Chapter 10

Hungry….. you will do

I ended up needing another bath. I was just gonna change clothes and cast cleanse on myself, but Shadow — the crazy/evil cat lady — felt like that was not the proper way to clean ones self.

In fact she said that’s disgusting and I should be ashamed. Even though it actually left you cleaner than any bath ever could! It also cleaned your clothes which was a huge bonus.

Imagine not having to get up early to go do laundry. Those laundry mats are absolutely disgusting!

Children make everything sticky, and for some reason I always end up using the one machine that doesn’t work!

In the end I was dragged kicking and screaming into the bathing area. The castle had a large chamber with multiple showers and a pool sized tub with infinite hot water.

It was constantly being cleaned with magic. I wonder what the point was in actually washing up if the pool was just magically gonna clean you.

Simply by getting wet I felt cleaner than any reasonable person ever should be.

Still Shadow insisted. She also decided she was gonna wash up alongside me. I thought I might see a boob or two but she jumped in wearing a two peace swim suit.

It was white. The bottom half had frills along the waist looking almost like a short skirt. Honestly this was even more sexy than her just simply being naked.

She had a belly button. I did to. That was strange considering the belly button implied we were birthed. It’s basically a giant scar.

What did this mean? I decided not to pursue that thought any further for fear of my head exploding out of pure confusion.

I couldn’t help but stare. She caught me! “Sorry!” I cried covering my eyes in terror. I heard her giggle.

The sloshing sound of water told me she was making her way over. A moment later I felt Her breath on the back of my neck.

I just about power jumped through the ceiling. My feet were about thirty feet in the air. Mid air I curled up into a ball and canon balled into the water.

There was a big splash and I sunk to the bottom in the fetal position. I felt water push its way up my nose but I didn’t care.

I don’t wanna be here! Alice I’m so sorry! The good thing about being under water was no one could see my tears.

I felt a hand grab my arm pulling me up. My head popped out of the water and I took a breath coughing in the process.

“Master don’t be shy. It’s pretty late so let’s wash up and eat dinner.” Her smile made me feel better but I still felt like closing my eyes.

For obvious reasons I still wasn’t comfortable with my body, so Shadow was here to help with that.

Except, she was only making me feel worse for different reasons. As long as I keep my eyes closed it wasn’t an issue so that’s just what I did.

“Sorry. I know I’m being difficult but this is all so weird. I’m married you know.” Alice was gonna kill me.

“I know that, but this can’t exactly be helped. It would be a shame if you let this body deteriorate. I’ll make sure it’s all taken care of.” I could feel her hands on my shoulders.

“But I can get clean with cleanse! Actually, I’m already clean! I can just get out now!” I tried to leave but Shadow held me firm.

She sighed and I heard her tail splash. “Master you sound like one of my boys. Did you know that they all individually came up with the idea of wetting their hair in the sink to make it look like they took a shower.”

She laughed. “Ridiculous right! You know your really lazy when you’d rather do more work to get out of doing work.” She was running her hands through my hair.

Was she trying to compare my totally viable cleaning method with wetting ones hair? I thought cats hated water.

I gave up. “fine.” I was already in the tub and she wasn’t gonna take no for an answer.

Despite her horrible reasoning. She was trying to help me. This probably wasn’t fun for her either. It’s like having to wash someone else’s car.

It didn’t take long to wash up. We spent more time relaxing than scrubbing. Speaking of which it still felt like she was trying to peel my skin off.

Well, it was either that or she starts nagging me again. I’m just happy she didn’t decide to clean me with her tongue. That’s illegal.

She handed me a white nighty and some underwear. The nighty was from our tour of the city.

It had long sleeves. It reached well past my knees and the ends had frills. The fabric was a very thick cotton.

I didn’t feel like describing the underwear….. let’s just say they were colorful.

No more tights. That meant I’d be dealing with a breeze. This would take some getting used to but it was better than sleeping in street clothes.

She spent a decent amount of time brushing my hair. It was kind of nice, up until she got aggressive with a knot. Ow.

After that we headed for the dining hall. My ankles still hurt but I didn’t mind walking.

