<Nocturnal Harmonia>

[Bloodedge]

So long as Yugi was engaged with the content, Miko had no issues to present. Her claim of such came with another noise, making it sound as if she was pleased receiving his saliva to her ass. He figured that would be the case since she was more than willing to take a load to the ass before. "Oh I'm engaged. Sounds like you are too. You like me spitting in your ass?" he questioned half-rhetorically while using one thumb to spread that same saliva around Miko's rectal wall. At this point, Yugi was simply doing some things just to do them ─ things he'd probably seen before in some form of pornographic media.

Whatever development team was in charge of the game 'Iino Miko', they were definitely the hungry sort. She wasn't a good free-to-play experience, but insisted upon a quality content loop? How interesting it was that she fell into the references so easily. All he had to do, according to Miko, was 'swipe' as they were putting it. A promise to make the experience worthwhile, one actually delivered, was all anyone could ask for from developers. Ah, but she even mentioned a bonus. How could he say no to that? "Then I'll buy every pack!" Yugi announced. He used those thumbs hooked into Miko's anus as a winch while slamming full-force into her womb. "Gimme that bonus!" he exclaimed, glans resting at the rear of Miko's womb and spraying directly against it a liquid that had expectedly become much more voluminous, but also viscous. The thick surge had so little room to work with, it crashed the wall of Miko's womb and followed it before filling the limited empty space between their flesh. Given the amount he was being squeezed by her canal, it only gave his expulsion a more difficult time trying to find additional space through which to travel. The end result would be... an expansion of Miko's womb while Yugi only continued blasting away due to the unusual vibrations he was now feeling.

Meanwhile, the Phantom lingered outside, its form half-submerged in shadow as it tasted the lingering traces of mana drifting from the fresh-built shelter. The energy wasn’t wild or reckless — it was concentrated, intertwined, amplified by the pair inside without either of them realizing it. To the visitor, that alone marked them as anomalous… and potentially dangerous. Its faceless helm tilted, as if weighing this new variable against whatever instinct drove it; the air around its silhouette thinned, trembling with the hush before a storm. Something within it—whatever passed for caution or curiosity—coiled tighter. These two were no longer simply intruders. They were a disturbance… and disturbances needed to be tested.

[Apollymi]

Miko was the type of person who could go along with a pretense. Ones she understood made it much easier for her to connect. The gaming referencing they'd been using since basically their meeting was one she fully understood. Beyond that, the lad was willing to go along with engaging with the content, in this case saliva finding its way to her stretched asshole was something she couldn't help but enjoy. His commentary about it, was rhetorical in nature but that didn't mean she wouldn't find it in her to say something. "Yes Daddy♫~ It feels so relieving when you're playing in my ass like that♪~" she commented another of those vaguely pornographic sentences that definitely shouldn't have just been falling out of a random person's mouth.

Still, with him hooked into her ass, and believing in her commentary about the nature of her game state, Miko couldn't help but fall in. She'd promised a bonus but it was mostly her body's natural response to filling which would playout. He wanted the bonus and claimed that he'd buy every pack, how interesting. Miko herself convulsed, the vibrations of her filling womb were one thing but the stretching of her anus the spit the sensations, they were quite a lot. "Waaaah♫~ Thanks for your purchase♪~" the girl chimed as her own body movements went along with the filling. Her continued inner twitching and her body's direct responsiveness was the bonus she'd offered, along with a splash from her own loins directly into his lap as he was covered in her juices due to the experience of her most recent orgasm. Her tongue was out, she was drooling and she felt, full. The fact that she could feel this way while being so thoroughly used and turning herself into essentially a game for someone else's pleasure was... pleasant. Even so, her legs would soon be losing their tightness around his waist as her thighs twitched and softened in a single moment. She'd once again be holding her arms downward in an attempt to catch herself. All the while, that threat looming in the distance was ever closer than either of them knew, and it was registering them as the threat they were.

