Seducing the Guideverse With My System — Raising an Anomaly [BL]

"Absolutely not." Ambrose didn’t even hesitate after Viktor’s suggestion. "Nope. I’m sorry, but I’m not giving up my secrets. Not until I’ve gotten powerful enough to protect them."

Viktor pursed his lips with disappointment. "Ambrose—"

"I said no, Viktor." The Guide’s voice remained firm. "I’ve managed to stay under the radar this long as nothing but a normal C-Rank Guide, and yet we still had crazy people like Josiah and Han Jae-won trying to pry open my secrets like a can of fucking sardines."

His voice rose toward the end. He noticed, making him glance toward the living room subconsciously.

Orion was peacefully eating his tacos, the television screen glowing on his face.

Seeing that, he brought his eyes back to everyone around the island. "I can’t trust the Pantheon as I’ve done with you all. Besides, this isn’t just our fight anymore. It’s the entire world. The whole multiverse if we truly want to talk about scale."

Valentine steepled his fingers on the island. "While I agree we can’t vouch for the Pantheon here," He kept his attention glued on Ambrose. "We won’t be able to face these Archons properly if the most powerful beings on the planet are divided. And Rory... whether you like it or not, you’ve become part of that list."

Ambrose blinked with astonishment. "Really, Valentine? Aren’t you the one who taught me how to keep my secrets hidden better?"

"That’s before those secrets became one of our only hopes of winning this." The Necromancer’s voice softened. "Orion’s abilities. Your system and ability to keep levelling up while keeping multiple Espers permanently linked to you. All this will be vital in giving us a fighting chance against this new enemy."

"I—"

"And from what you told us, future Ambrose had some form of familiarity with the Pantheon. This might be it, Rory. Maybe you don’t need to wait much longer to finally reveal yourself."

Loki let out a quiet breath before either Viktor or Valentine could continue.

"I don’t think there’s any point forcing this tonight." They folded their arms, leaning one hip against the kitchen island. "Whether Ambrose tells the Pantheon tomorrow or five months from now is still his decision." Their gaze settled on the Guide. "None of us should be rushing that."

The tension around the kitchen loosened ever so slightly.

"For now," Loki continued, "we’ve got something far more productive to focus on."

They swept their eyes across everyone gathered there.

"And that’s preparing."

Their tone remained calm, but there wasn’t a trace of their usual playfulness anymore.

"Mental preparation. Physical preparation. Political preparation." They ticked each point off on their fingers. "Whatever Kali saw... we don’t know when it’s happening. That uncertainty should scare us. But it also means we’ve still got time."

"Time," Devon muttered, "is probably the most valuable resource we’ve got."

"And we shouldn’t waste it," Gabriel added quietly. "Especially since right now we aren’t sure exactly how long we have."

Ambrose rested both palms against the kitchen island. "I’ve already got two priorities."

Everyone looked at him.

"The first is Orion."

His gaze drifted toward the living room.

"If Future Me was willing to risk everything just to make sure Orion got sent to the past with me safely while having his powers locked..." A small smile tugged at his lips. "...then I’m not letting him spend another day fumbling around with his abilities."

Through the doorway, Orion burst into laughter at something Neil deGrasse Tyson had just said on television.

Ambrose’s smile softened.

"I need to speedrun his training."

"And the second?" Devon asked.

Ambrose’s expression hardened again. "Myself." He slowly turned toward Viktor. "Vik, I know exactly what you’re trying to do."

The Ice Prince remained silent.

"And I appreciate it." Ambrose exhaled. "Really, I do."

He shook his head.

"But unless revealing everything becomes necessary... I’m waiting."

"For how long?" Viktor asked.

"Until I’ve crossed into an SS-Rank Aether Hybrid."

Everyone stayed quiet after that declaration.

Viktor studied him for several seconds before asking the question everyone else was thinking.

"And you’re willing to risk waiting that long?"

"Yes." There wasn’t even the slightest hesitation. "If I’m exposing every secret I’ve spent months protecting," Ambrose folded his arms, "Then I want enough power that nobody can force those secrets back out of me afterwards. Ever."

Nobody argued.

Even Viktor merely gave a slow nod.

"I still disagree," he admitted. "But I understand."

Ambrose smiled gratefully. "That’s all I’m asking."

Leaving the adults to their thoughts, he quietly walked into the living room.

Orion barely noticed him at first, completely captivated by Neil deGrasse Tyson enthusiastically explaining the formation of black holes.

"Daddy!" The little boy shifted over immediately, patting the space beside him. "Come watch! They’re talking about black holes now!"

"I figured, buddy." Ambrose sank onto the couch beside him.

For a few peaceful minutes, he simply watched.

The narrator’s calm voice filled the room while stars exploded across the television screen, Orion’s eyes sparkling with childlike wonder.

It was funny how the universe looked so beautiful from a distance.

"So," Orion whispered without taking his eyes off the screen, "do you think space is really that big?"

Ambrose chuckled.

"Buddy... I think it’s even bigger."

He ruffled Orion’s hair, earning an annoyed little huff.

’Aura.’

[Yes, sweetheart?]

’Check the seal.’

A translucent screen quietly unfolded before his eyes.

[CurrentSealStatus: 58%]

His brows lifted. ’Already...?’

He’d barely noticed it falling this quickly.

The system continued calculating silently before disappearing.

Ambrose leaned back against the couch.

Fifty-eight per cent.

It wasn’t exactly close to breaking completely.

But... Maybe he’d been approaching this from the wrong angle.

His gaze slowly drifted toward Orion again.

Toward the tiny sparks of Aether dancing unconsciously around the boy’s fingertips whenever he got excited.

A thought suddenly clicked into place.

A very dangerous... Very ambitious thought.

A slow smile spread across Ambrose’s face.

[Sweetheart...]

Aura’s voice carried an unmistakable note of suspicion.

[Please don’t do anything stupid.]

Ambrose’s eyes already glinted decisively. ’I guess it depends on your definition of stupid, Aura.’ he relaxed more on the couch, resting an arm on the headrest. ’But we’ll see...’

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!