Seeing that Ryuya still had the leisure to joke around while they were in trouble, the girls were about to lose their composure completely.
This guy was obviously just standing there enjoying the sight of them flailing about…
Ryuya himself was torn on whether to step in and help.
If he didn't, it'd look bad.
But if he did… he'd end up seeing everything.
That also didn't sound very good.
After careful thought between being a beast and being worse than one, Ryuya decisively chose the latter.
"Hang in there, I'm coming!"
With that totally serious shout, he rushed toward Rias first.
The slimes' main trait was that they could paralyze magical energy and then slowly corrode it.
Since Rias and the others' clothes were all woven from magic, they were perfect targets.
By now, the girls were already covered in quite a few globs of sticky green slime.
"Ugh, it's all over me… it's so cold and slimy…"
Rias clutched her chest, her arms bound tight by slime tendrils, completely unable to move.
The scene made Ryuya genuinely impressed by the creature's tactics.
Damn, this thing's got skills…
Smiling wryly, Ryuya moved closer, trying to pull the slime off Rias's wrists.
But when he tugged, he realized how absurdly tough the thing was.
Even with brute force, he couldn't tear it off.
"This thing… I'm starting to think it's actually pretty amazing. It's great at immobilizing opponents!"
Was this really a slime? How could it be this strong?
If he could somehow enhance this trait, it'd make for a perfect support-type familiar.
Only problem—
It seemed to only go after girls.
Yeah, that was… not ideal. Bit too limiting.
While struggling to break free from the slime's harassment, Rias shot him an exasperated look.
"What are you even thinking? Slimes are the most common, most annoying creatures out there. A familiar is something very important to a devil, Ryuya—you'd better think carefully before deciding."
Before she even finished, more droplets of slime splattered over her, the cold sticky touch making her let out another small, involuntary gasp.
"Ara ara~ this is quite an indecent situation we're in, isn't it…"
Akeno couldn't help but let out a helpless laugh. The little gear she had left had already been completely dissolved away.
The more mature, voluptuous figure she had compared to Rias's… was definitely a sight that Ryuya didn't mind one bit.
He chuckled awkwardly.
"Well, setting that aside—this slime really understands guys, doesn't it?"
His tone was suggestive, and his eyes roamed shamelessly across the group of beautiful girls.
That was the last straw.
Koneko Toujou walked up, her wrists still bound together, and with her small hands she grabbed Ryuya's cheeks—
Then crack! she twisted his head aside.
"Ah! That hurts—!"
The sheer strength she used almost snapped his neck on the spot.
"Please don't look."
Koneko's flat voice carried no emotion, but even in her petite frame she refused to let go of his face.
Ryuya honestly felt like she might just lift him up by the head next.
"Alright, alright! I won't look! Just let go already!"
Only then did Koneko release him.
But as Ryuya turned his head back around, his eyes instantly landed on Koneko herself—
completely stripped bare.
Small she may be, but she was still breathtakingly beautiful.
"...Don't be discouraged, Koneko. Even if your figure can't compare to Rias or Akeno, you're still super cute, really." he murmured softly.
"..."
Koneko's golden eyes snapped toward him again, her adorable face tightening in silent fury.
Realizing what was coming next, Ryuya hurriedly summoned the Sword before she exploded.
"I'll use this to help you."
As Ryuya spoke, he drove the King's Sword straight into the slime binding Koneko's wrists, then gave a careful pull near her hands.
The blade sliced cleanly through the slime in an instant.
Freed at once, Koneko's raw strength erupted. In just a few swift motions, she tore the remaining slimes off her body by sheer force and slammed them hard onto the ground.
Splatt!
Ryuya's eyelid twitched as he silently prayed, Rest in peace, brave souls. You died a noble death.
Next, he hurried to free Rias. Once she got her arms loose, she immediately unleashed a burst of flame magic, burning the slimes covering her to ash.
But when he moved on to help Akeno, things went wrong—
The slime, sensing danger, suddenly pulled tighter, making Akeno stumble.
And just as Ryuya was stepping toward her, she fell right into him.
He reached out to catch her—but got dragged down instead, landing squarely on top of her… and accidentally getting an up-close experience of "Akeno-senpai brand face wash."
"Ara ara~" Akeno let out a soft gasp, a teasing smile spreading across her face. "Ryuya's already at that age, huh…"
"Ryuya is such a pervert," Koneko said flatly, still clearly holding a grudge over his earlier comment about her body.
"Ryuya…" Asia whimpered, her voice trembling as she blushed. "I–If you really want to… I could… help you…"
Ryuya froze, facepalming as he pushed himself up. "What the hell are you all talking about?"
Looking down at Akeno beneath him, he sighed helplessly.
"…That was an accident, okay?"
"Fufu~ I know, I know. Come on, help me out."
Even though she was lying there completely bare beneath him, Akeno's smile remained gentle as ever. She reached out her hands—still tangled with large clumps of slime.
Ryuya swung the King's Sword once more, slicing them away and freeing her. Akeno flipped gracefully to her feet, then immediately unleashed her magic.
A storm of golden lightning rained down, blasting the remaining slimes into charred dust.
Meanwhile, Koneko had already freed Asia, and the girls' bodies shimmered with magic light, restoring them to their usual forms.
Watching them, Ryuya sighed with genuine regret.
"I still think those slimes were kinda great, though…"
"No way." Rias rolled her eyes, clearly disapproving.
Ryuya could only chuckle and shake his head. Inwardly, he offered a brief moment of silence and gratitude to the slimes that had—quite literally—blessed his eyes that day. Then, without another word, he started walking ahead.
The girls followed behind.
——
A few minutes later, a faint rustling came from deep within the forest.
Ryuya's eyes narrowed as he stopped.
A shadowy figure emerged from between the trees.
"Ah, it's Mr. Zatouji!" Asia exclaimed, her eyes lighting up when she spotted the small blue dragon beside him.
"Haha, took me some effort, but I finally managed to communicate with it," Zatouji said with a grin. "So then—who among you wants to form a contract with it?"
"Give it to Asia," Ryuya replied casually.
"Very well. And you, young man—what kind of familiar do you want?"
Ryuya tilted his head, thinking for two seconds. Noticing all eyes were on him, he spoke meaningfully:
"I still kind of want one."
Without hesitation, all the girls answered in perfect unison—calm, firm, and merciless:
"No."
"…"
Zatouji blinked, completely bewildered.
"…Huh?"
----
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