"Master, welcome back~"
As the teleportation circle in the guild hall flickered with faint light, Alice immediately threw herself at Kurose Akira, burrowing into his arms.
"Guildmaster, you're finally back!"
Viora followed right after, the Magiflame Silver Phoenix Butterfly still perched on her deer back, flapping its wings joyfully.
"Yeah, we're back."
Kurose Akira gently ruffled the hair of the two girls, a soft smile playing on his lips.
Though Alice and Viora hadn't left the guild at all, they'd seen everything that happened in the Stellar Kingdom through his perspective.
Of course, they couldn't watch what went down in the Abyss—the screen had just been a blurry void.
[You've received a new private message!]
The moment he returned to the guild, Kurose Akira got a private message ping.
He opened the messaging interface and saw it was from Xu Feiyan.
[Fei: ??? (attached: a puzzled kitten emoji)]
Kurose Akira stared at the message, rubbed the tip of his nose, then fired back a question mark.
Xu Feiyan's reply came almost instantly.
[Fei: What the hell happened? How did your contribution points suddenly surpass mine?]
"Ahem~ Yeah, some stuff went down…"
Kurose Akira cleared his throat lightly, then filled her in on the chain of events in the royal capital.
Naturally, he glossed over the crucial part about how he'd beaten Vivian in her Valkyrie form—didn't breathe a word of it.
[Fei: I had no idea so much went down. Looks like I missed out on a ton of juicy plot.]
"Yeah, if you'd been there, you wouldn't have been disappointed…"
Kurose Akira sent that off, then fell silent.
It hit him all at once—the whole scene had been pitch black. Even if Xu Feiyan had been right there, she wouldn't have seen a damn thing.
[Fei: What a shame. But even more of a shame that I didn't snag those seven Valkyrie petals… (attached: a pitiful-pouting emoji)]
"…"
Kurose Akira clocked the emoji and instantly got the hint. Xu Feiyan had been obsessing over those seven Valkyrie petals this whole time.
"You want them?"
[Fei: Could you bear to part with them? I'd buy 'em off you.]
"I…"
Kurose Akira was about to reply when another message from Xu Feiyan popped up.
[Fei: If you're game, I'll give you a price you'll like. 1000 gold coins—sound good?]
"1000 gold coins?"
Kurose Akira's eyes narrowed, his brow arching slightly.
Those seven Valkyrie petals could summon a phantom of the Valkyrie for a short burst of combat, but they were one-use consumables—nothing for prolonged fights.
Still, even as a fleeting projection, a Valkyrie phantom with a divine core could sweep aside anything below demigod tier.
1000 gold wasn't overpriced. Hell, he might even be taking a small loss.
Before he could respond, Xu Feiyan messaged again.
[Fei: Haven't gotten any gold in-game lately, and I just bought a batch of gear, so I'm down to my last 1000 coins. But if you're up for a real-world trade, I can triple that.]
"?"
Kurose Akira's gaze sharpened with keen interest as he read it.
3000 gold converted to cash was three million!
That wasn't just enough to fix his housing woes—it'd cover normal living expenses for decades if he didn't blow it recklessly.
Kurose Akira weighed the pros and cons, mulling it over deeply before typing out his response and hitting send: "Real-world trade works."
[Fei: Awesome! But I've got a lot on my plate these days, might not have time right away. I'll hit you up when I do—promise it won't be more than a week.]
"Got it. I'll wait."
Kurose Akira replied, then glanced at the seven Valkyrie petals in his inventory.
He couldn't help but sigh inwardly. A pseudo-mythic item like this was worth millions—what about true mythic gear? Had to be tens of millions at least.
But all that value hinged on the game's mechanics.
Kurose Akira knew damn well that mythic adventurers like Lucia and the others were priceless. No price could tempt him to trade them away.
Truth be told, he'd never even considered selling his adventurers—just loot and gear from adventures, at most.
Wrapping up the chat with Xu Feiyan, Kurose Akira closed the messaging window and turned his focus to the seven Valkyrie petals in his hand.