[Bloodedge]

An explosive end, between this pair, couldn't even be the end. Since Miko alleged enjoying the way he played in her ass, Yugi primed himself to repeat his earlier actions. Lips pursed, and saliva gathered under his tongue until it streamed down into her gaped hole. All the while, Yugi kept tugging her anus to either side as if to ensure that lubricating saliva was properly spread around while it pooled. He still couldn't free himself from her womb... but that was fine; he didn't intend to end their fun just yet anyway. "Have some extra for my account. I think I'll go buy a new set of cosmetics later ─ maybe some new gameplay features too. Now about those not-apologems~" he said. Alas, nothing about that conversation would come to fruition. Why? Well. . .

The Phantom advanced with predatory stillness until it loomed directly over the shell-home, shadows tugging toward its form as though gravity itself had shifted. Then, with a single soundless pulse, the structure collapsed inward—ribs splintering, bone plates crumpling like dry bark, the entire dwelling imploding under invisible pressure before bursting apart in a muted shockwave of dust and shattered fragments. In the settling haze, the boss hovered above the ruin, its hollow, six-fissured mask turning toward the mana it had sensed within, weighing the unseen occupants now as something more than incidental prey.

Their house crumbling around them in a single moment brought Yugi to an immediate realization. There was something on his mind before, during the building process. For a D-rank threat, those eels were disturbingly easy... and for something marked hostile, they were surprisingly non-aggressive. "Godfuckingdamnit!" he yelled. Yugi rammed against the end of Miko's womb again in an act of sheer frustration while slouching over her body, all to act as a shield against debris. "Pilot fish! They were fucking pilot fish! I almost had it, but no! I decided to be fucking stupid! And I JUST BUILT THAT FUCKING HOUSE, YOU PIECE!"

[Apollymi]

And so a fantastic flourish occurred for both participants in debauchery. Miko also realized they'd not been able to part just yet, but assumed it was a matter of muscle control and figured they'd come undone once relaxation was achieved. Of course, Yugi didn't yet seem ready for relaxation not given he was spitting even more into her rectum. "YES DADDY!~" Miko chimed of course, there was the matter of their combined interest. "Also I am always ready for that, just gotta..." she began trying to loose her hold on him, concentrating on the muscles in her abdomen and trying to release a seal which she didn't fully register as something she could feel, but no... it wasn't to be.

No sooner than she'd finish speaking did their new space of domestic bliss come crashing down around them. She squeaked just a little drawing in, with magic in her hand. She was ready and willing to immediately case the veil of choice, only to find Yugi still over her and protecting her in the carnage. "Waaah♪~ Are you okay?" she questioned first and foremost. "HYUCK!♪~" was the second thing out of her mouth given the lad's rather aggressive push into her womb the second time as he griped about his missing information. "Pilot fish?" she murmured seemingly in thought, well as much thought as she could be given their current positioning. "Oh, the little fish that eat the annoying stuff beside big fish..." she murmured. That made sense of the eels, but not why they registered as aggressive even though they weren't the bigger threat. Still, Yugi was slouched over her and she was now feeling something odd like her heart beat echoing in her chest. There were several problems, their house was destroyed, they were naked, and as far as she new still stuck together but... beyond that there was also the matter of not being able to relax given he kept pumping just a bit.

[Bloodedge]

Deviant behavior was not to be stopped until both parties were satisfied. Yugi wasn't satisfied just yet, nor did he think Miko was. They were just getting ready to shift into another round of foreplay when their house crumbled. Miko questioned the wellness of Yugi, who shielded her from above with his own back. Was he alright? Physically he was, but... "Fuck now; I just built that fucking house!" he reiterated. As for the 'pilot fish' they had been dealing with before, Yugi couldn't possibly be more upset with himself for not completing the thought earlier. "Yes, they were way too trash for the highest threat we'd seen thus far. I thought there was a chance of them being adds, but let myself forget about it after the first twenty minutes," he explained hurriedly. Meanwhile...

The Phantom didn’t hesitate; its form flickered once before a violent pulse rippled outward from its core—an expanding ring of compressed air that twisted the space around it with a deep, bone-felt hum. The blast wasn’t meant to kill but to divide, slicing horizontally through the ruined shelter like a shockwave fired from a cannon, calculated to tear the two bodies apart at the hips where they were still joined. Debris lifted, dust spiraled, and the force rolled across the clearing with ruthless precision, a cold, mechanical intent behind every inch of its advancing pressure.

