《Blessed by Night》


 Chapter 1: A Welcome Call

    <h4>Chapter 1: A Wee Call</h4>


    In the year 2033 it began.


    Gods, monsters, devils, angels every higher creature from every mythology began to bless those they found worthy and share their powers.


    They became known as the highers.


    They never told us the purpose.


    Or maybe we were too caught up in what we were being offered to ask why.


    But eventually with the emergence of the gates, we realized they were preparing us.


    Gates are portals that connect our world to some other reality or ne of existence.


    Through these gates we find mythological monsters and magical resources the likes of which were only fantasy until now.


    The so called chosen heroes who enter gates are known as the Blessed and in two years it''s be the most sought after career in the world.


    The Blessed have it all.


    Money, fame, admiration and power.


    They are the most famous and well known people in the entire world and some are even the leaders of their own nations.


    There isn''t a single ce that a blessed can go and not be swarmed by paparazzi.


    They are immensely powerful, beautiful, and charming beings.


    While their abilities range from an incredibly wide variety, even the weakest among them can crush a car with their barehands.


    After five whole years, we still have no idea what the higher''s criteria are for blessing a human.


    Normal srymen, death row inmates, bus drivers and even an olddy are just a few of the beings who were blessed and had their lives turned around overnight.


    Blessed have their bodies forcibly changed into peak condition so that little olddy was able to return to her youth and a crippled man was able to run faster than a bullet train.


    Despite the seemingly loose criteria, only 1 percent of the poption actually end up as blessed and gain the privilege of entering gates and defending our world.


    With all of the excitement around the Blessed, we seem to have forgotten the most important question.


    Why are they doing this for us and what will they require in return?


    -


    "Wooo .. d that''s done."


    Mchi Saint leaned back from hisputer and breathed a sigh or relief when he finally finished his college paper that was due tomorrow.


    He wasn''t a bad student by any means but if you asked him why he always waited until thest minute to do an assignment he''d say that he worked best under pressure.


    Checking the time on his cracked Tphone, he saw that he had to start getting ready to go to work pretty soon so he rose from his seat and went to his closet to get dressed.


    As he slipped on his work shirt and pants that reeked of fast food, he attempted to polish himself in the mirror but became disheartened when he realized even a polished turd is still a turd.


    Mchi was a skinny young man with dark brown skin and short ck dreads that barely went past his ears.


    His eyes were a warm almond color, a trait he inherited from his father and shared with his sister.


    He stood at an unimpressive 5''7 and didn''t appear to have an ounce of muscle on his body.


    Despite his downtrodden attitude over his looks, he still shed his signature prize winning smile in the mirror before exiting his room.


    Seeing no lights on in their tiny apartment, he checked to make sure they hadn''t been cut off again before a sudden feminine voice reached his ears.


    "Heading to work already?"


    Sitting on their old ratty couch was Mchi''s sister and only family, Aubrey.


    Aubrey Saint was the textbook definition of beautiful with soft brown skin and long curly ck hair.


    She had a short but curvaceous body that was currently hidden underneath an oversized hoodie and a pair of bright almond eyes.


    "Yea¡­ how are you feeling today." He walked towards his younger sister and gave her a warm pat on the head.


    "You know you don''t have to ask me that everyday¡­ I''m fine." Aubrey took a second to enjoy her brother''s caress but she didn''t want him to keep worrying about her.


    "I''ll continue asking whether you want me to or not." Mchi chucked before finally moving towards the door.


    "I''ll be backter don''t forget to lock up okay sis?"


    "I won''t forget just be safe." She waved him out the door warmly before she resumed sitting alone in the darkness, illuminated only by the light of her phone.


    "Jeez that girl¡­" Mchi didn''t feel right about leaving his sister alone but he had no choice.


    His shitty job was the only thing that could support them and they had no other family to rely on or turn to.


    Both their parents were killed in a gate eruption four years ago and they''ve been scraping by ever since.


    But still he felt guilty about leaving her alone, especially after...


    Shaking his head to free himself from dark thoughts, Mchi got into his rusty old car that was currently missing it''s front bumper before turning the key and heading to work.


    He''d just begun to drive when his phone suddenly started vibrating.


    He looked at the name across the dirty screen and smiled when he saw a name he was all too familiar with.


    The contact picture showed a divinely beautiful woman with icy white hair and crimson red eyes.


    She had smooth white skin that looked like it was made out of marble and was posing back to back with him with an aloof demeanor.


    Answering with a swipe across the ss, Mchi''s cheerful voice contained no traces of his earlier somber mood.


    "How''s my favorite blessed doing today?"


    ----------------------------------------


    Thank you for giving my second book a read!


    I want to take a moment to say two things :


    1. The beginning of this book will have a lot of slice of life and fun stuff, and things won''t start getting serious tillter on.


    2.Mchi is human!


    He is just like me and you, so that means that he does cringey things at first, has shortsighted moments and is kinda just your average nice guy.


    Therefore, everyint you''re going to make about his personality has already been made before so either watch him grow or fuck off.


    He''s created to feel like a real person who fails, makes mistakes, and learns along the way.


    If that''s not your cup of tea then for the love of fucking god do us both a favor and drop this now so that I''ll be spared from your unnecessary assments ''Hes a cuck, he''s too nice, he''s so naive, etc.''


    Ight, y''all good? Y''all prepared?


    Sorry for this lil public service announcement, I''m just at my wits end wit some of you overly aggressive mfs on this site.

 Chapter 2: Fired.

    <h4>Chapter 2: Fired.</h4>


    "Shove it up your ass you sarcastic cunt." The feminine voice on the line immediately retorted back.


    Mchi touched his chest as if her words touched him to his very core. "Ah you have such a way with words my friend!"


    There was a fit of giggles on the other line before the woman responded. "How you been bastard?"


    Mchi couldn''t help but smile as they conversed.


    He was unspeakably grateful fame hadn''t changed her.


    The woman currently on the phone was his oldest friend and closest confidant Aisha.


    They''d grown up together since they were babies because their parents were ssmates in high school.


    Honestly she was a lot like a sister to him as well.


    Three years ago, Aisha received two blessings from gods and her life changed considerably.


    She received the blessing of beauty from Aphrodite, and the blessing of war from Ares.


    These simple but monumental facts turned her into a superstar among superstars.


    With her exquisitely beautiful yet fearsome demeanor, she easily captivated the attention of the people and was famous overnight.


    And as one of the few people alive with a dual blessing, she was just as deadly as she was beautiful, clearing out dungeons in record time was no difficult task for her and she soon became something of a living goddess.


    With her talents, it was no wonder her rating was SS.


    "So¡­ how''s your sister?"


    "No." Mchi immediately shut the conversation down.


    "I-I''m just asking a simple question shit for brains!"


    "You''ve had a crush on her for forever do you think I don''t know you?" Mchi rolled his eyes.


    An audible gasp was heard over the phone.


    ''She honestly can''t believe she''s been found out this dumbass!''


    This was a SS ranker?


    If he was a scummy person he would''ve sold this story to the tabloids for a nice buck.


    "H-how did you find out.." her voice was almost a whisper.


    "You''ve been looking at her like you''ve wanted to eat her ever since her boobs got bigger than yours."


    "I have not!"


    "What would all your fans think if they knew their warrior goddess was such a pervert?"


    "Whose the pervert?! Don''t think I don''t remember that time I found that milf porn under your bed when we were nine!!"


    "I told you that was my dad''s!"


    The two continued to argue over the subject until Mchi arrived at work and it was time to say goodbye.


    "You know.. you don''t have to work so hard. Please let me help-"


    "I won''t take any money from you Aisha. I know what you''re trying to do but it just wouldn''t feel right."


    "Tsk¡­ stubborn fuck."


    "You wouldn''t have me any other way."


    The beep signaling the end of the phone call also signaled Mchi''s victory in rejecting Aisha''s handouts yet again.


    Ever since she''d firste into her money, she''d been offering to take care of them.


    While he appreciated the gesture and knew it would make their lives much easier, his pride just wouldn''t allow him to take money from his friend especially if he knew he had no chance of paying her back.


    With a sigh, the young man got out of the car and prepared to walk into the restaurant only to see a pair he recognized all too well.


    His boss who was only a few years older than him, was standing next to an attractive young woman with gray hair and ck eyes.


    Upon seeing the pair Mchi let out an impressed whistle. "You sure move on fast huh Mnie?"


    The woman looked slightly embarrassed before the man next to her decided to speak for her.


    "You know Mal I''ve been sleeping with this little beauty for about two months. "


    "But imagine my surprise when she told me she actually used to be with somebody like you. "


    "Two months huh.. "Mchi showed a bitter smile as he realized that he''d not only been dumped for someone else but he''d also been cheated on.


    "Mal I - " Mnie began.


    "You don''t have to pretend to care about him Mnie!" The man named Derrick once again interrupted.


    "Weren''t you telling me how he couldn''t afford to buy you anything nice and you only went out with him in the first ce because you felt bad for him?"


    Mchi showed no real reaction to this.


    Deep inside he knew.


    He always knew.


    There was no way a girl as pretty as Mnie should''ve ever said yes to him.


    She was one of the most popr girls at his college.


    What did he even have to offer a woman of such caliber?


    Even if he was attentive, kind, and loving was that not something that any person could do?


    Derrick owned multiple chain restaurants just like the one Mchi worked at and his cousin was even rumored to be a Blessed.


    It was no wonder she chose him in the end.


    He wasn''t even certain what possessed him to confess to her in the first ce.


    "Look Mal you were a half decent worker but I just don''t feelfortable having you around. "


    Derrick walked forward and took out an envelope from his pocket. "This is yourst paycheck, don''te around anymore."


    Faced with such humiliation Mchi could not resist a final sarcastic retort. "Damn Derrick.. didn''t think you''d be so threatened by little ole me. You really know how to give a guy some confidence huh?"


    Derrick smiled and chuckled.


    Truthfully he always did find Mchi pretty funny.


    But now was the time to set an example.


    POW!


    Derrick yed football in high school and still kept himself in decent shape.


    So naturally when Mchi received his overgrown fist directly in his jaw, there was only one way for the situation to y out.


    Thunk!


    Mchi''s body hit the ground and he slipped into the realm of unconsciousness.

 Chapter 3: Chosen.

    <h4>Chapter 3: Chosen.</h4>


    When Mchi awoke, he realized he was on a soft surface and his nose was filled with the smell of lilies.


    With one whiff of that familiar floral scent, he knew exactly where he was.


    Slowly opening his eyes he saw a familiar beige ceiling.


    "You''re awake!"


    Suddenly a warm mature voice was heard and Mchi immediately felt his heart speed up.


    The source of the voice was a gorgeous older woman with chocte brown hair and soft white skin.


    She had a delicate motherly figure with an enormous bust that was barely contained in her white blouse.


    Her gentle light brown eyes made Mchi feel seen and cared for, an emotion he hadn''t felt in far too long.


    With one quick look around he realized he was in her nicely decorated living room as he had been so many times before.


    "Ms. Aihara? How''d I get here?"


    The woman pouted before cing a delicate hand on Mchi''s stomach. "W-what''re you- OW!"


    The woman leaned back with a satisfied nod after giving his stomach a pinch from hell.


    "How many times do I have to tell you to call me Sei now? You''re an adult already and you make me feel old!"


    "I-I got it I''m sorry. How did I get here Sei?"


    Sei moved to get some ice for Mchi''s jaw that was beginning to swell.


    "I got a call from some girl asking if I could pick you up because you''d gotten into a fight so I closed the shop and rushed right over."


    Two realizations immediately hit Mchi like a ton of bricks.


    One was that the girl Sei was referring to must''ve been Mnie.


    The second was that he''d caused Sei, who was a single mother and a struggling restaurant owner, to lose customers.


    "I''m.. so sorry for the trouble."


    Sei looked behind her to see Mchi staring at the ground.


    ''You''ve grown up so well..''


    She''d known Mchi ever since he woulde over to tutor her daughter while they were still in high school.


    He was the reason she was able to get into the same college as him.


    When his parents died she was the first one to offer to take him and his sister in yet he promptly refused.


    Despite the odds he graduated two yearster and even got into a decent college.


    Even though his life was incredibly hard, she''d never seen him when he didn''t have a carefree smile or a sarcastic remark to make.


    It was truly a miracle how one boy could still be so carefree.


    Yet here that boy was now crying over inconveniencing her.


    Mchi flinched when he felt his body be wrapped in a warm embrace.


    "Sei?"


    "You''re such a kind boy, Mchi. I''m sure your parents would be proud."


    When she released him they sat in silence for a minute while she iced his cheek.


    "Well¡­ since it''s my fault the restaurant closed early, let me buy a meal." Mchi suddenly said as he pulled out his wallet and smiled with a swollen jaw.


    "Mal I couldn''t possibly-"


    "Please." Mchi insisted. "Let me repay you."


    Seeing the unwavering determination in his eyes, Sei realized she wasn''t going to win this fight and hastily got up to prepare her most popr dish.


    "Fine but don''t you darein if it''s not good!"


    "I wouldn''t dream of it."


    As Sei walked away, Mchi ced a palm over his rapidly beating heart.


    ''Damn¡­ she''s too beautiful to be that close.''


    -


    While the two shared a meal Sei asked how such a kind boy like Mchi could possibly get into a fight and was devastated to hear the story of what happened.


    She of course offered to hire him at her shop, but Mchi knew she wasn''t really in a position to do such a thing withoutpromising her own living situation and promptly refused.


    After he said his goodbyes he walked home with his mind in a million different ces.


    ''She gets more beautiful everytime I see her.''


    ''What am I going to do without a job?''


    ''Fuck, that big bastard can throw a punch..''


    ''Do I go back to tutoring?''


    ''Do I finally swallow my pride and call Aisha?..''


    ''I have to do something, anything!''


    With a sigh, he sat down on a nearby park bench and stared into the sky.


    The crisp cool night air temporarily alleviated his worries and he felt his body immediately rx.


    "Well.. with a night like this it can''t be all bad."


    He felt a smile spread uncontrobly across his face.


    "You like the night do you?"


    Suddenly, Mchi turned his head to see a strikingly beautiful blue skinned woman sitting next to him.


    Her hair and eyes were as dark and empty as the ckest of shadows, and yet it did not make her any less captivating.


    Her ck dress tightly clung to her body and glimmered with sparkles that looked like stars in the sky.


    Mchi should''ve been downright terrified to have this strange woman suddenly appear next to him and yet¡­ her presence gave him the same rxed feeling that he got underneath a full moon.


    "Yea¡­ kinda peaceful don''t you think?" Mchi returned his gaze to the sky.


    The woman seemed to like his answer as she showed a smile that was absolutely dazzling.


    "I do."


    She slowly rose up from her seat and came to a stop directly in front of the dazed man.


    "I''ve made my choice."


    "What choi-"


    Before he could finish speaking, she ced a single finger on his forehead and his eyes rolled back as he slipped into unconsciousness once again.


    -


    Back at Sei''s house she was washing dishes as she thought of her conversation with Mchi.


    "Hmph, hateful girl! How could she be so cruel!"


    Just thinking about how the girl had treated Mchi made her blood boil.


    ''Such a gentle boy¡­ I hope one day you find someone to treat you the way you deserve.''


    Suddenly, the front door opened and a young girl with pink hair and eyes walked in.


    She wore baggy blue jeans, ace top that revealed her ck bra and a leather jacket.


    "Hey mom!" The girl quickly wrapped her arms around her mother''s back and nted a kiss on her cheek.


    "Wee home my sweet girl." Sei enjoyed her daughter''s embrace for a little longer before an idea shed into her mind.


    "Honey.. what do you think about Mchi?"


    ''Those two are around the same age¡­ let''s see if I still retain my matchmaking skills from my youth!''


    "Hm?" The girl immediately stiffened and stared at her mother with a ck jawed expression.


    "Did.. did he actually do it?" The girls voice was so low it was almost a whisper.


    "Serana? Do wha-"


    "Well it''s about time he did it but I''m telling you right now I won''t call him dad." Serana nodded seemingly satisfied as she folded her arms.


    "...Pardon?"

 Chapter 4: First Blessing

    <h4>Chapter 4: First Blessing</h4>


    "What the hell.. who chose this one?"


    Thousands of murmurs rumbled throughout therge white coliseum where highers were in attendance, curiosly eyeing the frail looking boy that had shown up next to be blessed.


    "What is this.. where am I?" Mchi woke up and sleepily rubbed his eyes.


    He felt like he''d just had the most pleasant and rxing dream imaginable yet he wasying on a cold stone floor.


    "He speaks!" A loud masculine voice like crackling thunder boomed in Mchi''s ears.


    Finally able to get his bearings, Mchi looked around and realized where he was.


    But he didn''t dare to believe it.


    "Speak your name mortal, and tell us the limit of your ambition!"


    Mchi pped himself to make sure that he wasn''t dreaming and no matter how hard his hits were, the scenery in front of him was never changing.


    Rows and rows of divinely beautiful beings from every pantheon.


    Gods, demons, angels and the most famous demigods imaginable.


    At a nce he could see a man with one eye and two crows sitting on his shoulders.


    ''Odin..''


    Looking around more he could see an incredibly busty woman with blond hair and pink eyes whose face was hidden under a veil.


    Mchi wasn''t certain but given the way his lower body was reacting he suspected that this woman was Aphrodite.


    "It''s exactly as the Blessed described."


    He continued to spin around in awe as tried to recognize as many gods as possible.


    There was Zeus, Horus, Thor, and even Lucifer.


    "My name is Mchi Saint." He finally introduced himself after gawking at these beings who could kill him with a blink.


    "And as for my ambition¡­" Mchi began but then stopped when he realized the answer to this question was slightly embarrassing.


    "It is alright child. You are free to speak your true thoughts here, we will not condemn you for them."


    A woman sitting next to Zeus who Mchi could only assume was Hera attempted to ease his mind and loosen his tongue.


    Mchi took a deep breath before he spoke.


    "For ambitions¡­ I have none."


    Some seemed shocked or even amused by his words but Mchi wasn''t done.


    "I just want to be strong so that no one would ever think of touching anything that belongs to me ever again."


    I do not know why you have chosen to bless some of us, but if your legends are to be believed you will expect something in return."


    Now none of the gods wereughing.


    Out of all of the humans that had been blessed so far, not one of them had suspected that the gods might''ve had some ulterior motive for doing this.


    If before they were simply interested in the young human in front of them, now they werepletely focused.


    "But let me say this¡­ I don''t care what you want as payment. I have lived through being unable to protect someone twice before and I will do anything not to experience that hell again."


    The boy was shaking with every word and Achlys, the primordial goddess of misery, smiled as she dragged her nails down her face when she sensed that oh so delicious emotion the boy was now releasing in waves.


    "So to that end, I will pay any price you require and I will be your most obedient soldier. All I ask is that you give me the power to protect thest person I hold dear."


    Mchi''s words contained the utmost sincerity and for a moment there was silence.


    "Well said my child." A soft masculine voice spoke.


    The source of the voice was a gentle looking old man with a pure white beard standing next to a man with skin of brass and hair of wool.


    Internally, Mchi was smirking a little bit.


    ''I was an atheist just a few years ago now look at me speaking to god himself with Jesus sitting right next to him.''


    Life truly was a funny thing.


    "Next, a god will assign you a blessing. If more than one wishes to bless you then you may choose between the two, or if theye from the same pantheon you may take them both if your soul can bear the burden. "


    Mchi listened to the rules before frowning.


    "Why can I not have blessings from gods of different pantheons?"


    A falcon headed man with deep bronze skin chuckled when he heard Mchi''s question.


    "Greedy aren''t we?"


    He simply shrugged. "Nah, desperate."


    The being Mchi guessed to be Ra chuckled before he exined.


    "While we are all higher beings as you humans call us, our powerse from different sources and are therefore ipatible.


    If you attempted to hold a blessing from two opposing pantheons, your soul would shatter like ss against stone."


    Mchi nodded, while he wasn''tpletely satisfied with this, he realized there was no other way.


    "Now.. who would like to offer this one their blessing first?" God asked as he looked around.


    "I would."


    Mchi flinched when he heard the voice of someone that he barely knew yet could never forget.


    He looked towards the height of the coliseum where there were seven thrones above the Greeks.


    There he saw the strikingly beautiful woman he met just beforeing here.


    Zeus seemed slightly fearful of this woman, as evidenced by his respectful tone when speaking to her. "A-Are you sure you-"


    " I, Nyx, primordial goddess of the night, wish to bestow Mchi Saint with my blessing of the night. Will you ept?"


    She promptly ignored the quivering thunder god and focused her eyes directly on the human that she''d brought here.


    Furious murmurs immediately broke out amongst the gods.


    Mchi smiled when he realized that the beautiful and enchanting woman he''d met earlier was actually a primordial goddess.


    And such a being wanted to bless him?


    Only two humans are blessed by a primordial god and they are both SSS rankers capable of sinking an entire continent overnight.


    He really couldn''t believe his fortune.


    He got on one knee and bowed respectfully.


    "I gratefully ept."

 Chapter 5: Second Blessing

    <h4>Chapter 5: Second Blessing</h4>


    As soon as the words left his mouth, a connection was formed between Nyx and Mchi that made him feel like he was overflowing with power.


    He felt incredible, like he''d just been enveloped in the weing embrace of a lover under the night''s sky.


    It was as if a part of himself had been returned after it''d been missing for so long.


    He felt whole.


    "Impossible.. there was no bacsh?"


    "How is he still standing?"


    "That was her main divinity..."


    "He can actually bear the power of a primordial without issue?!"


    "That guy Ouranos picked was bleeding from every hole in his body by now."


    Mchi listened to the shocked murmurs of the gods and tilted his head in confusion.


    "Did I do something wrong?"


    Nyx disappeared from her seat and appeared right in front of him to ease his mind.


    "They are simply in awe. No one has ever seen a human who can bear the weight of a god''s main divinity without any sort of bacsh."


    The woman carefully touched his face and stared at him as if she were looking at something fascinating. "You are quite intriguing indeed."


    "I try to be." Mchi didn''t know how to respond to the woman''s closeness to him so he elected for his standard nonchnt persona.


    "Alright¡­" God seemed to have finally gotten over the shock of this event and was now trying to move on with the proceedings.


    "He appears to be fine...so does anyone else want to offer their blessing to this child?"


    Immediately hundreds of gods from the Greek pantheon mored to offer this human their blessing.


    "Order! Order!" Zeus cried in an attempt to ease his rowdy children and siblings.


    It wasn''t like he couldn''t understand after all the potential of this human in front of them was immense.


    But even still this human had already shown himself to be sharp. If he saw how desperately the gods were attempting to form ties with him, he might start asking questions and right now such a thing should be avoided.


    It simply wasn''t the time.


    "Mchi was it? Why don''t you choose the god that you''d like to be blessed by."


    Zeus then stuck out his chest with pride.


    Of course he was sure he''d be chosen.


    He was a godking with an entire pantheon under his control!


    Legends of his terrible powers and might had been passed down throughout human history!


    Surely there was no better choice right?


    ''Well almost¡­'' his eyes drifted to the seven seats where Nyx was sitting and suppressed a shudder.


    Those gods are primordials and they.. are monsters that defy reason.


    In his infinitely long life he has never feared anyone not even his father but those monsters sitting above him made his golden blood run cold.


    They were just that iprehensible.


    Though there were more primordials across different pantheons, the Greeks were... famously ill tempered.


    Mchi dragged his eyes over all of the gods in the Greek pantheon before his eyesnded on the three in the front who were sitting on the biggest thrones.


    Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades.


    Each of them had already blessed a human already so Mal knew what powers he''d receive if they blessed him but¡­


    When he remembered his sister and thought of the conduct of two of the gods, he immediately shot down the thought when the idea that they might touch her bubbled up in his mind.


    ''No way in hell.''


    Speaking of hell, Mchi then looked at the dark haired man who had a bored expression.


    With Hades'' blessing he would be able to summon legions of the undead and make them do his bidding.


    But Mchi had always been the kind of person to handle things himself, so he did not really want to lead an army.


    Even though it was a pretty cool visual.


    He couldn''t help but sigh internally.


    This was literally the dream of every man and woman and he was being so indecisive.


    ''Sigh¡­ should I just pick at random then?''


    Suddenly out of the corner of his eyes Mchi saw something that intrigued him and turned his back to the Greek gods and walked towards a different pantheon altogether.


    "What is he doing?"


    "Human! Are you lost?"


    "I had thought him smart but this is just stupid."


    "Why is he walking toward the Egyptians?"


    Mchi was too distracted by this feeling he was getting to pay the irate gods and demons any mind.


    Eventually he came to a stop in front of a fairly tall woman wearing Egyptian robes.


    The woman had the head of a panther and her skin and fur were both a deep obsidian.


    She stared at the human who''de in front of her with two bright yellow eyes that did not hide her curiosity.


    "How beautiful¡­" Mchi was so entranced by the deep ck of her fur and skin, he didn''t even realize he''d muttered those simple words.


    "A-Ah, I''m sorry." He hastily bowed and tried to correct his mistake. "May I know your name, goddess?"


    The beast woman looked him over curiously before she opened her mouth. "Bastet."


    Mchi nodded. He hadn''t heard of this goddess before yet she''d undoubtedly struck some kind of cord with him.


    "Cool if I ask for your blessing?"


    Immediately the gods began to buzz.


    "Human¡­ did my pharaoh not tell you that attempting to hold two blessings from opposing pantheons was tantamount to suicide?"


    Despite the cat goddess'' surprise, her tone hadn''t changed much and she was only giving Mchi a nk look.


    The boy briefly looked towards Ra who was sitting a fair distance away and smiled bitterly. "He did but¡­ is it rude of me to say I feel drawn to you?"


    Bastet hesitated for a moment before she spoke. "Are you trying to bed me, mortal?"


    "No goddess, I apologized if it seemed that way."


    Mchi hastily deepened his bow and attempted to calm his beating heart.


    ''What if she gets offended? She''ll chew my head off!''


    Naturally Bast could smell the fearing off Mchi and decided he must''ve been telling the truth.


    "Bast, you''re not actually considering this are you?!" Zeus roared.


    "That''s right this is madness." Odin agreed.


    "What would it mean if he actually seeded?" Tsukuyomi pointed out.


    "I don''t know." Bast responded only when the moon god spoke.


    "But it''ll be interesting nheless."


    ''She really intends to do it!'' Zeus was panicking internally.


    The boy would undoubtedly die and they would lose their most promising candidate yet!


    "Nyx! Will you not stop-" Zeus turned around and looked toward the seven thrones only to see that they were now all empty.


    Zeus clenched his fists and blue lightning began to crackle around his body.


    ''Damn it¡­DAMN IT!!''


    Bastet brought her wed hand to Mchi''s face and tilted it upward so that she could look him in the eye.


    "I, Bastet, goddess of felines, women''s secrets, fertility and domesticity, wish to bestow my blessing of felines and women''s secrets to you, Mchi Saint. Will you ept?"


    Mchi could not suppress the grin that formed across his face.


    "I ept."


    Almost immediately, his head began to feel like it would split apart.

 Chapter 6: No More Blessings

    <h4>Chapter 6: No More Blessings</h4>


    Mchi felt like he had two little children running around causing havoc inside of his mind.


    They were smearing shit on the walls, screaming at the top of their lungs and breaking everything they touched.


    ''Damn it¡­ be quiet!''


    Mchi''smand fell on deaf ears as the two opposing powers continued to fracture his sanity.


    ''Getting real annoying¡­SHUT THE FUCK UP!!''


    As if they were responding to his will, the two energies stopped before separating into different corners of his soul.


    With a relieved sigh, he wiped away the sweat that had formed on his forehead and opened his eyes to see¡­ Bast?


    Before she was a tall powerful looking woman with a beasts head yet now her frame had shrunk in size and she had a gorgeously delicate human face.


    On top of her head was a sea of long ck hair and two fluffy cat ears.


    If before she was beautiful, now she was simply immacte.


    ''It''s a good thing she didn''t ask me that question before I would''ve had to lie to a goddess.''


    Mchi didn''t know exactly what would''ve happened to him but he was sure higher beings were not fans of deceit.


    He could tell because he''d constantly seen gods shooting middle fingers at Loki since he''d arrived.


    "You¡­ you actually survived somehow. "


    Bast''s voice before was much more regal and authoritative but now she sounded serene and soft like the purring of a cat.


    "Ah.. yea I guess I did." Mchi rose up from the ground and stretched his body.


    While he could immediately feel some changes when Nyx blessed him, right now he didn''t feel much of anything.


    ''Maybe it''ll kick in when I go back to my body?''


    Mal suddenly noticed something didn''t feel quite right and turned around to see every god in the coliseum staring at him open mouthed.


    No one could speak.


    Nor could they even think.


    How could something so iprehensible be standing right in front of them like this.


    He''d just made the blessings of two gods from two different pantheons submit to him easily!


    "I feel fine so¡­ can I choose again?"


    The silence somehow multiplied before Zeus spoke for all of the gods present.


    "Boy¡­ are you telling us you can handle a third blessing in addition to the two you already have?"


    Mchi poked his stomach a few times just to be sure before responding. "Yea?"


    Like a bomb had gone off, several gods immediately began to attempt to solicit him with promises of their most powerful blessings.


    Zeus, God and Odin were still in such shock that they did not even attempt to calm down the rowdy gods.


    Suddenly, two shes of light appeared in front of the young human.


    "Kid, you''re really something strange! ept my blessing!"


    "What an intriguing human. Do you mind if I am the one to bless you?"


    The two looked at eachother for a moment before an argument broke out.


    "As I have yet to bless anyone I think this honor should fall to me should it not?"


    The one with a soft spoken voice who appeared in a sh of golden light was an angel well over six feet tall wearing pure white robes.


    Behind his muscr back were six pristine wings that lookedrge and imposing and yet incredibly weing.


    This man was the archangel, Michael.


    "Shove off pigeon! Naturally your blessing would be a waste! My power would serve him much better in the eons toe!"


    The man with a booming voice like that of rolling thunder who appeared in a sh of lightning was a red skinned being who appeared to be a demon.


    Wearing simple robes that covered his lower body and tworge drums behind his back, he was incredibly frightening and imposing.


    This man was the god Raijin.


    "Actually¡­" Mchi hesitated to interfere in the debate of these two higher beings. "If you''ll allow it, I wouldn''t mind epting both."


    Once again, Mchi had delivered a shock to every higher being in the room.


    "Did you just say¡­ you want to ept both of our blessings?" Michael asked while cleaning out his ancient ears.


    "I did."


    "Ha! That is how a man should be! I like you mortal!" The boomingughter of Raijin echoed throughout the coliseum.


    "Shall we, pigeon?" Raijin sped the archangel on his shoulder and prepared to begin.


    "This is madness! Even if he has been lucky so far, there is no way he can handle a blessing from four entirely different religions!" Michael tried to reason.


    "My apologies."


    "I''m d you understand."


    "I called you pigeon earlier but now I see that chicken is more appropriate."


    Without waiting for Michael to retort Raijin released him and prepared to bless Mchi. "If you want to have a chance at this now is your only opportunity."


    Michael ground his teeth in frustration. This boy was undoubtedly the best human to be selected since they''d begun the trials.


    If there was even a chance for his faction of heaven to emerge victorious he had to take this gamble.


    He was the only one left who could after all.


    The other archangels had no more divine energy left to give to humans and god had elected not to interfere in this matter.


    With an exhausted sigh, he turned to face Mchi once more.


    "Do not me me if your demise is more excruciating than you could''ve imagined. You will only have your own ignorance to me, child of man."


    "Noted." Mchi nodded.


    "I, Raijin, god of thunder, lightning, and storms wish to bestow unto you my blessing of lightning!"


    "I, Michael, archangel of fire, wish to bestow unto you, Mchi Saint my blessing of fire."


    Michael/ Raijin : "Will you ept?"


    "I gratefully ept."


    Raijin had a satisfied grin as he flipped off the wind god Fujin who was watching with clear jealousy.


    For a moment, nothing happened.


    Mal started to think maybe the blessing had failed.


    And then it began.


    "AAAHHH!!!"


    Mchi released a blood curdling scream as his body was wracked with the most intense pain imaginable.


    His bones, his blood, his entrails it felt like his very existence was fighting against eachother.


    He simplyy on the ground in an unimaginable agony, unable to even move.


    The gods watched this with neutral yet slightly disappointed eyes.


    The most promising human they''d had in years and now he was going to be another copse in the dust.


    Suddenly, Nyx''s cool, serene voice began to y in Mchi''s mind amidst all of the anguish he felt.


    "Rx¡­ the one I chose is much stronger than that right? Let me help you a bit child, but keep this between us okay?"


    Almost immediately Mchi''s screaming became dull groans and he felt the turmoil running throughout his body calm down considerably.


    The pain had now diminished into a dull throb and a feeling of fullness enveloped him.


    Mchi knew instinctively that he''d hit his limit on blessings.


    "Huuu¡­" Mchi slowly sat up on the ground and stared into the intense eyes of a smiling Raijin and a stunned Michael.


    "Sorry about that guys.. I think I ate too much."


    Mchi chuckled at his own bad joke before he was lifted off the ground by an excited thunder god.


    "Ha! Is my chosen not amazing?"


    Mchi looked into the eyes of the gods and once again saw them staring at him with disbelieving eyes.


    ''You know, I don''t think any of these guys remember thest time they''ve been shocked like this.''


    Oddly enough Mal was beginning to feel sleepy and was having a hard time keeping his eyes open.


    Sensing his weariness, Raijin ced him on the ground in the middle of the coliseum where he originally appeared.


    He looked deeply into Mchi''s eyes while he was still conscious.


    "Listen to me mortal- no, Mchi. You will undoubtedly be the most fearsome blessed your world has ever seen.


    The humans will love you, they will envy you and some will even fear you. But understand that in therger scheme of things none of that matters."


    The gods yful demeanor was no longer present and his eyes were hard and serious.


    "Train well. Grow the blessings we''ve given you, do not becent for a single second because there are worse things than those that lie in the gates."


    Mchi nodded in understanding as his eyes began to flutter closed.


    "Oh and mind your learning curve. I''m sure yours will be especially¡­ interesting." The god chuckled.


    Mchi was now fast asleep as his body shimmered before breaking apart into flecks of gold and disappearing from his stage.


    After he left, there was a moment of silence before god spoke while looking at the three individuals present who''d blessed Mchi.


    "I believe a new wager will have to be made no?"


    Each of the gods sighed as they realized that this would be another long and arduous debate.

 Chapter 7: I See All

    <h4>Chapter 7: I See All</h4>


    "Hey fucker! This is my bench, find your own!"


    ''Hmm? Five more minutes Aubrey then I''ll move, I promise.''


    "You hearing me shithead?! I said this is my bench!"


    The dirty homeless man attempted to smack the man he found sleeping on his bench only to bepletely surprised when the man caught his hand with ease.


    "Damn it.. who the hell are you? Wait¡­ why do I sound like that?"


    Mchi released the homeless man and slowly rose up from the bench where he''d been sleeping and examined his body.


    For starters, the formerly 5''7 twenty year old, was now a staggering 6''5.


    His body which before was skinny and frail was now tightly packed with the well defined muscles of a wild animal.


    His dreads which formerly barely went past his cheeks, were now dangling freely around his waist.


    While the changes should''ve made him incredibly happy, Mchi couldn''t help but be annoyed as now his perfect fitting work shirt had turned into a suffocating tank top that exposed the lower parts of his now well defined abs.


    His pants and shoes weren''t much better, with the former being tight enough to reveal his business imprint and thetter having bursted open entirely.


    "Damn.. no wonder you thought I was homeless."


    Mchi spoke to the homeless man while pushing his dreads out of his eyes, allowing the man in front of him to get a good look at his face for the first time.


    "Y-your eyes , y-you.."


    "Hm?" Mchi tilted his head in confusion before his mind was ovee with a terrible headache.


    "Urgh¡­" Mchi dropped onto one knee and held his head while he groaned in pain.


    "H-hey man are you tweaking? T-tell you what if you share whatever you got left this bench can be yours!"


    Mchi naturally couldn''t hear the nonsense ravings of the homeless man in front of him as he was much too distracted by another fact.


    He could see.


    Not just the area in front of him or behind him, he could see everything in the world that was currently under the cover of night.


    He could see families sleeping, couples on dates, stressed adults takingte night drives and even crimes beingmitted.


    All of it shed by in his vision endlessly and he felt as if his brain was going to explode from the rapid influx of knowledge.


    ''Aisha¡­ I need Aisha!''


    He thought of her and he could suddenly see his dearest friend arge distance away in avish hotel room naked with a pretty woman''s head in between her legs.


    ''You fucking pervert we don''t have time for that!''


    Mchi fumbled to pull his phone out of his pocket only to crush it when he pressed too hard.


    Mchi''s strength had been augmented to several thousand times past the normal human threshold so breaking his phone was as easy as putting his finger through paper.


    ''Damn it.. damn it!!''


    "I have to get home." Mchi weakly said as he stumbled off the ground.


    Mchi took a step forward when his body became a dark mist and he disappeared from the park.


    Leaving only a stunned homeless man that muttered something iprehensible about how his bench never gave him magical powers before so maybe he was sleeping on it wrong.


    -


    When Mchi reappeared, he was outside the front door of his apartment.


    Fumbling for his keys, he was able to gingerly take them out of his pocket even with his splitting headache and managed somehow not to break the door.


    Unlocking the front door, he drunkenly stumbled in and fell to his knees on the floor after closing the door behind him.


    "W-who are you?.."


    A horrified small voice came from the corner of the room where Aubrey was currently shaking as she stared at the unknown man in front of her.


    "A-Aubrey I need help.." Mchi weakly said.


    "W-why do you know my name?? P-please take whatever you want and leave just don''t hurt me!"


    If Mchi had been in the right state of mind, he would''ve cried when he heard those words.


    Aubrey had severe androphobia due to an incident in her past and it was so bad she didn''t even leave the house anymore.


    Her brother was the only male in her life that she could talk to and not be afraid of.


    But now it looked like she had developed a fear of him as well.


    "Aubrey please listen to me.. it''s me, Mal. I''ve been blessed and I''m having a really hard time. I need you to call Aisha for me and tell her I need her help."


    The tears that were flowing from Aubrey''s big almond eyes immediately stopped when she heard this man''s story.


    "M-Mal?" The girl hesitated.


    She couldn''t see his face clearly since the room was dark, but she could see two cat like yellow eyes peaking out from behind his very long hair.


    Suddenly the man released another groan of pain before he lurched forward and copsed onto the ground, unconscious.


    For almost five whole minutes Aubrey''s body was still paralyzed by fear and she did not dare to move.


    Slowly she grabbed a broom from nearby and turned on the light in the living room to get a better look at the man''s face.


    Moving his dreads out of the way with the broom, she stared hard at the face of the man iming to be her brother.


    The man was¡­ divinely handsome.


    While all blessed have their looks augmented when they are reborn, she''d never seen anyone that fit the standard of attraction more than him.


    He looked like the word lust was specifically created to describe the feeling that urred when looking at his face.


    Even knowing that it might be her brother she began to have strange thoughts but when she remembered the times he made her eat his boogers when they were younger, her delusions were permanently ceased.


    And now thinking that this might be the same scrawny kid that she''d just waved goodbye to a few hours ago, she was naturally quite shocked.


    But when she saw the uniform that barely fit his body along with his name tag, all fears fled from her mind and she hastily pulled out her phone and dialed a number.


    The phone didn''t even ring twice before it was picked up by an out of breath woman.


    "A-Aubrey? W-what can I do you for- Shit! I-I mean what can I do for you?"


    Aubrey giggled lightly when she heard the rushed and nervous way Aisha answered the phone.


    She couldn''t fathom when she started acting this way around her or even why but she found it slightly amusing.


    The world famous ''War Princess'' was now stuttering on the phone with a girl who was barely eighteen years old.


    "Aisha¡­ it''s about Mal."


    Immediately the white haired woman felt her heart drop and she immediately feared the worst. "What''s wrong is he okay?!"


    "That''s¡­ well¡­ he somehow got blessed."


    "¡­The hell did you just say?"


    If the orgasm Aisha had just had prior to this phone call wasn''t enough to spice up her night, the information divulged on this phone call gave her the shock she needed.


    "I''ming right now." Was all Aubrey heard before Aisha hung up the phone.

 Chapter 8: Invitation

    <h4>Chapter 8: Invitation</h4>


    ''Ugh my head¡­''


    Mchi groggily awoke on the couch in the living room.


    The sunlight peeking through the curtains revealed to him that it was now early morning, and he rxed slightly when he realized he wasn''t being overloaded by his new powers.


    He suddenly realized he could hear a heartbeat next to him and turned his head to see Aubrey sleeping on the floor next to him.


    ''Wait, hear a heartbeat?!''


    Mchi''s hearing was now so finely tuned he could hear his sisters heart thumping away in her chest clear as day.


    He also noticed that his sense of smell had improved drastically and he could smell so much more vividly than before.


    "Bastet''s blessing no doubt..."


    Mchi could barely suppress the smile that formed on his face when he remembered the captivating Egyptian goddess.


    As a man that''d always been captivated by older women, he found her mature charm to be especially alluring.


    Mchi suddenly heard hurried footsteps approaching and soon smelled a familiar scent of blood and roses.


    ''So she called her after all.''


    He didn''t bother to get up since Aisha had a key and his body felt sore.


    The door unlocked with a click and Aisha entered with a worried look on her beautiful face.


    ''Was she actually worried about me?'' Mchi was unbelievably touched.


    "Gods I hope I look okay..." Aisha was continually fixing her dress and straightening her hair.


    ''This bitch is only worried about Aubrey!''


    Mchi quickly sat up with an annoyed look on his face.


    When Aisha''s bright red eyesnded on Mchi, she was stunned into silence.


    "Mal?.."


    In response he simply offered her a middle finger.


    That small provocation was enough for her to snap out of her trance and return to normal.


    "You.. you really got blessed."


    "Seems like it." Mchi removed his shirt that had been choking the life out of him ever since he''d woken up and sighed in relief.


    "Did Freya bless you?"


    Seeing her friend''s perfectly sculpted muscr body and his enchanting new appearance, she thought it only logical that he received a blessing from a goddess of war and beauty.


    Mchi only shook his head. "I''m sure she would''ve, but no."


    "Then which god blessed you?"


    "Gods." Mchi corrected.


    "Pardon?"


    Mchi''s yellow eyes stared deeply into Aisha''s bright red ones. "I was blessed by multiple gods, not just one."


    It only took a second for her to process the information before she showed a pristine white smile that only those she loved were allowed to see.


    "Mal! That''s great this changes everything!"


    She excitedly hugged him, seemingly unbothered by the fact that he was currently shirtless.


    He''d actually managed to get dual blessings just like her! This was amazing!


    This would change everything about his future and his money troubles would be a thing of the past!


    "So which gods blessed you?! Come on, tell me!"


    She was so excited, she didn''t even notice her yelling had woken the young girl that was asleep on the floor until now.


    "Hm? Oh Aisha you made it."


    Aubrey shed the blessed woman a groggy smile that made her heart skip a beat.


    Mchi of course heard it and rolled his eyes.


    "Y-yes hello. You look as beautiful as ever." Aishaplimented.


    "How can that be true when I just woke up?" Aubrey giggled before moving to offer the white haired woman a weing hug. "Thank you for saying so though. It feels nice."


    Aisha''s face soon turned an unhealthy shade of scarlet and she desperately fought the urge to sniff the hair of the girl in her arms.


    Mchi watched all of this with a dry gaze and when his sister finally remembered he was here she quickly hugged him as well.


    "Mal, how did this happen?!"


    He sighed before he calmly retold them the events ofst night.


    Though when he told Aisha and Aubrey how he lost his job, he had to physically hold the girls down so that they did not turn Mnie into meat paste and Derrick''s store into rubble.


    Once he''d calmed them down he exined how he ended up at Ms. Aihara''s to which prompted both of the girls to give each other cheeky grins.


    Mchi elected not toment once again and then he came to his encounter with Nyx in the park.


    Now Aisha was notughing, smiling, or drooling over Aubrey.


    She knew just how incredible it was for her friend to receive a blessing from a primordial god.


    But that would prove the least shocking thing she heard today.


    Her friend that she thought was blessed by two gods, was actually blessed by four.


    In the entire world, no one possessed more than two blessings.


    The fact that her friend could store all those blessings in his soul was an aplishment in itself.


    Not only that but they also came from different pantheons!


    Of course, Aisha did not believe it at first but then Mchi attempted to use his his powers for the first time.


    ck lightning crackled from his finger tips.


    His hands changed into wed paws with ck fur and his eyes were now permanently catlike.


    He snapped his finger and golden mes appeared in his palm.


    He attempted to use his blessing from Nyx as well but it proved much too difficult so he just told her what happenedst night and how he saw everything including who she spent the evening with.


    She was so shocked by the information, she wasn''t even bothered by the fact that he''d seen her having sex with her personal assistant.


    After his story waspleted, both girls stared at him for a full minute.


    They were looking at him like they were seeing some kind of freak of nature.


    ''Well I guess I should start getting used to things like this, huh?''


    Suddenly Aubrey leaped up and gave her brother the biggest hug imaginable.


    "My brother is amazing!!"


    Seeing Aubrey''s sudden action allowed Aisha''s brain to properly reboot and she congratted him as well.


    "Do you want to join my guild?" She suddenly asked.


    Guilds are organizations formed by blessed that provide all manner of services.


    They train new recruits, go on gate raids, deal with gate breaks and some are evenw enforcement specifically for blessed.


    "You mean Immortal Moon? Isn''t that an all women''s guild?" Mal asked with a shocked look.


    "Well yes, but I''m certain the guild master would make an exception for you."


    "I don''t know.. seems kind of weird."


    Even If he wanted to be in a guild with his best friend, would it not be weird for him to join one that was exclusively women?


    "There''s an 850 million signing bonus for recruits that have a B rank aptitude or above."


    "You know, I''ve always wanted to join you guys."


    Mal''s hesitation disappeared immediately.


    All that money was going to help him move Aubrey somewhere nicer and he could even hire some maids to help around the house so she wouldn''t be alone all time.


    Even though he probably could''ve made that money somewhere else, the chances of him being taken advantage of at Immortal Moon were rtively low since Aisha was a fairly high ranking member.


    "Shit¡­ I have a paper due today." Mchi sighed when he realized he still had to go to school.


    He''d always promised his mother that he''d graduate college and he wouldn''t change that for anyone not even the gods.


    He wouldn''t be the first blessed to attend college but he would still gain a lot of attention.


    "No sweat, we can go after." Aisha immediately waived away his concern.


    "But¡­" she noticed quite a pronounced problem.


    She looked down at his tight work pants and saw therge imprint that wasn''t being hidden in the slightest and gave him a dry look.


    "Are all of your clothes like this now?"


    Mchi followed her gaze to his crotch and felt his face get hot.


    "¡­yes¡­"


    Aisha could only sigh.


    "It''s fine, you dressed like shit before anyways."


    "You bitch!"


    She rose to her feet and stretched her lean muscled body while ignoring his outburst.


    "Guess that means we''re going shopping."

 Chapter 9: First Day Out

    <h4>Chapter 9: First Day Out</h4>


    "Oh my god it''s her!"


    "Who is that guy next to her, he''s gorgeous¡­"


    "What the hell is he wearing?"


    "His eyes are so scary¡­"


    "He must be a blessed but I''ve never seen him before."


    Currently, Aisha, Aubrey and Mchi were walking throughout a luxurious mall.


    Mchi found some of his dad''s old clothes that just barely fit him and was able to squeeze them on so that he could look somewhat decent.


    While he still looked slightly out of ce in his father''s old faded clothes, his body was covered and therefore he could go out to shop and get new ones.


    Normally, Aubrey was much too afraid toe out of the house for any reason but somehow Aisha was able to coax her intoing with them.


    Though when considering her reputation, it wasn''t hard to understand why.


    While normally blessed were always swarmed by fans and most enjoyed the attention, Aisha was careful to make her dislike of crowds and strangers well known to the public.


    The first time a man approached her with a phone in his hand, she took it from him and stuck it up his ass.


    Naturally it made several headlines and when she asked for the reasoning behind it her answer was simple.


    ''I don''t like people running up to me and sticking their phones in my faces for their bullshit ThemTube videos or some stupid ass social media app.''


    After that, there seemed to always be an invisible wall around Aisha whenever she went out which is why she could travel without security.


    And currently, Aubrey and Mchi were piggybacking on her infamy to get a problem free mall visit.


    The group''s first stop was the sunsses shack.


    The girls had bothined to him that his eyes were really intense and made them feel like they were standing in front of a predator.


    Mchi still hadn''t looked at himself in the mirror so he had no idea what the girls were getting at but he obliged them nheless.


    "What about these?" Aisha picked up an expensive looking pair of ck sunsses.


    Mchi gingerly took the sunsses from Aisha''s hand.


    Before they''d left the house, Aisha had gone over some basic exercises that he could do to control his monstrous new strength.


    He was now able to pick up things without obliterating them again.


    Though he almost forgot everything he''d learned when he saw the price tag on the sses he''d just been handed.


    "These¡­ are over 700 dors.." Mchi said in disbelief.


    "Yea, do you like them?" Aisha wasn''t bothered by the price in the slightest.


    She''d spent billions to buy her own anime studio in Japan so that she could force- I mean pay people to animate her favorite manga and light novels.


    A measly 700 dors was nothing to her.


    "I could only afford to buy them if I sold everything I own." Mchi chuckled and prepared to put the sses back before Aisha stopped him.


    "I know you can''t afford these yet idiot. That''s why I''ll be buying everything today."


    "What? I could never let you-"


    "Just pay me backter once you sign with the guild and stop whining."


    Mchi proceeded to open and close his mouth like a goldfish before he finally gave up and let Aisha buy whatever she felt like he needed.


    All in all he got a nice pair of sunsses, an entirely new wardrobe from multiple designer brands, a new phone and they even had time to get a new car before it was time for Mchi to head to ss.


    Aubrey elected to stay and hangout with Aisha for a while before they split up.


    Mchi said a silent prayer that his friend would not taint his sister''s innocence and drove to school.


    -


    Mchi attended a very famous institution in the south of the United States.


    While it was known more famously for its athletic programs, it''s academic requirements were quite stringent as well.


    Mchi had found his standard parking spot and before he''d even stepped out of the car he was attracting tons of attention.


    The car he''d gotten was actually the newest top of the line Evade Rusher.


    He and his dad had always loved muscle cars and it was a bit of a dream of theirs to one day be able to afford one.


    The gag was they didn''t even buy this one!


    As soon as Aisha walked into the dealership she was offered the car for free by the owner if she agreed to take two photos, one for thepany page and another for his family.


    That was how deep the influence of the blessed ran in society.


    "My gods who is that?"


    "A new student?"


    "He''s so handsome.."


    "Go and try to talk to him!"


    As soon as Mchi stepped out of the car, the entire parking lot became abuzz.


    In this day and age seeing divinely beautiful people was fairly normal.


    Not only because of the blessed, but because magic infused beauty products were also floating around on the market, though they were very expensive.


    But this man getting out of the car was somehow leagues above all of them!


    The sun glimmered perfectly off of his rich chocte skin making him look positively radiant.


    He wore a simple white button down shirt with clean ck cks and neat leather shoes.


    His long dreads dangled freely around his waist and blew majestically in the wind.


    His simple yet stylish outfit,bined with his heaven defying looks made it look like he was heading for a photo shoot instead of a literature ss.


    Naturally, Mal could see everyone staring at him but he thought they were just curious about his car.


    It was thetest model after all.


    He''d finally had a chance to look at himself in the mirror when he changed clothes earlier and while he could admit he''d changed a lot, he wasn''t that much more handsome than before right?


    Because of the noise canceling earbuds in his ear to help with his new enhanced hearing, he couldn''t hear the whispers directed towards him either.


    ''Come to think of it, I wonder if she''ll be in ss today?''


    -


    Upon entering into the ssroom, Mchi of course turned heads once again and the ss that was once abuzz was now deadly silent.


    But now Mal was taking extra care not to look around.


    Mnie was in this ss and even if he did not look at her, he could smell her.


    She used a special peach body wash that Mal had memorized in hopes of buying her some as a gift.


    He went to his seat and promptly sat down and prepared to wait for the ss to start, only to be swarmed by a few other students only secondster.


    "Hi, are you new here?"


    "What''s your name? Can we be friends?"


    "Do you have a girlfriend?"


    "Nice to meet you man!"


    "That car in the parking lot is yours right?"


    Mal''s head was spinning.


    Even though none of these people had ever been malicious to him, they still had never paid him any attention.


    Suddenly having people be so chatty towards him was slightly unnerving.


    "Been here the whole semester." Mal responded dryly.


    "No way!"


    "You''re a real cutie and you''re tall as hell too there''s no way I would''ve missed you."


    "His voice really does something for me.."


    "This guy''s funny!"


    As the group giggled aloud and tried to converse with who they believed to be a new student, a young woman pushed past the group and stared directly at Mchi.


    "Excuse me but do you mind moving? My friend and I usually sit here together."


    When Mchi saw who asked, he couldn''t suppress a happy grin that made the hearts of every woman present skip a beat.


    "What''s good Serana? Been a minute."


    Serana stared nkly at this extremely charming stranger.


    "Do I.. know you or something?"


    Mchi realized he''d be facing a lot of awkward situations like this in the future.


    "It''s me, Mchi."


    "Don''t joke with me my friend doesn''t look anything like you! Are you gonna move or not."


    Mchi sighed. "If I''d have known you were this much of a dumbass I would''ve charged your mom more to tutor you."


    He paused for a moment before taking back his words, "Nah, what am I saying. Your mom''s so gorgeous I probably would''ve tutored you for free."


    Hearing those words caused Serana''s pupils to tremble as she stared at the man in front of her in a new light.


    She only knew one man who was degenerative enough to call her mother hot to her face.


    "Mal?!"


    "Duh."

 Chapter 10: Hello… It’s Me

    <h4>Chapter 10: Hello¡­ It¡¯s Me</h4>


    "What the hell happened to you!? My mom said she saw youst night but she didn''t mention anything about this!!"


    Serana was currently poking, pinching and prodding at Mal''s face, chest, stomach and arms.


    "Ah well.. I kinda got blessed after I left your ce."


    "YOU WHAT?!"


    Not just Serana, but the entire ss was now in shock.


    This handsome guy was actually Mchi!


    The same guy that used toe in and wouldn''t ever speak to anyone!


    His only friend in ss was the hot girl he''d always sat next to!


    "Haha, I know I''m a little taller but is it that surprising?"


    "Who gives a fuck about your height you look like a male model!" Serana screamed.


    Why was he acting like this was no big deal?!


    Only 1 percent of the worldwide poption get blessed so how does he not understand how monumental this is!


    "Aren''t you being a bit over dramatic?" Mchi tilted his head.


    "NO!" The entire ss yelled.


    "Ah.." Mchi could only scratch his cheek in mild embarrassment.


    Apparently he was better looking than he''d originally thought.


    Who knew?


    Suddenly the door opened and the teacher came in.


    Dr. Victor Andrews was a highly decorated teacher famed for his literary works and informative lectures.


    "Alright it''s time for ss kids.."


    He sighed deeply before looking up to see a group of students swarmed around an attractive young man.


    He didn''t remember having a kid this handsome in his ss but honestly he didn''t remember half his students anyways.


    "Hey you."


    "Hm?" Mchi pointed at himself. "Me?"


    "Yea you, take those sunsses off you''re inside."


    Mchi flinched. "Teach I really don''t think you''d befortable-"


    "Well I''m touched that you''re concerned but either take those off or get out."


    Suppressing the urge to zap this professor immediately, Mchi removed his sunsses for the first time and revealed his new eyes to the entire ss.


    "Oh my god.."


    "That''s awesome!"


    "I want him!"


    While the other students found Mchi''s eyes to be cool or even charming, it''s because they weren''t looking directly into them.


    For those that held prolonged eye contact with him like his professor was currently doing, Mal''s eyes were incredibly unnerving and made him feel like a mouse standing in front of a lion.


    Even when he turned his back, he could still feel the intense gaze boring holes into his back causing him to sweat profusely.


    He ended up ending ss a whole thirty minutes early just to get away.


    -


    "Hey Mal are you busy right now? You gottae by the restaurant!"


    After ss let out Serana was excitedly chatting with Mal.


    After she''d gotten over his drastic transformation, they''d been able to resume normal conversation and she was now inviting him to her home again as they left campus.


    Mchi checked his new golden watch.


    It was currently 1 o''clock and his meeting with the immortal moon guild that Aisha set up wasn''t scheduled until six so he had plenty of time to go and hangout with her.


    "Sure let''s go. I wonder how Sei''s doing." Mchi wondered aloud with a charming grin as the duo walked towards his car.


    Serana was so distracted by the excitement of riding in the nicest car she''d ever seen that she''d forgotten to mention that she''d ended up giving away his biggest secret to her mother the night before.


    As the duo left the parking lot, they didn''t realized they were being watched by a young pretty girl who was making a sad expression.


    Her phone suddenly buzzed and her mood only worsened when she realized she''d just received a message from thest person she wanted to see right now.


    ''Mal.. I think I really might''ve made a mistake.''


    -


    Upon entering Sei''s restaurant, Mchi was happy to see there were a few customers today and they appeared to be enjoying the food.


    They were mostly older people and one young boy and his father.


    Serana had him take a seat and went to go grab her mother in the kitchen so he was currently sitting at a table alone scrolling mindlessly on his new phone.


    Eventually he got bored since he''d lost all his contacts and simply stared out the window into the busy street.


    As he watched people walk by busy with their everyday lives he couldn''t help but think about how much his life had changed in one night.


    This was the happiest he''d been in a very long time.


    ''Do not becent for a single second.''


    Mchi was shaken from his happy thoughts when he remembered the words of the rowdy lightning god who''d blessed him.


    ''That''s right.. I have to keep growing. I don''t even know how to use all of my powers yet.''


    He materialized a small ball of golden fire in his palm and watched the mes crackle silently.


    Even if he knew things were about to get very serious¡­ he could not suppress the grin that formed on his face.


    This shit was too cool!


    "Woahhh!"


    Suddenly, a small boy rushed over to Mchi when he saw him ying with the ball of fire in his palm.


    "Hey mister are you a blessed?"


    Mchi was slightly embarrassed when he saw the reaction he was getting.


    "Yea, I guess I am."


    "So cool! Are you strong like Alex Heller?"


    "I don''t know kid, I just got my powers yesterday." Mchi chuckled and honestly answered the kid''s question.


    At this moment the kid''s father ran up and tried to scold his child.


    "I''m sorry I hope he wasn''t a bothe- what the fuck!"


    At this moment the father saw the golden mes in Mchi''s palm and nearly forgot why he''d evene over in the first ce.


    "Daddy look this guys a blessed!"


    "I-I see.."


    At this time the customers in the restaurant had begun to crowd around Mchi and stared at him in awe.


    "Umm I don''t think I''ve seen you anywhere before." The father of the small boy had gotten over his initial shock and was now curious about Mal''s identity.


    "Yea I haven''t exactly signed with a guild yet."


    "Well do you mind if we get a picture?"


    Mchi was slightly flustered but in the end he obliged.


    He took pictures with the young boy and his father and afterwards a few more people wanted to take pictures with him as well.


    -


    Sei wiped the copious amounts of sweat from her forehead as she was pulled from the kitchen by her daughter.


    "What''s so important, Serana? I have work to do kiddo."


    "I know mom I know but I promise this is totally crazy!"


    ''Why''s it so rowdy out there?'' Sei became worried when she heard amotion as she got closer and closer to the seating area.


    She hoped there was nothing wrong with a customer''s meal.


    Pushing open the door to the front, Sei saw her small crowd of customers gathered around the most gorgeous man she''d ever seen.

 Chapter 11: New Reactions

    <h4>Chapter 11: New Reactions</h4>


    "Serana do you know what this is about?"


    Sei was staring in shock at her small number of customers all crowding around one man.


    She''d never seen him before, and yet there was something so eerily familiar about him that it gave her chills.


    "That''s Mchi, mom."


    "Come again?"


    " I know it''s hard to believe but that''s really him. Apparently he got blessed."


    As Mchi finished taking thest picture, he looked up to see a mature woman who was slightly sweaty and staring at him like he''d grown a second head.


    With a chuckle he weaved through the small crowd around him and came to a stop directly in front of the two women.


    "Mal? Is that really you?" Sei stared up at him in utter disbelief.


    She was taller than him justst night!


    And now he was towering above her like a grown man!


    "It''s me Sei. My hair looks a little different so I understand the confusion." He joked.


    The woman was still too shocked to even giggle at his attempt at humor.


    She just stared at him in disbelief as if he were going to shit a golden egg any second.


    She couldn''t help but remember what her daughter had told her the night before and her face became a very noticeable scarlet.


    "Hey you feeling okay? You''re not overworking yourself are you?"


    Mchi leaned in and attempted to press his palm against the woman''s forehead to feel her temperature, only for her to release a small yelp and take several steps back.


    "I-I I''m fine no need to worry!"


    "Oh that''s great...?"


    ''Why is she acting like this?'' He wondered.


    Even though it was rare, there were those that treated the blessed with fear instead of reverence.


    He immediately feared the worst and Mchi wasn''t the type of person to have lingering questions so he boldly decided to ask her directly.


    "Hey¡­ you''re not afraid of me now are you?"


    Unbeknownst to the both of them, Mchi had activated his second blessing from Bast.


    His blessing of women''s secrets made it so that any woman he came into contact with would be unable to lie to him if asked a question.


    It gave him an aura of a calm, approachable man that could be trusted even with their deepest and darkest secrets.


    "N-No of course not! I could never be afraid of you Mal."


    "You sure? Cause you almost jumped out of your skin a second ago."


    "I-I''m sure! T-that was for a different reason."


    "Oh? What might that be?"


    "You''re¡­ incredibly handsome."


    At this moment, the usual calm and carefree Mchi disappeared and all that remained was a gobsmacked young man.


    Staring back at him was an equally shocked mature woman.


    Staring at both of them was a pink haired young girl who looked like she was going to throw up.


    ''Why did I just say that?! WHY DID I JUST SAY THAT?!''


    "W-well it was great to see you but I should get back to cooking!"


    Before she could embarrass herself even further, Sei turned around and ran back to the kitchen at an impressive speed.


    "¡­Serana?" Mal asked.


    "Yea?"


    "I promise I won''t make you call me dad when I marry your mom."


    "I wouldn''t do it even if you paid me, dickhead!"


    -


    Currently, Mal and Aisha were standing outside the headquarters of the Immortal Moon guild.


    It was an extremely borate white and gold building with handcrafted ss windows and the emblem of a full moon with an infinity symbol carved in the middle.


    Mchi could not help but give Aisha a sideways nce.


    Ever since they''d met up she had this dopey, cheerful look on her face.


    He wasn''t sure exactly what she and Aubrey had done in their time together but he was hoping she didn''t spend the time being a creep.


    The two walked into the building and headed directly past security to the elevator.


    ''Looks like even the staff fears Aisha.''


    It was worth noting that Mchi was getting a lot of stares.


    While some were lustful, most were just curious about what a man could possibly be doing in a women''s only guild.


    As the pair came to a stop in front of arge set of double doors Mchi finally asked the burning question in his mind. "Are you certain I''ll be epted here?"


    Aisha finally came out of her Aubrey induced stupor and looked at her longtime friend like he''d just asked the most oundish question imaginable.


    "You¡­ are you stupid?"


    Seeing Mchi''s confused look, Aisha fought the urge to punch her friend in his stupid handsome face.


    "Do you really not understand how valuable you are?"


    "I understand no one has held this many blessings before, much less from different religions but is that enough for them to ept me?"


    Unable to listen to any more, she raised her hand to deliver Mchi a hard smack across the face when an idea sparked in her mind and she lowered it instead.


    "You know what¡­ I''ll let you see for yourself instead."


    Before he could ask what she meant, she pushed open the double doors and strode confidently inside.


    Mchi followed closely behind her and suppressed an erection as his eyes fell on the most beautiful woman he''d ever seen.


    Sitting on a soft spacious couch drinking a cup of tea was the guild master of Immortal Moon, Luna Autumn.


    She wore a loose ck and red kimono that showed off her ample cleavage and delicate pale skin.


    Her long silver hair fell past her bottom and her soft pink eyes shone like rubies.


    On her forehead was a small red tattoo that resembled a lotus flower.


    "Aisha dear how many times have I told you.. to.. knock¡­." As Luna''s eyesnded on Mchi, the usually calm andposed womanpletely lost her train of thought.


    Mchi felt it when he saw her as well.


    It was as if in this person, both of them would find something that they desperately needed.


    Aisha ignored her guild master''s chastising and promptly made introductions.


    "Luna, this is a friend of mine."


    Mchi approached the seated woman and offered her a hand shake.


    "Mchi Saint."


    For the first time the woman showed a smile as dazzling as the stars in the night sky as she took his hand.


    "It''s very nice to meet you. Sit down let''s talk."

 Chapter 12: Control

    <h4>Chapter 12: Control</h4>


    Currently Luna, Aisha, and Mchi were all sitting in Luna''s office drinking tea.


    Ever since they''d sat down, Luna had not taken her gaze off the man in front of her.


    His presence was slightly boundless yet he behaved in such a carefree manner, she knew he couldn''t have been blessed for very long.


    ''But what is this attraction I feel?''


    While the man in front of her was undoubtedly handsome, such things were usually not enough to sway her emotionally like this.


    She became curious about the man sitting in front of her and desperately wanted to know more about him.


    "So¡­ why have you brought this handsome stranger here?" She crossed her legs sensually and leaned deeper into her seat as she stared expectantly at Aisha.


    Not one to beat around the bush, Aisha answered without wasting any time. "I want you to offer him a contract to join the guild."


    "Are you joking?"


    "Not in the slightest."


    Now that Luna knew what this meeting would be about, she was no longer so rxed as she looked at the man across from her in a new light.


    "Aisha is not one to y favorites no matter who they might be, so what makes you special enough to earn her direct help like this?"


    Before Mal could even open his mouth to speak Aisha interrupted, "Actually I want you to wait for his aptitude test tomorrow before you find out."


    "Hm?" Now Luna was really confused.


    Did Aisha really bring her a new recruit that hadn''t even taken an aptitude cement??


    And did she really expect her to offer a contract to someone she''d brought in fresh off the street?


    And he was a man?


    Was she mental?!


    "I will only tell you this." Aisha leaned in and stared directly into Luna''s eyes.


    "His value is iprehensible. If you miss this opportunity the other top four guilds will snap him up in an instant and gain a monumental resource."


    Mchi wasn''t exactly sure what his friend was doing, but he trusted her after being friends for such a long time and elected to just be silent while she made the negotiations.


    Luna was now staring even harder at Mchi.


    As one of the top five guilds in the world, there wasn''t much that immortal moon actuallycked.


    If you asked why immortal moon wasst among the top five, the answer would undoubtedly be raw power.


    While all of the women in the guild were monstrously talented, that was all.


    They were not blessed by powerful highers with destructive powers and instead were able to crawl their way to where they were through their ingenuity and hard work.


    On the other hand the other top four guilds have members blessed by highers like Set, Poseidon, Lucifer and even Shiva.


    It wasn''t as though Immortal Moon had never tried to recruit someone with more destructive powers before, but they always seemed to be swayed by the more attractive offers made by other guilds.


    Because they were more powerful they got to challenge higher ranked gates with less casualties and reap even greater rewards.


    Or if they joined immortal moon they felt like they should be pensated'' with one of the attractive guild members.


    Aisha knew all of this so for her to tell Luna that she''d certainly regret it if she did not sign this man meant a lot.


    Frustrated with so much thinking Luna ruffled her hair before making a decision.


    "Argh! Alright look, here''s what we''ll do."


    -


    It was now nighttime and Aisha and Mchi were walking back to the car.


    Mchi was currently nursing a small headache.


    It seemed like the darker it got outside the more changes began to take ce in his body.


    He felt at peace,fortable, and even more alive, yet his head felt like it would burst from everything he could currently see.


    While it wasn''t quite as bad asst night, it was still extremely unpleasant.


    "You don''t look so good."


    Aisha had finally noticed that Mal was having a hard time with his new powers and immediately became concerned.


    "My blessing from Nyx seems to be activating on its own."


    Seeing her friendcking his usual trademark smile and unable to make a joke, Aisha immediately knew it was serious. "Alright, look at me."


    The two stopped in the middle of the parking lot and Aisha began trying to teach Mchi self control.


    "Close your eyes, Mal."


    He obliged and closed his eyes despite his worsening headache.


    "What does Nyx mean to you?"


    "She is like a weing mother. She isforting. She is endless, and her love is overflowing."


    "What does she embody?"


    "She is the night personified."


    "Can you feel her?"


    Mchi concentrated on his connection to Nyx.


    He tried to recall the feeling of her delicate hands on his face and the warm smiles she''d given him.


    He recalled the way she spoke, walked and even smelled.


    "Yes."


    Aisha nodded in satisfaction. "That''s good, now hold onto that feeling. Realize that your goddess would not have blessed you if she did not see something in you and slowly try to control your power."


    Mchi nodded and focused.


    Instead of fighting to try to deactivate his blessing, he instead began to will it to see only what he wanted to see.


    Slowly images from all over the continent vanished until he could only see his friend in front of him.


    "Well this is a surprise ¡­ since when are you helpful?"


    Before Aisha could throw a punch Mchi thanked her profusely and the two got in the car and drove off.


    As they rode silently through the streets, Mchi finally asked about her decision to hide his powers during the meeting.


    "You still don''t get it, subconsciously you''re still acting like you are some run of the mill blessed even when there are already signs of your strength being utterly terrifying."


    "What on earth makes you think-"


    "Idiot, you can see half the world at any given time without even understanding how! You could instinctively use your blessings without any training, not to mention they are from four entirely different gods from different pantheons!"


    "One''s an archangel."


    "Shut the fuck up!"


    This time Aisha did smack Mchi over the head, making him chuckle.


    "It''ll be good for you to see how people react now that you''ve been granted this massive opportunity."


    Mchi had never been very confident ever since they were children.


    She was d that being blessed hadn''t turned him into some egotistical dick who thought he was better than anyone else, but she did want him to improve his self esteem.


    Like that, the two rode home in the dead of night as Aisha silently anticipated the storm that woulde tomorrow with Mchi as the center.


    -


    It was a new day and Aisha, Aubrey and Mchi were all heading to the assessment facility.


    Once again, Aisha was able to coax Aubrey out of the house much to join them and the two seemed to be getting along even better than before.


    ''I''ve got to get a girlfriend, I''m sick of third wheeling.''


    Mchi rolled his eyes as they arrived at their destination and got out of the car.


    The group entered a white futuristic looking building.


    The registration process was fairly simple snd soon Mal was waiving goodbye to the girls as he went in for his evaluation.


    "Do you think my brother will do well?" Aubrey asked as the two sat together in front of a monitor that disyed the trials.


    Aisha gave the young girl a cheeky smile, "I think he will be the most sought after man in the world."


    "So you say."


    Both Aubrey and Aisha turned around to see Luna strutting up to them apanied by two members of immortal moon acting as bodyguards.


    "Let''s see if he''s as intriguing as you''ve led me to believe." Luna sat down alongside the girls and politely introduced herself to Aubrey.


    "My gods it''s really her!"


    "She''s even more beautiful in person¡­"


    "Who do you think she''s here to recruit?"


    Unbeknownst to them, the moment the guild master of Immortal Moon showed up in person, several spies in the assessment facility made calls to their higher ups.


    Seeing that Luna was here in the flesh was all they needed to know that Luna must''ve had her eyes on a powerful new recruit.


    "Boss there''s something you should see.. I think you might have toe in person for this one again."

 Chapter 13: Guild Masters

    <h4>Chapter 13: Guild Masters</h4>


    Upon entering the testing facility, Mchi was given a pair of simple sweats to change into and led to a room with ten other examinees inside.


    While he didn''t think much of them, most immediately hated him.


    What kind of guy is so concerned with looking cool that he won''t even take his sunsses off inside?!


    And for an aptitude cement no less!


    They slowly came to the conclusion that this guy wouldn''t amount to much if all he was concerned about were his looks.


    With his extremely handsome face he must''ve been blessed by a god of beauty and let it go to his head.


    "Alright examinees! First up is the four pirs!" The overseer for the assessment was a gray haired old man with a tall stature and a muscr build.


    The four pirs as they are mostmonly referred are the four basic powers that are bestowed to all blessed without exception.


    Enhanced speed, strength, durability and telekinesis.


    "Examinee 0531! You''re up first."


    At the examiners beckoning, a young man with pale white skin and purple streaks in his hair stepped forward.


    The examiner pressed a button on his wristwatch and suddenly the group was in an incredibly spacious room the size of a football field.


    "You know the drill. Let''s hurry up and do this."


    Without waiting for another word, the young man stretched his body before he dashed forward.


    There was a gust of wind followed by a sonic boom before the white haired young man reappeared in his original position.


    "(Whistles.) 4.26, not bad kid. That''s A rank level speed. "


    The man only gave an uninterested nod before continuing.


    The next segment of the test was strength based and the examinee was required to toss a car over a measured distance.


    The frail looking young man was able to toss a car over 40 yards earning him a C rank level strength assessment.


    The next to be assessed was an attractive young woman with caramel colored skin and a muscr yet curvaceous physique.


    She had long ash blond hair and fiery golden eyes that hadn''t left Mchi since she first saw him.


    Mchi of course noticed her hungry looks but did nothing about it.


    Even if he found her attractive, he felt like he had other things to prioritize in his life at the moment.


    The woman was equally as impressive as the man before her and ended up getting a B grade in both the strength and speed assessment.


    In the lobby a small crowd had formed around the monitors and were watching the proceedings with great interest.


    While it was still early, the examinees so far looked to be very promising this time around.


    As examinee after examinee took the test, it became harder and harder to guess who guild master Luna was here for.


    "Look it''s the guild master of Ragnarok!"


    Everyone turned their heads toward the front door where a well built man with fiery red hair walking in confidently.


    He wore a neat maroon suit with smart brown shoes and was covered from the neck down in Nordic tattoos.


    He strode past the other people present and came to a stop in front of Luna to offer her a warm handshake.


    "Lady Luna is as radiant as ever."


    The red eyed woman stared at his hand for a moment before turning her gaze back to the monitor. "Would you expect anything less?"


    "Ha! Of course not!" The man did not seem to be fazed by the woman''s unapproachable nature in the slightest.


    "Why are you here Morgan?" Luna asked but deep inside she already knew the answer.


    "Can''t Ie to scout new talent every once in a while?"


    "I had no idea other guild masters had so little to do. Perhaps I overwork myself."


    "It''s nice to see so many friendly faces here." A new voice spoke.


    Luna''s blood began to boil when she heard a voice she wouldn''t forget in a million years.


    Everyone looked towards the source of the voice to see a handsome blond haired man in a sky blue suit.


    The man had a pair of bright silver eyes that contained imperceptible traces of contempt as he stared at Luna.


    "I-It''s Alex Heller!"


    "The guild master of true sky is here too?"


    "Why are all these big shots showing up today?"


    Sensing a potential media storm, a few onlookers discreetly made calls to various reporters.


    When you''re in this business long enough you learn to see the signs of when shit is about to hit the fan.


    Alex strode forward and shook hands with people in the crowd beforeing to a stop in front of the scowling Luna.


    Aubrey tensed up slightly when she felt all the males around her but Aisha hurriedly took her hand and gave her a reassuring smile.


    She felt¡­ safe.


    "Funny seeing you two here." Alex smiled at the two guild masters currently present.


    Luna elected not to speak and Morgan simply rolled his eyes.


    "What''s with the chilly reception? I don''t believe there''s any bad blood between us."


    "Then your memory is shorter than my patience." Luna growled.


    "Filthy Greek." Morgan spat.


    This man was guild leader of the number one guild in the world and was responsible for poaching several of the blessed that Luna and Morgan were attempting to sign.


    It wasn''t an exaggeration to say he was the most powerful man in the country.


    Subconsciously, Luna began to worry.


    She wasn''t sure that Mchi wouldn''t be swayed by the amount of money and resources this man could offer.


    If he was truly as valuable as Aisha had said, she absolutely could not afford to lose him.


    Aisha seemingly sensed her worried and patted her reassuringly. "He is not a disloyal person so you don''t need to worry."


    Luna only smiled bitterly.


    Since when was she so easy to read?


    She calmed down tremendously and turned her focus back towards the monitor.


    ''Is that all? I''m actually a bit disappointed.'' Alex clicked his teeth in mild annoyance.


    He was hoping he''d rile Luna up enough to start a fight in front of all these people and frame her as the aggressor.


    After she''d rejected him, he''d do anything to make her look bad and send her guild plummeting downwards.


    "Ah, it''s brother''s turn!" Aubrey suddenly eximed.


    She subconsciously squeezed Aisha''s hand and the girl promptly returned it.


    Seeing that Luna was watching the monitor with new intensity, Alex grinned in satisfaction. ''So this is who you''re waiting for.''


    When Alex saw the extremely handsome man with sunsses on during the assessment, he immediately frowned.


    While he couldn''t believe that the recruit was a man there was another fact that bothered him.


    He''d seen a lot of new blessed like this who were so absorbed in their looks and new image that they did not realize the severity of the world they were now in.


    Typically, such people did not live long.


    He almost did not want to spend the money just to teach Luna a lesson.


    ''Oh well¡­ money can always be earned back.''

 Chapter 14: The Difference Between Us

    <h4>Chapter 14: The Difference Between Us</h4>


    When Mchi stepped up for his examination, the other participants sneered inwardly.


    Surely this smug looking pretty boy wouldn''t amount to anything.


    There were only two who noticed that Mchi was not as ipetent as he looked.


    As he stood on the starting line, Mchi had a realization.


    ''I¡­ haven''t had the chance to run in this body yet.''


    Deciding it would probably be fine, Mal crouched down into a sprinting stance before the examiner gave him the signal and he took off.


    BOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM


    There was a sonic boom, a gust of wind and a loud explosion on the other side of the room.


    The ground splintered beneath his feet and the shards of earth flew backwards into the other participants.


    "What¡­ the hell?" The examiner was shocked.


    What just happened and where was the examinee?


    "HAHAHAHAHA!!!"


    Suddenly,ughter was heard from within the cloud of dust that was slowly dispersing and now everyone was able to see clearly what''d happened.


    Mchi was currently pulling himself out of a him shaped hole in the wall. "That was crazy! I was just like that cartoon coyote!"


    His jovialughter could be heard throughout the entirety of the room but everyone was much too stunned by what they''d just seen to join in.


    "That speed¡­ it was easily S Rank wasn''t it?"


    "Yea.."


    "He didn''t even go down and back but still.. I didn''t even see him move."


    "He must be blessed by a powerful god.."


    Shock was evident on all of the faces of the recruits present and rightfully so.


    Among the blessed, those with an S rank aptitude in any stat area are incredibly rare.


    Almost as rare as those with a dual blessing.


    Mchi returned to the starting line in another impressive burst of speed and everyone immediately took a step back.


    "Hm? Why are you all looking at me like that?"


    "Y-your eyes¡­" One of the recruits pointed out.


    Only then did Mchi realize he''d lost his sses when he ran face first into the wall.


    He immediately became annoyed when he realized why the room looked different. "Damn it.. those were really expensive."


    Wanting to relieve his frustration some, Mchi kicked a nearby car for the strength test, only to send it flying and leaving it embedded into the wall right next to the hole he''d made a moment ago.


    "Whoops.." he muttered before he slowly looked at the examiner. "That counts right?"


    The examiner nodded nkly as he stared at the sight of a car that was leisurely kicked over a hundred yards.


    ''This boy¡­his strength is S rank too?''


    -


    Outside in the viewing area people were equally stunned and buzzing with excitement.


    Luna did not pay this any mind and instead turned to Aisha and Aubrey.


    "You could''ve told me his strength and speed were S rank you know."


    "Hmm?" Aisha came out of her small stupor and gave Luna a confused look. " I didn''t know though."


    "What?" Luna''s reddish pink eyes widened in surprise. "There''s more we haven''t seen?"


    Usually if someone was blessed in one area they weren''t that great in another.


    Everything must be bnced after all.


    So for this man to have more hidden was simply unthinkable.


    Aisha and Aubrey looked at eachother momentarily before they turned back to Luna.


    "Yep."


    "Lots."


    Luna stared dumbfounded at the two girls who seemed to bepletely serious and rubbed her temples.


    ''Maybe I should''ve just signed him immediately like Aisha said.''


    -


    The examinees had now moved to a much smaller room.


    In one corner there was a metal table lined with a knife, a gun and a sword that glowed with a faint blue light.


    On the other side of the room was another table lined with various weights.


    "Alright boys and girls, your durability will be tested first." The examiner ordered and everyone followed him towards the table.


    The test for endurance was simple.


    The participants would line up and subject themselves to injury beginning with a simple knife stab.


    If they were fine they would move up to a gunshot and then a slice from a magic sword.


    The severity of the wounds as well as the time they took to heal would determine the level of endurance.


    One by one each of the examinees lined up and let themselves be wounded.


    Most only received small scratches that barely bled from the knife and healed in about thirty seconds.


    Bianca Tate, the woman who''d been staring at Mchi the entire time, was unable to be injured by the knife or the gun.


    When she was injured by the magic sword, the wound bled for only ten seconds before itpletely healed, not even leaving a scar.


    ''They''re both fucking monsters.'' The examiner stared back and forth between Mchi and Bianca who were eyeing each other curiously.


    He could only imagine the storm that would follow when they left this room and their results were released.


    Surprisingly, Mchi''s durability was only an A rank.


    His healing rate was a bit slower than Bianca''s at sixteen seconds but he wasn''t all that disappointed.


    He was still upset over his smashed sunsses.


    ''All that money¡­ wasted.''


    He barely registered that they had moved on and were now onto the final portion of the first half.


    Each of them now had to lift up varying degrees of weight without actually touching it.


    From fifty pounds to a hundred all the way to a whopping 1,000.


    Their rating was determined by how much they could lift as well as how long they could hold it.


    Most of the examinees seemed to have practiced as they could all hold three hundred pounds for atleast five minutes.


    But the most impressive by far was the aloof white haired man with purple streaks in his hair.


    He easily held up 700 pounds for fifteen minutes and his only sign of exhaustion was a single bead of sweat running down his forehead.


    Bianca was simrly impressive, managing to hold up six hundred pounds for ten minutes.


    Their grades were A and B respectively.


    As Mchi stepped up to take his turn, he was still stewing over his broken sses and was barely even present.


    ''Let''s just lift this shit and go home.''


    Reaching out with his mental force, Mchi lifted every single weightid out in front of him and closed his eyes as he thought of all the ways he could''ve better used 700 dors.


    "What the fuck.."


    "Ohe on!"


    "This isn''t even fair anymore."


    "What the hell is he?"


    Mchi couldn''t even hear the surprise murmurs and gasps when he did something outstanding again as his mind swam with regret.


    ''Groceries for a whole month, light bill, phone bill, gas bill, car insurance , I could''ve caught up on some old bills too¡­''


    He was¡­ very upset about breaking his sunsses.

 Chapter 15: Shock The World

    <h4>Chapter 15: Shock The World</h4>


    "Aisha?"


    "Hm?"


    "What am I seeing?"


    Aisha turned her gaze towards the monitor where Mchi was being orbited by several weights as he silently pondered something with furrowed brows.


    The timer at the bottom of the screen read thirty minutes and forty eight seconds.


    Turning back to her shocked guild master, Aisha fought the urge to roll her eyes. "Boss I think you should learn to not be shocked by the things you''ll see him do otherwise your brain will explode."


    Luna absentmindedly nodded.


    What kind of a freak was this kid?!


    Morgan and Alex weren''t having much better reactions.


    With a nce at each other, both men knew they''de to the same conclusion.


    This man had to be blessed by atleast a godking.


    There was no way he got such incredible power from someone like Persephone after all.


    ''As if this bastard and his blessing from Surtur wasn''t enough now there''s another one of us.'' Alex was fuming as he stared back and forth between Morgan and Mchi.


    Alex could tell that this brat who was barely half his age had to also be blessed by a primordial and he immediately got a headache.


    Mchi was just as strong as him, and his other stats weren''t far behind his either.


    If he wasn''t controlled, he''d be a problem that he couldn''t allow to live.


    Inwardly, he was thanking Luna.


    If she hadn''t let him know about such a big fish, he might''ve missed the catch and had to put him down instead.


    ''Maybe I should let her have the next one as a thank you.''


    -


    "A-alright we get it, you can put them down now." The examiner stammered.


    "Hm? Oh, right." Mchi snapped out of his thoughts and ced all of the weights back down.


    The young man looked up at the other examinees and most flinched at his gaze.


    The only ones who didn''t were Bianca and the white haired young man.


    Even though they did not flinch, each of them were giving him strange looks of their own.


    "Why are you looking at me like that?" Mal got tired of waiting and decided to just be direct.


    "You''re a monster."


    "You''re hot."


    The replies of the two of them came too swiftly for Mchi to follow.


    Before he could even respond, the examiner was leading them to the final test.


    They were taken to a room lined with dark bs with gems embedded in them.


    Alright kids you know the drill, stand in the circle in the middle, then when your higher''s gem glows demonstrate the powers you were blessed with.


    "Who wants to go first?"


    Surprisingly, Bianca stepped up to go before anyone else.


    She walked forward confidently and stood on top of the engraved runes on the floor.


    Almost immediately, on the stone b designated for the Greeks, a single gem shone with a bright red light.


    "Hephaestus? Not bad at all girl. Would you demonstrate for us?"


    Bianca smiled widely and it was clear she''d been waiting for this.


    She held out her palms and two bright orange mes appeared.


    "Could I get some targets?"


    The examiner pressed a button and four targets slid down on the other side of the room.


    Bianca breathed in before she willed the balls of fire to leave her hands and impact the targets.


    When they connected, each of the targets melted into puddles.


    The instructor let out an impressed whistle before reading off her chart and giving her a final score.


    "B grade strength, B grade speed, S grade durability and A grade telekinesis. Congrattions Bianca, you''re an A rank blessed."


    The tanned skinned girl showed a cheerful smile that tugged at the hearts of most of the male examinees and they subconsciously vowed to impress her with their powers.


    The white haired man, whose name was Ryo was next to go and surprisingly enough was blessed by Loki.


    His ability was to shapeshift into just about anything with almost no one being able to tell he was a copy.


    His rating was B.


    Each of the examinees stepped up but their blessings were all unimpressive and their ratings never went above C.


    Finally it was Mchi''s turn and all eyes were immediately glued to him.


    As he walked towards the runic circle in the center of the room, he inwardly contemted whether he should attempt to hide some of his powers.


    Eventually, he decided against it.


    His powers are simply his powers and there was nothing else to it.


    Whatever problems would arise would be dealt with but after the hard life he''d lived these past few years, he felt like he was owed some time to just be himself and not worry about anything else.


    And this was the first step to doing that.


    He reached the magic circle and four of the stone tablets vibrated furiously before a gem began to glow in each.


    -


    Outside in the viewing lobby, the only sounds that could be heard were those of chewinging from Aisha and Aubrey.


    The two girls had gotten slightly hungry while watching the exam, so they were currently snacking on bags of chips as they sat in their own world seemingly oblivious to the silence around them.


    Nobody blinked.


    Nobody even spoke.


    They were all too stunned to say anything.


    Alex was the first to break the silence as he stared gobsmacked at the young man he believed he''d had totally figured out.


    "This.. this has to be some kind of malfunction!"


    Seemingly in response to that, Mchi began demonstrating his powers on the monitor and everyone could see his hands crackle with ck lightning.


    Luna felt her brainpletely freeze as she watched the young man who was just in her officest night shoot a destructive lightning st from his fingertips that pulverized a target and the wall behind it.


    "How¡­how is this possible?" Luna weakly muttered.


    As if the sound of Luna''s stunned voice was all they were waiting for, the girls suddenly looked up from their conversation to see the entire room staring at the monitor in disbelief.


    "Aww brother started already and we missed it!" Aubrey pouted.


    "It''s okay, it seems like he''s not done quite yet."


    Under the watchful eyes of everyone present, Mchi got down on all fours and his body shifted and stretched until he was a panther the size of a horse.


    "I-it''s really true.." Morgan muttered.


    "Did you know he could do that, Aisha?" Aubrey asked.


    "No, but do you think he''d let me ride his back if I asked?"


    "Maybe?" Aubrey shrugged.


    The crowd that was watching this waspletely shocked.


    Why are they treating this like it was normal?!


    "Hey I just realized something funny!" Aubrey suddenly eximed.


    " Let me hear it."


    "If brother is blessed by a god of thunder and a panther goddess, does that make him a thunder cat?"


    "Pffft¡­ Aubrey that''s some!" Aisha tried to hold in herughter but it proved to be to no avail as the two girlsughter resounded throughout the silent room.

 Chapter 16: Bast’s Blessing

    <h4>Chapter 16: Bast¡¯s Blessing</h4>


    "Hmm..I wasn''t certain this would work but¡­ this is really kind of cool."


    The sight of a giant panther speaking humannguage left everyone in the exam room equally stunned and horrified.


    Mchi examined his current monstrous paws and sleek ck fur.


    He thought it would feel strange to suddenly be arge furry creature but interestingly enough, nothing felt wrong.


    He did not feel out of ce or clumsy and was able to walk as if he''d been like this his whole life.


    ''I wonder if my power increases like this though?''


    Mchi wondered if he could use his blessings simultaneously but ultimately decided this wasn''t the ce to test it.


    If something went wrong not only would all of these people see him writhing in pain but so would the people watching on the monitors.


    As a man he had to maintain his dignity.


    "Umm.." Bianca suddenly spoke.


    "Something wrong?"


    "I know you don''t really know me or anything but¡­ can I pet you?" She asked with sparkles in her eyes.


    "S-Sure?" Mchi waspletely taken aback by this sudden request and before he knew it Bianca had run up to him and was stroking his fur.


    "Wahhh you''re so soft!!"


    "U-umm thank you?" He had no idea how to react to this sudden affection.


    Suddenly, he felt more pets at his side and turned to see Ryo stroking him with his trademark bored expression.


    "Bastard! Why are you touching me!?"


    "You said it was okay to pet you."


    "Yea for the hot girl not you!"


    ''Oh so you like me too? That''s very good to know. '' Bianca was making several ns to make this man hers as she petted between his ears.


    "My girlfriend has a cat, you remind me of him." Ryo continued to pet Mal, seemingly not caring about his irritation.


    "Then go torture that asshole and get away from me!" Mchi swiped his huge ws at Roy''s face only for Ryo to duck under the blow and proceed to scratch his furry chin.


    "Ahhhh¡­" Mchi''s whole body rxed from the sudden assault and he almost forgot why he was upset.


    Under the shocked gazes of everyone present, his body began to shrink drastically until instead of a massive frightening panther he was only a small ck house cat.


    "Kyaaa! You''re so cute!!" Bianca hurriedly scooped Mchi off the floor and held his small furry body in between her enormous breasts.


    ''I¡­ don''t even know how this happened but I will notin.'' Mchi was currently grateful for Bast''s blessing the most.


    Suddenly, Bianca pulled him from her breasts and held him out in the air. "That''s if you definitely have to be my boyfriend!"


    "Pardon?"


    "Don''t worry I''ll treat you really good~!"


    The other male examinees wondered if they''d have an easier time killing Mchi while he was still a cat.


    "Ahem!" The instructor interrupted.


    "You two can sort all that outter but for now let''s let him finish his assessment."


    "Aww¡­ okay.." Bianca begrudgingly gave Mal a final hug before she nted a big kiss on his furry face and put him back down.


    Almost two minutes went by and Mchi was sitting at an awkward angle, still in his cat form.


    "You''re not stuck are you?" The examiner asked.


    "N-no I''m just.. waiting for my body to rx a bit."


    Bianca giggled and had a flirtatious look in her eyes while the male examinees regretted not taking their chance to kill him.


    Eventually, Mchi returned back to human form and continued his exam.


    His golden mes were next to be on disy and Mchi learned an interesting fact.


    Because he had showed such destructive power with his lightning earlier, the examiner had taken even greater precautions and brought out targets made of tungsten.


    To the continued surprise of everyone present, his golden mes were almost immediately able to melt the resilient metal and would''ve done more damage had he not stopped them.


    Even though his mes burned at over six thousand degrees, there was no heating off of them and everyone was able to stand around himfortably with Bianca noting that she felt absolutely nothing.


    ''Just how monstrous is this kid..? Every power he''s shown has been crazier than thest and he still has one left!'' In all his years in this job, the examiner has never seen anything like this.


    ''Alright¡­ let''s finish and go home.''


    Mchi took a deep breath and tried to calm himself.


    He realized through Aisha that his blessing from Nyx worked best when he waspletely rxed.


    Of all of his new abilities, this one undoubtedly awed and terrified him the most.


    He could feel the boundless potential of the ability inside of him and instinctively knew he hadn''t even begun to scratch the surface of what he was capable of.


    His yellow cat eyes became empty and dark like Nyx''s as he plunged the city into a panic.


    -


    In the viewing room they had just gotten over the reveal of Mchi''s powers but the shock was still present in their minds.


    Beast shifting, electrokinesis and the mes of heaven.


    How was this even fair?!


    They were currently waiting to see what he''d do next as he stood in a trance like state in the middle of the examination room.


    Suddenly, the room began to get darker and darker with every passing second.


    People were utterly confused until someone pointed a trembling finger outside of the window and they all saw it.


    At ten in the morning, the sky was as ck as the darkest, coldest night imaginable.

 Chapter 17: Idol

    <h4>Chapter 17: Idol</h4>


    "Woah¡­That''s kind of cool." Aisha noted.


    "It''s¡­ pretty." Aubrey agreed.


    Naturally their words were heard by the panicked crowd and they looked at the two girls as if they''d just said the most oundish words imaginable.


    "Are you girls crazy?!"


    "It''s horrifying!"


    "What is going to happen?!"


    Suddenly, a sultry feminine voice cut through all the panic. "It''s not scary."


    Everyone turned to see Luna staring out into the night sky with a mellow expression.


    "You''re all afraid of what could lie within the dark and not the dark itself. But this¡­"


    Luna''s eyes drifted to the ck starless sky and a small smile formed on her face. "If you understand him well enough you''ll see. His darkness is soothing andforting. It is as if it''s offering protection to wayward souls."


    Luna turned to Aubrey and gave the girl a warm smile. "I understand what kind of man your brother is now."


    Aubrey returned her smile in kind and watched in awe at what happened next.


    Luna''s eyes glowed a beautiful reddish pink before a shimmering apparition of a full moon appeared in the night sky.


    Her face broke out into a proud and arrogant smile that shot an arrow through the hearts of all the men present.


    "As I thought, the two of us are good together no?"


    ¡ª


    In the exam room everyone was now giving Mchi confused stares.


    "Nothings happening.."


    "Is one of his powers a dud?"


    "It can''t be if it''s from a primordial right?"


    "Performance anxiety?"


    "He''s been doing fine so far though.."


    No one could figure it out.


    The man in front of them was just standing around seemingly in a trance.


    Even the examiner was stumped.


    Why wasn''t anything happening?


    "Hey are you alr-"


    Buzz buzz buzz!!


    The examiner took out his phone from his pocket and saw that it was his wife calling.


    ''She knows I''m at work is something wrong with the kids?''


    He hurriedly answered and the panicked voice of his wife echoed throughout the room.


    "H-honey! The sky something''s wrong!!"


    "The sky?" The examiner tilted his head in confusion.


    There were no windows in this room so he had no way of knowing what she was talking about.


    "I-I think it might be some kind of gate break! The sky ispletely ck even though it''s morning!"


    "What?!"


    "Look!"


    Not just the examiner, but all of the examinees crowded around his phone to get a glimpse of what was going outside.


    A sky filled with ck and no stars with a shimmering moon in the center, looming ominously above.


    As if they all had the same thought at the same time, everyone in the room craned their necks to stare at Mchi in a new light.


    "J-Jacob if anything happens to me I just want to tell you that I love you and I''m so grateful for-"


    "Janine calm down it''s okay nothing is happening." The examiner reassured as he walked up to Mchi.


    "Bastard! You''re scaring my wife!"


    Smack!


    "Ow!"


    Examiner Jacob delivered a hard smack to the back of Mchi''s head that snapped him out of his trance.


    Almost immediately, the dark sky began to break apart and the sun shone once more.


    "Why is everyone looking at me like that?"


    "Do you.. really not know what you just did?" Bianca asked hesitantly.


    Mchi rubbed his chin and put on a thoughtful expression. "I''m really not sure. I was just trying to remember her and suddenly I was in some kind of trance."


    That answer only seemed to terrify them more as they once again stared at him like he was a freak of nature.


    The examiner hung up on his wife and rubbed his temples. This was by far the most exhausting day he''d had in years.


    He looked up and stared into those yellow cat like eyes.


    ''This boy.. he''s about to turn the world on it''s head and he doesn''t seem to realize it.''


    He could only imagine the storm that the guilds would cause as they tried to pull this man to their side.


    "Mchi Saint, S rank."


    -


    As the examinees changed back into their regr clothes and prepared to leave, they were caught off guard to see everyone staring at them with incredulous expressions.


    Or more specifically, they were staring at Mchi.


    Suddenly, a white haired girl and a ck haired one ran up to him with huge smiles.


    "You did great!"


    "We definitely saw the whole thing!"


    Mchi simply returned Aubrey''s hug and gave Aisha a dry look. "If you''re gonna say something like that atleast wipe the chip crumbs off your face."


    Aisha''s cheeks quickly became furiously red as she wiped her face.


    "Aww why did you tell her I thought she looked cute like that." Aubrey pouted.


    ''C-cute?!'' Aisha felt like she could die happy in this moment.


    Suddenly the sound of footsteps interrupted the group and Mchi looked up to see a handsome blond man in a sky blue suit walking towards him.


    ''Huh¡­ he''s a bit shorter than he looks on tv.''


    Of course Mchi recognized one of the most powerful blessed in the world but he wasn''t all that excited to meet him.


    He knew it was the dream of millions of people all over the world to meet this man but honestly? Mal couldn''t really care less.


    His favorite blessed was always¡­


    "Holy shit!"


    Mchi vanished from his spot next to the girls and ran past the approaching Alex Heller and came to a stop directly in front of Morgan.


    "You''re Morgan Creed right?! I''m a huge fan!" Mchi shook the hand of the stunned guild master with a wide smile on his handsome face.


    Morgan was stunned silly by this development.


    He thought he''d lost the opportunity to approach Mchi when he saw Alex heading towards him and had already resigned himself just to give up.


    But who would''ve thought this guy would actually be a fan of his?


    ''But this kid sure is strange..''


    For someone blessed by a goddess of night Mchi was not at all like he expected him to be.


    He was so¡­ kind?


    Shouldn''t he be all edgy and monochromatic?


    His charisma was so infectious that it didn''t take long before Morgan was wearing a genuine smile as well.


    "Yes that''s me and I''ve gotta say young man you have some incredible heaven defying talent."


    "I''m just lucky is all." Mchi shrugged.


    "H-hey I know you probably get tired of this but do you mind if we take a picture?" He hesitantly asked.


    "For you? Of course not!"


    Aubrey hurried over and offered to take the picture since she knew how big of a fan her brother was of Morgan Creed.


    She felt he deserved to have this momentous day documented properly.


    Reporters also took this opportunity to get photos of the world''s first man to hold quad blessings.


    And judging by his reaction, they were certain they were also looking at the next member of ragnarok.


    "Mchi I''d like to offer you a contract with ragnarok. If you''re interested in signing right now you''ll have ten billion in your ount within an hour."


    The crowd sucked in their breath.


    Ten billion!


    Most people here couldn''t even dream about thatrge a sum!


    And here he was being offered that at the drop of a hat!


    Mchi opened and closed his mouth several times.


    Everyone immediately assumed he was so shocked he just didn''t know how to respond.


    "Wait a second!"

 Chapter 18: Reasons

    <h4>Chapter 18: Reasons</h4>


    The source of the sudden outburst was none other than Alex Heller as he confidently strode up to Mchi and Morgan and made his own proposal.


    "Morgan don''t you think his value is too great for a measly ten billion dors?"


    ''Ten billion is measly? Fuck, I was poorer than I thought.'' Mchi was currently looking back at his life through new lenses.


    "I am prepared to offer you 50 billion dors if you sign with true sky. As the number one guild in the country we also have various resources we can offer you that you won''t find anywhere else."


    "Are you trying to steal from me again you piece of shit?" Morgan''s eyes became the color ofva and the air around him became noticeably warmer.


    "Now now Morgan calm down, I''m simply trying to offer our young friend here the best deal possible."


    Alex ignored Morgan''s rapidly rising temper and gave Mchi a prize winning smile.


    "So what''ll it be kid? You wanna sign wit-"


    "Sorry but I can''t sign with either of you."


    "I knew you''d make the right choi- wait what?"


    Alex and Morgan stared at Mchipletely dumbfounded.


    Not just them, almost everyone in the room was looking at him like he''d just grown a second head.


    He just turned down fifty billion dors with out bating an eye!


    "I-Is there some reason you can''t sign with us?" Morgan had calmed down considerably and now was hopelessly confused.


    Mchi showed a cheeky grin before calling over his shoulder. "Hey bossdy, you wanna tell them why I can''t sign?"


    Click


    Click


    Click


    The sound of heels clicking against linoleum echoed throughout the spacious room as Luna walked towards Mchi with a stack of papers in her hand.


    "Mal.. are you sure you want to do this? Your value is inconceivably high and I only have the funds to offer you a billion at most.."


    Luna had begun to second guess this entire thing ever since she realized his true worth.


    Even though she wanted Mal to join her guild, she didn''t want him to feel like he''d been taken advantage of.


    Mchi''s only response was to take the papers from her hand. "Got a pen?"


    She absentmindedly handed him one and he prepared to sign the papers only to be interrupted by Alex once gain. "Wait!"


    "Why would you settle for less money? Immortal moon can''t offer you half of what true sky could!"


    Mchi tapped his jaw with the pen in his hand and pondered how to best answer that question. "Well the only reason why I even came here today was to gain her approval. And as far as the money goes¡­"


    Mchi looked towards his sister who was watching him with proud eyes. "I guess I don''t really need it? I don''t need to be the richest man alive, I just need to be able to provide for the only family I have left and give us a life worth living. We were eating sleep for dinner justst week so just a billion is plenty for us."


    "Plus if I join this guild I get to walk beside my oldest friend again and that''s all I''ve wanted ever since she got blessed."


    Aisha and Aubrey did not say anything, but they were both incredibly touched by Mchi''s words.


    Morgan couldn''t help but respect this young man.


    Truthfully he found meeting most of his fans to be a burden since he never set out to be a hero of any kind.


    But meeting someone like Mchi left him grateful for his status that helped him form a bridge between them.


    Even if he wouldn''t join his guild, he''d surely try to establish a friendship with this young man.


    ''Luna has a good recruit indeed.''


    On the other hand Alex felt like his brain was short circuiting.


    Could his enhanced hearing be failing him?


    Not only did this brat reject his exorbitant offer, he actually idolized that hothead Morgan over him?


    This boy was an idiot!


    Alex had never felt so humiliated in his life!


    "You¡­ you can''t be serious right?" Alex swallowed his anger and tried to change Mchi''s mind somehow.


    "Immortal moon is an all women''s guild!"


    "I''ll make an exception." Luna waived her hand as if she was unconcerned.


    "S-surely the other members of the guild would feel-"


    "I don''t care." Aisha interjected.


    Luna''s two bodyguards looked at each other before shrugging as well.


    "He''s an invaluable resource."


    "If guild master Luna doesn''t mind I don''t either."


    "Seems like there''s no more objections then." Mchi smirked.


    With everyone in the room watching, Mchi Saint an S ranked blessed became the first male member of immortal moon.


    "H-hey can I join too!" Bianca suddenly spoke up.


    Luna was only momentarily surprised by the girl''s boldness before she smiled. "I don''t have a contract on hand for you but if youe with me to the office I should have no problem getting you sorted out."


    An S rank recruit and an A rank one in the same day?


    Luna''s luck seemed to be getting better and better.


    Luna left with Bianca and her two bodyguards but not before writing Mal a check on the spot.


    It took everything in him to suppress his trembling hands as he looked at the exorbitant number written.


    Bianca blew him a small kiss and promised toe find himter prompting Mal to scratch his cheek in embarrassment.


    Having women suddenly be so interested in him was definitely gonna take a lot of getting used to.


    As Mchi and the girls left, Alex was still frozen in ce as he stared at Mchi''s disappearing back.


    Truthfully he did not want to kill him but by this point he had no choice.


    He''d been publicly humiliated and passed up for a second rate guild?!


    He wouldn''t be able to sleep at night if he didn''t kill this boy to avenge himself.


    ''So sad¡­ another young star dead so soon.''


    -


    Currently, Mchi and the girls were heading home before they prepared to move.


    Aisha had found a good realtor that could help get the two siblings into a nicer ce by tonight.


    As the group arrived at their old run down apartment, they frowned when they realized someone was in front of their door.


    With a sudden blowing of the wind, the group was able to see exactly who it was and the girls auras became murderous.


    Mchi sighed before he walked up to the uninvited guest.


    He didn''t know why Mnie was here but just seeing her gave him a massive headache.

 Chapter 19: Fame

    <h4>Chapter 19: Fame</h4>


    "You''re¡­ Mchi right?" Mnie hesitantly asked.


    "For the most part."


    Mnie seemed to recognize his sarcastic tone of voice and realized that it really was him.


    She didn''t get a good look at him in ss but now that she was up close she could see that he was not only incredibly handsome but his eyes not hidden by sunsses were slightly frightening.


    "You uh.. look good."


    "I think it''s the clothes."


    Mchi got tired of beating around the bush and decided to get to the heart of the matter. "Why are you here?"


    Mnie put on aplicated expression before she spoke. "Well.. you know how the sky got all dark and scary and stuff a minute ago?"


    "I vaguely recall something like that." Mal scratched his cheek in embarrassment.


    Just how much of the city did he put into a panic?


    He wondered how he''d be seen when the news about his assessment hit the news and inte.


    Mnie wondered why Mal suddenly looked like he was ufortable and ultimately decided he must''ve been bothered by her presence.


    ''Well.. it''s not like I don''t understand.''


    She sighed bitterly in her heart before she resigned herself to just say what she had to say and get out of here.


    "W-well I thought it might''ve been some kind of gate break and I got scared that I was going to die."


    ''Should I apologize?!'' The more Mchi heard the more guilty he felt.


    Mnie looked Mchi in his illustrious yellow eyes and spoke clearly. "I didn''t want to die without apologizing to you for what I did."


    Mchi was momentarily stunned by this seriousness that he''d never seen from her but soon recovered and put on his usual carefree demeanor.


    "It''s cool. No apology necessary." Mal waived his hand at her apology and moved past Mnie to open the door.


    Suddenly he felt her grab his sleeve and looked back to see her trembling with her head facing the ground.


    "I.. I know you might not want to hear it but I need to say it. I truly am sorry Mal."


    Before Mchi could even turn around and ask her why she was going so far, she released him and ran away.


    He watched her get her car and drive off, his mind swimming in confusion.


    - The Next Day.


    Pandemonium.


    That would be the only word to urately describe the world''s reaction when Mchi''s existence was released to the public.


    Not just in America but countries all over the world used Mchi''s testing facility of fabricating results to create a puppet with tremendous influence.


    A blessed with four different blessings from highers in entirely different pantheons?


    Who the hell would believe such an absurd lie!


    And then footage of Mchi''s exam was released.


    Now guilds all over the world were calling Luna''s phone attempting to buy Mal out of his contract with Immortal Moon.


    The prices offered were so exorbitant and outrageous that Luna would have agreed immediately had she not been so fond of Mchi.


    Naturally since he''d shown her such incredible faith and loyalty she couldn''t just go and soil that could she?


    Mchi himself was actually unaware of his meteoric rise to fame.


    As someone who didn''t watch the news and was barely on social media, how could he know?


    He''d gotten a few texts from Serana but he just assumed she was being over dramatic like normal.


    And he hadn''t been back to ss yet so there was nobody staring at him in awe or whispering around him.


    While Aubrey knew, she didn''t think her brother would care so she didn''t mention it.


    Currently, Mal was admiring hisvish new penthouse apartment.


    Since he didn''t need much space with just him and Aubrey staying there, he found a perfect upgrade for them.


    It was only a three bedroom but it was nicer than most mansions.


    ck granite floors with shiny golden chandeliers, expensive yetfortable furniture chosen by Aisha and even a balcony view of the city.


    He almost fainted when he saw the price, but Aubrey had reminded him they didn''t have to be so cheap now that their situation had changed and they could afford to spoil themselves a bit.


    As he rxed on hisfortable new couch, he found himself incredibly d that he''d listened to her.


    Suddenly, Mchi''s phone began to ring and he saw it was from Serana.


    The call had barely connected when her frantic voice pierced through his ear.


    "Mal! We need help please!"


    He immediately sat up and put a serious expression on his face. "Serana? What''s wrong?!"


    There was so much background noise on the other side of the phone that he couldn''t even hear her clearly.


    All he could hear was something about her and her mother needing help but that was more than enough.


    He dashed out of his apartment and headed for Sei''s restaurant hoping he wouldn''t be toote to help.


    -


    "It''s him!!"


    "Kyaa, he really doese here often!"


    "Can I get a picture!?"


    Mchi stared gobsmacked at the enormous crowd of people that were packed outside of Sei''s restaurant like sardines.


    "What.. the hell is this?"


    Suddenly a pink haired girl pushed through the crowd and came running up to Mchi out of breath and sweaty.


    "Huff huff, Mal! I''m so d you made it!"


    "Serana? Why are all of these people here and why did you say you needed help?"


    "Well¡­"


    Serana went on to exin how the older customers Mal had taken pictures withst time he was there showed their grandkids, neighbors and just about anyone that would listen.


    Those same people had nowe hoping to see the only man in the world with four blessings.


    "You idiot you scared me!" Mchi grabbed Serana by her pink cheeks and began to pull.


    "Oww oww oww! I''m sowwy!"


    As the crowd of onlookers stared at the interaction between the handsome man and the gorgeous young woman, a conclusion bubbled up in all of their minds.


    "Hey.. don''t they look really close?"


    "They''re both attractive so.."


    "Do you think they''re dating?"


    Mchi and Serana naturally heard the murmurs of the crowd and turned around to stare at them in horror.


    "As if!"


    "Her mom is way hotter than her!"


    "Are you calling me ugly you piece of shit!"


    "No, just inferior."


    "I''ll kill you!"


    Serana had to be restrained so that she did not strangle her friend and once the two were separated, Mal could see the woman he''d just called hot a second ago amongst the crowd, a scarlet blush on her smooth cheeks.


    ''She..totally heard me.''

 Chapter 20: Reward

    <h4>Chapter 20: Reward</h4>


    Mchi spent several hours taking pictures with everyone and meeting his supposed fans.


    The influx of customers was also great for Sei''s business and she made more money today than she''d made in thest few years.


    She ended up running out of ingredients and ended up having to close shop early.


    As a thank you to Mchi she invited him back to her home for some tea and dinner.


    Mchi naturally couldn''t allow Sei to cook for him again after she''d been doing so all day.


    Sei was surprised when, upon arriving at home Mchi immediately asked to borrow her kitchen.


    She of course tried to refuse since this was supposed to be a thank you for him after all, but Mchi was firm in his determination to cook for her and Serana.


    This brought about the current situation in which Mchi was sitting down to eat dinner with the mother daughter duo.


    "Mal¡­ you really made this?.." Serana was staring at the meal in front of her in disbelief.


    "Yea does it look okay?" Mchi was visibly sweating.


    It was the first time he''d been able to cook with actual ingredients in a long time so he was more than a little nervous.


    "I-it looks incredible!" Sei waspletely taken aback.


    She was only in the shower for about 30 minutes but in that time Mchi had already begun to prepare a full spread.


    An elegant pasta dish with handmade noodles, a light but refreshing sd paired with fresh baked bread and red wine.


    Serana was literally drooling, earning a kick from her mother under the table.


    "Well don''t just stare at it, dig in let me know how it tastes." Mchi tried not to show his nervousness but it was tough.


    He felt like one of the contestants on a cooking show hosted by an angry Scottish man.


    He held his breath as Sei and Serana raised their forks to their mouths and had their first bite.


    The silence seemed tost an eternity for Mchi as he waited to hear the girls'' reviews.


    Suddenly they looked up at him with twinkles in their eyes as they saw him in apletely new light.


    "It''s incredible!"


    "It''s shoo good!"


    The blessed man finally released a sigh of relief when he heard his rave reviews.


    The group ate in utter silence as the girls hungrily devoured the food in front of them.


    When they were finished, Serana put on a sneaky expression before she left the room under the guise of doing homework.


    The atmosphere was slightly awkward as the two silently sipped wine in each other''spany, both of them with a million things they wanted to say yet no idea where to begin.


    "I can''t believe you''re really blessed by four highers." Sei was the first to break the silence as she put on a cheerful smile. "You''re even an S rank blessed. I''m honestly surprised you didn''t get promoted to SSS right away."


    Mchi smiled bitterly when he heard the undeserved praise.


    The ranking system for the blessed is fairly simple.


    No matter how powerful a recruit might be, the highest rank they can achieve in their initial assessment is S rank.


    Blessed are able to increase their rank through mastery ofbat, number of dungeons cleared and resources acquired.


    This system was out in ce to avoid the tragedy of S rank recruits getting too full of themselves and dying needlessly.


    "I don''t deserve something as great as that. I don''t even know how to fight and my mastery over my powers is crude at best." Mchi shrugged.


    "But you''ll learn that stuff with the guild! I''m certain you''ll reach SSS in no time."


    Truthfully Mchi was still unused to such praise and found himself unable to respond.


    He who prided himself on always having a clever remark waspletely at a loss for words in the face ofpliments.


    With the silence once again setting in, Sei hesitantly asked the question that''d been guing her mind since earlier.


    "What you said earlier¡­did you mean it?"


    Mchi instantly understood her meaning and stared at her unflinchingly through dark sunsses. "I did."


    "Ah.. S-Serana told me something along those lines but I didn''t believe it."


    ''She did? That snitch!'' Mchi made a vow right then and there to teach her a good lessonter.


    That was supposed to stay a secret between friends!


    "Well.. even if she told you everything I want you to hear it from me."


    Mchi scooted his chair closer to Sei and the mature woman got a full whiff of his cologne.


    ''He smells so good.. but he''s too close!''


    "I like you Sei. I always have."


    "B-but I''m so much older than you and I don''t think someone of your status should be-"


    "I''m gonna stop you right there." Mchi interrupted.


    "I don''t give a damn about status or public eye or anything like that. And you being older than me doesn''t matter either."


    In a rare moment of seriousness, Mchi took off his sses and stared deep into Sei''s eyes.


    "I like you because you''re you, and that means that I like everything thates with you, whether you think I should or not."


    "I held it in for a long time but¡­ I want to be with you."


    Sei had her concerns.


    Blessed are known to attract multiple partners.


    Whether it is their godlike power, beautiful appearances or unique charisma, they attract so much attention that thews had long since normalized polygamy as long as it is not excessive.


    Mchi hadn''t even done anything yet but already the entire world had its eyes on him.


    Surely he would meet more women and eventually he would realize that there wasn''t anything special about her at all.


    It was only natural that she be left behind in the end.


    The longer she looked at him, the more she wanted to be with him anyway.


    There was something about him that made her feel seen and valued, emotions that she hadn''t experienced in a very long time.


    It was then that she made a decision that she was sure woulde back to harm herter.


    Even if it will end with her being thrown aside or the subject of ridicule from the world, she wanted to feel this happiness for just a little bit longer.


    Atleast until he no longer needed her.


    "Then¡­ please take care of me Mchi."


    Before he could react, she hugged him and buried her face in his neck.


    She didn''t want him to see the scarlet blush that was spreading across her face uncontrobly.


    Mchi himself was in such disbelief he didn''t even return her hug immediately.


    He thought for sure he was going to be rejected!


    Mchi wrapped his arms around Sei and inhaled her warm scent of honey. "Yea.. of course I will."


    The two lingered like that for a while until the click of a cellphone alerted them to the fact that they were not alone.


    "Alright mom! d to see you''re getting out there. You want me to tag you in this Mchi?"


    The two trembled in embarrassment from being spied on and they quickly released each other and turned to face the intruder with furious blushes.


    "G-get out!"


    "Tag me and get out!"


    - The next day.


    POW!


    "Ow fuck!"


    Mchi received a hard punch to the nose that sent him falling back onto his butt.


    He looked up above him to see a lean muscr woman with short brown hair and olive skin giving him a disdainful look.


    "I thought our new recruit would be more promising but is this all you amount to?"

 Chapter 21: Ray of Sunshine

    <h4>Chapter 21: Ray of Sunshine</h4>


    Mchi awoke this morning at the top of the world.


    For the first time since his parents died, he woke up with a full stomach.


    He was sleeping invish sheets on arge andfortable new bed and he''d even woken up in a gorgeous new home.


    To top it all off, his confession to the woman he''d loved for years went sessfully.


    He''d never been so happy to be alive!


    Is there a better way to wake up in the morning than with a smile, a good morning text from your beautiful girlfriend and a bank ount full of money?


    Aubrey of course noticed the way her brother was giddily walking around the house at breakfast but she assumed he was just excited for his first day of training at the guild.


    What else could it be after all?


    Upon leaving the house, Mchi found his steps were as light as a feather.


    He drove to his first real job with a smile on his face the entire time.


    Upon entering the guild building, he went directly to Luna''s office where he found her drinking tea with a small white fox in herp.


    "Mornin'' bossdy!"


    Luna and her pet both looked up and stared at the cheerful young man who just entered the room and were momentarily stunned by his radiant smile and infectious demeanor.


    "Morning Mal¡­ are you that excited for your first day ofbat training?"


    "Hm? Ah, sure but isn''t it such a beautiful day today? The kind that makes you grateful to be alive!"


    Luna looked out the window to see a dark and cloudy sky with heavy rainfall.


    "¡­Indeed it is."


    "Right??"


    Luna wondered what could be the reason for Mal''s cheerful mood.


    It was then that she remembered a picture that had been circting online of him embracing a woman.


    ''Is that what this is?¡­ Why does that tick me off so much?!''


    Luna swallowed her rising irritation and stood up and prepared to leave.


    "Hmph. Let''s go, Rose will break you if you show upte."


    ''Although maybe I should have him show upte so she can knock some sense into him¡­.''


    Luna shook off the thought almost as quickly as it formed.


    She didn''t know why she was so irritated by the thought that Mal might be seeing someone but she couldn''t let him intentionally be hurt just because of that.


    As they left her office, Mchi noticed the change in demeanor of the mature woman.


    ''Is she having a bad day? Should I cheer her up somehow?''


    -


    Mchi was lead to a high tech training room where he saw an unfamiliar woman sparring with a familiar one.


    Aisha was sparring expertly with a woman of about her height with twice her muscle.


    Both women were sweating profusely yet did not seem to be showing any signs of slowing down.


    The sound of their shes reverberated off the walls and Mchi was in awe of the mastery being disyed.


    He knew Aisha was a monster but because her fights had never been recorded, he didn''t know just how skillful she really was.


    ''The gap between us.. I''ll definitely close it.''


    "Alright girlse say hello." Luna finally made her presence known and the two women ceased their spar immediately.


    Aisha hurriedly ran up to Mchi and the two did their signature handshake and he embraced her despite her sweatiness.


    "You were so cool! If I knew you had hands like that I wouldn''t have ever talked reckless to you."


    The girl seemed overjoyed with such praise and it immediately went to her head. "Hmph! Does that mean you''re going to start showing me the respect I deserve?"


    "No? Who said that?" Mchi smirked. "My body can take the abuse now so I''ll stick to being me."


    Aisha''s ego immediately deted and she gave Mchi a dry look. "Cheeky bastard."


    He chuckled before turning his attention towards the new woman who was approaching.


    "Mal this is Rose Ortega, like myself she''s a SS ranked blessed and she''ll be yourbat instructor." Aisha introduced.


    "Nice to meet you." Mchi held out his hand and offered the woman a warm smile.


    Instead of epting it, Rose cocked her fist back and delivered Mchi a solid punch to the nose.


    "Ow fuck!"


    Rose stood over the fallen Mchi and gave him a disdainful look.


    "I thought our new recruit would be more promising but is this all you amount to?"


    Aisha and Luna looked like this was well within their expectations.


    Out of all of Immortal moon''s members Rose was the most¡­ entric.


    The girls waited to see how Mchi would handle what had be sort of an unofficial initiation ritual for new members.


    "What the hell¡­" Mchi groaned.


    "Are youining with just tha-"


    "That shit was so cool!" Mchi popped up and stared at Rose with sparkling eyes.


    "They say my speed is S rank but man I didn''t even see you move!!"


    "W-what?" Rose stared at Mchi as if he''d just said the most oundish shit imaginable.


    ''Did I hit him too hard? Is he broken??'' She waspletely taken aback.


    ''Yea¡­ that''s about the reaction I expected.'' Rose thought. "Here go put these on." She handed Mchi a pair of simple ck sweatpants. "


    ''What the hell¡­ isn''t this doofus more cheerful than normal today?'' Aisha wondered what could''ve possibly made her friend so happy that he smiled at a punch in the face.


    Mchi had gotten so close to Rose that the young woman''s face had begun to turn an unhealthy shade of red.


    "W-what kind of a weirdo are you!? G-get out of my face and go get changed!"


    "Sure thing teach! Or should I call you master? Sensei? Yoda-"


    "Just call me Rose and go get dressed!!"


    Mchi hurriedly ran to the small dressing room to go and get changed, leaving the group of women to stare at each other in confusion.


    "Why is your friend so weird?"


    "Don''t ask me. He''s extra cheerful today so maybe he likes you."


    "W-what?!" Rose yelped.


    ''H-he''s handsome sure but we literally just met! Although I''ve never gotten such an interested look from someone before..''


    "I don''t think that''s it." Luna took out her phone and showed them a picture of what was obviously Mchi embracing a curvaceous woman who''s face they could not see.


    "I''m back!" Mchi changed into a pair of loose ck sweat pants and had wrapped his hands and feet in ck bandages.


    He immediately noticed something was wrong when he saw the furious looks Aisha and Rose were giving him.


    "You punk! How could you not tell me you''re dating someone!?" Aisha was furious.


    "Fuck that. Put your hands up, I don''t want to cave your skull in." Rose was going to make him pay for embarrassing her.


    For the first time today Mchi''s mood was broken and reced with a mild sense of fear.

 Chapter 22: Fated Meeting

    <h4>Chapter 22: Fated Meeting</h4>


    For two entire hours, Mchi was beaten like a toddler''s drum set.


    Due to his enhanced physique and healing factor, no bruises were left behind but the mental scars were more than enough of a reminder.


    He still had no idea what he''d done to piss Rose off so bad but he made a silent vow to never do it again.


    As the fight went on, much to the surprise of the girls watching Mal showed gradual improvement.


    He''d slowly learned to defend her blows and counterattack with his own.


    While his skill was not prodigal or masterful, it was impressive for a beginner and worth praise.


    Mchiy on the floor breathing hard and holding his ribs after Roseunched a devastating kick to his side.


    "Can I ask.. huff huff.. why does it feel like you hate me?"


    Seeing him y dumb made Rose even angrier and she prepared to strike him again in the face only to be surprised when she gave him an honest answer instead.


    "You think you can pretend to flirt with me so that I''ll take it easy on you? I''ll make your training a living hell!"


    "¡­Excuse me?" Mchi stared at Rose inplete shock. "When did I do that?"


    "When I punched you in the face and you acted like you were so interested!!"


    ''Why am I telling him this? I can''t stop myself!'' Rose was screaming at herself internally.


    Mchi slowly picked himself up off the ground and looked Rose directly in the eye.


    "I wasn''t flirting with you. I do think you''re beautiful but I was sincerely interested in the punch you threw. I don''t know where the misunderstanding came from but I hope we can be friends."


    Even though Mal''s eyes were hidden behind dark sunsses, that did not stop Rose from noting the seriousness in his gaze.


    "Y-you think I''m.. beautiful and cool?" She hesitantly asked to confirm.


    No one in the guild or even in her life had ever told her she was cool or even beautiful.


    Scary? Yes.


    Brutal? Also yes.


    But she''d never beenplimented as sincerely as she was now!


    She was already twenty eight and she''d never had a boyfriend!


    "Yea. You actually seem kind of nice when you''re not trying to take my head off." Mchi responded without much thought.


    "O-oh I''m sorry about that.."


    "Don''t worry about it just take care of me in the future alright teach?" Mchi gave her a warm smile and once again held out his hand for a handshake.


    Rose stared at that captivating smile and outstretched hand for what felt like an eternity before she hurriedly turn around and ran out of the training room. "Training over great first day see you tomorrow!"


    With that she was gone leaving Mal scratching the back of his head in confusion. "I thought we were getting along better but was I mistaken?"


    Luna and Aisha suddenly approached Mchi from their spot on the wall and he was immediately reminded that there was another woman who wanted to kill him earlier.


    "You bastard! You got another girlfriend and didn''t tell me?!" Aisha roared.


    The subject of the woman who was now his put a giddy smile on Mal''s face that only served to infuriate her even more.


    "I was gonna tell you eventually. I just kind of forgot since it still doesn''t feel real."


    "This is Serana''s mother right?" Aisha asked while looking at the picture again.


    ''M-mother?!'' Luna''s entire world trembled with just those simple words.


    "Yea.." Mal''s voice was so delirious it was as if the mere mention of her was enough to put him under a spell.


    Aisha nodded, seemingly satisfied that her deduction was correct and with his choice of partner.


    "W-wait Mchi!" Luna suddenly intervened. "How old is this woman?"


    "She''ll be 38 in the spring. Oh! That reminds me I should start thinking of birthday ns for her."


    "Maybe you could take her on a trip?" Aisha suggested.


    "That''s good but where would we go?"


    As she listened to Mchi and Aisha n for this woman who was about the same age as her, Luna felt like she was going insane.


    "Mal you.. like older women?"


    "Loves them." Aisha responded dryly.


    "It''s an addiction really." Mal confirmed without an ounce of shame.


    ''Then does that mean I¡­ No what am I thinking I''m his boss!'' Luna stuffed her impure thoughts down almost as quickly as they formed.


    Mal''s phone suddenly vibrated and he smiled when he saw that it was a text from Sei asking him toe to the restaurant.


    He hurriedly changed out of his sweats and put on normal attire before bidding the two women farewell and running out of the building.


    On the way to the parking lot he ran into Bianca who scowled at him and yelled something about not giving up before she turned around and ran off.


    ''I didn''t think Serana had so many followers, seems like a lot of people saw that picture."


    At the time Mchi was still unaware of his new fame and didn''t think that the picture spread so far simply because he was tagged in it.


    -


    Arriving at the restaurant, Mchi could see that it was busy but not quite as bad as yesterday.


    Word seemed to have gotten around about how good the food served was and now Sei had herself a number of new regrs.


    Sei was waiting for him outside when he pulled up and he happily hoped out the car and embraced her.


    "I missed you.."She shyly returned his hug and hoped that Serana wasn''t hiding somewhere taking pictures again.


    "I missed you too." Mchi nted a kiss on her forehead and Sei''s face became as red as her underwear.


    Deciding to focus before she fainted, she led him inside so she could talk about why she called him here.


    In the corner of the restaurant there was a man sitting down holding arge briefcase in hisp.


    "That man showed up looking for you about an hour ago and begged me to call you. I thought about kicking him out but he looks so¡­desperate." Sei exined.


    Mchi looked at the man seated and was able to confirm that the man did have an aura of desperation and hopelessness, not only that but he could hear his heart beating rapidly as if he was incredibly nervous.


    Mchi sent Sei away and walked forward to meet the man.


    When the man''s eyesnded on him they shed with hope and he stood up and offered his hand.


    Mal didn''t know at the time that what this man wanted from him would change his mentality about life going forward and make him the most powerful blessed in the world.

 Chapter 23: Contract

    <h4>Chapter 23: Contract</h4>


    Mchi shook the man''s hand politely and he hurriedly introduced himself.


    "I-I was worried you wouldn''te! I''m Rowan Ivers."


    "Good to meet you.." Mal warily took a seat opposite the old man and stared at him as if he was trying to get a read on his intentions.


    All things considered the man opposite him seemed harmless.


    He was an older man around 65 with wiry gray hair and a pair of crooked sses.


    There were deep ck bags under his eyes indicating it had been several nights since he''d gotten proper rest.


    His clothing was wrinkled and disheveled and Mal could smell liquor on the man''s breath.


    ''You seem harmless enough but..''


    Mal took off his sses and Rowan flinched when he saw those predatory yellow eyes.


    "Tell me old man.. why are you taking up space in my girlfriend''s restaurant looking for me? You don''t seem like a fan."


    "I-I havee with a proposition." Rnd stammered.


    Ever since Mal had taken his sses off it was hard to meet his gaze.


    He felt as if he was standing in front of a giant beast that was ready to tear his throat out should he tell the slightest lie.


    "A proposition? You''re not about to do something silly like ask me to leave Immortal Moon are you?"


    "N-no that''s not it."


    Mal could hear the old man''s heartbeat rapidly increasing and became increasingly curious as to what sort of proposition could be causing this sort of reaction.


    "Y-you see I''ve been waiting for someone with your particr blessing toe along. Or one of them I suppose."


    "My blessing?"


    "Only someone with a blessing like yours could pull off what I''m about to ask you without being caught. " Rowan confirmed.


    Mal''s gaze intensified but Rowan hade too far to back down now.


    "I-I''m an expert on mythology and ult studies and I have the necessary knowledge to help you learn how to use your powers in ways that you never thought possible."


    "Bold im for you to make as someone who''s not even blessed." Mchi pointed out.


    "I don''t need to be, I''ve studied your kind ever since the first blessed appeared and I can say with the utmost confidence that I can help you."


    "I can simply learn to master my powers from the guild or in the gates."


    "True but much of what any of the blessed could teach you would only be feelings based and it wouldck much of the technicality. And it''s not practical to attempt to learn something like that on the fly you know? You should study as much as you can beforehand to decrease the chances of putting your life at risk."


    The old man''s words made sense to Mchi but the uneasy feeling bubbling up in his heart kept him on his guard.


    "In addition to helping you¡­" Rowan ced his briefcase on the table and slid it towards Mchi. "I am also prepared to offer you my life savings provided you listen to my request."


    Mchi could tell from the old man''s struggle lifting the briefcase that it contained no small amount of money.


    "This is shady as hell, old man. You''re acting like you''re about to ask me to kill someone."


    "¡­"


    Seeing the man''s deadpan expression, Mchi''s heart dropped.


    "You¡­ you''re fucking crazy. I know I wear sunsses a lot but do I really look like a fucking hitman?"


    The dreaded young man stood up and began to walk away only to be stopped when he felt the man grab his sleeve.


    "Please.. he.. he took my daughter from me."


    Mchi looked over his shoulder to see the man looking down and tears falling onto the table.


    As someone who''d cried their fair share of tears in life, Mal was naturally weak to the tears of others.


    Especially ones thate from loss.


    This old man begging him so sincerely was bringing up old memories and tugging at his heart strings.


    He was not a person with a hard heart, his sense of empathy was well above most.


    ''I''m too easily manipted¡­''


    He gradually sat back down and had the old man wipe his face before he exined to him why he couldn''t do it.


    "Look old man.. I''m no killer. You''re better off looking for someone on the dark web for this kind of thing."


    Rowan was unconvinced and spoke through muffled sobs. "You.. you are a blessed so that means you kill monsters right?"


    "That''s what they tell me." Mchi hadn''t even been inside of a gate yet.


    "I can promise you.. this man is more of a monster than anything you might find in the gates." The man began rustling through his jacket pocket and pulled out a photo of a man.


    "Look old man be that as it may I think maybe you should call the police or¡­" Mchi''s words trailed off as he stared at the photo of a man he wouldn''t forget for even a single second.


    "T-this is Arthur Rnd. H-He-"


    "Fuck everything I just said in its entirety." Mchi interrupted.


    The man was confused for a brief second before he saw Mchi''s eyes shift from an illustrious yellow to an intense orange.


    "I''ll do it."


    -


    It had been a few hours since Mchi''s meeting with Rowan and he hadn''t moved from the table where it took ce.


    Sei of course noticed his downtrodden air and brought him a drink after the shop closed.


    "You kind of looked like you needed something stronger than tea." Sei sat two sses on the table and poured them both a shot of whiskey.


    Mchi knew he couldn''t get drunk from this with his new body so he did not stand on ceremony and gulped it down.


    He thanked her for the drink and afterwards the two simply sat in silence, with her simply holding his hand as they stared out the window.


    She knew something was wrong with Mal but she did not want to push him and ultimately decided to wait for him to speak about what was bothering him.


    She was also enjoying just spending time together like this.


    "Sei?"


    "Yes M- I mean honey?" She blushed profusely and regretted not dimming the lights before they sat down.


    Mchi chuckled at Sei''s cute sides before he asked the question that had been guing his mind.


    "If I became a murderer, would you look at me differently?"


    Sei''s eyes widened in shock when she heard Mchi ask a question she never expected.

 Chapter 24: Dual Approval

    <h4>Chapter 24: Dual Approval</h4>


    For as long as Sei had known Mchi, he''d been the sweetest man imaginable.


    Even before their rtionship progressed, Mal had always helped out with housework after he''d finished tutoring Serana and made conversation with her.


    She''d never seen him upset or even badmouth someone.


    He was the very image of a kind and considerate young man.


    Even when his parents were taken from him, instead of being angry andshing out he grieved silently and started working to provide for Aubrey.


    Sei didn''t believe Mal had a malevolent bone in his entire body.


    So what was with this sudden talk of murder?


    As she stared into Mchi''s eyes she saw a great range of emotions.


    There was anger which was new but there was something more as well.


    ''Is he.. afraid?''


    It was then that Sei realized that despite the stoic aura Mchi was trying to present, he was actually quite afraid of how she would react.


    Sei ced her hand on his and gave him a warm reassuring look.


    "Why don''t you tell me what''s going on?"


    Mal debated internally how much he should reveal before ultimately deciding he didn''t want to hide things from someone he cared so much about.


    So in the end he divulged everything.


    He told her about how Rowan''s daughter was vited by the man he''d been asked to kill which lead to hermitting suicide.


    He opened up the briefcase of money he was given and Sei gasped in shock when she saw the exorbitant amount of money inside.


    It was easily around 500,000 dors.


    Sei had never seen such arge amount of money in her life and Mchi pulling it out so casually had almost caused her to faint.


    She listened to him as he exined that Rowan imed to be an expert on the ult and mythology who could help him master his powers.


    In the end when he told her about his eptance of the job, there was silence once more.


    As the day slowly descended into night the two sat there watching all of the cars on the city streets go by.


    "I¡­ will not look at you any differently." Sei honestly answered.


    Mchi was honestly surprised by this answer and looked at the woman with a slightly bewildered look.


    "I know if I''d lost Serana the same way that man lost his daughter I would probably feel the same way. I think this man lost everything that would qualify him as a human a long time ago." Seiforted.


    "But can I ask what made you ep-"


    "Well said!" A new voice spoke.


    The couple looked across the table to see the goddess of the night wearing her signature starry ck dress.


    "Who.. are you?" Sei thought she would be frightened by this woman''s sudden appearance but instead she felt strangelyfortable.


    She felt as if she was taking a slow walk in a crisp cold night.


    "She is Nyx." Mchi answered for her and offered the goddess a warm smile. "It''s good to see you again. I didn''t know gods were allowed toe down here so freely."


    "Don''tpare me with those low level gods." Nyx frowned.


    "They only hold power over an aspect of nature while I embody a part of creation itself." Nyx stared out into the night with a satisfied expression as if she were looking in the mirror.


    "Therefore I have a bit more leeway than the others. But that''s unimportant for now¡­" Nyx stood up and analyzed Sei from head to toe. "You''ve chosen well my child. I''m not particrly fond of humans but this one seems an exception."


    Sei could only blush as she received a genuinepliment from what was undoubtedly the most beautiful woman she''d ever seen.


    Mchi said nothing but he squeezed Sei''s hand lightly and smiled.


    "But my son.." Nyx drifted her eyes to Mchi and her tone became slightly more serious. "Even if he is the one that harmed your sister, to hunt down another human in cold blood will undoubtedly take something from you. Are you prepared for that?"


    ''This man harmed Aubrey too?'' Sei''s heart wrenched at the sudden revtion.


    Just how much had Mchi and his sister been through?


    Mal''s gaze became hard and he stared unflinchingly at Nyx. " I am."


    To Sei, Mal sounded incredibly sincere and convincing but Nyx knew better.


    Because darkness hides everything the night sees all.


    Therefore nothing could be hidden from The personification of night herself.


    Even if they weren''t connected through her divinity, Nyx could feel the fear that Mchi was shoving down.


    Fear that in killing that horrible man he would also lose something critical for being human.


    And yet she could feel his unwavering determination to go through with this task anyway.


    ''What a kind child I''ve chosen¡­ he will undoubtedly shoulder the weight of the world.''


    Nyx knew there was nothing she could say to sway Mchi from the path he''d decided to walk so she nted a kiss on his forehead that sent a warmth streaming throughout his body.


    "Walk always in my night child, and you will never be alone."


    With that she disappeared leaving behind a reassured Mchi.


    He couldn''t exin it but conversing with Nyx always gave him the same feelings that he got when he talked to his mother while she was still alive.


    ''Is it because she calls me her child? It''s oddlyforting.''


    Mchi turned to apologize to Sei for the somber mood only to see her ring at him.


    "W-what''s the matter?"


    "Even if she''s a goddess how could you let her k-kiss you!?"


    A small smirk appeared on Mchi''s face.


    "Is my dear Sei jealous?"


    "Of course I am! Even I have not!.." Sei realized that she was beingpletely honest despite her intention to lie.


    Her face slowly became as red as a tomato before she immediately got up and prepared to run away.


    She waspletely surprised however when Mchi pulled her in by her waist and nted a warm kiss on her lips.


    Sei''s body immediately tensed up before she melted like snow in his grasp.


    The two lingered like that for a while, each of them seemingly trying to ingrain them taste of the other in their memory.


    -The next day


    Mchi went about his usual routine.


    He woke up early to go to the guild so that Rose could beat- I mean train him for two hours before he changed and went to ss.


    Every person that knew him could tell that he wasn''t quite right but what could they do when he so adamantly stated that he was fine?


    Luna, Serana, Aubrey and Aisha were all incredibly worried about the always cheerful young man who''d suddenly be much more quiet.


    Night had fallen and Mchi was driving his nice car to an unknown part of the city.


    After a twenty minute drive, he arrived at a run down abandoned building and promptly got out.


    He saw Rowan waiting for him and promptly began to shrug off his nice jacket and roll up his sleeves. "Alright old man."


    "Let''s work."

 Chapter 25: Hunt

    <h4>Chapter 25: Hunt</h4>


    Night had already fallen over woodcrest maximum security penitentiary.


    Arthur Rnd was currently heading back to his cell for lights out.


    He heard the familiar yelling of the guards before the lights cut off in the cell block and he climbed into his cot.


    Top bunk was his so he stared up at the ceiling and began counting tiles as he tried to drift off to sleep.


    "Arthur Rnd."


    "Hm? That you fishcake?" Arthur was sure his cellmate was already asleep but maybe he wasn''t.


    "In prison for sexual assault, two victims ages fifteen and seventeen¡­ but there''s a lot more that just haven''te forward right?"


    The longer the voice spoke, the easier it became for Arthur to tell that this was not his cellmate.


    Sensing something was amiss, Arthur scrambled to look down from his bed, only to see an extremely tall man that he didn''t recognize.


    He was wearing simple ck pants with a white shirt and the top button undone. He was in the corner of the room staring out a barred window while smoking a cigarette.


    "The fuck?! Who are you?"


    "Unimportant." The man waved his hand and dismissed the question.


    Arthur''s eyes widened.


    He''d seen enough people die in prison to know what a hit looked like.


    He had to call for help before it was toote.


    "G-guard!-"


    In a sh, the man who was leaning motionlessly against the wall appeared in front of him and quickly sped his jaw shut.


    "This ain''t really the best environment for conversation is it?"


    Suddenly, dark mist rose up from the ground and covered the two men before they disappeared from their spot.


    Not long after that a pair of guards arrived and shone their shlights inside of a cell.


    They repeatedly banged on the bars to awaken its upants only to be incredibly rmed when there was no movement.


    Opening the gates, the two men rushed inside and found an overweight man in the bottom bunk, and an empty bed on the top.


    They tried to shake the one inmate awake but got no response.


    There was no blood, no signs of blunt force trauma or even strangtion.


    It was as if his heart had just stopped beating.


    "Put the cell block on lockdown and bring me some goddamn defibritors!"


    -


    "Gah!"


    Arthur fell out of the darkness and immediately noticed he was outside.


    Everywhere he looked there was nothing but dark forest surrounding him.


    "W-what the hell?"


    "Wee to Tongass National Forest!"


    Arthur looked for the source of the voice and found the man who brought him here leaning up against a tree, cigarette still in hand.


    "Interestingly enough this just so happens to be thergest forest in the U.S."


    The man spun around and admired the cool night air mixed with the rich scenery that only he could make out.


    "500 miles of nothing but nature!" He turned around to look at the convict who was shivering on the ground.


    He took off his sses and revealed a pair of intense orange eyes. "Perfect for us to have a little chat don''t you think?" When he smiled, a mouthful of pointed canines were revealed.


    "Y-you''re a blessed?"


    "I thought the use of super powers would''ve given it away but apparently you''re not very quick."


    Arthur''s heart immediately dropped to his stomach and he prostrated on the ground. "P-please.. I-I haven''t done anything to offend-"


    "Aubrey Saint."


    "P-pardon?"


    "Roseline Ivers."


    "L-look I-I don''t know who-"


    CRACK!


    "GYYAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!"


    Hearing that Arthur didn''t even recognize the names of two of the girls whose lives he''d ruined, Mchi''s already frightening mood became worse and he delivered a swift and powerful stomp to the convicts hand.


    "Stop screaming you sound like a child."


    Mchi ced his heel on Arthur''s neck and ground his face into the earth.


    "Alright, are you listening?"


    "Mmh! Mm!"


    "Good." Mchi nodded, satisfied.


    "We''re going to y a little game. I''m going to let you up and you''re going to run really fast and far. Once you''re far enough away, I''m going to chase you but don''t worry I won''t use my night blessing since that''d be cheating after all. "


    Arthur began to furiously wiggle and scream into the dirt as if to make known that this sick contest was still very unfair.


    "Calm down man, if you can survive until morning you''re free to go. See? I can be nice too."


    Mchi looked at his watch and saw the time was a little after nine.


    "Alright then, you''re free to go."


    Once his abductor''s foot was off his neck, Arthur scrambled up from the ground and took off running in a random direction.


    Mchi watched the man''s orange jumpsuit disappear before he sighed out loud.


    "Should I draw a picture in the dirt while I wait?"


    -


    Arthur was currently covered in sweat and dirt and having the worst night imaginable.


    He was snatched out of his bed in the dead of night by some blessed and made to participate in this sick and twisted game of cat and mouse.


    He''d been stumbling around in the dark for hours being chased by wild animals, falling into rivers and tripping in mud.


    The entire time he was out here he never once caught sight of his abductor and assumed he was doing a good enough job at covering his tracks.


    Eventually he wondered if he was just tricked into running around like an idiot for several hours.


    Finally, after several hours light had finally began to show on the horizon.


    Arthur smiled as hope filled his system before he kept running.


    He wouldn''t feel safe until the sun waspletely up but this did easy his nerves a bit.


    When the sun finally rose and thest of the night had been chased away by the sun, Arthur copsed where he stood and cried tears of joy.


    He''d survived.


    Somehow someway he''d done enough running to escape from some crazy powerful blessed.


    "I wonder if this is how they felt."


    Arthur''s happy mood disappeared immediately before he felt the wind get knocked out of him and went flying towards a tree.


    He coughed furiously and attempted to inhale sweet air into his lungs before he looked up to see a giant panther the size of a horse.


    ''W- what the fuck is that I thought it was that guy?!''


    "Finally getting a sense of safety when they arrived home, only for you to heartlessly shatter it when you broke in."


    Only when he watched the panther speak again did he realize this beast and the man that brought him here were one and the same.


    "Y-you said."


    "I know exactly what I said." Mchi prowled forward, his ws tearing up the earth beneath him with every step.


    "I just wanted to show you the same despair my sister and all those other women felt."


    Arthur''s body began to shiver uncontrobly and he unknowingly wet himself. "P-please I-I was really sick back then b-but I''m bett-"


    SLASH


    Before Arthur even realized what happened, Mchi had swiped his razor sharp ws across his chest.


    "AAAAAAAAAAGGGHHHH!!"


    Blood began to flow almost immediately and Arthur became a screaming crying mess.


    ''Better? Don''t make meugh. I won''t even allow you to say any of that useless shit.'' Mchi''s anger had long since reached a boiling point.


    Seeing his prey attempting to crawl away, Mchi''s instincts that he''d been holding onto all night long burst forward and he bounced on top of the wailing man.


    The rest was a blur as Mchi ripped Arthur into shreds.


    Blood spattered, bones were crushed, entrails flew and flesh was turned into mincemeat.


    Even when Arthur''s screams had long since ended, Mchi continued to maul his victim as if he didn''t want him to have a body even in death.


    When it was over, Mchi let out a defiant roar that shook the ancient trees surrounding him.

 Chapter 26: Truth

    <h4>Chapter 26: Truth</h4>


    Aisha was sleeping soundly in the middle of the night when her phone suddenly rang and she was shocked awake.


    Her irritation and grogginess disappeared entirely when she saw that the one calling was none other than her crush Aubrey.


    "Hey is everything okay?" Aisha sounded so alert on the phone that Aubrey sighed in relief, believing she didn''t wake her up.


    "C-can you turn on the news?" Aubrey meekly asked.


    Aisha fumbled around in her bed for the tv remote before flipping on the news.


    There was a breaking news story about an escaped convict who was on the loose.


    The man''s mug shot showed an ugly looking man in his mid forties with orange hair and ck eyes.


    "Why do you care about¡­" Aisha''s words trailed off as the list of the man''s crimes was disyed on screen.


    A sickening feeling spread to her chest and an idea bubbled up into her mind but she prayed that she wasn''t right.


    "¡­Is that him?"


    She received no reply, but judging by the muffled whimpering she could hearing from the other side of the phone, she knew she had her answer.


    "Where''s Mchi?"


    Aubrey spoke through choked sobs as she exined that Mal wasn''t home and that he wasn''t answering his phone either.


    Aisha''s anger reached a boiling point.


    ''You dick! Your sister is traumatized and you''re out somewhere doing gods know what!!''


    For about two weeks now Mchi had been acting very distant.


    It wasn''t just with her, even those in the guild noticed and wondered what could''ve possibly happened to the cheerful young man they''d seen before.


    Aisha had allowed him his space out of respect for their friendship but this had gone way too far.


    "Aubrey put some clothes on okay? I''m going toe and get you." Aisha hoped out of bed and hurriedly began throwing on clothes.


    "*sniff* Okay¡­"


    The pair stayed on the phone right until Aisha arrived at her door to pick her up.


    "I-I didn''t ask where we were going?" Aubrey realized.


    "Don''t worry." Aubrey took Aisha''s hand and led her into the elevator toward her car. "We''re gonna go and get some answers okay?"


    Aubrey wasn''t sure exactly what that meant but the warmth of Aisha''s hand in hers did wonders for her nerves.


    The sensation was very faint but she started to get the feeling that everything was going to be okay.


    -


    Bang, bang, bang!


    "Aisha it''s prettyte maybe we shouldn''t.."


    "We''ll apologize for thatter but for right now we need answers and I''m sure she''s got em."


    "But what if-"


    Click!


    The door they''d been banging on so fiercely finally opened and a groggy Sei opened the door with a weary Serana not far behind her holding a bat.


    ''Damn it Mal¡­ I hate you right now but you have good taste.'' As Aisha peeked at Sei''s massive bust that was barely hidden in her bathrobe she had to give Mchi credit where it was due.


    "A-Aubrey and Aisha? What are you doing here at this time of night?"


    "Sorry to bother you but it''s about Mal. That six foot sack of shit isn''t answering his phone and we''re wondering if you know where he might be."


    "Jeez they aren''t joined at the hip you know? Why would my mom know where he is?" Serana rolled her eyes and returned her bat to its spot by the door.


    Sei''s face took on aplicated expression before she stood aside and invited the girls in.


    "Wow mom you guys are that close already? Have you guys had sex yet?"


    "N-no we have not!"


    Smack!


    "Ow! It was just a question!"


    After giving her daughter a hard smack over the head, Sei led the girls to the living room where she told them to make themselvesfortable as she went to go prepare tea.


    As Serana stared at the two girls on the couch, an evil smirk crossed her face when she saw that they were holding hands. "So, how long have the two of you been together?"


    "She just picked me up from my house a little while ago." Aubrey answered.


    "No I mean how long have you guys been dating." Serana gave Aubrey an exhausted look.


    "Pardon?"


    "Come again?"


    Seeing the nk expression on Aubrey''s face and embarrassed one on Aisha''s, Serana was able to roughly grasp the situation and smiled. "Oh? My mistake."


    ''I wonder if Mchi knows.''


    Sei returned carrying a pot of tea and arge briefcase.


    After pouring tea for the two girls she passed the briefcase to Aisha and she frowned when she realized it was filled with something.


    "Before you open that¡­ I want to say that what I am about to tell you cannot leave this room."


    Aisha was suspicious but she nodded and unzipped the briefcase in her arms to reveal its contents.


    "Shit.."


    "What the hell?"


    "We were rich this whole time?!" Serana''s gave her mother an usatory look.


    "It''s not ours it''s Mchi''s!" Sei corrected. "He didn''t know what to do with it so he gave it to me for safekeeping."


    "Does this have something to do with why he''s been acting so strange?.." Aubrey hadn''t taken her eyes off the exorbitant amount of money since it was revealed to the room.


    Sei gave a small nod before she exined everything to the girls in the room.


    She started with how she called Mal to meet with Rowan one day after training.


    She then went on to exin how Rowan hired him to kill someone and Mal initially declined before he realized who he was being asked to kill.


    The girls also found out that Mchi was worried about how he''d be seen by his loved ones for doing something so horrible as killing another man.


    They also heard about how he''d been visiting the old Rowan almost everyday for thest two weeks to learn how his powers were intended to be used as well as their limits.


    Finally, she exined that tonight was the night he''d decided to kill Arthur.


    When Sei finished speaking, silence filled the room once more.


    Aubrey felt relieved and a little ashamed.


    Was she such a bad sister that her brother thought she would look at him like a monster?


    All of Aisha''s rage had disappeared leaving her in a reflective mood as well.


    She wasn''t mad at Mal at all for killing that scumbag, on the contrary she was rather jealous.


    She''d give anything to get her hands on the bastard who destroyed the lives of her two best friends.


    ''You bastard you were carrying all this around but you didn''t even think you could tell me about it?''


    Both girls had a lot to think about.

 Chapter 27: Words of Thanks.

    <h4>Chapter 27: Words of Thanks.</h4>


    Old man Rowan never slept much since his daughter passed away butst night he couldn''t close his eyes for even a single second.


    Mchi left from his housest night and went to enact their revenge and the old man was slightly nervous.


    Over the past two weeks, he''d actuallye to look at Mchi like something of a son.


    They spent a lot of time together while he was teaching him to use his powers and it was impossible for him not to begin to grow fond of the young man.


    His infectious personality made him easily likeable and their shared hatred of the same man gave them something to bond over.


    The two weeks were spent teaching Mal how to control his blessing of the night and utilize its power to fit the situation.


    Because the night can be anytime that Mchi wishes, his power can be very showy.


    Due to that, all of the training had to be conducted when it was already nighttime to negate any questions being aroused.


    Mal already knew that he could see anything covered by night, but traveling to anything was an entirely different manner.


    Apparently he''d done it when he''d first awakened his powers but he described that as more of a freak ident.


    "It took two entire weeks and all he managed to learn was how to teleport without fail." Rowan leaned back into his chair and stared at his farm as he thought of Mchi''s frightening potential.


    Even he didn''t know the limit of Mchi''s abilities but he was certain of one thing for sure.


    With enough time and training, Mchi could cover the entire in an endless night.


    While that was a scary thought for some, it would only be that way for those that did not know Mchi personally or share his appreciation for the night.


    "Did you wait long?"


    Rowan turned his head to see Mchi leaning against a support beam with his standard sses and a cigarette in his mouth.


    He would''ve looked pretty suave if his shirt and hands were not covered in blood.


    "I guess I don''t need to ask how it went." Rowan chuckled. "How''d you get all the way back here so fast anyway?"


    Mchi knocked the ash off his cigarette before his entire body began to float upwards. "Telekinesis works in more ways than one might think."


    Mchi pulled up a seat right next to Rowan and promptly handed him a cigarette and a lighter.


    Smoking had be a habit he''d picked up from the old man to ease his stress.


    It wasn''t like he could destroy his body after all now that he was a blessed so what was the harm?


    "You should really stop smoking old man."


    "Says the kid who just handed me a cigarette and a lighter."


    "You looked like you needed it. Haven''t been sleeping have you?"


    "I''ll sleep when I''m dead."


    "That''ll be soon if you keep smoking."


    The two chuckled at their usual back and forth banter as they entered a period of silence and simply watched the cows graze on the farm.


    " I won''t ask you for any details but.. did he suffer?" Rowan finally asked after minutes of silence.


    "Horribly." was Mchi''s only reply.


    The old man shed a single tear and offered his daughter a final goodbye.


    He felt as if her spirit had finally been avenged.


    "Thank you, Mchi."


    "No thanks necessary, old man."


    Mal didn''t feel he deserved thanks.


    He didn''t feel like his actions were heroic or praiseworthy.


    The reality is that he broke into a prison to kidnap an inmate that was already serving a life sentence so that he could murder him for revenge.


    Is that something a hero would do?


    "Ah, I almost forgot." Rowan took out Mchi''s phone from his pocket and handed it to him. "You were blowing upst night."


    When Mal looked at the list of missed calls from his sister, he initially panicked.


    But when his eyesnded on the most recent message, he calmed down slightly but his fear was now reced with confusion.


    Aubrey : Sorry for calling so much but I''m fine now,e home as soon as you can.


    Mchi quickly got up from his seat and said a quick farewell to Rowan before quickly flying home.


    "Damn kid.. didn''t even clean himself off."


    -


    Mchi only remembered certain wardrobe issues about halfway to his destination.


    At that point he decided to change tactics a bit and instead of walking through the front door he flew onto his balcony.


    He was surprised however when upon opening the sliding door, he found his home was currently having guests.


    Serana and Sei were here and Aisha and Aubrey as well.


    The woman were apparently cooking in the kitchen but upon seeing Mchi enter through the balcony door, they immediately froze.


    Mchi could feel the gazes on his bloody shirt and hands and screamed at himself internally.


    ''That''s right.. I''m a monster now.''


    He''d never wanted anyone to see him like this, least of all the women whom he was closest to.


    A great fear welled up in him that these woman would never see him the same way again.


    Suddenly, Aubrey stumbled forward before she ran into her brother and gave him a big hug.


    Mchi waspletely unprepared for this turn of events.


    Shouldn''t she be scared or running away?


    "H-hey, get off I''m-"


    "The best brother ever." Aubrey finished.


    He froze at her words and stared at her like she was some kind of odd creature.


    Sensing that she wasn''t going to let go anytime soon, he sighed before he returned her hug.


    Mchi felt footsteps approaching and looked up to see the rest of the girlsing to embrace him as well.


    Even Aisha wasing to hug him, causing him to question whether or not he was really dreaming.


    He wasn''tpletely sure why they were acting like this but he had a general idea.


    Far from being upset with Sei for spilling the beans, he was actually grateful.


    He didn''t know he''d need the support of these women as much as he did.


    In this moment, there was nothing greater that could''ve soothed his soul.

 Chapter 28: Chosen Weapon

    <h4>Chapter 28: Chosen Weapon</h4>


    Mchi was currently letting the hot water from the shower wash the dried blood off his body.


    His mind was still addled with the reactions of the girls when he returned.


    They didn''t ask any questions, nor did they cast judgements.


    Their only request was that if he should go through something again he not shy away from the people that loved him.


    ''I know I said I would listen to them but..''


    Mchi shut off the water and grabbed a towel from the rack before proceeding to dry off.


    He briefly nced in the mirror and got a look at his body''s newest edition.


    Ever since he''d killed Arthur, Mchi''s eyes had not reverted from that predatory orange.


    He didn''t know if it was a symbol of the stain on his soul or some other factor, but he now went even farther out of his way to hide his eyes than before.


    Mchi began to get dressed before grabbing his bag with spare clothes inside and heading out.


    The girls appeared to be waiting for him and were surprised when he came out with a bag over his shoulder.


    "Where are you going?"


    Mchi patted his inquisitive sister''s head and gave her a warm smile. "I have weapons training today, kiddo."


    "Mal are you sure you should.."


    "I can call Rose and tell her you.."


    Sei and Aisha each began trying to dissuade Mchi from heading into other things so soon after the events ofst night but he felt like a good distraction was what he needed best right now.


    "Sigh, alright then. If you''re determined to do this then I guess there''s no other way." Aisha pulled out her phone and began texting rapidly.


    -


    Bianca Tate was having a pretty good morning.


    Even though she was the newest member of immortal moon, she was already the most popr.


    Her bold yet cheerful personality made it easy for her to make friends with her fellow guild mates and she had quite therge social circle.


    The young girl checked her watch and saw that it was about time for her favorite part of the day.


    She smiled and skipped merrily to the fourth floor training room.


    Along the way she got knowing smirks from most of the women in the guild but she didn''t pay them any mind.


    When she arrived at her destination, the metallic door slid open to reveal Mchi browsing over a table full of weapons with a thoughtful expression.


    Rose was standing next to him and seemed to be giving him details about each of the weapons present.


    Bianca was about to call out to him and blow him a kiss when she noticed the training room was a bit more crowded than usual.


    Standing against the wall were three women, but she only recognized two of them.


    One was Aisha and the other was a young girl she remembered to be Mchi''s sister.


    ''But who''s that woman there?''


    Thest member of the group was a mature woman with long soft brown hair and eyes to match.


    She had arge bust that made even hers look inadequate and a warm motherly aura.


    Suddenly, the door opened behind Bianca and Luna walked in. "What''s wrong?"


    "Do you¡­ know who that woman is?"


    Luna followed Bianca''s gaze to the mature woman next to Aisha.


    When Aisha texted her about visitor''s passes earlier, she was too busy so she just agreed without asking who they were for.


    But seeing this incredibly beautiful woman who''s eyes never left Mchi for s single second, she could only think of one possible answer.


    "I think.. that''s his girlfriend."


    "Oh that''s his¡­ what?"


    -


    Oblivious to the storm brewing behind him, Mchi had just listened to Rose''s long summary of all the weapons avable to him.


    "So? What do you think?" Rose asked.


    She was hoping Mchi would chose a good pair of gauntlets due to his monstrous physical strength and improvement in hand to handbat.


    As he stared at all the weapons in front of him, Mchi couldn''t help but think about the events ofst night.


    He didn''t much enjoy the feeling of having blood all over him, so if possible he''d prefer to mainly fight long range.


    With that in mind he picked up a belt that contained several gleaming silver knives.


    "Throwing knives?" Rose looked slightly disappointed. "Are you sure?"


    "Yea.. I think these will work great."


    "Alright then¡­ wanna do a test run?" Rose didn''t really understand Mchi''s choice but she knew he had pretty good instincts.


    Mchi nodded and slipped on the belt.


    "Hard light simtion G-26."


    At Rose''smand, several holograms ofrge muscr kobolds materialized in the room.


    The training rooms were capable of producing ultra realistic simtions of monsters inside gates.


    They looked real, felt real and the damage they could do was real as well.


    But of course they could be weakened for beginners.


    Although Rose had neglected to activate training wheels mode due to her being too deep in thought about why a physical fighter like Mchi would chose something like throwing knives.


    "3."


    "2."


    "1!"


    "ROOOOOOAAAAA!!"


    After the simtion''s countdown, the hulking monstrositiesunched forward.


    ''I''ve never seen him use throwing knives before I hope he''ll¡­ be...okay¡­''


    The scene disyed in front of Rose gradually made her lose her train of thought.


    The kobolds had taken no more than three steps forward when the silver knivesunched from Mchi''s belt at a speed almost imperceptible to the naked eye.


    Howls of pain filled the air as the pack of kobolds were diced into chunks in only ten seconds.


    Cuts umted all over their massive bodies until entire pieces of them hit the ground and they broke apart into fragments of light.


    When all the projections disappeared, Mchi returned the des to his belt and nodded in satisfaction.


    Truthfully, there was another reason why Mal had decided on a long range weapon instead of a close quarters one.


    Mchi had chosen this as his main weapon to keep his animal instincts in check and it seemed like the idea was working smoothly.


    After all, if he wanted to fight close range there was no better weapon for him than the massive ck ws that he could grow from his fingertips.


    But afterpletely losing himself when he killed Arthur, Mal wanted to avoid having to use those as much as possible.


    Mal looks for his trainer to ask for her input and turned around to see her staring at him like he was a freak of nature.


    "Rose? You good?"


    She didn''t even know how to answer him.


    Mchi was not the first to use telekinesis to better control his weapon, but he was the first to control so many simultaneously.


    Not only that, the speed at which he''dunched those des was¡­frightening.


    She thought she knew the full extent of Mchi''s capabilities but he was once again showing her he had so much still in store.


    "Fucking unreal.."


    "Huh?"


    Rose shook her head indicating for Mchi not to pay her any mind.


    ''That settles it..'' Initially she nned to train him a little while longer but after what she''d just seen, she didn''t have any more doubts.


    "Mal I think you''re ready for your first gate."

 Chapter 29: First Gate

    <h4>Chapter 29: First Gate</h4>


    "You sure?" Mal hadn''t expected this turn of events at all.


    He''d only been training two weeks and Aisha had told him she''d trained much longer.


    "I''m positive!" Rose shook her head firmly.


    "Don''t tell me our only male member is scared?" She teased.


    "Hm? Oh yea totally. I''ve seen what hordes of female goblins do to human males and I am terrified." Mal shook his head in disgust as he remembered the unspeakable nightmares.


    Who knew a single night spent browsing too deep in the inte would be so damaging?


    Rose giggled before patting his shoulder to ease his nerves. "Don''t worry! You''ll be going in with a party and you''ll all be responsible for each other. Plus since you''re new you won''t be going to a gate above C rank so there won''t be hordes of anything."


    Truthfully Mchi was only joking about being nervous but Rose''s attempt to help his nerves really touched his heart.


    "Thanks Rose¡­ I mean it."


    The woman''s smile grew even wider. "Is our bright and cheerful Mchi finally back? I was wondering when I''d hear you crack a joke again."


    "You like my jokes?"


    "Gods no they''re worse than cancer but after a while you start to get used to them."


    Unbeknownst to Rose, Mchi took a small arrow to his pride when he heard that.


    He might have a lot of other things going on now but before he got blessed he always prided himself on being funny!


    "Look I don''t know what was wrong with you but.. you have friends here that you can talk to you know?"


    Rose''s voice spurred him from his spiral and he offered her a simple smile. "I know Teach, thanks."


    Rose told him to go and get changed since he was done for the day and she would begin making preparations for his first gate.


    Mchi went to go get changed with a lightness in his steps.


    After this he was going to go and have some fun with the girls since they refused to leave his side today.


    Even though he put up a resistance, he was actually quite touched.


    ''Where should we go after this?''


    While Mchi was heading off to change out of his sweats, Sei and Aubrey were still semi frozen in shock from the spectacle they''d just seen.


    "He¡­ how did he even?"


    "Was he always that strong?"


    Aisha could understand the two girls reactions since she was a bit awestruck herself.


    It seemed like her friend was getting more and more impressive everyday.


    Sei was the most mesmerized by Mchi''s strength.


    ''Such a person.. really wants to be with me?''


    A warm feeling began to spread throughout her chest.


    Even if she did not believe it wouldst, she was nheless incredibly grateful that Mchi had chosen her.


    "Hello."


    The girls were suddenly greeted by an approaching Luna and Bianca.


    Sei immediately felt starstruck by the beauty of the two women.


    She''d never seen such mesmerizing women in her whole life.


    Aisha made introductions and the two groups exchanged pleasantries.


    "So are you Mchi''s girlfriend?" Bianca was straight to the point and did not waste any time.


    Sei immediately felt her face get hot but she did not deny it.


    With a simple shy nod she confirmed Bianca and Luna''s suspicions.


    "Awwe on sister-inw don''t be shy!" Aubrey teased.


    "I-I''m not!" Sei''s reddening face was not making her lie any more convincing.


    Bianca looked Sei up and down before nodding, seemingly understanding something.


    "I''ll admit you''re beautiful and you have a great figure."


    "Ehhh???" Sei was unused topliments, especially ones that came by surprise.


    "But I won''t give up on Mal so easily! I''m here today to dere myself your rival!"


    "My.. what?"


    Before Bianca could even restate her deration, her mouth was covered by Luna and she received an elbow in the ribs from Aisha.


    "This one''s a bit slow, please don''t pay her any mind." Luna offered a sincere apology.


    She then said a farewell before she proceeded to drag Bianca away, the young blessed making muffled remarks the entire way out the door.


    "Don''t let her bother you Sei." Aubrey reassured.


    "Ah, well if I''m honest I have already prepared myself for things like this."


    She tried to force a smile but it was difficult.


    It felt as if she''d been punched right in the chest and had the wind knocked out of her sails.


    Was it time for Mal to walk away from her already?


    ''I¡­ thought I''d have a bit more time.''


    -


    In arge corporate building, Alex Heller was currently seated behind a desk with a thoughtful expression on his face.


    He was currently going over guild expenses while brewing silently over a certain lost resource.


    Knock, knock!


    "Come in."


    The door suddenly opened to reveal a beautiful blonde haired woman wearing formal attire.


    "What is it Selene?" Alex''s secretary knew he didn''t like to be disturbed so he was certain this had to be important.


    The woman did not respond and instead handed him a tablet with the page pulled up to thetest news article.


    There in big bold letters was a headline about Immortal Moon''s rising star.


    Apparently, it was finally time for his debut into the world and he''d been assigned his first C rank dungeon.


    There appeared to be quite the buzz online with multiple news outlets posting the same story each with millions of views.


    Apparently he was going to be apart of a simple three man team with one additional civilian going in with them to livestream his capabilities to the world.


    "Gods this''ll be great!" Alex tossed the tablet back to Selene andughed hysterically.


    Nothing could humiliate immortal moon more than setting up a public execution!


    He''d make Mchi look like another cocky brat who''d gone into a gate with no real idea of the horrors inside.


    And Luna and her guild would look like the most ipetent guild in the world when they couldn''t utilize someone as talented as Mchi!


    "Call Sierra and tell her I need a favor. She does this for me and we''ll forgive her debt."


    Selene nodded and promptly left the office to carry out what she was sure would be another tragedy.

 Chapter 30: Plot

    <h4>Chapter 30: Plot</h4>


    Currently, Sei and Mchi were sitting on the couch watching a movie.


    The day had been long and arduous to say the least, especially since Mal''s name had once again red up.


    A few days had gone by since the news that Mchi was going to be entering his first dungeon released, causing everyone around him to go into a frenzy.


    Was he scared?


    Excited?


    Which weapon would he use?


    Would he wear armor?


    People wanted to know everything about anything that was rted to his ns.


    In truth? He did not have any.


    That''s why he was currently sitting on his couch with Sei while receiving ap pillow and watching Moana.


    Was there any better way to spend an evening before a big event?


    "I wonder how the world would react if they knew the famous Mchi Saint still watches cartoons." Sei teased.


    Mal looked at her as if she''d just made an unbelievable statement.


    "Is there someone alive that doesn''t enjoy cartoons?"


    "Yes honey, lots of people."


    Mal shook his head and returned his attention back to the singing tattooed man on screen. "Then those people are not living, they are already dead inside."


    "Fufufu, maybe."


    The pair carried on like that for a while with Mchi asionally bursting into song and Sei shyly joining him.


    As it gotter andter, Mchi began to wonder why Aubrey still wasn''t home.


    She''d gone out with Aisha earlier in the day and it was now almost 11 o''clock and she wasn''t home.


    She was with one of the strongest beings alive so Mchi was sure she was fine but he still wanted to know what was going on.


    As soon as he pulled out his phone however, he received a message from his missing sister.


    Aubrey : Gonna stay at Aisha''s tonight. You and Sei have the ce to yourselves!! ;)


    "Oh my¡­"


    Sei was reading the message along with Mchi and when she saw the suggestive nature of Aubrey''s text, she couldn''t help but blush.


    Mchi sent an emoji of rolling eyes as a reply and put his phone away. "Don''t pay her any mind."


    "Mm."


    Sei nodded but her mind was swimming.


    She knew Mchi was a healthy young man who must''ve had desires of his own, yet he never rushed her into doing anything.


    ''I-If we did¡­ what would it be like?''


    It had been so long for her she barely remembered what that level of intimacy was like.


    And honestly she was a bit insecure and didn''t believe she was quite ready.


    The movie soon ended and Mchi prepared to take Sei home.


    He opened the door for her and the pair was immediately floored when they saw a duffel bag with a note on top of it.


    Sei recognized the handwriting as Serana''s and opened it up and read aloud.


    "Dear mom, don''te home tonight. I have packed all of your necessities plus a change of clothes and a little something special for Mchi. P.S I am hoping for a¡­"


    Sei did not continue reading the letter but judging by where it was going, Mchi could guess what was said next.


    ''This¡­ feels like a nned assault.'' Mchi could smell something fishy about this whole situation.


    But if he was honest, he was slightly grateful.


    "Do you¡­ want to stay the night?" Mchi asked.


    "I-I could never impose!.."


    Mchi did not even allow her to continue and instead ced a tender kiss on her lips.


    "You''re my girlfriend so my ce is yours. You could never impose."


    He pulled her back inside while using telekinesis to take the bag inside and close the door.


    Sei was so swept up in Mchi''s natural rhythm she barely even registered what was going on.


    The next thing she knew, she was in his bedroom and he was asking her if she wanted to shower first.


    "W-wait Mal! I-I don''t think I''m ready!"


    "Hm? So you want me to shower first then?"


    "N-no I mean I don''t think I''m ready to have sex!!"


    Sei did not realize that she''d yelled that a lot louder than she meant to and the blush in her face just became even bigger.


    "I understand." He looked at her and smiled warmly. "You don''t have to worry about any of that right now, I''m not some horny teenager who can''t control himself."


    If Mal was honest, he was nervous too.


    He''d never had sex before and he was a blessed now too.


    The stories of blessed injuring their partners when they couldn''t control themselves properly were too many to count.


    "You¡­ you really don''t mind?" She asked hesitantly.


    "Nah just ignore the girls, we''ll take our time." Mchi waived away her concerns.


    A warm feeling and a sense of relief flooded her heart that stayed with her long after she got into the shower.


    The smile did not leave her face until she got out and prepared to get into her night clothes only to see what her daughter had packed for her.


    An extremely thin ckce teddy with matching stockings and leggings.


    ''W-where did she even get this?!''


    She cannot wear something like this!


    It wouldn''t even look good on her!


    ''Or would it?..''


    She quickly shook her head furiously to free herself from her delusions.


    Timidly, Sei wrapped herself in a towel before peeking her head out the bathroom door.


    Mchi wasying on the bed scrolling through his phone absentmindedly when she called for him.


    "Honey¡­ do you..have a shirt I can borrow?"


    The visual of his girlfriend acting so cute with water dripping down her body was almost too much to bear and ended up giving him a small nosebleed.


    "U-uh yea, just give me a second."


    He was so distracted by her alluring figure hidden beneath the towel that he didn''t even think to question why she''d need a shirt of his in the first ce.


    -


    The two had finally climbed into bed and it was awkward to say the least.


    Mchi was staring up at the ceiling with his arms and legs tucked in neatly.


    He didn''t want to risk making Sei ufortable so his solution was toy like a dead person.


    Sei didn''t fare any better and her heart was beating so loud she was sure Mchi could hear it.


    ''I-it''s fine right? We''re just sleeping!''


    She gathered up all of her courage and reached out and took Mchi''s hand.


    With that, the pair rxed and became a little morefortable with each other.


    They spent an hourying in bed joking and giggling about how silly they were being.


    After a while Sei noticed Mal had yet to take his sses off and asked him about it to which he promptly responded that he was waiting for her to fall asleep.


    Sei was confused since it wasn''t like she hadn''t seen his eyes before.


    She didn''t want him to think she''d ever be scared of him so in a rare moment of boldness, she rolled over on top of him and reached to take his sunsses off.


    Mal would''ve tried to stop her had he not been focusing all his attention on making sure his body did not have a certain reaction.


    When Sei removed his sses and saw the intense predatory orange, she was stunned momentarily but she was not frightened.


    She snuggled up under him and did not pay his surprised expression any mind.


    "Now we can fall asleep together."


    "Yea¡­ goodnight Sei."


    The woman did not respond and instead fell asleep with a smile on her face.


    - The next morning


    The site of today''s gate expedition was an abandoned mall on the outskirts of the city.


    While the time to enter was scheduled for 11, a crowd had already formed around the area at 8 and police had to enforce crowd control.


    With the time for the raid approaching, the crowd began to murmur about just when the blessed taking part where going to arrive.


    The mining crew and the camera man for today had already showed up a few minutes ago.


    Now everyone was anticipating the arrival of the man they''d alle to see.


    Suddenly, avish ck truck pulled up and the man who stepped out was someone who no one expected to see.

 Chapter 31: Arrival

    <h4>Chapter 31: Arrival</h4>


    Stepping down from his expensive ck truck was the red haired guild master of ragnarok in his signature burgundy suit.


    Immediately everyone became confused about why he was here and thought they might''ve had the wrong gate.


    Interviews quickly approached the famous guild master and the answer to why he was here was quite shocking for most.


    "I consider myself to be a fan of Mchi as well so like all of you I am here to see his first raid in person!"


    "Woahhh!!"


    "This is so awesome!"


    "I can''t believe my two favorite blessed are going to be in the same ce!"


    The public was shocked and rightfully so.


    As a well known hothead, the number of people who had a good rtionship with Morgan was enough to count on one hand.


    And those he considered himself to be fans of were even less.


    But he had just admitted so casually in front of all of these people that he was in fact a fan of Mchi!


    This was front page worthy news already!


    Suddenly a sleek ck limousine pulled up and the day''s stars arrived.


    The first to get out was guild master Luna and the public mored to get a photo of the extremely captivating woman in a white kimono.


    Next was a blessed by the name of Nina Hess.


    She was a lithe looking young woman with short brown hair and cheerful golden eyes.


    Herck of curves did not take away from the massive following she''d gained online and the numerous suitors whom she''d rejected.


    She was a B rank blessed who was chosen by Medusa.


    Next to get out of the limousine was a pale woman with waist length blonde hair.


    Her ample but small figure was hidden beneath a leather bodysuit and she had a katana strapped to her back.


    Her name was Opal, a C ranked blessed chosen by Bishamonten.


    "There he is! It''s really him!"


    "Kyaaa I love you!!"


    "Can I have your autograph?!"


    When Mal stepped out from the limousine, all attention was diverted to him and rightfully so.


    He was wearing a ssic tuxedo with the jacket draped over his shoulders and his signature ck sses.


    Everyone immediately became enamored with his choice of outfit as well as the statement it made.


    Wearing nice attire into gates was a trend started by Morgan Creed himself.


    It was a way for blessed to say ''I am so powerful I can clear this dungeon in record time and still look damn good!!''


    With Morgan already being his favorite blessed, naturally he had to imitate his idol a bit, atleast for the first dungeon.


    Truthfully, Mchi hated wearing suits or any kind of formal clothes.


    But when he received a suit from the one blessed by Surtur himself did you think he would refuse??


    He was so excited to put it on he would''ve slept in it had he not been distracted by Sei spending the night!


    As the group moved through the crowd Mchi gave the fans cheerful smiles and waived as much as he could.


    At that point, a scent he was extremely familiar with wafted into his nose and his face twisted in surprise but he tried not to show it.


    "How do you like my gift?"


    Morgan had approached Mchi and offered him a firm handshake.


    The sudden appearance of his idol refocused him, allowing him to almost forget about that scent from earlier.


    "It''s amazing. Thank you so much." Mchi offered the man his sincerest thanks.


    Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine himself receiving a custom suit from his hero.


    Morgan offered him a few more words of encouragement before letting Mchi go and offering to go out for a drink to celebrateter.


    He epted and he prepared to enter the gate with his party.


    Since this was his first gate, no one was allowed to know exactly whaty inside.


    Other than the initial estimate of C rank, the type of monsters inside as well as the environment were to remain a secret.


    It is a bit of a ritual for the first blessed to go in blind to test their ability to be prepared for anything.


    Opal, Nina and Mchi met the camera man who''d be entering with them.


    Bill seemed like a nice enough guy who promised not to get in the way but Opal and Nina gave each other knowing looks as if they''d heard those words too many times to count.


    With that, Luna offered the group her sincerest words of encouragement.


    "It''s time. Don''t embarrass us."


    "I don''t know why I was expecting something better after all this time." Opal rolled her eyes.


    "Your speeches still need work. Have you ever seen transformers?" Nina offered.


    Luna did not understand.


    What was wrong with her speeches?


    No one likes to be embarrassed so shouldn''t that be incredibly motivating?


    "I thought it was fine, bossdy." Mchi smiled.


    Luna felt her cheeks turn slightly pink when Mchi smiled at her.


    "Kiss ass."


    "Suck up."


    Mchi simply shrugged off the insults from his party members and walked toward the gate.


    "Shall we go?"


    -


    When Mchi entered the gate three things immediately caught his attention.


    The first was the bitter cold.


    Second, the invigorating feeling of being in night air.


    Third, was the concerning feeling of being watched.


    He looked towards the source only to see nothing but glimmering stars in the sky.


    There was nothing yet¡­ his senses were clearly screaming there was someone there.


    ''Am I just nervous because it''s my first gate?''


    Mal shook of his worries as the rest of his group arrived and took in the scenery.


    Opal gave him a knowing smirk. "Oh I bet you''re just LOVING this."


    Mchi gave her a smile as bright as the stars in the sky.


    "I think this is a fitting first gate for me don''t you?"

 Chapter 32: Ambush

    <h4>Chapter 32: Ambush</h4>


    "Jeez how does one bastard get so lucky?" Nina found this entire situation absurd.


    This guys first gate was in an environment he was strongest in!


    If they''d wound up in a jungle she was going to start breaking things!


    Her first gate was on a beach filled with ravenous sirens and her power only worked on males!


    "It is a bit unfair." Opal agreed.


    "Even if it were the middle of the day, the night is wherever I am. That means home advantage is always mine if I so choose." Mchi gloated.


    While a true statement, the truth was his control over his powers wasn''t that strong yet.


    Even if he did turn the day into night, it would take up all of his focus and leave him useless.


    But of course, the people watching on stream didn''t know that and everyone thought he was the coolest blessed imaginable.


    ''This is ridiculous¡­ we just entered and we''re already at 500,000 views!'' Bill was over the moon.


    "Alright, let''s get moving." Nina didn''t want to stay in this dark and cold ce any longer than she had to.


    The group began their trek though the desert yet Mchi was still on edge.


    That feeling of being watched hadn''t left him since he''d entered and no matter how hard he tried there was no shaking it off.


    He was about to ask the girls if they felt anything strange when suddenly the earth rumbled and the blessed immediately went on their guard.


    All around them, sand was parting and giant scorpions were rising up from the ground.


    ''They look.. off?'' Mchi thought.


    While they looked normal per say, there was a hollowness to their eyes that left him bewildered.


    "Mal do you wanna take the lead?" Opal asked.


    "It''s his first dungeon of course he''s taking the lead!" Nina gave Mal a hearty pat on the back.


    "Careful. If he breaks in here thendy Luna will me us."


    "¡­.Hey Mal why don''t you let your senior take the lead, yea?"


    Mchi chuckled at their concerns.


    "You girls don''t need to worry, I don''t break that easily."


    Suddenly Mal''s jacket flew open and the dozen glimmering silver knives he had tucked away sprang out.


    The group watched in awe as Mal controlled the knives expertly, their trajectory was precise, weaving around the bodies of the scorpions tightly before lopping off their head in a swift motion.


    With the rapid movement of the des in the dark, the group felt like they were surrounded by miniature shooting stars.


    "Unreal.."


    "I''ve never seen carnage so¡­ pretty?"


    The girls weren''t alone, the number of views online had skyrocketed and all of thements were saying the same thing.


    Viewers were allpletely stunned by the fearsome yet captivating disy on their screens.


    Once every scorpion had been beheaded, Mchi returned his des to his jacket and breathed a sigh of relief.


    Honestly he was more nervous than he''d been letting on so he was grateful that his first fight had gone off without a hitch.


    Mchi turned around to face his group only to find them all giving him strange looks.


    "Should we¡­ Why are you all looking at me like that?"


    "That.. was awesome.." Bill muttered.


    "I''m pretty jealous of your control." Nina stated.


    "Do you want another girlfriend by chance?" Opal asked boldly.


    Nina promptly elbowed her friend in the ribs. "You can''t have him! You know Bianca already called dibs."


    "Tsk. Lucky bitch.."


    Mchi was about to tell the girls he was more than satisfied with his current girlfriend when he sensed movement behind him.


    He narrowly managed to dodge a well ced stab from the tail of a headless scorpion.


    Activating telekinesis on himself to dodge and gain an aerial view, he frowned deeply when he realized these creatures weren''t dead at all.


    "What the hell?"


    He wasn''t that familiar with arachnid type monsters but he was fairly certain they shouldn''t still be able to move after being decapitated.


    It seemed like all of the other scorpions were recovering as well and they all rushed at Mchi.


    He took one look at their thick exoskeleton and realized his knives would never be able to prate any other area of their body.


    He clicked his teeth before his hands began to crackle with ck lightning.


    With a wave, he dropped severalrge lightning bolts on the backs of the headless creatures.


    A hole was blown right into the center of their backs through their underbelly.


    The creatures shuddered and fell over seemingly finally dead.


    Mchi lowered himself to the ground and went to investigate their bodies.


    Some were still crackling with electricity from his st but he ignored that and focused on looking for drops.


    While he was investigating, the group warily approached him while eyeing the dead scorpions curiously.


    "Never seen insect type monsters survive after losing their head like that." Opal muttered as she poked at the corpses with her sword.


    "Weren''t they pretty aggressive too? They didn''t even look at us." Nina added.


    Mal finally stood up and his expression contained unmeasurable disappointment.


    "Nothing¡­ none of these things dropped a single item."


    The girls both looked around and realized he was right.


    While not every monster dropped loot, in a herd of 20 like this one it was extremely umon for nothing at all to drop.


    "It looks like our pretty boys luck is over." Opal joked.


    The blonde haired woman had no idea how right she was when in the next second an earthquake iparable to the one that came before shook the desert.


    Hundreds of giant scorpions crawled up from the desert sands and trained their beady hollow eyes on Mchi.


    "What the hell is this¡­" Bill was now trembling horribly.


    This was supposed to be a simple C ranked gate!


    So why the hell did an entire horde of monsters just show up?!


    Viewers were just as confused.


    Hordes this big usually only showed up in S rank gates or above.


    A reassessment of the gate outside proved that it was in fact C rank, so what was with this absurd amount of enemies??


    Opal and Nina immediately became rmed and drew their weapons.


    Mchi''s nerves were going mad.


    There were so many enemies and their only focus seemed to be on taking his head off.


    To make matters worse, there was this strange energy he could feel that was making his senses go haywire.


    "Mal look out!"


    Thanks to Opal''s sudden warning, Mchi was able to pull himself out of his own mind long enough to see the fourrge stingers aimed directly at his back.


    He avoided them with ease, but did not anticipate the venom that was dripping from them would be corrosive.


    A single dropnded on his shoulder and burned a hole in his suit before traveling directly to his skin.


    "Damn it!" He ground his teeth in pain before he took a giant leap back towards the group.


    "Are you okay?" Nina had a worried look on her face.


    "I''m fine, I''m fine!" Truthfully, Mal was really annoyed.


    So much so that his animal instincts had begun to emerge causing his teeth to sharpen.


    "I need you guys to stay behind me alright?!" Mchi suddenly thought of a crazy idea but he wasn''t sure if he had the control or the necessary power.


    "Mal we can''t let you-"


    "Lady Luna would kill us if-"


    "JUST DO IT!"


    Mal roared and the girls could now see his lengthened canines and his orange eyes that were now glowing too brightly to be hidden by sunsses.


    The girls meekly nodded and formed a tight circle behind Mal, waiting for his next action.


    "Here goes nothing¡­" Mchi breathed in deep and summoned as much of his power as he could use at the moment.

 Chapter 33: Lost Control

    <h4>Chapter 33: Lost Control</h4>


    As soon as Luna saw that three of her guild members were surrounded, she wasted no time and jumped right into the portal.


    Upon being immersed in the cool desert air, she sprinted as fast as she was able toward her group.


    She didn''t have any idea how such arge number of beasts could''ve shown up out of nowhere, all she knew was that she had to get her people out alive.


    After a few moments of running at her full speed, she finally caught side of the herd of giant scorpions.


    She prepared tounch an attack to cause a distraction, only to learn that her help was far from needed.


    With a loud boom, the night suddenly became as bright as day when walls of golden mes sprang up.


    The mes flickered violently before they took on a life of their own and came down upon the numerous scorpions like crashing waves.


    As soon as the mes made the slightest bit of contact with the scorpions, their entire bodies were enveloped in me.


    "SCREEEEEE!!"


    The pained wails of the giant insectssted no more than a few seconds before the rabid mes burned them to ash.


    The mes did not halt their advance until every one of the beasts were nothing more thanrge piles of ash.


    "He..how did he even?¡­"


    Luna stared bewildered at the scene before her.


    The army she was sure would require her full power to escape from, was decimated entirely.


    She shook herself free of her stupor and trudged forward to see the condition of her guild members only to see Nina and Opal checking on a kneeling Mal who was breathing heavily.


    "Just breathe Mal it''s okay."


    "How.. did you do that?"


    Mchi spoke through shallow breaths and revealed he was just as surprised as they were.


    "I¡­ was only trying to make a wall¡­ I was hoping to buy us some time but¡­ the mes went out of control."


    "What?!" Luna was so shocked she''d finally made her presence known.


    "Ah¡­ bossdy you showed up. Were you worried?" Mal tried to sh his signature cheeky smile but because he was currently exhausted, it didn''t look nearly as charming.


    Luna promptly ignored him and asked the burning question on her mind. "You.. annihted all those monsters.. identally?"


    "Something like that¡­" Mal weakly nodded.


    In truth, saying he lost control would be putting it lightly.


    As soon as the mes became big enough, he felt like he was a toddler trying to walk a grizzly bear.


    He didn''t even know what the mes were doing until they''d finished their ''meal'' and disappeared.


    While Luna was still reeling from Mal''s revtion, Opal made an observation that made her headache even worse.


    "Lady Luna.. there aren''t any drops."


    Luna looked around and saw that while there were indeed numerous piles of ash, there wasn''t a single piece of armor or equipment.


    "This¡­this is insane." She felt like her head was going to explode from shock.


    After much deliberation, she sighed deeply before telling the group their next course of action.


    "That''s it, you guys are pulling out of this dungeon."


    ""What?!""


    Mal and Bill, who were the two to voice their displeasure, looked at each other in confusion.


    "Dude, why are you saying no?"


    "We''re at 4 million views and climbing! This is beyond viral!!"


    Mchi briefly became camera shy when he realized so many people were watching him.


    However, he shrugged off his shyness and stared directly at Luna. "I don''t want to give up on my first dungeon."


    "Mal! This is not about giving up! Look around you this ispletely unprecedented!" Luna argued.


    "Besides, look at yourself! You barely have the energy to stand!"


    "I just need a quick rest and I''ll be good as new."


    "Quick rest my ass!"


    Luna could see that she wasn''t going to get through to him like this so she took a deep breath to calm herself before speaking to him in a gentle tone.


    "Sei is waiting for you outside you know? How do you think she''d feel if you died in here due to your stubbornness?"


    The mention of the woman he cared so much about, did make him pause, albeit only briefly.


    "She''d be devastated." Mal muttered.


    He didn''t know the details but he knew Sei had a hard life.


    He didn''t want to add any more stress on her already fragile heart.


    "Exactly, so you should-"


    "But.." Mal slowly rose from the ground while struggling to catch his breath.


    "I don''t want her to think the man she''s chosen to be with is some quitter either."


    Suddenly a cheeky smirk crossed of his face before he added, "Besides, what man doesn''t want to look cool for the woman he loves?"


    Mal walked forward and stopped only when he was a few inches away from Luna. "I can do this bossdy."


    Even though Mal''s eyes were currently hidden behind his sses, Luna could still feel them boring into her intensely.


    She became slightly flustered with him being so close and took a step back while looking for assistance from Opal and Nina.


    "Girls? Would you say something to him?"


    They looked at eachother and a look of understanding passed between them.


    "I don''t know why ma''am but¡­ I believe him."


    "As do I."


    Luna stared at the two girls as if they''d just grown second heads.


    She decided they''d been brain washed by Mchi''s charm and elected to use a different set of tactics to get them toe home.


    "Girls¡­ there aren''t any drops here. That means you won''t be able to get any new equipment or weapons."


    The way it worked was a party that entered a gate would sort out the weapons or armor that dropped when a monster was killed amongst themselves.


    It was usually a blessed''s favorite part of entering a gate.


    The items that could be obtained possessed various strange powers and abilities and could augment the strength of their weilder even further than normal.


    They could also be bought online or through special auction houses but none of the truly worthwhile items ever made it outside of the hands of who originally found them.


    "Well.. we haven''t done much so far so none of that stuff would be ours anyway."


    Nina nodded in agreement and Luna rubbed her temples.


    ''These damned kids!''


    Sometimes, the job of a guild master is a lot like babysitting.


    "Damn it fine!" Luna finally growled and gave up.


    She grabbed Mchi by his cor and pulled him in close.


    "Every single one of you bettere back alive or I will pull you from Anubis'' realm myself."


    Mchi nodded furiously.


    Luna was currently very intense but he found himself realizing something he hadn''t ever quite paid attention to.


    ''Was she always this.. gorgeous?''


    Mchi knew that Luna was divinely beautiful but she suddenly had a certain charm that made her looks truly captivating.


    Luna released Mchi with a light shove and started walking away. "Hurry and kill the boss."


    """"Yes ma''am!!"""


    The group watched Luna''s back disappear and Mchi finally dropped his tough act and sat cross legged on the ground.


    "Hahhh¡­ can we rest here for five- no ten minutes?"


    "Pfft.. sure Mal." Opal chuckled beforeing to sit down right next to him.


    Nina followed her lead and Bill warily sat down opposite Mal. "Since we have a free moment.. think I could get an exclusive interview?"


    But Mal could no longer hear him and soon his light snoring was heard.


    Exactly ten minutester, he opened his eyes with renewed energy.

 Chapter 34: Desert Beast

    <h4>Chapter 34: Desert Beast</h4>


    When Luna exited the portal, the first thing she saw was a red eyed Sei.


    "I''m sorry, I couldn''t.."


    "It''s fine." Sei smiled.


    "It''s true that I''m worried but I want to believe in the man that I love."


    Only then did Luna notice that Sei''s hands were trembling and her palms were sweating.


    She gingerly took her hand and offered her a kind smile.


    "We''ll wait for him together, yea?"


    An idea briefly bubbled up in Sei''s mind before she smiled and agreed.


    ''Surely she doesn''t but if she did¡­ I think that if it was her.. I would not mind.''


    -


    "This is bullshit!"


    Nina was staring at an almost fully recovered Mchi.


    Even though there was still some faint fatigue, he was iparable to the walking corpse he was before.


    Nina''s shock was an appropriate response.


    Normally a blessed overusing their powers would put them on their ass for the rest of the day.


    Yet after Mal''s brief 10 minute nap, he was brimming with energy.


    He wasn''t certain, but he got the feeling he was drawing strength from the night itself and using that energy to recover his stamina.


    "I-I give up! I cannot allow you to shock me anymore I feel like my brain is going to explode!"


    "Isn''t he just incredible?" Opal was staring at Mal hungrily and he was beginning to feel like she could see through his clothes.


    "I can''t believe i only filmed him sleeping for 10 minutes and we''re up to 15 million viewers!" Bill was certain he''d be getting a raise after this.


    Mchi rolled his eyes at all the attention he was getting.


    "Come on guys let''s just get going."


    ''Who made this rookie the leader?'' Nina thought but she followed behind him all the same.


    ''I love amanding man~'' Opal was imagining some very dangerous scenarios as she trailed behind Mchi.


    -


    As the group trekked throughout the desert, they didn''t run into any more scorpions.


    There were some rare materials to be collected by the extraction teamter but there were no more monsters and most importantly, no drops.


    "Do you think you killed them all back there?" Nina asked after realizing they''d been walking around unimpeded for about twenty minutes now.


    Mchi tried to use his sight enhanced by the night, but because the scorpions were below ground to begin with, he had no way to know if they were there.


    What he could see though, was the boss and they just so happened to being upon her right now.


    Lounging sleepily in arge sand basin was a captivating monster.


    From the waist up she was a beautiful woman with richly tanned skin, sleek ck hair and four red eyes.


    Her lower half was that of a massive ck scorpionplete with golden markings.


    She was easily around 13 feet tall.


    Mal felt his face get hot as he stared at the beautiful monsterdy.


    When Mal noticed that her massive breasts were swaying freely in the wind, he felt like a pervert when his gaze lingered for longer than it should have.


    "Alright Mal, do you have a n?"


    "Huh? O-oh right, n¡­"


    Suddenly, Mchi was drawing a nk.


    Even though he was a very smart and reliable person, for the first time in his life he was at a loss for what to do.


    This was his first dungeon after all.


    After much deliberation, he finally settled on a n that was absolutely foolproof.


    "Hit with powers, make fall down?"


    His joke of a n only earned a smack from Nina and a chuckle from Opal.


    Viewers online alsoughed at Mal''s attempt to joke even in a dangerous situation,pletely unaware that he was actually very serious.


    "Alright guys, here''s what we''ll do.." Nina began.


    While the group was going over their n, a seemingly invisible force blew a faint red powder into the face of the sleeping monster.


    She inhaled the substance in her sleep, and it wasn''t long before her four eyes shed open, strained with power.


    "AAAAARRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!"


    The group''s nning was interrupted by the scorpion woman''s roar that shook the desert sands.


    "What the hell?! Her aura''s exploded!"


    At first nce it was easy to see that what was formerly a C rank boss had somehow jumped to B rank.


    "Nina! The sand!" Mchi yelled.


    "Got it!" Nina quickly threw her hands down and the sand underneath them began to rapidly harden and change into concrete.


    Since a bit of the boss''s legs were submerged under the sand, the resulting attack left her stuck.


    "That won''t hold!" Nina was already sweating and felt like she was going to go mad under the strain of trying to keep the monster subdued. "Use those mes, now!"


    Mchi hurriedly obliged and witching the next second his hands produced bright golden mes.


    He shot them directly at the trapped boss monster, only to be briefly surprised when he did not feel them going wild as he did before.


    The surprises didn''t stop there, when the boss saw the volley of mesing towards her, she held up her giant pincers and blocked the blow.


    "RRRRAAAAAAAA!!!"


    The boss seemed to feel some pain, but it was nothingpared to the absolute incineration inflicted upon her children earlier.


    When the volley of mes ceased, the group could see the boss''s partially melted ws, but were shocked when she simply used her upper human hands to rip off her pincers.


    The blessed watched in abject horror as she promptly grew new pincers in the blink of an eye.


    BANG!!


    The beast finally broke free of the stone encasing her legs and wasted no time leaping out of the sand dune on top of the group.


    Mchi, unwilling to miss the opportunity to strike his airborne opponent, let loose a volley of ck lightning from his hands.


    The results proved to be even less effective than the mes as the monster simply smirked, indicating she felt no pain at all.


    BOOOM!


    The beast crashed to the ground and immediately began iling out her extra appendages, intending to strike or impale all of the intruders before her.


    Opal was knocked aside and coughed up a mouthful of fresh blood, Nina was almost pierced but narrowly avoided the strike from a jagged leg.


    Mchi''s reaction was the fastest, as he had time to avoid the blow and still get Bill back to a safe distance.


    Opal drew her katana and Nina drew her weapons as well, a pair ofrge sleek magic pistols modeled after a character from an anime that Aisha had shown her.


    Nina shot off a few rounds but most were blocked by the enemies hard exoskeleton and the few that weren''t unfortunately did not prate deep enough to cause any real damage.


    Opal coated her sword in vibrant blue energy before she rushed forward and began to attack the beast.


    She barely managed to avoid iing pincers, legs and the pointed tail that wasunched at her and counter attack with her own blows.


    Like Nina''s, they were shallow and hardly effective.


    Seeing his teammates working so hard, Mchi endeavored to follow in their footsteps.


    He summoned all of his knives and left them rotating around him before he quickly coated each with ck lightning.


    Launching the des at an imperceptible speed, his efforts proved not to be in vain.


    The des weaved around the beasts body expertly and like all of the attacks before them, they were not sharp enough to leave any deep cuts.


    One de however, was propelled directly into one of the beasts four red eyes.


    A sickening squelch was heard, before the electricity on the de shocked her from the inside out.


    "SCREEEEEEEEEE!!!"


    The beast howled in pain as the most substantial wound so far had just been dealt.


    "That''s great Mal, keep going!"


    "I''ll reward youter if you get us out of here alive!"


    He ignored the praises of the two girls and only stared at the beast in front of him.


    When the boss realized which human inflicted that grievous injury upon it, it snarled before rushing forward with a speed that wasparable to some A rank bosses.


    ''Fast!'' Mal barely had time to react as he narrowly dodged a blow from a massive pincer.


    Unfortunately, Mal forgot about her tail and that proved to be the perfect opportunity for her to smack him with it, sending him flying across the sand.


    "Mal!"


    "Mchi!"


    Both girls rushed forward, only to receive simr heavy blows that produced loud cracking noises.


    The boss ignored the two groaning women and focused it''s eyes on the human male in front of it.


    It had to pay for inflicting a harmful injury on her divine body.


    She would eat him to help heal the damage he had caused!


    Mal groaned as he looked up and saw the beast slowly approaching.


    He recognized the look in her eyes and a bestial anger bubbled up in his heart.


    ''She''s looking at me like I''m prey?! Me?!''


    Such a thing could not be allowed to stand!


    He was the apex predator here and there was no one above him!


    Unbeknownst to Mal, his body was undergoing a transformation to suit his current needs.


    His skin turnedpletely ck before it became tough like old leather and dark ws burst from his fingertips.


    His muscles exploded, and his body grew at such a rapid rate that he tore through his clothes with ease.


    He needed more than to be a beast at the moment.


    He needed the best aspects of both.


    Only thebination of both of his natures, would allow him the satisfaction of feeling his enemy''s bones crunch between his teeth.


    The boss seemed to recognize that her prey was going through some sort of metamorphosis and it made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.


    Mchi rose up from the ground and an apex predator was revealed.


    The only thing left of his clothes was his dark suit pants which had long since started tearing at the bottoms.


    His feet had torn through his nice leather shoes and changed into massive dark paws.


    He was already tall at 6''5 but currently he was a staggering 7''3.


    His handsome face had shifted and contorted until all that remained was the head of a giant panther, it''s gaze unflinching and upromising.


    "ROOOOAAAAAAARRRR!!!"

 Chapter 35: First Gate Cleared!

    <h4>Chapter 35: First Gate Cleared!</h4>


    The boss took several steps backwards as it stared at a transformed Mchi.


    While she was still physicallyrger than him, his body radiated an aura that made her feel small and helpless.


    His body that was covered in sleek ck fur did nothing to hide his explosive muscles that were packed with power.


    Seeing his prey attempting to flee triggered Mal''s instincts as a predator and before the boss knew it, Mal was on the hunt.


    In a frightening burst of speed, he appeared directly in front of the boss and ced hisrge wed hands on her pincers.


    With another bloodcurdling roar, he ripped the beasts appendages from her body.


    "SCREEEEEE!!!"


    The beast forgot about fleeing as it became enraged that it had once again been injured and decided to fight back.


    Sheunched a flurry of deadly thrusts from her poison tipped tail, only for Mal to effortlessly sidestep them as if she were moving in slow motion.


    When he grew tired of ying around, he spun the two ws around in his hands before stabbing them into the stomach of the woman they came from.


    Hot blood flowed as she screamed in pain, the metallic scent of it was enough to drive his instincts even wilder.


    An unfathomable hunger welled up inside of him. Unable to control it, before he knew what he was doing, he''d leapt on top of the still reeling creature and taken arge bite into her neck.


    ''Delicious¡­DELICIOUS!''


    Not only was the meat perfectly fatty and delectable, there was an energy in her body that was being transferred to Mchi and strengthening his body.


    The boss stumbled and fell backwards as it''s vision began to darken.


    It struggled with thest of its meager strength to push the beast on top of it away, but it''s efforts proved to be fruitless as Mal continued his ravenous feast and ate the beautiful monster.


    Finally, a sh of golden light appeared and three items appeared in its ce.


    A ring, a pair of boots and a ck sword.


    "Holy shit¡­ he did it!" Bill had gotten the entire battle on film and the stream of over 30 million viewers was abuzz.


    Hearing the voice of another human was enough to send a shock to the brain of Mchi and he immediately froze.


    He slowly stood up from the corpse and walked over to check on Nina and Opal.


    The two girls had a broken arm and cracked ribs, respectively but as blessed those injuries weren''t anything to worry about.


    They were already sitting up and groaning as they stared at a still transformed Mchi.


    "Congrats on your first dungeon clear kiddo."


    "I''d kiss you for saving us but you don''t look very friendly at the moment."


    Mchi merely rolled his orange eyes and helped the girls get to their feet.


    He wasn''t allowed to change back just yet because Opal was rather intrigued by his transformation and wanted to take a few pictures.


    Meanwhile Nina collected the drops and brought them all to Mchi.


    "Here, these are rightfully yours."


    "Hm? We all fought the boss together didn''t we? So why would I alone get the drops when there''s enough to share?" Mchi asked.


    "Are you kidding?" Nina stared at him in shock. "You''re the only one who did anything substantial!"


    While that may have been true, Mchi was not a greedy person.


    He approached Nina and took two items from her hand, the ring and the sword leaving her with only the boots.


    "H-hey you forgot-"


    Mchi just ignored her and walked towards Opal and handed her therge ck sword.


    She stared at him in confusion before he held up his ring with a sense of satisfaction.


    "Since they''re my items, naturally I can do what I want with them right? And I want you girls to keep them as mementos."


    He was certain that the sword would''ve gone to waste with him since he had no interest in learning how to wield one and the boots weren''t quite his style either.


    Leaving the girls no room to refuse, he began to walk towards the exit.


    "Let''s hurry guys, we only have three hours before this thing closes."


    -


    When Mchi exited the portal, the cheers of apuse were deafening.


    "THAT WAS SO AWESOME!!"


    "You''re my hero!!"


    "Those mes were so cool!!"


    Thepliments from the crowd filled his eardrums and Mchi truly could not understand it.


    He didn''t think he''d ever look less heroic than he did right now.


    His transformation had ripped through his clothes leaving him bare chested and with tattered pants.


    ''Is this how Bruce Banner feels?''


    Suddenly a group of people approached him and he smiled when he recognized each one.


    Luna , Sei, Aisha, Aubrey, and Morgan were all walking forward to congratte him on the conquering of his first gate.


    He was surprised when Sei rushed forward to hug him in front of everyone with tears streaming down her face.


    "Did I make you worry?" He chuckled.


    Sei''s only response was to pinch him as hard as she could.


    Even though he was being assaulted, he couldn''t help but find her antics incredibly cute.


    He tilted her head up and nted a firm kiss on her lips and the crowd went wild.


    Ever since that picture had been circting online a few weeks ago, the whole world had been moring to find out who the woman was and now it looked like they had their answer.


    The sounds of camera shes filled the air as everyone wanted to get a picture of the loving couple.


    In the back of the crowd, Mal''s ex girlfriend, Mnie was watching with a hurt expression.


    Even if she somewhat expected this, it still broke her to see.


    She knew what she''d done was unforgivable, but she walked away silently wishing that Mal knew the full story.


    After the pair broke their kiss, Mchi held a blushing Sei in his arms as he epted congrattions mixed with snidements from Aisha and Aubrey.


    "You did pretty good for a newbie." Aisha smirked.


    In truth, he was exemry but she didn''t want him getting too full of himself like so many rookies do.


    "Hey bro you almost died a lot, you should write a will and leave me all the money just in case." Aubrey joked.


    Mchi rolled his eyes and silently wondered if he should mention to Aubrey that even if he died, there was no way in hell Aisha would let her want for anything.


    "My friend¡­ that was truly impressive!" Morgan was stunned.


    From beginning to end Mchi had never given up even when faced with seemingly insurmountable odds.


    Even when Morgan was younger and more hot blooded than he is today, he never would''ve been that courageous.


    "Ah.. well I''m a bit disappointed I ruined the gift you gave me." Mchi honestly replied. "I wanted to be like you a bit."


    Morgan looked at the young man who fought fiercely before shaking his head and patting his shoulder.


    "You don''t have to be like me Mal, you''re going to be so much better."

 Chapter 36: Dinner Plans & Failure

    <h4>Chapter 36: Dinner ns & Failure</h4>


    Mchi felt the urge to smile stupidly when he heard such genuine praise from his idol.


    Really was there anything that could make this moment better?


    "If you and thedy are interested, would you like to have dinner with my wives and I to celebrate?" Morgan offered.


    ''It just got better!''


    Before Mchi got too excited he looked down at a still blushing Sei in his arms.


    "Would you like to go?"


    Sei could naturally tell that Mal was trying to rein in his excitement but his eyes not hidden by his sses were extremely telling.


    ''He can be so cute sometimes.'' Sei smiled inwardly.


    "I would be honored." She bowed politely to Morgan.


    "Come now, it''s just dinner." Morgan waived away her polite gesture. "And of course you all are invited as well." He said gesturing to Aisha, Aubrey and even Luna.


    Aisha and Aubrey looked at each other briefly before Aisha spoke, "We¡­ actually have ns already."


    Mchi raised a brow at this, but he did notment.


    Luna thought a bit and she really had nothing better to do than stay at home and y with her magical beast.


    "I will ept your invitation." Luna nodded.


    "Wonderful!" Morgan seemed to be truly excited. "Then I''ll send a car to pick you all up from Mchi''s house at eight."


    With that, he waved goodbye to the group and prepared to head home.


    "What sort of ns do you two have?" Mchi hurriedly activated protective big brother mode as soon as Morgan departed and directed it at Aisha.


    "I-Its just dinner!" Aisha hated the knowing look she was currently getting from Mchi.


    "Oh? Well you could''ve just had dinner with us don''t you think?" Mchi prodded.


    "Aisha got us reservations at a really nice restaurant!" Aubrey smiled.


    Mchi wanted to be more upset but¡­ it truly has been a long time since he''d seen her be so carefree.


    Aisha was getting his sister to smile more and more everyday it seemed like.


    "Fine but you can only go on one condition." Mchi said sternly.


    "Which is?" Aubrey asked curiously.


    Mchi pointed at Aisha and said, "You better eat until her wallet is empty."


    "Pfft¡­ sure!"


    After that, the group separated a bit.


    Mchi was bombarded with questions from interviewers about his first gate but also with questions about Sei.


    The two quickly became ufortable with all of the attention so Mchi hurriedly lifted her up and flew away with her in his arms.


    Just because he didn''t want to hide, didn''t mean he was some attention whore.


    He just wanted to live his life as himself.


    Luna gave hugs to both Opal and Nina and told them she was d they were safe before she went and spoke to the mining team in charge of excavating resources from the cleared dungeon.


    "Everything about this dungeon is strange so I want you all to stick together to ensure each other''s safety." She ordered.


    """YES LADY LUNA."""


    The group of around 40 men and women then entered the gate, preparing to search for any magical materials they could find.


    While the group was entering, no one noticed that amongst the waves of people entering, the portal distorted slightly indicating a single invisible entity had exited.


    Luna thought she noticed something strange but upon closer inspection she found nothing to be amiss.


    Her curiosity sated, she soon turned her mind towards a more important issue.


    ''What on earth do I even wear?..''


    -


    "God damnit!"


    BANG!


    Alex Heller destroyed his desk in a blind rage as he saw the hundreds of thousands ofments online raving about Mchi and his harrowing gate raid.


    Viewers were enamored with his frighteningly amazing powers as well as his determination to see things through no matter the danger.


    While there were some online using him of being reckless or simply putting on a show for the camera, thosements were few and far between.


    A knock at the door briefly stifled his rage, but if it was who he expected it to be, he knew he wouldn''t be calm for very long.


    "Come in."


    Selene strode in with a woman wearing dark clothes.


    "I''ll order a new desk." She said before she calmly walked out and allowed the two blessed to discuss things privately.


    ''I''m almost certain I''ll have to call someone to mop her up.'' She thought as she closed the door.


    Standing across from Alex was an almost equally famous person who looked like she was ready to be chastised by her mother.


    Short ck hair styled in a pixie cut, bright red eyes that were trembling with fear and a beautiful yet scared face.


    Her fair white skin was spoiled by what appeared to be two intersecting scars, one running down her left eye, the other across her nose.


    She was Sierra Caligo, a SS ranked blessed, a member of true sky and the woman chosen by Hades.


    "Tell me something Sierra.."


    When she heard his tone, she felt her whole body tense up in fear.


    "I got you in the gate early¡­ I got you an artifact that let you turn invisible and conceal your presence¡­ I even gave you that special crystal to empower the boss should all else fail." He slowly approached the trembling woman, his eyes glowing a bluish silver.


    "So tell me, why is Mchi Saint still alive?"


    Sierra hesitated for a moment as she seemingly tried toe up with an eptable answer.


    Truthfully, she''d done as much as she could despite the circumstances.


    She killed all the monsters inside the gate with her telekinesis so as not to leave any visible wounds and raise suspicions.


    She''d even taken care to mimic their actual behavior and hide them under the sand for an ambush.


    Her personal undead army was off limits since they were much too recognizable and with a camera man there recognition was thest thing they needed.


    "I-"


    Sierra didn''t even finish her sentence before Alex had his hand around her neck and lifted her up into the air.


    "Idiot! An entire army of undead at yourmand yet you couldn''t kill one fucking rookie?!"


    She wanted to say that Mchi''s weird mes seemed to be her power''s natural weakness as they not only destroyed her undead, they also burned up her energy.


    "Useless!" Alex roared and hurled the young woman into the nearest wall.


    Bang!


    Her body collided hard with the solid surface, and she fell weakly to the ground while coughing furiously.


    Suddenly, Alex stomped her head into the ground and ground his heel into her skull.


    "Fucking worm! You whine about wanting to be free from me but you can''t do the one fucking thing I ask of you?!"


    Sienna simply held her breath as she tried not to cry.


    She was seen as a strong, dependable woman by many and yet she turned into a weak little girl when it came to this man in front of her.


    All she could do was try not to be even more pathetic by crying.


    "Give me the drops." Alex ordered as he removed his shoe from her head.


    Sienna shakily took out a golden storage ring that was filled with various items that rightfully belonged to Immortal Moon.


    "So you can do some things right." Alex snorted in contempt and began to walk away.


    He stopped at the ruined remains of his desk where he picked up his tablet that was still open to thetest news articles about Mchi.


    He picked it up and scrolled angrily throughout several stories that were all saying the same thing before he stopped as he saw a photo of Mchi and a beautiful woman.


    ''It''s a shame¡­ an entire guild under my control and yet I have to do everything by my goddamn self.''


    Tossing the tablet to a slightly recovered Sierra, he gave her another set of orders.


    "Find out everything you can about that woman, and try your damndest not to fuck that up too." He growled.


    Sierra swallowed and took the tablet before she shakily exited his office.


    Selene saw the state of the woman when she walked past her to enter the elevator and could not help but raise her brow in surprise.


    ''Huh, I guess I called the janitor for nothing.''

 Chapter 37: Dinner Party Pt. 1

    <h4>Chapter 37: Dinner Party Pt. 1</h4>


    "Do I really look okay?" Sei asked nervously.


    "You look great, my dear." Mchi chuckled and gave her a small peck on the cheek.


    The couple had gone with a bit of a matching theme tonight, with Mchi wearing a ck dress shirt and pants with a ck and white sweater on top.


    His signature sunsses could not hide the love in his gaze as he stared at the woman before him.


    Sei on the other hand was a bit of a frazzled mess, wearing an elegant but simple ck, long sleeved dress that Mchi had bought for her.


    She wore a glittering pair of golden earrings and her supple lips were coated with a clear and fragrant lipgloss.


    Her entire outfit was actually bought by Mchi, leaving her to feel slightly guilty.


    He''d already done so much for her already, she couldn''t help but feel undeserving.


    Thanks to him or rather his influence, her restaurant was thriving more so than ever before.


    She''d been able to hire more staff to help out, and more often than not, her restaurant was always full.


    And now she was being invited to the house of one of the most powerful beings in the world.


    ''Seriously¡­ just how much will you spoil me?'' She looked at him with a happy yet sad gaze.


    He consistently did so much for her, yet what could she do for him?


    Mal noticed the sad look on the face of the woman he cared about and quickly pulled her into his arms.


    "What''s the matter, did you change your mind about going?" He asked calmly.


    As always, she found herself unable to lie when he asked her a question with such genuine concern in his voice.


    Even without his blessing active, she would''ve told him the truth anyway.


    "It''s not that. I feel like¡­ I do not deserve to be this happy." She snuggled deeper in his embrace, as she finally told him all of her worries and fears.


    "When you first asked me to be with you, I had resigned myself to be thrown away eventually, as I was certain that there was no way someone with a bright future like you would stay with an old woman like me."


    "Sei you.." Mchi began.


    "But the more time I spend with you, the more I hate the idea that we may have to part one day." She stared at the floor in shame.


    Mchi did not let her continue and pulled her in for a lingering kiss.


    The two stayed intertwined like that for a while before Sei broke their kiss by cing her hand on his chest.


    "What..was that for?"


    "You were being silly." Mchi lightly stroked Sei''s soft cheek as he gazed at her with tender eyes.


    ''Really.. how could I not notice she was worried about something like this?''


    He made a silent vow to pay more attention to things like this in the future.


    "I''m not going anywhere, now or in the future. Everything I do for you is because you deserve it and I know that you would do the same for me." Heforted.


    "But¡­"


    "Ow ow ow!"


    Mchi suddenly pulled and stretched Sei''s cheeks like they were made of y dough.


    "If I hear you speaking negatively about yourself again I''m going to get upset." He smirked.


    "Okay okay I''m showwy!" She apologized profusely in the hopes that Mchi would cease his assault on her face.


    Mchi released her face and the two stared into each other''s eyes for a long time.


    Sei felt strange inside.


    Mchi didn''t even say much but all of her worries seemed like they were slowly fading away.


    Everything she was so concerned with before seemed like such a fantasy.


    Mchi had never been a disloyal or traitorous person, so why did she expect that to change so suddenly?


    As if both had the same thought, they leaned in and shared another long kiss that erased the world around them.


    So much so that the two did not notice the presence of another individual who was staring at them quite intensely.


    Only when Mchi''s hands slipped farther down Sei''s waist did Luna make her presence known.


    "Guys, I don''t think you have time for that."


    "KYAAA!!"


    "What the hell!?"


    Immediately, the eyes of the couple widened and they nearly jumped out of their skin.


    Leaning leisurely against the wall was Luna, as sexy and seductive as ever.


    Contrary to her usual attire she was wearing dark jeans with sandals and a simple green sweater that hung off her shoulder.


    Her hair was tied up in a messy bun that gave her a youthful and carefree appearance.


    "Bossdy? How did you even get in here?!" Mchi asked.


    "Your sister and I ran into eachother downstairs and she gave me the code to the door." Luna said without much thought as she looked at the outfits of Sei and Mchi.


    "You two look great, but I think you should change." Luna said.


    Sei and Mchi looked at each other and then back at Luna and finally noticed her outfit.


    "I''m sure he just was so excited he forgot to mention it but Morgan has a very particr hobby." Luna said.


    ""What kind of hobby?"" The couple asked in unison.


    -


    In front of an extremelyrge mansion, a long ck limousine rolled to a stop.


    Morgan Creed''s home was the definition of exorbitant.


    When Mchi and Sei stepped out from the car, they could not close their mouths.


    Even though Mchi now had a billion dors in the bank, he was slowly remembering the feeling of being poor.


    Sei''s brain had nearly stopped workingpletely.


    She was certain that even if she worked ten lifetimes, she could only afford to buy the two statues at the front door.


    Luna got out of the car and took one look at their reactions before shoving them lightly.


    "Are the two of you really so awed by little things like this?" She asked.


    "T-there''s nothing little about this!"


    "This is insane!"


    Suddenly Mchi paused and sniffed the air and realized what Luna had told him was indeed true. "Holy hell you weren''t joking¡­"


    Sei seemed to notice it as well and her eyes took on a strange glimmer of excitement.


    "Aren''t you d you changed?" Luna teased.


    They both nodded furiously.


    Currently Mal was wearing simple ck jeans and a cored shirt while Sei was wearing a yellow sundress.


    "If you''ll follow me please." The driver led the group to the door where he promptly rang the doorbell and a choir could be heard.


    "This is really¡­ too much money¡­" Mchi muttered and Sei nodded absentmindedly in agreement.


    Luna found Mal''s innocence to be quite cute and wondered what his reaction would be if she brought him to her house.


    ''W-why am I suddenly thinking about something so weird?'' Her cheeks turned a slight shade of red as she pushed her thoughts of showing him her bedroom out of her mind.


    Suddenly, therge wooden doors opened and standing there was a beautiful woman with waist length ck hair and vibrant green eyes.


    "You guys made it!" She had a bright and cheerful voice that matched her pristine white smile.


    "Indeed we did, Emilia." Luna politely smiled back.


    Even though she could be a bit cold to most people, the woman in front of her was simply far too likable.


    "Come in,e in!" She hurriedly stood aside and allowed entry to the group.


    "You must be the famous Mchi and Sei I''ve heard so much about!"


    The pair were slightly floored by how kind this woman was.


    Mchi was considered by many to be a pretty nice guy but this woman in front of him was like pure unfiltered joy.


    "I''m Emilia Creed, Morgan''s first wife and it''s so nice to meet you!" She introduced herself politely and stuck out her hands for a polite handshake from both.


    "It''s nice to meet you as well." Mchi smiled.


    "Yes, thank you for having us." Sei said.


    "Welle on let me show you to the backyard!"


    She then led the group through the house and the couple once again was stunned by all of the expensive things they saw.


    One of one paintings, diamond chandeliers, marble ceilings and more.


    Soon they were led to an enormous field of grass behind the house that resembled more of a farm than someone''s backyard.


    "Dear, they''re here!" Emilia waved.


    Standing over arge ck grill wearing an apron that said ''kiss the chef'' was one of the most powerful blessed in the world, Morgan Creed.


    He waved the group over and immediately sped Mchi on the shoulder. "You guys finally arrived! I hope you''ve brought your appetites."


    It was then that he gestured to the grill in front of him, allowing Mchi and Sei to get a good look at the hobby Luna had told them about.


    "I wasn''t sure exactly what you guys liked so I made a bit of everything." He scratched his cheek in embarrassment.


    Gorgeously roasted chicken, sulent ribs, and even a few grade A steaks were all present and looked to have been cooked to perfection.


    "Well are you guys ready to eat?"

 Chapter 38: Dinner Party Pt. 2

    <h4>Chapter 38: Dinner Party Pt. 2</h4>


    "Alright guys, please enjoy!"


    Morgan Creed gestured to therge table of food in front of him with a pleased expression.


    There wasn''t just meat avable, there was a few side dishes prepared by Morgan''s second wife, Crystal.


    Currently the group was seated at arge hand carved wooden table.


    Morgan was sitting between his two wives on one side, meanwhile Mchi was sitting on the other between Luna and Sei.


    While Luna seemed like she expected atleast this much, Mchi and Sei stared at the mountain of tes in front of them in awe.


    Sei was especially shocked since, as a chef herself, she could tell the amount of dedication and care that went into each dish.


    Luna did not stand on ceremony and instead started piling her te with food, the couple next to her not far behind.


    Morgan watched with bated breath as his guests tried their first morsels of food.


    In the next moment, the glimmering eyes of the young couple seemed to shine bright enough to light up the night sky.


    ""It''s so good!""


    "Hahaha! Thank you for thepliment!" Morgan''s face twisted into a proud grin.


    "See dear they''re enjoying it, so you can eat as well now." Crystal smirked.


    She knew her husband would never begin eating unless he was certain their guests were totally satisfied.


    "Ah, I suppose I can." He nodded.


    For a while the group made pleasant small talk over their delicious dinner.


    At first they discussed the strangeness of Mal''s first dungeon, with everyone trying toe up with their individual guesses on the matter.


    Next they asked Mchi questions about his powers and he tried to answer to the best of his ability through his mouthfuls of food.


    The evening was going well until Crystal made ament that caused Mal to choke on his steak.


    "So, you aren''t just dating miss Sei here butdy Luna as well?" Emilia guessed.


    "Ack!"


    "P-Pardon?"


    "Oh my.."


    The raven haired woman looked at the reactions of her guests and tilted her head in confusion.


    Morgan let out an impressed whistle and raised his ss to Mchi. "Pretty damn impressive, kiddo. I had no idea."


    In truth Morgan was beyond impressed.


    The number of suitors who''d tried to get under Luna''s kimono was as long as the amount of stars in the sky.


    However, much like the goddess who blessed her, she was as unreachable as the moon itself.


    He wasn''t surprised they''d be keeping their rtionship a secret, he could only imagine the amount of bitter men who''d try to make life hard for Mchi or those around him.


    ''Though seeing him in that dungeon today, I wager they wouldn''t be able to do much.''


    "W-we most certainly are not in a rtionship!" Luna cried.


    "T-That''s right!" Mchi looked back and forth between Emilia and Sei.


    "I swear I don''t know what she is talking about." He pleaded.


    Surprisingly, Sei did not look bothered and only showed a small cute smile.


    Mchi did not know if that was the smile women used when they found something adorable or the one they used before they killed their partners.


    Just to be safe, he moved the sharp steak knife she''d been using out of reach.


    "Oh the two of you aren''t together then?" Morgan and his wives asked.


    Emilia usually had a pretty good nose for these kinds of things so they''d just assumed her words to be true.


    ""No we are not!!"" Mchi was panicking internally and Luna''s cheeks were as red as the lotus tattoo on her forehead.


    """May we ask why?""" Morgan and his wives were not going to let this subject go.


    "I already have a girlfriend!"


    "He is my subordinate!"


    Hearing their reasoning, the trio became even more confused as they looked at each other.


    """So?"""


    ""WHAT DO YOU MEAN SO?!""


    Morgan sighed before giving Mal a weary look. "Surely you must know that as blessed we are allowed to take an additional two spouses. Many have more on the side."


    His choice of words seemed to earn him a death re from his wives and he quickly cleared his throat to profess that he didn''t condone it himself.


    While Mchi was aware of thews surrounding blessed in this country, he never thought much of it.


    He still didn''t know quite how attractive he''d be so for him just having one super hot older girlfriend was a dreame true.


    He then turned to Luna, "And what does it mean if he''s your subordinate? Emilia was my secretary and Crystal was my head maid."


    That information made Luna suddenly feel like she was having dinner in the yboy mansion.


    "I don''t mind." Sei suddenly spoke.


    "Come again?" Mchi was stunned.


    "You don''t?!" Luna cried.


    Both stared at the giggling woman like she''d just said the most unbelievable statement imaginable.


    "Well before I might''ve been worried but¡­" the woman took a deep breath as if to illustrate that her next words woulde from the depths of her soul.


    "I know now that you will not abandon me. I want you to be happy even if I am not the only one to make you that way."


    She looked past Mchi and shed a stunned Luna a warm smile. "Besides, I think you are a good person who would not try to monopolize him. So if you wish to be with him as well, I will notin."


    At her speech''s end, silence rang out across the dining table.


    Morgan and his wives put on a satisfied expression.


    They all thought that Mchi had been blessed with two very good women.


    Doing what Sei had just done wasn''t easy and Emilia and Crystal knew that from experience.


    Yet here she was, ready and willing to sacrifice a bit of her happiness so that Mchi might have more, and by extension, Luna as well.


    Her eyes contained no ulterior motives or hidden malice.


    She truly just wanted the best for both of them.


    Luna and Mchi could only sit there and stare at the woman in shock.

 Chapter 39: Match Made in Night

    <h4>Chapter 39: Match Made in Night</h4>


    "So Mal what do you say? Do you like Luna?" Emilia asked with a glimmer in her bright green eyes.


    In college she was the designated matchmaker for all of her friends. She''d never failed to spot the potential of a couple before and she wouldn''t start now!


    Mchi was still reeling from Sei''s sudden permission and waspletely at a loss for what to say.


    He already had one super hot older girlfriend and now she was telling him he could have two?


    Just the thought alone was enough to make him cream his jeans.


    Suddenly he saw Luna staring at him out of the corner of her eyes and got a first hand reminder of just how beautiful the woman was.


    With a red blush on her soft white cheeks, she was even cuter and Mchi found her practically irresistible.


    It wouldn''t be a stretch to say that she was every man''s dream woman.


    Strong, dependable, gorgeous and aplished.


    And even though she hardly showed it, Mchi knew that she hid some softer sides deep inside as well.


    Plus she was older than him!


    She was checking all of his boxes!


    Other than Sei, he could not imagine a more perfect woman for him!


    From the moment he firstid eyes on her he''d been drawn to her.


    Only now was he realizing that what he felt was romantic interest.


    "I do." Mchi said after much internal debate.


    His words seemed to send Luna into a spiral as her face finally reached an unhealthy shade of red.


    Morgan and his wives all had satisfied smiles before they turned to Luna.


    "And you? Do you hold any special feelings for Mchi?" Crystal asked Luna.


    For the first time in a long time, Luna began to panic internally.


    She''d juste to eat barbecue and make conversation!


    Now she was under interrogation about her love life!


    She felt like she was right back at her parents house!


    Feeling like she was rapidly losing control of the situation, Luna did several mental calctions and finally found a light at the end of the tunnel.


    Her cold, business like demeanor had returned and she had a sudden air of indifference about her.


    "Honestly, I don''t know what you think but unlike your husband I don''t see my subordinates as potential romantic suitors."


    She rose up from her seat and prepared to walk away. "I don''t have any interest in Mchi whatsoever."


    She turned to leave, and was about halfway towards the door when she felt Mchi suddenly grab her wrist.


    "Are those your true feelings, Luna?"


    Whether it was his blessing from Bast, or the fact that he''d called her by her name for the first time, who can say?


    All Luna knew was that in front of this man who was almost half her age, she found herselfpletely unwilling and unable to lie.


    "No..they aren''t." Luna''s voice contained an untouched tenderness that led Morgan to believe he''d drank too much.


    Was this truly the guild master of immortal moon? Sounding like some frail maiden in love?


    What the fuck was happening in his dining room?


    Luna''s eyes widened when she realized that she''d identally said her true feelings out loud.


    Something inside of Luna broke and she suddenly ripped her hand away from Mchi before turning tail and running out of the door.


    Mchi of course wanted to chase her, but there was something about that look of fear in her eyes that left his feet firmly nted in the ground.


    Sei''s eyes held a mysterious knowing light as she watched Luna run out of the door, seemingly understanding everything and yet saying nothing.


    -


    After that night, Luna had taken great care to avoid Mchi to the best of her ability.


    Even when the guild just so happened to have meetings, she never allowed him to get close to her for even a moment.


    Currently, Mchi was in ss absentmindedly listening to his professors lecture.


    After Mchi''s dungeon raid aired on tv, he never bothered to say anything about Mchi''s sses again.


    ''I guess I should go visit Rowan after I leave here.''


    He hadn''t seen the old man in a few days and he was quite curious whether he could help him master more of his abilities.


    He hadn''t forgotten Raijin''s warning about their being worse things toe so he wanted to be prepared for the inevitable struggle.


    ''I wonder¡­ were others warned as well?'' He wondered before his exhaustion caught up to him and he slowly dozed off.


    Mchi eventually woke up to the gentle sensation of someone nudging his shoulder.


    Before he''d even opened his eyes, he knew exactly who was in front of him.


    "Hey, just because you get straight As doesn''t mean you can fall asleep in ss."


    Mchi looked up to see Mnie standing above him with a sympathetic expression.


    "This isn''t like you, are you alright?" She asked.


    Mchi groggily looked around and saw that they were the only ones present in the ssroom. "Yea I''m¡­fine."


    Mnie correctly guessed what he was looking at and immediately exined. "I think everyone else might''ve been too scared to wake you."


    "Scared?" Mal muttered.


    He soon remembered that the entire world had seen him turning into a giant seven foot beast and figured that exined the sudden apprehension of his ssmates.


    "Well I should be going, Take care of yourself."


    Mal watched her walk away and head towards the door.


    He prepared to call out to her and thank her for waking him when he saw something that made his blood run cold.


    Brief shes of dark ck bruises could be seen on Mnie''s slender, pale arms.


    ______________________


    Please go leave a review if you like the book or have any ideas you''d like to see incorporated.

 Chapter 40: Flames of Heaven

    <h4>Chapter 40: mes of Heaven</h4>


    Mchi dragged his feet as he approached Rowan''s farm.


    The image of Mnie''s bruises had seemingly burned themselves into his mind, giving him an even greater headache than the one he''d already possessed.


    He''d kept trying to tell himself that he''d been mistaken, that what he''d seen was some sort of trick of the light.


    No matter how many times he''d told himself that, it didn''t change what he already knew.


    Mnie was being abused, and Mchi was certain he already knew the culprit.


    "It''s none of my business anyway." He grumbled.


    ''So why am I so bothered?''


    "She cheated on me with my fucking boss for god''s sake."


    ''Yet I still don''t feel like I can turn my back on her.''


    "This is bullshit."


    ''I''m just not going to think about it anymore.''


    While Mchi no longer held romantic interest in Mnie, that would not change the fact that he was a person with apassionate heart who could not justifiably walk away from someone he knew being abused.


    "You know if you have to make that kind of face when you visit, I think I''d prefer you not visit at all."


    Mchi looked up from his thoughts to see Rowan standing on the porch, cigarette in hand.


    "Sorry old man, it''s not because of you." Mchi came to a stop at the bottom of the steps and gestured for the old man to give him a cigarette as well.


    Rowan obliged him and soon the two were standing side by side, smoking leisurely as they watched the grass blow in the breeze.


    "Wanna talk about it?" Rowan finally asked.


    "No." Was Mchi''s only reply.


    They sat in silence for a bit longer before Mchi finally made a request.


    "Can you teach me how to use my mes better?"


    "The mes of heaven, huh?" Rowan became deep in thought, seemingly trying to recall what he''d read from textbooks and stories.


    "For a power like that, you don''t actually need my help." He said after a long silence.


    "Pardon?"


    "Show me a spark." Rowan asked.


    Mchi obliged and a small ball of golden mes were created in his palm.


    Rowan took a deep breath before he walked towards Mchi and stuck his hand directly into the ball of mes.


    "H-hey, what''re you doing you crazy old man?!" Mchi jerked his hand back and put his dark gold mes away.


    Instead of answering, Rowan held his hand up and showed Mchi that it waspletely unblemished, showing no signs or damage except for age.


    "What the hell?" Mchi stared at Rowan in shock.


    He knew for a fact that his mes burned at over 6,000 degrees.


    Yet the old man''s hand was just fine?


    "The mes of Michael are said to do many things, but they are most famous for being able to burn away beings of sin."


    ''Apparently, this old man isn''t irredeemable.'' Rowan chuckled inwardly.


    "They also cannot be held by someone who does not possess a righteous character." He added.


    These words caused Mchi to smile inwardly and he began to feel a little relieved.


    "Come on, let''s work on your control." The old man walked towards the barn with a lightness in his steps that wasn''t there before.


    Knowing that the main weapon of the strongest archangel in heaven did not consider you to be a malicious person has it''s ways of easing the burdens on the soul.


    Mchi followed closely behind, and soon the two were embroiled in another taxing training session.


    -


    Currently, Luna was sitting at her desk and going through a stack of papers.


    She''d been working harder than normaltely in an effort to distract herself from certain events and it appears to have been sessful.


    She''d finished up work she''d been days behind on in only a single night.


    The only problem was, now she had run out of things to do and as a result, she had no distractions.


    ''Gods, I miss being able to get drunk.''


    She sighed before she leisurely leaned back into her chair and gazed up at the ceiling.


    She took out an item from her pocket and stared at it with a forlorn expression.


    This was Mchi''s ring he''d gotten from his first gate.


    He''d given it to her to be analyzed and she had yet to return it to him.


    ''I really don''t want to see that kid again.'' Luna sighed internally.


    Suddenly, there was a knock at the door and Aisha entered without even waiting for a response.


    Luna was much too tired to care by this point so she didn''t even chastise her as she usually would.


    She simply sat up in her chair and leisurely tossed Mchi''s ring to her. "Perfect timing, you can deliver that to Mal."


    Aisha caught the ring and looked at it suspiciously. "What''s it do?"


    "It''s an invisibility ring." Luna replied tly.


    Aisha let out an impressed whistle. "Pretty decent drop for a first timer."


    "Indeed."


    The white haired girl put away the ring and walked closer to her boss''s desk.


    "Is there something going on with you and Mchi?" She asked.


    That question seemed to be one Luna suspected and she showed no signs of being caught off guard. "No, there isn''t."


    "Are you sure? Seems like you''ve been avoiding him for some weird reason." Aisha prodded.


    "Seems like you have a bit too much free time if you can worry about something as trivial as this." Luna poked back.


    Aisha finally relented and she sighed before walking towards the door.


    "I don''t know what''s going on but she never asks me for favors so it must be something serious."


    "She who?" Luna asked.


    Aisha did not answer and instead opened the door to reveal Sei standing outside timidly.


    "She''s all yours, I hope you''ll tell me what this is all aboutter."


    Sei politely bowed to show her thanks. "I will, thank you Aisha."


    Sei entered the room and Aisha closed the door behind her, leaving only Luna and Sei alone to talk.


    "What are you doing here?" Luna asked warily.


    "I''m sorry for the intrusion!" Sei once again bowed apologetically. "But I felt I had to talk with you!"


    Luna sighed as she could already guess where this conversation was going.


    "Look, I am far too busy to talk about nonsense, I don''t know why I said that to Mal at dinner but my guess is it was just the wine."


    "You can''t get drunk." Sei reminded her.


    "Then I was high."


    "You don''t smoke, and nothing is strong enough to-"


    "Alright fine!" Luna finally had enough and stood up in frustration.


    "I said it alright? But I have no interest in being with that brat, okay!?"


    Sei put on a sad smile and she moved to sit on one of the couches in Luna''s office.


    "I don''t think that''s true. I think you are just afraid to be vulnerable."


    Luna scoffed. "What would you know?!"


    Sei took a deep breath and then showed her a warm smile. "I know because I was the same."


    "I should probably tell you¡­ about my ex husband." Sei finally said.


    Luna stared at the woman in front of her for a long time.


    She could kick her out, but so far this woman had been nothing but kind to her.


    Plus, in this moment, Sei seemed to be quite fragile.


    Even though she was trying to hide it, Luna could smell the sweat pooling in her palms.


    With a sigh, she sauntered forward and sat on the couch opposite Sei.


    "Talk."

 Chapter 41: Sei’s Story

    <h4>Chapter 41: Sei¡¯s Story</h4>


    Like Luna, Sei was originally born in Japan.


    She was the oldest daughter of a very wealthy and prominent family.


    She was seen by her family as a diligent, obedient child who excelled at whatever she tried her hand at and was her parents pride and joy.


    When she entered adolescence, Sei gained a mesmerizing beauty to match her divine talent.


    Simply saying she had arge amount of suitors would be a gross understatement.


    Boys were lining up in droves to gain her affections, yet only one was so lucky.


    A young man that Sei met in an after school club, turned out to be her first love.


    They spent lots of time together,ughing, discussingmon interests, and even studying together.


    Eventually, the pair sought to enter into an official courtship and went to Sei''s parents for their approval.


    Surely she, who had never asked for anything in her life would have this one wish granted?


    Her parents were utterly furious.


    Their daughter had actually brought home some poor nobody with average looks and ability!


    They could not allow her to sully their name and reputation!


    The young couple''s request for acknowledgment was denied, and they were forbidden from interacting with each other again.


    Sei was heartbroken but what could she do?


    She had never gone against the wishes of her parents before and she wasn''t even sure how.


    Months went by with each day seeming more and more bleak than thest.


    The boy she fell in love with had stoppeding to school entirely, and she hadn''t seen him in months.


    Her life that was once so beautiful and dreamlike, quickly became a dull wastnd she could not escape from.


    Then one day, the young man suddenly appeared in front of her once again.


    He had arge suitcase full of money and two ne tickets to America.


    Apparently he''d been working like mad ever since the two had separated, all in hopes of running away with her and starting a new life together.


    Sei waspletely stunned.


    At only seventeen, she did not know if she was ready for such a monumental decision as running away.


    But when she looked at all of the money he had collected, she knew just how hard he''d worked to give them this chance and she simply couldn''t say no.


    Sei went home to collect her passport and pack some clothes before she left a letter on her dresser exining her disappearance.


    She fled in the middle of the night with the boy she''d fallen hopelessly in love with.


    Arriving in America, things were slightly rocky at first but the pair were happy.


    For a while they slept in motels and worked odd jobs to make ends meet when money began to run low, but when Sei became pregnant, they knew they would have to take more drastic measures for their future.


    The man got an apprenticeship at a car garage as a mechanic, and was able to start earning a livable wage in a short time. Sei also started working at the restaurant that would be hers in the future.


    With their new sources of ie, the two were finally able to purchase a house and even a car.


    Their life seemed to be perfect with many more happy days in front of them.


    Unfortunately, it did notst.


    The man soon fell in love with an American woman and ran away to be with her.


    Leaving a heartbroken Sei with piles of bills to pay and a child to raise.


    She called home and begged for her family''s forgiveness and toe home, only to be told that a whore who opens her legs for any random man she meets had no ce in their lives.


    So now, Sei had no family, no husband and a child who she desperately needed help raising.


    Luckily, her boss at the restaurant took pity on her and she invited her toe and stay in her home for as long as she needed.


    As someone who never had children of her own, she weed Sei and her daughter with open arms and Sei found herself confiding in the tenderness of a new mother figure.


    A few yearster, her boss passed away from old age. Sei and Serana were devastated, but then they''d discovered the woman had left behind a will containing a small sum of money, the deed to the restaurant and the house they were currently living in.


    Sei was eternally grateful to the old woman for helping her to raise her daughter and giving her a ce to go when she had no one.


    -


    "As the years went by I never interacted with men outside of the restaurant." Sei said with a sad expression.


    "I thought I was just uninterested, but eventually I realized that I was just too scared to be vulnerable with anyone else.


    I couldn''t trust anyone, couldn''t depend on them either. The one person who consistently helped me has already passed away."


    Luna stared at Sei as if she were looking at a new woman.


    She had no idea this kind and gentle woman had such a horrible past behind her.


    ''I can tell this is difficult for her to talk about¡­ so why is she going so far?''


    "And then.. Mchi asked to be with me." Sei''s downtrodden disposition suddenly turned into a pure warmth as she remembered the man she was dating.


    "Normally, I would''ve refused immediately. Maybe it was our history or maybe it was the genuine way that he asked me, but I found myself unable to say no.


    Despite that, I was determined not to fall in love with him and I was sure he''d lose his fascination with me sooner rather thanter. "


    "No matter how handsome he''d be.." she shyly added, prompting Luna to roll her eyes even though she inwardly agreed wholeheartedly.


    "But he''s so kind and caring.. unlike anyone I''ve ever known. He''s given me everything he possibly could even when I did not deserve it."


    "And even though the entire world is moring for his attention, he only gives it to me. I feel¡­ special."


    Luna could not help but remember how Mchi was behaving like he was on cloud nine the day he and Sei began dating.


    ''So that''s why I was so bothered.''


    "Not once has he ever caused me to regret my decision. In truth, I wish I had made it sooner. " she giggled.


    Sei moved to the couch beside Luna and took her hand. "I will not pretend to know everything that you have been through, but I do understand what it''s like to feel scarred by your past and unable to trust in anyone. I am not asking you to trust in anyone else, just trust him."


    Luna stared at Sei''s soft white hand that was intertwined with hers.


    Her words were constantly ringing in her mind, telling her that she could be trusting, and vulnerable, no matter how hard it seemed.


    Could she really do that?


    Would it truly not go horribly wrong?


    She wasn''t certain but if Sei could try¡­ maybe she could too.


    -


    "Alright kid, you wanna do this the easy way or the hard way?" Rowan asked Mchi.


    They''d reached their destination inside of the barn and were standing in the area Mchi usually trained in, arge open space with metal pails opposite him to act as targets.


    "What''s the difference?" Mchi asked.


    "If we start out hard, you''ll have an easier time with simple actions in the future. If we do it the easy way, we''ll slowly be able to build up your fundamentals, making sure your power is more concise." Rowan exined simply.


    Mchi thought long and hard about this decision.


    The gods had warned him already that more dangerous things woulde so he needed to be prepared.


    ''Do I focus on gaining power as fast as possible, or do I have time to learn the fundamentals?'' He wondered.


    Which was the right way to go about gaining power?

 Chapter 42: Golden Flowers

    <h4>Chapter 42: Golden Flowers</h4>


    "Let''s do it the hard way." Mchi said after much debate.


    Rowan didn''t seem to be too surprised by this, it was almost like he''d already expected it.


    The old man picked up a notebook and a pen and began drawing something with great focus.


    "Make this." He held up his drawing and revealed it to be a flower in mid bloom.


    Almost immediately, Mchi wanted to go back to the easy way.


    He had no idea how to shape his mes, much less into something asplicated as a flower!


    "This is the path you''ve chosen, do not regret it, do not run from it. Instead walk proudly into your future."


    Rowan seemed to sense Mchi''s hesitation and tried to give him the words he needed most at the moment.


    With renewed determination, he cupped his hands together to form a ball of bright gold fire.


    He began to concentrate intensely, trying to will the ball to change shape.


    ''If he doesn''t understand after ten minutes, I''ll give him a hint.''


    Rowan pulled up a nearby stool before sitting down and watching Mal struggle with his powers.


    - 20 minutester.


    Mal had tried everything, yet there was absolutely no change.


    He tried to will it, he tried to beg it, and he even tried to visualize the change step by step.


    Absolutely nothing worked.


    "Zzzzz¡­"


    Mchi looked up and saw that Rowan wasfortably sleeping in his chair!


    ''This damn old man!''


    He debated on using a small shock to jolt the man awake before ultimately deciding against it.


    Knowing Rowan didn''t sleep much since his daughter passed, he figured he shouldn''t ruin this one moment where he could.


    Mchi once again turned his attention back to his mes as he stared at them in frustration.


    He never thought once he''d gained all this power that he''d go back to feeling useless.


    When he recalled the spectacle he''d caused in front of the gods he found the urge tough at himself.


    "Damn it.. I can''t protect anything like this."


    Slowly, the worry that his loved ones would perish in front of him began to corrode his mind.


    Sei, Serana, Luna, and Aisha as well as all of his friends at the guild.


    ''Do I have to lose them all too?''


    Suddenly, the mes in his palm began to flicker in a way that they hadn''t before.


    Mchi became excited and tried to will them to change shape yet again, only to be disappointed when the mes returned to normal.


    ''What the hell? They were just starting to work!''


    Suddenly, it was as if a lightbulb went off in his head.


    Protection.


    Surely the main weapon of an archangel was intended to be used for the defense of others, instead of offensively.


    With a new theory in his head, Mal closed his eyes and tried to visualize his loved ones.


    ''Aubrey..''


    The mes once again began to flicker wildly and turned a faint white.


    ''Aisha..''


    The ball of fire began topress, until it looked like a radiant gold and white ball.


    ''Sei..''


    The ball of fire slowly began to unfold, until a gorgeous golden lotus flower floated in his hand.


    Mchi opened his eyes and was immediately assailed by the feeling of sweat running into them.


    He hadn''t realized how taxing using this power was on his body while he was focused but he''d certainly noticed now.


    While the level of exhaustion was nothingpared to when he used his blessing from Nyx, it was still nothing to sneeze at.


    "Ha¡­ I really did it." Mal chuckled.


    He suddenly eyes the targets on the opposite side of the wall and gained an idea.


    "It¡­ probably won''t be too bad right?"


    Mchi held out his palm and flicked the fiery lotus towards the center target.


    He only intended to pulverize the pail.


    Maybe put a small hole in the wall behind it.


    But he never intended to unleash the havoc that happened next.


    BOOOOOOMMM!!!


    Mchi''s ming lotus that was no bigger than a fist, exploded upon contact with the pail and destroyed it, and the entire wall behind it.


    Dust and debris flew, and Mchi hurriedly shielded a now awake and screaming Rowan.


    "Brat! What did you do!?"


    "I made a flower!"


    "The hell you did! What kind of flower pulverizes a wall?!"


    "The one I made!"


    Mchi ended up getting chewed out for ten whole minutes before Rowan calmed down.


    Of course Mchi offered to pay for the damages and the old man meagerly epted before sitting back down.


    "So you figured it out huh?"


    "It wasn''t easy but yea." Mchi wore a small smile of pride.


    "Hmph, your training is just beginning brat! Make three more simultaneously and DON''T THROW THEM!"


    Mchi looked at Rowan as if he''d just ordered him to put his nuts in a blender. "O-Old man you''re joking right?!"


    Rowan''s only response was to take a cigarette out of his pocket and stare at Mal like he was waiting.


    ''Sinister bastard!''


    Mchi ground his teeth in frustration before he begrudgingly began his task.


    - 2 hourster.


    Night had fallen and Mchi was currently breathing heavily as hey on the barn floor.


    His shirt had long been removed as he was covered in an ungodlyyer of sweat that made it ufortable.


    "Huff.. huff.. I did it though."


    Mchi stared up in satisfaction at the three golden lotus flowers currently rotating above his head.


    It took a lot of time and even more energy and focus, but eventually he was able toplete the task Rowan assigned to him.


    "Impressive indeed." The old manmented.


    Truthfully he was expecting Mal to take a few days to learn how to do this but instead it was only a few hours.


    He didn''t know if it was determination or just t out talent.


    "Go home kid, get some rest." Rowan finally stood up and began to walk back to his house.


    "Hah.. sure, just let mey here a minute." Mal replied but the old man was already gone.


    Mchi dispersed the golden flowers floating above his head and basked in the cool night air.


    Something about everything that''d just happened made him miss his loved ones and a desire to see them grew in his heart.


    ''Should I check on them then?''


    Mchi opened his consciousness to the night and suddenly he could see everything that was covered in darkness once again.


    He focused his mind on Aubrey and found that she was sitting on the couch at his house next to Aisha.


    The two appeared to be watching a movie and had even ordered pizza.


    ''I wonder if they''ll bother to save me any¡­''


    Me thought of Sei and was surprised when he saw her and Luna eating together in a fancy restaurant.


    ''When did those two be such close friends?'' He wondered.


    While he could listen in on their conversation, he figured that would be an even bigger invasion of privacy than spying on them like this so he decided against it.


    Last he decided to check on Serana and he immediately regretted it when he saw her about to step into the shower.


    ''Gross and weird! Gross and weird!''


    While he knew that Serana was a pretty girl, after being friends for so long he''d never be able to see her as anything other.


    Plus he already had her mom and from the small shes he''d seen, he was pretty sure Sei''s charm beat her daughter''s by miles.


    Suddenly a person creeped into Mal''s mind and he couldn''t help but wonder about her well being.


    ''It.. wouldn''t hurt to check right?''


    Before Mal knew it, he was sifting through his consciousness searching for Mnie.

 Chapter 43: Too Late

    <h4>Chapter 43: Too Late</h4>


    TW : Domestic violence


    ________________________


    Mnie was currently sitting on a couch in the middle of a fairly nice home.


    Derek was currently in the other room sleeping and she could not be more grateful for the moment of peace.


    She hated everything about the man, from his attitude to the way he treated her, but she especially hated that she could not escape him.


    As Mnie absentmindedly scrolled online, she soon saw a poll asking a very popr question.


    Who was more attractive, Mchi Saint or Alex Heller?


    She''d seen this debate circting online quite a bit since Mchi first stepped into public eye.


    ''Although I''m certain he wouldn''t care about something like this.''


    Mnie''s eyes became weary and sad as she pressed the button to vote for Mchi.


    She was rather unsurprised to see that 85% of the voters agreed with her and her ex was winning by andslide.


    ''I''ve always found him cute but now¡­''


    Mnie shook her head to free herself from dangerous thoughts.


    Things were over, it wouldn''t do any good to go fantasizing about him now.


    She scrolled a little further and saw pictures of Mal kissing an older woman.


    The inte had of course done a deep dive on the woman and found that she was a small restaurant owner and a single mother.


    Young girls all over the country were devastated to learn that they were not Mal''s type.


    ''Is this my fault for calling her that night?'' She wondered.


    She''d only called because she didn''t want Mal to lie out in the street unconscious and she knew he didn''t have the money for medical fees.


    The only other contact in his phone was this woman and Aisha and since she did not want the white haired war princess to stomp out her skull, she figured this woman was the safer option.


    ''Should I expect a wedding invitation? They are together because of me after all.'' She joked with a silly grin.


    "What do we have here?"


    Mnie''s eyes widened in horror and she quickly tried to tuck away her phone only to have it snatched away before she could.


    She quickly spun around to see Derek looking through her phone with a displeased expression.


    "You''re fucking pathetic. Were you actually thinking about going back to this bastard?!"


    Mnie knew she had to choose her words carefully.


    Ever since Mchi had been blessed, Derek had been incredibly afraid and irate.


    The worry that Mal woulde to take revenge, apanied by the inferiority that rose inside whenever he saw his handsome new face on tv, was more than enough to erode his sanity.


    "H-He wouldn''t take me back even if I got on my knees and begged after everything you said." She finally said.


    "Oh? Having second thoughts are we? It was you who agreed to sleep with me for money but now you''re feeling guilty?"


    Mnie swallowed her regret and didn''t say anything.


    How could she?


    While there was more to the situation than Derek had said, it''s true that she had indeed betrayed Mchi.


    "Y-You know I wouldn''t have done that if you had given me any other choice." She had onlye to him originally to ask to borrow some money since she knew he was well off.


    Things were never supposed toe to this.


    Her words only served to infuriate him and he grabbed the girl by her hair and pulled her close.


    "You slut! You think you''re too good for me?"


    Tears welled up in Mnie''s eyes.


    Not because of the pain from having her hair pulled, but because of his words that seemed to taunt her.


    She no longer believed she was good enough for anyone.


    The fact of the matter was that she had sold her body like some prostitute.


    The reason didn''t matter, what mattered was that she felt disgusted with herself every time she looked in the mirror.


    Seeing that his question wasn''t being answered, Derek became even more furious and struck Mnie hard across the face and sent her tumbling backwards.


    Mnie was so stunned, the pain barely registered.


    Derek had been violent with her, but he''d never hit her in the face before.


    She wondered just how much worse things would get when her world went dark as she hit her head on a nearby table.


    Her abuser seemed unconcerned with her condition and prepared to take his belt off to give her a few goodshes.


    He would ingrain respect for him into her very bones.


    Or so he intended.


    As soon as he raised his hand to deliver the first strike, dark mist swirled around in front of him and out of it stepped an enraged Mchi.


    All he''d seen was Mnie get hit and he immediately teleported here.


    He was furious with himself for being toote.


    He was even more furious for not stopping Mnie earlier in the day.


    ''Idiot, I''m such an idiot!''


    Derek continued to back away until he was against a wall.


    Mchi''s appearance could hardly be seen as something human.


    His hands had long turned into sharp, dark ws that looked like they could cut through metal.


    His eyes were glowing so brightly that his dark sunsses no longer concealed them.


    "M-Mal, look I-"


    Mchi raised a single wed hand and activated his telekinesis.


    Derek''s body immediately floated up and flew towards his outstretched hand.


    "Gah!"


    The man could do nothing but cry out in pain as Mchi''s ws dug into his neck.


    He attempted to struggle and even fight back but each blow he struck against Mchi''s blessed body only served to injure his own fists.


    "I don''t know why I waisted so much time, I should''vee to kill you a lot sooner." Mchi growled.


    ''I''ll maim him.''


    ''I''ll string him up with his own intestines.''


    ''I need to see the life drain from his body!''


    ''I''ll-''


    Mchi lost his train of thought when a thick metallic scent entered his nose.


    He looked behind him and his eyes widened in horror when he saw a scary amount of blood pooling around Mnie''s head.


    "Mel!"


    Mchi forgot all about his anger as he threw Derek over his shoulder and scooped up Mnie.


    Her breathing was faint and she was growing even paler by the second.


    He forgot all about his hatred for Derek as he once again became enveloped in ck mist before he disappeared.


    Derek stayed on the ground for a while as he held his neck to stop the bleeding.


    Luckily Mchi''s ws had just missed his carotid artery so his bleeding wasn''t nearly as bad as Mnie''s.


    Eventually, he scrambled to his feet and ran to his bedroom.


    Quickly grabbing his suitcase, he began to fill it with clothes, money and anything else of value he owned.


    He had to run away.


    He had to run very, very, far away.

 Chapter 44: Comatose

    <h4>Chapter 44: Comatose</h4>


    "Aye can I get some help over here?!"


    Mal appeared in the middle of the fanciest hospital he could find and immediately cried out for help.


    Doctors and nurses were stunned when, one of the most famous men in the world suddenly showed up shirtless and carrying a bloodied girl.


    After getting over their surprise, they immediately sprung into action and gingerly took Mnie from his arms.


    "Umm sir.. do you mind telling us what happened?" One of the nurses asked.


    She was trying to do her job and remain professional, but it was extremely difficult since Mal had yet to cover up his body.


    Mchi begrudgingly told the nurse that she was his friend who was being abused and he just so happened toe by in time to save her.


    He tended to keep his omniscience a secret, since he figured it would make people ufortable around him.


    I mean, who would like it if they knew it was virtually impossible to keep secrets from him?


    During the night he could be everywhere and nowhere at the same time.


    The nurse listened to his testimony and immediately contacted police to arrest Derek.


    Although Mchi was certain they would not find him, atleast not so easily.


    He could currently see him loading up his car fervently and preparing to drive away.


    "I''ll deal with youter.." he muttered before taking a seat in the waiting room.


    For now, nothing mattered more than making sure Mnie was alright.


    The nurse from before delivered him a spare shirt so he was no longer drawing the gazes of all of the nurses.


    Although, the nurse who originally gave him the shirt was now getting hateful res from her coworkers.


    They wanted to keep enjoying the show damn it!


    They got to see bodies all day long but none like this!


    As Mal sat in the waiting room, he fought desperately to keep his eyes open.


    He still hadn''t recovered from his strenuous training earlier so teleporting twice and using his enhanced sight was really taking its toll.


    ''I can''t rest.. not until I know she''s okay.''


    - 1 hourter


    A nurse finally came to get Mchi and took him into Mnie''s hospital room.


    There he saw her sleeping blissfully with a tube in her mouth and bandages around her head.


    "She''s out of danger for now but she does appear to beatose." The doctor said with a sorrowful expression.


    Those words broke Mchi''s heart as he stared absentmindedly at the girl he used to love.


    "I''ll.. give you some time alone." The nurse exited from the room, closing the door behind her and leaving Mal alone with only his anguish.


    Mchi stared at Mnie motionlessly for a while before he moved beside her and took her hand.


    "I''m sorry Mel. I should''ve stopped you back at the school but¡­ truth be told I wanted to wash my hands of you." He said honestly.


    No amount of words could adequately express the guilt he felt in this moment.


    He knew Mnie was hurting and being abused, yet he still averted his gaze.


    Why? Because she hurt him.


    Even though she''d apologized and even though he''d already moved on, he would never forget her betrayal.


    How could he?


    This was the first person he''d ever loved after all.


    But that didn''t mean he should''ve ignored what was happening to her.


    "This is all my fault.." Mal muttered.


    Tears threatened to fall from his face but he did not allow them.


    He didn''t feel he deserved to cry.


    Mnie was the one in the hospital bed not him.


    If she wasn''t crying then he couldn''t either.


    Mchi lightly squeezed the hand of the sleeping girl and made a solemn vow.


    "I hope whenever you wake up we can have a real chance at being friends, and not just hurt each other and apologize like we''ve been doing."


    Responding to his desire, his blessing from the archangel activated on it''s own.


    Mal suddenly felt an enormous amount of energy leave his body.


    Since he was already exhausted, that was all it took for him to go tumbling to the ground.


    As Mal slipped into unconsciousness, a golden light left his body and entered Mnie''s forehead.


    A shining gold mark appeared briefly before it vanished entirely.


    - Four Days Later.


    Sunlight streamed through white open curtains down onto a nearby bed.


    In it was a sleeping Mchi who looked to be having the most blissful dream of his life.


    Suddenly, his eyes began to flutter open, only for him to immediately shut them when he felt the blinding light from of the morning sun.


    He released a loud dissatisfied groan when he realized he could not be in his own room.


    He''d specifically ordered extra thick curtains to prevent this sort of ufortable awakening.


    "Mal?"


    Mchi opened his eyes and sat up on the bed when he realized he was not alone.


    Only then did he notice he was in a very nice hospital room with Sei and Aubrey.


    While Aubrey was still sleeping peacefully, Sei was now wide awake after hearing Mchi''s groaning.


    "Ah.. waking up to your face really is the best."


    Mchi said as he stared dreamily at his attractive girlfriend.


    Those words seemed to send the woman over the edge and before Mal knew it, she was weeping furiously as she lept on top of him.


    "I-I''m so d you''re okay!!"


    "Hey, hey what''s all this crying for?" Mchi asked as he wiped her tears.


    "Y-you''ve been unconscious for four days!" Sei cried.


    "Pardon?" Mchi asked in shock. "Don''t you mean four hours?"


    "No!"


    Mchi could do nothing but hold his weeping girlfriend in surprise.


    He felt like he''d just had a really nice nap, but he''d actually been in a sma.


    "Brother!"


    Aubrey was now awake and she too was crying all over Mchi.


    "W-what happened to you? You had all of us so worried!"


    "Umm.."


    Mal was suddenly drawing a nk.


    He didn''t remember what happened exactly.


    Though the sudden question did remind him of what he was doing here in the first ce.


    "Is Mnie okay?" He suddenly asked.


    Aubrey and Sei suddenly made ufortable expressions.


    Mal immediately feared the worst and his heart began to elerate rapidly.


    "She''s fine but¡­" Aubrey began.


    "But what?!"


    "Honey.." Sei shyly began. "Did you¡­ do something to her?"


    Mchi felt his face heat up as he heard his girlfriend ask him the worst question imaginable.


    "What? No! You know I want you to be my first woman."


    "Gross!" Aubrey cried.


    "T-That''s not what I meant!" Sei blushed furiously and she tried not to show how happy she was with Mchi''s sudden deration.


    "Oh.." Mchi immediately calmed down and said a silent apology to his sister for any trauma he may have caused.


    "Then what''s going on with her?" Mal asked again.


    The girls looked at each other withplicated eyes before Aubrey spoke.


    "Well she''s.."

 Chapter 45: Mark of Cain

    <h4>Chapter 45: Mark of Cain</h4>


    Mchi was able to get out of his hospital room fairly easily.


    Because doctors figured there was nothing wrong with him and he was just exhausted, he wasn''t actually hooked up to anything.


    Currently, he was nestled up against Sei''s breasts in his cat form as she carried him to Mnie''s room.


    He''d decided that this was the best way to move throughout the hospital without drawing attention.


    It had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that he wanted to feel her breasts.


    The two werepletely unrted!


    ''So soft¡­ like giant marshmallows.. she smells great too!''


    Oddly enough, Sei was having simr thoughts.


    ''He''s so soft and fluffy! He has to be the cutest cat I''ve ever seen!'' She screamed internally.


    ''I should do this more often.'' Mal thought.


    ''I should ask him to change more often.'' Sei thought.


    The happy mood of the couple was so palpable that the nearby Aubrey was coteral damage.


    ''Ugh, I wish they''d just get a room.'' She thought as she rolled her eyes.


    Upon reaching Mnie''s hospital room, there were three doctors inside all writing down something on their charts.


    "Hello."


    The three turned around to see a beautiful older woman holding a cat and an attractive young girl.


    "I''m sorry ma''am but this patient can''t see visitors at this time." One of the doctors said.


    Suddenly, he looked Sei up and down and shed her a flirtatious smile. "I would be happy to escort you to our cafeteria if you''d like?"


    In truth, Sei was disgusted and wanted to make her displeasure known.


    Before she''d even gotten the chance, Mchi leapt out of her grasp and returned to his true appearance.


    He possessively wrapped his arm around her and shed the perverted doctor a menacing re.


    The three doctors took several steps backwards.


    Of course they recognized one of the most famous men in the world, how could they not?


    But only at that moment did the doctor remember that Mchi was often photographed with an older woman that looked eerily simr to the one in front of him now.


    "I-I was just-"


    "Get out." Mchi ordered.


    He currently did not have his sses on so his eyes were burning an intense and frightening orange.


    The doctor wasted no time and hurriedly excused himself from the room.


    ''W-was Mchi always so possessive?'' Sei squirmed a bit in his grasp.


    Seeing a new side to the man she loved, she became slightly aroused.


    As Sei''s mind began to fill with dangerous thoughts, one of the other doctors finally got over his fear and realized why Mchi must''vee.


    "Mr. Saint, Y-You did this correct?" He gestured to the sleeping Mnie.


    "I''m still not exactly sure what''s going on." Mchi said.


    Aubrey and Sei had told him something but he found it too wild to believe.


    The doctors sighed before they began a game of Rock Paper Scissors.


    "What are you doing?" Mchi asked in confusion.


    "We''re deciding who has to demonstrate." One doctor exined.


    Mchi didn''t understand but elected not toment further.


    ""Rock!""


    ""Paper!""


    ""Scissors!""


    One doctor threw up rock, the other scissors.


    "Damn it!"


    "Yes! I''m safe!"


    Mchi stared at all of this in disbelief.


    Was what happened to Mnie really that dangerous?


    The doctor who''d lost put on a forlorn expression as he looked at Mchi. "Can you atleast.. catch me?"


    "Uhh.. sure?"


    The man seemed satisfied with this answer and he took a deep breath before he pulled a clean needle from the nearby cab.


    He walked towards Mnie and prepared to prick her arm when it happened.


    Bang!


    "GAH!!"


    A shield of bright golden light left Mnie''s body and threw the poor doctor into the air.


    Mchi hurriedly caught him before he hit the ground as promised, but he was so shocked that he''d almost missed him.


    As hard as it was to believe, what the girls had told him earlier was true.


    But what was even more surprising was that Mchi recognized the energy.


    "I¡­ think I might''ve did this, but it''s not like I really know how." Mchi said honestly.


    The energy st he felt earlier was frightening simr to the feeling his golden mes gave off.


    So much so that if he''d closed his eyes, he would''ve thought someone else had his same power.


    "You did this honey?" Sei asked in shock.


    "No fair! Why does your shitty ex get super powers and not your cute sister!" Aubrey finally made her displeasure known.


    "I didn''t give it to her on purpose!" Mchi defended.


    "Then give it to ME on purpose!"


    Mchi ignored her and walked forward to investigate.


    He tried a few times to absorb the power from Mnie back into himself, but it proved to be to no avail.


    Mal took a closer look at her body and saw a faint glowing symbol on her forehead.


    "Hey can you hand me my phone?" He suddenly asked.


    Sei fished Mchi''s phone out of her purse and watched as he began to dial a number.


    "Who are you calling?"


    "An old man."


    -


    Of course, Rowan was extremely worried about Mal like everyone else who knew him.


    His hospitalization wasn''t on the news, but the fact that he''d left his car at his farm was very concerning.


    After he''d made sure Mal was okay, he immediately gave him all of the information he was asking for.


    Rowan deduced that Mal had bestowed upon Mnie the mark of Cain.


    In short, she was now unable to be killed by natural means.


    Any harmful attack not containing divinity or magic, would immediately be repelled.


    "Christ.."


    When Mchi finally got off the phone, he rubbed his temples in frustration.


    Life had suddenly be way tooplicated for his taste.


    If the doctors couldn''t pierce Mnie''s skin, they would have no way to ce IVs to keep her from dying in her sleep.


    She would die because she was too well protected!


    "Well? Could you figure out how to remove it?" A doctor asked.


    Mchi unfortunately shook his head no when he suddenly had an idea.


    "No but.. I know a way you could treat her anyway."


    Since Mnie couldn''t be pierced by anything not containing mana, all they needed to do was to treat her as if she were a blessed.


    Usually, blessed do not go to hospitals but there have been a few rare asions where it was necessary.


    In those moments, the tools used on them were made from mana ore inside of gates.


    It was outrageously expensive but what other choice did they have?


    Mal told the doctors his idea and they became incredibly excited.


    Using such high quality tools was every doctors dream!


    "And I want everything you saw in this room to stay a secret, alright? " Mal said.


    If word got around that he could make everyday people practically invulnerable, his life would be even more insane than it already was.


    Luckily, the doctors were not idiots and solemnly swore that her condition would remain a secret.


    With that done, he went back to his room to prepare to be discharged and was surprised by what he saw.


    Standing at the door holding balloons and flowers was Luna Autumn.

 Chapter 46: Guilt & Friendship

    <h4>Chapter 46: Guilt & Friendship</h4>


    Luna was surprised to see that Mal was not in his room as he''d been for the past few days.


    She immediately turned around and prepared to inquire about his whereabouts, only to immediately find him standing behind her.


    For a moment, only silence persisted between the two.


    They hadn''t actually spoken since that night at Morgan''s house.


    Luna was utterly unprepared for a confrontation of any kind today.


    She knew what she wanted to say but would Mal be upset with her answer?


    The fear that he would began to cause turmoil inside of her heart.


    "It''s good to see you, bossdy. " Mal suddenly said.


    He wore his normal smile, but Luna could not help but feel hurt.


    He''d returned to the way he addressed her before.


    The one time he''d said her name was more than enough for her to never want to be called anything else.


    She swallowed her disappointment and shed him a polite smile of her own. "It''s good to see you''re up and walking around. You gave us quite the scare."


    Luna, Aisha, Sei and Aubrey were the only ones who knew about Mchi''s hospitalization.


    As his sister and only next of kin, Aubrey was of course notified when Mal copsed next to Mnie''s bed.


    She called Sei and Aisha in a panic, who in turn called Luna.


    The four all dropped what they were doing and immediately came to see him.


    Luna and Aisha immediately knew that Mal had overused his powers when they sensed his weak aura.


    The girls guessed that he''d wake up in a day or two, which gave Sei and Aubrey the peace of mind they needed.


    But on the third day, the girls began to panic.


    They couldn''t imagine how he could''ve possibly expended enough energy to keep him unconscious for four whole days.


    "I''m sorry for the trouble." He scratched his cheek in embarrassment.


    "Hmph, as long as you know how troublesome you are." She said.


    "These are for you." Luna shyly handed him the flowers and balloons she''d brought.


    Mchi graciously epted, but in the next moment a question was posed that made his blood run cold.


    "Now that you''re awake, do you mind telling us how the hell you ended up with your ex?" Aubrey asked.


    Suddenly, Luna and Sei both began to give Mal usatory looks.


    They knew he''d saved the girl from being abused but, they weren''t sure how he ended up with her in the first ce.


    With a sigh, Mchi began telling the girls everything, starting with how he first saw Mnie''s bruises.


    -


    "Brother.."


    Aubrey wasn''t alone, all three of the girls were currently giving Mchi sad looks.


    The guilt contained in his story was palpable, so much so that they could almost see the aura of despair surrounding him.


    "Mal¡­ it''s not your fault." Luna said gently.


    "That''s right honey.. you couldn''t have known something so awful would happen." Seiforted.


    For the first time, the words of his loved ones fell on deaf ears.


    In Mal''s heart, he knew that he could not believe in the words of the girls.


    The fact of the matter was that if he''d only bothered to stop Mnie earlier, or even checked on her just a moment sooner, things would not be the way they were now.


    There was nothing the girls could say to lift this burden from his mind.


    It would be another regret that he would carry with him for the rest of his life.


    But he could not allow them to know that could he?


    "Thanks girls, I feel better already. Let''s get out of here, yea?" He said said with his usual cheerful smile.


    Even though they could tell that his smile was slightly different from his usual one, they all elected not to press him too much.


    The group soon left the room and as Mchi prepared to be discharged, he was hit with an unexpected question.


    "Mr. Saint, will you be taking care of the bill for the three of you?" A nurse asked.


    "Pardon?" He asked.


    "Yourself, Miss Mnie, and her mother."


    Mchi immediately felt like he was hit by a truck.


    Mnie never spoke about her mother when they were together and because he did not want to make her ufortable, he never asked about her either.


    He knew better than anyone what it meant if you were actively avoiding the subject of your parents.


    "Yea, I''ll take care of both of them." Mal said.


    He didn''t need to know the details of what was wrong with her, for now all he had to do was help.


    He owed Mnie atleast this much.


    The women behind him knew they could do little to change his mind so they did not stop him.


    -


    Currently, Mal and Luna were riding in the car together.


    Mal absolutely did not want to go back home toze around some more so he was going back to the guild to get in some training with Rose and Aisha.


    Tired of the awkward silence, Luna finally decided to erase the tension between the two.


    "I''m.. sorry for running out on you Mchi." She finally said.


    Truth be told, Mchi was unprepared for this sudden apology.


    Luna always seemed like a proud and regal woman who''d never apologize for anything.


    ''But then again, she never seemed like the kind of woman to make a face like the one I saw that night either.'' Mchi thought inwardly.


    Luna was proving to be full of surprises.


    "It''s cool but.. can I ask why you did it?"


    "I''m just not good with things like this." Her bright pink eyes took on a faraway look. "I''ll spare you the whole sob story but I''m just not the kind of person who has fulfilling rtionships."


    "Luna you-"


    "Despite that.. for the first time in my life I want to try." She interrupted.


    When her words sank in, Mal felt his head spin.


    He thought for sure this was going in apletely different direction.


    "But.. I need you to be a bit patient with me." She added. "These feelings are all very new a-and I just need some time to process them. So.. can we try just being friends first?"


    This was the part she was worried about the most.


    She didn''t want him to think she was outright rejecting him or friendzoning him.


    There was just so much she needed to sort out.


    Her own feelings were just one thing, she still had to figure out how their rtionship dynamic would work.


    She was still technically his boss!


    If things progressed further and their rtionship was found out, people would say she seduced him to join their guild!


    She could already imagine the headlines.


    They''d make her look like some kind of predator!


    "Please understand I just-"


    "Okay." Mal said without much thought.


    Luna was so surprised by his sudden answer she almost bent the steering wheel in her hands.


    "You.. aren''t upset?"


    "Huh? Why would I be upset?" Mal asked in bewilderment. "I know this must be a lot for you because of our current rtionship, so I don''t mind being your friend until you decide whether to move forward or not."


    "You don''t mind waiting?"


    "Nah, you''re worth waiting for."


    Those words filled Luna''s heart with an indescribable joy.


    She hadn''t realized how fast her heart was beating during this entire exchange until she finally let out a sigh of relief.


    "Thank you Mal.. truly."

 Chapter 47: Proposition

    <h4>Chapter 47: Proposition</h4>


    Bang!


    Bang!


    Boom!!


    The brutal exchange of blows between three high level blessed sounded like roaring thunder reverberating against the walls.


    "Jesus Mal.. are you on steroids?" Rose asked in shock as she rubbed her aching body.


    "Steroids don''t work on us remember?" Aisha added.


    "Then you exin why he''s suddenly such a freak!"


    "Hey!" Mal interrupted. "I''m not a freak!"


    "The hell you aren''t!"


    "You are pretty freaky, Mchi." Aisha confirmed.


    Currently, the trio were inside one of the standard white training rooms inside the guild.


    Mal spontaneously decided he had a massive amount of energy to burn so he requested to spar not only with his favorite trainer, but his best friend as well.


    Because Aisha knew that he''d been in the hospital, she was going rather easy on him but even still, he was doing wonderfully.


    Since she was blessed by a powerful god of war, Aisha understood all the nuances and details ofbat down to the millimeter.


    Her body had long been transformed into something that could be called a living weapon.


    Despite that, her friend was actually managing tond decisive, fierce blows on her.


    She''d gotten a brief chance to spar with him before and the power contained in his strikes was definitely higher now than back then.


    Rose was the most shocked.


    Since she spent so much time training Mal, she believed she knew his capabilities better than anyone.


    Imagine her surprise when she realized that her former pupil was managing to keep up with her at 80% of her strength.


    "You girls better get ready, I''m not done quite yet!"


    Mal held out both of his palms and showed off his newest trick.


    Two bright golden flowers sparked to life in his hands.


    The girls were momentarily stunned by their beauty, giving Mal the perfect opportunity tounch his attack.


    "Flowers for the lovelydies!" Mal taunted before throwing the two miniature bombs at his opponents.


    Aisha could instinctively sense danger and wasted no time jumping out of the way.


    Unfortunately, Rose was a bit too slow and ended up being thrown back by the shockwave from the explosion.


    BOOOOOM!!


    "Kyaa!"


    She was flung face first onto the ground after letting out a surprisingly girly scream that Mal would never expect from her.


    Suddenly, Aisha appeared in front of Mchi in an unseen burst of speed and delivered a brutal punch to the stomach that immediately made him double over.


    Just like that, the spar had ended.


    Mal was getting shbacks to when they were kids and she used to kick his ass all the time.


    While she stopped being so rough once she became a blessed, he had never forgotten that she was always a better fighter than him.


    "Mal..how did you do that?"


    "*cough!* I.. have a really good teacher." He weakly replied.


    "A teacher?" As far as Rose recalled, he wasn''t working with anyone in the guild.


    ''Is he getting some special lessons fromdy Luna?''


    "Who the hell is teaching you to do something like that?!" Rose yelled.


    "An old man." Mchi answered as he continued to clutch his midsection.


    If Aisha had applied even a bit more force, he was sure he''d be spitting up blood by now.


    "What old man??" Rose asked curiously.


    And so he weakly told them about his rtionship with Rowan, while of course leaving out the purpose behind their original meeting.


    While Aisha already knew about how their rtionship, she didn''t know his teaching would be so effective.


    An idea began to form in her head and she asked Mal for rification. "Do you mind asking him if he''d like to train some of the girls here?"


    It would be a lie if Mal said he wasn''t surprised by her question.


    But when he thought more about it, he realized this would be a good thing for all parties involved.


    He had no idea when then the enemies the gods spoke of were going to turn up so it would be great if all the girls learned to protect themselves better.


    Plus Rowan didn''t get much social interaction so Mal thought it would be good for him to be around people.


    "I don''t mind but.. are you sure things will be okay?"


    Aisha didn''t need to ask what Mal was worried about.


    When he first joined the guild, there were a few members that took issue with him being there.


    Even though those voices were few, they were still there.


    Mal was worried that the same women who disdained his presence would be even more aggravated by Rowan''s.


    "You don''t need to worry about that. Anyone who has something to say can talk to me since it was my idea in the first ce." She defended.


    "Plus if we get permission from Lady Luna as well, then nobody canin right?" Rose added excitedly.


    As a well known battle junkie, she was always looking for any opportunity to further her power however possible.


    Before anyone could say anything else, she was already pulling her phone out to dial Luna''s number.


    Mchi sighed before he took out his to call Rowan.


    Something told him that when she heard he was involved she would agree.


    -


    Sei was having a fine day after leaving the hospital.


    Her restaurant was as busy as always and she was receiving rave reviews from customers.


    More than a few had asked to chat with her with questions about her recipes as well as what it was like to be with Mchi.


    In those moments, she could not help but blush and think of how happy she''d been.


    Life had be a dream that she never wanted to wake up from.


    "Excuse me, boss?"


    Sei stopped her task of doing inventory in the back and paid attention to one of her waitresses. "What is it Ruby?"


    "One of the customers is asking for you." She responded politely.


    Sei sighed and stood up indicating for her employee to lead the way.


    As the pair walked through the crowded restaurant, they came to a stop in front of a nearly empty booth.


    Sei felt her heart drop when she saw who was asking for her.


    It''d been years and he''d definitely aged but there was no mistaking it.


    Sitting timidly in her very own restaurant, was her ex husband.

 Chapter 48: Reconnection

    <h4>Chapter 48: Reconnection</h4>


    Sei was only momentarily stunned before her body began to fill with rage.


    "You.. why are you here Minoru?"


    If Mchi were here, he would undoubtedly be shocked by his girlfriend''s demeanor.


    He''d never seen her so much as raise her voice, yet she was ring at the man in front of her with an expression that could kill.


    Minoru could be described as a polite looking man with salt and pepper hair. Unlike Sei, he had begun to show more signs of aging and possessed a few wrinkles on his face.


    "I know this muste as quite the shock."


    "Shock doesn''t even begin to cover it."


    Sei refused to sit down and even clenched her fists in anger. "Why are you here?"


    "I¡­ see you online a lot." He began. "I''m happy to see that you''ve found someone, even if he is a little young."


    He chuckled as if he''d just said something hrious and Sei had to stop herself from breaking a soju bottle over his head.


    "My rtionship with Mchi is none of your damn business."


    "You''re right, it''s not and I have no ns to interfere in that-"


    "You couldn''t even if you tried." Sei growled.


    She was pissed and it was getting worse by the second.


    Every word from this asshole''s mouth only served to infuriate her beyond belief.


    It was taking more and more effort not to cause a scene in her own restaurant.


    Minoru tried not to show that he was surprised by her words but failed.


    In the end he''d never expected his kind and gentle ex wife to have such a viscous mouth. "Be that as it may¡­ my only interest is in seeing our child."


    "You.. are you insane? You haven''tid eyes on our daughter once since she''s been alive, yet now you suddenly want to y at being a father?!"


    "I-I know I have made a lot of mistakes and hurt you both but I want to make up for them."


    "Make up for them?? She''s already an adult! You''ve missed everything that truly counted!"


    Mentally, Sei was kicking herself.


    She couldn''t believe she''d ever fallen for anything that had evere out of this man''s mouth.


    "I-I know it''s a big ask but¡­ I''m begging you. Please, Sei." He bowed deeply.


    Sei did not say anything, and simply stared at the man she hated more than anything.


    For the first time in a long time, she was unsure of what was the right decision to make.


    -


    It was now night time and Mal was at home studying.


    Turns out being unconscious for four days leaves a person with lots of missed school work.


    Who knew?


    Sei hade over to check on him and ended up ying the roll of a sexy housewife.


    She was currently preparing tea to help him rx and she even had dinner in the oven.


    Mal had told her they could just order takeout, but Sei reminded him that just because he couldn''t get fat anymore didn''t mean she couldn''t.


    As she poured the piping hot tea into a china cup, she once again wondered how she was going to tell Mal about today''s events.


    Honestly speaking she didn''t want to worry about any of todays events and simply catch up on the time she missed while he was unconscious.


    Plus she wasn''t exactly sure how he would react and Sei didn''t want to risk him being the cause of another person''s disappearance.


    Sei walked towards the table where Mal was working and ced the cup of tea in front of him. "Be careful honey it''s hot."


    Mchi smiled and prepared to give it a taste, when he noticed her palms.


    They were red and irritated like she''d dug her nails into them.


    "Eeep!"


    Wasting no time, Mchi pulled the gorgeous older woman into hisp and took her hand.


    "What happened here?"


    Sei immediately felt like she''d been caught red handed and judging by the coloration of her palms, she was correct.


    "T-This is nothing!" Sei quickly lied and tried to leave hisp but Mchi held her firmly.


    "Hey.. tell me what''s going on with you." Mchi said as gently as possible.


    He''d been so focused on catching up on missed work that he hadn''t been paying attention to Sei but now that he''d thought about it, she''d been acting strange ever since she arrived.


    Hearing the gentle way Mchi spoke to her, Sei felt she had toe clean or risk worrying the poor man to death.


    "Well.. my ex husband came by the restaurant today." She finally said.


    Mal did not immediately be protective but this sudden revtion did make his heart speed up.


    He didn''t know what had happened between the two but he did know that Serana had never met her father.


    "What did he say?"


    "He..wanted to meet Serana."


    "Oh.. did you allow it?"


    Sei nodded sadly, though she looked to be having some regrets. "They''re meeting right now."


    Mchi chuckled before he gave Sei a peck on the forehead. "Are you worried?"


    She nodded slowly as shey her head on his chest.


    Sei could''ve refused and maybe she should''ve.


    But she knew that her daughter had always wanted some kind of male figure in her life and she didn''t want to stand in the way of that.


    Her daughter was already grown and more than capable of making her own decisions.


    She just hoped that she wouldn''t get hurt in the process.


    "I wouldn''t worry too much." Mchi said as he rubbed Seis back lightly.


    "On the contrary, I think you should be more worried about him."

 Chapter 49: Lethal Combination

    <h4>Chapter 49: Lethal Combination</h4>


    Serana was currently walking through a well lit park at night.


    Minoru had chosen this spot as the meeting ce and she was honestly less than thrilled about it.


    ''Creepy bastard, making a young girl show up in the park at night all alone.''


    She ceased her internal grumbling when she finally caught sight of an older Asian man sitting alone on a park bench.


    Evidently, he saw her as well and stood up with a smile.


    "Serana¡­ you''ve grown into such a wonderful young woman." He said with a hint of sadness mixed into his voice.


    He held out his arms, indicating he wanted a hug and because she did not halt her advance, he assumed she wouldply.


    ''I knew it! I knew my daughter would miss me!'' He thought excitedly.


    Unfortunately, reality is often disappointing.


    Instead of the warm parent and child embrace he was expecting, Serana swiftly brought her steel toed boot directly between her father''s legs.


    A sickening, squelch sound could be heard and Minoru immediately fell to his knees as he yelled in pain.


    "GYAAAA-"


    Evidently, Serana did not believe that was enough punishment as she delivered a solid right hook to her father''s jaw, sending him sprawling out onto the ground.


    The money her mother spent on self defense lessons for her as a child did not appear to have been wasted.


    Though one could not say that they were being used for the greater good either.


    "Why!! Why?!?" Minoru yelled.


    "Damn bastard." Serana looked down at the writhing man with unfiltered disgust. "You think I want you around after all this time?"


    Sei had never spoken to Serana about her father but that didn''t mean she did not form her own hatred of him.


    She would never forget all the times in school where her friends would excitedly talk about their fathers, while she had to sit in silence.


    On more than one asion had she listened to her mother crying and she knew it was about theirck of money and support.


    To her, there was absolutely nothing to be talked about with this man. As far as she was concerned, they had absolutely no rtion.


    She''d only epted his proposal to meet to give him this simple message she''d been holding onto for neen years of life.


    "Don''te around anymore. Neither me or my mother want anything to do with you." She said coldly.


    With that, she left the park leaving him on the ground writhing in agony.


    -


    "HAHAHAHA!!!"


    Mchi threw his head back andughed heartily as if he''d just seen the funniest thing imaginable.


    "What? What did you see??" Sei asked curiously.


    Because she was too worried to rx, she''d asked Mchi to peep with his powers a bit and see if things were going well.


    He reluctantly agreed and after around a minute, he began tough hysterically like this.


    "She¡­ pfft.. HAHAHAHAHA!!!" Mchi tried his best to calm down but it proved to be ineffective.


    The cartoonish way in which Minoru had hit the ground had been much too entertaining to watch.


    Sei had reluctantly told him why he left them, erasing any and all sympathy he could''ve held for the man.


    He was hoping Serana would''ve gotten another punch or even a kick in but unfortunately she seemed satisfied with just that.


    "That was great! I''ll have to thank her for showing me something so funny!"


    Sei had finally had enough and she puffed her cheeks out in irritation.


    She grabbed Mal by the face and began to stretch and pull like his cheeks were made of taffy. "Why are youughing? You''re supposed to be checking on Serana!"


    "I was! I was!" Mal chuckled.


    He secretly found his girlfriend''s pouting face to be very cute.


    "Then what happened?? How could their meeting be so amusing?"


    "Let''s just say.. your daughter has pretty good aim. You should talk to her about ying ser."


    Sei was about to ask what that meant when her phone started ringing and she received a call from her daughter in question.


    She hurriedly answered and the concern in her voice was palpable.


    "Hey sweetie are you okay¡­ What do you mean you''re heading home already?¡­ You did what?!!"


    "HAHAHAHAHA!!" Mchi couldn''t hold it in and burst into a fit ofughter once more.


    Sei simply rubbed her temples as she listened to Serana''s breakdown of events.


    "Serana you really.."


    Sei tried her best to put on her stern mother act because her daughter did technically assault someone and she didn''t want her to think it was okay.


    However she was having quite the difficulty suppressing a giggle herself.


    -


    Long after Serana had left, Minoru was still writhing around on the ground.


    With great difficulty, he pulled out a burner phone from his pocket and dialed the only number saved in it.


    After a while, the call connected and a cold voicd could be heard.


    "What?"


    "I-I can''t do it! She wants nothing to do with me and she raised our daughter to be a merciless bitch!" Minoru''s voice was now several octaves higher than it originally was.


    "Did you think it would be easy? You''re a fucking deadbeat. Of course they don''t want anything to do with you. However that doesn''t mean you''re allowed to stop trying." The cold voice responded.


    "I don''t understand! Why do you even care about them?"


    "That''s none of your business. You''ve already received payment, you have no room to question me or my motives. Embed yourself back into your ex wife''s life and don''t call this number again until you''re ready to move forward."


    "And put some bass in your voice, you sound like a fucking girl."


    Click!


    The phone disconnected, leaving Minoru with only ruined genitals and bruised pride.


    "Fucking Alex Heller¡­ damn blessed bastard."


    Minoru groaned in pain as he scraped himself off the ground and prepared to head to the hospital.


    Along the way, he desperately tried toe up with a way to regain his family''s trust.


    He shuddered at the potential consequences of failure.


    -


    Mal had just seen Sei out of his apartment.


    She would''ve normally stayed over, however with tonight''s events, she elected to return home and spend the evening with her daughter.


    She of course invited him toe as well, but he declined in favor of a personal matter he wanted to take care of tonight.


    Derek was still on the run and Mal would not allow him the safety of being caught by police.


    After changing into a long sleeve ck shirt, ck cargo pants and boots, he finally opened his consciousness to the night.


    "Alright.. let''s see where you''re hiding bastard."

 Chapter 50: Dark Angels

    <h4>Chapter 50: Dark Angels</h4>


    Derek was currently looking nervously outside the window of his shabby rundown motel room.


    Normally, he would never stay in such a filthy, low ss ce.


    But desperate times called for desperate measures.


    He was already outside of the state so he was no longer worried about police, but he was sure there was another, more dangerous pursuer after his head.


    ''Mchi..''


    The look he had on his face when he''d arrived suddenly in his home was nothing short of horrifying.


    Derek was certain that if Mnie hadn''t been bleeding so badly, he would''ve died right there.


    ''At least that bitch was good for something..''


    He wouldn''t let his guard down until he reached his destination, his cousin''s home on the other side of the country.


    Only a blessed could deal with another blessed and Derek''s cousin happened to be S rank as well.


    However, he had to rest before continuing his journey.


    He''d been driving nonstop for several hours and it was an utter miracle he hadn''t fallen asleep at the wheel.


    He finally pulled over at the first motel he found, paid cash for the room and went inside.


    After putting his stuff down, he immediately began looking out the window to assure he hadn''t been followed.


    He scoured every inch of the parking lot but it appeared that he was safe and sound.


    Finally, he let out a sigh of relief.


    Seems like he was going to be able to get some rest after all.


    "Who are you looking for?"


    Suddenly, a voice Derek would recognize anywhere made his heart drop and his palms sweat.


    He slowly turned around to see a slightly disappointed looking Mchi standing behind him.


    "H-how are you-"


    "Jeez, that''s mad disappointing. I was hoping it would be like in theedy movies where you didn''t even realize you were talking to me until we exchanged a few words. Guess that''s all just a fantasy huh?" He clicked his teeth in mild frustration.


    There goes his n to get augh out of this whole thing.


    "H-Help-" Derek began to yell when Mchi suddenly grabbed him by the neck.


    "Oh you don''t wanna do that, Derek. See, cause then I''d have to tell anyone who came that you''re a woman abuser who''s on the run." Mchi warned.


    "You don''t wanna go to jail, do you Derek?"


    Even though Mchi''srge hand was around his neck, that did not stop him from nodding as hard as he possibly could.


    This caught Mchi by surprise.


    "Really? Do you know what happens to men in jail? Never thought you''d be so excited to go."


    Mchi released Derek when his face began to turn blue from theck of oxygen.


    "M-Mal wait! Let''s talk about this!" He begged as he tried to catch his breath.


    "Not particrly interested." Mal shrugged and raised his hand.


    A single bright golden me sparked to life from his finger tip.


    "The old man said they burn sins¡­ let''s see what that means."


    With a flick of his finger, the small spark of fire flew into Derek''s head.


    - 1 hourter.


    A single police car pulled into the parking lot of the shitty motel.


    Two officers proceeded to get out and headed for another pair officers standing a bit further away.


    "d you guys came." One officer said.


    "What''s so strange about this that you needed backup? I thought the perp confessed over the phone." An arriving officer asked.


    "Well it''s.." an officer tried to exin butcked the words.


    "You''ll understand if you speak to him yourself." His partner said and he turned around and walked towards a specific room.


    Upon entering the room they found a single man with dark hair sitting politely on the bed.


    When the man saw the officers, he offered them a gentle yet eerie smile that was frankly unnerving.


    "Hello officers. Fine night isn''t it?" Derek said, with his smile not once leaving his face.


    "Sure pal, why don''t you just tell us what you said when we first arrived." An officer said.


    "Okie dokie!" Derek said in a childlike manner that did not fit his rather bulky frame.


    "My name is Derek Walker. In my life I have abused thirteen women and raped seven. I have also taken part in a bit of moneyundering as well as some drug distribution." Hearing his deeds out of his own mouth, Derek began to cry.


    How could he have been so awful?


    He''d destroyed so many lives, and for what?


    The officer nodded, not particrly concerned with this bit of information at the moment. "And tell us, what made you want to confess?"


    "I have finally been made to see the error of my ways! God had bestowed upon me true sight and showed me the horrors I havemitted!"


