16 DxD: Recruitment Week 06

Lightning flashes in the dark clouds above as I glare upwards. Above me, a figure floats, five pairs of black wings spread out behind him, and in his hands is a sword of immense aura made of the purest light I've ever seen. Behind him is a veritable army of other figures, black wings extending from their backs as well, but not as many.

I roar, blood pumping in my ears, losing myself to anger. I step forward, disappearing from this world only to reappear behind the figure, the knife in my hand glinting as it rushes at his back.

But, almost contemptuously, the figure turns and casually swipes the sword through me. If it weren't for [Gamer's Body], I would be in two pieces. As it is, I'm sent hurtling backward into the ground, my HP being reduced to almost nothing.

As I struggle to get up I reach into my Inventory to grab a potion to restore my Health, but my hands come back empty. I've run out. And without healing potions, I can't risk using [Void Blood].

I look around me, looking for anything I can use, and I freeze in horror at what I see.

Corpses lay scattered all around me, all of them familiar. Rias, Sona, Momo, Atsuko, Aika, Ruruko, Koneko, Asia. Their bodies lay still and unmoving, cauterized gashes littering their bodies.

"No," I gasp, my voice hoarse. "No no no nononononono!" I rush to the nearest corpse, Momo, and desperately cradle her in my arms. I search desperately through my Inventory, looking for anything that could help, but there's nothing. The only things left in it are useless pieces of junk. Despair washes over me as I realize that everyone I loved is dead, and there's nothing I can do about it.

I barely react as I hear a pair of feet land on the ground next to me, only bothering to look when their footsteps approach me.

I look up to see the sneering face of Kokabiel, all ten of his wings displayed. "Pathetic," he snarls. "For all your boasting, you didn't even rate being an obstacle. And to think I wasted my time planning around you."

The despair that weighed over me like a blanket vanishes as white-hot fury courses through my veins. It was this motherfucker right here that took everything away from me, and now he came to gloat? Fuck. That.

The feeling of white-hot fury is wiped away by the biting cold of Void in my bloodstreams as I activate [Void Blood], uncaring of the dangers.

I raise my knife and rush at the bastard, the sound of infinite nothingness singing in my ears as I draw on more and more of the Void.

I'm going to kill this bastard, even if it means I die trying.

-x-

I wake up with a jolt, my eyes snapping open. My heart is thundering in my chest, and adrenaline rushes through my veins, bringing me to full alertness. Was that a nightmare? It felt too vivid to be a normal dream. My eyes focus on something in front of me, a Game window.

I forgot about that perk. I sleep so little, and since it hadn't activated last time, I didn't think it would be a common occurrence. The reason I'm getting one now isn't hard to figure out. It's the same reason I've been beating myself up since yesterday.

I fucked up. The fight I had with Freed shouldn't have even been close. It was fucking Freed. Holy sword or no, I should have demolished him in seconds.

The fact of the matter is that I got lazy. I grinded like hell to reach a level where I would be safe from Raynare and the other Fallen, and I've gone even beyond that, but the urgency was gone. Even though I'm still so weak compared to many of the major threats, I stopped worrying about it, and just focused on romancing girls.

I don't regret spending time with my girls, they're important to me, but I regret only worrying about getting laid more, and not as much about training. How many nights did I spend only a couple hours in the dungeon, even if there was no girl waiting for me in my bed? I could have cleared the Hard Mode dungeon, and maybe even one of the other Tier 1 dungeons, if I had put the time into them.

Not to mention that I've been slacking on my potions. It took me desperately needing a boost in a fight for me to realize that I don't have any of the most useful potions I can make, focusing only on what I can mass produce to level up, and even then I didn't focus enough on it to max out the skill.

Disgust rises in my throat. I came to this world paranoid and ready for danger. I'm pissed that all it took was a little bit of strength for all that caution to go away.

Well, no more. That dream made it clear that Kokabiel was coming, and he was going to hit Kuoh harder than he did in canon, and that's my fault. I don't know when he's coming, but considering the equipment I had in the dream and the skills I used, I have at least a little time.

Asia stirs, drawing me from my thoughts, and I realize the position the two of us ended up in during the night. We weren't very far apart when we fell asleep, but now there was no space between us at all. Asia has her back against my chest, pressing against me as I spoon her with my arm around her waist.

And of course, my morning wood is tenting my underwear and is pushing against her rear. It takes all I have to not rotate my hips and rub myself on her. However, the urge dies down as she shifts more and I see her eyes flutter open.

"Good morning," I greet her casually. She blinks at me, still working on waking up and not quite processing things yet. "Did you sleep well?"

She nods, and starts to move, but stops. I can see an expression of confusion cross her face, and she shifts again, this time her ass definitely pushes into my erection. I hold myself completely still and carefully keep my expression casual.

She wiggles more, and if I didn't know better I would accuse her of teasing me on purpose, but instead, I believe she's just unsure of what the sensation she's feeling is. She looks down and places her hand on top of where mine rests on her stomach. She follows my arm up with her eyes to my shoulder and then to my face, looking at me, still confused.

"Is something the matter?" I ask her. She shakes her head, but as I look at her I can see the gears turning in her head as thoughts begin to click together.

A blush creeps up her face. "I- we- you-" she stammers, not able to put her thoughts into words.

"Oh, sorry about that," I say as I lift my hand off of her stomach. "I guess I got a little grabby in my sleep and latched on to you."

"It's- it's fine," she says, finally forming a coherent sentence. I note with interest that she doesn't move at all, despite no longer being 'trapped' by my arm around her waist. "Have you been awake long?"

"No, I just woke up," I answer her, smiling. I don't even need to use my lewd skills to incentivize her, she's already perfectly willing to cuddle like this. "I think me waking up woke you up actually." I look at the time. It's a little later than I would normally get up, but since I wasn't going to classes today anyway it's fine. "You want some breakfast?"

She nods but doesn't move. And since she's on the outside of the bed, she has to get up before I do. I don't rush her though, enjoying the feeling of her back pushed up against me, especially her backside against my erection.

After a few moments of silence and neither of us moving, she seems to figure it out for herself, and she blushes a little more before she climbs out of bed. I chuckle slightly as I follow her, patting her on the head.

"I'll leave so you can get changed with some privacy," I say as I use my Inventory to throw some pants on. No shirt though, so I can give Asia a little eye candy. "I'll get some food started."

I close the bedroom door behind me and head for the kitchen. I'm pretty sure I have the ingredients for pancakes, I can cook up a few stacks of those pretty quickly.

As I start grabbing the stuff I need, I hear Kyu's voice from behind me. "Ooh, cooking topless? Now that's a look I appreciate."

"Good morning Kyu," I say, checking on Asia with [Sound Domain] and making sure she doesn't hear us. "I'm making pancakes, you want some?"

"You bet your ass I do," she said. "If you make pancakes and there's none for me, I cannot be held responsible for what happens afterward."

"Noted," I say with a laugh. I check on Asia. She's still getting dressed. "So I had a dream last night."

"Oh?" Kyu says. She pauses for a beat. "Oh, that perk went off. Boring. I was hoping you had a wet dream while sharing a bed with Asia." She sighs. "Anything interesting in the dream?"

