Man Made God 005, page 2
“I’m back,” Adam announced after stepping into the living room. As always, Titania sat on his shoulder and Kureha, currently in her fox form, was using his head as a burrow.
“Welcome back,” Fayte said with a smile. “How did your meeting with Clarise go?”
“It went well,” Adam said as Kureha hopped off his head and transformed.
Kureha was an adorable girl with long black hair and skin like freshly fallen snow. Her big eyes were wide and innocent. Aris knew this game was a fantasy setting, and thus the countries on Earth didn’t exist, but she looked like someone of Asian descent.
Aris had always thought Asians were super pretty. There was something about them that she found captivating. Kureha was no exception. This girl was gonna be a knockout when she grew up.
It’s too bad she’s so young. I don’t think adding her to Adam’s harem would be a good idea, but maybe if we find her mother…
Aris entertained the thought for a few moments before shaking her head. She had just gotten schooled for talking about giving Adam more lovers, so now wasn’t the time for such thoughts.
“You say it went well, but once again, you have done something incredibly reckless.” Titania floated over to the table and sat down with a huff, while Kureha hopped onto Lilith’s lap, finally snapping the woman out of her daze. She looked down at the young child and began petting her head and rubbing her ears. Kureha sighed and melted as though she was experiencing heaven.
“What did Adam do this time?” asked Fayte.
Titania crossed her arms as Adam sat beside Aris. He placed an arm around her shoulder, and she leaned into him without thinking. He was so warm. Even though this was just a game and their bodies were made up of polygons and pixels, his warmth remained the same.
“Hmph. Listen to this. Adam just decided to accept a suicidal commission from the Guild Association to kill the [War Demon’s] commanders.”
“Adam…”
“Don’t look at me like that,” Adam shrugged when Fayte stared at him. “I didn’t say we would do it right now. We’ll level up more, gather intel, and only attack when we’re certain of our victory. However, I have determined this is something we need to do. Your reputation in the game will soar if our guild defeats the [War Demon’s] commanders.”
“You’re not wrong. I do wish you would discuss this with me first, but I understand that you’re only thinking about how to help me win my bet,” Fayte said with a gentle smile. Aris locked onto that smile.
She definitely loves him.
It was clear to Aris that Fayte loved Adam. The only reason she didn’t act on her feelings was because he was already in a relationship with Aris. Fayte said she didn’t want to be in a polyamorous relationship, and Aris could accept that even if she only had a vague understanding of why, but that didn’t mean she would just give up. Wouldn’t it be a win-win situation if they could both be with Adam?
I won’t do anything right now. I’ll be patient and slowly unlock Fayte’s heart. I’ll wear down her resistance until she’s ready to accept a relationship with me and Adam.
Aris nodded several times. She wouldn’t give up, but she would learn prudence.
“You’re being awfully quiet, Aris. Did something happen?” asked Adam.
“No. Nothing happened. I was just thinking about something Fayte told me,” Aris said with a cheerful smile.
The sound of the heater hummed through the living room as Adam sat on the couch, sipping a cup of coffee as he read the latest news about Age of Gods.
It was December 25. All players had been asked to log off so the updates could be installed. They would be able to log back in on January 1. Adam still had his reservations about implementing a Time Compression System, but this would work out to his advantage. After all, if he could stay in the game for several days at a time, he could increase his level much more quickly.
“What are you reading?” asked Aris.
He looked over at the young woman who, up until just a few seconds ago, had been stuffing her face with pancakes. She had some syrup on her face. He grabbed a napkin and wiped it off for her.
Aris was a young woman with brown hair, innocent blue eyes that reminded him of the sky, and skin like fresh snow. Her face still retained the youth of someone just coming out of their teen years. That made sense. She was barely eighteen now. The form-fitting pants hugged her hips and she wore a shirt that showed off her flat belly.
“Just checking the latest news on Age of Gods. At last estimate, 3.5 billion people are now playing it. That’s almost the world’s entire population,” Adam said.
“That’s a lot of people,” Aris murmured.
“That makes this the most-played game in history,” Fayte said on Aris’s left. Unlike his girlfriend, Fayte ate with poise and elegance, gracefully cutting her pancake into bite-sized pieces before placing them almost delicately into her mouth.
If Adam considered Aris to be as pretty as a porcelain doll, then Fayte was as seductive as a succubus. The blonde hair descending from her crown was like waves of golden thread. She had blue eyes, but unlike Aris’s sky-blue, hers were a darker shade that complemented their narrower, more seductive shape. She didn’t wear makeup, but her pink lips still stood out starkly on her white skin. Adorning her body were yoga pants and a turtleneck sweater that hid a buxom figure.
“I think the only gave that ever came close to getting this level of reception was Final Frontier XXI,” Adam said, nodding.
Final Frontier XXI was a game created by a company stationed out of what had formerly been Japan. The game had combined realistic graphics with a beautiful fantasy-esque setting and an in-game character customization system that a lot of players really enjoyed. There were still many people playing the game even to this day, though it had far fewer players now. While it might have been a great game, it couldn’t stand up to the sheer realism of Age of Gods, which felt almost indistinguishable from real life.
