Chapter 2: The Starving Snake Princess and the Golden Mana

His field of vision was warping softly.

Wrapped in golden fur, his small body sank into the damp earth, unable to withstand the recoil of the “Curse Chains” he had unleashed for the very first time.

(…My body is hot. The chains on my neck are pulsing…)

Allen, who was now a prince trapped in the body of a golden spirit beast, breathed heavily.

The two chains he had just unleashed, powered by Elizabeth’s obsession and Sylphi’s desire to keep him for themselves, turned the huge attacking magical beast into pieces in an instant. It saved him, but it was also a violent surge of love that wore away at Allen’s sanity.

“………G-Guardian Deity-sama?”

A trembling voice reached his ears.

When Allen forced his heavy eyelids open, the Lamia girl from earlier was there. Her lower half was a massive snake covered in deep green scales. Her upper half was that of a young human maiden, clad in nothing but tattered scraps of cloth. She pressed her long fingertips against her mouth, staring at Allen with eyes that looked as if they were witnessing something unbelievable.

(Ah, it’s over. I’m going to be eaten… Now that I’m a mascot, I’m probably bite-sized.)

Allen tried to flee. But his short legs had no strength.

The Lamia girl, Misha, approached Allen as if crawling. When the distance between them reached zero, she raised her sharp claws—and instead, bowed her head deeply, rubbing her forehead against the ground.

“Thank you so much…! To defeat such a terrifying magical beast, for a ‘stray’ like me… Are you a Spirit-sama of this forest?”

Allen blinked in surprise. It seemed he didn’t need to worry about being eaten.

He cleared his throat and, putting all his will into it, released a telepathic message.

【…I’m not a spirit. I’m just… someone who ended up in this form due to certain circumstances. My name is Allen.】

Along with a cute “Kyuu…” cry echoing through the forest, the gentle voice of a young man directly reached Misha’s mind.

“You spoke…!? No, a voice directly in my heart. Ah, what a pure sound. You are called Allen-sama, then. I am Misha. I am a lowly snake woman who was chased from my flock and have been wandering this frontier.”

Misha’s stomach rumbled guu pathetically.

Her face flushed red. Looking closely, the scales on her arms and tail were dry, and she was terribly emaciated. This frontier was a world of survival of the fittest. Weak monster girls couldn’t even manage to secure prey.

【Misha, are you alright? You look terribly exhausted.】

“I am utterly ashamed… I haven’t eaten anything for three days, and my mana has hit rock bottom. I was only attacked by that magical beast earlier because I was weakened…”

Allen felt a pang of sympathy. He had just been chased out of the castle himself. He couldn’t just abandon this girl shivering from hunger.

He approached Misha with unsteady steps and gently placed a golden paw pad onto her cold hand.

【I’ll share a little bit of my mana with you. …Though it’s a clumsy power mixed with a curse.】

In that instant, the “Invisible Chains” wrapped around Allen’s neck glowed intensely. The golden mana overflowing from Allen’s body poured into Misha through his paw pads.

“—!? Wh-what is this… It’s hot, it’s so hot, Allen-sama! From inside my body, power… love… is overflowing…!”

Misha’s body was enveloped in a faint light.

Her dry, rustling green scales regained their emerald-like luster before his very eyes, beginning to “evolve” into a harder, sharper shape than before. Her remaining mana instantly broke past its maximum limit, beginning to emit a pressure powerful enough to blow away the surrounding mist.

This was Allen’s special ability: he could force mana into others and strengthen them using the “Curse Chains.”

However, the price came immediately.

(…Agh!? This sensation again…!)

Allen’s consciousness was forcibly linked to the royal castle far away.

In a gorgeously decorated rose garden, Elizabeth smiled fearlessly.

【Oh my…? My little Allen, you used my mana, didn’t you? What a good boy. I’ll pour plenty more into you…】

In a dark room, Sylphi hugged a crystal ball tightly.

【Onii-sama, you can’t. You can’t use any power besides Sylphi’s. Look, I’ll overwrite it with my love…!】

Ba-dump, his heart pounded.

To make up for the mana he had used, even more obsession flowed through the chains from the two heroines. Allen’s body shrank a little, and his fur started to shine like a jewel.

As the curse grew stronger, Allen became more perfect as a “mascot,” losing more of his humanity.

“Allen-sama! Please look, I am overflowing with power! Like this, I won’t be afraid of any magical beast!”

The revived Misha raised a voice of sheer joy and scooped Allen up. She hugged the fluffy golden mass tightly against her generous cleavage, rubbing her cheek against him.

“Hyau!? W-Wait a minute, Misha! Don’t fluff me, I can’t breathe!”

To Misha right now, Allen’s cries of “Kyuu kyuu!” sounded like nothing more than the sweet, spoiled voice of a pet.

“Allen-sama, I cannot possibly leave someone as precious as you in such a windswept place. Let me guide you to my hideout. There are others there who have lost their home, just like me.”

Misha wiggled her tail powerfully and advanced deeper into the forest, still holding Allen.

They arrived at an old, abandoned shack carved into a rock wall. Perhaps it had once been a guardhouse for miners; although tattered, it was spacious enough to keep out the wind and rain.

There were three guests already present.

A Harpy girl with a broken wing.

An Orc girl with a chipped horn who had lost her will to fight.

And a small Slime girl whose water had become murky, unable to maintain her shape.

“Everyone, listen! I’ve brought a wonderful Spirit-sama. He is our new ‘Master’!

At Misha’s declaration, the weakened monster girls looked up.

Seeing the absolute despair in their eyes, Allen solidified his resolve.

(…I am a prince. It is the duty of royalty to protect the people. Even in this form, I cannot possibly abandon these girls who have been forsaken.)

Allen jumped down from Misha’s arms and, standing in the middle of the old shack, proudly puffed out his chest as much as a mascot could.

【Hello, everyone. I am Allen. …Starting today, I will turn this place into a sanctuary where you can rest easy. So, I want you to lend me your strength.】

His pure telepathic message reached their hearts, which had been on the brink of despair, as a single ray of hope.

◆　◇　◆

Meanwhile, at the royal castle.

A single girl was standing in Allen’s private chambers. It was the Court Mage Luna, who wore intellectual glasses and had short, indigo hair.

With tweezers, she picked up a strand of golden fur that had fallen on the floor and analyzed it with a magic lens.

“…There’s no mistake. This mana wavelength belongs to Allen-sama. But what is this biological composition? A mammal… and it closely fits the category of an extremely rare spirit beast.”

A sharp light dwelled in Luna’s eyes. She knew of Elizabeth and Sylphi’s abnormal obsession. And she also knew of the explosive energy that resulted when their manas collided.

“I have to find him before those two catch him. …But, if Allen-sama has truly turned into such an ‘adorable form’…”

Luna suddenly envisioned herself holding Allen and monopolizing his brushing time — her face turned bright red.

“N-No, I shouldn’t! Rescuing him comes first! Wait for me, Allen. I will absolutely return you to your original form!”

With firm resolve, Luna picked up her grimoire.

The only person who had figured out that Prince Allen was still alive, and knew about his new “fluffy” form, was about to start her search.