It was time to level up a few stats. I visited the Soulful Doll.
“Open up,” I said. “Open up wide!”
“I’m not one of your wives,” it replied with its usual, steely expression.
“I didn’t mean it like that. Just… let me see my stats.”
Soul Level: 17
Strength: 6
Intelligence: 1
Agility: 4 + 3
Endurance: 2
Vigor: 2 + 3
Mind: 1
Luck: 1
Soulcores Required for Next Level: 600 (7000)
This would be one of my most momentous power ups to date. With that many soulcores, I could add 8 stat points. I had to choose them carefully, because I probably wouldn’t get such a huge trove of soulcores for a while.
Since I had so many points, I was tempted to increase some of my lower stats. Mind, luck, and intelligence were still at 1, and so aside from Small Meteor, I pretty much never casted spells now. I didn’t expect to have much time for farming going forward, so leaving luck at 1 seemed fine.
But leaving mind at 1 sounded risky, especially since the emperor commanded an army of sorcerers. I had some gear that helped me tank magic attacks, but that might not be enough going forward.
I decided that 2 points in mind and 1 in vigor would balance my defensive stats. Endurance was fine at 2, for now. That left strength, intelligence, and agility as the targets for 5 stat points.
I could divide them between the three. But my agility was already very high. So high, I didn’t really have an issue evading enemy attacks or getting my own to hit. I was simply so much faster than anyone, especially with the agility ring equipped.
Earlier, I’d decided I wanted to be a dodge tank and damage dealer, which was a hybrid build, though it did play to my strengths. I liked hitting things with hammers, swords, whips, and spears rather than standing back and blasting enemies with spells.
Fuck it, all 5 points were going into strength.
Soul Level: 25
Strength: 11
Intelligence: 1
Agility: 4 + 3
Endurance: 2
Vigor: 3 + 3
Mind: 3
Luck: 1
Soulcores Required for Next Level: 1000 (800)
I was going to hit like a fucking truck, now. Bosses in the Underground Forest would probably fall in a few swings of whichever weapon I chose. I could rapidly make progress and collect the treasures on each floor, which if useful, would only augment my power further.
I was so excited to test my “hit hard and fast” build that I grabbed the only girl who wasn’t out farming, which happened to be Maria, and fast traveled to the 4th floor of the Underground Forest.
My petite, white-haired wife took out something from her soul storage. It resembled a cookie.
“I made these for you,” she said. “They boost strength by 25% for an hour.”
I took a bite. It tasted like cookie dough and cinnamon.
“I love it,” I said. “It’s super sweet, just like you.”
Maria’s cheeks turned red. “Oh? Am I really that sweet?”
“You’re easily the sweetest girl I’ve ever met.”
“Is that so?” Maria stomped her foot. “Maybe I should be less sweet.”
Uh oh. Had that line backfired, somehow? “I love how sweet you are. I mean it.”
“But you love Sherry and Ayla, more, because they’re strong.”
“You’re strong too. In your own, sweet way.”
She looked away from me. “It’s okay, Remy. It’s fine if you have a type. And it’s fine if I’m not it.”
“I love you just as much as I love them.” I planted a kiss on her white head of hair. “It’s like your cooking. Do you always cook food with the same flavor? It’s more fun when you mix things up, right? That’s why I love all of you equally. You each bring your own unique spice into my life.”
I picked her up and spun her around lovingly. It was so easy to do with my high strength. Maria seemed to weigh nothing.
She giggled. “Okay, that’s enough. Put me down, Remy.”
I settled her back onto her feet. “High strength has all sorts of perks.” I hoped to pick her up later, in the bedroom.
We stepped on the platform at the edge of the shrine. As usual, it took us lower into the Underground Forest. I had high hopes for the 5th floor, though didn’t want to travel too far with just Maria.
“So what’re your plans for the island?” she asked while we waited on the platform.
“We’re going to make it the best place to live in all of Lumaria.”
She lovingly put her arms around my bicep. “I heard how you proclaimed that all curseborn will have the same rights as anyone else. Thank you, Remy.”
“Of course. That’s why I did all of this. I couldn’t stand living in a place where you and literally everyone I love is being treated like shit.”
“You really do what you say… it’s incredible.”
“I’m not stopping there. We’ll bring the same to the rest of the world.”
“But the world is really, really big. I saw a map of it in a book, once. This island is just a tiny little dot on the map.”
If I was going to conquer the world, then my power needed to increase exponentially.
“Don’t worry. We’ll take it one step at a time. And you’ll be by my side the whole way.”
She nuzzled her head against my chest. “I’ll never leave your side.”
The platform came to a stop. We walked out of the door at the far end.
Snow. Snow everywhere. A blizzard howled in my ears. I was already chattering my teeth.
I couldn’t make out much, but there were snow-covered trees all around us. We were in some kind of frozen forest.
Maria hugged me. “I can barely feel my hands!”
So much for testing my strength. I’d become used to brutally cold winters on Earth, but this was something else. This was the kind of cold even polar bears would run from.
I pulled a torch out of my soul storage. But it hardly did enough to warm me up.
