The wooden floor of the Infinity Castle slammed into me and I felt something crack as the impact drove the air from my lungs. A rib maybe. Hard to tell when everything hurt.
The fusion dissolved completely, armor shattering into blue sparks that then faded into nothing.
Blue-Eyes White Dragon reappeared beside me in a flash of light and settled down next to me, clearly exhausted from the fight.
I tried to get back on my feet but collapsed to my knees, gasping for breath, one hand pressed against my side where the rib was definitely cracked, the other braced against the floor. Every muscle in my body was screaming from pain and exhaustion, trembling with every breath taken.
Not to mention I was covered in blood. Flaxan blood, bright red and sticky, coating my arms up to the elbows, splattered across my chest and face. Some of it was already drying, flaking off in crusty patches.
A moment later, the smell hit my nose and god, it just felt wrong as I barely stopped myself from throwing up on the spot.
Nakime's voice came from nearby, soft and respectful as always, but I could hear the exhaustion bleeding through.
"Welcome back… Master."
Right.
I was finally home.
I'd just banished Omni-Man to another dimension, destroyed a Flaxan invasion, summoned a fucking Blue-Eyes White Dragon, killed hundreds of aliens and somehow survived all of it.
"Nakime," I wheezed in a hoarse voice. "Room's... too small... Bluey's crushing me."
I looked up and realized we were in one of the smaller guest rooms, the dragon's massive bulk taking up most of the space, his wings pressed against the walls.
Nakime's single eye widened in panic and she quickly struck her biwa.
Twang-
The castle shifted around us, walls expanding, floor dropping away and rearranging until we were teleported into the main hall where the full scale of the Infinity Castle was on display. The ceiling had more castle growing downwards from it, multiple floors visible above us, and the floor extended in all directions like an Escher painting.
"Apologies, Master! I was too tired and made a mistake transporting you to the wrong room."
I wanted to tell her to calm down, that it was fine, but I was too damn exhausted to speak the words.
Blue-Eyes White Dragon himself flopped down with his tongue hanging out, sides heaving as he panted like an oversized dog. The poor beast had burned through everything he had today.
I reached up and petted his scaly head.
"Good… boy."
The dragon rumbled in a cat-like purr again, nuzzling into my hand despite clearly being exhausted.
We stayed like that for a while. All three of us just lying on the floor trying to get our breaths even. My cracked rib throbbed with every inhale, even the Flaxan blood on my skin was starting to itch
After about half an hour of this Blue-Eyes started to shimmer. The edges of his form becoming translucent as he started to dematerialise.
The one-hour summon was up.
I forced myself to stand on shaky legs, ignoring the protest from my cracked rib, and walked over to him. Put my arms around his massive snout in a hug.
"Hey Bluey," my voice came out rough "If we meet again, let's go for another ride, yeah?"
The dragon's crystalline blue eyes met mine as he purred one last time, the vibration rumbling through my chest and vanished in motes of blue light that drifted up into buildings above.
Nakime, seeing that the dragon was gone, struck her biwa again and the world shifted. One moment I was standing in the main hall, the next I was falling backward onto the softest thing I'd felt in days.
The softness of the silk felt too good against my battered body as an involuntary moan escaped my mouth.
"Ahh..."
Nakime appeared at the bedside, kneeling on the floor in her proper position. Still maintaining that respectful distance even though she looked ready to collapse herself.
I instinctively reached down and patted her head.
She went rigid for a moment. I could see the internal battle playing across her face. The ingrained servitude from her demon days warring with something else. Confusion maybe. Or the simple desire for comfort after two days of hell.
Finally, she relaxed slightly, accepting the gesture even as a faint blush colored her pale cheeks.
"It's been a tough two days, hasn't it?"
Nakime immediately tried to straighten up, the blush deepening. "This only reflects my weakness, Master. I was too weak to even open the gate exactly in front of that alien portal. I apologize—"
"None of that!" I cut her off. "You went above and beyond for me, which I can't even say for my own family. So be proud and accept my praise. Please?"
She blushed harder and nodded, still fighting her own instincts, but staying still under my hand.
Then the reality of what we'd just survived started sinking in.
I finally asked the question I'd been avoiding.
"How much damage did Omni-Man cause to the castle?"
I needed to assess the damage. This was my haven, my...
Nakime's expression turned grim as she cut my thoughts.
"Nearly the whole of the barracks are destroyed, save for a few facilities like your master room, the bath, and a handful of other chambers. They can be repaired over time with my Blood Demon Art, but it will take significant energy. Most unfortunately any and all items stored in the barracks are lost as well. Clothing, food supplies, bedding for the guest rooms. All destroyed."
She paused, her single eye meeting mine.
"Unfortunately, Master, I won't be able to trap that Viltrumite monster another time. Not unless I'm willing to destroy the whole castle to give you a moment to escape."
That sent a chill down my spine.
I nodded, remembering the look on that bastard's face as I'd banished him to the Flaxan dimension.
