Chapter 12: Convincing

Velma chuckled lightly.

’’Come on, don’t eye me like that. It’s not my fault you lack talent.’’

Aaron gasped.

’Is she trying to make me more jealous?’

He clenched his fists with a deep frown. He wanted to say at least his family was still alive. But he quickly decided against it. He wasn’t Soran.

So with an exhausted sigh he added.

’’Answer my question Velma. What exactly is your nature?’’

Velma smiled lightly.

’’Chill.. I was joking. Anyways...my nature allows me to copy the physical ability of whatever insect or Animal I touch."

Aaron raised an eyebrow.

"It makes you mirror animal physical capabilities with your human body."

Velma nodded quietly.

Aaron watched her blankly for a long moment...

Then he frowned.

"Wait..." He chuckled. "This doesn’t make sense. You could theoretically run as fast as a rabbit as long as you touch a rabbit and even jump as high as a frog as long as you hold one?"

Velma nodded again.

"Yes. It’s just... I have to keep holding them. If possibly, have any form of body contact with them or I would immediately lose their ability. And I can only use one animal or insect at a time."

She smiled awkwardly.

"I strain myself when I try to use two."

Aaron blinked, completely bewildered.

"Don’t that make you have access to more than one ability? As long as you hold an Animal, you copy it’s powers! You can basically do almost anything."

Velma gave him a satisfied smile, then placed a finger on her lips.

"Lower your voice Aaron. I told you already. My nature is quite overpowered. How do you think I was able to hide from an older and more powerful reincarnate when he attacked my home?"

Aaron’s brows furrowed in confusion but he did not say a word. So Velma lowered her finger, smiled and continued:

"I held on to a chameleon tightly and copied its ability to blend in with the environment. It made me completely unnoticeable."

With his little mouth hanging open, Aaron slowly shook his head in wonder.

"Wow. Just WoW! A nature like yours is just so... I... Now I see why you are so confident in venturing into the dungeon despite the deadly horrors the dwell within it."

Then his eyes slowly widened in sudden realization.

"That’s... That’s why you moved so fast when you knocked out Damien and why I never noticed you walk past my room."

Velma folded her arms nodded with a proud smile.

"You get it now."

Then Aaron’s expression immediately turned serious.

"How did you do it?"

Velma gave him startled look for a few seconds. Then she chuckled lightly and sat back on the bed beside Aaron.

She tied her hair in ponytail, turned to him and held his gaze intensely. Subconsciously, Aaron swallowed hard as he tried to hide his sudden nervousness.

It was the first time he was getting a proper look at her face.

In the dim light Damien’s room offered, he could see her scarlet eyes, disheveled long red hair and her ivory skin. She had assumed she just had a pretty face initially but he was wrong. Her hair had covered most of her face so he never got a good look. But now...

She was extremely gorgeous.

He had been wrong!

Still holding his gaze, she said in a low tone.

"Look behind my ear."

Aaron flinched.

"W-What?!"

"Look behind my ear." She repeated with a calm expression.

Aaron slowly nodded and brought his face close to her cheeks to get a good look.

He raised her loose hair gently and rested his gaze on her ear.

For a second or two he saw nothing. But a moment later eyes widened in realization.

He saw it.

A little black spider was perfectly glued to the back of her ear. It was struggling to leave but the glue she had used to stick it behind her earlobes seemed to be stronger.

Still keeping his gaze on her ear he asked:

"I thought you had to hold the Animal... Or insect."

She shrugged.

"It doesn’t necessarily have to be my hands. I said as long as my body touches, it’s enough to do the trick."

Not taking his eyes off her ear he asked again:

"And the spider helped you move fast and undetected?"

Velma nodded in hesitation.

"Yes... Spiders jump really fast that they’re undetectable. It just doesn’t work well on humans because we are bigger and have a wider perspective. So we see them. But when I replicate it, it becomes very effective.’’

Aaron sighed.

When she moved to knock out Damien she didn’t run, she jumped. She was just too fast for him to notice.

He glanced at her neck— which was surprisingly smooth despite her feral nature.

And considering her Ability there were so many ways a spider could go past his room and he would fail to notice.

Slowly he left the lose hair he was holding and traced the back of her neck with the tip of his fingers.

’’Sooooo Smooth"

She flinched a little.

"What are you doing?"

Still resting his eyes on her neck, Aaron began to caress it

"I’m just wondering how someone so feral and wild looking could be so soft and feminine at the same time."

Velma gave him a suspicious side glance. She stayed quiet for sometime before breathing out

"You know, I am beginning to reconsider your proposal. I don’t think you are someone a girl should live with."

Aaron froze for a second. Then protested.

"Hey, that’s rude!"

Velma chuckled and wiped his fingers away with the back of her hand before standing up.

"That’s what I’d have said if we were on Earth. But here, you are not strong enough to molest me. You don’t even have a system."

Aaron sighed in disappointment.

"Yeah... Thanks for reminding me of my shortcomings."

Velma smiled at him.

"Now, take me to your room."