Chapter 64 Issues
While he held the hand of both, Dante couldn't help but notice the subtle rippling in the air; Daniel's aura seemed to cover his arm while Su Yuan seemed mildly uncomfortable as she adjusted her hand, sensing Su Yuan's subtle fidgeting. Dante realized he pressed their hands too tight.
Su Yuan began shaking one of her hands to keep the blood flowing, but after seeing Dante's face, she joked about the situation, "Ha... I should have placed more points in strength."
Dante chuckled to lighten the mood, replying with a self-deprecating smile. "Sorry... that place wasn't quite friendly." A faint chuckle escaped his lips, "I'm still a weakling! Compared to 3 guys I met in that world, I practically cheated to beat them!"
Daniel fixed his gaze on the rainbow-haired girl because the enigmatic color of her eyes piqued his curiosity. With a tilt of his head and an inquisitive tone, he asked, "We were too busy last time, so I couldn't ask, but are your green eyes also part of the story?"
Dante was caught off guard by the unexpected question, feeling a wave of confusion wash over him. His brow furrowed in perplexity, creating deep creases in his forehead as he struggled to comprehend the question.
'What did Daniel mean by that? Was there something important about his eyes that he had missed?' In a reflexive gesture, Dante's hands reached unconsciously to his face; his fingers brushed against his iris in an attempt to recognize the root of the problem.
Both of their faces froze; observing Dante's bewilderment, Daniel sprang into action to retrieve a mirror from the system, offering it so he could see his gleaming green eye.
As Dante gazed at the mirror, his breath stopped at the sight that greeted him. Underneath the vibrant rainbow hair, his reflection revealed a startling revelation.
A pair of multicolored eyes stared back at him, each iris a fascinating blend of strange colors. In his left eye, a blazing shade of green burned dazzlingly, while his right eye sparkled with a brilliant magenta glow.
A sense of awe washed over Dante as he watched his transformed iris. Despite the initial shock, a sense of wonderment grew inside him. With a soft chuckle, he admired the unexpected discovery, his laughter ringing with honest amusement.
Welcoming the unexpected side effect, he couldn't help but find a certain charm in the unique style. Dante remarked with amusement, striking an exotic pose to accentuate the new style radiating from him. "They might look a bit childish, but they look really awesome. 20% more cooler? That's for sure!"
Daniel was about to comment on the concerning possibilities, but before he could utter a single word, Su Yuan interjected with an enthusiastic suggestion. "If you like them, then why don't we go to buy cosmetics and maybe makeup? You got a nice skin; perhaps we can-"
With a gentle gesture, he placed a finger over Su Yuan's lips, stopping her from falling even further into her fantasies. Dante said, "I'm more interested in the cosmetics rather than makeup... I also need to buy weapons and armor with my money. I can't waste on unnecessary things."
Despite Daniel's logical reasoning, Su Yuan remained undeterred; trying to convince him to the cause once more, she pleaded, her eyes sparkling with charm, "Come on, they are really cheap, in the worst case we'll spend eh... We'll only spend a few thousand; it's a small price to pay for a bit of luxury."
Daniel, seeing that Su Yuan finished with her topic, interrupted in, reminding him about his carelessness, "You should check your health; it might be detrimental to your life, maybe a side effect of something you consumed."
Dante, feeling a twinge of guilt mixed with annoyance, closed his eyes briefly; in a swift motion, he instantly snapped his fingers, remembering the words he read after getting back. He replied, "Oh! Right, I forgot, Midas Gem mentioned something similar."
Daniel's expression darkened; his frustration became evident in the furrow of his brows and the sharp edge to his voice. "You need to start taking everything more seriously; instead of running away at any sight of danger, you run into it!"
In response to Daniel's warning, Dante adopted his usual light-hearted attitude, nonchalantly shrugging off the gravity of the situation with a dismissive wave of his hand. "You're always so paranoid. I understand the risks, and when I cooperated with those guys, the plan was: leave the moment our plan is done."
Daniel's frustration became evident, his voice tinged with exasperation as he recalled the countless near-death situations Dante had experienced. "You almost died four times... and that's just in that world you visited; it's not just 'minor details' when your life hangs constantly in a thread."
