Tsukune desperately struggled against the much stronger Tamao, but before she could sink her teeth into his human flesh, they were both abruptly distracted by a scream.

“Tsukune!”

Recognizing the voice, Tsukune and Tamao turned toward the pool's edge and saw Moka rushing toward them.

“Moka!”

Seeing Tamao’s monstrous form, Moka’s fears and worries were immediately confirmed.

“Tsukune, what’s going on?!”

Tamao turns toward Moka with a grimace.

“YOU! Why are you back?! Don't you dare get in my way!”

Remembering Moka’s weakness, Tamao smirks.

"Not that you could. You're nothing in the water! What's the purpose of all that power if you can't even swim?!"

Tsukune turns to Moka with a confused look.

Can’t swim?

But before he can contemplate Moka’s situation, Tamao forcefully pulls Tsukune toward her, distracting him from Moka.

"I'm right, aren't I? It's a well-known weakness!"

Raising her claws to threaten Moka, Tamao gleefully shouts.

“There's nothing you can do! So, if you're going to insist on staying, watch quietly from there as I take your beloved Tsukune!"

But contrary to everyone’s expectations, Moka uses her supernatural strength to leap upward and dive toward the open pool. Tsukune, who managed to piece the puzzle in his mind, screams.

“Moka! No!”

Moka ignored Tsukune and continued diving toward the pool. Just before she enters the pool, she hears an angry voice in her head.

~Why are you being such a fool?!~

Moka knew very well that the other her disapproved of this.

But…

Unfortunately, Moka's thoughts are abruptly severed by an immense pain that engulfs her entire being. The moment her body touches the water, youki begins to pour outward. It feels as though every drop of her blood is draining from her body in all directions, seeping out through her pores.

As Moka's potent youki exits her body, lightning appears to crackle within the pool, stunning Tamao and Tsukune. A small whirlpool of chaotic power forms with Moka at its center, jolting everyone and everything around it.

“What is this?!”

Tamao's face twisted in terror as she realized the sheer depth and magnitude of Moka's power.

“Moka!”

Despite the growing instability of power due to Moka, Tsukune tried to swim toward her. He felt her youki electrify him, a sensation that, despite being familiar from previous encounters, remained painful if not lethal.

But after getting shocked a few more times, Tsukune was forced to pull back.

Moka!

Tsukune couldn’t push forward without risking himself. He started panicking, trying to think of a way to help her but before he could think of anything, he heard a familiar voice shouting at him.

"What's going on?! Why did Moka jump in the water?!"

Momentarily turning his attention toward the edge of the pool, Tsukune saw Kurumu. Despite her self-created rivalry with Moka, she had a worry-stricken face.

“Kurumu! What are you doing here?”

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Aware of the true nature of this club, Tsukune didn't want Kurumu to be ensnared in its grasp as well.

“Tsukune! Are you okay?!”

Tsukune nods.

“Yeah, I-”

Kurumu immediately continues, cutting off Tsukune.

“Tsukune! If we don’t save Moka, she’s going to die!”

Hearing those words, Tsukune felt his heart stop.

“W-What?!”

“Didn’t she tell you?! Unpurified water is dangerous to vampires! It drains them of their youki!”

Tsukune turns back to the growing ball of energy, recalling all the signs he had disregarded in favor of his personal desires.

Without any hesitation, he starts swimming toward Moka again.

“Oh no, you don’t!”

Tamao rushes toward Tsukune to grab him but recoils at the last moment, narrowly dodging a slash aimed at the spot she was about to reach.

“Where do you think you’re going you man-stealing lamprey?!”

Tamao looks up and finds Kurumu, already with her wings out.

“Go Tsukune!”

Tsukune could barely hear Kurumu over the sound of electricity around him but was thankful when he heard her shout.

“What do you think you’re doing you succubus?!”

Kurumu gives Tamao a proud and smug smile, the powerful flap of her wings drowning out the mermaid’s outrage.

“My man is clearly going to save a friend. What type of woman would I be if I couldn’t support him?”

Tamao grits her teeth and tries to swim downward but Kurumu dives deep into the water and attacks her.

“You fool! We mermaids are unbeatable in the water!”

Kurumu maintains her smile as Tamao shifts direction and charges at her. With a single glance, Kurumu shatters Tamao's feeble mental defenses and ensnares her with charm. Though the charm's efficacy is weaker on women, Kurumu's power surpasses that of the average succubus.

Distracted by Kurumu’s mental magic, Tamao loses some of her momentum, allowing Kurumu to strike her with her claws.

Kurumu draws blood but Tamao's monstrous form, empowered by being in water, prevents her from cleaving her in two. She clicks her tongue when she realizes that Tamao is going to be tougher than expected.

“Tsk.”

With water reducing her strength, Kurumu knew that she couldn’t deliver a decisive blow against Tamao. She turns around and sees Tsukune near the heart of the storm.

Tsukune, be careful!

Kurumu then used her wings to fly upward, escaping the pool's oppressive grasp. Once above the water, Kurumu saw Tamao swim toward her in a rage.