    One of the officers in the back finally noticed some bruising around Derek''s neck, indicating he''d been strangled at some point.


    "Please good servants of thew, you must arrest me and see to it that I serve no less than the rest of my life in prison!" Derek pleaded with those same dead eyes and eerie smile.


    "Yea, yea, we got it just give us a moment."


    The officer turned around and ushered his coworkers outside before closing the door behind him.


    "What the fuck was that, Bill?" An officer finally asked.


    "Do you see my concern now?" The officer referred to as bill asked as he pulled out a cigarette and lit it. "I don''t think this falls within our jurisdiction."


    The group nodded simultaneously. They couldn''t shake off the eerie feeling they''d gotten from this case even if they wanted to.


    "Still.. I don''t like calling those blessed bastards to interfere in police work." Onemented.


    "What choice do we have, Dan? I don''t wanna deal with this shit!"


    The officer who''dined gritted his teeth before grabbing his radio.


    It took him a moment, but he finally pressed the button and said the ursed words.


    "This is officer Daniel Mordello¡­ I''m putting in a request for the assistance of the dark angels."

 Chapter 51: Rowan Is a Bad Liar

    <h4>Chapter 51: Rowan Is a Bad Liar</h4>


    Mchi was currently standing in an elevator next to a very nervous and fidgety old man.


    Today, he was scheduled to have a meeting with Luna about Rowan''s potential employment at the guild.


    Rowan had put on the most formal suit he owned and for once, did not reek of cigarettes and depression.


    "Why are you so nervous, old man?"


    "Brat! It''s Luna Autumn! She''s the most beautiful woman in the world and I''m about to walk into her office!" Rowan was constantly trying to straighten his clothes and make sure his hair looked presentable.


    "Keep it in your pants, geezer! She''s mine!" Mchi argued.


    Luna technically wasn''t actually his yet, however the words flew out of his mouth before he even realized it.


    "You wouldn''t know what to do with a woman like that, boy! She''s almost twice your age!"


    "You''re double hers!"


    "I''m only fifty!"


    This sudden reveal caused Mal to pause and give Rowan a pitying look.


    As he looked at his head full of gray hair and face full of wrinkles, he couldn''t help but feel bad for the old man.


    Mchi lightly patted Rowan on the shoulder and said in a voice full of sadness, "It''s been a hard fifty years, huh?"


    Rowan felt like a blood vessel was going to burst in his forehead. "You son of a bi-"


    Ding!


    The door to the elevator slid open and Mchi hurriedly slipped out followed by an irate old man.


    The two arrived directly in front of Luna''s office and Mchi hurriedly opened the door.


    ''Bastard! Why didn''t you knock?!'' Rowan wasn''t prepared yet!


    He needed another minute to calm his pulsing heartbeat!


    Upon entering Luna''s office the pair were greeted with the sweet, melodious sound of herughter.


    Both men felt their hearts speed up at the sight of the gorgeous white haired womanughing cutely.


    "I must say, the two of you are really amusing." Luna said as she wiped tears out of her eyes. "I can''t remember thest time Iughed like that."


    "Hm?" Mchi asked in confusion. "What are you talking about?"


    As a response Luna picked up her tablet and showed the two the footage she was just watching.


    "You know we have cameras in the elevators, Mal." Luna giggled.


    Both men now had embarrassed looks on their faces as if they''d just been caught red handed.


    Luna walked right up to Rowan and introduced herself politely.


    "I am Luna Autumn, thank you foring today."


    Rowan was entranced by Luna''s feminine movements that oozed grace and charm.


    In his entire life he''d never seen someone so effortlessly regal.


    He reached out to return her handshake but words continued to elude him. "I¡­I- "


    "Have one foot in the grave." Mal muttered.


    Rowan did not hear him however he assumed that Mal made another joke about him being senile and straightened up his posture. "I am Professor Rowan Ivers, thank you for seeing me today!"


    "Shall we sit down?" Luna gestured to the empty couches in her office and the men took a seat.


    "So, how do the two of you know each other?"


    Immediately, the two were blindsided.


    They hadn''t really expected such a question but in hindsight, it wasn''t unreasonable of her to ask that.


    "I''m his grandfather." Rowan blurted out without much thought.


    ''Oh my god what the fuck is wrong with you!?'' Mchi screamed internally.


    Rowan wished he could take it back as soon as he said it, however it was already toote.


    Luna looked back and forth between the two men on her couch who were clearly not rted.


    "I see¡­ well atleast I know where Mal gets his sense of humor from."


    She obviously knew that the two were not rted, however she trusted him enough to find out how they knew each otherter.


    Unbeknownst to her, she had already begun to give Mal special treatment.


    ''She''s just epting it?!''


    ''Do we actually look alike?''


    Mchi and Rowan both simultaneously checked their individual skin colors before looking at each other''s face.


    ''I was more handsome as a youth.''


    ''I wonder how long it''ll take me to age like that.''


    Seeing the two men who''s thoughts were clearly written on their faces, Luna could not resist the urge to smirk a bit.


    ''So they actually are a bit alike, huh?''


    She made sure to make a note of this for teasing Malter and decided to continue with the interview.


    "Now, tell me what you can do for us here at immortal moon."


    Rowan swallowed his nerves and then proceeded to exin his knowledge and how it could be applied to the guild members.


    Mchi also made sure toment on the few tricks that Rowan had taught him in their time together.


    She found the golden flowers to be especially innovative and captivating since the tattoo on her forehead was of the same flower.


    Luna made sure to ask more questions of her own and by the meeting''s end she''d actually learned a few new things about her potential abilities as well.


    After an hour long conversation, Luna was finally convinced and weed Rowan as an instructor at the guild.


    As the pair exited the building the old man was the liveliest Mchi had ever seen him.


    "Come on, brat! Let''s go get a drink!"


    "I can''t get drunk." Mchi shook his head.


    "I can!"


    Mal chuckled and prepared to agree to the old man''s request when he got a sudden phone call.


    He felt his whole body tense up when he saw who it was from and his finger trembled as he epted the call.


    "Mr. Saint? This is Moriarty Memorial Hospital calling to inform you that the patient is awake and responsive."


    He didn''t remember much after that, only that he''d driven to the hospital like a mad man.


    -


    When Mal arrived at the hospital, he was in such a daze that he almost needed to be led by the hand.


    What would he say?


    How should he apologize?


    Should he ask about why she ended up with someone like Derek in the first ce?


    Did it even matter anymore?


    His mind was embroiled in a storm of emotions.


    "Sir? Sir!" The nurse yelled.


    "Ah.." Mchi looked up and realized that he had indeed been spacing out and they''d already arrived at their destination. "Sorry about that."


    "It''s fine, I see it happen a lot." The nurse said as she waived her hand. "She''s right inside."


    The nurse waived him goodbye and left while he stared absentmindedly at the door.


    He was sure that what was waiting for him was an ufortable conversation but it was one he didn''t want to run away from.


    "Hoooo¡­No time like the present."


    Mchi opened the door to the hospital room and stepped inside.


    However instead of finding Mnie, the person actually sitting in the bed looked more like her older sister.


    Like Mnie she had short, ck hair that framed her face perfectly and a pair of dark amber eyes.


    They shared the same creamy whiteplexion, yet the woman in front of him seemed to be a bit paler than he remembered Mnie to be.


    She had a beauty mark beside her right eye and despite her slender figure, she also possessed thergest pair of breasts he''d ever seen.


    "Hello.. do I know you?"

 Chapter 52: Letting Go of Guilt Pt. 1

    <h4>Chapter 52: Letting Go of Guilt Pt. 1</h4>


    Mchi''s heart dropped down to his shoes.


    He wasn''t fazed by the beauty of the woman in front of him, instead he was horrified by her identity.


    It didn''t take a genius to figure out that this was Mnie''s mother.


    "Young man? Are you alright?" She asked in concern.


    This handsome young man had entered her room without saying a word and was looking at her like he''d seen a ghost.


    It was a good thing they were already in a hospital because she was certain he was going to faint at any moment.


    "Y-yea, I''m fine.." He lied.


    "Okay then.. can you tell me who you are?"


    Mchi considered for a moment what to say before he spoke.


    "I''m a friend of Mnie. My name is Mchi." He said with great difficulty.


    The woman felt her eyes widen at the mention of this young man''s name.


    Earlier today when she woke up, after ensuring that she was rtively healthy, a nurse informed her that her daughter had been admitted to the hospital as well and that all of the fees for their treatments had been paid in full.


    Naturally, like the good mother she was, she had many questions and the nurse did her best to sate her curiosity.


    She could only tell her that her daughter was in ama after sustaining blunt force trauma to the head. She was brought in by someone named Mchi who was supposedly very famous and he offered to pay medical expenses for the both of them.


    At the end of the story, Mnie''s mother Celeste didn''t know what to say.


    Someone was actually kind enough to not only bring her daughter to the hospital, but he''d paid all of their bills as well.


    Simply saying she was grateful would be an understatement.


    However, she''d been alive long enough to know that people very rarely do things simply out of the kindness of their hearts.


    "The nurses told me.. you''ve done a lot for my daughter and I." Celeste said gratefully.


    "But.. I don''t understand why someone who''s supposedly just a ''friend'' would be willing to pay such an enormous amount of money for us."


    Mchi felt his heart clench even further and he wondered how much he should tell the woman in front of him.


    Celeste seemed to notice his hesitation but she did not relent. "No matter how hard you think the truth may be, I deserve to hear it."


    Her words hit like a ton of bricks and Mchi found himself unable to refuse.


    He pulled up a chair to sit down before he began to tell Celeste the story of how he met her daughter.


    "Mnie and I got partnered together to work on a project for our sociology ss. Our professor thought it was funny that our names sounded sort of simr so he stuck us together." Mchi smirked.


    "Your daughter is quite popr at school, you can always find her surrounded by people who are desperate to get to know her.


    I thought that she''d just be a friend and nothing more but as time progressed I started to develop feelings for her."


    Mchi suddenly realized how embarrassing it was to tell his first girlfriend''s mother how he fell in love with her but he didn''t stop.


    "Eventually, I worked up the courage to confess to her and to my surprise, she actually said yes. To this day, I don''t understand why she epted someone like me."


    "What do you mean someone like you?" Celeste suddenly asked. "Even I can see that you''re extremely attractive and obviously wealthy."


    Mchi suddenly remembered his divine makeover and pulled out his phone.


    He quickly found a picture of he and his sister before his change and showed it to Celeste. "I got blessed after we broke up. She agreed to be with me when I looked like this."


    Celeste felt her eyes widen in surprise.


    The difference between the boy on screen and the man in front of her was like night and day.


    "Anyways, I didn''t have much due to my family situation but I tried to be good to her. When I wasn''t working, we were together. We went on dates to the park or anywhere we could find that didn''t cost too much."


    "I don''t understand."


    "Hm?"


    "You sound like the perfect little couple so why do you seem so sad?" Celeste asked.


    "Well that''s.. because she cheated on me and left me for my boss." Mchi said with great difficulty.


    "What?.." the mature woman asked in surprise.


    That didn''t sound like her daughter at all!


    But looking at the face of the young man in front of her, he seemed to be absolutely sure.


    "That''s.. I''m sorry."


    Mchi waived away her apology. "You might want to wait until the end of the story to decide if I''m still the kind of person who deserves your sympathy."


    He took a deep breath before he told her about the events that happened after the breakup.


    From the time where she showed up at his doorstep apologizing, to the day in ss when he saw her bruises yet ignored them.


    He even told her about his special ''vision'' that allowed him to check on her but it was already toote.


    "I¡­ didn''t want anything to do with her. Truthfully, I was bitter because she broke my heart and I wanted her out of my lifepletely.


    The fact that she was being abused didn''t matter. I was neglectful and as a result, your daughter is in aa and it''s not certain when she''ll wake up."


    Mchi lowered his head and his long dreads covered up his face that was twisted by guilt.


    "It''s not you that should be apologizing to me, I am the one who needs to apologize to you." He said solemnly.


    Mchi heard the sound of rustling sheets and closed his eyes in preparation of what he was sure wasing.


    Celeste would certainly strike him and why would she not?


    Would that not be the very least of what he deserved?


    Surprisingly, Mal did feel hands on his face but they weren''t hitting him.


    Celeste took his face in her hands and lifted his head up so that they were looking eye to eye.


    The two stared at eachother, both letting their tears of grief fall to the floor without a word passing between them.


    They simply watched each other in their most vulnerable state as they agonized over a young girl who was dear to both of them.


    "I-I don''t me you." Celeste finally broke the silence between them as she spoke with a shaky voice.


    "B-but I-"


    "I know how much you loved my daughter. And despite how much hurt she caused you, in the end you were still the one to save her."


    Those words made Mchi''s tears flow harder because he felt as though they were untrue.


    He didn''t save her, she''d still been hurt. Once again in his life he was unable to protect someone he cared about.


    The only difference now was that he''d actually had the power to do it.


    "I-I know you feel like you didn''t do enough, but if you didn''t get my daughter to the hospital in time she would''ve died on that horrible man''s floor."


    In a moment that would be ingrained in Mchi''s mind forever, Celeste smiled beautifully despite the tears running down her face.


    "So I should be thanking you instead. Thank you, Mchi. For saving my baby girl despite all the hurt she caused you."


    Those words left him stuck and unable to respond but luckily Celeste seemed to be expecting that.


    She wiped her face with her sleeve and tried her best to cleanse herself of tears.


    "I haven''t been out of my room since I woke up and frankly it''s a little bit stuffy in here."


    Mchi looked at her in confusion as he waited to see where she was going with this.


    "It just so happens that I haven''t been to see my daughter yet, so why don''t we go together?"

 Chapter 53: Letting Go of Guilt Pt. 2

    <h4>Chapter 53: Letting Go of Guilt Pt. 2</h4>


    Even though Celeste had asked Mchi if he wanted to go and see Mnie, it didn''t seem like she was going to take no for an answer.


    Before Mal could stop her, the buxom woman rose up from her bed and intertwined her arm with his.


    "Come along now, we don''t want to keep her waiting, do we?"


    For a woman who had just gotten out of aa, Celeste was moving around just fine.


    She had no problem lugging Mchi all the way to Mnie''s room without letting him slip from her grasp even once.


    But just as the two were about to enter, Mchi finally put up some resistance and stopped the two of them from going further.


    "Ma''am, I-"


    "Call me Celeste."


    "...Eh?"


    "You make me feel old when you call me ma''am so just use my name."


    "I... okay. Celeste, I-"


    The mature woman blushed furiously when she realized it had been a very long time since a young man had called her by her first name.


    It was significantly more embarrassing than she remembered.


    Mchi was oblivious to her current emotions and continued voicing his difort. "I don''t think I should intrude on your time with your daughter. I mean honestly I''m-"


    "Oh, enough!"


    "Ow!"


    Celeste suddenly grabbed Mchi by the ear and began to tug on it like she wanted to take it home with her.


    "You''re too young to wallow in guilt like this! If you keep this up your entire life will pass you by before you know it. How can you ever move forward if you''re consistently bogged down by memories of the past!?"


    "I get it, I get it! Can you let me go now?"


    "I haven''t decided yet!"


    The two attracted a great many stares from others in the hospital but neither of them seemed to notice that.


    Mchi was in far too much pain to care, while Celeste never did have a good sense of surrounding awareness.


    Eventually, the mature woman did release the tall young man but not before giving him another earful.


    "A man should be more confident and resolute! I''m not telling you to be some cocky asshole or anything like that but you have to learn how to leave all of your regrets behind and move on!"


    Maybe it was because his ear was still ringing, but Celeste''s words had a much more profound affect on Mal than they normally would have.


    While he did not particrly enjoy being scolded, he had to admit that her words had caused him to see a ring pattern within his life.


    For as long as he could remember, Mal had never been able to let any of his mistakes go no matter how big or small they were.


    They were all little things that he carried around with him on a daily basis and thought about constantly.


    He thought living like that would be the only way to avoid repeating his mistakes.


    But what if he was wrong?


    Could he learn from his mistakes without hating himself everyday?


    Was it possible to forgive himself for Mnie?


    What about what happened to Aubrey?


    Or that time he got beaten up in front of the whole school in 9th grade?


    Could he... forgive himself for the death of his parents?


    If he was honest, he wasn''t sure.


    But the thought of living a life free of all of his guilty burdens seemed like such a relief that he would be lying if he said that he did not want to try.


    "I get it... thank you, Celeste."


    "Hmph! If you''re going to say something like that then the least you could do is look me in the eye when you apologize!"


    Before Mchi could stop her, Celeste reached out and plucked his sunsses off his face.


    She wasn''t sure what she expected to see, but bright orange eyes that looked like they belonged to some kind of cat were absolutely not it.


    Mchi Immediately closed his eyes and gestured for her to hand him his sunsses back. "They probably scared you a bit, right? I get that a lot."


    Just as Mchi reached for the sses, Celeste hid them behind her back and lightly touched Mchi''s face. "No... they aren''t scary at all... I actually find them to be quite beautiful."


    Mchi was visibly stunned to hear someone other than Sei refer to his gift from Bast as ''beautiful.''


    He wondered if the two women were insane or if everyone else was just rather jumpy.


    A smile spread across Mchi''s face that threatened to flood Celeste''s underwear. "Thank you for saying so... Maybe I won''t hide them from now on."


    For the first time today Celeste lost herposure as her face became a much more noticeable shade of red.


    Mchi of course noticed this change and moved in a bit closer out of worry. "Are you alright? You aren''t still feeling unwell, are you?"


    "I-I''m fine!" Celeste finally realized that maybe she''d been acting a little too familiar with this young man who she barely even knew.


    She pushed open the door to her daughter''s room and did not even wait for him toe inside behind her.


    ''H-He''s my daughter''s ex! I-I''m sure he doesn''t want some old woman thinking about him like this!''


    Just as Celeste Sat on her daughter''s bed, Mchi entered and sat in a chair opposite her.


    She could not help but notice that Mchi seemed to have listened to her advice and now had a much moreposed and confident air about himself.


    It was a small change, and one that would undoubtedly take time to cultivate but she noticed it all the same.


    ''This is bad... He''s much more attractive than before...''


    The two spent an entire hour in Mnie''s room.


    What they talked about was something only the three of them would be allowed to know, but the one thing that was for sure was that Mchi came out of the hospital that day a changed man.

 Chapter 54: Found

    <h4>Chapter 54: Found</h4>


    Leaving the hospital, Mchi felt lighter than air.


    He had relieved himself of all of his burdens and inside of Mnie''s room, and finallye to ept that he had nothing to feel guilty for.


    Somehow, hearing the stern words from Mnie''s mother herself had been thest piece of the puzzle that he needed to move on.


    As the day slowly turned into night, he began to feel happier and happier.


    And there was only one person whom he wanted to share this happiness with.


    Pulling out his phone, he immediately dialed the number of his beautiful and mature girlfriend.


    Unfortunately, the voice he heard when the call connected was not one that he enjoyed hearing.


    Serana : "What''s up, step-bastard?"


    Immediately, a vein bulged In Mchi''s head and his good mood all but disappeared. "What the hell kind of name is that?"


    Serana : "A fitting one."


    "Why do you have Sei''s phone?"


    "She''s in the shower, and I just wanted to take this time to ask a favor of my good friend!"


    ''I thought I was a bastard¡­?''


    Mchi finally reached his car in the parking lot but instead of getting in, he sat on the hood of his car while looking up into the night sky.


    "Oh yea? And what might that be?"


    "Can you pleaseeee introduce me to that guy Ryo Amaki?"


    Mchi immediately rolled his eyes and fought the urge to hang up. "I barely know him."


    "Can''t you get to know him then? And you can casually mention that you have a hot avable friend who''s a really big- Kyaaa!"


    Suddenly, Mchi heard sounds of struggling on the phone, followed by the sound of his beloved girlfriend''s voice.


    Sei : "What are you doing with my phone?!"


    Serana : "Trying to make sure that you can have some grandkids!"


    Sei: "What?!"


    Mchi listened to this back and forth ordeal for several minutes andughed himself to the point of physical exhaustion.


    Tears were running down his cheeks, his sides were aching, but he had honestly never felt better.


    Eventually, Sei recovered her phone and was praying that Mal hadn''t heard all of that when she realized he was still on the line.


    "Honey¡­ You didn''t hear any of that, did you?"


    Mchi smiled and contemted saying no to spare his girlfriend some embarrassment, but ultimately decided that wouldn''t be any fun.


    "What do you think our grandkids should call us? Grandpa feels pretty boring, but I think if a kid called me pee-paw I''d want to kill myself."


    "Honestly... You''re not funny!"


    Despite her embarrassment, Sei let out a genuine amused giggle that made Mchi''s heart speed up.


    The two spent several minutes talking and enjoying the sound of eachother''s voices.


    It wasn''t until a few minutes had gone by that Mchi suddenly decided he missed Sei too much to be satisfied with a mere phone call.


    "I''ming over, have you eaten?"


    "E-Eh? No I haven''t but honey you don''t need to-"


    "I know I don''t need to but I want to." Mchi slipped off the hood of his car and instead opened the door to get inside.


    "Alright honey¡­ I''ll be waiting."


    It wasn''t intentional, but Sei''s soft and feminine tone nearly drove her boyfriend wild.


    "I''ll be there in ten minutes!"


    "Honey, no speeding!"


    Mchi chuckled before nodding inpliance. "Alright, I''ll be there in¡­"


    His words gradually trailed off, as he suddenly felt like he was being watched.


    "Honey?"


    "Ah, I''ll be there in twenty minutes, I guarantee it."


    Afterwards, Mal hung up the phone and his body was suddenly encased in shadows before he disappeared.


    -


    On the roof of the hospital, two men in king dark coats could be seen staring down at the parking lot below.


    "Damn it, he teleported!"


    "Could you have set him off somehow?


    "That''s not possible."


    "Yes it is." Mchi suddenly said.


    Both men immediately whirled around to find Mchi leaning against the railing with his arms folded and his eyes unhidden.


    Mchi briefly nced at the two men who''d been watching him from the rooftop.


    One was a bit more tall and muscr than the other, with neatly gelled brown hair and a sharp jawline.


    His eyes were quite strange, and seemed to be glowing a bright purple.


    ''He was the one watching me...'' Mchi realized.


    Standing next to the tall man was a slightly shorter one who appeared to be equally handsome.


    He had long dark hair and golden eyes that paired perfectly with his radiant dark skin.


    His hair was neatly cut into a fade, and he was consistently wearing a charismatic smile.


    Even though Mchi had never seen these two men before, he knew what organization they represented.


    ''The Dark Angels...''


    The dark angels are a secret task force consisting of blessed that only deal in blessed rted crimes.


    They received their name based on their angelic purpose that sometimes became muddled by their violent confrontations.


    If they hade looking for him, he already knew what it was about.


    "You could feel me watching you?" Therge man said. "That''s... rather impressive."


    "Is there a reason why you were watching me in the first ce?" Mchi asked, feigning ignorance.


    Suddenly, the shorter man walked forward and held out his hand.


    "Nice to meet you, Mr. Saint! My name is Lamont, blessed by Papa Legba."


    He then pointed to his partner and introduced him as well. "This is my partner, Seth, he is the one blessed by Heimdall."


    Mchi nodded at each of the men before taking Lamont''s outstretched hand.


    "Nice to meet you... If you don''t mind, can we wrap this up quickly?I have to be somewhere in twenty minutes."


    "Sure, sure!" Lamont said with a heartyugh. "We just have two very simple questions."


    Suddenly, Seth walked forward as if he was trying to intimidate Mchi. "What did you do to Arthur Rnd and Derek O''Brian?"

 Chapter 55: Stupid Cards

    <h4>Chapter 55: Stupid Cards</h4>


    Maybe it was because Mal hadn''t expected him to ask about Arthur, but his face did show traces of surprise when asked about him.


    "What makes you think I have anything to do with the two of them?" Mchi asked.


    "Ah!" Lamont seemingly realized he''d forgotten something important and smacked his head in embarrassment.


    "Sorry, sorry! Papa Legba is a loa in Haitian voodoo who stands at the spiritual crossroads between this world and the next.


    My blessing allows me tomunicate with any spirit who has recently departed, provided I know who I''m looking for."


    Mchi already did not like the sound of this and contemted whether or not he should run.


    "It''s very difficult for someone to suddenly go missing without a trace from a maximum security penitentiary. So naturally I was called to investigate and see if our dear serial rapist might be dead. And do you know what I found? He was."


    Lamont took a slow and steady step forward while Mchi''s entire body tensed up.


    "But then something strange happened... Even in death, Arthur''s spirit was consumed with so much fear that I couldn''t get anything out of him.


    He merely wailed constantly professing his apologies for touching two young girls. Care to ask what their names were?"


    "Not particrly."


    "Aubrey Saint and Roseline Ivers." Lamont said casually.


    Truthfully, that was already enough to suspect Mchi, but then a mere few dayster, they got another call about a man who had confessed to all of his crimes and begged to be taken to prison.


    This time, the man just so happened to be Mchi''s former boss.


    Also, the story of how Mchi Saint randomly appeared in the middle of a hospital while holding the battered body of a woman was not one that went unnoticed.


    "You fancy yourself to be some kind of vignte? I''m sure that you''re aware that such a thing is a crime." Seth said pointedly.


    Mchi had no real defense; they already knew about everything that he''d done.


    In retrospect, he should have been a bit more cautious when dealing with Derek, but Lamont''s ability to locate deceased spirits was something he could not have anticipated.


    The abilities and appearances of the dark angels were all highly confidential.


    Even if you saw one of them out in the street and knew that they were a blessed, you would not know that they were an agent unless you saw their signature ck cloaks with the symbol of wings across the back.


    Mchi figured that maybe this was just an inevitable fate.


    If he was honest, he did not regret killing Arthur or lobotomizing Derek and if he had to go back, he wouldn''t do anything differently.


    Even if he was still new to not feeling guilt, he knew that those two men did not deserve his sympathy.


    "So, what happens now." Mchi said with a sigh.


    "Oh, well we can''t actually prove that you did anything to Derek, leaving only the murder charge for Mr. Arthur.


    Butttt..."


    Lamont suddenly pulled out a ck card from his coat and handed it to Mchi.


    On it was a simple smiley face with the words: ''You''ve been recruited!''


    "...This is a joke, right?"


    "I told you to knock it off with those stupid cards!" Seth eximed.


    "With a name like ''The Dark Angels'' we need a bit of lightness every now and then! Otherwise, everyone would think that we''re all serious all the time." Lamont defended.


    "We ARE supposed to be serious all the time."


    "I know and that shit sucks I''m trying to change it!


    Mchi could barely hear the arguing going on amongst the two men, his mind was still swimming with jumbled thoughts and emotions.


    Confusion.


    Relief.


    Nausea.


    "Can the two of you please exin what the hell is going on...?"


    Finally, the two stopped arguing as they cleared their throats.


    Seth: "Well it''s like you read on that dumb ass card. You''re-"


    Lamont: "Your mother."


    "Can you be an adult for one second?!"


    Lamont merely rolled his eyes and did not say anything further, although he seemed like he still had something to get off his chest.


    Seth sighed before finally turning back to Mchi.


    "Normally, we would arrest you. But our organization feels as though that would be a waste considering your enormous potential. As such, we are willing to allow you to serve out your sentence as a field agent."


    Lamont nodded as he continued his exnation. "You''ll be able to continue living out your normal life, and no one has to know that the most famous man in the world murdered someone in cold blood."


    "But, you will be closely monitored. If you murder someone outside of a field assignment, that''s it. You''re done."


    Mchi only needed a moment to think about it before nodding in agreement.


    The reality was that a situation like this was already a miracle and he was incredibly lucky.


    He almost had to leave behind Aubrey, Sei, and Luna.


    If it meant that he got to stay beside them, he would align himself with all of the gods of evil if he had to.


    "I got it." He said after a brief moment of thought. "What do I have to do?"


    "Nothing."


    "We''lle find you when we''re ready."


    Both men suddenly turned around and leapt of the building, leaving Mchi alone with only the familiar night sky and lingering questions over the future.

 Chapter 56: The Best Laid Plans...

    <h4>Chapter 56: The Best Laid ns...</h4>


    In Alex Heller''s luxurious penthouse office, the man himself was seated calmly at his desk.


    Just as he prepared to close out hisputer for the night and go home, the doors to his office were suddenly flung open.


    Surprisingly, he didn''t even bother to get mad.


    There was only one person who was bold enough to enter his office like this unannounced.


    Walking boldly into his office was a woman with waist length dark hair and mesmerizing violet eyes.


    She had a pair of full cherry lips and a figure that was both enchanting and dangerous.


    "I was just about to head home dear; you didn''t have toe and get me."


    The woman did not respond and instead walked seductively behind Alex''s desk and found her ce in hisp.


    "I''ve got good news for you~"


    "Oh? Do tell."


    The woman removed a small sh drive from between her cleavage and inserted it into Alex''sputer.


    She then began to pull up a list of files and Alex''s eyes widened when he saw whose name was attached to them.


    "Honestly, I don''t know why you bothered with that crusty old deadbeat. The kid''s so naive that it''s honestly a bit concerning."


    Alex did not seem to hear the words of the woman in hisp and instead began to send all of the files to his phone.


    "We need to release these right now. By morning that bastard will be-"


    The woman suddenly grabbed Alex''s phone and held her finger up to her lips. "Easy now, tattletale. Why are you always so wasteful?"


    "What are you talking about, Joanne?"


    The woman sighed before leaning her body back into Alex''s chest. "Honestly, it''s a good thing you''re pretty. Now that I have him, I want to use him a bit, let him catch a few outstanding criminals and the like.


    "And then... If you want, we can send him on a mission that he will note back from."


    Alex sighed before putting on his signature movie star smile. "Honestly... I should have juste to you in the first ce!"


    Joanne shook her head in denial. "You know that we have to keep our organization as legitimate as possible. There was nothing that I could have done before but now that he has ced himself in my hands, I''m more than capable of helping you."


    Alex nodded before whispering seductively in Joanne''s ear. "Still, you''ve done a good job. How would you like to be rewarded, my love?"


    This earned an involuntary shudder from her and she quickly made her request known.


    "I want them to hear me from all the way downstairs... You understand what that means, right?"


    "I do indeed."


    Alex suddenly bent Joanne over his desk and ripped her tight ck dress.


    Tattooed on her back, were the dark wings of an angel along with their intertwined initials.


    "I''ll be sure to make it hurt as much as possible."


    -


    Mchi had finally arrived at Sei''s home at exactly his twenty minute deadline.


    ''Thank god I can teleport...''


    Mchi knocked on Sei''s door and it only took a few seconds before she answered.


    Wearing afortable looking sweater dress that perfectlyplemented her voluptuous figure, her beauty was almost great enough to give Mchi a nosebleed.


    "You''re here!" She said excitedly.


    "I''m notte, am I?


    As a response Sei stood on her tiptoes and gave him a small peck on the lips. "You''re just in time, honey."


    Immediately, his mood showed signs of a drastic improvement.


    He didn''t want to think about the organization he''d just been ckmailed into joining, for right now all he wanted was to ogle this beautiful mature woman for the rest of the night.


    Sei quickly pulled him in to her house and closed the door behind them.


    The two quickly made their way to the dining table where they began to unwrap the food that Mchi had brought.


    Just as the two of them prepared to sit down and eat, Serana emerged from her room, summoned by the smell of food.


    "Oooh! Mal brought blue lobster? Don''t mind if I-"


    Sei: "We''re having a dinner date, Serana."


    Mchi: "You''re not invited."


    "What!? Then what am I supposed to eat?!"


    "There''s some cereal in the cupboard?"


    "Mom!"


    The two of themughed in amusement as Serana''s cheeks puffed out more and more.


    "We''re just joking, Serana, Your food is in the kitchen." Mchi said.


    "But we really do want to be alone." Sei reminded.


    "Hmph, I didn''t want to eat with you two lovebirds anyway!" Serana said as she left the two of them alone.


    Once the sounds of ravenous chewing were heard from the kitchen, the two chuckled in silence as they began to enjoy their own dinner.


    Eventually, the two moved to the couch and nestled closely together as they drank wine andughed.


    Finally, after spending a lot of time observing him, Sei questioned Mal on his recent changes.


    "You seem a bit different tonight, honey. Is there something the matter?"


    She couldn''t help but notice that mal was no longer wearing his sses and seemed to be a bit more quiet than usual.


    Even though he seemed to be okay, she could not help but think there may have been something wrong.


    "There isn''t." He said as he pulled her into his embrace.


    He did not want to worry Sei with talk of what had happened tonight.


    While he had already epted it as a reality and a consequence, he knew that she would have a hard time with him undertaking such a dangerous job.


    Entering into gates was one thing, as most monstersck intelligence and strategic thinking.


    However there was no limit to the amount of traps and tricks that humans could y.


    Any one of which could be the reason why Mchi''s life was cut short.


    Sei wanted to press harder but with Mchi''s warm body against hers and his inviting scent filling her nostrils, she couldn''t.


    And when Mchi brought his lips down to meet hers, her mind was totally cleansed of unnecessary thoughts.


    Normally, Sei would not hold their kisses for long before she inevitably pulled away.


    But tonight for some reason she not only did not run, but she also let her hands wander.


    Mchi''s eyes became as big as saucers as he simultaneously checked with his hearing to make sure that Serana had gone back upstairs.


    When he was certain that they were alone, he pushed Sei back onto the couch and hovered above her, his mind focused on only one thing.


    "Sei, do you..."

 Chapter 57: Graduation Day*

    <h4>Chapter 57: Graduation Day*</h4>


    Sei''s heart was thumping so wildly she felt like she''d just gone for a ten mile run.


    The image of Mchi hovering over her with eyes filled with burning desire was almost too much to bear.


    If she was honest, she didn''t know why she hadn''t pulled away from him earlier.


    Maybe part of her reasoning could be med on the wine, but the way her hands wandered so shamelessly along his body was another thing entirely.


    "Sei do you-"


    "D-Don''t say it!"


    "Mmf?"


    Before Mchi could finish his overwhelmingly embarrassing question, Sei threw her hands over his mouth to seal it shut.


    ''W-What should I do?! I just wanted to touch him a little bit more but I honestly wasn''t expecting it to be that easy to set him off!''


    Sei did not realize just how great Mchi''s attraction to her was.


    He had to suppress himself not to jump on her in the middle of a simple conversation, so running her hands up his abdomen was certainly going to have a more pronounced effect.


    Sei''s face began to get redder by the second, and she wondered what she should do in this situation.


    It wasn''t that she didn''t want it too, but there were a great many things that she wanted to do in preparation first!


    She hadn''t shaved down there recently, and she was also worried about what he would think of her body when she was fully undressed.


    Mchi''s body was literally a gift from the gods themselves, and inparison Sei was just some old woman in average shape.


    What if he saw herpletely naked and realized that she wasn''t that attractive?!


    As Sei spiraled deeper into paranoia, Mchi gently removed her hands from his face and pinned them behind her head.


    Before Sei could say anything, Mchi''s lips were once again on hers and she lost her train of thought.


    By now, Mchi had given up on talking and just wanted to act.


    If Sei wanted to stop this she could have at any time.


    But seeing as how she didn''t, Mchi knew that she must have wanted it as well, yet been too scared to act for some reason.


    Mchi finally broke their kiss and released his girlfriend''s arms from his grasp.


    His lips gently grazed against the skin of her neck as he tried his best to take things as slowly as possible for the both of them.


    As Mchi''s hands found their way on to Sei''s thighs, she let out a surprised flinch before ultimately allowing him to continue.


    As he slowly lifted her dress, Sei suddenly stopped him at thest moment before her already wet panties would be exposed.


    "W-Wait¡­ I''m not-"


    Sei was going to tell Mchi that she wasn''t young anymore so he should lower his hopes a bit, but he would not allow her to belittle herself for even a second.


    "You''re perfect just the way you are. There is nothing for you to be afraid of, Sei."


    Because Sei knew that his words were not just stemming from simple lust, the effect was that much more exaggerated.


    The mature beauty melted like butter, and her grip on his hands loosened immediately.


    Mchi pulled the gorgeous woman out of her sweater and her naked body was fully revealed.


    Sei had on an enchanting ckce bra and panty set that almost gave her twenty year old boyfriend a nosebleed.


    Slowly, he began to leave a trail of kisses all the way down her body from her neck to her chest and eventually her thighs.


    Spreading her legs apart, the full scent of her arousal hit him dead on and he wondered how anything in this world could possibly be so stimting.


    "H-Honey, what are you- Ahh!"


    Sei quickly covered her mouth to hold in a moan as Mal kissed her leaking vagina through her panties.


    Mal quickly moved the damp garments out of the way and began licking her vagina with fervent desire.


    Sei''s body trembled as she experienced a man going down on her for the first time in all of her 37 years of life.


    It took everything she had not to cry out in pleasure from the unfamiliar yet wonderful sensations that were spreading all throughout her mind and body.


    As her sweet and sticky taste filled Mal''s mouth his new predatory instincts finally revealed themselves.


    ''I want to taste more.''


    ''I want her to feel better.''


    ''She is mine and mine alone.''


    "Hnn! Mmh!"


    Mal began to focus more on Sei''s clit as he expertly slid his tongue underneath the hood and began to lick much rougher than before.


    The sudden increase in technique along with the direct assault of one of her sweet spots resulted in a near instant orgasm that nearly made Sei ck out.


    She was still trying to be quiet with her daughter resting upstairs, but Mal was making such a thing more and more difficult by the minute.


    ''H-He''s supposed to be a virgin so why is he so good at this!?''


    Finally, Sei used thest of her waning strength to try and push Mchi''s head away.


    When he looked up, he could see that her eyes had a faint glossy look and there was a small trickle of drool spilling from her full lips.


    "Honey... you''re so mean..."


    Unable to withstand her charm, Mchi again brought his lips to hers and finally began to remove his own clothes.


    With every bit of his flesh that became exposed, Sei''s face became redder and redder.


    She had seen him shirtless a number of times before, but tonight was the first time she got to peek down below.


    When his manhood was finally freed from the suffocation of his jeans, Sei''s eyes became as big as saucers and she wondered whether or not she was still under the effects of the wine.


    Sei initially had wanted to go to nursing school a few years ago so she knew quite a bit about anatomy.


    But even if she did not have that expansive knowledge, she would still know that her boyfriend''s was well above average.


    Both the length and thickness made her feel like she was looking at an iron rod instead of a male appendage, and she began to wonder if it would even fit inside of her.


    As Mchi positioned himself at her narrow and wet entrance, she once gain had to stop him, though not for the same reasons as before.


    "Can we... go to your ce instead...? If you put that inside of me, I don''t think I will be able to hold back my voice anymore..."


    Mchi briefly checked to make sure that his home was empty and once he confirmed that it was, he picked up Sei in his arms and the two of them sank into the shadows at his feet.


    A few momentster, Serana came down from her room to grab something to drink from the fridge.


    However, when she passed by the living room where the happy couple were a few moments ago, a strange yet familiar smell filled her nostrils.


    Going to investigate, her face quickly became an unhealthy shade of green as she found the remnants of their steamy first time.


    Arge wet stain on the couch, the smell of a woman''s pheromones in the air, and the hastily discarded clothes of both of themying sadly on the floor.


    "Oh gods.... BLERGHHH!!"


    The poor girl ultimately lost the battle against her stomach as she threw up the dinner she''d just had all over the living room floor.


    ''Seriously... I have got to move out!''

 Chapter 58: Graduation Day* Pt. 2

    <h4>Chapter 58: Graduation Day* Pt. 2</h4>


    Mchi and Sei appeared soundlessly in his bedroom and did not even bother to turn on the lights.


    Their bodies were illuminated by only the glow of the city outside the window, allowing them both to see just how aroused each other were.


    Mchiy Sei gently on the bed and slowly crawled on top of her.


    Her heart was beating so loud that he could hear it even without his enhanced senses.


    He knew it had been a long time for her, so he made up his mind to give her the best experience possible.


    "T-This is a bit embarrassing... I''m the one with experience yet I feel like I''m being led by you." Sei said with a shy smile.


    "Is that a bad thing?"


    "No... I just wish I could show you the charm of an older woman is all." She replied jokingly.


    Mchi smiled tenderly when he heard Sei give such a cute reason for her shyness.


    "Don''t worry, I can assure you that you''ve been doing that since the day I met you."


    He brought his lips down to hers once again and Sei felt a bolt of electricity run through her body when she felt his member knocking at her slick entrance.


    Without breaking their kiss, Mchi pushed his hips forward and finally made Sei his woman.


    "Hnngh!"


    Sei let out an involuntary moan as Mchi''s tip slowly delved deeper and deeper into her depths.


    It had been quite a long time since Sei had been intimate with anyone, but she was absolutely certain that she had never been stretched open this widely before.


    Despite Mchi''s massive size, she was amodating him with rtively little pain or difort.


    In fact she felt herself quickly bing addicted to the sensation of all of her sweet spots being stimted at once.


    Even though Sei was moaning loudly already, Mal was still not satisfied and wanted her to be louder.


    Unsping her bra, he revealed two bountifullyrge breasts with pink inverted nipples.


    His mouth quickly moved from her lips to her breasts and he began sucking on them until her nipples became fully erect.


    "Ahh! H-Honey, you''re too rough!"


    Sei had suddenly began to feel a familiar yet new sensation coursing through her body and at first, she didn''t know what it was.


    However, she quickly put two and two together to realize that she was very nearly reaching her first ever orgasm from intercourse.


    But there was a problem.


    Sei had a rather embarrassing habit that she was hoping to take to her grave.


    She had not expected Mchi to see this side of her so soon or even at all for that matter, but the sensation she was experiencing right now was a loud indicator that she was going to squirt.


    "W-Wait, I think I''m going to pee!"


    Mal heard the wordsing out of Sei''s mouth but unfortunately it only served to make him even more excited.


    He wasn''t proud of it, but he had watched more than enough pornography in his life to know that Sei was already going to cum.


    The thrill of knowing that he was making her feel good enough to lose allposure like this was so intoxicating that he idently bit down on her nipple a bit harder than normal.


    A sudden jolt of pain mixed with her already overwhelming pleasure was more than enough to push Sei over the edge and she finally released everything she had built up inside.


    "M-Mal, I''m cumming!!!"


    Sei''s eyes rolled aroundzily inside of her skull as a torrent of liquid sshed onto Mal''s abdomen.


    The young man finally pulled out of her for a moment to admire his handiwork.


    Sei''s entire body was shivering as if she''d juste in from the cold.


    Her cheeks were red, her breathing was heavy, and her vagina was still twitching as if it was still greedily asking for more.


    "Honestly... how is it fair for anyone to be this enticing." Mal said through shallow breaths.


    He gingerly flipped Sei over so that her backside was facing him.


    She made no moves to stop him, either because she was physically incapable or because she also wanted this feeling to continue.


    But judging by how she arched her back of her own volition, Mal guessed that it was probably thetter.


    In a single fluid motion, Mchi buried himself to the base inside of Sei and found himself pressing against her womb.


    Sei let out another animalistic cry of pleasure as she nearly cked out from the sudden thrust, and it took all of her willpower to remain conscious as Mal continued to strike against that same spot.


    Mchi was sure that if the walls of his apartment weren''t so thick, he would undoubtedly be receiving several noiseints tomorrow.


    Sei''s gentle and motherly disposition had vanished without a trace and all that was left behind was a woman embroiled within the throes of ecstasy as she had fulfilling sex for the first time in her life.


    If you''d asked her before, Sei would tell you that she was a person who did not particrly enjoy lewd acts.


    During her marriage to Minoru, she really only did so as a way to express her love and out of a small feeling of obligation.


    But in the bed of a man who was almost twenty years younger than her, Sei''s eyes were being opened to an entirely new world as Mchi brought her to her fourth orgasm in under twenty minutes.


    "Honey, you feel so good I can''t stand it!"


    Leaning down, Mchi ced a bit of his weight on Sei''s back as his hands traveled up her body to cup her breasts.


    "Sei, I''m..."


    She immediately understood what was going to happen when she felt his member twitching inside of her. "I-Inside! I want it inside of me!"


    Mchi did not wait for further instruction as he came hard inside of Sei.


    The sudden influx of arge volume of warm and thick liquid was enough for Sei to reach her own orgasm and the moans of both of them filled the air.


    For a few seconds, both of them remained motionless as they came down from the high of such a fulfilling release.


    But then, Sei realized that Mchi''s erection still had not gone down and he even seemed to be harder than before.


    "You can still keep going?" She asked, her tone containing a mixture of surprise and something else he couldn''t quite decipher.


    Mchi opened and closed his mouth several times as he tried to decide how to answer.


    Despite his lust, he hadn''t forgotten that Sei was still human.


    There were aundry list of stories about blessed getting too engrossed in sex with human partners and injuring them identally.


    From the way Sei was breathing, he could tell that she was already tired so he felt bad for needing more.


    However, Sei took himpletely by surprise when she showed a lustful smile that made his heart skip a beat.


    "I''m actually d... I still wanted to do a bit more as well."


    With hisst thread of reasoning snapped, Mchi lifted Sei up by her waist and spun her around so that her legs were wrapped around his waist.


    "Shame on me then." He said with a warm smile. "I was thinking of stopping before my girlfriend was fully satisfied."


    In response, Sei chuckled cutely as she locked her arms behind his neck. "Indeed, shame on you. As punishment you can make it up to me by going at least four more times."


    "How about all night?"


    "Fufufu~ That''s even better."


    The two lovers passionately kissed as Mal began effortlessly lifting Sei up and down on his dick.


    With every thrust, Sei released a muffled moan into his mouth as her heart and mind were assailed with the most dreamlike bliss.


    ''This man... I love him so much!''

 Chapter 59: Perverts! Both of You!

    <h4>Chapter 59: Perverts! Both of You!</h4>


    Despite his promise to go all night long, Mchi and Sei onlysted another eight rounds before Sei became too tired to continue.


    The two found the driest spot possible in his bed and fell asleep, holding each other while dreaming of the extremely pleasurable night they''d just had.


    In the morning, Sei proved to be much more clingy and expressive than before.


    Mchi had to get up early in the morning for training, and instead of staying in bed she decided to get up alongside him and followed him around like a cute little duckling.


    He was a bit rougher on herst night towards the end, so he fully expected for her to spend the day sleeping or even have some difficulty walking.


    Surprisingly, she was perfectly fine other than some faint soreness, and as such she was more than happy to keep going.


    Evidently, the sex drive of an older woman was nothing to sneeze at.


    They had sex twice in the shower.


    Once while changing the sheets.


    And another time while making breakfast.


    After cleaning themselves up yet again, Mchi finally prepared to leave for the morning and Sei was making things as difficult as ever.


    Both of them were intertwined by the door, kissing passionately and unwilling to let each other go.


    Finally, Sei halfheartedly pushed Mchi away so as not to make himte. "You should go¡­ I''ll be here when you get back."


    Hearing those words put arge smile on Mal''s face as he pulled Sei in for onest hug.


    "Are you sure you don''t want to go home first? It''s no problem for me to take you."


    "No¡­ I don''t want to waste any time when youe back."


    Mal briefly considered canceling his entire schedule for the day.


    However, just as he thought about spending the entire day in bed with his beautiful girlfriend, the door to his apartment unlocked and Aubrey and Aisha walked in holding hands.


    As soon as the two siblings saw each other, their minds immediately went into analysis mode.


    For Aubrey, it was rtively simple to decipher.


    Mal was not only holding Sei with a much more possessive and loving embrace than before, but the mature beauty was currently covered in kiss marks on both sides of her neck.


    It also didn''t help that she was only wearing an oversized T-shirt that barely covered herrge bottom and no bra.


    Aubrey would have to be an idiot to not know something had happened.


    Sei''s face quickly became a bright shade of scarlet as she covered her enormous chest and started hiding behind Mchi.


    ''W-What is she going to think of me now that she''s seen me dressed like this?!'' She screamed internally.


    She normally would have put on some better clothes but the rather lustful morning that the two of them shared left her unable to think about anything else.


    Sei embarrassingly grabbed the back of her boyfriend''s shirt, only to realize that he was frozen as well.


    Mchi had not taken his eyes off his sister since she entered the room, and he was seriously having troubleing to terms with what he was seeing.


    Currently, Aubrey only had on an oversized hoodie that said, ''Deaf Row Records''.


    Normally that wouldn''t have been anything to be rmed about, but there was just one problem.


    That hoodie didn''t belong to Aubrey, it belonged to Aisha.


    Mchi couldn''t see any kiss marks on his sister''s neck due to her long curly hair, but he could smell his best friend all over her.


    The pair had also walked in holding hands and giggling cutely like a pair of lovebirds.


    At the same time, both siblings came to a staggering conclusion.


    ""Y-You were having sex!""


    Evidently, Aubrey was not expecting to be found out like this and her cheeks immediately became hot. "I-I''m an adult and I can do whatever I like!"


    Before Mchi could respond, his sister grabbed his arm and began pushing him and Aisha out the door. "D-Don''t the two of you have training to get to or something?! Get going already!"


    Aubrey closed the door with a m after blowing a small kiss at Aisha, which only served to worsen Mchi''s headache even further.


    For a moment, the two of them stood motionlessly in the hallway as neither of them really knew what to say.


    Ultimately, Aisha decided to break the silence since Mal had been blindsided by all of this. "Sorry... It just kind of happened and-"


    "Don''t worry about it." Mchi said with a sigh. "She''s right, she''s an adult and she can do whatever she likes."


    He suddenly gave his best friend a sideways nce. "Even if I do think she has some rather questionable taste-"


    "What did you say you piece of shit?" Aisha asked with a smile that was not a smile.


    "Joking." Mchi said with a smile. "I''m d she''s with someone who''ll take care of her."


    Aisha recognized the amount of trust her best friend was cing in her, and she couldn''t help but feel a bit warm inside.


    Their rtionship wasn''t really a mushy one, so she didn''t express her feelings to him but she felt incredibly touched in that moment.


    As the two of them got into the elevator, a small silence fell over them before Aisha asked the burning question between them.


    Aisha: "So, you had sexst night huh?"


    Mchi: "You did too evidently."


    Aisha: "How was it?"


    Mchi: "She was incredible. It was even more addicting than I could''ve imagined. You?"


    Aisha: "She was really delicious, easily the best I''ve ever had."


    Again, the pair fell into a long silence before exchanging a small fist bump and a lighthearted taunt.


    ""Simp.""

 Chapter 60: Girl Talk

    <h4>Chapter 60: Girl Talk</h4>


    After Mchi and Aisha were thrown out by Aubrey, she and Sei were left alone in the apartment and fell into an awkward silence.


    However, that was quickly dispersed when the young girl started sniffing the air like a blood hound.


    "You guys made breakfast? Is there any left?"


    Still covering her chest, Sei nodded with her trademark motherly smile.


    "There is. Do you-"


    "Yes!"


    Aubrey quickly interlocked her arms with her future sister-inw and made her way towards the kitchen.


    In a sh, the young girl had piled her te high with delicious looking food and prepared to dig in, only to stop herself at thest moment.


    "Aubrey? Aren''t you going to eat?" Sei asked. "Your brother and I made it together and I must say that it''s pretty incredible!"


    It was a miracle that nothing was burnt since they weren''t exactly focused on cooking the entire time.


    A helpless smile formed on Aubrey''s lips as she slowly began prodding her food with her fork.


    "I think¡­ maybe I should go on a diet."


    Sei looked at Aubrey''s youthful and charming figure and suppressed the urge tough out loud.


    "Sweet girl, why would you think that?"


    The young girl''s face showed traces of embarrassment as she recalledst nights events in great detail.


    "Well Aisha has a really nice body you know¡­? I guess I just want to¡­ measure up a bit I guess."


    Sei''s face showed traces of understanding as she also recalled Mchi''s body that was much more impressive than her own.


    She could understand Aubrey feeling slightly inferior, but at the end of the day, her worries werepletely unfounded.


    "I think that maybe the curse of those of us who are in rtionships with these special beings. We cannot help butpare ourselves to them and see exactly how far behind we are."


    Unconsciously, Aubrey lowered her head as she thought of the massive societal and physical difference between herself and Aisha.


    "But I''ve learned that the best way to ovee that doubt, is to recognize the fact that no matter how different we may seem from them, they can still find beauty and attraction even in us ordinary people."


    This was a lesson that Sei had learned intensely afterst night''s events.


    Mchi had filled her with so much of his love and essence that she would never have doubts over his attraction to her ever again.


    In her entire life, not once had she ever been loved sopletely like that.


    Sei gently took Aubrey''s hand and gave her signature motherly smile.


    "You are a very beautiful girl, and I''m sure that Aisha sees that as well. There is no reason for you to think of yourself as lesser whenpared to anyone, much less the one you''re supposed to be in a rtionship with."


    Before Aubrey knew it, a small tear had fallen from her eye.


    Laughing in embarrassment, she quickly wiped her face and tried topose herself. "I-I''m sorry! It''s just been a minute since I''ve heard something like that."


    Before this moment, Aubrey had yet to realize just how much she missed her mother.


    Or maybe she always knew and she had simply been keeping such thoughts buried.


    But the honest and caring words of Sei had dredged up old memories and left her feeling a bit overwhelmed.


    While she did not see her brother''s girlfriend as a recement for her mother, the reality was that she had been missing an older woman in her life whom she could look up to.


    Sei quickly took the young girl in her arms and gave her a reassuring hug.


    "You should talk to Aisha about how you''re feeling. I''m sure she can wipe away your fears better than I could."


    "I will. Thank you, Sei."


    After embracing each other for another few moments Sei picked up Aubrey''s fork and ced it back into her hands.


    "Now, why don''t you eat as much as you like while you tell me how things progressed so fast with you and Aisha."


    "Ah¡­ it''s kind of a long story."


    "Fufufu~ Don''t worry, I have time."


    -


    At the immortal moon training center, Nina, Opal, Bianca, and Luna were all standing around with their eyes glued to the back of one particr member.


    "Doesn''t he seem a bit different today?"


    "It''s strange¡­ he suddenly feels a lot more manly."


    "I thought I wanted him before but now I absolutely have to have him!"


    The object of the girls'' attention was naturally Mchi.


    Currently, he and Rowan were engaged in a deep conversation that held all of their focus.


    "I can''t quite exin it, he just feels more mature all of a sudden¡­" Bianca said with a burning hunger in her eyes.


    The look she was giving the young man was so intense, the other three women around her believed that she was nning to force herself on him.


    While Mchi did not seem different on the surface, the women around him had noticed some small but ring changes.


    Just as Bianca had pointed out earlier, there was an aura of maturity that now surrounded Mchi that wasn''t present before.


    It was as if he had suddenly be a man overnight.


    Luna was almost certain that she knew what happened and as a result, she was feeling slightly jealous.


    She made a small mental note to call Sei personally and get all of the details aboutst night from her.


    Suddenly, all of the shadows within the room began to vibrate before rushing towards Mchi.


    They traveled up the length of his body before congealing on his outstretched hands.


    Dark shadowy ws coated his fingertips and both Mchi and Rowan had satisfied smiles on their faces.


    "I gotta say Mal, this is really impressive." Rowan admitted. "This opens up a whole new avenue of capabilities for you in the future. "


    In response, Mchi merely showed a small smile as he carefully analyzed his new ability.


    "Takes quite a bit of concentration though, so I don''t know how much I''ll get to use it in the future. Can''t be out here putting myself and others at risk just because I wanna look cool."


    Mchi lowered his hands and the shadows dispersed almost immediately.


    Letting out an exhausted sigh, Mchi looked up to see Rowan staring at him intently.


    He had also noticed how his supposed grandson had matured overnight and just like Luna, he hade to the same conclusion.


    "This brat. Lost your virginity, huh?"


    "Excuse me?"


    "You can''t hide it from me kid. The only way for someone as loud and energetic as you to be this mature and thoughtful is if they''ve had their pickle tickled."


    Mchi stared hard at Rowan as if he couldn''t believe the wordsing out of his mouth.


    "You''re crazy."


    "And you''re suddenly tolerable."

 Chapter 61: [Bonus chapter]New Partner

    <h4>Chapter 61: [Bonus chapter]New Partner</h4>


    Unlike everyone else, Mal hadn''t actually noticed that he''d changed.


    If he had to put how he was feeling into words he''d say... rxed.


    As if all of his worries that had been bogging him down for so long were finally put to bed.


    While he wouldn''t say that sex with Sei was solely to me for his change in attitude, the reality was that it did have a rather sizable impact.


    Suddenly everything that had ever urred before the moment theyy down together no longer mattered.


    The only thing of any importance to him now was that he continue to experience that same dreamlike bliss that he felt this morning.


    Not solely because of the sex, but because of the dreamlike bliss he felt from doing nothing but loving and being loved.


    He had to protect this happiness and sense of peace with everything he had.


    Leading him to make another decision regarding his future.


    ''There is no way in hell I can stay in service to the dark angels.''


    No man wants to live his life under the thumb of someone else.


    And naturally, Mchi was not an exception to this rule.


    He had yet to receive any contact from the shadowy organization and did not know when to expect them.


    But whenever they did contact him, he had already decided that he would utilize everything he had solely for the goal of escape.


    He would carry out orders like a good little soldier for the time being, while also simultaneously looking for a way to free himself.


    ''Or maybe I can just wait for those supposed ''worse things'' to wipe them all out for me.'' He thought with a chuckle.


    Bang!


    Due to Mchi''spse in concentration, he received a swift kick in the chest from Aisha that nearly knocked the wind out of his body.


    "Don''t lose focus!" She mocked casually.


    "Damn, that was nice." He admitted. "But you know I always have to get my lick back!"


    Executing a sweeping low kick, Aisha naturally jumped to avoid it and fell right into his trap.


    With lightning enhanced reflexes, Mchiunched another kick from below right into his opponent''s stomach, sending her flying back a few feet.


    She hit the ground with a thud and took her time getting back up, signaling Mal''s victory in their spar.


    Wanting to gloat a bit, he innocently stood over the sprawled out Aisha and smiled down at her proudly.


    "Looking a little fragile down there, Aisha. Was I too rough?"


    For some reason, she found him to be significantly more annoying today than he normally was.


    So naturally, she had to get him back just a bit, right?


    "If this is your idea of rough then I''m sure Sei was bored beyond beliefst night." She replied with an evil smile.


    Almost immediately, a vein began to bulge in Mchi''s forehead and he held up his hand that was already crackling with ck lightning.


    "Good joke. Want your reward?"


    Suddenly Aisha was no longerughing and she slowly began to crawl backwards on the ground.


    "W-Wait Mal, I was just joking! I''m sure you''re a certified sex machine and I- KYAAA!!"


    Initially, Mal was only nning to threaten her a bit before letting her go.


    But her horribly aggravating apology earned her a small shock of 4,000 volts of electricity.


    After Aisha was sufficiently energized, Mchi saw that her appearance had taken a rather noticeable alteration.


    Pinning her down with his foot, he immediately pulled out his phone and began taking pictures of her electric new hairstyle.


    "You look like a little dandelion!"


    "I''ll kill you, Saint!"


    "Not if I make a wish that you won''t."


    "GAAAAHHH!"


    Luna chose that moment to walk up to the pair with Rowan following closely behind.


    "Alright you two, that''s enough for the day."


    Luna briefly nced at Aisha who was still on the ground fuming and could not help but find that she resembled her magical beast after being dried off from the bath.


    Before she knew it, she was also taking out her phone to get a picture or two.


    "Lady Luna, why?!"


    "I''m sorry Aisha, you''re just so cute like this." She said through a snicker.


    It took a few more minutes for Mchi to let Aisha up and once she was she immediately went on the warpath.


    Unfortunately for her, her target was a rather nimble man with the ability to teleport.


    Before Aisha could repay Mal for the humiliation she''d suffered he was sinking into the shadows at his feet and waving goodbye.


    "I''ll y with youter, Aish. I''ve gotta head home and show Aubrey these pictures real quick."


    "MALACHIII!!!!"


    "Toodles."


    With a final teasing goodbye, Mal had left the training center and left behind Aisha, Luna, and Rowan.


    "Arghhh I''m going to kill him! He thinks he can treat me like this just because he''s finally getting some?! I''ll turn him into a eunuch!"


    ''Knew it.'' Rowan thought in satisfaction.


    ''Damn it... I knew it was true.'' Luna thought in annoyance.


    While she was the one who suggested that they take things at a slower pace, that didn''t mean that she didn''t want to be with him as well.


    But unlike Sei, Luna had quite a bit of baggage that she needed to sort out first.


    She did not want to taint a new rtionship with unpleasant ghosts from her past.


    As she left the training room with Rowan in tow, she silentlymented the fact that she was still being weighed down after all of this time.


    Why did healing have to have such a stringent process?


    -


    After heading home to embarrass Aisha and indulge in Sei a bit more, he dropped his girlfriend off at home before heading off to college.


    As he strode casually to his ss, his rxed yet confident steps attracted the attention of anyone he walked past.


    Although he himself remained oblivious to this fact.


    Making his way to his ssroom, he found his seat next to Serana and gave her a calm friendly smile.


    "What''s good Ser-"


    "Man whore." She responded coldly.


    Unprepared for the sudden hostility, Mal blinked his eyes several times in confusion before realizing a potential cause.


    In their passionate excitement, Mal and Sei had casually left their clothes on the living room floor for almost an entire day.


    No doubt Serana had seen them and likely been traumatized as a result.


    "Ah...Sorry?"


    "Fuck off."


    In the end, he had to make a promise to buy her lunch for the next month and introduce her to Ryo Amaki before she calmed down.


    Although, Mal still felt like she was holding on to some inner hostility but ultimately he had no proof.


    When the professor walked in, ss finally began and he started it off with announcing Mal''s worst nightmare.


    "Alright guys, it''s project time. This is worth 40% of your grade so you''ll have to do your best, alright? Or don''t and take my ss again. It doesn''t really matter to me; I''ll get paid either way."


    Just when Mchi thought things couldn''t get any worse, Dr. Andrews proved that they very well could.


    "You''ll be working in randomized pairs for this assignment so I''ll call out the names and then begin exining the details of your assignment."

 Chapter 62: [Bonus chapter]Scary Girl

    <h4>Chapter 62: [Bonus chapter]Scary Girl</h4>


    "Serana Aihara and Walter Michaels."


    ''Shit.''


    ''God damnit.''


    Both Mchi and Serana cursed their luck as they realized that they weren''t going to be paired up together to do the project.


    Both students were fairly smart and they worked very well together, ensuring that they would have turned in a great assignment and had fun along the way.


    But Professor Andrews had unfortunately dashed all their hopes and dreams of a smooth ride.


    Since they were the smartest in the ss, the chances of them doing all of the work for their partner was almost a certainty.


    Serana could already see that the oaf she''s been partnered with was so excited that he nearly jumped out of his chair.


    Leaving Mchi alone in the wind and anxiously waiting to see who his partner would end up being.


    When the professor got to Mal''s name, he briefly paused to search for him and became awash with fear when he realized that he was no longer wearing his sunsses.


    "M-Mchi."


    "Hm?"


    "About what I said before¡­ about the sses¡­ you don''t need to pay that any mind. You''re free to put them on if you like." He said with a nervous smile.


    ''Please! Put the god damn sses on so that I can get through a ss without feeling terrified!''


    Unfortunately, Mal simply gave him a confused stare as he rested his chin in his palm.


    Sensing hopelessness, Dr. Andrews just decided to try to get through the rest of ss without ruining his underwear.


    "Alright, Mal your partner is¡­"


    In the seconds before Mchi''s partner was announced, every student in the ss held their breath.


    The girls in the ss desperately wanted to be paired up with Mal, and they weren''t exactly hiding it.


    Their intense stares were piercing the body of their teacher, as if they were trying to will him to say their name and set them up for a possible marriage.


    The guys were desperately hoping to be paired up with Mchi so as to leech off his meteoric fame.


    Mchi had always made himself unavable before but if they were forced to be paired together, they could use this as an opportunity to get in good with him and skim some of the benefits of his fame and fortune.


    Someone like Mchi was certain to have plenty of women around so if they became friends with him, they''d surely receive some of the spill over poon, right?


    With their motives, aligned, they all held their breaths as they waited to hear their names fly out of the professor''s mouth.


    "Annalise Gray."


    The disappointment among the students was immeasurable and they slunk down into their seats in a depressed manner, not even caring to hear who their actual partners were.


    Mchi''s eyes scanned the room for the girl who was supposed to be his partner and found her sitting in her usual seat by the window.


    "I thought my luck was bad but it looks like yours was even worse. Wasn''t expecting you to get paired up with the scary goth girl." Serana whispered jokingly.


    "Shut up." Mal said as he rolled his eyes. "There''s nothing wrong with her."


    Mchi''s supposed partner was a young woman of 22 years of age with pale skin and short ck hair.


    Her bright violet eyes were half closed and unfocused as she stared out the window, her face showing a mixture of extreme drowsiness paired with sheer boredom.


    Both of her ears contained several silver piercings and a pair of earbuds as well, which she seemed to have spray painted ck.


    As Serana had alluded, Annalise had a bit of a goth aesthetic paired with a rather tomboyish appearance.


    She wore a ck hoodie with a skull on the back that seemed to be a few sizes toorge for her, and her plump yet slender legs were being squeezed to death in a pair of ripped ck jeans.


    On her feet she wore ck boots that had been painted with the names and initials of various bands and musicians, and they seemed to be fairly well made.


    Eventually, Annalise felt like she was being watched and found Mchi staring at her intently.


    She immediately became ufortable, as she had never had any interaction with Mchi before and didn''t know why he would possibly be staring at her.


    Taking out her earbud, she gave Mchi a slightly irritated look that would normally be enough to scare anyone off.


    "Can I help you with something? Why the hell are you staring at me so hard?"


    "You''re my project partner." Mal said, unfazed by her unfriendly demeanor.


    Suddenly, Annalise made a face as if she''d just heard something dreadfully shocking.


    "We have a project??"


    "Jesus."


    -


    On the other side of town, Minoru was drunkenly stumbling out of a casino while mumbling profanities at the ''cheating machines''.


    To him, there was no way that he shouldn''t have won at least a few grand or so with all of his gambling skills and knowledge.


    The only logical exnation was that those crooks who ran the ce were purposefully sabotaging him so that he could not collect what he so rightfully deserved.


    ''Doesn''t matter, as long as I keep working for that asshole then the money will never stop rolling in.''


    Bzz Bzz!


    Just as Minoru crashed onto a nearby bench, his burner phone began to vibrate and he immediately knew who was calling.


    Pulling out the device, Minoru immediately tried to sober up and put on his most professional tone of voice.


    "Ahem, Hello Mr. Heller, how can I-"


    "It''s over, you are no longer needed."


    Believing he may still have been inebriated, Minoru rubbed his eyes hard before requesting rification. "Sir, what are you-"


    "As of today I am terminating our contract. You are an unneeded expense that I no longer require as I have found other methods to procure what I want."


    Suddenly, Minoru stood up and began yelling into the phone.


    "Y-You can''t do this! W-What about severance pay or-"


    On the other side of the line, Alex Heller burst into a fit of furiousughter. "HAHAHAHAHA!!"


    "Severance? You should be d that I''m letting you keep your life! I''m in a good mood today so do me a favor and don''t fuck that up."


    Alex''s tone suddenly became considerably less friendly as just hearing his voice sent chills down Minoru''s spine.


    "This is thest time we will ever converse. Dispose of the phone as you''ve been instructed and forget that you ever met me. If I find out you are talking to anyone that you shouldn''t then I am going to put you in the fucking ground."


    Before Minoru could utter a single word, the call disconnected for thest time and he was left alone once again.


    "Damn it... damn it!!"


    He hurled the phone at the bench and it immediately broke apart into several pieces.


    "This is all that bitch''s fault! She made things so difficult for me that he cut me loose!"


    What other exnation was there?


    If Sei had only weed him back with open arms then none of this would have happened and Minoru would be rolling in money by now!


    "You think you''re hot shit just because some punk kid ys with your dirty old body..?" Reaching in his jacket, he pulled out a silver sk containing nothing but vodka.


    After taking a sizable gulp, he wiped his mouth as he vowed to teach her a lesson by any means.


    ''You think you''re too good for me... I''ll show you!''

 Chapter 63: Project Details & A Studious Sei

    <h4>Chapter 63: Project Details & A Studious Sei</h4>


    Mchi and Annalise were walking out of ss side by side.


    Neither of them had spoken a word to each other ever since that first exchange in ss, and it didn''t seem like either of them were going to speak to anytime soon.


    The project for their psych ss was... interesting to say the least.


    As the professor exined earlier, the goal for this project was to observe and study your partner in their natural environment while doing their day to day activities.


    Be it work, other sses, or even hanging out with friends, their partner was supposed to observe them openly while putting together aprehensive report on their behavior and personality.


    Annalise had never been so pissed off in her life.


    As soon as the professor said the details of the project, every girl in ss started looking at her like she was their worst enemy.


    She already had a hard time fitting in due to her choice of style and appearance.


    Now that she was stuck with the dream guy of every girl on campus for the week, she felt like the small embers that represented her social life had been cruelly stomped out and shitted on.


    She could kiss the chances of ever making friends with any of those girls goodbye.


    Out of the corner of her eye, she nced at Mal and analyzed him from top to bottom.


    While she could admit that he was handsome, she didn''t understand why everyone in the world seemed to be going so crazy over him.


    Without the mention of his powers or wealth, Mchi just seemed like some average guy to her with no outshining characteristics.


    She figured she could probably write an entire paper on him after one day together.


    Mal noticed Annalise looking at him out of the corner of her eye and took that to mean that she was ready to start a conversation.


    "So Annalise, do you-"


    "Never call me that ever again." She said tly.


    Luckily, Mal seemed immune to her frigid response and continued rolling like nothing had even happened.


    "Then what should I call you?"


    "Just Anna. Anything else feels too uppity and formal."


    Mchi nodded in understanding as the two of them continued their walk to the parking lot.


    "We have six days together, with three days to observe each other and one to write our paper. So how do you want to do this?"


    Anna sighed as she ran her hands through her short ck hair. "We''ll just knock it all out at once I guess. I''ll follow you around first and then you can do me."


    She then pulled out her phone and began punching in a few buttons before handing it over to the young man.


    "Give me your number and address. I''ll try not to sell it to any paparazzi."


    Mchi chuckled and entered his information assuming that this scary looking girl was attempting to joke with him.


    She wasn''t.


    These are tough times for a young college student you know? Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.


    Once she had Mchi''s information, she walked away while waiving without looking back.


    "I''ll text you whenever I remember to."


    Mchi watched the young woman get into an older ck car that was parked opposite of his.


    The engine soon sputtered to life and a momentter Mal could hear the sound of heavy metal reverberating from the speakers.


    Anna pulled out of the parking lot like a bat out of hell, leaving behind a slightly stunned Mal who was wearing a small smirk.


    "She didn''t really seem all that bad... this project will probably go fine, right?"


    -


    At Sei''s house, the mature beauty wasying in her bedroom upstairs and staring absentmindedly at the ceiling.


    Visions and echoes of the passionate night she''d experienced with Mchi had left her lost in a daze for the past hour.


    No matter how much she thought back on it, she realized that there was a ring issue with their lovemaking that she could not ignore.


    "I-I will not be led on anymore! I have to make him feel good too!"


    Sitting up, she went to her nightstand and grabbed herptop and a pair of headphones.


    She had never done anything like this before, but her pride as an older woman had been wounded by allowing herself to be continuously led on by her boyfriend who wasn''t even twenty one.


    She needed to learn some new tricks, anything to ensure that Mal was having great of a time during their love making as she was.


    Typing in ''sex tips'' she became slightly disappointed when all she found was advice columns from middle aged couples having intimacy problems and podcasts hosted by former pornstars.


    ''What does porn look like anyway...?'' She wondered.


    Her simple curiosity led her to jump down the inte''s darkest rabbit hole and soon she was soon immersed in more nasty videos than she could handle.


    As a fairly innocent woman, Sei felt like her eyes had been opened to an entirely new world.


    She had a lot of questions and a lot of concerns, and as she went from video to video, they only multiplied.


    ''Oh my...''


    ''H-He put his tongue... in her bottom?''


    ''Milking...?''


    ''I still haven''t seen anyone asrge as Mchi...''


    ''Neglect y? This just seems cruel...''


    ''B-Bondage also seems like a bit too much...''


    ''T-Threesome!?'' Her mind filled with various images of herself, Luna, and Mchi all intertwined together on the bed.


    While she did not believe she was adverse to the idea, the truth was that she felt like she would need quite a bit of time to prepare for such a thing.


    "T-This is all too much for me right now!" She yelled with a red face.


    Sei quickly closed out of her current video and took a small breather.


    ''I just need something a bit more simple and intimate... I just want to use my body to show him how much I love him...''


    She took a deep breath and ventured into a much more softcore section and found a video of a woman on top of a man.


    The woman in the video kissed the man intimately before making her way down his body.


    Sei''s eyes widened as she watched the woman in the video take the entirety of the man into her mouth without even breaking eye contact.


    The man began to release muffled groans and obscenities as he grabbed her hair and made her go faster.


    The longer Sei watched, the more she felt like this was the most obvious solution!


    Mchi had used his mouth on her a number of times and each instance made her see heaven and question if she was truly his first woman.


    Surely she could give him a simr experience if she only learned how to do it properly!


    With her goal decided, Sei spent the next hour in a full deep dive into every blowjob video she could fine.


    Instead of watching porn, she looked like she was studying for a college entrance exam.


    She took great care to study the tongue movements of the women, which spots produced the best reactions from the men, and most importantly how they were still able to breath while nearly being choked to death.


    After a while, Sei finally removed her headphones and let out a massive thoughtful sigh.


    As she sat there contemting everything she had just learned, the strong scent of something burning wafted into her nose.


    A momentter, the ring sound of a fire rm going off assailed her ears.

 Chapter 64: [Bonus chapter]Up In Smoke

    <h4>Chapter 64: [Bonus chapter]Up In Smoke</h4>


    - A few minutes ago.


    Minoru drunkenly stumbled out of his car and pulled on his hood to cover his face.


    Through his half lidded eyes, he stared at a medium sized two story house that he recognized as his ex wife''s.


    He wouldn''t have known where she lived without Alex Heller, as one of their possible schemes involved him ''randomly'' showing up at this address and pretending to have car trouble and a dead phone.


    "At least that bastard was good for something..." Minoru pulled on a pair of dark ck gloves and reached in his backseat to take out a bottle of vodka and a dirty cloth.


    Unscrewing the cap, he quickly stuffed half of the cloth inside the bottle while making sure that it was securely in ce.


    He took out a small silver lighter from his back pocket, and lit the exposed end of the cloth on fire.


    ncing upstairs, he smile when he realized Sei''s bedroom lights were on, indicating she was home.


    "I hope you burn to death you WHORE!"


    Crash!


    Minoru hurled the Molotov cocktail right through Sei''s front window into her living room.


    He would have liked to stick around and watch her panic from his little gift, but he didn''t want to risk being seen by anyone so he had to run for now.


    Stumbling back into his vehicle, he pulled off like a drunken madman just as Sei''s living room caught on fire.


    -


    When Sei finally rushed downstairs, her entire living room was already engulfed in mes and it was quickly traveling to the kitchen and dining area as well.


    Tears quickly filled her eyes as her mind ran at a million miles a minute to process next steps.


    At the current rate the fire was spreading, the door to her home would soon be engulfed and she would have no way to escape.


    There was no back door, and the windows were much too small for her to climb through.


    Which meant if she was going to leave soon and call 911, she had an extremely limited amount of time to grab whatever was important and leave.


    With tears in her eyes and lungs that were quickly filling with smoke, Sei opened up a closet door near her and pulled out her purse and a folder filled with important documents.


    She wished more than anything that she had time to grab more, but her window of opportunity seemed to be quickly closing, as the mes where already a few seconds away from reaching the front door.


    But just before she was about to leave, she remembered another important item in her household that she absolutely could not leave behind.


    ''The money!''


    The 500,000 dors Mchi had received from Rowan as payment for killing Arthur was located in another closet on the other side of the room.


    After covering her mouth and nose with her shirt and clutching her things close to her chest, Sei rushed to the closet without wasting another moment.


    Grabbing a nket, she quickly threw it on top of the mes that had started to lick at the door and stamped it out.


    After throwing open the door and retrieving the duffel bag, Sei ran directly for the front door of her home.


    "Aghh!"


    She let out a cry of pain when she touched the burning hot doorknob and felt a searing heat travel through her palm.


    Wrenching open the door, she sprinted outside and threw herself onto her frontwn.


    Her hand was still stinging a bit and she hadn''t fully caught her breath yet but otherwise, she was fine.


    "Sei!? Sei is that you? Are you alright?!"


    From across the street, Sei''s neighbor Mr. Richards had noticed the fire ande out of his house to take a look.


    "I-I''m fine!"


    "Crawl as far away from the house as you can, alright? I''ve already called the fire department!"


    Nodding in understanding, Sei began to crawl all the way to the edge of herwn before sitting up and resting against the mailbox.


    As she watched the fire continue to spread, the tears that she''d been holding back all this time finally fell freely and she was powerless to stop them.


    Why was this happening to her?


    She hadn''t left any candles burning, or even cooked tonight for that matter!


    How could a fire just spring up in her living room out of nowhere!?


    Sei was so distraught, she did not notice a very familiar car pulling up along with the sound of sirens growing ever closer.


    "Mom!"


    Serena barely put her car in park before leaping out of the drivers seat and frantically throwing herself at her mother.


    "A-Are you alright?! W-What happened to the house?!"


    Sei looked up at her daughter with tears still falling from her eyes and making the most heartbreaking face known to man.


    "Serana, I-I don''t...." Sei couldn''t even finish her sentence before another round of choked sobs escaped her mouth.


    Distraught beyond belief, the mother daughter pair said nothing as they cried and held each other for dear life.


    The two continued to cling to each other and act as their onlyfort long after the fire department arrived to save the remnants of their house and treat Sei''s burn.


    -


    At Mchi''s apartment, the young man had just stepped out of the shower and began wiping his body down with a towel.


    After drying himself off and pulling on a pair of cozy house pants, he grabbed his phone to check his messages and frowned when he realized he hadn''t heard back from Sei yet.


    He''d texted her an hour ago to ask about her ns for the week, and she had yet to give a response.


    Normally Mal would not see this as a cause for concern but his girlfriend typically always texted him back within twenty minutes unless she was either working or sleeping.


    ''Did she fall asleep?'' He wondered.


    Ding Dong!


    Just as Mal prepared to use his powers to check on her, his doorbell rang and he lost his train of thought.


    Mchi raised a brow in confusion when he realized he had visitors at this time of night, but after a moment''s thought he realized that there weren''t very many people it could have been.


    Appearing at his front door, he opened it to find both Sei and Serena with red puffy eyes, and a few personal items in their hands.


    Immediately recognizing something was wrong, his tone became soft and gentle as he allowed them both inside.


    "Girls... Tell me what''s the matter."


    "Honey...C-Can we stay with you for a little bit...?" Sei asked gently, embarrassed to even be asking such a question.


    Next to her, Serana was biting her lip hard so as not to cry in front of Mal, and that look only tugged at his heartstrings even more.


    In the blink of an eye, he had pulled the both of them into his embrace and brought them inside.


    "You girls are being silly... You should already know that I will do whatever I can for you."


    "Thank you, honey..."


    "Thanks Mchi..."


    The mother daughter duo thought they''d thoroughly cried themselves into exhaustion tonight, but in Mchi''s warm and caring embrace, they found that they still had a few more tears left to shed.


    Although, these tears contained something other than sadness or confusion, and it made the burden on their spirits much lighter.


    Relief.

 Chapter 65: [Bonus chapter]The Morning After

    <h4>Chapter 65: [Bonus chapter]The Morning After</h4>


    Sunlight had just begun to stream through the curtains in Mchi''s bedroom and came dancing on the bodies of the two adults that wereying beneath the sheets.


    Mal had been awake for thest hour or so, yet he hadn''t moved from his current position for even a second.


    His hand was still intertwined with the lightly bandaged one of his sleeping girlfriend, and he was more than a little reluctant to pull away.


    It had taken her forever to fall asleepst night, and Mal was worried that if she sensed that he was gone for even a second, she would wake up immediately.


    The longer he stared at her beautiful sleeping face and swollen eyes, the more sure he became that he couldn''t leave this woman behind today.


    Holding out his hand, he called his phone over to himself using telekinesis and began to dial a number.


    It only took a moment for the phone to connect, and when it did he immediately began to whisper lightly into the phone.


    "Hey Luna... I don''t think I''ll be able to make it to training this morning."


    On the other line, Luna immediately became concerned as she knew Mchi well enough to know that he wasn''t one to avoid his responsibilities.


    "Are you alright?" She asked worriedly.


    "I''m fine, it''s just... Some things came up and I have to take care of Sei today."


    Luna''s eyes becameplicated as she leaned further back into her leather chair.


    "Alright... You''ll still be able to participate in your dungeon raid in two days, won''t you?"


    "Of course I will. I still have to redeem myself from that embarrassing first run."


    "Fufufufu~ You did alright."


    "Maybe so but I want to give the women rooting for me a better show this time around."


    "Oh?¡­ Might you be talking about all of your fans that showed up at thest event?"


    "I certainly appreciate the support, but nah. I only have two women who can motivate me like this. "


    "Oh? Aubrey and Aisha?"


    "I said women, not roaches."


    Luna could not help but giggle as she smiled like a woman madly in love.


    But despite how Mal''s words made her feel, she knew that they wereing dangerously close to crossing the line she''d drawn between them.


    "Mal, you¡­ I''ll see you tomorrow morning."


    With that, Luna hung up the phone and tossed it onto her desk.


    ''That boy¡­ he''s too dangerous for his own good.''


    -


    It took a few more minutes, but eventually Mal separated from Sei and slipped out of bed.


    After freshening up inside the bathroom, he quietly tiptoed through his apartment to Aubrey''s room where Serana was currently sleeping.


    Luckily, his younger sister spent most nights at her girlfriend''s ce nowadays and she didn''t mind Serana sleeping in her bed while she was gone.


    Mal''s apartment had a spare bedroom and bathroom , but because he didn''t know what to do with it until now, there wasn''t anything in there.


    ''When we go shopping I''ll buy her a tv and a bed too.''


    His n for today was to take Sei and Serana to the store and buy them whatever they needed.


    Almost 80% of their house caught firest night, and while they didn''t lose everything, it certainly felt like they had.


    Sei was especially distraught to lose the house that had been gifted to her by a woman who was like her second mother, and even though Mal couldn''t turn back time to save the house, he could rece the things that were in it.


    But there was a problem.


    He was 90% sure that Sei was not going to simply allow him to spend an exorbitant amount of money on her in one day.


    She would want to wait for the insurancepany to settle things, but something like that could take weeks and Mal didn''t want them to go without basicforts for that long.


    Sei didn''t even have a phone anymore, as it had been left upstairs when the fire first started.


    Leading Mal to his current n of attack.


    He was in the kitchen, preparing a nice and hearty breakfast the likes of which Sei would absolutely love.


    She wouldn''t have the energy to argue with his generosity if her stomach was full.


    Or at least that was what he hoped.


    In the kitchen, Mal was whisking together a bowl full of eggs, buttermilk, and vani.


    Once everything was incorporated fully, he grabbed a whole loaf of brioche bread from the pantry and grabbed a knife to start cutting thick slices.


    In the midst of this, Mal suddenly paused when he sensed someone approaching his front door.


    Worried that they would ring the doorbell and wake the girls, he rushed to open the door before that could happen and was surprised by who he found.


    "Jesus, fuck¡­ why don''t you have a shirt on?!" Anna asked with a red face.


    At that moment, Mal remembered that before Sei and Serana showed up at his house, Anna had texted him to ask what time his day started and what he was going to be doing.


    When he told her how early he had to be at the guild, she left him on read so he assumed that she wasn''t going for it.


    But apparently that wasn''t the case.


    Although the bags under her eyes and cup of coffee in her hand indicated that she wasn''t doing this willingly.


    "Sorry, I''m just kinda always like this at home." He said apologetically.


    Mal then looked at what Anna was wearing and realized that she wasn''t exactly one to talk.


    The tomboyish goth girl was wearing ck sweatpants and socks with slides.


    Her dark hoodie was fully unzipped, allowing him to get a good look at her impressive chest that was covered by a sports bra from a famous brand.


    Mal could also see that she had quite a few tattoos that he hadn''t noticed before, some were on her ribs and a few where on her delicate looking fingers as well.


    "But should you really be talking? Your outfit isn''t much better than mine."


    Anna looked down at her clothes in sheer confusion before tilting her head to indicate she didn''t understand.


    "What''s wrong with this?"


    "Nothing, never mind."


    Anna finally rolled her eyes and pushed past Mal into his apartment.


    Taking a look at her surroundings, her mood improved a small amount and she wasn''t as grumpy as before.


    "Nice ce¡­ I''m really feeling the ck floors."


    ''Big shocker.'' Mal thought with a chuckle.


    "I''m d you like it but I''ve got some bad news."


    "Oh yea? What?"


    "We''re not going to the guild today. I have some other things to take care of."


    Almost immediately, Anna''s face became ugly and Mal thought she was going to beat his ass.


    The look on her face was so scary that he had forgotten that she was still a regr human.


    Currently she looked more like a beautiful yet vengeful demon.


    "You got me up¡­ at seven in the morning¡­ for nothing¡­?"


    "It wasn''t intentional." Mal said sincerely.


    Yet Anna didn''t seem to buy it for even a second.


    Her mind began to run at 1,000 miles a minute, and she realized the absurdity of this situation.


    "This was all apart of your n wasn''t it."


    e again?"


    "Having me show up at your ce alone, opening the door shirtless, you just think I''m some easy little loner girl that you can y with as much as you like and then dump her onto the street when you''re done."


    Mchi sighed before going into theundry room and pulling on a simple sleeveless t-shirt.


    "You''re being crazy. I''m not some sort of creep who would try to take advantage of you like that."


    "Oh? Then do you care to tell me why we''re suddenly not going to your guild? Don''t tell me it''s cause you''re embarrassed to be seen with me."


    Before Mal could respond, a sleepy yet sarcastic voice suddenly spoke.


    "Wow Mal¡­. If I knew my house burning down was going to cause you this much trouble, I would''ve made sure that we kept a fire extinguisher around."

 Chapter 66: [Bonus chapter] Stepfather?

    <h4>Chapter 66: [Bonus chapter] Stepfather?</h4>


    Leaning sleepily against Aubrey''s bedroom door was Serana who seemed to have just woken up.


    "How''re you feeling, little dude?" Mal asked gently.


    The young girl smiled bitterly when she heard Mal''s tone that was still full of concerned affection despite his annoying way of referring to her.


    "I''m fine Mchi, you don''t need to worry about me."


    Serana nced at Anna and was briefly stunned by her great body and bold tattoos that were normally hidden by baggy ck clothes.


    "Umm... Did you say something about a house burning down?" Anna asked.


    "Yup, mine."


    "O-Oh.. I''m sorry..."


    Anna suddenly started looking back and forth between Mchi and Serana like she was putting pieces together.


    "So... this must be the reason why we aren''t going to the guild today."


    "Pretty much." Mal nodded as he breezed past her to check on Serana.


    "Come into the kitchen, I''ll make you some food."


    Suddenly, Serena''s pink eyes that were showing pure exhaustion lit up as she followed behind Mal like a little duckling.


    Anna moved slowly behind them, but she was inwardly cursing herself for her previous assumptions about Mchi''s motives.


    ''I can''t believe I used him of being such a sleezebag... I... should apologize, right?''


    Mchi''s kitchen was located on arge ind that was directly behind his living room.


    On one side there was a six burner stove that looked like every chefs dream, and on the other there was a bar with six stools where individuals could sit and watch whatever cooking was taking ce.


    He invited the girls to either sit on the couch or at the bar as he resumed his task of making breakfast and was surprised when Serana sat right in front of him and gestured for Anna to sit next to her.


    "You''re Annalise, right? I''m Serana."


    "Yea... my friend''s just call me Anna." She said shyly.


    "Oh, Anna''s much better!" Serana said with her usual friendly smile. "Your tattoos are so pretty, I had no idea you had any!"


    "I guess I tend to keep them covered when I''m in ss and stuff, though I''m not really sure why."


    Anna was distracted by the sound of the stove sparking to life and found Mchi looking like he was going to prepare a full spread.


    "You... cook?" Anna asked, not even bothering to hide her surprise.


    When he offered Serana food, he thought he was just going to give her a pop tart or something.


    "I do what I can." Mal said with a shrug.


    "He''s just being annoyingly humble again as usual." Serana said while rolling her eyes. "Mal''s a great cook, and I fully intend to have him fatten me up a bit now that I''m staying here!"


    Again, Anna felt like she had beenpletely caught off guard when it came to Mal.


    Weren''t super rich guys supposed to have private chefs and sexy girls in maid outfits?


    Why was he so different?


    Mal paid the first part of Serana''s words no mind as he continued to slice into the bread before dunking it into the egg mixture. "It''s a good thing we''re going to get you new clothes today then."


    Serana''s smile suddenly faded as she looked at Mal with a slightly painful expression.


    "Mal... you know we can''t let you-"


    "Shut it."


    "Mmmph!"


    Mchi shoved a piece of dry bread into Serana''s mouth to stop her from talking.


    "I already know that I''m going to have to go to battle with your mom over this, so I can''t waste that energy on small fry like you."


    Serana wanted toment that she wasn''t small fry but the bread that had been stuffed into her mouth was really pillowy and delicious.


    *Nom nom* "Okay."


    With a smile, he continued focusing on his task as he dropped a pad of butter into a heated skillet.


    ''He''s letting her mother stay here too? I knew that they were close from how they acted in ss but I didn''t know they were this close.'' Anna thought in amazement.


    "Sorry Anna, I know I had you get up early for no reason and now I''m dragging you to the mall with us."


    The young girl sipped her coffee silently as she tried to avoid Mal''s sincere gaze. "It''s no big deal, I didn''t really have anything else to do anyways..."


    The smell of food began wafting into the air and filled the nostrils of both girls.


    They stared in wonder at the slices of French toast on the griddle that had turned a mesmerizing golden brown and their mouths began to water.


    "H-Hey... you''ll et me have some too right?" Anna asked shyly.


    "I''m not cruel enough to invite you into my home without feeding you. You can have as much as you want."


    In response, Anna''s tattooed stomach let out a massive rumble and her cheeks reddened in embarrassment.


    "...You guys didn''t hear that."


    "I did."


    "I have really good ears."


    As Serana and Mchi chuckled at Anna''s expense, the door to Mchi''s bedroom opened and a soft and sleepy voice yed in their ears.


    "Honey? Where did you go?"


    When Sei came into view, she was wearing the same outfit that she usually wore whenever she went to bed at Mal''s house. An oversized t-shirt that went all the way to her thighs and ckce panties that were just out of sight.


    As the mesmerizing mature beauty rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, she realized that there was an additional person here whom she was unfamiliar with.


    "Ah!"


    Sei immediately covered her chest and ran back to the bedroom, in the hopes of making herself look more presentable.


    When she left, Anna turned around to face Mchi with eyes as big as saucers. "Who... was that?"


    "My girlfriend." He answered.


    "My mommy." Serana confirmed.


    Anna''s head was on a constant swivel between the young man in front of her and the girl sitting next to her as she tried to process what she had just seen.


    "He... with your mom... and you just..."


    "Jeez, what''s wrong with you? I thought the whole world knew about Mal''s rtionship with my mom by now."


    "I-I don''t get on social media much..." Anna admitted.


    "Then... that would make you her stepfather?" She asked Mchi.


    Immediately, Mchi and Serana''s faces became ugly as they stared at Anna like she''d just said something horrible.


    "No... please don''t use that term..."


    "Even if you''re our friend now, we''re putting you out if you say something like that again."


    Anna decided that maybe it was better if she just drank her coffee for the time being and did not say anything else.


    ''I really... don''t understand anything about these two at all...''

 Chapter 67: ...What Do You Mean ’Ok’?!

    <h4>Chapter 67: ...What Do You Mean ''Ok''?!</h4>


    "I''m sorry about earlier. I am Mchi''s girlfriend and Serana''s mother. It is very nice to meet you!" Sei said politely.


    It had taken the mature beauty all of five minutes to run back into Mchi''s room and get changed into an outfit suitable for guests.


    Luckily, she kept a few spare clothes over at Mal''s ever since they started spending the night together and it seemed like that decision hade in handy.


    Anna stared at the woman opposite her who was wearing a warm and radiant smile despite the tired bags under her eyes.


    Unlike before, her body was now hidden behind a bright yellow sundress that emphasized her bold and seductive curves.


    In her 22 years of life, Anna could not recall ever meeting anyone quite so feminine and sexy.


    Realizing she''d probably been staring too long, "I''m Anna... I''m their ssmate and Mchi''s partner for our project."


    Once the two shook hands, Sei moved to stand beside her daughter and gave her an affectionate kiss on the forehead. "You look like you slept just about as well as I did."


    Serana smiled helplessly in response as she returned her mother''s hug.


    "I think I was finally able to fall asleep around 3... but Aubrey''sfortable bed is the only reason I was even able to fall asleep at all."


    "Well you do you have anything to do today? Maybe you should rest for the day, dear."


    If Serana was honest, there was nothing she would like more.


    But unfortunately, she had to work on her own project and there was also the matter of Mal wanting to take them both shopping.


    It didn''t seem like Mal was ready to talk about his n with Sei yet, so Serana just told her mother that she was too busy to rest and she seemed to ept it.


    Finally, Sei found her way to Mal''s side and leaned her head against his shoulder while watching him cook.


    "Do you need any help?"


    Of course, Mchi shook his head no but that did not stop Sei from helping him anyway.


    "This girl... You''re supposed to be resting."


    Sei immediately blushed and did notment.


    It would be too embarrassing of her to say that she did not feel like she could sleep unless Mchi was there, right?


    The two continued to cook in tandem, and Serana and Anna were both equally impressed by how well the two worked together.


    Sometimes, the two did not even have to say anything as they immediately knew what their significant other would need next or if they should clear space for them.


    "I heard about your home..." Anna suddenly said. "I''m very sorry."


    Sei gave her usual warm motherly smile, only now it contained hints of sadness.


    "It''s alright, it isn''t your fault. Electrical fires aremon with old houses." She said sweetly.


    Mal noticed how Serana''s eyes becameplicated and he smiled at her warmly.


    He figured she was still distraught over the loss of her home, so he decided not to make her wait for her meal any longer.


    "Alright girls, time to eat."


    With the food done, Mchi and Sei presented it to the two eager looking girls at the bar and their eyes practically lit up.


    "Did we overdo it?" Sei asked.


    The couple had prepared french toast thered in butter and syrup, bacon, grits, fruit sd and even eggs.


    Mchi briefly nced at the two girls opposite him who had already begun to stuff their faces with little to no semnce of etiquette.


    "Nah, I''m actually kinda worried we didn''t make enough."


    As if to confirm his point, both girls made requests for more food.


    Serana: "More French toast please!"


    Anna: "A-And eggs if you don''t mind..."


    Mchi chuckled and told Sei that he would handle them while she finally sat down to eat.


    After getting some warm food in her stomach, Sei''s mood improved and she felt at peace for the first time since her house burned down.


    When about half of her te was gone, Mal chose that moment to unveil to her his ns for the day.


    "After you finish eating, I want you to rest for a little while longer and then I''ll take you and Serana to the mall and we can try to rece everything you guys lost. "


    Sei''s eyes becameplicated and Mchi prepared himself for an intense debate.


    However, he nearly dropped the spat in his hand when his girlfriend said the two words he least expected.


    "...Okay, honey."


    "...Okay?"


    "Okay." Sei confirmed.


    Both Mchi and Serana stared at Sei like she''d just grown a second head.


    Why didn''t she refuse?


    Both Mchi and Serana had expected her to deny his offer firmly and spend the next several minutes arguing over it.


    Serana turned to Mchi in a crazed frenzy and immediately used him of brainwashing her. "Hey Mal! What''d you do to my mother!?"


    "Huh? I ain''t do anything!"


    "Liar! Why else is she acting so agreeable all of a sudden?! It''s because you guys are having sex now, isn''t it!?"


    Anna choked on thest remnants of bacon within her mouth, and Sei''s face became as red as an apple.


    "That doesn''t have anything to do with it you brat!" Mal argued.


    "Then why is she suddenly so okay with everything you say?! You must''ve dickmatized her!"


    "S-Serana! That''s enough!" Sei finally said.


    Her face was now so red that she was indistinguishable from a bottle of ketchup and she looked like she was going to die of embarrassment at any moment.


    ''Breakfast and a show... this ce is great.'' Anna was no longer regretting the fact that she had to get up at such an unholy hour.


    The food she was chewing on and the entertaining scene in front of her made this all more than worth it.


    "Mom, are you really okay with him spending so much money on us??" Serana asked.


    Sei nodded shyly, as if she wasn''t fullyfortable with it herself. "I know that he''s not going to take no for an answer, and I can just pay him back when we get the settlement from the insurancepany."


    ''He''s not going to take it.'' Serana thought in annoyance.


    ''I''m not gonna take it.'' Mchi thought happily.


    He would have told her that directly, but he thought that if he brought that point up to her then she would no longer ept his offer and things would be much moreplicated.


    Suddenly, Sei stood up from her seat and began heading back towards Mal''s room. "I don''t need to rest, I''ll just go and get ready."


    "Alright."


    "If you say so.."


    Once Sei was back in Mal''s room and shut the door, she let out a massive sigh of frustration.


    Truthfully, the reason why she did not fight Mal''s request was because she already felt guilty.


    The truth was, she had lied to him about how the fire really started.


    Last night, the fire department had told her that the fire was intentional, and the cause was a Molotov cocktail that had been thrown through her front window.


    At first, she didn''t believe it.


    Sei didn''t know anyone who would want to hurt her, and she certainly had never treated anyone unkindly.


    It seemed inconceivable that someone would want to do this to her.


    And yet, as she looked at her house that had gone up in mes, she knew it to be true.


    She hade up with the story that it was an electrical fire because she didn''t want to worry Mal, or even worse, send him into a rage on her behalf.


    Serana seemed iffy on the whole idea, but after being persuaded by her mother she also agreed to keep the cause a secret.


    For now, the two would just let the police investigate everything while they waited for this entire nightmare to end.


    But Sei had not anticipated just how guilty lying to Mal would make her feel.


    The toll it had begun to take on her mind was a heavy one, and she did not know how much longer she could keep this from him.


    As she sat on the edge of the bed, a small tear fell from her tired eyes.


    ''Honey... I''m not sure what the right thing to do is anymore...''

 Chapter 68: Big Spender?

    <h4>Chapter 68: Big Spender?</h4>


    True to her word, Sei had allowed Mchi to take her and her daughter to the mall and purchase whatever they needed.


    Both girls received new wardrobes, in addition to some misceneous items like a new phone for Sei and a bed and tv for what would be Serana''s room.


    "I want a VS5 too!" She asked excitedly.


    "No." Mal denied swiftly.


    "E-Eh?! B-But I lost my old one in the fire..." Serana put on her most pitiful puppy dog eyes for added effect and it appeared to be working.


    Mal nced at Sei for confirmation and when she shook her head no, Serana received a hard flick on the forehead.


    "Ow!"


    "Nice try."


    Serana shot her mother a betrayed look only to receive an unbothered chuckle in return.


    As Mal spoke to the cashier to finalize the details of the delivery, their additional guest Anna found herself unable to take her eyes off his back.


    Serana soon came to her side, nursing a small red spot on her head where Mal had flicked her. "Can you believe that brute? Treating a dainty thing like myself that way!"


    Anna chuckled in response and decided not to tell her that she wasn''t actually delicate herself.


    "He must do this kind of thing a lot, huh?" Anna asked as she watched Mal swipe his card without a care in the world.


    "Hit me? Yea and I''m starting to get real fucking-"


    "N-No, not that." Anna said a she tried to hold in augh. "I mean spend thousands of dors before noon."


    She had never seen anything like this.


    Mal had taken the girls to various clothing stores, a mattress store, and now they were inside of a ce that sold electronics.


    And he was STILL asking Sei if there was anything else she needed.


    "Oh, that? No, this is pretty new, Mal''s usually a cheap bastard."


    Once again, Anna was so surprised by a revtion that she nearly fell onto her face.


    "Y-You''re kidding, right? He almost bought you a brand new console a second ago!"


    Once again, Serana''s cheeks puffed out as she remembered how close she was to getting that gaming system. "I know, right? But of course my mom had to snitch and ruin-"


    "Please focus..." Anna said as she rubbed her temples. "How can he be a cheap bastard if he just took your mom into a luxury clothing store twenty minutes ago?"


    Serana was filled with irritation as she recalled how Mal had taken her mother to shop in Li and made her look inside of Fap.


    The young girl let out a frustrated sigh as she nced at the backs of Mal and her mother.


    "Well, Mal spent so long without any money that he has a lingering fear of not having any, so he can be really reluctant to spend money on himself.


    Most of the nice things he has are things that Aisha bought him. But when ites to himself he''s normally pretty reluctant to spend more than forty dors."


    Suddenly, Serana realized that Mal had notined even once about the amount of money they were spending.


    He let the two of them shop freely, and bought them whatever they asked for without batting an eye.


    For the first time, she understood just how much she and her mother meant to him.


    He had stuffed down his fear of poverty all for the goal of making the girls smile again and feel at home while they were staying with him.


    There weren''t very many who would offer to do such a thing, which only made Mchi''s enthusiasm during this ordeal all the more touching.


    While Anna was still in a daze from learning about Mchi''s unexpected money habits, Serana made a surprising maneuver.


    Just as Mchi prepared to leave the store with two hands filled with bags, two slender arms suddenly wrapped around his midsection from behind.


    He immediately knew the culprit was Serana, although this unexpected action had left him horribly confused.


    ''A suplex? Is she that mad I didn''t get her the damn console?!''


    But unlike what Mal expected, Serana had much kinder and gentler motives.


    "Thank you Mal... I really appreciate everything you''re doing for us."


    Mchi rxed considerably and let out a smallugh.


    "Didn''t think you had these kinda manners in you. Maybe you are your mother''s daughter after all."


    "Don''t push it fuckface."


    "Hahaha!"


    As Sei looked at this heartwarming scene, her mind was once again flooded with unease and guilt.


    She clenched her hands behind her back as she tried her best not to show how distraught she felt inside.


    ''Keep it together¡­ I shouldn''t ruin this for him.''


    After leaving the store, Mchi nced around the expansive shopping mall to decide their next steps.


    Ignoring the small crowd of people that was following him discreetly, he figured that they had purchased just about everything the girls would need.


    Fishing in his pocket, he casually tossed his keys to Anna.


    "Catch."


    "W-Why''re you giving me these?"


    "Can you and Serana bring the car around? Sei and I will meet you guys in a second." He handed the bags in his hand to Serana and she took them with some difficulty.


    Both Anna and Serana stared hard at the keys in her palm as if they were contemting going on a joyride.


    Eventually, the girls walked away from the couple while giggling madly and whispering between themselves.


    Normally, Mal would have stopped them and taken his keys back but he currently had more pressing matters to deal with.


    He just said a silent prayer that they didn''t destroy his precious car.


    "Alright, out with it."


    At his side, Sei made a surprised expression that quickly turned into a forced smile.


    "W-What do you mean honey?"


    "Y''know, at first I thought that you were still upset about your home, but no matter how much I watch you, I keep feeling like there''s something I''m missing."


    Knowing she''d been caught, the mature beauty was temporarily frozen as she wondered what she should do.


    After a moment of deep thought, Sei decided she could not hold onto the secret anymore and pulled Mchi into a nearby bathroom away from prying eyes.


    Once the two were inside, she leaned against the wall and gave him a rather fragile look.


    "S-Shrink¡­"


    Mal immediately understood her demand and transformed into a small ck cat that Sei immediately took into her arms.


    She began to squeeze him lightly while pressing him against her chest to calm her raging heartbeat.


    "I did something awful¡­ I¡­ have been lying to you about how the fire started. It¡­ wasn''t electrical."


    Mchi hadn''t expected for this to be the focus of their discussion, but he did notment and allowed her to get everything off her chest.


    "The fire department¡­ they said that it started because someone threw a bottle through the window¡­


    T-The police are still investigating so we don''t know who did it but I''m sure that they''ll find whoever did this a-and I''m sorry for not telling you sooner¡­"


    Within her arms, Mchi was trying his best to control his anger.


    His mind was embroiled within a storm of emotions, but he had to stuff those down for the moment and ensure that Sei was okay.


    "Why didn''t you tell me?" Mchi asked as gently as possible.


    He wasn''t upset with Sei for keeping this from him, but he was curious about her reasoning behind it.


    Sei took a deep breath and began petting Mal''s fur to calm herself down.


    "I-I knew that you would want to find whoever was responsible, b-but I didn''t want you to get angry on my behalf."


    "Then what do you want?" He asked calmly.


    Sei ced Mchi back on the ground and allowed him to go back to his true appearance.


    She flung herself into his arms and a steady stream of tears began to fall from her face.


    "I just want you to stay beside me and protect me! S-Someone tried to burn my house down a-and I don''t even know why! I''m scared honey!"


    As Sei let herself be vulnerable within Mchi''s arms, he understood why she didn''t want to tell him before.


    His reaction would have been terrible, and he would have torn the entire city apart while looking for the culprit.


    No matter the consequences.


    But what Sei needed the most wasn''t an avenger, it was a protector.


    While the difference might not seem veryrge, the two were like heaven and earth.


    "You don''t have to be scared, I promise. I''ve got you, okay?"


    Sei nodded shyly in eptance, and the two brought their lips together in a warm embrace that contained all of their longing and affection.


    It seemed like the two were going to stay like that forever, until Mal suddenly broke their kiss and made a concerned face.


    "Honey? What''s the matter?"


    Before Mal could answer, Sei heard it for herself.


    The sound of screaminging from outside.


    Suddenly, a ring rm triggered throughout the mall, and Mal knew right away his suspicions were correct.


    "There''s been a gate break."

 Chapter 69: [Bonus chapter]Winter Wonderland

    <h4>Chapter 69: [Bonus chapter]Winter Wondend</h4>


    Gate break.


    A term used to describe an event where monsters that lurk inside of gates suddenly enter the real world.


    They are generally pretty rare, and usually only take ce when a gate has been left unattended for a long period of time.


    Once Mchi heard the ring rm that signaled the appearance of such a catastrophe, he immediately became serious.


    "Sei, I''m sending you home right now." Mchi said.


    He immediately began to manipte the shadows at her feet to send her right to their bedroom, and she knew that she only had a limited amount of time to say goodbye.


    "Honey, please be careful..."


    In the face of Sei''spassion, Mchi could not help but smile warmly at her. "Always am... You know I have toe back to you."


    As Sei sank into the floor, she clutched her heart and finally said the words that had been buried within all of this time.


    "I love you..."


    As the shadows returned to normal and Mchi was once again left alone, a massive grin formed on his face.


    "That''s just not fair... You can''t just say something like that in a situation like this."


    He made a silent vow to make her say it againter when they were alone.


    ''It''s a good thing I bought Serana those headphones.''


    Exiting the bathroom, the first thing that Mal noticed was that the mall was not the same as when he had left a minute ago.


    For starters, he was now fully immersed within a thick blizzard the likes of which a southern boy like him had never experienced.


    Everywhere that he looked, snow had started to pile up on the tile floors and created a true winter wondend.


    "R-Run!"


    "T-There''s a gate break!"


    "Outta my way!"


    Arge horde of people ran past Mal in a panicked frenzy.


    It didn''t take him long to realize that everyone he saw was going in the opposite direction of the parking lot, which meant that was where the danger was.


    He immediately became worried about Serana and Anna, and his body changed on it''s own once again.


    Just like in his first dungeon, Mchi wanted the best characteristics of both man and feline.


    Only this time, the form he took changed to suit his environment.


    His height grew and his body expanded, yet instead of being 7''3 and littered with muscles, he became 7''0 and the muscles on his bodypacted to make him look more lithe than normal.


    His traditionally sleek and ck coat of fur became fuller and warmer, and it turned a silverish color with ck spots.


    Only when his movie star good looks were reced with the head of a snow leopard, was his new transformation finallyplete.


    Mal hadn''t noticed these changes yet, and right now he couldn''t really care less.


    All that mattered was that he find Serana and Anna at any cost.


    Dropping onto all fours, Mal''s wed hands and feet gouged out the ground beneath him as he bounded throughout the mall like a mad beast.


    It seemed like the mall had be mostly deserted, and the few people still rushing to get out could barely recognize what Mal was before he rushed past them.


    It didn''t take him long toe across a group of the invaders.


    Icy giants that were over eight feet tall whose bodies were packed with sturdy muscle underneath bright blue skin.


    They wore nothing but animal pelts and ornaments made out of bone, and each one was currently preupied with the unfortunate humans they had caught.


    While the men were already being gnawed on as a snack, the women were being knocked out and piled up in the corner for gods know what purpose.


    "Ru gra natte!"


    Thergest giant suddenly sensed something approaching at a very high speed.


    Its underlings stopped what they were doing and whirled around to see what their leader was pointing at, only to find¡­ nothing?


    Bang!


    Just as the giants were looking for the source of their leader''s worry, his body hit the ground with a loud thud.


    They immediately went to his side to check on him, only to be rmed when they realized he had no head.


    His body simplyy on the ground twitching as his neck spouted dark blue blood like a faucet.


    "Ye!"


    The four remaining ice giants all formed a circle and pushed their backs against each other in a protective formation.


    Their eyes could only see so far with the blizzard ensuing around them, so even though they were aware that they were being hunted, they weren''t sure what exactly was hunting them.


    Every now and then, they would see two tiny orange lights sh past them at a blinding speed before


    It seemed like they were going to continue this stalemate for forever, until there was finally a change in the battle.


    Shinng!


    All the ice giants heard was the sound of a sharp object whistling through the air before their legs and shoulders were suddenly pierced by silver knives.


    While their bodies were too dense for them to go terribly deep, that didn''t mean it didn''t hurt like hell.


    "Grah!"


    "Argh!!"


    In the blink of an eye, the formation of the ice giants had been destroyed as they all attended to their own individual injuries.


    With a roar, Mchi finally revealed himself as he leapt into the mass of blue bodies.


    Reaching out for the nearest giant, he took arge furry fist and punched him in the back of the head so hard that his skull exploded from the impact.


    Before the body could even hit the ground, Mal had shifted his focus to the rest of the invaders.


    Malnded on the back of a kneeling ice giant and took it''s massive head in between his paws.


    With a sickening wet crack, Mal twisted the neck of the giant and snuffed out it''s life with minimal effort.


    Kicking off it''s back, Mal performed a somersault in midair that carried him in front of another giant who was slowly recovering.


    Before it could even get back onto it''s feet, Mal pierced through it''s chest and pulled out an egregiouslyrge dark blue heart.


    Aubrey would never believe that this beast that was capable of such carnage was her older brother who used to be freaked out by raw turkeys on thanksgiving.


    With one giant left, Mchi watched as it shakily got back to it''s feet.


    Unlike the others, this one had seen it''s kin annihted at the hands of Mchi.


    It knew full well just how monstrous this beast was, and yet it understood that if it could rise to the challenge and y such a creature, it could easily be a tribe leader.


    The ice giant picked up it''s weapon, arge club that looked like it was made out of ice and bone. With a harrowing war cry, the beast rushed forward into what was sure to be a legendary battle.


    "Guuoooohhh!!"


    The giant raised it''s club high in the air before bringing it down to smash Mchi''s head in.


    Bang!


    Mal caught the attack with unfair ease and held the giant''s hand with an unshakeable grip.


    As Mchi opened his mouth wide, the ice giant was able to get a good look at his enormous and sharp teeth before he bit into his arm.


    "GRAAHHHHH!!!!"


    The ice giant let out a monstrous wail of pain as he struggled in pain to pull away from the still chewing Mchi.


    The giant raised it''s free hand to deliver a swift punch and hopefully break Mal''s grip, but Mchi caught that attack even easier than the first.


    "You taste like shit..." Mal muttered as he spit out the remnants of flesh from his mouth.


    Other than the strange influx of power he felt from eating this beast''s flesh, this was an extremely unpleasant experience.


    "Get back."


    Before the ice giant knew what happened, Mal had raised his leg and delivered a powerful kick to it''s midsection.


    Since Mchi was still holding onto his arms so tightly, the ice giant''s limbs were ripped free from it''s body as the force behind Mchi''s kick sent the rest of him flying into the air.


    Mchi threw the discarded limbs over his shoulder and immediately continued with his search.


    Taking a knee beside the bodies of the women, he quickly analyzed them to see if Serana or Anna was among them.


    When he realized that neither were present, his worries increased tenfold.


    With the ice giants and the freezing cold temperature inside the mall, he had to get to the girls quicker if he wanted to make sure they were okay.


    But first, he used the darkness surrounding him to teleport the unconscious women outside where they would hopefully warm up under the august sun and receive some help.


    After they were out of harms way, he recalled all of his knives and slid them into the belt of his tattered pants.


    ''Wait for me girls, I''ming as fast as I can.''


    -----------


    Huge thank you to Scott_Berry_3382 for sending me a massage chair and sponsoring this bonus chapter!

 Chapter 70: Not A Moment Too Soon!

    <h4>Chapter 70: Not A Moment Too Soon!</h4>


    Serana and Anna were currently huddled together in the back of a clothing store.


    When the gate break had urred, both girls had almost reached the exit when arge crack appeared in the space right in front of the doors.


    Before anyone could react, a bright blue portal opened up, and out from it poured a powerful blizzard and icy giants with bright blue skin.


    They of course tried to run like everyone else, but Anna unfortunately tripped and sprained her ankle after a few minutes of running.


    Unwilling to leave behind her new friend, Serana did her best to carry her to the exit but it proved a futile effort.


    The giants were relentless, mowing down hordes of humans without a second thought as they single mindedly pursued the duo of young girls.


    Anna''s injury had caused the giants to see her as wounded prey and she very quickly became the most desirable.


    Left with no choice, the two girls ran into the closest store they could find after some of the giants chasing them became distracted by slower humans.


    Luckily, the power had gone out in all of the chaos so the girls now had a dark and somewhat safe space to hide in.


    Both girls were shivering horribly from the cold as they hid behind a counter all the way in the back.


    Anna was weeping silently, both from the pain of her ankle and the fear she felt from this hellish situation.


    How does a gate just open up in the middle of nowhere like that?!


    ''And all of those people.... Oh god...''


    As Anna spiraled from seeing a massacre right in front of her, Serana was busy taking out her phone and trying to contact Mchi.


    It didn''t take her very long to realize that she had absolutely no cell service and none of her calls or texts were making it through.


    "Damn it..." She muttered.


    Emotionally, she wasn''t doing much better than Anna.


    It was taking all of her power not to panic as well but she had faith that there was someone who could get them out of this situation.


    Serana finally noticed that the beautiful goth girl opposite her had been crying for a while now and moved closer to provide warmth andfort.


    "It''s okay." She whispered. "Mchi wille to save us in no time and we can leave all of this behind."


    Anna seemed to have forgotten about her project partner who also happened to be the world''s most famous blessed, and it didn''t take her very long for that information to slow her heartbeat down just a bit.


    But in the next moment, her heart was beating even faster than it was before.


    Crash!


    The sound of something breaking through a door was apanied by slow and heavy footsteps.


    Both Anna and Serana''s eyes became as wide as saucers as they covered their mouths to stop the sound of their breathing froming out.


    Inside of the abandoned store were two ice giants, a male and a female.


    The two were stumbling around, knocking over mannequins and flipping over disys as they tried to follow the smell of frightened food.


    While their movements were unsteady at first, after a while they began to drift towards the back of the store where the two terrified girls were hiding.


    With every booming step, the shaking of the two girls became worse and worse.


    Before the girls knew it, the horrifying scene of two blue giants peering eerily over the counter yed right in front of their eyes.


    Serana was so afraid she fainted on the spot, and Anna found herself unable to move even a single inch as the giant''s hand inched closer to her.


    "Please... don''t..." She pleaded.


    Just before she was grabbed by the icy giant, a change finally urred in the atmosphere.


    Suddenly, the giants turned around towards the destroyed entrance and found a pair of burning orange eyes peering through the wintery storm.


    "Chinpa?"


    Shiing!


    Faster than the eye could follow, ten bright silver shes shot out from within the storm and found their way into the bodies of the giants.


    As the monsters went down, Mchi finally leapt into the store and began ripping the two limb from limb.


    Anna was still sitting behind the counter, scared out of her mind and unsure of what was happening, but by this point she was absolutely certain that she was going to die.


    After a few more seconds, the sound of fighting died down and the only sound left was off the fierce wind outside and Anna''s thudding heartbeat.


    She contemted whether or not it was safe to get up and was surprised when arge furry creature suddenly discovered their hiding spot.


    Normally Anna would have been afraid, but as she looked into those bright orange eyes, she felt a strange sense of relief instead.


    "I''m d I found you girls... I was almost toote."


    The beast''s voice was deep and monstrous, but there was a softness inside that Anna hade to know very well.


    "M-Mal...?"


    "You know anyone else who can turn into a giant cat monster?"


    Mchi''s bad joke didn''t seem to have an effect as Anna shook her head sheepishly.


    Coming behind the counter, Mal reached out to take both of the pale and shaking girls into his arms. "Come on, let''s get out of here."


    Anna tried to move, but her legs had unfortunately been reduced to jelly and she had realized something horribly embarrassing.


    In her immense fear earlier, she seemed to have lost control of her dder and relieved herself all over the floor.


    Now she was caught between a rock and a hard ce, with no way to escape from this monumental embarrassment.


    Luckily, Mal seemed to understand exactly what she was concerned about and immediately reassured her.


    "It''s alright, I''m sure that you were terrified out of your mind, huh? I''m not childish enough to be disgusted with you for this, especially when it was my fault for taking so long."


    Mal gently reached out and ced his hands around Anna''s waist.


    He lifted her up with minimal effort, and shuffled all of her body weight onto one arm.


    His forearm was ced just underneath her butt, allowing him to have a firm yet appropriate grip on her without causing any awkwardness.


    With both of her arms wrapped around his neck, she looked a bit like a baby ko the way she was clinging to him.


    After lifting up Serana and holding her the same way, Mal walked out of the store with both beauties in his arms.


    Despite the embarrassment she felt, Anna could not help but feel at peace from being so close to Mchi like this, and a small part of her wished to never leave.


    "Thank you for saving us, Mal." She whispered amongst the whistling winds of the snowstorm.


    She wasn''t certain if he could hear her, but she felt like a weight had been removed from her chest after she said it.


    As she buried her face in the crook of his neck, she finally realized that she hadn''t really felt cold ever since he picked her up.


    ''Seriously... how can someone be so warm...?''

 Chapter 71 Why Are You White?

    71 Why Are You White?


    Mchi carried the girls out of the ruined store and promptly manipted the shadows at his feet to take them home.


    Appearing in his apartment, he had a slight headache that was made worse by the frightened screaming of his girlfriend.


    "KYAAA!"


    Boof!


    Before Mal could even respond, a pillow was thrown into his furry face and he was robbed of the opportunity.


    Eventually, Sei realized that thisrge furry cat monster was carrying too very familiar looking girls.


    "Ah... Honey?" she asked hesitantly.


    In response, Mal shed her a toothy grin and ced Serana down onto the couch. "I gotta say love, you have a hell of an arm. Must be from all that time you spend baking, huh?"


    Sei smiled sheepishly in return and slowly put down the remote that she was going to throw at him next.


    She went beside her daughter and brushed the hair out of her face before asking about the status of the gate break as well as his new look.


    "What happened in the mall and... why are you white?"


    "Come again?"


    "She means your fur." Anna said gently.


    The young woman had yet to move from Mchi''s grasp as she was still a bit traumatized and morefortable than she wanted to admit out loud.


    Mchi finally noticed his winterized new look and attributed it to the climate he was just in.


    After taking a peek in a nearby mirror, he realized that he looked a bit like the main viin from the first karate ko movie.


    ''Cool...''


    Anna finally realized that Mal had been trying to put her down for the past few minutes and crawled down from his arms with a slightly reddened face.


    "Sei, can you grab a few spare clothes from my room?" He asked.


    "Oh? Okay honey, one moment."


    She quickly slipped into Mchi''s room and left the two of them alone, allowing Mchi to show Anna where the nearest shower was without embarrassing her.


    He had to help her since she was still limping quite a bit, but since he could not follow her all the way into the bathroom, they had to separate once she closed the door.


    "Once you''re finished, tell Sei about your ankle and she''ll get you some ice or even drive you to the doctor if you need it. I''ll bring the clothes and put them outside."


    Anna said nothing for a long time as she let her body sink into the warm crystal clear water.


    "Thanks... You''re going back, right?"


    Mchi let out a monstrous chuckle as he looked at his wed hands. "Kinda have to, don''t ya think? These murder mittens ain''t exactly made for sitting on the couch."


    Anna let out a dryugh as she slicked back her wet hair. "Whatever... just be safe kid."


    "Always am." Mchi said as he sank into the floor once more.


    Before he left, he couldn''t help but feel like he''d misjudged his new friend quite a bit.


    ''She acts all tough on the outside but she''s quite the softie, huh? That''s cute.''


    -


    When Mchi reappeared in the mall, the first thing he did was double over in pain.


    The headache that was only mild a few minutes ago was now much more intense and felt like it was traveling throughout the entirety of his brain.


    "What the hell... is this...?"


    In all of Mchi''s life, he had only felt pain like this once before.


    It was when he''d first received all of his blessings and they ran uninhibited across his mind and soul.


    For the first time, Mal pieced together the absurdity of everything that he''d done today.


    Never before had he been able to use two of his blessings simultaneously, but just a moment ago he had been using shadow movement on himself and others without even realizing it.


    And he still had yet to deactivate Bastet''s blessing that was making him so monstrous.


    He scoured his mind for any sort of answer to this sudden development, and he very quickly was able to reach a conclusion.


    Monster meat.


    After eating the flesh of the scorpion woman and the ice giants, his body was flooded with a new energy that he hadn''t ever felt before.


    At first he''d thought that there were no additional benefits other than increased speed and strength, but now it seemed like there was much more to it than that.


    Irregardless of his current predicament, Mal knew that there was only one logical course of action.


    Moving back to his feet, he ventured back into the ruined store where he''d first found the girls.


    Picking up a piece of a shredded ice giant, he ced it between his monstrous teeth and began to chew on it to prove his theory.


    While his headache was relieved, he did not gain the traditional rush of power that he normally would from eating dungeon beasts.


    "Been dead too long, huh..."


    Whatever magical substance gave him such arge energy boost, it seemed as though it was time sensitive.


    Making hunting for fresh food his only viable option.


    Returning onto all fours, Mchi bounded throughout the mall while searching for more giants.


    After a round of nonstop running, Mal found the enemies that he was searching for but¡­ he very nearly wished he hadn''t.


    The good news was that Mal had reached the source of the gate break and there were only three monsters in his way.


    The bad news was that their was very clearly a boss monster among them.


    Seated between two snowy white dire wolves was an ice giant that was different from the rest on almost every level.


    It was considerablyrger, almost twelve feet in height.


    The muscles on it''s body were much bulkier and taut than it''s brethren, and Mal knew at a single nce that his daggers were going to bounce right off it''s skin.


    The ice giant boss finally noticed something was approaching and stood up while pulling out an enormous icy hammer.


    It smiled and revealed teeth that were stained red and contained pieces of what Mal only hoped was beef in between.


    Mchi recognized that the beast seemed to be anticipating his challenge and dropped onto all fours so as not to keep his new friend waiting.


    Just as he prepared to have this creature for lunch, a soft and sultry voice that he knew all too well began to tickle his ears.


    "You weren''t thinking about taking that thing on by yourself, were you?"


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    AnathaShesha

 Chapter 72 The Immortal Kitsune

    72 The Immortal Kitsune


    Mal had always found Luna Autumn to be incredibly beautiful.


    But as she stood before him right now, he could not help but find her even more enchanting than before.


    Her usual loose and frilly kimono had been discarded and traded in for a set of tactical clothes.


    She wore simple ckbat pants that were tucked into a pair of dark boots.


    Her upper body consisted of a long sleeved ck shirt with a sleek metallic vest covering up herrge chest.


    The milky white hair that she was famous for had been restrained into a beautiful French braid that hung delicately off her shoulder.


    But the greatest surprises for Mal were the fluffy fox ears on top of her head and nine swaying tails behind her back.


    Without even meaning to, Luna had left her young protegepletely starstruck.


    "Damn..."


    Luna let out an mused giggle as she covered her mouth with her wed fingers. "Are you saying. that because I caught you about to do something foolish or because you like my appearance?"


    "Like doesn''t quite cut it..." He muttered under his breath.


    With Luna''s new appendages on top of her head, she of course heard him and her heart began to flutter with excitement.


    "GROOOOOAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!"


    The pair were suddenly reminded of their less than friendly surroundings as their ears were filled with the roaring of the now irritable ice giant.


    ''I nearly forgot that we weren''t alone... That''s a bit embarrassing.'' Luna thought shyly.


    The bewitching guild master nced overhead at the ss ceiling that was separating them from the outside world.


    "Hey Mal, think you could help me out here a bit?" She asked as she pointed to the sky.


    It didn''t take him very long to grasp her meaning and soon enough his body was returning back to it''s normal appearance.


    He thought he''d feel a bit colder since his shirt had been ripped after transforming but strangely enough, he found that it was actually rather bearable.


    Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, Mal focused on his connection to Nyx and allowed his consciousness to drift off into the night.


    The sky darkened overhead and Luna smiled at it''s beauty before her eyes began to glow a bright pink color.


    A shining full moon appeared in the sky overhead, filling Luna with a renewed energy.


    "Much better. I believe that I work best in environments where I am mostfortable."


    Mal watched in awe as Luna held out her delicate hands and a scythe made of pure moonlight appeared in her grasp.


    "Can you leave this to me? It''s been a while since I''ve done any field work and I wanted to y with the boss a bit."


    Mchi was so mesmerized by her appearance, he almost agreed to her insane proposal without so much as a second thought. "Hold up, you won''t let me take on the boss myself but it''s fine if you do it?"


    As a response, Luna shed him a bright smile containing pointed teeth that very nearly made his heart skip a beat.


    "But of course, I am SS ranked after all. Do you think that''s just for show?"


    Before Mal could respond, Luna moved faster than his eyes could follow and rushed toward the boss.


    Taking a giant leap into the air, she twirled her scythe around in her hand before executing a downwards sh onto the head of the blue giant.


    Surprisingly, the lumbering behemoth was able to keep up with Luna''s impressive speed and raised it''s own hammer in defense, but it''s efforts would prove to be wholly ineffective.


    Luna''s scythe of light cut through the icy hammer as if it were made of butter, and her attack continued it''s destructive path free of obstacles.


    The giant let out an agonizing roar as it''s right eye was ruined beyond repair.


    The kitsune did not remove her weapon from the face of her enemy and instead let gravity pull her body downwards, allowing her to carve a straight path down the giant''s face.


    Blood flowed like a river, and yet Luna remained perfectly unblemished among the cascade of red water as she plotted her next steps.


    Looking below, she could see the two icy dire wolves bearing their fangs at her and snapping their powerful jaws menacingly, but she honestly couldn''t have cared less.


    Kicking off the body of the giant, Luna gracefully flipped in midair before giving Mal a show that he would recall for the rest of his life.


    The bewitching fox woman began to hover in the air, and held out her palms as nine blue mes appeared over each of her white tails.


    She smirked at the sight of the frenzied dire wolves rushing at her with hatred in their eyes.


    The mes from her tails floated towards her outstretched palms, and a burning bow made of nothing but bright blue fire was created on the spot.


    Drawing back the bowstring, three fiery arrows appeared magically within her bow, and once she released the string from her fingertips, they were all sent flying.


    Two buried themselves in the foreheads of the icy dire wolves.


    The third travelled all the way between the eyes of the still reeling ice giant, and all three creatures came to a dead stop.


    Luna sighed in relief and let her body float back down to the ground where shended a few feet away from a stunned Mchi.


    She couldn''t help but smirk as she saw the stunned look on his face, and a sense of pride began to well up from within her chest.


    In her entire life, she had received a lot of looks from a lot of different men, and had thought herself It was the way he looked at her when they were alone, as if there was no one in the world above or 14:12


    equal to her in terms of beauty or importance.


    used to it by now.


    But somehow the look that Mal was giving her now was different from all of them, and she didn''t quite understand why at first.


    But after a moment, she remembered a conversation that she''d had with Sei about one of the reasons why she fell in love with Mchi.


    It was the way he looked at her when they were alone, as if there was no one in the world above or equal to her in terms of beauty or importance.


    ''Now I understand what she meant... No wonder she has already fallen so far.''


    "It''s rude to just stare at me like that you know?" Luna said with a joking smile. "You could at least tell me what you thought of my performance."


    Luna''s transformation finally became undone and the tattoo on her forehead began to glow with a bright light.


    A small white fox jumped directly out of her tattoo and grew to it''s normal cute size before finding it''s usual ce in Luna''s arms.


    "Kyuuu!!"


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    The arrows embedded within the heads of the icy enemies finally exploded, and three columns of bright blue fire swallowed their bodies whole.


    Standing in front of three pirs of me and lovingly stroking her pet, Luna looked nothing short of mesmerizing and left Mal able to form aplete sentence.


    "Damn..."


    Sorry I been gone for so long, life caught up with me. AnathaShesha

 Chapter 73 [Bonus chapter]You Don’t Have To Be Alone

    73 [Bonus chapter]You Don¡¯t Have To Be Alone


    Once Mal was able to recover from his Luna induced stupor, he inquired about the circumstances behind her appearance and was surprised that his girlfriend was the main culprit.


    After Mchi sent her home, Sei immediately pulled out her phone and contacted Luna to inform her about everything that had happened at the mall and the fact that he was still on the scene.


    Because gate breaks are wholly unpredictable and no one can be quite sure what will emerge, both girls were admittedly very worried and it was decided that Luna would suit up personally to check on him.


    Currently, the two of them were standing side by side as they supervised the mall cleanup.


    After the dungeon boss was defeated, the crack that they originated from finally closed up and the blizzard finally ceased to blow.


    Despite that, the piles of snow didn''t fade away just because the blizzard was no more and the mall still resembled a snowy mountain peak.


    Luna was still reying the testimony of the survivors in her mind, and she could barely believe what she''d heard.


    "A gate break appearing out of thin air... This is insane." She mumbled as she finally freed her hair from it''s braided appearance.


    At her side, Mchi''s face looked to be equally serious. "Luna... did I ever tell you what happened the night I got blessed?"


    Surprised by this turn of events, Luna looked at Mal like she didn''t understand where he was going with this. "You haven''t... tell me about it."


    "After I received all of my blessings, Raijin was seemingly worried about me bing overconfident and warned me not to becent.


    He spoke of worse things that lie beyond the gates, and I can''t help but feel like these spontaneous breaks are only a harbinger of the worse things that wille."


    "!..."


    Luna looked to be struggling with this sudden revtion and it took a few moments for her usual icyposure to return.


    "Do you believe that these ''worse things'' will be limited to spontaneous gate breaks or could there be something else?"


    Mchi did not answer immediately and instead held out his hand to produce a small golden me.


    He controlled the fire to melt the lingering snow around them while thinking hard about how to answer without scaring her.


    "You know I usually like to be optimistic but... I''m honestly expecting the worst case scenario."


    Luna nodded and took a moment to begin formting ns.


    If their world was going to be overrun by creatures they had noprehension of, then that meant they needed to make sure that certain insurances were taken out in advance.


    In the midst of her mental calctions, a sudden question surfaced in her mind. "Am I the only one you''ve told about this?"


    Mchi nodded as he continued to absentmindedly melt the snow around them. "I had nned to tell you and all of the girls together, I wanted to prepare you for the idea that this life that we live now might alle to an end some day."


    Sei, Aubrey, Aisha, Serana, he had intended to tell all of them quite a while ago, but he couldn''t for fear of scaring them.


    It may have been a selfish delusion on his part but Mal wanted the girls to enjoy mundane lives and problems for as long as they could before pulling the rug out from underneath them.


    In a rare moment of boldness, Luna intertwined her hand with Mal''s and gave him a confident and warm smile. "Thank you for telling me... Now at least you do not have to cary such a massive burden alone."


    Mal smirked in response as he kissed the back of Luna''s hand and earned a small blush from her.


    "Burden, huh?" he said thoughtfully. "Maybe it was but... I don''t particrly mind carrying things like that if it means my loved ones don''t have to. What''s the point of all of this power if I cannot protect them from the things that go bump in the night?"


    Luna had expected Mal to say something like that, but she couldn''t help but find his desire to help others rather sad in that moment.


    "I understand why you feel like that Mal... I know how hard the past few years have been for you and your sister, and I know all of the sacrifices that you''ve had to make."


    Mchi''s eyes became a bit distant as he recalled those unpleasant memories of working himself to the bone as a method to make ends meet, all so that his kid sister would not have to worry about suddenly bing homeless in addition to losing her parents.


    "I have no doubt that when the apocalypse doese, you will fight alone on the front lines to defend this world and all that you hold dear.


    And you will die, like an idiot." She finished.


    "...You are just a ray of sunshine, aren''t you?"


    "I like to think I am, yes." Luna replied with a smirk. "Humans are social creatures by default, and we aplish more when we all work together towards a goal greater than ourselves.


    It can be easy for us to forget because of our powers, but we blessed are still human, Mal. That means that we can fall prey to fatigue, exhaustion, and even death due to overwork."


    Luna suddenly brought her hand up to Mal''s cheek and tenderly ran her fingers across it.


    "You may be special, but you have to learn to let others help you when you need it. You can be the quarterback if you like, but if you have no linemen to defend you then how are you ever going to win a game?"


    "You watch football?"


    "I''m a season ticket holder with the bengals."


    "Gods you''re hot."


    "Please focus!" Luna chuckled and suddenly began pulling on Mal''s cheek.


    "You shouldn''t try to carry all of the world''s burdens on your own, no matter what the reason may be. You''ll only make the women who love you worry needlessly."


    "...I cannot say but... I do know that this is the first time I have felt like this in a very long time."


    14:13


    Mal suddenly stopped smiling as he looked at Luna with an expression of genuine curiosity.


    "The women who love me, huh? That include you by any chance?"


    The white haired beauty suddenly looked slightly embarrassed and Mal thought that maybe she was not going to answer him.


    But after a few seconds, she parted her lips to give an honest answer.


    "...I cannot say but... I do know that this is the first time I have felt like this in a very long time."


    For a moment, the two simply stared at each other without speaking as they became unaware of the world around them.


    It seemed like the two were going to close in for their very first kiss when they both became aware of an eerie silence.


    All around them, members of immortal moon were staring at the two with expressions that ranged from ''OMG, really?'' to ''it''s about damn time.''


    Embarrassed, the two quickly put a distance of five feet between each other and tried to return to some sense of normalcy.


    "...Think they''ll go all the way this year?" Mal suddenly asked.


    Luna''s expression suddenly became ugly as she immediately understood what Mal was talking about.


    "Hell no. Burrow doesn''t have enough help."


    "Hahaha!"


    -


    Back at Mchi''s apartment, Sei was seatedfortably on the couch while smiling at the scene in front of her.


    After getting out of the bath, Anna declined Sei''s offer to be driven to a medical facility and instead requested only an ice pack.


    Once it was administered, she fell asleep on the couch next to a lightly snoring Serana.


    Both girls seemed to be tired beyond belief, and Sei couldn''t help but wonder when thest time she''d seen her daughter with a girl friend around her age.


    ''I should take a picture of this to tease herter...'' Sei thought in amusement.


    Pulling out her phone, she had just opened the camera and prepared to take a picture when her device suddenly began to vibrate and she received a phone call that she had been anxiously awaiting.


    I been reading this new webtoon called ordeal and it''s easily within my top 3 of all time. AnathaShesha

 Chapter 74 The Culprit

    74 The Culprit


    Sei took several deep breaths to calm her raging heartbeat as she stared at the police station that was only a few feet away.


    A few hours ago, she had received a call from the local police department saying that there had been a development in her case.


    She had hardly expected the investigation to bear fruit this soon, and she would be lying if she said that she did not wish for it to take a bit more time so that she could mentally prepare herself.


    As such, she really had no other option but to bring in some reinforcements for moral support.


    Arge and warm hand suddenly wrapped around her own and her mood immediately showed signs of improvement.


    "We''re here for you, love. Let''s just go and hear what they have to say." Mchiforted.


    "Thank you, honey... I know that I''m being silly." Sei said with a helpless smile.


    "Don''t worry, mom!" Serana piped up from the back seat. "Hopefully they''ll tell us that they caught the bastard and we can have Mal set HIM on fire as payback!"


    "Did you just volunteer me to roast a man alive?"


    "Yea, why? Did you want to shock him to death instead?"


    Sei smiled and held in augh that she felt would be inappropriate.


    In all honesty she wasn''t expecting her daughter to be interested ining after everything that she had gone through today, but after Anna left Serana decided that there was no better ced for her to be than by her mother''s side.


    "Excuse me, but... should I really be here for this?"


    All eyes drifted towards Luna who was sitting awkwardly in the backseat next to Serana.


    "W-Well I know it might seem strange but you are sort of my only friend. I was just sort of desperate to have all of the support I could get." Sei said sheepishly.


    ''Friend...'' That one word seemed to echo in Luna''s mind endlessly.


    How long had it been since she''d had a genuine friend?


    Had she ever had one?


    Sei''s warm and gentle demeanor hadpletely melted away all of Luna''s hesitation with minimal effort.


    "I see... I am happy to support you then."


    Even though she appeared to be rather aloof on the outside, both Mchi and Sei could notice a twinkle in Luna''s eyes that conveyed how pleased she was with this situation.


    She didn''t even seem to care about the massive pile of paperwork at headquarters that was waiting for her patiently.


    Sei finally let out one final sigh before she gave everyone a small nod and stepped out of the car.


    She and Mchi walked through the parking lot hand in hand, earning a look of jealousy from Luna and a look of disgust from Serana.


    Needless to say, as soon as the group entered the police station they immediately had every pair of eyes glued to them.


    It wasn''t every day that two of the world''s most famous blessed walked into your job, and the sight of Luna in street clothes was more than enough to give most of the male officers nosebleeds.


    Luckily, one officer was not as scatterbrained as the rest and immediately ran up to the visitors once they recognized Sei among them.


    Chloe Espinosa was the lead detective on this case and she was the one who had contacted Sei earlier.


    She was a woman of average height and build with a stern yet slightly attractive face and blonde hair that was restrained into a ponytail.


    "Ms. Aihara? We spoke over the phone earlier, I''m the detective in charge of your case."


    "Ah, right. Hello."


    Chloe briefly nced at Sei''s entourage and wondered if she should ask for a photo.


    But since she was nothing if not professional, she elected to forgo such unnecessary things and led her to an empty room and had her take a seat.


    Under the detective''s left arm was a folder containing a stack of papers and she seemed rather reluctant to give them to Sei.


    "I should start by saying this, discovering the identity of the culprit was rather easy since he didn''t avoid traffic cameras, and his crime was recorded by your neighbor''s doorbell camera."


    Sei nodded slowly as she tried to calm her thumping heartbeat.


    "Alright... who is the culprit?"


    Detective Chloe sighed and nced at Mchi and Serana to gauge what their reaction to this news would be.


    Mal seemed to only care about Sei''s wellbeing, meanwhile Serana had been cracking her knuckles this whole time as if she was ready to retaliate.


    "It was your ex husband... Minoru Aihara."


    The silence was deafening.


    Absolutely no one had expected this answer, and the shocked looks on each of their faces were downright identical.


    "That fucker!"


    Bang!


    Serana was so enraged she was trembling as sheshed out at a nearby wall.


    "I knew I should have done more than just kick him in the nuts! I should have ground them into paste!"


    ''She did what now?''


    Chloe decided to overlook Serana''s admission of assault since she was clearly in great distress.


    She took nce at Sei and saw that not only was she frozen, but she was staring off into space as well.


    Chloe looked at Mchi and Luna for help, and they immediately shook off their own stupor and ced a hand on Sei''s shoulder.


    Finally, she seemed to regain some sense of rity as she realized that she had indeed been spacing out.


    She met the eyes of both Luna and Mal and gave them a reassuring smile that neither of them believed.


    Sei turned back to face the detective and tried her best not to show just how much this news was getting to her. "I-I see... then... have you already arrested him?"


    "I hope you stuck him in a cell with the biggest inmate in here and gave him the slipperiest bar of soap you got!" Serana yelled.


    Luna decided that maybe it would be better if the young girl wasn''t present for this conversation and took her hand to guide her outside.


    "Come on, kiddo. We''ll step outside and take a breather for a minute."


    Despite her fuming, Serana did not resist Luna''s grip and followed her outside quietly.


    That left the three rational adults in the room alone, embroiled in an even greater silence than the one that gued them before.


    "Regarding the arrest of the perp..." Chloe sighed when she realized they''d gotten to the part of the meeting she''d been dreading the most.


    "We... cannot do that."


    "What? Why?"


    Mchi had done remarkably well so far, he hadn''t said a word and he hadn''t showed any traces of anger, only concern and disbelief.


    But he had finally slipped up, and his teeth had lengthened and be sharper like that of a wild animal.


    Even though his demeanor was still nonthreatening, the sight of his wild teeth and eyes sent a wave of fear down Chloe''s spine and she simply tossed them the folder she''d been holding on to all this time.


    Mchi and Sei opened it together, and when they saw what was inside their hearts simultaneously dropped.


    "We can''t arrest him because he''s already dead... I''m sorry."


    I wanna watch your lie in april, but my girl told me it''s too much for me and I''ll want to take a toaster bath after it''s over.


    Is she being fr or is she just being overdramatic?


    AnathaShesha

 Chapter 75 A Real Promise & New Gear

    75 A Real Promise & New Gear


    "He... died?" Sei asked in disbelief.


    Chloe nodded apologetically and began to exin.


    "It appears to have been a suicude. Neighbors reported the sound of a gunshot going off and we found him in the bathroom, already long gone."


    Sei felt like she was being bombarded with more and more world shattering information.


    First, the man who burned down the house where she and her daughter lived was her ex husband.


    Next, it is revealed that not only did he burn her house down, but he killed himself afterwards as well.


    "I-I don''t understand... why did he do this?!" Sei asked as her tears finally began to fall.


    Mchi immediately threw his arms around her and Sei held onto him for dear life, as if she was afraid that she might fall apart if he let her go.


    Chloe could do nothing but slide the poor woman a box of tissues, and wait for her to be emotionally stable enough to hear more.


    After a few more moments, the detective was able to exin that even though Minoru had left no suicide note behind, he had a staggering amount of gambling debt, and had even been unemployed for the past three months.


    Chloe''s theory was that this was hisst act of revenge against Sei for rejecting his attempt toe back to their family, and that he was more than likely jealous over her rtionship with Mchi.


    Sei had mentally checked out long ago, and now her only thoughts were of the times where she was back in Japan and she and Minoru were still in a courtship.


    How could a person who used to be so kind want to hurt her so much, and all because she had moved on with another man?


    She didn''t feel this betrayed even when he had walked out on her to be with another woman.


    Sei and Mchi left the station not long after, hand in hand.


    Needless to say she wasn''t very talkative after that, but she absolutely refused to release Mchi for any reason.


    As they walked back to the car, they could see Luna and Serana sitting closely on the hood of Mchi''s car.


    The young girl had somehow convinced the mature beauty to take some selfies for her instagram, and because Luna was supposed to be calming the young girl down she had no choice but toply.


    Serana seemed to be having the time of her life, but her costar was very clearly forcing smiles, and seemed as though this level of exposure was absolutely killing her.


    Luna and Mal made eye contact from across the parking lot, and the look of undiluted misery in her eyes forced a small chuckle from his lips.


    "Honey... Can you do me a favor and not tell Serana about Minoru...?" Sei suddenly asked.


    Mchi wasn''t going to interfere in the rtionship between Sei and Serana since she wasn''t his daughter, but she was just like another sister to him and he didn''t want to keep things from her unless he had to.


    "I don''t mind, love but... can I know why you came to this decision?"


    "I just... I worry that she might feel a little guilty, you know? I don''t want my baby to feel like any of this is her fault." Sei said emotionally.


    Once Mal heard that, he immediately understood and all of his hesitation disappeared. "I get it, love. She''s very lucky to have such a good mother."


    Suddenly, Sei stopped walking halfway through the parking lot, and she looked up at Mal with watery eyes.


    "Can I... ask you for another selfish request?"


    "You''re silly. You can ask me for as many selfish requests as you like."


    "Then... can you promise me that you will never hurt me...?"


    Mchi cupped Sei''s face in his hands and his bright orange eyes met her rich brown ones.


    "Love, you have my word that I will never hurt you. You are the most important thing in this world to me."


    Mchi pulled his girlfriend in for a kiss and a tear finally fell from her eye as she meted into his embrace.


    Truthfully, when she asked Mchi to make that promise with her, she knew that she was being silly in the back of her mind.


    It was just something that she needed to hear so that she did not fall apart right here in the parking lot.


    But as always, Mchi''s words were so gentle and genuine, that she could not help but feel like they were grounded in reality.


    She had never been so thankful that she said yes to being with him.


    "Hey! Would the two of you get off each other already?!" Serana roared." Why the hell does it feel like you two are always in the mood?!"


    - The next morning.


    Mchi was currently inside of immortal moon''s training hall and was going through his usual routine of discussing the application of his powers with Rowan.


    Suddenly, Bianca walked in wearing a huge giddy smile and carrying two silver briefcases, One was particrlyrge, and the other was a bit on the smaller scale.


    "Handsome~ I have a gift for you!"


    Mchi and Rowan both looked up, neither of them knowing which one she was talking to.


    ""Me?"" They asked as they pointed to themselves in unison.


    ''Jeez, sometimes it really does seem, like you two are rted.'' Bianca thought as she smiled wryly.


    "I was talking to Mal, grandpa Rowan." She rified.


    The old man merely rolled his eyes in contempt, as he once again felt the weight of losing his youth.


    "Hmph, what do you kids know... I was way more handsome than that brat in my twenties" He grumbled.


    Rowan walked off to leave the two of them alone, and decided to check on the observer that had joined them today.


    Anna was seated with her back against a nearby wall, with a simple notebook in herp and her eyes glued to Mchi.


    Around her neck hung a special visitor''s pass that was sandwiched between her breasts, and when she saw Rowan approaching she quickly removed the earbuds from her ears.


    20:42


    "What are you listening to, kiddo?" Rowan asked politely.


    "Motionless in white."


    "Say again?"


    Anna let out an amused chuckle as she tried to exin what her favorite band was.


    Rowan tried toprehend what she was saying to the best of his ability but... the poor man was having an awfully hard time keeping up.


    "H-How''s the surveince going?" He asked as he tried to steer the conversation into a more understandable direction.


    Anna looked down at her notebook that was already almost filled with notes on Mchi. "It''s cool I guess... I didn''t really realize how many preconceived notions I had about him until I actually started paying attention to him."


    Rowan nodded as he leaned against the wall to watch Mal and Bianca. "Life is full of little lessons like that. At least you''ve learned something at 22 that most people never learn."


    Anna had only heard half of his words, as she was too distracted by the scene of Bianca leading Mal to a nearby workbench.


    "Are they... together by chance?"


    "Hm? Ah, I don''t believe so but everyone around here seems to think that it''s only a matter of time."


    "I see..."


    Anna buried her head in her notebook as she tried to suppress the ufortable feeling in her chest.


    She couldn''t help but feel like all of the women around Mchi were not only effortlessly beautiful, but they all seemed to have fun and bright personalities as well.


    Completely different from her.


    ''What''s wrong with me... When did I start caring about nonsense like that.''


    Anna quickly stuffed her earbuds back into her ears and turned her music up as loud as it would go without causing permanent damage, almost as if she was trying to drown out her own feelings with music.


    -


    "You really made all this for me??" Mchi asked in shock.


    "I did, ain''t I just the bestest?" Bianca asked with a childish smile.


    Right now, Mchi couldn''t help but agree.


    Sitting inside therge brief case was a suit of ck body armor that was made of a shock absorbent yet breathable material that would not only protect Mchi, but would also adjust with the size of his body if he were to use his blessing from Bastet.


    It consisted of a sleeveless top, cargo pants, boots, fingerless gloves, and a half mask that wouldpletely erase the sound of his breathing.


    Sitting in the smaller briefcase were ten silver knives that were different from the ones that Mchi currently possessed.


    These wererger, sharper, and could even be wielded by hand more easily than their thinner and shorter predecessors.


    Without even being asked, Bianca had made Mal a full set of equipment, and even provided upgraded weapons without batting an eye.


    Her blessing from Hephaestus seemed to be good for much more than just making fireballs.


    "This is so hard!" Mchi excitedly wrapped Bianca up in the tightest hug he could muster as he spun her around in the air. "Thank you thank you thank you!"


    Bianca was ted that the man she liked was so happy with her gift, and it was easily worth all of the effort she''d put into it.


    She couldn''t wait to see him wearing it tomorrow, when herself, Mchi, and Aisha would be entering a gate together.


    In real life, everyone is going to hurt you, be it big or small. Whether the hurt was intentional, or whether or not the person responsible is willing to apologize and change their actions, is what determines wheter or not a person is worthy of remaining by your side.


    Also, my daughter shit on myp as I was typing this... don''t let that take away from the little nugget I just gave you.


    AnathaShesha

 Chapter 76 Calling Card

    76 Calling Card


    It was another day, and Aisha Rose woke up the same way she had been for the past few weeks now, face to face with a sleeping Aubrey Saint.


    The young girl waspletely naked and snoring lightly, and it didn''t seem like she was going to wake up any time soon.


    ''Seriously... how did I get so lucky?'' She wondered.


    After being blessed, Aisha had a lot of eyes on her and was showered with attention.


    Being blessed by not one but two of the most famous greek gods tended to have that effect.


    For a while she reveled in it as any normal person would.


    She had numerous rtionships with all kinds of women, but none of them were ever able to make her forget about the girl she truly had her eyes on.


    Aisha had always hoped that her fame would bring Aubrey to her as well, but when the young girl was hit by one tragedy after another, rtionships became the absolutest thing on her mind.


    But once Mchi became blessed, the two began to spend more time together and Aisha''s crush became less and less one sided.


    Because Aisha was not a man, Aubrey wasfortable enough to be herself around her and open up.


    That was something she had not been able to do with anyone, not even Mchi for a very long time.


    Aisha finally slipped out of bed quietly after spending five whole minutes oogling her girlfriend like some kind of stalker.


    After stretching her beautiful and well defined body, she tip toed into the bathroom where she immediately turned the shower on the hottest setting.


    While showering, Aisha fully cleared her mind of anything unnecessary.


    For the first time in a long time, she was quite excited for today.


    She and her best friend would be entering a gate together, and it meant an immense amount to the both of them.


    Neither of them were very good at expressing their feelings to one another, but both of them knew how much this day meant to them.


    Who doesn''t want to fight side by side with their best friend?


    Aisha got out of the shower and put on some light sweats before grabbing her duffel bag with all of her equipment inside.


    She ced a small kiss on Aubrey''s cheek before exiting her bedroom, already knowing she would see her at the gate siteter.


    Softly closing the door, Aisha walked casually towards her garage and listened to the sound of her feet tapping against her white marble floors.


    Entering her garage, she put on a thoughtful expression as she mulled over which of her twenty four super cars she should drive today.


    "I''ve been driving the tagani a lottely... should take the veyron for a change of pace?"


    Just as she thought she''d made a decision, she caught sight of a small white card on the windshield of her fambrogini.


    20:43


    Picking it up, her face became nothing short of frightening as she read the words and symbols of her fambrogini.


    Picking it up, her face became nothing short of frightening as she read the words and symbols inscribed on the back.


    The symbol was that of a man on top of a mountain, and below him were what appeared to be worshippers.


    Inscribed in bright red letters were the words, ''You are superior.''


    Unconsciously, Aisha released a bit of her pressure and cracked the windows of a few of her cars, but right now she couldn''t have cared less.


    "Those fuckers... how dare they!"


    -


    "I thought this before but aren''t you in a shit mood today?"


    Currently Mchi, Bianca, Aisha, and Luna were all sitting in the back of a limousine, riding towards the site of the gate.


    The ride was almost over, and yet Aisha had yet to say a single word.


    While it was true that she wasn''t very talkative to begin with, one would not have expected her to be like this on today of all days.


    Even though Mchi posed his question as a lighthearted joke, his eyes showed that he was actually quite concerned.


    Aisha was able to notice that small detail, and her expression softened as she stared out the window.


    "Sorry, just a bit worried I''ll spend an unnecessary amount of time trying to save your ass today."


    "I''ll do my best to spare you the trouble, little beast."


    Aisha nced at Mchi out of the corner of her eye and analyzed his new equipment.


    He looked every bit like a capable soldier, and she was particrly jealous over the half mask sitting in hisp that had a clenched teeth design.


    She couldn''t help but think about her favorite anime character of all time, and her need to possess such a treasure skyrocketed.


    Turning to Bianca, she immediately pulled out her phone and opened up a money transfer app. "Hey new girl, make me one of those too. I''ll pay you whatever you want."


    "Yea.... wait, huh?"


    Bianca was so preupied staring at Mal in his new gear that she''d barely registered what Aisha had said.


    The war princess of immortal moon simply pointed to the mask in Mchi''sp, and Bianca was immediately able to get the gist of what was being asked of her.


    "Oh, sure I can make you one! For the design do you want something like-"


    "Exactly like that."


    "For real?"


    "Yes."


    "Copycat." Mal muttered.


    "Would you prefer I just kill you and take yours?"


    Mchi chuckled and threw his hands up in surrender just as they arrived at their destination.


    "Are all of you ready?" Luna asked.


    As always, she received only confident nods and smiles from each of her guild members, and in turn she was filled with reassurance that things would go well.


    But in the back of her mind, she was a bit worried that something unexpected might ur like thest time Mal entered a dungeon.


    Stepping out of the car, the four of them were immediately showered with cheers, apuse, and a barrage of photos.


    For the first time, Mchi wasrgely unnoticed, as everyone''s attention was on the two beauties that would be entering alongside him.


    Aisha wore a simple outfit of ck cargo pants paired with heavy duty boots and a military style k jacket that stopped just below her breasts and exposed the dragon tattoo running down her back.


    Bianca''s outfit had a much sleeker look, with simple pants paired with a long sleeved top that exposed her muscr abdomen as well as highlighted her curvaceous figure.


    "I''m in love..."


    "I would dly run into a gate if it meant I could get a whiff of their hair..."


    "How can they be so gorgeous?"


    The girls seemed to be uncaring or immune to thements and desires of the crowd, as they continued to make their way towards the gate without sparing them so much as a nce.


    At the front of the crowd, sitting just outside the gate were faces that Mal and Aisha knew all too well.


    Sei, Serana, Anna, and Aubrey were all there wearing proud smiles and saying silent prayers for the wellbeing of their loved ones.


    The blessed had no time to stop and speak, but Mchi still managed to sh his girlfriend a flirtatious wink as he slipped on his mask.


    Sei''s face began to get hot, and she was already looking forward to their intimate alone timeter tonight.


    At her side, Serana was making a face like she was going to be sick at any moment.


    Once the trio met their assigned camera man, they did not waste another moment and immediately entered the swirling blue portal.


    Mchi was the first to pass through, and once he got a good look at his surroundings, he knew exactly what kind of monsters he would be facing and his heart dropped all the way to his boots.


    ''Oh gods no... anything but this!''


    Thank you for reading!


    AnathaShesha

 Chapter 77 Mal is Traumatized

    Chapter 77 Mal is Traumatized


    Mchi appeared within a dimly lit cave that smelled nothing short of deplorable. There were small hastily made torches embedded into the walls, and all around him were pieces of shredded clothing and trinkets. He immediately recognized these types of surroundings, and he was suddenly filled with a desire to turn around and go home. A momentter, both Bianca and Aisha passed through as well and they quickly covered their noses from the rancid smell. "Hobgoblins... I would''ve picked a more conservative outfit if I''d know that they were in the dungeon." N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "Ditto." Bianca muttered as she looked at her massive chest and exposed belly. Just like regr goblins, hobgoblins were effectively sex on legs as all of their thoughts seemed to be focused on screwing until they were soggy. The only difference was that hobgoblins were much closer to adult size and could put up a better fight while also utilizing the poison and trickery they mastered while they were young.


    Suddenly, Aisha recalled that her friend had a particr apprehension to these creatures after identallying across some of their handiwork on the dark side of the inte. Poor Mal had been traumatized ever since.


    Even his favorite manga about a guy being reincarnated as a goblin had beenpletely off limits.


    "You good?" Aisha asked with a mocking smile. Just before Mal could respond, the sound of several footsteps echoed off the walls of the cavern, and several monsters appeared carrying torches and rusty weapons. There were around twenty of them, and they all had mottled green skin and crazed red eyes burning with wickedness and lust. Their massive mouths hung open to reveal cracked and broken teeth of every shape and size, and long purple tongues that licked their lips in anticipation. Among this group of twenty, around half were females who were looking at Mal like he was a b of meat. "Maeraka!!" The lead hobgoblin ordered the rest to rush forward, and it''s underlings immediately moved to im their prizes. However, they did not get very far. As soon as the goblins started moving towards the humans, ten gleaming silver knives were flung from Mchi''s hands. The daggers seemingly took on a life of their own as they cut through the air at an inhuman speed andsliced up the bodies of the goblins like they were made of butter. Disbelieving screams filled the air as the bodies of the hobgoblins were pierced all over, reducing their figures into piles of mincemeat in no more than a few seconds. And yet, Mchi still proved to be unsatisfied as he sent forth a wave of bright golden mes from his hand and incinerated their remains. Only when Mchi was staring at several piles of ash and glimmering dungeon drops did he finally feel a sense of relief wash over his body. But when he remembered that the dungeon would likely have more of these horrifying creatures, his body stiffened and his mood became serious once again.


    "This ce must be cleansed from top to bottom..." He muttered dramatically. "Hahaha! I know you''re traumatized and all that but save some work for your teammates, yea?" Aisha said as she kneeled to examine the loot. Unsurprisingly, such low level monsters did not yield anything better than the items that the three already had, so the items were put away for now and the group continued moving. "Don''t you think that was a bit overkill, handsome?" Bianca asked as they walked through the stone tunnels.


    Mal shook his head no as he kept his eye out for more of those foul creatures. "You just don''t know, B. Something like that was the bare minimum."


    "Ignore him." Aisha said as she rolled her eyes. "He''s just like this because he doesn''t know when to stop pressing ''next video'' on YouTube." "I''m just saying there is no way I should''ve been able to go from rdc, all the way to extreme gore! There''s a problem with the algorithm!"


    "You''re just too curious for your own good."


    Bianca looked back and forth between the two best friends and let out a charmingugh. "You guys are really close, huh?" "He knows too much about me. He''s stuck with me for life." Aisha said seriously.


    "Same." Mchi agreed. The two shared an instinctual fist bump without exchanging another word, both already knowing that they were fated to follow each other in both life and death.


    The viewers watching on stream unleashed a flood ofments apuding their unusual yet rock solid friendship.


    As the group continued their exploration, they realized that the deeper they explored the more the underground tunnels opened up. It wasn''t long before the four of them were standing in a wide open cavern with a glowing blue stones lining the surface of the ceiling. At first, none of them believed what they were seeing, but after blinking for several minutes they had no choice but to ept the reality.


    "Are those really all mana stones...?"


    "It would seem like it..."


    "This... is insane..."


    In today''s time, mana stones were more valuable than diamonds and gold. Different from mana ore which are used for construction, mana stones have much greater applications for use. Despite their use appearing as no more than cosmetic, just one of these fist sized stones is enough to power a small building for two years, and it is theorized that a football sized purple one would be enough to power an entire state for ten.


    Needless to say, these stones are very rare and simply acquiring two in the same dungeon is seen as a gift from the gods. And now the three members of immortal moon were staring at thousands of them. "Looks like I''m getting a raise." Bianca said excitedly. Aisha and Mchi nodded along in stunned agreement, neither of them able to take their eyes off the glowing ceiling overhead.


    Mentally, they were already imagining the absurd amount of money that would hit their ountster and they could not have been more ecstatic. Suddenly, the heavy sound of footsteps echoed from the cavern around them, and the group were reminded that they had only just entered this dungeon, and there was much more work to be done. The group were expecting more hobgoblins, but instead of the ravenous monsters they were anticipating, they were greeted by a herd of orcs that numbered well into the fifties. "Humans! Keep them away from the treasured and take the women alive!" The lead orc ordered.


    The eyes of the blessed nearly popped out of their skulls. While wasn''t umon for monsters to talk, they did not speak in a dialect that humans couldprehend. So for one to suddenly begin speaking english.. it was strange beyond belief. "Did he just..."


    "No time to worry about that, they''reing!"


    The orcs did not hesitate to charge at the intruders and Bianca and Aisha responded ordingly. While Bianca pulled out twin bronze gauntlets, Aisha reached inside of her storage ring and pulled out a ck and gold Naginata that was aglow with a purple light.


    Mchi stepped in between the two of them, looking quite different from his usual self. His already tall frame had gone up another foot in height, making him 7''5. Powerful muscles had bloomed all across his body, and his skin was now covered with a thinyer of dark ck fur.


    His long dreads had shrunk considerably and now resembled a proud mane of dark ck hair. The ws on his fingers were so long they resembled his knives, and seemed as though they were capable of cutting through even the thickest of metals with a single slice. He removed his mask and clipped it onto his belt, revealing his face that was no longer human but instead a monstrous lion''s. "Leave at least one of them alive. We need to know what they can tell us."


    ""Right!""

 Chapter 78 Talking Monsters

    Chapter 78 Talking Monsters


    Even though Aisha was a dual blessed, she was not always widely respected and famous.


    In a world where men could summon armies of undead and cause earthquakes with a snap of their fingers, having drastic charming abilities wasn''t very much to write home about. So as a result, Aisha wasn''t very happy with her blessing from Aphrodite. But her blessing from the most famous god of war was an entirely different story. It enabled her to have a master level understanding of any weapon just by touching it, but that was not what made her such a force to be reckoned with. Within gates, there are a rare ss of weapons that can grant their welders additional abilities, like low level fire maniption, enhanced speed, and some even housed spirits.


    If you aren''t lucky enough to find one of these treasures inside of a gate, there are private auctions held only for the blessed where these rare trinkets are sold. Once Aisha found her first spirit weapon, both her natural talent and value exploded, and she became one of the most feared and women alive. The rate at which she cleared gates was nothing short of staggering, and her mary value skyrocketed to reflect her aplishments. As a result, she was able to buy more ability weapons, and increase her talent and lethality to rarely seen heights. The total number of weapons in her collection now numbered well over seventy, each with their own unique ability. But even after all of this time, Aisha still preferred the first ability weapon that she had ever gotten her hands on. A ck and gold naginata named Kaizen, imbued with the spirit of a powerful warrior from some ancient dynasty. Aisha''s weapon began to glow with an eerie purple light, and a whisp of energy left her de and floated at her side. Bit by bit, the mist transformed into a man wearing ancient rusty armor and an oni mask covering his face. The man was holding the same kind of weapon as Aisha, only his seemed to be in an incorporeal state just like the rest of his body. "Let''s go."


    "Yes, mydy."


    Aisha fearlessly rushed forward into the horde of approaching orcs. Her speed was as impressive as it was devastating, and she cut through the enemies with equal parts grace and mastery. She and her weapon spirit worked in tandem as they moved their way through the horde of green skinned monsters, if Aisha cut off a a limb, then Kaizen would pierce it''s head and ensure it''s death. In the midst of battle, Aisha nced to her left, and the scene ying in front of her made her smile unconsciously. Mchi was a few feet away, ripping apart these very muscr orcs with his bare hands. His ws were never idle as he tore through these monsters without suffering so much as a scratch himself, and the young girl was overflowing with a sense of pride. The two of them had been thick as thieves ever since they were able to draw breath on this earth, and there wasn''t a lot that the two of them hadn''t done together. But after Aisha became a blessed, it was like there was this invisible wall in her life that was keeping the two of them separated. They both wanted nothing more than to tear down that wall so that they could continue walking side by side. But how could they hope to do that? N?v(el)B\\jnn


    It wasn''t like she could bless him, nor did they have a direct hotline to the gods so that they might ask them personally. Mchi getting powers was an insane stroke of luck and a blessing for their friendship, as well as a way to ensure that the two of them would never be separated again. As Aisha looked at her best friend''s monstrous figure, she couldn''t suppress the overwhelming sentiment she felt from watching this scene


    ''You''ll always be my best friend, Mal. No matter... The fuck? Why are you eating these things!?''


    ''Mydy, please pay attention.''


    ''R-Right! Sorry Kaizen!''


    The group was able to dispatch the orcs rather easily, and it wasn''t very long before there was only one left, and he was currently being held down by Bianca. "Get off of me, human! You soil my honor with your touch!"


    "You kinda smell like you soiled yourself a while ago, though."


    Bianca was trying her hardest not to gag as she breathed in the orc''s body odor. The urge to puke was currently only being surppressed by the knowledge that Mchi was here. How embarrassing would it be if she vomited in front of her crush?!


    ''Throwing up is not sexy, throwing up is not sexy!!'' She screamed internally. Mchi and Aisha dropped to one knee in front of the struggling orc, and took a moment to marvel at the absurdity of their capture. "What should we ask it first?" Aisha asked. Mchi needed only a moment to think about an answer, as there was really one that was of the utmost importance. "Are monsters like you responsible for opening the gates?"


    "Fool! Why would we possess the power to open portals to the beyonds?"


    "Then whose opening them? And what motivates you to walk through?"


    "Not who, human! What!" "Tomato, tomahto, motherfucker just answer the question." Mchi was beginning to get irritated, as Bianca wasn''t lying about the smell. And since his senses were leagues ahead of the average blessed, he felt like his nostrils were filled with excrement and gooch grease. "Bastard human! Do you not know that we are lured at the whim of..." Suddenly, the words of the orc began to trail off and his eyes became glossy and unfocused. Bianca noticed that her captive had finally stopped struggling, and she slowly let go and removed herself from his back. "Forgive... me... I didn''t know...I wasn''t supposed to..." Dark blood began to drip from the nose and eyes of the green skinned warrior, and he soon lost the ability to hold up his head. A momentter, his heart stopped beating entirely. "What the hell..?" Bianca asked in horror. The three of them instinctively took a step back as they tried to process everything that had just urred. "We''ve lost signal..." The cameraman suddenly said. "I don''t think they caught any of that..." "Hell, that''s probably for the best." Mal muttered as he rubbed his temples. He could only imagine the amount of fear and panic that would ur outside if everyday humans witnessed that scene. It was nothing less than chilling, and it was exactly the kind of thing that would keep people awake at night. "Let''s keep moving... I want to hurry and get out of here as fast as humanly possible." Aisha suggested. Bianca and Mal nodded slowly in agreement, and the two of them followed behind their senior while remaining on their guard. They didn''t run into any more enemies for a while after that, but they still couldn''t rx with this eerie feeling breathing down their spines. It was as if they were being watched from every corner by a force beyond their perception. Finally, the group stumbled upon anotherrge cavern, but this one was significantly different from the previous one. Once the eyes of the blessednded on what was inside, their jaws went ck from the sheer absurdity. "What the hell... there''s no way!"

 Chapter 79 A Boss Unlike Any Other

    Chapter 79 A Boss Unlike Any Other


    Just like before, the group found themselves in an enormous cavern with mana stones lining the surface of the ceiling.


    But unlike the previous scene where all of the stones were glowing with a bright blue light, these stones had already gone dim. In the center of the mass of stones was a dark ck egg roughly the size of a mens shoebox. Bianca squinted her eyes as she stared at the ceiling and she came to a shocking conclusion. "That''s a beast egg... and those are violet mana stones... did that thing seriously drain them all??"


    "It would seem so... what the hell kind of beast can absorb that much energy?"


    Beast eggs are another rare item that can be found in dungeons. Inside are various creatures with their own mystical abilities which are capable of forming blood pacts with humans. Through blood pacts, they can share senses, abilities, and even fuse together to act as one. They are so rare that it''d be easier to find a cluster of violet mana stones, gift wrapped with a note from Santa. Luna is currently in possession of the only one in the United States, a young kitsune she calls Shiro.


    And almost every day, she receives offers of billions of dors from those who are asking to buy her. Typically, beast eggs can only be found in mana rich environments that are extremely isted. Finding one in a cave like this where there were hobgoblins and ogres walking around was nigh inconceivable. "T-The stream is back up and the viewers are going crazy! Everyone is saying that this is the most insane dungeon in history!" The camera man eximed. "Well... they certainly wouldn''t be wrong." Mal muttered. It was still rather hard for him to be excited about all of this. All of these treasures and goodies being dangled so openly in his face made him rather nervous. This was only his second dungeon, and yet he could not shake the feeling that he had intruded somewhere that he did not belong. No sooner did he have the thought that a horrifying and scratchy voice confirmed his suspicions. "Humans? Here? Oh no, this will not do. This most certainly will not do...."


    Almost immediately, the trio of blessed formed a circle around the vulnerable cameraman as they searched for the source of the hag-like voice. "Always intruding where you are unwanted, always trying to take what does not belong to you... You are a consistent stain on the world..."


    Whoosh!


    In the blink of an eye, a horrifying old woman appeared in front of Bianca. She had greasy grey hair that dropped all the way to her feet, and filthy cracked nails that were five inches long. The old woman had egregiously long limbs and stood nearly shoulder to shoulder with Mchi, although her body was seemingly made out of nothing but skin and bones. She raised her wiry old hand and prepared to slice Bianca''s head off with her dagger like nails. "Bianca, get back!"


    Mchi''s body reacted on it''s own, and he instinctively pushed his partner out of the way. Luckily he was able to save her, but unfortunately the cameraman was not fast enough, and his head immediately went flying. "One down..." She muttered. Aisha removed another weapon from her inventory, a shiny gold trident with des made of some blue crystal. "You''ll pay for that you freak!" She roared as she thrust her weapon directly at the head of the boss.


    Tink!


    Aisha''s eyes went wide as her weapon was caught with seemingly no effort. "Pretty... but...useless..."


    "We''ll see about that!"


    Her weapon began to glow with a bright blue light, and a giant volume of water shot out from the tip of her weapon.


    BOOOM!!


    The boss took the full force of a geyser head on, but she suffered no sort of difort other than suddenly bing wet. "...It is as I said." The woman raised her arm and swiftly brought it down on the pole of Aisha''s weapon, snapping it in half. In a disy of great power and fluidity, the old woman lifted up her leg and kicked her hard in the stomach, sending her flying into a nearby wall.


    Crackle.


    Suddenly, the old woman let out a horrifying high pitched scream as her entire body was engulfed in vicious ck lightning. "AAAAAGGGHHH! BAD HUMANS! VERY BAD HUMANS!!!"


    Mchi continued to up the voltage on his lightning as if he were trying to overload a battery and make it explode. Realistically he knew that his best friend was tough, but he didn''t want to see her get hurt and he would always avenge her if she was. Bianca finally recovered and slipped on her twin gauntlets that gave off a sweltering heat. Not wanting to waste the opportunity Mal had created, she lunged forward with eyes burning with determination. BOOOM!


    A powerful right hook to the jaw was enough to send the old woman flying, and she rolled to a stop on the ground a few feet away. Bianca was about to continue her offense, when she finally looked down at her gauntlet and saw that there was a strange material clinging to it. "What... is this..?"


    Upon closer inspection, she realized that what she was looking at was a mass of skin, but there was no sign of blood or any other tissues. It was as if it had been cleanly peeled off a surface and hastily glued onto another. Aisha finally recovered and came back to Bianca''s side. "I can''t believe that thing broke my weapon... I didn''t even know that was possible."


    "Something tells me that this boss isn''t like normal ones." Mchi muttered. "And so far, we haven''t seen half of what it can really do."


    As if to prove his point, the boss finally began to stir on the ground.


    "Disgraceful... disgusting..."


    Taking her wed hands, she began to rip away her own ''skin'' bit by bit. "The treasured must be protected... mustn''t allow them to get their hands on it..."


    Once all of her skin was removed, the trio were horrified to see a creature unlike anything they had ever seen before. -


    Outside the gate, Luna had a worried expression on her face as she looked at thest bit of footage that was captured before the cameraman was killed. ''That boy is practically bad luck at this point. Why does every dungeon he enters have to be so strange??'' She nced at the swirling gate a few feet away from her and wondered if she should go inside. Last time she ran in to help Mal, she ended up beingpletely unneeded. After that experience, she had started to trust in Mal''s abilities a bit more and no longer saw him as a young man who needed her help. ''That''s right, this is for the best... No man wants to be with a woman who is constantly checking up on him, right?''


    Nonsensical though it may have been, Luna began looking for any sort of method to rationalize her decision. And after a few more minutes, she believed that she had finally dissuaded herself from going inside. ....So why did it still feel like there was a knot in the pit of her stomach?


    Inadvertently, Luna made eye contact with Sei, who seemed to be looking at her withrge brown eyes that were pleading sincerely. ''Damn it...'' Before Luna knew what was happening, her body was moving on its own as it carried her all the way to the entrance of the gate. Tying her hair up, she moved forward to step inside, but instead ofing cleanly out the other side, she felt as if she had walked right into a closed door. "What...?"


    It seemed like Luna and Sei would have no choice but to ce their faith in Mchi, as the gate had beenpletely closed off to outside visitors.

 Chapter 80 Words Hurt

    80 Words Hurt


    Standing in front of the trio of Mchi, Aisha, and Bianca, was a woman that two of them never expected to see again.


    Aisha immediately recognized what was happening, and she began trying to put out a fire before it could spread. "Mal, that''s not-"


    "Mom...?"


    She was a woman with beautiful brown skin and a head of dark curly hair with blonde ends. Just like Aubrey, she had kind yet mischievous amber eyes and an inviting smile. She wore dark ck jeans and her favorite shirt that Mchi hated due to the cringey words written on the front. ''Mom. Boss. Forever.'' It was a shirt that he never expected to see again.


    Because she had been wearing it on the day she died. "My little man is all grown up... I can''t tell you how happy that makes me. I wish that your father and I had gotten to see you grow with our own eyes."


    When her tender and southern voice yed in his ears, Mchi reflexively took a step back as his eyes began to water. "Mal, listen to me! I know what you''re thinking but that is not auntie! You have to see that!" Aisha argued. She was beginning to get emotional as well, but she had to maintain aposed line of thought or else things were going to go very wrong very fast. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    By now Bianca had gotten the gist of what was going on, but she wasn''t quite sure of what was the right thing to do.


    "Aisha, how can you say that?You don''t recognize the woman you peed on when you were two?" Mal''s ''mother'' said.


    "I-It''s a trick! Don''t listen to anything that she''s saying!" Aisha yelled with a red face. But Mchi could hardly even hear. His entire world hadn''t stopped spinning ever since his ''mother'' showed up, and now he felt like he was stuck in some kind of twisted dream. "You''ve be so sessful... and yet you still remain in school. I''m d you haven''t forgotten about the promise you made to me...That''s all your dad and I ever wanted for you."


    She slowly began to walk forward, while maintaining a calm and nonviolent demeanor. "I''m sorry that your father and I left you behind... but I need you to trust me now so that we can all be together again..."


    Mal shakily took another involuntary step backwards as he tried to control his rapidly beating heart rate. "W-what do you..." A warm yet eerie smile spread across the lips of Mal''s mother, making Mal''s heart drop to the bottom of his boots. "I need you to die for me, okay?" Whoosh!


    Faster than the eyes could see, Mal''s mother moved directly in front of him and pierced through his chest with long, dagger like fingers. "Mal!" "Noo!"


    Once Mal went down, Aisha and Bianca lunged forward to get his attacker away from him. Mal''s mother easily avoided a kick to the stomach from Aisha and a superheated punch from Bianca, and smiled madly as shegrabbed the both of them by their necks and held them up into the air. "My son has such cute girls around him... I thank you for taking care of him all this time but he needs toe back to me now."


    The appearance of the creature had be truly monstrous, with the sclera of her eyes bing ck and her teeth bing pointed like that of a shark.


    ""He''s not your son!!"" Boom! Slice!


    Finally Biancanded another strong right hook on the jaw of the creature while Aisha removed another weapon from her inventory. Arge one handed axe easily cut through the arms of the doppelg?nger, allowing both girls to fall harmlessly to the ground. "Why are you girls trying to harm me?! Don''t you know how much my family has suffered already?!" The creature regrew it''s arms at an astounding rate, and it immediately kicked Aisha to the side before proceeding to sit on top of Bianca and strangled her mercilessly. "You''re not good enough for my son! Even if you try to fool him with this whorish new appearance it will do you no good! You will always be that same ugly bitch that even your own mother didn''t want!"


    Bianca wasn''t sure what hurt more, the feeling of her windpipe being crushed or the scathing words of this woman she''d never even met before. ''Shut up... shut up!''


    As tears filled Bianca''s eyes, she became desperate to make this creature go away, no matter what it took.


    For a moment, she lost control of her powers and the two of them were engulfed in a smoldering red me. Unfortunately, the creature seemed to be impervious to Bianca''s me, and instead smiled eerily as if it were submerged in a warm bath. "How invigorating!"


    Crack!


    Before Bianca even realized what happened, the doppelg?nger brutally head butted her into unconsciousness. The mes surrounding the two of them were extinguished in the blink of an eye, and now the boss seemed to be making some sort of disappointed expression. "Darn.. I''m all chilly again.."


    "Get off of her!"


    Bang!


    Aisha had finally recovered and attacked the doppelg?nger with arge ck hammer that was almost the same size as her. However, she never expected for the boss to catch it with one hand and give her another eerily warm smile. "Aisha honey, you have to be a dear and wait a moment, okay? This girl will be dead in a second and then I can y with you all you want."


    Not only was Bianca bleeding from her forehead, but the doppelg?nger still maintained a tight grip on her throat with one hand.


    If Aisha didn''t do anything soon, her friend was going to die and there wasn''t going to be anything they could do about it.


    "Take off my aunts'' face you fucking freak! You''re not her!"


    "Freak..? How dare you say that to me when you''re the disgusting one! I treated you like family all of your life and as soon as I died youid your hands on my only daughter! You''re revolting!"


    Even though Aisha knew that these words weren''ting from the real Mrs. Saint, it still knocked the wind out of her sails to hear such harmful words. In that brief moment of hesitation, the doppelg?nger finally released Bianca and dove at Aisha.


    The boss held the young woman on her shoulder and drove her straight into a nearby wall, nearly nting her inside of it.


    BOOOOM!


    The cavern walls shook violently, and Aisha let out a heartwrenching scream as her abdomen was pierced by the ws of her monstrous enemy. "My, my! You always made fun of my Mal for being a crybaby as kids but now it seems like you''re the one who''s always whining. Marianne and Trevor must be so ashamed."


    The mention of her parents caused Aisha to see red and before she knew it she wasshing out, uncaring of the pain coursing through her abdomen. "Never say their names!!"


    Boom!


    Aisha punched the face of her aunt with all of her strength, but only seeded in knocking out a single tooth. "Not cute, Aisha... not cute at all.."


    With whirlwind speed, the doppelg?nger struck Aisha in the face with it''s own version of a right hook, and the difference in strength between the two was apparent to all.


    BOOM!


    The doppelg?ngers punch had nearly knocked Aisha unconscious, but someone who can hold multiple blessings is certainly more durable than most. Evidently the boss did not seem to like that it''s attack did not immediately crush it''s opponent''s head. "So stubborn... why won''t you just die so that my family can be happy!? We don''t need you, we don''t need you, WE DON''T NEED YOU!!!"


    BOOM! BOOM!


    BOOM!


    The doppelg?nger continued to unleash a storm of blows onto Aisha''s beautiful face with the goal of disfiguring her. With every blow that struck Aisha''s face, the cavern would tremble horribly as if it was all going toe down at any second. Bit by bit,rge violet mana stones began to fall from the ceiling. The doppelg?nger remained blissfully unaware that such a thing was going on, as it''s sole focus was on brutalizing the human girl in front of it. As soon as the egg made contact with Mchi''s blood, it''s descent came to aplete stop and it began to float in the air on it''s own. 11:34


    However, it forgot all about a key item that it was supposed to be protecting. The beast egg that was so firmly lodged into the ceiling before, was now not as secure and the continuous trembling of the cavern was causing it to lose more and more stability. BOOM!


    Finally, with onest shake, the egg became dislodged and was in a free fall. Mchi was still lying on the ground, right where his ''mother'' had left him. Her attack pierced through his lungs and even injured his spinal cord, so he was in no condition to fight even if he was of sound mind


    For the past seven minutes, he had been lying in a concerninglyrge pool of his own blood.


    His eyes fluttered open just in time to see a spherical ck object facing from the sky. As soon as the egg made contact with Mchi''s blood, it''s descent came to aplete stop and it began to float in the air on it''s own. Finally, the doppelg?nger sensed that something was wrong, and turned around to see the treasured item that she was supposed to be protecting in the vicinity of one of these humans. "The treasured! NOOOOOOOO!!!"


    Despite the protests of the creature, the beast egg became a small white light that made a beeline directly for Mchi.


    It entered the space directly between his eyes, and soon a small ck tattoo in the shape of a diamond appeared on his forehead. "UNFORGIVEABLE!! UNFORGIVEABLEEEE!!!!"


    I hope you guys like this chapter, I tried to make it as emotional as possible while also ensuring that it remained a difficult fight. I hope I did you all proud!


    AnathaShesha

 Chapter 81 His Mother

    Chapter 81 His Mother


    The screaming of the doppelg?nger was truly horrendous, and Mchi felt like he was listening to some kind of dreadful so. When his eyes fluttered open, the first thing he saw was the beautiful and always cheery Bianca, with a face that was smeared with blood. "B..."


    On the other side of the cavern, he could see Aisha embedded into the stone wall. Not only was she bleeding from her abdomen, but she was also bleeding heavily from her face just like Bianca. Although it was very clear that she had endured much worse treatment, as the sight of her was nothing short of heartbreaking. Spurred on by the scene of the women he cared about hurt, Mchi buried his knuckles in the dirt as he finally started to push himself up from the ground.


    He was only able to lift his head up a few inches away from the dirt before a footnded on the nape of his neck and brutally forced him back down. "GIVE BACK THE TREASURED YOU REVOLTING CREATURE! DO WHAT YOUR MOTHER TELLS YOU! WHY DO YOU HAVE TO BE SUCH A DISGRACE?!!"


    The doppelganger continued to stomp on top of Mchi''s head with seemingly no end in sight. ''Damn... I have to get us out of this.'' Mal thought.


    Crackle. Mchi ran a strong current of electricity all over his body, and the doppelganger was temporarily stunned by the voltage.


    "AAAIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!"


    Mchi used this brief opening to escape from underneath the boss and put some much needed space between them.


    Even though his vision was still blurry from having his head stomped in, he could now see very clearly that this thing wasn''t his mother.


    "Why the hell do you look like that?! You think this shit is funny?!" Ten daggers flew out of Mchi''s pockets on their own and pointed at the monster wearing his mother''s face.


    However, the creature seemed to bergely unconcerned with anything that did not involve the beast egg that had been taken from it. "YOU THIEF GIVE IT BACKK!!!" Once again, the doppelg?nger disyed inhuman speed as it rushed at Mal before he could even react. Booom!


    After receiving a hard punch to the stomach, Mal''s body was temporarily lifted from the ground and he felt a few of his organs rupture.


    "Ugh!"


    The doppelg?nger immediately snatched him out of the air by his neck and held him above her head. "GIVE IT BACK GIVE IT BACK GIVE IT BACKKKK!!!"


    She continued to pummel his ribs and abdomen with her free hand, and even Mal''s electric bursts no longer seemed to be working to dissuade her.


    ''Damn it... why is this happening?''


    -


    Mchi blinked, and suddenly he was no longer in the boss room getting pummeled, but in a ck void filled with stars.


    All around him, he was surrounded by a swirling gxy filled with beautiful dark colors.


    It took him a moment to realize that he was not alone and he was currently in a woman''s embrace with a pair of breasts pressed against his back. "It''s been too long since we''ve had a chat, my son." "Nyx?" The goddess of the night suddenly released Mchi and spun him around to face her. She gently cupped her face in his hands and looked at him with a pitiful expression. "Mchi... do you know that I do not particrly like humans?" Mal was admittedly surprised that she so openly admitted such a thing, but he nodded yes nheless. Studying with Rowan had allowed him to learn a great deal about Nyx as well as her usual disdain for humanity. "But you, my boy are the exception. I love you very much because I see in you all of the qualities that most of them im to embody. And even if you are not perfect, you have never once stopped growing."


    Suddenly, her ck eyes became a bit more serious as she continued. "But my dear boy... that is also why you are having such a difficult timetely." "What do you mean?"


    "You''re too trusting. You believe that most everyone is honest and has good intentions just because you do and that is simply not the case. You are also gentle and overflowing with hope, but that is also the reason why the creature you are currently facing was able to manipte you so." Mchi flinched in his Nyx''s gentle grasp, and her eyes softened a bit as she took his hands. "Do you know why the mimic took the form of your mother?"


    "No... I don''t." "It is because you had the potential to harm it and were also the easiest to manipte. It red your memories in an instant and used it''s shapeshifting abilities to create a scenario you desperately wanted to believe." Mchi hung his head in shame. His emotions had put both Bianca and Aisha in jeopardy, and it was all the fault of his foolish delusions. Nyx quietly pressed her forehead against his and spoke to him so gently that he hardly heard her. "Even though I am not the mother who gave birth to you, will you listen to me anyway?"


    Mchi nodded without a moment''s hesitation and Nyx spoke to him as if she were really his parent. "If you''re going to be kind, then you must also be conscious. I''m not asking you to turn into the same kind of egotistical monster that we both despise, but I am telling you that you should learn how to see things for what they are, and act ordingly.


    If you do not learn this soon, then the likelihood of you being taken advantage of and the people that you love being hurt as a result increases everyday."


    That was undoubtedly Mchi''s worst nightmare, and he could not imagine the amount of guilt he would feel if any of the women around him suffered so much as a scratch. "I won''t let that happen... I''ll do whatever it takes." Nyx revealed a smile more beautiful than all of the stars in the sky and gave the young man a reassuring hug. "You know that I think of you as my own son, don''t you?" "...I do." He said with a mild guilty feeling.


    "Fufufu~ Don''t be ufortable. I am not trying to rece the mother you lost, but I do want to care for you in my own special way. I hope that you''ll eventuallye to see me as such but I will not force you."


    Before Mchi could respond, he received a gentle yet firm push that sent him falling backwards.


    Nyx waved him goodbye with her same charming smile, and said a sentence that nearly made his eyes pop out of his skull.


    "I''ll being to visit you soon! And I''ll be having a little chat with these three women who seem to have fallen in love with you~" N?v(el)B\\jnn


    ''That sounds...Wait, three? ''Nyx had already met Sei and approved of her, so why was she saying there were three more women left for her to meet?


    He knew about Luna and Bianca, but other than that who else could it be?


    ''Well... I guess I''ll find out soon enough.'' Before he vanished, he smiled helplessly and let the goddess know that he would be waiting for her.


    "Sounds good. I''ll see you then, mother."


    After he left this space, Nyx smiled warmly as she ced a hand over her chest. She was quite surprised to hear Mchi call her mother so suddenly, and it had sincerely warmed her ancient heart. She was so ovee with happiness she was tempted to plunge the world into eternal darkness and give it to her son with a bow wrapped around it.


    "You have no idea what it means to ept me as your mother, my son.... I am quite touched."


    -


    As the doppelganger held Mal''s body overhead, a chill ran down her spine and she felt an instinctive sense of danger. She quickly released the young man and did a massive backwards leap before crawling up the wall like some kind of monstrous spider. "What is this..!?" She hissed. She watched in horror as the shadows within the room vibrated and rushed directly towards Mchi.


    All of the surrounding darkness was easily absorbed by his body, and his flesh and skin burned away from the drastic influx of energy. The clothes he was wearing simply passed through his body harmlessly, as if they were not capable of making contact with him in this form.


    Slowly, Mchi stood up and revealed apletely changed physique. All of the features that made him such a handsome and easily recognizable man were now gone save for his very long dreadlocks.


    His body was now resembled a living mass of darkness, stars, and nebs, quite simr to that of Nyx.


    But unlike her, he had no eyes, nose, mouth, or ears. Even though he hadn''t actually done anything, the mimic was already trembling with fear. Mchi''s power was now very clearly leagues above her own, and she had no choice but to rely on his weak heart to remain alive and recover the egg she was supposed to protect.


    "My son... you wouldn''t hurt your mother, would you? You know how much I love you...I''m just very sick and I need you to help me with-"


    BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!

 Chapter 82 You Seem Different

    Chapter 82 You Seem Different


    Outside the gate, Luna had been beside herself with worry. She hadn''t moved from her ce in front of the gate ever since she failed to enter earlier. The guild master had been anxiously awaiting any sort of change from the swirling void, and after twenty minutes she finally got what she wished for. She could feel cool air being sucked into the dungeon once again, and she knew immediately that something had changed. Hesitantly, she stuck her hand out and checked to see if her hypothesis was correct, and let out a massive sigh of relief when she realized that whatever barrier inhibiting her before was no longer present.


    "I''m heading inside!" She yelled over her shoulder. As soon as she passed through the gate, she emerged within a dark cavern that smelled like burned goblin. But as soon as she took a single step, she very nearly fell over.


    Whatever was inside of here... it was unlike anything she had ever felt before.


    This pressure was so enormous and overwhelming that she didn''t dare to take a step forward, and she almost forgot why she came here. FLASH!


    The tattoo on luna''s forehead shone brightly, and her magical beast Shiro appeared out of thin air.


    "Arf!"


    "W-What are you doing? Get back here, it''s dangerous!"


    The fox payed her no mind and ran down a tunnel while barking orders at her. "Arf!" (Bring your ass!)


    Luna tried to recall her pet back into herself using their connection, but the small fox seemed to be having none of it. She bit her lip hard to give her body the shock she needed to move, and once there was a small line of blood running down her chin she finally chased after her rowdy pet.


    The two traveled deeper and deeper into the dark cave, and Luna felt like the deeper she went inside the more likely it would be that she fainted from the overwhelming pressure. She had no idea why Shiro waspletely fine in this atmosphere and was evenpletely energetic. Usually she had a hard time trying to get the little fucker off the couch at home, but now it was running around like it''d just had twenty cups of coffee. Eventually, Shiro led Luna all the way into thest room that was recorded by the cameraman but it looked... different.


    The northernmost wall had been... erased? It now looked like another huge tunnel had been created, when this room was very clearly a dead end before. But Luna was now struggling so much to pull in a single breath of air that she hardly even noticed thendscape changes. The source of this horrible pressure was the thing that was standing above the bodies of Aisha and Bianca.


    It was utterly unlike anything she had ever encountered before. Somehow, it was both the most beautiful thing she had ever seen and also the most frightening. Standing before her was a mass of darkness, stars, and swirling nebs in the shape of a man. It had no eyes, ears, nose, or mouth, but Luna did notice that it seemed to have something resembling very long hair on the top of it''s head. The longer she stared at the creature, the more she felt like she knew what it might have been but she dared not believe it. "M-Mchi...? T-That''s you, right?" "Arf!" (Goddamn you look cool as fuck!) N?v(el)B\\jnn


    The being seemed to only just now be aware that there was someone in the room with it, and it slowly started walking towards her. "My Luna..."


    Mal''s voice was a great deal deeper than usual and seemed to have it''s own echo, and it caused small shivers to run down Luna''s spine. She couldn''t bring herself to step forwards or backwards, and her body was seemingly locked in ce as she watched him approach her. "Mal, what happened here? A-After the cameraman was killed we-"


    "I''ve been dreaming, Luna... but fortunately I was able to wake up before you, or anyone else I love was harmed as a result of my shortsightedness..."


    Luna didn''t hear shit else that Mal said after he basically confessed that he loved her. Her mind was now submerged by a flurry of thoughts andplex emotions that she didn''t fully understand. "I-I-"


    "Luna..."


    Mchi took the face of the mature beauty into his hands and pressed their foreheads together. Even though he did not have any eyes, she still felt as though she could feel him staring into the depths of her very soul.


    "I no longer care about protecting everyone in this world... all that matters to me now is that I never have to watch any of you be harmed again... To that end I will...."


    Gradually, Mchi''s words began to trail off and he started to sound like he was further and further away. He stumbled a bit as if he were having trouble keeping his body upright, and Luna had to support him so that he did not fall over. "Mal? What''s wrong?? I don''t understand!"


    Suddenly, particles of dust began to converge on Mchi''s body and his skin was gradually reformed as he returned to normal. "Tired..."


    His head slumped over onto Luna''s shoulder, and a momentter he was snoring lightly as if he was exhausted beyond belief.


    "What are you... KYAAA!"


    Luna reflexively stepped back and let Mal fall to the ground when she realized that he was naked, and she tried her best to calm her rapidly beating heartbeat. Shiro walked towards his body and began sniffing him as if she''d found something interesting about the nude young man. "S-Shiro! Get away from him while he''s... oh my god."


    While trying to reprimand her beast, Luna''s eyes identally fell somewhere that they shouldn''t have and her face became significantly redder. "I thought Sei was exaggerating..."


    "Arf arf." (And that''s while he''s at rest.... Seems like you''re in for a tough time in the future.)


    Luna didn''t know exactly what the small fox was saying, but do to their connection she did have a vague understanding of what she was thinking. And she was less than pleased. "Perverted girl! I should shave you bald!"


    "Arf!" (Just try it and I''ll tinkle in your good teacups!)


    Luna rolled her eyes in frustration and turned her eyes back to her three subordinates who were all unconscious on the ground. Shiro confirmed that the girls were alive and healing but she couldn''t tell when they would wake up. After sweeping the room, she found three shiny items that she assumed to be loot from the boss and finally let out a deeply held sigh. "You all have been through so much... I''m very proud." She said sincerely. "Let''s get you all out of here."


    - 2 Days Later


    A single twitch from him was all it took for Sei''s eyes to sh open, and she seemed to be fully awake. "Honey!"


    When Mchi awoke, it was the middle of the night and he was in his bedroom at home. Sei was sleeping next to him, wearing her usual outfit of an oversized t-shirt and panties and was clutching his hand so tightly that he had practically lost all feeling. A single twitch from him was all it took for Sei''s eyes to sh open, and she seemed to be fully awake. "Honey!"


    "Oof!"


    Sei practically flung herself on top of Mchi, and the young man was smushed by her veryrge breasts. Although judging by the fact that he made no attempts to move, clearly he was fine suffocating like this. "You have no idea how worried I was! When Luna brought the three of you out you were all unconscious and she wouldn''t tell us how you killed the boss!"


    Mchi briefly tried to recall the events that had transpired inside of the dungeon and was reminded of a horrifyingly powerful new form that he had almost no control over. It was almost as if everything he did while in that state was somehow on autopilot.


    "What happened? How are you feeling? I''m sure you''re hungry, right? I can go and-"


    Mchi ced both of his arms around his girlfriend in the hopes of calming her down. He was touched by all of her concern and worry, but this was all he needed right now.


    "Can we just stay like this for a moment? I don''t want you to go anywhere."


    "O-Oh, okay."


    The two of themy intertwined like that for quite a while, and eventually Mal began to tell her about everything that he saw inside of the dungeon. Sei waspletely taken aback and bewildered by the creature that could take on the appearance of Mchi''s mother, and she immediately became concerned about the damage done to his mental state. Mchi loved both of his parents dearly, but those close to him knew that he was the most fond of his mother. Sheid the foundation of everything that he strove to be, and she was without a doubt the greatest influence in his life. "Honey...I''m so sorry..." Sei said sincerely. "I can''t imagine how horrible it must have been for you to have her memory used against you like that." Mchi deepened his embrace with Sei and buried his head in the crook of her neck. "It wasn''t the best feeling, won''t lie. But I think what was worse than that was seeing Bianca and Aisha broken like that... do you know if they''re doing okay?" Sei smile softly when she saw that the monster hadn''t broken his gentle heart that was always concerned about others. "I think they''re still in the hospital. Bianca is awake but Aisha is still sleeping." Mchi nodded slowly as his hands sank further and further into Sei''s soft body. "Kinda surprised I didn''t wake up in a hospital myself. Though I''ve kinda had my fill of them if I''m being honest." Suddenly Sei was reminded of something very important that she wanted to talk to Mchi about and she stopped his hands before he could make her forget. "About that..."

 Chapter 83 No Longer Human?

    Chapter 83 No Longer Human?


    "Luna tried to take you to the hospital but... apparently Nyx appeared in front of her and told her that such a thing wasn''t necessary. " Sei exined. "What? Why not?" As a response, Sei looked like she was having a hard time figuring out what to say. "Honey... that form you took... how much can you recall about it?"


    "Not a lot for real... I just know that I was crazy powerful."


    "Well, yes... but that form also seems to have killed you in a sense."


    "Say what now?"


    Sei tried her best to recall Luna''s exnation that was filled with terms that she didn''t understand. "Well, basically in that state you were something like like sentient darkness and energy and because of that your physical body waspletely destroyed...


    Apparently after you returned to normal you were still only ayer of skin over that swirling mass that Luna described... over the past few days you literally have been regrowing your flesh and bones."


    Mchi already felt like his head was going to explode, but a sudden voice that he was all too familiar with nearly caused him to leap out of his skin. "That''s right, isn''t that cool?"


    "KYAAA!!"


    "WHAT THE HELL!?"


    Nyx had appeared as she always did, silently and wearing a beautiful and radiant smile.


    She was sitting casually in a chair in the corner of the room, wearing her usual ck dress with no shoes. "Fufufu~ The two of you should be more aware of your surroundings. This is why Serana has almost caught you two in the middle of your intimacy so many times before."


    ""Ah...""


    The couple looked at each other briefly before making a silent vow to be more careful in the future. "Anyway, this is what it means to ept me as your mother, Mal. The power at your disposal is truly great, but I must also warn you of something."


    Nyx''s tone became uncharacteristically serious, and Mchi knew that whatever warning she was about to give was a stern one. "If you use that form too much, you will cease to be human."


    It seemed like all sound had been sucked out of the room and both Mchi and Sei stared back at Nyx with shocked expressions. "What do you mean?" Sei asked in a hushed voice. "I mean that his body will be just as it was in the dungeon, the avatar of night itself. Continued usage will cause his body to be permanently ustomed to the changes, and as a result he will be something more than a blessed, less than a god, but undoubtedly not mortal.


    He won''t need to sleep, eat, or piss, and he will heal from even the most grievous of wounds so long as they are not... special in origin."


    So far, Mal was hearing nothing but benefits. So why was his mother still acting like it was such a bad thing?


    "But... it also means that you will not be able to have children and that you will be truly immortal... and that is a very lonely road.


    Those girls Luna and Bianca will live for a few hundred years, but sweet Sei here and that cute little... oops, I''ve almost said too much." Nyx said as she covered her mouth.


    Mal''s entire body suddenly tensed up. Living without the people he loved by his side... it was a nightmare that he didn''t even want to consider. He and Luna might not have been in an official rtionship yet, and there were still things to be sorted out with Bianca but he was knew that he enjoyed theirpany beyond belief.


    And what about Aisha, Aubrey, Serana and even...


    ''Anna...'' Mal was surprised when such an unfamiliar name bubbled up into his mind, but he could not help but admit that the beautiful young woman had caught his eye and begun to grow on him.


    Rtionships aside, he had never thought about having kids before.


    But he couldn''t say for sure that he didn''t want them, and he also wasn''t sure how the girls felt about them either. More than anything else, he believed that he''d like to have the option. Now he wasn''t so sure if he ever wanted to use that power again. "Tsk."


    Nyx suddenly made an annoyed expression as she clicked her teeth, signaling that her time here had run out. "I''m sorry, my son but this will probably be thest time I''m able to visit you for a while. I wish I could stick around to help you make a decision, but unfortunately even we gods do not get everything that we want."


    She stood up from her seat and came beside the bed and took the hands of both her son and his girlfriend.


    "I will support you two no matter what decision you make, I just wanted you to be aware of all of the options that lie in front of you." Surprisingly, the she gave the two of them a light kiss on the forehead before she vanished right before their eyes. Mchi and Sei sat in silence for a moment after Nyx left, and it was clear that both of them were still trying to process everything that they''d just heard. Finally, Mal decided to break the ice and asked the very ufortable question. "Sei... are you-" N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "Honey."


    Sei suddenly straddled Mchi and took his face into her hands. "When I decided to be with you, I was already prepared for the reality that I might die before you do... and as far as kids are concerned... I did not enjoy being pregnant the first time around so I got my tubes tied after Serana was born."


    Suddenly Mal remembered that he and Sei had never once used a condom and he always finished inside of her. Blessed generally have lower birth rates, but with the amount of sex the two of them had he should have already figured that there was some sort of extra factor at work.


    Tears fell form both of their eyes as they shrugged off their clothes and embraced each other like it was the very first time.


    "So I don''t want you to let me interfere in your decision. You do whatever you feel is best so that you can protect us."


    As always, Sei''s words were incredibly genuine and seemed to hit Mchi directly in the heart. As he pulled her in for a kiss, he realized that there was no way he could ever live without experiencing the sensation of these lips at any point in his life. Tears fell form both of their eyes as they shrugged off their clothes and embraced each other like it was the very first time.


    Or the veryst.


    -


    In the morning, Mal got up despite Sei clinging onto his arm in her sleep. He wanted to stay in bed with her and spend the entire day intertwined, but afterst night he felt like he had to do something with himself or risk going insane. Since he was technically still in the middle of working on a project, he texted Anna and asked where he should meet her today and received an almost immediate response. After he ensured her that he was fine to be out, she texted him the address of the music shop where she worked and told him to meet her at 10.


    He got dressed in a simple outfit of ck sweats, apression shirt and slides before he prepared to leave his house. Serana seemed to have left already to work on her own project, and didn''t seem to be aware that Mal was awake yet. ''She sure did leave me a lot of messages to read when I woke up though..'' He thought as he looked at his phone. Not just her, but his sister and practically everyone from immortal moon had wished him a speedy recovery. It made him remember the girls that were wounded alongside him, and he silently decided to go and visit them before the day was over.


    Opening the door to his apartment, he was surprised when he found the very beautiful Luna Autumn standing outside looking flustered. "Luna?"


    "H-Hello!" She said politely. Mal could not help but notice that her cheeks were unusually pink. And judging from the way she was constantly avoiding his gaze, he concluded that she did not expect him to be awake.


    "I''m d you''re okay... you have no idea how worried I was..."


    "Sorry to scare you." He said with a helpless smile. "You know I''m the type who has to make things interesting."


    "Fufufu~ Yes, I do."


    It seemed like his attempt to break the ice had been somewhat sessful as Luna no longer seemed to be as tense as before.


    Now that she was more rxed, she was able to tell him about the g that she was throwing for the guild and a few special guests. After raiding thatst dungeon the value of immortal moon shot up tremendously and they were now one of the top 5 richest guilds in the entire world. As such, Luna was in quite the celebratory mood. "You''re free to bring dates of course, I''m sure that Sei will be delighted to... Oh?" Suddenly, Luna came closer to Mchi and stared hard at the diamond shaped mark on his forehead. "No wonder we couldn''t find the beast egg... when did you fuse with it?" "I''m not too sure." Mal said honestly as he tried not to peep down Luna''s shirt. "When I woke up that mark was just there but I don''t feel any different." "You won''t notice anything until your beast actually hatches but who knows when that will be. Nheless it seems like you''ve got your hands on a great treasure." For some reason, Mal found Luna''s bright pink eyes to be particrly beautiful this morning, and he felt like it would be easy to get lost in them. "Yea...I really do." Luna suddenly became aware of just how close she''d gotten to Mal, and she was reminded of thest time they were close together like this.


    "Mal... do you remember what you said to me in the dungeon?"

 Chapter 84 Am I What She Said I Am?

    Chapter 84 Am I What She Said I Am?


    It was another sunny and warm day outside of Moriarty Memorial Hospital. Aubrey Saint was walking through the halls wearing a beautiful violet dress and with her hair up in a bun, humming casually and carrying a small bouquet. It had been two whole days since her brother and her girlfriend were injured in a dungeon, and she had been traveling back and forth between the two of them a lot. Her brother didn''t show any signs of waking up when she left the housest night, so now she was here to see Aisha. She would be lying if she said she wasn''t worried, but luckily she had somehow managed to keep herself from falling apart during this stressful time. As she walked through the hallway, she passed by a hospital room with a familiar girl inside. Bianca Tate was sitting up in her hospital bed, staring silently at the space in front of her and seemingly very deep in thought. Aubrey suddenly came to aplete standstill as she hesitantly knocked on the door and poked her head inside. "Hello... is this a bad time?"


    Bianca jolted slightly as if she hadn''t heard Aubrey approaching, and she smiled exhaustedly when she saw who it was. "Nah, of course not. Come right on in." Aubrey hesitantly stepped inside and sat down on the edge of Bianca''s bed. "How are you feeling? You guys came out of there pretty beaten up." "Y-Yea it was... definitely an unpleasant experience." She recalled. Aubrey could tell that there was more brewing underneath the surface, but she wasn''t exactly sure if she should pry. She didn''t know Bianca very well, and she had no idea if such a thing would be unwee. Eventually, she just decided to grit her teeth and make it known that she was there should Bianca need someone to confide in.


    "I know that we may not be as close as you and my brother are, but if you''re important to him then you''re important to me so I''m always here to talk." Aubrey''s words inadvertently caused Bianca''s lower lip to tremble as she held back a wave of tears. "Am I... really important to him?" "Ah! D-Don''t cry! But... yes?" Aubrey was horribly confused, and she had no idea what part of what she said could have set her off.


    She was just hoping that she didn''t somehow make things worse.


    Bianca hung her head low and her entire body was shaking. "You know... this isn''t me. Not the real me anyway." "Pardon?" "I was nobody before I got blessed... I was worse than garbage. When it finally happened I was so overjoyed that I made a vow to change myselfpletely. I changed the way I spoke, I wore sexier clothes, and I even tried to act more extroverted just so that people would like me. A-And it worked for a while but I don''t think I can do it anymore!!" Unconsciously, Bianca''s body began to heat up as she cried and the room became noticeably warmer. Aubrey had no choice but to get off the bed and take a few steps back, but even then she still felt like she was beginning to sweat. "When he sees what I''m really like and how I really am then he probably won''t like me anymore! A-And it''ll be all my fault because I''m the one who tried to tricked him in the first ce!!" By now, Aubrey could fully understand what was going on but she really couldn''t believe it. Why was everyone so crazy over her brother?? He made her eat his boogers as kids!


    What part of that did girls find sexy?? ''I shoulde out with my own documentary or something. I have plenty of material.'' She thought jokingly. "I-It''s just like she said! I''m not good enough for him and I never will-"


    "Bianca!!" Aubrey finally couldn''t take the heat anymore and decided to speak up, causing the crying girl to regain control of her powers. "I thought you liked my brother." "W-What? I-I do but-" "Then why are you acting like you don''t know the kind of person he is? If he knew just how much suffering you were going through for his sake, he''d be crushed." Bianca suddenly froze up like she''d finally had some kind of realization and remained motionless. "I''m sorry that people treated you poorly before you got your powers, and it shouldn''t have made you feel like you had to be an entirely different person. You deserve to be yourself and feelfortable in your own skin no matter what, and as long as you are still the same sweetgirl that you''ve always been, I''m sure my brother can fall in love with that version too."


    ''And if he doesn''t, I''ll crush his nuts for breaking your heart!'' Aubrey thought.


    Finally, Bianca wiped her face andughed halfheartedly. "Do you really think so...?" "Yea, Mal''s standards aren''t really all that high. As long as you genuinely care about him and get along with Sei, there''s no way that you won''t have him stuck."


    "Hehehehe! I''ll take your word for that then... Can I ask you something else?" n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Sure."


    Bianca gripped her bedsheets ufortably as she tried to ask the question on her mind without iting off as strange. "Do you... think I''m the kind of girl that your mother would have approved of?"


    Aubrey smiled brightly as she recalled the woman who she and her brother idolized more than anything. "Bianca, the fact that you would even ask means that you are exactly the kind of girl she would have wanted as a daughter inw."


    More tears fell from Bianca''s face, but instead of being ones of sorrow, these contained an indescribable joy. "Thank you!"


    -


    After leaving Bianca, Aubrey headed directly into Aisha''s room and received an extremely pleasant surprise.


    "You''re awake!!"


    "Oof!"


    Aisha had been sitting up on her bed for all of two minutes before her girlfriend came barreling into the room and knocked her over again. "A-Aubrey? Y-Your boobs are smothering me..."


    "I-I''m sorry, just deal with it for a few more seconds! You really have no idea just how worried I have been!"


    "You two are such an adorable couple." Aubrey''s entire body stiffened up when she heard a very familiar voiceing from right beside her.


    Looking up, she found a middle aged couple withpletely different aesthetics. The man looked like a cross between a biker and a pro wrestler, with a body that was littered with muscles and tattoos and was stuffed inside of a button down shirt and dress pants. He had a bald head with a full white beard that was reminiscent of Santa us, and one of the fondest memories of Mchi and Aubrey''s childhood was when this man woulde over to their house in a matching red suit.


    Sitting on hisp was a much daintier woman with long blonde hair and a charming figure. She wore her usual sses paired with a vibrant orange sundress with a sweater hastily thrown over her shoulders. These were Aisha''s parents, Trevor and Marianne Rose.


    "Ah, sorry auntie and uncle!"


    Aubrey hurriedly pried herself off of Aisha and went to give her inws a hug.


    The two of them already knew and approved of their rtionship, and as a result Aubrey had been spending a great deal of time around them as ofte.


    As Aisha watched her girlfriend embrace her parents, she was reminded of the horrible words of the doppelg?nger inside of the dungeon. In the back of her mind she knew that creature wasn''t really Mal and Aubrey''s mother, and yet the words that it used to cut her seemed to be entirely too real. Would her aunt really not approve of her rtionship with her daughter?


    It wasn''t something that should''ve mattered, and yet Mrs. Saint had practically had a hand in raising Aisha, so she of course wanted her approval. And with how easily she was defeated in the dungeon as well as the fact that a shadowy organization was able to break into her multimillion dor home, she was also beginning to doubt her own strength.


    Did she have the right to be with someone whom she couldn''t even protect?


    "Honey? What''s wrong?"


    Marianne had been the first to notice the fact that something was wrong with her daughter, and was rightfully concerned.


    "Me...? I guess I''m just a bit tired I guess." She lied.


    Aisha wasn''t really one who enjoys worrying others, so if it wasn''t something life threatening then she had a tendency to keep everything bottled up. But she had forgotten that everyone in this room had known her for all if not the majority of her life. They knew she wasn''t being honest without even putting any effort in. "Honey, if you don''t tell us what the matter is then you leave me no choice but to ask you in a way that you''ll understand..."


    Aisha''s heart immediately dropped to her stomach.


    "Mom, please don''t I promise I-I''m fine! See!?" The young girl forced a smile onto her face to try to dissuade her mother, but it was of little to no avail. As mentioned before, Mchi and Aisha were practically like siblings. That means that the two of them hade up with all kinds of ways to piss each other off over the years, and to this day Mal hade up with the most vile method yet. Teaching Aisha''s mother how to use modern ng. "Honey, I don''t want to embarrass you but you''re not giving me a choice. Lying is not very P of you~"


    "Momma please!!"


    Trevor and Aubrey were still sitting in the corner of the room, trying desperately to hold in theirughter and yet still failing miserably. Much to Aisha''s horror, her mother was still not done. "Why are you getting upset? Can''t a big homie be concerned about her lil homie?" "I get it, I''m sorry! I''ll spill so please stop!!" Aisha pleaded.


    "That''s a bet, twin."


    "MOM!"

 Chapter 85 Mal is Dangerous

    85 Mal is Dangerous


    "Mal... do you remember what you said to me inside of the dungeon?" Initially, the answer was no. Mchi had been so focused on everything that he''d heardst night from Nyx that everything he''d said to Luna was buried in the back of his mind. But as soon as she''d reminded him of it, all of the memories came flooding back to his mind and he became slightly embarrassed. He remembered how he''d possessively grabbed Luna and proimed her to be his, while also dering his desire not to save the entire world, just the few inside of it he held dear. As mentioned before, in that form he was in he was sort of on autopilot and had no real control of himself. The words buried in his heart simply burst forth without any real way to stop them, and he had ended up confessing his feelings to Luna in a terrible setting. "Ah... I''m sorry about that..." he said as he scratched the back of his head. Luna was inadvertently hurt by his words as she took them to be a sign of amnesia. Unconsciously she clenched her fists, as if she was going to sock Mal right in the jaw at any second. "Tell me...just so that I can be sure... are you sorry because you don''t remember, or because you didn''t mean it...?"


    "Hm? Neither."


    "What?"


    Mchi suddenly wrapped his arms around Luna''s waist and pulled her in so that their bodies were pressed against each other. "I''m sorry that the first time I told you I loved you was in the middle of a dungeon that reeked of blood and goblin ash. I promise I''m usually a lot more romantic than that." He said with a helpless smile. Luna''s face quickly became as red as the mark on her forehead as all of her anger vanished almost as quickly as it came. "W-What''re you doing?"


    "A do-over." Mchi leaned in, and Luna closed her eyes when she believed that she was about to receive a kiss, only to nearly jump out of her skin when she felt Mchi''s warm breath by her ear. "I. Love. You."


    Mchi released Luna immediately afterwards, and acted as if he hadn''t done anything out of the ordinary. Walking past her, he began heading towards the elevator. "I have a project to do now, but I hope I''ll see youter. You should go in and see Sei too while you''re here." Unfortunately, Luna''s brain had all but short circuited and she was now frozen in ce right where Mal had left her. "I-I... Y-You..."


    Mal merely waived her goodbye with his usual warm smile and waived her goodbye. "See youter, Luna."


    Once the elevator closed, she still remained frozen in ce for a full three minutes while she tried to calm her raging heartbeat.


    Eventually Sei woke up as well, and rubbed her eyes sleepily as she approached the stunned white haired woman who was standing in the doorway. "Luna? Why are you standing outside like that?"


    "...That man is dangerous... "


    "Nani?"


    -


    Annalise worked at a hole in the wall record shop on the north side of town about twenty minutes away from Mal''s apartment. It was actually owned by her uncle, so more often than not she was able to ck off quite a bit. The interior was fairly nice, with almost every record imaginable in the form of either cds or vinyls, and there were even a few instruments on sale in the back. In the days of streaming, record shops like this weren''t very busy. And yet today this store had already seen ten customers ever since they opened twenty minutes ago, all because of the young woman who worked behind the counter. Today, Annalise was wearing simple ck jean shorts and a dark crop top that barely contained herrge bust. After seeing her from the window outside, young men of various ages practically trampled over themselves trying to get inside. Some asked for help selecting a record they had no interest in listening to, while others were just openly ogling her. One particrly handsome man was a bit bolder than others and brought the most expensive guitar in the shop right up to the counter, while showing off what was nothing less than a movie star smile. "I''ll take this and uh, don''t worry about the price you can just swipe my card." He said, having no idea just how douche-like he sounded. Annalise maintained a nk expression as she proceeded to ring up his purchase, and the man became even more ensnared by her icy demeanor. "So... how many of these do I have to buy to get some special lessons from you?"


    Annalise seemed like she was already used to this kind of thing and did not even bother looking up rom the register. "We''re running a special. Buy sixty and I''ll spit in your face." She handed the man his new guitar along with a receipt while looking at him with apparent disgust. While taking his guitar, the man also took the opportunity to grab Anna by the hand. "Come on, don''t be like that gorgeous. I just wanted to get a little more familiar with you, that''s all."


    "Oh fucking well. Take your hands off of me before I put you on your ass." Finally, the man''s permanent smile broke and he twisted his face up in anger. " You don''t have to be such a bitch. ying hard to get doesn''t do any good when you''re dressed like that."


    Suddenly, a small ck cat leapt on top of the counter and began hissing at the man like he was feral.


    "What the hell do you want, cat?" The man growled.


    "He said duck." Annalise warned. "What?" n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    CRACK.


    Using her free hand, Annalise pulled a wooden bat from behind the counter, and proceeded to knock the man clean across the face. The sound of a nose being broken echoed throughout the music shop, and the entire store came to a dead standstill. Anna had seeded in knocking out the rude customer with a single swing, and casually dropped his new guitar over his unconscious body. She wiped the blood off her bat like it was no big deal and turned her attention to the small crowd watching from the corner.


    "Can one of you idiots take Mr. zero boundaries outside? He''s bleeding all over the floor and I''m gonna have to mop that." If the young men inside were aroused by Annalise before, they were now terrified of her after witnessing how cruel she could be without batting an eye. "W-We''ll juste another day..!" "I would prefer it if you didn''t." "R-Right!" Once the store had been emptied, Anna sighed before she reached behind the counter and pulled out a mop. "I could''ve helped you, you know?" Annalise smiled and nced at the small ck cat that was still sitting by the register. "And what is a cute little kitty like you gonna do? Nuzzle him to death?" Mal let out a huff as he watched Annalise mop up the blood as if she''d done this a thousand times before. "I''m only like this cause you ain''t really give me a choice."


    "Damn right, and you better stay like that, furball. Serana told me how crazy things got when you were sighted at her restaurant and I absolutely do not want to deal with anything like that." She had enough trouble beating away all of her potential suitors. There was no way in hell she was going to deal with Mal''s rabid fan base as well. She didn''t even want him to be seen walking into this shop, so she had him change into a cat as soon as he arrived and she walked out to retrieve him herself. "Does that kinda thing happen often?" Mal asked. "Often enough that I keep a bat and a mop behind the counter." Anna answered inly. "Why? You jealous?" Anna meant it as a joke, but her words really caused Mal to think. He had a special dislike for forceful men after everything that had happened to his sister, but that didn''t exin this additional feeling of repulsion that he felt when that man grabbed Anna. The only time he''d evene close to feeling like that was when Sei was being harassed by that doctor in the hospital, or when Rowan said something about Luna being too pretty for him. Mal took a moment to observe Anna fully. Revealing outfit aside, she was absolutely gorgeous and her well done tattoos only added to her dangerous charm. Suddenly, Mal remembered how Nyx kept referring to a fourth woman who was in love with him that he hadn''t yet realized. "I don''t know... maybe." Anna froze like a deer in headlights and her eyes nearly popped out of her skull. She calmed down her beating heartbeat by force, and went back to mopping long after all of the blood had been wiped up. "Don''t joke with me... You don''t know me well enough to say something like that. "


    "That''s true." Mal admitted. "But I like what I know so far." Annalise finally showed some degree of emotion as she turned towards the talking cat on the counter. Mal had never seen Anna with such an embarrassed look on her face, and he briefly wondered if he was having some kind of fever dream. "Don''t joke with me. I don''t have anything inmon with the girls you go for. You''re better off saying things like that to some supermodel." "I don''t have any interest in supermodels though? I like to eat and I hear they starve themselves." Anna didn''t know what she was more mad about, the fact that Mal was joking in this situation or the fact that it actually made her want tough. Mchi disobeyed his very strict orders and changed back into his regr appearance. Despite having the eyes of a wild animal, the way he was looking at Anna was incredibly gentle and patient. "Do you... like anything about me?"


    As always, Mal identally activated his blessing from Bastet, leaving Anna with no choice but to tell the truth. Her eyes gradually lost focus and an answer fell out of her mouth before she could stop it. "Yes... everything."


    Ring! Just as Anna finally told Mal her feelings, the door to the store opened and a very familiar man strode inside. "Well, isn''t this lovely! I''m suddenly in the mood to hear some Teddy Pendergrass!" Mchi''s blood immediately ran cold, and his teeth and nails sharpened instinctively. Anna didn''t recognize this strange and mboyant man who''d just walked into her store, and her cold and unfriendly demeanor returned like it never left. "Can I help you?" "Ah, not you sweetheart. But the man behind you can." Mchi surpressed a growl that was desperately trying to escape from his throat. "What do you want, Lamont?" New character art of Mal, Luna, Bianca, Sei and Annalise is now up!


    Go check it out!


    AnathaShesha

 Chapter 86 He Is Not The Same

    86 He Is Not The Same


    Currently, Mal and Lamont were in an alley behind Anna''s music store.


    The dark angel was as infuriating as ever and seemed to be blissfully unaware of just how bad Mchi wanted to tear his head off. "She''s a real cutie, huh? And as thick as cold peanut butter-"


    "Why the hell are you here?" Mal asked. Lamont nced at Mchi and finally noticed something strange about him. Outwardly Mal appeared to be very calm, almost like he had no emotions, but his eyes were smoldering. It was as if he was envisioning roasting him alive.


    "You seem different, buddy boy. Mad that I interrupted your steamy conversation? I promise you can get right back to the little goth girl after-"


    "You''re really starting to piss me off."


    This time, Lamont did not miss the sight of Mal''s pointed teeth shing as he spoke, and he realized that things were bing dangerous.


    "Alright... I''ll get to the point then, buzzkill." He muttered as he rummaged into his jacket pocket. "If you pull out another card, I''m gonna torch that shit."


    "Awwe on, not you too!"


    Lamont finally threw his arms up in the air and let out a heavy sigh.


    "Whatever, I''m just here to tell you that the boss finally has time in their schedule to meet you, so I''m here to bring you to them. Now." Mchi''s brow twitched as he tried his very best to keep hisposure. "You''ve really got some shit timing. I''m kind of in the middle of something."


    "You''re the most famous man in the world, Mal. There will always be some girl or another whose trying to spread her legs for you but you have to be-"


    In the blink of an eye, Mchished out and grabbed the chatty man by the neck. He didn''t like the way Lamont had showed up and demanded that he go with him like he was some kind of errand boy. And he especially didn''t like how he spoke about Anna like she was some kind of cheap woman. With Lamont at only 5''10 and Mchi at 6''5, the sight of him being held up in the air was ratherical.


    "Kugh! M-Mal, buddy, why''re you being like this?" Lamont stammered as he tried to catch his breath. "I thought we really got along before, you know?Bros before hoe-" Mchi suddenly tightened his grip on Lamont''s neck, and dark ck ws burst from his fingertips. "You''re quiet all of a sudden. Why is that?" Mal asked calmly. ''What the hell is wrong with him?! Is it even possible for a person to change so much??'' Lamont didn''t know that Mal''s new disposition stemmed from his most recent conversation with Nyx and his transformation inside the gate. The reason Nyx warned him not to enter that state too many times was because his body was literally bing darkness. Cold, unfeeling, darkness. Entering that state just once had taken something from him, and he was no longer as polite or patient as before. The only reason why none of the girls had noticed anything different, was because they were precious existences to him and he would treat them as such. But no one else in the world had the luxury of his kindness as there simply wasn''t enough to go around. Not anymore. "T-Take it easy, Mal! You want to add another murder under your belt?! Urk!"


    Baddump.


    Mchi froze when he heard the sound of a heartbeating from behind him.


    His expression immediately softened, and he dropped Lamont to the ground before turning around and finding Anna, her head peeking around the corner and a shocked expression on her face. "Lamont... go wait out front, I''ll be right there." The dark angel rubbed his sore throat as he picked himself up off the ground. He wanted to tell Mal to hurry up as his boss wasn''t exactly the kind of person who liked to be kept waiting but... he was honestly terrified. His blessing from Papa Legba didn''te with any offensive benefits... against someone like Mal he was at a clear and sore disadvantage. ''I thought he would be easy to control, but now it doesn''t seem like it... Thedy will need to move things forward at a greater speed than anticipated. ''


    After Lamont left, Anna shakily came from behind the wall, the sound of her heartbeat echoing in both of their ears. Mal didn''t know what to say, and he was afraid to make any sudden moves and risk terrifying her further. "Anna..." "Did you... really murder someone...?" "...Yes." Anna was not expecting him to give her such a straightforward and honest answer, and her anxiety over this situation only got worse. ''No... don''t make that same mistake, Annalise.''


    "W-What happened?" She asked shakily. Mal wasn''t really expecting her to ask for details, and he inadvertently raised his eyebrows in surprise.


    "I know you, or at least I think I do... I don''t think you''re the kind of person to just kill someone for no reason so... I want to hear your side of the story." Anna exined.


    Ever since Anna met Mal, she had judged him based on her own preconceived notions and she had been wrong at every turn. So until she heard him say from his very own lips why he did it... she would not make any judgments.


    "I... have a sister..." Mal began.


    He took a few minutes to exin everything that Aubrey had went through, in as little detail as possible so as not to darken the conversation beyond what was necessary. He told her about the day where Aubrey was hurt, and even about the time where Rowan showed up at Sei''s restaurant with the goal of hiring him as a hitman. In the end he told her bout how he freed Arthur from a maximum security penitentiary, just to rip him apart with his teeth in a national forest on the other side of the country. When Mal was done exining, Anna remained motionless for a few seconds and he thought that he might have broken her. ''Should I have not told her the full story? Would it have been better to gloss over some of the more gory details?''


    Suddenly, a horrible thought crossed his mind. ''Is she... afraid of m-'' "Oh thank god!" Anna suddenly squatted down on the ground as she tried to calm the nauseous feeling in her stomach. Mchi felt like his brain had endured a hard reset.


    "...Wut?"


    "I know I said that I wouldn''t judge you, b-but I honestly thought that you were about to tell me you killed some rude Karen or maybe a homeless guy but it was just some lowlife rapist!"


    "...Que?"


    "I''m really relieved and I''m sorry but I guess I was kind of expecting something to be wrong with you? I mean so far you''ve seemed like my dream guy but something like that can''t be realistic right?"


    "...Huh?"


    "But I guess it is because not only are you super kind, generous, and sexy but you''re also really protective over your family and that''s really attractive too and I kind of...."


    By now, Anna had realized that she had been rambling away like a maniac and her cheeks quickly turned red with embarrassment. ''Don''t look up, don''t look up, don''t look up!''


    Despite her inner monologue, she couldn''t help but nce up from the ground to check on Mal''s expression, and she immediately wished that she hadn''t. Mchi was standing in his same position as before, with his hands in his pockets and wearing an amused smile on his face. "Go on, I''m listening."


    "S-Shut up!"


    ''She''s so cute.'' Mchi couldn''t help like he was discovering more and more sides to Annalise with every interaction. "A-Anyway! Who was that weird guy you were with and what was this boss you''re supposed to be meeting?"


    Mal suddenly lost his smile as he ran his fingers through his dreads. "He''s with the dark angels... they found out I killed Arthur and now they are making me work for them."


    Anna''s face went from being red with embarrassment to red with anger. "What?! They can''t do that, it''s ckmail! Who gives a shit if you turned some creep into chicken fingers!?"


    "It was more like tartare."


    "Whatever, smartass. My point remains the same." Anna said as she rolled her eyes. Mchi suddenly squatted down so that he was eye level with Anna. "Wow you must really like me, huh? Why else would you be this upset on my behalf?" "Don''t make me go get my bat."


    "Hahaha!" Mchi suddenly stood up and began walking towards the street while waiving Anna goodbye. "I gotta go but I''ll see you tomorrow, alright? I''m sorry our time got cut short today."


    "I-It''s cool... are you going to be okay... with them?"


    "What do you want, Uncle Pete?"


    18:19


    Mchi smirked as if he already had some kind of n in mind. "You don''t need to worry about me. I won''t be with these assholes for long." He didn''t borate, and she did not press him for answers, Annalise watched his back disappear around the corner, and once he was gone she finally let out an embarrassed sigh. "What is wrong with me... why did I tell him all of that stuff..?"


    She was usually a much more reserved and standoffish person, and she couldn''t recall thest time she''d confessed to someone first. ''Come to think of it... I don''t think I''ve ever-''


    Ring!


    Anna''s phone suddenly vibrated, and she fished it out of her back pocket. Once she saw the contact shing across her phone, she knew that she was in for an even worse headache. "What do you want, Uncle Pete?"


    Immediately, the sound of her uncle''s ring voice nearly defeated her. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "AG, WAS THAT REALLY MALACHI SAINT IN MY SHOP!?! WHY DIDN''T YOU TELL ME YOU KNEW HIM!?!"


    Anna knew immediately that her uncle had been watching the store cameras again, and yet he didn''t even bother to ask if she was okay from that asshole grabbing her earlier.


    But then again, if he called to ask her if she was okay every time she had to hit a handsy customer, his phone bill would suffer the consequences. "You didn''t exactly ask." Anna said.


    "WHO WOULD THINK TO ASK SOMETHING LIKE THAT!?!"


    *Sigh..*


    My mom has been at my house for all of 5 minutes and she has already kidnapped my baby girl.


    She just walked right past me!


    I was here first, why is she suddenly trying to rece me?!


    AnathaShesha


    Suy ngh? c?a ng??i t?o

 Chapter 87 Starting Off On The Wrong Foot

    87 Starting Off On The Wrong Foot


    Mchi was currently in the back of a very nice limousine with cked out windows. He''d been riding for quite some time now and he wasn''tpletely sure about just how much longer he had to go. His phone wasn''t receiving any cell service, nor was it able to pinpoint his location on the map. He waspletely and totally isted. ''Sun''s still out... once it goes down I should be able to get a better grasp of my surroundings.''


    As soon as he had the thought, the car began to slow down. A few minutester, he finally came rolling to a stop and the door was unlocked. Pushing open the door, Mchi was briefly blinded by the bright white lightsing from above.


    Once his vision adjusted, he could see that he was in a hangar surrounded by military vehicles that looked like they were straight out of a sci fi movie. Armored trucks, tanks, and even a helicopter were all on standby, looking as if they were freshly polished. "It''s this way." Mchi nced at Lamont and noticed that he was much less talkative than before. He wasn''t sure if it was due to the fact that he''d almost lost his life earlier, or if he was just tired from the long drive. It was likely a healthy mix of both. Mchi followed carefully behind him while keeping an eye on his surroundings. The two of them entered into a high speed express elevator, alerting Mal that he was in a veryrge structure. Lamont pressed the button for the highest floor, and it took a minute before they actually started moving. "The boss is a no nonsense kind of person, so whatever you do be sure to be polite." He warned. Mchi didn''t say anything, and continued to have a bored and empty look on his face as if he wasn''t at all interested by the fact that he was in a highly secure military base. "Seriously... what has happened to you?" "..."


    Ding!


    The doors to the elevator finally came sliding open, and Mal strode through before Lamont did. Inside he found a luxurious penthouse office with monitors lining every corner of the walls. Furniture was scarce, consisting of only a wooden desk with aputer on top and a small table lined neatly with alcohol. Sitting behind the desk was a proper looking woman with ck hair and full lips. She wore a dark ck pantsuit with prim looking sses and a beauty mark beside her lip. ''Weird... she kinda looks like-''


    "Mchi Saint? You''rete." The woman said in a stern tone. "Ain''t like I knew about this beforehand. I had things to do."


    For some reason, the scowl on the woman''s face only became worse and Lamont felt like he was going to pass out from fear.


    "I-I''m sorry, Director J. He''s just been feeling a bit out of sorts today and-"


    "Fuck off, Lamont."


    "Yes ma''am, right away."


    Lamont practically threw himself back into the elevator, and he felt like he couldn''t press ''close door'' fast enough.


    Once the two of them were alone, the director stood up and came from behind her desk. As the sound of clicking heels came closer and closer to Mal''s ears, he began to feel a very unpleasant feeling spreading within his chest. Directer Joanne stopped a few inches away from Mal''s body and his stone-like expression finally broke as his face twisted up in disgust. ''What the hell is this... She smells horrible.''


    Let it be known that Director Joanne bathed religiously and she never stepped out of her house without wearing the finest of perfumes. Even now, a random passerby would get a single sniff of her hair and find themselves captivated entirely by the scent of Channel no 86.


    So whatever Mal was smelling... it was a scent only he could notice. But Director Joanne was not aware of such a thing, and Mchi''s facial expression only caused her already sour mood to plummet. "You have something you need to say, boy?"


    "Nah... just back away from me."


    "What was that...?" Joanne asked in a hushed tone.


    Instead of answering, Mal took a step back on his own and tried to prevent the unfortunate disaster of throwing up in this office. He didn''t really care about first impressions anymore, but he still had to maintain some level of dignity. "In all my life I have never..." Joanne closed the distance between the two once again, and raised her hand to smack Mchi directly across the face. Because he was faster than she was, Mal easily caught her attack with one hand. But as soon as he made contact with her, his feeling of revulsion skyrocketed to new heights. He could feel something... odd, coursing through her body.


    It was strange and honestly quite alien in nature, and he was no longer quite sure how to describe it. Suddenly, he noticed a silver bracelet on her wrist in the shape of thorns. It seemed like they were... embedded in her skin?


    Pow!


    Mal was only able to get a nce for half a second before a heeled foot connected with his temple. The world immediately went dark and he felt himself beginning to lose consciousness, but he bit down on his tongue to prevent such a thing from happening. His vision returned just in time for him to see Joanne''s heeling towards his chest. BOOM!


    Mchi flew like a kite with it''s strings cut, and his body mmed hard into the elevator doors. "Damn... quite the business meeting." Mal muttered. "You disrespectful brat, you don''t seem to understand how things work here. You take orders from me, you do not speak unless you''re spoken to and you do not-"


    "You are making this a hell of a lot easier." Mal said.


    "What did I just-"


    FWOOSSHHH!!!! n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Before Joanna could react, Mchi opened up his palm and a st of golden fire sprang forth. Ever since he first smelled this woman, he could feel his instincts screaming out that action had to be taken. He thought maybe he was just bing irrational and irritated because of the stench, so he held back until this point.


    But something about being yelled at like he was a two year old made him lose all of his hesitation.


    Mal allowed his golden mes to run unrestrained, and they embraced the body of the director and swallowed her up. For some reason, neither herself nor the clothes on her body were being affected by the heat of his attack, but she still dropped to the ground while screaming and clutching her left wrist.


    "AAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"


    Mchi hoped that this room was soundproof, or else he was about to have a lot ofpany in the next few minutes. Suddenly, the sound of something dripping onto the ground could be heard and Mal could see that this woman''s silver bracelet had started to melt off. She also had begun to bleed some sort of dark silver-ish liquid from her eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.


    While this was undoubtedly a scary sight, Mal knew that this woman wasn''t actually dying. Whatever unnatural thing that was within her body was simply being burned out and this was merely the proof of that.


    After what felt like an eternity of screaming and burning, Joanne''s eyes finally rolled into the back of her head and she fell forward, her head striking against the marble floors of her office. Mchi''s mes disappeared a momentter, leaving him in this now quiet office with an unconscious woman a few feet away from him. *Sniff, Sniff.* "... At least the smell''s gone."


    -


    "Ugh..."


    Director Joanne rubbed her head as she finally stirred awake. Her mind felt a bit foggy, but as she rubbed her temples a bit she was able to recall everything that had happened before she went to sleep. "That boy... he-"


    "Sorry for frying you right after we met. I''m usually moreid back than that."


    "!"


    Joanne stumbled upwards looking for the source of the familiar voice. She found Mal floating in the corner a few feet away, with his legs crossed and his usual emotionless expression as he scrolled through all of the photos on his phone. Although if one looked close enough, a bit of light could be seen in his eyes, as he was currently only looking at photos he had with his friends. "But given the fact that you kicked me... twice... figured we''re even." He added. "You... you did it..." Joanne muttered. "You freed me..."


    "Freed you? From what-"


    Mal was suddenly alerted to the sound of snifflinging from the woman on the ground, and he tucked his phone into his pocket as he floated above her. "Easy now. Tell me what''s wrong with-"


    BOOM!


    Suddenly, Joanne mmed her fist into the ground and cracked the floor. "That bastard... how dare he vite me and manipte me like this...! He''ll never see the light of day again!!"


    Mal finally ced both feet on the ground and kneeled in front of the raging woman. "Still a lil clueless over here, miss. You wanna fill me in anytime soon?"


    For the first time, Mal understood why Lamont was so afraid of his boss. The way Joanne was looking at him now... it was as if she was going to burn the whole world down at any second. "That bastard Alex Heller... I will strip the flesh from his bones!!"


    I ain''t get no good barbecue today this 4th wasn''t hitting on nothing frfr. Feel like I missed out a lil bit.


    AnathaShesha


    Suy ngh? c?a ng??i t?o

 Chapter 88 Mal Learns The Truth

    Chapter 88 Mal Learns The Truth


    To be honest, Mal didn''t really think much of Alex Heller.


    He''d seen him on tv a lot, and even bought his cereal a few times.


    Even when he''d met him in person when he first got blessed, he couldn''t really find it in himself to make a judgement about him. But as he listened to this woman fight the urge to sob while she trembled with anger, he realized the man that he''d formerly thought nothing of was actually the kind of person he despised most.


    Joanne exined that she had gotten a tip about Alex about two years ago, and began closely investigating him and all of his movements.


    One night, she was tailing him at a cocktail party in DC, when her body suddenly began to feel heavy and she passed out. When she woke up, she had that strange bracelet on her wrist and Alex Heller was by her side.


    Without understanding why, she was obeyed his everymand.


    Divulging state secrets, covering up his crimes, and worst of all ying house with them as if she were really his woman. The entire time her true consciousness was locked away behind a ss box, able to see and feel everything her body was going through without being able to do a thing about it. It was a miracle from the highers that she was still sane. "I''m sorry... that''s awful." Mchi said sincerely.


    "Spare me your pity, it only drives the knife in deeper when some young brat like you is looking at me like I''m broken china."


    She finally picked herself up off the floor and began walking towards a wall on the other side of the room. "You aren''t even supposed to be here, the two of us never should''ve even met."


    "What?" "Those of us who are blessed by archangels are ssified as a non threat by the government. If our heart ever bes malicious or impure then we immediately implode, making any kind of surveince or incarceration unnecessary. "


    As seen with Arthur, there was a small amount of leeway, but it wasn''t enough to allow Mchi to suddenly go on a killing spree. His heart had to be in the right ce whenever he acted, and his soul had to be redeemable if he ever sinned.


    If it wasn''t, he would be incinerated by the very fire that he had been using so freely.


    In short, surveying Mal was a waste of taxpayer dors.


    If he ever truly did something malicious then he would die before anyone from the government could even get their hands on him.


    While Mal was still wrestling with the fact that he was walking around with a weakness that he knew nothing about, Joanne picked up an entire bottle of liquor and brought it to her lips. There was no way for her to get drunk, so Mal could only assume that she was drinking to feel something other than revulsion. "Then how are you still alive?" He asked.


    Joanne put down one empty bottle only to unscrew the lid off another.


    "Your listening skills need work. I told you that my body was overtaken, not my heart and mind. That is a world of difference but I still could not use my powers for all of that time. I guess Cassiel installed a failsafe or something..." She muttered. As Mal watched this woman put away alcohol at a speed that would have qualified her for an invitation to rehab, he silently began to put the pieces together. "You brought me in for Alex.... why?" *Gulping noises ensue.*


    "...."


    *Continued gulping.*


    ''...She needs this so I''m going to give her a second.''


    Mchi began floating in the air and crossed his legs like he was prepared to be patient.


    Joanne finally removed the bottle from her lips and wiped her mouth before picking up another one. "Because he hates your guts." "The hell for? I only met him once."


    "You rejected him in front of arge crowd in favor of a guild he considers to be less than his own and a woman who has denied his advances numerous times. That is enough."


    "...Are you fucking with me?" Mal asked as he stared at Joanne with an expression of disbelief.


    There was no way this guy hated him over something this mind numbingly idiotic. Were they in fucking middle school?!


    Joanneughed so hard that liquor nearly came out of her nose.


    "That''s the problem with random people being blessed, kid. When the outcasts of society suddenly gain positions of power, most make it their life''s mission to fuck over the entire world as revenge for however they were forced to live before they got their powers."


    It was the entire reason why the dark angels were founded. Despite what the blogs, and the cereal boxes, and tv interviews would have people believe, cases like Mchi were rare.


    Humans have a tendency to be driven by the memory of the darkest times in their life, and the motivation and lessons that they take from that time can very from person to person.


    They can be bringers of change who want to make the world a better ce despite the tragedies they''ve endured, or they can be vain conquerors who believe that the highers have finally rewarded them for all of their years of suffering. They view their lives from before as nothing more than a test and believe that their prize for passing is to crush the skulls of those who stepped on them when they were powerless.


    It all depends on the personality and the surroundings that they had before they were blessed.


    "There''s more you don''t know." Joanne said as he searched for more booze. "He tried to kill you on the day of your first gate. He ckmailed Sierra Caligo into sneaking inside and killing all of the monsters the night before you entered and stole all of the drops. The scorpions you fought were just being controlled by her necromancy. And the boss had it''s powers enhanced by the use of-"


    "Wait..."


    Joanne nced over her shoulder to find Mchi with his body engulfed in smoldering darkness and his orange eyes on the verge of turning red. "What you just said... are you telling me the truth...?"


    ''Scary...'' Joanne thought humorously. "I am. Are you upset he robbed you or that he tried to-"


    "Do you think I give a damn about some trinkets or my own life?"


    Mchi''s feet touched the ground, and he began walking towards Joanne like he was about to explode. "My friends got hurt that day, and they could have died. I thought we were just unlucky but now you''re telling me that shit was rigged? I''ll kill him."


    The monitors on the walls could no longer withstand Mchi''s pressure and they all cracked and became dim. The already dark room was now illuminated only by Mal''s bright orange eyes that were as like a smoldering me. ''Now I don''t feel like I should tell him about his girlfriend''s ex husband... If he''s this mad now then he''s likely to run off and get himself killed.''


    Joanne made an executive decision to keep thatst bit of information to herself for the time being. "Your enthusiasm is admirable but you cannot kill Alex Heller. Just because you are also blessed by a primordial doesn''t mean that you''re his match. He''s had his powers for longer and is a great deal stronger than you. Even if you beat him in quantity, quality is what matters." Mchi was pissed, but he didn''t let Director Joanne''s words go over his head.


    He knew full well that the speed at which he mastered his powers was slower than others because he had multiple areas to cover. Bast blessed him with two of her divinities, felines and women''s secrets, and he was sure that there had to be more to them than just the simple turning into cats and making women honest. There seemed to be a whole slew of things that his blessing from Michael could do, so far his golden mes could not only burn away anything but they could also cleanse souls, sense bodily impurities and bestow invulnerability. His blessing from Raijin had toe with more than simple lightning. How much could he increase the voltage? Could he summon thunderstorms? How far could he enhance his speed before his body was destroyed?


    And he didn''t even want to think about his blessing from Nyx. He had barely even scratched the surface of everything that it was capable of. Her words certainly stung, but that didn''t make them any less truthful. "So what am I supposed to do? Sit on my hands like the pushover he thinks I am and allow him to live freely? "


    "...You think I''ll allow that bastard to be free after everything he has done to me...?"


    Crack!


    The empty bottle in Joanne''s hands turned to dust in her grip as her body began to glow with a golden light.


    Behind her back, fourrge white wings appeared that seemed to chase away all of the darkness in the room.


    "Let me make one thing clear. Your petty grudge with Alex Heller is absolutely nothingpared to the hate that I feel for him. You think you''re mad? Do you have any idea what that man made me do? What he did to me?! FOR OVER A YEAR!?!"


    BOOM! N?v(el)B\\jnn


    The ground cracked beneath the feet of the two powerful blessed, and Mal realized that this woman was right. While they were both victims, his pain could not bepared to hers. The treatment they endured just had toorge of a gap. "He is going to sit in tartarus for the rest of his life, no matter what I have to sacrifice to get him there." Joanne said sternly. Tartarus was the name for an underwater prison located in the Mariana Trench. It was a highly secure facility that housed nothing but blessed, and just like the greek primordial it was named after, it was considered to be inescapable. "Go home, Mchi." She ordered. "You''re a decent kid so I hope that you''ll listen to my sincere request and leave this to me."


    Mal fell into a silence as he stared into the face of the director of the dark angels, seemingly searching for any lingering weakness. "What will you do?"


    "Nothing for now. I''ll tell that bastard I have some work that''s keeping me away from that pce of his for a while as I put together a strike force. Without that bastard Lamont noticing of course."She muttered. Lamont was actually one of Alex''s men, and his role was to act as Joanne''s right hand while also reporting everything she did while out of his sight.


    Mchi backed away like he was gong to leave, but not before he left Joanne with some parting words. "I know that you wanna handle him yourself and all, but I just wanted to let you know that when things go down I''ll be there."


    "It''ll be a highly covert operation, you will never know it''s happening."Joanne said as she rolled her eyes. Mchi chuckled as his body began to sink into the shadows on the floor. "Then I suppose the next time I see you it''ll be entirely coincidental."


    Once he disappeared, Joanne let out a deep sigh as she looked at the dark and empty room in front of her. "Damn it... I forgot to thank him for helping me."

 Chapter 89 Why Are All Of You Here?

    Chapter 89 Why Are All Of You Here?


    Mchi emerged from the shadows in the alley behind Anna''s workce.


    Night appeared to have just fallen as the world still showed some traces of life, and there was still an energy in the air. Mal casually looked up into the dark sky and smiled as if he was appreciating fine art. ''You''ve outdone yourself again, mother. It''s as beautiful as always.''


    He stood there motionlessly for a minute to appreciate the scenery when he suddenly heard two voicesing from the street. "How long do we have to sit out here like this, Unc? We look like we live in a trailer park."


    "Who cares about that?? You said he had toe back to get his car, right? We can wait for him until then!"


    "I''m supposed to be seeing him again tomorrow, so can''t we just do this then? You''re going to make me seem like some clingy stalker girl." n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "Aren''t you? You''ve texted him like three times over the past six hours."


    "I-I just wanted to know if he was okay, alright?!"


    Mchi suddenly felt a buzzing in his pocket, and his phone was flooded with messages from multiple people. ''Damn... this feels kinda nice.''


    Mal tucked his phone back into his pocket and followed the sound of the voices. Emerging in the street, he saw Annalise and an unknown man sitting inwn chairs right in front of his car. They appeared to have been waiting for a long time, as there was a small table between them that was covered in ying cards. "This is an odd little set up you got here."


    Anna''s blood suddenly ran cold and she turned around to see Mal approaching from the alley, his hands in his pockets and wearing a small smile. Her face became slightly red with embarrassment and she wished that she could disappear. "Mal, I swear this was not my ide-"


    "Mchi Saint??"


    The man sitting opposite Anna suddenly bolted from his chair and appeared in front of Mchi with his hand outstretched and a charismatic smile on his face.


    Anna''s uncle was a skinny man in his 40s with long greasy ck hair and neatly trimmed stubble around his mouth.


    Like Anna his arms appeared to be covered in tattoos and the quality varied between breathtakingly artistic and others that looked like they were done in a basement. He shared her bright purple eyes that were currently sitting behind a pair of circr sses and sparkling with disbelief.


    "I-I can''t believe it''s really you! I-I mean Anna told me that the two of you were friends but I honestly couldn''t fathom why someone like you would be friends with my little AG! I mean her personality is shit and she only-"


    "I cannot wait for you to be old and senile, I''m sticking you in the worst retirement home I can find." Anna growled.


    "See what I mean? She''s a little tyrant!"


    Mal''s emotions had been dulled to an extent, but even he found this man to be extremely likeable and amusing. "Anna''s been pretty kind to me so far, or maybe I just haven''t done anything that would make her grab her bat yet." Mal said as he shook his hand.


    "You''re heading in that direction." Anna said with her arms folded. Why were they picking on her??


    The two men promptly ignored her and continued their conversation like they hadn''t heard anything strange. "I-I''m sorry, I know this must be strange but I promise that I did not wait for you to ask for anything, I''m just a really big fan and I wanted to meet you. I''m Anna''s uncle Pete but everyone just calls me PG."


    The two men exchanged lighthearted pleasantries, but Anna was still giving Mchi a lighthearted scowl.


    ''Bastard... you had me worried for nothing... WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?!''


    Anna rubbed her fingers through her short hair just in time to hear something absurd fly out of Mchi''s mouth. Mal: "I actually like her quite a bit. This project is really giving us a chance to get to know each other better."


    PG: "... Annalise? Grey? You''re getting to know her...? ...And you like what you''ve learned?"


    Mal: "Hahaha! So far, yea!"


    PG: "Wow... okay then, I''ll make you a deal. If you take a picture in my store for advertising then I''ll let her have the day off tomorrow and the two of you can go on a little date."


    Mal: "Deal."


    "W-Wait a damn minute!"


    Both men turned around and looked at Annalise like they had forgotten she was there. ""Yes?""


    "H-How are you guys going to sit here and barter over me like I''m thest wing on a tray? A-And what is this about a date?!"


    "Don''t worry kiddo, I''ll pay you for the day." PG said as he waived away her concerns. "Or do you not want to go on a date with me? Not gonna lie, that kinda hurts my feelings, you know?" Mal yfully wiped away a tear and pretended like he was truly heartbroken.


    "I-It''s not that! W-Well it is, but-"


    "Aww damn, that''s cold." PG muttered.


    "I forgot how it felt to be rejected by pretty girls. Almost makes me feel normal again." Mal muttered as he stared up into the sky. "Uncle Pete, can you just go inside for one second!" Anna yelled with a red face.


    "No? I''m kind of entertained by-"


    "Swear to god if you don''t I''ll tell the brte at footlocker that you''re plowing her sister!"


    "You kids have a good night."


    Pete picked up thewn chairs and went back into the store in a hurry, but he still pressed his face up against the window to watch them with bated breath. Anna suddenly looked like she was very ufortable, and she began ying with the silver rings on her fingers to ease her nerves.


    "Mal... You already have a girlfriend." she said sadly. "And no doubt you''ll have more and I don''t know if I can... share you like that."


    Mal wasn''t really expecting for the conversation to turn this way, but he realized that it was only natural. Even though it was legal now, there were still a lot of people who had issues with blessed having multiple partners. After all, greed is instinctual to humanity, and such an emotion is usually only amplified when ites to things that you love.


    Mal hesitantly reached out to take Anna''s hand, and she flinched and pulled away as if she was scared to get closer to him.


    "Anna... I don''t want you to think that I''m just some womanizer who wants to collect as many girls as I can. I only care about you, Sei, Bianca, and Luna.


    I don''t have much experience with rtionships, and the only one I''ve ever been in was a real shitshow.


    But I will do my best to make sure that none of you girls ever feel left out or uncared for."


    "Mal, how can you possibly promise something like that...?"


    This time, when Mchi reached for Anna''s hand she did not pull away.


    "Because if you girls are okay with me practically two timing you, then something like this is the least I can do."


    Anna looked down at their hands that were interlocked and weighed the felt a dangerously warm feeling spread.


    It was almost addictive, and she already felt like she was reaching the point of no return. "Mal, I-"


    *Muffled* "Just say yes!!"


    Mchi and Anna turned around to find Uncle Pete still in the window, desperately trying to ship these two together.


    Would they not make the cutest couple!?


    He was seriously questioning Mchi''s taste but ultimately he wanted his niece to be happy!


    ...He also wanted the influx of clientele that came from a blessed endorsement but that was besides the point!


    Mchi chuckled while Anna''s face turned beet red from embarrassment. She quickly released Mal''s hand and reflexively stepped backward. "I-I get it so... just meet me tomorrow and I guess we''ll talk more then... without an audience!" She said pointedly at PG. However, he seemedrgely unbothered and simply shrugged his shoulders as if to say ''So? I''m an adult and I do what I want.'' Mchi seemed to recognize the fact that he was starting to convince her since he was not immediately rejected like before. "Tomorrow it is then." He said as he turned back to the store. "Where are you going? Your car is right here!" "I''m freeing up your schedule!" Anna watched her uncle smile giddily as Mal walked back into the store and began taking pictures of him like he was some kind of model. "Seriously... I think something is wrong with that guy." She muttered. But despite her words, a smile of true happiness was on her lips. -


    Mchi stepped out of the elevator to his apartment and headed towards his front door. For some reason today felt longer than normal and if he was honest, he was slightly tired. But based on the numerous text messages he''d received ever since earlier, he knew that he wouldn''t get to sleep for a while. Opening the door to his apartment, he was assailed with the smell of Sei''s cooking and the gap band''s ''Outstanding'' ying loudly on a speaker. "He''s back!" "Brother!" "Damn brat, didn''t anyone ever teach you how to respond to a text?"


    The sight of all of his favorite people in his apartment nearly brought a tear to his eye. For starters, Sei and Luna were in the kitchen cooking together and seeming very close, with Serana a few feet away taking pictures. Aisha and Aubrey were hand in hand, with Bianca sitting on the couch alongside them. Old man Rowan was standing in the corner next to both of Aisha''s parents, and all three of them seemed to be drinking merrily.


    "This is certainly a sight worthing home to."

 Chapter 90 Old Family, New Weapons, First Kiss!

    Chapter 90 Old Family, New Weapons, First Kiss!


    Before Mchi knew it, three beautiful bullets hit him directly in the chest and nearly knocked him over.


    Aisha, Aubrey, and Serana had all bolted from their ces and gave the young man returning home the biggest hugs they could muster. "Where have you been? We were all so worried about you!"


    "I''m d you''re okay... learn to respond to a text message, dickhead."


    "Hey Mal, I''m in your will right?? If you ever traumatize me by dying, I want to at least bepensated."


    Mchi rolled his eyes and only returned his sister''s hug as she was the only one who seemed to know how to be nice.


    "Sorry girls, I had things to do."


    "Was one of those things my friend Anna?" Serana asked. "I heard that you were supposedly with her, but a man and a woman alone thiste at night is- Ow ow ow!!"


    Mchi grabbed Serana by the ear and started pulling on it with the intent to put it in his pocket.


    "You''re quite a nosy thing aren''t you? Didn''t anybody ever teach you to stay out of grown folks business?"


    "You''re only a year older than me!"


    "Don''t really make a difference." He said with a shrug. Aubrey suddenly freed Serana from her brother''s grasp and gave him a semi serious look. "I heard that you saw momma...or at least some monstrous version of her... Are you okay?" n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Mchi nced at Aisha and immediately knew she was the culprit. "I-I couldn''t hold it in, they made me spill!"


    Aisha had been made to tell her family and girlfriend everything that she experienced inside of the dungeon from A-Z. After she told them about the doppelg?nger Mrs. Saint and the harsh words she''d said to her, she also confided in them her worries and fears. ....And they allughed in her face. Mchi and Aubrey''s mother was the textbook definition of gentle, and the thought of her saying anything unkind to anyone was downrightical. "I know that you must''ve been shaken up when she showed up like that, but you should know that whatever she said to you was-"


    Mchi suddenly pulled his sister in for a hug that caught herpletely off guard.


    "You don''t need to worry, sis. I won''t let that thing taint her memory."


    "Okay... I''m just making sure." Aubrey muttered.


    There was something about her brother that felt a bit different today. She wasn''t sure what it was stemming from, but after a while she just attributed it to all of the sex he''d been having with Sei. Maybe intercourse with an older woman was all it took to turn a boy into a man.


    Mal was finally released from the group of girls and he made his way over to his elders that he hadn''t seen recently. "Unc, Auntie! I see you met my grandfather!" Trevor and Marianne nced at the still drinking Rowan and suppressed smiles. "We did indeed, and we''re sorry for just showing up out of the blue, nephew."


    Therge tattooed man quickly embraced Mchi with the handshake they''d been perfecting since he was little, followed immediately by a hug. "Don''t think anything of it, I should have invited you guys over as soon as I got the ce, that''s my bad." No sooner had Mal released his uncle than he felt an instinctive sense of dangering from beside him. His aunt quickly snatched his ear as she did so often when he was a child, and he wasn''t sure why it still hurt the same. He was probably just imagining it. "That''s right you bad boy! Do you have any idea what it was like to see my nephew all over television, yet never hearing from him even once?


    You only call me when you want to ask for recipes! And when did you get a tattoo on your forehead?? Your father is probably rolling around in his grave right now!"


    Mchi stared at Rowan and Trevor with eyes that were pleading for help, and both men suddenly looked like they found something very interesting at the bottom of their bottles. "A-Auntie it wasn''t like that! I guess I just got a bit caught up in everything and I forgot to hit you up." "Hmph! I know I know, you''re probably busy with your beautiful girlfriend with hugebreasts whom you never introduced us to. Am I right??"


    "...Partially but I mean-"


    Marianne suddenly released Mal''s ear and instead wrapped her arms around him to give him a crushing hug. "I''m just teasing you, Mal but we were worried, you know...? We thought you may have outgrown us." "For the record, I never thought that." Trevor suddenly added from his seat against the wall. "Honey, you''re sleeping on the couch tonight."


    "Yes, dear."


    Mchi chuckled as he returned his aunt''s hug with one of his own. "You guys should know that I could never outgrow you, you practically raised me. You will forever be my family."


    Marianne suddenly felt a lot better, and all of the anxieties she''d felt were fading away. As he said, Mal would always be her nephew, and no amount of time, money, or fame, would change that.


    "I''m sorry to interrupt, but may I borrow him for a moment?"


    Luna had approached the group without a sound, and wearing her usual eye-catching smile. Marianne wasn''t old enough to the point where she couldn''t feel the chemistry between these two, so she let Mal go without a fuss and watched as they walked out onto the balcony. She found her ce in her husband''sp, and let out a sigh of mncholy. "He''s all grown up now." She muttered. "He grew up to be quite the fine young man." Trevor said thoughtfully. "He won''t be one for long. I was a man too before I got married." Rowan suddenly said. "Hahahahaha!!"


    Rowan and Trevor shared a round of knee pping, out of breathughter as if they had just heard the funniest joke on the. Tears fell from their eyes and they very nearly spilled their drinks, and they shared a moment of true camaraderie.


    When they finally calmed down and wiped away their tears, they realized that the room had fallen into aplete silence at some point.


    Looking up, they found every woman in the apartment staring at them with ugly scowls.


    Rowan: "... Don''t mind me, I''m off my meds."


    Trevor: "I swear I wasughing at something else."


    -


    Out on the balcony, Mchi and Luna were immersed in a beautiful dark night with a full moon overhead.


    "Coming home to everyone I care about is nice but I have to admit that you were the biggest surprise." Mal said with a smile. "Yes, well... you distracted me so much this morning that I forgot why I came here in the first ce. "


    Luna suddenly held up a small golden ring with a dark ck gem embedded inside of it. Mal pretend to be shocked with an Oscar worthy performance, as he clutched his heart like he was ovee with shock.


    "But my dear Luna, we haven''t even kissed yet! But I guess if the time is right then..."


    "Y-You idiot!" Luna yelled with a red face.


    "T-This is one of your drops from the dungeon boss. I discussed it with the girls and they both refused to take anything since they felt they didn''t contribute, so that leaves only you."


    Mchi finally ceased his act as heughed and took the ring from her. "Seriously... those girls are so stubborn."


    He carefully inspected the ring but still had no idea what it did. "It''s a storage ring." Luna exined. "You can use it to-"


    When she saw the excited glint in Mchi''s eyes, she knew immediately that he did not require an exnation.


    "Check inside, you have another prize waiting." "How do I...?"


    "Infuse a bit of your aura inside the ring, then you should be able to see inside of it, and take out what you want."


    Mal closed his eyes and did as instructed, and a momentter arge silver briefcase appeared in his hand.


    Opening it up, Mal found a pair of weapons inside, and he felt like a kid on Christmas. Twin iklwa with dark ck des and hilts wrapped in matching dark leather. The des themselves were around 14 inches in length while the hilt was closer to 20, and despite being a bit heavy, to Mal they were rtively light. The des themselves were inscribed with glowing purple runes,signaling that these weapons possessed a special ability. "We tested them and found out they have a corrosive effect. Anything that you stab will start to deteriorate and rot at an rming speed." Luna exined.


    "That''s cold... and maybe a bit gross." Mal decided not to use these when he''d eaten anything prior.


    "Thank you for the gifts, love. But... I don''t think I''m going to need this one." Mal said as he held up the ring. Luna blinked several times as she looked at Mal like he was throwing away literal gold. "You... are you serious?"


    Mal chuckled and pointed down at their feet. The shadows had be concentrated, and Mal ced the briefcase containing his weapons onto the ground. The briefcase was swallowed up by the darkness, and soon it disappeared without a trace.


    "You''re amazing... you just keep surprising me." Luna said with a helpless smile. "Hell, I surprised myself that time. I had only theorized that before now."


    This would make his day to day life a lot easier. He couldn''t wait to go back inside and put his suit and mask inside too, not to mention his daggers. It was going to be really nice not to worry about wearing that ugly belt everywhere. Mal suddenly took Luna''s hand and slipped the ring onto her finger. "You should hold onto this for me. I think it''ll look better on your hands than mine."


    With her slender, pale fingers and dark pink nails, the addition of the intricate golden ring indeed suited her perfectly. "You see? I was right on the-"


    Before Mchi could finish, luna grabbed him by his face and pulled him down, forcing their lips together. At first Mal''s eyes betrayed his surprise, but the feeling of Luna''s gentle and plump lips on his own caused his brain to short circuit. His hands quickly found their way around her waist and he pulled her body deeper into his own, and the two of them became lost in their first kiss under the moonlight.

 Chapter 91 Theyre Official! Yay!

    Chapter 91 They''re Official! Yay!


    Mal was admittedly very reluctant to let Luna go.


    Her figure was a bit more slender than Sei''s but she was somehow just as soft. Luna had grown tired of Mal taking the lead in their rtionship despite being younger, so she was actually being quite sensual and aggressive. Her hands lightly caressed his face as she sucked and bit his lips with fervor, earning a shiver with every action. Eventually Mal''s mind shut off and he allowed his body''s instincts to take over.


    His hands dropped from her waist and traveled all the way to her plump bottom, prompting him to give her a firm squeeze. Luna moaned lightly into Mchi''s mouth, and her soft feminine voice only served to send his body further into heat. Much to his dismay, she broke their kiss first and rested her head against his chest, her breathing ragged and heavy.


    Mchi was still a bit rilled up, and he ced his lips at various spots along her smooth porcin neck, earning more stifled moans. "Is our entire rtionship going to be like this..?" She asked shakily. "Like what?"


    "You just say and do things that make me want to throw myself at you... as if I''m some young girl with no control."


    Mchi smiled as he lightly bit Luna''s neck with his pointed teeth. "That''s how a rtionship is supposed to be, no?"


    "I-I don''t know... it''s been so long for me that I don''t have any idea what I''m doing anymore."


    Mchi suddenly froze from his deviant like activities and instead pulled Luna in for a hug.


    "It''s not like I''m an expert either, I''m still learning new things with Sei everyday. We can all figure this out together."


    "...I''m not against that... please take care of both of us."


    "Of course."


    Mal lifted Luna by the chin and kissed her much gentler than before, and the entire world seemed to fade away around them. He didn''t ask why Luna was so averse to rtionships, or what she had gone through in her past, as he just assumed that she would tell him when the time was right.


    Click.


    Suddenly, the door to the apartment opened and Sei poked her head outside cutely. "Ah, I-I''m sorry I may have been spying a little bit and gotten slightly jealous... Can I have a kiss too?"


    Mchi chuckled and beckoned his girlfriend closer, and soon he was embracing both mature beauties in his arms. Luna seemed to have developed quite the jealous streak already, since every time that he kissed Sei she would demand one in return. Of course Sei did the same thing...


    Leading to Mal being trapped in this never ending cycle the likes of which he had no real desire to escape from. But after a while, it did start to be ufortable. "Girls, I''d love to keep doing this all night but I''m sure dinner is ready..." "It''s not." Sei said as she demanded another kiss.


    Truthfully, Mal was just using dinner as an excuse.


    Blue balls wasn''t really a fun thing to experience, and having Luna and Sei consistently rub against it was only making things worse.


    In a few more minutes he was either going to turn his pants into a Jackson pollock paining or kick everyone in his apartment out for the night.


    ...His mind wasing dangerously close to theter. Suddenly, the door opened once again and Bianca stepped out but she looked a little different from usual.


    She normally wore very revealing clothes and let her hair flow freely down her back, but now she had on a ck anime t-shirt and a matching dark sweater with shorts and hightop skate shoes. Her hair was tied in a messy bun, and she wore a pair of cute yet nerdy sses on her beautiful face. "Hey guys, dinner is- Kyaa! S-Sorry!"


    She prepared to turn around and head back into the house, when Mal stopped her at thest moment. "Wait, B. It''s alright."


    "Kinda feels like I''m seeing something private though... in more ways than one..."


    Bianca nced down at therge bulge in Mal''s sweatpants and she felt like she was going to faint. Luna and Sei both pulled away from Mal and he took that moment to sit down while crossing his legs. "I-I''ll be inside in a minute, you guys can just start without me." He said as he scratched his head.


    "Okay, honey."


    "Alright... don''t keep us waiting."


    Sei and Luna stepped back inside of the house, leaving Bianca standing awkwardly in the doorframe. "You look different." Mal suddenly said. No three words could have caused Bianca''s heart to drop more than those. "Y-Yea... I don''t usually dress like this but I was feeling a bitzy today and I decided to throw on whatever s-so..."


    "I like it."


    "I know my outfit is cheeks but- Wait, huh?"


    Bianca''s brain suddenly felt like it had taken a hard reset, and she nearly lost all strength in her legs.


    "Somehow, you look a lot happier like this." Mchi said with a smile. "You were always beautiful but I think I prefer this look more. Besides, I love food wars."


    Bianca''s weeb switch had finally been flipped and she appeared in front of Mal with a blinding glint in her eyes. "R-Really? Who''s your favorite character??" "Probably Joichiro. He should''ve had his own show."


    By now, Bianca''s heart had begun beat dangerously fast. There is little more exciting to a lover of anime than the moment that you realize you''ve met someone who likes your favorite show just as much as you do.


    She had gotten so excited that her temperature had begun to re up and her sses became foggy. "You''re right! I really wanted to see him.."


    Bianca and Mal spent much longer talking about anime than they''d expected.


    Her natural enthusiasm over the topic ended up getting him pretty fired up as well, and soon they were embroiled in full blown debates that only they and Aisha could understand. They confused the hell out of everyone at dinner, but they were so happy watching them that they didn''t really open their mouths toin. ''This is perfect...'' Mal thought happily. ''I wish things like this wouldst forever.'' Right now, nothing could ruin his mood or dull his happiness. - The next morning. Luna was staring at Mal who was lying on the floor of the training room, breathing heavily and covered in sweat.


    "What happened?" She asked. Rowan was standing next to her, wearing an '' I told you so'' look on his face.


    "For some reason, the kid''s in a real rush today... ever since he came in he''s been pushing his blessings past their limit, especially Nyx''s... stupid brat."


    "I.. can hear you, old man." Mal said betweenbored breaths. "Good."


    Luna blinked her eyes several times as she tried to get the image of Mal''s shirtless and sweaty body out of her mind. ''Focus, focus!'' After sharing that kiss with himst night she couldn''t get odd thoughts out of her mind, and it was beginning to affect her work.


    She was eating a sausage at breakfast earlier and nearly gagged on it out of instinct. "Hm? Your face is red, Boss Luna. Are you warm in here?" Rowan asked. "Ah, n-no." She said as she shook her head in embarrassment. She finally turned her focus back to the young man lying on the floor and was able to maintain some degree of professionalism. "What''s going on with you, darling? It''s not like you to be impatient like this."


    ''It was nauseating over dinnerst night, but I think it might be even worse now.'' Rowan rolled his eyes as he made a silent vow to finally get on a dating site and find his own happiness again. Mal looked up at both of them and shed a helpless smile. "I have two beautiful girlfriends and a mouthy old grandfather. If I don''t get stronger how am I supposed to protect you?"


    "..."


    "..."


    "...Not buying it, huh?"


    ""No.""


    "Damn."


    Mchi sat up on the ground after taking another deep breath. "Love, would you mind cutting the cameras in here for a moment?"


    Luna was surprised by his sudden request but typed away on her wristwatch nheless. Once the cameras were deactivated, Mal sighed deeply before he realized that he had no idea where to begin.


    "I guess.. I should start with how Grandpa Rowan and I met..." He muttered. For twenty minutes, he retold the entire timeline of events that led to him being contacted by the dark angels and eventually how he traveled to their headquarters yesterday. He told them about his shady meeting with Joanne and how he''d sensed something strangeing from her body, as well as how they fought. When he got to the part about how it was revealed that she was being controlled by Alex Heller, Luna and Rowan were even more shocked than before. "She''ll be moving on him soon, probably within the next few days... I have to get as strong as I can to close the gap between us before then."


    "Darling, you don''t have to do something dangerous like that!" Luna said. "Let the dark angels take care of it, it''s literally what they were created for."


    "Luna."


    For the first time, Luna saw Mal with a very serious look on his face and she knew that he was not joking about this. "He tried to hurt Nina and Opal, and he stole from the guild. Your guild. Why would I let something like that go?"


    Luna''s heart was suddenly filled with a wave ofplex emotions. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    The knowledge that Mchi had killed someone didn''t bother her nearly as much as the idea of him putting himself in harms way for her.


    Primordial blessed are special existences, and a properparison between them and regr blessed is very difficult to draw.


    The closest one would be watching a professional MMA fighter go toe to toe with a toddler. But Mchi''s powers weren''t nearly at the level where he could contend with Alex yet.


    The master of True Sky would probably kill him with the same amount of energy that it would take to tie his shoes.


    "Kid... I am so sorry." Rowan dropped his head as low as it would go, and it seemed like the old man was on the verge of tears. "I''ve gotten you into so much trouble... I should have been satisfied enough that such a monster was locked behind bars, but I..." Rowan didn''t finish his sentence, but Mchi hardly needed him to. "You didn''t make me do anything, old man. I wanted that guy to disappear just as badly as you did. Besides, you don''t have anything to do with Alex hating me."


    As Mchi consoled his ''grandfather'',Luna was still lost in thought, chewing on her nail.


    She was pissed at Alex Heller too, but she knew full well that she couldn''t do anything about it. Besides, she was more worried about Mchi and his single minded desire to take revenge on her behalf. ''It feels good to have him this upset over me... but I can''t let him run into this blindly.''


    Her mind made up, she reached into her back pocket and pulled out her cellphone.

 Chapter 92 Whyre You Here?

    Chapter 92 Why''re You Here?


    Mchi didn''t understand why, but after he finished training Luna told him to go in her office and wait. Luna had her own private bathroom in her office as well, so he took a moment to wash up while he waited for her to return. Exiting the shower, he found that she still had yet to arrive, but there was now arge white fox sitting on the couch. Mchi clutched the towel around his neck and started to approach Luna''s magical beast. Shiro didn''t appear to be hostile in the slightest, even though these creatures supposedly abhorred everyone except for their partners. But one could clearly tell by looking into the fox''s curious eyes that this wasn''t the case with him. "You''ve grown since I''vest seen you." Mal said. Suddenly, Shiro shrank back down to her usual travel size and gave Mal a look like she demanded praise. He let out an impressed whistle as he lightly pet the furry creature. "Aren''t you special... I hope when my little guy hatches he''ll be as interesting as you." "Arf!" (Doubt it.) Mchi naturally could not understand the creature, so he just assumed that it was wishing him good luck. Taking a seat on the couch, he waited patiently in Luna''s office as he petted the small fox that had moved into hisp. The weing scent of his girlfriend''s office and the softness of Shiro''s fur was like concentrated NyQuil, and soon he was sleeping peacefully without any real care in the world. He wasn''t sure how long he was out for, but he awoke to the feeling of a familiar pair of lips being pressed against his own. Opening his eyes, he found Luna with her face above his, a subtle yet noticeable smile on her face. "Good morning, sleeping beauty." "Shouldn''t that be the other way around, love?" "It should, but I''m not the one who was sleeping just now, was I?" Luna removed her pet from Mchi''sp and took her rightful seat with extreme jealousy. "Arf?" (No kiss for me?) Luna merely rolled her eyes at her pet and pulled out a treat from her robe, appeasing the small animal. Shefortably leaned back into Mchi''s chest and he slipped his arms around her waist, locking her in ce. "Did you call me up here just for this, love? You could have just met me at home you know?" "This is certainly nice, but it isn''t what I called you for, beloved. You haven''t told Sei about everything with the dark angels yet, have you?" Mal regrettably shook his head, and Luna began to delicately trace over his interlocked fingers.


    "I know I''m thest one who should be saying things like this given that there''s still so much I haven''t told you, but you shouldn''t keep secrets from us. I know that you think you''ll worry us and some part of that may be true, but... part of being in a rtionship with someone is letting them know when important things happen... right?"


    Thest part of Luna''s speech seemed like a genuine question, as if she still wasn''tpletely sure what was normal. "You''re right... I promise I won''t keep anything from either of you, and I hope you''ll do the same." n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "Of course, darling."


    Mal left another trail of kisses down Luna''s neck, and it seemed like the mood was going to heat up once again. Unfortunately, there was a sudden knock at the door to Luna''s office, and a man entered whom both of them knew very well. "I see things have developed quite well between you... I cane back if you need a moment."


    Mchi smiled when he saw his idol, Morgan Creed, suddenly stride into the room wearing his usual immacte dark suit.


    "Nah, we were just spending a little time together is all."


    Even though Luna had just been caught red handed in apromising position, she didn''t show her embarrassment on her face. She was still getting used to regr affection, so public disys of it were still a big leap of faith for her. But ultimately, she had already prepared herself for this much after hearing from Sei how affectionate Mchi could be. She was also getting morefortable with not wearing underwear, since she had been told that Mchi was a ''anywhere at anytime'' kind of person. "Ahem, just in time, Morgan." Luna said as she lightly fanned her pink cheeks. "Please, sit down."


    At this moment, Mchi finally realized it was incredibly strange for the guild master of Ragnarok to show up at immortal moon, and he wondered just what could have brought him here. "It''s not like you to contact me, Luna. To what do I owe the honor?"


    "I need you to teach Mal how to better use his blessing from Nyx." ""...Wait, huh?""


    Both men looked at Luna like they could not believe the wordsing out of her pretty lips, and the mature beauty sighed in exhaustion. "He''s been a bit adamant in rushing his growthtely, and I''m worried he''s going to hit a wall or worse, hurt himself with such power. You are the only one I trust to teach him."


    The reality was that there was no way for Mchi to learn enough to kill Alex within the projected timeframe.


    But if he learned from the only other person in the world who was on Alex''s same level, he might be able to gain enough tricks to survive the confrontation.


    And Luna was desperately hoping that would be enough for him to put this grudge of his to bed. Morgan looked at Mchi and saw that while he did not appear to be expecting this, he was not averse to this situation either. His eyes contained a desperation to learn that was scarcely seen in younger people these days. "...You understand how the tabloids will react to this, yes? They will use him of being disloyal, treacherous, and make it seem like he''s trying to jump ship."


    ""Fuck em.""


    "...You two are remarkably in sync... how long have you been official again?"


    ""Sincest night.""


    Morgan didn''t realize that Mal and Luna''spatibility was only natural. He was the boy blessed by night, and she by the goddess of the moon. They each served topliment the other, and when they were together like this they were practically one and the same.


    Morgan sighed as he ran his hands through his fiery red hair. "I don''t mind doing this but I need to know two things."


    "And those are?" Luna asked, already feeling an iing headache. "What''s in it for me for starters."


    "I''ll give you three tickets to the g we''re hosting next month."


    "Ehhh..." Morgan made a wobbly gesture with his hand as if such a proposal wasn''t quite good enough.


    "....I''ll let you cater."


    "Deal!"


    "But the menu must be tasteful! If I see so much as a single hamburger at my event, I''ll go to your house and destroy your precious grill!"


    "Fine, fine! I''ll make it upscale, I promise."


    "And don''t wear that stupid apron fromst time either."


    "...Alright, I won''t." Morgan said.


    Luna didn''t know that he had a whole slew of aprons with phrases. The one he was nning on wearing to her event was a ck one that said; ''Don''t need no teef to eat my beef!'' But she would only find out about that when it was far toote.


    "What''s the second thing?" Mchi asked. Morgan suddenly became much more serious, and looked at Mchi with a serious expression. "I need to know that you won''t quit, Mchi. Handling primordial powers is quite different from the way that you learn to utilize others. I won''t sugarcoat it, this will be hell. If you backdown from this now, I will not see you any differently and you may still learn to master your powers at a much slower rate."


    Mchi could feel the genuine concerning from the voice of the man he once idolized and he had to admit, he was really touched. "I can''t afford to quit, man. There is no need for you to hold back on my ount."


    Morgan nodded and finally stood up from his seat. "I have a couple of things to prepare beforehand, you''ll have some free time until then. I''ll pick you up from your ce at around six. Make sure you have a bag packed."


    "Alright."


    When Morgan opened the door, he found a young girl with caramel skin, blonde hair and sses waiting outside. "Bianca? Did you need something?" Luna asked.


    "A-Ah, I... I''m sorry I wasn''t eavesdropping on purpose... but I also want to receive training from Mr. Creed!"


    After thatst dungeon nightmare, she never wanted to feel that weak and helpless again. She was actuallying up here to ask Luna for private lessons, but this would no doubt be even better. Surely the one blessed by the primordial of fire could teach her a thing or two about her own abilities, even if shecked his raw power. Morgan nced back at Luna like he was waiting for some kind of permission, and received a nod in response. "Alright..." Morgan muttered as he scratched the back of his head. "Then you can also meet me at Mchi''s apartment at six tonight. Pack a bag with a few days worth of clothes."


    "O-Okay!" Bianca was trying hard to contain her excitement, but her inner anime lover was making that rather difficult. ''My own training arc!! Kyaaa!! This''ll be so cool!!''


    Morgan exited the office not long after, leaving the three of them inside. "So, darling..." Luna asked. "What will you do until six?" Mchi smiled harmlessly at the sight of a cold woman like Luna acting like a maiden in love. "I''m supposed to be meeting Anna today, she''s my project partner."


    Both Luna and Bianca suddenly twitched as if they heard something they didn''t quite like. "This girl Anna... Do you like her?" Luna asked dangerously. Mchi didn''t seem to be intimidated by Luna''s jealous and possessive nature, and even found her to be even more beautiful. "I don''t know...but I am attracted to her and I think that I would like to move things further in the future but... are you alright with that?"


    Mchi was not an inconsiderate man who would continue to add women around him at the expense of the ones that he already had.


    He had already given himself to Luna and Sei, just as they had given themselves to him. They had just as much say in him taking new partners as he did.


    "I''m... not sure..." Luna said honestly. "... Tell me about her and I''ll make up my mind then."

 Chapter 93 Annas Ideal Date

    93 Anna''s Ideal Date


    Mchi knocked on the door of an apartment on the east side of town. His heart was beating unusually fast for some reason, and he merely attributed that to the conversation he''d had with Luna an hour prior. She listened intently to everything that Mal had to say about Anna, and while she was a bit peeved to hear him speak so highly of another woman, she had to admit that Anna did sound lovely.


    Initially she was a bit worried when she heard that Anna was human and a regr college student, as she was slightly worried about him being taken advantage of. It wouldn''t be an unheard of story after all, as things like that have always urred in rtionships where people were in different economical standings. For some, it was instinctual to want to climb up from their humble beginnings on the back of another. But Luna would only allow Mal to be with women who cared about him genuinely, and whose love was no less pure than her own.


    After hearing about Anna for five minutes, Luna had given her approval for Mal to pursue her, with the conditions that he wasn''t allowed to have sex with her before they had their first time together. And that she would take back her approval if she ever found Anna to have impure intentions.


    Mal considered both of those things to be fair, and as a result he did not pose any objections. When the door opened, Mal was greeted by the sound of ring R&B music, and the sight of Anna in an outfit that was nearly enough to give him a nosebleed.


    A simple dark ck sports bra, a pair of cotton sweatpants that appeared to be dreamily soft, and splotches of what appeared t be paint on her beautiful face.


    "...Why''re you looking at me like that?" She asked shyly. "Come inside, you''re drawing too much attention."


    Mal nced behind him and found a small crowd of older women a fair distance away, looking like they were about to risk it all and try their luck.


    But Mal wasn''t moved in the slightest by the attention, and even felt a bit annoyed by it.


    "Come on!"


    Anna grabbed Mal by the wrist and pulled him into her apartment before closing the door.


    Anna''s apartment was just as one would have expected, filled with ck furniture and art and posters of famous bands and musicians. In the middle of the living room, there was an easel with a canvas that looked to be halfpleted. "What''s this-"


    "None of your business so don''t look!"


    Before Mchi could actually get a good look at the art on the canvas, Annalise leapt on top of his back and covered his eyes with her hands.


    "Aww, but I was interested. The small part that I was able to see looked really good."


    "...You''re just saying that."


    "You should know by now that I never say anything that I don''t mean. Especially not to you."


    Annalise fell into another red-faced silence as she slid down from Mal''s back. "Then... you better not make fun of it or I''ll bash your balls."


    "Noted."


    Now that Mchi''s eyes were free, he could see that Annalise''s picture was that of an eerily familiar man. It was still just an outline, but he could clearly see that this was supposed to be a man with long dreads and cat-like eyes.


    "This... is me, right?"


    "...Almost." Anna said shyly. She was already embarrassed beyond belief since she had started painting him without even realizing it, but now he''d actually seen it too.


    Mentally, she had already begun to make ns to curl up in a hole and die.


    "D-Don''t you wanna leave or something? I''ll go change and then we can-"


    "Actually... do you wanna do this as a date instead?" He asked.


    "What do you mean?"


    Mchi suddenly held up the canvas and smiled like he was looking in the mirror.


    "I mean I''ve always wanted to learn how to paint and you don''t really strike me as the kind of person who likes to go out, so we can just stay here. You can teach me everything you know and I''ll order us some food. Cool?"


    Judging by the sparkles in Anna''s eyes, she was way more than okay with such a thing. She liked staying home more than anything else anyway, and she wouldn''t actually go out if there weren''t instances where it was demanded. "Y-Yea... that would be great."


    "Got an extra easel?" Mal asked. "Yea, one second."


    Anna suddenly ran to the back of her apartment to grab some extra art supplies for her date. While Mal was up front, still admiring Anna''s art, he suddenly felt a pair of eyes on his back.


    Turning around, he found a small chocte brown cat with dark eyes staring up at him curiously. "I''m seeing so many cute animals today. What''s your name, little dude?"


    "Meow." ("Piss off, fuckboy. Annalise doesn''t need any more no good men in her life.")


    "..."


    "..."


    "...Why can I understand you?"


    "Meow?" ("Wait, you can understand me?")


    Both the human boy and the cat were staring at each other with clear surprise. "I''m back!"


    Annalise returned carrying an extra easel and smock for Mal, and she seemed to be uncharacteristically happy. He was so caught off guard by her radiant and angelic smile that he forgot entirely about the fact that he was just speaking to a cat a few seconds ago.


    ''It''s always amazing to me that she''s not a blessed... she is so unfairly beautiful.''


    "Meow! Meow! Meow!" ("Stop ogling her, motherfucker! You think I can''t smell all those other bitches on you?! You ain''t shit! I know you hear me!!")


    "Oh? I see you met Marcelline." Anna said happily. "She usually doesn''t like strangers but seeing as how there aren''t any scratches on you yet, you must be the exception."


    "Actually, I''m not. She called me a fuckboy." Mal said honestly.


    Anna giggled and began setting up an art station for Mal to paint on when she suddenly froze and looked at him like he''d grown a second head.


    "Wait... is this a blessed thing?? Or were you just making one of those sarcastic jokes like you always do??"


    "Nah, not this time. I think this is another part of my blessing from-"


    Mal didn''t even get to finish his sentence before Annalise picked up the small brown cat and ran down the hallway. She tossed the furry animal into her bedroom and immediately shut the door behind her. If Mchi could talk to cats, she absolutely had to keep them apart.


    Marcelline had seen far too much from living with her all this time.


    Whether it was the egregious number of times she had gotten drunk alone and cried, her terrible rtionship with her ex or even the fact that she traditionally walked around naked at home, she absolutely had to keep all of them a secret.


    "S-So, are you ready to start?" She asked as if nothing had happened. ''...Cute.''


    -


    Mchi and Anna were lying side by side on the floor of her apartment, with both of them holding each other''spleted canvases above their heads.


    "I''m jealous... the me you painted is way better looking." Mchi said.


    Annalise''spleted portrait of him was nothing less than touching. Every brush stroke was performed meticulously and with the utmost precision while also retaining a sense of fluidity in her movement.


    The drawing itself showed a great deal of care for the subject material, as every line and detail that was present on Mal''s face was also on the canvas. It was a true masterss, almost indistinguishable from reality.


    "Compared to yours, mine is..." Mal looked beside him at Annalise and his heart nearly stopped beating.


    Small tears were running down the face of the beautiful young woman, as she looked at her self in a way that she had never been depicted before.


    In Mal''s painting, she was standing in a meadow wearing a white dress and she looked like some kind of angelic goddess of fertility. Her tattoos, though hastily drawn, were still present, and added a sense of identity to the piece. Mchi''s painting wasn''t nearly as well done as Anna''s, but it was every bit as heartfelt. "What the hell... this is amazing."


    "So you''re not crying because it''s insulting?" Mchi asked hesitantly.


    "Hahaha! Of course not!"


    In a surprising turn of events, Anna ced the portrait to the side and rolled over to give Mchi a hug. No matter how many times Mal was embraced by a beautiful woman, he didn''t believe that he''d ever quite get used to it.


    His heart began to thump wildly in his chest as he slipped his arms around her. "What''s this for...?"


    "I don''t know... just shut up." "That''s kind of hard for me, I think I might need your help with that." "Should I punch-" N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Mal suddenly tilted Anna''s face upwards and kissed her gently. Initially, the young girl felt her eyes widen in surprise. They discussed musical interests, dreams for the future, and even painful backstories. 20:32


    Anna was initially embarrassed to tell him that she had never even met her parents and been raised by her uncle her whole life, but somehow the more she talked the morefortable she became. She started to pull away, but at thest moment she recalled thest three hours they''d spent together. In addition to painting, they''d spent time opening up and getting to know each other on a deeper level.


    They discussed musical interests, dreams for the future, and even painful backstories. Anna was initially embarrassed to tell him that she had never even met her parents and been raised by her uncle her whole life, but somehow the more she talked the morefortable she became. She hadn''t felt thisfortable with someone since... actually, she hadn''t ever felt thisfortable with someone. The more she learned about Mchi, the more she knew that she wanted to be with him and vice versa.


    Her resistances melted, Anna returned Mchi''s kiss instead of rejecting it, and the two of them spent a great deal of time on the floor, each of them unwilling to pull away first.


    -


    Outside Anna''s apartment, there was a man whom Anna would recognize rather easily. He had long dark hair, and deathly pale skin like he hadn''t ever seen proper sunlight. In his hand he was carrying a bag filled with food and he wore a confused look on his face. "I knew this was her address but... it''s not her name on the order. Did she move or something...?"


    The young man pressed his ear up to the door, and he could hear Erykah Badu ying loudly on the speakers; Anna''s favorite music to listen to while painting. "She is still here... then does that mean..." The man began to formte conclusions within his mind, and soon his face turned ugly as he realized that there had to be a man inside.


    Raising his hand, he struck the door hard like he was trying to tear it down.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    I have a secret that I have never told anyone until now... I listen to doja cat religiously...


    I''m sorry! I can''t bump EST Gee and Beartooth everyday! Doja can sing and she fine so shit really hits different bro.


    Thank you for allowing me to get this off my chest.

 Chapter 94 Who’s That Contracted Beast??

    94 Who¡¯s That Contracted Beast??


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    Mchi and Anna were so busy kissing, they barely noticed the sound of her door being beaten on. Besides, with how loud the music currently was, they couldn''t exactly be sure if it was the beat or not.


    But when the song began to die down, the two of them could finally hear the rming banginging from the front door.


    "I-I''ll get it." Anna muttered, her face still red from the kiss. Mal wanted to get up, but his body was still showing signs of the mind altering first kiss they''d just had, and he didn''t think it''d be wise of him to answer the door like that.


    And as he watched Anna wobbly climb to her feet, he knew that she hadn''t exactly gotten off easy either.


    ''Nice to know that I ain''t the only one who enjoyed it...'' He could still remember the fulness of Anna''s lips and the yfully mischievous way she used her tongue.


    "You bitch! What the hell took you so long to answer, huh!? Who the fuck do you got in there??"


    "What the fuck are you doing here, Nick?! Piss off before I call the- Kyaa!!" n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    All Mchi heard was arguing followed by the sound of Anna''s screaming and his heart plummeted to his shoes. Sprinting to the door, he found Anna swinging wildly at somenky pale bastard, but his hands were already around her neck.


    After seeing that sight... Mal couldn''t really say what happened. All that he could recall was that he wanted so desperately for this man to stop breathing, when he was assailed with two strange sensations.


    A twinge of pain in his heart, and a feeling of something cracking within his mind. A sh of blinding white light burst from Mchi''s forehead, and a horrifying creature like nothing he had ever seen shot out of his body. Before Anna realized it, she was in Mchi''s arms and the man who had been assaulting her a mere moment ago was now being held up in the air by some kind of monster. "Anna, are you alright??"


    "I-I''m fine, Mal but... what is that thing...?"


    It looked like a demon from the lowest level of hell and an alien creature got a hotel room for the night, and this was the result. The monster had the lower half of some kind of octopus or squid-like creature, with pinkish gray skin that was reminiscent of a hippo. 20:34


    Judging by it''s upper body, the creature was female, as it had two small pronouncements where breasts would be, but no nipples or any kind of obscene looking flesh. It''s arms were long and frail looking, but there were massive ck ws jutting out from it''s four fingers and they were currently digging into the shoulders of the crying intruder. Right above it''s arms, it had a second pair of appendages that were more like ded scythes for cutting and shearing flesh. Down it''s back were sixrge, pointed spines divided into two rows, and they easily pierced the ceiling. It''s face was a bulbous gray surface with no eyes or ears, but it''s mouth was like that of a praying mantis.


    "W-What the hell is this thing?! Please god get it away from me!!" Nick cried. Mchi thought that maybe his contracted beast would end up being some kind of bird, or mythical creature. Hell, if he was really lucky, he thought he may even get a dragon. But surprisingly, what he received was nothing like that. It was infinitely more special and frightening.


    Somehow, the words of the god of lightning, Raijin, began to y within his mind once again.


    ''Do not growcent for even a single second, for there are worse things than those that lie in the gates.''


    He always wondered what kind of ''worse things'' could have had the gods so paranoid, and now he knew.


    But he absolutely never expected to meet one of those creatures like this.


    "Wait."


    The creature seemingly recognized Mchi''s voice, and it turned it''s attention from the prey in its grasp towards it''s master, seemingly waiting for further instruction. Mchi gently brushed Anna''s neck that was already showing some signs of bruising, and his eyes clearly showed just how hurt he was by the sight. "Anna... What do you want me to do..?" He wanted so desperately to kill this man, but he knew full well that Anna was a regr human girl. Seeing a brutal death in her own home would no doubt scar her for life, and he did not want to do something like that to her.


