How to survive in the Romance Fantasy Game

Ever since that day, something in Alice had shifted.

Not in a bad way—far from it.

It was just… she'd gotten a little more aggressive. In how she expressed her feelings.

In how she showed her love.

From the way she kissed me—hungry, passionate, like every moment we were apart had to be made up for tenfold the moment we touched—to the way her golden eyes turned crimson locked onto me with that glint of need.

From how she always sought my attention with that sweet, spoiled look of hers, to the way her hands moved along my skin—curious, wanting, always coaxing me to return her affection in kind.

To the way she reflexive move her bums in my direction whenever were close to each other.

Her voice, usually calm and graceful, now held something else in it.

Something warmer, heavier, a whisper that curled around my ears like silk—soft and breathy, laced with suggestion, almost begging.

No, not almost. Sometimes she really did beg.

Subtly. Or boldly. Depending on her mood.

And then there were the implications.

The way she'd brush her fingers over mine during breakfast.

The sultry glances she'd shoot my way in the middle of casual conversation.

The way she pressed her body against me just a little too long when we hugged—like she never wanted to let go.

Every little thing she did was like a spark, a tease.

A trap I willingly fell into every single time.

But hey… who was I to complain?

'I love this side of her so much!'

I mean can I really deny a goddess who willingly strips herself naked in front of me?

I didn't expect this level of need, this intensity.

We had crossed that line, yes—we'd done the deed now, shared ourselves fully.

But ever since sharing our first moment of love, Alice had only become more insistent.

More eager. Like her hunger had only grown after being fed.

Every day now she asked for more.

And I, being the fool in love that I was, gave in every time.

I'll be honest—I didn't remember her being this… kinky in the game.

Not even close.

This was a side of Alice that was never showed.

This was raw. This was real.

And gods, did I enjoy it.

Although we do it almost every single day now…. the way our bodies synced in just a few minutes after doing it was proof of our compatibility.

Honestly, I was proud of my stamina, but lately…

I was starting to think I needed to upgrade my stats again—especially endurance and strength. Maybe even a boost to power.

Because Alice really wasn't holding back anymore.

And I wasn't sure I could keep up with her much longer without some divine-level buffs.

I always suspected she was a physical type—the way she hugged me so tightly the first time we slept together, the way her fingers laced into mine when before we made the connection—but I had no idea she could be this…

'Wild...?'

We should probably start using protection soon…

I like doing it raw and Alice seems to prefer it that way as well.

But there were too many risks involved if Alice got pregnant, that nightmare of mine was probably already warning as well…

[Name: Riley Hell]

[Level: 176]

[Strength: S (???)]

[Agility: B (0/80)]

[Endurance: B (0/80)]

[Luck: 0 (????)]

[Power: B (0/80)]

[Available Status Points: 215]

I stared at my status screen in silence for a few seconds, taking in the numbers and the subtle glow that pulsed from each stat line.

The bulk of these points had come after I'd defeated the White Queen.

That, in itself, had been monumental.

Not just the victory, but the rewards that came with it.

Massive EXP, several hidden achievements, and even a rare resonance bonus for breaking through a natural threshold level barrier of mortals combine that all at once.

You get this many status points…

It felt… unreal.

With this many points, I could essentially push any one of my remaining B-rank stats into S-tier with some careful planning.

Agility, endurance—even power.

Any one of them could be elevated into something monstrous.

The temptation to focus on just one stat was real.

S-ranked agility, for example, would practically make me untouchable.

My reaction time would skyrocket.

I'd blur across the battlefield like a phantom., even without ascension or with the help of my movement skills.

Endurance, on the other hand, would let me take punishment like a walking fortress.

Pair that with my divine resistances, and I'd become near impossible to bring down.

'And it'd help me a lot dealing with Alice in bed…'

But…

I exhaled slowly.

No.

I'll stick to the balanced route—for now.

My [Ascension] worked best when all my physical stats were in harmony.

Balance was key. Optimization, not brute force….

So, with that in mind, I moved forward with my plan.

[Available Status Points: 215 → 80]

[Agility: B (80/80) → A (0/100)]

[Available Status Points: 135 → 80]

[Endurance: B (80/80) → A (0/100)]

[Remaining Status Points: 55]]

Done.

Two of my remaining B-rank stats had finally reached A-tier.

Agility and endurance now matched each other, complementing the S-rank strength I already had.

I could feel it too—a lightness in my legs, a steady resilience in my chest.

My heartbeat was smoother, my breath easier to control.

All that remained among my core stats now was power—still sitting at B.

But honestly, I wasn't too concerned about that one.

With the amount of divine energy flowing through me now, raw Power had become something I could supplement with magic boosts and Divine conversion.

