Chapter 25: Fame Comes Knocking, Politely, But Still Knocking!
Lucien opened his eyes to full sunlight streaming through the window.
He blinked at it, waiting for the exhaustion to hit.
It didn’t.
’Huh, it should feel like I pulled an all-nighter. Instead I feel like I could run a marathon and then fight a goblin king for fun, a second one. Immediately after the first.’
’Cultivating,’ he decided, stretching until something in his shoulder popped satisfyingly.
’Cultivating apparently does this, cool and cery convenient, eighteen years of nothing and now I get free energy drinks built into my own soul.’
He rolled out of bed and padded to the attached bathroom, and as had become something of a personal tradition at this point paused at the mirror afterward to properly admire the results of his shower.
’Yeah,’ he thought, tracing a finger slowly along one of the tattoos curling down his spine.
’Still handsome, still tattooed and still somehow married to three women who could each individually end a small war if properly motivated.’
Each tattoo pulsed faintly under his touch, warm and alive, like it recognized him back.
’Bonds getting stronger,’ he thought, watching the faint glow fade beneath his skin.
’Nice, very nice. Whatever this marriage contract actually is, it’s clearly a two-way conversation.’
He got dressed, feeling lighter than usual muscles looser, mind clearer, senses sharper in a way that made the whole morning feel slightly more vivid than it had any right to.
’Divine Talent,’ he thought, shaking his head. ’You’re absolutely ridiculous.’
---
Downstairs, the house had already come alive with noise.
"No! That’s too much salt!" Seraphina’s voice carried clearly from the kitchen, edged with barely-contained panic.
"...That’s sugar," came the correction a beat later, mortified.
Lucien leaned in the doorway, arms crossed, watching Evelisse stare down at a measuring spoon like it had personally conspired against her while Seraphina gently steered her back toward an actual recipe, patient as ever.
"You’re supposed to measure it before you dump it in," Seraphina said softly.
"That seems like an unnecessary and extra step so why should I?."
"It’s the entire point of the step, Eve."
Lucien bit back a laugh and let the moment stretch a little longer before announcing himself.
’Feels like home,’ he thought, warmth settling comfortably in his chest. ’An actual home and not just a building I happen to sleep in.’
Out in the garden, visible through the kitchen window, Aurelia moved through her morning routine sword forms first, sharp and precise, followed by a punishing set of push-ups that would have exhausted most soldiers twice her size.
’Crippled,’ he thought, watching her, ’and still moves better than half the veteran adventurers I saw at the guild, truly one terrifying woman. Glad she’s on my side and not, say, plotting against me.’
Eventually she noticed him watching and straightened, wiping sweat from her brow with the back of one hand, entirely unbothered by the audience.
"Breakfast ready?" she called.
"Give it a minute," Seraphina called back. "Evelisse is helping."
"That explains the smoke smell earlier," Aurelia said, deadpan.
"THAT WAS ONE TIME," Evelisse shouted from the kitchen, indignant.
---
Breakfast came together shortly after, Aurelia freshening up quickly, joining them at the table still slightly damp from a fast rinse, everyone settling in with plates full and conversation flowing easy in a way that would have seemed impossible a few weeks earlier.
"I’m heading to the renovation company today," Lucien said, between bites. "Should have enough now to cover the rest of the repairs. Roof, kitchen upgrades, the rest of it."
"Good," Aurelia said. "This place is starting to look almost respectable."
"Thanks, I’m doing my best."
"I’ll train both of them today," Aurelia continued, nodding toward Seraphina and Evelisse. "Hand to hand basics, actual training, not the half-hearted attempt from last week."
Evelisse groaned immediately, dropping her fork with dramatic flair. "The sword was just heavy."
"It’s steel," Aurelia said, unmoved. "That’s generally how swords work, they’re not supposed to be light, unless otherwise."
"I don’t like steel."
"Got it, but it’s irrelevant to the training schedule."
Seraphina hid a smile behind her cup, wisely staying out of the argument entirely.
Lucien pulled out the small collection of herbs and petals he’d accumulated from recent system rewards, sliding the bundle across the table toward Aurelia and Seraphina.
Aurelia eyed the offering, then him, suspicion sharpening visibly behind her eyes.
"Where exactly do you keep finding these? Every single time, more of them appear, and every single time you conveniently avoid the question."
"I know a guy," Lucien said smoothly, not missing a beat.
She stared at him a long, considering moment.
"You’re the guy, aren’t you."
"No comment," Lucien said, reaching for his tea like the conversation was already over.
Seraphina dissolved into giggles behind her cup, and even Aurelia’s mouth twitched, though she let the subject drop for now, at least, filing it away for a future interrogation.
Then Lucien turned his attention to Evelisse, setting two smaller piles in front of her fifty gold coins stacked neatly, a small mountain of E-Rank mana crystals beside them.
Evelisse’s eyes went wide. "That’s" she pushed it back toward him immediately.
"I don’t need this much, that’s way too generous."
Lucien pushed it right back across the table, firm.
