Refusing My God’s Advances

When I woke up, I could feel a pair of warm bodies pressed into either side of me. I didn't have to open my eyes to know who it was. I could feel Shelli's wing feather by my head, and Lyra's short body on my other side. What surprised me was opening my eyes to see golden morning light pouring in through the open window.

Had I really been out since yesterday?! That didn't really make sense since the last time I went to Hamazon, I had only been out for a few hours. How was it that this time I had been knocked out for over 12?!

"Mmm, Leon? You are awake now?" Shelli asked with a yawn, rubbing her eyes.

"Yeah, sorry for passing out like that. I didn't think it would hit me so hard this time," I groaned, and Lyra cuddled without opening her eyes.

"I am just glad you are safe, and it feels like you have gotten stronger from your visit to the Divine Realm. I am not sure what happened, but I can sense your Magic Power has grown. I can't say anything about your other statuses, but the greater your Magical Power, the greater the cost is to deplete your reserves," Shelli explained, and I nodded.

"That makes sense. I will have to stop staying so long in Hamazon, but I don't get how my Magical Power has grown," I said and then opened up my system.

Shelli started to laugh as our entire view was surrounded by pop-up notifications. It was worse than going to a shady porn site without an adblocker. The difference was that these were all good messages.

"Woah, that is a lot of floating squares!" Lyra said as she ran her hand through the messages.

As she did, I noticed no distorting effects on the notifications. It was like they were on different planes of reality. Lyra's hand didn't pass through the notifications, but more it was like they couldn't interact. I was sure that if Lyra's hand became transparent, I would be able to read the notifications as they passed through them.

I focused on the notifications, trying to understand the sudden influx of information. The messages seemed to be a mix of level-ups, skill improvements, and new abilities.

"Looks like your time in Hamazon had quite an impact on your stats and abilities," Shelli remarked, still chuckling.

I scrolled through the notifications, my eyes widening as I saw the changes. My Magical Power had indeed increased significantly, but other aspects of my status had also seen improvements. It seemed like the divine energies of Hamazon had enhanced not just my Magical Power but also my physical and mental attributes.

Curious, I opened up my stats.

[STATS]

Physical Power: 72

Magical Power: 121 (+15 from Cursed Grimoire)

Agility: 65

Technical Knowledge: 101

Arcane Insight: 115 (+15 from Cursed Grimoire)

Resilience: 64

[STAT POINTS: 35]

Upon seeing the stack of Stat Points, I grinned. My stats had exploded from my trip! Today I was going to test out what the effects of them were in training!

As I continued to review the notifications, I noticed a new passive skill that caught my attention: "Divine Connection." The description stated that this skill allowed me to establish a stronger link with the divine realm, increasing the efficiency of my interactions with Hamazon.

"At least you will be able to stay in the Divine Realm longer next time," Shelli pointed out, looking at the notification with interest.

I smiled and then chuckled. "Would have been nice to have before this!" I said, but then got to the last 2 notifications. 

One was the bill from Greg, so I opened that one first. As I did, two more notifications popped up. One was for the bill, but the other was for a message, so I opened it first.

[Message from: Greg: Hey! I picked out some good stuff for you, but those Crystals and core aren't something I can replace. As I said, you are going to need to farm some of those items on your own. The Cores come from... Wait for it... Golems! So, I am sure you know what that means. As for the crystals, I am sure that the girl with the blue-green hair can help you with what monsters will likely drop them. Sorry about the cost, I did give you a discount, but I promise you this stuff will make it worth it!]

That was really great of him to send me a message about everything, but now I was kind of scared to open the bill. I cringed, closing the message, and opening the bill. 

Seller: Greg's Printing Supplies

Total Cost for Included Items: 12000$

Items You Will Receive: (Epic) Assassin Silk Filament, (Epic) Platinum Filament, (Epic) Black Shadow Filament, (Epic) Mutable Fabric Coating.

I winced at the hefty price tag but nodded in understanding. Greg had indeed provided valuable and rare materials that would significantly enhance Ashagan's golem body. The mention of farming for golem cores and crystals added a new layer to my to-do list, but it was fine.

To become truly lazy, I needed to be able to swat anyone who tried to bother me away without trouble. On top of that, I not only wanted to make Ashagan's body, but I hadn't forgotten about Scarlet.

That meant fighting more monsters and making more money. 

"Well, it looks like we have our work cut out for us. I'll need to head back to the Crystal Cavern to see if I can find some more powerful golem to get a core from. Considering the core I got from the mini-boss was only Rare, if it feels wrong to use it with the Epic materials I have to pay for," I said, and both women nodded as I closed the bill. 

I would need to convert more cash to pay for this bill. I just didn't feel like looking through all my menus to see if I could do it here. Being asleep for so long made me feel restless, and I was sure Mary would be looking for me.

"We can help you with that. I have some knowledge of the monsters in this world, and Lyra has a unique ability to sense the presence of magical materials," Shelli offered, and Lyra nodded in agreement.

"That's good, and I am sure the others can help as well, but for now, I need to get to my morning training done. I also want to test some stuff with Daryle," I explained, and both girls kissed me before crawling out of my arms and bed.