Seeing that unexpected notification, he was montarily stunned.
But after thinking about it carefully… it actually made perfect sense.
After all, those two were basically walking, talking artillery platforms. Their monster-killing speed was on an entirely different level.
Just Rias alone — her casual Fireball spell could wipe out dozens of zombie birds in a single blast.
And Lux?
Lux was even more terrifying — she was literally playing with laser cannons.
Laser cannons, okay?
With monsters packed this densely, leveling up for them was as easy as breathing. It wasn't strange at all that they had surpassed him.
"Tch… good thing I never had any real interest in ruling over this broken world anyway."
Ryuji glanced down at his own tattered clothes and let out a cold laugh before finally responding to Rias.
"I told you, didn't I? This world is terrifying and bizarre in every possible way. You really should've been more careful."
He shook his head and decided to let the matter go. It wasn't worth dwelling on.
"Anyway, let's not talk about that anymore. What's done is done. But I'm sure you've noticed by now, haven't you? As your levels increase, your physical condition is starting to recover too."
Rias nodded.
"Yes, that's true. I've already reached level 70, but I still can't fully regain my peak strength. Lux is in the sa situation. I imagine it's similar for all of us here."
Kiri nodded as well, though she didn't seem too concerned. Her own power had long since returned thanks to her stat allocations, so this wasn't sothing that worried her.
As for Ryuji, he just curled his lip in mild disdain.
Power suppression? Yeah, sorry — never felt it at all.
That's right — he hadn't felt any power suppression whatsoever.
"But," Rias gently placed a hand over her chest, her expression calm, "give about an hour to recover, and I'll be able to handle this crisis completely."
Then, her crimson eyes subtly shifted toward him.
"Of course… if Mr. Ryuji, Miss Kiri, and Miss Tsunade are willing to let absorb so of your life energy — I could recover imdiately."
Ryuji blinked.
A giant question mark practically appeared over his head.
He looked at Rias, then turned to glance at Lux sitting quietly to the side.
And then — he couldn't help but ask the obvious question.
"...So why didn't you just absorb Lux's energy earlier?"
Honestly, with how chaotic things had been at the ti — and with, well, certain obvious distractions — he hadn't thought too deeply about it.
But now, hearing Rias casually ntion that girls were fair ga too…
What was that supposed to an?
Rias smiled faintly, as if expecting the question.
"Because Lux is still a young maiden," she explained patiently. "At the ti, her mana reserves were already dangerously low. Absorbing her energy would've caused significant harm to her body. Since Mr. Ryuji ca to rescue us, there was no need to hurt Lux unnecessarily."
Then she added with a gentle look toward Lux.
"And besides… Lux still has her first kiss. I'd prefer to let this child keep it — so that one day, she can give it to soone she truly likes."
"...?"
Kiri imdiately whipped her head around.
"Wait, wait, wait — what's that supposed to an?! My first kiss is still untouched too, okay?!"
Rias froze, genuinely surprised.
Then — incredibly seriously — she bowed her head in apology.
"My apologies. Seeing how close you two were acting, I naturally assud you were a couple."
Ryuji didn't say a word.
He just stared silently at Rias — then slowly turned to glance at the completely speechless Lux sitting beside him, her expression like a crashed program.
"…Uh, Rias… you an to say…"
Lux's voice was tiny, practically trembling.
But Rias just smiled sweetly, wrapping her arms around the stiff-as-a-board Lux like it was the most natural thing in the world.
"Mhm. I still very much hope you'll agree to beco one of my peerage. Naturally, I want to protect you as much as I can."
Of course… what Rias completely failed to notice — was that the very mont she hugged Lux — the poor girl visibly flinched.
The look of fear in Lux's eyes was so clear, even Ryuji could see it without trying.
…But Lux, for whatever reason, forced herself to endure it.
She didn't struggle.
Didn't resist.
Just… quietly endured it.
He could only sigh deeply.
"Yeah, nah. I'll pass. That kind of horrible experience? Once was enough."
Sure, getting your life energy drained by Rias felt amazing at the ti.
It was beyond amazing.
But afterwards?
It was pure hell.
The crushing sense of emptiness — the horrible craving that made him want to let Rias drain him again and again — it was unmistakably the mark of a devil's trick.
Whether Rias herself ant it or not — her demonic nature, or maybe her racial skills, worked like that naturally.
And now, even staring directly at that ridiculously perfect pair of—ahem—"attributes," he didn't feel even the slightest bit excited.
He just felt tired.
Exhausted.
Dead inside.
So yeah, better forget about ssing with that kind of thing again.
"This fortress can hold out for at least another hour. Just focus on recovering properly."