    Anna''s heart only hurt more when she saw how gently Mchi was looking at her, and she buried her face in his chest as her entire body shuddered. "Can we just call the cops...please..?" "Yea, just stay here." He said gently. He pulled out his phone with one hand and held the trembling Anna in another. It took less than ten minutes for the cops to show up, and when they did it was honestly quite a show. They went from being starstruck from seeing one of the most famous men in the world with a young woman in his arms, to being downright terrified of the creature that was still holding Anna''s abuser captive. Mchi''s contracted beast appeared to be rather mild mannered when she hadn''t been given an order, as it didn''t really budge from it''s spot no matter who showed up. The creature politely handed the officers the captive that was within her grasp and returned back to Mal''s side. After giving a statement to the officers, they hurriedly took Nick away, who had long passed out and wet himself from the fear of certain death. Quite a few procedures had actually been skipped possibly due to Mal''s identity or maybe it was due to the horrifying floating creature that remained at his side. It was really anyone''s guess. Now, Mchi and Anna were sitting on her couch, staring at the veryrge monster that had curled up on the floor. "I guess our date is kind of ruined, huh?" Anna said hoarsely. Her throat was still sore from being strangled, but as far as she was concerned that was nothingpared to how she felt inside. She was angry, hurt, depressed, and embarrassed. "No... it wasn''t. We just had a slight hup is all." He saidfortingly.


    Anna wasn''t sure if she wanted tough or cry. "You shouldn''t be with someone like me, I-I''m a total mess. Despite loving you I don''t have anything to offer and I feel like I''m just being some kind of burden and-"


    "Did you just admit that you love me?"


    Anna''s bad habit of rambling when she became frustrated appeared to have shown itself once again, and she became even more embarrassed than before.


    Mchi decided not to tease her since she''d already been through a lot today, and he held out his hand to call the resting monster towards them. "I don''t need you to give me anything, just be yourself and that will be more than enough. Besides, whether or not you should be with me, shouldn''t you leave that up to my discretion?"


    Just like Mal, his contracted beast appeared to be really gentle. It''s body was formerly around 7 feet tall, but it gradually began to shrink until it was around three feet, and all of it''s sharp appendages and spines retracted into it''s body. She gently rubbed her head against Mchi''s palm, allowing him to feel her cool and smooth skin.


    "And besides, I think you''re far from a mess. I wouldn''t be able to walk away from you even if you begged me to."


    "Seriously.... You''re such an idiot."


    "I''ve been called worse, love."


    Anna giggled softly and ced a long lingering kiss on Mal''s cheek. "You can''t change your mindter, alright...? I told myself I wasn''t doing rtionships anymore so if we do this then you''re stuck with me forever."


    "Fine by me."


    Anna also held her hand out, and hesitantly tried to pet the strange creature in her living room.


    Unsurprisingly, the creature looked more cautious when Anna tried to touch her, but ultimately she did not pull away. "Thank you for saving me, umm... What are you going to name it?"


    Mchi stared at the monstrous creature that now appeared to be much more harmless.


    No matter how hard he tried, he couldn''t get that image of the first time it appeared out of his mind.


    "How about Shear?"


    "Shear...?" Anna recalled the giant scythe like appendages that were above the creatures arms and immediately understood where the name came from.


    "Totally fits."


    "Right?"


    -


    Back at Mal''s apartment, he and Bianca were standing at the front door, being seen off by Luna, Aubrey, Sei, Serana, and even Anna.


    There wasn''t really an expected timeframe for Mal''s training, but it was expected that he would be gone for at least seven days.


    Luna: "Leaving right after we''ve begun seeing each other... I hope that you intend to make up for this when you return."


    Anna: "You better text me when you can... and I also want to be apologized to when youe back."


    Sei: " I''ll be waiting for you, honey..."


    Suddenly, Luna and Anna gave Sei a look of intense jealousy, as if they just remembered that she was the only one of them to have slept with Mchi, and even shared a bed with him every night. Aubrey: "Hey bro, can I drive your car while you''re gone? It''s not like you''ll need it."


    Serana: "Remember Mal, if you run into Ryo Amaki, show him my sexy selfies on finstagram! The ones that make my tits look big!"


    As usual, Mal only felt genuine concern from his girlfriends and rolled his eyes at the two young girls that seemed to be unbothered with his departure. He embraced all three of his beautiful girlfriends while simultaneously making promises to make up for this when he returned.


    Only Sei seemed to know what that meant though, and she felt a small shiver run down her spine. As Bianca watched Mal go from kissing one great beauty after the other, she could not ignore the longing feeling she felt in her heart.


    Luckily, Aubrey was there to give her a small nudge and act as her wing woman.


    "Don''t worry, that''ll be you soon enough." She whispered.


    "Thanks Aubrey... I hope so."


    The two of them hugged each other warmly before Mchi picked up his bags and began heading towards the door.


    "Be back soon, girls. Try not to miss me too much, yea?"


    Okay so when I was in like high school or middle school (I can''t remember which one I''m only 21 but I already have memeory issues give me a break.) There was this video game that i loved to PIECES called Evolve.


    In evolve, you can y as monsters or hunters, and I always yed monster, but more specifically, I yed as the third monster; Wraith.


    That video game is the inspiration for Mal''s contracted beast. AnathaShesha

 Chapter 95 Last Laughter

    95 Last Laughter


    Mchi and Bianca were currently seated in the back of a very nice limousine.


    Mal had been lost in thought for quite a while now, as he still felt slightly guilty about leaving his girls behind. It wasn''t her fault, but everything that had happened with Anna earlier had really put him on edge. After Sei and Serana lost their home to a crazy ex, he became particrly protective over his women. He wanted to believe that the sight of Shear would have terrified anyone into staying away and not trying anything stupid, but he would always be a bit paranoid. ''I want so badly for all of them to stay with me forever... but I guess it''s too soon for us to be living together, huh?''


    "Are you having second thoughts, Mchi?" Sitting opposite the two members of immortal moon was the guild master of ragnarok himself; Morgan Creed. He hadn''t taken his eyes off Mal for quite a while now, and he was a bit worried that he might want to give up before they''d even started. "Nah, of course not... I was just missing my girls a bit is all." Morgan smiled fondly as if he was recalling his own wives.


    "Hold onto their memory, my boy. There is little that gives a man strength like the genuine love of good women. They will carry you far." Mchi smiled as he knew that Morgan''s words wereing from a ce of experience. Morgan seemed to genuinely care about his women just like Mchi did, and was not greedily looking for more.


    Such a thing made it easy for Mal''s idolization of him to grow even further. "You seem to care a lot about your wives, Mr. Creed." Bianca said with a smile. "How can I not? Those girls have forgiven me for more than what should have never been tolerated. Until my dying breath, I will give them everything I have."


    Traditionally, those blessed with pyrokic abilities often have more vtile emotional states and Morgan was not an exception to this statistic. In fact as the one blessed by the Norse primordial of fire, his temper was even worse. Though he neverid a hand on his women, he would undoubtedly scream his head off in the middle of the smallest argument, or nearly burn them with the heating off his body. It took a long time and several therapy sessions for Morgan to learn how to control himself properly, and even longer for him to learn how to forgive himself for the harm he''d caused them. His greatest fear and shame was that the women in his life loved him so much that they would not have left his side unless he killed them. Even though he was grateful that they stayed with him, he did not feel that he was worthy of such devotion. And even if it cost him everything, he would always prioritize them above all else, just as they had always done for him. Finally, the limousine rolled to a stop after an hour of nonstop riding, and the three passengers stepped out of the vehicle. Mchi and Bianca werepletely taken aback when instead of arriving at some sort of facility, they arrived at an executive airport.


    Nearby, there was a private ne that looked luxurious even from the outside. "Come along, kids! You act like you''ve never been on a ne before!" Morgan said merrily.


    Bianca and Mchi both wanted to say that they were dirt poor until a few months ago, and they hadn''t even seen a ne in real life, much less been on one.


    Mchi''s telekinesis was strong enough to the point where he could already fly on his own, so he wasn''t particrly afraid. But Bianca on the other hand looked like she was going to fall over dead at any second. ''W-Why didn''t anyone tell me we were going to have to get on a ne?? I hate this, I hate this so much!!''


    Mchi suddenly grabbed Bianca by the hand and began pulling her towards the ne with a smile on his face. "Come on, B! I know it''s probably even crazier on the inside!"


    Bianca could not take her eyes off her hand that was interlocked with Mal''s and she felt her heartbeat start to spiral out of control.


    ''I love nes! I''ve always loved nes! I wanna be a ne when I grow up!''


    Just as Mchi expected, the inside of Morgan''s personal ne was more luxurious than most houses.


    Tanned carpet that was softer than most clouds, leather seats that reclined fully backwards, and a sectional sofa that had two beautiful women sitting on it. "You two made it!"


    "It''s nice to see you again, Mchi."


    Mal barely had a moment to greet Morgan''s wives, Crystal and Emilia before the man himself found his ce between them with his arms wrapped around their waists. "My loves be more beautiful the longer we are apart! How is it that I have be so lucky?"


    The two women blushed and Mchi and Bianca got the hint that they were interrupting a tender reunion. They quietly made themselves scarce as they headed to the back of the ne, somehow oblivious to the fact that they were still holding hands. Bianca was admittedly a bit nervous to say the least, but with Mchi next to her chatting away happily, she felt significantly less afraid.


    Neither of them could really say how long the flight was, as they spent so long argu- i mean talking about their passion for anime and music that they barely noticed. Even when the feeling of a bumpynding vibrated through their butts, they still didn''t seem to notice. "How can you say that you don''t like ''My Hero''!? If it''s about the mc then he gets a lot better after-"


    "I don''t like the show for the same reason why I don''t like youngboy anymore. The fan base makes it fucking unbearable."


    "That''s...!" Bianca wanted to muster some kind of a defense, but she was having a hard time countering Mal''s argument.


    "W-Whatever! I can''t respect someone who thinks Saitama is the strongest anime character ever." "Bro obliterated a moon... Nobody is touching him with that." "Sure babyboy, but can he beat Goku!?!"


    "Hell, here we fucking go." Mc hi threw his hands up in the air as Bianca threw out the one argument that somehow always started a fight in the animemunity. Emilia: "How long are they going to do this?"


    Crystal: "I don''t know what they''re talking about but it''s cute... maybe i do want kids after all."


    Morgan: "Are they arguing or flirting... I''m not sure anymore."


    Bianca and Mal became slightly embarrassed when they realized that they were being watched by the same people they were travelling with.


    "We umm... we were just having some very important philosophical discussions."


    Bianca silently nodded her head in agreement, earing theughter of the three adults opposite them.


    "Come along, kids. There''ll be time for those little discussions of yourster." Morgan said as he exited the ne with his wives'' hand in his.


    Mchi and Bianca grabbed their bags and exited the ne, only to discover that they were standing on a privatending strip a short distance away from an enormous modern beach house. Their surroundings were somewhere tropical, but it was difficult to pinpoint where they''d ended up from that alone.


    "Wee to our private ind, kiddos. When you''re practicing with the level of powers that we have, something like this is often a necessity." Morgan exined. ''Private ind...''


    ''I knew he was rich but what the hell...''


    Suddenly, a car started heading towards the group and pulled to a stop in front of Morgan and his wives. The door was opened, and a squad of maids stepped out to load the group''s luggage into the car while Morgan took off his jacket and rolled up his sleeves. "From what I''ve been told, we''re on a tight schedule so the girls will have to give you a tour of the ceter. For now let''s start your training." Dark shadows engulfed Mchi''s entire body, and soon he was standing in his all ckbat gear minus the mask. Bianca... she just unzipped her jacket and took off her sweatpants, with her gear already waiting underneath. "...Show off." N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "Indeed." Morgan agreed with a smile. "But there''s nothing wrong with that, I''d probably do the same if I had his powers."


    Mchi only showed a cheeky smile that properly conveyed just how proud he was of this little trick of his. He was just d that it actually worked this time, instead of being like the times he tried it in his bathroom at home and only seeded in bingpletely naked.


    Sei considered this to be her favorite out of all of his abilities.


    As Morgan rolled up his sleeves, his body began to lift itself off the ground. "Mal, I''m assuming you can already do something like this, yes? Then follow me with miss Bianca." Morgan flew towards the center of the ind, leaving the two young kids behind. "Okay so how do we-"


    "Upsy daisy."


    "Uwah!! Why are you carrying me like this!?"


    Instead of holding Bianca romantically like a princess, Mal chucked her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and took off into the sky. "Is this about the Goku thing!? This isn''t funny!!"


    "Of course not, B. I''m over that already!" (No he wasn''t.)


    "You''re lying!! Mchi Saint, I''m going to kill you!!!"


    As Mal''sughter echoed throughout the ind, Morgan began to feel a bit guilty about what was about to happen during this training camp.


    ''Laugh now, my boy... I think this will be thest time you''ll be able to for the duration of your stay.''


    We hit 1 million viewsst night! I honestly never thought I would pick up this novel again after I dropped it the first time, as i was really dissappointed with alot of the reactions that I got the first time around, but I''m honestly really d I did. I''ve gotten a lot more support, and so much more motivation this time around, so I''m not depressed when I write this story anymore.

 Chapter 96 This Is Hell!!!

    96 This Is Hell!!!


    Morgan led Mchi and Bianca to the innermost part of his ind. Once there, the trio found a massive clearing that spanned the length of a few miles, making Bianca and Mchi wonder just howrge this ce was. And just how much Morgan had paid for it.


    Once the two trainees were safely on the ground, Morgan finally began exining the reason for choosing such a remote location.


    "Sorry about bringing the two of you so far out, but I didn''t want to worry the girls with the sound of your screaming." N?v(el)B\\jnn


    For some reason, Bianca and Mchi could not bring themselves to ept his words as a mere jest.


    "Alright youngdy, I''ll start with you." Morgan suddenly held up a single finger that burned with a bright red me. Just by looking at it, Biana could tell that the quality and strength of this me was leagues above her own. She could practice everyday for hours for the rest of her life and she still would not be able to measure up.


    ''This is the power of a primordial... unreal.''


    "I''m going to give you a small bit of my own me, and you''ll need to refine it and make it yours. It will hurt, so are you prepared?"


    Bianca nced at Mchi onest time before nodding her head in agreement. "I am, let''s do it."


    "I apud your bravery, young one. Here ites."


    Morgan flicked the small wisp of me towards Bianca''s forehead and traveled inside.


    As soon as it entered her, an unbearable heat spread throughout her entire body, threatening to burn her alive.


    "I-It''s hot!! I don''t think I can- Aaaggghhhhh!!"


    "Bianca!"


    Mchi reached out to take Bianca''s hand, but he was stopped by the warning voice of Morgan.


    "Mchi. If you try to help her now, you will only be hurting her. I know that you two care for each other, but you must let her ovee this trial on her own."


    Regrettably, Mal clutched his fists as he tried not to let the sound of Bianca''s screaming shatter his resolve. ''You can do it, B... but I am going to kick your ass for making me worry afterwards.''


    Mchi finally forced his feet away from Bianca, and came to stand opposite his idol. "Do you know the most dangerous part of being blessed by a primordial god, boy?"Morgan casually unbuttoned the top few buttons of his shirt, revealing a bit more of his tattooed chest. "It is ourselves. Despite the fact that our bodies have been upgraded, sometimes they still cannot handle our abilities, which is a given since we are far from gods."


    Mchi hadn''t realized that, but he quickly pieced together that maybe he just hadn''t been pushing his powers hard enough.


    "So how do we fix that?" He asked. Morgan smirked as he found it amusing that Mchi was so concerned about Bianca when the first part of his training would undoubtedly be worse. "I am going to break your bodypletely. Liquify every muscle, crush every bone, rupture every vein. Only by doing this will you not be at such a risk when you push your powers past their limit."


    Through continuous healing and destruction of Mal''s body, he would be stronger, faster, tougher, and most importantly his body would not explode when he used his powers beyond their limits.


    Mal finally understood why Morgan had offered him so many warnings beforehand.


    This ''training'' was practically torture, and it wouldn''t be strange for any number of people to want to back out.


    But in all actuality, Mchi was actually quite lucky. If he had destroyed his body through use of his powers like Alex and Morgan had, this process would have been dreadfully slower. "I''ll be avoiding your heart and brain so as not to kill you, but everything else is fair game, even your junk. Luna will no doubt thank meter."


    Mchi smiled wryly as if he took his idol''s words as a joke. "Are you trying to make me r-"


    Boom!


    Morgan appeared in front of Mal faster than his eyes could follow, and he used both of his hands to chop Mchi on both sides of his neck, crushing muscles, vertebrae, and windpipe alike.


    Mal''s mouth filled with blood as his eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. Since his throat had been crushed, he couldn''t even let out a noise to scream and instead all that followed was a choking gurgle. "Try to breathe, my friend. If you don''t, you''ll die and Luna will have my head."


    With blinding speed that was unlike anything Mal had ever seen, Morgan continued his assault on Mal''s body, striking and destroying all of his upper body except his heart and his brain. The man blessed by Surtr was terribly efficient in hisbat, and he was fast enough that Mchi didn''t even have time to fall to his knees. When gravity finally started pulling him down to the earth, Morgan kneed him hard in the jaw and sent him back up into the air.


    "M-Mal- Aaaaggghhhh!!!" Bianca was concerned about Mchi just as he was about her, and the sight of him being brutalized before her very eyes was almost too much to bear. But the moment she lost focus, the heat within her body worsened and she felt like she was going to burn to cinders. ''No... I have to focus... He''s doing his best to grow so I can''t stay the same either!''


    Closing her eyes, she fell to her knees and tried her best to concentrate, and act as if she was oblivious to the terrible pain.


    Her body was dripping with sweat as she tried to take the powerful mes that were foretold to end the world, and use them to enhance the power of her own. It was radical and dangerous, but Bianca knew that it was far from impossible. She just had to want it bad enough.


    With Mchi''s body soaring into the air, Morgan reached out and grabbed him by the ankle, before whirling his body around and mming him hard into the ground. A myriad of cracking sounds were heard as Mchi''s spine was shattered on impact, while his leg was broken from Morgan''s otherworldly grip. ''I truly hope that you forgive me for this, Mchi. I know this is far from pleasant, but it is still far better than the alternative.... Hm?''


    All of a sudden, Morgan''s sense of danger went haywire. Ever since he''d had these powers, he had never felt this terrified of anything. All he could feel was an overwhelming amount of maliciousness emanating from Mchi''s broken body.


    Suddenly, the mark on Mal''s forehead changed from white to a purely ck color, and a horrifying creature leapt out of it.


    "Screeee!!!"


    "What?!"


    Shear used her ded appendages to swipe at Morgan blindly and without end, and even someone who was as frighteningly fast as he was had to admit that this creature was extremely quick. ''This is his contracted beast?? I hadn''t heard any reports of it hatching! And what the hell is this thing anyway!?!'' Shear was already scary enough in daylight, but the scene of hering after Morgan on a moonlit night like this one was terrifying enough to make him want to piss himself.


    Given that he was sure that this was Mchi''s creature, Morgan figured it was best if he did not hurt it too much. But still... the creature did not seem to have any qualms about hurting him.


    ''Shear, c''mere.'' Just as Morgan''s tattoos began to glow with a fiery red color, the beast suddenly ceased all movement and looked towards the area where Mal''s bodyy. Morgan nearly shit his pants as he watched the creature warp away from him and appear directly by it''s master''s side. While Mal could teleport, he could only do so through the use of darkness as something like a doorway. But whatever Mal''s contracted beast was... it did not seem to have any such restriction. Morgan wasn''t sure if it''s range was short distance or not, but it didn''t really matter. The fact that the creature could appear anywhere within a millisecond had terrible implications for a full scale battle. ''Seriously... just what else can that thing do...What the hell...?'' Morgan looked down at his chest and saw that he''d suffered a very shallow cut across his torso. It was bleeding lightly and it was nowhere near fatal, but still...


    His body wasn''t healing the damage like it should have been.


    When Shear appeared beside her master, she let out some kind of monstrous whimper at the sight of his body''s horrible condition. She was still just a baby so she couldn''t speak yet, but she understood that this man''s life was tied to hers and it distressed her to see him in such condition. Since talking was impossible for Mal at the moment, he relied on his mind tomunicate with the monstrous creature. ''I can feel how upset you are, you know? But there''s no need for that. That man is helping me get better so that we can go against our real enemy.'' ''...ene...my...?''


    ''Aww, your first word. Wish I had my phone to record.'' Mal joked.


    ''...''


    ''A-Anyway, yea an enemy. It is someone like that man from earlier who was trying to hurt my girlfriend Anna. Remember? You let her pet you?''


    Shear didn''t have many memories so it was easy to recall the event Mal spoke of.


    ''Morgan is helping me so that I have the strength to make sure nothing like that ever happens again, or at least that he can''t get away with it. You have to let him do this, alright?'' The creature fell silent for a moment as if it was weighing the risks and rewards of obeying such an order.


    Eventually, Shear floated off to the side and curled up on the ground, signaling that she would allow this to happen but she wasn''t leaving any time soon. Morgan''s head was on a continuous swivel between the broken man lying on the ground and it''s strange monster sitting a few feet away. He finally noticed movement from Mchi''s fingers that were curled up into a beckoning gesture, asking him to continue. ''By the gods... what a crazy kid.''


    I like writing these stories and all but bro I miss being able to READ I used to be able to spend all day reading novels and now it seems like I never have the time or energy anymore. It¡¯s somewhat heartbreaking AnathaShesha

 Chapter 97 Getting To Know Each Other

    97 Getting To Know Each Other


    "Alright, time to hand in your projects kiddos."


    There were a few groans and curses under breaths as students reached inside of their bags to pull out their hastily typed papers.


    Just by skimming over the first few lines of these assignments, Dr. Andrews could easily tell who tried and who didn''t. ''This assignment wasn''t even all that difficult... all of you brats are just so damnzy...'' Two students finally came up to hand in their assignments and he realized that there was an extra one within their grasp.


    "Ms. Grey, am I correct in assuming that this is your partner''s assignment?"


    "Sure is."


    Dr. Andrews sighed as he rubbed the bridge of his nose underneath his sses.


    "That''s no good, Mr. Saint will have toe and submit his assignment on his own."


    "Aww give me a break!" Serana suddenly yelled.


    "Mal is really busy doing something important right now so he doesn''t exactly have time to spare. Isn''t it enough that he did the stupid assignment??" n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "No, Ms. Aihara, it is not." He said in a monotone voice as he epted her paper and Anna''s without taking Mchi''s.


    "If he''s going to attend college then he should make that his priority. I''m sure whatevervish vacation he''s gone on or supermodel''s bed he''s found himself into can at least wait until he hands in a simple paper."


    Anna hadn''t been Mal''s girlfriend for very long, but she was already especially sensitive over matters concerning him and the way that he was perceived by others. The whole world thought he was just some reclusive snooty kid who thought he was too good for interviews or photo shoots or even celebrity parties. He was starting to be painted as a deviant who was merely interested in lusting after women twice his age.


    Although that has caused his poprity with that demographic to soar. While also causing it to plummet with men his age or older.


    Anna tried her hardest to remember the fact that she wasn''t at work and being harassed so she couldn''t crack this guy''s skull open like she normally would.


    "Look, he''s really doing something important alright? He isn''t just ying around like some spoiled rich boy!" Dr. Andrews seemed to realize that if he didn''t give this up now, these girls were never going to leave his ssroom. "Fine, I''ll take it but I''ll be docking ten points off the top."


    "You can''t do that!" "What the hell for??" "It''s either that or he fails. Which do you think he would prefer?" Anna clenched her fists so hard that her knuckles popped as she handed over her boyfriend''s essay. Serana didn''t want to take the chance of saying something to aggravate the situation further so she quickly interlocked her arm with Anna''s and pulled her out of the room. "Damn kids... he probably didn''t even bother to... huh." The professor nced over Mal''s paper and found that it was actually fairly well written. What''s more is that his observations of Anna seemed toe from a ce of genuine concern and intrigue. ncing over at Anna''s paper, he found that hers was much the same, in addition to shedding a light on the man dubbed by the world as the third living god. She went on to exin in perfect detail that Mal didn''t even seem like the kind of person who received such tremendous power. Whether it was is anxiety over returning to poverty or inability to recognize his own good looks, sheid out all of it clearly. Reading about all of his worries, fears, and tendencies like this had a way of making Mal seem more... human. ''Wasn''t expecting such good work out of such an odd pairing... seems like they got along a lot better than I thought.''


    In the end, maybe due to the quality of the work or his own old age, Professror Andrews ended up punching two 100s into theputer.


    -


    Serana and Annalise were walking arm in arm towards the school parking lot, but instead of being a way that girls show their affection, they were doing this to make sure that neither one of them stormed back into the ssroom and killed their professor. "Seriously... what a dick!"


    "All I ask is to meet him in a dark alley just one time, I don''t need anything else in life."


    Seeing the violent tendencies of the two girls would be rming to some and arousing to others, a perfect testament to the duality of man.


    "Hey... does the parking lot look a little crowded to you?" Serana suddenly asked. Anna suddenly came out of her murder fantasy and gazed into the parking lot, and she could see that quite a few people seemed to be gathered around something. Even though she knew it wasn''t possible, she silently hoped that Mal hade back from his impromptu training camp ande to surprise her. That dreamlike fantasy spurred her into moving her feet just a little bit faster than normal, and after a while she was practically dragging her pink haired friend through the parking lot. "Did you see that thing?"


    "I never thought I''d see one in real life..."


    "The tint is so dark I can''t even see who''s inside!"


    Contrary to what Anna was hoping for, the reason for so much attention being gathered in the parking lot wasn''t a handsome young man with dark skin and long dreadlocks. It was a very expensive and rare vehicle, or more specifically, an all ck ramborgini truck with pink stripes.


    "I love it... I love it so much."Serana muttered with stars in her eyes.


    Anna''s mood only became worse for wear and she rolled her eyes as she started walking towards her car. "Come on, let''s go to a restaurant or something."


    "But it''s so prettyyy!!!" Serana whined.


    Suddenly, her phone started vibrating in her pocket and she came to a stop in front of Anna''s car.


    "Ah, wait my mom is calling." Answering the phone, she heard the usual cheerful voice of Seiing from the other line. "Where are you girls going? We came to pick you up!"


    Serana suddenly froze and made an embarrassed expression as she looked around for her mom''s car.


    "Where are you? And did you have to pick me up like I''m some kind of middle schooler?" "Turn around!"


    Serana did as her mother asked and saw that the formerly motionless luxury truck was following the two girls. The driver side window rolled down and revealed two gorgeous older Japanese women inside. Luna and Sei looked like they belonged on the cover of a magazine, as both women wore dark sunsses with tank tops that barely held in theirrge chests and ck and blue jeans, respectively. Sitting on the armrest in between them was a small white fox, who also had on dark sunsses. "Arf!" (Get in bitches! We''re going to do hot girl shit!)


    Both girls werepletely taken aback by the sight of thest two women who they expected to see on their campus. "What are you girls doing? Hurry up and get in before I have to kill one of your ssmates for scratching my car."


    Luna unlocked the doors and gestured for the two girls to get into the backseat, leaving Anna still stunned.


    "This is really crazy, huh...?" She muttered.


    She realized after a few seconds that she had received no response, and found that Serana had left her a long time ago, and was already in the car. Somehow, a pair of sunsses had appeared on her face as well. "What''s taking you so long?? Let''s go!"


    "..." Anna''s mouth hung open in disbelief before she finally climbed inside of the car. Once she fastened herself inside, Luna pulled out of the parking lot like a form one racer, earning excited yelps from Shiro and a small cry of surprise from Serana.


    "Umm, why did you guyse to pick us up?" Anna suddenly asked. "Well, we thought since we''re dating the same man we should get a chance to know you better." Sei exined warmly.


    "Hope we aren''t inconveniencing you." Luna added. "No, of course not but... do you think you guys could have chosen a more discreet car to get us?"


    Luna cutely twisted her head to the side as if she didn''t understand. "Didn''t we? I thought this one was already pretty low-key."


    "...This car costs over 200 grand."


    "Is it? I forgot it was so cheap..." Luna said without an ounce of vanity. "I don''t really drive it anymore, I had really only chosen it because It''s my only ck vehicle."


    "You don''t!? So can I have it??" Serana asked. "This mine and Mal''s dream car!!" "I don''t mind." Luna said with a shrug. "It''s already paid off so just ask your mother if-"


    "No, she can not." Sei said without batting an eye. "But why!?!?"


    "Dear, you could sell your body for eighteen hours a day and you still wouldn''t be able to afford the insurance on this car, much less an oil change or maintenance."


    Luna wanted to say that she really didn''t care about paying for insurance and she already had a full personal service team who were responsible for working on all fifty of her cars. Eventually, she decided to just slip the keys into Serena''s pocketter.


    Serana suddenly looked offended and groped her breasts to make sure they were still above average in size.


    "Hmph! I think you are underestimating my value! If I ever decided to stoop that low, I could buy twenty of these every day for the rest of my life!"


    The girls burst into several adorable fits ofughter, allowing Anna to finally rx a bit.


    She had to admit she was a bit flustered to begin with as she thought this might turn into some kind of awkward hazing thing but it didn''t appear to be anything close to that.


    Anna wasn''t very good at making friends, so she was initially certain that there was no way she was going to be able to do it with her boyfriend''s other girlfriends. Especially not when she had always been the jealous type in rtionships. But for some reason, she could not bring herself to despise these women or wish for them to fall off the face of the earth.


    They just seemed to be genuinely likable people without a malicious bone in their body. And subconsciously, she began to hope that they liked her and thought she was good enough. ''Dating that guy has made me all soft and sensitive... since when do I care about things like that.''


    Despite her inner monologue, the undeniable smile on her face confirmed that she was not entirely averse to these changes taking ce within her.


    I think out of everything I have ever written so far the most unrealistic part of my story is the fact that a professor can remember a student''s name. AnathaShesha

 Chapter 98 Poolside Beauties & A Short Rest

    98 Poolside Beauties & A Short Rest


    Luna ended up driving the girls an hour away, to her home that was isted in the countryside. Well... ''home'' isn''t quite the proper term. "This ce is like a fucking pce!" Serana said. "Dear, watch yournguage.... but yes, it is like a fucking pce." Sei agreed. "I have never felt more poor in my entire life..." Anna added. Somehow, Luna had started to feel embarrassed by the reactions her travelingpanions had when seeing her home. She couldn''t help it if she liked nice things, okay??


    The gates at the front automatically opened when Luna''s car came close enough, allowing the girls a closer look at Luna''s enormous multimillion dor mansion. She had barely pulled in to her garage and turned her car off, when Serana practically threw herself out of the vehicle. "T-This is amazinggg!!"


    The echo traveling in such arge space only added to her deration.


    As Annalise finally looked around, she could not help but to agree. ''No wonder she didn''t give a damn about this truck... it''s the cheapest car in here!'' At first nce, all of the cars in Luna''s garage were priced anywhere from three hundred thousand to two million.


    Making it more than conceivable that she had forgotten about the price of her little ramborghini truck. ''If this is just the garage... how crazy is the rest of this ce going to be??''


    -


    The answer to Anna''s question was just as insane as she expected. Luna''s home was unbelievablyvish and elegant, whether it was the million dor sculptures or the one of one paintings, she seemed to have it all. Not to mention her squad of experienced maids and butlers who tried to cater to their every need. Serana made a simplement about how it was hot outside, and three of them peeled off to go and prepare the pool so that they could take a dip. When Sei and Anna tried to say that they did not have swimsuits, Luna waived away their excuse and exined that she had plenty that they could choose from. So now, Luna and Sei were seated on a beach chair poolside, wearing bathing suits that could make a pope abandon his faith. "This is more embarrassing than I thought it would be... I''m not exactly the same body type as you." Luna tilted her sunsses downward and nced at Sei who was sitting beside her. She was wearing a bold white bikini that surprisingly held in herrge chest without much issue. "What''s the problem? Our breasts are practically the same size."Luna said with a shrug. "Yes, well..." Sei suddenly looked around to make sure that the two of them were alone and stood up from her seat. Turning around, she allowed Luna to see her bikini bottoms that more closely resembled a thong than actual swimwear. Sei''s hips and butt were quite a bitrger than Luna''s, and as a result there just wasn''t enough coverage for all of the surface area. "Wow... I can see why he confessed to you first. I''m actually rather jealous." "S-Shut up! I feel so exposed that I could just die!"


    "How dramatic." Smack! "Ow!" Sei rubbed the Luna sized handprint on her left butt cheek as she red at the culprit. "There are only girls here so it''s not like you have to worry about anyone looking at you strangely. Just rx."


    Sei sighed and resigned herself to this ufortable yet sexy fate, while simultaneously wondering what Mal would say if he were here. ''Well... I doubt very much that he would use his mouth for talking.''


    "We''re done changing."


    "Woahhh it''s like an olympic pool!!!"


    Anna and Serana finally finished picking out swimsuits, and their choices were much the same but with different levels of charm.


    Serana had on a simple ck one piece bathing suit that was tied twice due to the fact that her own chest size was inferior to her mother''s and Luna''s.


    A fact that she would have been more pissed about had she not seen the price tag on the outfit she was wearing. After seeing so many zeroes, she couldn''t care less about chest size. Anna on the other hand wore an enchanting dark red two piece that contained a white band around the top and bottom that had the name of a famous brand. Eventually, she noticed that Sei and Luna were giving her a funny look, and she wondered if it was because her swimsuit was too tight. "What... why are you looking at me like that?" She asked shyly. "Ah, we''re sorry." Sei apologized. "You''re just very..."


    Luna''s question was a fair one, and anyone who saw Annalise would wonder the same. Whether it was her curvy body, her enchanting face, or her tattoos and piercings, she was a girl in possession of an extremely captivatingand unique beauty. "Yea, no. I''m not lifting things with my mind or crushing cars with my hands." She dismissed. "Good thing for the dudes whoe into the store, no?" Serana added cheekily. She did not wait for her friend''s backhanded reply and instead ran towards the massive pool anddove inside. Annalise rolled her eyes and joined her not long after, and as soon as her seductive body hit the water she felt as if she were being reborn. Not only was the water cold and clear as day, but she could smell little to no chlorine odor stemming from it. "This is nice... He should be here." She muttered to herself.


    Luna finally stood up from her seat and started heading for the pool with the girls. "Y-You''re leaving me?" Sei asked sadly. Luna merely shrugged and continued walking.


    "Yes, I wanted to test something. Old man Rowan told me a story about Changg''e where she rejuvenates the bodies of others by giving them some of her bath water. I wondered if I could do something simr."


    "O-Oh, alright... Wait, what!?"


    -


    Morgan broke Mchi''s body for hours upon hours. It was undoubtedly a hell unlike anything the young man had ever known, and he had passed out from the overwhelming pain on more than one asion. Shear let out frustrated and monstrous growls as she watched this scene, but other than that she did not interfere. But Morgan would still continuously check her positioning as if he was worried about that changing at any second. Bianca was still in a trance, desperately trying to refine the powerful me that had gifted to her, although she was undoubtedly making progress. Morgan looked up at the sun that was shining high overhead and wiped his brow of lingering sweat.


    "Well now, went a lot longer than I wanted to. But I think that this should just about do it."


    ncing down, he inspected the sleeping young man and nodded in satisfaction. Mchi''s body condition had drastically improved, and now it was nearly on par with his own. 14:25


    The amount of force he had to use in order to break his body every time it healed would shoot up in drastic increments, and by now he could no longer wound him seriously without using his blessing. A few appendages were still slowly healing but they would undoubtedly be finished within the next ten minutes or so.


    "I can''t wait to see what your new stats look like,d. You were already plenty fast and strong before, but I wonder just how big the difference will be now."


    "KYAAAA!! W-WHAT IS THAT THING?? IS THERE A GATE BREAK!?!?"


    "Oh? Seems like you''re done, Bianca. How was the experience?"


    "Fuck the experience!! Why is there a damn baby kaiju on this ind!?!"


    As soon as the young girl had fully assimted Morgan''s power, she opened her eyes to find Mchi asleep on the ground several feet away, with Shear curled up nearby.


    It was a very piss poor way to wake up.


    Bianca''s hands took on a smoldering fiery red color, and Morgan knew that she was about to make a very stupid mistake. "Easy now,ss. That''s your friend''s contracted beast."


    "That''s his... what??"


    Sensing they were done, Shear finally moved from her ce underneath the shade and floated towards Mchi. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    She carefully picked up his body and ced him on her back, disying her intent to carry him. "See,ss? She''s friendly... mostly." Morgan looked down at the small wound that he suffered during their first meeting


    He was cut over eight hours ago, but the wound had only showed signs of clotting about thirty minutes ago.


    He didn''t even want to imagine what would happen if he had allowed Bianca to strike her blindly. "You kids have worked hard, so we''ll head to the house and try to get some food in you. You can rest for around four hours or so, and then we''lle right back out here."


    "O-Only four hours?" Bianca asked pitifully.


    After an exhausting ordeal like this one, she didn''t want to settle for anything less than twelve.


    "Hahahaha! I know, I know, it''s not ideal. but since you''ve done such good work I can reward you by giving you a room right next to his?"


    Bianca nced down at the handsome resting face of Mchi and made a decision within nanoseconds. "...I''ll take it."

 Chapter 99 Shear Is A Friendly Kaiju

    99 Shear Is A Friendly Kaiju


    Mchi was gently stirred awake by the feeling of two pointy objects being pressed into his cheeks and hushed whispersing from above his head.


    "This is crazy... I feel like I''m poking stone."


    "Hissss...."


    "So you agree? Almost makes getting your body destroyed seem worth it.... Almost." When Mchi''s eyes fluttered open, he was staring up at his friend Bianca and contracted beast Shear, who both seemed to be rather interested in analyzing him.


    "Can I help you girls with something?"


    "No."


    "Hisss...."


    "....Alright, good talk."


    Mchi suddenly sat up and realized that he was inside of a very nice living room. Behind him, there was an open kitchen with a small team of maids who were cowering in fear as they cooked. It didn''t take long for him to put two and two together, and he realized that they must have been afraid of therge monster hovering above the couch.


    "Yea, they''ve been like that for a while now. Your beast seems to be super loyal and passive but I guess it''s hard for them to get over how scary she looks." Bianca admitted. She had actually grown to like Shear just a bit. She may have looked super scary on the outside but once you observed her a while, it was easy to see that wasn''t the case. "I guess I get that. I''m surprised she hasn''t gone back inside by now." Mal muttered. He tried to mentally call Shear back into his body, and she first looked him up and down like she was trying to assure he was okay before retreating. Once she was satisfied, her body became a mass of violet light, and she re-entered the mark on Mchi''s forehead. The maids within the kitchen let out an auditory sigh of relief while Bianca seemed to be slightly disappointed. Shadows engulfed Mchi''s body and hisbat suit was reced with simple dark sweat pants and a t-shirt. "Come on, we should eat now." Bianca said as she took his hand. "Mr. Morgan''s only given us four hours to rest."


    Mchi would have been more bothered by that information had he not just woken up from a nap. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    He and Bianca sat down at the table and allowed themselves to be serviced by Morgan''s team of dedicated maids.


    Their tes were piled high with all kinds of calorie rich foods, a menu that Morgan specifically requested as a means to keep their energy up.


    "This is a lot, right?" Bianca muttered in a somewhat scared tone. But unfortunately, Mchi could not hear her as he had decided to check his phone for messages.


    He had a few cute ones from Sei, some aloof yet sexy ones from Luna, and some threats of bodily harm from Anna. But the thing that garnered most of his attention, was the pictures that Serana had posted on finstagram.


    It was a photo of her and three beautiful women in a pool sipping margaritas. Evidently, her followers were just as shocked as he was and Serana''s simple caption didn''t exactly help.


    MamaSerana: No caption needed. :) #PoolDay!


    YbIsDaddy: Nah bitch you gotta exin this.


    Exoticya: Bro is that Luna Autumn!? Drop the lo. RodWaveWife: Okay girl I see youu! You should go live!


    CharlieTheProwler: Damn yo momma look good. I''m trynna y step daddy. 350Yaz: @ the girl with ck hair?


    Eventually, Mal decided to close the app before he went on a killing spree of random people on the inte. He then went to his messages and sent the girls a group message telling them how beautiful they looked and how much he missed them.


    When he finally put his phone down, he realized that Bianca was staring at him with her cheeks puffed out, a clear look of irritation. "Sorry, sorry. I''m listening I promise."


    "Whatever." She said as she rolled her eyes. "I asked you how your body felt since Morgan pulverized you and all."


    At that moment Mchi realized that he hadn''t actually noticed anything different, and his body felt the same as it usually did.


    "Normal...? Did I get my ass kicked for nothing??"


    Bianca didn''t even say a word as she continued to chew on her food nonchntly. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small magic knife with an iridescent hue, and stabbed Mal in the chest without even looking in his direction.


    The knife shattered against his skin without leaving so much as a scratch, although there was a small hole in his ck shirt. "... I guess I did improve a bit."


    While he had always been immune to regr weapons, magical ones were apletely new thing for him. Even if Bianca''s knife was of a very low grade, it was still a magical item and definitely should have drawn blood.


    "What about you? How''s your little training arcing along?"


    Bianca suddenly had a proud look on her face as she held up a single finger that burned with a dark red me. "I had something of a breakthrough."


    While it was quite hot, the mes did not seem destructive in nature.


    "I realized I was trying to be as powerful as you and Mr. Creed without really asking if that was how my powers were intended to be used. After all, Hephaestus is a creator and not a warrior. Maybe I wasn''t meant to fight directly alongside you, but that doesn''t mean I can''t assist you."


    Bianca had learned a lot about forcing herself to do things that just weren''t in her nature.


    The only way for her to be trulyfortable within herself was to find her own potential and maximize it, not try to copy someone else''s. This training would end up being much more helpful for her than she ever could have realized.


    Mal didn''t really know what to say. While it felt good to know that Bianca was always thinking about him, there was a part of him that wanted her to do things of her own volition and as her own source of motivation. "So, what''s her name?" Bianca suddenly asked.


    "Hm?" "Your contracted beast. It is a girl right?" "Oh yeah, that''s Shear." "Shear...? I cold see that." Bianca admitted. "Do you know anything about her? I have never seen anything like her before."


    Needless to say, Mchi didn''t know much more than she did about the strange creature he had acquired on ident. His belief that it was a beast of terrible catastrophe, was truly no more than a hunch. All that he could do was wait for Nyx to appear before him again, and hope that he could ask her for answers.


    -


    After eating, Bianca led Mal to their rooms upstairs. Just as Morgan had promised, their rooms were indeed right beside each other with a door connecting them. Almost being burned alive had never felt so worth it. Mchi wanted to take a shower once he got inside, so he and Bianca parted ways for the time being. Even the bathroom was sparkling and pristine with a golden shower head and soaps from brands that hecouldn''t even pronounce. After getting out of the shower, Mchi slipped on a pair of briefs before falling onto the cloud-like bed haphazardly. "I said I wasn''t tired but this makes it kinda hard not to be." He said sleepily. Not only was the room the perfect cold temperature, but the sheets andforters were obviously freshly washed and still smelled of the dryer. To not fall victim to such temptations would render him a monster incapable of feeling. Just as his eyelids became heavy, he heard a buzzing sound from the dresser on the other side of the room. Holding out his hand, he called his phone into his palm and saw that he was receiving a video call from Anna. A small smile spread across his lips and he answered in a heartbeat, excited to see the face of one of the women he loved most. But unfortunately, he only got Serana instead. The pink haired girl was teary eyed and clearly in distress though as for why, he was sure that it wasn''t anything serious. "M-Mal!! Nobody cares about me or thinks I''m hot!! All they care about are your stupid girlfriends and their huge boobs!!!" Mchi merely rolled his eyes and turned over to lie on his back. "Serana... why do you have Anna''s pho-"


    Sei: "Is that honey?"


    Anna: "Mal called? Give me back my phone!"


    Luna: "Let me see him! Morgan better not have ruined his face!"


    "Kyaa! Wait, I''m talking to him!"


    Mal suddenly heard the sound of sshing and the camera angle became a blur as the phone was wrestled from Serena''s grip. Unsurprisingly, Luna''s superior physical body and telekic abilities allowed her to recover the phone first, and she held it in a way that allowed Mal to see all three beautiful women. But Mal admittedly had to do a double take because for some reason his girlfriends did not look quite the same as he had left them.


    "Not sure if I just miss you guys or what but you look even more beautiful than thest time I saw you. How is this possible?"


    Ignoring the fact that the girls were currently soaking wet and wearing bathing suits, their skin and hair seemed to be literally glowing.


    "Luna has a magical body." Sei exined.


    14:08


    And it wasn''t hard to tell that the camera was in no way doing them justice. "Luna has a magical body." Sei exined.


    "It''s true, It defiesmon sense." Anna added.


    "...I think I need a better exnation cause the mental image that I have can''t be correct." He was met with gigglesbined with rolled eyes before Luna exined how Rowan had told her a story about Changg''e cleansing other''s body through the use of her bathwater. Since they were swimming today, she wanted to know if she could do something simr and decided to use the girls as a test subject. "My body feels great and all but my boobs didn''t get any bigger..." Serana said sadly. Sei merely offered her daughter a consultative pat on the head and did notment.


    "But enough about that, how are you, love? Is training going well?" Luna asked. Mchi told the girls about everything he''d done on the ind so far using as little detail as possible so as not to scare them. It seemed to have worked sufficiently, as when he told the girls that he could no longer be injured by low grade magical weapons their eyes took on a visible sparkle. Because Mal was sofortable, he ended up falling asleep on the phone with the girls, but they were not particrly upset. Though they missed him, they could understand that he must have gone through quite a lot and must have been tired.


    They said their loving goodbyes as he slept, before hanging up and promising to send him more picturester. As Mal slumbered, the door between his room and Bianca''s opened, and she hesitantly poked her head inside.


    Seeing bad kids in the barbershop will forever be the funnist part of being a man. This little boy told his momma ''Don''t tell me what to do'' loud asf in front of a room full of grown ass men and he had like six people trynna whoop him. AnathaShesha

 Chapter 100 The Powers of Primordials

    100 The Powers of Primordials


    Morgan knocked lightly on the door to Mchi''s room and waited for some kind of response. When he received none, he silently twisted the doorknob and checked inside, and was rtively surprised by what he found. Mchi was asleep on top of the bed, wearing nothing but a pair of ck briefs and with a young woman in his arms. Bianca was also sleeping lightly, her sses strewn across her face haphazardly and wearing a pair of shorts and an anime crop top hoodie. As someone who had just left the embrace of his own wives a few minutes ago, he could sympathize with this sweet scene and he very nearly turned around to leave. But he held fast to his promise to Luna to help Mchi grow as strong as possible in a short amount of time. "Rise and shine, kiddies!!"


    "Kyaaa!!"


    "Huh?"


    Both Mchi and Bianca immediately sat up on the bed and looked at each other strangely. Mal might''ve been tired, but there is no way that he wouldn''t remember going to bed with her. "B? Why were we..?"


    "A-Ah, we didn''t do anything! I came in a while ago and I saw that you were sleeping and I just wanted to y a little joke..." She exined shyly. While Mal was asleep, Biancaid down next to him on the bed and stated taking selfies with the both of them.


    However, Mal had grown ustomed to sleeping next to someone ever since Sei had moved in, so he instinctively grabbed her and pulled her close. Suddenly Bianca''s joke was no longer funny and she tried her best to escape without waking him, but Mchi only clung to her tighter. Finally, she resigned herself to her fate and decided to wait for him to wake up, but she was so enticed by his body heat and scent of the sheets that she ended up falling asleep alongside him. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "S-So you see, I didn''t do anything weird to you and I didn''t stare at you in your underwear or anything, I-I just wanted to take pictures of you with my finger up your nose!"


    While Morgan was trying not to die ofughter, Mchi was still holding onto Bianca without even realizing it. "Yea, I know we didn''t do anything, don''t worry."


    "..."


    Mchi and Sei spent a lot of time together. And since he was a twenty year old man with raging hormones and she was a middle aged woman with needs that had long been unfulfilled. As a result, the two of them had sex whenever they got the chance, and Mal was a quick learner and rather proficient. If Bianca had done something to him, not only would he have woken up, but she wouldn''t have nearly as much energy as she had now. "...Time for training."


    "Hey, I asked you a question!"


    -


    Just like before, Mchi was back in the clearing with Morgan with a bit of anxiety behind his orange eyes. Bianca had been sent to do her own individual exercises, leaving the two men alone to do gods know what. "Alrightd, let''s begin." Morgan pointed up at the sky where the sun was shining brightly overhead.


    "For most people, they must learn to adapt to times where they do not have an advantage, but you do not have that same restriction. Anywhere at anytime can be your home turf."


    Mchi seemingly understood what he was being asked and his eyes became ck and empty. The bright day suddenly changed into a beautiful yet eerie night, and he was already beginning to feel right at home in this atmosphere. But even though he was being filled with energy, maintaining this fabricated night was terribly taxing.


    "Good... Nowe at me."


    Mchi looked at Morgan like he had just asked him to jumpstart a car with a fleshlight. Creating night like this always rendered him practically immobile. So to ask him to fight was almost like a bad joke. "I know that I ask something difficult of you, but so what? Are you telling me that the limits of your ambition only go this far?"


    "...Nah, course not." Mal said with a cheap smile.


    At the end of the day, this was what he hade for. He always knew that he would have to get over this hurdle one day, so why not now?


    Reaching behind his back, he unsheathed the twin iklwa he''d received from Luna and gave them a delicate whirl. "Those look pretty dangerous." Morgan said with an impressed whistle. "But that''s not quite what I wanted to see."


    "Huh?" Almost on cue, Morgan''s skin became dark and molten, and he expanded and grew to a height of 25 feet.


    The temperature easily rose to 100 degrees, and all of Mchi''s work to turn this ce dark seemed to have been for naught.


    Morgan was a massive ming behemoth that wasn''t much different from a miniature sun, forcing the young man to take a step back.


    "Maybe I should have been more specific. We are primordial blessed boy, against us mere weapons are nigh insufficient. Only through power on par with ours can we be felled." For Mal, this training was only bing more and more unrealistic. Thud.


    Thud.


    As Morgan stepped forward, hisrge feet left ming footsteps in the ground and caused small tremors. "Does the task feel difficult? Insurmountable? Good, life will be like that. And if you want to sh against Alex Heller, this feeling will only be multiplied a hundred fold."


    Mchi flinched and his eyes widened in shock. "How did you-"


    Bang!


    Morgan casually kicked Mal with the same energy that one would an empty soda can on the street, sending him flying through the air like a kite with it''s strings cut.


    After being brutalized so terribly sincest night, he had admittedly be more ustomed to pain, but he still noticed the sensation of his skin burning and the air leaving his lungs.


    Correcting himself in midair, hended delicately on his feet but immediately fell onto one knee.


    "It was easy enough to guess, there is only one enemy who would require power like ours.


    Don''t know why you''re rushing, but I figure you''re trying to get revenge on that slimy bastard, and that''s enough for me. "


    Mchiughed dryly and pulled himself back to his feet. "Almost forgot why I was doing this for a second. Ain''t that a shame?"


    Dark shadows began rushing towards Mal and encased his body.


    Instead of darkness making up the entirety of his being, he used it as a kind of armor. Before he knew what he wanted his future to look like, he couldn''t be Nyx''s avatar and fully attain that level of power. "I hope that you won''t take it easy on me, Morgan." As the ming giant looked down at the man encased in stars, nebs, and darkness, he felt slightly impressed by the amount of control. "Oh? Why is that?"


    "How am I supposed to grow if you do?"


    Whoosh!


    Mchi disappeared from his ce on the ground, and appeared high in the air right next to Morgan''s head. BOOOOOOOOMMMMMMM!!!


    Mchi threw a kick aimed directly for his jaw, but Morgan held up an overlyrge hand to stop it. ''This strength is real...My arm is trembling.'' Morgan was actually rather proud.


    He had never had children before, but somehow he knew that this is what it would feel like to watch his child take his first steps.


    "I''m afraid I can''tply with your request,d. For me to truly going all out would eviscerate this whole ind. Bit much for simple lessons, no?"


    Morgan flexed his hand and an entirely ck sword with a molten tip appeared out of thin air.


    "But I can promise to bring you as close to death as I can, as many times as I can. You just promise me that you''lle back alive every time."


    Even though none of Mal''s facial features could be seen, Morgan knew that he was smiling underneath the mass of ck stars.


    "Shall we begin?"


    -


    "..."


    "..."


    "...I miss him."


    ""Same. / Me too.""


    "All of you make me sick!"


    After getting off the phone with Mchi, the girls had the wind taken out of their sailspletely. Now they were lounging on chairs poolside, staring nkly up into space and seemingly a million miles away. Serana had never been so annoyed in her life. "We were having fun before he called, why do you guys have to be such downers now!?"


    All three of Mal''s girlfriends stared nkly at Serana as if they were going through some tribtions that she couldn''t hope to understand. "Jeez, I should have hung out with Aisha and Aubrey instead! Even if they''re all coupled up and cuddly at least I don''t have to worry about them ruining the mood."


    "Give us a break, we''re still in the honeymoon phase. He''s all I can think about." Anna said honestly. Luna nodded silently in agreement, and Serana turned her gaze towards her mother who had yet to say anything. "And what''s your excuse, mother dearest? You should be out of the cupcake stage already."


    Sei tilted her sunsses downwards and gave her daughter a pitying look. "Honey... Sometimes women have needs that-''"


    "Eww, gross!!"


    Sei only shrugged as if she did not see the problem with her statement. Suddenly, she got a call on her phone and after sighing in disappointment when she realized it wasn''t Mchi calling, she answered. The first thing she heard was the voice of her energetic head chef from her restaurant, Tito. "Hey boss, how are you?"


    "I''m fine, Tito is something the matter with the shop? It''s rather unusual of you to call me."


    "Ah, well... This is kind of awkward..."


    Sei immediately sat up, concerned about what her employee might be about to tell her. "About twenty minutes ago, we had adye in asking for you by name. I don''t know if she''s lying or not but... she says she''s your mother."


    -


    100 chapters! Woohoo!


    I fr never thought this novel would make it past chapter 53, I was that determined to never pick it back up. But despite my own expectations, I did and it''s actually been kinda fun to write this again. And all of the support and kind words I''ve received from all of you make all of the sleep deprivation worth it. Thank you to all of you for giving me the courage to make it this far.

 Chapter 101 Old Scars

    101 Old Scars


    Try as she might''ve, Sei was not able to dismiss Tito''s report as a mere joke.


    The first thing she did was check the restaurant cameras on her phone, and she nearly dropped her phone when she saw a woman standing by the register who she thought she would never see again.


    Afterwards, she told Tito to have her wait for around an hour before hanging up the phone and running back inside to jump into the shower.


    She borrowed a car from Luna and drove over 100 miles an hour to reach her restaurant in exactly thirty minutes.


    Her heart was thudding in a way that it never had been before, and she wanted nothing more than for Mchi to be beside her in this moment.


    At the end of the day, Sei was a normal woman who had a lot of lingering trauma from her past.


    It was only natural for the man she was dating to be the pir of her strength. She silently pulled out her phone and found herself scrolling through all of the pictures they had, but it only served to make her heartache even more prominent. Stuffing her phone into her back pocket, she took as deep a breath as her lungs would allow before she stepped out of the car.


    With every step, she felt like her knees were going to give out, and she wasn''t even sure if she was going to make it to the door.


    "This is crazy..."


    Pulling open the door to her restaurant, she couldn''t find it within herself to be happy with the full house she had in her restaurant, or be annoyed by the tant stares she was receiving from men.


    All she noticed was the gray-haired Asian woman sittingfortably in a booth in the corner of her restaurant, with a te of tempura that looked like it''d hardly been touched. "Is it not to your liking...?" Sei asked hesitantly in Japanese. Her mother finally looked up, and Sei could see that even though she had aged, she was still beautiful and no worse for wear.


    She wore a dark red dress with a bold ck line down the center, and a sweater that was draped over her slender shoulders.


    "Out of practice it seems." Her mother replied in english.


    "O-Only a bit..." Sei muttered with a red face.


    In an instant, her mother looked her up and down, and immediately disapproved of what she saw. "Why are you wearing such an outfit when you''re already over thirty and you''ve gained a substantial amount of weight?"


    Her words easily pierced her daughter''s heart, and for the first time in a long time Sei felt like she was a child being scolded. "I was just out with some friends and I-"


    "Sit down, your rear is drawing too much attention."


    Just as she''d said, every man in Sei''s restaurant who''d gone through puberty was looking at her incredibly voluptuous and charming figure. She quickly sat down out of embarrassment, and covered her chest to protect it from further scrutiny.


    "I suppose I should ask how you''ve been." Her mother said robotically. It seemed as though she was only asking out of formality and not genuine interest, but Sei gave her a crash course in the past twenty years nheless. She was particrly vague when it came to her rtionship with Minoru ending and the years where she lived with her former boss, but other than that she told her everything.


    Whether or not it went in one ear and out the other, she couldn''t say.


    "But... how did you find me?" Sei asked. Her mother Ayame scoffed as if she found that question to be absolutely ridiculous.


    "Your rtionship with that... boy is everywhere. It took a two minute search on the inte to find this restaurant."


    "Ah, I see... A-And he''s not a boy. He''s a very dependable and loving man."


    "He''s... nevermind." She said dismissively.


    Sei''s mind was flooded with various questions, ranging to why her mother was looking for her to if her father was even still alive.


    But for some reason, she could not bring herself to ask any of them.


    "Have you ever had any thoughts ofing back to our family?"


    "W-What?"


    The words Sei least expected to hear out of her mother''s mouth, seemed to fly out so casually without any real concern. "I-I have but I thought that I wasn''t wee..."


    "Yes well, there are ways around that." "A-Around...?" By now, Sei had no idea where this conversation was headed, and she''d practically given herself whish on this emotional roller coaster. Ayame fixed her clothes and continued to speak in the same empty and emotionless tone. "I''ll be brief. Your father''spany has encountered a bad stretch of lucktely and money is tight. If you make a donation to him, he and I will forgive your prior embarrassments and you can return home."


    If one listened closely, they could hear the sound of Sei''s gentle heart breaking into pieces. "You''re... asking me for money...?"


    "I''m giving you a chance toe home and stop disgracing yourself here. Being seen on tv in the arms of someone young enough to be your son is hardly bing of someone your age."


    "I-I..."


    "I could understand if you are just doing this for financial security, as I''m sure someone like him has given you quite a sum to y around with. As long as you use two million dors of that money to help your father out of his hardships, you cane home and you won''t need to-"


    "You don''t even respect Mchi... but now you''re asking me to use his money to help keep your lights on... how can you be so heartless...?" Sei asked in a choked voice. Thinking back on it now, Ayame had always been like this. As long as Sei did what she was told, her mother would shower her with praise and affection and proim her to be the greatest daughter. But the moment Sei fell below the top 1% of her ss or showed interest in something deemed to be low ss, her mother''s deluge of affection would vanish like a trick of the light. It was embarrassing that she had never paid attention to those things until yearster. "You forget yourself. You have already proven once before that your taste in men is deplorable when that first miscreant left you, do you require another hard lesson?"


    "Mchi is nothing like Minoru! He''s taken care of Serana and I, even when he didn''t have to and he-"


    "Yes, yes, I''m sure that dating a rich young boy like that must be very exciting for you, but how long do you think you can hold his attention for?


    You''ve already failed to keep one man''s eyes on you when you were much younger, so how much more chance do you have now? I wouldn''t be surprised if he had his eyes on a younger girl already."


    Ayame''s words cut deeply, and even though Sei knew that they werepletely unfounded, her mind drifted to the memory of Annalise, Luna and even Bianca. The girls were extremely beautiful and their bodies were younger, firmer, and slimmer. She''d told herself that she was okay with him having other girls, but was that wrong of her to do?


    He''d always told her if she ever stopped being okay with it he would put all of his focus back into her, but what if things had changed and he couldn''t leave them?


    What if when it came down to it, his love for them was inferior to his love for her?


    Ayame suddenly twisted her face up in disgust and pushed over a pile of napkins toward her daughter.


    "Tsk, clean yourself up. You''ve always been such an overly sensitive girl."


    At first, Sei didn''t know what she was talking about, but then she touched her face and realized that she had started crying at some point. But when exactly that was, she couldn''t say. With trembling hands she reached out for a tissue, and a soft feminine hand was ced over hers. "I thought that was you, Sei. Why are you crying?"


    Through teary eyes, Sei saw a young woman with unusual white hair and red eyes wearing a baseball cap and sunsses. The one holding her hand was a younger girl with chocte brown skin and ck hair tied up in two buns.


    "Ah, h-hello girls."


    Embarrassed, Sei quickly wiped her face of tears and tried to put on a brave face to no real avail. "What''s the matter? Who''s making my favorite sister inw cry?" "N-No, I was just-" "Sister inw...? I see, you''re that boy''s sister." Aisha and Aubrey nced at the woman sitting opposite their sweet friend and realized that they hadpletely overlooked her. But given the overall mood and the condition that Sei was found in, first impressions were downright terrible. "What did you say to her?" Aisha asked aggressively. "You need to watch your tone youngdy, what I say to my daughter is none of your business."


    Aisha pulled down her sses and revealed bloody red eyes that were screaming murder. "I''m telling you it is, so repeat it step by step for me. I''m a bit hard of hearing."


    "Y-You''re..."


    "A friend of hers? Yes, I am."


    Even though Aisha was not consciously trying to scare this woman, being blessed by a god of war tends to have that effect on most people. Ayame''s face finally showed some trace of emotion as she stood up to leave.


    "I-I do not have to sit here and listen to this!"


    She reached into her purse and pulled out a business card before tossing it onto the table.


    "I''ll be in town until Friday, I hope you''vee to your senses by then."


    She stormed out of the restaurant without even bothering to pay for or finish her meal, but it looked like Aubrey had one of those things covered already. *Chewing happily* "This ce''s tempura really is the best! It''s always worth the drive."


    For some reason, after everything that she had heard today, the sight of Aubrey stuffing her cheeks happily did wonders to lift her spirit. Tears fell from her face once again, but these ones were far more lighthearted then before. Aubrey finished thest of the dish, and picked up a napkin to wipe Sei''s face. "You owe us a story time, yea? But no more crying this time, my brother would be crushed if he saw you like this." n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Idk if this chapter gonna hit too close to home for anybody so I apologize in advance AnathaShesha


    Suy ngh? c?a ng??i t?o

 Chapter 102 Skill Issue

    102 Skill Issue


    "So... that''s what happened. I.. don''t know how to feel anymore." Sei admitted. She had given the young couple a rundown of everything that her mother had said to her, and it was even more difficult to hear the words out of her own mouth.


    Her story had to be paused several times due to her own inability to speak over her own tears.


    When the young couple heard about how terrible Sei''s mother was to her, they regretted not telling her off a bit more or maybe even stabbing her before she left.


    It was easy to tell which girl was thinking what. n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "You''re not actually thinking of giving her money, are you? Not after everything she''s said about you and my brother." "N-No, of course not... I wouldn''t give that amount of money to her even if I did have it." Contrary to what Ayame believed, Sei had not allowed Mchi to give her any money no matter how much he offered. She never wanted to seem like some sort of gold digger, and she never wanted their rtionship to be based on what he could do for her. "But she has worried me a bit... about Mchi and the security of our rtionship..." "What?? Why?" Aisha asked. "Well he has other women now, so I... keep thinking that I will lose his attention." It was a terrible thing to think about especially after she had already told herself she was secure in their rtionship. But insecurities linger in the hearts of every man and woman, especially a thirty seven year old divorcee. All that it needed was to be brought to the forefront by scathing and harsh words from a maternal figure. "Sei, you really don''t need to worry about that. My brother watches the same Christmas specials every single year and never gets tired of them." "I-I don''t know if these are quite the same things, Aubrey..." "Aren''t they? No matter how much time passes, my brother does not forget about the things that bring him joy and happiness. Thest thing you should worry about is losing his affection." Sei wanted to believe her, but she just wasn''t sure. "Are you going to tell him that you want him to break up with the other girls?" Aisha''s query seemed to suck the air out of the room, and Sei unsurprisingly froze up from the question that was already dwelling within the back of her mind.


    "No... I don''t want to do that." She admitted. Sei and Luna were like best friends by now, and she couldn''t knowingly separate her from the happiness that they both so rightfully deserved. And while she was still getting to know Annalise, she could see that she was a sweet girl who seemed to love Mchi just as much as she did.


    How could she deprive the man she loved of two women who desperately wanted the best for him?


    But in the same breath, she just hoped that he never forgot that she loved and adored him too.


    ''This would all be so much easier... if you were around, honey.''


    -


    Mchi was having the shitiest time of his entire twenty years of life.


    The fact that he was still keeping up his eternal night on the ind, as well as his pseudo avatar state, was causing an unbelievable amount of strain on his body. He now understood why Morgan had broken him so thoroughly before.


    If he tried to undergo this ordeal with his body from before, every muscle, vein, and bone he had would have ruptured 1,000 times over by now. While the burden he was facing now was not as great as it would have been before, it was still nothing to sneeze at. With every move he made to dodge or attack, he felt like one of his limbs were about to spontaneouslybust.


    BOOOOOMMM!!!


    Morgan plunged his molten sword into the ground, and a wave of fire and earth came crashing down on Mal like a tidal wave. ''Christ...''


    Mchi leapt just above the incendiary wave and for a brief second he wished that he didn''t have legs.


    The pain shooting through his legs was nightmarishly unfair. Morgan seemed to know that Mal was going through an unbelievable amount of pain every time he moved, and he took every opportunity to keep him jumping around like a grasshopper. "Fight through the pain,d! Be creative! Think about all of your powers and how best they can help you!!"


    The ming giant swung his sword to catch Mal in midair. Holding out his hands, Mchi created enormous ws made out of shadow that were the size of his own body.


    The de was caught without any real difficulty, but the more he utilized the power of darkness, the greater the strain on his mind and body became. Sheer determination was the only reason he was even still conscious. Grabbing onto Morgan''s sword, he pulled himself onto the de and began running up the length of it, his body a dark blur. 17:07


    Even though the mes were licking at his feet with every step, somehow it was bearable to him. Afterall, there was little that could hurt him as much as he could hurt himself. As Mchi traveled up the length of Morgan''s fiery sword and arm, the giant tried to swat him away with his free hand to no real avail.


    Frustrated, Morgan iled his arm up into the sky, finally seeding in dislodging his attacker.


    With Mchi sent flying into the air, Morgan held his sword above his head, and allowed gravity to pull his opponent''s body downwards, impaling him on his weapon. Or at least that is what would have happened, had he not bent his body at thest second and narrowly avoided being pierced. But despite the fact that he avoided the sword, Mchi felt blood traveling up his esophagus and trying to escape from his mouth. ''Can''t keep this up much longer...'' After a few hours of back and forth with neither side being able to gain a significant advantage, this training was about toe to an end very soon with Mchi aplishing nothing.


    While learning was always a lengthy and uphill process, he couldn''t afford that right now. Time was ticking down to the inevitable contest with Alex Heller, and he had to match four years worth of experience within a few days.


    ''One. Last. Push.''


    Mchi drew in an absurd amount of energy from the night around him. If Morgan wanted him to be creative, he would be creative. His body started floating in the air, and a mass of shadows started pooling in the sky beneath his feet. As the ming giant looked at the creature starting to take shape within the sky, he could not help but be sufficiently impressed. If Mal had this level of potential all along... his future was nearly blinding. "Didn''t know you could do that,d. " He admitted. "What do you call that monstrosity?"


    High in the sky above, Mchi was standing on top of an enormous six headed hydra made entirely of shadows, and it breathed and moved like a living creature.


    All twelve of it''s bright red eyes and rows of snakelike teeth sent shivers down even Morgan''s spine, but the excitement he felt from getting to sh against a creature like this was undeniable. If he wasn''t careful, he would get too excited and blow this ind off the map.


    High in the sky, Mchi held his hand up in the air, before dropping it down to his side. Morgan had asked him the name of his creature and he hadn''t reallye up with one, but with hisst bit of energy he gave it one that was a bit on the nose.


    The beast unleashed a horrifying cry that promised to burst the eardrums of any human within a dozen miles. As therge creature descended onto him, Morgan raised his sword and prepared to meet him head on, a warrior''s smile on his face.


    "Hahahaha! I knew there was something special about you,d! Come, let us honor our gods in battle!!!"


    - 3 Dayster


    Lamont swallowed his nerves as he pressed the button to travel to the most secure location in this base. ''Don''t know why boss can''t make her a little nicer since he''s got her under his thumb... She treats every other man but him like some kind of insect.''


    When the elevator doors opened, he found Joanne seated behind her desk, looking worse for wear then he''d imagined. As he''d already known, the leader of the dark angels hadn''t left her office for several days, apparently working on some new case that required her full attention. Lamont thought that maybe Alex would be more anxious since his woman was noting home, but he hardly seemed to care.


    Most likely due to the fact that he had a dozen more in his bed to rece her.


    ''And even then, I doubt that he would want her like this..''


    Director Joanne''s hair was frazzled, and she had dark bags on her eyes indicating that she hadn''t gotten much sleep. And judging by the scent wafting off of her, she hadn''t showered since she''d been here either.


    "How goes it, miss director?" He said in his usual mboyant and overly friendly tone. "You called for me?"


    Joanne casually looked up at the man who''d entered her office and gestured for him to sit down without even speaking. Lamont nced around at the trash can that was filled with takeout and empty liquor bottles. "I don''t mean to overstep but you should really try to take better care of yourself, director. Boss won''t like it if-"


    Whoosh!


    Bang!!


    Before Lamont could even sit down in his chair, he was grabbed by his neck and mmed against the wall as if he was no more than a rag doll.


    The golden light in her eyes and aura surrounding her body confirmed what shouldn''t have even been possible. ''Her powers are back... how?!'' Due to the fierce grip around his neck, Lamont could not ask the burning question on his mind but he hardly needed to. His eyes traveled directly towards her wrist and he almost shit his pants in fear. The silver thorny bracelet that should have been embedded in her wrist, was absolutely nowhere to be found. "How dare you mention that man''s desires to me as if I should give a damn about his sick fucking preferences? I''ll haul both your asses into Tarta-"


    Crack!


    Due to her anger over Lamont''s asinine statement, she put a bit too much pressure into her grip and practically reduced the bones in his neck to powder.


    His head slumped over a secondter, his eyes already dark.


    "...Damn it."


    Joanne let the man''s body drop down to the ground and she closed her eyes to send her archangel a silent apology. ''Sorry Cassiel... that really was an ident.''


    Checking her wristwatch, she punched in a few buttons before it began broadcasting to the squad she''d quietly been preparing over the course of these five days. "Begin preparations for operation skyfall; keep all radio chatter silent and be ready to move out at 2100."


    I figured I was going to get the question ''Why isn''t Mal using his other blessings?'' So I just wanted to rify that when Morgan said ''We can only be felled by powers equal to our own'' he was not joking, and it includes other blessings. Remmeber, his other powers do note from primordials, so they aren''t as strong. Also; Jujutsu Kaisen makes me sad.


    AnathaShesha

 Chapter 103 Operation: Skyfall!

    103 Operation: Skyfall!


    Before he was blessed, Alex Heller was an utter nobody. He was your typical, 29 year old, overweight, unattractive man who never left his home and spent all of his time in his gaming chair. Once upon a time, he was a person with big dreams and hopes, but years of repeated abuse from peers and teachers left him with social anxiety and a lingering disdain for the world.


    Frustrated, he threw himself into video games and the inte, and became a fairly well known troll. He would leave hatefulments on the posts of just about anyone who seemed to have a happier life than him, ranging all the way from homophobic and racial slurs to talking about people''s dead family members. In the more extreme cases he''d even driven a few small content creators and amateur writers to the brink of suicide. He felt that with every self righteous and happy person that he pulled from their pedestal was another way of absolving himself of his bitter past. If he didn''t get to be happy, why did they?


    When he was more kind and benevolent than anyone else, the world continuously stepped on him so was it not only fair that he got to step on others?


    But even then, he never was able to truly relive himself of his hatred since he could not take his revenge on the people who were responsible for his miserable fate. And then it happened. The world suddenly changed overnight, and he was one of the first humans to be blessed by a supposed higher being. And it was even a primordial!


    While Ouranos did not seem to have any real interest in him, that didn''t really matter. The greek god of the sky had acknowledged the fact that he was better than everyone else, just as he''d always known!


    When he awoke from the night of his choosing, he was a man born anew. With apletely new look, body, and terrible power, he decided to throw away his old name and adopted an entirely new persona. But before he could debut, he had to take care of old issues. The first thing he did the night he received his powers was track down all of his old bullies and snapped all of their necks. A few had children and were married, so he killed their families too so as not to leave any lose ends. With thest of his path buried, Alex Heller finally stepped out into the world!


    He was the true alpha male of this world, and there would never be anyone equal or above him, no matter what anyone else would say.


    "How can you think about something else at a time like this?"


    Alex''s mind suddenly snapped back to the present where he was being pulled into his bedroom by multiple well known celebrities. ''These were girls I couldn''t have even sneezed around before, but now they''re dragging me to my bedroom and begging for me to fuck them like dogs in heat.How ironic.''


    "Sorry girls, I''ll make sure you didn''t waste a drive." He said with his usual charismatic smile. He casually lifted all six women up and tossed them into his bed. The women watched him shrug off his suit jacket with hungry eyes and when he began to unbutton his white shirt they nearly fainted. "Which one of you wants to go first, hm?" "M-Me!"


    "No, me!"


    "You didn''te to my movie premiere like you promised, so you need to make it up to me!"


    Alex chuckled lightly and kicked of his shoes as he dragged his gaze over all of the beautiful women on his bed with a smile on his face.


    "I think I''ll start with...."


    Click.


    Click.


    Click.


    The familiar sound of heels echoing off of the marble flooring in his mansion caused Alex to pause. Turning around, he found a very familiar woman entering into his bedroom, but upon taking a closer look at her his joyful smile turned into a scowl.


    Joanne was one of his most prized conquests, and he kept her on a tighter leash than others due to the nature of her position in the government. She was initially investigating him for the disappearance of several women whom he''d identally broken in addition to his shadier business deals and reports of ckmail.


    But after knocking her out, he used a magical artifact called Genesis'' Thorns to make her a loyal dog that would never even dream of biting it''s master. "The hell are you doing? I told you not to appear in front of me without fixing yourself up, didn''t I? Get the hell out of here and change."


    The outfit Alex was referring to were Joanne''s usual clothes that consisted of ck dress pants, heels, a ck button down shirt, and a dark overcoat. Not to mention the fact that she had on no make up and her hair was currently tied up in a bun.


    To him she was no different from a man in this very moment. Surprisingly, Joanne did not immediately run away like she should have, instead she looked past him towards the women on the bed.


    "I''m gonna have to ask you girls to leave. The sooner the better."


    Smack!


    Alex closed the distance between the two of them in an instant and struck Joanne hard across the face. "The fuck is wrong with you? Are you acting out because I haven''t disciplined you for a couple days?!"


    Instead of being hurt by the fact she''d been hit, Johanne only smiled eerily as if she wasn''t bothered by it in the slightest. "Alex Heller. By decree of the dark angels, I am cing you under arrest."


    Suddenly, a squad of around sixty men covered in dark riot gear stormed into Alex''s room and pointed futuristic guns directly at his chest. "...What...?"


    He couldn''t follow this turn of events at all.


    The woman he''d held so firmly under his thumb for well over a year was not only back in control of herself, but she was trying to arrest him as well!


    His eyes shot towards her wrist and he saw that the artifact that should have ced her under his control, was no longer present. "What did you do... WHAT DID YOU DO!?!"


    CRASH!


    Alex''s booming voice shattered therge ss window located in his room, and shards of ss flew just about everywhere. Lifting up his hand, Alex held up the bodies of all of the girls in his bed and began to squeeze their bodies. "A-Alex..?"


    "w-What''re you doing!?"


    "I-It hurts, stop it!"


    "I want to go home!"


    Alex seemed to be immune to the cries of these women and continued to hold them hostage without so much as batting an eye.


    "You motherfucking sons of bitches... All of you better get the fuck out of my ce right now unless you want these sluts to put a new coat of paint on my walls...!"


    Joanne smiled beautifully, as if she were waiting for this moment ever since she''d arrived. "Perfect. I was so desperately wishing that you would note quietly."


    "You cun-" n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Huge white wings burst from Joanne''s back and she brought her fist against his jaw before he even realized what hit him.


    As the woman blessed by the archangel of speed himself, there was not a mortal who breathed who was faster than her. Alex flew out of the empty window like a kite with it''s strings cut, and the women floating above the bed dropped down harmlessly. "Two of you secure the hostages, the rest of youe with me to apprehend the perp. Weapons are cleared hot."


    Joanne leapt out of the window mere seconds after giving her orders, and she was followed by fifty eight of her men. While most were not able to fly, their riot gear was equipped with jetpacks that carried them out of the window and into the night. Alex Heller lived in avish penthouse located in the heart of downtown Georgia. The entire downtown area had been closed of by the dark angles, and a perimeter had been set up to keep civilians away.


    Joanne was prepared for him to be rather noisy, so the safer she made things the better. Alex hadnded right smack on top of a car that was parked on the side of the street. But instead of looking like he''d suffered damage, he was nkly staring up into the sky, like he was lost in his own mind. ''Why is this happening...? I''m your chosen one, right? Then why don''t these insects know their ce yet?''


    Above his head, a swarm of over fifty men hovered in the sky, led by the very woman who he''d once had whimpering underneath him like a rodent. It was a detestable sight. "Light him up."


    At Joanne''smand, the dark angels fired their weapons without an ounce of restraint, and bright blue beams of energy rained down on Alex without any sort of end in sight. Each st felt like a million charges of a stun gun rolled into one, and Alex''s perfect body was showing clear signs of second degree burns. The pain was utterly horrible, but through it he was able to reach enlightenment and gained a true understanding of his purpose. ''I see... I''ve been hiding my superiority... that was my mistake.''


    ''Instead of trying to be the hero of these apes, I should have established myself as their overlord.''


    ''I''ll correct this... starting with every single one of you.''


    Suddenly, Alex''s eyes glowed a blinding cobalt blue, and the clouds overhead swirled and darkened. Joanne looked up, and her face darkened as a F4 ss tornado formed out of thin air.

 Chapter 104 Alex Heller vs. Director Joanne!

    104 Alex Heller vs. Director Joanne!


    "Fucking prick." Joanne growled under her teeth when she saw that Alex was clearly trying to take this city off the map rather than let himself be taken in.


    The single tornado he created suddenly split into four, and started ripping through buildings, sending cars flying, and tearing up the road. The dark angels who had been firing upon him relentlessly before, were suddenly being swept up by the fierce winds and flung about as if they were rag dolls. "Men, evacuate if you can! Leave the subjugation to me!"


    Joanne ordered her men to get clear just as Alex picked himself up from the molten wreckage of the vehicle. The man blessed by Ouranos saw the man who were fleeing away from the scene and shook his head in denial. "Where are you going, apes?"


    Bang!


    Bang!


    Bang!


    Enormous bolts of lightning suddenly dropped down from the sky out of nowhere, frying the men who were trying to escape and sending them tumbling towards the ground. "Monster!!"


    Johanne flew through the air and unleashed a shower of blows at Alex''s body. His skin was tough and durable, but Joanne seemed to be getting through his defenses without much difficulty. "Bastard! Son of a bitch! Motherfucker! I''ll haul you in if it costs me everything!!" She roared. Her emotions had begun to bubble, and memories of all of the physical and mental abuse she suffered at the hands of this man began to y back, fueling her rage. Alex was trying and failing to avoid her onught, and he would call down more bolts of lightening with the hope of striking her, but Joanne danced out of the way every time. But finally, she made a mistake. Joanne threw a sidekick with her right leg, but that was exactly what Alex seemed to be waiting for. Catching her leg with his arm, he smiled as if he''d just gotten the checkmate. "What good is all of that speed if you''re just going to be fucking predictable?"


    Raising his arm, he brought his elbow down directly onto Joanne''s knee, shattering it with minuscule effort. The screams of the director were absolutely heartbreaking to hear, but Alex seemed to not only find them enjoyable, but arousing. "Gods, I''ve missed those whimpers. Let me hear more." Alex punched Joanne hard in the side and cracked two of her ribs easily. The force of his punches sent her flying out of his grasp, and she crashed headfirst into a cement wall.


    Booom!!


    As soon as the dust cleared, Alex was standing over her once again with his bare foot on herface. "This is where you belong, bitch. Underneath me. Don''t ever forget-"


    "Shut the fuck up!!"


    Suddenly, Joanne began to release a golden light from her body and she grabbed Alex by his foot and twisted it hard, breaking it.


    In the brief moment she created for herself, Joanne was able to roll out from underneath him and released a st of golden energy from her palm that briefly disoriented Alex. With one leg ruined and her breathing off bnce, she had to be more careful about how she continued the fight from here on out. Alex was dangerous in every sense of the word, and he hadn''t even gotten serious so far. She had to pull out all the stops if she was going to live to see another day. ''Fuck taking you in, I''ll just kill you!'' The glow surrounding Joanne became brighter and brighter until she was blinding to look at. The light surrounding her suddenly dimmed, and she was revealed to have gone through a bit of an outfit change. Her body was adorned in heavenly white and gold armor the likes of which were only worn by the highest ranking members of the white city. The symbol of the cross was embedded within her chest, and each of her hands wielded white nunchucks that were inscribed with heavenly runes. An additional pair ofrge snowy white wings seemed to have formed from her back, and they allowed her to hover easily in the air without a sound. Alex finally blinked the sunspots out of his eyes and he saw Joanne in a way that he had never seen her before. It annoyed him to no end. "When I told you to change, I meant-"


    BANG!


    As soon as the insulting words left his lips, Joanne appeared in front of him and struck him hard across the jaw with her nunchucks. A blunt weapon moving at a speed of 0.005 seconds was worse than a shot from a cannonball, and Joanne easily decimated his lower jaw, reducing it to meaty chunks. Alex couldn''t even process what happened. One second he was speaking normally, the next he couldn''t. But he had very little time to investigate before he suddenly felt a terrible cracking pain in his back, and his body was flung into the air. ''What...?'' For some reason, he could no longer feel his legs, and it was crystal clear to him that Joanne had broken his spine with one blow from those annoying little weapons. Faster than his eyes could follow, she bashed in both of his arms with ridiculous expertise and left them mangled and crooked. When his body finally hit the ground, his head was the only past of his body that he could still move, but Joanne stomped on his skull with extreme prejudice and ground his face into the damaged pavement. "You disgusting piece of garbage. I should send you to hell after all of the things that you have put me through!"


    Raising her weapon above her head, she prepared to end the life of the man who had caused her such indescribable grief and misery. "Die."


    Before her weapons connected, an unthinkable amount of dread and terror filled her body, and she flew backwards on pure instinct. BOOOOMMM!!!


    A pir of cobalt blue energy shot out of the body of Alex and pierced the ck sky overhead. Suddenly, Joanne''s body was ovee with a terrible burden, and she felt as if the weight of the world had been forced onto her shoulders. Her body and everything else around her was crushed down into the ground. Joanne struggled with all of her might, but all she seeded in doing was lifting her head off the pavement. Alex had somehow fully recovered from Joanne''s brutal string of attacks, and not only were his limbs straightened back out, but his jaw had fully healed as well.


    His body now had a slight grey tint to it, and embedded in his chest was a glowing blue symbol of a hand with the eye in the center of it, surrounded by white wings. "ytime''s over, bitch." Alex growled. With every step that the blessed took towards her, Joanne''s panic became more and more intense.


    She didn''t want to die like this. She didn''t want to die at the hands of somebody like him!


    If she couldn''t defeat him with her own hands then she would never recover the dignity that was so cruelly taken from her. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    She still had so many mistakes that she wanted to atone for, and so many people that she wanted to apologize to. Joanne continued to struggle and tried to push herself up from the ground, much to the hrity of Alex. "You should have just epted your inferiority and walked away when you had the... chance?"


    Alex tilted his head in confusion, but Joanne didn''t really understand why. All of the sudden her body sank into the ground beneath her, and before she knew it she was somewhere else entirely. Looking up, she found herself in the arms of a young man looking at her with sympathetic orange eyes. She was suddenly reminded of a promise that was made to her a few days ago, that she hadn''t even bothered to remember. And now that she was seeing this young man again, her surprise was immeasurable. "Sorry bout this, director. Probably should havee a little sooner."


    He could see that her body was in terrible condition, and her leg was still bent at a ridiculous angle. He wanted to let Joanne handle this on her own if she could, since she understood exactly what she was fighting for, but it didn''t matter in the end. If he had waited even a few more seconds, she would have died.


    "H-How did you-"


    "YOU!!"


    Joanne and Mchi looked down from atop the ruined building they were on and found Alex Heller staring back at them from the street making a furious expression. "Hold that thought for now, Director." Mchi ced Joanne down on the mostfortable pile of rubble he could find and stood up while stretching his body. "You can''t beat him, kid. Just get us both out of here so that we can see another day." She muttered.


    "...Nah, I''m cool."


    Dark shadows began to crawl up Mchi''s body right before her very eyes, and encased him in armor that seemed to be made from the boundlessness of the night itself. "Hey Shear? Time to wake up girl, there''s an enemy."


    ''Ene...my...? Ene...my...!'' There was suddenly a burst of pure white light from Mal''s forehead, and his contracted beast shot out like a bullet towards the strange glowing man on the ground.

 Chapter 105 Malachi Saint Vs. Alex Heller!

    Chapter 105 Mchi Saint Vs. Alex Heller!


    "What the fuck is that..?" Alex had never seen anything quite like Shear before, and the mere sight of her was enough to give him pause. But unfortunately, he had severely underestimated the speed at which the creature moved. In the blink of an eye, it traveled from the top of a ruined building to the street directly beside Alex. Luckily for him, he was able to react fast enough to swing his arm out like a battering ram and crush the beast''s head.


    Or at least that was what should have happened. The creature shattered into several fragments of light like some sort of illusion before it disappeared from view. "The hell was- GYAAAAAA!!!!"


    Before Alex could even register what happened, huge dark ws pierced through his stomach and raised him into the air. In this form, nothing was supposed to be able to hurt him, and yet he had been so easily stabbed by this utter monstrosity. "You should save some for me, Shear. I didn''t go through all of that hell for nothing, did I?" Hearing an annoyingly familiar voice, Alex looked up into the sky just in time to see Mal''s fisting towards his face. BOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMM!!!


    The shockwave that ensued when Mal struck Alex ripped through their surroundings, cracking concrete and further destroying the buildings nearby. Alex was sent flying, and Shear looked mildly disappointed that she had allowed her prey to escape. "It''s alright girl, things aren''t quite over with yet." Mchiforted. For some reason, his words seemed to have given her a considerable pick me up, and she flexed her des in anticipation. Almost on cue, there was arge explosion and Alex had fully recovered from the surprise attack inflicted on him, but he looked a little different. His hair was now seemingly electrified and white lightning was coursing over his entire body.


    "He''sing." Mal warned. "Hisss..."


    Running forward, lightning trailed from Alex''s footsteps as he leapt up into the air and held out his hands. Twin bolts of lightning found their way into his palms, taking the form ofrge spears that he could wield with ease. There was a reason Alex Heller was seen as one of the world''s best. Despite his godlike power, he was never truly satisfied with just that, and he worked his fingers to the bone so that he would reach an undeniable peak. Run of the mill blessed couldn''t be allowed to think they were equal to him, could they?


    He had to surpass them in every single area.


    And it was all for moments like this where he could crush those beneath him with overwhelming ability. "I SHOULD HAVE KILLED YOU LONG BEFORE NOW, BUT YOU CAN BE SURE AS SHIT I''LL SAVOR IT!"


    Just before Alex could attack him, Mchi reached into the shadows and pulled out his newly acquired iklwha that he received from Luna. Raising both above his head, he protected himself as he and Alex shed weapons in another explosive confrontation.


    BOOOOOOOOMMMMM!!!


    As a testament to his strength and ability, Alex was locked in a deadlock with both Mchi and Shear. The supposed horror had both of her shoulder des locked against Alex''s electrified spear, and it was very clear that she was feeling some residual shocks.


    "You bastard, I always knew you were only focused on taking from me! I should have killed you long ago you fucking insect!" Alex roared. "You''re insane. I had no interest in you until you stole from Luna. For that, I''ll tear your fucking head off."


    Mchi did not back down, and continued to push back against his opponent with an icy demeanor. Maybe it was how casual Mchi seemed to be about all of this, but Alex felt himself getting angrier as the seconds ticked by."Fuck that bitch!"


    A terrible sense of danger began to trickle out of Mchi''s body. Even though his armor did not typically have any distinguishing features, a dark mouth filled with serrated teeth appeared on his face.


    His long dreadlocks that were floating in the breeze suddenly grew pointed and barbed ends, turning his hair into a lethal weapon. "Shear...e back inside." He ordered in a demonic voice. The unknown creature had never heard her master sound like this before, and for the first time she became slightly afraid. She left in a hurry without even putting up a fuss, freeing up Alex''s left arm and doubling the amount of danger Mchi was in. But he honestly could not have cared less. His hand now free, Alex stabbed Mchi directly in the stomach, but was rmed when the nightmarish apparition did not even flinch.


    "What the hell is wrong with you...?"


    Instead of crying out, Mchi used his newly weaponized dreads to pierce his opponents arm, where they embedded themselves inside and locked him in ce. Mchi dropped his weapons back into the shadows at his feet a momentter, and head butted Alex with extreme prejudice, shattering his nose. The man blessed by Ouranos was justifiably stunned, but his headache was only just beginning. His weapons no longer in his hands, Mchi started striking his opponent in the face with his fists, every blow apanied by the sound of an explosion and a sonic boom. For the crime of disrespecting someone he loved, he would beat Alex to death by any means necessary. Alex knew that he couldn''t just sit here and suffer these attacks without any sort of retaliation, so he called down two F5 tornadoes with the goal of forcing separation. A rational headed man would have stepped away by now, but Mchi''s mind was no longer interested in rationality. Nothing else mattered to him besides killing Alex. When the cyclones came close enough, Mchi was lifted into the air, but his barbed hair was still embedded in Alex''s arm, forcing him toe along for the ride.


    Even while being flung about as if he were no more than a rag doll, Mchi was still adamantly wing and punching at Alex. But being in the center of this storm had revitalized the leader of true sky, and he was finally done suffering through these attacks. He casually ripped out Mchi''s hair that was embedded in his arm, bing even more irritated by the pain. n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Whirling him around by the hair, Alex hurled Mchi''s body into the air and channeled another of his powers. An enormous piece of hail the size of a bolder fell from the sky, crushing Mal and burying him beneath the icy rubble. Bang!


    Mal admittedly took a moment to recuperate, as the act of suddenly being struck by such arge object hadpletely knocked the wind out of his body. Pushing the icy boulder off of him, he shakily wed back to his feet when he felt an overbearing sense of dangering from above him.


    "ROOOOAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!"


    "SSSCCCREEEEEEEEE!!!!"


    "GUUUOOOOOOOOO!!!!"


    Looking up into the sky, Mchi found three titans of enormous size waiting for him to stand up.


    One was a construct in the shape of a dragon whose body was made up entirely of unstable yellow lightning. Beside it was a falcon made from the most turbulent winds imaginable.


    Thest of the trio was a golem in the shape of a yeti with a clear icy body that froze the air around it with it''s mere presence. In the center of the creatures was Alex Heller, looking rather proud of his creations and staring at Mchi with an expression filled with contempt. "Game''s over. Shame you can''t stick around to see how I''ll fuck this world after you''re gone. But you don''t need to worry, I''ll keep those bitches around youpany."


    Mchi ground his teeth together so hard that they nearly cracked. In his entire life, he had never met a more infuriating person. He had to die by any means necessary, and he didn''t care what he had to do to turn that into reality. ''Morgan told me not to do this too much but... this is fine.''


    He reached into himself, and tapped into the well of power that he had been storing from the night around him, and he did something that he had only done once before on a much smaller scale. He swallowed all of the light within ten miles. His body became nothing more than a vortex that sucked in every source of illumination that it could find. The surrounding area became an empty mass of ck where nothing was visible, except for the starry night above, and the man who seemed to be made of night below. In his mind, Mchi recalled an event that he hadn''t thought about after it happened. In Sei''s restaurant, he was approached by a little boy who was excited to see his powers and asked him a question that he initially did not have the answer to. ''Hey mister, are you strong like Alex Heller?'' ''Didn''t have an answer for you then, so I think it''s about time we find out, no?''

 Chapter 106 Rise Of A New Order

    Chapter 106 Rise Of A New Order


    If Morgan saw what Mchi was attempting to do, he would undoubtedly headbutt him as hard as he could and call him stupid. Sometimes, one''s desire to achieve something can be so great, that they ignore safety, logic, and reasoning. For these instances, there is nothing of more importance to the individual, than creating an oue through their own force of will. Mal could so clearly feel that what he was doing was not meant to be done. But he ignored the continuous warning signs that his body was sending him, and focused on creating the future that he desired most. The death of Alex Heller.


    Within the darkness, all of the shadows that Mchi had created began to stir and ssh like an ocean. An enormous construct began to take shape out of the liquid mass of shadow. It had the face of a beautiful and captivating woman with empty ck eyes and glowing irises. It''s body was that of a powerful lion with taught muscles and massive ws that gouged out the earth beneath it. Along the entirety of it''s ck body, currents of dark electricity traveled along the entirety of it''s body. There were four angelic wings sitting on the back of the creature, alight in golden me. While Alex''s constructs were all around twenty meters tall, Mchi''s was closer to forty. And it was easy to see that Alex was annoyed to no end by this development. Mchi''s creature let out a horrifying screech, and it pounced on top of the three creatures with reckless animosity. As it took the neck of the eastern dragon in it''s mouth, it ripped the wings off of the bird made from wind, and began to melt the yeti with heated wingbeats. Alex and Mchi had yet to move from their positions, both of them floating in the air struggling to catch their breath. Both men had pushed their powers to the absolute limit and were justifiably exhausted. But they both had to keep up appearances so that their opponent did not smell blood in the water and capitalize. Alex was controlling his breathing so as not to appear winded, but he was indeed out of breath and weary.


    Mchi was undoubtedly worse off, and if Alex could look underneath his armor, he would find bright red blood running from his ears, nose, and mouth. His head was throbbing, his body in shambles, but his eyes were still burning with an undeniable determination. The retribution for Luna that he so desperately trained for was nearly within his grasp, and he would not allow this opportunity to slip away from him.


    As if both men had the same thought at once, they flew at each other simultaneously, each of them so desperately craving victory. BOOOOOMMMMMM!!!!


    The shockwave caused by their collision was unlike any that had urred before, and it was nothing short of deafening. While Mchinded a hard knee to the gut, Alex was able to get off a clean blow to Mal''s jaw. With both of their blessing''s exhausted, the two men were relegated to a good old fashioned slugfest in the sky. Mchi suffered a hard kick to the temple and briefly lost focus, causing his altitude to drop before he corrected himself. But Alex was able to capitalize on that momentary weakness, and tackled Mal back down into the shattered earth below. As their creature constructs raged in the background, both men remained locked in their own bitter struggle. Alexnded on top of Mal, unleashing a storm of blows on to the starry young man beneath him. Mchi lifted up his leg and flung his opponent off of him, giving himself a much needed moment to breathe.


    Crawling onto all fours, he leapt at Alex like a rabid animal, attacking out of sheer desperation and exhaustion.


    "I am going to fucking kill you... if it is thest thing I do!" Alex roared as he lunged at Mal.


    Once again, the two caught each other at the same time, both of them stunned by unfairly powerful blows.


    This time, two distinctively loud cracking sounds rang out into the air. Alex had a shattered jaw, but Mchi had cracked a few bones in his neck.


    The two of them hit the ground a short distance away from each other, unmoving and breathing shallowly. A few secondster, both of their constructs as well as their transformations, disappeared. Mchi''s bright orange eyes fluttered open, and he wed his way towards Alex with energy that he didn''t have. Long after he should have stopped moving, his orange eyes were still burning with hate as he unfurled dark ws from his fingertips. ''You disgusting fucking bastard... you stole from my girl... you vited Director Joanne...you ckmailed, trafficked, and stole from anyone you came across... you''ve long stopped deserving the life you live.''


    As he finally reached Alex, Mchi raised a wed hand above his head, and prepared to avenge the suffering of everyone who''s lives had ever been ruined by this man. But just as he prepared to end the final blow, a thin white rapier pierced his palm.


    "That''s quite enough, don''t you think? We blessed shouldn''t be killing each other."


    Somehow, before Mal even realized it, a man he had never seen before appeared directly between himself and Alex. He was a tall man, with long blonde hair as bright as sunshine, and eyes the color of the greenest pasture.


    He wore white robes that were like something out of the pope''s own closet, and the insignia on it was that of a man on top of a mountain, with worshippers lying below. "Who... the hell?"


    "Sorry about this but would you mind dying for our cause? I highly doubt you will join us and you could be quite the troublesome man in the future."


    The man suddenly pulled his rapier out of Mchi''s hand and pointed it right between his eyes. ''Am I really going to die... Without even knowing who kills me..?'' n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Just as the rapier pierced past the firstyer of his skin, there was a gust of wind and a sh of golden light, and Mal was suddenly several feet away. Director Joanne had been watching all of Mchi''s battle and she was incredibly moved by the way he fought until the very end. But when the man d in white robes showed up, she knew that she could no longer act as a simple spectator. "You''ve finallye out of hiding." Joanne said in a disgusted voice. "I take it that this bastard is a member of your fanatical little group?"


    The man looked down at Alex and lifted him up via telekinesis.


    "No, he is not. I must admit, he yed the role of America''s sweetheart so well that we didn''t even think to recruit him, but in light of all I''ve learned recently, I think he''ll fit in well with us."


    Joanne scoffed like she found this whole ordealughable. "All of you are crazy. You''ll all end up in Tartarus sooner orter."


    For the first time, the unknown man showed a displeased expression as he pointed his de at the leader of the dark angels. "That little box that the humans have made for us in the sea? I certainly think not, and the fact that you would align yourself with those beneath you is repulsive."


    "We were not created to rule over the humans, we are supposed to protect them!"


    "Protect? They who''s hearts are so filled with bile and malice that they find a new subspecies of themselves to hate every five years?


    They who have no interests aside from the destruction of one another, and the decimation of the they live on? They are not worthy of our benevolent ''protection''." He said scathingly. The man''s sword suddenly disappeared from his hand and he held out his arms in a weing embrace. "Do not be blind. Confess your superiority over them in the new age and have them serve us!"


    As a response Joanne merely spit on the ground, and the strange man turned up his face in disgust. "Foolish and deluded woman, the day in which we will take center stage is soon toe. I pray to my goddess that youe to your senses before then but if you do not..."


    He did not finish his statement, but only a fool would have difficulty understanding where his words were going.


    Touching Alex''s shoulder, he took a short nce at the exhausted and bleeding Mchi, and hoped that maybe his words would have taken root in him as well.


    The two men vanished in a sh, and Joanne finally showed some traces of rxing.


    Looking down at Mchi, she wiped away the blood that was running from his nose and ears. "Who... was that...?" He asked wearily. Talking had never before felt so exhausting, but he had to know just who that guy was that had tried to kill him. Joanne wondered if she should tell Mchi this given the fact that it was highly ssified information, but she decided that he deserved to know this much after saving her life earlier.


    "His name is Arias, and he is the leader of The New Day. It is a terrorist organization who believes in blessed supremacy and conspires to overthrow the current state of the world."


    The existence of Arias and The New Day was a secret among secrets, and only a few very powerful figures within the governments knew about them.


    If their existence became known, it would be terrible. Arias was a charismatic speaker, and it was so easy for him to sway other blessed to his side, and none of his points were necessarily incorrect. It would be easy for him to sway a great number of blessed to his cause. On the other hand, if humans found out that the ones responsible for their protection instead wished to rule them, their idolization would quickly turn into fear, and then anger.


    But because they could not explicitly pinpoint which among the blessed had these negative outlooks, they would shift their hate to all of them indiscriminately.


    And when the humans projected their hatred and inferiority onto the blessed who were caught in the middle, they would increase the likelihood of blessed joining Alias'' ranks. "But... I think it may be time for us to stop hiding the truth." She admitted.


    Joanne exined all of her thinking in great detail, but when she looked down into herp she realized that Mchi had lost the battle against his exhaustion, and passed out. "Damn kid... why did you ask me a question if you weren''t going to stay awake to hear the answer?" Despite her words, there was a short smile on her face that she would never show to anyone.


    She wiped the dust and debris out of his face, and got a proper look at him for the first time. "I can see why my daughter fell for you, since you really are quite handsome." She muttered. "It might be hypocritical of me to say this since I was never in Annalise''s life, but if you hurt her I will make you pay."

 Chapter 107 The Days After The Battle

    Chapter 107 The Days After The Battle


    After Alex Heller''s attempted arrest, the world fell into yet another state of turmoil.


    News of all of his crimes and his sh with Mchi took media outlets by storm, and America seemed to have suffered a very serious blow to the gut.


    Alex''s public image as a sweet golden boy was thoroughly tarnished when light of his reports came out. Everything from murder, to ckmail, to reports of trafficking, and to top it all of there were confirmed reports of him joining an unspecified terrorist organization.


    But of course, there must always be discord in life, and such arguments were never more prevalent than in onlinemunities.


    Diehard fans of Alex and inte conspiracy theorists immediately came to his defense, with arguments that were either repetitive or not very well thought out.


    ''There''s no way that any of this is true. I met Alex personally outside of a supermarket four years ago, there is no kinder man than him.''


    ''He must have offended some powerful people and now they''re trying to nder him by any means necessary. Don''t worry Alex, we won''t believe the lies!''


    ''If all of this is true, why is it onlying out now? Kind of hard to believe that all of these things were going on before, and no one said a peep.''


    Things became even more chaotic when those who had stories about Alex starteding forward, both human and blessed alike.


    After sharing their stories, they were used of taking payments from some shadowy organization, or even just seeking fifteen seconds of fame. While the whole world wasn''t like that, there was certainly a noticeable amount of people that were. And at the center of all of this, two questions were being asked. What kind of organization did Alex join?


    And why was Mchi Saint the one who tried to apprehend him?


    - n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    At Mal''s apartment, there was a knock at the door, and Serana got up from the couch to open it. Standing outside, she found Morgan Creed, and Bianca Tate.


    "Hell, he''s got another one?" Morgan said in surprise. "Lad was so hesitant to take other women at first that I never thought he''d get past two."


    A vein bulged in Serana''s forehead, and she tried to remember that this man was one of the most powerful beings in the world. So slugging him in the face was not exactly going to bring a fruitful oue.


    "No, this is Sei''s daughter." Bianca corrected. "Serana, right?"


    "That''s me." The pink haired girl said proudly. "I guess the two of you are here for the big doofus who hasn''t woken up yet?"


    "Indeed."


    "Yea."


    Two days ago, when Mchi disappeared off the ind in the middle of one of his breaks, Morgan and Bianca knew immediately that the time hade for him to put all of his training to good use. Morgan wished that he had more time, but unfortunately there was no such luck, and he just had to pray to Surtr that his prot¨¦g¨¦ would survive past the confrontation. Bianca was equally worried, but she had a bit more faith that Mal would not only survive, but he would win the battle. Serana led the two of them inside and they could see that as always, Mal seemed to have a full house.


    Aisha and Aubrey were seated on the couch, and Sei was in the kitchen cooking, and the dark circles underneath her eyes confirmed that she hadn''t been getting very much sleep.


    They exchanged simple pleasantries, and Serana led them to Mal''s bedroom. Inside, they found him lyingfortably in bed like he was sleeping lightly, but his chest, stomach, and arms all showed some signs of bruising. Sitting in a chair beside the bed was a young and very attractive woman with lots of tattoos wearing a simple unzipped hoodie and sweatpants along with a ck sports bra. She was sketching something into a notebook, and had both headphones in and ying at a loud volume, so she didn''t hear the three of theme in. Serana lightly tapped her on the shoulder and Anna didn''t even jump, she merely pulled out her earbuds and inspected the visitors carefully. Anna''s reaction to seeing one of the three most powerful men in the world was just like anyone would have expected. "Sup."


    "Hello... You wouldn''t happen to be Luna''s daughter by any chance, would you?" Morgan guessed.


    "Um... no?"


    Serana shook her head before sitting on the bed beside Mal. "Anna is Mchi''s actual girlfriend, and his only one who''s actually age appropriate."


    "I''m actually two years older than him." She added. Serana suddenly turned around and looked at Mal like he had a sickness. "Seriously... what is it with you and older women?"


    Morgan chuckled and held out his hand for Anna to shake. "Nice to meet you."


    "Same." She replied as she returned his shake. Bianca was a bit intimidated not only by Anna''s beauty, but also by her rough and unfriendly exterior. But nheless, she was able to swallow her fear and introduce herself as well, but Anna seemed to bergely unwilling to take her eyes off of her.


    It was rather unnerving for the timid Bianca. ''Scary, super scary!''


    Morgan casually looked down at the bed and his eyes showed a great deal of pity as he looked at Mchi''s state. The fact that his body''s bruising still hadn''t healed was a testament to not only everything that Alex had put him through, but also the fact that he had pushed his body so far beyond it''s limit that his regeneration was having a hard time functioning. "Have any of you heard anything about the battle? Or even how he ended up here?"


    "My mom got a call from some blocked number giving her a location of where toe and pick him up." Serana exined. "As for the fight... we don''t really know more than the rest of the world, only that he had to have given it his all." Anna muttered. Morgan shook his head regrettably as if he was displeased with this oue.


    "He''ll be upset when he wakes up and hears that Alex is still alive, I know a draw was thest thing he wanted."


    The girls all made ufortable faces and thought of just how bad Mchi''s reaction would be, but Serana suddenly had another question on her mind.


    "Those reports about him joining a terrorist organization... are those really true?"


    Morgan suddenly looked like he was reliving some bad memories and nodded his head regrettably. "Aye, most likely. Though ''terrorist'' isn''t exactly a word I would use to describe them."


    "Who are they?" Anna asked. "And how would you describe them?"


    Morgan rubbed his chin as he seemingly thought hard toe up with an answer. "The New Day are... a blessed supremacy group. And they are something like a murderous cult."


    -


    When Alex Heller woke up, he was in an unfamiliar room lying down on a hospital bed. He barely had a moment to take in his surroundings when an unfamiliar and overly cheerful voice reached his ears. "You''re awake! That''s good."


    Looking up, he found an unfamiliar man wearing purely white robes and a sympathetic smile. Irritated from waking up in unfamiliar surroundings, he immediately became hostile.


    "The hell are you? Where the fuck is this?"


    "Easy now, you''re among friends. My name is Arias, and I am leader of The New Day. We have brought you to a safe location where you can recover your injuries after your bout with Mchi Saint."


    shes of Alex''sst battle began to y back within his mind and he realized that he must have lost if this strange man felt the need to step in. It was a crazy and unbelievable turn of events, and yet his sense of reasoning was telling him that it was true.


    ''Unbelievable... Fucking unbelievable!''


    Swallowing his irritation, he ran his hands through his silver hair and nced at the man in weird robes.


    "The New Day, huh? Are you like a fan club of mine or something?"


    "No?" Arias tilted his head in genuine confusion.


    "We are a group that advocates for the supremacy of blessed over humans. We believe it is our fair and just right to rule over they who are so self-destructive."


    "Right, right. So you''re a cult who wants to recruit me then." He guessed. "Well, I don''t believe cult is a fitting term for us, more like bold idealists. But yes, we would like you to join us. Your powers can be of great service to our cause."


    Alex scoffed and shakily tossed the nkets off of himself as he climbed out of bed.


    "I will be in service to no one. I am no run of the mill blessed, blondie. I am the chosen of a primordial. To me, the rest of you are no different from humans. You''re all apes crawling through shit."


    For some reason, Alex no longer felt any need to hide his true thoughts or feelings. He was better than everyone else, so why on earth should he hide it?


    If any new world order was going to be established, it was going to be one with him at the top. Alex limped past Arias and headed directly for the door. "I see... so you have no intention to join us then?"


    "Unfortunately no, but thanks for patching me up. I''ll send you a fucking Christmas card or something."


    "Well then, that makes things simple."


    Slice!


    Before Alex''s hand could even reach the doorknob, Arias whirled around and generated a de of light from his hand. Alex''s head was lopped clean off, and both his body and head went tumbling to the floor.


    Arias casually picked up the rolling appendage by the hair and lifted it up until they were eye level. "I''m usually a bit more rational than this, but unfortunately yourparison of blessed to humans was much too insulting for me to let slide." He said with a sigh. He looked at Alex''s head and suddenly he didn''t feel like it was such a wasted effort. "Actually, I think I can use thister."


    Oblivious to the blood, he turned off the lights to the room and left while carrying Alex''s severed head. ''What a shortsighted man you were... couldn''t even recognize another primordial blessed when one was looking you right in the face.''

 Chapter 108 Intimacy

    Chapter 108 Intimacy


    The gentle sound of humming stirred Mchi from his deep sleep.


    A warm and soft hand was so gently caressing his face, and he almost didn''t want to open his eyes. He was almost certain in the event that he did, he wouldn''t get to be babied like this for much longer. And say what you will, but sometimes it''s nice to be treated tenderly by a girl, you know?


    A familiar scent of roses wafted into his nose, and he knew immediately just who was showering him with such love and care. Suddenly, the door to his room opened and he smelled another familiar woman enter. "You need some rest, Luna. You haven''t left his side for like five hours now." Anna said. "Has it really been that long...? I miss him so much that I hardly noticed it..."


    "Me too, but you know he wouldn''t want you to burn yourself out like this. Come into the living room with Sei and I." Luna sighed and admitted defeat before she tore her hand away from Mal''s face and stood up from her seat. She leaned down to ce a kiss on his forehead.


    "Wake up soon, my love. I miss you terribly."


    "You''re such a sweetheart."


    Luna let out a small yelp as Mchi wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into bed with him. "What''d I do to deserve such a sweet girlfriend, hm?"


    "Y-You.."


    "Go on, I what?" He said with a cheeky smile. Small tears formed in the corner of Luna''s pink eyes and she rested her head on his bare chest. "You''re stupid... that''s what you are."


    "Ah, totally understandable."


    Anna remained frozen in the doorway for a few seconds before her body moved on it''s own and she also flung herself on top of the two of them. Mchi ignored the dull pain throbbing throughout his body and focused solely onforting the two women in his arms. He wasn''t exactly sure how long he had been out for, but judging by their reactions it wasn''t a simple overnight nap.


    "Seems like I worried my girls a fair bit."


    "Yea, you''re the shitiest boyfriend I''ve ever had." Anna sniffled. "I agree, all you''re good for is making me worry." Luna added. Mchiughed despite his bruised lungs that were begging him not to and kissed both girls softly. "I''m sorry, I''ll make it up to you both however you want."


    If the girls had any demands, they didn''t voice them right at that moment. But he could be absolutely certain that they were going to remember thister ande to collect. "Are you girlsing out?"


    Sei suddenly poked her head inside the door and she nearly fainted when''s she found Mchi awake and holding both girls under his arms. Just as Anna had done, Sei practically catapulted herself into the bed and found herself on top of him. "d you''re here, love. I was starting to feel pretty iplete without you."


    "...Sweet talk won''t get you out of trouble."


    "I figured, but I had to try anyway."


    -


    After Mchi woke up, the girls were practically glued to him. When he got out of bed, they could see that some of the bruising around his ribs still had yet to heal, and he had lost a small amount of muscle mass. That really didn''t help to ease their nerves or make them feel better. When he was finally able to climb out of bed, he wanted to take a shower to help himself wake up, but the girls were worried about him experiencing sudden fatigue while inside. As a result, Luna dered her intention to join him in the shower. The silence that followed after her deration was nearly deafening, and Mal inwardly assumed her to be joking. Imagine his surprise when she started running water and pulled off her shirt and pants, oblivious to the shocked stares of the two other girls in the bathroom. n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    One of the perks of being blessed by one of the most beautiful deities to ever exist was permanent confidence in one''s looks and figure.


    Currently, Mchi''s body was only running at about thirty percent functionality, and 29.999 percent of that was going towards making sure that he did not get an erection. Despite the fact that Luna had stripped down to her underwear, her intentions were not sexual. She was genuinely concerned for Mchi and wanted desperately to help him, and he did not want to taint her gesture with dirty thoughts. He smiled kindly at her, and removed his ck sleep pants and nearly his underwear before he realized that there were additional eyes on his body. Sei looked like she was wrestling with the immorality of this situation, and contemted whether or not she was going to join. Anna seemed to have forgotten exactly where she was and if one looked close enough they could see two lines running down her face. One was blood from her nose, the other was drool from between her pink lips. "Are you guys going toe in too?" Mal asked. His shower was plenty big enough for the three of them to fit, so the only thing preventing them was there own willingness. After thirty seconds of no reply, Luna finally shrugged and removed thest of her undergarments, letting them fall to the floor. She stepped inside of the shower and gestured for Mal to do the same. He took a final look at the girls before removing his own boxers and stepping inside. The two of them stared at each other for a brief millisecond, before deciding to avert their eyes at the risk of losing control. This wasn''t about sexiness, it was about intimacy!


    As Luna prepared to wash Mal, there was a rustling sound outside before the door to the shower opened once again and Sei and Anna shyly stepped inside. Both girls were covering their bits, and their faces were a very unhealthy shade of red. Neither one of them had done anything like this before, but that wasn''t the sole reason why they were nervous. Sei could not help butpare her body to that of the girls around her, and Anna had never had girl friends before, but now she was naked in front of them.


    This was an entirely new experience for both of them. With Mchi in the center, Sei in front, and Luna and Anna behind his back, the young man was in absolute heaven.


    He had never been so grateful to be alive. "How long was I out for...?" Mal finally asked. "Four days." Luna said as she looked at the bruising along his back that was somehow even worse than the front. "The fight... What was it like?" Anna asked. She grew a bit morefortable the more steam umted inside the shower, and she had actually begun to wash him of her own volition. "...Sure you girls want to know?"


    Unsurprisingly, he received instantaneous nods that seemed to only be concerned with his wellbeing. "I won''t lie, loves. It was easily the hardest thing I''ve ever done."


    He told the girls in great detail everything that happened in his confrontation with Alex Heller. Everything from the extreme pain he felt when he used his powers, to the brutal sh their constructs underwent near the end. "And even after all that, I still couldn''t kill him." He growled. Suddenly, Luna ced a soft hand on his cheek and made it so that they were looking eye to eye. "Darling... I hope you know that you haven''t failed. Your training paid off splendidly, and you would have won had that man not shown up at thest second."


    It was clear by the look on Mal''s face that he didn''t actually feel a whole lot better."Luna, I-"


    "Why must you be so stubborn? The fact that you came out alive is all that matters, everything else can take a backseat."


    "He stole from you, he tried to kill me, he nearly got Opal and Nina killed. How am I supposed to let that go?"


    Luna wanted to tell Mal that those items could be reced and that his guild mates had forgotten all about the incident, but she couldn''t dismiss the attempt on his life. "You aren''t, and you''re not the only one who is upset that he''s still breathing, but look at the bright side of things." Sei suddenly hugged him and pressed her face against his chest. "You''re alive, we can touch you and you can touch us. For now, nothing else should matter."


    Anna was slower to disy her affection, but she also did not shy away. "I''m so proud of you for everything you tried to do, even if you scared the shit out of me. But I want to focus on us for a bit since we just got together... no terroists or archenemies or broken bodies."


    At the end of the day they hadn''t gotten the result they wanted, but it was far better than the alternative. Mchi was able to take the sincere words of his women to heart, and he smiled wryly in defeat as he embraced each of them. "I get it... I''m really lucky to have you girls."


    The four of them went back to showering not long after that, and the conversation became rtively light. Mal didn''t want to spoil the mood with all of these beautiful and soapydies surrounding him, so he alternated between cracking small jokes and heavy petting. But in the back of his mind, he was still thinking about Alex Heller and that organization he''d joined. Unable to let things go, he opened his mind to his blessing from Nyx and tried to find out where they may have been hiding. After a while, Anna noticed that Mal had fallen silent, and for some reason he looked like he''d seen a ghost. "Babe? What''s the matter?"


    Mchi''s eyes flickered between disbelief andplete absurdity. "My powers from Nyx... they''re gone."

 Chapter 109 Power Outage

    Chapter 109 Power Outage


    In the living room, Mal was sitting on the couch with all of the girls surrounding him. No matter how much he tried, his blessing from Nyx seemed to have disappeared into thin air. No darkness maniption, teleportation, or even shadow sight. It was as if he''d lost his blessing entirely. "Has anything like this ever happened before? To anyone?" Anna asked. Luna shook her head sadly as she continued to enjoy the feeling of being in Mal''sp.


    "Not to my knowledge. Our blessings are supposed to be part of us and they shouldn''t just... disappear."


    "Then maybe it''s not really gone, honey." Sei saidfortingly. "Maybe you''re just having a mental blockage."


    "Like performance anxiety?" Mal said emptily. "Umm... something like that?"


    The young man''s mood sank even lower and he threw his head back in defeat.


    There was another theory in the back of his mind that he was trying not to think about. What if Nyx had forsaken him?


    He believed them to have grown rather close, but what if that wasn''t the case? Was there something that he''d done in hisst battle with Alex that made her believe he was no longer worthy of her blessing?


    No matter how hard he tried, he couldn''t think of any possible exnation for this current dilemma. But when he recalled the love and warmth that Nyx had shown him, he couldn''t help but feel like he''d lost a lot more than just his powers. "Try not to think about it so much." Anna said. " Maybe it''lle back in the morning with some more rest."


    Mal nodded, although he wasn''t entirely sure this issue was that simple. For a while, he merely basked in the warmth of the girls until he remembered that there was something he''d been meaning to do. "Luna."


    "Hm?"


    "Think you can teach me how to synchronize with my contracted beast tomorrow morning? I want to-"


    """No!"""


    "...Why are all of you ganging up on me like this?"


    Anna: "What kind of idiot thinks about going back to training as soon as he wakes up from aa!?"


    Luna: "You''re on mandatory bedrest for four days minimum. Then I''ll think about letting youe back to training."


    Sei: "We will tie you down if we have to." N?v(el)B\\jnn


    ''...This is hot.'' Suddenly, Mal was having a hard time remembering what he was so depressed about a few seconds ago.


    Luna''s face became slightly flushed when she felt something poking her in the bottom and she jabbed Mal hard in the ribs."Are you listening to us?"


    "Mhm." She had the undivided attention of both heads. Mchi finally shook his mind free of dirty thoughts as he tried to weasel out of house arrest.


    "But I won''t do anything too strenuous, I just want to understand Shear a bit more."


    ""Shear??"" Luna and Sei asked in unison. Almost on cue, Mal''s friendly neighborhood kaiju exited his forehead and materialized in front of the girls. Due to her unexpected appearance, Luna and Sei''s reactions were a bit... exaggerated. "Kyaaa!!"


    "W-What the hell!"


    Even without her ws and ded appendages, she was still rather rming to look at. Luna and Sei immediately leapt up in fear, prompting Anna to im the coveted spot of Mal''sp.


    She held out her hands and gestured for the strange creature toe towards her. "Come here girl, I missed you."


    Shear made a small clicking noise before sliding into the open spot in Anna''s arms like some kind of overgrown puppy. Maybe it was her love of horror movies, scary video games, and halloween, but Annalise didn''t seem to find this creature the least bit terrifying. In fact, she was rather tempted to ask Mal to let her keep her.


    "What kind of creature is that...?" Sei asked. ""Dunno."" Mal and Anna responded in unison. "Well what does it do...?" Luna said curiously. "She makes really cute noises." Anna said. "As far as abilities go, I haven''t really seen her do much. She is capable of shapeshifting to a degree though." Mal added. Sei and Luna both hesitantly came closer to the monster in Anna''sp. Once they got past it''s odd appearance, they realized it wasn''t as frightening as they initially thought. They still did not understand why Anna found it to be so cute though. "Alright, we can go to the training room in the morning for ONE hour. And only because I am curious about what... Shear, can do."


    Even though the creature did not have eyes, it lifted it''s head as if it were staring at the two mature women opposite it. After finding nothing interesting, it rested it''s head back into Anna''sp.


    "Honestly... Nothing is ever ordinary with you, is it?" Sei muttered. "Would you have me any other way?" He said with a smile.


    "No... I guess I wouldn''t." she giggled. -


    When Mal opened his eyes, he was somewhere he was very familiar with. Inside a world of darkness, where even the brightest light would be choked out and rendered imperceptible. To most this would be nothing short of horrifying, but to Mal it was all soforting. He was weird like that. "You did not panic... I see why she chose you."


    Suddenly, a deep and old masculine voice echoed from all around him. Immediately rmed, Mal sought out the source, only to find nothing but more emptiness. "But I am convinced that your worthiness was no more than a mere delusion. I let you borrow power from me for far too long boy, and now I see no further need."


    A chill suddenly ran down Mal''s spine as the gravity of this being''s words sank in.


    "You''re the reason I can''t use the blessing from my mother?"


    "....What did you just call her?"


    The voice seemed to be asking out of genuine disbelief, as if it''s ancient ears were suddenly nonfunctional. "My mother, do I gotta spell it out for you? How the hell are you interfering in-"


    "This must be some kind of joke... For her to inte your value on a level simr to ours is..."


    "Ours?"


    Finally, the puzzle pieces began to fit in bit by bit, and Mal realized exactly who he was talking to. "You''re Erebus..."


    Almost on cue, an enormous figure moved through the darkness. In front of him, Mal was no bigger than an ant. It was a god in the shape of an old man, with two dark horns curling out of his head and unhealthy dark grey skin. His eye sockets were empty and ck, like looking into pure nothingness. If Mal did not have an affinity for the night, he would have long went insane with a mere look.


    "She equates you... to we, her children..?"


    Mal wasn''t interested in talking about he and Nyx''s rtionship, even if this being was his ''brother''. "Why did you take my powers? How the hell can you even do that?"


    "...From the beginning, my divinity and hers have been... what is the word... Neighbors. Too many times you have crossed into my yard, when you never should have left hers."


    "Wanna borate a bit more?"


    Erebus growled and pointed at Mchi with a massive wed finger. "You''ve been using power that you don''t have. She gave you blessing over the night, not darkness.


    I allowed you to go on so far out of my own curiosity, but you are bing bolder and bolder in the amount of power that you take, and I will stand for it no longer."


    Mchi had no idea why, but everything that Erebus was saying made sense to him. The reason why his body always hurt so much after using his powers was because they weren''t really his in the first ce. He had been unknowingly taking power from Erebus all of this time. "What...?"


    Erebus suddenly looked around in a panic as if he sensed something dreadfuling. Suddenly, Shear materialized next to Mchi out of thin air, and nuzzled next to him cutely. "Aww, hey girl. How''d you get he-"


    "Human, why is there a nightmare in your mindscape?!" Erebus roared. Mchi looked back at the irate god and saw an expression of pure shock, and even a small amount of fear. "Dunno what you mean by nightmare but this is Shear. She is my contracted beast."


    "She is your... what??"


    No matter how many times Erebus blinked his empty eye sockets, the scene in front of him did not change. One of the scourges that wasing to earth, was actually nuzzling next to this boy like it was some kind of domesticated animal. "You good man? Look like you''ve seen a ghost."


    "Boy... do you truly speak no falsehoods? This creature is truly bound to you and obeys your every whim?"


    "I''m not asking her to do any crazy shit like jump into a helicopter propeller but yea, she''s pretty obedient." Mchi said calmly. "That... is impossible... how can you even..."


    Internally, the gears within Erebus'' ancient mind began to turn. ''That''s why they''ve been having such a hard time observing himtely... he''s bound to a damned blindspot!''


    There were so many questions that he wanted to ask and things that he wanted to say, but even he hadws he must follow. But one thing was for sure. If this boy was capable of controlling that which is known for being uncontroble... his value to this world had just tripled. "You called her a nightmare." Mal reminded as he lightly petted Shear. "What is that?" Erebus was unable to take his eye sockets off of the creature in Mal''s arms. "...You ask me knowing full well I am not allowed to answer." "Worth a shot." Mal said under his breath. "Then if you won''t answer my question just give me my powers back. I need them to help pro-" "Alright." "...Alright?" "Alright." Erebus confirmed. -


    When Mchi opened his eyes, a bitter sunlight was streaming through the curtains. His body felt like it was sandwiched between three immovable objects, and it was in this moment that he remembered the girls had spent the night. Sei rested her body on top of his, Anna was underneath his right arm and Luna was underneath his left. All three were still sleeping peacefully, and judging by their snoring they were going to remain that way for a while. ''This would be nicer if that sunlight wasn''t in my face...'' Whoosh!


    Before Mchi had even finished his thought, a curtain of darkness fell over the window, blotting out the light. His powers were back and for some reason they were drastically easier to use than before. "Hm.." Sei finally showed some signs of stirring, and she slowly opened her rich brown eyes. When she saw Mchi, her gaze became unimaginably soft as she looked at him with utter devotion. "Honey... you''re beautiful..." She said sleepily. "...huh?"


    Staring back at Sei were two mesmerizing feline eyes that were a vibrant amethyst color. Not only that, Mchi''splexion was now a shade darker, and his charm had somehow grown even further. Erebus had done a whole lot more than just allow him the use of his powers again. Though just how much... he would have to find out soon.

 Chapter 110 What Is A Nightmare?

    Chapter 110 What Is A Nightmare?


    "Oh my gods..."


    "Are they..."


    "She sure snapped him up.."


    In the hallways of the Immortal Moon guild building, there was one spectacle that had thoroughly captured the attention of all of the members. Walking arm in arm through the hallway were Mchi and Luna, who seemed to bepletely unaware of all of the stares they were receiving. They were so used to being in close proximity to each other, and so engrossed in their conversation, that they instinctively grabbed each other as soon as they exited the car. They never even thought for a second about the fact that they were about to enter a public setting and they hadn''te out as a couple yet. "What else did Erebus want?" Luna asked. "Nothing. It seemed like he genuinely wasn''t going to give me my powers back until he saw Shear."


    Luna thought hard for a minute before prodding her younger boyfriend in the ribs. "Maybe he was jealous of your rtionship with your new mother."


    Mchi rolled his newly purple eyes.


    Luna thought hard for a minute before prodding her younger boyfriend in the ribs. "Maybe he was jealous of your rtionship with your new mother."


    Mchi rolled his newly purple eyes.


    "I doubt it. He didn''t strike me as the kind of guy whose desperate for a mother''s attention. Besides, he didn''t seem to know she adopted me."


    Luna suddenly paused and gave Mal a look like he was missing something important. "Erebus isn''t just her son, you know? He is also her consort."


    Mchi''s eyes widened as he pictured his sweet mother entangled in the arms of that enormous demon-like being he sawst night. He suddenly felt like a young child who had caught his parents ''wrestling'' in the middle of the night. He wasn''t sure if he would ever survive the trauma. Luna found the look on his face to be terribly amusing, and she misread his thoughts as something much darker. "Don''t worry, I am sure that she''s not nning to ''eat'' her youngest son as well. Good thing too, because I would hate to give you up to her. "


    "Wait.. what?"


    Visions of his beautiful mother beckoning him in very un-motherly positions began to y within his mind, and he quickly became more ufortable.


    Eventually, he lifted Luna''s legs out from under her while biting her softly on the cheek. "You''re trying to traumatize me, huh? How am I supposed to look at her again after hearing that?"


    "Fufufu~ Put me down! We''re...."


    Finally, Luna seemed to realize that they''d been in the guild building for quite a while, and had been so openly walking arm in arm together. ncing over her shoulder, she found a small crowd of girls led by Nina and Opal, all of them with their phones out recording. Her cheeks quickly turned pink as she tapped Mal on the shoulder and gestured behind them.


    Turning around, Mal didn''t seem to be nearly as embarrassed as Luna and greeted his guild mates with an aloof smile. "What''s with the entourage? You guys act like you''ve never seen a loving couple before."


    "You really don''t have any shame, do you?" Opal asked.


    "Not in this moment, no." He admitted. Though that was clearly evident judging by the fact that he had yet to put Luna down. "D-Don''t all of you have something better to do?" She questioned with a red face. "No?"


    "My schedule ispletely free."


    "Is there something better than this?"


    Luna had thoroughly underestimated the interest that her guild members had in drama. Eventually, she wiggled her way out of Mchi''s arms while fixing up her kimono so as to appear more professional. And immediately wished that she hadn''t. As soon as Luna''s feet touched the ground and she was out of her boyfriend''s grasp, she watched as he was besieged by other women. "We heard you were pretty banged up, everyone was really worried about you." "You aren''t still hurting anywhere, right?"


    "I heard about you and Alex, that guy was a real creep."


    "I hope you fucked his face up."


    "You look.. different... Are you satisfied with just the bossdy?"


    Mchi was met with warm hugs, well wishes, and more than a few flirtatious remarks about his new eyes. Luna had never wanted to cut the contracts of any of her girls until right this moment.


    "I''m alright girls, really." Mal said.


    For some reason, he could feel an instinctive sense of danger shooting down the back of his neck that made him want to get out of here as quickly as possible. When he was finally able to escape from the friendly mob, he turned around to find Luna waiting for him with her arms folded and an annoyed look on her face. Without waiting, Mal scooped her back into his arms and carried her to the training room.


    "....Manwhore."


    "I think you know that''s not true." Mal said without even looking at her.


    "I like the girls a lot, but they are just my friends. I would never disrespect you, Anna, or Sei by throwing myself at every pretty girl I see."


    Luna''s heart warmed at his words, but she wouldn''t allow herself to be so easily swayed. "...So you think they''re pretty?"


    Mchi chuckled in defeat and gave his girlfriend a small kiss on the forehead.


    "You''re cute all so cute when you''re like this. Feel like I should try to make you girls jealous more often."


    "Do it and you die."


    "Yes ma''am." (He was still going to do it from time to time.)


    -


    As Mchi and Luna prepared to enter their selected training room, they ran into the pairing of Bianca and Aisha. Both girls were ted to see Mchi awake and in fair condition, forcing Luna toe down from his arms once again so that they could hug him. She didn''t seem to mind quite as much this time though. "B, you cut your hair." Mal realized. "A-Ah, yea well I kinda didn''t have a choice." She said shyly. The truth was that she and Morgan had gotten a bit too fired up in one of their exercises and her hair kind of caught on fire. While that normally wouldn''t have been too much of an issue for her, her body was only equipped to handle heat of her own level, not Morgan''s.


    As a result, Bianca was now rocking a much shorter look, with cute bangs and a lightly shaved design just above the nape of her neck.


    In this moment, Mal realized that he may need to add girls with short hair to his list of fetishes. "You look beautiful, I think it really suits you." He said honestly. "A-Ah, thank you..." Bianca''s sses had started to fog up, and the temperature around her became noticeably warmer. Aisha merely rolled her eyes.


    When did this motherfucker start smooth talking girls?


    He was scared to even look at them when they were in middle school!


    After conversing a bit more, it was decided that both girls would stick around to watch Mal''s training with Shear, both out of curiosity and potential amusement. It was well known that training with contracted beasts was exceedingly difficult, and they were sure that training with a one of a kind creature was going to be nothing short of hrious. Once inside, Bianca and Aisha leaned against the wall while Luna and Mal went to the center of the room. "Alright darling, call out the little monster."


    As instructed, Shear materialized in the room right beside Mchi, at her full height of nine feet and with all of her pointy appendages exposed. "What the fuck..." Aisha muttered. "She.. did not look like thatst night." Luna realized. Mchi merely shrugged and pet her anyway as if he still found her cute regardless. "Okay then... let''s see what she can do first. If she has any special abilities or anything then you should also be able to use them as your own given enough time."


    Mchi nodded and gave Shear a simple order. "Alright, little nightmare. Show me what you can do."


    For a moment it seemed like Shear did not quite understand what was being asked of her, but then she finally sprung into action. Right before Mal''s eyes, she disappeared from view for a literal millisecond, and returned carrying Bianca and Luna like they were prized gifts. "What..?"


    "When did she even...?"


    Mchi graciously epted the offering of the two beautiful women and smiled at her gratefully. "Just what I always wanted, pretty girls."


    "Why didn''t it grab me then?!" Aisha yelled from the wall.


    "I said pretty, not bitchy."


    "Fuck you!" n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "Right there, do you see the difference?"


    While Aisha was still fuming over the tant disrespect, Shear was not done with her demonstration. The nightmare''s body flickered, and she split herself into twopletely identical copies. "Damn..."


    "So cool!"


    "I''m actually a little jealous."


    Mchi carefully inspected Shear''s clone, and as soon as he poked it, it disappeared in a shower of white light. "I wonder if I can do something simr..." Mal said out loud. "What do you mean?" Bianca asked. Mchi looked down at his own shadow and gave it a simple mentalmand. Like a scene from a horror movie, his own shadow rose up from the ground like a loyal soldier. As when he was in his avatar of night state, the shadow had no identifiable features except for his very long dreadlocks. "Have you always been able to do something like that?" Aisha asked. "Nah... I guess I can thank my brother father for this one."


    ""Your what??""


    Luna seemed to be the only one who was in on the joke, and it took all she could to suppress a snicker. Mchi returned his shadowy clone to an unanimated state, with his mind still running with thoughts about Erebus. The primordial god hadn''t just given him permission to delve into the darkness, he had expedited his understanding of it. And even given him a little something extra as well.


    ''Don''t know why you did all that but... I won''t let it go to waste.'' He thought gratefully. "Can I ask you girls for a favor?" Mal suddenly said. The girls all stopped and paused, while awaiting Mchi''s next words. cing his hands back into his pockets, he gave the girls his best '' you can''t say no to this face'' smile that he could muster. "Mind sparring with me for a bit? Got some things I want to try."


    I waana add that Shear will more than likely have a lot more abilities in the future, but remember shes still a baby so she can only do so much right now.

 Chapter 111 Mist & Shadow

    111 Mist & Shadow


    "Absolutely fucking not." Luna denied. Mchi would be lying if he said he wasn''t expecting that reaction, but just this once he was hoping to be wrong about something. "I promised the girls that I wouldn''t let you do anything strenuous today." Luna reminded. "Your body is still banged up."


    Bianca and Aisha looked at Mal a bit closer and realized that he did indeed look a little skinnier than before. "It won''t be anything major, love." Mchi said with a smile. "I just want to try out a few new party tricks."


    Luna always did soften up a bit whenever Mal called her anything other than her name, and her firm resolution began to crack. "I-I said no! Don''t be hardheaded!"


    Like a shark that smelled blood, Mchi knew that Luna was on the verge of giving in, and he moved in for the kill.


    With soundless steps, Mchi made his way towards Luna and slipped his arms around her waist. "Come on love, only for a moment. If you do this for me then I''ll take you to your office and repay you however you like."


    Luna trembled with every word that was whispered into her ear. She wanted to say no, but there were too many things tying her down!


    Sei had told her again and again how good sex with Mchi was, and she wanted a taste of that too!


    She couldn''t remember thest time she''d had sex, and after their passionate time in the shower yesterday, she was just about ready to force herself on him. ''I promise girls, I''ll make sure he doesn''t do anything too strenuous... not in training at least.'' Never one to be out done, Luna made sure that Aisha and Bianca could not see her actions before she seductively licked Mal''s neck. "Alright, you win. But I hope you know that I''m going to make you work for this little victory." She whispered.


    For a moment, Mal had to ask himself if he really cared all that much about training. "You guys are gross." Aisha said with clear disdain. "I''ll spar with you just so that I can knock you around a bit."


    Bianca timidly held up her hand like she was a kid in a ssroom. "Umm, I also need to be talked into it a bit I think..."


    Mchi and Luna looked at each other briefly, and had an entire conversation without saying a word. ''She''ll be thest one?''


    ''Until the end of time.''


    ''What if your new mother tries to get in your pants?''


    ''You are not funny.''


    Mchi rolled his eyes and moved next to Bianca, cing a small kiss on her cheek.


    "Sufficiently convinced?"


    "S-Sure..."She muttered. Aisha was the only one who seemed to be in the opposite of a lovey dove mood. "When did you be such a slut? I didn''t raise you to be like this."


    Mchi shot his best friend a middle finger and dispersed all of her insults. "I don''t wanna hear something like that from you. Before my sister you fucked more women than the IRS."


    Aisha showed a smile that was not a smile as she reached inside of her storage ring and pulled out an unnecessaryrge battle axe. "When are we starting? For some reason I feel a bit restless all of a sudden."


    Mchi knew that he probably shouldn''t have said that, but he couldn''t resist the opportunity that was right there in front of him. And as he looked at Aisha''s face that was simmering with barely repressed murderous rage, he couldn''t help but feel like it was worth it. -


    After Mchi and Luna got changed into some light sparring gear, they were all set to begin their exercise. Now that Mal was shirtless, Aisha and Bianca could see the bruises that were still on his body. They could only imagine how difficult his battle with Alex must have been if he still hadn''t healed after several days. Mal noticed the way the girls were looking at him and immediately waived away their concerns. "I''m good, don''t worry about it. Believe it or not I actually look a lot better than I did yesterday."


    The girls looked at Luna for confirmation, and only rxed once they saw her nod along in agreement. Mchi finally tucked his hands in his pockets and took on a rxed posture. "Alright, you''re free toe at me whenever." After looking at Mal''s utterck of stance or weapon, the girls wondered if he was even taking this seriously. "Don''t joke around." "We''re really trying to help you." Mchi rolled his eyes as his irises glowed violet. "Alright then, if youdies won''te to me then I''lle to you." Suddenly, a dense obscuring mist left the pores in Mal''s skin. The room began to fill up with the strange dark fog, and soon the girls couldn''t even see two feet in front of them. "Since when can he do something like this...?" "Lady Luna? That''s you, right?" "This is really crazy.." Suddenly, Mchi''s voice seemed to echo from all around them. "I think I''ll pick you all off one by one. Feel free to stop me if you''re able." Bianca was the first to think up a solution, although she wasn''t entirely sure that it would work. Gathering the power of her mes, she ran them across her voluptuous body until she was no different than a lightbulb. "Girls, if you can see me thene closer! We can stick together!" Luna and Aisha followed her directions and moved directly to stand beside the young girl. Like he was having the greatest of fun, Mchi''s cheerfulughter reverberated off the walls of the training room, giving the girls a rather unsettling feeling. "He''s enjoying this too much..."


    "He really is." "The suspense is starting to... huh?" Suddenly, Luna noticed that her body was moving against her will. Try as she might, she could not stop herself from walking away from the two girls and intruding further and further into the mist. "W-What kind of game is this?!"


    "Lady Luna, are you alright?" "Where''d you go??"


    Just as Luna tried to exin her predicament, a pair of amethyst eyes that she would recognize anywhere appeared from the fog. "I gotcha, love. You''re out." Mchi said with a smile. "H-How did you...?" Mchi pointed down at the ground and Luna finally noticed something strange. Her shadow was seemingly entangled with eight dark threads that traveled all the way from her body to Mchi''s own shadow. Without even looking at her, Mchi was somehow able to take control of her body. Mchi shrugged before he disappeared right before her very eyes. Luna felt a small smack on her butt that made her remember that she was supposed to be collecting a bribe after this. ''...I think I''m going to go wait for him upstairs.'' With only the two of them left, Aisha and Bianca moved back to back while surveying the area around them. "We have to do something. We can''t just wait for him to pick us off like we''re sitting ducks." Aisha nodded in agreement and swung her axe wildly. The wind pressure generated by her attack helped to clear away some of the mist, only for it to return a mere momentter. "Damn, what is this stuff?!" N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Suddenly, a sharp whistling sound cut through the air, and one of Mchi''s daggers came hurtling through the fog. Aisha narrowly managed to avoid it, but upon taking a step backwards she inadvertently sealed her fate. Before she knew it, she was falling into the shadows at her feet, and on the verge of panicking. She fell into an endless ck nothingness, and her body dropped for what seemed like an eternity. Suddenly, she appeared right underneath Mchi''s arm like some kind of oversized duffel bag. "Hey... are you alright? I know that might''ve been a little much." Mchi said apologetically. He''d remembered a bit toote that Aisha had a long time fear of heights. His cruel little prank was no doubt fairly traumatizing. "...put me down." She said. Against his better judgment, Mal released his best friend and allowed her to stand on her own two feet. Even through the mist, he could see the small tears that were forming in the corners of her eyes. "Aisha... I''m really-"


    He let out a small grunting noise before he immediately went down, the mist he created disappearing along with his chances of winning the spar. 22:58


    Just like that, training was over. POW!


    With power worthy of a god of war, Aisha punched Mchi so hard in the stomach that his feet temporarily left the ground. He let out a small grunting noise before he immediately went down, the mist he created disappearing along with his chances of winning the spar. Just like that, training was over. "If you tell Aubrey about any of this, I''ll kill you." Aisha muttered as she stormed off. Bianca was the only one left who seemed to have no idea what was going on and her eyes went to Mal who was still kneeling and holding his stomach. Squatting beside him, she patted him lightly on the back and tried to help him keep his breakfast down. "Sooo mist, huh? Pretty cool." She said cutely. Mchi chuckled as he ignored the throbbing feeling vibrating throughout his sternum. "So since I''m the only one that you didn''t catch, that technically means I won, right?" She asked. "Didn''t know you were helping me with winning and losing in mind."


    "What can I say? I''m crafty like that."


    "Hahaha, I see! Alright then, you win. You can ask me to do whatever you want."


    For some reason, Bianca''s beautiful yet evil smile made him wish that he could take his words back immediately. s, it was already far toote for regrets. We got a ssh banner today¡­ thank you guys so much man, words cannot express how grateful I am to all of you for carrying me this far. AnathaShesha

 Chapter 112 Lunas Bribe*

    112 Luna''s Bribe*


    As Mal walked through the hallway into Luna''s office, he was admittedly more downtrodden than earlier. Bianca''s request had taken him by total andplete surprise, and if he was honest he wasn''t sure that he was mentally prepared for it. ''But, a deal is a deal I guess.''


    Opening the door to Luna''s office, hepletely forgot all about his current dilemma as he was grabbed by the cor and pulled inside. Before he knew it, Luna had pressed him against the wall and had her lips on his. ''I probably made her wait too long..'' With all of the sexual tension that had been building up between them, this was a long timeing. Mchi wanted to show her that he desired her just as much as she did him, and he lifted her up and folded her legs around his waist. Carrying her to the couch, he felt his own mind be hazy as he relished in the sensation of her yfully biting his lips with fervor. Mchi gentlyid her body down onto the sofa, and tore his lips away from hers to start exploring her body. Her kimono was already partially undone, as if she had been expecting this moment and wanted there to be as few obstacles as possible. When her beautiful figure was revealed, Mal could not help but freeze up in wonder. Luna''s body was simply immacte. With her generous curves and ivory skin devoid of the slightest blemish, and a pretty and pink vagina with a small and cute bush, she was a captivating picture of a woman. Her body was so divine and captivating that she was like a rose that had never been touched. Mchi had already seen Luna naked before, but there was something different about the previous instancepared to now. With herid bare underneath him like this, she was unbelievably tantalizing to his mind and body, and he needed her desperately. Luna did not consider herself to be a shy person, but Mchi''s burning gaze and heavy breathing was going to turn her into just that. "How long are you going to stare at me like this...? You''re supposed to be bribing me, remember?" Mchi seemed to be immune to her teasing and the words on his mind simply fell out of his mouth. "I am so madly in love with you..."


    Luna felt a lot of things when Mchi expressed her love for her. Honesty. Obsession. Devotion. She felt as if she was physically wrapped in the embrace of his words, and her body went through an inexplicable range of emotions that she couldn''t quite process. Because she could not fully express all of the emotion she had in her heart, she merely wrapped her arms around his neck as small tears fell from her pink eyes. All she could do was let it be known just how badly she wanted to be connected to him.


    "Please... don''t make me wait anymore."


    Obliging her, Mchi flipped Luna onto her stomach and left a trail of kisses down her spine. He could feel her shivering in anticipation with every move he made, and his own excitement surged through the roof. Reaching her plump and luscious bottom, Luna became slightly embarrassed when she let out an involuntary yelp of surprise. Mchi bit her firmly with pointed teeth, nearly hard enough to break the skin. He wanted to leave a mark on her, both inside and out in the hopes that she would forever be his and his alone. Spreading her cheeks apart, he could see that she was already so wet that forey wasn''t necessary, but nothing could have stopped him from getting a taste of his woman. Taking a singr long lick, Mchi relished in Luna''s sweet yet salty taste. No one had ever done this to her before, and she raised her hips to run before Mchi locked her in ce. She wasn''t quite sure how to describe the sensation, but the feeling of a long strong tongue worming around in her insides was so good that she wondered why she attempted to run before. Once she got over the initial strangeness of this new feeling, she began desperately pushing her hips back in an attempt to get him deeper inside. The soft moans that she was initially so shy to release were now bing more and more obscene, delighting Mchi to no end. ''Come on love, let me hear more...'' Knowing that this normally icy beauty was now moaning loudly underneath him caused his desire to soar, and he finally decided to push her over the edge. While his tongue explored her delectable insides, he took his thumb and gently yet firmly rubbed her clit, and her reaction was instantaneous. "Darling... I''m going to cum... I''m... cumming..!"


    Luna gripped her couch so hard that she easily crushed the wooden armrest into powder, as she rode out the monumental high that came with her first orgasm in so long. Unsatisfied, Mal continued to eat her like he was trying to fill his stomach, turning Luna''s melodic cries into something more bestial. Mchi did not release her until she was brought to a second orgasm, and then a third. When he finally pulled his lips away from her rosebud, she was trembling terribly as if she''d just suffered a small seizure. "Do you need a break, love?" If Luna was capable, she would have scoffed right at this instance. After introducing her to something so good, how could he just stop right in the middle? Reaching back, she spread her lower lips as if she were begging him to continue. Sufficiently motivated, Mchi finally peeled off his own clothes and tossed them onto the ground. When Luna felt a hot and hard object push against her entrance, she had a very important realization. She had no idea what to expect from this. While she''d seen Mchi''s dick before, it was never erect but she already knew it was on therger side. As for just howrge, she honestly wasn''t quite sure but she became noticeably more slick when she thought of the possibilities. Taking several deep breaths, she let out a small moan as the head finally pushed inside. At first, she was surprised by the nearly overwhelming girth. Her insides felt like they had been pried open and stretched to the limit. Another thing that surprised her was the length. Just when she thought for sure that he couldn''t possibly have any more left, he would push another inch into her. By now she was so full that she hardly believed that she could fit anymore inside. ces that she never even knew she had were being stimted all at once, and Mal still wasn''t fully inside. It was certainly going to take some getting used to, but it was already starting to feel incredibly good. Finally, Mal pressed against Luna''s cervix and she released a cute squeal that was quite unlike her. Mal remained motionless for a moment as he kissed her neck, trying to give her body time to rx and fully amodate him. "Mchi..." Luna turned her head to the side and looked up at him with eyes that contained so many emotions that he couldn''t quite read them all. "I love you too so... you don''t have to hold back. I can take everything you have to give so don''t worry about hurting me... I want to feel all of you..." Mchi realized that he had unconsciously been treating Luna like he treated Sei. Since Sei was human, he was always sure to be careful with her and he could usually never push himselfpletely inside. But Luna was a blessed like him. Even if it would hurt her a little more, she was fully capable of taking everything that he had to give. Since she mustered up the courage to say such heartfelt words, Mal did not make her repeat them and did exactly as she wanted. Instead of merely pressing on the entrance to her cervix, he applied more force into his hips and pried it open. Luna bit down on the couch cushion so as not to release the scream of pain that was threatening to leap out of her throat. With Mchi now fully inside, he pressed their bodies together while allowing all of his weight to pin her down. The two of them instinctively interlocked their fingers together as if they were scared to let each other go, and Mal finally started moving. He rhythmically moved his hips in different patterns, sometimes in a circr motion, others back and forth. Luna had long stopped feeling any pain from his movements, and every rough thrust nearly sent her over the edge. Mchi was in heaven as well. Luna was not only incredibly wet, but she gripped him so tightly that it was as if she pleading with him not to leave his position. She moaned loudly while screaming obscenities and proiming her own love and devotion for him while squeezing his hand until her knuckles turned white. If Mchi hadn''t undergone Morgan''s training, his hands surely would have cracked in Luna''s irond grasp. Judging by theck of focus in her eyes and the way her tongue fell out of her mouth, it was clear that she hadn''t stopped cumming ever since they''d started. Being prated was one thing, but Mal would continue to whisper obsessive and sweet words into her ears while they were intertwined, filling her up with his love with every possible method. 22:59 n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Being prated was one thing, but Mal would continue to whisper obsessive and sweet words into her ears while they were intertwined, filling her up with his love with every possible method. Luna finally reached her strongest orgasm yet as Mal whispered a string of words that made her entire body clench up. Thebination of her sweet screams and sudden tightness caused Mal to reach the end of his rope. When Luna heard him groan and felt his pace quicken, she regained just enough of her sanity to properly receive it. "D-don''t pull out...! I want you to get me pregnant!" Mchi never thought that such words would turn him on so much, but the proof was in how desperately he tried to breed her afterwards.


    With one final thrust, he struck against the back of Luna''s womb and unloaded a torrent of semen inside of her. The sudden heat and added pressure inside her stomach allowed Luna to reach nirvana, and her body clenched up once more as she squirted all over the couch. Even after three whole minutes of remaining motionless, she was still trembling all over and moaning softly into the cushions. Thinking she was done, Mchi lifted his body off of hers and started to pull out. "Wait..."


    Luna suddenly grabbed him by the wrist and held him in ce, unwilling to let even a drop spill out. "This is your fault so... take responsibility..." "What do you mean, love?" Mchi asked softly. His voice sent a wave of chills through her body and she looked back at him with eyes that were red from crying. "You made me love you so much that I don''t think I can ever willingly let you go... so please, keep going until I pass out..." Mchi was far from sated as well, so he immediately dove back on top of her and nestled back into his ce in her cervix. "You should be mindful of your words, my Luna. If you tell me something like that I have no choice but toply." Do y¡¯all realize how hard it is to get baby shit out of fabric?? I was scrubbing for so long I almost forgot to upload this chapter AnathaShesha

 Chapter 113 Who Was Luna Autumn?

    113 Who Was Luna Autumn?


    Believe it or not, Luna was not always known as the world''s most beautiful woman. Before she was blessed, before she even came to America, she was an ordinary woman living in Shinjuku and working a simple office job.


    Her name was Emi Inui.


    She lived a somewhat boring life, with no husband, children, or even any real friends to speak of.


    Her parents had passed away too so she was really and truly alone in the world. But in her heart of hearts, she had always wanted children.


    She would see young mothers walking by on the street with the little bundles of joy in their arms and a subsequent feeling of jealousy would inte in her stomach. With that singr desire in mind, she started dating in the hopes of marriage. Even without Chang''e''s blessing, she was still a very attractive woman so it was not very difficult for her to attract attention from men despite her advancing years. But after going out onto several blind dates, she realized that it just wasn''t meant to be. The men she went out with were decent people and hardworking, and she was sure that they would have made fine husbands. But be that as it may, she did not believe that they would have made good life partners. They were all somewhat stringent, and living in the same kinds of dull grey existences as the one she was currently trapped in. She wanted to be with someone who pulled her into a world filled with color where everyday contained no less love than thest. Even if they did nothing but sit on the couch all day and get old and fat, she would be more than satisfied if they spent that timeughing and loving each other. But the men that she met just weren''t capable of that. Wishing them farewell and good luck, she cut her contact with all of the men she was seeing and resigned herself to never finding her ideal partner. Unfortunately, one of the men she was seeing was a bit more in love with her than she realized.


    When she tried to cut contact, he followed her back to her home while demanding a proper exnation. When she tried to ask him to leave, he became enraged and pulled a knife on her. Her shed her across the face, and she was stabbed in the stomach several times before the neighbor arrived to help. In the end, the doctors were able to save her life, but it was required that they perform a hysterectomy due to all of the damage suffered in her midsection. Traumatized and broken, she left her job not long after due to the stares she received from coworkers about her haggard new appearance.


    She contemted suicide on an almost daily basis, yet something seemed to always prevent her from stepping off the ledge. And then one night after the first dungeon opened, her life changed forever. She was blessed by the goddess of the moon, and her face was not only healed, it was transformed. But while her face and body were now perfect on the outside, her uterus did not regrow. As powerful as blessed may be, cases like the primordial blessed who could regrow whole body parts in the right conditions were unfairly rare. But even without children in her future, Emi was certain that she could make the most out of her new life, and she would never need to be helpless again. She adopted the name Luna Autumn as a way to pay homage to the goddess who had given her a new outlook on life. Deciding to leave Japan, she traveled to America where she disyed the new icy personality that woulde to symbolize her. She allowed no men to get close to her, subconsciously causing her to build up a guild for other women. Whether she realized it or not is a mystery, but she worked so hard for them that they became something like her children. And though there were challenges in her new life, she still considered it to be vastly superior to her old one. Especially since she had found the one man who could fill her life up with color. It seemed like Mchi was always forcing a smile onto her face, even when she didn''t want it. To top it all off his consideration of her and his other girlfriends made her feel like he saw her as more than some trophy, but an integral part of his life. It was a level of thoughtfulness that filled her entire being with more feelings of desperate love than she knew how to handle. From now until the end of time, she could no longer be without this happiness that she so rightfully deserved. -


    True to his word, Mchi ravaged Luna without rest until both of their bodies were dripping with sweat and it was well into the afternoon. After several different positions, a chorus of sensual moans, and passionate promises of pregnancy, Luna finally had an orgasm hard enough to send her tumbling into unconsciousness. Mchi removed himself from her, and all of his attempts to give her a child came spilling out of her swollen flower. He cleaned the area up the best he could before carrying her into Luna''s private bathroom. He lowered both of their bodies into the bath, and allowed their bodies to soak in the hot water as his mind ran wildly. When Luna first asked him to get her pregnant, he felt a wave of incredible lust sweep through him. But more than that, he started to feel a subtle sense of longing as well. He always thought that he would be okay if he didn''t have children, but in the blink of an eye he had some sort of vision. Watching Luna as her stomach got bigger, teaching his child how to tie their own shoes, and introducing them to all of his favorite cartoons. He knew that there was a great deal more to having a child than just those things that had been mentioned, but just those small parts made it all seem worth it somehow. ''Mom...maybe I can''t be your avatar after all.''


    "Hnn..." Gradually, Luna began to stir in the water, and she slowly opened her eyes to see herself in very familiar surroundings. A momentter, she felt an even more familiar pair of lips on her neck, and the arms around her waist tightened their grasp. "Good morning, love."


    Luna wanted to return his greeting, but the words became caught in her throat and she released a soft noise instead. Mchi''s hand traveled to her smooth and perfect stomach and Luna was reminded of all of the embarrassing things that she had said earlier. Her body sank lower into the water, and she ced her own hands over his. "I''m sorry...you must''ve been surprised, right?" "Hm?"


    "When I said all of that stuff about you getting me pregnant... I''m sure it came as a shock since it''s not like we even talked about it but I just felt so good that I..."


    Luna didn''t finish, but Mal could tell by how red her ears had be that she was probably mortified. "I think that you might be forgetting something." He reminded. "I didn''t exactly seem to be against the idea, did I?" Luna briefly recalled an instance where Mal held her up in the air and pleaded for her to have his child as he finished inside of her for the eighth time. The mere memory heated up her insides before it was reced with a great sense of shame. 23:00


    "Darling... I can''t get pregnant." The words were hard to hear out of her own mouth, but they still needed to be said. Out of everything that Mchi expected Luna to say, that most certainly wasn''t one of them.


    She took a deep breath and sped their hands together before she finally told him the story of her life before she was blessed. The attack was undoubtedly the hardest thing for her to talk about. She had transformed herself so that no one would ever look at her as weak or a victim, and yet here she was telling this sad story. It was so embarrassing that she wanted to crawl into a hole and die. When her story finally ended, she was expecting to hear the typical things that people say when you tell them something sad. ''I''m so sorry.''


    ''You didn''t deserve that.''


    ''That''s so awful.''


    She didn''t tell him the story of her past so that she could hear things like that, she told him because they were together and he had a right to know.


    But in her heart of hearts, he just hoped that he wouldn''t start to see her as something weak that needed to be protected. Mchi took a while to speak and he simply rubbed Luna''s stomach silently as if something was already growing inside. "Okay then... So having a child together will be more difficult than we thought."


    At first, Luna suspected that he was being sarcastic, but a nagging feeling in the back of her mind told her that he was not. "What...?"


    Mchi smiled and pulled Luna''s body further into his. "Are you forgetting that magic exists in our world now? Somewhere out there, there is a potion or a special item that can regrow organs. I just need to find it for us."


    "W-What''re you saying...? There is no such item out there."


    Mchi shrugged as he stared up into the ceiling above them. "I''m sure there is, but ain''t nobody found it yet is all. I''ll do whatever I have to do to bring it back to us, and then we can have a baby."


    "Why... would you go that far?" Luna asked in a hushed tone. Mchi suddenly lifted Luna up and twirled her body around so that she was straddling him. Her pink eyes met his bright purple ones as he made a vow that would change her life forever. "Because something you held dear was taken from you, so I should do my best to get it back. Cause if the shoe was on the other foot I know you wouldn''t even hesitate to do the same for me."


    His words hit Luna like a ton of bricks, and her heartbeat began to race at an out of control speed. She never expected to receive this kind of response. Most people would be thinking about adoption as a next step, or even a surrogate. But Mchi was pledging to do the impossible and give her a child that was all her own.


    All their own.


    It was a vow that had shaken her to her core. "Don''t joke with me... Do you really mean that?"


    Mchi smiled and pressed their foreheads together until both of their tattoos were touching. "I mean it. We''re going to have a child together."


    Even though Luna hated to be seen as weak, a downpour of tears fell from her face. She did not realize how deeply buried this hope of hers was until the man she loved brought it to the forefront of her mind. All of the years that she believed she''d spend her life alone, all of the times she spent crying herself to sleep after the assault, they were all being washed away like bad dreams.


    For the first time ever, they were being reced with a blinding hope for the future. "Mchi... I love you."


    Luna sobbed softly as she brought her lips to Mal''s and it seemed like the mood was going to heat up once again. Just as Mal''s hands dropped underneath the water to cup Luna''s bottom, a familiar scratchy voice echoed in his mind. ''un...ry...''


    ''Hun...y...''


    ''Hungry.... So hungry...''


    Earlier today I had two novels in the top fifteen of the trending list and I feel like that¡¯s such a crazy thing to even say.


    I called my momma, my girl, and even showed my daughter. (But she was on some hater shit she was acting like she wasn¡¯t happy for me fr.)


    But I left out all of you who have carried me to this point and I want to say that I am so incredibly grateful for the blessings and the support that you continue to give me.N?v(el)B\\jnn

 Chapter 114 What Do Nightmares Eat?

    114 What Do Nightmares Eat?


    Mchi immediately paused and broke away his kiss with Luna, much to her disappointment. "Are you tired..? If so I can-" "Nah, it''s not that love." He said gently. He had to admit, if he didn''t have more pressing matters at the moment Luna''s cuteness would have easily pulled him under. "It''s Shear. She says she''s hungry." Mchi exined. Luna''s face twisted in a glimmer of recognition as she nodded slowly. "Right then... I guess you shouldn''t keep her waiting." She was the first to get out of the tub, and she immediately draped her body in a towel as she wiped away the water. Realizing Mchi had yet to get out, she turned around and found him looking everywhere but at her. She wasn''t aware, but Mchi''s mind was working overtime to keep himself in control of his actions. "Darling?" "Hm?" Luna shed Mal a sweet and seductive smile as she left her body in full view. "Do you mind if I spend the night again tonight? I didn''t quite get my fill earlier." Mchi briefly had a vision of himself, Sei and Luna all intertwined on the bed, drowning in an inescapable pleasure until the sun came up. It was such an invigorating thought that he wanted to take her home and begin immediately. ''Shear... are you sure you can''t wait for just-''


    ''Hungry...!'' ''Damn it, fine but I just want you to know that you have some shit timing.'' -


    Luna took Mal to a special section of headquarters where monster corpses were kept. Here they were stripped down and put to various uses depending upon the type of creature. Monsters with exoskeletons were refurbished and turned into weapons or armor, while those with higher regenerative capabilities were dissected and studied, as a means to advance medical procedures and treatments. But one thing that always typically went unused was the meat of the creatures. Monster meat has a very poor vor and gamy texture, and even a Michelin starred chef couldn''t work with it as an ingredient. As a result, arge chunk of it is usually thrown away and wasted. There was talk of donating it to local zoos but... a few too many congressmen were worried that the animals might mutate if they ate enough of it, so the idea was scrapped. At the end of the day, monster meat''s only real value was to Blessed with contracted beasts. The magical creatures subsisted on the distasteful flesh like it was the best thing in the world, oblivious to the human stigma around it. Naturally, Luna had a mini fridge full of the exotic meat for her beloved kitsune, Shiro. "I would have given you some of hers, darling. But it seems she is being rather... stingy at the moment." She apologized. ''Call it what you want! He must have fucked everyst brain cell out of your mind if you think I''m going to let you give away my food!'' A vein bulged in Luna''s forehead as shemented over the fact that her sweet and fluffy pet was learning more and more colorfulnguage. No doubt it was due to that show she had been so adamantly watching over thest few days. ''That''s it, no more Snowfall for you.'' She said sternly. Immediately, her mind was filled with whimpers. ''Wait! Wait! I-I''m sorry! He can have all of the food he wants, I just need to know what happens to Franklin''s dad!'' ''No, I don''t like what it''s doing to you.'' Luna said firmly. She was met with another wave of stringentints but she merely ignored them in favor of her boyfriend that was still at her side. "Don''t worry, love." Mchi said as he took her hand. "I''m pretty sure that Shear would have eaten everything you had for her anyway." The nightmare was admittedly quite the glutton, and even now Mchi could feel her hunger that was almost bottomless. "Well, it''s a good thing I have prepared quite a feast for her then."


    Luna and Mchi finally reached arge meatpacker on the inside of the warehouse, and found hooks hanging with meat from all kinds of creatures. Orc,mia, siren, goblin, even some demon. An all you can eat nightmare buffet. "Alright, girl. Come out and eat your fill." Mchi goaded. A momentter, a small wisp of light left his forehead mark and Shear emerged at her full height and appearance. She carefully inspected the meat on all of the hook before turning back to give Mchi a disappointed look. Even though she did not have eyes, he could swear that she was trying to use the puppy dog technique on him. Without saying a word, Mchi knew exactly what the problem was. For Shear, eating meat that was already dead was like getting a blowjob with a condom on. It was fine but... it could be done so much better. "I''m sorry, girl but we don''t have any fresh meat right now. I''ll work on getting you some for you next time around."


    The nightmare seemed to be somewhat satisfied with that promise, and she started eating not long afterwards. While she chewed voraciously, Luna tapped Mchi on the shoulder to ask about his ''fresh meat'' response. "Is she not happy with this?"


    "I guess not... eating a monster fresh gives you this sort of influx of raw magical power, and I''m guessing she''s missing that part of her diet."


    Luna nodded in response before nodding and pulling out her phone. "I''ll apply for a private dungeon pass for you so that you can go...grocery shop?"


    Mchi suddenly pulled Luna in and kissed her gently on the cheek. "Thank you... I don''t know what I''d do without you."


    Luna blushed slightly in his grasp before pushing him away at thest second. "You can thank meter... for now I want you to try something."


    "Hm?" "It''ll be easier to bond with Shear when she''s in a rxed state like when she''s eating. Linking your minds together is the first step to synchronizing your bodies."


    Mchi nodded in understanding before inching his way over to Shear.


    In the brief moment they''d been talking, she hadpletely cleaned her first corpse and was now moving on to the second. Mchi ced his hand on top of her head as she ate, and tried to concentrate on the connection between the two of them. For a moment, he wasn''t sure if he was doing it correctly but upon closing his eyes to concentrate, he was able to link their minds together. However, he immediately wished he hadn''t. His mind was flooded with strange feelings and frightening images. Brief shes of horrifying creatures, nightmarish apparitions, and very ominous tidings. Apparently, nightmares share something of a hive mind amongst themselves, but Mchi''s blood connection allowed her to be walled off from such nastiness. But when Mchi intruded into her mind, he unknowingly delved too deep inside and exposed himself to all of it. He couldn''t catch everything, but he now understood exactly why the gods were so worried. These things that wereing... they were utterly horrifying. To call them monsters would be akin to a gross understatement, and there was only one word that could truly describe them. Nightmares. ''I have to get stronger...much, much stronger.''


    -


    "I try to forget it but... the memories don''t seem to go away. The way I acted, what I did for him, what he did to me... I''m so fucking pathetic that it''sughable."


    "You are far from pathetic, Director. You have experienced a hell that most people could never fathom.


    The fact that you''re taking positive steps to healing, however small they may be, is a monumental achievement in and of itself."


    Director Joanne leaned back onto the leather sofa and stared nonchntly into the ceiling. "Yea, well it''s not like I really have a choice. I won''t be cleared to resume my duties until you give me some shiny gold star."


    Sitting across from her was a gentle looking woman with a darkplexion and wearing circr sses and a simple button down and cks. As for what her name was... Joanne had already forgotten.


    "You should be grateful that your higher ups care about you enough to get you proper help. My boss couldn''t give a shit if I lived or died." The woman said honestly. Joanne knew that she should look at it like that, but opening up always had been rather difficult for her. This was her fourth session so far, and coincidentally it was also the first one she had decided to actively participate in. In all of the others she merely sat back and watched the clock tick by while her therapist asked her questions that she never answered. Only today had she decided that the sooner she got this over with, the sooner she could throw herself back into work.


    That''s what she''d always done, and that''s the only thing she''d ever been good at.


    But against her expectations, once she started talking she couldn''t stop. And unlike what they say on tv, she didn''t feel better the more she talked. She just felt angrier, and more revolted. Memories of all the abuse she had suffered through continued to gue her like a bad fucking dream and she was so sick of it that she wanted to... she didn''t know what she wanted. Her body was filled with raw emotion that she had no healthy outlet for. She was like a bomb that was just waiting to go off. 15:57


    But in time, she woulde to realize that her therapist was trying to diffuse her slowly, while directing her towards proper outlets an healing methods. For both of them, this would be a long and arduous process. But when it was over... maybe she would be better off than she was before. "That''s our time for today, right?" Joanne said as she stood up in a hurry. "I''ll be going then."


    "Oh, alright before you go I have a bit of homework for you." "...What?" The woman backed away under the blessed''s irritated gaze and tried her best not to pee herself in fear. "Ah, well I''m not going to ask you to turn in a paper or anything." N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Joanne stared at the woman while folding her arms, seemingly waiting to hear her next words.


    "I just... I want you to find a hobby, or better yet a friend. You need something to take your mind off of everything and I think-"


    "Yea, thanks for the advice, Doc. I''ll go dig out my high school yearbook and call some numbers or buy a vibrator. Whichever Ie across first."


    Joanne immediately left the office, in a worse mood than she was originally. Her hobbies were getting work done and collecting checks. Anything else was frivolous and unnecessary, and she had no time to indulge in some needless activity that would bear no fruit. And as far as friends went... that was even more of an impossibility. As Joanne walked through the hallway to get to the lobby, she heard an unusualmotion. And when she reached the front desk, she understood why. Casually taking a picture with the twodies at the front desk, was a young man she knew unnecessarily well. When Mchi''s eyesnded on Joanne, he smiled softly and immediately tried to approach her. Somehow, Joanne felt like her headache was about to get a lot worse. Trynna convince your homeboy to eat ass is lowkey like introducing someone into a cult... Idc tho he finna listen to me just this once. AnathaShesha

 Chapter 115 A Small Push

    115 A Small Push n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Hey." Mchi said casually. Joanne looked him up and down without saying a word before breezing past him to head towards the door. Much to her dismay, he followed closely behind her without showing any intention to state his reason for being there. "Why the hell are you following me, kid?" "Wanna talk." "Send a text." "You think I have your number?" "If you don''t then it probably means we have nothing to talk about." Before Mchi could respond, Joanne sprouted wings from her back and shot into the sky at a speed he couldn''t hope to follow. Instead of chasing her, Mchi decided to give her a few minutes and found a nearby bench to sit on. "I should really get more games on my phone..." Ding Dong!


    Joanne looked up from the book she was reading on her couch and stared hard at the front door. She didn''t even need to open it to know who was outside, and she growled in annoyance as made up her mind to ignore it. "I was d to see you were getting help." Looking up, she found Mchi standing a few feet away from her, leaning against the wall while staring back at her calmly. "Why the hell are you stalking me? I don''t believe we have anything to talk about." "Why did you abandon Anna?" Suddenly, Joanne froze like a deer in headlights. When it came to the topic of her estranged daughter, she seemed to be incapable of maintaining her stoic and unapproachable demeanor. "You were asleep back then... I''m sure of it."


    "Mhm." Mchi didn''t deny.


    He hadn''t heard Joanne''s confession at all, but Shear had. She sees everything that goes on around Mchi 24/7. The only reason he knew was because he''d linked their minds together yesterday. "Then how do you... no, it doesn''t matter." Joanne suddenly closed her book and stood up from the couch menacingly. "I want you out! I don''t have to talk about this with you or anyone else for that matter! So you can take your whole concerned boyfriend act and shove-" "I''m not asking to be judgmental. I''m asking because I really don''t understand." He left his ce against the wall and started approaching Joanne in a non threatening manner. Because of everything that she had been through, he did not use his power to make her tell the truth and instead asked her normally. "For you to know about my rtionship with her means you''ve been keeping close tabs on her. So you must care about her, right?"


    Joanne clenched her fists like she was trying her damndest not to slug Mchi in the jaw. And against all of his expectations, she didn''t. "Of course I care about her...she''s my daughter!"


    "Then why-"


    "Because she''s better off with my brother than me!" Like earlier in therapy, once Joanne started talking she just couldn''t stop. She told Mchi the story of how she was a bit of a wilder girl in her youth who was the total opposite of who she was now. She didn''t believe she had any of the qualities necessary to be a functional adult, so she left her daughter with her more level headed younger brother. Afterwards, she joined the army in an attempt to discipline herself.


    All of the intense physical exercises she put herself through would act as her method of atonement for leaving her child behind. Once shepleted basic, she intended to retrieve her daughter but... nagging voices in her mind told her that she would be better off without her. What did she know about being a mother?


    She was a mess ever since she was born, and surely she would infect Annalise with her disfunction if she were to be around her, right? Her heart broken and her mind made up, she created a bank ount in which she funneled in money every month and entrusted her brother with joint ownership. Afterwards, she never saw her brother or her child again except through a window or by stalking them on social media. She could see that PG had yet to touch the money she''d given her, no matter how much it piled up but she still kept putting more and more in every month. Joanne wasn''t really sure why she did it. Mchi listened to everything Joanne said without uttering a single word, and when her story was over, he pulled out an envelope from gods know where. "Here." "...What is this?" "Just open it." Joanne didn''t particrly like the way he ordered her around, but she took the envelope nheless. Inside was a ticket of some kind for some sort of event. "I''m sure you know Immortal Moon is hosting some g on Saturday. This is your ticket to get in." The director looked like she was confused about why Mal would give her such a thing, and she attempted to give it back. "Why would you give me something like this?" "Anna ising as one of my dates. You should be in a room with her, and not just stare at her from across the street like a stalker."


    "Who the hell are you to call me a stalker?? You broke into my house!"


    "I invited myself in, don''t change the subject."


    Joanne rolled her eyes and pressed the envelope against Mal''s chest. "I''ve already told you that I can''t... take this and leave." Unfortunately for her, Mchi had no intention of taking the tickets back. "You told me a lot of things, and I listened to all of them. But the main thing I heard is that you''re scared and need a little push."


    He would never tell Joanne this, but Anna had always been broken up over the fact that she didn''t have a mother. PG also refused to talk about her, so she never knew if she was alive or dead or even who her father was. It had left a considerablyrge hole in her life. "I won''t out you, I won''t draw attention to you, I won''t even nce at you. All I''m doing is giving you a chance to observe your daughter more closely." Mchi left the tickets on a nearby coffee table and started walking towards the front door without another word. "What''s your angle? What do you think wille out of all this??" Mchi shrugged and continued walking.


    "I''m pretty sure once you get in a room with Anna you won''t be able to resist drawing closer to her. She''s a special kind of person you can''t fully appreciate from a distance." He left Joanne''s apartment without borating any further, leaving her standing around in a state of deep contemtion. She stared at the tickets like they were a ghost from her past, before ultimately going upstairs to sleep her life away. -


    "That''s what it seems like but he''s not even dressed properly." "Is he... texting?"


    Currently, Mchi was being watched by a small security detail while he stood in front of arge gate located in an abandoned amusement park. His mind was noticeably more distant than usual, as his earlier run in with Anna''s mother had made him miss her a great deal. He would have gone to see her already, but business had toe first this time around. ...But he was still texting her and finalizing ns for her to be at his apartment when he was done. Finally, he stuffed his phone into his pocket and let the shadows drape across his body, changing into his armor without even breaking his stride. Once he passed through the portal, he arrived in a jungle type terrain that made him thankful that Bianca had designed this suit with no sleeves. The heat and humidity was practically unbearable, and he couldn''t imagineing in here with a k jacket like Aisha wore. "Alright, girl. Let''s go grocery shopping." Shear shot out of Mchi''s body with an unforeseen level of excitement, and she made several happy clicking noises in the air as if she were delighted by the smell of living prey. Suddenly, she paused to inspect Mchi carefully, clearly intrigued by the strange apparatus on his face. "You like it? It''s cold, huh?" He said proudly. "...." "...Shear, I don''t think I like you anymore." Closing his eyes, he focused on his blessing from Raijin and visualized the oue he wished to create. 15:58


    The nightmare did not believe his words for even a second and she turned around like she was tired of the needless conversation. Mchi rolled his eyes and looked up at the sun that was zing over him. While Shear didn''t seem to care, he was a different story. ''Let''s cover that up.'' Instinctively, Mal started to use his blessing from Nyx to blot out the sun, but he stopped himself at thest second. Recently, he had been using his powers a lot and neglecting all of his others. He didn''t want to be rusty or fall too far behind, so for today he decided that he would limit himself to using only his other three blessings. ''Let''s see if this works...'' Closing his eyes, he focused on his blessing from Raijin and visualized the oue he wished to create. Since he had progressed leaps and bounds with his powers recently, it was rtively easy. Rumble!


    The formerly cloudless blue sky was chased away by dark dreary thunderclouds that crackled with electricity. Mal waited for a couple more moments and a heavy rainfall began to descend on the entire jungle. Satisfied, Mchi patted Shear a couple of times on her back, signaling their start. "Alright girl, let''s go hunting."


    I got some great and fun ideas for the next few chapters and I really hope you guys like it! I¡¯m honestly really excited AnathaShesha


    Suy ngh? c?a ng??i t?o

 Chapter 116 Shear is A Glutton

    116 Shear is A Glutton


    Trouncing through the jungle were a group of monsters that looked like pigs with human bodies. They were clearly unprepared for this sudden downpour, as evidenced by the somewhat irritated snorts they were releasing. The meat they were carrying was already soaked from the rain, making this hunt seem like a total waste of time and effort. Snap!


    Suddenly, the group of six paused when they heard the distinctive sound of a tree branch being broken. Looking around for the source, they found nothing at all. Only the drizzling sound of rain bouncing off the thick green leaves overhead, and falling to the ground below. Thunk. "Hru?"


    The group of orcs heard another strange soundand broke their necks looking for the source. This time they found something but it didn''t really make sense. It was a sole pack like the one their tribesmen carry, dropped onto the watery ground with no sign of its owner. "Chinpa?" No matter how much they searched, they couldn''t find any evidence of their missing sixth member. It was like he just evaporated after leaving all of his stuff behind. Ssh! Suddenly, a figure appeared in the center of all of the creatures. Before any of them could react, he unsheathed the two handheld spears from behind his back and stabbed the orcs closest to him in the chest. The remaining three had only managed toy their hand on their weapons when gleaming silver daggers left the belt of their attacker and embedded themselves in their head. All five of them fell down dead at exactly the same time, and Mchi cleanly wiped off the des before returning them to his back. ''Gotta admit, that''s some pretty nasty shit...''


    The two orcs that he''d stabbed with his handheld spears were undoubtedly the worst off. 15:59


    The area that came into contact with the des was already starting to rot right before his very eyes, bing a muddled mass of chunky grey-ish brown liquid. As cool as it was, it was also unbelievably morbid and gross. "I wonder which of these guys had it worse." ncing up high into the trees above, he found Shear with her prey already in her hands, long dead and with his head bitten clean off. It looked like she was taking a bit more time to savor her food than normal, as she still hadn''t gotten to the lower half of the body yet. No doubt the addition of magic power in her meal was making it a much more pleasant experience. "Guess I''ll just stick these in the fridge forter then..." Mchi waved his hand and the bodies lying on the ground sank into the shadows around them. The main part of their goal for today was to fill her stomach, as well as stock up on food for the future as a convenience. Items stored in Mal''s shadow storage do not rot or age and he was willing to bet that the magic inside would not dissipate either. Once Shear noticed that her food was disappearing, she appeared beside Mchi in a sh while making frustrated clicking noises. "Calm down would you? I''m saving some forter when you get hungry again." "Hungry...now..!"


    "Christ."


    Mchi rubbed his temples like a parent who was exhausted after trying to exin to a child why they can''t have two dinners. "There''s a whole forest filled with prey out here, man. You can''t fill up right at the beginning."


    "W...Why?"


    "You don''t get the itis when you eat? I can''t have you trying to go and take a nap on me as soon as your belly''s full so that you can leave me out here to clean up alone."


    Shear looked like she only understood around half of what Mchi was saying, but she did calm down eventually. Mchi left the two corpses that were starting to rot out in the open, since he couldn''t take all of the corpses without raising some level of suspicion. Besides, the extraction team still needed things to retrieve at the end of the day. "Alright, shall we go look for our next prey?"


    Shear nodded in anticipation before darting off into the trees, with Mchi following closely behind. The two of them could clearly smell the scent of enemies from nearby and they followed the scent towards a shallow cave on the outskirts of the jungle. Here, they ran into a bit of a problem with their path going forward. Not only were there around sixty of these pig monsters all bundled up and living together, but the boss was nearby was well. He was a hulking monster well over twelve feet tall, with a body covered in gleaming metal armor and holding a hatchet the size of a battle axe. ''I want to take a picture of this so bad...''


    As bad as the situation was, Mchi''s inner anime fan could not help but want to capture this moment in the hopes that Aisha, Anna, and Bianca would understand why he was so excited. ''Nerdy shit aside, I have to figure out a way to bring down this creature without getting -


    Shear suddenly disappeared from her position and warped right above the boss. She raised one of her scythe like appendages and buried it right between the eyes of the Geld lookalike, ending its life without so much as a squeal. "What. The. Fuck..."


    Mchi watched as Shear started eating without a care in the world, finally alerting the other orcs to her presence. A second away from now she would be under siege from over sixty of these creatures, and Mchi wasn''t about to let that happen. Leaping down from the treetops, he made as loud of an entrance as possible as he ran ck lightning along the course of his body. Touching the wet ground, the electricity traveled from puddle to puddle and shocked around twenty of the overgrown pigs, drawing the herd''s attention away from his nightmare. For a moment the creatures nced back and forth between the two intruders and tried to decide which to pursue. Because Mchi was objectively less unnerving to look at, it was decided that he would be the one whom would be eliminated first. The orcs quickly retrieved their weapons, and started rushing at Mchi with the intent to reduce his handsome face into a pile of mashed potatoes. Mchi removed his weapons from his back and used a bit of his blessing from Bast to heighten his physical abilities and give himself a much needed edge. But before he could, something strange happened. Shear sort of... exploded. As she ate, her body started to heat up to a noticeable degree, and she unveiled a brand new ability that Mchi hadn''t seen before. There was a loud explosion, and Shear somehow created something like a domain of light made purely from the magical particles she''d been consuming. The dome was around the size of a two story house in both size and width, enclosing every one of the orcs inside with room to spare. Mchi noticed something strange about this dome after studying it for a moment. The movement of the creatures inside was slowed so drastically that Mchi could hardly tell that they were still in motion. Conversely, he seemed to be able to move faster than ever. His body felt so light that it was as if he was using his avatar armor. He prepared to dice these pigs up like nornal but... then he got a much more interesting idea. "Hey Shear... wanna see something cool?"


    The nightmare stopped eating long enough to watch Mchi''s next actions carefully, slightly curious over what he was about to do next. Mchi''s eyes suddenly started to glow gold, and a fiery lotus flower appeared directly in front of his face. That one became five, and then twenty, and then sixty. Normally, something like this requires an abysmal amount of tie and concentration but with Shear''s field active, he had plenty of time for both. He dispersed the flowers out amongst the slow moving orcs and ced them so that each one was resting delicately atop their heads. With a casual snap of his fingers, Mchi finally started the show. BOOM


    BOOM


    BOOM n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    BOOOOOMM!!!


    One by one, the golden flowers exploded into columns of heavenly fire that so easily blew the roof off the shallow cavern overhead. In the aftermath of the explosion, small petals floated throughout the jungle, unaffected by the rain. It was truly a beautiful spectacle, something that couldn''t be seen anywhere else. Mchi wiped his brow of sweat as he looked towards his contracted partner to see her reaction to his disy. "..."


    "...For real? Nothing?" Shear simply went back to eating not long after, not truly understanding why she had to stop eating to watch that. Mchi decided to get even and took away thest of her corpse to store it away forter. "Hissss!!" "Yea, yea, hiss all you want but you aren''t getting anything else for the rest of the day." Mchi started to turn around and walked back towards the entrance without looking back. "Youing? Let''s go home and see Anna." Annalise is the only person that Shear seems to like as much as Mchi. When she heard her name, the nightmare teleported to his side without a second thought. Mchi was just a little bit jealous over the fact that Shear was so obedient when it came to her, but in the end he wasn''t that upset about it. All that really mattered to him was that all of the people and creatures in his life were happy. The two of them walked casually side by side as if they were the best pair of friends imaginable, leaving only a still smoldering pile of rubble in their wake. Y¡¯all ever have a day so terrible that when you go to sleep you hope you don¡¯t wake up?


    AnathaShesha

 Chapter 117 Bianca Never Forgets

    Chapter 117 Bianca Never Forgets


    It was a beautiful sunny afternoon in the south, and Mchi was having lunch with two of his gorgeous girlfriends. Anna had spent the night against night, and it was easy to see that she was getting more and morefortable with the idea of sharing her boyfriend. Mal genuinely tried his best to make things work, and he ensured that none of the girls would ever feel left out. If Sei got a kiss, so did Anna. When they slept, he held them both under each arm and pressed their bodies against his. Anna had to admit, he was doing a great job at maintaining the bnce and she was honestly very happy. But it was also true that if either of his other girlfriends were slightly less likable, this rtionship that they had would not be nearly as stable. "You''ve been smiling a lot, Anna." Sei noticed. "Is something good happening today?" Anna''s hands went to her face and she realized that she had indeed been smiling like an idiot. For some reason she felt like it would be a bit embarrassing to say that she was thinking about how happy she was. Maintaining her image, she searched her mind for a lie that would save her reputation. "I was just excited to go to ss with Mal today. I figure it will be less boring if we''re sitting together."


    Out of the corner of his eye, Mal looked at Annalise strangely as if he didn''t fully believe her lie. Luckily she caught it, and she gave his leg a hard pinch under the table so as not to blow her cover. Chuckling, he finally stood up and stretched his body like he was ready to go. "I guess we should head out then. I don''t get many chances to show you off afterall." Anna blushed slightly and hurriedly picked up her things to get ready to leave. While Mal and Anna would be going to ss, Sei decided to go in to the restaurant for the first time in a while. Lately she had be a bit bored of staying at home so much and since Luna was too busy to hang out, she decided to go in for a little change of pace. The three of them walked towards the front door and prepared to separate for the day, when Anna and Mchi both received messages on their phones. Dr Andrews: I have a hangover. ss is canceled.


    Mchi and Anna both looked at each other before high fiving like bandits who''d just made it big. Sei sighed a bit in disappointment before turning around with a helpless smile. "Well, you two have fun together." She said sadly. Mchi pulled her in by the waist and kissed her on the cheek. "Don''t make that face, I''ll see you when you get back." "Alright... just make sure you have some energy left for me when Ie back. It''s been a few days for us..." She muttered. Anna''s cheeks became significantly redder as she watched Mchi''s grasp on Sei drop lower and lower. He whispered something in her ear that caused her to bite her lip in anticipation and even though Annalise didn''t hear it, she could tell that it had to have been something incredibly perverted. Sei finally regained enough strength in her arms to push Mchi away, somehow maintaining the small thread of her sanity that was on the verge of snapping.


    When she finally left the apartment, Mchi and Anna were left in the steamy environment, both of them curious about what was going to happen next. "So... what do you want to do today?" Mal asked. "Whatever you just whispered to Sei." She said honestly. Mchi closed the distance between himself and Annalise with a small humorous light in his eyes. Reaching her, he grabbed her somewhat forcefully and pinned her body against the wall. Lifting her arms above her head, he held her firmly in ce with one hand like he was trying to keep her from backing out of her decision. The two of their lips had barely touched before there was another sudden knock at the door, and their building romantic atmosphere was immediately broken. Mchi begrudgingly let go of Anna and moved to open the door, and he immediately wished that he hadn''t. "You totally forgot about your promise, didn''t you?" Bianca asked usingly. When Mchi recalled her demand from a few days ago, his jaw went ck when he saw the items in her hands. "B, y-you wouldn''t actually do this to me would you?"


    "Yes I would."


    "Can''t it be literally anything else?" Mchi pleaded. "Sure, we can go to a youngboy concert."


    Mchi felt like he was stuck between a rock and a hard ce with no way to escape. Finally, Anna poked her head out from around Mchi and took a look at what was going on. When she saw that Bianca was here, she smiled warmly like she was seeing a friend after a long time. "What''s this about a promise?"


    Bianca smiled eerily as she relished in the opportunity to properly exin Mal''s punishment.


    "He lost in apetition we had the other day so now he has to spend the next few hours watching all of ''My Hero'' with me."


    "Oh? That doesn''t seem like much of a punishment though." Anna said with a chuckle. "He has to do it while wearing one of these!"


    Bianca suddenly held up two different outfits, each one terribly embarrassing. They were My Hero themed onesies modeled after the main character and his annoyingly loud and explosive rival. "But umm, am I interrupting something between you two..?" Bianca asked as she looked a bit further down. "Cause Anna your nipples are kinda hard... nice piercings by the way."


    Anna looked down at her chest and zipped her hoodie back up before pulling Bianca inside. "Nope, you''re just in time. There isn''t anything more important than this." n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Mchi could not help but feel a small sense of betrayal from his supposed girlfriend. He made a small mental note to tease her relentlessly next time they had a steamy moment alone. Bianca smiled eerily as she held out one of the onesies towards Mchi. "What are you waiting for, Midoriya? Go get dressed!"


    Mchi said a few swear words in Haitian before snatching away the costume and heading towards the bathroom. Five minutester, he emerged in the most embarrassing attire he could have ever imagined. "In twenty years of life, I have never wanted to kill myself more than I do right now." He said solemnly. "Stopining!"


    Looking up, he found that Bianca had already changed into her own onesie, and Anna was sitting on the couch taking pictures of the both of them. Had she had any sort of social media presence, he would have been more worried about her posting them. ''Luckily, she doesn''t care about shit like that. Now I just have to convince her not to show Ser-''


    "Honey, I''m homeee!!"


    Mal could feel his heart drop and his balls shrivel up as Serena''s annoying sing-song voice echoed throughout his apartment. But if he thought things were bad now, he need only wait a few more seconds. "Serana,e look at this! Bianca got a anime costume for Mal to wear and he looks so cute!"


    The words ''Mal'' and ''anime costume'' caused Serana to run from the front door to the living room with nearly S ranked speed, and what she found was worth every bit of the extra cardio. "Pffft! Y-You look like- Hahahaha! I-I can''t hold it! I''m gonna pee my pants!"


    Serana wasughing so hard that she copsed onto the floor, holding her sides, which in turn reduced Anna to a simr state. Bianca casually walked up to Mal, clearly very pleased with herself and wearing a satisfied smirk. "Don''t worry, you still look handsome~" She said evilly. Mchi rolled his eyes and tried his best to push Serana and Anna''sughter out of his mind. Suddenly, an idea to get out of this came to his mind and he gave Bianca his best prizewinning smile."Don''t just tell me that, do something about it."


    "W-What?"


    Mchi started to get closer and closer to Bianca while making intense eye contact. "You think I''m handsome, right? Don''t just tell me, show me."


    Bianca, who was utterly unprepared for this sudden assault on her emotions, started to back away while covering her chest. Going in for the kill, Mal leaned in closely and made it so that his lips were nearly touching hers. "Are you going to close the distance? Or are you too sca-"


    Before Mchi could finish his taunt, Bianca reached her limit on teasing and grabbed him by the face, kissing him properly for the first time. Mal had to admit, he was takenpletely by surprise. Bianca may have acted bold when they first met, but her true nature was that of a sweet and timid house cat. He thought for sure that she would simply pass out from his sudden flirting or even run and hide. But not only was she responding to his aggression, she even took the initiative to slip her tongue into his mouth. Eventually Mal''s shock was ovee by desire, and he wrapped his arms around her waist to reciprocate. The two were so lost in their own world they didn''t even realize that Anna and Serana had been silent for a while now and were watching them. "You''re a real weird girl, Bianca." Serana said. "His whole anime get up isn''t drying you up at least a little bit?"


    "To be fair, It''s not really drying me up either." Anna suddenly admitted. "It''s funny to see how ufortable he looks, but I still wanna fuck him."


    Serana went from looking at Anna like she was her best friend to a revolting creature she couldn''t stand to look at. "I swear, I have to get a boyfriend... this whole lovey dovey atmosphere you guys have going on is going to give me a lifestyle disease."


    When Mchi and Bianca finally separated, her sses were fogged up and she was a bit out of breath, but her eyes didn''t seem to show the slightest sense of regret over what she''d done. "Is that enough proof...?" She said softly. "Yea..."


    Mal leaned in to kiss Bianca once again, when she suddenly muttered seven heartbreaking words under her breath. "You still have to watch the show..."


    "Shit..."

 Chapter 118 Shop Talk

    Chapter 118 Shop Talk


    ", I''m just gonna go ahead and warn you right now, just ignore whatever stupid shit they say."


    "Aww are you telling me this because you''re afraid you''ll be embarrassed?" Bianca asked teasingly. Mchi nced at the shop they were about to enter out of the corner of his eye and debated changing his mind. "Yes, I am 100% sure these motherfuckers will try to embarrass me."


    Bianca giggled and wormed her way past him like some kind of serpent. "Okay well know I HAVE to go inside."


    Mchi tried to stop her, but his attempts were all in vain. This was their second official day as a couple, and the two of them were spending it running all sorts of errands in preparation for Luna''s G in two days. While Bianca, Sei, Luna, and Anna all had to have dresses custom made and go shopping for essories and pick out a good hair dresser and make-up artist and a gaggle of other things...


    The only items on Mchi''s to do list were :


    A. Get a nice suit. B. Get a haircut. Leading to the current scenario where, after going to some fancy store that Mchi couldn''t even pronounce that was on the other side of the country, they ended up here outside of Mchi''s barbershop. Bianca pushed open the door and Mchi wearily followed her inside. The familiar homey atmosphere, the smell of wave grease, and the sound of low ying music that could barely be heard over the raunchyughter. When Mchi and Bianca walked inside, the sound ofughter and clippers immediately ceased as everyone stared at the two neers. "Shit, I know that ain''t Preach!"


    "Hide ya momma''s y''all! Don''t let that boy get a hold of em!"


    "It look like Mr. Famous done remembered where he came from!"


    "What''s good little bro? Is your sister still single?"


    In the blink of an eye, Mchi was being greeted by men young and old, all eager to see him after such a long time. However, they paused when they noticed an equally famous and beautiful young woman standing next to him. Bianca shunt back a bit due to the sudden influx of attention, and Mal took it upon himself to make introductions.


    And give well needed warnings. "This is my girl Bianca... Act like y''all got some sense."


    Mchi knew just how out of pocket these men could be when it came to pretty women. He would hate to send this shop up into mes because one of them said her body wascornbread fed. "Umm, hello." She said shyly. One by one, a few of the man came up to shake hands with Bianca and embrace Mchi, allowing him to make introductions. The first to step up was an older man with dark skin and an afro, wearing a orange dashiki and sandals that showed off his feet that were thered in coco butter. "It''s nice to meet you, sister. And it''s good to see you again, brother Mchi." He said in a smooth, preacher-like voice. "B, this is Hotep. He''s good people, just don''t ask him anything about religion, politics, or sports if you wanna get outta here in under two hours."


    "Oh, um okay. It is very nice to meet you." Bianca said kindly as she shook his hand. The next person to step up was a young man around their age who Mchi immediately dismissed. "Hell nah, get back."


    "Mal? You really gonna do me like this now that you famous?" The man said in a tone of feigned hurt. "Fame ain''t got nothing to do with it. You thest person I want around my girl, Triple D."


    Bianca tilted her head in confusion as she lightly tugged on Mchi''s shirt. "Umm.. why do you call him Triple D?"


    "Cause he''s a manwhore who tries to fuck any girl who has a pulse. So we call him dirty dick dork."


    "Pffft.." Bianca snorted lightly at such an unexpected response and quickly covered her mouth as she tried not tough. Darnell (Triple D), merely rolled his eyes and walked off after seeing that he was clearly not wee at this time. It was worth noting that he and Mchi didn''t actually have that bad of a rtionship, but their views on women were totally different. Mchi was the loverboy who would buy girls flowers, and Darnell was the fuckboy who would make them pay for their own Ubers after he smashed. The two were always making fun of each other. The next man to step up was also someone who Mchi knew very well. He was another older gentleman with salt and pepper hair and wearing clothes that had already started to fade. "Hey youngdy, how you doing? I''m Preach''s Uncle Elroy."


    Bianca was excited to meet another member of Mchi''s family, but he quickly rified that he wasn''t his actual uncle, just someone who''d known him since he was 5. "He''s alright too, just don''t loan him any money." Mal testified. "He acts like he can''t pay anyone back."


    Elroy clicked his teeth and shook his head in disappointment."All the money you making now and you still worried about forty funky ass dors?"


    "They wasn''t funky when you borrowed em."Mal reminded. "I needed it back then to help get some gas in my car so I could get to my daughter''s graduation! Surely now that you got all this money you ain''t hurtin for it!"


    Mchi made a nk face as he held out his hand without saying a word. Elroy grumbled and rummaged in his pocket before pulling out a wad of cash and dumping it into Mchi''s palm. He hurriedly left the shop not long afterwards, and Mal began to smell something funny about the whole situation. Checking his palm, Mchi had only received twenty one dors and a McRonald''s gift card.


    Knowing Elroy, Mchi wasn''t really counting on their being money on it. Afterwards, Mal made a few more hasty introductions before they were finally able to get past the entrance and walked a bit farther into the shop. Mchi and Bianca came to a stop in front of an old man standing by a barber''s chair. He was a somewhat burly man with a pot belly and dark circr sses. His full beard was immactely cut and styled, and shined with the luster of some essential grooming oil. "Tone."


    "Preach."


    The two men smiled and sped hands before embracing each other like they were family reconnecting after a long time apart. n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    When they separated, Bianca politely shook hands and introduced herself, and questioned his barber about something she''d noticed consistently since they''d walked in. "Can I ask, why does everyone call Mal ''Preach''?"


    The entire shop suddenly erupted inughter, while Mchi covered his face from the embarrassment. "That boy used to go to sleep in church every Sunday!"


    "Sitting in the back of the choir snoring his damn life away!"


    "The pastor used to get so mad he''d make him read scripture till he could preach it himself!"


    Bianca suddenly smirked and grabbed Mal''s arm, excited to have learned something new. "My boyfriend was a choir boy~?"


    Mchi: "No."


    Tone: "Lying ass."


    Bianca pulled out her phone and started to text Aisha for old videos before she suddenly paused. "Howe you never sang for any of us?"


    Mchi leaned down next to Bianca''s ear and whispered teasing words. "I like it better when I make you girls sing for me instead."


    Initially she did not understand, but soon her cheeks started to warm up and she put a short but necessary distance between them. Tone chuckled as he patted the chair and gestured for him to sit down. "Those powers of yourse with help talking to thedies?"


    "Nah, nothing like that." (Yes they do.)


    Evidence of Mal and Tone''s close rtionship was in how he immediately knew the kind of cut he wanted without even needing to ask. Bianca took a seat in front of them and watched with interested eyes and even took a few pictures in the process. Tone was more of the quiet and reserved type, and maybe that was why he and Mchi always got along so well. He didn''t ask Mchi for any favors, or try to start kissing up to him, instead they just talked about regr things without even mentioning his societal status. It was an extremely refreshing change of pace. "What''s been going on with y''all boystely?" Mal asked. He was immediately besieged with a flurry of answers before they suddenly trailed off and lost steam. The men nced silently at Bianca before giving vague responses. "Nothing much..."


    "I''m straight."


    "My wife put me out, but I''m not tripping."


    Bianca noticed that the atmosphere was almost ufortable and it wasn''t hard to determine the reason. "Are you guys acting like this because I''m a girl...? Because you can talkfortably, I don''t really care."


    The men nced at Mchi out of respect and he merely shrugged in response, and it was all out of control from there. "Craig got his bitch fucked by somebody else!"


    "Damn."


    "Ack!"


    While Mchi made a face like he''d been punched in the gut,Bianca doubled over in her chair as she tried to suppress a snort. Sitting in the corner of the shop, a tired looking man with a bald head looked like all of the life had left his eyes. "I confronted her about it but she tried to lie to me saying they ain''t do nothing cause it ain''t fit."


    "DAMN!" The collective shock erupted from everyone in the barbershop with functional ears, and they were all looking at the broken hearted man with pitiful looks. "And I''m like what the hell you mean it didn''t fit? I fit don''t I?! Why the hell he don''t fit!?" Craig cried. "You don''t want me to tell you why he don''t fit, Craig."


    "Don''t worry big bro, you just gotta have your viin arc."


    "He too old to be talking bout a damn viin arc, he just gotta kill himself and start over."


    The conversation quickly became wilder and more uncut, and Mchi wondered if it might have been too much for the innocent Bianca. Although after taking a look at her, he quickly dismissed such a conclusion. His girlfriend wasughing harder than anyone else, and it was clear that she was feeling right at home in the atmosphere. He was initially a bit worried to bring her here but now, he was d that he did. The beautiful smile on her face made it all so worth it. -


    Outside of the window, a very beautiful woman who seemed to be imperceptible to those around her was watching the young couple fondly. "The two of them are so cute... I should say hello."

 Chapter 119 A Small Favor

    119 A Small Favor


    Bianca and Mchi had spent the entire day together,ughing, holding hands, and of course attracting a fair deal of attention wherever they went. After an entire fun filled and eventful date, Mchi was dropping Bianca off at her apartment. Both of them looked reluctant to part as Mchi stood outside her door while she wrestled with the words on the tip of her tongue. "Do you want toe inside..?" "...Sure." Mal smiled gently as he gradually stepped into her apartment. As one would expect, Bianca''s home was lined with merch from various anime and conventions from all over the country, and she had more than a few rare collectibles. "You probably think it''s childish, huh?" She said shyly. It was clear that now that she had invited him in she was starting to regret it. One never really realizes just how much nerdy stuff they have in their home until they have someone else over. But of course, Bianca had forgotten that Mchi was also a huge nerd. "Is this the special edition immortalbat VS5 console?!" Even with the lights on, Mal''s eyes were easily the brightest thing in the room as he stared at Bianca''s entire gaming setup. Bit by bit, her own anxiety was being washed away and reced with a sense of smug satisfaction. "Yea, I had to stand in line for over six hours to get it. It was well worth it for my favorite game though." Mchi''s ears twitched a bit when he heard the words ''favorite game'' and he couldn''t stop his thoughts from slipping out of his mouth. "You feel like losing in it?" Suddenly Bianca was no longer smiling and she cracked her knuckles like a professional boxer. "I don''t take challenges lightly, baby boy. Don''t make me embarrass you on our first date." Mchi felt a great many emotions in that moment. Challenged. Aroused. Insulted. Turned on. He was no longer sure what he wanted to y with more; Bianca or her body. But once Bianca tossed a spare controller at him, his mind was easily made up. - 20 Minutester.


    The sound of buttons being mashed furiously was echoing all throughout Bianca''s living room. In addition to that, there was more than a fair amount of trash talk being thrown around as well. "Get that weak shit out of here, this is my house!" n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "You''re trash, babe! Step your game up!"


    "You''re cheating!"


    "So are you!"


    Anyone who looked into Bianca''s living room would have absolutely no idea what was going on. The both of them were sitting side by side on the couch, in nothing but their underwear. How they got here was really a rather simple and easy to grasp answer. Bianca ys dirty. After losing the first two matches back to back, she unzipped her jacket and revealed her generous bust that was only barely contained in herce bra. Mal immediately lost the next three games. Frustrated, he took off his own shirt and continued to y, evening the odds. The next two games were divided evenly among them, but Bianca couldn''t ept anything else than absolute victory. A few minutester, she pulled off her jeans with burning red cheeks and sat back onto the couch, thoroughly distracting Mchi. He lost the next two games before his own pants came off, and Bianca faced her biggest disadvantage yet. Mal was good at controlling his body''s impulses, but he wasn''t a monk or a eunuch. After Bianca''s cheating strip show, his body naturally showed an understandable reaction. And Mchi could feel her gaze that had yet to leave his exposed boxers. "You''re seeming a little distracted, babe. Something on your mind?" He said sarcastically. "That''s... not real, right?" Mchi chuckled a bit and continued to y oblivious. "Not sure what you''re talking about. But you might want to start ying again or I''m going to get this round."


    When the voice of the announcer finally dered a wless victory, Mchi finally put down the controller and looked at Bianca. "Something on your mind, B?"


    "I''m... your girlfriend, right..? So that means I can touch you whenever I want, yea?"


    Without waiting for an answer, Bianca reached out with a slender hand and grabbed therge bulge that was resting on Mal''s thigh. Based on the amateurish way he was being touched, Mchi knew instinctively that she must''ve had little to no experience. "I''ve never really done anything like this before... Are they all this... scary?"


    Mchi didn''t quite know why she referred to his appendage as ''scary'' but he shrugged off the perceived slight. "I think I''m a little... above average." If Luna, Sei, or Anna heard his description of himself, they would all smack him on the back of the head simultaneously. Her inability topletely wrap it around her head should have been rather telling, but Bianca was still determined to see more. She snaked her hand up to the waistband of her boxers and prepared to pull them down when Mchi suddenly stopped her. "B... You might wanna get dressed."


    Not understanding what was going on, Bianca''s first guesses was utterly horrible. ''D-Did I do something wrong?''


    ''I must''ve been too hasty!''


    ''Does he think I''m a hoe!?''


    Mchi seemed to recognize that his girlfriend was falling into a panic and he pulled her in for a reassuring kiss. "I''m sorry... but we kind of have a guest outside." He said apologetically. Bianca who was still delirious from the kiss, was having a hard time following the current twisting and turning of events. "Guest...?"


    Mchi released her and pulled back on his pants and shirt while gesturing for her to do the same. When they were both covered, Mchi leaned back into the couch with Bianca in hisp. "Alright, you cane in now."


    For a brief second, the lights within Bianca''s apartment flickered and there was only total darkness. When the illumination returned, there was a beautiful woman with a shifting gxy beneath her skin and long ck hair that went below her butt. "W-W-W-W-Wha...?"


    "It''s always good to see you, mom but... you really have some terrible timing."


    Bianca was able to deduce the identity of the mysterious woman in the room based on her unique appearance and the affectionate way Mal referred to her. Nyx snorted before folding her arms over her generous chest. "I''ll have you know that I waited for as long as I could before I made my presence known. I didn''t want to disturb you two during your date after all."


    "Y-You''ve been watching us the whole time?" Bianca said shakily. Nyx suddenly closed the distance between herself and Bianca and cupped her face in her cool hands.


    "I have, and it''s very nice to meet you, Bianca. You were quite charming before, but now you are a beauty without equal."


    Nyx''s words felt like they wereced with the same sedative as Mchi''s, and the contents of her greeting only made her introduction that much more impactful. "Ah, I don''t think... thank you very much for saying so."Bianca said honestly. Nyx eventually released her and ced a hand on Mchi''s cheek instead, looking at him significantly more tenderly. "It''s been a while hasn''t it, my son? It feels like we have so much to catch up on."


    Mchi was slightly ufortable as he remembered the teasing words of Luna and Nyx''s own rtionship with her consort and eldest son, Erebus.


    If she was capable of reading his thoughts, she didn''t show any sort of reaction from them other than the small smirk that passed over her blue lips. "I heard that Erebus paid you a rather unnecessary visit... I am sorry about that. But he told me that you made a rather interesting ally since we''ve been apart."


    Mchi nodded and called out his personal nightmare Shear so that proper introductions could be made. The creature appeared in it''s smaller, less prickly form and it excitedly sniffed around it''s new surroundings. However, when it sensed Nyx''s empty ck eyes racing across it''s body, and it started to tremble out of a sense of fear. This being... it felt like her master but it was incalcbly more dangerous. It shed out of sight, and reappeared behind a sofa on the other side of the room, trembling horribly behind a chair. "Well, that''s surely a nightmare. Albeit a baby one." Nyx said in a small amount of surprise. "Nightmare?" Bianca asked. Nyx nced at Mchi out of the corner of her eye before exining.


    "They are... a scourge that will being to this world at a time I cannot specify. As of now, my son is the best defense against them, and you will also y an integral part in aiding him."


    Bianca''s eyes widened and she looked at Mal as if to confirm that his words were true. "I... haven''t told anyone else except for Luna. I wanted all of you girls to live normally for as long as possible before shit hit the fan."


    He suddenly looked at Nyx with determined eyes that seemed to have some sort of idea in mind. "I''ve been waiting for you to show up again because I had something that I wanted to ask you. "


    "Oh? And what might my darling boy need from me?" Nyx asked sweetly. Mchi shrugged off her awkward nickname and took a deep breath before making his sincere request. "I need you to..."


    I think my girl''s only red g is that her favorite legendary pokemon is Heatran and I just can''t get past that AnathaShesha

 Chapter 120 Damn We Look Good!

    120 Damn We Look Good!


    "Damn, I look good!"


    Serana was ogling herself in the mirror and taking pictures from every conceivable angle she could. She had on an elegant sparkly grey dress with a simple coat draped over her slender shoulders, and a diamond ne that Mchi bought her after she asked him nicely. (She threatened him by saying that she would never let him have a moment alone with her mother ever again.)


    It was very clear that she was unbelievably excited to attend her first g tonight. "I''m d you''re happy but I feel like I''m going to be fucking sick..."


    Serana turned around to find Anna sitting on the couch a few feet away, looking more pale than a bottle of glue. But despite her ghostly appearance, she was nothing short of radiant. Anna initially refused when Mchi tried to invite her to the g tonight. She was fully aware of the kind of image she had and the sort of person she was, so she didn''t believe this kind of party was really the ce for her. However, Mchi dismissed such a notion almost as quickly as she thought it up, reassuring her that anywhere he was, she also had a rightful ce beside him. While she wasn''t sure if she believed him, she had to admit that she was more than a little touched by his sincerity. As a result, she not only agreed to go, but she even let him pick out a dress for her. Hers was selected with the goal of not hiding her personality and charm, but showing it off boldly for all to see. Anna wore a sleeveless ck dress with a slit in the side and the back cut out. She wanted to hide her tattoos so as to appear more professional, but with the way her dress was designed left the bulk of them on full disy. The pieces on her chest, back, arms and leg were all very well done, and she was extremely grateful that she never got a silly tattoo like one from a cartoon. On her wrist, she wore a dark golden bracelet that came as a set with her ruby earrings, and a pair of dark burgundy heels on her feet. "Why are you acting like you''re going to die? You''re going to a super fancy party, you should be way more excited!"


    "Yea but, this is the first time I''ll be stepping out with Mal as a couple and there''s going to be all these eyes on us and shit like that...Plus I don''t really like being the poorest person in the room." n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "I only have about twelve dors in my ount right now. Does that make you feel better?"


    "Good!"


    Suddenly, a small can of soda was handed to Anna and she looked up with grateful eyes at the short haired girl above her. "Ginger ale should help settle your stomach, Anna."


    "Thanks, Bianca."


    Just like everyone else, Bianca was also dressed to the nines. She wore a beautiful bronze colored dress with long sleeves and a deep V neck that showed off her captivating figure. She wasn''t much for essorizing, so her wrists and fingers were bare of any sort of jewelry, but she was wearing a small locket around her neck with a picture of her father inside. "Are you really not nervous at all?" Anna asked. "Well, some people have already taken pictures of Mal and I on our date so everyone already suspects we''re together, so I guess I''m not that worried about it?"


    "Perfect." Anna threw her head back in exasperation as she felt her own anxiety return. "So am I going to be the only one who''s going to faint before we walk in?"


    "Yes, because I am surely going to pass out as soon as we get into the limo."


    Sei suddenly entered the room looking almost as pale as Anna, but every bit as gorgeous. She wore a dark green dress that was both long sleeved and came up to her cor bone, but despite not showing any real skin she was egregiously sexy. In a rare change, her hair chocte brown hair was done up in a bun, with two small strands dangling by her beautiful warm eyes. Although in this moment, her eyes contained more than a fair amount of nervousness. She took shaky footsteps to sit on the couch just beside Anna, and immediatelyy her head on her shoulder. "I-I''ve catered for a few big parties before b-but nothing like this... What if they think I''m some kind of country bumpkin who doesn''t know anything?!"


    Anna suddenly began having her own panic attack and it seemed like she had also thought of some more equally terrifying scenarios. "W-What if they serve us food that we can''t pronounce!?"


    "W-What if they start talking to us about county clubs, beach houses, or vacations in Rome!?"


    Anna and Sei''s eyes only got wider and wider with every possible scenario they imagined and their fear finally reached a fever pitch. ""WE CHANGED OUR MINDS, WE''RE NOT GOING!""


    Serana chuckled while Bianca rubbed her temples in exhaustion. "What''s got you two so upset?"


    When Mchi exited his bedroom, the atmosphere within the apartment changed entirely. The young man hated to get dressed up more than anything, but that didn''t mean he didn''t know how to do it. When the girlsid eyes on him, Sei and Anna once again came to a unanimous understanding. Sei: "Nevermind, we''re going."


    Anna: "You look too good."


    Sei: "We have to keep those greedy rich women away from you."


    Anna: "And maybe have a quickie in the bathroom."


    Sei: "I-I wasn''t thinking about that, but I do admit that it would be nice..."


    Serana, Bianca, and Mchi all had different reactions to their derations. Serana looked like she was on the verge of throwing up after hearing her mother''s desire to havesex in a bathroom. Coincidentally, Bianca was also thinking about having sex with Mal, but she doubted they would make it to the bathroom. Mchi was simply staring at all three girls in confusion, wondering just what had gotten into them. -


    Tonight, there was only one event that firmly held the attention of the entire world. The guest list for Immortal Moon''s g wasn''t terribly long, but it contained more than a few influential names and faces. Outside of the venue, a red carpet had been set up from the front door to the curb, and two velvet ropes were separating the desperate paparazzi from these behemoths of society. Almost on cue, a sleek ck limousine pulled up and a frenzy erupted from the gathered crowd as they waited to see who would arrive next. A driver stepped out to open the door, and a tall and very handsome man stepped out. He was of Spanish descent, with a tannedplexion and sleek ck hair that was shaved on the sides. He had a neatly shaved beard that alluded to his real age that none were quite sure of, and he wore avish tan suit with dark brown wingtip shoes. He wore a simple white shirt with no tie, and a prize winning smile that could enchant the hearts of women and children alike. In the entire world, there were five guilds that were considered to be the best of the best, and unshakeable in their positions. And after True Sky was removed from it''s number two position, the rankings of everyone went up. 5. Dead Sea, led by Logan Reeves; The man blessed by Poseidon.


    4. Immortal Moon, led by Luna Autumn; the woman blessed by Chang''e.


    3. tinum Scale, led by a man known only as Ere; who is blessed by Sobek.


    2. Ragnarok, led by Morgan Creed; One of only three men known to have a blessing from a primordial; Surtr.


    And at number one, by the tiniest of margins, is the guild Children of The Aztecs. It is led by this man, Enzo Valentin, the one who is blessed by not only Quetzalcoatl, but Tl¨¡loc as well.


    "How are all of you people doing this fine evening!?"


    His thick Spanish ent caused the women in the crowd to swoon, and his outwardly friendly nature made men incapable of hating him. And even if they did, it wasn''t like they could beat him in a fight. "I can''t believe he flew all the way to America for this!"


    "Hey Enzo, can I get somements on how it feels to be number 1?"


    "M-My wife has you as number 1 on her list of hall passes, so maybe if you''re not busyter tonight then you can..."


    Enzo smiled and waved politely at the crowd like an expert who''d been media trained ever since he could crawl. He moved past the red carpet swiftly, and passed through the building to enter into a one of a kind ballroom. An exquisite champagne tower, waiters traveling about bringing horderves the likes of which most people couldn''t even pronounce, and more high fashion clothing items than money could by. There were already a great many guests that had arrived at the party, but Enzo set his sights on the one woman who didn''t even acknowledge his entrance. Amongst the crowd, Luna Autumn was positively radiant. She could be seen wearing a dark blue dress with a long slit that exposed most of her right leg and a ck and gold kimono that was draped across her shoulders. She was talking to two people, and older man wearing a ck suit and a much younger woman who Enzo recognized as one of her guild members. His destination made up, Enzo smiled as he confidently started walking towards the chatting trio. Having a homeboy who hates his girl when you in a happy rtionship is so crazy.


    He still be trynna get me to go out on two man missions and it''s like bro I''m happy just go to therapy.

 Chapter 121 A Sight To See

    121 A Sight To See


    "You look amazing, boss!" Opal said excitedly. "I''d be hard pressed not to agree. I''ve yet to see a woman that is your equal tonight." Rowan added. Luna smiled politely as she shook her head in disagreement. "I can assure you, they''reing. I must admit that tonight the girls look even more charming than I."


    Serana had sent her pictures of the girls in their dresses, and even though two of them were extremely pale, they all looked incredible. "I''m a bit surprised though, I thought you would be arriving with Mal on your arm." Opal pointed out. "Don''t tell me he''s noting?" Luna sighed bitterly as she remembered the disappointed look on Mal''s face when she told him she had to go on ahead of them. She was more upset than anyone, as she had prepared something very special for him and she desperately wanted to see him wearing it. "La Luna."


    Suddenly, a fourth voice joined the conversation, and the three of them turned to face the neer. "Mr. Enzo. I am pleased that you could make an appearance."


    The man clicked his teeth as he held out his arms for a friendly hug. "Come, don''t be like that. I haven''t seen you since the conference in-"


    Before Enzo could finish, Opal rushed into his open arms and hugged him of her own volition. "S-Sorry, I''m just a really big fan!"


    "Hahaha! Think nothing of it!" The man embraced her firmly, and once they separated he held out his hand to the other man standing silently beside Luna. "I am Enzo Valentin. I don''t believe we''ve been introduced?"


    Rowan looked like he wasn''t really expecting such a big shot to speak to him so suddenly, as his self introduction was a tiny bit dyed. "Professor Rowan Ivers. I am the applied abilities instructor here at Immortal Moon. " n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Enzo looked to be slightly surprised by that information, as the old man in front of him was clearly human. How was he supposed to teach blessed how to use their powers when he didn''t even have any of his own?


    "Well, if you were approved by Ms. Luna here, I am certain that your qualifications must be exceptional."


    His wordscked the usual condescending tone that one would expect from such an influential member of society, improving Rowan''s opinion of him. Turning his attention back to Luna, he gestured to the numerous guests around them and made an astute observation. "All these guests here, and yet you have no man at your side."


    He boldly took Luna''s hand before she could react, and made her an invitation that he was sure she couldn''t refuse. "Then I hope that you will allow me to be your date for this eve- Ow!"


    No sooner had he started making his asinine proposal did Luna use a tiny bit of Shiro''s blue me to burn the palm of his hand. Her hand free, Luna wiped her palm on her dress before realizing that this wouldn''t be quite good enough. "Opal, do you have any perfume on you?"


    "Worried about how he''ll react if he smells it?" Opal asked as she rummaged through her purse. "Mhm."


    "Yea, I guess that makes sense."


    Luna sprayed her hand with the perfume before returning it and walking away without another word. "He? So she does have a man for tonight?" Enzo asked.


    "Mhm."


    "Not just tonight." Enzo made a confused expression as if he had no idea who he could be. A fleeting thought crossed his mind, and he nced at Rowan out of the corner of his eye. The old man noticed the suspicious gaze he was receiving and he pushed out his chest with pride. "Well, Icould have had her if I really wanted her, but an old man like me has to be a bit more-"


    "Be fucking for real." Opal scolded as she jabbed him in the side. Enzo looked back and forth between the two of them beforeughing heartily as he held his sides. Really, everyone here was so entertaining!


    -


    Luna ended up circting her way throughout the party, exchanging short pleasantries with anyone who stopped her. It had already be extremely tiresome and tedious, leading her to wonder if it would be appropriate as the host of the party for her to run off and hide. As soon as she made up her mind to make the restroom her next destination, she found two familiar faces that immediately served to put a tender smile on her face. Aisha and Aubrey were an incredibly beautiful pairing, with one wearing a sparkly ck dress and the other in a bright silver one. Aubrey''s curly ck hair was tied into a bun on top of her head to highlight her pretty face, and Aisha''s was done in a French braid that hung on her shoulder. When they saw Lunaing towards her, they immediately smiled and closed the distance between the two of them. Embracing each other, the women immediately began chatting like they were the best of friends. "What are you doing here, Lady Luna? I thought you would have shown up with Mal and the rest of the girls."


    Luna smiled bitterly as she shook her head. "I wish I could have but... I had matters to attend to here."


    "Well, don''t worry. He''ll be here soon and the two of you can make me sick for the rest of the night!" Aubrey said happily. Luna merely giggled and shook her head wryly. "Don''t be like that, Aubrey. Do you mean to tell me you don''t want your brother to be happy?"


    "No, he deserves it more than anyone else I know... just don''t tell him that I said that or I''ll deny it."


    "Fufufu~ Your secret is safe with me, dearie."


    The three of them became inseparable from that point onward, as even when someone approached to speak to Luna, they were scared away by Aisha''s unfriendly re. It was like they had their own pretty bouncer at their beck and call. However, there was one individual who was immune to her scathing look. "Well, if it isn''t my favorite unfriendly war princess. How have you been, Aisha dear?" Enzo asked. "...Christ."


    At some point, the guild master had tracked down the bewitching Luna like some kind of bloodhound. However, he never expected to find her with another woman that he knew extremely well. "Still so curmudgeonly after all this time. It wouldn''t kill you to smile more, you know?"


    Contrary to what he believed, Aisha felt like she actually would die if she showed this guy the faintest bit of kindness. With the two of them being among the only blessed in the world with dual blessings, she waspared to Enzo at almost every conceivable instance. ''He''s so friendly, why can''t she be like that?''


    13:50


    ''His powers are so much cooler than hers, she must feel so jealous.''


    ''He runs a sessful guild with worldwide influence, doesn''t it make her seemzy byparison?''


    She was so goddamn sick of it she wanted to punch this guy every time she saw him!


    "And who do we have beside you, hm?"


    Enzo suddenly turned his focus to thergely unknown Aubrey and held out his hand. "Enzo Valentin. And you are...?"


    The young girl made a bit of an ufortable expression as she brought her hands close to her chest. She had taken immeasurable strides to getting over her trauma ever since she and Aisha first started dating, but there were still things that were arge no-no.


    Being alone with a man, and touching him in any way, were among those exceptions. "I''m sorry, I have a thing... I can''t." She said painfully. Aisha swatted away Enzo''s hand but he easily avoided her irate scolding, as he recognized the ufortable look on her face. "That''s alright, you don''t need to push yourself, dear. Can you at least tell me your name?"


    "O-Oh, it''s-"


    Suddenly, the energy within the ballroom shifted, and loud murmurs rang out amongst the guests. Even if they wanted to, they could not take their eyes off the individuals that had just entered the venue. Walking by herself was a young girl with bright pink hair and wearing a sparkly grey dress. She had practiced her calm,posed, and mysterious vibe for hours on end, and it appeared to be paying off. But on the inside, she was as far fromposed as she could be. ''That''s right, I know I look good! Starting tonight I''m taking sugar daddy applications!''


    The only evidence of her inner monologue was a small mysterious smirk on her soft lips. Coincidentally, this was also something she had practiced in the mirror. "Oh my... I don''t believe I''ve ever seen a more appealing man."


    "I don''t recognize the girl in the ck dress... Is she a foreigner perhaps?"


    "So he doesn''t only like older women? Maybe our daughter has a chance."


    "Hm? O-Oh, yeah... our daughter has a chance.."


    "Wait... that garment... do you think it means...?"


    The group that walked through the double doors had thoroughly captivated the partygoers, and for good reason. There wasn''t a single person here who was not either envious of Mchi, or the women on his arm. With Bianca and Anna on his right side and Sei on his left, he had a diverse array of extremely captivating women. And while there was definitely arge amount of focus ced on them, there was a greater amount on Mchi himself. As mentioned before, Mchi typically hated dressing up. But for some reason, he did not hate his outfit at all, and he was actually quitefortable. For starters, he wore a pair of slim, ck dress pants that were perfectly ironed and impable. The design on his belt was of a monster woman who was famous for turning men to stone. He wore a ck, corless dress shirt over his lean and muscr torso, and his bright purple eyes were hidden behind a pair of circr dark sunsses. His dreads dangled freely down his back, pushed out of the way by Sei so that his handsome face and signature golden earrings were always on disy. The only sound in this once noisy room wasing from his leather wingtip shoes that echoed off the white marble with every step.


    However, the article of clothing that garnered the most attention was none of those unremarkable aforementioned things. It was the ck kimono sitting on his shoulders with small golden streaks on the ends of the sleeves. In the center of his back, there was a single, lone moon. Making this article of clothing dangerously simr to one that was already in attendance tonight. Click.


    Click.


    Click.


    Luna''s heels rapped off the floor as she practically ran out from the crowd to meet him first. She stopped a mere few inches away from him and the rest of the girls, her eyes never leaving his handsome face. "You look better than I could have imagined... I''m d that you like my gift."


    Mchi nodded his head gratefully as he momentarily released Sei and Anna. Without saying a word, he slid his arms around her waist and pulled her in for a long kiss. The energy within the ballroom exploded.

 Chapter 122 Glad You Could Make It!

    122 d You Could Make It!


    "Holy shit!"


    "Lucky bitch..."


    "Lucky bastard..."


    "Am I seeing things?"


    When Mchi finally released Luna''s lips from his, their actions had caused quite a stir within the ballroom. But he himself didn''t seem to care all that much about themotion he caused, and instead his sole focus rested on the woman in his arms. "...You could have just said hello you know?" She muttered. "Not as fun."


    Luna rolled her eyes as she lightly fanned her reddened cheeks, not quite willing to admit that she had enjoyed his greeting more than anyone. "Oh...! I see now!"


    Suddenly, a man stepped out from the murmuring crowd, trailed by two people Mchi knew very well. Enzo wore an expression of true shock just like the rest of the crowd, but he didn''t really seem to be upset in the slightest. "So, this is the man they spoke of. I must admit, I had not taken you for a cougar, Luna."


    The white haired beauty''s building good mood was crushed t in an instant.


    "I am most certainly NOT a cougar, Enzo."


    "Are you not dating a much younger man?"


    "His age has nothing to do with my decision to be with him."


    Enzo shrugged as he held out his hand for Mchi to shake and shed him a charismatic smile. "Enzo Valentin, it''s nice to finally meet you."


    However, Mal wasn''t smiling in the slightest. After his collision with Alex, he was wary of people like this. Those that just seemed to be overwhelmingly charismatic and happy without an ounce of darkness in their hearts. ''What...are you hiding...?'' N?v(el)B\\jnn


    It was really a simple passing question, but Mal''s intense desire to know the truth unlocked a new ability. Suddenly, his vision darkened and the world around him becamepletely ck. Bit by bit, the bodies of everyone inside started to light up.


    Some were golden, others were an ominous violet.


    Some people were consumed almostpletely by the violet, and others only had a part of their body infected. And Enzo... the level of his violet stopped just below his knees, the rest was purely golden. Reassured, Mchi put aside his own skepticism and stuck out his hand. "I''m Mal." He replied calmly. He wasn''t aware of it then, but he woulde to realizeter that he was making a huge mistake. -


    "Fuck, why does bro talk so much?!" Mal cried in exhaustion. He and his group had entered a whole thirty minutes ago, and yet he was just now getting away from Enzo. The guy was super nice and had a likeable personality but he talked a lot! The only reason Mchi managed to escape was because his girlfriends had their fill of amusement and acted as his saving grace. Even though he''d just arrived, Mchi made an immediate beeline for the back of the ballroom and was now leaning against the wall as he regenerated his energy. Sei: "He got so excited when he found out that you spoke Spanish." Luna: "I couldn''t even follow half of what was said." Anna: "Me neither, but I wanna hear more~"


    Bianca: "I second that notion!"


    Mchi chuckled as Anna and Bianca pressed their bodies up against him like they were under a spell. Who knew speaking threenguages would have this sort of an effect on women?


    Mchi dropped his hands to the girls'' waists and prepared to oblige them, when an instinctive feeling of danger rushed into his body. Looking up, he found none of the partygoers looking at him strangely, but he was sure that he felt malicious intent just now. Discreetly, Mal expanded his senses while sniffing the air as he tried to search for the mysterious aggressor. And when he actually found them... a smile formed across his lips. ''I''m d you made it.'' -


    "You are positively divine! I don''t believe I''ve ever seen you before." "§Á §Ú§Ù §²§à§ã§ã§Ú§Ú." (I''m from Russia.)


    "Ah.. I''m sorry, I don''t believe I understand." "§Ó §ï§ä§à§Þ §ã§å§ä§î. §°§ä§ì§Ö§Ò§Ú§ã§î." (That is the point. Fuck off.) Eventually, the man gave up trying to speak to the mysterious Russian beauty and respectfully bowed before turning around and searching for other women to seduce. The blonde woman he left behind sighed before peeking at a group several feet away. Specifically, her focus was on the young woman with bold tattoos and wearing an enchanting ck dress. When she smiled, she seemed to light up the space around her, and it was clear that she was loved not only by the man she was holding onto, but the other women around her as well. How could something she created be so beautiful? In the back of her mind, desires that she had long stuffed down threatened to burst free. She wanted to hug her. She wanted to apologize for leaving, and for missing all those birthday and Christmases. She wanted to beg for forgiveness, and plead for an opportunity to start over. But she was also so unbelievably scared. The thing about being enamored with something beautiful, is that you naturally want to reach out and hold it. But sometimes, a single incorrect touch is all it takes to shatter the object that you were so hopelessly captivated by. The same is true for people. What if in trying to get closer to her daughter and apologize, she did more harm than good and hurt them both in the end?


    Hadn''t she already caused enough harm?


    How could she hope to ever look herself in the mirror again if she somehow made things worse than they already were?


    ''This was a mistake... I shouldn''t havee.''


    Just as Joanne prepared to make a hasty and well needed exit, she suddenly paused when she felt a pair of eyes boring into her back. Looking back, she found Mchi staring back at her through dark rimmed sunsses. ''How the hell did he find me?''


    Just so that she could remain anonymous, Joanne had taken special care to wear a blonde wig and blue contacts to this event. And yet somehow, it seemed as though Mchi had seen through her disguise with no real difficulty. But just as he''d promised, he was not approaching her, nor drawing attention to her identity. Her only problem with him was that his hands were a bit too low on his daughter''s waist and she was currently resisting the urge to break his arm. The two of them held eye contact for no longer than a few seconds before she ended up walking away. She was so sure about what the right thing to do was a second ago but... now she wasn''t so sure. As she walked towards the exit, she pulled out her phone and scrolled towards a contact that she hadn''t had the nerve to call in a long time. -


    "Can I interest you all in some toast points with a nice smoked salmon mousse?" A waiter asked. Mchi, Serana, Anna, Sei, and Bianca, all looked like they had no real idea of what had just been offered.


    They curiously analyzed the odd food on a silver tray in front of them, and tilted their heads at this unforeseen amalgamation. "Is it like Texas toast?" Bianca asked. "Ummm, something like that but also no..?"


    "Is it made of moose? Or salmon? ...Or both..?" Sei asked worriedly. "Ma''am, it''s not an actual moose but rather a thick, creamy substance that is made with salmon and other ingredients."


    """What does it taste like?""" Anna, Mal, and Serana asked in unison. The waiter fought the urge to chuckle as he tried his best to exin the vor. "It has a fishy taste, but it''s very-"


    "Oh, honestly!"


    Luna finally had enough and stopped the poor waiter from answering anymore unnecessary questions. "You are all adults! Why are you acting like you''re so afraid to try a simple appetizer?"


    """"""Cause what if it''s nasty?""""""


    "I can assure you that the sous chef I hired to work alongside Morgan is one of the finest in the world."


    The unsure group looked at each other before shrugging and reaching out for an appetizer. Once everyone had grabbed a toast point, they said a silent prayer before taking a hesitant bite. "Well? What do you think?" Luna asked suspiciously. The group finally finished chewing, and the reactions were as exaggerated as she expected. He was rich, but he wasn''t that rich. 13:52


    "My mouth tastes like fish." Anna said as she pulled out a small tin of mints. "It tastes like something I can''t afford to eat on a regr basis. I bet you they bought all of these ingredients from Whole Foods." Mchi said. He was rich, but he wasn''t that rich. "My mouth tastes like fish." Anna said as she pulled out a small tin of mints. "I-It''s not terrible but it''s not... terribly delicious either?" Sei said politely. "If we were in food wars, all of my clothes would still be on." Bianca said as she epted a mint from Anna. "Hey Mal, can you text Mr. Morgan and ask him if he can throw on some burgers for us?" Serana asked. Luna pouted cutely as she listened to the reactions of her loved ones.


    "There will be no burgers at this event, Serana. This is a very upscale event so the food has to reflect-"


    "He says no, but he''s nning to go to Waffle House after this and he asked if we wanted to join him." Mchi said as he read the message on his phone. Serana: "Ooh! Can we go??"


    Sei: "That does sound nice."


    Anna: "Oh, should I start drinking then? It always tastes better with alcohol in my system."


    Bianca: "I would choke a baby for a chicken hashbrown bowl right now."


    The group started to buzz with excitement, and Luna merely rolled her eyes at their childish behavior. Honestly, who would choose a warm, greasy waffle over-


    "You''lle with us, right Emi?" Mchi asked seductively. Maybe it was because she was weaker whenever he called her by her real name, or perhaps it was because she wasn''t 100% satisfied with the food being served either. But before she could stop herself, she was agreeing toe along with them. "I guess... an all star special doesn''t sound too bad..."


    Mchi and the girlsughed as he gave her a small kiss on the cheek, and they excitedly started finalizing their ns. "Excuse me, could I have everyone''s attention?"


    Suddenly, a melodic masculine voice rang out from the center of the ball room, and Mal''s blood ran cold when he saw thetest guests to enter the party. ''Arias...''


    Ik I got readers from all over the world so for those of you who don¡¯t know what Waffle House is¡­ it is probably the most unsafe restaurant where you can get the best food.


    It is the only restaurant where you can walk in and the floors will be greasy as shit and you¡¯ll be like ¡®Oh yea, I know this finna hit.¡¯


    And if the cook has been to prison and has a nicotine addiction??? I swear you¡¯ll never want to eat anything else it¡¯s amazing.

 Chapter 123 Revolutionary

    123 Revolutionary


    Mchi wasn''t sure when or if he''d ever see this guy again. But looking back, he realized that a scenario like this was inevitable and thinking otherwise was akin to a fever dream. However, he wasn''t expecting for him to arrive with an entourage. Arias was surrounded by five men and women, all of whom had their faces covered by some kind of white cloth. One of them was recording this entire scene on some sort of high tech camera, and they would only find outter that this was being broadcasted to every man woman and child across the globe. "Excuse me everyone, might I have your attention for a moment?" "Who is he?"


    "He''s very handsome."


    "Wait... those robes..."


    Arias suddenly pped his hands and smiled at the crowd like an artist who was finally about to begin his performance. "It is always a fine day when I get to see so many of our brethren gathered in one ce. Even if there are a few... undesirables present."


    He expertly picked out the so called undesirables within the crowd, and dragged his gaze over each and every one of the humans present. Luna prepared to step forward and say something, but Mal grabbed her wrist and shook his head as Anna and Sei hid behind his back out of fear. "Some of you have already heard of me, and for others this will be our first meeting. So let me introduce myself properly. I am Arias, bringer of the new day."


    "New Day?"


    "Is he like a religious missionary or something? Cause that''s really fucking annoying."


    "He''s pretty so I''ll keep listening."


    Mchi finally moved through the crowd and came face to face with Arias, who smiled at hising. "Ah, it''s good to see you again, brother! We got ourselves into quite a few headlines thest time, no?"


    Mal said nothing as his bright purple eyes burned behind his dark sunsses. The atmosphere between the two was clearly very tense, yet no one seemed to understand why. "I apologize for trying to killl youst time, I was a bit too hasty in my judgement. But that''s all water under the bridge now, right?"


    15:37


    "...."


    "...Geez, you seemed a lot more friendly on tv a few months ago. I guess all that fame and money''s went to your head, huh? It seems to happen to the best of them I''m afraid-"


    "Where''s Alex?"


    Mchi''s question was seemingly simple andcking in any sort of emotion, but Arias could tell that his anger was simmering. "Ah, I see. We''ll get to that in a moment and I think you''ll like it, but be patient for now, k?"


    Mchi prepared to say something when he started to notice something strange about the man in front of him. He couldn''t quite ce his finger on it but... something about this was wrong. Arias turned his focus back towards the crowd and held out his arms like he was offering an embrace. "My brethren. Does the current status quo make any sense to you? We are the literal chosen of the gods, and yet we are still behaving at the behest of man. Is that not an unthinkable delusion? We live and die for they who are too inadequate to defend themselves, and we merely ept it as if there is no other alternative. But there is one."


    "That''s enough."


    Enzo pushed through the crowd to stand on the right side of Mchi, and for the first time since he''d met him he seemed to be rather serious. "This talk of yours... It is dangerous, cabr¨®n. There is already enough division in the world as is, there is no need to add to the pile."


    "Yes, exactly!" Arias excitedly pointed at Enzo like he had just grasped the entirety of his message. "There is only division caused by humans! They do it so much that it''s practically a fucking pastime! Especially here in the states, they''d rather help a stray dog than a homeless person!" "No one said things were perfect as they are! We have a long way to go but we are making improvements everyday!"


    For the first time, Arias lost his smile as he stared back at Enzo like he was a hopeless idiot. "Mr. Valentin, I suggest that you open your fucking eyes. With the arrival of the gates, we have resources to provide everyone on this with safe, clean energy that requires no maintenance or upkeep. But do the humans want to share things like that? Of course not! Their sole focus lies in keeping those in power with everything and making sure that those below have nothing, when they are the ones who should be begging for our scraps!" Arias gestured for one of his men to hand him something, and he received a ck duffel bag that he reached inside of dramatically. "Oh god..."


    "That''s..."


    "I-I''m going to be sick..."


    The item that Arias pulled out was something that none of them could have anticipated; the severed head of Alex Heller. "This man was not at all what he presented himself to be! He was a narcissist and a psychopath who believed that he was above our brethren, so I killed him on the spot.


    In the new society I hope to create there will be no discrimination between the blessed, there need only bepanionship!


    Whether you are blessed by the mightiest of primordials or a simple deity of spring, it makes no difference! You all have an invaluable ce in our future!"


    Mchi and Enzo watched as the energy inside of the room started to shift. Among the blessed, those who were blessed by minor gods were often overlooked entirely.


    They received little attention, had almost no fanbase, and when they went into dungeons there would be practically no one cheering for them. Even though they were also putting their lives on the line, they received no praise or thanks for their actions. It was a heartbreaking way to live. Arias suddenly looked at Mchi and showed his usual cheerful and charismatic smile. "See? I told you that you would like it if you only waited a bit."


    He suddenly tossed Alex''s severed head at Mchi like it was a simple football, and Mchi caught it by his hair without even flinching. He tilted down his sunsses so that he could look his once great enemy in his now soulless eyes. Using his golden mes, he set the head aze and reduced it to ash in only a few seconds, erasing the remaining traces of him from existence. "Quite the show that''s taken ce out here. I just poked my head out to see how the food was being received and now look what I find."


    Morgan emerged from the kitchen wearing another of his famous aprons with an embarrassing phrase, while casually rolling up his sleeves like he was prepared for a collision. "Ah! It''s good to see you, Morgan. Thosemb skewers were your doing, yes? I meant to snag one but it seems-" n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "Cut the shit. Get out."


    Everyone could see the tattoos on Morgan''s body starting to glow beneath his shirt, and they simultaneously cleared the way for him to avoid idental burns. Arias chuckled as he shook his head wryly. "There is no need to be unpleasant, I haven''t finished my recruitment yet! It took a long time for me to prepare this speech so at least do me the courtesy of listening to the whole thing."


    Again, Arias ignored the neer as he turned toward the blessed in the crowd. "I offer you refuge, unity, and your rightful ce above the apes. You are my brothers and sisters in this life, there need not be strife between us. Join me as we pave the way towards a brighter tomorrow."


    Mchi looked around and noticed the struggle taking ce amongst the partygoers. Several of them looked like they wanted to run to Arias'' side and join him, but they were scared to throw away their public images. Arias was taking note of those who looked like they were too scared toe forward, and made a mental note to go and visit them aler without the fear of pressure bogging them down. ''Although I must say... I ever took you for one to care about such a thing.''


    Arias'' eyes lingered on Aisha who was mixed into the crowd with a young girl in her arms. He thought for sure she would be one of the first to join him due to her famous disdain for society. As such, she was one of the first ones he''d started sending letters to. But s, it seemed as though it was not fated to be. "Oh, I know!"Arias suddenly lit up like he''d had the most ingenious idea imaginable. "I neglected to perform a demonstration of some sort. You might think that I''m just some everyday activist if I don''t provide proof of my power, so how about we y a game?"


    Getting a bad feeling, Mchi rolled up his sleeves before dropping his sunsses and kimono into the shadows at his feet and removing his iklwa. "I''ll give you ten seconds to guess how long it will take me to kill every human in this room. Anyone have any bets?" Arias said with a smile. Boom!


    Boom!


    Boom!


    Mchi, Enzo, and Morgan all shot forward like bullets at the same time, determined to put a stop to things before they could go bad. Arias watched them approach with his same radiant smile as he shook his head in disappointment. "Sorry, that''s incorrect. The correct answer is; no time at all!"


    This might be a bit of a hot take but I think Hoopa is the best mythical pokemon ever

 Chapter 124 Those Who Fall & Those Who Are Felled

    124 Those Who Fall & Those Who Are Felled


    In a disy of surprising agility, the guards who had remained motionless at Arias'' side finally sprung into action and intercepted the unlikely trio. They may not have been able topletely stop them, but a few seconds was all that Arias really needed. ncing at the shimmering chandeliers above, he smiled as he snapped his fingers before anyone could stop him. The lights above seemed to crystallize and take on a diamond-like appearance before firing in random directions in the crowd. Or at least they seemed random at first nce. But in all actuality, the fragments of light were like glowing homing missiles that expertly sought out every human in the crowd. "Get behind me!" Luna conjured up a whip made from blue mes and knocked down the two projectiles that wereing towards Anna, Sei, and Serana. After sessfully defending them, she looked around for the next most important person in the room. Luckily, Aubrey and Aisha were safely protected by arge shield that she''d seemingly pulled out of thin air. But looking around, they seemed to be the only ones who were safe. She could see numerous humans already on the floor dead or with a shard of light embedded somewhere into their body.


    ''Wait... where''s-''


    "GRANDPA ROWAN!!"


    Luna''s heart dropped to her heels as she heard the distinctive cry of one of her guild members.


    She spun around like a mad woman, and eventually she found the old man lying on the other side of the room, a shard of light in his chest and a trail of blood running from his mouth. "Shiro!"


    Luna''s forehead mark started to glow a dull pink, and a momentter a fox asrge as a stallion with nine swaying tails came into view. "Get the girls out of here now!" She raised her hand and lifted up the girls with her powers and ced them onto Shiro''s fluffy back. "Take these three first and thene back for Aubrey and Rowan!"


    "Yes!"


    Shiro left without another word, carrying the three women past the crowd and towards the exit. The girls didn''t even bother toin, and they simply held tight as the massive fox bounded out of the doors. But once they were outside... they felt like they were going to be sick. All of the paparazzi that had been stationed outside were now dead. And it was very clear that they did not have the luxury of dying a quick and simple death. Their bodies were cut up into pieces and strewn out all over the ce, making this scene akin to aplete and utter nightmare. Shiro left them in the middle of the parking lot behind a few cars after wiping away their tears with her one of her tails. As the oldest, Sei had taken on the responsibility of consoling the two girls. Anna was a bit shaky but stable, while Serana on the other hand was crying in a way that she hadn''t done in years.


    "What is happening... I don''t understand!"


    -


    Amidst all the noise and screaming, Mchi heard only one name being screamed out by his friend Opal. "GRANDPA ROWAN!!!"


    The next few seconds seemed to go by in slow motion. Mchi turned his head and slowly as he immediately found the source of the scream. The old men was lying on his back staring up at the ceiling, while surrounded by the young girls from Immortal Moon. n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    He was only barely able to process the sight of arge fox carrying three of his loved ones on it''s back. His body moved on it''s own, and he disappeared from the center of the ballroom and reappeared directly over Rowan and the girls. "M-Mal..!"


    "H-He''s bleeding a lot..."


    "Stop it, girls... You''re going to worry him."


    Even with arge shard of light in his chest, the old man still maintained the presence of mind to smile as if there was nothing wrong. "You... shouldn''t be over here, you know?" He reminded. "Seems to me like you don''t have the luxury of leering at the old guy who''s about to die..."


    "D-Don''t say that!"


    "You aren''t going to die just yet...!"


    Luna finally ran beside Mal and immediately ced her hand on his shoulder. "Darling, he''s going to be...fine.."


    She was surprised by the tenseness of Mchi''s body, and the look on his face that was unlike anything she had ever seen before. A momentter, Shiro returned with Aubrey already on her back, and Luna and the girls loaded Rowan up gently. She found her ce on Shiro''s back and prepared to find the nearest hospital. But before she could go... she could not ignore her concern for Mal. Even after Rowan had been lifted off the floor, his eyes had never left therge puddle of blood where his body previouslyy. "Kid..." Rowan called. But no matter how much the old man called for him, he did not respond and his gaze remained firmly fixed onto the floor. His face was covered by his dreads, and it was uncertain if he could even hear them. Rowan began to have difficulty keeping his eyes open, and Mchi did not miss the sound of his heartbeat beginning to slow down. Before Shiro could start running, the shadows underneath her paws became animated, and they swallowed up her and all of her passengers. The four of them were immersed in total darkness for less than half a second before reappearing in the lobby of a crowded hospital. "G-Gate break!"


    "Wait, there are people on it''s back!"


    "One of them is injured, get a crash cart!"


    The medical professionals immediately rushed to get Rowan down from the back of the beast, but Luna and Aubrey still remained in ce.


    "Aubrey... Do you think your brother will be alright?"


    The young girl fell silent as she reflected back on her sibling''s state thest time she saw him. "I... don''t know anymore."


    -


    In his mind, Mchi recalled one of the worst days of his life. Seeing his mother ripped to pieces, and his father with arge chunk of metal in his chest on the day that they died. It took everything that he had for him to keep Aubrey pressed closely against his chest in an effort to spare her from the awful sight. In some ways, he felt the same way then that he did right now. 15:38


    Powerless. He still seemed to be helpless whenever it mattered. In the end, his efforts were never rewarded with results, but only more suffering. He could hold onto the burden if he was the only one affected, but the involvement of other people was another thing all together. He was supposed to be the one who kept everyone safe, right?


    But it seemed like no matter how hard he tried, he was not as good of a protector as he wanted to be. So why was he trying so hard?


    ''That''s it, you''re almost there. You need onlye a little further...''


    A throbbing pain began to ur within his chest. This was the doing of Michael and the blessing he''d received from him. It was a warning that he was straying too far off the path of righteousness, and letting negative emotions cloud his mind and spirit. But he wasn''t aware of that, and even if he would have known he likely wouldn''t have cared very much. Hadn''t he been passive for too long already?


    If he wanted to keep everyone safe, maybe he had to start hunting and neutralizing threats before his loved ones were affected. ''Make a firm decision now, boy... If you stain this part of you there''ll be no going back.''


    To Mchi, the night and everything in it had always been soforting that it was undeniable. But he had always neglected to think of how everyone else saw it. Everyone else in the world was scared of it for some reason, and rightfully so. The night and the darkness inside of it represented all that was unseen and frightening in nature. So maybe he should be that which was frightening and unseen. ''Seems you''ve made a decision... Happy hunting.''


    The throbbing in Mchi''s chest became worse and worse until it felt like every artery in his heart was going to implode. It went on for practically forever and it seemed to be umting more with every minute. But after what felt like an eternity of horrible heartache he finally felt...nothing. "....hi.!"


    ".al.chi!"


    "Mchi!"


    When Mchi finally regained focus, he was staring into the teary faces of Bianca and Aisha. Behind them were almost all of his fellow guild mates, and each of them looked every bit as concerned as thest. However, their sobbing faces gave way to confused ones as Mal smiled at them gently like they were all precious existences to him. He kissed Bianca tenderly and relished in the salty taste of her tears before he patted Aisha on the head like she was a young child. "Sorry bout this but I need you girls to go now alright? I don''t really want you to see me like this."


    "B-Babe, what do you mean...?"


    "Mal you''re starting to scare us-"


    "I''lle get you both, I promise."


    Before the girls could muster up any more words of concern, they were swallowed up by the pooling darkness at their feet, and sent outside. Mchi nced over at Arias, who was engaged in what looked to be a heated battle against Morgan and Enzo. However, the cult leader seemed to have no real difficulty in fending the both of them off simultaneously. For some reason that he could not exin, Mal felt his own smile widen into something much colder and unsettling. Whoosh!


    Without even meaning to, he released three pairs of enormous ck wings from his back. He pushed his dreadlocks out of his face and revealed eyes that were dyed a horrifying and bloody red. "I... feel... fucking incredible!"


    He yelled so loud that he drew the attention of the three blessed still fighting a few feet away. Each of them showed various reactions to Mal''s new look, all ranging from concern to t out intrigue. "...Damn, what''s that old ass rhyme that my momma used to sing all the time on halloween..?" Mal wondered as he scratched his cheek. His voice contained a lightness that it hadn''t had in years, and he seemed to show no signs of murderous intent. "Mchi..."


    "You don''t seem well, ni?o..."


    "Is it Humpty Dumpty? Don''t really know what that one has to do with halloween though..."


    Mchi ignored the raving of all three of the men opposite him as he wed through his most buried memories. "Ah!"


    He smiled as he pped his hands together when he finally managed to remember the words he''d long forgotten. "From ghoulies and ghoosties, long-leggety beasties and things that go bump in the night, Good lord deliver us!"


    He pped his enormous wings and slowly rose up into the air, his new and unsettling smile never leaving his face. "Look at me now, Ma. Your baby boy has be that thing that goes bump in the night."


    He bout to get that ass tapped. AnathaShesha

 Chapter 125 Grudge

    125 Grudge


    Mchi chuckled like an amused old man as he held up his hand. A spark billowed to life, and suddenly a ball of pitch ck me appeared in his palm. "This is something else... Now I got the whole set!" He held up his other hand and produced a spark of ck lightning, before summoning a dark tendril of shadow. "Ah... I guess I''m missing water though but ck water would be a little gross, no?" He realized. "What... is he talking about?"


    "Mchi...You''re starting to worry me,d."


    "ck water actually has a fair bit of minerals inside of it and is quite refreshing."


    Mchi flew down to the three men below and immediately wrapped his arms around Morgan and Enzo like they were the best of friends. "We''re still going to eat after this, right? If I''m honest I think the girls and I got our hopes up a little bit." "Oh, can Ie!?" Arias asked excitedly. Mchi smiled warmly like he was just waiting for the golden haired man to respond and he uttered the most chilling words imaginable. "How are you supposed toe with us if you''re going to be dead in a few seconds?"


    Rumble...BOOOOOOMMM!!!


    As soon as Mal finished his threat, an enormous bolt of ck lightning blew the entire ceiling apart, and fell down on the unsuspecting cult leader. Morgan and Enzo were both sent reeling from the explosive debris and the loud shockwave produced by the lightning strike. Mchi seemed to be the only one who was rtively fine as he looked down at the two men who were temporarily blinded and deafened on the obliterated floor. The men were groaning and holding their ears in synchronization with each other, all of which Mal found to be slightly amusing. "Sorry guys, probably should have warned you about...Wait why the fuck am I apologizing right now if you can''t even hear me?"


    "Urgh.."


    "Hijo de puta... ?me arden los ojos!" (Son of a bitch... my eyes are burning!)


    "Lomento. Se curar¨¢n en un segundo, Enzo." (Sorry about that, they''ll heal in a second, Enzo.)


    "Well, that was really something!"


    15:39


    An egregiously annoying voice yed from behind Mchi, and a small bit of irritation dampened his once pleasant mood. ncing over his shoulder, he found Arias standing by the splintered ruins of the champagne table, protecting a miraculously still intact bottle of bubbly. "I must admit that everything I seem to learn about you bes out of date rather quickly, Mr. Saint. That level of power wasn''t something my goddess spoke of."


    Mchi sent both Morgan and Enzo outside with the rest of the party guests before he reached inside of his shadows and pulled out his trusty daggers that Bianca had made. He casually plucked two of them out of the air and he allowed the rest to float around his body, each of them pointed at the golden haired man in white robes. "All of my power feels pretty insignificant if I can''t use it to kill an insect like you. So let''s keep trying new things, shall we?"


    Arias barely had enough time to pull out his own weapon before a flurry of daggers came flying at his chest. He narrowly managed to deflect them with his rapier before another problem came flying towards him at full speed. Mchi''s proficiency with his daggers wasn''t typically something he got to show off a lot, but it was something his trainer Rose had painstakingly drilled into him. As a result, Arias was somewhat unprepared when he narrowly avoided a stab to his cornea, and another de that was aimed at his windpipe. ''Fast, huh?''


    Arias quickly discovered yet another problem with Mchi''s approach, and that was the remaining knives that were floating around him. Every time Mchi attacked one side of his body, he would telekically send a few daggers towards the other side. It left Arias with practically no room to run, and he was forced to twist and turn at impossible angles in order to avoid being hit. But of course, his luck was always bound to run out at some point. Slice!


    Finally, Mal caught Arias by surprise and lodged a silver dagger in his neck, and drew their struggle to a close. Mchi relished in the sight of Arias'' eyes widening from shock, before he nced at the point of insertion and smiled wryly in defeat. From the beginning, he had always noticed something strange about Arias in the back of his mind. Only now was he able to put all of those things together and grasp the full picture. Arias had no heartbeat. He didn''t draw breath into his lungs, and his footsteps made no sound. He was able to bend and twist his body at impossible angles, and he was able to miraculously escape from certain death attacks without suffering a scratch. But what really gave it all away was the sight of a shining light being emitted from the wound he''d suffered. "Huh...Imagine that." Mchi muttered. Arias finally dropped the act and resumed his usual carefree smile as he held up his hands. "Well now, you don''t seem to be terribly surprised, do you? That really takes the fun out of this whole avatar thing, doesn''t it?"


    Hearing it out of Arias'' own mouth didn''t really rm him, but it did raise an important question. "I''m rather curious now... who''s blessed you, Goldilocks?"


    Arias smiled and a glimmer of madness shone in his eyes as if he had been waiting for this question all along. "I am so d you finally asked, since you and I are somewhat connected after all! You see, my mother happens to hate your mother very much. So, she has given me the power to revolutionize this entire world and all of the life within it, provided that I make your life as miserable as possible before you die."


    Mchi smiled jokingly, like he was oblivious to this tense atmosphere. "Now who could hate my sweet mother? Can''t be anyone who actually knows her."


    Arias'' smile grew wider and wider until it seemed like his lips were going to split apart. "Hemera, the Primordial Goddess of the Day."


    Cracks began to form along Arias'' skin. Bit by bit, his flimsy outer shell started to fall onto the floor like gentle snowkes on the grass. Arias'' appearance fell away until he was no more than a mass of light in the shape of a man. But where Mal typically had no identifiable features, Arias had bright green eyes that burned with the full intensity of the sun. "Do your best not to die yet, child of night. Lest I disappoint my mother with a poor showing of what she has given me."


    BOOM!! n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    One moment, Mchi was staring face to face with a human lightbulb, and in the next, he was sent flying through the ceiling and his vision had be blurry. Mal couldn''t exactly tell what he''d been hit with or how hard, but he was certain that his jaw was shattered from the impact. sh!


    Arias appeared above the airborne Mchi and grabbed him by his neck while holding him in the air. "Care to see a little trick?"


    The avatar of day snapped his fingers, and suddenly the night''s sky was chased away by sunlight.


    Even though it was currently 11 p.m, the sky above was as bright as early in the morning. Mchi tried to use his own powers to counter and bring back the night but... it proved to be to no avail. No matter how hard he tried to return some sense of shade into the world it failed all the same. In the back of his mind, Mchi started to wrack his brain for alternatives to the current dilemma. Based on everything he knew from Nyx about Avatars of the gods, he was certain that he wasn''t in possession of the abilities needed to defeat Arias, much less wound him. His weaponry would be ineffective, his physical attacksughable, and his powers were far below the necessary standard. Arias casually tossed Mchi up above his head, while making a finger gun gesture with his hands. "Pew, pew, pew!"


    With childlike glee, Arias fired bullets of burning light through nearly every corner of Mchi''s body. Even though he couldn''t see himself, he knew that he must have been riddled with holes all over. The pain was somehow as unbearable as it was sweet, as it was a reminder that he was still alive.


    But if he didn''t figure something out soon, he was going to head to the afterlife more quickly than he nned. And as if a light had gone off in his brain, he remembered one weapon that he had yet to use in this fight. ''Shear...!''


    Responding to his call, the frightening nightmare appeared in the sky. As Mchi fell from the sky in a free fall, she rushed at the one responsible for putting him into his terrible state. "What a horrible monstrosity you are."


    "ENEMYYY!!!"


    "Yes, yes, I suppose I am."


    Arias remained unbothered as he held out his hand and fired a beam of light asrge as a fully grown sequoia tree. The bolt of light obliterated the strange creature to pieces, and Arias resumed his search for Mal.


    It wasn''t very difficult to find his opponent''s broken body lying on top of a car that was parked on the street. He clenched his fist as he began gathering power within himself as he intended to close the curtains on this historic day. "My gentle mother... with this I will absolve you of your- AAAAGGGHHHH!!!"


    Arias wasn''t sure when or how it happened, but somehow that nightmarish creature from before had reappeared behind him, and pierced his chest with a scythe-like appendage. Normally he shouldn''t have felt anything from an attack like that but for some reason he was in excruciating pain. To make matters worse, the ce where his illuminous body had been stabbed was darkening, almost as if some kind of corrosive agent had been introduced into his system. ''Mother... you did not mention anything like this!'' Arias screamed internally. "Enemy... kill enemy!!!"


    I wanna pick my third novel back up but honestly I don¡¯t really know what direction I wanna take it and I¡¯m in desperate need of ideas. AnathaShesha

 Chapter 126 Goodbye For Now

    Chapter 126 Goodbye For Now


    Arias felt like his worst nightmare had trulye to life as he wrestled with the most terrible pain he could imagine. The feeling of being stabbed by this unforeseen creature was so unexpected that he almost thought he was mortal again for a brief moment. His body shed out of existence and reappeared in the sky a few feet away, where he immediately reached for the gaping wound in his chest. Even though he was no longer being impaled, his wound had yet to heal and that corrosive substance refused to leave his system. "This... doesn''t make any sen-"


    "ENEMYYY!!"


    Shear wasn''t the kind of creature who made a habit of letting her prey escape, and she would give herst to ensure that Arias knew that. She rushed at him with all four of her wed appendages out, but Arias was much more wary of her existence after being attacked. Like before, he conjured over forty of those massive pirs of light and fired them at Shear from every direction. The nightmare used her nimble body to avoid the projectiles by only the faintest of margins, and continued to inch ever closer to the terrified avatar. "Stay away! Stay away from me you fucking beast!"


    Arias was clearly beginning to be hysterical, and indiscriminately fired his attacks from any direction, causing terrible devastation on the city beneath them. ''Wait, this is some kind of contracted creature, right...?'' Arias realized. If he finished killing Mchi here, this creature would be no more as well. It was a pity, as Hemera wanted him to suffer more before he kicked the bucket but there was nothing that could be done about it anymore. Surely, his sweet mother would rather have her son alive by any means necessary. Arias teleported once again and reappeared on the street beside Mchi. The young man''s formerly perfect body was riddled with holes all over, but he was still alive and conscious by sheer force of will. He was trying to climb his way off the top of the car he was embedded in when Arias appeared beside him in a sh of golden light. The avatar of day grabbed Mchi by his throat and held him high above his head. Even in this situation, Mchi showed a bloody smile as if he was devoid of a single care in the world. "Now I know I''m not really all that smart but if I didn''t know any better I would think you were trying to kill me." "An infuriatingly astounding observation." Arias raised his free hand above his head and transformed it into a de of light. Mchi''s entire life shed before his eyes within a few brief moments. It was painful,but sweet, and he would have given anything to do it all over again. In the back of his mind, he contemted epting Nyx''s offer and fully bing her avatar. He very nearly made the choice, when an impactful memory arose in his mind. The recollection of he and Luna in the bathtub, making a decision to have a child together as soon as they healed her body. It may have been silly but... that brief moment of hesitation stopped his actions firmly within his tracks yet again. He couldn''t do it. No matter how badly he wanted to. ''My sweet boy... do you believe that Luna would rather have your child, or you?'' ''I...'' For the first time, the obvious answer seemed to escape Mchi and he could not bring himself to make a decision. Nyx''s voice did not y within his mind again for what felt like a long time, but when it did he could practically feel her overwhelming sadness and disappointment. ''Y-You asked me for a favor and I agreed without a second thought, so that mens you owe me too...''


    Mchi didn''t know where Nyx was going with this, but he was beginning to feel slightly anxious. ''I am taking the choice out of your hands...! I... hope with all of my heart that you forgive me...''


    ''What''re you-''


    ''Please, hold on to everything that you value about yourself, my son. Lest you lose it all in your ascension to immortality.''


    Just as Arias prepared to stab Mchi in the head, two significant things happened. For one, Shear appeared behind Arias once again, and she immediately bit his arm, nearly inhaling it regardless of it''s sharpness. Arias let out an involuntary scream that seemed to reach the highest of heavens at the same time that a pir of ck light struck the body within his grasp. When Arias watched Mchi''s body be ripped apart at a cellr level, he knew full well what was going to happen.


    ''No...No..!''


    Things were about to go from bad to worse within a few short seconds, and Arias couldn''t have anything jeopardizing his ns so far. With his hand lodged inside of Shear''s mouth, he transformed his appendage into a pointed mace that pierced through her head. The nightmare''s body twitched once, then twice... and then eventually not at all. Arias didn''t even bother to watch her body hit the ground before he teleported out of the city just as Mchi''s body started to reform. The sky overhead which was reminiscent of a beautiful summer morning soon lost all of it''s color. But even though this scene should have been nightmarish it was a vision of beauty like none had ever seen before. Apletely ck sky, with glimmering stars that shone like only the most polished of diamonds could. Beneath the rechristened night, a figure started toe back into being. It started at his feet, and stopped at the long dreads that were flowing out of his head. He was a mass of darkness, stars, nebs, and ck holes allpiled into the shape of a man. For a while he seemed not to understand his existence, and even had trouble remembering who he was. It seemed like he was going to stand there motionless like some sort of statue for all of eternity, but eventually he heard a small voce ying within his mind that brought his psyche rushing back. ''...re.''


    ''s..red.''


    ''scared...'' n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Turing around, Mchi found his beloved pet Shear lying on the ground, her life force fleeting. Dark ck blood was flowing from the wounds in her head, and the sight of her filled Mchi with unbearable pain. "No...Shear...!"


    Mchi went to the side of the alien creature that had be a cherished part of his life, and hekneeled on the ground as he pulled her into his arms. ''Scared...very scared...''


    "Shear, I''m here alright? You don''t need to be afraid. Nothing can hurt you now, I promise..."


    ''Scared...''


    Every utterance of that word broke Mchi''s nonexistent heart to pieces, and the pain was almost too great to bear. No, it was too great for him to bear. When Nyx asked Mchi to hold onto everything that he valued about himself, he did. And what he ced the highest value on was the love he had for the people closest to him and his desire to protect and avenge them.


    Because what he valued most about himself was rooted in his emotions, he had developed the emotional stability of an immortal within 2 minutes. There is a reason why the stories about the gods are filled with their obsessive tendency to love, enacting gues over the smallest of slights, and guarding the most minute trinkets with their lives. Their love is pure and obsessive, their hatred is even more so, and their heartache is iprehensible to the human mind. Unlike humans who''s feelings can change with the wind, the highers and those like them love and hate things with all of their being for all of eternity. In hindsight, it was partially a good thing that Mal was practically immortal now. If he wasn''t, he likely would have killed himself from this horrible grief that he had no idea how to process. But because he couldn''t do that, his despair changed to desperation. He focused on the tether that connected he and Shear together, and tried not to cry out when he felt it rapidly weakening. "You can''t leave me, Shear... not you too."


    He began to pull her body into himself, at the same time as he tried to strengthen the tether between them. Shear''s body was absorbed entirely into his, and he felt another change taking ce within his being. But in this moment, he couldn''t have cared less about that and focused instead on keeping hispanion alive. ''Just a little more... just a bit... No!''


    When Shear''s body was fully ingrained into his own, the tether that unified the two of them... broke. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn''t feel her... and he could no longer hear her. In the back of his mind, he tried to tell himself that she was still there and her touch was still within his body but... his logical mind was overshadowed by the grief within his heart. On his knees, he stared up into the sky and let out a terrible heartbroken scream that traveled for miles. The sky above which should have been beautiful and twinkling with lights, was swallowed up in total darkness. But it wasn''t just in the south of the U.S. where he lived. The entire world felt Mchi''s grief as it was engulfed in a pitch ck night with no chance for sunlight to break through.

 Chapter 127 Nyx’s Apology

    Chapter 127 Nyx¡¯s Apology


    In the hospital, things had fallen into a bit of a frenzy as a result of Mchi''s battle with Arias. The sound of the explosions inside could be heard from literal miles away, and the sky suddenly bing as bright as day didn''t help much either. Besides, the whole world had just seen Arias'' livestream from the party, and now their fears were at an all time high. There was a blessed supremacy group out there? How long have they existed?


    Are they going to kill all of the humans or make them ves?


    Why hadn''t the government told them about this?


    And most importantly, what was going to happen to humans in the future?


    The mood was so terrible, no one was paying attention to the two very beautiful women sitting in the waiting room. Luna could not stop herself from staring out the window with a worried look on her face, and it was clear that she was very torn about what she should do next. Irregardless of whether she liked it or not, Mal had sent her away because he didn''t want her to be anywhere near the conflict.


    10:33


    But despite all of the steps he''d taken to keep her safe, she was on the verge of undoing all of his hard work and running back to his side. Irregardless of whether she liked it or not, Mal had sent her away because he didn''t want her to be anywhere near the conflict.


    But despite all of the steps he''d taken to keep her safe, she was on the verge of undoing all of his hard work and running back to his side. She nearly made a decision, but movement out of the corner of her eye reminded her that she was not alone. Aubrey was sitting next to her, clearly still reeling from the shock that came with almost being murdered by some psychopath that she didn''t even know. Luna realized that what Mal would need from her the most in this moment was not to save him, but to be there for his sister. "Aubrey... are you alright?" "Ah, y-yea I''m fine." She lied. Luna reflexively pulled the young girl into her body and held her tightly without allowing for the slightest chance of escape. She did not offer her any words of consolidation, as this gentle and warm gesture was more than enough to get her point across. Aubrey rxed within her embrace and she finally stopped shaking for the first time since they entered the hospital. The two of them sat there motionless and distraught for what felt like an eternity. After holding onto each other for a long time, a change finally took ce outside. The sky that was formerly a crystal clear blue, was swallowed up by the most beautiful darkness that one could imagine. Or atleast that was how Luna and Aubrey saw this fabricated night. To everyone else, they saw it as something frightening and a sign that the world was about to end. "I guess that means he''s fine now..?" "Well, it certainly seems like that''s the case." Aubrey and Luna had relieved smiles on their faces as they admired the scene out the window. "Actually... he is not fine. Although I amrgely the one to me for that."


    Luna and Aubrey nearly jumped out of their skin as they heard a new voice y in front of them.


    Turning around, Aubrey let out a small yelp as Luna felt a lump well up in her throat. "W-Who are...?"


    "N-Nyx..."


    Aubrey felt all of the color drain from her cheeks as she realized that she hade face to face with an actual goddess.


    Not to mention she was one of the strongest ones to boot. Evidence of that fact was further proven by how time around them seemed to have been stopped and every other living being in the hospital was frozen in ce. But she quickly forgot about all of those factors as she reyed Nyx''sst words in her mind once again. "W-What do you mean that my brother is not fine? D-Did you do something to him?" n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Y-Yes but, I only did it to save his life..."


    "What... did you do?" Luna asked as respectfully as possible. She was just as worried as Aubrey if not even more so, but she was trying her best to remain respectful so that she did not get smited out of existence. "The man he was fighting against... he was too powerful and Mal could not defeat him even after falling from grace. So I... made him my avatar to save his life..."


    Luna and Aubrey blinked their eyes several times before they tilted their heads in confusion. ""Avatar?""


    "You made him blue?"


    "Or is he an airbender?"


    It was at this moment that Nyx realized that Mal had never told his sister or any of his other girlfriend''s about Nyx''s offer. For one, he never wanted to worry Aubrey about something that he wasn''t sure would ever happen, and he also wanted to know how his girls felt about having children first. But since they hadn''t been dating for all that long, he couldn''t really just bring up the topic of having kids out of the blue. Meaning Nyx had to exin to them what an avatar was, and why him bing one was a problem. "Essentially... he is no longer alive in the same manner that the two of you are. His flesh was destroyed and now he is a mass of sentient darkness that will not age, require sleep, or sustenance."


    Aubrey blinked her eyes several times as she tried to understand the downsides to this. Her brother was truly immortal now?


    Didn''t age?


    Never had to spend money on groceries ever again?


    Where the fuck was the downside!?


    "I''m sorry... why didn''t he do this before?" She asked. Nyx bit her lower lip ufortably as she nced at Luna who had been sitting down silently all this time. Evidently, she seemed to have already understood what Mal''s change meant for their future. "We...can''t have a child anymore... can we?"


    It had been so very long since Nyx had felt any kind of heartache or disappointment, and yet seeing the sorrowful look on Luna''s face filled her with that oh so terrible emotion. "I''m sorry... I truly thought that there was no other way."


    Luna smiled as she wiped her eye of the single tear that was sliding down her face.


    "I-It''s fine. We wanted to have a child but... I would much rather have him by my side... Thank you for saving the man I love, Goddess."


    A small weight was lifted from Nyx''s chest now that she knew Luna was not upset, but she was still worried about how Mal himself would react. Out of the corner of her eye, she nced at the area where Mal was still located and she felt a bit of anxiety well up in her heart. "Girls.... do you understand what it is like to love and be loved by an immortal?" She asked. Unsurprisingly the both of them shook their heads, and Nyx chuckled dryly as she took Aubrey''s face in her hands. "For you my daughter, you will have the most staunch protector you have ever seen. If you suffer so much as a scratch, the one responsible would cease to exist before your blood hit the ground."


    Aubrey wasrgely unconcerned with the second part of Nyx''s words and focused entirely on the first. "D-Daughter?" "Yes, dear. I haven''t gotten to get to know you as well as I have your brother but I hope I get to do so very soon. But I will always consider you my daughter."


    Aubrey was left with a warm feeling in her chest that she hadn''t felt in a long time as Nyx released her face in favor of Luna''s. "And you, my dear... You are in for an experience unlike anything you canprehend. Mal''s emotions have taken such arge increase in intensity that he will flood you with his love and obsession through every pore in your body. But that also means that he will be extremely dangerous to others when ites to the four of you. If he should catch another man so much as sniffing around any of you, he will kill him and everyone he''s evere into contact with out of retribution. Handle him carefully."


    Luna couldn''t decide if she was more terrified by that information or intrigued and aroused. But unfortunately before she coulde to a decision, Nyx had decided that her time was up. She reluctantly released Luna from her grasp and began to back away while pointing out the window. "He''s going to need you right now... It is his first day experiencing heightened emotions and he won''t know how to handle himself. Only you girls will be able to pull him out of his misery."


    Before either of the girls could ask what she meant, Nyx''s body started to evaporate right before their eyes. "Don''t daly now, girls. Lest everyone else beat you there."


    As soon as Nyx disappeared, time started to flow once again and people left their statue-like states. Almost on cue, the beautiful sky overhead lost all of it''s medley of colors. All that was left behind was apletely ck sky that seemed to be utterly devoid of hope or light. If onlookers thought the view was scary before, it was absolutely nothingpared to this nightmarish scene they were seeing now. Luna and Aubrey nced at each other for only half a second before the two of them got up from their seats and ran out the front doors of the hospital. Without even being called, Shiro materialized in front of the girls in her usual massive form and lifted the two of them on her back. Once they were securely on, Shiro ran like the wind towards the concentrated negative energy she could feel brewing within the city. Luna looked up at the darkness brewing overhead and she felt unbelievable sadness in her heart. Right now, the man she loved was drowning in sorrow and felt as though his life had no color. She had to do whatever she could to remind him that she was here for him, and that everything would be alright.

 Chapter 128 Within The Clutches of Despair

    128 Within The Clutches of Despair


    Outside of the destroyed party venue, Serana, Sei, Anna, Bianca, Aisha and Morgan were all standing around, looking at the strangely beautiful night sky up above. The police had just shown up to this location a few minutes ago, and they were in the process of getting statements from the witnesses and offering first aid to any who might need it. Although the number of physical injuries were few, everyone was still visibly shaken up. But once the night returned to the sky, only Mchi''s loved ones felt a sense of calm wash over them that wasn''t present before. "I''m going to find him." Morgan suddenly said. "The rest of you should stay here."


    Naturally, Morgan wasn''t expecting to face any resistance to his decision, so he was surprised when he heard the sound of heavy footsteps following him. The gorgeous and tattooed Anna, along with the icy and charming Aisha immediately followed in Morgan''s footsteps. "What.. are you girls doing?" "He''s my best friend." "He''s my boyfriend." "I... understand that, but I don''t think that he would want the two of you near a battlefield."


    "I don''t always have to give a fuck what he wants." n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "I''ll make it up to himter if he''s upset."


    Evidently, the courage of the girls was rather infectious, and now Sei, Serana, and Bianca were also stepping forward like they wanted toe with him. "Girls... Mchi will kill me if anything were to happen to you."


    "Fine, then you don''t have to take us." Aisha suddenly said. She calmly walked past Morgan and started walking towards downtown, and the girls immediately followed her. Once Morgan saw that they were really intent on leaving him behind, he quickly ran in front of them to halt their advance. "Would you girls wait for just a moment! You cannot-"


    "Mr. Morgan, if you''re worried about something happening to us then you should make sure nothing happens to us, right?" Serana said. Morgan exhaustedly stared at all five women without having the foggiest idea of how to stop them. Each of them was every bit as determined as thest, and it was clear that he wasn''t going to be able to talk them out of it.


    As a man with two wives whom he loved to pieces, it was easy for him to recognize the look of a woman who was prepared to argue with him even at the cost of her life. It was exhausting just to think about. "Fine...You girls keep your legs closed."


    Anna: "What''re you- KYAAA!!"


    Aisha: "What the hell?!"


    Bianca: "I have a fear of heights!"


    Serana: "This is so cool! A bitch is just like Peter Pan!"


    The air became filled with shrill screams as Morgan lifted up the girls and himself via telekinesis and started to ferry them through the air. Evidently, the only ones who seemed to be having fun flying were Anna and Serana, who were even holding their arms out like beautiful birds. "I''m d you''re all having fun, but there''s something you should know."


    "KYAAA!!"


    "What the fuck?!"


    "Who the hell is the sparklingdy!?"


    "It''s nice to see you again, Ms. Nyx!"


    "Oh, hello mother-inw. You scared me a bit."


    "Ah, you have my apologies sweetheart."


    Nyx suddenly appeared out of thin air, her arms wrapped around Sei in a show of cheerful affection. Morgan was so surprised by the appearance of a goddess, that he nearly lost his concentration and dropped the girls right out of the air. But judging by the way that Nyx was sweetly wrapping her arms around Sei, she appeared to visit this world quite a lot. Which was rather surprising since Surtr''sst visit to him was over two years ago. He wondered if the norse primordial just wasn''t all that sociable. Nyx looked up at the three other girls she hadn''t gotten to officially meet yet and smiled at them sheepishly. "I wish that we had the time for proper introductions and pleasantries, but our time is truly rather short. There''s something that you all should know before you go and find my son."


    -


    As Luna and Aubrey drew closer to the source of the darkness that had swallowed the world, Shiro was bing more and more anxious. She thought the energy in the air was terrible from afar but once she felt it up close...it truly was terrible. *Whimpers* (Mommy... I don''t want to go any further.)


    Luna knew that her pet must have been really upset, as the only time she referred to her as a mother figure was when she was trying to get more treats.


    She patted her on the head reassuringly as she tried to offer her words of consolidation.


    "Sweetie, it''s just Mchi. You know he would never even dream of hurting you."


    In the back of her mind, Shiro knew that Luna was telling the truth but it was hard to fight this fear that was welling up inside of her. Nevertheless, she kept going and prayed that the kind man who used to sneak her treats was still around. "Luna! Aubrey!"


    The two girls nced above their heads and saw a familiar group of people flying over them, earning a reassured smile from the two girls. Finally, Shiro stopped running and Morgan and the girls came to a halt before descending slowly from the ground. The group looked ahead and found the source of the entire world''s panic, but it didn''t look anything quite like what they would have expected. Around twenty feet away, there was a figure kneeling within arge crater. It was very difficult to make out since the area was so dark, but luckily the movement caused by the being''s hair helped to pinpoint his location. The being looked... empty. His body seemed to be made up of only amass of darkness, with no stars, and no nebs. He truly seemed to have nothing in his dreary existence. Aubrey was the first one to approach him, irregardless of the strange anxiety she felt inside. "Big brother... You can hear me, right?"


    The figure finally showed some signs of stirring, and he slowly looked up at the young girl approaching him. "Did what, dingus?"


    Aubrey kneeled in the gravel in front of her brother and took his hands that were resting at his side. Her brother''s voice was a bit distorted and tired sounding and his body was cool to the touch, but it was him nheless. "I lost someone precious again... Even with all of my powers, I could not protect either of them... Why do I have to be constantly weighed down by my failures...? When will my efforts be enough...?"


    "M-Mal, if this is about grandpa Rowan then you should know he is in the hospital getting the best treatment possible!"


    Luckily that information did seem to reach Mchi by some method or another, but he was still locked within the throes of despair. "But Shear... she is truly gone and I can''t bring her back. Just like I can''t bring them back."


    Aubrey didn''t need to ask who exactly her brother was referring to, and her own heart was wracked with pain at the mention of her parents whom she loved so dearly. "How many times are you going to make me tell you that everything bad that happens isn''t your fault. Not with our parents or Shear... or even what happened to me."


    Mchi flinched when he heard her words as Aubrey pulled him in for an embrace. "I never apologized to you or thanked you... after our parents died my life just kept getting messier and messier but you held me together...


    I wanted to thank you for always taking care of me, and apologize for turning you into the kind of person who feels like they have to be responsible for everything and anyone."


    Aubrey suddenly grabbed Mal by the face and stared into his featureless void. Tears started falling down her face, but it was unclear whether they were from regret or sadness. "All of the bad things that happen to the people around you are not because of you or anything you have done wrong.


    You can''t stop life from happening to us, and we don''t expect you to. Just be the person who always helps us forget about it in the end and don''t worry about anything else."


    Within Mchi''s dark body, small twinkling stars began to spring up from all over, and the same scene was repeated in the sky above. Aubrey knew that she must have been getting through to him, and she gestured for the rest of the group toe over. When Mal''s eyesnded on the tearful Luna, his nonexistent heart felt like it was being torn apart once again.


    He looked down at his own body and remembered the promise he''d made to her that he had inadvertently broken. And not just her, all four of the women in his life were inching closer to him, staring at him with disbelieving faces. "It''s strange... isn''t it?" He said as he gestured to his new body. Unsurprisingly, the girls didn''t seem to agree in the slightest. Bianca: "No."


    Anna: "Of course not."


    Sei: "I think it''s beautiful, honey."


    Luna: "As do I."


    Mchiughed dryly just as the girls threw themselves at him, each one trying their best to touch some part of his body. However Luna was still staring at him face to face, as she knew that he had something to say. "Mei... I know what I promised you, but I can''t-"


    "I know, and I''m not upset. As long as you are alive then nothing else matters to me."


    That was undoubtedly a weight off his chest, but Mchi was still worried about Anna and Bianca would say. Lucky for him, they seemed to be capable of knowing his thoughts even before he''d voiced them. "We''re okay with this too you know?" Anna saidfortingly. "Nyx already filled us in on everything... So you don''t have to worry about us being upset, okay?"


    "She did...?"


    Bit by bit, Mchi was starting to fully remember the circumstances that led to him ending up in this state. He couldn''t say for sure how he felt. It was as if two sides of his mind were at war with each other, one angry at her for taking the choice away and another grateful that she saved his life. He wasn''t sure which one was going to win in the end. However, he realized that he was going to have to make a decision very quickly, when Nyx miraculously appeared in front of him yet again. I need the winter toe back I can¡¯t do these heat waves everyday

 Chapter 129 New Beginning

    129 New Beginning


    Mchi wasn''t sure what to feel when he saw Nyx again. But before he knew what his body was doing, he''d stood up and started walking towards her. Even though Nyx''s son now looked a lot more like her, she couldn''t bring herself to be happy about it. How could she when she knew that this was literally the opposite of everything that he had wanted. Nevertheless, if she had to do it all over again she would do it without a second thought. Irregardless of the hopes of the other gods, she had trulye to love Mchi like her own son and she only wanted the best for him. Even if it was selfish of her, she would never apologize for wanting to keep her son alive. She just... had to pray that he wasn''t too upset with her. "Son... I-"


    Before Nyx could speak, Mchi wrapped his arms around his mother and pulled her into his arms.


    His body instinctively moved on it''s own, and he surprised even himself with his actions. There was a part of him that was surely upset with her for her what she had done but... that part was evidently being drowned out by all of the overflowing love he felt for her. He had already lost one mother before, and he didn''t want there to be an unnecessary wedge between he and his second one.


    Life was too short for things like that. "Thank you for saving me." he said sincerely. Nyx melted like a young school girl instead of one of the oldest goddesses, and she returned his hug with one of her own. A momentter, she grabbed him by the face and stared up at him with warm eyes full of affection.


    "I have to go soon, so let me see my boy''s face onest time."


    Bit by bit, small particles of what appeared to be dust umted onto Mchi''s body. Ayer of skin was formed right onto the starry mass that made up his being, acting as something of an outer covering. After his body waspletely covered, Mchi was back in his normal appearance. Well, almost.


    For some reason his bright violet irises were now constantly swirling and shifting, and there was a tattooed pair of wings across his back, the same as Joanne had. But the mark in his forehead that signified his pact with Shear, was no more. Aubrey: "KYYAA! I''m traumatized! TRAUMATIZEDD!!"


    Aisha: "I am going to be sick!"


    Morgan: "Lad...please put some clothes on..."


    Serana: "Wow, mom. I see why you let him have other girlfriends, there''s no way you could have handled all that alone."


    Sei/Luna/Anna/ Bianca: "Stop looking at it!"


    Serana: "I can''t help it, it''s literally taking up most of my vision! How are any of you even walking prop-"


    Sei finally couldn''t handle anymore and grabbed her daughter by the bottom lip and covered her eyes. Mchi chuckled as he looked down and realized that he was indeed standing around stark naked. Normally he would have panicked and immediately rushed to cover himself but for some reason, he didn''t really see it like it was a big deal. Nevertheless, he manipted the shadows at his feet and pulled out the kimono that Luna had given him to cover himself. Oddly enough, Nyx pouted a bit as if she did not understand why he had to cover up. "What''s wrong? My boy should be proud of his body! He has no equal in thends above or below this world!"


    Looking at Mchi, his girlfriends would have to agree. Bianca and Luna had both seen immortals during their own blessing ceremonies and they knew full well how beautiful they were. But after bing an avatar, Mchi was somehow head and shoulders above them all.


    In the back of their minds, they remembered everything that Nyx had told them beforehand about Mal bing more passionate, loving, and unstable than before. It was as arousing as it was frightening. Eventually, he noticed the four gazes locked firmly on his body and he smiled so widely that his thinyer of skin nearly split apart.


    The longer he looked at the girls, the more he could feel new and overwhelming sensationsing from the depths of his very soul. His women were the most beautiful in the world with no equals under the sun or moon. He loved them so much that it hurt!


    He wanted to take them somewhere far away where the five of them could be alone forever, living off nothing but nature and each other''s bodies. And he was filled with the most abhorrent rage he had ever known when he thought of another man breathing their precious air orying their filthy eyes upon them.


    The urge was so bad, he identally looked at Morgan with a bit of murderous intent, and caused his idol to take a step back out of instinct. Luckily Mchi realized what he had done and smiled sheepishly as he apologized. "Ah... my bad, Morgan." n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Think nothing of it... Though can I ask what that was about?" Even though Morgan said it was no big deal, there was now a distinctck of color in his face. Again, Mchi gazed lovingly at the four girls who still seemed to be undressing him with their eyes.


    "I guess I was just feeling a little bit possessive."


    Mchi vanished from his ce beside Nyx and reappeared in front of Sei, and he immediately pulled her in for a kiss.


    "Mmf?"


    In the end, all of Sei''s strength left her body as her boyfriend kissed her with an unseen fervor and intensity. It was the most energizing, revitalizing thing that she''d ever done in her life, and she never wanted in to end. Unfortunately, as soon as it seemed to start, Mchi pulled away and gave Bianca the same treatment. He moved through all four of the beautiful women beforeing back around for seconds. "Wait a minute!"


    In true motherly fashion, Nyx had grabbed Mchi by his hair and pulled him away from a dizzy Anna. "Sorry, but it''s probably best if you all don''t go any further for tonight."


    """""Why!?"""""


    The hormone level of not only Mal but also his girlfriends was practically through the roof.


    So why were they being cockblocked!?


    "Mal, you don''t have very good control over yourself at the moment so once you taste pleasure of some kind,you will likely be addicted and fall into a pit of depravity that you cannot pull yourself out of."


    Mchi and the girls fell silent for a moment, as they took in Nyx''s startling revtion. It certainly sounded serious, but...


    """""We/I don''t really mind that though.""""" All of a sudden, Nyx felt like she was talking to a group of horny middle schoolers instead of adults in a loving rtionship. She took a deep sigh and tried to provide an exnation that would be better received. Turning to the girls, she took Luna and Bianca by the hand as she spoke to each one of them at the same time. "Girls, I understand that you have needs but you have to remember that Mchi is different now. He no longer feels exhaustion like you do, so if he gets too into it then there''s a possibility he won''t ever stop." Finally, the girls seemed to see the underlying issue with engaging in lewd acts so casually. Death by coitus was suddenly a very real and scary possibility. Sei: "I-I guess it can''t be helped then..." Anna: "Hurry up and learn to control yourself already... I''m tired of waiting." Bianca: "Me too..!"


    Luna: "I''ll have you make up for thister." Aubrey: "I am absolutely never fuckinging home again."


    Mchi ignored his sister as he made up his mind to be in control of his new emotions as quickly as possible. As Mal contemted how best to learn to control himself, his mother suddenly tapped him on the shoulder, and whispered something into his ear.


    "By the way, that favor you asked me for? It will be done tonight."


    Again, Mchi''s mood only showed more and more improvement as he felt like a huge burden was lifted from his chest. "Well then, I suppose I should take my leave."


    Nyx suddenly started to float off the ground, and she waved goodbye to everyone present. Even though this was the first time many people here had met her, they couldn''t help but be a little sad to see her go so soon. Perhaps because she sensed that, she would blow everyone present a small kiss goodbye as she vanished from there world. -


    A few hourster, Mchi was back in his apartment, his eyes wide open and staring at the ceiling. Surrounding him were all of the sleeping bodies of the women he loved, all snoring peacefully after a long and strenuous night. Not needing to sleep was a really strange thing. Mchi suddenly had so much free time on his hands that he had no real idea what to do with. There was only so much time he could spend robotically scrolling through his phone before he became mind numbingly bored. ''Should I finally start trying to beat that Elden game again?''


    ''Maybe this would be a good time to catch up on schoolwork...Nah.''


    ''I should write an online novel or something.''


    ''I want to have sex...''


    Suddenly, Mchi thought of a proper way to use his time and nearly sat up on the bed. He knew what he needed to do, he just needed a quiet ce to really focus. And in addition, he didn''t want to move and risk waking any of the girls who could be particrly light sleepers. But upon thinking for a moment, he was able to easilye up with a way out of this situation. In an instant, he teleported from his bed and at the same time created a shadowy construct that resembled his body shape and likeness perfectly. Seeing as none of the girls noticed the difference, he knew that he had seeded in ensuring they stayed asleep. His worries erased, he teleported outside of his room and reappeared outside, floating in the sky. He looked up into the 2am sky and smiled as his outer shell started falling away, his next destination made up. -


    Sei couldn''t really fathom why, but for some reason her bed didn''t really feel asfortable as it did when she first fell asleep. She tossed and turned hoping to fix her problem without having to open her eyes, but it proved to be to no avail. Eventually, her eyes fluttered open and she realized, she was not in her bed at all. "She''s awake." A deep, masculine voice reverberated within her ears and she quickly sat up on the cold floor beneath her. Looking up, she found a scene she didn''t think she''d ever get to experience. In a colosseum, rows and rows of divine beings ranging from gods to devils and spirits, were all watching her with looks of clear interest. She was so overwhelmed by the scenery in front of her, her mind had the only natural reaction. She fainted. Webnovel is going to post my novel in the library saturday and I''m honestly panicking a bit.


    Whenever they do something big like this it ususally brings a crazy amount of attention and unsurprisingly practically none of it is good.


    I was just starting to feel okay with my writing again but now I''m worried about it being shit on tomorrow.

 Chapter 130 Sei Aihara: The One Who Brings Peace!

    130 Sei Aihara: The One Who Brings Peace!


    ''Sei, my dear~ You have to wake up now, this is not a dream.''


    ''M-Mother-inw...?''


    ''Yes, darling. Come and wake up now, and step into your new life.''


    When Sei opened her eyes again, she was still lying on the floor of arge colosseum. Just like her young boyfriend had described, she was surrounded by rows and rows of higher beings. Some were beautiful, and some were monstrous. But all of them were looking at her with different expressions. Some gazes were disinterested, others were curious, and a few were lustful. Chief among them was Zeus and his brother Poseidon, who were looking at the mature beauty''s bountiful assets with no amount of hidden desire. ''I will kill you both.''


    The two men heard an eerily cold and familiar voice y within their minds and they immediately knew the source. They could both feel death''s scythe hovering above their necks, stemming from one of the nine thrones above them. In the face of her protection, these mighty gods could do nothing but drop their gazes to the floor. "Speak your name mortal woman, and tell us the limit of your ambition!"


    Sei followed the sound of the voice to a falcon headed man with Nubian skin and borate egyptian robes. Among his pantheon, he and a few select members sat the highest. ''I-Is that... a frog..? I can''t do this!''


    Sei very nearly asked to be sent back home immediately when the familiar voice of her mother inw eased her nervous. ''Don''t let Kek scare you dear, he''s really a silent fellow. You don''t need to be scared, just tell us your ambition. Everything else will work itself out.'' Nyx exined. ''I... I do not understand why I was chosen for this.'' Sei said honestly. ''You were chosen because my son sees something in you and wants you to be able to protect yourself, dear. Your world... it is about to be very dangerous soon. You need this. Do not think of giving us some grand reasoning behind your motivations. Just give us the honest answer that dwells within your heart and spirit. Nothing else matters.''


    Sei felt her chest tighten and she felt her eyes start to spill over. Of course Mchi had asked Nyx to help her be blessed. He was always doing things like that, even without being asked. She had never been with someone who was always so willing to go above and beyond for her, no matter the cost. It left her feeling so grateful for his love that she often didn''t know what to do. But if she had an opportunity to do something in the future... she had to take this gift now. Once she made up her mind, her words flowed out of her mouth easily, containing no sense of dishonesty or subterfuge. "I... don''t have any ambition...! But, the man I love is the kind of person who wants to bear the weight of the world on his shoulders... All I want is to bring himfort and peace, no matter what he may be going through. It may sound like a small goal... but I''ve never thought of myself as much of a fighter and I don''t really believe that part of me will change anytime soon. But if I can help to support the one who defends me with everything he has... Then I believe I can find my value in that."


    After Sei''s deration, the highers murmured amongst themselves for a few moments. Unsurprisingly, Sei''s words had thergest impacts over the dieties of love and marriage, and they became determined to take her as their chosen. Honestly, how could a love as pure as hers still exist in today''s day and age?


    Everything she said was just so touching that she had practically moved these gods to tears.


    "I see... that''s certainly a fine ideal." Ra said. "Who among us desires to bless this woman?" Unsurprisingly, Sei had quite a few offers from the aforementioned gods of love and marriage. From Eros to Freya, and even Hera. They were all moring to have her. "Make your choice now, daughter of man." Odin said. "Which deity would you have bless you?"


    Sei shakily looked around at all of the gods and goddesses looking at her lovingly and she had to admit, she was having more than a little bit of trouble making a decision. Suddenly, she heard the pping of wings and a man floated down in front of her. He was gentle looking and handsome like most gods, wearing soft grey robes and with wings growing out of his back and temples. His skin was rather pale, and his long grey hair was tied in a French braid that traveled down his back. When he appeared in front of her suddenly, Sei admittedly took a wary step back which earned a chuckle from the unknown god. "Steel your heart, daughter of man. My intentions for you are not impure, so you may feel at ease in my presence."