"You do. Start cultivating properly, using the technique I gave you last time. Your rank matters now that you’ve got a Talent to back it up."
The chime rang the moment her fingers closed hesitantly around the coins.
[Ding!]
[Investment Detected: 50 Gold Coins + 100 E-Rank Mana Crystals → Evelisse Noctis]
[Bond: Partner — 20% — Max ×20]
The wheel spun, numbers blurring, then landing hard.
[×10]
[Reward: 500 Gold Coins]
[Reward: Mana Gathering Array Blueprint (Rare)]
Lucien’s brows rose slightly. ’Seems like her bond went up from last night.’
’A blueprint, it’s probably for the estate, something to speed up ambient mana absorption for everyone living here, quite useful, very useful, actually.’
He tucked the thought away, satisfied, and finished the rest of breakfast while the conversation drifted toward lighter topics, the renovation timeline.
Evelisse’s continued outrage over sword weight, whether they should get an actual dog now that the estate looked less like a crime scene.
Eventually everyone scattered, Aurelia marching Seraphina and a still-grumbling Evelisse toward the training yard, sword complaints trailing behind them the whole way, while Lucien headed upstairs to change into something more suited for a day out.
---
The dwarf at Blackstone Renovations greeted him like an old friend the moment he walked through the door.
"Back already," Borin said, setting down a set of blueprints he’d been reviewing. "Ready to finish the job properly this time?"
"Ready," Lucien confirmed, and paid the remaining balance in full, watching the dwarf’s eyebrows climb appreciatively at the sum.
"Crew’ll be there first thing tomorrow morning," Borin said.
"By tomorrow evening, this place’ll look like a proper noble estate again. Roof, kitchen, plumbing, the works."
"Much appreciated."
Lucien left the shop feeling lighter, mentally checking one more thing off a rapidly shrinking list, and turned his thoughts toward his next objective.
’Time to test the new talent properly, another dungeon, maybe something with a bit more bite than goblins this time.’
He pulled out his phone on the bus ride back toward the estate district, scrolling idly through the Guild App, only E-Rank listings populated the screen, same as before.
’Right, Guild license still says E-Rank, I need to get that updated before anything interesting opens up.’
He got off a few stops early and hailed a carriage the rest of the way toward the Guild instead, unwilling to waste more time than necessary.
---
The gothic fortress looked just as imposing as his first visit, black stone catching the midday sun, gold emblem gleaming above the entrance like it had been polished that very morning.
’Still an impressive building,’ he thought, stepping through the doors. ’Even by this city’s already ridiculous architectural standards.’
Inside, he made his way toward the reception counter and found the same succubus from before.
Luna, according to her nameplate, apparently mid-daydream, gaze drifting somewhere past his shoulder toward nothing in particular.
She blinked back to focus the moment he stepped up to the counter, cheeks coloring slightly before her professional smile snapped smoothly into place, like a curtain dropping over whatever thought had just crossed her mind.
’Definitely noticed something,’ Lucien thought, hiding a smile of his own.
’Bloodline evolution really did a number on the whole charisma stat. Poor woman didn’t stand a chance.’
"Welcome back," she said, voice admirably even. "How can I help you today?"
"I need my rank updated," Lucien said. "Advanced a fair bit since my last registration."
"Of course." Her fingers moved quickly across a glowing console.
"You’ll need to pass a combat evaluation to confirm the new rank officially. Room’s down the hall, second door on your left."
"Thanks."
He followed her directions down a corridor that opened, unexpectedly, into something resembling an indoor colosseum.
Tiered stone seating rising in a wide circle around a sunken arena floor, faint illusion arrays humming along the walls, several guild instructors observing sharply from a raised platform overlooking it all.
Dozens of spectators filled the surrounding seats, murmuring and occasionally cheering, watching an orc currently locked in fierce combat with what looked like a very determined, very stubborn Oni presumably another applicant mid-evaluation, judging by the intensity.
’Guild’s got its own little coliseum,’ Lucien thought, impressed despite himself. Very extra but I approve.’
He found an open seat near the edge of the tiered seating and settled in to wait his turn, watching the fight below with mild curiosity.
The moment he sat, the man beside him turned toward him unprompted.
Jet-black skin. Faint silver markings tracing sharp lines across his face five of them, Lucien noted, counting almost on instinct.
Two curved black horns swept back from his temples, and dark hair fell loose around sharp, angular features that gave nothing away.
’Shadow Walker Demon.’ Lucien thought, placing the race immediately.
’Never actually met one in person before but they sure do look interesting.’
The man studied him for a long, measuring moment, something unreadable flickering behind his eyes.
"You’re Luc Voss," he said finally. Not quite a question and more like a statement he was simply confirming out loud.
Lucien went very still.
’Nobody’s called me that outside Rika’s party before. And it’s not like he already knew the answer before he even opened his mouth.’
"...Depends who’s asking," Lucien said carefully, keeping his tone light despite the sudden tension coiling in his chest.
The man’s mouth curved slowly into something caught between a smile and a warning.
"I’ve been looking for you," he said.
"My name is Zalor Nox."
***************
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