Fuse

And now, my clothes were all good as new.

Putting my clothes back on, a notification appeared in front of me.

Achievement Unlocked!

[Wait, That Actually Came In Handy?]

Requirements: Actually use the stylist profession for its intended purpose.

Addendum: Why have others fix your clothes when you can do it yourself?

Rewards: Increased Stylist Proficiency, 1 New Profession Slot, 1 gacha token, Medium Increase in Social Ranks.

[Your Charisma Rank has increased to C!]

[Your Charm Rank has increased to C-!]

[Your Luck Rank has increased to C+!]

[Your Social Rank has increased to C!]

Why does the achievement sound so surprised? Do people not get their clothes ruined while fighting sometimes?

Well, I guess it's fine.

Now, let me open the gacha token real quick.

Rare Skill Rolled.

[Message - Grants you the ability to speak to anyone telepathically within a 50 meter radius. The receiver can also talk to you this way.]

Ah, that sounds pretty useful. That can definitely get me out of a sticky situation in the future.

Now, I guess I should figure out what my next profession should be.

Hm, something to help me make bullets and guns would be nice. While Taiclet is a fellow American who no doubt has my back, I kind of don't want to depend on him for everything.

So, maybe a blacksmith? But then I have no idea where I'd start with that.

Meaning I would have to leech off of Dori some more.

Damn it, I really need to hurry up with my progress so I can pay off my debts faster…

You have gained a fortune cookie!

Oh, hey, I haven't gotten one of these in a while. I wonder what I got this time?

'The lies and deceit of Vale lies buried, as we ascend above its carcass, almighty.'

The lies and deceit of Vale? Where the hell is Vale?

Damn, I really hate these fortunes sometimes, saying the most random crap.

Luckily though, the cookies are pretty nice.

Munching on the cookie, a fantastic idea pops into my head.

Why don't I just become a chef? That way, I can keep eating good food, and I can always repay my debt just by feeding them!

Well, actually, all my fellow players are probably already good chefs, or employ chefs…

Then really, it's just me feeding Dori.

Huh, that kind of sucks. But you know what, I want to eat well too. I'll walk the path of the chef!

New Profession Unlocked!

Requirements: Decide to walk the path of the chef.

[Chef - Cooking is your art, and all forms of cooking will be unlocked for you.]

Starter skills unlocked.

[Cooking Proficiency - Beginner]

Sweet, I'll work on that later.

Well, I guess I ran out of things to procrastinate with, so I guess I'll go to Dori for my…

Eh, I'm calling it a business proposal.

Hopefully this doesn't pan out too awkwardly.

"What."

Yeah this panned out too awkwardly.

I shrugged as casually as I could, "I'm basically asking for sex so I can get another gacha token to fuel my gambling addiction."

Dori suspiciously looked at me as she pointed at herself, "With me."

"Well, the only other American I know is Nahida," I said, "And I'd rather cut my own dick off than bang a foreigner."

"So if I said no, you would go to Nahida?" Dori asked.

I nodded, "Yeah, I guess so."

"But you're not romantically interested in either of us and are just going for material gain."

"That's exactly right."

Dori hummed as she considered the offer, "Well, I am an expensive girl to buy… Hey, out of curiosity, what would it take for you to romantically consider either of us?"

I thought about it for a second before replying, "My ideal girl is one that I can put my head on theirs or on their shoulder. And, well, you two are a bit too short for that."

Dori rolled her eyes, "Somehow, I regret asking, but duly noted."

In my head, that sounded like Dori was going to keep that little bit of info somewhere to use as blackmail later. But it's probably fine.

Then Dori asked, "Alright, back to the deal, how's it going in that new world?"

"It's not safe for you to enter yet. I haven't beaten the crap out of Garbanag yet," I answered, knowing she was interested in world hopping.

Dori frowned, "Alright, but you'll let me take a look as soon as you kill him, right?"

I nodded, "Yep, that's always been the plan."

Dori scratched her chin, figuring out a fair deal, "Hmm… Say, I heard from Nahida that you have the potential to become a god. Is that true?"

Huh? How did Nahida… Well, I guess gods can probably sense other gods.

I confirmed Dori's question, "Yeah, I do have the potential to become a god. I'm just morally opposed to it, though."

Dori tilted her head, "Huh, why are you opposed to becoming a god?"

"All men are created equal," I quoted the Declaration of Independence, "Gods aren't very equal, obviously."

"What do you need to do to become a god?" Dori asked, suddenly becoming very interested in this line of thought.

"Uhh…" I checked my deity menu, reading through the instructions, "I think I need worshipers, mostly."