The lighting allowed me to locate the fast travel point. We trudged through the snow toward it, keeping our bodies close to stay warm. As soon as we got in range of the fast travel point, we returned to the onsen.
We both ran for the hot pool and jumped in without taking off our clothes.
Soon enough, the steamy water warmed us up.
“How are we going to progress through that?” Maria asked.
“We’ll need to craft some warm clothes. I’ll ask Ruby. Oh, and we probably need to bring Sherry along to create fires.”
I wondered what kind of enemies we’d find there. Not only would we have to survive the cold, but we’d have to survive the monsters that lived in the cold. I hoped the treasure would be worth it.
Esme came to the edge of the pool. She was covered in sweat from farming so much.
“You should all take a day off,” I said. “I mean, we did just conquer the island.”
Esme shook her head. “Only more reason not to take a day off. You need to get more powerful to face the emperor’s sorcerers.”
“But it won’t do us any good to burn out.” I snapped my fingers. “Maybe we should celebrate.”
“Celebrate?” Esme crossed her arms. “What do you mean?”
“Don’t you have holidays?”
“There’s only one holiday on this island, and it’s to commemorate the prince’s ascension. Now that he’s no longer the ruler, I suppose that holiday goes in the trash bin.”
“Then we need a new holiday,” I said. “The day I came to power fits.”
“How about the day you came to this world, instead? I think that’s more significant.”
“In any case, let’s have a festival to commemorate the great change we’ve brought. We’ll announce it across the island.”
“I’ll cook a ton of stuff!” Maria said. “I can’t wait!”
“Go tell Ayla to make preparations.” I got out of the pool and grabbed a towel. “We’ll throw a party in our new palace.”
“I like the sound of that!” Esme gave me a thumbs up.
I ventured around the first floor of the Underground Forest, killing gargoyles, evil hounds, and slimes, changing my weapons as I pleased. Anything to test my increased strength. But it wasn’t much of a test. Every monster died in a single hit, no matter which weapon I used.
It was satisfying, but also completely lacking any challenge. In a weird way, I hoped the 5th floor of the Underground Forest would challenge my build. That way, I’d know what my weaknesses were, and could account for them with future upgrades.
But it was the emperor’s sorcerers that I truly had to worry about. So while the girls prepared for the festival, I decided I was going to do something bold. I’d accumulated several fast travel points over the past few days, and there was one place that sorely needed one.
A place across the sea that I’d heard much about. A place simply called “the mainland.” It seemed so mysterious to me, having been stuck on this island for so long.
It was time to make it less mysterious. It was time to go there.
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It was time to level up a few stats. I visited the Soulful Doll.
“Open up,” I said. “Open up wide!”
“I’m not one of your wives,” it replied with its usual, steely expression.
“I didn’t mean it like that. Just… let me see my stats.”
Soul Level: 17
Strength: 6
Intelligence: 1
Agility: 4 + 3
Endurance: 2
Vigor: 2 + 3
Mind: 1
Luck: 1
Soulcores Required for Next Level: 600 (7000)
This would be one of my most momentous power ups to date. With that many soulcores, I could add 8 stat points. I had to choose them carefully, because I probably wouldn’t get such a huge trove of soulcores for a while.
Since I had so many points, I was tempted to increase some of my lower stats. Mind, luck, and intelligence were still at 1, and so aside from Small Meteor, I pretty much never casted spells now. I didn’t expect to have much time for farming going forward, so leaving luck at 1 seemed fine.
But leaving mind at 1 sounded risky, especially since the emperor commanded an army of sorcerers. I had some gear that helped me tank magic attacks, but that might not be enough going forward.
I decided that 2 points in mind and 1 in vigor would balance my defensive stats. Endurance was fine at 2, for now. That left strength, intelligence, and agility as the targets for 5 stat points.
I could divide them between the three. But my agility was already very high. So high, I didn’t really have an issue evading enemy attacks or getting my own to hit. I was simply so much faster than anyone, especially with the agility ring equipped.
Earlier, I’d decided I wanted to be a dodge tank and damage dealer, which was a hybrid build, though it did play to my strengths. I liked hitting things with hammers, swords, whips, and spears rather than standing back and blasting enemies with spells.
Fuck it, all 5 points were going into strength.
Soul Level: 25
Strength: 11
Intelligence: 1
Agility: 4 + 3
Endurance: 2
Vigor: 3 + 3
Mind: 3
Luck: 1
Soulcores Required for Next Level: 1000 (800)
I was going to hit like a fucking truck, now. Bosses in the Underground Forest would probably fall in a few swings of whichever weapon I chose. I could rapidly make progress and collect the treasures on each floor, which if useful, would only augment my power further.
I was so excited to test my “hit hard and fast” build that I grabbed the only girl who wasn’t out farming, which happened to be Maria, and fast traveled to the 4th floor of the Underground Forest.
My petite, white-haired wife took out something from her soul storage. It resembled a cookie.
“I made these for you,” she said. “They boost strength by 25% for an hour.”
I took a bite. It tasted like cookie dough and cinnamon.
“I love it,” I said. “It’s super sweet, just like you.”
Maria’s cheeks turned red. “Oh? Am I really that sweet?”
