Third-person POV.
Exactly one day had passed since Evelina and Tanatos met.
In one night of meditation, Tanatos absorbed about 14 light-blue cores, bringing him closer to a breakthrough into the Third Star rank.
Contemplating his immediate plans, Tanatos decided to stay at the base for a couple of weeks and, if necessary, go wherever his eyes could see. He chose to give the world time to adapt to the new changes, so that there would be a purpose in exploring the altered planet.
Tanatos learned from Nemesis that approximately 6 billion people had died within five days since the start of the Monster Apocalypse. That meant a large portion of Earth's population.
If it weren't for the appearance of Stellar Cultivators among ordinary people, humanity would have fallen into complete despair.
There were no official statistics yet, but the truth was that for every male cultivator, there were five female cultivators. This meant that women were becoming cultivators five times more often, gaining the ability to protect themselves from both extraterrestrial monsters and the lustful nature of men.
From early morning, Tanatos dragged Evelina to the training hall, forcing the girl to learn offensive and defensive techniques. He took into account her extraordinary ability to create acid.
Meanwhile, Agata enlisted Samuel, Victor, and Emma into the ranks of soldiers, granting them privileged positions upon Evelina's request.
Everything was peaceful, and the squads on the high walls of the base managed to fend off the undead onslaught. At Montok Military Base, several more soldiers became cultivators, meditating with monster cores. They obtained the necessary information from the Chief of Staff, who generously shared only the most essential details.
At the moment, Spica and Nemesis gathered in a room to discuss pressing issues.
A worried Nemesis stood near Spica, who was sitting with a blue parrot perched on her shoulder. Their sweet conversation was not without profanities.
— Go fuck yourself, Spica! He's mine, bitch! MINE! — Nemesis stomped heavily, destroying the tiled floor, pointing her finger at her athletic figure.
— I didn't come here to take him away from you, calm down, — Spica stood up, petted Nemesis on the head, and then sat back on the couch, mockingly saying, — It's okay that you're a weak girl. It's okay that I'm stronger than you. You're still responsible for the operation to save Tanatos' life.
Nemesis couldn't do anything about the growing anxiety. Her brain had conjured up a crisis situation of its own amidst mild paranoia. It was inevitable considering the unpredictability of Nemesis' close relatives.
Placing several daggers in front of her cousin's face, Nemesis continued to rant, — Oh, of course! Once I leave my little brother for a few weeks, you'll try to seduce him! Get it through your head that you won't get my brother so easily!
— Oh, you're too noisy... — Spica shook her head and, stroking her bird, added with a smirk, — Aunt Niks is just really worried about her son, so I'll make sure you don't mess things up. He can't die! The Priestess of Chaos and Orderliness from Limbo won't do us a favor a second time if our brother happens to perish. You must remember the state of the whole family as we watched him die over and over, on our eyes and... and o-on our hands! Thousands of agonizing deaths passed until Niks made an agreement with the Priestess...
Nemesis felt slightly guilty upon realizing her own childishness. Trying to appear as serious as possible, she quickly calmed her jealous nature and nodded, — Alright, so be it. And I ask you, never... never, ever dare to tell him about what we all went through. I don't want Tanatos to feel guilty. I don't know how he would react to such a story.
— I understand you, little sister, hehe. Or do you prefer being addressed as a cousin after all?
— It doesn't matter, — Nemesis snorted, not allowing Spica to hug her.
— Florence, you can fly around the territory, — Spica sent the blue parrot on a solo walk and then turned to her cousin, — His power of Chaos is different from what I've encountered.
Pride surged within Nemesis. Feeling the praise, she said, — I know. It's of primordial quality. My milk also contributes to the unveiling of our pure lineage in our brother!
Spica shifted her sitting position due to restless leg syndrome and said to her cousin, — Other cultivators with Chaos power wouldn't be able to destroy the physical structure of my sturdy thorns on the Second Star. Even if I didn't utilize the natural energy of my rank, my natural spikes alone are enough to repel any attacks from cultivators of the Stellar Nebula and below.
Nemezida nodded in agreement with Spica's words and approached the window to observe the unusual scenery. On the left side, inexperienced and green cultivators were training, while on the right side stood a partially covered training area where Evelina underwent rigorous combat training according to Tanatos' brutal standards.
As Nemezida listened to the noise produced by her cousin in the background, she reflected on her beloved man, thinking, «Ha-ha, I taught him to be like this! I'm proud of myself and proud of my little beloved brother. We need to keep the fact that I had sex with Thanatos a secret from Spica for as long as possible. I already warned Agatha not to tell her about it»
— ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME, you cunt deaf! — Spica angrily hit the couch and released a few spikes that grabbed Nemezida and turned her face towards her furious interlocutor.
— Oh, you're too noisy... — Nemesis struck back sharply with an identical barb, and then said without pompousness, — Our brother is a very promising Stellar Cultivator. Considering all the circumstances, I think he's capable of surpassing our mother in power. He can Surpassing all of our mothers, for that matter.
