Phobos first had to find an item to improve. He could use his body but for the purpose of improving his ability, a small item would be better. As for why he needed an item at all was because he could better target his ability while it was in action.

He chose to use the revolver that Hera left with him. Starting his ability something like a virtual reality space was created. In it, there was an analyzed version of the revolver. In fact, whenever he uses his ability this virtual space is created but he just doesn’t pay much attention to it.

For Phobos, the final product is important not the process. However, he does understand it. There are two general ways his ability works. The first being targeted improvement. When Phobos knows what he wants to improve and has a general idea of how to improve it. Then the improvement ability follows that direction and tries to create the best version.

Then there is the second method. This is when Phobos has no idea how to improve the item and even doesn’t have an idea what can be improved. That is when his ability starts to make dozens of versions of the item being improved with random small differences. After which it is tested in the virtual world and when the best version of the many is chosen it is once again improved on that iteration.

The test in the virtual world is unneeded because of the analyzing aspect of his ability which allows him to know all the specifications of an item but Phobos likes to have a test to see how it would translate in the real world.

In most cases, both ways are used in tandem when improving to create a better item. But this didn’t matter much. Phobos at the moment was focused on the virtual world which was being created every time he initialized his ability.

What he wanted to do was stop this virtual world from occupying his whole mind and transfer it to his subconscious. He was capable of using his ability without lending his brain to it and when he did it was a bit similar to what he was trying to do.

However, it was more of a vague feeling sent from his ability and Phobos in turn could send vague instructions to it. He wanted to keep the direct link with his brain and for his ability to utilize his processing power but still keep his senses. But still wanted his ability to work with small input.

He knew that the simulated world was the answer. For about an hour he tried to send it to his subconscious brain. And finally, he was successful. At first, Phobos felt like he was drunk. But after waiting around for a bit he knew that it wasn’t that he was drunk but his intelligence had dropped.

Rather it hadn’t dropped but was allocated to a different task. When Phobos looked in his mind what he found was something like a window and in it, he was the simulated world. His initial idea was that when he used his ability, it would create such a window in his subconscious and there his improvement ability would do the job.

However, for some reason, it became a permanent allocation of processing power. This is why he was feeling drunk. Most of his intelligence was used by his subconscious to help his ability to improve an item, in this case, the revolver. While some were spared for conscious thought processes.

Phobos feeling a bit uncomfortable tried to stop his ability but his mind-space didn’t change. There was still a window in which the revolver was being constantly improved. He took the revolver that was in his hands and placed it on the table. He hasn’t been able to improve things without touching them so leaving the revolver aside should stop his ability.

However, that wasn’t the case. The improvement of the revolver in his subconscious was continuing. He saw that although the revolver in his mind was changing, the one on the table was not. It was like the improvement process was continuing in his virtual world alone.

That was basically what was happening. What was being improved in his mind was only the design of the revolver but there was no physical change. He took the revolver in his hand again and saw that the new design which was improved in his mind was being applied to the physical copy.

Maybe it was because of his analyzing ability aspect the simulated reality he created was a perfect copy of the real world so any improvement designed there would be feasible outside. That didn’t surprise Phobos. What surprised him was that when he took the revolver from the table and applied the improvement it was really inexpensive.

The energy cost if he had held the revolver the whole time he was improving it would have been at least twice what it took only to apply the design he created in his simulation. The most likely cause being that every iteration of an item is being applied but when he wasn’t in contact with the item he skipped this step. Thus it was less expensive.

For now, Phobos felt that he should bear the drunk feeling. Most likely it wouldn’t last that long either. After all not only his strength and speed were being passively improved by his ability. His intelligence also followed.

It may take some time to return to at least his previous IQ but it should return at some point even if this simulated world was on nonstop in his subconscious. Leaving it for now Phobos went to his bedroom.

He was really feeling tipsy. His lowered intelligence shouldn’t mess with his balance but maybe because it was so sudden he was a bit disoriented. When he entered the room there was a repeat of yesterday. Once again three beautiful women were waiting for him on the bed.

This time however Phobos didn’t feel strange. And as he had an agreement with Diana he won’t reject her again. The three of them had laid down on the mattresses and were only clad with their lingerie. Phobos felt that he shouldn’t be rude so he undressed as well.