"Oh not much," I say, my voice straining slightly. "Just me and everyone I love dying."

"Ouch," Kyu says. "That bad huh? You do know those things aren't set in stone though, right?"

"Yeah, there was a message indicating so. And I know how to avoid it." I hope.

"Good," she says. "I'm having a lot of fun, I don't want things to end like that."

"You and me both," I say quietly.

The bedroom door opens and Asia comes in, ending the conversation between me and Kyu. Asia, dressed in her nun robes, comes to stand next to me, watching as I pour the pancake batter on a heated pan.

"Have you had pancakes before Asia?" I ask her. She shakes her head. "Well then, you're in for a treat."

She watches as I make a few pancakes and stack them on a plate, keeping them in my inventory between stacking for maximum freshness. When I get a good stack I drop a bit of butter on top of it and pour some syrup on.

Asia needs some guidance on how she's meant to eat it, but a quick demonstration later and she's devouring the plate. I smile as I cook up more, wanting to prep a bunch for future use. The XP they give for cooking isn't bad, and neither is their buff.

I also note that the buffs my food provides don't seem to be going up as the skill does, meaning the quality of the buff probably depends on the dish, or more specifically, the ingredients. I'll have to work on getting my hands on quality ingredients soon. And plates, I note as I look in my now much emptier cupboard.

I store a dozen plates of pancakes into my inventory before I make a plate for myself and scarf it down. As I eat I start planning for the day. Now that Asia is here, it opens up some possibilities. Mostly training up [Void Blood] as it was by far my most powerful Ace, but there was something else I was too busy to do that she would be well suited for, and if I understood her personality correctly, she would be thrilled to be of use.

I also need to max out my Alchemy as soon as possible and get a wide range of powerful potions. Ingredients were still a major bottleneck in that though. I'll have to figure out what recipes I want the most of, and how to make them as cheaply as possible, and then bulk order those online or something. Thankfully, I was starting to get a pretty good instinctual feel for what ingredients made what potions.

I finish my food, grab mine and Asia's dishes, and throw them into the dishwasher. I pull out my phone and start writing a text to Sona even as I start speaking to Asia. "Okay Asia, here's the plan for today." She sits up and gives me her full attention. "Normally on weekdays, I go to class. Today I'm not doing that, both so I don't leave you here alone, but also because I have things I need to take care of here." I finish my text and send it. "I've just contacted Sona about getting you enrolled in classes, so hopefully starting next week you'll be able to come with me and we can go to school together."

"So soon?" Asia asks, tone excited and filled with wonder.

"Sona's got some pull, so I think she can make it happen pretty quickly," I say. "But for today, it's just going to be me and you. I have two things to work on, and if you're willing, I would appreciate your help with them."

"I'll do anything I can to help," she says earnestly. "I know I'm asking a lot by staying here with you, and I want to show my appreciation however I can."

I smile and pat her head. "You don't have to do anything, but I do appreciate it." I pause as I think of how to explain things to Asia, or rather, how much I want to reveal to her.

It doesn't take me long to realize that I'm okay with revealing a lot to her. Between how fast I got her to 100 Affection and just her personality in general, I trust her a lot. I'm confident I have her complete loyalty and I won't have to worry about her telling others or using the information against me.

"The fight last night showed me that I'm not as prepared for things as I thought I was," I start. "In fact, I had to rely on a dangerous technique to repel him."

"The one I healed the after-effects of," she says, frowning. "The one that left your veins nearly in tatters."

"You could tell that?" I ask, surprised.

She nods. "I'm not a doctor, but I get an impression of what I'm healing."

"Interesting," I muse. I didn't know that. "But yes, that technique. Last night was my first time using it, because of how dangerous it is. But I was pushed into a corner and it was my best option, and I don't want to be in that position again.

"Thankfully, there's an upside to it," I continue. "If I practice it in a safe environment, I'm sure I can make it far less dangerous. And If I can get it to the point where the damage is negligible, it would give me an extremely powerful tool. The advantages it gives me are too great to ignore."

Asia looks nervous and unsure, but she nods at my words. "What do you need me to do?"

"Mostly, just watch me," I tell her. "I'm going to be careful about it, but I would be a lot more comfortable with someone watching over me. And I'll probably need you to heal me a few times."

She nods. "I'll make sure nothing happens to you."

I smile. "Thanks, Asia. That makes me feel a lot more comfortable with this." I stand up. "Come on, let's do this in the living room where I'll be a little more comfortable."

She follows me to the living room, where I sit cross-legged on the couch. I sit sideways so she can sit behind me. "Are you ready?" I ask her.

She places her hands on my naked back. "Yes," she says, her tone serious and determined.

I take a deep breath and activate the skill.

Not much has changed since I used the skill last night. I only leveled up once from the fight, probably because Freed got away. But I pull up my stat windows and do the math anyways as I watch my health bar.

My efforts last night got the cost of the skill down to a 'mere' 818 HP a second. With the aid of [Photosynthesis], I healed roughly 225 HP a second, which means using [Void Blood] effectively only cost me 593 HP a second, and at that rate, I can keep it up for just under 12 seconds before I drained my HP completely.

It's not as simple as that though. For every second I use the skill, it gains a little more experience. It's not a lot, but it probably would be enough to make it so it would take more than 12 seconds for it to kill me.

I decide to just play it safe though and cut off the skill when my HP goes below 1,500, which should give me somewhere between 2 and 3 seconds for a margin of error, which is more than enough.

I cut the skill off 9 seconds later, ignoring the status window that pops up. My health is down to 1026, but already it's shooting back up. I breathe heavily, the pain of the skill slowly fading away, and check the skill.

<[Void Blood] - Level 24(38%)>

My efforts had gained me four levels in the skill, but it isn't enough. The HP cost only goes down 9 per level, and it isn't even every level, most likely due to rounding. Twilight Gear might be amazingly efficient, but Asia's MP recovers too slowly for her to keep up with this training.

Still, I do confirm that the status effect only reduces my stats by 76% now, meaning that by the time I max it out, it shouldn't happen at all.

"Heal me up please," I say once my HP is full, and I feel the comforting warmth of Twilight Healing spread through me. "Thank you, but we're going to have to change things up," I say.

"What do you mean?" she asks as I turn around to face her.

"That's as long as I can hold the skill before it becomes dangerous, and the rate that it improves is too slow. I need you to heal the after-effects of it each time, but I doubt you have the energy to heal me every 10 to 15 seconds."

She grimaces. "Sorry, I can maybe do it once or twice more, but I would need to rest after that." She tilts her head. "But didn't you use it for longer than that against Freed?"

"Yes I did," I confirm. "Which brings me to the second thing I want to work on. I can make potions that do various things. If you were watching me last night, you probably saw me drink some things out of vials?" She nods. "One of the ones I drank a lot of healed me, letting me keep the technique up longer. But I don't have enough of those to properly train with.

"So my goal today is to make a lot more of those, and also another kind of potion. My body is weird, and I can heal from most things very fast. Even the aftereffects of that technique will dissipate roughly an hour later. But there's a type of potion I can make that increases my healing to even more extreme levels. If I can make a good enough one of those, I can keep up the skill for as long as the potion lasts, which will let me train it much more efficiently."

