During the war preparations, Rai continued training relentlessly in the simulation chamber. Sometimes he channeled his Angel Khodam form, other times the Valkyrie Khodam. He also received intel that the Martian bats were mobilizing for a massive assault.
Still, Rai couldn't shake the shame gnawing at him—it was his use of the mushroom bomb in their territory that had provoked the bats and triggered the full-scale invasion of Earth.
Though Nadine reassured him that this war was inevitable, she had even gone further:
"It's better to wipe them out now than to drag this on by killing them slowly."
Her cold logic, though harsh, carried weight in times like these.
Back on Earth, under a global emergency directive, each nation summoned all Khodam users from across the solar system. The planet was now brimming with powerful warriors, each bonded to spirits from beyond.
Even Rai's father and mother returned—at the government's request.
As Rai hovered in his Angel form, he turned and smiled.
"Father, Mother... You came back."
Rai's mother twitched slightly when she saw her child in a female Khodam form.
"I still can't believe it… Did I give birth to a son or a daughter?" she sighed.
"Hahaha, does it matter? Let's just say our child is... unique," Rai's father replied with a grin.
"Hey, I'm right here in front of you! Can you stop gossiping about your own child?" Rai pouted in his angelic form.
"Whoa, my child can pout now?!" his father laughed. "By the way, what's your current level and synchronization rate?"
"My Angel Khodam is level 54, Valkyrie is still just level 1. My own level is 10. As for sync rates: Angel is at 15%, Valkyrie just 1% since I only got her recently," Rai explained.
"Not bad at all," his mother nodded. "You got your second Khodam after just a few days!"
Rai smiled proudly.
"By the way," his father leaned in, "there are... unusual ways to raise synchronization rates."
"Huh? What do you mean?" Rai asked, curious.
"One of them is sexual activity," his father said bluntly, causing Rai to stumble midair.
"Wait—WHAT does that even mean?!"
"Exactly what you think," his mother replied casually.
"But my Khodams are female... does that mean I'd have to... with a guy or a girl...?" Rai asked, now visibly terrified.
His parents gave him a meaningful look, sending chills down his spine.
"Wait—your Khodams are Red Dragon and Blue Dragon, right? Did you two... do it in dragon form?" Rai asked, stunned.
"Haha, smart guess!" his father chuckled. "See, synchronization isn't just about power—it's about understanding your Khodam's body. Besides sexual activity, things like training, hunting aliens, eating, drinking, even going to the bathroom—all of that helps."
"So... that means sexual activity is just one of the many ways?"
"Exactly," his father laughed. "But hey, nothing wrong with trying it."
"Ugh, Mom—Dad's being a perv again!"
"Yeah, I know," she rolled her eyes. "I found that out the moment he suggested doing it in dragon form."
"Wait… THAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED?!" Rai gasped.
Angel was left speechless by her mother's blunt remark.
"So... did your synchronization rate increase?" she finally asked.
"Yeah, it went up more than 20%," Rai's father said proudly.
"W-What? Should I try it too...?" Rai muttered, unsure.
"That's up to you. It's your Khodam, your choice," his father replied with a shrug.
Later, Rai lay in his room, trying to sleep. But his mind kept replaying his parents' conversation, and now he couldn't see them as anything other than certified perverts.
---
Meanwhile, Mora's small infiltration squad had successfully created micro holes in many of the Mars Bats' masks and even weakened several parts of their armor.
However, General Zurek and Xalthea both felt that something was wrong with the Havoc Spiders.
Following his instinct, Zurek had secretly ordered the production of backup masks in a separate facility—away from Mora's knowledge.
Xalthea was furious at Zurek's deduction. She knew he was most likely right, but Varnak—one of Mars' fiercest Bat warriors—loved fighting too much to back down, even if the equipment was compromised.
Zurek, deep in thought, began formulating a backup strategy for the coming war.
He even asked Xalthea to prepare for a possible retreat.
Even presidents from various countries across Earth held an emergency summit. Countless spacecrafts were placed on high alert.
Mushroom bombs had entered mass production, and even nuclear weapons saw an increase in output—because the first wave of the invasion would be mindless alien monsters.
With the power of nuclear bombs, most of these creatures could be wiped out. As for radiation, Earth had already developed radiation-absorbing robots, capable of cleansing the affected zones within just a few weeks.
After ten days, the massive forces of the Mars Bats began gathering aboard millions of spacecrafts.
Their destination: Earth.
Leading from the front and center was the small ship of the Havoc Spiders.
Across the nations of Earth, anxiety filled the air. Even the presidents of every country sat in their respective monitoring rooms, silently hoping the massive alien fleet would avoid targeting their territories.
Earth had also prepared its own spacecrafts, though they were far less advanced than those of the Mars Bats—barely capable of reaching the Moon at best.
As the massive alien fleet approached Earth's atmosphere, millions of their ships extended their weapon barrels.
They fired projectiles that resembled large capsules, which burst midair into thousands of smaller pods. Upon nearing the surface, those capsules erupted in crimson light, releasing a variety of monstrous alien creatures.
Unfortunately, this was not a single attack—but wave after wave of continuous bombardment, plunging Earth's skies into darkness.
In response, world leaders began launching their nuclear warheads.
Humans who had not yet awakened their Khodams took shelter in underground bunkers and designated safe zones provided by their governments.
Rai, in his Angel form, looked up at the blackened sky as a massive explosion echoed above.
He stood in front of the school where he first awakened his Khodam. As the highest-level student, it was his duty to lead. Though the other students were only at level 1, many of them had high synchronization rates with their Khodams.
Seeing the darkened sky, Angel flapped her wings and ascended into the air. She raised her hand, summoning swarms of glowing fireflies—beings of pure light.
Then, without hesitation, she activated the weapons embedded within her Khodam's body, unleashing beams of concentrated energy toward the incoming threats.