Bathe

"I can't breathe," Shiro struggled for breath as she tried hard to free her head out of this suffocating place.

"Shiro, finally you came to see me again," Alka cried as she bit some chocolate.

Shiro was just wondering where Alka got the chocolate from.

"I thought I lost connection with you,

I was so lonely and bored," Alka cried dramatically.

[ I'll find the boring part hard to believe since you were watching anime before Shiro came today -_- ] the system thought to itself as it saw the honourable Alka acting like a kid who had just lost their toy.

"We lost a connection?" Shiro asked, confused.

"Yes, we did. I had tried to bring you here so many times, but alas, my efforts had failed." Alka explained as she looked confused.

'Maybe it has something to do with that dream I had,' Shiro thought to herself.

"Umm Alka can I ask what you're wearing?" Shiro asks, as she finally notices Alka's new clothes.

"Oh this," Alka got up and with no hesitation did a 360 degree turn to show off the blue dress she was wearing. Alka's beautiful black hair reached down her back which was tied up with a small rope and a big black flower inside. Alka wore a tight blue dress. From her neck to her torso the dress was like a bra that somehow fully covered her breasts. There was some linen to tie it to her neck. The dress was slim, going all the way down her legs, wrapping between her thighs. Her back too, from the waist up, had the same design. She wore two long back sleeves that covered her hands, but she wore nothing for her feet.

Shiro just looked at Alka sheepishly, for her taste in clothes was terrible.

"Well, I like this dress, because it's more comfortable than what I usually wear." Alka proclaimed with pride as she smirked.

"Okay then," Shiro answered blandly. She was disappointed in what Alka was wearing, but she couldn't compare this to the costumes that other Heroes wore, which were ridiculous.

"But what am I doing here anyway?" Shiro asked, confused and at the same time, curious.

Alka's face became serious and she sat on the ground, her legs crossed in a butterfly position. Shiro did the same.

"Now then. Shiro, there's something I have to tell you."

"As you should know, you should be able to see the system," Alka said with a serious expression on her face.

"Oh, you mean this screen that I can see," Shiro answered as the black and purple screen appeared in front of her.

Alka: "From time to time you'll be given a quest to complete to level up and gain skills to become stronger."

"Like how exactly?" Shiro asked again.

"Well that one comes at random, you can either be given a quest to fight monsters or do something normal but difficult," Alka answered her without hesitation.

"I'm too lazy to explain this but I guess I have to," Alka yawned as dark clouds formed before them, illuminating images like a video.

Alka then began to explain to Shiro how the system works so that the child won't come and bother her about how to use the system the next time they meet.

As Alka explained the clouds would transform into cartoon images that showed Shiro how things worked out.

So every day Shiro would be given some daily quest to complete. A quest is a form of the task given to the Diamond to complete either every day or once a week in exchange for some 'experience points.' The quest is divided into 4 sections. Daily, weekly, monthly, and Diamond Quest.

Each quest is separated into 4 ranks which are Easy, Intermediate, Advanced, and impossible. You can already tell by their name the difficulty of the quest.

On some special occasions, Shiro might receive a Diamond Quest but it would be extremely difficult and it's mostly a rank Impossible quest. However, there would be great rewards given to the Diamond if the Diamond quest is completed and a terrible punishment if she were given a right to fail.

Some humans at a certain level can also have this system but it's far different from the one Shiro is using.

Also in some unexpected cases, there could be special quests, but those are quite rare and their rank can't be easily determined since sometimes they can be easy. From time to time, they would pop up, and if a Diamond fails to complete any quest, there would always be a penalty for it. The penalties too, vary from time to time and some can be more… gruesome, than others. So, Shiro must always complete her quests. Or else.

"Is that enough Shiro?" Alka asked, checking if Shiro understood what she just explained.

"Yes, Alka. Thank you," Shiro answered with a smile. This new information made her quite happy, as she realised that she was different from others.

Alka: "You're….. welcome."

"Hehehe," Shiro giggled cutely.

"So then I'll see you later," Shiro waved her hands as she started to feel a little sleepy.

"Don't worry about seeing me later. Now that I've established a good connection, I can talk to you while you're awake," Alka informed Shiro, with a smirk.

Shiro then walked away and disappeared into the void.

Alka materialized a chair for herself and sat down, feeling a sense of happiness.

"I wonder what is in store for me in this Subaru household."

.

.

_______

Shiro suddenly woke up, a big smile on her face. She got to see Alka again when she thought Alka was gone for good, and now she has a way to grow stronger.

"I forgot to ask Alka about her level. No matter how many times I tried to look upon it, all it said was ERROR. I suppose I could just ask her when we meet again."

Shiro got up from the bed, eyes filled with determination, when she suddenly realised that the room was empty and Tael was nowhere to be seen.

"Is it time already?" Shiro thought to herself as she looked around for Tael, unable to see her.

"But where are the maids? Who is to help us take a bath," Shiro pondered as she felt a little worried.

Shiro then shrugged as she let go of that thought and skipped to the bathroom, cutely. She doesn't always need to rely on her maids to bathe her.

As she entered the bathroom, she was stunned at this sight in front of her. A huge, spacious room with a toilet, jacuzzi and a shower, with a large drawer by the wall.

As Shiro was busily admiring the bathroom, she heard some water flowing at the other end. She couldn't tell since curtains were covering all the bathing areas.

So she decided to move closer to the noise. Passing curtain after curtain Shiro reached one side of the bathroom where a big sauna and a young boy was inside looking through a hologram screen with a serious expression. His dark purple hair dripped with water as he wore no clothes.

Shiro decided that she might as well take a bath with Tael so she removed her clothes and took a bright pink towel on the Towel rack on the right side of the Sauna and wrapped it around herself.

"Tael!!" Shiro called out as she jumped into the sauna where Tael is and made a huge splash.

Tael didn't mind Shiro's childish behaviour even though a wave of hot water hit him. He just continued to read what was on the screen.

Shiro finally recovered from her first jump but her face to her feet were all red. Shiro then started to raise her hand and started to do dumb gestures in front of Tael.

Tael would just take a peek at her misbehaving and resume his reading.

"Pfffttt," Tael let out a tiny laugh when he saw Shiro place two small cotton sticks in her nose and wiggling them.

"Aha, you finally laughed, Shiro

as she pointed at Tael. Okay now stop what you're doing and just enjoy the bath," Tael

"Wait, we're bathing? But where's the soap?" Shiro asked confused

"The water waves help wash the body and I think this water contains somebody cleaning potion," Tael explained to Shiro.

"Oh that's so cool," Shiro exclaimed as she jumped in awe then all of a sudden her towel fell.

Shiro froze there once she realized what had happened.

"What the hell are you doing?!!" Tael yelled as his face flushed bright red like a tomato.

Shiro: "My bad I guess my towel fell"

"Well put it back on," Tael instructed as he blushed in embarrassment.

Shiro: "Why should I put it on anyway. I do this all the time and I bathe with mummy like this, and you're as young as me so what's the problem," she argued.

"As a girl, you should prioritize your body and not show it to other people," he said in a low voice as his face was still red.

"Even when you put your towel on," Tael said.

"And what if I don't?" Shiro retorted

"Then I'll go bath somewhere else," Tael replied calmly

"And I would also follow you," Shiro said, cheekily

"Then I won't bath," Tael answered back

"Fine, I'll just wear it," Shiro mumbled

Shiro took her towel and wrapped it around her clear body and dipped herself in the sauna.

'Tch, why do I have to watch this troublesome child? I know I'm also a child but at least I act mature," Tael thought to himself as he scrolled through the screen in front of him.