Down in the center of Floor Four, Xenia and DEATH OF RABBITS were playing one of their usual games of chess. While Xenia could teleport to any point in her dungeon at a whim, the fact that DEATH lived just a stair climb away from her current core chamber location somehow made him feel much more accessible, and the two had spent quite a bit of time hanging out in recent weeks. It may also have been a factor that DEATH had yet to fight even a single Challenger, and Xenia felt a little bad about him having nothing to do even if the boss never showed much sign of boredom. The chess set was custom-made, with a bit of input on the design from DEATH meaning that every piece had its own little set of rabbit ears, somehow making the game a little more fun to play.

Fun or not, the games themselves were often little more than a backdrop to their true hobby: philosophical debate. "I'm just saying, there's no harm in blowing off a little steam with a teammate if everyone's into it, yeah? Everyone's got urges - well, most mortals do, anyways, so what's the harm in mutually agreeing to taking care of each other?"

DEATH shakes his head as he moves his bunny rook. "A NICE IDEAL, IF YOUR IDEAL IS CASUAL SEX, CERTAINLY. BUT YOU CAN'T DENY THE EMOTIONAL IMPACT OF INTIMACY. PRETENDING THAT YOU CAN ENGAGE IN SEXUAL INTERCOURSE WITH SOMEONE YOU HAVE KNOWN WHILE NOT DEEPLY CHANGING YOUR RELATIONSHIP IS NOTHING MORE THAN DENIAL. IT IRREVOCABLY CHANGES THE BEHAVIOR OF THE ENTIRE PARTY."

"I'm not saying folks should, or even could feel nothing, obviously! But why let that hold you back? Change is growth, and if you're not growing, you're dying - no offense. And ha, Bunny Knight swoops in from the flanks!"

The boss leans forward to witness the demise of his rabbit bishop. "NONE TAKEN. YOU'RE FORGETTING THAT WHEN IT COMES TO ADVENTURERS, DYING CAN BE A VERY REAL AND IMMEDIATE THREAT. FEELINGS OF PROTECTIVENESS, JEALOUSY, OR SIMPLE HORMONAL CONFUSION COULD CAUSE A DELAY AT A LETHAL MOMENT. NOT THAT DEATH IS THE ONLY POSSIBLE NEGATIVE OUTCOME OF CASUAL PROMISCUITY."

Xenia snorts. "Please, hormonal confusion? Like letting yourself get backed up is going to avoid that? And this is about promiscuity in general now? DEATH, please, I didn't take you for a slut-shamer! That's sure not how I raised you!"

"I DIDN'T MEAN TO IMPLY THE ONLY CONSEQUENCES WERE NEGATIVE - ONLY THAT THEY EXIST AND MUST BE CONSIDERED. THE PARTIES INTRUDING OUR DUNGEON HAVE BEEN CHANGING IN RECENT WEEKS, SURELY YOU CAN'T DENY THAT."

"Yeah, they have, but you can tell because they're smiling more, skullhead! You'd know what that meant if you had lips."

"TURNING TO PERSONAL INSULTS IS A SIGN YOU'RE LOSING THE ARGUMENT. AND THE GAME. SAY FAREWELL TO YOUR HOPPING QUEEN."

Xenia gasps. "Nooooo, queenie! Alright, fine, I apologize. But I'm right! The Challengers are having fun in here now, which makes me the safest I've ever been! From having two different governments breathing down my neck to having the Challengers on my side in a few weeks, all through the power of casual promiscuity! Maybe you underestimate its positive benefits, eh?"

"OH? THEN WHY IS IT THE ONLY MEMBER OF YOUR 'PARTY' THAT YOU'VE SLEPT WITH IS STILL JUST THE SLIME GIRL? IF THE BENEFITS ARE SO POWERFUL?"

The dungeon master smirks. "Is this you flirting with me, DEATH? Are you the one feeling jealous?"

The undead shakes his hood-covered head as he moves another piece. "YOU KNOW WHO I'M TALKING ABOUT."

Xenia leans back in her chair, a little surprised. "Wait, really? You're on the Xenia-Sincere shipping team too? What's with you and Lollyp always pushing that, we've got nothing in common!"

