Let's play a game.
Imagine waking up, checking your notifications, and seeing:
Affection Bond: Lina Elrien – 12% ❤️She currently thinks you're: "A reckless dumbass with fireproof luck."
Now imagine realizing two things:
This percentage is moving.
You have no idea what makes it go up.
After my spectacular flaming handshake with Lina, I returned to the Academy pretending nothing happened. The scorch marks on my sleeves told a different story.
I spent the next day hiding in the back corner of the library, trying to decode the mechanics of the System without drawing attention.
"Okay," I muttered, scrolling through the floating UI. "So… Affection Bonds. Linked Parties. Skill Sharing. Why does this sound like a sketchy dating sim from the dark web?"
I tapped Lina's profile:
Lina Elrien – LinkedAffection: 12% ❤️Current Mood: "Mildly curious, mostly annoyed."Notes: Higher Affection = Stronger Skills.Bonus: Affection reaches 80% → Skill Evolution.100% → ??? (System Locked)
"...She gets stronger when she likes me more?" I whispered.
My brain short-circuited.
"Wait. WAIT. Does that mean I literally power up by flirting?"
I heard a dramatic dun dun dun in my head.
No. No, absolutely not. I was not about to min-max my love life for stat boosts.
I had dignity.
...
Fifteen minutes later, I was following Lina across campus like an absolute creep.
"Morning!" I called out, too enthusiastically.
She turned, red hair tied back in a ponytail, eyebrow raised.
"You're following me."
"Nope! Just walking in the same direction! Pure coincidence. By the way… did you change your hair? Looks great. Really, uh, flame-retardant."
Her eyes narrowed.
Affection Status: 13%Mood: "Mildly suspicious."
Progress?
I grinned and tried again. "Did you know your fire chakrams totally saved my life yesterday? You're like… a spicy guardian angel."
She blinked.
Affection: 12%.
"Wait, it went DOWN?!"
"What went down?" she asked.
"Nothing! Just my expectations for… the weather?"
"Are you okay?"
"Nope. Brain damage from the fireball, probably."
She sighed and turned to leave. "Weirdo."
I stared at the Affection meter again. It flickered between 12% and 13% like it was mocking me.
Experiment Log, Day 1:
Compliments = Mixed results. (She doesn't like flattery unless it's sincere.)
Forced chivalry = -1%. (I tried to open a door for her. She thought I was trying to trap her.)
Jokes = 0%. (She doesn't laugh when I imitate a fire wisp having an existential crisis. Tough crowd.)
Back in my room that night, I flopped onto my bed and groaned.
"Why is affection farming harder than leveling up?"
The System pinged softly.
[Hint: Affection increases most during shared moments, emotional connections, and acts of trust.]
"Ah," I muttered. "So… real human interaction."
Terrifying.
I stared at the ceiling.
If I really wanted to use this System responsibly… I'd need to stop trying to cheese it like a mobile game with daily login bonuses.
But also…
I wanted to know more about her. Not just for power boosts or fire resistance, but because—
She was the first person I'd ever soul-linked with.
She'd seen me at my worst… and didn't kill me.
Yet.
The next day, I found Lina training alone, throwing her chakrams into the air and catching them mid-spin.
She noticed me and rolled her eyes. "Here to say something dumb again?"
I hesitated, then walked over. "Actually… I wanted to ask. Why fire?"
She blinked.
"Huh?"
"You use flame magic, but you're always so careful not to burn things. Even when you got mad yesterday, you didn't roast me. Why?"
Her hand froze mid-throw.
For a second, I thought she wouldn't answer.
Then she said, "Because when I was little, I burned my sister's favorite book. Accidentally. She cried for hours, and I swore I'd learn to control it. Master it."
I stayed silent.
"…You can laugh," she muttered.
"I won't," I said. "But if it makes you feel better, I once accidentally fireballed my entire breakfast."
A pause.
Then… she snorted.
"Idiot."
Affection: 15% ❤️Mood: "Warming up."
Progress.
Real, actual, honest-to-flame progress.
End of Chapter 3