Reborn Regress Return: I Am the Heir of Shadows!-Chapter 88: Proceeding Alone

Julian sat on the sofa, his head swaying while half asleep—after what had happened in the showers, Maria ended up watching something that made her both angry and jealous.

It wasn't until much later that she could sneak out and rejoin the pair.

"Maria, what do you think about Julian playing alone for a few days?"

Sena tilted her head back and asked while fixing a late-night snack for them once Sena could enter the game. She and Maria would enter alone and play together so they could gather items for the auction house and avoid danger.

"Well because you died he insisted on me healing you, what can we do? You've seen it too right though, as long as you aren't with him he can use his Shades in the game."

"I know but..."

Sena bit her lip—she understood the logic.

Clack!

Cutting through the sausage, a thick scent of onion, pork, and apples filled the air, causing Julian to snap out of his light nap.

"Oh? What's cooking?" He suddenly leaned over the table and asked, looking at the frying pan with an innocent smile. It wasn't until his eyes drifted up to Sena that his body froze.

She had a sinister smirk on her lips as she looked at him.

"You want to try?"

She held a small piece of the sausage with a red sauce that seemed to be some kind of salsa she made.

Julian shrugged and nodded before opening his mouth. The hot, meaty taste melted on his tongue along with the hint of pepper, onion and a slightly sweet chili aftertaste.

He worried because Sena couldn't cook normally, her food a little dangerous.

After all, she liked to experiment with different dishes, but thanks to the apocalypse it seemed her abilities improved.

"This tastes pretty good," Julian spoke in surprise and then opened his mouth for a second bite, causing Sena's face to glow as a proud expression filled her eyes.

"Wait... I cooked something too!"

Maria quickly stood up from the sofa and rushed to the oven, before tapping the timer and taking out a fresh lasagne, because they burned calories.

So she wanted to eat something heavy before going into the game because even though the nutrient gel kept your body safely nourished, the feeling of hunger remained after long sessions.

And now she had the chance to cook, Maria would take advantage of it! The soft cheese melted onto the steaming pasta as the aroma of tomatoes and minced beef filled their noses.

"Do you want some Julian?"

It was a tough choice, because Sena's dish seemed to be a sausage dish while Maria's was a meaty lasagne.

Both looked delicious, but eating both dishes would fill his stomach to the limit!

"Well..." He looked at both women and couldn't help but smile bitterly.

***

A few hours later, he stepped out of the apartment and looked back at the two women who looked apologetic seeing him struggle.

"Do you need medicine?"

"You can stay here you know?"

Sena and Maria wanted to keep him there, but he knew there would be no chance of playing the game when trapped between these two women at night.

Since the two acknowledged each other, they would approach him and touch him constantly competing.

So, until it cooled down, he returned home.

"It's fine, I'll come in the morning, okay?"

Sena and Maria stepped closer and hugged him on either side.

Their soft bodies pressed into his arms before both gave him a deep kiss as if to mark their territory. He couldn't help but sigh as his hands moved without his control. The soft, perky buttocks of Maria were softer and warmer than Sena's tight and muscular rump, which felt bouncier.

"Both of you try to get along, if you do well I will reward you both." With a soft tap, he brushed each of their cheeks with a faint smile. He had to say something after all, but he didn't dare lie when saying such a thing because they would remember.

"Fine..."

"It better be something nice." Sena huffed, but he saw her cheeky smile and knew she was joking.

"Well, I go back inside I'll leave when your door is locked."

He waited for the two to disappear behind the door before heading out into the street. It wasn't far, just a few minutes by foot while jogging—he needed to catch up with his daily exercise, anyway.

"Let's go..."

The night sky seemed clear, and a cool breeze blew over the streets, making it comfortable. But the darkness seemed to have changed since the other night—Julian always wondered if monsters were lurking just outside of his vision.

A trash can suddenly rolled over and made a loud sound, causing Julian to snap his gaze towards it and he felt a shiver run through him as he jogged along the dark road.

