Arkham lingered on the image for a moment, eyes fixed on Yui's last expression frozen in the photo. A strange silence settled in his chest. With a sigh, he turned his attention back to the System Phone, flicking through its features.
Nothing stood out.
No hidden apps. No other extra functions. "Guess that's it," he muttered, setting it aside as another translucent screen hovered into view.
Horcrux, Gacha Shop, Scenario, and Points.
'Scenario's probably for another quest like before…' he thought, hesitating.
The memory of Yui's last words, cut off just before she could finish, left a bitter taste in his mouth.
'Will I even see her again…?' With a small frown, he dismissed the thought and skipped the scenario tab for now. That's when something clicked in his head. 'Wait… didn't I get her Horcrux? Just what the hell is that supposed to be?'
With a thought, he selected the Horcrux tab.
A new screen opened in front of him, labeled Waifu Gallery, looking almost like an inventory page. Right now, it only had one entry—an icon featuring Yui's portrait.
***
[Yui Hatano]
Type: Support Horcrux
Level: 1
Effect (When Equipped):
Full Recovery – Can be activated once per day.
Instantly restores the user to peak condition, healing all physical wounds, replenishing stamina, and clearing fatigue.
+2 Intelligence
Description:
A Horcrux born from the soul imprint of Yui Hatano, bound by emotion and submission.
***
Without a second thought, Arkham tapped Equip.
A warm wave spread through his body. His mind cleared, sharper than ever—like fog had been swept away. But more than that… he felt something.
A presence.
It wasn't overwhelming, but it lingered, almost like Yui was standing just behind him, watching in silence.
"A soul imprint…?" he muttered. "Is this like… part of her soul?"
He browsed further into the tab, learning what information he could. The system categorized Horcruxes into Combat, Support, and Special types.
Yui's, of course, was Support as it offer recovery skill. There were no rarity grades; each Horcrux was entirely unique. Leveling them required points or completion of special quests.
And at the bottom, another sub-feature was grayed out: Horcrux Fusion. He didn't need a tooltip to know what that meant. Still, he doubted he'd ever use it.
Curious, he tapped the Level Up button.
[Level up this Horcrux will cost 100 points. Are you sure you want to proceed?]
"Yes."
The screen shimmered.
***
[Yui Hatano]
Type: Support Horcrux
Level: 2
Trait: Lingering Control
"Her once-commanding presence still shields your mind, a silent barrier against manipulation."
+10% Resistance to Mental Influence – Grants increased defense against charm, seduction, fear, panic, and emotional manipulation.
Effect (When Equipped):
Full Recovery – Can be activated twice per day.
Instantly restores the user to peak condition, healing all physical wounds, replenishing stamina, and clearing fatigue.
+2 Intelligence
Description:
A Horcrux born from the soul imprint of Yui Hatano, bound by emotion and submission.
***
Arkham leaned back on his bed, arms crossed behind his head, eyes fixed on the screen. "So that's what you left behind, huh…" he muttered with a quiet smirk.
Yui was gone. For now. But a part of her would stay with him.
Arkham could feel Yui's presence grow stronger the moment he equipped the Horcrux. A warmth settled in his chest, and his thoughts felt clearer than ever. "Interesting…" he muttered under his breath.
But that sense of clarity was quickly replaced with mild disappointment as he glanced at his remaining points. "Only 20 left, huh…"
Curious, Arkham tried to level up the Horcrux again.
[Error: Cannot level up. Requirement not met.]
He frowned and scrolled through the system, trying to find more information. No explanations. No hint or tooltip.
Still, a theory formed in his mind. "Requirement… does that mean I need to complete another scenario related to Yui? Maybe... I'll get to see her again after all."
Hope sparked quietly in his chest, but he pushed the thought aside and turned his attention to the next tab: Gacha Shop.
There were two options:
Single Draw (1 Point)
10x Summon (10 Points, Guaranteed Rare)
Arkham was tempted to try it right away, but before spending anything, he remembered something else.
He opened his status page.
***
[Name: Arkham]
Strength: 1 | Agility: 2 | Vitality: 1
Charisma: 5 | Intelligence: 5+2
Horcrux Slot: 1
***
"Oh? There's a new stat… Guess it unlocked after getting Yui's Horcrux."
Intrigued, he tapped on the Horcrux Slot stat to upgrade it.
[Not enough points.]
"Tch. Figures." He backed out and decided to boost his base stats instead. With taps, he distributed his remaining points evenly.
***
[Name: Arkham]
Strength: 3 | Agility: 3 | Vitality: 3
Charisma: 7 | Intelligence: 8+2
Horcrux Slot: 1
***
The moment he confirmed the changes, pain exploded through his body like a surge of electricity.
"AAARGH!!!" He screamed, body convulsing as invisible lightning raced through every nerve. It felt like being eaten alive by a swarm of fire ants. His muscles spasmed, his bones shifted, and every inch of his body screamed.
"F-FUCK!! FUCK!! FUCK!!! DAMMIT! WHY DOES IT HURT SO MUCH!?"
The process lasted only a few seconds in reality, but to Arkham, it felt like an endless eternity of agony. Every nerve in his body screamed as electricity surged through him, twisting and reshaping him from the inside out.
When it finally ended, he collapsed to his knees, chest heaving, breath ragged. His skin was slick with sweat, clinging to his clothes as if he'd just stepped out of a downpour.
"If not for Yui's Horcrux…" he muttered through gritted teeth, "…I probably would've blacked out."
He sat there for a moment, catching his breath, trying to process what had just happened. The pain had faded, but a strange heat remained—like his body was buzzing.
Still shaking, he pushed himself to his feet and stumbled toward the bathroom. Then he looked up. The face staring back at him wasn't the one he remembered.
"…What the hell…" he whispered, touching his reflection.
What stared back was… someone new. His face had sharpened, more defined, more striking—his eyes clearer, jawline stronger.
He pulled off his shirt and stared in disbelief. Tight muscle lined his frame.
A clean, sculpted six-pack stretched across his abdomen. "No way…" Curious, he peeked into his pants.
"…Oh. Little Arkham's become a dragon." He smirked. "Is this from Charisma… or Vitality?"