    No matter how smooth the man''s words were, Sei did not show any signs of rxing and even seemed to be more on edge than before. But again, the gentle god did not seem bothered by this. ''He speaks the truth, Sei.'' Nyx suddenly said.


    Sei found Nyx sitting high in the crowd among the gods and gave her a confused look. ''You know him?''


    ''Fufufu~ I birthed him. This is Mchi''s elder brother; Hypnos.''


    Within mythology, Hypnos is considered to be an extremely powerful deity. More than an olympian but less than a primordial, he is the personification of sleep, and brings rest to all living things both mortal and immortal. He is a liberator from fear and anxiety, and the ruler of the ind of dreams. ''For my most gentle daughter-inw, I think you need the blessing of the most gentle god, don''t you?'' She said sweetly. Sei realized that Nyx must have asked her son to bless her, and she lost all of her reservations about interacting with this being. "Ah... hello there."


    "I take it that she has filled you in then?" He said with augh. "She has."


    "Well then, that make things simple then. I, Hypnos, god of sleep wish to bestow Sei Airara with my blessing. Will you ept this?"


    Sei lowered her head respectfully and recited the same words Mchi had recited so long ago. "I gratefully ept...Thank you." n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    As soon as the words left her lips, Sei felt a sense of calming relief invade her entire body from her head t the tips of her toes. A feeling of fullness rooted itself in her being, and she felt as if she were finally worthy to stand by Mchi''s side. It was such a relieving and cathartic feeling that it very nearly brought tears to her eyes. In the stands above, Nyx was receiving a few discreet dirty nces. The gods knew who Sei was, as they spent a great deal of time watching Mchi and his exploits. Therefore, when she proposed this candidate for blessing, they thought that they would perhaps earn a chance to gain a worthy and useful pawn. But Nyx had clearly cheated, not only bymunicating with the human woman but by persuading one of her children to bless her. The few gods that noticed what she''d done weren''t all that happy about it, but what were they going to do?


    Beat her up?


    Hell no.


    So they had no choice but to sit there and scowl, like toddlers who had been forced to eat their vegetables. But there was one a few seats away from Nyx, whose scowl was not as discreet. "Is there a problem, Hemera?" Nyx asked coldly. Sitting two seats down from the bewitching goddess of the night was a woman with radiant blonde hair and sky blue eyes. She wore a purely white dress that clung to her motherly figure and exposed her slender and pale arms. Even though Nyx had spoken to her, she didn''t seem to have any intention of responding back. She just continued to scowl at Nyx like she knew what she''d done. "Be careful dear, your face will freeze that way if you aren''t careful."


    Crack!


    Hemera inadvertently turned the armrests on her stone throne to dust, earning a round of dryughter from Nyx. ''Really, how funny.''


    Now that Sei had been blessed, her body started to break apart as she returned back to her bedroom. With herst remaining seconds she looked up at Nyx and showed her a smile filled with gratitude. ''Thank you, mother-inw... I will not waste the opportunity you have given me.''


    ''What a silly girl... just work on making yourself and my son happy, alright?''


    ''Yes, ma''am. I will do my best!''


    Once she disappeared, silence returned to the colosseum once more as Zeus ran his hands through his white hair. "Right then... has anyone else had their eye on any more chosen?" He asked. "I have."


    "As have I."


    "Same here."


    When the gods in attendance looked at the three who had spoken, they knew that their night was only going to get much more interesting from here. "Alright...let us summon the next one then."


    Well it happened and it was only half as exhausting as I thought it would be.


    Kinda feel like I need a real long nap and a ss of hard liquor.


    AnathaShesha

 Chapter 131 Aubrey Saint: Her Hidden Ambition!

    131 Aubrey Saint: Her Hidden Ambition!


    For some reason, Aubrey was having a really hard time sleeping. Perhaps it was due to everything that happened tonight, but she just couldn''t seem to rx even with her girlfriend''s arms wrapped around her. Her body was falling asleep in weird intervals due to exhaustion. She would close her eyes for around five minutes, and then wake up immediately and see that it was still dark outside. If she hadn''t had so much on her mind, she would have been dreaming peacefully by now about any number of silly little things. But unfortunately, she was having no such luck. Her eyelids became too heavy to keep open once again, and it became time for her regrly scheduled cat nap. However, when she opened her eyes again, she felt entirely different. There was no longer a nket covering her body and she felt like she was lying on a stone floor. It had been so many years since she had slept so roughly that she had thrown herself out of bed, so her embarrassment level was at an all time high. Opening her eyes, she realized that there was far too much light in the room. And this was most certainly not her girlfriend''s mansion. "She has awakened." A jolt ran through her spine when she heard a masculine voice that was surely new to her. She briefly considered that she had been kidnapped by that same shadowy organization from earlier and her heart started beating uncontrobly. ''Aubrey my darling daughter, don''t be scared. No one is going to hurt you here, on the contrary we just want to help you.'' ''Help me? Help me how?''


    ''How do you think, my dear? We want to bless you.'' N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Aubrey expertly picked out the voice in her head from the crowd of gods in the stands. Once she made eye contact with Nyx, the goddess shed her a small wink to put her mind at ease. For some strange reason, everyone here was staring at Aubrey like they already knew her. Even though she wasn''t famous by any sort of metric, they were looking at her like she was some kind of religious figure. "Sister to the fabled son. Tell us the limits of your ambition." The one who finally addressed Aubrey was a horned and hairy beast that sat high among the Chinese pantheon. Pangu seemed to be staring at the young girl rather intently just like all of the others, though she wasn''t sure if it was because he wanted to eat her or not. "My... ambition...?"


    Aubrey had heard from both her girlfriend and brother about this part of the ritual, but she still was not ever expecting to ever be asked this question herself. She honestly wasn''t sure if she had any ambition. The way that her life was set up now, her brother and girlfriend gave her everything she could ever want. Mchi even gave her a few million once he signed with Luna, so she was already pretty wealthy despite never even finishing high school. It was hard to answer what your ambition was when everything was done for you by your loved ones. Aubrey wasn''t ungrateful or spoiled, but things had been this way for so long that she had never stopped to question it. But in thinking about these things for the first time, she realized what the answer to the question that Pangu had asked her a few moments ago. "My ambition is... I want to be someone who can stand on their own two feet again." She said with great difficulty. "My brother and girlfriend... They tend to coddle me a lot because of my...past. I''m grateful that they love me so much, but I think... I want to do things for myself again.I want to protect myself so that they don''t have to feel obligated to do it for me.


    I want to be able to walk on the street again, even if they aren''t holding my hand. I want to be someone who can stand beside those two amazing people proudly. My ambition is that I want to be strong, and independent."


    With every word that she spoke, Aubrey''s words flowed easier and easier. It made her realize how deeply buried this wish was, and just how long she had been suppressing this desire inside. "Such powerful words, my daughter. Your brother would be proud, as am I." Nyx said warmly. Even though Aubrey and the goddess had yet to build a proper bond of any kind, it would be a lie if she said that she did not feel anything when this woman referred to her as her child. It was a very warm and pleasant feeling... so much so that it gave her shbacks to her birth mother and father. She missed them... so very terribly. But just like her brother, she had to keep living with their memories and lessons ingrained into her being everyday. "Now then... who will bless my child?" Nyx asked. The casual way that Nyx referred to Aubrey set off a chain reaction inside the minds of the highers. Previously, everyone was looking at Aubrey like they could not wait to offer her their blessing. With her brother''s immense potential, surely she would not be very far behind him, right?


    They may have missed their opportunity with him, but this was their chance to correct that with his sibling!


    But...Nyx''s interference was a not so veiled way of saying that any intentions had to be pure, or they would be punished. Immediately, that dissuaded most of the demons and powerful monsters from trying to bless her. Their power tended to corrupt, and 98% of the humans blessed by them were now sitting in the underwater prison Tartarus or dead. But as for those who did not have any impure motives, Aubrey was fair game. And they lobbied for her like she was prime real estate. "Daughter of man, ept my blessing!"


    "No, mine! The fuck do you need a wine god''s blessing for?"


    "Kill yourself, Apollo!"


    "Watch your mouth or I''ll fuck your wife, Dionysus!"


    Aubrey was being solicited by so many highers that her head was beginning to hurt. She didn''t know how she was ever going toe to a decision with all of these highers yelling at her like this. ''This is more annoying than they mentioned...'' Aubrey thought exhaustedly. ''Fufufu~ Don''t worry, dear. Help is on the way.''


    As soon as Nyx transmitted the thought, a figure appeared in front of Aubrey. It was a man, but strangely enough he didn''t make her feel ufortable. He had dark grey skin pared with silver hair that flowed down his back. His ck robes seemed to be constantly swirling and shifting, almost like they had a life of their own. Despite his eyes being entirely ck and empty, he was not unappealing to look at and was actually rather handsome. When the higher saw who had chosen to appear in front of Aubrey, the entire colosseum came to a dead stop. Among the crowd, two figures stood up, clearly displeased with this turn of events. One was known as the pale rider, a horsemen of the apocalypse who is fabled to bring his namesake to the world when he rides; Death. The other was an archangel with feathers that were a muddled grey instead of the usual white. He was known to the masses as the angel of death, Azrael.


    "Thanatos... what is the meaning of this?" Death asked pointedly. "You know we aren''t allowed to bless mortals with our powers, so what is the meaning of this?" added Azrael.


    The being identified as Thanatos stared calmly at his two counterparts. They had indeed made a pact not to take part in the blessing of mortals for one very simple reason. The three of them are divided aspects of the initial concept of death itself. They are not gods of the dead like Hades, Hel, and Yama. They are beings of actual death. Therein lies a world of difference. While those blessed by the rulers of the underworlds can summon and manipte armies of dead, it is theorized that those blessed by a being of death would be able to bring it. Or even stave it off. Needless to say, their powers were deemed to be too much for mortals to hold onto. There was also a possibility that a mortal body could not handle such dark abilities. The potential for things to go wrong was so much greater than it was with other blessings. Thanatos would never have done this had his mother not asked him so sincerely. And since his twin brother had also gotten to bless someone earlier in the night, he may have been feeling a tiny bit left out. Though he would never admit that out loud. "Our pact... I have decided that it no longer interests me." He said inly. "You''re joking."


    "Am I?"


    Thanatos stared directly into Aubrey''s big brown eyes and finally introduced himself properly. "As they say, I am Thanatos, and I am a god of death. Even though this is our first meeting, I am also your brother."


    "Oh... I guess that I have a lot of brothers and sisters now, huh...?"


    "You may say that, but you need not think of us as your kin unless you deem us worthy of the title. The time for that cer."


    Aubrey had to admit, she was feeling a lot less nervous around Thanatos now, and her opinion the god had already been raised just a small bit. She thought if it was this man at least... she could eventuallye to look at him like another sibling. "I, Thanatos, god of death wish to bestow Aubrey Saint with my blessing. Will you ept?"


    "Ah, y-yes!"


    As soon as Aubrey epted, she felt a strange force invade her mind and soul. It was cold and dark, but it wasn''t unpleasant. It was just... there. "How is she still standing...?"


    "She absorbed death... true death..."


    "This..."


    Aubrey noticed that she was receiving quite a few strange looks from the highers in the room, but she didn''t really understand why. Had she done something fantastical like her brother?


    If she had, she would have liked to have done it intentionally, but all she did was mutter a few words. "Oh, right!" She realized. She gestured for Thanatos to lean down so that she could whisper something in his ear, and he looked at her strangely before obliging. "I don''t feel that fullness thing that my brother and girlfriend talked about so does that mean I have to pick again?"


    Today, Aubrey learned that in a room filled with higher beings, it should not havee as a surprise that they all had super hearing. This time, themon was even louder than the first. "She''s fine!!"


    "She is like her brother! She can handle more!!"


    "Young girl, please allow me to give you my blessing!"


    "Eep!"


    Aubrey had specifically chosen to whisper in the hopes of avoiding this exact situation, but it appeared to have been useless in the end. In the blink of an eye, two more gods appeared in front of the young Saint girl. One was arge, green skinned oni with white and red hair and the face of a hungry ogre. The other was a beautiful woman with richly tanned skin and dark ck hair. Her golden eyes were warm and gentle, like pools of warm honey. "Mortal, I am Fujin, the god of wind! Together we can outshine both of our brothers and-"


    "Youngdy, I am Isis, goddess of magic and healing. I believe that if you ept my blessing then-"


    "I''ll take both, I''ll take both!! I just want to go home now!" Aubrey cried.


    The two gods blinked their eyes several times before smiling at each other widely and undergoing the ritual. In the thrones above, Nyx was sitting on her throne wearing her usual warm and motherly smile as she watched Aubrey do just as her brother had, ept blessings from different pantheons. It was like she was watching her child win some kind of award in school or bring home a straight-A report card. She honestly couldn''t remember thest time she felt this proud. ''Honestly...my children are so special.''


    Bro, I was riding around with my girl and her best friend all day and I just checked my bank ount.


    I beenying on the floor for the past twenty minutes, trying to pray that money back into my pocket by the time I wake up


    AnathaShesha

 Chapter 132 Why Did We Pick This One?!

    Chapter 132 Why Did We Pick This One?!


    *Inhales* "... LET''S FUCKING GOOOO!!!!"


    The highers looking at the newest mortal to be blessed weren''t really sure what to think. This one clearly had a few screws loose, and that was really saying something when it came from those among them who were dubbed as mad themselves. " She''s ... interesting."


    "She''s a little touched." "Bless her heart." "Hey! I can hear you!" Serana yelled. Honestly, how could these people bring her here and still proceed to be so rude?


    They were treating her like she was slow! Was it wrong of her to be excited that she was about to receive super powers??


    When she showed up here a few seconds ago, she couldn''t help but be so overjoyed that she yelled from the depths of her lungs. Could anyone me her?


    "Apologies, daughter of man. Your personality is simply... rather surprising." Serana made eye contact with an old man with two crows sitting on his shoulders and one missing eye. She wasn''t certain about who exactly this guy was, but he looked important so she decided to ept his apology and just keep it moving. "Tell us then, child. What is the limit of your ambition?"


    Serana really only needed a moment to think about an answer, as she had been dreaming about this day for as long as she could imagine. She took a deep breath, before dering her ambition from the very top of her lungs. "I want to be the strongest and most beautiful blessed woman on the face of the earth! I want to be so hot that guys cream their jeans just from looking at me, and I want to be rich as fuck too! Oh, and if it''s not too much to ask for, then I also want an ass that wiggles like my momma''s!"


    In all of the time that the higher had been blessing mortals, they had never heard anything like this before. Her reasons were so ridiculously mortal that it wasughable. And against Serana''s expectations, the bulk of them did. "Hahahaha!!"


    "She''s a funny one indeed!"


    "Hey, tell us your ambition again!"


    "I haven''t had augh like this in centuries!"


    Serana started to pout as nearly every higher within this ceughed so hard that they fell out of their seats. "The hell''s so funny? I don''t think I made any kind of jo-" "The hell she says!!" An unfairly handsome man who many of the higher would recognize as Lucifer, wasughing at the young girl harder than anyone else. "Damn it, WHAT IS WRONG WITH MY AMBITION!?" She finally yelled. Her unexpected outburst caused theughter of the gods to die down a bit, and they were all giving her a look of true pity. "Child, that is not ambition." Hera said. "Your desires are superficial at best, the things you want will have no longterm meaning in the-"


    "Who the fuck are you to tell me that my dreams have no meaning? You don''t know the first thing about me if you think that my desires are just the superficial wishes of a dumb girl!"


    The colosseum became filled with a dumb silence. Not a single person to ever be brought here had spoken to a higher like this, least of all the queen of an entire pantheon. Although, Zeus still seemed to find this scene rather funny, and did not utter a peep in Hera''s defense. His wife was frozen in utter shock.


    Had anyone ever dared to talk to her like this? If they had, she certainly couldn''t recall it. She most definitely could not let this disrespect go unpunished. Serana''s mother tried her best to give her the best life even if her father wasn''t around, but she still struggled quite a bit. "Girl... you dare to-"


    "Can it, blondie! I bet it must feel real good to sit up here in the heavens and have everyone kiss your ass all the time, but I never got anything like that! Don''t try to tell me the things I want are stupid unless you wanna be mortal for a day!"


    Serana''s mother tried her best to give her the best life even if her father wasn''t around, but she still struggled quite a bit. For one, she was a second generation immigrant in America with a mother who was still learning to adapt to new customs. In elementary school, she was picked on for bringing ''weird'' lunches to school and for identally speaking Japanese instead of English in her ssroom. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    When she got older and went to middle school, the bullying over food finally stopped but was reced with another issue. Money. Sei was a single mother, trying to keep an entire restaurant afloat with close to no help. Even though she wanted to, she just wasn''t able to buy her daughter the cool and trendy clothes that all the other kids her age were wearing.


    Serana wore clothes from payless and thrift stores, and her bullies never let her forget it for a single second. In high school, no one cared about her clothes anymore. Specifically because someone was always trying to take them off. At that age, the minds of young men are focused on only one thing; girls. Some wanted to date, but most wanted to sleep around and be top dog among their friends. And Serana was a fourteen year old girling into the ninth grade, who was poor with low self esteem and no friends. In other words, she was an easy kill. She would never forget the first time she got asked out on a date by an older guy, and was so excited that she couldn''t even sleep the night before. She tried to wear her best clothes and even snuck a bit of her mom''s makeup, before she ran out of her house to meet him for their ''date''. At first, things were great. He gave her a bunch of surface levelpliments that she had never received before, and she listened as he talked about how ''exotic'' she was. She thought that she was going to have the best night of her life, when her date suddenly pulled into the back of a fast food parking lot, and asked her if she was ready to get into the backseat. That was the day she learned another painful lesson. She wasn''t pretty, only average. She wasn''t the kind of person guys wanted to do nice things for and marry, she was just the kind of girl who was expected to give it up because she wasn''t used to attention. Of course, Serana didn''t go through with it that night and demanded to be taken home, but that didn''t matter. The guy she went out with had already told everyone they''d done the deed by the time she went back to school on Monday. In the blink of an eye she had this terrible reputation that she hadn''t done anything to deserve. She had all of the attention she could have ever dreamed of, but none of it was good. Serana didn''t want to be rich, beautiful, and powerful to appease some inner vain pursuit. She wanted those things because she had been without them for so very long, and she wanted the respect and admiration that came with them. So what if it was a terribly mortal wish?


    So what if there was a possibility that none of those things would matter in 10 years?


    She wouldn''t allow anyone to tell her that her desire to heal the parts of her that had been broken was a waste of her time. Even if it was a so called goddess from above. "Well, I don''t know about you guys but I surely do find this one amusing!" Serana watched as the handsome man from before leapt down from the crowd. He wore an entirely ck suit, and had neatly cut blonde hair paired with red eyes. Even though Serana didn''t have the foggiest inclination of who this guy was, she could see the way that hemanded the respect of nearly everyone in the room. Even Hera, who looked like she was going to fry her a moment ago, had paused as she silently ground her teeth in anger. "Now kid... I must admit that I have taken quite a liking to you. You may be a girl but you seem to have quite the pair."


    The man stuck out his hand, and finally introduced himself properly. "Lucifer. Pleased to make your acquaintance."


    Immediately, Serana''s eyes went wide and she started to back away. Lucifer had already blessed a man on earth, who was a former member of ragnarok. Aside from the recently revealed Arias, he is one of the world''s most dangerous criminals, and currently sits on the lowest level of Tartarus. "Oh? This wasn''t really the reaction I was expecting from someone as bold as you. Who would''ve though that a girl with courage to curse at a goddess was so afraid of the devil?"


    "E-Everyone!" Serana said shakily. "Oh right, I guess I do have a rather poor reputation."


    "Get away from her, Lucifer." An archangel in white robes with a face eerily simr to the deciever''s spoke to him rather coldly. "You have already gifted a mortal with the allotted amount of your power. You have no more left to bless this girl."


    "Does that mean that I cannot say hello? She''s just such a fun character that I couldn''t help but be intrigued."


    "Be intrigued from your seat like the rest of us."


    "Mind your business."


    "Oh, hello! Are you going to bless me?" Lucifer and Michael stopped arguing long enough to find Serana engaging in conversation with a pretty woman. She had beautiful and fair skin, with long auburn hair and dark ck eyes. The two brothers could not help but look at the greek goddess of the night once again, as yet another one of her children had appeared during the night. "Indeed I am, if you find me worthy of it. " The goddess said. "What''s your name?"


    "I am Apate. The goddess of deceit."


    Serana''s eyes went wide and she let out a low, impressed whistle. "Pretty edgy."


    Apate wasn''t really sure if she should take that as apliment or not, but she continued on with her conversation nheless. "Hey, wait." Lucifer began. "I, Apate, goddess of deceit wish to bestow my blessing onto you, Serana Aihara. Will you ept?"


    Lucifer: "I said wai-"


    "Sure thing! I can''t wait to be able to kick Mal''s ass the next time he calls me a stiff booty bit- Ow!"


    It took a moment, but Serana soon felt a strange invading force entering her mind. No one told her about the annoying headache that came from being blessed, or else she probably would have had more reservations about agreeing so easily. But a few momentster, the feeling passed and she started to feel better than ever. "This is... great!" "W-Wha?"


    Before Apate knew what was happening, Serana flung herself at the goddess and hugged her tightly. "Thank you, Apate! I promise I won''t let you down, and I''m also gonna go home and study up on all of your legends so that I''ll know who you are!"


    For the first time in a long time, the goddess feltpelled to hit a mortal. But for some reason, she had to admit that the girl in front of her was... oddly likable. She was almost d that her mother had asked her to do this. After Serana disappeared, Michael and Lucifer both stared hard at Nyx. The goddess naturally felt their gazes, but she felt no real need to exin her motives. After all, everything that she did was for her beloved son and his loved ones.

 Chapter 133 Anna Grey: Seeker of Redemption!

    Chapter 133 Anna Grey: Seeker of Redemption!


    "....Christ." "Yes?" "N-No, I mean god-" The Gods: "Which one?" "No, none of you, I just... Why am I here?!" Anna was more than a little ufortable with this turn of events. She woke up thinking that she had to pee and prepared to crawl out of bed, only to realize that she was in some kind of weird colosseum, surrounded by more beings of legend than she could count. But for some reason, no one was looking at her and instead staring at one amongst themselves. "Problem?" Nyx asked annoyedly. "Why don''t we just skip the deration of ambition and just get to the part where you have one of your children bless the mortal."


    "It''s not like the rest of us have an opportunity anyway..."


    "I just want to go back to my realm and lie down."


    Anna nearly jumped out of her skin when the woman who was sitting on a throne above her suddenly appeared right beside her. This was only her second time meeting her, but even she was able to recognize Mal''s adoptive mother. "Hello Anna~ It''s nice to finally get to speak with you properly."


    "Y-Yea, umm.. Nice to meet you too?"


    "Fufufu~ Don''t be nervous."


    Nyx gently took Anna by the hands and admired the tattoos on her knuckles and arms. "Such exquisite artwork... They are always so beautiful no matter how many times I see them."


    "Thank you for saying so..." Anna said shyly. She wasn''t really good with mother figures since she never had one of her own. As a result, it was rtively easy to disarm her usual prickly and unfriendly nature as long as you used an older woman to do it. In that regard, she was quite a bit simr to her boyfriend. "Tell me something, Annalise..."


    Nyx ran her cool fingers along Anna''s cheeks as she looked at her with gentle ck eyes. "What is your ambition, dear? What kind of person do you want to be?" Surprisingly, it wasn''t hard for her to think of an answer as she had always known it for as long as she''d been an adult. "...I just.. think that I would like to be someone new." "Oh? And why is that sweetie?" Annalise had never said these words out loud to anyone before, and yet here she was about to spill her deepest insecurities to her boyfriend''s mother. Life was funny like that. "Can you... keep a secret?" "Of course dear, my lips are sealed." "I''ve... done a lot of bad shit. I spent a few years in juvie for.. pretty much everything. Fighting, breaking and entering, possession with intent and..."


    She didn''t bother to finish, and Nyx didn''t press her for more answers. The goddess could tell that what she''d already gotten to hear required a great deal of effort. "I cleaned up a lot sense then, you know? But even when I turned 18, I was still hurting myself by getting into bad rtionships with guys and drinking until I cked out. I put my uncle through hell, but for some reason he never scolded me for anything and just kept picking me up every time that I fell down. I... owe him so much." Anna couldn''t tell, but Nyx silently put up a barrier to keep her words from reaching any of the other highers from hearing her very personal confession.


    "Dating your son is like... A real breath of fresh air for me. He''s so gentle, and he makes me feel like I''m the most special girl in the world even though I''m just some orphan with a record. I''m happier than I''ve ever been, but I''m also terrified out of my mind that he is going to find out about all the shit I used to pull and look at me differently because of it. So I- Ow! why!?"


    Anna was nearly midway through a very moving confessional when Nyx suddenly picked her cheeks and started to pull them like they were made of taffy. "Nope~ Don''t do that. If you''re going to say that you love Mchi, then you need to be aware of the kind of person he is.


    Can you actually imagine him leaving you over something silly like your past?"


    Anna wasn''t sure what she was more embarrassed by, the fact that another woman brought up something obvious that she should have known about her boyfriend, or that she was having her face yed with like she was a child. Realistically, it was probably the former. Nyx suddenly pulled Anna closely until their foreheads were pressed together. "Listen to me now, Anna. If you want to redeem your past mistakes, then you should do that. But don''t think for a single second that you have to do it so that it might make you worthy of my son''s affection. If he''s chosen you, then you are worthy. You don''t need to do any more or any less, just love him the same as you have always done. Everything else is insignificant in the grander scheme of things. "


    "So, I''ll ask you again dear." Nyx said warmly. "What is your ambition, and what kind of person do you want to be?" "...I want to be redeemed."


    "Oh? Why?"


    "So that maybe one day I''ll feel like I deserve all of the happiness that''s in my life right now..."


    Nyx smiled warmly and gave the young girl aplementary pat on the head.


    "As I thought, I knew just who''s blessing would fit you all along."


    Nyx finally released Anna and nced over her shoulder at the greek pantheon. "My darling girl, would you minding to say hello?"


    A woman stood up from the crowd and flew into the air on inky ck wings. Anna was mystified by this woman''s bright red dress and long ck hair that blew casually in the wind. When shended, Anna was able to get a more detailed look at her face. She was gorgeous, with a stern gaze and powerful red eyes that seemed to see through all of Anna entirely. Her history, her inner shame, her fear, her regrets, it seemed like they were allid bare. Mal gave her a simr feeling when the two of them were alone, but what she felt from this goddess was more unpleasant and invasive. "Annalise, this is Mchi''s elder sister; Nemesis."


    "Hey..." n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "Greetings."


    Nyx vanished and returned to her seat so that the girls could get acquainted, but Anna would have given anything for her to stick around. She was already awkward when it came to meeting new people, so she didn''t have the slightest idea how she was supposed to behave in front of a literal goddess. "Do you know how you may redeem yourself, Annalise?" Nemesis suddenly said. "...Well I triedmunity service but that just made me feel like a crusty convict so I''m gonna have to say no."


    Nemesis didn''t really seem to understand or care for Anna''s awkward joke, and instead chose to ignore it like it wasn''t even mentioned. "You want to absolve yourself of your guilt? Then take my blessing and hunt down those with more wicked hearts than you.


    I am the goddess of retribution. Destructive anger and a spirit of vengeance are the gifts I will give. Be my agent, and relinquish your dark past as you cleanse the world of the irredeemables." Anna''s eyes went slightly wide as the gravity of what she was being offered sank in. Nemesis was basically asking her to be some kind of supernatural huntress who punished criminals by bringing death. It was a crazy offer and she wasn''t even sure that she should take it, but suddenly she remembered the words of her mother-inw .


    Nyx had specifically picked this goddess for her because she believed that her blessing would be best suited for Anna. And when Anna recalled her own words about wanting to be redeemed, it wasn''t really hard to see why. So really, why was she still hesitating?


    "I ept your blessing then..." Anna wasn''t exactly sure if she was supposed to bow in this instance, but she felt like it would be rude if she didn''t at least lower her head a bit. She felt a warm sensations spread through every corner of her mind and body. It was invigorating, weing, and it felt so right that she couldn''t believe that she''d ever been without it. "Thanks for this... it''s really amazing." She admitted. Nemesis was always rather stoic and remained stone faced even in front of Anna''s sincere gratitude. "You need not thank me, since it was your choice to take it. But know this, blessed daughter, should you prove unworthy, I will reim my blessing at the expense of your life if I must."


    Anna couldn''t focus too much on Nemesis'' warning because she was so focused on the way she had referred to her. Blessed daughter. She didn''t say it with any sort of warmth or affection, so she couldn''t have been proiming herself to be her mother. And that left only one possible alternative. "Wait a second... Do you know who my-"


    "It seems our time is up."


    "W-Wait-"


    Before Annalise could get the answer that she wanted her body started to break apart and she vanished from the colosseum. After she left, Nemesis felt a small but sharp poke in her side and found her mother with a cute yet displeased expression. Even before she said anything, Nemesis had already lost her constantly stoic demeanor and was trying to apologize. "I-It was just a slip of the tongue! You know I would never reveal to that girl anything about her parentage or her mother''s rtionship with my brother."


    For some reason, Nyx still seemed to be unsatisfied. "If you know what you''ve done wrong, then how should you apologize?"


    Nemesis'' face became as red as her dress as she nced at the numerous divine beings around them. "Do I... have to do it here?"


    "Yes!"


    Finally, Nemesis decided to bite the bullet and swallowed her embarrassment and displeasure. She kissed Nyx on the cheek so quickly that you could barely even see it, and said the dreaded words of apology. "I am sorry, mommy..."


    "Fufufu~ Good! My sweet girl is forgiven!"


    The highers surrounding them were immediately able toe to one undeniable conclusion. This entire family waspletely mad.

 Chapter 134 A Needed Rest

    Chapter 134 A Needed Rest


    If one had a powerful enough telescope, they would be amazed by the sight they could observe in this moment. Located on the dark side of the moon, there was a single, ck cat curled up with it''s eyes closed. The animal seemed to have no problem breathing, nor was it sumbing to the unbearable cold temperatures out in space. It was as if it was right at home here inplete darkness and silence. After several hours of sitting here, the fluffy animal opened it''s violet eyes and let out a small sigh. ''I feel alright but... got no way to tell if I''m stable or not.''


    Mchi had been meditating for a while now and he had no real way to examine the fruits of hisbor. He wouldn''t really know if he was fully in control of his emotions until he was put into a situation that would test him. Though who knew when that would be. He left his feline form and returned to his true body, a mass of darkness, stars, and nebs in the shape of a man.


    He ran his hands through his dreadlocks and watched as they floated around him like they had their own mind. ncing at the earth, he could tell that the sun was likely about toe up in the U.S in around thirty minutes or so. ''I should probably head back before my girls-''


    Before Mal could finish his thought, he felt like a thread was cut within his mind. Instinctively he knew exactly what that meant and he chuckled wryly in defeat. ''Guess I''ve already been up here too long.''


    -


    When Mchi reappeared in the bedroom in his apartment, he found a scene that he was already somewhat expecting. All four of his girlfriend''s were awake and conscious, ring at him with irritated faces.


    Bianca held his shadowy construct by the neck with a fiery fist and looked like she was abut to put it out of it''s misery


    "You left us.." Sei pouted. "And then reced yourself with this cheap construct." Added Luna. Mal regrew his skin and shed the girls an apologetic smile in the hopes of alleviating their displeasure. "I was trying to get my new emotions under control so that I could control myself with you girls. Or are you telling me you don''t miss having sex?"


    The two women immediately forgot about their frustrations as Mal climbed into the bed with them. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    He grabbed Anna and Sei first and pulled the two girls close into his body. "You girls... you''re gorgeous."


    After being blessed, both Sei and Anna had their bodies altered. While there weren''t drastic physical changes, the quality of their bodies had undergone a noticeable elevation. Both could easily pass for top models anywhere in the world. Sei: "You don''t seem very surprised that we got blessed..."


    Anna: "I guess you really did have something to do with it."


    Mchi nodded slowly as he let his hands roam freely across the bodies of the two girls. "The world''s... about to get real dangerous sooner orter. I want, no I need you girls to always be safe and capable of holding your own. "


    The girls had to admit, they felt rather moved that Mchi''s interest was on strengthening them instead of protecting them. Most men would have let an inted ego get to their head and thought that they were all that was needed to keep their women safe. But Mal didn''t want to lock them in some sort of ss cage and instead found a way to help them stand on their own, even without him. It was an incredibly mature and kindhearted gesture. "So, wanna tell me about whose blessings you girls got?" Mal flopped onto the center of the bed and held out his arms. All four girls wasted no time in getting as close as they could and resting while the sun was still down. They talked about their experiences with Hypnos and Nemesis, as well as first impressions and curiosity over their new powers and bodies. As the more senior blessed, Mchi Bianca and Luna answered all of the girls'' questions to the best of their abilities. "Does this mean that I sign with immortal moon too now?" Sei asked. "I don''t mind training and all that stuff, but getting up early to do it is a serious no." warned Anna. The questions of the girls brought up a point that he''d also wanted to bring up but wasn''t sure how. "Actually girls, I think that you both should-"


    Ring!


    Almost on cue, Mchi''s phone vibrated on the nightstand and Bianca picked it up. "It''s your sister." She said as she handed it to him. Mchi smiled as he answered the video call without a second thought andid eyes on his baby sister. But... she wasn''t quite like he remembered her. Aubrey''s long and dark curly hair was now an ashen grey and her eyes were a deep and unfathomable ck. Mchi let out an impressed whistle as he stared at his sister proudly. He wasn''t sure which god she''d been blessed by, but he knew that it had to be a pretty powerful one. "How do I look? Am I the most attractive sibling again?"


    "Were you ever?" Mal asked as he rolled his eyes. "As long as I''ve been alive, you can ask literally anyone."


    "I will hang up this damn phone."


    "Hey, I haven''t even told you about the blessings I got yet. Aren''t you the least bit curious?"


    """""Blessings as in plural??"""""


    Mchi and his girlfriends were clearly in sync as every one of them had the same thought at the same time.


    "Yup! I''ve still got less than Mal though."


    The eyes of the group just kept getting wider and wider as Aubrey listed off her new powers. Controlling the wind was nice but they were particrly jealous of her ability to use magic and even manipte death itself. Even though she had less blessings than her brother, she would be no less powerful in the future. Bianca: "The two of you are so weird..."


    Luna: "Multiple blessings... multiple pantheons...This doesn''t make any sense.."


    Anna: "Well now my little one blessing seems inferior."


    Sei: "I''m happy that the two of you are so talented."


    Mchi and Aubrey shrugged like they didn''t understand why the things they''d done were so surprising. After all , it wasn''t like they had done any of this on purpose. Things just kind of... happened. "Hey Luna, you got an extra spot for me at the guild??" Aubrey asked happily. "Of course I do, dear. And since we''ve had a surplus of funds recently, then your contract will likely be worth more than your brother''s."


    ""How much more?"" The two of them asked suspiciously. "Around 29 billion give or take?"


    In that moment, Aubrey and Mchi had two very different reactions. For some reason Mal felt like he had just been beaten in some kind of race and been reduced to the younger sibling.


    Aubrey on the other hand....


    "Don''t be sad bro, I''ll loan you a few million if you need it!"


    "You''re lucky I don''t need to eat anymore or I''d have you take me to dinner overnight until your money runs out."


    "Don''t be silly, you''ll die before my money runs out!" She gloated. "I''m immortal now." "Exactly!"


    Mchi rolled his eyes and nearly offered a retort, when he suddenly heard footstepsing from down the hallway. Bang!


    As soon as he noticed her approach, Serana came bursting through the door to his room. Literally. She was new to her powers, and as a result she couldn''t control her new strength and knocked his door clean off the hinges. However, she seemed to be too excited over what she had to tell them to really care. "Guys, guess what!? Your girl got blessed, and the goddess even gave me a cute little booty just like I asked for!!"


    As a demonstration, Serana twirled around the room in her very small ck shorts that were barely keeping both of her cheeks inside. "S-Serana, I''m d you''re happy but can you please stop!" Sei yelled with a red face. At that moment, she wanted her daughter to stop embarrassing herself so badly that she ended up using her own powers. A pulse of silver energy left her body and struck everyone in the room.


    Before they knew what was happening, their entire body began to feel terribly heavy andfortable. Even Mchi was not immune. He never thought that he would experience this feeling of drowsiness ever again in his life but now it was back and stronger than ever. Mchi: "What the hell...?"


    Bianca: "Sleepy..."


    Anna: "I knew I wasn''t a morning person...."


    Luna: "I think...we can skip training this morning...."


    Serana: "Dancing... made me tired..."


    Sei watched in horror as everyone around her closed her eyes and fell straight to sleep. Serana suffered the worst fate as she wasn''t in a bed and had no choice but to face nt on the ground, snoring rather loudly. If she had still been human, she would have easily broken her nose. "Ah... oops."


    "What happened? I can''t see anything!" Aubrey yelled. Sei picked up Mal''s dropped phone and shyly exined the current events. "I um... identally put everyone to sleep with my blessing."


    "Oh, cool! Do you know how you did it??"


    "N-No, of course not!"


    She looked to her side and Mal snoring lightly while his face was side by side with Bianca''s. It was clear that he was okay, and he even seemed to be sleeping more peacefully than she had ever seen. Her feelings of concern and embarrassment, quickly gave way for ones of pride. She had always wanted nothing more than to bring the man she loved peace, and it seemed like she had finally done that. Her first day with her new abilities was already one of the best of her life. "Goodnight, honey... Sweet dreams."

 Chapter 135 Super Squad!

    Chapter 135 Super Squad!


    Mchi awoke to the sensation of soft and gentle hands on his face. Even if he couldn''t hear the soft humminging from beside him, he would still know the culprit behind this gentle assault. "Oh, seems like you woke up first, honey."


    Mchi opened his eyes and found Sei lying on the bed beside him, a clearly pleased smile on her face. "I could feel it when you started to wake up, a-and I can even tell how long it''ll take for the others to wake up too!"


    To prove her point, Sei excitedly pointed to the foot of the bed and waited for around three seconds. At exactly at that interval, Serana popped up from the ground, clearly delirious with her pink hair strewn all over her face. Her eyes were still half closed, and it was clear that she had no recollection of how she''d gotten here. "Momma? Mal...? Why am I on the floor?" n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "...You were sleep walking."


    "And broke our door down doing it." Serana followed Mal''s finger all the way to the destroyed door on the left side of the room that she had so casually ran through. "That... doesn''t seem like something I''d do."


    Serana followed Mal''s finger all the way to the destroyed door on the left side of the room that she had so casually ran through. "That... doesn''t seem like something I''d do."


    ""Yes it does.""


    "Argh, whatever!"


    Serana finally picked herself off the ground and proudly put her hands on her hips.


    "I''ve got powers now, and soon I''m going to be even more famous than you, Mal!"


    As a way to demonstrate her new powers, Serana held out her hands and lifted up the nket covering everyone with her mind. Although, she quickly realized that she would have been better off showcasing her powers in a different manner. "Ohe on?! Why''re you always naked!?"


    "This time is on you, man. Nobody told you toe in here and rip the nket off me like that." Mal defended. Serana rolled her eyes as she put the nket back on top of the bodies lying in bed. However, the three sleeping girls had finally stirred awake from all the noise. "Hey, wait a damn minute! Why do all of you guys look more hot than usual?"


    "Blessing stuff." Anna said sleepily as she crawled over to Mchi. "Wait, so I wasn''t he only one to get blessedst night?! Mom and Anna did too?!"


    "And Aubrey." Sei added. "Although, she seems to be rather special like Mal so she received more than we did."


    Usually Serana would have let something like that dim her mood a bit, but as of right now she was far too excited. "Whatever, that''s even better! Now we can all make our debut and we can be like a super squad!"


    Bianca fully woke up at the sound of that, and she grabbed both her sses and phone off the nightstand. "W-We can be like a special division of Immortal Moon! We should get T-Shirts!"


    "Wanna hoodie..." Anna demanded sleepily. "Anna will get a hoodie." Bianca agreed. Mchi was d that the girls were so happy, but there was something that he wanted to discuss with them before they got their hopes too far up. "Not gonna lie, I think you should wait a bit before you make you debut."


    "Why!?"


    "Why''s that honey?"


    "Okay..."


    Mchi''s eyes took on a distant look and it seemed like he was thinking about something very deeply. "That Arias guy... he''s shifted the bnce of the world. The way that humans will start to look at Blessed is going to change real soon, I can feel it."


    Mchi didn''t know why he felt like this, he just did. Human naturepels us to attack or control that which we are afraid of.


    And now that there was a group advocating for blessed supremacy, he knew that there was bound to be some fallout. The worship and idolization that the blessed had grown so ustomed to was undoubtedly going to trickle away, and when that happened the blessed who had yet to pick a side will feel slighted. In turn, more and more of them would join Arias'' cause, increasing the threat he posed and public fear, into one big vicious cycle. Sure there would be a few blessed who would not have an interest in joining Arias, but they were truly far and few between. And the way that the governments of the world would deal with them... it was truly anyone''s guess. "If you don''t mind, I think you should give it a few weeks to really see the fallout... but these are your lives. I''ll support you no matter what you want to do."


    Sei: "Alright honey, I''ll trust you. "


    Serana: "I wanna be famous! I''ll worry about all that other shitter!"


    Anna: "Zzzzz...."


    Mchi got the three reactions that he just about expected. He was only making a suggestion, but if Serana wanted to do the opposite then that was her choice. He would protect her regardless anyways. "Mei, is there an open training room at this time?"


    The white haired beauty checked her phone for a few minutes before nodding in confirmation. "You want to start already?" "Why not? No time like the present."


    Mchi sat up on the bed with Anna in hisp and smiled at the group of girls. "Alrightdies, you feel up for a field trip?"


    -


    Serana: "I hate training!"


    Sei: "This is actually kind of fun."


    Anna: "My body''s really sore... Babe, would it be too much to ask for a massage?"


    Aubrey: "This magic thing is tricky..."


    In a pristine white training room at Immortal Moon, four figures could be seen sprawled out across the floor. It was now eleven A.M, and the girls had been practicing with their new powers for around three hours. On the physical spectrum, they were all top quality recruits. Their physical strength, endurance, and speed were all in the S to A range. But their physical properties aside, their individual powers were what made them real monsters. As already shown, Sei had the ability to put beings to sleep. She could do this through her presence, actions or words, and as of now she did not seem to have a limit on the amount of beings she could do this to. On average, beings she knocks out stay unconscious for an hour or two unless she chooses to wake them ahead of schedule. In theory, she can put someone into aa that they can never wake up from, but she described such a thing as incredibly taxing and mean spirited. Her daughter Serana was also rather special. She had been given the power of illusions. She could influence the minds of beings to make them see, hear, and even feel things that weren''t there. In addition, she could secrete a pink mist from the pores on her body that she could manipte into solid illusions. However, her constructs could easily be destroyed with a hard smack and she had trouble influencing stronger minds. Anna''s blessing was also rather unique. Nemesis'' blessing gave her the power of kic energy absorption. Every time she received so much as a high-five, she absorbed the energy into her body and held it in her tattoos. Coincidentally, they had only discovered this because Mal smacked her on the butt once as she walked by. They were calling it a happy ident. When all of her tattoos were lit up brightly, she was fully charged and couldn''t handle anymore energy without feeling like she''d eaten too much at a buffet. But once she had absorbed the energy, she could use it for multiple purposes. Energy projection, physical empowerment, and even imbuing it into other objects to create something like a bomb. Coincidentally, she could also do something simr to Mchi and judge a person''s soul to find out if they were good or bad. She had only run into good people so far so there were no problems but she couldn''t help but wonder about what would happen if she ran into someone bad. Even though the girls had strong showings, Aubrey had done the least and still seemed to be the most impressive. Due to her worries over Thanatos'' blessing, she hadn''t even tried to use it. Her blessing from Isis was amazing, but it was also difficult. She didn''t know the first thing about using magic, or how to use it. The most she was able to do was use it to close up a small cut that Sei had gotten on her arm. But her blessing from Fujin was another story entirely. She seemed to be a natural with the power of the wind, and by trainings end she was even creating miniature tornadoes and sending them running all through the room. In addition, she could also summon a white and fluffy cloud to ride on just like the wind god himself. The highlight of her day was gathering up all of the girls and flying around the training room like a kind of mythological taxi service. After a fun and rigorous first day of training, the girls had all copsed on the ground, equally sweaty and out of breath. On the wall, Luna, Bianca, Mchi, and Aisha had been watching their entire performance from start to finish without blinking even once. The guild master in particr was more shocked than anyone. So much talent in one room... the prestige of her guild could shoot up to an astronomical degree.


    If they were not so concerned with hiding their new abilities, she would have already signed them all without waiting for a press release. "They''re really incredible... I wasn''t expecting them to have such talent with their powers."


    "I wonder how much they''ll be able to do once they''ve practiced a bit more and expanded their potential." said Bianca. The two girls noticed that their area was rather quiet and quickly looked to their left. They found Mchi and Aisha, standing side by side with their eyes glued to the bodies of their respective girlfriends. It wasn''t there fault but really, when the woman you love is all sweaty and wearing tight gym clothes in front of you, how can you possibly be expected to focus on anything else??


    "Are you two listening to us?" Luna asked exhaustedly. ""Sorry, did we miss something?""


    "..."


    At times like this, it was really easy to see how the two of them had be best friends.

 Chapter 136 Rowans Wish

    Chapter 136 Rowan''s Wish


    Mchi stepped out of his car and took a deep breath before he started crossing the parking lot. Even though he no longer had internal organs, his stomach felt like it was in knots. It seemed like every time he hade to the hospital, something unfortunate had urred or followed closely after. For once, he just wanted to have a normal visit without anything unnecessary happening. And as he moved past the front desk and through the building, it seems like he was going to get his wish. One of the results of Arias'' reveal was finally starting to show itself. People were going out of their way to avoid him, and some were giving him looks of suspicion. He didn''t really mind this, as it wasn''t like anyone was stopping him to take pictures or sign any autographs. Although there were a few kids who looked like they wanted toe up and speak to him, they were inevitably held back by their mothers. He was used to being stared at but this was a much more unsettling experience than normal.


    "What, no gift? You''re such a cheap bastard." Mchi had been in such a deep state of thought that he hadn''t been paying much attention to his footsteps and as a result, had already reached Rowan''s hospital room. Evidently, Mal was not the first person to stop by and visit as the old man''s room was already filled with get well soon memorabilia. "The girls at the guild brought you all this?" "Of course they did, because they''re sweet grateful angels and you''re a penny pincher who couldn''t even be bothered to spring for a card." Mchi chuckled as he held out his hand and a card came floating out of the shadows at his feet. Along with a carton of cigarettes. "...I take back everything I said, I couldn''t ask for a better grandson." "Like I thought." Mchi passed the old man his gifts and took a minute to fully observe him for the first time.


    The old man''s chest was heavily bandaged, along with some signs of sleep deprivation around his eyes and his cheeks were slightly sullen. "...You look tired." "I''m old. The two go hand in hand." Mchi knew that Rowan was trying to y his injury off as a minor scrape, but he didn''t have a chance at fooling him. "Oh yea, and I''m sure it''s got nothing to do with that near death experience you had?"


    "Kid, why can''t you ever just overlook nasty little incidents like these? Why do you have to dwell on them?" "Rowan, you were almost on a t-shirt. How do you expect me to overlook that?"


    "Easy, just think of all the good that would havee from my death. Do you know how delicious the grub at a funeral is? The grief does something to your pte I swear."


    Mchi was trying really hard to remain upset, but Rowan''s stupid jokes were admittedly wearing down his resolve. "At the end of the day, I am still breathing so let''s try not to dwell on the negative too much, hm?"


    "...Whatever you say, old man."


    "What? You actually listened to me? Have I actually ascended already?" Mchi rolled his eyes and took a seat as the old manughed at his own unfunny jokes. In truth, Rowan''s attitude over almost being killed was much less cavalier than he was showing. He just didn''t want Mchi to run off thinking that he had to avenge him. After everything that urred with Arthur Rowan, the old man knew full well that Mal had a bit of a tendency to settle grievances in very violent manners. He didn''t want to be responsible for further staining this young man''s soul...not anymore. Mchi and Rowan spent a lot of time talking after that. Since the old man clearly wanted to keep the conversation light, that was what they did. For nearly two hours, the two of them talked about seemingly everything but the elephant in the room. Instead they cracked jokes, talked about the blessings Mal had gotten for the girls, and even the old man''s interest in his middle aged night nurse. It was a good time, but in the back of his mind Mchi''s focus was solely on finding Arias and making him pay for this. Everything about him had been heightened after he became his mother''s avatar, and his desire to always pay back slights was not an exception. However, it seemed like his meditation on the moon had payed off if only just a bit. Even though he was simmering with murderous rage, his cheerful and giddy smile never left his face. Day by day, he was bing more and more of a frighteningly unstable being. And when there finally came a need to expose his true self, may the gods have mercy on the unfortunate soul who experienced it first hand. -


    "I''m bricked up..."


    "Damn they look good!"


    "I''ll eat her a-"


    "Bro, what have I told you about that shit? This why I''m not passing the wood to you no more."


    In the college parking lot, there was a spectacle that was garnering no small amount of discreet attention. Two girls could be seen leaning against a very nice ck ramborghini truck with pink stripes. Serana was clearly loving the attention, and had chosen an outfit specifically to show off her body''s new charms. She wore a simple ck sundress that clung to her curvaceous figure paired with simple slides and a very familiar pair of dark sunsses. Beside her, Anna was in no way her lesser. Even though she had worn the same kind of simple outfit that she always did, with her new body she looked absolutely gorgeous. ck jean shorts and hightop skate shoes along with an oversized hoodie that hid her voluptuous chest. Both were standing outside waiting for Mchi so they could walk to ss together, and they had already been approached by ten different guys in five minutes. "I can''t believe Luna gave you one of her cars just because you asked." Anna hated riding in this attention ma, but since Serana wouldn''t stop begging her she didn''t have a choice. "Why wouldn''t she? I''m her cute little niece!"


    "Are you saying that because she and your mom are best friends or because Mal''s like your dad?"


    "Obviously the first one!"


    "Sure, sure. Hey wait a second, why do you have his sunsses on!?"


    "Because I thought they would look good on me and they do. Why do you have his hoodie on?"


    "Maybe because I''m the one dating him?"


    Serana was seconds away from offering up an excuse, when the eleventh guy approached them and she quickly swapped her persona. As long as she could remember, she had always wanted to be beautiful.


    And now that she had gotten her wish, she was doing with it what she had always wanted. Cruelly rejecting the same guys who would have callously picked on her before. As yet another handsome and athletic looking guy showed up, she began scheming up different ways to make him victim number 11.


    "Excuse me, you''re in my intro to psych ss, right?"


    Serana put on an aloof demeanor without even bothering to look up from her phone."How the hell should I know? It''s not like I-"


    "Oh sorry, not you. I was talking to your friend."


    "Yea, yea, that''s what they all... wait what?" Serana finally looked up and realized that the guy really wasn''t looking at her, he was staring at Anna. So far, no one had bothered to approach her since they''d been sitting here. After all, she was on camera with Mchi as his date at the immortal moon g, so practically everyone on campus knew they were together. Except this guy apparently. Serana immediately lost her icy demeanor as she let out a disappointed sigh. "She has a boyfriend, don''t bother."


    "She might want another one."


    The guy seemed to be unflinchingly confident, and he was not at all dissuaded by the mention that there was another man in her life. After that, there was little that Serana could do to avoid a confrontation. Anna finally looked up at her would be suitor and he was delighted to learn that she was even more beautiful than he thought. "Hey, I''m-"


    Anna didn''t even bother to listen to the guy''s name and instead spit directly into his face.


    She then proceeded to turn her music all the way back up, and act like absolutely nothing had happened. "What the fuck is wrong with you!?"


    Clearly unwanted, the young man stormed off while fuming as he wiped Anna''s DNA off his face. For some reason, his entire vibe gave Serana a rather strange and icky feeling and she started to think that maybe standing around like this wasn''t the best idea. "You couldn''t have rejected him more politely?" she asked in exhaustion. "No?"


    "Christ."


    In retrospect, he had actually gotten off pretty easily. Had Anna decided to hit him, she would have likely killed him in a single hit. Ding! n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    While changing songs on her phone, Anna received a text from her uncle and only family. At first nce, she thought he may have been about to call her in for workter and she let out an audible groan. But much to her surprise, it wasn''t anything like that. PG: Hey kiddo, would you minding by the house after your ss is over...? Got something I wanna talk to you about.

 Chapter 137 Joanne & Anna

    Chapter 137 Joanne & Anna


    When Mchi arrived, he found Anna and Serana standing side by side in the parking lot. But of course, there were a swarm of flies buzzing around them. Mchi slipped through the group while uncaring of the men he bumped into and kissed Anna possessively. "Jeez, you sappy fucks just saw each other a few hours ago, how can you possibly miss her that much?" Serana was seeing so much PDA everyday that she was practically sick of it. What the hell was so fun about kissing and shit anyway!?


    Mchi released Anna''s lips and interlocked their hands together possessively. "You look good. Anyone bothering you?"


    "If I said yes, what would you do?"


    "Tear their heads off, what else?"


    Suddenly the space that was swarming with guys before was cleared out in a matter of seconds. "I feel like I need an insulin shot..." Serana grabbed her bag and started to leave the cute couple behind when Mchi suddenly ced a hand on her shoulder. "You little junkie. You think I wouldn''t notice you had my shades on?" "Well, y-you don''t really wear em anymore so what''s the harm, huh?"


    Mchi plucked his sses of Serana''s face without even bothering to hear her flimsy reasoning. "H-Hey, why!?"


    Ignoring her, Mal turned around and ced them onto Anna''s face instead, enhancing her beauty even further. "How do I look, babe?" She asked. Mchi didn''t respond and instead pulled out his phone and started taking pictures of Anna like she was some kind of runway model. Anna: "Are you going to use those to beat off when I''m at work?"


    Mchi: "You know me so well."


    Serana: "I am going to be fucking sick."


    The trio resumed their walk to ss and Mal finally got a chance to talk to give the girls an update on Rowan''s condition. The girls also decided that it would be best to go see him as well, and Anna finally remembered the strange text that she''d gotten from her uncle. "Are you free after ss, babe? I was hoping that you could take me to my uncle''s ce."


    "Sure. It would also be a good time to tell him that we''re dating and that you got blessed."


    "And then you can make that poor bastard sick instead of me!" Serana said excitedly. The couple promptly ignored her as usual as they finalized their ns forter. Anna had never brought one of her boyfriends over her uncle''s house before, so if she was honest she was pretty excited. She just hoped that he wouldn''t make a big deal out of it and embarrass her unnecessarily. - n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Ah, hey kids. d you two could make it..."


    "..."


    Anna knew that she was hoping not to be embarrassed, but seeing her Uncle''s seemingly distracted nature was a bit of a curveball. He could at least act like he was a little more happy to see them. All of a sudden, she felt Mal tense up for some unknown reason and wondered if there was just something in the air today that made men act weird. PG stepped aside to allow Anna in the house, but he stopped Mal by cing a hand on his shoulder. "Ah, kid... I''m real honored to have you in my ce but today is..."


    "I know." Mal said solemnly. "But she won''t take it well, and I think you''re going to need my help to keep her calm."


    PG''s eyes unconsciously widened as he realized that Mal knew a lot more than he should''ve. He was already so frazzled from today that he had no idea what to do, so he just let Mal inside in the hope that he would be able to keep a bit of the peace. PG''s home was exactly as one would have expected. Everywhere one looked, the decor was focused on music in some way, be it posters or actual instruments. But what touched Mal the most were the few pictures that he had hanging up with Anna. Anna appeared to have been quite the rambunctious little girl, as every photo seemed to show her with missing teeth or covered in dirt and scrapes. But even then, her smile was the purest that he''d ever seen it. "Oh, hey. Who''re you?"


    Mchi felt the tension in his body reach new heights as he looked at the scene in the living room. Anna was staring face to face with a woman whom she didn''t recognize sitting on the couch. Joanne was dressed in a nice pantsuit with a dark red color and a ck shirt underneath, but Mal didn''t need to be able to see her armpits to know how much she was sweating from this confrontation. "I-I..."


    Anna tilted her head in confusion as she looked back and forth between the woman and her uncle. "What''d you do to thisdy? Why''s she acting like this?"


    PG opened and closed his mouth as he wracked his brain for an excuse and realized that he didn''t have one. With nothing else to do, he decided it was best to juste clean. "AG... this is my sister, Joanne... she''s your mother."


    Complete and total silence followed for a full three minutes. Anna reyed the words ''she''s your mother'' in her mind so many times that she had inadvertently given herself a small headache. Her consciousness felt like it was beginning to flicker, and she stumbled backwards as all strength left her legs. Mchi appeared behind her in an instant and caught her without letting her hit the ground. His presence was reassuring enough that she was able to regain temporary control of herself and realize where she was. She had so many questions that she wanted to answer, but only two could jump out of her mouth at this moment. "W-What are you doing here...? W-Why did you even leave...?"


    Both questions seemed like they hit Joanne right in the gut, and even though Anna hadn''t said anything hurtful the tears were already falling. "I...I don''t have any excuse but I...I try believed that I would be giving you a better life if I wasn''t around. I was a mess who didn''t know the first thing about being a mother and I just-"


    "Did you think that you would be giving me a better life or could you just not be bothered to be a mother...?"


    In all of the time that Mal had known Anna, he had never seen her this emotional. Not even when she was seconds away from dying. She was trembling within his arms, and clenching her hands so hard that the sound of her knuckles cracking was audible. "I wanted to try, you have no idea how badly I wanted to stay with you but... I was just such a mess and you were so innocent and pure that I didn''t want to ruin you...!"


    "How would you have ruined me!? By driving me to school!? Watching a few stupid ass cartoons with me on Saturday morning!? Was that too much for you!?!"


    "I wasn''t a healthy person back then, Anna! I could never have been what you needed me to be and I''m sorry!"


    "Fuck your sorry! You abandoned me!!"


    Mchi wanted to stop this somehow, but he wasn''t even sure of what side to take. Anna''s feelings were justified, as was her reaction. She was only a little girl, and she had to grow up with no mother or father to support and love her the way she always deserved. On the other hand, Mchi also felt bad for Joanne. She truly thought she was doing the best thing for Anna by leaving her with her uncle, and the fear that Anna would hate her for her decision had kept her away all these years. It was selfish. It was cowardly. But it was also human.


    And for that reason Mal couldn''t bring himself to hate Joanne for the things she had done. Joanne swallowed her nerves as she tried to calm her rapidly beating heartbeat and this foreboding sense of dread within her body. She had prepared herself for her daughter''s wrath but now that it was here, it was worse than she had imagined. But she had no choice but to endure it. After all, this was her bed and now she had to lie in it. She had run away from her daughter before... and she would never do it again. "Anna... I may not have been around, but I have never abandoned you for even a single second. I-I watched you at all of your ser games, I opened up a bank ount for you, I-I even pulled some strings to get you out of juvenile hall a year early! I don''t say these things because I want to throw them in your face, or because I''m seeking some kind of validation. I''m only telling you this because I earnestly want you to know that I have always loved you and been beside you, even if I couldn''t be beside you!"


    Anna wasn''t so mad that she couldn''t understand her mother''s words or notice her sincerity, but she wasn''t so easily moved. She couldn''t be. This woman had brought her twenty two years worth of heartache and she wouldn''t give her absolution with one simple apology. However, it did make her think of something. "That... ident I got in two years ago. They told me they were having trouble finding blood for me because I''m AB negative but then some mysterious donor showed up and gave that day.... That was you, wasn''t it?"


    Joanne wiped her face of tearsand nodded slowly, confirming what Anna already knew to be true. Now... she didn''t know how to feel. Her mother had abandoned her, but she had also saved her life. She had never tucked her in at night, but she had apparently been to every game she had in elementary school. This day was so confusing and exhausting that she desperately wanted to go andy down. "I just have onest question... Why are you only showing up now?"


    Unconsciously, Joanne nced at Mchi out of the corner of her eye. It was a lightning quick movement that Anna never should have caught, but with her newly enhanced body and senses it was as easy as breathing. "Wait..."


    She slipped out of her boyfriend''s grasp and stared at him inplete shock. "You...knew?"

 Chapter 138 You Knew?

    Chapter 138 You Knew?


    Anna didn''t know what the rtionship between her mother and Mal was, but she was beginning to pick up on small things. Theplicated light in her boyfriend''s eyes and her mother''s stammering was rather telling, and soon she came to an understandable conclusion. "Mchi... Jadou...Saint... I''m only going to ask you this one time." She growled. "Did you fuck my mom!?"


    Mal: "No."


    Joanne: "N-NO! Why would you think that!?"


    PG: "I feel like I''ve missed a few episodes..."


    Mchi immediately waved away all of Annalise''s suspicions as he ced his arms on both of her shoulders. "Joanne''s just a friend, and I knew but-"


    "I''m not your friend."


    "Pick your fucking battles." Mchi reminded. Anna looked somewhat betrayed and her violet eyes were filled with hurt. "How did you find out...?"


    "I..." Mal didn''t know how much he was allowed to say. "I told him, I thought he was unconscious but he heard it anyway." Joanne admitted. "And why the fuck were you around my boyfriend while he was unconscious!?" Anna roared. "I-It wasn''t like that! It was right after we failed to apprehend Alex Heller and I just-"


    Joanne didn''t mean to let that bit of information slip out, but she had been flustered by this unexpected situation. Unfortunately, her daughter had caught it anyway. "We?" Anna questioned. By now, she had heard enough to be able to put a clear picture together. All of Mchi''s girlfriends knew that he was working with the dark angels to apprehend that monster disguised as a man. But Anna was the only one who knew the specifics of how that partnership came to be since she and Mal were together when he was ''kidnapped''. She knew about the supposed bossdy whom he freed from under that slimy bastard''s thumb in the first ce. And though it was a small reach, this woman''s fancy suit and Mal''s referral of her as a friend made it seem like it was that much more usible. "Are you... the director of the dark angels?"


    Joanne froze and opened her mouth to refute Anna''s im when her brother further blew her cover. "Jesus, is that what you''ve been doing all this time!? Is this where all that money came from?!" PG cried. "How much money?" Anna asked. "8 million dors!"


    "Fuck, I had eight million dors in a secret ount and you never said shit?? My cupboard at home is full of ramen noodles and prayers!" "Can you honestly me me for not wanting to tell you about the money before, AG...?" Anna fell silent, unable to refute her uncle''s words. If she''d had that amount of money before she''d fully matured then there''s no telling what she could have gotten herself into. Blowing through the money was the best case scenario. It was a very high likelihood that she could have ended up dead in a ditch somewhere. Anna put away those unnecessary thoughts and looked back at her mother like she was waiting for an answer. Joanne looked like she wasn''t prepared for this level of interrogation and she weighed her options in her mind. In the end, she decided that thest thing she wanted was to start off her rtionship with her daughter by lying. "Yes, I am... " She admitted. "Does that surprise you...?" "It surprises me...." "Shut up, Peter..." Anna ignored the squabbling of the two of them as she looked at her mom in a new light. Now that she knew about the way she had lived thest two years of her life... she couldn''t make herself be as mad as before. Coincidentally, Joanne also noticed the way her daughter was looking at her and she realized that her daughter must have known quite a bit. "So... it seems like you already know how Mal and I met then."


    "Yea... I''m sor-"


    "Don''t."


    Joanne shook her head as she held up her hand to put an end to any unnecessary words or apologies. "I didn''te here because I wanted your pity. I haven''t done nearly enough to deserve something like that, have I?" Joanne swallowed her fear and closed the distance between herself and her daughter. Instead of going for a hug, she held out her hand for a simple handshake in the hopes that her daughter would take it. "I... want to get to know you, and love you the way that I always should have. But if you don''t want that, I will understand and respect your decision."


    Joanne had hoped that her inner desperation wouldn''t be transmitted into her voice as she tried to keep her hand from shaking. If her daughter didn''t want her in her life... she would truly have nothing left. Anna watched her mother''s hand for what felt like a long time. Her mind was clouded with so many thoughts that she had only one real option in front of her. "I... need some time to think about it, okay...?"


    "I understand."


    Joanne returned her hand to her side and moved past Anna to head towards the front door. "Your Uncle and Mchi both know how to contact me so.. whenever you''re ready."


    After opening the front door, Joanne revealed her pure white wings from her back and shot into the sky at a speed none of them could follow. Save for Mchi of course. ''I couldn''t even begin to keep up with her before, but now she looks a little slow... This avatar thing has a lot more benefits than I thought.''


    "My sister''s a blessed!?" PG nearly fell to his knees from thispletely unfair turn of events. Why did she get to have super powers and he didn''t?!


    What''s next, his niece too?


    "Woah, wings... Oh yea, I got blessed too, Uncle Pete." Anna reminded. "WHAT!?" n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    -


    After the pair left PG''s home, Mchi drove Anna to her apartment in total silence. Normally he would have been a bit worried that she may have been upset with him, but ever since they''d gotten into the car she hadn''t let go of his hand. After falling from grace and bing something like a fallen angel, Mal developed an ability to sense the emotions of others. It wasn''t easy for him to use, and he hadn''t practiced with it a whole lot but the difficulty was typically lessened when the person he was trying to use it on was experiencing negative emotions. Right now, he could feel a few of thoseing from his girlfriend. Confusion. Sadness.


    Resentment. And even exhaustion.


    But there was also something else that he couldn''t quite identify. Before Mal knew it, they had reached her apartment and the two of them were stepping out of the car. In the back of his mind, he decided that he would talk this out with Anna as soon as they werefortable inside. And that was certainly his n, all the way up until she started peeling off her clothes as soon as he locked the door. "Let''s have sex."


    "...I beg your pardon?"


    To prove that she was serious, Anna pulled off her panties and tossed them directly into Mal''s face. "You were meditating on the moon, right? Then let''s put it to use."


    Mchi could already feel his rational psyche slipping away as he stared at Anna''s knockout figure. He had of course seen her naked before, but when you love someone enough every time feels like the first time. Anna''s body was dangerously alluring, with wide hips and arge chest being her least impressive assets. The gorgeous tattoos on her body, the small silver piercings in her pink nipples, the neatly trimmed patch of hair between her legs it was almost too much. Were Mal capable, his nose definitely would have started bleeding by now. But even though he was incredibly tempted, he still knew something about this scenario wasn''t right. "Love... you know I want to, but don''t you think that we should talk about the elephant in the room first?"


    Anna didn''t look at all surprised that Mal was hesitant and she closed the distance between them and pressed her naked body against him. "I don''t want to deal with all that right now, I just want you to take my mind off of everything for a while..."


    "Anna... this isn''t healthy."


    "I know, but you''ve always spoiled me before so you can''t stop now."


    Again, Mchi bit his lip so hard it seemed like he was going to tear off his outer skin and it was easy to tell that he was really wrestling with this turn of events. Anna knew that he only needed one little push until she could get what she wanted. "If you don''t want to have sex, we could always have a fight about the fact that you were keeping secrets from me?"


    "....Couch or the bedroom?"


    Anna giggled as she finally allowed her hands to wander into Mal''s pants. "Neither, I want it right here and now."


    -


    The day to day life of a primordial goddess is really boring. Nyx had been doing the same thing, day in and day out for millennia without ever stopping or taking a break. A few billion years ago she would entertain herself through escapades with Erebus but the two of them hadn''t had that sort of rtionship for quite some time now. Nowadays, most of her time was spent helping to fend off the earth from an impending doom the likes of which could not be imagined. And also, spying on her newest son and daughter!


    ''It''s been a while... I should check on them!''


    Nyx excitedly reclined backwards in her shadowy dimension and used her divine vision to search for her dearest son and avatar. And her heartpletely dropped to her knees when she realized that she could not find him anywhere.

 Chapter 139 Nyx Watches The Show*

    Chapter 139 Nyx Watches The Show*


    Nyx had run into trouble trying to find her beloved son before. When his contracted beast was still alive, the gods became incapable of spying on his movements while she was around him. Their divine vision would only show them fragmented images that they couldn''t fully process, and they had no idea what the reason might be. But what was happening right now was totally different from that. Her ability to see Mchi wasn''t fragmented, it was gone. Immediately, she switched to her connection with him and let out a sigh of relief upon learning he was still alive. She descended onto the mortal world and went searching for him, curious about what he could be doing that could hide him from her divine sense. But upon finding him in Anna''s apartment, she realized that he wasn''t doing anything at all. At least not consciously. She was d that she had chosen topletely hide her presence when she came down here, or else she would have interrupted a rather private moment. Mchi and Anna were kissing right in front of the door, and it didn''t seem like they had any intention of moving. The two of them only separated so that Mchi could pull his shirt off, and Anna lunged at the opportunity to run her hands down his body. ''Should I be watching this..? ...Probably not, but I''m going to do it anyway!''


    Nyx folded her legs and started floating in the air, clearly intrigued by this scene. Whether it was creepy or not, she didn''t really care. She was a greek goddess after all. They were the original freaks in the sheets. Anna used her newfound strength to push her boyfriend against the wall as she slowly left a trail of kisses down his abdomen. When she reached his navel, she hooked her fingers onto the waistband of his sweatpants and pulled them down excitedly. Anna had seen Mal''s member numerous times before, but never erect. The length and thickness were both far beyond anything she had ever experienced, and she didn''t know if she could fit this in her mouth, much less her vagina. But Anna wasn''t a quitter, so since she''d been the one to start this, she couldn''t back out now. If Sei and Luna could do it, then she could too!


    She stuck out her long pink tongue and gave it a long lick to the best of her ability. The small groan Mal released in response spurred her on further and prompted her to try to fit it inside of her mouth. Since she couldn''t take something thisrge into her throat, shepensated by using her tongue to stimte him even further. This wasn''t Mal''s first time receiving oral as Sei had done it a few times,, but this was the first time he''d been with a woman who clearly got aroused from it. Her eyes were filled with so much love and lust that it made him even more excited and he grew harder just from looking at her. Finally, he lost the battle against his own desire and pulled himself out of Anna''s mouth, much to her disappointment. He lifted her into his arms and carried her to the counter closest to them. cing her bare bottom on the cold counter, he speed her legs open and immediately started going down on her. Anna however wasn''t really a fan receiving so she tried to stop him before he did something unnecessary. "I-I''m already wet you don''t have to..."


    Anna lost her train of thought as a wave of pleasure shot through her lower body. When she got a chance, she really wanted to ask Mal about how his new physiology worked because his tongue felt just the same as a real one. Or perhaps even better. It was warm and soft, and it seemed to easily push past her folds to lick her deepest nooks and crannies. This waspletely unlike anything she had ever felt before, and now she fully understood the craze that came from oral sex. An experience that she thought couldn''t get any better, was further enhanced by Mal''s hands that weren''t idle. His hands snaked up the length of her body and found her bountiful breasts with ease. Taking them both into his hands, he squeezed and needed them firmly as he sent very small jolts of electricity through his palms. The stimtion would have already been great by itself, but the addition of Anna''s nipple piercings made it several times stronger. Mal hear Anna''s cries increase in volume at the same time he felt her insides mp down around his tongue as she squeezed his head with her thighs. It was clear that she was having a hard time enduring and wanted him to take things a bit easier on her, but the sound of her heavy breathing had already spurred him past the point of return. He held her down firmly as he encircled her swollen clit with his tongue, and the effect was nearly instantaneous. "G-Gonna cum!"


    Instead of screaming like Luna or Sei, Anna groaned loudly when she orgasmed, and let out a string of alluring profanity that made even Nyx blush. A loud cracking sound could be heard as Anna turned part of the counter to dust underneath her grip as her eyes rolled back into her head. When her body finally started toe down from it''s orgasm, he gave her onest lick before he finally released her trembling figure. "I can''t... feel my legs." she admitted. "G-Give me a few minutes and then we can-"


    "Too early for you to im you need a break, love. Don''t you remember? We''re going to do it until you can''t think."


    Mchi positioned himself at Anna''s entrance and started to slowly push his hips forward. She regained her lucidity long enough to watch the head of Mal''s member easily breach her entrance. More and more of it pushed inside of her body and she felt like the inner contents of her stomach were being rearranged. "Fuck, wait wait!"


    Surprisingly, Anna ced a hand on Mal''s stomach to stop him.


    When she looked at him with those small tears in her eyes, he knew she was still feeling a bit of pain despite all of the previous forey. "I''ve never had anything this big before so... I think I need you to hug me a bit..." She asked shyly. It always drove Mal wild when his usually roguish girlfriend started behaving cutely, so he did notmake her ask twice. Slipping his hands underneath her butt, he lifted her up so that she could lock her arms behind his neck. Once the two of them were eye to eye, she said something thatpletely caught Mchi by surprise. "Hey... I know that I can be difficult sometimes but, I just want you to know that I love you.."


    Not once in the entire time he had been dating Anna had Mal ever considered her to be difficult. He meant to tell her that. He should have told her that. But the endorphins produced in his mind when he heard those words made him jump right over anymon sense. Instead, he kissed her passionately as he resumed pushing more of himself inside of her, causing Anna to moan in his open mouth. His immortal emotions had almost fully taken over his mind. Everything he felt for her was so strong, he transmitted it to her without using his words. ''I love you too, Anna.''


    ''I will never let you get away from me.''


    ''You''re stuck with me for all of eternity.'' n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Anna didn''t know why, but his voice within her mind was so intoxicating that she felt her body rxing to ept him. His obsessive love was being transmitted and shared with her loud and clear, and in turn she began to share these feelings of possessiveness and fervent need. Mal continued to push his hips forward so that he could fit inside of Anna, and he had yet to notice that she was nowhere near as tense as before. If he was honest, he was too distracted by how incredible she felt. She was so wet that he could slide in with minimal effort, but she was also so tight that it felt like she would never let him go. Mchi pushed past Anna''s cervix before he even realized it and he was finally inside of her fully. Anna was surely in pain, but for some reason her boyfriend''s every moment felt so good that she barely felt any difort. Once he slowly started thrusting inside of her, she reached her second orgasm in no time as all of her sweet spots were stimted at once. When their kiss broke, Anna dug her short ck nails into Mal''s back hard enough to break hisyer of skin. This was good, the best even, but she wanted more.


    She wanted Mchi to make her forget about everything in the world except for the two of them. "Fuck me harder! Make me yours!"


    Never needing to be told twice, Mchi upped his pace and started mming his body into Anna''s with a desperate fervor. The sound of their bodies pping together echoed around the dark room as Anna''s ability activated on it''s own. Her tattoos started to glow a beautiful purple color, and Mal felt a new wave of pleasure assail his mind. Anna''s body had just gotten several degrees warmer out of nowhere, and it enhanced his experience to a previously unreachable height. After enduring for around twenty minutes Mal finally couldn''t endure any longer and felt his own orgasm approaching. It was then that he realized that he didn''t know what he was about to give Anna. Since he wasn''t flesh and blood, he had no sperm. It wasn''t something that he could consciously alter like with his member''s hardness and rigidity. "Fuck, I''m going to cum again!!"


    After listening to Anna''s desperate moans, he decided that he didn''t care to figure it out all that much. With one final thrust, Mchi groaned as he knocked against Anna''s cervix for a final time as he came inside of her. The feeling of relief and pleasure that he experienced upon climax was 100 times better than it used to feel. It was more powerful, intimate, and addictive. He definitely understood why Nyx had warned him not to do this before he was ready. "You came inside... It feels so good..."


    Looking down, he found Anna twitching absentmindedly as she struggled to catch her breath. He opened his mouth to say something, when he heard the sound of something dripping onto the floor. The source was a ck, jelly-like substance that was leaking from Anna''s vagina. ''He''s so amazing... he can never leave me..''


    Almost as soon as Mal saw his ''sperm'' leaking out of Anna, he heard her thoughts in his mind. He wasn''t sure what he had done but... he knew that it had made intercourse significantly more meaningful.

 Chapter 140 Two Visits

    Chapter 140 Two Visits


    While Anna and Mchi were enjoying their dreamlike first time together, Aisha and Aubrey had decided to take a small field trip. The two girls were walking hand in hand through a pair of iron metal gates when Aubrey suddenly froze in her tracks. "Is it working? Can you see something?" Aisha asked worriedly. "Uh-huh... it''s working." Aubrey admitted in wonder. The two of them had entered into a cemetery on the outskirts of the city. As soon as the young Saint girl stepped out of the car, she could feel an ominous sensation all the way from the parking lot. But after crossing the threshold, she could see multiple departed spirits hovering over their graves, or even standing beside loved ones who were paying their respects. "You''re not afraid are you?" Aisha asked worriedly. "No...They''re all really gentle and sad." She admitted. The two of them continued on their walk, passing by spirits with no trouble just as Aubrey had predicted. But now that she knew she could indeed see spirits, she became even more anxious about what she might find when they reached their destination. With every step that Aubrey took, her heart beat more and more uncontrobly. If these spirits were here then.. maybe?


    Taking a deep breath, she and her girlfriend finally arrived in front of two specific gravestones. Their names read Marcus Saint and Tatianna Saint. Aubrey searched and searched, but their spirits were nowhere to be found. "Well...?" Aisha asked gently. "They aren''t here... They''ve already found peace." Aisha immediately pulled her girlfriend in for a hug even though she did not appear to actually be sad. In that moment, she just felt like it was the right thing to do. "Why did you want to do this..?" Aubrey took a moment to answer, as the words in her mind felt like they were struggling toe out. "I...wanted to tell them about this new family that Mal and I supposedly have now. I think they would like to know that we''re being taken care of, but I don''t want them to think that I''ve forgotten them either."


    Aisha said nothing as she ran her fingers through her girlfriend''s new curly grey hair. It seemed like she was struggling to talk, so she just wanted to be there and listen.


    "I also wanted... for them to tell me that it was okay. Calling someone mother whom my brother and I have only known for a few months is kind of..." n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Do you want to be Nyx''s daughter?" Aisha asked gently. "...I think... it may be nice."


    "Then you shouldn''t focus on how strange something is. You''re not the kind of person who gets close to people easily, so if something has drawn you in about this goddess then she must be worth embracing fully." Aisha''s words seemed to resonate with Aubrey and left her with a fair amount to think about. She was now anxiously awaiting the next time that she would see Nyx in the hopes that she could sort all of these new feelings out. And maybe even her new older brother; Thanatos. -


    Aubrey and Aisha went back home not long after that, but the mood wasn''t as depressive as one would have thought. If anything, the girls were in a more thoughtful mood than a somber one. They held hands all the way up until they entered the front door of Aisha''s mansion. "I think that I''m going to go and jump in the bath." Aubrey casually stretched her muscles and gave her girlfriend a view of her curvaceous body that was further enhanced by a blessing. Even though Aisha wasn''t inexperienced by any means, every time that she looked at her girlfriend now she felt like a prepubescent boy. Dangerously horny and incredibly nervous. "I-I-I''ll join you?" She stammered. Aubrey paused and looked at her girlfriend curiously. "Are you asking me or telling me?"


    "B-Both?"


    Aubrey wasn''t oblivious to her girlfriend''s new opinion on her looks, and she would be lying if she said that she didn''t enjoy this new attention. "Alright then...You have to wash my back though~"


    ''I''ll wash every damn thing you''ve got...''


    "Are you thinking something perverted? Your face just got really red."


    "N-No!"


    "Liar."


    Aubrey ran up the stairs while waiving over her shoulder. "I''ll start the bath, okay? Don''t keep me waiting~"


    Aisha watched her girlfriend travel all the way up the stairs before her bottom left her vision, and a small trail of blood ran down her nose.


    One wouldn''t expect someone blessed by Aphrodite to be so easily charmed by another person, but even the divinity of the most famous goddess of beauty was no match for the natural charm of the Saint siblings. "Aren''t you two just adorable!"


    The hairs on the back of Aisha''s neck stood up and she immediately reached inside of her storage ring and pulled out an enormous scythe that wasrger than her own body. Whirling around, she found an uninvited guest standing in the parlor of her home, a cheerful smile on his face. "Now, I must admit that I am rather touched. It has been so long since I have been truly moved by the love of a-"


    "What the hell are you doing here, Arias?" The leader of The New Day seemed unbothered with Aisha''s hostility and held up his hands in a nonthreatening manner. "I really just came to talk, dearie. Why the sudden hostility?"


    "You broke into my house, dick biscuit! Were you expecting to be met with a fucking cocktail!?"


    "...Do you have any-"


    "WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU HERE!?"


    Arias winced as he plugged his ears from the unexpected screaming of the white haired girl. "Geez, the pipes on this one... I just came for a simple follow up conversation, kiddo. "


    Arias started circling the young girl like a lion stalking his prey, and yet his bright smile never left his face. "I''m curious, Aisha. I had thought for sure that you would have been one of the first ones to join in the bringing of the new era, and yet you stand on the wrong side. Why might that be?"


    "Do I seem like some kind of bigot to you!? Why the hell would I have an interest in ruling over any humans?"


    "Well...You certainly seem like the kind of person who has no interest in the current status quo."


    Even though she was one of the most famous women in the world, Aisha had a terrible reputation in the media. Her dislike of taking photographs with anyone other than small children had caused the world tobel her a diva who thought she was too good for others. She didn''t domercials, toy deals, sponsorships or anything else that would have helped to improve her image. As a result the way the world saw her just became worse and worse overtime. And Aisha liked to pretend that she was immune to it, but sometimes the things that people said really got to her. "I hate all of you... none of you know me, yet you act like you''re in some higher ce to make assumptions about the contents of my character... You''re all the fucking sam-"


    "Watch it."


    Faster than Aisha''s eyes could follow, Arias appeared beside her with a de of light pointed between her eyes. "I will tolerate a lot of abuse, you know? But you will notpare me to those filthy humans for even a single second. Such disrespect is egregious enough for me to im your life."


    Arias put a way his shining weapon and gave the young girl a distasteful look.


    "This conversation has be unpleasant for me, so I''ll be taking my leave. Should I see you again, your head is going to roll. Alongside those humans that you seem to be oh-so fond of."


    Just as he imed, Arias disappeared from Aisha''s home in a golden sh of light and left her standing there frozen. It had been a full five minutes after he left when Aisha''s knees finally gave out from underneath her and she copsed onto the floor. For the second time in her life, she had faced certain death that she had no way to escape from. She didn''t know why Arias had chosen not to kill her but if he had... there would have been nothing that she could have done about it. It was just as terrifying as it was the first time it happened. It had been years since she''d had herst panic attack, but once that feeling of difficulty breathing set in and she had a familiar pain in her chest, she knew exactly what was happening. She was so out of it, she didn''t even hear the sound of footstepsing down the stairs and a familiar presence inching closer. A faint echoing in her ears was all that she could pick up on, and she assumed that someone was trying to call her name. A blurry figure suddenly came into vision. She was more beautiful than an angel, with long and curly grey hair that touched the floor and a sinful body wrapped in a white towel. Despite the feelings that this girl elicited from her, it did very little to repair her fractured mental state. She wasn''t sure how long she remained on the floor for, but she knew that she was starting toe to when the echoes started getting louder. "..sh."


    "A..ha"


    "Aisha!"

 Chapter 141 Mal & The Girls Connect

    Chapter 141 Mal & The Girls Connect


    Early in the morning, Sei heard the familiar sound of the door being unlocked and she knew immediately that Mal had made it home. Stuffing down her excitement, she folded her arms and put on her best disproving face. He had to pay the price for noting home yesterday!


    He hadn''t texted or called or even a picture of his junk to tie her over for the night!


    She was going to milk being upset for all it was worth in the hopes that she would get spoiled to bits!


    As Sei watched the door swivel open, her stern and unfriendly expression gave way to one of utter confusion. ...And a little bit of jealousy. Mchi was here, but he was using one arm to support Anna who was clinging to him like a ko. Her arms were locked behind his neck and her legs were wrapped firmly around his waist, and she was giddy in a way that neither Sei nor Mal had ever seen. "Ummm.... What happened?" Sei asked curiously. "I''m sorry love, I know I should have called but Anna and I got a little... preupied." Mal admitted. Sei watched Anna rest her head on Mal''s shoulder while looking like she was in utter bliss, and subsequently wondered if she''d been drugged. Everyone already knew that the young girl was nowhere near as unfriendly as she looked but even then this was an entirely new side to her. "Preupied doing what exactly...?"


    Instead of giving an answer like a normal person, Mchi was once again overwhelmed by the sight of his girlfriend in her sleep attire. He smoothly slipped one of his free hands behind her waist and pulled her body in close to his own. "I missed you, so I''m hoping that you''ll let me show you instead of telling you."


    Sei knew full well what Mchi was trying to do, and it was working dangerously well. It had been almost a week since they had sex due to Mal''s new condition and mental state, so she was already at her wits end. She also couldn''t imagine how good it must have felt to have sex with him now since his body had an entirely newposition. ''N-No, I have to stand firm or he won''t take me seriously!'' She was only just barely able to hold on to reason and remain firm under this sensual assault. "I-I don''t think so! I''m really mad at you for staying out all night and not telling me!"


    Mal''s eyes softened a bit as he kissed Sei on her cheek gently. "I know, and I''m sorry. I''ll spend the whole day making it up to you if you let me."


    Sei had a small epiphany in that moment. Wasn''t this what she wanted anyway??


    Did she really have to keep pretending to be upset if she was going to get what she wanted at the end of the day??


    This line of thinking caused that iron will of hers to crumble like a gran bar.


    "Alright... but if you stop early I''ll be mad." "Don''t worry, love..."


    Mchi proceeded to lift up Sei with his free arm and carried her to the bedroom. "Like I said, we can go all day."


    In her heart, Sei was so giddy that shepletely forgot to tell him about the guests in their home. But it wasn''t like he wouldn''t find out on his ownter anyway. - 8 Hourster For several hours, Mchi had the most fulfilling experience of his life. Not only did he get to enjoy the bodies of Sei and Anna, but Luna had also shown up eventually as well. Just like Sei, she had also been worried when Mal did not respond to her messages for an entire night, and she came looking for him around two hours after they''d started. Once she saw the three of them naked and intertwined on the bed, she also forgot why she was mad and pulled off her clothes to join them. What followed was seven hours of the most heavenly experience any of them could have imagined. The girls were engaging in much more than simple sex, they were literally being filled with Mal''s essence. All of the obsessive and passionate love that he felt for them was being transferred, and at the same time a sort of connection was formed between them. They could now sense his emotions, and if they were in close proximity they could actually read his thoughts directly. The same was true in reverse. After a long, loud, and pleasurable time together, all three girls finally passed out and didn''t seem to show any signs of waking up any time soon. Satisfied with his time together, Mchi slipped off the bed and dragged his body into the shower. Even though he did not need to do something like this anymore, he''d been having sex since 6pm yesterday and had literally only stopped to drive home this morning. Surely something like that deserves a quick rinse off, right?


    Afterwards, Mal pulled on a ck tank top with sweatpants and slipped out into the living room. There, he found a small gathering waiting on the couch.


    But they seem to be less than pleased to see him. Serana: "Do you know that I pray for my momma''s safety every night just to hear her in your bed asking you to choke her? I''m finna stop doing that shit."


    Aubrey: "Traumatized... so very traumatized... they don''t make headphones with good enough noise cancetion..."


    Serana: "And I also want to rify that just because she calls you daddy doesn''t mean I have to! So don''t even expect it!"


    Aisha: "Mal... Did you really eat their... you know what, next time youe to my house I''m gonna get you a cup and some utensils with your name on it and those are the only ones you can use."


    Bianca: "Hey babe..! Seems like you were, umm... having fun..?"


    Mchi ignored all of the other girls in the room and instead went to Bianca and kissed her on the lips warmly. "Christ, don''t fuck her here!!"


    "Traumatized! TRAUMATIZED!!"


    "Keep it in your pants, dick for brains!"


    Mal and Bianca broke their kiss after a few more seconds despite all of the yelling and he cupped her face in his hands. "Why didn''t youe in?"


    Bianca shook her head weakly as she enjoyed the feeling of Mal''s hand on her skin. "I wanted to but... I don''t know if I''m ready for all of that yet..."


    Mchi was all of Bianca''s firsts. First rtionship, hug, kiss, and he would be her first partner as well, but she would be lying if she said she wasn''t a bit afraid. After all, she had already seen a fair bit of Mal''s body and she knew that something like that going inside of her would definitely cause her a lot of pain. "Are you disappointed..?" She asked weakly. "Nah, there''s just something that I wanted to do with you is all, but I don''t think we necessarily need to have sex for it."


    "Hm?"


    Mchi kissed Bianca again only much deeper this time. Slipping his tongue into her mouth, he focused on sharing himself with her just as he did with the other girls. Thirty secondster, he pulled away from her and knew that he had been sessful. The way Bianca was looking at him was now significantly more passionate than before, and he could feel her emotions in his mind as well. "What did you do...?" She asked. "I made us closer... Do you hate it?"


    "No... It makes me really happy."


    As proof, Bianca threw her arms around Mchi and hugged him tight enough to break his spine. That is if he still had one. He started to lightly stroke her hair as he finally acknowledged the other three intruders in his home. "What''s good girls? Been a minute since I saw all of you over here like this."


    Serana: "Don''t talk to me with coochie and yams on your breath."


    Aubrey: "I am already regretting it but we have no other choice..."


    Aisha: "I think I would have preferred feeling unsafe at home..."


    Ignoring Serana, Mal noticed that something seemed to be going on between Aisha and Aubrey. "What happened? What''s wrong with your ce?" He asked. Aisha clenched her fists as memories of yesterday surfaced within her mind. She couldn''t go home... she couldn''t bring her girlfriend back there. The fear that Arias would return and kill them at any moment was constantly bogging down her mind and preventing her from functioning normally. At least for now... she wanted to be around someone whom she knew could protect them both. "I just... we need to stay here for a while... is that okay?"


    Mal had only ever seen Aisha like this a few times in her entire life, so he figured that something must have really gone wrong. He could learn exactly what at ater time, but for now he just wanted her to feel like she was safe. "Of course it is, man. You know my ce is yours." n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Relief flooded Aisha''s body as Mchi stood up with Bianca still in his arms. "You girls hungry? I''ll make you something to-"


    Ding!


    Before Mal could finish offering the girls some apology food, the phones of everyone in the room went off simultaneously. The cause of which was a news headline that dropped the jaws of everyone who read it. SSS RATED GATE APPEARS IN LONDON! IN THE HOPES OF DEALING WITH THIS MONUMENTAL THREAT THE UN HAS CALLED FOR THE ASSISTANCE OF THE WORLD''S TOP FIVE GUILDS!

 Chapter 142 Appearance of a New Threat

    Chapter 142 Appearance of a New Threat


    In the four years since gates hade to earth, the highest recorded dungeon had only appeared in Taipei, and was SS ranked. Initially, the Republic of China declined help from outsiders and told the world that their blessed were more than capable of handling this catastrophe on it''s own. This supposed show of dick swinging ended with an entire team of 15 SS rated blessed being eliminated in under 2 hours. Over the course of a week, the republic sent blessed after blessed into the gate in the hopes that they would be able to amend this monumental mistake. As a result, the gate failed to get cleared in time, and a break urred on the ind of Taipei. The death toll was catastrophic, and the entire ind was destroyed as the monsters started to cross the sea. In the end, a problem that should have been solved in a little under a week instead required the better part of a month to get under control. The difference between a S rated gate and a SS rated one was likeparing a little league sport''s team to a professional one. So how terrible would this new gate opening be?


    After the disaster on Taipei, the governments of the world came together and decided that they would put all differences aside and provide aid in the future should a simr threat arise. And now, it seemed like the this shaky new alliance was about to be called into practice. After the group read the news alert, they understandably fell into a tense silence. How could something like this happen?


    What kind of creatures could be inside of the gate to warrant this sort of rm??


    And most importantly, would those who had to go be safe??


    Eyes within the room became firmly locked on Mal, Bianca, and Aisha to gauge their reactions. Shock, anxiety, and fear could be seen on all of their faces. Except for Mchi who seemed to be thinking about something else rather seriously. "Babe..?"


    Bianca gently nudged her boyfriend to get his attention and looked up at him with eyes filled with worry. "Do you think... those things areing already..?" She whispered. Mchi honestly didn''t know the answer to Bianca''s question. It wasn''t like he had some inclination on when the end of the world was supposed to ur, so he was just as unaware as anyone. "I.."


    ''They''re not here yet.''


    The thought was alien and belonged someone that he couldn''t even begin to identify. But it wasn''t an ufortable feeling, so he decided to trust it. "Nah... it''s not them." He said reassuringly. Bianca seemed to rx a little bit in his embrace but she still seemed to be a little worried. And she wasn''t the only one. Aisha was seated on the couch trembling, being consoled softly by Aubrey just as Mal was doing with Bianca. Ring!


    Mal''s phone started to vibrate in his pocket, and he pulled it out to answer as soon as he read the name on the screen. When Morgan saw the serious faces of Mchi and Bianca in the camera, he knew that they had already seen the news just like the rest of the world. "Seems you''ve gotten the alert."


    "Kinda hard to miss, no?"


    "Indeed, but I was calling to ask whether you had nned to join in the raid. Or even you as well, Bianca?"


    The young couple looked at each other in confusion before turning back to Morgan. ""We didn''t know we had a choice??""


    *Sigh.* "Of course you have a choice, kids. Your guild master is supposed to be putting together a team of around twenty five evolved to meet in London by noon tomorrow. Has she not spoken to any of you yet??"


    It was at this moment that Mal realized that Luna had no way of knowing about the request from the U.N because she was currently in a coitus induceda. And since they had been going at it rather intensely all day, he figured that she would require a bit more time before she woke up. ''Whoops...''


    "She''ll likely be getting around to it in a few hours or so..."


    "Hours?? We don''t have that kind of time, Mchi. The U.N wants a report of our expected numbers at 4pm sharp."


    Bianca sighed as she finally released Mchi and started walking towards the bedroom. "I''ll go wake her up."


    After hearing that, it wasn''t difficult for Morgan to determine what the cause of Luna''s absence was. He gave Mal a slightly usatory look that he desperately pretended not to notice. A few momentster, Bianca returned with the weary Luna wrapped in nothing but a nket. Her legs were wobbling and her hair was somewhat in a mess but she was awake all the same. "What''s going on..?" She asked sleepily. Morgan opened his mouth and started to exin the world''s current dilemma, and her eyebrows shot to the top of her head. - 5 Minutes Later Who would have known that the threat of impending doom was all it took to wake a woman up fully?


    After Luna learned about everything going on in London, she went from sultry girlfriend to full business woman in the blink of an eye. Five minutes after she''d been woken up, she was in the process of calling every single member of her guild while she simultaneously returned the numerous emails she''d received from foreign dignitaries. In the end it was decided yet she, Mchi, and Bianca would be heading to London alongside twenty two more volunteers from the guild. Luna was admittedly very surprised when Aisha declined to join, as she had thought that the white haired young woman would have been one of the first to volunteer. She could have attempted to persuade her or even questioned her about her unwillingness to go but she inevitably decided against it. For something as dangerous as a SSS rated gate, she could only afford to bring soldiers who 100% wanted to be there. Anyone who had the slightest sense of apprehension would effectively be throwing their lives away for nothing. The margin for error in a ce like that was just that small. After Luna had finished making arrangements, she informed her three travelingpanions to start packing immediately. The members were supposed to meet at the guild building within two hours so that they could immediately fly to London, and Bianca and Luna rushed home so that they could make the deadline. As Mal packed for the journey, he was being pelted with worriedments from the girls in his room. Not only Anna and Sei, but Serana and Aubrey were inside as well, equally concerned about something happening to him.


    Serana: "N-Not that I''m worried or anything but, you''re going to be okay.. right?"


    Anna: "I''ve got powers now too so maybe I can go with you and watch your back...?"


    Sei: "M-Me too..! You need all the backup you can get!"


    Aubrey: "I''m almost as strong as you so it should definitely be okay if Ie, right??"


    Mchi shook his head as he dropped supplies into the shadows on the floor.


    "Preciate the offers girls, but you haven''t been trained for things like this. Besides, I didn''t ask for all of you to be blessed so that you could run off fighting unnecessary battles.


    I did it so that in the event that you absolutely HAD to, that you could protect yourself. This is some shit that none of you need to worry your pretty heads about.... and whatever Serana''s got."


    "Fuck you!"


    "See? You girls will be just fine."


    Sei grabbed Mal by his shirt and pulled him close to her so that she could rest her head on his chest. "Honey... please don''t do this again..."


    "Do what, love?"


    "You can ept help from us.. You don''t have to do things on your own again."


    Out of the corner of his eye, Mal nced at his sister who looked like she wanted to say the exact same thing. She had already watched her brother shoulder everything on his own back when she was too depressed to function, and she would never let let him carry so much responsibility again. In truth, it wasn''t Aubrey''s fault that her brother became the kind of individual who was unwilling to ept help. It was just the role that he always thought was best. Rather than being the man who didn''t know how to do anything without inconveniencing another person, he wanted to be the one that could shoulder the burdens of everyone he loved on his own. That was especially true for the women he loved. Even when he and Aubrey were poor, he would voluntarily go hungry more than one day out of the week if it meant that she had a full stomach. That was just the kind of man that both circumstances and his father had raised him to be. "I know that you want to protect us, but can''t you understand how we could also feel the same way about you...? The same love that you feel that makes you want to give us the world is exactly what we feel for you. So let us give you something back, if only to prove how much you love us."


    Mchi gently ran his hands through Sei''s long brown hair as he let her words sink in.


    "...Not this time, love."


    Sei flinched as she felt her heart breaking from his tant refusal. She felt tears beginning to pool within her eyes and she didn''t know how to stop them. "But I promise... once you train with Rose a bit more and she lets you pick out a weapon, I will never say no to you again. I will bring you everywhere with me."


    As quickly as Sei''s tears started to form they dried up.


    Mchi''s sincere promise had touched her to the depths of her soul and gave her new hope. "I guess I can hold you to that... Just don''t back out of your promiseter."


    "I wouldn''t dream of it." n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Mchi looked at the room filled with his loved ones and held his arms out.


    "Onest hug before I go?"


    Unsurprisingly, Anna and Aubrey did not need to be asked twice and dove into his arms without uttering a word. Serana looked like she was hesitating a bit, but soon she also inched toward the group. "I''ll hug you but... don''t try to fuck me or anything!"


    "Bestiality ain''t my thing."


    "I''ll kill you!"

 Chapter 143 Hope of Humanity

    Chapter 143 Hope of Humanity


    Saint Paul''s Cathedral is one of the most famousndmarks in all of London. This one of a kind structure has been standing on Legate hill for three centuries and is a widely renowned tourist destination. But now, this world famous building is the sight of the earth''s first SSS rated gate. Outside of the golden gallery, there was an enormous dark red portal that was the cause for the whole world''s panicked state. However, there already existed a small amount of hope in the hearts of many. And the source of this hope was the team of one hundred heavily armed blessed standing outside of this crack from another world. "How much longer do you think it will be before we go inside, guild master?"


    Morgan turned towards his newest protege in Ragnarok, Ryo Amaki, and shrugged his shoulders.


    "Hard to say. Immortal Moon had ate start as their guild master was... wrapped up in some messy business..."


    The young man tilted his head like he didn''t quite understand. "What could have been so messy that she missed a world wide alert?"


    Morgan looked ufortable as he tried to spit out the best excuse he had. "Ah, well... it could have been anything,d. That''s the life of a guild master...someone''s always trying to fuck us."


    Ryo wrongly assumed that Morgan''s words were metaphorical and not literal. And Morgan had absolutely no intention of correcting that false belief. "W-What is that!?"


    One of the blessed pointed into the sky towards the east and garnered the attention of everyone present. Flying ever closer was an enormous creature that sent chills down the spines of most onlookers. It was an entirely ck sphinx, with wings made from lightning and burning ck me on the tip of it''s tail. Several members thought that there may have been a gate break at another location, but they could not sense any hostile intent from the approaching creature. "Easyds!" Morgan warned. "These are just thest of our little group."


    His words proved true when the creature suddenly hovered above their heads, and beautiful women started sliding down from it''s enormous back. One by one, members of immortal moonnded safely on the ground among the unit. They all seemed rather chipper for people who were about to go into a literal deathtrap. "That was fun!"


    "I''m d we made him give us a ride, I feel less nervous now."


    "He''s like our own lil taxi service!"


    "Yea, but don''t let his girls hear you say that... They''ve been acting mad possessivetely."


    Finally, the shadowy creature in the sky vanished out of existence and three figures fell from the sky. Mchi held both Bianca and Luna by their waists and floated down from the sky like a god descending upon thend. All three were already donning their weapons and armor, and Bianca had even created two new masks for her and Luna to wear that were simr to Mal''s. But while his was just a regr row of teeth, theirs were closer to a snarling animal''s. He was unbelievably jealous of how cool they looked. Once theynded safetly, Morgan was the first one to try to exchange greetings. However, he was quickly beaten out yet again. "Mis amigos! It is so good to see all of you again! I must admit, your entrance gave us all quite the scare!"


    Enzo cut through the crowd, trailed by two of his most faithful guild members. Always overly friendly, the world''s number one guild leader held out his arms in a cordial and friendly embrace. "Luna my dear! You look absolutely-"


    It was only for a brief second, but Mchi''s eyes changed to a hateful red color and his teeth sharpened beneath his mask. Somehow Enzo was able to recognize the threat to his life and he quickly pulled his arms back in, hoping to keep them on his body. Mchi blinked several times until his eyes went back to normal, and he let out a shy cough of embarrassment. ''Not enough meditation practice, huh babe?'' Bianca thought.


    ''Guess not... I''ll practice a little more when wee back.''


    Luna suddenly tightened her grip on Mchi''s arm and pushed her body just a little bit closer into his own. ''You don''t have to, you know? I think I prefer you just a little bit unstable.''


    ''...You''re crazy....I like it though.''


    ''You better love it, sense you''re the one who did this to me. ''


    At this moment, Mchi was wishing that he had an extra 30 minutes or so to spare just so that he could show Luna just how much he loved her but unfortunately he had more pressing matters to attend to. Morgan breezed past Enzo and finally got a chance to greet Mchi. "Hell of an entrance. You should sell tickets for a ride like that."


    "I''m not a carnival ride, man. I just wanted to give the girls a nice experience before we went into this hell."


    Mchi saw all of his guild mates as precious friends that he never waned harm to befall. Even though they had agreed toe on this expedition, there were still a great many of them who were worried about what lie ahead. But because Mchi didn''t want them to feel afraid, he tried to at least make their journey here a little more fun. And now that they were here and about to go inside, he would give everything that he had to protect them if it was necessary. As for everyone else in this raid... he was unsure. He was no longer the same person as before who had that burning desire to save the world. As far as he was concerned, there were only a handful of people that were worth putting his cape on for. And anyone else would have to tread carefully, or at least bepetent enough to save themselves. "Alright everyone, it''s time! Listen up!"


    Enzo walked out in front of the crowd of blessed and prepaired to give a speech. Perhaps as the world''s number 1 guild leader, he felt it was his responsibility to act as the one in charge of this raid. And in his glimmering teal colored body armor, he did somewhat look the part. "I won''t sugarcoat anything, we are in for the fight of our lives. We haven''t yet determined what lies beyond these gates but to earn such a high rating it must surely be a significant threat. ...But none of that matters today. Instead, I want to talk about something else. We live in a time where the rtionship between us and the people whom we are trying to protect is teetering on the brink of copse."


    All of a sudden, it felt like the tension within the area had multiplied. People were trying and failing to be discreet, as they nced at the blessed beside them. Everyone wanted to gauge reactions to Enzo''s words. Who still believed in protecting the humans? n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    And who was interested in the new day Arias spoke of?


    It could not be made certain by simply ncing at facial expressions alone. "Today isn''t just a SSS rated raid. It is an opportunity for us to show humanity that we want to walk beside them, not above. And that we will protect them from any threat, be they man or monster.


    Even though we have the powers of gods, we are no better than the average man. To find true tranquility in our world, we must cast aside any hidden prejudices, and focus on making the world a better ce for all! ...But that is a tomorrow problem. "


    Enzo drew his weapon from his back, arge macuahuitl that was made with a strange ck wood and magical stones embedded in the sides. "Today, I and the Children of the Aztecs will lead the charge! Stick together, and do not give way to despair!"


    A round of rousing cheers erupted as Enzo and all twenty five of his apanying guild members charged into the portal.


    The members of Ragnarok and tinum Scale were next to follow, with Dead Sea entering after them. Leaving Immortal Moon as thest ones to enter, and Luna gave a small speech of her own to her guild mates. "I know all of you have agreed toe along because you want to fight, but I don''t want you running onto the front lines unless it''s absolutely necessary. Your lives are my top priority."


    Luna''s sincerity touched the hearts of all of her guild members, and they felt like they had indeed chosen the right organization to sign with. However, they couldn''t follow her orders just this once. "We appreciate the sentiments, mydy, but..."


    "We didn''te here to hide."


    "We''re all prepared to fight with everything we have, so you don''t need to worry about us."


    Faced with such firm resolve, Luna couldn''t do anything but smile bitterly. "I see... it appears I was worried for nothing then."


    With Mchi and Bianca at her back, she confidently started walking towards the portal.


    It seemed like she didn''t have a worry in the world, but Mchi and Bianca knew full well that her act was a facade. ''Darling... please-''


    ''I''ll protect them, love. I promise that we won''t lose a single member today.'' Mchi thought reassuringly. ''Thank you...''


    After receiving such a firm promise, Luna could finally rx a little bit knowing that the girls she took care of like her own children would be protected. The members of Immortal Moon finally passed through the ominous red portal to face the unseen threat waiting inside. After they were all inside, a figure in white robes and a mask appeared in the area they were once standing in. He pulled out a smallmunication device from within one of his many pockets and punched in a few key codes before holding it up to his mouth. "Inform his eminence that they are all inside. The sentinels are cleared to move."

 Chapter 144 Attack & Entrance

    Chapter 144 Attack & Entrance


    Serana: "Training fucking sucks!"


    Anna: "All of this training isn''t going to make me lose my butt, is it? Mal really likes my butt."


    Sei: "I-I am also worried about that...!"


    Serana: "Someone please kill me!"


    Aubrey: "What have I done to deserve this..?"


    After training this newest batch of recruits for the past several hours, Rose Ortega had reached an undeniable conclusion. This group wasprised of the most talented mismatches she had ever seen. Serana was ainer, but once she got it out of her system she was a real physical specimen who did everything Rose asked her to do wlessly. Annalise was a real monster in the strength department, as she was one of the only people Rose had ever sparred with who could break her bones with a punch. Sei was a natural with her telekic and blessed abilities but... when it came to fighting hardlight simtions it was revealed that she wasn''t much good at it.


    She was just too gentle to kill or harm anything outside of a life or death scenario. And Aubrey... she was every bit a monster as her older brother. She was highly above average in every conceivable category, and she was an adept in hand to handbat as well. But what Rose was really impressed by were her abilities.


    She was already so proficient with the power of wind, she could literally suck the air out of an opponent''s lungs and asphyxiate them without lifting a finger. And when using magic, she learned how to create small objects out of thin air that never went away. Although Aubrey still had yet to touch her death element, Rose was doing her own research on how to allow her to y with it in as safe a manner as possible. "Alright girls, let''s call it a day." Rose said. "You''ve all done great, and I know you must be worried so go home and get some rest, hm? I''ll see you on Monday. "


    "Wait, what about my ass?"


    "And mine!"


    "...Your butts will be fine, girls." Rose said with a sigh. She decided that it would be best if she left first, in the hopes that no one else would ask her anymore silly questions. The girls finally peeled themselves off the floor and Aisha approached from her ce on the wall. "You girls looked great. Mal''s got some realpetition if he wants to keep wearing the pants in the house."


    "I prefer him without pants actually." Anna said sleepily. ""I''m going to be fucking sick."" Serana and Aubrey both felt like they were hearing too much information about Mal''s sex life these days. However, Sei seemed to not hear most of the rabble as she was focused on the well being of her young boyfriend. "I hope that he''s okay... I keep wishing that I could call or check on him in some kind of text message."


    Anna moved beside her and took her hand reassuringly. Around 40 minutes ago, their ability to sense Mchi''s presence had taken a big dip, confirming he was already within another world. After they noticed he left, any progress that the two were making in training was ground to a screeching halt. How could they really expect to focus when the man that they loved was fighting some terrible unseen threat that they couldn''t even fathom. But regardless of that fact, Anna took it upon herself to reassure Sei the best she could. "I know you''re worried, but we have to keep ourselves busy so that we have something to show for this time apart when hees back.


    Besides, I think you''re forgetting that our boyfriend is literally immortal and practically unkible. Maybe instead of worrying about him we should worry about whatever he''ll run into."


    Sei smiled bitterly and squeezed Anna''s hand in thanks. "You say that, but you''re worried too... I can feel it, you know?"


    Since the girls each had Mchi''s rawest essence inside of them, they could sense each other''s emotions just like they could sense his. A fact Anna had conveniently forgotten about. But as someone who had been in her fair share of trouble with thew, she knew exactly how to get out of a situation like this. "...I have no idea what you''re talking about."


    She quickly turned towards the locker room so he could start getting ready to go home, believing that this conversation was over and she had sessfully avoided an ufortable expressing of emotions. ''I can still read your mind, Anna. Thank you for being so sweet. We''ll both try not to worry about him, hm?''


    ''Y-Yea... I got it.'' n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    An ufortable feeling swelled up in Anna''s chest as she continued walking without pausing to look back. It never failed, somehow interacting with Sei always made her long for her own mother figure. And with everything that happened recently, it wasn''t hard for her mind to drift to the stranger who showed up at her uncle''s house. Maybe... just maybe she should give that woman a call and try to sort things out. It was all so confusing and exhausting to deal with, and if she was honest she would rather not touch the situation at all. But she was tired of feeling like this. She had a great life now, yet no matter what it always seemed like she was being weighed down by her silly little mommy issues. She pulled out her phone and dialed her uncle''s number as quickly as she could before holding it up to her ear. PG: AG? To what do I owe the pleasure of this delightful call?


    Anna took a deep breath while trying to calm her raging heartbeat. "I think I''m ready, unc. Can you... give my mom a call for-"


    BOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM!!!!! Out of nowhere, a huge explosion rocked the building and sent all of the girls sprawling onto the ground. Debris from the ceiling started to fall in huge chunks that wererge enough to crush a full grown adult. "Girls, get by me!!" Aisha cried. The white hair beauty pulled out a bronze shield from her ring and held it above her head. Like a folding umbre, the shield widened and opened up curtain of energy that protected Aisha and those around her from the falling ceiling. The girls scrambled and tried to get to her as quickly as they could, but because Anna was the furthest away she wasn''t quite fast enough. "Anna, look out!!"


    Serana barely warned Anna in time for her to see a steel beam falling from the sky on a collision course directly for her head. She threw her hands up like she was hoping to stop it via her telekinesis, but because she had reacted sote she only managed to slow it''s fall by a little bit. The beam connected with her temple, and she immediately went down like a sack of potatoes. Thest thing she saw before her vision went dark was two men floating in the sky. Even though they were far above the open ceiling, Anna could still make out their familiar white robes and strange new demonic masks. ''Assholes...'' -


    Contrary to what Mal was expecting, the portal did not lead to some barren wastnd that was teaming with even stranger wildlife. Under a moonless ck night, the unit of blessed appeared in front of an absolutely enormous castle. It seemed like even the members who''d been the first to blindly charge in weren''t expecting such scenery either. Enzo raised a single fist to quiet all of his men as he looked around blindly for any sign of enemies.


    Morgan and Luna were the only ones who didn''t bother looking around and instead nced at one man standing in the back of the group. Neither of them asked him to say anything, but he already knew what they wanted to know. Unfortunately, the answer he had for them was less than positive. "No good. We''ve been surrounded ever since we showed up."


    Mchi could feel them lurking in the darkness. They blended in with it so well that it was no wonder no one here could sense them. But no matter how adept they were at hiding in it, they could not hide from he who was an extension of it. There were quite a lot, easily around three times the amount of people they''d brought to raid this ce. And there were even more lurking in the castle a few yards away. The only reason he remained unrmed was because he could feel that they had no hostile intent. Instead it was like they were waiting for something. And when he sensed new movementing from the castle, he knew exactly what. The enormous double doors to the grand structure creaked open, and every human that came through the gate took a step back. Unlike the beings in the bushes, this individual was taking no measures to hide it''s presence or it''s power. And it was frightening. Click.


    Click.


    Click.


    The sound of heelsnding on top of cobblestone drew ever closer as a figure cut through the fog. A beautiful woman was being trailed by two stone gargoyles with massive wings and fist sized rubies were their eyes should have been. But regardless of how horrifying the two creatures were, the woman between them was an absolute vision. She had long golden blonde hair, and a pair of bright purple eyes that were nothing less than hypnotizing. Her full and curvaceous figure was hidden beneath a deep ck dress with the pelt of a white creature hanging off her shoulders. She appeared to be of foreign descent, and stood at a tall height of 6''0 while giving off an imposing and seductive aura. "You finally came! We were so bored we thought we would have toe to you first!" She said joyfully. "What the hell...?"


    "Did she just speak English..?"


    "What kind of ent is that?"


    "Is this a joke!?"


    While most everyone was rmed by the sight of a talking monster, Mal was instead focused on something else entirely. The woman''s mouth. It was only for a second, but when she spoke he saw two gleaming white fangs jutting from her gums. By now Mchi was easily able to figure out what kind of creatures were in this dungeon, but he was having a hard time epting it. Who would have thought that he would''ve evere across a real life vampire?

 Chapter 145 Toyed With

    Chapter 145 Toyed With


    "I have to admit, I was expecting quite a bit more from you humans! None of you seem to be trulypetent."


    The strange woman dragged her eyes over the bodies of every blessed present. Like a powerless mortaling across a higher being for the first time, they could do nothing but shudder in front of her intimidating gaze. However, Morgan and a few other guild leaders remained unafraid and boldly stepped forward with their weapons drawn. The vampire smiled beautifully at the four men who seemed above the rest of the rabble and she couldn''t contain her excitement any longer. "It''s been so long since we''ve had a good meal so I know we''re all a bit excited, but try to save those four for me, okay?"


    Morgan was the only one who had some inclination of who this strange woman could be talking to, and his eyes immediately went to the trees surrounding them. As he suspected, figures started leaping out of hiding like they had been there all along. They sprouted wings and hissed madly like horrifying possessed monstrosities as they took to the sky. Bright orange mes covered Morgan''s tattooed hands and he held them above his head. Twin torrents of me shot out of his palms like homing rockets and exploded in the center of the swarm, lighting up the permanently dark sky in a deadly fireworks show. Charred corpses started dropping from the air like flies. Upon hitting the earth, their bodies exploded into piles of soot that dirtied the tactical boots of the blessed. Unfortunately, while Morgan''s attack had seeded in taking out arge number of the vampires, there were more than a few who were capable of avoiding it. They fell into the crowd like hungry monsters, and the battle to clear the gate finally got underway. While their guild mates were expected to hold their own, four of the guild masters ran at the woman who''d emerged from the castle. At her side, the two gargoyles rushed to defend her. The stone creatures tackled and intercepted Ere and Logan Reaves, leaving Enzo and Morgan free to continue their advance. Morgan summoned a ming ck sword out of thin air and Enzo raised his macuahuitl over his head. The two of them swung their weapons from two totally different angles, hoping to cut down this monumental foe before a catastrophe could befall them. Tink!


    ng!


    BOOOOMMMM!!!


    A shockwave rippled outward from the collision between them, and the two men felt their jaws drop. Despite being the guild master of the number one guild in the world, Enzo wasn''t actually the world''s most powerful blessed. If the world would wee anyone with this title, it would likely be the man beside him. When going all out, Morgan was practically a force of nature and it wouldn''t be a far fetched assessment to say that he could destroy the whole world within a week''s time. Therefore, it made it that much more surprising that this bewitching vampire had caught Morgan''s attack withplete and total ease. She looked down at her pale hand that held Morgan''s sword and raised a brow in surprise. It had been so very very long since she had been burned, and yet these mes licking at her hands were strong enough to do just that. She had started to see Morgan in a new light, and looked at him like she found something interesting to y with. "Talented one, I believe I''ll take you." "W-Wha-!?"


    Before either of the men could react, the vampires backhanded Enzo and sent him flying through the air. "Enzo!"


    "No no, don''t look at him."


    The vampire grabbed Morgan by the face and made him stare into her bright purple eyes that changed into a hypnotizing red. "You don''t need to worry about anything else, just worry about pleasing your new mistress, kay?"


    Morgan''s body started to lose it''s rigidity, and his eyes became slightly hazy as he stared back at the charming vampire. Meanwhile, Enzo was sent flying from the most brutal back hand he had ever experienced. His body was considered to be extremely tough by most, but a single attack from that woman had practically turned his jaw into powder. It was a miracle he had found a way to remain conscious after something like that. Using his power over the winds, Enzo tried to give himself a softernding when he crashnded into the dirt and rolled for several feet. His vision was blurry, his mouth was filled with blood, and he had never experienced such a humiliating hit ever before in his life. A fact that was multiplied by the knowledge that he could see a familiar face looming over him with pity in his swirling violet eyes. Mchi was sitting cross legged on the battlefield with Luna and Bianca when Enzo suddenly came flying out of nowhere and nearlynded in hisp. He was a bit preupied dealing with other things at the moment, so he hadn''t been paying attention to guild leaders'' battle. Although looking at Enzo''s face, he could easily tell just how well it was going. "Damn. Smacked the fire outta you, didn''t she?"


    Enzo let out an unintelligible groan as his jaw finally started to heal slowly. Only he would know that he was trying to ask why Mal wasn''t helping. "Yea, I get it. Shit looks like it... one second." With blinding speed, Mchi reached into the shadows at his feet and pulled out three gleaming silver daggers. He threw each of them in different directions in the air, and guided them towards their intended targets. A member of immortal moon was being pinned down on the ground by a ravenous male vampire, who was mere inches away from taking her life. She silently closed her eyes and waited for the death that she believed was sure toe, only to hear some kind of sickening wet sound a half secondter. Opening her eyes, she found her assant''s head slowly sliding away from his body, cleanly disconnected at the neck. This scene repeated itself twice over with two different girls, and all three immediately knew the culprit. ''''''Thank you, Mchi..!''''''


    The daggers returned to him a few secondster, and he casually plucked them out of the air before he returned them to his shadowy storage space. "Alright, now what was I-" BOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!


    A monumental explosion of red mes erupted into the sky, capturing the attention of everyone in attendance. Mchi would recognize these mes anywhere, and he quickly looked around for their origin.


    When his eyesnded on Morgan, he briefly considered that he might have been seeing things. The guild leader of Ragnarok was holding two of the other guild leaders by the neck, with the entire area around him bing a charred mess. "M-Morgan!"


    "What the hell are you doing?!" The guildmaster''s eyes were glossy, and his tone of speech was rather robotic as he held the life of hispanions in his hands.


    "Everything...is for Mistress Nadine..." Before either of the two men could escape, Morgan engulfed the three of them in a powerful column of mes well over 6''000 degrees. "W-What the hell is going on!?"


    "Why has the guild master turned on us!?"


    "We''re fucked... W-We have to get out of here!!"


    After witnessing Morgan turn his back on them, panic like none other descended on most of the assembled guilds. Those that tried to turn tail and run were immediately hunted down by other vampires, turning this raid into an out of control bloodbath. "Time to work, girls." Mchi said. With all of the panic going on, it was going to be a lot harder for him to keep their members safe, meaning that they had to step in and cut down the opposition''s numbers. "But remember what I said, loves; This is just the weing party so don''t over exert yourselves."


    Bianca and Luna nodded in understanding just as the column of mes containing Morgan disappeared. His usual clean cut appearance was burned away as he became a giant alight in me with dark horns jutting out from his fiery red hair. He swung his ck sword in the air and a de of smoldering orange fire rippled outward. The blessed would have been vaporized in a single blow, had a wall of pitch ck mes not erupted up from the ground and intercepted the attack. BOOOOOOOMMMMMM!!!


    The two great powers produced a terrible explosion that knocked man and vampire alike onto their back. Mchi walked through the field of his own mes unfazed by the heat that they were giving off and looked up at Morgan''s massive body. He didn''t know why his mentor had suddenly turned on them, but given that their opponent was a vampire, he had a pretty good guess as to why. Enzo suddenly reappeared next to him, with a jaw that was swollen but healed. "What the hell is going on...? Why is Morgan doing this??"


    "He just needs a time out." Mchi muttered. Manipting the shadows at Morgan''s feet, Mchi opened up a portal to his own shadowy domain and sent the fiery giant directly into it. Closing up the portal, Enzo began looking at Mchi like he was some kind of walking cmity. "Did you... kill him?" "What part of ''he needs a time out'' didn''t you understand?" Mchi said exhaustedly. "Of course I ain''t kill him."


    Even though he had just been betrayed without knowing why, Enzo couldn''t deny that he felt a bit relieved to know that Morgan was still alive. "Oooh! A better toy has arrived to rece my old one!" n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    The vampire Nadine seemed to bergely unbothered by the disappearance of hertest worker and instead smiled as she looked Mchi up and down. The feeling of danger wafting off his body was so exciting that she knew he would have many great uses if she could only get her hands on him. ''And his body isn''t bad either...It may even be better than the lord''s.''


    Nadine licked her lips sensually as she fantasized about having another man inside of her bed for the first time in centuries, and her anticipation only seemed to build with every passing second. "Come along, little boy, let your new mistress y with you just a bit, hm?"

 Chapter 146 First Embrace

    Chapter 146 First Embrace


    Mchi remained uninterested in the face of the vampire''s teasing and unsheathed his iklwha from his back. "We''ll take her together, Mr Saint." Enzo said. "...You sure? She already tapped your ass once, you wanna give her a chance to do it again?"


    Enzo scowled at Mchi and he held up his arms in surrender. "Just checking for safety-"


    Mchi was suddenly assailed with a terrible headache that made him feel like his head was going to split open. shes urred in his mind, and he saw Anna being struck in the head by a falling beam and copsing onto the ground. Thest thing she saw before she passed out was two men floating in the sky above the open ceiling, wearing the same white robes that Arias and his followers could be seen wearing. "Enzo... change of ns." Mchi muttered. The guild master suppressed a shiver when he felt Mchi''s tone and demeanor do aplete one eighty. Three pairs of huge ck wings burst out of his back and Enzo was nearly blown away by the gust of wind they produced just from being unfurled. Mchi reached up towards his face and removed his mask before dropping it onto the ground. He inhaled the cool night air as his swirling purple eyes changed to a sadistic and murderous red. "I think... I''m gonna lose control just a little bit. So your new job is to make sure none of our people get hit when that happens, alright?" Before Enzo could ask what was going on, he heard the familiar rumbling of thunder from overhead. Out of nowhere, dense ck storm clouds began to cover the sky, bringing with them a brutal downpour and a storm of ck lightning the likes of which left huge craters in the ground. If Enzo didn''t protect the blessed they''de with, they were all going to end up as coteral damage. But for the life of him, he couldn''t understand why Mchi was suddenly behaving so recklessly. However, before he could ask him, he had already disappeared from where he stood a mere moment ago. The vampire Nadine looked at the storming overhead and clicked her teeth in annoyance. She tried to raise her arm and protect herself from any wayward lightning but.. she couldn''t move her arms. As a matter of fact, she couldn''t move her entire body. It was like she was being held in ce by some invisible force that had no intentions of relinquishing her from it''s grasp, leaving her with no choice but to take this lightning bolt head on. BOOOOOOOMMMMMMM!!!!!!


    When the smoke cleared, Nadine was rtively fine save for a few scorch marks, but thevish dark dress she wore was damaged in several ces, exposing patches of her wless skin. "This is... unreal.." She muttered. A gust of wind blew her hair into her face, and she found Mchi flying towards her while wearing a vengeful look. "Seems we''re outta time to y. So you and every other monster in this gate need to die quick."


    As Nadine looked into the face of the man who was about to deliver her a swift and cruel death, an emotion she never expected started to bubble within her stomach. ''Ah... I love him~!'' -


    "Anna!"


    "Anna, are you okay!?"


    "She''s not waking up!!"


    After the girls saw Anna hit the ground, they immediately forgot all about the danger of falling debris and rushed to her side. Upon assessing her injuries, they found a ratherrge gash in her forehead that was leaking a concerning amount of blood. While it was healing, it was very slow, and Anna had yet to regain consciousness. However, things weren''t as bad as they seemed. Anna''s blessing made it so that her body was almost as durable as Mal''s without any additional training. If one of the other girls had been hit by a steel girder like she had, their entire head likely would have been crushed. After they saw that Anna would be fine, Aisha and Aubrey looked into the sky for the culprits while Sei and Serana remained by her side waiting for her to wake up. High up above, they found two men in white robes floating side by side, with one raining down what appeared to be chunks of earth onto the building. Aisha pulled out a staggeringlyrge golden bow from her storage ring and immediately took aim at the two attackers. As she pulled back the bowstring, two arrows made of blue magic notched themselves of their own volition. "Babe, little help?"


    "Sure!"


    Once Aisha let the bowstring go, Aubrey further enhanced their speed and velocity by using her power over wind. Even though this attack wasing from a measly bow and arrow, an explosion like that of a cannonball urred as the projectiles sailed towards their targets. One of the men in the air seemed to sense theing attack and held out his hand to stop it. A shield made from earth protected the two men from the st, and caused no more damage than a small explosion. The two of them descended towards the ground their arms folded behind their back and bodies that were entirely devoid of worry. Theynded on top of a mountain of rubble, and inspected all five of the women present with curious eyes. "Odd... I thought the guilds would all be empty in light of everything that is going on." One said. "I believe the rest are, brother. The guilds are supposed to be closed today in honor of those that ventured into the gate." Added the other. "So then what? Are thesedies rule breakers?"


    "More likely they are people who don''t know how to sit idle."


    "Ah, I see."


    "WHO THE HELL ARE YOU TWO AND WHY ARE YOU ATTACKING THE GUILD?!" The two strangers stared down at a clearly irate Aisha without an ounce of fear in their bodies. "She''s loud." n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Well wouldn''t you be if someone suddenly dropped a building on you for no reason?"


    "Hm... I suppose that does make sense."


    "Right, so answer her question, Brother Griffin."


    The man described as Griffin was the same one who had been using the earth attacks before and was responsible for the total destruction of Immortal Moon. "Right then, listen up, loud girl. My brother Cassius and I are here representing The Ten Sentinels of The New Day. As for why we destroyed this base..."


    "It''s because guilds as a whole are no longer needed. These ces whose sole purpose serves to protect and coddle the humans have no ce in the new world. We don''t want to have monuments dedicated to any Uncle Toms now, do we?" Cassius finished. Griffin looked at his brother oddly through his mask and gave him a small nudge. "Why did you ask me to exin if you were just going to steal my spotlight?"


    "Sorry brother, but you were taking too long. Thedies might get bored and fall asleep before you could finish."


    "You take that back!"


    It seemed like the two brother''s were going to start fighting amongst themselves when Sei and Serana let out twin cries of surprise. "Oh thank goodness, you''re awake!"


    "I was so scared!"


    Near the girls, Anna was sitting up on the ground and wiping away the blood that had run down the left side of her face. "I need all of you to tell me something right now..."


    Right before the eyes of everyone present, Anna''s hair and eyes were dyed an intense and bloody red. Her tattoos normally glowed a bright purple color, but for some reason they too changed to match her hair and eyes. For some reason, the power coursing through these markings of hers seemed to be a great deal more powerful than normal. "Who the fuck... dropped a fucking building... on my motherfucking face...?"


    All of the girls here knew that Anna was significantly sweeter than her outside appearance would suggest. And after spending enough time with her, they all came to see her as a super cute teddy bear who made you want to give them endless hugs. But as of right now, that teddy bear was nowhere in sight. For the first time, Anna actually seemed like a roguish delinquent who would beat you up outside of a bad neighborhood and take all your money. The girls couldn''t do anything but silently point at the two men standing around in strange robes. "Snitches..." "I know, right?" Anna started walking on shaky legs with her fists clenched tight enough to crush bone. "Okay.... which one of you wants to die first?"


    This time, the two brothers pointed at each other as if they were offering each other up on a silver tter. "Actually, don''t worry about it ... CAUSE BOTH OF YOU SONS OF BITCHES ARE GOING TO GO TOGETHER!!!"


    Anna parted her full pink lips and a huge beam of destructive red energy shot out of her mouth. BOOOOOOOMMMMMM!!!!


    Cassius and Griffin took the st head on and flew through the air like kites with their strings cut. The two of them were sent crashing through a copsed wall over fifty yards away, and Anna doubled over as she tried to catch her breath. "I''m... not done with you bitches either... Just wait till I catch my breath... I''m gonna beat you till you shit yourselves...!"


    Her threat would have sounded significantly more frightening had she not been struggling to stay on her feet at the moment. "ANNALISE!"


    Looking up in the sky, the girls found a woman in a pantsuit with huge white wings descending onto the battlefield. The sight of so much of her daughter''s blood being spilled admittedly caused Joanne to panic, and faster than Anna''s eyes could follow she was on the ground in front of her. "M-My girl, are you okay? What happened to you..?"


    Joanne seemingly forgot all about the fact that she and her daughter weren''t exactly the closest and threw her arms around her for a protective hug. Unsure of what to do, Anna froze up like a deer in headlights and simply let this rtive stranger hug her. It only dawned on Joanne a few momentster that this gesture may have been unwanted and she started to pull away regretfully. Anna''s hands soon found their way around her mother''s back and she pulled her into her embrace. "It was just some stuff... but I''m alright now...mom." Is it too early to start watching Halloween movies or is my girl tripping?

 Chapter 147 The Super Squad Catch Bad Guys

    147 The Super Squad Catch Bad Guys


    As the rest of the girls watched Annalise hug her mother, they felt like they were intruding on a tender reunion. All of them already heard about Joanne from either Anna or Mchi, and now that they were seeing her for the first time they weren''t sure what to say to her. After all, it wasn''t everyday that you came across the head of a government agency like this. The four of them simply stood around motionlessly like they were waiting to be introduced. "Hey, so umm... Are we sure that Mchi didn''t fuck her mom too..?" Serana asked quietly. "Because now that I''m looking at her, she really seems like his type." Sei became annoyed and pinched her daughter hard on the butt to silence her. But as upset as she was, she couldn''t ignore the truth of her words. Joanne was every bit as pretty as Anna was, with a mature body and a seemingly warm yet fiery personality. She was exactly the sort of woman who Mchi would be attracted to. Inadvertently, Sei ended up making herself a bit jealous. After having an injection of Mal''s essence into her body, she and the girls shared his heightened emotions, as such they were more likely to feel these intense fits of possessiveness. For the first time, Sei waffled a bit on whether or not putting someone into an unendinga was really such a cruel thing to do. "O-Oh, umm I should introduce you." Anna suddenly pulled away from her mother and held out her hand towards the group. "These are my friends; Serana, Aisha, Aubrey, and Sei."


    Aubrey: "Hi there."


    Aisha: "It''s nice to meet you."


    Sei: "Hello.."


    Serana: "I''m her BEST friend. I shouldn''t be lumped in with these other guys, I deserve my own special ss!" Joanne wanted to say that she already knew all of these girls, due to her less than legal surveince of her daughter over the years but decided against it. She wasn''t a stalker or anything, just a concerned mother who loved her daughter very much!


    There was a difference!


    While Joanne was wrestling with the proper way to introduce herself, a rustling sound urred from within the rubble. Cassius and Griffin were significantly better off than the girls initially thought, and the only real sign of damage were their robes and face masks that had been destroyed. Cassius was revealed to be a pale looking man with cobalt blue eyes and short ck hair. On the other hand Griffin had a darkerplexion with a bald head and amber eyes. With their robes ripped, both men were standing around in tattered pants, revealing their unnaturally muscr torsos that weren''t noticeable before. "Did we stay down long enough? Seemed like all of you were having a rather tender moment and we didn''t want to interrupt." Griffin said respectfully. "We also had some mommy issues, and so we understand the significance of things like this." added Cassius. "Bro, they don''t need to know that!"


    "But they shared with us so I feel like it''s only right of us to do the same."


    "They didn''t share, we just so happened to be here!!"


    Again, it seemed like the two of them were going to get into another needless squabble when Joanne decided to act. Faster than either brother could react, she appeared in front of them and struck them thousands of times within a second, clearly infuriated over the harm done to her daughter. But when Joanne dealt thest blow, she realized that her hands were the only thing that appeared to be hurting. The bodies of the brothers were like iron, and Joanne''s hands were aching terribly from striking them so casually. Griffin and Cassius both spit outrge mouthfuls of blood before Cassius grabbed Joanne by the neck and held her in the air. "That one actually hurt. We arent supposed to be doing any fighting today but I think the leader can make an exception for this."


    Tossing Joanne high into the air, he punched her hard in the stomach before her body could hit the ground, sending her flying backwards. POW!


    "You bastards!"


    Joanne was caught by her daughter with some difficulty, and Aisha rushed at the two hulking brutes with arge axe hoisted over her shoulder. 16:46


    Instead of attacking the two men, Aisha mmed her weapon into the ground and an explosive wave of earth and malice rose up that threatened to swallow the two men whole. Cassius held up his hand like he was about to put an end to the attack without much effort when his body started to feel heavy. "Sleepy..."


    "You too..?" Griffin yawned. "I thought it was just me..."


    BOOOOOOOMMMMMMM!!!


    Once Aisha''s attack connected, a storm of dust and debris was thrown into the air that obscured the vision of the rest of the girls. Aubrey took on the role of clearing away the smoke, and when she did they found the two men lying on the ground, undamaged from Aisha''s attack but snoring lightly. "What the hell kind of weapon is that to put them to sleep...?" Joanne asked as she clutched her stomach. Aisha looked down at her axe and realized it had no such effect before turning around and finding the true culprit. Sei had both other hands held out in front of her, and her cheeks were starting to turn red like she was straining herself quite a bit. "Ummm... Joanne right? I know we''ve just met but if you''re with the dark angels then it would be great if you could make some kind of a phone call right now or something...I''m still not very proficient with these powers and these two are rather restless sleepers..."


    Joanne was looking at Sei like she''d grown a second head. In all of the reports she''d read, Sei was supposed to be an average human. Not only her, but Mchi''s sister was as well. Did they get blessed at the same time as her daughter?


    How does that even happen??


    She had thought that maybe they had beening to immortal moon so frequently because of their rtionship with Mchi, but was that really not the case?


    As she pulled out her phone to make a quick call, she decided it may be best to interrogate her daughter''s boyfriend a little further and learn why everything that happened around him seemed to be so abnormal. With the authorities being called, Serana walked up to Anna and inspected the wound on the side of her head that had yet to fully close. "Christ, Mchi is going to freak when he sees you like this... Let''s hope it heals up before he gets back."


    Anna smirked as she thought about the man she loved and a sudden realization dawned upon her. "About that... I feel like he already knows. Even though he''s not here, I can still sense his worry and anxiety that seems to be solely focused on me." n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "Oh.."


    Serana nced over her shoulder at the two sleeping men with abnormally muscr physiques. "So those two are gonna die, huh?"


    "Most likely, yes."


    -


    Just like Anna, Bianca and Luna could also sense Mchi''s anxiety over her well-being, only it was significantly stronger due to their close proximity. They couldn''t figure out exactly what had happened to him to cause this sort of episode but they knew it had to be rather serious to cause something like this. The lightning storm he had created had practically destroyed this entire area.


    Bolts of lightningrger than any they had ever seen before sent chunks of debris flying in every direction whenever theynded. And with such a downpour urring above, thend had be muddy and slippery, while puddles the size of small ponds were being created left and right. The two of them looked around for the man behind this madness and found him with one of his iklhwa buried in the side of the vampire''s neck, and another in her stomach. Nadine smiled beautifully at Mchi while seemingly oblivious to the dangerous weapons embedded in her body. He easily recognized the seductive look she was trying to give him and his irritation skyrocketed. Just as he was about to set her aze, she parted her full lips to make him an offer that he never expected. "Mister human~, is that fire giant your friend?"


    "...."


    "Not very talkative, hm? That''s alright, I think I like that even better. I only ask because if you want to undo my hypnosis on him then you cannot kill me so casually~"


    Mchi''s red eyes became significantly more unfriendly, and he dug his des just a bit deeper into her figure. "Undo it."


    "But if I do that then you won''t listen to my request! What I want is very simple actually, if you''ll only just-" "I don''t have the time for this shit."


    Opening up another portal to his shadowy domain, he pushed the vampire inside without a second thought and watched her fall into a bottomless abyss. Closing it, he shifted his focus towards the castle looming in the distance and the numerous presences he could feel lurking around inside. With his every thought focused on clearing this dungeon so that he could go back home to see Anna, he had no time to check every room until he found the boss. Instead he opted for a much more loud and direct approach in the hopes that he could flush the bastard out without wasting any more time. Holding out his hands, two palm''s full of pitch ck me sparked to life. He brought the two mes together and held them above his head. Despite the torrential downpour, the ball of fire continued to grow and grow in size until he was literally holding a miniature ck sun above his head. The temperature outside became several degrees warmer, and all eyes drifted toward Mchi''s winged back. "Knock, knock."


    Without a single ounce of hesitation, Mchi tossed the enormous ball of me at the glorious castle walls, and a fiery cmity unfolded. BOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!


    We got 9 days left till this new MK game drops and I swear it feels like it¡¯s taking forever AnathaShesha

 Chapter 148 Man or Avatar? Monster or Nightmare?

    148 Man or Avatar? Monster or Nightmare?


    When Mchi''s miniature sun collided with the castle, the explosion that followed looked like it was right out of a Hollywood blockbuster. Debris from the building and ck fames rained down everywhere, along with the smoldering corpses of the unfortunate vampires lurking inside. Mchi didn''t budge a single inch and instead stared unflinchingly into the mes as he waited for his attack to bear fruit. And sure enough, the result he was hoping for urred. A powerful aura and a monstrous voice cut through the smoldering rubble, and traveled far into the dead of night. "INGRATES! SCUM! YOU HAVE DESTROYED MY HOME!!"


    In a sh, a man appeared through the mes and made a beeline directly for Mchi. Clearly, this man was above the rest of the rabble, as he had not immediately burned to death when subjected to his powerful mes. He was a tall and powerful looking man, with deathly pale skin and short silver hair that was framed perfectly around his unnaturally handsome face. His body was covered in menacing ck armor with a red cape pping in the breeze behind his back. In one hand he held a veryrge great sword, and with the other he reached out to grab Mchi by the neck. His glowing red eyes were bright enough to burn a hole into Mchi''s head, and his mouth was filled with razor sharp fangs. "YOU!! YOU ARE THE ONE WHO HAS-"


    "Thank, fuck. It took you long enough toe out."


    "WHAT!?"


    Mchi ced one of his hands over the face of the vampire and set his head aze in ck me. After bing a fallen angel, Mal''s mes worked a bit different from normal in that they were significantly hotter and didn''t go out unless he told them to. There were likely some additional effects that he had yet to discover as well, but he needed more time to learn about them. "What is this!?"


    The vampire let Mal drop to the ground and started fanning away the mes on his face, but fell into a panic when he realized even his magic could not put them out. Then, something Mal didn''t expect happened. Instead of bothering to put out the mes, the vampire king rushed at him while still on fire. "I''LL KILL YOU!!!!"


    Raising his weapon high above his head, the vampire cleaved Mchi directly into two and split him like dry firewood. The two halves of Mal''s body ttered onto the ground harmlessly, but the fire raging across the vampire king''s face had yet to go out. The only reason he hadn''t died was because his regeneration was healing his skin almost as fast as it was being melted away. ''What is this?! Why won''t they... wait.''


    In the next moment, the vampire realized that he couldn''t smell any blood from histest victim. His vision was slightly impaired by the mes, but it did not prevent him from looking towards the ground where Mchi''s body should have been lying. It was there, but where the two halves of his body were separated, he did not find flesh and blood. Instead, he only found a swirling mass of darkness and nebs that were entirely captivating. And against all expectations, his body started to repair itself right in front of him. "By the sovereign.. what is this..?"


    Tendons of that strange darkness reached out and reconnected with each other, and they pulled the two halves of his body back together. Standing up, Mchi''s skin peeled off his body as his armor and weapons sank into the ground. The vampire took a cautious step back as he started looking at the monster in front of him with a new degree of suspicion. Mchi made a stretching movement as he tried to get used to the feeling of being cut in half and put back together. "What are you...? Why are you among the livestock if you aren''t one of them?!"


    "Livestock, huh..?" Mchi finally finished making sure everything was properly back in ce and he dropped his hands to his side harmlessly. But despite his seemingly wide open stance, he radiated a feeling of danger that caused all of the vampire king''s hairs to stand on end. Huge dark leathery wings shot out of his back, and he lunged at the starry man with new purpose. Mchi remainedpletely motionless as he conjured a pair of dark tendrils to snatch the vampire out of mid air and restrain him. He was strong, so much so that it was taking quite a bit of Mchi''s willpower to keep him restrained. The shadowstched onto the vampire king''s arms and legs while pulling in opposite directions. Panic set in for the vampire as he felt his flesh tearing and being ripped apart. "Wait, what are you doing!? They said we were supposed to work together to subjugate them until it all begins, so why are you-AAAGGHHHH!!!"


    With a wet ripping sound, all four of the man''s limbs and appendages were liberated from his body. His head and torso dropped to the ground like a sad sack of potatoes, and Mchi raised an imaginary brow in surprise. He knew that he had be significantly stronger after bing his mother''s apostle, but was it really enough to overwhelm a SSS rated boss like this?


    A sneaking suspicion started to form within his mind, and he ced a foot on the chest of the fallen vampire. "Are you the boss of this gate?"


    "The.. what??" n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "THE BOSS!!"


    "I-I don''t know what any boss is, but if you are asking if I am the ruler here then, no! Our ruler awaits in-"


    Mal didn''t need to hear anymore as his already terrible mood became even worse than before. "Useless, fucking useless..."


    Mchi stomped on the man''s head so hard that it exploded like an overgrown watermelon. Since the vampire was already having trouble regenerating the other grievous injuries he''d suffered at Mchi''s hands, his regeneration was finally starting to fall behind, and his body was immediately enveloped by the ck mes. It only took a few moments for his entire being to go up in smoke. Standing over him, Mchi was unconcerned with the magical items that sprang from his corpse and instead expanded his senses to a wider distance. What he found almost made him cry out from sheer indignation. There were five more castles located a few miles from here, with a distance of twenty miles between each of them and a few thousand presences inside. 16:47


    The sixth castle was thergest and farthest away, and even from here Mal could feel a pressure that nearly made him want to run and hide. "The fuck is this... This has to be a fucking joke..!" he said madly. All of a sudden he felt like he was having a hard time breathing, even though he had no more use for oxygen anyway. His chest began to hurt terribly, even though he no longer had any organs inside of his body. "Babe!"


    "Darling, are you alright?!"


    Bianca and Luna finally wrapped up their efforts to cut down the initial weing party of vampires and ran to Mal''s side, finding him in a terrible condition. He was doubled over clutching his chest like he was having a panic attack, even though such a thing should have been impossible. "I have to get out of here, but I can''t...! And that boss... It will take me forever to kill him on my own..!"


    "Let us help you! You don''t have to do everything by yourself!" Bianca cried. The thinking lights within Mchi''s body started to go out before he slipped farther and farther into his paranoia. "I love you girls, but you can''t fight that boss...! He could kill you in an instant and I would lose you too... just like I..."


    It wasn''t of his own volition, but ufortable memories began to surface from Mchi''s subconscious. He reyed the deaths of his mother, his father, and even his contracted beast over and over within his mind. But the tipping point was when he recalled thosest images of Anna. A girl he loved to pieces was somewhere hurt, and he couldn''t even get to her despite being able to run fast enough to break the sound barrier and teleport anywhere on the he was standing on. What the fuck was the purpose of having powers if he was always toote to save the people who mattered?! And the highers wanted him to save the whole world?? Why should he give a shit about something like that?!


    If the world was going to keep taking everything that he loved away from him, then he should just destroy it himself!


    The negativity racing through Mchi''s mind reached a never before seen level. While on his knees in front of the girls, a dark, egg-like casing swallowed up his figure. "Mal?" "What''s happening??" Bianca asked worriedly. The two girls ced their palms against the egg containing Mchi and tried to gain a glimpse into what was going on inside. Unfortunately, all they could feel was Mchi''s swirling emotions and the cool feeling of the shell on their hands. ''Girls... get away from him, right now..!'' A jolt ran up Bianca and Luna''s spines as they heard a very familiar voice in their minds. ''Miss Nyx??''


    ''What''s happening to Mal??''


    ''Girls, listen to me right now!! You have to get away from him, it''s not safe!!'' crack. A small fracture appeared on the eggshell enclosing Mchi''s figure, and the girls could see a red light starting to shine through the egg. Finally, the girls backed away hesitantly as they waited to see what would be of the man they loved. As more and more of the eggshell fell away, they gained a glimpse upon his figure but... he was not in a way that they had ever seen him. In their entire lives, they had never seen something that fit the definition of a monster so well. My stepbrother had his baby the other day and his lil boy got a chin like a cash register AnathaShesha

 Chapter 149 Food & Sex Are All A Living Nightmare Needs

    Chapter 149 Food & Sex Are All A Living Nightmare Needs


    In thergest castle that was the furthest away from Mchi and the group, there was a man sitting in a veryvish throne room. He was unnaturally handsome and regal, with a soft tannedplexion and a muscr body lying underneath a blood red robe that matched the color of his long hair. It appeared as though he was sleeping, as his arms were folded neatly across his chest and his head remained locked in a slouching position. n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    There seemed to be absolutely nothing capable of waking this otherworldly man from his deeply needed slumber. And then a chill ran through the air out of nowhere, and his violet irises shed open. The vampire blinked his eyes several times, believing that he may have been mistaken and double checked continuously to be sure, but it proved to be the same every time. "Why... is one of them here now..?" The vampire exploded into a hazy bloody mist as he vacated the confines of his throne room, rushing to find the source of his panic. -


    When the first piece of Mchi''s eggshell fell to the ground, the pressure that was released from it''s confines was utterly deplorable. Even though the humans who''de through the gate with him were several yards behind him, their minds could not handle the burden that his power ced upon them. One by one, they all started dropping like flies onto the ground, without even catching a single glimpse of the creature that was putting them there. The only ones who remained upright and conscious were Bianca and Luna. Perhaps due to their special rtionship with the one responsible, they werepletely immune to any negative effects caused by his hatching, other than a mounting amount of concern. Whatever this was... it was so negative, so hateful that it couldn''t be the man that they loved desperately. But upon searching deeply, they realized that it was indeed him. And it broke their hearts to see him like this. The final pieces of eggshell finally fell away, and a hybrid between a nightmare and a man was revealed. Standing up at its full height, it was at an unfair 7''2. Surprisingly, there was real life flesh on it''s body, and not a cheep imitation like before. The skin on the monster was entirely ck, with cracks running through it that resembled bright purple tattoos of some ancientnguage. Like in his avatar state, he had no eyes, ears, or nose. He had only a mouth of serrated teeth that hung open as a testament to the practically endless hunger it had inside. ck ws as long as kitchen knives hung out of his finger tips, looking sharp enough to cut through anything. His dreadlocks floated above his head of their own volition, making it seem like he was back in outer space with no gravity. But the most unnerving thing about this creature by far were it''s tails. Well... if you can even call them that. There were four of them, each as thick as a telephone pole and five feet in length. But the size was not what made them unnerving, it was the fact that the ends contained the heads of what appeared to be snakes. They were clearly alive and just as hungry as their main body, as their forked tongues flickered in and out of their mouths as they searched desperately for a meal. And to their delight, they found it easily! Waiting behind them was an entire smorgasbord of delicious morsels that were lying on the ground like they were just begging to be eaten!!


    This was only his first day alive, and yet he was already the happiest that he had ever been!!


    He took one step out of his broken eggshell and reappeared in the center of the mass of sleeping bodies. His sights were set on the sleeping Enzo who had fallen asleep face first in the dirt. The nightmare grabbed the sleeping man by the back of his neck and lifted him so that they were eye level. He opened his mouth wide enough to chomp half of his face off in a single bite, when he felt a strange voice enter his mind. It was female, mature, and very desperate. He paused to think of where he could have possibly heard this voice before, but he couldn''t think of anything. And why was she calling him her son? What was a son??


    Did she mean that big annoying thing in the sky???


    The nightmare took one of his long ws and stabbed himself in the side of the head. It literally began to scratch it''s own rubbery brain in the hopes of jogging it''s memory but it proved to be to no avail. ...Oh well, time to eat! Just as the nightmare''s tails prepared to bite through Enzo''s armor like crystallized sugar, he received another dinner interruption. "Wait!!" A small pair of arms threw themselves around his waist, uncaring of the monstrous serpent-like appendagesing out of his lower back. Like a scene out of a horror film, the nightmare turned it''s head around an entire 180 degrees and looked down at it''s assant. There were two female humans behind it. Both of them had water running from their eyes and seemed to be in a state of panic. He could not taste any fear from them, but there was a lot of distress and worry. For some reason, he did not like the vor of those things very much at all. The female that had glued herself to him had brown skin, and she had big doe eyes like pools of gold that slightly mesmerized him. "Mchi baby, I-I need you to put Mr. Enzo down calm down, okay? We... we''re going to go for a little walk or something...!" By this point, Bianca would have said anything to get her boyfriend to calm down. She didn''t have any real n or thought process behind this decision, but she knew that they had to stop him from literally taking a bite out of a famous guild master. Luna also stepped forward and ced one of her hands on his warm back. "Please listen to us, darling. We just want you to hurry and be yourself again... I know that you can feel how much we love you, so please juste with us..." "..."


    The creature remained motionless as it''s vision flickered back and forth between the two girls. He thought they were weird. He didn''t understand why their faces were leaking or why he liked it when they touched him, but the sensations were in his mind all the same. Dropping the human to the ground, he turned around and squatted so that he could be eye level with the two of them. The longer he looked at them, the more he started to feel really funny inside. It was rather different from his feeling of hunger, as it came from significantly lower and filled his body with warmth instead of irritation. He wasn''t quite sure what to make of it. Two of his serpent tails slithered out, and used their long pink tongues to lick the water running down the faces of the girls. They shivered a bit, but they did not pull away. They truly were not scared of him. His tails shared the taste of the girls'' tears with him, and it was as if a light switch was finally flipped in his brain. "Kyaaa!"


    "W-Wait..!" Before either of the girls knew what was happening, the creature had pushed them onto the ground and loomed his body over them. Neither of them knew what was happening, but a ratherrge tent in his ruined pants quickly gave Luna some inclination. "Y-You must be joking..! Here??" "What?? What is he joking about?!" Bianca had yet to see the rather prominent hard on that was mere seconds away from bursting out of his pants. Luna pointed down shyly, and Bianca''s eyes nearly leapt out of her skull. "W-We can''t have our first time like this..! If it''ll help you calm down then just use Luna!" said Bianca. "Why''re you offering me up on a silver tter?!" She cried. "He belongs to both of us, so we should share the responsibility if anything!" "He will literally destroy my pussy!" "You have A-rank healing, you can practically grow a new one!" Luna reminded. "I know it''s not ideal but if this can help him in any way then we have to try!"


    Bianca gulped nervously as she looked up at the monster breathing heavily above her. She knew that this experience was likely going to hurt like hell, as she was a virgin and Mchi was even bigger than normal. He wasn''t going to be in any kind of state to be gentle with her, and she was likely going to be getting around in a wheelchair after this. And yet if it meant that Mchi mighte back to normal, she thought it might be worth it. "I... really hope everyone stays asleep.."


    "..As do I." Their minds made up, the two girls dropped their hands to the waistbands of their pants and started to pull them off. They had only just began undressing when there was a whooshing sound heard above them, and the pressure within the air increased tenfold. The nightmare, Bianca, and Luna all looked up into the sky and found a man floating there silently. He hadn''t even done anything but shown up, and the girls were already on the verge of pissing themselves. The vampire sovereign locked his gaze firmly onto the monster hovering above the two women. He honestly had no idea what he was looking at. This thing felt so much like one of those creatures... and yet it wasn''t one. Or was it? He had only ever seen three, but none of them came this small or had this humanoid of a figure. "Perhaps you are a baby..? Or a runt of the litter?" He wondered aloud. The nightmare stood up off the ground and stared up at this new intruder who had appeared. He was only mildly bothered that his breeding time was interrupted, as he was significantly more excited by another fact. This one was strong! And because he was strong he was full of magic! And because he was full of magic he would be fucking delicious!!


    The hunger that he had forgotten about with the arrival of the girls was now back with a vengeance. Somehow, the vampire sovereign recognized that he was being looked at as prey and a frown formed on his face. "Your kind promised us that-" Crackle. In a sh of ck lightning, the nightmare disappeared from his ce on the ground and reappeared in the air behind the boss. Because he was caught off guard, the vampire waspletely unprepared as two of the nightmare''s serpentine tails bit into his shoulder des.

 Chapter 150 Why Nightmares Are Feared

    Chapter 150 Why Nightmares Are Feared


    A growl of pain mingled with irritation escaped the lips of the vampire as recurved teeth as long as spearheads burrowed into his flesh. The vampire sovereign felt a nasty poison coursing through his ancient bloodstream and knew that he had to get out of this thing''s clutches before it was toote. Once again, the vampire exploded into a bloody mist and reappeared behind the nightmare. Grabbing him by a wed foot, the sovereign hurled him into the distance. CRASH! The nightmare crashnded through a stained ss window, and bounced off the floor before rolling to a stop at the foot of someone''s throne. "W-Why is one here?!" "S-Stay beside me girls, this one''s clearly below the rest of them." "Why is this happening!?" Looking up, the nightmare realized that it had been thrown clear into the throne room of another vampire noble. A man was sitting on some kind of shiny chair with two panicked women sitting on hisp. This entire ce was so noisy... but he knew just how to fix that. Dark ck electricity began to run along his entire body as he shed the three vampires a sinister smile. -


    The vampire sovereign was flying towards the home of one of his nobles when he felt a chilling bolt of electricity shoot through his spine. And then... one dropped from the sky as well. BOOOOOOMMMMMMM!!!


    An enormous bolt of ck lightning fell down onto the castle and blew the entire structure apart. The only remainder of the once proud vampire home were the charred bodies lying amongst the rubble. The vampire remained unconcerned with the dust and debris flying into his face as he remained focused on another fact. "What ... are you..?" He said in genuine confusion. The sovereign knew the abilities of these nightmares very well. Their powers had a distinct felling of negativity that seemedto be inescapable and filled sentient creatures with terrible helplessness and dread. Thatst attack was certainly fearsome, but there was something wrong about it. Something that was almost... godly. His eyes scanned the wreckage for the culprit and he found him; munching on the head of what appeared to be the concubines of one of his nobles. Before he could think of what to do next, he sensed arge number of his brethren approaching. Coming from the west, his remaining three nobles were being trailed by arge number of their soldiers. "Sire!"


    "Was that your attack?"


    "I heard it all the way form my bed chambers!"


    The sovereign shook his head as he felt his body start to heat up from the poison he''d been subjected to. "It was not mine, no.... We have had a guest." He said nonchntly. The sovereign pointed down towards the currently munching nightmare and his nobles sucked their teeth in. "That.. is one of them, correct?" One asked. "I am not entirely sure... It pays no heed to my words, nor does it seem to be capable of speaking. It is akin to a wild animal."


    "Then... what are we going to do..?"


    The nightmare finally finished it''s appetizer and looked up at the sovereign like it was ready for it''s main dish. "...Subdue him." He ordered. "I believe that he might be rather interested to learn of this one''s existence." n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "But how are we supposed to-"


    "By any means necessary."


    Before any of the vampires could carry out his order, the nightmare acted first. Opening up the mouths on all four of it''s tails, the creature fired individual beams of what felt like concentrated heat and malice. Anticipating a very real sense of danger, the vampire sovereign flew above the attack and meticulously avoided any stray beams. His underlings however were not so lucky. The nightmare''s beams were something like highly corrosive sma, burning up the bodies of the vampires and giving them the most painful death imaginable for their kind. It must be noted that the nightmare wasn''t actually trying to hit any of them. His beams were focused on shooting down the sovereign but the rest were getting in the way. "Subdue him!"


    "For the blood sovereign!"


    A swarm of vampires rushed at Mal from every angle, looking to force him onto the ground and subdue him by any kind of avable method. The nightmare was pelted with multiple projectiles, some made of ice, others of blood, and a few were even made from patches of the earth. He allowed these projectiles to pierce, burn, or bludgeon him without any real regard for his own safety and it was unknown whether these attacks actually caused him any pain. But they eventually must have turned into quite a hassle, cause he decided that he was done ying around with them. Shadowy constructs arose from the ground around the creature. Taking the form of enormous ck hands, they easily caught tens of vampires by the fistful and either squeezed them to death or simply smashed them into the ground. Once all the flies had been swatted away, the nightmare resumed looking around for the morsel he was sure would be the most delicious. However no matter how far he searched, he couldn''t find him anywhere near him. Stab!


    Looking down, the nightmare found a fist buried in his gut. The hand of the vampire sovereign quickly found what should have been the spine of this monstrous being, and sent pulses of icy energy through his palm. Starting with his stomach, the creature''s body began to freeze from the inside out, in the hopes of immobilizing it. As far as he knew, there was no way to kill one of these things. But if he could manage to seed in halting it''s movement, then he could hold it until he could get in contact with the dark one. It seemed like his n was working out rather well so far, when a sudden feeling of weakness nearly knocked him onto his butt. ''...No, not now..!''


    The nightmare venom was bing more inconvenient with every jerking motion or use of his magic would only worsen the effects. Even now, his nose and eyes were beginning to bleed as he continued trying to freeze the creature. Somehow, this had turned into a test of endurance. If he wanted to seed and have a hope of survival, he had to endure this challenge long enough for the nightmare to sumb to being frozen solid. However, it did not seem like he was going to get his wish. While the nightmare did look like it was having a hard time for a few moments, that may have all been an act. The nightmare suddenly reached out and grabbed the vampire by the face, digging it''s dark ws into his flesh. By now, the vampire couldn''t even teleport away as he''d been doing for the bulk of this fight. Panic began to set in as the vampire tried and failed to pull away due to his adversary''s formidable strength. Once again, all four of his mouths but into the vampire''s body and he felt his vision beginning to darken. Opening it''s mouth wide, the nightmare positioned it''s teeth over the boss'' skull and bit down hard. Snapping, cracking, and crunching sounds could be heard as the creature dined on the head of it''s enemy. As it expected, he tasted so wonderful that he wasn''t sure how he''d ever gone without it before. But the best part of his meal was still toe. After eating around half of the corpse, an invigorating energy coursed through his entire being, that eventually gave way to extreme drowsiness. -


    Bianca and Luna had to run on foot to try to reach the area where Mchi was thrown. They would have used Shiro, but it was as if the young fox could sense the malicious energy in the air, and she absolutely refused toe out. And when the girls finally found the man they were looking for, they could see why. Mchi was standing still in an utter wastnd, eating the corpse of some unfortunate vampire. Around him were enough blood stains to make someone''s head spin, and what seemed like a ruined castle underneath him. "He did all of this..?" Luna muttered as she looked at the damage. "It would seem like it...but somehow I don''t feel like he was really trying." Reasoned Bianca. That was a scary thought to imagine. If this form of Mchi''s was capable of effectively clearing a SSS rated dungeon alone without even trying, then what on earth could it aplish when it was angry?


    Suddenly, the girls watched as the nightmare finally finished eating and wobbled a bit before falling over outright. Concerned, they tried to run to his side when they realized their bodies were starting to feel heavy too. They had only taken a few steps before the both of them fell over onto the ground, mere inches away from Mal''s monstrous figure. They tried to fight the overwhelming drowsiness and keep their eyes open, but eventually this proved to be easier said than done and the two of them fell asleep right beside each other.

 Chapter 151 It’s Over? Foreal?

    Chapter 151 It¡¯s Over? Foreal?


    "Easy now! Be careful of their heads." "This is crazy... did they really clear the boss by themselves after we got knocked out??" "That would be the logical conclusion but... they don''t have anything on them but dirt and a couple of scratches." The members of Immortal Moon were absolutely stunned by the current state of three of their members. After they woke up from their impromptu nap, they found a destroyed battlefield awaiting them along with a now empty gate. Confused about what could have put them all to sleep so easily, they went searching for answers, yet only found only more questions. Corpses and dungeon drops were literally everywhere, and all of these valuable materials seemed to bepletely uncared for. In a stretch ofnd almost two miles away, the group found three members of immortal moon sleeping nonchntly on the ground, just as they had been before. The only difference being that this time there seemed to be nothing that could be done to wake the three of them. With minimal difficulty, the three of them were picked up by their fellow guild members and carried out like backpacks. "This is weird... Mal''s body feels really light."


    Opal had taken the responsibility of carrying her friend on her back, but she couldn''t help but notice how it was significantly less difficult than it should have been. "Well you do have super strength after all."


    "Yea but... this doesn''t feel like me though."


    At well over six feet tall and with a body that was packed with lean and explosive muscles, Mchi should have weighed at least two hundred pounds. As of now he just felt...somewhat weightless. The girls finally crossed the gate threshold and entered back into their world. As of right now, it was around 9:27 pm and the sky was alight with stars. "Alright, let''s get them back to the -"


    *Gasp.*


    No more than a few seconds after passing through the gate, Bianca and Luna woke up and sucked in a needed breath of air.


    And a few momentster, Mchi''s eyes shed open as well. "Aww! They even wake up together, that''s cute!"


    "I think it might be a little creepy actually."


    "Yea well, that is why you''re single."


    Mchi groggily looked around and realized that he was back in the outside world. However this.. didn''t make any sense. "What the hell is going on...? Why are we back outside and why is Opal giving me a piggyback ride??"


    "Cause the gate is cleared and I''m the only one who was going to carry you without groping you?"


    Mchi had never been drunk before, but he rubbed his head like he was having the worst hangover of his life. On his right side, Luna was on Nina''s back and on his left Bianca was with another guild member. They didn''t seem to be as confused as he was, but they looked just as tired. "Ah, you three are awake!" n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Moving through the closely knitted group was the leader of the world''s number one guild; Enzo. He wasn''t sure whether or not he should make a beeline for Luna or Mchi first but eventually he decided to address the both of them. "What happened?? What were you doing while we were all passed out?? And what even happened to us in the first ce??"


    He usually wasn''t one to pry, but he needed answers. Over sixty men and women had fainted at the same time in the same ce without even knowing what put them there. To make things even more unbelievable, three had managed to somehow stay awake, AND defeat the remaining forces inside of the gate. Things like that don''t just happen. No matter how tenacious or talented one might be. Mchi rubbed his head as he climbed down from Opal''s back; desperately trying to recall the events that led up to his impromptu nap. It felt like the more he tried to remember, the greater a headache that he gave himself. But there was one thing that he remembered that was more important than any of that nonsense right now. "Anna!"


    Mchi''s eyes went wide as he quickly located all of his guild members nearby. "Girls, we''re leaving now!"


    He snapped his fingers and all twenty five members of immortal moon sank into the shadows around them. Enzo stared gobsmacked at the ce where Mchi and his guild members were standing a mere moment ago. Usually he was quite good at talking, but for some reason he felt like he was never able to get a word in edgewise when it came to that young man. He didn''t typically like taking trips to America but... he felt that it may have been necessary this time around. -


    Mchi sent the girls from the guild to their individual homes while he, Bianca, and Luna honed in on Anna''s location. He was initially quite surprised when he realized where she was, and believed that he may have ben mistaken. But as he appeared in his apartment, he found her, Sei, Aubrey, Serana, Joanne, and Aisha sitting on the couch, happily eating chicken wings and watching a big fight on tv. "You''re back!"


    "Are you alright??"


    Sei and Anna immediately wiped their faces of lingering wing sauce and ran up to hug him, oblivious of his stunned look. He kissed them both softly before he inevitably cupped Anna''s face into his hands and started checking her face for wounds. But no matter how hard he looked, he couldn''t find anything. Her face was just as gorgeous and wless as it always was. "But I was so sure, I..."


    Anna reveled in the feeling of Mchi''s touch while inwardly worried about how he would break the news of what happened earlier today. "About that... promise me that you won''t go running off and trying to kill anybody."


    "..."


    "..."


    "...I promise that I won''t run."


    "BABE!"


    "I got it, I got it... I promise, love, now tell me what happened."


    Anna took a deep breath as she ave Mchi aplete rundown of everything that had happened earlier in the day. She told them about the destruction of the world''s top five guilds, as well as how they got attacked for being in the wrong ce at the wrong time. Sei was rather proud of herself, so she told Mal about how she kept the bad guys apprehended with her powers until the authorities arrived to transport them to Tartarus. When the entire story was over with, Anna said nothing and she waited for Mal''s reaction. She and all of his other girlfriends could feel his emotions go up and down like a turbulent roller coaster before he even said anything. "I''m... just d you''re good. Nothing else really matters to me."


    He pulled her in for a tight embrace that seemed like he was trying to absorb her flesh into his. No matter how hard he tried, he didn''t believe he would ever forget the terror and panic that ran through his being when he thought he may have lost another person in his life. For a moment, he actually regretted asking his mother for her help getting the girls blessed. After all, if they didn''t have powers then they also would never have been in danger today. But now that he was feeling significantly more clearheaded, he was d that they had them. They were proving everyday that they were strong and capable, and that they could take care of themselves without him running home to save them. He had to put more trust in them... especially since they were all he had. "The guild''s really been destroyed..."


    Mchi looked back at Luna who was scrolling through news updates on her phone with a shocked face. He couldn''t imagine how hurt and taken aback she must have been, especially since she literally worked her fingers to the bone to get the ce afloat. Releasing Anna, he immediately went to Luna''s side and took her hand in his.


    "Mei... I''m sorry."


    She smiled sheepishly at his gesture before tucking her phone away, realizing they had more pressing matters at the moment. "Ah well, it''s just a building and they can always be rebuilt. But for now, can youe to the bedroom with us? There''s something we need to talk to you about."


    Mchi wasn''t expecting for Luna to get over the destruction of her building so quickly, and nodded absentmindedly as she pulled him by the hand to the bedroom. "You guys aren''t gonna speak to the rest of us?! Just have a lovey lovey reunion and go fuck?!" Serana screamed. "We''re not having sex, Serana." Luna reassured. "We just need to talk with him about something private and we''ll be back in a moment."


    None of the other girls looked like they believed that, and they watched the backs of all five of them slip into the bedroom and close the door. "I give it five minutes before we start hearing moans." Aisha said annoyedly. "I dunno, Luna seemed pretty pent up so it might be three?" guessed Aubrey. "If I hear my mom so much as giggle I am going to stick my finger down my throat and throw up in front of their door."


    Joanne was the only one looking around at all three girls like they were saying something absurd. "You girls are joking, right? They wouldn''t do something like that with all of us here."


    "...."


    "..."


    "..."


    "...Would they...?"


    The girls decided to exercise their fifth amendment right and not say anything about just how much they had heard living in this apartment. "Pass the ranch."


    "Bleu cheese is superior, but sure."


    "You''re such an anarchist."


    As Joanne watched the girls continue eating wings like it was no big deal, she kept looking at the room down the hall out of the corner of her eye. She silently prayed that she would not hear any strange noisesing from that room, lest she never be able to look her daughter in the face ever again.

 Chapter 152 A New Promise

    Chapter 152 A New Promise


    Unsurprisingly, what Luna wanted to talk about was Mal''s behavior in the gate. Mchi was a grown man and it wasn''t often that she felt the need to advise him on anything, and yet today was one of those days. In the confines of the bedroom, she and Bianca discussed with all of them what happened when Mchi underwent his assumed anxiety attack inside the gate.


    They detailed it all, from the strange egg-like casing he sealed himself in, to the strange and frightening creature he became when he emerged. Even how he''d almost taken a bite out of Enzo and the other guild members after knocking them all out with his pressure alone. But that wasn''t the most surprising thing about their story.


    After bing the avatar of night, Mchi was strong.


    However, he was in no way strong enough to clear a SSS rated gate on his own in under twenty minutes. It was insane. Nonsensical even. He wouldn''t have believed it if it weren''ting directly from the mouths of Luna and Bianca. "Did I hurt either of you..?" He asked.


    Luna and Bianca both shook their heads no, but Bianca''s cheeks admittedly became hot when he remembered how he pushed them down. She elected not to tell him about how they almost had their first time inside of a gate as she wanted to save him the shame of doing it and herself the embarrassment of admitting that she almost went through with it. "You didn''t hurt us, you actually seemed to recognize us if only a little." Luna said. Mchi wondered if the reason why he recognized the girls was because they had a bit of his essence inside of them. And if they didn''t... he shuddered to think of what could have happened to them. Before he could fall too deep into his self loathing, Luna climbed on top of them and took his face in her hands. Her eyes were gentle and contained unparalleled concern and affection. "Darling... Do you know why I love you so much?"


    "...Nah.. still trying to figure that out." He admitted. "It is because you are the most gentle and loving person that I have ever known. No matter what you have suffered through in the past you have always remained the samepassionate man."


    Just to make this moment a bit more tender, she pressed her lips against his forehead and let them linger there as she spoke to him. "I know that you love all of us so much that it hurts, and you should know that we all feel the same way about you. But we cannot be the reason why you lose yourself and be someone vengeful."


    Luna would never be able to forget the few moments before Mchi changed. She could literally feel his entire being drowning in worry, hatred, and negativity. That wasn''t the man she loved. And it practically broke her heart to see him be someone like that. "You always say that you''ll do whatever we ask of you, yes? Then I need you to make all of us a promise right now." "...Name it."


    "No matter what happens, you cannot let the world harden your heart again. You are the most powerful man alive, so that means that you have to be that much more mindful of how you deal with adversity. I don''t want you to be someone the world has to fear every time one of us gets a little scratch. I want you to always be the man who is unconditionallypassionate, and looks out for those in need above all."


    As of this moment, Luna may as well have been asking Mal to give her the moon. How could he not react if something happened to these girls?


    How was he supposed to just keep a smile on his face and keep moving?


    Not just them, but if anything happened to his sister, or his best friends, or even one of the other girls at the guild, he felt like would go absolutely ballistic. And who could me him??


    He was already so tired of loss that the slightest danger aimed at someone he loved was enough to send him off the deep end.


    But the more he thought about it, he realized that therein lie her point. Mchi almost ate people today. Innocent, kind people who had never done a single thing to him were almost taking up permanent residence inside his stomach, and he didn''t even remember it. All because he was overwhelmed with the fear that he might lose Anna, and a rage that wanted to make the whole world pay for her loss. That wasn''t healthy. Luna was right; he had to get control of himself before another incident like this took ce in the future, and he destroyed the world before the other nightmares even got a chance to. At his core, he was a good person who didn''t want to cause any harm. It wasn''t in his character. And he couldn''t let the world change that about him... no matter what obstacles he may end up facing. Looking around, he could see Sei, Bianca, and Luna all giving him the same concerned eyes. Even though Luna had been the only one talking this whole time, it was clear that they all felt the same way as her. Mchi fell backwards onto his bed and let his arms flop to his sidezily. There was a strange sense of relief in his chest, like a weight had just been removed. Maybe it was because now, he knew exactly what he had to do. "I won''t promise you that I would just be the same if anything happened to any of you, cause I know that would be a lie. But I can atleast promise you that I won''t be that monster again. But I can promise you that I''ll work more on getting these new emotions under control, so that I''ll always be able to pick myself back up."


    Visible relief could be seen on Luna and all of the girls faces. Mchi always kept the promises with them no matter how absurd they may have been. And now, they were more than confident that this one would be much the same. His bold promise caused all the girls to promptly dive on top of him and smother his face with kisses. It was a very sweet moment, and it reaffirmed hismitment to keeping the girls happy by not losing himself. Somewhere deep inside, there was a perfect bnce that he need only work to find. But if it meant these girls would keep smiling, he would work as hard as he needed to. - That night, after the grouping back from the gate got showered and changed, they came out to join the rest of the guests in the living room. There were a medley of strange looks being thrown their way, almost as if they couldn''t believe they didn''t hear any moaninging from their room. The rest of the night was spent in good spirits andmunity, with lots ofughter and jokes being thrown out casually, along with a few shared stories for Joanne who became something of a neer to the group. But despite that, Mal couldn''t figure out why hefelt like he was forgetting something. This feeling persisted all the way through the dead of night, where he and the girls were lying in bed trying to go to sleep. After all of the girls were snoring lightly, he sat up on the bed when he finally remembered the guests he''d had in storage. "Fuck... Morgan." Slipping out of bed, he started pulling on his clothes in the darkness while trying not to make a sound. However, Sei''s eyes shed open not long after he started getting dressed, and she also pulled herself out of bed. "Are you going somewhere, honey?" She whispered. "Yea I... have something that I sort of need to deal with." Sei did not ask any further questions and moved towards her dresser, where she also started to get dressed as quietly as possible. "What are you doing, love? Get back in bed, I''ll be back in a few minutes." "I want toe with you." Mchi had literally juste back from an entirely different world while she spent all day worrying about him. She didn''t want to be apart from him any more if she didn''t absolutely have to. Besides, a part of her blessing from Hypnos meant that she didn''t actually require sleep. It was more like a luxury that helped her to rx and pass the time when it was dark. Mchi stared at her back as she pulled a sweater and jogging pants over her body and let out a defeated sigh.


    He already knew that there was no changing her mind, so he thought of a way to have a bit of fun while the world around them was still sleeping. "Alright then, since we''re going out let''s make it a little date night, hm?"


    Finally finished getting ready, she showed him the enchanting smile of a mature woman as she took his hand in hers.


    "That sounds very nice. Where are we going?"


    Mal pulled on a ck hoodie over his bare chest and zipped it up halfway before taking his girlfriend''s hand in his. "I have to run an errand first but afterwards, we can go wherever you want." N?v(el)B\\jnn


    -


    Currently, Mchi and Sei were standing side by side in the backyard of Morgan''s multi million dor mansion. He held out his hand and a portal of darkness opened up in the sky, and a woman fell out onto her butt. "Ow! You could be a little more gentle with me, don''t you think so, handsome?"


    Mchi suddenly felt Sei''s grip on his hand tighten to an unfunny degree. He always forgot how strong she was now that she was blessed, but this was a very loud and dangerous reminder. ncing at her, he could see her staring holes into his head wearing a smile that was not a smile on her face. "Honey... who is this bitch?"

 Chapter 153 Married??

    Chapter 153 Married??


    "Honey... who is this bitch?"


    Mchi found Sei''s jealous look to be incredibly sexy and he was unsure of just how far he should let this act of hers persist. Evidently, he did not do a very good job of concealing his thoughts as Sei''s cheeks suddenly turned pink and she covered up her breasts in a protective manner. "I-I''m not having sex with you anymore if you don''t tell me!"


    "You don''t even sound like you believe that."


    "Mchi!"


    "Alright, alright. "


    Mchi pulled the mature beauty back into his arms and ignored her look of murderous rage. "This is... actually, I don''t know who the hell she is.


    "I''m Nadine!" she said happily. "Don''t care." Mchi continued. "But she''s a vampire who enved Morgan in the dungeon and she had some shady demands.


    I would have dealt with her back then but I thought Anna was hurt and I didn''t have the time so I stuck her in the shadow realm and-"


    "Are you referring to your storage space as the shadow realm now?" Sei asked usingly. "Yea, you don''t like it?"


    "It''s fine but I know you stole it from that silly card game that you and Aisha like."


    "Can you prove that?"


    "Fufufu~ I guess not."


    Mchi nodded, grateful that his secret was still safe and sound within the confines of his mind. "Anyway, she made it seem like just killing her wouldn''t help free him so I had to take her with me."


    Sei felt like she was nursing a migraine and rubbed her head like she was trying to wipe away years of exhaustion. "Honey... have you stopped to consider how absurd it is that you walked out of a dungeon with a monster instead of any drops..?"


    "...No?"


    The drops wold be collected and divided before they were sent to a warehouse owned by Luna, and it wasn''t really like he had taken Nadine because he wanted to keep her as a pet. Why was that so absurd?


    Sei seemed to find his look of genuine confusion just the slightest bit cute and she quickly forgot why she was feeling upset.


    But as soon as she looked at the bewitching vampire for a second time, she quickly remembered the reason why.


    She was just too pretty and threatening. Nadine hadn''t even really said anything yet, and Sei already didn''t like her. Nadine finally picked herself up from the ground and dusted off herrge bottom. "You know if she''s not going to have sex with you, I am more than interested~"


    Now Sei REALLY didn''t like her. She held Mchi a bit more possessively as she scowled at the beauty from another world. Nadine smirked as she saw this and dragged her gaze up and down both of their bodies. "Don''t be like that, we can share him! I can even-"


    "Can you stop fucking with me and just tell me what you want?" All that Mchi cared about was getting Morgan from underneath this woman''s thumb. Anything else was unnecessary and quite frankly a real headache. He was just d that Anna wasn''t here. With her short temper and rampant jealousy, she would''ve started beating this bitch already. Nadine pouted slightly as if she couldn''t believe she was failing to seduce the two of them. "What, you don''t like me?"


    "Youpelled a friend of mine and made him murder innocent people. The fuck do you think?"


    "Yea well, you and your friends probably murdered my friends and husband judging by the fact that you''re still standing here, so can''t we just call it even?"


    Pushing her luck, Nadine inched closer to Mchi and ced her hand on his chest. Seconds before it was swatted away by Sei, she felt something criminally unusual from within his body. "You... don''t have a heartbeat?What exactly are you?"


    Ignoring her, Mchi remained stone faced and focused on rescuing Morgan. "I want you to let him go."


    Smirking, Nadine folded her arms across herrge chest. "And I will, as long as you marry me."


    The way that Mal and Sei''s mouths fell open at the exact same time was utterlyical. Neither of them really knew what to say to Nadine''s proposal that camepletely out of left field. All they could do was stare at her like she''d grown a second head. "You''re insane."


    "You''re out of your rabbit ass mind."


    "The two of you are so mean!" Nadine cried. "You killed my old husband, so now you should be my new one! That''spletely fair!"


    ""The hell it is!""


    "Why!?"


    "Cause you''re ckmailing him!" Sei reasoned. "I prefer to think of it as being a shrewd negotiator though?"


    "I couldn''t give a fuck what you prefer!"


    All of this yelling had alerted the attentions the actual residents of this home. Crystal and Emilia were both in silk robes and night gowns with their hair tied up like they were ready for bed. Their eyes were red and puffy like they''d been crying a lot, and they looked so exhausted like they had lost years off their life force in one night. "Mchi...? W-Who are these women and why are you in our backyard..?" Emilia asked. "Ah... about that."


    It took Mal a total of five minutes to tell Morgan''s wives everything about why he was there and that he wasn''t justwith random women. In retrospect, he should have introduced Sei first instead of Nadine, because as soon as he told them about the pale blonde woman they lunged at her like they were going to kill her. "You bitch!"


    "Give us our husband back!"


    Mchi had to catch the girls with his telekinesis and held them in the air so that they didn''t get themselves killed, but that didn''t stop them from wing at her like they were going to tear her eyes out. Earlier today, they received a notice that Morgan was reported missing inside the dungeon after going crazy and attacking everyone. Obviously they feared the worst, and the two of them had spent the entire night crying their little hearts out at the loss of the man they loved. And now they were learning that their beloved Morgan wasn''t dead, just chilling in the shadow realm while Mal tried to get his brain unscrewed by a ditzy vampire. But now, he had an entirely different ordeal on his hands. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    One that came in the form of controlling Morgan''s hotheaded wives who were unafraid of the charming monster. "How could you do that to him!?"


    "I''ll beat you with a fucking coat hanger!!"


    Mal smiled wryly as he tried to prevent these nice women from getting themselves killed by a SSS rated monster."Heydies, can the two of you just-"


    "Bloodsucking bitch!"


    "Dirty hoe!"


    Sighing in defeat, Mchi gave Sei a small nudge as a signal for her to take over. Her eyes glowed silver for a few seconds, and Emilia and Crystal''s bodies both started to be heavy. When they were snoring lightly in the air, Mchi gave her a grateful kiss on the cheek and butt squeeze before returning his focus towards Nadine. Surprisingly, she didn''t seem to be bothered by the insults of the two and she was even pinching their cheeks like she found them rather cute. "These two are so fiery. I can tell that they are good wives."


    Looking back at Mchi, she shed him a smile that would have made most men weak in the knees. "I could be as good of a wife to you as they are to their husband. Does that truly sound so bad?"


    "....Yes."


    "Ohe on!"


    Mchi would not change his mind for anything in the world. He didn''t have eyes for any women other than the ones he already had, least of all a literal vampire who could wreak all kinds of havoc on this world. Even now, he was silently thinking up ways to kill her after he freed Morgan. Sunlight was a nice choice but he didn''t really like it either, so he silently decided to choke her to death with the leftover garlic parmesan wings they had at home. Assuming that those myths actually worked that is. Nadine seemed to recognize that she wasn''t getting anywhere and sat crosslegged on the ground as she began to think up a new strategy. ''Hmmm.... he really seems like he has no interest in me.''


    ''That makes him even more perfect!''


    ''Hmmm.... he really seems like he has no interest in me.''


    ''That makes him even more perfect!''


    ''Those eyes that are filled with contempt are so different from that other man''s, I just have to have him!''


    ''I have to think of a new way to y this, one that guarantee''s that he''ll let me live long enough to woo him and get into his pants!''


    Scratching her head, she wracked her brain for several seconds as she tried to think of any possible method that would result in her desired oue. After thinking hard enough for smoke toe out of her ears, she finally seemed to reach a conclusion that caused her to let out a happy giggle. Standing back up, she started inching closer to Mchi once agin. "Alright then, handsome, we don''t have to get married right now-"


    ""Not ever.""


    "Sure, sure." She said with a shrug. "I have something that might be even better in mind for us. Would you like to hear it?"

 Chapter 154 It’s Happening

    Chapter 154 It¡¯s Happening


    A fiery giant appeared on the green grass within Morgan''s backyard, and blinked its eyes several times as it tried to get used to the sensation of light in it''s eyes. "Yo."


    Looking up, he found a handsome young man with a rich brown skin and dreadlocks standing beside an equally attractive older woman with a gentle aura.


    Also standing outside were his two wives, who were staring at him with overjoyed eyes. "Morgan!"


    "Darling!"


    Both Crystal and Emilia rushed to tackle their husband as soon as they saw him up and alert. This joyful reunion was wonderful enough to bring tears to the eyes of even the most stone hearted of men. Morgan didn''t seem to know why his wives were so emotional over seeing him, but he returned their embraces nheless. Finally, he remembered hisst moments in the gate before he spent hours in that world of darkness. Falling to his knees, his hands immediately went to his head as he became overwhelmed with grief. "Ere... Logan... by the gods, what have I done...?"


    He could still remember the feeling of holding their lives in his hands as he engulfed all three of their bodies in smoldering me the likes of which they had no hope to survive in. That was no mere dream; he''d truly killed those men. Emilia and Crystal also came to his side, and tried to reassure him that he''d done nothing wrong. "Morgan, it wasn''t your fault!"


    "That''s right, Mchi told us everything already and we know that you were under a vampire''s control!"


    Morgan didn''t really seem as if his guilt had been alleviated by the words of his wives, no matter how much they consoled him. He looked up at Mchi like he was still searching for answers. "That monster, what happened to it? How many did we lose inside the gate??"


    Mchi shook his head and took a knee before Morgan and ced his hand on his shoulder. "Please man, don''t worry about that right now. You can look at the reports and stuff after you''ve rested and gotten yourself together." Mal immediately stood up, as this situation wasn''t one that he was willing topromise on. He went back towards Sei and took her hand while waving the three of them goodbye. "Lad."


    Looking back over his shoulder, Mchi was having difficulty meeting Morgan''s eyes. Almost as if he knew what he was going to ask. "That vampire... you killed her, yes?"


    "...She''ll never hurt anybody ever again."


    "Thank you,d. You''re a good man."


    For the first time ever, Morgan saw a strange and ufortable smile cross Mchi''s face. Unfortunately, he lost the chance to ask him about it when the couple sank into the ground, and vanished from his backyard. -


    Sei and Mchi ended up on a beach in the dead of night. It wasn''t really a nned decision, but this was the space that seemed to call out to them the most. The mood wasn''t necessarily tense, but neither of them were saying anything. Sei was continuously watching Mchi out of the corner of his eye, and monitoring his behavior. As one might have guessed, he really didn''t kill the vampire that was responsible for controlling Morgan. She proposed an alternative to marriage that would not only ensure that he couldn''t kill her, but that she could not go against his wishes either. And the proof of this pact was in the form of an ancient ck bracelet that was now bound to his left wrist. After making the pact, Nadine flew off somewhere into the night, iming that she wanted to seea bit of what this new world had to offer. And after making her promise not to bite,pel, or harm anyone, Mchi allowed her to go. More like he was ted to see her leave so that he could forget about her existence for a while. She imed that she would be able to find him no matter where he went due to the bracelet and flew away, though not before shepelled Crystal and Emilia to forget that they ever saw her. Sei figured that Mchi was feeling guilty about lying to his mentor and letting a monster walk free. But she had to find a way to let him know that there was nothing that he could have done to change the oue of this situation. "Honey... You couldn''t have-"


    "Sei... I love you." n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "I know that you- Wait, pardon??"


    Chuckling, Mchi pulled his girlfriend deeper into his arms and stole her lips with a kiss. When they separated, he rested his hands on her face lightly and stared into her infinitely warm eyes. "You know... when Nadine started saying all that shit about wanting to marry me, I was really pissed off."


    "You better have been." Sei said seriously. "I would strangle you if you married some random woman before me."


    Chuckling, Mchi ignored her remark. "Can''t have that. So why don''t you marry me then?"


    Sei froze up like a deer in headlights and Mchi felt her whole body be tense. "Don''t joke like that, honey..." she said shyly. "Aww it hurts that you think I''d joke about something like this, love."


    Mchi pushed Sei onto the sandy beach and let his body loom over hers. "I want to marry you. Do you still think I''m joking?"


    "M-Maybe..?"


    Mchi lifted up his hand and literally pulled off one of his own fingers. He manipted his detached limb and changed it into a simple but captivating ck band with a literal gxy inside. When Sei was the ring being held out in front of her, her eyes started to water and her hands covered her mouth. "I hope you can see how serious I am now."


    "W-Why would you...?"


    "Because I adore you. You''re apart of the reason why my life has changed aroundpletely and everyday we spend together feels better than the next.You advise me, you nurture me, you support me.


    I probably wouldn''t be half the man I am now without you standing at my side everyday. I want you to be my wife, Sei. So I''ll ask you; will you marry me?"


    Mchi didn''t get an answer to his question, instead he had his face forcefully grabbed by the woman he''d just proposed to and she brought her lips towards his. The two of them locked their bodies together as they rolled on top of each other in the sand, with neither one of them saying a single word. Their lips didn''t separate until around five minutester, and Mal finally wiped away the tears running down her face. "Are you crying because I''m getting rejected or..?"


    "You idiot, of course not!" Sei was so overwhelmed with emotion that tears of joy were falling from her face. "Y-You can''t change your mind, okay!? E-Even if we''re hundreds of years old O-Or you meet some really pretty immortal or-"


    "You''re silly."


    Mchi took Sei''s hand in his and slid the ring onto the appropriate finger. As soon as it was around her digit, it adjusted to fit her perfectly.


    "I will love you in 500 years just as much as I do today. You will never be able to run me away, and nothing will evere between us." He said honestly. No matter how long Sei looked at her new ring, she couldn''t take her eyes off of it. Besides her daughter, it was easily the most beautiful gift she''d ever received. "Ah! That''s right!" She realized. She gave Mchi a mischievous smile as she prodded him in the midsection yfully. "Do you know what this means, honey?? You''ll really be Serena''s stepfather now!" She said excitedly. Mchi made a crestfallen look as he stared up into the sky hopelessly. "NOOOOOOOOO!!!!"


    Sei rolled her eyes at his dramatic gesture and started to let her hands wander up the length of his body. "Honey... do you think we can stay out tonight? I.. don''t want to go home just yet."


    Mchi quickly forgot all about his current plight as he heard his fianc¨¦''s sultry tone. Without wasting another second, he started expanding his senses to start searching for nearby hotel rooms. -


    It was around 6 am the next day when Luna''s pink eyes shed open. Perhaps due to her role as a guild master, she had be used to waking up at this time and now did so out of instinct. But once she remembered that she had no more building to go to, she contemted lying back down. Mchi and Sei weren''t in the bed, but Bianca and Anna were both still sleeping cutely side by side each other. She almost joined them, but something within her mind told her it''d be best to check her phone before she did so. As always, she had quite a few text messages from some people that she couldn''t care less about, and more than a few emails from annoying bootlickers. But there was one message she received that made her sit up. The sender dubbed POTUS had sent her one simple message that nearly made her head explode. She immediately jumped out of the bed and went into the still empty living room where she dialed the number without hesitating. It took only three rings before the line connected and the voice of an older man yed over the phone. "Ms. Moon. To what do I owe the-"


    "Cut the shit." Luna said coldly. Right now, she was in no mood for pleasantries. Especially not after what she''d been told. "What the hell do you mean you won''t be allocating our guild the drops from the gate?!" She asked dangerously.

 Chapter 155 The World Is Changin

    Chapter 155 The World Is Changing


    On the other line, the president fell silent for a few moments as he loosened his tie just a bit. "It is as I''ve stated over the phone. In light of certain... world events, the U.N has unanimously decided to start the collection of resources found inside the gate for use by the world''s military."


    "And I presume this world event you''re referring to is the revtion of Arias'' faction, of which you all already knew about?" Luna asked pointedly. The silence on the other line was nearly overwhelming and gave her the only response she needed. "You cannot just take the guild''s resources that we fought on the front lines for! If you want more resources to outfit your armies then you and every other power in the world should put your lives on the line and collect them yourselves!


    But what my guild members and I have collected belongs to us and I expect it to be returned! You have no right to take them, so find some other way to appease the scared hearts of your voters!"


    The president let out a deep sigh containing an entire presidential term of exhaustion. "Honestly Ms. Autumn... I am not obligated to. Under the agreement between your guild and the United States Government, you are obligated to handover any magical devices your group is in possession of that might aid against a national emergency level threat. And a blessed terrorist group certainly qualifies."


    Luna clenched her fists so hard that her knuckles had started to crack audibly. It was exactly as Mchi had predicted. The world''s attitude toward the blessed was starting to change and this was likely only the start. From here on, demands were likely to get more and more irrational as an attempt to appease humans of their fear. But Luna was not interested in ying these games. "Is that so... then I suppose that you''ve just made my decision a lot easier then. As of now, Immortal Moon is officially disbanded." She said coldly. The president immediately leapt up from his seat and started to break out in a sweat. "Ms. Autumn, what do you mean by this!? If this is a joke I assure you that-"


    "It is no such thing. I suppose you could say that thest dungeon run has really put things into perspective for me and I''m honestly a bit tired. I have more money than I could ever spend in twenty lifetimes, good friends the likes of which I''ve never had before, and a wonderful man who loves me to pieces. I don''t need to waste my life doing paperwork, do I?"


    "T-Then just retire and pass down the guild to someone under you! But to disband itpletely is-"


    "Nah, I''ll disband it."


    "Ms. Autumn!"


    Luna wasn''t stupid, she knew exactly why the president was trying to prevent her from disbanding the guild. After thest dungeon run, the top five guilds were inplete disarray. The leaders of Dead Sea and tinum Scale had both been killed, and by the leader of Ragnarok no less. Morgan Creed had also conveniently gone missing and wasn''t avable forment, butst known reports say he was with Mchi Saint who was damn near impossible to track since he just blipped all over the goddamn ce. America had been able to remain in the top of the world''s food chain because four of the world''s top five guilds were based here. With two guild leaders dead, one missing, and another one going to disband her guild entirely, their ranking was going to slip downwards like fat kids at a water park. That couldn''t happen!


    "Y-You''re being irrational! Simply because you do not wish to give up a few trinkets does not mean that you can try your back on your coun-"


    "Oh, seems like I''m getting another call, Mr. President. Please do not contact me again."


    "M-Ms. Autu-"


    Without waiting another second, Luna hung up the phone and blocked the number, although she was sure that it wouldn''t stop him from trying to persuade her. She had to make things official quickly so that there would be nothing that he could do about it. Which meant she had to talk to the girls first. Creak.


    Out of the corner of her eyes, Luna saw the young Serana peeking at her through her room.


    "I... feel like I just heard a whole bunch of stuff that I don''t really make enough money to hear."


    Luna chuckled softly and sat on the couch before patting the seat beside her. The pink haired girl slipped out of her room, and joined her shyly. The two of them kicked their feet up on the coffee table and Luna started to exin what Serana had just heard. "I don''t know if you''re worried about something, but you need not be. Disbanding the guild will not have any negative effect on our lives in the future. "


    Over time, Serana hade to look at Luna as something of a real aunt. Therefore she was more thanfortable enough to rest her head on her shoulder. "You sure about that..?"


    Chuckling, Luna rested her head gently atop Serana''s. "Yes, I am. I have been preparing for something like this for quite a while now. I think it will greatly benefit us all this way."


    Serana still seemed to be bothered by something and Luna took her hand give it a reassuring squeeze. "What''s wrong? Disappointed you won''t get to be rich and famous?"


    "Are you kidding? Have you seen my new face and body? I''ll make bread even if I''m not in a guild." She said cheekily. Lunaughed at Serana''s bold confidence and she felt her mood improving already. "By the way, Mal and your mother weren''t in bed this morning when I woke up. You didn''t hear them leave did you?"


    "No, but hold on." n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Serana pulled out her phone and went to her mother''s contact before she started tracking her device. "Does your mother know that you have her location?" Luna asked suspiciously. "Nope, I just turned it on one night a few years ago when she started workingte since I didn''t want her to get kidnapped or anything. Ain''t I a good daughter??"


    Luna wondered how exactly she should answer that question since Serana had technically invaded her mother''s privacy. She wondered if she should admonish her even just a tiny bit when Sei''s location finally finished loading. "Ah, gross! Looks like they got a hotel room in Sandestin. Did you guys get tired of washing your own sperm soaked sheets?"


    When Serana didn''t receive a response, she looked up and found Luna staring at her phone with a dangerous glint in her eyes. ''Honestly... why are all of Mal''s girlfriends so crazy? It''s like he fucks their brain or something...''She thought exhaustedly. "Oh? So they went to a hotel all alone without us, hm? That''s fine, see if I have sex with them ever again!"


    "...Auntie, you don''t even sound like you believe that..." Serana muttered. Luna rolled her eyes and bit her lip in jealousy and annoyance. "Just wait until theye home, I can''t wait to hear what excuse they have for ditching us to spend the night out!"


    -


    In a presidential suite two hours away, the new fianc¨¦s hadn''t gotten a wink of sleep. With Mchi''s inexhaustible energy and Sei''s new blessed physiology, the two''s bodies were inseparable. They had spent the entire night in all of their favorite positions, reaffirming their love for each other with nothing but their bodies. The entire bed was already sopping wet, so they had switched to the floor instead. On his knees, Mchi cupped Sei''s butt in his hands and bounced her body up and down as she locked her legs around his waist. The two of them hadn''t spoken to each other in hours, not with their mouths at least. While their lips and tongue were firmly intertwined with each other, their minds were busy proiming their oaths to each other, over and over again. Enough times that it would have been easy to go insane from the constant stream of obsessively possessive words. And in a way, it can be said that they did. Through every exchanged moan into his mouth and word of devotion streamed into his mind, Mchi could feel Sei''s passion and love for him increasing by leaps and bounds, which in turn further fueled everything he felt for her. If before their love was as unbreakable as a titanium board, it was now as expansive as the universe itself. Among heaven earth or hell, there existed no force strong enough to separate them. Mchi felt Sei bite his lip a little bit harder than normal and knew that she was about to cum again. Increasing the pace at which he bounced her atop him, Sei finally lost her ability to form coherent thought as she had her hardest orgasm of the night. A shrill scream finally escaped her mouth that delighted Mchi''s ears beyond any calcble measure, and a fierce trembling assailed her body. Mchi still had so much love to give Sei and so much that he needed to express, so he wasn''t intending on letting her go just yet. "Don''t pass out on me yet, love."


    "I-I need a break, honey..!"


    "Sorry, love. I just don''t think I can let you-"


    Knock, knock, knock!


    Mchi and Sei''s steamy and intimate celebration was interrupted by an annoying serious of knocks at the door. A voice yed from the other side, one of a ditzy and equally friendly vampire. "Hey, I heard a big scream just now so are you guys done yet? Or can Ie join you~?"

 Chapter 156 Learning & Informing

    Chapter 156 Learning & Informing


    Mchi unconsciously squeezed his fianc¨¦ a bit tighter when he heard Nadine''s voiceing from outside.


    Honestly, he''d forgotten all about the friendly otherworld vampire he''d inexplicably collected, and he was already wishing it''d stayed that way. Begrudgingly, he stood up and carried Sei to the bed and wrapped her in the driest sheets he could find. Pulling back on his boxers and sweatpants, Mchi opened the door and allowed a blonde haired rocket to fly through. Nadine was like some kind of exotic bloodhound, excitedly sniffing the air like she was trying to ingrave the scent into her memory. On the ground and in the bed, she found so many huge wet spots that they almost looked liked puddles, and strange drops of what appeared to be ck jelly. ''Or maybe...?''


    Nadine bent down and stuck her fingers into the mysterious ck substance. Just before she could bring it to her lips, Mchi reflexively grabbed her wrist and prevented her from doing so. "What are you doing? Don''t be gross."


    "I take that to mean this is what I think it is?"


    "You know what it is and you''re still trying to eat it off the floor?" "I would LOVE to get some the proper way. "


    This time, Mchi didn''t even need to say anything as Sei hurled a pillow at the blonde woman''s head. Nadine seemed rtively unbothered and she gave his fianc¨¦ a disappointed look. "Don''t be greedy, human. You should learn to share a bit."


    "I''m already sharing with three other women and there won''t be a fourth!"


    "Eh? Why? Is there something wrong with me?!"


    ""Everything!""


    Nadine puffed out her cheeks in irritation and folded her arms. "The two of you really know how to make a girl feel insecure. "


    "Given that you literally forced yourself into our lives, I think we might be even." Mchi reminded. "Forced feels like a very strong word."


    "The hell it does."


    Breezing past the vampire, he lie on the bed beside Sei and rubbed the irritation out of his eyes. Nadine kneeled at the foot of the bed and ced her head in both of her hands.


    "Aww,e on now. Surely you must see SOME benefit to having me around. I''m quite powerful you know?"


    "I''m sure you are..." The longer Mal thought about it, he realized that Nadine may have been a tiny bit right. There were things that he wanted to know about after all, so maybe this was the perfect time to learn. "Nadine... why are gates showing up in this world?"


    Sei also curiously looked at her for the answer, and to their surprise she actually seemed like she was going to be helpful. "Isn''t it obvious? If we don''t soften you mortals up before those abominationse calling then we die alongside you.


    Or I suppose, saying that we die would be the wrong way to put it. But our lives would cease to be our own."


    "What do you mean?"


    "You''ve probably seen them by now. The mindless drones inside of the ''gates'' that you call them. Monsters that wear the shells of who they used to be as they act on an endless appetite for destruction?


    They fought against them at first too, and now that is the fate they have received. Living hollow lives, servicing the ones who killed them to bring more worlds underneath it''s collective. Underneath it''s leadership."


    Mchi and Sei thought back to how certain monsters behaved in gates. While there were some who behaved rtively normally and even spoke in some kind of unknownnguages, the bulk of them did not. They were just like rabid animals with dead eyes who had a sole interest in killing. No one ever discovered the reason why. Until now that is. "Why don''t they juste and do it themselves instead of sending all of you??" Sei asked curiously. This time, Nadine shrugged as if she didn''t know the answer to that either. "Generally, powerful creatures like that don''t get to run around unchecked no matter what world they originate from. So it''s possible that they have some sort of restriction that''s buying you a few more seconds of breath. "


    Whatever it was, Mchi was grateful for the extra time it brought. If they hadn''t had it, the human race likely would have perished already. Along with most of the highers. "These overlords of yours..." Mal begin. "They''re called nightmares, right?"


    Nadine seemed surprised that Mal already knew that, and she attributed his intelligence to the fact that he was ''special''. As far as what exactly made him that way, she wasn''t sure yet. "Yes, that''s correct. They''re called..."


    Nadine''s slender hand suddenly went to her nose and she examined it carefully. On her finger, she found a trail of dark blood running from her nose and her eyes went wide. "This... What was I talking about...?" Mchi and Sei watched as the bewitching vampire''s eyes rolled into the back of her head and she fell onto the floor hard. "Oh, gods!"


    "Nadine!"


    He immediately went to her side and checked for a pulse before realizing that she was fine, just unconscious. He rxed for one a moment before he felt himself bing increasingly wary of theseing enemies. If they could harm Nadine all the way in this world where they had no real foothold, then just how terrible were they really?


    And when the inevitable day came that he and his girls had to face that threat... would they survive that terrible collision?


    It was a sobering thought to think about. - n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Mchi didn''t need to worry about fighting the nightmares. Because the way things looked now, he wouldn''t even live long enough to see the first one step onto this world. In what was probably his dumbest decision ever, he and Sei appeared in the living room of his apartment while holding hands and with Nadine''s sleeping body over his shoulder. On the couch, his other three girlfriends were all waiting for him, and it was looking like they were going to tear his head off his body. They were already mad at Mal for ditching them, but now they were even more upset to see him show up with another woman''s ass so close to his face. "Who... the fuck.. is.. that..?" Anna asked dangerously. Her knuckles were clenched, Bianca was starting to warm up the room with her body temperature, and Luna was staring at him with an icy gaze that could terrify a mortal soul. Mchi could feel their rampant jealousy being thrown at him without holding back in the slightest. He had never been so turned on in his life. "Girls, that''s Nadine." Sei exined. "She''s okay... sorta."


    "You''re not off the hook either, missy." Luna said coldly. "How could you guys just ditch us to go and spend the night in a hotel?" Bianca asked. "I can literally smell you two all over each other... I''m so fucking jealous." Anna muttered. Sei smiled wryly as she waved away theirints. "I-It really wasn''t nned and I''m sorry we didn''t include you girls. Buttt... look!"


    Sei held up her hand and showed the three girls her new ring that was courtesy of Mal''s own body. "Is that..."


    "Yes, we''re getting married!" She screamed excitedly. Bianca: "KYAAA!! OHMYGOD!"


    Anna: "NO WAY! NO WAY!


    Luna: "I-I GET TO BE YOUR MAID OF HONOR, RIGHT?? WE TALKED ABOUT THIS AND YOU PROMISED!"


    In the blink of an eye, all three girls had pushed Mal aside and started jumping up and down, clearly happy for Sei. Surprisingly, Mal expected them to feel just a bit jealous of her but the longer he searched their minds, he couldn''t find anything like that. There was only pure and unbridled joy for the one they saw as their best friend and sister. It was unbelievably touching, and no one was more grateful for this beautiful scene than the man who loved them all equally. One day, they would all be his wives in body and soul. And he couldn''t wait for that moment. "What''s with all the screaming??"


    "Is everything okay??"


    Not only Serana, but Aubrey and Aisha hade out of their rooms as well, both looking around for the source of the panic. """THEY''RE GETTING MARRIED!!"""


    Serana: "NOOOOOO!"


    Aubrey: "Oh my god, congrattions!!!"


    Aisha: "You don''t have any guy friends so I get to be your best man, right? We talked about this!"


    While Aubrey picked Serana up from the floor so that they could congratte her mother, Aisha went to embrace Mchi. She did not ask why there was some strange woman on his shoulder, and instead the two merely exchanged a congrattory fist bump. "And just so you know.. you have my blessing, so stop wasting time and be my sister for real." he whispered. Aisha blushed as she looked at Aubrey out of the corner of her eye. "Shut up.. don''t rush me."


    "Whatever, scrub."


    Eventually, all of the yelling woke up another upant in the home who had been sleeping peacefully draped over Mal''s shoulder. "Ugh, my head... why is it so loud in here..?"


    Almost immediately, Mal felt a shiver run down his spine. With how loose Nadine''s mouth could be, he was almost certain she was about to ruin the feel good mood in the atmosphere. I cannot stress how much I love music bro. It took me like three hours to write this chapter cause I was listening to the new teddy swims album while I was doing it. Me and my girl just kept dancing and I couldnt focus.

 Chapter 157 Secret Facility

    Chapter 157 Secret Facility


    Nadine slid down from Mchi''s back as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. Once she saw the room full of people staring at her, she waved and introduced herself politely. "Oh hello. Nice to meet all of you." She said with a yawn. Instead of responding to her, the eyes of almost everyone in the room drifted towards Mchi and waited for him to exin this situation. The young man simply smiled wryly as he gave the woman beside him a harmless pat on the head. "This is a bit of luggage I had to bring back from the gate. Like Sei said-"


    "Why am I luggage?" Nadine cried. "Cause you''re a hassle. Anyway-"


    "You are so mean to me!"


    While the pair of them were arguing, Bianca began to feel like she''d seen this woman somewhere before. Finally, she started to remember. It was much darker back then, but there was no mistaking that it was her. She almost didn''t recognize her due to her different clothes, but now she was absolutely sure of it. "You''re that vampire from the gate!"


    "My name''s Nadine, pleased to meet you, dearie."


    As soon as Serana heard the word ''vampire'' she quickly ran to the fridge and opened it. Rustling through it''s contents, she pulled out a stic bag containing leftover chicken wings from the night before and immediately unzipped it. "Team Jacob, bitch!!"


    "What?!"


    With the uracy of an MLB level pitcher, Serana started hurling garlic parmesan wings at Nadine like she was trying to take her head off. Unfortunately for her, she vastly underestimated the speed of Nadine''s reflexes, and the vampire easily plucked the morsels out of the air and looked at them curiously. "What is this?" she asked as she held it up to Mchi. Even he was a bit surprised that she waspletely fine after touching these foods covered in garlic but it seemed as though his back up n had just gone out the window. "You don''t feel like you''re burning or anything?" n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "No, they''re cold."


    "No, I mean... never mind." he muttered. "Why is she here??" Anna asked pointedly. Mchi exined to the girls the story of how he and Nadine''s fates became entangled and he unsurprisingly received some very poor reactions. mes began to flicker along Bianca''s forearms and Aisha reflexively pulled out one of her swords. Before any of the girls could destroy his living room in a fight they weren''t going to win, Mchi held up his hand to diffuse the tension. "Don''t bother. If Morgan couldn''t torch her then I''m pretty sure you guys couldn''t do it either. She''s harmless anyways and she was actually able to give us some information about what''sing."


    "I did?"


    "You did."


    "Oh, well then can I be rewarded then? If you give me the same treatment as what you gave that woman earlier, I could be-"


    Ding dong!


    Nadine had no idea just how close she came to joining her ex husband in the afterlife before she was saved by a guest at the door. A momentter, a mature woman of Korean descent and wearing a pantsuit entered into the apartment, looking around with a sense of urgency. "Mom?" Anna asked. "A-Ah, hello dear. I''m sorry for dropping by so suddenly but I had toe talk to Luna... who''s the blonde in a hockey jersey?"


    Mchi prepared to introduce Nadine when he finally realized she had on different clothes than when she first arrived here. Instead of her ancient purple dress that matched her eyes, she now had on a famous hockey jersey with ck jean shorts and even a pair of sneakers. "Nadine... where the hell did you get those clothes?" Mchi asked, already fearing the answer. "Do you like them? Are you fucking with it?"


    "The hell? Who the fuck taught you how to talk like that??"


    "Ah, well when I went exploringt night I ran into a young woman who taught me this world''s dialect and she also told me that my fit was... what was the word...? ''Cheeks'' as he said."


    "Christ."


    "It was only after conversing with her for a tiny bit longer that I realized that she was making fun of me! So since you said I wasn''t allowed to harm orpel anyone-"


    "Definitely not."


    "I asked her how to correct the problem with my attire instead, and she pointed me in the direction of her favorite apparel shop."


    By now not only Mchi, but Sei and the rest of the girls were also confused. "Nadine... it was around midnight when we separated so everything should have been closed, how did you get inside of a store?"


    "And where did you get the money from??" Luna questioned. Nadine held up her hands as if she waspletely innocent. "Mchi said that I couldn''tpel or hurt anyone, he never said that I couldn''t steal or break into ces."


    The silence that settled into the room was nearly deafening. But eventually, Aubrey and Anna lost their ability to keep themselvesposed and they fell over each otherughing. "What''s funny?" Nadine asked. "I had to make it do what it do!"


    "No!" Finally, Mchi sped his hand over the vampire''s mouth as he tried to calm his raging headache. Suddenly he felt like he understood what Aisha must have gone through when he taught her mother modern ng. While it was funny back then, he now felt like he owed his best friend an apology. "Ummm...do I even want to know what''s going on?" Joanne asked. """"No.""""


    She ran her hands through her hair and decided it was best to listen to them and focus on the reason she''d evene here in the first ce. Walking up to Luna calmly, she let out a sigh containing all of the exhaustion her job seemed to cause her. "I heard you were having a few grievances and I''ve been sent to try to resolve them as amicably as possible."


    "Ha! There are no grievances to resolve, Joanne. I''ve decided to disband my guild for my own personal reasons and none other."


    ""What?!"" Sei and Mchi cried in unison. Luna shrugged her shoulders at the both of them and sat down onto the couchzily. "I was nning on telling you both but it just got away from me."


    "Why so suddenly?" Mal asked. "I wanna bezy." She lied. "Luna, please be rational about this." Joanne was on the verge of begging at this point but she was really trying not to show it. The president was so frantic when he called her on the phone that she knew he would never stop bugging her if she didn''t sort this all out. The only reason why he didn''te himself was because Luna specifically told him to leave her alone. You don''t exactly disobey someone who can remove your head from your body with a flick of their fingers. So that meant that he had to send someone whom she couldn''t do that to in order get through to her. But judging by the way things were going now, Joanne would not fare any better than he would have. The mature beauty sighed and sat down next to Luna in the hopes of getting through to her. "I understand that it was the principal of the situation, but the government is trying to make amends here and I need to know how to repair things as quickly as possible so I can go home and day drink." "Fuck, you really are my mom..." Anna muttered. Ignoring her, Luna sat up and stared at Joanne hard before deciding to speak. "Joanne, am I speaking to the mother of someone dear to me or an agent of the United States government?"


    The sudden question threw Joanne almostpletely off guard and she stared at her daughter out of the corner of her eye. She had already lost so much time with her by putting her job higher on her list of priorities for ten whole years, and she wouldn''t do it again. From now on, she would always be Anna''s mother first and anything else second. "As the mother of someone dear to you... why do you ask?"


    Luna seemed to find her answer satisfactory and she held out her hand for Mchi. "Darling, can youe here a moment?"


    Slightly surprised, Mchi released Nadine and gave her a ''behave'' look before sitting next to Luna. The group watched as she whispered surprising information into his ear and his brow rose in surprise. "What''s out there?"


    "Just take us, darling."


    "Alright..."


    Before anyone knew what was happening, the shadows within the room swallowed up everyone present and pulled them into the floor. -


    At an undisclosed location, the group appeared on what appeared to be arge cliff overshadowed by a powerful waterfall. "This the right ce?" Mchi asked. "It is indeed. Thank you, my darling."


    The group watched as Luna went towards arge boulder nearby and ced her hand on the rocky surface.


    ACCESS GRANTED : 001 - EMI INUI


    A robotic voice rang out and a sliding door appeared from within the boulder. Luna turned back to the group of stunnedpanions and held out her hand like she was inviting them to enter. "Don''t dawdle now, you all. I''m really proud of this ce."

 Chapter 158 Luna’s The Planning Type

    Chapter 158 Luna¡¯s The nning Type


    Once the group piled into the elevator, Luna pressed one of the first ten buttons that was ced along the wall. Their bodies jerked a little bit as they started descending slowly into the mountain. Ding!


    The sliding door finally pulled open, and the upants inside sucked in their breath. What they were staring at was some kind of futuristic andvishmon area,plete with multiple couches and seating space with monitors mounted to the white walls. They had a few more small amenities in the corners like a pingpong table and a dining area, but other than that there were no more noteworthy features. "What is this ce?" Joanne asked. Luna smiled proudly as she folded her arms across herrge chest.


    "This is the reason why I no longer need the guild. My focus now lies solely on preparing my girls for what''sing, instead of being focused on our PR or endorsement deals."


    Joanne frowned as she slipped her hands into her pockets. "And what exactly is it that''sing? If you''re referring to the uprising then I doubt that-"


    "Nah... that''s not what she means, Joanne." Mchi said with a sigh. Briefly, Mchi told her all he knew about the nightmares, which admittedly wasn''t very much. Nheless, Joanne felt like her head was going to explode from this new wave of information.


    "Y-You all have known about this and haven''t told anyone?! Why would you keep this to yourselves??"


    "Hypothetically, what do you think would happen if I just one day randomly started telling the whole world that the end times wereing without having any proof?" Luna asked. Joanne needed only a moment to think about it, and the possible scenarios weren''t that good. They would either call her crazy or proim that she was trying to stay relevant for not having proof, or the exact opposite would happen and the whole world would be embroiled in a state of panic. It was really a lose - lose situation. "Oh? Seems like you''ve figured out an answer for yourself then. Lovely. "


    "Fine, I get it but you could have at least told the leaders of the world governments! Their reactions wouldn''t be so terrible and they would likely start to build some sort of doomsday n!"


    Her idea wasn''t without merit and this was also something that Luna had thought of but there was just one reurring problem. She didn''t have any proof. Even an influential guild master would need some kind of backing if she suddenly started ranting about gates only being a precursor to real bloodshed. The world leaders would certainly develop ns, but they would first require some or any kind of proof before they started to move such a tremendous amount of money and resources around. All she had was the word of her young boyfriend, who had a very poor depiction in the media. Next to Arias, he would be thest person who they were willing to trust. "We''ll have to tell them eventually to keep down the number of casualties once everything begins but as of right now, this is where we''ve found ourselves." Joanne didn''t like it and looked like she was going to put up some kind of protest, when she saw her daughter out of the corner of her eye. Anna wasn''t saying anything, merely staring at her as if she was waiting to see just how her mother would handle this frustrating revtion. "Alright then... so what is this ce exactly?" Luna smiled and held her arms out proudly for everyone to see.


    "This is the Nightfall base. When things start to get ugly, my intention is to have the former members of immortal moon live here and work together to act as rescuers and protectors." From there on, Luna showed the group the rest of the base. Each floor contained a different amenity, some designed for function and others to make this ce more homey and livable. On one floor there was an Olympic sized swimming pool, and on another there was an armory that was already halfway filled with decent weapons and armor. There was also a floor containing a garage filled with modified armored cars that would do more than well in the event they needed to mow down a few brain dead zombies or whatever was toe. A pair of hangar doors could be opened up to reveal a carved out trail that went through the mountain and led into a road on the other side, like a scene out of a Batman movie. On another floor, there was a workshop that made Bianca squeal and caused hearts to form in her eyes. Mal had never been jealous of inanimate objects before today. Of course, there was a floor filled with training rooms and even a basketball court. And because Luna is nothing if not an overachiever and perfectionist, one of the floors even contained a greenhouse that was already beginning to produce fruits and vegetables. But the most impressive part was the dorm rooms. There were exactly 60, enough for the members of immortal moon and any parents or siblings the girls decided to bring with them. They were around 800 square feet on average,plete with a bedroom, shower, kitchen, and sitting area. To substitute theck of windows in this underground space, the northernmost walls could show lifelike depictions of various environments. Rainy city, tropical rainforest, ocean water, and even sunset and sunrise. There was even already furniture and canned food items inside, making them move in ready at anytime. "I''ll tell you now that some of the rooms are bigger than others so... you might want toy im to yours now." Luna said cheekily. Serana, Aisha, Aubrey, and Nadine all twitched when they heard that, and they immediately ran out of the elevator to go and choose a room. Joanne didn''t think she would ever end up staying here, but she decided to go look around nheless. She was too roguish to admit it to herself, but she was actually beginning to enjoy the lively atmosphere within the group. So much so that she was starting to feel a teensy bit jealous that Anna got to hang around these people all the time. Serana: "The poorest girl should get the biggest room, it''s only fair!" n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Aisha: "How the hell does that work! Don''t be slow and you can get whatever room you want!" Aubrey: "Babe, what about this one! It''s perfect for us, right?" Nadine: "Ah, somebody teach me about these square boxes on the walls..! ... Don''t ignore me, help a bitch out!" Mchi and Sei prepared to step off the elevator and go find a room of their own when Luna suddenly grabbed the two of them by the hand. Pulling them back into the elevator, she ced her palm on a ck space beneath the elevator buttons. A blue hue shone through a small panel and the doors to the elevator closed once again, and they started to descend one floor lower. "There''s more we ain''t seen yet? Honestly... how could you even do all of this, love?" Mchi asked. Luna smiled proudly at him as the elevator finally came to a stop at it''s final floor. "When you told me all those months ago about the task ced upon you by the gods, I immediately got to work on this.


    I wanted to help others sure, but my main priority was making sure that we could have somewhere that we could be safe and not worry about scrounging for food or basic amenities. " When the doors to the elevator finally slid open, the four inside let out gasps of shock. Already different from the apartments above, this one actually contained a window and allowed the group to see that they were currently behind the powerful waterfall they saw earlier. At 4,000 square feet, it wasrger than even Mal''s current apartment. The floors were made out of some sanded down ck stone, which felt so pleasant to walk on that it was preferable to walk around barefoot. Coincidentally, the walls were also painted ck, matching Anna''s aesthetic to a tee and causing her to let out her own happy squeal. There was arge living room areaplete with a sectional sofa that wasparable in softness to the flying clouds Aubrey could make. Their kitchen wasplete with ck marble countertops, a surplus of storage space, and even a functional stove and oven that Sei knew for a fact costed well over a few thousand dors. But what was more touching was the rooms she''d specifically prepared with each of them in mind. Down one hall, there was a room that contained a room lined with art supplies. There was a spare closet with atleast 100 nk canvases, paint of various colors, and an easel sitting directly in the center of the room. To make the moment even sweeter, there was a speaker and a cat bed in the corner, just to make this ce feel a bit more like home. Clearly, this ce was for Anna. "I hope you like it." Luna said shyly. "I know that this is a strange arrangement that we have but I''ve really grown to-" Like a bullet, Anna barreled right into Luna''s chest and gave her a desperate hug. With a red face, she returned it and tried to crack a small joke to hide her sudden shyness. "Naughty girl, you didn''t even let me finish my sentence.." "I didn''t need to hear it, I already know what you were trying to say and I couldn''t agree more." Now it was not just Anna and Luna, but Sei and Bianca were also starting to get misty eyed. Sharing one man could be difficult sometimes, and even though Mchi drowned them in as much love and attention as they could ever want, it could still be a tough pill to swallow. However, the rtionships they''d formed amongst each other made this entire thing work smoothly. It was harder to feel jealous and possessive over Mchi when they cared so much about each other and wanted to see the other girls happy. And since they had taken pieces of Mchi into their bodies, the bond between them had be significantly stronger. Now, no one in this rtionship could do without each other, no matter what would happen in the future. Luna eventually wiped her eyes and looked back at the other three in the room. "Now, would you like to see what I have for the rest of you? Just promise not to go crying on me."

 Chapter 159 Meeting The Parent

    Chapter 159 Meeting The Parent


    "So... the world is going to end?"


    "But you have no idea when?"


    "And the things that areing are called nightmares?"


    "And you want us to focus on fighting them?"


    "Which is the reason why you''re disbanding the guild... did we get all that right?"


    "Pretty much." Luna admitted. She was in themon area of the Nightfall base, staring back at the forty-four members of her guild whom she''d brought here on short notice. If she was honest, she was expecting for there to be a great deal more panicing from them and was surprised when she didn''t see any. There were some concerned faces and some shocked ones, but everyone seemed to be in almost total control of themselves. "I have to admit, I was expecting for you girls to be a bit more... frightened?" Luna said. Rose Ortega looked around at all of her fellow guild mates and she came to an urate consensus.


    "I think.. we''re all just kind of shocked and it''s not really hit us yet." She admitted. "I mean the reality that everything you''ve ever known is about to go up in smoke is a little..."


    She didn''t bother to finish her assessment but Luna didn''t have any real difficulty understanding what she was getting at. Later on at some point, it was highly likely that the news they had received today was going to really hit them and they would probably be a bit more erratic than this. "But... the fact that you''ve built this one of a kind ce for us to be once everything starts.. It''s more than a little bit reassuring and it makes all of this a little bit less scary... just a little bit though."


    "I feel the same."


    "She''s right."


    "I think if I had to spend the apocalypse here, it wouldn''t be too bad."


    Luna showed a small smile as she felt just a tiny bit of her tension leave her shoulders. "I was honestly expecting you not to believe me."


    "Well we probably wouldn''t have if you didn''t show us this crazy fortress you built and told us about everything going on with Mchi." one admitted. The members of Immortal Moon were all extremely close knit, therefore once they learned about their only male member''s warning from the gods, they knew it was all real. He simply wasn''t the type to lie about such a thing, not even for a cheapugh. "Speaking of.. Where is your boyfriend, bossdy?" Nina asked. For some reason, Luna showed the girls a wry smile that none of them knew how to process. "He''s... got his hands full right now. But, he likes this ce so much that he''s already moved in downstairs so you''ll see him soon."


    As Luna had said, Mchi packed up his apartment wishing five minutes and moved in here the other day. His apartment was starting to get really crowded with everyone that was staying there currently, so he couldn''t wait to get out and have the extra space. And with the beautiful waterfall view that he saw from his window every morning... he did not regret his decision in the slightest. "Got his hands filled with what exactly? Are those things already starting toe into this world?"


    "Ha! He wishes."


    -


    Mchi let out a deep sigh as he stepped out of his car in the parking lot of an auto body shop. Coming around the passenger side, he opened the door to his precious car and let one of his girlfriends out. Bianca happily stepped into view, and shed him a knowing smile. "You look nervous. Having second thoughts, babe?"


    "Never that." He said firmly. Bianca interlocked their hands together and started pulling him towards the garage. "I''ll hold you to that! Make sure not to change your mind."


    Irregardless of whether he wanted to or not, Bianca''s grip on his hand was so tight that he never could have run away even if he had the chance. She led the two of them right into the open garage and paused before she filled her lungs with air. "DADDY, WE''RE HERE!!!"


    Mchi was temporarily stunned by the volume of Bianca''s voice that was like nothing he''d ever heard before. From the other side of the garage, a door opened up and a huge man strode through. At 6''6, Mchi wasn''t used to people being his height anymore. Therefore when Bianca''s father showed up, he was slightly taken aback. Mchi had seen pictures of this man before, but seeing him in person made him realize that he was much bigger than he thought. Hisrge body was paired with explosive muscles and a more than healthy beer belly that was indicative of his second favorite pastime. Like Bianca, he had rich chocte skin and light amber eyes that must have made him a big hit with thedies. However, that was really where the simrities ended. As already mentioned, he was extremely big and buff, with two tattoo sleeves covering both of his arms. He had a shiny bald head and a thick ck beard that appeared to be well groomed and maintained. His size fifteen timbend boots thudded off the floor with every step, making him seem like a real life iteration of Godzi. But when he saw Bianca, he held out hisrge arms happily and allowed her to fly directly into them, and the two shared a sentimental greeting. "Who is this young adult up in my shop? You''re growing up so fast I can barely recognize you!"


    "I just came here three days ago, and I''m already 22!" Biancaughed. "See what I mean? Growing too fast."


    Mchi merely watched the two of them with a small smile on his face as he waited for his presence to be acknowledged. Just like Anna, Bianca''s mother wasn''t in her life, so her father was all she had. She didn''t much like to talk about the rough times she ad growing up and no one ever asked her, but they all knew just how close she and her dad were. "Ah, Daddy I had someone I wanted to introduce you to!"


    Bianca suddenly released her father and went right to Mchi''s side and held his arm happily. "This is my boyfriend, Mchi!"


    "It''s nice to meet you-"


    BANG!


    Mal didn''t even get to finish his greeting as Bianca''s father Ali pulled out the biggest handgun that he had ever seen. In reality it was a desert eagle, but to him it looked like one of those super guns that was wielded by a vampire in an anime. "Daddy.. you can''t scare him with that, he''s bullet proof." Bianca reminded. ''Shit, I am? I damn near forgot..'' Mchi thought in embarrassment. Ali didn''t say a word as he walked past them and went to the wall on the other side of the room. Reaching up, he pulled a shotgun off the wall and pumped it once just for dramatic effect. "Bullet proof doesn''t mean that you can just get a bigger gun and it''ll work! Stop being extra ande say hi!" Bianca scolded. Ali unloaded the buckshot from his shotgun and started walking towards Mchi. Once the two of them were eye to eye, he held out his hand and handed him the bullets that he was going to try to put in him a mere moment ago. "I know who you are, Saint. I don''t like your ass."


    "Daddy!"


    "Can I ask why?" Mal said calmly. Ali ignored his daughter for once and instead focused solely on the young man in front of him. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "You not the kind of brother I want to be with my daughter. You a no good hoe whose just going to break her heart sooner orter, and I''m going to have to fuck you up when you do. Give a damn bout no invincibility."


    "Daddy, that''s not true! Why are you acting like this!?" Bianca yelled. "Because I know cats like this, B. Based on everything you''ve already told me, I know exactly how this is going to end, and you''re only going to get hurt as a result."


    Bianca told her father almost everything. The day she took her aptitude test and got blessed, she was ranting and raving about this young man she met who she was really attracted to. So much so that she joined his guild without any other consideration and the singr goal of getting closer to him. Day in and day out, he listened as she told him about how she was adamantly trying to get his attention, and yet it never seemed to work. She even pulled multiple all nighters to craft him a suit of body armor and new weapons that he was sure could''ve sold for a few grand easily. But what really set his impression in stone was how she told him about the other girlfriends he had. From that point on, he was sure that this young man was only using his daughter and stringing her along, without having any real interest in her. And he couldn''t let that slide. "Don''t know whatchu came here for, but if you''re looking for my approval you ain''t finna get it. My baby deserves better than to be some backup hoe that you only go to when you need some shit done. If she ain''t gonna be your number 1, then you need to leave her the fuck alone."


    Bianca felt her heart beginning to beat wildly ut of control as she looked back and forth between her father and Mchi. Honestly, she was never expecting for things to turn out like this. She knew her father wasn''t keen on him, but she thought that he was just being over protective and he would eventually get over it. Only now was she realizing that her father''s issues went much deeper than she initially thought. She was desperately regretting her decision to have them meet each other today. Mchi on the other hand was slightly frozen and unsure of what to say. But because he wanted to clear up this misunderstanding as soon as possible, he finally opened his mouth to speak.

 Chapter 160 Smoothing Things Out

    Chapter 160 Smoothing Things Out


    Truthfully, Mchi could fully understand why Ali was upset. Bianca was the first girl to show interest in him after his break up with Mnie, but she was thest girl that he started dating. It wasn''t intentional, as he was always attracted to her from the jump, but things just always seemed to get in the way of their progressing rtionship. He could only imagine the pain he must have caused her, and the guilt he felt from treating her feelings so casually was more than a little agonizing. "I''ll admit, it really took me longer than I''m proud to admit to make things official with Bianca. But it was never because I didn''t care about her or the things she did for me."


    "Then what was it?" Ali asked gruffly. Honestly Mal didn''t believe her father would care about his answer either way, but he knew that he was still obligated to try. But... there was really only so much that he could say. "No reason that I could give would ever be a good one, I already know that. Especially when the truth is that I was just careless with her feelings."


    Mchi wasn''t sure if Bianca''s dad was going to try to kill him for this but he didn''t care. Reaching out, he took her hand in his own and held it tenderly just as he always did. "But every day since we''ve made things official, I''ve done my best to make her and the other women I''m seeing the happiest girls on the.They are all integral pieces of my life that I can''t go without, and Bianca is apart of that.


    Not because of the things she''s done for me, but because of the happiness she brings me.And I will give every ounce of my flesh and blood to make sure that she never regrets her decision to be with me. "


    His words certainly worked on Bianca, and the small smile on her face was utterly bewitching. yfully, she gave him a small nudge on the ribs as she rested her head on his shoulder. "That''s sweet, but you''re not exactly flesh and blood anymore, babe."


    "Oh yea, I forgot.."


    "Who is your damn babe?!" Ali roared. "And what''s this I''m hearing about him not having no blood!?"


    The young couple smiled wryly and merely chose not toment on Ali''s question, making him stare at Mal much more suspiciously than before. "Is you a damn zombie, boy?"


    "Not quite."


    "Vampire!?"


    "Getting colder."


    "Daddy, he''s not a monster!" Bianca yelled. "Then what the fuck do you mean he don''t got no blood, Bianca?! We got blood! Why the hell don''t he have blood!?"


    Ali nearly shit his oversized pants as a scene that he never thought possible yed in front of his eyes. Mchi''s skin literally ked off his body like old paint and fell onto the floor of the shop.


    When it was all off, Ali was staring at a manprised solely of nebs, stars, and darkness. It was without a doubt the strangest thing he had ever seen in all his years of life. Hesitantly, he raised one of his overgrown sausage fingers and poked Mchi directly in the forehead. His finger easily passed through the surface, and was engulfed in a somewhat chilly embrace. "What.. the hell..." "Kinda weird, huh?" "How the fuck are you speaking with no mouth?!" Ali asked in horror. Mchi thought about it for a moment before realizing he didn''t actually know either. "I guess it''s one of the perks thates when your mom is a really strong goddess?" he guessed with a shrug. Ali seemed to have some real difficulty believing that as he stared at Mal suspiciously. Eventually he just took a few steps back and elected not to ask any more questions. He was already beginning to get a headache from this entire surprise visit, and by now he just wanted it to be over. "Saint... go back to normal so I can look you in the eye man to man." Mchi obliged and regrew the skin on his face, causing Ali to shiver as he felt like he''d already seen too much. "Right then... How can you be sure that you won''t break my baby''s heart?" "Because I would rather die. She means everything to me." "Everything? Kinda hard to believe when you got three other girlfriends. Makes you seem like a hoe who just says anything in the moment." Ali''s reaction was fair and any other father would have likely had the same concerns if they were in his shoes. After all, who wants their daughter to be the fourth girl in a harem?


    Mchipletely understood his line of thinking, and as such he pretended he was not insulted by Ali''s constant insistence that he was a hoe. "...I can promise you I''m not sleazy like that, and everything I''ve ever said about my girls is genuine. Bianca, Sei, Anna, and Luna all mean the world to me, and like I said, I love every one of them equally."


    "..."


    Ali still seemed like he wasn''t the biggest fan of Mchi, but he respected his honesty and straightforwardness at least. And even if he didn''t like it, he had to admit that his daughter seemed to be happier with him than he had ever seen her. It was a pleasant but slightly depressing feeling. Ali stuck out his hand for Mchi to shake, and he stared at it only briefly before he shook it without a second thought. "If you go back on your word, I''ll find some way to kill you." Ali said as he tightened his grasp. "I''ll hold you to that." Mchi nodded. - N?v(el)B\\jnn


    A few hourster, Mchi and Bianca were back in her apartment, getting thest of her stuff that she needed to move into the base. Furniture and things of that nature would be moved to a storage room she had across town, so all that she was really here to pickup were her various gaming consoles and clothing items. Mchi finally finished taping thest box together and wiped his brow of imaginary sweat. "I''m done in here, B! You good to go?"


    Creak!


    Mchi nced over his shoulder at Bianca''s bedroom door and his eyes nearly left his face again. His girlfriend was standingpletely naked, with her toned yet soft body on full disy and all of her assets hanging out. "I think.. I''m ready." She said shyly. She wasn''t quite sure what thest piece of the puzzle was, all she knew was that watching her boyfriend try to win her father''s approval had done something to her. Truth be told, he didn''t need to do that. Even though they had never had sex before, Mchi already had a part of Bianca inside of her, and the love that the two of them shared was unbreakable. Ali could haveined ill he was blue in the face, and it still wouldn''t have changed anything. And yet, Mchi suffered through all of her father''s rude behavior because he knew just how much it would mean to her to have him on their side. It was just about the kindest thing that anyone had ever done for her, and it helped her to make up her mind. She wanted to cross the threshold and take that final step in their rtionship, legitimizing everything that they had even further. "A-And don''t ask me if I''m sure again or if I''m still scared, because I''ve made up my mind to go through with this and there is nothing that-"


    Bianca''s words trailed off as she watched Mchi stand up and begin to undress. He came out of his sweater and jeans easily and kicked off his shoes before approaching Bianca in just his boxers. She let out a small yelp as he easily scooped her into his arms and carried her into the bedroom before closing the door behind them. ---------------------------


    Hello people!


    Sorry for the short chapter today, I just had a little bit of news. Not necessarily good news though...


    In an effort to catch up where I left off on my third novel and build a descent stockpile of chapters, I am going to be going on hiatus with this one for around seven days. I know, I know, I''m sorry!


    But I''m only one man and theres only so many hours in a day so this is really kind o my only option at this point. However, the good news is that if you''re a fan of my other novel I''ll still be writing that one so you don''t have to go without both. Like I said, I should be back in like a weeks time with more uploads for this story and we''ll probably start getting into Arias and the new day a little more. In the meantime, please send me golden tickets, powerstones, gifts, anything at all it really does help!!


    Again, I''m sorry for the sudden deferral, I''ll make it up to you all when I return!

 Chapter 161 Bianca & Malachi*

    Chapter 161 Bianca & Mchi*


    Mchi had already wanted Bianca desperately for so long that when she finally told him she was ready, he didn''t question it.


    As soon as her door closed behind them, heid her body onto the bed gently and hovered above her.


    "Damn, I-I was honestly expecting you to protest just a bit." Bianca said with a sheepish smile. "Guess I made you wait too long, huh?"


    "You did, but It''s alright. I know that you will be more than worth the wait.


    Bianca''s heart was beating out of control from the sheer excitement of what was about to happen.


    As Mchi lowered his lips onto hers, she rxed and surrendered her body to his total control.


    ... No, I want to be in charge and make him go crazy!"


    Before Mal knew it, Bianca had gotten from underneath him and flipped him over, straddling him with a satisfied look on her face.


    "What are you doing, B?" Mchi asked with a smile.


    "The girls always say that you attack them like a wild animal without ever letting theme up for air. I''m gonna set myself apart from them by taking the lead!"


    "...But it''s your first-"


    "I-I don''t care if it''s my first time, I said I was going to do it and I am!" She yelled.


    Mchi chuckled and fully rxed into the bed, not intending to move an inch. "Alright then, take the lead, my love."


    For now, Bianca ignored the very hard bulge she could feel poking into her bare bottom and instead focused her attention elsewhere.


    With a bit of force, she grabbed Mchi by the face and began to kiss him yfully, biting his lips and slipping her tongue inside of his mouth.


    Even though Mal had promised to stay still, his body unconsciously acted of it''s own volition.


    His hands immediately went to Bianca''s soft round ass, giving it a firm squeeze and forcing her body to grind against his.


    ''He''s supposed to be staying still but... it feels really good so I''ll let him keep going... She thought.


    Removing her lips from his, Bianca started to kiss and bite on Mchi''s neck, making a trail of dark marks down the length of his body.


    Finally, she reached his ck boxers that were currently still struggling to retain the frightening member buried beneath.


    Bianca swallowed and took a deep breath as she finally pulled down his boxers, and a shadow covered her face that made her want to run away in fear.


    Even though this was to be the first time that she and Mchi would have sex, she had already seen him naked quite a few times before.


    Though... never like this.


    "T-This... there is no way I can fit this inside of me." Bianca said honestly.


    Mchi knew that maybe his size would have been too much for a virgin, so he decided this would be the perfect moment to test something he''d only theorized.


    Gradually, his member shrank by three inches and lost a bit of it''s daunting girth, and he nodded his head in satisfaction.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "Better, love?"


    "No! It''s still too big!"


    "I think you''re just being scary. This is the same size that it was before I got blessed."


    ''Oh my god, what the fuck is wrong with you?! She thought in exhaustion. However, Bianca swallowed her cries of indignation.


    She was already getting a handicap by having him be smaller than normal, so she couldn''t keepining or else she''d never earn the respect of the other girls!


    Finally, Bianca shuffled around and brought her behind towards Mchi.


    Her legs opened right above his face, she brought her hips down enough so that she could feel his warm breath against her already drenched lips. Her garden was plump with a small tuft of ck hair atop it, making her as pretty upstairs as she was downstairs.


    Mchi raised a brow in surprise, clearly not expecting for her to know about such a tactic.


    "Where''d you learn this, love?"


    "P-Porn!" (Anna & Luna)


    She finally gripped his member with both hands and felt the rigidity that wasparable to an iron pole.


    With her mind made up, she opened her mouth as wide as it would go before she took it inside.


    When she heard Mchi release a small groan from behind her, a small sense of thrill started to bubble up in her heart.


    She wasn''t really an expert on these sorts of things, but she had received a fair amount of tips.


    Keeping her teeth as far away as possible and licking meticulously on the spots she believed would feel the best, she was sure that she would make him cum in


    no time.


    ''Wait... do I let him do it on my face or in my mouth...? Which one would feel better for him..? What does it taste like..? Do I have to swallow it? Anna said spitters are quitters, so that means I have to, right?''


    Naturally, Mchi could hear Bianca''s rambling thoughts and fought off the urge tough.


    Deciding not to leave her with so much to think about, he finally brought his lips towards her leaking garden and gave her a long lick to savor her taste.


    She was sweet, and yet slightly bitter like lightly salted peaches. Once the first taste had been introduced into his system, he was like a man possessed as he thrust his tongue deeper, determined to taste as much as he could.


    He felt his love shudder in his grasp as she lost her sense of proactiveness, unustomed to these new waves of pleasure that were flowing through her. Bianca was a rtively sheltered girl growing up, as such the most she''d ever done was finger herself a few times after watching a steamy movie.


    The sensation of a warm and soft tongue expertly searching through all of her nooks and crannies was quickly bing too much to bear.


    She had already stopped sucking Mchi as aggressively as before, and now she merely held his member in her mouth as she suppressed her delicate


    moans.


    Finally, Mal felt Bianca squirm in his grasp much more furiously than before, and he knew that she was reaching her limit.


    ''I should make it memorable for her then. Grabbing Bianca''s butt so that she couldn''t move, he embraced her small pink clit between his lips and started to suck on it meticulously.


    At the same time, he used his thumb to press against her ass without actually pushing slipping inside, and the effect was instantaneous.


    Bianca''s back arched hard enough to break her spine as she threw her head up into the air and let out a desperate and bestial scream.


    She pressed the full weight of her body down onto Mchi''s face, further


    heightening the intense pleasure she felt as she quickly reached the peak.


    "Baby, I feel it! I''m cumminggg!!!"


    Bianca''s first orgasm was even bit as strong and breathtaking as Mchi wanted it to be, and her scream his ears filled him with the greatest sense of pride that he had ever known.


    Bianca rode out her orgasm for the better part of a minute, and when it was finally over her body fell to the side while she trembled terribly.


    As her eyes refocused, she saw her boyfriend''s member that was still standing proudly without showing any signs of going limp.


    "Damn... I was hoping that we''d both get to cum at the same time."


    Mchi fought the urge tough once again as he finally sat up on the bed. "Don''t feel bad, love. I think I''ve just had a lot more practice."


    "Yea... you''re probably right... manwhore."


    "Hey!"


    "Hehehe! I''m kidding!"


    Shakily, Bianca arched her butt up into the air and gave her boyfriend a view of


    her garden that was begging to be filled.


    "I couldn''t make you cum with my mouth this time so... use this instead."


    Never needing to be told something so enticing twice, Mchi immediately positioned himself behind Bianca and ced both hands on her waist.


    As he pushed his hips forward slowly, Mchi and Bianca both let out erotic


    groans.


    He was overwhelmed by the overwhelming tightness and her elevated body temperature, and she was still wrestling with the pain and pleasure that came with having another person inside of her for the first time.


    When her hymen was broken, Bianca finally let out a scream that was not born


    of pleasure, but pain.


    Mchi immediately stopped dead in his tracks and put on a concerned expression. "B? Do you want to stop??"


    Bianca gritted her teeth and clenched her fists so hard that he thought they


    would break, and he started to pull out without even waiting for an answer.


    "No!"


    Before, Mchi could leave her body, Bianca reached behind her to hold his wrist.


    "I.. I''ve been waiting for this for a really long time now, babe. The girls always


    tell me how nice it feels when you guys give yourselves to eat other, and I want


    that too! I don''t want to feel like I''m thest one left out in our rtionship


    anymore..."


    Bianca looked at her boyfriend from behind, and Mchi could see a radiant smile on her face along with a single tear sliding down her cheek.


    "So I don''t care if it hurts at first, just make me feel your love for me, and let me


    give myself to you, okay?"

 Chapter 162 Malachi & Bianca*

    Chapter 162 Mchi & Bianca*


    Faced with such sincere feelings from a woman whom he loved to pieces, Mchi felt his own nonexistent heart beginning to thump wildly in his chest. Feelings of gratitude, love, desperation, and fervent need began to bubble up within him. Finally, he started to push his hips forward and treaded deeper inside of her, trying not to get lost in the pleasure so soon. Bianca was still having a hard time, and the feeling of being opened up all the way to her stomach was surely going to take some getting used to. Once most of him was inside, the two of them remained frozen for a moment to allow her to get ustomed to his size. They must have remained frozen in ce for upwards of five minutes, with Mal gently caressing Bianca''s butt and lower back in the hopes of helping her to rx. Eventually, it seemed as though his tender care had paid off as Bianca''s small voice finally gave the signal he''d been waiting for. "Start slow for me, okay..?"


    "..Of course, B, just tell me if it hurts too bad." Mchi said gently. Once he saw her nod, he began to move inside her for the first time. As she''d requested, he started with slow and shallow strokes that were designed to get her used to the feeling of being prated. Gradually, her moans changed from ones of pain into melodies of pleasure. Mchi tried not to let his mind be swept up into the sensation of Bianca''s insides and remained steady at his current pace and depth with great difficulty. Perhaps because of his girlfriend''s power over fire, her body temperature was a fair bit higher than normal, and it was a new and pleasurable sensation that threatened to sap his rationale. "H-Harder please.." Bianca stammered. Mal''s excitement red at her words and he immediatelyplied. The sound of their flesh pping together became louder, and in turn so did their moans and breathing. Mchi was now thrusting into her at a moderate pace, and Bianca was quickly beginning to learn that he was an expert in finding the spots that made her feel the best and rubbing against them with just the right amount of force. Sex no longer felt as scary or as painful as it did before, instead a jolt of pure euphoria would shoot into her brain every time that she felt him moving around. She let out a yelp when he suddenly wrapped his arms around her body and leaned her upwards so that her back was pressed into his chest. His two hands cupped both of herrge breasts into his overflowing palms, and he felt her squirm in his grasp from the new sensation that came with a change in position. As Mal pinched and pulled her gorgeous brown nipples rhythmically, he buried his head into the crook of her neck and started to bite her delicately. Only going so far as to leave a few marks, it was more than enough to cause a reaction in Bianca. Her moans became louder, and Mal felt her insides mping down on him harder than before. Bianca started to be jus a bit bolder in the act, and she backed her hips up against Mchi to match his thrusts. "G-Gonna cum again..!" She said desperately. "Me too..!"


    The couple felt their world start to spin as they came in unison. Used to finishing as deep as he could, Mal unconsciously pushed himself as deep as possible inside of Bianca, earning a not so quiet scream followed by a string of profanities. He thought that he had hurt her, however he was surprised when she kept bucking against him amidst the high of her own orgasm. "Please don''t stop, make me cum again!"


    Bianca had a few years of unresolved sexual tension that she was finally getting a chance to put to bed.


    She was going to use every bit of this time with her boyfriend to ensure that she gother fill from all of the times she''d spent missing out. Now that she knew how good sex could feel, she was almost like apletely different woman. "Y-You don''t have to hold back anymore, just treat me like the other girls!!" She demanded. This request admittedly caused Mal to raise a brow, but he could feel that Bianca was serious about her request. "Try not to pass out, love. I''m only doing what you asked."


    Bianca only had a moment to process as Mchi suddenly released her upper body and held onto her by her arms.


    Holding onto them behind her back, Mchi drilled into Bianca without rest, sending her into heaven from the sensation of him beingpletely inside of her and striking against her cervix repeatedly. "F-Fuck it hurts! It hurts but it feels so gooddd!!" Bianca literally had tears running down her face as she moaned lustfully and panted like she was about to faint. Mal was pretty sure that everyone on this floor could hear her with how loud she was being, but as of this moment he couldn''t really bring himself to care. As long as Bianca was desperately goading him for more, he would oblige her. Once again, he came inside of Bianca without even bothering to slow down, and she savored the feeling of her insides filling up further as well as the euphoric loss of control. This was what it meant to give yourself to someone, and this was the feeling she had been so desperately craving. Her mind was addled with euphoria, she had lost count of how many orgasms she''d had, and she had never felt more loved in her life. As Mchi felt Bianca release another clear jet of water onto the bedsheets, he finished inside her once again to make things even. ''I wonder... just how long can you keep this up?''


    Forgetting that Bianca could read his thoughts, Mchi was surprised when she suddenly looked back at him and smiled with drunken pleasure. "We''re going all night, I want you to use me as much as you want! We''re not going home until the morning!"


    - 37 Minutester. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Mchi was looking down at Bianca''s body on the bed. She was breathing heavily, and her gorgeously curvaceous figure was wrapped in a sheen of sweat. A mixture of blood, ck gel, and her own juices were steadily flowing from her swollen garden onto the bedsheets. One arm was covering her face, and the other was holding an ice pack wrapped in cloth up to her lower lips. "...So fucking embarrassing."


    "Hahaha!"


    Mchiughed as hey on the bed beside his girlfriend and pulled her into his arms. "It was your first time, love. You for real thought you were going to be able to go all night?"


    "That''s what happens in doujin and dirty novels..."


    "Why do you have to be so cute?"


    Unable to resist, Mchi left a few kisses on her cheeks that slowly drifted towards her lips. Bianca moaned lightly into his mouth as she initiated a more aggressive kiss before she punched him hard in the chest to break away. "D-Don''t be starting nothing if you know I can''t do anything right now!"


    "So I can''t kiss on you now just because you tapped out? Why am I the one getting punished?"


    "Cause you''re the one who did it, bighead!"


    "But you beg-"


    "Hush!" Bianca ced a hand over Mchi''s mouth to stop him from embarrassing her further.


    However, this backfired when she felt the tongue that she was so familiar with lick her hand, and her body suppressed a small shiver. "Seriously.... You just wait for me to heal up, I''m really going to keep you between my legs all night."


    *muffled* "That ain''t no problem." Now Bianca was the oneughing and she couldn''t help but give Mal a kiss of her own volition. This tender disy of aftercare went on for several minutes longer. Neither of them bothered to move or put on clothes, as such they merely lie on the bed and made jokes while admiring each other''s naked bodies. It was a sweet moment and possibly Mal''s favorite memory that he shared with Bianca, but it was about to face the rudest interruption imaginable. "Hey, would you love me if I was a cockroach?" Bianca asked. "Why would you... Yes, yes I would." Mal responded. "Lying ass."


    "I''m not, if you really turned into one then I''d keep you in a little box and-"


    Like a bomb had went off, all of Mal''s senses started to go haywire. Immediately sitting up on the bed, his body shot towards the window and he peeked through the curtains. The sky was unnaturally dark and cloudy, like a heavy storm was about to rip through the city. " Baby? What''s wrong?" Bianca asked from the bed. Mal wondered if maybe he was just making a mistake, and then it happened. There was a loud cracking sound like ss being shattered, and an enormous hole opened up in the sky. Mchi barely had a moment to tell Bianca to stay back before a massive deluge of water fell out, spilling onto the streets and swamping them immediately.

 Chapter 163 Seafood Menu

    Chapter 163 Seafood Menu


    In a remarkably short amount of time, the streets began to fill up with dark murky water. In the blink of an eye, it had reached ankle level, and was steadily rising with no real sign of it slowing down.


    It was clear that this entire area was going to flood within a matter of minutes. Mchi could see some people driving like mad trying to get away, and others were running frantically into buildings as if they were hoping to get to safety. "B, I''m going to send you home alright? When you get there I need you to give Joanne a call and tell her to meet me out here." Mchi said. "W-Wait, I can help!" Bianca tried to get to her feet but her legs were utterly useless after everything she and Mal had done earlier, so she quickly went down. Luckily, her boyfriend was there to catch her before she hit the ground and he gave her a pitying look. "I know you want to help, but you''re not really in the best condition for that right now. Just go home and sit tight, and I''ll meet you thereter."


    Without giving her room to argue, Mchi gave her a short and sweet kiss before dropping her into the shadows beneath them, sending her right to their bedroom at the nightfall base. His body armor became glued to his body a few momentster, and he leapt out of the window into the watery streets below. As soon as he made the decision to appear, so did they. Out of the portal in the sky, amphibious creatures began to fall out one by one. Some stood on two legs, with mottled green skin and fish-like heads with bulbous ck eyes. Others were more rming looking, like miniature leviathans around forty feet long and with bodies as thick as cement pirs. Their gaping mouths hung open two reveal fangs as long as swords; all dripping with what seemed like a potent venom. Mchi realized that it had been quite a while since he''d gotten to eat any dungeon monsters, so he elected to have a bit of a feast today. ''I don''t remember liking fish that much before ¡­ I wonder if this is a part of Bast''s blessing?''


    Recent dietary interests aside, he would still have to be careful about how he subjugated the monsters. His powers over lightning werepletely off limits, since there were likely still civilians in the nearby area and he didn''t want to be responsible for identally electrocuting someone. Therefore, Mal sprouted three pairs of wings from his back as he decided to engage from the air.


    However, there was something different about his wings since he''dst seen them.


    The left were a mesmerizing white, while the right were a deep and enchanting ck.


    ''That''s... new..?''


    Mchi would have spent more time analyzing his body''stests development but the sea creatures seemed like they were more than a little tired of waiting. With the ten of his daggers sitting between his knuckles, Mchi hurled them at the approaching fishermen as his wings carried him into the sky. As always, they flew from his grasp like guided projectiles with minds of their own and soared towards the assants; piercing their eyes, brains and hearts like they were made of warm tofu. "HISSS!!"


    Two of the leviathans lunged at Mchi while he was airborne. He raised a brow in surprise when he saw their rming quickness, as well as the fact that they seemed to be growing somehow. Unsheathing his iklwha from his back, he avoided one of the creatures by shifting his position around and performing a somersault in midair. His bodynded gracefully atop the head of the other Leviathan, and he immediately stabbed it in the top of it''s skull. Letting his body be pulled by gravity, Mchi carved the serpent all the way down it''s spiked spine, causing it to let out a screech of pain. Dark blood sshed out and threatened to soil Mchi''s pristine white wings, but he quickly disappeared in a flurry of shadows before any of it could reach him. He reappeared on top of a nearby building, and he held out his hands to recall his knives back to his grip. "Mchi!"


    "Yo!"


    "Babe!"


    Looking up, Mal found three very familiar women flying towards him. In what might have been the oddest pairing he''d ever seen, Joanne was flying with two full grown women in her arms. One was his lovely girlfriend Anna, and the other was his friendly visitor from another world; Nadine.


    "Funny seeing you three together..." Mal said. Joannended on the rooftop beside him and took in the sight of his wings; the white and ckbination not only seeing off rms in her head, but also stupefying her. This shouldn''t be possible!


    Cassiel had specifically told her that there was no chance for one blessed by an archangel to be a fallen one, and she had personally seen evidence of their supposed failsafes. So why was this boy still alive?!


    Why did everything about her daughter''s boyfriend seem to be so far out of the ordinary!?


    Anna gave her boyfriend a reassuring hug as she gestured to their unwee guest with a flick of her head. "That one wouldn''t leave us alone when she heard we wereing to help you. She just started whining about being bored and making a fuss."


    "That''s true, I did!" Nadine said happily. Mchi smiled wryly and prepared to offer up a response when a loud scream interrupted his thoughts. "KYYYYAAAA, HELP MEEE!!" n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Whirling around, Mal could see a few of the fishermen beginning to climb buildings above them and punch in the windows. One of them had actually seeded in grabbing onto a woman, and it opened it''s horrifying mouth wide as it prepared to bite through her with it''s dull yellow teeth. Mchi immediately flew towards the monster while leaving behind his three reinforcements. Clenching his fist, he punched the fisherman hard without even allowing it to notice his presence, obliterating it''s head and forcing it to drop the woman. Before she could fall freely from her building into the dangerous water below, she was caught by a young man in ck body armor with a skull mask and long dreadlocks. When the two of their eyes met, the both of them raised their brows in surprise as they called out each other''s name. "M-Mchi?!"


    "Celeste??"

 Chapter 164 Slayer of Milfs & Monsters

    Chapter 164 yer of Milfs & Monsters


    Mchi wasn''t at all expecting to find the mother of his ex girlfriend in mortal danger, and he did not really know how to react upon seeing her.


    However, the feeling was not unique to him.


    At such a close proximity to Mchi, Celeste had gone from having her heart beat from fear to attraction in a matter of seconds.


    She firmly believed that there was no way that this could be good for her health.


    Mchi carried her up to the roof where the rest of the girls were waiting.


    Nadine was like a huntress, firing spears of coagted blood from her wrists into the bodies of the fish men who were trying to invade the homes of the citizens.


    Anna would have been helping but.. she was more focused on the woman in her boyfriend''s arms.


    When Mchinded on the rooftop, he ced Celeste down and allowed her to shakily get to her feet.


    "T-Thank you, Mchi¡­" she stammered. "I wasn''t expecting this to be the way that we met again."


    "Neither was I, but I''m d that nothing happened to you."


    By now, full blown rm bells were going off in Annalise''s head.


    Celeste clearly knew Mal, and what was even worse was that she had all of the attributes that he liked in a woman.


    A woman of ck or asian heritage? Check.


    A milf? SUPER check.


    Short hair? Check.


    An ass that you could sit a cup on top of? Another infuriating check.


    She even had a body that was ripe for cuddling just like Sei''s, with a soft and cuddly stomach to caress and enormous breasts toy your head on top of.


    If she had tattoos and didn''t shave downstairs she would literally be what you got if you took all his favorite parts of all of his girlfriends and put them together.


    Anna was so upset that the dreaded question flew free her lips before she even knew to stop it.


    "Did you fuck her?"


    Mchi: "Huh?"


    Celeste: "W-What?!"


    Joanne: "Anna!"


    Nadine: "Her too?! Why are you passing out dick to everyone but me?!"


    Leviathan: "HISSS!!!"


    Another enormous snakelike creature of the deep rose up from the murky waters, intending to swallow up everyone on the rooftop in one bite.


    Without breaking eye contact with Anna, Mchi conjured up two enormous balls of fire with both hands, one golden and one ck.


    He casually tossed them over his shoulders and into the open mouth of the hungry creature, causing it to let out a wail of pain.


    The leviathan dove back into the water hoping that it''s home would put the mes out, but he was met with no such luck.


    Three seconds was all it took for the creature that was over twenty meters long to be burned to ash and sent to rest in agony.


    "Love, why would you think that?" Mchi asked without a judgy tone.


    Perhaps because of the soft way he spoke to her, Anna lost all her nerve and started to fiddle with the silver rings on her fingers like she was embarrassed.


    "I.. don''t know. You guys just seemed kinda friendly with each other and stuff, plus she''s your type so I thought¡­you know.."


    "This is Mnie''s mom. We met at the hospital a few months ago, remember?"


    Anna recalled Mchi''s story about how he took care of the medical bills for an ex girlfriend out of a sense of obligation.


    She also remembered how he told her about meeting the girl''s mother, but she had no knowledge of what she looked like.


    Had she known, she would have definitely been more jealous at the time of hearing that story.


    ''I-I''m his type..?'' Celeste felt like she needed to sit down within a few seconds or she was going to hurt her head when she inevitably fainted.


    "H-Honestly, why do you have to react like this all the time?" Joanne asked exhaustedly. "I still remember when you asked him the same thing about me!"


    "I''m still suspicious that you''ll try to jump on him one day though, so that''s why I like to keep you two as faraway from each other as possible." Anna admitted.


    "I can assure you, thest thing I want in my life right now is a man, thank you very much!"


    "Yea right now, but what about after that??" Anna asked usingly.


    Joanne had no time to respond before Mchi suddenly pulled his girlfriend away.


    Truth be told he liked when she was jealous, so he didn''t offer up anyments to chastise her.


    Instead he pulled his mask down to give her a short kiss on the cheek and a firm squeeze on the butt.


    "You know that what I have now is all that I could ever need. Soe help me, and then we can talk about silly shitter."


    "O-Okay.."


    The two lovers jumped off the roof holding hands as they fell into the invading force of enemies below.


    The tattoos on Anna''s back glowed for a brief second before a pair of blood red wings left her shoulder des.


    With grace like that of a swan, she flew alongside Mchi and started to obliterate the fish men with her bare fists.


    Meanwhile the three women were left atop the roof, each with different areas of focus on their minds.


    Nadine was still shooting down the monsters who were pouring out of the gate, meanwhile Celeste''s eyes were flickering back and forth between her and Joanne.


    The leader of the dark angels was on amunication device, checking the ETA of her disaster relief squad.


    Although she pretended to be focused on that, she was admittedly having a hard time with her daughters words.


    She still had yet to heal from everything that Alex had done to her, and as a result she couldn''t even think about being touched by another man.


    But when the day came that she was no longer broken and she was ready to move on with her life, what would she want?


    Who would she want?


    Ordinarily she would have told herself that she could just focus on work or drinking but¡­ for some reason that didn''t seem like it was going to do the trick anymore.


    Unconsciously, her eyes flickered to the back of the young man in ck armor who was flying in the air; battling against a group of three leviathans.


    As quickly as her eyesnded on him, they were redirected back towards her device.


    She didn''t get to be selfish like that, not after how she''d lived the past twenty years.


    -


    Mchi twirled his iklwa in his palm until he was holding it like a spear.


    Hurling it as hard as he could, his weapon punctured clear through the underside of one of the Leviathans and blew a massive hole in the back of it''s neck, killing the creature instantly.


    His iklwa did not lose the slightest bit of momentum and carried itself right into the body of the one behind it, stapling the creature to a nearby building.


    Holding out his hands, Mchi grabbed onto the creature''s very own shadow.


    He made a gesture like he was forcing it''s mouth open, and kept stretching his arms further and further apart.


    The creature began to panic as it''s upper and lower jaws were literally ripped apart, and the two halves of it''s body were peeled away from each other like a piece of string cheese.


    Dark purple blood and guts fell into the murky water and further darkened it''s already questionable color, and the creatures two halves quickly fell behind it.


    Mchi held out his hand and his weapon came flying back to his palm; allowing him to return it to it''s sheath that sat across his back.


    With this area now clear, Mchi turned around to look for Anna and surveil her progress.


    He found her not far from him, hovering in the air and holding two dead fishmen by their necks.


    Her beautiful face had splotches of dark purple blood on it, and the white sleeveless tee she''d been wearing got soaking wet, allowing one to see her ck bra underneath.


    She dropped the two enemies coldly into the water just as she saw her lover flying towards her rather quickly.


    "Oh, I''m done babe! I was just thinking though, what weapon do you think would be good for- mmf?"


    Uncaring of the fact that Anna was wet and had blood on her face, Mchi immediately grabbed her by the waist and brought his lips towards hers.


    She spent a few seconds struggling to escape his iron-like grasp before eventually relinquishing herself to it and allowing him to do as he pleased.


    Although, she couldn''t exactly say that she was not also enjoying this treatment.


    "HEY!!" Nadine yelled.


    "¡­" Both Mchi and Anna waved their hands to shoo her away as they kept kissing each other.


    "Would you two pay attention! That big guy looks mad and I''m not going to deal with him by myself if I''m not getting rewarded!!"


    Finally, Anna and Mchi broke their long kiss and after ring at Nadine for a single second, they could see why she was so anxious.


    Arge sea serpent hade out of the portal.


    But different from the rest of them, this one had three heads on top of it''s body and was much bigger than the rest. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Every few seconds, it absorbed more water into it''s armor-like cyan scales and grewrger.


    Even though it had just shown up, it was already over 40 meters tall.


    Anna and Mchi were both looking at the creature in surprise, with one very simple question on their minds.


    ''That thing¡­ why didn''t we feel it show up..?''

 Chapter 165 What is Malachi?

    Chapter 165 What is Mchi?


    Even if a roach were to run directly at Mchi in the middle of a filled concert venue, he would still be able to notice it and react ordingly. His senses were just that well developed after bing his mother''s avatar. And since Anna regrly ingested his essence and limated it into her body, her senses were almost as sharp as his. So then why hadn''t either of them noticed the sea creatureing until it was almost toote?


    Mchi pulled in Anna by the waist and together the two avoided a well timed bite that was aimed at them by one of the creature''s three heads. Finally, Mal seemed to notice just what was wrong with this creature and the reason why he didn''t notice it, but it was pretty hard to believe. And even if that was the case for him, it didn''t exin why Anna couldn''t sense it. "Hey babe... did you notice anything weird about that thing''s attack just now?" He asked. Anna put her hand to her chin as she thought about it for a few seconds and came up with the same crazy and nonsensical answer as Mchi. "Now that you mentioned it... it seems really slow. And I thought that we didn''t notice it because we were too busy kissing, but... truth be told it''s aura just doesn''t feel that imposing." she admitted. Mchi nodded in amazement, confused by how Anna had managed to reach the same conclusion as him. If he was honest, this thing didn''t feel that much more impressive than anythingthing else they had just fought. But why?


    He was always strong, but he had never been so strong that he could practically ignore the arrival of a boss level monster before. Even if this thing was around B rank, it still should have set off more than a few rm bells. And another strange detail was that his girlfriend remained equally oblivious.


    Anna and the girls were tough too, but they were still new to their blessings and weren''t quite as powerful as him yet. But... what if they were closer to him than he thought?


    He wanted to be sure. "Anna.. do you think you could beat that thing on your own?" Mchi asked suspiciously. The young woman in his arms looked at the creature for around a solid five seconds before nodding. "Yea, I think I can, I''m just worried about that venom though."


    "I can give you a hand with that if you like."


    With a simple mentalmand, shadows solidified and rushed toward the open mouth of the three headed Leviathan. They encased it''s venomous fangs like oversized mouth guards, preventing the beast from spreading its poison anywhere. Mchi thought that he had done good, but Anna gave him a yful nudge in the ribs and shook her head wryly. "Babe... you don''t have to tee things up for me all the time. You''ve already done so much for me, now you just have to let me seed or fail on my own, or else.. why do I even have these powers in the first ce?" She asked.


    Not giving him a moment to say anything, Anna shook herself free of his grasp and did a freewill through the air. "Let me show you that I can make you proud, okay? Keep your eyes on my ass!" n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    As she left him with a teasing remark, she finally unfurled her vengeful red wings and flew at the giant sea monster without showing the slightest traces of fear. ''That girl... Her ass does look good in those jeans though.'' Mal thought as he freed the creature''s teeth. Shaking his head free of degenerative thoughts, hended on the roof beside Nadine, Joanne, and Celeste. Leaning against the railing, he did exactly as he was asked and kept his eyes firmly nted on his girlfriend''s behind. "Can you not stare at my daughter''s rear so openly while I am right beside you?" Joanne asked in annoyance. "Sorry, director. I already have my orders."


    "Shameless brat."


    "I prefer a man in love." "I don''t give a damn what you''d prefer."


    Nadine suddenly joined in on the banter, jumping on top of Mchi''s back like she was a little kid. "Damn, I hope the dayes where you look at my butt like that." Nadine said with a pout, not at all hiding her jealousy. "Hope in one hand and shit in the other then let''s see which one fills up faster." Mchi said without looking back. "Jerk!"


    Nadine started squeezing Mchi''s neck with her monstrous strength, but since he didn''t need air or feel real pain anymore, it did not bother him in the slightest. In the corner, Celeste watched the three of them with something of a happy smile on her face. The man in front of her now was drastically different from that somewhat timid and insecure young guy she met several months ago. And the way he specifically looked at that one young woman with the tattoos and piercings... she could tell that he loved her very much. ''Mnie, did he look at you like that too in the past?'' She wondered. -


    Anna flew at the rampaging hydra who was in the process of destroying a building. When it felt hering, it turned it''s heads around and opened it''s three mouths wide. Jets of venom squirted from the ns within it''srge front fangs, and six consecutive sts traveled right towards Anna. ''Babe''s watching, gotta do some cool shit!'' she thought excitedly. Using thest bit of her stored kic energy, Anna created a glowing red shield in the air that was justrge enough to protect her body. Ignoring the strong jet of poison that was threatening to push her back, Anna closed the distance between herself and the hydra before she finally dispelled the shield. Now that she was right in front of the beast''s snout, she cocked her fist back and punched it as hard as she could. BOOOOMMM!!


    Despite the rming size difference between the two, Anna felt the familiar crack of bone as the beast''s middle head was thrown back by the sheer force of her blow. The other two heads dove to crush her between them while their leader recovered, but the young woman on red wings simply flew above their reach, causing them to miss wildly. Anna thought she had perfectly avoided any follow up attack, but she missed the moment where the creature''s thick tail came flying out of the water and struck against her body hard. She was immediately sent catapulting backwards into the air, temporarily making her lose her bnce. "ANNA!"


    Righting herself in the air, Annalise could see her mother looking like she was about to jump over the railing and help her, but Mchi was holding onto her by the back of her jacket to prevent any interference. Their eyes met in midair and she heard his voice in her head not long after. ''That didn''t hurt you, right?''


    ''Course not, babe. You know I''m tougher than that.'' She said with a twinge of vanity. Mchi smiled at her proudly and gestured for her to continue. ''Remember, give as good as you get.''


    ''Of course!''


    Thatst attack had left Anna with a fair amount of kic energy at her disposal. Even though it didn''t actually hurt, the fact was that she had just taken a strike from a tail the size of a building. Something like that was bound to give her plenty of power to y with. Anna''s entire body started to glow like a red lightbulb. The serpent had finally recovered from it''s earlier assault, and it looked to be pretty upset that one of the heads that Anna had punched with all her might was now crooked and had a pretty bad nosebleed. It let out a horrible roar that should have deafened anyone within the nearby radius, and it began to rush at Anna like she was it''s most hated enemy. Coincidentally, Anna also flew like a bullet towards the multi-headed serpent. But she would not aim for it''s heads as she hadst time, instead she had a different target in mind. Focusing on the chest where the three head were conjoined, Anna focused her power into her arm and clenched her fist until it seemed likely that she was going to break it. "Ha!"


    BOOOOOOOMMMMMM!!!


    Throwing out a fist, Anna expelled all of her stored up kic energy into her punch, causing a massive shockwave to ripple outward from the point of collision. The hydra did not even have a moment to process how it died as its entire chest waspletely obliterated, sending chunks of blood, scales, and flesh everywhere. Anna hovered in the air, slightly out of breath and holding the arm she''d used for thest attack. She''d never released that much energy at once before, and now it seemed like she was paying for it. The bones in her left arm felt like they''d been broken, and not in their usual quick healing kind of way. She felt a gust of wind blow past her, and soon her boyfriend was scooping her out of the air, returning her to her rightful ce in his arms. "You did great... Is your arm okay?" he asked, clearly trying to hide his worry. Anna smiled at him harmlessly and immediately put his mind at ease. "Yea, that''s what I get for trying to shown off in front of you and my mom anyway. I just didn''t want you guys to think you always had to protect me."


    "Well you definitely showed us, but we''re still going to look out for you. You''re all either of us have."


    Anna wouldn''t admit just how happy those words made her to hear, but Mal knew the truth anyway. But on another note, he was really surprised by just how easily she had dispatched the creature. Her initial aptitude assessment said she was around an A rank and yet she was taking down B-Rank gate bosses on her own.


    Things like that don''t just happen to those who aren''t blessed by primordials, no matter how talented they might be. He wondered just what might be separating her and the girls from the rest of the pack but... he had a feeling he might know. He couldn''t wait for the next time his mother decided to descend onto this world, as he had a great many things to ask her.

 Chapter 166 POTUS

    Chapter 166 POTUS


    As Mchi held the slightly injured Anna in his arms, they suddenly felt a multitude of iing presences approaching at a high speed.


    Looking over his shoulder, Mchi found six helicopters steadily approaching the area.


    In the center, almost as if it was being protected, there was a white helicopter that looked more like it was designed for carrying civilians than soldiers.


    "What the fuck¡­ why is he here¡­?"


    Mchi wasn''t sure when Joanne had appeared in the air beside he and Anna, but he wasn''t really unsettled by her appearance.


    "Friend of yours?"


    "Not quite, you brat. Not at all." Joanne muttered.


    The white helicopter came closer and closer to the flying humans until itnded on top of the building closest to them.


    After a few seconds, a man stepped out from a door on the side.


    Wearing a standard dark blue suit with a white shirt and a tie, he almost looked indistinguishable from a regr sryman.


    He was an older gentleman with skin that had begun to sag a bit in certain ces and a head of salt and pepper hair.


    His blue eyes and unassuming smile were expertly practiced and perfected; a side effect of having a job that almost relies solely upon your likability to others.


    He waived his hand in a friendly manner at the group of three who were still in the sky.


    Anna had retracted her wings into her back already, so to him it looked like Mchi had just saved her after she''d gotten injured.


    "Does he¡­ want to speak to us?" Mchi asked.


    "He does, let''s go." Answered Joanne.


    "We don''t work for him, so why do we have to go??" Anna asked from Mal''s arms.


    "Because we''re all friends and family here, so that means when I''m miserable you two have to share in it." Joanne said stubbornly.


    "I don''t know if I like that stiption."


    "Tough shit, you''reing."


    Joanne subtly yet forcefully ced her arm on Mchi''s shoulder, pushing him down to the rooftop where the president remained waiting.


    Once they were in earshot, the well dressed older man started to p his hands together like he was giving the group a round of apuse.


    "Incredible, incredible!! We were expecting for there to be a fair amount of monsters left to take care of but it appears as though you didn''t need to wait for us!"


    At first, he turned towards director Joanne and gave her a hearty handshake. "I''m curious as to why you arrived out here, Mr. President. I don''t believe that you are apart of my subjugation and relief team." She said robotically.


    "Yes, yes, I''m not but when I got the alert about a gate break at this location I just felt I had toe here for myself and help the people however I could. Two breaks in one state in under a year is practically unheard of, you know?"


    Mchi''s eyes briefly becameplicated as he realized a fact he hadn''t had the time to think about yet. This was the second gate break to ur and it was in the same state as thest. Normally, things like this ur every once a year or so and never in the same ce twice. It felt like the world was slowly but surely reaching the end of it''s countdown. "But Director, you''ve been holding out on me¡­" the president said in an usatory manner.


    "Because you didn''t tell me¡­ that you knew THE Mchi Saint, I mean wow! A-And you were one of the youngdies from the g, I saw you on television!"


    Beaming like a giddy eighth grader, the president stuck out both of his hands for both Mal and Anna to shake.


    Making niceties, the two of them epted the handshakes without much thought as the president continued to butter up Mal.


    "My daughters are real big fans, you know? They are just going to lose their minds when I tell them that I met their hero in the middle of a battlefield. Think I could get your autograph??"


    "Ah¡­ sure. Think you could do me one favor first though?"


    "Pardon? What''s that?"


    Mchi made a grabbing gesture with his hands and the wind was filled with sound of several screams before the bodies of several men from the rooftops were yanked up by dark tendrils of shadow.


    Sniper guns with bullets specifically designed to kill blessed fell into the water, and thousands of dors were wasted in an instant.


    Mchi was trying his best not tosh out, but this was really too much.


    It was lucky that Luna had told him she wanted him to control his emotions better, or else he may have ''identally'' tossed the president and these men off the roof.


    "You can point guns at me all you like and it won''t faze me. But doing it while you see my girls standing here is some shit that I''m not going to let go. Thank your star spangled banner that I haven''t killed nobody yet."


    ''He''s so hot when he''s like this¡­'' Anna thought dreamily.


    "W-Who is your girl, you bastard!!" Joanne roared with a red face.


    POW!!


    The director punched the young man hard enough to form a dent in his chest, but he of course remained unbothered as he looked at her.


    "I didn''t mean it like that for you. I just meant you''re like my homegirl."


    "I''m too damn old for you to call me something like that, Mchi!"


    "Would you prefer padre, twin, or bestie for restie'' instead?"


    "¡­I swear to god I am going to knock your jaw off your body."


    "Homegirl it is then."


    "Fuck you."


    ''They are closer than I thought¡­''


    The president was unsure when he would find a good time to jump in this conversation as he held his hands up as a show of non aggression.


    "Please, I apologize for them. It''s just that in the world''s current climate they feel that they can never be too safe, you see? They meant no disrespect I assure you."


    "Put my guys down, Mchi. I don''t want to have to meet any wives and families this weekend." Joanne asked.


    Mal didn''t look like he was about to put the men down until she asked him to, and he lowered all of the soldiers to the rooftop without damaging a hair on their pretty heads.


    "That''s a good boy." She said sarcastically. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "T-The hell would you call me something like that for??" He asked.


    "You''ve got cat powers, don''t you?" She replied.


    "¡­."


    Mchi decided that for the sake of time he wouldn''t debate with Joanne about this any further.


    He definitely did not like it when she called him a good boy.


    Not at all.


    He had truly never hated anything more.


    And that is the god''s honest truth.


    "My, what an amusing rtionship the two of you seem to have!" The president said as he tried to move past the previous awkwardness.


    "And it seems you''re quite capable, it is no wonder that all those guilds wanted to pay a pretty penny for you."


    Mchi remained unmoved by thepliment as he waived it away with his hand.


    "That stuff is in the past. I''m not in the guild business anymore."


    The ears of the president twitched as he realized they''d finallye to the part of the conversation that he had been hoping for.


    "Ah yes¡­ it truly is nasty business that. I know of your¡­ more personal rtionship with Luna Autumn; perhaps you could convince her to reinstate Immortal Moon? I truly believe that it would be for the good of all."


    "That''s not something for me to interfere with." Mchi said sternly. "She built that ce from the ground up, and it is her decision alone when ites to an end."


    "B-But isn''t it such a waste to disband an entire guild over a few weapons??"


    "Weapons??" Mchi asked in confusion.


    As soon as he asked the question, he heard not only Joanne''s but the president''s heartbeat start to speed up.


    He immediately knew that there was something he wasn''t privy to.


    "Nothing, it seems I''ve misspoken." The president said with a polite smile as he backed away. "Seems I must be going now, it really was a pleasure to-"


    "Nadine."


    Twelve seconds after Mchi called the name of a random woman, Nadine appeared in a gust of wind with the mature Celeste on her back.


    "Yo! You called?"


    "I need you to get some information for me." He said as he stared at the president.


    The old man sensed something off about this beautiful woman who appeared from out of nowhere.


    For starters, she was too beautiful to be considered human, and her eyes were as captivating as they were unsettling.


    "Oh really? I don''t mind, but I''ll be expecting a reward for this. You could atleast give a bitch some head or something."


    "What have I told you about watching tik tok and BET?!" Mchi roared.


    "They''re my eyes and I''ll do what I want with them!"


    Nadine ced the pale and shaking Celeste on the ground before she walked up to the president with swaying hips.


    "Now, let''s see what''s in that little old head of yours, shall we?"

 Chapter 167 Apologies & Refugees

    Chapter 167 Apologies & Refugees


    Bianca: "A-And then, he did this thing with his hips that felt really, really, good and I started to see stars and then he-"


    Luna: "Did he y with you breasts while he took you from behind? It was nice, right?"


    "YES!"


    Sei: "Oh, did he get a chance to use his mouth on you while you lie down helplessly? It really increases my sensitivity and feels so much better than normal."


    Bianca: "I-I wanna try that next! But how do I ask for it exactly¡­?"


    Luna: "Just be crude like Anna and spread your legs on the countertop, it all works the same."


    "Got it!"


    In the nightfall base, Bianca was lying on her back with her head in Luna''sp, and her feet in Sei''s.


    Since these three were as thick as thieves, she naturally ran to tell them about her magical yet animalistic first time with Mchi a few hours earlier.


    It was a really cute scene, and both of the mature beauties gave her quite a few new things to tryter.


    Only after she could walk normally again, of course.


    "Well now that you''ve finally taken thatst step you can start to join us in our night activities." Luna said yfully.


    Bianca''s sses began to fog up as she briefly recalled the times she''d peeked through the door to watch their ''group bonding time.''


    ''B-Bodies, so many bodies! A-And sweat and cum and moaning¡­''


    Sei noticed that Bianca started to get warm and she gave Luna a chastising nudge in the ribs.


    "Don''t tease her like that, she''s only just had her first time today!"


    "Yes, yes, sorry."


    Sei rolled her eyes and took Bianca''s slender hand and smiled at her warmly.


    "Don''t worry, Bianca. I know from personal experience that it feels like a really big step so just enjoy things at your own pace, okay? No one is going to rush you."


    "O-Okay¡­ thank you, Sei."


    At that moment, a bundle of shadows rose up in the living room and Mchi appeared with three additional women in tow.


    Anna was hanging onto him like a ko while Nadine hung off his back and he held Joanne by the ear like she was a 2nd grader.


    "I-I''M NOT EVEN READY TO HAVE A FIVESOME YET, SO A SEVEN WAY IS COMPLETELY OFF LIMITS!!" Bianca yelled at the top of her lungs.


    Completely caught off guard, Mchi and everyone he brought with him stared at the young woman like she had just grown a second head.


    "I-I¡­ don''t even know where to begin." Mal muttered.


    "Bianca sweetie, why don''t you go lie down and take a little nap, okay?" Sei said gently.


    "Oh..okay then."


    After the young woman got up and left the room, Mchi shook his head a few times to free his mind of dangerous images.


    He refocused his mind on being upset, and stared at Luna with a smile that was not a smile.


    "Love, do you have something you''d like to tell me?"


    "I¡­ don''t think so?"


    Anna and Joanne winced meanwhile Nadine''s eyes lit up like she was waiting for this moment all her life.


    ''Yes! When he gets mad at her, I''ll get to fill in her spot!'' She thought with glee.


    Mchi released Joanne and Nadine before cing Anna on the kitchen counter while he went rummaging through the supply closet for a sling and an ice packet.


    "Oh, for real? That''s crazy¡­ on apletely unrted note, what ever happened to those weapons we were supposed to get from ourst raid?"


    Even from the kitchen, Mchi heard Luna''s heart start to beat harder.


    She immediately looked at Joanne to see if she''d been the one to spill the beans only to see her hold up her hands innocently.


    "Don''t look at me. The president showed up at the site of the break and let it slip. He asked that weird girl for help and she hypnotized him or something."


    "Who is the weird girl?! I have a name I''ll have you know!" Nadine roared.


    "Don''t care."


    Nadine grumbled in annoyance as she tried to think of ways to get this woman to have an ''idental'' death.


    "I''ll remember this¡­ watch your neck, bitch."


    "What?!"


    "Please stop."


    Luna sighed as she stood up from the couch and walked over to Mchi.


    "I''m sorry that I kept it from you. Are you upset with me?"


    As Mchi tended to Anna''s arm, he maintained a rather stony faced expression as he bandaged her up. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Luna started to feel a little bit worried as she ced her delicate hand on his arm.


    "I was just worried that you would feel the need to do something silly like run off and wage war with the United States government because I was slighted. I did not mean to be deceptive."


    ''¡­''


    Truth be told, Mchi was upset enough to give the government more to worry about than Arias.


    And precisely because he felt like that, he knew that she must have been justified in her worry.


    When it came to the women in his life, he could only stand to see them receive the fairest of treatment or none at all.


    He probably would have thrown the president into space earlier if it weren''t for the small voice in his head that told him that it wouldn''t be what Luna wanted.


    "I get it¡­ just don''t keep things from me, alright? You don''t have to worry about me flying off the handle at our every inconvenience." He said finally.


    "I understand. Does this mean that I am forgiven?"


    "¡­Still deciding." He lied.


    Luna gave him a rare innocent look as she dropped her hand just below his belt buckle.


    "I''ll apologize however you want me to, does that help at all?"


    Mchi felt a bit of his rationality staring to leave his mind and enter another area.


    Holding his hand out, he sent Joanne and Nadine out of their living quarters with a flick of his finger.


    "I would have settled for a kiss but since you offered me something better I won''t refuse."


    Once Anna was all fixed up, he lifted Luna over his shoulder and carried her to one of the spare bedroom before shutting the door.


    The young goth girl jumped down from the counter and started to follow them when Sei suddenly ced a hand on her shoulder to stop her.


    "Anna¡­ maybe just leave this one to them this time."


    Despite her rough exterior, she clearly looked crestfallen. "But I¡­ wanted to get eaten out just a bit.."


    "I get that but you haven''t had any disagreements with Mchi yet so you don''t know but¡­ makeup sex with him is very different from regr sex." Sei exined.


    "How so?"


    "Well it''s¡­" Sei''s face started to turn red and she started to pull Anna back towards the kitchen to avoid the subject.


    "H-How about I make you something to eat, hm? Name whatever you want and I''ll prepare it for you!"


    "Umm¡­ A BLT and maybe some fries and lemonade?"


    "Okay, sure!"


    "While you''re cooking I''m gonna go watch Luna get fucked."


    "Anna!!"


    The young girl shrugged her shoulders helplessly as she prepared to offer a retort, only to be interrupted by beautifulughter that she would recognize anywhere.


    Turning around, the two beauties found Nyx sitting on the couch, smiling at them both fondly.


    "I''ve truly missed the two of you. Where else can I go to experienceughter as fulfilling as this?"


    - Mariana Trench : Tartarus


    In a highly advanced underwater facility located at the deepest reaches of the Earth, the world''s most dangerous criminals are held.


    Without exception, all of the upants are blessed, with rankings from anywhere from themon B to the singr SS.


    Without a specialized submarine thates only once every two weeks to deliver food and amenities, there exists no way to enter or escape.


    And even then, everything brought in is highly regted and inspected at a predetermined checkpoint.


    Pat downs, body cavity searches, wands, there is no method that one will not go through in order to step into this prison.


    No matter how many times one may have visited before.


    The guards alternate in four week shifts, with two weeks to spend on the surface followed by four weeks of living down here alongside the inmates.


    Today, the shift change was taking ce and the guards could not have been more excited as they waited around in the hangar for the iing sub to finish docking.


    Once the giant metal structure was locked firmly in ce, a hatch opened up in the side to reveal the guards who would be taking their ce.


    Only¡­ this time there was a problem.


    Everyone was dead, and the floor of the submarine was slick with the blood of the guards who were lying without their heads or lower halves.


    The culprit of this onught was a man with pristine white robes and long golden hair whose face they all recognized easily from the numerous briefings that had been held.


    "Tartarus, huh¡­? It''s nicer than I expected."

 Chapter 168 Jailbreak

    Chapter 168 Jailbreak


    "O-Open fire!"


    "Shoot him, now!"


    "Sure, knock yourselves out."


    Arias remained standing with his hands behind his back as he watched the sixty odd guards pull their weapons out of their holsters and start shooting.


    Bullets started to fly throughout the air by the dozens, meanwhile Arias simply stood there motionlessly with a familiar smile and no signs of being harmed.


    No matter how many times he was shot, the bullets either missed him entirely and bounced off the titanium walls of the submarine or passed through his body harmlessly, exposing the golden visage underneath.


    "W-What is that?!"


    "H-He''s not falling!"


    Arias feinged ignorance and ced his hands on his hips like he was embroiled in a real conundrum.


    "That can''t be right, now why o why aren''t your weapons working..? ¡­They''ve been giving you guys the cheap shit down here, huh? You probably couldn''t kill an olddy on life alert with those guns."


    "Grenade!"


    "Oh now it just feels like you''re ovepensating."


    Before the grenade could be thrown towards the sub, Arias decided that he''d been ying for long enough.


    Holding out his hand, he caught the projectile with his telekic power and held it in his center of the assembled guards.


    BANG!


    When the bomb went off, only a couple died instantly while the rest were sent sprawling onto the ground from the explosion.


    Arias snapped his fingers and a flurry of des of light appeared at his side before piercing the bodies of everyone present.


    With the hall now quiet, Arias stepped out of the sub and looked at all of the corpses distastefully.


    ''If only you had a blessed here¡­ you lot might have fared better.''


    Truth be told, Tartarus used to have quite a lot of blessed guards who weren''t in service to any guilds, just the government.


    But when Arias and his faction came into the spotlight, suddenly having a bunch of blessed guard other blessed didn''t seem like such a good idea, and they were ''reassigned''.


    To be honest, the leader of the new day didn''t believe that he or his followers could shoulder the me for this change.


    If it was so easy to tear apart the trust between two groups, then clearly there mustn''t have been any in the first ce.


    Arias breezed through the field of corpses without a care and simply melted down any security doors.


    When he finally reached his destination, he was in a long corridor lined with cells that had prismatic doors and little amenities inside.


    The worse crimes an inmate was in for, the less things they had in their cell.


    In one block there was a man with nothing in his cell but a toilet.


    But judging by the thin and decrepit state of his body, he hadn''t been fed in a while so it wasn''t like he was using his one amenity either.


    Arias sucked in a deep gust of air into his imaginary lungs before screaming throughout the entire prison block.


    "Hello all!! I''vee to ask, do any of you feel like you have been rehabilitated and are ready to serve a grander purpose???"


    -


    It was four hours before Mchi stepped out of the bedroom he''d pulled Luna into.


    Since he was home and living with only his women now, he emergedpletely nude as he prepared to go straight from this bedroom to the shower.


    But he would learn toote that he was making a fatal mistake.


    Right in his very own living room, his mother and two of his girlfriends were sitting on his couch; watching some trashy reality romancepetition on tv and eating BLT sandwiches.


    "Oh hey, baby boy! Did you miss me??" n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "Shit!"


    Reaching inside of his shadow storage, he quickly pulled on a pair of boxers as he tried to recover some of his dignity.


    "W-When did you get here and why couldn''t I feel you??"


    "I was hiding!"


    "Why?!"


    "You seemed busy! I never interrupt when you and the girls are intimate together, I just watch and wait for you to finish."


    """What?!"""


    Anna, Sei, and Mchi all looked like they were utterly horrified by the fact that their moments of depraved passion had been witnessed.


    On the other hand, Nyx merely shrugged and popped another French fry into her mouth.


    "What? We''re Greek, darling. We like to have fun."


    "¡­I get that but it still makes me horribly ufortable, Ma."


    "You should loosen up. I was thinking about joining you one of these times, do you think you''d be interested??"


    "N-No!! God, why?!"


    Mchi''s firm and dramatic refusal put a small frown on the face of the ancient goddess.


    "I feel hurt by such a refusal, son. Are you insinuating that your mother is past her prime??"


    "I''m saying that my mother is my mother." He said adamantly.


    Nyx finally remembered that Mchi was a normal human a little over a year ago.


    Of course he wasn''t going to have a sexual interest in her.


    She wondered if that would be something that would fade away in time or if he would remain forever obstinate to her advances like Nemesis was.


    She was really hoping for the former.


    "Never mind that,e let me hug you!"


    Nyx suddenly floated from her seat and wrapped her arms around Mchi.


    "Ma, I should probably take a shower before-"


    "No, you''re fine, dear!"


    Nyx suddenly grabbed Mchi by the face and stared at him with a mixture of love and concern.


    "My son¡­ you have no idea just how much worry you''ve put me through thesest few weeks, do you?"


    "Ma?"


    Nyx ced one of her hands directly into the center of Mchi''s chest.


    "Don''t you remember, dearie? You''re a nightmare now. Albeit a hybrid of one."


    "Yea¡­ I''m still not sure how that happened though. Is that what''s got you so worried?"


    Nyx nodded solemnly as if giving him this news was breaking her own heart.


    "We¡­have to keep this a secret for now. If the other highers learn exactly what you are before you can learn to harness your abilities, they will see you as a liability instead of an asset."


    "¡­Why don''t you?" Mchi asked.


    He was fully aware of what he had be.


    Of the sort of monster he had lurking inside of him.


    It terrified even him to some degree, so the thought of others being okay with his new state of being was more than a little hard to ept.


    But as a response, Nyx simply cupped his face in her hands and smiled at him beautifully.


    "You are my son and I know your heart. From the moment that you and your sister epted me, I was prepared to never forsake you for any reason. You bing something new will not change that."


    Mchi looked like he was on the verge of crying tears even though he wasn''t capable.


    He embraced his mother once more and held her tightly for a long time; allowing something cracked within him to heal.


    "Thank you.."


    "There is no need to thank me, my son, this is what a mother should do. Besides, in this way something that I''ve taken from you can be returned."


    "Hm?"


    "You can have a child again. It will be different and utterly unlike anything the world has ever seen, but it will be yours."


    Not only Mchi, but Anna and Sei also felt their jaws drop to the floor.


    "Q-Quick, somebody tell me when thest time I got my period was!"


    "Anna, we''re all synced up, it was three weeks ago, remember??" Sei reminded.


    "Fuck, I-I''m gonna go buy a test!"


    Nyx giggled mischievously as she waived away the concerns of the two girls. "The two of you can rx since he can''t get you pregnant like this."


    "Like what??"


    "Like this." Nyx took her finger and jammed it into Mchi''s chest, and it of course passed through harmlessly.


    "As my avatar he is only boundless night. But nightmares are flesh and blood and thus are capable of procreation. A bit surprising to hear, huh?"


    "Are you telling me¡­ if I want to have a baby¡­ I have to sleep with the girls¡­ as a monster¡­?" Mchi asked carefully.


    "Don''t speak about yourself that way, my baby boy will never be a monster."


    "That''s¡­ really not the point here, Ma¡­" Mchi felt like his world was spinning around and his knees were about to give out from underneath him.


    Briefly, he recalled the story Bianca and Luna told him about what had happened when he changed inside the gate, and he felt like he was going to be sick.


    What if he hurt them??


    Honestly, it wasn''t worth it to him if he had to have a child by spilling even a drop of their blood.


    And then there was also the question of what exactly the baby would be.


    He knew that you were supposed to love your child no matter what, but he atleast wanted a baby that he could walk around with without scaring others.


    But at that moment, Luna finally came out of the bedroom.


    Like Mal, she waspletely naked, but she was also covered in bite marks, ck gel, and her ass was as red as a tomato.


    She honestly looked like she shouldn''t have been out of bed so soon but she couldn''t stay put.


    Not after what she''d just overheard.


    Starting directly at Nyx, her eyes contained unveiled hope and the tiniest fragments of disbelief.


    "Mother inw¡­ what you just said¡­ is it true?"

 Chapter 169 Hope at What Cost?

    Chapter 169 Hope at What Cost?


