Chapter 36: Ravaging Wives Unlocked the Mana Chef!
[Multiple Investments Detected.]
[Target: Aurelia Astrax]
[Investment Type: Protection / Combat Assistance]
[Target: Seraphina Lilith]
[Investment Type: Protection / Combat Assistance]
[Target: Evelisse Noctis]
[Investment Type: Protection / Combat Assistance]
[Generating Random Returns...]
The wheels kept spinning.
×4.
×9.
×13.
×17.
×20.
×23.
×9.
×5.
’Come on, come on, come on...’
The first wheel finally began to drag.
[×17]
The second followed shortly after.
[×23]
The third spun longer than either, numbers blurring past for several more seconds before finally, decisively, locking into place.
[×21]
Lucien held his breath.
[Investment Rewards Generated.]
[Aurelia Astrax — ×17]
[Investment Reward: Vein Restoration Elixir (Super Rare) ×5]
[Seraphina Lilith — ×23]
[Investment Reward: Bloodline Stabilization Potion (Super Rare)×3]
[Evelisse Noctis — ×21]
[Reward: Rare Culinary Manual — Feast of the Mana Chef]
Lucien exhaled slowly, staring at the words.
Not maximum but it’s still incredible.
---
His eyes lingered on Aurelia’s reward first, pulling up the full description.
[Vein Restoration Elixir (Super Rare)]
[A rare medicinal elixir refined from high-grade mana plants. Gradually repairs damaged mana veins and reduces core instability. Effectiveness scales with the user’s condition. Repeated consumption has diminishing returns until the body fully adapts.]
’Mana vein restoration elixirs, there are these types of elixirs too? And I even got five of them.’
He thought back to the numbers he’d checked days earlier, at that time it was around 20% and climbing, slow but steady.
’This’ll speed that up considerably. Finally, something I can actually hand her that moves the needle in a real way.’
Beside him, Seraphina stirred slightly in her sleep, and Lucien turned his attention to her reward next, careful not to wake her.
[Bloodline Stabilization Potion (Super Rare)]
[Temporarily stabilizes an unstable or rejecting bloodline for 1 day per use. Each additional use provides diminishing duration, up to a maximum of 5 uses. When properly timed, creates a window during which the bloodline can accept external nourishment. Warning: cannot repair a severely damaged or rejecting bloodline on its own and only alleviates it temporarily.]
Lucien’s chest tightened slightly, reading it twice.
’Damaged or rejecting bloodline? Why would it reject her considering it is not damaged from what she said.’
’This is not even a cure, not even close, how high of Investment or multiplier is needed to get a cure.’
’But atleast it gives her a window. A day at a time where her blood isn’t actively fighting itself. That’s, somewhere to start at.’
’She must’ve be in pain every time I actively fights her, althoughit hasn’t happened yet since we got married but just incase i’ll take it as it can help just in case.’
---
He turned to the last reward, and something warmer settled into his expression.
[Rare Culinary Manual — Feast of the Mana Chef]
[At Rare rank, cooking becomes something more than preparation. Teaches mana-infused cooking, ingredient compatibility, proper mana ingredient circulation, magical preservation, advanced seasoning, and recipes designed around cultivation itself. Properly prepared dishes may grant minor temporary effects: accelerated mana recovery, improved stamina, minor physical recovery, improved cultivation efficiency, or resistance to fatigue, all depending on ingredients, complexity, recipe and the chef’s mastery.]
Lucien blinked at it slowly.
’So cooking just became another way to make my wives stronger. That’s extremely on-brand for this entire system, honestly what else did I expect from it.’ He thought shaking his head a little with a small smile blooming on his face.
’I should’ve expected it, at this point already.’
’Well atleast Evelisse is going to be thrilled. Or possibly just hungrier, most probably both.’
’What else can I expect from that little glutton demon who also happens to be my wife?’ He thought funnily.
’Atleast I get to see her stuffing cheeks like a squirrel, cute like one too.’
He decided to claim it immediately, curiosity winning out over exhaustion.
---
Knowledge unfolded in his mind, different from the flat information-dump of the Technique Comprehension reward, this felt layered, textured, recipes assembling themselves alongside the why behind each step.
