Peaches is sat inside Ali's with Sweet A and Sweet B. After a lot of effort on her part, the Pink Slime has finally managed to complete a full transformation and now looks completely human.
Alongside that development, Peaches' speech pattern has also improved since she joined us. Due to that, she is now able to mingle with the residents of Varona without causing any suspicions. Even having the most-flawless skin and bright-pink hair isn't enough to catch a monster out in my city. She's but one fish one in an ocean of beauty and the only true monsters are those designated by Soul Guide.
Currently, the Slime-in-disguise is enjoying one of the sweetest delicacies that Ali's has to offer as she enjoys her lunch break. Peaches works in lots of different locations and has the most part-time jobs out of everyone I know. Even when working, however, she still has to have at least two of the Sweets accompanying her for certain reasons.
Not that they're a burden in any way. The extra pair of hands always goes a long way in making the working day more productive for whichever lucky person ends up with them. Whether it's working reception at the Royal Halls or assisting Lucinda in potion brewing and serving customers, Peaches always has a smile on her face.
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Simon's role inside Varona is simple.
The gold-loving Catergoriser has become the Dungeon Supervisor. The management of Varona's human population has been thrust into his capable, if not young, hands. With a fully-fledged Categoriser on the payroll, it would have been foolhardy not to take full advantage of his knowledge and expertise. In doing so, it completely switched his job role. Instead of categorising, he now has Katrina and Anon watching over and instructing groups that are leveling up on Goblins.
Having more than one Categoriser on the books is a major blessing for any city. Never mind one that's actually a dungeon in disguise. Currently, the ginger-haired elder of the three is inside his own office at City Hall. Sitting in a chair several sizes too big, Simon counts the gold on his desk, stacking one piece on top of another.
"173, 174, 175." Mid count, the concentrating Categoriser is startled by a loud knock at the door and his sweaty fingers slip. This in turn causes the tower of gold to come crashing down on his desk with sounds that make Simon smile instead of frown. Money has always been his main motivator after all.
"And I was doing so well. Nevermind. It's my gold. I can count it again," The gold-obsessed man chuckles before he wipes the coins off the desk and into the top drawer. He composes himself and then shouts, "Enter!"
Wearing an outfit befitting of a city official with her hair up in a bun, Deputy Mayor Sacha enters the Categoriser's office. Her glasses shine in the sunlight reflected from the window as she stops on the other side of his desk.
"Were you enjoying yourself?" She asks knowing full well that Simon had been stacking his coins again. The sound of falling gold was relatively easy to hear as she was only on the opposite side of his door. Simon takes her comment the wrong way however and immediately turns bright red.
"I would never do anything of the sort and even if I did, it certainly isn't the time or place for such... Activities." Coughing at his last word, Sacha looks at the embarrassed man with a puzzled expression until she realises what he means. She laughs at the misunderstanding and produces a bag from behind her back.
"This might help you to reach greater heights?" Raising her eyebrows at the red-faced man, Sacha holds it out in front of herself for him to notice. He returns her previous look of confusion until the heart-warming sound of clinking fills his ears. The sound is coming from the bag in her hand. Realising the error on his part, Simon's face reddens more than what Sacha believes to be possible.
"Shit. I didn't mean... I don't... Why is my mind suddenly in the gutter?" Recently, Simon has been having more and more thoughts of the sexual nature. Surrounded by copious amounts of sex appeal, however, he had just put it down to that fact alone.
"It's OK. There's nothing wrong with a healthy imagination. Maybe you should give Veris a visit?" Having already met Veris, Simon's face loses colour and he struggles to respond.
"I... I think I'll give that one a miss for now, thank you. However, if that's all you've come for, I think I'll get back to my gold." Overlooking the beautiful, blue-haired Deputy Mayor, Simon opens his drawer before emptying the contents of the bag inside. Adding to his already large collection he smiles in satisfaction and feels a tinge of excitement creeping back over him.
"Maybe it's the gold?" He says as Sacha leaves him alone with his one true love.
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The Black Death rolls around in the meadow that was created by its Master as it contemplates the easy-going lifestyle it pursues. The evolution that came about from the Large Black Slime is the ruler of its floor and as such it is its job to ward off any intruders.