His senses became fully focused, like a wolf on the hunt while dashing through the road.

It seemed even the cars and people stopped going out, as the distant howl of animals echoed in the distance.

'I was just being paranoid.'

***

Click!

In the end, there wasn't an attack, and he didn't need to be so guarded. The moment he entered his apartment, Julian noticed the lingering scent of Sena... as if she had just sprayed her perfume in the hallway.

That's when he saw her coat hanging and smiled.

"Let's hurry and wash before getting in the pod... I should check for mail too."

Julian's apartment was quite high-tech when he wanted to be lazy. If it detected the key unlocking the door, it would start the automatic AI that would turn on lights when detecting movement and start brewing coffee.

"Phew..."

He dropped onto the sofa and let out a long sigh, a little exhausted from fighting Sena and Maria in alternating duels.

During the training, he managed to improve himself, but the intensity of Sena's attacks increased after she lost to him, and although he won two of their three duels in the last one became extremely vicious.

▼ Attributes Increased

+ 1 Speed

+ 1 Attack

To make this more effective, he used his spare attribute points to increase the same attributes.

With 8 Attack and 9 Speed, he could now match most monsters around his level, apart from those that specialised in those two attributes, but it also boosted his ability to fight against Sena and other humans in the future.

'I should keep a fine balance.

After a brief rest, he climbed from the sofa and grabbed the steaming hot coffee and enjoyed the aromatic scent of the earthy and strong beans. "This is great. I should buy more before they stop producing these beans."

He closed his eyes while taking a sip, the bitter taste with a hint of sweetness spreading through his mouth.

As if it was his lifeblood, the exhaustion and tiredness vanished, and he suddenly felt energised after a few gulps.

"Let's go!"

He dashed to the shower and flung his clothes off into the distance.

Now, at home, he didn't have to pretend to be neat—the cleaning robots would collect them once he turned them on.

"I love this world!"

The benefits of technology sometimes surpass magic, like right now.

***

After a quick shower, he stepped into his room, leaving a trail of wet footprints and water lingering on the carpet.

Before he tapped the capsule button and the black frame opened with a hiss. It felt strange entering a pod alone, but he couldn't help but be happy.

'Entering alone... It feels good.'

Everyone needed privacy sometimes, and he wanted to spend the next few nights grinding as much as possible before heading to the capital in the dream world. He wanted to learn more, to see what effects the NPCs in the dream world might have on the nightmare. Since Fran changed, could he change the future?

'Or was it just a game?'

That question was something important to Julian, because if he could change the game world before they fused.

It might lead to a way to defeat the seven devils.

"We've only been thinking about the first one... but what about the second and third?"

Julian realised this point when he ran through the empty night streets.

Maybe they avoided it to stop losing hope.

*Hisss*

Once the seating panel slid out, he shook his head, and Julian focused on the game and tonight.

He could take things one step at a time—rushing would only lead to danger and ruin everything they had gained so far.

"It's cold!"

The icy gel was cool because Julian hadn't used it for almost two days. A sticky green gel stuck to his flesh as he sank into it, and he felt a sense of weightlessness while smelling the crisp scent of green apples.

[Welcome To Avalon's Fall Online!]

Almost nostalgic now.

The single-player login wasn't as vibrant as the couples' one.

Julian leaned back as the gel connected to his neural brainwaves, swaying weightlessly in the comfortable gem that vibrated gently from the unit's engine.

This chapt𝒆r is updated by frёewebηovel.cѳm.

Then he heard the low snap of the metal bolting shut and focused himself.

[Processing Data!]

[Starting up System....]

[Welcome Back, Julian Pendragon!]

The burned forest and destroyed city appeared in front of him, and he looked at the woman to his left. Solaria knelt, holding a golden spear full of wounds and wearing damaged armour It seemed nothing like the other login screen.

Her aura was weak, and blood oozed from her wounds.

And all she left behind was an eerie and stomach-churning message before she vanished.

[◊ Prince Julian, there is not much time...

The First is coming! ◊]