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I went to a local bar with Yanisse and her bodyguard, whose name was Alexander, the most common Russian male name, actually. He was a "powerful" S-Rank Hunter that belonged to the girl's Guild. He possesses special Skills such as Lie Detection, Telepathy, and "Damage Share" where he'll take any damage from a target he has imbued with a Rune beforehand. He's pretty much her shield and utility tool. And he's happy to serve, I suppose.
"So that's how it is! I had no idea that Russia was such a good ally of the United States. The last time I saw any news about the two, both were in quite a rather... not so well in the situation." I said. "But I was never into politics too much, so I am guilty of being ignorant about everything regarding these topics."
"Well, when the Apocalypse began, most of our country was devastated. Especially by the Three Calamities, as we call them. Three S-Rank Dungeons opened and destroyed our three major cities. The president was killed, and most of the government officials and your military were devastated too. When I awakened and managed to slay the damned S-Rank Monsters with my allies, it was too late; our country was in complete ruins. It was America that extended a hand of help." She sighed. "And we had to reluctantly agree. Even with my power, I can only destroy; I cannot create. I couldn't rebuild people's houses, I couldn't create a safe environment, and I couldn't feed the orphaned children."
"I see, so that's why, when you got a telepathic message of me touching that Prime Minister's tender little neck, you immediately came here? So, can you teleport?" I asked her.
"Yes, I can leave special areas imbued with my Runes, which I use as Teleportation Spots." She answered, revealing her powers to me with confidence. She was rather laid-back. "Alexander, go get me another vodka."
"…" He quickly left with the small cup.
As I drank the liquor, I asked her something.
"Why did you invite me to drink? Did you want to gauge my strength? How honest was I? By now, I've told you mostly everything regarding my family." I said. "But I can't talk more than that... But as you've already guessed, I indeed disappeared and gained these powers while I was gone. And once I returned, here we are."
"Then you don't need to tell me anymore. You must truly be a Lost Person who got lost inside a dungeon gate and returned." She said. "Incredible… You're the first one in the world, Bing Xue."
"I suppose I am." I shrugged. "So, Miss World Class Ranker, how is life as one?"
"Stressing and tiring, you should have hidden your strength instead. You're up for a life of endless bloodshed." She started smoking her cigarette, below her silver eyes I could see black slits, she looked very tired.
"I am much more used to such a life than you could ever be; trust me," I answered with confidence. "Oh, may I heal you? You seem quite tired. I need to touch your shoulder, though."
"…You can heal me? I'm fine, though." She said.
"There is a lot of exhaustion and accumulated stress; I can take that away," I answered with a gentle smile. "May I?"
"…Sure." She said. "Do your worst." She smiled almost cynically as she smoked her cigarette. Although she looked very tired and stressed, she was still a very attractive and cold beauty.
I touched her shoulder, imbuing her with a Golden Aura of Healing Light. In a mere second, all her exhaustion was gone, and her appearance looked much more radiant. And she gained the energy worth several days of sleep, which she had been probably missing. I also made sure to lessen the stress on her small body due to her tremendous quantity of Mana and gave her a good massage on her shoulder muscles.
"Oooh, fuck…" She almost moaned in pleasure. "Hahhh… No healer has ever- What the hell did you use?! It is… It's amazing. I feel so refreshed, like I've slept for a whole month!"
"It is an Ancient Healing Technique that repairs the Meridians. It combines acupuncture with Ki injection techniques." I answered. "I combined it with a healing skill; it seems to work well."
"It worked more than well, Bing Xue. Dammit, now I feel indebted to you." She groaned. "Argh, and it's already going to be 12? I got another S-Rank Dungeon raid later. I guess I should get going. I hate to leave it like this, though."
"It's fine, dear; have fun." I smiled at her.
"…You're way too nice, girl." She sighed, suddenly approaching me and looking into my eyes; our faces were quite close out of nowhere. "You got the prettiest eyes I've ever seen, though, I have to admit it. Here, take my number." She winked at me while giving me a piece of paper with her number. "Let's meet again sometime; you're fine."
"Your number?" I couldn't help but blush slightly. "Well, thank you, Yanisse. I will make sure to add you to my phone number then. It was a nice experience to meet you. I wish I could have seen your Void Magic though."
