…Some giant lion-man has shown up in town. I have no idea what he is here for, but he very much looked like if lions were bipedal, and muscular beyond belief. This guy’s muscles were so big that I had a hard time believing that he could bend over to pick up something.

  He seemed to be about three meters tall, and also very wide–Not three meters wide, but I was going to pretend like he was, the image in my head was too funny not too–Regardless, that lion-man looked incredibly strong, and I suspected that he was here because of my planting of curses.

  His build turned out to be indicative of his area of expertise, as he was unable to figure out what was happening. He kept on searching around for something to slaughter with his bare hands, but I just went into my ‘Plush Form’ and evaded him every time he tried this.

  He wasn’t quite as perceptive as Red Snow in this regard and wouldn’t notice me even if I moved… As brutish as this guy looked, though, he did not seem to be an idiot. After a day of looking around like a beast of prey, he went away and came back the next day with a scantily clad tiger woman.

  I wasn’t quite certain why the people of the city wore clothes when the people in the forest didn’t bother, but they did, and this woman wasn’t wearing much at all.

  She was much smaller than the lion, shorter than me and also much frailer-looking than my human self, despite being a damned tiger. I’ve seen one of those once in the past. That thing had been just a mundane animal, not even considered a beast, and yet, it had been built with high-end muscles.

  The tigerfolk? I guess she had fairly prominent thighs, so maybe she could jump high like a real tiger… She wasn’t the kind that was just covered in fur for show, though. Her face wasn’t very bestial, but it was still bearing animalistic traits, like the nose and her teeth.

  She was the typical kind of beastfolk that human men would be willing to go for, even if they claimed not to be into that sort of stuff–I suspected that the biggest reason why men were willing for it despite the furry body was because of the hair. She has regular, human-like hair on top of having fur, and frankly… It did help make her way more ‘relatable’ in a sense. Such hair wasn’t a trait beasts usually had.

  It evoked a human.

  Regardless of my observations about her body, or my interest in checking how soft that white belly fur really was–The she-tiger was clearly a shaman of sorts. This type of mage was more common in Heldinot than it was in Rootriska.

  Shamans shared many similarities with the typical mages, but shamans had a stronger tendency to engage in sacrifice-type spell casting, and were also known to indulge in separate ways of power alongside their study of magic.

  Their differences were typically not great enough for it to actually matter that they were differentiated. This woman, though, had some symbols painted all over her body, which I assumed was the reason why she dressed so little.

  Soon after arriving, she set up some sort of area with various miscellaneous items and started dancing and chanting like she was possessed.

  This bitch is doing some divinations, isn’t she?

  Nara, do you think my ‘Plush Form’ helps against this sort of stuff?

  If you are regarded as an inanimate object, then it should definitely be effective… But I don’t think she is divining to find you

  Oh? What is this fluffy wench up to, then?

  …Wait a minute.

  Staying in my plush form, I had one of my little sisters take atop a tree to get an even better look at the city to make sure I wasn’t mistaken–I was not. The tiger woman had not divined to find the culprit, but the victims. She determined who exactly I had placed ‘Remember Me?’ onto, and from there, these people were quarantined away from the city like they carried a plague.

  My negative emotion farm! Those sweet sapient emotions with an edge of wildness to them! You can't do this to me. Not without offering your fluff up before at least!

  I can’t help but notice that there seems to be a fixation on the fur of beastfolks–I was under the impression that you did not like them very much?

  Nara, you can dislike people but still find good points in them. Not everything is black and white. I find beastfolks to be generally unpleasant, but they have animal parts, and animals are cute, cuddly, stupid, and I like them–Do you think there would be a way to transform someone's soul, erase some of their memories, and turn them into a cute little version of themselves for me to add to my adorable troop?

  …As a matter of fact, that isn’t that far-fetched of an idea. There is probably a piece of equipment you can unlock that can do exactly that

  Grandiose. For now, though… What do you reckon are the odds that this tiger lady is a light sleeper?

  Do you want to mark her with your curse? I would not recommend bringing too many beastfolks into the nightmare trials. Some of them have superior physical capabilities. They might be able to pose a threat, depending on the type of final trial they end up in

  Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

  Don’t worry, I had to deal with a few of those so-called ‘dangerous’ folks in my time–You see, there was this occasion where Leton got a huge crush on this adorable goat beastfolk. I am talking about a BEASTfolk, not a beastFOLK.

  She had all-white fur and was really cute… That was before he realised he was into big, muscular women, I suppose.

  Anyway, the problem was that she had a bunch of brothers who did not take kindly to a human hitting on their sister. Thus, I had to beat them all to death with a digging bar. Motherfuckers had some real tough horns and skulls, but I managed.

