Chapter 337: CH. 343-344: Godhood?

Asahi took the girls down to the 59th floor. The forest was eerily silent. Asahi couldn't feel a single life form on the entire floor.

"It's like a safe floor now," Nao mused.

Saeko had a deep frown on her face as she looked around. "Something feels off."

"It does!" Shiori threw herself at Asahi and squeezed his arm. "My horror meter is buzzing madly!"

It was all an excuse to be intimate with him in Saeko's presence. Everyone knew that, yet no one pointed it out.

"There is no one here," Asahi said and checked the time on the watch given by his devil maid. "It's time for dinner."

"We should return then," Saeko said. "Rika-san will be angry if we explore the legendary 60th floor without her."

"I'm more interested in the 69th floor," Shiori said, giving Asahi a wink. "Aren't you as well, dear?"

"Of course."

Ray silently tried to understand their back and forth, but she couldn't understand one thing. "Why is the 69th floor special? Has Master been there before?"

Shiori released his hands as though knowing his next action. Asahi stepped past Nao and wrapped Ray in his embrace. Ray's ears twitched as she felt his warmth.

"You're too adorable, you know. I'll show you 69 later."

He could imagine Ray doing her best to jerk him with her wings. It aroused him more than it should, oddly so.

'My lust is going out of control!'

(Don't worry. You have us to take care of your needs.)

"Uhm…" Ray nodded meekly, unknown to his lustful thoughts.

Asahi glanced at Rini who gazed at him, her eyes filled with passion. Her skill was acting up again. Asahi reached out and patted her head. She couldn't help but feel a little lost as the desire to mate with him got out of her head. At the same time, she was reminded of the first time she met him. He patted her head in the same way when she had nowhere to go.

"Onii-san…"

Asahi patted her cheeks. "Let's continue it later."

Rini could barely hide her surprise at being seen through. Then again, he was always there whenever she lost herself to the rage.

'He understands me the most…'

She let him spoil her while Shiori gave her an envious look. Rini pretended not to notice her and indulged in his headpats.

Once Asahi was done, he returned home and let them shower. He found the girls watching an anime on the television. The meeting room had no wooden chairs now. Only shiny leather couches could be seen. Every female in the Familia was here, including Rika and Grayfia. Astraea waved at him with a bright smile before she turned her attention back to the shonen anime.

"My Lord, we were waiting for you," Grayfia said and distanced herself from Rika.

Asahi sat between the two and rested his head on Rika's shoulder. "What were you doing?"

Rika wrapped his head around his head and stroked his hair. "Meeting Natsumi."

"Huh? Why would you?"

Rika smirked. "Don't be so cold. She's been standing at the city gate for hours. People were panicking because a level 4 adventurer was keeping watch on the gate. Someone had to go and stop her."

"Is she an idiot? I thought she'd use her wolves for the job."

"Not an idiot. A devoted slave," Rika said and pecked his forehead. "I'm more obedient than her, Master~."

"You sure are," Asahi said and cuddled with her.

The scene of Rika spoiling him caused a little commotion among the adventurers. Soon everyone returned to watching television except for Ryuu who kept staring at Asahi with an odd look in her eyes.

Feeling Ryuu's intense gaze, Asahi couldn't help but look in her direction. The elf smiled; the instinctive reaction embarrassed her.

Asahi chuckled and caressed her cheeks with his telekinesis. Ryuu gave him a glare, which only looked adorable with her red cheeks.

'What if I touched more than her cheeks?'

Asahi wondered about her reaction.

Nobody noticed Kaguya's smirk in the background.

***

After an uneventful dinner, Asahi returned to his room. The emperor-size bed was empty as though the girls predicted his meeting with Rini.

'Rini might have told them.'

Asahi sighed and plopped down on the bed. Rini had promised to come to him. She might be gathering her courage for her first time, or so he thought.

'What do I do…?'

(How about you read the Grimoires to unlock more elements?)

'Sounds good.'

He took out his good ol' Grimoire to learn more about the elements. He hadn't touched the Grimoire for a while despite the benefits it offered. After all, the headache it brought forced him to rest.