There was no time to hesitate or continue complaining with an immediate assault en route. Yugi just barely managed to place both hands against Miko's back and put forth enough physical strength to force their loins apart. It was rough, a little painful and slightly pleasant─but it most importantly was enough to clear them both of a shockwave that would even leave a narrow trench in the ground below. "Wow, not even gonna talk shit before a fight huh? Well guess what bitch? Your adds were delicious!" Yugi instigated. Immediately afterwards, he reached into the inventory box and received a replacement sword purchased after selling scraps from the many small creatures they'd taken down to build the house. It was only a minor upgrade to the previous iron sword ─ one of steel with an additional point of Attack. "Fuck it. I'll keep this guy's attention. Sell whatever parts of the house aren't totally destroyed."

[Apollymi]

Miko was always far from finished. She'd have preferred to keep having sex for the rest of the day as they intended. Of course, their intentions and those of the world around them and the System were always very different things. In this case, she'd questioned if Yugi was okay, and had gotten out of him that he wasn't because he'd just built the house. She supposed if he was still griping over something they could fix technically then he was alright. "I know, I know..." she agreed. It was always annoying when work you'd just finished was ruined by no mechanization of your own. Besides that apparently, he'd allowed himself to forget about the thoughts he had concerning pilot fish after about twenty minutes. "Sou ka, well I don't blame you. It's been a thing, I also didn't hear its approach or even expect it," Miko affirmed of her own lack of knowledge. This thing had slippedher radar in a way that most things couldn't. Still, there were more important matters like the coming attack.

Yugi managed to react in the knick of time, making their loins come lose with a somewhat painfully-pleasant popping, "Uah♪~" was the first chirp before seeing the damage caused by the shockwave which left her strangely shocked. "Whoa whoa whoa, we need telegraphing before you do attacks like that!" Miko gripped. That could have been exceedingly dangerous. "I don't have growing back dicks on my list of skills, sir! Behave yourself or I'll eat you too!" she chided the monster as if it was a child acting naughty and somehow managing a threat that could be taken physically or sexually given the nature of their previous devouring of the creatures pilot fish. Whatever the case, Yugi taunted the creature and then, claimed that Miko should sell the leftovers while he distracted it. "Shop." she saw the screen in front of herself before looking over at Yugi. "Lumen Veil," she casted that wrapping piece of light around him aiming to get him back to standard. Of course, it now had a multi-cast functionality so it would be like the effect was applied thrice over. "If you take more than three hits or if it goes right though let me know," she offered as she went about the sale. Of course she couldn't let herself unprotected either. She rolled away putting herself out of the way before casting, "Miststep Veil," causing her form to immediately be camoflagued while she interacted with the System. Broken items around them started disappearing as their amount of gold steadily increased.

[Bloodedge]

Both Yugi and Miko had a proverbial bone to pick with this intruder. In spite of its large stature, seeming to stand at about eight feet tall, a pair of upset teens would surely behave as such in the face of most things. "Maybe have re-growing dicks on the list if dickheads like this are gonna be targeting my precious son all the time!" Yugi griped openly. He stepped forward, ready to face the Phantom. Only then, as Miko's Lumen Veil cascaded over him, did Yugi view the System alert for this enemy.

[IDENTIFICATION COMPLETE]
Name: Riverglass Phantom
Rank: B
Type: Constructed Predator (System‑Spawned)
Height: 8'0"
Behavior: Silent, relentless, reacts to mana signatures
Traits:

Mana Reflex: Prioritizes the highest‑output mana source.
Phase Step: Momentary semi‑intangible movement for position shifts.
Refraction Hide: Reduces effectiveness of magic not directly applied to its “core.”
Kinetic Lash: Generates high‑impact concussive strikes through motion alone.
Sensory Drift: Detects disturbance, motion, or mana flux within 20 meters.

Weaknesses:

Physical attacks to the chest‑core (exposed when its “armor plates” realign mid‑movement).
Overloaded mana input short‑circuits its external refraction field.

Current Status: Actively engaged. Target acquisition locked.

