AN: Hallo, hope you guys are having a nice week.

  Here is another chapter for you all. I am in the middle of studying to my finals, so I can't dilly-dally too much, so let's proceed.

  Question of the Week:

  Which Gacha verse would you like the least to live in: Honkai Verse, Star Rail, Genshin, Wuthering Waves, Arknights, or (Other if you know another one)?

  ~Razen Antares Gremory~

  – Floor 91 Day 743 –

  ?

  Even after three days, Midna was still fast asleep. And although the blinking light that shone from her body started diminishing in strength, it still blinked in its usual heartbeat-like rhythm.

  The more time passed with Midna unconscious, the more worried Antares became. Many scenarios of her never waking up or dying while asleep passed through his mind, his paranoid thought process making sure he was perfectly aware of all the worst it could conjure up.

  The girls were also deeply worried about their friend and sister. This meant that in the st three days, none of them also slept properly. If it wasn't for Time-Savers guaranteeing that Eu and Neptune can have very little sleep per day, they would've passed out from tiredness and sleeplessness ages ago.

  Pyra had the Trinity Processor and a White Hole in the form of The Conduit, energizing her at all times. Sadly, both were sealed, so she couldn't access their full power, but even less than 1% allowed her to recover her energy better and faster.

  Then, close to the middle of the third day, when Antares and the girls were talking with each other while accompanying the unconscious Midna, there was a change.

  The blinking light from the Twilight Princess' body suddenly became a constant, turning Midna into an imp-shaped mp of white light. Antares exchanged worried gnces with the girls, but before any of them could make a comment or do anything, the light got brighter and brighter.

  Many universes away, in a realm whose connection was severed from the world, the small figure of an imp-like creature that sat on a throne twitched. Her small, diminutive body then suddenly burst into a supernova of light, and like a real-time evolution, she changed.

  In a room of an Inn on the 91st floor, a certain guide simultaneously changed as well.

  Her limbs elongated, turning from stubby into long and slender, and her hips widened and infted turning her ass into two pliable mounds that attained an absolutely perfect peach shape. Her waist was thin and slender, showing a beautiful and elegant abdomen; her shoulders were slim but not without strength, dispying a refined beauty rarely seen even in the elves of legend.

  Her breasts were rge, supple, and perky, with a supernatural estic-like quality that allowed their size without reducing any of their beauty. Overall, she had a perfect hourgss figure with her hips being slightly wider than her shoulders, and an almost unmatched beauty even by the likes of goddesses.

  Her hair was of a fiery orange color, its texture silky and incredibly smooth, and it flowed from her head and over her shoulders until it almost touched the base of her spine. It reminded Antares of a waterfall made of fire as if he were looking at the Phlegethon itself.

  Her face was an absolute work of art; as if a Fae and an Angel had an offspring that ended up fusing with a Muse. It had an innate elven-like beauty and features that could even take the breath of someone like Antares—who is used to living with unparalleled beauties—away.

  Plump and slender lips of a very inviting dark grey color almost begged Antares to be kissed until they turned slightly swollen. Intense dark orange pupils with a lighter orange sclera scanned the world around as if taking in everything for the first time.

  Her knife-shaped ears twitched slightly, drinking in the sounds echoing in their surroundings, making sure to catch everything they could.

  Her skin was of an incredibly beautiful grey color, with long and wide bck colored markings covering a great deal of her body.

  Simple words can't describe just how harmonious and smooth-looking those bck markings were, and the only certainty Antares had was that they were completely natural. Besides the bck markings, there were a couple of neon-blue colored circuit-like markings in a few key parts of her body, with some ending up in intricate and fancifully eborate unknown sigils.

  Overall, Antares was looking at one of the most gorgeous women he had the pleasure of knowing.

  And she is his lover.

  Antares stood there, frozen in surprise at Midna's sheer change. Intellectually, he knew Midna without her curse was a kingdom-toppling beauty, but seeing some Wiki Pages about Legend of Zelda and seeing the real woman in person is a completely different thing.

  Before he could recover from the surprise, he suddenly felt a weight on his arms. Tilting his head down slightly, he saw that the first thing that Midna did was jump into his embrace. She hugged him tightly, pressing her body against his, and in one swift moment, she cimed Antares' lips.

  The kiss was intense, passionate, and almost overwhelming. Years of suppressed feelings and sheer passion burst forth. Their tongues warred and twisted with one another, making the lovely dance of passion.

  Midna was a little clumsy at first. Antares was, after all, the first person she ever became so intimate with. But he was a very attentive and supportive lover, slowly guiding Midna to turn the kiss into an even more pleasant experience to both of them.