Not to mention, Valeria's resonance added more punch to my attacks than any flat stat ever could.

And as for Luck…

[Luck: 0 (????)]

Yeah. Still zero.

That hadn't changed since the very beginning of my journey.

A literal enigma of a stat.

No matter what I did or how many levels I gained, it stayed stubbornly fixed.

Well, there was no use thinking too hard about that damned stat now.

I let out a small sigh, slightly disappointed, and closed down the status screen with a flick of my hand.

The glowing numbers vanished into motes of light, leaving me once again alone with the silence of the training ground.

I had undeniably gotten stronger—of that, there was no doubt.

My stats were hitting peak-tier thresholds.

My body, my mana, even my spiritual resonance had improved by leaps and bounds.

Right now, I probably even outclassed Lucas in terms of raw specs and skills.

But still… it wasn't enough.

That bitter truth clung to the edge of my thoughts like a shadow.

I wasn't satisfied.

Not yet.

Not when I had already tasted the level of power, I would need to reach in order to survive what was coming.

The battle with the White Queen made one thing painfully clear—just raw stats wouldn't carry me to the end.

Not anymore.

Even with [Ascension], even with Valeria, I had struggled.

Pushed to the brink. If Alice hadn't been there, if things had tilted even slightly out of our favor… I might not have made it back.

And that was against the weakest of the Epilogue bosses.

At her core, the White Queen was a twisted reflection of fate itself—powerful, yes, but compared to the others like Liyana or Erebil… she was still the bottom rung of the ladder.

Which meant…

I still wasn't ready.

Levels alone weren't going to save me.

They weren't a guarantee of victory anymore.

I needed more.

I needed external help.

Allies. Cheats.

Variables the system couldn't fully control.

And right now, I only had one guaranteed cheat on my side—Alice.

She had awakened something even the game never hinted at.

A side of her that bent the rules, twisted logic, and made her into a borderline anomaly.

If I was going to make it through the Epilogue arc… I needed more people like her.

Lucas is a potential guarantee so he doesn't count for now…

There were two others that came to mind.

People who, in the original timeline, had access to special conditions—hidden stats, unique abilities, untraceable artifacts.

They weren't easy to approach, let alone convince.

But once Alice and I returned to the academy, contacting them would be at the top of my list.

Especially since I'm already acquainted to one of them….

With my strength my current strength I'm confident they won't turn me to dust out of whim or boredom.

Whether they joined me or not… was still up to them.

But I wasn't going to beg.

If they didn't want to join me, if they didn't want to get involved in the coming storm, then fine.

But if they weren't going to guarantee me their cooperation—then I would take their cheat items as compensation.`

Setting that aside for now… there was something else I probably needed to start worrying about.

I pressed a hand gently against my chest, just above where my heart beat steady and strong.

A breath later, I activated my skill—[True Sight].

At once, the world peeled away like thin layers of cloth, and my vision tunneled inward, diving past muscle and bone, through mana circuits and soul pathways, until I was staring at the very core of my being.

There, nestled deep within the essence of my soul, was a flicker of something dark.

Twisted.

Alien.

A strand of energy that didn't belong to me, yet hummed in sync with my existence as though it had become part of me.

Erebil's energy.

That unmistakable, corruptive, and impossibly ancient force—her dark and dreadful essence—was carefully working its way through the cracks of my soul, weaving itself into the broken threads, slowly stitching me back together.

It didn't burn.

It didn't consume.

It was… gentle.

Like black silk wrapping around a wound.

I should've been horrified.

But instead, I just stared at it in silence.

No wonder my soul hadn't shattered despite everything I'd been through.

I had pushed far past any mortal threshold.

My mana had run dry, my spirit had nearly broken, and yet… I was still standing.

No permanent damage.

No lingering curses. Just a slow, steady healing process.

I let out a small laugh—quiet and dry.

Erebil didn't have to do this.

Not after our contract broke in that moment.

She could've let me burn out.

Let me fade away.

And yet here she was, still pulling the strings in the background, still ensuring that I lived to fight another day.

It was almost… thoughtful. In a twisted sort of way.

Of course, that only meant one thing.

She still had something in mind.

I wasn't naive enough to think this was charity.

No, Erebil was calculating.

Precise.

The type of being who never moved without purpose.

Letting me live—preserving my soul—was an investment.

One she'd expect a return on.

And once I was fully healed, I'd have no choice but to face her again.

And honor the promise I made in that bargain.

My expression tensed slightly.

Dear goddess will probably hate me but… it's in order to save the world so telling Erebil a secret or two shouldn't be much of a problem, right?

....

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[Note: DEATH wishes to speak with you....]