The two of us stared at the yawning void before us.
The right-hand door was as I had left it, and unsurprisingly, it still led to some sort of extra-dimensional maze of darkness. Even less surprising, neither of us where particularly keen on stepping into it.
Lynnria swallowed nervously, her usual bravado for once cowed into submission by the task ahead. “Maybe we should read that clue one more time?”
I was pretty sure it would remain unchanged, but… “Couldn’t hurt.”
Gingerly, the two of us padded our way back over to the left, staying to the white tiles this time. The clock currently read just after six o’clock, meaning I had only been out for a couple of hours.
I had mixed feelings about that. On the one hand, I was not much hungrier than before, but on the other, I also had not had much opportunity to rest. And I could tell.
“Here we are,” Lynnria muttered before reciting the clue aloud. “Jump for glee: Blues in three, As hanging weight. One of six, One of seven, One of eight. First find a Key. Left to see, Right to mate.”
As one, we glanced down at the three crystalline, and notably blue, counterweights sealed behind the glass door of the grandfather clock.
“At least part of that seems clear,” she continued. “I can’t see how the ‘blues in three’ could be anything else.”
“That was my thought, as well. But we’d need a Key to get them out of there,” I observed, tapping at the triangular lock in question with my knuckle. “And even then, I have no idea what to do with them.”
“We’ll find out later,” she said with some confidence. “Branching clues, right?”
“It’s just a theory.”
She made a sound in her throat. “Still… from the way this reads, I would assume you’d find the Key back on the island where we met. Otherwise, what’s the point of the left-hand door?”
I opened my mouth, but she quickly forestalled me.
“Besides a crappy pun?”
My lips twisted to one side wryly. Still, it was a fair question. I mean, it was possible that finding Lynnria had been my ultimate objective—that dilapidated crystal had said to find a guide, after all—but that was only after asking it how to find my lilim. It was also possible that the Key had been secreted back on the island, and if I had bothered to ask, the crystal might have led me in an entirely different direction.
I blamed the children. They were distracting.
“I… guess we could go back and check,” I suggested slowly.
Lynnria paled somewhat. “I’d… rather not. Flying doesn’t seem to agree with my stomach. And besides, we shouldn’t have to! The Dungeon is supposed to grant rewards for completing objectives, and we didn’t get a thing.”
I started to shrug—after all, it was not as if I had really accomplished much thus far—but then what she had just said sparked a memory. The ever-present yet invisible Faen had been quite amused by our little tumble down the stairs, and just before I had passed out, I recalled one of them starting to mention a proper reward.
Something about…
“Lynnria, do me a favor and turn out your pockets,” I said.
Her eyes widened in surprise at my suggestion and, with a strangled tone, she asked, “Whatever for?”
I eyed her suspiciously. Odd response… “I think the Faen may have tried to pull one over on us. I seem to recall one of them mentioning something about a pocket or… well, I don’t know. But it can’t hurt to check.”
“Really? I didn’t hear anything,” she informed me with an uneasy little chuckle. Then she slapped at her hips. “Even so, no pockets here. Leather you know. Far too tight.”
I tilted my head downward with an air of incredulity. She was clearly hiding something. But I did have the one pocket—technically a pouch—I could check before accusing her of anything. Best to be thorough.
“Inventory.”
Instantly, an illusory array of my stored items popped into view. The young laoi gasped in shock at the sight.
“What is this?” she breathed.
“Just what I’ve got stashed in here,” I informed her, jiggling the little Coin pouch hanging about my neck helpfully. Then after a quick scan, I sighed. “I don’t see anything new, though.”
“Yes, but… how did you do it?” she asked excitedly. “Was it some spell? A skill you purchased? Is the pouch engraved?”
“Well… yes it is, but not for that,” I replied. “It’s just a quirky little thing my mates and I can do.”
Actually, I had not thought to check with Arx about whether she had gained the ability, or indeed whether she had ever had it. We had been… rather lacking in inventory space for quite a while. And clothes. So it had not come up.