Pure rage and hatred focused entirely on me.
"But Master," Nakime said, as a hint of hope appeared in her voice. "Since you banished the monster to that alien dimension, even I felt the connection to that dimension close off after your attack damaged their portal. Perhaps he's trapped there permanently?"
I sighed.
"It's not that simple. The Flaxan dimension has its time sped up drastically compared to Earth. A single day here is nearly two years for them. Omni-Man will either conquer them and force them to open another portal to Earth. Or…"
I paused, thinking about it.
"Given that he's clearly injured, weakened, and absolutely rage-fuelled… he could very well wipe their entire race off the map to prevent them from being a future obstacle for his goal of conquering Earth. Might take him a few decades their time, which is like... a week here."
Huh.
Look at me casually accepting that I could very well have caused the extinction of an entire alien species.
But I wasn't as affected as I probably should be.
Maybe I did inherit something from my father after all. His coldness and heartless nature when it came to consequences.
The thought made my stomach turn slightly, but I pushed it away.
I knew Omni-Man would be back eventually, and the best thing to do would be to hide and get stronger before that happened.
The only thing I could rely on was the gacha.
And speaking of the gacha…I pulled up my notifications and heard the series of dings that were music to my tired ears.
[Feat Achieved! First Time Flying] Reward: +1x Bronze Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! First Public Power Usage] Reward: +1x Bronze Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Jump Off Mid-Flight] Reward: +1x Bronze Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! First Named Attack] Reward: +1x Bronze Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Escape GDA Custody] Reward: +1x Bronze Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Destroy First Droid] Reward: +1x Bronze Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Let Your Inner Chuunibyou Out] Reward: +1x Bronze Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Infrastructure Destruction] Reward: +1x Bronze Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! First Murder] Reward: +1x Silver Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Glutton for Radiation] Reward: +1x Silver Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Made Impression on Teen Team] Reward: +1x Silver Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Saved Invincible's Life] Reward: +1x Silver Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Announce Yourself to the World] Reward: +1x Silver Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Dragon Rider] Reward: +1x Silver Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! First Fusion] Reward: +1x Silver Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Destroy Alien Army's Portal] Reward: +1x Gold Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! First Massacre] Reward: +1x Gold Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Saved Thousands of Human Lives] Reward: +1x Gold Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Reclaimed Your Base] Reward: +1x Gold Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Banished Omni-Man to Another Dimension] Reward: +1x Platinum Random Gacha Ticket
[Feat Achieved! Saved a City from Alien Invasion] Reward: +1x Platinum Random Gacha Ticket
Oh boy, did I hit the motherload!
The gambling addict in me perked up immediately, exhaustion forgotten in the face of new pulls.
'Fighting an alien army head-on while exposing my powers was totally worth...'
But I stopped mid-celebration as two notifications stuck out sharply in my eyes.
'First Murder' and 'First Massacre'
There was a lump in my throat that I could neither swallow nor spit out. Something heavy settling in my chest that made it hard to breathe, and it wasn't just the cracked rib.
Have I, John Strange Fake, heir to the Fake family fortune, been reduced to a murderer?
Much less a mass murderer?
The Flaxan soldier's face flashed through my mind. The moment my rapier went through his eye socket. How easy it had been. How smoothly the blade had slid through bone and brain matter.
He'd been a person with a family back in his dimension. And I'd killed him without any hesitation whatsoever.
Seeing the color of my face change, Nakime asked quietly, "Master, is everything alright?"
I rigidly turned my neck towards her.
"Nakime... how do you deal with it? With killing people, I mean? With murder?"
She became serious immediately, turning to face me more directly. Then, in a move that surprised me given how much feudalism was instilled in her, she shifted from kneeling on the floor to sitting on the edge of the bed.
"For me, they are just food. As simple as that." Her voice was matter-of-fact. "Even before I became a demon, I used to kill someone before my performances, as the tension enhanced my music and made it more beautiful. It was a habit I picked up after I killed my husband with an axe."
The casual way she said it should have been shocking. Maybe it would have been, before today.
But I'd just killed hundreds of beings myself. Who was I to judge?
I was about to follow up with more questions when her single eye focused directly on mine with complete conviction in what she's about to say.
"Master, you killed because the situation demanded it. Those creatures were slaughtering innocents. Would you have preferred to let them continue?"
She paused, making sure I was listening.
"It doesn't matter who or what you kill, Master. You are my master, how could someone as honourable as you be tied down to such pitiful moral philosophy? You killed them because it was war. That's all that matters."
Yeah?
Yeah, she was right.
I was just defending myself, wasn't I?
Plus, those green freaks were killing innocents and would continue trying to conquer Earth in the future.
Hell, Omni-Man might do me & humanity a favour and genocide them off the face of the universe permanently.
The lump of saliva went down in an audible gulp as I accepted Nakime's logic.
After all, I wasn't some two-bit murderer.
I had some class.
I am a Gambler after all.
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