The raw power thrumming through Donarstraza's veins after her three-level ascent was intoxicating. Standing beside Karnazul, the Primordial Resonance humming like a low bass note between them, she felt a confidence she hadn't known since… well, since ever. The looming orc threat felt marginally less terrifying. She had a terrifyingly loyal general, a significant power boost, and fifteen shiny attribute points burning a hole in her mental interface.
"Karnazul," she stated, her voice echoing with newfound authority that felt less like an act. "Stand watch. I must… consolidate my awakening." It was a vague, suitably goddess-like excuse.
"Of course, My Liege," Karnazul rumbled, his molten gaze sweeping the ruined chamber entrance, his posture radiating lethal readiness. The intensity of his focus on her protection was both flattering and slightly unnerving. He moved a few paces away, a silent, ash-grey sentinel near the broken archway, his obsidian tail flicking slowly.
Donarstraza turned her attention inward, pulling up her full Status screen. The blue rectangles shimmered into clarity.
[Status - Donarstraza]
Name: Donarstraza
Title: Fallen Goddess of Lightning and Ruin (Dormant)
Level: 4 (15/??? XP) // XP needed for Lvl5 not displayed yet
Class: Primordial Absorbaatrix
HP: 345/345 // Massive boost from Lvl4 and CON
MP: 98/98 // Big jump from Lvl4 and INT
Stamina: 260/260
[Attributes]
Strength: 17
Dexterity: 14
Constitution: 21
Intelligence: 28
Wisdom: 12
Charisma: 27 (???)
Free Attribute Points: 15
[Traits]
Mana Vampirism (Lv.1)
Demonic Physique (Lv.1)
Primordial Spark (Lv.1)
Primordial Resonance (Lv.1)
[Skills]
Basic Mana Perception (Passive Lv.1)
Mana Drain (Active Lv.1)
Lightning Arc (Active Lv.1)
Primal Seduction (Passive Lv.2)
Fifteen points. Elina's inner pragmatist warred with the lingering thrill of raw power. Horny demon goddess or not, squishy means dead. Dead means no more lightning, no more Karnazul, no more anything. The memory of her pathetic Level 1 MP pool and the cost of Lightning Arc was stark. She needed staying power. She needed to survive long enough to unleash the flashy stuff.
Decision made. With focused intent, she poured 10 Free Attribute Points into Constitution. The effect was immediate and profound. A wave of dense, anchoring energy flooded her body. Her shimmering purple-red skin seemed to thrum with increased resilience. She felt… sturdier. Like her bones had been reinforced, her muscles woven with steel cables. Her HP gauge visibly swelled: 345 → 495/495. A near 150-point increase! The sheer bulk of it was reassuring. Let the orcs hit me now, she thought with grim satisfaction. They'll chip their axes.
Next, 5 Free Points into Intelligence. This surge was different – a sharp, crystalline clarity blossoming in her mind. The ambient mana of the chamber, previously a faint haze, snapped into sharper focus. She could almost see the currents swirling around Karnazul, a dark, potent river. Her own internal mana reserves felt deeper, calmer, easier to grasp and shape. Her MP gauge climbed: 98 → 128/128. Thirty more points. Enough for eight Lightning Arcs now, or sustained Drain. Much better.
[Attributes Updated!]
Constitution: 21 → 31
Intelligence: 28 → 33
Free Attribute Points: 15 → 0
[HP: 495/495]
[MP: 128/128]
She felt incredible. Denser, sharper, brimming with untapped potential. The constant low-level thrum of her demonic energy felt more controlled, more like a purring engine than a rattling boiler. She stretched, wings flexing, feeling the newfound solidity in her frame.
As the attribute changes settled, a new section of the System interface pulsed into existence, distinct from her Status or Skills. Golden script, softer than the usual blue, scrolled into view.
[New Section Unlocked: Bond Log]
[Tracking Profound Connections]
[Active Bond #1: Karnazul, Lord of the Nine Blades]
* Bond Level: 2 (Initiated)
* Bond Type: Primordial Resonance (Unique)
* Loyalty: Absolute (Oathbound)
* Proximity: Immediate (Within 10m)
* Emotional Resonance: Protective Devotion / Controlled Ferocity
* Intimacy Level: Established
* Intimacy Events: 1
* Potential Synergies: Combat Coordination (Minor), Power Amplification (Minor), Shared Perception (Locked), ??? (Locked)
Donarstraza blinked. Intimacy Events: 1. Heat flooded her cheeks despite herself. The System was certainly… thorough. But seeing it laid out so clinically – the Bond Level, the established intimacy – sent another complex wave of emotion through her. Gratitude for his loyalty, the thrill of their connection, and a flicker of embarrassment at the system's record-keeping. The 'Potential Synergies' were intriguing, hinting at deeper power to be unlocked. Combat Coordination… that could be useful.
