CHAPTER 128: WHAT’S THAT SHIT?!

"Me protect you, madame. No worries. Rae strong. Rae so strong, Rae can lift madame up."

He shouted like he was making some kind of big announcement, puffing his chest out and slapping his own biceps like they were made of steel.

Then he walked stiffly towards her, arms bent at the elbows in a square, like a soldier trying too hard to look cool.

"Wait! Hahaha. You can’t lift me up, Rae-kun. Hahaha."

Melissa was still laughing when he came right up to her and wrapped his arms around her from behind.

Of course, poor little Rae, being short and all, ended up with his small, eager face buried right between the deep, warm crack of her enormous cheeks.

"Aah~ Rae-kun, wait!"

Melissa’s body jolted at the sudden hug. She could feel his small hands grabbing at her thick thighs, fingers trying to squeeze inward but not quite reaching.

He was clearly trying, but his height was making his grip awkward and his strength even more pitiful.

"No. Rae prove madame. Rae will lift madame."

He gave a serious grunt like he was about to hoist a mountain. He bent his knees, pulled with all his might, but absolutely nothing happened.

All he managed to do was make a few louder grunting noises and push his face even deeper into that plush valley between her cheeks, as if trying to hide in there forever.

Of course, he could have just lifted her up.

He was level forty for godsake. Even if his arms didn’t look like they could crush rocks or tear apart a tree, the strength was still there, buried under skin that looked way too ordinary for someone of his standing. And that was what bugged him.

He had the stats, the power, the level... yet not a single damn bicep vein popped out to flex on anyone.

It was like the system went, "Yeah, you’re strong, but let’s keep you looking like an everyday goblin uncle who spends his afternoons napping."

In this world, level was everything—your strength, your influence, your seat at the table.

A level forty was supposed to look intimidating, to make people step aside just by walking into a room.

Him? He looked like he had just waddled out of some cheap fantasy novel, potbelly and all, the kind of goblin you’d see tending a roadside grill.

He sighed internally, shaking his head, but that thought was gone the second he took a deep breath—pulling in the full, intoxicating mix that was Melissa.

It wasn’t just a smell; it was like inhaling a whole damn Chapter of something forbidden. Warm, heavy, and sweet in a way that made his chest tighten.

It was like leaning over the edge of the tallest mountain in the world and taking in a breath that was all woman—soft and hot, nothing like the crisp, clean chill of high peaks.

This was the kind of scent that wrapped itself around your lungs and refused to leave.

The holy part? That was the kind that made you close your eyes and just... exist in it.

The unholy part? That was the kind that whispered to the animal in you, the part that made your hands twitch with the urge to pull her closer and never let go.

His little brother was already standing tall and proud, like a soldier ready for inspection, and Rae, being unusually cautious these days, had at least bothered to slip on his cute little white underwear.

The poor thing was stretched to its absolute limit, the thin fabric clinging desperately as if it could somehow keep the monster inside from breaking free and storming the battlefield.

And of course, while this was happening, there was someone in the background quietly boiling over with rage.

Adrian.

Peeking out from the slit of his tent flap like a suspicious raccoon, only one eye visible, glaring as if he could burn a hole right through Rae’s back.

"Dammit. He’s at it again. First Alice, then Lyra, and now poor Melissa too. What is he?"

Adrian muttered under his breath, jaw tightening.

It wasn’t fair. These women were his. He’d been around them for so long, earned their trust, shared their moments, their laughs.

By all logic, they should be falling into his arms—not crawling toward some smug little goblin with a dumb grin.

"Look at him. He’s going to suck all of her ass into his nose."

He hissed, teeth gnashing, hands clenching at his sides. His foot stomped on the ground, the kind of petty stomp that screamed pure frustration.

"Yes... I should follow them," he whispered to himself, a plan already brewing in that jealous, twitching brain of his.

...

"Okay fine. You can come but when I says hide, you hide under my cloak, alright"

After relentless pestering from Rae, him clinging to her like a cat begging for food, Melissa finally gave in. The least she could do now was make sure the little brat didn’t end up as monster lunch.

"Hide under madame’s cloak?"

Rae blinked at her, head tilting to the side like he’d just heard the most suspicious phrase in the history of phrases.

That tiny movement alone was enough to make Melissa’s chest flutter. She reached out and ruffled his hair without even thinking.

He looked like one of those small, clueless animals that tilt their heads when they hear a weird sound, completely unaware they’re about to get eaten.

’Wait, what the hell kind of line was that?’

Rae was genuinely lost.

Under her cloak? What was she even talking about?

Usually when someone strong wants to protect the weak, they say hide behind me, not hide under me.

And the funniest part—she didn’t even have a cloak. Not even half a cloak.

Melissa was wearing her usual signature green leather armour, the tight kind that hugged her in all the right places, built for speed and stealth.

The kind of outfit that made any sane man think about tackling her right there on the grass, stealth be damned.

"This..."

Melissa muttered, fishing out a thin black cloak from her saddlebag. The thing looked so flimsy Rae thought it might disintegrate if the wind blew too hard.

It reminded him of those cheap plastic carry bags from the corner store.

She slipped it on with a flourish, spreading her arms and giving it a dramatic little swish, like a kid showing off a new princess dress to her dad.

"Tada..."

"..."

"Ermmm... Say something, Rae-kun."

"..."

Like what was there to say here It was ugly. Not just normal ugly, but spectacularly ugly. The kind of ugly that could end wars because both sides would stop fighting to laugh.

Honestly, she looked like she was doing unpaid mascot work for the National Association of Plastic Bag Manufacturers.

Rae’s mouth twisted into a scowl at the fit. Melissa just chuckled like it was all part of her master plan.

"Don’t search for looks, Rae-kun. Search for functionality. And this thing is one of those."

She gave the tragic cloak a few pats, almost like she was comforting a dying pet. Rae caught that tiny flicker of sadness instantly.

His lips twitched upward, eyes narrowing with the gleam of a man who’d just spotted prey.

’Is that my hook for the jiggle’

He was honestly shameless. Not only was he hunting for jiggle moments, he was willing to dig through her sad little memories just to trigger one.

The man was fully invested in his self-appointed quest, the Great Cheek Jiggle Hunt, and by the looks of it, he wasn’t stopping until he completed it.

After a moment, Rae finally raised his hand and gave her a big, lazy thumbs up. Not the sincere kind either—more like the "fine, here, take it and shut up" kind.

Melissa still burst out laughing though. She knew exactly why he was doing it and didn’t even care.

"Can’t use this carelessly though. It’s hard to recharge. So we have to be careful within."

That line went in one of Rae’s ears, had a quick look around, and then happily leapt out of the other.

He had no damn clue what she was on about, and frankly, he doubted that this trash-tier looking cloak could do anything except make her look like the spokesperson for a discount market.

But hey—he came from Earth. Back there, magic was just fiction, and goblins were those ugly little creatures you read about in fantasy novels that probably deserved to be stomped out by a sword-wielding hero.

Now here he was, in a very real magical world, as one of those ugly little creatures, with a very real lust system that basically rewarded him for doing anything lewd.

So yeah, maybe the cloak did have some hidden "functionality." Or maybe Melissa was just pulling a fast one and it was literally just a piece of crap fabric she liked.

Either way, Rae wasn’t going to start trashing it in case it actually worked.

’Whatever it is, it’s probably got something to do with her personal life. And personal life means personal details.’

’Am I finally about to hear her lore?’