Dori raised an eyebrow, seemingly not believing me, "Just worshipers?"

I nodded, "Yeah. I got my ability to ascend into godhood just by killing Luciel a while back. So now I would just need worshipers, and then a 'domain' to be the god of."

"Is wealth an option?"

Wait, is Dori asking what I think she's asking?

"Are you trying to get me to become the god of wealth in exchange for sex?" I asked, somewhat impressed by her boldness.

Dori nodded shamelessly, "Yep, I am. Like I said, I'm an expensive girl. And you know what? I might even become your first worshiper, if you're into that type of stuff. Otherwise, I'm sure I can get some gullible clowns in Sumeru to worship you."

That… Sure is a hard bargain.

On the one hand, I get more powerful. On the other hand, my conscience as an American doesn't let me accept the fact that I'm spitting in the face of equality.

"Quite frankly, I'm not fond of this deal," I told her, getting a disappointed look on her face, "It's not like I can just take godhood back so easily. And I would much rather be an average American than be a god."

"Well, just take it in Nahida's point of view, then," Dori proposed, "She may be the god of Sumeru, but she's also just a regular Sumerian once you get to know her. And besides, aren't you already different with, you know, the whole getting stronger by hopping through worlds thing?"

I crossed my arms, "Me being able to live the life of a fantasy protagonist doesn't immediately compel people to start praying in my name. Even our presidents are just normal people at the end of the day."

Dori looked a bit disappointed at my abject refusal, "Is that so? Well, what if I just start praying to you anyways? Would that turn you into a god?"

…I genuinely have no clue.

I shrugged, "I have no idea. I would guess no, but I somehow wouldn't be surprised if the answer was yes."

"Then what would you do to me if I got people to worship you without your approval?" Dori questioned.

Oh, now that's a hard question.

On one hand, if she were a Sumerian, I would probably just beat the hell out of her and the people she tricked in an attempt to get them to stop believing.

But since she's American…

"I guess I would just slap you on the wrist and tell you not to do that anymore. And if you were to keep doing it…" I hummed, not having a good answer, "Well, you are my friend. I guess I would just have to accept it."

Dori's eyes suddenly turned predatory, "And as a god, you could grant blessings, right?"

"...Maybe?"

Dori lined out her final offer, "Then here's my offer. In exchange for getting your one divine gacha token through sex with me, I will become your one singular worshiper and you'll become a god of wealth. And then you'll bless me with whatever godly power you can every day, or permanently if that's an option. And you can figure out a way to dump your godhood later, and I won't ask about it again."

I narrowed my eyes on her.

That doesn't fix the issue at all of the whole 'gods being different from people' thing. But if Dori were to eventually just stop worshiping me, I might just be able to turn back into a mortal again…

But is the potential risk of my godhood being eternal worth a singular divine gacha token? My last divine gacha token was an absolute scam, after all…

Hm, well, I'm sure that someone in the Player's Hub will have a solution to curing deification. As long as I believe in it hard enough, it'll become true, after all.

I open my hands to her, "I think I'll accept the deal."

Dori grinned as she shook my hand, "Good! I'll be sure to make things pleasant for you, Fuse."

[Perk: Deal with the devil has activated. You will now get 2 divine gacha tokens for Dori's side of the deal. However, your godhood will now be extended for a longer period of time, regardless of the number of followers you have. And you can only bless Dori while you fade away from godhood.]

2 divine gacha tokens? Oh that's good… But damn, forcing me to stay as a god longer is a dick move. But at the very least, I now know it can be removed.

"Now, how should I pray to you?" Dori asked, "Should I give you an offering, or should I just offer you my voice?"

I tilted my head, "Why are you asking me? This was your idea."

"Well, all gods have their specific ways of wanting to be worshiped. So I'm asking you, how do you want to be worshiped?" Dori replied.

I sighed, "I don't know, I guess just pray?"

Dori nodded as she clasped her hands, "Then Fuse, please grant me just a bit of your blessing so that I can become the richest merchant in existence…"

[You have gained your very first worshiper! The Domain you have gained by them is: Wealth!]

[You may now choose a second domain.]

Achievement Unlocked!

[Theory on Godhood]

Requirements: Become a God.

Rewards: Guaranteed Rank Up item, Divine Aura,

[Guaranteed Rank Up Item - When used, your selected ranks will increase by 1 (Ex: C++ to C+++)]

[Divine Aura - People around you can now feel your divinity. Can be toggled on & off. Costs no mana. Requires divinity to use.]

"Oh, that worked," I said, tapping through my new menus, "And by the way, I'm the god of wealth and freedom now."

[You are now Fuse, God of Wealth and Freedom!]

