*Day 33*
“So, you’re telling me that a new Dungeon has appeared in your back yard?” Celys asked, looking both pained and incredibly weary as she rubbed her temples.
“We’ll go with that,” Joram said with his second-best smile as he used [Cure: Panacea] on Celys in an effort to ease her headache, gaining him a quiet ‘thanks’ for his effort.
“If it’s where you described, then it’s outside of Kirkwall’s jurisdiction,” Celys said, frowning slightly. “That would then be classified as a Wild Dungeon, and thus able to be claimed by whoever discovered it. That said, the Exterminators’ Guild will pressure you to sell the managing rights to them.”
“Would that ‘pressure’ be anything that I can’t handle?” he asked as his eyes narrowed slightly at the thought of being bullied or extorted into selling what was his.
“No, I’m sure that you’ll be fine,” Celys said, waving off his concern. “You’re already a member of the Guild, so it’ll just be internal politicking that you’ll have to worry about. That said, given that you’re already a peak Rank C member, they’ll not be able to do too much.
“That said, I’m sure that you’re likely to cross into Rank B soon enough, so that’ll also come with its own prestige in their eyes. Alienating a rising star like you won’t be a thought they’ll seriously entertain.
“So, to make sure that you won’t face any issues, I can send in a report to the Bureau of Finance letting them know that you’ve found, claimed, and are managing the Dungeon. Which will mean that you’ll need to set aside the proper taxes each month for them,” she said, then went on to describe the taxation system for dungeons.
He was glad that it was relatively simple given that his “one” dungeon was actually six dungeons stacked on top of each other. He was also glad that he wouldn’t have to explain anything regarding the dungeon besides the highest ranked monsters found in it. Which also included the drop-rates of said monsters, as well as any unusual drops that were found.
That last part was important because any dungeon that could produce magic items were highly sought-after. Specifically due to how primitive magic item creation was here. The items produced by a dungeon weren’t the temporary ones that were commonly produced nowadays. Only the most expensive magic items produced by the most sought-after artificers even came close to comparing to the most mundane of items produced by a dungeon.
So, he’d need to make sure that he didn’t kill anything when the kingdom’s inspectors came to evaluate the dungeon.
Yup, that would be a pain in the glutes. So, he’d likely have to leave that prototype farm dungeon as it was and create another one somewhere else that he could use to level himself and his people.
“I’ll arrange it with the bank, then,” Joram said, nodding. “And, again, thanks for arranging things with Zerava,” he said with a grateful smile.
“Well, with what you’ve got planned, I couldn’t not do my part,” Celys said with a warm smile.
“Well, I’ll be sure to return the favour one day,” he said, nodding. “So, do you think that I’ll be able to set up my own territory?” he asked, getting back to talking about his plans for getting recognized by the crown.
“That’ll probably be a difficult task. Though, if your Dungeon proves to be a significant enough source of revenue for the kingdom, then I’m sure that you’ll get there sooner rather than later,” she said with a nod.
“It’s been bothering me for a while now, but why hasn’t anyone claimed or developed the forest west of here?” he asked, finally able to ask the question without it being weird.
“Oh, haven’t I mentioned it before?” Celys asked, looking a bit confused. “Well, anyways, there are a couple of reasons for that.
“The first being that it’s so far away from the major hubs and trade routes of the kingdom. Anyone wanting to settle and start harvesting the resources of the region would have a significant hurdle in the form of start-up costs. Anything from getting the right talent all the way to convincing the common folk to settle in the new development is hard to do.
“The second reason is its history. Well, you could probably say that it’s the first reason for most people. The history of the Ghostlands, as they call the western forest, is rather… fear-inducing for most.
“I’m not sure if you know, but there used to be an extensive civilization that spanned the entirety of the Ghostlands a very long time ago. Records are spotty, but its fall is said to have occurred roughly three thousand years ago when the [Demon Lord] of the time attacked, and nearly won.
“Well, anyways. The forest is called the Ghostlands because of the number of spirits that still wander the Great Forest. Those spirits, or ghosts as outsiders call them, are a significant deterrent for anyone with desires to develop the forest.
“But there’s also the proximity to the Demon Continent to consider. Given how easy it is to get there from the western shore, no one wants to risk being any closer than they absolutely have to,” she said, then paused for him.
“So, location, spirits, and again with location,” he summed up, getting a nod from her. “So, why haven’t I run across any spirits yet?” he asked, genuinely curious.
“Oh, that’s probably because of Asami Miki’s presence, not to mention the other Spirit Foxes that like hanging around you,” she said, nodding to herself.
“What?”
“You don’t know? You’ve been living with Asami and Myra all this time, yet haven’t gotten to know them better?!” Celys demanded incredulously, completely scandalized at the notion.
“…” he really couldn’t say anything to that, especially since he really hadn’t gone out of his way to really get to know the two of them better.
Which led back to why he was sure that it was a bad idea to try to progress anything on a romantic level with them. He just wasn’t… ready, for he was still broken.