However, the problem with that role is that there isn't much in the way of foot traffic down here on the thirty-fifth floor. This leads to the Black Death having copious amounts of free time in which it doesn't know what to do with itself.
Luckily, it isn't alone in this endeavour as it's surrounded by a large amount of other-coloured Slimes that also have no idea what to do with their lazy days. They shuffle back and forth before repeating the same patterns in what look like endless rotations.
Arriving at the right time to help out the depressed residents of floor thirty five, Peaches walks in with her Sweet companions. After seeing the sorry state of the Slimes' everlasting boredom, she feels terrible and decides to take matters into her own hands.
Using the knowledge she has learnt since entering Abi's dungeon, Peaches teaches the Boss of the floor how to transform into a person. Not only does she teach the Black Death how to master the skill, but she even helps out all the other Slimes while she's at it.
Making a game out of who can do the best copy of their Master, the majority of them end up not doing such a bad job and their gloomy frowns soon pass. The contracted Pink Slime looks over the group that are putting their best efforts in and smiles. Her life as a Slime was a solitary one, until she stumbled upon the mysterious mountain she now calls home that is.
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
Now, surrounded by smiles and laughter, she wouldn't have it any other way and can't even imagine herself being alone again. Happy she joined the dungeon all that time ago, Peaches jumps back into the mix to help those who haven't fully grasped the transformation skill yet and even joins in on the fun.
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"Do you think we should tell someone? What if they've already noticed?" The first father in Varona, Mark Ely, seems worried as he peeks out of the window. He didn't want to be the first to voice his concerns and is terrified of his wife's response. Curiosity, coupled with fear, for the better of him as they won't be able to keep him secret much longer.
"I would rather die than let them take my child!" Tina glares at her husband, "Just le someone come and try. I'll show everyone how strong mothers need to be."
"That's not what I meant and you don't actually know that would happen. You're assuming the worst and I get it. I do. I'm scared too." Moving away from the window, Mark puts his hands on his wife's shoulders to reassure her. "He hasn't even had his first birthday yet, T, and he's already grown so much. What if our son's a... Mage or something? As a father, I'm so proud, but I can't shake off this cloud that's following me around. If we just take him to Tilly's, then..." Mark's sentence is cut short by a slap to the face.
"No! What if they try to take him away from us because of his abnormal growth?" she cries, the fear evident in her tone. How could it not be? Her dream had turned nightmare the moment her child starting growing.
"Take him where, T? He's gifted by the mana and that's fantastic, right? People gifted in magic generally live good and prosperous lives. Not that we're doing so bad ourselves right now, but I still think we should see Tilly to be safe." Mark grits his teeth and prepares for another slap. Risking a peep after it doesn't arrive, however, he sees his wife trying to fight back tears silently.
The absolute need to protect her child is the strongest voice present inside the young mother's mind. She understands that every word her husband speaks he believes to be true, but Tina can't shake the irrational thought that someone will take her child away when they find out he's special.
Downstairs, a child of about three years old is drawing contently as the heated argument upstairs draws to a close. With blonde hair and blue eyes, Kieran Ely looks like exactly his mom and isn't bothered in the slightest. Right now, he's enjoying the comfort that having a family provides and nothing could sour his mood.
Having reincarnated into the city of Varona a few months ago and discovering magic and make believe aren't a far-fetched ideal in this world, Bruce Gold is loving his second life. The A-Star orphan would never have believed it possible if told firsthand about what would happen to him. Logic and science dictate the laws of the universe and spells like haste or soul protection are only meant to be found inside video games.
However, living firsthand an undeniable truth is not something a logical person can ignore. Only denial, resentment and anger come from ignoring one's truth. Still, that wasn't what made his second life worth living. Even if magic is every teenagers dream.
What made Kieran Ely complete, was the love provided by his parents. Even if he had aged years in only a few month, his mother never said anything about it directly and instead showered him with affection. His father wasn't lacking either and everyday after work, Mark would make time to spend with Kieran.
