Everyone's schedule inside the villa varies. Haruno, for example, has to manage the ever-growing survivor group nearby. Saeko is always brought over along with a few other girls, both for training and for security. Eishi became a homebody in the past ten days, mainly because of this sudden 'peace'.
'If I hadn't gained power…'
He might have been embroiled in the esper chaos outside. Though Yokohama seems peaceful, it is anything but such. The lack of zombies and insects did not deter other esper groups from annexing and looting each other. The city hall, despite its foundations, isn't spared from it either.
As to why Eishi's villa was spared, most of the credit went to his casual demonstrations in the city hall. Nobody knew how his enemies died. His power was so eerie and bizarre that most avoided him.
While there are those who attacked his villa, they couldn't even get past Eishi's squad full of girls. All he had to do is to focus on leveling up… and having fun with his women.
Today, he acted differently. He saw off the team on rotation today—Saeko, Haruno, Utaha, Yukino, and Yui—before staying in his rarely-used bed room.
A crimson-red crystal appeared on his left and right hand. These were the third-order zombie crystals gained from overfeeding a zombie. The entire feeding process was quite arduous, requiring him to raise a zombie to the second-order first before using its crystal to feed another zombie. Otherwise, his rebate function wouldn't have easily accumulated the genetic energy needed for its evolution.
Overall, it took two days.
Eishi was focused on leveling up when his door opened on its own. Megumi shifted her gaze to the floor as she closed the door behind her. Her one-piece oversized shirt did nothing to hide her fair and slender legs.
The swift-footed ninja sat in his lap.
"T-that…"
He sighed deeply, regulating his emotions. Megumi's bold actions fell through the moment she came close to him. She could not bring herself to blatantly ask for it despite doing it several times—indoor and outdoor—already. It is her apparent show of vulnerability that made her susceptible to Eishi's bullying.
"My hands are full. You need to move on your own."
"..!"
He showed the two crystals attached to his palm.
Megumi's body froze momentarily. She meekly nodded as her bangs hid her eyes—her sight glued to the ground. It took a lot of courage to be able to look up on him; another to bring her face closer to his.
Her hands rested on his chest, pushing him down the bed. She sealed his lips with hers, clumsily sucking on it.
Like a shy kitten, Megumi began her first-ever initiative…
*****
'Her strength…'
Eishi looked at the naked Megumi sleeping on his arms. He remembered to check on her panel.
[Megumi Kato]
Innate Talent: Forgotten One (SSS, Second-order)
Non-exclusive Talent: Strength Boost (B, Second-order), Spirit Boost (B, Second-order), Static Field (A, Second-order), Metal Sharpening (A, Second-order), Clairvoyance (A, Second-order), Regeneration (A, Second-order), Wind Blessing (A, Second-order)
Life Level: Second-order, Seven-star
Strength: 17 > 462
Agility: 19 > 389
Constitution: 15 > 385
Spirit: 123 > 768
A far cry from her previous self, her panel showed a lot of growth over the past twenty days. She is the only other triple S rated esper/confidante Eishi has. He showered her with favor, even when the 'jealous meter' of other girls went up.
The practical value of SSS rated espers is too high, and at the same time, resource-consuming.
Compared to lower-rated talents, SSS rated espers suffer in the early game. The difficulty of leveling up is cranked to the max. Even if their innate talent is heaven-defying, the others with lower-rated talents can level up faster. The latter can suppress these SSS rated espers with their physical attributes. The dangers at the early stage lay on these problems.
Once they can get through it and reach the second-order, their 'genetic energy' becomes extremely abundant, allowing them to spam their innate talents to their hearts' content. The past problems become irrelevant at this point.
In short, Megumi is lucky to have met a 'cheater' like Eishi.
'Since the contraceptives… the Life Nurturing Pills strengthen the future offspring, just how strong would our children be?'
He remained true to his words. Megumi did all the action while he absorbed the crystals in his palms.
'Thousands… no, maybe after ten thousand times of sex will I have children…'
In the end, Eishi declined this thought. He is self-aware. He doesn't have the patience to look after a child—at least not now.
He was only eighteen this year. An A rated first-order lifeform, as recorded in the [Origin Swallowing Method], has a life expectancy of 120 years due to their genetic energy.
His SSS rated talent is dozens of times stronger when it comes to housing genetic energy. Eishi's first-order can live for as long as three hundred years based on the quantum computer's differential estimates.
Things are different in the second-order. The same A rated lifeform can live for three hundred years; SSS rated lifeforms for roughly seven hundred years.
The main reason behind it was genetic energy. The rise of physical attributes isn't the only thing that lengthens lifespan. Genetic energy is a 'special substance' that does the same, not to mention its enhanced recovery effect to the human body. It was too weak to 'feel' in the earlier stages, but with his level up, this effect became more prominent.
The combination of genetic energy and physical attributes are what elevate an individual into a powerhouse.
It could be seen how absurd the existence of espers is, even more so Eishi's duplication of resources. The matters of having a child can also be put back for now.
Just then, the turning of his doorknob broke him from his thoughts. Eishi skillfully placed Megumi's head on the pillow, his eyes staring at the sneaky Mrs. Yuigahama. This time, she wore an oversized blue shirt. It barely hid her towering chest, not to mention her thick thighs. Her matching blue underwear was thoroughly exposed; her lustful look as well.
She sat at the edge of the bed. Her hot gaze circled around his exposed chest and chiseled abs.
Mrs. Yuigahama came to a silent verdict. She crawled along the bed before positioning herself atop Eishi. She did not notice the invisible Megumi.
"What? I thought this was a contractual exchange, Yuigahama-san."
"...You haven't touched Yui. I… can entrust her safety to you."
A flicker of rationality remained in her eyes.
