I Reincarnated into a Game Filled with Mods

Side Story: Enhancement Potion – 2

“…….”

I sat still, unable to say anything. The hand that had been nervously fiddling with mine was suddenly gone. It was only natural with such a horrifying scene unfolding before my eyes.

Ceres gazed down at her chest, which had become completely lifeless and devoid of any curves. Her trembling fingers tugged at the micro bikini that had slipped down to her waist.

However, the bikini just hung limply again. The orange eyes that witnessed this turned even darker.

Her fingertips traced her chest. Fingertips touched her torso, and her arms moved up and down.

In sync with her movement, her fingers moved up and down perfectly, as if gliding over a beautifully carved marble wall.

The hand that had been tracing her chest quickly fell away. A dreadful silence surrounded us. I pondered what comforting words could possibly help her, and whether I, of all people, could allow Ceres to find solace.

“Hey… what was the name again? Delta?”

Suddenly, Ceres looked up at me with a bright smile that I had never seen before.

“I had fun today. Please take care of this house.”

‘This insane—’

Without a moment’s hesitation, I snatched the knife that was about to pierce my own heart. I had gripped it so tightly that the blade trembled in my palm.

‘That could’ve been disastrous.’

If my reaction had been even a moment slower, my heart would have been stabbed. Sure, people here generally don’t die easily, but getting stabbed in the vital point would still kill anyone.

According to the Knight Commanders, getting stabbed in the heart is more dangerous than being cut in half.

Even if someone is cut in half, they can recover completely if they use healing magic right away, but if the heart gets pierced, the likelihood of instant death is far too high.

‘Minerva is here, so I wouldn’t die, but…’

Having even failed at suicide, she must have felt even more miserable.

“Let go! What are you doing? I just want to die, so leave me alone!”

Ceres thrashed around. The table swayed, and the plates of food on top fell to the ground with a loud crash. I approached her and grabbed her wrist, still holding the knife.

“Are you insane? Why do you want to die?”

“Is there any reason for me to live now?! After I ended up like this, is there any reason?! I’d rather die than live like this! I want to die! I’m going to die! Let go of me!”

“Please calm down…!”

Ceres’s resistance was desperate. I had to use both hands to try and take the knife from her since even I, who could easily overpower Kaiquilia, was having trouble.

“Let’s talk after you put down the knife!”

I struck her wrist to make her drop the knife and pushed her against the wall. Crossing my arms above her head in an X, I secured her wrists tightly.

Ceres kicked her legs in a frenzy, but no matter how desperate she was, she couldn’t match my deliberate strength.

“Wahhhh… just kill me… or let me die… I don’t want to live like this… I hate it… Whooaaah…”

Realizing she couldn’t win through strength, Ceres began to cry instead, half-cradled in my arms. Tears filled with sorrow streamed down her cheeks.

“Ceres.”

“Wahhh… Waaaahhh…”

“There’s a way to restore your chest. So please calm down.”

“Wahh… Huh?”

At the mention of a way to restore her chest, the sobbing Ceres sniffled and swallowed her tears.

“Sniff… what do you mean?”

“I have a way to make Ceres’s chest grow again.”

“…Really?”

In the blink of an eye, the tears ceased, and Ceres fixed her glare on me. Her orange pupils sparkled.

The sight of her just moments ago, weeping as if the world were ending, was nowhere to be found. If there was a chance to restore her chest, she might even be willing to sell her soul to a demon.

“We knew all along that the effect of the enhancement potion you created was only temporary. Look, didn’t we accurately predict when the effect would wear off and come to find you?”

In truth, I had just remembered after forgetting it, but during times like this, a little white lie is necessary. I met Ceres’s gaze calmly.

“Then why didn’t you tell me earlier? If you had just let me know beforehand—”

“Would you have listened, even if we told you?”

“……”

“We clearly saw how happy you were when your chest grew bigger. If we had mentioned that the effect of the enhancement potion was temporary and that your chest would eventually return to its original size, do you think you would have accepted it? You probably would have kicked us out before we even finished speaking.”

“Th-that…”

Ceres trailed off. It seemed there was no denying that she would have kicked us out.

“That’s why we’ve come to you now. It’s a bit apologetic of us, but we had to time it just right for when the effect was wearing off.”

