"You."
"???"
"From now on, you will be mine. You give me a sense of familiarity. Something I find soothing."
Did I just get claimed? Who would have thought that a goddess would do this? But if she claims me, what about the rest?
I suddenly remembered my fortune. Does losing myself mean that I lose my physical body? I thought it was more of a metaphorical term than a physical one.
If that was the case, what about the rest of the girls? Do I have to leave them so they won't be harmed? If I rejected her offer, would I go crazy because of her powers?
"If I become yours, what will I be doing from now on?"
"Isn't it obvious? You will come with me. The eighth realm is where I reside."
"Eighth Realm?"
"You should know there are five realms in this world. Or instead ranks, but once you ascend to the sixth realm, there would be only one world. The sixth realm is closed off to this world, which is only open to gods. You should be considered lucky for me to take a liking to you."
Who knew there would be worlds above the fifth rank? And how dangerous were they if they kept going up?
"Goddess Iris, may I have a year to prepare? I still have friends and family I need to protect. My heart won't be settled if I leave now."
With Iris' statement, I had to come to terms with my situation. I could not get out of this and had to accept it going forward. I did my best to stall for time.
"A year? Very well. A year shouldn't be too long."
"..."
A year should be enough to settle everything. The goddess cared enough to let me sort everything out within a year.
"But only one year. I will take drastic measures if you don't comply."
"The world won't be able to hold my body any longer. I have marked you. Within a year, I will return."
And just like that, Goddess Iris left. Her presence was still within the room, but only their traces could be found.
The vampire woman stared into space, wondering what she would do next. As for Joanne, she looked at Iris with hatred. Why was that? I don't know their history, but I don't plan to get involved.
Constance was sleeping because of my curse. Now that I had found her, it was time to leave. Her three friends' locations were unknown, they were probably dead, but I had no way to revive dead people. This incident might scar her for life, but she will get better in time.
"Joanne, I'm leaving this place. It's been fun and all, but it's about time I leave."
"You're leaving so soon?"
Joanne sounded disappointed when she heard that I was about to leave. Constance was my goal, and now that I had obtained her, there was no reason why I should be here.
For us to leave, we would have to find a dimensional portal that we had already found when Melvin carried us here. We were lucky to find one, but because of this, our travels were ending.
"You can come with us. Who knows, you might enjoy the world that I live in."
Since Joanne seemed to like my company, I could show her around Earth for a few days. Looking at her, she was in deep thought. She had considered my offer but was hesitant.
Joanne's choice didn't matter to me. I would spend more time with the girls if she didn't come.
"Sorry, but I have to decline. After our visit to the city, a situation has occurred. You could come yourself if you're interested. Everyone who had entered this world would be participating."
"Before you reject this event, why don't you listen? This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
I was going to reject it, no matter what she said. Spending time with everyone with the time I had left was the most critical priority.
"Joanne. No matter what you say, I have no intention of joining. I have to take care of Constance and return immediately."
"Very well. Our journey has been fun. This may be our last time meeting, but I wish you the best of luck."
"Before you leave, the thing you're going to isn't so urgent, right? Let's have a final talk before we part ways.
Joanne accepted our situation and tried to bid me farewell. If she wasn't in a rush, we could slowly go to my destination and leave it at that.
My destination was three days away from where I was, within walking distance. Constance will awaken during this time, but the control down to her brain will take a while before it returns to her previous state."
"So what's your choice?"
If Joanne liked me enough, she would accept my proposal without considering it. But looking at her, I couldn't tell what her thoughts were. In the end, Joanne sighed and decided on her choice.
"I will only accompany you until you leave."
"Melvin, go slow."
Since Joanne had decided to stay with me, I had ordered the dark wyrm to go slow. The first few hours were quiet. We had no idea what to say to each other, which made it awkward for us to speak.
The vampire Joanne kept was still tied up and witnessed this awkward atmosphere. I wonder what Joanne was going to do to her.
"Your lover, she different from what I expected."
"What did you expect her to be?"
"More sultry looking?"
Did she call Constance a slut? Well, with the talk I had about her with the old man, that was the only conclusion she could come up with.
I wonder how that old man is doing. He may be dead already. I wouldn't know unless we met him on our way back.
With Joanne breaking the ice, our talks became more frequent, and it was time for me to leave.
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