Idiot. You can’t beat me in water and you’re still going toward me.

Tamao explodes out of the water with surprising force, immediately closing the gap between her and Kurumu. Kurumu was prepared to fight Tamao but seeing her enemy smile was confusing. Just as she reached Kurumu, Tamao screamed.

“Everyone! If you want Tsukune! You can have him!”

After her scream, Tamao smirks at Kurumu. As gravity pulls her back, she doesn’t attempt a single attack. Instead, Kurumu rushed downward.

“You goddamn cheater!” shouts Kurumu.

Tamao laughed.

“All is fair in love and war!”

Kurumu dove into the water, where she was at a disadvantage, and immediately spotted a dozen mermaids rushing toward Tsukune. Gritting her teeth, she infused her wings with youki and propelled herself forward, just barely managing to catch up to the nearest mermaid.

Several mermaids turn and charge at Kurumu, but despite being in the water, she proves faster, a testament to her training and superior upbringing. She dodges to the right, narrowly evading the bone-crushing lunge of one mermaid. Before the mermaid can escape her range, Kurumu delivers a sharp blow, cutting her tail and leaving a sizable gash.

Good. They’re not as tough as that other girl.

Kurumu keeps Tamao in her peripheral vision, worried that this stronger mermaid would suddenly charge her.

Seeing one of their friends get hurt, most of the mermaids that wanted to take Tsukune turned their attention to Kurumu, who managed to move quickly enough due to her strong youki-infused wings.

Moving gracefully, if not sluggish compared to her normal pace, Kurumu dodges and weaves around the incoming mermaids. Most of them were her seniors but it was clear that unlike her, these monsters didn’t have formal training to strengthen their natural talents.

As Kurumu dodges, she notices several mermaids closing in on Tsukune.

He's not going to make it!

With urgency, Kurumu propels herself toward Tsukune, but a mermaid intercepts her, slashing toward her body. Kurumu narrowly evades the attack but her clothes are shredded by the mermaid's sharp claws.

That was close.

Unfortunately, her path toward Tsukune was blocked by a dozen angry sexy mermaids. She wanted to scream but doing so would cause water to flood her lungs.

No choice then. Grr, I wanted to save this for Moka but I can’t let them hurt Tsukune!

Harnessing her youki, Kurumu stops moving, preparing to unleash a surge of sexual energy. As the mermaids draw closer, unaware of her intentions, Kurumu holds her position, ready to take them by surprise.

Once the mermaids were close enough, Kurumu smiled.

Got you.

With a forceful release, Kurumu unleashes a potent surge of seductive energy, enveloping everyone within her vicinity. The mermaids, unaccustomed to relying on their youki due to their physical superiority in the water, are caught off guard. Their lack of trained defenses renders them vulnerable to Kurumu's magic, swiftly incapacitating the majority of them.

Once the majority were knocked out, Kurumu swam towards Tsukune, using both her arms and wings to move forward.

But before she could get close to Tsukune, Tamao attacked her, shredding her clothes and cutting her flesh. Kurumu internally winces and backs away. The pain caused her to involuntarily inhale some water.

Oh no!

Tamao smiles.

“You’re not going anywhere succubus. I don’t know who you are but you’re mistaken if you and your kind think you can step into a mermaid’s turf and get away with it.”

Kurumu swims upward but Tamao is faster than her and quickly drags the succubus down with superior strength.

“You idiot! I’m going to drown you here and drain you of all your life force!”

Kurumu attacks Tamao with her sharp claws but this mermaid is far stronger than her peers, able to cover the majority of her body with thick metal-like scales. Without infusing her claws with potent youki, her attacks will simply bounce off.

She can use transformation?!

Kurumu infused her body with youki, allowing her to kick off Tamao’s hands. The mermaid surges forward but Kurumu attacks with her claws, making space between the two of them.

“Why fight the inevitable?! Even if you’re a monster, you still need air and I’ll never let you get even a single mouthful!”

Despite her disadvantage, Kurumu smiles at Tamao, causing the latter to flinch. Using magic to mentally connect with her target, Kurumu taunts the mermaid.

Oh please. You’re completely inferior to me. After all, aren’t mermaids just a bunch of cowards who couldn't seduce men so all of you ran away to the middle of the ocean where the only men who'd fall to your lap literally had no choice?

Tamao grits her teeth. Seeing that, Kurumu smirks.

No retort? I may not swim as well as you but you’re clearly an idiot. I can’t expect much from you pathetic mermaids.

Upon hearing that, Tamao's fury intensifies, consumed by a fiery rage in an instant.

“I’ll rend you in half!”

Infusing her voice with magic, Tamao's piercing screech echoes through the pool, commanding the attention of every mermaid present. Kurumu senses the hostile gaze of a dozen angry mermaids fixated on her. Even those in pursuit of Tsukune halt their chase, redirecting their focus toward her.

Kurumu’s senses were starting to slow down. She needed air but she knew Tamao wasn’t going to let her go.

Tsukune, be quick!