  After a rather long time kissing, they finally separated, Antares breaking the trail of saliva automatically, as if he had done it thousands of times.

  "Damn, you have no idea how much I wanted to do that," Midna affirmed breathlessly. "Two years, Handsome, two years earning for your hot piece of—"

  Eu coughed on her hand, making Midna pout at the interruption. "Are you alright, Midna?"

  The Twilight Princess spun in pce, showing off her gorgeous body for everyone. "I feel amazing, even better than before I was cursed."

  "Midna, I know you are excited and all." Neptune deadpanned. "But could you please put on some clothes?"

  The Twilight princess froze and blushed a beautiful shade of crimson that almost looked purple on her gorgeous grey skin. In a swift and decisive mood, she swiped the silky sheets of her bed and used them as a makeshift toga.

  "Sorry about that." She apologized shyly in a way Antares felt the Imp Midna would never do.

  "Bah, don't worry about it." Neptune rolled her eyes before narrowing them when she looked at Midna. The purplette approached the grey-skinned beauty with swift steps, her hand carefully measuring her height. "I… you are the tallest one amongst us now," Neptune mumbled, a little distracted. Midna just smiled smugly.

  "Hehe, all those times where I was called short, impy, midget, dwarf, mosquito, little—"

  "We get it, Midna." Pyra chuckled while interrupting her, relieved that her friend and sister was alright.

  "Now, out of curiosity." Eu hummed while cupping her chin. "Can you wear Dream Equipment?"

  Midna froze again and closed her eyes. "Well… It's a rather new situation. But I think I can." She then picked neckce Antares provided to her, smiling brightly. When the neckce settled normally on her as if she were any dreamer, the group blinked owlishly in pleasant surprise.

  "Seriously?" Eu raised her eyebrow. "Aren't guides unable to—"

  "Usually we are." Midna cut the bluenette in excitement. "But it seemed the effect of the cleansing talisman was more profound than I had imagined." She then turned towards Antares. "Do you have a full set to lend me?"

  "Oh, there is plenty." Antares nodded and retrieved a full set of Dream Equipment and Accessories from his Pocket space. "I still didn't go selling our extra stuff, so you can even choose what you want."

  Seeing the massive pile of equipment appear in the middle of the room made Midna blink owlishly. "Damn, we really killed a lot of monsters on floor 90."

  "And that is just stuff that is Rare Grade or superior." Antares shook his head. "Albeit I don't have any Legendary Grade stuff in stock, as we are all wearing those."

  "Nah, that's no trouble." Midna approached the pile of equipment. "Floor 91 and onwards have a way higher drop rate of Legendary stuff. Theoretically, of course."

  "Now, I am a little curious, Midna." Neptune hummed and approached the Twilight Princess, helping her go through the pile of equipment. "I've never seen you fight before, so what can you do exactly?"

  "Well, using your weird videogame terms, you can say I am a Control Mage with some emphasis on DPS." She hummed while seeing a particurly good Epic Helmet on the pile. "My melee abilities are quite abysmal without my Fused Shadow, however."

  "Fused shadow?" Antares asked while kneeling down to help Midna.

  "A type of Ancient Shadow Magic I get access to when I am wearing my Helmet." She shook her head. "Sadly, not everyone is like Antares, so I can't use it inside The Tower as it is on my real body."

  "And what about the stuff you can use here?" Asked Neptune while separating an interesting Epic Quality pauldron for Midna.

  "Well, as a Royal Twili, I know a lot of Shadow Magic and Twilight Magic in general." Mina waved her hand, creating a cartwheel of shadows that quickly turned into a perfect shadowy bck statue of Antares, dispying a masterful skill in control. "My tenure in the tower also afforded me an encyclopedic knowledge of many schools of Magic, but I don't have that much practice with them, considering my previous cursed situation."

  "I can also use Darkness Manipution, telekinesis, fly, manipute my hair like another hand, and a bunch of other minor things that I need to check if I still can do them." Midna sighed.

  "Well, we definitely need to rectify your melee skills." Concluded Eu softly. "You don't need to specialize in it like me, but having some skills in close quarters with and without weapons is good for your survivability."

  "Couldn't agree more." Midna nodded. In her long time inhabiting The Tower, she saw plenty of teams lose one or more of their members because they didn't cover their bases.

  "Wait, you can manipute your hair?" Asked Neptune in a mix of befuddlement and excitement. "That's so cool."

  Midna smirked and turned her hair into a thumbs-up shape. Earning a chuckle from the purplette. "How do you do it? Is it some type of magic?"

  "Ehh, it's magical in origin." Midna shrugged, and Antares' eyes shone. "But it's more of a Twili racial ability than anything."