"I'm not sure I really follow, but if you think that's the best way to do it, I'll help however I can," Asia declares earnestly.

I smile and pat her on the head again. I really do that a lot with her huh? It just feels so natural to do.

"Thank you, Asia." I stand up and move to the window. "So when it comes to actually making the potions, the process is simple, and I don't need much help there. But there's one crucial aspect that I could use some help with. Ingredients."

A little bit ago, last weekend actually, I bought some planters and gardening equipment, but I never really took the time to do anything with them. But with Asia here now, perhaps she would like to try her hand at it?

"I have some seeds for plants that would make good ingredients," I say as I pull the Wild Seeds and Wild Magic Seeds out of my inventory. "I also have a technique I can teach you that will make them grow much faster. If you don't mind, I'd appreciate it if you helped me out with growing them and taking care of them."

Her face lights up. "I've always wanted to have a garden. The priests at the church never let me, they said they didn't want me getting my hands dirty."

I shake my hand. "You know, I'm sorry you were forced out, but it sounds like it might have been a blessing in disguise. A chance for you to get out and experience all the things you wanted to."

"I hope you're right Axton," she says.

"Now, come on over here, lemme teach you how to do this," I instruct her. She nods and comes over, and with some simple mental commands, I add her to my Party. Other than Yua, she's the first one I've done this with.

When I added Yua, there was a screen that told me that she would only get 25% of the XP I earned because our levels were more than 10 apart. I get a similar one when Asia is added, but now it's telling me she'll only earn 10% because our levels are more than 100 apart. A shame, but 10% of the XP I can earn is still pretty good for someone who is level 4.

I take one of my Wild Seeds and push it into a pot already filled with soil. "This is how you do it," I tell her as she squats down next to the pot on the ground. "All you need to do is to push some of your magic into it while holding onto the desire for it to grow in your mind."

My instructions are mostly based on what Yua had told me about using her own skills that I had taught her. She said all she really needed to do was think about it, and it happened. I demonstrate for Asia, using [Green Thumb] to grow the plant, pouring roughly 500MP into the seed.

It grows much faster than I expected, shooting up to several inches tall. Huh. I probably should be using this skill more often. Hiding my surprise, I turn to Asia. "See? Easy as that."

She looks unsure. "Magic? I've never done magic before, the church doesn't like it."

"It's only kind of magic," I fib. "Magic usually needs you to do calculations and make a magic circle and all sorts of fancy stuff." At least in DxD that's how it works. I think. "This is more like using your Sacred Gear. Just take that effort and willpower you usually draw on when healing someone and instead try to put it in the plant. The plant will take that energy and do the only thing it knows how to do and grow."

She still looks a little unsure, but she nods, accepting my explanation. I quickly use [Mentor] to give her [Green Thumb] and motion for her to try. She reaches out and gently curls her fingers through the small leaves protruding from the stem of the plant. Her eyebrows furrow as she concentrates on the plant, but soon enough it starts to visibly grow.

The Game makes using these sorts of skills insanely easy, so I wasn't worried about her not being able to do it. And the way her face lights up and her eyes sparkle in wonder as she watches the plant grow makes it worth it.

Unfortunately, her MP pool is small, and she's not able to grow it as much as I did, but that doesn't dampen her spirits in the slightest.

"I did it!" she exclaims, looking up at me excitedly. She immediately frowns though. "Oh, that took a lot out of me though."

"Hmm," I hum, thinking. I only have one Mana potion, and that would only help her a little. A Regeneration potion would be better, but I don't have any of those. But I can make one. I use [Observe] on the plant we just grew and discover that it's ginseng.

I use [Green Thumb] again, dumping 2,000 MP into it to fully grow it. The part above the soil grows until a small bush, and to my delight, there are visible seeds. Asia looks on in wonder as I then pull the plant up to get at its large roots, the useful part of the plant.

Asia watches, curious, as I remove the seeds and set them to the side, place the roots into my automatic mortar and pestle that I pull out of my inventory, and I start grinding up a ginkgo plant I got as a random loot drop ages ago in my normal mortar and pestle.

I take both of those, some green tea leaves, and some coffee grounds, and throw them into a vial with some water. A quick application of 5,000 MP and the ingredients swirl together to create a teal-colored Major Regeneration Potion.

"Here, drink this," I say as I offer the vial to Asia. "This will cause you to generate magical energy really fast for the next 12 minutes." At least, compared to her normal regeneration speed. It 'only' increased MP regen by 5% of her max per second, which only put her at a little over 18 MP a second. Unfortunately, it's the best potion I can make right now.

"Plant some more of these," I say, handing her the ginseng seeds, "and the rest of these as well," as I give her the Wild Seeds. "I don't know what plants those will grow into, but if we're lucky, I might be able to make more of those potions for you."

"Okay Axton," she says with a nod. She takes the potion from me and drinks it, then takes the seeds from me and starts planting them.

Leaving her to it, I go back to the couch to work on more potions. My main issue right now is having a sufficient number of different kinds of ingredients. I was able to make that Regeneration potion for Asia, but without her growing more ginseng, I wouldn't have the ingredients to make more Major potions and would have to make Moderate ones. But making higher-level potions was far more efficient in leveling the skill in terms of costs.

Following that line of logic, my previous strategy of focusing more on leveling the skill wasn't wrong, but I slowed down too much, comforted by the high level without actually making the potions I need.

I go to pull the ingredients I plan to use out of my inventory and pause, my eyes catching on the five Gacha tokens I still have that I got for completing the Asia escort quest last night. I decide to take care of that first since it might give me something useful.

<Omni-Ring>

We're off to a good start. I pull out the Omni-Ring. It's a thick metal band with a green gem being held in place by decorative jaws. This came just in time. Currently, I have five different rings, one of which I don't even use normally, and two necklaces. I hate wearing all of them but the benefits are too good to pass up. Being able to do all that with just one accessory is perfect.

I quickly feed all of my accessory items to the Omni-Ring, excluding only my Lucky Underwear, which is far too comfortable and useful for me to give up, and my Bloodhound Ring, a ring that increases my sense of smell. Being that sensitive to smells could be a detriment and I don't want to have it always active.

I put the ring on again after it absorbs the accessories. And with it all in just one ring, I can wear it at all times, not just when I'm in my combat gear. Excited over my good pull, I use my next gacha token.

<Thief's Compass>

Nifty, maybe I should take it out for a spin soon. I chose Rogue as my first class, but I've yet to do any good old-fashioned burglary. Except for when I snuck into the Fallen's base. Hmm. I pull the compass out. It's simple and looks more like a pocket watch than a compass. There are no numbers, only a single needle, pointing roughly north and glowing in a bright blue color. I'll have to check that out later. On to the next pull!

My eyes widen. Now, this is a good pull. Running some calculations in my head, it's only a little better than my current best knife, but it'll improve faster, especially as that Critical Hit modifier increases. And if I add some poison on top of that damage, it grows to an extremely potent level.

I frown as I look at it though. This is definitely the knife I used in my dream. The fact that I got the knife I saw immediately after having the dream fills me with unease. Pushing those thoughts aside, I use my fourth gacha token.

