How could he have forgotten about her?
Kenji stared at the small, innocent-looking child sitting on his couch, her legs dangling just slightly off the cushion. She looked like she belonged in a primary school classroom. But this was Ophis, the Dragon God of Infinity. The literal manifestation of the concept of "infinity" of "unlimited," compressed into the form of a quiet girl in a black dress.
Ophis stared back at him, her black, soulless eyes unblinking and devoid of standard human emotion. It felt as if she were peering past his skin, past his muscles, and into the very fibers of his existence, searching for something within him.
Both of them seemed lost in thought, the silence stretching.
Ophis took her time observing this strange human.
When she had finally decided to visit him, she had been expecting the usual routine that accompanied her rare appearances in the mortal world. To those who didn't know her, her presence usually triggered indignation or arrogance, they would demand to know who she was or try to force her out, only to be crushed by the sheer weight of her existence once she allowed a fraction of her power to leak.
Those who did know her simply became hollow shells of fear, as they tried to talk their way out before a being who could erase them by simply existing.
She hadn't expected this human to know her. According to the whispers of the supernatural world, he had appeared barely half a year ago, a mere heartbeat in the lifespan of a dragon. But the recognition in his eyes when she appeared told her he knew exactly what she was.
And that's where things turned strange.
The man had vanished before her eyes, and then the world had simply... stopped.
It wasn't like a time-stop magic or anything similar that she could simply cancel out.
It was an absolute cessation. The birds in the sky became statues, the wind died mid-gust, the very molecules of the air ceased their vibration. The world went silent in a way that even the Dimensional Gap didn't.
All of creation had frozen, and even she could do nothing but exist in it.
She had reached out with her senses to the Gap, searching for his signature, but she found nothing. He had disappeared completely and become absent from reality.
She, who possessed the power of Infinity, found herself unable to jump-start the world again.
Only she and that "red idiot," Great Red, were capable of maintaining consciousness in that void of non-time.
So, she had decided to wait. And what a wait it was. Days turned into weeks. She spent that time in absolute, frozen silence, sitting on his couch in a world that had become a still-life painting.
When he finally returned, time resumed its pulse so suddenly it felt like a physical impact. Ophis debated throwing him back into whatever void he left to and just enjoy the silence again, but she held back.
The silence he provided was peaceful, yes, yet it lacked the specific "void" of her home. It was a secondary silence at least. A surrogate.
"Welcome back," she said, her monotone voice snapping Kenji out of his spiral of exhaustion.
"Ophis," Kenji said, his voice a dry rasp. He was trying to be polite, but after facing the Personification of Death, his social filters were completely burned out.
"Join my Khaos Brigade." She went straight to the point.
"Okay," Kenji answered immediately.
The response was so fast it actually caught her off guard. She stared at him, blinking slowly, before tilting her head in a rare display of puzzlement.
"Okay?" she repeated. Despite the lack of inflection, he could hear the silent question, Why?
"Well, I obviously can't beat you, so refusal isn't really an option here, is it? " he told her truthfully. Kenji wasn't going to bother posturing. In the face of Infinity, pride was just a fast way to get deleted.
She nodded at him, accepting the logic. If he had said no, she would have simply forced him until he accepted. His honesty saved them both a lot of Time and him pain.
"And from what I've gathered," he continued, leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees, "your Khaos Brigade isn't a single faction. It's a collection of factions that all serve under you, each pursuing their own selfish goals while helping you. You let them do as they please as long as the end goal is what you want, right?"
She nodded again. The Hero Faction, the Old Satan Faction, the vampires, they were all just tools to her.
"And your ultimate goal," Kenji sighed, "is to remove Great Red from the Dimensional Gap and take back the silence that belongs to you, yes?"
This time, she nodded strongly, a faint intensity flickering in her Dark gaze. It was the only thing that gave her purpose.
"Then I have no problem joining the Khaos Brigade under you, but as a faction of my own. I will answer to no one but you," he finished. He really didn't want to join, but it was a calculated move. By joining, he removed Ophis as a potential enemy and had somewhat of a backer in the supernatural world.
She stared off into the distance, perhaps thinking about it. Finally, she nodded. "Okay."
Kenji heaved a sigh of genuine relief. "So, you want me to help you defeat Great Red?"
"Yes."
"At the moment, I won't be much help. I'm strong, but I'm not 'Great red challenge' strong. I'm sure you can see that."
Ophis raised her hand. A black, coiling energy snake manifested around her wrist, its eyes glowing with a power. She moved to extend it toward him, intending to "gift" him the power he lacked.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! I don't need that, honestly," Kenji said quickly, holding up his hands. He'd seen what those snakes did to people. "I can handle growing stronger on my own. Six months ago, I wasn't even Low-class. Now? I'm a Satan-class. Look at my growth rate, Ophis. I don't need a shortcut that messes with my soul. I'll handle my own development."
