You are very strong, but my painting style is better than yours!

"We're not exactly best friends who would risk our lives for each other, and we've only met less than ten times in total... But not only did you save me a few days ago, but now... Have you been following me and protecting me secretly all this time?"

"Yes," Iori replied immediately.

Akame was taken aback by his decisiveness and was momentarily stunned, then became even more uneasy.

Given her upbringing and education, she naturally wouldn't believe in unprovoked kindness. However, Iori definitely treated her differently, sparing her life when they first met and helping her in every way now... There must be a reason for this.

"So, what exactly is the reason—"

“The main reason is that you’re a beautiful girl,” Iori said without hesitation, “and I like icy beauties with long, straight black hair.”

"..."

Akame's pupils dilated in shock, taken aback by Iori's words: "L-Like you?"

She had no idea what was going on. A teammate had previously expressed his feelings for her, but Akame, oblivious, had only given him a polite response. But now, for some reason, her emotions were fluctuating wildly, wavering more than ever before.

"Of course, I also like short-haired tomboys, big-breasted older sisters, cool female teachers, blonde heiresses, tsundere twin-tailed girls, scheming bespectacled girls... and the silver-haired red-eyed girl who will always be number one!"

"..."

Iori declared quite frankly: "If two complete strangers fell into the water, I would decide which one to save based on my own preference—that's my answer!"

"..."

Being this straightforward is actually quite refreshing.

Akame became inexplicably angry after realizing what was happening: "Are you only being so kind to me because of my appearance?

"Your appearance is also part of you. Do you expect me to see your inner beauty the moment I see you?"

Iori smirked: "However, to be honest, a beautiful appearance won't save your life. I'm not the kind of person who will show mercy just because someone is beautiful. After all, the more beautiful a woman is, the more dangerous she is."

If it were only the appearance that was commendable, I might pay more attention, but I wouldn't put in that much effort.

Why I'm with you... well, there is a special reason.

"That's... ugh!" Akame held her breath. "What is it?"

Of course, the key is to increase bond points and affection levels, so you can naturally get closer to the main characters, collect more CGs, and then defeat the empire to divide up its resources!

Besides, it's much more comfortable to focus on pretty girls than to try and woo men, right?

Of course, since Iori is a writer of (erotic) books, she can be considered an artist, so we can't say it directly; we have to embellish it a bit:

"I guess... I want to know you better and get closer to you."

"hiss!"

Akame seemed to have been mentally attacked. She looked away and said, "It's a date, see you in ten days," before hurriedly picking up the dazed Kurome and leaving, like a rabbit fleeing from a hungry wolf.

Oh dear, did she misunderstand something?

Iori sighed, shook her head slightly... and then couldn't help but let out a crooked smile (Dragon King.jpg).

—I did it on purpose!

Chapter 22: If I were to use a cheat code, how would you respond?

[CG included]

I. [The Wanderer]

Category: Art Style CG

grade:--

quality:--

Rewards Overview:

Art style value +2

Note: The current cumulative art style value is "35", and the spiritual pressure limit has been increased to "460".

Current spiritual pressure: 421

II. [The Heartache of the Funeral Attendees]

Category: Bond CG

Grade: B

Quality: Rare

Rewards Overview:

Mobility - Minor Improvement

Hit chance slightly increased

Avoidance · Moderate Improvement

talent:

【Precision】

Meticulousness, caution, thoroughness, and attention to detail, coupled with decisiveness when necessary, are essential qualities for an assassin. Some develop these qualities through training, while others are gifted with them.

• Improves body coordination, subtle control over muscle function, and overall power flow.

• Enhances neural reflexes, enabling faster and more decisive responses to emergencies.

• Accurately grasp the "distance from danger," walk on the edge of a blade and still be able to deal with it calmly. Even if you spend every day with a demonic sword that can kill with a single blow, you can ensure that you will not be devoured.

skill:

Assassination Swordsmanship

• Offense is more important than defense; the goal is to kill the enemy to save oneself, making it an extremely aggressive swordsmanship style.

• Increase the attack speed of "Iaijutsu" and "Draw Sword Slash".

