The Dark Rebirth of Pandora: Revenge of the Abyss

Chapter 744: Crossover Part 11

"Shizune, is something wrong?" Ayla asks as I step out of the bathroom with my face flushed.

"N-Nothing..." When I deny it, she gets thoughtful for a few seconds before taking hold of my hand.

"Pandora's up to something, isn't she? You two seem to be competing over something. Please don't underestimate me — I'm not an idiot, I've noticed something's off." When she says that, I find myself wondering if I should speak up. Pandora is powerful. Having an ally would be nice.

"Pandora's been rubbing herself on things in my room... she's masturbating right now while moaning my name in my bedroom, and it's frustrating and weird. That woman's lust makes me uncomfortable." When I say this, Ayla shivers.

'How can that woman enjoy herself with that gigantic thing on her ass... she's vile... what a shallow woman.'

"Do you have some kind of camera in your room or something?" I decide not to mention that I have a spell on more than just my bedroom, because it would be embarrassing to admit I'm monitoring even the bathroom and Ayla's room. After all, I can't leave any place unguarded where Pandora might hide things.

"Something like that... I thought she wanted to do something malicious when she sent us out to this universe, but she's just acting like an animal. It's honestly disgusting... I'm no prude, but she's extreme, and it's pathetic." Ayla and I leave the store, heading to an ice cream shop with the money Pandora gave us earlier.

"Have you ever considered that maybe she's using her lust as a disguise? Pandora makes a lot of sexual jokes, but I've met plenty of lustful monsters, and I can tell you — Pandora doesn't exude lust in her gaze."

"Actually, her gaze is bloodthirsty, violent, and above all, dark." When she says that, I get confused.

"What do you mean?"

"You can't tell?" she questions, confused, as she places an order with a machine and gets her ice cream. I place my order and get a strawberry ice cream.

"No."

"I see. Well, you should know that I'm also biologically a monster — more specifically, a chimera — and I've lived through a situation very steeped in lust... especially with monsters."

"So I've learned to recognize the pattern in various behaviors. I can say for certain — no matter the universe — if it's a monster and it's lustful, it will follow these patterns at least a little."

"There's a pattern to it?" I guide her to a chair and table as we sit down. I take a glance at Pandora, who won't stop moaning my name while using my toys.

"Of course there is. First, monsters don't focus on your eyes when they're being lustful. They get kind of unfocused — that's because lust takes away a lot of their focus. Monsters only lock eyes on you when they're looking at something interesting, or prey."

"Why do you think I complain so much about Pandora's sexual jokes? She looks at me as if she literally wants to devour me. She doesn't look at me like something she desires, just like a piece of meat."

"Another thing — monsters, when lustful, also get more instinctive. Have you ever seen Pandora distracted during her jokes or the masturbation she does?" When she says that, I think for a moment and reach the conclusion that no, I've never seen Pandora "distracted" during her unpleasant jokes. In fact, she stares way too much.

'Right now she's like this... for the first time, she seems distracted...' This is the first time Pandora has truly seemed "distracted" by something. Maybe now she's actually enjoying it, but the other times she always seemed focused.

"Interesting. How solid is this information?"

"Very. I can guarantee it — years of experience. Besides, I don't know Pandora, but I've noticed she uses her tail a lot. There must be some emotional pattern she can't avoid."

"Since she's a monster and I can also sense things you probably can't, here's a warning — she's deceiving you. Pandora isn't shallow, not like she tries to pretend. She actually seems far too alert, almost paranoid about us."

"After all, she switched rooms to one close to ours, she's always on the couch, and she never sleeps, always wandering around the house. Those aren't the behaviors of someone relaxed." When Ayla says this, I get completely confused.

"Why have you never mentioned this before if you noticed so many things?"

"...Because I'm weak. I don't want trouble with Pandora. You're strong, and you can run from her, but I can't. And worse — you're just a fragment. Your death changes nothing for your universe. I'm the original of my universe. Even if Pandora doesn't kill me... she could abandon me somewhere and I'd be trapped..." She speaks with a tense tone.

I look at the spying spell with more focus. Does Pandora know? Did she notice I'm watching and start putting on this masturbation "show" to distract me?

"But what would Pandora gain from that? If we're a problem for her, wouldn't it be better for her to be alone?" I question Ayla, who is more observant than I expected.

"I don't know. I have no way of predicting Pandora. She's a different kind of monster than I am. She's more primal. She reminds me of Fenrir."

'Fenrir? Like the legendary wolf?' I decide not to ask too much. I haven't seen everything from Ayla's past, just a surface glimpse.

"I'm just saying — be careful. That woman is terrifying, but the point isn't her strength. It's what she's willing to do to get what she wants. Look at her eyes. Just like you can never turn your back on a tiger, you should never turn your back on Pandora."

"Metaphorically and literally. I wouldn't put it past Pandora to put a spying spell on us or some kind of bomb spell. So much so that I've never turned my back on Pandora when she was too close, and I've avoided letting her touch my body as much as possible."

"!!!"

"W-Wait, seriously?"

"Heh, yeah! Pandora's magic is strange, chaotic, but nearly imperceptible, so I've been careful." When she says that, I get nervous, because Pandora always touches my back a lot, as if trying to grab something. I've never tried to avoid it. From now on, I should.

'My connection as a fragment is on my back...' I shrink a little more into my chair as I taste a bit of the ice cream.

"Y-You know, I think I'm a little on edge. Could you not talk about her anymore? Also... can we be allies?" I deactivate the spying spell and extend my hand to Ayla. I don't want to watch that terrifying woman masturbating. I'd rather focus on the moment.

"Of course. I don't want to talk about her either. Honestly, it's frustrating, and it would be great to have an ally." She shakes my hand as if we've just made a pact.

"So, what do you think of this universe? It's very peaceful, and people don't even look at us — they just go about their business." When she says that, I look around. It really is very peaceful and calm.

There are lots of people. Some look human, others seem completely alien in comparison, but everyone is calmly living their lives.

"It's a really nice universe. The goddess or god who governs the balance is truly incredible." I praise the one at the top, and Ayla smiles.

"It really is!!"