1707 A Way to Level-up Intent-based Magic?

Roza felt as though she was melting in Eren's embrace.

Eren's kiss stirred a range of emotions within her that she believed had perished in her demonic heart.

She felt alive once more, sensing that her human side hadn't completely faded away. A part of her previous self seemed to linger.

Even after cleaning himself up, the scent of blood still clung to Eren, but to someone like Roza, it wasn't repulsive. To her, this was something primal and emotion-evoking.

"Hmmmmmm," she hummed as she returned Eren's kiss. She welcomed his hands, gently caressing her back. Each finger left a distinct touch, tracing imaginary lines on her body as Eren held her.

Roza's body, once as cold as an ice statue, began to warm from within. Her pale skin gained color as Eren's body provided the much-needed warmth.

It surprised Roza to realize how comforting someone's body warmth could be for her. She had believed that her transformation into Vepar's incarnation had erased her identity as Roza.

However, Eren's gesture reconnected her with the Roza she had known since birth. It made her realize that she wasn't completely a demon, no matter how the world may label her after her "true demon transformation."

Eren could sense the range of emotions budding within Roza. it was as if he had opened the floodgate of something that was supposed to stay close. He enjoyed the fact that he had so much sway over this girl from Labh Salem that he had come to know within only a few months.

'Some warmth is needed in one's life for them to appreciate the beauty of living. Nobody can enjoy a barren living for long,' Eren thought to himself as he kept on kissing Roza, feeling her body with his ever-restless hands.

Eren brought his hands between him and Roza before latching them onto her perky breasts. He squeezed and kneaded them as he nibbled on her earlobe. He would have kept on kissing her. But it was a bit distracting for him to keep on kissing her while he attended to her boobs.

"Aaaah… my…"

Whose mistake is that? When will you take responsibility for your lack of skills and planning?"

Reva Rain's voice and presence lingered in Eren's soul for all the wrong reasons. He recalled the torment she had subjected him to, making his first timeline a living nightmare. Or perhaps, it wasn't so much a recollection as an inability to forget.

'Damn it. I… I can't.'

Eren abruptly halted his advances on Roza as the flashbacks from his past hit him. It was as if someone had doused the fire within him by pouring cold water over it.

It was as if he had suddenly gained a post-nut clarity even before the actual act. He stood still and stopped moving his hands even when Roza was still in the heat of the moment.

It took a while for Roza to realize that something had changed within Eren. When she did, she felt extremely awkward and humiliated. She separated from Eren before mustering enough courage in an attempt to speak.

"You don't need to say anything. It's not you. It's me," Eren sighed as he got closer to Roza before placing his hands on her shoulder.

Eren said that it was not her fault that he had such a strong sense of enmity towards Vepar's previous possession. He didn't go into details but told Roza that Reva Rain was the worst Ranker from Anfang he ever had a chance to meet with.

"I know that Reva and you are two completely different beings. And that I shouldn't compare you. I also know that I should drop the baggage I have from the past and move on. But these things… they can't happen overnight even if one understands their nature.

I can control my emotions. I can pick and choose the memories I want to invoke at will. But I just need some time to do it in this case."

Eren spoke to Roza sincerely while caressing her cheek. Only now did he realize that he was not in complete control of his emotions. At least not as much as he thought he was. Especially when it came to controlling emotions that were attached to his core memories.

'Perhaps… I need a breakthrough in my ability to control my emotions as well. Only then can I level up my intent-based magic.'

The butcher thought to himself as he tried to console Roza.