Kiss-Shot, while slightly disappointed, wasn't particularly
bothered
.
Unlike Souta, she didn't care
that
much.
After all, she still had suicidal tendencies—if the system
took away
her ability to
sacrifice herself
, she would actually be
upset
about it.
Souta, on the other hand, took a moment to get over his disappointment.
He had just been hoping for a freebie—a way for the system to erase his weaknesses for free.
If he couldn't be a freeloader, though, it wasn't
too
big of a deal.
After all, he had the entire anime multiverse to rely on!
Fixing vampire weaknesses should be
easy
.
Not to mention... he
still
had his unused Invitation Letter!
If he just sent an invite to Rias Gremory, she could turn him and Kiss-Shot into Devils...
...Wait.
Souta suddenly
paused
.
Would the
Devil
race's characteristics be
strong enough
to override Kiss-Shot's vampire weaknesses?
If not... then the reincarnation could fail.
Then again, that
wasn't
a big problem either.
The anime world was huge—if Rias wasn't an option, he could just do a quick search and find
tons
of alternative solutions.
Besides, once he completed this quest, he would earn 1,000 points and be able to buy a Travel Card.
With that, he could freely choose his travel destination and time period.
That was even more useful than an Invitation Letter!
He could pinpoint the exact time and place that would make solving his problem as
easy
as possible—
...Wait.
"Quest Rewards"?!
Souta suddenly froze as he remembered
something important
.
The Solo Quest that the system had assigned him...
Didn't it promise more than just points?
Aside from 1,000 Points, the reward also included—
💀 [One "Immortal Body" Evolution Opportunity] 💀
When the quest first appeared, he had been
too busy
worrying about saving Kiss-Shot to ask the system what it meant.
Then, after she turned him into a vampire, he
passed out for two days
and completely forgot about it.
Now that he thought about it...
What did "Immortal Body Evolution" even
mean
?!
Souta quickly asked the system:
"System, what exactly does the reward 'Immortal Body Evolution Opportunity' do?"
Souta didn't waste time and asked directly.
[This reward allows an immortal body to evolve towards a more perfect state, eliminating any weaknesses caused by different world-setting limitations on immortality.]
"Hm? Why does this sound like it was
specifically
made for vampires in this world...?"
Souta was a bit surprised.
Did the system already
see through everything
from the beginning?
That said—he had to admit—this reward was amazing.
It was the
perfect
solution to his current condition.
He wouldn't even need to use the Invitation Letter anymore!
"Oh, right," Souta asked again, "Will this kind of reward show up in future quests?"
He immediately thought of Kiss-Shot.
If the reward could appear again, then
her
weaknesses could be perfectly fixed as well.
[The appearance rate is random. However, the host does not need to worry—once a special reward has appeared in a mission, it will become available for purchase in the marketplace after the mission is completed, using points.]
That answer reassured Souta.
He even felt a little excited.
After all, system marketplace items are infinitely purchasable!
That meant... not only could Kiss-Shot be saved, but—
If other vampire characters joined the Friends Chat in the future, like Arcueid Brunestud (who struggled with bloodlust) or Leticia Draculea (who feared the sun),
Their weaknesses could also be removed with ease!
And it wasn't
just
vampires—
Any immortal beings with flaws could be fixed.
For example, the demons in Demon Slayer (
Kimetsu no Yaiba
).
Just as he was deep in thought—
"—Souta!"
Suddenly, Souta felt a hard kick against his knee.
The force was
strong
, making him wince slightly from the pain.
He looked down and saw Kiss-Shot, her cheeks puffed up in frustration, looking
extremely
displeased.
"...Uh, sorry." Souta awkwardly rubbed the back of his head. "I was thinking about something."
"Souta." Kiss-Shot narrowed her golden eyes. "You
already
used that excuse the
last
time you zoned out."
Clearly, she wasn't buying it.
Souta didn't hide anything from her and admitted:
"I was communicating with the system through my thoughts. You should try it—it's pretty useful. Just think about what you want to ask, and it'll respond."
"Hm?
Mind communication?
"
Kiss-Shot raised an eyebrow, curiosity piqued.
She gave it a try.
Her surprised expression afterward confirmed that it worked.
Souta only now realized—
Oh. So I
don't
have special privileges after all.
"Oh, by the way—"
Souta suddenly looked at Kiss-Shot and said:
"I found a way to remove all vampire weaknesses."
"...Remove weaknesses?"
Kiss-Shot's gaze turned serious as she stared at Souta.
"...Souta."
Her voice was quiet, but it carried undeniable weight.
"Are you saying that, instead of relying on
me
—your master—to help you...
You would rather place your faith in that
mysterious system
?"
To die for her servant—
That was the new path she had chosen for herself.
It was the perfect way to end her existence.
She had resolved herself to this choice.
It wasn't something she could just throw away.
And she absolutely would not let some ridiculous system interfere with that decision.
"Wouldn't it be better..."
She whispered.
"...if I were the one to return you to humanity?"
Hearing her words, Souta fell into a rare moment of silence.
For once—he didn't know how to respond.
Kiss-Shot's suicidal tendencies were
not
an easy problem to solve.
But...
Maybe they weren't
as
severe as he had originally thought.
At first, Souta assumed that Kiss-Shot's desire to die was absolute.
That was the logical conclusion, given everything he knew.
But...
Something she did earlier made him question that belief.
She had been
enthusiastically
showing him all the benefits of being a vampire.
Why?
There was only one possible explanation.
Maybe—deep down—she actually
wanted
someone to stay by her side.
Someone to live with her.
Someone who wouldn't leave her alone.
A single person couldn't endure immortality.
But two people...
Could maybe support each other and keep going.
That's what she was really thinking, wasn't it?
If that was the case...
Then solving her inner conflict might not be as impossible as he first assumed.
After about ten seconds of silence, Souta finally lifted his gaze to meet Kiss-Shot's eyes.
He spoke firmly:
"Kiss-Shot, do you know
why
I want to return to being human?"
Kiss-Shot's golden pupils flickered.
"...You already told me."
She responded.
"You don't want to drink human blood—so you reject being a vampire. Isn't that right?"
Souta nodded.
"Yeah. The reason I don't want to
be
a vampire is because I
don't
want to eat humans."
Then, he continued:
"But it's
not
because... I don't want to spend my life with you."
His voice was calm, sincere.
"A single person living forever... must be a
lonely
and
boring
thing."
He said.
"So lonely that you might even start
wanting
to die."
"But if there were
two
of us—"
"If we had each other—"
"I think we could keep each other going."