I woke up because I was drowning.Not in water. Not in mana.I was drowning in something soft, warm, and smelling faintly of ocean breeze and expensive lavender soap."Mmm... Master..."A weight pressed down on my chest, pinning me to the silk mattress. Wet, rhythmic breathing tickled my neck.I opened one eye.All I saw was violet hair and pale, luminescent skin.Melody. The S-Rank Siren Queen. The terrifying "Devourer of Worlds."She was currently curled up on top of me like a giant, clingy cat, wearing a translucent silk nightgown that left absolutely nothing to the imagination.(I can't breathe. Her... assets... are crushing my diaphragm.)I tried to push her off. My hands touched skin that was unnaturally smooth."Melody," I wheezed. "Personal space.""No..." she murmured, nuzzling into my collarbone. "The bed is big... but you are warmer. The Void... it pulls me in."She wrapped her legs around my waist. The friction was immediate and dangerous.[System Alert: Morning Vitality D

"Hydrotherapy," Dr. Mai announced, adjusting her glasses which were already fogging up. "It is essential for stabilizing your core after the hypersensitivity treatment."I stood at the edge of the villa's private hot spring. It was a massive, rock-lined pool filled with steaming, mineral-rich water. It looked relaxing.It would have been more relaxing if I wasn't naked.(Well, I had a towel. A very small, insufficient towel.)"Doctor," I said, clutching the fabric to my waist. "I can bathe myself. I do not need supervision.""Nonsense!" Mai pushed me from behind. "Get in. The heat expands the pores, allowing mana to vent. If you don't vent, you explode."SPLASH.I hit the water. It was scalding hot."Ah!" I gasped, surfacing. My skin, still tender from yesterday's potion, felt like it was being boiled."Good," Mai nodded from the edge, scribbling on a waterproof clipboard. "Your heart rate is spiking. That means it's working."(That means I'm dying, you sadist.)I sank lower until the

I sat on the edge of the silk bed, staring at my bank account balance on my phone.¥0.I checked my System Interface.[Current Desire Points: 0.]I was the "Saint of Shinjuku." I was the man who slapped a Siren Queen and scared a Guild Master. I was living in a villa that cost more than a small island.And I couldn't afford a pack of gum."This is dignified," I muttered, rubbing my temples. "Truly the lifestyle of a Sovereign."Knock. Knock."Renji?" Ayaka’s voice drifted through the connecting door. "I brought you some... recovery supplements. And a platinum credit card. Just in case you need to buy a country."(Take it. Take the card. Buy the country.)My hand reached out instinctively.Then I stopped.If I took her money, the power dynamic shifted. I would be the "kept man." The "Sovereign" persona relied on being untouchable, unbuyable, and superior.If I became her dependent, the System would probably penalize me with a title like "Trophy Husband" and debuff my charisma."Keep yo

The strawberry assassin had fled.But the Seven Stars Guild wasn't known for giving up. They were known for escalating.I sat in the garden of the Saionji Villa, enjoying the fresh air (and the fact that I was now a billionaire). Melody was busy pruning the hedges with her sonic screams."Master," a sultry voice purred from behind the rose bushes.I turned.Standing there was a woman in a skintight black catsuit that looked like it was spray-painted on. She had emerald green hair, predatory eyes, and lips painted a deadly shade of violet.Viper. The real Viper.(Wait. The guy on the roof was a decoy? Or did he just have a really convincing voice changer?)"The Red Mist was a test," Viper smiled, stepping closer. Her hips swayed with a hypnotic rhythm. "You passed. But strawberries are blunt instruments."She licked her lips."I prefer... intimacy."She walked toward me. Every step was calculated to distract.(She is terrifying. And very attractive. But mostly terrifying.)"You are tre

Darkness.Absolute, suffocating darkness.The roar of the collapsing ceiling had faded, replaced by the settle of dust and the dripping of unseen water."Cough."I waved my hand in front of my face, trying to clear the air. My lungs burned. The dust tasted like old stone and malice."Runa? Ayaka?"I reached out into the void. My hand brushed against a wall of jagged rock.Blocked.The path behind me was gone. The path to my left was gone. I was in a pocket of air within the rubble."Melody?" I whispered.No answer.My heart began to hammer against my ribs. I was alone. I was F-Rank. And I was trapped in a rigged dungeon with zero mana and the physical resilience of a potato chip.(I'm going to die here. I'm going to starve in the dark.)"Renji..."A groan echoed from the floor a few feet away.I froze."Sae?"I scrambled forward on my hands and knees, ignoring the sharp stones cutting into my palms."Sae! Are you okay?"I found her. She was slumped against the dungeon wall. Her tactic