"We can do that later if you want. I also want to spar with someone like you." She smiled as Alexander finally came back, bringing the vodka. "Hey, Alexander! Why are you so late with the damn vodka?!" The girl drank it and then dropped the glass on the floor. "Let's go; we're going to be late for the Dungeon Raid! Goodbye, Bing Xue. I hope I can see you again soon."
"Bye! And likewise, I would love to meet you again, Yanisse. Take care, please."
FLASH!
The two disappeared before I could even say anything else. I wish it could have lasted a bit longer. Her beauty was comparable to some of the most beautiful immortal women I've met in Murim, although they didn't match her honesty, sincerity, and true-kind heart. Those women were all rotten, and most of them were just the loyal, brainwashed slaves of male cultivators who boasted gigantic harems. Well, most of them were Demonic Cultivators that were slaughtered by my sect; their harems were mostly spared, but the girls, even as immortals, were too traumatized.
But aside from that, yes... Yanisse was amazing. I want to meet her more. I don't know what could come out of that, but friendship and perhaps something else? I am not really experienced with dating. I never dated anybody in my entire life. And I hate to admit it, but I am still a virgin as well. An eleven-thousand-year virginity—how hilarious! I remember that people on Earth used to make fun of virgins; is it still the same now? I wonder.
It's not that I didn't want to date, nor that I didn't want to find a woman to love or even make her my wife, but I simply couldn't. I had to always be focused on my goals—fighting, growing stronger, and surviving—through all these years; this has never changed until now.
I feel like my life is finally beginning again now that I am back home.
"Now, what should I do?" I wondered, stretching my arms and then leaving some money for the drinks and leaving the bar, walking through the streets.
I am finally done with all the things I wanted to do; I even made a connection with a World Class Hunter. I suppose I should go check on my mom and my sister, then cultivate some more and consider my possibilities. I need to make money and also reach a maximum level so I can get a Class in the Tower.
So I suppose once I am done inspecting my family's cultivation progress, going to a dungeon gate should be good. Some stay permanently open and spawn monsters continuously outside; they often form their own "Wild areas," where people hunt regularly. I should go there.
But above all, money. I can't just rely on my mother's money. And selling the things I possess is… Too much for now. I should probably sell the goblin materials and the carcass of their boss too. And then, hunt and sell things, as Mother does.
I guess that's much more relaxed than all the stress I had to go through back in Murim; I prefer this life without a doubt.
"I'm back~!" I greeted my family.
"Katherine? What happened? You came so late!" My mother said.
"Hey big sis, I feel stronger out of nowhere; what the heck did that food have?" Ruby wondered. "Look! There's a whole golden aura around me!"
"Oh, excellent; it worked well. I will help you two cultivate using the Ki you gained from the food I prepared." I said. "Also, I'm now a World Class Hunter."
"World Class?!" My mother gasped. "Oh my god! Katherine! You make your mother even prouder." She hugged me tightly. "Did the test go well?"
"Ah, yes. I even learned this new skill. Check this out." I revealed to her a black fireball emanating a cursed aura.
"W-What the hell is that fire?!" Ruby cried. "It's creepy; turn it off!"
POOF!
As the flames dissipated, I laughed a bit after seeing my sister's reaction. Eleven years have passed here, yet this young woman still has the same reactions as when she was a little girl. She's so endearing.
"That flame… It reminds me of the Calamity Dragon from France. That thing could also conjure black flames and burn all of Paris with them." Said my mother. "It is said those flames contain powerful curses too; you can wield that, Katherine?!"
"Yeah, they had this simulation about that exact creature, Mother! As expected, you're very smart and resourceful. I fought it and defeated it with two blows. I then managed to copy its ability. The System likes to spoil me, giving me all kinds of skills easily. It makes the assimilation of Mana much faster. And it's quite fun." I nodded as I sat down and stretched my arms.
"You had to fight a simulation of such a monster?!" Ruby complained. "That's so crazy… No wonder you're World Class, big sis! Now I'll become so popular if I tell everyone about this. Wait, no, I'm already out of college! Ugh, dammit. I guess… I could tell the nurses?"
"Maybe just don't tell anybody, Ruby; let's keep these matters private." My mother said, "Katherine. I saw the news treat you as Bing Xue; is this some other name you had?"
