Isaac POV
Isaac appeared inside the master bedroom of the Soulbind Pendant.
He didn’t waste time, and called out his Bonded Blessing System.
“Show me the stats Alice gained since the last time I checked status.”
The system responded instantly, and the numbers floated up in front of him.
Strength: 20 → 40
Agility: 33 → 50
Constitution: 23 → 53
Spirit Power: 34 → 50
Mana: 32 → 53
Isaac stared at the screen, momentarily stunned.
“She more than doubled her Constitution. Even Strength… That physique really changed her,” he muttered, brows lifting.
A grin crept across his face. Without waiting another second, he gave his next command.
“Share stats!”
A second wave of notifications bloomed across his vision.
Strength: 80 → 100
Agility: 118 → 135
Constitution: 1000 [4055] → 1000 [4085]
Spirit Power: 136 → 150
Mana: 1000 [4064] → 1000 [4085]
Isaac felt the surge instantly.
His muscles tensed and relaxed as power coursed through his body.
His thoughts sharpened, like someone had cleared out a fog he hadn’t even known was there.
He let out a slow breath, savoring the aftereffect.
Then, a new notification appeared in front of him.
[Would host like to share the Body Nourishment Fluid (Peak Tier 1) from Alice?]
Isaac blinked.
“This is… talking about the pod she was in?” he said, more to himself than the system.
He remembered seeing Alice float within the pod filled with glowing liquid.
Maybe he could share its effect just like the body tempering potion Emily had taken on their first day at university.
“Share!” he said with anticipation.
Almost immediately, a warm, soothing wave spread through him. His bones tingled. His skin felt subtly stronger, like it had been reinforced from the inside. It was mild, but the effect was hard to ignore.
Then another notification popped up.
System Alert: It is recommended that host shares wife Alice Calloway’s Physique to absorb full benefits of the Body Nourishment Fluid (Peak Tier 1).
He nodded to himself. That made sense. His current body wasn’t aligned with the same structure the fluid had been optimized for – which was Physique Awakening or Breakthrough to Overlord rank.
“Share the Physique!”
What followed was unlike anything Isaac had ever experienced.
Every cell in his body felt like it was being wrung out and rebuilt at the same time. It was as if he was being reshaped him from the inside out.
Yet it was gentle, comforting even. It was like the warmth of the sun on a cold day.
Then something else happened.
Thin, black lines of tar began to ooze from his skin. They were the impurities being wrung out from him.
They slid out from his pores like ink bleeding through cloth.
The liquid hit the ground with faint splatters, thick and sluggish.
He watched it for a few seconds, then turned back to the status screen.
“Show me the changed stats.”
Strength: 100 → 160
Agility: 135 → 200
Constitution: 1000 [4085] → 1000 [4520]
Spirit Power: 150 → 210
Mana: 1000 [4085] → 1000 [4520]
Isaac stared at the screen, not quite able to believe it.
“That’s insane,” he whispered. “I gained more than three times the stats Alice did from the same fluid.”
A frown appeared on his face when he tried to move.
He wasn’t surprised by the numbers themselves. What caught him off guard was the way he felt.
“…That’s it?” he said quietly. “These numbers increased, but I feel way stronger than what they suggest.”
His body felt like it could lift a truck—no, a small house, at least.
“It’s… almost like my base stats changed.”
He crossed his arms, and a theory appeared in his mind.
“Stats are multipliers,” he murmured. “They scale off your base body. The better the physique, the more value each stat point has.”
And now, he had a Dragonic Physique, which made his base body incredibly powerful.
“If my theory is correct, then even if I and another human have the same stat values, the raw output from mine would be far higher.”
He turned away from the system screen, thinking it over again, just to be sure.
The theory made sense, but there was a chance he was mistaken.
“I should ask Professor Catherine about this. She’s the only one who might know for sure.”
Before he could say more, he felt a slight dryness in his throat, and he felt hot. It was nothing major, but still strange. He blinked and rubbed his neck, confused for a second.
“…I’m thirsty?” he murmured. “Weird.”
It wasn’t urgent, so he pushed it aside.
“System, show me what else changed.”
The list popped up immediately.
