Chapter 20 - Melodious Voice

With the skill <Transparent Bond> I could see my level of relationships with the characters according to the number of Hearts.

Since I had two hearts with Aria, that meant a friendly relationship. The normal thing was not to have any hearts with a stranger and to have one with people I already talked to on a friendly basis, and from there relationships like friends, lovers, boyfriends and so on began. Discovering this reminded Willow that he still had two Skill Points left, which meant he could unlock more skills. He had three options, which were: <Melodious Voice>, <Predator Touch> and <Carnal Bond>.

However, the skill <Carnal Bond> couldn't be unlocked yet as it didn't even show the amount of points needed to unlock it.

'When you reach a high degree of emotional bond with someone, and you have sex, a permanent increase in all your attributes will be granted...' Willow mentally read the description of the skill <Carnal Bond>. 'Requirement: Have more than five hearts with the target... Possibly, that's why I can't see the amount of Skill Points needed to unlock it. I'll only be able to unlock it when I reach the five-heart mark.'

Thus, Willow's options became a little scarcer.

'<Predator's Touch> sounds like a very strong skill, although it costs two Skill Points as it would allow me to copy other people's skills, but I'd have to kiss or have sex with the target of that skill and well...' Willow glanced at Aria, who was next to him on the bed. 'Even though I'm in this situation with a woman, we don't have that kind of relationship yet.'

With a sigh, Willow decided to unlock the skill <Melodious Voice> because it only cost one point.

+

[Skill: Melodious Voice.]

Description: This skill allows you to use your voice to soothe creatures and people, promoting harmony in the environment.

Effects: Stuns the target and nullifies any effect that is afflicting the target, whether this effect is emotional or magical.

Rating: Unique

Requirement: None

Cost to Unlock: 1 Skill Point.

+

[Do you really want to unlock the "Melodious Voice" Skill? This action will cost 1 Skill Point].

[1 Skill Point debited.]

[You have unlocked the Unique Skill "Melodious Voice"!]

*

The next morning, Willow woke up slowly, his senses still intoxicated by sleep. When he opened his eyes, he found Aria's, seemingly lost in thought as she seemed to study every detail of his face.

Obviously, Willow's natural reaction was to let his heart race. Aria was a magnificently beautiful woman with white hair, blue eyes and skin as smooth and delicate as a jade vase.

However, when Aria realized that she had been caught admiring Willow's features, she blushed and looked away.

"Good morning..." she said.

"Good morning." he replied with a sincere smile.

In that instant, they were both aware of how intimate a scene like this was. It seemed as if they had spent the night together, and indeed they had, but their early morning was not filled with the things that men and women who wake up together sharing the same bed usually do.

To dispel the awkward feeling, Aria got out of bed, but at this point he noticed the nightclothes she was wearing — a robe of light fabric that revealed more than what she usually wore under her ordinary clothes. With an even greater blush covering her cheeks, she took a step back, as if to hide herself.

"S-sorry, that's... Wait, why are you shirtless?" She asked when she noticed that Willow wasn't wearing the same clothes she'd gone to bed in. "Don't tell me you and me..."

"N-no! We didn't do that! Of course, we didn't! You'd remember!"

"That's... true. So why are you like this?"

"I felt hot during the night. And you?" He threw the question back with a playful smile as he admired the elf's body with a brief glance around the corner.

"I felt hot too!" Aria replied, although she didn't even remember the moment. She looked down at the floor, shyness taking over.

An awkward silence hung between them, but a laugh from Willow broke the ice.

"All right, I believe it wasn't you trying to seduce me. And as proof that I didn't do anything wrong while you were asleep, I won't look while you get ready. Make yourself at home." He declared, turning towards the wall.

Aria let out a chuckle and thanked him with an affectionate tone:

"Thank you."

As he turned, Willow could hear Aria's movements as she dressed. It was stimulating his imagination, but no more so than the whole of last night had been. He had stored up dozens of hypothetical scenarios.

When Aria finally announced that he could look, Willow turned slowly, finding her already dressed as she had been when she went to sleep. He then stood up, and Aria was the one who sat on the bed.

At that moment, he realized that, unlike him, Aria wasn't looking away. Her gaze was fixed on his abdomen. He laughed, a little embarrassed.

"You shouldn't stare so much."

Aria quickly looked away. "I wasn't staring on purpose! It's just that... you seem much stronger than when we met three days ago. How...?"

Willow quickly thought of a few answers and chose to tell the truth. After all, in this world, the question of levels was a well-known one, with some people having abilities like Willow's that allowed them to see the Level of people or monsters.

"I went to a dungeon after we split up in Pavagar. I faced some challenging creatures and got a few levels up."

Aria's eyes sparkled with genuine interest. "Really? And what did you find there? Because you seem to have evolved a lot of levels in a short time."

"Nothing too extraordinary, just a lot of insects proportional to my level, and killing them was making me evolve exponentially. What's more, I also evolved when we killed that Beast of Carnage. Just like that, I reached Level 9."

It wasn't a problem for Aria to know what level Willow was at that moment. She just didn't need to know that he was only a level 1 man when they met three days ago, otherwise his speed of evolution might surprise her.

Normally, adventurers evolve one to two levels a month at most. As killing monsters is tiring and risky, they don't kill much more than that. However, Willow practically killed two Bosses in a single day. Something that even he thought was absurd, using the comparison that in five years of playing the game, he'd only killed ten bosses.

Willow put his shirt on slowly, enjoying the moment of relaxation that followed the conversation. He adjusted the sleeves while glancing at Aria, who remained seated on the edge of the bed and avoided looking at him while he changed.

"So, what are your plans for today?" Aria asked when he was dressed.

"I'm going to the adventurers' guild. I want to sign up as an adventurer, finally. I only didn't go before because... well, I didn't have much confidence in my strength. However, after climbing a few levels, I think I'm ready." He adjusted the collar of his shirt.

Aria crossed her legs on the bed, which caused the light robe she was wearing to sway subtly.

"So, apart from that, what other plans do you have? Are you going straight to any dungeons?"

Willow shook her head negatively. "I still need to go to the blacksmith. I bought a spear yesterday, but it ended up being broken in half by the Beast of Carnage. I want to see if I can fix it before I enter another dungeon."

Aria nodded slowly and looked at Willow a little apprehensively, as if she were making an important decision. "Can I go with you?" she asked suddenly. "I also need money, and... well, although I can't officially work as an adventurer, we are a duo, aren't we?"

Willow frowned. "Why can't you officially work as an adventurer? You seem more than capable."

Aria raised her eyes and met Willow's. "Why, I thought you knew because you didn't even question it when I agreed to work with that group of Rank-C adventurers. I'm a Knight of Sylvanor. Officially, we can't register with guilds because we already have official titles. It's like the Knights of this kingdom too, who can't work as bounty hunters. Therefore, I need to join some adventurer groups to get quests."

"I see. You're in a complicated situation. But, okay, if you want, you can accompany me. Even if we can't share the guild rewards officially, we can do it on the side. Besides, if we run into Kevneth on the streets, we might be able to get our reward for killing the supposed 'Evil Spirit'."

Aria laughed lightly. "I hope so. We almost died trying to defeat it."

That's how Aria Valenwood, a beautiful knight from Sylvanor, joined Willow's group, becoming the first and only member. Willow knew that this would give him a chance to get closer to her and learn from a professional, as well as perhaps being able to use the skills of his new class.