They gave off a faint, enchanting fragrance, like they carried some kind of magic. Just pulling them out drew Viora and the Magiflame Silver Phoenix Butterfly's attention.
"So fragrant~"
Viora stepped forward gracefully on her deer legs, leaning in close to sniff the Valkyrie petals delicately with her nose.
The Magiflame Silver Phoenix Butterfly danced excitedly around Kurose Akira's side, clearly captivated by the seven petals.
Kurose Akira watched the two little ones with a smile. "You guys like the scent that much?"
"Mm-hmm!"
They nodded vigorously to show how much they loved it.
Seeing that, Kurose Akira pulled out the White Rose Valkyrie's intimate petal and held it up to Viora and the butterfly. "What about this one?"
"This…"
Viora leaned in curiously, sniffing the intimate petal carefully.
But the moment she caught the strange aura mixed in with its scent, her stunning face turned deadly serious.
"Guildmaster, this petal… it's bad news."
There was a hint of fear in Viora's voice. She even backed up a few steps on her deer legs, clearly wary of it.
The Magiflame Silver Phoenix Butterfly sensed it too, fluttering restlessly over Kurose Akira's shoulder with faint chirps, like it was trying to warn him.
"?"
Their reactions caught Kurose Akira off guard. Was this White Rose Valkyrie's intimate petal some kind of cursed evil?
"Bad how? What's that mean?"
Kurose Akira asked Viora, brimming with questions.
"I'm not totally sure, but it feels like this petal could bring disaster," Viora replied, her face etched with worry. "Guildmaster, if you can, return it to its owner."
"…"
Kurose Akira fell into a brief silence. If he had the means to return it, why the hell would he have held onto it this long?
He pressed on: "So, quality-wise, how does this petal stack up against the other seven?"
Viora answered right away: "This one's quality blows the others away. Even all seven of those combined couldn't compare."
"?"
Kurose Akira's mind reeled at Viora's words, a flicker of surprise crossing his thoughts.
Didn't that mean the White Rose Valkyrie's intimate petal was true mythic quality?
He dared to imagine: if the seven regular petals summoned a Valkyrie phantom, could this intimate one call the White Rose Valkyrie herself?
But he shook his head, shooting down the idea.
The White Rose Valkyrie was a full goddess—no way she'd show up on the Magic Continent.
Though… there were exceptions, like the Elf Mother Tree or the Demon Mother?
"Got it. I'll keep that in mind."
Kurose Akira stowed the Valkyrie petals back in his inventory, but Viora's warning left him uneasy, his mind lingering on it.
Would that White Rose Valkyrie intimate petal really bring catastrophe?
From his encounter with her… that Valkyrie might be the catastrophe herself.
Kurose Akira let out a soft sigh, pulling his thoughts from the petal and shifting to his trait pool.
He'd collected all the Vampire Progenitor portraits now, and he still had that extra [Demon King] trait unused.
Wait.
He suddenly remembered he hadn't turned in the quest yet. He pulled up the quest panel.
[High-Difficulty Quest: Stellar Shift!]
[Quest Description: Support a 'King' to ascend the throne of the Stellar Kingdom!]
[Quest Reward: Star God Stone]
[Hidden Quest: ???]
"Is it because she hasn't actually taken the throne yet?"
Kurose Akira eyed the still-active quest, pondering.
Just securing Editha's dominance in the succession wasn't enough—the quest needed a true king crowned on the throne.
Still, the reward showing up already was a small comfort.
He studied the Star God Stone reward curiously, but the quest interface gave zero details—just a picture.
Maybe he could ask around the Stellar Kingdom's royals, see if they knew anything about the Star God Stone.
As his mind wandered, Kurose Akira turned to the Vampire portraits.
The second one had upgraded [Vampire] to [Virgin Vampire]. Wonder what the third would do?
He took out both portraits, and the instant he did, they burst with blinding light, merging into one.
At the same time, a notification popped up:
[Third Vampire Progenitor Portrait Collected!]
