Speedrun 36

(Aletia POV)

[Quest: [The Mother] Completed 800 WP (1/8) (100 WP) Received]

"Is he really safe to be around children?" Masaki asked, giving a worried glance toward the back, where Ichigo, her son, along with her two daughters, Karin and Yuzu, engaged in an epic 'life or death' battle using toy swords against Andy.

I took a sip of the tea that the not-so-ordinary housewife had prepared, a wry smile spreading across my face as Andy shrieked in defeat, falling to his knees as a toy sword 'pierced' his abdomen, scattering confetti across the living room floor.

"Kurosaki! You might have wounded me, but the fight is not over yet! Come forth my mighty beast, consume their candy!" Andy shouted, and the kids screamed, "Not the candy!" Fluffy, for some freaking reason, colored pink and the size of a chihuahua, appeared before them letting out an adorable roar that made the children stop and squeal in delight.

"I think they'll be fine... mostly... probably..." I muttered, uncertain.

"That doesn't sound convincing at all..." She gave me a deadpan look, to which I simply shrugged.

I didn't know Andy well enough to answer her question definitively. From what I'd seen, he had a soft spot for kids, but at the same time, he didn't seem to truly care about who lived or died, so it was a difficult question to answer.

"Anyways, thank you for the refreshments, but we better get going," I said with a smile, setting down the teacup.

"Oh, don't even mention it," she waved it off before asking, "Are you sure you don't want to stay for dinner? My husband is on his way home, and there is more than enough for two additional guests."

"We don't want to intrude," I replied, shaking my head.

"You would never," she denied it wholeheartedly. "You saved the life of my child; it's the least I could do."

"Thank you for the offer, but we have a busy schedule," I said with a wry smile, downing the rest of my tea, and standing up. "Andy, it's time to leave," I said, turning around and giving a deadpan look to the man, who was now riding his mighty steed, Fluffy while wearing medieval armor made of candy.

The living room had been transformed into a jousting ring the size of a castle courtyard, with the Kurosaki heir sitting on a living, breathing piñata, charging at Andy at a remarkably safe speed.

"What the hell!" I heard a shout from the side, and I couldn't help but agree with the mother.

"Andy, we're leaving!" I shouted, pulling the attention of the man, just as the sponge spear hit him straight in the chest, pushing him off the mighty steed and making the kids shout in excitement.

He looked at me with a dejected look, which tugged at my heartstrings, before exclaiming, "But Mommy!"

Whatever I felt at that moment vanished, replaced with annoyance as I gave him a deadpan look, promising him a world of hurt, which seemed to do the trick.

"Alright, kids, it seems like a Demon Lord or two needs vanquishing," he stated, straightening up and waving his hand to shrink the room back to its original size, while the kids voiced their displeasure.

"Don't worry, wield the swords of the Kingdom of Fluffiness with pride, practice wholeheartedly, and one day you might join the quest to rid the world of evil!" He exclaimed, a smile spreading across his cheeks as he thumped his chest with his fist, and the children followed suit.

I shook my head, a small smile spreading across my face, while the mother chuckled at their cute display.

"He does seem to have a talent with children," she quipped, and I couldn't help but agree.

"Yeah, because he is one of them," I added, and we seemed to share a look before we both burst out laughing.

Andy and I exchanged a few words with the housewife before finally leaving.

As we walked through the town, I couldn't help but steal glances at him, a mischievous smile spreading across my lips.

"What?" He asked, turning towards me and squinting his eyes.

"Nothing~" I replied with a smile, before adding with a smirk, "It's just funny how three children defeated the mighty god-slayer."

"Oh, shut up," he rolled his eyes and looked away.

"Is that a blush I see?" I teased, only for him to look at me with a deadpan expression.

"Are you done?" He asked, his voice serious, sending shivers down my spine and awakening a tingle in my heart.

"Y-yeah..." My voice cracked as I replied weakly before regaining my composure and once again poking the sleeping dragon. "Oh, come on, why are you so serious?" I asked playfully, patting him on his back.

"Why did you accept the tea? We have stuff to do..."

"I thought you were interested in her, or at least in them," I said, tilting my head. "At least my secretary skill told me so. Why would you otherwise cast such a powerful defensive spell on her?"

"That's the reason we are in a hurry," he said with a deadpan expression as the world shifted around us.

"That mutton chops sleeping on that throne has just killed almost an entire race," he said, pointing towards a stone throne where a long-faced old man with, you guessed it right, black mutton chops and a mustache, as well as long black hair, sat.

The old man opened his reddish-brown eyes, and the world around him dimmed, revealing thousands of eyes glaring right at our souls. "Why can't I see you?" He asked, his words reverberating throughout the empty throne room, bouncing off the naked stone walls, but it didn't feel like the question was truly directed at us.