While using this sword technique can pose a great threat to the enemy, it can also put oneself in a dangerous situation.

-

A talent, a skill, and two art style points? Putting everything else aside, those attribute points are quite a lot... It's been a long time since I've had such a bountiful harvest. Looks like following the protagonist really does bring rewards!

Luckily, he was wearing a mask; otherwise, passersby would probably have seen his comical expression of trying to laugh but holding it in, with his lips twitching from time to time.

It's only natural that Iori would feel excited as he saw his spiritual pressure limit getting closer and closer to the vice-captain's standard.

However, the so-called vice-captain and captain are just job titles, not actual spiritual pressure levels, and it depends on the specific situation.

For example, Chojiro Sasaki, the vice-captain of the First Division, is a veteran who has been around since the founding of the Gotei 13. He also mastered Bankai a long time ago. If we're being honest, he definitely deserves to be a captain or something.

Generally speaking, the prerequisite for being promoted to "captain" is to master Bankai and receive recommendations or recognition from multiple captains.

The criteria for "vice-captain" are somewhat vague. After all, many officers and even elite soldiers can comprehend the initial release, so from this point of view, there seems to be no essential difference between the two sides.

However, according to Iori's assessment, there is still an invisible threshold:

To withstand the spiritual pressure of a captain-level being head-on without losing the ability to act.

After all, she is meant to assist the captain. If she can't even withstand spiritual pressure, wouldn't she be a hindrance in battle?

Those who can intervene in captain-level battles and influence the final outcome can be considered top-tier captains, such as the Sparrowbeard, and later figures like Renji Abarai and Shuhei Hisagi.

If this standard is quantified numerically, the threshold is around 500, while the extreme value is... hard to judge. After all, some vice-captains have mastered Bankai, but there is still a big gap between them and the main captains. It can be seen that there is a great improvement in each small stage after Bankai.

Iori's spiritual pressure ceiling is close to the threshold of a vice-captain, and her actual spiritual pressure has reached around the fourth or third seat level. She is not a minor character in the Gotei 13, and she might even get a certain amount of screen time in the anime.

Of course, it would be too unambitious to be satisfied with this... In "Bleach", officers and soldiers die one after another!

After calming down from his excitement over the harvest, Iori quickly returned to his usual self. Instead of returning to Soul Society immediately, he traveled day and night to a hilly area in the eastern province of the Empire. Following the unique markers, he found a small, seemingly unremarkable lake.

This place is quite desolate, with the nearest village more than five miles away and far from the main road. Apart from wild animals occasionally coming to drink water, there are almost no traces of humans. But this remote place is the destination of Iori's trip.

“Very good, the spirit particle mark has not been touched.”

Iori arrived at the water's edge, startling away several deer and rabbits. He then took off his hat and other clothing, leaving only his academy uniform as a candidate Shinigami. He rolled up and tied the cuffs, looking like he was about to participate in a sumo wrestling match, and then suddenly jumped into the icy lake water...

Phew~puff~puff~

After a while, just as the water was about to calm down, a dark shadow broke the silence and returned to the shore from the water—it was Iori!

This time, he had an extra piece of rope in his hand, with a rectangular block as tall as a person tied to the other end. The block was smooth and shiny, but upon closer inspection, it was found to be wrapped in layers of thick oiled paper.

Iori patiently untied the rope and peeled off the layers of oil paper, revealing a tightly closed iron box. Upon opening it, a large pile of miscellaneous items came into view:

There is gold as hard currency, beautiful gemstones that look very rare, things that resemble noble coats of arms, and two sets of clothes to change into.

Among the many miscellaneous items, a few stood out: three weapons.

One was a jet-black longbow with a silver string, another was a golden rapier only two fingers wide, and the third was a pair of large axes, all of which looked quite substantial.

The first two are imperial weapons collected by Iori, while the seemingly worthless large axe is one of only forty-eight imperial weapons.

These three items were Iori's biggest gains after arriving in "Akatsuki". In addition, there was a servant's tool placed in another location.

Of course, now we need to add two more!

