Day 76 of the Preparation Phase.
Fourteen days until Mandatory Missions began.
Riri sat cross-legged on her penthouse floor, Loki's massive head resting on her thigh while she ran her fingers through his fur. Vesper dozed on the back of the sectional. Vermillion's six butterflies rested on the windowsill, wings folded, their collective consciousness quiet in the early evening light.
Level 20. Max progression. All A-Grade gear minimum across every slot. Crimson Fang at her hip, S-Tier and perfectly maintained. Her companions had hit their own level caps, skills refined through seventy-six days of constant combat.
She pulled up her Status one more time, studying the numbers that wouldn't change until Mandatory Missions unlocked higher content.
[Riri Lee - Level 20 | Class: Beast Tamer (Unique - SSS)][Combat Power: 14,293][Active Companions: 3/3 | Bonded Creatures: 3/12]
Three out of twelve slots filled. Nine empty spaces that could hold additional companions if she chose to fill them.
Training Dungeons still offered creature diversity. Different builds, different utility options. A tanky golem for absorbing damage. A ranged attacker to complement Vermillion's drain. Maybe something with crowd control her current team lacked.
But taming required the target to drop below ten percent HP. And with Samael eliminating threats before they could become actual problems, finding viable candidates had become increasingly difficult.
The doorbell chimed.
Riri's head snapped up. Loki's ears swiveled toward the door.
The doorbell. Her penthouse doorbell. The one that had never rung in seventy-six days because nobody visited anyone in the Prep City. Everyone was too busy grinding levels and preparing for the inevitable.
She stood slowly, crossing to the door. Checked the security interface mounted beside it.
The camera showed a tall figure in black. Dark hair still damp. Familiar build.
Samael.
Riri opened the door.
He stood in the hallway wearing black joggers and a black t-shirt that fit close enough to show definition she'd only guessed at beneath tactical gear. His hair was damp from a recent shower, falling just past his collar instead of being pushed back like usual.
And he was holding a bottle of wine in one hand and a bag from the System Shop's premium food vendors in the other. The logo marked it as Thai cuisine. Expensive, high-quality, the kind of thing that cost actual credits instead of basic rations.
He looked at her. She looked at him.
Three seconds of silence stretched between them.
Then Samael spoke, his voice carrying an edge of uncertainty she'd never heard before. "Can I come in?"
Riri stepped aside, gesturing him through.
He passed close enough that she caught the scent of his soap. Something clean and sharp, cedar maybe, mixed with whatever shampoo he'd used. Heat radiated from his body, the warmth of a recent shower still clinging to his skin.
Her pulse kicked up for reasons that had nothing to do with combat.
Loki raised his massive head from the floor, amber eyes tracking Samael's entrance. The wolf huffed once. Acknowledgment, not threat. Then he settled back down.
Vesper appeared on the sectional's arm, giving a soft yip that sounded almost like a greeting.
Vermillion performed a lazy circle around Samael's head, six butterflies moving in synchronized patterns, inspecting him like they were checking for injuries or threats.
Her companions didn't just protect her anymore. They'd extended that protection to Samael. Vermillion especially had become a mother hen to both of them. The swarm would transfer HP the moment either of them took damage, priorities split equally between Host and pack.
Pack. He'd become pack.
Samael tolerated Vermillion's inspection with patience she wouldn't have expected two months ago. When the butterflies finished and returned to their resting spot, he turned to face her.
"Did you need something?" Riri asked, finding her voice.
His dark eyes met hers. Held. "I have a proposition."
Samael moved to the coffee table and set down the wine and food. Then he sat on the sectional, movements controlled but carrying an edge of tension she rarely saw from him.
He leaned his head back against the sofa, throat exposed, eyes closed. Took a breath.
The t-shirt rode up slightly. Just an inch. Enough to show a sliver of skin above his joggers' waistband. The defined line of his lower abs, the sharp cut of his hip bones.
His Adam's apple bobbed when he swallowed.
Heat crept up Riri's neck and into her face. She forced herself to look away. Focused on the wall. The window. Anything that wasn't the man on her sofa who apparently looked like that under his tactical gear.
By the time she trusted herself to move without her voice cracking, Samael had straightened. He was unpacking food now, pulling containers from the bag with methodical precision.
Two portions of Pad Thai. Two small sealed bowls that smelled like Tom Yum Goong, the hot and sour soup that cost twice as much as basic rations. A side of Poh Piah Tod, spring rolls usually reserved for special occasions or Players celebrating major achievements.
He pulled two wine glasses from his inventory. Actual crystal, not cheap System Shop basics. He uncorked the bottle with practiced efficiency.
The wine poured smooth and dark. He handed her a glass, took the other for himself. Then gestured to the food without speaking.
Riri gathered her portion slowly, hyper-aware of his gaze tracking her movements. Not clinical assessment this time. Just watching. Focused. Intent.
She took a bite of Pad Thai. The flavors hit her tongue. Sweet, spicy, perfectly balanced.
Only then did Samael start eating.
Twenty seconds of silence. Just the sound of chopsticks and quiet breathing and the city humming beyond the windows.