Aris finished eating, set her place down, then picked up a steaming cup of hot chocolate. She tucked her feet underneath her bum and leaned into him as she took a slow sip of her drink.
“Doesn’t it feel weird not to be playing right now?” asked Aris.
Adam nodded. “I’d normally have been playing for several hours already.”
“It can’t be helped. The updates are going to take five days to implement, which means no one can play right now,” Fayte said.
“Uuuuuugh…” Aris groaned.
Adam studied Aris and Fayte with a small frown. He had noticed the distance that had suddenly opened between them. Most people probably wouldn’t have noticed at all, but Adam had been watching them for a long time now. Up until his meeting with Claire from the Guild Association, Aris and Fayte had seemed to be as close as real sisters, but something had changed.
He couldn’t say whether the change was bad yet, but there was no denying it either. The way they talked to each other was more awkward than it used to be.
He thought about asking, and yet, he refrained for fear that it would only cause the rift between them to widen.
“Hey, we should go out tonight,” Aris suddenly said.
“What?” asked Fayte.
“If we stay here, we’re just going to get bored. Let’s have a night on the town! We can also invite Susan and Lilith!”
“I don’t think that’s such a good idea…” Adam said.
“Awwwwww. Come on, Adam? Please? I don’t want to stay cooped up here all day!”
Aris leaned into him even more, allowing her chest to come into contact with his torso. He gave the young woman a complacent smile as she rubbed herself against him. Maybe if he was a blushing virgin, her attempts would have worked on him, but the two of them had sex regularly, and while he certainly wasn’t immune to Aris’s charms, he knew when to resist and when to let that resistance crumble.
“Adam is right,” Fayte said. “Levon Pleonexia has people everywhere and his family has several government officials in their pocket. It’s just a rumor, but I’ve heard they are allowed access to the surveillance cameras. The last thing we want is for Levon to discover who you are.”
While violence was technically illegal, that did not mean nobles wouldn’t engage in it. Money was power. And when you had power, you could do whatever you wanted… within reason. Levon might not be able to assault them in a full-on confrontation, but he was more than capable of sending assassins after them. That was the kind of power the nobility possessed.
“Couldn’t we go somewhere without surveillance cameras like we did last time?” asked Aris.
Aris was referring to when he, Aris, and Fayte went to the New York Strip. It used to be a popular place, but its popularity declined after World War III, and now it was a hole in the wall. The people who knew of it loved going there. However, most people preferred New York City Town Square Mall, which had many more luxuries and high-end boutiques.
Adam tried to resist the impulse to let Aris do what she wanted. Maybe he was being overly cautious, but in this day and age, he felt like caution was necessary. The last thing they needed was for Levon to find out about him and Aris in the real world. There wasn’t a doubt in his mind that the man would stop at nothing to remove them.
Strong as he might be, Adam could not stand up to the power of a noble family. It was better to remain under the radar.
“Adam… please? I really want to go out.” Aris clasped her hands together.
“I can’t… there’s something I need to do today,” Adam said, still resisting, though he felt the walls he had built up crumbling. Aris was staring at him with those big, blue eyes and her lips turned into a pout. The look on her face should have been illegal.
“Then it can just be me, Fayte, and Susan,” Arith exclaimed.
“Aris…” Fayte said, a warning in her voice.
“Ah! No! Don’t worry, Fayte! I promise not to do a repeat of what happened last time!” Aris waved her hands back and forth as though trying to supplicate the other woman.
Adam raised an eyebrow. “Last time? Did something happen?”
“Nothing that you need to worry about,” Aris said quickly—a little too quickly. “Anyway, please let us go out? I understand why you wouldn’t want us to, but if it’s just us girls, there shouldn’t be a problem, right? We can even go to New York Town Square Mall where the surveillance cameras are since you won’t be with us.”
He was about to tell her no again, but then he paused.
No one had seen Aris’s face in Age of Gods because she wore a veil like Fayte, so it wasn’t like they would automatically be able to tell who she was. But it was possible to find out who she was if someone decided to run a background check. That was his biggest worry. He didn’t want Levon running a background check on Aris. It wouldn’t take much digging to discover her adopted older brother.
But it’s not like he would know where to find us. I changed our home address to an abandoned apartment not long after Fayte discovered my location, and now we’re living here. Even if he’s part of the Pleonexia Family, he can’t use the surveillance cameras too freely for fear of being discovered and suffering public backlash. Maybe… it will be fine.
“Well… I suppose, it’s okay if you go out,” Adam said at last.
“Really?!” Aris looked like she’d just won the lottery. Her eyes were sparkling.
“Are you sure about this, Adam?” asked Fayte. She still seemed concerned.
“Well, no, I’m not really sure about this, but… I think Aris has been confined long enough,” Adam said.
Aris had been confined to a bed for years thanks to Mortems Disease. It would be a shame if she couldn’t go out and stretch her legs now that she was cured. He didn’t think he would be able to handle the guilt of forcing her to remain indoors after everything she had already suffered through.
