Restia asked, "Penetrate? The past Red Dragon Emperors didn't seem to have this ability."
Tatsuma nodded. "I unsealed Ddraig and restored his power."
Restia suddenly understood. "So that's it. I was wondering why I hadn't heard of it."
She had been in this world for hundreds of years. After partnering with Grayfia, Restia had heard many stories about the Red Dragon Emperor. It was precisely because of these stories that Restia had no defense against the Boosted Gear's Penetrate.
If Tatsuma hadn't said it himself, she wouldn't have known that the Boosted Gear had such a hidden ability.
Restia became a little emotional. "You easily did something that previous Red Dragon Emperors couldn't do. You're really amazing."
"If you were born in my world, you might have been able to become a contractor of a Elemental Lord."
Tatsuma asked, "Is an Elemental Lord stronger than you?"
Restia nodded slightly. "Elemental Lords control the elements that make up the world. To some extent, they can be seen as part of the world."
Restia thought for a moment and added, "To put it in the terms of your world, Elemental Lords have power at the transcendent level, comparable to the main gods of various pantheons."
Tatsuma looked thoughtful. "It sounds like they are indeed stronger than you, but the gap isn't particularly large."
Restia blinked. "Are you deliberately saying nice things?"
Tatsuma shook his head. "I'm serious."
Tatsuma raised his hand and summoned a ball of black mist. "As long as you continue to train and master the True Darkness within you, your upper limit won't be lower than an Elemental Lord."
Restia: "???"
True Darkness?
Looking at the ball of black mist in Tatsuma's hand, Restia, who had been chatting casually, suddenly froze, her face showing an expression of disbelief and surprise.
Not only Restia, but also Grayfia, who had been silently recovering on the side, showed a shocked expression at this moment.
"Tatsuma, why do you have the power of True Darkness?"
"Trade secret, no comment."
With a thought, Tatsuma put away the True Darkness, then reached out and patted Restia's head.
"Do you need help? I can help you unleash the true power within you and become stronger."
"Don't touch me randomly." Restia slapped Tatsuma's hand away.
After that, she hesitated for a moment before replying, "If I completely unleash the power of True Darkness, I might go berserk and lose control."
"Don't worry, I'm here."
Tatsuma entered the three-in-one Balance Breaker mode, and his aura instantly surged to the extreme.
"If this still can't control you, I can use Juggernaut Drive to become even stronger."
"...Grayfia, what do you think?"
Restia was silent for a moment, then looked towards her contractor on the side.
The opportunity to become stronger was right in front of her, and it was naturally false to say she wasn't tempted. However, the power of True Darkness was extremely dangerous.
To avoid making a wrong judgment, Restia decided to hand over the choice to Grayfia.
"I think we can trust Tatsuma." Grayfia, who had taken on the responsibility, gave her reply.
"Tatsuma, like you, possesses the power of True Darkness. Even if something unexpected happens, he can minimize the impact."
"...I understand."
Restia nodded, her gaze returning to Tatsuma in front of her.
"What do I need to do to unleash True Darkness?"
Tatsuma extended his hand. "First, transform into a weapon and resonate with me, so I can suppress your power more easily."
Restia was taken aback. "You want to sign a Spirit Contract with me? That's not possible, I've already signed a contract with Grayfia."
Tatsuma shook his head. "No need for a contract. You just need to transform into your weapon form, and I'll handle the rest."
Restia: "..."
The more she listened, the less reliable it sounded.
It was possible to transform into a weapon and be used by someone without signing a contract.
But without a contract as an intermediary, it was difficult for an elemental waffe and its wielder to resonate. At least in Restia's memory, no one had been able to do such a thing.
However, since Tatsuma said so, Restia could only choose to cooperate with him.
Transforming from her human form into a weapon form, Restia flew into Tatsuma's hand.
"I'm ready. Next, you... Huh?"
Restia, who was about to ask a question, suddenly let out a surprised sound.
"We're actually resonating? How did you do that?"
Of course, it was by cheating.
Tatsuma smiled and remained silent.
With [Holy Demon Sword], he could use any Holy Sword or Demon Sword regardless of conditions.
Although Restia came from another world and wasn't a traditional Demon Sword, from the final result, this didn't hinder [Holy Demon Sword] from taking effect.
Using the resonance between [Holy Demon Sword] and the power within Restia, a massive amount of energy flowed into his body through the sword.
With the boost from this power, Tatsuma's already extremely powerful strength was further enhanced.
"This is truly amazing. In terms of enhancement, you boost me even more than Gram."
