"Haa~ that felt amazing~"
Kurose Akira stepped out of the bath, his entire body steeped in the afterglow of warmth and deep relaxation.
"Waa~ Master washed me so clean~!"
Alice twirled happily, her skirt fluttering as her voice rang with pure delight and satisfaction.
At Alice's insistent urging, Akira had no choice but to agree to bathe together with her.
At the beginning of the bath, Alice showed off her deft hands and thoughtful nature. She carefully wiped every inch of Akira's skin, her movements gentle yet practiced, easing his muscles and melting away his fatigue until both body and mind were completely relaxed.
But when Akira picked up a towel and soap, preparing to wash his adorable maid in return—
Pop!
Alice suddenly transformed into a cloth doll, landing squarely in Akira's arms.
Akira was utterly stunned.
After all, he had never bathed a cloth doll before. He had never taken off a doll's dress, nor dipped his fingers into body wash to meticulously clean every nook and cranny of a doll's body…
Although the entire process was awkward and deeply unnatural, the end result was undeniably satisfying. Alice emerged spotless, as if reborn anew.
Turning to Loserine, Akira said, "You should go wash now."
"…Mm."
Loserine stepped into the bath. Not long after, the heavy clatter of armor hitting the floor echoed from within.
Even though she was undead, she still needed to smell nice—carefully cleaning each bone, polishing them until they gleamed brilliantly and radiated a unique luster.
A glowing skeleton was just way too cool.
When Akira settled onto the sofa in the guild hall, his gaze drifted to Lucía, who lay reclining nearby. She rested her head on one hand, eyes closed, quietly recuperating.
Her exquisitely serene sleeping posture drew Akira in, and he couldn't help but think: Lucía seems to enter this state often. She must usually be quite busy, only able to steal brief moments of rest like this.
Just as he was admiring her, a soft voice floated over like a gentle breeze.
"Guildmaster, have you ever considered strengthening yourself?"
Lucía slowly awakened. Through the white veil, her golden-red eyes fixed steadily on Akira.
"Of course," Akira answered honestly. "I'm always trying to improve my strength—it's just that progress isn't very fast."
This was a shared dilemma among all players. Without levels, players often defaulted to support roles within a team.
Of course, if one seized the right opportunities on the Magic Continent—such as consuming epic-grade or higher elixirs to rapidly boost attributes, or mastering powerful sword techniques or spells—it was possible to become a core combatant.
Beyond that, Akira clearly remembered that once a player advanced to a C-rank evaluation and officially established a guild, a qualitative leap would occur.
Though not a traditional level-up, this rank-based system granted massive attribute bonuses comparable to leveling.
"No, that's not what I meant," Lucía said softly, shaking her head. "You could learn some spells from us. If you're willing, I can teach you certain spells from the Holy Church of Light."
"Really?" Akira asked, intrigued. "Can the Holy Church's magic be taught to outsiders?"
"The Holy Church's magic has never been a secret," Lucía replied gently. "As long as one's heart leans toward the light, anyone may learn spells below the super-tier. Whether you can actually master them—that depends on the individual."
Akira's eyes flashed.
"Then… could you teach me some spells, Lucía?" he asked eagerly.
Teacher Lucía, I want to learn magic!
"Of course."
Lucía slowly sat up. Her snow-white jade feet briefly swayed before Akira's eyes before touching the floor lightly as she explained, "Normally, learning holy magic requires first studying the doctrines of the Holy Church and engraving them into one's heart. But I can allow you to skip that step."
As she spoke, Lucía produced a golden holy tome.
[Holy Canon of Light · Replica (Gold): A replica of the Holy Church's sacred text. A magical implement that increases spell-casting speed and potency. Usable only by Holy Church professions.]
"A… gold-grade Holy Canon?"
Akira showed clear surprise. He suddenly remembered that he still had a blue-grade Holy Canon in his inventory. Compared to the blue version, however, this gold-grade tome radiated far stronger effects and contained far richer holy magic.
"This is for you," Lucía said, handing the Holy Canon to Akira. "Once you've mastered the basic holy spells, I'll teach you more advanced ones."
"Alright."
Akira nodded slightly, his gaze locked onto the Holy Canon in his hands as waves stirred in his heart.
Rich and generous Lucía~ so nice~
Lucía glanced at the sky beyond the window. "It's getting late. I still have other matters to attend to, so I'll be taking my leave."
Before departing, she reminded him once more, "Remember—absolutely do not let outsiders see this Holy Canon, understood?"
Akira nodded in acknowledgment. Even within the Holy Church, a gold-grade Holy Canon was a rare treasure and naturally needed to be concealed with care.
"Mmm~"
Lucía gave a soft laugh, then gracefully stepped into the teleportation array.
Akira watched her disappearing figure without blinking, thinking to himself: I've already seen two of Lucía's personalities. Only the cold and the indulgent personality traits haven't appeared yet.
I wonder… will there be a surprise someday?
Just as Akira was lost in thought, Loserine finished bathing and emerged from the bathroom.
"Y-Your clothes…?"
Akira froze on the spot.
Loserine wasn't wearing anything at all—her blue-luminous, graceful form fully exposed before him.
"They burned," she replied flatly.
Only then did Akira notice that, for convenience, Loserine had stored the Flame Magic Stone inside her own body.
Through her semi-transparent soul form, he could clearly see the Flame Magic Stone glowing brilliantly at the position of her heart.
Elemental immunity is seriously broken…
"I'll buy you some fireproof underwear!"
Akira immediately purchased a set of flame- and heat-resistant undergarments for Loserine. He truly hadn't anticipated something like this happening.
Still, once Idice reclaimed the Flame Magic Stone, many of these troubles would disappear along with it.
…
In the blink of an eye, evening arrived—seven o'clock.
Akira sat inside the guild, fully focused on reading the Holy Canon of Light. The basic holy spells inside made his scalp tingle—it might've only been slightly easier than advanced calculus.
Even so, with his exceptional aptitude, he mastered one spell in just a single second.
That spell was Light Illumination.
Well—thanks to the [Sunlit Optimism] trait, his fingertips could already emit light. Functionally, it wasn't much different from the illumination spell anyway.
Just as he was deeply engrossed in studying the Holy Canon, he failed to notice countless vivid rose petals drifting down behind him.
In a haze, a faint, elegant fragrance slipped into his nose—an ultimate temptation that made Akira's body shudder violently.
Immediately after, a bewitching voice whispered into his ear:
"What are you reading~? You look so absorbed~"