Then Samael set down his chopsticks and spoke.
"Bond with me."
Riri choked on her Pad Thai.
She coughed, eyes watering, hand pressed to her chest as she tried to clear her airway. Loki's head snapped up in alarm. Vesper materialized beside her, concerned. Vermillion's wings flared.
"Bond?" The word came out strangled.
Samael nodded. His expression was serious. More serious than she'd seen outside of boss fights. "System Bond. Permanent link between our Systems."
System Bond. She knew what that meant. The mechanics had been explained during Integration. A rare connection that could form between compatible Systems, linking their progression, rewards, and living spaces.
She'd dismissed it as irrelevant. Bonds required mutual consent and deep compatibility. Most Players never found someone they'd willingly tie themselves to for the rest of their lives.
But Samael was sitting on her sofa, having brought wine and expensive food, asking her to...
"Why?" she managed.
"Tactical advantage." His tone stayed level, but something flickered in his eyes. "Bonded pairs share mission deployment. Same Gates, same objectives. We wouldn't be separated when Mandatory content begins."
That made sense. Logical. Efficient.
But there was more. She could see it in the tension in his shoulders, the way his fingers tightened fractionally around his wine glass.
"System Bonds also share living space," he continued. "Sanctuaries merge in the Hub. Credit pools combine. Loot distribution becomes automatic."
Still logical. Still tactical.
"And stat transparency," he added, quieter now. "Bonded pairs can view each other's full Status windows. No hidden information."
Riri's pulse thundered in her ears. "That's a lot of trust."
"Yes."
"Bonds are permanent. Can't be broken except by death."
"I know."
"You're asking me to tie my System to yours forever because it's tactically advantageous?"
Samael's jaw tightened. He set down his wine glass with careful precision. "No."
The single word hung between them.
"Then why?" Riri asked again, softer this time.
He was quiet for ten seconds. Fifteen. His gaze dropped to his hands, then back to her face.
"Because when those men approached you at Red Cult Altar, my first thought was elimination. Not assessment. Not tactical analysis." His voice stayed low, controlled, but carried weight that made her breath catch. "Elimination. Immediate. Permanent. Before they could finish speaking."
Riri's fingers tightened around her wine glass.
"And when your companions showed homicidal intent, I agreed with them." Samael's dark eyes held hers. "The idea of you being in danger when I'm not there to prevent it is unacceptable."
"Bonding ensures we deploy together," he continued. "Same missions. Same timing. I can guarantee your safety if we're always in proximity."
"I don't need..."
"I know you don't need protection. Your Combat Power is fourteen thousand. Your companions are capable. You're one of the strongest Players in this Prep City." His tone sharpened fractionally. "But I need to be there anyway."
The admission settled between them like a blade.
Riri stared at him. At the man who approached everything with clinical efficiency, who'd spent seventy-six days optimizing dungeon clears and maximizing reward multipliers.
Who'd just admitted he needed to protect her despite knowing she didn't require it.
"This isn't about tactics," she said slowly.
"No." Samael's expression didn't change. "It started that way. Optimal resource allocation. System #1 and System #2 synergy. But it's not that anymore."
"Then what is it?"
He was quiet again. Then: "I don't know what to call it. I only know that the idea of you entering Mandatory Missions without me is unacceptable. And a System Bond ensures that never happens."
Riri's thoughts spun. System Bond. Permanent connection. Shared missions, shared sanctuary, shared everything for the rest of their lives.
Or until death.
She looked down at her wine glass. At the expensive Thai food. At Samael sitting on her sofa in civilian clothes, hair still damp, having orchestrated this entire conversation with the same precision he applied to boss strategies.
"When did you decide this?" she asked.
"Day forty-three. After the Sunken Temple clear."
Three weeks ago. He'd been planning this for three weeks.
"And you waited until now because?"
"I needed to be certain." His gaze didn't waver. "Bonds are permanent. I don't make permanent decisions without data."
"And now you have data?"
"Yes." Simple. Absolute. "Bond with me."
It wasn't a question this time. It was a statement. A request. A proposition that would tie her System to his for the rest of their existence in this death game world.
Riri sat in stunned silence.
System Bond with Samael. System #1 and System #2, permanently linked. Never separated. Always deployed together.
Shared sanctuary meant living together. Credit pools combined meant financial interdependence. Stat transparency meant he'd see her exact build, every allocation choice, every strength and weakness.
Her hidden stats. Luck and Charisma. The advantages System #2 provided that made her fundamentally different from normal Players.
He was offering complete transparency. Complete trust. Complete integration of their Systems.
Because the idea of her being in danger without him was unacceptable.
Her heart hammered against her ribs.
Loki shifted position, resting his head on her thigh again. Grounding. Present.
Samael waited. Patient. Certain. Like he'd already made his decision and was simply waiting for her to catch up.
The wine sat untouched in her hands. The food cooled on the coffee table. The city hummed beyond the windows.
And Riri sat frozen, trying to process that System #1's host had just asked her to permanently bond their Systems together. The apex predator. The man who eliminated threats with mechanical efficiency.