Reborn Regress Return: I Am the Heir of Shadows!

The young rabbit girl, likely around her late teens, gazed at Julian with sharp eyes before she huffed and turned to face her sister, who stepped into the kitchen. They likely removed the double doors to create the reinforced windows and walls.

"Do you like my sister?" Eris asked with a whisper, her eyes sharply glaring at him.

"She's an amazing woman, and I would probably die without her."

Julian wasn't lying because Fran had saved his life several times.

Not just creating this village, which gave him a chance to grow faster.

It was also because of the elixir and how she hunted with him during his first visit. Regarding liking her as a woman...

That wasn't something he could answer without speaking with Sena or Maria.

He found her extremely attractive, but she was a character from a game to him at the moment, and it felt strange to have those thoughts.

"Hmm..." The girl hummed while leaning on her palms before tilting her head. "You're quite good-looking, so my sister probably fell for you at first sight."

"Huh?"

"Eris—! What are you talking about?!"

Whack—! Fran hit her sister with a wooden ladle, but her face became as pink as her hair and long, fluffy ears. When she looked at Julian, her expression made him tilt his head and press his lips together in confusion. 'Why does she look so strange?'

"I'm going to finish changing, then cook the steak!" Fran blurted in a high-pitched voice, though much lower than the past as it still carried her mature and raspy tone.

Then, she dashed into the back room with rapid steps.

"Wow, my sister has got it hard..." Eris chuckled while kicking her feet under the table.

Julian remained quiet while browsing his system. He needed to observe and choose the best talents to improve me the most. The talent system was dangerous for him because he couldn't reset it.

'I have a much broader choice now with these things...'

Julian tapped his gauntlets on the table before they turned invisible, and coarse bumps covered his delicate hands from training with a sword and the other weapons in Sena's training room.

He spent most time training and fighting when not in the game or with the two women.

However, he learned something vital while fighting the black abomination: he could fuse the claws and form two short blades. Thus, he wanted to learn how to fight better with these types of weapons.

'I should ask Sena to order some, I am sure the internet has some gauntlet with blades...'

He also wondered if there was a blacksmith in the dream world who could enhance them, adding an iron or steel blade that would retract when not needed and mean he wasn't limited to the time limit of his Shadow Claws' cooldown.

"Well... I should check the item's current state."

While Eris watched his face, her eyes narrowed, sometimes smiling to herself and other times curiously tilting her head when he tapped the air to operate the system.

In Julian's eyes, the panel revealed the current state of his weapon, the cursed item that he couldn't remove now superior to most of the items he had bought.

▼ Gauntlets of the Fallen Prince ◊ CURSED ◊

Item Level 25

Soulbound

Unique Growth Item

Leather/Cloth

Gloves/Weapon Slot

+5 Magic

+5 Defence

+5 Attack

Requires Level 14

Growth Level 4: [■□□□□] 20/100%

"Once worn by a prince who fell in battle, these gauntlets are imbued with the sorrow and power of a fallen hero, growing stronger with every sorrowful tear shed in their wake."

• At Level 10, it unlocks "Echoes of the Fallen" (Chance to increase Magic by 10% for 5 seconds after successfully landing an attack).

[SKILL]

Shadow Claw's [Level 4]

Instant

Mana Cost: 100 MP

Duration: 2 minutes

Cooldown: 4 minutes

Effect: Increase Attack and Magic by 10 for the duration.

Bonus: Attacks Convert Attack and Magic damage into Shadow damage

—

The improvement helped cover his weaknesses, being his physical strength and defence, but the biggest issue Julian held now was his speed. He closed his eyes and then started dealing with his Talent tree, making sure he spent his points well.

His talent tree appeared, the eerie image more familiar now after he remembered that strange monster with shadowy arms growing from its back.

Julian quickly distributed his new talent points before he focused on his surroundings.

[Talents]

Tier 1

Legion of the Forgotten - Increases Max CP by 5 [3/3]

Dark Ascendance - All Shades gain 10% attack speed [2/2]

Abyssal Command - Reduces the cooldown of Rally Unit by 10 seconds [1/5]

Tier 2 (Needs 5 points)

Twilight Pact - Each time a Shade Critical hits, Julian restores 10% HP [5/5]

Abyssal Focus - Reduce damage taken by shades by 5% [1/3]

Mask of Shadow - Reduces the threat generated by 0% [0/2]

Tier 3 (Needs 10 Points)

Shade Form - Fuses with a shade and merges attributes and skills for 60 seconds [1/1]

Empowered Shade Form - Increased the duration of Shade Form by 20 seconds [0/4]

Abyss Bolt - Replaces Shadow bolt with an empowered spell [1/1]

—

He watched Fran, who changed into a floral summer dress, though a little tattered and with patches of repair.

