Alana was a little surprised to find herself in her bed when she woke up in the morning, but more than that, she was incredibly happy to find her beloved sound asleep by her side. She loved how his arm was wrapped around her waist, and how her skin was kissing his skin.
And what she could not believe was how unbelievably good he smelt even after the night they shared. This made her feel a little insecure and self-conscious as she was well aware that she did not smell as good as him. Then again, her body was doused in his scent right now, and she found herself a little unwilling to wash it off when she realised that she would have to take a bath later.
Lost in her silly thoughts and reminiscing last night, she did not realise when Keith opened his eyes. He amusedly smiled as he watched her wearing a frown and a silly smile at the same time.
"Good morning." He greeted her, and the panic she displayed made him chuckle.
"I love you!" Those were the first words she said to him, and then immediately hid her face in his neck, hugging him tightly. "And good morning."
"Is it sore?" He playfully asked, and Alana shook her head before planting a kiss on his neck.
"No."
"That's a lie." He teased her, and she playfully bit him on his neck, which he played along with as he squeezed her tightly in his arms.
"Oww..." She groaned her complaint and earned a kiss on her head. "If you know it is sore, fix it. You are a doctor." She shot back at him.
"No. I won't." He smiled and then started getting out of bed. "Let's go. We missed dinner last night, and I don't want to miss breakfast."
His words suddenly reminded her of some things, and her stomach grumbled a little in protest, making her feel quite embarrassed.
It was still early morning, but if they did not get up now, the morning Training session would be delayed.
Alana frowned a little when she felt a little stronger than she was last night. When she sensed her Aura, she was shocked to find out that it was several times more than it had been the last she checked, and for some reason, it felt purer as well.
She quickly calculated and understood that she was in the Great Profound Realm, and quite close to the True Profound Realm as her Aura was already enough to cover her entire body.
"Congratulations on reaching the Peak of Great Profound Realm." Keith understood her thoughts and informed her what her current level of Cultivation was.
"How?" She was genuinely amazed and curious, and it made him smile at her.
"Perks of sleeping with me. After all, I am Divine." He teased her, making her blush at his words. "And it helps that you are quite special as well."
His words made her more curious, but Keith did not explain anything to her.
As soon as they entered the bathroom, they indulged in activities that gave her no time to think about anything else, and as much as she wanted to be on time, they were late for breakfast when they finally arrived in the dining hall.
She was glad that Harud, Roy, Ruru, and Riku had already left for the training ground. So, she ate her meal in peace and took her time to compose herself.
"Keith."
"Yes?"
"Do your senses turn sharper as you advance in Cultivation?"
"Yes." He nodded to her.
"Oh.." She felt a little relieved that she could hear things from a distance that she could not do before, and it was starting to bother her a little as well.
"Every race has its limits. However, your case is special. Your heightened hearing has nothing to do with your race or Cultivation."
"My Special Physique?" She guessed, having already known that she possessed one as he had told her that before. "You never told me what it was about." She curiously asked, but seeing his smile, she understood that she would still have to wait for the answer.
"It has awakened now, and you will slowly understand its perks." He informed her, making her more curious, and for the rest of the meal, the girl was lost in her thoughts.
"Good morning, Alana!" A cheerful girl suddenly entered at room and greeted her, and Alana raised her head to watch Ingvild plant a kiss on Keith's cheek and then receive one in return on her forehead.
The mischievous smile that crept on the little girl's face tensed her a little, and despite herself, she blushed hard.
For some reason, she felt sure that Invgild could tell what happened between her and Keith last night, and her hunch proved right when she heard her next words.
"You should take some rest and skip the training today." The little Carmilla Princess lightly said, but the mischievous glint in her eyes was not missed by her and neither by Keith. "You can join us today. We are going to construct some new words." She offered, but Alana immediately shook her head.
"I am fine..."
"Skip it." Keith suddenly cut in, and his Songbird could only helplessly nod her head after that.
Keith then left her at Ingvild's mercy, but luckily for her, Kiara and Rebecca were not there to tease the life out of her for truly becoming his lover.
Keith left the two girls chatting at the table and arrived at the Training Ground where all four of his students were already busy with their routines.
Harud was meditating. Roy was busy running around the grounds. And Ruru and Riku were engaged in a spar.