— Perhaps... Well, I'll go about my business, you milking cow, — not wanting to stay near her busty cousin, Spica bid farewell to Nemezida and was about to leave. But suddenly, she slapped herself on the forehead and exclaimed, — I almost forgot the most important thing! Where's the merchandise?
Nemezida gave a sly grin and started coiling her hair into a spiral as she asked, — Are you referring to the forbidden contraband? And did you bring the ingredients from the list?
— I did. Although I don't understand why you need such rare herbs and ingredients typically used in advanced genetic engineering or molecular biology, — Spica handed over the ring with the ingredients and said, — Now give me my merchandise.
Nemezida took the spatial ring, checked if everything was in place, and then transferred all the items into her own ring, pulling out men's underwear with a white lump.
— Ah, there's my favorite worth! — Spica immediately took the merchandise in her hands and pressed it to her nose, inhaling the pungent scent emanating from the dirty panties, — Oh my God... this is the most underrated contraband in the entire universe!
— Hehehe... Thanatos' panties straight after masturbation. I used Aunt Isida's Temporary Stasis Amulet so that the scent and flavor would last indefinitely, — Nemesis boasted once again.
— Of course! It would be a great loss to the whole family. It's a rare relic, an artifact of rainbow rarity! — Spica licked the area of dried sperm, experiencing psychological ecstasy. Her tongue's receptors were in bliss from the taste they were accustomed to, — Uum-m, Thanatos very rarely cum right in his underpants, hehe.
— Uh-huh.
If only Tanatos could hear this dialogue... He would be the happiest man on the planet. And not because his underwear is their favorite contraband in the family, but because he hasn't gone insane. His theories about *the missing underpants* conspiracy were not a fabrication. Tanatos would no longer consider himself a fool if he knew the truth. But he didn't know, alas and alack.
...
POV Evelina
I endured violence! Tanatos tormented my weak body. I had never engaged in active physical activity, and it was only because I'm a Stellar Cultivator that I managed to survive.
As soon as the first day of combat training ended, he gave me a task to absorb a sufficient number of monster cores to approach the Third Star.
*Slap*
After letting me rest, Tanatos slapped me on the butt.
Damn, he's so lecherous. The devil is trying to seduce an innocent lamb! But I won't give in so easily.
—Ah, Tanatos! — while catching my breath, my face turned red.
I looked into his shameless eyes, and the owner of those eyes shamelessly replied, — My beauty deserves a reward, doesn't she?
Due to embarrassment, I lowered my head and weakly nodded.
Shit, I surrendered to Tanatos too quickly. I'm not as resilient against him as I initially thought.
I wanted to say that Tanatos is a lewd fool, but suddenly I felt the communication device vibrating in my pocket.
Fuck! Morena wants to contact me. Damn, such bad timing.
— Is something wrong? — Tanatos asked, grabbing me by the waist. We walked out together onto the street from the semi-covered hall, but immediately encountered an unknown soldier.
— H-Hello, Mr. Pierce, I would like to apologize for my behavior! — the guy fell to his knees before my man.
I pressed closer to Tanatos and looked up at his astonished face.
— Are you alive? What the hell, — Tanatos' eyes darted in bewilderment.
— Tanatos, who is this? — I asked timidly, pressing against his left side.
— Hmm, it seems to be Sergeant Brown. But I blew his head off just two days ago, so I have no idea why he's intact,— Tanatos explained the situation to me.
I learned that this sergeant showed disrespect to our superior. That is, to my sister Agatha, and he also insulted Tanatos, for which the latter simply killed Brown.
The sergeant tried to explain his uniqueness to us, — I-I resurrect in ashes every time I die, completely healthy. I suppose my fire abilities are connected to the power of the Phoenix.
— Interesting, — muttered Tanatos, then waved his hand and imperially declared, — Overall, I don't care, lucky one. If you disappoint me or any of my women again, I will find a way to break your cycle of rebirth. One more mistake, and you won't resurrect ever again.
I bit my tongue, feeling Tanatos' masculinity. It was too hard to handle without an accelerated heartbeat. As soon as the sergeant apologized and left, I quickly retreated from Tanatos' embrace.
— I-I need to shower, I'm very dirty. See you later, — I stuttered and hastily acquitted myself, waving goodbye.
— Hey, I wouldn't mind taking a shower with you, — Tanatos said mockingly.
As soon as I left him, I quickly ran to a secluded corner and took out a communication device.
It was an interesting high-tech artifact that created a protective field around me.
It also made me invisible, and no one could eavesdrop on our conversation.
— Human child, is that you? — Morena spoke with a grave voice.
It was done to intimidate me. But in my mind, a very dangerous and crazy idea was already brewing, causing me obvious concern.
This is risky! But if I manage to intimidate her with it, I will gain advantageous conditions and won't be in such a terrible position.
I had several sleepless nights during which I was able to realize the extent of my advantages.
Suppressing a cunning smile, I said, — Yes, it's me. Hello, Morena. Did you call so that we could discuss the most interesting thing together? Hehehe...