  Eu briefly looked at Antares, who nodded his head and tried replicating what Midna did; he succeeded, but only partially, as he barely made the tips of his hair move slightly.

  Midna looked at her lover with a deadpan. "Seriously? You can learn even that now?"

  Antares chuckled. "It's way more difficult than it looks, but I don't see why I wouldn't be able to replicate it with enough practice."

  "…" Midna sighed, sounding a little defeated, only a soft "How?" escaping her lips.

  Antares deadpanned and pointed at himself. "Devil Aethermorph plus Soul Talent… I am basically a cheat sheet to anything magic-reted."

  "Ah, yeah… I forgot about your absurd company perks for a moment." Midna grumbled in fake dejection.

  "Well, no need to be so glum." Antares smiled softly and hugged the grey-skinned beauty. "When I add you to my peerage, you will also enjoy the Shared Talents as well. You don't need to worry about being left behind."

  Midna smiled softly, content to be in her lover's embrace. "I know…"

  Finding equipment for Midna ended up being way harder than they first imagined. Antares could give her something weaker from the lower floors, but that would be very dangerous on the floor that they are at right now, so she needed something on at least floor 85 and up.

  This narrowed down her options quite a bit, but she still ended up with a mostly Epic Grade set, with a few rare accessories to fill in the bnk spaces. It would be a good temporary solution until they could get better equipment for her.

  The rest of the 91st floor ended up being mostly an adaptation period for Midna, where the grey-skinned princess tested many different fighting styles, got rid of the rustiness in her magic, and started learning some close-quarters combat from Antares. Who, by using his Educational Talent, brought Midna up to speed in no time. Of course, they had to slow down their progression quite a bit, but that also allowed them to get better equipment for Midna and everyone else as well. They were still far from getting a Full Legendary Set from the Peak floors, but they were getting closer by now.

  With a wave of Midna's hand, a sphere of swirling shadows unched forward and hit a mountain in the distance, completely erasing it into an explosion of bck-fme-like shadows.

  "Impressive." Antares whistled. "I fully admit I always thought of shadows as more of a utility thing, you know? Unless you go to the more eldritch stuff…"

  Midna smirked. "Well, Shadow Magic is indeed very versatile." She hummed and summoned another Shadow Sphere, ready to unch it again. "At the start, most of the stuff you learn is reted to battlefield control or stealth." Midna unched the Shadow Sphere towards another mountain in the distance, erasing it in another explosion of shadows. "Stuff like Shadow Stealth, Shadow Blending, Shadow Binding, Shadow Spike, and it goes up from there. Things start to get really interesting when you can mimic different effects with Shadow Magic."

  Midna then summoned another Shadow Sphere, but this time, instead of unching it, she started to spin it, slowly trying to imitate Neptune's Rasengan.

  Antares raised his eyebrow in slight surprise when he saw that the Twilight Princess was progressing quite far, the rotation of the sphere increased and increased. But unfortunately, the Rasengan wasn't as easy as she initially thought, so her shadow sphere started to slowly destabilize. She hurried and punched her hand forward, ready to unch the sphere away, but it was already too te.

  The Shadow sphere exploded. An explosion of high-pressure shadows hit both Antares and Midna in full. Even considering they were in full Dream Armor, it was bound to cause quite a massive amount of damage, considering just how much mana Midna pumped into it.

  The explosion of shadows slowly died down, revealing two flying figures, both of them completely intact. A transparent bubble made of Pure Force Attribute covered both of their bodies.

  "Thanks," Midna added, a little out of breath, that explosion scared her more than anything. "If it wasn't for you, I—"

  "Don't worry, it's normal to mess up when testing new stuff." Antares smiled warmly. "To be honest, I was already prepared for something like that."

  "To tell the truth, I hadn't expected the boost to my strength to be so thorough like this." Midna smiled a little awkwardly. "The jump in strength to the Peak of Super Css is way too massive. I feel like I could erase an entire Kingdom in the flip of a finger…"

  "That's because you can." Antares nodded solemnly. "A Super Css being can affect the whole world, and the less said about the Heavenly Level, the better."

  "Heavenly level?"

  "You can think of them as Pseudo-Dragon Gods." Antares hummed and waved his hand, building a statue of Fire in the Draconic form of Ddraig and one of Ablion in Ice. "You remember Albion and Ddraig, right?"

  Midna nodded. "Yeah, difficult to forget that day." She then mumbled under her breath. "... Still gd I didn't meet Bloom tho."

  "I don't know much of the specifics, to be honest. But supposedly, the Heavenly Level is the closest level to the Dragon God's status." Antares dispersed the statues with a wave of his hand.