"YOU BOTH HAVE GENITALS AND EMOTIONS. APPARENTLY THAT'S ALL YOU REALLY NEED."

"That is an outrageous oversimplification, and - " Xenia halts as a screen suddenly fills her vision, one taking an appearance she hasn't seen in weeks.

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DIVINE QUEST

HAVE AT LEAST FIVE CHILDREN BE CONCEIVED WITHIN YOUR DUNGEON BOUNDS.

TIME REMAINING: 45 WEEKS

PROGRESS: 1/5

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She stares at it, wide-eyed, realizing what it means. "Hold up, hold up! Gotta put the game on pause for a bit, Big D, I think I wanna go check something out." As she stands up from her seat, she gives the monster a smirk. "Think we can chalk one up for the power of promiscuity."

As she vanishes, the boss shrugs and mutters to himself. "XENCERE IS INEVITABLE. THIS I KNOW."

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As much as she may have been encouraging the changes in the Challengers' behavior as of late, the dungeon master had to admit that even she felt a little uncomfortable about things at times. While creating a spirit avatar and walking around allowed her to focus on specific things at a high level of detail, as she'd once told Beatrice she was still at least a little bit aware of everything the mortals inside her dungeon were doing at all times. This meant she had enjoyed the honor of getting to watch nearly two dozen different adventurers getting it on over the past few weeks, and a few of those repeatedly. She wanted to give them privacy, she really did, but there was nothing she could do.

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Xenia did at least take the step of not forming her avatar on Floor Five while it was in use, which was about as far as her options went. Well, most of the time, anyhow. She did have to do the occasional quality inspection, of course. Just to make sure the Challengers were enjoying the environment as intended, given that she wasn't exactly in a position to hand out surveys. They were solely professional, observational visits.

And if she did occasionally step in to create custom printed pornographic recreations of the events that occurred as special loot items for her repeat visitors, well, that was just a special bonus for her most loyal customers.

Regardless, today when Xenia popped into the second section of Floor Five it was for entirely dungeon-related reasons. "Guy! Guy! I think something just happened!"

Summoned to her side, the guide pops up a moment later with a questioning tone. "Oh? Did a Challenger finally manage to kill themselves mid-coitus? Lollyp was wondering if we might get an achievement for that."

Xenia grimaces. "You know, I'm almost starting to think that maybe killing people all day for a living might be psychologically unhealthy, or something. No, I mean I think someone just got knocked up! I'm wondering if we can maybe tell - " Before she can finish her sentence, one of the four bedroom doors ringing the section's center chamber opens up, and an elvish woman and a male kobold step out, adjusting their armor. Going by the embarrassed looks on their faces and the several feet of distance between them, Xenia assumes they're one of the increasingly-common 'what happens in Worthy Dungeon, stays in Worthy Dungeon' couples, though it's possible that it won't exactly be the case for them this time. "Oooh, do you think it was them? Those two are...Traylana and Drossder, aren't they? Know I've seen them in here a few times..."

Ignoring the invisible duo, the pair move on to one of the other bedroom doors where the kobold begins knocking. "Hey, you two done yet? We said an hour an', well, it's been an hour an' a quarter already. Wanna get a move on if we don't wanna end up hiking back in the dark, you know!"

A muffled voice answers through the door. "We're coming, we're coming, just getting dressed!"

The kobold snorts and mumbles. "Yeah, I bet you're coming alright. Probably gonna be coming some more back at the Lucky Bastard, the way those two have been getting lately..." Xenia can't help smirking at the comment, although the kobold's partner lightly slaps him on the shoulder.

"Drossder! Don't be mean...I think they're cute together."

"Sure, sure. Though not as cute as the noises you make when I - " The elf is saved from a round of furious blushing when the door opens up, interrupting the kobold's thoughts. This time it's a redheaded human woman and a dwarvish man who step outside, their armor in a somewhat more in-progress state of wear than it was for the first couple, but that's not what grabs Xenia's attention.

The woman, the party's Mage, is glowing. Literally, a golden glow emanates from the woman's body making her appear almost angelic. It certainly hadn't been there when the party arrived earlier, Xenia is sure of that, yet for some reason no one else is making any comments about it. "Guy! Guy, do you see that? I'm not going crazy, right, that Mage is glowing?"