[Physique: None → Solar Dragonic Physique]
[Solar Fire Affinity Level 1 gained]
[Fire Affinity Level 1 gained]
[Light Affinity Level 1 gained]
Isaac raised a brow.
“Affinities?” he said. “That’s something new.”
He stared at the words, waiting for more. But just like Titles, there were no ranks, or descriptions of their effects.
“Are these like skills?” he asked. “But they don’t have any ranks and they only show a level.”
He didn’t get a response from the system.
“Whatever they are, they probably came with the Physique. Solar Fire, Light, and normal Fire too.”
He couldn’t help but feel curious.
Until now, he’d only seen elements used in skills.
Affinities sounded more foundational than the skills.
“More things I need to test.”
He exhaled slowly and sat down at the edge of the bed, still looking at the panel.
His body was burning with power. His skin felt like it could deflect a blade. His mind was sharper, and faster.
Afterwards, he stepped into the the bathroom.
His body still carried faint traces of the black tar, most of it dried into thin, dark lines along his arms, shoulders, and chest, and he wanted to clean himself.
When he was done, he stepped in front of the sink and looked at himself in the mirror.
His gaze looked sharper, and he could swear he looked more handsome than he did in the morning.
Shaking his head, he dried off quickly, wrapped a towel around his waist, and stepped out of the bathroom.
His eyes drifted to the spatial ring as he stepped out of the bathroom. It had the book Selene gave him.
He sat down on the edge of the bed, pulled it out, and flipped through a few pages.
But no matter how many times he re-read a sentence, the words didn’t sink in.
His mind kept drifting.
The warmth in his chest stirred again, rising and curling at the base of his throat.
Without meaning to, he thought of Emily’s soft voice, and needy expression when they spent the night together.
Alice’s seductive touch and the image of her devilish figure kept coming surfacing in his mind.
He rubbed his temple.
“…I guess I’ll just go and sleep.”
He placed the book down, stood up, and left the subdimension.
He reappeared in the study.
The lights were dimmed, casting a soft glow over the room.
Alice sat at the desk, reading with full focus. A faint penlight illuminated the open book before her. On the couch nearby, Emily was curled up with a blanket, clearly asleep.
Isaac’s gaze drifted on Emily’s nape, then shifted to Alice’s lips.
He blinked and forced his mind to settle.
“You two didn’t sleep?” he asked trying to sound casual.
Alice looked up from her book. Her hair was tucked behind one ear, and she didn’t seem surprised by his sudden return.
“No,” she said, then turned slightly to glance at Emily, who stirred as if sensing their conversation.
Alice added, “We were waiting for you to return. We should sleep now.”
Emily sat up slowly, rubbing her eyes. Her voice was soft. “Mm… Isaac?”
He nodded at her, and she gave a drowsy smile before pulling the blanket closer and floating along with it.
Alice closed her book and stood.
The three of them moved toward the hallway that led to the bedrooms.
As they walked, Alice spoke again, “Isaac, you should sleep with Emily—”
“Huh? What are you talking about?” he said, almost too fast, words slipping out before he could think. “We’re sleeping together.”
Alice turned to him, blinking in surprise. But she said nothing right away.
Emily, meanwhile, froze.
“Huh?” A deep blush spread across her face. She lowered her head, eyes wide, lips parting as if she wanted to protest.
Her hands pulled at Isaac’s sleeves to tell him to not do that.
But before she could speak—or run—Isaac caught her and scooped her up into his arms.
“Wha—Isaac—! Wait—put me down!” she stammered, kicking slightly.
He turned his head to Alice. “We’re sleeping in my room.”
The words came out firmer than he expected, and they sounded like an order.
Alice blinked again, clearly caught off guard. Then she gave a small nod and followed behind without a word.
Meanwhile, in his arms, Emily squirmed.
“This isn’t fair! You can’t just—! I didn’t even say yes—!”
“You didn’t say no either,” he said with a grin.
“That’s not how it works—!”
But he didn’t slow down. The heat inside him had only grown stronger.
He pushed open the door to his room, stepped inside, and let it close softly behind them.
Alice followed in without hesitation and moved to her side of the bed without a word.
Emily was still blushing furiously in his arms, her fists lightly thudding against his chest.
“You’re awful,” she muttered.
But she didn’t ask to be put down.
He smiled again.