My initial reaction is that it's lackluster, but honestly, it's not bad. I've pulled less useful things in the past. I think. I'm not sure what I can use this for. Maybe in the future I'll run into someone really heavy who needs to be carried by someone with an insufficient STR? It's not very helpful for making myself lighter. It would barely make me any faster and I'd have to get used to my new weight. I shrug and stash it into my inventory. I'll save it for when I need it. I have one last Gacha token, so, with mixed expectations, I spin the gacha again.

Another grimoire? I pull it out and start flipping through the pages. Where the Dark Mage one had diagrams, explanations, and formulae, this one is mostly a guide on how to pray and shape what they called 'holy power'. From the sound of it, holy power is just mana. Maybe mana infused by the user's faith?

I recognize the spells, or miracles as the text called them. The names are different, but they're definitely the miracles from Dark Souls. Healing, lightning, and even what was obviously the Force miracle.

Now that I think about it, the spells in the Dark Mage grimoire were pretty reminiscent of Dark Souls as well. A coincidence? The description of the grimoires implies that they can be from any conceivable class, so it's strange that both of the ones I've gotten so far are both Dark Souls themed.

I'm still not sure what I'm going to do with the Dark Mage grimoire, but this one seems perfectly suited for Asia, considering it seems to be powered by the user's Faith. Maybe Irina or Xenovia too, if they ever show up here.

I look over at Asia, who is gently cupping another ginseng plant as it grows. Maybe later. I'm not sure I want to ask her to start studying a grimoire of magic right after asking her to magically grow plants. I need to get her leveled up too, but I'm not sure how to approach that.

I shake my head. I'll figure that out later. Right now I need to make potions. I could start making Health Regeneration Potions immediately but I have so few ingredients for making them, and I'm so close to level 75 that I'm sure I can unlock the next tier of potions soon, and those ingredients would be better suited for those.

So instead, I figure out what ingredients I have a lot of and what potions I can make out of them. I stocked up on more ingredients for Aphrodisiacs yesterday, so I start with those. Before I start I down a Minor XP potion for a small boost. I could use a stronger one, but I'd rather save them for when I'm making better potions.

Thankfully, it seems like I have enough. Using all the ingredients I can, over the next half hour I make 56 Major Aphrodisiacs and 3 more Major Regeneration Potions, after Asia brings me ginseng plants after growing them. I replaced the ginkgo with some energy drinks, which seemed to do the trick. And all that was enough to get me to level 75, and even a little beyond.

<[Alchemy] - Level 76(77%)>

The skill description changed more than just a little. Where before, trying to use the skill on nothing gave me an impression of making potions or mixing different kinds of metals together to create magical alloys, now there was a new impression. Two kinds of ritual circles I could draw to combine just about anything into one; one to combine them evenly and the other to enhance one of the objects with properties of the others.

This opened up so many possibilities. With the right items, I could create just about anything. I start using the skill on various potions of mine and an iron dagger, to see if I could enhance it with the effects of the potion, and immediately run into a wall. The skill is telling me that I can't use anything I've created with Alchemy as components, just like I can't use potions as ingredients to make more potions.

That limits my options somewhat, but not completely. I'll experiment with that later. For now, I need to focus on making some Restoration Potions so I can train [Void Blood]. I only have the ingredients on hand to make a couple. But looking at the ingredients, I notice a common theme, and my mind quickly figures out two more potential ingredients I can get in decent numbers.

I grab a few handfuls of soil from the gardening stuff I laid out on the floor, take out my alchemical jug, still filled with seawater, and dump that into a container, then use the alchemical jug to fill itself with spring water. Then I combine both kinds of water with the soil, a taproot, and a bear claw and begin to mix my mana into it.

It takes 10,000 MP to make the potion, which means I can only make one about every 25 seconds. Which is fine, because I only have enough ingredients for 5 of these potions, but they are worth every bit of mana I use on them.

And just like that, I have enough potions for nearly an hour's worth of continuous [Void Blood] training. The regeneration these potions offer me is already higher than the cost of [Void Blood] before I even take [Photosynthesis] into account. But there's one more potion I can make before that. I quickly throw some ingredients together to make three more potions.

Combined with my Covetous Silver Serpent Ring, that's a total increase of 70%. The ingredients aren't even that valuable, mostly scrap material and batteries. It's definitely going on my list of things to get a large supply of ingredients for.

As I go to drink it though, I pause. The plan was to just level [Void Blood] with this, but that would just be an hour of sitting around doing nothing. No, I can train other skills at the same time now that I don't have to worry about the HP cost.

Looking at my other skills, my eyes settle on [Fade]. At level 91, it offers me almost complete invisibility, but that qualifier of 'almost' annoys me. I'm a Rogue dammit, I want to be completely undetectable.

A plan coming together in my head, I call out to Asia. "Asia? Change of plans, we need to go somewhere briefly."

She looks over at me while in the middle of pulling out another ginseng plant. "Okay Axton," she says. She places the plant aside on another one she pulled out earlier, plants a new seed, and brushes the soil off of her hands. "Where are we going?" she asks, curious.

I've told Asia this much about my powers, so I don't mind telling her a bit more. "One of the things I can do is enter a sort of pocket dimension," I explain. "Inside there, I can train really efficiently, it's how I'm so strong. And I can bring other people with me, and they can get stronger too, even if they don't do anything."

Her eyes widen in surprise. "Really?"

I nod. "Yep, and I just made some potions that will help me train even faster. So I want to go in there for an hour and train some, and since I don't want to leave you here alone, I want to take you with me."

"Is it dangerous?" she asks.

"No," I say, shaking my head. "At least, not where you'll be. There are safe spots inside of the pocket dimension and you'll be staying there. Yua will be with you there to keep you company, and so she can alert me if somehow something happens."

I look around. Where is Yua anyway? I haven't seen her all morning. Using our bond, I track her down to find her curled up on one of the kitchen chairs, still asleep. "Yuaaaa," I whisper at her while gently poking her with a finger. "Wake up sleepyhead. I've got a job for you."

Yua blinks awake, stretching and yawning. "What is it, Papa? Are we going out?"

"Sorta," I tell her. "Papa needs to do some training in the Dungeon, and I need you to keep an eye on Asia in a safe room, just in case."

"Okay Papa!" she says cheerfully, now fully awake. "Yua will protect Asia!"

"That's my good girl," I say with a smile, scratching her behind her ears. This causes Yua to close her eyes and purr for a moment before she climbs up my arm and perches on my shoulder.

I turn back to Asia. "Are you ready?"

She looks unsure. "Do I need to do anything to prepare? Should I bring something?"

"Not really, except maybe something to entertain you for an hour," I say. "Actually, I have something that might interest you. But it's a commitment." I pull out the Grimoire of Miracles. "This is a book I found that teaches you how to turn faith into miracles, allowing you to heal or even control holy lightning for something more offensive. If you want, I'll give this to you, and you can start studying it."

"Is this more magic?" she asks.

"Not really," I lie. "It uses your mana, same as your Sacred Gear, but again it's not like you're doing magic. From what I read, you use your faith to shape your magic power through prayer and your will. The stronger your faith, the better it works."