  Midna frowned. "I remember Neptune commenting their Tier on the Catalog being just 8, and Big Red was a straight 10. Is there really such a difference between ranks like this? Two whole Tiers… Isn't it a bit much?"

  "Well, I suspect that's because they weren't at the peak of the Heavenly css, so to speak." Antares hummed in thought. "A good example of that is Big G."

  "The Biblical God?"

  Antares held back a flinch. "Yeah, him. Theoretically, he should be a prime example of the Peak of the Heavenly Css. But, while he was the strongest member of the biblical faction to date, bar none. He still theoretically lost to Thrihexa, who is a Dragon God-level existence."

  Midna scratched her head; "...didn't he seal the Beast of the Apocalypse in the end?"

  "Indeed." Antares nodded. "And that goes to show just how absurd that guy was. Not only did he seal the Dragon God of the Apocalypse, he probably had to fight it to a standstill to do so."

  "That's…" Midna mumbled, visibly impressed. That meant the Biblical God had such superb skill and flexibility that he could fight opponents even vastly stronger than him. Midna was starting to understand why he always held humans in such high regard, as what he did basically sums up what humans did daily till they started building a society properly.

  "Now, I suppose you've got the hang of your powers?" Antares asked with a smile.

  "As well as I can without a lot of fighting anyway." Midna sighed and clenched her hands, feeling the absurd strength and mana coursing through them.

  .

  .

  .

  Adding Midna to the equation turned the group's climb of The Tower that much faster. Not only was she an exceptional control mage the likes Antares had never seen, but the Twili with her knowledge as a Guide was a scary existence on the battlefield. She knew exactly where and when to hit something, with timing so impeccable Antares felt he should stop to appud her every time she nded a spell.

  Of course, at the start, things were a little bit bumpy. No matter how you look at it, Midna has been a guide for quite a while, so her combat and teamwork skills were a bit rusty. But by the time they had felled the Boss of the 91st floor, she already fit in the group like a well-oiled machine. The fact that Antares conducted training exercises daily with everyone only helped her integrate with the group's style—something she was already mentally aware of due to how much time they spent together previously—that much more easily.

  By the time they reached the 95th floor, the fame of the group had risen quite a bit. They were already retively famous previously, but thanks to Asn's team's absurd accomplishments, they sort of navigated in their shadows until now.

  Still, none of them could care less about their growing fame. Principally, when an event that shook the entirety of the upper floors.

  It all happened when they were in the middle of an expedition on the 95th floor. Midna had overheard a few rumors about a Unique Rank Item that could bring your body inside the tower, with that being one of their objectives in this pce, the group instantly went to investigate and check things out.

  Sadly, it ended up being a dud. But they still managed to drop a Colored Ring from the hidden boss and find another one tucked in the depths of a dormant volcano called Mount Boom.

  At their camp for the night, the group was checking over their spoils of the day, when they all collectively froze.

  They felt the entire tower shudder, and a strange white wave of mana filled with feelings of happiness and contentment washed over them. Antares was a little dumbstruck for a moment, and his nerdy brain could not help but ponder 'Is this how a Patronus feels?' Before another celestial phenomenon caught his attention.

  The Sky split open, only to reveal a massive golden-white orb. The orb shone and bathed the whole Peak Floors in its warm lights, healing all wounds and making sure everyone felt absolutely well-rested and filled with energy. Antares also felt something like a 'Blessing' being applied to him, but he couldn't detect exactly what it was.

  The golden-white orb in the Sky changed, dispying the image of a very familiar group. Antares wanted to excim, 'Asn!? ' But no matter how much effort his reflexes put his body through, he couldn't move or utter a word.

  His gaze still focused on the orb, he finally noticed it wasn't just Asn there, but also Biscuit, a Hippo, and two other girls with very dark hair and intense eyes with bck scleras. 'Is that Biscuit's team as well?' Antares also noticed no indication of their guides, something that started worrying him a little.

  Then the Golden-White orb exploded, and Antares felt another 'Blessing' set into him. Finally able to move, Antares exhaled loudly; "What… What was that?"

  "That was The Tower's blessing." Midna cleared her throat. "Just concentrate and you will be able to find out what it does."

  Antares did so, and what Midna said was indeed correct. Upon focusing on these so-called blessings on his dream body, information instantly appeared on his mind.

  [120% Increase in efficiency when fighting against evil. 120D 23H 58M]]

  [100% Increase in efficiency when learning. 120D 23H 58M]

  "What the actual…" Antares stopped there. While 120% effectiveness against evil beings is nice, the 100% increase in learning was what surprised him. Such a thing is absurd.

  "It's absurd. I know." Midna smiled a little smugly.

