Chapter 12: Garbage Dump Reopen ⑤ — Heavy. Overwhelmingly heavy

I stood there, dumbfounded.

“Huh…?”

She had slammed hard into the wall of garbage. The impact shook the area slightly, scattering trash everywhere.

“Gyaaaaan!!”

“Juicy-san!?”

Something was off. That kind of speed from a power-type… It hit me.

Could she be a Relic holder — and an Adaptive Out-of-Place Artifact (OOPArt) on top of that!?

The Omega Unit swung its axe down at me.

It was too fast to dodge. Instinctively, I raised the knife I’d already drawn.

“Guhh… grrrgghhh!!”

The strength behind it was unreal. Just stopping it with both hands was all I could manage.

The blade of my knife groaned under the pressure, a high-pitched screech as metal strained against metal.

Little by little, I was being pushed back, forced into a kneeling position.

This is bad. At this rate, the knife’s going to break.

“Guhh…!”

The Omega Unit pressed harder, and I hit my limit trying to hold it back.

My knees gave way, and I was practically sitting, forced down.

T-this is bad… the knife… it’s going to—

No good. The knife’s… and I’m… running out of strength… I can’t hold on…

“AOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!!!”

Just as I was on the brink of death, a fierce howl rang out — and something pure white slammed into the Omega Unit.

The Omega Unit staggered, giving me the chance to retreat backward.

I-I’m alive. That was close. The knife, me — I was really about to die.

The last time I felt this close to death was back in that forest. If I hadn’t happened to activate 【Generous】 during training this morning, I’d have been done for.

“Hah… hah… But what the heck…?”

The pure white figure glowed faintly, grappling with the Omega Unit in close combat.

What is that thing? It’s strong — overwhelmingly strong.

“BUHMOHMOHOOOOOOOO!!”

“Woof! Here comes the finishing blow! Rakshasa Slash Howl Claws! It’s over! AOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!!”

The white figure spun half a turn.

A violent shockwave rippled out, followed by a sharp, triumphant howl echoing through the air.

Looking closer, the Omega Unit’s arm had been severed, its axe shattered, and its torso torn apart.

When the figure softly landed on the ground, the Omega Unit’s head was already gone.

Its mangled body collapsed and lay still.

I cautiously called out to it.

“…Juicy-san?”

“Woof woof! Wof-sama! Wof-sama! Are you hurt? Are you alright!?”

She spun in place with a cheerful twirl and dashed toward me, nearly tackling me in a hug.

It was Juicy-san — with flowing white hair, large fluffy white wolf ears, and a white tail.

This wasn’t her usual 2P color swap. Her eyes were shining brilliantly violet.

Violet eyes… and her hair changed too. Could it be…?

As she rushed toward me, I stood there — no way I could catch her.

“Whoa!”

“Kyain!”

I was completely knocked over. My back hurt.

“……”

Well, of course. Dogs with that much momentum are unstoppable.

Juicy-san’s white, glowing hair spilled around me, and her shimmering violet eyes stared down into mine.

Violet — just like me. Looks like I’ve switched into 【Generous】 again. And she’s really close.

“…Kuuhn. Wof-sama… you’re so close…”

Her warm, soft breath tickled my face.

I felt the same way.

“…”

“Woof… Kuuhn… Wof-sama… are you alright?”

“……”

Something about her right now… I couldn’t shake the feeling that she looked a lot like 【Generous】.

Not just her violet eyes — the way her hair color had shifted too.

And her overwhelming presence… could this be a 【Pseudo-Divine Relic】?

So Juicy-san was a holder too. I was seriously surprised — but also, she looked adorable.

Ah… she’s beautiful.

“Kuuhn… Wof-sama… can you see me…?”

Alright. I’ll just pretend I didn’t see her like this.

Total denial. I saw nothing. I know nothing.

“Woof woof… Kuuhn… Kuuhnnn… Kuuuuuhn…”

【Pseudo-Divine Relic】. Definitely top-secret for the Tasan family.

If this gets out, it’ll be trouble. Although honestly, this position is already trouble.

“Kuuhn… Wof-sama… Kuuhnn…”

Even more dangerous than the position is her voice.

It was way too alluring — not the kind of sound a 13-year-old girl should be making.

“……….”

Wait… why is her mouth slightly open? And isn’t she getting… closer?

I need to do something about this pose and that dangerously sweet whimpering, fast.

Also, she’s slowly inching toward my arm. Actually, she’s holding it down—

CHOMP.

“Eh…?”

She bit me. Juicy-san bit my right arm.

It didn’t hurt. It was just a soft, nibbling kind of bite. Over and over. It felt… weird.

What’s going on…? I finally spoke.

“Uh, Juicy-san?”

“Woof!? Wof-sama! I-I… woof woof! Are you okay!?”

“Yes. You saved me. And um, I’d like to get up now.”

“Woof! Oh — I’m so sorry! I’ll get off right away!”

She jumped back like she’d been spring-loaded.

I slowly got to my feet, and she walked back to me, still in that form.

“Um, um… do you know who I am?”

“Yes. I do. You’re Juicy-san, right?”

“Woof! Yes, that’s right! Juicy Tasan! And this form is called 【Fenrir】!”

“Eh?”

Fenrir — as in that Fenrir?

I was stunned.

So Fenrir existed in this world too. Or more accurately…

“Woof woof! I transformed using a relic called [Pseudo-God]!”
“Awoooo—n!”

“Wait, hold on.”

Why are you casually spilling classified top-secret info? My face turns pale.
Meanwhile, Juicy, still in her [Fenrir] form, turns bright red.

“Um, um, I-I’m sorry! When I take on this form, the desire to bark and howl just overflows, completely without restraint! Woof woof! Woof! Awoooooooon!”

