MMORPG: Birth of the World's Luckiest Player-Chapter 261: Alana’s Devotion

"Alana, here. I want you to have this Blood-Fiend Fruit."

Marcus held the rare fruit out to her with a warm, unguarded smile.

The pull of status within the Dragon Dynasty’s hierarchy had its appeal, of course, but Marcus had never been the type to chase titles for their own sake. Power meant little if it came at the expense of the people he cared about. Handing something this valuable over to the empire felt hollow when he could instead place it in the hands of the woman standing before him.

"For me?" Alana’s voice came out soft, almost fragile. She looked at him as if she wasn’t quite sure she had heard him right, her eyes glimmering with confusion and something deeper, something steadily growing.

"Of course." Marcus nodded without hesitation. "A fine blade belongs in the hands of a hero, and something beautiful deserves to be preserved. You’re... incredible, Alana. Honestly. A fruit like this, something that can hold onto youth, would be wasted on anyone else. If you ask me, there’s no one more deserving."

He studied her as he spoke, not bothering to hide the admiration in his gaze. Alana carried a kind of elegance that didn’t feel entirely mortal, a quiet refinement that set her apart without effort. If the fruit could preserve that, freeze it in time, then to Marcus it was a trade more than worth making.

"Thank you, Master," she said, her voice softer still.

Something in his sincerity reached her. The restraint she usually carried slipped away, and she leaned into him, her slender form pressing gently against his chest as he wrapped an arm around her. For a moment, the world of Dominion seemed to recede, leaving only the warmth between them, steady and real in a way the game rarely felt.

A crisp chime broke through the stillness.

Ding!

"System Notification: Congratulations, Stonehaven! Alana’s affection for you has increased significantly. Intimacy has increased by 3 points. Current Intimacy Level: 98/100."

’Ninety-eight.’

The number settled in Marcus’s mind with a quiet sense of victory. Just two points away.

He barely had time to dwell on it. Alana shifted slightly in his arms, lifting her hand to his face. Her fingers brushed along his jaw before she leaned in and pressed a light, fleeting kiss against his lips.

Then she pulled back.

"But... Master, I’m sorry," she said, her voice gentle, though her eyes lingered on his. "I can’t accept the Blood-Fiend Fruit."

Marcus blinked, the refusal catching him completely off guard. "What? Why not?" He frowned slightly, searching her expression. "Do I need to feed it to you myself or something?"

"Master..." A deep blush spread across her cheeks, and she turned her face aside, clearly flustered. The mix of shyness and something more playful only made her more captivating.

Marcus’s grin widened, his thoughts already wandering in a far less innocent direction, but whatever he had in mind didn’t last long.

"Master, I have the Body of a Hundred Flowers," she explained, glancing back at him with a hint of mischief. "Once I turn twenty, my appearance will stabilize on its own. I won’t age for a hundred years. The Blood-Fiend Fruit wouldn’t actually change anything for me."

Marcus let out a groan, realization hitting all at once. "So that’s it? You just wanted to see my reaction?" He narrowed his eyes at her, though there was no real irritation behind it. "Playing games with your own Master... I think that deserves a little discipline."

Before she could respond, he leaned in and kissed her.

This time, it wasn’t fleeting.

Alana didn’t resist. Her arms slipped around his neck as she returned the kiss, her earlier hesitation melting into something warmer, more certain. The air between them thickened, her faint floral scent lingering as they lost themselves in the moment.

When they finally parted, both of them were breathing a little harder.

A deep flush had spread across Alana’s face, her heart beating fast enough that Marcus could feel it through the space between them. The intensity of it, the closeness, sent a sharp thrill through him.

"You little troublemaker," he murmured, his voice roughened slightly.

His hand settled at her waist, then drifted upward, almost absentmindedly, as if drawn there. Alana’s reactions were impossible to ignore, that mix of innocence and quiet eagerness making even the smallest contact feel charged.

"You really thought you could refuse something I gave you?" he teased softly. He leaned in closer, brushing his lips against her ear before pressing a light kiss to the tip of her nose. "I should be upset with you."

Knowing she didn’t need the fruit should have settled things completely, yet what lingered in Marcus’s mind wasn’t disappointment. If anything, it only made him more aware of her, not just her beauty, but who she was beneath it. The longer they spent together, the clearer it became that Alana wasn’t simply the composed, dutiful attendant she appeared to be.

She was lively. Playful. And somehow, she had become the one presence in this digital world that felt genuinely real to him.

"I understand now, Master," Alana said, her tone turning more serious as she met his gaze again. "I love you. I want to stay with you... always."

"And I want that too." Marcus exhaled quietly, though his attention drifted back to the fruit still in his hand. "Still... what a waste. Giving something like this to an NPC princess instead of you just feels wrong. Princess Celeste better appreciate what she’s getting."

The Blood-Fiend Fruit wasn’t just rare, it was legendary. In Dominion, something that could halt aging for twenty years was the kind of treasure people would kill for. It just happened to be useless for players. Otherwise, he would have saved it without hesitation for Lily in the real world.

He ran through the rest of his companions in his mind.

Lyanna, the Wyvern Saint Knight, was practically divine. Camillo, the Vixen Queen, existed on an entirely different level of existence. Their beauty wasn’t something time could touch. And now Alana, in her own way, stood outside that limitation as well.

"Unbelievable," Marcus muttered, a short laugh escaping him. "My team’s so ridiculous I can’t even find a use for a legendary item like this. Guess I’ll just turn it in and get the reward."

It stung a little more than he expected. He liked being the one who could provide, the one who could give something meaningful, yet none of them needed it.

"Are you worried Princess Celeste won’t be worthy of it?" Alana asked gently, picking up on his mood. She smiled, reassuring and calm. "You don’t need to be. The Princess is truly beautiful. In some ways... she might even surpass me. Your gift won’t be wasted. If anything, it could become something people talk about across the Dreamland Continent."

Marcus raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced. "More beautiful than you? That’s hard to believe."

He thought back to the women in his life. Lily, Anya, Chloe, even Lyanna, each one exceptional in her own way. Aside from someone like Camillo, whose allure bordered on the unreal, he couldn’t easily imagine anyone surpassing them. Even his sister Amber held her own in that regard.

Yet Alana spoke with quiet certainty, not jealousy.

Admiration.

"Really?" Marcus asked at last, curiosity slipping into his voice. "There’s actually someone out there who can outshine you?"