Limitless Fortune: I Collect SSS-Rank Skills as Payment-Chapter 183: Stranded In A Vast Desert!

"Reason my ass. Lucien, I know what you are thinking. Turn around and don't look."

Lilith was, of course, very shy to realize that she was totally naked right now. But she was angrier at Lucien's behaviour.

Even if there was indeed some reason why he didn't release her in the Mirage Pond, shouldn't he do that just after exiting?

Why wait until she was completely suffocated? Lilith really never wants to experience that feeling again in her life.

"What turn around? I already saw everything. Besides, shouldn't I get a reward for saving you?"

Luicien didn't care about her anger, though, but took his time measuring her body with his eyes.

He had to say, unlike Sera, Lilith had a very good proportion of breasts and bust.

Maybe it was due to the Seed of Lust, but he felt extremely attracted to her body, more so than Sera.

In fact, if not for their location being odd and he was wary of his surroundings, he really wanted to press Lilith down right her. She looked just too seductive.

"Tsk…yeah, yeah. You really need a reward for your hard work."

Lucien was like a wood who just wouldn't listen. So, Lilith stopped persuading him and quickly took out her dress from her ring before wearing them immediately.

Fortunately, her change in form in the Mirage Pond didn't cause her to lose her mana ring, otherwise.

"..."

"Can you please not glare so strongly. I feel… uncomfortable."

Lilith thought she wouldn't feel much changing her dresses in front of Lucien. But she seemed wrong as this guy was too abominable and looked at every nook and cranny of her.

She felt so ashamed that she wanted to beat this guy if possible.

"Haha…okay. Don't feel shy and take your time."

Lucien chuckled and signaled Lilith with his eyes to put her long robes back on as he was done measuring her.

If he ever found the right place and time, he'd already decided to have some fun with this girl.

After all, that unexpected strip show in the middle of a desert had left him rather pent up.

It was quite the experience, he wouldn't lie.

It didn't take long for Lilith to get dressed, thanks to someone's gaze tracing every curve and every bend of her body. Even she, who was extremely bold for a girl, felt shy in his fiery gaze.

She was thankful that he didn't pounce on her right here.

"Where are we?"

After Lilith dressed up nicely, she finally looked at Lucien's eyes and asked. From the brief gaze around, all she knew was that they were in a desert, a vast, barren desert.

"How do I know?" 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Lucien rolled his eyes and faintly asked,

"Before that…girl, aren't you going to thank me for saving you? Are you so ungrateful that you don't even recognize your savior?"

No matter what, Lilith was alive today only because of him. To be honest, if Lucien really wanted to, he could kill her right after exiting the Mirage Pond.

After all, unlike Sera, their bond was made under extreme circumstances. She literally tried to kill him at that time, didn't she?

Even her mark was still in his mind, although that also managed to save him today.

"Sigh…okay, thank you for saving me. If you haven't come on time…I might really die this time. This place is so dangerous."

Apparently, Lilith also thought so and immediately thanked him from the depths of her heart.

Although they started on bad terms, due to the continuous events, she felt closer and closer to him.

And, to be honest, she couldn't deny that Lucien was the only man who was quite close to her, both mentally and physically.

It was inevitable that she would have some feelings. She was, in essence, a human after all.

"Haha…that's my girl. Finally, you came to your senses."

Lucien laughed at Lilith's serious expression, stepped closer, and pulled her into his arms. His hands moved on their own, playing with and molding her ample bosom through her clothes as if it were only natural.

His movements were so smooth that Lilith couldn't even react before she felt a tingling sensation on her breast.

"So, what happened to you? Why were you inside the Mirage Pond all of a sudden? Didn't we enter this place at the same time?"

Lucien suddenly spoke, diverting Lilith's attention in the process.

Well, it wasn't enough to completely distract her, per se, but Lilith chose to ignore his wandering hands. Maybe she thought it was his reward for saving her, who knew?

She merely let it slide and answered lightly.

"I don't know what happened. Right after I entered the portal, I was immediately teleported to that Mirage Pond. Then, I heard an announcement, similar to the one in the dungeon, saying it was a quest for class ascension. That's all."

Lilith shook her head, still looking confused.

"As for why we entered the portal at the same time, I think the time flow inside and outside the Mirage Pond is vastly different. That might be the reason."

She guessed while frowning slightly as Lucien pinched her nipple all of a sudden.

"Hmm… it might be because of your SSS-rank skill. That pond seemed like a very high-ranked place."

Lucien analyzed, comparing her situation to his own. Still, he couldn't understand why Lilith had received an announcement from the World of Origin, while he hadn't.

Besides, she even had a Bronze Origin Coin with her, granting her a second chance. But what about him?

'Is it trying to kill me or what?' Lucien thought, but quickly shook his head. If that were the case, he doubted he'd still be alive, no matter what he did.

"Did you get the announcement from the World of Origin after you failed to catch a fish? What about your class ascension?" Lucien asked, setting aside his random thoughts for now.

"Yeah, I got it as soon as I dived into the Mirage Pond. It said I failed to advance my class this time."

Lilith's tone turned a little somber. After failing her class ascension, she wasn't sure if she would ever get another chance.

Worse, she feared that if the next trial turned out like this one, she might actually die for good.

"Hmm, I feel like this situation was too strange and random. I don't think you'll get such a dangerous class ascension quest next time, if there even is one. After all, not just anyone can enter that place so easily."

Seeing the concern on Lilith's face, Lucien consoled her lightly.

From what he had learned from that short old man, the Mirage Pond was a rare, five-star Scene, an incredibly difficult place to enter even intentionally, let alone by chance.

So, he felt that encountering it again was nearly impossible.

"Yeah, I hope so. Sigh… let's not talk about this anymore. Why don't we first try to figure out where we are?"

Lilith didn't want to dwell on the incident that had clearly traumatized her, so she shifted the topic while scanning the vast desert around them.

But no matter where she looked, there was nothing but sand, no landmarks, no horizon markers, nothing she could use to gauge direction. She had no idea how to get out of this place.

"Didn't Grand Magister Orin give you anything for a situation like this?"

Lucien asked, seeing how lost she looked. Before the Genesis Rift Dungeon, he had noticed that Orin seemed to care about her deeply.

Someone that powerful must have anticipated something like this could happen, surely there was some kind of countermeasure, right?

"Yeah, he did place some kind of mark on me. But… after changing my form in that lake, I don't think the mark could have survived."

Lilith shook her head, feeling a dull ache building behind her temples. In truth, she hadn't wanted to come here at all.

But she'd had no choice; the invitation from the World of Origin was something she couldn't ignore.

She just never imagined things would spiral this way. Thankfully, Lucien was with her. Though he was infuriating at times and far too bold for his own good, at least he was someone she could trust… probably.

"Hmm… then that's too bad. Doesn't that mean if I did something bad to you right now, no one could save you? Hey, Lilith… aren't you afraid?"

Lucien suddenly said with wide eyes as if realizing something while pinching her nipple strongly, eliciting a painful moan from Lilith.

"Hey, can you please stop it now? Our situation is serious. Don't get distracted."

Lilith rolled her eyes at his antics and lightly slapped his hand in annoyance. Though interestingly, she still didn't push his hand away from her chest, even after he'd just tried to tease her like that.

After being saved by him, she had unknowingly grown dependent on Lucien, trusting him without even realizing it herself.