Dragon Across the Multiverse (Si-WC) (Patreon)

Chapter 27: Call to the Hunt

Six Months Later

Without much effort, I blocked a downward sword strike coming from the left before stepping back and dodging another one from the front.

“Better,” I said with a small smile, earning proud little grins from my opponents, before I lightly bonked them both on the head with the flat of my training sword. “But not good enough.” My smile grew into a teasing grin, drawing a scowl from one and a determined look from the other.

“How are you still so much stronger than us after all this training!?” the red-haired one huffed, her cheeks puffing slightly. The pout only made her cuter, especially as it highlighted her crimson eyes.

“Just you wait, Akari-kun! Someday my swordsmanship will be as beautiful as yours!” declared the platinum-haired one, her almost identical crimson eyes burning with determination.

Chuckling, I dismissed my sword with a thought and placed a hand on each of their heads, gently patting them. Both immediately froze, melting under my touch as their faces reddened.

“I’m not making fun of you two,” I said with a soft smile that only flustered them further. “Want to know an interesting fact?”

“I-I guess,” Iris muttered shyly, looking away.

“Mn,” Alexia nodded, trying to play it cool.

“You’re both fifty times stronger than when we first met,” I revealed with a grin, enjoying the way their eyes widened in disbelief.

“F-Fifty!?” Iris sputtered.

“Have I really gotten that strong? I definitely don’t feel like it,” Alexia said, frowning thoughtfully.

“Tell me,” I said with a knowing look, “have either of you sparred with your trainers since I started working with you?”

Both girls blinked, then exchanged glances before speaking in unison. “No.”

“I had a feeling.” I nodded, withdrawing my hands to their obvious disappointment.

“Now that you mention it,” Iris said, tapping her chin with a clueless look on her face, “every time I ask someone to spar, they just make an excuse and run away from me in panic.”

“My trainers have also stopped correcting me,” Alexia added, crossing her arms. “They spend all their time trying to suck up to me instead.”

“And probably trying to get information about me too,” I said with a teasing grin, glancing toward the edge of the field. Through the barrier I’d erected, I could see at least a dozen guards watching us closely, some glaring at me with looks thaw were none too friendly and others with outright hate.

“That too,” Iris muttered, folding her arms with a pout. “No matter how many times I tell Father that you’re not here to hurt us, or that you don’t have an ulterior motive, he just won’t listen.”

“Thankfully, most of those questions go to Iris-neesama, so I’ve been spared,” Alexia said with a small, smug smile that immediately earned her a glare from her sister.

‘Well, technically, your father’s not wrong,’ I mused silently. ‘I do have an ulterior motive, just not the kind he’s probably thinking of. I just want to possibly seduce his daughters in the future and invite them to live with me in another world.’

“Don’t worry about it,” I said aloud, shrugging it off. “I don’t care what people I don’t care about think or say about me anyway.”

I could see they wanted me to get along with their father, but that was a lost cause. No father liked it when some boy kept getting close to his daughters. Especially when said boy wanted them for himself.

“Anyway, back on topic,” I said, straightening up. “The reason you don’t feel any stronger is because your only sparring partner has been me so far. And, not to brag, but I’m way out of your league.”

My grin earned me a glare and another adorable pout from Iris, who was still a sore loser even after months of training even if she was slowly getting better. Alexia, meanwhile, crossed her arms and declared that she’d catch up to me soon, only for me to pat her head again, earning me an indignant little huff as she slapped my hand away.

It had been six months since I rescued Livia and Eta, and a little more than a year since I’d first arrived in this world. During that time, I’d been busy training the girls as much as I could and teaching them anything about the modern world that piqued their interest.

None were more eager than Eta, she treated every lesson like a holy scripture and even asked for a voice recorder so she could capture every word I taught her.

For the moment I’d paused recruiting new members so I could properly train the ones I already had. But the time had finally come to pick up the pace: I still needed to recruit the last member of the Seven Shadows, Zeta, and I had plans to revive and recruit the vampire Elisabeth, the Blood Queen. With my power and perks it would be easy to handle her thirst and make it so she, like her followers, would no longer be reliant on blood and could walk under the sun.

Two more possible recruits sat on my list after that: Victoria, who was still serving the Cult as their Saint, and Liriel’s aunt, Beatrix. The latter was tentative; I’d need to consult Liriel first, I had no idea how she’d feel about her aunt joining us.

