2:00 AM.
Utaha's apartment.
Luo Shu, who had just finished blow-drying his hair, ran a hand through the warm strands and turned to see Utaha shuffling unsteadily out of the room in a loosely tied nightgown, heading for the fridge.
"So, Luo Shu-kun, who's good for nothing except stamina, is now planning to go home and comfort his little girlfriend?"
Utaha pulled out a can of chilled cola, hesitated before opening it, and tossed it to Luo Shu.
"Open it for me."
"Are you seriously this weak...?"
Luo Shu caught the can and, despite his words, pulled the tab with an exasperated smile.
With a sharp pop, bubbles fizzed out.
He quickly took a sip before handing it back to Utaha as she approached.
"Pretending to be weak and helpless is a woman's privilege, host-kun."
Utaha took a sip of cola before pressing the cold can against Luo Shu's cheek, letting him feel the chill.
"My bed tonight will be even colder than this. Won't you really help warm it up?"
Though unfazed by the cold, Luo Shu turned his head away with a sigh:
"So you want me to be your body pillow for the night?"
Hearing this, Utaha showed a flicker of interest but replied:
"Never mind. You're going to take over the remaining Ghoul factions next, aren't you?"
She added meaningfully: "A smart woman wouldn't hinder her lover's ambitions, would she?"
Luo Shu sensed something hidden in her words: "You sure about that?"
"Not worried I might just be saying this while secretly going back to Kisara?"
Surprisingly, Utaha didn't get angry. Instead, she took another sip of cola, her smiling expression unreadable:
"Going back to comfort her is fine. After all, losers need more consolation, don't they?"
"..."
Luo Shu gave her a deadpan look. Who was the one who just forced him to shower five times, screaming about removing all traces?
Forgotten already?!
"Fine, as long as you're happy."
Opening his system interface, he continued:
"Speaking of which, I haven't distributed the points for the Ghoul operation yet..."
Utaha blinked before casually sitting beside him.
Leaning back on the sofa, she draped her legs across his lap and said airily:
"We only helped with intelligence gathering. Is this really necessary?"
She added, "Besides, your magical encyclopedia did all the investigating. We just recorded data~"
"Participation means points - that's the rule we established. Forgotten already?"
Luo Shu mocked her memory before pausing:
"Moreover, points are our nourishment for growth. More points don't guarantee strength, but they're essential for it."
After some interface adjustments, he said:
"1000 Points for intel gatherers, 3000 for combatants. Fair considering the risks?"
"That's quite generous for the danger involved."
Utaha handed him her half-finished cola before lying down with her head on his lap:
"Still frustrating being stuck in support roles."
"Yet you refused extra points," Luo Shu couldn't help retorting.
"Well~" Utaha smiled playfully. "A woman must preserve some dignity occasionally."
"I saw zero dignity when you took my host fees earlier."
Luo Shu scoffed while finalising the system transfer:
"Done. Check if your points came through."
"Won't bother. 1000 Points can only buy the cheapest Excellent Rank ability anyway."
Utaha Kasumigaoka covered her eyes with her forearm and laughed softly:
"By the way, after this points expenditure, will there be anything left in your little stash?"
"What do you think?"
Luo Shu countered with a question while glancing at the system points notifications he'd been ignoring for ages.
[Appointed as Director of the SDS Hidden Management Department. The host's authority in human society has increased. Gained 30,000 Points. Monthly fixed points increased by 3,000.]
[New Familia member added: Pureblood Demon Kisara (Elite Rank, adolescent stage). Gained 50,000 Points. Monthly fixed points increased by 5,000.]
[Played a pivotal role in Operation Spring Cleaning, indirectly eliminating 21,290 Ghouls. Gained 83,870 Points.]
[Acquired title 'Black Reaper'. Deterrence in human society has increased. Gained 5,000 Points.]
[Successfully captured Kurumi Tokisaki's clone. Gained 3,000 Points.]
[Monthly points expenditure for member Kisara: Deducted 2,500 Points.]
[Operation points reward: Deducted 7,000 Points.]
Luo Shu skimmed through the scattered points notifications before finally landing on the total.