There was no real rush to get anywhere. I was already home. The feel of the cold hard uneven stone felt grate on my feet. It was almost like walking outside but not that.

It took Shadow about thirty minutes to make dinner. I was surprised at how fast she cooked everything.

Our kitchen was better than any normal kitchen. The stove was powered by runes, so it only made sense the food was easier to cook. Magic was still magic after all.

Instead of taking the guild leader chair, I sat in one of the side chairs. It took the same amount of books to level myself with the table. Just two.

I wasn’t that sort. If anything the table was big. I noticed that when checking out the NPCs furniture.

There had to be a way to grow taller in this world. Like some kind of growth hormone. Changing my avatar wasn’t a thing anymore so I was stuck as Aku.

The meatloaf looked juicy. On the side was mashed potatoes and pees. There was also a small bowl with steamed vegetables. I was hungry so I dove right in.

Shadow watched me eat in horror. “Slow down. If you eat like that you’ll end up choking.” She was sitting next to me. Her tail was gently patting me on the back.

The dining hall felt colder than usual. The fire was out. Shadow was the one to turn it on in the morning and was the one to shut it off when we left the castle.

At first I thought it was powered by gas but I was wrong. Like everything else it was rune powered.

Everything was an enchantment. Including the lighting in the room. It was all hooked up to the guild core.

I wonder if we’ll ever run out of power. As far as I could tell the core was gathering focus faster than it could spend.

I wonder if it also powered the city. Where else was all the power coming from. There certainly wasn’t a power plant somewhere.

The question was. How do we implement runes like that. If they could do these sorts of things then I could definitely use them to do other things.

Maybe even make weapons of mass destruction, or what about a magic micro wave that can cook hot pockets to the perfect temperature!

Hear me out! You can eat them right after you nuke them! Never again shall I burn my tongue or eat a hot pocket that’s cold in the middle!

Yes the ultimate microwave! I could create world peace with something like that! Truly a revolutionary device!

I shivered in my seat. Having damp hair didn’t help with the cold. It was currently tied up in a ponytail. I wasn’t a big fan.

It pulled my hair hurting me. Shadow said I just wasn’t used to it. Whatever, this was still better than having it hang wet on my shoulders.

She must of noticed because she opened her menu. A moment later the fire place sparked to life.

It wouldn’t warm the room until after we were done eating, but it was the thought that count.

Now that I wasn’t in a room full of strangers. I could actually relax. All the stress I felt today wasn’t gone, but it didn’t bother me as much.

Luca couldn’t join us seeing as she was passed out in her room. Poor kid was tuckered out.

I must have had a little food stuck to my face because Shadow picked up a napkin and cleaned it for me.

“If you’re gonna be a girl you should at least learn to be more graceful. Take small bites, chew, and use a napkin. You act like one of my boys.” I was really getting sick of this.

“Well, I am a guy.” I took a bite of meat.

“I know but I’ve called you she a couple times now, and you haven’t really said anything.” She was pushing food with her fork.

“As long as your being respectful I don’t really care what you call me. If I come off as a girl to you. That just means I haven’t been very manly.” Everyone’s perception was different.

What would Shadow do if I shaved my head and dressed in plain male clothes. Most likely she’d be really disappointed and might even become depressed.

For some reason I felt panic at the thought of shaving my head. Part of me really wanted to cut it all off while the other part dreaded the thought.

It was hard to really focus when my mind was so split. I’ve shaved my head multiple times back when I started dating Alice.

It was usually because I had lice. Why did it bother me now? Actually, It would be a shame to lose all this silky hair.

Alice once said growing hair took a lot of time and effort. I remember growing my hair out as a teen.

It wasn’t that hard. Then again my hair didn’t turn out as silky. Maybe it really is difficult to grow hair.

“Master? When I said slow down I didn’t mean stop eating. Eat before it gets cold. You’ll need lots of food if you ever wanna fill out that sports bra.”

Her tail was moving along my back like a guy’s arm in a movie theater. She was getting really good at using it. The urge to grasp it grew inside me.