Ophis paused, the snake dissolving back into her palm as she considered his words. It was true, his rate of growth was abnormal even by the standards of the old age. He was a singularity in that for all that she had seen over the ages.
"So I'll just be waiting," he told her. She tilted her head. "When you're ready to face Great Red, call me. I'll just spend my time growing stronger, and when the time comes, call me."
The two stayed silent for a while after that. Ophis stood up, her small form casting a shadow that seemed far too large for her body. She nodded once, a soft "Okay" escaping her lips as she turned, seeming about to leave.
"Wait," Kenji called out. He didn't know if this was a good idea, but it was worth a shot, even if this wasn't the anime he'd try his luck. He opened the Multiversal Shop and bought some sweets from the Food Wars world.
He summoned the box, ornate and smelling of heavenly sugar, and offered it to her.
Ophis stared at the box for a long time before taking it. She took one of the sweets and placed it in her mouth. As her eyes seemed to gain a tiny, shimmering spark of light, Kenji mentally checked it off as a success.
Instinctively, his hand moved to her head, giving the Dragon God a gentle pat as she ate her sweets. She just looked so adorable, reminding him of Ren.
He froze the moment his palm touched her hair, his life flashing before his eyes. He withdrew it quickly, but she didn't strike him.
She simply stared at him for several seconds, unreadable, before she disappeared. There was no ripple, no magical circle, no sound. not a hint of magic or anything like that. One moment she was an occupant of the room, the next, he was staring at empty space.
"Is it something you learn when you're a cosmic being" Kenji muttered, falling back onto the couch, remembering death too came and went like that.
He stared at the ceiling, trying to reconcile the fact that he had just joined a terrorist organization and patted the head of its leader in the span of ten minutes.
He raised his hand, his voice a whisper. "Status."
He hadn't looked at his stats properly since like forever. When the blue light filled his vision, Kenji was amazed by what he saw.
STATUS
Kenji Takahashi
- Race: Human (Reincarnated)
- Level: 162
- Title: Gamer
- Free Stat Points: 66
---
Attributes (Tier-5)
- Strength: 24.55
- Speed: 28.10
- Endurance: 22.90
- Intelligence: 18.50
- Wisdom: 15.80
- Charisma: 11.35
- Luck: 95 (Tier-2)
---
Subordinate/servents
- Ritz Family
-Devils
-Magicians
-Spirit Servants (Spirit Magic)
High Wind Spirits
High Water Spirits
High Fire Spirits
High Earth Spirits
-Golem Constructs (Golem Magic)
Stone Sentinels (x175)
Metal sentinels (x93)
Gem sentinels(x43)
Iron sentinels(x35)
---
Skills (Additions & Notable Upgrades)
- Blunt Weapon Mastery (LV 42)
- Sword Mastery (LV 32)
- Spear Mastery (LV 19)
- Bow Mastery (LV 9)
- Physical Resistance (LV 44)
- Pain Resistance (LV 67)
- Power Smash (LV 39)
- Nen-Infused Strike (LV 46)
- Adept Combat (LV 39)
- Gravity Manipulation (LV 35)
- Mana Ball (LV Max)
- Mana Shield (LV Max)
- Adept Fireball (LV 18)
- Magic Control (LV 44)
- Mana Sensitivity (LV 56)
- Mana Channeling (LV 64)
- Enchantment Magic (LV 55)
- Mana Efficiency (LV 47)
- Spatial Awareness (LV 48)
- Danger Sense (LV Max)
- Instant Dungeon Creation (LV 23)
- Meditation (LV Max)
- Observation (LV 47)
- Household Management (LV Max)
- Intimidation (LV 20)
- Crafting (LV 23)
- Alchemy(LV 25)
- Material Analysis (LV 32)
- Wind (LV40)
- fire(LV36)
- ice (LV23)
- earth (LV37)
- lightening (LV36)
- Water(LV34)
- Chakra Control (LV 8)
- Golem Magic (Lv 38)
- Spirit Magic (Lv 47)
- Nen Proficiency (LV 31)
- Warfare Tactics (LV 26)
- Sex (Lv Max)
-Nen ability: Save Point(LV max)
-Nen ability: Stat Shift(LV max)
-Nen ability: Contract Chain(LV 2)
-Nen ability: Player Reward(LV max)
-Nen ability: Game Field(LV 2)
---
Perks
- Gamer's Body
- Gamer's Mind
- Father's Resolve
- Devil Slayer
- Undead Slayer
- Elemental Affinity (Wind)
- Elemental Affinity (fire)
- Elemental Affinity (lighting)
- Elemental Affinity (ice)
- Elemental Affinity (water)
- Elemental Affinity (earth)
- Chakra
- Dark Pact
- Monster's Bane
- Vampire Hunter
- Ogre's Might
- Oni's Cunning
- Nen Conscript
- Floor Master
-Godslayer]Permanent +10% damage against divine or "immortal" beings.