He put the silver sniper rifle and the newly acquired "Hachifusa" into the box, and before closing the lid, he glanced at the demon sword again, his eyes full of meaning.

Let's leave it at that for now.

After taking out a few more gold ingots and repacking everything, Iori took the box and dived back into the water.

He distrusted the money changers and inns of this world, and there was no suitable person to keep his belongings safe. Besides, these things were a huge temptation for anyone, so he simply hid them in the wilderness.

Even so, he was still not at ease, so he used his spiritual power to dive into the deep water and dig out an absolutely safe treasure trove.

If someone manages to pick it up like this... it can only be said to be fate!

"Teigu Hachifusa... Manipulating the power of the dead? That's quite interesting."

But historically, this ability has only been used to stir up hatred, pad out the plot, and capitalize on nostalgia, thus helping the main characters level up; it lacks a bit of sophistication.

Iori pouted: "Let's just consider it a backup option for now... I wonder when I'll be able to find the perfect 'blade blank'."

He was preparing to forge his own Zanpakuto.

The so-called "Zanpakuto" is "the embodiment of the soul and will of a Shinigami." By injecting one's spiritual pressure into a blank katana called "Asauchi," one can eventually cultivate it into their own unique weapon.

Its nature is similar to the awakening of martial spirits or innate fighting skills in fantasy novels.

The students of the Shinigami Academy are all candidates for Shinigami. After two years of basic training and selection, they can usually obtain an Asauchi in their third year and begin training to nurture their Zanpakuto.

Those with exceptional talent can even apply for asauchi (a type of martial arts skill) right after enrolling. In short, Soul Society is a very realistic society where the strong have privileges that need no explanation.

Logically, Iori should have found an asabu earlier and tried to learn Shikai as soon as possible, instead of foolishly waiting to be assigned one.

But he also had his own concerns.

Because there is a hidden setting in Bleach:

Asauchi, the basic vessel for Zanpakuto, is forged by "Sword God Nimaiya Oetsu," one of the Zero Division (Soul King's guards).

He and another member of the Zero Division, a certain great monk who claimed to know everything in the world, worked together to know the true names of all the Zanpakuto in the world!

He even knew the release phrases for Shikai and Bankai before the owner of the Zanpakuto.

In the world of Bleach, a real name is a very important thing, and the Great Monk even has the ability to "strip away names". This means that the Zero Division has the ability to suppress any Zanpakuto. Even Yamamoto would not be able to get past the Great Monk!

This is why, despite the Soul Society's long existence and the constant emergence of powerful figures, no one has ever said, "The Soul Kings take turns, next year it's my turn."

On the surface, Yamamoto is the one in control, but in reality, all the strong individuals from the Shinigami system are completely countered by the Zero Division!

In the original storyline, it would probably be a hundred or two hundred years before the original Aizen would utter the line, "Does the Soul King have any right to rule?"

—Then he was locked in a dark room.

He didn't even make it to the Spirit King's Palace...

Iori is wary of the legendary Zero Division, which is why, all these years later, he hasn't mentioned going to find an Asauchi to start training his Shikai.

In theory, the Zero Division wouldn't intervene unless it posed a threat to the "Soul King," and Iori had no intention of usurping the throne, so there shouldn't be much to worry about.

But he knew that in this worldview, to become a top powerhouse, one always had to have some connection with the Soul King, because essentially, the source of the power held by both Shinigami and Quincy was the Soul King.

If Iori were to become a "Transcendent" in the future, inadvertently possessing multiple power systems, and the Great Monk were to look at him and think, "Hey! This young man has a unique style, good aptitude, and is a promising candidate to become a Spirit King..."

That would be a tragedy!

The Spirit King is said to be the ruler of the three realms, but in reality he is a lamb placed on the altar and turned into a human stick by a bunch of ingrates... Even if he is just a candidate, Iori would politely decline.

Don't assume that the Zero Division, being on the "good side," wouldn't do such a thing. In the original work, the Great Monk had considered that if things got out of control, he would have no choice but to turn Kurosaki Ichigo into a human pillar to replace the Soul King and support the three realms.