An Unexpected Surprise

Without giving the Guard Death before him another chance to attack, Gwen swung his greatsword diagonally. A Cloud Sword knocked aside the other two scythes coming at him, then beheaded the Guard Death directly in front of him.

Before the upper half of the Guard Death Gwen had cleaved could hit the ground, two whistling sounds came from afar.

They were arrows fired by distant Ranger Deaths. Though they were arrows, their power far exceeded that of some small-caliber bullets, only lacking somewhat in speed.

Sensing the danger, Gwen remained utterly calm as the two Deaths brought their scythes down again. Gripping his greatsword, he rolled on the spot and slid out from between the two Guard Deaths.

The two incoming arrows collided where Gwen's head had just been, and the Honkai Energy attached to their arrowheads exploded upon impact.

After rolling away from two arrows that could have cost him half his life if they struck, Gwen raised his greatsword. Without giving the two Guard Deaths time to turn around, he swung the Honkai Energy-infused blade in a horizontal sweep.

As blood rich with Honkai Energy sprayed forth, both Guard Deaths had their legs severed and toppled to the ground.

Using the force of his swing to launch himself upward, Gwen, as if possessed by the Abyss Watchers, dragged his greatsword across the blood-stained ground and split one Guard Death in two.

Stepping on the last Death's head, Gwen's greatsword carved a deep trench through the ground and severed its head at the neck.

After dealing with the three Guard Deaths as easily as chopping vegetables, Gwen had no time to catch his breath. He rolled again to evade arrows fired by Ranger Deaths in two different directions, then dragged his greatsword as he charged wildly toward one of them, like a tiger descending the mountain—unstoppable.

Faced with Gwen's charge, the Ranger Death, lacking much combat intelligence, did retreat, but it still stubbornly raised its bow and fired.

Meanwhile, the Ranger Death Gwen had not chosen was not idle either. It fired arrow after arrow, each aimed at one of Gwen's vital points.

With arrows constantly coming from both front and back, Gwen directly slung his greatsword behind him and used it as a shield to withstand the arrows from behind, even using their force to accelerate again.

The arrows coming from the front were easily dodged as Gwen shifted his body.

Within a few breaths, the distance between Gwen and the Ranger Death had vanished. Gwen could even see his own reflection in its vacant, cloudy eyes.

Relying on the sharp perception he had gained through training to evade the arrow from behind, Gwen raised his hand, bent down, and drew his sword. The massive blade spun out, its Honkai Energy glow cutting through the air as effortlessly as a hot knife through butter.

Whether it was the Ranger Death's body or the bow in its hands, both were like paper and were easily split in two by Gwen's strike.

With only one Ranger Death left in the distance, Gwen, despite the battle already being essentially decided, did not relax in the slightest. Like a sprinting cheetah, he charged toward the last enemy.

The incoming arrow was slapped away by Gwen's greatsword with a crisp clang. Two breaths later, the final Ranger Death was cut in half and slowly collapsed.

"Phew..."

Having dealt with the last enemy, Gwen finally let out a breath and wiped the fine sweat from his forehead before skillfully closing his eyes.

When he opened them again, Gwen had returned to the brightly lit control room.

He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, calming the strange sensation brought on by the scene change. Then he closed his eyes and reviewed what he had gained from the simulation.

Another half month had passed since Gwen bought the Light Shadow Stone. As he learned techniques, accumulated combat experience, and improved his basic physical abilities, the enemies in the virtual training room had changed from a single Death at the beginning into small squads of Deaths combining ranged and melee combat.

Just like the "Four Hounds Burning Salary Formation" in a game from Gwen's previous life, adding more enemies made the difficulty far more complicated than simple addition.

Gwen had seemed relaxed during the battle just now, but he had only managed it by fully exerting all the strength he currently possessed.

After reviewing what he had gained from the simulation and checking the training records provided by the system, Gwen did not continue training and instead chose to leave the virtual training room.

The time was about right. Gwen planned to go back and study information on higher-level enemies, then challenge stronger opponents tomorrow—

Drawing on the Blessing System of DanMachi, which was very similar to his own, Gwen guessed that he would most likely need to accumulate so-called "Great Achievements" in order to level up.