Yugi viewed the screen and realized some upgrades had been made to how they saw enemies... or perhaps it was a matter of elites? This one notably had a name colored red, as opposed to the yellows and whites they'd been seeing up to this point. Such was standard fare in RPGs and the like. Regardless, the time had come to act. The phantom shifted its stance the moment Yugi advanced, its eyeless helm angling toward the glow of the Lumen Veil as if tasting the mana radiating off him. Its towering frame went unnaturally still—then its right arm snapped outward in a blur, a concussive shock pulsing from the motion like a silent thunderclap. The attack wasn’t a projectile but a compressed wave of force, aimed straight at Yugi’s chest with enough power to test the limits of the Veil. Even as it moved, the phantom’s head twitched subtly toward the faint disturbance of Miko’s Miststep aura, a predator acknowledging prey it could sense but not yet see… and deciding Yugi would be broken first. Sadly, Yugi had other plans in mind. He shifted left, not intending to let the veil be tested at all if it could be avoided. "Can we not deal with something two full fucking ranks higher as a boss? Shouldn't D-rank bosses be a problem right now?" Yugi complained while darting around the phantom in a clockwise circle, sword at the ready and charged with electricity. After reading the System layout, he had an idea... but it required a certain test before it could even be attempted. "Hey dickhead, can you understand me?"

[Apollymi]

The ability to regrow a dick was apparently something which should be added to Miko's list of skills. Given the blatant targeting of the lad's tool she could only agree. Besides that if she could regrow a dick she could probably regrow limbs and those were much more likely to need to be replaced. "Box it♪~" she chirped, if only because she had quite a bit more to focus on. She cast her veils and then began the process of selling damaged items as instructed. Still, she continued that sale while another screen came up with some information about the creature. She looked at it and scanned it, frowning. "Constructed? Someone made this? On purpose?! What the fuck Brainface!?" she griped. Ah but that wasn't the only thing to gripe about.

This Riverglass Phantom seemed to choose Yugi as its target. Still... that didn't stop it from casting its gaze towards the hidden Miko. She shivered as she realized it was sensing for her and could probably do so even though she was hidden from sight. "I don't like that... I feel anxious. I think it knows where I am..." she murmured softly. Well, perhaps she could count on it viewing Yugi as more threatening in the moment so she could swiftly finish her task and maybe move on to helping with the offense in a more proper way. "Again someone made this!" Miko griped along with Yugi about the strength of the boss. Still, she'd managed to amass some amount of gold back from their destroyed abode. "Still I wish had requip. Requip would be awesome..." Miko murmured. "Sales done!" she announced quickly. Sure enough all of the debris that was salvagable had disappeared from around her, sent to the shop for the scraps of gold she could collect for them.

[Bloodedge]

The phantom had remained an unyielding, silent monolith as Yugi circled, his sword crackling with electricity and tangling with the kinetic energy radiating from its form. Tiny waves of force had pressed against him like a living pressure, but it had made no sound, no gesture—only the faint shimmer along its edges had indicated awareness. The administrator observed from afar, murmuring to himself, “Communication is unnecessary. Humans are predictable; their intentions radiate like flares. Even unspoken, their strategy imprints upon the surrounding energy… fascinating how they attempt reasoning where only reaction is required.” Conversely, Yugi muttered words of annoyance for all to hear. "Nobody installed a voice box on this damn thing? I hate when bosses talk shit, but I like my bosses to talk shit!" he said whilst leaping over a horizontal slash the phantom aimed his way ─ immediately having to slide under another as the boss spun fully in a circle to follow the first attack. "Woah!"

This creature knew Miko's location ─ at least in a general sense. Regardless, it seemed Yugi had enough of its attention for the moment. Though he was busy dodging attacks and running around like the mobile target he'd been reduced to, Yugi both heard and responded to Miko's mention of 'requip'. "Just get what you need and put it on! I'll hold it!" he urged. In the following moment, a charged strike at the phantom's leg was parried by its armored hide alone, even causing Yugi's electricity to arc into the sky, stronger in that moment than it was when he attacked. "Take over when you're done? There's a thing I've been saving for!"

