A little while earlier…
Dim, flickering light wavered across the research lab, as if it couldn't bear the oppressive gloom that saturated the room.
The walls were peeling and mottled, dust-filled corners heavy with the marks of time. Rows of experiment tables stood in chaos, scattered with flasks and reagents—some dried up, others still fizzling with unknown chemical reactions.
On the floor, an unidentified liquid slithered through the grooves of the tile, seeping toward lower ground and leaving behind twisted, strange trails.
And near the center of it all, a certain racing event between a man and his horse girl was still ongoing…
Haru himself was doing just fine, but his Uma Musume seemed to be having issues.
Maybe it was the prolonged sprinting that had worn her down, or maybe it was something else—but her pace had noticeably slowed.
Even her usage of Water-type moves had dropped dramatically.
And yet... wasn't she still rolling in bliss earlier, thanks to the catnip?
There was no way a Mythical Pokémon's stamina could bottom out that fast—Mew should still have plenty of gas left in the tank.
Growing suspicious, Haru stopped fiddling with the erhu and looked down at the little pony beneath him.
"Mew? What's wrong with you? Don't tell me this style still isn't wild enough for you?"
"Well then, guess I'll have to bust out my secret technique."
"N-no no no, that won't be necessary! It's already way too over-the-top, nya~ I have nothing but respect for your scholarly creativity, Master, nya."
"But Master, you might want to brace yourself, nya."
Mew said this with a peculiar smile—like a fox that just got away with stealing a hen.
"What do you mean? Brace myself for what?"
The moment Haru asked that question, a loud commotion erupted above him.
More precisely… it was the unmistakable sound of several different women shouting at once.
"Ha! If we're going down, Lusamine, then we're going down together!"
"Let... let go of me, damn it! Stop dragging me with you!"
"W-Wait! I'm still up here! I don't wanna fall like this, aaahhh!"
"...?"
"What the heck's going on?"
Haru tilted his head in confusion, completely baffled.
Did he just hear Lusamine, Iono, and Wicke up there?
No way—why would those three be here together? Didn't each of them have their own stuff going on?
Before Haru could think further, Mew reacted faster.
Even though she was still tethered to Haru via the "collar," which made it hard for her to control her powers precisely, she still managed to use psychic energy to catch the three falling women and gently lower them to the ground.
Having finished her rescue operation, the pink-haired girl—still in her Lillie disguise—turned to Haru with a mischievous grin.
"All done, Master, nya."
"Now it's your turn to put on a show, nya~"
"Who would've thought so many were hiding up there? Feeling the pressure, Master?"
Still wearing Lillie's appearance, Mew asked with curious eyes.
Up to now, Haru had only ever fought one-on-one—he'd never truly faced defeat.
Mew was genuinely curious—did Haru really have no limits? Was he actually as invincible as he seemed?
Or would he finally fall to the combined special attack of a trio of girls?
"..."
In that moment, Haru finally pieced together what had just happened.
He pulled out the Star Relic Lance from the Water Curtain Cave, eyes locked on the trio of women who had dropped in from above.
Even without looking closely, he could tell something was very wrong with them.
Their faces were flushed red, their eyes practically dripping with seduction, and their little mouths gasping for breath.
They'd clearly been... drugged.
So here came the real question—these women had obviously been dosed with something, and they just so happened to crash this scene at this exact timing and location.
Who was the most suspicious party here?
Haru's gaze slowly shifted toward Mew.
"...Mew, don't tell me you're running some weird scheme again?"
"I was still in the middle of punishing you—and you're already starting new trouble?"
"Looks like I really should've gone all out on you and deleted all your accounts without mercy."
Mew panicked at that and scrambled to defend herself:
"N-no no no! I know it looks like my handiwork, but this time it really wasn't me, nya!"
"If you want the truth, this whole setup was orchestrated by that human woman—Wicke."
"All I did was catch them. I didn't do anything else, nya!"
Haru narrowed his eyes, unconvinced. "Really?"
"Really, nya, I swear! And Master—you don't feel something's off?"
"Hm... now that you mention it, the air has smelled a little weird since a minute ago. But... it's actually kind of nice."
"Did they spray perfume or something?"
"That 'perfume' is the drug that did this to them, nya. It was developed by Wicke. And the fact you can smell it means... you're affected too."
"And this concentration… it's terrifying, nya. You might need to put in some serious work if you want to 'conquer' them."
No sooner had Mew finished speaking than Haru saw Lusamine—cradling what looked like a landmine—barreling toward him.
And right behind her, Wicke and Iono lunged at him too.
All three radiated killing intent. They were absolutely not going to be easy to handle.
To make matters worse, Haru could feel something strange in himself too—like he'd gone through two Focus Energy boosts, granting him 100% critical hit rate.
He also felt like he'd just been Tera-Fire typed—his whole body burning with heat, ready to unleash Overheat at any moment.
No doubt about it—this was the drug Mew had just described.
And standing between him and the incoming wave of danger—was Mew going to protect her Master?
...No. She decisively chose to join the other side.
The drug had no effect on her—but wasn't this the perfect opportunity?
This was her elegant betrayal of her Master.
At that moment, the tides reversed—Haru was now the true challenger!
"Wait, I was just here for some friendly racing—what the hell are you trying to do?!"
Just as Haru tried to object, Mew lunged and tackled him to the ground.
Tackle—yes, this Mew had now learned how to weaponize defense into offense!
With Mew seizing the initiative, Lusamine and the others wasted no time diving in after.
Today, they would finally bring Haru crashing down—and wipe away all their past defeats!
---
As Haru's dramatic battle loomed ahead, Lillie and Lana finally reached their destination.
"We're here. What do we do next?"
"Kick the door down?"
Lillie, now far more mature than before, shook her head.
"No... we should check the situation first."
"Maybe Mr. Haru can resist that woman's temptations."
"We need to believe in Mr. Haru."
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