I felt my face warm up. Boobs? Like heavy bags of useless flesh! How could I power skip if I had giant knockers flapping in the wind!

No way! That can’t happen! Why would Shadow say that! I’m not even wearing that bra thing anymore.

I feel like having boobs would really throw me off. I am of the strong opinion that boobs are nice but only on other people.

I got mad at her. “Shadow! Leave me alone! I don’t need boobs!” I got out of my seat then moved the books and my food one seat over.

Shadow laughed. The rest of the meal went mostly uneventful. That was until I got to the steamed carrots.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

I got up then looked to Shadow. “Thank you for the meal. I’m so full. Anyway there’s some stuff I have to take care of so I’ll be going now. Please excuse me and enjoy the rest of your night.” I tried to slip away by walking past her, but she stopped me with her tail. It was so firm.

“Master. Where do you think you’re going?” Her smile was not a smile. It was to forced for it to mean anything resembling happiness.

Her tail just about wrapped around me. I wanted to be polite but I also wanted to power skip for the hills.

I tried to take a step back but was held in place. “Uh… I’m full I can’t eat anymore. It was very good though.” I felt arms wrap around me.

I was startled by the sudden body heat pressing up against my back. “ah!” I jumped in fear but didn’t go very high since I was being held tightly.

“I don’t think so.” Somehow Shadow snuck her way around me. She was also in front of me. Wait a sec, that’s not Shadow!

The thing in front of me wasn’t even moving. That’s the after image martial art for ninja! It vanished into nothing a moment later.

“You sneaky cat! But I don’t wanna eat carrots! They taste like toe nails!” She lifted me up from the back of my gown like a cat carrying their young.

Then plopped me down in my seat. The chair was scooted up against the table pinning me between the two.

It was actually kind of hard to move. I could feel her holding the chair in place. You know….. this almost felt like a highchair.

Shadow leaned in close to my left ear. Her tail was wrapped around the back of the chair tickling my other ear.

“Listen honey. Whether it’s this meal or the next you will eat these carrots. Don’t feel bad you have several options.” Her tail swung back over to her side and was used to slide the plate closer to me.

“Option one, you can eat them now while they are nice and warm. Option two, you can eat them tomorrow for breakfast when they are cold and possibly covered in roaches or ants. The next few options get worse as I go so you can only imagine what that might mean. What do you choose?” her eyes were so sharp.

I felt fear creeping up on me. It was only like two baby carrots but still! I hate them! If I set them ablaze could I get away with not eating them?

I might lose the castle in the process. It still might be worth it. What do I do?! I just wanna go finish up my project and go to bed. I don’t have time for this.

I almost cried. “Shadow your being really mean right now.” There was a quiver in my voice. I felt every bit my size.

She seemed to take delight in my emotional state. She really was evil. Maybe if I cry she’ll let me go. I could already feel tears forming. I sniffed and sobbed.

She rolled her eyes in annoyance. It didn’t piss me off like when Luca did it. Shadow’s seemed more sincere.

“I’m not being mean. I gave you options. There’s like a million of them. You know my mom never gave me any options. She would just make me eat onions no matter how much I cried.” She forked one of the carrots then held it up to my mouth.

My crocodile tears ended there as I kept my mouth shut to try and stop her. “Come on. It’s only two itty-bitty carrots. You already beat up a crazy kidnapper and a group of terrorist’s. Your telling me your afraid of two baby carrots.” She waved the carrots in my face. I could smell them. Gross.

I turned my head and crossed my arms. “I’m not afraid of carrots. I hate them. There’s a difference.” I finished by puffing out my cheeks. She sighed.

“Well, these little guys don’t hate you. In fact they like you a lot. You hurt their feelings. Don’t you feel bad?”

What was this logic right now? I know I had a big imagination but come on. Like I was gonna fall for something so silly.

I retorted with “I hope they die in a fire and their children die of mysterious circumstances. And the rest of the carrot population dies out from a carrot zombie apocalypse. Then when there all burning in hell. They’ll be tortured for eternity for being the worst food item to ever exist.” Shadow’s fake smile faded. Then a new idea flashed behind her eyes.