His shadow sprung to life, covering his regal visage, as some kind of energy started to gather within his palm.

"Because you're already dead," stated Andy with a grin, and the old man's aura surged, revealing millions of ethereal threads connected to him, while a shudder ran through my being.

With spirit magic fully under my grasp, I instinctively understood what those were and what they represented.

"Oh my God," I couldn't help but voice my shock, as I watched the energy, no, life force of millions, being drawn to him through those threads.

I turned to Andy and with a horrified expression, asked, "Please tell me those aren't people."

"They are," he stated, and the next moment, he released a wave of power that shook the entire realm.

The old man's eyes widened in disbelief, his head snapping upward, watching the ethereal threads simultaneously snap.

"What have you done!" Mutton cops shouted, standing up and releasing all of his gathered energy towards us.

But Andy just stood firm, his expression mirroring boredom, as he brought down his hand, effortlessly splitting the attack in half, making it completely avoid us.

"Your story ends now, Yhwach," Andy stated, waving his hand and making the old man release a soul-shaking shriek.

Andy didn't simply kill him. In a gruesome display of power, he disintegrated him, peeling him layer by layer, before ultimately shattering his soul and burning it away.

[Quest: [The Almighty] Completed 5.000 WP (1/8) (625 WP) Received]

"That was quite... effortless..." I mumbled absentmindedly as my eyes glanced at the destruction the old man's single attack had caused.

"I'm pretty sure you don't understand the disparity in power between me and him," Andy stated, giving me a pointed look.

"Well, you didn't explain too much," I replied, rolling my eyes.

"The difference in power is larger than between an ant and a human. I don't even need a finger to crush him. That guy was a son of a... let's say god. He still needed about nine years to get back to his peak. But even then, the most he could do is matter-to-energy conversion," he said, shaking his head. "He could see the future, but even if it sounds stupid, if I don't want to, I will not have a future, nor a past, and only exist in the present."

"You're right, that does sound stupid," I chuckled, making him roll his eyes.

"Anyway, let's ignore the guy... Take this," he said, showing me a sword and a drop of blood.

"I'm not hungry, but thanks," I said with a smile, pushing his hand with the blood back.

"It's not for eating," he deadpanned. "Use the Race system to create a new race card with it."

"Oh!" My eyes perked up in excitement, and I did as I was told.

[Quincy King] [Bleach]

+2 STR, +1 DEX, +3 INT, +3 WIS, +2 VIT, +3 PER per Global Level

- Gain the skill [Reishi Manipulation], allowing you to manipulate spiritual particles known as Reishi to create various forms of energy attacks and defensive barriers.

- Gain the skill [Spiritual Awareness], granting you an enhanced sense of spiritual energy, allowing you to detect the presence and intentions of other spiritual beings.

- Gain the skill [Soul Absorption], enabling you to absorb the souls of other spiritual beings to enhance your own power and abilities, while also extending your lifespan.

- Gain the skill [Blut], which can be used to increase your defensive or offensive capabilities by strengthening your blood vessels or altering the flow of Reishi within your body.

I equipped the race as my secondary one and touched the blade. The moment I did, I felt something shift within me. A shudder went through my soul, accompanied by a sudden sprout of weakness and a system notification.

[Skill: [Yakōsei] unlocked.]

(AN: Noctilucent Star)

As I stood there in a stupor, getting the feel for what was happening to me, a voice from the side pulled my attention.

"Alright, from now on, your nickname is Little Star," Andy said with a grin.

[Title: [Little Star] gained.]

"Would you like to test it?" he asked, gesturing towards the back, where moments later, hundreds of people dressed in white rushed into the room.

"I... I don't feel so good..." I muttered, using all of my willpower to keep myself conscious. Albeit, it was futile. Darkness crept in, my sight felt fuzzy, and I fell forward, unable to keep myself standing.

The last thing I felt was a fuzzy feeling in my heart and a warm embrace as unconsciousness claimed me.

(Andy's POV)

A grimace etched across my face as I cradled Aly's unconscious form in my arms. The Zanpakuto connection had drawn in an overwhelming amount of spiritual energy, leaving her soul wavering and her body devoid of strength.

"Well... I'm not waiting for you to—" I began, but my words were abruptly cut off by the barrage of spiritual arrows hurtling towards me.

I let out an exasperated sigh.

"Shatter," I commanded, unleashing Relativity throughout this miniature dimension. The dimensional barriers crumbled, while the authority formed a multilayered bubble of warped space around us. It deflected all the incoming attacks and safeguarded us from impending destruction.

