Isaac wanted to run after Catherine immediately, but he knew he couldn’t. There was something he had to do first.
’System, share the reward of the Quest Emily completed.’
A soft chime rang in his mind.
200 Silver Coins gained.
This was the reward from Emily’s task to conquer Sector 2 in Fortified City 50.
’Good. Now it’s time to share sis’ skills.’
He couldn’t find Catherine as he was right now. Not when she was using her disguise skill. If he went after her without preparation, he would miss her entirely.
So, he needed her skills.
’System, show me Catherine’s status.’
The panel unfolded before him.
Name: Catherine Lorraine
Title: Conqueror Candidate, Mana Resonance, Formlock, Colossus Will, Wind-kissed, Mind Echo, Mountain Breaker, Needle Dancer, Ironbound, Veilbreaker, Unshaken, Titanblood, Shadow Stride, Bulwark Core, Arcstream Conduit, Mind Anchor, Peakbreaker, Flashstep Sovereign, Stoneheart Ward, Etherwell Keeper, Astral Listener, Worldshaker, Horizon Dancer, Eternal Bastion, Spellforge Paragon, Soul Dominion, Perfectionist, Abyss Delver, Monsterbane, Nightreaper, Death’s Shadow, Descendants of Ancients
Even after seeing it so many times, the wall of titles still amazed him.
Catherine had maxed out her stats at every rank until Champion.
She had Titles for each of those milestones.
Isaac still didn’t fully understand what his Adept-rank Titles did, let alone Titles earned from maxing Elite, Master, or Champion rank.
And then there were extra Titles like Abyss Delver, Monsterbane, Nightreaper, Death’s Shadow. Titles that sounded like stories on their own.
’What are all of these even supposed to do...?’
He knew most people would be happy with even one title.
He was an anomaly for having many.
But compared to Catherine, he had to admit he still had a long road ahead.
Still, all these Titles were about to become his.
He grinned, and said, ’System, share all Titles!’
The notifications poured in.
Title Titanblood gained.
Title Shadow Stride gained.
Title Bulwark Core gained.
Title ...
The list kept going. And as it continued, Isaac felt his body changing in real time. His stats didn’t increase, but he felt like they did.
His muscles felt denser. His limbs felt lighter. His body felt twice as strong, twice as fast, and far tougher than before.
His mana reserves swelled like a lung filling with air. His senses sharpened. He could feel that reaching top speed would take him no effort now. And he realized he could see deeper into the darkness around him.
These were only the effects he could identify right away. He was sure more would reveal themselves as the Titles effects were needed.
’One of these days I really need to sit down and study all of this. There’s no way I can walk around with a dozen Titles and not know what half of them do.’
But for now, he enjoyed the growing warmth of the upgrades.
Title Conqueror Candidate gained.
Congratulations, you have become an Awakened Conqueror Candidate.
Golden Gacha Ticket ×1 received.
"Huh?"
Isaac froze.
’I became a Conqueror Candidate...? Just like that?’
He lifted his hand and tightened his fingers into a fist, surprised by the strength he felt.
’So this is why sis could keep up with me back then despite having lower stats.’
Catherine had only reached Apex rank recently. Before that, she was High rank with a hard stat limit of 500. Even after reaching Apex, her stats shouldn’t have been anywhere close to his.
But she was slightly stronger than him in their training battles.
He thought it was because of Titles. Now he knew the truth. Titles helped her, yes, but the main reason was her being a Conqueror Candidate.
’I think all of my stats are twice as effective now.’
He looked at his numbers again.
’So with 2000 in all categories... it basically means I’m sitting at 4000 compared to a normal Apex species.’
Conqueror Candidates weren’t just rare. They were overpowered.
He pushed onward and scrolled through the rest of Catherine’s status.
Species: Celestial Kitsune
Talent: Silent Eclipse Assassin (SSS+) (Share)
Classes:
— Moonlit Shadowblade (SSS)
— Mindpiercer Fox Enchantress (SSS)
— Void Eclipse Executioner (SSS+)
— Celestial Soulflame Assassin (SSS+)
Rank: Champion, Level 50 (Share)
Isaac licked his lips.
SSS+ rank Talent. Given her Class ranks, he could guess she had SSS rank Talent, and later upgraded it to SSS+ rank.
’Share her Talent!’
A crisp ding.
Talent Fragment SSS+ ×1 gained.
Total Talent Fragments: Transcendence ×2, SSS+ ×1, SSS ×1.
His grin widened. The progress was clean and steady.
’Her classes are absurd. Two SSS and two SSS+. Ridiculous.’
He hovered over the option to share Rank but stopped.
The reason was simple.
Catherine’s bloodline.
If he gained it and became Champion rank, he wouldn’t be able to be intimate with Emily, Celia, and Alice. At least not until they leveled up and reached Champion rank.
He didn’t intend to wait long. He wanted to help them reach higher ranks soon, and then share Catherine’s rank properly.
’Let’s see her stats.’
Stats (Share):
Strength: 819
Agility: 999
Constitution: 679
Spirit Power: 912
Mana: 978
He had no need for her stats. His own stats and backlog were already maxed out, and he couldn’t absorb more anyway.
He scrolled further.
Affection: 125
Physique: Celestial Temptress Body (Share)
Affinities: Shadow, Mind, Poison (Share)
He raised an eyebrow.
’Affection 125. For someone who loves teasing me and never goes beyond that, her affection is ridiculously high.’
He didn’t share her Physique either. Catherine’s innate ability to drain her partner’s life force was dangerous. He didn’t want anything like that happening until he was done with Celia, Emily, and Alice right now in the Cradle. He didn’t want to kill them accidently.
After they were done with him, he would take Physique immediately. And yes, he knew that once he obtained her Physique, he wouldn’t be able to be intimate with Emily or Alice anymore. But that was fine. They would reach Adept rank soon—tomorrow or the next day—and after that, everything would be safe after that.
He also realized something important recently.
If he gained Catherine’s bloodline and Physique, he could be intimate with her regardless of rank.
That understanding came from the Sword Empress’ words.