“Apologizing is fine. I couldn’t care less about that. So, the main point is that there’s a way to restore my chest to ‘normal’, right? Isn’t that so? Yes?”

Reading the madness in her eyes, I quietly nodded.

Technically, a chest with not a single curve would be her original state, but there was no need to provoke her further when she was already in a bad mood.

“Okay. So what do I have to do?”

“Just a moment, please. Minerva?”

“Understood. Here, drink this first.”

Minerva pulled a small vial from her robe and placed it on the table. Ceres’s eyes widened at the sight. The liquid inside was the same color as what she had made before.

“Is that the method you were talking about? If I drink that, I can—”

I pressed down on her overjoyed wrist gently.

“It will indeed make your chest bigger, but it’s not permanent. It will have the same temporary effect as the one you created. First, we need to get your chest back to the ‘original’ state, don’t we?”

“R-right. I can’t stay in this weird state.”

Just like Ceres did, I emphasized the word ‘original’ with feeling. Her orange hair flared dramatically. Nevertheless, her chest remains unwavering.

It was a rather pitiful sight, but I maintained my composure, letting go of the wrist I had been holding. Ceres rushed to the table and downed the potion. Her chest began to grow again.

It was the exact opposite sequence of when it had shrunk.

“Thank goodness… sniff… I’m so relieved… my chest…”

Ceres, her chest now a few sizes larger than even the Pope Sisters or Lize, was weeping as she kneaded her bosom. Tears that fell from her eyes rolled down the valley between her breasts.

“Ceres.”

“Sniff… yeah?”

“I can see you’re happy, but please cover up your chest first. Everything’s showing.”

“R-right! Sorry! I’m just all over the place! Where did my underwear go?!”

Ceres, covering her pink tips with her hands, dashed out of the room. The hurried footsteps gradually faded away.

“What a poor child.”

Minerva spoke in a tone filled with pity. I couldn’t help but agree. The moment her chest returned to its original size, she tried to kill herself without a moment’s hesitation.

Had she not remembered me at this point, we might only have found her lifeless corpse. It was a horrifying hypothetical scenario.

“Are you okay, child? Is your hand alright?”

Minerva, who had crept closer, began to massage my right hand—the one that had been gripping the knife.

“A knife for cutting meat wouldn’t even leave a scratch. Just a little grease is on it.”

“…I see.”

Minerva answered in a strange voice, then brought my hand up to her mouth. Lick, a strange sensation filled my palm. Minerva was licking my hand.

“What are you doing?”

“Just cleaning it.”

I was taken aback and almost pulled my arm away, but I noticed her grip tightening, so I resigned myself to letting it be. It seemed I was losing my sanity rather than my senses.

Did I accidentally grab the wrong scroll?

“I’m back!”

Before long, Ceres returned. Wearing a turtleneck that exposed only her chest, she had on a micro bikini that barely covered her nipples.

In terms of exposure, there was virtually no difference between now and earlier. The pink circle stood out prominently near the orange bikini.

It was tough to adjust to a world where exposure and fashion could be decided by such a minuscule difference.

“What were you doing?”

Ceres stood frozen, staring at Minerva, who was licking my palm like a cat. This time, it was their turn to look bewildered.

“It’s a side effect of magic research.”

“O-oh really? That’s a really interesting side effect.”

She looked like she had a lot to say, but since we had a method to make the enhancement potion’s effects permanent on our side, she decided to refrain from further questions.

“Anyway, what’s this method you mentioned? What do I need to do? Don’t tell me I need another vial of holy water imbued with light—”

“For detailed explanations, you should consult Minerva. And even if you need more holy water imbued with light, you don’t need to worry.”

The reason why holy water that glows with light is exceedingly expensive is that it is solely produced in the Holy Kingdom, and its properties make it extremely sensitive to shock during transport. Luckily, I already had solutions for both issues.

Ceres looked at Minerva with urgency.

“What’s the method, Minerva? Should I lick your toes or something?”

“What use would you have for my toes? That sort of thing is completely pointless.”

In her urgency, Ceres had even resorted to honorifics, but the moment Minerva frowned and stopped her teasing, she shrank back instantly.

“Unless it’s someone else, that might be different.”

With a flirtatious glance, Minerva met my eyes and flashed a mischievous smile. What was with that look while saying such things?

“Don’t worry. I won’t ask anything too difficult of you. You just have to help with a very simple experiment.”

---