“Well,” Celys said, huffing a bit before continuing. “You know that Myra is a special kind of [Priestess] known as a [Miko], right?” she asked, then continued when he nodded.
“A [Miko] has the special duty to act as a sort of intermediary between us, the Spirit Foxes, and the spirits. Not only that, but they’re also responsible for conducting special rites twice a year to help rid the spirits of their resentment, thus allowing us to live here peacefully.”
Joram nodded, getting it a bit more now, but had to ask.
“So, the spirits haven’t bothered me out there because of the Spirit Foxes, Myra, and Asami?”
“Yes.”
“So, what if they hadn’t decided to come with me? Would I have been haunted to death for having decided to build out there?” he asked, not sure how he should feel about that.
“Possibly,” Celys said, looking away briefly before turning back to him.
“So, you knew that I could have died out there, but still allowed me to buy the land, then to build out there?” he asked, glad for M12 focussing on [Clear Mind] in the background.
“Well, it all turned out well in the end,” Celys said with a brilliant, though slightly strained, smile.
Joram sat quiet for a few moments before shaking his head.
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
There were ways to deal with spirits and ghosts and such, so he wasn’t as angry about the whole affair as he could have been. However, learning that Celys had been willing to risk his life like that… hurt a bit.
“Why?” he asked, knowing that she’d know what he was really asking.
Celys sighed, then leaned back in her chair, sliding down slightly as she did.
“That was before we really knew that we could trust you,” she said as she looked up at the ceiling. “At the same time, seeing how many Spirit Foxes had chosen to follow you about, not to mention Harumi, the chances of you running into anything deadly were much lower than for anyone else,” she said, sounding… regretful.
He thought about that for a minute before asking his next question.
“So, why wasn’t I attacked when I was living on my own?”
“I really don’t know,” she said, dropping her head down so that she could look at him again. “It could be anything ranging from pure chance all the way to, well, just about anything, really,” she said, shrugging.
He nodded, wondering if it had anything to do with Altaea’s presence when they’d arrived. A goddess, even a weakened one, who also happened to be a [Paladin] who specialized in eradicating undead, might have left a mark. One that spirits didn’t dare approach.
“Well, thanks for your honesty,” he said, smiling a bit, exchanged parting pleasantries, then excused himself from her office.
He’d finished the expansion of the apartment building for the new arrivals last night, as well as the rings for the new girls. He’d also checked each one of them after dinner, using [Delve] to get what he needed for the rings, as well as [Cure: Panacea] to be sure that they were in optimal health.
It had gone better than everyone had thought, though. The girls and young women hadn’t shied away from him, but had instead been keenly interested in meeting him. Myra had later told him that the first group of girls had basically sung his praises the whole day, alleviating most of their worries.
As part of the ring gifting ceremony, as everyone was now calling it, he’d also freed all those who could legally be freed. Which once more left the “demons” of the group. Though, the three gals had stepped up brilliantly and had basically taken them under their collective wings. Literally or proverbially.
Which led to now. He stepped out of the back hallway and didn’t bother suppressing a smile upon seeing the new girls and young women being registered. The younger ones were being registered under the care of his orphanage while the older ones were getting registered as “adults”.
The eighteen “demons” amongst the new group were also there, but off to the side with the three gals. He couldn’t help but pay attention to them through [Touchsight], though.
The three dragonkin women had pretty much the same features that Erys had when she’d first [Polymorph]’d. Wings, tail, horns, slightly clawed fingers and toes, along with very fine scales, though their colouring varied. There seemed to be a white dragon, a black dragon, and a red dragon given the colour of their scales.
The five Harpies, though, weren’t like the ones of ancient Greece, nor the ones you’d see in most RPGs or video games. Like the various animal-kin, humans had very much interbred with them, making them basically look human.
Sure, their arms were wings, but they had very human-like hands at the ends of them. Most of their legs were “human”, but about mid-shin they basically turned into standard bird legs and feet. Well, a raptor-type bird, anyways. Those talons at the ends of their claws were pretty awesome looking.
Their hair varied in colour, from white to a light grey. At the nape of their necks, he could see very fine down that crossed the backs of their shoulders to connect with the feathers on their wing-arms. They were all slight of build, making sense to his physics-oriented brain, looking as though they could be trained ballerinas.
The next group were the two Lamias. Both had stunning emerald-green scales, alternating with slightly lighter or darker greens in a diamond-like pattern from the hips down. From those awesome hips and up, they were very much human, even with the super-fine scales running up their spines, at their elbows, and on the backs of their hands.
Even their teeth weren’t all pointy as he’d more than half expected. Aside from more prominent incisors, they weren’t any different from those in his own mouth.
Then there were the Oni. Two of them had white hair, while the third had raven-black hair. But all three had what he’d call “Asari” blue skin and very short white horns in the centre of the foreheads. They were also almost as tall as he was, making them a lot taller than most other people around.
