gentle enough not to gouge out his eyes."
Erica: Really?
Liliana: Huh, did something like that really happen? I didn't realize that...
Mariya: You didn't do that, Eiji. But you...
Luo Hao raised one eyebrow, and her smile faded as if she were slightly offended. "Did Lu Yinghua do that? I asked him to come down from the mountain just to test your character and gather more information about a new Campione who killed my arch-enemy, the Marquis Voban."
She glanced at Erica, Athena, and the other women by Eiji's side and said, "I didn't expect him to be blinded by lust for the opposite sex. But looking at the appearance of your women… That might actually be the case."
Luo Hao didn't want to admit that the women in front of her—especially Erica—were just as beautiful as she was. As for Athena? She was a goddess, so it was only natural that she was as beautiful as she was.
"...." Athena.
With her wisdom, she knew Luo Hao was comparing her appearance to her own. And from the arrogance in her eyes, she seemed to think she was above herself.
Unfortunately, she would surely be surprised to learn that there were many women more beautiful than her in Eiji's harem.
The Goddess of Wisdom gave the second-oldest Campione a cynical smile.
"?" Luo Hao frowned; she was a little annoyed by the way Athena was looking at her. But she decided to ignore her; she glanced at Eiji and added, "I'll punish Lu Yinghua myself for his stupidity, Eiji."
"Oh? Does that mean you won't seek revenge for him? In the worlds I've visited (specifically, the many Chinese manhua and novels he's read), a master often takes revenge on the person who defeated his disciple."
Eiji said, slightly surprised.
He also didn't try to hide the fact that he could travel to other worlds. After all, in the world of Campione, he had long ago admitted that he was a god from another universe.
Luo Hao should have known this.
"I won't do that." The woman shook her head and said as if her disciple's injury was no big deal to her.
Poor Lu Yinghua.
His master didn't even want to avenge him, and planned to punish him later.
"Then why did you come here, Luo Hao?" Eiji asked, calling her name intimately as if they were on good terms.
Luo Hao frowned; she folded her arms and glared at Eiji with a haughty look. "I came to warn you."
"Warn me? About what?"
Eiji looked confused.
He hadn't used Future Insight since returning to this world, so he didn't know what plot twists might be coming up soon.
"Don't you ever interfere in my battle with Sun Wukong anytime soon." Luo Hao mentioned the name of a legendary figure.
"!?" Erica and the other women were taken aback.
[Sun Wukong? Isn't that me?]
Eiji, what do you mean?
Just like the women in front of her, Luo Hao was also confused. And yes, it had actually been a long time since she'd been able to hear Eiji's inner voice.
[I know Luo Hao is talking about the Monkey King in this universe. But I myself could also be called the Monkey King from another universe.]
After all, Eiji had the Jin Mori character card he'd obtained earlier.
[Should I mention it? I'm a humble person. So, forget about it.]
Luo Hao: "...."
To the other heroines: "...."
They felt Eiji was showing off.
Still, Erica and the other women there didn't expect that Luo Hao's purpose in visiting their man was to warn him about the legendary Heretic God.
In this world, Sun Wukong is also very famous.
None of them were unaware of the legend about him.
However—
"How is that possible?" It wasn't Eiji who said that, but Mariya, who hesitantly spoke to Luo Hao, "Hasn't Sun Wukong long been sealed in a sacred shrine in Nikko?"
Let's set aside who sealed the Monkey King in that world, because I myself don't know. But the seal was intentionally created so that his power could be harnessed to protect Japan.
Eiji had only just learned this.
After all, Sun Wukong in this world was nothing more than a villain to him. He hadn't bothered to look up any information about him before this.
"That's true, but according to the information I wrested from an ancient sorceress named Guinevere—and having studied Sun Wukong's history extensively myself— I've learned that he seems to be planning to release the Monkey King from his seal."
"An ancient witch named Guinevere? Do you mean the Ancestral Witch?" As a fellow renowned witch, Lucretia was familiar with the name of the witch Luo Hao had mentioned.
Or more precisely, she knew just how dangerous that woman was. In the past, she had even collaborated with Guinevere on a research project.
Because of that, she knew her ambitions and could guess the reason why she wanted to release a Heretic God like Sun Wukong from his seal.
Luo Hao glanced at Lucretia indifferently, "You know her? Well, I don't really care about her."
Lucretia's lips twitched.
She was about to say something when Eiji suddenly touched her butt—which was still a little sensitive from the sex they'd had the night before.
