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Days quickly turned into weeks.
The Kuoh mansion was completely peaceful.
There were no surprise attacks, no angry gods, and no Khaos Brigade terrorists knocking on their door.
Nothing important happened at all.
Rias and Sona spent all of their time training their peerages.
The official Rating Game was getting closer, and both girls were absolutely determined to win and become mid-class Devils.
Elias spent his days simply enjoying his life.
He helped Asia in the garden, watched Rias and Sona practice their magic, and played games with Illya, Ophis, and Kunou.
He loved just being a normal father and partner to his big, crazy family.
One quiet evening, Elias was sitting alone on the balcony, looking up at the starry night sky.
The air shifted slightly, and Dee floated down right next to him.
She wrapped her pale arms around his neck from behind and rested her chin on his shoulder.
"Eli,"
Dee whispered softly, her sweet voice right next to his ear.
"Do you want to go on a date with me?"
Elias smiled. He reached up and gently held her cold, pale hand.
"Of course I do, Dee,"
Elias answered warmly.
"We haven't been on a real date in a while. Where do you want to go? A fancy restaurant? A walk in the city?"
Dee giggled, floating around to sit on his lap. She looked deep into his eyes.
"No,"
Dee smiled.
"I want to take you much further than that. I want to go to other universes."
Elias blinked in surprise.
"Other universes?"
Elias asked.
"Yes,"
Dee nodded, her dark eyes sparkling with excitement.
"There are so many beautiful, strange, and wonderful worlds out there, Eli. I want to see them all with you. I want us to travel together."
Elias thought about it. It sounded like an amazing adventure. But then he looked back toward the inside of the house.
"I would love to go,"
Elias said softly, his voice full of care.
"But what about our family? Rias has her big Rating Game coming up soon. Illya and Ophis still need me. And what if Rizevim tries to attack while we are gone? I can't just leave them unprotected for weeks or months."
Dee reached out and gently touched his cheek.
"You don't have to worry about time at all, Eli,"
Dee promised him with a confident, happy smile.
"I already took care of it."
"What do you mean?"
Elias asked, looking confused.
"I made a special deal with this universe,"
Dee explained simply, as if talking to the entire universe was a completely normal thing to do.
"Because of my concept, the rules of reality listen to me. I told this universe to wait for us. The exact moment we leave, time in this world will completely stop."
Elias's eyes widened in pure amazement.
"Will it stop completely?"
Elias asked.
"Yes,"
Dee nodded.
"To Rias, Ophis, and everyone else, we won't be gone at all. We could travel across a hundred different universes for a hundred years. But when we step back into this house, not even a single second will have passed."
She wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head against his chest.
"I share you with everyone here because I love our family,"
Dee whispered sweetly.
"But for this date... I want you all to myself, Eli. No gods, no wars, no terrorists. Just you and me, exploring the endless stars."
Elias's heart melted completely. He looked at the girl who was literally Death itself, and all he saw was the woman he loved.
He leaned in and kissed her softly.
"That sounds absolutely perfect, Dee,"
Elias smiled.
"Take me wherever you want to go."
Dee pulled back just a little bit. Her endless dark eyes were shining with pure excitement.
"I know exactly where I want to go first!"
Dee announced happily, clapping her small pale hands together.
"Where is it?"
Elias asked, smiling at her bright energy.
"We are going to the world of Danmachi!"
Dee cheered.
Elias blinked. He tilted his head, feeling completely confused.
"Danmachi?"
Elias repeated the word slowly.
"Is that a city? Or maybe a type of food?"
Dee stared at him for a second, and then she burst out laughing. Her sweet, musical giggles filled the quiet balcony.
"Oh, Eli,"
Dee smiled, gently poking his nose.
"You really do not read manga or watch anime, do you?"
Elias rubbed the back of his neck, feeling a little embarrassed.
"Not really,"
Elias admitted honestly.
"Before I met you, my life was just about surviving day by day. I never really had the time to sit down and watch cartoons or read comic books."
Dee's smile softened. She looked at him with deep love and understanding.
"I know,"
Dee whispered softly, resting her hand on his chest.
"You had a very hard life. But while you were busy surviving, I was watching over you from the shadows. And since the shadows are very quiet, I had a lot of free time."
Dee giggled again, looking a little bit proud.
"I read all the human comic books, played the games, and watched all the shows. I guess you could call me a total otaku!"
Elias's eyes widened, and then he let out a loud, warm laugh.
The idea of Death itself sitting in the dark, reading manga and watching anime, was incredibly funny and cute to him.
"Death is an otaku,"
Elias chuckled, hugging her closer.
