The group of us had gathered silently. It was clear the girls wanted to say many things to me, but after my stern warnings, they kept their mouths shut. Even the banter between themselves had diminished into nothing. It was clear that until we managed to break through into the safe room, that the environment between all of us would be tense.

At the moment, their mission was to battle down the dungeon and gain experience while protecting me. I wasn’t sure what kind of assurances Calypso was using to gain their cooperation, but she didn’t seem even remotely worried about allowing me to travel with them. With her control of the dungeon, she likely could ensure I wasn’t hurt even if the entire group was defeated, but there was also a chance the group could betray me.

I mean, they never would. They were my slaves, but Calypso didn’t know that. It was difficult to tell what Calypso knew. She was a mysterious woman full of secrets. She had mentioned numerous times that her reasoning had to do with the Demon Lord. She even claimed something about being his mother. She wasn’t a demon though, so I had no clue how that was the case. Her age was undetermined though, so it was difficult to reason out her background. For her to reach level 100 in any job, she had to have experienced a lot.

“Wait!” Just as we started to head into the cave that led to the second level of the dungeon, Calypso suddenly called out.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

I kept my face schooled, but I suddenly worried that all of our deceptions were found out. My frown grew when I saw Calypso walking up to us with a familiar face by her side. Celeste’s eyes brightened at the sight, but as she opened her mouth to say something, Terra pinched her particularly hard.

“Owie!” She cried, rubbing her arm.

It was enough of a distraction, as Calypso was already speaking.

“I’ve decided that to ensure the safety of everyone here, my servant will also accompany you. Salicia, go with them. Take care of my little Deedee for me.”

The group of us all looked at each other as the puppet-like Salicia walked over to our side. It looked like Calypso did have one more trick to make sure I was safe. On the other hand, Salicia might be there as a means of watching over us.

“Master, isn’t this a good thing?” Lydia asked over Slave Communication.

“Can we trust her?” Shao demanded.

I didn’t have a clear answer. I didn’t understand what Calypso’s aim was. If Salicia entered the safe room, would her connection with Calypso be severed? If that was the case, then this was our best chance to wrestle her away from Calypso. It would be a very good thing, as Lydia suggested. On the other hand, if Calypso suspected this was a possibility, why would she send Salicia in the first place? Perhaps, she could spy through Salicia’s eyes and see what we’re saying in the safe room.

This whole thing just became much more complicated.