"Yes, it is the name I created for Murim. Calling myself Katherine there would only raise suspicion. So I chose the name of my favorite Cultivation Novel female protagonist." I told Mother, as she quickly served me some green tea.
"I see… Well, I suppose that's better." My mother nodded. "Though, I am guessing they already know your true name and everything, right?"
"Yeah, I met the Prime Minister of the States, quite a peculiar man. He said that he became bitter because his wife left him, and his son told him he hated him." I said this as I drank the green tea. "I hope he has a better life, and I really hope he takes care of his family. To think he would cry in front of me for that."
"W-What? The prime minister? Katherina, what the fuck are you talking about?" Ruby asked.
"Ruby! Who taught you to talk with such manners to your big sister? Please talk to me with a bit more respect, alright, dear?" I asked her with a cute smile. "I will always have patience for my family, but I don't really like when you use swearing words against me, please?"
"A-Ah, yeah, sorry… But yeah! What are you talking about, big sis?!" She asked.
"Well, some representative of the government seemed to need to take into consideration my Rank or something…" I said. "Ah, mother, are you alright?"
"Katherine, what did you do to him?" She asked me with a pale face. "Y-You didn't do anything bad to him, right? Nothing like with Nicholas, right?"
"A-Ah… I mean, I taught him a valuable life lesson, and we took a strong oath. Don't worry, he will not bother us. It might quite literally kill him if he does!" I laughed out loud. But my family didn't find it funny.
"She definitely did something." My mother sipped her coffee half-bitterly.
"Seriously…" Ruby facepalmed. "Now I don't know if I should feel proud of you being a World Class Hunter or not, big sis… Anyways, did you bring something to eat?"
"Ah yes! I bought some KFC!" I said. "The chicken is terrible, and the spices are horribly low quality, without even mentioning the sugary drinks. But well, this is something I also missed. Eating Chinese food for eleven thousand years quickly makes you want to indulge in some classic American fast food. Let's enjoy!"
I placed the plastic bags over the table, retrieving them from my Inner Realm. The fried chicken was piping hot, and there was a wide assortment of dipping sauces and many sugary drinks. I also bought a lot of sweet desserts, such as mini pancakes, ice cream, and cinnamon sticks.
"Nice! I won't have to cook lunch and dinner; you brought a lot!" My mother was strangely happy about the simplest of things. Mothers are like this, I suppose.
"Been a while since I've eaten fried chicken. Oh, the tartar sauce's good; it's creamier than before." My sister enjoyed the chicken.
"Yes, these dippable sauces are actually made using my own ingredients. Although we're indulging in such terrible food, I wanted to add some of my own creations. It will also hasten your cultivation, so please eat! You'll soon be able to form your Core." I answered happily, eating some myself. The crunchy chicken, its strong flavor, the slight spiciness, and the creamy white tartar sauce made with Immortal Treasure Materials—it was quite a godly combination.
"Ah, right, we haven't even addressed that, Katherine!" My mother seemed angry. "Why did you trick us into eating all of that superfood that makes us weirdly stronger? You never asked for our consent first!"
"Yeah, but I'm fine with it. So I get stronger by just eating?" Ruby seemed more along with the ride than our mother.
"I-I'm sorry, mother. I should have indeed asked for your consent first." I nodded. "But seeing how dangerous this world has become, I wanted to make sure you two become strong so you can protect yourselves, even when I am not around."
"Katherine…" My mother sighed. "W-Well, if you put it like that… Fine. You'll have to teach us how to do this whole "Cultivation" thingy, though!"
"Of course! Leave it to me, my dear mother." I smiled happily, drinking the fuzzy and bubbly cola. "Ooh, after tasting thousands of Elixirs, this drink in comparison is absolutely deplorable, yet I can't have enough of it!" I kept drinking until I emptied the can.
We enjoyed a relaxed and lazy day, eating all kinds of snacks and greasy fast food, while I taught my dear family the steps of basic cultivation and more. It was a lot of information to take, so I wrote it all down into manuals for them.
Tomorrow, I'll help them forge the strongest Ki Cores!
Ding!
[Because of the strong connection and bonds you have with your family and your endless desire to protect them, you learned the [Family Bond (D): Lv1] Classless Skill!]
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