Mana circulation patterns threading through meat fibers without destroying delicate flavor compounds.
Precise temperature thresholds where infused mana stabilized rather than dissipated. Knife techniques designed specifically to preserve mana-rich cuts.
Timing windows for ingredients that would curdle or collapse if mana saturation happened too early or too late.
’The Common and Uncommon manual taught me how to cook,’ he thought, comparing the two sets of knowledge settling side by side in his mind. ’This one teaches me how to make food that actually does something to the body once it’s eaten.’
’Its a huge difference, genuinely huge like knowing how to drive vs actually making a car.’
He glanced at the clock.
’Well time really flies,’
’It was already late and now it’s very late.’
’I should test this immediately, honestly, it’s a groundbreaking discovery for foodies in this family, really and deserves proper attention.’
’But not now the Girls are exhausted. If I start cooking at midnight, Aurelia will actually kill me, and Evelisse will wake up the second she smells anything remotely edible.’
’Actually, that’s basically guaranteed regardless of the hour.’
He set the thought aside for tomorrow, mildly amused at himself, and left the healing items tucked safely in his inventory for the morning.
---
Curiosity still humming, he pulled up his full status before finally settling in to sleep.
[Lucien Dracul Aethernis]
[Race: High Vampire]
[Age: 18]
[Rank: Peak D-Rank]
[Bloodline: Mythical — Crimson Origin Bloodline]
[Talent: Divine — Sanguine Genesis Crucible]
[Stats: —] 1
[ Strength: 280
Agility: 340
Vitality: 400
Intelligence: 270
Mana: 320 ]
He scanned past the ability list quickly, already familiar with most of it.
He checked his stats that increased a lot thanks to his rank, bloodline and talent increasing and ignored that his intelligence was his lowest stat before he moved toward the section he actually wanted to see.
[Wife Bonds: ]
[Aurelia Astrax — 19% → 36%]
[Seraphina Lilith — 16% → 33%]
[Evelisse Noctis — 20% → 40%]
Lucien stared at the numbers for a long moment.
’They all jumped and significantly at that.’
’It must because we actually fought together, trusted each other and protected our home as a family. Our bonds growing closer, mine and all the girls too.’
Something settled warmly in his chest at that realization.
’The system isn’t just rewarding gifts,’ he thought slowly just as always.
’It’s rewarding the relationship itself. Everything we build together, apparently, counts.’
’Good to know it’s not only materialistic.’
He briefly checked his inventory as well, the fresh elixirs and potions sitting alongside a modest collection of mana crystals and some odds and ends he’d never bothered pulling out like some gold coins.
’Getting messy in there,’ he thought, nudging the mental list toward tomorrow’s errands.
’I really need that storage ring, I’m definitely buying one it’s non-negotiable at this point, just look at my pouch it can barely hold anything.’
---
His eyes grew heavy at last, exhaustion finally catching up properly, not the bone-deep exhaustion of the Goblin King fight.
Just the comfortable, well-earned tiredness of an extraordinarily long day where he so happened to fight some wolves that broke out from a dungeon and then later ravaging his wives,
’Yes just a normal extraordinary day.’
He glanced down at Seraphina, still curled against his side, breathing slow and even in her sleep.
She shifted slightly, murmuring something unintelligible, and pressed closer without waking.
Lucien pulled her in gently, closing the small remaining distance between them.
’No system, no cultivation, no dungeon break or monsters and no political conspiracies waiting somewhere in the shadows.’
’Just my wife, breathing steady beside me.’
’On second thought scratch that last one I’m sure there are some happening behind some dark and dingy alley corner.’
’Tomorrow I’ll deal with the guild, sell the wolf materials and I’ll figure out the storage ring situation, and worry about Aurelia’s recovery, and Seraphina’s bloodline, and whatever else the world decides to throw at us next.’
’Tonight, though—’
’Tonight, I’m done.’
He drew the blanket up over both of them, and Seraphina settled instinctively into the warmth, her breathing never once faltering.
Lucien closed his eyes as he held her close.
And, for the first time since the wedding that had started all of this, fell asleep without a single worry keeping him awake.
***************
[A/N: Loving the story so far? Comment and let me know.
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