Chapter 17 New Abilities

A young man awoke in a dimly lit room to the sound of banging on his door. He held his head in pain before hearing two voices talk amongst themselves.

"Musashi-san? Is there something going on?".

"Ah Ange-chan? It's just Takemi. He hasn't woken up yet".

"Is that strange?".

"Most definitely! He usually wakes up before me and practices the sword and gets breakfast ready before anything else".

The two voices grew silent before a much louder knocking was banging against the door.

"... I'm awake! Just not feeling 100%. We'll have leftovers for breakfast...". Shouted Takemi. He thought his voice sounded a little bit deeper and more baritone. It sounded rather pleasant.

"Okay! C'mon Musashi-san. I'll make breakfast today... you can see how well I do as a wife!".

Takemi could almost imagine the look on Musashi's face. He knew that she would've broken the door down already if Angelina wasn't here. As the sound of their footsteps grew smaller and smaller Takemi said,

"[System] what happened last night?".

"Ding! User does not remember? User ingested the heart of a Dragon last night and entered a state of metamorphosis".

Sitting down on the bed he realized that his entire room smelt of blood and vomit which made him turn on the rooms independent ventilation.

"Status".

Name: Mikazuchi Takemi

Age: 15

Magic Circuits: 21

Element: Space, Ice, Water

Origin: Truth

Magecraft: 13*

Skills: 5*

Servants: 1

Items: 1

TMP: 149,140

Takemi wasn't surprised by the changes but the Skills and Magecraft however definitely made him raise an eyebrow.

[Modern Magecraft]

[Alchemy]

[Material Transmutation]

[Modern Magic]

[Ancient Magic]

[Age of Gods Magecraft]

[Mana Stream] - A Magecraft from the Age of the Gods. Allows for the body to passively absorb mana from the atmosphere in order to replenish internal magical energy supply. Is the result of becoming a being accepted by Gaia and thus part of the "natural world".

[Essence of Winter] - A Magecraft from the Age of Gods. As Ao Shun was a Dragon God representing the season of winter, his powers lay in the properties in "winter". This Magecraft has but one use, and that is to realize the "concept of winter" into the world.

[Divine Winter Cycle] - A Magecraft from the Age of Gods. It is an extremely intricate version of the [Basic Breathing and Walking Technique]. It allows the user to increase the quality of their Magic Circuits by a single Rank as the quality and quantity of mana circulating around the body would "cleanse" the body of impurities. It is one of the few reasons why the Dragon Phantasmal Species are so powerful.

"Holy sh*t! That is amazing! And the third one... I could probably teach that!".

It was only three Magecrafts that weren't useful for combat, but their power was far greater than anything that a Magus could ever hope to achieve. A Dead Apostle may have a chance if they were old enough, but where would they find a Dragon in this day an age?

The Reverse Side of the World was closed off to humans and only Sorcerers could ever hope to reach that place.

"What about the skills?".

[Skills]

[Mystic Eyes of Empyrean EX] - Is the ability that permits the resolution of a desired result as 'inevitable', by way of committing the entirety of the user's existence to the act of achieving the outcome.

[Reduced Earth E] - Reduced Earth is a technique to cut down the distance between opponents instantly. Many martial arts masters have pursue the extremity of Step Movements in martial arts. Rather than a simple quickness, there are numerous phenomena that are connected with each other and are completed with walking, body movement, breathing, blind spots, etc. The highest grade beyond A-Rank becomes a long dimension leap technique and it would be in the category of Sage Techniques.

[Fifth Form D] - A stance that instantly maximizes on power, the main advantage of using two swords. The Nito Ichi-ryuu is a style that fights while going along with the circumstances, letting the sword fight as it wants to, but in exceptional situations, when she is facing against a powerful opponent; when she is facing against destiny, she calms herself down, turns her sword's heart into Zero, and takes the stance.

[Mana Burst Winter A+] - Mana Burst is the increase in performance caused by infusing one's weapons and body with Magical Energy and instantly expelling it. Simply put, recreating the effect of a jet burst by expending large amounts of Magical Energy.

[Magic Resistance A] - Magic Resistance grants protection against magical effects. Differing from the Resistance effect that merely rejects Magical Energy, this ability cancels the spells altogether. Has improved under the effects of the Dragon Heart.

Takemi looked down the page and his eyes widened.

'Oh. My. God'.

[Crystallized Wisdom EX] - Crystallized Wisdom is a crystallized form of wisdom gained by eating the heart of a dragon. Grants knowledge that can't normally be obtained by normal humans.

