Chapter 162: Noah will be defiled, whether he wants it or not.

She advanced and Noah stepped back again, at which the goddess asked him playfully.

"Why are you moving away?"

"Because I know you."

"You shouldn’t reject something before trying it."

"That sounds exactly like something I don’t want to hear from you."

The goddess kept advancing and Noah stepped back once more.

"Stop."

"Nervous?"

"No."

"You’re backing away."

"Because you don’t respect personal space."

"I’m the goddess of love and fertility."

"That doesn’t give you permission to invade my personal space."

"I could give you a demonstration."

"I don’t want one."

Noah’s back hit something, so he quickly looked behind him and a white wall had appeared where there had been nothing before.

Noah closed his eyes.

"Of course."

The goddess planted a hand beside his head, so Noah looked at her again and she was far too close.

"What are you doing?"

"Trying to get you to reconsider my proposal."

"I’m not going to reconsider it."

"I could make you feel really good."

"I don’t need you to convince me."

"That’s what you say now."

The goddess leaned her face in and Noah turned his head.

"Get away."

"You’re blushing."

"Because you’re too close."

"Then I am getting somewhere."

"It doesn’t mean what you think."

The goddess slowly slid one hand down her own side while keeping that provocative smile.

Noah tried to ignore her.

"It won’t work."

"Sure?"

"Yes."

She brought her lips right next to his ear.

"I could reward you for all your hard work."

Noah squeezed his eyes shut.

"No."

"I could spoil you."

"I said no."

"I could let you do all those things you’ve surely imagined at some point."

Noah looked at her immediately.

"I haven’t imagined anything."

The goddess smiled.

"Liar."

"You can’t know that."

"I’m a goddess."

"That doesn’t..."

She ran a finger down his chest and Noah grabbed her wrist at once.

"Enough."

The goddess looked at the hand stopping her and then at Noah.

"Sure?"

"Yes."

"Last chance."

"No."

"You’ll regret it."

"I don’t think so."

The goddess made a small gesture of disappointment.

"The humans from your previous world would have started wars for a chance like this."

"I just want to sleep."

"How unromantic."

"I’m tired."

The goddess sighed and then stepped away.

The wall behind Noah vanished at once, so he breathed in relief.

"Thanks."

"Don’t get excited, my offer will still be available."

"Don’t worry, I’m not taking it."

"When you complete the group."

"Are you listening to me?"

"We can celebrate."

"No."

"With a long night."

"I said no."

"Or maybe two nights."

"I already told you that..."

"Better make it three."

"I’m not negotiating!"

The goddess burst out laughing and Noah clenched his teeth.

"You enjoy teasing me way too much."

"A whole lot."

"I already knew that."

She headed back toward her throne, but before sitting she looked at him over her shoulder.

"Either way, rest time is over."

Noah raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

"You’ve still got work."

"Wait."

The goddess snapped her fingers and Noah felt the floor disappear.

"At least tell me which of the two it’ll be first!"

The goddess smiled.

"You’ll find out when you wake up."

"That doesn’t help!"

"Good luck, my dear stud."

"Stop calling me...!"

Everything vanished and Noah opened his eyes.

"...that."

He stared at the ceiling of his room and for several seconds didn’t move, but then brought both hands up to his face.

"Damn goddess."

His heart was still beating faster than normal.

He didn’t know which was worse.

The offer, the insistence, or the fact that she had created a wall just to corner him.

Noah rolled onto his side.

’At least it was a dream.’

Pause.

’Well, not exactly a dream.’

Everything that happened in that dimension was far too real to consider it one.

Noah closed his eyes again, since he needed to sleep and was still tired, so maybe he could recover a few hours before...

Bzzzz.

Noah opened his eyes.

Bzzzz.

He looked toward the desk and his phone was vibrating, but it turned out it wasn’t exactly the phone.

A golden light was blinking from the screen and Noah remained completely still.

"Don’t be like that."

Bzzzz.

The Golden Clover symbol appeared and Noah closed his eyes.

"I just got back."

Bzzzz.

"You could wait until tomorrow."

The app didn’t answer, of course, so Noah got up reluctantly, took the phone and sat back down on the bed.

He unlocked the screen and the Golden Clover app was open with a notification occupying the center, so Noah tapped it.

The screen changed.

[NEW MISSION]

Noah swallowed and below it a new line appeared.

[Main objective: Recruit Hikari Amatsuki.]

Noah stayed completely still, since he recognized it immediately.

Hikari Amatsuki.

The top student of her generation and the girl who was always among the highest academic rankings.

Noah stared at the screen.

’One of the two left.’

Only she and Stella remained.

That meant that, after everything that had happened, he was finally entering the last stage of recruitment.

Noah should have felt relieved, but instead he immediately remembered something.

Hikari Amatsuki would not be easy to convince at all, so Noah let his head fall back.

"Of course."

The Clover vibrated again, so Noah looked at the screen once more and a new line appeared under the objective.

[Additional information available upon starting the mission.]

Noah narrowed his eyes.

"No."

The screen stayed the same.

"I’ll read it tomorrow."

Noah turned off the phone and left it on the desk.

He returned to the bed, covered himself with the sheets and closed his eyes.

The silence lasted five seconds and Noah opened his eyes again.

"Hikari..."

He knew too much about her.

He knew what she was like, how much she valued her studies, and that convincing her to take on responsibilities as a magical girl would be complicated.

Noah kept staring at the ceiling.

Then he remembered the goddess’s words.

Only two left, which were Hikari and Stella.

Once both of them were in, the group would be complete.

’Two more.’

Noah breathed slowly.

’Two and it’s done.’

He stayed silent.

’Sure.’

Noah closed his eyes.

After everything he had lived through since arriving in that world, he should have already learned something.

Every time he thought a mission would be simple, that was exactly when his problems started.