Reincarnated as Itsuka Shido: Collecting Spirits as Lovers

When Shido opened his eyes, he was greeted by a boundless expanse of white stretching out endlessly in every direction. He glanced around, his brows furrowing slightly as the realization dawned upon him.

"I'm inside my Inner World again, huh?" Shido muttered with a voice tinged with both familiarity and frustration. This wasn't the first time he found himself here after losing consciousness.

However, he quickly concluded the situation of being here wasn't that bad. The abundance of mana within his Inner World presented an opportunity he couldn't pass up.

Sitting down cross-legged, Shido closed his eyes and focused, absorbing as much mana as his body could handle until he felt full and revitalized.

His thoughts inevitably drifted back to his earlier event with Origami. As he recalled her frantic cries and the pain etched on her face as she clung to him.

Shido let out a bitter sigh. "I'm such a bastard," Shido revealed a bitter smile as he thought of Origami.

The memory of her tears and the mix of agony and betrayal in her eyes weighed heavily on his chest. "But what could I do?" he thought helplessly. "I'm just… a normal guy."

Well, perhaps not entirely normal. After all, he had a system as his saving grace, and an eternal companion.

Yet, standing there amidst Origami's storm of pain and hatred, he had felt completely powerless. No system in the world could ease the weight of facing her feelings of being betrayed.

Still, facing Origami again after everything that happened was not something he currently could do. He could only hope that when he woke up, Origami's hatred towards him lessened even just a bit.

He admitted it was a gamble, a moment of sheer recklessness but at that time, it felt like his only option.

Shido's grimace softened slightly as he replayed the moment he had impaled himself on Origami's photon sword.

"I really must've lost my mind back then." Shido let out a bitter laugh, his fingers brushing against the spot on his chest where the sword pierced him.

That reckless gamble could've easily ended with his death if not for the miraculous resilience of his Spirit Body combined with Camael.

In a twisted way, it was the one moment where being reckless had somehow felt like the only path forward.

With a shake of his head, Shido snapped out of his thoughts and called out, "System."

[Yes, Host?]

"What happened after I passed out?" His voice carried an undertone of unease. Memories of Origami's frantic state replayed in his mind, leaving him to wonder if she had done something strange while he was unconscious.

Despite his concern, he convinced himself that Origami wouldn't do anything strange… right?

[After host lost consciousness, Origami hastily stopped your bleeding and brought you back to her apartment.]

Hearing this, Shido let out a small sigh of relief. At least his body was safe.

"Then how is she doing right now."

[She seems to have fallen asleep nursing you, Host.]

"I see…"

Hearing this, Shido lips curled up in a warm smile thinking that Origami truly cared for him even after what happened.

Knowing that everything is fine now, Shido could finally relax his tense shoulder. His body slumped down slowly on the ground inside his Inner World.

For now, there wasn't much he could do from within his Inner World.

Clearing his thoughts away from his head, Shido decided to attend to another pressing matter. He needed to purchase a skill that could reduce the pain he could feel.

His chest throbbed just from thinking about the earlier wound, and the vivid memory of being stabbed sent an involuntary shiver down his spine.

"Store." Shido commanded the system.

A display materialized before him, showcasing countless options. He navigated through the Skill Section and went to the Support Section under it.

After scrolling through a list of support abilities, Shido finally settled on the skill he needed the most right now. Without hesitation, he made the purchase.

[You have successfully purchased Pain Resistance (Intermediate Level).]

[10,000 SP has been deducted.]

[SP Remaining: 88,950.]

Satisfied, he then exited the store and closed the system panel.

Looking at his current balance, Shido realized he needed to prioritize completing the quests as soon as possible.

"I can't earn much EXP and SP in this world." Shido mused while clenching his fists. His progress felt sluggish, and staying in one place wouldn't get him any closer to his goals.

He needed to travel to another world, a place brimming with adventure and opportunities to grow stronger and gain the points he needed.

The thought made his eyes gleam with anticipation.

"And when I do…" he muttered, a small smirk forming on his lips. He couldn't stop himself from imagining the possibilities: summoning iconic anime heroines, going on an adventure with them, or even get closer with each other...

His smirk deepened as visions of beautiful girls flashed through his mind, graceful warriors, enchanting mages, and tsundere students.

The mere thought of meeting them, fighting alongside them, or even just enjoying their company brought a spark of excitement to his chest.

"But first…" Shido shook his head, forcing himself to focus. "I need to deal with what's in front of me."

Clearing his mind, he returned his attention to his newly acquired skill. With a determined expression, he brought up the system panel and viewed its description.

Pain Resistance (Intermediate Level): Reduces physical and soul-related pain by 20%.

Seeing that the skill only reduced pain by 20%, Shido knew it wasn't a significant amount, but it was enough to make a difference in critical situations.

Even a small reduction could help him endure and push through difficult battles.

He had chosen the intermediate level because he needed to have at least 50,000 SP reserves in case of emergency. Nevertheless, the skill could be improved gradually, and Shido was determined to max it out eventually.

Once the skill reached the Transcendent level, he would be completely immune to the physical and soul-based pain inflicted by his enemies.

However, this skill didn't protect against emotional pain. Strangely, though, Shido wasn't bothered by this.

He believed that emotional experiences, both good and bad, were part of what made him human though he was now a spirit.

Removing the ability to feel emotional pain would leave him incomplete and feel empty.

Content with his choice and sensing he had lingered long enough in his Inner World, Shido decided to wake up and returning to the real world.