He spent all his Upgrade Points to receive the SSS-tier Omni Cock to successfully subjugate Bastet, but since then, he got two more for the fangirl quest’s successful completion.
It was ti to invest. And there was only one skill that ca to Kaiden’s mind.
[Adaptive Reflexes] (B-tier)
A combat passive that allowed his body to react faster the longer it was in combat, making it easier to dodge, parry, or counter. It wasn’t the flashiest spell, but in a solo duel like this, it was a difference-maker.
He selected it and ntally confird the upgrade.
[Upgrade Point Consud...]
In his mind’s eye, the familiar gacha-style animation blood, normally slow, colorful, triumphant.
But not this ti.
This ti, it was sped up as if even the system sensed how dire his situation had beco.
Bright signs spun rapidly.
A golden wheel clicked into place.
[DING!]
[Adaptive Reflexes] has been upgraded to S-tier!
[Instinct Overdrive] unlocked!
A quiet, fierce grin spread across Kaiden’s face.
He could feel it: the spell now didn’t just let his body react faster; it let his entire form shift in microbursts of movent to align with deadly precision. Every dodge would require less thought. Every parry, more instinctual.
His body would move with violence.
But he wasn’t done yet.
He still had one more point.
"Let’s make it a miracle..." he whispered to himself.
He selected the skill again.
[Second Upgrade Point spend.]
The ceremony began. Colors spun. Trumpets blared. Confetti rained.
Then...
Black.
The entire ntal theater went dark.
As if a war had just been lost.
Somber strings played.
An error tone buzzed.
Kaiden blinked, heart dropping.
[Instinct Overdrive] has suffered regression. Downgraded to A-tier.
[Combat Drift] unlocked!
"... What?" he muttered aloud as a cold sweat broke over his skin.
It was the first ti this had ever happened.
No warning. No buffer. The system just... punished him. He’d gambled and lost.
’Not now!’ Kaiden cursed inwardly. Any other point in ti could’ve been more appropriate than this! Why did it have to fail him now?
His body still felt more responsive than before, but the sting of the downgrade shattered his focus for a critical second, and that’s when the vampire moved.
The noble’s robes fluttered as he glided forward in a blur. His claws dragged mana across the floor, leaving ribbons of blood-hued mist in his wake. His eyes were afla with seething rage and hunger.
"[Bloodforged Gauntlets]..." he whispered.
A grueso glow overtook his arms.
Thick veins of corrupted mana moved up his limbs. His claws cracked and thickened, lengthening into large, bone-like talons coated in blood. Flesh hardened unnaturally, each knuckle now reinforced with hexed bone and necrotic might.
Kaiden barely had ti to brace himself.
The first punch shattered the air.
It didn’t hit Kaiden’s flesh. It hit the armor protecting his body.
And thank god it did.
His ribs still scread beneath the enchanted plates of the Dawnguard set, but without it? That first blow alone might’ve stopped his heart.
*BOOM!*
Another hit, this ti to the shoulder. His body was flung sideways like a ragdoll before his boots carved ssy tracks into the marble.
"Guh!" Kaiden gasped as his breath was stolen from his lungs.
The vampire noble advanced.
*WHAM!*
"You think you’re the only one who can cast magic and also fight in lee, Dawnguard mongrel?"
A third impact crushed into Kaiden’s gut, and he doubled over, only for another to slam into his side.
His bones creaked. His armor glowed as protective enchantnts flickered under stress.
The Reactive Barrier in his gear finally kicked in as a blinding light burst from the shoulder plate as a desperate counter.
But it wasn’t enough.
The noble just hissed and slamd him again, knocking Kaiden to his knees.
’That fucking unlucky upgrade roll! Why is it RNG anyhow?! Damned Heavenly Demon thinks he’s a jester or what?!’ Kaiden cursed inwardly, spitting blood.
His new upgrade?
[Combat Drift]?
A fucking downgrade.
Still helpful, sure. His movents were sharper. Reflexes cleaner. But it wasn’t enough to bridge a 10-level gap against a vampire noble in full kill mode.
[Combat Drift] (A-tier)
Your mind and body begin to flow with the rhythm of battle. As the fight goes on, your reflexes subtly elevate until the shift becos unmistakable. It’s not just reaction ti. It’s adaptation. It’s prediction. It’s the mont when thought and motion blur into one.
Effect:
– Begins at base level. Every minute in sustained combat, reaction efficiency increases.
– 10% Evasion Speed
– 10% Counter Damage on Perfect Dodges/Parries
– After 3 minutes of uninterrupted combat, you enter the "Drift State."
→ Slight precognition against repeat enemy patterns.
→ You perceive effects more slowly during enemy wind-ups.
→ 5% Mana regeneration from clarity under pressure.
It was good, yes... But it was no [Instinct Overdrive].
*CRACK!*
A bone-jarring uppercut cracked against his jaw. Kaiden’s vision flashed white.
And then...
*SHRAK!*
A crescent of moonlight sliced across the vampire’s back, searing his robes and flesh.
The noble roared in pain, staggering for a mont. His next punch missed Kaiden as a result.
A familiar voice rang out from the battlefield behind him.
"Fight, Kaiden Grey! You’re not allowed to lose!" It was Aria’s voice.
Feminine. Beautiful.
Terrifying.
"I won’t let you interfere!" ca a shriek from one of the vampire wives as she rushed toward Aria.
But the damage was done.
That mont of reprieve—gifted by the Moon Valkyrie herself—let Kaiden rise back to his feet.
But it was her words that had a much stronger effect on the Paragon of Sin.
Eyes bloodshot. Body bruised. Grit in his teeth.
He looked at his shaking hands, at his dented sword, at the puddle of blood beneath him...
And then his gaze sharpened.
The way he fought. The way he thought.
He wasn’t just weak.
He was pathetic.
All this ti, he tried to keep them safe, thinking they were fragile girls who needed his protection as they found themselves tossed into the world of the supernatural, but it was they who held him up. The people who gave him strength.
Nyx.
Aria.
Luna.
Bastet.
He just lost the lucky roll.
Yes.
But so what?
Now he should just keep cursing inwardly about his bad luck until he fell to the floor dead?
His grip tightened on the Twilight Ripper.
His crimson eyes locked onto the vampire, and sothing in him snapped into place.
No more hesitation.
No more panic.
Only cold-blooded resolve.
His stance shifted.
Not a textbook. Not elegant.
But it was his.
Sheer willpower to win pulsed behind his eyes.
The bruises across his ribs no longer scread but sang.
Kaiden took one step forward.
The vampire noble paused for a fraction of a second.
His undead instincts, which were refined over centuries, sensed the change.
This was no longer a al clawing at survival.
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