“Do you think I could do it?” she asked, hopeful. “I mean… now that I’m betrothed to your Clan and all.”
“I dunno. Maybe,” I replied. “Mia? What do you think?”
“Hard to say—hard! Hard dick! I want your dick hard.” There came a sound like she had slammed her fist against something. After a moment, she took a breath and continued, “Strange little Clan skills do crop up from time to time, so it’s possible you may have passed it on during the ritual. Tell—the whore—to try it.”
I gave a hesitant nod. “She… also says maybe.”
Lynnria’s eyebrows lifted doubtfully. “I won’t ask.”
“That’s for the best.”
“Okay, so… what do I do?” she queried.
“Just say—”
“Fuck me, daddy!”
I coughed into my hand. “Just say, ‘inventory.’”
“That’s it?”
I steeled myself for the expected interruption, but Mia had apparently decided to step away from… whatever it was she used to listen in. Grateful, I nodded.
“Alright…” Lynnria shrugged uncertainly. “Inventory.”
It was not quite as instantaneous as when I called on the ability, but soon after saying the word, her eyes unfocused and she shivered. It looked as though a chill had just raced up her spine. Then a very slight, trembling sort of moan escaped her lips. However, before I could comment on the bizarre reaction, her own inventory screen flickered into existence just as mine had.
She did not have much. Just the dagger I had given her, a couple of cloth pouches, a few coins, a strangely large amount of what looked to be loose fur or perhaps wool… and a blue, triangular gemstone.
“Ah, there we go!” I exclaimed happily.
Seleroan
Hey there, gentle reader.
Enjoying the content? Well, why not drop by my Patreon? It helps me keep this show running, and allows me to afford great things like editors, cover artists, and food!
Each chapter is now being personalized with some... passable chapter-inspired AI generated art. I try. But it gives things a bit of color. And you can read ahead!
Come on down! We'd love to see you.
The two of us stared at the yawning void before us.
The right-hand door was as I had left it, and unsurprisingly, it still led to some sort of extra-dimensional maze of darkness. Even less surprising, neither of us where particularly keen on stepping into it.
Lynnria swallowed nervously, her usual bravado for once cowed into submission by the task ahead. “Maybe we should read that clue one more time?”
I was pretty sure it would remain unchanged, but… “Couldn’t hurt.”
Gingerly, the two of us padded our way back over to the left, staying to the white tiles this time. The clock currently read just after six o’clock, meaning I had only been out for a couple of hours.
I had mixed feelings about that. On the one hand, I was not much hungrier than before, but on the other, I also had not had much opportunity to rest. And I could tell.
“Here we are,” Lynnria muttered before reciting the clue aloud. “Jump for glee: Blues in three, As hanging weight. One of six, One of seven, One of eight. First find a Key. Left to see, Right to mate.”
As one, we glanced down at the three crystalline, and notably blue, counterweights sealed behind the glass door of the grandfather clock.
“At least part of that seems clear,” she continued. “I can’t see how the ‘blues in three’ could be anything else.”
“That was my thought, as well. But we’d need a Key to get them out of there,” I observed, tapping at the triangular lock in question with my knuckle. “And even then, I have no idea what to do with them.”
“We’ll find out later,” she said with some confidence. “Branching clues, right?”
“It’s just a theory.”
She made a sound in her throat. “Still… from the way this reads, I would assume you’d find the Key back on the island where we met. Otherwise, what’s the point of the left-hand door?”
I opened my mouth, but she quickly forestalled me.
“Besides a crappy pun?”
My lips twisted to one side wryly. Still, it was a fair question. I mean, it was possible that finding Lynnria had been my ultimate objective—that dilapidated crystal had said to find a guide, after all—but that was only after asking it how to find my lilim. It was also possible that the Key had been secreted back on the island, and if I had bothered to ask, the crystal might have led me in an entirely different direction.