"Okay," she says, equal parts determined and excited. "I'll study it. I want to be more useful."

I frown. "You don't have to be useful, Asia. I'll keep you around even if you just want to lounge around eating pancakes all day."

"But I want to be useful," she insists.

"In that case, I won't stop you," I say, and I hand her the Grimoire. "Now hold still, and I'll move us into the pocket space." She clutches the book tight to her chest and nods as I place a hand on her shoulder and use [Dungeon Traversal].

When the list of Dungeons appears, I pause and consider which one I should go to. The Hardmode Zombie Dungeon would probably give me the most experience, but I wanted to focus on [Fade], and stealth didn't work very well against those enemies. Perhaps one of the dungeons I haven't gone to yet? Of my options, the best one is the Vampire Mansion. The Pharaoh's Tomb would undoubtedly be too much of a maze, and the Water Temple is the Water Temple. To make the best use of my hour, that one is probably my best bet.

I choose it, and the surroundings change around us from a normal kitchen to what looks like a Victorian sitting room. Asia looks around in surprise at the smooth transition and Yua jumps off of my shoulders to start sniffing around.

I start pulling things from my inventory. The Wand of Searing Light for Yua, who gently takes it in her mouth, ready to use it. I also take out a Light Sword and hand it to Asia. "The chances of anything happening to you in this room is zero, but I believe in taking caution anyway. Push your magic into this like you do with the plants to create a blade of holy light. The dangers here are undead in nature, so that should be effective in holding them off long enough for me to get back."

She frowns at it. "How did you get an Exorcist's Light Sword?"

"Took it from the Fallen," I explain. "I'm glad you recognize it though. Again, you shouldn't need it, but just in case. Let Yua handle anything that comes up though, there shouldn't be anything that she can't take care of here." Yua puffs up her chest at my praise.

"Feel free to explore this room, there might be something interesting in here," I continue. "But don't open the doors." I take out an Ultimate Restoration Potion and an Ultimate XP Potion. "Anything you need before I go? Once I drink these, I'll be on the clock."

She pauses, looking around nervously. "Are you sure it's safe?"

"I wouldn't risk your life if I wasn't 100% sure," I respond. "But here, if it'll make you feel better, drink this." I hand her a Minor XP Potion. "This is a special potion that will keep you safe, okay? Drink it right when I leave."

"Okay," she nods, looking comforted. Good, this will help her level up just a little faster.

"In that case, I'll see you in an hour," I say. She nods, and sits down in one of the antique chairs, getting comfortable, and I turn to leave, putting on my gear and activating my skills. It's time to get to work.

-x-

There's honestly not much to be said about the Vampire Mansion dungeon. It's a labyrinth of Victorian Era rooms filled with thralls, vampires, and hellhounds. It's absolutely filled with shortcuts, secret passages, and hidden stashes. I ignore most of the stashes for now, focusing on clearing rooms of enemies as fast as possible. And between [Fade] to remain hidden, [Sound Domain] to make sure no one hears anything, and how fast I am with [Void Blood] active, I clear rooms very fast.

I get all sorts of windows and notifications as I make my way through, but I ignore them, focusing on clearing the dungeon as fast as possible. The layout of the dungeon makes no sense. I've checked the map a couple times and it's the worst thing to navigate. Rooms occupy the same space and I'll go up a flight of stairs only to end up in a basement like this place is straight out of an M.C. Escher painting.

Thankfully, [Void Detect] doesn't have too much trouble with it. I don't know which way I'm going, but it gives me a sense of the positioning of the rooms in a way that I suspect a normal spatial sensory skill would be unable to do. It seems the Void doesn't care how twisted space is though.

Even with how fast I'm clearing rooms, I'm surprised when I enter a room under the cover of [Fade] and discover that I'm in what has to be the boss room. It's a large throne room lined with marble pillars that stretch to the ceiling a good 30 feet above me. And at the other end is a being in a black suit and cape, a glass of wine in his hand.

Just as I tense up, ready for a fight, I notice that he hasn't moved. He's sitting on the throne, staring right at the door, but he didn't notice me slip in. So I use the chance to use [Observe] on him, and I instantly relax. This is no Dracula, no Alucard, no great vampire of old. No, the game lists him as merely a Vampire Lord. He's by far stronger than any of the other vampires I've killed, but not by enough to matter to me under the effects of [Void Blood].

I play it safe anyways though, and scramble up a pillar and along the ceiling with [Spider Climb], making sure I stay out of this range of sight. Then, when I'm above him, I drop down and plunge my Hestia Knife into his heart while using a Light Sword to cut off his head.

Strictly speaking, I didn't need to take special measures to kill vampires, or at least I haven't so far. Either [Void Edge] does the job, or they aren't the immortal kind of vampires that need a specific method to kill them. Still, better to be safe than sorry, and it was very little additional effort to do so.

Whether or not I needed to do it remains unanswered because the vampire doesn't get back up. I relax and look at the time. 57 minutes to rush a dungeon and defeat the boss, not bad. Now I just have to go back and pick up all the items I missed. But first, I need to check on my level-ups.

<------>

Axton

Level: 194

Class: Void Mage(94/100)[84%]

HP: 8,700 (1,044 per second)

MP: 26,340 (527 per second)

SP: 5,920 (118 per second)

CON: 435

STR: 271(296)

DEX: 476

INT: 878

WIS: 764

CHA: 273

LUK: 375(385)

<------>

<[Fade] - Level 100(0%)>

<[Backstab] - Level 100(0%)>

<[Void Blood] - Level 100(0%)>

21 levels in my Void Mage class and three maxed out skills. [Fade] being maxed out is nice, but it's [Void Blood] that I'm really excited for. Over 2000 bonus points in each stat for what amounts to slower healing. And the status effect is completely gone. I actually felt it when it reached max level earlier because it went from a very small amount of pain to being almost soothing. I shrug and keep the skill active. I'm pretty sure everything is dead, but I might as well keep playing it safe. I think I'll keep it as a trump card outside of the dungeon though.

I got more than a couple maxed-out skills though. I got two more perks just from leveling up.

<[Empowering Muscles] - When struggling against more powerful foes, your STR will increase by 1 for every two seconds to match their own. The increase reverts when you are no longer struggling.>

<[Everyone's Type] - Increases Affection gains with anyone who does not gain increased Affection>

Both are good. The STR one is useful and can help me tip things in my favor, and the CHA one will speed up the Affection growth of the types of people I don't have bonuses for.

With a class level of 94, I should have gained two more Void Mage skills. I start to pull them up, but I freeze after reading the first one.

<[Void Cloak] - Level 1(0%)>

<Wrap yourself in Void, rendering yourself intangible and invisible. Costs 10,000 MP/s

Just like the Tenno. But you're not quite like them, are you, champ?>

I- what? The Tenno? No, wait. First off, what is this message? The Game hasn't ever included fucking commentary on my skills. It's not even sentient, that's why Kyu is needed. So why do it now?

The only reason I can think of is that it isn't the Game, but somebody or something from the outside.