Since the current low-level Deaths were no longer enough, Gwen naturally had to try challenging stronger enemies.

After leaving the virtual training room, Gwen chose to send the report to his terminal electronically, then removed the card and left.

Glancing at the time on his wristwatch, Gwen turned a corner in the hallway and sat down outside the virtual training room used by You Lan Dai Er, intending to wait for her to finish and leave together.

Although active Valkyries of Schicksal did not have excessively demanding daily training quotas when there was no Honkai outbreak, leaving these warriors who were always prepared to rush to the front lines against the Honkai ample time to rest and relax—

You Lan Dai Er, as Schicksal's undisputed training maniac, treated exercise as a form of rest and had once sparked a training craze.

However, aside from a few exceptionally gifted Valkyries, most could not endure such prolonged high-intensity training—

If not for the limits of what the human body could withstand, Schicksal would not have left the Valkyries so much free time.

In the end, it was only when Otto, the Archbishop himself, stepped in that the trend was stopped.

After that, although the Valkyries realized that You Lan Dai Er might possess talents they lacked, they did not grow dissatisfied with her. Instead, her popularity only continued to rise.

When Rita pretended not to notice You Lan Dai Er's cough beside her, her pretty face flushed red, and smilingly told him about this, Gwen wore the same mischievous smile as Rita at You Lan Dai Er's expense, yet could not help feeling a little emotional—

Was this what one expected from You Lan Dai Er? She worked so hard that her growth seemed only natural.

While Gwen waited for You Lan Dai Er, Valkyries passing by from time to time smiled and greeted Gwen, who was still a handsome young boy with red lips and white teeth—

Whether it was a genius like Anna, a famous training maniac like You Lan Dai Er, or an "S-Class Seed" like Rita, Gwen, already a rare male Honkai Energy adaptor himself, had naturally become well known at headquarters very quickly.

Gwen responded to the enthusiasm of these older sisters—and younger girls—one by one.

An Unexpected Surprise

Of course, there were occasionally some invitations that were a little too enthusiastic, and Gwen politely declined every one of them.

If he actually accepted, Gwen worried that he might become the next Siegfried, gaining a reputation like "the man who has touched every Valkyrie's butt at Schicksal headquarters"—

Even though he had never had any romantic experience in his previous life, Gwen had teased children before and could tell that these seemingly passionate and bold girls mostly just wanted to tease him, a little boy whose actual expiration date had long passed.

If he agreed, he would go from being a cute, teasing-worthy child to a lecherous pervert.

After dealing with several groups of Valkyries leaving together, the door before Gwen finally opened, and a spirited young woman with golden hair tied in a high ponytail walked out.

"Gwen?"

Seeing who was waiting outside, You Lan Dai Er could not help being surprised—

During this period, You Lan Dai Er had usually finished training first and gone to wait for Gwen. This was the first time Gwen had come to wait for her.

"Hmm?

What, are you surprised to see me?"

Gwen raised a hand and offered You Lan Dai Er a bottle of drink, smiling warmly at the surprised blonde girl.

"A little, yes."

You Lan Dai Er's answer was strikingly honest. She nodded and admitted,

"In my impression, Gwen, you always train until almost everyone here has left before you leave the training room."

"..."

Gwen froze at her words. Remembering the blonde girl waiting for him every time he opened the door, warmth rose in his heart. Then he chuckled and smiled.

"If even You Lan Dai Er says so, then it seems I need to adjust my training schedule..."

"You really should pay more attention to it."

Completely failing to realize that Gwen was calling her Schicksal's training maniac, You Lan Dai Er nodded solemnly.

"You still need to grow, Gwen. Training is important, but you should rest properly too.

And although you have..., your body still needs careful recovery to regain its vitality."

"Then... I won't hold back at the dinner Rita prepared tonight..."

Faced with You Lan Dai Er's serious lecture, Gwen smiled and nodded, saying something that made her expression stiffen.

As he spoke, Gwen held up his terminal and showed You Lan Dai Er his chat history with Rita. One photo showed a table already half-covered in delicious food.

"Mm..."

