Otherworld TRPG Game Master

Chapter 168: The Great Mental Labyrinth - 1

This world was full of filthy Illusion Magic.

Turning love into hatred, manipulating the brain to trigger uncontrollable dopamine surges, distorting memories, turning lovers into enemies, amplifying personality flaws, hypnosis, brainwashing, and all sorts of perverse applications⋯⋯.

Among these, there were also cases where cunning tactics were used to bypass people’s Mental Barriers. A prime example of this was Senior Scarface’s 『Puppet』 spell, which worked by slipping past defenses with a “I’m not a threat, just harmless data—let me in” type of tactic.

While researching these terrifying Illusion Magics for a TRPG, I suddenly became horrified by the realization that falling under a single spell could leave me like a brain trapped in a jar.

Who could predict if some deranged wizard might kidnap me, imprisoning me in an endless Illusion, or if some red-eyed ninja might cast a global Illusion Magic on everyone in the world1?

I’d rather be cooked to a crisp by a fireball than lose my sense of self to Illusion Magic. With that resolve, I poured all my energy into fortifying my Mental Barrier.

At first, I took the approach of adding modules piece by piece.

I installed a Backup-Retrieving Module to counter hypnosis and perception manipulation, as well as a visual-audio manipulation module with an artificial brain to process sensory data and so on.

As I added more and more, my mental barrier became like Howl’s Moving Castle2—a chaotic patchwork that occasionally malfunctioned.

“Ah, wasn’t that the time when you brought lamb meat, and they freaked out like a cat in front of cucumber⋯⋯?”

“Yeah, the barrier misinterpreted the lamb as an illusion spell and triggered the Flying Spaghetti Monster filter to warn the master.”

It took me a while to pinpoint which module had caused that glitch.

I needed to find a way to harmonize all these Illusion Magic defenses in my mind, and the breakthrough came from TRPG.

If I couldn’t solve it with science, why not take a literary approach? So, I created an entire world in my mind where all the modules could function seamlessly.

I built a virtual world in my head, modeled after the modern map I knew best.

Though it wasn’t my original intention, this structure turned out to be incredibly effective against entities that could cross between mental and physical realms.

-Please, let me out of here⋯⋯, I’m sorry⋯⋯!!

And this was the result of that.

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There was a cozy haven woven from the minds of those who had surrendered to pleasure—a palace of indulgence nestled deep within the mind, known as the Succubus’s Paradise.

With a mere thought, they could drain energy from others, and no matter how much they indulged in bodily pleasures, they would never grow tired. But that wasn’t all. Simply wandering through this palace would naturally replenish their strength and sharpen their abilities.

This was because the very act of experiencing the apex (極致) of Mental Magic with their own body brought new realizations.

Who could possibly weave together human minds to craft such a world? What wizard could accomplish this grand feat? Only the Queen. Their Queen, the sovereign of dreams, who was capable of toying with the minds of countless as she willed.

If someone grew tired of such boundless indulgence and sought a more intense『Stimulation』, all they had to do was bow their head before the Queen.

The pure white Queen would bestow upon them a pleasure so intense that a single second felt like decades of ecstasy.

“Ah, ahah⋯⋯!!”

That was⋯⋯ the pinnacle of unimaginable pleasure.

Succubus Isabella, who had experienced the Queen’s grace with every fiber of her being, had lived every moment since then for the sole purpose of reliving that fleeting instant of bliss once again.

Love, laughter, fulfillment, orgasms—all of it was meaningless. After tasting the heights of pleasure beyond human comprehension, every form of happiness in reality seemed dull, colorless, and insignificant.

Isabella had become the perfect slave to pleasure.

One day, the revered Queen summoned Isabella. She crawled toward her, heart racing, her naked body prostrate on the ground. It was a level of submission lower than that of a dog, but none of it mattered.

“You may raise your head.”

Even her voice was exquisitely beautiful.

With overwhelming emotion, Isabella lifted her gaze. White. The Queen’s skin was like pure alabaster, and her silky, snow-white hair cascaded over her naked body.