[Apollymi]

The overseer in his wisdom had the wrong idea about why the teens wished to speak with this creature. It wasn't necessarily about reasoning with it, no, they both just wanted it to get a piece of their minds for interrupting their afternoon activities. It would seem that Yugi wanted his boss to talk shit, but if Miko had to guess, this was a matter of wanting to show it up. That made sense in her case, "Silence is oddly unnerving for me..." she mentioned almost passively. Still, in seeing this creatures attack patterns she could think that there was a possibility of it being rather difficult to handle. It's attack patterns were pretty consistent, and his armor would make it hard to pierce. Magic could help but without the ability to strike it's core it would be rather difficult to maneuver around. Well, she at least had faith that as long as it didn't speed up its attacks it could be dodged with a bit of accuracy.

Yugi was showing off such an ability. Still, Miko had quietly claimed to want requip and had gotten a response from Yugi. That she should just get dressed and he'd hold off the creature while she did. Then they could switch as he'd been waiting for some kind of upgrade. "Hai hai I just need a second," she mentioned. It didn't matter to her if she didn't have on shoes so much but at least something to cover her nudity would make her happy. She'd gotten a singlet dress to slip into. She'd gotten it knowing that they were among the easiest ways to get dressed in case of an emergency, much like her slipping into her uniform dress had been when she'd met Yugi. Of course, she expected some amount of oddity about it with her current body but she didn't expect the kind of difficulty she was having as she stood to slip into the dress. While she was likely still invisible until she moved from the spot. Still she found herself struggling to fit into the dress. It moved over her head, neck and shoulders fine, but slipping it around her chest was now difficult and much to her own chagrin the window created around her chest was massive. Beyond that it snuggly fit over her stomach and showed off her narrow waist before having to be pulled over her rather plump rear. She had a large opening in the back as well, which left a breeze going over her butt cheeks top but overall at least she wasn't naked anymore given she was still wearing her thigh highs. "Ugh♪~ I didn't know it would be so tight!~" she commented as she made herself visible by moving while she pulled forth her water based staff. "Tag out?" she asked shifting her hips slightly as if trying to make sure she could move comfortably.

[Bloodedge]

Yugi had been managing to evade well enough. He would have preferred dealing with an enemy that could at least be damaged easily, but beggars could not be choosers. Eventually, he heard the announcement of Miko... but it wasn't initially the one he expected. Her comment about something being tight was originally assumed to be about his dodging. Ah, but he could see her again. That tight dress left just the right amount to imagination, and laid bare just enough to put Yugi in danger. "HOT DAMN FUCK!" he exclaimed almost incoherently. The phantom had shifted slightly as Yugi’s gaze lingered, its motion responding to his momentum yet utterly indifferent to distraction. Sparks from his sword had flickered across the air, following the arc of his evasions, while kinetic pulses thudded against the ground in response to its controlled power. The overseer murmured, “Ah… even the most primal instincts, when tethered to desire, alter reaction time. The human mind is a curious anomaly—capable of focus yet so easily disrupted by proximity, by stimulus… by the very presence of the one they would protect.”

Without warning, the phantom lunged forward, a precise kinetic strike aimed at where Yugi’s shoulder dipped in distraction. The air compressed violently around him as the force carved through the clearing, testing his reflexes against both speed and instinct. The phantom's power, sadly, was its biggest weakness during that surprise assault. In close proximity, Yugi was overwhelmed by its power ─ to such an extent that he could feel that kinetic force before it got anywhere near him. It wasn't too difficult to ride the proverbial wave and duck beneath another cleaving attack. "Shit! Why the fuck would you put that on?!" he questioned while beneath the phantom's blade. Sadly, things were becoming more difficult for the lad. He didn't need Miko's offer to switch, if only because he'd be immediately launched by the concussive force following the phantom's most recent attack, missed or otherwise. The jarring shockwave felt like it struck his brain directly, tossing him across and alongside a spray of debris from the shell-house rubble. As he careened across the field taking impact after impact, Yugi continued bitching and moaning. "Gah! Fucking! Da─it! Ugh! Fight!" he shouted.

[Apollymi]

Miko appeared dressed once more though revealing a lot of flesh in a skin tight dress. Just the same it would seem she'd be getting quite the endorsement and perhaps even a boost to her self-esteem. Why? Well, because initially all Yugi had to offer was a string of incoherent curses. "Squee♪!" she chirped a deep redness coming to her face. What was more she was now watching as some interesting maneuvers took place, Yugi seemed perfectly capable of dodging though he was obviously distracted by her look. Ah but even that wasn't fated to last, no Yugi would be tossed eventually but not without questioning why the girl was wearing that particular article of clothing. "It was a singlet, it was supposed to be quick to put on in case of emergencies. I didn't know it would fit like this," Miko explained. Ah but she was told to fight... so fight she would.

