[—You have leveled up!]

[—You have leveled up!]

...

The influx of strength and mana reinforced his muscles. Once the surge of level-up notifications ended, a new window popped up.

[—Congratulations on accumulating 500 stats in Defense.] [—Reward: Deathless Tank Class]

Klyscha burst into a fit of giggles. “Ah, my love. Your skin alone qualifies you for the special class.”

“More survivability, I guess.”

“Class?” Ddraig asked, foggy question marks popping over her chibi head. “Satan class?”

Klyscha turned her gleaming eyes towards the innocent and curious dragon. Ddraig shuddered and clung to Asahi’s shirt. The warmth around him untied the knots of worries in her heart.

“Asahi, can I hug you to sleep every night?” Ddraig asked in a cute, yet curious voice.

“Only if you obey me,” Klyscha intruded. A cute dragon to bully in her free time was a blessing. “Agree?”

Ddraig shook her head rapidly. “Asahi, you are strong. Fight her! For your pride!”

Asahi lifted the dragon and looked her in the eyes. “You know who this lovely woman is?”

“No.”

“She created the world you live in from the dreams and imaginations of mortals. She can delete your world with one thought.”

Ddraig's eyes widened. “That’s—”

Klyscha leaked a minuscule amount of her aura. Ddraig struggled to stand straight, her knees shaking from the pressure. Yet, she defiantly glared at Klyscha, mustering her aura as much as she could.

“Don’t… underestimate a Heavenly Dragon!” Ddraig yelled.

Klyscha grinned and turned up the pressure. Ddraig felt like the sky had collapsed on her head. She was about to collapse, but Asahi placed his hand under her chin and scratched her scales.

“Ddraig, she is too powerful for us.”

“Even with Boosted Gear?” Ddraig questioned. He had nearly bent reality with his existence after a couple of boosts with the Boosted Gear.

Asahi shook his head. Bringing the dragon close to his face, he whispered, “There is one way for us to become stronger and stand up to this tyrant wife of mine. You in?”

“Really?” Ddraig’s eyes shone at the mere thought of getting stronger. “How?”

Asahi discarded the loli lover class in favor of his new class. Klyscha laughed when she saw what he did.

“My love doesn’t need any more lolis?”

“Probably not. I can seduce if I want someone.”

Asahi closed his eyes and initiated the bonding process without knowing if it’ll work on Ddraig. After all, she was just a soul.

A burst of golden light left his hands and wrapped Ddraig. The dragon felt like something was melting inside her.

‘What’s this feeling?’

She felt intoxicated, drunk even. Her eyes nearly closed in the comfortable sensation as if she was in a pool of lava.

[Asahi Marikawa wants to bond with you as a Monster Tamer.] [Accept/Reject]

Ddraig saw a blue screen window emerge, unlike anything she had ever seen before. She could read the letters despite not knowing the language of humans.

“You want to tame me?” Ddraig stared at him fiercely. “...You do have that right after defeating me… but—I won’t yield to anyone!” 

Draig mustered every bit of her courage to deny the offer. For ten years, she wouldn’t be able to train and receive any significant boost in her strength. 

“It’s not yielding,” Asahi coaxed with a gentle face. “It’s adapting. You’re no longer a lone dragon. You’re my family. My kin.”

Sweet words dripping with magnetism reached Ddraig’s ears. The tremendous increase in Asahi’s charm even affected the incredibly powerful soul of Ddraig.

“Kin…” Ddraig trailed her words with a sharp gaze. “Promise me you will treat me like family.”

“Geez, it’s not like our relationship is going to change.” Asahi sighed. “It’s just a skill to increase your power.”

“True.” Ddraig nodded. “I accept.”

The golden aura around Ddraig surged and sank in her chibi body. She gazed at Asahi, her gaze softer than ever. A connection was formed between them. She could feel it even with her eyes closed.

[Ddraig has become your pet.]

[Ddraig received a new unique skill: Soul Manifestation] [Ddraig received a new unique skill: Soul Strengthening Art (Bronze)]

“Unique skills?” Ddraig asked before a stream of information invaded her consciousness. The information of the new skills blended as if it had always been there since her birth like her flames.

A look of disbelief flashed in her reptilian eyes. “Manifestation and strengthening… everything I needed.” Ddraig happily flapped her wings and rubbed her face with Asahi. “Thank you, Asahi!”

She could materialize in the real world as a soul and become strong through the mysterious art. It was a dream come true moment for the Heavenly Dragon.

[+4 Affections points with pet Ddraig]

Her total affection points rose to 65. More than he expected. He patted her head, giving Klyscha a smile, who returned a smirk.

Leaving Ddraig to ponder on her new skills, Asahi opened his status.

[STATUS] Asahi Marikawa Lvl. 73
Current level progress	89%
[ATTRIBUTES]
Strength	395
Dexterity	370
Constitution	460
Defense	525
Charm	620
Magic	880
Karma	2,500,100,785
[SKILLS] …

He had reached level 73 in one go, just two more levels to unseal the Enchanter class that will replace the Mature Lover class.

‘It feels surreal.’

Klyscha pulled his head to her lap and patted his hair. “We still have many worlds to explore. Many classes to unlock.”

Asahi grinned. “And many gods to kill.”

***

Asahi’s new day started with a massive uproar. The massive increase in strength startled the entire castle. 

Then came a calm breakfast. The dining room was lively, mostly thanks to Shiori, Rika, and Lemegeton, who only showed up once in a blue moon. 

All of Astraea Familia Familia had eaten earlier, after receiving brutal lessons from Aimi in the castle’s yard.

“When is Hades coming?” Saya asked, frowning in displeasure. “I’ll blow him up if he talks shit.”

To reiterate her point, she conjured balls of scarlet fire.

“We can’t do that, Saya,” Grayfia chided Saya. “Hades has an army of grim reapers. Let’s not forget he is connected to the Greek Pantheon.”

“Argh, he can have his army of gods. I have Asahi.”

“Dear can break this world’s reality with the Boosted Gear,” Shiori chimed in. “Gods are XP for him.”

“Hahaha,” Rika laughed merrily. “Can my bullets go through skeletons?”

Asahi calmly watched the girls spit dangerous threats towards the god as if he was just another undead they encountered in the dungeon.

“Hades is a lot stronger than they think,” Ddraig said in his mind. “...I heard about it from Tiamat.”

Asahi shrugged. ‘I don’t really care.’

His nonchalant discussion with Ddraig was disrupted by the approaching presence. A familiar angel walked through the door and awkwardly greeted the girls.

“Sorry for disturbing your breakfast.” Sandalphon smiled apologetically. “Teacher, Father sent me to aid you… But I believe you don’t need my help.”

“Huh? When did I say that?” Asahi scoffed.

Leaving his seat, he took Sandalphon’s hands and took her to his room. On the way, Sandalphon described the tragic situation of Gabriel. His fiance was gritting her teeth in her room as God had prohibited her from entering the Underworld. What he did say was to meet Asahi in the special room he made.

They stopped in a spacious dojo filled with all sorts of wooden swords, firearms as well as bows. Asahi pulled out two wooden swords and tossed one to Sandalphon.

“Let’s sweat until Hades comes.”

A lovely smile blossomed on Sandalphon’s face. “Yes, Teacher!”