"Of course you can."
With her approval, Tsunayoshi Sawada finally began to think things through.
Looks like I've ended up in a Western-style fantasy world—swords, magic, and all.
This Loki woman seems to have some kind of lie-detection ability. She's probably the head of a Clan, or maybe some kind of noble lady.
I still need more information about this world before I can draw any solid conclusions. For now, that's all I've got.
He didn't have much to go on. Even so, there was something… off about Loki.
Her behavior was undeniably strange. Compared to the refined grace one might expect from a lady of status, she acted more like a bold trickster who did whatever amused her. Tsuna couldn't imagine any proper noblewoman holding a conversation stark naked while someone else was clearly watching.
Still, that wasn't the point right now.
He had to deal with his immediate needs.
"I'll need a few resources."
Since things had reached this stage, Tsuna figured he might as well take advantage of the opportunity to grow stronger.
Annihilation Maker was an overpowered ability, but he didn't want it to become his biggest weakness. At the very least, he needed the strength to defend himself if things went south.
"And what else?" Loki prompted.
"I want a degree of independence."
"Oh~? Like what?"
"When I find a way back to my own world, I want you to let me leave."
"Hmm~ if you can really manage that, you wouldn't need my permission anyway. But sure, I'll agree. In exchange…" Loki's eyes gleamed with mischief. "When that time comes, I want to visit your world."
She made her own demand, and after a brief moment of thought, Tsuna nodded.
"All right. If I ever find the way home, I'll take you there myself—and I'll make sure you get back safely afterward."
When that day came—when he could open the door between worlds—it would mean he had the power to choose for himself.
Resources and freedom were what he needed most right now. And with that promise in place, Tsuna believed that when he finally gained the ability to return home, he'd also have the strength to face Loki as an equal.
"No other requests? You're not worried I'll just treat you like a toy or something?" Loki teased.
Tsuna didn't even flinch.
"I'm not worried. I can tell you're not the type to bother with something that troublesome. If you wanted to, you could've just called someone in earlier. And if you really saw me that way, you wouldn't have let me make conditions in the first place."
"Well~ aren't you sharp?" Loki chuckled again, the sound low and amused.
"Good. Since we're done negotiating, strip."
"…Strip?"
Tsuna froze, staring blankly. That was the last thing he expected her to say after agreeing to terms.
"What are you imagining?"
A sharp thwack landed on the back of his head.
"This is for the contract. I need to inscribe it on your back, so take your shirt off."
A contract, huh? That definitely fit the whole swords-and-magic aesthetic. Tsuna rubbed the spot where she'd hit him—it didn't even hurt. Her strength was surprisingly light.
Once he understood, he unbuttoned his shirt and pulled it off without protest.
Then a hand pressed against his bare back.
"Oh-ho~ looks like you've been keeping in shape."
Her touch tickled a little, and Tsuna tensed, not used to the sensation.
"Guess so. I like swimming and climbing—stuff like that. Keeps me in decent shape."
"No wonder. Solid foundation."
Better than I expected, Loki thought, lightly tracing the lines of his back.
A real treasure fell into my lap this time. A faint smile curved her lips.
Without hesitation, she brought her finger to her mouth and bit down. The skin broke, and bright red blood welled up.
She pressed the bleeding fingertip to his back.
"Shhh—"
The instant her blood touched his skin, a blinding light erupted, flooding the entire bath in brilliance.
The flare was so intense that Loki had to shut her eyes against it. When the glow finally faded, she opened them again—and froze.
Her Familia's crest, the jester insignia, had changed.
That was impossible. The Familia mark was supposed to be immutable, a divine seal that no mortal could alter. Yet there it was—overwritten before her very eyes.
Seven flames of different colors and shapes circled around a single shell-shaped core. One of them, a vivid orange flame, looked like it was truly burning.
My crest… was replaced?
Loki's eyes widened, first with shock, then with pure curiosity.
Something like this shouldn't be possible—but that impossibility only made her all the more intrigued by the boy responsible.
Her gaze returned to his back. The Falna was still active—it hadn't failed. It was just… no longer hers.
She puffed her cheeks in mock annoyance, then shrugged it off. "Fine, whatever. Let's see what we've got."
The basics were normal—name, level, all at the initial stage. The real interest lay in the magic and skills.
Magic: [???] — No description, no chant, no effect. Completely blank.
Skills, however, there were more of.
The first one was also [???]—another unknown, mirroring the mystery of the magic.
Then came the next:
[Blood of Vongola] — Grants Hyper Intuition and ???
[Annihilation Maker] — Allows the user to create magical beasts based on imagination.
"So many unknowns…" Loki muttered, her eyes practically sparkling.
She'd known from the start that Tsuna had secrets, but she'd assumed her divine blessing would expose them. Instead, the result blew past every expectation.
A completely unidentified magic. An incomprehensible skill. Only one—Annihilation Maker—was readable at all.
Even from its description, Loki could tell the ability wasn't normal.
Shouldn't that count as magic instead of a skill? she thought. The power to create creatures through imagination alone was absurd. Even gods would hesitate to grant such an outrageous gift.
So that's why he fell here from another world… because of this skill.
The cause and effect clicked instantly in her mind.
Loki leaned back, eyes drifting toward the ceiling.
For the first time in a very long while, she found herself honestly amazed.
Sometimes, the difference between people really was impossible to fathom.