Villain: 10x Rewards Begins With The Protagonist's Mother

At night, Natasha opened her eyes as the last traces of the manual’s knowledge settled into her mind.

’Path of Recultivation...’ She let out a slow breath. She had expected the manual to be somewhat useful, but this was way beyond what she had in mind.

The manual wasn’t anything groundbreaking on its own, but it gave her a clear map for rebuilding her strength instead of stumbling through it blind. It singlehandedly bumped her cultivation speed up by 20%.

Combined with the resources she had, her recovery was going to look completely different from here on out.

’At this rate, I should be able to cultivate back to Law Perception in 4 years...’ A small smile appeared on her lips.

But it vanished just as fast.

’It’s not fast enough... not nearly enough.’ As she thought about everything she still had to do, her shoulders started feeling heavy again.

She was about to get off the bed when a knock came from the door.

She already knew who it was. Nobody else lived in this mansion besides the two of them.

’What does he want at this hour?’ Her body tensed for a second as she looked at the clock.

10 pm.

"Master, are you awake? I want to talk to you about something." Dante’s voice came through the door.

Natasha’s mind instantly jumped to everything that happened in the kitchen. ’No, that shouldn’t be it. System said he didn’t notice the mana glow and didn’t think anything of the... finger lick.’

After thinking for a while, she couldn’t figure out what he wanted. She took a breath and forced her face into something normal.

She straightened her clothes and threw on a loose cardigan over her nightgown before heading to the door.

When she opened the door, Dante was standing outside with his head slightly lowered.

He looked like a student who got called to the principal’s office.

Natasha studied his face. He wasn’t angry and there wasn’t a trace of suspicion on his face either.

Instead, he looked... ashamed?

"What’s wrong?" She asked, tilting her head.

Dante stood there for a moment, rubbing the back of his neck, looking like he didn’t know how to start.

Seeing this, she stepped aside and let him in instead of making him stand at the door. "Come in."

Both of them sat on the chairs opposite each other. Natasha waited patiently for him to speak.

"Master, I’m sorry about lunch." Dante said with an embarrassed look on his face.

"...Huh?" She looked at him like she misheard.

"The pasta." He repeated, his voice dropping. "I know it was bad. You were really nice about it, but I could tell. You were just forcing yourself."

Natasha blinked and then blinked again, completely dumbfounded.

Out of all the things she had thought of, this was not one of them.

’He’s apologizing... for the food?’

"Dante, I told you I liked it." She said, shaking her head.

"Master, you don’t have to lie for my sake." Dante looked up at her with a weak smile. "I saw the way you were looking at the pasta. Your eyes were.... scary."

’I WAS LOOKING AT THE SYSTEM WINDOW YOU IDIOT!’ Natasha screamed internally.

But she obviously couldn’t say that.

"I... that’s just how I eat when I’m thinking." She said, grasping at the first excuse that came to mind.

"You think about things with a murderous look in your eyes?"

"Sometimes." She said with a straight face.

Dante stared at her for a second and then let out a small laugh. "Master, you’re really bad at lying."

"Okay fine." Dante’s expression shifted. The guilt was still there, but something else crept into his eyes. "Since I made you suffer through my cooking, let me make it up to you, Master."

"There’s really no need—" Natasha tried to stop him but he didn’t give her the chance.

"I’ll give you a massage!" He said, looking at her with determination. "I’ll do my best, I promise."

"I’m pretty confident at this!"

The smile on Natasha’s face died on the spot after hearing those words.

Massage.

His hands on her body.

After the day she just had.

Her brain instantly dragged her back to the kitchen against her will. His hands wrapping around her waist, those thick fingers working the dough while she stood so close she could smell him. The sound of him slapping it over and over while her filthy mind turned it into something that made her clench her thighs together.

And the one thing she was trying the hardest not to think about. Her lips around his finger and the pleased expression on his face.

Now this same man wanted to put his hands on her body.

At 10 pm.

In her bedroom.

"That’s really not necessary." Natasha said, the words coming out way faster than she meant them to. "I appreciate it, Dante, but I’m fine. Even though my realm is falling, I’m still an awakener."

The moment those words left her mouth, she saw the light in his eyes dimmed.

His shoulders dropped just slightly and he stood up from the chair.

"Right." He said with a small nod, his voice quieter than before. "Sorry, Master. I shouldn’t have bothered you this late."

He turned and started walking toward the door.

’Shit.’ Natasha felt her chest tighten.

She had seen that look before.

The look of someone who just got reminded that they were powerless. She had basically told him that his help wasn’t needed because she was an awakener.

’I didn’t mean it like that...!’

She opened her mouth to call him back, but before a single word came out, a blue screen slammed into her vision.

[New Mission: Shoulder the Burden]

[Description: Dante feels guilty for ruining your lunch. Even though his body is broken and his condition gets worse every day, he still wants to take care for you. Let him massage your neck and shoulders. He needs to feel useful.] 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

[Time Limit: 2 hours]

[Reward 1: Dante’s condition will stop declining.]

[Reward 2: Mana Zone (Epic)]

[Failure: No missions related to Dante’s condition for 100 days]

Natasha’s eyes locked onto the first reward and everything else disappeared.

[Dante’s condition will stop declining.]