My Dungeon Life: Rise of the Slave Harem

“Lydia.” I called out. “It’s me.”

Wouldn’t it be great if it was that simple? Before I did anything else, I just needed to reveal myself to her. If she was my Lydia and there was nothing specifically wrong, then she would immediately jump into my arms, and there would be no contest. However, life never seemed to work out so cleanly for me. The catgirl blurred, immediately using her speed to the point where I lost sight of her.

“Behind you!”

I spun just as a kick slammed into what would have been my back. I narrowly blocked with my gauntlets, Alysia absorbing the brunt of the hit. I had no intention of playing around in this match. I didn’t know why this Catgirl of Doom hid her identity, but I intended to get to the truth of things. I only had one chance, and I definitely wouldn’t blow it.

I came at the black catgirl hard, using sword techniques and quick attacks to face her head-on. Our hands moved back and forth, each side blocking the other strike after a strike. To an outsider, it might have resembled the motions of a martial artist, although I didn’t know anything about karate. Our hands were our blades, and each strike attempted to injure and wear down the opponent. Our movements were so fast that it was a blur to someone who was a low enough level.

The black catgirl showed no emotion as she fought viciously. Even this close, she didn’t seem to show any indication. Was I mistaken? Was this not Lydia? I also considered several other possibilities. Maybe, she was under someone’s control. I knew such devious puppetry skills existed. I had also known karmic infections to control people and make them act under someone else’s control. Then, there was the possibility that I didn’t even want to think about. What if Lydia died, and this was her replacement, much like Salicia.

I shook my head. Even if that was the case, Salicia had loved her sister, and even her clone had some kind of ingrained love. I couldn’t believe in a version of Lydia without me. Unfortunately, my thoughts had distracted me, and the black catgirl took every advantage. I found her breaking through my attacks. I got stuck three times before managed to jump away and make some distance. She had struck me once on the arm, once on the leg, and once in my side.

At first, I thought that hits were minor, but I immediately felt numbness in every place she hit. I found my leg and arm didn’t move quite right, and it was slightly more difficult to breathe. I raised my hand to cast heal, but whether she knew I had magical healing or not, she seemed to react almost instinctively. She moved forward and attacked, giving me no time and interrupting my spell.

Realizing how the fight was going south, I threw caution to the wind. I put all of my efforts into a single strike, allowing her to hit me in the process. The two of us met, and I felt myself flying back, striking one of the posts with enough power that it cracked. That hurt. I spit up blood as I forced myself up to my feet. I didn’t regret my actions though, because I had met my goal. I had knocked the mask covering her face away. I was finally able to see the true identity of the black catgirl.

“It is Lydia.” I breathed.