Seeing several dishes she liked in the photo, You Lan Dai Er unconsciously swallowed, but she still nodded and said,

"Yes, Gwen, you still need to grow. It would be good for you to eat more."

Seeing the reluctance on You Lan Dai Er's little face despite her mature manner, Gwen once again experienced Rita's joy. Rising to his feet, he said with a smile,

"Don't just talk about me. Aren't you still at the age where you're growing too?"

He raised a hand and patted You Lan Dai Er's shoulder. Though he looked three or four years younger than her, Gwen spoke in an old-fashioned manner, making You Lan Dai Er break into a radiant smile.

"Let's go. By the time we get back, Rita's dinner should probably be ready."

As she spoke, You Lan Dai Er took Gwen's hand and led him down the road home.

When the two returned home, they indeed found Rita bringing dishes to the table.

"Thanks for the effort, Rita!"

In one quick step, You Lan Dai Er took the bowls and chopsticks from Rita's hands, not forgetting to thank her.

Although Rita said she willingly did these things as a maid, You Lan Dai Er never took them for granted and always thanked her at the right time.

"Not at all..."

Seeing the two of them thank her and help out as soon as they returned, Rita wore a perfectly gentle smile.

"Rita enjoys it as well..."

Though being a maid was Rita's hobby, serving sensible and adorable children like You Lan Dai Er and Gwen also made her all the happier.

"Rita, could you check whether the heat over here is right?"

Anna suddenly called from the kitchen, drawing Rita inside.

At the dinner table, Gwen learned after asking that Anna had decided to use the free time she still had to learn cooking from Rita.

"Then you should study hard, Anna. A master chef like Rita is not easy to hire..."

Remembering the joke he had made with Anna half a month ago, Gwen smilingly teased the chestnut-haired, pink-eyed girl.

"Do you need to tell me that?"

Anna rolled her eyes at Gwen, but her slightly reddened little ears quietly betrayed her feelings.

"Alright, Gwen, eat more vegetables. You need balanced nutrition to grow strong..."

Watching Gwen chat and laugh with Anna, Rita smilingly added some vegetables to his bowl and gently reminded him.

"That's right, that's right. Gwen, don't just eat meat. You need balanced nutrition."

Seemingly reminded by Rita's words, You Lan Dai Er also added plenty of food to Gwen's bowl, piling it high.

"Don't worry. I'll take care of all the remaining food in the end. It'll definitely be nutritionally balanced."

Already used to Rita deliberately treating him like a child based on his appearance, Gwen did not refuse. Instead, he patted his chest and confidently took on the task.

"If you eat that much, be careful that your height doesn't increase while your weight shoots up!"

Seeing that she had no chance to add food to his bowl, Anna hesitated for a moment. Then, seeing Gwen like this, the corners of her lips rose as she teased him.

"Hehe, as long as I keep up with my training, fat won't be able to catch me..."

Gwen laughed unconcernedly. His childlike appearance paired with his old-fashioned demeanor drew a burst of bell-like laughter from the girls...

After dinner, true to his word, Gwen sent the few remaining dishes into his stomach. After chatting and laughing with the beautiful girls for a while longer, he returned home.

Pouring himself a glass of water, Gwen sat on the sofa and closed his eyes as if resting, habitually opening his status panel.

Previously, in the virtual training room, Gwen had avoided opening the system because he did not know exactly how it appeared in his field of vision or whether the virtual training room, which was connected to the mental realm, could detect it.

But the moment he looked, Gwen was instinctively startled. His eyes widened as he struggled to believe what he was seeing.

After working hard to calm his emotions, Gwen, who had nearly grown accustomed over the past month to weaving acting into his daily life, let out a burp as cover. He rubbed his stomach, sat properly again, and carefully examined his status panel—

Gwen--lv1

Strength--SS1477

Endurance--SSS1679

Agility--SSS1581

Spirit--EX

Energy--SS1411

Energy System: None

What had caused Gwen to lose his composure was naturally not those familiar, exaggerated numbers, but the "lv1" after his name, slowly flashing with golden light.

I can level up?

The thought flashed through Gwen's mind. Before he could believe it, his will had already clicked on it.

The next moment, a new pop-up window appeared before Gwen's eyes—