'This is a bitter moment…' Kyle thought in frustration, and the feeling was entirely justified.
The woman, whom he had yet to recognise, repeated the question, this time with greater force.
The effort, however, made her cough blood, and the gun slipped from her hand.
Kyle seized the opportunity to switch positions, but as he turned with the iron picker aimed at the stranger and grim intent in his eyes, he saw that she had already retrieved the weapon and now held it level with his forehead.
His eyes glinted with horror, though he forced himself to suppress any visible sign of it so he would not seem like a pussy.
Then, in one swift movement, she struck the weapon from his hand with the back of her gun.
The firearm itself was unlike any conventional model, its design bordering on the fantastical.
In the same motion, she drove it into his stomach, the blow forcing the air from his lungs in a wave of pain.
He dropped to his knees with a grimace.
'What the fuck is wrong with you!?' Kyle forced down the urge to voice it, though the frustration was written plainly across his face.
When he looked up to study the features of this strange and evidently battle-hardened woman, he found himself momentarily caught off guard.
The first thing to draw his attention, even through the gloom, was her armour. It was a marvel; each plate was shaped with near-obsessive precision, making it clear that it was not crafted by human hands.
The breastplate bore a faintly raised motif of curling lines, like frost spreading across glass, catching and reflecting a light that was not present.
The pauldrons were larger than most, sweeping out and down in a layered curve, while the gauntlets tapered into articulated fingers. The hip guards were adorned with fine silver filigree.
From a distance, the armour might have appeared ceremonial. Kyle felt both awe and envy in equal measure.
'Goddammit. I wish I were the one wearing that...' The thought lingered, though he knew it was an impossibility and accepted it as permanent.
It was the only thing that truly stirred his emotions.
Her features, on the other hand, inspired little in him, though they were undeniably worthy of praise. Her beauty was striking, almost divine, and suited the commanding aura she exuded.
She was the kind of woman who could halt a conversation mid-word. Her hair was a deep black, smooth as silk, and fell to her waist.
The pallor of her skin was the flawless white of porcelain, visible from her neck to her face. Her eyes were dark in both colour and tone, carrying a cool gaze that was not truly cold.
Her face, taken as a whole, resembled the very image of a goddess in human form. Yet on her beautiful lips rested a frown, marred by faint stains of blood.
Her eyes were slightly sunken, much like Kyle's, a mark born of stress and long deprivation of sleep.
After a brief spell of admiration, he found himself in an unusual state, though his anger remained unsuppressed.
Abruptly, she coughed more blood into her hand before it could spill.
But not once did she lower her guard, which spoke volumes about how combat-oriented and focused she was.
"I'm asking for the third time... What the fuck are you doing here, and how did you get in?" she repeated in a voice like cold stone, keeping the strange, otherworldly firearm trained on him.
Everything about her gear looked deliberate and well-earned, marking her as a skilled hunter.
At first, Kyle did not want to answer.
He felt like the victim in this exchange, and his self-loathing deepened as he found himself completely disarmed and disgraced by someone who seemed about his own age.
The worst part was that she was clearly unwell.
There was no sign of injury on her, yet her pallor made her condition obvious.
Kyle gritted his teeth, scowling as he answered with frustration.
"What the heck do you mean by 'how did I get here'? What am I doing here? No. The fuck are you doing here? This place does not even belong to anyone, and the world outside is dangerous... so you... You are not even worth my voice. That is it."
She was left momentarily dumbstruck by both his words and his manner.
The damsel took a moment to weigh his answers before lowering the gun and walking deeper into the theatre room.
Her movement was slow and weakened until she reached the rows of seats and sat down.
Kyle rose from the ground with a low groan, clutching his stomach.
He picked up the iron picker for defence in case she tried anything, though he knew that even in her state he would still lose.
'...She is infected with Qi Corruption? That would be a waste,' Kyle thought, already certain of her condition.
She displayed every sign of the corruption, and judging by her state, she likely had no more than three or four days before it killed her.