She moved to the other side of my head. Her tail now tickling my other ear. I squirmed to try and get comfortable but that wasn’t happening.

“Maaassssster. If you eat the carrots I’ll give you a slice of cake.” Her voice was so soothing. I could fall asleep right now.

This was like that time Alice made me listen to ASMR. There was this sleepy tingly feeling and immediately after I was never able to feel it again.

If I eat them she’ll give me cake. Cake that she took from me in the first place. Part of me wanted to say yes while the other part was screaming no.

Logically if I eat it it’ll be over. If not then this will continue for who knows how long. I can do it.

It’s Like ripping off a Band-Aid or shaving your beard, because your wife says it’s “icky” her words not mine.

Wait….. why was she trying to feed me these gross looking things. Was she trying to fatten me up?

That way she could eat me. I’d heard that cats often eat their owners when they die. Not that I owned Shadow. Was Shadow gonna kill me?

I squirmed in my seat but Shadow was still holding it up against the table. I couldn’t even slip out the bottom.

What to do. If I eat she’ll let me go…. Or…. I could just fall asleep here. Its certainly relaxing enough.

You can’t make a sleeping person eat. That’s just a choking hazard. I really want cake though. “Okay” I cried. Shadow smiled satisfied.

She held the fork up to my lips. I opened my mouth and immediately felt disgust. I gagged at the awful flavor and coughed it up.

“I don’t want it, I don’t want it, I hate it!” I kicked and pushed and even managed to move the chair back about a half foot.

Freedom!

I jumped up over the table and landed on the other side. Shadow watched me. She didn’t look angry she looked more worried.

Was I making life hard for her? Now I felt kind of bad. What the hell am I talking about!

She doesn’t have to mother me like that. It’s weird. “leave me alone for once! I don’t need another mom! You crazy cat lady! Also you cant eat me I taste bad!”

I didn’t look at her face. Instead I kept my eyes on the hall while I walked away. Running away would make it look like I did something wrong. I needed to be taken seriously.

Her reaction was unknown to me. It was better that way. I didn’t want to regret anything.

except…. She didn’t come after me so did that mean she was hurt? Was she giving me space? I take it back not knowing was even worse.

I felt guilt bubbling inside me. It demanded I turn back and apologize. When I didn’t comply anger began to mix with the guilt almost overpowering it.

It was directed at me. This was strange. You know how you can be mad at yourself. Well this was more like myself being mad at me.

What was this? I couldn’t force it into the hole and I couldn’t really claim it as mine. It was like I had something else inside me.

I ignored it. I had so many things going on right now. Apologizing to Shadow was to childish.

Adults fight all the time. It’s not like we hate each other now. We’ll be besties by morning.

I made my way to the lounge on the second floor. It wasn’t a huge room. It was more akin to the size of a local bar.

There was a few couches spread out. Some arcade games. A pool table, air hockey table, and even a foosball table.

There was a fridge which was stocked up on drinks. From water bottles to soda, and even some beer.

This room was actually designed by fish. Since he did such a good job I let him name it.

He decided to call it the Fish cave. I stopped him. While Fish cave wasn’t terrible. I thought of something a little better.

Fish tank. He liked it so that’s what the place was named. There was an actual neon sign displaying the name in bright letters.

This place was actually pretty cool. The games were actual mini games you could play in-game.

Most were cheap knock offs of old arcade games like packer man, or dug dig. There was also my favorite, galactic which was just a rip off of galaga.

I looked to the fridge. It had a glass door revealing the ice cold beer cans. Everything in the fridge and in this room gave small buffs to the entire guild. Owning property basically made you overpowered.

I had a bunch of extra levels in my stats thanks to all the items displayed in my guild.

The extra levels weren’t added to my actual stat levels. Instead they were seen next to the actual stat with a plus symbol between them.

I thought about getting a drink when I felt a sudden stab of fear.

Shadow will get mad.

Why did I care. She’s not in charge. I made my way over and was about to grab a can of beer when my hand reached for a juice box instead.

