While he expected something terrible to happen, it certainly wasn't up to this extent.

This 'Grinning One' was more atrocious than Michael initially thought he would.

"I guess it's pretty much what a demon should be. Still... *Sigh* what am I supposed to do with the body now?"

Approaching the almost mummified body left behind, the Sanctuary decided to lend a hand in identifying the cause of this incident.

[ Orgai's corpse

Orgai's jaw is ripped open; a horrid smile spreads across his face. The jawbone is missing. ]

Upon closer examination, the Necromancer saw all the 'small' details mentioned by the in-depth description the Sanctuary worked on, feeling goosebumps on his skin.

Since he couldn't just leave the body here in front of the altar, like it wasn't his business, he decided to first contact Beatrice and explain the situation to her.

After hearing the details, the Tier 4 Spirit Caller's voice was even more tired than at the start of the conversation.

[So, this Grinning One is, in fact, a demon linked to the Grinning Labyrinth Dungeon, and you think he's using his influence in the outside world to draw in foolish victims, such as this dead Orgai, and then consume their blood and soul?](Beatrice)

"Pretty much."

[*Sigh* To be honest, I never heard about this worshiped 'deity' before, but I'll have to look into it before deciding what to do. As for the man's corpse, sorry, but you can't bring it back to Jirandai. If people there start asking questions and looking into the matter, we could have even more innocents die.](Beatrice)

"In that case, I'll just dig a grave for him somewhere and let him rest. What about the worship of this demon? Will you tell the residents that practice this?"

[Most definitely not! At least, not until I successfully find out exactly how many settlements worship this Grinning One. Who knows how the demon might react if it's not done properly? *Sigh* Lately, I feel like I should find a successor for my position as a Representative. This is too much!](Beatrice)

"Hire a secretary to help you with the workload."

[A what?](Beatrice)

"Ugh... we'll talk at the meeting."

[Speaking off, where are you? Everyone's here, and the conversation is progressing nicely.](Beatrice)

"I just wrapped the last thing up. I'm on my way."

Checking the MAP, Fate's Retreat was the closest location with a Waypoint. It was also less than 15 minutes on horseback, so Michael made it his destination.

On his way there, he noticed his Equipment inventory with one slot empty and nodded to himself. While there were more Rare items and Caches than Legendary items, he didn't mind.

After all, his main goal was to sell them for gold coins and use the money to purchase a house.

'In the end, there are certain things that I cannot postpone any longer. My relationship with Helen and Mina is one of these things. I need to make a decision.'

He spent these fifteen minutes considering his interactions with these two women so far and realized that he wasn't against the idea of having them around.

It wasn't to the point where he could say there were feelings of love involved, but there was lust, and there was possessiveness.

The thought of the girls finding someone else didn't sit right with him.

The main issue was that he knew it wasn't a proper answer, and neither Mina nor Helen would be satisfied with such a half-assed resolution.

'To begin with, the relationship I started with Helen was supposed to be only that of friends with benefits. Things just happened to progress up to this point.'

Rubbing his eyebrows, the Necromancer couldn't bring himself to decide. There were enough arguments for both continuing and cutting the relationship short.

In the end, he could only compromise. He would spend more time with them both, albeit separately, and figure out how he felt.

While he dreaded letting someone in, he couldn't use the same half-measures his facade used.

'*Sigh* Facade my ass. In the end, isn't it still me?'

Conflicted, he reached Fate's Retreat campsite but didn't see the Curio Collector anywhere.

Since it was already pretty late, almost 10 p.m., the Necromancer stepped through the Waypoint and returned to Kyovashad.

He was surprised to see Orzen and Zivek's shops still open, so he took advantage of the situation.

"Good evening. Are you still open for business?"

[Hmm? It's you, lad? Come in. Do you have anything you want to sell?](Orzen)

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

"Yes, sir."

Leaving the ten caches aside and two Legendary items aside, his inventory was almost full of Rare items.

To make things easier, Orzen asked him to open the Caches first, which would give him another ten items he might want to sell. Michael agreed.

After the 'unboxing' procedure, he gained 16 Iron Chunks, 23 Bundled Herbs, 38 Rawhides, 12 Veiled Crystals, 20 of each Jewel Fragment, 20 Murmuring Obols, and 10 brand new Rare items.

Selling all Rare items to Orzen netted him 289,210 gold coins, bringing his grand total to 990,943.

He was incredibly close to his 'small goal.'

With his business concluded, he turned to Zivek and handed him the two Manuals he found.

"This is what I picked up after getting the Tempering Priority Quest."

[Huh? Let me see... hmm... It does look like a recipe. And they are of different rarity grades also. *Sigh* Leave them to me overnight and come back in the morning. I'll let you know what I found.](Zivek)

After thanking the two men and bidding them good night, Michael checked his experience bar and saw that it had reached 806,289/1,763,640.

Walking toward the Pink Palace while contemplating today's events, he concluded something significant was happening.

'The Sanctuary is concocting something. I am not sure exactly what, but all these small and big changes point to something big happening soon. It most likely has to do with Lilith and Inarius clashing and the obvious chaos that would occur after.'

The two guards at the gates greeted the Necromancer and allowed him entry. Looking at the two Level 20-ish Wanderers, to consider them 'guardians' when the ones they're supposed to protect are at least three to four times stronger was a bit of a stretch.

However, Mayor Collin insisted on having them so nobody could say anything, even if it felt redundant.

Politely thanking them for their hard work, he bypassed the duo and headed to the garden. Judging from the chaotic sounds, Aylin and Connie were at it again.