The only way to save her would be to purify her core, a process that was rarely possible and depended entirely on cultivation stage and rank.
The higher the rank, the more impossible the purification became.
In other words, her death was certain. Her expression reflected it, a picture of resignation and complete detachment from the world.
She sighed, tilting her head back to study the ceiling with one closed eye before speaking in a calm voice.
"I really do not give a fuck about your situation. The only reason you are still breathing is because you are not worth the effort. I am at my own brink, and you are too insignificant to be a name on my record of kills."
Her words struck Kyle in the chest, and he could not deny that she was right.
Because she was.
Yet a flicker of pride surfaced.
His first kill had been the boss of a zone, and in that shameless fact he compared himself to her.
Could she have ever done the same?
He grimaced and walked to a chair well away from hers, lowering himself into it.
He placed his bag on another section, ensuring it remained unnoticed by her. Its worth was not something he intended to reveal.
Without prelude, the familiar voice spoke to him.
***
[Clueless] has found a compatible partner
[Heavenly Cycle Dual Cultivation requirement fulfilled]
[Bonding with the eligible partner will grant three lasting effects: Purified Qi Pool, Bond Imprint, and Potential Unlock... further empowering both your core and hers simultaneously]
[Eligible Partner is graded at the Elemental Vein Realm, Tier 3 – Forged, and is nearing a breakthrough]
[Consent Sync is required to initiate Bond]
***
Kyle's eyes widened, shock rooting him in place.
For a while his thoughts scattered before pulling themselves together.
'You mean if I sleep with her, she will be cured of the corruption and I will share abilities with her, with a strong chance of unlocking one, despite still being in the Foundation Purification Realm?
…Wait, she is Tier Three? Nearly at Ascendant level and in the Domain Lord stage? Well, that is a shutdown. Fuck.'
The revelation changed everything.
If the manual was accurate, her life rested in his hands, although only in an indirect way.
He had no intention of using that leverage for control. His reasoning remained pragmatic rather than lustful.
Bonding with her could grant him her abilities, and if he managed a breakthrough, a Potential Unlock would follow.
It was a win-win situation, and that alone was enough to tempt him.
He hesitated at the thought of intercourse, though the reason for his golden dragon's sudden increase in size now made sense.
When his eyes returned to her, the striking damsel in distress seemed far from the sort of person one would wish dead, despite the first impression she had given.
Her appearance suggested resignation, yet her emotions remained concealed behind a wall of detachment, which he found worthy of respect.
She possessed the strength to avoid displaying her despair or acting recklessly.
He felt little pity for her, and that had not changed since their first meeting.
Yet after some thought, he decided to go through with it.
His motivation was not to save her life, but to claim the benefit for himself.
Perhaps after that, he could finally be strong enough to venture out and hunt for food. He hoped so.
However, one problem loomed above all.
As the manual had made clear, her consent was essential before a bond could form.
He understood the process well enough.
The real question was how to tell her that he could only save her by sleeping with her.
Would she believe him?
No.
She would most likely kill him on the spot, assuming he was mad and driven by lust for a woman he had just met.
The only way forward was to present it as a temporary arrangement.
Kyle clenched his fists and let out a slow sigh.
He glanced at her and spoke in a hoarse, deliberate tone:
"...It seems you have been corrupted as well."
Her face darkened as she realised he now knew what plagued her.
She levelled an emotionless gaze on him and spoke with cold precision:
"And why should you care? Shouldn't you be thinking of how to get out of here this instant, before I kill you in the next?"
He scowled, biting his lip bitterly, then exhaled to steady himself.
She was plainly stamping him as a worthless weasel, but that was nothing new.
He pushed the thought aside and forced himself to respond.
"I can cure you, but it is a tricky situation. The point is—"
The stunningly beautiful lady cut him off without the faintest hint of surprise, her voice remained cold as she responded:
"And how in hell are you going to do that?"