[You may grant 1 minor blessing every day to one of your followers. The amount of blessings you can give and the powers it brings is based on the number of followers you have.]

[If you go without gaining followers for an extended period of time, your godhood may fade away!]

Thanks, system. I know, I'm hoping for it.

Alright, now, can I give my 1 blessing to Dori?

[Follower: Dori has been blessed!]

Dori blinked, "I felt that. I somehow feel… More free and lucky."

"It's a 'minor blessing,' whatever that means. So don't think you have all the luck in the world, but you might get a better deal later today," I explained.

Dori hummed, chewing on my words for a bit, then she looked at me, "Huh, you don't look any different."

I shrugged, "What did you expect? For me to turn into a dragon or something?"

"No, I just thought gods might look different. But you're just Fuse," Dori said.

That's…

"Dori, that may be the greatest compliment someone has ever given me. Let's go to your bed. Now."

"Huh? That wasn't a… Oh, whatever, sure, I'll fulfill my part of the deal."

Nahida

It was very faint, but she felt the birth of a new god just now.

There's basically no doubt in her mind that the new god wasn't Fuse. Fuse is the only candidate for a new god to arise in Sumeru.

Though, how did Fuse become a god? That's something she needs to ask him the next time she sees him…

Nahida was a bit tempted to go check out what Fuse was doing, but considering how Fuse is adamant about personal freedom, it wasn't the wisest thing to try and invade his mind like that just to see what he's doing.

Well, according to the small burst of power that he emitted when he became a god, Fuse was likely at Dori's home. Nahida isn't quite sure why that place was the place he decided to ascend, but again, she doesn't have the answers to those questions.

Well, either way, if Fuse was going to stick around Sumeru for a while instead of just camping out in that other world, she should probably formulate a response in case any other gods decide to check out what had happened in Sumeru…

Someone knocked on the door, "Lord Kusanali, it's me, Cyno. I have some news."

"Come in," Nahida allowed.

Cyno entered the room, did a short bow, and started to say, "First of all, in terms of foreign news, I've just learnt Inazuma's Saikotu decree has ended."

Ah, that's interesting. But maybe not so relevant right now. She'll be sure to send the Raiden Shogun a letter.

Cyno continued, "Additionally, we've finished drafting a rough template for how voting will work in Sumeru."

And that's good news. Now if Fuse asks for their progress, they won't be empty handed.

Nahida smiled at Cyno, "I see. That's good, make sure you go over the rough draft meticulously. I'll go over it at a later date. Now, I have to go visit Fuse for a few moments, so if you'll excuse me…"

Nahida disappeared in a burst of light.

Fuse

Dori's first words after we finished was, "Fuse, you kind of sucked at this."

I, quite frankly, agreed with her, "Yeah, I did kind of suck at this. Sorry."

As I figured out a few years ago, I'm kind of a bottom. And Dori, apparently, also is a bottom so I had to step up. And obviously that didn't turn out well.

Honestly, I'm just going to blame it on me being half slime and call it a day.

"Did you at least get what you wanted out of this?"

"Yeah, I did."

[Divine Gacha Token x2]

Should I roll now? Or after I clean up? Now that's the question…

Wait a second, I'm deathly terrified of water, how the hell am I going to clean myself without water?

"Dori, do you have a towel anywhere?"

"...We have a bath."

"I'm deathly terrified of water."

"Oh, right. Towels are also in the bathroom, but you're responsible for cleaning it after you're done using it."

"Don't you have attendants for that sort of thing?"

"Weren't you just talking about how you didn't want to be different? Go clean your own stuff."

"God damn it you're right."

I groaned, getting up from the bed.

Yeah, I'm never doing this again.

AN:

Being a low-tier god doesn't give Fuse extra stats, that comes at a higher tier. But since Fuse is planning on ditching godhood ASAP, he's basically the same except he just "Feels" different. Mostly so I don't have to keep track of any extra stats he gets.

Maybe one day, Fuse will actually come around to the idea of being a fully formed god, but it's certainly not today. He's doing this for his gambling addiction.

Well, my gambling addiction, I'm writing all of this. But you know what I mean.

Next upload is on Monday for President's Day.

[Also I think this is the first time one of my protagonists actually got laid. Congrats, Fuse. It's a shame you're ass at it.]

[I was thinking about uploading this on Valentine's Day, but Valentine's Day isn't an American holiday, and we do no exceptions.]

[This is 100% for Fuse's April Fools battle against Vagisilious and I'm not sorry about it. In fact, his divinity will probably fade out literally 1 chapter after April Fools. So, in like… 6 chapters from now? And we'll probably beat the hell out of Garbanag in that time too.]