The Sword God style was all about delivering a single, decisive strike. If Roy could awaken Moment, he could confidently say that he would become a prominent figure in the swordsmanship world in the future.
The awakening of a Word of Power was bound to be a long and tedious process, so Roy wasn't in a rush to use it just yet.
He opened the World Capture interface again, this time displaying options for [Soul Projection] and [True Body Travel].
Roy decided to try True Body Travel. After all, the Soul Projection from the previous world hadn't yielded many benefits—only the dragon blood and Word of Power could be considered useful. But the time cost had been quite high.
Selecting the True Body Travel option, he found that it allowed him to adjust the world's time flow, but it still required a significant amount of Temporal Energy to do so.
Roy experimented with the settings and quickly realized that the cost of adjusting time flow here was considerably more expensive than in Sword Art Online, which was surprising.
He looked at the World Capture interface, and with a small movement of his finger, clicked the next option.
The system's cold voice rang out.
[Searching for a Two-Star World: ???]
[Time ratio between Two-Star World and current world: 4:1]
[World coordinate location successful.]
[Please select your entry method: 1. Soul Projection (requires control), 2. True Body Travel]
[Note 1: Death in Soul Projection results in mere injury, while death in True Body Travel is permanent.]
[Note 2: Soul Projection entry provides only partial experience (distributable).]
[Note 3: Please try to participate in the storyline to gain substantial Temporal Energy for future travels.]
[Note 4: Your mini-world is in a state of disrepair, significant amounts of Origin Power may be required.]
Roy clicked on the True Body Travel option once again, and another system prompt popped up.
[Would you like to enter the world with the current time flow rate?]
[This will consume 1,000 Temporal Energy. Would you like to proceed?]
Roy paused. He didn't click "Continue" just yet. He still had unfinished business to take care of, particularly with Eris's birthday coming up. He figured it would be better to wait until after the birthday celebration to venture into another world. If he left before Eris's birthday ended, he could already imagine her cold, unforgiving glare when she saw him next.
With a sigh, he climbed into bed to rest.
...
Eris's birthday quickly arrived, just a month after Roy had settled back in. During this time, he had focused on recovering mentally, occasionally stepping in to guide Eris.
Her magical talent had shown notable improvement, going from a small fireball to a full-fledged fireball, a development worth celebrating.
The atmosphere at the mansion was festive that day.
On Eris's birthday, both the main hall and the courtyard leading to it were opened for the occasion.
Gifts poured in from various parts of the territory, and invitations had been sent to the local nobles.
Since Shalros, being a military man, wasn't concerned with formalities, the initial plan was a casual buffet-style celebration. However, after Philip suggested a more refined approach, the gathering was changed to a formal ball to accommodate the visiting mid-level nobles.
The mansion was bustling with preparations for the event.
Cat-eared beast-girl maids ran through the corridors, their usual duties of walking briskly replaced by the need for speed as they worked to prepare.
Normally, maids were strictly prohibited from running, but today, everything was in disarray, and even the maids were racing against time, darting through the halls.
Roy, on the other hand, sat calmly, watching the chaos unfold with detached amusement.
For the occasion, Roy had dressed in formal attire. It was a noble suit with intricate golden embroidery, and as Philip had mentioned, as Paul's son and tutor, attending the ball was a necessity.
He had instructed the servants to fetch him the most suitable outfit.
In the end, that's how it all came to be.
Roy's natural aura was already aristocratic, and in this attire, his noble presence only became more pronounced.
With his slender, well-toned frame and chiseled features, he exuded an elegance that was both refined and intimidating.
Simply sitting there, he naturally attracted the attention of the ladies around him.
Some of the early-arriving nobles couldn't help but glance in Roy's direction. He was lounging carelessly in his chair, his legs casually crossed. He wasn't someone who paid much attention to formalities, but even in such an unrefined posture, there was an undeniable charm.
At the end of the day, it seemed that handsome people had a special way of drawing attention, no matter what they did.
Before long, a noblewoman dressed in silk and brocade made her way over to Roy. It seemed like she had summoned quite a bit of courage to approach him. Roy gave her a fleeting glance, sitting up slightly as he looked at her with a puzzled expression. "Is there something you need?"
He didn't ask her name—just a simple, "Is there something you need?"
That one question effectively shut down any further conversation. The young noblewoman flushed slightly, biting her lip. With an awkward smile, she shyly replied, "N-no, I just wanted to know your name."
The girl's cheeks were flushed, and realizing her slip of the tongue, she quickly found herself in an awkward situation again.
Roy thought for a moment and then said to her, "Roy. Just call me Roy."
The girl's heart lifted with joy, and she was about to speak again when a soft voice interrupted from beside them.
"Roy, where's the gift?"
The voice, unmistakably, belonged to Eris.
Only she ever called him by his full name. Roy smiled and stood up from his chair.
Standing at 1.75 meters with a well-proportioned frame, despite still carrying a hint of youthful innocence in his face, he flashed a charming smile. He didn't say much, just looked at Eris and replied, "The gift? Well, I'll give it to you later. It's a surprise, after all, and a surprise must have an element of mystery."
After saying that, Roy's gaze once again fell on the girl in front of him.
To his surprise, she was quite beautiful.
Today, Eris was different from her usual lively self, dressed in a blue-themed gown. Her hair was elegantly styled, adorned with a flowered hairpin that gave her a very cute appearance. Her usual carefree attitude was subdued, and in this blue dress, she looked graceful and refined.
In short, Eris was absolutely adorable today.
Roy, naturally, wasn't stingy with his praise for things that were cute.
He smiled and said, "You look very cute, Miss Eris."
Flushed with the compliment, Eris's cheeks turned slightly pink, but she accepted Roy's praise with her usual straightforward nature, unfazed.
Her gaze swept over the girls who had gathered nearby. Her eyes narrowed slightly as she gave a cold snort before turning to Roy and saying, "Come with me. I need to talk to you."
Without giving Roy a chance to respond, Eris took his hand and led him toward the door.
The young ladies in the living room fell silent, exchanging looks and silent glances with one another.
***
Hi guys! Elena here, hope you're all in good health.
We wanted to let you know that we are currently working on a great new project, if you are interested in checking it out feel free to visit.
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[Bleach: Love and Bonds Make Me Stronger!]
Synopsis:
Falling into a rabbit hole called the Soul Society is bad enough.
But do you know what's even worse than that?
Landing in a Soul Society where the very concept of the Gotei 13 doesn't even exist yet!
Armed with shattered fragments of meta-knowledge, Makoto struggles to survive in the Rukongai amidst human-shaped monsters.
But even after throwing everything he's got into the fight, staying alive in a world where the Soul Society's Most Diabolical Criminal still roams free is nothing short of impossible.
Fortunately, it seems the gods might have heard his suffering, on the brink of death, his cheat finally awakens!
[Love and Bonds System!]
As long as he builds relationships be it romance or friendship with every character around him, his strength will grow.
Simple, right?
But…
[Unohana-mama, can you give me some of your milk?]
[Bald old man, you're lucky to face just 1% of my power, otherwise, you'd be split in half and dead!]
[Saito-chan, could you sit on my face? Please!]
[Aizen-kun, you might be good at manipulation, but that brain of yours is still only 3% of mine!]
[Yhwach, if you can see every possible future, can you see one where you become a Magical Girl?]
Why the fuck this system have a foul mouth that only drags him toward death instead of fostering love and bonds?