    Luna wasn''t as over the idea of having a child as she wanted Mchi to believe.


    But because she knew that their sudden loss of an opportunity had nothing to do with him, she never said anything about it.


    Thest thing that she wanted was to ever make him feel worse about it than he already did.


    And so, Luna had been dealing with the pain of this loss all on her own.


    But after hearing Nyx''s words, she was unable to contain herself and desperately grabbed on to this small thread of hope.


    Mchi quickly grabbed a nket from the couch and draped it around the shaking woman.


    "Mei, what are you doing up? You still need to-"


    "I-I''m fine, I just need to know if what your mother said is true!"


    Luna pushed past Mchi and stood in front of the waiting goddess.


    Her eyes were filled with hope, and she took her hands like he was about to start begging for a reason to hang on.


    "Please tell me¡­ that what you''ve just said is true."


    "It is, my darling girl. Please don''t look so despondent, it breaks my heart to see." Nyx said sweetly.


    Tears started to run down from Luna''s face in droves and she threw her arms around the ancient goddess.


    Nyx was admittedly surprised, but she epted the embrace warmly and rubbed her back.


    "Sweet girl¡­ are you not concerned about the fact that you will have toy with him as a nightmare?"


    "Of course not!"


    Luna suddenly separated from Nyx and ran to Mchi and embraced him firmly.


    "I don''t care what he is or what he might turn into.. I just want him to be the father of my child!"


    "Are you sure about this, Mei?" Mchi asked worriedly. "You don''t know what I could-"


    "I know that you wouldn''t hurt me! You cannot try to talk me out of this, I won''t lose this chance again, darling!" She cried.


    Mchi felt his own expression contort into one of pain.


    His worries and concerns were valid just as her longing for this wish toe true was.


    But he wanted her to be safe above all else, and she was willing to sacrifice anything if it meant that she could have a baby.


    His baby.


    This truly was an ufortable situation for both of them to be in.


    "Guys¡­ we have time to figure this out." Sei suddenly said.


    She stood up from her ce on the couch and embraced the both of them.


    "At the end of the day, everyone here loves each other and only wants the best for one another. There is a way for you both to have a child AND ensure that Luna remains safe and healthy. We just have to find it together."


    As expertly as always, Sei had alleviated the worries and stress of both of them with only a few words and a gentle tone.


    The eyes of the two of them softened up immensely and they immediately brought their lips together to act as confirmation of theirmitment.


    Mchi held both girls fondly as he started to n out next steps.


    In order to have a child, he had to get control over that thing inside of him first and everything else could fall inter.


    However, there was one important thing that he was still forgetting about.


    His hand lightly brushed against Luna''s stomach, and he looked towards his mother for more hope.


    "Any chance that you''ve got some secret method to heal that part of her?" n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Nyx shook her head, much to the dismay of Mchi & Luna.


    However, they were quickly able to get a hold over themselves.


    They already had received a great deal more hope today than what they thought possible, so that was more than enough for them.


    As long as they had one half of the equation solved, they could focus on solving the restter at their own pace.


    No matter how long it took, the two of them were determined to-


    "I don''t have any method to heal you, but you don''t really need to ask me since you already have one."


    ""¡­""


    "¡­?"


    ""¡­.PARDON?!""


    Nyx shrugged and pointed above her head up into the ceiling.


    "Just ask that busty vampire woman you brought back from the gate for help. Using her would be a lot quicker than going to hunt for an item or potion."


    "Nadine?? What can she do??" Anna asked.


    "Her race have ster regenerative capabilities that are far beyond that of you blessed. Just ask her to turn Luna, and then she will also have the ability to regenerate her organs." Nyx exined this like it was obvious.


    Had no one truly thought of this as a solvable scenario??


    Judging by the looks on the faces of everyone else in the apartment, it didn''t seem like that was the case.


    Who knew?


    "I¡­ can be whole again?" Luna said shakily.


    "You have never not been whole, my dear. But if you are referring to the ability to regrow your womb, then yes. Should you desire it, you can take that step and have it returned to you."


    Luna''s knees gave out from underneath her as she fell to the ground, allowing Mchi to catch her.


    It was clear judging by the look in her eyes that she waspletely frozen with disbelief, and her boyfriend wasn''t exactly any better.


    "Ma¡­ can you give us a minute to process all this and sort ourselves out?" Mchi asked.


    Nyx smiled at him sweetly as she nodded in eptance.


    "Of course, I''ll leave all of you to talk about this amongst yourselves. In the meantime I''m going to go visit your sister and send her my love."


    Nyx''s body started to break apart right before the eyes of everyone present, and a momentter she vanished from the living room.


    Once she was gone, a silence persisted among the group for a while.


    Mchi held Luna in hisp as the two of them sat in the ground; both of them locked deep into their thoughts.


    "Anna¡­?"


    "Yea, Luna? Do you need something?"


    "I-I''m fine it''s just I need you to do me a favor. Can you run upstairs and grab Nadine for me¡­? I have some things I would really like to ask her."

 Chapter 170 Death & Mothers

    Chapter 170 Death & Mothers


    Aubrey took a deep breath as she tried to calm her raging heartbeat.


    She stared with a dry mouth at the furry four legged creature opposite her, and the resolve that she''d been building up threatened toe crashing down.


    "I can''t do it!" She cried as she turned around.


    Through arge ss window, she could see Rose and Aisha watching her in a viewing room.


    "Aubrey, Mr. Needles has a brain tumor the size of a golf ball, he''s already going to die." Rose reasoned.


    "There is nothing that your powers will do to him that isn''t already happening at a much slower and more painful rate." Aisha added.


    Aubrey turned her attention back to the old golden retriever lying on the metal table.


    Even if the girls didn''t tell her about the dog''s condition, she knew that this animal was not long for this world.


    She could just¡­ feel it.


    The aura of death slipping off the dog in waves was so terrible that she doubted that it would even make it through the week.


    And yet, she was still having a great difficulty ining to terms with harming such a cute animal.


    She couldn''t help it if she was a dog person!


    The dog looked at her with bloodshot eyes and let out a painful whimper as it lie pitifully on it''s back.


    Aubrey bit her lip ufortably as she stared back into the pained eyes of the dog and held out her hands.


    "I''m sorry, big guy. I hope you lived a good life while you had it. "


    Focusing on the power over death that she had been given by her older brother Thanatos, she willed her powers to do something, anything.


    Since she had never tried to use this power before, she was unsure of what exactly she was supposed to make happen.


    As of now, she really had no specific knowledge in mind, just a fervent wish to see this poor animal reach eternal rest. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    And somehow, it seemed like that was more than enough.


    A power like that of a swirling ck mist encircled her delicate fingers and turned her nails permanently dark.


    She gave the dog a single reassuring pat on the head and whispered the words ''good boy'' as a tear fell from her eyes.


    The dog started to have more and more difficulty keeping it''s eyes open, and it finally let it''s tail droop onto the metal table.


    Aubrey smiled wryly as she continued to cry.


    As the dog died, she could see shes of the life it had lived and it''s most impactful experiences.


    It had indeed lived a good life from beginning to end.


    Aubrey heard the sound of a door opening to her left and found her girlfriend running at her quickly.


    She dispelled the power still lingering on her hands and quickly put them behind her back to avert disaster.


    "W-What are you doing, we said it was dangerous!"


    "I know, but how do you expect me to just sit behind a wall a few feet away when you''re clearly in distress?? Let me hug you!"


    "N-No!"


    "Yes,e here!"


    "Noooo!"


    A scene like that of an old cartoon ensued where Aubrey and Aisha ran around in circle around the table.


    Aubrey was adamant about her unwillingness to let her girlfriend touch her and wouldn''t stop running no matter how much Aisha pleaded.


    She likely would have kept running for forever had she not eventually been caught by a pair of different, equally firm arms.


    "R-Rose?! What are you doing, I could-"


    "I''m fine, Aubrey. Just rx. You aren''t going to hurt either of us."


    As the architect of this whole event, she was the one who felt the most guilty.


    Her father owned a veterinary clinic and wasmenting about the fact that he was going to have to put down a longtime patient, and Rose saw it as an opportunity to help Aubrey practice with her powers for the first time.


    She had no idea that it would affect the young woman to this degree.


    "I''m sorry, Aubrey. This is really not all my fault." She said.


    "N-No it''s not, I had to practice at some point, right¡­? I just wasn''t expecting my powers toe with¡­ that kind of effect."


    ""Effect?""


    Aubrey gave both girls a detailed exnation of how she saw the dog''s whole life sh before her eyes as she killed it.


    It was a horribly morbid and tragic experience to undergo.


    "I''m sorry, Rose but¡­ can we just go for today?" Aubrey asked.


    "¡­Of course you can. I''ll call youter to check on you."


    Aubrey hugged the gorgeously fit woman once again before taking Aisha''s hand and leaving the room.


    As they left, Rose let her gaze linger on the backs of the two of them for a little while longer, and it was unclear exactly what she was thinking.


    "Fuck¡­ I really did just want to help you, Aubrey.."


    -


    As the pair of girls left the veterinary clinic, they remained silent as they held each other''s hands and walked to the car.


    Aisha noticed that Aubrey was consistently trying to pull away from her, but she maintained her firm grip and did not allow her to run away.


    "Babe¡­ you won''t hurt me. You''ve maintained a firm control over your powers all this time, and there is no reason to believe that you would have an incident now."


    Aubrey softened a bit and finally stopped pulling away from her partner.


    "Okay¡­"


    "Why don''t we go and get something to eat, hm? Food always takes your mind off of¡­. Who is that??"


    Aisha and Aubrey were rather rmed to find a woman sitting on the hood of their car.


    While Aisha did not recognize her, Aubrey did immediately.


    "Momma!"


    "I didn''t think you would recognize me. I am touched beyond belief." Nyx said warmly.


    It was no surprise that Aisha didn''t recognize her.


    Because they were in public, Nyx''s body had taken on a less conspicuous form.


    Since physical appearance was nothing to her, she specifically crafted one that would make her look like her human children.


    She had wless skin of a lighter brown variety with long ck hair that had Aubrey''s natural curls.


    Her features were sharp like Mchi''s, and she was very clearly the source of his divine looks.


    Her body was rather voluptuous, and was hidden beneath a normal ck sundress instead of the usual one she wore that was made from stars.


    The only part of her that was inhuman were her eyes.


    Instead of being normal with pupils, retina, and sclera, they were entirelyprised of darkness with shining stars embedded within.


    Nyx held out her arms and allowed Aubrey to fly into them.


    After everything that she''d just been through, there could be nothing more healing than her mother''s embrace.


    And now that she was here, there was something that she desperately wanted to ask for.


    "M-Momma, I need you to help me!"


    "With what, dear? You need only name it."


    "I-I don''t want Thanatos'' power anymore, I want you to give it back to him!"


    Nyx smiled sadly as she cupped Aubrey''s face and wiped away her running tears.


    "My girl¡­ You have no idea just how special you are. The requirements to hold the true power of death are a truly kind heart and a mind capable of understanding and empathizing with all life. Even your brother doesn''t meet the criteria to hold it."


    "I-I don''t care, I just don''t want to hurt anyone on ident!" She said firmly.


    "Aubrey, you have to trust in yourself and give yourself more credit. The truth is that if you haven''t had an ident with your power by now, then you aren''t going to.


    Your power is now just as much yours as it is your elder brother''s, and that means that you alone have total control of it."


    "Are you sure¡­?"


    "Well if you sneeze too hard then you might have a little ident, but-"


    "W-What?!"


    "Kidding!"


    Nyx kissed Aubrey on the forehead lightly and pulled her in for another tender embrace.


    "I know your power may feel scary, but the truth is that you are more than capable of oveing it. All you need is a little time and patience, okay?"


    "¡­Will you help me?" Aubrey asked quietly.


    Nyx felt like such a question was more than a little silly and she rubbed her back as sheughed.


    "Of course I will. You are my beloved daughter after all."

 Chapter 171 Harem Siblings

    Chapter 171 Harem Siblings


    After Nyx finally got her daughter to calm down, she finally exchanged greetings with Aisha.


    The white haired youngdy seemed to be more than a little surprised every time that she saw the ancient goddess, and now was truly no different.


    "H-Hello ma''am! It is lovely to see you as always and I must say that your new appearance is enchanting!"


    "Oh? Are you trying to collect mother and daughter alike, dear Aisha?"


    "N-No ma''am, I would never!"


    "That''s the right answer." Aubrey said as she folded her arms across herrge chest.


    Possessiveness seemed to run in the family as she was looking at her girlfriend with eyes that could kill.


    "Don''t be jealous, my dear. Why don''t we all have fun together?" Nyx offered. "We can even invite that little Rose girl who seems to like you and-"


    "M-Mama! What are you saying?! A-And Rose and I don''t have that kind of a rtionship!"


    "A-A foursome with a goddess¡­ I think that I am going to get a nosebleed.."Aisha muttered.


    Nyx chuckled at Aisha''s supposed delirium and took Aubrey under her arm.


    "Why, you don''t want to bond with me? That Rose girl seems like your type as well so I don''t understand what the big deal is about."


    "T-That''s a little more than bonding and R-Rose and I are just friends!" Aubrey said shakily.


    In the back of her mind, she recalled Rose''s gentle demeanor, great body, and pretty smile.


    It seemed like all of these nights of being doted on by her girlfriend had led to her developing a bit of a type.


    Who knew?


    But she didn''t want a harem like her brother!


    Keeping up with one woman was already a lot of work!


    Aubrey looked at Aisha out of the corner of her eye and found her staring back at her, making a sort of ''is this something that we need to talk about'' look.


    The younger Saint sister gave her own cheeks a couple of firm ps to shake her mind of dirty thoughts.


    "A-Anyway, I''m not having any threesomes with you and that''s final!" She said firmly.


    Nyx made a disappointed sound as she poked out her bottom lip pitifully.


    "What is a mother to do when neither of her young children want to bond with her..?"


    "Did you make this offer to Mchi too??" Aubrey asked as she wrinkled her nose.


    "Well of course I did! What greater way exists for me to show my love than to give a part of my being to someone? But he didn''t indulge in my offering either.."


    '''' Of course he didn''t, he has morals.'''' Aisha and Aubrey thought in unison.


    "I would have propositioned him further, but.. your brother has his own issues going on right now." Nyx said disappointedly.


    "Is he alright??" Aubrey was always worried when it came to her brother, and even now her eyes seemed like they were going to explode out of her head.


    Nyx smiled sweetly as she patted the young girl on the cheek and ran her fingers through her gray hair.


    "He''s fine, my dear. He''s just¡­ trying to figure out next steps for his family I suppose."


    -


    Back at the nightfall base, Anna had juste back from upstairs with Nadine in tow.


    The bubbly vampire seemed to not notice the rather tense mood in the room, and she flopped right onto the couch like she was already living here.


    "Ah~ Sofy!" She said giddily.


    "Nadine¡­ I need to ask you for a big favor." Mchi said.


    The vampire rolled over and showed him a very udylike middle finger.


    "No! I''m not doing any more favors for you! You haven''t even rewarded me for thest one!"


    "Fine, just tell me what you want."


    "You have to carve out a whole day in your schedule to watch the entire Bernie Mac show with me!" She said firmly.


    Mchi had to blink the surprise out of his eyes a few times as he was honestly rather shocked.


    He was fully expecting her to ask for something that involved him taking his pants off.


    "Oh, I love that show! Can I watch with you guys?" Anna asked excitedly.


    "No! If you''re there I won''t get an opportunity to fuck him!"


    And there it was¡­


    While Sei restrained Anna so that she didn''t crack Nadine''s skull open, Mchi was trying to keep his focus on the task at hand.


    "I''ll do it, so¡­ there really is something else I need your help with."


    Luna sat in Mchi''sp forfort as she lowered herself beyond what she ever thought possible.


    "Actually, Nadine¡­ the favor you would be doing isn''t just for Mchi¡­ it''s for me as well."


    Nadine stopped arguing with Anna as she stared at Luna like she was trying to discern what she would ask for.


    Luna was normally always graceful and regal, but as of right now she looked more than a little tired and desperate.


    It was like she was seeing a different person all together.


    "Okay¡­ what do you want then?"


    Luna ced her hand on her stomach and opened up in a way that she hadn''t done with anyone else outside of Mchi and the girls.


    "I¡­ was attacked a few years ago and the incident took away my ability to have children. But I really love Mchi, so¡­ I want you to make me a vampire so that I can have that chance given back to me."


    Nadine looked back and forth between Mchi and Luna while making a stone faced expression.


    Eventually, she just closed her eyes and shook her head as she flopped back onto the couch.


    "You''re crazy. I don''t know what Mchi is exactly, but I know he isn''t alive in the traditional sense.


    Vampires have low enough fertility rates as it is, so trying to have a baby with him would be a waste on both ends."


    "Mchi has a special method to gain a real body and I don''t care about the probability! I would dly take a 1% chance over the absolute zero I''ve had for the past five years!"


    Nadine maintained a rather nonchnt demeanor as shey on the couchzily.


    "Sure, I understand that. I won''t inquire about Mchi''s special method since I''m hoping to experience it personally one day, but are you really willing to give up everything that your life has been up until this point just to have a chance to have a child?


    Being a vampire is totally different from being a human. Sure our physical bodies are improved, but we don''t do well in sunlight, have garlic allergies and we need to consume a liter of blood every 72 hours."


    "That reminds me, where do you get your blood from?" Mchi asked.


    "What are those ces called again¡­? Their like food trucks but for blood."


    Mchi, Sei, and Anna all made horrified expressions.


    "Nadine¡­ those are for hospital patients." Sei exined.


    "I don''t know what they could possibly need it for but I''ll be in a lot worse condition than them if I don''t drink it. And since Mchi didn''t say I couldn''t steal then it''s fair game." She said firmly.


    Luna was the only one who seemed to be unconcerned and she stood up to move beside Nadine.


    Pulling her hair behind her head, she offered her neck to the vampire without batting an eye. n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "I''ve made up my mind, Nadine. I want you to make me a vampire; I don''t care about anything else."


    Nadine seemed to be thinking about something deeply as she stared at Luna''s pale neck.


    It was clear that this conversation had taken her very far away and she was currently having visions from her past.


    "Nadine?"


    "Hm? Oh, right. Stay still for me, Luna. This might hurt a bit."

 Chapter 172 Luna The Vampire Mommy

    Chapter 172 Luna The Vampire Mommy


    When Luna opened her eyes, she was lying underneath the covers in her bedroom at the base.


    As soon as she took her first conscious breath of air, she felt different.


    For starters, she didn''t actually need the air.


    She had merely breathed in out of instinct, and not because her body was dependent upon oxygen.


    It was definitely a strange feeling, but it was far from ufortable or tiresome.


    Another thing was her hearing.


    It was such a drastic improvement over that of her old body that it wasn''t even funny.


    Despite the top notch sound-proofing in their home, she knew just by listening that she was entirely alone, Anna had left her music ying in her art room, and the fridge was currently producing more ice.


    ''Incredible¡­''


    Suddenly, the sound of the elevator opening could be heard and she listened to the excited running of footsteps.


    In a moment, the vampire Nadine rushed through the door wearing her usual bright and charismatic smile.


    "Luna!! My dear blooded is awake!"


    "Your wha- oof!"


    Like a blonde rocket, Nadine flung herself into Luna without waiting for her to prepare fornding.


    As if she were a puppy, she stared to rub her face against hers while muttering words that poor Luna had no idea how to process.


    "As I thought, you take after me, huh? Fangs above, you are so beautiful that I can hardly stand it! Fuck I''m so proud!"


    "Nadine¡­why are you behaving like this?"


    "It''s been around 600 years since Ist turned anyone, so I suppose that you could say that this entire situation has made me a bit emotional!"


    "Wonderful¡­"


    Luna somehow managed to pull herself away from the overly friendly vampire and ced a few pillows between them.


    "How did you know I was awake?"


    "Because I''m your maker! The two of us are connected now, in the sense that I can feel your emotional, and physical state even from ten kilometers away.


    And no matter what, I will alwayse running towards you if you require my aid. Just like the rest of your family."


    Luna wasn''t a 100% sure but it seemed like Nadine was being incredibly sincere towards her.


    It made her feel even more wary about her now that she seemed to be able to manipte her emotionally too.


    Nadine smiled wryly like she had heard all of Luna''s distrusting thoughts.


    "I know it must all be strange, right? But I hope that this will be a way that I can show you my sincerity."


    She took one of Luna''s hands and ced it directly over her stomach, allowing her to feel more of her body''s new changes.


    "Your chances are back, however slim they may be. You can have a child again, Luna."


    shes of disbelief inevitably turned into crying, and then joy.


    Luna could do nothing but smile beautifully as sheughed, unsure of just how her emotions had taken such a sudden and dramatic turn.


    Wiping her face of tears, she immediately started looking for her phone to call the one person she had done this for.


    "W-Where''s my phone? I have to call Mchi right now!"


    Once she saw it sitting on the dresser, she immediately lunged for it, only to have Nadine snatch it away at thest second.


    "What are you doing?!"


    "I-I''ve been instructed not to let you touch your phone for a while, atleast until everyone else gets back."


    "And why the hell not?"


    "I''m not allowed to tell you! I''m supposed to focus on getting you used to using your new body properly so that you can function without any issues."


    Luna said nothing and folded her arms across her bare chest while staring at her maker coldly.


    "Nadine¡­ tell me right now, what is going on?"


    "I-I''ve been sworn to secrecy! Real ones don''t break the code!"


    "Nadine!"


    "F-Fine..!" The vampire said exhaustedly.


    She started to fiddle with her fingers as she tried to figure out the best way to break the news to Luna.


    "Well¡­ as of right now you humans are kind of¡­ fighting against each other?"


    "What?!"


    "Yea¡­ it started over here in America but now it''s kind of happening all over the ce. It happened a week ago the day after your body started to transition."


    "Exin! How did this happen??"


    Nadine scratched her cheek as she tried to remember the name of that prison that was all over tv.


    "It started when some terrorist organization broke everyone out of¡­ what was it again¡­? Tadpole¡­? Transylvania¡­? Catharsis¡­?" n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    As Nadine tried and failed to exin what was going on, Luna''s eyes only got wider and wider with every passing second.


    "Please tell me¡­ that you aren''t trying to say Tartarus¡­?"


    "Yeah, that''s it! You''re such a smart girl, my little-"


    "NADINE!"


    "Okay, okay!"


    -


    What is the most discriminated and restricted group within the United States?


    If you have any sort of political literacy, you would know the answer easily.


    It''s criminals.


    In today''s day and age, criminals are the only people in society who are openly discriminated against with little to no bacsh.


    They are stripped of their right to vote, they be numbers on a printed sheet, some will endure forcedbor, inhuman treatment, substandard living conditions, and they are stuck inside of a box with others just like them as they slowly lose their minds and be ustomed to life inside cells.


    Even when they get out, they hardly know how to function in society after following the so called ''prison rules'' for months or even years at a time.


    To make matters worse, getting a job bes staggeringly difficult, and the only things avable to you would be back breakingbor or flipping burgers and cleaning up shit stains off a bathroom ceiling.


    Though there are wonderful and inspiring stories about those that rise above the circumstances, this is not the case for everyone in the U.S where the prison system is often more focused on punitive measures rather than reform.


    As a result, most of the inmates of Tartarus knew what kind of future awaited them when or if they were ever released.


    But when Arias came to free them, they realized they had a chance to turn the whole world upsidown before they could be dragged under.


    Their eagerness resulted in themmencing their first attack with Arias'' faction only two days after escaping.


    At first, they destroyed multiple army bases along the east coast and north west.


    But that was only a precursor to their true objective; which was to attack the Bureau of Fiscal Services.


    Any humans inside that responded with violence were immediately killed while the rest were tied up and left unbothered.


    Afterwards, Arias and his men uploaded a virus into government servers; corrupting records and eliminating any and all traces of debt for any American, at which point they burned the physical files and thoroughly cleansed all traces.


    The U.S. treasury department was next to see a visit from Arias and his faction, and their fate was much the same.


    This sparked a national debate over whether or not it was truly beneficial to let Arias and his believers do as they wished or if they should be stopped entirely.


    Even humans were starting to think life under his direction might not be so bad, but they were neglecting one simple thing.


    Arias wasn''t shy about dropping bodies.


    He gave the humans he came across one simple choice; bow or die.


    Those who chose to fight and open fire were immediately cut down without waiting for another second, and a video was uploaded onto a stream for the whole world to see.


    It made it clear to many that this man was not acting for the benefit of humans.


    His main priority would foremost be the blessed, and whatever humans that believed otherwise were overwhelmingly mistaken.


    Even now, the body count left behind by him was crawling towards two million.


    And yet Arias and his faction were still on the warpath and destroying government buildings and offices all across America.


    The national guard and the army had been deployed, effectively shutting down parts of the country all together and forcing evacuations.


    But even now¡­ things didn''t look good.


    With Arias and his followers running out of opposition to get in their way¡­ many were starting to flee the country, or even brace themselves for a new regime built on the ashes of humanity.


    The only hope the world seemed to have were the blessed who weren''t alright with Arias'' needless killing, and were desperately trying to stop him alongside the government''s remaining forces.


    -


    After Luna heard everything, she wiped her face of tears as she pulled her body out of bed and went to her closet.


    "Nadine, I''m only going to ask you this once. Where is my man, and where are my friends?"


    Fiddling with her fingers ufortably, Nadine realized that she would already be in trouble for snitching so there was no longer any use for being tight lipped.


    As she said a silent apology to Mchi and the others, she switched on the tv and showed Luna the live broadcast.

 Chapter 173: A Country at War

    Pandemonium.


    That was the only word that could possibly be used to describe the scene outside of a naval base in Miami Florida.


    Fires were raging in the streets, cars were left abandoned, and buildings were either already destroyed or on the verge ofing down within a few seconds.


    Two groups were engaged in a heated struggle that had been going on for hours already.


    On one side, Arias and his followers were adorned in white robes and masks that concealed their identities.


    Except for the convicts who were uninterested in hiding themselves, and left  their faces exposed in an effort to make a statement.


    They flung their powers with reckless abandon, all at the heavily armed military that currently had them under siege.


    The military was not alone in this battle, as there were a small number of blessed sprinkled into their numbers who were evening the odds with their own dramatic firepower.


    Some were engaging in hand to handbat while others were seeminglypeting to see who was in possession of the most destructive powers.


    Since firearms could not be used at the risk of coteral damage to the blessed fighting alongside them, the army unveiled their newest project.


    Tobat Arias and his faction, each soldier in the army had been given newly designed camouged tactical armor and energy weapons powered by broken shards of mana stones.


    These weapons were more than enough to cut through the flesh of the blessed without much difficulty; and it raised some questions about just how long the government had been keeping these weapons hidden.


    Among the battlefield, there were a few individuals who truly stood out from the rest.


    One was a pink haired girl with matching eyes who wore a ck tactical gear with long sleeves and a moon symbol across her back.


    To hide her identity, she wore a ck and silver mask that covered her nose and mouth.


    Her powers worked rather strangely and left many not understanding what she was doing.


    She would make simple gestures with her hands and 4-5 of the enemy opposition would go down screaming before she shot them with the stun guns she''d grabbed from the armory.


    Beside her, there was a woman wearing a simr outfit only her mask was ck and gold instead of silver.


    Even with her voluptuous and curvy frame, she did not look out of ce here on this battlefield and was even doing a rather splendid job of making herself useful while still keeping an eye out for her daughter.


    "You''re doing amazing, sweetie!"


    "Mom, you''re embarrassing me!"


    "That is one of my divine privileges as your birth giver."


    "Focus on the bad guys!!"


    "Hm? Alright , alright but I want to take picturester."


    "Mama!"


    "Watch carefully!"


    Sei put on a determined expression beneath her mask and started picking out targets one by one so as not to affect nearby friendlies with her powers.


    Her eyes became a bright silver color and she snapped her fingers discreetly.


    At hermand, the bodies of members of the opposition started to drop like flies, and they lie on the ground awkwardly as they snored peacefully.


    Serana raised her guns to paralyze the men and ensure that they stayed down, but her mother quickly raised a hand to stop her.


    "It''s alright, dear. I can keep them down without you having to stun them."


    Serana did a quick headcount and realized that there were over fifty men lying on the ground, and her mother seemed to have absolutely no problem keeping each of them asleep.


    "Since when can you do something like this?? I thought that holding just a couple of people down made you tired?"


    "It did before, but it''s weird, I feel like I can do a lot more now. Isn''t that great??"


    Sei found her daughter a few feet away, squatting down and drawing circles in the dirt.


    "This shit sucks¡­all I can do is give a couple bastards the illusion of pain¡­ I wanna get power ups from having sex too¡­"


    "Y-You''re too young for that a-and you have no reason to believe that is the cause for my new strength!" She cried.


    -


    On another part of the battlefield, a second familiar group of girls wereying waste to the opposition.


    Bianca and Anna were working in tandem, ounting for each other''s blind spots and ensuring that neither of them suffered so much as a scratch.


    As Anna fired a st of pure kic energy from her palms, Bianca waived her hand and melted an icy projectile that was aimed at her.


    "Thanks, B!"


    "If you''re really grateful let me sleep on top of Mal tonight!"


    Anna rolled her eyes as sheughed underneath her mask.


    She prepared a sharp tongued retort when out of the corner of her eye she saw a mangled tank flying overhead; on a direct collision course for Bianca.


    "B!"


    Anna quickly sprouted a pair of red wings from her back and moved behind Bianca in the blink of an eye.


    Throwing out her fist, she punched the airborne tank as hard as she possibly could and obliterated it from existence.


    BOOOOOOMMMMMM!!!


    Sighing, Anna brushed off her knuckles as she looked over her shoulder to check on Bianca''s condition.


    "You alright?"


    Instead of finding a smiling and grateful friend, she was instead met by a pair of folded arms and a slightly poked out lip.


    "Damn it, does this mean that you''re not going to let me sleep on top of him now?"


    "Well I don''t owe you anymore do I?"


    "The battle isn''t over yet, I''m going to save you if it''s thest thing I do!"


    "¡­You want my life to be in mortal danger so that you can wake up with our man''s morning wood against your stomach?"


    "When you say it like that you make me sound horrible! It''s true though!"


    "¡­."


    "Stop making it seem like I''m the only crazy one in our rtionship!"


    "I have no idea what you''re talking about." Anna said lied. "You should duck by the way."


    "Huh?"


    Anna''s eyes glowed red before two beams of destructive energy cut down a man who was rushing at the youngdy from behind.


    "That''s two for me."


    "Fuck!!"


    -


    Amongst the ruin of the naval base, there were only two blessed on the side of humanity who were fighting against the new day faction.


    However, these two were arguably the most dangerous on the battlefield.


    One was an unrecognizable girl with chocte skin and thick and curly gray hair paired with deep ck eyes.


    Like a few other women here today, her face was covered by a mask to conceal her identity and gave her an alluring sense of mystique.


    In her hands she wielded no weapons, and instead attacked her opponents with the devastating power of wind that seemed inexhaustible.


    The man opposite her was a significantly more well known figure, even with his mask.


    Mchi Saint twirled the two handheld spears in his grasp as he cut down opponents left and right as they came for his sister.


    Though this was a battlefield, the two of them were having a normal conversation amidst the chaos as if they were seated at a coffee shop.


    "So you like Rose? Are shredded chicks your type now?" Mal asked with augh.


    "I-I don''t know, our mom''s got my head all messed up!" She cried.


    Using her blessing from Isis, Aubrey tossed a ball of golden power at a concrete pir lying a few feet away from her, and watched as it turned into a living breathing snake that could swallow a man whole.


    "You should go for it. She''s fine and I don''t really think Aisha would mind that much, hell she might be more excited than you."


    One of Mchi''s arm''s started to course with ck lightning, and the other a golden me.


    He stabbed both weapons into the ground and a loud explosion like that of a car bomb rang out; flinging his white robed enemies into the air.


    "I-it''s not about that, Mchi! You should definitely know that seeing as how you also have girls you''re slightly interested in who you aren''t dating."


    Mchi said nothing but Aubrey knew by the way that he flinched momentarily that she''d hit the nail on the head.


    "That''s what I thought! Our loyalty is all we have in this life, we can''t just run off chasing every pretty face that we see whenever we feel like it. It would make our love and our vows meaningless."


    Mchi smiled wryly under his mask as he continued fighting.


    It was a strange feeling to hear your sister suddenly be so mature out of the blue, especially when she had spent the past few years in such a vulnerable ce.


    However¡­ he did not dislike it at all.


    All that he wished for was for her to keep growing and learning until she became the wonderful human being he knew she was destined to be.


    Distracted by happy thoughts, he kissed the moment where a hand suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and gave him a hard smack that sent him flying.


    Bang!


    "Mchi!"


    Aubrey watched as her brother crashed through a ruined cement wall and was buried underneath a mountain of rubble.


    She turned around to attack the culprit, and yet her blood ran cold when she saw who it was.


    "It was noisy out here so I came to take a look¡­ that was the biggest fly I''ve ever seen in my life though."

 Chapter 174: Lucifer’s Chosen

    There is a man that the whole world knows of, yet doesn''t like to talk about.


    When he appeared three years ago, he burst onto the scene as an up anding member of Ragnarok who had quite a few eyes on him.


    But within a month, he was bored of that life and went on an unprecedented spree of destruction.


    No one could say why he finally snapped.


    Some think it was the pressure from the media to remain good despite the way that they tried to portray him.


    Others decided that something like this was to be expected when you considered just whom it was he was blessed by.


    However, none could deny that regardless of his public image, he was the most powerful blessed the world had ever seen.


    Had he not voluntarily entered into Tartarus, none would even think of Alex Heller or Morgan Creed deserving the title of ''the strongest''.


    After all, neither of them could ever hope to beat this man.


    Stepping out of the ruined naval base was a tall man of around 6''2.


    He looked to be an older gentleman, with salt and pepper hair and a nicely groomed goatee.


    Like the one who had blessed him, he wore a dark suit with gold rings adorned on every finger, and had a pair of leather wingtip shoes on his feet.


    His eyes were a dull shade of gold, as if they had long lost their luster or perhaps had it forcibly taken away.


    He yawned casually and showed a smile full of perfect white teeth that were as blinding as the sun.


    Instinctively, Aubrey backed away as she stared at this man with a sense of unbridled fear.


    This was Kendrick Gerard, former member of Ragnarok and the man blessed by the devil himself.


    Also known as the world''s number one criminal.


    "Shit, my hand stings a bit¡­ Did I not hit a bug after all?" He muttered.


    He noticed a pair of eyes on his figure and turned around to find a young girl in a mask staring at him.


    "Hm? Aren''t you a little young for civil wars? I swear, parents these days just let their kids run rampant¡­"


    With shaking arms, Aubrey held up her hands as she willed her powers to do something or anything at all.


    She felt fatigue like nothing she had ever known before, and a bright green tornado was created from the very air above their heads.


    The tornado was about to touchdown right ontop of her opponent when he tilted his head and looked at her like she was a nuisance.


    "What are you doing? Stop that."


    With a swat of his hand, Kendrick easily dispelled Aubrey''s tornado into a harmless gust of wind and proceeded to lecture her as he ran his hands through his hair.


    "Look kid, call your parents and get out of here, this isn''t the ce for you."


    Aubrey was fighting to remain upright on her feet after creating a tornado for the first time, and just spat out the first excuse she could think of.


    "My mom¡­ she isn''t the kind of person I can just call whenever I want..!"


    Kendrick seemed to connect with that statement on some level and he nodded his head in understanding.


    "I get that¡­ my mom was a deadbeat too."


    "What?!"


    Boom!


    At that moment, Mchi came flying out of the rubble with his iklwa poised to strike.


    As soon as he came within striking distance, Kendrick looked upzily as he held out two fingers on both hands.


    With the greatest of ease, Kendrick stopped all of Mchi''s momentum and brought his body to apliment standstill.


    Mchi immediately gritted his teeth in frustration as he tried to push his weapons into his opponent''s flesh but failed miserably all the same.


    This was Kendrick''s ability that had made him so widely feared and the reason he was seen as the strongest.


    Absolute force maniption.


    Provided that Kendrick already understands the inner workings of an external forcepletely; he is free to manipte that force for any effect he desires.


    Like earlier when he dialed back the wind pressure of Aubrey''s attack until it was a light breeze or even now where he was siphoning away the kic energy that Mal needed for strength and momentum.


    There was also a simr urrence in the past where he tapped the ground with his foot and manipted the impact waves until they were at the seismic level; setting off an earthquake and killing everything inside the gate within in a few moments.


    However, using this ability could be very draining for him as it wasn''t a power that mortals were supposed to have.


    The more dramatic andplex his feats are, the more tired he bes as a result.


    In addition, using his powers on more than one force at once was also a no-go, as it would give him a terrible headache and cause his nose to bleed severely.


    "That''s weird¡­ really feel like I''ve seen you before¡­ Are you a pornstar by chance?" He asked.


    Mchi thought up all manner of smart mouthed retorts but he unfortunately couldn''t say any of them.


    His mind was much too preupied on another strange feeling that was taking ce within his body.


    Or more urately, the gnawing sense of need that he was umting.


    Though he wasn''t sure exactly what this sense of need was stemming from.


    "No¡­" he muttered.


    "So that wasn''t you with Sara Jay, Asa Akira, Diamond Jackson and Havana Ginger?"


    Mchi''s nose crinkled up in disgust. "What are you, in middle school?"


    "I''m a grown man with needs and fetishes, and what I do in my free time is my own personal business."


    "Do I honestly look like a porn star to you?!"


    "¡­"


    "¡­Fucking jackass."


    For a brief moment, Kendrick''s eyes glowed a bright red before they inevitably changed back to gold.


    "That''s rude."


    BOOOOOMMM!!


    Manipting the sound waves from his own words, Kendrick created a sonic attack that ripped through Mal''s armor and phony skin like they were made of toilet tissue.


    Lucifer''s chosen expected blood and guts to fly freely through the air, but instead there was only a strange ck sludge.


    "Gross¡­ the hell kind of diet did you have..?" Kendrick muttered.


    Suddenly, the ck substance started to pool back together, and became a dark gxy in the shape of a man.


    Finally, Kendrick seemed to remember exactly where he knew this man from, and it wasn''t Brazzers.


    "Oh right¡­ you''re the one he told me about. You guys are real tricky things aren''t you?"


    As his hair floated upwards of its own volition, Mchi clutched his face as he finally realized what that desperate need from earlier was.


    ''I want to eat him¡­ I want to eat him so fucking bad¡­!''

 Chapter 175: Navigating The Shadow Realm

    As Kendrick watched Mchi double over while clutching his head, he raised a brow in confusion.


    His powers certainly didn''t have any way to effect Avatars due to their abnormal body condition.


    The energy that made them tick was so insanelyplex and profound that he couldn''t hope to understand it yet, making Mchi something like his natural enemy.


    He''d already learned his lesson about fighting blessed like this after his challenge against Arias had gone horribly awry.


    So why did he look like he was in pain?


    Suddenly, Mchi looked up at Kendrick and he felt a weird force flowing off of him.


    This one was unlike anything he had ever felt before and even felt a bit alien in origin.


    "You''ve got a lot more ticks than that other guy, don''t you..? I wonder why that is."


    However, Mchi did not answer Kendrick''s question no matter what, leaving him to wonder just what had changed and what exactly Mal was.


    -


    As Bianca and Anna continued theirpetition, both girls had arrived at a staggering 3-3 record.


    Thest to make a save was Bianca, who was admittedly taking thispetition more seriously than her opponent.


    "I''m so close! Just one more!" She said aggressively.


    "We''re running out of enemies here, B. Just give it up for the day."


    "Never! I want that position!"


    "Your turn ising up tomorrow anyway, why can''t you just wait?"


    "I want to be greedy!"


    Anna rolled her eyes as she tried to stop herself from smiling.


    ''Really, should I just let her win at this point?'' She wondered.


    As she considered this, she felt a cold feeling in the back of her mind that stemmed from one of her connections.


    Confused about why this could possibly be happening, she turned to Bianca for answers only to find her standing around motionlessly, a petrified look on her face.


    "B?"


    "W-We have to get to Mchi¡­ like right now..!"


    "This is him? What''s going on?"


    "It''s like inside thest gate, he''s slipping again!"


    Both girls immediately put theirpetition on hold as they started running through the battlefield at an inhumane speed.


    Along the way, they slung aside any enemies without a care as they drew closer to his position.


    "Girls!"


    Both girls suddenly looked up and found Sei floating in the sky; keeping pace with the girls as they ran.


    "What''s happened??"


    "We don''t know, we''ve been separated this whole time!"


    "He ran off with Aubrey earlier!"


    As the three girls crossed the rubble of the ruined naval base, they found themselves staring at Mchi''s back in his true appearance, with Aubrey and a man in a dark suit standing opposite him making a somewhatzy expression.


    "Babe!"


    "What''s wrong?!"


    As the three girlsnded around Mchi, Kendrick finally noticed their presence.


    "Oh, newbies? I can hear your heartbeats so I know you''re not like him¡­ You''re all really hot though. Kid is a lucky bastard I''ll give him that."


    Kendrick casually slicked his hair back as he tried to make a favorable impression.


    At that moment, thest bit of sanity that Mal had been holding on to was yanked into the darkness; and he immediately lunged at the unlucky adversary.


    "It was just apliment? Don''t be tender."


    BOOMM!!


    Kendrick tapped his foot on the ground once again and manipted the rubble to create a wall of spikes that stood in the way of himself and Mchi.


    He waited and waited for the sound of some sort of collision to take ce, but nothing of that sort ever came.


    He raised a brow in confusion before he felt something stirring underneath him, and felt something grab his ankle a secondter.


    As soon as he looked down, he saw that the ground had turnedpletely ck like it was dyed by ink.


    A single ck hand with stars and nebs embedded within was sticking up from the abyss, and holding on to him tight enough to break the joints.


    "Fu-"


    A hard yank sent Kendrick tumbling into the void beneath him, rming everyone nearby.


    "T-The first lieutenant is gone!"


    "H-He''s actually been taken!"


    "Fall back, now!"


    As the remenants of the new day began to panic, Bianca, Anna, and Sei ran towards the sea of dark shadows in the ground that was quickly starting to close up.


    "Where are you guys going?!" Aubrey cried.


    "We need to calm your brother down before he loses his mind and eats that guy!" Bianca exined.


    "What?!"


    "No time to exin!"


    "Make the time please!"


    Aubrey started to run behind the girls and followed them as they dove into the dwindling pool of darkness.


    Once inside, they fell into an endless abyss of shadows that they had no idea how to navigate.


    They simply fell freely through the air as if they were skydiving.


    "T-This ce is a lot weirder than thest time I came here!" Anna yelled.


    "You''ve been down here before?!" Aubrey asked.


    "Y-Yea, I thought it would be romantic if we¡­ you know!"


    Bianca: "Was it?"


    Sei: "I am also curious about that!"


    "Why are you all so fucking horny!?" Aubrey was on the verge of tearing her perfect curly hair out.


    """We can''t help it if we have needs!!!"""


    "Bullshit you can''t!"


    Finally, the girls saw a few stars appear out of nowhere.


    Or atleast they believed them to be starts at first.


    Upon closer inspection, the group realized that they were portals.


    Billions upon billions of portals that all reflected different parts of the world where shadows were present.


    "H-How are we supposed to find the one my brother went through?!" Aubrey asked.


    Focusing on the connection the girls shared with Mchi, they were able toe to a conclusion rather quickly.


    "Hold on to me!" Anna yelled.


    Once the girls grabbed on to the tattooed young woman, she sprouted a familiar pair of red wings and started to maneuver around the shadowy domain, searching for a specific portal.


    ''Hold on, babe, just keep your head! Your girls areing for you!''


    -


    On Morgan Creed''s private ind, Mchi and Kendrick came tumbling out of the shadow domain while throwing blows at one another.


    The two of them hit the ground and caused an explosive collision in the dirt.


    When they were separated, Kendrick picked himself up from the ground and wiped off his ck suit that was now covered in dirt.


    "What a fucking mess¡­ this is Armani you kno-"


    "GROOOOOOAAAAAAAA!!!!"


    A blood curdling roar shook all of the trees and terrified every living thing on the ind.


    Even Kendrick was no longer aloof as his dull gold eyes tried to process what he was seeing in front of him.


    Mchi was growing pitch ck flesh out of thin air, and was steadily growing into a monstrous entity.


    Dark ck skin, ws the size of knives, and four massive tails that ended with snake heads and seemed to have minds of their own.


    A single mouth filled with crooked and dangerously sharp teeth opened wide, and let out something that sounded like an unholyugh.


    Unsurprisingly, Kendrick forgot all about his dirty suit.


    "Funny¡­ I guess I''ve got bigger problems."

 Chapter 176: Spit That Out!

    Kendrick pulled off his jacket and unbuttoned his shirt before rolling up his sleeves.


    It was a real pity, but this seemed like the kind of fight where he would have to get his hands dirty.


    He blew a breath of cold air from his lungs and consistently dropped the temperature until it was freezing.


    Because the nightmare did not know what he was doing, it missed its opportunity to escape and was encased within a wall of ice that was several feet thick.


    Not wasting a moment to rest, he turned his gaze toward the sky or more specifically the burning ball of fire within it.


    His eyes furrowed from difort as he tried to pull off this task of monumental difficulty.


    As he concentrated, the ice surrounding the creature started to crack and fall away.


    BOOM!


    Just as the creature broke free of it''s confines, A beam of pure ultraviolet radiation flew down from the sky andnded atop it''s head.


    A wave of fire rippled outward from the site of the explosion that seemed determined to char the entire ind alive.


    To prevent that, Kendrick halted the mes and turned them into millions of fiery javelins.


    Leaping up into the air, he sprouted a pair of dark wings from his back and hovered as he waited to see what had be of his adversary.


    As he feared, when thest of the smoke cleared away; the nightmare was still standing tall.


    To make matters worse, it''s four snakelike tails were glowing with a kind of energy that he recognized all too clearly.


    Ultraviolet radiation.


    The four mouths on it''s tails opened up as wide as possible, and fired offindividual beams of destructive energy that were several times hotter and more destructive than what Kendrick had thrown out.


    He tried to use his ability to turn the attack into a simple harmless ray of light that would only blind him at most.


    However, he let out a cry of indignation when he realized that he was unable to do so.


    Whatever the creature had done to this energy... it had mutated it in a way that he was not familiar with, rendering all of his power moot.


    "Son of a-"


    BOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMM!!!


    A brutal explosion urred within the sky that naturally lit up the surrounding area.


    Kendrick was able to stave off instant destruction by hardening the air in front of him to act as a barrier while he got just far enough away.


    Even though he thought he had escapedpletely, the bacsh from the explosion had hit his ck wings; setting them on fire.


    ''Damn it!''


    Kendrick wasted only a single moment to put out the mes that were spreading across his feathery appendages.


    But in that moment, the enemy that seemed un-kible reappeared in the sky at an eye level with him.


    At a speed faster than what Kendrick could react to, the nightmare punched him in the face hard enough to send some of hs teeth ttering down his throat.


    The blessed hit the dirt face first, and writhed around in the dirt like a cockroach as he wrestled with the pain of having his jaw nearly obliterated.


    How long had it been since somebody had hit him??


    It surely didn''t ur in any dungeons, as he was always more than capable of protecting himself from any kind of attack.


    Therefore, he wasrgely unustomed to pain, and let out a miserable cry as he tried to stop the bleeding.


    "Fuck, you damned-"


    BOOOOMMM!!!


    The nightmarended directly on top of Kendrick''s head; curb stomping him into the ground and creating another seismic event.


    With hisst bit of consciousness; Kendrickunched the ming spears at the monster making such a mockery of him.


    The spears homed in on the nightmare like a homing beacon; and rained down on him like unholy hail.


    The nightmare swiped the first few aside like they were simple trinkets, and even used a few of his tails to eat a few more.


    However, he was unable to keep this up for all of the projectiles and a few of them pierced his ck skin.


    However, the creature did not even seem to be remotely phased by the fact that it was suddenly filled with holes.


    It simply plucked them out one by one or waited for them to die down on their own without much thought.


    With no more distractions, the creature reached down and ripped out the ck wings of his enemy; waking him up in the most painful way imaginable.


    "AAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHH!!!"


    The creature casually tossed the wings over his shoulders and focused on the actual meat on it''s prey.


    It focused it''s attention on an arm, and yanked until it was ripped free of flesh, bone, and sinew.


    Another sad chorus of screams erupted from the mouth of Kendrick as the nightmare brought his loose arm up to his mouth.


    Opening wide, it immediately started to chew flesh off the bone and swallow.


    Immediately, the creature felt like it was bing awash with new power and it''s tails went into a small frenzy.


    Palpable excitement filled the air as the creature finished the arm in no time, and was ready for another piece to feast on.


    No longer wanting to be peckish with it''s meal, it grabbed Kendrick by his head and held him in the air.


    It opened it''s mouth wide as if it were about to swallow the blessed''s entire head when unfamiliar noises cut through it''s meal.


    "Brother!"


    "Stop it, put him down!"


    "If you eat him I am never going to kiss you again!"


    "Alright, I know we''re trying to calm him down but let''s be for real with ourselves here..."


    """BIANCA!"""


    "Right, right, sorry."


    The nightmare looked over it''s shoulder and found four women running at him recklessly.


    Three of them looked rather harmless and he did not want to eat them, but the one with grey hair... she looked absolutely delicious.

 Chapter 177: Who is The Real Monster?

    The nightmare tossed Kendrick over his shoulder like he was a random piece of litter.


    It began to walk towards Aubrey while making a threatening sound from it''s mouths; indicating it''s nefarious intentions.


    The four girls noticed it''s gaze and demeanor had suddenly changed from how they were a second ago, and they backed away ordingly.


    "H-He.. wasn''t like thisst time!" Bianca yelled.


    "Well then why is he behaving like this now??" Anna yelled.


    The three girls followed the creature''s line of sight towards the gray haired girl standing in between them.


    At that moment, they conveniently remembered the fact that she was the only one among them who did not share his essence.


    That very small detail meant that she would likely not be seen as a safe extension of him.


    "A-Aubrey, you need to get away from here right now!"


    "We''ll buy you as much time to run as we can! Now go!"


    Despite the sincere pleas of the girls, Aubrey not only did not move, but instead she started walking towards the hulking monster without a care.


    While the girls tried to stop her from going through with whatever scheme she had concocted, Kendrick crawled miserably on the ground as he tried to get as far away from this conflict as possible.


    For some reason, his arm had yet to start healing, and he was still losing a steady supply of blood with every second that ticked by.


    With his one arm, he reached inside of his pocket and pulled out a small ckmunication device.


    Pressing on it, he immediately heard the annoying voice of Arias on the other line.


    "Where are you? The men are reporting that the battle''s gone to shit because you suddenly disappeare-"


    "Track... my location now.. Get here immediately and help me get out of here..!"


    Arias had never in his life heard Kendrick sound so utterly exhausted and abused before, and his silence on the other line was indicative of his surprise.


    "...Give me a few minutes."


    Kendrick would never know if Arias was going to make it to him in time, because he fainted shortly after he voiced his SOS.


    Meanwhile, Aubrey had to wiggle out of the embrace of the girls in order to have a hope at putting her n into action.


    "S-Sorry about this!"


    Aubrey snapped her fingers and a golden light shone within her eyes before thick green vines sprang up from the ground and encircled Bianca, Sei, and Anna.


    The three girls were hoisted high into the air, and held in ce without having the slightest bit of wiggle room.


    Bianca''s body becamepletely engulfed in bright red mes, and she started to burn through her restraints rather quickly.


    Recognizing she didn''t have much time, Aubrey hurriedly ran up to the nightmare and threw herself directly at it.


    In a twist that the creature was not expecting, the young girl threw her forearm directly into his mouth like she was trying to feed it.


    It was confused, but who in the world was going to turn down free food?


    The creature bit down and the metallic taste of blood filled it''s mouth, and he heard a small whimper escape the mouth of it''s prey.


    However, before it could rip flesh from bone, it was filled with a strange feeling that it did not quite understand.


    Though it did not understand why, this blood... it was very familiar to him.


    So much so that it frozepletely and simply let the taste linger in it''s mouth.


    Aubrey used her free hand to reach out and pat the creature lovingly on the head.


    "I always fantasized about being able to do something for you, even though I never expected it to be something like this.


    This might be a pretty stupid n, but I just felt like this was something that I had to do, you know..?


    But judging by the fact that you stopped chewing, I think I may be getting through to you if only a bit."


    Small pieces of memories started to y within the creature''s mind.


    But the memories that it was seeing didn''t belong to it though.


    ¡­Or did they?


    "I know that you''ve got this new condition and all and you''re still figuring it out, but I think you should let me help you too.


    I know you think your girls are all you need and I understand that, but I love you too, you know..? I want you to rely on me just like all of those years I spent relying on you.


    We''ll get through this and help you get control no matter what it takes. No matter how many new brothers and sisters we get, you will always be irreceable to me, Mchi."


    "A.. Au¡­"


    The nightmare creature tried to speak aloud for the first time since it''s creation, and Aubrey felt a smile form on her face despite the pain in her arm.


    "See? I knew you would be able to hear me. Are you feeling less cannibalistic now, bro?"


    Bit by bit, the nightmare''s monstrous visage faded away and it''s skin dissolved back into nothingness.


    Once again, Aubrey was staring at her enchantingly handsome brother who was giving her a sleepy yet horrified look.


    "Aubrey¡­I-I.."


    "You''re good. Let''s keep this incident from our Mom, okay? I think she''d feel better if she didn''t know about it."


    Unamused, Mchi looked down at her wound in horror.


    "Why¡­ aren''t you upset? I bit you! A-And you aren''t heal-"


    "This is nothing. You''ve sacrificed your all for me so many times before that this doesn''t feel like such a big deal inparison."


    "This is definitely a big deal..! How could you have known that I would be able to stop?!"


    Aubrey gave her brother the most tender and heartbreaking smile that he had ever seen before.


    "Because you''re my brother¡­ and I don''t care what you turn into, I know that you would never hurt me. Is that enough of an answer?"


    Mchi''s drowsiness seemed to have finally gotten the best of him, and his knees gave out as a response.


    Aubrey caught him easily with her newfound strength, and  she lowered his body to the ground gently.


    "You''re so slow sometimes¡­"


    "Yea, I guess I am. But this just means that you have to keep watching out for me." Aubrey said with a smile.


    She watched her brother close his eyes and fall into aatose-like state before she rubbed the dirt out of his perfect face.


    Thunk, thunk, thunk!


    Turning around, Aubrey found that all three of Mchi''s girlfriends were free from their restraints and had fallen asleep on top of each other, one right after the next.


    "Umm¡­ guys..?"


    No matter how much Aubrey called, none of the people on the ind with her seemed like they were about to wake up anytime soon.


    "Shit¡­ how am I supposed to get back if none of you are up to help me?" She muttered.


    "I was wondering that too."


    A chill ran down Aubrey''s spine as she looked behind her and found a blonde haired man who the world seemed to know very well.


    Using one hand he held Kendrick''s unconscious body over his shoulder, and with the other he held a small ck recording device.


    "Now this is something, isn''t it? The whole world likens me to a monster for the things that I have done, yet we had an actual horror living within our midst.


    I wonder if when they see this they will change their minds about just who it is that they should be hunting with all their hearts, don''t you?"

 Chapter 178: I’m Not Scared

    Upon seeing Arias, Aubrey was given immediate shbacks to the night of Immortal Moon''s G wherehe had indiscriminately started attacking humans out of the blue, including her.


    She had almost died then.


    And her brother''s mentor had suffered a very serious wound to the chest that resulted in him still being in the hospital even now.


    Had her girlfriend not saved her, Aubrey could have been in the same situation, or even worse.


    It was a very scary thing to think about.


    Back then, she didn''t have any powers or any way that she could have possibly defended herself.


    But now¡­ things were different.


    She had powers of her own, and though she still had a lot to learn about herself and her abilities, she believed that she was more than capable of protecting herself.


    And maybe even getting a little revenge along the way.


    She wouldn''t ever let a man make her afraid ever again.. just as she would never let the world see her as a helpless littlemb who needed the protection of her brother or girlfriend.


    "Give me that camera, you bastard¡­!"


    Arias made a slightly stunned and confused expression.


    "Hm? Why would I do something like that? The people deserve to see the truth."


    "I said give it to me!!"


    Aubrey mmed her hand on the ground and a wellspring of magic power flew out.


    Arias watched as a giant golden hand reached out to grab him.


    His eyes glowed white in color for a brief moment and he materialized a de of light that cut through Aubrey''s construct like it was made of butter.


    ''I... don''t recall any reports of her having powers.... I guess those aren''t hair dye and contacts. Which higher could have blessed her to give her an ability like that..?''


    The fist construct that Arias had split apart suddenly transformed int two golden bears the size of a pickup truck.


    Arias only narrowly managed to avoid the mauling by flying up into the air at thest moment.


    With everything he saw Aubrey do, his curiosity was only rising higher and higher.


    ''Let''s see just how much you can show me, Sister Saint.''


    "Give me that damn camera!!!"


    A fierce wind was whipped up around the young girl and a literal tornado formed in the air.


    ''She has multiple blessings?! How grand!''


    Arias remained motionless as if he were about to take Aubrey''s attack head on.


    He wanted to know just how much power Aubrey held within, and he could only do that if he sawmore and more of the abilities she had hidden inside.


    "Ugh..." Kendrick groaned from within his sleep and began tossing and turning on his savior''s shoulder.


    "Oh shit, I forgot about you."


    Arias once again had no choice but to avoid the iing tornado when he remembered the very heavily injured passenger he was carrying on his shoulder.


    Teleporting from one area to another, he reappeared directly beside Aubrey and her slumbering family.


    Aubrey only had a moment to be stunned before she lunged at Arias with nothing but an open palm.


    Very briefly, a dangerous feeling seeped all the way into Arias'' nonexistent bones.


    Whatever this new power was...it was a bit too dangerous to study up close.


    Arias avoided it by a hair before taking a massive leap back andnding on top of a nearby tree.


    "Get back here!"


    A thick and fluffy white cloud appeared underneath Aubrey''s feet and carried her toward Arias at an rming speed.


    "Sorry, Sister Saint. I''d like to keep ying with you a bit more, but with presentpany here I don''t really know if that would be in my best interest."


    "Stop talking and give me that camera, you bastard!"


    "I''lle find you soon so that we can do this again. Toodles."


    "Son of a bitch!!!''


    BOOOOMMM!!!


    A strong gust of windpletely ripped the tree that Arias was standing on out of the ground and sent it flying.


    Aubrey scoured the area for any sign of her adversary, only to find him nowhere in sight.


    ''Damn it..!''


    Cursing herself internally, she headed back towards the group and loomed over her brother apologetically.


    "I''m sorry, Mal... I wasn''t able to get that stupid camera back... I.. don''t know what he''ll do with it."


    Though her brother was not awake to say anything, she still felt like she could hear his voice in her head trying to console her.


    She smiled wryly as she wiped away her tears, and stared to pull Mchi, Bianca, Sei, and Anna onto her floating cloud.


    She didn''t know exactly where she was, but... she had to get them all home somehow.


    "Should I just pick a direction and fly...?" She wondered.


    -


    An unknown amount of timeter, Mchi finally opened his eyes and realized he was not in bed.


    He was somewhere very familiar, in a world full of boundless night and beautiful stars that he would have liked to stay in forever.


    "It took you a while to wake up this time. Even in here."


    Mchi sat up and found his mother floating upside down a short distance away.


    Judging by her soft tone of voice and the look in her inhuman eyes, she had been unbelievably worried about his well being.


    She slowly floated towards him and ced her hand on his cheek.


    "Even if you don''t say anything, I already know how you are feeling. Your sister is fine, my son."


    "I bit her..."


    "Because she let you."


    "I could have done worse."


    "But you didn''t."


    Nyx sat directly in front of Mchi and cupped his face in her hands.


    "Even in that state, you still knew that your sister was someone who you didn''t want to harm. Can you not be satisfied with that?"


    Mchi bit his lip ufortably.


    He knew he should be d that nothing worse had happened today, but he couldn''t help but feel like some kind of unnatural monster.


    As soon as he looked at Kendrick, he just felt so hungry that he could barely even see straight, and his only thoughts were on filling his stomach.


    "That guy... what did I do to him?" Mchi asked hoarsely.


    Nyx looked like she was unsure of exactly what to say in that moment.


    Just as she was about to put together a string of words to make Mchi feel better, she suddenly paused and started to look around.


    Mchi raised a brow in confusion as an angelic masculine voice that he didn''t recognize started to echo around him.


    "My, my! You''ve been keeping quite the secret from all of us, haven''t you, Nyx? How naughty."


    Soon, a figure started to materialize in the air beside them, although his visage was rather blurry as if he were a static image.


    Mchi didn''t recognize the blonde haired man in a ck suit, but Nyx knew him painfully well.


    "Lucifer..!"


    The devil showed a smile worthy of his namesake, as he sat crosslegged on the ground beside them like a long lost best friend.


    "I guess I''m in on the secret too now, huh? This''ll be so fun for all of us!"

 Chapter 179: The Problem With Nightmares

    Mchi was having a hard time processing everything that was going on, so much so that he was admittedly a bit slow to react.


    "What the hell... You''re...?"


    "The devil, yes. Are you afraid?"


    "More like I''m not in the mood. Fuck off."


    A swipe of Mchi''s hand released a strong st of ck lightning in the form of a tidal wave.


    The storm came crashing down on top of the devil''s visage, and made aloud crackling sound as if it had struck the earth.


    Mchi wasn''t really expecting to kill Lucifer if he was being honest, but he hoped that this attack would help get his point across.


    Unfortunately, he ended up rather disappointed to see that not only had he failed, but the devil had reappeared beside him even closer than he was the first time.


    "Now that''s not nice! Here I am trying to exchange friendly greetings and you just-"


    "Why are you here, Lucifer? No, how are you here!?" Nyx yelled angrily.


    This space was like a shared bridge between Mchi and his mother, meaning that absolutely no one should have been able to intrude upon it.


    Least of all someone who Nyx so openly despised.


    Out of all of the highers in creation, Lucifer was undoubtedly the one she hated most.


    To her, Lucifer represented everything that was wrong with the universe.


    At first there was nothing but glorious night and shadow as far as the eye could see, and everything was surrounded by an air of calmness and tranquility.


    But with Lucifer''s birth and rebellion within heaven, all of the quiet she so loved was stripped away from reality, and instead it became filled with what she saw as meaningless strife.


    Every time that she saw his perfectly angelic face she became filled with so much rage that she wanted to pull out his tonsils through his anus.


    "Ah, well you should know the answer to that right, my dear? Our boy here is part nightmare after a-"


    "He is MY son, you rejected pigeon! If you ever dare toy any kind of im to him again I will finish the job your father wasn''t man enough toplete!"


    Lucifer smiled dangerously at Nyx''s enraged state and his red eyes shone with a red light.


    "You sure do have quite the mouth on you, Night Mother. I wonder if you truly have the talent to follow through with such a threat?"


    As a response, Nyx uttered some words that were in anguage that sounded so old and foreign that Mchi couldn''t even begin to fix his lips to utter the sybles.


    However... it left him utterly transfixed.


    "That''s... beautiful. Whatnguage is that?" he asked in a hollow voice.


    No matter how mad Nyx may have been, she would never lose herself enough to not react when one of her beloved children spoke.


    Her frightening and limitless aura of aggression vanished almost as quickly as it began, and she looked rather caught off guard to receive such a sudden and sincerepliment.


    "Ah... It''s a chthonic dialect, my son. Does it interest you?"


    "Little bit... Would you mind teaching me?"


    "Of course not." Nyx smiled warmly at Mchi and it seemed as though she hadpletely forgotten about their uninvited guest.


    Unfortunately, he was very much still around.


    "The two of you are such a cute mother son pair. I can see why you are trying so hard to hide his little secret."


    Once again, Nyx''s face twisted up into a scowl and Mchi wondered just how it was possible for someone''s mood to change at the drop of a hat like this.


    ''I wonder if it''s hereditary... Are Aubrey and I gonna have this problem too?''


    Deciding not to think about it for now, Mchi finally decided to get to the bottom of Lucifer''s sudden visit.


    "Why are you here, man? I hope it''s not to take revenge for your chosen."


    "Hm? Ah, no it''s nothing like that." Lucifer said as he waived his hand."You really don''t know much about what you are now, do you?"


    "Lightbringer.." Nyx said dangerously.


    "He can know some things can''t he? It does pertain to him after all. The boy should at least know why I''m suddenly in his head."


    Nyx looked like she wanted to protest, but upon finding no justifiable reason to she fell into a silence instead.


    "The thing about the nightmares is that they have a peculiar ability to asionally steal the abilities of the prey they eat. About a 1 in 100 chance I believe.


    It seems like upon eating Kendrick''s arm, you copied his ability. And since his giftes from me, you now have something of a bastardized version of my blessing. Aren''t you d?"


    "Fuck... did I really eat his arm?"


    Nyx gave her son a sad look as she sat behind him and wrapped her arms around his back.


    "You did, but your sister was able to stop you before you could do anything further. Please, take the small victory."


    Mchi was trying to tell himself that things could have gone worse, but it was extremely difficult.


    He wasn''t a stranger to killing and it wasn''t really something that he lost sleep over anymore, but eating people was different.


    He felt that with every bit of human flesh that passed between his teeth was subsequently stripping him away of his humanity.


    And when he passed the point of no return... What would be left?


    What would he be?


    It was a thought that terrified him to his core and haunted his dreams at night.


    "So how do I get you out of my head? I don''t feel like listening to you sell me some nonsensical shit about killing all humans or eating apples. You can take your fucking powers back too."


    Lucifer smiled as he ced a hand across his chest like he was truly hurt. "You wound me, Mchi. You have such a human idea of who I am and what I represent.


    It''s true that I''m even less fond of humanity than your mother, but that doesn''t really have anything to do with you now, does it?


    I am free will personified, Mchi. You do whatever you like with the power that you have stolen from me, and know that I could not care less about what you will do with it. But I do hope that you amuse me a bit."


    "Got other shit to do that''s higher on my list of priorities than acting as a jester for the devil. Find some other sad soul to do that annoying shit."


    Mchi suddenly stood up and stretched before giving his mother a hug.


    "I''ll see youter, Ma. Hopefully without any extras around."


    Nyx was more than a bit worried about Mchi, but she was never one to turn down her precious son''s affection.


    "Alright then... I''lle visit you soon."


    Lucifer: "Me too!"


    ""No!""


    -


    When Mchi opened his eyes, he expected to be in a bed or even lying on Morgan''s ind.


    What he did not expect was to be falling out of the sky like a dead bird, plummeting towards a turbulent ocean underneath him.


    "It''s always some bullshit whenever I wake up..."

 Chapter 180: Weariness

    Once he saw that he was falling headfirst into the sea, Mchi immediately sprouted his ck and white wings to stop himself from going for a swim.


    Out of the corner of his eye, he found more bodies plummeting from the sky and he felt his heart drop to his feet.


    Throwing out his hand, he caught his sister and three sleeping girlfriends using telekinesis and held them above the water.


    Aubrey was not quite asleep like the rest of the girls, and she showed her brother a helpless smile when she saw that he had finally woken up.


    "Sorry you had to save us again... I think I spent too much energy so I kind of just conked out..."


    "Aubrey... Just get some rest kid, I''ll get us home."


    "Okay... But can I tell you something before you take us back to base...?"


    "Sure."


    "Put some fucking clothes on..."


    Just as Aubrey fainted, Mchi looked down and realized that he was indeed floating around naked since his clothes had been shredded by Kendrick''s attack.


    But on the bright side, he was currently in his true appearance so he hadn''t exactly been shing anyone while he was unconscious.


    With all of the girlsin tow, Mchi concentrated on the shadows situated within the nightfall base, and he pulled all five of them through.


    -


    At an undisclosed location in a remote corner of the world, Arias was staring down at his most powerful lieutenant as he writhed around in bed.


    He was still clutching one of his stumped arms no matter how often they tried to sedate him, and it didn''t look like he was going to start healing anytime soon.


    ''What exactly is Saint now...?''


    Arias pulled out his recording device and rewatched the footage he had captured of Mchi''s frightening new form.


    No matter how hard he tried, he could not recall seeing any kind of creature like this in any sort of mythology that he had studied before.


    As far as he could tell, it waspletely alien in origin.


    "Where did you see this?!"


    Nearly jumping out of his fake skin, Arias whirled around to find the goddess who had blessed him, Hemera, standing over his shoulder and staring into his device with an expression of shock.


    "Mother, when did you-"


    "Arias... Where did you see that creature...?"


    Confused, Arias tilted his head as he handed the device to his mother. "On a small ind off the coast... That is Mchi Saint, Mother. Nyx''s chosen."


    Hemera''s blue eyes trembled as she stared at the ck creature holding a familiar young girl hostage and biting into her.


    She watched as the creature transformed from arge alien monster to a handsome young man with dark skin and long ck dreadlocks.


    "It is truly... that boy..." Hemera muttered.


    "I was nning to upload this footage to the inte if I could not get his sister to cooperate and join our forces. I can still fish her out at ater date so-"


    "No."


    Hemera suddenly handed the device back to Arias and pressed it into his chest.


    "Do not dally. If we are to properly capitalize on neutralizing this threat then you mustn''t worry about the Saint sister."


    Arias couldn''t say that he had ever seen his mother this serious about something before, so he didn''t bother to press the matter further and nodded without a second thought.


    "I understand, Mother. Give me a few minutes."


    -


    After Mchi finished dropping off Aubrey into the care of Aisha, he immediately brought Sei, Bianca, and Anna back to their ce.


    As soon as he arrived within the living room, he was greeted with a much warmer sight than he was expecting.


    "You... look incredible."


    Luna smiled and pushed her hair out of her face.


    Just as Mchi had described, Luna was indeed significantly more charming than before.


    Her features were sharper, her body more alluring, and her skin much softer looking.


    Her pink eyes were much more vibrant and sometimes cold looking, causing her to seem even more like an icy beauty than Anna.


    "You... look tired." She said sadly.


    "How can you know that when I don''t have a face right now?"


    "We''re connected aren''t we? I don''t always have to see your face to know how you''re feeling."


    "Ha. I guess you''re right."


    Mchi ced the three sleeping girls down onto the couch and finally embraced Luna.


    Only once she got her arms wrapped around him fully did she understand how he was truly feeling.


    She knew he was tired, but... upon touching him she could feel the weariness etched into his very being.


    "Want to talk about it...?"


    "...In a moment, love, I promise.Right now I''m kind of... burned out."


    As if biting his sister and receiving an impromptu visit from the devil himself wasn''t enough, Mal currently had a real nasty headache as a result of his new power that he had stolen from Kendrick.


    No one had ever spoken of just how troublesome the power of absolute force maniption actually was .


    There were so many different kinds of forces in the world, like mental, astral, seismic, sonic telepathic, gravitational, and so on and so forth.


    Each of the world''s different forces emitted something like a frequency that practically cried out to be manipted by him, but it was to no avail.


    He didn''t understand what he was hearing.


    Didn''t understand what the frequencies were for either.


    And as of right now, he had no way to quiet the noise.


    Were he not an immortal being, he likely would have already tried to eat a few bullets by now.


    But even though he was undergoing an enormous burden, Luna''s warm embrace was helping to ease his mind if only a bit.


    "This ain''t exactly how I wanted us to reunite after you were unconscious for a week..." He said with a dryugh.


    "Do you think I care about that right now? Just let yourself rest, darling. We''ll catch upter."


    "Yea...I''m real lucky to have you girls..."


    Luna would have responded, but for some reason Mchi ended up falling asleep within her arms before she could say anything.


    "Almost like a child... how cute."


    After giving him a small kiss on the cheek, Luna ced his arm around her shoulder and started to carry him to the bedroom.


    As she was doing so, she found two other upants in the room staring at her with disappointed faces.


    Nadine: "He''s such a jerk... He didn''t even acknowledge my presence."


    Shiro : "Arf!" (Mine either... Everyone knows I''m the best looking bitch in this house.)


    Luna rolled her eyes and walked right past the two of them to carry Mchi to bed.


    He wouldn''t wake up until three dayster, and the world he knew would be very different than how hest experienced it.

 Chapter 181: Panic & Sickness

    When Mchi finally awoke, he only had a second to realize that he was lying in bed before his head was filled with those same horrible useless signals from before.


    The dull headache he felt was back in full force and it made him want to fall back into his peacefully obliviousa.


    Suddenly, he felt a small weight sit upon his chest and opened one eye to see Anna''s beloved cat sitting on top of him.


    "Meow." (You made Anna worry about you, bitch boy.)


    "Good to see you too, you furry bitch. How long have I been out?"


    "Meow." (Two days. The most peaceful ones of my short life.)


    "Why the fuck are you acting like I''m such a loud person?"


    "Meow, meow meow!" (You defile my sweet Anna like a beast and I have to listen to you guys go at it all night! My ears are sensitive!)


    "That''s a problem I will never be able to fix."


    "Meow!" (Lay back down and die!)


    As Mchi and Marcelline continued their useless argument, a storm of footsteps could suddenly be heard from outside of his bedroom.


    Recognizing them immediately, Mchi moved the chocte brown cat aside so that she wouldn''t get hurt.


    Bang!


    The door came flying open out of the blue, and four women came sailing into the bed atop the recently awakened Mchi.


    "You''re up!"


    "We were all really worried!"


    "Are you hurting anywhere?"


    Mchi smiled underneath the weight of the women he loved and tried to wrap his arms around them as best he could.


    "Slight headache is all, but nothing that staying like this for a while won''t cure."


    One by one, the girls stole his lips and reaffirmed his earlier statement even further.


    "Do you feel like making room for any extras on that bed?"


    Mchi pulled his lips away from Anna''s and nced at the doorway where he found some unexpected yet familiar faces.


    Nadine, Joanne, and even Serana were smiling at him reassuringly.


    Serana: "Please don''t lump us in with you, Nadine. You''re the only one who''s even remotely interested in jumping into his bed."


    Joanne: "R-Right¡­"


    Nadine: "Oh? More for me then."


    Normally Mchi would have been a bit meaner to Nadine when she flirted with him, but after she had helped Luna regain her ability to have a child, he was significantly less inclined to do so.


    "It''s good to see you, Nadine. I haven''t gotten the chance to thank you yet for all of your help¡­ I really appreciate what you''ve done for Luna."


    Perhaps because Mchi had never actually been nice to her before, Nadine had no real idea how to process it.


    Her cheeks gradually reddened, and she started fumbling around with her speech as she desperately looked for some words to say.


    "I-It wasn''t¡­ much to¡­ I-I¡­ I need to go to the bathroom!"


    A gust of wind blew Serana and Joanne''s hair into their faces as the bewitching blonde vampire disappeared from the room.


    "As many perverted things as she says to me I was expecting her to have a bit thicker skin¡­" Mchi muttered.


    "Okay¡­ I''m d you''re awake Mchi, because there is something I need to talk to you about." Joanne suddenly said.


    Mchi didn''t know why, but for some reason he felt the tension within the room multiply by leaps and bounds.


    "Mom. Not now." Anna said sternly.


    Joanne opened her mouth to say something before she inevitably decided against it.


    She turned her back to leave the room only for Mchi to teleport directly in front of her.


    "Something you want to tell me? Go ahead."


    "No, Anna''s right¡­ you have only just woken up and I think we can wait to discuss all this unpleasant shit a littleter."


    "Yea, she''s right, Mal.." Serana agreed. "You should just sleep in a little bit more since my mom and everyone really seemed to miss you."


    "I''m good. So can you girls just tell me what''s going on already?"


    Joanne bit her lip and reached inside of her pocket before pulling out of her phone.


    After selecting a few buttons, she handed the device to Mchi and let him see things for himself.


    A video was pulled up that showed a monster with ck skin and four tails with snakes at the end.


    The creature was biting into a beautiful young woman with deathly grey hair and a diminutive frame.


    Gradually, the creature changed and became a handsome young man with long dreadlocks and dark skin.


    Plus a very well known face.


    "We''re trying to take the video down as fast as it can be uploaded but¡­ most of the damage has already been done I''m afraid¡­"


    Mchi typed in his name within the search bar as a means of confirming her words.


    As soon as it popped up, he was greeted with headline after headline and they all seemed to be worse than the next.


    In some form or fashion, they were all calling him a monster and making pleas for his capture.


    And those were just the nice ones.


    He saw more than a few that were calling for his immediate execution before he went out of control and started attacking humans indiscriminately.


    He couldn''t believe it.


    Why didn''t they know that he was fighting for them?


    All of the battles he had been through in thest week to keep the army of Arias'' new day at bay, none of it mattered.


    He was just another monster now to them.


    It was so absurd and heartbreaking that he almostughed out of an inability to process his emotions.


    ''Maybe they''re right though¡­ I can''t even me them for thinking like that.''


    The headache he felt became worse, and he felt like he needed to go andy down for a few centuries.


    "You probably already figured this out, but¡­ I''ve been asked to assemble a team and bring you in for questioning and observation." Joanne said with great difficulty.


    Immediately, she was met with a flurry of objections and rudements from all of the girls within the room.


    They would have continued to tear her a new one, that is if Mchi had not stopped them out of the blue.


    "Girls¡­ just calm down for a moment, yea?"


    He looked down at a slightly embarrassed and ufortable Joanne and he pulled her out into the living room alone.


    Once they were free to talk privately, Mchi held out his wrists in a show of submission.


    "What are you doing¡­?" Joanne asked.


    "You''re somebody who has my total trust and confidence. And I''m just¡­ tired, Jo. So if you think that going with you is really the right thing for me to do, I''ll let you take me."


    Joanne looked at Mchi''s tired eyes and she felt her heart breaking into two.


    Even though he was only twenty, he looked as exhausted as a fifty year old man.


    Briefly, she thought about just what would likely be in store for Mchi if she took him to see the president.


    As optimistic as she wanted to be¡­ she was unenthusiastic about the possibility of them treating Mchi humanely.


    Though he wasn''t by any means the kind of person who she needed to worry about, she couldn''t help but want to do her part to protect him.


    Gently, she ced her hand on top of his wrists and lowered them back down to his sides.


    Even as exhausted as he was, Mchi couldn''t help but smile at her actions.


    "Hey¡­ it''s nice to know you have something of a sweet side."


    "Shut up¡­ You probably knew that I wouldn''t risk my life by taking you away from those crazy women in there."


    "Nah, I didn''t know what you would do. I was leaving the decision totally up to you."


    "You really trust me that much¡­?"


    "Is that surprising? I consider you a really close friend, so of course you have my total confidence."


    Joanne couldn''t say exactly what was wrong with Mchi''sst words, but she felt more than a little pissed.


    "Your friend, huh¡­?"


    "Ye-"


    "Bastard, now I''m regretting not taking you in."


    ''¡­Why though..?'' Mal wondered.


    Joanne walked away irritability and paused just before she hit the elevator. "I don''t think I have to tell you this but¡­stay out of public eye as much as possible and¡­ go see your sister while you''re at it."


    Once Aubrey''s name was mentioned, Mchi felt his already weary heart drop to the bottom of his feet.


    -


    A short but firm knock on the door prompted Aisha to open her eyes sleepily.


    Climbing off the couch, she moved to answer it and was rtively surprised by who she found waiting outside.


    Her best friend was standing directly in front of her, with Anna, Sei, Bianca and Luna waiting behind him silently.


    When Aisha saw the sad look in her friend''s eyes, she couldn''t help but embrace him despite their two decades long promise of : ''none of that mushy shit.''


    Finally, she led the group into her living quarters and opened the door to the back room.


    There, the group found Aubrey sleeping in bed somewhat restlessly.


    A thick nket of sweat epassed her body, and her formerly cute and unblemished face was now marred with ck veins that were visible from beneath her skin.

 Chapter 182: Leaving

    Mchi took shaky steps to reach his sister, and every move forward seemed like it required a monumental effort and would pull his legs out from underneath him.


    "Aubrey..?"


    The young girl''s eyes fluttered open and she found her brothering closer quietly as if he was afraid to spook her.


    "Hey¡­ I''m real d to see that you''re up and about now."


    "Y-You¡­"


    "Aww, don''t be so dramatic¡­ I just have a little flu is all. It''s not as scary as it looks."


    The words that were meant to give her brother consolidation failed to do just that.


    Mchi sat on the bed beside his sister and pulled down her covers just a bit.


    Her arm was heavily bandaged, and he slowly unwrapped it to reveal a horrible wound that looked like it was already terribly infected.


    "D-Don''t look, it''s gross!" Aubrey yelled.


    "Aubrey... shush."


    Mchi ced his palm over the horrendous wound and closed his eyes.


    Concentrating on the venom flowing through her system, he slowly pulled it out of her body through her opened wounds.


    A thick, ck liquid trickled out onto the bedsheets and spilled onto the floor.


    Aubrey let out a sigh of relief as she felt her body start to show rampant improvement; so much so that it was practically like a miracle cure.


    The ck veins running along her face gradually disappeared, and she finally sat up on the bed with an incredulous look in her eye.


    "How... did you know that you could do that?"


    "I didn''t..." Mchi admitted.


    His desire to see his sister healed under any circumstances had somehow... willed his body to move on it''s own.


    Though he should have been grateful for this, it only made him feel more and more worried.


    "Well... thank you!" Aubrey hugged her brother and seemed to be back to her usual self as if there was nothing wrong.


    "Truth be told, I was feeling really shitty before! Now I just need to take a shower and then I can-"


    "Hey... I''m going to be leaving for a bit."


    The entire room seemed to fall into an inescapable dead silence as Mchi''s words sank in.


    Aubrey: "You... what?"


    Aisha: "Hey..now ain''t the time for jokes..!"


    Sei: "Honey, what are you saying?"


    Bianca: "What do you mean you''re going to go?!"


    As Mchi stroked his sister''s hair lovingly, he spoke to all of the girls in a sad tone.


    "I hate to leave so much shit unfinished but I think it''s just time for it, you know...? Got a lot of shit I need to sort out, and... I don''t wanna hurt anyone anymore."


    "I-I''m fine now, see! Besides, I stuck my arm into your mouth willingly!"


    "If this is about that stupid video then just forget about it! Those people don''t know you!"


    "If you want to hide for a bit then just stay here! We already live in a literal imprable military base!"


    Mchi shook his head amidst all of theints he was pelted with.


    "I''d like to stay and hide out, but... this ce isn''t really for me right now. I don''t want to make anyone ufortable."


    Aisha, Bianca, Anna, Sei, and Luna immediately tensed up.


    The panic around Mchi''s monstrous new appearance was not solely centered in the outside world.


    His friends and former guild members were now slightly afraid of him too.


    He noticed it on the way here.


    As he walked through the corridors and passed his friends who were normally grateful to see him, he noticed that they were looking sat him with traces of fear in their eyes as they spoke.


    They tried to hide it as a means to be respectful, but... he noticed the fear all the same.


    He could smell it.


    The knowledge that some of the people he valued most were now living in fear of him killed him inside.


    But he didn''t me them.


    For some reason... he just couldn''t.


    After all, he was a monster now.


    And who in this world does not fear that which goes bump in the dark?


    Luna bit her lip hard enough to draw blood as she clenched her fists in frustration. "Those girls... I''ll keep talking to them! I''ll drill it in to her minds that they don''t need to be-"


    "Mei, you don''t need to do that. You can''t change their minds through force, or else Anna likely would have already done it by now."


    "..." Blushing silently, Anna slipped her brass knuckles back into her pocket.


    "So what...? You''re just going to leave me and go where? Outerspace?? What am I supposed to do without you?!" Aubrey had tears in her eyes as she struck her brother''s chest repeatedly as if she were banging on a drum.


    Because Mchi did not feel like it was his ce to stop her, he simply let her be without putting up any defense.


    "I... don''t know where I''m going yet. And I won''t be gone forever... I''lle back when I''m no longer a danger to you."


    "You''re not a danger now you bastard!"


    "I am... and even if you don''t think I am to you, it is undeniable that I am to others. I have to do this."


    "No! I won''t let you go anywhere!"


    As Mchi wrestled with this situation, a familiar and very wee voice yed in the room.


    "I.. think I can help you both."


    Standing in the doorway, they found Nyx wearing her usual sleek ck sundress in the guise of their human mother.


    "My son...e to my realm with me. You can stay there as long as you like while you figure things out for yourself... and this way Aubrey you can be free to visit him at any time."


    "Your realm..?"


    "C-Can I really..?"


    "Yes, my realm." Nyx said as she sat with them on the bed. "My space may be a bit of an acquiredtaste for you since it isn''t exactly the brightest.


    But I can bring you both there all the same since you have mine and Thanatos'' blessing. Being there will likely make you stronger too."


    Both Aubrey and Mchi sat quietly as they pondered over this newest revtion, when Bianca posed a very important question.


    "And what about us...? The girls and I... none of us can bear to be separated from your son for even a second."


    Nyx rubbed her chin thoughtfully as she stared at the girls'' bodies through their clothes.


    They had a lot of their son''s essence within them... like a lot.


    As such, she could not only take them, but they would find thends hospitable as well.


    "Of course I will take you girls... I couldn''t imagine leaving my precious daughter-inws behind for even a second."


    All of the girls smiled as they wiped small tears from their eyes, and smiled reassuringly.


    This in turn made Mchi feel a lot better, as he could have imagined ever going anywhere without them.


    ''So this is what it means to be in love... I already knew it, but it really is a crazy feeling.'' he thought warmly.


    Even with the entire world against him, the allegiance of these four had never waned or wavered.


    Everyone will always make assurances of their loyalty, but to see it actually be tested in person was one of the most wholesome experiences one could ever witness.


    It left Mchi more than a little touched.


    "I... still don''t know how I feel abut you leaving... What if something happens and I can''t get to you..?" Aubrey asked.


    Mchi had no answer for this, but luckily Nyx did.


    She ced her hands on both of their heads, and a change urred in them.


    Mchi''s hair became the same suffocating dark grey as Aubrey''s, and her eyes took on his permanently glowing violet color.


    "This way, the two of you can always carry each other around with every step you take. When your brother returns, you can both be swapped back, how does that sound?"


    "...Okay." Aubrey agreed.


    "Good, now hug us both." Nyx said with a smile.


    Aubrey smiled wryly, and the group of three became entangled in a warm embrace as they finally settled upon their ns for the future.


    "I''lle and get all five of youter, at dawn''s first light. Make all of your preparations before then, okay?"


    """""Got it."""""

 Chapter 183: Before The Departure

    Rose Ortega stepped into the elevator that traveled throughout the nightfall base and pressed the lowest button at the bottom.


    There was a small ding and a purple glow signifying temporary ess before the doors closed and she descended on to the lowest level of the building.


    A few momentster, the elevator finally stopped and opened the doors to allow her to exit.


    "H-Hello..?"


    "In here, Rose!"


    The woman followed the sound of Luna''s voice to a beautiful albeit dark living room.


    There, she found the white aired beauty standing above a sectional sofa, with another familiar face sitting in front of her.


    "Aisha?"


    "Yo."


    "You''re just in time, Rose. Please,e sit down."


    A bit less nervous now that she knew she wasn''t going to be chewed out for something alone, Rose sat down beside Aisha as respectfully as possible.


    At first, she noticed that Aisha seemed to be a bit different for some reason today, almost as if she wasn''t all there.


    She had never seen her be quite as despondent as she was now, and she didn''t know if her mood had something to do with the reason that they had both been called here.


    "Since Aisha already knows, I''ll be getting right to the chase." Luna ran her hands through her hair and sighed deeply as if this conversation were already exhausting.


    "Simply put... Mchi and the girls and I are leaving tonight."


    "Leaving? To go where?"


    "Somewhere that Mchi doesn''t have to feel persecuted. And where he can learn to try and better control these new powers of his."


    "Wait... what? I-I know things are a little tense within the base, but-"


    "Things aren''t just ''a little tense'' Rose. The members are afraid of him, they''ve been staring at him like he''s going to bite their heads off! Do you have any idea what that''s done to him?"


    Internally, Luna felt like she needed to be away now too.


    Part of bing a vampire meant her emotions were heightened to an even more staggering degree, and right now she wasn''t exactly the safest either.


    In her mind, she was ready to wring the necks of almost everyone in the building.


    How dare they treated her beloved like this after everything he''d done for them?


    Didn''t they know just how much he cared about everyone here?!


    Instead of them being worried about Mchiing to kill them in the middle of the night, they should have been more worried about her doing it.


    Rose bit her lip as she lowered her head in disappointment.


    While she wasn''t afraid of Mchi and was one of the few who was trying to change the minds of everyone else, she knew exactly how difficult things were at the moment.


    The timing behind all of this was just... terrible.


    "I see... how long will you be gone?"


    "We haven''t decided yet. I honestly don''t know how long we''ll be gone but know that if something bad happens we''ll return at a moment''s notice."


    "I see..."


    "Yes, so in that time the two of you will be in charge."


    ""....Wut?""


    "Yep, that''s the gist of it. The two of you have the most respect and experience out of all of our members, so I''m leaving you in charge of everyone while we are gone. Ideally I''d like the two of you to work together, but if you want to leave the task to only one of you then-"


    "W-Wait a minute!"


    Aisha suddenly leapt up from the couch in a clear state of panic.


    "I-I definitely can''t be in charge! We''re still in the middle of a civil war right now and I don''t have the strength to protect everyone like-"


    "Aisha, you are one of the strongest blessed in the world. if you don''t have the power necessary, then who would you rmend in your ce?"


    "A-Aubrey!"


    "She is still so young, dear. She hasn''t had her powers for nearly as long as you and she still has so much more that she needs to learn about herself.


    Maybe she''ll be ready in the future, but for right now there is no way that she is prepared for something like that."


    "I-I''m not either! How can you ask me to protect everyone when I can''t even go against-"


    "Arias?"


    Aisha shivered at the mere mention of his name and Luna sighed as she took her hands in hers.


    "Aisha... He is strong, but he is a man all the same. And all men die, so long as you are determined enough to kill them. Do not let him hold sway over your heart or mind, and focus solely on besting him with your own power."


    Unconsciously, Luna used one of the most famous and difficult abilities of a vampire for the first time.


    Compulsion.


    Because she felt so strongly about everything she said, she ended up imnting a hypnotic suggestion within Aisha''s mind.


    Suddenly, the immense fear that she felt taking root within her psyche was being washed away in an instant.


    "I get it... I won''t let you down... or Mchi."


    Luna showed a satisfied smile as she pulled in Aisha for a hug. "Good. Take care then, guild master."


    While embracing Aisha, she turned to face Rose on the couch and waited for her decision.


    "Well? eptance hug?"


    Rose clenched her fists as she wrestled with all possible scenarios within her mind.


    Eventually, she too swallowed her lingering doubts and worries and stood up from the couch.


    "eptance hug."


    -


    In Serena''s quarters, she and her mother Sei were lying in bed and watching a movie like they often did when Serana was young.


    Sei had also told her daughter about the fact that she would be leaving with Mchi, and to her surprise, her daughter had taken it a lot better than expected.


    "Are you sure you aren''t upset with me for leaving, Serana...? I was honestly expecting some sort of reaction from you."


    "What? Are you saying I''m a crybaby!?"


    "Sweetie, swallow the popcorn in your mouth before you talk."


    Serana rolled her eyes nonchntly and waved away her mother''s concern.


    "The way I see it, it''s not like I don''t understand why he wants to leave. I mean I don''t really think I''d want to be around all of this either right now.


    Besides, Nyx said that I can visit you guys anytime since I have Apate''s blessing, right?"


    "Well...yes?"


    "Then it''s no big deal. If anything it''s more like you''re moving down the street to another realm.


    I will miss popping in on you randomly a bit, but I think I will be okay. And hopefully I''ll be a lot stronger by the time you all are ready toe back too!"


    Sei didn''t know if she was grateful or not that her daughter had such a cavalier attitude about her leaving, but she just told herself that it would be better than the alternative.


    "My girl... don''t get too big while I''m gone, okay?"


    "Don''t say that, I want my boobs to get-"


    "By the gods I''ve raised such a crude daughter."


    "But you love me!"


    Seiughed and smiled warmly as she pulled her daughter closer into her embrace. "You''re right about that... and I want you to know that I always will."


    "Yea...I love you too, mom."


    -


    That day, time seemed to drag on a fair bit slower than normal, but the time to depart eventually arrived all the same.


    Mchi, Sei, Luna, Bianca, and Anna were all standing on the barren cliff above the nightfall base; basking in the cool night air.


    Suddenly, they heard the sound of footsteps approaching behind them and turned around to see their pursuers.


    There, they found Nadine, Joanne, Aisha, Aubrey, Serana, and a few more members of Nightfall standing behind them quietly.


    Well... some of them were quiet.


    "How could you?! You almost left without me! It''s a good thing I woke up or I would have missed you!" Nadine yelled.


    Mchi made a bit of a surprised expression as the friendly vampire strode up to him confidently.


    Immediately, he began fumbling around for words necessary to diffuse the situation.


    "I-"


    "Don''t fucking start! Give me one good reason why I can''te with you!"


    Immediately, Mal ran into a stumbling block.


    Nadine had absolutely no ties to this world, and as such there was no reason why she should have to stay behind.


    But he did have one question.


    "You''re not afraid of me?"


    Nadine smiled sweetly as a response and gave Mchi a firm hug. "Of course not... You are the man I''ve chosen after all. And I have known that you were different from the very beginning."


    Against his own expectations, Mchi found himself returning Nadine''s embrace.


    He wasn''t sure how he felt about all of her romantic advances but... right now he would always be grateful for the fact that even one less person was not afraid of him.


    "Thank you, Nadine... Do you want toe with-"


    "I told you, I was always going to do that."


    "Damn, I guess you did."


    Nadine released Mal and stood beside he girls smugly; seeming oblivious to the res she was receiving from Bianca and Anna.


    Aisha was the next one to step up to Mchi, but she also seemed to have some difficulty figuring out what she wanted to say.


    "Oh right. I wanted to give you something."


    Mchi waved his hand and the shadows at his feet spit out his twin iklwha that glowed with purple runes.


    "Keep these warm for me until I get back. You should use them to protect my sister and your parents."


    "...You have my word. They''re my favorites in my collection already." Aisha sad as she took the weapons.


    "They better be."


    The tension between them broken, the two exchanged a small handshake they''d shared since they were kids and separated without bing too mushy in each other''s presence.


    After Aisha, the next one to say their goodbyes was Joanne.


    Anna gave her mother a heart warming hug that was bing more and more normal for her, and Joanne seemed to lose her permanent scowl for just a moment.


    "Just when we were starting to get closer, you''re leaving me. I honestly feel somewhat sad."


    "You know how it is, mom... He and I have made amitment to support each other no matter what. I would never let him go off without me."


    "Yea... I get it."


    Joanne finally released Anna and gave Mchi one of the most hateful res that he''d ever seen.


    It was almost like they were having their first meeting again.


    "Saint."


    "Grey?"


    "You have to take care of my daughter. And make sure you don''t keep her from me for too long."


    Mchi smiled helplessly as he ced a hand on Joanne''s shoulder.


    "I''ll try to bring her back to you as quick as possible... And you know how much I love her¡­ I''d give her anything she needed before she could ask for it. "


    In her mind, Joanne felt her heart beginning to speed up as she stared at Mchi with an expression that could kill.


    "Really... I''m such a fucking bitch.."


    "Say what?"


    Before Mchi knew what was happening, Joanne grabbed him forcefully by the face and kissed him firmly on the lips; leaving everyone outsidepletely stunned.

 Chapter 184: A Sweet Kiss & A Sad Goodbye

    Mchi had always harbored a small attraction to Joanne.


    However, it was one that he never nned to pursue due to the nature of his rtionship with her daughter.


    Anna was everything to him, and because of that he never wanted to jeopardize everything that he had with her for some small fascination that he had with her mother.


    He just thought he''d get over it over time.


    And he very nearly was, atleast until this moment where she suddenly grabbed him by the face and kissed him forcefully.


    Joanne was a firm believer that if you were going to do something bad, you might as well go all the way with it and worry about the consequencester.


    So, she didn''t even hesitate to slip her tongue into Mchi''s mouth so that she could have no regrets about not going far enoughter.


    She thought she would feel ufortable since she hadn''t done this in a while, but she found that it was just like riding a bike.


    ''This.. doesn''t feel scary at-''


    "Mom! What the fuck?!"


    Joanne''s eyes immediately snapped open and she pushed herself away from Mchi so hard that she nearly knocked him off of the cliff.


    She looked at Anna sadly almost as if she just realized that she made a terrible mistake.


    "I¡­ I''m so sorry."


    Before she could get chewed out by her daughter, Joanne sprouted her wings from her back and took off in a sh of golden light.


    With her speed, she was over a mile away in under ten seconds, flying with her face in her hands as she continued to rey the past minute of her life over and over again.


    "What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck!!"


    Her daughter was never going to talk to her again.


    The other crazy girls that Mchi kept around him all of the time were going to bite, burn, or tear her head off!


    All because she couldn''t keep her lips all to her self!


    Though Joanne was already a growing ten miles away, that did not stop her from hearing the voice of the man she couldn''t stop thinking about within her mind.


    ''You left before I could say anything, but... I am definitely going to miss you the most, Jo. Let''s talk when Ie back, yea?''


    As Joanne tried to remain steady in her flight, a slight smile that she couldn''t suppress broke out on her face.


    "Fuck it, it was worth it."


    -


    Mchi smiled as he kept his eyes focused on the section of the sky where he''d watched Joanne disappear.


    He could still remember the soft feeling of her lips on his as she kissed him, and her taste that was like one of the sweetest things he''d ever experienced in his life.


    And now that she''d identally had some of his essence put inside of her, he was thinking about her more strongly than ever.


    ncing behind him, he found all four of the women he loved standing still and staring with their arms folded.


    "Are you mad at me?"


    Sei: "No.."


    Banca: "You didn''t really do anything."


    Luna: "But you didn''t seem to hate that she kissed you either."


    Anna was still trapped within a stunned silence, and Mchi wasrgely unsure of what she was even thinking.


    Nadine was standing by silently a couple of feet away, but her cheeks were puffed out like a damned squirrels as she fought to hold in everything she was thinking.


    But he guessed that it went somewhere along the lines of ''That was supposed to be mine''.


    It all left him with a serious headache.


    Out of the corner of his eye, he looked to Aubrey, Aisha, and Serana for help but only found them desperately going out of their way to avoid his gaze.


    It was as if they were clearly saying that this problem was his own.


    Mchi pushed a bit of hisgray dreadlocks out of his eyes as he sighed deeply.


    "Truth be told... I guess I-"


    "Santa use?!" Serana yelled.


    Everyone followed her finger in the sky and were mesmerized by what they saw.


    Upon the horizon, there was a dark carriage being pulled by two nightmarish horses with bodies as ck as night and muscles like stygian iron.


    The carriage galloped across the sky and everywhere that they departed from was reced by glorious day as far as the eyes could see.


    The horses stopped just shy of the cliff and hovered in the air like they were waiting anxiously for their guests to enter.


    When the carriage door swung open, Nyx poked her head out wearing dark sunsses and her usual hypnotic smile.


    "Come along now! It''s still a bit too bright and early for my liking, so I want to head back home as quickly as possible."


    The goddess tilted down her sses and dragged her gaze across everyone in the group.


    "Am I... missing something? Seems a little awkward around here for some reason."


    Mchi chuckled dryly as he started to help the girls up into the carriage. "Ah, you know... just some stuff I''ll fill you in onter."


    "Oh? Okay then!"


    With Luna being thest one to get in, Mchi took onest look at the group who was watching him depart and he felt his resolve weaken just a bit.


    Aubrey was silently crying while being held by Aisha, and Serana looked to be equally as sad.


    He didn''t want to be separated from the people closest to him in his life either, but when he closed his eyes he still remembered the moment where he bit his sister and was the cause for why she fell deathly ill.


    He absolutely had to prevent something unfortunate like that from happening again.


    So instead of running to hug her and weakening his own resole, he smiled at her confidently like he did when they were children, and tried to reassure both himself and her.


    "Don''t look so sad, yea? Ain''t like I''ll be gone forever."


    "Yea.. I got it. I''ll help keep things running in the meantime."


    "I couldn''t think of anyone better for the job."


    After waving goodbye over his shoulders, Mchi climbed into the carriage and sat between Bianca and Sei.


    "Are you sure you have nothing left to say?" Luna asked.


    "I''m sure... Too long of a goodbye makes it seem like I ain''ting back, you know?"


    At that moment, the horses let out powerful neighs that traveled throughout night and day for miles.


    Nyx clicked her teeth and the horses started to gallop into the sky above at a speed that was beyond what any normal animal could have ever hoped to achieve.


    Mchi held the hands of the girls sitting on either side of him as he peered out the window nd watched the world as he knew it be reduced to a blur.


    He could hear the girls chatting with his mother excitedly and making smalltalk but for some reason, he just couldn''t focus on anything like that.


    His mind was just so weary.


    ''Do you need my help, honey?''


    Mchi knew exactly what Sei was trying to offer him, and he nodded a bit wearily as he smiled at her.


    ''Wake me up when we get there?''


    ''Of course, my love.''


    Sei''s grip on is hand tightened momentarily and a silver power flowed into him in waves.


    Like all of the tension within him had been lifted off his shoulders, Mchi suddenly let his he''d droop onto the shoulder of his fianc¨¦.


    Once he was asleep, everyone''s eyes darted towards him and stared at him lovingly.


    "My son...He is tired, hm?"


    "Yes, he is... I think everything that is going on has taken a muchrger toll on him than he wants to admit.. This is honestly the most worried about him I''ve ever been." Sei answered.


    Bianca: "I still can''t believe this all happened... He does so much for the world and has only ever thought of protecting it, and yet they all turned on him in an instant."


    Luna: "They don''t even know the truth of what''s going on... they can''t see that Arias is just using them to turn them against the one guy strong enough to stop him."


    Nadine: "No matter the world, it seems humanity will forever be the same. A stain upon existence."


    Nyx looked like she had her own choice words to say about the subject, but she swallowed all of herments all the same.


    "Be that as it may... I am d that he has all of you to protect and nurture him all the same. There is little else I believe would serve him better at this moment."


    The girls and Nadine smiled appreciatively as they lowered their heads.


    It was always nice to be epted and appreciate by the family of the ones you loved; but that feeling was only amplified when your inw was a literal goddess.


    The apprehension that the girls felt about traveling to her domain was dwindling more and more by the second, and instead they were looking forward to what they might find in their new home.


    "So... Did Joanne really kiss my son?"


    Nyx did not realize that her simple question intended only to pass the time would set off such a strong reaction in the girls, and for the next several minutes she listened to their frustrated ranting and raving with a small smile on her face.


    ''It will truly be nice to have them around... My home is certainly about to be more lively.''

 Chapter 185: The Land of Eternal Night

    - One Month Later.


    In a dark butvish bedroom, a mother and son pairing could be seen sharing a rather heartwarming moment.


    Sitting on the bed was a woman whose beauty was beyondpare, with a physique that was literally divine.


    With skin containing all of the darkness and stars in the sky, some would say that she was equally as frightening as she was captivating.


    She wore a sleek ck dress with a cut on the side that traveled all the way up to her upper thigh like a stairway to heaven.


    She absentmindedly tapped her heeled foot on the ground as she hummed a soft tune in a long dead dialect, as if this moment were the most blissful she''d had in eons.


    All of her focus lied on the young man sitting on the floor between her legs.


    His skin that was once much darker and healthier now had a slightly ashen hue after spending so long in this realm that was devoid of sunlight.


    It softened his facial features, and gave him more of a cold and unapproachable air that was slightly mystifying.


    The young man looked every bit like the child of a powerful greek god, wearing a sleeveless ck shirt that barely covered his chiseled abdomen.


    Golden bands adorned his biceps, wrists, and even his belt loop; as this was the one bit of color that his mother and women insisted looked the best on him.


    Even now, she joyously threaded in small threads of gold into the ends of his hair after several days of relentless begging.


    And again, judging by how happy she seemed, this too filled her with a great joy.


    After all, greeks weren''t exactly known for their subtlety.


    *In chthonian* "You still haven''t said anything."


    The woman smiled as she felt her heart swell with pride.


    When her son asked her to teach him thenguage, she was hardly expecting him to take to it so well.


    Now, it was the only way that he spoke to her whenever they were alone.


    "Said anything about what, my dear boy?"


    "About if you think I''m doing the right thing. Staying down here... hiding like this."


    "You aren''t hiding. Hiding implies that you have the spine of a coward, and you are the furthest thing from."


    "Ma...."


    The woman bit her lip as if she were wrestling with her own tongue and she temporarily stopped the process of adorning his hair.


    "I... was trying to avoid saying anything because I do not want my own personal beliefs to influence your decisions, but..."


    Nyx suddenly bent over and hugged Mchi from behind; letting her head rest on his shoulders.


    "I think... that right now there exists no other ce that I would rather have you. Those humans... they are disgusting ungrateful aberrations who would dare to turn their weapons against you who has only ever thought to protect them from the moment you got your powers.


    To hell with them. Let them survive theing threat on their own if they think themselves able. The night is eternal, my son.We are eternal. In this realm alone, you and your wives can stay and live safe lives, allowing the earth to survive or perish on it''s own.


    You were always the best of them, but they couldn''t see that. So since they couldn''t appreciate you, I would selfishly ask all of you to stay here, in my love... forever."


    "Ha. I knew you had something to say about it."


    "I did, but now that you asked me of your own volition I can voice my true feelings guilt free."


    Mchi opened his eyes and their crystallized violet color set the area in front of him aglow.


    He ced a hand on his mother''s arm like he was holding her tightly and rested his head against hers.


    "I understand how you feel that way but... they are human, you know? Fear of things they don''t understand sort of ties in with their existence."


    "Even so... I do not want you to be the one who bears the brunt of their scrutiny. You are a god''s child, and that means you are above they."


    "Funny... My entire life I''ve never felt like I was above anyone. Not even when I fly."


    "Is that your attempt at humor?" Nyx asked.


    "Little bit. Is it not working?"


    "Keep trying sweetie."


    Mchi grumbled something about losing his touch before he stood up from the floor and stretched his body.


    "I gotta go. It''s time for Luna''s lesson to end and mine to begin."


    Nyx wiped away the drool that came from viewing her son''s body and shook her mind free of dirty thoughts.


    ''Honestly, if he''d just give into my seduction by now I wouldn''t have to call Nemesis or Apate into my realm so often tofort me.''


    Mchi started to exit the room and paused just as he ced his hand on the doorknob.


    "You know how much I love you, Ma. And I appreciate everything that you have ever done for me, but... I won''t stay here forever you know."


    Nyx smiled bitterly as she sat down onto a couch in her room.


    Honestly, she knew her child was too kind to turn his back on a whole world, no matter what it had done to him.


    Hispassion was one of the things she loved most about him, but sometimes she wished that he was a bit more vengeful on his own behalf.


    Her son had a tendency to only be enraged when others around him were aggrieved, instead of when something was done to him.


    "If that is your decision I won''t fight you on it... but know that you will have my support no matter what you do."


    Mchi smiled imperceptibly as he waived at his mother without looking back and passed through the door.


    -


    The Goddess Nyx actually dwells within the deepest and darkest region of the greek underworld, not far from Mchi and Aubrey''s older brother; Tartarus.


    Typically, the realm ispletely barren with only a dark nothingness surrounding it, as the goddess Nyx floats around endlessly with no real interest inforts or amenities.


    But since she would be entertaining guests for the first time in a very very long time, she had changed things up a bit.


    Instead of being embroiled inplete darkness, Nyx made her domain a bit more friendly and weing for her son and hispanions.


    Instead of being and where no light could reach, the goddess decorated hernds with bright stars and nebs the likes of which were undeniably hypnotic.


    Floating in the center of this space was a lone mansion that made the La Fin in Beverly Hills look like a knock off ordered from a replica website.


    Their home wasvish,rge, and of course, decorated with mostly ck.


    Mchi and the girls wanted to say that it was a bit too much for them, but... Honestly, Nyx was so proud about the whole project that they couldn''t even begin to ask her to downsize.


    Right now, Mchi was heading towards the basement where something like arge bunker had been constructed for the group.


    This was where his and Luna''s lessons took ce, as well as some of Mal''s.


    Turning a corner, Mchi pushed in the double doors to the bunker and stepped inside of therge room.


    There, he found his loving girlfriend Luna practicing with the use of two leathery wings that came from her delicate back.


    Currently, she wore a ck button down shirt with a long skirt that was cut at the thigh simr to Nyx''s and a pair of t shoes.


    Like Mchi, her skin had be paler ever sinceing to the realm of permanent darkness, and she had be even more beautiful too.


    When they were supposed to be sleeping, Mchi could hardly keep his hands off of her.


    Standing below Luna was the vampire who''d turned her, Nadine.


    Currently, she was coaching her fledgling vampire on the ins and outs of using her wings to fly instead of her telekic abilities.


    "That''s it, you''ve got it! You''re finally not falling anymore!"


    "D-Don''t jinx me or you''ll break my concentration!"


    "So maybe we do need more practice after all..."


    When the girls heard Mchie in, they paused their lesson and stared at him like he was a b of meat.


    Luna seemed to shake off her jitters fairly quickly, and flew directly into Mchi''s arms like she''d been doing it for years.


    "You... look... delectable~"


    "Literally or sexually?" He asked.


    "Yes."


    Luna kissed Mal possessively and they temporarily forgot where they were; with her new insatiable libido taking over.


    "Ahem!"


    *Continued kissing.*


    "I said AHEM!"


    "..."


    "Oh you motherfuckers want to y deaf, huh?" Nadine rolled up her sleeves and strode right up to the loving couple with a dastardly n in mind.


    Drawing her hand back, she smacked Luna on the behind so hard that the sound reverberated off the walls.


    Luna let out a noise that was a cross between a yelp and moan as she pulled her lips away from Mal''s and looked at Nadine angrily.


    "What was that for?!"


    "You were both being rude. Especially you."


    Nadine red at Mchi pointedly and he felt himself get a bit hot under the cor.


    Truthfully, he had been avoiding her ever since they''d been here, but that was only because he didn''t really have any idea what to say to her.


    At the end of the day he knew what she wanted to hear from him, but he didn''t know if he could just say things to her that he didn''t know to be true.


    But at the very least... maybe it was time he stopped running from her and talk things out.


    "Nadine... Let''s talk a bitter, yea? Just you and I."


    It took a minute for his words to fully sink in, and then she looked as joyful as a child on Christmas morning.


    But eventually, she remembered that he''d been ignoring her for the better end of a month and she resumed her natural poker face.


    "Hmph! I guess I can make the time..."


    Mchi chuckled as the door opened behind him again, and his instructor strode in.


    Bianca smiled like a mad scientist as she held up a book that was almost as thick ass the ass in her jeans.


    "Alright, who''s ready to study some thermodynamics!?"

 Chapter 186: Lessons & Attraction

    "Alright, babe, time for a refresher! What is the firstw of thermodynamics?"


    "I know this has nothing to do with learning, but what do you think it''s like to be inside a cartoon?"


    "Babe!"


    "Sorry, sorry.Energy can change forms but cannot be created or destroyed, entropy of an isted system always increases and entropy of a system approaches a constant as temperature approaches absolute zero."


    "That''s my boy~!"


    Currently, Mchi was sitting at an all ck desk in the open practice room beside Bianca.


    Over the past month that they had been here, Mchi had been receiving lessons to help him understand his power of absolute force maniption.


    Because the power relied on a fundamental understanding of the basicws that make up reality,Bianca had been teaching Mchi physics for an entire month.


    Mchi often joked that he was a psychology major because he was bad at every other subject, especially ones centered around math and sciences.


    Now it no longer felt like a joke.


    Forck of a better description, Bianca was a genius.


    While he knew that before, now he was really getting to see it firsthand.


    Every time that she cracked open the textbook to teach him some new information, he felt like his mind was going to explode by the end of their session.


    He couldn''t believe that she could actually grasp it all and rather firmly for that matter.


    But the bright side was that he finally started to understand different concepts and he no longer had a constant headache at every waking hour of the day.


    So far, he had only learned how to influence sound waves and small amounts of kic energy, leading to his third lesson of the course : thermodynamics.


    But there was a problem.


    Like any good teacher, Bianca was fully capable of recognizing when her student was feeling burned out.


    So now, her challenge lie in finding a good way to motivate her boyfriend so that he was still learning efficiently.


    And as of now, she believed that she might have found the way.


    Bianca closed the book on the table and pulled out Mchi''s chair just a bit.


    She peeled off her jacket and ced it aside before she straddled him and wrapped her hands around his neck.


    "What''s this for, B?"


    "I can tell you''re feeling a bit exhausted from all of the nonstop tutoring so I wanted to make this lesson a little more personal. Are you alright with that?"


    Bianca''s voice was slightly raspy and soft, both of which were terribly alluring to Mal.


    He didn''t know what exactly this lesson was going to be like, but he was absolutely sure that he wasn''t going to be bored.


    "Of course I am... But this might make it a little bit harder for me to focus."


    "Well let''s try to keep this strictly educational for now, shall we?"


    Bianca held out her hand and produced a small ball of orange me that was more warm and inviting than smoldering.


    "Just like we''ve been practicing, try to take control of it, hm? Even though I used my own abilities to ignite it, it still functions the same as a normal heat source. Show me something cool."


    "Ha! I''ll do my best."


    Mchi stared hard at the me dancing around in Biancas palm and focused on the signals he was receiving from it while keeping in mind everything that he had learned about heat and it''s rtion to energy so far.


    First, he opted to funnel air more oxygen into the me, making them bigger and a bit warmer too.


    "You''re doing good, babe... Keep going." Bianca encouraged softly.


    Smiling slightly as he concentrated, Mchi mapped out a path for the mes to follow in the corners of the room where the air was the densest.


    Like a serpent, the mes rose up towards the ceiling and wrapped around every corner until it looked like the room itself was on fire.


    Bianca was clearly mesmerized, but Mal wasn''t done yet.


    He held out his hand to catch the row of mes that had been dispersed throughout the room, and started to absorb the heat from them.


    Unsurprisingly, the mes disappeared not long afterwards with no more heat to keep them going.


    Mchi ced the pads of his fingers across Bianca''s lips and she shivered as she felt a wave of pleasant warmth travel to every corner of her body.


    "I think I got the hang of it." He said pretty proudly.


    "So do I.. Do you want your reward now orter?"


    "What do you think?"


    As Bianca brought her face closer to Mchi''s, the door suddenly opened and Anna poked her head inside.


    She didn''t have any interest in physics either, but it wasn''t umon for her to stop by and observe when Mal was testing his powers for the first time.


    She just liked to see him doing cool stuff sometimes without sitting in for all of the extra lectures and stuff like that.


    But when she saw Bianca sitting on top of Mchi and clearly about to kiss him, she thought that maybe she shoulde to observe these lessons more often.


    "Hey, what are you guys doing?"


    "Studying!"


    "Very intimately."


    Anna''s eyes narrowed in suspicion and she entered the room fully before sitting on the desk and crossing her legs.


    "Alright, tell me what kind of lesson could have led to this scenario."


    Bianca''s eyes immediately lit up.


    "Thermodynamics!See, our boyfriend can use his powers to manipte the energy produced by fire and heat sources for a wide range of-"


    "Okay, okay I believe you!"


    -


    After his lesson was over, Mal sent Anna and Bianca up to their room before he scoured the house to find Nadine.


    Unsurprisingly, he found her in the living room of the mansion; staring out therge ss window in the center of their home and drinking a cup of tea with blood mixed in.


    A delicacy that had been generously donated by one of the girls.


    "You actually came." She said, still trying to uphold her aloof and uninterested attitude from before.


    "Don''t tell me you thought I wouldn''t?"


    Mchi sat down beside her and raised a brow when she immediately scooted away from him.


    "..." Stubbornly, he closed the distance between the two of them again.


    "...!" With a growl, Nadine moved away once more before grabbing a random pillow and cing it between them like a wall.


    "Nadine..."


    "Hmph!"


    Rolling his eyes, Mchi snatched the vampire up before she knew what was happening and pulled her into hisp.


    He thought for a moment that he may have seen a happy smirk on her face, but it disappeared before he could confirm.


    "...What''s with the sudden affection...?"


    "I owe you at least this much after you stuck by me like you have, don''t I?"


    "...Maybe."


    Judging by how hard she was fighting to remain indifferent, Mal figured that she clearly did not dislike it.


    Before he could figure out how to get the conversation underway, Nadine beat him to it.


    "I need to know... Has everything that I''ve done to earn your attraction been in vain..? When you look at me, do you feel... anything?" She asked hollowly.


    After hearing the normally always cheerful Nadine sound so fragile, Mchi finally realized just how much he''d been inadvertently hurting her.


    He also didn''t realize just how much he had grown attached to her usual personality and antics.


    "When I look at you... I feel guilty." He finally said.

 Chapter 187: New Relationship & New Family

    Nadine was expecting Mchi to say any number of bad things, but the fact that he felt guilty around her was not among them.


    "Guilty...? Why would you-"


    "Nadine. Do you remember how we met?" he asked softly.


    "In the gate?"


    "Yes, but more specifically; What did you do when we first met?"


    Finally, Nadine fell silent as she became unable to meet Mchi''s gaze. "I..."


    "Morgan is my mentor. Youpelled him, made him kill two men, and held his life hostage until we promised not to hurt you."


    Somehow, Nadine seemed to shrink lower and lower at Mchi''s words.


    Her actions from the past seemed like a lifetime ago, but they only went back by a couple of months.


    "Like I said, Morgan is my mentor and somebody I idolized. I even told him that I killed you. How can I justify not only keeping you around, but falling in love with you? How can I ever face my friend again?"


    Nadine clenched Mchi''s shirt so tightly that one would have thought she was trying to squeeze the color off of it.


    "I...know that my methods were extreme, but...You have to believe me, I wouldn''t have used such extreme methods if I wasn''tpletely serious about you...I''m sorry that I hurt people but... I just wanted you to love me."


    "Why would that matter to you..? You didn''t even know me and I came to blow your home up and burn all of your friends away. Not exactly a cindere story."


    "Oh, I didn''t like that movie."


    "Focus, Nadine."


    "Right, sorry."


    Nadine took a small chance to be closer and rested her head on Mchi''s shoulder.


    "Human rtionships are not like vampire ones... Sometimes, there is a moment where we see another person for the first time and we feel an immediate sort of ''spark''.


    It''s sorta rare, and it isn''t even something that happens every hundred years or so, but when it does it is treated as a moment of unshakeable rity and a godly sign.


    When I saw you for the first time.. it did not matter that you were trying to kill me. I knew that you were fated to be my partner for all of eternity, and I would do whatever it take to stand by your side... even if it was wrong."


    Nadine brought her slender hands up to Mchi''s face and cupped his jaw in her palm lovingly.


    "Because I love you... even if you don''t love me. And there is nothing that I wouldn''t do to be with you."


    Pulling his face closer, Nadine prepared to bring her lips to his for the first time.


    And for a moment, Mal nearly let her.


    Her words, scent, and her sincerity were all so intoxicating that he very nearly gave in.


    But at thest moment, he pulled his lips away from hers and lowered his head.


    "I can''t... I already have the girls and I''m still-"


    "Oh! They said it''s okay!"


    "...What?"


    "Well, just because you were ignoring me doesn''t mean that they were. They thought that we might find ourselves in this kind of situation at some point so they gave me their permission. I even passed Anna''s initiation!"


    "Her what now..?"


    "I let her punch me in the stomach as hard as she could without blocking at all and since I didn''t cry she gave me her blessing!"


    "Christ."


    Nadine giggled happily as she nuzzled against Mchi like some kind of cat.


    "Don''t you see? This is just how deep my feelings for you go. Even if I had to be punched 1,000 times or be cut up and burned alive, I would do it withoutint if it brought me even a single step closer to you."


    "...You''re crazy."


    "Fufufu~ Yes, I am... So since you know that, don''t push me away this time, okay?"


    Once again, Nadine brought her lips closer to Mchi''s and just as she''d requested, he did not pull away from her this time.


    Instead, he actually became somewhat of an aggressor.


    After all, what man could hold back after hearing such kind and devoted words.


    He had a lot of feelings about Nadine and despite the fact that they hadn''t had the best meeting, she had always been kind to him and everyone that he valued, even when subjected to their scrutiny.


    Besides... she took a full force punch to the stomach from Annalise.


    She was the strongest physically out of everyone that Mal was dating, so it was a miracle Nadine didn''t have a giant hole in her chest.


    Suffering through a punishment like that deserved to be rewarded by a little more than just a kiss, no?


    He could figure out all of theplicated things with Morganter and apologize if he ever got the chance.


    But for right now, this woman loved him and he was finally allowing himself to feel some things for her as well.


    There are no things more important than that at the moment.


    Mchi dropped his hands onto Nadine''s plump thighs and gave them a firm squeeze as he lifted her up.


    "Where are we going?"


    "There are lots of empty bedrooms. Let''s find one."


    "T-Takes too long, just take me to the counter instead..!"


    Nadine''s request was less like a demand and more of a desperate plea.


    And perhaps the husky way that she asked him so firmly was more than enough for him to sap away the small bit of rationale that he had.


    Normally he wouldn''t have indulged in something so intimate right in the open like this, but since he learned how to control sound waves he was feeling a bit more confident.


    cing Nadine on the counter at her request, he slowly bit her neck tenderly as he unbuttoned her dress and revealed her body to the room.


    Mchi wasn''t often someone who found himself speechless, but somehow the sight of Nadine''s body had done just that.


    She was gorgeous beyond belief, and her body fit his tastes on every possible degree.


    She had a soft mature figure that was shockingly well maintained, withrge breasts and pillowy thighs that spread out like dough on a baking sheet.


    Her nipples were a tender and rosy pink, with the buds already stiffened from excitement over the present situation.


    "Don''t be shy, my love... I don''t want to be the only one who gets undressed." She said sweetly.


    "...How rude of me."


    Mchi''s new clothes were made from solidified darkness, meaning they could be taken on and off any time he wanted and any damage taken would be regenerated.


    As such, he was easily able to take his clothes off with a thought.


    And as Nadine watched the coverings that were hiding his body disappear, she slowly let her gaze drop farther and farther downward.


    As her eyes finally traveled beneath his navel, she felt her eyes be glossy and excited as if she were met with an unimaginably delicious treat.


    "I always wondered why the girls were screaming like that whenever I eavesdropped on you all."


    "When you what??"


    "Nothing, my darling~"


    Nadine grabbed her beloved''s member with her hand and licked her lips at the extraordinary thickness and length.


    "I fantasized about this for so long but... it''s still bigger than I thought it would be... I''ve never had anything like this before...!"


    Nadine pulled her beloved''s member closer to her entrance that was already slick beyond belief.


    "I don''t need any forey since I''ve already waited for so long so I don''t want to wait any longer... Make me yours."


    Mchi''s violet eyes glowed visibly brighter as he wrapped his arms around Nadine''s waist and pressed his lips against hers.


    Pushing his hips forward, Mchi nearly let out an involuntary groan as he felt the pleasure of Nadine''s flesh wrapping around him like she never wanted to let him go.


    Sex with all of the girls felt different in a number of ways.


    Sei was softer and her needs reflected that, so she had to be embraced with a gentle and loving touch.


    Luna was more erotic. She had a number of egregious zones that she liked to have stimted all at once to give her the strongest orgasm possible.


    Anna was wilder. Sex with her was like a desperate battle where either of them were desperately trying to prove which of them loved the other one more through who could make the other one feel the best.


    Bianca was more innocent since she had the least experience, but she was steadily scouring the inte for new things to try from ropes, to candle wax, and even vibrators.


    And on the first few seconds of being inside Nadine, Mchi wasing to understand her as well.


    The vampiress was a fervent romantic, with an obsession for him that traveled all the way to her bones.


    He felt her get more and more excited the deeper she went into her and her eyes rolled into the back of her head as she covered her mouth to stop herself from screaming.


    "Aww, that''s no fun. If you''re quiet like this then I''ll start to doubt myself. So you can be as loud as you want."


    Mchi pushed the rest of himself inside of Nadine all at once, and elicited a loud and erotic moan from her that was like music to his ears.


    He controlled the sound waves to stay only within the area so that nobody else in the house would be disturbed.


    And he thought that his n worked wlessly, until his catlike eyes picked up a small amount of movement.


    Looking up, he found his mother standing on the ceiling upside down, but she wasn''t alone.


    There were twenty or so odd women with fangs and talons who were dressed in ck.


    They had bloodied wings that were tattered like that of a bat, and their faces were a mix between frightening and beautiful.


    "See girls? I told you all that your new baby brother was handsome."

 Chapter 188: The Keres

    By now, Mchi was fully aware of and ustomed to his mother''s strange behavioral tendencies.


    For one, she was sometimes overly affectionate; going so far as to wake her son in the middle of the night just to tell him that she loved him and she was happy that he was here with her.


    She also had a nearpleteck of boundaries, as it wasn''t umon for her to poke her head in the room whenever her son was having sex with the girls or they were changing clothes.


    However, the girls didn''t seem to really mind this all that much; likely due to the orgies they had at night stripping them away of all shyness long ago.


    However, this event took the cake by far.


    Nyx watching her son during his first moment of intimacy with Nadine was already bad enough, but the twenty or so identical women were too much.


    "Ma¡­ what are you doing?"


    "Don''t mind us, just enjoy yourselves and finish! We wouldn''t want to interrupt this sweet moment."


    The identical women all looked at Nyx with a sort of cold expressionless look. "Must we watch this act topletion? We have matters to attend to and we can hardly see this as a proper way to utilize our-"


    "Don''t be like that, my dear! How can you not be moved by the sight of your brother inducting a new member into our family with his body?"


    "Easily."


    "You''re such a cold child!"


    Nyx returned her focus back to the counter where Nadine had been impaled and she nearly let out a cry of indignation when she found nothing there.


    "Mchi!"


    -


    As soon as his mother looked away, Mchi pulled his lover into an empty bedroom within the house and resumed their passionate lovemaking.


    "Y-You didn''t have to do this, you know?" Nadine said between shaky breaths. "I don''t mind if anyone watches us, since I want everyone to know that you are mine and I am yours~"


    The feeling of Nadine''s warm breath of Mchi''s neck as she licked him almost made him carry her back outside.


    But because he knew that was just thinking with his lower body, he stuffed all of those thoughts back up as he pinned her against the wall without allowing her any escape.


    "I''m sorry, but I''m feeling a little selfish right now. Especially since it''s our first time, I don''t want anyone to see this beautiful sight but me."


    Nadine tried to respond, but her mind became addled by the pleasure of Mchi thrusting into her relentlessly.


    She quickly learned that Mchi was meticulous; and he tirelessly poked into different spots at various angles until he found which one made her feel the best.


    Upon finding them, he continued to attack her at only those angles while leaving small bite marks on her neck and squeezing her butt until there were bruises left behind.


    Nadine was having the time of her life.


    Originally she couldn''t tell if it was because Mchi was good at this or if she was just so excited that she had finally broken down the borders to his heart.


    But the more time passed, the more she learned that it was abination of both that attributed to her one of a kind experience.


    She had been having light orgasms ever since earlier, and the longer they went on the more she felt like she was going to explode.


    ''This was sooo worth getting punched in the stomach~! I can''t believe those girls were keeping something this good for themselves!''


    Her moans were loud and sensual, stimting Mchi even further as he felt like he was quickly reaching the end.


    Because Nadine noticed an increase in Mchi''s pace and groaning, she knew he was almost done with his first shot.


    "A-As deep as you can, darling! Please, I want to feel it in my stomach..!"


    Following her demand, Mchi thrusted inside of the charming vampire for onest time before he filled her insides with his unique ck essence.


    Gritting her teeth as her eyes rolled back into her head, Nadine let out a deliciously intoxicating scream as she came hard enough to break her own mind in two.


    Her inner walls tightened with pleasure as she wrung Mchi dry of every drop she could like it was her sole reason for living.


    It took forever for her toe down from her monumental high and even longer before she gother legs to stop shaking.


    The fluids of the two of them melded into one on the floor as they kissed passionately, neither of them wanting to leave thefort of each other''s bodies.


    When their lips finally separated, Mchi could swear he saw literal hearts in her eyes as her fangs sharpened of their own volition.


    "Mchi~ I love you..!"


    Mal had heard these words from women before, but somehow every time seemed to feel different from thest.


    It was something he would never get tired of hearing.


    "I know it took me a bit, but... I love you too, Nadine."


    -


    "It took you two long enough!"


    "Sorry, sorry. I got a little carried away."


    "We can see that."


    Mchi finally reappeared out of the bedroom and ran smack into the his mother and his mysterious older sisters who were waiting meticulously.


    Nadine was hanging onto his back like a small bat; giggling happily to herself every few seconds and muttering something about not being able to wait to continue.


    "Did you really need to be in there for an hour? You knew we were waiting for you." Nyx scolded.


    "I''ming out after only an hourbecauseI knew you were waiting for me, Ma."


    Two lovers with bodies that were undead meant limitless stamina, meaning that Mchi and the blonde vampire could have dragged out their first time for much longer than an hour.


    And they probably would have, were Mchi not trying to atleast be somewhat considerate.


    It took a lot to resist his partner''s constant seduction but ultimately he was able to stand strong after promising that they would continueter.


    Nyx rolled her eyes, secretly jealous of the loving look of satisfaction she could see on Nadine''s cute face.


    She finally shook her mind free of perverse thoughts as she gestured to the woman and her copies standing with her.


    "N-Never mind that now. I wanted to introduce you to some of your sisters. These are-"


    "Keres." Mchi said with a small smile.


    He turned his attention toward all of the identical pale women and gave them a short nod.


    "Nice to finally meet another one of my siblings. This is my girl Nadine."


    "Hi!"


    Without exception, all of the Keres stared at Mchi and Nadine eerily like they didn''t understand them.


    Their eyes were empty, cold, and dead, so much so that they were zombie-like in nature.


    A normal person would have been terrified out of their mind, but the new couple appeared to be no worse for wear.


    "We do not unnerve you..?" Keres asked robotically.


    "Nah¡­ Do you want to or something?"


    As the personifications of violent and cruel death, the Keres were dubbed evil spirits who were used to receiving less than amicable greetings from others.


    So much so that they literally never even left the underworld anymore.


    Since their new brother was formerly human, they expected him to be the same as the rest and meet them with only fear in his heart.


    However, he was actually treating them pleasantly, as if he had no kind of animosity towards them.


    "We like brother... He is kind to us." They realized.


    "That''s what family is for, right?"


    Thinking about something for a moment, the Keres suddenly turned back to Nyx and shook their heads.


    "We reject your favor. We will not beat brother up."


    "Aww that''s¡­ Wait, what?"

 Chapter 189: Like She Never Left

    Nyx gradually started to back away under the scrutinizing gaze of Mchi, feeling like their roles of parent and child had suddenly been reversed.


    "You brought one of my siblings here¡­to beat me up?" He asked in a dry tone.


    "N-No, not quite! There''s a bit more to it than-"


    "Is this because I won''t let you watch me have sex?"


    "No, but I''m certainly not happy about that either."


    "Ma!"


    "Sorry, sorry! But I honestly only called your sister here so that she could help you with your little¡­ hesitation problem."


    "What are you..?"


    Nyx suddenly reached up and touched the golden earrings hanging delicately from her son''s ears.


    "Your sister gave you these for a reason¡­Don''t you owe it to her to actually try to use them as intended?"


    Immediately, Mchi grimaced and began to wish that he had avoided this question all together.


    During one of Aubrey''s many visits to the realm, she had gifted Mchi these special earrings made from her magic.


    Apparently, she was bing rather proficient in the field during her free time on earth, and she had given these a very special effect.


    ording to her, they would help link his conscious and unconscious minds together when he was in his nightmare state and allow him to remain cognizant in his other state.


    Theoretically¡­


    Everyone had been patiently waiting for him to test them, but for understandable reasons he was a bit apprehensive about doing so.


    "I called your sister here because I figured that she could help assuage some of the worries you had about this undertaking. If Keres are here then you can use the earrings guilt free without worrying about losing control and hurting someone."


    "Because she''s going to beat me up if I lose my shit?"


    "Yes!"


    "But we like brother." Keres reaffirmed. "We do not wish to hurt him."


    As evidence of her new affection, she gave her brother a small pat on the head like he was some kind of dog.


    "I appreciate the sentiment but you don''t need to worry about beating on me unless I start doing some bad stuff, okay?" Mchi reaffirmed.


    "Bad stuff..?"


    "Yea, like if I try to eat our mom or any of my girlfriends or even you-"


    "You could eat me if you wanted to!" Nadine said happily.


    "I will keep that in mind forter."


    Keres looked like she was wrestling with the proper decision to make before she eventually nodded in her usual slow and unfeeling manner.


    "Alright¡­ I will do this for you if that is what you truly wish for."


    "Wonderful!" Nyx said happily.


    -


    Mchi finally separated from Nadine begrudgingly and headed back to the empty room where he explored all of his new powers.


    Sitting directly in the center of the room, he was surrounded by all twenty copies of Keres.


    Nyx was floating around somewhere out of sight, leaving her son with the peace of mind needed to focus.


    Mchi didn''t actually know how to use his nightmare bloodline, but since he had a little experience with transformation already, he thought he may have known where to start.


    His earrings started to glow as his skin solidified and he started to feel a bit lightheaded.


    His body slumped over onto the floor and his mind was transported somewhere dark inside his subconscious.


    But he didn''t feel quite alone here.


    "Hello?" He called out aimlessly hoping to hear some kind of response, but he received nothing in return.


    Suddenly a figure appeared through the darkness.


    It was him, or atleast the version of him that he became when using this hated power of his.


    A tall and powerful looking creature with ck skin and a powerful physique paired with four snake-headed tails jutting from his lower back.


    "Heh¡­ I really am a monster. No wonder I''ve got everyone in the world above spooked."


    "Mon¡­ster..?"


    "What else would you call something mindless that goes into random frenzies and attacks people?" He said angrily.


    "Love¡­ We¡­love¡­you. Eat¡­to¡­make¡­you¡­ strong."


    Out of all of the things that Mchi was expecting arge alien to say, the fact that it loved him certainly wasn''t among them.


    Previously, he had been understandably hostile toward this creature he saw as mindless.


    And yet, it had never responded to his hostility even once; meeting it with only good graces.


    He didn''t even remotely know how to process that.


    "Make me strong, huh..? I don''t need you to eat people to do anything like that. I''m already plenty strong."


    "Need¡­ more¡­ strength¡­ if had¡­ would not¡­ have¡­ to¡­ leave."


    "Leave? Where am I supposed to be going?"


    "You¡­ stay¡­ I¡­ leave."


    Right before Mchi''s eyes, the monstrous silhouette in front of him changed into something entirely different.


    It''s features were reced with feminine ones instead of masculine, and it''s irredeemably dark skin was lightened to a pinkish grey hue.


    It''s legs split apart into lengthy slender tentacles as it''s limbs became more wiry and seeminglycking in power.


    Even in a million years, he would never forget this face that most would have considered frightening.


    "Shear!"


    Oblivious to her pointy fingers and shoulder appendages, Mchi embraced the loveable monster as he felt a wave of emotions rushing through him.


    He understood it all now.


    Shear had been unconsciously driving Mchi to gain strength because she didn''t want anything like what happened to her to befall him.


    If they were stronger when facing Arias for the first time, they would have never been separated.


    But there was still something that he didn''t understand.


    "Why would you make me bite Aubrey..? You know her, she fed you chicken strips under the table when she thought I wasn''t looking..!"


    Shear turned into her smaller and more easily held form as she wrapped around Mal''s neck like a scarf.


    "Did¡­ not¡­ recognize¡­ until¡­too..te. Very¡­different¡­ from¡­ before."


    Aubrey had gotten her blessings only after Shear had died.


    Since she suddenly possessed such arge amount of power within her body when she formerly had none, Shear did not recognize her, and thought that she would make the perfect morsel to strengthen them.


    And because nightmares do not ''see'' in the traditional sense, she was only able to recognize her by her blood that was staggeringly simr to Mchi''s instead of her looks.


    "Okay¡­ I guess I understand that¡­ but what about the time that Luna and Bianca said you were trying to jump on them in the middle of the dungeon?"


    "You¡­revert¡­to¡­. instinctual¡­thought¡­ and¡­behavior¡­ when¡­ see¡­ them. Overwhelm¡­ me."


    "Oh¡­So I''m just a horny beast then?"


    "¡­." Shear did not answer, but Mchi noticed she was going to great lengths to avoid his gaze.


    ''Sei was right¡­maybe I do have an addiction¡­ She doesn''t seem to mind though, actually she-''


    Shaking his head free of useless thoughts, Mchi walked around the dark space aimlessly as he held Shear in his grasp.


    "You know¡­ I know now that you were only trying to help me. And I appreciate it but you gotta let me have some control now, alright?"


    "¡­ Are¡­you¡­displeased¡­with¡­my¡­help?"


    "Never that. But It''s a real scary thing to not know what you''re going to do sometimes, you know?


    I need to be able to make my own choices at all times, and not lose my head because you saw something that made you hungry."


    "¡­Understood."


    "That''s my girl. I''ve really missed you."


    "Miss¡­ too."


    Holding Shear out in front of him, Mchi smiled at her proudly.


    "I''m usually not okay with it but I promise¡­ I''m going to bite Arias'' head off for hurting you."


    What followed from Shear was a chorus of happy clicking noises that he didn''t realize just how d he was to hear.


    -


    Finally, the nightmare started to pull itself up from the ground after lying motionlessly for several minutes.


    The creature let out a distinctive hissing noise from it''s mouths and tails as it rose to it''s full height of seven feet.


    A gust of wind blew, and the creature was surrounded by pointed weapons from every conceivable angle; the Keres closing in when they saw the creature climbing to his feet.


    However, the nightmare remained calm and showed no visible signs of stress or agitation.


    "You were acting like you were against hurting me before. I fell out of your good graces that quick?"


    Keres dispelled all of her weapons almost as fast as she had summoned them, and instead gave her brother her version of a gentle pat on the cheek.


    She wasn''t at all disturbed by the unholy sound of his voice or even the sight of his terrible new face.


    "Brother is still my favorite. I was only doing as asked."


    "I know, I know."


    Suddenly, the air in front of the nightmare distorted and Nyx was revealed to be floating in the air, her hands covering her mouth in shock.


    "My boy¡­ have you really done it¡­?"


    Mchi fell silent momentarily as he ced a wed hand across his chest.


    "Nah¡­ I haven''t done anything at all."

 Chapter 190: Acceptance In All Forms

    While Mchi was understanding the origins behind his nightmare state, the girls were upstairs in their bedroom, doing any number of different activities.


    Currently, Sei was changing in the middle of the room openly for anyone to see, and the rest of the girls were scattered around the room as if it waspletely ordinary.


    She had just slipped out of her underwear and reached for a new set when a feminine body hopped onto her back from behind.


    "Boo!"


    "Nadine, I''m changing!" Seiughed. "Besides, aren''t you too old for these kinds of games?"


    "No! Besides, this game has a purpose!" She said firmly.


    Lowering her head beside Sei''s ear, she asked her a very serious question in a sing song voice.


    "Do you love me, Sei~?"


    "Fufufu, Yes, I do Nadine. You''re a very sweet girl."


    "Kyaaa! Thank you!"


    The vampire then leapt off of Sei''s delicate back and floated towards the bed where Bianca was curled up under the covers.


    Plopping right on top of her midsection, she delicately pulled her attention away from the game on her phone.


    "Do you love me Bianca~?"


    "I don''t like that you call me a ''spicy girl'' and p my ass whenever you drink my blood, but yea. You''re our favorite slutty nutcase."


    "Noted!"  Nadine rubbed her face against Bianca''s like some kind of dog and went searching for her next victims.


    She drifted towards the couch where Luna and Anna were seated side by side each other.


    "Do you girls love me~?"


    This time, the behaviors of the girls were anything but warm and fuzzy.


    "Right now, I don''t love anything but this wine mother inw gave to us." Luna said dryly.


    "Gods I missed the feeling of being buzzed." Anna added.


    "Here here."


    The two girls clinked their sses together as they continued to enjoy the first meaningful taste of alcohol that they had tried in forever.


    Apparently, Nyx had a ratherrge supply of wine made by Dionysus himself, and had given some to the girls as a gift.


    Neither of them were truly focused on the taste, more so the familiar fuzzy headed feeling that came with drinking alcohol.


    "Why are you even asking all of this anyway?" Luna questioned.


    Nadine timidly lowered her head as she avoided the gaze of her progeny.


    "O-Oh, you know.. No reason."


    Now that she was in an officially recognized rtionship with Mchi, she was already looking for ways to cement her ce and make him happy.


    And she figured that step one waspletely winning over the women who he was already in love with before her!


    One night back on earth, she coincidentally (totally on purpose) overheard Mchi gushing to Aisha about how much he loved the rtionship between his girls.


    It made things so much easier and less worrisome now that he didn''t have to worry about any of them growing resentful towards each other or harboring jealous feelings.


    Naturally, Nadine knew that her introduction to this world and their family was more than a little¡­ rocky.


    But now she wanted to make sure that there were no lingering resentments between all of them, just so that she could continue to be loved by everyone without being pushed away.


    Click!


    The sound of the door opening drew everyone''s attention and caused them to drop whatever they were doing.


    Because they could all clearly feel Mchi''s prescenceing from the other side, they all rushed to meet him.


    Anna was the most excited and she rushed to pull open the door before it could even open on it''s own.


    "Babe, guess what! I can get drunk aga-"


    When the girls saw the figure standing outside, they felt their breath get caught in their throats.


    It was the man they loved but in the form of arge, ck skinned horror with a face containing only razor sharp teeth.


    The serpent tails behind its body hissed as they dragged their gaze over every woman in the room as they backed away hesitantly.


    All except Anna and Luna who were more so inebriated than rmed.


    "Jeez¡­ I wanted to jump on him and make him drink with me."


    "I second that. I always thought that he would be so cute while drunk.."


    "I thought it would make him nastier.."


    "Two things can be true at once."


    *Clink*


    Nadine looked back and forth between Anna and Luna with a face full of misunderstanding.


    "W-Why are you two so calm?!"


    "Well he doesn''t ever hurt us when he''s like this and there''s no one else in the house for him to eat right now so he''s rtively harmless¡­ I think." Muttered Anna.


    "Y-You think?!"


    "He came inside you when you guys had sex earlier, right?" Luna asked.


    Unconsciously, Nadine felt her eyes begin to get hazy as she gradually lost strength in her legs again. "Yea~"


    "Then you''re fine." Luna shrugged. "Although he might try to jump on you."


    "Oh¡­ That''s fine too."


    The girls all waited endlessly for the nightmare to do something out of the ordinary or aggressive.


    Finally, the creature started to move as it lumbered towards Anna while making small hissing noises.


    It ced arge wed hand on top of Anna''s head and started to give it a light squeeze.


    "I love you, but your survival instincts are for shit."


    Almost immediately, the girls felt like their heads were going to implode.


    "M-Mal?!"


    "You talked!"


    "¡­ I didn''t think my survival instincts were that bad¡­ I just trust you."


    "You have control now!"


    "How did this happen?!"


    Even in his alien form, Mchi showed a wide toothy smile as he was bombarded with hugs and questions from all of the girls.


    His body changed back to normal seamlessly, and he gradually started to exin to the three of them everything that had happened in thest hour.


    "It was Shear. Turns out that she wasn''t as gone as I thought." Mchi said with a small smile.


    Anna''s eyes began to water from the memory of the beloved creature as well as mild intoxication.


    Mchi wiped away her drunken tears before he suddenly grabbed Luna by the hand.


    "Mei¡­ if you still want to try and¡­"


    Maybe Mchi was just to embarrassed to say the words that were on the verge ofing out of his mouth, but he somewhat froze up in her presence.


    Luckily, Luna was still more than smart enough to understand exactly what he was getting at.


    "Y-You mean¡­ we can try..?"


    "If you''re fine with having a monster over you then-"


    "Don''t joke." Luna gave Mal a ''small'' punch in the rib cage that nearly doubled him over. "You aren''t a monster. No matter what you turn into you will still be the man that I love."


    Luna quickly shook of her drunkenness as she grabbed Mchi by the hand as she pulled him to the bed.


    "Besides, I''m a vampire now. Does that mean you think of me as a monster too?"


    "Course not, but-"


    "Good."


    With unorthodox strength, she tossed the young man onto the bed before crawling on top of him.


    "I have ws you know?"


    "Bast''s blessing gives them to you anyway."


    "Okay, but I also have really weird tails."


    "All I heard was extra tongues."


    "Christ."


    Luna suddenly grabbed Mchi by the face and brought their lips dangerously close together.


    "There is nothing that you can do or turn into that will ever stop me from loving you. I want to have a child, no matter what it takes."


    Mchi smiled wryly as he lost all resistance in his heart.


    "Since you''ve gone this far¡­ don''t change your mind on me, okay?"


    "When have you ever known me to tease you and not follow through? We''re not leaving this room until you''ve done everything you can think of to me."


    "Really now¡­ I hope you won''te to regret that."


    - 4 Days Later


    Pacing outside of a bathroom door were seven women.


    Nyx, Bianca, Anna, Sei, Aubrey, Nadine, and Serana had been waiting with baited breath for the results of Luna''s test.


    Anxiety was rather high as it was well known that vampires had terrible fertility rates ording to Nadine, and everyone was unsure how Luna would react if she still failed to get pregnant in spite of all that had happened so far.


    All of the girls were ready tofort her at a moment''s notice should the results not be as desired.


    Click!


    After fifteen minutes of waiting, Luna and Mchi finally stepped out of the bathroom holding hands.


    The hearts of everyone in attendance clenched as they saw that Luna was already crying, and she was holding the test hard enough to break it.


    Immediately, everyone feared the worst.


    Sei: "Hey¡­ it''s okay, you know you can both keep trying."


    Bianca : "T-That''s right! I''m sure it''ll happen real soon if you guys don''t lose hope!"


    Aubrey: "Maybe the test was just defective! Serana and I can bring you another one!"


    Luna gradually wiped her face and held up the test for all to see.


    "We¡­ We''re pregnant!"

 Chapter 191: As Time Goes By...

    After Luna''s pregnancy was revealed, the energy within the house shifted drastically.


    With her long held dream of pregnancy finallying into fruition, Luna was the happiest that she''d ever been in her life.


    Even the side affects of pregnancy like morning sickness and various bodily aches didn''t seem to bother her one single bit, and instead only made her more joyful.


    There was also a small air of curiosity that surrounded her as questions over what exactly their child would be like started to circte.


    After all, what exactly was supposed to be of a hybrid between an unknown alien creature and a vampire from another world?


    Would the babye out humanoid, or would her features be more unnatural?


    Would it subsist on regr breast milk and form, or would it require blood and flesh to be satisfied?


    These questions were in the back of Luna''s mind as well, but she wasn''t much worried about trivial things like how her baby looked.


    She would love them no matter what they turned out to be, and her only hope was that her child remained healthy above all else and she had a safe delivery.


    While Luna was in the middle of her new motherly bliss, Mchi was dealing with new additions to his ss schedule.


    "No, honey, don''t hold it like that."


    "Rest it''s back gently on your forearms and support it''s head with the crease of your arm."


    "A-Alright, I got it... Like this?"


    "Exactly!"


    "You''re doing well, Daddy~"


    "You know exactly what you are doing and I''m going to get you back for itter."


    Nyx and Seiughed as Mchi sighed and looked down at the small bundle in his arms.


    "Aga!"


    Moving as if it were alive was a small mass of darkness that resembled and behaved like a real baby; courtesy of his mother Nyx.


    It could coo, squirm, anrevenugh just like a real baby; giving Mal the practical experience necessary to be a father during the infant stage.


    "Think I''m getting the hang of this." he said somewhat confidently.


    "We''re still taking it easy on you, honey." Sei reminded with a smile.


    "There is still more you have to learn and more that you need to be prepared for." Nyx confirmed.


    "Alright, like what?"


    In a rare moment of synchronicity, Nyx and Sei looked at each other evilly as if they had decided on next steps in an instant.


    A silver power coated Sei''s hands and she touched her fianc¨¦ directly on the face; imbuing him with terrible drowsiness.


    A momentter, Nyx snapped her fingers and the shadow baby produced a mound of thick mud-like waste all over Mchi''s arm; ruining it''s diaper and his shirt.


    As if that weren''t bad enough, the child started to cry loud enough to wake the dead, causing the already exhausted Mchi to be even more weary.


    "W-Wha... this.."


    "You can do it, honey! This is nothingpared to fighting monsters!" Sei said cheerfully.


    "And remember to wipe him well, or he''ll get a rash. Also, I made him hungry." Nyx handed Mchi a fake bottle and told him to get to work before the baby woke up the imaginary neighbors.


    "Is there... Any chance my baby wille out fully grown like one of my siblings?" He asked exhaustedly.


    ""No.""


    -


    Mchi had to endure three more hours of baby lessons before Nyx and Sei finally let him head upstairs to rest.


    The lesson likely would have continued for longer, but Nyx said it was time for her to attend the gathering of the highers that was about to ur.


    Apparently, time works a bit differently in the space they inhabit for these meetings, making it so that the gods only had to see each other every so often instead of on a consistent basis.


    But Mchi only heard about 1 / 3 of his mother''s exnation, because Sei''s sleep inducement ability was no joke by this point.


    It was a miracle that he never dropped the shadow baby on it''s head from fatigue.


    He was so tired that he didn''t even bother to walk upstairs and instead floated upwards like he was in some kind of old timey cartoon.


    Upon entering his bedroom, he found that the bed was already upied, with Luna lying directly in the center while propped up on some pillows and surrounded by Anna, Bianca, and Nadine as they patted her stomach sand attended to her every need.


    "Are you sure you don''t want anything?"


    "It wouldn''t be any trouble for us to get whatever you ask."


    "Let me rub your belly some more!"


    Luna smiled wryly as she tried to think up a way to politely refuse the kind offers of the girls.


    It was nice that they cared about her, but honestly she was starting to feel more than a little bit smothered.


    When she saw Mchi float through the bedroom door with Sei in tow, she felt like all of her problems had miraculously been solved.


    "Darling, please save me from them!"


    "Ha. I''ll try my best."


    Mchi started to peel off his own clothes as he walked towards the bed.


    Without even waving his hand, the three girls who were guing Luna in bed all came floating up to the cieling before he crawled into bed in their ce.


    "Hey!"


    "No fair!"


    Ignoring them for a moment, Mchi climbed into bedzily and pulled the covers over himself and Luna.


    "Someone seems tired." Sheughed. "What did they do to you?"


    "Baby trainin... Not for the weak..." Mal said sleepily.


    "Fufufu, Having second thoughts already?"


    "Never that... I''ll go through this as many times as it takes for my wife and child.. I am real sleepy though."


    Luna felt her body tense up and she looked at Mal strangely underneath the covers.


    "I.. think you may be more tired than I realized. We aren''t married yet, love."


    "You''re right¡­. Let''s get married then." Mal said as he closed his eyes.


    "I.. W-What?"


    Suddenly, the girls who were suspended in the air came drifting back into bed, and Mal took that moment to wrap his arms around as many of them as possible.


    "I love you all so much... I want you all to marry me... It''s not like I will ever let any of you get away anyway, so you have to say yes.."


    The air with the room became deadly silent as the girls stared at Mchi while he dozed off.


    Their heartbeats were thumping so strongly that thebined vibrations could be felt throughout every inch of the bedsheets like the booming of a car speaker.


    Anna: "H-Hey, what are you saying right now..?"


    Bianca: "Y-You can''t just drop something like this on us as you''re about to go to sleep!"


    Luna: "Yea!"


    Nadine: "Of course I''ll marry you, darling! We belong together!"


    Nadine was the only one who seemed overly joyful as she kissed Mchi on the lips despite his exhaustion.


    "I know it''s real shitty of me to do it like this, but it seem like I can''t wait any longer... I''ll think of something real romantic... as soon... as I wake... up.."


    With the weight of all five women crushing him, a chorus of soft snoring sounds started to y within the room as Mchi fell into the deepest and most peaceful sleep of his life.


    Because he was in dreand, he missed the unique moment where all five of them looked at each other beforeughing.


    Their were tears, smiles, and small kisses being shared with him as they whispered their eptance softly into his unconscious ears.


    -


    Nyx arose from a mass of dark shadows on the ground and took her seat amidst the highest pantheon of the greek gods.


    As she sat down and crossed her legs sensually, she maintained her same distant and cold demeanor that was like the boundless night given flesh.


    As she watched the various thrones in the colosseum fill up, she began to get a strange feeling.


    Whenever a higher appeared, they were stealing secret nces at her and whispering something indiscriminately to whoever was beside them.


    "It seems that we can finally begin."


    The eyes of everyone within the colosseum were drawn to the blue god of destruction, Shiva.


    With the meeting officially underway, the first thing that everyone did was turn their eyes to Nyx; no longer hiding their inquisitive gazes.


    "It hase to our attention that the avatar you have epted as your child has somehow be a nightmare. Is this true?"


    Nyx''s face didn''t show it, but her heart immediately dropped to her heels.


    Two seats down, a woman with blonde hair and sky blue eyes easily recognized the look on her mother''s face, and she quickly had to cover her own lips to prevent a fit ofughter from spilling out.


    A gesture that Nyx did not miss in the slightest.


    "Seeing as you aren''t saying anything, it must be true." Shiva realized.


    "We have no choice. Bring the boy here now."

 Chapter 192: Threat Prevention

    The nightmare of suddenly waking up in public in his underwear wasn''t as frightening as Mal always thought it would be.


    Somehow, being stared like this by all of these divine beings and monsters wasn''t quite setting in as it should''ve; perhaps because he was still really tired.


    "Mchi Saint."


    Mal followed the booming masculine voice towards the Norse section where Tyr was staring at him like he was looking for any excuse to cut him down.


    "One among us has used you of harboring origins closely rted to theing enemy. What defense do you have?"


    Out of the corner of his eye, Mchi saw his mother sitting in her usual ce high above the greeks, but there was something wrong.


    He could see very clearly that she was upset, even though her face showed no real signs of it.


    Because of that, he offered her a small smile as he pushed his hair out of his eyes.


    "Origins is a bit of a stretch... It''s kind of a new thing if I''m honest."


    Seeing as how they already knew, Mchi did not see any real point in lying about anything and just decided toe clean.


    "A new thing you say... Just how new, mortal?"


    "Few months or so I guess."


    Osiris leaned forward from his throne to bring his golden eyes closer to Mal. "Can you... Show us?"


    The gods and higher beings visibly tensed up at this, and a few even clenched their weapons in anticipation that he would lose control.


    Before Mal could offer any words to calm them; all light within the area was suddenly cut out entirely.


    Mchi usually had no fear of the dark even since he was a child and the acquisition of night vision to his list of abilities had only further hampered that fear.


    But this kind of darkness was something he was scarily unused to.


    There was nofort, no peace that came with this darkness.


    It was just empty, cold, and frightening.


    A single feminine voice echoed from all around; and made every higher being in attendance shiver uncontrobly.


    The words were spoken in an ancient deadnguage that only a few of the oldest highers in attendance would recognize, and of course the son who had spent time in the underworld trying to learn it all thought that he would have been among them.


    But he wasn''t.


    Whatevernguage his mother was currently speaking in was so old andplicated that even he didn''t understand itpletely, and trying to do so made him feel like his mind was going to split apart.


    However, their was one part that he did catch- a single name that sounded like it belonged to a woman; albeit one that he had never heard mentioned before.


    A small bit of light tried to pierce through the darkness, and the sun god Apollo was revealed to be holding up a small ball of golden fire in his palm.


    "N-Now now, Nyx, this isn''t personal. And besides, you may have taken him in but he isn''t even your real-"


    Apollo only blinked and Nyx appeared directly in front of him without so much as a sound or gust of wind.


    She forcefully grabbed his hand and suffocated the light lingering within his hand, but that wasn''t all.


    With a twisting motion, she nearly ripped his handpletely off his wrist, leaving only a small strand of flesh dangling around.


    "GAAHH!!! What in the seven hells is wrong with- Ugh!"


    With speed that defied human exnation orprehension, Nyx stuck her hand in Apollo''s open mouth in the midst of him talking and grabbed his lower jaw.


    Mchi watched his mother rip a man''s jaw out of his face with scarily empty eyes and no remorse.


    "Oh damn.."


    Apollo''s body twitched as golden blood ran down his chest like a river.


    He fell over not long afterwards; unconscious as he made a symphony of gurgling noises.


    Nyx grabbed the god by the neck before tossing his body directly into thep of Hygieia; the greek goddess of healing.


    "Does anyone else have anything to say about the legitimacy of my rtionship with myson? Go ahead and say something now, so that I might liberate you of your need to speak."


    Unsurprisingly, there wasn''t a higher in attendance who bothered to chime in, and Nyx returned to her throne in a worse mood than before.


    The light finally returned to the realm a few secondster, and the looks that everyone was giving Mchi were much different than before.


    But then again, that was probably because he''d changed.


    Instead of a handsome young man who was standing around nearly naked, an unholy horror with deep ck skin and living tails took it''s ce.


    The creature had it''s legs crossed as it floated up above the ground; deep in thought over everything his mother had just said and done.


    Naturally, Mchi knew that he and his sister weren''t even Nyx''s real children and more like strays that had been taken in off the road.


    And yet... the way she had always treated him just like all of her other children was more than a little touching to him.


    It almost made it easy for him to forget that in the eyes of everyone else, he was just an orphan.


    ''Why exactly does she care for Aubrey and I so much...?''


    "He really is..."


    "A small one, but yes..."


    "And he doesn''t seem to be on any sort of warpath..."


    "That''s right... Have you ever known one to just sit still like this...?"


    With the murmurs of numerous gods finally reaching his ears, Mchi looked around to gauge their different reactions to his appearance.


    There was awe, suspicion, and of course a carefully veiled animosity.


    "Perhaps we can find greater use with him like this..." A god suddenly said.


    Mchi looked toward the hindu pantheon and found another man whom he didn''t recognize; one with four arms and three faces who had a long grey beard and glowing white eyes.


    "I believe... The phrase of fighting fire with fire is best applicable here. The nightmare who devours other nightmares."


    "I am not so sure about that." Another goddess objected. "He is a wild card... uncontroble. Things like that are better off locked away or properly disposed of."


    Again, the visible light within the domain flickered as Nyx''s hair started to float wildly in every direction.


    "Tiamat.. Are you actually suggesting that as if I am not right in front of you?"


    The primordial goddess of Mesopotamian monsters, chaos, and the sea was every bit as beautiful as Nyx, and just as cold.


    She had soft looking skin that was lightly tanned andplete with a shock of long raven hair.


    Her eyes swirled with a great number of dark colors and images; making looking into them maddening beyond description for a mortal mind.


    "Your favor for this boy blinds you terribly. I don''t care if you want to take in a stray human, but you need to understand the potential consequences if he starts to run amok."


    *Rumble*


    A fierce earthquake shook the entire colosseum so fiercely that it was a miracle that it didn''t alle crashing own.


    The pressure Nyx was putting out to force Tiamat into submission was currently being contested by her own, and suffocating almost every other higher in attendance who wasn''t at the primordial level.


    Even Mchi''s body was reduced to dry heaving as he dropped down onto one knee and clutched his head in his wed hands.


    This pressure was nauseating, horrifying and unimaginable all at the same time.


    Just sitting within this domain made him feel like he was about to go insane!


    And he wasn''t the only one here who was feeling like this.


    "Can the two of you stop it? Tiamat is right, Nyx. If we are going to let your child out into the world we have to have some kind of assurances that he won''t be a creature that turns it''s fangs against us."


    Another primordial being chimed in, this one being the incarnation of the sun itself; Helios.


    "He is already an avatar with blessings from four different highers! We cannot have an unkible nightmare walking around with ess to godly power!"


    Bit by bit, all of the primordial gods started to voice their agreement.


    "The potential ramifications are indeed too great."


    "Steps need to be taken to ensure that he doesn''t be the sort of monster we are already contesting against."


    "You must think logically for a moment, night mother."


    "You pieces of fucking garbage..." Nyx muttered. "If you make even the slightest attempt to cripple him there will be no ce in creation where you can hide from me..!"


    A god who was literally made of nothing but the clearest blue waters folded his arms and shook his head in disappointment. "You cannot fight all of us for him, Nyx."


    "You think me so cowardly as to not even try?"


    As the pressures in the air mounted; one man suddenly pped his hands and drew all of the attention towards himself.


    "Right, right, we are all so impressive here but let us put this discussion on hold for a moment, shall we? I believe that I may have a solution that will help us all if you are only willing to hear it."

 Chapter 193: Trials To Pass?

    Unsurprisingly, the one who stepped forward iming to have a solution to the group''s current predicament was none other than the devil himself; Lucifer.


    Wearing his usual dark suit, he floated down towards the colosseum grounds and ced a hand on the back of the heaving nightmare that was Mchi.


    "We should let those who have actually blessed him decide if they think he is worth the risk. After all, they surely must know his heart better than most."


    Nyx seemed to like that idea unsurprisingly, and her face started to light up.


    Unfortunately, the devil was good for nothing if not bursting one''s bubble.


    "Ah, but not you, Nyx. Your personal attachment to our boy here is a real conflict of interest. We''ll have toe up with some different stiptions of course."


    While the goddess of the night looked pissed, the rest of the primordials looked like they were finally in the mood to listen.


    The air in the colosseum became noticeably less oppressive, and the lesser gods and higher beings were finally able to breathe.


    "How about this!" Lucifer said confidently. "Each of the gods who have given our boy here a blessing will be free to test him however they want within their domain!


    Once they have made a decision on whether or not they want to let him keep his blessings, they will pass him to the next god. When all four have made their decision we will return here, and cast a vote."


    "Four?"


    "I thought Nyx wasn''t allowed to participate?"


    "Oh, pardon me."Lucifer remembered. "Our dear nightmare here received Erebus'' blessing at thest minute outside of the ceremony. Sorry you were allte to that party."


    Everyone''s eyes drifted towards the human shaped mass of darkness with a throne right beside Nyx''s.


    If he had some kind of remorse over it, he certainly did not show it.


    Although he did flip Lucifer off as if he was not fully okay with being outed.


    "Whoops. Sorry, bud."


    "Eat shit, Seraphim."


    "Yes, yes." Lucifer waived away the primordial''s unkind words and instead focused on his proposal.


    "If more than half of the panel agree that he should not have his powers and decide to take them away, then Nyx you must also retract your blessing from the boy."


    Immediately, the night goddess became enraged again and Lucifer quickly tried to diffuse her ticking bomb.


    "Now now, Nyx. Finish listening to me before you get all antsy like that. In the event that an astounding none of the highers decided that they want to trust him, his powers can be reinstated, but some kind of contingency n will be enacted."


    "You would have my son bent to your will like some kind of mongrel? I think not!"


    "Be realistic here, Nyx. There are no other options other than the one I''veid out."


    "I can hear all of you..." Mchi muttered in a very tired voice.


    His monstrous figure stood up from the ground, still rubbing his head as if he were not quite over everything that had happened earlier.


    Lucifer cooly slipped his hands back into his pocket as he looked therge creature up and down. "Then you tell us what you want to do, Mal. I''m sure you won''t be as difficult to deal with as your mother is."


    "Fuck you!"


    "See?"


    Mchi finally changed back into his normal appearnhace and looked at each and every one of the gods and goddesses who had blessed him aside from his mother.


    Michael, Bastet, Raijin, and possibly even Erebus were all looking at him with some degree of suspicion.


    Almost as if they''d already had their minds made up about him before things even began.


    It reminded him an awful lot of the stares he was receiving before he left earth, and everything that came with them.


    Before, he felt a bit sad because he was receiving these res from humans who truly didn''t know any better.


    But these were gods who should have had more understanding.


    He was not a vicious person.


    He wasn''t a monster or a tyrant who wanted to dine on every living being in existence.


    And yet he was being treated as one for no reason at all.


    It was all mind numbingly ironic.


    "I''ll take these damn tests of yours... but if I pass and you see that there''s nothing malevolent about me, none of you will ever call me here ever again."


    "And if you fail them?"


    "Do what you want. I don''t really give a shit anymore."


    "M-" Nyx began.


    "I''m alright, Ma. I just want to get this all out the way and go home." he said sincerely.


    Nyx gritted her teeth and did notment anything further.


    A storm of emotions raged inside her; all of them depressing and negative.


    As a mother, how could she not protect her son from this sort of awful ordeal?


    Were she able, she would take her son back to her domain and hid him there for all of eternity; never letting him leave the nket that represented her love.


    But she knew that wasn''t what her son wanted for himself or the future.


    He wanted to get married to his girls who were sleeping in bed back home, and wee the arrival of his baby that was currently nestled within Luna''s womb.


    And despite the massively selfish being that she was, she loved her child too much to take that from him.


    ''Mchi... I am sorry.'' she thought sincerely.


    "Well, alright then! Since the man himself has no objections then it seems there isn''t anything else for us to discuss."


    His eyes went towards the four special highers within the crowd and he made a time is ticking gesture on his wrist.


    "So? Which one of you wants to take him first and put our young nightmare to the test?"


    "...I will." Bastet stood up first and leapt from her seat all the way down to the colosseum sands.


    The panther headed goddess stared at Mchi almost as coldly as she had when she first met him, and it nearly made him scoff out loud.


    Bast snapped her fingers and opened up a swirling emerald green portal right behind them.


    "Come."


    She started walking without waiting to ensure that he was following behind her, and Mal hesitated a bit before his feet started to move too.


    He wanted to look back at his mother and offer her a smile, but for some reason he just couldn''t.


    He could feel just how bad she was hurting, and he thought that it would break his own iron faced resolve if he saw his mother on the verge of crying.


    However, he did send her a message telepathically.


    ''There isn''t a thing you could have done to change any of this, and I will never me you for a single second. You know how much I love you, Ma. Nothing will ever stop that."


    Nyx smiled sweetly at Mchi''s back and a single tear dropped from her eyes in that moment.


    Honestly... how could someone be so consistently warm and kind?


    Mchi''s back disappeared through the portal a momentter, and she felt as if the brightest star in her night''s sky had just died out.


    -


    Bastet''s portal led to a veryrge throne room lined with treasures and big cats of every variety.


    The goddess moved to sit on her throne and crossed her legs as she waited for Mchi toe through, but a problem soon arose.


    He was taking way too long.


    A few secondter, her portal finally closed and yet there was no Mchi standing within her domain.


    Even worse, she could no longer sense or feel him in any capacity.


    Since she had blessed him, she should have had a basic method to track him and tell his vital signs with only a thought.


    But she couldn''t.


    It was like he''d been erased from reality entirely.


    "What is going on...?"


    -


    "Alright, I suppose we should adjourn the meeting today given all that has happened, yea?" Lucifer suggested.


    Unsurprisingly, a great many of the highers nodded in agreement; each of them exhausted from everything they had suffered through today.


    Nyx was especially ready to go; as she was feeling particrly emotionally raw.


    She was half way out the door when she suddenly froze dead in her tracks; her ancient mind not at all willing to ept this reality that she unfortunately knew to be true.


    "No... no no no no no no..."


    Her insane muttering drew a great deal of attention as she clutched her head so tightly that she very nearl pulled out her own hair.


    "Nyx?" Odin questioned. "What is-"


    "YOU FUCKERS!"


    If before Nyx''s voice was cold and empty when mad, now it was booming and more demonic than even one of the 72.


    Just the mere sound made the eyes and ears of the higher gods bleed terribly as they fell out of their seats one by one.


    Though to them it sounded horrendous and oppressive; beings at her level would easily recognize the true heartbreak that followed whenever she spoke.


    "WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH MY SON?!"

 Chapter 194: Where Have I Been?

    Mchi didn''t know how long he had been gone.


    Or even where he went.


    He simply floated within an endless chaotic space of which he was unable to process even with his immortal mind.


    He felt like someone was speaking to him while he was out and touching him while he had no control over his body.


    He thought it may have been a woman¡­ but he truly wasn''t sure.


    He felt like it asked him questions.


    About what he wanted from life in the future, and exactly how he wanted to be seen.


    But he couldn''t remember his answers either.


    The things that he saw and experienced within that domain would be forever locked away to him.


    In the end, the only thing he could remember was a name that he''d heard only once before.


    It was the very same name he heard his mother yell in that argument with the gods that had taken ce only a mere moment ago.


    .....


    -


    "Get him out! Let''s see if he''s gotten anything on him!"


    "Ah... this guy definitely doesn''t have anything valuable on him."


    "Well he does, but... We can''t exactly steal that."


    "His makes mine look cute..."


    In the dead of night, a group of five men fished a body out of argeke in the middle of the forest.


    Pulling it onto the shore, the men realized that the body they found belonged to a handsome young man with dark skin and gray dreadlocks.


    His body was not covered by a single fabric, and he didn''t appear to have anything on his person either.


    "Wait... Don''t the two of you recognize this guy??"


    "I think... Maybe"


    "It''s him! That blessed who went missing after he got outed as a nightmare!"


    Suddenly, the five men had a very different air about them as they realized theirpanion''s words were true.


    This man''s disappearance had caused quite a disturbance in the world when he was first found out, so much so that his face was all over every paper, tv, and smart phone for weeks.


    While his hair was previously ck in the photos, this was exactly the same man as before.


    "Don''t take a chance... Kill him, now!"


    At the behest of the leader, the rest of the men started to pull out a variety of weapons, ranging from strange looking guns to swords that looked like they were made out of some sort of monster carapaces or skeletons.


    They pointed their weapons at him without a lick of hesitation or reservations in them, almost as if they were more than used to doing this kind of thing already.


    At that moment, the young man lying on the ground opened his purple eyes as wide as they would go, startled awake.


    "Shit!"


    "Kill this freak!"


    The men pulled their triggers and swung their des recklessly, but Mchi raised a single hand to stop them cold in their tracks.


    Even the strange bullets slowed down to a crawl before inevitably falling out of the air harmlessly.


    "W-What the hell...?"


    "H-He''s..."


    "D-Don''t kill us..!"


    Mchi picked himself up from the ground and covered his bits with both hands.


    "This shit is so crazy... I never realized just how lucky I was to wake up in bed naked with a bunch of beautiful girls... Something like this has really put my life in perspective." he muttered.


    Non of the men could say anything, as Mchi''s mentioning of waking up surrounded by beautiful women only served to spark their ire even more.


    Why was bragging about sleeping with beautiful women the first thing this guy did after waking up?!


    Mchi looked around at the dark surroundings before looking up into the night''s sky.


    It should have been a beautiful night with stars or even a moon visible high within the sky, but there were none of those things visible here.


    The night was sad ... and empty.


    Mchi knew immediately that his mother was hurting terribly.


    "The sky... how many nights has it been like this?" he asked hollowly.


    "You... You''re kidding, right?"


    "Have you been living under a rock?"


    Mchi scowled at the five men and tightened his grip around their bodies. "I woke up butt ass naked in the middle of a fuckingke. You think I''m in the mood for funny shit right now?"


    The men visibly shivered as they shrank back underneath Mchi''s gaze.


    "I-It''s...nine in the morning... The sun doesn''t show up on this world anymore... Hasn''t for a year now."


    "Day in and day out... this is all we see. We''re living in a literal hell scape."


    "No thanks to you and those monsters you brought with you... If the government hadn''t have had some kind of preparations prepared at thest minute the whole world would be toast!"


    Mchi froze as if he''d just been punched in the jaw by prime Mike Tyson.


    "Wait... What the fuck did you all just-"


    GROOOOOAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!


    Suddenly, arge creature flew into view from the trees above theke.


    It was easily around fifteen meters tall, with an entirely ck body.


    The creature was shaped like a bat, with no fur and bulbous red eyes.


    It had a mouth filled with sharp teeth like giant yellow stgmites, and it''s enormous ears were constantly flickering about as if it were picking up sounds in the air.


    Without a doubt, it was a...


    "Nightmare!"


    "It''s a banshee ss, let us go!"


    "If one ising, there will be more behind it! We have to leave before this ce gets swarmed!!"


    As the men around him started to panic, Mchi stepped forward to deal with the invasive new creature.


    Reaching into the shadows, he tried to pull on his clothes so that he could didn''t have to fight this thing while naked.


    ...But much to his dismay, he realized that his connection to the shadows was no longer there.


    "What the fu-"


    "SCCCCCRRRRREEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!"


    The bat opened it''s mouth wide and shot out a giant ball of orange fire from it''s mouth.


    Mchi felt a foreign energy wash through his body, at the same time as he threw a hand out to stop the iing ball of fire from vaporizing theke.


    The ball of fire hovered above his hand, and it became smaller and smaller until it was the size of a golfball.


    However, there was something strange about the way that he had done it.


    As he grabbed the attack to stop it, a smoky ck and red energy left his hand and infected the ball of fire; corroding it and turning it into a much more sinister and smaller looking attack.


    Mchi flicked his finger and thepressed ball of fire flew back towards the bat creature at twice the previous speed.


    For the first time in it''s egregiously long life, the bat made a pitiful sound as it watched the attack that was drastically more powerful than it''s own fly towards it.


    "Awro?"


    BOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!


    For the first time in a year, an explosion temporarily lit up the sky and turned it as bright as the day, and the banshee ss nightmare plummeted from the sky into theke- missing it''s entire upper body.


    As the creature reached it''s final resting ce, Mchi looked down at his hands like he was having some sort of epiphany.


    He ced a hand over his chest and he felt something that he hadn''t felt in a very long time.


    A heartbeat.


    As his eyes went wide, he assessed his body and powers in an instant.


    Once again, his body was flesh and blood, albeit a very... very...strong version.


    His blessings were gone as well as all of the elemental powers that came with them.


    However, he still had monstrously enhanced strength, speed, senses, flight, and telekinesis.


    The one special ability he had left was the absolute force maniption that he had stolen from Lucifer but even that seemed to have been... altered.


    For some reason it was drastically easier to use than before... it didn''t even require half as much concentration.


    The strange ck and red energy that he could now produce from his body helped to act a bit like a conduit to provide greater control and power.


    "I wonder if..."


    Using a bit of this new internal energy of his, Mchi reached into the shadows at his feet once again.


    This time, he was able to open them and crafted clothes made from their darkness just like he''d practiced in the underworld.


    A sleeveless white tee that only barely covered his lower stomach, golden armbands around his powerful biceps and a pair of ck pants with sandals.


    Golden nes adorned his neck while matching the threads he had in his hair.


    Now that he was dressed, he immediately started searching for the five connections within his mind.


    Four were farther than others, but there was one that was a bit closer to his position; unmoving and asleep.


    ''Girls... please tell me that you can hear me.'' He pleaded.


    Much to his relief, he received responses immediately, and they all sounded like they were on the verge of tears.


    Sei: ''H-Honey...?''


    Bianca: ''T-This is really you, right... W-We aren''t dreaming again..?!''


    Luna: ''Oh my god... Oh my god...!''


    Nadine: ''I-I was so scared, we thought that we would never...!''


    Unconsciously, Mchi unclenched his chest as he let out a sigh of true, sweet relief.


    ''My loves.... You have no idea how d I am to hear your voices right now...''

 Chapter 195: The Year in Review

    It took forever for Mchi to get the girls to stop crying.


    Even from such arge distance, he could very clearly feel all of the misery they carried that came from his unexpected absence.


    He truly felt guilty even though his disappearance wasn''t his fault.


    He could only imagine how he would have reacted if any one of them had gone missing for a single day, let alone a year.


    He was just grateful that the girls had each other to rely on and support each other so that they never had to deal with it alone.


    It took an entire thirty minutes before the girls could stop crying and then their questions started flying one after the other.


    Nadine: ''Are you okay, darling?''


    Bianca: ''Where have you been?''


    Luna: ''Do you have any idea how worried we were?''


    Mchi tried to sate the girls'' curiosities as best he could but he didn''t know anything either.


    All that he could say for sure was that he woke up without the bulk of his powers and in a new body while floating in the middle of ake.


    He sat on a nearby rock and stared at theke with the dead bat nightmare inside as he gave the girls his very brief run down.


    ''I''ve only been up for a few minutes and I''ve already gotten jumped by a nightmare... I guess things started while I was gone, huh?''


    ''Yes... It has been difficult, but since we had the base from the beginning things aren''t nearly as bad as they could have been.'' Sei exined.


    Mchi looked up into the dark sky and felt like his mind was swimming with questions, but for right now only two really mattered to him.


    ''My mom and Anna... Where are they? How are they?''


    For some reason that he didn''t understand, the girls fell silent afterwards and he could feel their anxiety spiking.


    ''Your mother... we aren''t exactly certain.'' Luna said with difficulty.


    ''Aubrey is the only one who shees to speak to on a rare asion, and judging by what she tells us she has never stopped grieving.''


    ''At one point she was fighting with the gods constantly... they went from pleading with her to bring the sun back to trying to force her and... you can imagine how that went.''


    Mchi pictured his mother enraged and beautiful, holding off an army of gods with one hand and holding the skulls of their fallen in another.


    While that wasn''t much different from the truth, it was still something of an over dramatization.


    ''As for Anna...'' Nadine began.


    Even from here, Mchi could feel the heartbeats of all of the girls quicken when his fianc¨¦ was mentioned.


    And as he listened to his vampire fianc¨¦ exin, he understood exactly why.


    Understandably, much of the world had been destroyed with the arrival of the nightmares.


    However, it was able to recuperate faster than one would have thought due to the rise of two great factions.


    The remnants of the previous world government, dubbed The Revival Regime.


    And the faction of Arias and his Blessed supremacists, The Light.


    Both sides have imed different halves of the U.S as their own and do their best to contend with the nightmare threat and rebuild society to the best of their ability.


    Albeit they have two very different ideas for how they should do this.


    Where the Revival Regime seeks to restore, The Light want to make anew.


    However, in the middle of these two powerhouses are the small and unknown Nightfall faction, who obey the desires of neither side and focus solely on locating people disced in the disaster and helping them get to whichever side they choose discretely and without confrontation.


    But on one of their missions, Anna and Joanne were leading a family of six to the border that separates The Revival territory and The Lights; an area that''s been dubbed as the wastnds.


    In the midst of their journey, the girls became surrounded by arge squad of over fifty regime soldiers.


    But from what Mchi had been told, these were not regr human men and women.


    These people were augmented, either technologically or gically to be their own version of superhuman.


    Due to Arias having a literal army of blessed supremacists and even human underlings who believe in him, the attitude the humans have taken towards blessed has undergone aplete one eighty.


    Now, if a blessed is caught by a member of the Revival Peace Corps they are expected to surrender themselves to a shot that imnts a nanite device within.


    Not only does it have GPS tracking, but it can also be used to deliver paralyzing stuns in the event of nopliance.


    When caught, the first thing that the peace corp soldiers did was try to inject the girls with chips.


    Needless to say, Anna wasn''t going for that shit, and neither was Joanne.


    They attempted to flee with the rest of their squad mates and get out of there, but there was one particrly strong cybeic human who got the drop on them both one after the other, and they were captured.


    The only reason why the girls even knew everything in such explicit detail was because they had seen everything within Anna''s shared memories before she was knocked out.


    They had been trying to contact her and rescue her for months, but security around the facility were they held POW''s was tighter than a nun''s pantyhose on the day of Sabbath.


    Every mission that they had led to retrieve Anna and her mother either ended up with one of their own almost being captured or killed by a member of the regime, and with every time they failed the difficulty only got that much more difficult the next time around.


    After all of these months, the girls were even more distraught.


    Just as Mchi views them as irreceable pieces of his life, they feel the exact same about him and each other.


    They are all incredibly close friends that border on a tightly knit sisterhood, so the loss of the man who they all loved and one of their own right after had surely done a severe amount of damage on their hearts and minds.


    ''Honey... We are so so sorry..!'' Sei sobbed.


    ''We knew that you wanted us to protect each other but we couldn''t...''added Luna.


    ''It''s all our fault that they got captured..! We should have stayed together..!''Cried Nadine.


    Mchi had no doubt that the girls were incredibly emotional at this moment and were likely weeping all over each other.


    His own emotions were in utter chaos but for right now he had to prioritize them over everything else.


    ''It''s alright, you girls tried everything that you could to get her back. That is all that matters to me, and I can''t thank you enough for never giving up on her. All three of us will be home soon so get al of your crying out before then, okay?''


    Just like that, the tears of all four girls dried up as their despair changed into disbelief.


    Bianca: ''Babe... You can''t mean..''


    Luna: ''You can''t do that by yourself! We just got you back, we can''t have you risking your life again!''


    Sei: ''A-Atleaste back to base first, we can assemble a team and-''


    ''Girls... I need you to listen to me. I don''t care what the circumstances are, I will nevere home and rx quietly if all five of you aren''t by my side.


    I would do anything for any of you, but don''t ask me to change that. I''m not leaving Anna or Joanne in some prison facility for even a second longer than I have to.''He said seriously.


    Against the knowledge of the girls, Mchi stood up from the rock he''d been sitting on and started to float up into the sky.


    His eyes became locked on the direction he could feel Anna waiting in, and he unconsciously clenched his fists hard enough to crack his own bone.


    ''Like I said, all three of us areing home soon, okay? Just wait for us.'' He tried to put on the calmest tone he could muster but was unsure if it actually worked.


    ''Alright¡­''


    ''We''ll trust you.''


    ''We love you¡­ so much.''


    One by one, the girls all voiced their eptance meekly before they wished him luck and sent him their love.


    The connection was cut a momentter, and a densely concentrated aura started to leave Mal''s body.


    He did not consider himself to be a particrly bloodthirsty man or even one who enjoyed fighting and violence.


    But for the first time in his entire life he felt himself turning into somethingrgely unrecognizable as he made a vow to kill every single person who got in his path to rescue the girls.


    With a sound like a sonic bomb, Mal shot through the air faster than most nes as he raced to get to Anna and Joanne as fast as he could.

 Chapter 196: Malevolence

    The half of the United States that the Revival Regime upies is the west, with Washington DC being simr to the capital.


    Of course, there were parts of the countryside that still had yet to be rebuilt after the day when nightmares suddenly started falling from arge hole in the sky and destroyed the entire world with more ferocity than anything that had yet toe from a gate.


    However, the sections of the country that had been destroyed and rebuilt were more futuristic than anything that had been seen in this world before.


    White buildings with automated features and small forcefields were bing more normalized and belonged to every homeowner, but due to the understandably questionable state of the economy, there were a lot of cases of homelessness and people living in shelters because they couldn''t afford it.


    Among the new additions to this side of the country, there were certain facilities that saw the most amount of traffic.


    Those areas would be the POW camps or prisons that housed strictly blessed.


    These bases were double the size of their predecessors and were more like small cities housing upwards of 200,000 people at any given time.


    In what was formerly Seattle, this base was the most popted as the prisoners that were being harbored inside were among the most dangerous or influential blessed around.


    At every entrance or exit on this base, there were exactly one hundred enhanced humans who were dressed from head to toe in modified ck fatigues and face masks to protect them from the cold.


    "Hooo.... I can barely even feel my toes at this rate." One soldier whispered.


    "Should have sprung for the serum instead of the cybeics man. We been standing out here sixteen hours and I''m still toasty." one said in response.


    "I couldn''t help it... Robocop was always my favorite movie."


    "The original? Or that shitty remake that came out like thirty years ago."


    "I like to think that it was just before it''s time."


    "Fuck your taste is terrible. No wonder everyone you date has the same sixints about you."


    "That''s a low blo-"


    "AM I HEARING CHATTER BACK THERE?!"


    The two men quickly straightened up as the sound of heavy footsteps started to inch towards their position.


    An enormous man with muscles bulging out of every conceivable inch of his body stood over them menacingly.


    At six foot six, he was already intimidating, but his bald head and thick red beard further added to that sense of fear and oppression.


    His formerly pale skin was now permanently tanned from several tours overseas, and the tattoos along his massive fists were numbered with his confirmed kills.


    His cybeic left eye scanned the two of them up and down as he read everything about them without even asking a single question.


    "You boys have already been ontrine duty for a month now. Surely you don''t want any unnecessary matter to double that?"


    ""N-No, toon leader.""


    "Good thing I don''t give a fuck what you want. Have fun scrubbing boys, next week is supposed to be taco Tuesday."


    Both men grimaced under their masks and the ton leaderughed as his heavy boots carried him back to the front of the line.


    Suddenly, ring sirens began to y from all around base and the soldiers outside visibly tensed up.


    "Looks like they''re trying again, men! Weapons hot, let''s make sure none of those god worshipping bitches scamper out of here again!"


    "YES PLATOON LEADER!"


    All eyes were drawn towards the front gate of the base a few miles away.


    Since everyone here was in possession of enhanced vision by some sort of unnatural means, it was easy for them to see the front gate from this far away as if it were right in front of them.


    And then they heard it.


    A loud sonic boom rang through the permeant dark sky and a bright redmentpierced through all of the clouds.


    The automated turrets stationed around the base tried and failed to shoot it out of the sky in time, and theet kept traveling until itnded directly in the center of the base- directly in front of therge prison base that was supposedly being protected.


    A figure stepped out of the cloud os smoke billowing up from where theet hadnded, and themander in front let out a low whistle.


    It was a young man of around twenty years of age with dark skin and otherworldly grey hair and violet eyes.


    He''d apparently been living well since his disappearance, as he was adorned in gold around his neck biceps and even ankles, and his body was in even better shape than it had been a year ago.


    "The World''s Last Living God. Boy don''t I feel honored. Where you been hiding all this time? Did you bring your friends into the world and then decide to getzy?"


    "Move."


    The toon leader made a surprised expression before he shivered as if he was cold.


    "Ooooh... Think you''re scary, huh? Not anymore, hot shot. We''ve killed plenty of your kind by now and-"


    "I can absolutely promise you..."


    Mchi''s body started to release that same red and ck mystifying energy as before.


    "You have absolutely nevere across anything like... me."


    As the ground started to rumble, Mal called for his iklwha within the shadows before remembering that he had already given them away.


    As if it was responding to his body''s desire, his hands grew long ck ws and teeth sharp enough to splinter bone.


    "We''re not trying to take this one in! Light him up!"


    At the same time that the bullets started to fly, Mchi felt like that same energy from before was flowing into his body from all over.


    As if a switch had been flipped over in his brain, Mchi immediately understood just what this new power of his was.


    "Negativity... Shit is so ironic."


    The bullets struck against Mchi''s skin in excess and even though he could feel that there was something special about them, they definitely weren''t what he would consider harmful.


    The toon leader saw that long range weapons were having no effect so he performed a single hand gesture in the air.


    Instantly the guns were put away and reced with military grade tomahawk axes or swords that glowed as they vibrated and produced an extreme heat.


    The toon leader ripped off his army jacket and vest underneath to reveal a muscr chest with silver lines running through it like metallic wiring.


    "I''ll tear you apart, beast!" Lunging out wiyh his massive hands outstretched, the toon leader aimed to crush the young man in an instant with his enhanced might.


    However, Mchi stood motionlessly in ce as he watched the man get ever closer.


    He tapped his foot on the ground a single time, and sharp pirs of what seemed to be corrupted earth shot up from the ground and pierced through his body with no obstruction.


    As he remained suspended in the air, Mchi ced his hand on top of the man''s head and pulled hard, yanking his head and cybeic spine free.


    Tossing the trophy over his shoulder, he turned his attention back to the 99 other soldiers who were all trembling furiously.


    With speed that none of them could react to, Mchi suddenly flipped into the air gracefully.


    Performing a powerful axe kick, he obliterated the head of one man before taking his axe from his limp grasp and burying it into the neck of the soldier nearest to him.


    "I already gave you all a warning you didn''t deserve and you decided not to take it. Now even if you run, there is nothing that you can do that will stop me from killing all of you."

 Chapter 197: Heartache

    After the men saw that Mchi was serious about retracting any offers of salvation, they tightened their grip on their weapons and rushed at him with as many numbers as ten at a time.


    Snarling, he ran through them while on something of a high.


    The negative emotions he could feel vibrating with the atmosphere were seeping into his body and filling him with renewed energy.


    He felt like he could do so much with these new powers of his that he was almost swept away in their potential.


    However, he had to stay focused on the task at hand for the moment and not let himself get lost in his growing bloodlust.


    Anna and Joanne were waiting downstairs and he couldn''t bear to keep them in cages for even a moment longer.


    Using negative energy as a conduit for control, he reached into the shadows at his feet and brought them surging upwards.


    Countless dark snakes with glowing red eyes and mouths sprang forward and either devoured the men whole or bit them in half from the waist up.


    But while it seemed like Mchi was going to clear away the initial weing party within seconds, a problem soon showed up.


    Reinforcements were beginning to arrive from all sides, in the form of either armed personnel, tanks, or attack helicopters that were already starting to fire upon Mchi and the constructs he''d created.


    "I don''t understand¡­. Why you are all so determined to forfeit your lives like this."


    Mchi made a clenching gesture with his fist and ball of the snakes that had been running around on their own until now suddenly came rushing back together.


    The mass of serpents grewrger andrger until an enormous wall of serpents rose up and immediately began to attack everything in sight.


    With his enemies distracted, Mchi had no issue walking past the chaos and heading straight to the front door.


    The doors outside were clearly made from magic ore and were more secure than a bank vault, with only a keypad on the side permitting entry.


    But after gathering only a small amount of negative energy within his fist, he punched the doors with so much force that the imprable surface was broken down into fine pieces.


    Uninterested in the absurdity of what he''d just done, Mchi stepped through therge opening he''d created in the building with a deathly calm and uninterested look on his face.


    "Are you really going to make me kill all of you too?"


    The small army of personnel trembled and for a moment they almost dropped their weapons out of fear.


    But like a bomb only needing a single match to go off, they too only needed just one of them to give them courage.


    "O-Open fire!"


    Bullets flew through the air wildly beforeing to a dead stop mere inches away from his face.


    Shaking his head, Mchi redirected the bullets back through the heads of the senders, and their bodies dropped onto the ground twitching mere secondster.


    "I guess that''s a yes..."


    Continuing his adventure through the prison, Mchi kicked open the doors to the first cell block and came face to face with a white room lined with cells.


    Inside, prisoners wore very simple white jumpsuits and sat behind walls of blue sma that could burn away even blessed skin.


    "It''s Mchi Saint..!"


    "Please, help us..!"


    "I-I never believed it when they said you were a monster..! Please don''t leave me in here!"


    One by one, Mchi was bombarded with sincere pleas to save these people.


    Each of the prisoners got as close to the barrier as they could before yelling the most desperate appeals they could think of.


    Mchi would get all of these people out, but for right now he was focused on something else.


    There was one heartbeat within the room that he could hear beating louder than all of the rest.


    It just so happened that this was also the only person he could not hear any pleas to be saved from.


    Almost as if the person inside did not really want to believe that he was here.


    Mal slowly floated off the ground before flying towards a fairlyrge cell in the back of the cell block- near the women''s side.


    When hended in front of the cell, he found the body of a woman curled up in the corner.


    There was a tattoo resembling angel wings across her back that was only barely visible beneath her shirt.


    She was very thin, and she was protecting her head by holding it between her knees and covering it with her arms.


    "Joanne¡­"


    The woman flinched when she heard her name called, and she hesitantly turned around and Mchi felt his own heart tear in two.


    Her head had been shaved, there was a small numeric tattoo on her neck and there were ck bags underneath her eyes as if she hadn''t been sleeping.


    As soon as she saw Mchi, she immediately let a small river of tears fall as if she was tired of holding them back.


    Mchi touched the searing sma wall with one hand and watched as it slowly lost power and vanished.


    He hesitantly stepped inside of the cell and dropped to both of his knees in front of her.


    More often than not, Joanne had difficulty being touched after everything that she had gone through in the past, and he was still trying to be mindful of that.


    No matter how much it hurt him to do so.


    "It''s really you¡­ right?" She asked hollowly.


    Mchi couldn''t bring himself to say anything at risk of breaking down, and he simply held out a wed hand that she hoped she would take.


    Begrudgingly, Joanne crawled from the corner and hesitantly poked the center of his palm.


    Once she saw that he was real, a dryugh escaped her lips as she continued to cry.


    "Hell of a disappearing act you pulled¡­ You had all of us walking around like zombies for months..."


    "I am¡­ so sorry. None of you will ever have to worry about me leaving your side ever again." He said sincerely.


    "You always were cheesy like that¡­ You should save those kinds of words for those five."


    "You are just as important to me as they are."


    "Honestly¡­ how can you say all of that with a straight face when I look like this..?" She said painfully.


    "You''re just as beautiful now as the day where we first met and you tried to kick my head off. There is nothing that could ever be done to you that would change that."


    Joanne didn''t say anything, but she let herself crawl into Mchi''s arms and rested in his affectionate embrace.


    Out of Mchi''s desire for Joanne to never know negative emotions, he greedily consumed every drop of anxiety, sadness, and stress within her mind.


    Joanne wasn''t sure exactly what happened, but all that she knew was that she felt absolutely amazing in his embrace.


    She could feel all of her worries leaving her at such an rming rate that it was almost dizzying.


    She hadn''t had a full nights sleep since she''d gotten here, but now that she was back in Mal''s embrace she felt her fatigue hit her like a Mack truck.


    Before either of them knew it, she was snoring awkwardly with her mouth open and her body had gone limp.


    "You''re just like Anna¡­ The way you guys sleep is so funny." Malughed.


    "Don''t move!"


    Mchi''s warm and fuzzy mood quickly disappeared as he stood up with Joanne in his arms.


    Wrapping her legs around his waist, he gave her a small kiss on the forehead as she rested on his shoulder peacefully.


    "I''m d you''re getting some sleep now¡­ I dont really want you to see what I''m about to do to avenge you."


    Mal''s voice gradually became deeper and more demonic as he became the unholy apparition that so many in this world hade to fear.


    This time, none of the firing squad could pull the trigger on their weapons before the nightmare''s tails bit through the body armor of all assembled and left them dead in seconds.


    Mchi leapt out of the cell with Joanne still nestled against him closely and not showing any signs of waking up soon.


    Mchi continued to intrude deeper into the prison, smoldering with rage and regret.


    He kicked in another pair of doors to a different block and emerged in what looked like a highly secured solitary wing.


    Securing his grasp on Joanne, he ran towards Anna''s position with inhuman speed and reappeared in front of a thick lead door.


    Taking his razor sharp ws, he cut through all three feet of lead as if it were tissue paper and knocked down the door.


    Inside, he found light panels putting out UV light into every corner of the room; ensuring that there were no shadows here.


    In the center of the room, Anna was strapped to a medical table a blindfold over her eyes.


    Two IV bags were embedded into each of her arms- one to keep her sedated, and the other to supply nutrients and fluids.


    It was no wonder why the girls hadn''t been able tomunicate with her for all of these months.


    "We always thought that you woulde for her, but we didn''t expect you to take so long. Do you like her amodations?" A voice suddenly asked.

 Chapter 198: Don’t Break

    A sliding door opened up on the opposite side of the room where Mchi hade from, and a man stepped out from the doorway.


    Like Mchi, he had a leaner figure that was still in excellent shape and he wore the same ck military garb as all of the dead men lying outside.


    Albeit his seemed to have more patches to symbolize his higher rank and status.


    His unnatural pale skin and white hair paired with icy blue eyes made his identity as a blessed scream out loud and clear.


    Both of his arms were bionic and remained sped behind his back as he paced around the room.


    "This one was quite a fighter. I''m sure she would have made you proud. We had to keep her sedated like this because she kept-"


    "Did¡­you¡­ put¡­ her¡­ here?"


    Mchi had never had such trouble stringing together a coherent sentence in his life, but after seeing this man and Anna''s condition; he felt like he was having difficulty maintaining basic functions.


    He forgot how to breathe.


    How to walk.


    And he could barely think.


    All he knew was that he wanted to make whoever had done this to her pay miserably.


    He sat Joanne down against a wall and covered her face with a shirt to keep too much light from getting into her eyes and waking her before she was ready.


    "One of the rare catches that came out of stepping out into the oil for a change. I had no idea I would run into such a famous-"


    BOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM!


    A loud, earthquake like rumble erupted through the room as a giant hole was created in the ceiling.


    In a moment of surprising agility, Mchi appeared directly in front of the lieutenantmander and punched him clearly through the ceiling.


    He gave Anna one short and longing look before using his telekic abilities to remove the needles from her arms.


    Once she was no longer hooked up, he leapt through the hole in the ceiling he created and out into the ck morning sky.


    It had started to rain since he''d been inside, with asional rumbles of thunder and brief strikes of lightning.


    The serpent construct he''d created was still in battle with th heavily armored vehicles that had been called in for backup, and it was clearly gaining the upper hand.


    With so much darkness in the area to pull from, his great serpent would keep regenerating over and over again until Mal told it to stop.


    It didn''t matter how many new toys they threw at it, the result would always be the same.


    BANG!


    A wave of ice the size of a cier suddenly struck Mchi as soon as he reached the air.


    The lieutenant responsible for Anna''s capture wiped away the concerning amount of blood running from his nose as he held out his hand.


    "Damn beast... The world was fine before you brought all of your alien friends with you!"


    There was a low rumble that sounded almost like some kind of response before the cier cracked open and Mal came flying out.


    Feeling a bit panicked after earlier, the lieutenant wouldn''t allow Mal to get as close as he had earlier and enacted his first countermeasure.


    His arm transformed until he was holding a device that looked like a sonic cannon, and when fired they produce a strange and annoying noise.


    Mchi could feel a force trying to invade his mind and make him dizzy, causing his anger to surge forth even more.


    ''This is how you captured them? With these shitty party tricks?!''


    The lieutenant only noticed that his weapon wasn''t working when Mchi had yet to fall out of the sky even after prolonged exposure.


    He tried to switch his tactics around quickly, but by the time he set his body in motion it was toote.


    Mchi grabbed the lieutenant''s arm with one of his oversized hands and crushed the sonic weapon under his grip.


    This alone was staggering, as it too was made from magical ore and should have been unbreakable at least ording to the men in theb.


    Maintaining a firm grip on the lieutenants arm, Mchi performed an open palm strike in the man''s stomach and his arm was yanked free as his body was sent flying.


    Boom!


    The one armed lieutenant flew face first into the window of an attack helicopter and cracked the bullet proof ss like a scene from an old cartoon.


    "Ah!"


    "Lieutenant Russell?!"


    The men inside started to panic when they found one of their superiors suddenly smashed against their windshield, but their view was only going to get worse.


    Mchi came in flying feet first; kicking Lieutenant Russel cleanly through the chopper and causing it to go up in a fiery explosion.


    Mchinded on the ground amidst the storm and fallen debris with the lieutenant still underneath his heel.


    His dark and thorn-like teeth curled upwards into a smile when he saw that Russel was still clinging on to life.


    His body was pretty mangled and even had some burn marks, but he was alive and responsive.


    And that meant that Mchi could keep hurting him.


    He didn''t care why a blessed would be working with the Revival Regime and he didn''t much care either.


    He had no interest in the man''s background, significance in the regime or even his name.


    All he knew was that this man was the cause for everything bad that had happened to Anna and Joanne, so Mal would never be able to sleep peacefully by their sides ever again if he did not hurt this man at least half as much as he had hurt them.


    "Do one good thing with the remaining time that you have left..." he asked.


    Mchi suddenly lifted Russel from the ground by the head and held him high in the air.


    "No matter what I do to you... Do not break."


    With strength that would put Hercules to shame, Mchi threw his hated enemy atline of nearby tanks that were aiming at him, and her nearly folded it in half when he struck against the side.


    Thest thing Lieutenant Russel recalled being conscious to see was arge ck figure with the tails of four serpents leaping out to brutalize him while he could muster no kind of defense.


    ''We... were woefully underprepared for him¡­Who would have known that he was phantasmal ss!?''


    "W-Wait! I can help you get-"


    BOOOOMM!

 Chapter 199: Anguish

    In front of him, Mchi held up the mangled body of the lieutenant responsible for Anna and Joanne''s capture.


    The serpent headed tails that swung from behind his back were biting down on each of the four limbs that were already broken and mangled horribly.


    Out of his one good eye, Lieutenant Russel analyzed the world around him for the veryst time.


    Complete and utter destruction.


    The millions of dors funneled into these defense vehicles and personnel was utterly wasted and provided no aid in stopping the nightmare in front of him.


    A sea of fire epassed almost the entire base, and there were crumpled pieces of metal and mangled bodies everywhere.


    The blood in the air was so thick that red liquid could have umted onto every wet surface in sight.


    It was an unholy nightmare of a scene, right down to the core.


    "We were right about you¡­ You really were a damn monster.." Russel said weakly.


    The tails biting onto his limbs increased their bite force and caused the blessed in their grasp to let out a more horrendous cry.


    Venom spread through his body in an instant, turning his veins ck and causing him to foam from the mouth.


    "I¡­ am what they need me to be¡­ and what all of you have made me¡­ There is nothing else¡­ Never again will there be anything else."


    Pulling in four different directions, the limbs of the blessed were yanked free with an unsettling twisting noise and the limbless torso immediately dropped to the ground.


    With a hard stomp, Mchi crushed Lieutenant Russel''s head into paste and even broke through the concrete lying underneath.


    Although the nightmare was disgruntled to know that his venom had already stopped his heart before his foot had even crushed his skull.


    When the only sound Mal could hear was the dropping of rain and the distant ring of rms, he brought a wed hand to his chest.


    After everything he had done¡­ he didn''t feel better.


    Why didn''t he feel better?


    The bad guys were dead and the women he loved were avenged.


    He should be good now, right?


    They should be good.


    But what was with this unthinkable weight in his chest?


    It was so dense that he felt like he''d swallowed a whole tray of dry ass cornbread and he was about to suffocate.


    The more he tried to calm himself down, the more he felt like this tightness was umting in excess.


    Maddened and filled with grief, he fell to both his knees and let out a roar so loud and heartbreaking that any who heard it started crying without even understanding the reason.


    This seemed to be just the release that was needed, and a blinding column of red light shot up into the sky.


    From the permanent mass of gray clouds and darkness, a giant demonic-looking skull formed in the middle of the sky.


    -


    For a year now, Aubrey hadn''t been operating like her normal self.


    Everyday, she felt like she was walking through a fog with no method to navigate her next direction or even keep in mind what her destination might be.


    Living without her brother just made her feel¡­ lost.


    From the moment she had taken her first breath, her brother had been by her side.


    Most siblings fight a lot and are only cordial to each other at best, but Aubrey and Mal had never been like that.


    Even when they were just barely able to string sentences together, they were getting into all kinds of trouble and giving their parents no small amount of grief.


    Even as they got older that never changed, and somehow they had even gotten closer.


    When her brother had first disappeared, she couldn''t have imagined anyone being more heartbroken than her.


    But she had yet to see her mother back then.


    As bad as Aubrey was, Nyx was even worse.


    The goddess of the night was no stranger to grief or even sadness, but this was unlike anything she had ever felt before.


    For all intents and purposes, she was inconsble.


    For the first six months, she lived every day in her domain fending off the attacks of the sun and day gods who were trying to bring the light back to the earth.


    After she killed some of them and fed the rest to another of her darling sons for imprisonment, they finally left her alone and let her grieve in peace.


    She spent her days either crying or trying to inebriate herself on the wine made by Dionysus, or in bed trying to use her body to forget her loss.


    A number of Nyx''s children had been called to her realm, each of them being propositioned into her bed in one method or another.


    Apate, the Keres, the Erinyes, Geras, Nemesis, Oizys, Moros, she used all of them to temporarily unburden herself from thought or reason as she focused solely on achieving temporary numbness.


    To her, this was not only a way to pass the time, but it also helped her to feel like she was keeping all of her children safe.


    As long as they were touching her, as long as they did not leave the confines of her bed or her body, she could keep them safe.


    They couldn''t be taken away from her if they just stayed like this.


    And as a goddess, she had inexhaustible stamina which meant that this could all go on forever.


    The only asion where Nyx let her body rest was when she felt a familiar prescence pop into her realm through magic.


    Then it didn''t matter what she was doing, Nyx would crawl out of bed and try to make herself look decent.


    Opening the door, she found Aubrey standing outside looking fairly different from a year ago.


    She''d gotten a bit taller, leaner, and undoubtedly just a bit less cheerful due to her managing her grief, rtionships, helping out with the faction, and taking care of her mother.


    When Aubrey''s eyesnded on Nyx, she felt her heart break when she saw that she was getting worse again.


    The smell of sweat and body fluidsing from their room was so strong that the daughter of the night goddess felt like she was going to be knocked on her butt.


    Briefly, she saw the sweaty and exhausted bodies of several of her older siblings lying on the floor, the bed, or even a desk.


    She didn''t really have time to count them all, but she knew that they numbered at least thirty or forty.


    Their chests were rising and falling heavily as if they were humans who had just run a 10k marathon.


    "Ah, it''s my sweet girl..! How are you darling?"


    Nyx hurriedly closed the door behind her so that Aubrey''s gaze did not linger.


    However, she still did not bother to put on clothes and let her daughter stare at her uncovered body if she so desired.


    Nyx was hoping it would get her to stay this time so that she could keep her safe as well.


    But Aubrey was in no way interested in staring at anything other than her mother''s eyes.


    Beautiful though they might have been¡­ they were so sad and empty that Aubrey felt like crying.


    "Oh mom¡­ why are you doing this?"


    "D-Doing what, dear..? Your siblings and I are just-"


    "You have exhausted them, Mom..! You''re worse than Aphrodite!"


    "Well that just feels hurtful.."


    "O-Okay, maybe it was too much. I''m sorry."


    Nyx deted like a hot air balloon and Aubrey immediately sighed as she took her mother''s hands in hers.


    "This isn''t healthy¡­ You are being so self destructive and I hate that I ever enabled this even once..! I know that you are hurting but-"


    Roughly, Nyx pulled away and crossed her arms in a stern demeanor.


    "I am a goddess, Aubrey! This is all that I know, all that I am! Your human concepts of health do not apply to me and I am not in any way bound by them!"


    Aubrey''s heart only broke further under her mother''s outburst but she continued to keep her voice steady.


    "I know that you aren''t¡­ but can you imagine how he would feel if he saw you like this..? Do you know how badly his heart would be broken?"


    "That''s not fair, Aubrey.."


    "How is it not..? Can you imagine just how much he would hate himself if he saw what his absence had done to you? How much guilt he would feel?"


    "I-It''s not his fault..! All I''m doing is keeping them all alive and-"


    "Mom¡­ this is not living. I know that you have been alive for longer than I can even imagine, but you need to let me help you. What is the use of keeping us safe if we don''t ever get to live our lives beyond your bed..?


    But this doesn''t have anything to do with our safety in the first ce. You just still haven''t gotten over the fact that he is gone. "


    Nyx slowly let her body fall to the floor, and her whole body took on a sort of broken and empty demeanor as tears began to fall from her eyes.


    "I don''t know what to do anymore, darling¡­ I miss your brother so much that I can''t even stop to think about him or else I just.."


    Though Nyx was outwardly broken, her entire realm began to tremble as if it were responding to her suppressed emotions.


    Aubrey kneeled in front of her mother and pulled her into her arms before she finally let her own tears fall from her face.


    "You don''t have to avoid those feelings¡­ let yourself feel them. It is the only proof we have left that we got to have someone as amazing as him in our lives¡­ When is thest time you''ve been above ground?"


    "A.. while¡­ after¡­ I just couldn''t go back."


    "I get that. But will youe with me now? I think it may be good for you."


    "I¡­" Nyx started to respond, but before she could her whole body tensed up as if she had just suffered an electric shock.


    "What..? What''s the matter now, Ma?"


    Aubrey gingerly wiped away her mother''s tears that were beginning to flow even harder for some reason.

 Chapter 200: Reunification

    The giant skull that Mchi created in the sky seemed to be fueled by his own inner turmoil and negativity, and functioned somewhat simrly to a ck hole.


    The construct opened it''s bony jaw and inhaled continuously.


    Arge suction force was created that inhaled all of the nearby debris, be itorganic or inorganic.


    Once anything entered the mouth of the skull, it was thoroughly ripped apart to only the finest of pieces and obliterated.


    The longer the skull kept its mouth open, the more it started to pull into its destructive maw.


    Even the imprable building where the blessed were being imprisoned was starting to be ripped apart, withrger andrger fragmentsing off by the second.


    Mchi tried to tell it to stop, but for whatever reason his mind was too cloudy to be able to properly control his new and terrible power.


    Frustrated, he began to bang his head against the ground as he tried to dispel useless thoughts from his mind.


    ''Focus, focus, focus!!''


    As he agonized over hisck of control, he missed the moment where a small pair of footsteps started walking towards him.


    Finally, he felt their presence and looked up with hope in his nonexistent eyes.


    The first one he saw was a woman with artful tattoos all over her body.


    As always, she was every bit as beautiful as she was the first day he met her, and there was nothing that could have changed that.


    She held her sleeping mother over one shoulder, and due to the fact that they were currently both skinnier and sporting shaved heads, they almost looked like twins.


    And although Anna looked noticeably healthier than her mother, she still looked like she''d been through hell.


    "Babe..?"


    "Anna¡­"


    Like it never happened, the giant skull in the sky finally closed up before it disappeared in a burst of negative energy.


    The two lovers stared at each other frozen in ce as if time had stopped, and it was clear that both of them were filled with a surplus of emotions.


    "¡­You hurt me like hell, you know..? All of us¡­ where did you go?" Anna asked in an empty voice.


    "I¡­ didn''t go on purpose¡­ I don''t know where I even went but.. I will never be separated from you all ever again."


    Anna smiled wryly as a single tear dripped down her cheek. "¡­You sure you weren''t just having second thoughts about asking me to marry you?"


    "From the second you said yes, you were already my wife. I would never have changed my mind no matter what." Mal said without hesitation.


    Anna dropped to her knees in front of Mchi; showing that she had long gotten used to the sight of his monstrous form.


    "¡­Keep your promise¡­don''t leave us again."


    "Never."


    Mal desperately pulled Anna and her mother into his arms and held them both like he was afraid to be apart from them for any reason.


    His head changed back to normal first, and he immediately found Anna''s lips for the first time in what felt like forever.


    Her lips were dry and cracked, but they were still the sweetest thing he had ever tasted and filled him with a lightheadedness that was more intoxicating than alcohol.


    He never would have pulled away if she hadn''t have done it first.


    She stared at him with somewhat of an expectant look, and he thought that maybe she was going to say something about his disappearance again.


    "¡­My head''s cold as shit."


    Laughing, Mchi kissed her forehead softly and knitted together a small beanie from the shadows around her. "Better?"


    "Yea, thank you¡­ Still just as attentive as ever, huh?"


    "For you? Always."


    It seemed like the two of them were going to kiss again, when suddenly a dark hole opened up in the sky and two women flew out.


    "Mal!"


    "Son!"


    Aubrey and Nyx flew at Mchi like homing missiles and knocked him cleanly onto his back, luckily Anna was able to get herself and her mother out of harm''s way just in time.


    Mchi could hardly get a word in edgewise as Nyx and Aubrey blubbered all over him without even giving him an opportunity to speak up.


    Nyx was crying so loudly and giving off so much raw emotion that the earth around them started to tremble.


    Aubrey wasn''t really much better, and she identally whipped up several tornadoes in the air as she cried all over her brother with a snotty nose.


    ''¡­Just gonna wait this out.'' Mchi thought casually.


    -


    "Where were you?! Do you have any idea how worried we all were!"


    "My darling boy¡­! I am so so sorry that I could not protect you..!"


    ''Cool, I can understand them now.''


    Mchi held his mother and sister ever closely to his body as if they were every bit as precious as Anna and Joanne.


    "I keep saying that I don''t know where I went but no one really seems to believe me."


    "How can that be?! You were gone for over a year!" Aubrey cried.


    "Believe me I wish I could tell you¡­ everytime I try to remember my head just gets more and more fuzzy." Mal said honestly.


    "That¡­ can''t be?" Nyx muttered.


    The night goddess passed her hand over the head of her son as if she were searching his body for some kind of impunity.


    It did not take her long to find something, and she flinched in a rare moment of vulnerability that her son in particr had never seen from her.


    "Ma?"


    "A-Ah¡­ It is nothing, my son. Another of life''s great mysteries it seems. Even I do not know everything."


    Tenderly, Nyx grabbed her son by the face with both hands.


    She kissed him on both cheeks and barely grazed his lips with her own.


    "I am¡­ very d that you are back. You should go home to everyone else for now¡­ I''ll return to visit you all shortly."


    Mchi sensed a lot of things from his mother in that moment; not all which he understood.


    Shame.


    Guilt.


    Confusion.


    And even a small bit of apprehension.


    Before he could ask her why, she vanished right before his eyes without making a single sound.


    It took Mchi several seconds to blink away his surprise and he suddenly felt two gazes boring into him.


    "Back five minutes and you already look like you''re about to cheat on me with your mother. Manwhore." Anna muttered.


    "Not saying I don''t understand, but if you''re going to be tempted then I rmend you at least get some proper rest first¡­ and hydrate." Aubrey informed.


    Mchi had to bring a hand to his temple as he suddenly felt like he had heard something he shouldn''t have.


    "I''m sorry¡­ I hope I''m missing something here, but why does it sound like you are speaking from experience?"


    Anna stared at Aubrey out of the corner of her eye, and the young girl started to look every way but where her brother sat.


    That was more than enough for him to piece two and two together.


    "You''re kidding¡­ You really.."


    "I-It wasn''t just me!" Aubrey defended. "It was Aisha and Rose too! We were all grieving together and one thing sort of just led to another and.."


    "The week after was really funny. They were all so fucking awkward." Anna snickered.


    "Not helping!"


    Mchi said nothing and simply pulled Anna and Joanne into his arms before he started to fly away.


    "I leave for one year and the whole world flips upside the fuck down¡­ I need toy down or something."


    "W-Wait! Let me exin!"


    "Stay away from me, degenerate!"


    "Mchi! Stop judging me ande back here right now!!!"


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-


    200 Chapters or any sort of milestone always feels weird for this story.


    Afterall there are a lot of times where I hit stumbling blocks and don''t know how I should properly progress the story, and that makes me feel insecure about my own work and I often want to drop it.


    Not to mention the numerous criticisms I received in the beginning still weigh heavy on my mind a lot, and I begin to wonder what the purpose of even writing this story really is.


    But! In those moments where I feel the most lost I remember that I still have a great many of you that would be disappointed if I were to suddenly drop this with no exnation, and I am able to continue by some miracle.


    I think that is part of where the inspiration for Mal''s new powerses from.


    Perhaps if I write about the ability to take all of the world''s negativity and make it your own strength, a bit of that will motivate me and help improve my writing even further.


    Nheless, I would like to take this time to thank all of you sincerely for your support of my novel thus far, and I hope that i can continue to churn out better, more enthralling stories for all of you who take the time to appreciate my writing.

 Chapter 201: Going Home

    What do you think of when you hear the term ''perfect being'' ?


    Do you think of someone gorgeous beyondpare?


    Or perhaps someone with no fear, insecurity, or self doubt.


    An immovable force.


    No matter what you think of, you probably imagine something desireable and thus dream to possess it for yourself.


    For beings who are truly perfect and deserving of the title ''god'' the truth is that they are anything but.


    Their perfection means they areplete.


    Butplete in a sense that is not all benevolent and grand like the followers of the Christian god believe.


    If any of them ever really understood what a truly perfect being is they would crucify it, and proim it to be an unholy and evil abomination.


    A true perfect being means that it isplete as in it contains everything within itself and does notck anything else, therefore it cannot acquire anything.


    To be a perfect being means that it must be it''s own cause.


    Though they cannot acquire anything, they sometimes interfere with casuality liesurely without understanding why.


    As long as it interests them at least.


    For even though they are the pinnacle of a being who transcends through everyyer of reality, sometimes even they do not know everything, and they interfere with the lives of those lesser because¡­ why not?


    Who is there to chastise them for doing so?


    How else are they to alleviate the boredom thates from living in everyyer of reality, every corner of fantasy and imagination, and every narrative all at once?


    And yet, the goddess Nyx was about to do so.


    She had  traveled all of the way from earth through space and time to a ce referred to only as the edge.


    Even if I were to try to describe it to you, I would not be able.


    It is a ce that defies mortalprehension and knowledge, as it is a ce we are never even meant to dream of, let alone imagine.


    The closest I coulde to painting a picture is to say that the goddess is staring at you, right now through whatever device you may be viewing this on.


    But she is not staring at you in particr.


    She is looking through you, to the being behind you.


    The one behind us all.


    "Why¡­ did you take him from me..?"


    "¡­"


    "Answer me, Calligo! You stole my precious son away from me for an entire year, no I''m sure it was even longer for you! Tell me why, NOW!"


    Nyx received no answer, it did not matter how much she yelled.


    Instead, something entirely different happened.


    It all happened so fast.


    At a fraction of even the speed of light, it was almost as if nothing had happened at all.


    But Nyx knew the truth of the matter.


    For just one infinitesimally small moment, she had ceased to exist.


    Burned away from existence, every existence, just to be put right back again.


    It was a warning and a very solemn one at that.


    Gritting her teeth, Nyx flew away knowing that she would receive no verbal answer.


    But then again, she already knew it before she even came, she just wanted to be angry at someone for all of the precious time that had been stolen from her with her son.


    The being had done it because it could, and there was no other exnation required.


    It wasn''t fair at all, but then again what else could she have expected from her own mother?


    -


    Already, Mal was realizing just how much he hated having a heartbeat.


    As his mother''s avatar, he didn''t have to worry about it.


    He''d forgotten just how loud his own heart could beat whenever he was nervous, and it was showing itself now that he was standing firmly in the familiar elevator of his home base.


    Evidently, Anna could hear it as well because she snickered a bit as she took his hand in hers.


    "I don''t think I''ve ever seen you like this before. You weren''t even this nervous when you asked me to marry you."


    "Yea, well¡­ I was nervous back then too, you just couldn''t hear it."


    "Well back then or now, there''s no reason to be nervous." Anna nted a quick peck on Mchi''s cheek, and he felt his unease being siphoned away.


    Out of the corner of his eye, he found Joanne leaning against the wall farthest from him, as if she were trying to avoid him for the time being.


    When things finally settled down, he wanted to find a moment to talk to her¡­ and let her know that he would never allow her to fall into harm''s way ever again.


    Ding!


    The elevator finally came to a screeching halt, and Mchi realized that he could feel multiple recognizable prescences just on the other side the doors.


    The door seemed to open in slow motion, and as soon as the other side was visible Mchi was quickly barreled into and knocked onto the ground.


    Nadine was just as beautiful as he remembered, and evidently just as strong too.


    Crying, she filled his ears with the sound of her sobs as she muttered disbelieving words of thanks and heartache.


    Suddenly Mchi felt more weight on his chest, and two more bodies piled on top of his own- those of Sei and Bianca.


    A few times, he tried to tell the girls that he was d to see them too and he was sorry to be gone for so long, but he was unsure if any of his words got through due to their chorus of wails.


    Nevertheless, he said them anyway in the hopes that they would somehow reach their collective subconscious.


    "Ada!"


    An unfamiliar noise prompted Mchi to sit up, even with the weight of three grown women on his chest.


    Looking past Sei''s dark brown hair, he found Luna standing in the corridor with all of his friends from Immortal Moon behind her.


    She looked just as radiant as ever, but her tears seemed to be a reflection of all of the weight that was dropped on top of her shoulders when Mal disappeared.


    In her arms, she held a very small baby that was no older than a couple of months.


    She was precious beyond measure, with dark grey hair and purple-pink eyes.


    Her skin was caramel colored and soft looking, and she held a beauty inherited from both of her parents.


    She held out one of her small and pudgy hands and pointed at the man lying in the elevator.


    Luna smiled and grabbed her daughter by her baby hand and first pointed at Anna.


    "Cami, that''s your other mother Annalise¡­ She was gone for a long time but I hope you''ll learn to love her just like the rest of us."


    Anna covered her mouth as tears started to fall from her own eyes and she sank to the ground.


    Finally, Luna pointed back to the man lying on the floor, one who seemed to be on the verge of falling to pieces himself.


    "And that is¡­"


    In a sh of light, the young girl teleported from her ce in Luna''s arms and reappeared on the floor in front of Mchi, and she immediately ced her hand on his thigh.


    Immediately, brief shes of memories were imprinted into his mind that seemed to be from an entirely different lifetime.


    ''Shear..?''


    "Ada!"

 Chapter 202: Reconnecting

    Nadine: "Is he still in there with them..?"


    Bianca: "Yes, he has been in that same spot for days now, what do you expect?"


    Sei: "I''m d to see that he''s taken to her so well but I really¡­"


    Luna: "I know, I want it too.. let''s just give it some more time and then we''ll go and jump on him."


    Anna closed theic book that she had been reading and looked over in bed.


    There, she found her fianc¨¦ sleeping quite deeply with their daughter lying on his chest; Camille Monica Saint.


    For the four days he had been back, Mchi hadn''t put her down for any reason, nor had he left Anna''s side.


    The former was because he felt that he had already missed so much, and thetter was because he had be slightly paranoid and feared that something terrible would happen to her if she left his sight again.


    Admittedly, Anna had let this go on longer than she should have because she was reveling in the attention and affection after so long.


    But the other women they shared a bed with had missed him just as much as her, and they needed to be loved too.


    Besides, by the way things were sounding outside, Mchi only had a short time left before Nadine broke in here and raped him.


    And since Anna was also starting to feel just a little bit pent up, she figured it might not be long before she joined her.


    ''¡­I''ll do it onest time.''


    Smiling mischievously, Anna swung her feet off the side of the bed as if she were about to get out of it.


    Immediately, Mal''s eyes shed open and he sat up smoothly without waking baby Cami, still a bit delirious but alert nheless.


    "Ah, where you going? Do you need something? Lay down, I''ll get it." He muttered drunkenly.


    Anna snickered impishly as she let her body lean against the headboard and Mal finally realized that she never intended to go anywhere at all.


    She just wanted to see him wake up andugh about it.


    "You aren''t funny¡­" Mal muttered as hey back down.


    "Oh I think I''m quite funny. You just can''t appreciate it at the moment."


    "Yea, yea.." Mchi checked to make sure that Camille was still sleeping before closing both of his eyes and continuing to rub her back until he fell asleep.


    Anna smiled softly at this scene as she kissed their sleeping child softly before moving to her fianc¨¦''s lips.


    "¡­We need to talk, babe."


    "I want you to remember you already said yes, so we''re not breaking up anymore."


    "It''s not that." Annaughed as she ran her fingers through his hair.


    "I know that you''re worried about me and you want to spend time with our daughter, but don''t forget that I''m not the only girl who missed you while you were gone.


    We''re home now, and we have time. Don''t neglect them because you''re scared something will happen to me, or because you feel bad for missing Cami''s birth."


    Mal finally opened his eyes and he peered down at the small bundle in his arms.


    Never in his life did he ever want to miss the birth of his precious child like this.


    The night he found out Luna was pregnant, he nned the entire delivery out in his mind from point A-Z.


    And yet all of his nning had been dashed away by a force that he didn''t even ce his eyes on.


    And even though he knew it wasn''t his fault, he felt so very guilty.


    These four days had been some of the best and most challenging of his entire life.


    But, Anna was right, and he needed to learn how to better manage his new life and not neglect the women he was in a rtionship with who had given him everything so far.


    Sensing that he needed something else to focus on, Anna bit his ear yfully as she ran her hands across his face.


    "Why don''t.. you take Camille upstairs to her aunts so that they can watch her for a few hours and we can have some time to ourselves, okay? I think we all need to feel¡­ just how much we missed each other."


    A small shiver ran down Mchi''s body and he agreed in an instant without realizing it.


    He got dressed quickly and grabbed a few necessities for the baby before heading out.


    Along the way, he gave the girls scattered in the living room a small wink followed by a promise to ''really reconnect'' when he got back.


    Judging by the reddening that formed on their cheeks afterwards, they would likely be undressed already by the time he got back.


    -


    Dropping of Camille with Aubrey, Rose, and Aisha was every bit as awkward as Mal thought it would be.


    Especially with his best friend.


    They''d had a lot of arguments in their life, but something told him if the words ''I fucked your mom'' came out of her mouth he would really lose it and kill her.


    He also wanted to ask his sister how she and his favorite trainer got together when she seemed so apprehensive about starting a new rtionship before.


    They looked happy enough, but again, Mal could only ask more when he no longer felt awkward around his sister and the women she was dating.


    ''Maybe I''ll ask one of them..?'' During the walk back downstairs, Mal briefly thought about Serana, Aisha''s parents, and Grandpa Rowan.


    His favorite pink haired lunatic had apparently grown up a lot in his time away, and was currently leading a mission in the wastnds that she should be returning from any day now.


    After the world ended, those in the base who had parents and siblings brought them in, so now the ce was just a bit more crowded than before.


    Mchi had seen the old man as well as his aunt and uncle for around two minutes when he first got back, but he''d been holed up in his bedroom ever since and hadn''t had the chance to speak.


    ''That reminds me..!''


    Mchi suddenly stopped right in the center of the hallway and started looking around for a very specific room.


    In a whoosh of air, he appeared right in front of the futuristic white door and knocked on it without hesitating.


    A momentter, Joanne poked her head outside and Mal immediately began to feel bad when he realized she clearly was having some trouble sleeping again.


    "Mind if Ie in?"


    Joanne took only a moment to think about it before nodding in agreement and pulled open the door to let him in.


    When he stepped inside, he realized that Joanne''s quarters were rtively tidy, save for the several empty bottles of wine scattered across the coffee table and the one ss that seemed to have seen it all.


    Joanne sat on the couch, and Mal marveled when he realized that she was just like Anna.


    At home, she wore baggy sweatpants that almost slipped off her slender and seductive waist,, but she wore a tee shirt with the arms cut off instead of a simple sport''s bra.


    She looked a lot healthier than she had five days ago when he found her, as her skin was no longer deathly pale and she had begun to gain her weight back.


    Her hair was also starting to grow back too, although it was currently only stopping at her shoulders.


    In a few days, it would be back to it''s beautiful normal length, but Mal had to admit that he was not against the short look.


    Then again he found her to be beautiful either way.


    "So... Done with your whole reunion already? Should I expect another child to pop up soon?" Joanne muttered drunkenly.


    Mal did not respond, and instead he sat beside her on the couch as he gingerly took the ss of wine away from her.


    The two of them sat in silence afterwards, with only them staring at each other with neither of them bothering to say anything.


    Mchi finally tried to speak to the slightly drunk woman, but before he got his words out she balled up her fists and swung for his face.

 Chapter 203: Until Then

    Mchi watched Joanne''s fist sail towards his face like it wasing in slow motion.


    Holding up a single finger, he stopped it froming closer for even a second and smiled at her somewhat helplessly.


    "Now¡­ what''s this for?"


    "Because you keep looking at me like that!" Joanne threw another drunken punch that was immediately caught by Mchi.


    "Like what?"


    "L-Like you¡­ I don''t know, I''m just not ready for you to look at me like that!"


    Mal closed his eyes and turned his head away. "Better?"


    A drunk Joanne took his genuine attempt to pacify her as a mockery.


    So of course, she did what she felt to be the only natural thing.


    She headbutted the young man in an attempt to knock him over.


    And while she did seed at that, her unawareness of Mal''s new hardened physique proved to be her undoing.


    The pain she felt from doing so was hardly worth it.


    Actually not at all.


    "Son of a bitch..!"


    "I''d apologize, but¡­ this kind of feels like the kind of thing that you did to yourself." Mal said honestly.


    "S-Shut up!"


    Smirking silently, Mal gently rubbed the sore spot on her forehead.


    Joanne tried and failed to pull herself off of him a few times, but failed all the same due to ack of strength in her limbs.


    Begrudgingly, shey on the chest of the young man who she felt she hardly knew and listened to the sound of his heartbeat.


    "¡­I don''t like you." She finally said.


    "Then why did you kiss me?"


    "Because you make me think I like you."


    "¡­And how do I do that?"


    "I don''t know, but you do. The fact of the matter is that I don''t have any reason to like you."


    "No one has any reason to like anyone."


    "You''re half my age."


    "I''m legal. You won''t go to jail for touching me."


    Joanne snorted as if she found his remark amusing before immediately dashing away her smile.


    "I don''t know what I have been thinking about all this time but I don''t want to keep crossing lines with you. I think... I''m starting to rely on you just a bit too much if I''m honest, and that''s something I can''t do."


    "And why is that?"


    "I''m not good at the whole.. Y''know... the stuff you do with Anna and the other girls."


    A myriad of colorful images yed in Mal''s mind and he knew that he and Joanne had to be thinking about two very different things.


    "I don''t do cute things like go on dates and express my feelings and do PDA and stuff like that." Joanne rified.


    "What do you do then?"


    "Drink, watch bad tv usually centered around some kind of supernatural force, and eat until I hate myself."


    "...So... you''re like Anna but with tv instead ofics."


    Evidently, Joanne did not seem to have realized that she and her daughter were so simr and she showed a noticeable degree of surprise at this revtion.


    But then, she also seemed to realize that it spoke to a greater issue.


    "That''s another thing... I am Anna''s mother, I can''t just go about taking her fianc¨¦ from her."


    "Did Anna try to break your jaw while I was gone?"


    "No..?"


    "Then she must not have been too upset about the whole kiss thing, or the idea of us together. She may even be more okay with you than she was with Nadine."


    "And how do you figure that?"


    Mal smiled wryly as he recalled the brutal punch to the stomach that his poor Nadine had suffered from Anna in order to get her permission to be with him.


    "I just... have a hunch."


    Chuckling, he lifted Joanne off of him before he started to exit from her quarters.


    "Whenever you''re ready, you shoulde and find me when you''re not so afraid anymore. After that, we can take things as slow or as fast as you want."


    As Joanne watched Mal''s back get farther and farther away, there were a number of things she wanted to say.


    After everything she''d just said, why wasn''t he willing to give up on herpletely?


    What part of her was so appealing?


    Why did she still want to rely on him, despite already knowing that she should do anything but?


    She had no answer to any of these questions, but even without them her body started to move on it''s own.


    Lunging from the couch, she ced a single hand on Mal''s back and forced him to turn around.


    Jut like before, she grabbed his face to kiss him possessively, but was shocked when he grabbed her back with just as much intensity.


    He lifted her up and locked her legs around his waist as the two of them became enthralled in a passionate embrace against the walls of her quarters.


    Out of breath, Joanne momentarily broke the kiss to provide some much needed rification.


    "I-I''m still not ready, b-but this is.."


    "A goodbye kiss?"


    "Right! A goodbye kiss!"


    "Noted."


    - 20 Minutes Later


    Mal left Joanne''s room muchter than he''d initially nned, with an unusually content smile on his face.


    No matter how much he tried, he found it difficult to forget the feeling of Joanne''s lips on his and he had to confess that he was still rather excited.


    However, all of his excitement disappeared in an instant as he ran right smack into a face that he never expected to see within this base.


    "Celeste??"


    "Oh! Mchi, it''s good to see you! I heard you came back a few days ago, where have you been all of this time?"


    Mal could not help but be slightly shocked to see the mother of his ex walking around in his home base as if she lived here.


    "I don''t really know the answer to that, it''s like I have amnesia or something... Are you.. staying here?"


    "Yes! My quarters are right over there!" In a moment ofical absurdity, Celeste pointed to a door that was literally two down from Joanne''s and Mal felt a small ulcer forming.


    "Oh... And how did you end up-"


    "They''re back!"


    "The scouting team is back!"


    "Bonfire tonight!"


    Mal suddenly paused mid sentence and let his eyes drift towards the opposite side of the corridor where a small group was exiting the elevator.


    Leading them was a pink haired girl with a charismatic-yet cocky smile who seemed to be reveling in the attention.


    She was walking hand-in-hand with a handsome young man wearing sses and with dashes of purple coloring in his hair.


    Due to Mchi''s height, the pink haired girl easily picked him out of the crowd and her eyes started to show immediate traces of disbelief.


    "M-Mal...?"


    Serana gradually started to push through the crowd in an instant, and was ran towards her missing friend in clear distress.


    Mal smiled sheepishly as he held out his arms and allowed young Serana to barrel full steam into his chest.


    "Y-You''re back!? W-When?! Where did you go!? You missed Cami''s birth! You''re a deadbeat! You made my mom cry!


    Don''t ever leave us again or I will kill you!"


    Serana quickly pulled herself away from Mal in rapid session and struck him as hard as she could in the stomach.


    Of course, she practically broke her hand as a result.


    "Bastard! Why are you being abusive to me as soon as you get back?! I''m supposed to be your friend!"


    "...But I didn-"


    "Shut up!"


    "Yes ma''am."


    Serana rubbed her fist in an effort to make the pain go away while tears continued to run down her face.


    A momentter, Ryo walked up to them quietly and in his usual robotic demeanor.


    "Been a while."


    "..."


    It was worth noting that Mal was protective by nature long before his DNA was altered.


    But ever since it had been changed, he was something like a helicopter parent with super powers.


    It didn''t take much to piece together his rtionship with Serana since the two emerged holding hands.


    And if he was honest.. it filled him with a sense of ire that he had never known.


    He snapped his fingers, and a table and two chairs were created out of shadows.


    With overbearing telekic power, he easily pushed Ryo into one of the seats and held him firmly in ce without allowing him to get up.


    Mal took the seat opposite him, and ced both his elbows atop the table as he peered into Ryo''s violet eyes with his own.


    "Tell me... What are your intentions with my best friend?"


    "Why are you acting like my dad as soon as you get back?! You''re going to embarrass me!" Serana yelled.


    "...Well if you want to be technical I am-"


    "WE AGREED NOT TO ABIDE BY THOSE TITLES!" Serana started to strike Mal on the back repeatedly in the hopes that she would leave her boyfriend alone.


    Ignoring her hands that were currently showering him with blows, Mal kept his eyes locked on the man sitting opposite him.


    That is, until somebody else caught his eye.


    He thought he may have been mistaken, after all hisst few minutes spent with Joanne had made sure that all of the blood in his body surely hadn''t gone to his brain.


    But even as he blinked his eyes several times to focus, the image he saw did not change.


    "...Mnie...?"

 Chapter 204: Uncomfortable Changes

    When Camille Saint opened her eyes, she found her favorite face in the world staring back at her.


    A young man with eyes capable of lighting up the dark room where she resided, along with a handsome face and long grey dreadlocks that she could y with as if they were ropes!


    "Ada!"


    "Shhh..." Mchi whispered as he pulled the young girl out of her crib.


    It was barely 6am when he snuck into the apartment of his baby sister to retrieve his only child from her idental two day staycation.


    It should be noted that Mchi was not an irresponsible parent who would ever want to leave his children alone for that long.


    However, he had forgotten that his wives were superhuman, with supersized emotions and needs.


    Namely, Nadine and Luna.


    One was a vampire at almost 500 years of age who was kinkier than the back section of a Spencer''s.


    The other, was also a vampire who had just as much of a libido in addition to having recently had a child.


    She needed to feel the love and validation that came from physical intimacy after going without it for so long, just so that she could see herself as beautiful again.


    They would need more than a few hours to properly celebrate their long awaited reunion.


    "Bu?"


    "D-Don''t worry about these marks on my neck, they just mean that your moms and I love each other and we''re getting along great."


    "Bu!"


    "Yea, this is why you were left with your aunties for so long, I''m sorry. But to make up for that, we''re gonna go on a special daddy-daughter adventure right now."


    Using the skills he got from his mother and Sei, he fed and changed Cami in the dark before exiting just as quietly as he came in.


    The only trace to prove he''d even been here was the note he left to thank Aubrey for all of the time she''d spent babysitting.


    As he stepped into the hall with his daughter, he ran into the unlikely pairing of two old men.


    His father inw, Ali, and the man who was something like his grandfather, Rowan.


    The two men had cups of coffee in their hands from themon cafe, and they looked to be having a deep discussion about something.


    However, as soon as they saw Mal with his daughter in his arms, they quickly brought their conversation to a halt.


    "Well, well. Seems like you aren''t wasting any time making up for your absence, are ya?"


    "Go easy on him, Al." Rowanughed. "We can''t exactly me the kid for being kidnapped by someone he probably couldn''t even hope to go up against."


    "I can me him for whatever I want. He made my baby girl cry."


    "Fair enough."


    Mal smiled wryly despite the intense re of his father inw.


    "I''ve apologized to Bianca and the girls more than you can imagine already. And you can believe me, I don''t n on leaving my family again anytime soon. Isn''t that right, munchkin?"


    "Pa!"


    Both old men seemed to be rather powerless against Camille''s cuteness and Ali finally showed signs of relenting from his oppressive onught.


    "So where are you two going so early then?" He muttered gruffly.


    "I been away a long time. I wanted to go get a better look at the outside and spend some time with the newest girl in my life while I''m at it."


    "Sure you aren''t just making yourself scarce to avoid the oldest girl in your life?" Rowan chuckled.


    Immediately, Mal knew that the old man was talking about Mnie and he became noticeably tense.


    "A-Anyway¡­ you old men enjoy your morning and we''ll be on our way."


    Mal hurriedly began to move away from the old men despite theirughter traveling through the corridor.


    "That boy tense!"


    "No reason to avoid her, Mal! She doesn''t even remember you!"


    Mchi ignored the both of them and just kept watching, paying no real attention to either the sounds of theirughter or the confused noises that his daughter kept making.


    -


    After Mchi came back into the world, for the first time in over a year there was a bit of sunlight that could be seen peaking over the horizon.


    It wasn''t much, but day by day Nyx had to slowly expose the inhabitants of this world to sunlight instead of bringing it back immediately and risking blinding everyone.


    But hopefully, the sun would fully return to thesends in around a week or so.


    And he hoped, his mother with it.


    "Hey munchkin?"


    "Ada?"


    "Does it seem like your grandmother has been avoiding me since I came back? I figured she would be all over me by now¡­ and trying to get me all over her."


    *Raspberry noises*


    "I dunno¡­ I can just sense her difort with me since I came back. She barely even touched me."


    Mchi held out his baby as he sat on top of the roof of his former college building.


    "Wait a minute¡­ is there a reason why you aren''t speaking? I know you can say actual words."


    "Abu¡­"


    "What do you meannguage is hard for you with your new body? You''re like a one of a kind nightmare-vampire. Shouldn''t you be a prodigy at little things like that?"


    "Bu!"


    "You''re right, I''m sorry. Parents shouldn''t ce unnecessary expectations on their kids."


    Mchi gave Cami a small kiss on the cheek as he floated down from the building and set foot on his ruined campus.


    He wasn''t sure why he ended up here of all ces, but there was a somewhat undeniable allure that had brought him here.


    Perhaps it was because this ce was thest one where he had felt truly normal that he was drawn to it so inexplicably.


    It wasn''t like he could exactly take his baby to a nursery now that the world had ended, could he?


    As he walked along the campus filled with shattered concrete and tossed cars, his mind identally reverted to his past spent with Mnie, and he remembered the unpleasantness waiting for him at home.


    Apparently, his ex woke up from hera about two months before the world ended.


    However, she imed that she had amnesia and didn''t remember anything after her first year of high school.


    Which just so happened to be long before Mal ever met her.


    In addition, the mark of cain that he gave to her when he still had Michael''s powers seemed to have... mutated.


    He didn''t really know all of the specifics but apparently she had some of the powers that were simr yet different from that of a blessed.


    Coincidentally, one of the members at the base found her protecting her mother after the world ended, fighting off a horde of-


    "Uggghhh..."


    Mchi looked over his shoulder at the decaying being that was crawling out of it''s car.


    In the new world, nightmares are divided into five sses.


    Gargoyle - Usually inactive, do not move unless alerted by something and no bigger than a semi truck. Can be killed by a small team of five specially trained soldiers.


    Baphomet- The mostmon and easiest toe across. They are the only ones who seem to disy some sort of intelligence as they delight in ambushes that they shouldn''t be able to pull off with theirrge bodies. 10-20 soldiers are typically required to bring one down.


    Banshee - Typically a veryrge and very loud arial monster. They fly around from ce to ce gobbling up whatever they can like a heartbroken girl at a frat party and announcing their findings to others under them. They are usually around the size of a two story house. Attempting to kill one with anything less than 50 men is suicide.


    Manticore - Amalgamations of different mythological creatures formed onto single monstrous bodies. In their usual form they are around the height of a cell phone tower, but they can shrink if needed and are exceedingly smart. Not to be approached under any circumstances.


    Phantasmal- Enormous creatures that are quite frankly capable of destroying the whole world within two nights if they felt like it. We have no countermeasures for them, and even the weapons made from other nightmares do not seem to bother them much.


    We can only assume that they require an abysmal amount of rest to move suchrge bodies and thus spend most time asleep. If youe across one, it is best to just pray they do not feel like bothering you.


    Based on the fact that they seem to appear wherever they want randomly, it is assumed they also posses the ability to shrink, or even take on different forms.


    What Mal was seeing now was a creature on the lowest of the chart, so low that it wasn''t even worth being on there.


    An organic creature taken over by the higher nightmares and stripped of it''s ego, will, and sanity.


    It''s only purpose is to alert whatever parasited it to the sighting of fresh food to the hive mind, and it can have a ce swarmed within minutes.


    Basically, a zombie.


    BOOOOMM!


    Mal exploded the creature with little more than a thought and looked at the young girl in his arms with an exhausted expression.


    "What are the chances... that he didn''t tell his boss we were around here?"


    "Ada..."


    *Rumble*


    "...I hate when you''re right."

 Chapter 205: Is This Cannibalism?

    As the sound of rumbling started to get ever closer, Mchi looked at his daughter for ideas on next steps.


    "What do you think? Where should we hide?"


    "Bu¡­. "


    "What do you mean you don''t want to hide? Nightmares will swarm this ce in an instant if we linger here too long."


    "Da!"


    "The hell do you mean this is a chance for self discovery? And what kind of newborn worries about things like that when their soft spot hasn''t even closed yet?!"


    *frustrated cooing*


    "Alright, alright, Dad is sorry, he knows you''re special. Just tell me what you had in mind."


    -


    A few momentster, a pack of hulking figures emerged from around the corner of a ruined building; eagerly looking for their next meal.


    They were quadrupedal in stature, with bodies reminiscent of furless ck hounds with mouths that split apart like tentacles and enormous ws filled with dark noxious venom.


    The group of hounds found something in the area where they had been called, but it wasn''t exactly food.


    It was another one of their collective, although it looked and felt very different.


    The group of hounds circled it from all angles and sniffed at it curiously.


    What they were staring at was a smallish nightmare of around seven foot tall with four snake-like tails swaying behind his back and long dreadlocks that floated in the air above his head.


    His face had no eyes, ears, or even a nose, only a single mouth filled with ck dagger-like teeth- yet it seemed undeniable that it''s senses were better than theirs.


    Drastically better in fact.


    The creature held another, smaller nightmare creature in it''s arms.


    It¡­ was a lot stranger.


    Surely a nightmare creature, but¡­ also not.


    A baby-like thing with two leathery bat wings jutting from it''s small back and it''s cute and nubby fingers were reced with ck ws that were as long as pocket knives.


    The skin up to it''s elbows waspletely ck in color, as was the top half of her forehead.


    Short but lethal looking horns curled out of her forehead that were reminiscent of a demon''s.


    Her eyes werepletely ck and empty as if they were devoid of all light or charity, and their was no escape from them.


    Interestingly enough, she looked more like some sort of cross species than the one holding her.


    But still, both were beyond strange.


    Almost on cue, the entire pack of baphomet ss beasts sat onto all fours as they stared at the odd pairing like they were waiting for them to do something.


    Mchi and Cami looked at all members of the pack calmly while trying to remain as nightmare-like as possible.


    Out of all of the things Mal may have been expecting to happen, this was far from among them.


    He was honestly kind of d that his daughter had suggested they do this.


    ''I gotta say, muchkin. You really-''


    "HISSSS!!!"


    Suddenly, the creatures became agitated and they lunged at Mchi from all sides.


    "Shit..!"


    He easily leapt straight up into the sky before any of them could reach he or his daughter and let the hounds crash into each otherically.


    "Bu!" Cami chastised in frustration.


    "What do you mean my thoughts were too loud? They were just thoughts!"


    The hounds recovered in an instant and started leaping into the air likerge hungry meteors.


    Mchi flicked his hand and the hounds were knocked away by an invisible force and sent crashing through the ruined library.


    "I think we should get out of here. Your moms will skin me alive if they found out I had you exposed to mortal danger before you even took your first steps."


    *disgruntled cooing*


    "No I am not calling you deadweight, munchkin. I''m just saying you shouldn''t be seeing your dad open up monsters from button to belly this early in your life."


    Cami said nothing and instead held up her wed baby hands as if to give her father a loud and obnoxious reminder that she was not now, nor had she ever been, a human infant.


    "...Fine, but don''t tell Sei. She''s the one most worried about your development."


    "Ada?"


    "Your mom with brown hair who sings to you a lot and is the most adamant about you getting proper nutrition."


    "Ah!"


    A loud crashing noise rang through the empty campus as the hounds recovered and leapt through the library Mal had all sent them through.


    "Tell me, munchkin... can you fly with your wings yet?" he asked.


    "Bu!"


    "Alright then, stay up here and watch your old man work for a bit, yea?"


    Mchi begrudgingly loosened his grip on Camille and she flew up into the air with no trouble at all.


    On the other hand, Mchi let his body plummet through the air as he reverted back to his normal appearance.


    Once the hounds saw a single human man adorned in a simple ck outfit and jewelry, their irritation skyrocketed along with their fervent hunger.


    Lunging into the air once again, Mchi smiled as he narrowly avoided their horrifying mouths by a hair''s breadth.


    Angling his body to the side ever so carefully, Mal easily avoided being chomped to death by the first creature and buried his heel right between the eyes of the beast.


    The contents of it''s skull were immediately knocked out of it''s head and spilled onto the shattered concrete in grand fashion.


    ''I hope that wasn''t too violent for her... I should dial it back a bit.''


    Summersaulting through the air, Malnded on the back of another baphomet hound as if he were attempting to ride it; and the creature immediately protested by thrashing about as if it were a bull.


    With the faintest bit of negative energy, Mal made a slight twisting gesture with one hand and the hound''s neck twisted itself nine times over.


    The creature hit the ground a momentter, and instead of having a moment to rest Mal was immediately besieged by the remaining three hounds.


    ''Shit, I''m supposed to be less violent!'' Malmented.


    Ever since he''d gotten his powers and started training, he had only learned how to put things down effectively, not cleanly!


    Who did he have to go to in order to learn some G-rated violence?


    ''Wait. Maybe I can..?''


    Mchi suddenly threw both of his hands out and held the three nightmares firmly in ce.


    Concentrating on their body temperature, he amplified it and amplified it by several hundred degrees until he was literally cooking the creatures from the inside out.


    Today, Mal learned byplete coincidence that the smell of slow cooked nightmare is more appetizing than one would have ever expected.


    It had a sweet yet smoky smell like slow roasted barbecue that practically made his mouth water.


    As the nightmares fell over dead, he seriously contemted walking right up to them and taking a bite out of their nks.


    "This... is a little bit like cannibalism, no..?" he wondered aloud.


    He quickly shook off his macabre thoughts as he heard audible gigglinging from above his head, and he remembered the fact that his young daughter just watched him ughter hounds casually.


    But as he looked up, he found that she was not even paying attention to him, much less his fight with the hounds.


    Instead, she was in the arms of a mature and beautiful woman with an empty silhouette filled only with darkness, stars, and swirling nebs.


    Her little toes were being nibbled on yfully, and judging by the fits of giggles she had fallen into, this had been the most enriching experience of her whole life.


    Smiling wryly, Mchi sat atop the fallen body of the nightmare he''d killed and watched his mother be the best grandmother in the world.


    Eventually, Nyx felt his eyes upon her and she shuddered before she floated down from the air and sat atop the hound''s corpse alongside her son.


    "...You''re looking at me like you''ve seen a ghost."


    "More like a stranger. I''ve hardly seen you since I''ve been back, you know? You kind of ran off on me." Mal said honestly.


    "Hardly that. We''ve been apart for longer than a few das before, haven''t we."


    "I guess." he admitted with a shrug. "But somehow this time around just feels.. different."


    Nyx bit her lip ufortably as she avoided her son''s ever piercing gaze.


    She casually looked up into the sky above their heads and divulged her feelings honestly.


    "I... suppose you could say that I find it very difficult to face you ever since your return. Do not mistake my words as I am ted beyond belief, but... I did not do well in your absence."


    "I heard that no one did." Mal admitted.


    He took Cami away from his mother with great difficulty, and she returned to her normal appearance as she delighted over the receiving of back to back affection.


    Nyx brushed her hair from her face as she bit her lips ufortably.


    "I... fear that I handled things worse than most. I did things that I knew you would abhor in the name of my grief and out of determination to not think about the void losing a child left within my life."


    Nyx lightly touched her son on the hand and stared at him with a serious look in her eye.


    "If you are willing.. and if you promise not to despise me for what I have done...I would share it all with you."


    Smiling, Mal took her hand gratefully and spoke to her in his usual deep and gentle voice.


    "If you tell me about how you slept with Aubrey and her girlfriends, I am going to kill myself."


    "...Maybe I did not miss you as much as I thought."

 Chapter 206: Everthing Out In The Open

    Even though it was hard for her, Nyx listed off every one of her shorings and failures to her son one by one.


    She listed off the days that she spent drinking in agony and even the times that she spent locked in terrible struggle against the sun gods.


    But what required the most effort for her was the difficulty that lie in telling her son that she had let herself be drowned in carnal acts in a misguided bid to keep all of his remaining siblings safe.


    Normally this would have been the part where he tried to kill himself out of sheer difort, but he sensed that his mother was truly trying to be vulnerable in this moment.


    Long after Cami had fallen asleep in his arms, Nyx suddenly closed the distance between herself and her son and ced a hand on his cheek.


    "There have been a number ofmoments in my life where I have been filled with grief over the loss of something dear to me. And at no point in my life have I ever¡­ known pain like I have the day that I suddenly lost the ability to feel you.


    You and your siblings are everything that I live for¡­ to suddenly have even one of you leave my life nearly broke me in ways that I cannot describe to you. I became lost.


    I remembered the moment where I first realized that we were discovered and and I¡­ begrudgingly¡­ foolishly, brought you around those who would only seek to do you harm."


    Mchi began to feel like he knew where his mother''s next words were headed, and he shook his head preemptively.


    "You aren''t to me for-"


    "I should have kept you!" Nyx said as she clenched her fists. "I-I should have never have brought you before them, and I should never have listened to your wanton desire to save the humans from their fates and I should have kept you in my world, in MY arms! Just so that you could be safe!!"


    "¡­Why didn''t you?"


    Nyx gritted her teeth as dark tears fell from her eyes; heartbreaking but more beautiful than crystal.


    "Because if I did that then you would have hated me! And all I want is for you to love me as much as I love you! So I foolishly brought you before those bastards, and she snatched you from me for a year, Mchi! A YEAR!"


    Finally, Mal understood exactly why his mother had been avoiding him and could no longer bear to see him.


    While it wasn''t that she med him for suddenly disappearing, she med herself for letting him go.


    Nyx, the primordial goddess of the night had always been one of the strongest beings in existence on any ne.


    Which also meant she could be the most overbearing.


    She had never had to listen to anyone, as the number of beings who were capable of keeping her in check could be counted on one hand.


    But the one time that she did listen to the other gods and brought her darling child before them, she immediately was made to wish that she hadn''t.


    They started treating her son like he was some sort of monster.


    Behaving as if he were a beast who would gnaw at the heads of all women and children if he were allowed back onto the earth without a leash.


    If he were even allowed to return with his life at all.


    They had nned to subject him to some needless trials that he was far above already, and gave him no opportunity to refuse.


    And then¡­ she lost him.


    Her son that was more precious than anything else was ripped away from her so cruelly, and she could not do anything about it.


    Despite all of her massive power.


    All that she could do was keep her remaining children safe, and she would do so even with her body if need be.


    Aubrey gave into her seduction as well in a moment of mutual grieving, and they spent a week trying their best to forget the hole in their lives before she finally tore free.


    Things became awkward between them after that, and it took a while before they could return to some semnce of normalcy.


    And now that they were¡­. It still was not the normal that Mchi remembered.


    Mal shifted Cami in his grasp and took his mother''s hand.


    "It wasn''t your fault. Who could have known what was going to happen that day? And me going before the gods¡­ that was always going to have to happen sooner orter.


    I mean¡­ I am a nightmare. My daughter is a nightmare. We are beings that are supposed to destroy this world and they would need to know where our loyalties lie. That''s only natural."


    "¡­.Why does that notfort me in the slightest?"


    "Sorry." Mal chuckled. "But that''s just the way it is. We just have to takefort in the fact that I''m back, alive, and keen on making up for all the time I missed. That''s all there is to it."


    Nyx fell silent shortly afterwards, not liking her son''s words but not able to refute them either.


    She was so caught up on the unfairness of their circumstances that shepletely forgot all about the words she''d let slip earlier.


    "Ma."


    "Hmm?"


    Much to her surprise, Nyx found her son staring at her with a rare and very serious look on his face.


    "Let me ask you¡­ earlier you made it sound like you knew the being responsible for snatching me away like a priest would kids at a petting zoo."


    Almost immediately, Nyx flinched a bit before she went back to her usual avoidant nature.


    "A-Ah, did I say something like that? I don''t really remember." Nyx said yfully. "And you and your crude analogies are really-"


    "Ma."


    "Oh alright, alright¡­. I''ll tell you if you give me one little kiss?"


    "Aubrey has given you enough kisses for the both of us for the next 400 years!"


    Nyx suddenly bit her lips and her eyes went hazy as if she were remembering something delightful.


    "She has truly grown up splendidly¡­ her body is exquisite, and the way she uses her tongue is rather- Would you stop it!"


    Nyx was interupted from her fond recollections by the sight of her son creating a short dagger made out of shadows and acting as if he were about to slit his wrists.


    ¡­Although acting was really more of a stretch.


    "Please¡­ no more torture..! Tell me who did this to me or I will paint this sidewalk with my blood." Mal pleaded.


    He even forced tears into his eyes for additional dramatic effect.


    "Can''t have that, can we?" His motherughed.


    With lightning quick reflexes, Nyx ced a kiss on her son''s forehead before he even thought to stop it.


    What followed next was the familiar scene of his skin and flesh burning away into nothingness as he came to resemble a being simr to her.


    A mass of stars, gxies, and swirling nebe that were each more beautiful than thest.


    "¡­ I still want to know who did it."


    "Damn it!"


    Nyx ran her hand through her hair exhaustedly as she tried toe up with a way to dissuade her son from pursuing this particr tidbit of information.


    "My boy¡­ if you are thinking about revenge, it is best you give up on that now. The enemy is not one that you will ever be able to go up against.. and you should be d that is the case."


    Mal had never seen his mother this adamant about something before, but he would not be dissuaded from learning about this so easily.


    And perhaps because Nyx could sense this, she let out a deep sigh as she flopped onto her back.


    "Your grandmother¡­ is the only being in my life that I have evere to fear. And even though I don''t know why¡­ it was her who took you from me back then."

 Chapter 207: Is This a Date or a Mission?!

    Mchi had been back at home for a few weeks now and had gotten rtively adjusted to the life he''d left behind.


    He and Cami had developed a wonderful rtionship and were practically as thick as thieves at any moment of the day.


    But also, he had been getting his love life back on track and showing the women in his life the proper attention they deserved after so long apart.


    Nowadays, it had be difficult for him to even get out of his quarters without having at least one of the girls glued to him.


    Like right now for example.


    On one side, he had Nadine''s head buried in the crook of his neck as she enjoyed the fact that her husband now had an actual body again and thus could be drank from.


    Camille was sitting firmly in the middle of hisp, wearing a small animal onesie and gaining an understanding of the children''s song ''Baby Shark''.


    On the other side of Mal, Bianca wasmenting over all of the uing video game projects that were put on indefinite hold due to the unfortunate end of the world.


    Suddenly, Bianca realized that something was strange about this picture and she raised her brow in confusion.


    "Hey... I thought you said your mother made you an Avatar again. Why are you still flesh and blood right now?"


    This seemed to be the first time that Mal had thought about such a thing judging by how he looked down at himself and then back at her like he couldn''t realize he hadn''t thought of this plight sooner.


    "I don''t know..? Maybe what Gam-Gam did is irreversible in some way."


    "...Are you seriously referring to the primordial chaos as ''Gam-Gam''?"Bianca asked in exhaustion.


    "Uh-huh. Do you think she''d like ''Granny C'' better?"


    "...I think if you suddenly get smited out of existence one day, I won''t need to pretend to be oblivious about what happened."


    Mchi chuckled wryly as he went back to watching Camille be mesmerized by the miracle of animation.


    When his mother first told him about the culprit behind his supernatural kidnapping, he was honestly stunned and unsure of exactly how to feel.


    For a while, he was just angry.


    A year of his life was just stolen away in an instant by a being that even his own mother had told him that he could not and should not try to go against.


    Something so far above hisprehensionthat he was next to nothing in front of it.


    The frustration of knowing that he was never fated to have any sort of retribution for his lost time had taken a while for him to get over.


    There was a sudden ding at the elevator and the group looked up when they realized someone had dropped by to visit.


    Looking up, they found Rose and Aubreying in and looking quitefortable together.


    "There''s the brother I was looking for!" Aubrey said.


    "¡­I''m not giving you any clothes."


    "I didn''te to ask you for anything, jackass!"


    Rose chuckled as she leaned over the couch in her usual friendly manner.


    "We came to see if you wanted to go on a mission with us. I know you haven''t really been anywhere since you''ve been back and I thought you might be going a little stir crazy."


    Truthfully, Mal had begun to feel just the teensiest bit ustrophobic.


    He figured that it would be nice for him to get out of the house for just a bit and stretch his limbs for a while with friends.


    "Alright¡­ how long will we be gone?"


    "No more than a day! I know you aren''t too keen on being away from home for too long right now."


    "And can I ask what this mission is?"


    "Of course! We''re going to be¡­"


    -


    A few hourster, Mal was stepping into the elevator to head upstairs and meet the small squad he''d be going out on a mission with.


    He found them in the hangar leaning against one of their modified off road vehicles, and he finally realized that this picture didn''t look quite right.


    Aubrey and Rose had changed out of usual clothes and now wore matching ck gear with silver breasttes.


    Standing next to them, Serana and Ryo were equally glued together wearing equally obnoxiously matching gear.


    "I thought this was a mission¡­ but it feels more like a double date with me as the third wheel."


    The group of four looked up in surprise; clearly not even noticing Mal''s approach.


    Such a thing only made him feel worse.


    Sei was working in the cafe; cooking meals for the whole base and earning no small amount of praise.


    Luna was leadingbat lessons at the moment with a few of the other members.


    Anna had a moment of inspirationst night and had been painting ever since.


    Bianca was working in the forge; repairing broken gear and starting to work on any requests that had beeen put in.


    And Nadine was taking care of their daughter; and likely getting a suffocating amount of snuggles in the process.


    For the first time in a long time, Mal was stuck living as a single man.


    He''d forgotten just how shitty it could really feel.


    "Oh? It seems like you''ve already gotten your pairings picked out already¡­ Wonderful."


    A small smile crossed Mal''s face as he turned around to find Joanne approaching the group; also dressed.


    However, it was quickly dashed away and reced with concern.


    "Might I ask what you''re doing here?"


    "I was going insane in my quarters, there are only so many reruns of reality tv one can watch before they start to lose it, you know?


    I needed something to do so I asked your sister if she didn''t mind letting me take part in any uing missions."


    Out of the corner of his eye, Mchi red at Aubrey and caused her to shrink back in fear behind her girlfriend.


    "Don''t be like that." Joanne gave Mal a small punch to the stomach that wasn''t actually intended to hurt him.


    "I''m fine, alright? I''m more than capable of getting back to work and pulling my weight around here."


    Before Mal could say anything in response, Serana suddenly appeared between them and wrapped her arms around them both.


    "Well hey! Now that Mal is here he can protect you and make sure that nothing unfortunate happens! Isn''t that right?"


    "I don''t need-"


    "I was gonna do that anyway. But then again she already knows that."


    Joanne scoffed and turned her head away out of embarrassment, but Mchi noticed that the tips of her ears had started to turn red.


    "Well, alright then! Let''s get goi-"


    "Waittt!!"


    A familiar voice called out to the group, and an individual ran up who made Mal''s blood cold.


    Mnie panted and wiped her brow as she came to a stop directly in front of Aubrey and Rose.


    "I heard you guys were going on a mission! Can Ie by any chance?"


    "I¡­ erm.."


    "W-Well¡­"


    Both girls froze up somewhat as they tried to discreetly look at Mal out of the corners of their eyes.


    However, he didn''t show any discernible signs of being ufortable and instead his face was rather nk.


    "If¡­ everyone else is fine with it, then I don''t mind."


    "Neither do I."


    "It''s okay with me."


    Atst, the group turned their attention to Mchi and waited for him to decide the fate of the young girl.


    ''Maybe¡­ I should have just kept staying home.''

 Chapter 208: Awkward Car Ride

    Sometimes, life can be a bitch.


    You can have hundreds of thousands of dors of debt that you didn''t umte passed onto you by a family member who died, and are forced to assume responsibility for all of it.


    You might get that special moment with a girl that you''ve had a massive crush on; but when you open her legs it smell like a seafood boil.


    You could win thirteen regr season football games and STILL miss the top four slots for yoff contention.


    However, there is very little that canpare to the awkwardness of sitting in the third row of a car, between your ex and a girl you currently have feelings for.


    This seating chart wasn''t done intentionally, but everyone else in the vehicle was certainly making sure that they enjoyed every moment of this delightful ident.


    By nature, Mnie could be a somewhat chatty person and right now she was trying to interact with the one person in the car she didn''t know: Mchi.


    "So you''re the guy who went missing, huh? You sure are popr around here." She said kindly.


    "I guess.."


    "You don''t seem like the talkative type though. Does having shadow powers make you all broody like that or is this just a normal thing for you?"


    Serana, Aubrey, and Joanne all snickered as Mchi felt his brow twitch of it''s own volition.


    "...I''m just like that I guess."


    "Eh??? That''s boring though!"


    "Sorry to disappoint-"


    Mal felt his phone buzz in his pocket and pulled it out against his better judgment.


    Serana : Don''t be so mean to our little amnesiac! She''s just trying to be friendly with you.


    Mchi: That''s the reason we broke up, she was too damn friendly.


    Serana : If you were going to hold that against her you wouldn''t have saved her.


    Mchi : Says who? I can be mad she cheated on me and still not want her to get beat on by some asshole.


    Serana : She doesn''t remember!


    Mchi : I do.


    "Why are you being so petty?"


    When Mal felt Joanne whisper in his ear, he felt all of the blood in his body rush to one specific area.


    He turned his head ever so slightly and found Joanne''s face dangerously close to his.


    "All of the women you have around you, yet you still have animosity for your first girlfriend?"


    "Of course." He whispered back. "I don''t really care what the reason is, cheating is despicable. No matter what kind of problems she had, I will never forgive her for going to another man to seek help when she could have juste to me."


    "I heard you didn''t have any money back then. What would have been the point of her telling you?"


    "I was already going to bed hungry to make sure that Aubrey ate every day. There is nothing I would not have done to assist her if she only asked."


    "You are such a weird kid... Going above and beyond for everyone like this is hardly the norm."


    "I take care of those I love. You''re going to tell me that I''m wrong for that?"


    Joanne noticed that Mal''s lips were beginning to get closer and closer to hers with every passing second.


    She was embarrassed by the fact that he was really about to kiss her in a car full of people but when she remembered that she was bold enough to grab him in front of her daughter, this no longer seemed so daunting.


    "No.. you aren''t wrong at all."


    The lips of the two had just barely scraped together when Aubrey suddenly hit the brakes hard and nearly flung everyone from their seats.


    "Out of the car! Enemy inbound!"


    Mchi grumbled more than a few unkind words as he and everyone else inside got out hastily.


    Flying in the sky at 12'' o clock was arge banshee ss nightmare in the form of arge bird-like creature with horns and the face of a bat.


    As soon as Joanne and Mchi saw the creature, their frowns deepened as if they felt slighted.


    Their very hot and passionate kiss was interrupted by the ugliest thing either of them had everid eyes on, and now they were expected to fight it.


    "Alright guys, I guess we can begin our mission a little early today! Let''s hunt down these invaders and make them useful!" Rose said proudly.


    To properly kill nightmares, the phrase, ''fight fire with fire''es to mind.


    Most all of them have an absurdly high regeneration rate, and the only method that had been fully proven to hamper that was the use age of the bones of other nightmares to create weapons.


    Of course, Mchi hadn''t realized this until a few hours ago, as he had been killing everything just fine before now.


    Although when he thought about it; this was likely due to the circumstances behind his altered genes.


    "You wanna deal with it or should I?" he asked as he stretched.


    "I''m not that dependent on you yet."Joanne said somewhat sarcastically. "We''ll go together."


    "Fine by me. Ladies first."


    "As if you were fast enough for it to be any other way."


    Joanne disappeared from her ce beside him in the blink of an eye, and Mal had no choice but to smile as he chased after her.


    Like Anna, her mother showed signs of making a rather quick bounce back from being imprisoned for almost four months.


    However, Mal was only just realizing that Joanne may have had just a small amount of suppressed rage inside of her all this time as well.


    As soon as she came within striking distance of the nightmare creature, she drew her fist back and struck it firmly in the nose.


    Though Joanne was not as strong as the other girls who were empowered from giving their bodies to Mchi, she was still a pretty tough cookie in her own right.


    The blow she gave to the bat creature certainly didn''t tickle, and since the noses were the most sensitive part of bats, the effect was even worse.


    The nightmare was immediately sent reeling backwards; causing it to run right into Mchi''s range.


    Landing atop the head of the creature, he stomped on it hard enough to immediately send it catapulting towards the ground.


    "Keep it down for me?" He asked as Joanne came to his side.


    "Only if you ask nicely."


    "...With or without my cloth-"


    "I-I''ll do it, I''ll do it, forget I said anything!"


    Joanne produced her brilliant white wings from her back and her eyes began to shimmer with a golden light.


    She held up her hand and twelve giant swords of golden light appeared in the air.


    Lowering her hand in a dramatic motion, she dropped all of the swords onto the bat''s wings; setting it up like he was on a high school dissection tray.


    "Thank you, love."


    "Yea, yea... Just do whatever you want quickly, alright? What do you need it immobilized for anyway?"


    "I wanted to try something." Mal said mischievously.


    He closed his eyes to concentrate, and an absurd amount of negative energy started to leave his body.


    However, instead of just simmering around his figure, it started to go up into the sky.


    The daylight that Nyx had returned to this world disappeared in an instant once again- at least in this specific area.


    Out of nowhere, the clouds parted way for a massive red and ck hand that coursed with the power of negativity and shadow.


    And since the two are often synonymous with each other, their powers only became amplified when used in conjunction like this.


    The hand was sorge that it was easily able to fit the entire bird-like creature in it''s palm with no issue at all.


    The creature started to panic and flee when the shadowy hand sped around it''s body and tightened it''s grip.


    The time it took for Mal to crush the bat with it''s new and devastating power was abysmally short, but the sound of such arge beast''s bones being crunched up would linger for forever.


    Once he was done, Mal wiped his brow of sweat as he looked over at Joanne to get her thoughts.


    "Show off." She muttered.


    "Aww you''re not impressed? I tried really hard for you though." He said as he pulled her closer.


    "...Well... Your effort deserves to be rewarded I guess."


    -


    As Mnie watched Joanne and Mchi start kissing in midair, she folded her arms as she realized that something seemed to be wrong.


    The contrast between this man now and the one she met in the car was just too different!


    Even when he was fighting the monster he seemed to be yful, so why was he acting like she was some kind of gue!


    Why didn''t he like her!?


    She hadn''t even done anything to him!


    ''Unless..''


    "Hey... That guy... we know each other, right?"


    When she saw all of the remaining girls in her group flinch, she knew that she had hit the nail on the head.


    "Why is he acting like this then?! Were we enemies?!" Mnie questioned.


    "You used to date." Ryo said nkly.


    "Babe!" Serana cried as she punched him.


    "What? She was going to find out at some point." he shrugged.


    Mnie felt her head start to spin dramatically at this revtion.


    "We... used to date? Why would no one tell me that?! Why in god''s name did we break up?!"


    Aubrey knew that she had to save this situation somehow, so she gritted her teeth as she tried toe up with an excuse.


    She finally thought of one that seemed believable, but it was not what she would call ''casualty free''.


    "You guys broke up... because you caught him jerking off to pictures of your mom."

 Chapter 209: Who Cheated on Who?!

    As Mnie allowed the full weight Aubrey''s words to sink in, she couldn''t help but feel a slightly sickened feeling spreading though her chest.


    "My... mom? Are you kidding me??"


    Since it was already toote to back out, Aubrey had no choice but to keep her story going.


    And pray that it was not ruined by Serana and Rose''s snickering.


    "W-Well you see him with Joanne, right? He has this thing for older women and your mom is kind of like his exact type soo.."


    Finally, Mal and Joanne chose that moment to descend from the sky and rejoin their friends below.


    However, they easily noticed how weird the mood had be.


    ""...Did we miss something?""


    Red faced, Mnie pointed a trembling finger at the unsuspecting Mchi like he was her most hated enemy.


    "Y-You... How could you cheat on me with my mother?!"


    Dumbstruck and blindsided, only two words could fall out of Mal''s mouth "...Excuse me?"


    "I already know everything! E-Even if I don''t exactly remember, how could you cheat on me!? Scumbag!"


    "...What?"


    "I don''t know why I would date you anyways since you aren''t even my type! Anyone who looks at you can tell you''re a total manwhore!"


    "...Que?"


    "I-I like shy and medium ugly guys who are sweet and soft spoken! You are thest person I would ever want to be with!"


    For some reason, thatstment really ended up sending Mchi over the edge.


    A vein bulged in his forehead and he finally let the truth fly free from his lips.


    "You were the one who cheated on me, Mel!"


    Suddenly all of the animosity left Mnie''s face and was instead reced with palpable confusion. "I... what?"


    *Rumble*


    In the next moment, the earth around the group started to tremble furiously as if the entire world was about toe undone.


    Nearby ruined buildings and structures that had already fallen were now crumbling into even smaller pieces and falling from the sky like hail.


    The group immediately forgot all about whatever useless spat they may have been having and instead circled around each other with their weapons drawn.


    From underground,rge centipede-like creatures came tunneling up around the group.


    Instead of the usual mandibles and beady eyes, these creatures had dark grey desated faces of different human individuals.


    The group wasted no time in guessing their sses and instead focused on neutralizing the threat in front of them.


    "Partner up, do not stray!" Aubrey said authoritatively.


    Her eyes started to glow with a strange green light and out of nowhere multiple tornadoes started to form in the air.


    They touched down on top of the creatures themselves and either knocked them onto the ground or sent them flying into disarray.


    It did not take very long for the group to spring into action, and surprisingly Mnie was the first to rush towards a iling centipede.


    The mark on her forehead appeared soon after she started running, but it was a bit different than thest time Mal had seen it.


    It was a lot darker, and now coursed with a red light that did seem slightly ominous.


    With a loud roar that seemed to be driven by more than just the enemy in front of her, Mnie let out a burst of destructive power from her little body.


    The energy took the form of an outward moving force field of energy.


    However, as soon as it struck two of the creatures, their very flesh started to burn as they were tossed back into the air.


    With two of the creatures airborne, Ryo and Serana got into a simple back to back formation as they revealed the weapons tucked on their waist bands.


    Both of them were in possession of a set of gleaming ck daggers that contained unparalleled sharpness.


    ''...Copycats.'' Mal thought as he turned his head away.


    The couple drew their weapons at exactly the same time, and threw them precisely at the airborne centipedes.


    Just as they''d seen someone close to them do a thousand times before, they used theirbined telekic force to cut through the creatures cleanlyand with little pushback.


    In no more than twenty seconds, pieces of cubed nightmare were raining down onto the ground.


    Meanwhile, Aubrey hadn''t exactly stopped at summoning tornadoes.


    From out of nowhere, she pulled our arge ck scythe that seemed like it was too big for her body.


    Right beside her, Rose pulled out arge ck spear that seemed to be every bit as dangerous as the woman wielding it.


    Completely in sync, the two women rushed at two of the closest nightmares to them without any fear on their faces.


    Aubrey performed a massive leap and started running up the underbelly of the centipede.


    Letting her scythe trail behind her, she carved up the softer underbelly and didn''t stop until she reached the head at the top.


    With great ease and a little too rxed of a smile, she performed a somersault in the air.


    Once she was in striking distance, she buried the de of her scythe between the creature''s eyes, leaving only the wooden handle still visible.


    There clearly seemed to be something special about the weapon, as the nightmare centipede did not even make a sound as it fell over and died; nearly ttening the rest of the group in the process.


    Rose finished off her opponent in simr fashion, and soon it fell right on top of Aubrey''s kill inedic fashion.


    Rose hurriedly put away her weapon and caught her girlfriend out of the air before giving her a warm smile.


    "You did great!"


    "You weren''t so bad yourself~" Aubrey replied slyly.


    As Mal watched his sister be a gushy maiden that he didn''t recognize, he gave Joanne a small nudge.


    "Hey.. exactly when and how did that happen?"


    As a response, Joanne only shrugged. "Like three months after you disappeared. We were all hurting, and all looking for ways to ease the pain. Rose was there for your sister when she needed her the most and things just sort of happened I guess."


    "Huh.. How about that. Maybe my disappearing was good for a few things."


    "Go missing again and I''ll kill you."


    "What if we go missing together?"


    "...Shut up and watch your back." Joanne muttered with red cheeks.


    BOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM!!!


    The ded appendage of a centipede came flying at Mal out of nowhere, but he easily caught it with one and and held it above his head.


    Other than the fact that his feet had been buried a few feet in the ground, he seemed to be totally fine.


    "Thanks for the warning, love!"


    "...Whatever."


    Malughed and prepared to respond when suddenly a change urred in the area.


    He could not see where exactly it hade from.


    He only blinked and it was suddenly there.


    But standing right beside Joanne and staring at him very intently was a child, seemingly no older than eight.


    However, a single nce was all that one would need to confirm that this was far from a normal child.


    It was a nightmare, and an intelligent one at that.

 Chapter 210: A Phantasmal Nightmare

    Mal couldn''t understand the feeling of danger that he felt, but he knew he had to act on it.


    With a shove, he sent the centipede he was holding onto flying through the air like a kite, and he immediately rushed to grab Joanne and put some space between them and the creature in the form of a child.


    He very nearly gave her whish with how fast he moved, but there was absolutely no way in hell that he was going to letJoanne get so much as a scratch ever again.


    A pool of shadows opened up beneath the two of them and he immediately dropped her into it- sending her safety onto the couch in his living room.


    He threw out his hand to get everyone else to safety too, but in that instant the child appeared right in front of him and grabbed his wrist to stop him.


    It''s unnerving red eyes bore into Mchi relentlessly, almost as if it were looking for some kind of exnation on his face.


    When it found none, it''s frown only deepened.


    It spoke in anguage that Mal had never heard, but easily understood.


    "Who... or what... are you? I do not recognize your bloodline."


    By now, Mal was certain that the creature in front of him was an intelligent nightmare, just like him.


    But also, much more powerful than he was.


    To such a degree that he hardly even considered fighting and instead was only focused on getting his people out of here.


    "Mchi!"


    "What''s going on?!"


    "Why is that kid so fast?!"


    The rest of Mal''s group was already running to approach him, and he started to panic a bit internally.


    "Go home!"


    At Mal''s behest, the shadows rose up from the ground and swallowed all five of them in an instant- sending them right back to the base.


    "You use this world''s power..? How are you even capable of such a thing?" The child asked in a robotic yet clearly stunned tone.


    Once Mal put a safe enough distance between himself and thestrange child, he warily tried to begin some kind of conversation with it.


    "Don''t know if you can understand me or not... but I''m a different kind of cocktail than whatever you are."


    Like Mchi, at first the child did not seem to understand thenguage his words were in, but the intent was conveyed all the same.


    "Not like me... but like me..? borate."


    Mal transformed into a seven foot tall nightmare with four snake-like tails and a face containing only a mouthful of sharp teeth.


    Possibly out of respect, the child changed too.


    But Mal really...really wished that he wouldn''t have.


    Standing above him now was a creature sorge that it was taller than most buildings he had ever seen, and it had a body that spanned over several miles in size.


    It was a crab-like creature, with six legs covered in hard ck armor that looked to be nigh imprable.


    It''s upper body was somewhat humanoid, with a spidery torso and enormous ws that seemed like they could have cut a city in half in one fell swoop.


    While it did not possess very much muscr definition, it hardly seemed to need it.


    It''srge and powerful jaws seemed like they were more than capable of crunching up anything in their reach.


    Burning red eyes stared down at Mchi with a weight that felt like it could crush his soul- further cementing this fear that he felt within him.


    He was d that his digestive system was basically just for decoration at this point, because he surely would have shit himself if it hadn''t been.


    "...Small. Were it not for your intelligence I would not think you a high breed."


    ''Yea, thanks for rubbing it in, big guy...''


    Mal wanted to back away, but his legs would no longer move.


    This was a phantasmal nightmare, and a real one unlike him.


    Mal only briefly revisited the thought of fighting against the creature before immediately dismissing the idea.


    That would be so monumentally fantastically stupid of him that he didn''t even harbor the notion for more than half a second.


    He knew that the girls would never forgive him if he died so stupidly.


    ''My girls..''


    The memory of the women he loved more than anything else in his life made him snap back to reality, albeit only briefly.


    Now that his mind was a bit more clear, he did the only thing that he could have in this situation.


    He ran.


    Since his body was currently engulfed in the shadows produced when the spider nightmare showed up, all he had to do was let his body fall back and carry himself home.


    Thest thing he saw before the portal closed was the very confused and somewhat exhausted looking face of the nightmare he was so desperately escaping from.


    Once he was gone, the creature shrank back to normal size almost instantaneously and kept looking at the spot where Mchi disappeared.


    "Not a talkative one, are you? A pity I still require answers."


    -


    Mal''s back hit the cold floor of his quarters and he immediately changed back to normal upon realizing he was safe.


    Well... moderately safe.


    ...From the nightmare at least.


    "YOU BASTARD!"


    "ACK!"


    Out of nowhere, Joanne leapt on top of Mchi and her hands found her way around his throat.


    Like a scene from a famous cartoon, she began to strangle him with all of her frustrations channeled into the act.


    "How could you just toss me aside like that?! I''m not ipetent you know? You could have let me help you!"


    Gradually, Mal overpowered Joanne and removed her hands from around his neck so that he could actually speak.


    "If you''re expecting an apology from me.. you won''t get one. Not about this."


    "What does that mean!?"


    "It means that I care about you! And even if I can not guarantee my own life I will always make sure you have yours! Nothing else matters to me, Joanne!"


    Joanne ground her teeth together until it seemed like she was going to turn them into powder.


    A wave of emotions washed over her chest; all of which she felt unable to contain.


    She grabbed Mchi roughly by his shirt cor before she kissed him forcefully and with unhidden desperation.


    And though he was surprised, Mal did not pull away from her.


    Hell, right now he felt like he really needed this.


    But when their bodies were pressed so close together like this, it was hard for Joanne not to notice the state his body was in.


    "Hey... why is your heart beating so fast?" she asked exhaustedly.


    "Tell youter.."


    Mal quickly pulled Joanne''s lips back to his and their kiss resumed, quickly picking up intensity and fervor.


    *tter*


    The two lovebirds froze dead in their tracks as they heard the sound of something being dropped.


    Looking up, they found Camille and Nadine with their heads peaking out of a doorway.


    Cami seemed to have identally dropped her bottle of milk, and in doing so alerted Mal and Joanne to the fact that they were being spied on.


    "Uh-oh..."


    Nadine grimaced slightly as she picked up her daughter''s bottle.


    "...Cami honey, remind mommy to teach you about stealth as soon as you can go to the bathroom on your own."

 Chapter 211: Come Outside, I Won’t Jump You

    "I''ve never seen anything like it before... It was the first time in a while that I can recall feeling afraid like that." Mal said honestly.


    He was sitting in the living room of his quarters, using his daughter like a therapy pet as he gave a brief summary of previous events to not only the women in his life, but also to the group he''d just gone on a mission with.


    Unsurprisingly, they had alle down here looking for some sort of exnation after Mal had suddenly chucked them through a hole in the ground without warning.


    "It was huge... and ugly." He said with a shiver.


    "How ugly exactly?" Bianca asked.


    "T.I''s wife."


    "Damn."


    The group sucked in their teeth as they visualized the horrifying creature, and understood firsthand why he was so traumatized.


    "It asked me.. about my bloodline. Made it seem like it wanted to identify me but couldn''t."


    "Identify..?" Sei said worriedly. "Does this mean that they have a system for ssification that is different from our own?"


    "This is incredible... I have never heard of a nightmare disying such intelligence, much less alluding to some kind of society. " Luna muttered.


    Mchi was d that they were all finding this so damned interesting, because he was pretty sure that the memory of everything he had just experienced was going to live in his head rent free for quite a while.


    He suddenly lifted up Cami, and brought her small and cute face closer to his own.


    "What do you think about all this, munchkin? Any bells being rung about an otherworldly society?"


    "Bu..."


    "Yea, I figured that." Mal said honestly.


    Part of the reason that they were able to form the rtionship that they did was because his blood had somehow acted as a barrier that protected her from the neuralwork of other nightmares.


    Though how exactly that happened, even he was not sure.


    But because it had, Cami never developed the full ego or knowledge of her people and who they were, or even what their goal was.


    "I''ve been meaning to ask, but... Can you really understand her gibberish?" Aubrey asked.


    Mal gave his daughter a funny look, almost as if he hadn''t realized she hadn''t been speaking in perfect English this whole time.


    Turning back to his sister, he smiled as he held up Camille''s face beside his own. "What can I say? We just have that special Father-Daughter connection."


    "Ada!"


    Everyone else rolled their eyes, save for Mal''s fianc¨¦''s.


    No matter how many times they saw it, they were constantly amazed and enamored with the rtionship that Mal had formed with his daughter in such a short time.


    It really was touching to see, and reaffirmed the choice they had all made in choosing him.


    "So... back to the topic of this talking nightmare.. Are you going to try tomunicate with it again? Maybe you can learn why they are attacking us." Serana asked.


    Mal wouldn''t lie and say that he hadn''t thought of her reasoning himself already, but he didn''t want to sit here and act like he wasn''t a bit worried about what he would do if things became hostile.


    He got away the first time, but he wasn''t exactly certain he''d manage to pull off that magic trick once again.


    And he already knew from his battle with Arias over a year ago that nightmares were fully capable of inflicting harm to avatars.


    He had seen so himself, right when Shear had gotten the drop on the leader of the new day and stabbed him right in the chest, sending him toiling into a fit of agony.


    Thest thing Mal wanted was for something like that to happen to him on a much grander scale.


    If he was going to go against that thing, he was going to need to have some way to defend against it first.


    Or at least learn some new tricks to close the distance in power between them.


    "Just... give me a little time first, yea? I want to make sure I can be ready incase things go south."


    "Of course, don''t pressure yourself. All any of us really want is for you to be safe and not get swallowed up by some creature again." Serana said honestly.


    Mal smiled wryly as he took in the sight of everyone in front of him nodding in agreement.


    "Aww, you all are worried about me. It''s so touching I think I might-"


    "Shut the fuck up."


    "Yea, yea."


    -


    Night had already fallen on the exciting day not too long ago, and most in the base were beginning to fall asleep.


    But of course, this was the time where Mchi became the most active and was in need of stimuli to pass the time.


    Normally, this came in the form of sex or unclothed cuddle sessions.


    But right now, all five of Mal''s women were sleeping in bed already; as they had already been exhausted by him earlier in the day.


    Currently, Mal was in Camille''s room, lying on the floor beside her crib.


    Being a baby seemed to be really exhausting for the former nightmare, and she was sleeping nearly as peacefully as her mothers were.


    While his daughter slept, Mal had his nose buried in another textbook from Bianca''s stash, this one pertaining to gravity and the theories around it.


    After reading this book for almost an hour, he hade to one, inescapable conclusion.


    "I am going to fucking kill myself."


    Mchi Saint was a lover of the arts, psychology, literature, and some history.


    Math and sciences absolutely weren''t his thing, and every time he tried to understand it he felt like eating a bullet through his nose.


    This was all so frustrating!


    Letting out an exhausted sigh, Mchi closed the book and simply lie on the floor staring up at the deep ck ceiling that was painted with stars.


    "This¡­ is impossible. How am I supposed to-"


    ''I''m here to finish our conversation. Come outside.''


    Immediately, Mal''s blood ran cold as he sat up on the floor in clear distress.


    He wasn''t sure if he was imagining things or if the voice in his head was really the same as the creature he only barely escaped from this afternoon.


    His heartbeat was thumping so loudly that he was sure he would wake up everyone in the house if he didn''t calm it down.


    ''No, that''s what I should do..! I have to get everyone out of here before-''


    Mal had just begun to reach in Cami''s crib to get her to safety when the voice from before yed in his mind once again.


    ''You have no need to disturb the slumber of everyone sleeping here. I only want to converse, nothing more. There will be no violence on this day.''

 Chapter 212: Blood, Water, NKai

    Mal found his way out onto the dark mountain peak that made up his home and slowly worked his way towards the ''guest'' that was already waiting for him.


    Just like before, the nightmare was in the form of a young boy with deep ck skin and unsettling red eyes.


    He wore a kid''s ''Paw Patrol'' t-shirt with matching blue shorts and dirty tennis shoes that lit up whenever he took a step.


    He would have looked unbearably cute if he were not the most frightening thing that Mchi had ever seen in his entire life.


    "...You fear me." The child noticed.


    "Kinda hard not to."


    The child seemed to take some offense to Mal''s words, as his brow crinkled in frustration.


    Mal''s entire life briefly shed before his eyes and he realized that he probably shouldn''t shit talk the one being on his earth capable of killing him.


    "...Sorry."


    The child seemed to rx if only just a little, and it''s face quickly returned to normal.


    "I wish to understand your origins and how exactly something like you came to be. It took me several hours to pinpoint your precise location through your lingering psychic waves. Why can I not recognize you?"


    "Jeez, right to the hard questions, huh?" Mchi said as sweat formed along his brow.


    "I was not aware that they were difficult... And you are unusually expressive for a N''Kai."


    "Is that what we are called?"


    "You... truly have no knowledge of us? Of all that we are?"


    "...No." Mal admitted honestly.


    The alien boy gave Mal a sort of''wtf'' look before immediately deciding that he would not allow him to put off the exnation any longer.


    "Start talking. Now."


    With no other option, Mal divulged the story of how he became the living nightmare that he was today.


    Starting with how he and Cami were identally bonded when she was still a full nightmare and the rtionship the two of them formed as a result.


    The child listened to everything without saying a word, although he did ce his hand to his chin and mutter some things to himself.


    Mchi''s story ended with the telling of how he absorbed Shear''s corpse to memorialize her, but ended up integrating her instead and keeping her soul housed within his body.


    Upon realizing that she was living inside of him, the two came to a meaningful understanding and Shear left his body for good, only to be reborn as his daughter who was part human, vampire, and n''kai.


    When it was all over, Mchi was staring at the child with somewhat of an expectant look.


    If he was honest, he was sure that the creature was going to attack him for being an abomination.


    And he had already made certain contingencies incase that were to happen.


    "Miraculous¡­ So you are a new bloodline then? How very unique indeed¡­"


    "¡­Is that¡­all you have to say?"


    "You were expecting more?"


    "Little bit, yea."


    "I told you that there would be no violence. Why would you think I would harm you?"


    "I''m¡­ a little different from you."


    Again, the child nodded with a thoughtful expression that was well beyond his years.


    "This is true, but no matter how you came to be, you are now N''Kai. N''Kai is blood. N''Kai do not harm other N''Kai."


    Mchi figured that he must have looked like one of those really old cartoon characters with the way that his jaw nearly fell off his face.


    No fighting, no struggle, no running, there was nothing.


    All that he had to do was tell the scary little boy his life story and he was given a lifetime pass to keep his neck.


    It was so difficult to believe that he felt like his brain needed to be rebooted.


    "Do you have any questions for me?"


    Mchi stared at the child, a bit less afraid of him now than he was before.


    He sat down on a nearby rock overlooking the waterfall that ran down his home as he tried to think about the overwhelming sea of information he wanted to know.


    Eventually, he settled on the most basic question.


    "What is your name?"


    "...You may call me Tsath."


    "Alright, Tsath...What are we?"


    "We are N''Kai. Our purpose is to expand across various dimensions and worlds and make others N''Kai."


    "...And why do we do that?"


    "Left to their own devices, other beings are destructive. Greedy. They abhor all that is different from them, so we strip them of all that they are and make them N''Kai."


    Tsath went on to exin that there are two different types of N''Kai.


    Lowbreeds and Highbreeds.


    While it may sound super elitist and stuck up, the truth is it was less divisive than one would have thought.


    Highbreed N''Kai are those who are born with their own ego and personalities (although they admittedly are not that much different from one another).


    They have a short list of abilities, but shared among them is the ability to parasite beings and make their own personal hive mind of creatures, effectively turning them into lowbreed N''Kai.


    Mal asked if they could choose how much of a creature''s ego they could leave intact within them, and he responded by saying, ''Yes, but why would you want to?''


    It seemed like a question of genuine curiosity that Mal couldn''t really hope to answer right now, so he just elected to keep going with his questions for the sake of time.


    In addition, Mal learned that the strength of a highbreed N''Kai is proportional to the amount of beings it has parasited.


    "And, just for rification.. How many beings are within your hive mind at the moment?" Mchi asked suspiciously.


    "Exactly 62 Trillion. Approximately four world''s worth."


    "Jesus fucking christ..."


    Now, Mal understood why he was so afraid of Tsath before.


    He couldn''t catch up to his strength in thousands of lifetimes, even if he tried.


    "This is all... so damn craz-"


    "Ah, they''reing."


    Tsath suddenly looked up into the sky from the north and a barely noticeable light of excitement shone within his eyes.


    Suddenly, Mal heard multiple sonic boonsing from the distance and four figures likeets started to close in on their location.


    "Who ising exactly...?"


    "The other high breeds on this world. They wanted to meet you and they bring gifts."


    "...Gifts...?"


    "Ah, well we had no knowledge of your birth beforehand, so now we celebrate the arrival of another new lineage into the legion of lightless day."


    Mal stuck his fingers in both ears to ensure that they were properly cleaned before he rephrased his question to ensure that he hadn''t misheard something.


    "Are you... throwing me a birthday party?"


    "I suppose you may say that, yes."

 Chapter 213: ….It Was That Easy?

    Mchi watched as themets approaching from the north drew closer and closer to he and Tsath''s position.


    Just as it seemed like they were going to barrel into the mountain, the group of four stopped on a dime and floated down gently from the sky.


    Mal got a good look at a group of ck skinned, robotic looking beings withvarious inhuman features that betrayed their identity loud and clear.


    Unlike Tsath, these actually looked like adults.


