"Nae, Nae..."
Hatsune urgently called out Nae's name, coughing lightly a couple of times. The suffocating feeling in his chest seemed to have eased significantly, and his breathing became smoother.
The leg strength of the Bouncing Demon was incredibly powerful. Even with Nae shielding him and sliding for over ten meters, he was still hit hard enough to cough up blood.
What Hatsune was most worried about now was Nae. She had taken the brunt of the Bouncing Demon's feet. If he, as an indirect victim, had been hit so hard he coughed up blood, her condition would likely be much worse.
Despite repeatedly calling her name, Nae remained unresponsive, making Hatsune increasingly anxious.
He carefully examined Nae from head to toe. There were no obvious injuries on her body, especially around her mouth and nose. If she had suffered severe internal injuries, blood would be flowing from her mouth and nose. But Nae looked as if she were just sleeping, her expression peaceful and free of pain.
Hatsune reached out to check Nae's breath with his fingers, then pressed his ear to her chest. She really seemed to have stopped breathing.
Hatsune was shocked. In his panic, he glanced down and saw Nae's ample chest. He vaguely remembered the Bouncing Demon's foot landing right on her chest.
After a brief hesitation, Hatsune made a bold and embarrassing decision. Gritting his teeth, he unbuttoned Nae's shirt just below her chest, revealing her fair skin.
From the outside, Nae appeared quite well-endowed, but her abdominal muscles were very firm. Just below her chest, near her abdomen, there was a patch of redness that hadn't faded. The color of this spot was distinctly different from the rest of her skin.
Hatsune guessed that the Bouncing Demon's foot had landed here. But judging from the color of the injury, it didn't seem too serious. There wasn't even a bruise. So why was Nae...?
"Hey, Hatsune, what are you doing unbuttoning my shirt? What are you looking at? You wouldn't be looking at my..."
Before Nae could finish her sentence, Hatsune quickly covered her mouth. He had no doubt this strange girl would say the word "chest" in her usual tone.
He was already well acquainted with her odd behavior.
Hatsune felt like a thief caught in the act, his face as red as a ripe apple. His whole body felt uncomfortable, and he wished he could find a hole to crawl into. But he had to tough it out.
Nae sat up from Hatsune's arms. Seeing the blood on his lips and clothes, she quickly asked with concern, "Are you hurt?"
"I'm fine."
Hatsune raised his hand to block her reaching arm and asked in return, "How about you? Do you feel any discomfort?"
"Me?"
Nae looked down at herself and buttoned her shirt. "No, I don't feel any discomfort."
No?
Hatsune's eyes widened in disbelief. He thought he had misheard.
He hadn't taken the direct hit and was still coughing up blood. She had taken the Bouncing Demon's kick head-on and said she was fine? How was that possible?
"Don't pretend. Tell me if you feel any discomfort."
Hatsune deliberately spoke in an impatient tone, knowing that only then would Nae speak seriously. He thought she must be lying to avoid being a burden.
"I'm really fine. If you don't believe me, look."
Nae stood up, spun around, and jumped up and down a couple of times. Other than making Hatsune dizzy with her bouncing chest, she seemed genuinely fine.
"You don't believe me? Wait a second." Saying this, Nae started to unbutton her shirt again.
Hatsune quickly turned his head away, raising his hand to stop her strange behavior. "Alright, alright, I believe you." He had already seen enough to know she wasn't injured. No need to look again.
Hatsune reassessed Nae and suddenly remembered she had mentioned her special physique before. Could it have something to do with muscle density?
After thinking it through, he concluded this was the only explanation. With six times the muscle density, the Bouncing Demon's leg muscle density probably wasn't even close.
At that moment, Akino ran over hurriedly, asking with concern, "Hatsune, Nae, are you two okay?"
"We're fine."
"No problem here."
One answer was cold and indifferent, the other seemed somewhat cheerful.
Akino's expression mirrored Hatsune's earlier one—shocked and incredulous. Ordinary contestants hit by the Bouncing Demon were smashed like tofu. Yet these two were fine? They were indeed not ordinary people.
Under the combined attacks of the Bouncing Demon and Spider Demon, many contestants had already fallen. At this moment, the Three-Headed Demon was roaring and charging towards the crowd. Once it joined the other demons, the contestants would have no chance of survival.
Hatsune bypassed Akino and prepared to charge with his sword. Nae hurriedly asked, "Hatsune, what should I do?" She was still terrified from his earlier "get lost" and worried he still resented her.
Hatsune glanced at her without speaking and quickened his pace towards the Three-Headed Demon.
Nae was feeling heartbroken and lost when she heard a distant voice, "Go chop off the head of that bouncing guy."
Hearing this, Nae's face lit up with joy. Without thinking, she responded with a cheerful "Alright!" She knew this was Hatsune giving her a chance. If she couldn't do this, he might never speak to her again. But chopping off the Bouncing Demon's head...
Nae still felt a bit nervous.
Hatsune instructed Akino and Kimura to team up against the other demons, especially to assign two people to focus on preventing the Spider Demon's interference. They would first deal with the ordinary demons and then join forces to deal with the Spider Demon.
Hatsune himself charged straight at the Three-Headed Demon.
Hatsune's return to the battlefield left everyone both shocked and delighted. They didn't have the time to question why he and Nae were still full of energy despite taking a direct hit from the Bouncing Demon. They just wanted to end this brutal battle quickly.
Akino informed Kimura of Hatsune's plan, and the two decided to work together to deal with the Spider Demon.
Hatsune would fight the Three-Headed Demon, Nae the Bouncing Demon, and Kimura and Akino would restrain the Spider Demon. The rest would handle the ordinary demons.
The battle reached a delicate balance again.
The Three-Headed Demon had torn off its frozen arm, but the cut between its two heads had not fully healed. Six new arms were extending from its sides, and the six large hands grabbed at the contestants in the melee.
"Ice Breathing Fusion: Phantom - Snowfall."
A cold gust of wind and snow blew past the crowd, colliding with the charging Three-Headed Demon.
The familiar aura made the Three-Headed Demon furious, finally identifying the culprit behind its discomfort.
The six large hands turned their direction, no longer aiming at the melee, but encircling Hatsune from all directions, determined to crush him into pulp.
Hatsune fell into the encirclement of the six hands, and for a moment, it seemed like six shadows floated out of his body, confronting the large hands from all directions.
Using the perception field formed by the cold air, Hatsune swiftly moved among the six hands, the blade leaving icy scars on the palms.
This time, he decided to go all out, giving the Three-Headed Demon no chance to catch its breath, aiming to cut off its two heads in a short time.