Breakthrough

All in his vision was a radiantly bright ocean-blue glow. Asher didn't know where he was or what this glow was.

But….he felt so connected to this place.

It was like this area was a part of him that's been hiddenly nestling inside him since the day he was born.

Asher wasn't sure how long he's been here or when he had even shown up. But, being in this place, it was like no troubles or dramas weighed on his mind.

His own family, Jayline, the Kane Gang, they all became but fleeting feelings for him.

There were only two people that had stayed firm within his feelings and thoughts. These two had the most profound impact on his entire life that no one else could compare.

And amazingly enough, they both were mysterious blue-haired beauties.

Elsa and Yuki. These two women changed his life in more ways than one and vastly improved it to a standard he couldn't achieve alone. Yuki transformed his entire being for the better, and Elsa filled a gap of loneliness.

Asher was beginning to think how nice it would be if he could be very closely intimate with them both. To form a more profound, affectionate bond with them.

These kinds of thoughts slowly swirled in Asher's minds. And suddenly then, he spotted a bright azure twinkle within this blue space.

His vision focused on this shimmering azure twinkle, already feeling awe entirely by it. Whatever this twinkle was exuded an unfathomable aura that wrapped his entire mind in its presence.

Slowly, the azure twinkle began lowering itself to Asher. And he was able to eventually see the shadowy outline of what was causing the sparkle. He felt his attention spike as that shadowy outline looked so familiar to him.

"That's….that's the Sapphire Gemstone?" Asher spoke out loud to himself.

If there's one thing in his life Asher would never be able to forget, it's that Sapphire Gemstone. It did, after all, fundamentally changed him to the point of no return.

Asher wanted to get close to the Gemstone, touch it and feel its divine qualities.

But as the Sapphire Gemstone nearly revealed itself, Asher consciousness immediately left him. He didn't even realize he was passing out until darkness claimed his vision.

….

"Ahh!!"

Asher burst his eyes open as he abruptly awoke with a frightening start. His body sprang up to a sitting position as memories of jumbled up, mixed events flooded his dreary consciousness.

The grueling fights he had with the Mana Monsters bear and black widow spider. Him reaching a new boundary in both of his Ghost Lightning and Ghost Powers.

And finally passing out in the woods, which should've spelled his end.

But, his most vivid memory was that strange yet familiar blue space. Even with all the trauma, he had experienced, that Sapphire Gemstone made the biggest impression on him.

Before he could ponder on anything though, an intense jolt of pain reminded Asher of his battered state.

"Nnng…." He leaked a painful groan as this was the absolute worst he felt in a long time.

The time he fought with the masked creature couldn't compare. Throughout his entire body, Asher felt it was battered and broken. He honestly found it strange and wondrous he had even managed to wake up.

As the pain slowly returned Asher to reality, his eyes wearily looked around his current surroundings.

More questions sprang into Asher's mind as disbelief crossed his face.

Somehow, Asher had managed to end back at the starting area of the Decrypted Woods!

'Just….how….' So much confusion threw Asher's already jumbled mind into a mix of chaos.

After all, it wasn't like Asher had a large number of people he could rely on to get him out of a dangerous situation. Reese and Kylee simply weren't strong enough, Elsa was at home, and his family wasn't with him.

One chilling thought tried to enter Asher's mind. He believed, what if there was somebody watching him?

However, before that thought could develop, another jolt of immense pain shocked Asher back to his current situation.

Immediately then, Asher reached into his pocket, and a blue glow flashed. He had then swiftly brought a pure white Healing Pill, already feeling a bit better from just grasping.

It was at this moment, Asher was starting to see why it's so lovely to have somebody who cares so much about your health.

Initially, Asher wanted to deny Elsa giving him these Healing Pills as they were all tremendously valuable. But Elsa didn't have any of that and practically shoved the Pill into his hand.

Now, Asher felt even more grateful towards Elsa. Without this Pill, he wouldn't even know how he would recover in a reasonable amount of time.

As he did before, Asher stuffed the Healing Pill down his throat and let its healing energy work its magic.

Immediately, the Pill's warm healing energy streamed into his and quickly began repairing his broken bones and ruptured organs. In a couple of seconds, Asher was already feeling the pain alleviate.