He was truly blessed to be have murdered in that orphanage. Or at least that was the story Bruce was rolling with. Even though he was an orphan, the carers made sure everyone was fed and look after. Making sure no one went without, they were excellent role models in his eyes. Not that such kind-hearted people mattered anymore. Kieran would never see them again anyway and, in his new life, there was that much to learn he barley had time to spare them a though
Time Mages age faster than any other magic casters due to not being able to control their element. That alone maked them rarer than gold as most children die overnight. Parents waking to find great-grandpa Geoff in bed, instead of little Johnny, know they've given birth to greatness only after it's to late.
That curse, if and when it's able to be controlled, then turns into a blessing. Having the ability to control time, a Mage can live however they want without fear of repercussion. In Kieran's case, with the knowledge he already possesses about biology and what he should be doing at every stage to better himself, his new life is off to a fantastic start and he has almost mastered speaking.
Not slightly grasped either, but Bruce has the local language down to a tee.
Which shouldn't be possible for a regular Tironian.
However, that's no problem at all for a reincarnated Time Mage and Bruce Gold, the teenager-turned-child is witnessing, living and owning the strange phenomenon firsthand. With a family that cares about his well being and magic at his untrained fingertips, the A-star orphan can't help but smile evferytime he thinks about the future.
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Sophie, the ex-dungeon diver and Light's girlfriend, has also found work inside the dungeon due to its opening to adventurers. She assists the Categorisers and leads groups through the first-five floors. Watching diligently as they level up on Goblins that roam Abi's top layers.
With experience in the field, Sophie was the perfect candidate to help train, guide and lead new adventurers into the dark depths. The newer candidates she gets to teach from scratch which is great since they don't already have bad habits. It also frees up the Master Assassin to finish up missions faster than he was doing prior to his girlfriends employment.
Not that Sophie is slow. She just doesn't possess the same set of skills as her significant other. However, she never let this bothers her. Sophie has always wanted to be in a relationship, she had just never found the right man. Little did she know at the time, her man had been created by a dungeon. Then again, even after learning that fact, she still wasn't deterred.
If anything, the bump in her belly was basically Light's wedding ring. There's no escaping now and it doesn't matter how far he can shadowport, Sophie and his unborn child are always waiting for him whenever he arrives home. With a smile on her face and love in her heart, it's always a warming scene.
If still weird as fuck.
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A large grin is spread across Veris' face as she swings the object in her hand towards the cheeks of the subdued woman. The victim of the paddling by paddle is none-other than Sweet C and she is making questionable noises as the diamond-rimmed object raps away in satisfaction. Loud enough that they catch the attention of a curious passerby.
From the doorway, a pair of on-looking eyes sparkle in curiosity as she watches the masochist and sadist engaged in their daily act. Her lip quivers and her body trembles with each thwap of the paddle. She clutches her robes tightly as her heart beats faster. Every beat of the bat is followed by dozens of her own. Her body begins to sweat and her breath gets heavy as she edges closer and closer to the scene.
The eyes belong to the once-Acolyte turned Disciple, Ang. The dungeon priests level up slower than the rest of my family as they spend more time preaching dungeon love than leveling. Plus, their only source of XP comes from the Coliseum and they barely frequent the violent place as it is. Even though they are able to revive, thanks to one of the building's extremely-useful features, there are only a handful of fighting enthusiasts to be found among the dungeon worshippers.
As Ang slides her feet further and further forward, her presence doesn't go unnoticed by the people in the room. The spectator spectates from her place on a purple sofa and the two engaged in the act continue on. Happier for the extra set of eyes to spice things up.
Sweet D's pats the empty seat beside her. Motioning for Ang to sit down, she accepts the offer without words and silently watches what some would call entertainment?
For a dungeon-worshiping priest, the last place you would expect them to end up would be watching Veris and Sweet C. Nonetheless that's where she has found herself and in a moment of outburst she cries "I want to try too!" before flushing redder than carpets inside the Royal Halls of Regeneration.
Regretting her action instantly, Ang plants her eyes on the floor until Veris' boots come into view. Slowly, she raises her head until her eyes are level with that of the woman in front of her. Her silk-white hair looks perfectly brushed, even though moments ago her actions definitely dictate that it shouldn't be so.
"So. Which side would you like to be on?" Veris' face is full of anticipation. She's hoping she found a new addition to her own ranks. Even without a title, or an actual feature, the Boss of Abi's dungeon is slowly amassing a small group of sado-masochists inside the Pleasure Palace.