[Gacha Haven has entered the Reinforcent Phase. The fallback cooldown will last for 7 days.]
Atlas's first victory in battle was nothing short of remarkable, delivering exceptional results. Not only had he successfully defended his island with strategic precision, but he also managed a devastating counterattack that culminated in the death of the opposing Lord.
His island had now expanded—though not dramatically, it was roughly 30% larger than before. Even so, this was a aningful developnt.
After all, this was only the beginning. So he still had a lot of room for future growth.
According to Edrik, for soone ranked as a Scout, the size of their island might typically be five tis the standard starting size for soone at Atlas's current phase. This ant he still had plenty of ti and potential to grow.
He now had 35 Rank Points, keeping him in Seeker Division 1. With 50 points needed to advance to Division 2, one more successful defense would likely be enough to push him over the threshold.
Atlas reviewed his resources and was pleasantly surprised. Soren had an impressive amount of Gold that Atlas had absorbed, leaving him with a total of 2,445 gold coins. His mind raced with possibilities for what he could acquire with such wealth, especially the chance to purchase World Shards to build the Gateway Altar.
He also had 2,120 Arcane Shards, enough to convert into exclusive gacha tickets. That ant he could do about 13 pulls with the shards.
For the first ti, he truly appreciated the value of every pull, now realizing how difficult Arcane Shards were to obtain. The 100 exclusive tickets he'd received at the start suddenly felt like an enormous gift.
With a full week ahead during the reinforcent cooldown, he had ti to rebuild and prepare more thoroughly. Strengthening his troops or recruiting new ones was a top priority.
However, he also needed to descend to the Lower Lands to secure a few key resources—resources he could now afford thanks to his newly gained wealth.
Atlas took a round of his island to check on everyone. He felt relieved to find that none of his troops had been killed in the battle. There were so severe injuries, but with Lyrassa's healing skills, the wounded assured him they would recover in three to four days.
He then visited the 10 persons he got after the successful defense. A group consisting of seven n and three won. Inspecting their abilities and roles, Atlas discovered that all ten were combatants, with an average level of 38 or higher—a comndable standard.
As he approached, the group knelt before him.
"My Lord, please spare our lives. We pledge to serve you and fight for you from this day forward," one of them said, speaking for the group.
Atlas nodded and instructed Edrik to assess them individually.
After a thorough evaluation, it was decided that the ten would be divided among the four teams Atlas had already established.
With this adjustnt, each team now had a complete set of roles: tankers, lee fighters, magic damage dealers, ranged attackers, and support units.
He was satisfied with the outco.
Now, with 32 combatants evenly distributed into four teams of eight, the composition was balanced and well-optimized—a solid foundation for future battles.
Mira suddenly ca running toward Atlas, her cheerful energy impossible to ignore. Before he could react, the girl threw her arms around him and began shaking him excitedly, leaving him montarily winded.
"My Lord, thank you! Our ho is so much bigger now… I can plant even more carrots!" she exclaid, her joy lighting up her face.
Her radiant enthusiasm was contagious, and the tension in the air lted away. Even the ten forr combatants, who had looked terrified monts ago, now wore expressions of confusion. A few of them seed so overwheld by the shift in mood that they wobbled and collapsed to the ground.
"Mira… Mira… please… I can't breathe," Atlas managed to say, his voice faint.
Mira quickly jumped back. "Oops! I'm so sorry, My Lord!"
Atlas took a deep breath, steadying himself. "We don't just need carrots. Plant whatever else people might need, alright?"
"Alright!" she chirped, her mood as bright as ever. She skipped off toward the newly expanded fields, clutching her hoe and humming happily, ready to get to work.
Atlas instructed everyone to rest for the night and begin reorganizing tomorrow. They still had ample ti to prepare and rebuild everything. This was a monuntal victory, and he could see the spark of excitent and determination in everyone's eyes.
He could only hope to maintain this montum, ensuring that no detail—no matter how small—was overlooked. He reminded himself not to let the euphoria of this success lead to overconfidence, which could blind them to potential challenges ahead.
Everything needed to be t with hard work and unwavering resolve. Only through consistent effort and a strong will could they truly secure the future they were fighting for.
It was late at night, and Atlas was just about to rest in his hut when he heard a knock at the door.
He stood up, opened the door, and froze in surprise as a hand gripped the door fra for support.
A figure erged, leaning heavily against the doorway, trembling, with her head bowed.
"Morganna?"
Atlas instinctively reached for her shoulders, steadying her. Slowly, she raised her face, and what he saw made his chest tighten.
Her skin… pale… Yes, she was always pale, but now she seed almost ghostly white. Her usually sharp, piercing gaze was dim, her eyes heavy with exhaustion.
"What happened to you?"
Was she in need of blood after today's battle?
As he tried to support her, Morganna suddenly slumped against him, her weight pressing into him as her face rested on his right shoulder. The door swung shut behind her, closing softly.
"Atlas…" she whispered, her voice barely audible. "Give … your blood… please…."
Atlas? And… please?
Wasn't this the first ti the Vampire Queen had addressed him by na? And more than that—she said please?!!!
The need for blood must have been so critical for her to humble herself like this.
This wasn't the first ti he'd given his blood to her, and tonight, he didn't mind doing it again. She had fought for him today, and her contribution had been nothing short of imnse.
"Take it," he whispered, steadying her trembling body.
Monts later, he felt the sharp sting of her fangs piercing his neck, followed by the sa strange sensation he'd felt before.
A mix of warmth and sothing he couldn't quite describe flooded his senses.
Her weary body seed to co alive, as her grip grew stronger.
Yet, oddly, he didn't feel weaker. If anything, he felt invigorated. There was a strange… pleasure in the act. One that he couldn't understand but found himself enjoying.
Wasn't Morganna supposed to regain her stamina by drinking his blood? So why did it feel like he was the one being empowered?
The mory of that night… when she had taken his blood in the tent… played vividly in his mind.
Atlas held Morganna steady, letting her drink until his body felt weightless, imrsed in emotions he couldn't fully comprehend. Yet, in that mont, one thing was undeniable.
He liked it.
And more than that… he wanted more. It was a yearning he couldn't easily put into words, sothing he knew he desired but might never express under normal circumstances.
He wanted her. And it happened!
Morning arrived!
Atlas opened his eyes and instinctively checked his body under the blanket. Yes… he was completely naked!
He glanced to the side but found no one there—no Morganna.
This ti, though, he rembered everything clearly, unlike the hazy events of that other night. For so reason, a strange mix of emotions bubbled up inside him. Was it happiness? Or maybe awkwardness? The mory of the night replayed vividly in his mind, especially the mont when he had told her he wanted her.
It was so damn weird. He couldn't fully explain it.
It felt like he had been intoxicated, swept away by his desires, and it had all happened without any real control.
After so ti spent composing himself, he got dressed, prepared his gear, and headed toward the teleportation pad.
Today, he would descend to the Lower Lands again, but this ti with a smaller team.
Edrik, Morganna, and Kurogasa would accompany him, while the managent of the island would remain in the hands of Karian and Lyrassa.
As the teleportation pad activated, Atlas and his team vanished, leaving the others behind to oversee their growing domain.
***
(Author's Note:)
Let confess sothing: writing scenes like Morganna ahem borrowing so of Atlas's blood leaves awkwardly hovering between "this is intriguing" and "wow, I'm terrible at this." 😅
You've probably already imagined a way cooler version of what I wrote, and I don't bla you.
But hey, the story's moving forward, the bonds are getting deeper, and things are getting juicier (pun intended). Stick with , okay? 😅
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