Although this time, the healing process wasn't as instantaneous. Asher suffered far more tremendous injuries from his previous fight than the masked creature.

'Ding!'

Suddenly then, Asher felt an intense jolt that shook his entire body.

Multiple streams of energy flowed into his body, improving Asher's power at a phenomenal rate. The streams of energy made Asher recall why he even put himself in this state.

He had then called out to Yuki, saying in his mind, 'Yuki….Yuki? Are-are you there?'

Asher was met with no response for two seconds. Because of the numerous injuries he suffered, he was a bit worried that something might have affected Yuki.

But to his relief, he soon heard Yuki's melodic voice.

'Fuuu~. Haaah~. Jeez, Asher! You really know how to make a maiden like myself work so hard!' Her tone sounded a bit strain, obviously tired from seemingly doing some sort of laborious trial.

And Asher wanted to think about why, but right then, a queer feeling enter into his mind. Hearing Yuki's voice made him recall that blue space dream and all his thoughts about her while being there.

Asher didn't know precisely how, but his thoughts about Yuki were heavily affected.

However, Asher quickly pushed these thoughts down as soon as they came. He didn't know what kind of reaction Yuki would have if she knew what he was thinking.

Focusing on the present, Asher asked her then, 'Yuki….I don't get it….what happened? Did you see how we ended up here?'

'Hmmm~.'

Yuki gave Asher a mysterious hum instead of immediately answering him.

It sounded a bit strained because of how tired she is, but it still held that mysterious element that Asher couldn't perceive just what she was thinking about.

Before he could question what, Yuki spoke up.

'Well, somehow, that mama tiger beast carried us all the way through the woods. And somehow, it was luckily enough to not encounter any other monsters. I had to hold your injuries over until you woke up. Thankfully you woke up now, and I didn't know how much longer I could've lasted.'

'I see….' Asher believed Yuki's words but at the same time was in slight disbelief.

Could it be that a wild and ravenous Mana monster actually recognized that he had protected it?

Although, when thinking about that specific tiger beast, he did recall how it so gently cradled its tiny cub. Right as he was beginning to question the complexities of Mana monsters, Yuki suddenly spoke again.

'Oh, don't think too hard about it. The important thing is that we're alive, and you still have the chance to grow your 'affectionate bond' with me~.'

'Huh??' Asher jumped a bit, feeling wholly startled.

Even though he knows Yuki can read his thoughts, he was hoping she at least couldn't see his dream. But, to his dismay, it appears like she can.

Asher awkwardly scratched his cheek and was going to try and come up with some sort of excuse.

But Yuki had simply given him a melodic, teasing giggle. 'Hehe~, like I said, stop overthinking things! Now then, let's see what our new stats are.'

Asher blinked his eyes as he realized that the streams of energy were indeed his rewards for completing the mission.

As a way to also scapegoat this peculiar situation, Asher focused entirely on saying 'System.' In his mental scape space, he pulled up his system stats and immediately felt an explosive burst of joy and achievement.

After so much pain and torture, his power had tremendously improved!

Asher read his stat, which was,

'Spirit Tier 1: Level 2

Spirit Mana: Initiate

Ghost 7

Ghost lightning 4

Spirit Aura 8

Positive Aura 4

Bloodline: ???'

Even among Asher's wildest expectations, his power grew to a point where it far surpassed it. The first and most significant thing he noticed was the increase in his overall level.

This stat will tremendously increase his physical capabilities and overall Magical Aura. With a stronger overall Magical Aura, all of Asher's Magical Powers attacks will be vastly strengthened, trumping over anything he could shoot out before.

Even down to his Battle Skill will it see a tremendous increase in power. Moreover, his individual stats were also significantly boosted and would also add a significant additional layer to his prowess.

Asher had thought it would be impossible. He thought even if he did this mission, he would still need to take on more grueling training.

But, after coming in face to face with death itself, it was like Asher broke through another shell in his power.

For any other common students, Asher at least knows it takes many months to increase a single stat. And that's factoring in their own talents and comprehension abilities.

Yet for Asher….he had truly achieved the impossible that no one in Balreth Academy would believe even if he told them.