    They were not egregiously beautiful beings, but they all possessed distinctive webbed hands with dark ws and various odd protrusionsing from their bodies; such as tentacles, spidery legs and the like.


    They disyed a unique array of glowing eye colors with ck sclera- ranging from the already seen red to the eerily pale blue.


    "Is this the one?"


    "He seems small. Malnourished."


    "Remember, he is part human."


    "Strange¡­ so very strange."


    Mchi allowed the neers to circle him like an animal at a zoo.


    Though it wasn''t really as if he had all that much choice in the matter, since every single person here could just tear him into two like he was a sheet of paper.


    *snap!*


    Suddenly, the sound of a twig snapping rang out from the clearing behind them, and Mchi saw something that made his heart stop and his blood run cold.


    Bianca had woken up at some point, wearing her usual ck sports bra and baggy grey sweatpants.


    However, her arms were filled with their sleepy yet adorable looking bundle of joy in a bear onesie.


    As soon as Bianca saw the swarm of inhumans surrounding the fianc¨¦ she hade looking for, her heart briefly became caught in her throat.


    "What the f-"


    "Ada!"


    In an instant, Mchi appeared right in front of his fianc¨¦ and child protectively and held out his hand to stop any of the other nightmares from moving.


    "Don''t¡­ touch them."


    Just like that, Mal forgot all about his own weakness.


    Power differences aside, he would fight tooth and nail to prevent so much as a hair from being out of ce on either of the girls'' heads.


    "¡­Your interpretation skills need work. I have already told you N''Kai do not harm other N''Kai. May we see the baby now?" Tsath said with a somewhat irritated voice.


    "It has been ages since I have seen a highbreed child.."


    "She is very¡­ what is the word¡­ cutie patootie?"


    "Her cheeks are like dumplings¡­"


    "¡­" Mal had never felt so embarrassed in his entire life.


    Like extended family at a barbecue, all five of the N''Kai swarmed around his fianc¨¦ while moring to get a look at the baby in her arms.


    "W-What the fuck is going on?!"


    "Bu! Uwah!?"


    When Cami suddenly woke Bianca out of her sleep with her crying, she was rmed to find her charming fianc¨¦ missing from the bedroom, but one of his portals was hovering above their bed like it was waiting to swallow them on a dime.


    And when she came up here to look for him, she found him surrounded by a bunch of alien looking creatures that looked like fucking robots!


    What the fuck was going on?!


    "Why did you ask me if it was possible to leave a parasited one''s ego intact when you have already done it?" Tsath suddenly asked.


    "I..what..?" Mchi asked.


    "Your lowbreed. She has autonom-"


    "The fuck did you just call me?!" Bianca said as she started to heat up the air in the atmosphere.


    "¡­This one makes me feel scared." One N''Kai said as it backed away.


    "Wait, wait, wait¡­" Mchi had no choice but to put his hand up to his temple as if he had just gotten a massive headache that could nearly knock him over.


    He turned around and cupped Bianca''s face in his hands gently.


    "Love¡­ you could understand him just now?"


    "Yea! Who the fuck is he calling a low¡­ Oh..!" Finally, Bianca''s eyes went wide as she realized that everyone had been speaking in some weirdnguage ever since she showed up.


    And she had been so preupied with what she perceived to be an insult that she didn''t even notice.


    "Can you¡­ please exin what is going on?" She pleaded.


    -


    "So¡­ nightmares are actually a race called N''Kai?"


    "Uh-huh."


    "And they are separated into Lowbreeds and Highbreeds..?"


    "Correct."


    "And their goal is to travel from world to world to eliminate strife wherever they find it by forcing them to either join the hivemind or be eaten..?"


    "Seems like it, yea."


    "But they aren''t going to hurt us because they don''t harm each other no matter what?"


    "Crazy shit, huh?"


    "But why am I considered a N''Kai too..? I haven''t absorbed any¡­"


    It was then that Bianca remembered the certain ''injections'' that she was receiving on a nearly nightly basis.


    They thought that they were getting stronger from sleeping with Mal because of his status as an Avatar.


    It never urred to them that it could have been the other part of his makeup.


    "Holy shit¡­"


    "Yep¡­"


    "Bu¡­"


    The group of N''Kai stared at the family of three as they sat in a circle on the ground and went over everything that they had learned tonight.


    They did not exactly understand why they seemed to be so perplexed by all of this, but they were going to attribute it to the unique circumstances behind Mal''s birth.


    "May we begin your culmination day celebration now?" One of the nightmares asked.


    "His what?"


    "My birthday party." Mal responded.


    "¡­Your birthday is in December, babe." Bianca pointed out.


    Mal shrugged and another of the nightmares in the shape of a woman stepped forward.


    "We celebrate the day he was born as N''Kai highbreed. Our fertility rates are terribly low you see. There are only five hundred of us on our home world, making the birth of new blood a very special asion."


    "We are¡­ sorry that our festivities are so poor. Normally, you would be beholden to a ceremony that is multiple days long and attended by every member of our race."


    "But since we are away from K''n-Yan, such a thing is not possible¡­"


    "A pity too, as the birth of not one but two highbreeds is a sure cause for a grand celebration¡­"


    The N''Kai let out a unanimous sigh and Mchi got a good look at what it meant for an alien to be depressed.


    He actually started to feel a little bad, but he wasn''t one for big parties anyway.


    "Umm¡­ ceremonies, huh? What kind?" Bianca asked.


    The assembled N''Kai regained their sense of life when they heard her question.


    "All N''Kai pool their blood together and allow the newborn to bathe in it freely, giving the child the great privilege of having their cells energized and strengthened by their forebears." One exined.


    "And then, gifts are presented from liberated worlds, as a way to remind them of N''Kai''s grand purpose." Said another.


    "Finally, the child is allowed to ask for one wish that must be granted, no matter what it might be." Added Tsath.


    Mchi''s eyes nearly twitched so hard that they shot off of his body.


    With an incredulous expression, he stared up at his extended family like they had just grown second heads. (Which in hindsight would not have been strange for them.)


    "You would grant¡­ any wish of mine?"


    "And the baby''s." Tsath reminded.


    "Bu?"


    "Yes, you."


    With a thumping heartbeat, Mal asked the question that was at the forefront of his mind.


    "Then¡­ if I asked you all to leave earth with your lowbreeds and let me take care of the myself, would you?"


    As a result, all of the assembled highbreeds stared at him like he was stupid.


    """""Of course."""""

 Chapter 214: The Blood

    Mchi couldn''t believe it.


    So easily!


    Even now, he had to continually check with himself to ensure that he wasn''t going mad.


    At the moment, he and Camille were sitting cross legged on the ground while they were being circled by the N''Kai as they chanted a song in their strange dialect.


    Bianca was leaning against a rock a few feet away, clearly worried about this all going well and not horribly wrong at thest moment.


    If things progressed smoothly¡­ the N''Kai would no longer be a threat to this world by the time the sun rose.


    It was a crazy thing to think about.


    "It is time for the blood''s offering." Tsath suddenly said.


    All five of the assembled N''Kai paused on a dime and suddenly cupped their hands out in front of them.


    They took one of their ws and cut open their palms without showing a modicum of difort.


    Inky ck blood started to pool within their grasp and they all poured it into Tsath''s cupped hands, allowing it to mix.


    "Normally, you both would bathe in an ocean of the collected blood of our people so that this ceremony might have yielded greater effects but we are away from home at the moment. Forgive us."


    ""It''s cool. / Bu!""


    Tsath showed traces of a smile for the first time as he kneeled in front of young Camille.


    "It is only right that the youngest go first. What is your name, new blood?"


    "Da!"


    "Camille is an earth name. You need a name for only those of N''Kai blood to address you by."


    "¡­Abu!"


    "Shear..? What a crude name."


    Mchi turned his head to the side and whistled inconspicuously.


    Tsath seemed to think about something for a moment before he nodded in understanding.


    "I have it. Your name shall be A''Shea."


    Cami didn''t really seem to be bothered by a name she wouldn''t be using all that much anyway, so she simply shrugged as if she had no problems.


    Once her name was decided, he offered her the overflowing pool of ck blood in his hands.


    Camille was part vampire so this wouldn''t be her first time drinking blood, and she was not at all squeamish.


    She greedily dunked her baby hand inside of the blood and licked the sanguine nectar off her fingers.


    It would have been cute were it not so unbearably morbid.


    While Cami was snacking, Tsath turned to Mchi next.


    "What is your name, new blood?" He asked again.


    "¡­Mc-"


    "No. You will be K''horror."


    "¡­Thanks for the name I guess."


    Again, Mchi saw Tsath smile faintly, as if he were very proud of himself.


    He held out his cupped hands filled with blood in front of Mchi''s face and gestured for him to drink as well.


    Unlike his daughter and two wives, Mchi is not a vampire.


    The only time he has ever had blood in his mouth was when he got hit too hard and coughed it up.


    Already, he was starting to have serious doubts about his ability to get through this whole thing.


    But once he remembered the few times he ripped men apart with his teeth, he figured he was probably past the threshold of being hesitant about these sort of things.


    Though he almost gagged, he allowed Tsath to tilt the blood into his mouth and swallowed it all withoutining.


    ''Don''t worry babe, I''ll still kiss you after this.'' Bianca said telepathically.


    ''B!''


    ''Is it too thick? Will it be easier to swallow if I call you a good girl too? That always helps me when-''


    "Kugh!"


    Thanks in no small part to Bianca, Mchi ended up choking and finally pulled away at thest minute.


    But since he had already swallowed more than enough, his vision started to blur and his entire body started to heat up and feel heavy.


    Evidently Cami was feeling it too, as she made a short wining noise before passing out on the ground and her father ended up joining her mere secondster.


    Through Mal''s heavy eyelids, he saw a screaming Bianca running towards him in what seemed like slow motion.


    ''I''ll definitely¡­spank her for that joke¡­''


    -


    When Mchi awoke it was still nighttime, but his body felt fully rested as if he''d just had eight hours of sleep.


    Gradually his eyes fluttered open and he smiled softly when he saw that the first woman he''d ever loved was giving him ap pillow.


    "Hey, Sei¡­ Bianca wake you up too?"


    "Yes, she did." Sei said with a smallugh as she wiped a tear from her eyes.


    A momentter, the rest of his fianc¨¦s came to his side; each of them still in their night clothes and looking very worried.


    "Did I scare you all that bad? I wasn''t gone for another year again, was I?"


    Mchi was finally noticing how strange his voice sounded and the strange way his mouth felt.


    It was a bit too¡­ full.


    "No, you weren''t." Nadine said sweetly.


    "But honey¡­ we need you to stay calm for us, alright?" Luna said as she touched his face tenderly.


    Confused, Mchi nodded slowly in eptance. "Alright¡­ you girls are starting to-"


    "Ssss¡­"


    Suddenly, Mchi heard a familiar sound y from below him and he looked down near his stomach to search for the source.


    "A-Am I..?"


    Mchi suddenly got to his feet while analyzing his body meticulously.


    Anna came in front of him and held out an iPad with the camera facing him so that he could see his reflection.


    In the past two years since his life had changed around, Mchi had to do a lot of growing to ept the changes that had taken ce in his identity.


    But whether he was Avatar or Nightmare, this was the first time that he had ever felt it so clearly.


    The loss of his humanity.


    Mchi had always been on the darker side of the mnated spectrum, but now his skin waspletely ck.


    His flesh also had gained a tougher yet pleasant to the touch texture about it- simr to leather.


    In addition to that, the whites of his eyes had been dyed in the same color ck as his skin; making his brilliant violet irises stand out even more while giving them a slightly unsettling look.


    His hair texture was also a bit different, bing stronger and possessing a more rugged appearance that was reminiscent of a rope, but it now seemed to give off a pleasant scent and was softer to the touch like the rest of him.


    His hands and feet now contained permanent ck ws that were sharper than most des, and a set of barely visible webbing between his fingers.


    He also learned that the reason why his mouth felt so full earlier was because of the two huge pairs of fangs that sat side by side each other in the top row of his teeth.


    But the most unsettling thing about his transformation were the four, permanent snake headed tails that were jutting from his lower back.


    Even though he was not in his other form as a seven foot berserker.


    Each of the tails were quite obviously alive and showed no signs of retreating back into his body at any point.


    They were curious, quiet, and very observant.


    And also, a reflection of him.


    However, it didn''t matter if they seemed like perfect pets, Mal still felt his heartbeat increase as he tried not to panic.


    But the more his heart thumped, the more his hair began to take on lives of it''s own as well.


    Instead of being simple dreadlocks, his hair instead became a mass of living grayish white snakes with red eyes.


    "Nah, nah¡­ this isn''t happening, this can''t be happening¡­ I-I''m¡­"


    Before he could start to panic, Anna grabbed Mchi by the face and made him stare directly into her eyes.


    "You are our fianc¨¦, and that''s all that matters..! Nothing else could even begin to matter!"


    "How can you possibly say that¡­? Look at me..!"


    "You are such an idiot¡­ from the day that I first met you until now, you have never been less attractive to me. Only more."


    "Besides¡­" Luna suddenly said. "If you think of yourself as a monster¡­ then what about her?"


    Mchi found Camille sitting up on the ground, now sitting up and staring at him with a pained look while she held a random stick in her hand.


    Almost everything that he had thought about himself had to now go out the window.


    Because Camille was the most precious thing he had ever seen, and she nearly looked just like him.


    While she was missing all of his serpentine characteristics; her skin and sclera were ck, her ears were pointed like his own, and her hair was a shining grey.


    At the sight of her, Mchi had no choice but to drop to his knees and take her into his arms.


    "She is not a monster¡­ she''s the furthest thing from it."


    On a nearby rock, Mchi found all of the other N''Kai waiting for him to wake up, and looking somewhat bothered by his reaction to his new look.


    "I''m¡­ sorry about all of that you guys. Truly. Can we continue?"


    Each of the N''Kai looked at each other before nodding.


    "We can."

 Chapter 215: The Gifts

    Once Mchi and Camille were sitting back down, the rest of the N''Kai circled them again to begin the second phase of their ceremony; the gifting.


    Tsath continued to give Mchi something of a scrutinizing gaze.


    And inwardly, Mal felt really bad.


    Since showing up, these beings had been nothing but kind and courteous to him and his daughter.


    They hadn''t picked on him for having different origins.


    Nor did they try to eat him for being weaker than them.


    They didn''t even try to harm any of the beings in he base who weren''t N''Kai.


    And how had he responded to their kindness and favor?


    By almost having a panic attack because he started to look like them; inadvertently telling them loud and clear that he thought of them as a monstrous race of beings.


    His behavior had made him truly ashamed.


    He hadn''t been raised to act like that or treat people that way.


    And now, he was looking for an opportunity to properly make amends, but it was difficult.


    Especially since he still had his own reservations about his new appearance.


    Not because he still thought of himself as a monster.


    But because he feared that other people would.


    His sister, his best friends, his fake grandfather and father-inw.


    But most importantly of all¡­ he was so unbearably terrified of facing Joanne.


    "Tell me, A''Shea¡­" Tsath asked.


    "Bu?"


    "What kind of gift would you like to receive from us? What sort of things do you like?"


    Immediately, all of Camille''s parents sucked in their teeth.


    They were almost certain their daughter was going to ask for something baby shark rted or for more teething toys and stuffed animals.


    While that wouldn''t necessarily be a bad thing, this was a one of a kind opportunity to receive presents from an alien race that was likely centuries more advanced than their own and had conquered numerous worlds.


    It sort of felt like it would be a real waste to let a child pick those items out on their own.


    ''Well, as long as she is happy I guess..'' Mchi thought with a wry smile.


    Camille proceeded to start babbling as she waived her small fingers in the air- ensuring that she was being taken seriously by her extended family and gift givers.


    The first thing that she asked for was a big stuffed animal.


    Tsath nodded and pulled out a small metallic looking cube fr his pocket with numerous buttons on it.


    He punched a few of them in and a momentter the box started to vibrate and make a beeping sound.


    A wormhole opened up just above the punch pad, and it spit out a stuffed animal that was two meters tall.


    It was clearly from another dimension or something, because it was difficult to identify what kind of creature it was.


    It had a bear-like body with the head of a fox and two small antlers atop it''s head.


    "Aba!" Excited, Camille held her hands up in the air with evident glee.


    *Squeak* At that moment, the bear imitated her and lifted up it''s own fluffy arms.


    "Ah... What kind of toy is that?" Mchi asked with an incredulous look.


    "It is an automation device from my second world, Ozymundax. It will protect her, enact stimulus enriching activities, and it can even feed her if she still requires food."


    Mchi and all of his fianc¨¦s looked back and forth between each other to ensure that they hadn''t misunderstood Tsath''s words.


    ''Did he basically just give us... a nanny?''


    Tsath stood up and moved over so that the next N''Kai could ask Camille what she wanted for her birthday.


    This time, she said that she wanted a ''y house''.


    The N''Kai pulled out another one of those fabricator devices and handed it to Camille, with instructions for her to press the red button when she was ready.


    Because children and buttons are like guns and holsters, she could not resist pressing the button as soon as it was offered to her and nearly gave all of her parents a heart attack.


    A strong gust of wind almost knocked everyone on the mountaintop over as she created another wormhole in the sky and a muchrger item jumped out of it.


    But no one had any idea what it was supposed to be.


    It was a swirling, shifting mass of liquid metal the size of twelve olympic pools.


    "What... is..?"


    "It''s a programmable matter home. Tell it what sort of rooms you want, and it will mold itself to your specifications." the N''Kai exined.


    Camille giggled as she pped her hands together excitedly, while her parents tried to pick their jaws up from the ground.


    "You guys... you are not simple gift givers, are you?"


    """""No."""""


    -


    All in all, Camille ended up getting a stuffed animal nanny, a ''yhouse'', a toy automation in the shape of an actual baby shark, and a finger painting set that would temporarily bring her creations to life after she finished them.


    Anna was in shambles she watched her receive herst gift.


    Camille actually could have received a fifth gift from one of the aliens, but ording to her she could no longer think of anything else to ask for.


    So as a result, thest of the N''Kai panicked a bit and just gave her the spare wormhole technology that they had all been using.


    He exined the method of maneuvering through dimensions using buttons and dials but Camille looked like she only understood around every sixth word or so.


    Since nobody wanted her to open up random wormholes in space, Luna elected to hold the item for her daughter out of safety concerns.


    Now, it was Mchi''s turn to receive his gifts.


    "Tell us K''Horror. What kind of items do you desire?"


    Mal had been thinking about it ever since he watched Camille open her gifts, but he still didn''t have an answer.


    Instinctively, he began to caress the snake tails jutting out of his lower back in an effort to think better.


    "Ada! Bu!" Camille chirped.


    "Your father likes fighting?" Tsath asked with a raised brow.


    "Bu." Cami said as she nodded with satisfaction.


    Mchi smiled wryly and revealed his new menacing white teeth. "I wouldn''t say that I-"


    "A bit barbaric for N''Kai interests but.. I suppose that your upbringing would make something like that understandable."


    "..." Today Mchi learned that his extended family of gxy consuming parasites did not consider themselves to be barbaric and even judged him slightly for being so.


    He had no idea how he was supposed to take something like this, but smiled and nodded nheless.


    Tsath typed in a few buttons on his metallic cube and pulled out two golden wristbands.


    He took the liberty of cing them on Mchi''s wrists himself and started to exin their functions.


    With a thought, Mchi could shape the bracelets into three different weapons.


    A pair of heavy des with chains, a pair of handheld spears, and twin maces.


    Mchi opted for the first preset and he very nearly shit himself as soon as he called the des. out.


    The power emanating from the weapons was so great that the actual air around them was vibrating.


    The weapons themselves resembledrge cleavers, with a long trapezoid-like shape that curved slightly inward.


    At almost two and a half feet in length, they had shining silver des that were scratched up quite a bit, almost as if they had seen many battles.


    Golden patterns were inscribed along the t sides of the des that made them seem ceremonial in nature, but the power emanating from them absolutely begged to differ.


    Combined with Mal''s strength alone, he felt like he could take a good chunk out of the mountain with a single swing.


    ''Guess I''ll have to bother Aisha to teach me how to use these...'' he thought.


    He finally put the weapons away and lowered his head as deeply before Tsath as a sign of thanks.


    "I appreciate the gesture... it means a lot."


    Tsath was so surprised by Mal''s sudden show of sincerity that he had to blink a few times to let his words settle in.


    In the end, he simply nodded and backed away, unaware that he had forgotten to mention a specialty of those weapons he had gifted Mchi.


    The gifting ceremony continued, and Mal received gifts that were slightly less impressive than Camille''s.


    In total he received new weapons for not only himself but his fianc¨¦s as well, some insanely durable fabric to help make lightweight gear for everyone in the base, some tech for Bianca to study, one of those finger-paint kits for Anna, and some of their bottled blood for Luna and Nadine.


    With the gifting now over with, Mchi''s heart thumped in anticipation as they arrived at the part of the evening that had been on his mind all of this time.


    "I ask you now, new bloods... What wish would you have your forebears grant for you on this auspicious day?"

 Chapter 216: The Wishes

    Once again, all of the N''Kai were standing in front of Camille, eagerly waiting toplete the final part of the ceremony.


    "Tell us, newblood¡­ What wish would you ask us to bring to life?"


    This time, Camille seemed to recognize the fact that this was a serious moment that should not be squandered, and she looked towards her father to see what she should say.


    However, Mchi would not sway her one way or the other.


    ''It''s alright, munchkin. You can ask them for whatever you want, you don''t need to worry about me.''


    Cami seemed to understand, but that didn''t mean she wasn''t still having difficulty figuring out what to ask for.


    She looked up at all of these new mysterious aunts and uncles and she felt her child-like curiosity take new life.


    "A¡­bu."


    "¡­Your wish is to learn how to be N''Kai?" Tsath asked curiously. "You do not have to waste your wish on that when our knowledge is yours by birthright.


    "Bu."


    "¡­You just can''t think of anything else?"


    "Da."


    For the first time, Tsath showed a look of true confusion that was shared by all of the N''Kai at his side.


    For the life of them, they couldn''t understand why she had chosen such an unbearably simple wish.


    "How about this¡­ we will table your wish for another time."


    Tsath simply handed her a small silvermunication device that looked like it was ripped out of a space exploration movie.


    "When you are ready, you are free to contact me and I will see to it that you receive a more fitting wish. And you may still learn all that it means to be N''Kai."


    Camille made happy giggling noises as she ced the device in her mouth like the carefree baby she was.


    Tsath thought that maybe she was just hungry and left her alone to nibble on her new trinket.


    With Camille''s wish on hold, the rest of the N''Kai turned their glowing ck eyes onto the waiting Mchi.


    "I assume that your wish is still the same, new blood? You want the earth to be ced under your control?"


    "Yes." Mchi said without hesitation.


    Tsath and the rest of the N''Kai stared at the new blood with somewhat thoughtful eyes.


    While it was not umon for N''Kai to ask for worlds when they were first born to build up their strength, they could not help but notice that Mchi''s reasons for choosing this wish were drastically different.


    "Your wish will be granted, but¡­"


    "Do you ask this of us because you see us as evil?"


    "Or because you see yourself as human, and therefore you want to ''save'' them from us?"


    "Are we so malevolent in your eyes?"


    Mchi honestly was not expecting to be hit with such brutal follow up questions and he immediately faltered.


    "I-I.."


    "It matters not." Tsath interjected. "K''horror is new blood N''Kai. In ordance with tradition, his wish will be granted."


    The rest of the N''Jai fell silent, and so too did Mchi.


    "The hour growste and I am sure that you are still in the stage where your bodies require rest. We will reconvene on tomorrow for instruction and understanding, and then we will depart."


    Tsath''s words were epted by his brethren without much of a fuss.


    At his behest, they bowed respectfully before floating up into the air and flying off into whatever corners of the world they hade from.


    For a long time after they left, Mchi and his family remained sitting on the mountaintop, staring at the directions where their surprise guests had flown off to.


    It was done.


    The enemy would be retreating and a bit of the bloodshed would gue the world no longer.


    So they should have all felt great at the moment, right?


    So then what was this extremely unpleasant feeling within their chests?


    -


    After Mal ced a now sleeping Cami down into her crib, he lingered a bit by her bedside.


    He felt a gentle tug on his arm and turned around to see Nadine waiting for him with a soft and expectant look.


    "There is no need to stare at her so, I promise she will still be just as cute in the morning. Let''s go to bed."


    Mchi''s heart sped up a bit as he spied at the four snake headed appendages stilling out of his lower back.


    No matter how hard he tried, he couldn''t put the little buggers back into his body , and his control was limited to making them go to sleep or making them grow.


    Nadine seemed to recognize that he was ufortable with his new look, and she reached out to touch two of the serpents wrapped around his bicep.


    "Juste with me and stop worrying¡­ we just have a bit more of you to get used to is all. There is no reason why you should ever hesitate toe into bed with us. Toy your hands on us."


    "¡­You all seem to be taking all of this pretty well."


    "Well do you forget I''m not exactly human myself?"


    Suddenly, Mchi saw Nadine in a way he never had before.


    She grew to a height of around 6''4, and her ears becamerge and pointy with numerous rivets inside the canals.


    Her nose became upturned, more mangled and animal looking.


    Her fingers stretched so long that they touched the floor, and dark golden brown hairs spread along the length of her arms as fleshy membranes grew between her elongated fingers to reach her armpits.


    Her legs bent backwards slightly, and she grew dark talon-like ws from her usual pink and pretty toes.


    A thin, spade-tipped tail sprouted from the area just above her butt, And her face became slightly more slender and fearsome, but she was still beautiful.


    She smiled at him a bit shyly, and revealed tworge white fangs just as perfect as his own.


    "Tell me¡­ do you love me any less like this..?"


    Now, Mchi understood how the girls felt whenever he asked that question.


    "How can you be so dumb?" Heughed.


    His lips found hers easily and he relished in their immense softness and warmth that represented total eptance.


    Nadine wrapped her wings around the two of them like they were a nket designed to protect the couple from all harm, and the two of them pressed their bodies together desperately.


    Briefly, Nadine pulled away as she panted slightly and pressed her head against her fianc¨¦''s neck.


    "I know that I fell in love with you at first sight, but¡­ it has never been skin deep for me. But even if it was¡­"


    yfully, she lifted her head and bit him on his newly pointed ears.


    "You are so much more attractive now than you were before¡­!"


    Today, Mchi learned that his hearing had grown drastically more sensitive as a N''Kai- as the mere sound of her whispers sent a shiver down his spine.


    Nadine felt something hard pressing against her stomach and she smiled as she slipped her tail into his pants.


    "I think the rest of the girls are kind of tired.. so why don''t you and I go to the couch and-"


    "You had me at couch."


    Nadine giggled ever so slightly as Mchi lifted her up and slipped her legs around his waist.


    The two of them exited Camille''s room quickly and quietly, to avoid waking their shared bundle of joy.


    They easily found their way onto the couch even with the room in total darkness, and their breaths became heavier as the little clothing they had on was torn away.


    "I don''t think you''ve ever been this wet before¡­"


    "I-It''s embarrassing, I didn''t know this could happen¡­ did you get bigger?"


    "Do you want to find out for yourself?"


    "W-Wait, I think I need-"


    *creak!*


    Suddenly, Bianca and Anna poked their heads out of the bathroom door and stared at the two members of their family with wide eyes.


    Bianca :" I''m starting to feel left out¡­ I want a kaiju transformation too."


    Anna : "I don''t really know about that, but two of the people I have sex with almost every night are really not human¡­ 14 year old me is going insane with jealousy right now."


    Bianca: "Jeez, what was wrong with you?"


    Anna : "I read too much ''DMC'' fan fiction."


    Bianca : "¡­Makes total sense¡­ it was ''Monster Musume'' for me."


    "Are you girls going to join or just watch?" Nadine asked in anticipation.


    The two of them looked back to make sure that Luna and Sei were already asleep before slipping out into the hallway and out of their clothes.


    Anna didn''t seem like she was up for such strenuous excercise sote at night, so her choice was slightly different.


    She proceeded to remove her pants only and sat on the opposite end of the couch with her legs wide open and began to touch herself with an interested look on her face.


    Bianca on the other hand was as hot as her ability, and she was out of all of her clothes in the blink of an eye and making her way over towards the already intertwined pair.


    She satfortably on Nadine''s face without bothering to be polite and she grabbed Mchi''s face desperately and pulled him in for a kiss.


    As Mchi felt his mind go numb with pleasure, his hips pressed forward on their own and he entered Nadine desperately.


    But even with how wet she was it still ended up being a really tight fit, and the loud moan she let out as a result nearly undid all of their efforts to keep quiet.


    -


    Mchi understandably didn''t end up going to sleep untiltest night, and even when he did he kind of just passed out where he was.


    His new body proved to be much more than the girls could handle, and it took no more than three rounds for each of them before they fainted.


    Eventually, he ended up giving up along the way too, and now was just beginning to wake up as he felt horrible sunlight streaming onto his face.


    ""What the fuck¡­?!"


    Opening his eyes with a start, he saw the clearly surprised faces of Joanne and his own mother staring down at him from behind the couch.


    With his new transformation fully revealed.


    ¡­And while he was still inside of Anna.


    "¡­Fuck my life."


    Almost on cue, his four tails perked their heads up and gave the two women polite little bows.


    "Hisss." (Good morning,dies.)


    "¡­Definitely fuck my life."

 Chapter 217: The Dreaded Talk

    As Mchi showered offst night''s loving debauchery, he took special care to wash the soap off his body as slowly as humanely possible.


    Not because he feared that he might be leaving traces of dirt behind, but because he was desperately trying to put off the reality that would be waiting for him once he stepped back outside.


    He could still remember the shocked looks on the faces of his mother and Joanne when they first showed up and he wasn''t sure if that was due to surprise or fear.


    He didn''t think he wanted to find out that badly either...


    "Honey... I think we''ve been in here long enough."


    Mchi opened his violet eyes and found Sei standing under the water with him.


    Her skin had already started to turn red from such prolonged exposure to the hot water, and her fingers had long since started to prune up.


    Mchi smiled apologetically as he pushed her wet hair out of her face.


    "I''m sorry... I shouldn''t have held you hostage in here with me like this."


    "Don''t be silly. I stayed in here with you because I knew that you needed me, but we cannot hide from them forever."


    "...We could tr-"


    "No, we could not."


    Sei finally cut off the water that had been running for forty-five minutes nonstop and her skin let out a sigh of relief.


    She grabbed Mchi by the hand as if she waspletely unafraid of the new and lethal ck ws running from his fingertips and pulled them out of the shower.


    There were towels already waiting for them on the sink, and they both took special care to dry each other off thoroughly.


    "I understand why you''d be worried, but you should know Nyx by now. There is very little that you could ever do or say that would make her stop loving you."


    "Yea..."


    "Or... are you more worried about Joanne?"


    "..." Mchi''s silence was all that Sei could have possibly needed as an answer.


    "Honey... I know that you two have been working on developing your feelings for one another, so you should think of this as your first real test ofpatibility.


    If she can''t see that you''re the same person even with snakesing out of your back then she doesn''t deserve you, and she is not the kind of person we thought she was."


    Mal let Sei''s words sink in, even though he already knew them to be true on some level.


    However... he really didn''t want to see the worst case scenarioe to fruition.


    Not when he felt that he was just on the cusp of getting her to truly ept him and put down her barriers.


    He loved her... but he worried that his changes might have been just a bit too much for her to have a chance at feeling the same.


    "...Sei, that part is dry now, you don''t have to keep rubbing it."


    "S-Sorry! I was just..! ...It is no wonder that the girls were walking strangely this morning..."


    "Are you feeling curious..?"


    "Y-Yes, but... we shouldn''t let ourselves get distracted right now."


    Just as quickly as Mal''s good mood started to build, it deted.


    Honestly, he didn''t know if he was going to get another opportunity for a better distraction than that.


    "Sssss..."


    Almost on cue, all four of Mchi''s serpent tails presented themselves to Sei- indicating they would also like to be dried off.


    "My... how cute." She aid with a chuckle. "I did not think they would be sentient."


    "Only barely. I wouldn''t count on them speaking or anything like that unless I take control of their minds and speak through them."


    "So you''re choosing to let them have their own minds? Howe?"


    "No real reason I guess. I figured they would keep mepany." Mal admitted.


    Sei nodded thoughtfully she dried off the reflective ck scales of the amusing young serpents.


    "Have you named them?"


    Mchi thought about it for only a moment before he came up with perfect names for all four of the snakes.


    "Manda, Gwiya, Onini, Vritra."


    "Oh, those are..." Suddenly, Sei paused and gave Mal a suspicious look. "How many of those names did you get from anime and light novels?"


    "..."


    At this point, the snakes also turned to stare at Mal like they were waiting for an answer.


    "....Well, I think I''m pretty dry now."


    Sei watched Mal escape from the bathroom with palpable haste in his steps and she cold do nothing but shake her head pitifully as she watched him.


    ''Well, at least he doesn''t seem so nervous anymore.''


    -


    Contrary to what Sei thought would happen, Mal''s nervousness returned after he finally stepped back into the living room.


    There, he could see Joanne and his mother sitting on the sofa across from the rest of his fianc¨¦s and only daughter.


    It seemed like they had been chatting before, but as soon as he came out they all drew silent as they stared at him.


    "Ah... Am I interrupting something?"


    "No, of course not." Luna answered with a smile.


    At her side were Bianca, Nadine, and Anna, all of whom were showered and looking at him with expressions that he could not fully read.


    To the closest possible degree, he could only identify it as palpable lust and mysticism along with hints of fear.


    He satbeside Luna and she nuzzled warmly in an effort to calm him down.


    And against all expectations, it actually seemed to be working.


    "Well¡­ I guess the girls told you everything while I was in the shower?" He asked.


    "They did." His mother said somewhat nkly.


    Mal felt his heart speed up as he heard the distant and unfamiliar way that his mother was speaking to him, and he immediately feared for the worst again.


    *In Chthonic dialect* "You''re hurting me, Mchi. Can you not even look me in the eye?"


    Mal hadn''t realized that he had been keeping his gaze firmly locked on his mother''s knees this entire time and summarily lifted them up to stare into her gctic eyes.


    However, he found unrivaled heartbreak waiting for him.


    "Why¡­ are you acting as if you cannot face me? As if you have reason to be wary of me?Have I not loved you enough?


    What has made you think¡­ that you could have ever changed enough to be my son anymore?"


    "No, it is not anything you have done, I promise¡­ But perhaps that goes hand in hand with being shown so much love and care.


    You start to worry that you might lose that happiness. Even if it is for the smallest of reasons."


    Mchi eyed his deep ck skin that was definitely no longer human and that currently had tworge snakes coiling around it.


    ''Although I wouldn''t exactly call something like this ''small''¡­''


    "That''s silly."


    Nyx suddenly crossed the distance between herself and her son and she pulled his face into her hands.


    "I would never be so cruel to you. My children are all that I live for, and that will never change just because your eyes now glow."


    ''Is that all you noticed..?'' He thought with augh.


    Mchi smiled as he enjoyed the feeling of his mother''s warmth that always seemed toe just when he needed it.


    "Somehow, I knew that you would say something like that.."


    "Then that only makes your prior act of running away into the shower for forty-five minutes all the more silly."


    "¡­fair."


    Nyx finally released Mal and gave him a small kiss on the forehead that just barely grazed his skin.


    "I-I need to use the restroom..!"


    Joanne suddenly stood up from her seat before she ran down the hallway and into the spare bathroom.


    Briefly, Mal felt his own heart clench up and he started to feel like he already knew how things were going to end.


    ''Ah well¡­ Can''t win them a-''


    "I¡­ am going to kill her."


    Anna got up from her seat awkwardly and on ginger legs before running towards the bathroom her mom had hidden away in.


    "Anna, don''t-"


    "Mal¡­ let her do this." Luna said. "It''s been a while and I think¡­ those two have a lot they need to talk about."


    Mal didn''t really believe there would be any talking between Anna and Joanne, but he lost the chance to chase after them when he heard a familiar child-like voice in his mind.


    ''It is time for instruction to begin. Please, join me with the child.''

 Chapter 218: Different Family Chats

    Because Anna is already a practically uncontroble young woman, there was little that could have stopped her from barging into the bathroom whether her mom was actually using it or not.


    Lucky for Joanne, she wasn''t.


    Anna used her telekinesis to pick the lock with ease and kicked open the bathroom door like a member of SWAT.


    As she expected, her mother was seated on the edge of the bathtub with her head in her hands and a rather pale look on her face.


    After Anna''s sudden kick at the door, poor Joanne nearly had a heart attack and went tumbling into the tub.


    "Shit, Anna! Why are you just barging in here like that?"


    Unfortunately for Joanne, her daughter didn''t care in the slightest if she''d fallen and bumped her head or not as she closed the door silently and folded her arms.


    "What is your problem? Why are you treating Mchi like that? I thought you liked him!"


    "Anna... it''s not about tha-"


    "Then you better start exining because right now it seems like you''re letting his changes spook you out of being with him! After he saved you more than once and pulled us out of that fucking hell hole you can''t just-"


    "Anna, please! Just listen to me for once!"


    Annalise calmed down a bit, but it was clear that she didn''t like the fact that her mother had raised her voice at her.


    Despite all of her piercings and tattoos, she was still a sensitive girl you know?


    Joanne sighed and apologized slightly before she held out her arms and made room in the tub.


    Begrudgingly, Anna climbed into the tub and sat between her mother''s legs.


    Though she was unustomed to these kind of motherly scenarios, Anna did not at all find this kind of thing to be ufortable and all of her earlier irritation seemed to melt away.


    "I am... painfully aware of everything that Mchi has done for me and everything that he continues to try to be for me. Just when I thought I could never function normally again he just shows up and says all of these things that..."


    "So what''s the problem?"


    "...When I saw him, I was certainly surprised but... I realized that nothing that I feel has gone away. And I think that a few minutes ago was the first time I ever realized just how badly I want him. If him turning into a literal alien can''t stop me from feeling like this... I''m already too far gone."


    "Still not hearing a problem..."


    Joanne scoffed as she gave her daughter a yful nudge.


    "Theproblem youngdy is that I... won''t be any good for Mchi. I let myself fall into his spell for too long but I have to-"


    *Yawn*


    "..."


    "..."


    "You asked me to confide in you and now you''re yawning?!"


    "You weren''t saying anything worth listening to."


    "You brat! How can you be so rude to everyone?!"


    "My counselor in juvie said being raised without a mother made me terse and unfriendly."


    "O-Oh... I.."


    "Hahaha! Don''t be so serious, it''s already done so we might as wellugh about it!"


    Joanne didn''t find her daughter''s talent for dark humor very funny, but by now there seemed to be very little she could hope to do to stop it.


    "I think that we all had a moment like that at one point... After all none of us are the most healed bunch... oddly enough I think Nadine was the only one who came into this rtionship without any trauma attached to her." Anna said thoughtfully.


    "...No wonder she''s so bubbly."


    "My point is..." Anna redirected. "Even though we all had our doubts about whether or not we could make this work, eventually we just decided to let ourselves be happy.


    Whatever that means and however much work that requires... Mchi is worth it, Mom. He''s the best partner you could ask for... and an even better father. Not to mention the sex is-"


    "O-One thing at a time, Annalise!" Joanne felt her face getting red after she recalled the scene from this morning.


    She hadn''t seen Mal''s full proclivities since she was distracted by the glowing purple eyes and the snakes saying hello to her, but she would be a fool not to notice the way Bianca, Nadine, or Anna were walking.


    But as she let her daughter''s words sink in, she realized that she was going to have to get used to those kinds of things in the future.


    Because Mchi, at the very least, was worth it.


    "...Are you sure you''re okay with this?"


    "Yeah, just let me punch you in the stomach once and we''re good."


    "W-What..?"


    -


    Deep within the nearby wilderness, a newborn faun was drinking from a running stream.


    It''s mother was not to far away, keeping a watchful eye out for any signs of danger.


    Out of the corner of it''s left eye, it saw a strange sight.


    Three heads were just barely peaking above a shrub nearby; staring at them like they were some kind of stalkers.


    One was an adult human man with glowing purple eyes and grey hair.


    The other was a young child, seemingly a young human boy with robotic red eyes.


    The third, and final bush stalker was an infant girl that was no older than a couple of months; her eyes and hair bearing a striking resemnce to it''s first man.


    Mchi : ''...We''ve been spotted, but it''s not doing anything.''


    Cami : ''Bu..''


    Tsath : ''This is a part of the first lesson that I wanted to teach you. To be N''Kai is to have understanding with all wildlife, be they what you consider terrestrial or extra terrestrial... Except for dragons. Dragons do not particrly like us.


    Mchi / Camille : ''Dragons!?! / Dwa!?!''


    Tsath : ''It is only natural I suppose. In their minds, their sovereignty and individuality is one of the greatest things they value about themselves. Those that know of us usually try to kill us on sight.''


    ''W-What?! / Eh!?''


    ''Later. Now, pay attention new bloods.''


    Tsath stood up from behind the bush and walked over calmly towards the two deer grazing in the wild.


    Surprisingly, they neither ran away nor showed any signs of fear at his arrival.


    He was able to walk right up to the baby doe and was able to pat her back lovingly as she drank from the stream.


    "Animals, no matter what world theye from, are all able to recognize us as their own kin. Like them, we are not malevolent, not violent, we simply have our own role to y in nature''s cycle and act on it ordingly.


    It is the reason why our diminutive forms have so many animal characteristics. By befriending so many of them over the countless millennia, their DNA has be melded with our own, and it is not umon for some of those traits toe to the forefront."


    Mchi briefly recalled the fact that Tsath''s true form was eerily spider-like in addition to being the most horrifying thing he had ever seen.


    It answered the questions he had about his own new appendages, as well as the reason why he felt so at peace with nature ever since he stepped outside.


    It was like having Bast''s blessing on crack.


    He could smell things for miles; using both his new forked tongue and nose.


    His sight was unparalleled even without using Nyx''s blessing, and his hearing was even better than when he was half cat.


    He suddenly thought about something and piked up his daughter in her little onesie.


    Cami giggled as her father twisted her around in all sorts of manners as he looked for extra appendages on his two month old.


    "You hiding anything other than those adorable little wings you got from your mother? Don''t leave me hangin here, munchkin."


    "Hehehehe!"


    Tsath hated to interrupt such a tender and friendly moment, but he had something he absolutely had to show them.


    "Come here you two. I need you to see this."


    Mchi ced Camille on his shoulders and walked toward Tsath with violet eyes filled with curiosity.


    Tsath held out his hand and he began to secrete a ck, tar-like substance from his palm.


    "This is how N''Kai make things whole. We ask this creature to join us not just because we want it''s strength, but also because we wish to empower them, and take away all fear and sadness."

 Chapter 219: A Question of Morality

    Cami and her father stared at the cupped palm of Tsath without even bothering to blink.


    Right before their glowing violet eyes, the doe started to drink the strange ck water after only a couple of cautionary sniffs.


    It''s small tongue darted out and collected the dark nectar with no discernible traces of disgust or revulsion on it''s adorable face.


    ''...I kind of want to watch ''Bambi'' now.''


    As Mal fondly remembered the childhood film favorite, his fond recollections suddenly unfolded into an unnatural nightmare.


    The doe suddenly became unsteady on it''s thin little legs and started wobbling from side to side as if it were drunk.


    Tsath caught it''s small body before it could hit the ground, and lowered it down ever so gently.


    At that moment, the mother deer came over, both concerned and confused about the state of her baby.


    But after Tsath gave her muzzle a single reassuring rub, she seemed to rx.


    From that point on, the young deer began to change.


    It''s bones began to stretch and contort as the creature grew too quickly for it''s own skin to contain.


    The fur and flesh on it''s body turned an ominous ck color that closely resembled the liquid it had just drank.


    It''s hooves broke apart and started to resemble ws made from some kind of dense and jagged rock.


    When it was all over with , the creature got back into its feet without showing any signs of looking as weak as it had previously.


    Nor did it look like the kind of creature that could remind Mal of a ''Disney'' movie.


    It was arge, demonic looking beast in the shape of a fully grown buck with parts of it''s skull and legs exposed beneath torn skin.


    In ce of it''s eye sockets, it had acquired two more mouths full of teeth and a tongue, though it still seemed to be capable of seeing just fine.


    It''s horns had be something akin to crystallized ink, while possessing a majestic and ferocious looking nature.


    To add to the horror of the creature, an appendage that closely resembled a scorpion''s tail now swung freely behind it''s back.


    Mchi: "Christ..."


    Camille: "Fwa..."


    Unlike the father and daughter pair, the deer''s mother did not seem to be bothered by her child''s new appearance in the slightest.


    Upon closer inspection, she realized that it was still her innocent baby and she went back to guarding over him in case of nearby danger.


    She didn''t seem to realize that her baby was a gargoyle level threat who was more dangerous than everything else in this forest.


    "We are free to shape and shift their gics as much as we like to a certain degree." Tsath exined. "The more of your essence they drink, the stronger that you can make them. It is also worth mentioning though that not every creature can drink the same amount as another."


    "Oh yeah?" Mchi asked. "Why''s that?"


    Tsath paused momentarily as his red eyes stared off into the distance.


    "We... do not have a concrete answer for that. I suppose the closest theory that we have gotten is... willpower?"


    "Huh... imagine that."


    Camille leaned forward from atop her father''s shoulders as if she wanted give the hulking creature a few inquisitive pats just to be certain that it was not as scary as it looked.


    For a moment, Mal felt his own heartbeat spike and he nearly yanked her back hard enough to cause whish.


    However... he recognized that such behavior was apart of what he was trying to change.


    But in the end, his decision came toote as Tsath had already recognized that Mal was about to stop Camille out of worry.


    While he did not seem upset, his eyes did narrow by a fraction of a centimeter.


    As Cami teleported directly onto the back of therge creature, their instructor turned to Mchi with his arms folded.


    "You seem to be working quite hard to forget your prejudices against N''Kai despite being one of us. I believe humans have a term for this..? ''Uncle Ruckus mentality'', is that correct?"


    Mal didn''t know what was more surprising, the fact that a space alien had knowledge of a thirty year old earth cartoon or that he was actually likening it''s most infamous character to Mchi.


    "W-Why do you know that term?!"


    "I have yet to show you, but we can read minds outside the N''Kai through contact. One of the first things we usually do upon arriving at a new word is sort through the minds of it''s inhabitants so that we might better understand how they lived in society.


    Any advancements that they have made will be taken and added to our own, and they are usually quite popr. I am quite certain that our people will enjoy the finer points of adult animation, though finding voice actors with enough aptitude may prove difficult..."


    Mchi rubbed his throbbing temples in an effort to prevent himself from growing an ulcer.


    Honestly... it was just like Nadine all over again!


    Sighing, he decided to jump right into the heart of the conversation without worrying about needless things for now.


    "Look, Tsath... I''m sorry for the way I''ve been acting. All of this has just been a little difficult to fully grasp... but I can promise you that I am trying to do better."


    "You still perceive us to be a malevolent force on some level. Why?" Tsath asked inly.


    "I... am not sure. Could be everything that I''ve heard, or all of the destruction I''ve seen across the world... I mean, you just turned a deer into a demon beast like five seconds ago man."


    Tsath looked at the ''baby'' deer he had augmented and connected to his hive.


    He held out one of his hands and the creature instinctively nuzzled against his palm like he had been eagerly waiting for this opportunity.


    "A ''demon beast'' you say...? Tell me... does this creature seem aggressive to you?"


    "...No."


    "Bloodthirsty?"


    "Greedy?"


    "It''s an animal so.."


    "How about conniving?"


    "..."


    "No then? I''m assuming that is your answer."


    Mchi nodded solemnly, not understanding where this was going.


    "You consider this being to be the demon of your world, when I have done nothing more than change it''s shell and ensure that it need not ever be afraid again.


    Now I ask you... what about that is so wrong or demonic? You earthlings tend to think that anything that does not meet your standard of appearances is inherently evil. Monstrous. Demonic.


    Is that not why you feared the reactions your women and friends would have to your N''Kai appearance? Because in your heart you felt that their love came with the condition that they see you as desirable? As ''human''?"


    Silence seemed to be the only answer that Tsath needed, and once he had received it he immediately relented from his barrage of questions.


    He stretched his limbs unnaturally to lift Cami right off of the back of the deer he had created and held her with he utmost care; almost as if she were his little sister.


    "I do not mean to condemn you, K''horror, nor am I upset with you for your thinking. My only goalby the end of today is that I can get you to see, not with the human sight that you have developed during twenty years of life, but as N''Kai.


    Since I do not particrly require an apology, I will ept that as the proof of your wish to change."


    Mchi nodded and lowered his head until his head was nearly touching his chest.


    "You have my word."


    Tsath smiled slightly as this as if he were satisfied with this oue, then he suddenly held out Camille above his head.


    "I was nning to teach the two of you how to hive your own creatures first, but it seems as though there may now be a more pressing subject to address. Perhaps the two of you will find this one more interesting."


    "Hm?"


    "The trait that separates all N''Kai from each other and also makes us shine the most brilliantly. It is time we talk about bloodline abilities."

 Chapter 220: Last Day on Earth

    Highbreed N''Kai are all born with the same set of special abilities that make them feared throughout all of the cosmos.


    Shapeshifting, telepathy, parasitization, and enhanced physiology are but only a few.


    But even though those powers are dangerous enough on their own, they have more within their arsenal.


    Like their animal traits, they gain special abilities upon being born that make them even more of a scourge than they already were.


    These powerse in various different types and uses all the way from god-like me production to geokinesis.


    "And you are saying... munchkin''s ability to teleport is one of those bloodline powers?"


    "Mhm."


    Mal looked down at the small baby in hisp who seamed to be rather unconcerned with all of this.


    "Although I would wager... ''munchkin''s'' ability to teleport is likely a sub-power of some sort of spacial talent. Simple teleportation is too limited for a Highbreed of the N''Kai." Tsath added.


    Slowly, Mal and Cami turned to face each other with clear surprise in their eyes.


    Needless to say, they were both stunned silly by the potential fact that Camille could have such a powerful ability hidden within her tiny body.


    This was the first time that Mchi had ever felt slightly jealous of his daughter.


    "Munchkin... do you want to trade powers with daddy?"


    "Ada! Bu!"


    "...What if I give you real apple juice, and not that watered down stuff Sei and Luna have been giving you?"


    "Ma."


    "...Anna''s already been giving you some huh?"


    "Hehehe.."


    "...Bianca too?"


    Camille turned away from her father and started staring into the dirt as if she''d fund something interesting there.


    Sighing, Mchi turned his attention back to their waiting instructor and continued listening.


    "You need not feel jealous of your spawn, K''horror. You are already extremely special in your own right."


    "How so?"


    "Have you conveniently forgotten that you are in possession of powers that originate from one of this world''s higher beings? And you have even managed to assimte the abilities of another as I understand."


    "Is that significant..?"


    "Very! We are not supposed to bepatible with energy from higher nes. What do they call it again...? Divinity." Tsath informed.


    "Wait... what?" Mchi asked.


    From that point on, Tsath revealed a peculiarity about their race that the pair of them had yet to learn.


    Essentially, N''Kai were a mortal race.


    Alone they had nothing really special about them, and they even have a rather short lifespan of around 40 years.


    However, the changese when they start to create their own hives.


    Their lifespan, strength, and size, and physical abilities are all determined by the amount of beings they had within their webs.


    Once they crossed the one billion mark, N''Kai were essentially gods themselves, but with one crucial difference.


    Since they do not actually POSSESS divinity and cannot assimte it, they are still susceptible to it.


    At that moment, Mchi frowned and he realized he wasing dangerously close to asking a question that he wasn''t sure he wanted to hear from Tsath.


    How did the gods know about the existence of the N''Kai in the first ce?


    Why weren''t they just sieged immediately with no time to prepare and really capitalize on a surprised and vulnerable human race?


    Surely that would have made things easier.


    "...The questions you have..." Tsath began. "Would you care to hear them from me, or the one that you have chosen as your mother?"


    Mchi felt his jaw get tight as he clenched his fists.


    "I want to hear it from her."


    "Very well then."


    Tsath truly did not seem to care either way, as he soon went back to teaching as if he hadn''t been interrupted.


    Although, both he and Camille could not help but notice that Mchi was not listening quite as intensely as before.


    -


    A full eight hours went by before Tsath decided that the father and daughter pair had learned everything that he could teach.


    While they were not fully fledged prodigies with their powers yet, in time it seemed as though they would be a monumental threat to the world.


    As of right now Cami was instructed not to y with her potential spacial powers until she was a bit bigger, and Mchi was still trying to learn what his bloodline skill actually was, if he even had one.


    Currently, night had fallen and Mchi and Camille were staring at Tsath as he looked over the cliff of their home.


    "K''ho.. No, Mchi. I would ask you one simple question."


    "Go ahead."


    "What will you do with this world when we are no longer here within minutes? Will you safeguard them from themselves, or do you only intend to do so from us?"


    As always, Tsath''s line of questioning was less usatory and more so genuine curiosity.


    But that didn''t mean that it made it any easier for Mchi to answer.


    "I''m going to leave them be." he said honestly. "Whatever maye of that is just out of my hands and has nothing to do with me."


    "...Do you not consider that to be selfish?"


    "What?"


    "If you consider to absolve yourself of any sort of responsibility despite possessing the capability to help these earthlings, are you not just being selfish?


    You could end all of their wars, discrimination, and acts of disharmony that gue these creatures... though I am unsure if these treacherous creatures are worthy of the gift that is living without fear."


    "I can''t just take away their emotion like that. Fear and sadness are not pretty but they are just inconveniences that are all a part of life."


    "The idea that suffering is unavoidable so nothing should be done to try to prevent it from urring is almost a uniquely earth based concept.


    Inconveniences are getting caught in an acid rain without proper protective measures, not being mugged on the street by a man who is so desperate for a way to feed himself that he is willing to take a life to do so."


    "...Does our homeworld have acid rain?"


    "Yes. Now stay focused, Mchi."


    Mal ran his hands through his dreadlocks as he tried think of a way to weasel out of this conversation.


    His alien cousin was so damned straight forward all the time that it was rtively difficult for him to get him to focus on anything other than the current awkward conversation at hand.


    "Tsath, look¡­ I don''t know how to make you understand, but I just can''t see myself subjugating this entire. There has to be a better way towards understanding."


    Tsath was silent for a long time before he turned around to stare at Mal with a pained expression.


    It was the first time the young nightmare had ever seen his family like this, and it hurt all the more.


    "How I pity you, Mchi¡­ You have so little understanding of just how different humanity will be from your perception of them.


    And when that dayes that you learn the truth, I hope you be the very same corruption that they already fear you to be, and the sole force that is capable of saving them all from themselves."

 Chapter 221: So Long and Hello

    It was rare for Mchi to feel such concern from another person like this.


    Tsath''s words had inadvertently lit up a dormant region of Mchi''s brain where he kept his most painful memories.


    Once again, he had to relive the day where he found two of the women he loved more than anything trapped within jail cells and with their heads forcefully shaved.


    Only he knew just how much that incident had damaged him.


    Even now, he still cannot fall asleep properly unless he checks on both of them consistently to make sure that they were okay.


    He was still angered over that situation.


    Even though absolutely everyone on that base had already been killed, he wasn''t satisfied.


    He wanted to see the entire organization toppled over for ever allowing something like that to happen.


    Is that what Tsath meant?


    Are those the things that his new powers were intended to fix??


    But punishing those responsible for a crime and setting yourself up as some sort of all-connecting patriarchal figure were two vastly different things.


    He didn''t know if he had the stable temperament to be a savior.


    He wasn''t that innocent of a person anymore.


    Unfortunately, he lost the opportunity to tell Tsath all about his concerns when a change suddenly took ce over the horizon.


    Flying from every direction was a scene that most would consider horrifying.


    Swarms of nightmarish ck creatures that numbered in the millions.


    Tsath had already informed Mchi and Camille that any creature hived above the banshee ss would also be able to produce essence to connect others, but these numbers were still incredible.


    Now, more than ever before, Mal was able to see that his extended family had been taking it easy on the world.


    If they really wanted, they could have had this entire subjugated in under a month.


    As the swarm of ck and monstrous creatures reached the mountain peak where Mchi and Cami were staring in wonder, Tsath silently started to float up into the air like a mortal ascending toward heaven.


    Just before he left, he turned back towards Mchi and Camille and tossed them a small metallic device with a red button on it.


    "Know this, Mchi and Camille Saint. Should you ever require aid, you need only press that button and the full might of the N''Kai will be at your disposal."


    "..When you say ''full''... do you really mean-"


    "Yes."


    Camille gulped audibly and suddenly felt like her father was holding nuclearunch codes.


    Mal wasn''t exactly much better.


    He was scared to even put the damn thing in his pocket for fear of identally setting it off.


    "As I thought. Humorous until the end." Tsath said with his first real smile. "I hope we meet again soon, my friend. I wish you luck with your world."


    Biddng the two of them farewell, Tsath suddenly rocketed from the earth''s atmosphere while leaving multiple sonic booms in his wake.


    The creatures he''d created were a bit slower than him, but they all flew into the air behind him and disappeared from the atmosphere.


    All across the world, Mchi could feel the presences of other N''Kai leaving as well.


    He knew that there was some part of him that should have felt relieved but.. he just couldn''t.


    He still wasn''t sure if he had done the right thing by asking them to leave, or even what he was supposed to do now that they were gone.


    Or even what it meant for him to be thest thing on earth that was considered a ''monster''.


    "So long, family... Starting to miss you guys already."


    "Bu.."


    -


    Not long after Tsath left, Mchi and Camille reappeared back in the middle of their quarters, with the rest of their family waiting.


    Well... somewhat.


    Always the mom of the group, Sei was currently sandwiched between all of the rest of the girls who were sleeping peacefully or watching tv.


    Bianca and Anna each rested one of their heads on her shoulder while Nadine was in the form of a small bat resting atop her head of brown hair.


    Luna was sitting on the floor between Sei''s legs, a ss of red wine in one hand and a book in the other.


    "Don''t you all look cozy." Mal said with a smile.


    Since Sei, Luna and Nadine were they only ones awake, they each smiled at him softly.


    "We were waiting for you to tell us about what happened." Sei whispered.


    "But as you can see... we got a little toofortable." Luna chuckled.


    Already, Mal felt his heart warming as he headed to the kitchen and got his daughter a fresh bottle of milk.


    "So... they left, huh?" Nadine said quietly.


    Mchi paused just as she prepared to close the fridge door and he fell silent.


    "Yea... they''re gone."


    "You don''t seem happy about that at all... care to tell us why?" Luna asked as she finally closed her book.


    As Mal delicately shifted his daughter in his arms and began feeding her, he finally made his way over to the couch and sat beside the loves of his life.


    "Things were said that... left me with a bit to think about."


    "Y-You didn''t have a falling out with him, did you?"


    "Nah... actually the opposite."


    Mal sleepily told the girls about Tsath''s hope for him and the supposed responsibility that rested on his shoulders as a highbred N''Kai.


    Needless to say, neither of the three girls looked like they were expecting to hear what came out of Mal''s mouth next.


    While he was not being forced into subjugating the humans himself, Tsath seemed to think that it was only a matter of time until he realized that it was the best decision to be made.


    "Darling... do you think-"


    "I''m just tired now, Sei..." Mal said honestly. "I don''t really want to think about anything, justy here and rest." Mal said with his eyes already beginning to close.


    Physically, he was great and well beyond the peak of health.


    But mentally...he was very, very tired for reasons that he did not fully understand.


    Right now, all he wanted was toy in the presence of the women he loved and doze off peacefully.


    Even the snakesing out of his lower back were beginning to close their eyes and lean against each other.


    "Ah, wait love." Nadine prodded.


    "Hm..?"


    "Before you go to sleep, I think you''ll want to know that Joanne was hoping to see you when you came back. She should be back in her quarters by now."


    All of Mal''s weariness faded away in an instant as his eyes shed back open.


    He stared at the girls with a slight disbelieving look and they all fought the urge tough.


    "I''m not sure exactly what she wants to say, but... I think that you can go to her room without expecting the worst." Sei said.


    Luna took the liberty of taking the already half asleep Camille from her father''s arms and continuing to feed her.


    "I thought she.."


    "She doesn''t." Nadineforted. "Why she initially ran away is something that only she can tell you, and you can find out sooner if you head up to see her now and don''t hesitate."


    With his own heartbeat thumping nearly loud enough to wake up Anna and Bianca, he gave all of the girls small kisses on the cheek before sinking into the shadows on the floor.


    But as soon as he appeared within Joanne''s room, he heard a loud scream before a pot of boiling water and noodles came flying towards his face.

 Chapter 222: No Pun Intended!

    Mchi ended up taking a pot of boiling hot noodles to the face and chest, but since he had such a high resistance to the natural elements already, it was basically just cold bath water.


    Even the metal pot striking against his nose did not bother him nearly as much as it would have someone who was human.


    "Shit, Mchi! You scared me!"


    Joanne came running over with a towel in hand and hurriedly tried to pat down every inch of Mal''s damp body.


    "Shit, what were you thinking?? You can''t just go popping up in the middle of a woman''s room like that!"


    "Sorry." he said with a wry smile.


    He figured that seeing someone suddenly show up who looked like him was indeed pretty rming, and he started to wish that he''d maybe sent a text first.


    Joanne suddenly stopped trying to wipe down Mchi and paused without being able to meet his gaze.


    "I... Don''t want you to think that I was afraid because of the way you look. It''s just... would using the front door have killed you?"


    "Oddly enough, I didn''t want to put anyone else off but it seems like I''ve done that to you. I''m sorry."


    Again, Joanne fell silent and it was easy to hear the sound of her heart beating in her chest.


    "You... should go get in the shower."


    Mchi gave himself two investigative sniffs and realized that he now smelled like chili vored ramen.


    "Don''t think I can argue with you on that... Don''t run away before I get back."


    "Idiot, these are my quarters..." she said with reddened ears.


    She could see Mchi flinch like he was resisting the urge to kiss her before he inevitably turned around and headed back towards the bathroom.


    In the meantime, Joanne started to clean up the kitchen while her mind ran amok with a great number of thoughts.


    ''Just great, Jo... As if things weren''t awkward enough you had to throw a pot of noodles at the first guy you''ve liked in over twenty years.''


    ''This is so pathetic...''


    ''I don''t even know what I''m supposed to say to him now after I spent all day practicing.''


    ''This is all that bastard''s fault... Even as an alien he is still so-''


    ''Gods I miss getting drunk...''


    Joanne was stewing in her thoughts for so long that shepletely missed the moment where Mal exited out of the bathroom.


    "You burning something?"


    "A-Ah... shit!" Mchi''s interruption had finally made Joanne realize that she had ruined a second pot of instant noodles, and boiled all of the liquid out of the pot by thoroughly cooking the bottom well beyond al dente.


    "It... doesn''t matter I guess. I can just scrape off the top and then throw away the rest."


    "...What?"


    Looking over her shoulder, Joanne found Mchi shirtless with a tiny bit of water still falling from his hair, along with his usual pair of ck sweatpants that hung a little too low on his waist.


    A white towel was wrapped around his neck, and all of the serpents that came out of his lower back were rubbing their heads against it in an attempt to dry themselves off.


    This incredibly attractive scene would have been burned into her memory for the rest of her life as one she never wanted to forget, were it not for the incredulous look on Mchi''s face.


    "...Why''re you looking at me like that? Do you want some?"


    "Do I- No I don''t want any burned noodles, Jo! And you shouldn''t either."


    "I''m just not picky." she said with a shrug.


    Feeling a bit nervous, Mchi decided to peek inside of her cupboard to see exactly how she''d been living all this time.


    It was exactly as he feared.


    Upon building this ce, Luna had stockpiled this ce with around twenty years worth of non-perishable food in the event that doomsday was much worse than what they were expecting.


    Among that stockpile was a rather sizable supply of packaged noodles.


    It seems like Joanne had at least half of that stockpile in her cupboard in her quarters.


    "..." Mchi said nothing as his jaw hung open.


    "..." Manda, Gwiya, Onini, and Vritra were equally shocked and concerned.


    "Jo... we have a thriving garden on the tenth floor that is currently producing more than we know what to do with... Why are you living like this?"


    It was worth mentioning that they had recently also started a small farming project with chickens and goats after finding some roaming in the wild on one mission.


    "I-I just can''''t cook, alright?? I never learned how and I think I''m too old to start now."


    Mchi fought the urge tough as he ran his hands though his hair.


    Really, Joanne and her daughter were just too damned simr.


    Anna also had terrible eating habits, in fact one of Sei''s biggest gripes about her was that she never asked for anything to eat that did note with a side of fries.


    Or even just a meal that did not consist of fries in itself.


    It was a miracle they looked as incredible as they did with such horrible eating habits.


    "...Just... wait here for a minute, yea?"


    Joanne lost the chance to say anything else when Mchi suddenly sank into the ground and disappeared.


    She stared into her empty cupboard with a look of non-understanding on her face.


    "...The hell''s so wrong with my noodles anyway..?"


    Mchi came back barely ten minutester with his arms stuffed with a variety of ingredients.


    Joanne ended up getting swept away in his natural rhythm in the kitchen without having any opportunity to say what was really on her mind.


    Mchi was standing behind her with his body firmly pressed against her own.


    While his intentions were far from sexual in nature, Joanne couldn''t help but start to feel a bit nervous on the inside.


    "Normally, I think breasts are good but for this kind of dish I think the thigh meat makes it much juicer and full of vor. The stock will only make it even better."


    "O-Oh, alright..."


    "Here, cut the onions like this. And be careful not to nick yourself, love."


    "S-Sure.." (She had conveniently forgotten that she was bulletproof and normal knives posed her no danger.)


    "I wish we had some mitsuba here but since we have to work with what we have, I figured green onion was the next best thing. Slice them crosswise until you start getting towards the white bit."


    "I-I got it..."


    "Since the chicken''s almost done, we can go ahead and start adding the egg mixture. But don''t add it all at once since we''re going to need to use more in a second."


    "Why do you know how to make this exactly...?"


    "Sei and I trade recipes from time to time when we have little date nights. I gave her one for some candied yamsst time that she seemed really excited about."


    "I see... that''s very cute."


    "Yea? Maybe we can do something like that when we go on a date too."


    Joanne felt her words get caught in her throat all over again as her ears reddened beyond what could be considered healthy.


    Eventually, the two of them finished their dish and were able to stare at it in satisfaction.


    Two expertly prepared chicken and rice egg bowls were staring right back at the pair like they were just waiting to be eaten.


    It wasn''t long after they actually finished making the dish that Mchi realized he may have made a slight mistake.


    "This is... oyakodon, right?" Joanne asked.


    Sweat started to form on Mal''s forehead as he tried to think up some kind of excuse.


    "I-I swear I didn''t mean anything by it, I just picked this dish because it''s really filling and-"


    "Hm?"


    Joanne turned around and Mchi could see that she was already eating with seemingly no knowledge of the dish''s hidden meaning.


    Because she looked so cute while eating, Mchi couldn''t help butugh as herald his hands through her hair.


    "What do you think? A little better than cup noodles, huh?"


    Joanne looked down at the bowl she had already had a taste of.


    It was a rtively simple dish, but it was the first thing she had ever actively tried to make from scratch.


    And it hade out wonderfully no less.


    But in her heart of hearts, she knew that she couldn''t have done it on her own.


    In this dish, she felt their whole rtionship had been symbolized. (In more ways than she knew)


    He was always helping her in whatever way he was able, even when she didn''t ask for it and she was behaving like a hopeless child.


    It made her feel a myriad of things, but there was one that stood at the precipice of all of her other emotions.


    And she was tired of denying herself her true feelings.


    "I think... I love you."


    Though Mchi usually considered himself to be rtively quick with things like this, for the first time he had to pause as his brain did a hard reset.


    "I''m sorry... the chicken or..-"


    "You, idiot!" Joanneughed.


    She showed Mchi the most beautiful smile he had ever seen before she grabbed him forcefully by the face and kissed him.

 Chapter 223: Your Precious Love*

    It was well known that Mchi and Joanne had already kissed dozens of times before.


    However, this was the first time that Mchi really felt like she was cing herself in his hands.


    She seemed to have absolutely no guards up, and her willingness to express her feelings was so much greater than before.


    This was also the first time that he had felt like he was really about to take things a step further.


    Silently, he wondered just how far he should go.


    He wasn''t at all unaware of Joanne''s past, nor the time it had taken her to ovee it.


    But he feared that taking things too far here would reverse a bit of her progress.


    And because Joanne seemed to sense his hesitation, she relented momentarily.


    Breathing somewhat heavily, she rested her head against his chest and listened to the sound of his own heartbeat thumping out of control.


    "You know¡­ this isn''t easy for me. I have been¡­ such a mess for so long that I haven''t even been able to think about being with anyone.


    I told myself that it was something that I didn''t need¡­ that I didn''t want. Why does someone who abandoned her daughter and barely remembers her father get to be happy?"


    Mchi kept a stone face as he learned new information about not only Joanne, but Anna as well.


    He already knew that Joanne had a troubled past that wasn''t all that dissimr from her daughter''s.


    The only major difference was, Joanne had a narcotics addiction from the ages of 17-23, and she had a rtionship with her dealer.


    He ended up going away to prison right around the time that she found out she was pregnant, and she finally ended up epting her younger brother PG''s offer to help clean herself up.


    "After all that I ended up getting used as someone''s doll for over a year and I just-"


    "Jo."


    Mchi lifted Joanne up and wrapped her legs around his waist before pressing the two of them against the wall.


    "If you''re trying to list reasons why I am not allowed to love you, or why you aren''t allowed to be happy, I am going to have to beg you to stop."


    "T-That''s not what this is..! Well¡­ partially anyway¡­ What I''m trying to say is¡­ you make me want to be happy. Despite everything that I have told myself that I am¡­ I want to be someone better now¡­ Because of you."


    "I don''t need anything special from you. I like you the way you are now."


    "Really? I can''t cook for shit though."


    "I can."


    "I usually sleep till noon and have trouble remembering to take care of myself."


    "So do Anna and Nadine."


    "I have a drinking problem?"


    "I know that already, but you can''t get drunk so it''s basically just grape juice."


    "¡­My brother says I snore?"


    "I can listen to it forever if it means that you''ll be sleeping right beside me."


    Joanne smiled sheepishly as her ears turned that familiar shade of red.


    "Why do I feel like no matter what I say to you, you''re going to just ept it without batting an eye?"


    Mchi wormed his way into crook of Joanne''s neck and brushed his lips against her ear.


    "Because I have wanted you for such a long time now that there is not a single thing that you could do that would stop me from wanting you."


    It seemed like Joanne was quickly reaching the limit of her own patience, as she ran her hands along Mchi''s neck and ears.


    Her voice became dangerously seductive, and Mchi became intoxicated by the unwavering sexuality of a mature woman that he loved so much.


    "I guess.. this is supposed to be our first day or something like that¡­ we should make it special."


    Again, nervousness flooded Mchi''s brain as he felt Joanne trying to steer the night into a certain direction.


    "Do you know what you''re asking me..?"


    "I am fully aware that I am asking you for sex, yes. Are you going to tell me you aren''t interested?"


    "¡­I think maybe we should wait until-"


    "You should know that I''ve always appreciated the way that you treat me like I''m fragile, even though I pretended not to¡­


    But this time I really don''t need you to be overly cautious with me. What happened has already passed and there''s nothing we can do to change it.


    I want to move on. To have a fresh start. So please, just take my clothes off and stop worrying."


    A small, disbelieving smile started to show up on Mal''s lips as he gently ced Joanne back on the ground.


    "I''ll try to be gentle with you but I''m sorry¡­ I''ve been having a really hard time with thattely."


    Joanne watched as the lights in the room suddenly flickered uncontrobly.


    As if their radiance was being siphoned, the room suddenly became pitch ck, and all Joanne could see were Mal''s glowing violet eyes.


    "That''s unfair¡­ you think I''m the only one who gets off on looking at you?"


    Almost on cue, Joanne saw something that officially hammered home the fact that she had fallen in love with someone who wasn''t human.


    The hair on top of Mal''s head started to float upwards uncontrobly before they produced a neon violet glow reminiscent of avamp.


    Manda, Gwiya, Vritra, and Onini also gave off a simr light before their eyes closedpletely and they fell asleep.


    "Better?" Mchi asked with a fanged smile.


    "Y-Yea¡­"


    Mchi suddenly spun Joanne around and pressed her body against the wall.


    All she had on this whole time was a pair of old grey sweatpants and a big t-shirt, but to Mal she may as well have been wearing a runway dress.


    He happily pulled off her clothes with slow and methodical movements, allowing his ws to just barely graze the soft and delicate skin underneath.


    Briefly, he was hypnotized by the sight of the bold angel winged tattoo that spread across the entirety of her back, along with a pair ofce panties.


    Mchi ced his lips along the center of her back and began a slow but ravenous trail down her body.


    Joanne felt an electrifying tingle run down her body with every press of his lips against her skin.


    By the time he reached her waistline, her legs were already starting to feel more than a little tingly.


    Turning her around, she let out a small yelp when Mal suddenly pulled off her panties with strange glee.


    Her pink and rosy colored flesh was already twitching with anticipation, and he could not hold himself back any longer.


    A forked tongue slipped past his lips and he gave her a single investigative lick.


    A sweet, but bitter taste filled Mal''s mouth and temporarily sapped away all of his rationale.


    He began to taste her with delighted fervor, pushing his tongue deeper and deeper in an attempt to bring her ecstasy.


    Joanne could count the amount of times she''d been gone down on in her life on one hand, but this was utterly different from any she had experienced.


    Her moans started off soft, but they progressively became louder as she grabbed him by the head and pulled him further into her body.


    It wasn''t long before Joanne was reaching the end of her rope physically, and she felt her whole body spasm uncontrobly as she let out the most intoxicating and arousing scream yet.


    It was no surprise that she came tumbling down shortly afterwards, and into the waiting arms of her partner.


    "S-Shit¡­ give me a second, I need to-"


    "Nope."


    Mchi carried Joanne to her bedroom and tossed her on top of the covers before he started to peel off his own clothes.


    "You are even better than I could have dreamed, love..! My mind is filled with so many thoughts of you that I can barely see straight..!"


    The madness and obsessive devotion in Mal''s eyes and voice also came with an immense love that stunned her.


    In her entire life, she had never felt so desired and craved by another living being like this.


    It started to cross the border into fanatical religious worship.


    And when she saw the inhumanly thick member that sprang free from his pants, her nervousness reached a new threshold.


    "T-That''s absolutely not going to fit¡­!"


    "Won''t it?"


    Mchi climbed on top of the bed and fought the urge tough as Joanne shrank back a bit underneath the heat of his body.


    He sat on his knees and lifted Joanne up by the waist so that his member was resting against her stomach.


    "It''s a good thing I practiced this then¡­although I didn''t think I would be using it for this."


    As gently as he possibly could, Mal used his new fangs to nick the area right underneath Joanne''s corbone.


    A weak, muscle rxing poison and mild anesthetic was injected into Joanne''s bloodstream.


    A soft and sweet heat spread throughout her entire body, and she felt herself be mildly drunk.


    The stimuli wasn''t potent enough for her to develop an addiction to, but it did fully rx her muscles and make her much morefortable.


    Mchi tightened his grip on her impressive ass before lifting her up slightly and positioning himself at her entrance.


    With Joanne incredibly wet and fully rxed, it was the easiest pration Mchi had ever experienced.


    Like a cat that had found a new toy to y with, he expertly pressed around her insides while looking for the spots that would elicit the most dramatic reaction from her.


    He found it interesting that where Anna preferred rapid and shallow thrusts, Joanne screamed out the loudest from ones that were deep and slow.


    It took no more than four strokes before she was already reaching her first orgasm, and her eyes rolled back in her head as she dampened the bedsheets.


    However, Mchi was unsatisfied with this scene.


    He cupped her face in one hand and gently refocused her eyes so that they could regain their rity.


    "What are you doing, love? I thought you said you got off on looking at me?"


    "I-I can''t¡­ help it..! I''ve never felt anything like this before..!"


    "Just keep your eyes on me, okay? I don''t want you to look away for even a second..!"


    Through sheer willpower alone, Joanne kept her eyes open and firmly locked on Mchi''s as she moaned desperately.


    Everytime she reached her limit, he goaded her with sweet words and possessive embraces that made her feel like she was on the verge of touching a star.


    She lost all sense of time, appearances, and pride as she handed over her entire being to Mchi, and he gave her all of himself in return.


    She ended up reaching atleast a dozen orgasms before he finally reached his first.


    When she noticed his breathing be heavier and his eyes lose all focus; she knew that her dreamlike night wasing to an end.


    To put the perfect stamp on their rtionship, she brought her lips towards hers and kissed him desperately.


    Mchi pressed her hips down forcefully and pushed past the entrance to her cervix to release inside her with great satisfaction.


    Desperate, pleasurable screams erupted from them in unison as they savored in the afterglow of their joint orgasm.


    While Joanne felt her insides being filled to the point of spilling over, she breathed heavily as she savored the feeling of his arms around her.


    "You''re incredible¡­ I don''t know how I''m ever supposed to get my fill."


    "W-What..?"


    Mchi gingerly let Joanne rest on her back before lifting one of her legs onto his shoulder.


    "Every time you kissed me, walked past me, or even smiled at me, this was all that I could think about. And now that I''ve got you in front of me like this, I am going to fulfill every desire you filled me with. I hope you''re ready, love."


    Joanne gulped audibly as her eyes went wide with slight fear.


    No matter how fast she was, she had terrible stamina.


    She had begun to feel like she was in boot camp all over again at this point.


    Although, when she remembered how delicious the ecstasy she tasted mere moments ago was, she felt like she didn''t mind being exhausted.


    "I hope you don''t think you were the only one harboring those feelings¡­ you talked up a big game so don''t dissapoint me..!"


    -


    The next morning at around ten am, the metallic door to Joanne''s quarters slid open.


    Stepping inside was a middle aged man with oily ck hair and numerous bad tattoos.


    He carried with him two boxes of cereal along with some of the goat''s milk from the upstairs farming project, along with a handful of fresh fruit.


    "Sis! I brought you something to eat! Figured you might be tired of eating¡­ huh?"


    When PG saw the two bowls of cold oyakodon sitting on the counter, he raised a brow in surprise.


    His sister cooked?


    For two?


    And it didn''t look like shit on a stick?


    The fuck??


    In addition, he found a pair of clothes lying on the kitchen floor, but there was hardly anything suspicious about that.


    His sister had a bad habit of getting hot and just dropping her clothes wherever she felt like it.


    PG dropped the groceries on the counter before he wentbing through the apartment to search for his sister.


    Unsurprisingly, the first ce he checked was her bedroom where she was known to frequent.


    The good news was, he found her!


    The bad news was, he found that her entire room smelled like porn, and she was lying naked within the arms of a ck demon.


    "WHAT THE FUCK?!"

 Chapter 224: Into The Light

    Mchi and Joanne went at the act like animals all night long.


    They tried every position that they could think of without stopping for a single break. That is, unless it involved one of them going down on the other.


    Joanne had never felt so physically exhausted and overwhelmed by pleasure in her entire life.


    Several timesst night she felt like she was going to ck out during the deed and it was in those moments that Mchi would do something ''special'' to shock her back into the present.


    They started having sex at around 9:30st night and did not end until 9:30 this morning.


    Mchi wanted to go on for so, so much longer ,but with Joanne physically unable to keep up with him, he had to end things with one final attempt to impregnate her before he finally allowed her to pass outpletely.


    His weariness from before he came over eventually caught up with him too, and he fell asleep with her on top of him and two handfuls of her impressive ass.


    Just like nature intended.


    This beautiful scene normally would have marked a perfect end to the start of their rtionship and a sexy, passionate, and desperate night together.


    But then, the two of them were woken up by the horrified sound of a grown man screaming at the top of his lungs.


    "WHAT THE FUCK?!"


    "Shit!"


    Joanne and Mchi woke up immediately, and found a horrified PG standing in the doorway, looking like he was about to diarrhea himself.


    In his trembling hands was a standard issue white-high tech pistol that firedpressed beams of heat instead of bullets.


    And judging by the fact that he was shaking like salt shaker, this was the first time he had ever attempted to use it.


    "Pete, would you stop yelling and put that damn thing down¡­!" Joanne said in exhaustion.


    To PG, his sister looked like she''d just been through hell.


    Her voice was almost gone, her hair was a mess, her usual pale and slightly rosy skin was now covered in small bruises and bite marks, and to make matters even worse, there was a trail of some dried ck liquid running down her chin into her covered cleavage.


    "J-Jo, what the fuck is that!? Did you bang it!? I know we don''t fuck with organized religion, but why the hell are you giving demons blowjobs!?"


    "Would you stop yelling in my apartment so early in the morning! And he''s not a demon, this is Mchi!!"


    Mal waved in as friendly and non-threatening a manner as he could muster.


    PG swiveled his head back and forth between Joanne and the supposed ''Mchi'' that was in the bed, still pressed against his naked sister.


    "M-Mal..? Is this some kind of new transformation, buddy...? Like the cat thing...?"


    "Sure! It''s just like that.... but permanent."


    "O-Okay... cool... Do you want to tell me why you''re pressed up against my sister while you''re naked and why she looks like unholy hell..? Or why you both do for that matter.."


    "Right... well-"


    "We''re together now, though it''s not any of your business." Joanne interrupted possessively. "Can you please get out of my room?"


    "Can I get- No!! What do you mean you two are together?! He''s getting married to your daughter! They have a child together!"


    Joanne shuffled within the bed so that she could face Mchi on her own as she responded.


    "I know it''s weird.. and we have a lot of things to figure out, but I want to be happy... no matter how many awkward conversations we have to have or weird looks we end up getting. I will not... lose this for anything. I won''t lose him."


    Even though Mchi and Joanne both looked like sticky bundles of hell, he still found her to be the most beautiful thing in the world.


    He kissed her in a much softer manner than he had during the previous night they spent together, and Joanne melted in his grasp like butter.


    "I''m still here!" PG reminded.


    "Then can you get the fuck out!?" Joanne snapped. "You''re killing the mood!"


    "Well I''m sorry if I''m just having a hard time epting all of this! How did you think I would take it!? What did AG say about all of this!??"


    "She-"


    Suddenly, the group heard the familiar sound of the metallic front door sliding open and several footsteps streamed in one after the other.


    One by one, the rest of Mchi''s fianc¨¦s came waddling into the bedroom after exchanging short pleasantries with PG.


    It was clear that they were all very tired, as they werepletelycking in energy.


    Bianca: "Hey Mr. P..."


    Luna: "Hello, Peter..."


    Anna: "Morning, Unc..."


    Sei: "Good morning, Peter..."


    Nadine : "Grand rising, brother PG..."


    One by one, all five sleepy and exhausted women came streaming into the bedroom and climbed into the bed without saying another word.


    "W-What''s happening..?" Joanne asked in surprise.


    "We waited all night for you guys to finish, but you guys took forever. We''re tired, Mom." Anna exined.


    "...Well why didn''t you just-"


    "We don''t sleep that well at night without Mchi ever since the incident happened." Luna exined with a yawn.


    "We thought you two were going toe down and join us in bed at some point but you never did." Sei said.


    "Bianca, do you mind?" Nadine asked.


    Bianca ced a single finger on the bed and sent a small pulse of heat throughout the damp bedsheets, drying them in seconds.


    "Thank you, darling..." Nadine clearly had to have been exhausted, as it didn''t take her ten seconds after her head hit the pillow to start snoring.


    Anna nestled right underneath Mchi''s free arm while being careful to avoid lying on top of Manda and Vritra.


    The rest of the girls fit in wherever they could, while ensuring they were touching Mchi in some sort of way.


    Joanne looked slightly flustered by the fact that she was naked while surrounded by so many women but she started to feel morefortable the longer she stayed in their presence.


    It was like there was this invisible bond between them that made her feel like she had nothing to be ashamed of or ufortable with.


    Besides, everyone''s eyes were already starting to close anyway.


    And with thebination of these heated sheets and a cold nket, Jonne wasn''t far behind them.


    "Where''s munchkin..?" Mchi asked with a yawn of his own.


    """"Serana...""""


    Mchi chuckled before looking up in the doorway at the still-stunned PG.


    Normally Mal wasn''t shy about PDA in the slightest, but this time he did feel a little bad.


    "Sorry.. do you mind if we pick this upter..?"


    Those seemed to be the words that PG needed to snap himself back to his senses. "I.. sure. You guys just, uh... rest up."


    Afterwards, he hurriedly closed the door and rushed out of his sister''s apartment as fast as he could.


    Along the way, he ran smack into Mnie''s mother Celeste who wasing over with a dozen baked muffins in Tupperware.


    "Oh, it''s you Peter! How are you?"


    "O-Oh, I.. I honestly don''t know anymore."


    "Umm... alright then... Is your sister awake? I wasing to talk to her about some weird noises I was hearingst night and I just wanted to-"


    "S-She''s asleep... definitely asleep... I wouldn''t rmend barging in...like at all."


    "Oh... okay?" Celeste turned around and walked back to her shared quarters, not understanding why her neighbors were quite so weird today.


    -


    Like all of his women, Mchi fell asleep rtively quickly.


    This time he slept even better because he was surrounded by the women he loved most in the world and wanted to spend the rest of eternity with.


    His sleep would have been the most rxing and blissful that he had ever had in his entire life were it not for the annoying nagging sensation he felt burrowing into his brain.


    Strangely enough, he could feel that he could easily dismiss this annoyance, but he wondered if it would have been the right thing to do.


    This sensation felt slightly familiar to him... so he decided to step through the doorway and let himself be pulled through.


    And he immediately wished he hadn''t.


    "My word..."


    "He''s not even hiding it anymore.."


    "He''s really be one of those ursed things...!"


    "Why is he alwaysing here naked?!"


    "I don''t know... but I ain''t mad at it."


    Mchi let out an exhausted growl as he pushed his hair out of his eyes.


    Somehow, he had ended up right back in the colosseum of the gods of his own volition.


    With all of his business hanging out.


    "I was so hoping that I wouldn''t have to see any of you again." Mchi sighed as he waved a hand over his boy and fabricated a set of clothes made from shadow.


    "Even me, brother?"


    Mchi''s eyes found Keres sitting not too far away from Hades and wearing a slightly dejected look.


    "Of corse not. You know my family is forever to me."


    "... Good."


    "It is funny that you mentioned that, Saint boy."


    Mchi looked over his shoulder at the mayan pantheon, where the head god Itzamna was staring at him with a sort of suspicious look.


    "Why have all of the nightmares left this world so suddenly!? What are they nning that could warrant-"


    "N''Kai."


    "...Pardon?"


    "Calling them nightmares and shit like that... feels a little insulting. I don''t like that."


    The pure, unsullied silence after Mchi''s bold correction was so loud that it was almost deafening.


    However, he seemed to bergely unbothered by the stunned looks that he was receiving as he folded his arms behind his headzily.


    "And you''re asking me why they left all of a sudden... Do I even need to tell you something like that?"

 Chapter 225: Defiance In The Face of The Divine

    The only one who seemed to find Mchi''s tant defiance funny in the slightest was of course, the devil himself.


    Lucifer fell out of his chair whileughing hysterically, and seemed uncaring of the amount of dirty looks he received as a result.


    But for that matter, neither did Mchi.


    His eyes swiveled towards the area where the greeks usually sat and he looked towards his mother''s throne.


    Upon finding it empty, he let out an indiscriminate scoff.


    "Now I wonder... why exactly everyone is at this little get together except for my mother? I don''t believe in coincidences, and I would hope that you all aren''t ipetent enough to make such a simple fuck up, soo..?


    Did you think you were going to be able to throw your weight around a little easier if she wasn''t around? Get your answers from me by whatever means necessary?"


    "Insolent boy!"


    "Yea, here ites..."


    Out of nowhere, a giant hand made out of pure-blue lightning fell out of the sky with the goal of suppressing Mchi.


    Before he could voluntarily wrack his own mind for evasive maneuvers, the golden bracelets around his wrists started to shine brilliantly.


    A momentter, a silver and gold spear with faint red markings inscribed upon the de appeared within Mal''s hands.


    There was a small switch in the middle where the weapon could be broken into two in order to form more familiar one-handed iklwa.


    Not letting himself be fully mesmerized by this new weapon that he didn''t understand, Mchi threw his spear directly into the palm of the electrified hand over his head.


    Surprisingly, the two forces seemed to be fundamentally ipatible with each other.


    The second that they made contact, the air seemingly vibrated with an odd power before the electric attack became unstable and fizzled out.


    A momentter, Mchi''s spear returned right back into his open hands and he looked at it with somewhat of a dejected look.


    ''This reminds me... I really need to stop avoiding Aisha at some point¡­''


    "What¡­ is that weapon..?"


    The sight of a very concerned Zeus was not something that Mchi expected to see when he went to bed this morning, but he would be lying if he said it was not an enjoyable scene.


    "A familial gift. Seems a little more special than I originally thought though¡­ leave it to Tsath to go above and beyond like this."


    "You dare bring such an offensive weapon into these hallowed chambers?! Have you no shame?!"


    "Hm? Offensive? They''re just bracelets."


    "T-They are most certainly not just ''bracelets''! Those weapons are made from the remains of a god!"


    "Oh..?"


    This revtion admittedly made Mal pause just a bit, because he didn''t understand exactly how such a thing was possible.


    ording to Tsath, the N''Kai were supposed to be ipatible with divinity, so how in the world did they manage to kill an entire god and make this weapon??


    ''I wish that he would have left his phone number or something¡­ I''m kinda scared to push that big red button.''


    "So your heart has fully revealed itself atst! You have fully aligned yourself with the invaders, and in doing so are likely nning to assist them in the wager! What game are you ying?!"


    "¡­Wager?" Mchi asked in confusion.


    "Do not y games with me boy! Your attempts to feign ignorance will serve you no purpose!"


    Mchi clenched his jaw so tightly that he very nearly cracked all of his perfect porcin teeth.


    He felt so angry now that he could hardly stand it.


    The world''s me was being unfairly ced upon him from up high.


    The fact that he was once their greatest champion did not matter.


    All that was of consequence was what he was now.


    The alien.


    An invader.


    Earth''s natural enemy.


    Multiple gusts of wind disturbed Mchi from his furious realization.


    When his eyes refocused, Mchi was surrounded by multiple gods of the Greek pantheon.


    But these were not just any gods.


    They were his siblings.


    In particr, Nemesis and Keres came the closest to him and they each ced a hand on him protectively.


    Apate: "Your usations grow more exasperating by the second, Zeus."


    Hypnos: "We will not stand here and let you belittle him any longer."


    Nemesis: "He is far from the conniving sort. If he had any sort of nefarious intentions then we would no doubt already have been made aware of them."


    Even with several of Nyx''s childrening to his defense, Mal was only slightly moved.


    He slipped past the encirclement of his siblings and moved to speak on his own behalf.


    "You want to know why the N''Kai left earth? Because I asked them to."


    Even though Zeus was fired up only a few seconds ago, his brain suddenly sputtered out as he tried to wrap his ancient mind around everything that he had just learned.


    Not only him, but every other god in attendance had to clean out their ears as well.


    "Brother... what do you mean that they left..because you asked them to?" Keres asked.


    "It was my birthday gift."


    "Come again?"


    "Tell you at mom''s ceter."


    "Alright..."


    "You will tell us all what you mean, now!" Zeus interrupted.


    "I will do no such thing."


    Mchi leapt into the stands so that he couldnd directly atop the stone desk Zeus was formerly resting his elbows on.


    The greek god seemed horrified by this sudden insolence and his body started to churn with godly blue lightning.


    "Boy... you-"


    "I have been remarkably patient so far, but this shit is getting real old real fast. I owe you gods jack shit. Not my allegiance, my answers, and I have been gracious enough to give you my time.


    Ever since I came here you''ve been hostile, treating me as if I was some kind of schemer who was searching for a method to bring down the whole that I still fucking live on."


    The longer Mal spoke, the easier it was to see how angry he was bing.


    His dreads became animated and changed into miniature, grey looking snakes.


    Just looking at them made Poseidon and Athena ufortable and they felt they had no choice but to look away.


    The four snakesing out of Mchi''s back also woke up and hissed at Zeus with staggering aggression.


    Their bodies grewrger and they started to expand in length until they were a staggering ten meters in length and as thick as telephone poles.


    "If you want to know why the N''Kai left earth, then go and ask them. Maybe if you grovel low enough when you ask, they will give you an answer before they bite your head off...!"


    "That''s enough!"


    Mchi was suddenly flung through the air by an invisible forced was forced to perform a somersault to avoidnding on the back of his head.


    Against Mal''s expectations, he found that the culprit was the archangel Michael.


    "Why are you behaving like this, Mchi? This isn''t like you!"


    This final statement proved to be thest bit of straw that broke the cart.


    "Now do you know me!? Thest time I was brought here you stared at me as if I was a man you couldn''t even recognize!


    When my wings were taken from me, when my future was being argued over, you did not know me then! How the fuck are you going to act like you know me now?!"


    He was speaking to Michael at the moment, but his rage was also directed at Bastet, Raijin, and even Erebus.


    They had enough trust in him to bless him initially, but when they had found out what he had be they lost all faith in him.


    They offered no words in his defense at all, and where content to simply test him like ab rat as if he had not already proven his character numerous times over.


    "And even after you allbeled me a potential catastrophe that needed to be restrained I STILL saved humanity!


    The N''Kai value their blood above all, so when I asked them to leave the earth they did not hesitate! Even after knowing me for a single DAY they still did what I asked without oneint!


    So none of you have the right to question me about allegiances or make assumptions about my character! The crisis is over, your game is done, so whatever issues that you have left don''t have shit else to do with me!"


    Lashing out, Mchi punched the air in front of him and created a veryrge crack in the fabric of this space.


    Once the gods saw this, they immediately leapt out of their seats in surprise.


    Scowling at them onest time, Mchi stepped through the portal and vanished from their sight.


    All that remained after his departure were the stunned looks on the faces of the gods, and theughter of Lucifer that sounded like it was getting progressively closer to wheezing.


    -


    "Babe.... babe...!"


    "Hm..?"


    When Mchi opened his eyes again, he was still lying in bed with all of the girls with seemingly very little time having been passed by.


    At his side, Anna was only barely awake, her hair strewn across her face and her eyes hardly open.


    "You woke me up... You''re shaking a lot."


    "Oh.. really? My bad."


    "I didn''t want you to apologize, I just wanted to make sure that you''re alright."


    Faced with such genuine concern and love, Mchi nearly forgot all about the unpleasantness he had just sat through with the gods.


    A smile crept onto his face as he leaned in to give Anna a gentle kiss.


    "I''m fine... thank you for your concern."


    Anna felt like there was a little bit too much intimacy in Mal''s kiss so she tried to pull away from him immediately.


    "Stop trying to have sex with me... I''m too tired right now."


    "I''m not, I just wanted to show you how much I love you."


    "I see the bulge underneath the covers..."


    "...That''s just my tail."


    "Nice try, but you have four, not five. Goodnight, babe."


    Anna rolled over not long after and left Mal staring at the ceiling above.


    He wanted to go back to sleep too, but after kissing Anna a single time he had libido to burn.


    He contemted counting sheep as a means of rxation but he only got to fifteen before the sheep in his imagination became reced by the face of his extremely attractive tattooed girlfriend.


    Unfortunately, it didn''t seem like he was going to get very much sleep today.


    *Sigh...*


    One of Anna''s violet eyes shed open, and she nearly rolled them so hard that they came out of her head.


    "...I''ll give you ten minutes in the bathroom."


    "Yes!"

 Chapter 226: Serana is Mal’s Friend

    The door to the elevator in Mal''s family quarters finally slid open, and Aubrey, Aisha, and Rose all came inside of the apartment.


    They followed the sound of giggling and childish sing-song musicthat wasing from the living room with a vague idea of what they would find.


    There, they froze directly in their tracks when they found a scene that they weren''t sure how to process.


    A young, pink haired girl was lying on the floor watching a very old cartoon of a pair of brother and sister rabbits living together without any adult supervision.


    Next to her there was a ck skinned baby girl in a onesie who couldn''t have even been at walking age yet.


    She looked to be just as enthralled by what she was seeing on tv as the older girl lying next to her.


    And walking around in the kitchen warming up a bottle of milk with a few drops of blood mixed in was¡­ a giant stuffed animal shaped like a bear with the head of a fox?


    "See Cam-Cam? This is way better than that talking blue dog you like to watch. Your dad and I grew up with this one."


    "Oohhh.."


    "Although I have to say, Ruby did always seem a little ditzy."


    *Squeak*


    "Ah, I  guess your milk is done."


    Serana finally got up from her position on the floor and began moving to the kitchen, at which point sheid eyes on the other half of this faction''s famous harem siblings.


    "Oh, hey guys! What are you all doing here?"


    "Serana¡­what¡­?"


    "Oh, right. I forgot that they said you didn''t know."


    Serana lifted up the young ck skinned baby from the ground and presented her in front of the girls.


    "It''s a long ass story, but from what I''m told the aliens are kind of like Mal and Cami''s extended family now?


    They performed this trippy ceremony and now the two of them look like this. But the bright side is that all of the aliens are gone! Seems like a real win honestly."


    All three girls were immediately floored.


    They had already been getting reports from the scavenging teams this morning that the streets werepletely barren of nightmares, and as a result they were able to travel a lot deeper into the dead zone.


    They thought maybe all of the creatures were just hiding or something.


    But if what Serana was saying was not just babbling, then this was unbelievable!


    "I''m sorry¡­ but I think I need a more clear cut version of this story." Aisha said.


    At her side, both girls nodded without offering another word.


    "Fine¡­ but can we finish watching ''Max & Ruby'' first..?"


    "¡­No!"


    "Damn it."


    -


    Thirty minutester, Serana had recounted the story her mom told her to the best of her ability in order to give the girls a full walkthrough of events.


    When the story was over, Serana chuckled at the sight of her milk-drunk baby sister, who''s eyes were half open and half closed as she drifted off to sleep.


    "I.. can''t believe this." Rose finally said.


    "The invaders caused all of that death and destruction¡­ and their only goal was to eliminate strife and disharmony in the gxy." added Aisha.


    "Not to mention that they just up and left because Mchi and Camille just asked them to¡­" finished Aubrey.


    "Yea¡­ you girls hungry? I''m gonna raid my mom''s fridge for leftovers."


    Serana tried to pass the sleeping Camille to Rose so that she could get up and head towards the kitchen.


    But a problem soon arose when Rose flinched instead of greatfully taking the baby like she normally would have.


    Almost immediately, Serana''s eyes narrowed.


    "Rose¡­ I say this as respectfully as I can, but if you don''t give me a good exnation for that shit you just pulled, me and you are going to fight in the street."


    The princess of war was left to y peace keeper as she raised both of her hands to separate the two women from bing hostile.


    "Hey now, there''s no need for any of-"


    "The hell there isn''t. You all know by now exactly how Camille was born from A-Z. Now that she looks like this you''re suddenly too good to touch her?"


    "N-No, of course not..!" Rose immediately held up her hand in protest. "B-But I''m just concerned about this ritual that they put them through."


    "Bitch you better start putting together the most eloquent sentence you''ve ever said in your life."


    "I-I''m being serious, Serana! How do we know that they haven''t done something to the two of them that could turn them against us or turn them into giant monsters?!"


    No matter how justifiable Rose''s concern might have been, Serana wasn''t having any of it.


    "Oh¡­ I get it. You''re scared that they are going to hurt someone."


    "I¡­"


    "I''m going to let you in on some real privileged information that you may not have put together."


    Serana''s eyes were burning with a rage that was utterly unlike her, and her words contained such venom that they could have poisoned an entire ecosystem.


    "Mchi has been the most powerful thing in the world for two whole years now. There is practically nothing that those Ne''Calli guys could have done to him that could make him any more dangerous than he already was."


    "But what about-"


    "If Mchi or Cami were going to do something to us, willingly or otherwise, he could have already snapped our necks in the dead of night and there wouldn''t have been a single thing that we could have done to stop him. So the fact that he hasn''t must mean he''s still pretty normal."


    Rose felt her heart get caught in her throat, and she realized that Serana''s words were scarily urate.


    No matter the amount of preparations they took, the night always came back around, and the shadows always followed them wherever they went.


    If Mal were feeling homicidal towards any of them, everyone in this base would have already died in under two minutes.


    "I need you to open your fucking ears and listen to me when I say this; if you upset Mchi in the slightest then I am going to break my foot off in your ass.


    Mom says he''s been freaking out for two whole days now because he looks really different and he''s afraid that everyone is going to hate him again and I refuse to let him be right.


    If you make him feel like he has to run away a second time, Jesus, Mary, and Joseph will not be able to get me off of you with a mother fucking crowbar."


    "Jugga jugga.."


    "Hm?"


    Serana''s frightening demeanor disappeared like it was never there as soon as she heard the baby in her arms make a drunken noise.


    Camille made a gesture of bringing something to her lips and Serana immediately knew what she was getting at.


    "More milk? You just ate though."


    "Ada¡­ jugga jugga.."


    "You are barely awake, so why are you still moring for more food?"


    "Buu¡­"


    "Fine, you can have a little bit but then I''m going to put you down for a nap."


    Serana got to her feet with a greedy Cami in her arms and carried her towards the kitchen.


    In her wake, she left behind a very emotional Rose and two charming women who were not very far behind.


    Even though she was a rather stringentbat instructor with a tough personality, she actually does not do very well with face to face conflicts with bold personalities like Serana''s.


    She''s a big softie in that regard.


    "I.. was just¡­ concerned about our members.. I-I was just worried that-"


    "It''s alright, we get it."


    Aisha ced a gentle hand on Rose''s shoulder in an attempt to calm her down.


    "This is¡­ a delicate situation all around. I understand how you were feeling but they are still our family¡­ they are also a part of the people we are supposed to be worried about."


    Rose''s dejected look turned over to Aubrey, who had been silent during this whole ordeal.


    For some reason, she looked more hurt than anyone else, and her gaze never left her own feet.


    "Babe¡­ I''m sorry for how I-"


    "He was going mad with anxiety for two whole days¡­ and I didn''t even notice. I never even noticed his absence and thought he was just busy with family stuff or screwing around."


    Aisha became slightly emotional at this time as well.


    She and Mchi had been the best of friends ever since they were children, but it was as if they had been drifting apart over the past couple of years.


    She could barely even remember thest time they spent an entire night awake watching shit movies and ying video games while they fantasized over the girls in their ss.


    They made promises to never lose touch back then, but over time they had gradually forgotten to hold onto it.


    It made her feel even more guilty that she didn''t know about his grief over his new ''changes'' either.


    *whoosh*


    As the mood remained depressive, the familiar whistling of shadow teleportation came from the bedroom.


    Not long afterwards, a yawning Bianca stepped through the door while rubbing her eyes.


    "Thanks, Serana¡­ we appreciate your for watching Cami while we¡­"


    Once the young girl realized that her home was a bit more full than when she left it, she immediately woke up and closed the door behind her.


    "O-Oh, hey guys...! What are you doing here?"


    Serana came around from the kitchen with a very thirsty Cami in her clutches.


    "It''s okay, B. They already know everything."


    "E-Everything..?"


    "Yes, so if you don''t mind¡­ can you tell him that he doesn''t need to hide..? I want to see my friend, and¡­ I want to tell him that I love him."

 Chapter 227: Understanding All Around

    *Thump, thump, thump*


    The sound of Mchi''s heart was reverberating so loudly throughout the bedroom that all of the girls inside could hear it.


    He told himself that he was prepared for this.


    Afterall, he could not stay hidden for forever and eventually his closest friends and family would demand to see him.


    And though the girls told him that Serana knew already and said that she was not afraid of him, he still had his own worries.


    Little voices in the back of his mind that told him that he wouldn''t be epted once everyone saw his new tails or webbed hands.


    "Mchi..? Can you hear me?"


    The beating of Mal''s heart only got worse than before when he heard Serana speak to him with her lips nearly pressed against the bedroom door.


    "Do you remember in high school how you stood up for me after Seth told everyone in my grade that I let him sleep with me in the back of his car behind a McDonald''s?


    You barely knew me then, and yet you still told everyone off and got beat up by like five guys from the baseball team. But even then your only concern was making sure that my feelings weren''t hurt too bad."


    "¡­"


    "From that day on you were always with me and trying to help me with whatever I needed, whether it was schoolwork I was too depressed to do, or even just giving me a ride home because mom was too busy working¡­"


    Sei gradually tensed up the longer that she listened, and it was easy to tell that her heart was breaking.


    All she knew of how their friendship started was that Mchi had been there for her as an extra hand when Serana was struggling with school.


    Now that she was hearing the full truth she felt her heart breaking into two.


    Her hand slipped into Mchi''s, and she tried her best to cover her mouth to stop from crying.


    "I was never been able to articte how grateful I was for everything that you did for me back then, or even since then... and that was wrong of me.


    I''m still not able to say everything that I really want to without feeling all sappy and vulnerable but I want you to know... there is nothing that you could ever be that would make me afraid of you... you''re my best friend, you know?"


    Now, Serena''s own heart was beating out of control.


    She was horrible at saying sappy and emotional things, and it was a miracle that she had ever gotten her own boyfriend.


    She didn''t know if her words could ever give Mchi that needed push to get him toe outside, but she prayed with all of her might that they would.


    And after almost an eternity, the door finally cracked open.


    With tears in their eyes, Aisha, Aubrey and Rose also got onto their feet and waited to see what would emerge from behind the doorway.


    Just like Serana had alluded to earlier, Mchi really did look a lot like his daughter.


    The same deep ck skin, matching dark sclera, and gemlike amethyst eyes.


    Oddly enough, she believed that he may have been even more handsome than before.


    He nervously ran his hands through his long grey dreads, and the girls were able to get a good look at his webbed hands and dark ws.


    A bit of a shy smile crossed his face, and they were also able to see abined total of four venomous fangs in his mouth that were even longer than Nadine''s.


    However, the strangest thing about him was the four, dark grey serpents that swung from behind his back, each of them fully alive and with minds of their own.


    Before Mal could spray whatever awkward thought he had out of his mouth, Serana acted on her promise.


    Closing the short distance between them with no fear, she threw her arms around Mchi and wrapped him in an emotional embrace.


    "There''s my handsome guy. I love you buddy."


    "...I love you too, Serana."


    Their hug went on uninterrupted for only a few more seconds before two more bodies joined into the fray.


    Aubrey and Aisha were just as sniffly as Serana, though they didn''t bother to exin the reason why.


    Tsath had taught Mchi and Camille how to read minds through physical contact, so he could hear every heart warming thought that was going through their heads.


    Already, he was starting to feel the concerns that he was wrestling with fading away in the blink of an eye.


    "Mal... I.."


    "You should know that we would never be-"


    "It''s okay, I get it now. I just had my own little worries is all, but they''re pretty much gone now. I have all of you to thank for that."


    Mchi finally looked up at the remaining upant in the room and smiled at her wryly.


    He and Rose weren''t as close as the others so she did not rush to hug him, but she was giving him a friendly smile that was more than enough for him.


    Through some miracle he was able to escape from thebined clutches of the three girls and moved towards her.


    He gingerly took the sleeping Camille from Rose''s arms and gave her a small she hug that she did not shy away from.


    "I''m d I decided to pop by¡­ things like this are always more than worth the trip."


    Looking up, Mchi smiled brighter when he saw his lovely mother lying on the ceiling on her back.


    It was a rather provocative sight that gave Rose and Aisha dual nosebleeds.


    And Mchi was immediately infuriated.


    "Both of you cut that shit out!"


    "W-What?!"


    "I didn''t do anything, Mal!"


    "The devil is a lie! I can see your damn faces turning red!"


    Embarrassed, Rose sat back on the couch and hid her head between her knees.


    Aisha however was a bit more shameless.


    Turning her head away inconspicuously, a quiet tune slipped out of her lips.


    "¡­Anytime, any ce, tell me is there any more room for me, in those jeans~"


    "Hey!"


    "I''m sorry, I promise I won''t say nothing else."


    Aisha looked down at the floor in defeat, and Mal thought his nightmare was finally over.


    *Under her breath* "Damn yo momma got a fat ass¡­"


    "AISHA!"


    "That was myst one, I swear."


    Laughing, Nyx dropped down from the ceiling and wrapped her arms around the red faced girl.


    "It is lovely to see you too, Aisha. I''m d to see that our time together was as memorable for you as it was for me."


    "Y-Y-Yes, ma''am."


    Aubrey gave her girlfriend a not so discreet elbow in the stomach that made Nyx cackle melodically.


    "Is my daughter jealous? You should know that I have enough love for you both."


    "Y-Yes, I know¡­ but I said we weren''t doing that again!" Aubrey said firmly.


    "Aww, are you sure?"


    Nyx grabbed both girls by the chin and it seemed like she was going to give them both a rather provocative kiss.


    Or at least she would have, if Mchi had not ced Camille''s chunky cheeks between the two as a buffer at thest minute.


    "Do y''all mind?!?"


    Nyxughed as if she found this all terribly amusing and slipped her sleeping granddaughter out of her son''s grasp.


    "Ha! It''s not funny when your friend turns your mom into a water park, is it?" Serana joked.


    Sei: "S-Serana!"


    Aisha: "I-It was really more of the other way around..."


    "BOTH of you shut up and get outta my quarters." Mchi demanded.


    Unfortunately, the girls ignored him as they barely suppressed their own mischievousughter.


    Mchi''s eyes narrowed as he resisted the urge to wring Aisha''s neck.


    "You just hope and pray that your mom don''t throw her draws at me, cause if she does-"


    Nadine : "And if she does what the fuck are you gonna do?"


    "I''m going to fold them up and hand them back to her nicely."


    "Good boy."


    -


    Mchi took special care to sit between his mother and Aisha to avoid the unfortunate future where he had to either kill her or himself.


    Joanne was currently sitting on hisp, giving him an asional dirty look for thement he made earlier.


    It was clear that he would have to do a lot of ass-kissing to make up for it with not just her, but the other girls as well.


    ¡­He had absolutely no problem with that.


    ''I should get in trouble more often¡­''


    "I can''t believe that the aliens really gave you something like that."


    "Hm?"


    Mchi followed his mother''s gaze towards therge bear-like stuffed animal in the kitchen who was making a meal for everyone.


    "I can''t sense any magic from it at all. It operates from a purely technological concept." She said with slight wonder in her voice.


    Finally, Mal remembered something that he had been wanting to ask his mother for the longest time now and he realized that this may have been the best time.


    "Ma."


    "Hm?"


    "I wanted to hear it from you, but¡­ how did the N''Kai end uping to this world? Why did people even start getting blessed?"


    Nyx temporarily froze as if she wasn''t expecting to be asked such a question, and Mal immediately knew that the answer wasn''t going to be something that they wanted to hear.

 Chapter 228: How It All Began

    No matter how far one travels through the vast boundlessness of space there is only one constant in every universe that must remain the same.


    The gods, immortals, or whatever they might be called, are not to interfere in mortal conflicts for any reason.


    They can feed on them, and some can start them with enough power and influence, but they cannot partake in the actual war itself nor can they assist either side.


    The only way they would be permitted to take action would be if another divine force were to dere open war.


    This is where the N''Kaie in.


    Among the trillions upon trillions of races in the cosmos, they alone are the grey area between mortal and divine.


    Billions of years ago, they were nothing but a small, weak race with numbers so few that they barely qualified as such.


    Their disposition to overwhelmingly debilitating empathy for other living creatures made them easy pickings for the dominant race that overwhelmed their.


    They were ves, pets, and means of entertainment for the high ranking elite.


    The N''Kai were filled with unimaginable grief.


    Why were they being treated so horribly?


    All that they wanted to do was love and be loved.


    Why did that make them so worthy of scorn?


    Why couldn''t the dominant ones see that they should have all been taking care of each other since they were essentially just biological organisms trying to get by on a floating rock?


    ¡­What if they could make them see?


    From desperation and despair came discovery, and the N''Kai learned that the gift of oneness could indeed be shared.


    Not only that, but the formerly fragile and weak bodies that they possessed could grow stronger the more that they connected with others.


    In a year of earth''s time, the N''Kai turned their entire into their own idellic utopia, where every being was working for the advancement of another, and no man was greater than his brother.


    Once their society developed a means of space travel, they excitedly took to the stars with the goal of spreading their ''gift'' with other worlds.


    But they forgot just how bad sentient beings could be.


    When they traveled to their first world, they were immediately persecuted and attacked with the fiercest of weaponry.


    And even though they abhorred violence, for the first time in history the N''Kai decided to fight back.


    They beat back their enemies to the point of surrender, and on that day the race of pacifists learned a valuable lesson.


    For whatever reason, cultures no matter the way of life are only willing to listen to different viewpoints after they have been brought to their knees by force.


    The N''Kai applied this line of thinking to the next world that they visited and the next, and the next, and the one after that, and the one after that¡­


    Eventually, as a race they grew so powerful that it was difficult to still consider them mortal.


    They used to have a short lifespan of around ten years, but now even the weakest lowbreed can live for atleast half a million.


    They used to have difficulties running singleps, yet now they could run and fly at near light speed.


    They became immune to all forms of naturally urring disease and bacteria, and had incorporated the DNA of countless species into the cosmos into their own gic makeup so that they could continuously improve.


    But they still weren''t gods.


    And with that distinction still separating them, they were subject to the powers of those who were.


    Restrictions were suddenly imposed on the N''Kai from the heavens of the cosmos.


    From that point on, they were no longer allowed to go to worlds as freely as they had before.


    If they wanted to ''liberate'' a new world, a game had to be yed.


    The divine ones would bestow their powers onto their presided over world and they would fight against theing threat.


    However, they were only allowed to bestow 35% of their power at most and highers at the primordial level were only allowed to give 25%.


    The N''Kai were also required to give a five year ''warmup period'' to civilizations so that they could acquire time to get limated to their powers.


    The aliens assisted in this by offering to stage ''mock battles'' using some of their already conquered worlds, and the gods agreed.


    In addition, as a means of sweetening the pot the N''Kai would have to sacrifice something if they lost.


    Artifacts and divine trinkets that came from the various religions of other worlds, collected from the victories of the N''Kai and containing powers that even most of the gods of earth did not possess.


    Which brings me to the final condition for the game.


    In order for the N''Kai to visit a world, they have to be admitted entry by the governing gods that make up a''s higher beings.


    So in other words¡­


    The entire reason why the N''Kai coulde to earth, is because the gods already took a vote to let them in in the first ce.


    It wasn''t a unanimous decision and one that was certainly not entirely motivated by selfishness, but still.


    The fact of the matter was that the gods that had chosen to allow the N''Kai into their world, had unfortunately condemned a massive ten million men, women, and children to die.


    -


    Roaming through a swamp as the unchecked apex predator was a massive crocodile that clocked in at over eighteen feet long.


    It was clearly looking for it''s next meal with a rather purposeful gaze and aggression.


    It prepared to slither back into the water and continue on it''s day when the sound of a branch snapping suddenly drew his attention.


    Turning around, it released some air from it''s lungs to make a hissing sound.


    "Easy."


    What the crocodile saw, it wasn''t really able to make sense of.


    Wading through the bushes was a humanoid creature that looked like a male.


    His skin waspletely ck and devoid of any other pigments or markings, and his long grey dreadlocks swayed somewhat unatturally as if they had a mind of their own.


    Behind his back swung four dark grey tails with serpents that made one think of venomous boa constrictors.


    He wore a simple outfit that consisted of a pair of ck pants and sandals with a matching sleeveless shirt to allow his lean yet powerful muscles the room to breathe.


    Golden jewelry adorned his biceps, wrist, ears, and neck; but instead of seeming needless it all appeared to be ceremonial in nature.


    Tied around his waist was a deep, rich purple cloth with depictions of a moon surrounded by six stars in the nighttime.


    And one babyet.


    The man''s bright purple eyes seemed to glow even within the daytime, and he stared unflinchingly into the soul of the egregiouslyrge crocodile.


    For some reason, this reptilian beast did not feel the need to bite the strange human who had just shown up.


    It was like it had just run into long lost family at the grocery store.


    And it was so pleased by the sudden reunion that it did not even bother to pay attention to the other, less friendly looking humans behind him.


    *content hissing*


    Smiling, the alien dropped down onto one knee and brought his hand towards the snout of the dangerous meat eating reptile.


    A viscous, unknown ck fluid pooled in the palm of the familiar humanoid.


    Without really understanding why, the crocodile cracked open its jaws to allow the human to toss his own fluids inside.


    No more than seconds crept by before the two of them let out groans in unison as the crocodile fainted.


    When Mchi saw it start to transform, he immediately felt leagues better about everything that had been bothering him so terribly before.


    ''Banshee ss on my first try¡­ not bad at all.''

 Chapter 229: What Happened…?

    With great glee, Mchi smiled as he took in the sight of the new and menacing creature that he had created in front of him.


    This was his first time ever attaching an animal to his hive before, and he could see what Tsath meant about seeing them as beautiful irregardless of what they turned into.


    I mean, how could anyone ever be afraid of this cute little guy?


    To the best possible description, Mchi had created a hybrid creature that seemed to resemble a mix of a crocodile and a bear.


    It had a huge, bulky body that was covered in rugged, dark scales more stringent than armor.


    It''s thighs, shoulder muscles, and face were all covered in swarthy looking dark fur.


    The face on the creature had narrowed considerably, but it''s snout was still lined to the brim with six inch teeth that looked like they could have put a hole in the truck with minimal effort.


    Rows and rows of jagged spines ran along it''s powerful back and down it''s eight foot long tail.


    When it stood on all four of it''s pir-like legs, it was nearly tall enough to look Mchi directly in the eye with virtually no difference in level.


    "You''re such a cute little guy¡­" Mal said happily as he scratched the small fluffy ears of the new friend he''d created.


    *Thwack!*


    The creature raised a solid and powerful paw to knock Mchi clear into the water behind them.


    *snort*


    Mchi surfaced once again and spit out a mouthful of near-stagnant water with a grimace.


    "Cute little girl¡­ my bad."


    He crawled out of the water and shook himself dry before walking back towards his new friend.


    cing his hands back on her head, he gave her a few apologetic pats that she really seemed to be pleased with.


    "This is the first time I''ve seen you smile in like four days."


    Looking over his shoulder, Mchi found his two best friends in the world leaning against a tree and giving him sad yet happy smiles.


    He gave them only a moment''s nce before inevitably turning back to his new friend who had the bulk of his attention.


    "I knew it¡­ you both followed me out here because you were worried."


    "Is that so bad?"


    "Even the girls are saying that you have been a bit less chatty ever since you found out about¡­ you know."


    "I just don''t know what to say." He said honestly.


    "Something, anything would be nice."


    Mchi stared into the glowing white eyes of his first hived creature and wracked his mind for something to say.


    "I feel like¡­ the past five years have all been so pointless. My parents¡­ everyone else who has been lost.. they died because the gods wanted to y a game."


    No matter how much Mchi grew to love Nyx, he had never for one second forgotten about the parents who had given birth to him.


    For seventeen years they were his absolute everything.


    And then when they died¡­ he could not even stop to grieve.


    His sister had things that she needed, and he took it upon himself to provide them and fill in for their absence the best that he could.


    But he damaged himself in the process more than he realized.


    Now that he knew the truth of how they died, he didn''t know whether he should be resentful or just downright vengeful.


    "Are you upset with Nyx too..?" Serana asked softly.


    At the memory of his adoptive mother, Mchi ced a hand over his chest while making a pained expression.


    "No¡­ of course not."


    After Nyx told Mchi the truth, she apologized to him with tears in her eyes and vanished from the living room entirely.


    "I just wish I knew¡­ why it feels like someone as powerful and all knowing as her¡­ seems to be constantly worried about making me angry."


    The way that Nyx reacted when she told Mchi the truth just wasn''t normal.


    She seemed to be so afraid of a negative reaction from him that she could not even bring herself to linger in his face.


    "Perhaps she felt like her presence would be unwanted by you after everything that she told us. Maybe she also knew that you woulde to that same conclusion about your parents."


    "That doesn''t mean anything to me though¡­ she should know me well enough that I wouldn''t me her for that, especially when she voted against the invasion in the first ce."


    Mal suddenly decided that he didn''t want to talk about this anymore and he suddenly leapt atop the back of his gator-bear.


    "Think I''ll call you Lolo. How does that sound?"


    *content hissing*


    "Good."


    Mchi suddenly held his hand out to Serana and Aisha while making a beckoning gesture.


    "Climb aboard you two."


    Serana seemed to hesitate just a bit while Aisha fearlessly epted his invitation the moment he gave it.


    "S-She''s not gonna eat me or anything, right??" Serana asked warily.


    "Well she is a bit hungry but hair dye gives her stomach aches so you''re good."


    Serana had never been so thankful for her previous choice in hairstyling before.


    Once the three of them were seated on top of Lolo, she finished her original intention of climbing into the water and looking for food.


    She kept her body high enough above water level that only their feet were cresting on the surface.


    It ended up being a fairly rxing ride, and Mchi was starting to feel all of his tumultuous thoughts slipping away as he closed his eyes and enjoyed the-


    "Hey Aisha, I''ve been meaning to ask but what''s it like to have sex with Mal''s mom?"


    "What the hell! Why would you ask her that?!"


    "Because I want to know! I asked Anna what it was like to have sex with an alien earlier so now I''m just covering all my bases!"


    "Why are you asking shit like this?!"


    " I have a boyfriend now, I''m trying to learn how to cover all of my bases and keep things spicy." Serana shrugged.


    Aisha''s cheeks immediately became red as she brought her hands to her cheeks like an innocent young maiden.


    "S-She was amazing. Aphrodite''s blessing makes it so that I am always in control during sex and I am the one who gives the utmost pleasure but she beat me soundly."


    "How so?" A notepad and a pair of sses miraculously appeared on Serana''s person as if it were magic.


    "Can we please.."Mchi began.


    "Shh!"


    Aisha''s eyes took on a somewhat dreamy look that would have made Mchi sick if he''d been watching.


    "S-She was just relentless and she chased after me methodically without giving me any time to get my bearings. I screamed, I begged, I cried but she just kept whispering to me in that sweet voice and encouraging me to-"


    "LOLO!"


    Understanding what was being asked in an instant, the hybrid crocodile wrapped her tail around Aisha''s upper body and casually tossed her into the water around them.


    Immensely relieved, Mal gave her a few congrattory pats on the head for being such a good girl.


    "Hey! I was listening to that!" Seranained.


    "Have some sympathy, Serana! How would you like it if I talked about sex with your mom in front of you?"


    "I think I''ve grown numb because it actually doesn''t bother me all that much anymore."


    "Christ."Mchi had never felt like his open affection woulde back to bite him in the butt in such a manner as this one.


    "Actually, I have questions about that too now that I think about it."


    "Oh god."


    "Mom''s always been prettyzy, so is she a pillow princess?"


    "Serana.."


    "And since you''re all doing stuff together at night, are the other girlsying their hands on my mommy too?"


    "Lolo."


    "KYAA!!"


    Once again, Lolo disyed a remarkable ability to follow orders as she hurled Serana off her back without a second thought.


    It just so happened that at this point Aisha was finally crawling back onto the beast, and it was easy to see that she wasn''t appreciative of her sudden ejection.


    "Enjoy your swim?"


    "This is only around half as wet as your mom had me!"


    "LOLO-"


    "Wait!"


    A small buzzing sound came from Aisha''s flooded pockets and she hurriedly fished out a dampmunicator.


    "It''s me. What''s the matter?"


    Serana finally swam back over to Lolo just in time to hear the frantic rambling of one of their guild members who''d endeavored on a particrly faraway expedition.


    She wasn''t sure if she had too much lingering water in her ears or not but she knew that she couldn''t have heard what was said correctly.


    And apparently, Aisha shared the same sentiment.


    "Slow down, Mel. I need you to confirm¡­ you were attacked by what??"


    "Trolls!! Just outside of Wyoming! They came out of nowhere and grabbed our whole group before- KYAAA!!"


    Immediately, the hearts of all three travelers sank to the bottom of their shoes as they understandably feared the worst.


    """Mnie!"""

 Chapter 230: The Abomination Faction

    Just as she was rying the situation to her faction leader back in bama, Mnie felt her whole world darken as the air was knocked out of her lungs and she was sent catapaulting off her feet.


    Her back struck a ruined wall over thirty feet away with enough force to crack it, and she felt so many things go wrong in her body at once that she couldn''t even maintain the presence of mind to cry out.


    "Christ¡­ I thought you were a blessed with that weird energy thing you did earlier but when I hit you it was like punching tissue paper. Are you actually human?"


    Thudding footsteps drew closer to Mnie''s crumpled body but she could not make her body look up at the source of the voice.


    Hell, her vision was blurry and unfocused anyway.


    Casually walking through a ruined highway street was arge creature that was clearly not of this world.


    Standing at roughly ten feet tall, he was a beast huge in not just stature, but muscture as well.


    His hairy arms, chest, and stomach were jam packed with misshapen muscles as staunch as iron, yet were still rtively unappealing to look at.


    It had leathery tanned skin and roguish bony horns and teeth that neither fitpletely on it''s forehead or in it''s mouths.


    Their ''clothes'' if you could really even call them that was really just fluffy loincloths.


    Even though the gates had long since closed, there was no more mistaking that this was a troll.


    "Sucks to be you man. Seems like you broke yours."


    From behind the troll, seven more human men emerged from various ces on the ruined highway, each of them dragging an unconscious member of nightfall by the ankle or even their hair.


    "Don''t get me started¡­ let me borrow yours." The troll demanded.


    "You must be crazy. You know that these are practically single use only if we leave them as is. Should have been more careful with those meat mallets."


    "Damn it.


    The troll looked down at the crumpled young girl who was already beginning to bleed from her mouth.


    It was clear that she was going to die at any minute no matter how badly he didn''t want to admit it.


    "Hm?"


    The troll watched his kill lie there for a few moments longer and he felt like his eyes were suddenly tricked by the light.


    He could have sworn that he saw the young woman''s shadow¡­ twitching.


    Just as he thought that he might have been too sleep deprived, a giant beast just as powerful as him leapt out of the ground and tackled him with great force.


    The creature that seemed to be a mangled mix of a crocodile and a bear, took a ratherrge bite out of his exposed jugr.


    "Shit!"


    "What is that thing?!"


    "Get it off of him!!"


    Despite the cry for help that came from one of the surrounding human men, none of them really bothered to rush forward since it was clear to them that theirpanion was already dead.


    It was a well known fact that trolls had a scarily powerful healing factor, but none of it seemed to matter much when the beast bit theirpanion.


    They were all more than a little scared to rush in and join him in the domain of a death god.


    Suddenly, three more figures crawled out of the girl''s shadow.


    Two were normal albeit scarily attractive women in sleek ck leather bodysuits with matching symbols on them.


    The other one was a man, or maybe some kind of monster.


    He had deep ck skin, literal snakesing out of his back and weird webbed hands.


    No one could tell what he was, but he knew they didn''t belong among these girls.


    "Hey, it''s that girl from immortal moon!"


    "Holy shit it is!"


    Aisha ignored this group of simians who seemed to know her and instead focused all attention on Mchi.


    He had been the one who''d gotten to Mnie first, and he was currently kneeling beside her as he grabbed one of her hands.


    Even though her vision was growing dimmer by the second and he looked a lot different than how she''dst seen him, Mnie was still able to recognize her ex.


    "Mchi¡­? That''s you right..?"


    "You''re worried about the wrong things right now, Mel. Don''t talk so much, just try to stay awake and breathe for me, alright?"


    "There are rumors flying around that you look different¡­ guess those were true¡­ you still look like a slut though.."


    "I''ll take that any day since I was worried you all would think I was a freak before¡­ think your mom''ll like it?"


    "I can''t believe I ever slept with you..."


    "You told me you were saving yourself for marriage."


    "Thank god¡­"


    Mchiughed dryly as he pushed her hair out of her face and tried to feel her pulse.


    His heart nearly tore itself into two when he felt how weak she was and tasted the terrible fear that was flowing off of her.


    "Mchi¡­ everything is getting dark.. I-I can''t feel my legs¡­ I''m scared." Her voice was so quiet that it was barely a whisper, but Mchi heard it all.


    Tears started to fall from her face and Mchi felt his whole world breaking apart.


    This was just like before where he couldn''t save her from Derrick.


    Except this time, it was monumentally first.


    For all of his speed and power, he was always toote to do the things that mattered, wasn''t he?


    He was tired¡­ so very tired of trying and failing despite all of his best efforts.


    And because of his determination to not suffer the same loss over again, he attempted something crazy that he had never even practiced before.


    Holding out his palm, a dark, viscous liquid was produced in small amounts.


    Aisha : "Mal.."


    Serana : "That''s.."


    "I love you both, but please don''t ever question me on this¡­ I won''t ever let anybody else around us die." His determination unshakable, Mchi poured the dark liquid into Mnie''s open mouth.


    {A / N : I know this scene might upset some people but I just wanted to rify Mnie is NOT going in the harem! I repeat, the cheating ex is not getting cracked, the cheating ex is not getting cracked!!}


    "Hey, what the hell are you doing?! You''re supposed to be one of us, right?"


    Lifelessly, Mchi looked over his shoulder at one of the humans standing around in a loincloth.


    He felt a bit more of his treasured humanity slip away when he realized he was holding his friend Opal by the hair.


    "Lolo."


    Once she heard her name called, the crocodile hybrid came waddling over to Mchi with a full stomach.


    Miraculously she had reduced that troll down to a pile of bones within the short time she''d been here.


    Mchi ced Mnie onto Lolo''s back carefully before he ced Serana up there to watch her.


    "Put. Her. Down."


    The group of humans shivered uncontrobly as if some primal fear within their tainted blood had just been exploited.


    "Don''t know what the fuck is wrong with you¡­ but this faction doesn''t give up prizes once they''re caught..!"


    The man holding Opal let out a powerful roar before his body seemed to literally start fighting against itself.


    His muscles ballooned, his height exploded, and he grewrge tusks and horns that were sharper than even magical des.


    Around him, the other ''humans'' started to do the same and suddenly a group of trolls each as tall as twelve feet surrounded Mchi''s group on the bridge.


    Aisha unsheathed the precious iklwa that Mal had given her and stepped up to aid her friend.


    "Both of you¡­ close your eyes and don''t open them until I tell you to."


    "What?! Why would you ask me to-"


    "Because I don''t want you to see me as a monster after the shit I do next."


    Mchi flexed his wrists ever so slightly and the bracelets on his arms started to glow with a golden light.


    Two cleaver-like short swords appeared in his hands with silver chains that ran up the length of his arms.


    "I mean what I said. Do not open your eyes until I tell you to, no matter how much screaming you hear..!"


    Though they didn''t like it, it was rare for Mchi to sound quite as fearsome as he did now.


    They closed their eyes with great difficulty, and the first thing that they heard was the rattling of chains and the horrifying sound of flesh and tendon being ripped from bone.

 Chapter 231: Affliction

    Mchi first hurled his de at the troll who was still holding on to Opal after he had already asked him to put her down.


    Tightening his grip on one of his des, he hurled the thick cleaver-like short sword at the thick arm holding onto his friend.


    The de''s edge sailed through meat, tendons, and bone as if they were all made of warm butter.


    The thick arm holding up Opal came tumbling down to the ground along with an inhuman deluge of blood that only barely missed her.


    The chains of Mchi''s weapon lengthened themselves extraordinarily, and with his telekic powers working in tandem with them, they became even more deadly than normal.


    With the first troll still reeling from having his arm cut off, the ded weapon wrapped around his fat neck almost as if it had a mind of it''s own.


    Using his own Herculean strength, Mchi yanked hard on the chain and pulled the massive troll clear off his feet and barreling toward him.


    "UWAAAAHHH!!"


    "I asked you nicely."


    Mchi raised his leg up with an absolutely unorthodox level of flexibility.


    The moment that the troll came within striking range, he buried his heel into the skull of the troll with tremendous force and speed.


    Even though troll bones are notoriously harder than even concrete, Mchi broke through it as if it were no more than an eggshell.


    He ignored the dark blood that sttered onto his feet and the bottom of his pants and simply unwrapped his weapon from around the neck of the now unmoving troll.


    "Bastard!"


    "You''ll pay!"


    Two more trolls lunged at Mchi from opposite sides of the road.


    He leapt up into the air to avoid being sandwiched between the two hulking piles of muscle.


    Because the two ogres were unable to stop their momentum on a dime, they ended up mming against each other rather hard and briefly losing their bnce.


    In the air, Mchi changed his weapon into a long gold and silver spear with a de on both ends.


    While the trolls were still in close proximity to one another, Mchi hurled his spear at the trolls the moment that their hearts lined up.


    Twin holes were blown through their bodies and the two of them fell overically, one right on top of the other.


    "Gotcha!"


    One troll was able to get the drop on Mchi from behind, and trapped his body between his unnaturallyrge hands.


    However, this would unknowingly prove to be his undoing.


    Mchi opened his mouth so widely that he nearly unhinged his jaw, and bit the troll''s exposed flesh with his pointed fangs.


    "Agh! You little shit!"


    Frustrated from the pain, the troll hurled Mchi aside in the same manner that a kid would flick a booger.


    However, not long after tossing him away, the troll began to feel really sick.


    His entire body became hot and easily irritable, almost as if the air itself was causing it to break out intorge, disgusting boils.


    "Y-You bastard! What did you do to me...?!"


    Through what was bing a worsening double vision, the troll could only manage to make out the sight of a very angry Mchi flying right back towards his face.


    But the strangest thing was, he had no recollection of anything that happened afterwards.


    Everything just went dark.


    He would never know that his enemy flew so fast and with so much power behind him, that he actually punched through his head like a bullet and emerged from the other side covered in blood and grey matter.


    As Mchinded on the ground, he ced a hand on his own head to stop it from hurting.


    "So... there are more of you. A lot more. Good to know." Mchi sidestepped the tumbling body of the most recent troll to be felled.


    He looked back with cold, empty eyes and saw that there were only two trolls left standing.


    After the quick way that he had dispatch the previous four, it was clear to see that both of them were bing increasingly nervous about following theirrades into an early grave.


    Now is the moment where an individuals flight or flight usuallyes in as ast ditch effort of self preservation.


    Where one changed back into a human and started running, another lifted up arge chunk of concrete and swung it like a club with the intent to crush Mchi.


    With a single thought, the N''Kai brought his weapon back to him from it''s ce in the ground.


    This time, he had it take the form of two silver nged maces with short wooden handles wrapped in ck leather straps.


    With the troll charging at him recklessly, Mchi saw any number of openings that he could exploit.


    Running at only a moderate speed to meet his opponent, he casually ducked underneath the swinging piece of concrete that was aimed to take his head off and struck the knee of the giant with as much force as he could muster.


    Due to not only his strength but the uncanny potency of his weapon, Mchi ended up blowing apart the trolls entire left leg to such an unrecognizable degree that it''s bones were crushed.


    He performed a baseball slide to safety just as the beast came tumbling onto one knee and roaring with pain.


    Just before Mchi could finish the job properly, Manda, Gwiya, Onini, and Vritra all shot out from behind his back and bit the troll in various ces.


    Unlike Mchi''s body which contains a weaker, slower acting poison, the venom the snakeheads produce works twice as fast and is drastically more unpleasant.


    It wasn''t long before the troll''s very body started beaking down like melted ice cream in the sun, doing all of Mchi''s work for him with half the effort.


    "...I could have done that."


    ''Sure.''


    His eyes scanned the ruined highway for thest of the ''trolls'' who was still trying to get away.


    Once he found him a short distance away trying to hop over a car, he gave a smallmand to the shadows at his feet.


    "W-What..? Hey, what is this?!"


    Even without understanding why, the human suddenly turned back around and started heading towards Mchi at full speed.


    No matter how hard he tried, he could not stop himself from running headfirst into his death, and his cries and pleas for mercy ultimately fell on deaf ears.


    Holding out his weapon, Mchi changed it one final time back into a double ended spear.


    The troll''s jaw was forced open against his own volition, and he flung himself full force onto Mchi''s weapon,pletely impaling himself and dying without ever understanding how.


    Thest thoughts that went through his brain were that he was d he was able to send a message back to base about a monster that would require no less than the boss'' attention.


    Mchi let the body of his opponent drop to the ground and he felt his angering back down from a rolling boil to a simmer.


    A deep, tired exhale escaped his lips as he looked at the bloodied weapon in his grasp and he began to feel slightly introspective.


    Naming weapons had never been something that he had put all that much thought into, but for some reason now it seemed appropriate.


    As he decided on one rather quickly, he suddenly remembered that he was not alone here.


    Worried, he turned back towards his travelingpanions and grimaced when he found them waiting, eyes open, staring back at him.


    Immediately, his heart sank and he wanted to hide himself, but there was no where for him to go.


    The very second that she saw him starting to feel despondent, Serana had to chime in with one of her usual thoughtless and endearing remarks.


    "All done, buddy? See if you can find ake or something to take a dip in cause Lolo and I don''t want you touching us when you''re covered in gunk."


    *Disgruntled hissing* (Don''t speak for me, bitch.)


    "See? She agrees!"


    For some reason, Mal found his friend so much funnier than he normally would have.


    Hisugh started out small, but it grew louder and more unrestrained by the second.


    Eventually, he copsed on the ground with tears running down his eyes as heughed and stared up at the bright blue sky.


    He heard the sound of footstepsing towards him, and Aisha squatted down just beside his head and tried to pull some of the chunks of flesh out of his hair.


    "I hope you''re starting to get it now... your girls aren''t the only ones who love you unconditionally. No matter what you be, as long as Mchi is still in there somewhere we''ll still be right next to you. Alien, monster, or man."


    "I think... I''m finally starting to get that. Thank you."


    Aisha held out her hand to help her friend up and he took it gratefully.


    "Come on. Let''s get our people home."


    Serana : "But we have to find ake first!"


    "Right, ake is a priority."


    "Fuck you both."

 Chapter 232: No More Hiding

    Celeste was in the middle of reading a very riveting chapter of one of her cheesy romance novels.


    One of the great things about having a daughter who was on the scouting team was that sometimes she could bring you back old books from before the world fell apart.


    Celeste was hoping that the next time her daughter returned she would be bringing her back another volume that she wouldn''t sprint through in five hours or less.


    In the middle of her fantasizing, the electronic ringing of her front door interrupted her from reaching the erotic couple shower scene.


    Disappointed, she carried herself to the front door with a noticeable hint of frustration in her steps.


    But when she opened the door, her irritation changed into mild fear, and then slight concern.


    Standing outside her door was a tall man with dark ck skin and glowing violet eyes.


    Resting across his back was her own daughter, Mnie.


    She was sleeping rather peacefully, so much so that she had ended up drooling all over his exposed shoulder.


    Upon taking a nce at the familiar women standing behind him, Celeste realized that she was not about to be attacked by this charming creature.


    "Sorry, Celeste. Were you busy?"


    The voice was a lot different from thest time she''d heard it, but that charming southern drawl was unmistakably tied to the identity of one man.


    "Ah¡­ Mchi?"


    "You recognized me. I''m really touched."


    "Well yes, you''re still¡­ A-Are those snakes??"


    "Yea, they are¡­ Mind if I put Mnie down first..? She needs some real rest and attention."


    "Oh, okay.."


    Mchi stepped inside of Celeste''s own quarters and he left behind Serana and Aisha outside.


    They normally would have followed him inside, but they had something else that they wanted to deal with right now.


    Instead of simply teleporting from ce to ce to avoid being seen when he arrived, Mchi had walked through the entire base out in the open.


    As a result, a small, stunned crowd had formed behind them as they traveled, full of members who wanted to know just what they were looking at.


    Mchi wasn''t intending for the girls to exin things on his behalf, but they decided to do it of their own.


    Afterall, that was what friends were for.


    -


    Once Mchi was fully inside of her home, Celeste felt like it was difficult to take her eyes off of him.


    For all intents and purposes, he was the strangest thing she had ever seen.


    Skin so dark that he blended in perfectly with the night, strange webbed hands and not to mention those weird snakes that seemed to literally be apart of his body.


    Not to mention the way that his eyes glowed like miniaturevamps and lit up the dim room in front of him.


    "Uh¡­ where''s her bedroom?"


    "O-Oh right, sorry."


    "No worries¡­ at least you''re staring cause you''re intrigued and not afraid."


    "How do you know I''m not afraid?"


    "I would be able to feel it."


    Celeste wasn''t sure if he was just being dramatic by telling her that or if he was truly capable of peering into her mind somehow, but she elected to move past it for her own sanity.


    "So¡­ do you want to tell me what happened to my girl? I thought she was heading west for a few days."


    "Yea, well¡­ her group ran into a little ident so they asked me to go and pick them up."


    Mchi gingerlyid Mnie onto her bed and made sure that she wasfortable before he tried to flee the apartment.


    Of course, Celeste was there to ce her hand on his chest to stop him from leaving.


    "What kind of ident? Did something bad happen to her?"


    "No, no. They just ran into a little hup, alright? But she hit her head sort of hard so she''s going to need to sleep for a couple of days."


    As soon as she heard ''sleep for a couple of days'' Celeste''s brain immediately reverted back to when both she and her daughter were inas.


    Her heart clenched up tightly within her chest, and it seemed like she was on the verge of falling into a panicked state.


    "Not again, I just can''t.."


    "Celeste, look at her."


    At Mchi''s direction, the mature beauty let her eyes drift towards the bed where her daughter slumbered and she felt her nerves immediately fading away.


    Mnie was a bit feverish and red in the face, but other than that she was sleeping like she normally did.


    Drooling, scratching her belly, and muttering incoherent phrases about not wanting to go to school because her teacher was an asshole.


    "Do you see? I don''t know manya patients who sleep like that." Malforted.


    "I-I guess that you are right¡­ thank you, Mchi."


    A brief, curt smile was all that he gave her before he once again tried to leave her apartment in a hurry.


    "W-Wait! Aren''t you going to tell me how you ended up like¡­ this?" Celeste reasoned.


    "Oh, right... Come with me."


    "Eh?"


    Mchi grabbed Celeste by the hand and started leading her back outside into the hallway.


    He pulled out a silvermunicator device and punched in a few buttons before speaking into it.


    "Attention all Nightfall personnel. Please gather in the mess in five for an emergency briefing."


    "Emergency? Sounds ominous."


    "Well you''ve seen the way I look now¡­ figured it was fitting."


    Just as he stepped outside, he realized that there was something that he needed to grab from home first before his briefing, so he left Celeste on her own with a promise to meet up with herter.


    As she watched him walk away, she unconsciously looked at her hand that he had grabbed without much thought and a small red blush formed on her face.


    ''Honestly¡­ he''s so thoughtless for his age.''


    -


    It was very rare for Mchi to use the pda system in the base- only urring once before as a joke test.


    Therefore, when he seriously called for an emergency meeting a few moments ago it was  seen as something dire requiring everyone''s full attention.


    And once all base members were gathered within the mess hall, the members who had seen Mchi when he first arrived were already informing them about what they thought this meeting was going to be about.


    "Snake tails?"


    "Yes, and they were alive and everything."


    "And he''s ck now too! Like really ck!"


    *suspicious nces*


    "N-No, I mean like inhuman! Like he''s-"


    "Stop talking."


    "Okay, yea."


    At exactly that moment, thestrge group came striding into the crowded room and drew everyone''s attention.


    Unanimously, everyone had no choice but to suck in their own breath.


    Standing at the head of a group of women was a man with deep ck skin and four tails that were literal living snakes.


    Shuffling around in his arms was a small young girl who was nearly his twin in every way.


    The same deep ck skin, dull grey hair, and glowing purple eyes with ck sclera.


    "Right¡­ thank you all foring so quickly."


    Not wanting to beat around the bush, Mchi hopped on top of one of the dining room tables so that everyone in attendance could get a good look at him.


    "I think I''ve spoken to all of you atleast once or twice, but for those who I haven''t met, my name is Mchi Saint. And¡­ I guess I''m an alien."

 Chapter 233: What’s Next?

    "¡­And I think that just about sums it all up.. any questions?"


    Unsurprisingly, at least sixty hands went up at the same time.


    Mchi sighed and elected to just tackle all of the questions one at a time.


    "Umm let''s start with you then, Vanessa."


    "Those snake things on your back¡­ do they have names?"


    "Manda, Gwiya, Onini, and Vritra."


    "That''s clever."


    "Thank you."


    Once she put her hand down, around five others also followed suit.


    Despite wanting to rx a bit, Mchi figured that he wasn''t out of the woods yet and elected to save that for ater time.


    It wasn''t long before he settled on his next question from Bianca''s own father.


    "Mr. Ali?"


    "So those alien-inws of yours¡­ they came and destroyed the whole world and killed all of those people¡­ as some sort of messed up way to eliminate all of our strife and conflict?"


    "That''s pretty much it, yea¡­ They kind of follow the ''A thing must be destroyed before it can be rebuilt'' line of thinking."


    "And do you share that line of thinking with them?"


    "No¡­ but I understand how they reached that conclusion."


    Mchi''s answer made the entire mess hall be noticeably tense as if they weren''t quite sure how to handle the implications of what he had just said.


    Ali in particr felt his eyes narrow noticeably.


    "Now¡­ we don''t have to worry about you following in their footsteps, do we?"


    "Not unless you suddenly take back your blessing, then- Ugh!"


    Bianca punch Mchi in the side as hard as she possibly could and without sending him flying.


    As a result, she obliterated all of the ribs on one side of his body and caused him to double over in pain.


    "I''m an adult who can decide things for myself, thank you! I told you that we don''t need his permission!"


    "I was just trying to lighten up the crowd¡­"


    "W-Well don''t do it at my expense!"


    As quickly as the tension formed in the air, it disappeared and was reced only by a mild sense of pity.


    Another hand went up, and Mchi called on it  as he rubbed his own ribs to speed up the healing process.


    The next question came from another one of the actual guild members, a young woman named Roxanne.


    "This is less of a question for you, Mchi, and more so a question for the girls in a rtionship with you¡­ is it weird to bone an alien? Like does his junk look the same?"


    "¡­why the hell would you-"


    Sei : "T-That.."


    Luna : "The snakes took a moment to get used to, but I barely notice them anymore."


    Anna : "It was always big, but now it''s thicker and it''s easy to tell that he''s not really human anymore just by looking at it."


    Joanne : "It makes forey a requirement or else there''s no way it''d fit."


    "Can you girls please?!"


    Nadine : "But it''s not unpleasant, ya know? It''s almost like-"


    "Okay!"


    Mchi used shadows to cover the mouths of all of the girls other than Sei, as she was the only one who he trusted not to say something unnecessary.


    Unfortunately, the damage was done.


    Most every woman in here was staring at him with object curiosity.


    The men were equal parts envious and disgusted.


    Mchi wanted to crawl into a hole and die.


    "Alright¡­ any other questions?"


    Several hands went up and Mal''s brow began to twitch uncontrobly.


    "That don''t involve my private business¡­"


    Almost all hands went down afterwards.


    "Christ."


    Out of the corner of his eye, Mchi saw one hand that did not go down, and he realized that it was Celeste who had something that she wanted to ask next.


    "So¡­ the aliens are gone. There are no more gates opening up and we are still in the middle of a civil war¡­ I guess what I''m trying to ask is, what''s next for us?"


    This admittedly made Mchi pause a bit as he wasn''t exactly sure either.


    He was generally the sort of person who took his life day by day before the world ended, so it was difficult for him to n out his future sometimes.


    But even still¡­ he was more than a little certain that the months or days toe would not be quiet ones.


    "I won''t lie to you.. even without the gates and stuff, earth still has monsters running around. Only problem is now they look just like humans.


    It''s no secret that two of our most precious members were imprisoned by the Revival Regime for several months.


    I won''t go into detail, but if they''re doing the same thing to other blessed that they were to my girls¡­ we have to destabilize that whole system."


    Joanne trembled slightly at the memory of that hellish ce that was practically a blessed internment camp.


    It was easy to tell that her mind was going to some very upsetting ces.


    Like a ray of sunlight, Anna took her mother''s hand and offered her a reassuring smile.


    Her experience was less traumatic than her mother''s since she was asleep for most of her stay, but she was far from unsympathetic to how her mother was feeling about the whole ordeal.


    And once she felt her daughter was trying tofort her, Joanne felt all of her tension and bad memories beginning to slip away like bad dreams.


    "But just because we have beef with the Revival Regime doesn''t mean that we are going to start throwing in with the New Day either. Any civilization that thrives off the backs of another¡­ is one that we can''t let stand."


    The humans inside of the base all felt a massive wave of relief flow through them.


    It was nice to know that Mchi truly hadn''t changed¡­ and that he was still thinking of a better future for both humans and blessed alike.


    "And¡­ there''s a new threat that we weren''t aware of in the wastnds.


    They call themselves the Abomination Faction, and they are humans who have given themselves the power of monsters from the gates.


    The scout team that we just brought back today had a run-in with them and got a little banged up in the process."


    "Oh gods¡­"


    "H-How is that possible..?"


    "We''re all going to die¡­"


    Mchi noticed the air began to get depressive once again and he hurriedly tried to correct it.


    "Hey now, ain''t no need to get all upset like this. I know things seem crazy but all of you are going to be safe here. You have my word."


    "How can you honestly promise us that, Mal?" Rowan asked sincerely.


    Smiling, Mchi wrapped his arms around two of the girls behind him and presented them before the crowd.


    "Just make a little bet with me. How long do you think it''ll take me and three of my girls to erase a whole faction from what remains of the United States?"

 Chapter 234: Nightfall’s Extermination Unit

    "Alright, girls. No matter what we are going to honor the rules of the drawing, right??"


    """""Yes¡­"""""


    "Alright¡­ let''s get to it!"


    Mchi sat atop the kitchen counter with Camille on hisp as he watched the six women in his life draw straws to determine which of the three of them would be going with him to Wyoming.


    He was a bit surprised by the fact that even Sei waspeting to go, since she was usually quite mellow andid back.


    He wondered if it might have been because this mission was going to take a substantial amount of time and she didn''t want to be cooped up at home for that long.


    "Bu¡­"


    Camille made a depressed noise in Mchi''sp and he realized that this was the first time he was going to be separated from her since he''d been back.


    While the mission was in no way a year long effort, it would likely be a couple of weeks before he was back at home full time.


    "Don''t worry, munchkin. I''ll be back before you know it and I''ll still make sure to kiss you to sleep at night. So don''t look so sad, okay?"


    Camille offered no words of agreement in response, making Mal somewhat feel like his words had fallen on deaf ears.


    She simply tightened her grip on his trousers just a bit more, and left her father''s heart tearing into two with every second that ticked by.


    """Yes!"""


    """No!"""


    Finally, the girls had gotten done drawing straws and were both ted and devastated by the results.


    Bianca, Anna, and Sei were all jumping up and down with excitement as they held up the three longest straws.


    Nadine, Luna, and Joanne were standing around in a circle, crestfallen looks on each of their faces.


    The most hurt by this turn of events was Joanne.


    Through no fault of her own, she and Mal were still in that fresh stage of being together where they were practically inseparable.


    Everything she did was cute, everything he did was sexy, she was so much funnier than he realized before, yadayadayada.


    She would follow him all the way into the bathroom at night if he still had a working digestive system.


    And now that she knew that she wouldn''t be able to follow him all the way to Wyoming, she was crushed.


    But because Luna and Nadine were also still experiencing separation anxiety from Mal''s yearlong disappearance act, they weren''t really that far behind her.


    In that moment, three serpentine tails wrapped around the waists of the girls and pulled them over to where Mchi sat.


    "Now what are all of these sad faces for? You girls act like I won''t being back to check on you all at night."


    Mchi held up Camille so that her face and his were lined up identically.


    "And in the meantime, you got mini me here. Isn''t she just as good as the real thing?"


    The girls smiled wryly at their simrities as Nadine took their daughter happily.


    "I guess you''re right. We''ll have plenty of fun while daddy is gone, isn''t that right sweet pea?"


    Again, Camille was in a rather downtrodden mood herself, and it would require more than a few cheek kisses to change that.


    Discreetly, Mchi sent a message into Joanne''s mind that only she could hear.


    ''While I''m gone¡­ I want you to try to connect with Camille a little more. You two really haven''t had a chance to get to know each other yet.''


    Joanne would be lying if she said she wasn''t nervous.


    What if she dropped the baby? (Cami can fly.)


    What if it didn''t like her? (Babies like almost everybody.)


    What if she ended up teaching her bad habits? (She couldn''t do any worse than Anna or Nadine.)


    What if she overslept and forgot to feed her? (Cami would NEVER allow that to happen.)


    Despite all of her fears, Joanne already knew what the right thing to do was.


    She had made the wrong choice once before and regretted it almost everyday for twenty-two years.


    It would never happen again.


    "Can.. I hold her?" She asked weakly.


    Nadine seemed a bit caught off guard, as was Luna, but in the end she smiled and handed over their precious daughter without a fuss.


    Once Joanne actually held Camille for the first time, it was easy to see the surplus of emotions that were running through her.


    She was mesmerized by Camille''s wide, innocent eyes that shined like amethyst in the moonlight, and she felt an instant connection between the two of them that was nothing short of miraculous.


    It was also familiar to her, because she had felt this with Anna once before.


    She made an enormous mistake back then but from this point on¡­ she would do everything right or atleast die trying.


    "H-Hello.."


    "Bu¡­"


    Faced with this touching scene, Anna felt that it was her solemn duty to make a joke that would make everyone ufortable.


    "¡­So you did have it in you."


    "A-Anna!"


    -


    The next morning, Mchi was saying goodbye to what had be his perfect little family.


    Camille did not cry, but she certainly did sniffle a lot and made it monumentally more difficult for her parents to leave.


    Mchi in particr contemted abandoning the mission exactly seventeen times within the span of four minutes.


    ''A race of warmongering rapists doesn''t necessarily need to be eradicated¡­ r-right?''


    Ultimately, the only thing that allowed Mchi to hold firm to his resolve was the memory of what those things had tried to do to Mnie and Opal.


    Once he was finally able to give his munchkin back to Luna, he received a text on his phone from Serana.


    Instead of asking to babysit again, she was asking for him to meet her in the hangar in a few minutes.


    And a momentter, he got another text from his sister asking for the same.


    "Hey girls! We got to make a pit stop in¡­" As he watched his three travelingpanions exit the bedroom, he got three more reasons to want to stay at home.


    As a show of her affection, Bianca had designed custom made bodysuits for all six of the girls.


    They were made a from tear-proof fabric, along with a thinyer of titanium dipped tri-weave fiber mesh integrated with MR fluid that was designed to harden in response to impact.


    But Mchi could not have cared less about the schematics of their outfits and was instead focused on their overall design.


    ''T-Tight, very tight¡­''


    ''A-Anna''s thigh¡­''


    ''S-Sei''s butt¡­''


    ''B-Bianca''s¡­ everything.''


    Mchi didn''t believe it was medically safe for his dick to be this hard.


    "Pit stop? Where?"


    Bianca came dangerously close to Mchi and he felt like he was going to implode.


    She and Anna had given each other matching haircutsst night in a fit of boredom and he had to admit that they were really working for them.


    Her suit was ck with shades of military green on her thighs, ribs, and arms.


    This, in addition to her warm cocoa butter scent and full glossy lips temporarily sent Mal''s mind into a shut down.


    "I.. um¡­ S-Serana, she.."


    Anna raised a brow as she came over, and Mal''s problem got exponentially worse.


    Her leather suit made her look more like a dominatrix of some sort rather than a soldier, and the thick ck and purple puffer jacket she let hang off her shoulders was both functional and stylish.


    "What about Serana? Why are you stuttering, babe?"


    "I.. umm.. h-here."


    With no other option, Mchi just handed over his phone to the girls and tried to think about innocent things like nuns in church or puppies singing their ABC''s.


    "Honey..? Do I look okay..?"


    Sei worriedly shuffled about in her bodysuit and it was easy to tell that she was feeling a bit out of her element in such tight clothing.


    Her design was much simpler than Anna''s and Bianca''s, with only a sleek ck design and a white chest te.


    Mchi''s chest started to rise and fall more noticeably as he wracked his brain for the right words to say.


    "Sei¡­ you.."


    - 45 Minutes Later


    "What the fuck took you guys so long!?"


    Serana, Aisha, and Aubrey folded their arms annoyedly as Mchi and the girls finally came into the hangar almost an hour after she texted them.


    "W-We um.."


    "Wardrobe malfunctions.."


    "R-Right.."


    Serana looked at the girls'' flushed cheeks, slightly disheveled hair and she turned back to Mchi with one, inescapable conclusion.


    "You''re such a sexual deviant."


    "I know¡­"


    Anna: "It was so worth it though.."


    Bianca / Sei : "Uh-huh.."


    "Gross!"


    Rolling her eyes, Serana finally gestured to the twenty other personnel who were gathered inside of the hangar and geared up like they were ready for a mission.


    "Your bedroom antics aside, I hope that you didn''t think we were all going to let you run off and do something this dangerous all on your own? You make it sound like you guys will be pretty outnumbered, so we are at your service."


    Smiling wryly, Mchi ran his fingers through his hair as he stepped forward with a leader''s natural demeanor.


    "Preciate'' all of you for offering toe with. But I think before you make your decision we should head to the briefing room so that you can know exactly what you''ll be walking into."

 Chapter 235: First Strike

    The birth of the abomination faction sprang forth from amon element within hardships.


    Desperation.


    When the world first fell, food was scarce.


    When humans ran out of what they had at home, they of course had to venture outside their homes to hopefully procure more.


    But the N''Kai are often methodical in their destruction.


    Grocery stores, fresh markets, farms, and restaurants are usually the first to be destroyed or are just heavily monitored.


    With starvation as a constant worry, one must be crafty about their way of procuring food.


    As they say, desperate times call for desperate measures.


    In certain locations all across the country, there are special facilities with an abundance of unused meat that are just lying in wait to be taken.


    The Gate Processing nts.


    There, one can find an abundance of monster meat and materials that are set to be studied, incinerated, or donated to local zoos.


    The best monster meat tastes like eating a leather boot and the worst kind tastes like bad decisions, sperm, and regret.


    But when the only other option is starvation, the luxury of being picky is one that no one actually has.


    Lo and behold, a group of four fraternity brothers were able to make it towards one of these facilities and break in through a window.


    Naturally, they found enough meat inside of the gate nt tost them for years at a time if needed.


    But they didn''t want to just stay locked inside of the facility hiding, scrounging around like rats in the dark.


    With all of these materials and equipment around, surely they could find a way to make themselves into creatures with some real muscle behind them.


    In the end, their desperation heeded results.


    Monster meat is indeed useless to humans ordinarily, but if eaten with monster blood running through your bloodstream, drastically different oues are achieved.


    Once the group of survivors achieved the power they had been searching for, they could finally start to take the offensive to the N''Kai.


    As they fought, they found more survivors.


    With those survivors, they shared the gifts and strength that had saved their lives and started to build up their own forces.


    In nine month''s time, they were able to set up their own stronghold in the state of Iowa where they reigned like kings.


    But due to the savagery of the creature''s whose DNA they had stolen and assimted, they also became more savage themselves.


    And the ''society'' that they created grew to reflect that savagery.


    Now, instead of assisting survivors out of the goodness of their hearts, they kept them for more¡­ primal reasons.


    The men were eaten, the children were used as little servants and of course the women were used for libido relief.


    A peculiarity of otherworlders is that they seem to have an easier time impregnating and getting pregnant by humans.


    In addition, the children grow remarkably fast.


    A baby abomination can grow from the size of a newborn to a young adult in the span of seven days.


    With such explosive growth, it was no wonder how they had managed to take over the wastnds of Wyoming and were beginning to spill into Idaho.


    Left unchecked, this scourge would continue to grow at an unprecedented rate until earth had their own version of monsters to contend against.


    -


    A once nice and sterile hotel was now unrecognizable from it''s previous self.


    Literal bonfires were raging up in the middle of the lobby, and groups of monsters were surrounding them in groups of ten or more.


    Some were chowing down on some rather questionable looking meat.


    Others were heavily petting a few ufortable looking human men and women.


    The abominations themselves were not just troll-like.


    Some were half orcish, others were akin to goblins, and one was even a Jotunn.


    "I found a great one the other day, looked just like my third grade teacher! I was so excited when I grabbed him that I identally crushed his head in my hand like a peach. I was sad for the rest of the week."


    Deep, guttural guffaws erupted from the surrounding abominations as theyughed at the female orc''s morbid story.


    "I''ll lend you one of mine for the night, A, don''t you worry!"


    "This is like the sixth one you''ve broken isn''t it? Gotta be more careful, bossdy!"


    "You''re just too powerful for the meat!"


    The green skinned abomination waived her hand thoughtlessly as she picked up another cut of meat that certainly wasn''tmb.


    "Food''s starting to get more scarce even with those creatures suddenly putting up a disappearing act¡­ if you ask me the Beast King should be putting more energy into migrating so that we can find new food."


    The air seemed to get more tense with the mention of a pivotal figure in abomination society, and A merely scoffed in response.


    "Don''t shit yourselves, insects. It''s not like I said anything sphemous. There''s no reason for you lot to start.."


    Suddenly, a very familiar scent tickled the orc''s sensitive nose.


    Though she was already eating, her stomach growled with a new hunger and she felt her mouth begin to water.


    "Well¡­ looks like food''se to-"


    *CRASH!*


    The doors to the hotel lobby came flying off the hinges with a surprising explosion that alerted all of the abominations inside.


    "Gods this ce smells like shit¡­ even Cami''s got nothing on this."


    Through a cloud of smoke, six women came striding in through the brand new hole in the wall.


    Leading the group was an enchanting but dangerous looking woman wearing a dark bodysuit and an overcoat.


    Her beautiful eyes and bold tattoos were glowing with the same intense shade of purple, making it easy for her to light up the dark room with only her presence.


    "Well what is this!" A eximed excitedly. "Are there more of you out there? Just six is a little-"


    "Ah, hold on."


    The woman at the lead pulled out a piece of paper from her jacket pocket and squinted her eyes together cutely as she recited it out loud.


    "Attention Abominations. My squad and I represent the Nightfall Faction and are here for¡­ geez, Sei¡­ why''d you have to make this so long..?"


    "¡­What?"


    "Sorry, sorry. The gist of it is surrender or die."


    Hecklingughter erupted from all of the abominations inside the base.


    The idea of fooding in here and asking them to surrender was soughable that they almost couldn''t stand it.


    "Whatever¡­ it''s not like I was expecting a whole lot anyway."


    Anna folded the piece of paper back up and ced it back into her pocket tenderly.


    She knew Sei wasn''t the kind of woman who was okay with indiscriminate ughter but she didn''t really see any way around it this time.


    ''I hope.. she won''t be too upset with me.''


    "You all have twenty minutes to clear out this floor. Do not injure the hostages and do not let anyone else in the squad die. Get me?"


    """""Yes ma''am!"""""


    "Go wild then."


    A fierce gust of wind blew Anna''s sleek ck hair into her face.


    When she opened her eyes again, all of her members had rushed in headfirst to make first contact with the abominations.


    It was only a few seconds before tainted blood started to flow like rivers onto the ruined carpet.


    Anna was sort of a hands-off kind of leader, so while her squad mates were cleaning up the mess, she leaned against a wall and stuck earbuds into her ears as she watched.


    ''Ma''am, huh..? I kinda see why mom joined the military now. This is kinda fun.''

 Chapter 236: The Red Angel

    " Oh and my love~"


    "AGGHH!!!"


    "Did I mistake you for a sign from god~?"


    "Kill this fucking meat!"


    "Or are you really here to cast me off?"


    "They''re too fast, shit!"


    "Or maybe just to turn me onn~?"


    "Stop singing, bitch!"


    A green skinned abomination the size of a truck barreled towards Anna with a giant hammer that appeared to be made of sidewalk in it''s grasp.


    Her eyes narrowed with visible irritation.


    "I wasn''t even that loud¡­ stop ear hustling."


    Taking one hand out of her pocket, Anna smacked away the cement weapon like it was made of styrofoam.


    Unsurprisingly, it shattered into thousands of pieces underneath her massive strength and left the half orc without a weapon.


    With as little movement as possible, she punched the orc in the stomach so hard that his body went flying like a kite with it''s strings cut.


    He sailed right into one of the burning bonfires in the room, and several thick pieces of wood pierced his chest as he was slow roasted over the open me.


    "Shit¡­ he made me miss my part."


    Anna pulled her phone back out of her pocket and restarted the song she was listening to back at the halfway point.


    But not long afterward, she grew dissatisfied with the sound quality of her earbuds and plucked them out with a grimace.


    "The noise cancetion on these is kinda ass¡­ I wonder if.."


    Briefly, Anna went to the group chat with her fianc¨¦ and ''sisters''.


    -


    You : Babe do you have my headphones in your storage space?


    Soft Mommy Sei : Anna dear¡­ really?


    Bestie B : Lol.


    My Poundtown Monster<3 :  Ain''t you in the middle of a raid? Should you be worried about music rn?


    Mama Jojo <3 : Annalise, please be careful and focus!


    You : I''m being responsible guys, don''t worry. You got ''em tho babe?


    My Poundtown Monster <3 : Yea, I''ll send them to you if you change my name in your phone first.


    Anna : No ??


    My Poundtown Monster <3 : ¡­You''re lucky I love you.


    Thick Ass Nadine : Guys I''m horny! Send me nudes!


    Soft Mommy Sei : We are in the field right now, we don''t have the time or the privacy for that..


    Bestie B : Attachment: 1 Video.


    My Poundtown Monster <3 : Attachment: 1 Image.


    You : Attachment: 2 Images.


    Steluna : I was justing to tell you all that our daughter finally started to try solid food¡­ you''re all so perverted.


    Thick Ass Nadine : So you won''t send me anything? ??


    Steluna : ¡­


    Steluna : Attachment: 1 Image.


    -


    Anna looked down at her shadow and smiled when she saw her favorite pair of headphones appear at her feet.


    Picking them up, she prepared to put them on when her senses started to go haywire.


    Her eyes scanned the hellish battlefield and she found one of her squad members in battle against therge, green skinned woman who looked like an orc and a troll had a baby.


    Anna''s wings unfurled from her back and she practically glided through the air to stop a catastrophe from unfolding.


    A was mere seconds away from crushing the head of one of Anna''s unit with her foot when a dangerously powerful kick to the head nearly made her do a backflip.


    Annanded right beside her fallen subordinate and extended her hand to help her get back onto her feet.


    "Are you good to stand?"


    "Y-Yeah¡­ sorry, boss."


    "No worries. Catch your breath and regroup a bit."


    The young girl got to her feet rtively quickly and gave Anna a respectful nod before taking a moment to recouperate.


    "I haven''t bled since before I evolved. I had almost forgotten what it was like..!"


    By now, the abomination called A had picked herself up from the ground with a bloody nose and a rather wild look in her eyes.


    She casually wiped away the blood dripping down her face and cracked the bridge of her nose back into ce.


    "Hell of a kick, girl! Memory of this day will live on in memorial forever after I eat your legs to celebrate!"


    "You all really aren''t human anymore... Crazy."


    "Spare me that sentimental shit! What glory did we receive from staying the same? When the world fell we had no strength, nomunity, and no guidance.


    But now¡­ we have all that we could have ever needed and nothing that we don''t. We are free! Unrestrained! Mighty!


    We eat what we want, fuck what we want and we bite the heads off anything that gets in our way. This is nature bitch!"


    Anna scoffed audibly as she let her overcoat fall to the floor.


    "And he''s worried he''s the monster because his skin is ck¡­ unbelievable."


    A ran full force at Anna while roaring at the top of her lungs excitedly.


    However, her zeal would onlyst for around two more seconds before she received a hard right hand into her jaw thatpletely knocked out all of her teeth on the bottom row.


    Time seemed to travel in slow motion as she received a hard knee to the stomach that sent her doubling over before she was forcefully grabbed by the back of her head and mmed face first into the ground.


    Again and again¡­


    And again¡­


    The puddle of blood had begun to reach Anna''s prized Doc Martens, but she couldn''t have cared less.


    "Get your hands off our tribe leader!"


    Anna very briefly stopped brutalizing A and looked over her shoulder to see who was calling her.


    Her squad had done a remarkably quick job of clearing out the enemies assembled in under the twenty minute timeframe, but there were around four abominations left who had huddled together in the corner of the room in ast ditch effort of preservation.


    The assembled abominations had gotten hold of the few humans they were using for fun instead of food.


    Four women around the ages of 18-20, and two boys that only looked to be age seventeen at most.


    The meaty hands of the abominations were wrapped around their vulnerable necks as if they were looking for the slightest reason to snap them.


    "Cute¡­ real cute! d you bitches had your fun but ytime is over!"


    "All of you put your hands up and back away from us! If you so much as sneeze we are going to ruin all of this fucking meat!"


    Anna sprouted her wings again as she let A''s head drop to the floor.


    "Bitch what did I just say?!"


    A single, hard p of her wings disced dozens of her bright red feathers and sent them flying around the room.


    Like they were guided projectiles, the feathers sailed right into the bodies of the abominations.


    Interestingly enough, the fabric of the feathers became as hard and unbreakable as diamond against the skin of the abominations, but when it came to their human captives it was as if they were normal feathers that you could find inside of a throw pillow.


    Twelve minutes and forty six seconds after initial contact, the raid was over without a single injury or casualty.


    Anna finally put her wings away and picked her jacket back up before shrugging it on.


    "Good work everyone. See if you can find some nkets or something to cover our new friends up. Get them settled then I want to be searching this ce in three minutes."


    "Yes boss!"


    Anna slipped her headphones on and fully enjoyed their more immersive feeling.


    She contemted going over to the hostages to exchange some sort of reassuring words with them, but she was just so terrible with those things that she wondered if she would have done more harm than good.


    The man she loved was such a people person and he was good at making others feel safe and hopeful with only a few words.


    She learned a lot of things from him the longer that they were together, but she never did learn how to act all warm and friendly with others like that.


    It was a miracle that she could do it with the people she had waiting for her back at home.


    ''All of this shit¡­ it just makes me miss you so much more than it should.''


    Quietly, she listened to the rest of her song with a faraway look like she was in her own little world.


    But unbeknownst to her, she was receiving quite a few looks behind her back.


    Ones of admiration, gratitude, and even a faint air of mysticism hidden within.

 Chapter 237: The Silver Saintess

    Inside of a dark,run down old storage facility, upwards of around seventeen naked men and women were lying inside.


    Around half of them were women, and the rest were fit men of various ages.


    They were all naked, covered in a questionable yellow crust and shivering from the cold metal floors they had no choice but to rest on.


    They had been given only the barest of possibleforts.


    A couple of thin nkets that had to be shared, a few pieces of shoddily cut meat of questionable origin, and four buckets that were taken and dumped out everyday only to be brought back a few minutester.


    In the middle of the room, a man and a woman were lying side by side each other, equally broken and not saying a word.


    Their hands were just centimeters away from each other, with both of them wanting to touch each other and yet both feeling as though they couldn''t.


    The wonderful thing about expressing physical affection with the one you love is that you are able to allow them a closeness with you that you would not normally afford other people.


    It has a self afforded ''authenticity''.


    But when your body is forcibly taken from you, it bes difficult for some to share that same kind of intimacy as freely as before.


    Suddenly it is as if you are offering your partner something that is ''dirty'' or ''tainted''.


    A wed line of thinking, but an undeniablymon trait in those who have lived through abuse.


    And for those who are still living in their hell with no ending in sight, these traits only seem to worsen.


    To escape this seemingly destitute and hopeless fate, nothing short of miracles are required for salvation.


    Suddenly, the doors to the storage facility were kicked open and a ray of light shone from outside.


    Instinctively, the humans inside huddled into corners and tried to avoid looking their captors in the eye.


    Thest thing that they wanted to do was look more pitiful than they already felt and send their depraved captors'' instincts into overdrive.


    "Mom! There are more over here!"


    The eyes of the captors shed open with renewed delerium.


    Looking up, they found two young women standing side by side in the doorway.


    One was a young, pink haired girl with a slightly dumb-yet well meaning roguish demeanor behind her.


    The other was a dark skinned girl with long grey hair and empathetic ck eyes.


    "You poor souls¡­ I can smell death all around you."


    "A-Aubrey, don''t be rude!"


    "Ah! T-That''s not what I was saying, Serana! I mean that people have actually died in this room."


    "Oh, right."


    "You girls are going to make us look bad..."


    Another woman stepped into view of the refugees inside the room and her very presence sent waves of relief throughout every person inside.


    Even though they did not fully understand why.


    The woman was a vision that onlyes around once in a lifetime.


    She was a bit older with a soft, motherly figure that seemed to embody femininity and grace through unintentional nonconformity.


    Her long, dark brown hair was like a flowing waterfall from a very famous children''s movie.


    Her eyes were entirely aglow in the most radiant silver coloring, and just staring into them could put an unguarded mortal soul into blissful sleep.


    The closer she got to the captives, the more pronounced that this feeling became.


    By the time that she had kneeled in front of the young couple, they were already struggling to keep their eyes open and their bodies upright.


    "You''ve all suffered quite a bit now. Please rest peacefully, and know that when you wake up you will be in a much better ce than you are now."


    With thest of their worries slipping away, the weary couple closed their eyes at the same time and fell back onto the floor, believing in this woman whom they had never even seen before without understanding why.


    Once everyone in the room was asleep, the dreamy mature beauty rose back to her feet and snaked her hand into her pocket.


    Pulling out her phone, she dialed the number of the first contact in her phone and held it up to her ear.


    "¡­Hey, honey? You aren''t busy are you? ¡­ Yes, we found a few more here and we need an extraction please¡­ Oh, okay."


    Silently, Sei levitated a couple of inches off of the ground so that her feet were not touching the floor.


    At the next second, her shadow expanded and opened up so that it was covering every inch of the storage facility.


    Like drops of rain falling down from the sky, the sleeping humans fell into the bottomless ck hole below, with no visible sign that they would ever reach the bottom.


    Once the floor went back to normal, Sei let her feet grace the ground once again.


    "Thank you, honey¡­ I love you too."


    ""Blegh!"" Aubrey and Serana made twin gestures like they were sticking their fingers down their throats.


    Sei put her phone away and rolled her eyes as she grabbed both girls by the ears.


    "I''m surprised at you two! You should be d that your family members are in a happy andmitted rtionship."


    Aubrey : "We are, but¡­"


    Serana : "Do you two have to be so happy all over the damn ce?"


    "Yes? He is my true love."


    ""Blegh!""


    "Whatever!"


    Sei led both girls outside of the storage facility by the ears and they walked into a rather morbid scene.


    In an abandoned office building, over fifty abominations of all different types and sizes were out cold on the ground.


    Members of Sei''s squad were going around with their weapons and stabbing the creatures in either the hearts or the carotid to give them quick deaths.


    They never even had a chance to put up a decent fight to begin with.


    "¡­" Out of the corner of her eye, Sei saw something that made here to a rtively short pause.


    Releasing the girls'' ears, she drifted over to a somewhat troubled member of her squad.


    rissa Hall was the youngest member of Immortal Moon before it disbanded.


    She was a cute, well mannered young girl who was looked at by all of the members as something of a little sister to the group.


    Due to the fact that she had gotten her blessing from a Celtic god at the ripe age of sixteen, she had a tendency to be rather childish and was looked after by everyone in nightfall almost as much as Cami was.


    And now, this very same young girl was repeatedly stabbing the same corpse over and over again, a very faraway look on her face.


    Almost as if she wasn''t really all there.


    Sei drew closer towards the young girl and caught her sword by the pommel before she could mutite the corpse even further.


    "A-Ah, Squad Leader?"


    "rissa dear¡­ this one is already gone. There is no need to continue this any further."


    The young girl looked down at the macerated pile of meat underneath her and she became slightly sick.


    "I-I¡­ I don''t know what happened I was just thinking about all of this stuff and I.."


    "I get it." Sei delicately took rissa''s sword from her grasp and embraced her as closely as possible.


    "This would be incredibly hard for anyone, needless to say someone as young as yourself. Would you like us to arrange a transport back to base for you?"


    "N-No ma''am, I can keep going. I want to keep saving people¡­ I''m sorry I lost my head."


    "Sweet girl, you don''t need to apologize¡­ I just want you to take a beat for a bit and stick close to me for some time. Will you do that for me?"


    rissa was finally released from her ce between Sei''s heavenly breasts and she lowered her head respectfully.


    "Yes, Mrs. Saint. I will stay close by."


    "¡­Ehehe¡­hehehehe.."


    "..?"


    rissa watched as Sei went from a respectable leader and maternal figure to a giggling high school girl with pink cheeks and twinkly eyes.


    "Mrs. Saint, huh..? I always imagined that it would sound wonderful and it''s honestly better than I could have hoped..! I-I can''t wait to see him again and tell him!"


    "Damn it, shrimp! You broke my mom!" Serana took her mother under her wing and tried to stop her from spiraling further into a fit of delirium.


    "D-Don''t call me, shrimp, washboard! I was just trying to be respectful!"


    Serana growled as she folded her arms across her chest out of a mild sense of inferiority.


    In the middle of their argument, the sound of shattering ss suddenly rang out from the window, and arge stony projectile came flying through the window.

 Chapter 238: Empathy

    Once Sei saw the projectile that was flying in the room from outside, she held out her hand and made a pinching gesture with her fingers.


    In an instant, the massive boulder was crushed into a mass of sand that fell onto the ground harmlessly.


    She looked down at rissa whom she had grabbed protectively out of instinct.


    Naturally, her pale skin was practically beet red and her verdant green eyes were wide with shock.


    "Don''t be scared, dear, it''s just a little rock. There''s no need to panic, I promise."


    Serana: "Mom she''s not panicking, you stuck her face in your boobs she''s having a sexual awakening!"


    "Oh¡­ sorry, rissa."


    *Muffled* "I-It''s fine!"


    Sei released the young girl with an embarrassed blush on her face, her world irrevocably changed forever.


    -


    Out on the street, a rather rowdy battalion of abominations were loadingrge stones and chunks of sidewalk into a makeshift catapult or just hurling them through a window by hand.


    "The meat is inside!"


    "Bring the whole thing down!"


    "Justice for the blood tribes!"


    Three more stone projectiles went flying through the ss windows in an attempt to bring the building down through any means necessary.


    A momentter, a young pink haired girl poked her head through one of the broken windows and smiled.


    "Hello, D-Bags!"


    "Meat!"


    "Kill her!"


    "Breed her!"


    "My name is Serana Marie and I am with the nightfall extermination unit! I am here to ask that you cooperate with us and surrender peacefully, then we will take you into our custody and hopefully find a cure for whatever you have done to your-"


    "This meat talks too much!"


    "Well fuck you then, shithead!"


    The pink luster in Serana''s eyes practically multiplied itself in intensity.


    Suddenly the sky overhead darkened and a hellish rainstorm opened up within the sky.


    But instead of droplets of water, thousands upon thousands of little metal fishhooks descended upon the fragmented earth.


    Like guided projectiles, the fishhooks embedded themselves into the skin of numerous abominations and started to pull in any number of directions.


    The abominations immediately started screaming at the top of their lungs as they fell to the ground while writhing in agony.


    Serana turned back to a waiting Aubrey and folded her arms out of premeditated frustration.


    "Don''t say it."


    "You have thebined people skills of a group of suicide bombers."


    "I told you not to say it!"


    "Twas'' irresistable."


    "So is the urge to stick my foot up your ass!"


    Aubrey yfully turned around before walking past Serana with a small smile on her face.


    Inadvertently, Serana felt the urge to wipe away a small nosebleed.


    You could say whatever you want about the Saint siblings not being rted to Nyx by blood, but they had miraculously inherited her ability to charm individuals regardless of gender.


    Aubrey looked down at the ruined street filled with the writhing bodies of abominations who were trying to kill them just a few moments ago.


    There were no fishhooks in their skin, and there was certainly none raining from the sky either.


    "You''re getting a lot better at this illusion thing. That''s atleast thirty at once and you didn''t even fall on your butt this time."


    "Well, I''m not getting any thick and veiny injections at night like my mom but I am getting stronger all the time."


    Sei: "S-Serana!"


    "What? Is it more length than girth?"


    "Can you please?!"


    "Ryo''s is kind of like- Mmf!"


    Eventually, Sei just forcibly covered her own daughter''s mouth with her hand to avoid having any more dirty questions fly past her lips.


    ''I wonder if she asks all of this because I didn''t talk to her about sex properly when she was young¡­''


    Aubrey looked out the window and tried to shake off the feeling of disgust that she had umted from having her brother''s genitalia discussed so openly.


    "I wish that my friends and family weren''t such sexual addicts.." she muttered.


    Serana freed her mouth from her mother''s iron grip.


    "You and your girlfriends banged your mom. Aren''t you kinda the absolutest person who should be talking about devianism?"


    "S-Shut up!"


    Ignoring her, Aubrey gathered a huge bundle of golden power within her hands and prepared to fire it into the street below.


    "Aubrey¡­ gently." Sei reminded in her usual soft voice.


    The grey haired girl paused just shy of formting a magical spell and dialed back her energy output considerably.


    With a ball of light norger than a baseball, Aubrey created numerous shining rings of light.


    A gentle push of her fingers sent the rings dropping down to the abominations on the street.


    Sliding onto their fingers, the golden rings fastened themselves into immovable positions and started to burn with a brilliant white light.


    Bit by bit, the bodies of the abominations were subjected to such a rapid immtion that they were nearly here at one second and gone the next.


    Sei looked back at rissa and casually took her hand before leading her towards the broken window.


    "Squad leader?"


    "Come here for a second. There''s something I''d like to show you."


    Bringing the young girl to the window, Sei showed her the numerous golden cinders of ash that were flying up into the air, creating a beautiful lightshow.


    rissa had to admit that the scene was beautiful, but she didn''t understand why Sei had asked to show it to her.


    "I know that after everything that we''ve seen over the past week that it is easy to develop hatred for these beings¡­ but they used to be human too, you know?


    I like to think that they weren''t like this before. That they were only victims of their desperation for survival and ended up getting sick as a result.


    In that spirit¡­ I at least do not wish to brutalize them. Instead¡­ we just need to bring them a peaceful rest. It may be a bit sentimental of me but those are my feelings.


    Let the death gods act as their judge and punish if they see it fitting."


    rissa didn''t know if she could fully understand what Sei was trying to convey to her, but she did understand that she was trying her best to be incredibly thoughtful.


    "I understand¡­ you''re very kind, Squad Leader."


    Sei looked like she was going to say something not long after when something strange suddenly caught her eye.


    A giant tornado of merger than a skyscraper lit up the night sky and drew no small amount of attention.


    Sei smiled wryly as she reached through her mind to contact the culprit.


    ''Bianca sweetie¡­ what are doing?''


    Immediately, the young girl''s nervous voice yed back.


    ''A-Ah hey, Sei! I''m just¡­ you know¡­ chilling?''


    ''With a 100 meter tornado of me near your position?''


    ''O-Oh that..? I just¡­ sneezed.''


    ''Bianca¡­''


    ''T-Talk to youter, bye!''


    ''You can''t hang up on a mental connection, sweetheart¡­''


    *Bad static noises ensure*


    Sei eventually sighed as she pushed her dark hair out of her face.


    ''Alright then, I''ll see you in two days¡­ Try not to burn down the entire city in the meantime, yea?''


    ''I got it, don''t worry! Te amo!''


    ''Aishitemasu.''


    Sei felt Bianca''s voice finally leave her mind a momentter, and she prepared to move out with her unit.


    However, two secondster another tornado sprung up that was evenrger than the first.


    ''I-I just sneezed again!''


    *sigh.*

 Chapter 239: The Loveable Pyromaniac

    "The wheels on the bus go round and round, round and round, all through the town..."


    - 4 Minutes Later


    "Baby shark, doo-doo, doo-doo-doo-doo, baby shark..!"


    - 2 Minutes Later


    "Row, row, row, your boat, gently down the stream... merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a drea-"


    "Umm.. Squad Leader?"


    Bianca sat up exhaustedly in the back seat of one of the all-terrain nightfall vehicles and rubbed her eyes.


    The vehicle containing herself and five other girls from the base was cruising silently on a ruined road in the dead of night.


    "What''s wrong? Are you guys ready to set up camp?" She asked sleepily.


    "No ma''am..."


    "I think we''re good for a few more hours, but..."


    "Is there some particr reason why you keep singing children''s songs?"


    Bianca blinked her eyes a few times before blushing in embarrassment.


    "Whoops... guess that just goes to how how much I miss my baby girl. I''ve never been away from her this long, so maybe I''m just starting to go a little crazy."


    Bianca never thought that she would take to being a mother so well since she had been raised by only her father all her life.


    However, the moment Camille was born she felt like she could confidently step into a parental role, even though she had no experience.


    Actually... most of them didn''t have any experience.


    The first few weeks were somewhat hard, but with Sei and Nyx acting as suitable teachers for the rest of the girls, they were able to adjust to their new life and even develop a routine schedule.


    Honestly the hardest part of being a parent now was making sure that Anna didn''t teach their baby bad habits like eating cold pizza for breakfast and making sure her first words weren''t swears.


    But still, they were all wonderful mothers.


    Bianca sighed with a slightly depressed air as she leaned her head against the back of her seat.


    "My fianc¨¦ is so lucky... he just gets to pop in for a couple minutes every night to get his cuddle fix but I''m stuck with just the videos on my phone... and I wanna have sex too."


    Nearly every girl in the car blushed furiously as they tried to envision a beautiful, charming young woman like Bianca being pinned down underneath a man like Mchi.


    While they weren''t prejudiced against him for his new looks, it would be a lie if they were to act like they didn''t make them want to study him like ab rat.


    Her fianc¨¦ looked like something from the dark side of pornhub and that surely warranted some study.


    It was hard to judge Bianca and the rest of the girls for getting over it so quickly when they probably would have done the same.


    And due to the fact that the ratio in the nightfall base was 5 to one in women''s favor, there weren''t many other outlets for most women to deal with their lust effectively.


    It was no wonder that half the women in the base liked other women.


    "Is it shaped like... normal?" one girl questioned.


    "And does he like use the mouths of the snakes.. on you guys?"


    Bianca didn''t seem bothered by the invasive questions at all and kicked her feet up as she got ready for her interview.


    "Well it doesn''t look like a human''s anymore but you get used to it pretty quickly to be honest... and the cute little foursome on his back normally just go to sleep but.. now I have something to try when we reach the rendezvous point!"


    The girls suddenly felt like they''d been forced to eat dog food.


    "Umm.. Squad Leader, I know this might be weird but is your dad like... single?" One asked.


    Bianca sat up like she couldn''t believe what she had just heard. "I... What?"


    "He''s really hot."


    "After your fianc¨¦, he''s the most popr man at the base."


    "Any tips to win him over or..?"


    *BOOOOOM!!*


    Just as Bianca''s world was rocked beyond repair, arge object came hurtling at them from the sky above.


    Luckily, the member driving the car was able to swerve to avoid everyone being crushed to death and entered a momentary spin-out.


    Though she was slouching and rxed before, Bianca sat up in the backseat at a moment''s notice and resumed the mantle of an effective leader.


    "Everyone out of the car, now!"


    "YES, MA''AM!"


    With everyone getting out of the vehicle in under a second, they spread out in a more spacious formation so that they could not all be brought down at once.


    On the ruined street, a horde of abominations had made their home in an abandoned parking garage.


    They were pushing old cars right off the side of the railing, and hoping to crush the vehicle and all of it''s inhabitants.


    "Give me my eyes, Kelly!"


    One of the girls in the squad had her eyes glow a bright violet color; symbolizing the use of Heimdal''s blessing.


    "Around ten on each floor, sixty altogether!"


    "Civies?"


    "Negative, hostiles only!"


    "Wonderful!" An excited glimmer of light fueled Bianca''s burning amber eyes as bright orange mes traveled up the length of her arms.


    Whether or not she was a lowered or highbreed N''Kai didn''t matter much to her, but she loved seeing her body''s limits and abilities grow every time she shared a bed with her fianc¨¦.


    Though it came less from a power hungry standpoint and more of a fascination she had with the actual biological specifications by how such a thing was possible.


    And... she got to act out her chunibyo fantasies too.


    "Exploooosion!"


    mping her hands together, a ripple of me burst outward from the point of impact and formed a wave of destructive me that grew to one meter, two meters, and then thirty like it was nothing.


    A literal tsunami of me came crashing into the cardeck and nearly reduced the entire structure to rubble in an instant.


    The building started to fall over with burning bodies of abominations spilling out so as not to be crushed by the rubble, and Bianca turned towards her group with another smile on her face and struck another signature pose and phrase.


    "POWERRRRR!!!!"


    "Squad leader is so cute."


    "Don''t cha just wanna hug her?"


    "Bless her heart."


    Bianca suddenly lost her grandiose demeanor as she scratched her cheek in embarrassment.


    She couldn''t tell if she''d just gained more of her squad''s respect or if she''d just lost a bit.


    *Rumble*


    Suddenly, figures started to crawl out from the rubble of the building.


    Some had horribly burned flesh or were even missing an appendage, but they were already trying to heal themselves and rush at the squadron of women for revenge.


    And in another building across the street, a few stragglers that weren''t subjected to the might of Bianca''s attack started to peel out into the streets one by one.


    "Alright, game timedies! Let''s wrap this up quick and get back on the road!"


    "YES, SQUAD LEADER!"


    In a sh, the women of nightfall beganying waste to their attackers and returned piece and quiet to the streets.


    Bianca prepared to sit on the hood of their vehicle and rx for just a few moments, but just as she nned on doing so, the ground started to rumble and all of her senses went haywire.


    Looking over her shoulder, she found a veryrge wild beast approaching; mutated and carrying a rider that was nothing short of nightmarish.


    "WHORES!!"

 Chapter 240: Melting Point

    Bianca''s eyes narrowed at the sight of arge, red skinned man riding on top of a mutated tiger.


    At a nce, he appeared to be some sort of fire oni variant,with the usual staunch iron muscles and ashen grey hair.


    Like the rest of the abominations, he wore a simple loincloth made from some sort of animal hide and what looked to be car parts.


    However, the weapon in his hands was different.


    He wielded an actual greatsword from the gates that had likely been recovered from the wastnds.


    As his mount galloped toward Bianca, she could feel a distinct icy energying off the weapon in waves.


    This guy was certainly different from all the rest of the rabble.


    He was the first abomination who they''de across who actually seemed like a dungeon boss.


    "WHOREEESSS!!!"


    Bianca felt her eyes narrow.


    For some reason, it was like the abomination had a deteriorated mental capacity.


    It was all the same to her though, since she wasn''t in the habit of allowing monstrous beasts to belittle her subordinates.


    Gathering up an absurd amount of me in her hand, she sent forth a wave of me that was evenrger than her fist one and hoped that it would swallow the bastard whole.


    While her attack did strike true, Bianca unfortunately felt her eyes widen as she watched her enemy leap through the wall of me without showing so much as a scorch mark.


    It would have been a seriously cool visual if it weren''t so infuriating.


    "Toasty!" Showing a smile full of oddly bent and sharp teeth, the abomination chief lunged at Bianca from atop his own mutated creature.


    She was only barely able to avoid having her head chopped off by ducking underneath the de before it could reach her neck.


    However, she was caught by the back leg of the tiger and an assortment of ws ripped right through her right shoulder de.


    "Aaagggh!!"


    A scream of pain escaped her lips and drew the attention of all of her subordinates.


    "Squad leader needs help!"


    "Beta formation, now!"


    "No! Stay back, that''s an order!"


    Bianca gritted her teeth through the pain and threw up her hands.


    A wall of me arose around herself and the boss, protecting the rest of her soldiers from running in to do something foolish.


    The abomination smiled at this, and pointed his de at Bianca menacingly.


    "Meat wants Obe all to herself! Meat will-"


    "Ow..! This really sucks."


    Bianca ignored the threatening demeanor of the abomination pointing a weapon at her and wiped away the blood running down her back.


    "Damn it¡­ I hope they didn''t-"


    Mchi : ''Babe! I felt you scream, are you alright?!''


    Anna : ''I''m two miles out, I''ming to meet you now! Just stay put till I get there!


    Sei : ''My squad is rerouting and we''re on our way to your location right now!''


    Joanne : ''I-Is that what that was? Are you alright??''


    Nadine : ''Somebody get to her please!''


    Luna : ''Stay calm, Bianca. Everyone is going to-''


    ''I''m fine!'' Bianca screamed mentally.


    She was not only the youngest out of everyone in her family, but the one who had seen the least amount of trauma in her life.


    They tended to want to keep it that way.


    They handheld her a lot, just like they tended to do with Camille.


    It was nice and it made her feel loved sometimes but she waspetent too, you know?


    ''I''m fine, guys! I''ll wrap things up here and meet you at the rendezvous point in just a couple of hours. NO ONE NEEDS TO COME HERE!'' She said firmly.


    A loud roar drew her attention and she found the abomination running at her for a second round.


    Using the massive greatsword as ance, Obe held it out in front of him with the goal of piercing his opponent to the ground.


    Dark gauntlets with barbed knuckles appeared on Bianca''s hands and she raised them to defend herself.


    Catching the de between her hands, the force of the collision started to push her back.


    Even though her gauntlets, she could feel a cold, sinister energy trying to soak into her palms and freeze her from the inside out.


    Generally it was impossible for her to get cold with Hephaestus'' blessing, but she was certainly starting to feel chilly now.


    However, she knew just how to warm herself up.


    "Tell me something, you bastard¡­"


    "Meat not talk!"


    "Yea, yea, but I''m curious and this can''t wait. Are you fire proof, or fire resistant?"


    "Obe is conqueror of me and ice!"


    "Cool¡­ let''s test that..! MY SQUAD! If you can hear me, get clear immediately! This area is about to be uninhabitable!"


    Suddenly, the temperature around Bianca started to get warmer and warmer.


    The hair on top of her head caught fire, and became a mass of living orange me.


    Her eyes lost their pupils and became glowing orange lightbulbs that could illuminate an entire room with ease.


    "My powers aren''t really safe to y with like everyone else''s so I almost never get to go all out! I''m excited to see just what I can do!"


    The temperature within the air began to skyrocket.


    100 degrees.


    500.


    1000.


    2000.


    4000.


    5000.


    The ground around Bianca began to melt into a mass of tar and the air around her was literally starting to cook.


    Obe finally looked like he was starting to sweat, but it wasn''t enough.


    Letting out a determined roar, Bianca poured so much of her energy into her power that her body literally exploded.


    Both Obe and his mount were practically vaporized in an instant, but they would never forget the image that they saw just before death.


    A mass of me in the figure of a woman, with glowing white eyes and fiery wings flowing from her back.


    When things were all over, Bianca immediately turned back to normal before she did irreversible damage to the ecosystem. (As if she hadn''t already likely put a hole in the ozoneyer.)


    Once she was back to normal and assured there was no longer any danger facing the world, her body just¡­ copsed.


    She fell face down into the ground; utterly exhausted from expending so much of her energy all at once.


    With herst thought, she sent her family a message of the utmost importance.


    ''You guys are going to be so mad at me, but¡­ I swear I just did something really¡­cool¡­''

 Chapter 241: Worry & Stability

    When Bianca''s eyes fluttered open, she was almostpletely naked, flying on the back of someone she knew very well.


    "Anna¡­?"


    "Aww, hey firestarter. d to see you''re feeling okay."


    "Yea.. what happened? Where is my squad?"


    Anna pointed beneath them to the all terrain vehicle that was riding across the road smoothly.


    "They all made it clear of whatever you did in time. Other than a real need for air conditioning, they''re pretty much fine."


    Bianca looked down at the road and her eyes caught sight of some fresh burns on the exposed parts of Anna''s arms.


    "O-Oh my god, look at your back! I-I can''t believe I did this, I''m so sorry!"


    "Stop wriggling, you little worrywort! I''m going to be fine, I had to pick you up and get you out of that tar pit you created. I''ll heal in an hour or less."


    Bianca fell silent once again, and it felt like the right time for Anna to make one of her famously dark jokes that made everyone ufortable.


    "Besides, I used to burn myself worse than this when I was depressed in middle school."


    "Oh my god!"


    Anna cackled happily, relieved that her joke could still make her family so ufortable.


    It was the greatest part of having a fucked up adolescence. (A/N : if you ever wondered why Anna was my favorite, this is why.)


    Bianca fell silent as she rode on Anna''s back, and she rested her cheek on her shoulder de.


    "I''m surprised he didn''te and get me himself."


    "¡­He would have, but he was worried you might have been upset with him for trying to coddle you again. But I''m your best friend, not your girlfriend so I don''t have to give a damn about what you want."


    Bianca rolled her eyes and gave Anna a hard flick on the back of the head.


    "It''s not that I don''t like it when he babys me¡­ it''s just that I don''t want him to see me as something he has to worry about all the time.


    We''re supposed to be partners, so I want him to trust that I can handle myself and protect our personnel, our family ¡­ our baby."


    Anna wasn''t the best at giving advice like this, but she felt that she still had to try.


    "You know.. I sometimes get worried when I watch Sei use a knife really fast."


    "¡­?"


    "And even when you''re working in the shop, I worry you might identally drop an anvil on your foot or something."


    "You sound like my dad!"


    "And with our fianc¨¦¡­ I worry about him everytime he leaves my sight. Even though I already know he''s the strongest thing walking around on this right now.


    You worry about people because you love them, you know? Even if you know that they are good at what they do and you shouldn''t be worried, you can''t help it sometimes.


    It doesn''t mean you think less of them, you''re just¡­ afraid to see something bad happen to them. So in that regard¡­ I think you should let him baby you as much as he wants. Because without a doubt it is so much better than the alternative."


    Bianca fumbled around on Anna''s back and started patting down her sides, pockets and breasts.


    "¡­B¡­ What are you doing?"


    "Looking for cue cards, there''s no way you came up with all of that on your own! I can''t even get you to read webnovels!"


    "There''s no pictures, I need more visualization!!"


    "Some authors made character arts!"


    "Not enough of them!"


    "How were you able to read fan fiction then?!"


    "Oh, they were mostly just porn. The good kind that makes you feel insightful after, not the crude kind that makes you feel like you need to convert to Catholicism."


    "Gods, you are such a deviant¡­"


    "I''m sorry, I had no maternal figure in my childhood to keep me grounded."


    "ANNA!"


    The girls'' pointless argument continued for upwards of five minutes before Bianca suddenly squeezed her friend tightly from behind.


    "Thank you for trying to help me¡­ I guess I owe our man an apology."


    "Well, we''ll see him in a couple more minutes. As far as apologies go, just words is a little boring ,so you can either lose your gag reflex or your anal virginity, which''ll it be?"


    Embarrassed, Bianca attempted to strangle her friend and nearly sent them both plummeting from the sky into the road below.


    But as always, Anna had to have thest word.


    "I''m close, h-harder..!"


    "S-Shut up, pervert!"


    -


    "¡­And chances are, if you give him the jam, he''ll want a muffin to go with it."


    Mchi finally closed the children''s book he was reading with a sigh and looked down at his chest.


    Camille was sleeping on his chest softly, along with two other cute critters.


    Anna''s dark brown cat; Marcelline. And Luna''s beloved kitsune; Shiro.


    All three bundles of fluff had fallen asleep right on top of him in Camille''s bedroom, and he was tempted to let them lie there for the rest of the night.


    If he didn''t have work to do, it would be a nice way to fall asleep.


    Telekically, he lifted up all three of their small bodies and dropped them into Cami''s crib, where there was more than enough room.


    "Dad''s got to go to work¡­ good night, munchkin."


    Mchi gave the young girl a small kiss on the forehead and both cheeks before backing away.


    Once he turned around, Manda, Gwiya, Onini, and Vritra also gave their version of good night kisses before departing.


    "Leaving so soon?"


    Standing in the doorway was one of Mchi''s fianc¨¦s, Joanne.


    He slowly crossed the room and wrapped his arms around her,ing dangerously close to overwhelming his already stretched thin will.


    He hadn''t had any sex in two weeks and even just smelling the soap on Joanne''s skin was almost enough to give him a happy ending.


    "You know I don''t have a choice¡­The other girls..?"


    "Asleep already. Nadine held Luna hostage all day so that they could binge ''Anta'' and ''The Boondocks''. They crashed in bed a few minutes ago." She whispered.


    Mchi chuckled as quietly as he could when he imagined Nadine forcefully holding Luna down so that she would have no choice but to watch tv with her.


    Joanne looked past him and eyed the crib full of sleeping younglings.


    This admittedly made Mchi smile as he brushed her hair off her cheek.


    "So¡­ how are things?"


    Joanne chuckled slightly as she rested her head against Mal''s chest.


    "You mean how am I adjusting to a life of stability after living like a madwoman for over thirty years? You want to know if I''m feeling flighty, or ufortable adjusting to family life?"


    "I-I wouldn''t say-"


    "Nadine taught me how to read your mind."


    ''Shit.''


    Against his expectations, Joanne didn''t seem offended by his concerns and instead wrapped her arms around him tightly.


    "I am¡­ so very happy. For the first time in my life I have friends who don''t think I''m stuck up or bitchy, and my rtionship with my daughter, despite being somewhat strange, has never been in a better ce.


    Falling in love with you is the best thing that''s ever happened to me, and I honestly wish that you hade to find me a little¡­ a lot sooner. You don''t need to worry about me running away, you should be more worried that you can''t get rid of me."


    Mchi''s smile revealed the four shining fangs in his mouth and Joanne''s heart sped up to an unhealthy degree.


    Through all of the hell she experienced in her life, she never once imagined that it would be possible for her to love someone this much.


    Just the mere thought of her having to go on without him was so depressing that it could almost overwhelm her.


    She snaked her hands up to his face and pulled him down so that her lips could meet her own.


    In the dim room illuminated only by a butterfly nightlight, the two of them shared a rather desperate and passionate kiss that contained no small amount of love and bottled lust.


    Mchi only barely managed to pull away as Joanne slipped her hand into his pants with zero obstruction.


    "Sorry, love.. I don''t have the time for that right now."


    "You''re supposed to be using that thing tonight, right?" Joanne''s husky voice threatened to sap away every bit of Mal''s umted resolve.


    "Yea, I figured it would be a nice little reward for our members, and since she let me borrow it I didn''t want to waste the opportunity..."


    "Come get me when you''re stopped.. I don''t think I can hold it anymore, and the detachable shower head isn''t working like it used to."


    A shiver ran down Mchi''s spine as he heard the desperation in her voice that was practically a mirror image of his own.


    "Alright then¡­ don''t go to sleep on me."


    "I wouldn''t dream of it."


    -


    Mchi crawled through the shadows and reappeared inside of one of Nightfalls personnel carrier vehicles.


    Letting out a sigh, he reclined back into his seat and rubbed his eyes.


    "Sorry it took me so long tonight, guys. She ended up needing two books to put her down instead of one."


    From the passenger seat, Aisha looked over at her friend and the extremely noticeable bulge in hisp.


    "Uh-huh, sure. You expect us to believe you got a hard on from ''If You Give a Moose a Muffin'' ?"


    Three of the girls in the backseat craned their necks to stare into Mal''sp.


    Ryo, who was also riding with them, looked back and forth between Aisha and Mchi like he was thinking of something.


    "How much longer do we have?" Mal asked.


    "Calm down, pornstar. We''re here."


    Aisha pulled up onto the rocky bank of Jackson Lake, located in northwest Wyoming.


    Mchi stepped out of the car and smiled widely when he saw two more carsing from different directions, and very familiar presences inching closer at every second.

 Chapter 242: How To Live

    "Honeyyy!!!"


    Like a brown haired rocket, Sei came flying into Mchi''s arms and nearly knocked him over.


    Wrapping his arms around her, he rested his head in the cradle of her neck and inhaled her inviting scent to the point that his human lungs could have burst.


    ''Did she always smell this sweet..?''


    ""Babe!""


    In the next second, two more familiar faces plummeted out of the sky and joined in the group hug.


    Bianca and Anna were every bit as intoxicating as Sei, with their own unique scents and vors, and- god, he had never been more horny in his life.


    "Two whole weeks.. I really don''t know how I survived." He muttered.


    Sei: "Imagine how we felt when we had to do without you for a year."


    Bianca: "Let''s just make amitment not to separate from each other longer than this if we can avoid it. Agreed?"


    """Agreed!"""


    While Mchi and the girls were in the midst of their reunion, Aisha and Aubrey were doing the same.


    The grey haired young woman wrapped her arms around her girlfriend possessively, and kissed her with no small amount of need.


    When they separated, Aisha was the one who looked like she had been ced under some kind of love spell.


    "I''m d to see you haven''t gotten any injuries since thest time I saw you... how wasyour trip?" Aubrey asked as she straightened her hair.


    "G-G-Good¡­"


    "You''re stuttering again, babe."


    "I-I''m just a little cold because we had the air on full st in the car!"


    *Mchi from afar* : "No we didn''t!"


    "Shut up, prick!"


    Laughing, Aubrey refocused her girlfriend''s attention and brought their lips together in another tender embrace that made her knees go weak.


    "AHEM!!"


    A loud, unified clearing of throats drew the attention of Mchi and his sister.


    The members who had tagged along on this extermination mission so far were all standing around with their arms folded, unwillingly subjected to this disy of dogfood.


    Once again, they received a very painful reminder that the nightfall faction had quite therge gender imbnce.


    It wasn''t cool of the higher-ups to keep rubbing their happy rtionships in their face like this!


    "Show some restraint, guys. Everyone here doesn''t need to see some gushy reminder of their rtionship status." Serana chided.


    Mchi: "You have been rubbing Ryo''s abs since you showed up."


    "D-Do as I say, not as I do!"


    Mchi rolled his eyes as he briefly peeled himself away from the girls.


    Serana''s insanity aside, he did need to address the unit sincerely as well as disclose the reason foring here.


    He was still no good at public speaking, but he felt that he owed it to those who had worked so hard over the past fourteen days to acknowledge their efforts.


    "Right, umm¡­ I guess I want to start this off by saying thank you. I know that we asked you girls for an impossible task and you''ve likely seen some shit that you''re going to remember for the rest of your lives¡­"


    "We''re big girls, boss."


    "We can handle a little difort."


    "Besides, it had to be done."


    "And the job''s still not finished."


    Mchi felt immensely grateful to the girls in that moment; for the simple fact that they truly seemed to bear no resentment towards him even though this campaign was a taxing one.


    "Be that as it may¡­ for the next seventy-two hours I want us all to get a well needed rest. If you like, I will transfer you back to base right now, or¡­"


    Mchi held out his hand and the shadows spit out a metal box the size of a rubix cube.


    "We can stay out here and y with some alien technology instead. What do you think?"


    Immediately, the eyes of the girls sparkled like gemstones as they inched closer to the device.


    "W-What is it?"


    "Munchkin loaned me her birthday present. And I''m going to use it to bring us a little bit of a vacation."


    Mchi pressed a silver button on the back of the metallic cube.


    An odd alien voice spoke in anguage that no one but Mchi and his fianc¨¦s could roughly understand.


    Taking his phone out of his pocket, he held it just above the receptacle, and there was a series of shing lights before a different, more familiarnguage yed.


    *Schematics, Archictecture, and Cultural Database for 527 - Earth, have been scanned and registered. Please express desired environment.*


    A full and toothy smile revealed all four of Mal''s poisonous fangs.


    "Give me a¡­"


    Immediately, Bianca, Aisha, and Sei felt their heart''s speed up.


    Sei: "Oh honey, can it really do that?"


    Aisha: "No way, no way!"


    Bianca: "I''m going to explode!"


    Mchi instructed the group around him to get clear, and then dropped the talking device right onto the ground.


    Suddenly, an Olympic pool''s worth of Liquid Metal spilled outwards and created a thirty meter tall block with no real impressive features.


    A few secondster, the sounds of drilling urred, and Mchi knew that the device was working perfectly.


    "Right then. While we''re waiting on our ''tent'' to get set up, let''s eat something other than rations, yea?"


    Tapping the swirling shadows at his feet, Mchi pulled through three individuals and no small amount of equipment.


    Barbecuing equipment that is.


    Aisha''s father Trevor, Mal''s adoptive grandfather Rowan, and Bianca''s father Ali all came floating into view, with various cuts of meat and serious looks on their faces.


    Trevor : "I''ve been waiting for this all week¡­ my handmade spicy sausages will annihte you both."


    Rowan : "You youngds are always so impetuous. Today I will show you that there is no defeating a perfect barbecue chicken."


    Ali : "I got something for both your candy asses. When these girls can''t get enough of my beef ribs I want all your rations for the next two weeks.


    Rowan / Trevor : "Big bastard"


    Ali : "Oh it''s on."


    With determination in their eyes and ingredients prepared from Nightfall''s in house farm and garden, the three men spaced out and got to work.


    Each of them loaded fresh applewood into their portable grills and lit the kindling using matches or their daughter with magical me powers.


    Rowan / Trevor: "Don''t cheat, you bastard!"


    Ali : "I made her. She''s not breaking the rules. Ain''t that right, baby girl?"


    "Sure dad. Happy to help."


    "That''s my¡­ where your clothes at?"


    "I burned em off identally." Bianca shrugged underneath her nket.


    "Oh lord¡­"


    Ali red daggers at Mchi, almost like he was trying to make sure that he wouldn''t see something he shouldn''t.


    Mal and all four of his tails turned their heads away, thanking the night goddess that Ali didn''t know the password to his phone.


    Out of nowhere, a small nudge in the ribs gathered his attention and stopped him from thinking about certain death.


    Aisha appeared next to him in an instant, wearing a nostalgic smile and a sad gaze.


    "This brings back memories¡­ haven''t had my dad''s sausage since.."


    "Eighth grade. Remember our parents wanted to do something different that year, so we had a damn barbecue for thanksgiving."


    "Oh, that''s right." Aishaughed. "It was the first time your mom let mine make Mac and Cheese."


    "¡­I never forgave auntie for that day."


    "Completely understandable." Aisha nodded.


    The two of them stood in silence and the white haired girl rested her head on Mal''s shoulder in a rather tender gesture.


    "I''ve gotta ask¡­ what made you think of this?"


    A softness formed on Mal''s face that wasn''t quite there before.


    "I don''t know really¡­ I just wanted everyone that helped us to have a chance at some normalcy for a minute.


    I know the world ain''t pretty right now, but I wanna make sure we don''t get so caught up in survival that we forget how to live. How to be happy. Speaking of.."


    Smiling, Mchi opened up the shadows at his feet for onest time.


    When Joanne came flying through, he caught her in his arms and gave her a cheesy- but sweet whirl in the air like a princess.


    "There you are, my love. d to see you stayed up for me."


    "You thought I wouldn''t keep my word when we still have business to handle? Seems my new man doesn''t know me at all."


    "Oh? You gotta show me everything that I''m missing then."


    "I intend to."


    Aisha wore a disgusted, yet helpless face as she watched her childhood friend tongue down a woman who was twice his age.


    Though he was a degenerate, he was her degenerate.


    ''Auntie and Uncle would be so proud of you, Mal. You really turned out just like they''d hoped¡­ even if you are a manwhore.''


    - 30 Minutes Later


    The air was filled with the smell of grilled meats and the sound ofughter as the barbecuepetition seemed like it was about toe to an end.


    Trevor : "Alright, y''alle and get it!"


    Rowan: "Remember to vote fairly now, ya hear?"


    Ali: "Don''t be trynna act too cute out here, just dig in!"


    """T-Thank you, Mister Ali ¡­~"""


    "Youdies are more than wee."


    Bianca''s eyes narrowed as she watched a group of young girls start giggling around her dad like horny schoolgirls.


    "I think I understand how you felt when Aisha fucked your mom now. This sucks."


    "Urk!" Mchi choked on a beef rib and had to have Sei rub his back so that he didn''t go into lung failure.


    "Seriously, babe¡­ why''d you have to put it like-"


    *Ding!*


    Finally, the lodgings for the group finished their generation, and Mchi looked up with renewed excitement.


    However, his waspletely iparable to Sei''s, and she practically teleported in front of therge structure.


    With baited breath, she watched the mechanical doors slide open slowly to reveal something she''d missed sorely ever since she came to America.


    "I-It''s¡­ it''s really¡­ a hot spring resort!!!"

 Chapter 243: The Hotspring Chapter!

    Aisha and Mchi stood side-by-side on the edge of a beautiful body of crystal blue water that was steaming hot.


    They shifted from foot-to-foot on the smooth stone beneath their feet like antsy children who were having a difficult time holding their pee.


    "It''s a cultural thing, so we should do it right." Aisha finally decided.


    "I don''t know¡­ it feels like we should atleast get towels or something."


    "Sure, sure¡­ You want a pair of panties too, you pansy?"


    Immediately, a vein bulged in Mchi''s head as he tried to stop himself from biting his oldest friend.


    "You make me sick."


    "Yea, yea."


    Almost as if it was agreed upon beforehand, Mchi pulled off his swim trunks and Aisha began to untie her swimsuit.


    Once the two of them werepletely naked, they unflinchingly stared each other down to see who would blink first.


    "¡­No wonder the girls are always walking funny. I just thought you liked pigeon-toed hoes."


    "My sister''s feeding you a lot, huh? You''re growing a cute little muffin top."


    "Bitch."


    "Bully."


    This intense staredown persisted for a few more seconds before they bothughed and lowered their bodies into the spring.


    ""Ahhhhh¡­.""


    Unanimous exhales of relief escaped the mouths of both friends as the hotspring bliss permeated all of their enhanced muscles and bones.


    Through fuzzy eyes, Aisha looked up at the domed ceiling that was currently showing a projection of the dark sky outside.


    Her curiosity peaked and she dragged her gaze over the entire created surroundings.


    Somehow, the little metal box that was at first no bigger than a rubix cube had created something like this.


    A literal onsen in the middle of Wyoming, created by pulling together pieces of the nearby environment and synthesizing them together to form all of this in exactly thirty minutes.


    Isted pools surrounded by ck rocks and bamboo, culturally urate lodgings, and to top it all off, there was even soft biwa music being yed from somewhere!


    It was more rxing than watching a Bob Ross video on a full stomach!


    The two of them could fall asleep in here if they weren''t careful.


    "Ah, I''m so excited!"


    Suddenly Sei and Aubrey stepped into view and drew the attention of the hot spring''s inhabitants.


    Both women were only wearing towels, covering up their bodies that the two best friends were intimately familiar with.


    "¡­" Silently, the two of them exchanged a fist bump underneath the boiling waters.


    Sei prepared to jump into the pool right atop Mchi, when she suddenly saw his and Aisha''s clothes resting just outside the spring.


    Her usually gentle and always tender expression cracked as her eyebrow began to twitch.


    Just before she could say anything, a small ruckus drew away everyone''s attention.


    Anna: "Mom, cut it out..!"


    Joanne: "Juste here, you still have barbecue sauce on your cheeks!"


    Anna: "I-I can get it myself, I don''t need your help!"


    Joanne: "I know you don''t, but just let me do this anyway, huh? ¡­There, you''re my pretty girl again."


    Anna: "¡­I''m too big for that¡­ besides, you have chicken grease on your face too."


    Joanne: "Shit!"


    Bianca: "Ya know, I find it funny how Cami has better table manners than both of you."


    Joanne / Anna: ""S-Shut up!""


    When the three girls stepped into view, Mchi''s mouth practically fell open and overflowed the hot spring with drool.


    All three were wearing simple white towels and their hair didn''t even look all that stylish, but there was something about effortless beauty that was significantly more impactful than normal.


    He would have kept staring in wonder for an eternity, had the girls not noticed the fact that he waspletely naked and dangerously close to Aisha; who was also naked.


    They conveniently chose this moment to forget that she was practically his sister and did not like penises.


    *SPLASH!*


    Anna and Bianca reacted first, and the two of them tackled Mchi with full force and knocked him under the water.


    Aubrey decided that it was best to get her girlfriend out of this particr body of water before she got attacked next and held out her hand to pull her away.


    "Come on, babe. Let''s go find another spring."


    "J-Just the two of us?"


    "Just the two of us."


    Aubrey''s wink nearly gave Aisha a nosebleed, and she quickly climbed out of the hotspring to carry her towards whichever one was free.


    Once they were gone, Mchi emerged from the water with Anna holding him in a headlock from behind while Bianca pummeled his chest with her fists.


    Bianca: "What is wrong with you, why''re you so damn friendly?!"


    Anna: "I don''t care if the two of you took baths together as kids, we''re the only ones who get to be naked with you now!"


    ""Die bastard, die!!""


    If Mchi had any difort at the grant domestic abuse that he was experiencing, he certainly didn''t show it.


    He was evenughing like he found the whole thing funny.


    However, a sound suddenly yed that made the whole ordeale to an end.


    The three of them paused immediately as they turned their attention towards the edge of the pond.


    Sei was being helped by Joanne and gently lowered into the water, but there were tears running down her beautiful face.


    Mchi, Anna, and Bianca were immediately horrified.


    "S-Sei?!"


    "We''ll make him suffer, don''t cry over him!"


    "L-Look what you did, snake boy! Apologize to our sweet Sei!"


    In an instant, Sei was surrounded by all of her family, with so little space that even the water around her didn''t have room to touch her.


    On the bright side, Sei started tough at their antics as she wiped her tears away.


    "I''m not upset with you, honey. I guess I just felt a little.. homesick. I didn''t realize how bad it was until right this moment."


    It had been over twenty years since Sei had even set foot in Japan.


    With her parents disowning her, she had no life raft and spent practically all of her time working to keep herself and Serana afloat.


    They didn''t even take vacations, let alone travel to a whole nother country to sightsee or reminisce.


    And even if they did, where would they have gone?


    Her parents made it clear that they never wanted to see her again, and had even called her a whore.


    A part of her had always wanted to go and see her home again, or maybe even try to reconnect with her parents if possible.


    Those things were difficult to actually put into practice before now, but with the world in it''s current state she didn''t even know if her parents were still alive.


    Or if they would have changed their minds about her and been willing to apologize.


    "I''m sorry, everyone. I shouldn''t have worried you all like that."


    Mchi wiped away the small tears running from Sei''s eyes and pressed his lips against her forehead.


    "No, it''s alright love. Why didn''t you ever tell me that you were feeling homesick?"


    "I-I don''t know¡­ I guess I tried not to think about it myself."


    "Well why don''t we n some sort of visit then? I''m sure Mei would also want to go and see her home." Joanne offered.


    "Well¡­ I''m sure it''s probably in ruins and we don''t exactly have anywhere we could stay. Besides, we have lots of responsibilities now¡­ I think just this little taste of home is enough for me."


    Mchi looked like he wanted to say more, but at that moment Sei suddenly wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her chest against him.


    Since they were alone here, she and Joanne had dispensed with their towels and were currentlypletely naked in the spring, and were making it harder to think.


    "This is the first time I''ve gotten to see the family I love so much in two whole weeks. I don''t want to spend this time being sad over ghosts from the past."


    In the end, Mchi''s concern was beaten back by Sei''s aggressiveness as she forcefully slipped her tongue into his mouth.


    He wanted to continue their conversation, and tell her that they would make ns for her to visit her homnd, as a family.


    But he was already on edge after things with Joanne earlier!


    He wasn''t in a position to keep refusing sex back-to-back like this!


    ''We''ll¡­ talk about thister.''


    Finally, Mal returned Sei''s kiss in kind, and with a burning fervor.


    Reaching out without thinking, he grabbed Anna as well and alternated between her lips and Sei''s.


    He felt both of their hands grab different parts of his member at almost the same time, and he nearly bit the girls too hard out of ecstasy.


    Just before he could get too into the reunion and lose himself, he saw something out of the corner of his eye.


    Joanne had backed away until her back was against the wall of the hotspring, no doubt trying to give her daughter the space to be ''intimate'' with their fianc¨¦.


    The rtionship the three of them were in was still very new, and they were still figuring out certain aspects of their day to day life.


    But they weren''tfortable touching each other at all during sex, which made it impossible for Mal to enjoy the two of them together.


    They usually just huddled up in corners like this or even just found some excuse to leave the room entirely.


    He was worried that either one of them would start to feel left out or awkward at any given time, and he would typically take steps to avoid it whenever he could.


    While his brain was still receiving a little bit of blood flow, he had to think of a new way to keep her feeling rxed and a little less awkward.


    After all, his n was to happily spend the rest of his life with these women, so putting in the effort needed to ensure their constantfort was a crucial part of that.


    ''Think, think¡­''


    -


    On top of arge rock overlooking the isted spring Mchi and the girls were in, a number of women were poking their heads out just barely enough to be visible.


    Serana, Aisha, Aubrey, and more surprisingly, Nyx and Keres.


    *whispers* "Should we be watching this¡­?" Serana asked.


    Nyx: "No¡­ but I won''t tell my son if you won''t, just this once."


    Aubrey : "I''m going to check out the rooms¡­ you perverts have fun here."


    Aisha : "Babe¡­ look!"


    At that moment, a scenario unfolded in the hot tub that made the mouths of all five women fall open from shock.

 Chapter 244: Tender Reunion*

    Briefly, Mchi used one of his tails to wrap a Bianca''s neck.


    He whispered something into her ear through the mouth of the serpt, and watched a sinister grin form on her face that almost wasn''t indicative of her character.


    Save for wh one, particr subject was concerned.


    Bianca moved a in the water, and tiptoed toward Joanne who was still sitting on the edge of the spring, looking pt up and slightly ufortable.


    She was continuously looking back and forth betwe Anna and Mchi, and the nearest wall.


    Was she d that she and her daughter had both found a man to make them happy and fulfill their needs? Yes.


    Did she want to watch her daughter get her needs fulfilled? Not really, no.


    It seemed like she was going to be relegated to only standing a awkwardly wh Bianca suddly inched closer to her with a smile that she could not quite read.


    "Are you alright, Jo? You look kind of pale."


    "I''m¡­ alright?"


    Bianca smiled casually as she boldly took Joanne''s hands into her own.


    "We don''t have to just sit here, you know..? If you''re fine with me, th¡­"


    Anna''s eyes immediately shed op and she pulled her lips away from Mchi''s neck in an instant.


    "Hey! Don''t you dare try to have sex with my mom!"


    "I already have our fianc¨¦''s permission~!"


    "God damnit, babe, why?!!"


    "You''re focused on wrong things, love." Mchi traced his lips along Anna''s vicle and gtly nipped her right on the side of her neck.


    His fangs pierced her skin with practically no resistance and her eyes rolled back into her head as she bit her lip to suppress a really loud moan.


    Joanne may have looked pale wh Bianca first approached her, but now her face was so red that it looked like she was part apple.


    "U-Umm, Bianca, I don''t think I can-"


    "It''s okay, Jo. I just want to help you not feel so awkward and give you something else to focus on."


    "Y-You all.. do this thing quite a lot, don''t you?"


    "Well, yea. Mal seems to like it, and it''s a nice way to upy ourselves before he can get to us. After all, we love each other too¡­ it''s nice to express that."


    Joanne''s head swiveled back and forth betwe Sei, Anna, and Bianca.


    She turned her neck in such a fast manner that she nearly gave herself whish idtally.


    Today, she felt like she''d learned something that she shouldn''t have, and she would never be able to see her daughter''s cute interactions with the older wom in the group the same.


    "So..?" Bianca asked again.


    "S-So what?"


    "Are you fine with me?" Bianca passively used her natural charm and cute face to worm her way past Joanne''s defses and travel straight to her heart.


    Herst reservations disappeared wh she took a nce at Mchi and found him watching her ever closely, almost like he was waiting to see what she would do next.


    "I-I''ve never.."


    "It''s alright, just rx, okay?"


    Taking the liberty of leading, Bianca swapped her grip on Joanne''s hands for her face.


    Gtly pulling her closer, she ced her lips upon Joanne''s in a lingering innoct peck.


    Though Joanne seemed ufortable at first, she gradually became less tse and seemed not to be feeling as awkward as before.


    However, she nearly leapt out of her skin wh she felt Bianca''s hands go from her face to her breasts after only a few momts.


    "H-Hey, ar''t you moving too fast?!"


    "Maybee?"


    "B-Bianca!"


    Boldly taking one of Joanne''s perky breasts into her mouth, Bianca deftly sucked on the small pink bud like she was expecting milk toe out.


    This seemed to be the trigger that she needed to op up, as she was having a hard time dying how good she felt.


    While Joanne had her horizons fully expanded, Mchi finally had his atttion yanked back towards his own partners.


    In a more shallow part of the spring, Mchi was resting on a smooth ck rock, joying the feeling of Sei''s warm throat wrapped a his member lovingly.


    Sei was also being besieged by Anna without rest, as the tattooed young woman left a trail of kisses and bites down her spine.


    Her hands wer''t exactly idle either, as she diligtly fingered mature beauty from behind and brought her close to a small orgasm.


    Just before Anna could give her thatst necessary push, Sei removed her head from Mchi''sp, and straddled him instead.


    If something was going to push her over the edge, she would rather have it be the man she was going to marry instead of Anna''s fingers.


    But as her body loomed over the thick and impressive member pointed at her trance, a bit of fear crept into her psyche.


    It had only be two short weeks, but she already couldn''t believe this thing had ever fit inside of her.


    "Need help?" Mchi smiled as he slipped his hands underneath Sei''s soft ass and took control of her body weight.


    She wrapped her arms a him tightly and kissed him with such desperation that it was like they''d be separated for a year again.


    With clear need in his eyes, Mchi pressed himself against her trance and petrated her depths, almost immediately bing swept away by the pleasure in the process.


    Mal of course loved all of his wom equally and would never ce one of them above the others, but there was something aboutying with his first woman that always served to make his head spin.


    After such a long time apart, it understandably took Sei a momt to get relimated to her fianc¨¦''s size, but she greedily epted him all the way to the base.


    Suddly, a pair of hands found their way on to Mal''s shoulders and gtly pulled him onto his back.


    For a momt, he thought he saw a sh of pink hair on the rock overlooking the cliff before Anna sat on his facefortably like it was her rightful ce.


    "How does it feel?" She asked Sei with a slightly drunk smile.


    The woman in question disyed no trace of her earlier sadness as she bounced herself atop Mchi''s member with her hands covering her mouth.


    "B-Big... it''s be a while so it hurts a little bit, but I feel so good..!"


    At that momt Anna felt Mchi''s forked tongue roughly lick at her folds before pushing his tongue inside to scrape against her depths.


    Suppressing a moan, Anna released an erotic exhale as she grabbed Sei by the face and kissed her rather roughly.


    Anna and Mchi have oft be told they have a tdcy as a couple to think with the same mind.


    If anyone were looking for concrete evidce of this, they need not look any further than the momt where both of them instinctively reached out for one of Sei''s breasts.


    At the same time and with the same level of intsity, they gave her nipples a hard pull that inadverttly caused her to release a loud scream into Anna''s mouth.


    A miniature seizure overtook Sei''s tire body as she had her first hard orgasm in over two weeks, and she lost the ability to hold herself upright.


    Mchi''s thighs and stomach had be slick with her own nectar as she relieved herself uncontrobly.


    Falling into Anna''s arms, she only was able to bask in the glow of this pleasant ssation for a few short momts before Mchi grew impatit.


    After all, he still hadn''t gott to cum yet.


    Erging two of his tails, he wrapped them a Sei''s waist and underneath her thighs.


    She was temporarily lifted off of Anna before he bounced her up and down of his own volition.


    Ensuring that he wasn''t too rough with her, he thrusted inside of her depths at a pace that the both of them could be satisfied by; while not growing negligt of Anna''s needs either.


    He could hear her breathing getting heavier and heavier, and she had unconsciously begun to dig her ck nails into his chest.


    "A-Almost.. I-I can''t... FUCK!"


    Anna threw her head back and let out a rather loud, lustful scream that traveled far beyond what she''d meant for it to.


    After hearing Anna''s high pitched scream, Mchi felt like he was about to erupt.


    Pulling Sei down for one final thrust, he pressed himself against her cervix and filled her insides to the point of overflow.


    A grunt escaped his lips as he felt Sei tremble on top of him and scream out again; signaling her second orgasm only minutes apart from her first.


    Breathing heavily, the two wom copsed on top of Mal and basked in the feeling of being back together once again.


    The night was still young and they were in no way done expressing themselves, but for now at least they felt a need to revel in the mome-


    "KYAA!"


    Immediately, Mchi and the girls sat up, and turned their heads to the side to find the source of the familiar screaming.


    At some point, Joanne and Bianca had gott surprisingly close to the group, almost ough to touch them.


    Anna''s mother was resting on her back, with Bianca''s head betwe her legs.


    Both of them were staring up at the rock overlooking their spring, where a medley of familiar faces were watching with bloody noses.


    Most surprising of all, Keres and Nyx were in attdance.


    The goddess of the night seemed rather proud, while the always hard-to-read Keres remained somewhat stone faced.


    Although she did raise her hand up and wave at Mchi; prest circumstances not bothering her in the slightest.


    "Hello brother. We missed you."


    "Ah... missed you too, Sis."


    Honestly... he couldn''t help but feel like they had done this to themselves.

 Chapter 245: Deeper Family Ties

    The quarters inside of the gerated ons were rather nice.


    Styled after traditional ryokan, the floor had tatami mats that were soft to the touch and had a unique grassy sct that was neither overpowering or unpleasant.


    Mchi had ev crafted himself and the girls little kimonos to rest in so that they could fully joy the experice, much to the delight of Bianca and Sei.


    Although Mchi, Joanne, and Anna were slightly less unthused, because thest thing that they wanted to do right now was have clothes on.


    But it couldn''t be helped, because right now they were hosting.


    "What gives you all the right to spy on us!? W-We were having a very private momt!" Sei yelled with a red face.


    "Yea, real private ev though you all were out in the op." Serana muttered.


    At her side, Nyx, Keres, Aisha, and Aubrey nodded in unanimous agreemt.


    "T-That is not the point! We are loving adults who are titled to our private time after not seeing each other for so long!"


    "We get it, we get it, so can you hurry up and forgive us now? I have questions."


    "Q-Questions?!"


    "Uh-huh!" Serana pulled out a short notepad from her back pocket and flipped to the first page.


    Immediately, Mchi and the girls looked like they wanted to go home.


    "W-We don''t have time for any of your-"


    "Question , this one''s for Bianca. Are you eating out my mom too or just Anna''s?"


    """S-SERANA!"""


    Bianca was only seconds away from answering before Sei suddly sped her hands over her mouth and pulled her face into her breasts.


    But ev though she didn''t answer, Serana still pulled out a p and started writing something down.


    Aubrey leaned over to look at her notepad with a curious eye.


    "Question forty-six for Mchi, has Joanne let you eat her ass yet?"


    "A-Aubrey!"


    "Tsk..no." Mchi grumbled and folded his arms like this was a serious point of conttion in their rtionship


    Joanne was seated within hisp lovingly before this, and she took the liberty of elbowing Mchi in the ribs.


    "I-I''m just notfortable with it! I don''t know why you''re so adamant about doing that!"


    "Just try it once, mom." Anna replied with a sage-like look.


    "It takes a momt to get used to, but it really is quite nice." Bianca confirmed.


    Sei didn''t add anything, but her cheeks were really red.


    Joanne was still reeling from the earlier evts of the night and she didn''t know if she could take her horizons being expanded any further.


    If any more strange things happed, she felt like she would devolve into some kind of oply lustful woman like Nadine and her daughter.


    She had to preserve her pride!


    "Aww, you''re hurting my feelings, love..." Like the biblical sce of old, the serpt Mchi whispered delicate words into Joanne''s ears and st shivers down her spine.


    Her tire face wt red as she felt Mchi''s forked tongue graze her skin and his pointed teeth nip her earlobe.


    "Why won''t you let me express my love for you in every way I can, huh?"


    "T-This isn''t about that... a-and stop trying to provoke me in front of everyone."


    "You should get used to it love, since I''ll be doing it for the rest of our lives."


    "T-The rest of our lives, huh..? Hehe..Hehehehehe..."


    A glimmer of madness shone in Joanne''s eyes that was eerily familiar to one that all of the girls had on their faces at one point or another.


    "Alright th!"


    Aubrey suddly stood up and stretched before pulling Aisha into her arms. "I think I''ve se and heard ough traumatic things for one night. We''re gonna turn in."


    "W-Wait!" Aisha cried from within her arms. "I-I wanted to hear the answer to question sixty three!"


    "Do you want to hear creepy interview questions, or do you want to have sex?"


    "...Goodnight guys."


    Aubrey carried Aisha out of the bedroom not long afterwards, leaving Mchi subjected to a taste of his own medicine.


    ''I can''t believe I used to help put applesauce into that mouth...''


    Once the loving couple was gone, Serana decided to head to her room next. "Alright th, I shouldn''t keep Ryo waiting either. You Saint siblings ar''t the only ones in happy rtionships who can make your partners scream!"


    Reaching the limit of her durance, Sei finally fainted and fell into Mchi and Joanne''sp.


    Mal took the liberty of covering her with a nket while Anna and Joanne straighted her hair.


    Just like the perfect little family.


    "I''m d to see that this ce never ceases to be lively in my absce."


    Mchi watched his mother giggle but for the first time his eyes seemed to hard as he looked at her.


    It wasn''t a hateful look or a scornful one, but it did promise there would be no more beating a the bush.


    "Ma...We need to talk, don''t we?"


    Needless to say, Nyx looked like she''d be caught off guard wh Mchi suddly made it a point to address theirst meeting.


    Her beautiful smile contained slight hints of nervousness as she looked back and forth betwe her son and her daughters-inw.


    "N-Now my son, do we have to talk about something like that right now?I hav''t se you in such a long time and I would rather not-"


    "Ma, I''m not one for ufortable conversations either but this is for me and for you.


    It hurts me to see you look like you''re afraid of my every reaction whever you tell me something bad.


    I''m sure you know that I can''t hurt you, and I wouldn''t ev dream of trying. So why does it feel like you are prone to forgetting?"


    Nyx bit her lip so hard that she could have made it bleed if she had any actual blood to spill.


    "I-I''m sorry, I.."


    Keres ced her hand on top of her mother''s as a means offort.


    In the short but impactful amount of time that Mchi had known his sister, he had never se her disy such a wide range of emotion.


    "Brother¡­ you truly know not what you ask. Our mother is powerful, yes, but ev she hasws that she is bound by. Promises she cannot break.


    Telling you would be an admission of her¡­ deeds.


    As you have already se, there are certain gods who would do anything to try and condemn her by whatever means they are able.


    I am sorry¡­ it isn''t fair, and you should certainly have a right to know about more than you do, but there exists a strong possibility that she will never be able to tell you."


    Nyx crawled onto all fours until she had practically tak Joanne''s ce in Mal''sp.


    With his head still spinning, she touched him on the cheek tderly while tears fell from her eyes.


    Mimicking him, her skin turnedpletely ck and her hair a whitish grey while her eyes retained their profound cosmic luster.


    "I¡­ am so sorry, my boy. Since you have bonded with your other family they have be able to tell you full truths and share honesties with you in ways that I have not.


    But I should like you to know this if nothing else; I have always loved you and will continue to do so. If I have ever giv you the impression that I am afraid of you, I am sorry.


    I suppose that my behavior is just a by product of my own fears and shorings. Because I am so afraid to let your family down again that I can hardly stand it."


    Keres winced as if Nyx had already said too much.


    A feat that did not escape Mal and the girls'' notice.


    "My fam-"


    Just before Mal could demand a further exnation, Nyx ced the pads of her fingertips over his lips to seal them.


    "Please¡­ no more, son. All that you need to know is that you are my precious inkanyamba. And you, Aubrey, and my grandchild will have everything that your hearts could possibly desire until thest light fades out of the cosmos."

 Chapter 246: Be Careful What You Wish For

    In the early hours of 4 a.m, Mchi''s violet eyes shed op after a long period of trying and failing to fall asleep.


    He finally sat up from his bedsheets and realized that he didn''t seem to be the only one having trouble sleeping.


    There was a muffled flushing sound before the light inside of the bathroom clicked off and Joanne came back outside, scratching her t stomach like an old man and rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.


    Once she saw that Mal was sitting awake, she pushed him back down before falling on top of him like her batteries had gone dead.


    "Trouble sleeping¡­?"


    "Yea¡­" He admitted.


    "Stop thinking about it¡­ if your mother is that sincere about keeping the truth from you, th she has to have a reason.


    You''re a part now too, so you should be able to understand her¡­ How would you feel if you had to lie to Cami everyday?"


    Mchi''s heart immediately clched in his chest.


    He hadn''t be a father very long, but his little girl was his everything.


    Hers was the first life he had created with one of the wom whom he loved to pieces; and there was nothing that he did not dream of giving her.


    Joanne was certainly right about one thing; the thought of having to live with a lie he''d told her was almost too much to bear.


    "You get it, right? There is no way she came to this decision easily. She is immortal and infinitely powerful, but she is still a mother, and a good one at that.


    It''s probably hard ough for her to hold this secret, so you don''t need to make things ev harder for her by lingering on it.


    Just trust that whatever she has done, she has done it with your family''s best interest in mind, as well as her own."


    Mchi felt himself rxing if only just a bit.


    He ced a small but meaningful kiss on Joanne''s forehead as thanks. "Wh did you get so smart, huh?"


    Irritated and groggy, Joanne punched Mchi in the ribs hard ough for there to be an audible crack.


    "I''m older than you, smug brat... I know a little something."


    Mchi knew that he probably shouldn''t have tried to baby someone like Joanne, but he used to stick forks in outlets as a kid.


    He had always liked flirting with danger.


    In the dark room that smelled mildly of sweat and body fluids, he continued to tease her yfullydespite her reltless requests to allow her to sleep.


    But inwardly, she was happy that she had gott her formerly downtrodd young partner to think about something else for once.


    She never believed that she''d feel like this, but she was more than happy to sacrifice a bit of her sleep if it meant that she could keep him this contt.


    ...Just a bit though, she still needed the rest.


    -


    ", , 3!"


    *sh! sh! sh!*


    Under the shining midday sun, a rather activeke day was in full swing.


    Though the hot springs inside the gerated onset were nice, the nightfall unit had set up camp right beside a veryrge and cool body of water.


    It would have be a shame for them to not use it.


    The girls had fished out old bathing suits from before the world fell apart and were truly doing them justice.


    However, everyone''s main focus was out of the water, and on the riverbank.


    There, Mchi was lying on a beach towel with his hands sped behind his head and his face turned up to the sky.


    He wore only a pair of ck swim trunks, which Anna hadmted were too short and made him look like a slut.


    Meaning she liked them and was worried that other wom would too.


    Right beside him, Camille had copied her father''s exact pose;plete with her own little bathing suit that Bianca had sewn together.


    The pair had matching sunsses on and fancy ck earphones that were connected to Mal''s phone.


    Currtly, the two of them were listing to a very important father-daughter song.


    Not ''Isn''t She Lovely?'' by Stevie Wonder.


    Nor was it ''My Girl'' by The Temptations.


    It was the awe-inspiring, pivotal, and incredibly thought-provoking : ''4 Your Eyez Only'' by Jermaine Cole.


    The two of them were so captivated by this mesmerizing work of art that they werepletely unaware that the wom in the family had be standing a them for a while now, taking pictures and making remarks.


    Sei: "Soo cute!"


    Anna: "I don''t ev mind the favoritism, this''ll be my new lock scre forever."


    Nadine: "I-I just want to give them both all of the kisses I can!"


    Luna and Nadine had be brought over in the morning, and after having their own short but loving reunion, they were also persuaded to join in the festivities.


    Serana, Ryo, Aisha, Aubrey, and Rose were also standing hand-in-hand on the riverbank, staring at the father-daughter duo with eyes of vy.


    Smiling, Serana rested her head against her boyfrid''s bare chest. "Hey babe... What do you think about-"


    "Don''t you fucking dare!" Sei almost never swore, but Sera''s almost hypothetical had brought it out of her on idt.


    "M-Mom! Why?!"


    "You''re no where near responsible ough for your own baby! I''m still washing your clothes every week!"


    Sera''s cheeks turned the same color as her hair as she turned her head away out of embarrassmt.


    "It''s just a lot harder without thoseundry pod things..."


    Ryo broke his usual rigid demeanor and smiled thoughtfully as he gave his girlfrid a constory pat on the head.


    "We both have a little bit more growing up to do. Wh we''re ready, let''s have this conversation again."


    An egregiouslyrge and happy smile showed up on Sera''s face and she threw her arm a her boyfrid drunkly.


    "Aww, I love you so much! Tell you what, let''s go practice agai-"


    "G-Go cool off, you two!"


    With a red face, Sei hurled her daughter and her boyfrid into the middle of theke using Herculean telekinesis.


    "Should you really be so prudish?" Nadine asked. "This morning all of us had sex for-"


    "Y-You go cool off too!"


    "KYAA!"


    Mchi had be watching this tire sce through his one oped eye and he smiled softly at his family.


    Though he felt protective of Serana, he wasn''t averse to her bing a mother whever she was actually ready.


    He thought it might have be nice for Cami to have kids her own age to y with; and it would have be good for her developmt too.


    However, it did make him think of what Ryo would be like as a father.


    It made him realize that he didn''t know much about Loki''s blessed, other than the fact that Serana had coincidtally saved him on a mission in the wastes.


    Siltly, he wondered just how he''d ded up in that predicamt in the first ce, as well as the whereabouts of a particrpanion of his.


    ''Morgan... Don''t tell me you didn''t make it¡­''


    At that momt, the song finally ded and Camille threw her hands up in glee.


    "Ada!"


    "Again?" Mchi asked with purple eyes filling with tears. *sniff* "You really are my daughter..!"


    Camille nodded in satisfaction behind her sunsses that were just a smudge too big for her face.


    Just as Mal was about to restart the song, the girls decided it was time to interfere.


    Bianca snatched up Camille so fast that she practically yanked the young girl free of her headphones and shades instantaneously.


    "Come on, little miss! Mommy is going to teach you how to swim."


    "I-In the shallow water, right?" Sei asked nervously.


    "Yes, yes, we promise we''ll stay on the bank."


    At the same time, Luna demanded atttion and fell on top of her fianc¨¦ like a -haired cannonball.


    She smiled at him like a radiant vix, and started running her hands up the lgth of his exposed chest.


    "This seat tak?"


    "Not at all. Feel free to make yourselffortable."


    "Oh? But the day just started. It''d be a shame for us to go back to the room already."


    Several feet away on the riverbank, Ali, Trevor, and Rowan watched all of this with a dry gaze.


    The heat from their grills was nothingpared to the burning jealousy that smoldered inside each of them.


    Trevor: "Y''know, my wife used to flirt with me like that too back in the day. Now wh she''s in the mood she just doesn''t put on her face mask before bed."


    Rowan: "You go for it everytime, don''t you?"


    Trevor: "Damn straight."


    Ali: "I used to have em all over me like that at one point too¡­ I don''t have it like that no more though."


    Trevor and Rowan red at the overgrown man hatefully.


    "Big bastard¡­"


    "As wide as all outside, but not a thought behind those eyes¡­"


    "The fuck?!"


    Back on the riverbank, Mal was dealing with a rather antsy and adamant Luna who was only seconds away from dragging him back inside by the hair.


    And if he was honest, he was tempted to let her.


    After all, their little short and sweet reunion earlier this morning wasn''t really ough for him either.


    But he was hoping that showing some restraint untilter tonight would make the experice that much sweeter.


    Siltly he wished there was something, anything to distract him from Luna''s soft, curvaceous body.


    *Ring!*


    ''Thank the gods!!''


    Mchi pulled out his phone at thest minute and checked it with a bit too much ergy.


    However, the momt he saw the  pop up across the scre, he immediately wished that he had just gone to have sex with Luna instead.


    Celeste : I heard you guys were on a three day break today! If it''s not too much trouble¡­ could you stop by wh you get a chance? She''s be asking for you the whole time she''s be awake and¡­ her memory is back.

 Chapter 247: Malachi & Melanie : The Closure

    Mchi told himself several times that he didn''t have to go.


    After all, he was spding the weekd with his family and having a good time, and there was nothing that was more important than that.


    But while Celeste''s request may not have be important per se, it had it''s own unique urgcy that could not be ignored.


    Which was how Mchi ded up right outside of Mnie and Celeste''s quarters without ev remembering exactly wh he got there.


    He pressed the button for the doorbell and waited with sage-like patice for what felt like an eternity.


    Evtually, a familiar woman with an ev more familiar chest oped the door.


    As always, Celeste was incredibly beautiful, but Mchi wasn''t really in the right frame of mind to appreciate something like that right now.


    "O-Oh, umm.. you came right away?" For some reason, the mother of his ex was currtly boasting some really red cheeks.


    Mchi followed her gaze down to his body and realized that he hade here without changing and only sporting his swim trunks from before.


    "Sorry... I figured it''d be best if I didn''t put this off anymore."


    "R-Right... Should I close my bedroom door for the reunion?" she joked.


    Mchi smiled ufortably and didn''tmt.


    Celeste let him inside of their quarters and he headed straight for Mnie''s room in the back.


    He knocked on the door twice, but received no answer.


    But after what he''d done to her, he could sse that she was inside.


    Announcing himself beforehand, he stepped inside and looked a warily.


    At the same time, a door on the other side of the room oped up and a mass of steam poured out along with a young girl wrapped in a bath towel.


    She didn''t appear shocked by the fact that her ex was standing in her room, but she he was tak aback by his new look and the fact he was shirtless.


    "They were all telling me that you looked differt.¡­ but I had to admit that I was expecting to feel a bit more scared."


    "Really? I think your reaction might be the best out of everyone''s." Mal joked ufortably.


    However, it was clear that Mnie had tak some pride in what he said and he realized he''d made a simple mistake.


    "So, do you want to sit down?" she asked, a bit more cheerful than earlier.


    Biting his lower lip, he sat on the edge of Mnie''s bed with his back facing her.


    He thought he would wait for her to get dressed before they continued talking, but she sat wrapped beside him in her same towel from before.


    A familiar peach sct tickled his nostrils as he analyzed her from head to toe.


    Just like the first day he saw her, she was a very pretty young woman.


    Soft, pale skin that had rosy patches along her cheeks, short ck hair that was currtly dripping water down her back, a cute yet mischievous looking face, and dull red eyes that were more insightful than intimidating.


    She was practically the spitting image of her mother, just without the hanced charm of an older woman and a chest and backside that you could sit a cup on top of.


    "So... you want to tell me exactly what you did to me first?" she asked, trying to make this as painless as possible for the both of them.


    "O-Oh, right... Your injury in the field was so bad that I doubt you would have walked again if I didn''t help you so I... made you like me. A N''Kai. Albeit a lowbreed."


    "How''d you do that??"


    "I fed you my body fluids."


    "..."


    "F-From my palm!"


    "I told you that your hands were sweaty. Never saw anybody about that, huh?"


    "I.. It''s not...No, I didn''t." Finally, Mchi''s brain conked out and he just sort of gave up.


    Mnie on the other hand giggled, almost like she already knew beforehand what reaction her words would bring.


    If she was honest, she had already somewhat figured that he had done something strange to her.


    Before, she had no powers other than the mark of cain she''d received from Mchi, but after waking up a week ago, her body was now stronger, lighter, faster, and she ev felt a tiny bit smarter too.


    But there was just one point she was concerned about.


    "..." Looking over her shoulder, she nearly broke her own neck trying to nce at her lower back.


    "I didn''t alter your getic code at all, so you''re not going to sprout any tails." Mal revealed.


    "M-Maybe I just wanted to know if my butt got bigger."


    "It hasn''t."


    "...Does that mean you''ve be looking?"


    "N-No, I just-"


    "Because... I wouldn''t mind if you did..." Mnie muttered with a red face.


    Immediately, Mal felt his heart drop and he stood up from the bed.


    "Look, Mnie. I''m not-"


    His blood ran cold as he suddly felt a very familiar ssation gue him from behind.


    Mnie''s bare chest was pressed against him while she interlocked her arms a his waist, prevting him from taking ev another step forward.


    "Mal... please just list to me. Will you do that...?"


    "Yea, just... get dressed first, would you? I promise not to turn a, so..."


    Despite Mal''s one request, Mnie did not release him.


    Instead, she became choked up and only clung to him tighter.


    "I never... got the chance to be fully honest with you about everything. I know that I should have told you about my mom and her health problems before, but I just... didn''t know how. You had ough things going on at home and I didn''t want to add to it.


    T-Th your boss just sort of found out because he saw me at the hospital one day and he s-showed me this wad of cash and told me that he''d give it to me if I just had dinner with him and-"


    "Mel, stop."


    Mchi''s voice was uniquely upromising, and if Mnie was honest her heart broke just from hearing it.


    "I don''t really want to talk about this if I''m honest... I would rather we just kinda move on and act like things didn''t happ. Just keep it simple, you know?"


    "W-We can''t do that, because I know that you''re still upset with me! You have to give me some way to make it right! You can scream at me, curse me, or hit me, whatever! I just don''t want you to hate me for-"


    "Mnie, I''m not doing any of that. And I can promise that I don''t hate you."


    Mnie pressed her cheeks against Mchi''s back, a heart full of despair in her chest.


    "But you don''t love me anymore either... do you?"


    "...I''m sorry."


    Mchi could have sworn that he heard the sound of Mnie''s heart breaking into pieces.


    Her grip on his midsection tighted, and she began to sob siltly down his back.


    Mchi knew that he hadn''t done anything wrong, but the way his heart was hurting it was almost like he was the viin here.


    "Is it because I''m dirty now...?" She asked in a low voice.


    Mal finally turned a and sped Mnie''s shoulders with both hands.


    "Mnie... What happed to you has nothing to do with how I feel about you. And I can promise you that you are not dirty and there isn''t a thing wrong with you."


    "T-Th why..?"


    "Youlied to me. Whether you thought you were sheltering me or not doesn''t matter. The most basic requiremt for a rtionship is total honesty and you couldn''t ev give me that.


    I get that you wanted to help your mom, I really do. But instead ofing to me for help you wt behind my back to another man instead and let him sweet talk you.


    And ev wh he hurt you... you still didn''te to me. You just kept letting him abuse you again and again without ever considering talking to me as a possible option.


    Like you were afraid I would see you differt, or like I wouldn''t give everything I had to protect you. Powers or no powers. You let him blindside and embarrass me, and scar you... instead of just telling me the truth."


    Mnie shook her head in dial as the tears continued to run down her face and she became less and less stable with every word.


    However, Mchi wasn''t exactly in a better mtal state.


    He had never spok to anyone, not ev Sei, about just how bad Mnie''s actions had hurt him.


    For the longest that was because he didn''t see himself as someone worthy ough toin.


    After all, someone like him should have just be d to have be with a pretty girl at least once in his life, no?


    But as his self esteem grew, he realized just how wrong he was for his thinking.


    And he subsequtly began to feel bit restful towards her.


    However, all of that restmt was squashed the day he found her on the floor of Derek''s apartmt, with her head cracked op and lying in a pool of her own blood.


    But he couldn''t just erase all of the hurt.


    They couldn''t be together again, but Mchi was still Mchi.


    He wiped away the tears on Mnie''s face only for them to return in full mere secondster.


    He gtly cupped her face in her hands the way he did wh they were together and there was much less of a height differce.


    "But ev though we can''t be in a rtionship... you will always be my first love, and I am grateful for all of the memories we made. You will always be my frid."


    Finally, Mnie''s knees gave out from underneath her, and she copsed on the floor weeping siltly.


    Mchi picked up her towel and draped it across her shoulders before holding her as she cried.


    Much of what she said was incohert, but there was one part he could make out.


    "I''m sorry, Mchi... I''m so, so, sorry...!"

 Chapter 248: The End

    Mchi didn''t know how long he held Mnie for.


    But since he was feeling more than a little responsible for breaking her heart, he didn''tin or make any moves to leave first.


    After all, she was the victim in all of this.


    She had been taken advantage of, and he didn''t want to punish her any more than she already had been.


    But he couldn''t just make himself stay with someone who he didn''t love or trust.


    Not after all of the wonderful women that he was already with were showing him everyday just how much they cared about him and the family they were building.


    He just wanted to move on, and keep Mnie as another close friend.


    "I gotta say, you''re really surprising me here, Mel. I thought I wasn''t your type anymore." he tried to make a joke, hoping that would lighten the atmosphere a bit.


    Mel finally wiped her face of tears and grabbed him by the ear.


    "I-I only said that because I didn''t remember all the things I loved about you! I can get past your manwhorish looks now!"


    Mchi''s brow visibly twitched and he tried to keep a forced smile on his face.


    ''Somehow, I think she was nicer to me before I got my powers. At least then she used to lie to me and tell me I was cute.''


    While Mal was remembering the good old days, Mnie got a sudden idea and bit her lip anxiously.


    Before Mchi knew what she was doing, she took her hand and ced it directly over his crotch.


    "Mel!" The first thing that Mchi did was push her hand away, but she took it upon herself to remove her towel in the hopes of seducing him.


    "I know that we can''t be together¡­ but I want to rewrite my first time and give it to the person who I actually should have in the first ce."


    "Mnie, stop." Mal denied firmly.


    "Just once, Mal! I promise that I will never have feelings for you again if you just help me move on! I know that it''s selfish of me, but¡­ I just want to not feel like a victim for once..!"


    Mchi''s pupils trembled visibly as he watched Mnie fight to touch him again.


    Though he knew what the right thing to do was, the visible desperation in her eyes made making that decision so much harder.


    -


    Celeste opened her eyes after an unknown amount of time and sat up.


    Somehow, she had fallen asleep on the couch while waiting to see if Mchi and Mnie''s reunion went about as smoothly as she was hoping for.


    But once her eyes became heavy, she ended up falling asleep shortly afterwards; and she was known to be quite the heavy sleeper.


    An earthquake could shake the whole base today and she would only wake up if the AC went above 65 or her fan stopped.


    Therefore, she had no idea if she had missed anything or not while she had been sleeping here.


    *Click!*


    At that moment, the door to Mnie''s bedroom clicked open and Celeste sat up with a start.


    She quickly tried to correct her posture so as to seem attentive, and waited to see who woulde out of the room.


    A few momentster, Mchi came back out of the room with a rather despondent look on his face and sweating significantly.


    He paused when he saw Celeste sitting on the couch before inadvertently failing to meet her gaze.


    "¡­ Sorry about the noise."


    Mchi darted out the door without another word, leaving Celeste too stunned to do anything as she stared down the hallway.


    -


    Mchi reappeared in his room back at the onsen in Wyoming.


    He just needed a little peace and quiet to get his mind right for a second.


    There wasn''t a single doubt in his mind that if he went out there now like this the girls would be able to sense what was wrong with him in two seconds.


    And he knew that he needed to tell them, but he just wanted to wait for a bit before he did it.


    However, at that moment one of the girls came in and totally blew his entire n to bits.


    Like the happy and unassuming bundle of curves that she was, Nadine came into the room humming softly and wiping off her body in a towel.


    When she saw Mchi standing in the room, her eyes lit up like fireworks and she prepared to give him the biggest hug she could possibly muster.


    That is, until an unfamiliar scent tickled her nose, and her face became one that was scornful and downright frightening.


    In the blink of an eye she had leapt all the way across the room and tackled Mchi to the ground.


    Her eyes were a very noticeable blood red and there were tearsing out of her eye of the same color.


    Her hands were wrapped around Mchi''s neck so tightly that he couldn''t breathe even if he wanted to, but he made no move to stop her.


    "Why... do... I... smell.. a bitch... on...


    you..?"


    "Nadine, I-"


    Her voice became softer and significantly more broken as the tears running down her face increased their deluge. "Did you cheat on me..? On us...?"


    Mchi''s heart was being stomped on for the second consecutive time today.


    "No... of course not."


    He touched Nadine lightly on the forehead and showed her all of his memories from thest two hours.


    She had a minor headache before all of her heartbreak turned to guilt, then sadness, then sympathy.


    "Oh... darling, I''m-"


    "It''s fine, I get it. Seeing you broken hearted like that... makes me really d that I didn''t go through with it."


    Mchi and Nadine held each other on the floor of the bedroom without saying a word or turning on a light.


    The only sound that could be heard was the beating of their own hearts and the asional exchanged kiss between the two.


    "...Will you talk to me about it?"


    Instinctively, Mchi had almost told her no.


    After all, things were the way they were.


    There was no amount of talking that was going to change it, no words spoken that could undo the past.


    However, just this once he was feeling a little bit more inclined to open up.


    "Yea... Just promise me you won''t start crying again, alright?"


    "I promise."

 Chapter 249: A Parent’s Nightmare

    At some point, one would have thought that it was the norm to grow tired of swimming.


    Those people had never met Camille Monica Saint.


    In the early hours of the morning, the young girl woke up from her hibernation alongside all of her loving parents.


    The first thing she did when she woke up was give herself a moment to rub the sleep out of her eyes.


    She sat up from the covers while blinking slowly, and staring off into space like she wasn''t all there.


    After two minutes of this, she looked at her cacophony of parents and began to choose which one she was going to make get up with her.


    Eeny, meeny, miny, moe...


    "Bu.."


    Camille crawled across a sleeping Sei and Bianca to arrive right on top of Anna''s chest.


    Very gently, she poked her sleeping cheeks in the hopes that she would open her eyes.


    Annalise Grey had been two things all her life.


    Mean as hell and a sleep addict.


    When she was in juvie, even the guards wouldn''t try their hand at waking her up for fear that she would bite off their ear like a 98 pound Mike Tyson.


    PG hadn''t woken up his niece since she was 13 because he was worried that she would beat his ass and tie his pubic hair to a doorknob before mming it closed.


    Anna''s teachers wouldn''t even wake her up if she slept in ss, they would just continue teaching while writing her up silently.


    And yet, little four month old Cami was waking her mother up without a care.


    At that moment, an utter miracle urred.


    Instead of Annashing out from pure instinct, she cracked one of her eyes open and spied at the young girl sitting on her chest.


    "Mornin'' sugar¡­- Are you just waking up..?"


    Camille nodded cutely, and Anna felt her formerly ck heart starting to warm up by leaps and bounds.


    "Need help going to the potty?"


    Camille started to shake her head no... but then realized that the answer was actually yes.


    "Alright,e on mamas." Anna sleepily lifted herself out of the covers while holding onto the seven pound baby.


    Four minutester when the both of them emerged from the bathroom, Anna made a beeline for the bedsheets with her eyes only half open.


    "Ama!"


    "Hm..? What''s wrong?"


    Cami pointed to her stic floaties that were sitting up on the other side of the room beside the door.


    Immediately, Anna grimaced and let out a small whimper.


    "Cami... can''t we wait until noon to go swimming today?"


    Camille didn''t say anything, but her eyes became noticeablyrger and almost tear filled.


    Anna melted like a pad of butter on a hot skillet. "Well... Can we at least wake daddy first so that he can be miserable with- I mean, feed us?"


    "...Aba."


    "That''s my girl." Anna gave Camille a small kiss on the cheek before walking over to the futon area.


    Mchi was pinned between a haphazardly snoring Nadine and a drooling Joanne, and it seemed like he was right at home.


    He was sleeping so cutely that she almost didn''t want to wake him.


    ...Just almost though.


    Smiling mischievously, Anna hovered just over Mchi''s head.


    "Wakey, wakey, daddy~ It''s time to go swimming."


    Nano seconds after the words left Anna''s lips, Mchi''s eyes shed open.


    -


    "...This isn''t what I had in mind."


    Anna showed no signs of listening to Mchi''sints as she restedfortably in hisp.


    It was a cool morning, which meant the water was even colder.


    Mchi, Anna, and Camille were the only ones outside on the river bank, which meant he was free toin as loud as he wanted.


    He could only go as far as putting his toes in the water, as for some reason really cold temperatures seemed to affect him in a way that they never had before.


    He couldn''t for the life of him figure out why.


    "Ssss...."


    Manda unwrapped himself from around his bicep and encircled Anna''s waist before closing it''s eyes once again.


    ''Oh... That''s right, I forgot about that. Does this mean I''m cold blooded now?''


    Thinking up a quick solution on the spot, Mchi decided to ditch his body altogether.


    His skin, flesh, hair, and bones all burned away into oblivion, leaving behind only a mass of darkness in the shape of a man, with swirling nebs inside of his body and numerous clusters of stars spread throughout.


    His tails did not disappear in this form and the serpent quartet also received an updated look.


    Though after taking a moment to analyze themselves, they didn''t appear to care very much and went back to business as usual.


    As far as facial features went, Mchi still had none other than a mouth filled with sharp teeth, four of which were longer than normal.


    Anna felt the texture of her fianc¨¦''s body change and she opened one eye to look behind her.


    "..."


    "...What? " Mchi''s voice was a bit distorted, but it was still as charming and southern as ever.


    "...Have we ever boinked when you were like this?"


    "What are you saying in front of munchkin¡­?" Mal asked exhaustedly.


    "I said boinked!" Anna defended.


    Camille was ignoring both of her parents and was having her own fun time sshing around in the water.


    Since she wasn''t looking, Anna snuck her hand behind her back and started to slide it up Mal''s thigh.


    "I don''t have one on me right now, Anna. It''s inconvenient."


    "But you can grow one, yea?"


    "...Why are you so sexually charged?"


    "I dunno, maybe it''s an addiction, or a little bit of body dysmorphia... probably both."


    "Wow... me too, I think. Plus this N''Kai desire to procreate."


    "We should probably be in therapy."


    "We really should..."


    The two of them sat in silence for a couple of moments longer, watching Camille fill a bucket with water and then dump it over her own head.


    "Wanna boink after this?"


    "It''s like you read my mind."


    While the two of them wereughing and hugging, they heard a sound that would have terrified most parents everywhere.


    *Ssh!*


    Looking around, the two of them searched for their young daughter yet found only a mass of disturbed water where she once stood.


    "Munchkin!" Mchi calledzily.


    A momentter, Camille popped her head up from out of the water; just fine, but curious.


    "Try not to wander off too far, yea? You''ll give your old man a heart attack." Anna joked.


    ''..Who the hell are you calling an old man..?''


    Camille nodded before dunking her head back underneath the water, and swimming more efficiently than a seal.


    Something that the group had to learn the hard way this weekend was that Camille and her father were expert swimmers.


    And by experts, I mean their bodies were literally adapted for water.


    They already had webbed hands, but when enough of their body was submerged under water, they grew gills along the sides of their necks, and their eyes developed a special membrane-like filter designed to keep out any dirt or debris.


    Bianca nearly fainted the first time that Cami suddenly flopped underwater with no prior warning and came back up like nothing was wrong.


    But through that experience they had learned that she could stay under as long as she wanted with virtually no repercussions.


    Once the two of them were alone, Anna finally decided to address a topic that she had been avoiding during this weekend.


    "I haven''t said anything because I know how you feel about the situation, but¡­ I really don''t like that she touched you and tried to snake us behind our backs like that."


    "Anna-"


    "B-But I¡­ I also think¡­ no, I know that I would have felt the same way in her position. Even now¡­ there isn''t a day that I don''t want to give you my first everything. And¡­ I can''t imagine the person I would be if I ever lost you for good."


    Mchi smiled even with his nightmarish demeanor on disy.


    "So¡­ does that mean I can count on you not to hurt her?" Mchi asked, half joking and half not.


    Anna seemed to think about it for a moment before shaking her head in denial.


    "Yeah¡­ I can''t promise like I''ll be able to be friendly with her anytime soon, but I know she''s important to you. I''ll let her keep her bones intact."


    Smiling, Mchi tightened his grasp around her and nted a few kisses on her cheek.


    He nced at the water discreetly before he brought his mouth closer to her pierced ears.


    "How long¡­ do you think she''ll be under the water?"


    -


    In theke, Cami had gotten surprisingly deep.


    And yet, she was steadily using her little arms and legs to swim deeper, like a miniature underwater explorer.


    She couldn''t really tell you what exactly she was looking for, and it was entirely possible that she wasn''t really looking for anything at all.


    But the wilderness had to be explored!


    *Whoosh!*


    At that moment, something fast swam past Camille''s eyes at the bottom of theke.


    As soon as she caught sight of the otherworldly creature swimming towards her, she let out an instinctive scream under the water.

 Chapter 250: Camis First Lowbreed!

    Perhaps due to parental instincts or some grander factor, both Anna and Mchi immediately paused when they felt their youngest scream under the water.


    Mchi immediately took his hand out of Anna''s bikini and stood up with her in tow.


    "Move!"


    There was arge rush and all of the water in theke came streaming upward like a geyser, taking any marine life up in the air with it.


    The couple found their infant sitting on the bottom of theke,pletely unterrified and holding a small creature in her even smaller hands.


    Once she saw her parents staring at her from above, Cami excitedly held up the creature for both of them to see.


    "Ama! Ada! Bu!"


    "Ah... yea, we see."


    "Wouldn''t exactly call it cute though, munchkin..."


    Sitting calmly in Camille''s hands was a smalll ck axolotl the size of a tv remote.


    The young child seemed absolutely smitten with the strange new friend she had made at the bottom of theke, and was adamant about showing her parents.


    She teleported from her seat and reappeared beside Mchi and Anna in an instant.


    Her little legs waddled back and forth as she carried herself in front of them with the small creature outstretched like she was ying show and tell.


    "Bu! Bu!"


    "I see it... " Mchi was unsure of how dramatic he was supposed to make his reaction.


    He didn''t find the damned thing cute at all...


    They were nothing like his little scaly friends that were jutting out of his back.


    However, he atleast forced a smile onto his face so as not to upset his baby.


    It was harder to tell how Anna felt about the creature since she had always liked creepy and ugly things since she was a child.


    As if that wasn''t noticeable by therge amount of gothic tattoos she had on her body.


    "Seems like you found a really cool little friend there, hon. I think these things need water though. Do you mind, babe?"


    Mchi brought a small blob of water towards them and allowed his daughter to stick her arms in the blob so that she could hold onto her new pet without having it die on her.


    "Wanna keep it?" Anna asked.


    "Ama!?"


    "Uh.. Anna?" Mchi nudged.


    "Sure you can. Your rooms plenty big enough to put a fish tank in. I know your other mom told me she''s been looking for a new project to work on, so I''m sure she''d be happy to make you one." (Bianca)


    Camille looked like she was going to burst out of her skin with delirious excitement.


    She pelted Annalise with so many thank yous in a few short seconds that her parents were worried her lungs would go pop.


    Crestfallen, Mchi looked at Anna with a look of betrayal.


    ''Did you just rece me as her favorite?''


    ''Yea, but It''s alright, babe. You''re still my favorite~''


    ''Don''t try to make the pain go away with sex appeal, it won''t work this time...''


    While Camille was spinning around with her new axolotl, Anna smirked eerily and shed Mchi a view of his favorite piercings.


    And certainly not the ones in her ears or nose...


    "...It stings a little less."


    "I thought it would."


    While her parents were trying their best to console each other, Cami was still excited over getting to keep her new pet.


    Suddenly, her mind flickered back to a couple of months ago when she met her cousin Tsath and he showed her and her father how to make creatures be their friends forever!


    She shifted the weight of the axolotl to one hand and held out her little palm.


    Through concentrating and making little pushing noises, she was able to secrete just a little bit of that special essence from her body so that it could fill her palm.


    Bringing it towards her axolotl, she giggled cutely as the small critter stuck it''s head into her palm and ingested the dark liquid.


    Just like her father had said, she didn''t really feel all that strong afterwards since she was turning only a single creature.


    If there was any change to her power at all, then it was so small that it would be impossible to notice.


    Like a single grain of sand trying to create an anthill.


    However, she hadn''t really done this to be strong, since her dad already took care of all of that fighting and stuff.


    She just wanted to have more friends around the house!


    Concentrating, she used the liquid inside of the axolotl''s body to alter it''s gic sequence in exactly the way she wanted.


    She had to make it even cuter!!


    Right before her parents'' eyes, the amphibious creature thrashed about unmercifully before it''s body started to undergo very staggering changes.


    It grew to a foot, then five, then twenty.


    It''s dark coloring grew even more lifeless like obsidian, and it''s eyes gained a nightmarish white glow.


    It lurched a bit, and enormous bat-like wings came out of it''s back;rger than even a full grown man.


    Numerous, small jagged teeth popped out of it''s upper and lower jaw like gleaming white rocks.


    It lost the legs on the back half of it''s body, and it''s tail lengthened to around half the size of it''s length.


    The creature finally recovered from it''s metamorphosis and hovered off the ground like some sort of great mythological creature, much to the delight of the infant on the riverbank.


    Cami pped her hands happily as she jumped up and down full of glee.


    Her parents however stood there mystified as they took in the sight of the demonic creature circling above their heads.


    "I... don''t know if that''s going to fit in a tank." Anna muttered.


    Almost as if it were responding to herment, the twenty foot lowbreed shrunk right back down to it''s previous size with all of it''s new changes intact.


    "Oh... never mind then."


    Camille held out her first N''Kai to show her father and he smiled wryly as he patted her on the head.


    "That''s great, munchkin. What are you going to name-"


    At that moment, the serpents jutting out of his back and the axolotl in Cami''s hands started to hiss audibly in agitation.


    Mchi noticed it too, but he did not make any rash moves to draw attention.


    "Is that..?"


    "Yea. We''re being watched."

 Chapter 251: Setting up A Last Stand

    It took Mchi all of 1.6 seconds to identify exactly which direction the outsider was staring at them from.


    Instead of acting out immediately, Mchi picked up Camille like nothing was the matter and brought her face ever closer to his.


    "You might hear daddy use a couple of bad words¡­ just close your eyes and don''t tell your moms." (Luna & Sei)


    Cami nodded and quietly ced her head on her dad''s shoulder, her eyes alert and unusually serious for a baby.


    ''How do you want to handle this?''


    Anna rested her head against Mchi''s shoulder as she stared at Cami, making the three of them look like the perfect little family.


    ''We have a couple of options¡­ how much exercise do you feel like getting?''


    ''Barely any, ever. But I''ll do whatever if it gets us home quicker.''


    Mchi smiled as he rested his head against Anna''s.


    ''We can let it scout all it wants, and then let it bring back it''s reinforcements. Let some of our enemiese to us without moving another step.''


    Anna only needed to hear ''without moving another step'' and she was entirely on board.


    ''I don''t mind that. It''d give us the luxury of not fighting cross-country style like we''ve been doing. We could draw up some actual ns now while we''re at it too.''


    ''Oh, ns¡­ yea.''


    ''¡­You and your unit haven''t been nning shit, have you??''


    ''Well with me and Aisha working together on the same squad, our ns are kind of just-''


    ''Hit with powers, make fall down?''


    ''And chain swords.'' Mchi held up his bracelet weapons, which he was really growing fond of.


    Anna rolled her eyes and pushed her fianc¨¦''s forehead yfully.


    ''You''re both idiots¡­ how do we know this guy will even bring a force that''s worth the extra wait?''


    Mchi thought about the possible methods to ensure that Anna''s concerns were addressed, and he realized that he may have to get his hands dirty a bit.


    "Hey, Cami?"


    "Da?"


    "Push that little stop on my wrist for me... Yea, right there."


    Cami used her little finger to press a small invisible mechanism on the side of his golden bracelets.


    Not two secondster, a short spear appeared within Mchi''s grasp.


    "Close your eyes, peach."


    "Bu..."


    Mchi clutched the short spear loosely with his free hand and tossed it up high in the air above his head.


    Like a dog after a bone, Manda erged itself to reach up and catch the weapon in it''s mouth.


    Using it''s body like a whip, it flung it''s head to one side of theke andunched the handheld spear like a rocket towards a grove of trees.


    The weapon cut through the wind with so much force and power that it created arge sonic boom in the air as it traveled.


    A loud boom shook the forest and a horrible scream was released into the air, signaling that the weapon had found it''s target.


    "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!"


    "Bullseye."


    "Bwa!"


    "Hey, your eyes are supposed to be closed."


    Camille made a small ''Oop'' sound like she''d been caught and covered both her eyes with her free hand.


    The mutant axolotl on top of her head also covered it''s eyes in solidarity.


    "That''s better."


    Chuckling, Mchi passed Camille and her pet over to Annalise before he started walking towards the site of his attack.


    Through the gaps in the destroyed trees, he could see arge, demonic looking abomination, pinned to the front of a rtively thick tree.


    Mchi''s spear was still lodged into it''s shoulder de like a staple, and no matter how many times it tried to pry itself free, it was never able to do so.


    And as Mal came closer and closer to it, the abomination became even more desperate in it''s attempts to break free.


    Ever since he had first dipped his feet in theke, the N''Kai had shed his physical body and switched to the spiritual one gifted to him by his mother.


    Though his form was quite beautiful if one was paying close attention to it, it''splexities could not be fully appreciated when one was being loomed over.


    All that the pinned abomination could see were the enormous fangs too big for a human mouth, and the horrifying serpents jutting from it''s back that seemed to growrger with every second.


    "S-Stay back, creature! If youe any closer to me then I will-"


    "Have you seen everything that you needed to see...? Do you feel enlightened..?"


    Mchi''s boxdy was like a ck hole, absorbing any and all light within a growing radius and creating a perpetual night around him.


    This only further added to the feeling of dread that was umting within the mind of the degenerative abomination.


    "G-Get away from me, bastard! I''ll eat your fucking face off!"


    Oblivious to the words spat at him by the spy, Mchi drew himself closer and closer to the impaled prisoner.


    His face hovered mere inches from the mottled green skin of the abomination, and reveled at the sight of the terror in his eyes.


    "Who were you going to tell about us..?"


    "N-No one!"


    "Lie to me and I''ll stab you again."


    "M-My tribe leader!"


    "Aww, that''s too bad. Thinking real small there, aren''t you buddy?"


    "W-What...?"


    Mchi grabbed the abomination by the face and squeezed just hard enough to make the abomination feel like his skull was going to cave in.


    "Why such a small audience?? You should tell everyone! Shout it from the rooftops, scream it from the rooftops! Gather your whole race here and see if you all are enough to feed on my flesh!"


    Mchi yanked out the spear impaling his prisoner and gave him a hard kick that sent him skidding several feet away.


    The abomination''s yellow eyes showed clear confusion when he saw that Mchi didn''t seem to be trying to chase or trick him.


    Not one to wait around, he scrambled to his feet while holding his wound and he ran as fast as he possibly could in the opposite direction.


    Turning back to theke, Mchi whistled as he walked back toward his family while reattaching his alien skin.


    Uponing close enough, he frowned deeply when he found both Anna and Camille muttering to themselves and snickering like ymates.


    "Something funny?"


    "W-What was with that whole unseen horror act you had going there?? It was so cringey! Kekeke!"


    "Aba!" (Cringey!)


    Mchi felt his brow twitch uncontrobly and he showed both girls a smile that wasn''t a smile.


    "It was apart of the act. I had to really sell that-"


    *Poorly mimicking Mchi* "Have you seen everything you needed to see? Do you feel enlig-"


    "Go cool off!"


    "KYAAA!!"


    Using one of his tails, Mchi lifted up his fianc¨¦ by the waist and tossed her into the water.


    It was one thin to make fun of him, but making fun of him with his daughter around was unforgivable!


    She had actually called him cringey!


    "The girls were right.. Anna really is a bad influence." he said with a sigh as he walked back inside.

 Chapter 252: Prep Time

    It turned out that the environmental generator could also draw up additional rooms and areas at the behest of the user.


    Mchi made it a point to create a new room in the onsen that would act as a meeting hall, and currently he and the entire unit were surrounding a holographic table.


    On the table was a map of their current position and all surroundings within five miles.


    When prompted, the holomap would also show wildlife, flora and fauna, and sources of freshwater.


    "This¡­ is some real ''Star Wars'' shit." Mchi muttered in wonder.


    At this, the other upants of the room nodded their heads slowly in agreement.


    Sei began to feel dizzy, and she held on to Joanne''s arm to prevent herself from falling over.


    "Are you alright?" She whispered worriedly. "You need to sit down?"


    Sei shook her head no, but it was clear that she was still shaken about something.


    "I-I''m really bad withputers and stuff¡­ what am I going to do if no one else is around and I need to make a bathroom..?!"


    Joanne could tell that Sei''s fears were grounded in reality, no matter how silly they may have seemed.


    Hence the reason why she decided not to snicker and tease her like she was already so inclined to do.


    "I- Uh¡­ I''ll help you with it if you like. It seems to function with mostly A.I protocols so¡­"


    "¡­What does A.I mean?"


    "Christ."


    While Joanne was trying to exin technology to her ignorantpanion, Mchi was going over the n with the assembled personnel.


    Of course he had told them about everything that happened earlier with the scout, and he had to be honest and say that he didn''t realize how bad it sounded until right this moment.


    "I realize I kinda kicked the hos nest on this one, so if any of you would like a transport home, then I''ll arrange it for you in a heartbeat."


    A bunch of the girls scowled at him in response, almost like they were offended by the notion.


    "We''re not going to leave you high and dry now, especially aftering this far."


    "We would never, but boss¡­"


    "This feels more and more like a suicide mission¡­"


    "Just how many are going toe for us..? We''ve been lucky so far but our numbers are still less than thirty¡­"


    "Aba?" Camille pointed to herself.


    """""""Absolutely not."""""""


    Camille stuck her tongue out at all seven of her guardians and put her hand back down.


    The axolotl on top of her head covered its mouth and made a gesture like it was snickering.


    Mchi took the focus off his daughter for a bit and turned back towards his anxious squad.


    "Anyway¡­ as far as the numbers go, we''ll bring in reserve members back at the base and hope to even things out just a tiny bit more.


    But even if we had no backup¡­ I want you girls to know that whether it''s ten of us against ten million of them, I will always make sure that you girls make it out without a scratch."


    It seemed like even the ws, fangs, and snakesing out of Mchi''s back hadn''t done much to take away his appeal to women.


    The only girls who didn''t show blushes on their cheeks were Serana, Aisha, and Aubrey.


    The rest of the girls looked like they were finally understanding just how even a modest and homey woman like Sei had gotten used to Mal''s changes so fast, because it was starting not to bother them either.


    Anna and the rest of Mal''s fianc¨¦s noticed this, even if he didn''t.


    Nadine: "I don''t care what he says, I will let you bitches die in a ditch."


    Miraculously, the other girls found something else to stare at.


    ????$-¡é-§ß§Ñ$¦Ñ#¦Ó&¦Å-§ñ$-$?&?-!


    "Hm? Why''re you being like that?" Mal asked as he pulled her cheek.


    "No reason, darling~"


    "Nadine, you can''t just pick on our people for no reas-"


    """""She had a reason!""""" The girls reminded.


    Mchi scratched his head as he looked around the room for help, but he never received it.


    The closest thing to help he received came from Camille, who nudged his chest to get his attention before pointing towards her stomach.


    She was just hungry¡­


    "Haaa¡­ Everybody''s dismissed."


    -


    In an abandoned building that seemed to resemble an old high school gymnasium, dense, slovenly chewing sounds could be heard within the darkness.


    The noises continued over and over again before stopping, but inevitably continuing mere momentster.


    Suddenly, the double doors of the gym opened and the moonlight shone from outside.


    If the sight of the illuminated room didn''t shock you, the smell would have most certainly knocked you on your ass.


    It was a staggering bloody nightmare.


    The entire floor was caked with dried bones, blood, and discarded intestines.


    In the back corner of the building, there were treasures from a world long destroyed.


    Bundles of cash still wrapped in stic, shining Rolex watches, old sneakers looted from a store, etc etc.


    They were strictly kept away from the mass of rotting corpses kept on the other side of the room, in the hope that they would not lose their luster.


    There was a throne in the middle of the room, made from the bones of what appeared to be several elephant bones and blocks of broken concrete.


    There were quite a lot of abominations here, but three of them stepped into the gymnasium to address the thing inside.


    "¡­Have you brought me more food..?"


    The three abominations trembled at the mere sound of the creature''s voice and they were unable to voice their reasoning for being here right off the bat.


    "W-We.."


    "Where is Obe¡­?"


    Again, the three of them trembled as they nced at the empty spot of their missing foursome.


    "H-He is dead." One admitted.


    "¡­Did you bring me his body to eat¡­?"


    "N-No-"


    The abomination on the left was unable toplete his words before a tractor tire was flung at him like a high-powered cannon ball and knocked him clean against the cinder block wall.


    Though he wouldn''t die from it, this blow sure as hell didn''t tickle.


    "¡­No food for me¡­ useless, useless and unhelpful.."


    "W-We''vee here to bring you to a ce where there is food, King!" One of the abominations yellled in a panic.


    "Food¡­? Where¡­?"


    Suddenly, a smaller abomination was kicked into the gymnasium.


    He had mottled green skin, a goblin-like face, and was nursing a bandaged wound on one of his shoulders.


    "V-dimir has a story to tell the king..! T-Though he does not bring food, he does bring promises of a ce where you can go and get it, and it is sure to be a meal worthy of your abhorrent honor!"

 Chapter 253: A Deadly Alliance…

    The monster in the dark listened to the story of his underling intently.


    Even though he was an abomination now, he was still in possession of a scary amount of his intellect.


    Enough of it to recognize when something smelled fishy.


    And this story about a being by theke was just that.


    "Trap¡­ Shut the door now." he ordered.


    At his behest, the three strongest looking abominations closed the doors and left the rest of the army outside.


    Shuffling could be heard within the darkness as the abomination king started to look for something among the piles of garbage.


    His thick, mottled green hands finallynded on something that didn''t fit in with the surroundings.


    A futuristic looking silver rectangle, with a keypad and a blue reflective lens.


    The abomination king punched in a set of numbers and waited for what felt like a long time.


    Eventually, a trill sound rang out and a hologram popped up.


    Standing nonchntly with his hands sped behind his back was a man who already seemed tired of this conversation that hasn''t even started yet.


    He was a man in about his mid-forties, with blonde hair slicked back with gel, and cold blue eyes that sat behind silver sses.


    He wore a brilliant whiteb coat over a ck turtleneck and cks with a stic badge hanging from his leftpel.


    It was a government issued I.D. with the name Dr. Michaels printed underneath his identification photo.


    "What do you want, subject 443?"


    A deep growl escaped the darkness.


    "Yes, yes, what was it? r? What do you want? Advancements wait for no man or monster."


    Ignoring the doctor''s usual unfriendly attitude, the abomination passed along the report that had just been dropped in his ownp.


    For the first time, Dr. Michaels lost his constant condescending demeanor as he listened to every report intently.


    At the end, a vein bulged in his head and he pushed up his sses aggressively.


    "I knew I should have had you mongrels chipped... how could you not tell me your numbers were getting picked off over thest few weeks?!"


    "Did not know... did not care... all that mattered is pursuit of my own food."


    "Useless!!"


    The doctor ran his hands through his slicked back hair and put on the usual expression he made whenever he was thinking.


    "The subject who gave you the report... bring him to me, right now."


    In the darkness, the one known as r made a gesture with his hand and had the scout from earlier brought back inside.


    When he saw a holographic man in the palm of the king himself, he was confused for a moment, but ultimately did not ask any questions.


    He knew better than that.


    "This whelp has questions for you... answer them."


    "Whelp?!"


    The scout ignored the roaring of the Doctor and brought himself forward for questioning.


    "What does the meatbag want?"


    A vein bulged in the forehead of the Doctor as he began to regret the fact that it was not possible to stick suppressant devices within the necks of all of his test subjects.


    It simply wasn''t possible from afar like this, especially when they bred like rabbits.


    "This...meatbag, wants to know what kind of creature you witnessed near theke. What did it look like? Describe the woman and child with it as well."


    The green skinned scout scratched his head to jog his memory.


    ??!¡Ò§ä@¦Å?--¦Ò§á--


    "Weird... frightening, like a ghost. His body was made of stars and darkness, and he had four tails that looked like snake-"


    "Stop right there."


    The doctor held up a single hand as he felt a migraine beginning to form.


    He had read the incident reports from the destruction of Internment Camp Gamma. Seen the footage before the whole ce became a crater.


    The body full of stars and nebs was new, but who knew what kind of odd new abilities the damned high and mighty children of the gods could develop.


    However, the four snakeheaded tails was unmistakable.


    And if he had to make an educated guess, he would be willing to bet all the credits in his wallet that the woman standing with him was either one of the two that had been freed, or one of the four who had been making prior assaults on the facility.


    ''But the baby... that''s a new one... Irrelevant for now.'' The doctor thought.


    "r, I''m giving you an order to stay put for now. You aren''t going to move even a single step until I have a suppression force at your doorstep."


    Another growl could be heard within the darkness.


    "My people-"


    "Will no doubt ask questions and act up, but you will keep them in check.You are their ''alpha'' after all. Act like it."


    "...What is in it for me? I see the way that you changed your behavior about this food... You will not let me eat it."


    The Doctor scoffed as he pulled off his sses to clean them.


    "Curse my ingenuity... seems I made you too smart for your own good." he chuckled.


    "I am waiting for an answer..."


    "Yes, yes, I know. Tell you what..."


    The doctor ced his sses back on his face, with a noticeably colder and more calcting look than before.


    A big smile formed on his face that seemed not to mesh well with his stern personality.


    "I''ve just finished a new round of upgrades a few days ago. Initial testings are quite positive. So much so that the difference between you now and after will be like night and day."


    Within the darkness, a pair of burning yellow eyes burned brighter than sr res.


    "Interested, huh? I knew you would be. Anything else that I can get for you?"


    "...Food is scarce... we requite more."


    *Sigh* "If your people were fulfilling their purpose and expanding, you probably could have found more!"


    "...In time. They aren''t ready for blessed yet... not enough generations have passed, and we have ack of breeding partners."


    Dr. Michaels rubbed his chin thoughtfully before pulling out amunication device from hisb coat.


    "You''ll be sent some of the prisoners from the internment camps, around a hundred or so after this unpleasantness is out of the way.


    Do not eat them..! They are for reproduction purposes only, and if you break them I won''t gift you more!"


    "...Understood."


    The doctor ran his hands along his jawline and waived away the abomination dismissively.


    "You''ll be contacted again within the hour for an update on our schedule. What are your numbers after the exterminations?"


    Not knowing the answer, r turned his gaze to the three lieutenants standing by the door quietly.


    "Ah... two thousand or so... roughly?"


    "Two thousand..." r answered.


    "I''ve seen the kind of damage the target can do, that''s nowhere near enough... I''ll prepare eight thousand more units."


    The doctor disconnected the line a momentter, and r was once again wrapped in the darkness with only his glowing eyes visible.


    "Eight thousand... So noisy..."

 Chapter 254: Nadine’s Homeworld

    Mchi listened intently to the sound of soft humminging from behind his back.


    It was a song that he had never heard before, and one that was so beautiful that he was hung up on every soft note and melody.


    Looking over his shoulder, he found that he hadn''t been the only one to be affected by the harmonious tune.


    Their quarters inside the generated environment looked more like a hotel suite now, and all except for him were lying in the bed in some form or manner.


    Since Nadine was holding Cami, that made her the center of attention.


    She satfortably in the middle of everyone else as she hummed silently and yed in their daughter''s hair.


    Everyone else had been lulled to sleep around them, all touching Cami wherever they could.


    "Sometimes, it never really hits me that you''re from another world until you do stuff like this." Mal finally said.


    Nadine stopped her humming and looked up to give him a sheepish smile. "Does that mean thatI am indistinguishable from an ordinary earthling now?"


    Mchi nced back at his favorite vampire and analyzed her features.


    Looking at Nadine, it was easy to tell that she was a foreigner.


    The hallmark of identifiable physical features that can be found on different nationalities of people could be found all over her.


    It was like she was every man and woman rolled into one charming body.


    Not to mention the fangs, glowing purple eyes, and slightly pointed ears.


    "...Of course, darling. I can barely tell the difference." He lied.


    "Hehehe!"


    Mchi put down the weapons that he''d been polishing to ease his nerves and decided to crawl into bed with everyone else.


    Peeling off his shirt, me locked his hands behind his head as he wormed his way in between Sei and Luna to rest his head on Nadine''s thigh.


    He halfheartedly yed with Camille''s little foot as he asked her a question that she never expected.


    "I gotta ask, babe... Don''t you miss home..? You never really talk about it much."


    Nadine looked a little caught off guard, and she temporarily stopped ying in Camille''s baby hairs.


    "Miss home, huh...? Not really. My world is not nearly as... warm, as this ce is. And I don''t really mean the weather."


    Feeling curious, Mal''s ears perked up a bit.


    "Oh yea? I guess a world full of nothing but vampires wouldn''t be all that warm and friendly. Save for you that is."


    Nadine raised a brow and it seemed she only heard half of what Mchi had just said.


    "Hm? Vampires aren''t the only beings in my world."


    "Oh?"


    "Yea, I thought you would know that since you went there so many times."


    Confused, Mchi sat up so that he could look Nadine directly in the eye.


    "What are you talking about, love? The first time I went to your world was when I found you and you forced your way into my home and heart."


    "Ain''t you d I did that, though?" she asked with a big smile.


    "Yes, but that''s not the point."


    Nadine chuckled before shifting her gaze back towards the baby in herp.


    "I thought Luna told me that you had been on a bunch of gate raids before that though? Was she just trying to make you look good for me?"


    Finally, Mchi realized just what his fianc¨¦ was getting at, and he felt like his mind was going to implode.


    "You''re telling me that all of those environments... all of those different monsters... are all living on the same..?"


    "Yea!"


    "Jesus..."


    "Well don''t you think it was strange how they kept sending you to these ''other worlds'' but they were only filled with monsters from mythology instead of actual aliens?"


    With every word spoken, Mchi felt like he his mind was going to absolutely implode.


    "Wait a minute..." he said exhaustedly as he rubbed his head. "If you all were on another world this whole time, how did you end up in all of our legends and media??"


    Nadine scratched her head hard like she was trying hard to jog her own memory.


    "Ah... I wasn''t really a big studier when I was young and I fell asleep during a lot of my mom''s lectures. I think she said we got migrated there or something like 900 years ago, give or take?"


    "What? Why?"


    "Overeating from what I remember." she shrugged.


    Somehow, Mchi''s senses were screaming to him that he had just learned something that he shouldn''t have.


    But he was a curious man by nature, so he couldn''t help but want to learn more.


    "So the N''Kai..."


    "Visited us first, yea." Nadine admitted. "The war like races like ogres, trolls, goblins and the like, were subjugatedpletely, and now they only live as mindless drones that function like machinery.


    Vampires, werewolves, witches, and the rest of us sort of lived quietly, like we were trying to keep our heads down and not be noticed.


    And then the few dragons that are around... I guess you could say that your people have something of a non-aggression pact with them?"


    At the mention of his favorite mythological monsters, Mal''s eyes visibly glimmered and perked up.


    "Babe... are you trying to tell me that you know dragons? Real ones??"


    Not understanding why this would be such a big deal, Nadine tilted her head to the side absentmindedly.


    "I knew of one-"


    "What are they like? Leave nothing out, not even a single detail!"


    "Umm they''re kind of... sorry what''s the word... reclusive?"


    Mchi''s excitement visibly deted. "...What do you mean?"


    "Well, they don''t really interact with others outside of their own. They aren''t really outwardly hostile, but they kind of treat other creatures like an inconvenience to be around.


    They speak very little, don''t like to be touched, and don''t usually stay in other territories long enough to make any sort of friendships or acquaintances. And conversely, no one has ever been to their mountain either."


    Mchiughed dryly as he felt Sei nestle closer to him out of instinct.


    "Damn... so I guess I can kiss my dreams of riding one goodby-"


    *Smack!*


    "Ow! Why?!"