There are only so many people that can be. They would need to know about the Tenno, enough to draw the comparison from the skill I just gained to them. My mind instantly jumps to it being another Gamer. I know I'm not beyond the reach of them, considering I get packages delivered by one, and I suspect the person who tore space open and briefly appeared last night at the airport is another, but there's one detail that makes me realize there's only one person it can be.

Champ. A loving nickname given to me by my mother when I was a child. My real mother, not the one from my fake backstory here in this world, but the one from before all of this, before I ended up stranded in the void. A nickname that no being should have known, one that even I barely remembered.

A being that calls you by your childhood name, knows the Tenno, and could conceivably fuck with the Game? One candidate stood out.

"The Man in the Wall," I say out loud.

My only answer is three heavy beats against the wall, echoing through the throne room. Which is enough confirmation for me.

The Man in the Wall, the personification of the Void in the Warframe universe. I feel like cursing at the developers for being so stingy with information about him, as I know basically nothing. He's creepy but hasn't been actively harmful. Though he hasn't been very helpful either. It's mostly just the creepy thing honestly. He takes on your appearance and voice to talk to you and calls you by a childhood nickname. Why? No idea.

He was sealed for a while, to protect the Tenno. As the seal started to break down, there was a noise associated with a place he started to manifest in. Rap-tap-tap. Three taps, just like the ones I heard now.

The fact that he was sealed would make you think that he's dangerous and an enemy, but it was never explained what caused them to fear him, and he's been on relatively good behavior since being unsealed.

Which means that here and now, with confirmation that he's watching me...I really don't know how to feel about it.

"I don't suppose you want to come out and have a talk?" I ask the empty room. I wait for a moment, in complete silence. I turn around, scanning the room to make sure he hasn't silently appeared somewhere.

When I don't see him, I sigh. Either he can't or won't show himself, and there's no way for me to tell. I instead go back to checking out my skills, a proverbial eye over my shoulder to make sure he doesn't sneak up on me.

[Void Cloak] is good. It's very good. A little annoying that I got a spell that provides invisibility and intangibility right when I maxed out [Fade], but whatever. It's expensive though. Right now I can only keep it up for two and a half seconds, and something tells me a potion isn't going to be enough for me to cheese it out entirely. Considering how powerful intangibility is though, it doesn't surprise me that it's so expensive. I'll just have to be smart about how I use it.

<[Void Travel] - Level 1(0%)>

Is this what I think it is? Finally, a way to teleport long distances? If I weren't so spooked by The Man in the Wall, I would be dancing in joy. No more needing to get Devils to chauffeur me places. I'd try it out right now, but I don't want my first use of it to be in a dungeon. Or be so close to The Man in the Wall. I doubt he would interfere with it, but his presence makes me nervous. He's too much of an unknown.

I'm also reminded of the dream I had. The way I stepped forward into nothingness to appear behind Kokabiel. That was this skill, wasn't it? Another reminder of the dream kills my already poor mood, and it's hard to get excited over such a cool skill with that hanging over my head.

That's all I really got from my level-ups. [Void Edge] also got a lot of XP, but didn't max out and is instead sitting at level 93. [Sleight of Hand] is also at a very high 94, but considering I pretty much only killed things with single backstabs with my knife covered in [Void Edge], not much else improved significantly.

I send a mental message to Yua to let Asia know that I'll be a bit longer. I plan on clearing this dungeon of all the loot it has before leaving.

-x-

We arrive back at my apartment two hours later. Visiting all the rooms with hidden chests and opening them all took longer than clearing them. But considering the loot I got, it was very much worth it. Hell, the crafting ingredients alone were worth it. I got a decent number of a wide range of ingredients perfect for potions. I didn't get enough to grind out some potion levels, but I did get enough to make a handful of a bunch of different kinds of potions. I also got a handful of useful Moderate Potions and Poisons.

The minor loot I got was pretty good too. Two more wands for Yua, two more scrolls, and a couple weapons. I also got three new accessories that I fed to my Omni-Ring, one that lets me sense blood, one that lets me breathe underwater, and another one that prevents fall damage. In addition to that, I got a bunch of heart crystals of all sizes, including 4 Large and Super Heart Crystals. I'll figure out how I want to spend those later.

I also found a whopping 7 Gacha tokens, but like the Heart Crystals, I'll deal with that in a second. Because those aren't the most interesting things I got.

First are the five new skills I picked up.

<[Hypnotize] - Level 1(0%)>

<[Glide] - Level 1(0%)>

<[Speak with Animals] - Level 1(0%)>

<[Hemokinesis] - Level 1(0%)>

<[Empathy] - Level 1(0%)>

There's a lot of potential in those skills. One of them I can use immediately, by combining it with a useless skill I already have.

<[Hemomancy] - Level 1(0%)>

That's what I'm talking about. Now instead of one useless skill and one moderately useful skill, I have one very nice skill that does everything both of them did and more. Some of the other skills can probably also be combined, but I decide to hold off. None of them would mix as well as that, and it's better to wait for better ones.

I also got three more Treasure Maps, all pointing to various locations around the world where valuables are stashed away. I set them aside for now though. Soon I'll go around and clean them out, but for now, I have too many things to do.

I also got some neat items, a couple of them sexual.

Nothing super useful, but I'm looking forward to using the collar, and the Shrine Maiden plush looks a bit like Akeno, it'll make a good gift for her. Speaking of gifts though, don't I have another plush in my inventory?

"Asia," I call out, catching her attention. She's immediately gone back to the plants and is growing them again, and now at a much higher rate, considering the XP she earned just from being in my party.

<------>

Asia Argento

Level: 38[43%]

Race: Human

HP: 430 (4 per second)

MP: 1720 (52 per minute)

SP: 420 (4 per minute)

CON: 43

STR: 42

DEX: 41

INT: 86

WIS: 135

CHA: 89

LUK: 44

<------>

Her MP regen is still slow enough that she can't use [Green Thumb] non-stop, but she can do a lot more now.

I pull out the plush mouse toy I have in my inventory, styled after some mascot I didn't recognize. "Here. I have a gift for you."

Her eyes widen as she walks over to me. "Really?"

I nod and hand her the plush. "Now you have someone to hold on to and keep you company if I'm not around for some reason."

She looks a little nervous. "Is- is that likely to happen?" she asks.

"Not if I can help it," I deny. "But sometimes things come up where it'll be safer if I leave you with someone else while I go to a dangerous place, like today where I left you in the safe room. Whenever that happens, just hug that doll tightly and think of me, okay?"

She nods, clutching the doll in question tightly in her arms. "Okay Axton." She takes her new plush and goes back to the flower pots. She seems to be enjoying herself, smiling as she watches the plants grow before her eyes. Good, I'm glad she's enjoying it, especially since it's providing me more ingredients and leveling up [Mentor].

Speaking of level-ups, I look back at Yua, who's curled up on the couch, sleeping.

<------>

Yua

Race: Feline

Level: 100[0%]

HP: 2020 (40 per second)

MP: 1010 (20 per second)

SP: 1010 (20 per second)

CON: 101

STR: 101

DEX: 201

INT: 101

WIS: 101

CHA: 203

LUK: 109

<------>

It looks like she hit a level cap of 100, and I'm convinced it's the fact that she's still a 'normal' cat that's the issue. I half hoped that reaching level 100 would trigger an evolution, but that didn't seem to be the case. Which means I'll have to figure out something for her or stop taking her into combat.

