After breakfast, Lavinia asked Rhode if they were going out for training today.
"No need. Rest for a few days. Besides, I'm about to reach the threshold for the Balance Breaker."
Rhode felt he had plenty of time to unlock the Balance Breaker of Incinerate Anthem before the Three-Way Meeting. As his Sacred Gear approached a major evolution, he felt a bit of nervous anticipation, despite his earlier decision to let things happen naturally based on Lavinia's advice.
Especially after seeing Vali's Balance Breaker form last night, Rhode had been itching for his own. Strength aside, looking cool was a lifelong pursuit.
Do I need to watch a few more episodes of Kamen Rider to solidify my resolve? Rhode wondered.
"Eh? You're already sensing the power of the Balance Breaker?" Lavinia was shocked. As a Longinus wielder herself, she knew how difficult it was to unlock that power through individual effort alone. It had taken her nearly ten years.
How long had it been since Rhode obtained his Sacred Gear? His growth was terrifying.
Lavinia didn't fear his power; as his friend, she was happy to see him grow. However, Rhode's current rate of progress wasn't just "becoming stronger"—it was a speed that felt supernatural. For a normal person, growth came through years of accumulated effort. For geniuses like Akeno or Koneko, accepting their bloodline could cause a massive jump in a week. But Rhode was on a level she had never seen before.
"Rhode, becoming stronger is a good thing, but you must always stay true to yourself. Don't go astray. If you have any doubts about developing your Sacred Gear's power, you must come to me immediately. You can talk to me about anything else, too. Please don't try to shoulder everything alone!"
Lavinia's tone was incredibly serious. In her twenty-plus years, she had seen too many people lose their minds in the pursuit of power. Especially in the world of magic she came from—countless witches took dangerous risks with forbidden spells, only to meet tragic ends. Rhode was the person she cared about most. He was the one who had taken her in when she was at her most helpless. Thus, he was the last person she wanted to see in trouble.
She had heard... in certain manga, that if a girl does that, it can make a boy happy, solve his worries, and release his stress.
"If you need me, Rhode..."
"Don't worry about my body. Just... do those things to me as much as you want."
Rhode didn't realize what she meant at first, but when she added, "I'm not afraid of the blood," his expression became quite peculiar.
You might not be afraid, but I am! As a man with normal preferences, the idea of "fighting a battle in the mud," especially during "Aunt Flo's" visit, was a bit much for him to swallow.
Still, Rhode knew Lavinia meant well. In all his time since transmigrating, this was the first time a woman had cared for him so selflessly. Looking at the girl before him, Rhode actually felt his heart race.
"Eh?" Asia looked at the two of them, sensing the ambiguous atmosphere, completely lost as to what was happening.
Kuroka, on the other hand, felt the pheromones between the man and woman bothering her more and more. She proactively shifted into her human form, one hand on her hip and the other resting on a "mountain peak" half-exposed by her kimono. "If Lavinia is busy, this cat can take over for her nya~"
"And please, feel free to do it with the intent of getting me pregnant nya~"
"E-eh?!" Asia looked at Kuroka in shock.
Meanwhile, the Fallen Angel trio seemed to see an opportunity to climb the ladder. As they had fully decided to cling to Rhode's leg, using their bodies to secure their position wasn't something they felt ashamed of.
"E-e-eh?!" Noticing the predatory glares from the Fallen Angel trio, the look on Asia's face grew even more panicked. Why did it feel like everyone was suddenly excluding her?
"Don't worry. Being seduced by a Sacred Gear is impossible for me."
For one, most of Rhode's power came from system missions. Furthermore, after he obtained the Longinus, the system had kindly "neutralized" the will of the Saint that might have interfered with him. Even the Balance Breaker—which usually required intense emotions or a desire to subvert the world's laws—was being unlocked slowly through a harmless progress bar.
More importantly, Rhode wasn't the type to sacrifice everything for power. If he had to lose more than he gained on the path to strength, the power itself would become meaningless.
Of course, he was touched. How many girls would offer themselves so unconditionally during their period? At least he had found one.
Naturally, this didn't conflict with his firm resolve to build a harem.
"We're not training today. Let's go out for a walk."
After what happened yesterday, the next few days were bound to be quiet. Since he didn't have any missions on hand, taking a few days off was no problem.
And so, Rhode spent the rest of the day wandering around Kuoh with the whole group. Rhode usually wasn't a fan of shopping, but spending time with beautiful girls made the time fly.
To Rhode's slight disappointment, despite being surrounded by so many beauties, the classic trope of delinquent punks blocking their path never occurred. Come to think of it, even in the original story, Rias and the others never dealt with that while shopping. Even catcalling, which was common in Japan, didn't happen in Kuoh. The town was so well-渗透 (penetrated) by supernatural forces that the human side was suspiciously peaceful. Rhode could only say Rias's efforts were misplaced. What's the point of such high public safety in human society?
By the end of the loop, they hadn't bought much. At noon, they reached the park. Rhode pulled kitchen equipment from his storage and had the Fallen Angel trio start cooking.
Raynare and the others were at a loss for words. We were supposed to be out playing for the day!
But you can pull out a cooking pot at noon? Do you have Doraemon's 4D pocket or something? Should we just call you 'Rho-Doraemon' from now on?
Of course, Raynare only grumbled in her head. Her hands were quite fast as she sliced the meat.
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