  Let’s not talk about the past for too long, though… What I really aim for is to get her into the nightmare trial, where I will be in my human form, so I can really get a proper feel of that fur. And ears. And tails… And those paw pads as well. I hadn’t noticed she had those until now, huh…

  Anyway, what do you think, Nara?

  Although she doesn’t seem to have a strong build, I can tell that she is still strong. Her muscle tissue is powerful. Therefore, I believe that she is certainly very aware of her surroundings even while asleep. She should have inherited many traits of the tiger

  As such, getting anywhere close to her without being noticed should be incredibly difficult

  What a shame. That tummy was calling out my name…

  Another nightmare trial is coming

  I guess they still didn’t figure it out over there? Is Heltna not bothering anymore, or is she unable to remove my curses now? I doubt the latter. She was clearly very talented… It was more likely that she had gotten busy with something else and wasn’t available.

  A shame for them, but a pleasure for me. Every final trial was one step closer to me acquiring the ‘Nightmare Form’ and becoming capable of so much more than now–I didn’t actually know exactly what this form would allow me to do, but I was already enjoying the lesser trials I was being offered, so it would surely be something great.

  I immediately accepted to be transported into the nightmare world, and found myself in a nice, brightly lit, cosy room. There was even a window giving sight outside, where a full moon was out, casting its pale shine upon what looked like an orchard of sorts.

  That’s definitely a more inviting setting than usual.

  The special Nightmare Trial’s goal for the prey is as follows:

  You will be presented with a series of facts and images concerning a woman called Mara Nebulo. All of it paints a very bad picture of her…

  The goal is simple: Pay close attention to what is presented, and then step through a door. Once you enter the room, you will be met with Mara Nebulo in person. Once there, you must not experience any feelings of attraction toward her

  If you do, your internal organs will be instantly blended into mush

  Remember what you learn and see. Is it really wise to lust for such a person?

  What the hell. It’s doing it again! I am a great woman! I am sure that whatever they’ll see is nothing but positive things I did! Why? Because I never do anything wrong, ever. I’ve only ever enacted any type of violence against people who deserved it!

  What sort of trial even is this? Is this the circle of hell where Asmodeus punishes sinners for being lustful goats?

  Mmh… I mean… It is a pretty easy trial for you to win, though, right?

  Obviously. I can’t show this to my cute ghosts, though. They aren’t ready to witness decadent stares like that… Also, I want to win. What’s in that closet?

  There was an assortment of outfits inside. Some of which I frankly didn’t even know what they were supposed to be about–Well, I knew that they were supposed to cause the rising of a certain something, but I had no idea what the actual context they were supposed to be worn in outside of this trial.

  Is this stuff from another world again, Nara?

  Looks like it–Oh. There is a swimsuit. A one-piece swimsuit. Can you put that on? I really want to see how you look with it!

  Should I understand that you will want to go to the beach wearing one of those things if you ever get a physical body?

  Yes

  Is it this…? The material feels a bit odd.

  As I put on the so-called ‘swimsuit’, I realise that it is akin to a leotard.

  I wore one of those when I was learning how to dance. They help show off your thighs in particular. For some reason, some men are very hyper-fixated on that part of the body. They like them big, which is good because mine are indeed quite large.

  The muscles had been properly trained under my diligent care. Though the attire showed off some of my attributes, it did little to offset my wide shoulders. When the width was clearly noticeable, it took away from my glorious lower body.

  It suits you perfectly, Mara

  Thanks, but it is a bit overly tight… I get that the trial demands that I am seen in my full glory, but…

  Just as I was talking with Nara, the door to the room was opened, and a sheepish-looking man entered, only to instantly fall dead to the ground the second he looked at me.

  …Alright, maybe this nightmare trial isn’t so bad. That was freaking hilarious.

  A system panel opened in front of me immediately as the man disappeared out of thin air, exactly at the same moment as the swimsuit also vanished from my body.

  Outfit already worn once. Use a different one

  Oh… So these attires can’t be used more than once? Does this trial think I need sexy outfits to win? That’s cute.

  As I wondered what to wear next, the door opened once again, and this time, the man didn’t even make it all the way into the room before collapsing. The door shut by itself as his lifeless remains simply disappeared in the blink of an eye.

  Outfit already worn once. Use a different one. The door will remain locked until something is worn

  …That was unexpected. Poor guy didn’t even stand a chance. That was probably his first time seeing a woman like this. He probably would have died regardless of whether or not he was in this trial or real life!

  Anyway… I guess that was a good occasion to check how good I looked in different outfits. I hadn’t had much diversity in the past, and this closet was absolutely filled with different styles.

  With some luck, I’ll get some more resilient prey coming in.

  It will be fun to torment them.