  "Principally, when you consider knowledge is cumutive." Neptune pointed out. "Because the more you learn about a subject, the easier it is to learn future stuff about it. So if this bonus carries over… Yeah, double the results for half the effort kind of deal."

  "Was it just me, or did you see a hippo in there as well?" Asked Pyra, confused.

  "That's probably Motto Motto, Biscuit's teammate." Antares chuckled. "You saw him there as well, didn't you?" Pyra nodded cutely.

  "It's quite a surprise." Midna stretched her arms. "It's exceedingly rare for more than one team to complete the tower together. The st boss is not way more than simply twice as hard when you fight against him with more people. There is a reason people don't do raid parties anymore, you know?"

  "So we got two blessings because two teams beat floor 100th?" Neptune raised her eyebrow.

  Midna nodded. "Pretty much." She then perked up. "Oh, all Dreamers also have a hidden blessing going as well. For the duration of The Tower's blessing, all drop rates are increased by 100%, and if there are two blessings…"

  "200%," Concluded Neptune, her gamer mind shining with the words 'Rate Up!'

  "That's fantastic," Pyra excimed, visibly excited. "Perhaps we can finally find the items to bring us inside the tower." Midna enthusiastically nodded, excited at the prospect as well. Antares, Neptune, and Eu just smiled, happy for their companions.

  With the scare of a giant orb out of the way, the group went back to checking their spoils. While the girls went over a few set pieces they had gotten earlier, Antares looked at the two colored rings in his hand, a rather nostalgic feeling passing through him.

  "So that's what you searched so much for McTorke." He sighed. "Don't you think it is weird how fate works?" He asked softly, still looking at the rings. "You've searched so much for these rings, and I, who couldn't care less about them, got two." Antares chuckled. "Fate is really cruel sometimes… really cruel."

  Looking at the Red and White rings, Antares remembered a talk he had with his brief Bcksmithing mentor a long time ago. "The Red Ring of Fire and the White Ring of Ice."

  He briefly equipped them to see if there was some kind of curse. The way McTorke talked surely indicated that.

  Nothing. Besides fitting into his extra slots, both rings felt like normal Legendary equipment to him. Antares shrugged and called Pyra and Eu.

  "Well, I think these two rings would be the most suitable for you two." Antares gave the Red Ring to Pyra and the White Ring to Eu, prompting a nod of gratitude from both.

  "Oh, are those colored rings?" Midna asked hopefully. Antares nodded.

  "Nice! Those are some of the best Extra Slot items you can get." The twilight princess then hummed mischievously. "Did you know they used to be cursed?" Antares tilted his head in curiosity.

  "Yeah, until around a few decades ago." Midna approached and leaned on Antares. "Colored rings gave a passive obsession curse to anyone who wanted them. It caused a lot of pain and many split parties."

  "Until a mad d, a few decades ago, challenged the Nine Nethers Abyss Dragon and used a Unique Tier drop to upgrade them all and subsequently get rid of the curse." Midna briefly closed her eyes, enjoying her lover's embrace. "His name was Gunther, I think…"

  Antares briefly froze, a few memories coming to the forefront of his mind. At first, he didn't share McTorke's whole ring story because he didn't want to hurt he trust the old dwarf had put in him. But by what Midna said, she must already be aware of it. So he shared the few details he had saved to himself before.

  "Unfortunately, that story used to be quite common in the past." Midna sighed sadly. "I am gd he was able to overcome the curse on his own willpower; that tells a lot about how strong your teacher was." Antares nodded, fully agreeing with the princess.

  Seeing as he had a little bit of time, Antares pulled up his mission's Additional Objectives.

  Additional Objectives:

  .No one in your cohort dies. |R: A Demipne Perk of your Choice. (Max 100c in value).

  .Defeat all the main Bosses of the tower. |R: 5 Tempte Stackings I and II of your choice. (The rules of your Patron still apply.) [Pending]

  .Find 10 Unique Rank Artifacts. |R: A bnk Sacred Gear Seed. [6/10]

  .Find all the Legendary Colored Rings. |R: 150c and The One Ring. [02/???]

  .Discover a secret of the Devil Race. |R: One Heritage Perk of your choice. Only avaible ones. [60% Complete]

  .Finish the "Sky Floors" without getting hit. |R: One Ride of at least Medium size of your choice and the ability to freely move through 3D space. [Fail]

  .Stop your Cohort from splitting up. |R: 10c [OK]

  .Bring Midna's and Pyra's body inside the dreamscape. |R: 1 Tempte Stackings I and II of your choice.