"Of course. How could I not be better than a lifeless object without a soul?" Restia's voice was full of pride.
Although she couldn't compare to the Five Elemental Lords, she was still the highest-ranking Darkness Spirit. Coupled with the power of True Darkness, if she still couldn't surpass Gram, she could just bang her head against a wall and die.
"Tatsuma, you can continue." Just then, Grayfia's voice rang out.
Seeing Tatsuma gain Restia's approval, she felt somehow cheated. The unease in her heart gradually rose, and Grayfia subconsciously urged Tatsuma.
"Don't rush, this is just the beginning."
Tatsuma didn't notice Grayfia's true thoughts. With a thought, he opened his trait inventory.
His gaze swept over the many affixes, and Tatsuma chose a blue affix to grant to Restia.
[Trait granted successfully, click to view target panel.]
Amidst the system's notification sound, a terrifying aura rose from the sword.
True Darkness continuously surged from the surface of the sword, turning into mist and drifting around.
"Tatsuma! I can't control my power!" Restia's voice became a little hurried.
"Don't worry, I'm watching."
Tatsuma, using the resonance between himself and the elemental waffe, immediately controlled the power of True Darkness.
The black mist stopped spreading, gathered back into the weapon from around, and fell silent.
"Alright, the rest is up to you. Try to gradually touch True Darkness and bring them under your control."
Tatsuma released some of the suppression and instructed Restia on how to control True Darkness.
With Energy Fusion, he could easily grasp the nature and internal composition of different energies.
Although it was a newly acquired power, with the assistance of the trait system and Energy Fusion, Tatsuma's understanding of True Darkness was extremely deep. Under his guidance, Restia quickly mastered the method of controlling True Darkness and gradually became proficient.
"Amazing! You actually controlled it!"
"Of course, I have no need to lie to you."
While Tatsuma replied, his peripheral vision scanned Restia's trait panel.
[Restia Ashdoll]
[Race: Spirit]
[Strength: Level 6]
[Traits: Solid (Blue), Form Switching (Purple), True Darkness (Gold), Darkness Elemental Lord (Gold)]
[Solid (Blue): Defense significantly increased, reduces damage taken.]
[Form Switching (Purple): After signing a contract, can switch freely between human form and weapon form.]
[True Darkness (Gold): Dark Law sufficient to become the cornerstone of the world, those with insufficient strength will gradually lose their minds and fall into madness upon contact.]
[Darkness Elemental Lord (Gold): Successor to the power and will of the Darkness Elemental Lord, total energy volume greatly increased, Dark Element Affinity +4000%.]
Restia's traits were not many, but their quality was very high.
True Darkness, plus the power of the Darkness Elemental Lord who stands at the pinnacle of spirits.
After both were fully activated, Restia's strength rose sharply, entering the realm of Transcendents.
Affected by Restia, Tatsuma, who was resonating with her, also gained a boost.
"The enhancement level for the wielder is about ten Grams. Compared to Gram, you are now more suited for the title 'Demonic Emperor Sword'."
"Let's forget about that kind of thing, I don't like being surrounded and watched wherever I go."
After Restia replied, she ended the resonance and switched back to her human form. Black wings unfurled behind her, and Restia raised her hand to summon a ball of black mist.
Compared to her performance during the awakening just now, she was now very skilled at controlling True Darkness. Even without Tatsuma's assistance, there would be no more berserk situations.
"Tatsuma, thank you. If it weren't for your help, I wouldn't be able to master this power even if I trained for another thousand years."
Tatsuma said, "If you want to thank me, come visit more often in the future. With you around, fighting is easier for me."
"I can't decide that."
Restia looked at her contractor. "I usually act together with Grayfia."
"If you want me to stay and help, then you'll have to find a way to win over Grayfia and bring her into your harem."
Grayfia: "???"
"Restia, what nonsense are you suddenly spouting?"
Restia shrugged, "I'm not spouting nonsense, I really think Tatsuma is quite good."
"Grayfia, you've been single for so long, are you really not planning to find a boyfriend?"
Grayfia replied with a tense expression, "I'm not interested in that kind of thing."
Seeing this, Restia shook her head helplessly, looked at Tatsuma beside her, and blinked. "See. That's pretty much how it is. Compared to that unreliable Sirzechs, I think you are more suitable."
"If you need, I can tell you some of Grayfia's hobbies and also..."
"Restia!"
"Alright, looks like I can't say it."
Seeing Grayfia slightly vexed and angry, Restia stopped leaking information.