[Dragon Kind Modification EX] - Dragon Kind Modification is an extreme form of Self-Modification, achieved by swallowing a dragon's heart. It grants a physical strength, endurance and agility that transcends the limits of humanity. It combines the Human Heart with the Dragons Heart into a mana reactor core that acts as a giant prana generator. Is a single materialized Magic Circuit that improves the quality of all the other ones.

[Divinity B++] - Divinity is the measure of whether one has Divine Spirit aptitude or not. At high levels, one is treated as a mixed race of a Divine Spirit, and the level declines when the Heroic Spirit's own rank as a Monster or Demonic Beast raises. It can also decrease due to one's dislike for the gods. Those who have A Rank Divinity or above have reached the Throne of Gods. It also has an effect which reduces special defensive values called 'purge defense' in proportion to the Divinity's Rank. It can break through Skills such as [Protection of the Faith] and [Enlightenment of the Sacred Fig].

[Dragon Shift B+] - Dragon Shift is a skill that denotes the ability to change into a Dragon. Can alter limbs to grow scales and nails that can turn into claws. Can sprout wings from the shoulder blades and breathe fire from the lungs. Is an approximation of how much the body is "dragon" rather than "human".

He had gained four new skills and caused one of his previous skills to change as a result of the Dragon Heart.

He gulped, "[System] are these all the changes?".

"Ding! No. The User has not fully acclimated to the Heart and despite having a compatibility rate of 88.09%, has not gained all of the knowledge and power the Heart contained. It is estimated that it will take a minimum of several weeks and a maximum of one year to adjust to the new changes".

Takemi nodded understandingly. He had just shed his mortal body and become something closer to a Divine Spirit. His Divinity Skill almost made him eligible to enter the Throne of Gods. Of course it would take some time to adjust to the improvements.

"[System] how would I compare to Musashi?".

"Ding! With your current state it is estimated that you could fight with the Saber Servant until the point she uses her Noble Phantasm. At that stage you would be defeated".

"What if I used the same Noble Phantasm?".

"Ding! If you used the Noble Phantasm [Six Realms Five Planes - The Divine Figure of Kurikara] you would still lose. This particular Noble Phantasm is the cultivation of an entire life's work. If Miyamoto Musashi's would be A Ranked, yours would be E Ranked".

Takemi nodded, although begrudgingly when he heard the [System's] explanation. He was nowhere near as good as Musashi when it came to the sword. It would be like comparing the distance between the sky and earth.

Shaking his head Takemi opened his workshop door and headed downstairs. He had to be a little careful when he gripped the railing not to crush it under his body's newfound strength.

As he entered the kitchen he saw Musashi and Angelina sitting at the table their eyes glued to the TV before Angelina turned and smiled.

"Ah! Takemi! You're awake! What have you been-".

Musashi turned and said,

"Takemi! My breakfast should've been-".

The two froze and stared at Takemi with wide eyes. The young only stood there tilting his head saying, "Is there something on my face?".

Angelina blushed and looked down before shaking her head and saying, "I like the contacts that you're wearing".

Musashi just licked her lips and nodded.

Takemi who was confused at what they were getting at, ran towards the bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror. He had changed... greatly.

He was still around 185 cm, but his six pack had become more defined as his physique streamlined rather than bulky and muscly. His skin appeared completely unblemished and even the pale scars and small freckles on his arms disappeared and left behind a smooth pale skin.

His black hair seemed to get even darker than it was before and despite looking and feeling the same to Takemi, knew that each strand of hair was as strong as iron and couldn't be cut with normal scissors.

The biggest change was to his Mystic Eyes. They were normally the same color and shape as Musashi's however overnight they seemed to change and show off his draconian powers.

They had become gold. His once blue and red iris had become a radiant shade of gold. His pupils had remained the same, however possessed a different attraction compared to his old one's. They were deeper, darker and more profound. As if there was a hidden Divine Beast lurking behind those eyes. It carried a power not unlike a real Dragons.

"Holy crap! How the hell am I going to explain this?", Takemi sighed and clenched his hand. He heard the sound of creaking metal and then realized that he had crushed the sink in front of him.

The golden eyed young man shook his head and walked back into the kitchen and started to cook his own breakfast.