  .Discover the great mystery behind the Dreamscape and stop The Mantling. |R: 2000c and 3 Demipne Perks of your choice. [5%]

  There was quite a bit of progression in most quests. But Antares was particurly happy, the one about finding 10 Unique Rank artifacts counted the ones they used to open their extra slots, and the Cleansing Amulet. He has some real hopes of completing it until the end.

  He then pulled his Main Mission additional Objectives and couldn't help but smile.

  Additional Objectives:

  .Recover your Marriage Contract with Sona Sitri by defeating her in a Chess Match.|R: Instant Capture of Sona Sitri(Or her Value if Already Captured) + 50c.

  .Marry Both Serafall Leviathan and Sona Sitri.| R: One Heritage Perk of your choice + Instant Capture of Both(Or their values if already captured).

  .Traumatize Revya Phenex to the point she completely gives up on you.|R: 25c

  .Marry only members of your peerage.|R: Demipne Perk of your choice(Cannot exceed 100c).

  .Kill a High Css Being or Become one.|R: 10c [OK]

  .Kill an Ultimate Css Being or Become one.|R: 20c [OK]

  .Kill a Satan Css Being or Become one.|R: 50c [OK]

  .Kill a Super Css Being or Become one.|R: 75c [OK]

  .Kill someone on the Top 10 or Become one.|R: 100c

  .Kill a God or Become one.|R: A Bnk Divine Core capable of developing your own personalized divinity is perfectly fused with you.

  .Kill Thrihexa, The Beast of the Apocalypse.|R: Its Full Price is added to your bance.

  .Help the three Abrahamic factions achieve peace.|R: 10c

  .Help 6 Factions achieve peace.|R: 20c

  .Help All Positively Aligned supernaturals achieve peace.|R:100c

  .Create a Faction of your own.|R: Demipne Perk of your choice(Cannot exceed 100c).

  .Your Faction must be recognized in the Supernatural World.|R: Add a Faction Headquarters of your choice to your Demipne.

  .Your Faction is the strongest in the Supernatural World.|R: A Copy of Every Faction Headquarters is added to your Demipne.

  .Lay the groundwork to prepare the world against ExE events.|R: 10c

  ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  It appears that the enemies he killed inside the tower counted for the additional objectives of his Main Mission as well, which was a rather nice thing that he still needs to thank Neptune for. The purplette ended up discovering it when she was browsing the Catalog a few days ago, and she decided to point it out to him.

  Closing his HUD, Antares decided this was a good time to simply enjoy his lovers' company. He knows they will all be on a more accelerated rhythm in a few moments when everyone is ready, but there isn't anything saying he can't have 5 minutes of cuddling with Midna, both of them earned it.

  Antares' prediction quickly ended up proving itself right. As soon as the groups as done accessing their new equipment, the group returned to climbing the tower with a vengeance.

  With the blessings boosting their efficiency, Eu and Pyra with massive boosts to their Fire and Ice magic, respectively. And with Antares shamelessly copying everything with his perks. The group improved as fast as they progressed. Not to mention that with their Drop Rate increased, the group was quick to find themselves fully outfitted with an Epic Set worth the Peak Floors, with many Legendary Grade equipment to complete it even more. Antares and the girls concluded they could probably get a full legendary set on floor 99 if they pyed their cards right.

  So it was no surprise that barely many days ter, they were already setting foot on 99th floor, the Frontier.

  If the previous floors could be called so massive they were an entire world of their own, the 99th floor was many worlds fused together. As if someone had picked 7 different pnets the size of Earth, and fused them into a single supermassive pnet.

  The pce was beautiful, with hundreds of different biomes and thousands upon thousands of different Dream Monsters to kill and farm. The Dreamer's presence was, however, way smaller, but each team was an absolute powerhouse –they had to be to arrive at this pce.

  Due to the low popution, the 99th floor had just one single city estate, which was almost as big as Tokyo itself, not due to popution, but mostly because whoever lived at the Frontier liked to and could afford to have very big homes.

  Finding the aptly named Frontier City was extremely easy, putting aside the fact that Midna knew its location by heart, the group just had to go towards the tallest mountain range on the floor, something that was visible from the pce that they had arrived on.

  Entering the city, Antares almost stopped to take in its extremely chaotic appearance; the entrance and the closer buildings looked to be Greco-Roman in origin, but a few hundred meters ter it turned Hindu Arabic and then full-blow Chinese, probably the Qin dynasty era.

  Athenian, Spartan, Nordic, Persian, German, British, Victorian, Gothic, Aztec, and many more that Antares couldn't even recognize. It was such a chaotic cultural blend, somehow working together, that it impressed the Devil Heir greatly. He doesn't know how so many different cultures, some even directly cshing in their core beliefs, could work so smoothly together.