Once I’d rounded everyone up, I could finally relax for a while and let the girls run the organization while I lazed about doing whatever struck my fancy.

“I already have things planned so Master won’t be lazy all the time.” Ciel deadpanned into my head.

‘Hah, fine, fine,’ I answered her nonchalantly since at the end of the day, I didn’t mind. I liked being needed on occasion.

A sudden swipe from Alexia snapped me back to the present and I flashed her a grin. “You’ll have to try harder than that if you want to catch me off guard.”

“Tsk. You just looked like you weren’t paying attention,” Alexia said cross-armed, pouting, clearly upset at not having all my focus, which I immediately noticed.

“Aww, does Alexia want all my undivided attention?” I teased, and her blush gave her away.

“As if!”

“Akari, you’re leaving, right?” Iris asked, grabbing my attention. She had a small frown on her face.

“That’s right,” I nodded, and I saw the wind go out of them, if only a little. “I have some things I need to take care of.”

“I see. Then next time, I want you to fight me seriously,” Iris said, a small fire lighting behind her eyes. “I want to see just how far the gap between us is.”

I raised an eyebrow at the request and stayed quiet. There was a dangerous truth to it: if I fought at my full strength, I could destroy this fragile world. But I didn’t want to crush her spirit or undo the progress she’d made. Still, to poke her ego and push her forward, I resolved to take her a little more seriously next time: not my full, world-shattering power, but enough to force real growth. That should teach her humility without ruining everything.

“All right, if you impress me enough on my next visit, I promise to take you a bit seriously,” I said with a confident grin, causing Iris to puff out her chest proudly and nod with determination.

Turning to Alexia, who looked a little left out, I reached over and patted her head. She scowled slightly but didn’t move to push my hand away.

“Alexia, keep working hard. You’re already much stronger than your sister was when we first met, and I know you can get stronger still,” I said with an encouraging grin, ruffling her hair.

Her cheeks flushed as she turned away. “…I will. And… thanks,” she muttered under her breath, embarrassed.

Smiling at her cute reaction, my expression shifted to something more serious. “Both of you, come here for a second,” I said quietly. They exchanged a glance, then stepped closer, sensing the change in my tone.

I leaned in and whispered, “By the way, beware of the Knight Order. Everything is not as it seems. It might already be compromised.”

They both blinked, then nodded slowly, understanding the weight in my voice. Normally, they wouldn’t have taken such a warning seriously, especially given how deeply the Order was entwined with their kingdom’s power. But by now, they trusted me enough to listen. Hopefully, this time around, the Order wouldn’t be such a disappointment like it had been in the original timeline.

With that, I gave them one last reassuring smile. Then, with a snap of my fingers, I vanished, dissolving the barrier as I left.

Unbeknownst to me, a rather interesting conversation unfolded shortly after.

“Sister, do you like Akari-kun?” Alexia asked suddenly, her tone uncharacteristically serious.

Caught off guard, Iris froze, then turned bright red as she started sputtering. “W-Wha!? W-What nonsense are you talking about, Alexia!?”

“…I saw the doll you had made in his image in your room,” Alexia said flatly, face perfectly deadpan.

Iris’s face turned crimson, little spirals appearing in her eyes as she flailed. “I-I told you to stop going into my room without permission!”

“So, you don’t deny it,” Alexia murmured, almost to herself, before turning and walking away. After a few steps she stopped, and looked back at her sister, eyes filled with quiet determination. “I won’t lose.”

Poor Iris was left standing there, utterly flustered and confused, watching her sister disappear from sight. And with her entrance into the Academy later that year, they wouldn’t get the chance to talk about it again anytime soon.

=====

Alexandria — Moments Later

Arriving at the training grounds of Alexandria, I concealed my presence from everyone’s senses as I quietly observed the girls train.

A lot had changed in Alexandria over the past six months.

For one, the place no longer resembled the old ruins it once was. Rows of houses and newly built structures now stood proudly, transforming it into a proper town. Waterways ran through the streets, with a functioning sewage system installed beneath them. While none of those under my command technically needed such facilities anymore, they would prove essential for future recruits waiting to receive their Shrouds.

The fields surrounding the city were another major improvement. Maintained by my clones and the Spirit Fox tribe, they grew an abundance of plants, fruits, and vegetables, all species I’d imported from my trips to the Earths of the Resident Evil and HOTD worlds.