“The hell?” No matter how much I wanted I couldn’t make myself grab a beer can. This is to weird even for me. I struggled for a bit but eventually gave up.

Sitting on the couch I took a few sips from the juice box. It was apple juice. I brought up my menu. Opening the empire tab I looked through my options.

It didn’t take long to find the summoning option. I looked through it to see what types of NPCs I could get and was surprised when I realized I could summon an administrator.

I think I remember this. These guys used to collect the money and keep the other NPCs moving.

Mao got rid of them because he said he liked running all the NPC shops on his own. An administrator was basically like buying an auto button for mindless clicking.

If I can get a few of these guys I can set up one at each settlement. That way they can keep track of what happens.

Once a week or so I can get a report from them and from that I can decide on what needs to be done.

It’s not the worst idea I’ve ever had. No that title goes to the time I spent money on that NFT.

First thing’s first. I looked for the solider NPCs and managed to find them. I could adjust there stats a bit but there was a limit to how many stat levels they could have at level one.

This gave me an idea. I quickly changed the stats to encompass the right parameters for each soldier branch I wanted to establish.

This meant mages got higher intelligence. Berserkers got higher vitality and strength and so on so forth.

I had the option to give them different races. I went for half giants for the berserkers and warriors. Since they had more strength and vitality.

I picked forest elves for rangers. Since they had very good dexterity and a decent perception, but mostly because of their affinity to The forest and they’re natural at hunting.

Ape-kin for monks because they got a small boost to all physical stats and with monk as their class. They’d get an okay boost to wisdom.

For mages I went with demon-kin. They had high intelligence, strength, and vitality. The real reason though was the boost to dark magic.

I wanted dark magic since it had so many de-buffs and ailments. This would help with restraining criminals. The vit and str boost would help with keeping them alive.

For healers… well more like clerics. I went with human. They’re balanced out stats were fine for the class and besides it was cheaper. I needed to cut back somewhere.

For the assassin branch I went with moon elves since they had a nice dark affinity and had good dexterity and perception. They also made good assassins thanks to their night vision.

I ordered twenty of each except for half giants. I would need forty of those. The last thing was a champion.

I selected a human and went for a paladin type of NPC. I finished up by hitting the finalize button. A moment passed and nothing happened. “What? I was expecting a big bang or something.”

As if the gods had heard me. The castle began to shake. I heard thunder booming outside. It only lasted a few seconds before everything went back to normal.

I checked the citizens tab and surely enough there was now an extra one-hundred-forty NPCs.

Everyone of them were at the old barracks. I delegated training for the newly summoned soldiers. That meant they’d be doing stat training. Mostly just working on physical stats.

It wouldn't hurt for our mages and clerics to get a little faster and bulkier. Being less killable was always a plus in my book.

More muscle mass meant their strength and vitality ratios would go up. It was a win, win if you ask me.

I hope they’ll be alright. Maybe I should of done this tomorrow instead. That way I’d be there to greet them.

I’m sure they’ll be fine. Those guys aren’t mindless brutes. As far as I knew their dialog was usually very pro empire, so I doubt they’ll do anything to harm the city.

Then again what if they’re all confused and start going full authoritarian on the local population….. I checked the citizens tab and waited for a few minutes. Everyone was still alive.

I let out a yawn. I’m so tired…. Fuck it, if people die that just means more jobs for the socialists.

I wonder how Boner feels about waiting tables in a maid Café? It comes with a uniform.

I looked to the clock on the wall and it was almost nine. It’s still early. I normally didn’t sleep till like one or two in the morning.

I only ever needed like five to six hours of sleep. This body was different though. Do I really want bags under my eyes. Probably not but still. Who goes to sleep at nine.

I brought my juice box up to my lips and finished it off. Glancing around the room I spotted the trashcan in the corner.

From my seat I threw the empty cardboard husk making an ark through the air. It landed perfectly in the can. I love dexterity.

Party chat:

Shadow: Master, It’s late you should go to bed…. But I’m sure you know that so…. Do whatever you want.

Well she sounded upset. Should I do something?