Seeing the 'star' return, everyone greeted him enthusiastically. Everyone except for Beatrice, who appeared to hold a grudge for all the work he made her do.

Smiling sheepishly at the woman who decided to stuff her face with good food and ignore him, he shook his head and smiled bitterly. There wasn't much he could do about it since he might still need to pester her further in the following days, especially with the Crane Tribe project he had in mind.

Helen stood up and walked to him, lending a hand with taking off his chest armor and gloves.

Following that, he sat next to her on the table as he also unequipped his rings and amulet.

Food was served in large quantities, and the tigress filled his plate to the brim.

However, something was missing. Rather... someone.

"Where are the others?"

[Tia, Evelyn, Neyrelle and Gonk are at the Horadric Vault. She said there are about four books on the Vizjerei Mage Clan, and she'll spend the night browsing through them. Since they found it interesting, Tia and Evelyn decided to do the same. Gonk had no choice but to remain overnight as well.](Helen)

"Are they having a sleepover in the sacred place of knowledge of the Horadrim? Even I'm feeling a bit jealous. Won't it be dangerous?"

[It won't. We recently realized that some rooms have been sealed, and we cannot access them. After talking with Lorath and explaining which ones, he said not to worry and that it might be Donan.](Helen)

"I see. With him around, the girls will be safe."

[What about Gonk?](Helen)

"He can take care of himself. Where are Mina, Mei, and Hella?"

[They went ahead to meet with the 'escort' I sent for the young lady you found in the Steppes. They'll take over the protection and escort responsibility tonight.](Helen)

"Where is the meeting point?"

[The Hidden Overlook. From there, they'll rush to Nostrava through a secret mountain passage and stay at a local inn. Then, tomorrow, they'll return to Kyovashad.](Helen)

"I see. I feel bad for having them rush through the night like that."

[Just make sure you thank them properly afterward.](Helen)

"Hmm? Are you suggesting I should also thank you properly as well?"

Grabbing the tigress's hand and holding it in his, Michael looked at the beauty with a teasing smile.

Seeing her eyes not dare to meet his, he initially wanted to continue teasing the woman but suddenly realized it was strangely quiet at the table.

Lifting his head and looking around, it appeared everyone's gazes were on them, prompting him to sweat a bit.

[Tsk! Not only do you make me work all day, but now I have to suffer the indignity of watching your public display of affection. Do you believe I won't answer when you try contacting me from now on?](Beatrice)

Decisively waving the white flag and apologizing re-sparked the boisterous atmosphere.

Giving a quick rundown of what he experienced today helped Beatrice understand the situation of the Steppes a bit more.

[*Sigh* I've read the reports, but they weren't very detailed. And you said you previously encountered a similar situation.](Beatrice)

"Yes. At the Orbei Monastery. If that Azzoth the Deceiver managed to fool even the monks, I'm afraid this sort of thing doesn't happen only in the Dry Steppes."

[You suggest we check all deities worshiped in our regions?](Natalia)

"It would be the best course of action, though, slightly unrealistic."

[Slightly? I know a small settlement where the people worship five different deities. In a SMALL settlement.](Mira)

"I understand, but sitting on our hands won't be good either."

The conversation continued for another two hours, and then everyone went home.

Michael realized that everyone was using this 'meeting' as a means to unwind from the stress, and whatever resolution to certain problems they found was only a bonus.

Natalia also told him to prepare for the ritual two days from now, and she agreed to help guide him in terms of skill build after that.

Entering the house to prepare for the bed, the Necromancer realized that besides Aylin, he was alone with the tigress in this vast palace.

What surprised him was that she allowed him to bathe alone, and only after he was done she took hers.

It wasn't hard to figure out what was going through her head.

'She's feeling insecure because of how I've been acting. *Sigh*'

Without the usual shows of affection, who knows what's being going through that pretty head of hers?

Women are incredibly proficient at overthinking and making a mountain off a molehill. Therefore, it was best to nip this problem in the bud.

Calmly waiting for Helen to return to the room, Michael tried calming down his heartbeat. He was incredibly nervous and felt the palms of his hands sweat.

Ultimately, he could be considered experienced, but his mind didn't feel the same. In the silence of the room, he felt as if he could hear his heartbeat echoing between the walls.

When the door opened, he almost had a mini heart attack but forcefully put on a gentle smile, as he didn't want to infect the tigress with his strange mood.

Patting the mattress beside him, Helen bashfully sat next to him.

"Lay down. You did ask me to thank you properly, didn't you?"

[...](Helen)

Seeing her submissive actions, the Necromancer felt something stirring inside him but forcefully suppressed it.

Helping the pretty tigress on her belly, he used all his knowledge about massaging to turn her into putty in his hands.

It was unavoidable that it wouldn't feel that good with clothes in the way. So he carefully undressed her until she was fully naked.

[*GASP*](Helen)

Feeling something cold drip on her back, Helen let out a seductive moan, which made him feel dizzy.

Swallowing his saliva, he continued dripping the oil he procured in exchange for five recipes from Mira. It was very suitable for massaging, and he heard a while back from a party he was drinking with at the Sleepy Peaks Inn that there were actual massage parlors in Kehjistan.

So, he planned to surprise Mina and Helen with this. Unfortunately, the Nightmare Dungeon happened, and everything changed after that.

Erasing the random thoughts from his mind, he fully focused on the tigress.

Starting from her shoulders, he slowly tested the amount of force he could use based on her response.

Then, he slowly descended on her spine, using both of his thumbs to push the skin and muscle outward.

Once he moved past her lower back, his hands moved onto her hips, and felt Helen push her ass upward into his palms.