Inside the Diakos Estate, little Calliope busied herself with settling their new, unofficial brother into a tub of water, while Lukas went to inform their father, Duke Elias Diakos, of what they had brought back.
Knock
Knock
Lukas knocked gently on the door, waiting patiently for a reply.
"Come in," a cold, deep voice called from within.
Creek
"Father," Lukas said respectfully, his manner befitting the heir of the Diakos.
"There's no need for such formality," the Duke replied, his tone softening slightly as his sharp eyes warmed.
Still, Lukas hesitated, unable to let go of formality so quickly. His reluctance made the Duke frown. "What did you do?" he asked, his eyes narrowing as he studied his son's nervous demeanor.
"I... I brought you a surprise…," Lukas stammered, his tone awkward and uncertain.
"A surprise?" the Duke repeated, his brows furrowing.
Lukas lowered his head, revealing a rare vulnerability he seldom allowed himself to show. "Yes... a possible extension to the family...?" His voice trailed off into a near whisper.
A vein throbbed at the side of the Duke's temple. His jaw tightened, teeth grinding as he demanded, "What did you just say?"
"W-well... he isn't human. He's a merbaby. Calliope and I found him during a walk by the sea," Lukas stammered, his words tripping over one another. "He was lying in the sand, nearly dead, so I—"
"A merbaby?" the Duke cut in, his tone sharp.
"Yes, Father," Lukas replied, forcing steadiness into his voice though fear prickled at him.
"Bring me to him," the Duke ordered, his anger cooled but not extinguished.
"Yes, Father." Lukas bowed his head and quickly led his father to where Iris waited.
__
The brightly lit room glowed warmly, its centerpiece a large tub filled with water. Within it, the small merbaby splashed and played, ducking under the surface before springing back up with a delighted squeal. Calliope, seated beside the tub, burst into laughter at his antics.
"Do you want to see magic?" the merbaby asked eagerly.
"Ok!" Calliope shouted with an enthusiastic nod.
009, what do I do first? Iris asked his system nervously.
[Did you really want to show someone magic when you don't even know how to control it yet?]the system scoffed. [Figure it out yourself. I'm sure you'll eventually manage.]
Iris mentally rolled his eyes at the sarcastic voice. It can't be that hard, he thought, steadying himself. He had the talent for magic—he just hadn't practiced it much yet. Drawing on memories of countless animes, novels, and manhwas he'd devoured, Iris tried to recall the principles. As long as I follow the steps, I'll get it... hopefully. Still, his confidence wavered.
Closing his eyes, Iris reached out with his senses, feeling the mana particles that lingered in the air. He focused on water—difficult to isolate, but familiar and comforting as it coursed through him. Directing it to his fingertips, he slowly opened his eyes and cupped his hands. Water gathered and swirled in his palms, taking on shifting shapes before condensing again into a single orb.
He looked to Calliope with a small smile. "What do you want me to make?"
"Make an image of me!" she exclaimed, her eyes shining with excitement.
System, use 100SP and grant me the Ice ability, Iris commanded silently as he shaped the flowing water into a portrait of Calliope.
[Done, host], the system replied curtly before fading from Iris's mind.
With focused determination, Iris split his concentration in two—maintaining the delicate water sculpture while pulling at the cold particles around him. Slowly, the shimmering form hardened, ice creeping along its surface until the portrait froze solid.
At that exact moment, the Duke and Lukas entered the room.
They stopped dead in the doorway, eyes widening.
Did he just use magic?! Father and son thought the same thing in unison, disbelief painting their expressions.
The Duke turned to Lukas for an explanation, but his son only shrugged helplessly. He was just as baffled.
Before the silence could stretch too long, Calliope bounced over, throwing her arms around her father in excitement. "Daddy! Daddy, I'm a big sister now!" she squealed, then darted back to Iris. "This is Iris, and Iris—this is my daddy, who's your daddy too now!"
Fixing the Duke with an expectant glare, Calliope seemed to wordlessly challenge him: Well? Aren't you going to say hello?
For reasons he couldn't quite name, the Duke flinched under her gaze.
"Hello, Iris. It's a pleasure to meet you," the Duke said at last.
Iris only stared back, unblinking.
System, system, why is the Duke so hot? Iris whispered inwardly, but the system gave no reply.
[...]
After a few seconds of silent staring, Iris suddenly gave the Duke a radiant smile. The unexpected gesture left everyone in the room momentarily dazed.
|| Years Later ||
Sixteen years had passed since Iris became part of the Diakos family.
In that time, the manor had grown fond of him—the mysterious little addition who quickly became beloved. The Duke, Lukas, and especially Calliope doted on him endlessly, though Calliope's attachment bordered on the obsessive.
When Iris was five, he first dabbled in Transformation magic, a common ability among Merfolk and Beastkin. Though uninterested in gaining legs at the time, the practice revealed a hidden truth: Iris was intersex. Calliope's reaction, however, was not disgust or rejection. Instead, her protectiveness of him deepened tenfold, almost comically so, as though she had crowned herself his eternal guardian.
Life continued peacefully, and Iris grew so absorbed in this world that he completely forgot something important—his mission.
System, I know it's been like... sixteen years, but... what exactly was my mission again? I, uh, might've forgotten. Iris absentmindedly combed through his long, silvery-white hair. His fingers froze mid-motion as the weight of the question sank in, before quickly resuming as he waited for an answer.
[FORGOT?! You mean you NEVER asked?!] 009's voice thundered indignantly in his head. [Now that you finally remembered, we can actually start the mission!]
[Main Mission: Collect 2,500 sp worth of quality semen
Side Mission: Reunite with both mother and father]
.
.
.
Name: Zhao Bao
Gender: Intersex
Age:18
Hight: 5'0
Level: 0
Exp: 0/50
SP (semen points): 679,149
AP (attribute points):
Beauty: 89/100 (world class)
Charm: 80/100 (what a fox)
Flexibility: 79/100 (can do some complicated poses)
Strength: 15/100 (even my grandma is stronger that you, and she's Dead)
||Talents||
Magic, Mana Manipulation
||Skills||
Fire (Beginner), Water (Beginner), Light (Beginner), Space (Beginner), Nature (Beginner), Ice(Beginner)
||Body Upgrades||
Pink Nipples: 25% (10sp for 5%)
Breast Size: A cup (10sp per cup)
Pink Flower: 30% (10sp for 5%)
Perfect Skin: 59% (10sp for 5%)
Cute Toes: 59% (10sp for 5%)
Hight: 15% (5sp for 2%)