Reincarnated as a step-dad in a fantasy world

Chapter 347 : Blessed or cursed? (1)

"I guess I've upheld my promise," he murmured, a satisfied grin playing on his lips.

Glancing down, he noticed Freya’s eyes gently closed, her breathing slow and steady, a serene expression gracing her face.

'Looks like she fell asleep right away,' Alex mused, watching her motionless form. It wasn’t that surprising—she had spent the entire day working and moving from one place to another across the city. After the intense and successive orgasms she had just endured, there was no way she could stay awake any longer.

'Even asleep, she looks dazzling,' Alex thought with a smile as he carefully adjusted Freya into a more comfortable position on the bed before pulling the sheets over her.

He stood there for a moment, a sense of pride and satisfaction washing over him after having completely claimed her. Then, with a small smile, he sat down beside her, his gaze softening as he reached out and placed his hand gently on her head, patting her.

Alex repeated the action several times, savoring the quietness. The only sounds in the room were the soft rustling of the sheets and the faint rhythm of Freya’s steady breathing.

After a while, Freya's eyes fluttered open, but she just lay there, saying nothing and enjoying the feeling of his hand gliding gently through her hair. It was such a simple gesture, yet one she had never experienced before. Her parents weren't really the warmest parents one could have growing up. They were people who only knew how to work, and their only goal was to elevate the second branch to equal standing with the principal branch.

Freya seriously suspected that the very act of giving birth to her was one of their tactics to achieve their goal, a calculated move rather than an act of love. And seeing how she had indeed elevated the second branch to even surpass the principal one, they had more than succeeded.

Freya didn't hate them for that, though; it was just that she would have liked to feel their warmth growing up. It was precisely for that reason that she never missed a moment to be with her daughter as she grew up, ensuring Maya never experienced the same loneliness she had endured.

"You’re finally awake, I see," Alex said, pulling her out of her thoughts.

Freya gave a small nod, her voice still thick with drowsiness as she let out a soft "Mmm..."

Alex chuckled, his silver eyes gleaming with amusement. "I thought you'd be out for much longer, considering the state you were in after what we did," he teased, his tone playful.

Suddenly, images of what they did and how much she liked it, going as far as moaning like a slut, surged through Freya's mind, turning her head into a bright crimson. The memory of how she had completely surrendered herself to him left her burning with embarrassment.

If before she hadn't turned to glance at Alex because she enjoyed the way he patted her, now she absolutely couldn't bring herself to look at him because she felt too damn embarrassed!

Alex couldn't stop himself from bursting into laughter as he saw Freya's reaction. "Why are you even getting embarrassed? Weren't you bold when you confessed liking me?" he asked through his laughter.

"That's different!" Freya blurted out, sitting up and turning to glance at him. But the instant she saw the grin plastered on his face, she quickly averted her gaze, her cheeks burning even brighter.

Alex chuckled before pulling Freya closer to him. "You should stop getting embarrassed by such things because this was certainly not our last time enjoying ourselves in such a way," he said, gently tilting her chin up so that her eyes met his. "Understood?"

Freya's blush deepened, but she meekly nodded her head.

"Good," Alex said, placing a soft kiss on her forehead before pulling her into his chest. He resumed patting her hair, his touch gentle and comforting.

Time passed in silence, neither of them saying anything—simply basking in the warmth of each other's presence.

"Thank you…" Freya mumbled out of the blue, "...for not rejecting me after you became aware of my mark."

"You don't have to thank me," Alex whispered back. "You see, I am a simple man. If I have feelings for you, I will go after you, that's it. Things such as being marked by a god won't change my decision in the slightest."

"The majority of 'simple' men would have avoided me after knowing, though, so I doubt you're a simple man. It takes either courage or stupidity to still go after me despite knowing I'm marked, and you don't strike me as someone who is stupid," Freya replied.

"Who knows," Alex chuckled. "In any case, I think those who avoid people because they are marked without even knowing whether they are cursed or blessed are cowards."

"I guess there are many cowards out there," Freya said, sadness flickering in her eyes for a split second before disappearing as quickly as it had come.

"While we're on the subject," Alex glanced down at Freya, "you mentioned that you being a virgin was one of the advantages of your mark. I don't think I've ever heard that those who were cursed had any advantages, so that means your mark is a blessing?"

Freya hesitated for a bit before she responded, "To tell you the truth, despite having spent more than two decades with this mark, I'm still not certain if it's a blessing or a curse."

"Oh, I see," Alex nodded.

"As for the advantages I was talking about, I guess I would need to explain everything from the start," Freya said, taking a deep breath as if organizing her thoughts.

"I was just curious. You're not obliged if you don't want to," Alex reassured her.

"No, that wouldn't be fair of me after you accepted me despite my mark," Freya replied, glancing at him with resolve in her eyes.

"I'm all ears then," Alex said, giving her hand a gentle squeeze.

Freya nodded and began to speak, her expression turning pensive as she did. "Everything started around the time when I was nearing my eighteenth birthday. My talent had just been tested, and it was revealed that I had enough potential to at least advance to level 6. With enough luck and opportunities, I could even step into level 7. Back then, there weren’t as many level 6s in the Drazen family as there are now, so having someone with the potential to reach level 7 caused a big commotion. I was already hailed as a genius in economics at the time, so after my combat potential was revealed, I kind of became a superstar in the family," Freya explained, letting out a chuckle tinged with nostalgia.

"My parents' position and status instantly rose within the family, and the elders began preparing all the resources I would need to progress swiftly," Freya continued before her expression darkened. "All of that came crashing down the very instant I turned eighteen, though, because it was on that day that this mark appeared on my face."

Her expression hardened as she continued, "I can still remember the look on everyone’s faces at that moment. They all suddenly stared at me with a mix of disbelief and horror in their eyes—even my parents," she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper.

Glancing down, Freya saw Alex squeezing her hand as a sign of support. She smiled faintly before continuing, "In an instant, my world turned upside down. From the girl everyone wanted to be close to, I became the one everyone avoided like the plague. Fortunately—or unfortunately, I don’t know—the elders were adamant about not throwing me away and still believed I had some use. The fact that my mother was one of them probably helped."

"At that moment, I still held onto some hope that things would eventually turn for the better, but oh boy, how wrong I was," Freya chuckled to herself, though there was no humor in her voice. "The month after my mark appeared, I awakened my ability. The best way to describe this ability is that it was as crippling as it was beneficial."

Hearing her words, Alex grew curious about her ability and asked for more information. "What kind of ability was that?"

"It was an ability I had never heard of before," Freya explained. "It allowed me to increase my physical capabilities whenever I was in contact with mana. The richer in mana my environment was, the stronger I would become. And since we are constantly surrounded by mana, I would passively get stronger even if I did absolutely nothing."

"That's a pretty good ability," Alex whistled in amazement. He had never heard of such an ability—or even one remotely similar—but just from Freya's explanation, he could tell it was extremely overpowered. If someone had that ability, even if they did nothing but exist, they would eventually become a monster of strength.

"I also thought this ability was good at that time," Freya said, but her tone suddenly shifted, her expression turning somber. "That was until I learned about its drawback."

"And what was its drawback?"

"Remember how I said it was as crippling as it was beneficial?"

Alex nodded.

"Well, as it turns out, since I grow stronger physically by absorbing mana, I can't absorb that same mana to progress my level. Which meant that from the moment I awakened my ability, I became crippled—no longer having the opportunity to raise my level ever again."