With the dimensional barrier dismantled, an ominous void loomed, its insatiable hunger quickly swallowing everything in its path.

The hidden realm within the shadows of Soul Society was no more. Its ruler lay deceased, its armies obliterated in the blink of an eye. All that remained amidst the desolation were Fluffy, the unconscious Aletia, and me.

I sighed once again, draping the unconscious vampire girl over my shoulder, then signaled for Fluffy to conceal herself within my shadow.

The newfound race intrigued me. I had already equipped it, yet I noticed that the skills it granted—[Reishi Manipulation] and [Spiritual Awareness]—failed to appear on my status screen. These abilities weren't unfamiliar to me; they were akin to skills I already possessed, namely [Energy Mastery] and [Universal Sense].

[Soul Absorption] piqued my interest. It offered a rapid means of strengthening my soul, which could be conveniently paired with my ability to conjure souls.

[Blut] was another novel addition. Instead of reinforcing the user directly, it channeled spiritual energy into the user's blood vessels to enhance their offensive and defensive capabilities. Yet, it had a limitation; one could opt for either defensive or offensive reinforcement, but not both simultaneously.

"I'll explore other energy forms later," I murmured, already contemplating how to further develop this skill.

The Asauchi I had created for Aly was crafted with Existence, much like Ōetsu Nimaiya's method, the Divine General of the West and the Third Officer of the Zero Division. However, my process differed; I didn't employ a massive forge or fuse numerous Shinigami souls together.

I merely formed a duplicate of Aly's soul and forged a weapon from it. It crossed my mind that this might explain why the blade responded so quickly to her, advancing straight to unlocking her Shikai form upon their initial contact.

I couldn't be certain whether she noticed, but the sword underwent a subtle transformation as soon as she came into contact with it. Its external appearance remained unchanged, but its colors shifted to deep blue, while its edge gained a vibrant yellow tint.

"Fluffy, go and kill the guy with glasses," I said, opening a portal straight into the heart of Soul Society.

(Olivia's POV)

The clash of his sword and my daggers sent sparks flying in every direction, but this time, I stood my ground. I couldn't help but grin, despite the countless wounds on my reinforced body caused by the immense air pressure. I was exhilarated, thrilled that I was gradually adapting to the rapid shifts in energy coursing through me.

In a momentary lapse of focus, Jihan seized what he believed to be a weak point in my stance. With all his might, he delivered a kick to my abdomen that could have been fatal for anyone else. But it never connected. Fate intervened, altering the trajectory, causing his foot to buckle and crack upon impact, even tearing the right sleeve of his trousers. He winced as his leg instantly regenerated, and I couldn't help but taunt him, sticking out my tongue.

"You're getting cocky," he remarked, launching an overhead strike that filled the world with white light.

Our sparring session endured for a solid six hours, a relentless exchange of blows that occasionally led to the loss of an appendage or two. Each of our casual strikes reshaped the land, while our serious blows reverberated through the entire dimension.

"That's enough for today," Jihan declared, halting my swing with his bare hand, briefly turning dead serious before releasing it and dissolving the training dimension around us. He looked at me and nodded proudly. "You've made remarkable progress."

"Why, thank you," I responded with a contented smile. "I couldn't have done it without you."

"No, we believe you would have achieved the same results even without us," he said, shaking his head. "The only difference we made was in the time it took you to attain your current strength."

"Don't belittle yourself. You were a significant help," I replied, giving him a light pat on the back.

"We were not," he chuckled. But his expression then turned solemn. "With this, however, your training with us comes to an end. There is nothing more we can teach you. You have mastered all our techniques, and even improved upon them."

"Really? Are you sure?" I asked, somewhat taken aback. I had expected to spend a few more months here, stabilizing my energy containers and further enhancing my combat skills.

"Yes," he affirmed with a nod. "The next phase of your training requires you to find your own path, not follow mine."

"Does that mean you're simply tired of training me and want me to leave?"

"I won't deny that you could be a handful," he said with a grin, making me snort. "But it's also true that we have nothing more to teach you. You've even unlocked your secondary divine domain under our guidance."

"Right... Thanks for that," I said with a joyful nod. "Do you mind if I teach that method to Andy?" I asked, tilting my head.

"Not at all," he shook his head. "The stronger he becomes, the safer we all feel. After all, this world needs saving, and you've both pledged to help."

"Alright then," I said, shaking his outstretched hand. "I'll see you in a while," I added with a chuckle as I initiated the ejection process.

"Um... Are you waiting for something?" he inquired, tilting his head in confusion.

"Yeah... A cooldown..." I blushed in embarrassment, standing motionless before him, my inner monologue filled with cries of frustration. "Stupid ejection system and its five-minute countdown!"