"That is amazing. So, what exactly is this Danmachi world?"
Dee snuggled into his chest and began to explain.
"It is a fantasy world,"
Dee said simply.
"It is a place where gods got bored of heaven, so they came down to live with normal humans. They give humans special blessings so they can explore a giant, endless underground maze called the Dungeon."
"It sounds like a video game,"
Elias noted.
"It does!"
Dee agreed happily.
"But it is very real. I want us to go there, Eli. I want us to hide our true power and just act like normal human adventurers. We can explore the big maze, fight monsters together, and sleep under the stars. It will be our very own private adventure."
Elias thought about it. In this world, he was always the strongest. He was always the boss, the protector, or the terrifying monster that scared gods away.
But in a new world, with no one knowing who he was, he could just be Eli. And he could spend all his time with the girl he loved.
"That sounds like the perfect date,"
Elias smiled warmly.
"Just you, me, and a giant dungeon. How do we get there?"
Dee smiled brightly. She raised her hand and snapped her fingers.
Instantly, the wind stopped blowing.
The leaves on the trees froze completely still.
The sounds of the distant city completely vanished.
Time in their universe had completely stopped.
A glowing, swirling black portal opened right in the middle of the balcony.
"Hold my hand,"
Dee whispered, her eyes glowing with excitement.
Elias grabbed her soft, pale hand tightly. Together, they stepped right into the portal, leaving their frozen world behind to begin their new adventure.
Elias and Dee stepped out of the dark portal.
They felt soft grass under their feet.
The portal vanished quietly behind them.
Elias looked around.
They were standing in the middle of a beautiful, peaceful green forest.
Tall trees reached up to a bright blue sky.
But there were no houses, no roads, and definitely no giant city in sight.
"Well,"
Elias smiled, looking around the quiet woods.
"This is a very pretty forest. But I don't see a giant city or an endless dungeon anywhere."
Dee looked around and giggled nervously. She rubbed the back of her head.
"Oops,"
Dee smiled playfully.
"I think I missed the main city by a little bit. The city of Orario is supposed to be right on top of the dungeon. We are... definitely not there."
"That is not a problem at all,"
Elias laughed softly, gently squeezing her hand.
"Time has stopped back home, remember? We have all the time in the world. Walking there together is just part of the adventure."
Dee beamed happily.
But then, she held up one small, pale finger.
Her face became a little more serious, but she still had a playful sparkle in her dark eyes.
"Before we start walking, Eli,"
Dee said.
"We need to talk about the rules for our special date."
"Rules?"
Elias asked, raising an eyebrow.
"What kind of rules?"
"Rule number one,"
Dee announced clearly.
"You cannot use any of the magic or powers you learned from our home universe. No devil magic, no time stopping, no gravity spells, and no servant weapons."
Elias tilted his head. He didn't mind a challenge, but he was a little curious.
"Why?"
Elias asked gently.
"Do you want me to play on hard mode?"
"Well, that is part of the fun!"
Dee smiled.
"But it is also because of how the multiverse works. Every universe has its own strict set of laws. It is like trying to play a video game disc in the wrong console."
Dee stepped closer and pointed up at the sky.
"If you try to use magic from our old world here, it might not work at all,"
Dee explained simply.
"The laws of physics and magic are completely different in this world. If you try to force your old powers to work, they might just fizzle out, or they could cause a really dangerous reaction."
Elias nodded slowly. That made perfect sense.
"So, I have to start completely from zero?"
Elias asked.
"Not completely,"
Dee answered softly. She reached out and placed her hand flat against his chest, right over his heart.
"You can still use your Adaptivity. And what your body has been adapted into."
Elias looked down at her hand.
"Adaptivity is not just a magic spell,"
Dee told him, her voice full of absolute certainty.
"It is a core part of who you are. It is attached directly to your existence. And your existence belongs to you, no matter what universe we travel to. Your Adaptivity will always work."
Elias smiled.
He felt a familiar, thrilling excitement waking up in his chest.
"I see,"
Elias said warmly.
"I cannot use all of my old tricks. I have to let my body naturally adapt to the rules of this new world. I have to learn how this universe fights, how it uses magic, and how to survive."
"Exactly!"
Dee cheered, wrapping both of her arms around his arm.
"It will be just like starting a brand new game with DLC. We will start as normal beginners with a new beginner package, travel to the big city, and become great adventurers together!"
Elias looked at the endless green forest ahead of them.
He didn't have his crazy magic or his overwhelming strength.
"Alright, Lady Dee,"
Elias smiled, leaning down to kiss her cheek.
"Lead the way. Let's go find this city."