I blamed the children. They were distracting.
“I… guess we could go back and check,” I suggested slowly.
Lynnria paled somewhat. “I’d… rather not. Flying doesn’t seem to agree with my stomach. And besides, we shouldn’t have to! The Dungeon is supposed to grant rewards for completing objectives, and we didn’t get a thing.”
I started to shrug—after all, it was not as if I had really accomplished much thus far—but then what she had just said sparked a memory. The ever-present yet invisible Faen had been quite amused by our little tumble down the stairs, and just before I had passed out, I recalled one of them starting to mention a proper reward.
Something about…
“Lynnria, do me a favor and turn out your pockets,” I said.
Her eyes widened in surprise at my suggestion and, with a strangled tone, she asked, “Whatever for?”
I eyed her suspiciously. Odd response… “I think the Faen may have tried to pull one over on us. I seem to recall one of them mentioning something about a pocket or… well, I don’t know. But it can’t hurt to check.”
“Really? I didn’t hear anything,” she informed me with an uneasy little chuckle. Then she slapped at her hips. “Even so, no pockets here. Leather you know. Far too tight.”
I tilted my head downward with an air of incredulity. She was clearly hiding something. But I did have the one pocket—technically a pouch—I could check before accusing her of anything. Best to be thorough.
“Inventory.”
Instantly, an illusory array of my stored items popped into view. The young laoi gasped in shock at the sight.
“What is this?” she breathed.
“Just what I’ve got stashed in here,” I informed her, jiggling the little Coin pouch hanging about my neck helpfully. Then after a quick scan, I sighed. “I don’t see anything new, though.”
“Yes, but… how did you do it?” she asked excitedly. “Was it some spell? A skill you purchased? Is the pouch engraved?”
“Well… yes it is, but not for that,” I replied. “It’s just a quirky little thing my mates and I can do.”
Actually, I had not thought to check with Arx about whether she had gained the ability, or indeed whether she had ever had it. We had been… rather lacking in inventory space for quite a while. And clothes. So it had not come up.
“Do you think I could do it?” she asked, hopeful. “I mean… now that I’m betrothed to your Clan and all.”
“I dunno. Maybe,” I replied. “Mia? What do you think?”
“Hard to say—hard! Hard dick! I want your dick hard.” There came a sound like she had slammed her fist against something. After a moment, she took a breath and continued, “Strange little Clan skills do crop up from time to time, so it’s possible you may have passed it on during the ritual. Tell—the whore—to try it.”
I gave a hesitant nod. “She… also says maybe.”
Lynnria’s eyebrows lifted doubtfully. “I won’t ask.”
“That’s for the best.”
“Okay, so… what do I do?” she queried.
“Just say—”
“Fuck me, daddy!”
I coughed into my hand. “Just say, ‘inventory.’”
“That’s it?”
I steeled myself for the expected interruption, but Mia had apparently decided to step away from… whatever it was she used to listen in. Grateful, I nodded.
“Alright…” Lynnria shrugged uncertainly. “Inventory.”
It was not quite as instantaneous as when I called on the ability, but soon after saying the word, her eyes unfocused and she shivered. It looked as though a chill had just raced up her spine. Then a very slight, trembling sort of moan escaped her lips. However, before I could comment on the bizarre reaction, her own inventory screen flickered into existence just as mine had.
She did not have much. Just the dagger I had given her, a couple of cloth pouches, a few coins, a strangely large amount of what looked to be loose fur or perhaps wool… and a blue, triangular gemstone.
“Ah, there we go!” I exclaimed happily.
Seleroan
Hey there, gentle reader.
Enjoying the content? Well, why not drop by my Patreon? It helps me keep this show running, and allows me to afford great things like editors, cover artists, and food!
Each chapter is now being personalized with some... passable chapter-inspired AI generated art. I try. But it gives things a bit of color. And you can read ahead!
Come on down! We'd love to see you.