(With your increased mental strength, my love should be able to finish it now.)

'Let's try.'

He opened the Grimoire and immersed himself in the divine language. He had left the book at the Wind Element section, which wasn't that hard to comprehend. Baal and Amon's spells made him more than familiar with the Wind Element. Usually, ten minutes of reading made his temples painful. But he felt none of the side effects. Thus, he kept going until he reached the end of the Wind Element part.

[—'Elemental Roulette' ranked up to C.]

[—You have unlocked the 'Wind' Element.]

[—Rewards: +1 point in all attributes, +5 points in Dexterity attribute.]

"I'm gonna keep going. The next part is…"

Earth Element. Yuriko was rather proud of being the sole member possessing the defense-focused element. Though nowadays she was more proud of the store she had built in less than a month.

Without any side effects, the section was finished before long.

[—You have unlocked the 'Earth' Element.]

[—Rewards: +1 point in all attributes, +10 points in Defense attribute.]

He flipped another page to find a detailed illustration of a bolt of lightning striking the ground.

'Shiori will love this. Come to think of it, nobody has the lightning element in my harem.'

He didn't see anyone with the lightning element in his previous world either. Even in the Danmachi world, nobody wielded the power of thunder. Zeus and Ouranos weren't counted due to their divine powers.

'Bell did. Well, his firebolt was a mix of lightning and fire.'

(Saeko might awaken it. She is a quick thinker.)

'Water and lightning. A lethal combo to electrocute her foes. Another way to torture.'

He got back to reading. As he finished the last page, a jolt of hot electricity rushed up to his spine. He sat upright, his eyes wide in surprise.

[—'Elemental Roulette' ranked up to B.]

[—You have unlocked the 'Lightning' Element.]

[—Rewards: +1 point in all attributes, +30 points in Perception attribute.]

[—Congratulations on learning all six natural elements.]

[—Reward: Elemental Form skill.]

"That's an upgrade?"

"That's new. Show me the descriptions."

(Hai!)

[Elemental Form (Special): Allows you to become one with one of the natural elements in the world. In this form, you are immune to physical attacks, mana consumption is reduced to nothing, and all elemental attacks deal extra damage based on your affinity with the element.]

"This is magician class on crack."

(And this.)

['Multithreaded Processing' and 'Instincts' can be evolved into a Special-Rank skill.]

[Requirements — 350 Dexterity, A-Rank Multithreaded Processing, A-Rank Instincts.]

'A-Rank skills and 350 dex… you upgrading them to omniscience or what?'

(Not entirely omniscience. A little inferior...)

'Time for godhood, huh.'

He wasn't much different than the gods of the DxD world at this point. Klyscha was still a goddess on a different scale, so Asahi never compared her to any gods in existence.

(We are one step closer, my love.)

'Indeed. I shall grab your real ass one day.'

(Umu… she is here.)

Asahi also sensed two presences outside his room. Did Rini bring a friend?

*Knock!* *Knock!*

One of them ran away after knocking on the door. The muffled footsteps belonged to Ray.

'What is going on?'

Asahi opened the door and gaped. A blue present box stood in the lonely corridor of the shrine. Wrapped in light blue ribbons, the gift was nearly as big as him. Sensing the person hidden inside the box, Asahi revealed a mischievous smile.

"Huh. I got a big present. Was it meant for my birthday?" Asahi thought out loud and patted the box. The box stirred a bit. "It moves!"

Asahi wrapped his arms around the box and dragged it inside. He intentionally locked the door with a snap and slowly pulled the ribbon.

"Whoever is inside, can you hear me?"

He muttered as he pulled up the box with telekinesis. He almost got a nosebleed from Rini's new outfit. A black and white frilly bikini covering her chest and groin qualified as a maid dress. The black stocking stretching to her fair, athletic thighs made Asahi gulp.

"O-Onii-san," Rini said and straightened her posture. A haze of lust crept into her mind, but she pushed it back with her willpower. She clasped her hands on her lap and bowed. "Your birthday p-present is here."

Asahi raised her chin with his finger and pecked her lips. "Most wonderful birthday gift of my life."