Charlotin

{You should give her a name.}

Neto was still in shock. For the better part of a day, they'd been running at top speed, tearing through portals, seemingly at random. Rakshasa could apparently speak to her through Neto, and had been directing her in his stead.

{Of course I can speak to her! How long do you think I've lived here?}

"I don't know, I've known you for less than a week...."

They were currently in a small dungeon and had just finished clearing out all the ichor wicks to make it a temporary home. The dragon did all the work, so Neto gained no XP.

He gazed at her twitching azure nose, remembering its warmth.

Neto went through the list of every female name in his mind, landing on one in particular. He'd been a fan of a certain light novel in his old world. The MC had been a headstrong girl who escaped a peasant's life, eventually becoming the leader of a band of mercenaries. Her name was Charlotte.

A twinge of sadness filled Neto when he realized he wouldn't get to read the end. However, he was living in a world of fantasy, just like that MC. This was partially the reason for Neto's recklessness, as he admired the bravery of Charlotte.

{That name is-} Rakshasa cut herself off.

'What, you don't like that name?'

{It's not that.}

Neto imagined Rakshasa puffing out her chest and turning her head away like a tsundere.

{to complete the naming process, incant: 'Title Contract: Charlotte'. She still has to accept after that, but this won't be an issue from what I've seen}

Neto noticed Charlotte's eyes squinting. She'd just woken from a nap.

"Title contract: Charlotte."

A faint light shone from Neto's chest, and Charlotte sat up with a yawn. Her teeth were a much larger version of Rakshasas, being sharp on both the top and sides.

[##%(& has accepted the name 'Charlotte']

Using her fore-arms like a paddle, she scooted her tail on the ground towards Neto, bending close to his face. Was it just him, or had her nose turned red?

Neto laughed as her tongue slapped across his cheek.

Charlotte started giving him a bath.

{This is a problem.}

'What?' Neto's laugh signaled his nativity. 'She's like a big puppy, right?'

{She knows you're not of the same species, however your scent may be rather... arousing for her. Their noses turn red when they want to-}

'OK! OK!' Neto shouted in his mind, 'Stop that talk right there. How do I fix this?'

As if Charlotte could hear their talk, she began sniffing Neto as she licked his clothes clean.

"Whoa, whoa there, Charlotte!" Neto stood up and backed away. "Look, I really appreciate you saving me back there, but I'm a human! Stop trying to... well, just relax, ok!"

Charlotte dipped her nose to the ground and made an emotional growl. Was she pouting?

{Whatever happens, she won't be able to harm you because of the contract. That's why I stressed you to give her a name.}

'So ill be safe to turn my soul back to normal?'

{I-I think so.}

'You think so? You're seriously the worst.'

Neto did it anyway. He didn't want to worry about that tongue going to the wrong place.

After he finished, Neto expected Charlotte's attitude to grow cold or indifferent, but she stayed in her pouting position.

Neto felt bad, so he walked over and gingerly reached for her nose.

'Is she purring still?'

Her whole body vibrated as Neto pat her snout. The color was changing from red to purple.

'Thats good, right?'

This was closer to its original color, blue, after all.

{hmm. that's... Well, she doesn't want to do THAT anymore, but~}

'But what? stop trailing off and finish a sentence for once!'

{Ok, Ok. I think she fell in love with you. Like, at first sight.}

'WHAT!??'

Wasn't this still an issue? There was no way a species with this much expression and intelligence could have the same platonic love as a domesticated animal...

{I-it should be fine, you've named her, after all. I-it should be fine.}

'Dont say that twice!! My confidence is dropping!!!!'

Neto sighed and sat back down beside Charlotte. Emotional exhaustion claimed him. He really hated this feeling and wished he could take a nap. Maybe with more level's he'd be constantly alert, and wouldn't have to go through this scummy, pseudo-sleepy phase.

His hunger and thirst were in a similar spot Sure, Neto ate that redbulb, but it wasn't enough.

He wasn't starving, but his stomach was still at an uncomfortable level. His tongue was dry, and his throat was clogged, but he wasn't dangerously dehydrated.

It was very subtle, but the dirt of the Unbound still covered him in a faint layer. Too thin to see. It really was as if he'd become a part of this dungeon...

{Don't worry, these feelings will go away with more levels. You'll be able to increase a skill's level after enough use or practice. For all the ones you have so far, a simple awareness meditation should do the trick.}

This wasn't all that relieving. He was never good at meditation. With the commodity of life-threatening events, Neto wondered if he would ever level up his unbound entity. He could already feel his unbound sense grow stronger the more he focused, so that skill would level up at least.

'So skills don't increase with cultivation level?'

{Skills can only cultivate through practice and refinement}

'I see, so XP leveling is only for unlocking skills and bonus stats.'

{Correct, but unlocking skills is usually not worth compared to increasing stat caps. Especially for a weapon-user. Mages are different.}

'So why have we been unlocking so many skills?'

{I'm setting you up for long-term success. My skills are unique from most spirits, since they'll speed up your cultivation exponentially. Unbound entity grants bonus cultivation in [Grand Void], and unbound sense will help you find rare items.}

[Unbound Authority (Lv. 1)]-{Active}-{Unlocked!}

{This one will make combat here much easier. Ill put the rest of your cultivation into stat caps starting now.}

'You're calling them 'caps', so ill still need to train to level up the stats? I remember you saying something about sleep making people stronger.'

{You do, but in your case, sleep isn't required to level them in here. In the meantime, you can learn to control your new skill. This will give you a way to fight without a weapon, and once you're semi-comfortable, we'll go farm some XP.}

'Damn... Ill need to go to the gym. Does this world even have gyms?.'

{Fighting is better training for most stats. But, there are gyms, and you should go. Charlotte agrees: that body is too scrawny.}

'You don't have to be a prick about everything, you know.'