“Thank you, Adam! I love you!”
He should have expected her pounce, but he was completely unprepared for Aris’s surprise kiss. She knocked him onto his back, pressed her hands against his chest, and kissed him hard enough to leave him dizzy.
She’s gotten stronger… is this natural?
She wasn’t nearly as strong as him, of course, but the strength of her pounce still surprised him. Not only had Aris regained her previous athletic abilities, but she seemed to be even stronger now than she was before. He didn’t think that would be possible after she had Mortems Disease.
Is this the effect of consuming my blood, or is it something else?
“I’ll call Susan and ask her if she’d like to join us,” Fayte said, standing up.
Adam finally managed to pry Aris off his lips. He ignored the woman’s whining as he sat them up and looked at Fayte.
“I’ll call Lilith and tell her to tag along with you,” he said.
Fayte raised an eyebrow. “You have Lilith’s contact information?”
“Yes, but you already knew that, didn’t you?” said Adam. He posed it like a question, but it was more of a statement.
Fayte turned away.
Susan sat on a couch across from her father. Eugine Forebear was a tall man with a charismatic presence. His brown hair was the same shade as his daughter’s, but his broad shoulders, thick chest, and strong facial features were the exact opposite of her delicate countenance, which she got from her mother.
Right now, he was looking at her with a mixture of concern and resignation.
“Are you sure about this, Pumpkin? I know that the rumors surrounding Connor Sword are unpleasant at best, but none of them have been proven. They really are just rumors.”
“I’m sure, Father. Even if the rumors were not true, I would not feel comfortable with that man as my husband,” Susan said. Her voice quaked a little, but she still stood firm.
The two of them were currently sitting inside her father’s private office. The centerpiece of the office were the two couches and coffee table made from thick mahogany. Her father’s desk was near the back, in front of a window that showed an expansive view of New York City. Bookshelves on either side contained many old tomes that her father had collected. While any book could not be read on the web, her father loved collecting old books. It was his hobby.
“Well… if you don’t want to marry him, then I won’t force you to.” Her father sighed. “I’ll tell the Sword Family that our marriage talks are being called off.”
“I’m sorry for causing you trouble.” Susan bowed her head.
Eugine reached out to rub his daughter’s head. She looked startled at first, but he just smiled and ran his hand over her hair.
“Nonsense. This is the first time my daughter has firmly told me what she wants. There’s no way I could be angry with you for that.” Her father smiled kindly at her. “You are always doing your best not to cause me problems, and you have a strong sense of obligation. I’ve always worried that your desire not to cause a ruckus would prevent you from being able to seek your own happiness. I’m glad to know that isn’t the case.”
Susan smiled slightly at her father’s words, though it hid the guilt she felt.
While her father acted like this wasn’t a big deal, she knew it was. The Sword Family was powerful and influential. They might not have the same political influence as the Pleonexia Family, but they had enough power within the American Federation to put undue pressure on a simple politician like her father. That was, in fact, the reason Eugine had been willing to marry her off.
He hadn’t been forced to. However, he knew they could force the issue if they really wanted. In the end, it was simply easier to go along with them than fight a prolonged battle that might end with their family in a worse position than before.
Susan eventually left the office as her father put in a call to the Sword Family. The last she heard was her father addressing the Sword Family head before the door shut behind her.
She walked down the hall and soon entered her room, which was located just a few minutes’ walk from her father’s office. A noise caused her to pause before closing the door. She looked at her nightstand, where her phone, sitting upon the charger, was ringing. The song belonged to her favorite old video game.
Closing the door, she walked to the nightstand, picked up her phone, and placed it against her ear. She already knew who was calling thanks to the caller ID.
“Fayte? What’s going on?”
“Hey, Sue! I was wondering when you would pick up. This is my fifth time calling.”
“I-I’m sorry. I was talking to my father…”
Fayte just laughed. “It’s okay. I’m sure whatever you were talking about was important. Anyway, I wanted to know if you were doing anything for Christmas today?”
“No.” Susan shook her head, even though she knew Fayte couldn’t see it. “Mother and Father are attending an important function. I was going to go with them, but we decided at the last minute that I shouldn’t.”
Connor Sword would be there along with his family, and her father didn’t want her meeting with him right now, especially after she informed him of what happened between them in Age of Gods.
“In that case, how would you like to come with me, Aris, and Lilith to celebrate?”
“Wait. Really? We’re meeting IRL?”
“We are. I hope that’s not a problem.”
“No. It’s no problem at all. I’d love to go.”
“Good. We’re meeting at New York City Town Square Mall at noon.”
“I’ll be there,” Susan assured her.
“See you then.”
After Fayte hung up, Susan stared at the phone for a second, then fell backward onto the bed, clutching the phone to her chest. She was excited to meet with the others in real life. Even though they had only met together in the game so far, she felt more comfortable with them than she did anyone she knew in real life save her parents.
“Celebrating Christmas with friends, huh? That’ll be nice.” Susan smiled, but then furrowed her brow. “Fayte didn’t mention Adam. Is he not coming?”