  "Impressive, isn't it?" Mumbled Midna while looking at a very beautifully designed Gothic Pace. "Every time I come here, it feels like another half-dozen cultures are added to the mix."

  "I… what does it take for such different people to live in harmony?" Neptune mumbled, impressed. "I've seen people kill each other for much, much less. To see such dichotomy not only living but thriving together it's—"

  "Beautiful, right?" Eu completed her sister's sentence. "Even from Teyvat, where we didn't have as many countries as you guys, it was already difficult, I can't even imagine how a pce like this managed to..."

  "Well, don't be fooled by such a massive amount of buildings," Midna replied sadly. "Many of them are empty, relics of Dreamers long past. The City Autarch, called Either King or Queen depending on them, usually maintains these buildings as a form of respect for the great people who left their mark."

  "Yeah, I noticed it as well." Antares nodded a little solemnly. "I've barely detected a few dozen people in my range, and they all seem… hurried?"

  "Oh, that's expected." Midna hummed while pointing at a team swiftly flying from a Victorian-looking manor towards the center of the city. "With the Blessings up, people here would be the busiest." Midna then held Antares' hand and gave it a slight squeeze. "A lot of people also take their time on this floor, liking it or not, this pce has the highest chance of dropping Unique Tier items, so it's not uncommon to see people purposely refuse to advance in order to get something good that can affect the real world."

  "Things aren't so simple, aren't they?" Antares asked, already knowing the answer.

  Midna snorted. "You know they are not. It's a rumor, of course, but people who try to game the system tend to get very unlucky with their drops."

  "Do you think that could affect us?" Pyra asked, a little worried. "We found nothing but rumors of the Unique Items that we want. And we were pnning to stay on this floor until we got the items necessary to bring our bodies here."

  "I sincerely do not know, Pyr." Midna sighed. "I just hope that rumor about the Raspuziteyl, the Conjoined Dragon of Revetions, ends up being true."

  "Well, I hope it's true as well. For the st three floors, everyone kept mentioning him when we investigated the Unique Item we wanted." The redhead girl mumbled, her tone filled with hope.

  "Don't worry. Even if that doesn't work out, there is always another way." Neptune patted Pyra's shoulder, offering her support.

  "And even if it takes us hundreds of years, we are only exiting the tower with you two together with us." Added Antares with a very serious face. Pyra lowered her head and blushed, while Midna gave him a peck on the lips; "Thanks."

  "Won't that cause trouble for you? You have your Company Mission, and then there is your Marriage Contract—"

  "Pyra," Antares cut his lover softly, "All of that is worthless when I compare it to you two. I will do whatever it takes so we can be together. Even 1000 years here seems like a very cheap price to pay for it."

  Silence overtook the group, Pyra's face turned completely crimson, while even Midna blushed and lowered her gaze. Eu looked at the two lovestruck women smugly, as if proudly saying, 'That's my man.' While Neptune just smiled happily and leaned in Antares.

  Sadly, it appeared that life didn't want to give them a break. A slightly raspy voice suddenly cut through the rosy moment.

  "Sorry to interrupt you, Madams, Sir." Antares looked at the perpetrator, feeling slightly annoyed, but upon seeing the phosphorescent Orange around his equipment, his mind started to immediately think of the worst.

  Little of the man was visible, bar two pairs of intense blue eyes peeking from inside his helmet, his full pte armor looked like a walking fortress capable of even withstanding a point-bnk Hypernova, although Antares doubted it realistically could, even considering the intense Orange-colored aura—a clear sign of Legendary Grade—being emitted by it.

  Uncaring about the group's sudden readiness to attack him, the man turned towards Antares and asked. "Would you be Razen Antares Gremory?"

  "Yes. That's my name."

  "The Lion Queen requests your presence." The man half-bowed, showing respect to the group.

  Antares frowned. He didn't remember ever talking or meeting someone with such a Moniker. But if his memory serves him right, McTorke mentioned her in one of their talks.

  Turning towards Midna, who was doing her best to recover from Antares Antaresness. The Devil heir indicated the man with his eyes; "Do you know who this Lion Queen is?"

  "Oh, she is the current Autarch of Frontier City." Midna pyed with her hair a little. "A very honorable and just one, mind you, so there is no need to worry about her doing something underhanded or sketchy. At least not openly."

  The armored man twitched a little as if he wanted to interject. But self-control and discipline allowed him to hold himself back and simply wait for the team before him to calm down a little.

  Antares briefly exchanged gazes with the girls, their connection so thorough that no words were needed.

  "Please lead the way, Mr…"

  "Bel." The armored man replied succinctly before walking towards the Lion Queen's pace.