"Master." The Hubo twins greeted him as soon as he approached them, and by the time Roy came running over to them, Harud had finished an Aura Circulation and was up on his feet now. The two greeted him together, and though they noticed that Alana had not come with him, none of them raised any questions about it.
"Are you ready for the quiz?" He asked them, and they all nodded their heads in unison.
"Yes, Master."
"Very well. For the first question that you get wrong, I will make you feel pain equivalent to breaking your collarbone, and the pain will multiply for every wrong answer that follows. Understood?"
His words tensed them all, but they were used to his harsh training by now and nodded their heads confidently.
All of them had studied hard last night, recalling the lessons Keith had taught them over the last few months, and they were more than ready for it.
The results showed that as well since Harud got all 10 questions right. And Roy, Riku, and Ruru all managed to get nine right. Even though they were punished for it, the pain was something they were used to by now, so it did not bother them much.
At the end of the training session that followed, Roy approached him and asked a question that was seemingly bothering him a little.
"Master. Will we have our game of chess tonight?" He hopefully asked, a little sad that Keith was not inside his study last night when he went over as usual.
He had gotten quite attached to their sessions, liking them a lot, and the Demiliore could already tell that the boy now looked at him as a father figure in his life.
"Yes." He nodded to him, and Roy happily bowed to him and thanked him before joining the rest for the runs around the grounds.
At lunch, Keith could tell that Ingvild had not teased Alana too much since his Songbird was happily chatting with everyone.
After finishing his meal, he went over to check on Romeo to inspect the changes that were taking place in his body, and when he returned, he took Minami, Ingvild, and Yingying inside Aerzar and trained them there for the next few days.
It was only after they returned to Gaia that he checked the pending notifications from the System, as well as Alana's and his information.
[Subject: Alana Parker]
[Heroine of Destiny]
[Age: 21]
[Race: Ashaya]
Bloodline: None]
[Special Physique: The Physique of the Immortal Sounds (Awakened)]
[Status: The richest and the most Popular Music artist on Gaia. Keith Argus Demiliore's Lover. ]
[Cultivation Rank: Great Profound Realm (Peak)]
[Cultivation Talent: Violet]
[Strength: 11]
[Constitution: 13]
[Speed & Reflexes: 13]
(10 is the average limit for Cultivators in the Great Profound Realm)
[Charm: 93]
[Fate: 4,175 (Fluctuating)
As Keith had expected, sleeping with him had drastically raised her Fate Value. She had gained nearly 2000 Fate Points after awakening her Physique and baptising her Aura by losing her innocence to him, and Keith knew that he had probably gained just as much Fate Value.
[Fate Plunder System: Level 2]
[Host: Keith Argus Demiliore]
[Age: 24]
[Race: ******]
[Bloodline: ******]
[Special Physique: Yin-Yang Forbidden Physique]
[Status: The True Inheritor of the God of Darkness, Erebus....]
[Cultivation Rank: 1st Martial Realm (Peak Stage)]
[Cultivation Talent: Golden]
[Strength: 45]
[Constitution: 45]
[Speed & Reflexes: 45]
(10 is the average limit for Cultivators in the First of the Nine Martial Realms)
[Charm: 99]
[Fate Value: 666 (Black) + 15986 (Fluctuating with a positive trend)]
He was rather glad that he was now at the Peak of First Martial Realm. It would have otherwise taken him nearly a year to reach it, but by sleeping with Alana, bearer of an Immortal Physique, he had managed to reach the stage much earlier.
And finally, he checked the quest and the rewards which he had received upon claiming Alana.
[Ding! Congratulations Host for completing the Main Quest 4.1! Alana Parker, the Heroine of Destiny, has been successfully conquered. Rewards: 3000 System Points. 2000 Fate Points. 1000 System Exp. Aura Soul Potion x2 (Spirit Grade). The Potion of Youth x5 (Spirit Grade). Magical Artifact: The Harp of Hathor (Replica) (Heaven Grade). Skill Upgrade Card (Gold). A bracelet made out of purest pink Diamonds.]
Keith was not disappointed with the rewards even though the only thing useful to him was the Skill Upgrade Card. But it was more than special enough as it could help him advance a Divine Ranked Skill to the Master Level.