"I think my Mystic Eyes have mutated Musashi. And don't worry Ange, you're already family and would've found out about this inevitably. The Eyes that Musashi and I share contain a power that can alter spells without going through the Magic Calculation Area. It "corrects" spells so that it hits harder, faster and is more efficient when it comes to using Psions. You never know our children might possess it as well?".

He sat down beside the blonde who blushed when he mentioned "children".

"I think that is still more than a few years away", she said with a smile.

Takemi nodded. Being a family was one thing, but having children? That was a whole other discussion that he did not want to have right now.

"Don't forget to get ready to go out shortly. I've got to make a quick visit at Four Leaves Technology. Design my own CAD".

Angelina nodded and Takemi turned to Musashi.

"Do you have work today?".

The Saber Servant nodded and looked at the clock.

"I've got to go shortly as well. Got places to go and people to see!". Musashi had a mischievous smile on her face like she knew something Takemi didn't. The three washed up and cleaned a little before Musashi pulled Takemi to the basement.

She had a serious expression on her face.

"What happened to you overnight?".

"I used another lottery ticket and got a Dragons Heart".

Musashi wasn't surprised at his statement but just nodded and said, "It must've hurt a lot".

"Yeah it- OW! What the hell was that for!".

Musashi had punched her Master in the arm with a force that could send a grown man flying. Despite Takemi's physical enhancements he still felt it.

"You worried me last night. I could feel the increase in mana in the air and thought you were just messing around, but when I saw you this morning I knew something had changed about you".

Takemi just held Musashi in his arms and let her rest her head on his chest.

"I would never leave you Musashi. We're not just bound together... I love you remember?".

He kissed the Saber Servant on the lips and let her leave before him before turning to his left and saying, "Are you done spying... Ange?".

"... you caught me.....".

His blonde fiancée gave him a hollow smile before turning to the door and making a break for it. Takemi might not have been able to stop her it if not for the Dragon Heart in his body.

"Ange wait".

"No! Let me go!".

Takemi just sighed before saying, "Are you upset?".

"Am I upset? Of course I am upset! You are in a relationship with your-".

"What if I said that Musashi isn't my Aunt? That she is my Servant?".

Angelina stopped for a moment before retorting, "And your Eyes? How do you explain that?".

Takemi held onto her hands and intertwined them with his own, hot letting her go.

"Believe it or not, it was by chance that I was born with the same Mystic Eyes with her. That's all there is to it".

She narrowed her blue eyes and said, "Alright. I'll, let that slide for now, even though I think you're still lying to me. But what about.... what about us! About-".

"I didn't forget anything Ange. I want to marry you and to call you my wife".

She fought down a blush before trying to pull away from Takemi's hands.

"So why did you lie to me! About your relationship with Musashi!".

"It was to protect me until I became strong enough to deal with problems on my own. It was me and her against the whole world just three years ago. Tell me with absolute certainty that STARS wouldn't want to experiment on me and my eyes? You can't can you".

Angelina's body froze and she started to shake slightly.

"How- why... when did you find out!".

"A couple months ago actually. I was waiting for you to tell me... but you didn't... something that you had lied to me about?".

She turned red, but not out of embarrassment, but out of shame. It was rather hypocritical of her to say all these things about Takemi and forget about herself.

"Takemi I-".

"I don't care if you don't like that I love Musashi. I do love you Ange and that won't ever change. Why are you upset?".

"I want you to myself....". she responded. It was so quiet despite the silence in the underground basement. Takemi barely heard it despite his enhanced senses.

He smiled and said, "Magicians in today's society doesn't forbid polygamy. Second, third and even fourth wives aren't uncommon.... I'm not saying you have to love the idea but up until this point, you got along with Musashi and even considered her a friend. Why should that have to change?".

Ange had calmed down and just like before, Takemi had let her rest her head on his chest. Her held her hand while going up the stairs to see Musashi in jeans and a sleeveless shirt.

"I'm sorry-!"

"I'm sorry-!"

The two of them bowed and spoke the same words as each other.

Takemi stifled a giggle when he saw the two of them make up. It was a rough start however he believed he managed to stop the titanic that was his relationship with Ange.

'Damn. Being a protagonist is hard. 3 Days and I've destroyed the basement, cause the house to reek of... stuff, organize a meeting with a fellow protagonist and his cute little sister, get a fiancée, lose my humanity and ascend to a pseudo Divine Spirit and fix my love life.... I reckon that's pretty good'.

"Ding! The User obviously has no idea what the "concept of good" is if he believes that immorality and bad behavior is "good".

His eyebrow twitched.

'Damn [System]....'.