  Reaching the pace was quite an easy feat, liking it or not, everyone on this floor was technically of the Heavenly Css when fully equipped, so walking or flying a few kilometers at casual speeds barely even took a few moments.

  Bel didn't seem like the sociable sort, and Antares wasn't sure if the man was upset because he was being used as a servant or if this was simply his default personality. He still decided to stay silent and not provoke someone who was content in being left alone, a sentiment that the girls also followed.

  Arriving at the pace, the group couldn't help but stop for a moment. The Pace of the Lion Queen was a thing of beauty, a masterpiece of construction and art that could take the breath of almost anyone who observed it for the first time. Tall spires, titanic walls, windows almost thrice as wide as Antares and at least five times as tall –even from a distance, the Devil could see the sheer effort and investment that went into making such an outstanding and fancy pace.

  Greek columns as tall as Giants, fancily engraved with images and visages of lions in many different positions and poses. Lion statues adorned both the way and the outside of the pace, a green bed of grass that looked fresh and full of vitality, and Antares' sharp senses couldn't help but notice an entire pride of lions skulking about in it.

  Bel walked ahead towards a giant double door made of marble, lifted his hand, and knocked on it twice.

  A few heartbeats ter, a small opening on the lower right door was pried open by someone from inside. Said person traded a few hushed whispers with Bel before closing it and going back inside.

  A few more moments ter, the gigantic double doors opened.

  The inside of the ce was almost as spectacur as its outside. It was incredibly vish, but not to the point that it became gaudy or over-ostentatious. The floor was made of bck, white, and golden-colored stones, all polished to the point they almost became mirrors.

  Simple lion-themed decorations adorned the hall in carefully pnned ways that only served to complement the pace interior's appearance.

  Three marble doors, keenly spaced, led to the right, while another three led to the left. But Bel completely ignored them and walked straight towards another set of double doors at the end of the hallway.

  Bel walked swiftly and in one fluid movement, as if he had done this hundreds of times, he opened the doors.

  What greeted the group was another incredibly decorated room, a Throne room to be more specific.

  A straight golden carpet led directly toward the middle of the room, where there was a simple throne made of white marble, bck stone, and gold. Above the throne, the engraving of a roaring lion stood, making Antares frown. Something in the depths of his memories recognized such engraving, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

  On the two sides of the room leading to the throne, many other smaller thrones sat. A total of 12, to be exact. These throes followed much of the same pattern as the main one, but they didn't have the gold color mixed in their structure.

  The room was very well-lit by a supernatural light that Antares could only conclude was some kind of enchantment. Sadly, the group's thought process was interrupted when someone suddenly appeared on the main throne.

  It was a tall, brown-haired woman, her eyes two deep violet pools that held the depth and intensity of a warrior who had fought for over a century. Her rather curvaceous body was hidden behind a thick pte armor made of white steel that covered everything but her beautiful face. Her armor, much like Bel's, emanated a phosphorescent orange aura, indicating that she whore a full set of Legendary Grade Dream equipment.

  But what truly gripped everyone's attention was sitting on top of a woman's head, a crown so beautiful and mesmerizing that it was all but impossible to avoid your gaze. The crown gleamed, its material a very intricate golden-colored crystal that demanded to be appreciated. Nevertheless, all of it paled in comparison to the crown's aura, a bright prismatic rainbow that made avoiding looking at it a very difficult task.

  "A Unique Grade…" Mumbled Midna, trying to hide her shock. Neptune lowered her head to hide her surprise, her mind momentarily coming to a halt. Eu just pursed her lips and gave Antares' hand a gentle squeeze before adjusting her posture to something more noble and refined. Pyral looked intently at the crown but retained a neutral expression.

  Antares, on the other hand, wasn't even paying attention to any of these details. The moment the woman appeared in his field of view, he froze. Memories from a long while ago resurged… memories of when he used to visit his cousin around a decade ago.

  So it was no surprise that the moment he recovered from his momentary shock, Antares couldn't help but blurt out.

  "Aunt Mis?"

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  AN: Hoi, another chapter comes to an end.

  As you all can see, I am mostly focused on wrapping stuff up, and that means… yes, the arc is ending. There is still some stuff to go through, but we are now at the end of the arc.

  Midna finally joined the group in a more active role, while also becoming even closer to Antares.

  And while there is a lot of other stuff to talk about, I will stop my yapping for now.

  PS: Did something change with Google Docs or the forum? When I copy and paste something the font was coming with the same color as in my docs instead of adapting to the site font.

  Answer:

  Well… I guess the worst one would be Honkai? I know Arknights is pretty bad as well, and WW can also get pretty tense, but I still think Honkai is the worst one, both Starrail and the Impact 3rd.

  ~ClearSkySage