"I do see it, ma'am, and I can tell you that's actually a function of your dungeon interface. Not often used, as it's very rare that dungeons receive quests, but that right there is a quest indicator. It seems that she would be our first quest credit."

Xenia presses her hands over her mouth. "Oh shit, we actually did it. We knocked up a Challenger! Isn't that crazy quick, though, I thought the actual conception like, took longer than that, you know?"

The guide bobs up and down. "Could be the blessings of Kahlia, could be they simply got lucky, could be the fates already know it will happen and are giving us a heads up. Of course, whether the child will be born or not is still unknown, but all the quest requires is conception, so I'd say we've done our part."

As the chest containing the rewards for the Challenge Mode completion forms near the chamber's healing fountain, Xenia stares at it in a moment of indecision. "Should we...do something extra for em? Maybe they wouldn't even want to know? ...No, wait, that's stupid. Whether they want the kid or not, I'm sure anyone would appreciate the heads-up. I'm giving em a bonus."

When the party steps over to the chest a minute later and the dwarf starts going through the items, they begin by finding the usual rewards for a Section Two chest. "Let's see, slime-based dildo - we've got enough we don't have to fight over these now, yeah? Heheh...stamina potion...a flip book of a..." The dwarf pauses as he takes the booklet in hand and lets the pages flip rapidly. "...a kobold lass dancing in a maid outfit? Ooh ho, got her tits spillin' out, she does!"

The kobold standing behind him raises a hand. "Dibs!" After getting a bit of a look from his elvish companion, he shrugs. "What? You got the last two with the hot elf boys, I don't know what you're staring at me for."

"Haha, we'll start a library and loan em around, maybe. And...a card? Don't look sexy, it's just a pic of a...babe?" As he holds up the simple card, containing only a single word and a picture of a baby in a crib with a full dwarvish beard's worth of red facial hair, he reads it out. "'Congratulations!'? Congratulations on wha...oh. Oh!" He looks up at the woman standing next to him, the pair exchanging a shocked look, and the woman gasps.

"Oh! I...it's...Lanfred, do you think it means...?"

The man grins. "This is the dungeon blessed by Kahlia, Olanna, I daresay the place knows what it's talking about." The man pauses for a moment then, without rising from his kneeling position by the chest, turns so that he's facing Olanna instead. Taking hold of her hand, he looks up at her. "Olanna...I know we said this sort of thing would be all, well, far in the future, but seems the future's a nearer thing than we might have thought. Would you be willing to accept the vow of a foolish dwarf? So we can do right by...well, by what all appearances will be a handsome young lad?"

Olanna gasps again before falling to her knees and grabbing the man in a hug. "I will! Lanfred, of course I will!"

As the two join in a kiss, the kobold standing a few feet away elbows the elf in the hip. "Well, well...seems there's gonna be a bigger party tonight at the Lucky Bastard than I thought."

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The party collects their things, making their way immediately to the exit portal just a few minutes later, but they leave behind a dungeon spirit bawling into her palms as she sits on the edge of the healing fountain. Unsure what to do, Guy hazards a question. "Ma'am, are you...quite alright?"

Xenia's bawling intensifies. "It's just so - so beautiful! Did you see them? No hesitation at all, they, snnfff, they just loved each other so much!"

"That they did, that they did. Too early to call it a happy ending, perhaps, but a happy beginning at the least."

The dungeon master summons herself a handkerchief and blows noisily into it before speaking again. "It's just...I really needed that, I think, you know? And I didn't even know it til it happened. In the middle of all this...this blood, and murder, and gore, I'd almost forgotten...maybe sometimes good shit does happen too once in a while. Gods, forget what I said about Lollyp earlier. Maybe this place is doing a number on me."

"It's a difficult life, ma'am, no doubt about it. Perhaps as it turns out, we've been blessed in more ways than just the obvious by our divine patronage."

Xenia smiles as she nods. "Never been the religious type, but you might be right about that. C'mon...if that happens - nah, when that happens again, I wanna have something even better cooked up for the loot box. This is only the beginning."