I wasn’t sure on what to say. I honestly felt like ignoring it. Another part of me wanted to say something and to my surprise it did.

Aku: goodnight, um maybe we can sleep together….. or not…. I’m sorry!

My eyes went wide at that. What the hell! I didn’t mean to send that! Did I think that? It was in my head so….…… I did but….. I don’t think I meant to send that. This is to weird. I waited to see Shadow’s response.

She didn’t answer. I felt uneasy. Oh man! Both Shadow and Luca can see that! I can never show my face again!

With any luck they didn’t notice. Then again there was the fact that it played your voice when you sent a message….

Huh. I wonder if Luca is okay. She did have a headache.

Shadow didn’t answer so….. Did I break our relationship? She should of at least reacted.

Was she mad forever. The guilt from before was back and stronger than ever. Though, it was drowned out by the rest of the noise in my head. Something was clawing its way out of the hole.

“BUZZ”

What if I mess it all up? What if this country burns? What if I’m not cut out for this? There all going to die! Every last one of them! It’ll all be my fault!

“BUZzZ”

Everything from today erupted out of the hole. Mantis caged like a dog. The socialists losing there friend and attacking me.

There was more of them. More players suffering because I cant get my shit together. NPCs too. I’m sure of it.

What if everyone I love gets killed because I couldn’t hold the city together. What if the NPCs all turn on me along with the players?

What if I can’t bring Shadow home? Her kids are still waiting for their mother! Why am I so worthless!

Then other things came out of the hole. Much older things. I wanted to scream but that would wake mom up.

And then… she’d beat me again. I can’t! I cant! I cant! Mom was right. I’m worthless.

“BUZzZz”

You can’t do it. It’s impossible. Just die already! Disgusting. Filthy! Unlikeable. Degenerate.

Useless! Loser! Disappear. Vanish. Evaporate! Just stop. Stop existing! Your not worth a fuck. Stop trying. Give up! Devil child!

“BUZzZzZ”

The world glitches again and again. There was a horrible buzzing and I felt so small. The Shadows.

They were closing in. This wasn’t like the time I fainted. These Shadows were alive. They coiled and vibrated in a horrific frenzy.

They took unimaginable shapes. Demons, monsters. They reached for me. I forced myself to my feet and ran.

I ran and ran. It followed. Screeching. Buzzing. So very angry. I was being chased. The hole it was angry! It wanted to eat me!

It was unsatisfied with the things I fed it! I kept running until I ran into something soft. I fell to the floor holding my head. The buzzing wouldn’t stop.

“BUZzZzZz”

You’ll never be anything. Your dreams are stupid. You smell! Your ugly. Unlovable. Go away! No one wants you! You are just to broken.

“BUZzZzZzZ”

It got louder and louder. That was until I heard her voice. “chief?”

Silence.

with just her nickname for me. Luca freed me from the noise. It was as if it hadn’t happened. The darkness was slurped back into the hole. I glanced up at her.

“Are you okay? Chief.” She looked so worried, so afraid.

I wanted to cry but I didn’t. Instead I smiled and let out a laugh. “oops I fell down. I’m fine. Why are you up…. I thought…. I thought you had a headache?”

Even as I spoke I felt sick inside. Like I could vomit. There was an awful black ooze trying to make its way out.

It wiggled and squirmed. It clawed and screamed but I held on. My inside were being torn to shreds.

Hold it together Isaac. Not in front of other people. Their counting on you. You still have to get everyone home.

Luca held her head. “Yeah it sucks. Its pretty bad but I needed to use the restroom.” She was on her way back to her room when I ran into her.

I got to my feet. “Don’t let me keep you. Rest up, tomorrow we have a big day.” She looked a bit hesitant. Like she wanted to ask something.

The young mage was wearing a violet colored nighty that almost touched the floor. On her feet were a pair of white bunny slippers. Her cowlick seemed to bounce with every body motion.

“Chief. Can you help me with something?” She looked nervous. She was finally acting her age I guess.

“Okay.” I want to be useful.

“BUZZzzzzzZZZZZZzzZZZZZzzzzZZZZZZZZZz”