[Current Stack: 1 Mythic Chest, 6 Elite Fragments.] [Multiplier: 1.05%] [Vault Pressure: 2%. The itch returns.]
The dust settled in the ruined penthouse of Floor 13. Guildmaster Ryūzen was being dragged away by the surviving Ash-Tribe scavengers who had braved the climb to see if the rumors of the "Glowing God" were true.
Yuto ignored them. He was currently staring at a massive pile of discarded loot in the corner of the room.
During their thirteen-floor climb, they had slaughtered hundreds of low-level cyber-goblins and scrap-slimes. These monsters didn't drop stats; they dropped [Scrap Summoning Tickets]. They were literally the lowest tier of gacha pulls in the Babel System. The drop rates were famously insulting—a 99.9% chance to summon a "Rusty Tin Can" or a "Used Combat Boot."
Most Hunters burned them instantly just to clear their inventory.
Yuto had 412 of them.
"Kurosawa-dono," Ayase asked, walking over with her katana gracefully sheathed at her side. "Are you going to discard those? They are worthless scraps of data."
"Yeah, Alpha," Kurenai agreed, leaning her heavy nodachi against her shoulder and grinning. "You're a Transcendent Ash-Lord now. You don't need to dig through the trash anymore."
Yuto's eye twitched. Trash? I bled for these tickets. I suffered for these tickets. The math applies to everything! Yuto didn't say that out loud. He just put on his best stoic, monk-like face. "Everything has value if you apply the correct pressure, Ayase. Stand back."
He opened his interface and selected all 412 Scrap Tickets. But instead of clicking [PULL], he dragged the entire stack into his Vault.
The System froze.
[Error: Calculating compound interest on probability matrices...] [Warning: Vaulting Gacha Tickets causes chronological paradoxes in the summoning pool.] [Resolving Singularity... 412x Scrap Tickets condensed via 153.2% compound pressure.] [Result: 1x Mythic-Tier Void Summoning Ticket generated.]
Yuto's dark eyes widened in sheer, unadulterated gamer joy. He had literally squeezed garbage so hard it turned into a diamond. Without hesitating, he selected the golden ticket and hit [CLAIM].
The penthouse floor violently cracked open. A massive, glowing purple pentagram etched itself into the marble. The scent of ozone, dark cherry, and brimstone flooded the room. Kurenai and Ayase instantly drew their weapons, taking defensive stances.
From the center of the pentagram, black smoke spiraled upward, coalescing into a stunning, lethal silhouette.
She stepped out of the smoke wearing a skin-tight, obsidian leotard that left absolutely nothing to the imagination, paired with thigh-high leather boots. Bat-like wings folded neatly behind her back, and a spade-tipped tail flicked playfully in the air. Her eyes were a glowing, hypnotic magenta, and a pair of sleek, black horns curved elegantly from her deep purple hair.
"Tremble, mortals!" she announced, her voice a sultry, echoing purr that vibrated right in Yuto's chest. "I am Shion, the Apex Void-Succubus! Which powerful, wealthy conqueror has offered up a kingdom of souls to summon me from the abyss?!"
She struck a dramatic pose, waiting for the awe and terror to wash over her new master.
Yuto stared at her blankly. Then he looked at the floating system text.
[Summon Successful: Shion (Starving Succubus).] [Maintenance Cost: Requires regular consumption of Host's released emotional/magical tension.]
"Oh no," Yuto whispered.
Shion blinked, dropping her pose. She floated down until she was face-to-face with Yuto, her magenta eyes narrowing as she scanned his soul. Succubi were empathic demons; they could read a person's desires like an open book.
Shion gasped, her face turning pale. "Wait. You... you don't release your tension? Ever?! You just... stuff it into a vault and let it burn you from the inside out?!"
"Discipline is the foundation of strength," Yuto lied smoothly, though a bead of sweat rolled down his forehead.
"Liar!" Shion screeched, her sultry persona instantly shattering into the frantic panic of a starving animal. She grabbed Yuto by his jacket collar and violently shook him. "I can read your mind! You're just a greedy, math-obsessed hoarder! You edge your stats! I'm tied to a guy who edges his stats! I'm going to starve to death!"