-Unseen by Death – Recognition from the Endless Death
-"Hero Slayer" – Enemies with superhero affiliations take +15% damage
-"Vampire Apocalypse Survivor" – +20% resistance to curses and blood magic
-"Death's Chosen" – Undead creatures must pass a will save to attack Kenji
Kenji leaned back, his eyes lingering on the 66 free stat points. right now he was stronger than even serafall one of the strongest devil alive, that was good, serafall stats were of tier 5 but in the 10's and eeven then if was different for him since he always made sure that all his stats where in the same tier unlike normal people who could have some stats in the lower tier, that gave him an edge when fighing someone of the same tier as him.
"Damn," he whispered. He had grown exponentially, but the fight with Barbara had taught him a harsh lesson, stats were just numbers if the mind wasn't ready. He had forgotten his [Stat Shift] in the heat of battle. He had survived on luck and the help of his friends more than his own competence.
He tapped the new passive trait: Blessing of Endless Death.
Blessing of Endless Death
Soul Lock: Immune to forced soul extraction or manipulation by any entity below Tier 3.
Terminal Resistance: resistance to all "Instant Death" magic, skills, or attacks.
Death Recognition: Your name is carved into the archives of the Endless. You are a "fixed point" in the cycle of life and death.
Minor Conceptual Protection: Your existence is harder to erase from the timeline.
Kenji swallowed hard. Thank you, Didi. This would ease his mind a little about going to other worlds.
There were other things too.
--Vampire Fangs (x2,000) – Alchemy/crafting material
-Coffin Dust (x500) – Used in anti-vampire wards
-Stake-Worthy Hearts (x847) – Dried hearts, valuable to monster hunters
-Blood Vials (Low-Grade x1,500) – Can be sold or used in dark rituals
-Money: ~5,000,000 USD equivalent
-Elder Blood Vials (x46) – Permanent stat boosts (+1 to random stat each)
-Vampire Lord Fangs (x23) – Can be crafted into daggers that inflict cursed wounds
-Shadow Cloaks (x12) – Grants invisibility in darkness(one use per)
-Regeneration Rings (x8) – Minor healing factor (1 HP/10 sec)
-Mind Control Residue (x5) – Can be used to create temporary charm effects
-Amazonian Martial Arts (LV 1) – Wonder Woman's combat techniques
- Gauntlets of Submission
- Tiara of Truth
- Cape of the Last Son (Superman's cape)
- Thanagarian Battle Armor
- Utility Belt
- Regeneration Rings (x4)
- Ankh
- Wisdom of Solomon Scroll (One Use, Give one mastery of one particular thing)
- Rock of Eternity Shard (increases magical power)
- Elder Vampire Ashes (x7)
- Nth Metal Scraps
- Amazonian Armor
- Lord of Order's Grimoire (Magic knowledge)
- NEW: T-Sphere (x3)
And a lot more, but he didn't have time to go over everything he'd gained, like the random tickets and random boxes, the skill tickets, and so on.
Now for the other things, thing he had grabbed from that world, he started pulling out the things his servants had gathered, books of magic, tools, tech and thing they found interessing, and what he too took, from the mace from hawkgirl and what he took from Lex luthors building, he brought out everything on the table in front of him. It was while he was searching his inventory that he saw the shard that they got.
'Didn't the system take this' he thought as he brought it out. It was different from before he noticed. Before, it was like a purple shard, now it was colorless, looking almost transparent.
He used observation on it.
[Primodial Shard of ????
It was from a piece of ????, which broke off and was sent to ???? to fulfill its purpose, only to be taken by??? and corrupted. Now it's been cleansed of both influence and now holds the ????? of ?????].
He looked at the description and sighed. Well, as long as it was not corrupted, then he didn't care all that much. he was about to drop it on the table when it suddenly glowed, and then he started hearing the sounds of notifications as they came in fast and stopped before he could even see a single one.
He used observation on it again.
[Primodial Shard of ????
It was from a piece of ????, which broke off and was sent to ???? to fulfill its purpose, only to be taken by ???? and corrupted. Now it's been cleansed of both influence and now holds the ????? of ?????]- Bound to Kenji Takahashi.
It had bound to him, he didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing. He was leaning more to the other side, given what he saw with Barbara, but it was said that it had been corrupted, and now that it was cleansed, maybe nothing would happen.
He really didn't want to think about this now, so he dropped it on the table and pulled out the last item he had been keeping.
The Mother box.
observation.
Mother box(mildly damaged).
That was all it told him. can't believe he got more from a primordial shard than this box.
It was damaged, but he was sure that this thing was still powerful, and if he found a way to get it working, it would be a huge help to him in some way.
He sighed, but that won't be anytime soon. He didn't know the first thing about a mother box, fixing it will have to wait.
Or at least it would have been if Kenji hadn't made the mistake of dropping the box on the table close to the shard. The instant the two got close to each other, they started to shine, and then the shard flew into the box, and then it lit up and started beeping, leaving Kenji just staring at what happened.
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