"Eh?” I snapped out of whatever trance her bite had put me in as the effects wore off. “No way that’s happening.” I frowned. Her eyes widened, surprised by my sudden composure. “I mean, I can participate if you want, but there’s no way I can win. You saw my stats. My only good one is luck, and you said that can only get me so far. Plus, you haven’t trained me yet. I thought you were going to help me get stronger.”

  “Hm.” She laughed through her nose. “I think you’ll be fine. After all, strength is in the eye of the beholder.”

  “Don’t get cryptic with me!” I pointed at her. “I hated that shit in Batman! I skipped every mission and ignored every riddle!”

  “Batman?” She cocked her head.

  “Doesn’t matter. The point still stands that I’m weak. It doesn’t matter if I tell myself I can do it 'cause I know I can’t.”

  “Mmm…” She grumbled as she pushed herself off the desk and walked toward a closet. “…hate that…think…weak…you’re…monster.” I only heard a few words as she continued grumbling to herself before pulling out a black cloak. “Here.” She tossed it at me.

  I caught it and inspected it in awe. It had silver lining and some chains around it. Along with the cloak was a pullover vest with a hood. For whatever reason, it had bunny ears on it. I frowned and looked at her.

  “What’s this Organization XIII bunny cospl-AY !” I caught something else that she threw at me. “Wh-what’s this?” I asked as I inspected the mask. It was just that. A mask. Plan and simple. It was black and had no design on it. “Why are you giving me-“

  “Those are special magical artifacts taken from the vampire I mentioned before.”

  “The one all vampires had to work together to take down?”

  “Yep. Yep.” She smiled.

  She’s so cute when she repeats the same thing twice!

  “If you wear the cloak and hood, it multiples your stats by five times.”

  “fIvE tImEs!?” My voice broke.

  Damnit!

  “Hehe!” Her smile grew, exposing her fangs.

  “W-What about the mask?”

  “That’s a magical artifact that conceals your identity as long as you don’t speak.”

  “…And I need these; why?”

  “To participate in the tournament, duh.” She rolled her eyes.

  Has she always been this cute? Something's not right. Did she drug me with something else when she bit me?

  Everything she did was attractive. I liked how she walked elegantly and maturely yet spoke down to earth. I noticed she only did that with me, too. Her atmosphere and manner of speech changed when she spoke to other guild members. She was more refined and stern. There was also something about the way she animated herself when talking. Her expressive body language and hand movements appealed to me in some fashion I couldn’t explain. It was just…her.

  “I think I’m in-“ Her eyes met mine. “Hngh!”

  “What? What were you about to say?” She scuttled closer until her chest pressed to mine.

  “I-I think I’m in for a challenge.” I smiled weakly.

  NICE SAVE!!

  “Hmph.” She puffed her cheeks.

  “Why are you looking at me like that?” I smiled nervously.

  “It’s nothing.” She turned away. “The tournament is three weeks from now.” She placed her arms behind her back as she stared out the window. “I’ll be training you until then. I’m sure you’ll catch on quickly and probably won’t need much training afterward. So, when we’re done.” She looked back at me, and the rays of the setting sun shone through the window. The leaves outside blew in a gentle breeze as she smiled. “Promise you’ll still come to talk to me like this. Just me and you.” She gazed back out the window. “Being guild master can be so much work. Sometimes, I just want-“

  “A little snack to recharge?” She giggled at my joke.

  “I was going to say-“

  “NYA!” The door burst open.

  “YOU BROKE THROUGH THE BARRIER!” Sabrina exclaimed in shock.

  “I’LL KILL YOU!” Nia charged on all fours and pounced at Sabrina. I sighed softly as I reached my hand out and grabbed her tail. “MYASTER!” She hit the ground. “Oh, Myaster! Myaster! Pull harder! Could you put it in your mouth? Plyease! J-Just the tip. Just a little.”

  “I’ll never put the tip of anything in my mouth!" I shouted as I continued to force her tail away from me.

  “MYASTER! STOP TEASING ME!” She quickly turned around and lunged at me, grabbing my collar and pulling me closer.

  “Ungrab!” I squeaked.

  “I’m serious,” a low growl rumbled in her throat. “Stop teasing me.” I gulped at the weight of her words.

  “I’m sorry I took your Master away from you,” Sabrina started, attempting to alleviate the situation. “But I needed to talk to him about something important.”

  “Like what?” Nia let me go, freeing me from her gorilla strength grip and turning to Sabrina.