“I-I see.”

Juicy spun around with a twirl — it was graceful, even impressive, but she was clearly way too excited.
I almost wanted to blurt out “Stay. Stay, stay.”

“Woof! Wof-sama, I have a request! Woof woof! Woof!”
“W-What is it?”
“Um, um, woof woof! I want you to pat my head! Woof!”

She lowered herself, sitting like a dog waiting for affection.
Well… patting her head shouldn’t be a problem. I hesitated, then gently patted her.

“Woof woof! Woof woof! Woof woof woof woof! Awoooooon!”

Could you at least speak human language…

Then she asked me to stroke her cheeks, so I did.
Is this really okay…?

“Woof! Woof woof! Kuuun, kuuun!”

Next, she suddenly lay down and pulled up her clothes, asking me to rub her belly.
That was a hard pass — I settled for ruffling her fur instead, and she seemed content with that.
…Or was that really “settling”?

“Kuuuunnn. Kuuun. Woof woof! Woof woof! Kuuun! Woof!”

Eventually, her active transformation time must’ve run out.
Her appearance returned to normal. About five minutes had passed. I was exhausted.

“Juicy-san. Is that enough?”
“Um, um, I’m sorry! Woof! Thank you so much! When I become that version of myself, woof woof, the wolf inside me just completely takes over and I can’t hold it back! Woof woof, woof!”

…Even now, I’m not sure she’s really holding it back.
A wolf? Not a dog?

“Oh, but I’m glad you didn’t, like, try licking my face or anything.”

I joked lightly. No way, right?
I mean, sure, my arm got some love bites, but the face? No way.

But Juicy placed her hands on her cheeks and turned bright red, looking flustered.
…What’s with that reaction?

“Um, um, the truth is… I actually did want to lick your face earlier, but I figured that’d be too much, so I settled for a little nibbling on your arm. But! Woof! If Wof-sama desires it, next time I won’t hold back at all! I’ve never done that to any gentleman before, but if it’s you, Wof-sama, I’ll lick and lick and lick you all over, until your entire face is a slobbery mess!”

“I absolutely do NOT desire that!! Stop, please!!”

Thank god I was spared from that fate.
Just getting lightly nibbled was bad enough.
…Or was it?

Either way, including this whole [Fenrir] thing, Juicy is one heck of a marquis’s daughter, and a dog-girl at that.

I let out a long sigh, gave a glance toward the defeated Omega Frame, then turned my gaze forward.

A strong purple glow.
Unexpected surprises or not, I stepped forward toward it.

Finally.
Finally, the moment was here.

Juicy, her tail wagging wildly, followed behind me.
It was slicing the air, swishing back and forth with such force.

Her tail had been fully active this whole time.
It reminded me of my dog back home.

Smiling wryly, I finally arrived at the source of the purple light.

Behind the defeated Omega Frame, there it was… huh?

“What is this?”

“Woof! What… is it?”

Juicy tilted her head, puzzled as she looked at it too.
This pattern — it felt just like when we found the Relic Plate.

Sitting on a dirt pedestal was a square-shaped block, marbled with white and purple.

What the heck is this?
I checked it using the [Wheel of Fortune].

This is it. The strong purple glow.
Or… is it?

I reached out and touched it.
This… texture. It’s soft. Like clay?

“…It won’t come off.”

Even though it felt soft like clay, I couldn’t tear any piece away.
I tapped it lightly, but the only impression I got was “soft.”

The white and purple swirls twisted and spiraled wildly.

Juicy stood silently behind me, watching with curiosity.
Her gaze seemed to be asking, What’s wrong? What’s wrong?

Hmm. I don’t know. What even is this thing?

Reporting it to the witch was a given, but for now…
I pulled out my knife.

I pressed the blade against it and slid it.
Nothing. It didn’t cut.

“…”

I tried stabbing it.
It didn’t pierce. No matter how hard I pushed the blade, it wouldn’t go in, not even a millimeter.

“………”

I put away the knife and summoned [Vanish].

I shaped it down to the size of a baseball, and with just the slightest intent, I brought it into contact with the square block.

“…!?”

It touched.
That was it. Nothing disappeared.

I pushed it firmly against the block.
It only stuck to the surface — it didn’t vanish.

No matter how many times I tried, it wouldn’t disappear.

[Vanish] isn’t working!?

“Um, um, Wof-sama? Is something wrong? This thing… it feels strange!”

That purple glow…
Is this really… what the heck is it?

A chill ran down my spine.

I exhaled slowly.
Yeah, I get it now. This thing isn’t normal.

“It’s fine. For now, let’s try lifting it.”

I grabbed it with both hands.
The surface was squishy and soft, but —

“Ugh, it’s heavy…!”

I couldn’t lift it.
W-what the heck is this? It’s heavier than the Omega Frame’s axe push.

“Grggh…grghhh…aaaaghhhhh…ugh…ahhhhh…! No…I just…can’t…lift it…!?”

Not even a little. I let go.
So heavy. My breathing turned rough.

“Woof woof! Wof-sama, are you okay? Is it really that heavy?”

“Haa…haa… Yeah, there’s no way I’m carrying this.”

Phew. I was sweating.
So heavy. Ridiculously heavy.

What should I do? I can’t carry it.
Unless I were a gorilla or something, it’d be impossible.

Do I know any gorillas…?
Actually — I do. Lupinus.

Maybe I could ask her for help.

But how?
As I was sinking into near despair, lost in thought—

“Um, um, um, woof! I’ll carry it!”

“Huh? Wait, but this thing—”

Juicy grabbed the block firmly with both arms.
“Woof! It’s so soft!” she said cheerfully, as she easily lifted the white-and-purple marbled square.

A gorilla dog appeared.

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