Defying Daniel's concern, Dante simply sat in a chair, with a relaxed posture of his legs on the table, he remarked with a wry grin, seemingly unfazed by the gravity of his near-death experiences. "Well, you have to admit, those events turned into interesting stories."
Before Daniel could continue debating with the stubborn player, their conversation was abruptly interrupted by a recognizable robotic voice that echoed through the room, breaking the tension that had begun to brew. The voice announced, drawing everyone's attention. "Greetings. It's been a long time since we've seen each other."
Dante swiftly diverted the theme; leaning closer to his mechanical friend, he greeted her with genuine happiness. "Hello, Thalassa. Did the world treat you well while I was away?"
The robotic girl paused for a moment, her artificial mind processing the question before responding in her usual half-monotone, half-beaming with life voice, "My systems have fully recovered, and I've even managed to level up a few times, so yes, I am fine now. If it isn't too intrusive, may I ask if you've become a human?"
Dante's body was suddenly enveloped in a faint blue light followed by the summoning of a pair of magical wings; as they unfurled behind him, their vibrant hue seemed to glow even brighter, casting beautiful rainbow colors. Dante turned to his companion and spoke with a hint of uncertainty in his voice. "Kind of?"
An elegantly melodious voice spoke behind him, accompanied by the soft sound of footsteps. Drawing Dante's attention away from Thalassa. He turned to see James and his extravagant presence, "Long time we don't see... Um... Oh! Dante! Now you're a human?" James' surprise was evident as his tone totally betrayed him.
The girl rolled her eyes in amusement, her gaze moving quickly towards Daniel as to mentally say without words, "Literally everyone realized I was I at first glance."
Daniel sat at the table, ignoring what his friend said. Instead, his gaze slightly fixated on James to be exactly beside him; looking at James with slim displeasure, Daniel casually replied, "I was more busy trying to find a dying pegasus."
Dante couldn't help but notice a slight tension in the air, 'Is my imagination playing with me, or is he in a beef? no more like something around him...' He looked at the sides to see if anyone else realized this, but not even James seemed to sense it. The celestial restriction proved to be more useful than he initially expected.
Deciding to address the issue later, Dante made a mental note to explore it further later on, 'I don't want to spoil this. I need to get my well-deserved celebration.' with that in mind, Dante tried to change the mood in the room by cheerfully yelling, "Let's ask for something first, because I have hella of story to tell!"
...
...
...
Dante delved into his story with a level of detail that exceeded his previous retelling, each word painting a graphic picture. As he recounted from his memories, his companions listened carefully. Yet, despite the amazing history, Dante couldn't fully immerse himself in the moment. His attention was divided by the presence of a certain individual who seemed to emit a slight aura of displeasure.
After finishing his immersive recounting, they shared their own stories, exchanging laughs and jests as they recalled about it. However, Dante was still being pested by Daniel's slight displeasure for the entire duration of the dinner.
Thalassa bid her farewells, "I express my desire for a future encounter with you, with the optimistic expectation that our paths shall converge once again in the not-too-distant future." The robot stopped for 4.11 seconds and then realized she spoke in an unnecessarily complex way; to quickly amend her error, slightly embarrassed, she corrected herself, "I hope to see you soon."
As everyone left the table, Dante yelled to Daniel, who was seeing the intricate patterns in the new tablecloth, "YOU ARE GONNA STAY HERE!" In a second, the table transformed from a large dining table into a table adorned with flickering candles and an ambiance of serenity with the theme "Your Reality" playing in the background.
Dante intercrossed his arms like Monika and looked at him bluntly with his blazing green eye shimmering under the lit lights; with a hint of irritation creeping into his voice, he addressed the elephant in the room. "Did something happen between any of you two, like a fight or disagreement? Because, thanks to my new enhanced senses, I couldn't keep my eye out of your irritable aura."
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This chapter ended up being too long... I just celebrated my birthday, so I am really happy; consequence: Y'all get to keep this chapter instead of Go/jo'ing it.