The mere sight of her made Isabella’s brain throb, and a thin stream of blood trickled from her nose. Her mind flooded with chemicals of pure pleasure, as if it were on the verge of collapse. She was happy—so happy she could die.

Succubus Isabella trembled, her eyes nearly rolling back in ecstasy, as she bowed deeply before the Queen.

“I-Isabella⋯⋯ humbly presents herself before you, my Master⋯⋯!”

“I have a task for you at the academy. You are in agreement, aren’t you?”

“Of course, of course⋯⋯! I was just thinking the same thing, actually⋯⋯!”

Eagerly nodding without even knowing what the task was, Isabella listened as the Queen explained her mission slowly.

Seduce the Third Prince and spread the drug throughout the Academy.

“Ah, crap. Hey, old man! Get a move on! Can’t you see the light’s red?”

“Who are you calling old man, huh! How old are you?!”

“No, the light is red. So step on the damn gas and just fucking go already! Are you some kind of outdated model?!”

Why was there a city she had never seen before in front of her?

Something was off. People were carrying around strange devices, rode unfamiliar vehicles, and there were tall buildings touching the sky everywhere.

And⋯⋯ at the center of the city. There was a large, black dome.

A pitch-black hemisphere that seemed to devour the surrounding colors, towering ominously against the skyline. Just looking at it filled Isabella with a sense of foreboding.

Succubus Isabella blinked, then pinched her own cheek, pulling at it. Her skin stretched like mochi, confirming this was, indeed, a dream.

She clenched her fist and extracted a surface memory. With some effort, she grabbed hold of a memory where the Crazy Wizard was resting his head on the Purple Magic Tower Master’s lap.

Her powers worked here. This was undeniably the 『Mental Realm』. But, no⋯⋯

“⋯⋯It can’t be.”

How? How could a mere human construct an entire world within his mind?

Even Her Majesty needed to bind together the thoughts of hundreds to form such a world. How was this possible?

Even if he had the talent, his head would have exploded!

“⋯⋯No, no. It’s fine.”

It didn’t matter. She had just been caught off guard. Isabella’s goal was to shatter the Crazy Wizard’s mind and control him. As long as her Mental Manipulation worked, the appearance of the dreamscape wasn’t important.

Isabella reached out with both hands to pull out the Crazy Wizard’s painful memories. She felt something within her grasp. Everything seemed to be going smoothly.

Suddenly, a chill crept down her spine. So, she looked around.

The city had gone completely silent. The roaring engines, the voices, the billboards blaring advertisements, the footsteps—all of it had stopped, as if time itself had frozen.

Then, all at once, the people stopped moving and turned their heads toward Isabella.

“⋯⋯W-What is this? What’s going on?”

“D-Don’t look at me like that! G-go away, won’t you?!”

It was terrifying. She felt like she had fallen into a nightmare. Hundreds—no, thousands—of people stared at her, motionless, like wax statues.

Then, one of them opened its mouth.

“Succubus.”

The word spread.

“It’s a Succubus.”

“It’s a Succubus.”

“A Succubus is inside.”

The murmur spread like wildfire. As if confirming amongst themselves, the people chanted “Succubus” over and over, all while staring straight at her. The city became deafening with their voices.

Wriggle.

Isabella, frozen in terror, glanced down at her hand. What she had pulled out should have been the Crazy Wizard’s memory, but...

A mouth had formed on the surface of the memory, whispering, “It’s a Succubus”.

“Hee, heeee⋯⋯!”

Drop.

Isabella flung the memory away as if shaking off insects. The bundle of memories tumbled across the asphalt, continuing to mutter “Succubus” as it rolled.

She had to run. Her instincts screamed at her. She had to run away right now!

Terrified, the poor Succubus ran away in fear.

1. Naruto reference2. Reference to a novel, Howl's Moving Castle. More commonly known for Ghibli's movie adaption of it.

It is a giant moving castle made out of miscellaneous components.