Her contemplation was shattered by the sound of heavy, rhythmic footsteps approaching from the passage Karnazul guarded. Not the measured tread of her General, but multiple sets, accompanied by the clank of lesser armor and guttural voices. Karnazul shifted instantly, his relaxed vigilance snapping into a coiled, predatory stance blocking the archway.
Two hulking, lesser demon soldiers emerged. Their forms were humanoid but bestial, covered in coarse, grey hide, wearing crude iron plates strapped haphazardly. Their eyes glowed dull red. Between them, held roughly by the arms, was a figure that made Donarstraza's new, powerful heart stutter.
A human.
He was young, perhaps early twenties, with tousled, light brown hair and pale skin smudged with dirt and a trickle of blood from a split lip. He wore sturdy, practical leathers, now torn. But it was his face… High cheekbones, a strong jaw currently clenched in defiance, startlingly blue eyes wide with fear but burning with a fierce intelligence. And he looked… German. Blondish hair, unusual yellow eyes, the sharpness of his features… he could have walked out of her old Berlin neighborhood. A visceral wave of homesickness, shock, and something else entirely crashed over her.
Humans? Here? The thought screamed through her mind. The System had mentioned Kargath (orcs), but not humans in this world. She fought desperately to keep her expression impassive, the mask of the ancient, indifferent goddess firmly in place, though her golden eyes widened a fraction before she could control it.
The lead soldier, a brute with a broken tusk, shoved the human forward. The young man stumbled but caught himself, glaring up at Karnazul with impressive courage, given the circumstances. "Lord Karnazul!" the soldier rasped, pounding a fist against his crude chestplate. "Caught this surface-rat skulking near the Obsidian Scarps! Spying, no doubt!"
Karnazul's molten gaze swept over the human, his expression one of cold disdain. "A human spy? How… tedious. The treaty forbids their presence beyond the Blighted Marches." He looked back at Donarstraza, a flicker of concern in his crimson eyes. "My Liege? This vermin violates the accords. Shall I dispose of him?"
Donarstraza forced her voice to remain calm, resonant, utterly controlled. She couldn't show surprise. Not about humans. Not about treaties. "The treaty, Karnazul?" she prompted, her tone implying a goddess merely refreshing her memory after eons of slumber. "Remind me of its terms. The… reawakening process may have obscured minor details." It was a gamble, but a plausible one.
Karnazul inclined his head. "Of course, My Liege. After the Sundering Wars, a pact was forged between the surviving human kingdoms of Aethelgard and the fractured Demon Realms. The Treaty of Ash and Iron. It established the Blighted Marches as a neutral buffer zone. Any human found beyond the Marches, within the demon continent proper, is considered an agent of espionage or war. Likewise, demons venturing into designated human territories face annihilation." He gestured dismissively at the captive. "This one's presence here is an act of war. Punishable by death." He flexed a massive, gauntleted hand, the implication clear.
Espionage. War. Death. The words hammered into Donarstraza. But she was barely processing them. Her focus was entirely on the prisoner. The fear in his bright blue eyes was real, but beneath it was a fierce determination. And he was so handsome. Painfully, achingly familiar in a way that bypassed reason and struck directly at Elina's core. Her new demonic physiology, already primed by the proximity to Karnazul and the lingering effects of Primal Seduction Level 2, reacted violently. The low thrum became a demanding pulse, a heat flaring deep within her, entirely separate from her logical understanding of the situation.
She tried to look at him with the detached assessment of a goddess. Instead, she noted the strong line of his jaw, the defiant set of his shoulders, the way his damp hair clung to his forehead. The scent of human sweat and fear, so alien in this sulfurous chamber, was oddly… intoxicating. Primal Seduction… is it working on ME? Or is it just… him? The thought was terrifying and thrilling. Her gaze lingered a fraction too long, a flush threatening to rise on her shimmering neck. She saw Karnazul's eyes narrow slightly, tracking her focus.
The system offered no quest, no prompt. Just the overwhelming, inconvenient, and wildly inappropriate surge of raw, hormonal horniness directed at the terrified, handsome, doomed German-looking spy kneeling before her. Scheiße. This was not the time. This was definitely not the place. But her body, her traitorous new goddess body, didn't seem to care about treaties, spies, or the watchful, possessive gaze of her obsidian-horned General. It only saw the beautiful, forbidden human fruit dangling right in front of her.