Eve and Hera were on the sides while Diana was sprawled in the center. For Phobos, it isn’t a strange sight. Quite often he has enjoyed such a view, just the woman in the middle has a tendency to change.

Usually, when he sleeps with a new woman he has to figure out all her pleasure spots and what she likes and dislikes. However thanks to the analyzing aspect of his ability he was able to immediately know all of Diana’s pleasure spots just as he embraced her. While keeping the analyzing ability on it constantly fed back to him if she liked or disliked something.

Phobos was glad he could finally bypass the frustrating puzzle part of the act and go directly to the fun part. As this was the first time Diana was with him he was a bit milder with her. Although she was still left panting and exhausted with a blissful smile on her face.

Of course, he didn’t neglect Eve and Hera at all. Phobos had never neglected them even before gaining this ability and with it, they were again left in a debilitated state in a record time. In the end, there were only three sweaty beautiful bodies either delirious or unconscious.

He only now could appreciate Diana’s body. It was on the same tier as Eve and Hera. The perfect curves and supple form were alluring especially when they were glistening after a vigorous workout.

She was a bit more curvaceous but had no excess fat anywhere on her body. If any lingerie company saw her they would come begging for her to sign a contract with them.

Phobos took the bedspread and as he lay beside them he covered them. Tonight because of his upgrade in his ability he will more easily improve in his sleep. Especially when he will be targeting Diana’s ability to condense a Word.

While Phobos and the girls had already entered dreamland in the restaurant there were three more women who were a bit worried. The only one really worried was Anna but her mood was spreading to Megan and Alice.

What Anna was worried about was that being a part of the group would demand of them to accompany Phobos as Diana just had. Although the rooms were a bit sound-insulated they could still hear her screams and shrieks of pleasure.

If this was before the catastrophe Anna wouldn’t mind at all sleeping with Phobos. Such a fine specimen of the human species was rare to find. However, it may be because of the helplessness she was feeling or that she didn’t have a choice if they demanded it, which repulsed the idea of her sleeping with him.

The living and safety conditions were exponentially getting better for the group in a time when survival should have been at stake.

She may be able to leave now and no one would chase her but leaving the convenience and safety of the group meant that it was very likely that a fate way worse than sleeping with a beautiful playboy was waiting for her. There was the question whether she should take Megan with her a well and expose her to the same danger.

What calmed Anna down was that they had no interest in forcing her or Megan and Alice to do it. After all, just a few hours ago Hera had given each of them a quite powerful-looking revolver. If they wanted to pressure them into Phobos’s bed they would have kept the weapon for self-protection away from them.

There was one more factor that indicated that they wouldn’t be forced. Phobos had no interest whatsoever in her or the other two. Anna didn’t know how to feel about that. It calmed her down as she wasn’t seen as the next prey but it hurt her self-esteem as well.

It was quite a contradictory feeling. It isn’t that every man she has met has salivated for her because she was a gorgeous woman but most men had some reaction. The levels of disinterest Phobos show usually came from men who had different orientations or had no desire for sex. But his more than “healthy” nightlife showed that he was part of neither group.

This is why Anna didn’t know if she should be happy or sad. Being able to enjoy the safety of the group as long as she contributed what she could, was a happy event. However, even if she was not one to compare herself with other people when comparing Diana with herself, Megan and Alice, they weren’t worse in any way. They each had different charms but the level was about the same.

While Anna was struggling ideologically in her mind, Alice and Megan were a lot calmer. Alice was calm because she was innocent and didn’t think that much. The first day she saw Phobos she had already liked him and although she was innocent didn’t mean she hadn't experienced life. When she saw Diana going into Phobos's room she had a bit of expectation for herself.

Megan on the other hand was still just thankful to be alive. She didn’t think anything complicated in her mind. For her just breathing the air and eating food was a blessing. Phobos who brought safety to her was a benefactor. She felt that her sister Anna and Alice were quite lucky to have not experienced the terror which she did when she awakened alone in a horror movie-like situation.

Megan knew that she herself could be categorized in the lucky pool of people because Anna found her very early and brought her here. She had heard some of the stories the people who had migrated around here told. She couldn’t even imagine how she would live through even the mildest cases.