But perhaps the most striking change of all was the growth of the girls themselves. Under my relentless training, and with the assistance of the talents granted by the Company, every single one of them had advanced by leaps and bounds. Even Luna, who hadn’t been built for combat, had overcome that hurdle thanks to the Athletic and Martial talents. And since I was so far beyond them in raw power, they’d absorbed every lesson I gave them like sponges.

Of all of them, the three who stood out most in terms of sheer strength were Liriel, Yukime, and Sara. Those three had an instinctive knack for battle, even if Sara still fought more like a berserker than a trained warrior. She was working on it, though.

When it came to their ninja training and chakra control, everyone had reached roughly chūnin-level proficiency, with Liriel pushing into low jōnin territory and Yukime trailing close behind.

Liriel specialized in swordsmanship supplemented by her magic, while Yukime preferred her war fan and hand-to-hand combat. Beta excelled in long-range engagements with her bow, Gamma wielded a whip with surprising skill, Delta combined brute force and precision with her two-handed sword, Epsilon danced across the battlefield with her scythe and ranged magic, and Eta, ever the innovator, mastered long-range combat by materializing weapons from slime or her Shroud, firing them in a spectacle that could only be described as her own knockoff of the Gate of Babylon.

Sherry had also advanced in her own way, studying artifacts alongside her mother and serving as one of Eta’s assistants during research. Those three made a terrifying combination when they set their minds on something. And finally, Marie had continued improving as a cook, something we were all thankful for, especially Sara, who no longer looked at her as a weakling since she was in charge of the kitchen.

‘Maybe I shouldn’t have introduced them to anime,’ I mused, watching as Sara and Luna clashed while shouting exaggerated chuuni lines.

Letting my presence be known again, I pulsed my chakra slightly and was pleased to see all of them immediately stiffen and stop what they were doing before lining up in perfect formation.

“Good, always stay aware of your surroundings. You never know when you might face someone who can hide their presence.” I praised, giving a nod that made them puff up their still-developing chests in pride.

“Thank you, Akari-sama,” several voices chorused in response.

Before I could reply, a black blur launched itself at me, wrapping its legs around my waist and arms around my head.

“Boooss~ Sara behaved like you said! Can we go hunting now!?”

Peeling my face away from her chest, I looked up at her excited expression and couldn’t help but smile. Sara never failed to brighten my day, it was like watching a puppy wag its tail while begging for attention. You just couldn’t resist giving in.

“Delta,” Liriel’s stern voice rang out, causing Sara to freeze mid-purr, her ears twitching nervously. “Stop bothering Akari.”

Liriel had long since learned how to handle Sara, and now the wolf girl viewed her as a second leader, which worked out well, considering how much chaos Sara could cause. Curiously, the girls had also started addressing each other by their codenames instead of the personal names I’d given them. It was strange, but I didn’t mind. Even Yukime had taken to being called Snow Fox.

When I asked once if they wanted me to also address them that way, they immediately denied it and begged me to call them by the names I’ve given them.

“It’s fine, Liriel,” I said, waving off the reprimand. The elf relaxed slightly, and Sara’s tail immediately resumed wagging. “Besides, Sara’s actually right this time.”

Sara perked up, her grin widening. “I am? So, we’re going hunting!?”

“That’s right.” I nodded before turning to the rest of the group, my tone shifting to one of command. “It’s time to eliminate a future member of the Knights of Rounds who’s targeting the Golden Leopard Clan. Be ready to move within the hour. This will also be your first encounter with a high-ranking member of the Cult so I want to see how far you’ve come.”

“Wooo~ Sara’s going hunting with Boss!” she cheered, happily jumping in my arms and marking me with her scent.

“Understood,” Liriel replied firmly before glancing toward the others. “You heard Akari. Be ready in an hour.”

“Right!” everyone answered in unison before dispersing to prepare, leaving me alone with Sara still clinging to me.

“Don’t you need to get ready too, Sara?” I asked, patting her head as she purred.

“Sara already stored lots of meat in her inventory, so Sara’s ready to go~,” she said proudly, clearly expecting more head pats.

“I see. Good job, Sara,” I praised, obliging her as usual.

Not long after, the others returned, fully equipped and ready for the mission. I finally set Sara down, to her disappointment, and looked over my team.

“Ready?” I asked.

Upon receiving their nods, I snapped my fingers, and the world shifted around us as we vanished from Alexandria.

It was time to rescue Lilim — Zeta — and stop the Cult before they could slaughter her family, sparing her the tragedy that once drove her obsession with making Cid immortal.