With Yugi bounced out of the way she began charging up a bubble of mana on top of her staff. Though she still took the time to use her unoccupied hand to snap refresh of Lumen Veil for herself and for Yugi, "Gomen, I'll change when we're done and we have more time..." she said. "Lumen Veil," she chirped out as well. It wasn't her intention to be a distraction, but it wouldn't be the first time she could be called such. Instead of dwelling on it, she flicked that water ball at the creature aiming to soak it and then she'd belt out a high pitched magically enhanced note. Her logic being that... if its smaller creatures could be effected by sound, it might at least be annoyed by it and help her figure out how to get it to expose its weakness. "OOOOOOOOOAAAAH♫~" she belted out seeming to aim to vibrate those scales and its being if she could. At the same time, she figured it would definitely work for drawing attention to her.

[Bloodedge]

Yugi thought he'd experienced more than enough forceful impacts for one year. He'd tumbled so many times, banging against this thing and that, he was sure some amount of permanent damage would have been done without Lumen Veil in place. Only as he lay virtually motionless on the ground, receiving a fresh veil, did he groan out a response to the brunette. "CHANGE?! Do you have an even skimpier dress I don't know about?" he asked as if that were all he'd accept from her. Yugi then struggled his way into an upright sitting position, wincing and moaning all the while. "Hngh... fuck! Don't get hit by that shit! Shop!" he called out. While Miko took over, Yugi would be working on another weapon that might do some real damage.

The phantom felt the shift the instant Miko stepped forward—her presence a cooler, tighter current of mana than Yugi’s wild lightning. As her veil of water lashed out, the creature stilled, its entire frame giving that uncanny, predatory tilt of the head… as though listening. Then... her voice hit. Her mana-laced note thrummed through the clearing like a struck crystal, and the phantom’s semi-reflective plates rippled in response—brief distortions skipping across its armor as if her vibration magic were trying to find a resonance point. The creature didn’t stagger, but its posture tightened, claws flexing, torso leaning as though bracing against a sudden internal pressure. For a heartbeat, it assessed her anew… deciding whether she had just become the more dangerous target. It didn’t roar—only shuddered once, sharply, the tremor running down its limbs like a system reboot—then surged forward, compelled to break her rhythm before it could take hold.

The phantom lunged after Miko’s voice hit that trembling pitch, its form blurring into a rush of force that cracked the earth beneath it. It swept an arm through the air in a brutal, arcing strike, the pressure alone enough to send leaves spiraling away in a widening wake. As her water hissed across its armor, the phantom twisted with unsettling sharpness and drove a blow toward her sternum — a concussive pulse of pure kinetic force, meant to fold her in half and silence that resonant, scale-shaking tone before it built into something dangerous.

[Apollymi]

Miko apparently didn't need to change clothes. Why? Well, there was a strange utterance which made it sound like Yugi would only accept her change if she changed into something even skimpier. "Iia, I didn't even mean for it to be this skimpy. Singlets usually cover more... and it was supposed to be easy to slip into and out of," Miko claimed, truly abashed. Of course, she realized by his words that Yugi quite enjoyed her current outfit and as such she knew she looked good in it. According to Yugi, she shouldn't get hit by that attack, given how far he bounced she could say, "Hai, I'm usually pretty good at dodging," Miko claimed. She'd also been observing the fight before and realized the nature of this creature's attacks. So, she knew they weren't singular attacks and that she probably shouldn't be watching to dodge.

