The Soulmancer’s Ascension

Then came the moment for Zephyr to gather his guidebooks. There were three in total, mainly the ‘The Rules of the Hunter Society’, ‘The Archive of Magic Beasts (Theranhad Kingdom Edition) (Bronze)’, and the ‘The Realm Uncovered (Bronze).’ The knowledge of the Great Forest was recorded in the last book.

“Zephyr, I have a request.”

“Yeah?”

Laura propped her elbow on the table and leaned her chin on her palm. The enchanting smile and the soft look in her eyes combined into a dangerous allure.

“Can you come here to read the guidebooks? I get lonely here…”

Zephyr would be a fool if he couldn’t see through her attempt to seduce him. He acknowledged his charming looks, but he never felt like the guy these older women would go for. What would Laura gain from seducing him?

Maybe he was reading too much between the lines. The job of receptionist may have impacted her mind.

Laura’s eyes turned teary as if the previous mature look was an illusion. “I-I can clear your confusions. I won’t ask much of your time. Please…”

“Alright. I’ll drop by tomorrow morning with my fiancée.”

With Sherine present, he doubted the elegant woman would try anything. If she did, he’d deal with it.

“F-Fiancée?” Her face fell, and her posture became a slump mess. “I should’ve expected a nice guy like you to be taken. It makes all the sense in the world.”

“...”

“Is she strong?”

“She is not interested in fighting,” he lied with a straight face. “She also can’t speak. Be nice to her, or I’ll never come here.”

She gasped. “I will. I will.”

Having a friend at the Hunter Society might not be a bad deal, after all.

Zephyr took the rip off table and poured a bit of mana inside it. The magic circles bloomed, and the screen booted into a blank white screen.

“You have to show the back of your hunter badge to login.”

Zephyr flashed the back of his badge, and a short window appeared, saying that the login was successful. What followed was a greeting and multiple options.

[Login successful.]

[Welcome to the Hunters hub.]

[Check your hunter’s profile]

[Find the nearest Hunters Society’s branch] (Requires mana to properly work)

[Access the hunters communication area]

He curiously checked the second option, and he felt his mana dwindle just by a bit. A dark radar opened on the screen, showing a green dot sitting on a bigger red dot.

‘It’s literally a gps.’

This tablet had to be designed by someone from his previous world or a similar world.

He tapped the third option, which expanded into a dark blue screen. 

[Hunter3239 (Wyvern): These bloodsuckers are a pain in the ass.]

[DanielFU (Hawk): I know right. I lost my maid to them last year. Fucking undying bastards.]

[RenaQueen (Wolf): I hate undead…]

[Yrush (Hawk): Little sister, get a holy sister at your party. Those kindhearted good-for-nothing bitches excel at slaying undead.]

The rows of messages earned a stare of blank incomprehension from Zephyr.

‘A chat group.’

The communication area strengthened his doubt of Sterk Sol being an invention of someone like him. A person from earth.

“Actually…” Riven whispered. “There are merchants who hop from world to world to trade items. It might be their work.”

‘You should’ve told me sooner.’

“It’s fun watching my boy suffer.”

‘I’ll slap that smooth ass the next time we meet.’

Zephyr forced himself to shut down the communication area. This device might push him down a rabbit hole of social media addiction. He promised to only use it for information.

He said farewell to Laura and grabbed his stuff. Just as he exited, a burning sensation wrapped his chest, disappearing within seconds. He unbuttoned his shirt and found the source of the pain—a glowing golden mark resembling the head of a dragon.

[Skill ‘Dragon Touch’ advanced to Silver rank. Basic attributes +3]

[Skill ‘Dragon Touch’ advanced to Gold rank. Basic attributes +5]

[Skill ‘Dragon Touch’ first evolution failed due to unfulfilled requirements.]

The confusion kept on piling. He checked the description of the upgraded skill.

[Dragon Touch (Gold) (Passive): The love and devotion of a golden dragon nourishes your soul. Greatly increases your resistance to fire. Your element attacks deal 50% more damage. First evolution requirements: Soul Rank - King, Level - 30]

He hardly paid attention to anything seeing the word love and devotion.

‘This is… Sherine?’

She was too embarrassed to admit anything about her feelings. Just what happened behind his back for Sherine to come to term with everything?

***

A few minutes earlier.

Sherine stared at the door, her face lacking any kind of emotion. The first couple of minutes without her companion turned out to be more agonizing than anything. The affectionate hidden gaze of her father couldn’t sooth her loneliness.

“Sherine…”

“Father, I want to ask something.”

“Do so.”

“I’m…” Sherine went on to describe the sensations. The sensations that began after she met her champion.

Her father fell silent. Sherine had a hunch about the incoming answer. Despite all her innocence, she was a dragon at her core, the creatures who lived and died by their instincts. Creatures of pride, greed, and lust.

It took her time to realize the cause of everything.

After a long painful moment, Riven sighed. “My daughter, you’re going in heat for your champion.”

It was all she needed to hear.

“Father, do you dislike Zephyr?”

“Why would I choose him if I didn’t like him? I’m just surprised it happened this fast.”

“Zephyr is so… charming. It’s impossible to not adore him. What should I do? Marry him?”

“Slow down. You’re going too fast!”

“I have to act fast. W-What if he fell for some other woman?”

She didn’t have the confidence to compete with anyone. She had nothing else going for her except her beauty and power, both of which were inherited from her parents. She thought of herself as boring if not plain.

“It’s your choice… daughter. You have to decide if you want to take him right now. I’d advise against marrying. Do it after you have won the Game of Multiverse.”

“I will take off my clothes and a-and,” she stammered as all kinds of perverted acts came to her head. She concealed her blushing face with the blanket. “I-I will pin him d—”

Her mind overloaded and shut down.

She fainted.

“My innocent daughter…”

Zephyr showed up moments after. “Sherine? She fell asleep.”

He put a hand on her forehead and checked her temperature. She was burning, yet he felt nothing unpleasant. The fire resistance from the Dragon Touch worked as intended.

“Oi, Riven. She has a fever.”

“It’s not your average fever. You can treat her. Only you.”

“How?”

“Ask Sherine yourself,” Riven grumbled. “Don’t disturb me.”

Zephyr didn’t have the heart to disturb her rest. “Man, she is your daughter. How much more do you want her to suffer because of your selfishness?”

Sherine’s condition worsened yet Riven remained carefree. Zephyr was pissed. More pissed than he had been in his entire life.

Riven remained silent.

“There is no point in talking to you.”

Zephyr soaked a towel and placed it on Sherine’s head. After waiting a few seconds, he locked the door and headed down to the inn lady.

“Who is the physician in the town?”

“Physician? We don’t have one here. Lady Achmea’s potions can cure most of our diseases.”

“She got one for fever?”

“Yes.”

“Thanks. Can you look after my fiancée? I’ll be back in a minute.”

It was time to meet the incarnation of compassion and benevolence, Lady Achmea Flora.