That's something I'll have to figure out later though. I turn back to sorting through my loot, as there are still a few more things left. Some very nice things.

Another Unique Class that I can't see, though I'm a lot closer to being able to see it than I was last time.

Nice. I use it immediately. 10 isn't a huge amount at this point, but free stats are free stats. Now I finally get to the two pieces of loot dropped by the boss. One is the Crafting Skill Gem I expected, which I'll use later, and the other one is unexpected, but fitting the dungeon I just cleared.

Sakuya Izayoi, the time-stopping maid. She's not only powerful but a damn good maid too. I'm tempted to summon her right now, but I hold off. There's no room in this tiny apartment for a third person. I'm going to have to look into getting better housing soon. The dungeons have given me a lot of money, I'm nearing a million yen. But that's only like $10,000, not nearly enough to buy a house. Maybe I should use those treasure maps and that Thief's Compass sooner rather than later.

Something to think about for later. For now, I have 7 more Gacha to spin.

<SCP-055>

Well, first off, it's terrifying that SCP's are in the gacha. The fact that I pulled this one is insane though. That's staying in my inventory, forever. No anti-memetics for me, thank you. I'm honestly surprised the Game can't analyze it. Unless it's just trying to be funny.

Nice. I actually don't feed this one immediately to my Omni-Ring. My SP Regen is more than enough for my current skills, and an SP regen measured in 'per second' is faster than anyone else's who isn't me, so this could be better suited for an ally.

My eyes widen, and I immediately pull the Heart out. It's exactly as I remember seeing it, a human heart with clockwork and other steampunk looking technology worked into it. It looks grotesque, but it feels….comfortable. Familiar. Out of curiosity, I squeeze it lightly.

"This is an idyllic town by day, but at night monsters roam. But you know this. After all, you are one of them."

The familiar voice whispered gently into my ear. It was a bit judgemental perhaps, but accurate. I give it another go.

"There is a girl who spies on her neighbors, seeking inspiration for her art. She has seen great success lately, and feels no remorse for her voyeurism."

Both vague and very specific. Neat. This time, I aim it at Asia, wondering what sort of secrets the Heart has to say about her.

"Poor girl. She is the goose that lays the golden eggs and her cage may change size and shape, but still, she can only look beyond its bars and long for freedom."

I frown. Nothing new learned, but the Heart seemed to be implying she's still caged. Does she feel caged? She doesn't seem to mind me sticking close, and I'm trying to protect her because she's still in danger. Whatever. Mood ruined, I stuff the Heart back into my inventory and use another Gacha token.

Oooh. Now, this is interesting. I pull it out and turn it on. A simple logo of a heart with a ring around it appears briefly before a search box appears. On a whim, I type in 'Serafall Leviathan' and select pictures as the type.

Instantly the screen fills up with pictures of Serafall. Far too many. I use a menu in the top right to filter down my search using keywords, and soon I'm left with a screen filled with pictures of Serafall in a skimpy version of her magical girl outfit that doesn't actually cover anything, posing sexily and covered in cum. Nice.

I favorite a couple of them before I put the tablet away. Old me would have loved it for his masturbation sessions, but I don't need that anymore. Still, there are a few ways to have fun with that I could think of, so I hold on to it for now. I have three more Gacha tokens to use in the meantime.

Another Mondaiji girl, and a good friend of Leticia. Summoning both of them at the same time will either make them like me more or be angrier at me, depending on how the summoning works. Either way, I can't summon them now. If I keep getting companion gems at this rate though, I'll need a mansion, not just a house.

I guess they can't all be absolutely amazing. I didn't have much use for a pack of cards, but it's not like I have a limit on my inventory space, so whatever. One more left.

Oh? This is very good, either for emergency use for myself, or to give to an ally. I'll have to experiment with it and see what its limits are.

With no more loot to sift through and no more gacha tokens to use, I take just a moment to collect my thoughts and relax. Which is when I look at my phone and notice I missed some messages.

One is from Sona, confirming that she'd get the process of enrolling Asia started and telling me that Kiyome dropped off the letter of introduction to the Youkai and I can grab it from the Student Council Room when I get a chance. I send her a quick reply, thanking her.

Two more are from Atsuko and Aika, both asking me why I'm out. I respond to those quickly, letting them know there was some business I had to take care of today. Which reminds me that I told them all of us could hang out tomorrow. We can still do that, but with Asia there it won't be as 'fun'. Another thing to figure out later, though I'm beginning to not like how many things I'm placing on the 'figure out later' pile.

The last text message is from Rias, asking me to come over to the clubroom during lunch to talk about something. Most likely another recruitment attempt, which is fine by me. I send her a response and let her know I'll be there shortly.

"Okay Asia, I think I've done the training I need to do today," I say as I get up and walk over to her. "A friend wants to talk to me, so we're going to head over there." I look down at the plants and whistle. "Wow, you really got some work done."

Only six ginseng plants were piled on the floor nearby, but I saw five more growing in pots, and the rest of the pots were filled with short stems of plants I didn't immediately recognize. It'd be worth leveling Asia up for the gardening she could get done alone.

She smiles up at me from where she's kneeling on the floor. "It's a lot of fun. I've healed a lot of people, but caring for plants like this is a new experience."

I pat her on the head. "I'm glad you're having fun," I tell her. I scoop down and add the ginseng to my inventory. "It's certainly very helpful to me. But come on, wash up and we'll get going. We'll have lunch there." She nods, brushing the dirt off of her hands and going to wash her hands.

As I wait for her, my mind wanders, wondering what Rias will try today. With Asia there, she won't be able to be as explicit as she was that one time, but that only makes me more curious. I suppose I'll find out soon though.

-x-

The walk to Kuoh Academy is uneventful. There aren't many people on the streets in this part of town, especially as we get closer to the school. I point out a few landmarks to Asia as we pass them, and she asks me questions about all sorts of things and I explain them to her as best I can.

"Welcome to Kuoh Academy," I say when we arrive at the front gates. "Starting next week, you'll be a student here alongside me."

"It's so big!" she says as she stares at the school. "I'm really going to go here too?"

"It's being arranged as we speak," I tell her. I look at the time. "The tour will have to wait for later. Come on, there's a building around the back a little ways away, that's where we're headed."

It's only a few more minutes of walking to arrive at the Occult Research Club room. I don't bother knocking and just head directly in, feeling the presence of all four of the members already inside with [Void Detect].

Rias smiles at me as I enter, no doubt having been notified of my arrival by the wards surrounding the place. "Axton!" She greets me as we walk over to the sitting area. "Thank you for coming so quickly." She turns to Asia. "And you must be Asia. I'm sorry for what you've been through, but I hope your time here is better."

Asia smiles. "Thank you."

Rias turns back to me. "Have you eaten yet? I have some lunch prepared over there if you would like." She indicates the far side of the room, where Kiba and Koneko are eating.

"We have not," I answer. I place a hand on Asia's shoulder. "Why don't you go eat? Let me and Rias talk in private a little and then we'll join you."