  “I asked him to participate in the upcoming Tournament of Adventurers.”

  “What!?” Nia gasped. “My Master can’t do that. He’s too weak,” she grabbed hold of my arm. “He’ll get hurt. You must have asked me and him to-“

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

  “No, just him,” Sabrina’s stern tone made Nia’s fur stand on end, and her grip on my arm loosened as she stepped back.

  “Myaster.” She looked at me with Puss-in-Boot eyes. “Please dyon’t do it.”

  Those eyes. Such beauty! Much begging! Must list-

  “Sion!”

  “Yes!” I snapped to attention.

  “Calm yourself. Otherwise.” Sabrina opened her mouth slightly and ran her tongue over her fangs. I immediately knew what was at stake.

  “Ma’am, yes, ma’am!” I saluted. “I will control my urges and swear allegiance to the fangs of the United States of Euphoria.”

  “What?” Sabrina chuckled. “You’re so weird.” I did my best to ignore Nia’s glare. However, it was hard, seeing as her tail was waving violently and smacking against my back.

  “So then, it’s come to that.”

  “Huh?” I looked at Nia. “What did you say?”

  “You heard me,” she meowed fiendishly before running a hand across my chest as she walked back to the doors. “I’ll behave for now and let you two talk. But know I am the jealous type, Master.” I shivered at her threatening tone before she glared at Sabrina. “And I will get what I want, even if I have to force it. I will be the first.”

  “First?” Wait! That’s not important! “What will you force? What are you talking about?” Nia said nothing before shutting the door, leaving Sabrina and I alone.

  “Well then, shall we continue now that she’s gone?”

  ???????????????

  “Get up, Sion!” Sabrina demanded.

  “But I don’t wanna!” I complained, banging my hands and feet against the ground like a child. “This is unfair! There’s no way I can touch you!”

  Before I had even realized it, two weeks had passed. Two weeks since I was transported into this world. Two weeks since I had met Nia, and two weeks of getting my ass kicked by Sabrina.

  The stipulation for my training was simple. She taught me how to use Flow while also training me in Martial Arts. Her style of fighting was different than mine, not that I had a fighting style. Her fighting style was something I had seen before on Earth. Krav Maga. I never thought I would have seen it in action or person before. I didn’t know if I was lucky or unlucky that, in this world, she had developed it herself after becoming a Vampire. All I knew was it was way too OP.

  “Until you touch me, you’re going to suffer every day.” She scolded as she formed several Water Bombs in the air around her.

  “I can’t get past all that!” I shot to my feet. “I’m not a Vampire, and my stats are pathetic! At least let me put on that cloak that-“

  “No,” she fired one of her spells at me.

  “YA!” I arched my back and dodged it.

  “Use Flow.”

  “I’ve tried! It’s not enough!”

  “It’s more than enough, especially since I’m holding back.”

  “That doesn’t help!”

  You have no idea just how much you’d have to hold back to make a difference!

  “Stop holding back!” She roared, firing several more Water Bombs at me in succession.

  “I’m not!” I cried as I dodged each one, using Flow to help me. Without it, I would have been hit by each one. The ability really was broken. It gave me way too much speed and increased my agility to the point where I felt the difference.

  “Yes, you are!” She ran at me. She continued to fire spells at me as she drew closer, and I dodged each one.

  Notice:

  Flow has leveled up. New skill acquired

  Skill name: Zip (Passive)

  “If you keep holding back, you’ll never achieve the dreams you told me about! If you want power, show me that you want it!” She was within striking distance now, and time felt as though it slowed down as her words reached my core.

  She was right. I wanted power and told her my dreams of becoming the world’s strongest, no matter what it would cost. But if I thought negatively of myself, I would never be able to achieve that dream. I kept comparing myself to everyone else, but I couldn’t do that because I wasn’t from this world. I was different, so instead of comparing myself to others, I had to look back at my own growth. And of course, I had gotten stronger.

  My hands balled into a fist as my chest tightened. She’s right! I had to try, even if it meant failing. I had to stop fearing failure because that was an inescapable and undeniable part of growth. No more holding back! Her fingers closed in on my face. Even if it means embarrassing myself while giving it my all, I won’t quit!

  My body moved on its own, zipping around and behind Sabrina as if an invisible current had pulled me like the sea's ebb and flow. I got behind her, her hand still outstretched and eyes wide at my sudden movement without built-up momentum.

  It was all because of the new skill I had received. It was because of Zip that I was able to dodge the way I had. I took that opportunity to reach for her shoulder.