    "Don''t let any of them hear you say that. To them, it is a more than justifiable cause for war."


    "Eh?"


    "They aren''t Ubers, darling. They are sentient, powerful creatures with immense pride in what they are, and they don''t take well to being teated as anything less."


    Mchi almost never saw Nadine be serious about anything, so for her to suddenly lecture him was quite a shock.


    It made him wonder why she was so close to this particr subject, and what exactly made her feel so attached to this particr subject.


    "The dragon you knew... what were they like?"


    For the fist time ever, Mchi saw a look on Nadine''s face that he didn''t recognize.


    It was sweet, sad, and very, very faraway.


    Much to his horror, he saw a single line of red tears fall down her porcin cheek.


    "She was a little girl, norger than Cami... and... She died in my arms."

 Chapter 255: What Has Been Lost

    That night, Nadine told Mchi a very old and very sad story.


    One that she asked him never to repeat to anyone, not even the girls, as it was her greatest shame and regret.


    There were multiple points in the story where she had to pause because she started crying.


    And when it was done, she looked at Mchi with eyes full of fear.


    She worried that he would find her to be an unfit woman for him, and an unreliable mother to their child.


    However, Mal knew that neither of those were true and reassured her of his faith in her.


    That night, as she cried silently amidst the bodies of her family, she was held by the man she loved more than anything, and he showered her with soft words of understanding and care.


    They fell asleep kissing with their faces mere inches away from each other, and what remained of dried tears that covered Nadine''s face.


    It was still night out when the peaceful sleep of the Saint family was interrupted by an rm.


    Not one that said that they were being attacked.


    But the ringing of amunications device.


    Mchi groggily held out his hand and a small, white device with a ck screen came flying into his hand from across the room.


    He barely even looked at the caller before answering and bringing the device up to his ear.


    "Hello¡­?"


    "Mchi? Sorry to wake you, kiddo, but do you have a moment¡­?" Celeste asked from the other line.


    MVLeMpYr-original-content


    Once Mchi heard his ex girlfriend''s mother on the other line, he woke up a bit and sat up on the bed.


    Much to the displeasure of Sei, who tried to pull him back down in her sleep.


    "I, uh¡­ what''s going on?"


    "You don''t need to sound so awkward about hearing from me¡­ I know things between you and Mnie didn''t end¡­ the best. But you and I have established a friendship, haven''t we..? I would like it if that didn''t have to change."


    Mal smiled in the darkness as he ran his hands through his steel grey locks.


    "Alright then¡­ just promise me that you won''t ask any details about what happened between me and your daughter." He asked.


    "¡­"


    "..?"


    "¡­ I promise that I will not ask for the rest of the week."


    "¡­It''s Friday."


    "I know what day it is."


    Snickering discreetly, Mchi finally shook his head in defeat.


    "Alright then¡­ since it''s not next week yet, I gotta assume you called me for something else. What''s going on?"


    "Yea, about that¡­ we''re having a sort of¡­ problem with the refugees you brought¡­ could you grab your sister and meet us in the medical wing?"


    Mchi immediately grimaced.


    When it came to the nighttime, he did just fine but his baby sister was a bit¡­


    -


    "Sleepy¡­"


    "Yea, yea¡­ You''re getting heavy, kid."


    "You''ve got super strength, use it bitch.."


    "Keres is so much nicer than you¡­"


    Walking through the white coriddor of the nightfall base were a bickering pair of strange siblings.


    One was a normal, albeit dangerously charming young woman with long grey hair and a curvaceous body hidden underneath dark blue sweats and a wife beater.


    She was riding on the back of her brother like a ko, her eyes only half open and her head resting on his shoulder.


    Mchi carried her diligently and with only mild annoyance, his biggest concern being making sure that she didn''t drool over his favorite ck hoodie.


    He was surprised that she had even agreed toe with him in the first ce.


    The only time he had ever been able to coax her out of bed was when they were kids, and he did it by telling her that he would eat all of her pop tarts.


    This time, he had to tell her that she would never be allowed to babysit Cami again, and she got up right away.


    Mchi carried his sister all the way to a set of metallic double doors and waited for them to slide open.


    As soon as the medical wing was in full view, he heard the familiar sound of screaming.


    "Kyaa!! T-The monsters are back!"


    "I-I knew they woulde for us! We''re not safe here!"


    "It''s the guy who saved us! Hey Mr. Mchi!"


    Mal waved his hand at the few refugees who remembered him in a friendly gesture.


    Once a few of the others saw him behaving normally and not like some warmongering rapist monster, they started to calm down.


    Celeste and a few other young women working in the medical wing came running up to Mal to exchange their greetings.


    "Hey guys. d you could make it."


    "I''m so tired¡­" Aubrey reminded.


    Celeste smiled pitifully. "Sorry about that, little boss, but this couldn''t wait. We need you to tell us how you want us to move forward."


    The team led Mchi and Aubrey to a special room in the back that had only been used once in all of its founding.


    A NICU chamber.


    Sitting side by side in an incubation pod were two children.


    But they weren''t human.


    They were abominations.


    One had blue skin and white hair and closely resembled a frost ogre.


    The other was smaller with green skin and seemed to more closely resemble a goblin.


    "This¡­"Mchi began.


    "These two are just the first¡­ A few more of the mothers are due within a couple of days¡­ they are demanding that they be terminated."


    "T-That''s not exactly¡­ ethical.." Aubrey muttered.


    "Neither is what happened to them."


    Mchi felt a massive headache forming in his mind.


    In fact it was so egregious that he had to put his sister down for fear that he might fall over with them both in tow.


    Things like this always gave him a headache.


    Old world implications aside, abominations are almost gically predisposed to possess dangerous amounts of aggression and decreased sense of intelligence and morality.


    They also be full grown within a week''s time, turning a small problem into a really big one rather quickly.


    "Damn¡­give me a minute, girls."


    Reaching in his pocket, Mchi pulled out his favorite earbuds and plugged them into his ears.


    He found a nice little corner in the room and sat in it with his back against the wall.


    Once the music started to y, he closed his eyes and he started to think.


    Three minutes into his first song, he reopened his eyes and pulled his sister aside to discuss a n he felt would keep everybody happy.

 Chapter 256: Here to Help & Here to Harm

    Mchi and Aubrey stepped out into the medical wing where all of the women who had been rescued were being treated.


    It was easy to see that quite a few of them were still fearful of his alien appearance and the snakesing out of his lower back.


    Despite the fact that there were others who knew of his good deeds and even who he used to be, it was easy to understand how they might still be fearful after everything that they had just lived through.


    His hope was that if he acted rxed enough, he would seem more friendly and less imposing to the room full of survivors.


    "C-Can you help us¡­?"


    One woman who Mchi had personally saved was not afraid of him in the slightest, though she did hold onto her bulging stomach with no small amount of worry.


    "It''s Gia, right?" Mchi asked with aforting smile. "Don''t worry, I think my sister and I havee up with two solutions to all of your problems."


    At this, the women inside the medical wing seemed to visibly perk up.


    Mchi reached for a small syringe in Celeste''s hand.


    It was already filled with a familiar ck liquid, and he held it up for all of them to see.


    "I hope you girls aren''t squeamish, because we''ll have to give you all a littleee poke in the stomach with this guy here."


    "Umm¡­ what exactly is that?" Another woman asked.


    Mchi scratched his cheek as he tried to think of a way to exin the syringe''s contents quickly.


    ¡­But there was none.


    So even though it was hical, he lied just a bit.


    "A little medicinal concoction our medical team cooked up.


    This will get rid of the fetal abominations growing inside of you and break them down until you can pass them safely.


    The best part is, there won''t be any adverse effects to you girls'' health at all."


    Needless to say, the ''concoction'' inside of the syringe was actually Mal''s body fluids.


    By injecting them into the fetuses while they were still developing, Mchi could tamper with their gic makeup.


    One of the first things that Tsath had taught him and Cami was that every being would not be able to tolerate the process of N''Kai alteration.


    There were a myriad of factors, but the most surefire way for the whole process to go to hell was if it was ingested by beings or creatures who were still considered to be in the child stage of development.


    Their bodies just simply are not strong enough to cope with all of those dramatic changes at once.


    They''ll pass away pretty painlessly, and their bodies will be dissolved into a sludge that the mother can push out.


    The girls might have to strain a bit, but other than that they will bepletely fine.


    Before Mchi started jamming needles into stomachs, Aubrey stepped forward to pose another solution for the few who looked somewhat conflicted.


    "My brother has given you option one , and now I would like to give you option two."


    Most women looked fairly confused by this.


    Mchi''s solution was already perfect, so why did there need to be any others?


    "If¡­ and I do mean if¡­" Aubrey began. "A few of you do decide that you have no problem giving birth, then there are special amodations we can make.


    The goddess Isis has made me a powerful magic user. I can create enchanted tattoos and graft them onto the skin of any offspring.


    It''ll make them less impulsive, angry, and destructive. They will be no different from normal, human children."


    It was easy to see that this n had gone over much less smoothly than Mchi''s had, and understandably so.


    These women had just gone through a horrible, terrible, nightmare that no sentient being should have to endure.


    They didn''t want to have recollections of it running around their new home at any time.


    "And of course as a courtesy I would also wipe your memories of everything that you endured if you only ask." Aubrey added.


    At this, everyone seemmed to perk up like new once again.


    The chance to really move on and forget¡­ it was all that any of them ever wanted.


    Mchi wrapped his arm around his sister and rested his head on hers.


    "At the end of the day, we are just trying to give all of you lives that you can live with.


    No one, and I mean no one is going to judge you all for the choices you make today, and if they do then I''ll boot their asses out myself.


    Life''s hard enough already out there. We aren''t going to make it difficult for each other in here too. Ain''t no exceptions."


    The girls looked at each other before nodding in understanding.


    Mchi finally released his sister and headed toward the bed of the girl from earlier; Gia.


    "Alright, little miss. Tell us what you want to do, step-by-step."


    The neen year old girl seemed to need only a moment to think about a potential answer, because she gave one right away.


    "I¡­" your-MVLeMpYr-source


    -


    While Mchi and Aubrey were trying to make life better for their battered women in their care, Joanne finally woke up from a peaceful night''s sleep.


    For the life of her, she had never imagined that sleeping in a bed filled with seven different people would be sofortable.


    It really felt like she was a part of something evenrger than herself.


    A real, loving family.


    Even her daughter''s snoring and Nadine''s drooling could not piss her off.


    She was just in that good of a mood.


    Especially since she saw another upant already sitting up on the bed waiting for her.


    "Hello, Cami..!" She whispered with excitement.


    Excitedly, the young girl crawled over the mass of bodies in the bed so that she could reach Joanne.


    She yfully flopped onto her face, and the two of them devolved into giggling messes.


    Joanne lifted Camille into the air above her head and held her like a precious stuffed animal.


    And since Camille was in a teddy bear onesie, that assessment wasn''t that far off.


    "Seems like your daddy left us in the middle of the night, huh?"


    "Abua, ada."


    "N-No, when I call him daddy it means something totally different¡­ and I thought you were sleeping, tyke."


    "Bu."


    "Alright, well I''ll know to tickle you first next time to check."


    In the midst of Cami''s adorable giggling, a ring rm erupted throughout the generatedpound.


    This caused everyone still sleeping to sit up instantly and look around in a daze, but everyone already knew what this sort of rm meant.


    "They''re here."

 Chapter 257: Traumatic Experiences

    While waiting for the armed forces to actually show up, the assembled group stationed at the outpost by theke.


    Therefore, when the rm officially went off there was no one caught unawares.


    Everyone was up and instantly alert, and got dressed and prepped with a quickness that had been thoroughly rehearsed.


    Before each of Mchi''s girls left the room, they said goodbye to their little bundle of joy that was relegated to the sidelines.


    Something that she didn''t really seem to be all that happy about.


    Camille sat in the corner of the room with her arms folded and her new pet sitting on top of her head.


    The two of them wore matching scowls as they stared back at all five women.


    "Buu..."


    "Don''t be like that, little miss. You didn''t actually think we''d be the kind of parents who would allow an infant to run onto a battlefield, did you?" Biancaughed.


    Camille looked at Anna and Nadine, who promptly turned away as if they could not bear the weight of her usatory, yet cute gaze.


    "Well, that''s why we usually take votes for stuff, so more rash heads don''t prevail." Sei added.


    ""W-We aren''t rash!"" Anna and Nadine yelled defensively.


    "We can argue about why you''re wrongter, but for now we need to go." Luna said seriously.


    Everyone took theirst opportunity to give Cami a sweet showing of mother''s love before heading out the door.


    "Go with your grandmother until we get back, okay? We''ll pick you up as soon as we can!"Joanne waived.


    Once the door was closed, Cami fished out the locket hanging around her neck that was sitting just beneath her onesie.


    It was a small golden trinket that very closely resembled a pocket watch and seemed no differentfrom an ordinary heirloom.


    But her auntie Aubrey had made sure that it was anything but.


    She pressed the sp to open it and revealed a bulb of stored darkness sitting inside.


    She stuck one of her cute little fingers inside and closed her eyes before she felt a gust of wind blow past her cheeks, and her surroundings became slightly colder.


    "Oh? Do I have a little visitor?"


    Camille opened her eyes and found herself floating within an endless dark night with twinkling stars aplenty.


    The space suddenly distorted and became a much more familiar modern home, with luxurious wide open spaces, and better furniture than they even had back at the base.


    A familiar woman who seemed like the infinite cosmos personified appeared in front of her, with her hands on her knees and a big smile on her face.


    "It seems like I was right, only this time it was my favorite little visitor! Don''t tell your daddy I said that though, he might get his feelings hurt." Nyx giggled.


    Cami made an unhappy raspberry noise.


    "Now what''s that for? You know you''re a real daddy''s girl."


    "Awa! Bu!"


    Cami exined the detrimental state of everything going on in the mortal world and why she wasn''t the biggest fan of all of her parents right now.


    Nyx listened thoughtfully as she babbled, being sure to include lots of ''Oh?'' and ''Is that so?'' into her speech; hoping to assuage the rampaging tyke.


    When Camille was finally finished, her grandmother picked her up leisurely and carried her towards a specialized yroom.


    "Well, we can go and be mad at them all day if we like. I''ll skip my little meeting and we can draw up some angry pictures together. Sound good?"


    "..Aba."


    "Wonderful! We can even see if your aunt Keres wants to join us, and you can tell us all about this strange new friend on top of your head."


    -


    With Cami in good hands, the rest of the girls converged in themand center with everybody else in the outpost.


    Every activebat personnel from nightfall had been called in to this location, and now they had abined force of 83 on site.


    On the holomap, a visual had already been drawn up of the approaching abnormalities within a five mile radius.


    They could see a group of abominations marching through the trees; beating their chests and screaming like a race of savage primates.


    "T-There are¡­ so many of them." Serana said nervously.


    "You''re right¡­ has to be atleast a thousand." muttered Aubrey.


    "Try two." Aisha said as she narrowed her eyes.


    At that moment, Luna felt a familiar ringing of amunication device in her pocket.


    She pulled it out for all to see and allowed the  face of Mchi to pop up into view.


    "Hey, I just got the alert, what''s it looking like?" MVLeMpYr-only


    Luna grimaced as she answered honestly. "Their numbers are... more than we expected, I will admit."


    "I''m on my way back now-"


    "No, no, you don''t have to rush if you are in the middle of something important. Everyone here is fully capable of handling themselves until you return."


    A mildpetitive light showed up in Aisha''s eyes.


    ''I can finally show off the results of all of my training! He won''t show me up so easily again!''


    Mchi looked like he was still thinking about it quite a bit, but he eventually nodded and decided to finish his work at the base first.


    "Alright¡­ But the second I feel one of you panic, I''ll be over there."


    "And we would expect nothing less." Luna smiled.


    She hung up a secondter, and she quickly lost her sweet and loving demeanor in favor of one that was much more militant andmanding.


    "Alright, you all have exactly t-minus 4 minutes to get into position. Traps are set to go off in exactly 3 so if you aren''t in ce to watch the fireworks then you''re already too far behind. Let''s move."


    "YES BOSS!"


    The assembled personnel started to move out expeditiously, when Serana suddenly paused as she noticed something on the dashboard.


    "Hey, what''s this little red button here?"


    Confused, Joanne looked back over her shoulder to take a look.


    "Probably just the rms? Shut them all off and let''s get moving."


    Shrugging, Serana pressed the button without much thought, and started to walk away when theputer asked a question she did not expect.


    {Low level cloaking technology detected. Would you like to see a more urate depiction of your current surroundings?}


    Immediately, the blood of every member of nightfall ran cold.


    They paused dead in their tracks and turned back to the holotable while Serana pressed the glowing red button.


    Horror showed up on the faces of all members in attendance.


    Fourrge futuristic warships with the emblem of a RR on top of a bald eagle with ''U.S.A'' inscribed on it''s wings.


    Above each warship, there was number that symbolized an urate headcount of everyone inside.


    Exactly two thousand in each.


    Though everyone was understandably horrified, none more so than Joanne.


    As soon as she saw the emblem on the warship, she had a terrible reaction.


    It started off slow, with an increase of heart rate and shallow breathing.


    Before Joanne knew it, the simple increase in heart rate turned to actual pain in her chest, followed by simr sensations in her head.


    "Mom!"


    At some point, Joanne had ended up on her butt, on the floor.


    She had crawled away from the holotable as fast as she possibly could, and pressed her back against the wall.


    She didn''t remember when she started crying, nor did she remember her daughter running to check on her.


    Anna''s mouth was moving, but Joanne certainly couldn''t hear her.


    All that she could hear was her own screaming.


    Both from the present, and the past where she was locked in that tiny, tiny cell and treated worse than livestock in a barn.


    She didn''t want to go back.


    But they wereing to take her.


    And she couldn''t pull herself out of the hole their mere arrival had put her in.


    With Anna trying and failing to get through to her mother, the rest of the girls rushed to help her, but were cut short by a hair''s breadth.


    Out of nowhere, a dark hole opened up in the middle of the floor.


    A single ck hand reached out from the darkness, and dragged it''s ws along the floor as it pulled the rest of it''s body into the space.

 Chapter 258: Kill! Kill! Kill!

    They used to torture her for the hell of it.


    The number of shocks, injections, and shavings she received was not small.


    They deprived her of her sleep, carved away her sense of self, and chipped away at everything she held dearly about herself until she was nothing but an empty shell.


    Too timid to kill herself, and too despondent to even dream of rebellion.


    She was trapped.


    Until the day that someone she always dreamed for came to save her.


    She could still remember the horror and heartache in his eyes, and she feared that he would forever see her as this.


    The vulnerable and helpless little victim.


    But when she hugged him for the first time, all of those horrible little insecurities and nagging words seemed to fade into obscurity.


    Mentally, she cried out for that very same relief to take her right now.


    -


    Mchi was in the middle of administering a necessary shot to one of the female refugees when he suddenly felt a sensation like his heart was being torn into two.


    He immediately dropped the syringe on the floor and leapt into the shadows at his feet; inadvertently leaving behind Celeste and Aubrey without so much as an exnation.


    In the outpost, he crawled out of the shadows on the floor like a demon from hell, and his eyes immediately sifted through the sea of bodies to find Joanne.


    When he found her, he closed the distance between them almost instantaneously and pulled her into his arms.


    "Jo!"


    Joanne heard a familiar scream before she finally came to, and she realized a few momentster that she was nestled within one of her man''s famous bearhugs.


    Along with the delightful feeling of being crushed softly came the sensation of having all of her dread and terror sucked out of her.


    Now, everything just felt... warm.


    So much so that it was no surprise that she started to fall asleep.


    Herst thought was that she was sure that she had embarrassed herself quite a bit and was hoping that she didn''t wake up to deal with the consequencester.


    Once she was sleeping and the room was quiet, Mchi kissed her softly on the forehead before Anna did the same, and wiped away the running tears from her mother''s eyes.


    "What... happened..?"


    Mchi''s question was poised at the room more so than an individual.


    However, nobody answered initially.


    Perhaps it was the frightful tone that made everyone here take a step back and clutch their pearls out of surprise.


    Anna was the only one here who could muster up the energy to point at the holotable, where theprojected warships were still on their way with an army of abominations in tow.


    Mchi didn''t need to see anything else.


    He lifted Joanne into his arms and passed her to Anna as if she were a gentle flower.


    "Can you get her into bed and make sure she''s alright..? Stay with her just incase she wakes up."


    "Babe, I want to-"


    "I know you do, but please. There is nothing more important than this." he said softly.


    Anna had never heard Mchi talk to her like this before.


    It was soft, yet firm, and left absolutely no room at all for refusal.


    "Mm¡­ I''ll take care of her."


    Mchi passed Joanne to Anna just as he heard the first explosions go off.


    Realizing he was out of time, he finally stood up.


    The snakesing out of his back became a much darker, obsidian color of the same variety as his skin.


    They also grew in size and aggression until they were so damned frightening that even these experienced hunters didn''t want to go near them.


    His hair came alive and formed hundreds of miniature snakes; each of which was no less aggressive than therge ones.


    "Aisha. How''s your stamina?"


    Normally, his best friend would''ve said something crass like, ''Ask your mom about me, y boy.''


    But because she could tell that he was in a rare non yful mood, she decided to holster thatment untilter.


    ...She was definitely going to use it though.


    "I''m insulted you even needed to ask. I''m ready for whatever." she shrugged.


    She followed Mchi closely behind as he began to exit the room and watched him pull off his hoodie in front of everyone and drop it into the shadows on the floor.


    His torso was only bare for a moment before he pulled out a ck jacket made of a resistant, tear proof material.


    He pulled the silver zipper all the way up to his neck before crafting up a pair of matching fingerless gloves and pulling them on.


    Shadows reached up to remove his regr old sweatpants in favor of some matching tactical ones that weren''t nearly as baggy.


    A sheath was strapped to his right thigh, and held all nine of the precious silver daggers that he had gotten back from Aisha a few weeks ago.


    ckbat boots adored his feet instead of regr sandals like he always wore;ced tightly and already tucked in to his pants.


    "Good. Stay on my hip." he ordered.


    see-MVLeMpYr-for-more


    When the door finally slid open, he was barking out orders like a trained strategist.


    "Nadine, Luna, B, you''re with us, we''re bringing down those warships. Sei, Serana, Rose, you''re on the ground with everyone else.


    The abominations are already going to be rowdier the angrier they get, so drop em'' fast and move on to the next. This is a marathon, not a sprint. Be smart."


    Mchi didn''t exactly linger to make sure his orders were being followed or even heard.


    He and his group ducked out of them room not long afterwards with his sole focus being on vengeance.


    Bit by bit, he was remembering the anguished look of Joanne when he found her for the first time.


    And though he thought he had already unburdened himself from his hatred, he realized there was a lot more inside of him toy down.


    -


    Outside of the outpost, the forest was literally on fire.


    The medley of traps ced by the nightfall faction ahead of time had done their job splendidly, and thrown the advanced line of abominations into disarray.


    Those that broke through the fray were able to emerge in the clearing by theke, where Mchi and his group were already stepping into sight.


    "MEAT!!"


    "THE MEAT IS HERE!"


    "WE FEAST NOW!"


    Ignoring the row of rowdy abominationsing towards him, Mchi kept his eyes in the sky above, and on the four invisible warships that he could sense, but not see.


    But nevertheless, he knew exactly where they were.


    A flick of his wrist brought his spear into his hand; but like it was responding to his emotional state,


    The normal gold and silver spear became a much darker, ck metallic color.


    Aisha drew out arge goldennce like the kind used for jousting, and a pair of angelic wings were sprouted from her back.


    The white haired young woman looked back and forth between her weapon and her friend''s before being absolutely unable to resist.


    "...Mine''s bigger."


    "God, I hate you."


    "Yea, yea."


    Clutching his spear, Mchi hurled it right at an empty section of the sky.


    In the seconds before arge explosion took ce in the clearing, a single thought crossed his mind.


    ''No more warnings. None of you will leave here alive¡­!''

 Chapter 259: A Complete Disregard for Life

    Naturally, warships as advanced as these were outfitted with not only thetest in cloaking tech, but the most advanced projectile deflectors as well.


    On themand bridge inside one of the ships, a room full of cybeicly advanced humans were sitting at their assigned stations; observing any and all data that popped up on their monitors.


    The captain of the ship was arge man with two robotic eyes and a gleaming silver arm.


    He was one of the first to see Mchi emerge from the strange silver box that seemed to be like nothing they had ever seen before.


    "Get me a scan of that structure they just emerged from."


    The man in the bridge responsible for the scanner arrays got to work punching in a set of keys into the ship''sputer, and frowned deeply when a big red error message appeared on his disy.


    "Sir¡­ it appears our scanners cannot prate the hull to give us a peek inside."


    "What?!"


    "I-In addition.. we cannot even tell what this is made of. It''s not on record of any periodic table known to man."


    This second revtion made the captain sit up in his chair and stare at the building even harder.


    "These god loving sycophants¡­ always pulling advantages and treasures out of the crack of their a-"


    Suddenly, the captain noticed the way that Mchi was staring into the air.


    The pure hatred in his eyes and unwavering weight of his gaze had confirmed one, impossible fact.


    ''He knows we''re here..!''


    "¡­ Raise the deflectors to maximum, something''s wro-"


    *BOOOOOOM!*


    At that moment, a beautiful ck and silver spear was hurled through the floor of the ship itself.


    The weapon sailed right between the eyes of the robotic captain; stapling his head to the back of his chair.


    All remaining personnel inside of the bridge were stunned intoplete and utter silence, even with the ring rms going off at every second.


    None of them could believe what they were seeing.


    However, they very quickly had to write themselves because their problems were about to be much worse.


    While they were frozen into silence, a hand reached up through the opening in the floor of the ship. -verified


    Mchi tore apart the metal that was several feet thick withplete and total ease, and pulled himself inside before Aisha came flying through after him.


    "I was nice enough to hand out warningsst time... but this ain''t that."


    Mchi held out his hand and his spear came back into his hand as if it had it''s own mind.


    Once it reached his hands, it transformed into two dark des connected to sinister looking metal chains.


    "Just as well, Ares isn''t exactly the most merciful god¡­ Plus it hurt me to see Jo react like that too." Aisha shrugged.


    Hernce began to glow and heat up with a light that was almost blinding, and increased the temperature in the room along with it.


    Finally, one of the men on the bridge was able to scramble to hismunicator at thest moment and screamed out ate but necessary update.


    "F-Forced entry on the bridge! I repeat, f-"


    A de sailed into the neck of the whistle blower and cut his entire report short; though not before the entire bridge heard his message.


    "Now you didn''t have to do that. We would have went to go and get everyone on our own anyway." Mchi said with a hateful smile.


    For the first time, Aisha felt like her best friend really had screw loose.


    But when she thought for a second about how she would react if anything happened to Aubrey or Rose, she realized that she would have the exact same reaction.


    No, she would likely be even worse.


    "N-Neutralize them!"


    "Weapons cleared hot!"


    Finally, the soldiers in the bridge shook off their lingering rust and drew their weapons.


    Before they could even be pointed at Mchi, he acted first.


    Using his des like instruments of his wrath, Mchi twirled the chains in the air at his sides before hurling them into enemies on opposite sides of the room.


    The des sailed right into the chests of two men who were killed instantly, and Mchi used their lifeless bodies like battering rams as he bashed them into other soldiers.


    Aisha was a force of nature herself as she punched foot long holes into the chests of any who came close enough.


    Despite the wild and furious nature of Mchi''s weapons, he never once came close to cutting her or even grazing her with a chain.


    This disy proved the immense amount of trust that the two best friends had ced in each other, and the time they had spent working to improve themselves side by side.


    It was no surprise that only a couple of moments were required to eliminate everyone on the bridge.


    However, mere seconds after they finished they heard a loud explosion followed by a burst of shrapnel flying in from the doors to the bridge.


    Finally, the reinforcements stormed in by the fistfuls; each of them bearing strange futuristic weapons or gically altered physiques.


    However, they had next to no idea just what kind of trouble they were running headfirst into.


    -


    While Mchi and Aisha had already begun reigning havoc inside one of the ships, Bianca, Luna, and Nadine were still looking to bring down their first.


    They had sessfully pinpointed where a warship was in the sky; but they didn''t have enough firepower to break past its barrier.


    Bianca was unable to reach that same level as desperation that turned her into a living warhead before, so she was unable to get the temperature of her mes past 300 degrees.


    Luna was also attempting to use the power of the moon to create des of moonlight that struck against the ship''s barrier before shattering harmlessly.


    "This isn''t working!" Luna yelled.


    Bianca was in total agreement.


    "We need a new approach! Think of something!"


    Nadine gritted her teeth silently as she looked back and forth between the two women she considered to be her family.


    She thought back on thete night conversation she''d had with Mchi and how it''d healed the secret parts of her that had long been broken.


    "Girls¡­ get behind me please¡­ and ask me no questions about what you are going to see."


    Bianca and Luna weren''t quite used to hearing Nadine sound serious about¡­ well, anything.


    They flew behind her back without putting up any resistance to her secret n.


    Gathering her courage, her sorrow, and her shame, she closed her eyes.


    She inhaled so deeply that she thought her lungs would burst.


    When she opened her eyes, they had an unusual reptilian slit in the middle of her purple irises.


    She opened her mouth as wide as it would go, and revealed a mouth of razor sharp porcin teeth.


    Finally exhaling, she released a storm of cobalt blue mes from between her lips; the likes of which had enough power to level a city block.


    The moment the breath attack struck the concealed ship, there was an explosion like none other before the entire carrier started to fall out of the sky.


    But not before it crashed into another ship and started to bring it down with it.


    Bianca: ''H-H-Hey¡­ how strong is Nadine actually¡­?''


    Luna: ''I¡­ have absolutely no idea.''


    While the two were floating around in wonder, Nadine''s wings started to dip and she began to fall from the sky.


    Luckily, the two of them were able to catch her just in time and supported her before she could hit the ground.


    When they looked at her face, their hearts broke into two.


    A line of blood was running from in between her lips and a river of tears were flowing out of her eyes.


    ''I''m so sorry Yrre¡­ I''m so, so sorry..''

 Chapter 260: The Baby Boxes…

    -The Greek Underworld


    Currently, Camille had forgotten all about her earlier annoyance with her parents.


    As of right now, the little princess was lying on the bedroom floor with her grandmother; drawing a cute little picture with crayons and not having a care in the world.


    The subject material consisted of her entire family sitting on a bed of corral as they were serenaded by sharks.


    Who just so happened to be singing- you guessed it: ''Baby Shark''.


    "It''sing along so beautifully, my angel!" Nyx said proudly. "Are you going to put your Nana in the picture too?"


    "Ba!"


    Cami pointed to a corner of the drawing that waspletely covered in ck scribbles.


    "Ah¡­ should I go on a diet?" Nyx asked as she looked at her hips.


    "?"


    "¡­You know, I can''t wait for you to get older so you can understand some of my jokes."


    Cami shrugged like ''maybe one day'' before she turned back to her drawings.


    Nyx yfully ran her fingers through Cami''s hair as she admired the wonders of having a grandchild, when she suddenly felt a strange chill run down her spine.


    ''How nasty¡­''


    She stared absentmindedly into a particr corner of the room like she was observing something, or atleast trying to pinpoint it.


    ''Maybe it came from there?'' She wondered.


    Camille, who fell under the required spiritual attunement necessary to feel what her grandmother was thinking of, suddenly found something else to focus on.


    Underneath the bed, she saw tworge wooden boxes.


    Abandoning her art project, she crawled underneath the bed and retrieved them safely before presenting them to her Nana.


    "Gama! Bu?"


    Nyx suddenly snapped out of her strange trance and turned her attention back to her grand daughter.


    When she saw what she had found, her face darkened just a bit.


    Not from anger or any other negative emotion; more like embarrassment from having an infant suddenly stumble upon a longtime secret.


    "Ah¡­ do you want to know what''s inside?"


    "Bu!"


    Nyx held out her hand and raised her pinky finger.


    "Your Nana doesn''t mind telling you, but you would have to keep it as a super special super secret, okay? It has to stay just between us girls."


    Camille put on the cutest little serious expression that she could muster as she nodded in confirmation.


    The two of them performed the all important and heavenly right of the pinky swear, and Nyx finally opened up the boxes.


    Immediately, Cami felt her little eyes sparkle.


    "Ada! Aua!"


    Inside of the boxes were an abundance of keepsakes, each for a specific child.


    They were filled with old papers, photographs, old clothes, and even a small bear that came from the hospital on their date of birth- one blue and another one pink.


    "Your other grandmother and grandfather¡­ they made these baby boxes for your father and auntie when they were born and filled them up with all sorts of memories¡­ they never wanted to forget anything for a single second."


    Nyx handed Cami a picture.


    It was clearly Halloween, and her Aunt Aubrey was in a princess costume while her father was dressed like a famous caped crime fighter.


    But there was someone in the middle that she didn''t recognize.


    A young girl with ck hair, deep blue eyes and an abundance of missing teeth; dressed as a famous Amazonian woman.


    "Abu?"


    "Ah, that''s your Aunt Aisha, dear. I guess you''ve never seen her before she got her powers, huh?"


    Cami shook her head and made Nyx chuckle.


    "I guess it was worth going back to save these things then, if only to see this cute look on your face."


    Suddenly, Cami fished another photo out of Mchi''s box.


    It was a picture of him when he was still a couple of months old, wrapped in a nket and in the arms of a handsome man with dark skin and silver sses.


    A woman with curly hair and a lighterplexion hung off his arm, and the three of them could be seen posing in front of a Christmas tree.


    "Ah¡­ those are your grandparents too, sweetie. I''m sorry that you never got to meet them, but I just know they would have loved you just as much as the rest of us do¡­ Though they would have strangled your dad."


    "Uwah?!"


    The goddess nearly fell overughing.


    "They aren''t mean people per se, but they were somewhat traditional. The fact that your father had you out of wedlock would have definitely given Marcus a stroke." Nyx chuckled with sad eyes like she was remembering something fond, but painful.


    Cami looked like she only understood around half of what was said.


    Eventually, Nyx decided that since they were already sharing secrets, she may as well go all the way.


    Rustling through the box, she found two very important keepsakes.


    "Camille¡­ what I am about to show you is my most cherished secret and prized treasure. You will be the only one other than your Aunty Keres who knows about this."


    Nyx pulled out two documents from the baby boxes.


    Birth certificates to be exact.


    She flipped them both over and gestured to the back, on the bottom left corner.


    Two names were written in faded Ancient Greek.


    And they were certainly not the same as the ones on the front cover.


    "Your grandparents picked out wonderful names that I love dearly. But I guess you could say I have¡­ a bit of a tradition of picking ones of my own, just for me to use."


    She pointed to the name on the left paper first.


    "This is your Aunt. This name here means Caera."


    Gracefully, she pointed her finger over to the other paper.


    "And this is your father; Rasaka."


    Nyx mischievously held her finger up to her lips in a shushing gesture.


    Understanding that she had just been told a big secret, Cami mimicked the gesture exactly.


    But eventually, curiosity got the best of her and she pointed at herself. "Bu?"


    Understanding exactly what she was being asked, Nyx smiled.


    "You sure do have one, my little wonder. Your name is Tiaane. And I will love you forever."


    Using a warmth that only a grandmother could have, Nyx pulled in her granddaughter for a loving embrace that was more meaningful than any diamond or rubies.


    She gave the young girl a series of kisses on her chubby cheeks before a sudden knock at the door interrupted their bonding.


    Nyx waived her hand and opened the door to allow Keres toe in.


    "Ah! You''re just in time, my dear. Join us! We''re looking through old memories."


    Unfortunately, Keres put on a troubled expression as she shook her head in denial.


    She waived her hand over Cami, and the little tyke''s eyes started to be heavy before she fell asleep without even realizing it.


    "Eh? Why would you do that, we were snuggling!"


    "Mother, I''m sorry but we need to talk privately¡­ something has gone wrong at the meeting." Keres said seriously.


    Though she had no anatomy inside of her body, Nyx felt her heart drop all the way to the soles of her feet.

 Chapter 261: Vlar Arrives…

    On the ground, Sei was doing a wonderful job of leading the small force against therge number of abominations.


    The explosives and traps nted beforehand had done wonders in trimming down the enemy numbers just a bit, and sending the lot of them into disarray.


    Sei only kept a separate detachment of around ten soldiers on the roof of the outpost so that they could act as long range units.


    Their goal was to help provide support to any nightfall members in more trouble than they could handle.


    Suddenly, there was a huge rumble in the sky followed by an overbearing sh of blue light.


    As the mature beauty turned her gaze towards the sky, her jaw fell open from pure shock.


    There, she saw a wave of blue me striking an airborne ship.


    The damage was so catastrophic that she felt the waves of power wash over her bones, and the air rose ten degrees from the heat instantly.


    Before being brought to the ground, the ship crashed into another and brought it down with it, and the two of them plummeted into the middle of theke.


    ''Ah¡­ which one of our personnel was that..? And can they do it again..? ¡­ Please?''


    Unfortunately for Sei, no matter how long she waited another st never came.


    "Kuso¡­" Sei clicked her teeth in mild annoyance as a rare swear word fell out of her mouth.


    "I heard that, Ma! Swear jar!" read-first-at-MVLeMpYr


    The sound of bodies hitting the ground made Seie back to reality temporarily.


    Almost twenty abominations had been put to sleep at once using the aura that she was putting out.


    Once they fell asleep at her feet, Serana would walk around with a modified handgun and shot them all in the back of the head quietly.


    "I-I thought you weren''t interested in having me teach you Japanese? How could you understand me??" Sei asked nervously.


    "Oh, I just wanted to learn all the swear words. Are you proud of me?"


    "¡­ I should have put in more effort to monitor your inte usage when you were young."


    "Toote, I''m grown now!"


    Sei rolled her eyes at her well meaning but uncouth daughter and turned her gaze back towards the forest- where sudden vibrations had drawn her attention.


    There, she could see the beginnings of arge and horrifying creature knocking over trees to get to the battlefield.


    Just by looking at it, Sei could tell that this creature and the three abominations surrounding it were a lot different from the other rabble.


    "It is as they said¡­ the meat is plentiful here¡­ a feast will be held."


    Any worthwhile parent will tell you that it is their first instinct to protect their child in times of crisis.


    Sei had her own shorings and things that she wished to change about herself, but one thing was for sure that she was a wonderful mother.


    Perhaps that was why she moved to pull her daughter behind her before she even realized it and gave her a very clear cut set of orders.


    "Serana¡­ no matter what you do, you need to stay behind me."


    "What?! Mom, I-"


    "I am not asking you, I''m telling you! Stay behind me!"


    For neen years of her life, Serana had only ever heard her mother speak to her in this manner twice.


    Once was when she caught her about to give their address to some rando who she met online.


    The second was the time when she caught her with a cigarette in her backpack in middle school.


    Her mother wasn''t one to be stern about something unless she seriously feared for her life.


    And for the most part, Sei had extremely astute intuition.


    Serana followed her mother''s gaze towards the forest up ahead, and she found an unnerving pair of yellow eyes staring back at her.


    "Such pretty meat¡­ that one will be mine.."


    Staring rather intently at Serana and her mother was an abomination that was head and shoulders above its other ilk.


    At first nce, he was over thirteen feet tall, with arms and legs as thick as tree trunks.


    His skin was a mottled green color and wasced with no small number of scars andcerations.


    He was much too big for normal clothes, so instead he wore a loincloth made from what looked to be a surplus of bulls'' skins.


    But clearly, he was obsessed with the idea of impressing others.


    His fingers were covered in some¡­ rather questionable jewelry.


    Smart watches to be exact.


    Ten of them on each hand, and his thick neck was covered in diamond and gold nes.


    His face was rather hard to look at, with a mouth that hung open to reveal revolting yellow teeth and a grotesque reptilian tongue.


    Two horn-like tusks jutted out of the side of his face and made him seem like even more of an abominable demon.


    The moment that his eyes focused on Serana, Sei felt her instincts scream out that eminent danger was afoot.


    "Serana! Mov-"


    Before Sei could finish getting her daughter to safety, the abomination leaped across the clearing with incredible speed.


    At thest minute she threw her arms up to defend herself and seeded in atleast saving her own life.


    But the bad part of this was that she never anticipated just how much force would be behind that single punch.


    Her forearms arms were swiftly broken, and her body was sent flying into theke almost two hundred yards away.


    "MOOOOOMMMMMM!!!!"


    Serana''s horrendous, gut wrenching scream traveled throughout the entire battlefield and made everyone outsidee to a dead stop.


    Luna and Bianca only needed a moment to get a grasp of the situation and they understandably panicked.


    "SEI!"


    "NOOOOO!"


    Luna rushed to dive into the water while Bianca flew towards the ground.


    After dropping Nadine off in a secure spot, she made a beeline for the hulking green abomination who''d just put his hands on Sei.


    She was unaware of it, but her body was starting to heat up just like it had before.


    Orange mes licked at her face and arms and spanned across the length of her body until she was once again a woman made entirely of fire.


    "ILL KILL YOU!!"


    Enraged beyond belief, Bianca barreled right into the chest of the abomination like some kind of living rocket.


    She punched through the abomination without much difficulty, but got both of her fists stuck in his stomach when she tried to pull them out.


    "W-Wha..?"


    "Odd meat this is¡­ wonder if it even counts."


    In a twist that no one was expecting, the abomination grabbed Bianca by the head as if she was no more than a basketball.


    He lifted her up so that their eyes were at the same level and he inspected her curiously; seemingly oblivious to the searing temperature of Bianca''s body.


    "Been too long since r enjoyed spicy food¡­ I wonder if I still have the same taste for it."

 Chapter 262: The Doc Is In.

    Onboard a warship, the duo of Aisha and Mchi had just finished with thest revival soldier on board the bridge.


    The dynamic duo didn''t have a single scratch on them even after taking on an entire ship together.


    The only sign that they had by even been in battle was the blood staining their boots and the asional splotches on their face.


    The pair suddenly looked at each other as they wiped their weapons off.


    "Damn¡­ barely got any blood on you."


    Aisha shrugged. "Aubrey''s not a real big fan of the smell. I try to keep myself as clean as possible so that there''ll be less of it in our shower at home."


    MVLeMpYr-story


    No one would ever believe that this was the same girl who yed in the mud religiously when she and Mal were kids.


    Mchi shook his head at the absurdity of their development before something drew theirbined attention.


    Out of the window, the two of them saw a wave of blue me strike one of the airships.


    Aisha showed visible surprise at the attack and nearly dropped hernce out of shock.


    "What the hell was that..? I''ve barely seen Aubrey use that much firepower..!"


    She nced at Mchi hoping that he may have had an answer, but she found a surprising reaction on his face instead.


    Almost like he was sad to see this power being used for reasons that he couldn''t exin.


    "Hey¡­you know what this is?" She asked.


    Aplicated light shone in Mchi''s eyes as he smiled ufortably.


    "Not¡­ specifically. But I know just what it took."


    He didn''t borate further, and Aisha didn''t look to interrogate him either.


    Normally she would have pressed him for more answers, but part of the reason the two had remained friends for so long is that they both knew when they couldunch a sessful interrogation and when they couldn''t.


    So she would holster her questions for now, and see if she had better luckter.


    "Alright then... Shall we hit the next ship and-"


    *Metallic Voice* "I''m afraid that won''t be necessary."


    Mchi and Aisha immediately tensed up as they drew their weapons.


    Right in front of them, a holographic projection showed up with a man''s smiling face situated in the center.


    He was the neat type, with sliced back hair, sses, and and even ab coat to boot.


    He had no I.D on him for Aisha and Mal to identify him, but by the way he was looking he seemed to know the both of them quite well already.


    "I believe that there has already been enough death and destruction for one day... You and your little brigade are like the paraponera vata from South America. Small but mighty!" The doctor raised his fist proudly in a show of mockery.


    Aisha red and tightened her grip on her weapon enough for the metal to groan under her strength.


    Immediately, the doctor held up his hands in surrender. "Easy, easy, youngdy! Is there a reason for you to be so hostile to me if I''ve done nothing to you?"


    "Cut the shit. You can''t fool me."


    Aisha''s eyes began to glow with a sinister bloody red light.


    Her blessing from the greek god of war allowed her to see the amount of blood a person had spilled, either directly or indirectly.


    This Doctor''s aura was actuallyparable to Mchi''s, which was truly saying something.


    And it was more than enough reason for Aisha to distrust him.


    The doctor seemed to realize at some point that he wasn''t going to get anywhere by just pretending at ying nice.


    Just as well, since he didn''t have much of a stomach for it anyway.


    Aisha and Mchi watched the man''s whole demeanor change in an instant.


    He let out a sigh containing a year''s worth of exhaustion and slicked his hir back even further.


    "Alright you arrogant little shits. You god-loving sycophants think you might be outside our focus from the war, but let me be the first one to tell you that it''s the furthest thing from the truth.


    We are painfully aware of the continued existence of every single one of you. We were foolish to believe that you were some sort of saviors before, but no more.


    You all sat idly by while our world was destroyed by those creatures, and you, Mchi Saint, are the man who was responsible for bringing them here!"


    Mal contemted telling this doctor the truth, but he figured that it would make no difference to him either way.


    Whether the gods or their apostles were responsible for the end of the world, they would all look equally as guilty to those who were on the outside.


    "How are you liking my newest countermeasures against you? I know they are no nuclear warheads, but they have a high potential for growth, mind you?"The Doctor asked.


    Almost immediately, Mchi and Aisha felt their jaws clench up as tight as vice grips.


    The air surrounding them began to cry from the pressure they were exuding unconsciously, while the snakes on Mchi''s back became bigger and darker.


    "Are you trying to tell us that you created the abominations in a fuckingb..?" Mchi asked dangerously.


    "No." The doctor said tly.


    "Then why the fuck-"


    "I created the serum that turned them into abominations. I feel like there is a difference to be pointed out." the doctor said with an eerie smile.


    Mchifelt his gums beginning to bleed from how tightly he had clenched his jaw.


    "I can promise you... you will not die peacefully."


    At this point, the good doctor leaned forward with an uncanny smile on his face that would be enough to make the average person''s skin crawl.


    "That''s fine, because Miss Bianca won''t either."


    Suddenly, the doctor''s image vanished and what showed up on the holoscreen was an image of a ming woman being held up by a giant green monster.


    Both of her arms were restrained and she was being held up by her head as she struggled in vain.


    Not a secondter, the sky outside became ominously dark, and the skin on Mchi''s body began to burn away.


    For the first time ever, Aisha became slightly afraid of how far her friend might go for revenge.


    -


    Outside, r was still holding the squirming Bianca when the entire state became devoid of light.


    As he looked up into the sky in confusion, he saw a living star barreling towards him at the speed of sound.


    Before he knew what was happening, a strong knee borreled right into his nose and temporarily knocked him right onto his back.


    He dropped Bianca immediately and she was caught within the arms of what resembled her most cherished person.


    However, instead of being relieved, she was concerned.


    Bianca was uniquely in tune with all of Mchi''s emotions and thoughts no matter how obscure they might have been.


    So when she could feel nothing but emptiness running around in his mind, she knew for certain that he was more than a little upset.


    And for the life of her, she didn''t know if he would ever go back to being himself after this.

 Chapter 263: Rasaka : The Son Devoid of Light

    "Sir, should we leave while he''s distracted?" A soldier asked.


    Doctor Michaels leaned back into his chair and put on a thoughtful expression as he watched the ensuing conflict on the monitor.


    As he expected, r was already beginning to get back to his feet, and he was seemingly no worse for wear.


    The Doctor was a true fan of his craft, as well as a perfectionist.


    So naturally, there was no way that he would miss the opportunity to see how his best creation stacked up against the world''s most powerful blessed.


    "No... we''re going to sit right here and watch the show."


    Now, everyone on the bridge other than the good doctor looked incredibly nervous.


    "...Fine, keep the thrusters warm so that we can make a swift exit if needed." He conceded.


    "Yes sir!"


    -


    It took r no longer than a couple of seconds to get back to his feet.


    Once he was upright again, he reached up to his face and cracked his broken nose back into ce.


    "There!"


    "It is the star meat!"


    "He struck the king, gnaw his bones!"


    In an instant, the remaining three lieutenants who''d been acting as bodyguards to r decided to act on their leader''s behalf.


    However, they would not live long enough to even process the consequences.


    Without dropping Bianca, Mchi stood as still as a stone statue and allowed his tails to act on his behalf.


    Manda, Onini, and Vrita, eachshed out with zeal and captured an abomination in their mouth without much effort.


    Their venomous fangs drilled through torsos like melted butter, and injected an incredibly unfriendly dose of poison into their bloodstreams.


    None of them could even scream before they died, their faces just showed thest bit of disbelief they felt as their eyes became as wide as saucers.


    The snakes then swallowed their prey whole, and they put on gloating expressions in front of Gwiya; the only snake to not get a meal.


    If r was upset over three of his human best friends dying right in front of him, he certainly didn''t show it.


    Instead, he kept staring at Mchi with his unkind yellow eyes like he was displeased with the fact that someone was touching his food.


    And that look seemed to unnerve Mchi to no end.


    He ced Bianca on the ground like she was the most precious treasure, and ushered her away from the conflict.


    As soon as she was out of harm''s way, Mchi was on the move.


    He ran directly into r and knocked him onto his back.


    Drawing back his fists, he erged it until it was the size of a boulder and struck the oversized abomination over the head repeatedly.


    r covered his face with his arms in an x-shaped pattern.


    While Mchi was striking him, his forearms produced several barbed potrusions like the ones that grew out of the backs of porcupines.


    Because he wasn''t in his right mind, Mchi didn''t stop punching.


    In the end, his fist was caught on the barbs protruding from his enemy''s arms, and he was held firmly in ce.


    Mal didn''t seem to be all there. novel-hosted-NovelFire


    Even though having his fist punctured like this should have brought visible difort with it,he seemed to be perfectly fine.


    No, he barely seemed to even realize that he had been injured.


    With the dy caused by Mchi''s fist being barbed, r had an opening to grab him by the face and fling him away like a dirty magazine.


    When the abomination scrambled back to his feet and prepared tounch a counterattack; he found that he was moving too slow.


    Mchi was already rushing back towards him like some kind of frenzied beast; and was losing more and more of his human qualities at every second.


    He lunged out at r and grappled onto the creature''s upper body.


    His thumbs found their way into the creature''s eyes and he let out a horrendous roar of pain that shook the surrounding trees.


    Mchi opened his jaw until it was practically unhinged and bit r with his razor sharp teeth.


    With a yank of his head, he tore away the flesh on half of Val''s skull.


    Immediately, the abomination''s ster regeneration seemed to falter.


    Dealing with a devious eye injury was one thing, but Mchi''s bite along with having his skin ripped off was too much to handle.


    His body was beginning to shutdown already, but Mchi was not at all inclined to wait for that.


    Driving his thumbs deeper into Val''s eye sockets, he used his titanic strength and pulled in opposite directions.


    A gross wet cracking song could be heard as his massive skull split apart like a raw egg.


    With no more strength left in his body, he came copsing down like a house of cards.


    -


    Inside of the ship, Dr. Michaels frowned at the video feed in front of his face.


    He waited for ten seconds, twenty, and then thirty before letting out an annoyed growl.


    "Sir..." One of the soldiers began.


    "Yes, I know, I know.. ideally I''d like to get a sample of the venom but it doesn''t seem like that''s going to happen today... Let''s pull out." he decided.


    The doctor waited for the ship to start moving, but he never experienced it.


    "What is the dy?"


    One of the soldiers started to point at themonitor with a trembling finger.


    "S-Sir¡­ iing bogie from the east."


    "¡­Put it up on the monitor."


    "Yes, sir."


    As soon as the image showed up on the good doctor''s monitor, his facial expression soured and his mood took a noticeable downturn.


    "God damn it¡­ as if this day couldn''t get any fucking worse."


    -


    Mchi didn''t stop at just killing r.


    Once the biggest abomination was dead, he set his sights on the rest.


    With the entire area devoid of light, Mchi had an entire yground to run amok in.


    He started ying with the shadows.


    He would dive in to a pool of them beneath a tree, and then reeemerge underneath an unsuspecting enemy, where he either bit them unmercifully, or liberated the two halves of their body away from each other.


    He didn''t seem like he was capable of stopping.


    Bianca stared at him worriedly as she held Sei and Nadine underneath her arms.


    Both girls were injured and in need of rest and treatment, but she was just as worried about Mchi as she was them.


    "Mal! You have to calm down!" She finally yelled. "Our family needs-"


    "UNCLE!"


    Suddenly, a terribly familiar voice echoed throughout theke grounds.


    Bianca and the other girls grimaced.


    Aisha ground her teeth together until they were on the verge of cracking.


    And Mchi finally stopped his murder spree in the middle and stared up into the sky.


    There, a single man was floating cross legged in the air, looking quite pleased with the current scenario.


    His long golden hair was still as immacte as ever, and not even the surrounding darkness could sap away the luster of his bright green eyes.


    He was out of his robes for the first time since anyone had seen him, and instead wore a pair of dark grey sweatpants and a white T-Shirt with a famous band on it.


    "Little birdie told me you all were here, so I thought I would pop in for a minute and say hello!" Arias said in a friendly manner. "Have you been eating well? You''re looking thin!"

 Chapter 264: Arias : The Son Who Crawled Out of The Dark

    No one in Nightfall shares collective hatred of a single individual quite like they do Arias.


    Which was why there was no longer a single soul in the clearing who wasn''t ring at him.


    But whether he cared or not, was really anyone''s guess.


    Hended on the ground with his same cavalier attitude as usual and held up his hands peacefully.


    "Yo! It''s been a minute, huh? How''s everyone doing? Good? You guys look good. Everyone coping with this pollen?


    That''s the real killer here, I gotta tell ya."


    As a response, a spear made of darkness sailed right towards his head.


    He narrowly avoided it by tilting his head to the side ever so casually; and stared at Mchi like he was a long lost friend.


    "Well someone doesn''t seem very happy to see me. Family reunions always look so much more heartfelt on the inte¡­ maybe this would be sweeter if one of us had on an army unifo-"


    "You are not my family!"


    Mchi lunged at Arias like a speeding bullet, but narrowly missed him and ended up pulverizing a tree instead.


    Arias reappeared sitting on arge stone several feet away; his head in his hands and a despondent look on his face.


    "That is very hurtful, Uncle! I thought that you would understand the value and importance of family more than anyone! ¡­By the way, the snakesing out of your back are sick. I''m actually sort of jealous." He admitted.


    Evil cult leader or not, he knew how to give props when they were due.


    Mchi gnashed his teeth together and prepared to spit out a few unkind words in response when he heard the sound of whimperinging from behind him.


    Looking over his shoulder, he found a tearful Serana kneeling beside an unconscious Sei.


    Nadine was also with them, and she looked to be in a bad way, with her hand constantly rubbing her neck.


    In that instance, Mal forgot all about Arias.


    His starry visage burned away so that he could return to his normal body, and he started walking towards the girls with shaky footsteps.


    Once he reached them, he all but copsed at their feet.


    Slowly dropping to his knees, he pulled Serana into his arms to stop her from crying.


    "S-She.. she''s not waking up..!" This was one of the few times in Mal''s life that he had ever seen his friend cry.


    It reminded him that despite all of her loud and bold innuendo, she was still just a young girl.


    He felt as if he should have done a better job of protecting her, and her mother.


    The fact that these two were involved in something like this¡­ he was filled with such an unimaginable amount of shame and guilt.


    "She''s just asleep, I can feel it." Mal said softly. "Look."


    Mchi pointed towards Sei''s arms that were already beginning to twist themselves back into ce.


    Since Sei was sleeping, her recovery time would be that much faster than if she was awake, and she also wouldn''t be in any pain.


    The reason why Serana couldn''t wake her was because her body hadn''t finished stitching itself back together yet.


    After wiping Serana''s tears, he checked on Nadine.


    She forced a smile onto her face so that he wouldn''t worry, but they both knew that it didn''t quite work as well as she wanted it to.


    "How bad is it?" He asked in a low voice.


    As a response, Nadine put her hand up to her throat.


    Her vocal cords were too damaged from her own attack.


    She couldn''t speak anymore.


    Her body''s regeneration just wasn''t cutting it, and she required a bit of a jump start.


    Mchi turned his head to the side and pulled his dreadlocks behind his back.


    Nadine unzipped his jacket so that his neck was exposed and she promptly bit into him without reservation.


    Once she was drinking, Serana was no longer crying, and Sei had been checked out, Mal looked towards Bianca and Luna.


    Unsurprisingly, both of them mouthed the words ''I''m fine'' but again, that didn''t really seem to make him feel any better.


    "I admire this group''s¡­close knitted-ness." Arias suddenly said.


    Mchi looked up and all but scoffed at what he saw.


    Even though they knew they couldn''t hurt him, the members of nightfall had all surrounded Arias.


    Their weapons were raised, powers were just waiting to beunched, and they were just looking for a reason to act.


    If Arias took even one more step towards Mal''s group, they would all open fire without hesitation.


    It didn''t matter if they couldn''t kill him, they would give everything to try.


    The golden leader was sitting cross legged in the center of an encirclement, his eyes never leaving Mchi for an instant.


    A small smirk was on his lips, but it was not unkind or malicious.


    "¡­I''m not in the mood for any games today. I will kill you, I can promise that." Mal said seriously.


    Arias seemed to be even more amused by Mal''s words.


    He ignored his threats and instead focused on the earlier disy with his women.


    "I wish so desperately that I had gotten this¡­ Thispassion.


    In twenty eight years of life, not one person has ever showed me the level of love and sincerity that you share with these people.


    It''s haunted me for a long time, and sometimes it is the reason I toss and turn in my bed at night."


    "Is that supposed to make me feel sympathy for you?"


    "Whether you want to or not, I was just sharing my true feelings." Arias shrugged. "I simply felt for the first time that you and I are a lot alike. Two people trying to spreadpassion in a world that makes no real room for it."


    "I am nothing like you. I have no interest in standing on the necks of humans."


    "I guide them with a strong hand." Arias corrected. "They are hateful, vindictive little creatures who destroy each other at the first impulse for their own machinations.


    Someone had to grab them all by the reins and say that enough was enough. I was just the only one with the will and power to do it."


    Mchi shook his head; exhausted.


    He lifted Sei into his arms ever so gently and shifted Nadine onto his back so that she could keep drinking without interruption.


    And right before Arias'' eyes, he turned away from him.


    "Like I said, I''m in a shit mood and don''t feel like debating philosophy. Go away."


    After seeing that Mal really wasn''t interested in engaging with him, Arias let out a low sigh of defeat.


    "Well, that''s fine with me. I didn''t reallye here to fight anyway, and the mood here isn''t really all that conducive for talking."


    "So you can be reasonable. Wonderful."


    "Indeed! I have many good qualities!" Arias beamed.


    The avatar of day stood up and yawned in apletely non threatening manner before he started to float off his feet.


    "I''lle find you one day so that we can have our own little conversation. Still living in that nice little facility in the mountains back in bama?"


    Mchi, and everyone with him stopped dead in their tracks.


    "¡­What?"


    Arias smiled harmlessly as he stuffed both of his hands back into his pockets.


    "I''ll be off now, but I just wanted to say that I hope your women get better. Ah, and I''m hoping I get a chance to meet your infant soon too. I always liked kids¡­ not in a ''Dateline'' kind of way though, I just think they''re cut-"


    "Who the fuck told you about my baby¡­?"


    The serpent''s on Mal''s back were beginning to get irritated once again, as where the ones in his hair.


    But again, Arias just ignored him.


    "Oh and by the way¡­ My mother says that it''s back on. Aren''t you excited?"


    Before Mchi could ask what he meant, Arias shot out into the sky like a rocket and left the area in under a second.


    Mchi was left trembling as he stood firmly in one ce; his mind running itself into overtime.


    No matter how much he wanted to lie to himself, he couldn''t.


    But there was absolutely no way around it.


    There was a mole in Nightfall; feeding information directly into Arias'' ears.


    Headcount, facilityyout, supply lists, tactical information, he most likely knew it all by now.


    As well as personal information.


    Arias knew about Cami, and he wasn''t put off in the slightest by Mal''s ck skin or living hair.


    Because he''d been told about his changes already, or maybe even seen them through a picture. content-hosted-on-NovelFire


    And Mal was almost certain that he knew who was responsible.


    Mchi told himself that he should be patient.


    That he should handle this at another time, another ce, and not in front of the eyes of all of those who entrusted their safety to him.


    But Mal had two things working against him.


    He was young, which makes one impulsive.


    And he was a good father, which makes one capable of great atrocities.


    "Luna¡­ please take her." Mchi handed Sei over to his fianc¨¦, and unhooked Nadine from his back.


    "Babe?" Bianca asked worriedly.


    Mal just held his head up quietly, unable to speak.


    In the next second, he fell through the shadows in the ground and reappeared in front of a very specific target.


    "I¡­ am going to kill you in the worst way imaginable..!"

 Chapter 265: Rat.

    Mchi had surprised everyone in the clearing when the first thing that he did was rush to grab Ryo by the neck and hold him over his head.


    Without a single moment of hesitation, hemmed his face into a rugged tree a few feet away from him.


    "Mchi!! What are you doing!?"


    Serana rushed to defend her boyfriend and tried to pull Mchi away from him.


    However, his grip was like iron and he held Ryo firmly by his now bleeding skull.


    "I''ve been feeling funny ever since I heard that fabricated ass story.. by some sort of miracle he just happened to be found by one of the groups out in the wastes? I should have done something sooner."


    "You''re being crazy! Get off of him, please I''m begging you!!!"


    Mchi finally took his gaze off of Ryo''s head and stared at Serana with eyes full of anguish and anger.


    "Serana, I couldhear it! I heard his heart start to speed up when Arias started bbing about the fucking mole! I can feel the anxiety flowing off of him in waves!"


    "M-Maybe he is just like this because you are beating on him! Please, just put him down!!"


    Serana trusted Mchi with her life, but even she was having a hard time just epting his words as immutable fact right now.


    And it wasn''t necessarily wrong of her, merely a testament of her loyalty to the one who she had given her heart and body to.


    But Mchi was trying to shake her out of it, and he wasn''t necessarily being gentle with how he dispelled the illusion.


    "Serana, you''re being blind! He put everyone here and back home in danger, including your baby sister!!"


    The mention of Cami''s wellbeing shook Serana''s heart like a metal cage on a windy day.


    Everyone loved Camille, but she and Serana had a special rtionship.


    As someone who had a tough time fitting in when she was younger, she showered the young girl with no small amount of care and attention.


    She never wanted her to feel like an outcast for even a single second since she was growing up among humans.


    The notion that someone she brought around had put that innocent child''s safety in danger all but destroyed her.


    "Please... tell me that it''s not true..." she pleaded quietly.


    Ryo had a broken nose and a few missing teeth from his mouth, but he was still mildly conscious and capable of answering.


    Though the response he gave may not have been the one that she wanted to hear.


    "I... had no choice..."


    Serana''s tears started to fall quietly, and Ryo caught a front row seat to the heartbreaking sight.


    "H-He has Guildmaster Morgan. If I didn''t do it then he-"


    "I don''t... want to hear it." Serana said quietly.


    "J-Just listen to me, I- Urk!"


    "You are really fucking hardheaded. She said she didn''t want to hear it..!"


    Mchi tightened his grip on Ryo''s neck and cut off his words at the source.


    Mal was seconds away from pulling his spine from his back when a familiar, pale hand rested on his bicep.


    "Honey, I need you to put him down for me, alright..?."


    Luna spoke to Mchi as gently as possible to avoid setting him off any further and quietly coax him into putting Ryo down with his head intact.


    However, Mal wasn''t having it.


    "What?? Didn''t you hear his confession just now??"


    "I heard it, and I''m upset too, but there is a time and a ce for things like this, and now is not it."


    "The base ispromised! Our daughter''s home ispromised! We took this bastard in, broke bread with him, gave him a ce toy his filthy fucking head, and this is how we get paid back?!"


    "I''m not saying it wasn''t wrong, but I need you to stop and look around for just a second..."


    Begrudgingly, Mchi did as Luna asked.


    Serana was in the arms of Nadine, being held by her tightly as she sobbed into her shoulder.


    The other members of nightfall were standing around staring at the scene in wonder.


    There were some angry faces and some betrayed ones too, but ultimately everyone was watching him, waiting to see what he would do.


    They all wanted to see how their leader dealt with treachery, and if they should be afraid of him going forward.


    Mchi shook his head hard like he was trying to get some unkind voices out of his mind that were still demanding blood.


    "Mal..."


    Spurring Mchi out of his thoughts was the small, weak voice of Serana.


    Her eyes were still ed and puffy, her lip was trembling, and he had never seen her look so vulnerable.


    "Please... don''t kill him."


    Following the plea of the one who was most affected here, Mchi felt like he no longer had the right to act on his darker impulses.


    ...At least not the worst ones.


    He hurled Ryo thirty yards through a tree and sent him spiraling into unconsciousness, but at least he wasn''t dead.


    "Thank you¡­"


    In that moment, Mchi couldn''t respond to Luna.


    He just trudged along the path back to the outpost with Sei in his arms and Nadine and Bianca at his side.


    -


    Back in the bedroom, Anna had seeded in calming down her frantic mother, and now the pair were waiting in silence for the remaining duration of the battle.


    The two of them were holding hands as they sat on the bed, both clearly worried that something awful would happen because they weren''t there.


    Finally, Joanne had stood up because she could no longer handle sitting on the sidelines.


    Unsurprisingly, Anna stood up to join her without saying a word.


    The two of them made a beeline for the door at the same moment that Mchi opened it.


    They were monumentally surprised to find him holding Sei while she was soaking wet and unconscious.


    Before the girls could ask what was wrong, Mchi beat them to it.


    He forced a smile onto his face and tried to make it seem like he waspletely fine.


    "I''m d to see my girl is feeling better, but I hope you weren''t about to rush out there with us." He said to Joanne.


    "I¡­ what happened?"


    "I-Is Sei okay..?"


    Mchi nodded and started heading towards the bath attached to their room. your-NovelFire-story


    "She''ll be fine, I just have to warm her up and get her into bed. As for everything else¡­ I''m sorry, but do you mind if we talk about thatter?"


    Whether they wanted to or not, Mchi didn''t really leave a whole lot of room for debate as he ducked inside of the bathroom with Sei in his arms.


    Once he stepped out of sight, Joanne and Anna immediately turned their gazes towards Luna and the rest of the girls who looked equally exhausted.


    ""Start talking.""


    -


    In the bathroom, Mchi had just gotten himself and Sei undressed and lowered themselves into the water.


    He ced his fianc¨¦ into hisp so that she could sitfortably while recovering, and he held her closely as if he was afraid she would fly away.


    When she was like this, he realized how vulnerable she really was.


    Her curvaceous body was pillowy and soft to the touch, and her hands didn''t even have calluses on them.


    The more he analyzed her, the worse he felt.


    He should have done a better job at protecting her.


    No, she shouldn''t have even been out there in the first ce.


    He should have dealt with all of them himself.


    ''To whom much is given, much is required.''


    Mchi had been blessed enough to be the most powerful individual in the world.


    And because of that, it was his responsibility to shoulder any undue burdens that might befall anyone else around him, so that they could have as easy of a life as possible.


    "Don''t worry, love.. I get it now. I promise you that nothing like this will ever happen again¡­"

 Chapter 266: Everyone’s Future…

    It was a few hours after the battle.


    After ensuring that Sei was alright and resting, Mchi started to leave the bedroom to retrieve a very important family member.


    But before he could fully step out of the doorway, two different pairs of hands grabbed onto his wrists to stop him.


    He smiled wryly, already knowing who they were and what they wanted.


    "Girls¡­ I promise I''m fine, I''m just going to go and get Cami."


    "We''re going toe with you." Luna said.


    At her side, Joanne nodded in agreement.


    Mchi didn''t seem to even consider telling them no, and smiled at the fact that they didn''t seem interested in taking no for an answer anyway.


    He wrapped his arms around the waists of both women and together the three of them sank into the shadows on the floor.


    As the three of them fell through Mal''s dark domain, he was the first to speak.


    "¡­I''m sorry."


    Luna seemed to be surprised by the fact that Mal had offered up an apology unprovoked like this.


    It wasn''t until she looked into his eyes that she realized just how sorrowful he really was.


    She didn''t need to ask exactly what he was apologizing for.


    "It''s alright, I know you were just dealing with a lot in the moment¡­ I''m just d that I could get you to listen to me in the moment."


    Finally, the three of them reached the bottom of the shadowy tunnel and reappeared in a familiar dark domain, right outside of a veryrge mansion.


    In an instant, Mchi frowned when he realized that his mother wasn''t here.


    He floated right up to the doorstep with the girls in his arms and opened the door without bothering to pull out a key.


    Surprisingly, Keres was home in ce of Nyx; pacing about the living room with a somewhat serious look on her face.


    "Sister?"


    Once the goddess saw Mchi enter, she tried to put on as normal of a face as possible.


    "Dear brother. It is very good to see you. And you as well, Chosen of Cassiel, and Chosen of Chang''e."


    "¡­You don''t remember our names, do you?" Joanne questioned.


    Keres shrugged helplessly.


    Mchi thought maybe it wasn''t appropriate tough at this moment, so he elected to hold it in for now.


    "Where''s Ma? It''s not like her to leave when she''s babysitting."


    "Y-Yes, well she had something that she absolutely couldn''t avoid and so she stepped out. But you needn''t worry, I have been a perfect caretaker."


    The three loving parents looked at the almost seven feet tall demonic looking woman with sharp ws, dried blood on her clothes and a frightening appearance.


    """¡­Where''s our baby???"""


    -


    Mchi and the girls found Cami in one of the many bedrooms, sleeping peacefully while surrounded by a carcophony of stuffed animals, and her axolotl lowbreed.


    Mchi, Luna, and Joanne were looming over her quietly, just watching her sleep.


    Through no fault of her own, Cami sleeps like a drunk old man.


    asionally scratching her little stomach, drool running down her face, arms sprawled out, the whole nine yards.


    But to her parents, she was the cutest thing ever, bar none.


    Mchi sat on the edge of the bed and stuck out one of his fingers.


    Instinctively, Camille grabbed it and held him firmly so that he couldn''t escape.


    Luna sat in hisp and Joanne took her ce directly beside him and stole his free hand.


    They sat in silence for a while like that, just watching their daughter sleep without saying a word to each other.


    At least until Mchi broke the silence with a confession.


    "I never¡­ thought my life would be like this." He said quietly.


    "I don''t just mean the powers, I mean the responsibility.


    When I was a kid, I couldn''t even be trusted to make up my own bed in the morning.


    Now I''m responsible for the lives of over 100 strangers.


    But the thing is¡­ I love it.


    I love the littlemunity we''ve built, and I love how everyonees together to look after each other, and I feel honored that they entrust their safety to me.


    But by far, this is the most surprising thing of all¡­"


    With one arm, Mchi scooped up Camille into his arms and brought her close to his chest.


    "I never for one second thought that I could love something so much.


    She is the best thing that has ever happened to me and all that I want for her is to grow up and live a life filled with atleast half as much happiness as she brings me.


    Today¡­ when I thought for a moment that her safety and wellbeing might have beenpromised, I just¡­"


    Mchi couldn''t say anything else because Luna suddenly kissed him fervently.


    He didn''t know what it was for exactly, but he didn''t exactly care either.


    After the day he''d had, he was practically starved for tender physical contact.


    Mal didn''t know how long he kissed her for, but he only got a second to breathe when they separated and Joanne stole his lips next.


    As he kissed her, Luna stared at him lovingly and ran her fingers through his dreadlocks carefully.


    "Honestly¡­ I couldn''t have chosen a better husband, partner, or a better father for our child.


    The fact that you care so much about everyone under our little umbre is a huge blessing that I couldn''t possibly put into words.


    I don''t ever want you to feel like caring too much for us is a detriment or like you have anything to be sorry about.


    ¡­Just, trust us, please. You aren''t the only one who feels this way about all we have. We all have to work together to protect it."


    Mchi finally pulled away from Joanne with a notably hazy look in his eyes, and a body temperature that was beginning to climb.


    "I promise that I was listening, but¡­ can we continue this discussion in the next room?"


    Unsurprisingly, the girls didn''t hesitate to agree.


    In the span of thirty whole seconds, theyy Camille back down gently and stepped into the bedroom next door.


    It took them even less time to get undressed.


    Mchi tossed both girls on the bed and practically tore off his own clothes to join the already nude women.


    NovelFire-unofficial-text


    "I swear¡­ somebody is going to have to pry me off of¡­ you¡­?"


    Suddenly, Mal began to experience a very familiar dizzy spell.


    His hand went to his temple and he realized that he could no longer hear the sound of the fan spinning in the room.


    "Ah¡­shit."


    Mchi''s knees finally buckled underneath him and he hit the floor like a sack of potatoes.


    As expected, he saw both of the girls running towards him and screaming as he closed his eyes.


    Hisst thought was somethingpletely unrted, but nheless important.


    ''My gods¡­ they are so beautiful.''


    -


    As he expected, the ce where Mchi woke up was the one where he explicitly asked not to be called again.


    And he did not react to it well.


    His bracelets activated on their own and became a beautifully nightmarish ck spear.


    The first thing he did was hurl it at the god Zeus without a single moment''s hesitation.


    Unsurprisingly, the god fired a bolt of lightning from his fingertips and knocked aside the powerful weapon like it was nothing.


    In a twist that he wasn''t expecting, Zeus smiled at him like a long lost friend and said words that he never thought he''d hear.


    "Do you all see? Our friend here is quite eager to die. It is a good thing that we voted to restart the game afterall!"

 Chapter 267: The Game Restarts?

    Just because Mchi lost his weapon didn''t mean that he gave up attacking.


    In the moment after his first effort failed, Mchi lunged at Zeus with his fangs bared and ws outstretched. story at mvle,mp|y|r


    "Impudent to the very end."


    Zeus appeared in midair before Mchi could reach him and caught him by the neck.


    With speed and power befitting a god of lightning, Zeus mmed Mchi into the ground face first and ced his foot on top of his head.


    Manda, Gwiya, Onini, and Vritra tried to bite into different parts of the Greek god, but their fangs were unable to pierce his flesh altogether.


    This was the first time such a thing had ever happened to him, and the fact that he was suffering from this fate at Zeus'' hands only made the insult that much worse.


    "That''s enough, Zeus."


    Out of nowhere, a hand appeared on Zeus'' shoulder and stopped him from behaving even more irrationally than he already had.


    Looking over his shoulder, he frowned when he realized that the culprit was one of the few individuals in the room who he couldn''t beat.


    "...He attacked me first, Michael. I am only defending myself."


    "Yes, well, I feel that this does cross the line a bit. Besides, he did tell you not to summon him again."


    "Do I look like a being beholden to the whims of lesser creatures?"


    "Is someone incapable of a modicum of self-control capable of referring to themselves as a higher being?"


    "Spare me your mind-numbing lectures on chaste! If you want to lecture someone you should find one of those mortals who falls all over your every word!"


    It seemed like the two of them were going toe to eventual blows, but to save face the thunder god retreated first and returned to his seat as if nothing had happened.


    Michael tried to help up Mchi, but the young man simply red at his hand until he retracted it.


    Sensing that friendly rtions were a ways off, the archangel just decided to leave him alone for the time being, as he doubted there would be any hope of reconciliation at this moment.


    Once Michael retired to his seat, Mchi finally stood up in the foulest mood of his life.


    He fabricated his own clothes so that he didn''t have to stand around naked and directed his gaze towards a seat he was most familiar with.


    Unfortunately, he found that his mother''s throne was empty.


    In fact, the seats of most of his siblings were vacant for some reason.


    "You should do your best to get used to this feeling of being alone, Mchi. Things are in motion that Nyx cannot protect you from."


    Mchi turned his gaze back to Zeus and it was clear that he didn''t understand what he was talking about.


    "We gods all have a sacred pact. The decision made by this body are insurmountable, and cannot be overturned by the griping of one overprotective mother, no matter who they may be.


    Since you are the sole nightmare remaining on earth, our wager is not actually over, is it?"


    Mchi finally seemed to understand where this was going, and his eyes showed clear disbelief.


    "No... You wouldn''t dare..!"


    Zeus smiled as he continued. "And since you are... of a special breed, we figured that the rules needed to be amended.


    Instead of possessing only 30% of our power, our chosen will utilize 60. Those blessed by primordials will have 35%... save for you."


    "What!?"


    "In addition, I hope you do not set your mind on calling your little friends for aid. They have already forfeited their im to this game by leaving once, so we will not be permitting re-entry.


    The blessings of your allies andpanions will also be stripped away. Provided that they abandon your service, their powers will be returned to them."


    "You cannot do that!" Mchi roared. " They have nothing to do with this!"


    "In fact they do, boy. We don''t need our chosen aiding you, an enemy of humanity, do we? Now, as I was saying..."


    Mchi gritted his teeth and listened to it all.


    The confounding anger he felt grew and grew with every new stiption that was leveled against him, and after a while it was as if he didn''t even hear anything anymore.


    But while Zeus was talking, Mchi saw one individual to of the corner of his eye that made his already simmering blood start to boil.


    His supposed sister, Hemera.


    It was then that he remembered the words of Arias from a few hours ago, and he felt his temper re once again.


    He raised a ck w and pointed at her directly, ignoring whatever nonsense Zeus was spouting at the moment.


    "You... this was your doing...!"


    Frankly, Hemera seemed quite surprised.


    This was the first time that Mchi had ever spoken to her openly, and he was doing it while trembling with murderous rage to boot.


    She found it interesting.


    "...I had a hand in it."


    Hemera''s voice was as beautiful as a summer day, and as soft as the wind that blows through the leaves.


    Her demeanor was that of a gentle woman, the kind that doesn''t even have vulgar thoughts or raise her voice.


    And in certain regards, she was that.


    She was the manifestation of day, the lover of humanity, and the bringer of light.


    But she was also a deity.


    And deities, primordial or otherwise, are all incredibly petty beings with no real sense of morality.


    Mal had just made the unfortunate mistake of choosing the wrong side of a conflict that was even older than he.


    It was maddening.


    "All may not be lost for you, kin of night. We have given you our stiptions, would you like to make any of your own?"


    Mchi bit down on his bottom lip until blood ran from his chin.


    There were a slew of things he probably should have asked for, but in that moment there was only one thing that he could think of.


    It may not have been smart, but it was his one desire.


    "You..." he slowly drifted his pointing finger from Hemera to Zeus. "And you..."


    "If I kill everyone that you send to me... If I transform this whole world into a popted by N''Kai... I will have your heads to celebrate."

 Chapter 268: In A Years Time...

    In the aftermath ofMchi''s deration, only silence persisted among the deities in attendance.


    Mchi had done the unthinkable.


    He had actually demanded that the lives of not one god, but two be forfeited.


    And to make matters more inconceivable, one was the ruler of an entire pantheon, and the other was a primordial unbound by thews of reality.


    To ask for their lives above all others, was maddening.


    Not to mention incredibly insulting.


    And Zeus, more than anyone else, does not do well with insults.


    The god''s eyes began to glow as his entire body crackled with blue lightning.


    From somewhere in the distance, the distinct sound of thunder rumbling could be heard.


    "How¡­ DARE YOU!"


    From his hand, Zeus hurled a bolt of electricityrger than any that mortals had ever dreamed possible.


    Mchi''s vision was filled with white as his body was bathed in lightning, and he lost all of his personal autonomy.


    He could do nothing but hit the ground and scream against his will.


    The phenomena of one being in so much pain that they can''t make a sound appeared to have skipped right over him.


    He was painfully aware of the fact that he was in unbearable agony and probably screamed loud enough to wake the dead in every realm.


    He didn''t know how long he was electrocuted for, but he did know that relief did note easily, or quickly.


    If he have died in that moment, he wouldn''t have been surprised.


    He was only barely cognizant enough to hear the words of Zeus burrowing into his brain.


    ''You are¡­ so very lucky that I am inclined to give you grace despite your rudeness. But make no mistake, there will be no second time.


    You have but a year to get your affairs in order and make your preparations. Do try not to waste them in that time and try your best to die with honor.''


    check out m-v-l-e-m-p-y-r


    -


    Mchi awoke, screaming in the same manner as he had within the god''s colosseum.


    It was so loud that he was pretty sure that he rattled the whole house.


    His entire body felt like it was on fire; burning beyond description.


    The only cooling relief he felt were different sets of hands running across his chest and asional droplets of waternding on his chest and face.


    Finally, his vision returned to him and he opened his eyes to see three women looming over him.


    The first two were the women whom he loved more than anything, and the third was his sister; the so called spirit of violent death.


    All three were crying as they stared at him worriedly.


    Luna had a sensitive side, so wasn''t that surprised to see her crying, but Joanne and Keres were a huge shock.


    He wanted to force a smile onto his face and tell them all to stop crying but he couldn''t even manage that.


    Getting hit by Zeus''s famed lightning bolt was about as fun as an adult circumcision.


    The girls finally noticed Mal had stopped screaming and they each tried to talk to him  at once.


    Luna : "H-Honey, can you hear me? C-Can you sit up?"


    Joanne: *Unintelligible whimpering*


    Keres : "Do not try to move, sweet brother. Zeus'' lighting has burned you unmercifully¡­"


    Despite Keres'' words to not move around, Mchi did crane his neck to look at his body.


    His chest was covered in ck, scar-like markings that resembled fern patterns; amon symptom of being struck by lightning.


    But even his body''s impressive regeneration was of absolutely no avail to him.


    Keres waived her hand over Mchi''s chest and a small bit of the pain he felt subsided.


    But he still would not say that he was in tip top shape.


    However, at least he could talk now.


    "Sorry about that¡­ didn''t mean to send youdies into a- Urgh! Panic¡­"


    Emotionally exhausted, Luna flopped onto Mal''s chest because she couldn''t hold herself up any longer.


    "Honestly¡­ how can that be the first thing that you worry about??"


    Keres had told Joanne and Luna everything while Mal was passed out.


    The fact that he had the energy or mental capacity to worry about them after everything that he had just been told was absolutely astounding.


    "Awwe on¡­ you know that you girls are my priority¡­ when don''t youe first?"


    This seemed to only make Joanne cry harder as she fell on top of Mchi too.


    More unintelligible crying escaped her lips, but this time Mal seemed to be able toprehend it.


    "I love you too, Jo¡­ I''m not going anywhere."


    For a moment, the four of them sat around in silence, just relieved that Mchi was somewhat alright.


    But suddenly, a woman reappeared within the room.


    She looked different from normal, but Mal still recognized her.


    Soft olive skin, long raven hair, and a bold, curvaceous figure.


    Her eyes were ck in color, just like Aubrey''s.


    But they were filled with crystalline tears.


    "My boy, I¡­" Nyx had been out searching in vain for the gods colosseum to voice her extreme displeasure.


    However, the moment that she felt Mchi scream out in her domain, she abandoned her search and came rushing home.


    When she saw the marking spreading across her son''s bare chest, she only cried harder as she bit down on her lower lip.


    "I.. will kill him..! ALL OF THEM! I will see them all imprisoned in the depths of Tartarus itself as retribution for-"


    "Is that a new look, ma¡­? It''s pretty." Mal muttered.


    "I¡­ what?"


    Mchi closed his eyes as he rested his head back on the wooden floor.


    "It just looks nice is all.. guess I''m not really used to seeing you like this."


    Nyx turned her head to the side and made a very confused expression.


    But as odd as Mchi seemed to her, he had his reasons.


    "I get you''re mad¡­ I know you want to get some kind of divine revenge for me but I¡­ don''t need it.


    For now, I don''t need you to be a primordial goddess or anything close to it. You can just be my mom, and I promise that will be more than enough..."


    Nyx didn''t seem to understand Mchi''s line of thinking, judging by the way that her face was constantly twitching while the gears turned in her ancient mind.


    She who had never once in her life been told to ''just be my mother'' by one of her children, didn''t fully understand what that meant.


    Mchi felt his body starting to get heavy, and his eyelids soon followed suit.


    As they began to flutter closed, he had one final question for his mother.


    "Hey ma¡­I was wondering, what do you think my odds are of turning this whole game upside down and winning it all¡­?"


    In that moment, Nyx felt something click within her brain.


    She began to understand Mal''s earlier request and exactly what he wanted from her.


    And even if she didn''t necessarily like it, she felt like she owed it to him to atleast follow his wishes¡­ atleast, to the best of her ability.


    Wiping her own face, Nyx moved to the ground beside Mchi and pulled his head into herp.


    She smiled while trying to hide the inner turmoil in her heart and kissed him on the forehead ever so gently.


    "Odds¡­? I don''t believe in those¡­ if my son wants to do something then he will do it. Circumstances against him be damned."


    ''Especially¡­ when I get you and your family the help you all need to survive what wille.''

 Chapter 269: Fortifying the Base

    Back at the outpost, Nyx pulled the nket over Mchi and Camille while they slept peacefully for the moment.


    Once she kissed them both on the forehead, she turned back to the room filled with Mchi''s loved ones.


    "I am... sorry that this will happen to you all. I should have done a better job protecting you."


    Naturally, Aubrey shook her head in disproval.


    "Ma... every bad thing that happens to us is not your fault. Nor is it your responsibility to ensure that every aspect of our lives go perfectly smooth."


    "That''s right, Miss." Bianca added. "With or without powers, we would never let anything happen to Mchi. You have our word."


    Nyx was touched by the fact that literally everyone in the room seemed to share her same sentiment.


    "I see... then I suppose I don''t have anything to worry about, do I?" Nyx smiled so sadly that for a moment no one could believe such vulnerability wasing from a goddess.


    Just before she left, Aubrey reached out and grabbed her mother by the wrist.


    "Ma... What are you going to do?" Aubrey asked worriedly.


    Nyx forced a smile onto her face and gave her human daughter a kiss on the cheek.


    "For now... I''ll just return home. Today has been... a difficult one for me."


    Aubrey didn''t know why, but for some reason she didn''t think her mother was telling her the full story.


    But before she could press her for more answers, the goddess of night disappeared from the bedroom and took them all with her.


    -


    When Nyx reappeared in her home in the underworld, she found Keres already waiting for her, her arms folded across her chest.


    "...You promised him you would not interfere."


    Nyx sighed and brushed past her daughter. "Do not lecture me right now, Keres. You know that I have to do something."


    "No, you do not. Respecting his wishes would cost you nothing."


    "It might cost me him!!" Nyx snapped.


    The goddess'' entire realm trembled, but Keres remainedrgely unafraid.


    Nyx became slightly frazzled as she ran her hands through her long ck hair.


    "You cannot possibly know what it is like... The guilt I felt the day I lost Marcus was like the day that Nemesis fell into that ingrate Zeus'' hands..! I will not.. feel that again, I don''t have to!"


    "Mother... Mchi-"


    "He needs help! He just doesn''t see it right now, but I know that he will thank me for this when the timees!"


    "Or he may resent you and choose not to speak to you again."


    "He.. would not do that." Nyx said quietly.


    "And how sure are you of that fact? Could you bear the consequence if your judgment is wrong?"


    At this, Nyx finally copsed to her knees as she sobbed violently.


    Keres went to her mother''s side and took her underneath her arm.


    Nyx reabsorbed her ck tears without wiping her face and tried to pull herself together.


    "E... Even if he ends up despising me... I will sleep peacefully knowing that he is still alive."


    Keres shook her head sadly. "Mother... You have to trust brother toe back safely. If you don''t,then you are doing him a disservice. He is strong."


    Nyx suddenly smiled at her daughter with such sadness that it was heartbreaking.


    "I do trust that boy, and I have from the moment that he was born... but I do not trust the world, Keres. Not anymore."


    Finally, the spirit realized that there really was no convincing her mother.


    Grief had driven her so far beyond reasoning, and there seemed to be nothing capable of bringing her back.


    Save for Mchi himself likely.


    Out of options, Keres finally sighed in defeat. "Then.. what will you do? Are you going to ask her for help?"


    Nyx put on a sour face as if she abhorred the thought of asking her mother for anything.


    "Absolutely not... besides, she is unlikely to actually do anything anyway since that is her nature. I need someone more reliable... someone who understands the importance of family, whose blessing would be strong enough to overturn any and all forms of harm."


    Keres thought about it for a moment but eventually her face showed discernible confusion.


    "There is someone like that?" m _vl _em _p _yr only


    "There is... but he is a little far from us."


    Finally, Nyx tilted her head up to the sky and allowed her eyes to roll all the way in the back of her head.


    When Keres realized what she was doing, the strength of her migraine practically multiplied.


    "We''re all insane... every single one of us."


    - Four Days Later.


    In the Nightfall base, a group of six women were standing in front of the entrance to the base with their hands on their weapons and standing around like statues.


    Clearly they had all been standing here for quite a while, as they looked ready to drop at any moment.


    Suddenly, they straightened up their posture even more when they heard the sound of bootsing from around the corner.


    They were surprised when instead of the next shifting to relieve them, Mchi showed up instead.


    "Boss? Something the matter?" Nina asked.


    "Nah, nah, I just came to relieve you guys is all. Hit the mess and then get some sleep. If you want, you can shoot Sei a text and she''ll help you get the best nap of your lives."


    The girls all looked excited at this and started to breeze past him when Mal suddenly called out to them.


    "Oh, and girls... I''m sorry about all these long shifts. This''ll be thest one, I promise."


    At this, all of the girls smiled sweetly at him despite their tired eyes.


    "You don''t have to apologize, boss."


    "We know things have been a little crazy, so you should know that we don''t mind helping out at all."


    "We''ll take as many of these shifts as we need to, just as long as we can make sure everyone here is alright."


    Mchi seemed a bit caught off guard by this and it took him a few moments to process it.


    But finally, a wry smile crossed his face and he lowered his head in thanks. "I appreciate that, girls. Go rest up."


    The girls smiled at him with subtle hints of flirtation mixed in, and they soon left him to guard the entrance all by his lonesome.


    Once he watched them go, Mchi leaned against the white wall of the corridor and closed his eyes.


    In the aftermath of the revtion that Ryo was a traitor and Arias knew their location, the energy in the base was different.


    Normally, it was super easy to find people in themon areas chatting about nothings, ying games, or just being happy.


    But now, it was almost as if an air of tensity was hanging over the whole ce.


    Folks tended to stay in their rooms since they were worried about an attacking at any moment, and when they dide out they weren''t quite as joyful as before.


    Out of his paranoia, Mal had ordered a security detail to be posted at the entrance at all times, operating in eight hour shifts at a time.


    He had only recently realized just how taxing and unfair that must have been on them.


    ''We have to hurry up and relocate... soon.''


    From the shadows at his feet, Mal pulled out a tablet and began sorting through the list of targets.


    Specifically, ones in the domain of the Revival Regime.


    Mal''s patience for them had already long expired.


    Every time that he closed his eyes, he kept seeing Jo in an utter panic, her body wracked wit fear and anxiety.


    As the one who imed to love her more than anything, he felt it was his responsibility to make anything that troubled her disappear from the world forever.


    No matter what, he could not bear to see her in that state again.


    He wanted to bring down the entire regime quickly, efficiently, and fill the vacuum of power without causing widespread panic.


    And he was going to start by pushing them out, city by city, until he severed the head of the beast entirely.


    ''I''ve waited long enough... I should move tomorrow... And the target will be... this one..!''


    Just as Mchi made a decision, he heard the sound of footsteps approaching and smelled a familiar sweet soap.


    He stashed away his tablet just as Celeste came walking into view, clearly looking for him.


    And not at all pleased.


    "Now if I just told you to leave the nursery and go rest, what the hell would make you think that it was okay for you to run up here?"


    Mchi scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "Third shift had to be relived and I told first shift to get a few more hours of sleep since they went out scavenging."


    "And you couldn''t call Aisha? Your sister? Rose? One of your multiple partners??"


    "I can stand up for a few hours, Celeste. It''s not a big deal."


    As she often did when it came to Mchi, Celeste looked like she was developing a hell of a migraine.


    "Seriously... why are you so unkind to yourself?"


    Falling silent, Mchi felt like he had no good way to answer that question.


    Sighing, Celeste came to stand on the wall right beside Mchi and put herself in park.


    "...What are you doing?"


    "Keeping youpany."


    "The hell you are. You''ve been in the nursery all day."


    "Are you saying I smell like baby vomit and you can''t stomach my presence??"


    "I.. no?"


    "Alright then, I''ll be staying."


    "...I don''t suppose giving you a direct order would-"


    "I willugh in your face."


    "Yea, that''s what I figured."


    Out of options, Mchi finally folded his arms and stood quietly beside Celeste.


    This was going to be a long four hours...

 Chapter 270: Setting Out

    Mchi and Celeste spent the better portion of an hour in silence.


    This wasn''t by design mind you, but somehow they had settled into a bit of an awkward air.


    Eventually, Mchi simply went back to leaning against the wall and brooding silently with his eyes closed.


    Just as it seemed he was on the verge of falling asleep, he felt a pair of hands grab him.


    Or, a part of him technically.


    Opening one eye, he found Celeste holding a very babyish Gwiya as she fed him jerky from her pocket.


    Manda soon became jealous, and he also went over to her side to demand treats.


    "...Is this how it''s always going to be between us now?" she asked quietly.


    "What do you mean?"


    "You''ve barely said ten words to me ever since that day that you left our quarters. I thought we had established a better friendship than that."


    "..." All of the serpent heads on Mchi''s back turned around to face him like they too were waiting for an answer.


    Embarrassed, Mchi scratched his cheek. "I... didn''t really think you would want to see me if I''m honest."


    "Why? Because you and Mnie didn''t work out?"


    "..."


    Celeste sighed in disappointment.


    "I do think it would have been nice if the two of you had''ve patched things up, but I won''t penalize you, or her, because that didn''t happen. You should know me better than that."


    "You''re right... I''m sorry." He admitted.


    Celeste didn''t actually say whether she epted or rejected Mal''s apology, but he knew for a fact that she wasn''tpletely past it.


    It appeared as though his attempt to keep the peace had hurt her a lot more than he''d first thought.


    "...How is she?" he suddenly asked.


    At first, Celeste was going to lie, but she decided that it would be unkind of her to do so and elected for the truth.


    "Well... she had a hard couple of days. She sat with me and cried a lot, but she''s getting better. She has even apologized to Bianca, Nadine, and Anna."


    This new bit of information admittedly took Mchi by surprise, because he hadn''t heard anything about this.


    "I see... I''m d. I hope that she keeps getting better."


    Celeste opened and closed her mouth several times as if she was fighting to say something, and eventually she decided to plead her daughter''s case.


    "Mchi... she truly is sorry for what she did to you. I really think that if you gave her another chance then you would see that-"


    "Celeste, please don''t go there..."


    "I beg you, just hear me out. She''s a sweet girl, and she really-"


    "I can''t. Too much has already happened, and it would in no way be fair for me to go back to her since I.." Mchi''s words started to trail off and he looked away to save face. "It just... wouldn''t work."


    "Why wouldn''t it work? What were you about to say??"


    "Just drop it, please..."


    "I want you both to be happy, and I know that you''d be good for each there if you just-"


    Mchi suddenly grabbed Celeste by the waist and pulled her body into his.


    With their lips dangerously close, he finally spat out the words nobody but his fiances knew.


    "I can''t be with her because you''re the one I have feelings for, Celeste. Not Mnie."


    In this moment, Celeste was like an oldputer that hadn''t been booted up in a while.


    She didn''t understand any part of what she''d just heard, and it took her forever to grasp it.


    But because she knew Mchi liked older women, she wasn''t naive enough to think he was just joking with her.


    "I-I, uh, y-you, m-me... I-Is that why all of your fiances keep on hanging around me?! And why Nadine and Luna keep asking me questions and trying to touch my breasts?!"


    "Ah... I''m sorry about that, but... probably." he admitted.


    He told the girls not to put Mnie''s mother through any kind of interview because he was sure he would never act on histent feelings, but it seemed as though they did it anyway.


    ''I''m definitely going to spank them when I get off...''


    Celeste looked like she was wrestling for something, anything to say.


    Her eyes never left Mchi''s lips that were dangerously close to hers and she felt like her heart was going to leap out of her chest.


    She almost leaned in to kiss him, but then she remembered the most important person in this entire equation.


    Her daughter.


    She lowered her head, suddenly unable to look him in the eye.


    "I''m sorry, I... I can''t do this.. not to my baby. Can you please let me go..?"


    Did it hurt to hear those words? Yes.


    However, it was not at all unexpected.


    Mchi knew that Celeste was a good woman with strict principals and a strong sense of loyalty.


    It was partially the reason why he liked her so much.


    And because he already expected her to react like this, letting her go like she asked wasn''t nearly as hard.


    With an intense blush on her face, Celeste slowly began to back away from Mchi.


    "I think... I am a little bit tired after all. I''m going to turn in for the day if you don''t mind."


    "...''Course not. Take all the rest you need."


    Celeste nodded and left in a hurry after that, and Mchi went back to his previous position of leaning against the wall.


    Trying not to let himself be despondent, he stared up into the ceiling and altered his ns for tomorrow just a bit.


    ''I think... It''d be better if I headed out tonight instead.''


    -


    It was 2. A.M. when Mchi finally stoped pretending to be asleep.


    His frightening violet eyes shed open and he sat up without disturbing Nadine or Sei.


    Ever so gently, he kissed all six women in his bed before slipping out from underneath the covers.


    In the dark, he pulled on a pair of sweatpants, a simple ck tank top that couldn''t hide the lean muscles lurking underneath.


    Slipping on a pair of slides, he had his cover and was all set to leave.


    Discreetly opening his bedroom door, he ran into his home''s extra upants.


    Since the revtion of Ryo''s betrayal, Serana hadn''t set foot back in her quarters.


    It was just far too hard for her.


    She had been crashing at Mchi''s ce on his couch; crying silently every night and gorging herself on every Japanese desert Sei knew how to make.


    Last night, Aubrey and her girlfriends stayed over on ident.


    They spent the night watching some terrible show thatfocused on the overall theme of ''men ain''t shit''.


    Mchi tried toe out here a few times and join them, but everyone just red at him when he tried, so he hid inside of his bedroom.


    Mchi walked over to Serana and checked on her.


    As he expected, she was still crying in her sleep.


    He wiped her face as gently as he could without waking her, and gave her a kiss on the top of her head; siphoning a bit of her negativity in the process.


    ''I hope you heal from this soon¡­ You have no idea how much I hate seeing you like this.''


    "Are you going somewhere?"


    Mchi hadn''t realized that his sister Aubrey was awake and paying attention to everything that he was doing.


    But it was okay because he had nned for this.


    "Yea, I just wanted to check on her before I left¡­ I couldn''t sleep so I was just going to take a walk."


    Aubrey stared at her brother for a moment without saying anything.


    Eventually, she just nodded and pulled the spare nket further over her body.


    "Alright then¡­ Don''t stay out too long, yea?"


    "I make no promises.. got a lot on my mind, you know?"


    "Mhm."


    Mchi gave his sister a kiss on top of the head just like he did for Serana, and he began heading towards the elevator.


    Once the metal doors closed, he sank into the shadows on the floor and his entire demeanor changed.


    ''Alright¡­ let''s try to make it back in time to make breakfast for everyone."

 Chapter 271: Reconnaissance Mission

    chi reappeared on the mountain that housed the base, in different clothes than the ones Aubrey had seen him leave in.


    He now wore a standard pair of ck boots that traveled up to his calves and ck tactical pants with a matching jacket.


    As he nned his route, he thought carefully about what would be the best way to get to his destination.


    Naturally, traveling through the shadows would have been a good option.


    But for the past few days or so, Mal had been more reluctant to use them.


    Perhaps this was just his way of coping with the fact that he wouldn''t get to use them forever, and trying to get adjusted to that reality.


    ''Guess I have no choice then...''


    Just before Mchi left, he heard the sound of rustlinging from the trees behind him.


    Almost on cue, a veryrge and unnatural predator came sauntering out of the bushes like she''d been waiting there a long time.


    "Hey, Lolo. Why aren''t you sleeping?"


    Lolo sat on her hind legs and gave Mchi a look that said ''I could ask you the same thing.''


    "I''m just stepping out to run a little solo mission really quick. That''s not a crime, is it?"


    Lolo sat up and nudged Mal with her snout.


    ''Take me with you.'' She wanted to say.


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    Mchi smiled wryly.


    "Now girl... don''t take this personally, but you''re not really suited for a stealth mission, y''know? They generally require you to be a lil bit more¡­ inconspicuous."


    Lolo did not look dissuaded in the slightest.


    "¡­Alright fine, but you''re staying in the shadows the whole time. And you don''t get to eat someone unless I say so."


    Again, Lolo did not seem to like those stiptions.


    But at the end of the day, the chance of getting food was always better than no chance at all.


    She let out a gruff grunt in response and sank into the floor alongside Mchi.


    ''Now... let''s just hope this all works out fine and dandy.''


    -


    The location that Mchi had chosen to pay a visit to was a army base located in Montana.


    It appeared to have been destroyed in a wave of N''Kai attacks, but was now miraculously up and running once again.


    In fact, it seemed to be thriving.


    Threerge trucks load down with supplies pulled in to the cargo bay of the base.


    The men stepped out of the trucks one by one and looked around in clear confusion.


    This cargo bay certainly wasn''t supposed to be empty.


    "The hell do these guys have going on..? They sent so many delivery requests that you would think they''d move with some damned urgency!"


    One of the men sighed and reached for the radio sitting on his vest.


    Before he could press the button on hismunicator, his eyes were tricked when something whistled past his nose.


    Looking around, in a daze, he tried to find whatever had crossed his face, but he found nothing wherever he looked.


    ''Weird¡­''


    -


    Inside the cargo container of one of the eighteen wheelers, a strange urrence took ce in the darkness.


    A living mass of shadows rose up from the floor.


    It had no identifiable features or characteristics, but it did have a pair of glowing violet eyes that darted from crate to crate.


    ''The first truck had vats of chemicals and med supplies, the second had rations and MREs, but no weapons or ammunition¡­ this isn''t a military base anymore .'' He realized.


    *Ker-chunk!*


    The sound of the door being unlocked caused the shadow to sink back into the ground and disappear from view.


    When light poured in to the crate, the first thing that the shadow saw were a different squad of men in white uniforms.


    "What the hell do you all need all this crazy stuff for? Everytime Ie here I always see you same five squads." One of the drivers asked.


    "And what kind of facility is this anyway..?" another added.


    The man standing at the front of the uniformed guards turned up his nose in disgust.


    "You all are decades away from possessing the level of clearance needed for me to answer you. Just be good dogs and do what you are told without making us ask twice, yea?"


    Ignoring the now agitated drivers, the men in white began unloading all of the cargo from the three trucks in record time.


    As thest vat of chemicalponents was about to be unloaded, a small whisp of ck shadow leapt at the foot of a soldier as an effort to hide itself while continuing it''s recon.


    Entirely oblivious to this, the soldier soon left the area while the rest of the materials were put away by his subordinates.


    On the other side of the hangar, there was a thick metal door with a bio scanner just opposite it.


    The man ced his hand on the scanner and then ced his eye up to it next before the door opened.


    He carried himself down a long white corridor with the only sound being that of his boots rapping off the floor.


    Finally reaching his destination, he stepped inside of theb and addressed the one superior he actually respected.


    "Everything is ounted for, Dr. Michaels."


    "Wonderful¡­ I was worried that since we nearly doubled our amount of requested materials this time around."


    "Indeed. But perhaps they know that your breakthroughs are the only thing keeping us afloat and giving us a fighting chance in this war."


    "Yes, well speaking of advancements¡­ I believe I am about to make another one right now."


    In the middle of the whiteboratory, there was a young woman strapped to a table with an IV inserted into her arm that was keeping her asleep and unresponsive.


    In his hand, Dr. Michael''s held a syringe with a dark colored liquid inside.


    Just before he could stick the syringe into her arm, a shadowy hand reached out to grab him by the wrist.


    " G-Gah! What the hell is this?!"


    Suddenly, the shadows solidified as a tall man with ck skin and long flowing dreadlocks that moved with their own minds like serpents.


    Mchi plucked the syringe out of the good doctor''s hand and stared at it with cold, calcting eyes.


    "Now I wasn''t the biggest science buff in school, but I''m suddenly developing a real interest. Why don''t you tell me exactly what this little guy does?"

 Chapter 272: Saving The Day

    After Dr. ichaels realized that it was Mchi who had suddenly shown up in hisb, his frightened and panicked expression suddenly became much colder.


    "Unbelievable... You are somehow much more revolting in person."


    *Snap!*


    With the greatest of ease, Mchi snapped the doctor''s wrist and caused him to let out a pitiful wail.


    "Doctor!"


    As the second agent tried to rush and defend his idol, Mandashed out of his own volition and bit the man''s head clean off.


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    As his body dropped to the floor limply, Mchi brought the needle dangerously close to the Doctor''s eye.


    "This''ll work out better for you if you don''t make me have to figure out what this does on my own. But I warn you, you''re running out of time to tell me."


    Dr. Michael''s disgust only seemed to intensify more at every moment.


    "We should have seen it all before... the power that you wielded when you first emerged was like nothing we had ever seen, so of course you had to be some kind of omen of ill fate.


    From the beginning you had no interest in us. You thought yourself above our interaction.


    Your only interests were in subsisting on the bodies of women twice your age while plotting our destruction. The human race will not be caught unawares again.


    No matter the method or avenue we have to take, we will always move forward in our innovation to deal with deceitful creatures like you, even if we are- AAAGH!"


    Mchi finally ran out of patience, and he took the syringe and plunged it right into the doctor''s left eye.


    As far as his scathing words went, Mal was rtively unconcerned with them.


    There were times in his life where he had been told worse things by others and by himself.


    But right now at the rate that things were going, he didn''t have time for self loathing, and he didn''t have time to listen to the raving of some bigoted madman.


    The absolute only thing that mattered was the fact that Mal wanted to know exactly what was in the syringe.


    And if the doctor didn''t want to tell him, he could always find out for certain by observing it for himself.


    Pressing down on the plunger, he released whatever foul concoction was in the chamber.


    Mal watched the doctor writhe around on the floor in utter agony.


    He folded his arms across his chest and waited patiently to see just what this mystery serum would do.


    Several seconds went by, but Dr. Michaels was still rolling about on the ground while holding his eye.


    He was in pain, but he wasn''t in any more pain than the normal amount that somebody who was just stabbed in the eye would be in.


    And it was at that moment where Mchi realized the gravity of what was in that syringe.


    "That drug... it only works on blessed, doesn''t it?"


    Dr. Michaels continued to writhe around while groaning.


    Mchi grabbed the doctor by the hair and lifted him up so that the two of them were looking eye-to-missing eye.


    "What was that..?" Mchi asked through gritted teeth.


    Dr. Michael''s red at him with the most hated expression that he could muster.


    The doctor finally parted his lips to speak, but it absolutely wasn''t anything that he wanted to hear.


    "THIS IS RED SPARROW, WE HAVE A CODECHARLIE- I REPEAT-"


    Mchi attempted to cover the doctor''s mouth to stop him, but he was just a hair too slow.


    Before he knew what was happening, the lights went red and a low rm resounded throughout the building.


    *Hostile entity confirmed. Beginning facility wide euthanasia protocol.*


    From the vents in the ceiling, a misty white vapor began to leak into the rooms.


    Mchi gave up his corporeal form and switched to his avatar one instead.


    His first instinct was to grab the doctor by the neck and force him to stop whatever he had done.


    However, the doctor onlyughed in his face before he could ask anything.


    "Don''t bother¡­ from the moment a breach is announced, novichok is dispersed throughout the entire facility, and any and all data is transmitted to the desks of the higher ups before it is deleted from the servers.


    We are fully aware that a few of you have power over minds, so by design I could not stop it even if I wanted to."


    At that moment, Mchi all but panicked when he realized that in his haste to stop the doctor, he neglected to protect the girl who was still strapped to the table in the room with them.


    And he was almost positive that there were likely more helpless individuals in the building who were going to suffer as a result of his actions just now.


    "Damn it¡­!"


    Mchi turned around to pull the sleeping girl into the shadows when he was suddenly hit by a wave of golden energy.


    When he looked back, he was both surprised and terrified by what he saw.


    Leaning against the doorway while frowning was his baby sister; Aubrey.


    A golden light was radiating off her body and made her look like a human torch.


    As she red at him, he could see her performing certain hand signs with her individual digits.


    Unable to tell what she was doing, Mchi looked up at the ceiling.


    The vapor was no longer falling like it should have been.


    Upon further inspection,he finally noticed that the clock was no longer ticking, and the good doctor had stoppedining.


    "So you learned how to stop time, huh..? That''s pretty cool¡­ must just be for the building and those in it though, right?"


    Aubrey didn''t answer and the finally started walking towards Mchi.


    Since they were children, the two of them had a fairly good rtionship and only fought on super rare asions.


    And since their parents died and Aubrey was attacked, they hadn''t fought at all.


    But Mchi knew just by the look in his sister''s eyes that their long streak of goodwill was about to end.


    Contrary to his expectations, his sister didn''t hit him, nor did she yell at him.


    She simply spoke to him in that same icy cold voice that she used when he identally broke her tiara when he was nine.


    "Everyone keeps saying that we need to give you time and be patient because you''re going through some things, but I have reached the end of my grace period with you, Mchi. Sit down, we need to talk."

 Chapter 273: A Stern Talking To...

    When Aubrey said sit down, she actually meant it.


    She and her brother were now sitting crosslegged in the middle of the room as they both stared at each other.


    No matter how strong he was, Mchi would confess that he was actually feeling more than a little nervous right now.


    "Everybody is worried sick about you, you know..." she began. "You''re functioning like you''re on autopilot half the time, it''s like you''re not even there.


    You just go out to work,e home to check on Serana, and then go to sleep. I''d say you''re like a ghost, but ghosts don''t exactly run all over the base trying to do everything at once."


    "I-I''ve been a little more active than normal, yea, but saying I''m like a ghost feels like a stretch. I''m still present." Mal defended.


    Aubrey didn''t say anything, simply nodded while she concentrated on her spell. "Cool... so you know Rose broke up with Aisha and I then?"


    Mchi''s eyes nearly rocketed from their skull.


    "W-What!? But she was just in my quarters when I-"


    "We''re still friends and all, but we kind of just... want some different things. It''splicated."


    Mchi''s eyes narrowed. "What kind of diff-"


    "It doesn''t matter, I''m not talking to you about this because I''m in need of some pity. I''m just bringing this up to point out that in the past... there was no way someone as observant and nosy as you wouldn''t have noticed."


    Mchi felt like those words were more of a dig than an observation...


    Nevertheless, he let his head hang low as he wrestled with the undeniable truth of what his sister was saying.


    "I''m just... trying to keep everyone safe, Aubrey. Can you cut me a little break for that?"


    "No. Not when you''re lying right to my face and going on entire missions without backup or telling anyone!"


    "Aubrey, I''m sorry for lying to you, but this is my cross to carry and I don''t want-"


    "Why!? Who told you that you had to do all of this by yourself with no help!? Is our value in your eyes truly so little that you-"


    "No, but look at what has happened because of me, Aubrey! You are all going to lose your powers in a year just for siding with me! I can''t ask you to lift even a finger more for me!"


    Aubrey wasn''t fazed by her brother''s yelling, but she still stared at him like she was truly hurt.


    "What are you ming yourself for...? Nothing that has happened to you so far has been your fault, and you should know that already."


    Mal covered his face with his hands as he sighed in true exhaustion.


    He''d had a hard year.


    Not only did he miss the birth of his daughter, but the entire world had kept on moving while he was somewhere off doing Chaos knows what.


    Not only that, but Anna and her mother fell into captivity because he wasn''t around to defend them, and they still hadn''t mentally recovered from the experience.


    To top it all of, his saving of humanity by expelling the N''Kai was deemed not good enough, and now he had to die too in order to satisfy the opportunistic greed of the gods.


    It was no wonder that he had developed this incessant need to shoulder the problems of the world on his back.


    Aubrey wrapped her arm around her brother as she rested her head on his shoulder.


    "Mal... I understand that you are feeling pressured... but this isn''t the time for you to turn your back on us. We allwantto stand beside you. Even against the gods themselves... and that includes our mom."


    At this, Mal looked away towards the other side of the room.


    "I told her not to interfere because I wanted to prove to her... and myself.. that I can stand on my own without her."


    Mchi noticed that his sister had gone quiet, and he turned his head to stare at her.


    He found her trying not to meet his gaze by whatever means necessary, and looking mighty conspicuous in the process.


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    Aubrey began whistling as she stared at the wall.


    Mchi grabbed his sister by the ear and pulled. "What do you know!?"


    "OWW! NOTHING, NOTHING!"


    "Liar."


    "I''M SERIOUS, I JUST.... Do you really think that our mother can knowingly stop herself from not helping us? Pretty sure she has some kindapulsion at this point..."


    Mchi released his sister and his gaze hardened.


    Once she saw that, Aubrey finally did smack him over the head.


    "Ow!"


    "Don''t be like that." she said sternly. "Have some understanding for her position."


    "What is that supposed to mean?"


    "Our mother is the most powerful woman in existence and has been that for a very, very long time. She has lived without any rules, restraints, or having anything denied her for eons.


    So naturally, I''m sure you can understand how telling her to sit still and do nothing while her precious son fights for his life might be a teensy bit difficult for her."


    Mchi ran his hands through his hair exhaustedly. "Haaa¡­ so what then? I should just ept the fact that she will never listen to my wishes no matter how firmly I try to make them known?"


    "No, Mchi but this family isn''t just new for us, it''s new for her too and she''s had a lot more time to be stuck in her ways than we have. Just give her some time, and try to focus more on why she does things rather than how she goes about them."


    Mchi allowed his sister''s words to properly marinate within his brain, and he had to admit that they made sense.


    Even if he didn''t want to admit it.


    "I guess... I can do that. I don''t want her to think I''m ungrateful for all she does and... I owe everything that I am to her."


    "Annnd..?" Aubrey prodded.


    "I shouldn''t keep all of you in the dark... you are not helpless and you are my partners."


    "Annnnd...?"


    "And I.. I dunno, what else?"


    "The current rate that things are going is not your fault and is in no way rted to your past actions."


    "..."


    "...Say it!"


    *Yawn!*


    "Mchi Jadou Saint!!"


    Mal stood up and stretched his body before he started walking towards the doctor who was still frozen.


    He lifted up the doctor by his ankle and dropped him headfirst into the shadows that were already looking at their feet.


    "...Baby steps, sis. Give me a little time to grow too, yea?"


    Aubrey sighed in exhaustion, both from her brother''s attitude and the weariness of holding up such a big spell over the whole building for so long.


    To save her energy, she decided that it was best to resume this debate at a better time.


    "This isn''t over, Mal."


    "I know."


    Mchi finally freed the girl who was sleeping while strapped to the table and lifted her into his arms. "Come on. I''m sure there are more in this ce who are just like her."


    Mchi started to leave the room when suddenly his sister called out to him in a much more serious tone than normal.


    "You owe those girls an apology, Mal. Having multiple partners means that you have to be more attentive and present, not less. Do right by them."


    Mchi paused without looking back, and Aubrey could''ve sworn that she heard his heart clench.


    "I got it... thanks for trying to get my head on straight."


    "Hey, what is family for if not this, right?" Aubrey smiled.

 Chapter 274: Broken Hearts Club

    Nemesis and Keres watched their mother pace back and forth within her living room for what felt like an extended period of time.


    "I hade by to see how your effort went, but judging by the way you are behaving it doesn''t seem to have gone very well."


    "Indeed not." Keres agreed.


    "Hm? No, on the contrary dearies. The Red God has agreed to help when the time is right." Nyx said proudly.


    "...Then why are you anxious...?" Nemesis asked in confusion. "Was the price he demanded for his help so high that you-"


    "Am I not attractive!?" Nyx cried.


    ""...What?""


    "I practically threw myself at him and his wives but none of them took the bait! I wanted to taste the raw pleasure that can onlye from the rawest and most lustful holder of desire that there is, but they treated me like damned nuisance and friendzoned me!"


    "...Technically, it was not you, but your alternate." Keres reminded gently.


    "It stings all the same!" discover m,v,l,e,m,p,y,r novels


    Keres rolled her eyes and she and her sister sat on the couch.


    "I do not understand the appeal. Nor why you are upset."


    "Neither do I."


    "That''s because neither of you have seen him, but I assure you he is... heavenly..!"


    Nemesis reached out to wipe away the drool running down her mother''s chin like a good daughter.


    "It''s rare to hear you speak of someone like this, Mother. Should I expect a new father in the future?"


    "Possibly... For now I must continue to y the role of his friendlypanion in the hopes that he softens up to me and eventually shows me his penis!"


    "¡­And you think that will work?"


    "I don''t see why it wouldn''t, especially when he sees just how well I have taken care of his precious babies!"


    ""¡­Babies??""


    At that moment, a pitch ck portal opened up in the living room with the women and three individuals walked through.


    For the first time ever, Keres and Nemesis showed visible reactions as their jaws fell open from shock.


    ''I...I want them.'' Nemesis said telepathically.


    ''Which one..?''


    ''All of them.''


    Smiling radiantly, Nyx fabricated a party hat and confetti and held out her hands in a warm gesture.


    "Wee, children! Let''s get along wonderfully!"


    -


    Serana groggily opened her eyes after a few hours of being asleep and immediately wished she was unconscious once again.


    It took a full minute for the sick feeling toe back.


    Since learning of Ryo''s treachery against the faction, Serana was monumentally disgusted with herself every time that she had a moment to think.


    How could she have been so foolish as to give her body to someone like that?


    And why did she never notice anything?


    She had never imed to be the brightest, but was she really that stupid??


    With her mind clouded by self hatred and her tears beginning to fall all over again, Serana bit down hard on her lip to stop herself from whimpering.


    Suddenly, she felt a familiar arm wrap around her shoulder and all of her sadness changed to embarrassment.


    "It''s alright, Ser. You didn''t do anything wrong." Aisha said warmly.


    Serana forced a helpless smile onto her face as she brushed away the water on her cheeks.


    "Yea..? That''s not how it feels.."


    "Well your feelings aren''t always absolutes, you know? They can be wrong just like everything else in life."


    Serana wanted to let Aisha''s words heal her, but she was honestly afraid that in forgiving herself she would absolve herself of all wrongdoing.


    And she quite honestly didn''t know if she deserved to get off that easily.


    "Wanna go to the mess?" Aisha suddenly asked.


    "Thiste??" Serana questioned.


    "Sure. Most of our member''s parents are usually up around this time cause Miss Brenda gives out ice cream and malt liquor."


    At the mention of two things that could be used to drown her sorrows, Serena''s face seemed to be a little bit brighter.


    "Okay.. but should I fix myself up first..? I probably look like hell."


    "You look fine, kid. No one is going to be paying attention to us anyway." Aishaughed.


    "I guess you''re right." Serana shrugged.


    Discreetly, Serana and Aisha got up from the couch while trying not to wake Rose.


    "By the way, where''s Aubrey..?" Serana whispered.


    "Out teaching Mal the value of honesty and family."


    "Oh.. okay."


    -


    Aisha and Serana did end up going to the mess to get ice cream and liquor, but it proved to be much more crowded than they expected.


    Just as surprising was the fact that they ended up running into a familiar, equally heartbroken face while they were on their excursion.


    They found Mnie looking rather depressed as she stared into her bowl.


    They didn''t even have to ask what was bothering her.


    Sensing a kindred spirit among them, the two of them invited her toe along with them on their journey of healing.


    The trio carried their bowls with them outside of the base to the ledge overlooking the mountain range that housed them.


    In the midst of the cool night air and wrapped in nkets, the three of them exchanged their sorrows.


    "So... you guys and Rose, huh?" Mnie asked.


    Aisha grimaced as she stared into the deep gorge in front of them.


    "Yea... it''s kind of a shock if I''m honest. And I wouldn''t really say that Aubrey and I are taking it well."


    "But she was just with us?" Serana asked with ice cream all over her face.


    "Yea... she doesn''t want to make things awkward so we''ve been trying to stay on friendly terms, you know..? But it''s honestly even harder like this."


    As if it was pre-determined, the three of them took big gulps of alcohol at the exact same time before working their way through their ice cream once again.


    "I can''t believe I threw myself at Mal like that and jeopardized my friendships with the girls... I feel disgusted with myself... even more than normal." Mnie muttered.


    "But they''ve already forgiven you though, and so has he. Don''t keep beating yourself up over it."


    "Easier said than done..." Mnie said with a forced smile.


    "Hey... isn''t that Miss Nyx''s chariot?"


    Serana suddenly pointed high up in the sky, at a flying ck carriage being pulled by two nightmarish looking horses.


    "M-Mchi and Aiubrey''s mom!?" Mnie panicked.


    "Don''t be nervous, she''s super sweet." Seranaforted.


    "I-In more ways than one.." Aisha added dreamily.


    "That''s your best friend''s mom!"


    "S-So!? Mal went after yours!"


    "...That''s a good point, you''re both bastards."


    "Hey!"


    In the midst of their bickering, Nyx''s carriage drew closer and closer until itnded in the clearing right behind the girls.


    "Those are some big ass horses... think she would let me ride one?"


    "Probably." Serana admitted as the three of them stood up to wee their favorite maternal visitor.


    The carriage doors opened and Nyx stepped out; somehow wearing an evenrger smile than usual.


    "Hello, my darlings! What are you doing out here sote?"


    "Drowning our sorrows in sugar and trying not to kill ourselves." Serana held out her half eaten bowl to show Nyx.


    Aisha: "Umm, I''m not quite there yet.."


    Mnie: "Me neither.."


    "Oh? It''s just me then."Serana shrugged uncaringly and just went back to eating like nothing happened.


    ''...We shouldn''t leave her alone for a while.'' Aisha made a small mental note to keep better tabs on her friend.


    However, Nyx justughed as if she found such concerning humor intriguing.


    "Oh my dear, you never cease to amuse me. I think you''ll be finding some reasons to live very soon."


    *With a mouthful of ice cream* "Oh yea? The hell''s taking them so long then?"


    At that moment, Serana heard rustlinging from inside the carriage.


    A man suddenly stepped down into view, and all three girls felt their jaws drop.


    Previously, Mchi was the most handsome man that any of them had ever seen before, with no one in the worlding quite close to him.


    But as insane as it sounded to say, this young man was above even him.


    For starters, he was standing at a firm 6''5 in height.


    He wore a pair of dark jeans and boots paired with a tight ck t-shirt that couldn''t hide the rippling muscles and unblemished skin underneath.


    A ck leather jacket covered his body from further scrutiny, but the girls were certainly trying to develop some kind of x-ray vision at the moment.


    He had rich chocte skin, and a pair of piercing red eyes that were entirely reptilian in nature.


    Just looking into them created a paradox where they wanted to fall back in fear, and also stare into them for all of eternity.


    His hair was cut short with time crafted waves, and it appeared to be dyed purple.


    Hanging from his ears were two identical looking earrings that appeared to be egyptian in origin, and seemed like they would have cost a fortune before the world fell.


    He was so extraordinarily handsome, it took the three girls forever to notice the thick hornsing out of his head.


    With a small smirk on his face, he headed straight for Serana like she was the only other living being in the world.


    Upon inhaling his cologne, Serana felt like her brain hadpletely conked out and left her here to fend for herself.


    Raising a hand, he cupped her face in his palm gently and used his thumb to wipe away the vani ice cream around her lips before licking it away on his own.


    "This is unexpected... you''re even cuter than I thought you''d be."


    Serana, who was already emotionally unstable, fainted immediately and went down like a house of cards.


    But of course, the mysterious young man caught her before she could hit the ground.


    Nyx sighed in exhaustion.


    "I thought I asked you to make yourself uglier, Apophis."


    "I did though?"


    "Not enough!"


    Before either Aisha or Mnie could ask who or what this person was, two more individuals stepped down from the carriage.


    And they both followed Serena''s example and fainted at the sight of them.

 Chapter 275: The Children of Tathamet

    In the dead of night, arge winged creature could be seen flying at Mach 3 high above the clouds.


    It had the form of arge shadowy looking bird and was evenrger than an airne.


    Riding on the back of the majestic shadowy creature were the saint siblings; each of whom were deep in thought.


    Aubrey was making symbols with her fingers as she consciously kept the wind pressure from ripping her flesh off.


    And Mchi was busy reading a few of the documents that he had pilfered from theb.


    "They really did it.."


    "What?"


    "They''ve developed a series of serums that neutralize the powers of blessed... They are tailored specifically to attack certain strains like pyro, cryo, and electrokinesis."


    Find more at m-vle-mp _yr.


    "Jesus..."


    "There are also ones designed in the forms of gasses that eat away at enhanced physiques and render them useless... There also seem to be ways to impede telekinesis and telepathy via lobotomy."


    "How..? How is that even possible??" Aubrey asked in horror.


    Mchi''s face became even darker as he flipped to another page of the files.


    "They did it by... using leftover magical materials stored somewhere called ''The Bank''... used in conjunction with harvested cells taken from captives."


    "So... they literally are turning us against each other then...?"


    "Seems like it..."


    Both siblings sat in silence for upwards of several minutes with no way of shaking this gross feeling they felt inside.


    "My god... how did the world get to this point..?"


    "Things have always been like this, Aubrey. This is just the struggle of this age I guess."


    "You''re starting to sound like Arias.." Aubrey noted.


    Mchi stared at the familiar mountain that they were drawing closer and closer to by the second and a bit of relief crept into his tired mind.


    "It''s funny... for the first time ever he doesn''t soundpletely crazy... But I know I shouldn''t think like that."


    Before Aubrey could say anything, the shadowy birdnded on top of the mountain and both Aubrey and Mchi sensed something amiss.


    "Is that.. Thanatos?" Mal asked.


    "N-No, I would be able to feel it more clearly if it was.. that''s someone else entirely."


    Without a moment''s hesitation, the two of them leapt off the back of the avian creature and ran towards the hidden entrance.


    -


    When Serana opened her eyes, she was in the mess hall surrounded by quite a few people.


    Raising her head, she found an unforgettable face hovering above her, and wearing a blindingly radiant smile that showed off two unnaturally sharp fangs.


    "Fainting at the sight of me on our first meeting, huh? I''m honestly pretty ttered."


    Serana felt all of the blood in her body rush to her cheeks as her face became a concerningly bright shade of red.


    "Who is that..?"


    "I think I''m ovting now.."


    "I-I don''t know which one I want more.."


    "W-What''s with the horns though..?"


    "They have horns..? Didn''t notice.."


    "I swear I''m straight, but... if they had 20 dors and either of them just so happened to ask, then..."


    Serana momentarily nced past the impossibly handsome man and nced at the other, equally attractive one who appeared to be his brother.


    His skin was dark, but it had a light ashen look to it almost as if he was already dead.


    Where his brother was dressed fashionably, he had a somewhatzy look with only a grey hoodie and sweatpants covering his body.


    Though his hoodie waspletely unzipped and allowed everyone present to view the unequaled abs and muscture on his torso.


    He had short, grey dreadlocks that were mostly tied in a ponytail behind his head, with a few loose strands decorating his face.


    Like his brother, he also had hornsing out of his head.


    His eyes were ck and almost soulless, but they seemed to contain an undeniable warmth as he stared at Mnie who was still asleep on his shoulder.


    Serana suddenly felt a hand touch her chin and guide her head back towards the man in front of her.


    "Where are you looking...? Are you trying to make me jealous?"


    Serana, who already had little experience with men to begin with, was utterly unprepared for this kind of assault.


    "I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I..."


    "What is going on here?"


    At that moment, Mchi and Aubrey appeared in the mess hall where a crowd had formed around the two strange neers.


    Both were monumentally caught off guard by their enticing appearance, but Mchi had bigger concerns than that.


    To him, someone he didn''t know was standing in his home and touching someone who was very dear to him.


    "You... get away from Serana right now. And tell me how the hell you got in here."


    In an instant, the young man in the leather jacket underwent a change of disposition.


    His gaze became monumentally unfriendly, and Mal could have sworn that he saw the back of his throat start to glow.


    "If it''s all the same to you, I think I''ll decline. I''m really enjoying herpany you see."


    "It wasn''t a request. You can move or be moved. " Mchi drew his weapon and had it take the form of a double-sided ck spear. "I won''t warn you again."


    Serana finally pulled herself together and tried to diffuse the situation, but it was toote.


    The man beside her stood up and peeled off his leather jacket before draping it over Serana''s shoulders.


    Apophis took one single step before he appeared in front of Mchi like a ghost and ripped his spear from his grasp.


    "Cute toy. Did ite with chicken nuggets and a juice box?"


    The tails on Mal''s back reacted at a near blinding speed andshed out at the man in front of them, but somethingpletely unexpected happened.


    Not only did their fangs break against his skin, but even when their venom leaked out it didn''t cause so much as a rash on his skin.


    Though it did burn the color out of his clothes like bleach.


    "Bastard... My darling ire got me this shirt."


    With reflexes faster than any Mal had ever seen, the horned man reached out with one hand and yanked up Mal by the neck, and with the other he ripped away his ruined shirt; revealing a body that even marble statues paled inparison to.


    If one listened closely, they could clearly hear the sound of Serana''s forehead bouncing off the table as she fainted again.


    As Mal prepared to use all of his power to get free, an unfamiliar name was suddenly called out in the midst of the mess; along with the clicking of heels.


    "APOPHIS, YOU BASTARDDDDD!!"


    Out of nowhere, a blonde-haired rocket flew at the horned man headfirst and struck him full force in the temple.


    A sound like that of a cannon going off rang out, and the man dropped to the ground like a sack of potatoes.


    "God damn it, Thea, why!?!" Apophis cried as he held his temple.


    "Don''t ''why'' me! I leave you for two damn minutes and you''re already picking fights??"


    "H-He started it!"


    "Save it!"


    Suddenly, the young woman turned to the other brother, who was still sitting at the mess table with his nose buried in his phone.


    "And you, Belloc! Why werent you trying to stop him?!"


    At this, the young man lifted his head up and showed a smile of pure amusement.


    "Sorry, what was that? Apparently our old man turned himself into a baby and Aunt Lusamine just sent me the pictures. This is gold."


    "...WHAT!?"


    "Don''t worry, she says it''s not permanent and he''s gonna be fine."


    "I-I... Whatever!" Frustrated by so many things that she didn''t understand happening at once, the young woman finally turned her attention back to Aubrey and Mchi.


    "I''m really sorry about my idiots- I mean, brothers. I hope that this one didn''t hurt you too bad."


    Mchi and Aubrey gulped audibly as they came face to face with the most beautiful woman either of them had ever seen.


    She was tall for a woman, at a full 6''0 in height.


    Her body was in excellent shape, and was paired with an abundance of curves and unblemished caramel skin that was practically golden.


    She wore a white crop top with an image of a heart across her chest, and a ck jean jacket across her shoulders.


    Her skirt was short enough that one could see her long, toned legs and thighs that resembled a stairway to heaven.


    On her feet were simple wedged heels that made her look even taller and amazon-like, and she had three different rings located on her left hand.


    Her beautiful amethyst eyes shone like gemstones as she curled her full lips up into a smile.


    "Nice to meet you two. My name is Thea Tathamet, and these are my brothers Belloc and Apophis. We look forward to working with you."


    At that moment, the Saint siblings could only say one thing as their nostrils started to bleed.


    ""Damn...""

 Chapter 276: Making Introductions

    "Ma¡­What the hell is this?"


    "Welllll¡­. You could call them helpers and sightseers?" Nyx smiled innocently in the hopes that she could disarm her son.


    Mchi folded his arms and leaned back into the couch next to Aubrey.


    It didn''t work.


    "Helpers? Sightseers??" Aubrey questioned.


    "W-Well their father is a friend of mine, and they wanted to stretch their legs from theirnds a bit, so he entrusted them to my care.


    A-And since they were here I asked if they would not mind working only as stationary security for the base and they epted!"


    Behind Nyx, the trio of Tathamet siblings nodded in confirmation.


    "Who is their father? I didn''t know you had friends." Aubrey asked.


    Nyx felt like she had somehow just been made fun of. story by m|v_l,e,m,p,y,r


    "Y-You''ll meet himter if the fates are kind. He can''t really move around as freely as these three."


    "?" Aubrey and Mchi tilted their heads in unison.


    "A-Anyway, just know that they are only here to help¡­" Nyx said as she stared at Mchi. "¡­Are you upset with me for meddling?"


    Mal recalled he and Aubrey''s earlier conversation in painful detail, and the answer to her question came easily to him.


    "No¡­ I''m grateful to you for trying to help, Ma. Thank you¡­ but are you absolutely sure that these three can be trusted?"


    The eyes of the brothers narrowed, meanwhile the sister continued to nce about the room in wonder.


    ''This is a cool ce¡­ I should decorate my own inner world a little better.'' She thought.


    Meanwhile, Nyx easily waived away his concerns.


    "Yes, they are a trustworthy sort who understand the meaning of integrity. Dragons so rarely have the appetite for treachery."


    "¡­"


    "¡­"


    """""¡­Dragons?!"""""


    Mchi nced over his shoulder where Aisha, Serana, and Mnie were all peeping around the corner like small rodents.


    Evidently, they were as shocked by the news as anyone.


    Though Nyx sighed in disappointment. "Honestly, you didn''t know? Two of them have horns on their heads."


    "I thought they were demons.."


    "Sex demons¡­"


    "Oh¡­ well they are that as well, but you should really learn the difference between dragons and demons'' horns. It might save you a lot of hassle in the future."


    Aubrey let her eyes wander to the top of Thea''s head, and she noticed her obviousck of bony appendages.


    "Umm¡­ I don''t mean to be rude but, .. howe you don''t have horns, Thea?"


    The golden haired girl seemed to be positively delighted by the sound of her nameing out of Aubrey''s mouth and she lit up like a Christmas tree.


    "Unlike the rest of my siblings I was born human, and to better deepen rtions between my people and humanity, my father lets me stay this way. Though I still would not say that I''m exactly ''normal''¡­"


    ''You certainly are not¡­'' Everyone in the room who could see Thea was either jealous of her or wanted to sleep with her.


    Aisha was both.


    "Ah, your people¡­? Does that mean you are some kind of royalty?" Aubrey asked.


    "¡­" All three siblings turned their heads away and began whistling inconspicuously.


    Now more than ever, the Saint siblings were monumentally concerned about exactly why these three were here in the first ce.


    "I¡­ don''t get it. Why would the children of some kind of kinge to earth to sightsee when the entire ce is in ruins?"


    "I don''t know about ruins¡­" Thea began. "The parts that I have seen so far are iparably beautiful."


    Everyone in the room could see Thea staring at Aubrey without an ounce of hidden interest or appreciation.


    Causing the young woman''s ears to get hot and forcing her to look away out of reflex.


    Aisha suddenly leapt over the couch to Aubrey''s defense and tried to stave off Thea''s advances.


    "H-Hey, I don''t know what kind of princess you are but you can''t flirt with my girlfriend right in front of me like that!"


    Thea took a moment to blink away her surprise before her smile became as wide as a Cheshire cat''s.


    "I''m sorry¡­ I had no idea that you two were already in a rtionship¡­ Do you think you could have any room in your hearts for me?"


    Complete, and utter, silence.


    Mal''s mouth fell open.


    Nyx felt jealous.


    Belloc and Apophis rolled their eyes.


    And Aisha tried to stop her entire face from turning red.


    "I¡­ we¡­"


    "I''m sorry." Aubrey suddenly stood up and lowered her head respectfully.


    "Truthfully, I don''t really think Aisha and I are in the ce to be starting things with someone else right now. I hope you can understand."


    With Thea left stunned, Aubrey grabbed Aisha by the hand and the two of them left Mal''s quarters rather quickly.


    Nyx nced at Thea to see how she would be taking such a firm rejection and maybe capitalize on an opportunity to y ''shoulder to cry on''.


    However, upon inspection she found that Thea''s smile was just as blindingly radiant as before.


    No, in fact it was even brighter.


    Nyx even waived her hand in front of Thea''s face to snap her out of her giddy state, but it was to no avail.


    "Boys?"


    ""Hm?""


    "Is your sister the kind of woman who enjoys women who y hard to get?"


    ""Uh-huh.""


    "Interesting¡­ Does your father also share this dispo-"


    ""No.""


    "Damnit¡­ On an unrted note, care to tell me about this baby situation back home?"


    Belloc''s face lit up and he started to pull out his phone, but stopped at thest second. "Wait a minute¡­ are you going to try to take advantage of him?"


    "Probabl- I mean, no."


    Belloc slipped his phone back onto his pocket and ignored Nyx as if she weren''t even there.


    "Well, since the introductions are out of the way¡­" Apophis walked over to Serana who was still wearing his jacket and boldly took her hand.


    "Would you mind giving me a tour? I''m interested in seeing all that this ce has to offer."


    Serana''s eyes became glossy all over again and the words in her brain became all jumbled and messy.


    "I-I-I-I think do that I can..!"


    Apophisughed melodically as he gently led the somewhat ditzy girl towards the elevator.


    Mnie followed behind them, expecting to head to bed for the night when suddenly Belloc slipped into the elevator with them and took herpletely by surprise.


    Finally beginning to catch on, Mal turned back towards his mother with an exhausted look on his face.


    "So when you said that they came here to sightsee you meant¡­"


    "Uh-huh."


    "¡­Is every dragon like that?"


    "Only the best ones!"


    Mchi sighed as he stood up to handle tonight''s lingering business.


    For now, he would get the rescued into the medical ward and the prisoners into the makeshift jail downstairs.


    Though these weren''t enviable tasks, he was almost certain they would be thest moments of quiet he received for the foreseeable future.

 Chapter 277: The Place is Getting Crowded…

    Sitting in the middle of the medical wing, Mchi snapped his fingers and a small coalition of around 25 men and women appeared within the room.


    Every one of them were practically bone thin, and they were wearing white hospital gowns with their backs hanging out.


    Mal recognized a few of them from T.V. and blessed events from before the world fell.


    It tore his heart apart to see these once beautiful and vibrant people in the same kind of condition he found Joanne in after returning home.


    "You''ve all been through a lot, huh...? I promise that you''re all in good hands now."


    Needless to say, several of the refugees seemed to be put off by his appearance and voice, while others were so out of it from the abuse that they were practically robotic.


    "I know this might be a little jarring, but¡­ I need you all to trust me, alright?"


    Mchi held out his hands and dark tendrils of a wispy energy left his fingertips en masse.


    Of course, a few people panicked at the sight of a strange attacking towards them from a 6''6 demon, and even tried to run.


    But ultimately, they were too slow to escape, and were eventually caught by the tendrils.


    And instead of being attacked, or filled with pain, their inner turmoil and depression was eaten away, bit by bit.


    "I... What is this..?"


    "It feels a bit cold, but... it''s nice..."


    "I feel relieved somehow..."


    Mchi ate more negativity in that moment than he ever had in his life, and this was the first time that it ever caused him to feel slightly ''full''.


    When the refugees were no longer on the verge of suicide, Mchi pulled back his hands and smiled at them reassuringly.


    "You all should be feeling a little better now, am I right?"


    Stunned, the formerly captive blessed could only nod their heads as their mouths fell open.


    "Good to hear it. Now, where should I begin..." Read first on m|v|l|e|m|p|y|r.


    Mchi started floating with his legs crossed as he absentmindedly began to pet Manda.


    "I guess I should say... you all are safe now. My name is Mchi Saint, and this little group of mine is-"


    "Holy shit, Mchi?!"


    "The hell happened to you?!"


    "You look like something from the dark side of pornhub now!"


    "Not gonna lie, I really fuck with the snakes."


    "T-Then is it true what they said...? About you being connected to the aliens...?"


    Mchi had really forgotten just how famous that he had been before the world went kaput.


    He smiled wryly as he tried to think of which question to answer first, when suddenly an even bigger celebrity than him walked into the room.


    "HOLY SHIT IT''S LUNA AUTUMN!"


    "WHY DID NOBODY TELL US SHE WAS HERE!? WHY DID NOBODY TELL US SHE WAS HERE!?"


    *Unintelligible fangirl screaming.*


    *Unintelligible fanboy screaming.*


    Luna wore a simple, superstar-like smile as she stepped into the room.


    Since it waste at night and she had only just gotten out of bed, all she was wearing were a simple pair of leggings and a pullover she had stolen- I mean, borrowed from Mal.


    However, her clothes did nothing to stop her from looking like a superstar.


    She had an icy, yet cool smile that made all of her rabid admirers lose their minds.


    Before addressing the people, she slipped her arms around Mchi and kissed him in front of everyone.


    ...And because his snakes where attention whores, they demanded the same treatment too but were ignored.


    But then, Luna caved and kissed them once each on the heads.


    "What are you doing up sote?" Mal asked, though he was clearly happy to see her.


    "Well, I couldn''t right sleep since our bed was a little empty." she dug.


    Mal scratched his cheek then looked away in embarrassment.


    "Since I was up, I went into the living room to check on the girls when your mother introduced me to our... new helpers.


    They seem nice, but the boys don''t really appear to have any interest in anything other than Serana and Mnie. They barely shook my hand."


    Truthfully, Mal wondered just why two dragon princes were both so focused on the human girls.


    And given what had just happened to Serana, as well as their horrid first meeting... he was more than a little suspicious of Apophis, and he wasn''t sure how to deal with him.


    He was Serena''s best friend / unofficial step father, so he had a duty to remain vignt above all else!


    Luna, or Emi, finally released Mchi and turned her attention back towards her starstruck fans.


    "Hello everyone, and wee to Nightfall. I''m not exactly sure what my husband has told you, but..."


    ''She called me her husband...'' Mal covered his mouth and crotch so that no one would notice his giddy smile or the rising tent in his pants.


    Meanwhile, Luna continued her speech and tried to get the new additions up to speed.


    "...This ce is a self sustainingmunity with the goal of helping others we find who are caught in the crossfire or stuck in the wastnds.


    We''re sort of like a big family here, and our only rules are that you help out to the best of your capabilities, and do not antagonize or discriminate against any of our members.


    That aside, we''re sure that you''ve all been through a gruesome ordeal, so if you''ll allow it I want to admit you to this here medical wing so that we can help get you all some nutrients and ensure you''re in good health.


    I understand you may be averse to this given what you just went through, but please know that no one here wishes to harm you."


    Needless to say, there were more than a few of the blessed who didn''t look like they were too keen on being injected, or prodded, with anything ever again.


    And honestly, who could me them?


    The experience they had just lived through was unlike anything any sentient creature should ever have to endure at any point in their lives.


    And even though Mal had ''eaten'' their negativity, the resulting trauma had already damaged their brains, and they would never be the same ever again.


    However, despite all of this, one by one, a few of the refugees started to climb onto the various beds and nced at Luna with gazes of trust.


    The scene left her more than just a little bit touched.


    "Thank you all." she said sincerely. "We will do our best to make sure that your trust is not misced."


    Luna waived her hand and a team of nursing professionals came streaming in.


    They were led by Celeste, who conveniently avoided even ncing in Mchi''s direction.


    Though he could see her ears getting red as she walked past him.


    "Can I borrow you for a moment, hon?" Luna asked as she started to pull him away.


    She and Mchi made their way out into the hallway, where she finally let her face darken.


    "I''m d that we''ve got them here where they are safe and sound, but... their numbers are a bit of a problem. We only have around five avable quarters left before we are at capacity.


    And then there is the matter of clothing... I can see if some of our members have some things they are willing to donate, but I fear that most don''t have very much to give..."


    Mchi''s face darkened to mirror Luna''s, and the two of them seemed to share in a moment of despondence.


    "This is my fault." she muttered. "I should have anticipated arger volume of-"


    "Don''t go there." Mchi squeezed Luna''s hand reassuringly. "You did the best you could with the resources you had to get this ce built in time and as efficiently as possible. You couldn''t have known what this whole thing would turn into."


    Luna smiled softly as she rested her head on Mal''s shoulder. "Then what will we do? How do we get these people the level offort and security that they deserve?"


    Mchi fumbled for an answer that he didn''t really have.


    When he finally was about to blurt out some kind of half cocked n, a sweet voice interrupted them both.


    "I''m sorry... did I hear you were having spacial issues?"


    Looking back, the two of them found the always beautiful Thea wearing her usual radiant smile and with an unusuallyrge twinkle in her purple eyes.


    "I don''t mean to pry, but... I think I might have a solution that will help you out with that if you''re willing to listen."


    She held up the beautiful golden bracelet around her left wrist, and the bright red gem inside started to glow brightly.


    Miraculously, all three of them were teleported from the hallway to an unknown location¡­

 Chapter 278: Theatopolis? Theatlantis? Thealon?

    Luna, Mchi, and Thea were currently standing on a literalke in the wilderness.


    The water possessed a flurry of faint, dark blue energy wafting off it, and it would be easy to mistake them for fireflies if one wasn''t looking hard enough.


    Though this ce appeared to be sort of somber at first nce, closer inspection would confirm it to be a ce beautiful beyond description.


    Mal found it very simr to the forest in the movie ''Avatar'' at night.


    There was only one building here, and that was akeside manor that was even nicer than the kind you would see on home improvement shows.


    But there was something that was preventing Mal from enjoying the scenery.


    The pressure.


    It was even worse than Zeus''.


    Not only Mal, but Luna also felt if they made even the smallest move or breathed improperly, they were going to die.


    And nothing could save them.


    *Sniff, sniff*


    Mal contacted Luna telepathically. ''Babe... did you-''


    ''J-Just a little bit! I couldn''t help it, so don''t say anything or I''ll murder you!''


    Mchi was about tough at Luna''s little incident when he suddenly heard two of the absolute loudest roars he''d ever heard in his life.


    His and Luna''s ears bled immediately as they doubled over, and Mal''s serpents promptly shrank under his shirt to protect themselves.


    Out of the corner of his eye, Mchi saw two great creatures doing battle in the sky.


    One was a charcoal gray dragon with a western style build, but a much more slender and bony body.


    The other looked like a mix between a phoenix and a dragon, and was encased in burning blue mes bright enough to mimic the sun.


    Both creatures roared at each other defiantly as they did battle.


    The first dragon summoned argence made entirely of ck thunder, and it''s counterpart drew two swords made of eternal me.


    They swung their weapons in wide arcs, and generated turbulent winds even before their collision.


    Thea: "BABE! STHENO! Stop fighting, you''re scaring my new friends!"


    As if the two were never in a heated struggle, both dragons stopped and turned toward theke where the trio of smaller beings stood.


    Underneath the weight of the dragons'' gaze, Mchi and Luna''s legs turned to jelly.


    They would have fallen over into the water, were an outside force not holding them upright. (Thea)


    Almost on cue, both dragons flew towards theke where they stood.


    The closer they came, the bigger they realized that they were.


    From faraway they looked like they were the size of a small building at most, but in truth both of them were closer to 90 meters.


    When theynded on the surroundingkebed, the dragon made from me shrank, while it''s more slenderpanion stared at them ominously without saying a word.


    The dragon who transformed was revealed to be even more beautiful than Thea. (As crazy as it sounded.)


    She was her same height, but she looked to be of Asian descent and had long, fiery red hair.


    Like Thea, her body was toned, yet still very feminine and awe inspiring.


    Her bright amethyst eyes were made only brighter by her blinding white smile that was present as she ran towards Thea with her arms out.


    As she puckered her lips for a kiss, Thea sped her hand over her mouth to interrupt it.


    ''W-What are you doing, babe!? You know we aren''t supposed to appear like normal in front of them!''


    ''R-Right, I forgot!''


    The red haired girl quickly turned her back and tried to make some small ''adjustments'' but the damage was done.


    When she turned back around, she found Luna huddled over theke as she traced her fingers in the water.


    Mchi was rubbing her back as he consoled her.


    "Darling... I-I''m not ugly, right?"


    "Of course not, Emi. To me, there is no one more beautiful than you and the girls."


    "LIAR!"


    "I-I am not!"


    Emi hadn''t been insecure in years, but as of right now she felt like she was in her pubescent body all over again.


    She grabbed her stomach and despaired over thest bit of baby weight that she hadn''t quite gotten rid of. (Her imagination)


    "T-That''s it, we''re going on diets..."


    "Eh? But you don''t need to do that."


    "I said WE''RE going on diets! All seven of us!"


    "Be serious..."


    "I need your support in this trying time, so stop cooking so much!"


    "Fine, you wanna be the one to tell Anna and Jo they can''t eat meat and sugar whenever they feel like it? They are already having a hard enough time doing without potato chips and hot pockets."


    Luna thought about it for a moment before still nodding, uncaring of the danger.


    "I-I''ll tell them... Maybe I''ll lose a little weight when they punch a hole in my stomach..."


    Mal rolled his eyes.


    "We should also have more sex for excercise."


    "I have absolutely no issue with that and am behind you 100%."


    "With our eyes closed though... I don''t think I want you to see me naked anymore."


    "I''m taking back my support."


    "HONEY!"


    Mal could only shake his head as he kissed Luna on the temple and rubbed her shoulders.


    "Umm... hello there."


    Looking up, Mchi and Luna stared into the face of the goddess from before and were briefly confused.


    She was still extremely pretty, but she wasn''t quite ''Oh my god, have sex with me now'' pretty.


    ''Maybe it was just the lighting...?'' the couple wondered.


    "I''m Thea''s wife, Jasmine. It''s nice to meet you two."


    "Wife? Weren''t you just flirting with my sister and Aisha?!" Mal said sharply.


    "Remind me, how many partners do you have again?"


    "You''re right, I''m gonna mind my business."


    Thea suddenly had one of her cheeks grabbed by Jasmine, who was now wearing a smile that was not a smile.


    "Babe¡­ who is this Aisha person? We agreed only on Nyx''s daughter."


    "W-Well yes, but she has a girlfriend that we didn''t see! And trust me, she is exactly our type, but she seems to have a very cute shy and bubbly demeanor to her!"


    Jasmine actually did look intrigued, but much to Thea''s dismay she had yet to release her cheek.


    "¡­We''ll discuss it with the others. And I wanna go back with you to meet them!"


    "Yes!"


    "You''re not off the hook though, princess."


    "Aww¡­"


    Mchi smiled wryly as he tried to ignore the heavy gaze of the grey dragon that was still breathing down his neck and staring ominously.


    It seemed to have sucked in its pressure out of respect, but it''s presence was still a heavy one.


    "A-Ah, Thea..? This wouldn''t happen to be another of your wives would it?" Mal asked as he pointed over his shoulder.


    "Oh? Sorry, that''s Bell-Bell''s fianc¨¦, Stheno. She''s a little quiet and shy."


    "Si mi ti shy." The dragon finally said. (I am not shy.)


    When she finally spoke, her voice rattled around in the brains of the couple beneath her like nothing they had ever heard.


    Their brains felt like they were about to turn into jelly.


    "Hey, can youe back down to our size and speak in English? You''re gonna make them pee themselves again." Thea asked therge dragon.


    Luna''s face went as red as her now slightly wet underwear.


    There was a sudden burst of light, and therge dragon was suddenly reced by a woman.


    And briefly, Mal could have sworn that she was N''Kai.


    They both had deep, ck skin and ck sclera paired with glowing irises.


    Only hers were red.


    At 6''4, she was even taller than Thea and Jasmine, and she had an even more cut and chiseled figure.


    Her only clothes were a sports bra and a very tight pair of leggings that highlighted every muscle and curve along her lower half.


    Her long metallic silver hair was tied back in a ponytail, but still crested all the way to the back of her legs.


    "Apologies. As monster-kin, I thought you could bear the burden."


    "You''re a general, Sthen." Thea reminded. "There isn''t a whole lot that can withstand your pressure."


    Stheno folded her arms across her chest.


    Her facial features were a bit robotic, but she almost seemed to be rather proud of herself.


    "I forget that. I am rather potent, aren''t I?"


    No, she was definitely proud of herself¡­


    Mal smiled wryly, as his snakes slipped out of his shirt.


    "Nice to meet you¡­I know that I might look a little monstrous, but I''m actually a kind of alien¡­ though this kinda mistake happens a lot."


    For some reason, Stheno''s eyes narrowed.


    "I don''t make mistakes. My master is the origin of all monsters, frightening or cute, furry or scaly. Do you think I cannot recognize an i-"


    "A-Alright! So what do you guys think?!" Thea suddenly interjected in an over the top manner.


    While Mal was left a little stunned, Luna did all the talking.


    "Thea.. what exactly is this ce?"


    "Fufufu.. Shall I tell you? This is¡­ ah, wait. I never gave it a name¡­ uhh, g-give me a second." Smoke wasing out of Thea''s ears from thinking so hard.


    "It''s her personal world." Jasmine shrugged.


    "Babe!"


    "You''re overthinking this, cuteness. Just call it Thea-Land and keep it pushing."


    "Eh?! I don''t like that one, I want something cuter and more mystical!"


    "You''ll survive, pookie."


    "Stop giving me pet names and help me!"


    "No can do, thickness."


    "O-Okay, well I don''t hate that one¡­"


    Luna rubbed her temples as she tried to prevent herself from falling over.


    "I''m sorry¡­ are you telling me that this is an entire..? And you are its sole owner?"


    "Only a small one, around three quarters the size of earth I think. My dad''s is a lot bigger."


    "How much bigger¡­?"


    "Infinite?"


    Luna''s jaw fell open and Thea smiled proudly.


    "So what do you guys think? There should be more than enough room here to deal with your overflow, right?"


    "I-I¡­ yea, but where would they stay?" Mal asked. "That house is nice, but it doesn''t look big enough to hold all of them."


    "Oh no, that''s where the rest of my family and brothers'' wives are staying. I''ll create something new for the refugees!"


    ""¡­Excuse me?""


    Once again, Thea smiled proudly as she held out her hands.


    "We told you, this is my world. And that means that I can create almost anything here. Shall I show you?"

 Chapter 279: Accomodations

    Currently, Mchi and Luna were staring in awe of a building that they had seen literally be created out of thin air.


    From the outside, it looked like some sort of high rise apartment building.


    Luna and Mal, both with their mouths wide open, stared at the great structure before turning to each other.


    Without saying a word, the two of them ran inside like kids at an amusement park.


    "Aww, they''re so cute." Thea chuckled.


    - 7 Minutes Later


    "Well? What''d you think?" Thea asked with a proud smile.


    The couple were absolutely speechless.


    Thea had created a building that was almost exactly like the base they already had, but better.


    The farming area? Bigger.


    The cafe? BIGGER!


    The quarters? Magic Mike XXL.


    There were even certain amenities there that Luna didn''t even consider during her construction of nightfall, like a public and private pool, gaming room, adult lounge with a fully stocked bar, and an entire medical floor, a real daycare area, and more.


    "I know it''s a lot, but I figured that since you guys are big on saving people I know you''ll probably have a lot more bodies in the future, so I figured it would be best to over prepare a bit."


    *Mal and Luna are currently stunned into silence.*


    "Oh, but I meant to tell you that anything that you try to take with you when you leave will just disintegrate so long as it originated from here.


    BUT topensate for that, I can slow time down or speed it up in here as much as I like! Sweet, huh?"


    *Mal and Luna are currently still stunned into silence.*


    "Ah, what else am I forgetting... Oh, right since I can''t recreate meat and all, we''ll have to hunt it at first, so I hope you guys know how to get your hands dirty... On a random note, do you think you guys are allergic to monster meat?"


    *Mchi & Luna. exe has stopped responding.*


    Jasmine tapped her wife on the shoulder and shook her head sadly.


    "Babe, I think you''re overwhelming them just a bit. The light seems to have left their eyes."


    Thea looked back at Mal and Luna only to realize that her wife was right.


    "Ah... This must be a lot to take in, huh?" Thea said as she scratched her cheek in embarrassment. "Do you have any questions, or-"


    ""Are you a goddess...??""


    "Not yet!" Thea said proudly.


    "O-On a more serious note.." Luna began. "How are our members supposed to get to and from here easily? You all won''t be around here forever, will you?"


    "Nah, I''ll be taking visits back home when I start to miss my parents too, so I''ll give you something simr to a set of keys. Your hand please?"


    Mchi shrugged as he warily gave Thea his hand.


    Both Luna and Jasmine stared daggers into him, seemingly daring him to enjoy it in any way shape or form.


    He found Luna to be cute, but was absolutely terrified of Jasmine, so he didn''t even crack a smile.


    Thea held up one of her fingers, and the tip started to glow.


    She traced some sort of symbol or rune onto the top of his hand.


    It glowed momentarily before disappearing like a mere trick of the light.


    "There! Now all you need to do when you want toe here is hold it up to your mouth, say ''Base'' and open any door.


    Then, you''ll appear right here or back in the base with no dy. Are you impressed yet?" She smiled.


    ""¡­Are you sure you aren''t a goddes-""


    "I''ll take that as a yes!""


    -


    The next morning, a meeting was held over breakfast with the entire organization of Nightfall in attendance.


    For the past four minutes, Mchi had been talking and trying to exin who the three tall, hot, and horned people behind him were.


    But no one really seemed to listen to his actual words.


    "So, I''m sure you all will be thrilled to know that from now on, there''ll be no more patrols necessary. These three are officially acting as our very own private security, so we can all rest a lot easier."


    Mal finally noticed that nobody was even following his words, and their eyes were mostly glued to the three inhumanely attractive siblings.


    "I''ll just let them introduce themselves then." he chuckled.


    As soon as Mal stepped down, Apophis stepped forward with his hands behind his back like a trained soldier.


    As soon as he opened his mouth to speak, multiple hands shot up.


    "Uh...Yes?"


    "I heard we''re almost at capacity, so do you need a roommate!? On apletely unrted note, I''m a gymnast."


    Apophis smirked as his eyes found a familiar pink haired girl in the crowd.


    "Thank you, but I think I''d like to stay with Miss Serana, if she''ll have me."


    Serana, who was in the middle of a ss of orange juice, was more than a little caught off guard and her eyes practically burst from her skull.


    She quickly covered her face in embarrassment, hoping that he hadn''t seen her beverageing out of her nose. (He had)


    While Serana was currently receiving envious gazes from almost every woman in the cafeteria, Nadine and Anna were only just getting off the elevator.


    The vampire was currently giving the sleeping goth girl a piggyback ride, as Anna had dered that it was too early for her to be using her feet. (It was almost 10 am.)


    "Don''t jiggle me so much, you''re making it hard to stay asleep¡­"


    "You might as well wake up, how do you think you''re gonna eat if you''re unconscious?"


    "Babe will feed me¡­"


    Nadine started tough when she suddenly stopped dead in her tracks after leaving the elevator.


    Her very pulse quickened, and she felt a panic set in that she hadn''t experienced ever sinceing to earth.


    Her eyes darted over to the crowded seating area, where three individuals she had never seen before were standing among the crowd and introducing themselves.


    Anna only opened her eyes when she noticed Nadine had stopped walking, and she gave her a curious poke on the cheek. "What''s the holdup? I want pancakes¡­"


    "Ah¡­ I''m sorry, Anna, but could you go on ahead without me..? I''m suddenly not feeling all that well."


    "Hm? You were just fine a moment ago though."


    "I-I know, but it''s just a a sudden stomach thing I''m feeling. I think being around food might make it worse."


    "Umm¡­ do vampires even get stomach bugs?" Anna asked suspiciously.


    "Y-Yea, some do. They are kind of like allergies or morning sickness."


    "D-Does that mean-"


    "No, I''m not pregnant¡­!"


    "Boo¡­" Anna sleepily crawled down from Nadine''s back and gave her a hug before heading towards the cafe with everyone else.


    "Feel better. I''ll send Sei back down to check on you after we''re done."


    "Oh, that''s¡­ a-alright."


    Nadine hurriedly ran back into the elevator and pressed the button that would take her back to their quarters.


    As the doors slid closed, she identally locked eyes with the two horned men introducing themselves.


    It was only for a moment, but as soon as the two of them saw her they red at her with so much ferocity that she fell back onto her butt.


    When the doors shut, Nadine curled up into a ball and tried to prevent herself from crying hysterically.


    "Darling, I don''t want to die¡­ I don''t want to die¡­!"

 Chapter 280: Shadow & Shadow

    After breakfast, Mchi carried Camille to the impromptu daycare center that had been set up in the base.


    She was excited because, for the first time ever, the little munchkin wasn''t the only baby in the ce.


    Stepping inside, of a particr room, Mchi was once again greeted by the sight of a space decked out in children''s apparel.


    Arts and crafts projects on the walls, letters of the alphabet, and even a few childish looking maps and cartoon characters.


    In the middle of the floor running around on pallets were a total of seven children.


    However, these children were a bit different from normal ones.


    They were baby abominations.


    Complete with dark tattoos given by Aubrey, these adorable little ones were monstrous beasts no more and instead had be tiny bundles of joy.


    Mchi ced Camille on the ground and she excitedly ran up to hug her two friends; a boy and a girl, both of whom had yet to be named.


    Though it was unfortunate, the most of the mothers who felt they had a moral obligation to give birth, did not feel an obligation to actually parent these same children.


    So none, save for one little boy, actually possessed names or parents.


    But they remained carefree irregardless of the holes in their lives.


    Camille hugged her girl friend first and then went to hug the other.


    However, Mal snatched his daughter back up before she could hug the boy.


    "Uwa!?"


    "Let''s keep it to hand shakes and fist bumps, okay munchkin?"


    Mchi felt a hard pinch on his side and a familiar woman suddenly came from behind him to liberate Camille from his arms.


    "Stop being such a dad for two seconds... You''re going to be the reason she develops an unhealthy rtionship with the opposite sex."


    Celeste ced Camille back on the ground and the young girl ran to hug her friend; free of parental interruption.


    Wearily, Celeste turned around to face Mchi for the first time since their ufortable conversation.


    "You should understand better than anyone else that she can develop strictly tonic rtionships with boys. Your best friends are girls after all."


    "Y-Yea, but it''s kind of easy to forget that sometimes..." Mal chuckled.


    In his defense, Aisha talked about women like an old man who worked a warehouse job, and Serana ate like she was nning to audition for ''My 600 Pound Life'' one day.


    He would never remember they were girls if they didn''t forget to wear bras 90% of the time or talk about their periods.


    His friendships aside, Mchi now had a bit of romance on the brain.


    Now that he was looking at Celeste, he felt a wave of feelings threatening to jump out of his mouth.


    He wanted to ask her how she was doing, pay her a smallpliment, or even just strike up a normal conversation.


    But her eyes seemed to be pleading for him not make that choice.


    And even though he didn''t like it, he respected it nheless.


    "I''ll... see youter, Celeste."


    "Y-Yea..."


    Mal turned away begrudgingly and left the room quickly after giving Camille a kiss goodbye.


    Upon stepping into the hallway, he was startled when he found an unnecessarily handsome face leaning against the wall and waiting for him.


    "What a painful interaction." Belloc muttered without looking up.


    Annoyed, Mchi began walking away without bothering to dignify hisments with a response.


    Against his hopes and wishes, Belloc followed him in his tracks.


    "Can I help you with something?"Mal groaned.


    "We need to talk."


    "If I have to talk to one of you, I''d prefer it to be your sister. At least she''s sweet and bubbly..." Mal said, already establishing Thea as his favorite.


    "A pity. Our old man called her home, and if it''s for the reason that I think it is, you''re stuck with us for the day." Belloc shrugged.


    "I always did have shitty luck... Guess this is why pops told me not to gamble."


    As he walked, Mchi sank into the shadows on the floor and attempted to put some distance between himself and the broody dragon.


    He reappeared in the lowest section of the base possible.


    While it is a ce for storage, it now doubles as a prison.


    "Cool ce."


    "!"


    Mal nearly jumped out of his skin as he found Belloc standing on the ceiling, with a pool of shadows swaying majestically at his feet.


    "Did you just-"


    "Steal your power? Absolutely not. I don''t know if that kind of assumption should make meugh or piss me off... I''ll make up my mindter."


    Mal finally gave up on running away from the dragon and folded his arms across his chest.


    "Right... So what do you want to talk about then?"


    In the back of his mind, Mal thought this was going to be about Mnie.


    Belloc was clearly fond of her and the two seemed to be growing close, so he thought maybe the dragon would have a bone to pick with him as the guy that broke her heart.


    And Mal didn''t really have the time or patience for something so... high school.


    "The blonde vampire that smells like you. Tell me everything you know about her."


    Briefly, Mal seemed to fizzle out as he wanted to make sure that he had indeed heard everything right.


    Because there was no way he could have, right?


    "I''m sorry... What the fuck are you trying to ask me?"


    Belloc finally cracked a smile that was small enough to miss if you weren''t paying close attention.


    Clearly, he seemed to find this all terribly amusing.


    "Down, boy. I would hate to see you lose your life over a woman I don''t even want."


    "Why.. did you ask about her...?"Mal asked dangerously.


    "You won''t understand even if I wrote it for you in crayon. Suffice it to say that she took something she shouldn''t have, and I can''t say my brother and I are all that pleased about it."


    In that moment, Mchi''s anger deted half-way as he turned his back on Belloc without a second thought.


    "So that''s what this is about... I forgot all about it."


    "So you do know something."


    "Sure do."


    "Then you admit that she-"


    "Nadinedidn''t drink dragon blood because she was being greedy for power, or because she meant some kind of disrespect. It was an ident."


    "What kind of ident?"


    "Not my story to tell. If she''s inclined, then she can tell you herself. But if she isn''t¡­ tough shit."


    Mchi started to walk away, but before he could Belloc said something to once again stop Mal dead in his tracks.


    "If I sense her to be lying, I am going to kill her."


    Mchi''s neck cracked as he looked back at a dragon at an odd angle.


    The fangs inside of his mouth poked past his lips and his dark ws ripped out of his fingertips.


    "Now tell me¡­ how is that going to happen when you are going to see the grave long before she ever does?"

 Chapter 281: Nyx is An Evil Goddess / Mother

    Mchi whirled around and flung out his leg to kick Belloc directly in the temple.


    When the blow connected, the dragon had not moved even a single inch and had nothing to show in terms of wounds or bruises.


    Meanwhile, Mal''s foot was ringing continuously, and as hot as a whore in church.


    "Got that out of your system? Feeling better?" Belloc mocked.


    Mchi''s teeth sharpened to a dangerously concerning point.


    Using his own negativity, he channeled it throughout his body like a battery.


    "If only you knew¡­ just how much more I really have to give..!"


    Channeling all of his power, he clenched his fist and struck Belloc right on his square jaw and sent him flying like a kite.


    The dragon crashed headfirst into a titanium wall and actually dented it with the force of the collision.


    Mal''s knuckles were actually bleeding from hitting such a hard surface, but he honestly couldn''t have cared less at the moment.


    He stepped forward to inflict more punishment on the dragon when suddenly he was stopped dead in his tracks.


    A near insurmountable pressure was now bearing down on him and making it downright impossible to take even another step forward.


    "That attack looked promising so I thought that I would see what it was like¡­ sure enough, it stung just a little bit."


    Peeling himself off the wall, Belloc allowed his jaw to crack itself back into ce while he stretched.


    Dark grey scales began to cover his hands, cheeks, and chest and his eyes somehow became even more ck and lifeless.


    "I let you get two in for free, so the least that you can do now is pay me that same courtesy, right? Try not to die." He smiled.


    Mchi couldn''t say with perfect certainty exactly what happened next.


    At one moment, Belloc was still over fifty feet away from him.


    In the next, the dragon was directly in front of him with his fist outstretched and the wind pressure had left several cuts along his body.


    The only reason why the blow hadn''t connected, was because an outside force had saved him at thest moment.


    And Belloc looked to be just as surprised as he was.


    "Boys¡­ didn''t I ask you both to get along nicely while you''re working together?"


    ""¡­Shit¡­""


    -


    Currently, Mchi and Belloc were sitting on their knees, lowering their heads apologetically in front of a very annoyed Nyx.


    The goddess of night looked as beautiful as ever as she sat with her legs crossed and a goblet of wine in one hand.


    "Now¡­ tell me what happened from the beginning."


    Belloc: "This urchin got all pissy about his bloodsucking girlfriend and-"


    Mchi: "This bitch ass motherfucker threatened Nadine so I had to-"


    Nyx finally held up her hand as she nursed a primordial goddess sized headache.


    "So in essence¡­ you finally saw Nadine for the first time and it upset you?" She asked Belloc.


    "Naturally."


    Nyx sighed.


    "This¡­ is probably my fault. I should have given one of you a heads up at some point, but I confess that the urgency of the situation slipped my mind."


    Dragons'' bodies are quite literally a mythological treasure trove.


    From their tears, to their hearts, to their blood and especially their scales; almost every part of them can be used in some sort of magical ritual or another.


    It''s perhaps one of thergest reasons why they are such prideful creatures.


    However, with their bodies possessing such a wealth of coveted materials; this causes many individuals with less than pure intentions to seek them out.


    Vampires are the most famous for this.


    Not only does drinking dragon blood give them the ability to breathe fire and hamper down their weakness to it, but it also gives the very lucky ones the ability to enter a pseudo dragon state.


    But this ability isn''t really all it''s cracked up to be; since vampires weren''t really made to have these abilities in the first ce, even minute usage can quite literally destroy their bodies.


    And as leeches are famously fond of riches, they take great satisfaction in having weapons, armor, and jewelry made from dragon teeth, ws, and scales.


    Any dragon with an ounce of self respect or sentience regards individuals who carry these weapons or bear this power as a blight on creation and they react poorly to their presence.


    In truth, Belloc and Apophis had done a downright wonderful job of controlling themselves.


    Any other dragon would have already reduced the mountain to rubble as they tried to gnaw Nadine''s head off.


    "Wait¡­ how did you know about her?" Mal asked suspiciously.


    She kept the secret of what she did so close to her heart that she didn''t even want to tell him at first for fear of how he would look at her; he couldn''t imagine her telling his mother.


    "Was it not obvious?" Nyx tilted her head. "She''s a lot prettier and stronger than a normal nosferatu. Especially to be so young."


    Mal just kind of always thought that she was just special if he was being honest¡­


    Leave it to Nyx to spot something like that from a million miles away.


    Nyx finally turned to Belloc and gave him a small smile.


    "Bell-Bell~"


    "Please do not call me that."


    "I know that your parents probably filled you with a lot of pride and care for your species from the moment you were born."


    "Uh-huh."


    "And while I am not saying that is wrong, Nadine shouldn''t be the one who you are trying to enact revenge upon. She''s a sweet girl with a sad story, so just listen to her before you judge her."


    "¡­Fine."


    Nyx shook her head as she clicked her teeth.


    "You two should get along better. Not only will you be working together, but you may actually be brothers in the future!"


    ""The hell we will.""


    "Well if his father and I get together then what do you think that will make the two of you?"


    ""Not a damn thing.""


    A vein bulged in Nyx''s head as she showed a smile that was not a smile.


    "Alright then you little rodents¡­ I know just how to make you see eye to eye."


    Getting a bad feeling, Mchi started to tell his mother not to take any action against him, but it was toote.


    She snapped her fingers and she started to sink into the ground while waiving them goodbye with a smile.


    "Have a good time, boys! I hope the two of you enjoy spending the day together!"


    Before Mal could ask what she meant, he heard Belloc''s griping voicee from beside him.


    "Damn it¡­ I know she didn''t just¡­"


    Looking down, Mal followed Belloc''s gaze to the floor in between them.


    There, their shadows were clearly connected, even though the light source down here was positioned all wrong for something like that to ur.


    "No¡­"


    Mal jerked his body left and Belloc involuntarily followed like he had been yanked by his neck.


    Mchi absolutely couldn''t believe this.


    In order to force him to get along with the dragon, his mother had effectively handcuffed the two of them together.


    And if her words weren''t just teasing, then they would be stuck this way for the entire day.


    "¡­I hate my life." He muttered.

 Chapter 282: Sarcasm & Cup Noodles

    "¡­The fuck happened to them?"


    Currently, Mchi and Belloc were standing unnecessarily close together as they stared into a ''cell''.


    Behind a wall of ultra concentrated hard light, a total of around twenty individuals were all unconscious on the floor.


    Judging by the fact that most appeared to have soiled themselves, they must have suffered a great fright before passing out.


    Mchi remembered the ungodly pressure his unwillingpanion exerted only a few moments ago and he grimaced at the thought.


    "It''s your fault, dumbass... getting all pissy like that, its no wonder that they couldn''t stay upright."


    "All I''m hearing is that they''re weak. Can''t even handle me when I''m a little irritable." Belloc muttered.


    Mchi had no response to that, and truthfully he was starting to find death more preferable than this situation.


    On a keypad just outside the cell, Mchi punched in a short code and the barrier dissipated into nothingness.


    With nothing left to obstruct it, the collective smell of urine rushed into his nostrils and threatened to make him puke.


    "Ugh..."


    Belloc seemed to be no more pleased by the scent than he, so the dragon decided to do something about it.


    Unfurling his hands, Belloc released a strange dark smoke from his hands that quickly filled the room.


    Mchi couldn''t tell what''d happened at first, but a quick pat down of his body left him with a strange look on his face.


    He almost felt¡­ cleaner?


    "The hell did you do¡­?"


    "Made them clean. Isn''t that obvious?"


    "How??"


    "Emitting magical bacteriophages from my pores to eat dead skin and filth."


    Mchi gave Belloc a bit of a side eye and stepped away from him.


    "Is that... the only way that you bathe, or..?"


    "N-No, you damned idiot! I take regr showers!"


    "Just checking... you just seemed like the type to do shit like that."


    "The hell is that supposed to mean?!"


    Mchi looked down at the death dragon''s baggy grey hoodie and sweatpants that were just thrown over his chiseled body uncaringly.


    "...Nothing at all."


    "I really don''t fucking like you."


    "Amazing how I hadn''t picked up on that."


    Mchi ignored the irate dragon and started walking towards a very specific sleeping man.


    Using Gwiya, he lifted up Dr. Michaels by his ankle and gave him a hard shake until he eventually woke up.


    "G-Gah! W-What is this!? Release me!"


    "Now why would I do that when I''ve gone through all this trouble to make you and your friendsfortable? We nned for an extended stay, you know."


    Dr. Michaels looked around at the room that was filled with his fellow scientists working on the Blessed Dethroning Project.


    ...And one unconscious young man with multicolored hair whom he didn''t recognize.


    Nevertheless, it didn''t take a phd for him to guess what uses that the blessed had in mind for their capture.


    But he had no ns to make this task easy for him as Mchi would have wished.


    "Well then... it will be my delight to disappoint you!" With zero hesitation or regrets, the doctor bit off his own tongue and simply spat it out at his feet.


    The doctor showed a bloody smile that quite honestly turned the stomach a bit, but left Mchi and Belloc a bit unmoved one way or the other.


    Out of the corner of his eye, the dragon watched Mal to see what he would do.


    Truthfully, if Doctor Michaels died, Belloc could have subjugated his soul with ease and made him talk.


    Even Aubrey could do that if she practiced.


    As such, Belloc thought he figured out why Mal wasn''t panicking and believed that he was about to ask him for help.


    But he was wrong.


    Mchi held up his hand and suddenly an odd ck slime came out of his palm that Belloc narrowed his eyes at the sight of.


    In a somewhat crude disy, Mchi flipped the doctor right side up and jammed his fingers into his mouth.


    "...What are you doing?" Belloc asked.


    "Making him talk by altering his mind a little." Mal answered without looking back.


    "Oh... Feels a little pervy to do it that way." Belloc noted.


    "I didn''t have time to get a fucking spoon for him!"


    "Sounds like an excuse to stick your fingers in another guy''s mouth to be honest."


    "Shut up!"


    "I can go if you guys need the room."


    "Why are you so relentlessly annoying?!"


    "Sarcasm and cup noodles are the sole reason for my existence."


    Mchi was about to ask how the hell a dragon knew about cup noodles when suddenly a dastardly loud scream erupted from the mouth of Dr. Michaels.


    Right before the eyes of the two adversaries, the man was changing.


    Veins were beginning to bulge out of his skin while drops of blood leaked out of every orifice on his body as he screamed at the top of his lungs.


    Suddenly, his skin turned a wiry gray color, and several small pairs of whiskers sprouted from his cheeks.


    His entire facial structure cracked once, twice, and then three times as a short snout formed on his face.


    The ears on his head became thinner, pinker, and more floppy looking.


    Mchi finally dropped him on the ground and the doctor trembled as he continued to groan in pain.


    "...You can create demihumans?" Belloc questioned.


    "Seems like it.. this is my first time." Mal admitted. "I don''t wanna call them that though, feels too fantasy-esque and this is more science based."


    "Well what else do you call human-animal crossbreeds?"


    "...Spliced?"


    "...Dork...Not bad though."


    "Thank you."


    Right now, there was little that could take away the high that Mal was feeling.


    He knew that he could add gic coding from animals into other animals or bring out dormant genes entirely, but he didn''t know that he could do it on humans until right this moment.


    To be honest, he figured if something went wrong then someone like the good doctor deserved to die in the worst way possible.


    "...Why''d you pick a rat though?" Belloc asked as Dr. Michaels continued to groan.


    "He made other peopleb rats, so why shouldn''t he be one himself?" Mal answered confidently.


    "...You could have just said that it was on your mind because you were up watching ''Ratatouille'' at 4 am."


    Immediately, the N''kai''s eyes went wide. "How did you-"


    "My siblings and I can read minds."


    "Perfect. So now I have to worry about three overtly annoying dragons listening to my thoughts anytime they''re near me?"


    "Of course not, the other two are too polite to listen in to things like that. I''m the only one who doesn''t give a fuck."


    ''And the one I got stuck with somehow...'' Mal thought.


    "I heard that."


    "I know."


    Finally, Dr. Michael''s'' groaning ceased and he slowly tried to lift his head up off the floor.


    His first instinct was to look around and inspect the room he was fin as he rubbed his temples to soothe his throbbing migraine.


    "I... What was I doing..? I''m having the hardest time ever recalling it..."


    From out of the shadows, Mchi grabbed a notebook and pen that he had been saving for just this moment.


    "You were about to tell us everything that you were doing for the Revival Government and why. As well as any longterm ns they have for the war and the full extent of their current capabilities."


    The doctor stared at the pen and notebook for a moment while blinking his eyes slowly.


    Finally, his wed hands reached out and took them both. "Yes... that''s right, master."


    "So you have that kind of fetish, huh?" Belloc shook his head.


    "I have no such thing!" Mal fired back. "I only programmed him to be subservient, but whatever words he uses ain''t up to me!"


    "Whatever you need to tell yourself..."


    Before Mal could clear his name, both men were suddenly greeted by the sound of a spoon clinking against a bowl.


    Looking behind them, they found Apophis leaning against the wall in a standard tight white t-shirt and ck jeans; looking as infuriatingly handsome as always.


    In his hands was a bowl of what smelled like oatmeal and freshly cut fruit.


    "Wondered where you guys were... Any reason why your shadows are fused together?" he asked inly.


    ""My mom / His mom.""


    "Gonna stay my ass out of this one then..." Apophis muttered as he returned his gaze to his bowl.


    "Surprised you pulled your head away from Serana long enough toe down here." Mal said. "Has she run you away already?"


    "Course not, idiot. But since I''m technically security around here, I figured that I should at least do my job."


    Mal''s brow shot upward. "You mean-"


    "Mhm, it''s not those other blessed guys you all were worried about though. Seems like it''s a god.Do you want me to kill them or are you expecting someone?"

 Chapter 283: Old Faces

    Dark grey clouds filled the morning sky above as droplets of revitalizing rain struck the earth with no end in sight.


    Mchi savored the scent of wild grass and moist air; allowing it to fill his lungs until they were about to burst open.


    "The hells wrong with this guy¡­?"


    "Wipe that dumb look off your face you creep."


    Mchi''s good mood deted as he he remembered that he was not alone in this tranquil setting.


    Apophis and Belloc were unfortunately standing right behind him; albeit missing their horns and reptilian eyes.


    "Damn, a brother can''t just enjoy the weather?" Mal shook his head.


    Belloc: "You look like a missionary who''s been wandering the desert for 60 days and nights and just got your first sight of water."


    Apophis: "Take a picture man, I promise it''llst longer."


    Mchi felt the veins in his forehead almost pop out.


    "Seriously¡­ when is your sistering back¡­? She''s the only thing that makes the three of you tolerable."


    The brothers shrugged. ""A day or so?""


    Despair seemed toe to Mchi almost as frequently as the rain around him.


    "Whatever¡­ Where''s this god you''re sensing?" He finally asked.


    "Gods." Apophis corrected.


    "Huh?!"


    "There are two of them slinking around. I couldn''t sense the second because it blended in so well with the weather."


    "¡­So where are they?"


    "Circling the ce. The barrier I erected is misdirecting them, so they are passing the same ces over and over again."


    Mchi acted like he wasn''t impressed at all so that Apophis wouldn''t get a big head.


    "Alright¡­ let them in I guess."


    Belloc held up his hands and to about his midsection and twisted his wrists counterclockwise.


    In the sky above, Mal could have sworn he saw shes of what looked like a golden force field woven with Egyptian hieroglyphics and what seemed like¡­ Japanese kanji?


    Mal had seen his sister cast a few spells from time to time, but nothing as profound as this.


    He couldn''t imagine all the ways that it might help her- and by extension their organization.


    "Think you could teach someone how to do that?"


    "You? No." Apophis shook his head.


    "¡­The fuck is that supposed to mean?!"


    Mchi didn''t even want to learn, but now that he was being told that he couldn''t he was starting to take issue.


    "Oh? They''reing." Belloc muttered.


    Before Mal could look around in a certain direction, a rtively small bolt of lightning struck a patch of grass not even ten feet away from them.


    Mchi waited and waited for some sort of godly being to appear from the smoke, but nothing ever came.


    Or it is more urate to say that he didn''t see it at first.


    *Speaking in Japanese* "Psst! Boy!"


    Mchi looked down for the hushed whisper that was trying to get his attention.


    And he had to admit, what he found was fairly amusing.


    Hiding underneath a leaf was a small, but familiar red demon with a drum attached to it''s back and wearing a traditional Japanese hakama pants.


    Mchi had hardly expected to ever eee this god again, much less in such a¡­pact form.


    "Raijin¡­?"


    *In Japanese* "The one and only, snake boy!"


    Mchi sometimes received Japanese lessons from Sei in his free time, so he knew a little bit of thenguage, but he was hardly proficient.


    Nevertheless, he tried his best to speak back courteously. *In bad Japanese* "What are you doing here?"


    "¡­Pft¡­.HAHAHAHA!" Raijin clutched his stomach as a fit ofughter like rolling thunder escaped his fanged mouth.


    Mal didn''t understand why the thunder god wasughing so hard, but Belloc and Apophis were not quite as oblivious.


    "Your Japanese is horrible." Belloc said in amusement.


    Apophis nodded while giving him a pitiful look.


    Mchi furrowed his brows a bit as he thought back to his lessons with Sei.


    To be honest, most of their lessons took ce at like 3-4 a.m when they were both unwilling to fall asleep.


    And something about nighttime made her develop this kind of ''mommy'' persona that made it hard for him to keep his boxers on so their lessons were usually around four minutes max and¡­ yea.


    ''I gotta start paying more attention...''


    Raijin finally recovered from hisughing fit and wiped his glowing eyes of tears. "How I have notughed like that in centuries! Thank you for the good humor, son of Nyx!"


    Since the thunder god started speaking in English, Mal gave up on his attempt too.


    "Nevermind that, why are you here and why are you hiding beneath a leaf?"


    "You think I want the others from up high to know I''vee down here to speak to you? I''m not your mother, such a thing is forbidden!"


    "Then why would you risk it?" Mal asked with a raised brow.


    "Is it not obvious?" a new voice asked.


    From out of the bushes, a small ck cat with yellow-green eyes emerged.


    It waspletely ordinary, and even had a cor with a wooden square totem hanging around it''s neck.


    However... for some reason it was talking as if it were a regr person.


    "We havee here to make amends. That is, should you be willing to listen to us."


    "Bast..." Mal realized.


    The cat goddess sat on her hind legs just shy of Mal''s feet. "You should know that we-"


    "Fuck that for now!" Raijin interrupted. "Why couldn''t we find you at first!? Do you know how long we were circling out here!? And what''s with these two pretty bastards ring at us!?"


    Mchi nced at Belloc and Apophis, who were both staring at the gods in a very calcting manner, but not saying or doing anything of significance.


    But Raijin was still incensed. "Tell them to stop looking at us like that before I stomp a mudhole in their asses and feed them to Zeus!"


    ck mes licked at Belloc''s feet while purple ones covered Apophis'' hands.


    It wasn''t possible to tell that they were dragons with their horns hidden and eyes changed, but it seemed like they were about to abandon this disguise of theirs real soon.


    Mchi quickly grabbed hold of the situation while wearing an aloof and unfriendly demeanor.


    "These are just my... friends. As for why you couldn''t find me... Don''t you think I''m more than entitled to hide from you gods after everything that has transpired? Every time that Iy my eyes on one of you my day turns to shit."


    "Which is why we''vee here." Bast crawled up Mchi''s body like he was a tree until she rested on top of his head.


    "Is this necessary?"


    "Yes, your hair is quitefortable. But I digress.."


    Mchi rolled his eyes.


    "You should know that we have taken some time to... properly reflect on our actions towards you.


    It is true that you have every reason to be upset as we truly should have done better by you, but... we let outside influences and our own personal prejudices cloud our minds.


    More than anyone else, we should know your heart. You are kind, upstanding, perhaps a tad too lustful, but-"


    Raijin: "Bah! That''s just called being a man!"


    "No, I believe ''slut'' or ''manwhore'' is more fitting." Bast defended.


    ''What the fuck has my life turned into..?'' Mal was too distracted thinking about how his life had ever gotten to this point to even register the fact that Bast was currently disparaging him to his face.


    His eyes regained focus when she suddenly ced her head in front of his vision and stared deeply into his soul.


    "If you would ept it, we would like to offer you tokens of our sincerity. Can you bear to hear us out for even a moment longer?"

 Chapter 284: A Complicated Family History Pt. 1

    Mal narrowed his eyes as he stared into the patient and familiar eyes of Bast.


    All his life, he had been a person who held grudges.


    There were slights he was still holding onto from before the world ended that he would likely never forget.


    Perhaps it wasn''t the healthiest way to go about life, but that was just who he was.


    As such, when Bast suddenly offered him a token of her regret, his immediate reaction was simple.


    "You can keep it. I don''t want anything from either of you ever again."


    Mchi removed Bast from his head and turned around to leave without exchanging another word.


    Apophis and Belloc both assumed that there was more to this story that they weren''t aware of, but they didn''t know if it was their ce to say anything.


    Besides, they weren''t really all that fascinated one way or another.


    They too ended up turning to follow in Mchi''s footsteps; leaving behind the pair of apologetic deities.


    "Well¡­ that is certainly your right, son of Nyx."


    "Even so¡­ please ept these on our behalf."


    When Mchi looked back, both deities had disappeared and could no longer be found on the mountaintop.


    However, Mchi couldn''t help but notice that his pockets were suddenly heavier than before.


    Investigating, he pulled out two distinctive charms.


    One was a wooden totem in the shape of a w; the same cor that Bast once had hanging around her neck.


    The other looked like a small circr drum; the same kind that adorned Raijin''s back.


    "¡­" Mchi raised his arm like he was about to throw the totems off the cliff and never think about them again.


    However, something seemed to stop him from disposing of these weird trinkets.


    In the end, he finally just stuffed them back into his pockets and started walking back inside.


    "Put the barrier back up." Were the only words that came out of his mouth for a while.


    -


    Currently it was nightfall, and Mchi and Belloc were walking back from the ''prison cells'' downstairs.


    In Mal''s hands, he held the notebook that was literally chock full of ns, serums, notes, schematics, the results of gic and chemical testing, all information that the old government knew about the New Day faction, and loads more.


    It was so much.


    Too much.


    He had been reading for upwards of twenty minutes and he still wasn''t done.


    Compared to the stuff he and Aubrey found when they raided the base, it was like a drop in a fucking well.


    "I¡­ need a drink." Mal finally decided.


    Belloc had nothing to say in response.


    He wasn''t the sort of person who was unaware of the lengthy atrocities in which humans were willing tomit against one another, but there was a difference between just knowing about something and actually witnessing it firsthand.


    "Well¡­ you boys look like you''ve had quite a day."


    From out of the corner, Nyx emerged out of the shadows on the wall and offered the boys a friendly smile.


    "Was spending the day together that abhorrent for the two of you, or do your faces have something to do with that notebook in your hands?" She asked.


    Mchi forced a smile onto his face as he tried to hide the notebook behind his back.


    "It just made me remember how good I have it is all. I''ve been spending so much time around beautiful women everyday I forget how insufferable guys my own age are."


    Belloc said nothing, as he famously prided himself on being an asshole.


    Nyx could tell that maybe her son was trying to keep something from her, and she waffled a bit over whether or not she should pry further.


    But first, she snapped her fingers together and unbound the boys from each other.


    Afterwards, Belloc practically sprinted away to go and find Mnie.


    When she saw him and Mchi sitting together earlier she understandably got spooked and bolted before he could chase after her.


    Mal had already figured where he was going and didn''t bother chasing after him.


    Instead, he leaned against the wall beside his mother and basked in the silence.


    "...Would you like to talk about that notebook that''s behind your back?"


    "...Not really." he admitted.


    "I understand...but you know you can talk to me about anything, right?"


    "Of course, ma."


    "Just checking."


    The two of them stood around in the corridor for just a little longer before Mal remembered that he did have something he wanted to ask him mother.


    "Y''know... I met Belloc''s fianc¨¦ yesterday."


    "Oh yea? What''s she like?"


    "Hot and scary."


    "That tracks." Nyx nodded.


    "But she started to say something to me about expecting me to be stronger... because I wasn''t human."


    "W-Well of course you aren''t human anymore, hon... Let''s go find your sister, I think she wanted to ask me for my advice on-"


    Nyx started to turn away, but Mchi grabbed her hand at thest moment.


    "No, ma... for some reason she implied that I was a monster. You wouldn''t happen to know anything about that, would you?"


    Nyx fell silent for a very long time leading Mal to believe his hypothesis might''ve been correct.


    "...Let''s go find your sister, dear."


    "Ma, I need to-"


    "I know, hon... Let''s grab your sister and go home first, yea?"


    Mal noted the quiet tone of his mother''s voice and nodded while following closely on her heels.


    He couldn''t see her face, but he hardly needed to in order to know how grim it was.


    ''I don''t understand... Why all the secrecy?''


    -


    After grabbing Aubrey (and Camille who demanded to tag along) the family returned to the depths of the greek underworld where Nyx led her children upstairs to the master bedroom.


    As soon as she opened the door, she ced Cami down on the ground at her feet. "Alright sweetie, go and get them for us."


    Camille nodded and used her little legs to run over to the bed and pulled out two very familiar wooden boxes from underneath.


    And a couple of secondster, Camille pulled out another, much smaller box.


    This was her own, and she was very proud of it.


    Needless to say,both Mchi and Aubrey werepletely shocked to see their baby boxes sitting in the Greek underworld.


    They thought they had lost those long ago when their parents first died.


    "Ma¡­ how do you have-"


    "I''ve told you both before, but even though I never birthed you, you are still my children. And I have loved you long before I even knew you."


    Nyx crossed the bedroom to reach a closet on the other side of the room, which Aubrey just realized she had never seen her open.


    And she wondered why she even had one in the first ce.


    After all, she fabricated all of her clothes out of shadows, so she had no need to store stuff like that.


    So what on earth was inside?


    Nyx ced her hands on the door handles and pulled them open with a soft click.


    Inside, Aubrey and Mal saw no clothes at all.


    Instead, there were shelves lined with over thirty different boxes; with some being very, very old.


    "For a long time, your family has been more special to me than you can possibly know.


    Everyone from your father Marcus, to your grandmother Esther, and even more distant ancestors you won''t know.


    You have all taught me a love of humanity that I have never known, and filled me with an appreciation for that which is fleeting¡­ as well as a sorrow."


    Out of nowhere, Nyx began to cry as she smiled.


    "But even so¡­ you are the first ones I''ve actually gotten to care for and spend time with.


    And the experience is even sweeter than I ever could have imagined.


    It saddens me¡­ that this all began because I was trying to prove a silly little point."


    "H-Hang on, mom¡­" Aubrey held up her hands in a stopping gesture. "What are you trying to tell us¡­?"


    Nyx epted the tissue that Camille brought her so that she could wipe her eyes.


    "Ah, I''m sorry¡­ I should probably start from the beginning, where I turned a vicious monster into a human in the midst of an ongoing debate with Keres."

 Chapter 285: How It All Began... Pt. 1

    Nyx had famously never cared for a human in her entire existence.


    Though this wasn''t really all that surprising, since most gods around her age didn''t care about humans either.


    But Nyx had the rare disposition of being even less fond of them than others.


    This was in part because of Keres.


    Since her daughter was the spirit of violent death, she saw the worst of the mortal world and often confided in her mother about her exploits.


    As if that weren''t enough, most of her other children who embodied negative emotions were in possession of simr stories.


    The more that Nyx heard, the more disillusioned she became, and she saw humanity as little more than savages subsisting on treachery and brutality.


    As Nadine had told Mchi, there was a day where the gods convened a meeting for the relocation of the various species of monsters dwelling on earth.


    That day, Nyx had no real interest in the proceedings and barely recalled the actual vote count.


    To alleviate her boredom, she made an off-handedment to Erebus that they should have been voting whether or not to dispel the humans instead, since even the most ravenous monster was better behaved than an ordinary human.


    While heughed and overlooked her seemingly lighthearted jest, Nyx continued to think about it, over and over again.


    Eternity is a very, very, long time.


    As such, it isn''t umon for gods to grow bored with their run of the mill routines and direct their attention to more ''exciting'' avenues.


    Nyx of course was one such goddess, and her boredom had long reached a level that very few experiences could ever hope to induce.


    So of course, now that she had actually thought of something that could alleviate her boredom, she was going to jump at the chance.


    She talked to Keres and only Keres about the n she had in mind, and of course her daughter tried to talk her out of it.


    Primordial gods have lots of freedoms and can do just about whatever they set their minds to, but even they have limits.


    For instance, interfering in a decision made by the collective body of gods in any capacity, is highly forbidden.


    Punishment need not be mentioned now, but it is severe enough that even Nyx does not act too rashly.


    But this, she considered to be harmless.


    As such, it took Nyx rtively little time to convince Keres to participate in this wager of hers.


    With both of their minds made up, the next thing to do was to find a monster who would be the center of her little experiment.


    So as to give herself the greatest chance of secrecy, she decided not to use a greek monster for her experiment.


    Which meant she had to turn to the other pantheons for examples.


    After glossing over Mesopotamian and Shinto cryptids, she finally settled on one no one would have expected her to pick.


    Xhosa.


    With her pantheon selected, deciding which monster to pick was actually a no-brainer.


    There are tales of a kind of serpent dwelling within the jungles of South Africa.


    Legends around it were so wide and varied that even she herself barely knew about it.


    Some say it has one head, others im to have seen many.


    Locals im that it brings with it tornadoes and thunderstorms whenever it takes to the sky; seeking to find a mate.


    But it''s temperament is the most widely disputed thing.


    In some stories the creature is fearsome; engaging any and everything that moves with extreme aggression.


    In others, it is a protector of it''s habitat, who eats only the wicked.


    Nyx found the creature after almost a full night of searching.


    There, she was able to get her first look at her prized inkanyamba.


    Unlike the legends suggested, it was an eel-like snake with only one head and no wings.


    It had very dark green scales that could be easily mistaken for ck, and odd glowing purple eyes that seemed to see through one''s very soul.


    Once she actually found her desired creature, the next step was simple, but unthinkable.


    She transformed the monster into a human.


    So that there would be nothing about it that would make the gods look twice at it, she made itpletely ordinary.


    Average looks, average intelligence, athleticism, you name it.


    Once she was done, she left the newly transformed human in the middle of theke that it''d once called home with a single message imnted in their mind, but no memories.


    ''Live well.''


    The first few years of Nyx and Keres'' observations went by somewhat slowly.


    Gods can sometimes be impatient after all, and not every development of theirs is monumentally exciting after all.


    So in the same way that you might put down a show when it stops being exciting ande back to it a few dayster, Nyx did the same.


    Only she waited years on ident.


    When she finally remembered her little pet project, the woman she''d left behind had grown up well into old age, and was seen as a divine healer in her tribe.


    Nyx felt a bit like she had missed out.


    How had this one little monster wearing the skin of a human acquired all of these connections, be so renowned, and most importantly, how had she done it all without showcasing any of that vicious nature?


    Unfortunately, it was impossible for her to go back and watch things at the beginning again.


    But there were ways around it.


    When the woman finally died, Nyx had Thanatos bring her the soul.


    Once she had it, Nyxmunicated with the woman so that she could hear her entire life story from A-Z.


    And somehow, the strangest thing happened.


    Nyx found herself intrigued.


    The highs, the lows, the elevations and the pitfalls are all sopelling to hear.


    The life that her creation lived wasn''t pretty, but her responses in and of themselves were miraculous.


    At every turn, she met the brutality inflicted by the world and the people around her with grace.


    When Nyx asked her why, she could give no answer.


    The goddess developed her own theories pertaining to this, but she never voiced them out loud as she felt no need.


    When she heard the full weight of her creation''s life story, she was met with a bow and a surprisingly bold request.


    ''Please, continue to watch over the children I left behind.''

 Chapter 286: How It All Began… Pt. 2

    Nyx considered her creation''s request to be absurd.


    Watch over a single bloodline of humans for eternity??


    Laughable!


    She had neither the time, nor the patience to do¡­ okay, so maybe she did have the time.


    But she still didn''t have the patience!


    Nyx dismissed the idea without a second thought, but kept the soul of her experiment in her own personal custody.


    It wasn''t intended to be cruel, but to ensure that no one found out what she''d done, she couldn''t risk letting the monster''s soul rest in the Elysian Fields or any other afterlife.


    Hades was a sort of stickler about his responsibilities and kingdom, so Nyx didn''t know how he would react to the soul of arge monstrous snake suddenly taking a nap in his grassy pastures.


    As such, she ced the soul in a small wooden box that she imbued with the power to create the ideal ''rest'' of the inhabitant.


    Afterwards, she went back to her normal primordial-being life and it didn''t take long for her to set into another fit of boredom.


    Though this time, it only took around 11 days.


    But in that short time, she went back to observe the children of her experiment and found that one of them had died in a bad hunting incident.


    At that moment, Nyx thought to herself; ''Wow. You really can''t take your eyes off these meatbags for even a second, can you?''


    As such, Nyx decided to pay close attention to the surviving sibling and his escapades.


    And for the first time, the goddess got to experience the joys of what humans wouldter crown ''binge watching''.


    Everything that the son did intrigued her immensely.


    His perseverance, ingenuity,passion, and sense of responsibilitybined for an interesting protagonist to route for.


    There were times where he would struggle, and others where he would not necessarily make the best decision, or even suffer some kind of monumental setback.


    But nothing ever broke him.


    There was never a setback he endured that made him harder, or made his view of the world distort.


    Was that a weakness..? That depended on who you asked.


    But Nyx found such a quality to be more admirable than words could even begin to express.


    A sense of pride began to formte in the mind of Nyx.


    This was her creation, her descendant, her baby!


    She rejoiced when they were blessed, and she agonized when they were in mourning.


    For 1,000 years, her emotions reached various highs and lows as she experienced new sensations.


    At a certain point, she became tired of waiting and wanted to interact with them, as well as keep some mementos.


    So she gave one of their lineage the idea to start a new family tradition.


    The baby boxes.


    In her spare time, Nyx amused herself by sneaking down to earth and sifting through them; taking the time to admire little drawings that the children made and eventually writing names on their birth certificates.


    Never before in her life had she loved something so purely as she did her ''children''.


    Until Mchi and Aubrey came along.


    For some reason, they were the only pair of siblings born into their family line after the first set.


    So Nyx loved them immensely from the moment that Aubrey was brought home.


    They were everything that someone would want in their children.


    Smart, a little mischievous, gentle, good listeners. and unflinchingly loyal to each other.


    The greatest day of Nyx''s entire existence was when she actually got to speak to Mchi for the first time that fateful night; and began a true mother-son rtionship with him.


    And when she was eventually able to embrace Aubrey as well, her days became exponentially brighter.


    But now, she feared that she was about to lose it all.


    -


    In the aftermath of Nyx''s exnation, Mchi and Aubrey werepletely frozen in ce with their mouths on the verge of falling open.


    Little Camille could only look back and forth between her the three adults in the room, as she had no idea why they had all just gone quiet.


    "You.. had our parents souls the whole time..?" Aubrey''s voice cracked as she touched a wooden box with the initials ''M.F''.


    She knew it belonged to her father Marcus, and their mother Felicia.


    Nyx couldn''t even bring herself to look at her daughter. "I¡­ I did¡­"


    "Why?! Why didn''t you tell us?!"


    Nyx felt so small at the moment that she barely even seemed like a goddess. "T-They were resting, and I just¡­"


    "D-Don''t give me that! You kept this from us on purpose!!" Aubrey went from being on the verge of tears to full on bawling in the span of a few short seconds.


    Her tears pooled atop the wooden box in her hand as her whole body trembled uncontrobly.


    "Did you ever think about what I might need for once instead of your own fears?! That I might have something I needed to say to them..?"


    "I-I wanted to tell you so badly but I.." Nyx cut her sentence short, as she realized that therein lie the problem.


    ''I''.


    She had only thought of herself from the beginning.


    Threatened by the idea of Mchi and Aubrey reuniting with their birth parents, she kept an enormous secret from them, even though she knew what the truth could''ve meant to them.


    What kind of person does that?


    What kind of mother does that?


    For the first time in billions of years of existence, Nyx experienced the pinnacle of mortal emotion.


    Self loathing.


    "I just¡­ I can''t do this with you right now." With their parents'' souls in hand, Aubrey vanished from the bedroom instantly and left her niece and brother behind.


    And Nyx, for all of her power and lived experience, copsed to the ground as soon as she left.


    Mchi, for all his power and aplishments, was still just a 21 year old man.


    And any person around that age or younger can agree, there is very little that canpare to the pain of seeing the mother you love dearly cry her eyes out.


    Cami was also upset and crying.


    She was still a baby after all, and the only yelling she had ever heard was when she identally woke up in the middle of the night and tried to get into her parents'' room.


    So now, Mal had to consol two of the most important women in his life.


    Mchi dropped to the ground beside Nyx and sat cross legged.


    He took Cami into one arm and wrapped his mother underneath the other.


    However, while Camille calmed down just a little bit, Nyx didn''t.


    "S-Stop it, don''t touch me!" For all of her strength, Nyx tried and failed to push her son away.


    It took everything he had, but Mal held onto her tightly and refused to let her go.


    "Do you not understand what manner of being I am?! Get away from me, Mchi!! I don''t need this, I don''t want it!"


    No matter how much Nyx screamed at him, Mchi never let her go.


    Because he knew better than anyone that if she really wanted him to, there wouldn''t have been a single thing he could have done about it.


    But that didn''t mean Nyx made the ordeal easy for him.


    "L-Let me go, Mchi!"


    "I-I hate this! I don''t want to be touched by you!"


    "I-I¡­"


    Eventually, Nyx lost every bit of strength that she had and finally let herself be pulled into Mchi''s chest.


    She didn''t even have a physical body, so Mal was a bit perplexed as to how this living personification of the night had soaked his jacket in under twenty seconds.


    By now, Nyx was no longer understandable in any way, and Mal simply gave up on trying to understand her.


    He just opened his mind to her quietly, in the hopes that she could try to understand him without breaking the silence.


    Mchi wasn''t mad at Nyx for hiding his parents.


    Granted he was a little surprised to learn their heritage and that they were here the whole time, but that didn''t matter a whole lot to him.


    Truthfully, he suspected that maybe his parents were in the Elysian Fields this whole time given the fact that they weren''t Christians.


    But he never went to check or asked his mother about it, because secretly he didn''t want to face them yet.


    He missed and loved them just like any son, but there were always lots of things that he was afraid to tell them.


    The fact that he had be an alien for one.


    The daughter that he had before marriage was another.


    The fact that he had six different fianc¨¦s and was pursuing a seventh would also be a tough pill to swallow.


    The fact that he never finished college might kill his mom a second time.


    He missed his parents just as much as his sister, but Mchi was prone to moments of self loathing just like Nyx was experiencing.


    His worry was that his biological parents would not approve of the man he had be.


    After listening carefully to all of Mal''s thoughts, Nyx let her tears fall silently as she clenched his jacket between her hands.


    "I-I am so¡­ sorry..!" Nyx''s voice was heartbreakingly small and hoarse.


    In that moment, Mal could not recall ever seeing his mother so human.


    "I know you are. Just like you know that I forgive you."


    Nyx''s body twitched as her silent tears flowed harder.


    Though she was relieved to hear Mal''s feelings had not changed, she was petrified by the fear that her rtionship with Aubrey would never be the same again.


    ''I just¡­ wanted them to love me¡­!''

 Chapter 287: Papa Saint Gained Weight?

    Aubrey returned to the base in a daze.


    Therge wooden box with her parents'' souls. inside remained in her trembling hands as she walked towards she and Aisha''s quarters on pure muscle memory alone.


    It was a miracle that she never bumped into anything or anyone.


    How could her mother possibly have kept this from her?


    The longer she thought about it, the more she began to feel taken advantage of.


    All of the intimate and tender moments that she had shared with Nyx were alling back to her mind, one after the other like a rainstorm.


    Everything she thought she knew about her mother now felt like one big ploy to get her to stay by her side and allow her ess to the most intimate parts of her.


    Even...


    *Bang*


    Aubrey unconsciously walked smack into her front door and started the process of giving herself a concussion.


    As she rubbed her temples to ease the pain, she finally opened her front door the right way and stepped inside.


    "Oh? She''s back."


    "Baby! Save me! Shes insatiable!!"


    Aubrey took a moment to blink away the surprise in her vision.


    In her living room, both Aisha and Thea were seated on their couch in the dark.


    Aisha was dressed only in her white bathrobe and looked as if she had just gotten out of the shower a short time ago.


    Thea was still fully clothed, but Aubrey couldn''t help but feel that if she had walked in even a momentter then maybe she wouldn''t be.


    Oddly enough, this was how Aubrey knew that she was really depressed, as she couldn''t even divest energy into fantasizing about what kind of paradise might be beneath that mini skirt.


    ''Well now I''m thinking about it...''


    Aisha held up her hands from underneath Thea as she tried to process her innocence. "T-This isn''t what it looks like, babe ! She''s trying to rob me of my-"


    "I know, Aisha. I''m not mad."


    "Y-You''re not?"


    "I can see the pillow barricade that you tried to put up to protect yourself."


    Aisha looked down at the stack of pillows that she had strategically ced between herself and Thea.


    But of course, the tyrannical princess had just crawled right over them as if they were mere building blocks; inadvertently showing her an unhealthy amount of cleavage in the process.


    Thea turned to Aubrey and shed her an impossibly wide and beautiful smile. "I''m back, my dear. Did ya miss me?"


    "It''s only been a day." Aubreyughed dryly.


    "For you two maybe. But it''s been just a little bit longer for me, so I may have reacted a little aggressive when I saw sweet Aisha here." She shrugged.


    "A-Aggressive is an understatement! G-Get off me you damned subus!"


    "How''d you know?"


    "Eh?"


    Aubrey knew that she maybe should have been more upset in this situation, but if there was one thing she knew it was that Aisha wouldn''t cheat on her.


    Besides... she didn''t have the energy to fight with anyone else for the next sixty years of her life.


    "Well, you guys have fun. I think I''m going to turn in early for the night..."she waived.


    "What?"


    "But It''s only nine??"


    "Yea.. sorry guys."


    Without exining anything further, Aubrey started walking back towards her bedroom so that she could somehow piece together the remnants of her night.


    But at the moment she started to leave, Thea appeared in front of her like magic.


    The concerned expression she wore on her already beautiful face was almost too divine a sight for mortals to bear.


    "Hey... What''s wrong with you, sweet heart?"


    The heavenly softness in Thea''s voice proved to be the straw that broke the camel''s back.


    What started as a small trickle devolved into a full on deluge as Aubrey began crying so hard that her voice went out.


    "M-My mom has been lying to me..!!"


    Copsing to her knees, Aubrey sobbed as she clutched the wooden box in her hands like it was the single most precious thing she owned in this cold world.


    Thea and Aisha were more shocked than words could express, and they could do nothing but hold onto the young girl as she cried her heart out.


    For upwards of ten minutes, none of them budged and simply tried to get her to stop crying.


    Only when she was no longer outright sobbing could they finally get some sort of exnation.


    Aisha was understandably more surprised and had a bigger reactions than Thea, who just sat and listened without really making a face one way or the other.


    When her story was over, Aubey wiped her face of tears while trying to regain herposure.


    "S-So... Auntie and Uncle are in here?" Aisha asked reverently.


    She wasn''t nearly as surprised by the fact that her girlfriend''s family came from a line of snake monsters as she was with the fact that her inws were sitting in a box in Nyx''s closet.


    "Yes! And she''s had them all this time! How could she do that to me!?" Aubrey was about to start bawling all over again.


    "Maybe... she wasn''t necessarily trying to do anything to hurt you." Thea said quietly.


    "W-What..?"


    At that moment, Thea almost looked like she''d regretted saying anything at all.


    "Y''know... I understand what she did was inexcusable, but I think... it was onlying from a ce of fear, not malice."


    "I know that already, but that doesn''t make it right! After everything that we''ve already gone through together she doesn''t know that I love her enough to¡­"


    Aubrey''s words trailed off as she began crying again, this time too exhausted to let any whimpers out.


    Thea could only rub her back silently and act as support.


    To her, this situation wasn''t as ck and white as it seemed.


    She knew just how much Nyx loved her kids, and she could easily see how she would have kept the truth from them in a misguided attempt to keep her children in her life.


    It wasn''t right, but it was a very human thing to do.


    But the fact was, Nyx had made a huge mistake.


    Seeing how much Aubrey still loved her, Thea couldn''t imagine how anything could drive a wedge between them.


    Meaning Nyx''s fears werepletely unfounded.


    But Thea knew better than anyone else what it was like to live in constant fear of rejection from family because you didn''t have the blood rtion.


    "Are you¡­ going to open it?" Aisha eventually asked.


    Aubrey stared down at the box that was now slick with her tears and went over a few possible decisions in her head.


    Thea started to stand up and slowly backed away from the two girls.


    "Maybe I should just-"


    "No¡­ I would like it if you stayed." Aubrey said quietly.


    The corners of Thea''s lips twitched.


    Aisha: "Someone''s happy."


    "I-I am not happy! I''m totally normal! Totally! Yep!" Thea held up her thumbs to really sell the act.


    "Sure babe."


    "Babe~?"


    "It''s just an expression! An expression! Stay away from me and keep your shirt on! AUBREYYY!!!"


    While Aisha was about to be assaulted, Aubrey paid no real mind to the pair of them and instead ced the wooden box gently on the floor.


    Inhaling deeply, she slid her nimble fingers over the metal sps and pressed them to release the lock.


    The box opened with a click sound and the lid swung open on it''s own.


    Among the mementos inside, two bright green whisps the size of pennys floated out of their confinement.


    Aubrey covered her eyes and shrank back underneath the sudden sh of light that filled the room.


    When her vision returned to normal, she let out a yelp at the sight of the room''srge new upant.


    In front of her, all she could see was arge array of pointy, recurved teeth, and a mouth that was big enough to swallow her whole but still had room for three more of her.


    *Yawn* "¡­Whats the matter, big momma? What''d the kids do this time?"


    Slowly, therge mouth closed up and Aubrey was finally able to get a better look at what was actually in front of her.


    But even if she couldn''t, she still would have recognized that voice anywhere.


    Wrapped around Aubrey''s entire room was the absolutergest snake that she had ever seen in her life.


    Even with it''s ethereal green body, it had two glowing violet eyes that were asrge as tires and incredibly unnerving.


    It''s eyelid caps fluttered a few times as it adjusted to the light within the room and eventually it focused on Aubrey who was right in front of it''s face.


    "Huff, huff.. it''s cramped in here."


    Suddenly, Aubrey saw a much more familiar ghost crawl on top of the serpent''s head from behind.


    Aubrey would have started crying if she had any tears left to shed, but her earlier antics ensured that she was all dry.


    Nevertheless, she copsed to her knees while staring in disbelief.


    "Mom¡­ d-dad¡­?"

 Chapter 288: Malachi Saint Is A Deadman

    When Aisha heard her girlfriend call out for her parents, at first she was confused by the absence of any new inhabitants within the room.


    Because no matter how hard she looked, she didn''t see anyone that her girlfriend could have possibly been talking to.


    "D-Don''t call me a blubber baby, why are the two of you so calm about this!?" Aubrey yelled at the wall while waving her fists in the air.


    "That''s a really big snake..." Thea muttered quietly.


    "Eh? What snake?"


    "Ah... you don''t have the sight, huh sweet cheeks?"


    "D-Don''t call me sweet cheeks and what sight are you talking about!?"


    Briefly, Aisha recalled the asion where she and her girlfriend traveled to the cemetery to look for her parents.


    Back then, she couldn''t see anything while Aubrey could see a plethora of dead souls.


    "Oh... That sight."


    Thea chuckled as she delicately ced her fingers over Aisha''s left eye.


    Spreading her fingers just a bit and whispering into her ear, Thea was able to give her some much needed rity on the situation.


    Now, Aisha could definitely see the veryrge ethereal green serpent wrapped around the room.


    "S-Snake!"


    Normally, Aisha wasn''t really afraid of snakes since her best friend had four of theming out of his back.


    However, none of them wererge enough to wrap around her entire room or swallow her from head to toe.


    The serpent seemed to have finally noticed her with her scream, and it slithered over to her so that it could take her into full view.


    "...A-Dog?"


    "Uncle Marcus!?"


    "How''ve you been, kiddo? You''ve gotten so big and pretty! I bet your dad gets worried every time you step out of the house." In a horrifying disy, the snake tried it''s best to smile.


    "Oh? Let me see!"


    Suddenly, another ghost floated into view and this one was much friendlier in appearance.


    She was a woman in around her mid-forties, with a naturally brilliant youth and vibrance that she insisted came from many years of ''Minding My Own Damn Business.''


    Like Aubrey, she had thick and curly hair that stopped at just around shoulder length instead ofing all the way down her back.


    Her features were warm and vibrant, her demeanor fun and motherly, and her chest emphasized.


    Which conversely, is how Aisha discovered her attraction to women at the ripe old age of 13.


    "Aisha sweetie, it''s been too long! When did you girls get so big!?"


    ''I forgot that you were always big...'' Aisha let her gaze hit the floor while she was embraced by her Aunt Felicia for the first time in over five years.


    Or at least she tried to, but she noticed the blonde-haired vixen that was practically glued to her side. "Oh, hello. What''s your name, dearie?"


    Even Papa Marcus moved closer to inspect the girl who was beautiful enough to put any model to shame.


    "My name is Thea, ma''am. It is a pleasure to meet you." Thea bowed.


    Felicia: "So proper..."


    Marcus: "So bougie."


    Felicia elbowed her husband in the scales. "Shut up, doofus, it might be customary wherever she''s from."


    "Oh, right, my bad." The snake performed it''s own little bow in apology, making Theaugh.


    "What''s someone as polite and sophisticated as you doing hanging around our girls, hm? They aren''t exactly tea at the pce types from what we remember." Felicia admitted.


    Aubrey / Aisha: "HEY!"


    "See? What youngdy yells like that?"


    "Aubrey has Haitian in her blood, but I don''t know what A-Dog''s excuse is." Marcus muttered. "Probably T''s influence."


    Aisha could neither confirm nor deny that a prolonged amount of time spent with her father had shaped her current personality.


    Thea smiled as she took Aisha under one arm and snatched up Aubrey''s hand. "Actually, I am trying to get them to marry me. I''ve fallen quite hard for them, you see."


    ""Eh...?""


    Nyx had kept Marcus and Felicia up to date on lots of the happenings on earth.


    But there were certain things that she had omitted to tell them for a variety of reasons; all of them entirely justifiable.


    She hadn''t told the two of them about Aubrey''s attraction to women because she didn''t want to tell them how it happened, and she figured that would have been something that Aubrey wanted to tell them herself one day.


    As such, they were learning about this bit of information for the very first time.


    Aubrey stammered as she tried to figure out what to say and missed the mark several times. "I-I, y''see, the thing is..."


    "Somebody owes me some motherfucking money."


    "Eh?"


    Aubrey regained focus only to realize that Marcus and Felicia seemed to be having a conversation all on their own.


    "Don''t think I forgot, big boy. I still want my lil'' chunk of change from you and Trevor."


    "That was so long ago, you need to learn how to let shit go..."


    "The hell I do."


    "We don''t even need money anymore! The hell are you gonna do with 100 dors?!"


    "Frame it on Big Mama''s dresser above our box. Just so that she''ll never forget that I''m smarter than you."


    "Ooh, you make me sick."


    "Take some Nyquil, babyboy, you''ll be fine."


    Aubrey rubbed her head as she tried to piece together the situation in her mind. "I''m sorry... What is going on here?"


    Like magic, the Saint couple finally realized that they had been ignoring everyone else in the room.


    "Our bad." Felicia blushed. "We just rehashing an old bet."


    "A bet? What bet!?" Aubrey cried.


    "Well, when y''all were young, I told your father and your Uncle Trevor that they were going to warp you girls'' tastes permanently if they kept being overprotective like they were."


    Briefly, Aisha and Aubrey thought back to their childhoods.


    From the moment that they were cognizant, their fathers drilled the same lessons into their heads.


    ''Men are trash.''


    ''If he''s blinking, he''s lying.''


    ''Boys only want to give you cooties so stay away.''


    ''They ain''t shit, they ain''t never gonna be shit, you''re better off without them.''


    ''Your daddy, your uncle, and Mchi are all you got in this life.''


    ''You better not even be alone in the same room with a man until you''re 62.''


    Things like that were said frequently.


    ""Oh...."" The girls muttered in unison.


    "S-So you''re not mad at her or¡­ me?" Aisha whispered.


    Her mind shed back to the dungeon over a year ago where she encountered the mimic of her auntie and suffered a crushing defeat.


    "Why would we be mad? Y''all are already grown and out the house, so you can do what you wanna do at this point. So if you guys wanna marry this little princess from wherever then-"


    ""W-We''re not marrying Thea!""


    The princess in question deted and even poked out her lips in a pout.


    Aubrey and Aisha ignored her to hug each other and pressed their faces together.


    "WE are the ones who are dating, not us and Thea!" Aubrey corrected.


    ""Ohh¡­"" the pair nodded in understanding.


    "Just you two, right?" Marcus rified.


    "Yes, dad."


    "That''s good. I''m d you two didn''t fall into all of that glitz and mor of dual partnership stuff." Felicia rolled her eyes.


    ""Uhh.....""


    "I''m a little disappointed that we won''t be getting grand children anytime soon, but I suppose I can just rely on your brother for that... Unless you got something else you wanna tell me?" Felicia asked suspiciously.


    "Ah... I-I do, but it''s not what you''re thinking..." Aubrey muttered.


    "Well, what is it then? Go on girlie, spit it out."


    - 2 Minutes Later...


    "..."


    "..."


    "..."


    "..."


    Aubrey, Thea, and Aisha waited patiently as they allowed the ghosts of the Saint couple to fullye to terms with the bombshells that were dropped on top of them, one right after the other.


    In hindsight Aubrey felt like she should have done a better job at controlling her facial expressions and keeping the secrets, but it was difficult at the time.


    Felicia: "...We''re going to find that boy."


    Marcus: "Take us to him please, Aubrey."


    "W-Wait!" Aubrey held up her hands in surrender. "C-Can''t that wait!? I have so many questions! Why is dad a snake!? Why do you guys seem so cavalier about reuniting after all this time!? Why is dad a snake!?


    And who is Big Mama!?"


    ""Nyx."" the two answered in unison like it was obvious.


    "That is the least important question here, so why is that the one you answered first!?"


    "See what I mean about the yelling?" Felicia whispered discreetly to Thea.


    "Ma!"


    Suddenly, Marcus'' body shrank and he began to resemble the appearance he had when he was alive.


    He had dreadlocks like Mchi, but his were much shorter and only touched around his neck area.


    He was a skinny man, but lean and with some underlying muscle to his physique.


    A dark goatee encircled his lips that seemed to always be turned up in at least a half smile, and like Mchi he had some erged fangs within his mouth.


    The only thing missing were the sses he usually wore that, strangely enough he no longer seemed to need.


    Likely because those new reptilian eyes of his didn''t have many performance issues.


    "Your Big Mama said something about monster heritage being resilient, so she''s been keeping it under wraps every generation but death is... I have to be honest, I wasn''t listening that hard." he shrugged.


    Aisha grimaced. "Unc... An all powerful primordial deity was exining to you the history behind your entire family lineage, and you weren''t listening...?"


    "She was naked the first time she greeted us."


    "Nevermind, I totally get it."


    "You feel me?"


    Aisha and her Uncle exchanged a discreet fist bump that earned them res from both their women.


    And Thea.


    "ANYWAY!" Felicia dismissed angrily. "We''re sorry if we''re not excitable enough for you, baby girl, but being dead has a weird way of messing with your sense of time...At most, I feel like it''s only been a couple of days since Ist saw you."


    "Well it hasn''t..." Aubrey muttered.


    Finally, Felicia and Marcus seemed to recognize just how hard of a time Aubrey must''ve had in their absence, and they smiled at her apologetically.


    Together, the two of them embraced her in a hug that was iparably warm despite theirck of body heat.


    "We''re sorry, sweetie.We know we should have asked Big Mama to help us get in touch with you sooner, but...With life being so chaotic, it was nice to just... rest for once, you know?"


    Aubrey wanted to say no, but she knew exactly what her mother was talking about.


    Almost every time that she saw the dead on earth, they were in utter agony.


    Ghosts don''t just long for a peaceful rest, they physically crave it.


    And when they are denied it, they be violent, depressed, or just downright unpleasant.


    "We''re sorry for how it seemed, but we really did miss you, kiddo. Can you forgive us?" Marcus smiled.


    Aubrey wasn''t made of stone, and even if she was, she didn''t have the energy to be mad at three parents tonight.


    "Yea... I get it." she finally agreed.


    Her mother kissed her on the cheek before showing her a smile that she vividly remembered from her childhood.


    Because it was usually followed by the words, ''Go Get My Belt''.


    "Now, where exactly is that man-whorish big brother of yours?"

 Chapter 289: From Bad to Worse

    Apophis Tathamet had faced a number of monstrous beasts, some of which he was rted to by blood.


    But today, he was enduring what promised to be his absolute greatest challenge thus far.


    Sei: "Apophis, was it? I hope you don''t mind my asking you some questions."


    "Mom!"


    Sei: "Quiet, Serana. This isn''t something I''m willing to just let go."


    Bianca: "Just let this happen, Ser."


    Anna: "This is for your own good."


    "You guys are crazy!"


    Sei, Anna, and Bianca all continued to re at Apophis unflinchingly.


    After Serana''s horrible end with Ryo, the girls had been inwardly kicking themselves for not doing a better job of vetting his intentions properly.


    Serana was a bubbly and unserious person, but she hardly ever had a malicious bone in her body, and she didn''t deserve to be taken advantage of in the way that she was.


    So as her family, they were going to grill the  dragon prince like their lives depended on it and find out if he really deserved to breathe the same air as her.


    While Serana seemed to be fuming from the embarrassment, Apophis was as cool as a cucumber and even smiled in the face of the three lionesses in front of him.


    Anna: "Do we look like we''re joking, shithead?"


    Apophis stopped smiling.


    "Anna!"


    "We''re only doing this cause we love you, bud."


    "Love me a little less please!"


    "I''ll think about it." (No she wouldn''t.)


    "First question- exactly how old are you, Mr. Dragon?" Bianca asked.


    "Umm... Two?" Apophis shrugged.


    Every girl at the table looked at him like he was either joking or an abomination.


    "I-It''s the truth! Most of my siblings weren''t born normally, I was initially my mother''s magical familiar, but as I grew I gained experiences, emotions, and became... this." he shrugged.


    Serana held her head in her hands with a distraught look in her eyes. "Oh my god, I''m a shotacon.."


    "Does anything on me look child-sized to you?" Apophis asked- unintentionally seductively.


    Out of the corner of her eye, Serana dragged her gaze along Apophis'' rippling physique that was straining against his white shirt.


    Her eyes kept dropping further and further, and her cheeks became redder and redder the more her imagination ran wild.


    "Next question, next question!" Sei pped the table repeatedly as she internally mourned the loss of her daughter''s innocence.


    "Your sister and brother said that they are in rtionships already. Is that the case for you too?"


    "Yes. I have three wives." Apophis nodded without hesitation. "They all know about my interest in Serana already and are very excited to meet her."


    "Eh? Really?" Serana looked surprised.


    "I''ve told you this already..."


    "O-Oh, did you? I must''ve forgotten... somehow..." Serana lowered her head in shame.


    How could she possibly focus on every single thing this man said when he was so god damned pretty!?


    Sei inhaled several times as if she were trying to calm her nerves. "I suppose it would be... hypocritical of me to condemn you for that when my rtionship is... simr."


    "Yea, cause you''re getting passed around by your fiance, two girls in their twenties, your best friend, a former government agent, an old ass vampire, and probably a partridge in a damn pear tree." Serana fired.


    "E-excuse me!?" Sei''s face immediately went red. "I-I''ve told you before, you have no proof of that and-"


    "Anna told me!"


    "WHAT!?"


    Sei grabbed Ana by her cheeks as she tried to escape from this awkward situation. "What is wrong with you?! Why would you tell my daughter that!?"


    "I-It wasn''t my fault! She made me mad and it just slipped out!"


    Serana: "All I did was eat the cake that you made for her and she told me not to worry about it because ''my mom tastes better anyway''!"


    "ANNALISEEEEE!!!!"


    "It slipped, it slipped! B, help me!!!"


    Bianca turned away and started whistling as if she couldn''t hear a damn thinging out of their mouths.


    If it were physically possible to die from embarrassment, Sei''s heart would have stopped six times over by now.


    "I feel like I shouldn''t be listening to this..." Apophis admitted.


    "You''re right, let''s get out of here and let these guys work their stuff out for themselves, hm?" Serana smiled innocently.


    ''...Did you do this on purpose?'' Apophis asked telepathically.


    ''Maybe~''


    Smiling, the two of them teleported away and let the pandemonium that they had created rage with no end in sight.


    "I swear, I am going to kill you!" Sei sifted er hands from Anna''s cheeks to her neck and squeezed hard.


    Anna''s face turned pink. "W-Wait, take revenge when Mal gets here, this is making me feel a little..."


    "T-This isn''t for that y-you... Ugh!!" Sei finally gave up on properly venting her frustrations and simply let her head hit the table.


    "How am I ever supposed to face my daughter now... my entire upstanding parental image... all gone..."


    While Anna rubbed Sei''s back apologetically, the elevator suddenly dinged and a very familiar face entered the home.


    Carrying a sleeping Camille in one arm, Mchi somehow looked more exhausted than the baby he was holding.


    "Babe? Are you alright?" Because she had been looking away the whole time, Bianca was the first one to notice that something was wrong.


    And once she pointed it out, Sei and Anna did as well.


    "...Mind getting her into bed? She got herself a little tuckered out earlier." Mal deflected with a soft smile.


    Sei jumped at the chance to spend some time with the daughter who was 1. Still innocent. and 2. Still saw her as innocent.


    Of course Anna followed behind her, still whispering apologies that Sei didn''t seem to want to hear.


    "What''s going on with those two...?" Mchi asked in an attempt to hide how he was feeling by walking into the kitchen and searching for nothing.


    Bianca stood up from the table and pushed in her chair. "Serana told Sei that she knew about her¡­ involvement with us."


    Mal''s heart skipped a beat.


    "Don''t worry, she didn''t mention the videos she identally saw on your phone. She just made Anna take the me using the cake thing."


    Mchi let out a massive sigh of relief; knowing that his best friend had inadvertently saved his ass.


    Bianca walked up to Mchi with an allure that he was normally head over heels for.


    Her toes were freshly painted, her hair cresting over her face perfectly, and her toned stomach was shyly peeking at him from underneath her hand made croptop.


    If he weren''t so mentally out of it, he probably would have tried to take her here.


    She gently ced her hand on his stomach and pushed him against the counter so that he couldn''t escape.


    "Mchi... What''s wrong with you?" she asked again.


    "¡­Why''s something gotta be-"


    "Mal." Bianca never so much as raised her voice at Mal outside of a video game or a high intensity power scaling debate, but she had a unique ability to coax certain truths out of him that he would usually keep to himself.


    It was her special gift- born due to the fact that the pair of them were like two peas in a pod.


    Mal sighed and held her so closely that he could practically absorb her through his skin.


    He rested his head on her shoulder and closed his eyes for the first time in several hours.


    "It''s just... one of those days."


    "I''m listening... start small to big."


    "...I think we''re going to have to go and find Arias ourselves."


    While this revtion did surprise Bianca, she didnt make any overtly dramatic expressions or immediately fly into rm.


    "Any particr reason..?"


    "The ns that the government has for blessed... A lot of people are going to die, if they don''t wind up in more camps."


    "It''s that bad?" Bianca asked quietly.


    Mchi could only nod in response.


    "Well... You know that we will all support you the best we can. Everyone here trusts you with their lives and we''ll follow you wherever."


    Bianca couldn''t see it, but Mal curled his lips up in a small smile.


    "I appreciate the sentiments, love¡­ Today especially."


    Bianca unconsciously squeezed Mal just a bit tighter.


    "Alright, so wha''s the big- H-Hey!" Bianca suddenly flinched when she felt Mal suddenly lick her with no warning.


    "You smell nice..."


    "Don''t even start, it''s just soap. Now tell me what-"


    "Take these off." Mchi grabbed Bianca''s sweatpants.


    "Mchi Saint, we''re talking about something I-Important! What did I tell you about using sex to avoid talking about your feelings!?"


    "We can talk after, I promise..."


    "I won''t REMEMBER this after!"


    Mchi hooked his fingers in Bianca''s waistband and began pulling them down without waiting for hear Bianca''s protests.


    Like a little prairie dog, Anna poked her head out from the room down the hall with clear interest in her eyes.


    "I heard the word ''sex'' are we starting already?"


    Bianca: "N-No!"


    Mchi: "Mhm."


    "Yes!" Anna pumped her arms in the air as she began to peel off her clothes while skipping over towards the two of them.


    She immediately dropped to her knees and pulled down both of their pants with childlike glee.


    Mchi lifted Bianca up onto the counter and began removing her shirt, as she removed his.


    "I swear¡­you better not forget."


    "I promise it''s at the forefront of my mind, love."


    The two of them kissed tenderly as he felt Anna take him into her mouth with time-practiced ease.


    He could vividly hear the sounds of her touching herself in an explicit manner- surprising him with just how wet she already was.


    Feelings of euphoria began to seep into his mind, and the exhaustion he felt from this nightmarish day began to flee.


    *Poof!*


    Thea: "Oh wow..."


    Aisha: "Yea,this is about what I expected..."


    Aubrey: "KYAAA! Is this all you think about you damn predator!?"


    Mchi looked up in horror to see not only his sister, but both of his parents standing in the middle of his living room- looking more stern than horrified.


    Bianca screamed and covered herself, while Anna temporarily poked her head out from underneath the counter before yelling ''What the fuck'' and doing the same.


    Luckily, since everyone had appeared behind the counter, they hadn''t actually see anything.


    Mchi remained stunned at the sight of both of his parents standing upright, but in the form of ghosts.


    Though his mouth was dry and he had no idea what to say, he still tried to speak.


    "Ma.. Dad-"


    Marcus: "Look at this, hon. It''s our son, the ck ass Hugh Heffner."


    Felicia: "I see him. Lord where did I go wrong, this boy not thinking with the head on his shoulders, but the one between his legs!"


    "¡­"


    It was at that moment that Mchi realized that no mater how bad your day seems to be going, it can absolutely always get worse.

 Chapter 290: H.O.E

    There was little silence that could be quite as awkward as the one that ensues after your parents identally walk in on you as you''re about to have sex.


    It would be even more awkward if it was your parents'' first time meeting your fianc¨¦.


    Well¡­ fianc¨¦s in Mchi''s case.


    Mal, Bianca, Anna, Sei, Luna, and even Nadine were all seated at the table awkwardly.


    After receiving the sight from Thea, (save for Nadine because she already had it) the group could now see Mal''s parents sitting at the table in the form of spectral ghosts.


    While outwardly they appeared silent, internally the group was in an utter panic.


    Bianca: ''You jerk! How could you not tell us your parents were back!''


    Mchi: ''I didn''t think they woulde out of the box so soon! I thought Aubrey would atleast wait for me so we could let them out together!''


    Anna: ''Your mom was in the room while I was sucking you off, your mom was in the room while I was sucking you off, your mom-''


    Bianca: ''Look, now you broke Anna!''


    Sei: ''Oh what they must think of me¡­ I''m sure I look like some kind of predator!''


    Luna: ''Worst case scenario, I say we me this all on Nadine and say that she haspelled us into this rtionship and is the only real predator here.''


    Nadine: ''Hey!''


    Sei: ''Y-You are the oldest, hon¡­''


    Nadine: ''So?! Use Jo, she''s still sleeping!''


    Sei: ''It would make her cranky...''


    Luna: ''You are just one big bundle of fluff and lust so it''ll be fine to throw you under the bus a bit. You''ll forgive us.''


    Nadine: ''That''s not fair!''


    Bianca: ''We''ll make it up to youter?''


    Nadine: ''¡­I want to watch all ten seasons of Tyler Perry''s House of Payne and have sex for two nights straight.''


    Mchi: ''We''d have to spend over a week in the house for that¡­''


    Nadine: ''Take it or leave it, bitches!''


    "You don''t seem to have missed us very much."


    Mchi and the girls almost jumped when he heard his mother Felicia speak after over ten minutes of silence.


    "C-Course I did, ma, I''m just¡­ a little surprised is all."


    "You surprised..? The hell do you think I am...?"


    "Is our first conversation now that you''re back going to be a lecture...?"


    "Is there anything more important than the fact that I''ve got a slew of daughters-inw I don''t know nothing about and a one year old grand baby I''ve never met!?"


    "...!" Mchi aggressively gestured to his deep ck skin, fanged teeth, and the literal animalsing out of his back.


    But Felicia remained unswayed.


    "Boy ain''t nobody worried about them little wiggle worms you got, and you used to turn that color in the summertime when you were a little boy anyway." She dismissed.


    "Where did the time go... It feels like it was just yesterday that he was crying cause I got him out of bed to do yard work... Now my boy is cut like a block of marble and turned his spot into the yboy mansion..." Marcus sighed in disappointment.


    Mchi had absolutely no words to describe how he was feeling in this exact moment.


    His fianc¨¦s were alsorgely unsure of whether or not they shouldugh or cry.


    The snakes looked among themselves as if they were trying to decide how they felt about their identities being reduced to ''Wiggle Worms.''


    Unsurprisingly, Aisha was the only one who was giggling furiously and trying to keep it all together.


    "I''m sorry, we''re probably being rude." Felicia smiled warmly at the girls for the first time today and calmed their feelings of anxiety.


    She smiled at Sei in a friendly manner, and even took her by the hand.


    "I swear, I don''t know what my boy could have said to convince you to let him date your daughter, but I hope he''s at least been on his best behavior."


    Just like that, everyone''s smiles were wiped away.


    Aisha snorted so hard that lemonade came out of her nose and she had a small coughing fit.


    "What..? Did I say something wrong?" Felicia looked around in confusion.


    "W-Well... my daughter isn''t dating your son... I am." Sei smiled nervously hoping that it would make this situation less awkward.


    Felicia tried several times to blink away her surprise but failed miserably at every instance.


    Anna was practically glued to Sei in an attempt to hide her embarrassment, hence the reason why Felicia mistook her as being her mother.


    "..." In quick session, her gaze swiveled between Nadine, Luna, and Sei once again.


    "S-So you all... w-with my son...?"


    """¡­Yes...""" the girls replied in unison.


    Felicia was at aplete and utter loss for words.


    But Marcus wasn''t.


    "Damn. The boy got a type."


    "H-Hush, Marcus!"


    "You know, I should''ve known his tastes was like this when he kept asking if he could spend the night at school in elementary. He didn''t even like doing homework at that age!"


    Mchi briefly remembered his old teacher Mrs. Jenkins, the first woman to give him a big boy dream.


    ...He had indeed known what he liked for a very long time.


    *Click!*


    As if things couldn''t have possibly gotten any worse, at that moment the bedroom door opened and Joanne walked out.


    Out of habit, Joanne only sleeps in a bra and whichever pair of Mchi''s boxers that she fishes out of his drawer that night.


    She stepped out into view still rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, and with her hair messily strewn across her face.


    "Babe, Sei, do we have anything in the fridge to ea..." As the crust slowly fell away from Joanne''s eyes, she all but had a heart attack when she saw the full table.


    Joanne''s blessing came from Cassiel, an archangel from heaven.


    As such, she could also see dead spirits with no necessary alteration to her eyesight, she just couldn''t hear their voices.


    But given the current circumstances, she hardly needed to.


    "F-Fuck, guys, tell me when we havepany!"


    Joanne mmed the door closed and ran back into their room at the speed of light.


    "...I guess she''s another one of yours?" Felicia asked.


    "Yes-"


    "S-She''s also my mom!" Anna blurted without being able to stop herself.


    After so much information and revtions being dumped into the mind of Felicia Saint in such a short timespan, she reacted the only way that any upstanding mother would have.


    She fainted.


    Marcus caught his wife as she fell into hisp and carefully arranged her head so that she could restfortably.


    "Well... she''ll be out for a little bit so I figure this is as good a time as any to make introductions. My name is Marcus Saint and I''m Mal and Aubrey''s father. It''s nice to meet you all."


    One by one, the girls began introducing themselves with meager and polite smiles while inwardly trying to shake the horrible feelings in their hearts.


    "I wanted to... clear the air just a bit." Marcus sighed. "You have to understand,st we saw Mal he wouldn''t even talk to a girl, let alone... anything else."


    Anna and Bianca lowered their heads in shame as they recalled the painful scene from earlier all over again.


    "A-Anyway." Marcus continued. "We understand that grief has it''s ways of changing people to a pretty frightening degree.


    We''re just a bit worried that in our absence our son turned to filling the void with women recklessly.


    He, and all of you, deserve better than something shallow like that."


    Miraculously, the tension that had been hovering in the air for a while now seemed to have cleared up pretty quickly.


    Sei was still tiring her fingers ufortably like she was afraid to speak, but eventually she gathered the courage.


    "A-Actually... Mchi and I began dating first around two years ago and it was just us then...


    I was actually the one who gave him permission to bring others into the rtionship. He hadn''t even asked about it..."


    ''Good god, son, what kind of pipe are youying on these women?!'' Marcus wanted to ask.


    "If I''m honest... When Mal first asked me out I thought it was just some minor fascination that he would quickly get over... but as time went on, he continued to love me more and more everyday.


    Once I¡­ started to develop more intimate feelings for him, I got scared of what would happen if Mal''s attention was stolen by someone younger, skinnier, and more beautiful... so I gave him permission."


    Marcus couldn''t help but look at the two younger and skinnier looking girls at the table.


    Sei smiled as she wrapped their arms around both of them like they were irreceable parts of her life.


    "It was awkward at first when others came around, but then... everyday just became brighter and more fun. Suddenly I had a man who loved me, and five new best friends to-"


    "I am your only best friend." Luna corrected. "Give the rest of the scrubs some other title."


    """Excuse us!?"""


    "I didn''t stutter."


    "See? There is never a dull moment." Sei smiled.


    "I can tell¡­" Marcus smiled at the group.


    Papa Saint finally held up his hands in surrender.


    "Then I have no moreints. She''ll probably need a little more time to wrap her mind around this, but just know that Felicia and I wish you all the best and hope that you will keep taking care of our little pimp- I mean, son. "


    Mchi made a face as if he didn''t find the joke funny, but the girls did.


    "You''re done now, right?" Marcus suddenly asked. "I mean, I think you''ve got some pretty full hands already, yea?"


    Mchi uddenl turned his head to the side and whistled.


    Marcus'' jaw went ck. "You''re joking... Son, I did not give you that much penis for you to be giving so much of it out like this."


    "I so do not want to have this conversation with you..." Mal had never realized it before, but perhaps there were advantages to having dead parents that he didn''t appreciate.


    "You gon'' hurt your back one of these days, and I won''t do nothing butugh at you."


    Mchi only rolled his eyes while the girls held their sides withughter.


    "Alright, alright, I''m just jostling ya. So who is luckydy number... seven? Jesus, just saying it makes you sound like a hoe."


    "Dad."


    "Sorry, sorry, continue."


    Against his better judgment, Mchi parted his lips and told his father about the final woman he had developed a romantic interest in.


    And try as he might''ve to be supportive, Marcus was still getting used to all of this multiple partners stuff, so his response wasn''t as productive as his son would have liked.


    "...You are such a hoe."


    "Dad!"

 Chapter 291: Plastic Surgery?!

    The next day, Mchi woke up rather early to go and see someone very important to him.


    As he waited outside of Celeste''s quarters, he found his mind drifting back tost night''s family affairs; the explosive and the mellow.


    Try as he might''ve, he couldn''t get his mother to talk to him any further about the situation with Aubrey once she stopped crying.


    She apologized to him and Camille for showing them something unsightly, then tried to clean herself up as if everything was normal.


    Mal tried to talk to her the best he could, but¡­ she shut him downpletely at every turn.


    *Click!*


    The door Mchi stood in front of swung open, and he was greeted by the sight of a beautifully charming Celeste.


    Though she looked a little surprised to see him, and hid most of her body behind the door.


    "O-Oh, Morning, Mchi... How can I help you?"


    Mal smiled somewhat sadly at the mature beauty and held up his hands in surrender.


    "You don''t need to keep acting so skittish around me. I promise I''m not going to jump on you."


    "I know that, I just... don''t want to leave room for anyone to misunderstand our rtionship..."


    "Misunderstand? How?"


    "Y-You know how, just... What do you want from me?"


    Mchi realized that maybe he wouldn''t be able to get anywhere with Celeste like this.


    So instead of continuing to press the situation, he decided it was better to just get her in a morefortable setting to talk.


    "I came here cause I needed your medical expertise. I was hoping you''d do a bit of stic surgery on me."


    "Eh!?"


    "Imnts to be specific." Mal shrugged.


    Stunned, Celeste emerged from behind the door.


    Mal was able to get a much better view of her veryrge chest that was barely being kept within her nightdress.


    "What''s the matter? Miss the days when you were still prom queen? Or had your husband started ogling other young girls and you want to get his attention back?"


    "Ha-ha." Malughed dryly.


    "..." Celeste ced her hands on Mal''s chest and squeezed his pecs.


    "Honestly I don''t see anything wrong with these. I''ve seen worse ones on Brazzers."


    Mchi smiled at the knowledge that Celest basically just confessed to being very familiar with pornography. "You''re funny, but that''s not really what I meant... Or did you just want an excuse to touch me?"


    Celeste quickly realized how her joke might have looked misleading and ripped her hands away.


    "What? Done feeling me up already?" Mal teased.


    "D-Don''t joke with me!" Celeste punched him in the stomach with a strength that should not belong to a human woman in her forties.


    Chuckling, Mal pulled out two small items from his pocket and held them out in front of Celeste.


    These were the totems that Bast and Raijin had given him.


    "What are these?"Celeste asked curiously.


    "Ah... Equalizers." Mal shrugged.


    "I need you to put this one in one of my fingers by taking out one of the phnges." Mal held up Bast''s totem that was shaped like a w.


    "And this one..." Mal held up the totem from Raijin in the shape of a drum. "I guess you should put it in my lungs somewhere?"


    Celeste''s jaw fell open.


    "You...You''re not joking. I''m not a stic surgeon, you dolt! I was a scrub nurse!"


    "So you''ve sat in on surgeries before, right?"


    "Y-Yes, but I-"


    "Great! I knew you were the woman for the job."


    "Do you want me to murder you?"


    Mchi chuckled as he patted her on the shoulder lightly. "Don''t worry, I''m pretty sure that here isn''t much you could do to me that would cut my life short like that. Besides, I trust you to take care of me."


    Mchi waived her away with a smile as he began walking away from the mature beauty.


    "I''ll be waiting for you in the medbay. You can feel free to take your time, yea?"


    "I-I..." Celeste wore something of an incredulous expression as she watched Mal walk away from her in apletely unbothered manner.


    Honestly¡­ she missed when he was still just a sweet young man who listened to her every word and had a bit of doe-eyed innocence left.


    What had happened to that sweet young guy?!


    Could she possibly trade in this deviant version she had now for the previous cuter model??


    ''W-What am I saying, he was never c-cute!!'' Celest shook her head so hard that she nearly sent it rolling down the hallway.


    No matter what, she would absolutely not fall for any of Mal''s whims or spend any more time with him than necessary!


    And she certainly wouldn''t help him when it came to imnting those weird little objects in his body since it was already perfectly fine!


    ''N-No, not ''fine'' I mean¡­!''


    Mchi heard Celeste scream out in frustration and m her head in the door from all the way down the hall.


    -


    Mchi''s odd medical request wasn''t a spur of the moment decision.


    This was one of the only normal things his mother was able to talk to him aboutst night before she inevitably asked him to leave.


    Apparently, these two little totems were basically like consecrated divine power.


    Sometimes, gods can take an item bearing no physical significance and infuse a bit of their power into it.


    Though differently from the blessed humans, there is no acting ''tether'' connecting the gods to their blessed items.


    Once they dump a portion of their power into an item, they cannot just take it back out at will if it is not in their possession.


    And if the items are imed by someone else beforehand, they just lose it altogether.


    Though they can eventually umte it back after a few thousand years- depending on how much they discarded.


    Should the power inside of the item be fused with the body of another, it bes theirs permanently.


    Nyx noticed the items in Mchi''s pocket after she finished crying and was mildly surprised by it.


    She was the one who ensured hm that the items were safe to use, and that they were a fairly big gesture.


    This was the only normal moment that they hadst night, and he wished that he would have tried harder to keep the mood light.


    Truthfully, he was worried.


    He''d never really seen his mother behaving like this before, and he didn''t know how to snap her out of it.


    That said, he figured that talking to his sister would likely be the key.


    But since yesterday, Aubrey had been avoiding him and making herself hard to reach; almost like she knew what he wanted to talk about and wasn''t having it.


    ''I wonder if I should just tie her up and force her to talk to me... and then I''ll probably feed her to Thea right after.''


    Mchi peeled off his shirt andy on thefortable medical bed in sickbay.


    Gwiya slid into his hands and he began petting him absentmindedly as he stared up into the ceiling.


    "Hey guys?"


    "..." The snakes turned their heads towards Mal.


    "How long do you think that it''ll take her to get here..? If she shows up at all."


    "..." The snakes looked at each other as if they were having a serious wager amongst themselves.


    They eventually turned back to him and shook their heads; almost as if they were telling him ''she''s noting'' with absolutely zero hesitation.


    "Well what do you bastards know? You don''t even have brains..."


    The snakes bit Mchi on his thighs and stomach.


    "Whine all you want, won''t change anything." he muttered.


    As soon as the snakes started to bite Mal in the face this time, the automatic doors to the medbay slid open with a hiss.


    Celeste emerged wearing some of her old scrubs and an annoyed look, but Mchi couldn''t help but light up in spite of her death stare.


    "Damn..."


    "D-Damn what, boy?!" Celeste covered her body in mild embarrassment; worried that her old scrubs might''ve looked as tight as they felt. "A-And why do you have your shirt off?!"


    "How else are you supposed to get to my lungs...?"


    "I was going to cut through your shirt!"


    "The hell!? Why would you do that?!"


    "B-Because, I just don''t want to see you without a shirt on!"


    Mchi finally noticed some simrities between the way that Celeste was currently behaving and how Sei used to act when they first started dating.


    He would onlyter find out that it was because she was embarrassed by the situations they often ended up in and didn''t know how to hide her interest.


    The thought that this might also be the case with Celeste was more than enough to put a smile on his face.


    "W-What are you looking at me like that for?!"


    "No reason." Mal smiled as hey back on the table.


    For some reason, he felt like this was going to be the best surgery he''d ever had.

 Chapter 292: A Long (Short) Day...

    Complete, and utter, silence.


    For upwards of fifteen minutes, Mchi and Celeste had been sitting in medbay without saying a word to each other.


    Though, this wasn''t intentional on Mchi''s part.


    But every time he tried to say something, Celeste would stuff a stic glove into his mouth while iming that she needed to concentrate.


    However, she had underestimated the difficulty she would be facing when it came to this task.


    Not only had she never performed a surgery on her own before, but she had also never done a surgery where her patient was awake and staring at her the whole time either.


    If she was feeling the weight of Mal''s gaze while she was just working on his finger, she couldn''t imagine how she was going to feel once she cracked his chest open.


    "Are you... sure you don''t need anesthesia...?" Celeste finally asked. "Luna stocked us more than enough for a long time, so you don''t have to worry about rationing it."


    Unsurprisingly, Mal shook his head as he continued to stare at his attractive surgeon without hiding his interest. "Nah, I''m alright. It doesn''t hurt and I''m pretty sure it wouldn''t work anyway."


    "Hmph... I hope you''re not acting tough so that you can keep staring at me like a pervert."


    "Pervert? Me??"


    "You see any other young boys around here who go to sleep with a bed full of beautiful women every night? Pretty sure you guys aren''t just singing campfire songs..."


    "Well since we spend so much time with the baby it''s usually something ''Disney'' based..." Mal admitted.


    "Don''t joke with me." Celeste rolled her eyes.


    He wasn''t joking.


    Mal noticed that the mature beauty seemed to be a little more prickly than normal.


    "Is there any reason you''re acting like you don''t like me all of a sudden?"


    His question was simple, but it effectively acted as the straw that broke the camel''s back, because all of Celeste''s feelings and anxieties came spilling out at once.


    "I don''t like you, Mchi, a-atleast not in the way you want me to. I thought you were a nice young man when we first met, but I had no idea you would start behaving like... this.


    How can you im to have feelings for me when you spent months dating my daughter? D-Do you even understand the kind of position your confession has put me in..?


    J-Just looking at Mnie makes me feel guilty, and I''m afraid that she''s going to hear something strange one day and think that I betrayed her, or that I''m so desperate that I-I just ran to jump into the arms of the first man to show me attention in twenty years!


    A-And you just seem to want another notch on your belt! You already have six women in your bed, but now you''re chasing me? For what purpose??


    Are you just doing this out of some twisted need to get revenge on her?! She''s already apologized and I just d-don''t get why you would want to hurt her further using me!"


    Celeste rambled so quickly that she could have given ''Busta Rhymes'' a run for his money if she ever decided to release an album.


    And Mchi listened to every single word, without showing even the slightest change in his expression or interrupting.


    When Celeste was done, she was slightly out of breath and her cheeks were flushed red with anger.


    She only seemed to get angrier by the second since Mal had yet to say anything and just stared at her.


    "S-Say something!" She yelled.


    Mchi sat up on the bed and healed the finger Celeste had already cut open; inadvertently undoing all of her hard work.


    He started to reach for her, and Celeste shook her head weakly.


    She didn''t want him to do something to make her feel even more guilty.


    Mal cupped her face in his hands and removed her face mask before pulling her in closely.


    Despite Celeste''s earlier fiery dialogue, she was now surprisingly meek as Mal continued pulling her face towards his own.


    She didn''t even try to pull away.


    However, she did seem like she was on the verge of crying.


    "Please don''t do this¡­" She immediately feared the worst.


    However, instead of the action she expecteding to fruition, Mal only pressed his forehead against hers.


    Their lips barely grazed each other, but that slight friction seemed to make Celeste shiver for reasons she couldn''t exin.


    "I''m sorry... but I don''t have feelings for you because I''m trying to hurt Mnie. How I feel has nothing to do with her, and everything to do with you.


    Ever since you helped me get my head back on straight in the hospital and showed me how to move past my mistakes, I''ve always held a candle to you.


    You had just gotten out of a liter, but you were so full of life and passionate; exactly what someone like me needed to pick my head up and grow up a bit.


    I know it''s wrong, and I know you think I''m just being greedy, but my feelings for you are incredibly sincere.


    But I want you to know, just because I told you about my feelings doesn''t mean I''m going to ask you to reciprocate them. I''ll be the only bad guy here; you just keep being the upstanding mother that I know you to be."


    Celeste shut her eyes tightly as Mchi kissed her on the cheek softly.


    He grabbed his shirt and started to leave quietly, leaving her mildly confused.


    "What about the surgery...?"


    "Ah, don''t worry about it." Mal twisted his hand behind his back and the totems came floating into his palm. "I can just put them in myself."


    "What? T-Then what was the purpose of all of this?!"


    "Isn''t it obvious?" He smiled sadly. "I just wanted to spend a little time with you."


    Celeste watched Mal walk out of the medb without looking back.


    Unsurprisingly, she had no idea how to feel right now.


    Lots of things were said, and a few intimate acts were almost exchanged, and in the end it was revealed that Mal had never actually needed her help at all.


    He had her perform an entirely unnecessary and elective surgery... while awake¡­ just so that he could get her alone and stare at her.


    "I... don''t understand young people at all."


    -


    Mchi ended up outside of the base on the cliff overlooking theforest.


    His arrived outside just as a golden blur passed through the trees and stopped next to him.


    Though she can be a bit of a couch potato like her daughter, Joanne built up certain habits from all of her years in the army that were hard to break.


    She usually got up in the mornings where she wasn''t too exhausted from night activities and went on runs to atleast a different state.


    Afterwards she would take a shower and usually watch some shit tv with Nadine or just go back to sleep.


    "I''m back." Joanne held out her fingers in a peace sign and greeted Mal with a robotic expression.


    "How far did you make it this time?" Mal chuckled.


    "Florida. Turns out that it''s actually pretty nice when all of the people are dead. Surprised the hell out of me."


    Joanne gave him a small peck on the lips and paused when she smelled an unfamiliar perfume.


    It was then that she remembered exactly what her fianc¨¦''s n for this morning was.


    And the fact that he was out here could only mean one thing.


    "Didn''t go well, huh..?"


    "Not really."


    "What''d she say..?"


    "Nothing that wasn''t true." Mal shrugged.


    He burned away his skin until he was standing around in his avatar state.


    Ever so casually, he pulled out the drum of Raijin and inserted it into his chest and then pulled out the w of Bast and made his finger reshape itself to fit it like a plug and an outlet.


    After giving his hand a shake and doing a quick jump to ensure that nothing would fall out, he was confident that they weren''t going anywhere.


    "How do you feel? Divine?" Joanne poked Mal in the stomach like he was a dead frog.


    He started to answer and say that he didn''t really feel all that different when he noticed that it was getting a little warm out here.


    And as the seconds went by, the warmth he felt only grew and grew.


    It spread to every corner of his body until it was nearly impossible to remain unresponsive to it.


    He started to double over in pain and Joanne immediately came to his side to help him.


    However,he was just barely able to use the shadows to move her out of harms way when his body self immted.


    The winds blew hard enough to blow down trees and dark clouds formed in the sky overhead.


    A bolt of cyan green lightning fell from the sky andnded on the spot where Mchi once stood, and a chorus of animal sounds shook the mountain range.


    First was the screeching of a bird.


    Second was the roaring of arge cat.


    Third was the ever familiar hissing of a serpent.


    Andstly...


    "God, that shit hurt!"


    Joanne waived her hand and the dust that was kicked up by the storm was immediately dispersed.


    Once her vision was no longer obstructed, she could see her fiance sitting on a crater in the ground;pletely in the nude.


    "Babe, you''re... back to normal?" Joanne muttered in shock.


    Mchi stopped holding his stomach and groaning long enough to look down and realize that she was right.


    His ck hair, normal white pupils, chocte brown skin, andck of snakesing out of his back were all changes he wasn''t quite used to anymore.


    He kind of felt naked.


    Well¡­ even more so than he currently was.


    "But... Why is there a small petting zoo behind you?" Joanne finished.


    Mal finally looked behind his back at the three animals sitting and staring at him patiently.


    One was arge ck lion the size of a horse with a shining grey mane.


    Another was arge ck snake with hornsing out of it''s head that wasrge enough to wrap around a housefortably.


    The final one was a bird the size of arge dog with ck feathers and a golden serrated beak.


    It''s feathers seemed to constantly crackle with the same brightly colored lightning that fell from the sky before.


    *Whistle* "... You''re some big guys, huh?" He muttered in shock.


    However, thest thing he ever expected was to get a response back.


    Lion: "We have been born for all of two minutes and you''re already calling us fat..?"


    Snake: "It''s so improper of you to makements on a girl''s weight... Have you no manners..? I will never understand why so many women decided to marry you."


    ""What a dick.""


    The tworge beasts turned into pure energy and jumped back inside of Mchi''s body.


    Oddly enough, he felt a well of power return to him that he didn''t realize was missing, and his body returned to it''s previous N''Kai condition like nothing had ever changed.


    Though the snakes on the back of his head refused to look his way after hisments...


    Stunned, Mal turned towards the final bird that still had yet to leave and it let out a happy caw.


    "Don''t worry, brother! I''m not offended, I like being called big!"


    Mchi let his jaw hang open and slowly turned to face Joanne for an exnation.


    Unfortunately, his fianc¨¦ held up her hands in surrender.


    "Don''t look at me, babe. I''m still trying to figure out how our daughter teleports."


    With no other options, Mal justy back on the ground and closed his eyes.


    "It''s... been a long day."


    "It''s only 7:30?"


    "I said what I said."

 Chapter 293: Even Footing?

    About five seconds after Mal first conversed with the unusally chipper bird; three individuals appeared outside on top of the mountain.


    And Mchi, for all of his new power, almost died immediately.


    "KYAAAA!! Why the hell are you naked?!?" Thea was always extremely cheerful and the one who seemed to have the calmest head while being a bit sexually charged.


    However, the sight of a naked man was apparently way too much for her innocent mind to handle.


    Her face turned beet red, and she screamed out like a little girl.


    Belloc and Apophis, who had also appeared outside with her, immediately rushed to cover their sister''s eyes.


    They red at Mchi like he was worse than a park sher.


    "What the fuck is wrong with you, bozo?! The hell do you think you''re showing my innocent sister?!"


    ''Innocent¡­?'' Joanne questioned.


    "Put your damn clothes on right now or I will burn you to ash..!"


    Mchi had been seen naked by so many people identally at this point that he didn''t even perceive it as problematic anymore.


    However, the two ck and purple mes that the brothers summoned overhead made him remember that being naked wasn''t just indecent, but dangerous too.


    "Ah¡­ Sorry The-"


    ""STOP TALKING TO HER WITH YOUR DICK OUT!!!""


    Two columns of me fell right on the spot where Mchi once stood and created arge crater in the once unblemished mountaintop.


    The friendly lowbreed Lolo poked her head out from underneath a mass of bushes as she trembled terribly from the fright.


    Joanne started to snap when she remembered just how strong the two brothers were and knew that they of all people shouldn''t be haphazardly attacking Mchi.


    "It was just an ident... Dragons are so short tempered."


    "Eh?"


    Joanne slowly turned her head to the side when she noticed that her fiance had somehow ended up beside her at some point without her knowledge.


    And he was even wearing pants again. (Though she never minded the view to begin with)


    "When... did you get here?"


    "A couple seconds ago?"


    "How?"


    "I walked?"


    "What do you mean you walked!?"


    "Like that old Christas special song; Put one foot in front of the other and-"


    "I-I know how walking works it''s just... N-Nevermind, babe."


    Joanne was as smart as a whip and calctive to a fault, but if she didn''t have to use her brain to think she wasn''t going to.


    Being with Mchi had given her many moments where she had to just chalk circumstances up to ''My man is just special like that'' and kept it pushing for the sake of time.


    "We''re a lot faster now, boss, didja notice that??" The giant bird asked from beside Mchi. "We were like; ''Zoom''! And big sis Jo was like ''What the hell'' but we were like ''This is just another day baby'' and now, w-"


    "Where the hell did the talking impundulue from...?" Belloc was somehow just noticing the big demonic bird behaving nothing like his appearance would suggest.


    "What''d you call me, bitch?" the bird was already offended and he didn''t know what the word meant.


    Apophis dropped to his knee while clutching his sides fromughing while Belloc cracked his knuckles menacingly.


    "Impundulu isn''t a slur, you fucking chicken. It literally means lightning bird..!"


    "Oh...You should''ve said that then. Gosh." the impundulu turned it''s head away and began pecking the ground like he was looking for food.


    Belloc had only rarely experienced the urge to kill something as strongly as he did this creature.


    Mchi scratched the back of his head helplessly.


    "Honestly... I don''t know where he came from, I just kinda spit him out when I fused those totems into my body.


    There was a snake and a lion too, but I kinda pissed them off so they went back inside. Speaking of..."


    "W-W-Wait, wait, wait, I''m not done sightsee-"


    Mchi sucked the bird back into his body through his palm despite it''s protests.


    He took in a deep breath once his new pet was gone, and finally enjoyed the quiet that he felt had been missing from his life.


    However, he immediately had his pleasant scenario dashed away when Apophis suddenly asked for a favor.


    "Hey, Mal...? Spit all three out really quick, would you?"


    "...Do I have-"


    Thea / Belloc / Apophis: """Yes."""


    Shrugging to himself; Mchi shook his head before he proceeded to free all three of his new pets from their fleshy prison and brought the huge ck animals back outside.


    And just like before, he reverted back to his normal, human appearance before he became a N''Kai.


    As he had said earlier, there was a snake, lion, and a bird.


    The Tathamet siblings leaned in closely like they were inspecting all three; and the animals did the same.


    Lion: "Ah... We are in the presence ofpany."


    Snake: "And quite the royalpany too it seems..."


    Bird: "...Fuck these guys."


    The Tathamets ignored the animals'' words as they took in all of the changes going on in front of them.


    Joanne sat down on a nearby rock and sipped out of her water bottle while she texted the rest of the girls in the group chat.


    -


    Jo : Babe did something crazy again.


    Nadine <3 : Anal??


    Jo: No you horny bloodsucker!


    Nadine <3 : Booo.


    *Pervert Bianca emphasized ''Booo''*


    *Daughter #1 emphasized ''Booo''*


    *Emi emphasized ''Booo''*


    Sweet Sei: ''What did he do? Is it good??''


    Jo: ''I''m so d at least one of you is normal...''


    -


    After less than a minute of investigation, the Tathamet siblings came up with a theory that they were certain was iron-d.


    "Seems like your different powers kind of manifested themselves into their own unique creatures with personalities and autonomy in an attempt to stop your body from splitting itself apart." Thea exined casually.


    ""Excuse me!?"" Mal and Joanne asked in unison.


    "What did you expect?" she shrugged as she reached out to the lion to pet him. "You''re holding too much divine power in your body and soul right now and you aren''t even a real demigod."


    "If you weren''t able to take these three out freely so that they coulde and go; you probably would have exploded by sunset." Oddly enough, Belloc seemed disappointed that wasn''t going to happen.


    "I don''t know how your body developed this kind of failsafe, but you better thank your lucky stars for it." Apophis finished.


    "Yes! Be grateful for us!" The bird nodded proudly.


    Mchi petted the feathered creature absentmindedly as he thought of the person who was likely the true reason why he wasn''t a burning ball of ash right now.


    It had only been a day, but he was really worried for his mother.


    The longer he thought about it, the more determined he was to go and visit her.


    But she had already made her desire to be left alone perfectly clear.


    And he could only respect that and send his love from afar¡­ for now.


    "It''d be smart of you to not keep these three inside of yourself for longer than nine hours at a time¡­ probably less if you''ve been exerting yourself." Apophis confessed. "You''re just a little too strong for your own good now."


    Mchi heard something that immediately made him perk up and he grinned like a Cheshire Cat; revealing his teeth that were still as sharp as ever.


    "Oh yeah? Starting to feel a little afraid of me yet?"


    Apophis rolled his eyes dismissively, as did his brother. "One day I hope you understand the significance of weight sses, kid. And the dangers of trying to punch above your own."


    "Right, right, I get it¡­" Mal held up his hands. "You''re just afraid I could make you look bad in front of Serana."


    A thick vein bulged in Apophis'' forehead as the air around him became noticeably warmer. "I''m sorry¡­ what was that?"


    "No sweat bro, I really do get it. I''m in love too and I also don''t want to be shown up in front of my girls."


    ''Why are we suddenly involved in this...?'' Joanne wanted to ask.


    Mchi wrapped his arm around his fianc¨¦ and waived the dragons goodbye as he began to head inside.


    "Hold up, you little bastard¡­"


    A strong gripnded on his shoulder and crushed all of the bones inside with ease.


    "You can''t seriously think I''m going to let that go, can you?"


    Mchi smiled imperceptibly to himself.


    Joanne continued to sip her water while she thought about what she''d like for breakfast.


    ''I don''t understand men at all¡­ I feel like today is going to be a long one.''

 Chapter 294: Gambling Is Bad For Your Health

    "Put down what you got now, put down what you got!"


    "Nobody move but the goodsdies and gentlemen, nobody move but the goods!"


    "Step and make those marks folks, let''s get this all underway!"


    Mchi stared nkly at the crowd of people with their back turned away from him as they devolved into a buzzing mass.


    Members from the base were all gathered around a white folding table and dropping an array of goods onto the table.


    These were things that were considered ''valuable'' in a post apocalyptic world.


    Good canned foods, some baked goods and cooked dishes, cigarettes, un-opened alcohol, preferred weapons, fancier soaps, candles, and things of that nature.


    Ali, Rowan, and Aisha''s father Trevor, affectionately dubbed ''The Oldhead Brigade''; were organizing this entire gambling exercise along with the supervision of their newest ghostly member; Marcus.


    The end of the world can be hard on a man in ways that no one ever could have anticipated.


    There''s no more sports on tv, it''s nearly impossible to get a good haircut, none of the crappy foods your wife tells you to stop eating are avable anymore, and every porn site has already been taken down.


    The only thing keeping the spirit of the oldheads bright was their close-knittedpanionship; consisting of conversations about fatherhood, barbecue, and the like.


    Usually one can find the old men in the cafeteria ying cards, but today they came up with a whole new way to relieve their boredom.


    Upon sensing a bit of tension between Mal and Apophis; Rowan followed them through the base like an old bloodhound and the rest of the brigade trailed behind him.


    Joanne and Belloc noticed, but both unanimously decided not to say anything at all.


    When the elders noticed the two men make a beeline for one of the training rooms without stopping, they finally intervened.


    Mchi wasn''t sure what they thought was happening, but he heard a whole lot of ''This isn''t how we settle things boys'' and ''There''s too much at stake to be fighting over women''.


    ¡­He had no idea if they thought that he wanted Serana or that Apophis wanted Jo, but he considered either assumption to be horribly insulting.


    So much so that he wanted to put all of them into the graves that they already had one foot in.


    Once the old men heard what was really going on, their attitudes did an almostplete 180.


    Then, they practically started the god damned instigating olympics.


    Rowan: ''Remember how he made you look like a bitch on his first day here? I do.''


    Ali: ''You can let that slide if you want¡­ Couldn''t be me tho.''


    Trevor: ''About 60% of the girls say he''s prettier than you¡­ I just thought you should know that.''


    Marcus: ''Just make me proud, son! I didn''t raise a wuss! ¡­Well actually I did for a while, but Big Mama tells me you''ve gotten a lot more courageous.''


    As if Mchi wasn''t sufficiently motivated enough, the old men called over just about every free member in the base and jammed them into training hall six.


    They set up a white folding table to collect bets on the two fighters.


    stered on the wall behind them were two photographs taped on a whiteboard, and the betters were able to write their names under the photos of those who they believed would win.


    After a full ten minutes of this, the walls were lined with spectators who were anxious to watch the match begin.


    Nadine: "Come on babe! We all bet on you!"


    Aisha : "Me too bro, you got this!" *She actually bet on Apophis*


    Serana: "If you fuck up his face I''m going to crush your nuts!"


    Anna / Bianca : "Over my dead body!"


    Felicia: "B-Be safe now, baby! Momma loves you!"


    Mchi''s brow twitched uncontrobly as numerous cheers and yells fell on his ears.


    ''I''m realizing for the first time that maybe there isn''t enough to do around the base.'' He thought that if there were more amenities avable then no one would have made the time toe here and leer.


    Even with snakes on his back, this was the first time he''d ever felt like a zoo animal.


    "Don''t tell me it''s all starting to get to you?"


    Mchi looked up at Apophis who seemed to be entirely unfazed by the crowd.


    The dragon peeled off his shirt and several women began barking like dogs and making inmmatoryments.


    Coincidentally, Serana choked a few girls in the crowdpletely un-provoked and had to be pulled away by her mother.


    Who knew what had possibly set her off?


    "If the crowd is getting to you, then you''re free to back out if you like. Though I think everyone might be a bit disappointed." Apophis shrugged.


    After all of the earlier instigating, Mchi couldn''t in good conscience back down because of a little attention.


    "Sorry, not gonna happen man. I haven''t felt this full of energy since I first got my powers... I couldn''t settle down even if I wanted to..!"


    At that moment, all of Mal''s fianc¨¦''s shivered uncontrobly without understanding why.


    ''Are we... in danger?'' they all thought at once.


    Mal cracked his knuckles in excitement. "This ain''t gonna be like the first time, scaly prince. Try to keep up with me, yea?"


    Two changes urred within Mchi at that moment.


    The snake that represented the manifestation of his N''Kai and Inkanyamba bloodline manifested itself at his side; over thirty feet long and as thick as a telephone pole.


    He had decided to name her Ajani.


    His bare feet developed their own ws that dug into the solid ground and the muscles hidden beneath his shirt and pants began to strain against the fabric.


    Cyan green lightening spread from the soles of his feet to the top of his head and practically bathed him in raw energy.


    And yet Apophis still didn''t look particrly impressed or petrified.


    Finally, Mchi pushed off the ground with enough force to put a hole in the floor.


    But instead of running at Apophis immediately, Mal relished the feeling of having his speed back for the first time in over a year.


    He bounced off the walls, the ceiling, and the floor gaining more and more velocity every time that heunched himself across the room.


    By now, he was little more than a blur of energy that only three within the room could follow perfectly.


    Apophis stuck his hands in his pockets like he was seemingly waiting for him to finish.


    "Yea... lightning is cool. It has a lot of practical uses and applications that make it really viable. But my mother and sister are storm goddesses, so I''ve pretty much got all of it''s weaknesses figured out already. Like for instance..."


    Apophis suddenly appeared on the ceiling at the same time as Mchi and grabbed him by the neck.


    "If your movements are predictable, there is no point to making yourself faster."


    It seemed like things were going to go just like their first meeting when Mchi suddenly smiled and revealed the four pointed fangs siting in his mouth.


    Before Apophis knew what was happening, Mal had grabbed him by the wrist and sessfully dug hs ws into the dragon''s flesh; drawing blood.


    As if that weren''t surprising enough, Mal opened his mouth even wider and stretched his neck so that he could bite the dragon prince on the arm.


    "What the hell...?"


    Apophis'' surprise manifested itself as apse of spacial awareness.


    From the ground bellow; Ajani used her tail to grab him firmly by the neck and pulled him from his perch on the ceiling like she was plucking an apple from a tree.


    She mmed him head first into the ground as if she were imnting a nail, and the crowd winced at the sound of a spine snapping out of ce.


    Mchi flipped safely to the side of Ajani and petted her head as thanks for the save.


    "I knew I was right to pick you, girl."


    "Indeed, but he''s not-"


    "I know. It''d take away some of the fun he was."


    Mchi suddenly endured a familiar and necessary growth spurt.


    His body went from being 6''5 to a significantlyrger 7''2.


    The muscles that were already struggling against his shirt finally won the battle as they tore through the restrictive fabric and continued to grow.


    A mild itching sensation took his body by storm as fine, fluffy hairs sprang up all across his skin.


    After a moment, he had a full coat of orange fur lined with bold ck stripes.


    His entire skull cracked open and twisted itself into a new shape;plete with a short muzzle with long whiskers and two rows of impossibly sharp teeth.


    The ws along his fingers had practically tripled in size and now almost resembledrge bowie knives.


    He let out a roar so loud thateveryone in the hall was forced to cover their ears or risk early deafness.


    The only one who seemed unfazed by the roaring, was the one who was already starting to get back up¡­

 Chapter 295: Another Mother-Son Relationship…

    - New York City


    In a building that formerly belonged to a major financial conglomerate, apletely new purpose had reced it.


    It was a castle in the most modern sense imaginable.


    Though its function was less about the peacocking of some meaningless nobility, and instead focused more on efficiency.


    Even now, there were well over a thousand upants within the building, all working cohesively on one regime project or another.


    On the top floor, in a window office high enough to touch the clouds, there was a lone man standing in avish office.


    In his public persona, Arias typically wore bold white robes with gold insignia on them in the image of a rising sun.


    But those clothes were ones he usually only wore for formal events and the like.


    In his free time, and even when he was working, Arias liked to keep things simpler whenever he was able.


    *Knock, knock, knock!*


    "Come in, Carly!"


    The door clicked open and a beautiful young brte poked her head in the door.


    She smiled at her boss at first, but then upon seeing the way that he was dressed, she changed her expression into a re instead.


    "Mr. Arias-"


    "I told you to call me ''A-Bomb'' in the office!"


    "I will not do that, sir."


    "Spoilsport..." Arias went back to spinning a pencil between his fingertips and signing papers on his desk.


    His assistant Carly stepped in and shook her head at the sight of this fully grown man in ''Daffy Duck'' pajamas with a pair of earphones over his head.


    "Sir... Why does anyone else in the facility bother dressing appropriately if you, the boss, are only going toe to work in your pajamas every day?" she asked.


    "Well I do live here..." Arias pointed to a door on the otherwise of his office that led to a literal penthouse apartment. "Besides, I''ve told you all that you are free to dress as you like too, so long as your work does not suffer. You should starting in your pajamas too!"


    "I''m afraid I must decline, sir. I sleep naked."


    This made Arias tap his pen on his chin thoughtfully. "Do you believe we should develop ns for a nudist colony a little further down the line?"


    Carly sighed at her boss'' bad habit.


    Nearly every idea that popped into his mind was one that he absolutely had to act out at some point or another.


    He took the role of leading and raising a nation rather seriously, as his ultimate goal was to turn thesends into a good, honest paradise that would beforting to people from all walks of life.


    But things like that, however beautiful they may sound, are always easier to wish for than they are to bring about.


    Things like budgets,bor forces, time, board members, and priorities, often can inhibit the speed of the process.


    Nevertheless, Arias was never fully prevented from achieving his goals and creating the things he wanted to bring to life.


    It was the reason why everyone wanted to follow him so fiercely.


    Or at least, all of the people that mattered...


    "Are youing to bring me more work, or breakfast? I know I don''t need to eat anymore, but I think Margie''s working in the cafeteria today and I would lick her toes for some cheese eggs and-"


    Cary proceeded to drop an egregiously thick stack of papers onto Arias'' desk.


    "...Grape juice." he finished.


    A significant amount of heartbreak could be seen on the face of the leader of The New Day.


    "Nudist beaches and cheese eggs will have to wait, Mr. Arias. Your new credit currency system is working well, but there are a few programs and agencies that are requesting a higher budget, but we are nearing our limit on spending for the rest of the fiscal year.


    Also, six of the courts have elected to defer to you for a decision in the oue of their cases after being unable to find a precedent. In addition, there is a meeting with your council in forty-five minutes. I''m sure you forgot."


    Arias looked up at Carly with puppy-dog eyes so massive that it would have put anything ''Disney'' had ever animated to shame.


    "Don''t you have any good news for me...?" he whimpered.


    "...I''ll go to the cafeteria and see if Mrs. Margie has saved a te for you."


    "Will you ask her if she''ll go to my meeting for me to-"


    "No, sir."


    Carly disappeared from Arias'' office in a puff of smoke and left him behind to pout.


    "I guess I can get started on a bit of this before the meeting starts... Sure wish moving at light speed didn''t tear all of these papers apart or I''d be done in two minutes..." he grumbled.


    As he opened up the first man folder, he began reading over yet another proposal first thing in the morning.


    But out of nowhere, a pair of slender, feminine arms wrapped around his neck from behind, and a subtle sweet scent of wildflowers tickled his nose.


    "My, my. It may be true what they say after all. A hardworking son may indeed be a source of attraction and intrigue for all who gaze upon him. When are you going to bring home someone for me to meet, hm?"


    Arias'' face turned beet red as he ced his own hand on the arm of the mysterious intruder, who hardly seemed to be unfamiliar.


    "I''m afraid that it will be a bit of a wait... You know that I am still.." Arias made a pained expression;pletely unable to voice his own ghosts aloud.


    "Yes, I know, Arias dear. It was only a small jest, so please take your time to heal as you wish. I know that scars like yours do not fade so easily, even with time. Only know that when you are ready, I will be waiting."


    "...I appreciate the sentiment, mother."


    Arias stood up from his desk and turned around to face a woman who was as bright as the day itself.


    ...Probably because she was.


    Standing at exactly 5''7, Hemera could be considered a petite woman, and she was as modest as she was graceful.


    Her body, though not exaggeratedly curvaceous, did posses a more subtle bountifulness that wasn''t easily noticeable over her white and gold dress.


    She was almost the spitting image of Arias, but where he possessed a pair of bright green eyes, Hemera only had one that mirrored his, while the other was a beautiful sky blue.


    Her rosy, pinkplexion was as healthy as the wreath of sunflowers adorning the top of her head that showed no signs of death or decay.


    Immacte blonde hair fell all the way to the ground around her feet, but one her son knew that she had recently cut it due to the length.


    Arias did not hesitate to hug his mother after not seeing her in the flesh for over two weeks now. "You look like you''ve gotten thinner since Ist saw you."


    "Ah, have I? I couldn''t remember, dear."


    Hemera literally gained fifteen pounds in an instant, giving herself a more natural and mature looking appearance.


    ''I''ll never quite get used to that... Though it''s not as if I can''t do the same thing now." Arias chuckled to himself.


    Hemera suddenly broke their embrace so that she could grasp hold of her son''s face.


    "My chosen son... I have news for you."


    "Oh? Do tell."


    "In my dreams, I have had a divination. My youngest bother wille to you soon, and with him he will carry an offer of cooperation."


    "Cooperation?" Arias raised a brow. "Mchi doesn''t strike me as the sort."


    "Yes, well it appears as though he''s uncovered something that he feels warrants this dramatic of a move."


    "I see.." Arias actually looked vaguely troubled.


    If he could help it, he would prefer not to engage Mchi in any of his territories.


    Construction was so time consuming after all, and he''d hate to waste the efforts of those who''d gotten the world back up and running after the fall.


    "Perhaps I should go to him before ites to that. We could avoid having a firefight in the middle of the city."


    Arias waited for his mother to respond, but instead she merely put on a thoughtful expression and fell silent.


    "¡­ Listen to me carefully, my son." She finally said. "I believe that we may need to y this game of ours a bit more strategically¡­"


    For the next few minutes before his meeting, Arias listened carefully as his mother warned him about the frightening new premonitions that she had been having around Mchi Saint.

 Chapter 296: A Stand Up Guy…

    Even though he knew that Apophis was strong, Mchi was still a bit annoyed after seeing him get up right away.


    The dragon dusted off his chest and pants casually before taking in the sight of a newlyrge and furry Mchi.


    Whether he was surprised or not, he showed no visible reaction on his face.


    He simply seemed to be taking this all in stride as if it were a casual walk in the park.


    And that seemed to annoy Mchi quite a bit; so much so that he believed it his ce to take the overconfident prince down a few pegs.


    Mchi dropped onto all fours and started channeling power into his legs and feet.


    A bit more than he was used to, honestly¡­


    The difference in powerpared to now and before he absorbed the totems was a bit like suddenly swapping from a small pistol to a gattling gun- a fact that he wouldn''t realize until it was toote.


    Heunched himself at Apophis at an incredible speed the likes of which were unprecedented for him.


    And uncontroble.


    His body flew somewhat awkwardly as hepletely lost his bnce.


    And Apophis made him pay for it instantly.


    At the moment where Mchi came within striking range, Apophis raised his leg high above his own head and buried his heel into Mal''s head.


    The impact not only knocked him headfirst out of the air, but it also fractured his skull right down the middle.


    He hit the ground in a disoriented daze, with thest sight he saw being multiple Apophis'' standing over him.


    Unsurprisingly, hepletely cked out secondster.


    Before anyone noticed his eyes shut, Apophis waived his hand and erected a wall of bright purple me around the two.


    Needless to say, this caused quite a stir in the crowd full of anxious spectators.


    Serana: "Hey! Why can''t I see my gorgeous man-candy?!"


    Aisha: "I''ve got a whole twelve pack of beef ramen on this, I need to see what is happening!"


    Felicia: "Oh lord, my baby!!"


    -


    Mchi was only knocked out for a short amount of time before his skull healed and he jolted awake.


    He immediately cursed himself for hisck of foresight as he recalled thest moments of the battle.


    It was so long before he even noticed the heat and lifted his head to look up at the wall of me around him.


    "It took two minutes for your skull to close back up. Is that fast or slow for you?"


    When Mchi looked to his side, he found Apophis sitting on the ground not far from him.


    Ignoring his question, he instead pointed at the wall of purple mes erected around them. "What''s with this? Are you trying to cook me?"


    "More like I''m sparing you from your own stupidity." Apophis waived his hand.


    "The hell is that supposed to mean?"


    "Twenty-two."


    "Happy birthday?" Mal tilted his furry head.


    "No, dingus. It''s the amount of opportunities I had to end this fight before you could even get your momentum started."


    Mal''s face darkened instantly- because he knew the prince wasn''t bluffing.


    "Let this be a little lesson to you, yea?" Apophis lectured. "Familiarity with these powers of yours is not the same thing as mastery.


    From what I understand, mostly all power you have held before has been borrowed, but those divine items don''t work like that.


    You''ve effectively gotten the brand new keys to a Ferrari with only simted driving experience. Hence your little ''crash out'' earlier¡­ dumbass."


    Mchi''s muzzle twitched from annoyed embarrassment as he tried to look anywhere but where Apophis sat.


    The young prince started to feel like maybe he''d been a bit too harsh on the half-tiger and scratched the back of his head in annoyance.


    "Look... obviously I know what it''s like to be overconfident in your power. But something you have to learn sooner orter is that there is always a bigger fish. And they are usually impervious to any preconceived notions we have about ourselves."


    Mchi knew that every word out of Apophis'' mouth was dead on target.


    And perhaps that was what annoyed him so much.


    The excitement and nostalgia that he had felt from having two of his original powers returned to him was more than he realized at first.


    It made him so overconfident that he didnt even hesitate for a second to challenge someone he already knew to be far above him.


    It was as embarrassing as it was eye-opening.


    "... Help me get better." Mal suddenly said.


    "Eh?" Apophis was on the verge of ripping off his own ears because he was certain that they were no longer working as they should have.


    "Did I stutter?"


    "Might as well have..."


    The pointed teeth in Mal''s mouth ground against each other roughly. "Look... You said it yourself, I have things I need to learn. Don''t tell me you can''t be bothered to lend a hand after picking me apart like that."


    Apophis looked like his mind was taking a moment to process everything before he inevitably shook his head and stood up. "You''re better off asking my sister. Dealing with suddenrge influxes of power is definitely more her thing."


    "You''re saying she''s stronger than you?" Mal mocked.


    "Uh-huh." Apophis nodded unbothered.


    If that answer hadn''t left Mal stunned enough, the prince''s next actions certainly did.


    Taking his horrifically sharp ws, Apophis raked them all over his own body in an instant, spilling blood everywhere.


    He then gathered it up en masse and threw it onto Mchi like some kind of modern art painting, and then made sure to singe a couple patches of his orange fur.


    "What the hell are you doing!?"


    "Helping you." Apophis answered.


    "How?!"


    "Dumbass. Your people depend on you, so you can''t let them see you get knocked down. You have to maintain your image in their eyes no matter what, because for many of them you are the only hope they have left."


    While Mchi was stunned,Apophis carefully singed a bit of his fur to sell the illusion before lifting him up with telekinesis.


    After breaking one of his own arms for good measure, Apophis dispelled the wall of me obscuring everyone''s vision.


    Needless to say, everyone outside who had been anxiously waiting to see the end results of the fight was suddenly on the edge of their seat.


    Even the serpent Ajani had no idea what was going on inside.


    Naturally, the first thing that everyone saw were the two men standing face to face, somehow looking equally damaged.


    Apophis suddenly walked past Mchi while waiving dismissively to everyone in the stands.


    "Sorry to dissapoint you everyone, but¡­ It''s a draw."

 Chapter 297: Monster Among Men

    Thea emerged from a random door within the base and sighed deeply in depression.


    ''I was so close¡­ Now how am i supposed to get their attention?''


    "Why the long face?"


    Thea was so distracted that she didn''t notice the veryrge lion approaching her while carrying a young adult and child.


    "Tawa!" Camille held up her arms in excitement and gestured for the beautiful blonde to pick her up.


    "Aww, did someone miss me?"


    "Bu!"


    "Do you think your aunties did too??"


    "¡­Bu!"


    "Aww, you''re so sweet to lie to me!"


    As Mal watched Thea rub her face against his daughter, he started to observe her a bit more closely again.


    He couldn''t exactly put his finger on it, but she seemed a bit different from his memory.


    It was almost as if she''d gotten a bit curvier and developed a bit more liveliness to her already charismatic personality.


    And she was¡­ taller?


    "You seem a little different, T..." Mal finally said.


    Thea looked down at her outfit that kept her fully covered and made a depressed face.


    "Yea, my moms said I should stop dressing to seduce your sister..."


    "No, I meant¡­ Nevermind, buddy." He decided at thest moment that maybe he had bigger fish to fry for now.


    It was then that Thea noticed that Mal looked normal once again and his power was far below it''s usual standard.


    She reached out to pet therge lion that had been carrying the father-daughter pair. "I see you''re following my brother''s advice and trying to keep your power in check. How do you feel?"


    "Weaker than Cami." He admitted.


    Naturally, Camille looked quite offended by his choice of words.


    Her mind was already conjuring up a slew of words that were certainly inappropriate for a child to use and that she only knew because of Anna.


    "If you don''t mind... I kind of wanted to ask you for a favor." Mal suddenly leaned forward.


    "You''re cute, but not my type, Mal. I have a few sisters I could ask though if-"


    "No!" Mal chopped Thea on the head in mild annoyance- making her pout.


    "I wanted to know if you could... maybe help me train a bit."


    "Eh?"


    "Your brother told me that you were the best one to help me get control of my new power. Mind giving me a hand?"


    "He really said that?? Did you get it on recording!?" Thea''s eyes lit up immediately.


    "T."


    "Right, right, sorry." Thea shook her head hard to try to bring herself back to normal.


    "Well I don''t mind helping you, but I need a favor in return! ...Actually two." she realized.


    Already Mal was getting a bad feeling. "Do these favors have anything to do with my sister..?"


    "One does!" Thea smiled innocently.


    Mchi smiled a bit nervously as the fear that he was about to be asked for something unreasonable welled up in his stomach.


    But regardless of whether or not Thea''s request ended up being unreasonable or not, he desperately needed her help if he was going to be mission-ready in a few days from now, so he had no choice but to agree.


    -


    "...If I had known this training was going to be something so simplistic I probably wouldn''t have agreed to betray my family to you."


    "Well too bad, sweetface! The deal is done and the cake''s been baked!" Thea nodded in satisfaction.


    Mchi grimaced as he stared at the obstacle in front of him.


    At first nce, it was rtively simple and seemed like no more than a regr tall pane of ss.


    That was until one realized that it was even taller than Mchi and thicker than two bank vault doors glued together.


    "Impressed?" Thea smirked as she tapped the big block of ss with her knuckle.


    Her pride stemmed from the fact that she had created this ssy monstrosity out of thin air with seemingly nothing but her magic.


    "I guess if I ever need new windows put in, I know who to call." he shrugged nonchntly.


    Thea proceeded to flip him off in a gesture that Camille, who was sitting in a hastily erected y area nearby, copied.


    "...I''m starting to feel like you''re learning too much from adults." Mal narrowed his eyes.


    Camille picked up a toy sitting at her side and nuzzled it innocently.


    ''Aww...''


    Just like that, Mchi forgot everything that he was previously concerned about and was only interested in the fluffiness of his daughter''s cheeks.


    "Alright, here''s how this first little exercise of yours is going to work." Thea smiled. "Your goal is to use the new energy in your body to break this entire block of ss all at once!"


    "Oh?"


    "Without hitting it!"


    "Oh..."


    Thea ced her palm against the surface of the ss and Mal could''ve sworn that he saw it blush.


    "The goal is to deliver just enough power evenly throughout the block so that it all breaks at once. If you use too little..."


    A few small cracks appeared on the inner surface of the ss, but the whole thing didnt break apart.


    "Or if you use too much..." The entire block of ss shattered and was exploded into pieces so fine that they were indistinguishable from regr sand.


    After a few seconds, the block rebuilt itself and was as good as new.


    "Or if you use too much without properly dispersing it..."


    Using only her palm, Thea pierced a hole clear through the block and her aura struck the wall fifty meters away.


    At which point, the rest of the block seemed toe crumbling down intorge chunks.


    When the block rebuilt itself, Thea applied just the right amount of pressure so that she could break the block apart into tiny fragments of ss- each piece no bigger than the kind that woulde from a broken car window.


    "This is wha it should look like when done properly. You can manage something like this, right?"


    "Looks easy enough.." Mal shrugged.


    "Great! Be sure to channel exactly the same amount of power that you used against Apophis and build up from there, alright?


    And try not to burn yourself out and keep your limit in mind." Thea held up both thumbs and slowly began backing away.


    "Uhhh, where are you going?"


    "Just to go and have a chat with this ''Rose'' girl. that you told me about. It''ll just be for a quick little five minute chat and then I will be back in a sh!"


    "Thea, don''t-"


    "Buh-bye! Happy training!"


    The beautiful princess was gone in a fraction of a second and left Mal behind with baby Camille.


    ''Well... She promised not to mention my name, so nobody should be questioning me about how she found out, right?''


    Just for good luck, Mchi prayed this inner denial of his would actuallye to fruition.


    "A-Anyway¡­Come here, Serosh." Mal called.


    Therge ck lion who had been lying at Camille''s side and keeping herpany suddenly trotted over to Mchi''s side.


    He also recalled the impundulu whom he''d affectionately named Zazu back into his body- all the way from the kitchen downstairs.


    With a single touch, Serosh transformed into a mass of energy and promptly entered the same hybrid-tiger state that he was in just one day ago.


    cing his furry hand onto the ss, Mchi gathered the same amount of power into his body as he''d used against Apophis.


    With Camille cheering him on from the sidelines, his whiskered jaw fell open in absurdity when he infused all of his power into the ss and he couldn''t so much as crack it.


    His mind went back to the ease with which Thea had done this before leaving and he felt even more bewildered.


    "What the actual fuck is that girl¡­?"

 Chapter 298: Hard Lesson, Hard Decision

    Despite Thea making the im that she would be back in only a few short minutes, she ended up leaving Mchi in the training room for a few hours.