I can feel that she's nervous with [Empathy], most likely at the thought of going to interact with two people she doesn't know, but nods. "Okay, Axton."

As she goes to where the food was, I sit down across from Rias and Akeno, keeping an eye on Asia with my detection skills. "So what did you need to talk to me about?" I ask.

"Well firstly, I was wondering if you had given any more thought to joining my peerage," she starts. Her expression is confident, almost smug, which strikes me as odd. I check with [Empathy], trying to get a sense for it, but the skill is too low level, and all I get is a vague sense of confidence, though there's some nervousness there as well that she's hiding.

"I have," I lie. "Your arguments were very tempting, but I'm still unsure. I very much enjoy my freedom, and I'm undecided on whether or not the benefits you described are worth it."

"That's understandable," she replies, and I have to stop myself from narrowing my eyes at how casual and accepting of it she is. Her confidence hasn't changed either. So she expected that answer but she has some sort of plan? She continues. "Last time I tried to convince you, I mentioned an event coming up that I need a stronger peerage for, correct?"

"I was a little distracted at the time, but I remember you saying that yes," I answer. I use [Erotic Pierrot] on both of them as I do. It's unlikely that things will get very sexy this time with her peerage and Asia in plain view, but I want them to remember how things went last time, and I want them to get horny just remembering it.

Between the light feedback I get from [Erotic Pierrot], the vague feedback I get from [Empathy], and the more specific feedback I get from [Lewd Scouter], I can pretty accurately determine how aroused someone is, and I can tell it's working. Akeno's smile widens just a touch, and Rias blushes ever so slightly.

"Well, the timetable has moved up faster than I expected," Rias says, keeping the conversation on track. I feel her arousal plummet when she does so though, and [Empathy] picks up a little bit of annoyance and disgust. Dammit Riser, stop cockblocking me. "And with my current peerage, things will be a little difficult for me."

"And I have to be in your peerage to help?" I ask. "Because I'll gladly help out any way I can, but that's a pretty long term commitment just to help you out once."

She looks thoughtful for a moment, perhaps considering ways to get me to help without being in her peerage, but she shakes her head. "It wouldn't be allowed, and if I somehow got permission, it could cause problems down the line, and some parties might be upset at the inclusion of an outsider. There are also logistical issues."

"I see," I say, translating the vague answers she's giving me using my metaknowledge. Riser might throw a fit if Rias wins by bending the rules. I'm not sure what she means by logistical issues though. "In that case, if there is anything I can do to help, please let me know."

"There is something," Rias says, and her body language and emotions suddenly shift. She was waiting for an opportunity like this. "I would love to have you in my peerage, but I need any sort of edge I can get for the upcoming event, so I plan on asking the person I had my eye on before you arrived, a Sacred Gear wielder who attends this school."

Ah, so that's what this is about. "You want to recruit Atsuko," I say.

She seems genuinely surprised. "I do, yes. How did you know?"

"According to the information the Fallen had collected, besides myself, she's the only known unaffiliated Sacred Gear holder in Kuoh," I explain. "Also, you're talking to me instead of the person. Which I'm guessing is because you didn't want to invite her into the supernatural world, change her race, and make her part of your peerage without at least getting my opinion on it. Which I appreciate. It would be a little shocking if one of my girlfriends went from mundane human to a Devil overnight."

"That is precisely what I wanted to talk to you about," Rias replies, getting herself back on track. "With my time running out, and since I can't be sure I'll have your assistance in time, I don't have many options. But as you said, I didn't want to do this behind your back, and I wanted to give you a chance to state your opinion on it."

I note that she's very careful about making sure it's clear that she's not asking for my permission without saying it directly. I check out her emotions again. That confidence from earlier is back. What reaction does she expect from me? I have my suspicions, but it also doesn't seem like her style.

Still, this is a scenario I've already imagined, and I have a reply ready for her very quickly. "I appreciate the thought, and I would like to be there when you explain things to her and invite her into your peerage. I think it would make her more comfortable."

Again I feel a flare of surprise from her that is strong enough to be obvious to my still low level [Empathy]. I also feel it from Akeno, though not as strongly.

"I don't see a problem with that," Rias says slowly. I can basically see the gears turning in her head as she tries to figure out where to go from here. "You don't have any objections to her joining my peerage?"

"Nah," I answer casually. "I was thinking of telling her about the supernatural stuff I'm involved with anyways, and her becoming a Devil, especially one in your peerage, will make her safer. Plus, I think she's well suited for life as a Devil."

"I see," Rias says, frowning a little. I mentally shake my head in disappointment. Her poker face is so fragile. Akeno looks totally unphased though, and she has the same small smile she started this conversation with.

"Do you want me to text her to ask her to come here after classes?" I offer. "Or would you prefer to invite her yourself?"

She looks unsure but then shakes her head. "I'll ask Kiba to go get her when classes end." She looks at me, curiosity on her face. "Do you know anything about her Sacred Gear?"

Oh boy do I. But I have no way of knowing it or proving it. "Not really. The information the Fallen had on it was pretty sparse. They weren't sure what it was. They thought it was draconic in nature, but they couldn't pick up much more than that."

She sighs in disappointment. "That's roughly as much as we've figured out as well. We'll have to find out the old fashioned way I guess." She looks at the clock on the wall. "Sona mentioned you were skipping school today so you could watch over Asia before she's enrolled. If you would like, you could spend some time here, with us, until classes end."

Hmm. I did want to do some more training, but spending time with them could be good as well, and short of hopping back into the dungeon, without stocking up on Alchemy ingredients there's not much else I can do today. Though there is one thing I can do here.

"Sure, I can stick around," I answer. "This is a good chance to do that baking with Koneko I said I would do. Do you have the ingredients on hand here, or should I go run out and grab some?"

<+8 Affection with Rias Gremory>

<+7 Affection with Akeno Himejima>

<[Fiery Hot] - Increases Affection gain with redheads by 20%>

"That's a great idea," Rias exclaims. I can feel love and joy coming from both of them. I guess they're glad I remembered my promise with Koneko and am making good on it? "I'll send my familiars to go pick up whatever you need while we eat lunch together."

"Works for me," I say with a shrug. I quickly write up a list of the ingredients I'll need and hand them to her. I feel her familiar, in its bat form, teleport into the room. It takes the list from Rias, who doesn't even look at it, and flies out of the building, heading for Kuoh.

As we go to get up, I remember the doll I got this morning. "Oh right, Akeno." She looks at me, curious. "I found this doll this morning, and it reminded me of you, and I wanted to give it to you." I pull out the shrine maiden plus and hand it to her.

<+7 Affection with Akeno Himejima>

I can feel surprise from her, and another warm feeling. Gratitude maybe? "Thank you, Axton, that's very thoughtful of you." She smiles at me, and there's genuine cheer in it. Rias also feels pretty happy. I look at Akeno's Affection. It's at 46 right now, so close to 50. I could use one of the Heart Crystals I got this morning. In fact, it's my last chance to do so before she goes beyond 50 and I can't anymore. But I hold off for now, there's no rush.

Instead, I sit down and cheerfully eat lunch with all of them, though half of my mind is miles away planning and organizing. I have so much to do, and I have an unclear amount of time to do it in.

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