She flinched and glared at him with a look of complaint in her eyes.
Eiji, what are you trying to do?
[I don't want Lucretia to spoil the plot for us—especially since it's set quite far in the future.]
[For now, we should just focus on the Monkey King, who's much weaker than me, and deal with Luo Hao.]
It wasn't just Lucretia and the others who were stunned.
Forget about the Monkey King. But Eiji, what are you planning to do with Luo Hao?
Don't tell me, you're...!
[Erica: Why am I not surprised?]
[Mariya: Erica, do you mean Eiji likes Luo Hao and wants her to be one of us!?]
[Erica: That's exactly what I mean, Mariya.]
[Mariya: Ehhh!? B-But Luo Hao is...]
[Rias: Mariya, many of us hold high-ranking positions in our respective worlds, and in the end? We're all here.]
[Kuroka: Nyahaha! Just give up. No matter who that woman is, as long as she's beautiful, there's no way Eiji won't get her.]
"...." Seeing what the women in the chat group were saying, Mariya was speechless and just glared slightly at Eiji.
She also puffed out her cheeks and wondered why he was so greedy.
How many women would he need to have before he'd be satisfied?
[Host, you're a bastard.]
Miss System, don't get involved.
Eiji scolded the woman.
"Um… Since Sun Wukong hasn't been freed from his seal yet, shouldn't we prevent that from happening?" Liliana suggested an idea.
"What Lili said makes sense. Why don't we prevent it before something troublesome like that happens?" Ena was the first to agree with her.
Even so, Luo Hao's response was surprising and made them think he was crazy. "No, you guys shouldn't stop it from happening either. I've been trying to find out where Sun Wukong is and when he'll appear just so I can fight him. Even without that ancient sorceress named Guinevere, I came to Japan myself to release Sun Wukong from his seal after learning of his whereabouts."
"What!?" Mariya, Ena, and the other women finally realized something.
Just as the rumors they'd heard about her suggested, Luo Hao was a battle maniac!
As far as they knew, Luo Hao had once fought Sun Wukong long ago. However, their battle back then was interrupted and never concluded.
That seemed to have weighed on Luo Hao's mind for a long time.
Their suspicions were correct. As a narcissistic martial arts master, Luo Hao was always curious and obsessed with finishing a duel with anyone to prove who was stronger. This made her constantly on the lookout for any rumors or clues regarding Sun Wukong's whereabouts.
Eiji: Isn't that me?
Miss System: That's not you. Stop being so narcissistic, host.
"Luo Hao-san, you can't do that just to satisfy your ego! If Sun Wukong breaks free from his seal, he'll go on a rampage and kill many people in this country!"
As someone who disliked all the Campione except Eiji, Mariya was furious to hear Luo Hao's reason for preventing them from canceling Sun Wukong's resurrection.
Luo Hao didn't change her expression; she ignored Mariya and turned his gaze back to the only man present. "Don't worry, I'll defeat Sun Wukong before that happens."
"You…!"
Mariya's ample chest rose and fell, her face flushing red as she seethed with anger at the woman standing before her.
Luo Hao was clearly very confident that she could defeat Sun Wukong with ease.
But what if she was overestimating her own power? She was also unhappy with how the woman didn't take the lives of the people living in this country seriously.
*Tap tap!*
The sound came from Eiji; he was tapping the table with his fingers and staring at Luo Hao while resting his chin in his hand.
All the beautiful women in the room had their eyes fixed on him.
"Luo Hao, what if I refuse to stay out of this?"
He didn't agree right away, which pleased Mariya and made her think, just as she'd expected from her man—he must be on her side, right?
Luo Hao wasn't pleased; she could sense Eiji's subtle resistance. The formal friendliness she had briefly shown vanished without a trace, replaced by an extremely cold and arrogant aura.
Erica, Liliana, Athena, and the other women narrowed their eyes without a trace of fear.
"If you refuse, then you'll be at odds with me, Eiji," Luo Hao said in a threatening tone.
Eiji showed no sign of tension on his face; instead, he wore an amused expression.
Luo Hao furrowed her brow.
"I refuse."
Luo Hao flinched; her lips had just parted to utter more words, but Eiji immediately cut her off without giving her a chance. "I can't let a weak woman like you fight Sun Wukong in this world—he's clearly much stronger than you."
He also said casually. "Not only will you lose, but your actions will also endanger the lives of many people. As the Campione of this country, I cannot grant your request."