After saying that, he casually slung his gun over his shoulder and walked over to the firing port, joining Kiri in clearing out the zombie birds swarming outside. He clearly had no intention of chatting further with Rias and the others.
Better to focus on farming so experience points instead.
While running into these zombie birds out in the wild would normally be a huge pain, the situation here — with a sturdy fortress — made these monsters the perfect exp-grinding tools.
As long as they left a small gap open in the defenses, those zombie birds would recklessly hurl themselves at it over and over. All they had to do was keep pulling the trigger, and the creatures would co crashing down to the earth like rain.
Ryuji was killing them with great enthusiasm. Watching his experience points steadily climb, his mood gradually improved.
But then… he rembered the hint from his golden finger ability.
A certain idea started creeping into his mind.
"If I could sohow send Rias and Lux back to their original world… wouldn't that an I'd once again be the strongest candidate for this world's Dinsional Master?"
The mont that thought appeared, it took root in his mind, refusing to leave. He kept pondering whether it was actually possible or not.
But the more he thought about it… the more he frowned.
Because…
Because honestly, he didn't care who ruled this broken world in the first place.
If he could leave this crappy world right now, he'd do it in a heartbeat!
If he had the chance to leave this trash heap of a world right now, he'd take it without hesitation! Why would he waste ti fighting over a title like Dinsional Master — especially when he didn't even know what real use it had?
Sothing about all this just didn't sit right with him.
He knew what being a Dinsional Master ant — he wasn't clueless. After all, Marvel and DC movies had ntioned stuff like that before: the so-called strongest being within a given dinsion or world.
As long as the dinsion itself didn't collapse, that being would always exist.
But here was the problem — every dinsion ca with its own set of rules.
Just like Dormammu's Dark Dinsion — a place overflowing with darkness and corruption. Even Dormammu, the Dinsional Master of that realm, couldn't change its fundantal nature. That was simply the rule of his dinsion.
And this world… this 7 Days to Die dinsion?
How should he put it?
Was he supposed to spend the rest of eternity trapped in a world overrun by zombies, surrounded only by half-broken, mindless NPCs?
He'd rather die.
This kind of immortality… honestly felt more like a curse than a blessing.
If he could leave this world and head to another, that'd still be acceptable. But what if all the other worlds were like the Ancient One — blocking outsiders, refusing to let anyone in? Wouldn't that an he'd be trapped in this godforsaken zombie wasteland for eternity?
Sure, it'd be great if soone else could co into this world too — but what if no one ever did?
"…Sothing's not right."
As he watched his EXP slowly approaching the next level, he subconsciously paid attention to the feeling in his heart. And the mont he leveled up — in that very instant — he felt his earlier thought about driving everyone else out and becoming the Dinsional Master… subtly grow stronger.
It wasn't a huge change. But it was unmistakably there.
He could be sure of one thing: he hadn't had any emotional fluctuations during this period. Yet, right when he leveled up — his desire to possess and control this world had quietly increased.
"...This world really is guiding us. Guiding us to kill each other."
Ryuji's gaze landed on the 7 Days to Die system interface — that incomplete, half-broken "ga system" just coldly sat there, like it had been watching everything, silently foreshadowing sothing.
"Tch… What a bastard of a world."
He narrowed his eyes. And to think — he'd once believed that as long as a few superhumans appeared, survival here wouldn't be a problem. No matter how absurd this world got, the path to becoming the Dinsional Master shouldn't have been that difficult.
But now… it was clear he'd been too naive.
The title of Dinsional Master… was nowhere near as easy to claim as he had imagined.
"…Not like that's any of my damn business anyway. — a normal human — competing with those ridiculous superpowered freaks? What a joke."
Adjusting his mindset, he resud firing his gun. But just as he accumulated another half of the EXP needed for his next level-up, Rias suddenly spoke up from behind him.
"All right, Mr. Ryuji — I'm fully recovered now. From here on out... it's my turn to put on a show."
With a confident toss of her crimson hair, Rias didn't even wait for a response from Ryuji or Kiri. Instead, she spread her arms, casting a glowing barrier that enveloped their small steel shelter.
In the next mont, she boldly opened the door — revealing the endless horde of zombie birds still pressing in from all sides, their grotesque bodies cramd tightly against the tiny room.
But because of the protective barrier, even with the door wide open, those zombie birds couldn't break through.
Then, with a snap of her fingers, countless magic circles began to materialize around Rias, floating and glowing ominously in the air.
"Filthy monsters…" Rias narrowed her eyes, her voice calm yet filled with killing intent. "Bear witness to the reason they call — The Crimson Princess of Annihilation!"
~~~~~~~~~~
Bonus chapter target: 400 PS
User Comments
0 comments from readers