Well, before she had to dodge, Miko had attacked and she got a full look at her work before a counter was launched. It's scales shifted, she could hear them moving about... now that it was directly in front of her. And given the way it shifted, that predatory gaze to her she realized she'd been far too successful in her tactics... "Waah!♪~" she chirped out. "Aggro-acquired. Hate it!" she chirped out. Of course, she was already moving, she could feel the disturbance of the energy after its body settled and started moving towards her. That staff of hers was shifted upside down as the pressure started, she'd be shifting down with the channeling active. A short burst of mana would be used to force her upward, allowing her to ride the wave of the blast, pressing the mana of her weapon against the force that would have collapsed her and allowing her to ride out the arc before she skidded to a halt near the tree-line. "I have an idea I think will work when your weapon is ready~" Miko added. As such she'd continue her defense and try to avoid using too much mana in her dodges so she could use the most of it when the time was right. She couldn't help but lament the fact that she couldn't move while camouflaged it definitely would have allowed her a bit more freedom of motion and to do a few more tests of her voice. As it stood, she'd have to work through what series of sung notes would disrupt the creature most fully. With that in mind, she'd be using her ears, to try and listen for the shifts in those scales and its body so that she could have a better chance of figuring out the wavelength its physical form existed on.

[Bloodedge]

The phantom lunged after her the instant her voice fractured its scales, its movements sharpening with a predator’s certainty now that her song had exposed a weakness. Its reforming armor gave off that soft, rasping shiver of plates realigning, and the creature redirected its entire mass toward her with unnerving precision. When Miko blasted upward to ride the pressure wave, the phantom tracked her trajectory in a single smooth tilt of its head — a motion far too calm for something so heavy. The moment she hit the ground near the treeline, it was already advancing, its steps silent but its body rumbling with the faint, glassy resonance she’d triggered. It paused only long enough for its plates to ripple again — shift–shhk–settle — adjusting to counter the frequency of her earlier attack. Then it sprinted, low and fast, the air compressing in front of it as it aimed to close the distance before she could stabilize her next note.

In the meantime, Yugi kept himself occupied with the System's crafting menu. He decided to trust Miko's ability to deal with the phantom, leaving himself free to ensure something had become possible. He heard her griping about having the phantom's attention, and frankly... he could commiserate. "Just stay locked-in for a minute," he urged. While she figured out how her abilities interacted with their latest enemy, he was seeing a very exciting screen...

[ITEM INFORMATION]

Name: Steel Longsword
Rarity: None
Type: Weapon – One-Handed Sword

Attack Power: 22–28
Durability: 140 / 160
Weight: Medium

Effects:
• Conducts mana efficiently.
• No enchantments applied.

Upgrade Options Detected:
• Mana Conduction Channel (Lightning)
• Blade Shape Recast
• Material Fusion (Advanced)

Materials Required for Recast: “Lightning Chokutō”
• Lightning-Touched Ore Fragments ×3 (Owned)
• Chitin Spine Segment ×1 (Owned)
• Riverglass Filament ×2 (Owned)
• Mana Cost: 25

Projected Result:
Name: Lightning Chokutō (Prototype)
Type: Weapon – One-Handed Sword
Effects:
• Increased attack speed
• Enhanced lightning conduction
• Passive: Lightning Line – Reduces mana expenditure of lightning-based skills by 15%

Yugi looked over that screen thrice in quick succession. Since he acquired his first proper Skill, this was the sort of thing he'd been hoping for. "Craft," he stated. That steel sword he'd been using returned to the inventory, sacrificed along with the other items in the list.

[System notice]

Crafting Successful!

Item Created: Lightning Chokutō
Rarity: C-rank
Type: Straight Sword (One-Handed)
Attack + 42

Effects:
• Increased attack speed
• Enhanced lightning conduction
• Passive: Lightning Line – Reduces mana expenditure of lightning-based skills by 15%

Upgrade Options Detected:
• Mana Conduction Channel (Lightning)
• Blade Sharpening Protocol
• Material Fusion (Advanced)

Yugi was elated to finally have a reasonable piece of equipment suited to his ideal build. As things were now, he could keep and work on this new weapon all the way to the endgame. Moreover, he wasn't the only one having such thoughts. The administrator himself mused: "The configuration of this weapon is… intriguing. Its form is rudimentary, yet the integration of elemental conduction with a passive efficiency protocol suggests potential far beyond its rank. Were the wielder attuned, even minor surges could cascade into significant tactical advantage. This is not merely a blade—it is a conduit, a catalyst for the manipulation of energy itself." At the same time, Yugi was forcing himself to stand. "What's the idea?"