[Amazing! That's our King—he won't bow down to a woman who's clearly being arrogant toward him!]
Leme praised her king.
Miss System, where's your praise?
[Hmph!]
Instead of praising her host, she snorted.
Tsundere.
Hearing Eiji's words, Erica, Liliana, Mariya, and the other women felt deeply satisfied. They quietly nodded in agreement, proud to have a man who was both so protective and rational when it came to the world's safety.
In contrast, Luo Hao's face immediately flushed with rage. Her beautiful eyes flashed with overflowing rage. With a voice trembling as she held back her emotions, she hissed coldly, "What did you say? You… how dare you underestimate me!?"
*BOOM!*
In that very instant, a fierce gale swept violently around the mansion, sending the curtains flying and causing the windowpanes to rattle violently. Luo Hao unleashed her aura as the world's second-oldest Campione—a magical pressure so overwhelming it could force an ordinary mage to its knees in fear.
Staring at Eiji with a murderous glare, Luo Hao said, "Eiji, you're just a junior among the Campione. You think that just because you managed to defeat Marquis Voban, you can also defeat me with your current power? Do you foolishly think that I'm weaker than you?! I'm giving you one last chance—take back your words!"
Eiji didn't flinch at all in the face of that storm of aura. He merely shook his head slowly with an innocent expression. "I won't take them back. I'm just stating the facts."
"!!!" Luo Hao's breathing quickened. Fine veins began to stand out on her smooth forehead as she held back the rage burning in her chest. She clenched her fists tightly, glaring at Eiji with an intensely sharp gaze, as if she wanted to tear the man in front of her to shreds right then and there. "Prove it to me! Show me what gives you the right to say that to me, Eiji."
"Sure," Eiji replied very casually, as if they were simply discussing the lunch menu. "How do you want me to prove it? Do you want to duel with me?"
Luo Hao flashed a very cold smile. "Yes! Only a duel can settle the matter between the two of us. However..." There was a pause in her words; Luo Hao's gaze dropped toward the area below Eiji's waist with a cynical glint. "…don't blame me if I end up making you suffer the same fate as my disciple."
Eiji's lips twitched immediately upon hearing the threat.
In that very moment, he realized this woman's malicious intent. Damn it, it turned out Luo Hao hadn't really forgotten her disciple! She wanted to use this duel to take revenge for what happened to Lu Yinghua. Indirectly, she had just threatened to turn him into a eunuch if he lost this duel.
[Woman, you're so arrogant.]
Hearing his inner voice, Luo Hao snorted as she drained the tea from her cup.
Eiji gazed at Luo Hao's beautiful figure, clad in a tight-fitting Hanfu, the corners of his lips curving upward.
In his mind, he swore that after he beat and defeated this arrogant woman in the upcoming duel, he would punish her mercilessly in bed until she begged for mercy and called him "Husband."
Luo Hao suddenly felt a chill run down her spine. However, she didn't think it was a sign that she was going to lose.
...
A few moments later.
Using Luo Hao's spatial ability—the same one she'd used to instantly appear in front of Eiji's mansion earlier—
While Erica and her other women waited at the mansion, Eiji followed Luo Hao to an isolated, rocky plateau on the outskirts of the city—a fairly spacious area.
"Before we begin the battle. I'll give you a chance to use your authority as a Campione—or even a God from another universe, Eiji." Luo Hao said with an air of condescension toward her opponent.
However, Eiji himself was not a humble man. At that moment, he still had both hands in his pants pockets and said, "I don't need any preparation. On the contrary, you'd better attack first so this duel doesn't end in an instant."
"Arrogant! Eiji, you'll regret rejecting my generosity."
Luo Hao wasted no more time. Using the Qinggong stance—a Chinese martial art that emphasizes movement and the art of lightness— She immediately chanted her sacred incantation, The Twelve Divine Palm Strikes of the Phoenix.
"The sword unsheathed, the grassland turns into a forest! Sky, earth, wind, and clouds—the lion king seeks dominion! Treading tirelessly along the hero's endless path, approaching the supreme pinnacle of the martial way."
As soon as those words were spoken, the twelve giant, transparent hands of the god Vajrapani—radiating immense golden energy—materialized behind Luo Hao and hovered in the air.
An overwhelming sense of oppression spread in all directions, causing the grass and trees in the distance to sway as if caught in a fierce wind.
Seeing this scene, Eiji truly felt as though he were facing a female cultivator.
He also wondered if he should use martial arts to counter martial arts?
'Yosh, let's do it.'