    But he didn''t even realize it himself.


    The entire time he''d been trying to break the ss block created by Thea, Mal had hardly moved from his spot even by a couple of inches.


    Next to no progress had been made towards the goal of shattering the ss.


    The most he had been able to do was imbue a few cracks into the block, but even then he just had to watch it repair itself secondster.


    ''Ugh¡­''


    Mchi finally noticed that he was running a bit of a fever.


    He felt something wet running down his snout and brought his hand up to investigate.


    "A nosebleed, huh..? Haven''t had one of these since B made Anna that leather-"


    "Bu?"


    Camille, lured by the smell of blood, approached her father silently and without tipping him off.


    Her head tilted to the side curiously as she seemingly waited for her dad to finish his sentence.


    "U-Umm. Nothing, munchkin. Dad is just reminiscing to himself a bit. About some very¡­ very good times."


    Camille seemed not to understand what Mal was talking about in the slightest.


    "Bwa?" Ignoring her father''s degeneracy, Camille pointed to her own stomach that was awakened by Mal''s impromptu nosebleed.


    He quickly checked the time and he realized that Cami should have been fed thirty minutes ago.


    "Oops¡­ Don''t tell your moms about this, yea?"


    Camille looked like she wanted to ask, ''Well what do I get out of this?''


    "¡­Ten extra minutes to your hour of tablet time a day."


    "Bu!" (Thirty!)


    "No way in hell. Your mothers would wring my neck." (And deprive him of affection)


    Sei, Luna, Jo, and Bianca were the most concerned about Cami having proper development.


    Anna, Mal, and Nadine had to be monitored carefully by them, or else Camille would have ended up even more spoiled than she already was.


    "Bu." (Twenty-five.) She argued.


    "¡­Twenty, but it has to be animal or something else educational."


    "¡­Aba." (Deal.)


    Mal and Cami shook hands like two crooked business partners.


    With their deal struck, Mal sat down on the ground and reverted back to regr size.


    He sat down on the floor with his back against the block of ss and lifted his daughter into hisp.


    He pulled out a small container and spoon from the shadows and peeled back the lid.


    Inside was a concoction of mashed sweet potatoes and carrots, blended with a few drops of Mal''s own blood.


    After tying a simple bib onto her neck, Mal began feeding Camille in the silence.


    As he sat there, he allowed his body to recouperate from the burden of overusing his powers.


    This new limit of his wasn''t all that noticeable at first but when it hit¡­ boy did it hit hard.


    He yawned and his body was engulfed in a bright light.


    Once it died down, Serosh, Zazu, and Ajani were lying on the floor around him, and he was right back to normal.


    But all of his animal aspects looked like they were exhausted beyond belief, because they hadn''t opened their mouths to greet him or even crack a performance issue joke.


    They just went straight to sleep; leaving him awake and mildly envious.


    Once Cami was done eating, she began rubbing her eyes as if she was also tired.


    Lifting her into his arms, he rocked her to sleep gently and it wasn''t long before she was out as well.


    Now, Mal really felt alone with just his thoughts.


    It shoulde as no shock to anyone that they mostly consisted of his inadequacy inpleting the exercise Thea assigned to him.


    He thought that this would have been a fairly simple task to aplish, but leave it to the three dragon siblings to show up and make something difficult look easy.


    ''No, don''t be jealous. Just keep thinking¡­ I can do this somehow.''


    Mal''s brainstorming session went on for only a short while before a visitor stepped into the training hall with him.


    He opened one of his glowing violet eyes and tilted his head head a bit when he realized that he didn''t know this person.


    I mean, he''d seen him around the base and stuff, but he didn''t exactly remember his name off the top of his head.


    He was a man in around his mid tote twenties with unkempt dark brown hair and crooked sses.


    He would have likely been fairly handsome if he were taking care of himself.


    Once the man saw Mchi was rocking a sleeping baby, he nervously began backing away while apologizing in a low voice.


    "I-I''m sorry, sir.. A-Am I supposed to call you sir..?"


    "No, but that doesn''t really seem to deter anyone else in this ce from saying it.. Do you need something man?"


    "I-I, uhh.."


    Mchi slowly leaned forward as a sneaking suspicion formed in his mind.


    "I-I don''t mean to impose, but¡­ I haven''t been sleeping well for the past few days a-and I was wondering if you could maybe¡­ use your power like when you first saved us..?"


    Sometimes, Mchi hated it when his intuition was correct.


    "¡­What''s your name, man?"


    "Everyone j-just calls me Eddie, sir. I-I mean-"


    "Come sit down for a second, Eddie." Mchi beckoned.


    Eddie absolutely did not want to sit anywhere near Mchi.


    For one, he was 6''5 and wildly intimidating even when he looked 95% human.


    In addition, there were three supersized animals lying on the floor around him.


    Eddie was practically positive that if he so much as breathed too loud, they were going to bite off his head.


    He timidly came towards Mal and the sleeping animals.


    Because he was concerned for his safety, he elected to only stand a few feet away from Zazu since he seemed the least intimidating.


    Mchi sighed deeply as if he was struggling with the words that were about toe out of his mouth.


    "I''m sorry, Eddie, but I can''t help you like that again. It''s not good for either of us."


    "W-What..? What does that even mean??"


    Mchi asionally got requests like this from members who were having difficulties with PTSD.


    His ability to eat the negative emotions of individuals is kind of like a band-aid.


    The euphoric happy effect eventually wears off and needs to be re-administered after a time.


    Mal didn''t know if that side effect was idental or intentional so that he would always have a fresh ''battery'' waiting around.


    Oddly enough, the one who helped Mal see the dangerous implications behind his power was Joanne.


    As someone who had her own personal battles with addiction long before Anna was born, she knew better than else the kind of slippery slope that his power could lead to.


    Joanne was rtivelyid back and she didn''t particrly ask a whole lot of Mchi, but she did make him promise that he would never use his power on her, or anyone else, more than once.


    It made for hard conversations with some of the members sometimes.


    Some reacted poorly to his refusal.


    They would either cry and beg, or be irate and storm off.


    The most desperate offered their body to him.


    But all of those things only reaffirmed his decision not to use them.


    If things were this bad after just one use, he could hardly fathom just how much worse they could get.


    Mal exined all of this to Eddie calmly and carefully without skipping over a single step.


    He could tell that it was taking some time for him to process everything in full- and Mal waited anxiously for the next critical moment.


    As mentioned, some take his refusal alright.


    Some do not.


    Mal had no clue which side of the line Eddie was about to fall on.

 Chapter 299: Cracking The Code

    Eddie rushed to exit the door in a hurry at the same time Sei and Anna wereing to retrieve their daughter.


    He narrowly avoided bumping into them, and bowed his head apologeticly before he kept running with his head down.


    "What was that all about..?" Anna asked.


    Mchi smiled in exhaustion as his head hit the block of ss he was resting against.


    "Oh, you know¡­ Just one of the perks of being in charge."


    The girls smiled at him pitifully as they sat on either side of him.


    "Another one of ''those'' requests, huh..?"


    "Mhm." Clearly tired, Mal closed his own eyes to rest his weary mind.


    Sei rested her head on Mal''s shoulder as she gently lifted Cami from his grip.


    Anna took that opportunity to straddle him affectionately and he cracked one eye open in mild interest.


    "You''re doing the right thing, you know¡­? We''re supposed to be taking care of these people, and that means making some hard decisions sometimes."


    "I get that¡­ but I wish that there were better ways. Easier ones¡­" Mal muttered.


    "Even the gods cannot make the sort of decisions that would satisfy all free will and fix every problem. Why do you think that you can?"


    Anna was actually quite worried about Mal.


    Was he a good leader? Yes.


    But she didn''t always like it on him.


    The worries, the responsibility of it all¡­ it sometimes got to Mchi in a way that was hard to watch.


    The worry that he had for everyone here was often crippling.


    What kind of life was he giving everyone here?


    Was it sustainable?


    Was he doing all that he could?


    He was strong, but was being able to defend those here in a fight enough?


    Would Arias do better in his position¡­?


    Mchi voiced these doubts with them less and less, but Anna and the others still knew how to tell what he was thinking with simple exchanges.


    Sometimes, she selfishly wished that they were on their own again.


    They had a daughter to raise.


    And a rtionship to keep afloat.


    If Mchi was unable to get out of his own head, those things would surely suffer.


    And Anna knew that would destroy her.


    Though Mchi wasn''t her first boyfriend, he was her first healthy rtionship, and the first man she''d ever really loved.


    She wanted to be with and marry, the real, vibrant him.


    Not the budding demigod burdened with too much responsibility.


    That version was not her Mchi.


    "Zzzz¡­"


    Anna eventually noticed that Mal had somehow dozed off while she was thinking.


    A faint pout spread across her lips as she unzipped his jacket and bit his corbone.


    Being engaged to two vampires, having one for a daughter, and being engaged to another girl who typically bit him randomly, had thoroughly eroded any aversion Mchi had to unsuspected biting.


    Now, he just saw it as another way that someone was trying to get his attention.


    "Mmh?" His eyes barely fluttered open.


    "Wake up. You''re not supposed to fall asleep while I''m brooding."


    "Sorry, babe¡­ Just let me rest my eyes for a little bit and I''ll let you do your dark knight impressionter¡­"


    Mchi leaned forward to give her a small kiss but missed her lips by a mile and ended up with his face buried in her tattooed cleavage.


    A faint smile crossed her face as she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the top of his head.


    "My defenseless little idiot¡­ What would you do if I was some rando older woman with impure intentions who was trying to take advantage of you?"


    *Muffled* "I would probably like it¡­"


    Anna bit Mal hard on the back of his head.


    "Ow¡­"


    "Damn right, ow."


    *Yawn* "Let him sleep, Anna." Sei suddenly said. "Come over here and rx with us."


    Anna suddenly raised her brow.


    Sei didn''t get sleepy.


    Like at all.


    When it was time to go to bed with everyone, she just used her powers on herself so that she could sleep.


    It was either that, or Mchi would ravage her until she fainted.


    But Sei''s blessing from Hypnos made it so that she didn''t get tired like normal people did.


    Which was why seeing her actually yawning was so jarring for Anna.


    "Sei? Are you feeling alright?"


    "Mhm¡­ Just kind of tired."


    Anna grabbed one of Sei''s breasts and gave it a light squeeze.


    "¡­Annalise, what are you doing?" Sei asked, too tired to smack her hand away.


    "Checking to see if you''re sick."


    "Shouldn''t you feel my forehead for that¡­?"


    "This was closer."


    "Are you sure you''re not just ovting..?"


    "¡­Mind your business."


    Anna''s gaze went back and forth between Mal who was already sleeping, and Sei who was slowly on her way.


    "Let''s go and get in the bed for the night, loves. You''ll hurt your backs sleeping here like this."


    She held Mchi''s sleeping face in her hands and gave him a small peck on the nose.


    "You especially need to have a good back..."


    "What about me?" Sei asked as she rubbed her eyes.


    "Youll be fine either way, pillow princess."


    "Mean.."


    Anna started to pull both of them up but they groaned like an old couple and sunk further into their positions.


    "Comfortable¡­ Let me stay like this for a while." Seiined as her eyes finally shut.


    "Comfortable?" Anna raised a brow as she looked at therge ss block they were leaning against. "There''s no way in hell."


    She ced a hand on the material for just a bit and was mildly surprised.


    It was a cool surface, and extremely pleasant to the touch.


    But what was even more surprising was the fact that she noticed something unnatural about it.


    "No wonder you three are drowsy¡­ this big boy is sapping your energy. Where the hell did this evene from?"


    Even though Anna wasn''t even speaking that loudly, Mchi''s eyes still shed open like he was being woken up by a drill sergeant.


    "Wait, what??"


    "Woah!"


    He stood up immediately with Anna wrapped around his waist.


    With a scrutinizing gaze, he ced his hand up to the block once again and paid attention to it much more carefully than he did before.


    Anna was exactly right.


    It was hardly noticeable at first, but this big lump of magic ss did actively seem to be absorbing energy.


    It was like his daughter; just actively consuming more and more no matter how much it was fed.


    He had been shoveling power into this damn thing for hours like an idiot because he had overlooked such an important detail!


    ''What the hell¡­ Why didn''t Thea tell me about this¡­?''


    Mal knew his friend wasn''t so obsessed with Aubrey that she would have just neglected to share such important information with him.


    Which could only mean that she hadn''t told him on purpose, and this was also part of the exorcise.


    His mind began turning backwards as he tried to recall the instances where he had actually been able to put a crack in the structure.


    He finally realized that he saw the greatest results when he held his power within for a little bit; almost like he was charging it.


    Or refining it.


    Mal finally realized that he had been skipping over a key step.


    Refining his energy into something that the block couldn''t swallow, and then shattering it, was the whole point of this game!


    And it was all thanks to Anna''s incessant biting and Sei''s sudden narcolepsy.


    "Babe¡­ You''re a genius." Mal smiled as he held Anna up.


    "I flunked out of high school and had to get my GED??"


    "I said what I said."


    "You know I was almost on academic probation when we were in college, rig-"


    "Babe, just take thepliment."


    "Oh, okay."


    The two shared a short kiss and Mal started to put her down when suddenly Anna clung to him more tightly.


    He felt her lips graze just past his ear and a much softer voice than he was used to made his heart beat out of control.


    "I like you much better this way. You tend to make a girl worry when you''re not acting like yourself.


    Be more confident in yourself, yea? Even if you don''t have all the answers in the moment, you always get there eventually."


    Mchi didn''t quite have the words to say just how moved he was by Anna''s words, so he kissed her instead.


    It would have been much more meaningful and romantic had Sei not slumped over in that moment; causing herself and their baby to spill out onto the floor.


    "Ah¡­ We should probably help those two get into bed."

 Chapter 300: Finding Arias!

    In the corner of the room, the three Tathamet siblings were hidden behind a veil of magic as they watched Mchi get back up and start his training all over again.


    "Thank god, I thought they were going to fuck for a second." Belloc sighed in relief when Anna pulled Sei and Camille out of the way so that Mal could work with no interruptions.


    "I''m kind of disappointed that they didn''t. This would have given me an opportunity to leave and go find my cute little sunflowers." Thea swooned.


    "Those girls don''t even like you."


    "I''m sorry, what was that, you fucking cockroach?"


    "N-Nothing, sis..."


    "That''s what I thought."


    Apophis had been casually leaning against the wall the entire time; just watching Mal reach his realization.


    "You know, you could have told him that the key to figuring out this whole thing was in refinement. It might''ve saved him some time."


    Thea shrugged. "It undoubtedly would''ve, but having to figure this out on his own isn''t the kind of thing that will hurt him in the long run.


    Besides, I was always certain he would be able to get it eventually since he''s a smart guy. I bet I''ll have him in tip top shape before-"


    *Crash!*


    The trio were jarred by the sound of a massive amount of ss hitting the floor.


    Mchi was standing over the ss with a bit of an incredulous look on his face as if he couldn''t believe what he had just done.


    Thea smiled within the darkness as she gave her brothers a small nudge.


    "See? He didn''t need me to tell him anything at all. Isn''t my little pupil the best?"


    - 2 Weeks Later


    "It''s been a while since I''ve done this... Never thought I would need to again since I don''t require the kind of grooming that I used to."


    Anna: "Aren''t you d you let me talk you into doing this though?"


    "I am. It''s more rxing than I remembered."


    Bianca: "Why didn''t you letme do it!?"


    Mal: "Do you know how to do a straight part?"


    Anna: "Haveyou been cutting your own hair since you were thirteen out of a need to rebel?"


    "Welll..." Bianca awkwardly looked at the floor.


    ""Sorry, babe.""


    "I hate you both!"


    The pairughed despite Bianca''s serious considerations of revenge.


    "And... done!" Anna finally stood up and admired the sight of Mchi in the chair in front of her.


    Her fiance had a fresh new haircut with three razor-sharp parts on the side of his head.


    Anna had even touched up his hairline and offered to give him a re-twist, but they didn''t really have that kind of time.


    "How''s it look?" Mal smiled.


    Anna unbuttoned her pants and started to undress.


    Luna stopped her at thest minute and even gave her a rather brutal wedgie.


    "Ow! H-Hey!"


    "Just use your words, Annalise. We don''t have the time for anything else."


    "I can''t help it if I speak in bodynguage!"


    "You quite literally can, sweet pea."


    Mchi pretended as if he weren''t enormously interested whatever Anna was about to do next.


    He crossed the bathroom to admire himself in the mirror before nodding in approval.


    Nadine suddenly hugged him from behind without saying a word.


    "Nervous about something?"he asked.


    "Not really... Just another mission, right?"


    "Just another mission, love."He reaffirmed.


    Somehow, it was as if a switch had been flipped in the room and everyone''s demeanors suddenly changed.


    Each of the girls kissed Mchi silently before they stepped into the bedroom and began getting dressed.


    After weeks of nning and prep, Mal and the girls were finally ready to venture from the base and head for Arias'' new domain.


    To be honest, none of them were really sure what they would find.


    Mal''s attempts to use his little ''night vision'' to see what their world was like had ended in failure at every turn.


    This was their first time stepping back into civilization, and they were almost sure it wouldn''t be a pleasant wee.


    But they were prepared, and they had assembled a small squad to apany them and aid in a fight if need be.


    Even though the entire goal was not to fight in the first ce...


    Mal got dressed in rtively light clothes that wouldn''t spurn much attention.


    A simple ck t-shirt with no sleeves clung tightly to every rippling muscle lying underneath. A small sheath was strapped to both of his thighs that contained shining silver knives.


    He pulled on a pair of fingerless gloves and adorned a pair of simple sneakers before he was nearly fully dressed.


    ''Where''s my... Oh.''


    Mal went towards the door and poked his head outside.


    In the living room, he found his daughter surrounded by a miniature petting zoo that contained an axolotl, a massive lion, a big snake, and a loud-talking bird.


    "Munchkin."


    "Uwah!!?"


    As Mal suspected, Camille was wearing a pair of dark sunsses that were too big for her face.


    Once she saw himing, Camille quickly hid the evidence behind her back where Zazu would cover it with his wings.


    "Bu!"


    "Don''t ''daddy'' me. I saw what you just did, little miss."


    The infant held up her hands innocently.


    "She''s telling the truth, boss!Honest!" Zazu had be Camille''s right hand in a very short time.


    He didn''t believe that she could do anything wrong, and was often willing to sneak her little treats after bedtime.


    Mal had already learned to recall him right before they put Cami to bed.


    "Yea, sure she is." Mal rolled his eyes.


    He held out his hand and Zazu was instantly recalled back to his body- along with the still napping Ajani.


    Mchi''s skin darkened almost instantly and a quartet of mischievous ck snakes sprouted from his lower back.


    Serosh brought him his sunsses without even having to ask, and Mchi slipped them onto his face with satisfaction.


    "Ah¡­ Really brings me back to the early days."


    "¡­Bu."


    "No, they do not look better on you. Go take a nap."


    -


    After leaving Camille in the care of his sister and their parents, Mchi and his fianc¨¦s headed upstairs towards the hangar.


    There, they found a small squadprised of Aisha, Serana, and two others.


    Ryo was also present; though he was in special handcuffs.


    He trembled erratically like a newborn horse as he tried not to copse underneath Apophis'' burning gaze.


    ''W-Where the fuck did that guye from... And why is he so intense?!''


    Ryo shook his head hard and redirected his focus towards Serana.


    "¡­Can we tal-"


    Ryo couldn''t say what exactly what happened in the second after that, but the next thing he knew there was a wall of darkness over his face.


    He had no idea that he had just avoided a surely lethal blow from Apophis by the skin of his teeth.


    "I thought we were all ying nice here. Or at least that you''d be civil¡­"


    Apophis retracted his arm from the shadow. "Don''t give me that shit. You''re no better than I am when ites to these things."


    Everyone turned around to see Mal and the girls arriving in a close knit group like always.


    Joanne and Nadine were glued to his sides like holsters.


    He looked down at their beautiful faces and engagement rings and suddenly he understood Apophispletely.


    "¡­We still might need him, so hold off on that for now, yea?"


    Apophis snorted.


    His anger was dispersed when Serana suddenly slipped her hand in his own.


    "Have I told you how much I adore your possessive side?"


    Apophis smiled. "I-"


    "E-Enough of this lovey dovey stuff, get in the truck!" Sei forcefully separated the two and tossed Serana in the back seat.


    "Mom! I''ve seen Mal do way worse to you, so stop cockblocking!"


    "D-Don''t say that word to me!"


    "Would you prefer tallywacker?"


    "Serana!"


    Nadine chuckled as she leaned into Mal''s ear. "Funny how she can''t hear it, but she can put it in her-"


    "Nadine Willow cera-Saint, don''t you dare finish that sentence!"


    Nadine turned into a small bat and hid on top of Mchi''s head for safety.


    "Alright, alright, let''s load up and go, yeah? Preferably all in one piece and bruise free.." Mal said.


    Serana finally stopped resisting and allowed her mother to throw her into the backseat; though not without shedding a few small tears at the sight of Apophis'' hand waiving her goodbye.


    ''Hurry back, gorgeous.'' He winked.


    Serana felt her cheeks get hot uncontrobly.


    ''When I get back, we should¡­ Y-You know.'' She thought nervously.


    Gobsmacked, Apophis was now tempted not to let her leave.


    On the wall nearby, Thea, Belloc, and Mnie were all standing around and quietly watching Mal''s group depart.


    Mnie and Belloc in particr seemed rather intimate together. Their status as a new couple was quite the hot topic within the base these days.


    They would have normally gone over to wish everyone luck, but as of now they were having their own private discussion.


    "Are you sure that this is how you want to leave? I''m not so fragile that I would stand in the way of you resolving your past."


    "I know you''re not, babe, but I just¡­ I think it''ll be easier for everyone involved if I just leave like this. I want my own fresh start."


    Mnie slipped her arms around Belloc and looked up at him with pleading eyes.


    "Please¡­ I want to live with you in your kingdom."

 Chapter 301 The Peak of Civilization!

    Chapter 301 The Peak of Civilization!


    After leaving the ruins of the Deep South, the girls and Mchi realized just how much the world had really picked back up.


    It wasn''t until they saw debris bing less and less frequent- instead being reced by moving cars and sometimes flying individuals.


    Mchi and Sei were high above the clouds following along perfectly with the truck on the ground.


    Serosh was not only capable of running at great speeds onnd, but he also possessed the ability to run in the air too.


    Length aside, their journey was a rtively smooth one, aside from the fact that Sei was going on her own personal rants and using Mchi''s ear as a garbage disposal.


    Part of a longsting rtionship means learning how your partnermunicates best.


    Mal had long discovered that sometimes Sei didn''t actually want him to say anything, she just wanted him to be next to her while she ranted to herself.


    "I just don''t understand why she acts so hyper sexual towards the boys she dates! I don''t want her to rush into things with another boy again like she did with Ryo."


    ''Apophis is a pretty good guy though all things considered. He seems to genuinely like her.'' n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "What if she gets carried away and repeats my mistake of having a baby young?? She''s not ready for that, she still sleeps till noon everyday!"


    ''Well atleast she''d be having a baby by a prince. Can''t say she could do much better than that if I''m honest.''


    "I mostly wish she would just stop throwing herself at him in front of other people. It''s dreadfully embarrassing for me¡­"


    ''We haven''t really been shy about public disys of affection even once since we started dating¡­ and even less so once we got engaged.'' Mal thought.


    Sei finally exhaled after a long bout of one sided conversation between herself and her fianc¨¦.


    She tightened her grip around his midsection and nted a kiss on his cheek.


    "Thanks for listening, honey. I really appreciate it."


    Mchi sometimes thought that being engaged was a lot easier than people sometimes made it out to be.


    Or maybe he just got lucky with good women.


    "If the happy couple is done with their chatter now, I believe that there may be something that you need to see." Serosh interrupted.


    The lion dipped just below the clouds to allow the pair of lovers to see the world beneath them.


    Mchi hadn''t really been outside of his home state a whole lot, so for him, seeing New York for the first time was just a little bit eye opening.


    While this ce did look to have seen some damage, it was either on the verge of full repair or alreadypleted.


    Making it nearly as impressive as it was before the world fell.


    He could see the girls'' car stopped at a checkpoint and surrounded by a surplus of armed guards.


    "Hold on tight, love." He warned.


    "Alright."


    Serosh suddenly did a steep nosedive towards the ground.


    It let out a deep roar that reverberated all the way to the road; startling the soldiers.


    The men surrounding the girls'' car immediately jumped back when a lionrger than any horse suddenly fell out of the sky.


    "W-What the hell kind of beast is that?!"


    "Defensive formation! Sound the rm!"


    "Call the higher ups! We''re being attacked!"


    "Gonna save you a bit of time on that¡­"


    Ajani suddenly shot out of Mal''s body and blocked off any potential escape routes for the soldiers.


    "Just take us all to see the big boss, yea? You can tell him that his ''Uncle'' came to visit." Mal smiled.


    With two of his beast aspects removed from his body, Mchi''s skin and hair reverted to a much more recognizable appearance.


    Various infusions of power and instances of having his body destroyed had made Mal significantly more attractive since thest time he appeared on tv, but he was still something akin to a household figure in the world. Like Lebron James, or Santa us. "I-I thought he was a monster now.."


    "Jesus..."


    "It''s really him..."


    Among the murmuring soldiers, one held up his hand in timidly. "Sorry, sir... We''ve been told to expect you, but I''m still supposed to call this in...please tell your lion not to bite my hand off when I reach for my walkie.."


    Mchi didn''t really consider it unorthodox for Arias to expect him, even though he was just a bit irritated by it. Just as he said he would, the soldier reached for the walkie strapped to his vest andmunicated the situation to some higher ups. Mchi listened to everything that was said via his heightened hearing. He kept a rtively stony expression for the most part, that is until he heard Arias'' whereabouts and his brow shot up like a rocket.


    In the back of his mind, he told himself that he was just misunderstanding the situation and should wait. The soldier turned back to Mchi with a small grimace on his face. "Sorry, Mr. Saint... I''m afraid that he''s at work right now."


    Mchi however, didn''te all this way just to wait around. "Take me to him anyway."


    -


    "Wee to McDonald''s, how can I help you today, sir?" Arias asked with a smile. Mchi: "..."


    Sei: "..."


    Bianca: "..."


    Luna: "..."


    Joanne: "..."


    Serana: "...No fucking way."


    Anna: "I''ll have a ten piece nugget with arge fry, and-"


    "Anna!" Bianca hissed. "You''re right, B." Anna realized. "Make that a twenty piece and- Oww!"


    Joanne grabbed Luna by her heavily pierced ear and pulled her towards the back of the group. Mchi pulled his dark sses down as he stared at his distant family member with a ck jaw. "...You''re fucking with me, right?"


    "Whatever do you mean, sir?" Arias asked innocently. "Aren''t you like the head honcho around here...?" Nadine asked. "Why are you working at a fast food restaurant?"


    Arias shrugged.


    "I believe one shouldn''t ept money when they take on a roll that is in service to the people, so I don''t take a sry.


    I work part time jobs to cover the few expenses that I have, since my living conditions are free." (He turned his office into a penthouse so that he wouldn''t have to pay rent.)


    "...You''re fucking with me, right?" Was all that Mal could ask again. "Not at all. This also helps me so that I never lose touch with the needs of themon man. Two weeks ago I was working in construction!"


    "...You''re fucking with-"


    Arias scoffed as he gestured to his workers'' shirt and hat. "Does itlook like I''m joking? And we don''t allow pets in here I''ll have you know."


    Mchi looked down at baby Serosh who was sitting on his shoulder and baby Ajani who was wrapped around his neck. "Now, do you all want this meal or not?? I do have other customers to see to."


    Anna wormed her way back to the front of the group with a greedy look in her eye. Don''t get her wrong, Anna wasn''t necessarily a glutton, but before the world fell apart her diet consisted solely of fast food, caffeine, and alcohol. Her fast metabolism and asional tendency to forget to eat was the only reason she wasn''t 200 lbs. "Ah, should I ask how you will be paying for this?" Arias suddenly looked up. "This''ll be twelve credits."


    It was worth noting that Nightfall did possess some amount of money.


    The problem was that their money was taken from their raids on the Revival Regime, not the New Day faction. So in this part of the country at least, they were t broke. The feeling of not having money brought back certain memories for Anna, and before she knew it she was doing the same thing that she did when she was 14. Robbing poor bastards to feed herself. "...Give me your fucking wallet." Anna cracked her knuckles audibly. Gobsmacked, Arias looked around for help from Anna''s family, but found no one willing to stop her. Mostly they just looked embarrassed...


    "A-Are you just going to let her-"


    "Yes." They all answered at once, but they didn''t look proud of it. Serana suddenly wormed her way to the front too; wearing an innocent look on her face. "Add on anotherrge fry to that order. Also, is your ice cream machine working?"


    "...It''s down right now."


    "Holy shit, this really is a real McDonalds!"


    As Arias handed over his wallet to Anna, Mchi once again felt like he hadn''t quite gotten a firm grasp on this situation. "...You''re fucking with me, right?"

 Chapter 302: A World Rebuilt...

    5 Minutes after Annalise robbed Arias, the group was sitting and watching her and Serana chow down on their meals giddily.


    "How can you two sit and eat at a time like this...?" Luna asked genuinely.


    "I asked you if you wanted anything." Anna shrugged. "You told me no already though."


    "Because we''re on a mission?"


    "And I haven''t let my guard down one time... not even as I fill my stomach with nuggets." Anna threw another morsel of chicken in the air and caught it like a seal.


    When she received no apuse, she flipped off all of her family members angrily.


    Except for Mchi, whom she tried to feed a single nugget as a show of her love.


    Mal wasn''t actually hungry, but refusing the gift of food from Anna was almost a surefire way to end up on the business end of her cold shoulder.


    "Alright, thank you for waiting so patiently."


    Arias suddenly pulled up a chair at the table and sat down among the awkward family.


    "I''ve got about five minutes for my break, so we''ll have topress our conversation a bit for now... How was the drive up here? Did you enjoy it??"


    Mchi snapped his fingers and the shadows on the floor spit out a bound and gagged Ryo.


    "Ah... Yes, I should have expected you discover him when his reports stoppeding in... I kind of thought he was dead though." Arias admitted.


    "He should be." Serana muttered icily.


    "Where''s Morgan?" Mal finally asked.


    Arias finally observed Mal closely for the first time since his arrival and he finally seemed to notice something off.


    "Hey... You''re looking normal again! That''s a wacky little surprise, how''d that happen?" Arias'' eyes sparkled with genuine interest.


    Mchi felt the teeth inside of his mouth sharpen to a point while his ws nearly doubled in length.


    "What?!" Arias asked innocently. "We just covered the fact that my spy hasn''t been keeping me in the loop, so I''m not caught up on the lore!"


    "Morgan. Where is he?" Mal asked, much less patiently than before.


    Arias seemed to realize that he wasn''t going to get anywhere like this so he sighed aloud andined.


    "He''s fine, he''s fine, just asleep. You''re free to take him with you if you like. Consider it a gesture of goodwill."


    "How magnanimous of you." Mal sneered.


    "I know, right?" Arias smiled almost as brightly as the deity who gave him his powers.


    "And if you need even more proof of my overbearing kindness, I''ve taken the liberty of arranging you all some amodations for the duration of your stay!"


    "...Amodations?" the group asked at once.


    "Well, yes! I have to be a good host after all."


    At that moment, a woman in a grey pantsuit entered the restaurant and made a beeline directly for Arias.


    She stepped over Ryo''s body coldly and bowed in front of Arias and the group. "Everything is ready, boss."


    "Great." Arias cheered before making introductions.


    "This is my personal assistant Carly. She''ll begetting you all settled in and take you to retrieve that sleepaholic Morgan.


    She''ll also be responsible for acting as your tour guide and giving you a proper showing of all we''ve built here."


    For some reason, Luna felt like she recognized this woman, but she was unable to put her finger on exactly why she seemed so familiar.


    "Oh, and could you do something with Mr. Ryo here too? He''s sort of disrupting the sort of family friendly atmosphere we try to cultivate here at Mickey D''s."


    Carly sighed- feeling that once again she was being asked to do a job that she wasn''t quite being paid enough for.


    She picked up the bound man like he was a duffel bag before she turned to Mchi and the rest of the group.


    "The Nightfall group, yes? Pleasee with me outside, the car is already waiting for us."


    Mchi and the girls exchanged a look between each other in silence.


    This situation was far too strange and none of the Saints knew exactly how to navigate it.


    But eventually, once Mchi stood up, the girls unanimously trusted his judgment and followed behind him withoutint.


    They were almost out the door when Arias timidly raised his hand.


    "O-Oh, Carly has already been told you''ll need help with finances so c-can I have my wallet back..?"


    Anna stared at him coldly.


    "What wallet?"


    While Arias looked crestfallen, Anna smiled smugly as she interlocked her arms with Mal and her mother.


    ''You know I usually wouldn''t condone things like this, Annalise, but¡­ I guess it''s fine just this once.'' Joanne thought.


    ''Thanks, ma. Nugget?''


    ''¡­Sure.''


    Mchi wouldn''t admit it to himself, but watching Anna rob a guy with no remorse was probably the most attracted he had ever been to her.


    ''Maybe I also had a thing for bad girls all along¡­''


    -


    The car waiting outside for Mchi and the girls was a sleek ck limousine.


    The family, plus the two aides they brought to apany them, all piled in while still waiting for the other metaphorical shoe to drop.


    As the car cruised along the streets, the group could see a very bright and civilized world around them.


    It was like they were staring at a fully revived New York, only with significantly less garbage and rats.


    Mchi didn''t know what he was expecting a world ruled by Arias to look like.


    Perhaps there would be humans in chains..? Or maybe there would be no humans at all.


    And there were far too many blessed here for one.


    The more Mal''s senses became heightened, the easier it was to spot the difference.


    Purely from an observational standpoint, blessed seemed to walk differentlypared to humans.


    They carry themselves with a discrete sense of invulnerability that is unique to their own kind.


    But even without looking at them, Mal could close his eyes and sense the power emanating off of each one of them.


    While far beneath his own, it was definitely still there.


    And the other thing he had noticed was¡­ there were a lot of blessed here.


    Too many in fact.


    There are roughly 2,500 deities in total.


    Among those numbers, not all gods have taken blessed, and those that have are divided up into the major continents of the world.


    They should have been much more difficult toe across than what he was currently sensing.


    "Curious about our numbers?" Carly asked from the front seat.


    Mchi met the gaze of the woman who Arias had called his assistant.


    Her eyes temporarily glowed white and her lips curled into a small smile.


    "I suppose¡­ that may be my doing."

 Chapter 303: Bugging Out

    The limousine finally rolled to a stop in front of a towering residential building that ended somewhere above the clouds.


    Mchi recognized it as a former hotel that seemed to have been renovated to suit new purposes.


    Carly led the group inside of the building where they proceeded to all get bunched up on an elevator.


    Their first stop was on the ny-ninth floor, where Carly stepped off to show Serana, and the other two girls, Sierra and Casey, their living amodations.


    Just a single floor above them was where Mal and the girls were supposedly staying.


    A luxury penthouse apartment wasid out before them,plete with stunning white furniture and a huge window that allowed the entire Saint family to see the world above the clouds.


    "Who is this supposed to be..?" Nadine immediately noted the unknown hefty man in a chef''s coat standing by the open kitchen.


    "This is Fernando. He''ll be responsible for preparing all of your meals for the duration of your stay. Including tonight''s dinner with Mr. Arias at 9:30." Carly answered.


    Bianca, Luna, Anna, Joanne, and Nadine, all turned to look at Mchi and Sei.


    Unsurprisingly, the pair were ring at thechef like he''d justmitted a serious war crime.


    They say that cooking is an expression of love, and that idea is represented no better than between Mchi and Sei.


    The entire time they had been together, they alternated between cooking duties for their entire family.


    When they were cooking, they never allowed others in the kitchen with them - even for long periods of time.


    None of the others had so much as salted water with the two of them around.


    And now, the idea of someone else hovering around to cook for their loved ones was an insult to their pride.


    ""Get out.""


    "I-I''m sorry..?"


    ''They won''t ask again...'' Bianca sat down on the couch with a small smile and prepared to watch the show.


    "What seems to be the problem-" Carly began.


    Within a split second, Fernando was hit with a devastating wave of narcolepsy that knocked him out faster than any punch could have.


    Before he could hit the ground, a hand made of shadow caught him by the hem of his jacket.


    The construct proceeded to drag him along the floor before tossing him into the elevator like dirtyundry.


    After pressing the button for the first floor, it performed a ''thumbs up'' for Mchi and disappeared.


    Carly waspletely taken aback.


    "¡­Was that necessar-"


    ""Yes.""


    Carly noted Mchi and Sei''s close-knittedness and the beginnings of a smile formed on her lips.


    "Cute. Very cute."


    The mood immediately turned sour in the room.


    "I''m sorry, I hope you aren''t flirting with my fianc¨¦s while I''m sitting right in front of you..."


    Ever the dangerous one, Nadine appeared in front of Carly faster than her eyes could follow.


    A faint blue glow shone within the vampire''s purple irises and her tone became horrifically cold.


    Nadine didn''t really drink the blood of anyone outside the family, but that certainly didn''t mean she was above doing it to make a point.


    "P-Please, quell your anger¡­ I was only making ament on their behavioralpatibility and no other metrics." Carly said truthfully.


    Nadine was wholly unnerving by nature.


    Even though Carly hadn''t done anything wrong, just one glimpse into those eyes had terrified her so badly that she would have confessed to just about anything.


    "I-I''ve taken the liberty ofpiling this for you¡­" Carly suddenly pulled a tablet out of her bag and handed it over to Nadine.


    "¡­What is this?"


    "A list of ces we believed you might like to visit during your stay. These ces were formted based upon your individual interests and hobbies¡­ using data wepiled from Agent 0."


    Carly muttered thest part, because she was afraid to spark the ire of the buxom vampire in front of her.


    Ignoring her prey, Nadine snatched away the tablet and read off just a few of its contents.


    "Red Thread Tattoo and Body Piercing..?"


    Anna and Joanne''s ears perked up like little Dalmatians.


    "Blue Horizon : Gaming and Comic Emporium..?"


    Bianca visibly vibrated and her sses began to fog up.


    There were a few more ces listed that should have stoked each member of the group''s interest, but Mchi remained focused on a single mission.


    "Where is Morgan?"


    "O-Oh, right¡­ if I could..?" Carly hesitantly reached for her tablet back and Nadine allowed her to take it without iming her arm.


    She proceeded to pull up security camera footage of a man in a hospital bed being taken off some kind of assisted support.


    He was wheeled into a room that resembled living quarters, where two women awaited him.


    They immediately fell into tears upon seeing him and threw their selves across his bed.


    "Mr. Morgan will need approximately twelve hours for his body to burn off the sedation¡­ I can still take you to go and see him if you like, but you won''t be able tomunicate with him I''m afraid¡­"


    Mchi fell silent as he contemted his next course of action.


    Carly seemed to see that he needed a bit of time, so she respectfully bowed before stepping back into the elevator.


    "I will give you all some time to decide what you''d like to do. I''ll be downstairs in the car whilst you make up your minds."


    Mchi barely even spared her another nce, instead he sat down on one of the sofas while draping his arm around Bianca.


    "...Sweep the room."


    Zazu shot out of his body like a rocket and flew around the apartment at breakneck speed.


    Half a minuteter, he brought back two little devices and dropped them onto the table in front of Mchi; already crushed and non-operational.


    "This is all that there was, boss."


    Mchi picked up the pieces and gave them a once over after pulling off his sunsses.


    "Not really surprised... Where were they?"


    "The living room and the balcony. I didn''t find anything in the bedroom or the bath."


    If you were to ask Mchi if he were angry about finding bugs in his supposed ''living quarters'' he would''ve said no.


    Actually, it was the first Arias-like thing his nephew had done since he''d gotten here.


    It was nice to know that at least he wasn''t goingpletely insane.


    "Do me a favor and sweep the girls'' room too, yea?" He asked.


    "Would a ''please'' kill ya?"


    Mal pulled Sei''s curvaceous body into hisp. "How does baked chicken sound for dinner tonight, love?"


    "Alright, aright, I''m going! Shit!"

 Chapter 304: Cooking Family Dinner

    It was around the cusp of 8:00 at night.


    Sei was the only one alone in the penthouse provided by Arias.


    Well, she was the only human.


    Serosh and Ajani had been left behind to keep the charming beautypany while the rest of them stepped out.


    She absentmindedly stared out the window as she watched the twinkling lights of the city beneath her.


    It was so strange to see ces in the world like this that were somehow thriving.


    An alien apocalypse had literally unfolded right before their very eyes and an incalcble number of people had lost their lives.


    America was currently in the midst of a literal civil war, so she couldn''t imagine how the other countries were dealing with the aftermath.


    And for a brief moment, her mind drifted towards her parents.


    Were they still alive..?


    Should she still care..?


    They had discarded her aside the moment that she got pregnant with Serana.


    And stopped showing her affection long before that.


    So why should she spare them another thought when she was finally happy after so many years of trauma?


    ''That''s right, nothing they do concerns me anymore¡­ If they are no longer within this world, I must simply wish that they rest in peace and move on.'' She thought firmly.


    "Are you alright, miss?"


    Sei didn''t notice, but at some point arge ck lion had appeared at her side and sat down attentively.


    "Yes, I''m fine, Serosh. Just thinking a bit about the past I suppose." She muttered.


    Serosh seemed not to know how to respond to that, so he simply blurted out something that he felt would make her happy.


    "¡­The master is returning now. I can sense that he misses you a great deal."


    As he expected, that news did put a smile on Sei''s face.


    "Serosh, can you keep a secret?"


    The lion suddenly looked nervous despite his massive frame.


    "¡­Ma''am, please do not tell me anything that would make the master start skipping my meals."


    Sei giggled. "He wouldn''t do that."


    ''Yes the hell he would¡­''


    Sei ran her fingers through the mane of the ck lion and stared into the moon far off in the distance.


    "I must confess, Serosh¡­ This family has truly saved me. I don''t know if I ever would have be the woman I am now without them. Nor if I would have survived this kind of world on my own. I don''t know how to put into words what I feel for them. What I feel for him."


    Serosh seemed to take his time processing her words before giving her a very gentle nudge with his snout.


    "¡­I believe that might be something that the master might like to hear."


    "You''re probably right." Sei smiled. "But I don''t have to tell him everything just yet. We aren''t officially married afterall."


    At that moment, the elevator door dinged and Sei felt her heart skip a beat.


    Even before the doors fully opened, she was halfway across the room to meet them.


    She dove into Mchi''s arms like a homing rocket and sniffing him fervently.


    "Wow¡­ you know, if you were feeling this lonely then you should have juste with us for recon." He smiled.


    "Yes, well I.."


    Sei suddenly noticed Bianca holding two boxes of collectible figurines.


    And not the cheap ones you could find at Wallyworld, but the ones that came with a disy stand and costed hundreds of dors a pop.


    "¡­Recon, huh?" She grumbled.


    Bianca held her goods possessively. "I-I have needs, damn it! ?No me juzgues!"


    "I''m not judging you, sweetheart¡­ Whatever makes you happy." (She was judging a little bit.)


    Sei finally let the rest of her family inside and she could see that they had all immersed themselves in civilization one way or another.


    "I¡­ What exactly did you all do while you were out? And what''s wrong with her?"


    Sei''s main concern was Nadine, who was nestled within Joanne''s arm in a princess carry.


    "¡­She got a bit too carried away trying human food for the first time." Jo shrugged.


    *Unintelligible groaning*


    "Okay¡­ And the rest of you?" Sei asked.


    Bianca once again showed off her figurines, but also the stack ofic books she had acquired.


    Luna held up a few bottles of wine and a tea set- in addition to some different strains of actual tea.


    "Anything else?"


    "Serana may or may not have gotten her nipples pierced¡­" Bianca was going to do it too, but chickened out at thest moment.


    Sei opened and closed her mouth several times before ultimately deciding to just let it be.


    "¡­Did she cr-"


    "Yes, nonstop." Everyone nodded at once.


    "Oh, but that reminds me¡­" Luna held out her hand.


    The group mimicked her gesture and reveled new tattoos on their wedding fingers.


    Mal had each of the girls'' initials inscribed, while they only had his and a small heart next to it.


    Sei soon noticed that one of her family had yet to show off their own tattoo.


    "You didn''t get one too, Annalise? I''m fairly certain this was your idea."


    "Oh, yeah."


    Anna turned around and lifted up her shirt just enough to expose her waist.


    Just above her butt, she had a new tattoo of an empty heartprised of everyone''s names.


    "That''s¡­ actually very sweet." Sei chuckled. "Now I feel the tiniest bit bad for not going with you."


    "Worry not, gorgeous!"


    Anna suddenly pulled out her very own tattoo kit and ink;plete with a needle that would actually pierce blessed skin.


    "I''ll happily do the honors myself if you''re up for it! And that goes for anyone else who wants some art on their body from me!"


    "Don''t you typically need an apprenticeship to learn how to perform tattoos on people¡­?"


    "Look, do you trust me or not?" Anna pouted slightly.


    Rolling her eyes, Sei sat down on the sofa. Serosh, big animal that he was, came to sit his head on herp like a newborn puppy.


    "So, did you all do any actual reconnaissance today, or did you all just swipe Arias'' card the whole time?"


    "We used that Carlydy''s too." Bianca revealed. "We had to keep it even afterall."


    "How generous." Sei giggled.


    "We did learn something while we were out though." Mal sat down next to his fianc¨¦ and nestled his head in her neck.


    "Oh? Was it how many orders of french fries Nadine can eat in a single sitting?"


    "F-Four¡­" The vampire muttered pitifully.


    Mal rolled his eyes. "Not quite¡­ it''s moreso the way this ce functions."


    Arias'' new society wasn''t a very ridden hellscape like some would have expected.


    But there was tant ''discrimination''.


    Humans make 60% of blessed sries even for the same job.


    They all of them without exception live in low ie housing project areas that are practically falling apart.


    But what was truly interesting were the way that other blessed treated humans.


    They weren''t outwardly malicious or prone to fits of harassment, but instead they seemed to ignore the bottom ss almost entirely.


    It seemed like they were barely putting them into their eyes; as if their struggles and hardships did not concern them.


    Almost as if they thought they were above them¡­ but something about this crass outlook was unsettling to Mchi to say the least.


    He could feel that there was more here that he was missing, but he didn''t know enough just yet¡­


    Unsurprisingly, there is a small human resistance running about on the streets, but information about them is highly restricted.


    Only a few people manage to get images of their graffiti before it''s taken down or painted over.


    He could only assume that the reason any humans decided to live in this regime at all, is because the cost of living of the opposing faction is supposedly higher than giraffe tits, and housing is not free like it is here.


    They were second ss citizens here, but at least they could eat and have somewhere to lie their heads at night.


    And in uncertain times such as these, that was a big enough reason to keep their heads down and endure.


    Long after everyone had gotten home, the girls were jumping in the shower while Mchi and Sei were in the kitchen cooking side by side.


    With a wealth of ingredients at their disposal that they had previously taken for granted, the couple was preparing a light seafood soup for dinner that would soothe Nadine''s upset stomach.


    And still manage to fill Joanne and Anna''s bottomless ones.


    "Were you followed at all?" Sei finally asked.


    "Of course we were, but since we didn''t really have anything to hide, I just let them be." Mal shrugged.


    He deftly chopped up a medley of shallots, carrots, and garlic with the same ease as a certain bandana wearing culinary icon.


    He lifted up his cutting board and scraped all of the ingredients inside; a medley of aromas filling the room.


    "We had Nadine wipe the memories of anyone who we interviewed so they won''t be able to get anything out of them if they-"


    "You¡­ are very handsome to me." Sei suddenly interrupted.


    Mal felt his cheeks warm and it wasn''t because of the raging fire on the burner next to him.


    Sei was in the process of burning the alcohol out of the white wine when she stared at her young fianc¨¦ for a bit too long and ended up getting mesmerized by his features.


    Mchi was used topliments in his appearance by now, but sincere, head on confessions of infatuation hit him like a bus and practically rendered him defenseless.


    "I think¡­ we can let all the simmer for a bit."


    Sei blushed deeply and almost turned down the stove.


    However, out of the corner of her eye she noticed the elevator light blinking, and soon the doors slid open.


    "Sorry I''mte! But look, I brought friends!"

 Chapter 305: Is He Really Wrong? Pt.1

    Arias happily strode in to the group''s penthouse while still wearing his work clothes and smelling of grease and fried food.


    Mal was immediately reminded of the days he spent working in the pits of fast food and he all but grimaced.


    Some memories should stay buried forever.


    "Mchi..?"


    Stumbling from behind Arias was a familiar red haired old man with a Scandinavian ent and wearing a dark red suit.


    He was much skinnier than Mchi remembered; likely because he had been lying motionless in a medical bed for an extended period of time.


    As always, he was apanied by two women who looked just as surprised to see him here as their husband.


    "It''s good to see you all are healthy."


    Sei came from behind the kitchen counter and smiled at the three neers warmly.


    "It''s been a really long time since we all got to sit down for a dinner together. Our family''s a little bigger now though¡­"


    At the sight of a sea of such familiar faces, Morgan and his wives, Emilia and Crystal, everyone seemed to be just a bit too emotional.


    Morgan embraced Mchi like he was a long lost friend, and the girls quickly did the same with Sei.


    They then swapped partners to hug, andstly they joined as one big group.


    Well, they left one person out.


    "D-Does anyone want to hug me..?" Arias asked hopefully.


    As one might''ve expected, reactions to such a question were downright frigid at best.


    "I-I''ll just be over here then¡­"


    For the next five minutes, Arias squatted in the corner tracing a broken heart on the ground with his finger.


    -


    "Morgan, these are my fianc¨¦s Anna, Nadine, and Joanne." Mal introduced.


    "That''s¡­" Unsurprisingly, Morgan''s eyes settled on Nadine and seemed to be unable to move from her.


    Even when you''ve just awakened from a medically induceda, the face of a monster who''s mind controlled you is hard to forget.


    However, Nadine had already prepared herself for this moment.


    She lowered her head in a short bow and spoke in her most sincere voice possible.


    "Words cannot express how sorry I am for my actions upon our first meeting.


    My desperation to survive caused me to do so deeply regret, but i would ask that even if you can''t forgive me, please do not let my actions affect your rtionship with the rest of my loved ones.


    They hold you in quite the high regard¡­"


    Luna, Bianca, Sei, and Mal all seemed like their hearts were beating out of their chests.


    No matter how you slice it, Nadine''s actions within the gate were grantly awful.


    Not to mention that Mchi had even lied about vanquishing her and instead snuck her onto earth.


    Anyone would have expected him to be upset by this news.


    The fact that Nadine and Luna were vampires was a secret that the family kept close to their chest, so even Arias did not know about it.


    He still thought that she was just an unknown blessed who popped up out of nowhere.


    Crystal and Emilia also did not know who Nadine was, but made up their minds to ask him about itter.


    "¡­You''re not being mind controlled too, are youd?" He finally asked.


    Mchi shook his head solemnly.


    "¡­Alright then. Let''s let that be the end of that¡­ I''ve got no energy left for grudges today. Maybe not ever again."


    Everyone let out a tentative sigh of relief.


    "I know it may be hard to believe but she really is a sweet girl." Anna offered. "And if anything, Mal''s the one who''s got her hypnotized by his d-"


    "A-Annalise!" Joanne quickly covered her daughter''s mouth.


    "What?! I''m just trying to act as a character witness!"


    "Pick another way to do it please!"


    Morgan and his wives looked back and forth between the ck haired women who looked oddly simr.


    "I''m sorry for asking, but are you perhaps¡­ sisters?" Crystal asked.


    "W-Well, actually¡­"


    "She''s my mommy." Anna munched on a slice of bread without an ounce of shame.


    Morgan''s mouth fell open and the soup he was about to swallow fell back into his bowl.


    Crystal and Emilia had simr reactions.


    ''Yea, that was a real kicker for me when I read it in the report too¡­'' Arias thought.


    "I-It''s aplicated story though!" Joanne was desperately trying save face however she were able.


    """I bet¡­""" The three of them muttered in unison.


    "We''re all very happy though, and that''s all that matters." Sei smiled beautifully.


    Seeing her genuine smile, it was hard to believe that her words were anything less than theplete truth.


    "Honestly, I couldn''t imagine raising a child with anyone other than them." Luna smiled as she rested her head on Mchi''s shoulder. "And obviously the sex is inc-"


    Mal covered Luna''s mouth with her hands before she could spill any more privileged secrets.


    "Dinner''s really great!" Arias finally chimed in. "I gotta tell you, after snacking on fast food for a week and a half, it''s nice to get some real, soulful cooking like this, you know?"


    Everyone stared at him like they were trying to pray him out of existence.


    He hadn''t felt so alone at a dinner table since he was still a child.


    "You all have a child together? Truly??" Crystal asked hopefully.


    At the mention of their bundle of joy, the parents seemed light up just a bit.


    "We do actually¡­ Her name is Camille and she''s a bit of a troublemaker, but she''s a very sweet girl."


    "How precious! Do you have pictures??"


    Now, everyone looked mildly ufortable once again.


    Only Arias seemed to know why.


    "W-We do, but¡­ Cami is a bit different from normal children."


    Unsurprisingly, their dinner guests didn''t understand Bianca''s hesitation.


    "What does that mean exactly??"


    "W-Well¡­ it''s a long story, and one we''d prefer to talk aboutter if you don''t mind."


    Mal and Morgan nced at Arias at the same time.


    "Say no more." He understood.


    ''Seriously, what did I even do?!'' Arias cried internally.


    "I gotta ask¡­" Mal finally began ufortably. "How did you end up in this mess?"


    Morgan knew what he was talking about immediately.


    "I was¡­ trying to pull myself out of my hovel and save some human lives when this bastard showed up."


    After making an offer to Morgan that was swiftly rejected, Arias engaged him in a heated battle that persisted over the course of three full days.


    In the end, Morgan inevitably lost due to the difference in power between a avatar and a normal blessed, but Arias didn''t want to simply dispose of him.


    Instead, he kept his body in aa for a while and periodically woke him up to ask if he''d changed his mind about joining him, while simultaneously telling Ryo that Morgan''s freedom depended upon his usefulness.


    He also kept his wives close by in an apartment like the one that they were currently in just so that he could magnanimously reunite them when he finally changed his tune.


    The only reason Morgan hadn''t burned this whole city down already was because his body was using all of it''s energy to burn off the substance that kept him asleep for all this time.


    His powers were so suppressed that he could barely light a candle.


    "It never does pay to err on the side of humanity, does it?" Arias smiled mischievously.


    The tension in the air seemed to return with a vengeance in the span of a single second.


    This was going to be a very long dinner¡­

 Chapter 306: Is He Really Wrong? Pt. 2

    Needless to say, the dinner table took an unsurprisingly somber turn in the wake of Arias'' inmmatory remarks.


    Underneath the table, Bianca was practically squeezing the life out of Anna''s hand so that she wouldn''t leap across the table and cause a scene.


    For a few minutes, the only sound was that of spoons ttering within a bowl, and Arias'' incessant chattering.


    "So then, I had to tell the new guy; ''I don''t care if you''ve got a weak stomach, I''m not cleaning that bathroom again! If you throw up then just make sure to mop that up too before you-"


    "Arias."


    "Yes, Uncle Mal?"


    "Don''t be funny."


    "You were the one who brought up family technicalities first, I was just trying to y along a bit..." Arias pouted.


    Groaning, Mchi manipted the shadows and summoned the thickest folder any of them had everid eyes on.


    "¡­Birthday invitations??" Arias gasped.


    "Dude."


    "No? Wedding ns then?? Can''t keep these beautifuldies waiting any longer than you already have, amiright??" Arias joked.


    Finally, Mal snapped.


    The lights within the apartment flickered in and out as the world outside rumbled.


    Dark clouds formed outside that crackled with brilliant cyan colored lightning.


    But looking deeper within, Arias could swear he saw glowing figures running through the thick thunder cloud.


    They almost looked like¡­ animals?


    "Alright¡­ Guess the time for joking is over¡­" Arias muttered.


    "Been that."


    "Alright, alright, fine.." Arias was finally done ying around at the dinner table.


    He could sense an extraordinary amount of energy coursing through Mchi at the moment.


    Much more than anything he''d ever disyed from their previous encounters.


    ''This is the problem with being out of the loop, you start missing out on big changes like¡­ What the hell..?''


    Arias finally opened up the folder and the first thing that he saw was a sort of coronary report; along with some fairly gruesome photos.


    He briefly skimmed over the documents inside while wearing a grim expression.


    His face only grew darker and darker with every turning of the page.


    "What is that,d..?" Morgan finally asked.


    "The old regime''s dream for the future." Mal replied grimly.


    What Arias had just been handed were effectively the ns for the doom of the blessed.


    Chemical weapons that only targeted specific strains of cells.


    Bullets and weapons that superheated and vibrated at a speed that could cut through metal, or metallic skin, as easy as butter.


    Investigations on shutting down specific nds in the brain that make telekinesis, or certain other mental abilities, possible.


    Deployable neural disruptors had also been developed to prevent the use of blessed powers to begin with, so that they could be shut down and dispatched before they could do anything fantastical.


    Opening up a real world of horrors for the blessed.


    The only things that they seemed to have a hard time producing countermeasures for were Avatars and those with powers rooted in magic.


    But the percentage of individuals who fit that bill were close to 0.5 percent.


    Meaning everyone else in the world was at risk.


    But there was still more.


    Mchi reached over and flipped open the folder to a particr outlined tab he''d had marked at the end.


    "Do I even want to know what that is..?" Morgan looked like he had aged fifty years since the start of this conversation.


    "Definitely not¡­" Luna answered as she sipped her wine.


    "Tell me anyway." Morgan groaned.


    Since Bianca was the smartest, it fell on her to exin the document in a way that everyone at the table could understand.


    "A nanite injection and steroidal treatment.


    Once injected into the bloodstream of a normal human and subjecting them to a cycle of bone, muscle, and organ conditioning, a newly cybeic human is created.


    They''re not very fast, but they are as strong and durable as a B-ranked blessed and their regeneration is close to A-level.


    Preliminary trials recorded six hours as the average amount of time needed to regrow a lost limb.


    Their bodies are also more insted against the elements, making them nearly immune to erratic temperatures at either end of the scale.


    They also disy a low proficiency for technomancy and energy projection. This would be higher, but¡­"


    "By Ymir''s beard, there''s more??" Morgan cried.


    Bianca could only smile wryly and nod her head.


    "There is also a report on the very bottom about making these particr enhancements strain of enhancements for the general public.


    Police forces, military officials, and soldiers would receive a higher efficiency shot with a significant increase in functionality."


    "How much of an increase..?"


    "¡­Seventy percent, but the mortality rate for the procedure is 56 percent. Assuming they haven''t worked out all the kinks by now that is¡­"


    Bianca muttered thest part so that things wouldn''t seem quite so hopeless, but given how quiet it was in the room, her effort was useless.


    For the first time, the reality of war had set in for most everyone here.


    The Revival Regime was soon to be, if it wasn''t already,prised solely of cybeically enhanced humans capable of going toe-to-toe with the upper echelon of blessed.


    Not only that, but the other side was also developing weapons and equipment designed to strip them of their powers and enhanced durability.


    They were preparing for a witch hunt.


    A genocide.


    "¡­Am I still the monster in your eyes¡­?"


    Arias slowly stood up from the table while wearing a much more serious expression than he''d disyed at any point during the dinner.


    "You all would cast your judgments and preconceived notions about my motivations when there is a threat as great as this over the horizon?"


    "How many times have you tried to kill me again?" Mchi raised a brow.


    Morgan snorted.


    "I was trying to create a better path forward! You two fools insisted on standing in my way at every turn instead of standing with me! And for what?! For them?!?" Arias yelled back.


    "You were trying to harm people I love! You think I would actually sit and co-sign any of that shit?!"


    "Your vision is indiscriminate and without mercy when ites to humanity. You''re no better than them." Morgan sneered.


    Now, all three men were standing up in a heated argument that could have gone left at any moment.


    "Do you think I do not recognize my own hypocrisy, you fools?!" Arias roared. "But so what!? If I must, I will y the role of the viin all that I need to! Because this world is far better in my hands than anyone else''s!"


    "You think the other side doesn''t think the same way?!"


    "FUCK what they think!! Look at these fucking pictures again, you bastard! They experimented on our people! There are children in here!! You''re still going to sit here and act as if I am somehow the greater of the two evils!?"


    Arias picked up the folder and flung it at Mal dramatically, sending papers flying all over the room.


    Mchi, who already felt immensely annoyed, became even more agitated.


    His ws burst out of his fingertips like foldable knives and his fangs doubled in length.


    He would have torn Arias limb from limb right there had Morgan not wisely stepped in between them.


    "You''ve done your own share of dirt here, Arias! The conditions you have humans living in here are barely livable! They work for a fraction of what blessed do and are openly discriminated against by higher officials!"


    "And who do you think I learned that from?? I''m just repurposing an age old y out of the humanity ybook!"


    "Then you are just like them!"


    Arias shoved Morgan hard.


    His golden hair began to float above his head as it lit up the still dark room.


    "I am nothing like them, you foolish oaf!! I simply understand the psychology behind human behavior!


    No matter the ss or diaspora if you treat them like animals they will eventually behave like animals and pick each other apart at any given opportunity!


    Those on the fence about my ideologies will see I''m right as all of the humans will begin picking at each other for scraps to decide who is the lowest of the lowborn!


    They. Are. DOGS!! And they will all die a dogs death!!"


    The entire floor shook with the booming of Arias'' voice and any ssware close to him shattered.


    Mchi had finally reached his limit on ''talking''.


    He sidestepped Morgan quickly and was a millisecond away from lunging at Arias when suddenly a much calmer voice came from behind him.


    "Then why do you keep them around..?" Joanne asked.


    Everyone turned to the former head of the dark angels and found her wearing a very refined and business-like demeanor.


    "Among your territories, humanity makes up more than 80% of their total numbers and workforce.


    Now you certainly could just be keeping them around for the cheapbor and to make a point, but¡­ somehow I doubt that. Why are they still here, Arias?"


    Somehow, such a question seemed to disarm Arias'' hostile air.


    The light emanating off him finally died down and his hair began to return to normal.


    "What a great question." He huffed with a smile.


    "On the very rare asion that there are humans who can rise above, they receive the ultimate honor. They get to be blessed and leave the folly of humanity behind."

 Chapter 307: Man-Made Blessed??

    Naturally, Arias''ment made everyone stare at him oddly.


    "Are you actually insinuating that you can make blessed?" Joanne asked.


    Mchi didn''t even need to hear him admit it.


    This was where all of these additional blessed wereing from.


    Of course the evil blessed supremacist would have had something to do with their spontaneous births


    Arias was making a very punchable expression that boiled Morgan''s blood.


    With all of the smugness of a Cheshire Cat, he sat back down in his chair and picked up his spoon as if he was about to continue eating.


    "Pardon my nonsensical tongue... Seems I''m just going out of my way to say so many unnecessary things today."


    Bianca heated the soup in his bowl until it was literally boiling and far too dangerous to eat.


    Even if such a thing wouldn''t leave any persistent injuries, it certainly wouldn''t tickle either.


    "Start talking." Bianca demanded.


    "Ohe now, you aren''t expecting me to just start sharing government secrets with you all out of the blue, are you? I have to be more responsible than that given my position after all."


    The res in the room became even more ugly.


    "It''s that woman."


    Arias finally lost his charismatic smirk when Mal had a quiet, but urate realization.


    "That secretary of yours. Carly, right? She has some kind of blessing that lets you make new blessed."


    "...A lucky guess."


    Mchi finally began putting together certain pieces and events from the day.


    He thought that the people he could feel tailing him were all trailing his family.


    But their real goal was protecting Carly, who went literally everywhere with them.


    "So, how''s it work?" Mal asked with genuine interest. "If you''re not feeling talkative, I could always go find her myself."


    Arias red. "You wouldn''t dare hurt her for a tiny bit of information."


    "Of course I wouldn''t, but I don''t exactly need to hurt her to get an answer to everything I want to know. So are you gonna make me take that trip, or spare me the time?"


    Despite all of the arguments and death battles the two of them had in the past, this was the first time that Arias ever looked like he actually waned to kill Mchi.


    "...Carly''s blessinges from Hera."


    Mal: "That unlikeable old hoe?"


    Anna: "The bitch who can''t keep her husband in check?"


    Bianca: "Queen of the olympic gods?"


    Nadine: "The eternal cuckquean?"


    If Arias didn''t hate the direction this dinner had turned to so much, he would have undoubtedlyughed and found such reactions amusing.


    "Erm... Yes."


    "I don''t get it." Sei tilted her head. "How does a deity of matrimony produce a blessed capable of creating more of us?"


    Arias sighed loudly as if he couldn''t believe he was actually divulging such privileged information.


    "You''ve just answered your own question, Mrs. Saint. Matrimony."


    Carly St. ir''s blessing isn''t very powerful on it''s own.


    Her durability, strength, speed, and telekic abilities are all average at best.


    But her power is one that is invaluable in terms of supporting roles.


    Wedding ceremonies initiated through her powers allow her to form a certain ''bridge'' between the parties.


    If a blessed and a human are to be wed, then the human will be a blessed; sharing their partners inherited powers, enhanced lifespan, strength, and durability.


    The drawback of all of this is that if the one who the power originated from dies, the other person would also lose their powers.


    In addition, in order for the ceremony to work, the pair must exchange a set of unbreakable vows.


    The vows do not have to be specific to the couple''s love, and they can also be any particr condition set by Carly.


    If one party breaks any of the vows set, they immediately lose their powers.


    However...


    The real kicker is that this power is not limited to monogamous rtionships.


    If a human married two blessed, he would gain both of their abilities.


    If a blessed married two other blessed, then that person would gain both of their abilities in addition to his or her own.


    If those in a polyamorous rtionship were to be wed, they would all share each other''s abilities.


    She is also able to ''ordain'' certain people as ministers who are also capable of performing this ceremony; increasing the range and number of new blessed being created.


    Their existence is kept just as big of a secret as Carly''s is.


    On top of everything else, but children produced from these unions aren''t just enhanced as they had been beforehand, but they are nearly blessed themselves. Possessing at least two powers from each parent.


    "Sweet mother of god..." With Morgan''s mind thoroughly blown, he couldn''t do anything but flop back into his chair with his eyes asrge as a bass.


    "That''s where I know her from.." Luna whispered.


    Arias seemed amused. "Oh? Finally remember her, do you?"


    "What''s this dick-biscuit taking about?" Anna asked.


    Luna looked entirely embarrassed.


    "...Carly''s paperwork showed up on my desk on the same night Aisha brought Mal into my office.


    Her abilities weren''t listed, and there was a note attached that made it clear she would only divulge them in an in-person meeting...


    But when I finally contacted her she didn''t answer my calls."


    Arias smiled even wider than before. "Yes, I really do have to thank mommy dearest for telling me about such a gem. It took a while to figure out exactly what she could do, but it was very worth it."


    Mal all but sneered at the further mention of a sister whom he''d never spoken to, but already didn''t like.


    However, Joanne still felt as if Arias was omitting parts of the story.


    "You wouldn''t happen to be leaving anything out, would you? The fact that we have''t seen a blessed with 60 different powers walking around by now must mean that there is some catch we haven''t been told about."


    Arias'' eyes narrowed furthers his lips curled into a helpless smile. "...This is why I evaded you so harshly for all this time, Director Joanne. You''re too damned sharp for myfort."


    ''Sharp...?''


    Unanimously, the entire Saint family got visuals of Joanne taking four hour naps, frequently forgetting to feed herself, her unwillingness to admit her desire to be coddled, and almost never wearing pants.


    ...They honestly couldn''t believe someone like her had survived on their own for over forty years.


    "Yes, yes, you''re right..." Arias finally admitted. "Truthfully, there is one more condition. The couples have to at least be somewhat happy with each other or the union just sort of dissolves within a few month''s time. Or less...


    This makes finding multiple marriage partners somewhat difficult. The more differentponents we try to implement, the greater opportunity for friction, misunderstanding, jealousy, neglect, you know the like.


    But then again, maybe you don''t..." Arias muttered, remembering the nauseating reports of the Saint family''s fluffy and tender rtionship.


    He couldn''t say whether he was more disgusted or jealous.


    While Mal was still reeling from the massive amount of information that was just dumped into his brain, Bianca and Joanne suddenly yelled telepathically in his mind.


    Both of them seemed to havee to some grand conclusion at the exact same time.


    ''Babe / Hon!''


    ''W-What? You girls scared me.''


    ''Sorry, but this is important.'' Bianca kept a cool demeanor on the outside while her mind was running at a thousand miles a minute.


    ''No matter what, you cannot mention anything about your N''Kai ability to connect people.'' Joanne warned.


    It took everything within Mal to keep himselfposed and with a straight face once he realized what the girls were getting at.


    The fluid that Mal produces in his body doesn''t just make low breeds, but it also connects N''Kai to each other and gives them a heightened sense ofmunity and empathy for one another.


    It''s not ''Easy Rtionship Glue'' but it certainly is something akin to lube in that it does make things slide into ce much smoother.


    Though it does require effort to maintain, ultimately the group''s ability to feel what the other person needs helps ensure everything works in perfect harmony.


    Mal could only imagine what Arias could aplish with a bowl full of his fluids and a few thousand couples.


    As if reality was somehow projecting his thoughts, a massive explosion suddenly urred in the city below, and a great ball of fire rose up into the sky.

 Chapter 308: A Fire?

    Arias was a lot of things.


    A tiny bit egotistical.


    Somewhat genocidal. (He considered that term up for debate)


    Incredibly handsome. (He did not believe that one was up for debate.)


    And even a pretty damn good Uno yer.


    But no matter a person''s thoughts around him, the one thing that was for sure was that Arias cared about the territories under his leadership.


    So much so that when arge explosion rang off in the middle of the city, he didn''t waste a second with unfunny quips or jokes.


    His entire body burned with divine light so powerful that everyone except Morgan and Mal had to shield their eyes.


    There was a loud crash followed by a strong gust of wind before the group could open their eyes again.


    When they looked up, they found a giant melted hole in the window, and something that looked like a shooting star rocketing away at the speed of light.


    "I''ll be back in a second everyone." Mal cracked his knuckles and slipped his sses back on.


    "Aye. We''ll be back." Morgan emphasized.


    Mal paused just shy of jumping out the window and looked at the orange haired man who was one and a half pounds away from being dered malnourished.


    "¡­You''re joking, right?"


    Morganughed as he gave Mal a firm p on the back.


    "I appreciate your veiled attempt to call me a debilitated old fuck, but don''t forget who was in this blessed world long before you,d. I''m not fully without my bag of tricks just yet. Besides¡­"


    Morgan''s eyes drifted towards the massive ze that literally seemed to be calling his name.


    "I''ve just had a really splendid meal. I should burn it off best I can."


    Morgan lifted his body off the ground and flew after Arias; albeit at a much slower pace than the blonde ruler.


    Mchi looked back at Morgan''s wives and saw immense worry on both of their faces.


    "Don''t worry, I''ll make sure nothing happens to him."


    The girls seemed reassured by this and offered him a smile of thanks in return.


    Mchi called Zazu from the next room and leapt on his back.


    With every p of his feathers, Zazu''s wings sounded like thunder rolling in from over the horizon.


    In less than a second he had passed Morgan''s speed and found the area where Arias was standing.


    And his focus¡­ Well, it was the hospital building that just so happened to be on fire.


    Mchi only saw Arias for a moment before he shed towards the building.


    Just like Bianca''s favorite super hero, Arias appeared in and out of sight as he evacuated any survivors he could carry by the armful.


    Finally, Mal noticed why exactly Arias was so frantic.


    The individuals he was trying to evacuate were all children. Newborns to be exact.


    Now, Mal was invested.


    It had been a while since he used the absolute force maniption he learned from eating Lucifer''s chosen, but fortunately he hadn''t lost his familiarity with thermodynamics.


    He held out both hands and prepared to snuff out the entire building when suddenly someone else took control of it first.


    The mes that were billowing up into the sky suddenly went towards a very specific source.


    With his hands outstretched, Morgan called every single spark of bright orange me towards him like they had a mind of their own.


    Morgan let the mes touch his body and drew them into himself.


    As his body began to glow as brightly as the sun, a strange ck liquid oozed from his pores before evaporating.


    His weight, vibrancy, and of course his power seemed to return in full.


    But Mchi also couldn''t be sure that he wouldn''t go for round two with Arias now that his strength was restored.


    ''God damn, I guess he was right about those tricks of his.'' Mchi was remembering exactly why Morgan was his idol before he got blessed.


    Shaking off his moment of idolization, Mchi focused on evacuating any survivors in his own way.


    He hopped off of Zazu''s back and sank into the shadows on the ground.


    One by one, more and more of the patients were transported by the shadows back towards the safety of the street.


    Zazu took the liberty of sheltering them while they were in their infant warmers.


    Next, women and staff  starteding out, either teleported by Mchi or ferryed by Arias.


    Some were a little banged up, some had minor smokine inhtion and burns, and others were just scared out of their minds.


    First responders soon flew, or drove towards the scene and began setting up a triage station for those who were in the worst condition while they transported everyone else to another location.


    Morgannded on the ground next to Mchi, and the two of them watched Arias carefully from a distance.


    "Did you notice something,d..?"


    Mal nodded. "All women, children, and doctors¡­ but no men were being treated at all. Not even among the deceased."


    "Aye. Makes you wonder about exactly what was taking ce in this facility in the first ce. And then there''s the fire¡­"


    "What about it?" Mal tilted his head.


    At that moment, Zazu came over and perched himself atop Mchi''s head.


    "We heard an explosion, boss. A big one. This entire block should''ve been kaput, and we definitely shouldn''t have found as many survivors.


    When we arrived, the whole building was somehow up in mes¡­ someone had to have stoked that fire somehow."


    "¡­I''m sorry, did that bird just talk?"  Morgan asked.


    "Impundulu." Mal corrected.


    "He does voodoo too??"


    "¡­"


    Mchi knew this was supposed to be a serious moment, but he was still a little amused.


    All of a sudden, him is phone began vibrating furiously in his pocket.


    He quickly fished it out, but Morgan read the name aloud before he could put it to his ear.


    "Celeste, peach emoji and doctor emoji¡­ Whose that?"


    "S-She-" Mal began.


    "She is the woman who is going to someday feel the bliss of the boss'' penis!"


    "What?! Zazu, shut the fuck up!"


    "My bad, boss." Zazu corrected. "I forget he is what the youngdies call a ''munch''."


    Morgan scratched his head in embarrassment.


    "I''m a bit out of touch when ites to modern ng¡­ What exactly does that mean?"


    Mal tried his best to salvage the remains of his reputation. "M-Morgan, please don''t pay him any min-"


    "It means he eats pussy like he gets paid for it!"


    "Zazu!"


    "And ass."


    Morgan just stared at the young man with a ''wow'' look.


    Mchi felt as if he had just endured a level of character assasination that was nigh impossible toe back from.


    All that he could do was remind himself to pluck and stuff Zazuter while absolutely never bringing up this conversation ever again.


    To take his mind off everything, he answered his phone before it stopped ringing.


    This was thest semi-normal moment he had before everything went to hell again.


    In one ear he could hear the sound of Celeste crying harder than ever before.


    In the other, he heard the sound of a gun going off. And the body of someone he knew hitting the ground.

 Chapter 309: We’ll Save You… I Guess

    The sound of a gun going of may not have been asmon in the apocalypse as it once was, but it was still every bit as prizing.


    As soon as the shot rang out, everyone in the crowded street began scattering like roaches.


    Some ran for cover, others used their powers to protect themselves.


    Mchi and Morgan were the only ones who remained standing upright and instead looked for the source of the gunfire, and the person who''d been hit.


    Mchi found three gunman on a roof nearby.


    Morgan found the man who''d been shot. The only detriment to this? It was Arias.


    The shining leader of the new day was lying in the middle of the street; clutching his chest and screaming.


    "W-Was that gunfire?? A-Are you okay, Mchi?!"


    Celeste''s panicked voice on the other line was all Mchi needed to draw his attention back to the real world.


    "I-I gotta call you back, I''m sorry." Mal apologized.


    With a click, he stuffed his phone back into his pocket and looked at his fierypanion.


    "...No." Morgan shook his head.


    "We need him."


    "I don''t need anything but a Mordello and a neck pillow,d."


    "..."


    "...Fuck, I said no!"


    "You know what''sing. We need to atleast make sure he''s alright."


    "He locked me in a sted test tube for months!" Morgan reminded.


    "I never said he wasn''t a dick." Mal shook his head and shrugged.


    "He is a massive dick!!"


    "But he is one of only three primordial blessed in the world that we know of. Think of it not as us saving him, but as us saving his powers instead."


    "..."


    "...Please?" He shrugged.


    "...I am starting to see how you were able to talk seven different women into sharing you." Morgan grumbled.


    "In all honesty I never really had to do very much convincing after Anna." Mal realized.


    He didn''t really notice it before, but at a certain point the girls just kind of started making friends with each other and everything kind of just clicked into ce.


    Morgan wondered if Surtr had blessed him with better looks then would he also be living that kind of life.


    ¡­He was just the tiniest bit jealous, but that was only because he was only seeing the good side of things.


    The girls'' cycles were synced, there was almost always someone''s hair in the shower drain, and whenever one of the girls was mad at him, that meant they were all mad at him until he patched things up with the originator.


    Mchi definitely had his own crosses to bear.


    "I''ll get the gunmen?"


    "I''ll fix the fucker¡­" Morgan sighed.


    Mchi and Zazu disappeared in a sh of electricity, leaving his ming-haired mentor behind.


    Morgan grumbled to himself as he stuffed his hands in his pockets and treaded over to the fallen Arias.


    ¡­And proceeded to kick him in the side.


    "Gah, you bastard!!" Arias cried in pain.


    Morgan waved his hand dismissively as he pulled a cigar out of his jacket pocket. "Stop your whining. You sound like a newborn babe."


    "I''ve been shot in the fucking chest!"


    "My only sorrow over that is that it wasn''t the head." Morgan sighed as he lit the cigar with his fingertip and proceeded to take a big drag.


    He used his foot to nudge Arias onto his back so that he could get a better look at the damage.


    A bullet hole was located dead in the center of Arias'' chest.


    It may not have been very long since Arias had been shot, but the wound was dark and ugly as if he''d had it for years but it never healed properly.


    "Huh¡­Maybe this is a tad bit serious.." Morgan began rustling around for something in his pocket.


    "W-What are you doing..?" Arias groaned.


    Morgan pulled out his phone and opened up the camera.


    "Going to make this my wallpaper. Smile for the camera and say ''New York''. "


    This was perhaps the first time that Aroas had ever seriously regretted not killing Morgan when he had the chance.


    -


    When the men on the rooftop realized Mchi was pursuing them, they wisely decided to split up.


    He saw three shadowy figures dart across the rooftops before each of them headed north, west, or east.


    Mchinded on the roof closest to him and stopped.


    "Master, they''re running." Zazu reminded.


    "Uh-huh."


    "Aren''t you going to chase them??"


    "Nope."


    Mchi held out his hand and a ball of cyan electricity formed in his palm.


    Recognizing what he was about to do, Zazu quickly tried to talk him out of it.


    "T-That might inconvenience the people here, boss¡­"


    Mchi waived his hand dismissively. "It''ll be fine, I promise. I just need to turn out the lights for a couple of seconds¡­"


    "If you say so¡­"


    Mchi finished charging the sphere of energy  and it released a single pulse.


    Nothing too dramatic, and yet it disrupted every electronic system in a mile''s radius; rendering a portion of New York pitch ck for a span of 3 seconds.


    One of the fleeing gunman was running along the side of the building when it happened.


    Everything in front or around him became pitch ck.


    As if that weren''t disorienting enough, he suddenly felt ''something'' grab hold of his body and pull him backwards.


    The next thing he knew, his bodies was colliding with a hard surface and he and his associates were rolling on the ground all over each other.


    Not half a secondter, all of the lights in the city came back on.


    Now, the fleeing gunmen could easily tell that they were right back on the roof where they''d first split up at.


    And there was one more person here with them.


    "See, Z? I''m sure nobody even noticed."


    "Alright, boss, I guess I have to give it to you. That was indeed very ''P''."


    "¡­"


    "¡­Too muc-"


    "Yea, too much."


    "I''ll work on it." The bird nodded.


    Mal raised his hands above his head and a dome of shadows encased the roof.


    As the men slowly started to get up, Mchi realized they didn''t look any different from ordinary citizens.


    However, their body temperatures were quite a bit lower¡­ dangerously low in fact.


    "Evening to you, gentlemen."


    Mchi tipped down his sses so that his blinding purple eyes were visible.


    "Why''re you all cutting out so soon? I was just hoping to ask you a question or two."

 Chapter 310: Robots In Disguise!

    Mchi''s three silent captives unsurprisingly looked around for a possible route of escape, but found nothing in the end.


    All the while he watched them calctively, with all of the poise and grace of a jungle cat.


    "Now, I''m real curious here. Was this a regr run of the mill assassination attempt, or did you guys have something bigger in mind?"


    For some reason, the three didn''t seem like they were in a real captive mood.


    Though Mchi was sure he didn''t understand why.


    Just as it seemed he was going to have to take a more violent approach to interrogation, his three captives spoke in unison using a strange robotic voice.


    "Mission has been designated as a tentative sess. As all means of escape have beenpromised, units J-1842, D-2633, and T-7895 will undergo protocol two. Transferring data now."


    Science fiction was never Mal''s favorite genre, but he had observed enough of it to follow what was about to happen.


    True to his suspicions, he witnessed the three strange men begin to glow from the inside out.


    "Cover us, boss!" Zazu cowered.


    "What are you worried about? You can''t die anyway..."


    "Oh, right."


    Without putting up a singe barrier of any kind, Mal and Zazu sat and watched as the top of the building was rocked by an explosion.


    -


    Arias groggily opened his eyes after a lengthy period of time spent unconscious.


    At first observation, he was in his own bed back at home; nestled right next to his ''Hello Kitty'' plushie and ''He-Man'' action figure.


    It would''ve been a pretty nice and cosy way to wake up if he didn''t have a nasty ache in his chest and hear some slurping soundsing from the foot of his bed.


    With some difficulty, he craned his neck upwards to stare at his bedroom door, or more specifically, the two attractive bodies stered against it.


    Mchi and Luna were wrapped in a rather hot and heavy embrace as if they were right in the privacy their own room.


    Luna''s butt was given a firm squeeze that resulted in her releasing a small moan into Mchi''s mouth, and Arias had finally seen enough.


    "What the hell are you two doing?!"


    The couple unsurprisingly jolted from their lip lock and scrambled to return to normalcy.


    "Oh don''t let me break up your happy coupling." Arias replied sarcastically. "I think the bodega down the block has condoms if you want me to grab you some."


    "We''re a little past the condom stage in our rtionship, but thank you for the offer." Luna rolled her eyes.


    A sudden realization dawned upon Mchi. "I don''t think we''ve ever used a condom though, babe..."


    Now, Luna too seemed embarrassed that small fact had been brought to light.


    "...T-That''s your fault. You stuck it in before I had a chance to ask you to grab one."


    In truth, Mchi was the first man Luna had ever slept with. She kind of just forgot that condoms were supposed to be apart of the whole ordeal because she was swept up in the mood.


    She wouldn''t have thought to ask for one even if she saw it fall out of his back pocket.


    Meanwhile, Arias was regretting even bringing up this conversation in the first ce.


    "I-I actually don''t care if you''re practicing safe sex or not. Can you just tell me why the hell you''re in my roo-"


    *Click!*


    The bedroom door suddenly opened and Morgan stepped inside; chewing on a frozen waffle.


    "Oh, he''s up. Why didn''t you grab us?"


    Morgan noticed the fact that Luna''s lipgloss was missing and Mal was now conveniently wearing half of it.


    "...Never mind." he shook his head.


    "Bitch, is that one of my ''Eggo''s''?!" Arias yelled.


    "Uh-huh." Morgan took an absolutely huge bite of the waffle out of spite.


    Before Arias could muster any kind of retort, another face poked their way into the door. This time, it was the lovely Bianca.


    "You guys are real rowdy in here. Try not to wake up the cripple."


    "I-I am not crippled!" Ariasined.


    "Oh, he''s already up." Bianca pulled out a hot pocket from behind the door and began munching.


    "WHY ARE ALL OF YOU RAIDING MY FRIDGE!?" Arias roared.


    Joanne suddenly poked her head inside as well.


    "Because my daughter and Nadine already emptied your liquor cab."


    "T-That''s just... Ugh!! Why are you even in my apartment!?"


    "You think we were going to let you run off and avoid us when you got patched up? ''Fraid not, cupcake." Morgan dismissed. "We wanted to be right here when you woke up."


    "Kinda d it only took a few hours for that." Mal yawned. "I was worried we''d have to spend the night here in shifts..."


    Arias suddenly realized that something about this situation was amiss.


    "My people would have never allowed you to get this much ess to me while I was vulnerable. Nor would they have left me alone in this sort of condition. What have you done to them..?" Arias asked dangerously.


    Before any of them could tell him about the dozens of security personnel asleep in the hallway, Arias noticed that something within his body was violently amiss.


    He was definitely agitated, and his blood pressure was even starting to rise, but the usual glowing of his eyes and hair never came to him.


    "What the hell...? My powers are..."


    A sudden clinking sound drew his attention.


    When he looked up, Bianca was jingling a small stic bag with a bullet inside.


    "You were shot with a 338 Lapua Magnum bullet re-designed to act like an exploding shell.


    Once inside you, the bullet seems to have released a sort of powderprised of a variety of minerals into your body.


    I''m still waiting to get the results of some samples back, but they all seem to be ones that have the property of distorting light.


    They''re running around in your body right now, since they''re too small for us to just pluck out. Seems like they''re interfering with your powers a bit.


    So, like I said earlier... You''re a cripple. At least until you''re able to pass all of that shit out of your body."


    Arias looked down at his own hands in horror. A feeling of weakness returned to him that he hadn''t known in a very, very long time.


    Unsurprisingly, he had a very unbing reaction.


    "Those BASTARDS..! They are conniving, unscrupulous, parasitic little diseases upon the earth!" Arias roared.


    "Yes, yes... We were all sure you would say something like that." Morgan waived his hand dismissively.


    "You would still disagree!? After all that has transpired tonight??"


    "Not... entirely." Morgan admitted.


    "But we can''t let the whole of either side burn down because we have some disagreements. Compassion must guide our way, or else we would all be damned for the acts we wouldmit against each other."


    Arias sneered venomously.


    "A beautiful ideal, but one surely not based in reality. Humans.. are.. animals. Pretending that they are not will only leave you blind to their screams, their machinations... theircruelty."


    "And look at you, who has never let your guard down with them for even a second still ended up with a bullet through your chest and your battery depleted. So does it really matter if I y a little make believe?"


    Arias admittedly fell silent at this as he red.


    Mchi suddenly clicked his teeth. "We can worry about these questions of morality and civil warster..." he suddenly paused as he stared at Arias. "And trust me nephew, we will get to that."


    Arias'' re became uglier still.


    Mchi created a chair from the shadows and sat down beside the golden one''s bed.


    "For right now, I just want to know why three suicidal robots set only that building on fire to get your attention. I think that''s much more pressing now, don''t you?"

 Chapter 311: A Work in Progress

    It''s hard to stabilize the current blessed poption.


    Between those who may still be lost within the wastes, and others who likely died defending their countries, the world has never looked so bleak for them.


    Not to mention the fact that they cannot effectively reproduce.


    They can have children, sure, but the kids born from those unions are only a bit stronger than regr humans and do not inherit their parents'' divine abilities.


    Even Camille is no exception to this rule, as she bears neither Luna''s, nor Mchi''s blessing.


    However, what if there was a way to tie the individual powers of blessed to their bloodlines, and not just their individual selves?


    And what if there was a way to increase their fertility rate as well?


    Far fetched though it may seem, such a thing would literally drive the blessed from being a minority in the world to a stable majority in just a couple of generations.


    Especially when considering how they tend to take more than one partner and draw in the attraction of others.


    "That is what the building that was destroyed was¡­ A hospital designed to cure our kind''s only gic weaknesses and help secure our future in this world.


    We have a current rate of sess that stands at around 98% for new births¡­ It''s existence was supposed to be top secret." Arias exined in a grave voice.


    "Jeez, why is everything soplicated now..?" Annained. "Why can''t they have just decided to blow up a ''Build-a-Bear'' headquarters or something?"


    Joanne patted her daughter''s head in pity. "You really were never going to end up following in my footsteps, were you?"


    "Well, I dunno. We did kind of end up fucking the same man."


    "¡­I regret even bringing this up with you. Why do you take such pleasure in embarrassing me?"


    "A small payback for the years of abandonment, ma." Anna beamed with pride as if she were the funniest woman alive.


    Meanwhile, Joanne deted with shame and had to rest her head on Bianca''s shoulder.


    "¡­What an interesting family dynamic you have here." Arias muttered.


    Morgan didn''t like Arias very much, but even he had to nod his head in agreement at such a statement.


    "Not important." Mal waived his hand dismissively.


    "How would the other side have known about that hospital if it''s supposed to be so top secret?" Bianca questioned.


    "Obviously I need to expend some more effort to discover the answer to that little problem, don''t I?" Arias rolled his eyes.


    "It''s so hard to believe that someone would shoot you in the chest. You''re soo likeable."


    Everyone else just snickered, but Morgan made a point ofughing obnoxiously to further stoke Arias'' ire.


    It worked wlessly.


    "Do not concern yourself about my wound¡­ I will definitely have my retribution for this and so much more! You mark my words!" Arias yelled with his fists clenched.


    The mood became somewhat serious once again as everyone remembered the events of this evening.


    An entire hospital had been set aze to get Arias out into the open.


    People had died tonight.


    Not just blessed, but innocent humans who were only guilty of being in the wrong ce at the wrong time.


    They deserved so much better.


    And Arias would ensure that their deaths were not in vain.


    "There''s that look of yours I despise so much." Morgan shook his head. "Scorching the earth should be my thing, but you seem to have it all covered."


    "You''re damn right I do. But you''re wee to get off your ass and stop being a traitor to your kind at any time, Morgan."


    "You bratty little ingrate¡­"


    The girls took a step back from Morgan once he started to show signs of overheating again.


    "I am no supremacist, and any allegiances I have sworn are to my family and my family alone!


    Now I am no less upset about this attack than you, but I will never side with you in indiscriminate warfare!!"


    "Then you may as well say that you are condoning more deaths, Morgan!! Do not fill my ears with needless excuses, if you''re going to be a coward, then spare us all some time and say it proudly with your chest!"


    "My chest should be the least of your concerns, because I am about to put a second hole in yours!!"


    Morgan summoned a great sword as ck as the color of coal.


    Brightly colored orange-red mes ran along the metal of the de and surged in tune with their owner''s fury.


    Just before Morgan could give Arias a new hole to spout his dangerous nonsense from, he suddenly felt all of his agitation leave his body.


    Arias had something simr happen to him.


    Both men nced behind them and found Mal with his hand outstretched.


    A swirling red energy was dancing in the center of his palm; catching the attention of both men.


    "What¡­ did you do?" Arias asked in genuine confusion.


    Mchi clenched his fist and absorbed the energy into his body.


    A red current traveled along his veins until it reached his brain and disappeared. He winced slightly before his face returned to normal.


    "Just my little way of helping you gents keep cool heads¡­ One time only I''m afraid."


    Morgan had no idea what Mal had done, but he felt incredibly mellow.


    It was almost as if he had been through the most rxing course of yoga imaginable.


    "Look¡­ I think we can all agree that there is a problem in the world that needs fixing." Mal began. "But we have to find the right way to do this. Ideally, together."


    Morgan and Arias nced at each other momentarily beforeing to a deep understanding.


    ""Not a chance in hell.""


    *Sigh*


    Mchi had no idea what the future had in store for him, but he was 90 percent sure that these two were going to make it as difficult as humanly possible.


    -


    Mchi tried to persuade the two men to swallow their pride for a bit longer before epting that it was a far too big a task for one night.


    So, he sent the girls back to their room for the night so that they could rest, and in the meanwhile he returned to the base to find Celeste.


    It was around 3 am, and while the ce should have been very quiet, he could already hear faint sounds of arguing.


    ''Good to know that she is awake¡­''


    Mchi turned a corner and found Celeste rampaging against the young and beautiful dragon princess, while his sister and Aisha tried in vain to calm her down.


    "I don''t want to hear any more excuses! Take me to wherever my daughter is right now, Thea!"


    In hindsight, Mal now beginning to rethink just which situation would give him the bigger headache tonight.

 Chapter 312: The Abyss?

    Mchi raised one hand and rapped his knuckles against the wall.


    His small gesture ended up capturing the attention of the girls in the hall.


    Celeste came running up to him immediately; allowing Mal to get a good look at her eyes that were clearly red from crying.


    His expression immediately softened as if he were looking at something precious.


    And Celeste could not say whether she just didn''t like that look, or just didn''t like how much she liked it.


    Either way, it was a problem that she didn''t have the time for.


    "I-I need your help¡­" She asked quietly.


    "I''ll do whatever I can." Mal''s response was instantaneous.


    He wiped away the lingering traces of tears along her cheeks and felt her shiver against his skin.


    The light scent of soap on her skin, as well as the softness of her cheek was almost too much. And Mal had to give himself a very important reminder.


    ''She''s not your girl, she''s not your girl, she''s not your girl, she''s not your...''


    Needless to say, his mantra had to be repeated in his mind several times before he was fully equipped to deal with anything going forward.


    "I-It''s Mnie¡­ She''s gone."


    "Gone? What do you mean gone??"


    "S-She left a note on the bed that said she was leaving with Belloc and she didn''t know when she would be back."


    Mchi nced at Thea for an exnation and she sighed in exhaustion.


    "I promise you all, she is fine. She''s staying with my family at our home."


    "Then why can''t we go see her, or even talk to her about why she left?"


    "I don''t think she''s ready for that yet, guys... Please just give her another week or so, and then I''m sure she''ll-"


    "A-A week? What do you mean a week??" Celeste wanted to cry.


    "T-Time doesn''t quite flow back home the way it does up here. For you guys it''s only been a few days since she left, but Mnie''s been down there for close to a month I think."


    Celeste couldn''t say whether that revtion made her feel better or worse.


    Why would her child have been gone for weeks and not tried to contact her even once?


    Mchi noticed Celeste fall silent and his determination to help her saw a noticeable surge.


    "Thea¡­ please." He asked sincerely.


    Thea but her lip as if she was really struggling with all of this.


    "I-It''s not that simple, guys. Miss Celeste might not be able to survive the trip. She''s not nearly strong enough, and not to mention that she doesn''t have my father''s blood either."


    "Then how is Mnie surviving??"


    Thea lifted up her shirt and pulled down her pants just a tiny bit.


    Mchi looked away out of respect.


    Aisha tried to contend with her new nosebleed.


    Aubrey focused on reciting her ABC''s so that she didn''t stare.


    Celeste wondered if she could have a body like that too if she just worked out a little more.


    Suddenly, there was a soft light within the hallway and everyone nced at Thea''s lower stomach; right underneath her bellybutton.


    There, one could see a glowing pink symbol written in somenguage that none of them had ever even witnessed before.


    "My grandpa calls them wedding crests. My great grandmother bestowed them on our bloodline when he was born.


    We bestow them on the partners we chose and in turn we share each other''s life forces forever.


    And with a little help from a certain family friend¡­ the bonds are now so strong that even god cannot separate us." Thea exined.


    Celeste, Aisha, and Aubrey each took something entirely different from that conversation.


    Unsurprisingly, Celeste was the most dramatic.


    "My baby got MARRIED without ME?!?"


    "W-Well, not quite, but-"


    Celeste couldn''t hear anything else that was said because she fainted shortly after and had to be caught by Mchi.


    He identally ended up grabbing her breast in an attempt to catch her and a blush of shame showed up on his face immediately.


    He was immensely embarrassed that the words ''happy ident'' had popped up into his mind at that moment.


    ''I''m such a despicable degenerate¡­'' he thought quietly.


    While pushing his shame to the back of his mind, he lifted Celeste into his arms in a princess carry.


    "Thea¡­ is there really nothing that can be done?"


    The blonde princess shook her head in denial.


    "I''m sorry¡­ but really, it''s just not safe for her, or any of you to-"


    "I''ll give you my sister and Aisha for a whole day."


    ""WHAT?!""


    "D-Deal! Wait, no!" Thea really seemed to be fighting with herself over what exactly was the right thing to do.


    "Two days." Mal offered.


    "Deal! No take backs!" Thea made an ''x'' with her arms.


    Mchi smiled and the two of them almost shook hands but Aubrey suddenly pped him hard on the back of the head.


    "What kind of brother are you?? Who pimps out their little sister for favors?!"


    "Or their best friend l?!" Aisha added.


    "Atleast I pimped you out to someone you both like!" Mal fired back. "So is it even really that bad in hindsight?!"


    ""YES!!""


    "Too bad!"


    Mchi snapped his fingers and dark bands of shadow appeared on each of the girls'' ankles.


    Aisha tried to run away from the group, but a dark chain jumped out of her shadow and held her fast once she got too far away.


    Thea teared up at Mal''s ''gift'' and she seemed so moved that she was liable to kiss him.


    "I swear¡­ this is the best day of my whole life..!"


    -


    It took a ssh of cold water and a firm shake to get Celeste to awaken from her impromptu nap.


    Once she was up, she was quickly informed by the rest of the group about what was to take ce in the next few moments.


    Needless to say, she became visibly excited once she heard that they would be going to see her daughter.


    However, she admittedly started to get cold feet when Thea suddenly started casting magical buffs on her in the middle of the room.


    "U-Umm, Thea..? What are you doing?" Celeste asked as she looked at the thin, glossyyer of colors that had formed on her body.


    "The magic I''m casting will help you breathe since there isn''t any air back home for you to live off of.


    I''m also fortifying your heart so that it doesn''t explode from fear or just stop beating altogether, as well as your mind so that you don''t go insane from the spiritual pressure.


    So you know¡­ just the usual stuff." She shrugged.


    For the first time in her entire life, Celeste wondered if her only daughter was worth the amount of trouble she was about to go through for her.


    But it seemed to be toote to turn back, because Thea soon finished casting magic on her and went to cast it on Aubrey and Aisha instead.


    As an avatar, Mal didn''t need the same amount of help that they did, but he did still have the jeopardy of going insane.


    Once everyone was effectively bubble wrapped for safety, Thea stood up and went towards the bathroom door.


    As she wrapped her hand around the handle, she paused to give the group onest bit of warning.


    "You all should know¡­ if you can survive the first minute over there then you will be fine.


    Just keep your wits about you, and no matter what, do not focus on the feeling of the world around you, or else the abyss will swallow you whole¡­ K?"


    Celeste gulped and unconsciously took Mchi''s hand.


    He didn''t say anything, but he did give her hand a firm and reassuring squeeze.


    Seeing as her warning didn''t dissuade anyone present, Thea finally shrugged and threw the door open.


    But instead of there being a tub and a toilet in front of them, there was a long, dark hallway inside of what looked like the nicest castle Mchi had ever seen.


    Thea crossed the other side with ease and inhaled deeply before letting out a loud yell.


    "MOMS! DADDY! I''m homeee!!"

 Chapter 313: Thea’s Mom(s)

    With Thea crossing the boundary so easily, this gave the rest of the group the confidence needed to follow her.


    Together, they all locked arms and jumped through the doorway in one massive leap of faith.


    Regret followed them immediately.


    How to describe such a dreadful experience..?


    Their bodies felt like they were suffocating underneath the weight of the world- no, more like the entire universe.


    It hurt to breathe, fear threatened to flood every recess of their brain, and adrenaline ran rampant throughout their bodies.


    They hit the ground like sacks of potatoes; choking despite the presence of air in their lungs and mere moments away from greeting one of the several incarnations of the grim reaper.


    Mchi was doing the best out of everyone, but not by much.


    Meeting Stheno and Jasmine before this had definitely helped to give him some level of preparedness for dealing with insane otherworldly pressure, but this was on another level.


    The only thing that aided him was his immense care for Celeste.


    She was human without an ounce of magical power or experience in dealing with these types of trials.


    Even with all of Thea''s buffs and pep talks, she was lying face down on the floor while her body was wracked with shivers.


    Mchi couldn''t leave her like that.


    Despite the weakness in his muscles, Mchi crawled towards Celeste and pulled her into his arms.


    For reasons he could not express, he was reminded of the day that he found Jo in the blessed internment camp.


    She was so afraid. So vulnerable.


    And just as he had back then, Mal took away all of those ugly feelings from her.


    Her wellspring of fear that was about to overflow became a river and flowed into him safely.


    Only when it dried up did she take a deep gasp once again, with light and rity returning to her eyes.


    But the very first thing she saw when her vision came back was Mchi''s grief stricken face; just as heartbreaking as it was charming.


    Celeste knew that he was somehow the reason why she felt better. Whatever Mal had done hade at some kind of personal injury to himself.


    Celeste was so moved that she leaned her face forward before she could recognize what hade over her.


    Mchi was more surprised than anyone, but he was too delighted to care.


    ''Huh¡­ Maybe I should''ve tried that too.'' Thea was feeling rather jealous as she watched this scene.


    She''d just sessfully gotten Aubrey and Aisha under control, but she wasn''t getting any kind of reward like that.


    ''Maybe I should''ve been the one who was more proactive this time¡­ I kinda feel like I missed an opportunity here.''


    "You know, you''re not very good at keeping your thoughts to yourself¡­"


    "Ack!"


    Aubrey was still reeling from the worst headache of her her life, but even she could tell why Thea was staring at her brother and Celeste.


    "I-I was just curious about seeing that instinctive need to preserve the species in real time, you know?"


    "¡­Sure, Thea."


    Against all of the young princess'' expectations, Aubrey too leaned forward and gave Thea a small kiss on the cheek.


    And after a moment''s hesitation, Aisha did the same.


    "Orgy!"


    "KYAAA!!"


    "What the hell?!"


    Everyone in the room looked up in horror to find that they were no longer alone.


    At some point, two individuals had appeared within the hallway along with them.


    Well, more like three.


    A young girl was seated atop the back of arge scaly creature that resembled a Komodo dragon on steroids.


    It was easily the size of a small horse or full grown pony, and its dark red eyes seemed to bore into Mchi intently as if it found something interesting about him.


    Atop the back of the creature was a girl no more than five years old who seemed to have no resemnce to Thea.


    Her skin was on the paler side, and she had short ck hair that seemed to be naturally unruly.


    She wore a ck t-shirt several sizes toorge for her with the image of a skull across the front.


    "C-Courtney! Where did you learn that word?"


    Mal craned his neck to look upwards at the tallest woman he had ever seen.


    Standing at around 6''7, she was practically Thea''s older, paler, more muscr carbon copy.


    Her only clothes were a pair of oversized sweatpants and a sports bra that was fighting for dear life.


    Evidently, this was where Thea had acquired her long golden hair from, as well as her stunning physique.


    The only major difference between the two was that Thea''s mother had a pair of red eyes instead of purple ones, and a single horning out of her forehead.


    Oh, and both of her arms were covered in intricate Nordic tattoos.


    Mchi felt like that alone made this woman seem immensely familiar to him, but no matter what he tried he certainly could not ce her face.


    Aubrey and Aisha had never understood how Mchi could find interest in a woman and her mother before, but they were already on the verge of walking back every name they had ever called him.


    "Great Uncle Darius told it to me!" The child confessed.


    "And why in the world would he tell you something like that..?"


    "Because I asked him what he liked to do for fun!" (She thinks it means getting a bunch of people together and kissing them)


    "I see¡­ Sweetie, you know what we tell you about your Great Uncle Darius sometimes?"


    "That I shouldn''t get too attached because one day dad is going to take him out to the great big pasture in the sky and put him down like the dog he is??"


    "That''s correct." Thea''s mother nodded.


    "Is it time to say goodbye already??" The child pouted.


    "It will be once your fatheres back and we tell him what new word you learned." Thea''s mother showed a smile that was not a smile; inadvertently revealing some very sharp canine teeth.


    "Aww! Where did dad go?" Theained. "I wanted him to meet Mchi and Aubrey."


    ""He''s in Hell.""


    "That''s today?? I can''t believe I didn''t get to see him off!"


    Mchi, Aisha, and Aubrey were wondering when, if at all, they were going to hear something normale out of this conversation.


    It didn''t feel very likely.


    Thea finally picked herself up from the ground and ran to embrace both her mother and the young girl atop the back of the scaly beast.


    "Well, I''m home guys!"


    "And you''ve brought friends I see."


    "I just wanted to let you know that I don''t know what happened to those ''Pop-Tarts'' you hid in the back of the pantry¡­"


    Thea wasn''t sure if she should address the loss of her brown sugar delicacies at ater date or open an inquiry now.


    Eventually she decided that there was no point, since she would ask her sister what happened and her only answer would likely be Apophis.


    And Thea would go confront him only to reveal that he and their youngest sister ate them together in the dead of night like bandits.


    So to save herself some time, Thea decided to just skip to introductions.


    "Guys, I''d like you to meet my mom Sif and my baby sister Courtney." She smiled.


    "Not a baby!" She corrected.


    "Adults have to go to work, Pumpkin."


    "¡­I''m a baby sometimes."


    While the girls were snickering at the child''s obvious sense of humor, Mal felt like he needed to get his ears checked.


    "I''m sorry¡­ You''re Sif?"


    Mchi had seen Sif before.


    This was not Sif.


    The version he explicitly recalled was atleast fifty pounds lighter and a foot shorter.


    And she most certainly did not have a horn jutting from her head or dangerously sharp teeth.


    "I am¡­ You must be Nyx''s new children. I''ve heard a lot about you. And you are¡­"


    Sif nced at Celeste''s lipgloss that was half smeared on her own lips while the other half was smeared on Mal''s.


    "A woman after my own heart it seems. There''s nothing like a younger man behind you at night, is there?" Sif winked.


    Celeste''s face turned so red that you would''ve thought that she got punched in the nose.


    "What are you talking abou, Ma? Dad''s got like a couple billion years on you." Thea reminded.


    "I like to ignore that fact because it isn''t like I knew it beforehand. He was just my handsome little sugar baby with a big¡­"


    Sif suddenly paused and looked down at Courtney who was still clearly paying attention.


    "Personality." She corrected.


    Courtney didn''t understand why everyone in the room was giggling as if something super funny had just happened.


    "Sorry I''mte! I had to fix my face."


    Suddenly, a new woman appeared from out of nowhere.


    Though she wore an innocent and breathtaking smile, her appearance triggered a reaction in Mal''s body.


    Even though he felt perfectly safe just a moment ago, his mind was now screaming at him the words of wisdom that his cousin Tsath shared with him.


    ''Dragons do not like N''Kai.''

 Chapter 314: Dragon Family Karaoke?

    Mchi couldn''t exin why looking at the strange blue skinned woman had reminded him of his cousin''s warning, but now that he was seeing her he couldn''t forget it.


    Apparently this was another of Thea''s mothers; Tatiana.


    A seven foot, blue skinned, golden eyed goddess of the ocean and chaos.


    She didn''t bear any malicious intent toward Mal, but for some reason his body would not allow him to stop being on edge as if an attack was imminent.


    "¡­You must''ve found Thea''s mother quite pretty."


    "H-Huh..?"


    Mal felt like he was jolted awake when he heard Celeste''s voicee from right beside him.


    It was embarrassing, but he had only now realized that they weren''t in the same location as before.


    Thea was leading Aisha, Aubrey, and himself and Celeste up a flight of stairs.


    He hadn''t even registered that they had left the presence of Thea''s mothers.


    ''Just how powerful is that woman..?''


    Tatiana was perhaps the only woman other than Nyx who left him stumped as to the depths of her power.


    It furthered his questions about Thea''s family background, and what exactly this father of hers was supposed to be like.


    Celeste noticed Mal''s disconnected behavior and her mood quickly soured.


    It reaffirmed every assumption she had about him and solidified her decision to not pursue romantic involvement with him.


    That little incident earlier was just a slip up.


    A very nice, erotic, intimate slip-up¡­


    ''Don''t be fooled, Ce-Ce! Who knows how many women he put those full.. warm lips on.''


    Celeste shook her head hard to prevent herself from letting her mind wander too far below belt.


    But still, she had to get onest dig in.


    "¡­Slut."


    "Eh??!"


    Mchi lost the chance to offer a rebuttal when Thea suddenly stopped in front of a door along the hallway.


    She checked her wristwatch for the time before cing her hand on the doorknob.


    "They should all be up by now. Be warned though¡­ you might see some pretty strange stuff in here."


    Aisha raised a brow. "Why don''t you just knock on the-"


    "Big sister privileges, cutie. I get to barge in whenever I feel like it!"


    Before anyone could stop her, Thea threw open the door.


    Surprisingly, the sound of music spilled out instead of obscene noises.


    The visitors poked their heads inside curiously.


    They were looking at a very spacious and nicely decorated living room that was currently housing a small crowd.


    In addition to the three who actually lived here, Mal noticed a pair of twins, a young infant who looked to be around the same age as Cami, and another young woman with fiery orange-red hair.


    They along with Belloc were sitting around and cheering while Mnie and Stheno¡­ sang a duet?


    Mnie: "The n was to drink until the pain over. But what''s worse, the pain or the hangover? Fresh air, rolling down the window, too many Urkel''s on your team that''s why your wins low!"


    Celeste''s jaw dropped.


    When it came time for Stheno''s part, the entire group shared her exact facial expression.


    "Can we get much higher?"


    "So highhh~" the crowd cheered.


    "Oh, oh, oh! Oh, oh, ohhh, oh!"


    Mchi never thought that he would hear such an angelic voicee out of a frighteningly stoic woman like Stheno, and yet here it was.


    ''This ce is crazy¡­ I kinda like it.''


    "Hey guys! I broughtpany!" Thea said cheerfully.


    Mnie turned around and her cheerful face paled almost instantly.


    "M-Mom?!"


    Celeste showed her daughter a smile that was not a smile as she folded her arms across herrge chest.


    "And to think I was so worried about you when you left home so suddenly without so much as a goodbye, but it seems like that was all for nothing, wasn''t it?"


    Mnie gulped audibly as shbacks of being scolded as a child consumed her mind.


    "And what''s this I hear about you getting married?"


    Now, Belloc was the one who was going pale.


    -


    To have a more private conversation, Mnie asked to speak to her mother, and more surprisingly Mchi, in another location.


    She led the two of them to a beautiful garden located on the rooftop that was unlike any they had ever seen.


    There were no roses, chrysanthemums, or lilies, but there were flowers that possessed an organic glow.


    They even seemed to bear some semnce of sentience.


    As Mchi and Celeste walked past, the nts turned to face them as if they were curious about the new visitors that they didn''t recognize.


    Mnie led the two of them into a clearing behind a grove of trees.


    A nice pic table was there already waiting for them, and Celeste wasted no time diving into the heart of the issue.


    "Why did you leave home, youngdy? And what''s this I hear about you having been gone a whole month already??"


    "D-Diving right into the hard stuff, huh mom?" Mnie scratched her cheek in embarrassment.


    "I think we''re a little past easing in, sweetheart." Celeste rebuffed.


    ''Those are some really big doghouses¡­'' Mchi was still staring at the garden around him and trying to take in as many wondrous new sights as they could.


    "I just¡­ kind of needed a change I guess. A big one." Mnie sighed. "I didn''t feel like I could fully turnover a new leaf there."


    For a while before she left, Mnie had been quite unhappy at the base.


    Though nothing had happened on the surface, she felt like everywhere she went people were walking on eggshells around her.


    She couldn''t pretend that she didn''t understand why.


    She was the amnesiac girl. The ex-girlfriend of his most beloved man in their smallmunity. And the daughter of the woman who everyone jokingly insisted would make a cute pairing with him.


    It got to a point where Mnie began to question why she was even there. Why she was even alive.


    She understood the dangerous metaphorical cliff that she was looking down.


    As she stood on the precipice of an irreversible decision, she met Belloc.


    He offered her a different path out of the darkness and a life where she could finally be happy.


    She did admit that the certain ''permanent'' aspects of the offer were rming, but after struggling for so long she was kind of tired of overthinking.


    "So I kind of just jumped right into everything without really thinking about it..!" Mnie scratched her cheek in embarrassment. "¡­Are you mad..?"


    "I-I¡­"


    Celeste didn''t know what to say.


    But Mchi did.


    "Mel, I''m d you''re happy now and everything, but I wish I would''ve known that you were having a hard time back at home."


    Mel smiled and leaned forward with her elbows on the table.


    "Oh yeah? And what would you have done exactly? Stopped courting my mom?"


    "I¡­"


    "T-There is nothing going on between us so you do not get to use that as an excuse!" Celeste interrupted.


    Oddly enough, Mnie seemed to find her im even more amusing.


    "Weren''t you the one who said ''you should fight harder for your rtionship because back in college I wouldn''t have let a boy like that leave my side''?"


    "You''re taking that out of context! Out of context I say!" Mal didn''t know it was possible for a woman''s face to get as red as Celeste''s, and yet here was the proof.


    "I also remember you talking about him a lot before I left home¡­"


    "I told you I couldn''t stand him! He''s manwhorish and cocky and-"


    "Still sitting right here¡­" Mal muttered.


    "I-I don''t care!"


    Mnieughed until her cheeks turned red.


    It was a free, lightheartedugh that made Mal realize just how happy she really was here. He hadn''t seen herugh like that at the base ever since she regained her memories.


    "I''m d you''re happy, Mel." He confessed.


    Mnie looked down in embarrassment as she realized that there was one thing she had yet to apologize for.


    "A-About that day where I¡­"


    "It''s already forgotten." Mal smiled.


    "I-It was very R.Kelly of me, and I just want you to know that I''m-"


    "Please, let it go." Mal tried not to snicker.


    "What?? What happened between the two of you?" Celeste looked around in confusion.


    ""Nothing.""


    "D-Don''t lie to me!!"


    Mal and Mnie fell into twin fits ofughter that made mature Celeste feel the tiniest bit left out.


    Mnie suddenly stood up and hugged both her mother and Mchi around their necks.


    Mchi returned it as if she were an old friend he had known for forever.


    Celeste hugged her more tightly as if she feared the loss of something precious.


    She wasn''t sure how to cope with everything that she was feeling.


    And when she wasn''t sure how to cope with her feelings, she had a small tendency tosh out¡­

 Chapter 315: I Hate You, I Love You

    Mchi and Celeste returned to the base when it was stillte at night.


    Mchi closed the door to Celeste''s quarters behind them as they entered.


    Something Celeste seemed to be slightly ufortable with.


    "Shouldn''t you be going back to New York now..?" She asked without looking back.


    Mal was a bit caught off guard by her frigid tone.


    "I.. just wanted to make sure you were alright first. You''ve been quiet for a while now."


    "I can assure you, I''m fine. Don''t let me keep you from those girls you''ve already got at home."


    "Is that supposed to be a jab?" Mal raised a brow.


    "It''s just how things are." She responded coolly.


    Mchi stepped in front of Celeste''s path.


    "Why are you acting like this?"


    "I-I''m not acting like anything! Just move out of my way."


    Mchi remained in front of her motionlessly.


    Frustrated, Celeste tried to shove him, but of course he went nowhere.


    Which only seemed to frustrate her even further.


    She pushed him again and when he didn''t move or flinch, she resorted to dribbling her fists off his chest.


    And the damn holding back her emotions burst and came spilling out into the forefront.


    "It''s all your fault! If you weren''t such a manwhore, then my baby wouldn''t feel like she had to leave me to be happy! I hate you!"


    "What? Mnie''s leaving isn''t my fault!"


    "Yes it is! You think she didn''t know about your feelings for me? Everyone knows! And now you''ve cost me my rtionship with my daughter because you can''t keep your lust in check!"


    Mchi finally caught Celeste''s hands and held her firmly so that she could no longer hit him.


    "I get that you''re upset, but you haven''t lost anything. Mnie said herself that she''s not mad at you and would evene to visit.


    And as far as everyone knowing about my feelings for you¡­ I don''t know how that happened. I haven''t told anyone but the girls."


    Mchi had indeed not told any other members of the base about his interest in Celeste. Aside from his family that is.


    However, given his reputation, as well as the fact that Celeste was a curvaceous woman over thirty, they were able to make their own inferences surrounding their entire rtionship.


    There was a betting pool gambling on how long it would take them to get together. Aisha had quite a lot riding on it.


    "STOP saying that you have feelings for me!" Celeste snapped. "You don''t get to say that! Not when you already have other women in your bed and a child!"


    Mchi was stunned into silence, but Celeste had more to say.


    "Do you think that it''s fun to y games with my heart like this?! You''re sitting here acting as if you really care about me, when in reality I''m just another part of some egotistical male fantasy for you!"


    "You''re more than that for me." Mal shook his head. "Much more."


    "How can I be sure? What is the value in saying that if I''m not the only one you''re saying it to?? How could I ever expect to love someone when they already have six different women besides me??"


    Mchi didn''t know what to say.


    He knew better than most that Celeste wasn''t exactly wrong for how she felt. Or for how Mchi seemed.


    Things were kind of strained in the world when it started bing legal for blessed to take three partners. He already had double that.


    People who had more traditional views on family and rtionships saw this as a world gone mad where people became so enved to lust that they werepromising their self respect.


    Others thought blessed were starting on the path to making themselves kings. Or rather gods.


    No argument was wholly unfounded. And in some cases, perhaps both could have been true as well.


    But Mchi had never really been ruled by his lust, nor had he ever put a desire to have sex with new people over the happiness and wellbeing of the women that he already had.


    But just looking at him on the outside, it was difficult to make people see that.


    Which was why he and the girls kind of gave up a long time ago.


    But just this once, he wanted to try to provide an exnation.


    "You know¡­ I don''t really me you for feeling the way that you do. I''m pretty sure most of the people in the world would react the same if I told them what my family was like.


    Once upon a time, even I might be worried about the kind of man I''d turned out to be. Because my moms certainly did her best not to turn me into a womanizer."


    "Didn''t seem to work.." Celeste whispered under her breath.


    Mchi actually seemed to find her little dig a tiny bit amusing.


    "Despite the way things may look¡­ I''ve never just said anything to you or anyone I loved for the sake of it.


    I told you all that I love you because those are my honest feelings. And I understand the difficulty thates with a confession from someone like me.


    But I can promise you that I am not just looking at you as some thrill to chase or another notch on my belt as you put it."


    Celeste found it difficult to look at Mchi in the moment.


    Her gaze would never lift above his belt buckle, and her voice was as quiet as that of a church mouse.


    "¡­Then why? How can you justify these rtionships that you already have and the feelings that you say you have for me?"


    Oddly enough, Mal had asked himself that question several times already.


    How could he be sure he was doing the right thing by the women he wanted to marry?


    After numerous conversations with himself, the answer became clear.


    "Because¡­ I know that I''m not doing this to satisfy some bottomless vain desire. I''ve truly fallen in love with all of you. And the only way that I can deserve to say something like that, is if I do right by you everyday for the rest of our lives."


    Mal gently tilted Celeste''s head up so that the two of them were eye to eye.


    She was unbelievably vulnerable and fragile. Her eyes seemed to contain an immense pain and difort.


    The next words spoken out of her lips seemed to break her heart. "I don''t believe you.."


    "¡­I don''t me you." Mal responded.


    The two of them stared at each other for what felt like an eternity.


    Mal pretended that he couldn''t hear her heart beating out of her chest.


    She pretend that she didn''t notice the anxiety in his eyes as he stared at her.


    With her inner voice strongly urging against it, Celeste stood still as Mchi''s lips leaned in for hers.


    ''One night¡­ just one night...''

 Chapter 316: For One Night Only…*

    Mchi and Celeste were already more than aware that they still had a lot of issues that remained unresolved.


    And neither of them were truly wrong for what they wanted.


    They saw what was happening now as¡­ a way to discover whether or not what they potentially had here was worth everything they had to ovee.


    Though Mchi believed that he may have already had his answer¡­


    Celeste''s dress was the first piece of clothing tond on the floor.


    As the cool air hit her bare skin, her internal temperature soared from sudden embarrassment.


    The first man to see her naked in more than fifteen years was barely even past the U.S drinking age¡­ just that thought alone made her feel a bit like some kind of predator.


    But when she looked into his eyes, she realized she was just the tiniest bit mistaken as to who really wanted to eat who.


    Since Celeste didn''t want to be the only one still standing around naked, she began trying to undress Mchi.


    Removing his pants felt too bold, so instead she clumsily peeled off his ck shirt.


    This wasn''t the first time that Celeste had seen him shirtless, but it was the first time she let herself stare so tantly.


    He was divine.


    His soft, chocte skin was like a glossy exteriorid gently over a lean physique that the gods (Nyx) definitely seemed to have taken their time on.


    He was like a living, breathing, work of art.


    ''Oh right¡­ he doesn''t actually breathe anymore, does he?'' Celeste finally remembered Mal''s special condition and her expression became a bit downtrodden.


    There was another reason things wouldn''t work out between them. They were just too different.


    Mchi noticed Celeste had begun to get cold feet.


    "Having second thoughts..?"


    Celeste was very surprised by the voice that was much huskier and needy than she was used to.


    Love was not lust, and Celeste was more than smart enough not to confuse the two, but she did feel just a bit moved when she saw how badly Mchi wanted her.


    She was also not a woman made of stone, and she had her own needs as well that had gone unmet for quite a long time.


    Biologically she wanted this, but psychologically she was still trying to make up her mind.


    "¡­This¡­ is just a one time thing. You understand? And we''ll never tell anyone..."


    Mchi unsped Celeste''s ck bra and finally let herrge breasts free.


    Even when he had just met Celeste for the first time, Mal knew that her breasts were well above average, but now that he was seeing them uncovered like this, he felt as if his earlier estimation didn''t do her any justice.


    They were like sulent mounds of mochi with perfectly pink inverted nipples and a natural sweet scent.


    Mal was also extremely stunned to see Celeste had a rather racy ck tattoo on her right breast.


    "¡­That''s a-"


    "D-Don''t stare at it!" Celeste all but poked out Mal''s eyes to keep him from looking.


    "A-All I''m going to say is that college is a very easy time to fall into peer pressure from your girlfriends, and you should never listen to any of their advice when you''ve been drinking!!" She yelled with a red face.


    Mchi had a whole heap of questions that he wanted to ask, but he''d be damned if he wasted this moment on things like that.


    He slowly peeled away Celeste''s hand from his eyes and pulled her in closer.


    Like this, he could feel her heart beating rapidly in her chest as he became intoxicated by the smell of her perfume.


    He brushed his lips against her neck and slipped his hands lower and lower along her waist.


    "¡­If you don''t want me to tell anyone, then I won''t. But my girls have to know. It''s our agreement. And¡­"


    Mchi pulled down the mature beauty''s panties.


    "I can''t sit here and promise you that I''ll be satisfied with just tonight. I will never be able to let you go."


    Mchi stole Celeste''s lips again and her brain turned to mush.


    From that point on, everything that happened was a bit of a blur for the pair.


    The bedroom was too far to walk without separating, so the two of them ended up copsing right in the middle of the living room floor.


    Celeste was caughtpletely off guard.


    Mal was more¡­ attentive than his appearance would have suggested.


    He took his time to gauge her reactions to the slightest touch and new sensation, and when she made a noise or twitched ever so slightly, he would apply greater force or pressure to his action to bring out louder noises.


    ¡­Celeste had never been so simultaneously annoyed and aroused.


    ''Manwhore¡­ H-He probably learned how to do this from ying with a bunch of different women..!''


    "¡­"


    Celeste was unaware that Mchi could read her mind when they were in physical contact with each other like this.


    He heard everything that she had to say loud and clear.


    Today was the first time he ever understood the popr phrase; ''Suffering from sess''.


    Mchi finally removed Celeste''s nipple from his mouth and her face showed minuscule traces of disappointment.


    Mal had to be very careful to hide his smirk, or he risked earning more of her ire.


    He methodically made his way down Celeste''s body, leaving a trail of small marks in his path.


    She was so distracted by the feeling of his warm lips on her skin that she began to feel like she was floating on a cloud.


    And then, she noticed something warm and hard press against her leg.


    Briefly, she recalled Nadine, and even sometimes Luna''s vivid descriptions of Mal''s member and what sex with him was like.


    "Y-You¡­ dont need to keep me waiting, you know¡­?"


    Mal was further aroused by her sudden timidity and pushed her thighs apart.


    Even though they were in the dark, Celeste knew full well that wouldn''t impede Mal''s ability to see.


    She moaned softly when she felt him rub the head of his member against her outside folds.


    He was surprised at just how slick she was from such little forey, but still felt the need to forewarn her before they proceeded.


    "It might hurt a bit at first¡­ bear with me."


    Mal''s face was partially illuminated only by the glow of his own eyes, allowing Celeste to see the concerned look he wore as he stared down at her.


    It made this situation feel even more novel for her.


    "I-I''m a grown woman, Mchi. You don''t need to be so concerned about me."


    Since she insisted she was fine, Mal did not stand on ceremony.


    He gradually pushed his hips forward past her entrance and Celeste let out a small yelp before stopping herself.


    ''I-I''m fine, I''m fine..! I-It was just a little bit thicker than I expected is all..! And since it''s been a while, I wasn''t used to-''


    Celeste let out another involuntary moan when she realized that Mal was still going.


    His thick, searing member was intruding further into her depths than the toy she had in her nightstand had ever reached.


    Her stomach already felt so full, and she didn''t know just how much deeper he was going to go.


    "W-Wait..!"


    As much as it pained her, Celeste had to cast her pride aside and ce a hand on Mal''s lower abdomen.


    "C-Could you¡­ go just a bit slower..?"


    Celeste was cute when she was fiery, but Mal found her timid side to be even more irresistible.


    "¡­No."


    Mal leaned forward and stole Celeste''s lips yet again.


    By now, she was already growing more than used to the feeling of his lips devouring her own, and she even began developing an affinity for using her tongue in pace with his.


    However, she was caught off guard when, in the midst of sucking her bottom lip, Mal suddenly bit her.


    It wasn''t arge bite, just a small nip that barely even broke the skin.


    But just that was enough to make Celeste start feeling strange.


    Her body became noticeably warmer, and she felt all of the tense muscles in her body rx.


    Any difort she felt vanished like a bad dream, leaving only the euphoria of this new experience behind.


    Mchi noticed her change in demeanor instantly.


    Without breaking their kiss, he buried himself all the way inside of Celeste with one fluid motion.


    In an instant, Celeste''s brain recieved the shock of a lifetime and her vision shed white.


    Herst clear thought was of Mal''s words that she had dismissed as mere flirtation.


    But now¡­ now she wasn''t so sure.


    The sound of his voice in her mind was more than enough to drown out her own voice as she screamed in ecstasy.


    ''I will never be able to let you go¡­''

 Chapter 317: The End?

    Mchi and Celeste didn''t leave each other for the span of the whole night.


    It was an experience unlike any she had ever felt before.


    Her long dry spell paired with Mal''s insatiably created an exquisite hell that she didn''t know if she ever wanted to escape from.


    The twenty two year old was very affectionate.


    Even if Celeste was sore and needed a moment to recover, Mchi would still adamantly caress her skin or leave small marks in ces no one else would notice.


    Normally Celeste felt she might consider such a thing overstimting, but it was quite far from unpleasant.


    She felt as if her entire body was humming with echoes of his touch that only amplified the intense pleasure that followed when he inevitably continued.


    But as exhrating as the evening was, Celeste was still only human.


    There was a limit to just how much intercourse her body could take before pain and difort began to outweigh the pleasure.


    Celeste lost count of the amount of orgasms she endured before finally copsing.


    Only now did Mal feel like he may have overindulged in his excitement.


    Celeste was a beautiful wreck; heaving dryly as she was covered in their sweat and a familiar dried ck substance.


    The only dissapointing part ofst night was that Mal never got to finish inside of his longtime crush.


    He was fully aware that Celeste hadn''t fully made up her mind around him yet.


    So since he didn''t want to tamper with her emotional state even a little bit, he withheld himself from taking that final step.


    ¡­His libido was still screaming at him that he hadn''t made the right choice, but luckily his idea of morality was stronger.


    While Celeste was still trembling, Mal knelt by her side and lifted her off the floor.


    She groaned in his embrace and spoke in a hoarse, tired voice.


    "N-No more¡­ I can''t-"


    "Don''t worry, we''re done for the night, love. We''re just going to get you cleaned up."


    Celeste''s ears turned red. "I-I can do that myself, Mchi. Please put me down¡­"


    "¡­"


    Mchi paused in the hallway and tried to put Celeste back onto her feet.


    Unsurprisingly, she went down immediately like a newborn baby.


    She would have hit her nose square on the floor if Mchi didn''t catch her and put her right back in the same position as before.


    "¡­I hate you."


    "I love you though?"


    Celeste turned away in the hopes that Mal wouldn''t see her face turning red.


    He did.


    "I''m not gonna force you to say it back, but I am still going to say how I feel. You don''t have a problem with that, do you?"


    "¡­J-Just help me get into the bath." She said quietly.


    Though she was still acting with a hard exterior, Mal could feel himself cracking through it.


    He carried her into the bathroom and ran the water for both of them until it was at the perfect temperature.


    Lowering both of their bodies in, he ced her in between his legs so that she could recline back into his chest and rest her body.


    For a while, the two of them stewed inplete silence- the only sound being the asional drip of water into the tub.


    Sense they were in close contact, Mchi could hear Celeste''s thoughts kind of like they were background noise in his brain.


    However, he decided not to listen to them this time and instead give her a moment to herself.


    He simply ran warm water along the exposed parts of her body; cleaning her skin and hopefully soothing her muscles as well.


    "That was¡­" Celeste became quiet as if she couldn''t get thest word out because it was too embarrassing.


    Mchi kissed her at the base of her neck and he felt her body tremble in his grasp once again.


    "¡­For me too."


    Celeste was d that the water was fairly hot, so now she could me her flushed face on something other than his words and body.


    "¡­This doesn''t change anything for me, you know..? It was a nice night and all, but I want us to put this behind us¡­ I still can''t be in a rtionship with you."


    There wasn''t a single part of anything that Celeste said that surprised Mchi.


    But just the same, none of it really deterred him either.


    "Well since we''re being honest, this doesn''t change a whole lot for me either¡­"


    He gently touched Celeste''s cheek and turned her face towards him so that he could see her beautiful expression.


    "I am never going to let you go. No matter what you think, I am going to earn your heart by any means necessary."


    Celeste saw Mchi''s lips slowly moving towards hers, and she knew that she had to avoid them.


    And yet despite her mind yelling at her loudly to move, she closed her eyes instead.


    -


    "And then what happened???"


    Mchi chuckled at Luna''s rare disy of childlike curiosity.


    "We kissed, finished bathing¡­ and then she asked me to leave."


    "I see¡­" Luna actually looked a bit disappointed like she was hoping for much juicier details.


    When Mchi left Celeste''spany, it was already 5 am.


    He returned to New York to find that most of the girls were still sleeping, but Luna remained awake and seated on the couch.


    Since it was already morning and the girls would probably wake soon, Mal stepped into the kitchen and started cooking breakfast for the loves of his life.


    But of course, Luna wanted to know everything that''d happened while he was gone. Starting with the reason why he smelled of Celeste.


    Even little Shiro had crawled into her master''sp so that she could listen in on this bit of sexy gossip.


    And so, Mchi told them everything from beginning to end. And when it came to the details of his first night with Celeste, he didn''t spare any details.


    Luna listened intently, and she never made him feel like he was in jeopardy of saying something that she shouldn''t have and earning her ire.


    When he finished, she looked at him with a tiny bit of pity that didnt escape his notice.


    "...Do you really think you can convince her?"


    "She''s stubborn... but she can''t hide her feelings as well as she thinks." he started to smile.


    Mal suddenly paused momentarily as he nced at Luna.


    She was already staring back at him with unhidden interest, and when their eyes met she broke out into a small smile.


    "Something on your mind?"


    "...Do you ever resent me?"


    "Only when you and Joanne drink all my wine without leaving me any."


    "Babe, I''m being serious." Mal hid a smile.


    "And so am I." Luna suddenly stood up and came around the kitchen ind.


    She wrapped her arms around Mchi and gave him a small kiss on the cheek.


    "You''ve asked me and all of the others this frequently since we''ve been together. And miraculously, our answer has yet to change. I wonder why that is?''


    "Me too, that''s why I asked..."


    "Smart ass." Luna bit his ear hard enough to cause difort. "Do you want my answer to change to ''yes'' one of these days?"


    "No, but-"


    "Then you should stop asking as much." Luna emphasized. "We love you because you are considerate of us, but you should know by now that if we really had a problem we would tell you. Especially Anna."


    Mchi could not argue with such fool-proof logic even if he wanted to.


    Luna rested her cheek on Mal''s chest as she took the eggs off the eye of the stove. "Besides... It isn''t as if we don''t all end up falling in love with each other too. So if one of us is guilty of something, then we all must be."


    "...I don''t deserve any of you."


    "I''d beg to differ, darling. Just take a look at this."


    Luna pointed to the stove where several different meals were in production.


    Sei liked lighter meals for breakfast, so she was being made a small omelette with chunks of ham and tomatoes.


    Luna and Nadine would just drink the blood of whoever was sitting next to them.


    Anna was seemingly attempting to be a diabetic, because she usually wanted French toast and pancakes on Saturdays.


    Bianca was lessplicated; requiring only a bowl of cereal and a coffee to adequately get her engines running.


    Joanne usually only ate a bowl of cut up fruit and toast with a mimosa strong enough to make even Dionysus consider AA.


    "You care about us, Mchi. In a way that I believe no others men in this world would. That is why we all stand beside you, and why we trust you with our hearts in a way that few women would dare to."


    Luna took Mchi''s face into her hands and stared into his eyes warmly.


    "So long as you continue to be the man that you are, we will always stick beside you. And once you finally seduce that stubborn Celeste¡­ our ''little'' family will beplete."


    Luna leaned forward and pressed her lips against his.


    Perhaps more than anything else, this was exactly what he needed at the moment. Mentally and physically.


    He opened his mouth to let her know just how much he appreciated her when suddenly he got the strangest, most annoyed feeling.


    Not even a minuteter, Serana came in through the front door holding her breasts and crying.


    "WHY DIDN''T ANYONE TELL ME GETTING YOUR TITTIES PIERCED HURT THIS BADDD?!?"

 Chapter 318: Peace Talks?

    It was a couple of more minutes before the rest of the girls finally woke up.


    They joined Mchi and Luna as they tried to keep Serana from crying over her injured nipples.


    All except for Anna, who immediately pulled up her chair and started eating the breakfast that was alreadyid out for her. Some may have seen this as cruel, but Anna felt that if she could survive this hell once before, Serana could certainly do it too.


    "Just think about what Apophis will think when he sees them for the first time." Anna replied between bites.


    Serana suddenly stopped her wailing and instead a dumb little grin formed on her face.


    "Ehehehe...hehehehe..."


    "Works like a charm." Anna folded up and entire pancake and jammed it into her mouth like a boa constrictor.


    Now that the small crisis was much more manageable, Mal and the rest of the girls sat down together and discussed the events ofst night.


    No matter how many times Serana witnessed it, she would never understand just how her mother was so okay with this new open and expressive sexual lifestyle.


    ''Is this a N''Kai thing, or is the sex just that good..?''


    Serana looked at Mal strangely out of the corner of her eye.


    Bianca flicked some of the cereal off her spoon and nailed the pink haired girl between the eyes.


    "H-Hey! What was that for??"


    "I dunno." Bianca admitted.


    A small re passed between the two girls that was honestly quite cute to observe.


    "So, how was she?" Nadine askedsciviously.


    Mal''s expression seemed to soften a bit as he recalled the events ofst night and the ''exercises'' he and Celeste enjoyed on the floor.


    "She''s soft¡­ but surprisingly protactive."


    "Oh? Sounds like just our type." Nadine bit her lip erotically. "You should have brought her home to share."


    "I''m kind of d you didn''t, I felt too bloated for a big orgyst night." Anna leaned back in her chair and patted her pierced navel.


    "I-I also would have wanted to shave my legs before something like that¡­" Sei blushed.


    "You bastards have the weirdest rtionship I have ever seen¡­" Serana muttered in disgust for the thousandth time.


    Joanne waived her hand dismissively. "If things keep progressing the way they are with Apophis, then you might find yourself turning into us at some point."


    Serana''s cheeks turned pink.


    "I think I already am. I mean, have you seen those women he married before me? Good googly moogly¡­"


    Sei paused just shy of inserting her spoon into her mouth. "I didn''t know you liked women."


    "Yea, I didn''t know you did either, MOMMY, so I guess the sex toys don''t fall too far from the drawer, do they??"


    "W-We don''t use those!" Sei''s face became red and she lowered her head.


    "That''s not exactly true." Bianca admitted. "We have some handcuffs and a couple of plug-"


    "I''ve officially heard enough, and I regret ever bringing this up in the first ce." Serana held up both hands practically begging for her to stop.


    As the familyughed at their umtedck of normalcy, Mchi suddenly paused and nced at the door.


    He soon returned to his meal; seeing no reason to get out of his chair.


    "Serosh, wake up buddy." He called.


    The sleeping lion let out a low bellow and rolled deeper into the couch.


    "Don''t be like that or I''m not making you those salmon croquettes you like." Mal threatened sternly.


    Serosh waived his tail dismissively and continued to sleep.


    Mchi gritted his teeth as he turned to stare at Sei usatorially.


    "You see? He doesn''t respect me anymore because he knows that all he has to do is turn small and you''ll spoil him to death."


    "B-But he''s so cute when he''s a kitten..!" Sei whined.


    Mchi rolled his eyes as Luna kissed his cheek.


    "Don''t worry, baby, Shiro can handle it. Isn''t that right, sweet girl?"


    The small fox made an excited yelp and leapt from Luna''sp.


    She cutely trotted towards the door, and Bianca used her telekinesis to open it for her.


    "Freeze!"


    "Don''t move!"


    "Grenade!"


    A small projectile was tossed into the room and Shiro exhaled a breath of cold air to freeze it solid.


    In an instant, Shiro grew to be Serosh''s size, with three snowy white tailsing from her behind.


    She lunged out into the hallway amidst a hail of gunfire and flying powers, and screams soon ensued in her wake.


    The family simply waited for the noise to stop while continuing to eat together like normal.


    Despite one believing that she would have already learned her lesson, Serana still had a couple more sex rted questions that were colorfully answered by Anna.


    But when Sei attempted to answer one, she shut downpletely and insisted that she had to go back to eating.


    "Arf!" (I''m done! Praise me, you horny beasts!"


    Shiro returned to Luna''s side in her usual cute appearance, but sshed with blood.


    Despite that, she was still wagging her tail and adamantly demanding a reward.


    "Good girl." Luna smiled. "You didn''t kill any of them, did you?"


    Shiro shook her head and Bianca tossed her a bit of table food as a reward.


    Mchi was in the middle of chewing when he got a sudden phone call.


    As soon as he saw it was Morgan, he already knew what the call would be about.


    "Morning." Mal answered positivly.


    "Good morning,d. He try to kill you too?"


    "Mhm. Seemed more like a capture squad than a suppression force though. Did you kill any of them?"


    "Only the one who tried to shoot something at my Crystal."


    "Completely fair." Mal nodded as he pilfered some bacon off Anna''s te.


    "I guess this is his way of summoning us for something? Bastard acts like he''s never heard of a phone..."


    "Yea, can''t really say he''s the most subtle... You heading over?"


    "Doesn''t seem we have much choice... Youing?"


    "Mhm. Give me five minutes. It''s about time that we figured all of this out for good."


    -


    Mchi, Morgan, and Arias were seated at a long table within Arias'' penthouse.


    None of them had said so much as a single word since the time of their arrival.


    Morgan and Arias were simply ring at each other in silence.


    Mchi was the only one who seemed tone in a stable mood. Even now, he was staring out the window at the clear blue sky overhead.


    ''I wonder... Are you resting peacefully right about now, Ma?'' he thought sadly.


    Knowing Nyx, he doubted the answer was a yes.


    He really did need to work on getting their family back on track and soon at that¡­


    "...You see something funny on my face, you blonde twink?!"


    "That shit you call a beard isirritating me, I think you should stand still and let me fix it by cutting your fucking face off."


    ''Here we go..'' Mal sighed.


    Morgan threw his chair back and steam began to roll of his body.


    "You''re wee toe and test your luck again at any time, boy. But things won''t go as well for you as they did before!"


    "You think I need my powers to embarrass you, Creed? Even in my current state I can still tear your tonsils out through your ass before you blink!"


    Mchi watched all of this with a dry gaze.


    He was in the middle of deciding how to put an end to everything when his phone suddenly buzzed.


    Much to his delight, it was a message from Celeste.


    Celeste: I''m too sore to sleep properly thanks to you¡­ You should have been more gentle with an old woman like me.


    Mchi was fully aware this may have been crossing the line, but he couldn''t resist the opportunity that was practicallyid bare in front of him.


    ''I''ll be more gentle next time.'' He typed back.


    The message was sent and Celeste read it immediately, though she didn''t respond.


    But somehow, Mal felt that was more than enough of a step in a better direction.


    He finally noticed the room had gone quiet and he looked up to find Arias and Morgan staring at him as they held each other by the throat.


    ""The fuck are you smiling at??""

 Chapter 319: Time Apart

    - 2 Months Later¡­


    "Okay, okay¡­ one more time."


    Nyx straightened her posture and adjusted the bouquet of flowers in her hand.


    She looked into the mirror with a straight, steely eyed gaze and spoke in a very business-like manner.


    "Aubrey¡­ I know that it has taken me a long time, but I wanted toe to you and apologize, because I-"


    "Too formal." Nemesis dismissed. "Start again, mother."


    "FUCK!"


    Beside Nemesis, her brother Geras, the withered personification of old age, also shook his head.


    "I-I fear she may be right, mother. Your words convey too much restraint and are not nearly heartfelt enough."


    "If I speak too much with my heart I will start crying again and I can''t control my emotions!" Nyx reminded.


    "Yes, we know. We spent the prior forty-two attempts reminding you of that very thing." Nemesis said tly.


    "I-It hasn''t been that many, has it?"


    "Indeed it has." Geras nodded. "Sister Keres has already fallen asleep."


    The old man pointed towards an ottoman in the bathroom where one of Keres'' many selvesy face down.


    "So on top of everything else my apology is boring too?!" Nyx was just about ready to tie a rope around her neck and jump off a bridge.


    Not that it would have done anything¡­


    "This is hopeless¡­" Nyx deted like a popped balloon.


    "Aubrey is never going to forgive me for the things that I have done and Mchi will not forgive me for shutting him out so coldly.


    And why should they? I''ve done nothing but bring harm to them. This is all one big waste of effort¡­ they are better off without me."


    Nyx threw aside the flowers she''d been holding onto and fell to her knees on the floor.


    Even though she felt broken hearted, Nyx couldn''t muster the energy to cry. Probably because she''d already shed so many tears without even meaning to.


    Nemesis brushed her fingers through her red hair as she shuffled her feet awkwardly.


    She could rack her brain for thirty years if she was given the time, but she still wouldn''t have anything to say.


    Luckily, the withered Geras was there to showcase the wisdom of old age.


    He ced a trembling hand on his mother''s shoulder and passed her a tissue to wipe her eyes.


    "I don''t know if you are being fair to yourself here, mother. You have loved those two honestly for as long as they have been alive."


    "And look at what my love has made me do¡­ I kept their family from them so that I could y their mother¡­"


    Geras shook his head. "I am not saying that you haven''t made mistakes.


    But the children should be the ones to decide whether or not they are too great.


    If you back out of this because of your own guilt, then you are taking another choice from them yet again. And I don''t believe that is what you truly want."


    Nemesis chose that moment to pick up the flowers Nyx had discarded.


    She too kneeled beside her mother and brought them back to her.


    Nyx took them begrudgingly after wiping her eyes a final time.


    "¡­What will be of me if they do not forgive me?" Nyx asked her children and herself.


    "You shouldn''t do this because you want them to have a specific reaction to you, mother. You should only apologize with the sole purpose of expressing your regret. The rest has to be up to them."


    Nyx knew that Geras was right, but what was she to do?


    Her fear felt as if it was ruling her. It was like being paralyzed by an invisible force that kept her tightly bound under lock and key. Unable to take even a single step forward.


    She didn''t want to see the scornful face of her daughter. She was afraid to hear her say what she already knew.


    She was not their mother.


    "Come now, let''s get you up."


    Geras used his feeble strength to help his mother get back into her feet.


    "Go to them, mother. Our family has far too many fractures as it is."


    - Earth: The United States of America, bama.


    It had been a while since Nyx had returned to the base.


    So as she flew over the mountain range, she was surprised to find it sparsely poptedpared to before.


    Even before entering, she could already sense theck of presences within.


    But it didn''t matter, since the one person she wanted to see was here.


    Nyx phased through the mountain and followed her senses until she arrived within the nursery.


    There, she almost teared up immediately when she saw the one she hade to see.


    She was no less beautiful and precious than thest day she''d seen her.


    Aubrey''s soft chocte skin was wrapped in the exquisite packaging of a white sleeveless crop top and dark denim shorts. The curly gray hair she hade to adore was tied up in a ponytail while she worked.


    Her stomach was exposed to disy the sheen of sweat umted from moving things around.


    Nyx waspletely floored.


    Aubrey looked so¡­ radiant.


    And not just because she wasughing and smiling with Celeste.


    Her nails and toes were freshly painted, her eyshes had been done, she was sporting a new piercing on her navel, and she even smelled of a sweet new perfume.


    She looked like a normal, cheerful young woman who should have been entering her second year of college.


    Not the daughter of a goddess.


    Not the descendant of a monster race.


    Just a normal, well above-average looking girl living in the south.


    And¡­ Nyx wanted her to have that. This normalcy. She deserved it.


    "Mom..?"


    Nyx felt her metaphorical heart seize up.


    She hadn''t noticed Aubrey begin looking around at some point.


    Her eyes couldn''t actually see anything within the room, but she could tell something was there.


    It was a familiar, reassuring feeling that only three people in the world were capable of giving her.


    And since one wasn''t even in this world at the moment, and the other was on the opposite side of the country, that left only one.


    "Mom¡­ can you say something please so Celeste doesn''t think I''m crazy..?"


    Celeste didn''t say anything, but she was indeed beginning to give her young friend a sideways look.


    Aubrey put down the refrigerator that she was carrying and slowly turned around the room in circles.


    "¡­I know you''re here. O-Or atleast I think I do¡­ can you¡­ say something..? Anything??"


    Aubrey waited and waited for so long that even she thought she had gone crazy.


    Embarrassed, she lowered her head in shame.


    That was when the saw them.


    A bouquet of roses dyed in ck;in directly at her feet.


    On top of them was a small white card with words written in the most beautiful handwriting.


    They were short, simple, but unquestionably impactful.


    I''m sorry. I love you. I''m always thinking of you.

 Chapter 320: False Claim

    Aubrey felt like the wind had gotten knocked out of her body.


    A flood of memories both sweet and bitter came rushing back to her mind.


    She slowly bent over to pick up the flowers under the watchful eye of Celeste.


    "Erm¡­ were those here just a moment ago?" Celeste paused as she suddenly looked embarrassed. "Don''t tell me they came from your brother..?"


    Aubrey weakly shook her head as she bent over to pick up the surprise memento. "They''re from my mom.."


    At first, Celeste was confused but then recalled that there was another who held that title besides the friendly ghost floating around downstairs.


    "Oh¡­ I see. It''s been a while since you heard from her, right?"


    Aubrey nodded.


    Celeste noticed the card that came with the roses. The sweet writing was very touching.


    "Are you.. still upset with her?" She asked.


    Aubrey didn''t know how to answer that.


    If she was honest, she had mostly tried not to think about Nyx over the past two months.


    Her difort was understandable, and none could really me her for it.


    Nyx was not only a mother figure to her, but on one asion they had identally crossed a line that traversed the boundary of family.


    She thought that atleast someone whom she had done that with would never lie to her about anything, especially something so serious as her parents'' whereabouts.


    But when Aubrey did finally make an attempt to talk to her mother again, she couldn''t reach her.


    Nyx''s realm was closed off.


    So at a certain point she began to feel like¡­ maybe her mother didn''t actually need or want her that much at all.


    Dealing with all of these feelings by herself was so egregiously difficult that she eventually just abandoned all thoughts and pushed it to the back of her brain.


    She never would have thought that Nyx would contact her like this. Or that it would have this kind of impact on her.


    Celeste watched Aubrey enter a frozen state like a statue.


    She couldn''t take her eyes off the ck card in her hand, or even take a single step in any direction.


    Celeste slowly put down the box she was carrying and tip toed over to Aubrey.


    She delicately ced her hand over her shoulder in a warm gesture.


    "¡­Think you might be up for a bit of the wisdom of an old woman?"


    Aubrey smiled wryly. "You''re not old, Celeste¡­"


    "You should tell that to my back when I get up in the morning."


    "¡­" Aubrey was almost absolutely sure that there were two much bigger and more impressive reasons why Celeste might''ve been experiencing back issues.


    "As a mother who has made her own fair share of mistakes with her daughter, I''m telling you that the times where I have closed myself off from her were because I felt I could not get past my own guilt. It had nothing to do with her.


    I-I get that Nyx is a goddess and all of that, but I believe that she still has more humanity in her than she would like to admit. So¡­ talk to her. Discover for yourself whether or not you two can move forward. Neither of you can go on like this."


    Aubrey knew that, but there was still just one problem.


    "¡­I can''t get to her, Celeste." She reminded in a cracked voice.


    Celeste''s eyes narrowed and she gave her young acquaintance a yful nudge like she knew a secret.


    "Are you really going to tell me that you tried every single method you know of to get to your mother? Or did you stop trying to get to her after the metaphorical front door didn''t open?"


    "¡­."


    "I thought so. You and your brother have the same sort of guilty look, you know?"


    "I wonder if that''s the only look of his that you are intimately familiar with." Aubrey chidded.


    "H-How many times do I have to tell you, Mchi and I aren''t like that! We''re not having sex!"


    ck smoke began pooling out of Aubrey''s left hand.


    "Eh? What''s that?" Celeste poked her palm.


    Aubrey grinned. "A little lie detector spell I found. If you''d have told the truth, then the smoke would''ve been gold."


    Celeste''s face became such an unhealthy shade of red that Aubrey actually thought she might pass out.


    "How many times has it been?"


    "Aubrey!"


    "Have you done it with any of the other girls yet or just him?"


    "Go see your mother and keep your mind out of what''s in my pants!"


    Now that Celeste knew that lying wasn''t a viable option, she was going for t out avoidance instead.


    "It''s clear to everyone that you like him, you know? You should just hurry up and be together." Aubrey shrugged.


    Celeste shook her head sadly.


    "It won''t work, Aubrey. I''m not going to jump into that rtionship knowing I could never be sure of my ce in it. I need something more stable and clear-cut."


    Aubrey opened her mouth to speak, but Celeste quickly covered her lips with her hand.


    "Please, don''t ask me anything else about your brother. We''re only worried about dealing with your issues for today."


    Aubrey recognized that she was at risk for doing more harm to her brother''s cause than good, so she begrudgingly decided to drop the subject for the moment.


    "Now, how are you going to go find your mom?" Celeste asked, clearly desperate to get back on track.


    Aubrey smiled wryly as she scratched her cheek.


    "Well, don''t be too surprised¡­"


    "?"


    Aubrey took a step back and inhaled deeply.


    "I AM GOING TO KILL MYSELF!!"


    "WHAT?!"


    Aubrey waited and waited before she eventually burst out into a grin.


    "I was wondering if that''d work. Seems as though you aren''t that busy, huh? Mom says you only make time to check on stuff like this when you''ve got nothing else going on."


    Celeste noticed that Aubrey seemed to be looking passed her and she slowly turned around.


    She nearly let out a loud scream when she saw a man with deathly gray skin and long white hair standing in the room with them.


    The man didn''t seem amused in the slightest by any part of Aubrey''s little false rm.


    "I am very busy, sister. I hope that you called me here for a good reason other than toy eyes on me."


    "Of course! I need you to help me get inside of mom''s realm so that I can talk to her!"


    Thanatos, the stony and robotic god of death, instantly went pale and looked as if he would rather do literally anything else.

 Chapter 321: I Forgive You

    Could you imagine that there was actually a fate that Death itself dreaded?


    Though it sounded like a silly premise, Thanatos was abysmally unmotivated to interfere in whatever drama that his mother had going on with their other siblings.


    Not only because it was 100% not his business, but also... he just really didn''t want to get involved.


    His mother could be a bit... much.


    And he liked keeping his life as stress free as possible.


    That said, he honestly could imagine what Nyx would do to him if she found out that he refused to bring Aubrey to her.


    So with all things considered, Thanatos decided to help Aubrey get to her realm.


    Though the way that he sent her wasn''t exactly what one might call ''gentle''.


    "SHITTT!!!!!"


    *Crash!*


    Aubrey and Celeste were tossed through a swirling hole in the air. Bothnded on their face atop some exquisitely done mahogany hardwood flooring.


    The young sister Saint''s body rolled to a stop in front of a pair of women''s feet whom she would have recognized instantly.


    "A-Aubrey..?"


    Holding her bloody nose, Aubrey looked up at a surprising sight.


    A pretty mature womanprised of infinite darkness and stars, who looked like she''d been crying into a bowl of ice cream. Though why she had chosen this particr coping mechanism, Aubrey wasn''t sure.


    "Hey, mom... I''m home."


    -


    How much can a primordial goddess cry? A lot.


    ...Like a lot.


    Have you ever seen one of those cartoons where a broken-hearted character shoots water out of their eyes and floods a small room?


    That hadn''t entirely happened yet, but if Celeste''s wet jeans were any sort of indicator, then this room was shortly going to need a veryrge mop.


    Nyx was a mess.


    From the moment that Aubrey had let that ''M'' word slip past her lips, the goddess was practically inconsble.


    And hard to understand too.


    But it''s easy forpses in interpretation to ur when one has sobbed so loudly that they''ve actually lost their voice repeatedly.


    And all this started twenty-five minutes ago.


    Now, Nyx had finally given up on speaking as she held onto Aubrey for dear life and sobbed into her shirt.


    Had Aubrey gotten the full gist of what her mother said? No.


    But she understood the premise she was trying to convey. Even if she never actually said a word.


    "I missed you too, mom..."She said warmly.


    "WAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!"


    - 1 Hour Later...


    "I apologize..." Nyx sniffled. "I seem to have shown you all something unsightly."


    "No problem, Ms. Nyx. We understandpletely." Celeste smiled as she wrung out her shirt.


    Aubrey casted a spell to dry herself off and did the same for the room full of water that was up to her knees.


    She was d her mother had finally pulled it together, or else she was probably going to need floaties soon.


    Now that she was more put together, Nyx let her hands hover over the face of her youngest daughter.


    It was almost like she was afraid she might be an illusion. And if she touched her, she might fade away into nothingness.


    Nyx wanted to enjoy the vision staring her back in the face for as long as she could. If she got too greedy, then she might mess up and make things worse again.


    Aubrey though, missed her mother''s touch more than anything, and rested her cheek in the palm of her hand.


    Nyx might''ve been emotional, but she didn''t break down this time¡­ due to some monumental effort on her part.


    "...You look so beautiful. You''re all grown up..." Nyx muttered.


    "It''s only been about three months, Ma... And I just don''t think you''ve ever seen me in a period where I was really trying to take care of myself before."


    "O-Oh, I guess you are right..."


    Previously, Aubrey had a huge sore spot for making herself look super morous.


    She didn''t really want to stand out a whole lot or make herself seem... desirable.


    But things were different over the past two months.


    Perhaps it was reentering society, or a few lingering feelings for Thea, but Aubrey no longer had her same issues as before.


    Perhaps it was indicative of some real healing taking ce within her the she was long overdue for.


    Nyx lowered her head as she hugged her daughter tightly again.


    "...Aubrey, I can never tell you just how sorry I am formal of the-"


    "I know, mom. I said some things too that I really regret..."


    "You didn''t say anything out of line and were totally in the right. I was being selfish, and maniptive, and unfair, and I-"


    "You were trying to be a parent to me the only way you knew how.... You made some mistakes, but I don''t want to hold them against you forever." Aubrey said; misty-eyed.


    Despite her daughter''s words, Nyx''s guilt had all but consumed her over these past few months.


    Even if Aubrey could let it go, she couldn''t just yet.


    "D-Don''t let me off easy, I don''t deserve it! I am going to do whatever I can to win back your trust no matter how long it takes me, or what you may need from me!"


    "I-I don''t need anything super extravagant, Ma, just... please don''t lie to me. Family is supposed to be about caring for each other and being honest."


    While the two women had a much needed reconcile, Celeste was leaning against the wall; trying not to add to the tear-count in the room.


    Seeing a sight like this made her miss her own daughter quite bit, and even though she had just seen herst weekend, somehow still felt like it had been far too long.


    ''I should give my baby a call when I get back... Though I have no idea how she''s getting reception at the bottom of... everything. I should''ve paid more attention to Thea''s exnation..''


    *Sniff, sniff.*


    "KYAAA!!!"


    Celeste nearly jumped out of her skin when the most frightening woman she had ever seen appeared at her back.


    She was a woman over six feet tall with sharp teeth, red eyes, and an appearance that reminded one of a bat.


    Keres sniffed Celeste like a bloodhound; boldly invading her personal space and pretending not to notice the smell of fear pooling off her body in waves.


    In a couple of seconds, Aubrey was probably going to have to use that spell again when Celeste inevitably pissed herself.


    "...You... smell like my brother." Keres lowered her head until she was eye level with Celeste''s crotch. "Especially in this particr area right here..."


    Celeste was so unbelievably mortified that she would have rather heard Keres say that she was musty.


    "I-I.."


    In a turn of events that she wasn''t expecting, Keres suddenly raised her head and revealed a much more embarrassed and anxious look.


    "Is he... well..?"


    Celeste''s face turned red. "W-What makes you think that I would know if.."


    For a goddess of vengeful death, Keres wielded surprisingly big puppy dog eyes when she put her mind to it.


    So even though Celeste wanted to deny any involvement with the handsome young man as much as possible, she couldn''t in good conscience go through with it.


    "Well¡­ I-I haven''t talked to him recently, but I think he''s¡­"

 Chapter 322: The Nightfall Unit

    It was a perfect, sunny day with not even a single cloud in the sky.


    A squad of heavily armored military vehicles drove down an empty street as fast as their vehicles would allow without toppling over.


    This route had been mapped out and cleared an entire day ago before the caravan was set to arrive, and even then every stretch of it was heavily monitored to ensure nothing and no one broke the ordinance.


    Ten cars surrounded arge futuristic APC.


    One was in front, leading the group.


    Four were on each side; one following after the other.


    Thest car was taking up the rear. Each one had a man stationed on a mounted machine-gun scoping the area for so much as a squirrel to run across the road.


    {This is Eagle One checking in with Mobile Unit 2482, how do you copy?}


    The driver of the lead car reached for his radio and rattled of the start of their all-clear procedure. He could practically do it in his sleep now, since they had been doing these check-ins for the past seven minutes now...


    Once every car had confirmed that they were still alive, breathing, and sound of mind, the dispatcher over the radio chimed in with some needed news.


    {Almost home, gentlemen. Drop the package off at the depot and then head on back.}


    -


    High in the air, a giant bird loomed over an empty street.


    It beat it''s wings rapidly so that it could hover in one spot like a humming bird while a single figure peered down onto the caravan approaching their direction.


    The figure was a woman, dressed head to toe in ck.


    Her body was slender, and chiseled. But with a subtle, charming curvature that had a deceptivelyrge amount of impact on her appeal.


    The beginnings of arge dragon tattoo could be seen on the small of her back beneath her shirt.


    She pushed aside her white hair and tapped the small link in her ear once.


    Once the information was ryed, she turned to the other passengers on board.


    "Any reinforcements are ten minutes out. I want us gone in seven."


    "Sure thing, battle barbie!"


    Behind her, a young woman with bright pink hair could be seen standing in front of the group.


    She wore a half mask over her mouth that obscured her usual imps smile, but herpanion had no doubt that she was wearing one by the look in her eyes.


    "Stop joking around, Serana, and take this seriously. You''re the most important part of this whole thing so you have to be sharp."


    "I got it, I got it... It''s not my first mission carrying you chumps on my back."


    Suddenly, the bird carrying all fifteen of them decided to chime in. "Ya know, I don''t want to get technical, but-"


    ""Shut it, Zazu.""


    "Fine! Bunch of bitches..."


    Shaking her head, Aisha pulled out a veryrge bow from her inventory.


    She pulled the drawstring back and an arrow magically notched itself to fire.


    Inhaling, she kept herself perfectlyposed while she took aim at the first of their targets: a series of drones in the sky that were supposed to be providing the caravan with an aerial view.


    They were being shielded from their vision for right now, but in about five seconds things weren''t going to matter.


    "Strike team, step up."


    Six egregiously muscr men and women also wearing masks and dressed in ck, stepped up.


    "Deploy."


    Aisha let her arrow fly first.


    The golden bolt of energy zipped through the air and shot down every drone one after the other like clockwork.


    Before thest drone had even been hit, Serana was using her own powers to give the car drivers a little surprise.


    She knew it had worked when all ten of them suddenly swerved off the road to avoid a surprise meteor that had fallen from the sky. Or at least that is what they thought.


    Only the tank stayed on course and continued driving despite the other carsing to a stop.


    The sixrgest members of the unit dropped down into the middle of the road at exactly the same time.


    Forming a line, each of them through out a dynamic punch at the same time; resulting in the entire armored vehicle doing aplete flip over their heads.


    At that point, the very heavens seemed to open up around them.


    Rain fell in a swift deluge that was practically a monsoon.


    Huge drops of water and cyan colored lightning struck the ground in unison; throwing the soldiers who still lived and breathed into nearplete disarray.


    While her men worked to neutralize any resistance, Aisha was focused on the main mission. Zazu carried her around the back of the flipped tank, where a pair of bay doors remained shut.


    She drew the iklwa given to her by her very unlikeable best friend and stabbed them into the tank''s metal.


    Normally, this would be entirely impossible even for her.


    But because her des were extraordinarily sharp and they came with the added benefit of corrosion, she was able to cut through the metal that was quickly rusting.


    Once she sessfully cut through the rear doors of the tank, she stepped back to kick it open.


    But before she could so much as lift her leg, a destructive beam of energy came out from the other side to knock her back.


    Zazu narrowly managed to grab her with his beak and move her aside so that she couldn''t be injured. But for some reason, she didn''t seem to be the slightest bit happy about being saved.


    "God damnit..."


    A figure stepped out of the back of the tank.


    Maybe it was human once, but now appeared more cybeic than anything else.


    It possessed an entirely robotic figure made from a strange ck metal. Dangerously sharp ded appendages jutted from it''s back like the terrifying wings of an angel.


    Or maybe a greater demon.


    His face was only obscured by a dark visor that asionally shed with a neon red light.


    When his gazended on Aisha, she shook her head in disappointment.


    "So¡­ it was a trap, huh."


    "Affirmative."


    "¡­So if I were to take a peek inside of that there troop carrier, I wouldn''t find any hostages at all?"


    "You will never know."


    Aisha sighed as Zazu put her back on the ground.


    "I''m sorry, alright? I just wanted to do the right thing."


    "Your wants are irrelevant. You have repeatedly challenged the Revival Regime and are designated a ss-"


    "Not talking to you tin-nuts."


    The cyborg followed Aisha''s gaze above his head.


    His sensors found a young man sitting atop a ck tiger and wearing a superior ''I told you so'' look.


    "I''ll give you my conditions for forgivenesster. Just warning you though, they won''te cheap."

 Chapter 323: New Work Arrangements

    Once the cyborg saw Mchi sitting on top of the tank, it immediately engaged a special protocol designed just for him.


    The edges of his des began to glow a strange dark purple color; making Mchi raise a brow behind his sses.


    He, Arias, and Morgan all were being targeted by specially designed cybeic beings designed to counter their specific sets of abilities.


    If the trio of primordial blessed were hailed as the Three Living Gods, then their antithesis would be Three Living Weapons.


    This was actually the first time that Mchi had actually run into his, but he remembered the story Morgan told when he came back from a mission with his unit one day.


    He was cleaning fire retardant out of ces that no man should ever find it.


    But he also exined that the worst part of the battle was that if you didn''t beat the robots quickly, then you ran the risk of creating a bigger problem for yourselfter.


    The visor that these government sanctioned science projects wore acted as a recording device.


    Any and all data captured during the fight was sent back to headquarters, so that if the unit failed, they could analyze, reassess, and if necessary, upload the data to a new host.


    Mchi didn''t know how to feel now that the government had sunk quite a great deal of currency into killing him. In a way, it boosted his self esteem a bit.


    "How much time we got left?"


    "I''d say about five minutes." Aisha answered.


    "Don''t be out here taking your time now."


    "Yea, yea."


    Mchi hurled a single iklwa at the cybeic monstrosity faster than the human eye could see.


    There was a loud nging noise and his de went flying into the air where it was caught by Aisha.


    She leapt out of the sky and attacked the cyborg from behind while Mchi engaged it from the front.


    A second iklwa appeared in Mchi''s hand.


    While Aisha went high, he went low.


    The cyborg put all of it''s focus into it''s processors to prepare for the fight of his life.


    - New York


    "It''s strange no matter how many times I think about it¡­"


    "What you talking about, cheeto-head?"


    Morgan felt a vein bulge in his head uncontrobly. But he''d been dealing with this kind of nonsense for about two months now and he was getting used to controlling himself when agitated.


    He turned his gaze from therge window overlooking the city and nced at Arias.


    As always, the golden haired avatar was seated behind his desk while signing a stack of papers.


    ¡­He was, of course, in his pajamas again. But as I said, Morgan had learned to ignore that little idiosyncratic tendency.


    "Living here¡­ It really hits home that the world isn''t at all like it was before. When my wives and I walk on the street, I still get stared at, but I feel more like a politician than a celebrity¡­ it''s new for me." He said.


    Arias paused in the middle of signing his signature on a new document.


    His tone became slightly less humorous and more noble. Like a dignified aristocrat.


    "You''re finally starting to see it then. The real purpose behind why we were given these powerful gifts and extraordinary abilities.


    It''s not to make television appearances, sell action figures, or act as meat shields against monsters.


    We work to bring about true change here, Morgan. The kind we should have been pursuing all along."


    Morgan stared at Arias for a long time.


    Eventually, his thoughts spilled from his lips without him even realizing it.


    "Sometimes, I do think you may have been a good man at some point, Arias. I spend a lot of time wondering exactly what could have happened to twist you into this man I''vee to know."


    Arias smirked humorously and just went back to signing papers.


    "A pity¡­ My story isn''t all that original. Hence the reason why I don''t like to tell it.. No one likes teenage tragedies after all."


    Morgan knew Arias well enough to know that he wasn''t going to get anymore than this out of him.


    It was a pity, because Morgan had developed quite the listening ear as he''d grown older.


    "Now go get me a sandwich, bitch."


    "Do you think I work for you, motherfucker!?"


    A wave of heat washed over the room just as the door to the office finally opened.


    When a familiar duo passed through the door, their argument promptly ceased.


    Arias'' cheeks ballooned and his entire face turned a very unhealthy shade of red.


    "¡­HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!"


    Mchi felt his irritation soar unnecessarily.


    "Lad¡­ What exactly happened to you?" Morgan covered his mouth.


    "That boy got grill marks on his face!!" Arias fell out of his chairughing; taking all of the papers on his desk with him.


    Now, even Morgan was doubled over as he tried, and failed, to maintain his professionalism.


    In their defense, it was a pretty difficult sight to remain stone-faced in front of.


    Mchi''s face did bear sharp looking lines across it that looked like cuts from a ming knife.


    It turned out that the strange purple glow the cyborg''s des were projecting was extremely concentrated UV light.


    And Mchi, who was mostly made from sentient darkness, was slightly allergic to such a thing.


    Read today on m,v,l,e,mpyr


    Hence the reason why his face now looked like a handsome T-bone steak.


    Aisha also had a few cuts, but due to the nature of her enemy, hers were understandably healing a lot faster.


    "Yea, yea, go ahead andugh it up, you bastards. Don''t worry, I''m not injured or anything." Mal rolled his eyes.


    "I''m sorry, I''m sorry¡­" Arias crawled out from behind his desk,pletely out of breath and with his hair strewn all across his face.


    "I do have¡­ just one question though¡­ Are you okay?"


    "¡­I''m fine, Arias. Don''t need you to-"


    "That''s a shame, cause I thought I ordered you well done! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"


    Arias went back to rolling around on the ground in a childish fit ofughter. Even Morgan soon crumbled and joined him.


    Thest piece to fall was Aisha, who coincidentally, needed help standing up from the very person whom she wasughing at.


    Mchi eventually just let her fall and left the office entirely. He didn''t almost die to put up with shit like this.


    ''I just want to go see my family¡­''

 Chapter 324: A Southern Boy in The North...

    "Remember, little sis. Men are trash. They lead you on, say that they like you and then leave you in the dirt as soon as the mood strikes them."


    Camille nodded like she was listening to this harder than anything else she had ever heard in her entire life.


    *Smack!*


    "Ow!! Why?!"


    Serana rubbed the side of her head as she looked at the only other upant of the couch.


    Even though she was still only within her early twenties, Bianca had developed the figure of a mature, shapely woman.


    She wore a pair of smart ck pants and buttoned down shirt. Though since she was done with work for the day, the first three or four buttons of her shirt had already been undone.


    Serana was trying her best not to stare, but politeness was never really her strong suit.


    How was it that her literal


    mother


    was having a more fulfilling sex life at night than she was?!


    "Don''t start filling your sister''s head with all of this nonsense. She listens to the things you say a lot more than you realize." Bianca scolded. Experience tales at m-vl-e-mpyr


    "And what could possibly be the issue with that?" Serena raised a brow.


    *Ding!*


    The elevator to their penthouse suddenly opened and Mchi stepped inside; already yawning.


    "Bah!"


    "Who are you calling trash!?"


    Bianca gave Serana an ''I told you so'' look that caused her to slink down into the sofa.


    Shaking her head, she stood up from the sofa and walked over to Mchi at the door.


    Serana wasn''t the only one to notice how good she looked, and Mchi was much less subtle in expressing his attraction.


    "Booo!!!!!"


    Jeers of annoyance left Serena''s mouth as she watched the two embrace each other.


    Their kissing was interrupted once she started hurling pillows at them in anger.


    And of course, little Camille joined in too.


    Though in all honesty, the little one was only upset because she wasn''t getting any affection for a change.


    Bianca finally pulled herself away and got a good glimpse at Mchi''s new burn scars.


    "That looks like it hurts... Are you okay?"


    "Aww, you don''t need to worry about little ''ole me. Besides, you should see the other guy."


    Bianca smiled wryly. "Serana was just telling us about your mission... Sorry that it was a bust."


    Mchi kissed her on top of her head and pulled her back into his arms. It''s true that things didn''t really go their way today, but it was hard to call it a loss.


    Everyone made it home to their families at the end.


    No one was seriously injured.


    They hadn''t lost anything but time.


    And for now, at least, they had a little bit to spare.


    Besides...


    "It wasn''t all bad... Once we searched the caravan, we did find a few prisoners inside... Just a lot less than we were expecting. But if we got even one person out, it''s a good thing."


    Bianca stared at her fiance proudly. Honestly, she wasn''t sure how this whole new working arrangement was going to go for any of them.


    But Mchi, and the others, seemed to be genuinelyfortable here. And they were doing good work to help people instead of hiding away in their own personal corner of the world.


    And the one gripe Bianca did have... She couldn''t really say that it was wholly anyone''s fault.


    *Ding!*


    Bianca and Mchi turned around in confusion.


    Morgan, Arias, and Aisha were packed together in the elevator.


    "Mchi... I just wanted to express my sincerest apologies for- Pffft.. Hahahaha!! You look like you''ve beenying down on a ''George Foreman''!" Arias cackled.


    Once he started, the other two guests couldn''t help but chuckle as well.


    Mchi felt a vein bulge in his head.


    "...What the fuck are y''all doing in my house?"


    Arias stood up- wiping his eyes of tears. "We have a lunch meeting scheduled for today, remember? Since it''s my fault for insulting you I decided to buy today. Aren''t you lucky?"


    Mchi finally noticed the stic bags of food that the trio were carrying- as well as the jugs of yellow and brown beverages.


    With his extremely enhanced senses, all he had to do was sniff the air to know what was inside.


    "...You didn''t."


    Arias smiled evilly.


    Aisha looked ashamed.


    Morgan looked like he already knew what was about to happen.


    Bianca just dropped her head and started heading towards the kitchen for tableware.


    - 6 Minutes Later


    Mal: "On my mother''s grave I''m resisting the urge to smack the shit out of you right now."


    Arias: "You''re being overdramatic, Uncle. The ce has got some really great ratings."


    Mal: "I don''t give a fuck about the ratings! This ain''t real southern soul food!"


    Aisha / Serana: "Preach."


    Morgan: "I don''t really get it¡­ What exactly is the issue?"


    Mal: "I am so d you asked..."


    Bianca just sighed to herself as she continued to break apart pieces of food on her te and feed it to Cami.


    Mchi used his fork to point to individual items on the te.


    "Look at these cord greens. They ain''t been cooked in ham hocks, bacon grease, turkey legs, nothing! Justzy as shit!"


    "There''s lemon and red pepper kes though?"


    "...Arias, don''t fucking y with me right now or I will turn every building in New York upside down."


    "Touchy..."


    Mchi wasn''t done, and he had much more toin about.


    "And this cornbread? Ass. Cornbread is supposed to be mildly sweet like a pre-dessert, and brushed lightly with butter after cooking to keep it moist. Why the hell is this bitter and dry!?


    And don''t get me started on this poor excuse for chicken. They couldn''t even cook this right!"


    "Oh,e on, Mal. This isn''t even bad." Morgan sighed.


    Mchi picked up a piece of ''chicken'' in true disgust.


    "Morgan... This is some fast food shit. You don''t just deep fry chicken in oil and call it southern."


    "Then how else are you supposed to cook fried chicken??"


    Mchi / Bianca: "Cast iron and margarine."


    "Margarine? Isn''t that really bad for-"


    "Southern cooking is about being here for a good time, not a long time." Mal said firmly.


    Arias shook his head as he passed a new silver tray down the table. "You''re being pretentious, this is good food. Here, just try some of this."


    Mchi stared into the dish suspiciously. His anger already threatening to get the better of him.


    "¡­What the hell is this?"


    "Macaroni and cheese."


    "I think the hell not. What is the grainy shit on top supposed to be?"


    "Bread crumbs!"


    "..."


    Mchi snapped his fingers and everything on the table fell into an infinite ck void.


    He stood up from the dining table and strode straight into the kitchen, where he began aggressively pulling ingredients out of the fridge.


    Arias smiled in satisfaction as he leaned back in his chair- his smug look catching Morgan''s notice instantly.


    "This was your goal from the beginning, wasn''t it..?"


    "Whattt..? Nooo... I wouldn''t possibly do this just to.." he suddenly paused and turned to the kitchen. "Hey Mal, just curious: are we getting red velvet cake too?"


    "Shut the fuck up, Arias." Mal pulled down flour and cocoa powder from the cab in an angry huff.


    Arias smiled so big that his lips practically stretched off his face- giving Morgan his earlier answer without even saying anything.


    "You must know we don''t have the time for this.." He whispered in a hiss.


    "I sent out a text earlier and cleared our schedules for today." Arias whispered back.


    "..." Morgan was very conflicted over how he should have felt about this.


    But as he watched Mchi angrily wash cord greens, he also began to feel like maybe what he''d had didn''t quite hit the soulful spot.


    ...He would keep quiet about this act of treachery just this one time.


    Bianca sighed as she passed Camille over to her Aunt Aisha. She then stood up and began washing her hands to get ready to act as a sexy sou? chef.


    So far, their new working arrangements were working out pretty well for the Saint family.


    The only persistent issue? Mchi''s culture shock from moving out of the Deep South into the North East.


    As of right now, it seemed like this issue was going tost... forever.


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 325 Failed Experiments

    325 Failed Experiments


    Five hours and an ungodly amount of sweatter, Mchi had done it.


    An entire feast nowy out in front of him; unequaled in it''s steamy splendor and surefire road to weight gain.


    Arias and Morgan were almostpletely broken down.


    Everything from the yams, to the cord greens, to the baked Mac and cheese, to the golden fried chicken was too powerful for them to fight against.


    The pair stuffed themselves to the point ofedic exhaustion.


    They had no idea how it happened!


    At one point they were just eating, and eating, and eating without a care in the world.


    But before they''d noticed it, they''d unbuckled their pants and a fit of narcolepsy had snuck up on them like an unnned pregnancy.


    It was doubly surprising for Arias, who was functionally nothing but pure energy.


    And yet, the itis proved itself undefeated in it''s conquest of Avatars too.


    Morgan had even called his wives over for help in this great battle. The weaklings were defeated after one te.


    The elevator door dinged for the first time in a while, and the rest of Mal''s finances arrived to immediate tion. n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "Sunday dinner on a Thursday??? Nice!" Anna rubbed her hands in excitement.


    "What''s the asion?" Nadine asked- already not caring one way or the other.


    Bianca was helping Camille eat her vegetables and giving her face a series of necessary wipes.


    "Spite, babes... The answer is spite."


    To understand what she meant, the girls found Mchi sanding over the upants of the dining room table; a clear air of superiority hovering around him.


    "You want my opinion? Spite is delicious!" Serana was currently waiting for the cake to cool so that it could be frosted and served. Her meal just wouldn''t beplete without it.


    Morgan lifted his head up wearily. "Unbelievable... You all eat like this every Sunday..? How are you all not over three hundred pounds by now..?"


    Anna humped the air in a crude gesture to answer his question.


    "Right.. of course that''s your method for it..."


    A fist mmed on the table as Arias struggled to lift his head.


    "I''m not... done... yet..! I still have more space to fill."


    Morgan''s face paled. "What are you doing, man?! Stop this madness! Just admit that our presumptions were wrong and stop eating before your stomach bursts!"


    "B-Be quiet, Morgan! I am the proud son of the day goddess Hemera, one of the oldest deities to ever draw breath! I cannot and will not be bested by meat, starches, and vegetables!" Arias snapped back.


    "They aren''t just regr meats and starches! This mad man has done something to them!"


    The aforementioned mad-man finally began icing a threeyered red velvet cake before cutting into it like a scene from a famous food anime.


    "Nah, he says he''s good, right..? Let him try a little of this before he throws in the towel..."


    They could not control all of the emotions that they were feeling at once.


    Terror. Desire. Mild and confusing sexual arousal¡­


    And the cause of it all was sitting right here on a te in front of him.


    All that Arias had to do was be courageous enough to take it¡­


    But Morgan was still trying to dissuade him. "Don''t do this,d. You''ve already proven yourself more than enough, so-"


    "Q-Quiet, Morgan¡­ no matter what I do, I have to show him¡­ that I ain''t no bitch..!"


    Arias snatched away the hunk of desert and picked up his discarded fork like an old weapon used in battle.


    Ignoring all of his instincts telling him not to do it, he dove in for the single greatest fight of his life.


    -3 Minutester¡­


    "Dread it... run from it... the itis arrives all the same." Mal said in an unusually deep voice. He was standing over four fully grown adults asleep facedown at his dining room table. The moral superiority he felt from upholding the incontestable glory of southern cuisine was unmatched. "I have to ask... Was it really all worth it?" Joanne asked.


    Mchi looked down at himself. He was covered in sweat and smelled of cooking oil and a variety of seasonings. "...Yes." He nodded without hesitation. "You are unbelievable." She snickered. Mchi helped move all of their dinner guests to the couch while they slept off the most sulent meal they had ever had in their life. With them down for the count, he was finally able to sit and have a proper meal with all of his friends and family. "So... How did you guys end up like this in the first ce..? Not that I''mining, of course." Anna had assembled an absolutely ungodly te, and she was barelying up for air as she ate. "This was supposed to be a lunch meeting, but your fianc¨¦ got pissy when Arias brought over take out from a ce up the street." Aisha answered. "Sounds about right." All the girls said at once. Mchi just shrugged innocently as if he hadn''t done anything wrong. "Not like I can''t figure out what it was going to be about anyway." Mal held out his hand and the satchel that Arias brought over came flying into his hand. Opening it up, he pulled out a mani folder and flipped it open to the first document inside. Reading along the lines, his expression quickly turned sour. "Something the matter, babe..?" Nadine asked worriedly. "The, umm... favor I asked for from Arias. Thebs are saying they can''t do it with the parameters they''ve been given."


    The mood at the table suddenly became depressive; confusing Camille. Mchi and Morgan never agreed to work with Arias for free. Both were paid a sry, and were allowed to ask for at least one favor. Mal asked that Arias use his resources to help find a way to help the blessed keep their powers permanently. So that the gods would not punish those who called themselves his allies. And so that they could hopefully not take his powers. But science.. just hadn''t advanced the far yet. Especially since there were extreme regtions against experimenting on blessed. There was just no way to get things done in the timeframe that Mal had specified. So as of right now... Mchi was without hope and was slowly creeping toward extinction. Honestly... This day wasn''t going anywhere like he''d hoped. He tried not to show it to the girls, but he was incredibly dejected.


    But he was in for the surprise of his life, when familiar faces suddenly arrived to turn his mood upside down.


    "Have we¡­e at a bad time?" happy to announce I¡¯ll be back with regr uploads starting tomorrow. thank you all for your patience!


    AnathaShesha

 Chapter 326 Welcome Back, Family

    326 Wee Back, Family


    Despite being the youngest, Camille was the first to react. She vanished from her ce in Bianca''s arms and reappeared at the door with her arms outstretched and her little booter-belly clearly visible. "My, my. Someone''s been eating well I see."


    Nyx lifted the young girl into her arms and smiled contentedly as if a missing piece of her life had finally been returned.


    "You have gotten so, so, big... I have missed you so much that I could screa-"


    Nyx''s words were cut off when Mchi suddenly threw his arms around his mother and his daughter. She was already barely keeping it together just by arriving alone. And now this too? How was she honestly supposed to keep it all together without breaking down?


    She trembled slightly in his embrace. His actions mirrored hers. I''m sorry. She said hoarsely. ''I missed you'' Was his only response. That only seemed to make her sob even harder. Though no sound came out. Bit by bit, more arms covered the group as they embraced. And it became harder and harder for the goddess to pretend she wasn''t crying too. There were no questions like ''Where''ve you been?'' or ''Why did you shut us out?'' And they likely would never ask such a thing. The reasoning why wasn''tplicated. Interrogating her just wasn''t a priority for anyone here right now. All that mattered was the fact that they were back together again. As a family. -


    *Sniff* "That was so beautiful that I am starting to miss my own mom!" Serana sobbed pathetically as she chowed down on her second slice of red velvet cake. "Serana, honey, I''m right here.." Sei reminded. "I know! I just love you so much!"


    Sei wasn''t made of stone, so she quickly became misty eyed. "I love you too!"


    "Can I borrow a couple of credits to get through the weekend?"


    Sei mushed her daughter in the face and took away her cake. Nyx giggled softly as she sat between Mchi and Aubrey just like old times. "I''m d to see that this ce hasn''t be any less lively since I''ve been gone. I was worried that I''d missed too much."


    "Of course not... You haven''t missed anything, Ma." Mal smiled. "That doesn''t seem entirely true..." Nyx nced over at the sofa where Morgan was sleeping between his wives Emilia and Crystal while Arias had somehow rolled over onto the floor. "This is... a working arrangement." Mal admitted. "We''ve been doing a lot of strange things since we made the decision to start reintegrating members of nightfall into society again... but we''re trying to get used to them all." Aubrey added. It wasn''t exactly an easy decision for most. They went from living in a secure facility in the wilderness surrounded by nothing but each other to going back to filling out job applications. It was harder for some to say goodbye to this life than others, but at the end of the day, the nightfall base was only created to be a temporary solution. Not a permanent residence. It was a good thing that people could go back out into the world again. A lot of people had passed away who would never get that chance again. At that moment, Camille came running over with her axolotl in hand. She held it up to her grandmother''s eyes so that she could see personally how big it had gotten. Since his mother was preupied, Mal used that moment to slip away and check on the well-being of another guest who he wasn''t expecting to see today. Celeste sat by herself in the kitchen, seeming a bit out of ce and timid. Mchi quietly crept up behind her with a smile on his face that she would have secretly found to be slightly charming. "You''re not hungry?"


    "H-Huh? Uhm, n-no, I''m fine. Thank you though..."


    "Why so nervous?You''re moving like you think I''m going to eat you or something."


    "B-Be careful with the phrases you use..!" Celeste''s entire face turned red as she hurried to cover Mal''s mouth.


    She looked around the room in a panic, but luckily no one seemed to be looking at her.


    "Honestly¡­ Why do you do things like this..?" She whispered back. "You know how guilty all of this makes me feel."


    "Well it shouldn''t. We haven''t done anything wrong."


    "We''re sneaking around, Mchi..!" She hissed. "When you have all of this here waiting for you."


    Mchi slipped his arms around her waist and pulled her in until they were face to face.


    He held her softly, but firmly so that she couldn''t get away from him.


    "I never hid how I feel about you. Or what we''ve done. And everything that is here is also waiting for you. I''ll keep trying to give it to you until you tell me honestly that you don''t want it."


    Celeste wondered if she should headbutt him or lean against him.


    There were a myriad of reasons why she should say no to this. What must people think of her for getting caught up in such antics?


    How could a man who was clearly no good for her be so good to her?


    She was too old to be having these kinds of rtionship problems¡­


    Nadine did keep her word and pry Celeste away, but that was just so that she could hold the mature beauty in her arms herself.


    14:18


    "Things seem to be going well."


    Celeste hadn''t seen Nadine appear in the kitchen with them, and as a result she nearly jumped out of her skin when she grabbed her butt.


    "N-Nadine! T-This is just-"


    "Why so jumpy? I was onlying to say hello."


    "I¡­ Y-Your fianc¨¦ is being just a little bit too friendly as you can see¡­ Maybe you can get him off of me?"


    "Oh? Don''t mind if I do."


    Nadine did keep her word and pry Celeste away, but that was just so that she could hold the mature beauty in her arms herself.


    "W-What are you doing??"


    "Bonding a bit. You''ve been doing so much of it with Mchi that I figure the rest of us might be overdue for a bit of skinship too, no?"


    Celeste was broken. "I-I-I-I-I-I¡­"


    Nadine licked her lips predatorially.


    "Careful now, darling. You''ll learn I have quite the appreciation for cute things."


    Now, Celeste looked like she was waiting for Mchi to save her.


    But before she could voice her request for help, Nadine stole her lips first in an intimate gesture.


    And maybe it was just his imagination, but¡­ Mchhi had noticed form the moment she arrived that she wasn''t denying him as hard as normal.


    He wondered just how long it would be before she was willing to give life with him, with them a real chance.


    "Hey, Mama Nyx?" Serena suddenly said loudly.


    "Erm, yes, sweetie?"


    "I don''t know when you are going to get in contact with that scaly bastard again, but when you do you tell him that just because he''s only two years old that doesn''t mean he can ghost me like a child!"


    For a moment, Nyx made a confused face. "Just so I''m sure¡­ are you talking about-" n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "I guess we really did spend too long away. I guess we owe you all an exnation, huh..?"


    Familiar figures suddenly descended from a hole in the ceiling.


    And let''s just say that seeing their faces again was¡­ jarring.


    I try not to be too devisive in these notes but I can no longer stay silent anymore¡­ tater tots are an inferior way to eat potatoes AnathaShesha


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 327: About A Favor…

    It had been so long since the group had seen them that they almost looked and felt entirely different.


    They somehow seemed older, wiser¡­ and definitely stronger.


    "Mnie!"


    Celeste came running from her ce in the kitchen and nearly tackled her daughter out of the air.


    "Hey, ma. I''m back." She smiled.


    Celeste was already on the verge of tears. "Where have you BEEN?!"


    "Well¡­"


    Apophis touched the ground and Serana came barreling at him like a freight car.


    She would have knocked him over if he weren''t on the same level of rigidity as an iron wall.


    When tackling him didn''t work, she went to pummeling.


    He caught her hands, and she head-butted him.


    ...She nearly knocked herself out and she had to be held up.


    Theanded softly in front of Aisha and Aubrey- and it was clear that she wanted to run and embrace them both, but didn''t for whatever reason.


    "...Give me a chance to exin?" She asked with a guilty smile.


    Aubrey looked like she wanted to say no.


    However, Aisha grabbed her hand gently and gave her a sort of pleading look that she couldn''t refuse.


    "...Start talking."


    - 4 Minutes Later...


    Aisha: "So your entire everything was destroyed and rewritten...?"


    Serana: "All because Apophis won a contest..?"


    Mchi: "And you guys didn''t even remember us until like an hour ago..?"


    ""Basically."" Thea and Apophis nodded in unison.


    Naturally, that kind of information took a while to settle in with the group.


    Well... for most of them anyway.


    "Good enough for me! I missed you, babe!" Serana leapt into Apophis'' arms like a princess.


    She immediately grabbed him by the face and nted a big smooch right on his lips.


    "S-Serana! Is that really your only question?!" Sei cried.


    Serana did a thumbs up without even taking her lips off the six foot dragon man.


    Sei just covered her eyes in embarrassment and flopped into Bianca''sp- who immediately consoled her over the loss of her daughter''s innocence.


    Meanwhile, Celeste was also on the verge of tears as she looked at her daughter''s face. "How could you not remember me? Do you know how worried I was about you..!"


    Mnie looked older- now in around herte twenties, but she still shared a striking resemnce with Celeste.


    "I didn''t forget you on purpose, mom. But I didn''t remember... anything. Belloc found me wandering in Asgard one day while he was on a rampage."


    "Not exactly what I would call romantic..."


    Mnie smiled and embraced her mother for what felt like the first time in thousands of years. Which for her, it was.


    "Why do you guys feel so...different?"


    Mal was the one to finally address the elephant in the room- making everyone else turn to stare at them as well.


    Thea smiled bashfully as she pushed her blonde hair behind her ear.


    "W-We might happen to be a little bit older... And-"


    "They''re just like me."


    Nyx had been sitting on the sofa this entire time- quietly rocking Camille to sleep and taking the entire conversation in.


    But for some reason, now she was finding it a hell of a lot harder to stay silent.


    She pressed through the ''wall'' in her brain that separated this version of herself from all of the others.


    As soon as she did, she was hit with an ocean-liner sized headache and a mountain of information to match it.


    But she had her answers.


    *Whistle* "A primordial god of the sun, and a goddess of fate... Some real high rollers you two turned out to be."


    "Are you proud of me, Auntie Nyx?" Thea winked.


    Nyx blinked her eyes several times.


    She pointed at her while turning to stare at Thea and Aisha.


    "Look, I mean it. If you two don''t fuck that girl, you are going to have to pry me from-"


    Aubrey: "MOM!"


    "I''m just saying, look at her!"


    Mchi was beginning to get that usual feeling of indigestion that he got whoever his mother said something wildly inappropriate.


    Did he miss her..? Yes. Did he miss this..? No. Not at all.


    "Hey, in a fight who wins?" Bianca asked.


    "Are you seriously trying to power scale our rtives right now..?" Anna asked.


    "Don''t shame me, this is exciting!" Bianca pouted.


    Unfortunately for her, neither Apophis or his sister seemed like they were going to answer that question either.


    Thea picked up a bottle of liquor and smiled at everyone reassuringly. "So, what are we drinking?"


    -


    About an hourter, Camille had already been put down while the adults held a small drinking party.


    While Apophis was getting felt up by Serana and Celeste was catching up on all of the motherly hugs that she had missed, Thea was trying to make up with the pair of beautiful women whom she had been painfully separated from.


    "So... Is the other dimension still thriving well?" She asked awkwardly.


    "...It is actually." Aisha realized. "How is that possible?"


    "I-I guess when our realities were broken off, my realm was caught somewhere in limbo. And since several of your members still had keys to enter, then they were fine... I''m just d that everything worked out." she sighed in relief.


    Aubrey wasn''t quite old enough to drink yet, so she nonchntly sipped from a soda can while avoiding Thea''s pleading gaze.


    Aisha was seemingly much less upset, but it was clear that she wouldn''t be making things easier for Thea either.


    Even though what happened was not technically her fault, they could not help but feel like they had been abandoned.


    So even if it was illogical, they wanted to make the gorgeous goddess sweat, if even for a moment.


    And judging by the look she currently wore on her face, it was working extremely well.


    "Don''t be like that, my dears¡­ I will do anything that you ask if you would only grant me your forgiveness just this one time."


    Aubrey was a bit closer to caving than she wanted to admit. Aisha was too, her poker face was just better.


    But all of the sudden, a single idea popped into Aisha''s mind that made her look at Thea in apletely different light.


    "You really want our forgiveness..?"


    Continue your journey on m|v-l''e -NovelBin


    "Of course I do." Thea kneeled and took both of the girls'' hands.


    "Okay then¡­ then we need your help with one very important favor¡­"

 Chapter 328: [Bonus Chapter] Abaddon Tathamet

    A door opened in a dark hallway and a steady stream of visitors walked out.


    Mchi couldn''t help but do a double take when he stepped into Thea''s home for the second time.


    Because it was nothing like thest time he was here.


    *Whistles* "Hell of a lot of renovations going on here¡­ If I didn''t feel underdressed the first time that I came here, then I sure do now." Aisha looked around in wonder.


    "D-Don''t be like that." Thea nudged her. "You look perfectly fine¡­ more than fine. Actually, if you wanted to-"


    Mal: "You are all making me violently ufortable."


    Serana: "I like the way my sister-inw thinks! Where''s your room, handsome?"


    Apophis: "Right down the-"


    Mal: "Dog, I''m not gonna say it again. Violently ufortable!!"


    Everyone seemed to smirk at Mal as if they found the irony of him being the one toin amusing.


    After everything he had ever forced them to sit through, he had such minuscule room toin that it was embarrassing.


    "Come on, he should be this way." Thea relented.


    Aisha actually looked moderately disappointed that she was no longer being harassed.


    Suddenly, a door opened down the hallway and a small child walked out rubbing his eyes.


    For a moment, Mchi mistook him for N''Kai due to his ck skin and sclera.


    "Baby bro! Come meet our friends." Apophis called.


    The child looked their way, and the visitors unconsciously stepped back at the sight of his swirling red eyes and unnatural cold demeanor.


    Even more horrific was the fact that he without a doubt had the deepest voice they had ever heard.


    "I find it unbelievable that either of you were able to convince anyone to be friends with you. I''m aware that mortals often scrape the bottom of the metaphorical barrel forpanionship, but they have outdone themselves by standing beside you plebeian children."


    Mchi and the girls'' jaws dropped. Meanwhile, Thea and Apophis took it all in stride as if this urrence was normal.


    "Aww, did someone miss their nap today?"


    The young child lowered his head to the ground. "¡­Yes. Gaia would not stop pestering me."


    "Nubia''s room is free, buddy. You can hide from her in there."


    "¡­Thank you, brother."


    The small child vanished in a puff of smoke and left the stunned group behind.


    "What¡­ or who¡­ was that..?" Aubrey sputtered.


    "That''s our brother Bashenga. Isn''t he cute?" Thea gushed.


    Aubrey didn''t know if she was joking or not, but that little boy was the single most terrifying entity she had everid eyes on in twenty years of life.


    If she were going to run across more entities like that in this house, she was absolutely positive that she should run back to borrow one of her niece''s diapers before trying to travel any further. Find adventures at m_v l|e-NovelBin


    Serana raised her hand like she was in a ssroom. "Umm¡­When he said Gaia, did he actually mean-"


    ""Uh-huh."" Thea and Apophis nodded in unison.


    "¡­"


    It was official¡­ this ce was a nut house.


    -


    After a brief adventure / tour of the new house, Thea finally led the group to a pair of fancy looking double doors with the letters M.C on it.


    And a little sticky note that said ''+ Jazzy''.


    "MC?" Aisha asked.


    "Man cave." Thea rolled her eyes.


    "Someone is upset because she''s not invited in but her wife is?" Apophis smirked.


    "Don''t act like dad wouldn''t flip all the rules in a second to let his precious baby inside."


    "Tch."


    Apophis pushed open the doors and a light smoke spilled out.


    Mchi noticed several things in that moment.


    The smell of exotic cigars, the familiar sound of clinking sses, loud football announcers, and of course, foulnguage from several different male voices.


    ¡­And one female voice among them.


    "This shit is fucking embarrassing. Number 72 is getting beat like allegations on every y."


    "You''re worried about 72?? Our safety keeps picking the wrong man like a former child star."


    "That running back is ruthless. If he stiff arms his defender one more time, then his neck is going to look like my dick after a cold shower."


    "Look at this shit! The QB throwing out picks like the other team''s hair is nappy."


    "Fuck this, I have to make a call to the GM and demand a new coach."


    "Isn''t that a bit much, Jasmine?"


    "No! You think I''m going to keep letting him fuck us day in and day out with no ring to back it up? Does my favorite team look like your mother??"


    "You dumb broad! We can take this outside if you really want to go there!"


    "You''ve been drinking, Darius, you don''t have that in you today. All you''re going to do is put your hands on my jacket and shake me like your momma''s ass and I''m going to beat you to pieces."


    Raunchyughter spilled out from the group of men and even Mchi found himself covering his mouth so that he didn''t chuckle.


    "Hey, can you guys fix your faces, we''ve got guests." Apophis called.


    Inside of the man cave, there was a fully stocked bar, pool table, several arcade machines, and a table lined with party food.


    A huge sectional sofa was ced in front of a movie screen with a televised game on.


    The score was 42-12. No wonder everyone in here was mad.


    Horned men say with their backs turned to the entrance. Their bodies tensed up once Apophis gave his warning.


    One by one, they started to turn around, but only one figure stood up.


    He was massive.


    Without exaggeration, he must''ve been close to nine feet tall.


    His body was somehow overcrowded with muscles, and yet they fit perfectly within his body to make him look like an immacte divine statue.


    But Mchi could see and feel it clearly. This man was more impossibly dangerous than any god he had ever met in his life. Perhaps even more than his mother too.


    The man had deep ck skin that was even darker and more ominous than his own. Shining gold tattoos literally moved across his entire body from the neck down.


    His hair was tied behind his head in a single ponytail- and it was equally as unique as the rest of him. Half of it was dyed white, the other side was pure ck.


    His three golden eyes were encircled with ominous ck sclera- and his simple gaze was heavier on one''s back than the entire weight of the world.


    And therge one in the center of his chest was too disturbing to even look at for long.


    His presence was so imposing and regal that for a while the duo didn''t notice that he only wore a simple hoodie and sweatpants like a secret NEET.


    Albeit a very, very, frightening one.


    "O-Oh¡­ You found your jacket, huh?" Thea scratched her cheek in embarrassment.


    "After I fished it out of your closet."


    The visitors felt their vision be slightly blurry. The man''s voice stroked a certain pleasure center in the mind and just kept rubbing, and rubbing, and¡­ it was very nice to listen to.


    Finally, the unit realized something that they had sort of skipped over at first.


    This man was impossibly handsome. Aisha almost started liking men, and she had never done that.


    "I was nning to return it at some point, dad." Thea apologized.


    "Oh, I''m sure." Thea''s father rolled all four of his eyes.


    He pulled a burning cigar from between his thick lips and smiled at the group of foreign young humans.


    "I''d say nice to meet you all, but¡­ I probably know you better than you know yourselves by now."  Heughed.


    Thea elbowed him lightly in the stomach. "Dad, ease up on the all-knowing monster thing. You''re freaking them out..!"


    Thea''s words were an understatement. They were absolutely terrified.


    Aubrey suddenly fell back on her butt as she stared at Thea''s father.


    Her eyes had turned fully ck and lost their shine, while dark murky tears ran from her face.


    "Am I¡­ going to die¡­?"

 Chapter 329: [Bonus Chapter] Weirdly Wholesome??

    Aubrey was sure when she firstid eyes on Abaddon that he was going to kill her.


    And her family.


    And¡­ everything.


    It was undoubtedly the single most horrifying moment of her entire life.


    She had never even imagined in all of her wildest dreams that there would be an entity that could make her feel that hopeless.


    And now, she was watching that very same entity sit on the couch with her brother as the two of them seemingly had a rather heated argument.


    " ¡­What?! The state fair is garbage! Whenever I went I was always worried about getting shot!"


    "That''s because you were chunky. If you were skinny like me you could have just weaved through the bullets and ate your funnel cake at the same time."


    "¡­How did you know I was going there for funnel cake?"


    "We just established that you were fat, Unc. What else would you have been going for?"


    Aubrey rubbed her eyes slowly to make sure that she wasn''t imagining things that weren''t there due to her weariness.


    No matter how many times she thought about it¡­ this really was too big of a disparity between her initial impressions and reality.


    "Are you feeling a bit better now..?"


    Aubrey looked to her side and finds the beautiful Jasmine staring at her attentively.


    "I''m, uhm, fine..." She blushes slightly. "A little mortified about causing such a scene, but I more or less feel like I''ll be able to get over it in the next eight years or so.."


    Jasmine chuckled as she pushed a stray hair out of Aubrey''s eyeline. "Well, I''ll ask you again everyday until then, how does that sound?"


    Aubrey was beginning to feel moderately awkward here.


    She didn''t know how her brother did this! Having more than one woman show interest in you at a time is far too much strain to ce on one''s heart!


    As if Thea wasn''t bad enough on her own, she married three more women who all seemed to have it in their mind that they had to have Aubrey and Aisha in their hands by any means necessary.


    Even now, Aubrey could see Aisha being chatted up by the toned fate goddess and blushing like a tomato. She wasn''t in any position toe save her.


    Because do you want to know the worst part of this whole thing?? It was


    working!!


    Thea and Jasmine were both extremely well built, but what''s worse than that is they now looked at least seven years older than thest time that she saw them.


    Why was this bad? Well, it was making Aubrey realize that she also had an Achilles heel for older women!


    She had to take back all of the cracks she made about her brother being disgusting.


    ''Oh my gods, is this how Mom got me that time..?!''


    "Aubrey..?"


    "H-Huh? Yes!" Aubrey hadn''t realized it but her revtion had her grabbing her head like she was undergoing a serious mental crisis.


    Aubrey was now seriously ready to go home. Everytime she took an action, her stupid fucking brain caused her to humiliate herself in the absolute most unttering ways possible.


    She just hoped that her brother could ask his favor of Abaddon soon, so that hopefully she could leave here with some shreds of a reputation.


    -


    Mchi was savoring a smooth burn in his chest as he swallowed some of the strongest liquor he had ever put in his mouth.


    Normal alcohol stopped affecting him a long time ago. However, alcohol made with divinity or blessed by magic still worked like a charm.


    But absolutely none of itpared to the liquid abomination currently in his ss. His entire body felt like it was buzzing and asleep at the same time.


    The real kicker here? They served him a damn kids drink.


    He watched Thea''s grandfather pour two gallons of water in a basin before a single drop of alcohol was dipped inside.


    ¡­Mchi and Aisha thought they were joking with them at first.


    But once the ancient beings poured their sses, denying the obvious was no longer possible.


    This alcohol was meant to be consumed by gods. Definitely not mortals.


    "A bit too strong for you, eh?" Abaddon chuckled.


    While it was a question posed in good nature, Mchi felt as if his dignity as a man was being questioned.


    "It''s not that difficult. My fianc¨¦ drinks stuff like this all the time."


    While Anna did make strong drinks, she had yet to make anything quite as deliciously dangerous as this.


    "Oh? You should''ve brought her then." Abaddon chuckled.


    Mchi paused just shy of raising his ss to his lips again.


    He looked at Abaddon''s face and blinked just a couple of times.


    "¡­Yea, I don''t think so."


    Somehow, Abaddon felt like he had been discriminated against, but he couldn''t say that he didn''t see iting.


    "Hey, boy! Are those trinkets of yours just for show or what?!"


    A gruff, abrasive voice called out to Mchi- and for some reason the tension that wasn''t present in the room at first seemed to multiply.


    Even though his eyes were half shut, Mchi starred through blurred vision at another muscr tattooed man. Continue reading stories on mvl


    Like Abaddon, he had dark brown skin and a muscr physique, but he was around six inches shorter.


    His hair was orange colored and spiky, with two dark horns pointing up towards the ceiling.


    His eyes were burning red with ck sclera encircling his uncanny pupils.


    Mchi could tell just by staring at him. This individual was unspeakably fucking dangerous.


    Well, only to him and the girls it seemed.


    All of the other men in the room started throwing popcorn and chips at the muscr brute while hurling obscenities.


    "Uncle¡­" Abaddon glowered dangerously.


    Abaddon''s Father: "Cut the shit, brother."


    Abaddon''s Son-in-Law: "Stop ruining the mood everytime we get together, you fucking freak."


    Abaddon''s Best Friend: "He''s a kid, Satan. Have some fucking tact for once in your immortal life."


    The orange haired man stood up amidst the hail of salty snacks.


    "What?! I can''t test the waters a little bit?! If the kid walks in here with godyer weapons on his wrists, then I should be allowed to ask about them!"


    Mchi looked down at the shiny bracelets he always wore.


    For some reason, he got the feeling that instead of protecting him, they were about to get him in even more trouble.

 Chapter 330: [Bonus Chapter] A Bad Idea?

    Mchi was smart, but sometimes he had slow moments that would make one believe otherwise.


    Like when he briefly forgot which of Cami''s shoes went on which feet as he was dressing her.


    Or when he mixed up Aisha and Serana''s birthdays so they both punched him.


    But this was probably his slowest moment yet, and it was about toe with real consequences.


    From Judeo-Christian mythology, Satan is one of the seven sins- being the embodiment of wrath.


    He is one of the son''s of Lucifer, or sometimes referred to as Lucifer himself.


    He is big. Loud. Angry. And powerful.


    He also happens to be Thea and Apophis'' great uncle.


    And Mchi had somehow attracted the attention of this being without even knowing what he had done in the first ce.


    When Satan saw the shining bracelets sitting on Mal''s wrists, his formerly nonexistent interest in the young man had fully peaked.


    Not just


    anyone


    can carry around weapons made from the body of a god.


    So Satan, being the embodiment of anger, violence, and destruction that he was, felt the urge to personally ''test'' whether Mchi was strong enough to hold such a thing.


    Of course, everyone told him that he didn''t have to participate in such a thing.


    He was a guest here, and he shouldn''t have had to put up with the shallow antics of one overly unlikeable old demon.


    But Mchi didn''t see the harm in epting.


    If there was one thing he had earned from all of his time training with Thea and sparring against Apophis, it''s that he really was like a frog at the bottom of a metaphorical well.


    Learning a little more would not kill him. Nor would getting tossed around a bit. Everything in life was a learning experience.


    So even though it probably wasn''t very smart, he had epted. And ended right inside of Satan''s ''house''.


    If one could even call it a house.


    In actuality, it was a big empty colosseum that looked half-wrecked already. The colosseum floor was nothing but t sand littered with broken weapons. And dried blood... lots of dried blood.


    Apparently Satan slept here every night. Surrounded by the ''echoes of his glory'' or whatever that meant.


    "...Did I maybe hit you too hard in our spar? If so, I''m sorry. That''s the only way I could possibly understand why you would voluntarily choose to do something this stupid."


    Mchi rolled his eyes at Apophis'' feigned concern.


    "Some friend you are. Would it kill you to act like you believe in me a little bit?"


    "You want me to co-sign this foolishness purely because you don''t know when to say no?"


    "It''d be nice."


    "Oh, I bet it would."


    Apophis held out his hand and a portal opened up in the air beside them.


    Serosh, Zazu, and Ajani all came running out into the colosseum one after the other like a petting zoo parade.


    One after the other, they ran into Mchi''s body and were reabsorbed.


    His familiar ck skin returned, his teeth sharpened, and four familiar wiggly friends sprouted from his back.


    "How''re you feeling?" Apophis asked.


    "Like I stand a bit better chance than I did a couple seconds ago."


    "That''s cool. You don''t though."


    "You know for a guy who''s now thousands of years old, you''re still just as much of a childish dick as you were when you were two."


    "That''s the glory of longevity, my friend. I get to enjoy things for a little bit longer than most." Apophis cackled.


    The first prince soon faded away into a golden light and disappeared from view. He seemed to have no interest in watching a contest who''s result was already known to him.


    Plus, he had a pretty young woman with pink hair waiting in his room. Why would he waste time watching these two idiots when he had something much better waiting for him at home?


    "Finally!"


    Satan finally finished stretching and stood up with literal fire in his eyes.


    "Don''t go crying to your mommy if you can''t y with the big boys, kid! The road to being a man is paved with a few broken bones!"


    "...I guess I don''t need mine then."


    Mchi''s body literally tore itself apart until he was nothing but a mass of intanginble darkness and stars. His height shot up considerably, as did his muscle definition.


    But the most notable change was the roaring head of a tiger that had reced his handsome mug.


    Satan rubbed his hands together like he was waiting on fresh cookies to get out of the oven.


    He suddenly turned his head and screamed off to the sidelines. "Hey! Are you bastards ready yet!?"


    Mchi nced over at the abandoned stands where Abaddon and the rest of the group were standing around a table.


    Money had no value in The Abyss, so these mn were over there gambling over one of a kind weapons, personal items, and cases of beer.


    "Yea, we''re good!"


    "Hey, Mal! Don''t fuck up my pay!"


    Mal, the giant tiger-snake monster, was very touched. "Aw. You bet on me to win, Mr. Darius?"


    "Fuck no, I bet that you would stay on your feet at least two minutes though. That''s about as much faith as I''m capable of giving,d."


    "...You know what, I''ll take it."


    Now that the bets were established, there was nothing else holding thepetitors back.


    Satan roared into the sky, and a red miasma filled the air.


    Mchi felt a pressure bearing down on his chest that wasparable to getting ap dance from a blue whale.


    His head felt like it was going to copse in on itself if he couldn''t alleviate the pressure.


    He hadn''t felt anything like this ever in his life. It was hard to even think.


    But the good thing about this body was that it required surprisingly little input to move on it''s own.


    Nagini, Vritra, Gwiya, and Onini all expanded to be nearly the size of bridge pirs.


    They easily closed the near sixty-yard distance between the two of them.


    One after the other, they smashed down into the ground while kicking up sand and broken weapons like loose dust. Enjoy more content from mvl


    Satan avoided every crushing attack directed towards him with surprising agility that he shouldn''t have possessed with such a huge frame.


    The serpent quartet left open a small gap that led straight back to Mchi.


    Satan plucked two weapons out of the air and flung his body through the gap like a football.


    He moved at such an unbelievably fast pace that Mchi didnt even see him arrive.


    However, he did notice when the back of Satan''s heel kicked him so hard that his head spun around a full 360 degrees.


    But hey, at least he was still upright...


    And he was about to learn that things may not have been as hopeless as he initially thought.


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 331: [Bonus Chapter] Fight Well Or…

    So far, this spar was a real first for Mchi.


    Never before had he been kicked so hard in the face that his headpletely spun around his body like a fucked up children''s toy.


    Three thoughts crossed his mind in that moment.


    ''You know¡­ I''m d I told the girls to go to bed before I came here. They don''t need to see this.''


    ''I wonder if my head is ever going to stop spinning. I''m getting dizzy.''


    ''Wait a second... I think I feel something...''


    Mchi wasn''t out of his mind. He wasn''t feeling any pain.


    There did exist some mild feeling of difort, but that aside, he barely noticed anything.


    In fact, his body... it was tingling. It had been since earlier actually.


    "I''m not the sort of opponent you stand still with, boy! Don''t get idle on me!"


    Satan''s provocation was like the jolt that Mchi needed to get his head on straight... Literally and figuratively.


    As Satan''s foot came barreling back towards his chest, Mchi made his body gaseous so that he wouldn''t identally get his chest caved in.


    Simultaneously, he had his bracelets take the form of two electrically charged maces.


    He swung his maces on either side of Satan''s knee to crush the bones inside and render the leg useless.


    However, his weapons never came within ten inches of striking distance, because Satan caught them with his bare hands before they could.


    As if the moment couldn''t get even worse,he made Mal really ufortable as he stroked the cold metal and made some... interesting noises.


    "Oooh.. Really nice kid. These''ve got some great grip feel to them. Let me take them for a whirl sometime!"


    "...Funny."


    Electricity crackled around Mchi''s body and arge bolt of cyan lightning fell out of the sky.


    When it dropped onto Satan''s head, Mal was expecting for there to be some sort of resistance.


    A wince. A look of surprise. Some mild dismay?


    No¡­ nothing... there was nothing.


    Satan didn''t even look phased in the slightest.


    In hindsight, he should have expected this from the very same man who had just been set on fire earlier.


    "Don''t waste my time here, kid! Be creative, or go suck on Nyx''s bosom again!" Satan taunted.


    "...You are so lucky I don''t carry a crucifix around."


    Mchi''s body dissolved into a pool of ck water.


    The liquid spread across the entirety of the sandy floor until it seemed like Satan was standing on a smallke.


    The king of wrath felt his mood beginning to damper.


    "I said be creative, not HIDE!!"


    Satan raised his leg high in the air.


    Before he could stomp it on the ground and cut this hiding nonsense short, a huge ck crow lunged out of the ground and wed at his face.


    Bu what was a little bird to the first King of Wrath?


    Satan easily tore the bird apart with his bare hands and he didn''t even have a scratch to show for it in the end.


    However, as soon as the bird turned back into a ck water, a huge snake wrapped around his body next.


    It was followed by two lions, four more birds, and what felt like the entire animal kingdom.


    Every time that Satan put down one animal, it seemed like three more took it''s ce.


    But this busy work was really starting to get annoying. He didn''t like animals all that much to begin with either.


    Satan roared so loudly that the heavens could probably hear him. Every shadowy beast in his vicinity exploded and turned into puddles.


    Finally, Satan could see Mchi at the very back of the colosseum on all fours.


    Electricity crackled along his paws and he shot forward with a speed that was just a bit inferior to what Satan had disyed earlier.


    Feeling challenged, the king of wrathughed maniacally as he rushed forward to meet him.


    In Satan''s left hand he held an insidious-looking rusted axe. In the other, there was a short rusted sword.


    As they grew closer, Satan left a very visible opening as bait.


    At the moment that Mchi took it, he was going to cut those annoying little wiggle worms off his back and y open his belly!


    You know, as a joke.


    Roaring, the two finally came into close contact and as Satan expected, Mchi took the bait.


    He clenched his fist and threw out the fiercest haymaker the animal kingdom had ever seen.


    Satan, who greatly enjoyed the pain of war and even got off on it, had no intention to avoid this attack.


    And sure enough, at the very moment that Mchi''s fist connected with Satan''s jaw, Satan stabbed Mchi in the stomach and severed two of the four tails on his back.


    But the greatest surprise of the century urred when both men screamed in agony.


    This marked the end of their confrontation.


    Because out of nowhere, the very sky seemed to turn against them.


    Arge woman made from stars and darkness appeared and towered over the entire coliseum.


    She lifted up Mchi by the nape of his neck and cradled him in her palm.


    Wincing in pain from his wounds, Mchi looked up at a figure who was both eerily familiar and unfamiliar at the same time.


    And yet, Mchi knew her like the back of his hand.


    "...That you, ma? You look a little different in this univ-" Experience new tales on §Þ??


    "Not. One. Word." Nyx said firmly.


    After making sure that Mchi was alright, Nyx turned her attention to Satan, who was sitting in the sand fondling his broken jaw with a perplexed expression.


    Or at least he was. Until Nyx smushed him with the pad of her finger like he was an ant in her kitchen.


    By some miracle, Satan was able to avoid being crushedpletely was by pushing against her in a show of titanic strength.


    "H-Hey, cool your pits, woman!! It was an agreed upon spar! Just a bit of men being men! Believe me, if I wanted to kill the brat at any time, then I could-"


    Nyx applied just the faintest bit more force and Satan was squished.


    His remains looked like a ketchup packet in the middle of the street.


    Of course he immediately tried to reform himself... but Nyx only squished him again.


    And again..


    And again...


    This persisted for a couple of minutes before Mal stood up in his mother''s hand while holding his side.


    "Ma, that''s enough. It was my decision to do this, nobody tied my arm behind my back. I''m a grown man who can deal with the consequences of his own decisions and fight his own battles."


    Nyx looked at her son out of the corner of her eye.


    Unbeknownst to him, parts of his body were dissolving into thin air; albeit very slowly.


    "...Leave it." She demanded.


    Mchi was a bit disoriented, but he didn''t have to ask his mother what she meant.


    His body shimmered and soon he was back to normal with Zazu, Serosh, and Ajani all surrounding him.


    Only then did Nyx''s gaze seemed to soften a little bit, but it was honestly clear that she was still quite troubled.


    "Honestly... What do you expect any of us to do with you?"

 Chapter 332: [Bonus Chapter] On Your Heads

    Not long after the match ended, Nyx finally stopped smashing Satan and returned to normal size.


    Now, Mchi could get a better look at his mother.


    While some things werergely the same, she did seem to be just a tiny bit paler in this universe and her expression was a fair bit sharper.


    This version of his mother actually seemed scary.


    "Sit." She said without borating.


    "Hm? I''m fine, I just need to-"


    "I wasn''t asking."


    Nyx snapped her fingers and a sterilized medical table appeared in front of them. Mchi''s butt was on it before he even knew what was happening.


    "Shirt." Nyx held out her hand.


    "Ma, I can-"


    "Shirt!"


    Mchi peeled off his now bloody-shirt and let it drop to the ground.


    Nyx held out her hand and a small pot appeared in her palm. With one look, Mchi could see that it was filled with some kind of ethereal green paste.


    It sort of looked like ghost ectosm from a kiddie cartoon.


    Nyx started rubbing the paste on Mal''s wounds, and even though he winced- he did feel better the more she rubbed into his body.


    Satan finally finished pricing himself back together and though he was clearly wary of another incident urring, he wandered over to Mchi and Nyx.


    His curiosity was just too great.


    "Hey, kid! What did you hit me with exactly? Not just anyone can crack this jaw of mine, y''know?"


    Mchi started to answer, but Nyx did it for him as she bandaged his side.


    "Negative energy maniption. He''s had it for a while now."


    Satan paused and blinked as if he were reaching a slow realization. "¡­So, you basically hit me with my own power then! I see! No wonder it actually hurt, Hahahahaha!!"


    "...." Mchi was starting to think that maybe Satan was the sin of pride in disguise.


    "Good to know, kid! But hey, you won''t be able to use that little trick again though. I didn''t get to live all of these years without being able to control myself!"


    Satan took a deep breath and sat in a lotus position.


    His intense, fiery aura immediately dissipated, and the dense red fog he had covered his home with was sucked back into his body.


    The overbearing feeling of wrath and anger that poured from him in waves waspletely erased.


    He re-opened his eyes and smiled boastfully.


    "Come on, boy. Let''s have us another-"


    Nyx backhanded Satan and sent him soaring away into a wall.


    Without looking up, she called out to another group she had previously ignored.


    "And where do you lot think that you are going?"


    The group of men who were spectating and gambling on this whole ordeal were trying to sneak away quietly until Nyx caught them mid-attempt.


    Abaddon''s father Asmodeus was among them, and attempting to flee.


    "N-Now, Nyx, we did tell the boy not to go through with it, a-and Satan was holding back a bit¡­"


    "Oh?" Nyx raised a brow.


    "Yea, if he weren''t using weapons then we never would have gotten to see anything!" Another man confessed.


    "...."


    Today Mchi learned that this version of his mother shows two veins in her head when she gets angry instead of one.


    -


    "How long do we have to do-"


    "Until I say you can fucking stop."


    Nyx continued to patch Mchi up as the irresponsible group of men stood on their heads.


    Satan: "In my defense, I was holding back quite a bit! If I hadn''t used weapons then-"


    "He got into this state because you were using weapons, you revolting demon!" Nyx spat.


    "I''m sorry, what do you mean using weapons is holding back?!" Mchi questioned.


    "You hush." Nyx covered his mouth with a bandage.


    "¡­" Now that Mal thought about it, he was pretty sure that this was the first time his mother had ever been this upset with him.


    Satan chose to address his question with an air of superiority around his body.


    "I am anger and violence given flesh, boy. I breathe war and harm at every second of the day. I''ve traveled from universe to universe testing myself against martial masters, cultivators, and war gods of every denomination.


    None are worthy to best me. Conversely, there is no de or axe more dangerous than my own body. If I had fought you bare, you would have lost in less than twelve seconds."


    *Muffled* "Woah..." Mal said under his mask.


    "Don''t ''woah'' him." Nyx scolded. "This idiot is the reason you were hurt so badly."


    "I don''t understand what the big deal is, the kid is fine!" Satan rolled his eyes.


    "He''s not fine, you fucking doorknob! Look at him!"


    While upside down, Satan took a hard look at Mchi''s body.


    He finally noticed that some parts of him looked... brittle.


    "Jesus, boy. The hell is wrong with you??"


    Mchi shrugged as he looked down at himself. This was his first time noticing everything.


    Nyx moved to his back and began applying cream there too. "He is my alternate''s avatar. The body you saw him take is held together by her essence, his soul, and a small portion of his own divine power."


    Nyx suddenly grabbed Mchi''s ear and pulled it hard enough to tear it off.


    "But he''s not. Supposed. To. Use. It."


    "Mmf!"


    "I don''t want to hear it!"


    Mchi''s body could barely hold onto Bast''s and Raijin''s power withouting undone. He could stay like that for approximately five hours at best.


    Hence the reason why he kept his animal friends out of his body most of the time.


    The amount of negative energy he had to pull into his body to not only match Satan''s speed, but crack his jaw too, was extremely significant.


    It cut the amount of time he could hold onto his full power by a significant margin.


    Mchi had around ten more minutes in this fight before his soul unraveled and he literally went up in smoke.


    "Mchi... Why didnt you tell us about your special constitution.." Asmodeus looked exhausted as he rubbed his brow.


    "Mmfh."


    "He says he didn''t think it was significant." Nyx answered as she gave him a new, clean shirt.


    Asmodeus, and all of the old dragons that he was partying with tonight, suddenly looked incredibly exhausted.


    "Lad... of course it is. Every weapon made in Tehom, is created from Abaddon''s own scales. They destroy the body as well as the soul."


    The only reason Mchi''s mouth stayed shut was because the tape held it firm, but he was still fairly gobsmacked.


    This ce was metal as fuck.


    "Hey, where is that big red bastard anyway??" One of the guys asked.


    Only now did everyone else realize that the great ck dragon was conveniently not here.


    Nyx stuck her chest out proudly as she suddenly poked out her chest.


    "He''s just weed the new baby. AndI''m the godmother!"


    "WHAT!??!"

 Chapter 333: [Bonus Chapter] Thank You, Goodbye.

    Achey and mildly exhausted, Mchi sat in the corner of a room while he watched his mother and a small crowd form around Abaddon''s newborn baby.


    Now... he felt a bit on the outskirts.


    It wasn''t anyone''s fault, but whenever he got to witness moments like this it kind of stung... because he had already missed the most important birth of all.


    With that thought in mind... He began to feel more than a little homesick.


    Hadn''t he already missed enough time with his family?


    As if she could senses his thoughts, Nyx looked at him from across the room. She smiled faintly and nodded.


    Abaddon was standing at her side. She gave him a slight nudge on the arm and together the two of them came up to Mchi.


    "You look weary. I guess we should work on getting you home now." Abaddon said.


    Mchi smiled wryly.


    "I don''t believe I''ve ever given a blessing before, so tell me what you need and I will ensure ites to fruition." Abaddon said sincerely.


    The willingness he disyed to held was quite touching to see. Mchi was more appreciative than he knew how to express.


    Most people would kill for this opportunity. Asking a literal god outside of space and continuity for anything in the world was practically a fever dream.


    But he wasn''t about to ask for something for himself.


    Some would say that Mchi was about to waste his opportunity.


    He didnt really see it that way though.


    Because he had a lot more people to provide for than just those he went home to at night.


    "I''m not going to ask you for any of your power, though I admit I''m tempted." Mchi chuckled.


    "Instead, I just need you to help keep the gods from interfering with my earth... And I need the powers that the blessed have toe from their bodies and bloodlines... not a divine connection."


    Abaddon seemed surprised by the subject around Mchi''s request. All four of his eyes showed it.


    "Right... Are you sure that''s all you want? It''s not that there is anything wrong with it, but it is just a little unexpected."


    He wasn''t expecting Mal to ask for so little.


    Mchi smiled wryly. "I''m afraid that''s just how I am... I have a hard time asking people for things I know I can do myself."


    "I see... Well, I''ve known many men like that. And I''m willing to bet that you will definitely not be thest." He smiled.


    Abaddon pulled a phone out of his pocket and dialed a number.


    He held the phone up to his ear and began speaking with someone in a business-like manner."It''s me... I need to borrow some of his authority for a bit."


    While Abaddon walked away, Mchi felt he had more questions than ever.


    "Who''s he on the phone with, God?" Mal joked.


    "...."


    Mchi stared at his mother out of the corner of his eye. "¡­You''re kidding me. Just on speed dial like that?"


    Nyx just kind of shrugged.


    She ced her hand on Mchi''s head and ran her fingers through his hair absentmindedly.


    "When you go back.. Make sure to hug me a lot, okay? The separation was... a bit harder on us than you realize." She said quietly.


    Mchi smiled at his mother caringly. "Believe me... I would have done that even if you didn''t ask."


    Finally, Abaddon walked back over to the duo just as Nx rested her head on her son''s shoulder.


    "Thingsare in order. When you go back to your world, you should notice a change immediately¡­ Oh, and you might be in a bit of pain as well."


    "Huh-"


    "Thank you, Abaddon." Nyx stood up and hugged the egregiously tall man. "I''ll always be grateful to you for this."


    "There''s no need for that, my friend. Family takes care of family." He smiled.


    Mchi felt a discreet tap on his shoulder from behind.


    Looking back, he came face to chest with an unnecessarilyrge Satan.


    For some reason, the ancient demon looked like he was suffering under the brutal thumb of constipation.


    "Ah¡­Look, kid, I appreciate you being a good sport and all about almost dyin'' n'' stuff."


    "Are you¡­ trying to apologize or something?"


    "N-No! That is beneath me! I wouldn''t dare!"


    "Uhhh¡­"


    "J-Just take this! Hopefully you''ll be in better condition when I see you next. Then we can have some real fun!"


    Mchi was stunned when Satan suddenly reached towards his own head and grabbed his horn. He proceeded to break it off like it was made of plywood.


    Before Mchi knew what was happening, Satan stabbed him right between the eyes with his broken horn.


    Nyx barely caught her son''s body in time as he slumped over;pletely unconscious.


    She red at Satan in mild annoyance.


    "You couldn''t have been a bit gentler when you did that?"


    "Nag, nag, nag¡­ This is why I don''t do nice things for anyone¡­" Satan grumbled.


    As the demon of wrath stormed off, Abaddon helped Nyx get Mchi settled on her shoulder. "Let''s get him home, since he''ll need a bit of time to digest that."


    "What about my daughter and her friends? Where are they?" Nyx asked.


    Abaddon made a kind of funny expression.


    "Well¡­ you live here, so you''ll just have to see them in the morning?"


    "What? But-"


    "They''re spending the night."


    "How co-"


    "Please don''t make me tell you anything else about this." Abaddon smiled as politely as possible.


    "Ah¡­" Recognition finally shone in Nyx''s eyes and she licked her lipssciviously. "Maybe I should-"


    "I will not allow you toy a finger on those children! They''re too young for you!"


    "For your information I happen to have had sex with my daughter and her girlfriend once already!" Nyx stuck her chest out proudly.


    Abaddon wished he could say that revtion surprised him.


    "I¡­ I don''t think I can allow you to be Odessa''s godmother anymore."


    "What?! That''s not fair! It wasn''t this me, but the other one!" Nyx snapped.


    "Does that really matter?"


    "Yes!" (No.)


    Abaddon never feltfortable leaving Nyx alone with his children after that. Though he never should have considered it to behind with¡­


    -


    Time in the abyss is a funny thing. Even though Mchi and the others had been gone for several hours, it was like no time had passed at all on earth.


    As soon as Sei and the others got done seeing off the group, Nyx opened up another portal to pull Mchi''s unconscious body back through.


    The panic was immediate.


    Sei: "Oh my god!"


    Anna: "What happened??"


    Bianca: "What is that sticking out of his head?!"


    Nyx smiled apologetically at the girls. "I promise you three that I will exin everything to you when you wake up. Just for now¡­ try not to scream."


    Before the girls could ask what she meant, a horrible wave of heat washed over their bodies.


    With the exception of Nadine, all of the girls copsed, and just as Nyx had predicted, they screamed unconsciously.


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    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 334: World Changing

    Camille woke up on a mission.


    From the moment that her eyes opened up, she had but one goal in mind.


    She got to her feet quietly and teleported out of her crib.


    Her new room in New York was a lot bigger than her old one.


    It was close to six hundred square feet, and it was fully decorated with her crib, a corner full of plushies, a nice closet, a y kitchen set, and most importantly, a five hundred gallon fish tank for her pet axolotl.


    Since her usual partner in crime was still asleep, Cami was stuck doing a solo mission for today.


    She teleported out of her crib, and again to get out of her room. (She couldn''t reach the door handle.)


    Cami''s room was on the second level of the penthouse.


    From her perch atop the stairs, she could see the living area / kitchen.


    It was empty. The coast was clear.


    Cami jumped around a bit like her pants were suddenly on fire.


    Eventually, two baby-ish bat wings sprouted from her back.


    She gave her wings a couple of test ps before nodding resolutely.


    Clenching her baby fists together, Camille gathered an immense amount of courage and took a leap of faith.


    Literally. She jumped off the top of the staircase.


    While a horrific visual, this was offset when her little wings caught air and she began to glide with expert precision.


    How many times had she done this kind of thing? A concerning amount.


    Camille glided throughout the huge penthouse for several seconds.


    When her objective was in sight, she smiled mischievously and prepared another teleport.


    But before she could make it, something descended from the ceiling and snatched her up.


    "Bu!"


    "Language, youngdy. You know you''re not supposed to be going in there right now."


    Nadine did a somersault through the air andnded on her feet without making a sound.


    She checked the grumpy looking baby in her arms and gave her daughter a kiss that she didn''t want.


    "Don''t pout like that with me, missy. I told you that you can''t see everyone else right now¡­ they''re really sick and I don''t want you to catch what they have."


    Mchi, Sei, Joanne, Anna, Bianca, and Luna, had all been asleep for about two days now.


    Nyx had assured her countless times that everything would be fine, but this was hard for her.


    The people she loved were sweating so profusely that they''d soaked the bedsheets four times.


    They tossed and turned as they slept, muttered things iprehensibly, and scarring the hell out of her.


    And it wasn''t just them.


    Every blessed in the entire world was going through the same thing.


    New York was in a state of confusion.


    Luckily Arias had some good people under hismand who were able to calm the masses after Nadine had a short conversation with them.


    She also had to call Aisha''s parents and tell them why their daughter was suddenly missing¡­ they couldn''t really follow everything said, but they were d she was safe at least.


    Camille''s eyes began to water, and so Nadine''s did too.


    "Don''t be like that, munchkin¡­ I know you miss them but you have to trust me too. This''ll all be over soon and we will all be back together again." Nadine promised.


    Camille wasn''t a bad child by any means, so even though she didn''t like the circumstances they had found themselves in, she wasn''t really going that far out of her way to make things overly difficult for her mother either.


    She was just worried¡­ she didn''t want anyone in her family to get separated again.


    The two of them suddenly heard the elevator moving and wiped their eyes quickly.


    Once the elevator door slid open, Celeste warily stepped inside.


    She made awkward eye contact with Nadine and the memory of their prior interaction only served to make her a bit more ufortable.


    "I was just¡­ I wanted to drop off some things to help keep their fever down."


    Nadine smiled at her softly, making her heart speed up.


    "I appreciate the thought¡­ They''ll be happy to know that you thought of them like this."


    "T-Then maybe don''t tell them¡­ I think the egos around this ce are already a little too big."


    Nadine''s hand brushed Celeste''s intimately before she took the gifted bag from her.


    "You should spend some more time around us then¡­ You can show us a little bit more of the humility you think we''recking in."


    Celeste was going to deny that racey invitation with every bone in her body for as long as she was physically able.


    But who knew whether or not she would be able to keep up her guard for very long¡­


    *Click!*


    Nadine felt her heart do a small unprovoked jump.


    She turned her head hopefully and her expression showed an instant tion.


    Joanne emerged from around the corner- rubbing her head exhaustedly.


    Her only clothing was a tank top and a pair of underwear that she''d stolen from Mchi. Both articles of clothing were clinging to her sweaty body for dear life.


    "I need¡­ an abominably stiff drink right about now¡­ I''m hungry as hell too."


    "Ama!" Camille pointed.


    At the sight of her daughter, Joanne seemed to lose much of her weariness.


    "Hey there, munchkin. I''m surprised to see you up and about so-"


    "JO-JO!!!"


    Once they recovered, Nadine flung herself at Joanne and nted her lips firmly on hers.


    Celeste turned around and pretended that she was going through the refrigerator.


    Suddenly, a loud pping sound filled the air.


    Celeste couldn''t help but look back and when she did, she found that the room was suddenly filled with loosening feathers.


    Looking back, she found a pair of enormous white wings wrapped around the two women.


    Evidently, she wasn''t the only one surprised.


    "Uwah! Bu!"


    Nadine and Joanne pulled away from each other and both of them seemed to be equally surprised by their current surroundings.


    Nadine stared closely at Joanne''s wings and realized that they seemed a lot bigger than before.


    Plus it was almost like they were alive¡­


    "Umm¡­"


    "S-Sorry¡­" Joanne blushed. "They just kind of¡­ did that on their own."


    "Oh? Like you got excited?"


    "D-Don''t embarrass me in front of the baby."


    "Bu." Cami shrugged.


    "Well you shouldn''t be used to it, pea." Joanne smirked.


    "A-Actually, having affectionate parents is really good for children''s development." Celeste suddenly chimed in.


    The women both stared at her like they had something to say- making Celeste wish she had kept her mouth closed and stared at the mangoes for longer.


    *Sniff, sniff* "I¡­ I smell smoke." Nadine frowned.


    As if responding to her discovery, the fire rm in the bedroom went off.

 Chapter 335: Heating Up?

    Once they smelled smoke, the girls quickly dropped everything that they were doing and ran to the bedroom.


    The sight that they found was... surprising to say the least.


    Bianca''s body was smoking and there was a terrible odor in the room.


    Their bed was literally soldering; with small orange mes spreading out from their lovable pyrokic.


    "Woah... She''s always been hot, but this is-"


    "Nadine!"


    "Right, right, sorry."


    Nadine and Joanne first worked to move their lovers around so that Bianca wouldn''t burn them from contact with their skin or the mes.


    Meanwhile, Celeste patted out the building mes and cleared the smoke from the room.


    Bianca slowly sat up and her face immediately showed confusion.


    Her body felt warm.


    While this wasn''t necessarily new to her, it did feel significantly different this time.


    To the closest possible exnation, what she was feeling now was akin to lounging beside a softly crackling firece.


    More than anything, she just wanted to close her eyes and go to sleep until the end of wintertime.


    "Bianca!!"


    Her eyes finally snapped alert and the young woman realized she was in a small sea of me.


    On instinct, she sucked it all back into herself to avoid disaster, but it was somehow a little harder than she remembered it to be.


    With the room''s mes extinguished, Bianca slowly got up from the bed in a daze.


    "H-Hot.."


    It was the strangest thing. Now that she had sucked the mes back into herself, she was now ufortably warm.


    Nadine might''ve yed around a lot, but she was an excellent caretaker when the moment counted.


    She handed Camille to Joanne and helped Bianca get around without showing the slightest fear of her own skin burning.


    "Easy now, missdy. Take one step at a time for me."


    "Carry me¡­" Bianca demanded.


    "So selfish.."


    Despite her initial protests, Nadine didn''t seem to mind lifting Bianca up and carrying her into the bathroom.


    She stripped her down and ran the water on the coldest setting before helping her get in the shower.


    Her skin was so hot that the moment the water touched her, it sizzled like freshly forged metal.


    But Bianca breathed a sigh of relief nheless.


    "Thanks, babe.. I feel a lot better now." Bianca said shallowly.


    "No problem, my love. And hey, I like the new look by the way."


    Bianca didn''t know what she meant until Nadine handed her a mirror.


    But now, it was painfully obvious.


    She had burned the dye out of her hair.


    Instead of her usual blonde, she now had a beautiful cinnamon brown.


    Other than a couple of baby pictures, this was actually Nadine''s first time seeing Bianca''s real hair color.


    Bianca was immediately alert. She grabbed Nadine by the cor like a bouncer at a club.


    "Babe... Go to the store... right now..!"


    ''So adorable.''


    -


    Camille was staring at the smoldering bed in slight wonder.


    She tried to worm her way out of her mother''s grasp a few times to maybe touch it, bt Joanne held her firm.


    "Why do kids always want to do such dangerous things, huh? I''m pretty sure messing with charred bed carcinogens isn''t exactly an activity ''PBS'' would approve of."


    "Wa?"


    "Yes I''m sure, I checked."


    "Fwa."


    "What do you mean that sounds like a lie? Your parents don''t lie."


    "Ba-ba."


    "...Okay, that was one time, but we thought you were asleep."


    "Awa!"


    "You''re right, that doesn''t make it excusable, and I am sorry." Joanne lowered her head.


    "...Bu."


    "Are you trying to convince me to bribe you for your forgiveness? It''s nine a.m, why would I give you ice cream?"


    Camille gave her mother a kiss on the cheek and hugged her neck sweetly.


    "...Okay, you can have a little bit."


    Celeste had been sitting there watching this entire ''conversation'' take ce and she was almost too surprised to put into words.


    This wasn''t the first time that she had seen Camille talk to her parents and they responded like they understood her perfectly.


    It was fascinating to her. She found herself wanting to understand the connection that this family shared with each other more and more.


    But she was smart enough to recognize that wanting more, being curious, and developing a fondness was going to be her undoing.


    Even if she had identally had sex with Mchi all night long on three separate asions, that still didn''t mean she wanted a life with him, or that she even liked him!


    He was just a big, handsome, funny, chivalrous dildo that she asionally liked to use...


    ''Yea, I''m not the insane one here.'' Celeste nodded to herself.


    Joanne was halfway to the door before she heard movemente from behind her.


    "Don''t let her butter you up with smooches, Mom... Pretty sure she just learned that trick from watching me do the same thing to her dad."


    Joanne''s eyes lit up as she watched her daughter pick herself up from the ground slowly.


    Anna stood up shakily as if she were nursing a real foul hangover.


    "Sit down, kiddo. I''ll get you some water." Joanne urged.


    Anna normally would have waved off her mother''s concern, but that just wasn''t happening today. She felt like dog shit.


    She sat down on the nearest ottoman; not even bothering to question why their bed was partially a molten mess.


    "Will you let me give you a little once over?" Celeste suddenly offered.


    Anna slowly looked up at her and smiled half-heartedly.


    "Sure... could be fun seeing as how I don''t even remember myst doctor''s visit."


    Celeste rolled her eyes and reached inside of her bag.


    She pulled out a stethoscope and proceeded to listen to the sound of er heartbeat, and then her breathing.


    But when she moved to her back, she found something that was quite a bit different.


    "Umm.. Anna, could I get you to remove your shirt for just a minute?"


    "...You''re lucky I''m too tired to make a dirty joke." Anna pulled off her shirt as she was asked.


    Celeste gulped temporarily. She saw a lot of bodies, but none like Mchi and Anna''s.


    However, the biggest surprise were the two, hand-sized red wingsing out of her shoulder des.


    "I¡­ can you feel this?" Celeste gently brushed her fingers over one of Anna''s little wings.


    "I mean it''s not going to get my nipples hard or anything, but-"


    "Anna!"


    "Sorry, couldn''t hold that one in that time."


    Celeste rolled her eyes as Joanne retuned with a ss of water for her daughter.


    "Oh, so yours aren''t going back in either, huh?" She asked Anna.


    "I.. guess not." Anna tried a few times to dispel her wings like normal, but they just stayed on her body.


    A thought suddenly dawned on her and she stared at her mother with a look of horror. "I-I... I''m not going to grow a beak or anything like that, am I??"


    "You''ll still be my adorable little girl even if you do."


    "Ma, this is..." Anna''s eyes suddenly settled on a lock of her hair. It was moving around on it''s own.


    Suddenly, Anna noticed that the water in her ss was behaving simrly.


    As a matter of fact, just about everything in the room was beginning to defy gravity.


    "Mmmh... Why do I feel like I''ve been burned...? And why am Iying on the floor?"


    Luna slowly picked herself up from the floor and drunkenly stared at the room full of upants.


    "...Why is Anna''s shirt off?"


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 Chapter 336 Doctors Visit?

    Luna tried her best to stand up without supporting herself on the smoking bed.


    She struggled to get her bearings over the course of several moments, and most importantly, hold onto the contents of her stomach.


    But it was kind of hard. Something about the way the room was buzzing made her feel queasy, like she was pregnant all over again.


    "Feeling alright, love?" Joanne asked. "Cause, uhh¡­ pretty sure you''re doing a thing here." She gestured to the room.


    Luna finally noticed that the gravity in the room was practically non-existent. Cami was even trying to y with the globs of water floating out of Anna''s ss.


    It was as if they were on the surface of the moon.


    Bianca and Nadine emerged from the bathroom at the same time and both of them were nearly lifted off their feet.


    "Woah¡­ Who''s in here learning new tricks? I''m pretty sure none of us could do this befo- Hey, why is Anna''s shirt off?" Nadine raised a brow.


    Luna also wanted an answer to that.


    Celeste seemed exhausted. "I was just trying to give her a check up¡­ you should all sit down so that I can look over you as well."


    Anna: "I''m hungry."


    Joanne: "Me too actually.."


    "Your tummy troubles are duly noted. But please, sit down first." Celeste rolled her eyes.


    Luna, Joanne, and even Bianca sat down with Anna so that Celeste could take a better look at them.


    Was she jealous of their bodies? Absolutely.


    But that aside, she was also enamored with them from a purely educational standpoint.


    The girls were all sharing the same symptoms of dehydration across the board, but that was where the simrities stopped.


    Luna was almost violently hungover. Anna and Joanne were practically in caloric deficits.


    Bianca was somewhat hard to read. Her body temperature was elevated, but for all Celeste knew, this could simply be a new normal for the youngdy.


    "I rmend that you all take a sabbatical on running around and try to visit a hospital instead. You all need fluids and a more in-depth evaluation than anything I could provide you with here." She finally said.


    "Nughhh¡­ Outside bad.." Anna flopped backwards onto the bed with her breasts still uncovered.


    Luna just threw an unburned nket over her body.


    "Why are you acting like some kind of shut-in? I''m certain you have been outside since you moved here." Celeste poked her stomach.


    "Too tired for outside¡­ sleep until it gets dark¡­" Anna rolled onto her face.


    "But aren''t you hungry? They have food at the hospital." Celeste tried to coax Anna as if she were a big dog who needed to learn new tricks. Continue your journey with empire


    "Ugh, don''t want that¡­ Babeeee! Seiii!!" She called.


    Bianca, Joanne, Nadine, and Luna all pped her on the butt.


    "O! Why?!" She cried.


    "Don''t try to wake up our fianc¨¦ for things like that! You can feed yourself just fine at the hospital." Nadine scolded.


    "Wugghh¡­" Anna made another iprehensible groan and sat up. "Okay¡­ let''s go."


    The girls stood up and started to pull on some clothes to leave the house.


    Camille had been ced on the floor and given a toy to keep her upied. However, she only got to y with it for a few minutes at most before she found something much more interesting.


    "Ada! Bu!"


    *Yawn* "Good morning, munchkin. How long have we been asleep?"


    Excited, Anna gained a surprising burst of energy. She waddled over to the other side of the bed where her daughter was running to.


    She didnt wake Mal up this time, so it would be fine if she asked him to make her something to eat, right?


    "Babe! These guys are being dicks and they won''t... woof." Her jaw went ck.


    "Woof?" Mal and Sei tilted their heads.


    The rest of the rooms inhabitants dogpiled on top of one another to get a good look at thest pair to wake up.


    And they, unsurprisingly, had the same reaction as Anna.


    """"Woof...""""


    -


    Mchi analyzed himself in the mirror- not really understanding the girls'' reaction. He felt he looked like normal- albeit with his hair now mid-length instead of dangling below his thighs like before.


    Dark patterns like tiger stripes could be seen underneath his eyes, dropping down to his neck, and covered the full of his back- leaving the front of his body unmarred.


    Well... except for the nice new scar that he had running along his midriff. A gentle reminder of his encounter with the Sin of Wrath.


    Though healed, the area was still tender when he touched it. Like a not-so subtle reminder not to try that earlier foolishness again.


    Remembering the power he had experienced was almost enough to turn his stomach into knots.


    He was so far down the food chain that it was funny.


    Shaking off those thoughts, he turned to the woman at his side who seemed to have undergone the greatest change out of all of them.


    "I think that the girls should be more obsessed with you than me, my love." He whistled. "I mean this is¡­ Wow."


    Beside him, Sei could barely hear hispliments one way or another. She was more shocked than anyone.


    She touched her face slightly. Soft, porcin skin that was smoother than a baby''s bottom.


    Like Bianca, the dark brown dye in her hair had been pushed out. The ck hair that Mchi had only seen in baby pictures was now back in full- paired with a unnatural streak of dark grey.


    She had lost a small amount of weight after constantly overheating her body for two full days.


    Sei couldn''t take her eyes off herself in the mirror. It was almost like she couldn''t believe that what she was seeing was her.


    She was beautiful.


    But there was something else.


    "Honey... Could you shut the door for a moment so I can show you something?"


    Mchi did as she asked and shut the door quietly to block out the girls'' peeping gazes.


    As soon as it was closed, Sei started unbuttoning her night shirt.


    What lie underneath left Mchi so stunned that he felt like he''d been hit by a truck.


    "Sei... What... How...?" Mal wasn''t sure to ask first.


    Sei looked down at the tattoos on her body and gulped at such a dramatic transformation.


    "I-I''m pretty sure... These are everyone''s dreams."


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 337 Check-Up

    337 Check-Up


    Nightfall is now an officially recognized government organization- meaning that it''s members also have a host of facilities at their disposal.


    Instead of going to a local hospital, Mal and the girls decided to go to the med ward- since they figured it would put less strain on hospital workers who were no doubt already overloaded with blessed from all over the city.


    The group arrived at the facility, but somehow it seemed like the need for them to be there had already disappeared.


    The color had returned to their faces, there were no more lingering headaches or dizziness, and even their fatigue was gone.


    Which meant that they were of much more sound mind to appreciate certain changes within the group¡­


    "It''s really been forever since I wore one of these¡­ Are you sure that it''s really okay, Luna?"


    Sei climbed down out of a ck Escde and readjusted her clothing.


    "I insist." Luna smiled as she got out. "You look incredible."


    "Seconded..." Bianca wiped her nosebleed.


    ""THIRDED!"" Mchi and Anna yelled with unveiled lust.


    Sei blushed. "O-Okay, I get it-"


    "Not yet, but you sure can, sweetheart." Nadine licked her lips.


    "Amen to that¡­" Joanne pulled on a pair of sunsses so that no one could tell where she was staring.


    "Guys, please! The baby and Celeste are still here!"


    "Gaba."


    "Well it''s not good that you''ve heard worse, munchkin." Sei rubbed the bridge of her nose in exasperation.


    In the family''s defense, it was hard to me them for their infatuation.


    Sei wore a dark kimono that hung low to reveal more cleavage than she had ever shown in her entire life.


    Since none of her clothes quite fit anymore, this meant she had to borrow some from Luna and this was the delightful result.


    Sei had been acting as if she were flustered, but the truth was¡­ she was actually reveling in the attention. She just didn''t know how to handle it.


    As a woman in her 40s, Sei kind of felt that her best days were behind her physically.


    Not to say that she was insecure, because the people in her rtionship did quite a good job of making her feel desirable.


    But this was the first time ever that she had felt this lusted over. This craved.


    She felt like some kind of supermodel.


    She didn''t want to admit it, but she was just as excited to go home as any of them.


    The group parked their car in a very high tech underground garage.


    Several other vehicles were already here. Meaning that they likely weren''t the first of the new age beings to wake up today.


    They filed into the elevator where Anna scanned her retina to send them ascending to the fifth floor. The medbay resembled a short corridor with twenty beds on each of the opposing sides. A row ofrge ss windows stained the left side, while aboratory and simtor sat on the right. As soon as they stepped onto the floor, things were... rowdy. "Look, look! I can make these little gremlins appear when I concentrate real hard!"


    "Don''t concentrate too hard again. You fartedst time."


    "Gods, I miss when we were working with just women..."


    "Can none of you overgrown children sit down for longer than a minute while we wait for thisb work to finish?"


    Cami wiggled out of Sei''s grasped and teleported to the middle of the room.


    "Bau!"


    The energy went from rowdy and chaotic toplete order in seconds.


    "It''s the big boss!"


    "Attention!"


    Everyone gave Cami the crispest salutes possible and she gave her own clumsy one back.


    "What a grand wee."


    Camille''s parents were actually noticedst, and of course the crowd looked much less happy to see them.


    "You know we have to roll out the red carpet for our most important government official, boss." Nina smiled. "Where would we be without her cuteness to give us something to fight for?"


    Mchi felt like he could literally see his daughter''s head swelling as she puffed out her chest with pride.


    "Good to know I''ll have someone to me for when she inevitably gets too full of herself when she''s older." He chuckled.


    Cami looked at her father and pouted.


    Theb doors hissed open and a fair-skinned man with a dark brownb over emerged from the chilly room.


    His white coat was impably clean, yet as wrinkled as his shirt underneath.


    He could always be seen chewing on the cap of a pen- perhaps out of nervousness or more likely some sort of nervous twitch.


    He spoke with an English ent that even the apocalypse hadn''t been able to take away from him.


    His deep green eyes looked up from theb papers in his hand and they settled on the new but familiar faces in his facility.


    "Ah, it''s the Third. I was wondering when you were going to pop up around here looking for someone to stitch you up."


    Mchi nced around the room behind his sunsses. "Seems you''ve got quite a few new hands for it, Doctor Wells."


    Mchi''s focus was on the dozens of white cloaked individuals whom he was highly unfamiliar with.


    "Hired hands for help dealing with this new phenomena that seem to be taking ce in all of you. At least until you bring me that new nurse you promised me." Dr. Wells shrugged.


    "Oh, right. Well, look no further." Mchi ced his hand on the lower back of Celeste.


    "This is..?"


    "J-Just a friend of the family." Celeste said quickly. "It''s very nice to meet you, Doctor."


    Dr. Wells, and just about everyone else in the new world, was well aware of Mchi''s attraction to women twice his age.


    If he had''ve said that Celeste was the woman who he was currently pursuing, no one here would have even batted an eye. "I see... Nice to meet you then, Family Friend." The Doctor shook her hand. "I wasn''t exactly prepared for a wee wagon today, but if you''ll wait in my office then I''ll be with you shortly."


    "dly." Celeste smiled innocently; masking her inner displeasure known as she discreetly pressed the back of her heel into Mchi''s foot.


    He smiled and sent her a telepathic message as they broke contact. ''Need help getting settled in, then you know where to find me.''


    Celeste discreetly flipped him off as she walked away; grateful beyond belief that he couldn''t see the growing red in her cheeks.


    She tried her best to walk away quickly, and ignore the not one, but seven different gazes she could feel firmly affixed to her bottom.


    "I''m assuming you''re here to get yourself looked over, Third? Or maybe you''re finally going to tell us all why every blessed from here to kingdome has gone down with a nasty case of the flu." The doctor asked.


    Everyone stared at the young man curiously like they were also curious about what happened to them.


    After all, Nadine had already had promised Arias'' people to give an answer when the time was right. It was the only way to prevent aplete and total societal panic.


    Now, it was time to give his people a suitable answer. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Well, the thing is¡­"


    The hairs on the back of Mchi''s neck stood up and a giant tear appeared in the middle of the room.


    An immense pressure poured out from the gash, and a creature from the darkest depths of hell came walking out of it.


    But there was a familiar face seated on top of the great beast.


    Wearing a modest, but no doubt extravagant tiara, Serana flipped off the room full of panic stricken humans.


    "My dear subjects, your princess has retur-"


    "Easy everybody, it''s just Serana." Someone said.


    "Ohe on, I can''t have shit around here! Earth fucking sucks!" The pink haired girl yelled.


    I promise Celeste finna give in soon y¡¯all just be patient.

 Chapter 338 A WTF Kind of Power

    338 A WTF Kind of Power


    "Hi, sweetie! You look so pretty!"


    Serana looked down from her hellish mount for the source of that oh-so sweet and familiar voice.


    She found a woman whom she definitely didn''t recognize waving at her happily.


    It seemed like the slightest movement was going to be enough to cause the breasts that subsisted her in infancy to spill out in front of everyone.


    But none of that was as concerning to Serana as¡­


    "All the shit you gave me for getting my bellybutton pierced and you turned yourself into a chipotle bag the minute that I wasn''t looking?? It''s only been two days for you, woman!"


    Sei huffed. "Y-You know I didn''t do this to myself, I hate needles! It''s apart of my power now I guess!"


    "Your new gics came with a boob job and liposuction?!"


    "S-Stopmenting on my body, I didn''t raise you like that! You could have at least said something about my hair first!"


    "Well your hair wasn''t really that surprising, Mama. I mean isn''t it time for you to start getting a little bit of¡­ gray?" Serana''s voice only became smaller and smaller as she looked at her mother''s face.


    She knew that she was wrong. She knew that she should stop herself.


    And yet her words just kepting like a tidal wave. She was absolutely powerless to stop them.


    Sei''s face turned so red that it mirrored a ripe cherry.


    "Y-You.. you¡­!"


    Sei''s hand unconsciously went to her arm and her eyes took on an odd silver glow.


    She made a throwing gesture and ''something'' left her body and traveled through the air.


    The most unbelievable thing in the world happened.


    A very familiar man who was well known in American history appeared flying through the air. In his hand he held an equally familiar bag of cheesy torti chips.


    He spoke in a deep southern dialect that would have been instantly recognizable to anyone who made it through elementary level history.


    "I had a dream¡­ that one day little pink haired Japanese girls wouldn''t give their mothers so much SASS!" *Whap!*


    "Oww!"


    The apparition swatted Serana over the head with his bag of chips.


    He then flipped through the air andnded in front of the crowd of ck jawed men and women.


    As he stood up, it was 100% clear who this was supposed to be. Everything from the voice, to the appearance, to the natural cadence was all perfect.


    "I also have a dream¡­ that one day we will all eat freely from the bag of prosperity, as one people underneath almighty God."


    The apparition held out his bag of chips for the room to share, but needless to say, everyone was too stunned to take them.


    Their jaws were wide open. Their faces aghast.


    The only one who didn''t know what had just happened was Nadine. She wasn''t even originally from this.


    A moment of true togetherness was indeed created when everyone in the medbay turned to stare at Sei like she''d just¡­ well, like she''d just resurrected a famous civil rights hero to chastise her daughter.


    Mchi slowly turned around like a revolving door. He even took off his sunsses.


    "Baby¡­ How did you just do that?"


    Sei''s face went from red with anger to pink with embarrassment. "R-Reflex..?"


    "I don''t think that answers my question for real¡­"


    Sei only looked increasingly more embarrassed. "I-I told you, my tattoos are dreams. I guess I can store them in my skin and¡­ pull them out when I need them??"


    "Well who the hell had a dream about MLK wielding a bag of Doritos?!" Serana asked as she rubbed her head.


    Sei turned to stare at Joanne, who was desperately trying to hide herself behind the cover of herrge white wings.


    She could feel her family''s gazes boring into her feathers like drills.


    "¡­You guys know I like the history channel." She said quietly without revealing her face. "And I get really snack-ishte at night¡­ so stop staring at me." n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The Saint family continued to keep their gaze on her for a couple of more seconds before inevitably turning back to the bigger problem at hand, which was Sei.


    Luna paid more attention to the artwork adorning her chest.


    She hadn''t really noticed at first, but now that she was taking her time¡­ there was no mistaking it.


    "This is mine¡­ I had a dream I was in a field of spider lilies on the moon." She said in wonder.


    Sei nodded, a faint smile hinging on her lips.


    Dr. Wells especially would pick that apart in less than an hour.


    19:07


    It wasn''t worth the trouble. Nor was it a good way to build trust among his team.


    "So¡­ Everytime that we go to sleep now you''re going to steal our dreams and wear them on your body?" Bianca asked in genuine curiosity.


    "I¡­ I honestly do not know." Sei shrugged.


    Everything that she knew and had done so far was purely instinctual. She would need time, and a lot of it, to fully understand everything that she could do and if she had any limitations at all.


    "Fret not, Mrs. Saint." Dr. Wells began filling out a new patient chart. "We''ll sort out everything going on with each of you as quickly as we can."


    He finished writing something down and turned to Mchi.


    "But first, we''re going to need that backstory you''re holding on to. All of this¡­ it''s leaving the boundaries of what I can realistically exin with science."


    "And where the hell did Serana get that murder horsey from?!" Another member asked.


    "His name is Bagheera! Ain''t he precious?" Serana gushed.


    "If that thinges near me I''m going to turn my pants into a chocte fountain!"


    "Aw."


    The time had finally arrived.


    Mchi reyed this moment over and over again in the car.


    There wasn''t really a good way to tell a part of the truth. He had to either tell these people everything, or give them a story rife with holes.


    Dr. Wells especially would pick that apart in less than an hour.


    It wasn''t worth the trouble. Nor was it a good way to build trust among his team.


    So he had to be honest.


    "For starters¡­ the gods are gone. And they aren''t going to be able to y games with our lives anymore. It''s funny, I don''t even know where I should begin." Heughed dryly.


    "But I guess I should start with¡­ the day I found an egg inside a dungeon."


    By pure coincidence, it just so happened that at the moment Mchi was exining everything that had happened on his end, the gods were finally convening to address the fact that their favorite means of pastime had been suddenly ripped away from them.


    And unsurprisingly, they were¡­ less than pleased.


    Christmas is finally about to be here and over and my wallet could not be more happy AnathaShesha


    Creator''s Thought

 Chapter 339 The Dismay of The Gods

    339 The Dismay of The Gods


    "The nerve of him! To just make such an announcement and now hide his hands! Where has the heavenly faction fled?!"


    Everyone was pretty much saying the same thing within the hallowed colosseum of the gods.


    Why is the game over?


    The notification came swiftly and without warning.


    Every deity participating in the contest received a floating ledger from the White City, informing them that effective immediately, the game was done.


    Not only that, but any travel to earth was expressly forbidden for the foreseeable future. A barrier had even been erected to keep them out.


    The reason this was all possible was through a rule as old as time.


    As the body with the greatest influence on earth, the Judeo-Christian Pantheon of the Bible is allowed to make certain decisions without consulting the other governing bodies.


    And there was nothing that any of them could do about it- since they couldn''t even get God''s ear in the first ce.


    Michael and his siblings did their damndest to keep their home ''problem free''.


    No one would dare go there toin, or risk ending up on the business end of a ming sword.


    So this entire thing was nothing more than everyone collectively airing out their frustration over a decision that was never going to be reversed.


    And Nyx was reveling in their ire.


    She sat on her throne with a small smile that seemed permanently affixed to her face.


    "You had something to do with this. Didn''t you?"


    Nyx looked down the row of seats and found Hemera staring at her.


    Her cheeks were flushed with anger and a not so small amount of murderous desire.


    "I''m sure I don''t know what you mean, Goldilocks." Nyx snickered to herself.


    Her voice''s usual sing-song mocking tone was irrevocably grating on her golden daughter''s nerves.


    But Hemera was still trying not to tip her hand.


    "Whatever you did¡­ undo it."


    Nyx yfully rolled her new ne around between her fingers. "Tempting¡­ but no. You and everyone else here are just going to have to find some other way to cope with your boredom, dear."


    Hemera scraped her nails against her armrest. "You can''t do this¡­ some of us have ties there too."


    Nyx finally met her daughter''s gaze and her eyes were colder than Jotunheim in the winter.


    "Perhaps you all should have thought about those ties more¡­ back when you were content to let your brother be hunted like an animal."


    Hemera couldn''t stomach any more of this. Her psyche just couldn''t take it.


    Her mother''s gloating had bested her. And reminded her yet again that the two were permanently at odds with one another.


    But just this once, she had wanted to best her.


    Nyx reclined and watched the rest of the madness unfold below; immensely satisfied and relieved.


    But also¡­ just a little bit guilty too.


    But she had no idea why, and honestly, she was content to put this whole nasty feeling behind her.


    -


    Mchi peeled off his shirt and stared at himself in the mirror. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    He paid close attention to his forehead, where he was searching for some sort of mark or indent. Something out of ce.


    However, there was nothing.


    When the girls told him he showed up with a horn stuck in his head, he didn''t even remember what they were talking about.


    Satan had moved so fast when he stabbed him that Mchi never even registered it.


    Apparently Nyx told Nadine not to take the horn out and let his body ''digest'' it.


    Which really begged the question. What was the use in absorbing a few billion years old demon horn?


    Now he was beginning to wonder if that was the reason for these new marks on his body as well.


    He pulled off his shirt and turned around so that he could stare at his back.


    Just as he saw this morning, they were still there.


    Beginning at his neck, a series of tiger stripes ran all the way down his entire back.


    ''Might need to go home for a minute and ask some questions¡­'' He thought. ''I also wanna know where those two ran off to¡­''


    He started to pull his shirt back on when the door to the bathroom suddenly opened and Joanne rushed inside.


    She locked the door behind her and leaned against the door with a flushed, slightly exhausted look.


    "Something on your mind, babe?" Mal smiled.


    "Do you realize just how many horny adults we employ?"


    Mchi kind of tensed up and stared at her awkwardly. "I mean¡­ I didn''t exactly put that on the application forms, so-"


    "T-That''s not what I mean.."


    Joanne threw herself into her fianc¨¦''s arms and wrapped her wings around the two of them. It seemed like she was trying to iste them from the whole world.


    "I don''t know what''s going on, but it''s like I can hear what everyone is thinking. And all of it seems to be focused on the act of reproduction." She gagged.


    Mchi smiled as he inhaled the scent of her hair.


    "Everyone has a lot more energy now, and you know how human beings are wired¡­ their baser urges are starting to take over."


    "Yea, well if they keep taking over the bunks upstairs are going to need a mop. So you might want to tell your outfit of preteens to keep it in their pants."


    "I''ll be sure to get the message out." Mchiughed as he kissed her on the cheek and held her tightly.


    "How are you feeling..? What''d the Doc say?" He asked.


    Joanne was the first person to get a checkup with Doctor Wells so that he could see what her new body was capable of.


    Needless to say, some form of telepathy seemed to be on the list.


    "Well¡­ Apparently I am producing some sort of extra strength growth hormone now to erge my wings whenever I want¡­ Anna is probably doing the same." She shrugged.


    "Cool."


    "My metabolism is also up¡­ by like a lot."


    Mchi raised a brow. "How much is a lot..?"


    Joanne looked embarrassed. "He''s still running estimates, but¡­ I need somewhere around 60,000 calories every seven hours..?"


    Mchi''s jaw fell open.


    "S-So on that note.. you mind if we go grocery shopping after this?" She asked with an embarrassed smile.


    Somehow, Mchi felt like his life with his fianc¨¦s was only going to see more defining changes before the day was even over.

 Chapter 340 Serosh?

    340 Serosh?


    Mchi took a deep breath as he basked in the cool air of the room.


    Even before opening his eyes, he felt as if he could feel the energy in the room. Sense the energy coursing through the walls on a grander scale than before.


    He could picture each electrical pathway in the entire building. Not just inorganic material either. He could feel the minor electrical activity running through the nervous system of every person here.


    Thinking about it''s practical applications made Mal feel a bit like a superviin.


    "You can begin whenever you''re ready, Mr. Saint."


    Mchi was too deep in his thoughts to properly pay attention to the Doctor''s voice over the loudspeaker.


    Dr Wells is what is famously known as a ''dick''.


    Even though he could see that Mchi wasn''t necessarily ready, he pressed the button to begin the simtion anyway.


    Mchi felt a gust of wind pass over him.


    He finally opened his eyes and pulled on his signature dark sses.


    "Alright, Doc. I''m ready."


    Mchi waited and waited, but the doctor didn''t say anything.


    "..Doc?" He called.


    "You''re fucking with me, right?"


    Mchi nced over to the observation room with his arms crossed.


    He found Doctor Wells and his fianc¨¦s staring back at him. All looking like they''d just seen a full grown hog shit out a pulled pork sandwich.


    "Y''all look pretty amazed. I look that good?" He smiled.


    ""Yes."" Anna and Nadine held up their thumbs.


    "But that''s not why we''re staring." Sei said- trying to convince herself as much as him.


    "Babe, you just-" Joanne began. B


    "Initiate yback." Bianca said.


    A holographic screen appeared in front of Mchi''s face.


    There, he saw a recording of himself surrounded by a dozen hardlight constructs in the shape of lizard men.


    He watched himself move much faster and more precisely than he ever had before. He used martial arts he was sure he didn''t know and moved in ways that he had probably only seen in anime before now. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Mchi generally tried not to have too high an opinion of himself, but right now that was looking pretty difficult.


    "I¡­ did all that?"


    "You don''t remember it??" Joanne asked.


    "No." He shrugged. "I didn''t even feel myself do anything."


    That was the strangest part about all of this. Mchi felt like he had just barely woken up and everything was already done.


    This went far beyond traditional sleepwalking or natural reflexes.


    "Do you, uh, want another test..?" The Doctor asked.


    "I think I kind of need one.." Mchi looked down at his hands. "Haven''t really felt myself doing anything different.."


    Before the doctor could reboot the simtor, one of the girls suddenly took over the console with a question of her own.


    "Can you call out any of the little ones, honey? How are they faring in there?" Luna suddenly asked.


    "¡­Ah."


    Mchi suddenly felt a terrible pet owner. Of course his animalistic children should have been one of the first things he checked on. Especially since he/they were injured before he went into aa.


    He sifted through his mind for their familiar faces.


    Something heeded his probing and crawled out of the darkness at his feet.


    It was arge ck tiger, easily twice the size of an adult man. It''s tail was a frightening serpent nearly half the length of its full body.


    Dark feathery wings were nearly enough to envelop Mchi entirely. A strange golden mask with demonic markings covered the top half of it''s face.


    The creature stared back at Mchi with violet eyes full of intelligence and regality.


    ¡­And possibly a little bit of lethargy.


    It bellowed out a roar crossed with a yawn and tossed itself on the floor like dirtyundry.


    "¡­"


    Mchi took his sses off, cleaned them with his shirt, and then put them back on again.


    He then took them back off, and then rubbed his eyes to really make sure that there were no issues with his sight.


    Once he was certain of his 20/20 vision, he leaned down and poked the creature in the muzzle a few times.


    The creature opened its eyes slowly and kind of waived at Mchi with its paw.


    "Too tired for words then, buddy?" Mchi kneeled down so that he and the creature were at eye level. "Guess you must be Serosh then."


    Instead of poking, he reached out to pet the seemingly harmless creature.


    At the minute he ran his fingers through his fur, he realized that his intitial observation may have been the tiniest bit incorrect.


    "All of you are in there, aren''t you..?"


    The beast opened a tired eye and stared at Mchi.


    "It''s been a very strange day¡­" Serosh replied sleepily.


    Mchi began to feel like that was an understatement.


    "Where''s my Ajani? Is she well?" Mchi grimaced.


    He remembered what it was like to have two of his tails cut off by Satan in their spar.


    It had cause him a dastardly amount of difort, so he knew it couldn''t have tickled for her either.


    Serosh just nodded and rolled over when asked about her. "Resting¡­e outter."


    "¡­" Mchi had a sneaking suspicion that spending so much time with Anna had rubbed off on Serosh in more ways than one.


    "Third. You have a visitor." The Doctor suddenly announced.


    Mchi looked towards the sliding doors where he saw two familiar faces striding through the door.


    At first nce, he felt like he was seeing strangers.


    He had no real exnation as for why, other than maybe their clothes were a little bit different.


    "Hey! Where you two lovebirds be¡­"


    Mchi finally saw them.


    Two of the sparkliest, most out of this world rings that he had ever seen sat on both of their fingers.


    It wouldn''t at all be an understatement to say that they were priceless.


    Mchi couldn''t help but smile.


    "I really gotta hurry up and finalize my wedding ns. Now that you two are right behind me, that is."


    Aisha let a small tear run from her eye. "How you feel about being a best man?"


    "You thought I would let you pick somebody else over me? C''mon, you know me better than that." Mchi dismissed.


    Aisha finally couldn''t take anymore and she tightly embraced the only brother she had ever known. He hugged her back just as tightly.


    Both of them were absolutely going to deny this moment ever happenedter.


    "I''m afraid we''ve got just a little bit more news than that¡­"


    Mchi looked up at his sister. In an instant, he saw the silhouette of a gentle, but frantic little girl who was too adorable for words. It felt like she had grown up all at once somehow.


    "Oh yeah? What''s that?" He smiled while trying to hold back his own feelings of nostalgia.


    "I¡­ well¡­" Aubrey shuffled about awkwardly with her hand on her stomach. "L-Let''s just say¡­ we might not be drinking when I turn 21 in a couple of months?"


    Mchi''s vision flickered.


    His brain struggled to keep up with the current scenario. No, it couldn''t keep up.


    The room began to spin. He had a hard time putting together strings of words.


    The next thing he knew, his vision was cutting out and he was hearing familiar voices cry out in panic.


    "He''s going down!!"


    "Catch him, catch him!!"


    -


    Celeste was in another corner of the base filing out paperwork for her new position.


    For an agency that was just starting to get on it''s feet, they sure were being thorough about all of their qualifications.


    She was nearly finished when she heard a knock from behind her and an unfamiliar face walked in.


    "Excuse me, ma''am¡­ I was wondering if I could have a moment of your time?"


    had a coworker tell me today that he strict with his wife because he knows she¡¯s easy¡­ I think it¡¯s time to request a transfer AnathaShesha


    Creator''s Thought

 Chapter 341 This Isn’t a Date

    341 This Isn¡¯t a Date


    - Four Days Later¡­


    If there was one thing Celeste didn''t know if she would ever get used to, it was the buzzing of New York.


    It didn''t seem to matter what time of day it was, there always seemed to be a natural energy to the streets that was dangerously infectious.


    If this was the so called ''big city living'' that she had always heard about, she could understand why everyone was such a fan.


    Celeste paid the cab driver and then took a deep breath before heading towards the man waiting for her.


    "Wow¡­ You look amazing..!"


    Celeste smiled politely. "Thank you, Joe. I wasn''t sure if this old dress of mine would even still fit.."


    The man waiting outside for her was a decidedly neat, clean-cut and objectively handsome individual.


    Joseph Kent is a colleague of Celeste and a fellow member of nightfall. He is warmly referred to as ''Superman'' by his co-workers due to his likeable personality and resemnce to a certainic book character.


    Though he does not have the sses to match.


    "Is everyone else already inside?" She asked.


    "Should be, since the group does take these weing parties pretty seriously."


    Celeste almost felt nervous. It had been a long time since she actually got to do something normal like a group dinner.


    Granted this steakhouse was a lot more fancy than she was expecting¡­ but it would still be fun. And it would help take her mind off of the fact that she was going home to an empty apartment.


    It''s funny, after living at the nightfall base for over a year, she hade to rely on that feeling ofmunity more than she initially realized.


    The two of them entered the restaurant together and endured a few minute wait.


    They made polite small talk about the weather, what it meant to go to a restaurant with Michn stars and the like.


    But when they were shown to their table, Celeste immediately noticed a problem.


    "No one else is here?"


    Oddly enough, Joe looked just as surprised as she did.


    He pulled out his phone and checked his messages and quickly found an answer. "Seems like everyone''s running a bitte¡­ Should we just start enjoying ourselves without them?"


    For some reason, Celeste was slightly ufortable with that idea.


    But she couldn''t exactly put her finger on why no matter how long she thought about it.


    "I guess that makes the most sense, doesn''t it..?" She smiled nervously.


    Together, the two of them sat down and started looking over the menu. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    As Celeste was beginning to feel a bit more conscious of the scenario, she nned to order some wine to help mitigate her anxiety.


    That is, until she saw the prices.


    "This is¡­ definitely something that I did not miss about civilization." She said.


    "Ah, don''t worry about a thing." Joe smiled. "Since you''re the newbie, I couldn''t in good conscience let youe out of pocket for this."


    Now, Celeste was beginning to feel doubly ufortable.


    "Well that wouldn''t be proper, would it? That''d feel a bit too much like a date." Sheughed nervously.


    Joesph scratched the back of his head. "I mean, we''re both single adults, right? A date might not be too far out of line¡­ unless I''m overstepping and you already have someone?"


    Celeste felt a knot in her stomach growing.


    A face kept appearing in her mind no matter how much she tried to push it out.


    And she was beginning to understand what the source of this unease had been.


    She absentmindedly traced her finger over the menu in front of her as her eyes took on a glossy look.


    "I¡­ that is the million dor question, isn''t it?" She smiled hopelessly.


    Joe double checked her hands to make sure that there was no wedding ring present.


    Since she didn''t wear one, he assumed again that things must not''ve been going well.


    He decided to push his luck- if only just a little bit.


    "Well I¡­ I can''t imagine that any man would want to leave things in a gray area with a woman like you. He must not be very sure of what he wants."


    Celeste grimaced slightly. Joe realized that he might''ve made a mistake.


    "Or are you the one who doesn''t know what they want?"


    Celeste''s grimace turned to a helpless smile as she prayed that the water in her ss would turn to hard liquor.


    Maybe this conversation would have been easier if it did.


    "I¡­ want a man to be kind to me. I want him to be responsible, respectful¡­ patient with not only me but also others around him. I want him to sing to me softly under moonlight and make me feel loved down to my very bones.."


    "I see¡­ And the man you were seeing isn''t like that?"


    Celeste rested her elbows on the table and held her chin.


    "No, he is exactly like that¡­ but there are some extenuating circumstances that make me feel as though a future with him may not be an attainable thing."


    The more he heard, the more Joe began to develop a certain picture of the man Celeste may have been alluding to.


    "I''m sorry¡­ but is the man you''re talking about-"


    "Sorry we''rete!!"


    Six of Celeste and Joe''s co-workers came running up to their table; equally frazzled and apologetic.


    "Hope we didn''t keep you two waiting long!"


    "This traffic is murder nowadays¡­ it''s like everyone has forgotten how to drive."


    Celeste''s mood showed an instant improvement. If she released a sigh of relief at that moment it would have been so powerful that it blew away all the tableware.


    "You guys are just in time. I was really starving over here." She smiled.


    -


    Despite iming to be hungry, Celeste didn''t actually eat much of anything.


    She slogged her way through both her meal and the conversation. Neither of which was particrly appealing to her on this night.


    Too much of the prior conversation had been about her rtionship status to just move on from it.


    Now she was thinking about silly things that she just didn''t have the space in her mind for.


    Honestly¡­ she just wanted everyone to choke down their desserts so that she could go home quicker.


    When the time finally came, she couldn''t get out of her seat fast enough.


    She paid, and practically bolted out of the door before anyone, especially Joe, could call out to her.


    As the cool night air enveloped her body, she was faced once again with the dilemma of how to get home.


    She honestly should have called a ride several minutes ago, but again, the wine had gotten the best of her.


    She really didn''t want to stand out here in the cold while waiting for a car.


    As she pulled out her phone, she saw a very familiar ck Escde roll to a stop right in front of the restaurant.


    To make matters even more infuriating¡­ she felt her heart speed up dramatically as soon as she saw it.


    This feeling only got worse as the window slowly rolled down and a face she knew all too well smiled back at her.


    For some reason, she didn''t even make him say anything.


    She opened the car door, and got inside before he could even hold his hand out.


    "What took you so long?"


    I¡¯ve never felt the urge to gatekeep until solo leveling started popping off because I remember reading ts during lockdown and my friends called me a dork AnathaShesha


    Creator''s Thought

 Chapter 342 Need

    342 Need


    Celeste didn''t ask Mchi where they were going.


    Rather, she enjoyed the ride in the car and watched the city go by through the tinted windows.


    "I gotta admit, I''m pretty surprised."


    "Hm..?"


    Celeste met Mchi''s eyes again and was immediately reminded why she had decided to stare out the window in the first ce. From the very moment she caught sight of Mchi, she felt her breath get caught in her throat. The memories of everything she had confessed over dinner were alreadying back to haunt her. "I thought you would have been asking a lot more questions. ''How did you know where I was'' for one." Mal said. Celeste smiled as she dipped her gaze. That indeedshould have been something she asked him, but the thought kind of slipped her mind back at the restaurant.


    "I was just eager to get out of there... but now that you mention it, howdid you know where I was,Cat-Boy? Is peeping through the shadows at older women apart of how your mother envisioned using the powers she gave you?"


    Mchi almost said ''Probably. Have you met her?'' However, there was a more pressing issue here.


    "Cat-Boy?" He raised a brow.


    "You know what I''m talking about." Celeste chuckled as she pulled off her heels.


    Mchi would''ve blushed if he were just a couple shades lighter. "That was one time and you haven''t let it go since."


    Celeste adjusted herself in her seat and stared at Mchi again. The drunken look in her eye was getting harder to overlook.


    "Do the thing."


    "Celeste." Mal rolled his eyes.


    "For me..?" Celeste made her eyes unnecessarily big. Mchi sighed. He had a hard time saying no when women looked at him like this.


    Celeste watched in glee as two dark, furry cat ears showed up on top of Mchi''s head.


    *Incoherent squealing* "So adorableeee..!!"


    "Yea, yea.."


    Mchi had to put up with Celeste''s drunken fondling as he drove- which was admittedly a lot harder than it looked.


    Celeste took her time rubbing his ears until they rolled to a stoplight. She gently ced her hand on his cheek and stared at him with a look that was far more unique than any she had given him before.


    "Aww, don''t look so glum, young man. I''ll make your sacrifice worth your wile."


    For the first time ever, Celeste kissed Mchi first. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    It was an act that undoubtedly surprised him, but he didnt let his shock trante through his lips. He was very active in kissing her back, and savoring the sweet taste of white wine on her lips. She practically came undone within his grasp. They spent so long there that the background melted out of view and the two were only aware of the fact that they were in a dangerously cramped space with too many clothes on. *Honk!!*


    The reality that they were in the middle of traffic came crashing back into them. They pulled apart with a jolt. Celeste breathed somewhat heavily as she realized the gravity of what she''d just done. Maybe that wine she''d had at dinner had a bigger impact on her mental capacity than she thought.


    "I, um... Think that I need to get some air somewhere.. Do you mind?." Celeste said breathlessly.


    Mchi nodded absentmindedly as he started driving again. The cat ears on top of his head were no longer the only bodily protrusions he was painfully aware of.


    "N-Nah, of course not. I know just the ce."


    -


    Walking through Central Park at night was way more exciting than Celeste thought it would be. But then again, that was probably because of who she was with. Themp posts lighting the concrete walkways were being blotted of their light to make a much more magical scene. Glowing purple animals made from shadow scampered across the park in various directions.


    They took the shape of squirrels,rge bullfrogs, cats, roons, birds, and generally every other small animal one mightmonly see in North America. Celeste was rightly amazed. "How are you doing this..? You''ve brought them to life..."


    Mchi kind of just shrugged. He maintained a steady hold on Celeste as he carried her on his back- her shoes still left behind in the car.


    "I always liked the zoo as a kid. Guess that makes it easier? The shadows, they''re just mimicking the behaviors of the animals I have in my memory. They''re not actually alive."


    Celeste could tell that Mal was intentionally trying to make the things he was doing seem less impressive, but it definitely wasn''t working as well as he thought.


    "So... Are you like a god now?" Celeste asked honestly.


    Mchi honestly wanted to cackle. He had seen many gods now. Felt real, true power. Calling himself a god in light of all that he knew kind of felt overindulgent in a way that he just wasn''tfortable with.


    "Nah... still just a demigod if anything. I wouldn''t say someone could put me toe-to-toe with Zeus or his brothers yet." Mchi chuckled.


    He could probably fuck up a minor god though if he really put his mind to it. But at the end of the day, gods still had ess to powers that he didn''t have. Such as the utilization of faith, prayer, and some other things.


    "I see..." Celeste said thoughtfully.


    Mchi looked over his shoulder at her. "You sound a bit disappointed. Would you like me more if I was a god?"


    Celeste hid a smirk as she stared into theke. "I guess we''ll never know now, will we?"


    The pair basked in silence. They enjoyed the feeling of the night air and each other''s warmth and scent in this moment. This was easily the mostfortable Celeste had been all night. And once she realized that, she remembered how problematic this whole thing was.


    Mal didn''t even look phased. "Oh, yea? Howe?"


    "I don''t like you."


    "Could''ve fooled me with everything you said back at the restaurant."


    Celeste felt a vein push against her forehead. "I don''t like men who spy on me."


    "Noted. I''ll remember that forter." Mchi kept walking.


    Celeste resisted the urge to strangle him with his own dreads. "There, you see! That right there! I hate how you''re so cocky sometimes and you act like Ineed you. I don''t."


    "Of course you don''t. Nobody necessarily needs anybody. But I know you like the idea of me at least."


    Celeste''s anger petered out. She rested her head on Mchi''s shoulder as he continued their walk through the park. She then became mad at him all over again for being right.


    "...So what if I do? Every adult over thirty-five has drams of ying around with a hot 22-year old.But it''s just a thought. A fantasy without any substance¡­ And you already have too much going on for us to work."


    "Because..?"


    "Because you''re in a polyamorous rtionship, you brat..." She pinched his neck. "Honestly, it seems overstimting and I''m not sure how you even do it." Celeste admitted.


    Mchi hummed slightly to a tune in his mind that only he knew. "You''ve got more to say, I know it. Keep going."


    Celeste bit her lip unconsciously. "...I don''t want to feel like some conquest. Like some nice watch you wear to make other men envious or put out some kind of status symbol. I don''t want my rtionship to be a spectacle."


    Mchi nodded as he watched two squirrels fall out of a tree near them. "And?"


    "... And I think I am afraid to take a chance with you. I don''t have time for games, I''m too old for heartbreaks and jealousy, and I don''t want to be with anyone who doesn''t make me feel like the most important person in their life." Celeste exhaled deeply. It was done. She had said it all. This would surely finalize things between them.


    "Got it all out?" Mchi asked. Celeste nodded.


    The duo arrived at a park bench together. Mchi helped her sit down and slid into the spot beside her.


    Despite everything that she had said, she still ended up worming her war underneath his arm.


    Mchi thought for a long time about what to say. But at a certain point he decided to just turn his mind off and speak honestly.


    "I honestly never pictured my life like this.


    My parents are ghosts. I got an extra mom who just happens to be one of the most powerful goddesses of all time. I have super powers. I work what''s basically a government job. I never finished- Holy shit, I never finished college." Mchi realized. "Mal."


    "Right, right, sorry." he shook his head. "Anyway... Out of everything I have, none of it has ever made me feel luckier than my rtionship. Maybe it was wrong of me. Maybe I was greedy.


    But I found myself being around these wonderful women in a time where my life was changing so fast everyday, and they kept me grounded.


    They helped block out all the noise and kept me from going insane or bing someone I''d hate.


    And yea, as the number of bodies in my bed increased, I was lucky enough to watch the women I loved fall in love with each other while still retaining their love for me.


    I don''t really expect you to get that right now because it''s the kind of thing you have to feel to understand.


    But my fianc¨¦s and I.. we all have a daughter together now.


    This family that we built together is unconventional, and hectic, and beautiful, and loud, and passionate, and trying, but I wouldn''t change anything about it because it is the best thing I have ever done.


    But I have neverpromised on anything that the girls have needed from me. I wouldn''t ask you topromise on what you need either."


    Mchi took Celeste''s face in hi hands and now the dropping temperature felt like a figure of her imagination.


    "I am not pursuing you out of vanity. I am not pursuing you because I think you''re something to be conquered.


    I''m doing it because the first time we spoke you pulled me out of my own head in a way that only you could. And I haven''t been able to get you out of my mind since."


    Celeste looked more embarrassed the closer Mal got.


    He didn''t know why, but he rested his forehead against hers and closed his eyes.


    "If there is any small part of you that is willing to take a chance on me- on my ability to make you happy and give you everything you want- then I want to make you an offer¡­"


    I¡¯ve been having a real inferiorityplex about my writingtely so shout out to my fairy god brother for helping me not kill myself from shame AnathaShesha


    Creator''s Thought


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 343 House Guest

    343 House Guest


    The elevator door dinged and Mchi stepped into his apartment with Celeste trailing slowly behind him.


    Somehow, holding his hand right now felt too bold of her. She had tried to let it go several times already, but Mal was still holding her firm.


    Entering the house, they found Joanne and Sei at the bar looking rather close to each other.


    The two were holding hands and giggling together over now-empty sses of wine.


    They looked up at the duo as they entered and met their arrival with a warm smile.


    "We were wondering where you went when you stepped out so suddenly¡­" Joanne smirked as she dragged her eyes over the woman hiding behind her fianc¨¦. "Hello, Celeste. Nice dress."


    Her cheeks turned a deep scarlet. "T-Thank you.."


    Somehow, thatpliment felt like it wasden with suggestive undertones that made her slightly anxious.


    That gaze, and that slight drawl on her words¡­ she was almost of the same type as Mchi.


    Celeste was beginning to develop the sneaking suspicion that she had voluntarily stepped foot into the lion''s den.


    "I was going to stay here for a few days if that was¡­ alright with all of you?"


    Sei and Joanne shared knowing smiles with each other.


    "You don''t need to be so stiff, dear. Of course you can stay."


    "I''m surprised at your boldness though. With someone as squeamish as you, I would have thought it would''ve taken a lot longer before you spent the night with us."


    Celeste lost all of herposure instantly. "N-No, no, no! Mchi told me you had a spare room so that''s where I''ll be sleeping! Nowhere else!"


    "If you say so~" Sei replied in a sing-song voice.


    Celeste didn''t like thatugh. She really didn''t like thatugh.


    "O-On that note¡­ I feel like I should go ahead and turn in for the night. Alone. By myself. With my underwear on." She smiled awkwardly and backed away.


    Mchi actually let Celeste pull her hand away this time, but judging by the look on his face he didn''t seem to like it much.


    "Do you know where you''re going?" He snickered.


    "I''ll find it by myself!" Celeste ran upstairs barefoot; practically tripping over several steps.


    Serosh was lying on the floor while Cami yed with toys on his stomach.


    He too watched Celeste arrive and he developed a sneaking suspicion.


    The beast fished a small pair of headphones out of the shadows and ced them on top of Cami''s head.


    "Mu?"


    "Nothing, you just probably shouldn''t take those off for the rest of the night."


    Cami shrugged and just went back to ying without a single thought behind her eyes.


    -


    To her credit, Celeste did find the room by herself. Doesn''t mean she got to keep it to herself though.


    "Shouldn''t you two be sleeping in your OWN bed???"


    ""No."" Mchi and Joanne smiled in unison.


    "Well if you want to be technical, every bed in the penthouse is ours since we bought them." Joanne shrugged.


    Celeste red at the duo and tried not to let her eyes wander anywhere unsavory.


    Mchi had arrived practically naked and only wearing boxers. Joanne wore a shirt that she was sure belonged to him and a pair of underwear.


    Both of them carried spare pillows underneath their arms, but Celeste knew that had to be a prop.


    There was no way these deviants had any sort of sleep on their minds!


    Celeste might''ve had to let them sleep with her, but she didn''t have to give them what they wanted!


    "I-I have to be up for work tomorrow so keep your hands to yourselves please¡­"


    Mchi and Joanne nced at each other and then back at her.


    "Of course."


    "Do we look like we would cause you any trouble?"


    Celeste noted therge angelic wings that were still erged behind Joanne''s back.


    She hadn''t seen something that ill fitting since she was in her second year of college and her roommate tried to get into a frat party for free.


    Celeste crawled into bed and her two additional guests joined in on either side of her. rming, but she wouldn''t overreact just yet. They hadn''t done anything wrong after all.


    The lights went off, and they all got settled into their positions. Celeste got to experience her first instance of being sandwiched between two people.


    Two very attractive people at that¡­


    It didn''t feel¡­ quite as bad as she imagined.


    She actually ended up snuggling just a little bit closer to them on instinct.


    Joanne ced a hand on her waist. Mchi ced his hand on the top of her thigh.


    Celeste''s heartbeat quickened. But she didn''t stop them or attempt to move their hands away.


    ¡­.


    ¡­.


    Ten minutes went by and neither of them did anything else.


    Nothing? Not even make a pass at her or attempt a little heavy petting??


    N-Not that she wanted to be forced to endure this kind of thing¡­ but she had packed only good underwear for this little staycation.


    If they just so happened to see it then it wouldn''t necessarily be the worst thing, would it?


    But no. These bastards didn''t even want to take a peek.


    Just sleep their lives away while leaving her high and decidedly not dry.


    ''I swear to gods it feels like they did this on purpose¡­''


    Celeste closed her eyes and went to bed angry that night.


    Shepletely forgot about Mal''s teensy tiny little ability to read minds when he was in physical contact with a person.


    But maybe, that was for the best.


    -


    The morning came and Celeste was still mad that she hadn''t.


    She ate breakfast in rtive silence; only speaking when spoken to and shooting asional res at Mchi and Joanne- who either winked or blew her kisses as a result.


    It was difficult to say whether that exacerbated her frustrations or just ttered her.


    Her heated gaze settled onto Mchi like a predator stalking the tall grass.


    The moment she got him alone for even a second, she was going to make him work twice as hard as normal to make up for this-


    "Ba?"


    Celeste abruptly blinked her eyes.


    Sitting next to her in a high chair was a young infant who was staring at her with eyes full of innocence.


    Camille was holding out a strawberry and offering it to her in a sweet gesture.


    All of Celeste''s negative inhibitions were starting to whither away into nothing.


    "Hey, Cece?"


    "Hm..?" Celeste looked up at Anna as she epted Cami''s strawberry of friendship.


    Anna grabbed her shoulder and made a pitiful expression. "My wing is feeling a little bit stiff afterst night and it''s hard to move it properly¡­ think you could give me a little ''check-up'' when we go in today?"


    "U-umm¡­"


    It was not lost on Celeste that everyone at the table was currently avoiding her gaze.


    Even the baby and the house pets seemed to conveniently find something else to focus their attention on.


    Somehow, it felt like she was being slowly sucked in to a ck hole of unknown origin. n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    And she had no idea if she still wanted to jump out before it was toote.


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!