Catgirls And Dungeons (Yuri)-Chapter 264 - 264: Enhancing my sense!

However…
Ouch!
Ouch!
Ouchhhhh!!
I keep trying and trying, over and over, but no matter how I move or how I attack, Eris is always one—no, ten steps ahead of me! I still can't see her movement at all.
At this rate, my dream of Maid Eris will be over before it even begins!
Nooooo!!!
And now… there's only one minute left before time is up.
Grrrr…
Grrrr…
I glare at the dozens of Eris afterimages flashing and dancing in front of my eyes.
I'm furious—super furious—but I know anger will only make me slower. Eris is clearly trying to make me lose my cool!
Calm down, Felicia…
Calm down.
You can do this!
Wait…
An idea suddenly sparks in my mind.
What if… I channel demonic power into my eyes?
Would I be able to see better?
So far, I've only used demonic mana to enhance my muscles. It's been boosting my physical abilities like crazy. And thankfully, I rarely get those scary heart attacks now while using demonic power. It's simply because I have been training everyday, learning how to control it the way Alter showed me.
Right now, I can use demonic energy at roughly ten percent of what Alter could do. Yeah, it sounds small, but still—progress is progress.
And honestly?
I'm proud of it!
But thinking back…
Did Alter ever enhance her eyes with demonic power?
There were so many things happening at once back in Morvena's dungeon that I never actually paid attention to whether she did that or not!
Still, she always moved so fast, and her reaction speed was absurdly quick. So… she must have had some kind of hyper-sensing ability, right?
I don't know how it works, or if this will even work at all…
And trying this might be dangerous—my eyes could literally explode if I'm not careful!
But… now that the idea is stuck in my head, there's no way I'm letting it slip away without at least trying!
Alright. I'll start by infusing juuuuuust a tiny bit of demonic power into my eyes.
If anything feels wrong, I'll stop immediately!
And so, I… do it.
I focus…
And then…
…
Woaaahhhh… holy shit!!!
This… actually works!
I can't believe it—I can see everything so much clearer now! I'm a genius!
It's like time has slowed down. Like someone hit the 0.5-speed button on reality.
Eris's afterimages are still everywhere, but now I can actually see her weaving between them—she's literally dashing from one to the next!
Still… it's too fast!
I need more demonic power!
So I push more and more mana into my eyes, trying to slow my perception even further.
But then—
Arghhh!
A sharp pain punches through my head and my eye is literally burning. Time snaps back to normal, my vision blurs for a heartbeat.
I see…
This must be my limit!
Eris is still insanely fast—way too fast for my liking—but at least now I can react!
"THERE YOU ARE!" I shout, pointing my sword at the real Eris before charging straight at her.
She freezes for a split second, eyes widening.
Haha! She did not expect me to see through her tricks!
Alright—I'm coming for you, Eris!!!
With this newfound power, I can finally land a hit!
Maid Eris will be mineeee!
****
However…
Ahhhh… this is so embarrassing…
I thought I solved the problem—but it turns out I only solved half of it!
Because even if I can see the world in 0.25x slow motion…
I cannot move four times faster!
Yup. I completely forgot about my own speed limit!
All my movements are now slower than a dying snail, mostly because I shoved all my demonic energy into my eyes and left my muscles running on poverty mode!
FUCK!
"Eeeeeeeerrrrriiiiissss!!! Taaaaaake thhhiiiiissss—!"
I swing my sword, while even my mouth muscles are super slow now so I'm speaking snail language!
Everything is slow as fuck now!
God damn it!
And right in front of me, that girl forms that sly grin again.
No way.
No way!
Don't tell me she—
SHE FIGURED OUT MY PROBLEM!!!
Fuuuuuck!!!
I don't know if she's doing this on purpose or just being a menace, but Eris casually dodges… in the slowest, laziest motion possible.
She even tilts her head like she's posing for a painting.
Then, still moving at ultra slow speed…
She attacks.
With a smug little smile, she raises that cursed plush fish—
And aims straight for my head!
And of course, since I can't move fast at all, I'm completely doomed. I can only stand there and watch… in horrifying, cinematic slow motion… as the giant fish descends upon my skull like divine punishment.
Closer…
Closer…
And closer…
"AAAAAAA!!!"
NOOOOOT LIIIIKKKKE THIIIIISSSSS!!!
But then—
Whoooosh!
The fish… missed?!
Somehow, I… dodged it?!
What the actual fuck just happened?!
I have no idea what's going on. One moment, the fish was inches from my forehead and there was zero chance I could move away. But the next moment—bam!—it's like something suddenly supercharged me. Like I unlocked ULTRA INSTINCT: FELICIA EDITION!
My body twisted on its own, moving at insane speed, and whoop! I dodged that attack like a feral cat boss!
Even Eris, after swinging, stumbles a bit as she loses her balance.
"Woah! You are fast!" Eris exclaims. "How did you—"
"Ahaha! I don't know! But I guess I'm awesome now!" I grin, absolutely amazed with myself!
Perhaps… I really did unlock super ultra instinct mode! Some kind of automatic dodge reflex?!
Hoho!!!
If that's true—then I'm freaking unstoppable now!
But then…
Inside my head, I hear another voice.
"Super ultra instinct reflex? Haha, that's funny."
I hear my own voice.
Or rather…
HER voice.
Oh shit!
"ALTE—"
"Shhhhhh!"
I was about to say her name, but she instantly cuts me off!
Anyways, it's really her. Alter!!!
I can't believe it. I thought she'd need more time to recover and wake up, but apparently—she's here now!
Just hearing her voice fills me with this sudden burst of joy, warm and bright, like my whole chest is glowing! Hehehe, she sounds so healthy now, I'm so glad!
So now, I talk with her through internal dialogue.
(Alter, when did you even wake up? How are you feeling right now?) I ask.
(Kaka, never been better! I actually woke up a while ago, you know.) she replies.
(Oh shit! Then why didn't you tell me?! This is awesome!)
(Well, I had my reasons.) Alter answers. (Anyway, good job with your training so far.)
(Hehe, I'm trying my best!)
(So… about your little bet with Eris—want me to help you win?)
(OOOOOOOHHHH!)
Oh my god.
Now I get it.
That's why Alter stopped me from saying her name earlier—she wants to keep her return a secret from Eris!
If Alter helps me in secret, landing a hit on Eris would be child's play!
Muahahaha! The ultimate cheat code!
I feel a tiny bit bad for cheating… but honestly? Whatever! If it gets me Maid Eris, I'll take it!
(Alright, Alter—LET'S DO IT!)
(Sure.)
A surge of confidence rushes through me.
Meanwhile, Eris… she must have sensed something. Her expression sharpens.
"Hmmm… I don't know what just happened, but for some reason, I'm getting chills…" she mutters, lifting her fish sword.
Kuahaha.
Muahahaha!
I'm cackling like a villain inside my mind now.
(Alright, Alter—my body is yours!)
And just like that, I surrender control.
With Alter at the wheel now…
Victory will be ours!