[Virgin Vampire] trait evolving to […]
[Choose one from the following traits (no refresh):]
[Pervert][Little Pervert][Big Pervert]
"?"
Kurose Akira stared at the three options, his expression turning grim.
These were worse than the plain [Virgin] trait!
But no choice—he had to pick one.
Pervert, little or big, what difference did it make? Might as well go with [Pervert].
With a thought, Kurose Akira selected it.
[Virgin Vampire] trait has evolved to—[Perverted Virgin Vampire]!
"…"
Kurose Akira stared at the new trait, his feelings a tangled mess.
Pair it with the others in his pool…
[A perverted virgin vampire partner with masochistic constitution and lustful love goddess blood]?
It looked weird as hell, but what could he do?
As long as the trait boosted combat power, a quirky personality wasn't the end of the world.
"Hiss~"
Kurose Akira took a deep breath and pulled the purple recruitment scroll from his inventory.
The moment he did, Lucia and the others all fixed their gazes on him.
They knew the drill—every time he busted out a recruitment scroll, a new guildmate was on the way.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Kurose Akira tossed the scroll into the air.
In a flash, dazzling lights exploded like fireworks, a riot of vibrant colors.
Then, like shooting stars streaking across the void sky, they traced breathtaking arcs.
[Your selection: A perverted virgin vampire partner with masochistic constitution and lustful love goddess blood!]
[Recruiting suitable adventurer…]
[No suitable adventurer found!]
"?"
What?
Kurose Akira froze at the notification.
Recruitment… failed?
Before he could process it, another prompt appeared:
[Adventurer summoned to guild!]
"Hm?"
Kurose Akira spotted the new message, his brow furrowing.
No suitable adventurer—then how…?
His thoughts hadn't settled when the guild hall blazed with intense light.
A heavy object materialized from the glow, crashing onto the wooden floor with a resounding thud.
Everyone's faces turned serious, tinged with confusion, when they saw what it was.
Because it wasn't an adventurer. It was… a silver coffin?
The coffin's surface was etched with intricate patterns, every detail screaming master craftsmanship. What drew the eye most were the blood-red gems embedded all over it, gleaming with an eerie crimson glow under the lights, like fresh blood.
"The guild's new member… is a coffin!?"
Alice clapped a hand over her mouth, gasping in disbelief.
"No way that's possible!" Kurose Akira cut her wild speculation short, stepping up to the coffin and tapping its surface lightly with a finger.
He could tell it was solid silver. But didn't vampires hate silver?
Why the hell was a Vampire Progenitor's coffin silver?
He even tried reaching out to the two Vampire Progenitors bound to his soul, but got nothing back.
So… he really had summoned the Vampire Progenitor?
But why just a damn coffin?
As Kurose Akira pondered, Lothelrin drew her Oath Sword, eyeing the coffin warily. "Want me to chop it open and see?"
"No!" Kurose Akira stopped her cold—her approach was way too brutal.
Before his words even finished, Lucia reached out with her slender fingertips, brushing the coffin lid's edge and giving it a gentle push.
The sealed lid popped open effortlessly, revealing what lay inside.
But opening it only deepened the confusion in everyone's eyes.
Lying there was a golden-haired loli, completely naked save for a few red silk ribbons barely covering her skin. On her bare feet, though, she wore a pair of pristine white little socks—oddly out of place.
Kurose Akira knew at first glance this was the Vampire Progenitor Carmilla.
So… where was the other one?
As confusion swirled, a status prompt for Carmilla popped into view:
[Carmilla/Carmthis (Mythic)]
Level: 1 (0/100)
Race: Vampire
Strength: ? / Agility: ? / Magic: ? / Constitution: ?
Growth: 15 (15 points all-stats per level)
Skills: (Expand)
Traits: [Lustful Love Goddess Blood][Masochist][Pervert][Virgin][Vampire Progenitor][Partner]
[Pervert: After absorbing blood, her physique will change. 0~100! (Value tied to blood volume)]
0~100?
Did that number mean combat power… or…?