[Total points: (217,038). Monthly points increase by 11,000 at the start of each month.]
Seeing the roughly 210,000 Points made Luo Shu happy, though he didn't want to show it in front of Utaha Kasumigaoka.
Hearing Luo Shu's retort, Utaha deliberately asked: "Can I check the accounts?"
"No!" Luo Shu rolled his eyes and said irritably, "Points are under my jurisdiction—no negotiations."
"?" Utaha blinked in confusion before responding with an amused smile: "I meant cash. Yen."
Then she added thoughtfully, "Did you gain a lot of points this time?"
"Eliminating Ghouls alone gave me 80,000." Luo Shu didn't hide his thoughts from Utaha and stated the figure directly.
"80,000?" Utaha froze.
Like Luo Shu, she could see the system's ability purchase interface.
"If I recall correctly, 100 Points is the minimum for Common Rank abilities, 1,000 for Excellent, 10,000 for Elite, 50,000 for Hero Rank's baseline, and 80,000 should be enough to buy a fairly powerful Hero Rank ability, right?"
Luo Shu rubbed his chin thoughtfully before replying:
"If we're just talking about buying abilities and not Classes, then what you said is roughly correct."
Hearing this, Utaha seemed surprised and also grew curious about Classes, so she rested her head on Luo Shu's lap and asked:
"What's so special about Classes?"
Luo Shu thought for a moment before summarising:
"Expensive."
"And powerful!"
"Powerful in multiple ways."
"For example, the Hero Class 'Sanctuary Guardian' possesses temple-level defences along with corresponding strength, functioning like a mobile war fortress. They can also use a wide variety of holy spells and have extremely high physical and magical resistance."
"But becoming a Sanctuary Guardian requires multiple conditions."
"First, the Class itself must have 'Sanctuary Guardian' as its prefix. Beyond that, you need the corresponding advancement materials."
"One of them is the Holy Shroud, priced at 90,000 Points—almost reaching the 100,000 Point threshold for Demigod."
"The second is a treasure priced at exactly 100,000 Points, possessing the strong will of a saint right at the Demigod threshold."
"Aside from the two advancement materials, there are supplementary materials: one tear from a maiden with a pure soul worth 10,000 Points, some purified water, and a sanctuary recognised in one's heart."
"Moreover, with all these advancement and supplementary materials gathered, one must hold an ascension ceremony before the sanctuary in their heart, enduring the assault of a Hero Rank enemy for at least five minutes."
"Only by completing all this can one advance to become a Hero Rank Sanctuary Guardian."
As Luo Shu explained the advancement conditions for a Sanctuary Guardian, Utaha felt a tingle on her scalp.
Just the advancement materials alone cost 190,000 Points. Adding the supplementary materials pushed it over 200,000 Points, not to mention having to conduct an ascension ceremony.
Though the abilities gained under such stringent conditions were undoubtedly formidable, wasn't the difficulty simply too high?
"How could anyone possibly meet such conditions?"
Hearing Utaha's murmur, Luo Shu let out a heavy sigh:
"The advancement materials Sharon prepared are all ready, and we've already saved half of the 10,000 Points needed for the Maiden's Tears. We're pretty much just waiting for the ritual now."
Utaha's eyes widened upon hearing this.
She knew exactly who Sharon was—a cadre of the European secret organisation Demon Hunters that Luo Shu had subjugated, someone who handled his dirty work.
Had she nearly gathered all the conditions for advancing to Hero Rank? Those incredibly stringent requirements were almost complete?
For a moment, Utaha's mind was in turmoil.
Emotionally, Kisara had beaten her to it, and now, in terms of career, Sharon had far surpassed her. What use could she possibly be to Luo Shu in the future?
Noticing Utaha's unease, Luo Shu patted her arm reassuringly from behind:
"Well, no need to stress too much. Sharon just got lucky with the advancement materials this time."
"Besides, her starting point was much higher than yours, which is why she's close to meeting the conditions so quickly."
"Compared to her, I'm the one who's really suffering here."
As he spoke, Luo Shu tapped the air, summoning his own advancement interface.
[Calamity Priest (Hero Rank)].