What was more dangerous than a strong opponent?
The answer was a crazy person.
There was a certain step needed to deal with that kind of opponent.
First, I confirmed that Milea was in this building with <Presence Detection>. The safety of the hostage was the top priority. Even though I knew she could revive if she died, I didn't want her to lose a Level and experience it if possible.
Second, I still didn't know what to do with Mia. This girl went crazy because of the full moon's effect, combined with a suggestion that probably came from Princess Carissa. That yandere Princess was good at words, but I never expected my subordinate to fall for it.
As a result, this kind of incident happened.
Tak tak tak–
Mia walked down the stairs while spreading her arms, still with a scary grin on her face, as if waiting for me to jump and hug her.
"What's wrong, Sir Paladin? Come! This is your beloved Mia!"
It didn't look like she was controlled either, but I used <Appraisal> to make sure of it.
Name: Mia Castitas (Full Moon Rampage)
Race: Half-Human Half-Vampire
Lv: 22
Sins: 50
Virtues: 120
Status:
HP: 100/100 (MAX 100)
MP: 51/51 (MAX 100)
STR: 52 (MAX 100)
VIT: 50 (MAX 100)
AGI: 54 (MAX 100)
DEX: 38 (MAX 100)
INT: 5 (MAX 100)
LUC: 35 (MAX 100)
Skills:
[Lv 2 Holy Magic] [Lv 2 Blood Magic] [Lv 2 Cleaning] [Lv 1 Bloodlust]
Titles:
[Castitas Church's Nun] [Vampire Hunt's Survivor]
Her status was (Full Moon Rampage). Somehow, her STR, AGI, VIT, and DEX looked like they were doubled, but that was at the cost of her INT. I was glad she wasn't controlled, as that would simplify things.
But her title as [Vampire Hunt's Survivor] made me worried. When I used my <Appraisal> on it, the description made her look pitiful. It was a miracle she could still smile, but I now knew where her craziness came from.
When she arrived at the bottom of the floor, I ordered.
"Stop right there, Mia. If you stay quiet and surrender yourself, I will still forgive you and won't punish you harshly."
"…"
She stopped just as I ordered, but then she tilted her head 90 degrees to the left.
I was surprised that a person's neck could bend that much, but we were talking about a rampaging Half-Vampire here, and she was also a yandere. So I didn't focus too much on it as she began to mutter.
"Why?"
At first, I didn't know why she asked such an obvious question. Then… I realized.
"Why why why why why?!"
Mia clutched her arms and pulled the bandages hard without caring about her safety. She was clearly in pain as the bandages ripped apart, and blood began seeping out of many open wounds hidden beneath. Her skin looked like sharp claws ripped it.
"Why, Sir Paladin?! Is it because of that girl? AH, I know! You've been brainwashed."
Arriving at her own conclusion, she let the bandage fall to the ground and hugged herself with a loving smile.
"Don't worry. I can cure you. I have Lv 2 <Holy Magic> to cure brainwashing! I can also love you, so you will love me, not others! Also also!"
I kept silent as I wanted to hear what she had to say so I could know what to do. It was the first time I experienced something like this, being wanted by a woman to the point she even kidnapped her own colleague.
"Look at this!" Mia pulled out a necklace hidden by her nun outfit. "Did you see the ring? That's our marriage rings! It's called [Slave Ring] and will bind both of us forever! Isn't it wonderful?"
She pointed at two rings held by silver chains around her neck and smiled happily. Did she realize what she had said?
Looking at their designs, it was clear that both rings were to be used to slaving someone. How did she get it? There was only one source, and it was that crazy Princess.
"It can't be helped," I muttered in a low voice as I took a step forward. "I guess I have to do it by force."
Mia's state was currently too dangerous, even to herself. If I let her be, she wouldn't be able to return to normal and would stay in that rampaging state forever.
'I can't hurt her too much, but I also can't be lenient with my punishment. She has defied me and even wanted to make me a slave, after all.'
I pitied her, but this needed to be done. I wasn't naïve enough to forgive Mia without punishing her after what she had done. And so… I took a whip out of my inventory and let it fall to the ground.
"Once again, surrender yourself, Mia."
Releasing her hand from the chain around her neck, Mia looked at my hand, which held a short black whip.
"What's that for, Sir Paladin?" She asked curiously, holding her chin with her index finger. Then she clapped as if she had realized something wonderful. "Oh? Is it to punish the girl seducing you? If so, she's upstairs! I bound her hands tightly, so you could punish her right away!"
"It seems you misunderstand something."
Talking with a crazy girl would result in nothing.
"This will serve as my last warning. If you take a step forward–"
Cracking my whip, I looked at Mia coldly, hiding my emotion deep inside my heart.
"–I will subdue you."
The rampaging girl stopped moving and lowered her hands. Her face frowned deeply as her body moved stiffly, raising her head high.
"Did I hear that right?"
I didn't answer her question and only looked at her coldly.
As a result, she arrived at her own conclusion.
"Oh no. Sir Paladin is corrupted. I need to help him. He needs me."
Saying so, she bent her body forward and rushed toward me. With the boost of her rampaging state, she managed to close our distance in less than a second.
And when she was in front of me, she didn't hesitate to aim at my neck with her nails that got sharpened like a claw.
Swish!
I dodged it by stepping backward. My whip danced in the air as I moved my hand. It caught Mia's outstretched hand and her body, binding her.
While I had no <Whip Mastery> skill, I had trained enough to be able to use a whip to the basic level. At least enough to bind a girl without giving them a chance to fight back.
Her expression turned into a surprise as I pushed her to the ground, not expecting me to be able to dodge and counter her attack.
"Ack!"
Wasn't everyone underestimating me too much these days? Even my subordinate didn't expect me to be able to dodge something like this.
Before she could move further, I pulled the whip hard, securing a knot around her body and bringing her right hand behind. I quickly secured her left hand and pushed her against the ground.
"Release me! Sir Paladin! You need to be cured!"
Mia tried to bite me with her fangs, even to the point where her neck cracked and almost snapped. She had long since cared about her own safety, so…
"Calm down!"
Thud!
I knocked her out of the conscious.