It looked cute.

However, he noticed that as she hopped around the kitchen, humming to herself while preparing, chopping and adding carrots and other veg to the boiling broth.

The dress began hitching up, and thanks to her small, fluffy rabbit's tail, it became stuck, revealing her plump and juicy rump that bounced and wobbled with her energetic movements just like the meat she started chopping and seasoning.

Ironically, it was a huge chunk of rump steak.

"You're looking at my sister's butt, such a perverted human. Should I scream and tell her?"

A bratty yet evil smile formed on the young rabbit's lips as she curled her pink tipped hair around one finger and gazed at Julian.

"Wait—Wait..."

Julian remembered how Fran had acted with him earlier and how she wasn't the clueless and cute Fran anymore, but a battle-hardened and sensual woman.

"I won't wait~ We're a poor house, and my sister is always taken advantage of." Eris glared at Julian, and her aura became heavier. Her words made him remember something. Didn't Fran hide her animal features when in the village?

'What prompted her to change and is it related to how she is fighting constantly, despite her old wounds and that scars covering her body?'

"Eris... when did Fran stop hiding her ears?"

"!!!" Eris looked stunned—then her glare faded as she inhaled. "Did you know sister, before that?" When Eris changed her atmosphere, he understood half of the story. He rubbed his temples and tried to think about what might have happened.

"Was there a sudden attack that meant she couldn't hide it anymore." He gazed at the beautiful rabbit shaking her hips rapidly in a dance as she stirred the carrot and beef broth with a low humming tune.

The young rabbit couldn't hide her emotions—likely, the difference between her and Fran was experience. He found it admirable that she wanted to protect her sister, which made him want to help Eris become stronger too.

'If I can enter the dream world... I have to meet Eris.'

[Quest Created - The Sickly Rabbit]

• Because of your interference, the sick young rabbit Eris survived her illness, but because help came too late, she cannot fight or gain a class because of her weak heart and body!

• Eris wants to help and protect her sister!

• You must seek a way to save this pair of sisters from their cruel fate.

The quest seemed straightforward, but what annoyed Julian was the lack of reward and the fact that the Eris looking at him seemed fine and healthy.

However, then he thought back to the moment he last came here... and the room she wouldn't let them enter to the point of aggression.

• Warning!

There is a time limit on this quest of 24 hours.

If you cannot bridge the gap between the sisters and help cure the young rabbit, she will die within the next two months.

'What?!'

As his mind focused on the information in front of him, the movements of Eris and Fran became clearer. His eyes narrowed, and he noticed she filled one pot with a crushed up powder... made from a certain type of grass.

Julian quickly used the system to examine Fran, her exposed buttocks no longer important... the herb's information became clear.

[Herb: Blue Mallow]

Grade: Uncommon

Item Type: Medicinal Plant

Effect: Helps to soothe pain, clear fluid, and reduce Inflammation.

'What kind of a sickness needs this type of medicine?'

Julian closed his eyes and focused on the system using the search function, all to find out what was wrong with Eris! After entering some details about the herb and its properties, Julian finally found something...

He opened his eyes and gasped.

The young rabbit stared at him with a confused gaze as his sudden noise scared her. Her sister continued cooking without noticing their silent interaction.

The illness was Acute Pulmonary Edema.

Fluid in the lungs.

"The symptoms include shortness of breath... Coughing up blood or foamy saliva and wheezing."

However, this wasn't an illness in the game, but from his world, and that's when the systems text and warning came to mind. Because of him, the two worlds fused faster than before. In the past, maybe Eris didn't suffer from something so serious, but now he needed to save her in 24 hours.

'Full Elixir...'

Something created by the elves, a rare and hard-to-obtain item this early in the game.

The only way to get one was to complete a dangerous quest for level 30. Or hope someone placed one in the Auction house.

'No that's a dumb idea... fuck!'