Eric wasn't particularly worried about the current situation: Rubra was getting stronger by the day hunting with him, Cain was probably around level 500 and he was alright I guess.
He wasn't sure because, apart from the usual increase in his basic stat points, which increased by three for each level up, his status had changed a lot in the complex.
Thinking about it the usual black square appeared:
Alec(Erechtheus Blake)
Race = Human Chimera
Age = 18(28)
LV.210
STR = 100
STA = 100
AGI = 200
MAN= 200
Remaining stat points:33
Abilities: Hero blessing, Dominion (lv.4, partially limited), Survival magic(lv.8, partially limited), Phoenix kin(lv.2, limited), *a** *le**i**(limited), A***o*i** *le**i**(limited), A**en* *le**i**(limited), H**e* *le**i**(limited), P**e**o* *le**i**(limited), D**da*** *u*s*, N**es** *le**i**(partially limited)
Seeing it he could confirm that during his short stay in the Cinder Forest, he had regained more than half of his past strength.
The two most interesting parts, though, were that he wasn't a human anymore, probably because of the new ability he had obtained: Phoenix kin.
When he first saw that he was worried as if he had changed irreversibly as if he had done something taboo.
After some time thinking about it rationalizing and thinking about his interactions with Rubra, he wasn't actually unhappy about it, in a way he felt closer to her and that gave him a strange sensation that he didn't have the courage to acknowledge.
From the actual fighting point of view, he became capable of controlling heat in an instinctual way and his wound regeneration got exponentially faster.
He didn't try resurrecting because of his self-preservation instinct.
Thanks to that he could fly, heating the air under his feet, moreover he created deadly fire pillars with half the casting time he needed in the past to light a bonfire with his survival magic.
Eric hypothesized it thanked to his Dominion power interacting with Rubra but during his past heroic tales, taming monsters when necessary he had never seen this kind of effect he was happy about the result even though it wasn't planned but the probable negative reaction she would have thought that he had used her occupied his thoughts for a couple of days.
The morning after his talk with Rubra to leave the forest, he decided to tell her everything because he didn't want to add another lie, creating this way an increased risk of losing her trust in the future and this could also help convince her about starting their travel.
Definite in his course of action he started calling her:'' Rubra, can you watch here for a second?''
She turned around watching him with a somewhat expectant gaze…to her surprise, he didn't kneel down on one leg but took a dagger from his right pocket and cut his left forearm with not indifferent strength.
She became pale and started shouting:''Aaaah, what are you doing?''
''Why are you doing this, didn't you say you would be with me when I needed you?''
Before she could reach him trying to stop his rash gesture she saw his wound starting to close by itself and at the edge of the wound there wasn't only blood but also microscopic crimson flames which attracted each other were the main driving force of the near-instantaneous recovery.
Speechless because of what she saw, her mind was divided into a sense of relief because of his recovery and dreadful uncertainty because of the possibility he had lied to her about his identity.
Unknown to her, she was both right and wrong about her second intuition but started talking with a low anxious voice:'' How are you able…''
She was cut short by him.
''Now we are a family!''
He said while showing her his status, this was a sign of trust that was very rare even between family members, this was showing itself to the other in his true essence.
She was dumbfounded by his action before when he self-harmed but now her mind was empty: his words and the act of showing her his status left her speechless.
Then with a joyful feeling that was rising in her without any sign of slowing down, she started reading his status: there were some things that she wasn't able to understand like the brackets in his name and age entry but she stopped thinking anything else when she saw his fourth ability in the list.
She started crying again but with a wide smile on her face as if her emotions were too strong to just stay inside of her.
Eric seeing her reactions, in the beginning, didn't know how to act but when she started crying he decided while bowing his torso and watching the ground.
''I'm so sorry I didn't tell you about it before but I was worried you would think I lied to you, but actually, I obtained that skill just recently while staying with you and I guess my race changed consequently.''
She dried her eyes with her hands and then started laughing.
''Eheh I know, I waited to see your reaction as compensation for your bloody show.''
He felt betrayed but happy for her reaction, then she continued:'' In our society that is a blessing that benefactors of other species receive, but I didn't know it could change your race or give such powerful abilities, to begin with.''
Raising his right hand towards the sky he said:'' Oh it isn't just a recovery ability.''
A pillar of flames emitted from his hand without any movement of ambient mana, as if he was directly controlling nature.
That was the main difference between magic and hereditary powers.
''That's also one of the reasons I'd like to start our travel.''
Focusing for a couple of moments her mind on the words ''our travel'' as in honeymoon she then regained her reasoning ability and decided with reasoning similar to that of many animals and started speaking.
''We'll start our travel only when you'll be able to defeat me.''
Eric was confused, he started his new life hoping to escape from the Cinder Forest and get some elixirs with the monsters he hunted to improve his constitution and be able to start taking revenge on his past companions but now his difficulty level raised too fast.
I have to continue my training arc to defeat an lv. 400 Boss just as a tutorial?!
I guess life wasn't ever properly balanced.