He would also classify them as the stereotypical “hot barbarian” chick. The definition of their muscles wasn’t anything to take lightly. He was sure that each one of them had passed that first bottleneck in Strength. But given what he knew of (human) physiology, he was very much impressed with their curves.
All three had respectable hips and breasts, once more playing into that barbarian chick stereotype. It didn’t help that all three had insisted on wearing clothing that they insisted was “traditional attire” for their clans. Ridiculously reinforced sports bras on top with basically Daisy-Duke’s on the bottom.
It had been a fight to compromise with them into wearing even those shorts, as they’d initially insisted upon wearing loincloths. Or what he’d call “butt-flaps”. He nearly sighed remembering their insistence as they’d pressed close to press their point. Points. Sigh.
The Merkin had been, comparatively, easier to deal with. Though they, too, were basically just wearing bras around. Fortunately, they’d agreed to wear a sarong-like skirt while they had legs. Yes, legs. The four mermaids could freely shift between having a tail and legs, much to his relief.
That said, he was astonished that evolution hadn’t reduced their profiles for better hydrodynamics. Then again, if he thought about every other race out there, he supposed that they’d also interbred with humans… a lot.
Which left the Yuki-Onna, a stunning young woman with snow-white skin and hair. Her eyes still seemed to unnerve most people, though. He had also been surprised by her nearly white, pale blue eyes, but had found them rather striking. It was her black sclera that people had found disconcerting, though.
Which led to the young woman avoiding eye contact with almost everyone, instead choosing to gaze down at her feet. Which then resulted in giving her an air of a shy and demure young woman, especially since she seemed to prefer wearing a kimono after seeing Asami’s.
She wasn’t very tall, standing about 168cm or so. But considering the national average, he supposed that she was on the taller end of the spectrum. And she could be another dancer with her lithe figure and long legs.
Looking around, he idly wondered if he should start a dance class or something. Not that he could actually dance himself, but he did remember everything that he’d ever seen, let alone what he had in the form of digital media, so it might not be as impossible as all that.
Shaking his head, he turned to look at the Goatkin and had to wonder just how… every milk-producing animal had wound up with a “kin” with such prominent breasts. Probably horny humans again, if he was being realistic.
Anyways, the four goatkin women weren’t the kind with massive horns, though they did have them. They were similar to the Oni’s horns, though a very dark brown bordering on black. Their ears, though, were the type that started near the top of their head and angled straight down, long enough to reach their jaws.
All four had brown hair and kind of standard goat tails that extended from where you would expect. Aside from those basically cosmetic changes, they looked human.
He then focussed on the Halflings and wondered if they were really a separate race from humans. Sure, the tallest stood under a metre tall, but aside from that, they were proportionally the same as a human. Even if you took a human child and stood them next to an adult halfling, you could easily tell the difference between the two due to their morphology.
These young women were just that: women. They had fully developed breasts and hips, not to mention being narrower in the waist than a human child could ever be, let alone their arms and legs. Bone structure was a thing, after all.
But seriously, did someone just use a shrink ray or something on people? He silently wondered as Asami gave him a weird look.
Finally, he regarded the Sea Elves. They were very much their own race given their hair, skin, and eye colours. These three, respectively, had very light blue, green, and purple skin. Their hair also varied between them, from sea-green to deep ocean blue. Though their heights were fairly different.
One was about the same height as Arise, the next was about the same height as Asami, while the third was about the same height as Qyress. Unlike the mermaids, they’d opted for the same clothing that the other elves had chosen, which had surprised him a little, but ultimately didn’t matter a whole lot if they weren’t walking around half- or mostly- naked.
Then he lost himself in his thoughts for a time as everyone got registered one way or another and only came out of them when Arise cleared her throat beside him.
“We’re ready to go to the bank now,” she said, already looking at the doors.
He nodded, then led the way out as Asami took up her spot on his right with Harumi on his left, the skulk flanking the large group following him.
Zerava was once again called upon to get the tags the “demons” would need to access his account, but aside from that, things went pretty fast, all things considered. Before the could leave, though, Zerava pulled him aside for a word.
“Just what is with you?” she asked, her eyes searching his face as though she was trying to read a book in a foreign language.
“What do you mean?” he asked, completely taken off guard by the question.
“More slaves. Buying out a slave company. Starting the orphanage. Them,” she said, motioning towards the ‘demons’ who were still in shock over receiving their bank tags. “Did you know that each and every one of them chose to take on your family name like the first group did?”
He blinked at that, not able to say anything. Not because his minds had stopped, nor because he felt guilty or something like that. But because of the lump in his throat. It took him a minute to finally speak past the lump, though he still had to whisper for fear of his voice failing him.
“I’m sure they’ll do me proud,” he said, then swallowed again before taking a deep breath, then another as Zerava continued to scrutinize him.
“Keep up the good work,” she said before patting him on the shoulder and making her way back to her office, leaving him to wonder how another frog had ninja’d its way into his throat.