She could not deny she built some sort of affection towards the lecherous man beneath her. Her body craved for him. He also gave her an unprecedented sense of safety—like a reliable husband.
'Husband…'
Mrs. Yuigahama shook away these thoughts. She wasn't wilful nor dumb. She approached Eishi with the intent of offering herself because he is lustful. The notion of husband-and-wife does not exist in his dictionary. He has nine women around him!
Her gamble paid off as they earned the right to permanently reside in this villa. She and Yui also gained the standard set of evolution fruits to become stronger, with Mrs. Yuigahama having the same portion as Eishi's confidantes. Yui's was much less, though it is still plentiful compared to others.
There weren't any other reasons for it. While he did not earn any 'benefits' from Mrs. Yuigahama, she has a unique taste that Eishi likes—the taste belonging to a fully mature woman.
He didn't mind spending a bit for it—his duplication cheat working full-time with nine confidantes present.
"My wife is cute this way."
"W-wife..?"
A single word from Eishi melted Mrs. Yuigahama.
"Then, h-husband…"
"I want to see my wife taking the initiative…"
She first greedily sniffed on his neck, slowly losing herself in intoxication.
He glanced at her status panel.
[Mayumi Yuigahama]
Innate Talent: Moisture Control (A, Second-order)
Non-exclusive Talent: Constitution Boost (B, Second-order), Flower Druid (B, Second-order), Regeneration (A, Second-order)
Life Level: Second-order, Nine-star
Strength: 6 > 451
Agility: 5 > 450
Constitution: 10 > 530
Spirit: 12 > 483
Eishi doesn't have anything to say with her physical attributes. Her ease of leveling up stemmed from her A rated talent. What surprised him was her choice of talent.
Instead of the practical [Spirit Boost], Mrs. Yuigahama chose the [Flower Druid] for one reason:
"Do you have a fruit that enhances… sexual experience?"
That was how they ended up with that "overpowered' talent. It changed her body's composition, giving a floral scent to her bodily liquids. They tasted as sweet as nectar. She willingly forsook her future—despite Eishi revealing the talent limit—just to please him more. The [Flower Druid] had no other capabilities than giving her bodily liquids 'functions' such as physical and mental fatigue restoration.
It is the biggest reason why Mrs. Yuigahama is in the top four of the people he always fucked.
She is going toe-to-toe with a literal succubus!
The familiar sweet taste invaded Eishi's tongue. Mrs. Yuigahama did all the action, which lasted for five hours. Megumi woke up in-between its duration, causing her to sneakily leave his room with a face full of embarrassment.
Mrs. Yuigahama only stopped when she went 'overload'. Moisture Control and Flower Druid combined sucked Eishi over a dozen times, though it backfired, leading to her fainting due to extreme pleasure.
Beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.
"This… succubus number two."
Eishi knew he met his match. The only other person that made him feel 'threatened' like this was Airi, the first succubus in his house.
He pulled out his dick out of her very moist insides. The act of doing so sent a shiver down his spine.
'Should I also… no.'
Eishi shut down the idea of giving everyone a [Flower Druid]. Each talent slot is extremely important. The only reason he wanted to do the same with [Partial Beastification] is its practical potential. Acquiring an animal's trait, further enhanced by their already strong physical prowess, is a game-changer.
[Flower Druid] loses in that regard.
'This reminds me of it…'
Eishi gave the [Partial Beastification] fruit to Saya. He wanted her to study it deeply, ensuring there won't be any permanent changes to its consumer. The [Flower Druid] also went through her hands, though it was swiftly confirmed to be 'non-harmful'.
Saya already gave the preliminary results days ago. She confirmed it won't do any noticeable changes to the body. The 'animal' trait can be recalled at will.
Only, the fruit itself is 'random' when it comes to the trait it gives. Saya wanted to find a way to control the selection process, which is why the 'beastgirl' plan was stalled until now.
'I need to level up first. Beastgirls… should have stronger bodies.'
Eishi placed the sleeping Mrs. Yuigahama on the bed before sitting on its edge. His continuous absorption of the crystals soon led to a drastic change. Red light continued to flow towards the milky-white core on his head. Its size increased further. His skin and muscles are fully saturated with genetic energy.
With a simple push, the bright red genetic energy penetrated through his bones and bone marrow.
Crack-!
Crack-!
…
Weird popping and cracking sounds came from his body. Wounds opened all over his body, expelling black blood and white bone fragments. Pain swept through his brain like a tide. Eishi's teeth clattered as his grip over the bedside increased.
Seeing he was about to demolish the bed, he crawled to the ground.
"Kkh…"
Crack-!
Shatter-!
His fingers pierced a hole through the marble flooring. He penetrated the layer of cement as his fingers squeezed against it. What was a tough material turned into sand in his hands.
The agonizing process took twenty whole minutes. His black blood let out a bad stench. Fragments of white bones could be seen across the shallow blood pool.
He took several deep breaths before regaining his composure.
"This power…"
Click.
Eishi unfolded his innate talent. Everything turned gray. His fingers touched the greyed-out blood pool.
The next moment, time was reversed. The blood pool and bone fragments gathered together. The difference was minimal. The damages to his floor remained.
Still, the consumption of his genetic energy and the heaviness of his mind increased.
Eishi tested other actions before his talent receded. He roughly confirmed two things:
First, the consumption of his time stop was halved. 100 points in spirit can now last for two seconds of time stop.
Second, he gained a brand new ability, [Time Reversal]. He can reverse an inorganic item's time, with its duration connected to the duration of his [Time Stop].
He placed a [Stamina Restoration Pill] in his mouth, lifting the heavy feeling in his head. Eishi felt the pill's full effect now. It wasn't wasted unlike before.
"Third-order…"
Eishi hasn't tested his strength yet. All he knows is one thing:
He's way stronger now.