“You’re easily the sweetest girl I’ve ever met.”
“Is that so?” Maria stomped her foot. “Maybe I should be less sweet.”
Uh oh. Had that line backfired, somehow? “I love how sweet you are. I mean it.”
“But you love Sherry and Ayla, more, because they’re strong.”
“You’re strong too. In your own, sweet way.”
She looked away from me. “It’s okay, Remy. It’s fine if you have a type. And it’s fine if I’m not it.”
“I love you just as much as I love them.” I planted a kiss on her white head of hair. “It’s like your cooking. Do you always cook food with the same flavor? It’s more fun when you mix things up, right? That’s why I love all of you equally. You each bring your own unique spice into my life.”
I picked her up and spun her around lovingly. It was so easy to do with my high strength. Maria seemed to weigh nothing.
She giggled. “Okay, that’s enough. Put me down, Remy.”
I settled her back onto her feet. “High strength has all sorts of perks.” I hoped to pick her up later, in the bedroom.
We stepped on the platform at the edge of the shrine. As usual, it took us lower into the Underground Forest. I had high hopes for the 5th floor, though didn’t want to travel too far with just Maria.
“So what’re your plans for the island?” she asked while we waited on the platform.
“We’re going to make it the best place to live in all of Lumaria.”
She lovingly put her arms around my bicep. “I heard how you proclaimed that all curseborn will have the same rights as anyone else. Thank you, Remy.”
“Of course. That’s why I did all of this. I couldn’t stand living in a place where you and literally everyone I love is being treated like shit.”
“You really do what you say… it’s incredible.”
“I’m not stopping there. We’ll bring the same to the rest of the world.”
“But the world is really, really big. I saw a map of it in a book, once. This island is just a tiny little dot on the map.”
If I was going to conquer the world, then my power needed to increase exponentially.
“Don’t worry. We’ll take it one step at a time. And you’ll be by my side the whole way.”
She nuzzled her head against my chest. “I’ll never leave your side.”
The platform came to a stop. We walked out of the door at the far end.
Snow. Snow everywhere. A blizzard howled in my ears. I was already chattering my teeth.
I couldn’t make out much, but there were snow-covered trees all around us. We were in some kind of frozen forest.
Maria hugged me. “I can barely feel my hands!”
So much for testing my strength. I’d become used to brutally cold winters on Earth, but this was something else. This was the kind of cold even polar bears would run from.
I pulled a torch out of my soul storage. But it hardly did enough to warm me up.
The lighting allowed me to locate the fast travel point. We trudged through the snow toward it, keeping our bodies close to stay warm. As soon as we got in range of the fast travel point, we returned to the onsen.
We both ran for the hot pool and jumped in without taking off our clothes.
Soon enough, the steamy water warmed us up.
“How are we going to progress through that?” Maria asked.
“We’ll need to craft some warm clothes. I’ll ask Ruby. Oh, and we probably need to bring Sherry along to create fires.”
I wondered what kind of enemies we’d find there. Not only would we have to survive the cold, but we’d have to survive the monsters that lived in the cold. I hoped the treasure would be worth it.
Esme came to the edge of the pool. She was covered in sweat from farming so much.
“You should all take a day off,” I said. “I mean, we did just conquer the island.”
Esme shook her head. “Only more reason not to take a day off. You need to get more powerful to face the emperor’s sorcerers.”
“But it won’t do us any good to burn out.” I snapped my fingers. “Maybe we should celebrate.”
“Celebrate?” Esme crossed her arms. “What do you mean?”
“Don’t you have holidays?”
“There’s only one holiday on this island, and it’s to commemorate the prince’s ascension. Now that he’s no longer the ruler, I suppose that holiday goes in the trash bin.”
“Then we need a new holiday,” I said. “The day I came to power fits.”
“How about the day you came to this world, instead? I think that’s more significant.”
“In any case, let’s have a festival to commemorate the great change we’ve brought. We’ll announce it across the island.”
“I’ll cook a ton of stuff!” Maria said. “I can’t wait!”
“Go tell Ayla to make preparations.” I got out of the pool and grabbed a towel. “We’ll throw a party in our new palace.”
“I like the sound of that!” Esme gave me a thumbs up.
I ventured around the first floor of the Underground Forest, killing gargoyles, evil hounds, and slimes, changing my weapons as I pleased. Anything to test my increased strength. But it wasn’t much of a test. Every monster died in a single hit, no matter which weapon I used.
It was satisfying, but also completely lacking any challenge. In a weird way, I hoped the 5th floor of the Underground Forest would challenge my build. That way, I’d know what my weaknesses were, and could account for them with future upgrades.
But it was the emperor’s sorcerers that I truly had to worry about. So while the girls prepared for the festival, I decided I was going to do something bold. I’d accumulated several fast travel points over the past few days, and there was one place that sorely needed one.
A place across the sea that I’d heard much about. A place simply called “the mainland.” It seemed so mysterious to me, having been stuck on this island for so long.
It was time to make it less mysterious. It was time to go there.
AnnouncementHey there! Go up to 10 chapters ahead by joining my PATREON, and get exclusive chapters as well as clothed and nude art of the girls!