They didn’t linger much after they heard that Phobos was done. They would have gone to bed earlier as well but it was a bit hard to sleep with the sound being generated.

It was in the middle of the night while sleeping that Phobos heard screams coming from the building next to them. Frequent screams and roars echoing in the town were already the norm so they didn’t pay much attention to them but this time the screams were so close that Phobos woke up Immediately. At the same time, Hera did as well.

She jumped from sleeping position, got dressed quickly and went to the window to check what was happening outside. Phobos too got up from the bed while Eve and Diana just woke up. While coming to the window he saw Hera opening it and launching herself out with enormous speed. Then there was a sound of broken glass.

Phobos got to the window still and saw that she had penetrated the opposite building’s window and there seemed to be some ruckus inside. He could most likely follow her way and jump over as well but felt that there is no need to.

Hera was more than capable of dealing with any situation. Even if there are scary mutants all around, Phobos knew that Hera was the biggest monster around. The ability she had awakened purely on basic stats crushed any competition. Doubling every stats she had wasn’t as simple as doubling her fighting power. Her fighting power has at least quintupled if not more. And this is when perfecting her skill set isn’t factored in.

This is why Phobos just dressed calmly and went out the normal way. He wasn’t in much hurry but didn’t wait for Diana and Eve to follow. Going downstairs and through the front door of the restaurants and then going to the building next to it which was a two stories clothing store. There was a bit of crowd gathered around after the screaming and the breaking of the window but no one approached the building.

People had been burned quite a few times in the past two days and knew that if it wasn’t their business they shouldn’t mess around. That didn’t mean that they were bad people just had self-preservation in mind. On top of that undue help when not knowing the situation may be unappreciated even scorned.

Phobos would be in the same mentality as them most of the time but as Hera had acted he would follow without question. Even if in the end they were in the wrong.

Getting inside the store he saw almost complete darkness as there was no electricity and a few groups of people who seemed to have camped in different sections of the store. There were a few more curious people who were next to the staircase snooping up but no one climbed up.

Phobos ignored them and got to the second floor. Going where he felt the window Hera crashed through should be. When he arrived there he saw Hera standing around most likely waiting for him. Next to her was a woman that had curled up into a ball and a few meters away was a man that was wheezing in pain.

“What happened?” Phobos asked even if he could already guess. After all, he wasn’t one to assume things.

“Just how it looks. This asshole thought that the “end of the world” means discarding all moral standards and enjoying the flesh of the weak women all around.” Hera looked with disdain over to the man that couldn’t take a breath properly.

Phobos looked over the fact that maybe Hera forgot rape was an everyday occurrence even in the so-called “civilized world” or that this man may have never had so-called moral standards. He accepted what had happened here but didn’t know what to do now.

As he was thinking Eve and Diana came as well. They passed Phobos and Hera the revolvers they had forgotten. Although Phobos felt that it wouldn’t be needed he accepted it. He should have taken his sword but taking it around without a sheath was a bother. He should get that fixed.

While Phobos was thinking of what to do a group that looked like it had settled on this floor came closer to them. A man was leading the group. He was dressed in a suit and looked like he made an effort to look presentable. For some reason when Phobos looked at him he didn’t like him.

“Why don’t you let him be? He should have learned his lesson.” The man in the suit called out to Phobos and the girls.

“You are?” Phobos didn’t know why this person was butting in the situation so he asked.

“Oh, how rude of me. My name is Don. What might your names be?” The man named Don answered a bit pretentiously.

“You are right. He may have learned his lesson” Phobos ignored Don’s question because his was left unanswered. Although technically he did answer however it was not what Phobos wanted to know. “However I don’t think you have the right to forgive this man. Neither do I have the right to punish him.”

“That’s right. That’s right. Let’s leave this to the police when the situation has calmed down for a bit.” Don believing he was taking control of the situation continued to persuade.

“However there is a person...” Phobos continued to ignore him. “That is perfectly in the right to judge what happens to this person.”

And as if in perfect sync with Phobos just as he finished his words Hera gave the revolver that she just received to the girl that had hugged her knees. Looking at the lethal weapon in her hands the girl shivered a little and a light of vigor passed through her eyes.