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Whatever Hajime Nagumo could do, he could do too.
The mission to save Yue was complete. At most, Alex had twelve hours left in this world.
There was no way he could stay behind to slowly study the knowledge Oscar Orcus had left in the labyrinth.
So he packed up every book in the castle, along with all the ores and crafting materials, and stored them inside the space of Unlimited Blade Works.
Once that was done, he turned to Yue."My mission's finished. I'll be leaving soon. Are you coming with me, or staying in your own world? You could leave the labyrinth and see what it looks like after a few hundred years."
Yue didn't hesitate for even a second."I'm going with you."
A smile spread across Alex's face. He leaned down slightly and kissed her lips."Good. Then we won't be separated again."
"Mhm!" Yue nodded brightly.
With twelve hours left, there was no rush.
Alex took out all the monster meat he'd gathered and started grilling. Once it was cooked, he brought out the divine water and began eating and drinking at the same time, absorbing the monsters' genetic traits into his body.
Of course, he only kept the refined essence.
Take the good, discard the trash.
He used those refined traits to further perfect his own genes, polishing them closer and closer to flawlessness.
Yue sat quietly across from him, just watching him eat.
"You're not having any?" he asked.
She shook her head. "I'm a vampire. My food is blood."
"Only blood? Doesn't that mean you miss out on all the good stuff?" he asked curiously.
"I'm an atavistic vampire," she explained patiently. "I still retain part of my human genes, so I can eat human food. But drinking blood restores energy much faster."
"I see." Alex nodded.
Suddenly, Yue stepped forward and threw herself into his arms.
Her lips parted, revealing a pair of small fangs. She stared at his neck and licked her lips.
"You want to drink my blood?" Alex asked, amused.
She nodded, eyes full of anticipation.
He chuckled. "My body's been reinforced more times than I can count. I've got a Godslayer's physique. You won't be able to bite through."
Yue wrinkled her nose, clearly unconvinced.
She opened her mouth and bit down on his neck.
Clang!
Her teeth hit something that felt like solid steel.
She froze.
Since when was human skin this hard?!
Watching her stunned expression, Alex couldn't help but laugh. Shaking his head, he raised his left hand and used his fingernail to slice open the tip of his right index finger.
A single drop of pale golden blood welled up.
Yes—his blood was golden.
Ever since he fused multiple types of magic and holy flame within his body, giving birth to divine power and divine fire, his once-red blood had turned a faint gold.
It was blood that was infinitely close to true godhood. Once he became a god, it would fully transform into sacred gold.
The moment Yue saw it, her eyes widened in shock.
"It smells incredible… This is divine blood!" she breathed.
"Not quite," Alex said with a smile. "But it's close."
Yue didn't stand on ceremony. She immediately took his finger into her mouth and began to drink.
The moment that high-quality blood touched her tongue, she felt the change.
Stronger.
Far stronger.
She had only been an atavistic vampire before—but now, she evolved into a true vampire progenitor.
After Yue had her fill, Alex continued devouring monster meat and integrating their genes.
When he finally finished all of it, he could clearly feel his physical body had grown stronger yet again. Even his very life essence seemed to have evolved.
He felt stuffed.
If he weren't a Godslayer, there was no way he could've eaten that much meat.
He stood up, stretched, and checked the time.
Five hours had passed.
Seven remained.
Alex picked up a book on forging storage rings. After flipping through it at high speed and memorizing the method, he immediately got to work.
The materials were all there. The process was clear.
Using his Divine Forging Technique, he began crafting.
Less than an hour later, it was done.
A divine-tier storage ring.
Its internal space was the size of Earth, complete with an ecological cycle capable of sustaining living beings.
He named it Star Ring.
Then he transferred everything from Unlimited Blade Works into the Star Ring.
Unlimited Blade Works was meant for combat. Back when he had no other storage options, he'd been forced to use it as a warehouse.
Now that he had Star Ring, there was no need.
After moving everything over, he thoroughly looted the castle one last time, taking anything remotely useful.
Then he forged another Star Ring for Yue.
She was absolutely thrilled.
She extended her right hand toward him, subtly lifting her ring finger.
Alex's lips twitched.
Right ring finger? Wasn't that how you wore a wedding ring?
But seeing the hopeful look in her eyes, he slipped the Star Ring onto her right ring finger anyway.
Yue beamed and threw herself into his arms.
Her pale arms wrapped around his neck as she gazed at him affectionately.
Their eyes met.
And before either of them could stop themselves, they kissed.
Outside the castle, by the open-air pool—
They enjoyed a comfortable bath together.
And afterward, shared an even more intimate exchange.
Twelve hours passed in the blink of an eye.
Alex was teleported back to the world of Demon Slayer to continue Shinobu Kocho's mission.
After arriving, he also issued a private task to Yue.
[Group Member Alex has posted a mission: Companionship | Difficulty: ★ | Reward: 1000 Points]
[Group Member Yue has accepted the mission!]
The task was simple.
For the next ten years, Yue would remain by Alex's side.
Of course, even if she wasn't in her original world during that time, she could still post missions and have group members travel there.
Once she accepted, the chat group transported Yue to the Demon Slayer world as well.
...
Inside the group chat—
Miko Yotsuya: @Alex @Yue Did you guys finish your mission?
Yue: Yeah. I'm already in the Demon Slayer world with Alex.
Miko Yotsuya: As expected of the leader—cleared it that fast.
"..."
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