Natalie stepped through the gssy bck portal, and the busy noises of Aradon's dungeorance dropped away. Her team followed after, one by one, appearing in the small stone room that made up the floor sele chamber. As usual, only two portals presehemselves: the first and the sed floor. They'd yet to head down to the third.

  "Today's the day we find Nat a proper boss to fuck," Jordan mused loudly—attrag four heads to swivel her way. "It's a shame all we've been finding are actual monsters. Where are the fuckable ones when you hem?"

  "You," Sofia grumbled, "are growiirely too crude."

  "Crude? I'm being practical," Jordan disagreed. "That erotite arrow is a two-part rare reward—we're gon something amazing once we find Nat proper prey. If only that dryad had e ter. She looked cute. What do you think dryad pussy is like?"

  Sofia shook her head, exasperated, and faced Ana. Natalie's amusement lingered on Jordan for a moment, who gri her—whiatalie respoo by rolling her eyes. Sofia was right, holy. The woman really was being more and more of a provoker.

  "You said you had something you wao talk about, once we got inside?" Sofia asked Ana.

  Everyone's attention turo the team's mage, who was slipping off her bra—whiatalie paused at. Though it was hardly anythiheir team covered up during the trip over to the dungeorance. Even if they had to wear revealing attire while ihe dungeon, for the stat boosts, it still felt rather indiscreet to do so out in public. For that matter, Natalie herself had taken to wearing a skirt and jacket overtop her extremely revealing armor. She tucked both away, following Ana's lead.

  "Yes," Ana said. "Just a quinou. And possibly a momentary interruption, before setting out. You remember the tattoo and ink vial, from earlier?"

  "You mean the glowing pink womb tattoo everyone see? That you wear out in public?" Sofia asked dryly. "Yes, we haven't fotten about that, Ana."

  It was true; Ana was definitely more shameless than Natalie, when it came to walking through Aradon's streets. At least she wore a bra, because when that thing came off, it was fifty-fifty odds whether slight movements would destroy her modesty. If it'd been anyone else, she'd have thought Ana was showing off. Since she did have a lot to show off. But no—Natalie retty sure she simply didn't care, which was equal parts impressive and hirious.

  "The [Inscriber] I issioned had a breakthrough," Ana said, ign Sofia's sarcasm—maybe not eveing it. "He mao redesigtoo so it works differently from its inal purpose. So that it's funal for us."

  "Oh?" Natalie asked. "Funal how?"

  "Before, it collected asms to unlock those doorways, if you remember," Ana said, and a brief heat fsh went through Natalie, recolleg that whole series of events. "Now, it stores the same energy, but as a sedary mana resourot signifit, but, of course, any increase in mana is an excellent boon. Especially when bined with my crystal ball."

  'Crystal ball'. Ana had taken to calling her buttplug that. The team didn't really mind; dropping the word 'buttplug' into casual versations could be … a little much. Even for their circumstances.

  "It stores asms as mana," Sofia said, rubbiemples. "You're serious?"

  "Yes."

  "Why am I not surprised?" Sofia asked, sounding almost angry.

  "You figured that out fast," Natalie ented, impressed. She'd expected it to take loo track down someone who could help her with the task of redesigning the tattoo. But Ana worked effitly. It'd takehan a week.

  "And you said there might be a short diversion before we start today?" Liz asked hesitantly, a heat rising on her face. "By that, do you mean …?"

  Natalie paused.

  "The energy decays, so I didn't ha beforehand," Ana said. "And the iy of the asm also affects how muergy there is to draw on." She nodded. "So, yes, I waited until we were at the duo ask."

  Those statements sat in the air for a moment.

  "You … want to ha … now?" Sofia asked.

  "It shouldn't take long," Ana said, as uurbed as ever. "Especially if I have some help." She paused, then gnatalie's way. "If you don't mind. I suppose I shouldn't assume you would."

  Natalie blinked.

  "You wao …?"

  Help her fill the tattoo up?

  Ana nodded.

  "Like, here?" Natalie asked, looking around the small floor-sele chamber. "Now?"

  Ana didn't seem to uand why everyone was either flushing, amused, or exasperated at the request. "As I said, it'll be quick. This is a reality of our situation, isn't it? Such breaks will be required, especially if we tinue receiving simir items." She Liz. "Like Elizabeth's wand. That's a daily y, isn't it?"

  Liz shared a look with Natalie, her cheeks going a shade darker. Natalie ughed. The two of them had, in fact, been making good use of her wand—they weren't going to leave stats oable, not when expl the dungeon.

  Natalie had been very mujoying those events, too. There was something strangely erotic about the quick, even perfunctory at times, nature of having to fuck Liz with her dildo to provide her the stat boost. And the linking process, too. Si was needed every time they ventured out, it was something they 'just took care of', beforehand. Natalie didn't know why the 'get it over with' attitude Liz sometimes treated the event with turned her on, but it definitely did. Not that she ever seemed relut, just that they were busy people, and so Liz insisted Natalie work as hard as possible to have her squirming without wasting time.

  Her current record was one minute and forty-five. She retty proud of that one.

  "I help if you need me to," Natalie said. "But it's, uh, a bit crowded in here, isn't it?"

  Ana, again, nodded, uurbed. "Yes. But that should just make finishing even easier, if everyone is watg us."

  Sofia and Liz both made a sort of choking that, and Jordan started ughing. Natalie's eyebrows went up.

  "You want them to watch?"

  "The idea makes me feel rather hot," Ana said. "So yes, it would speed things up. I don't want to waste our time. Of course, it's their choice, too."

  "How you say something like that? With a straight face?" Sofia demanded.

  Ana looked at her bnkly. "What do you mean?"

  Jorda ughing.

  Well. That sort of impassive analysis was very on-brand for Ana, but still, Natalie couldn't help but give her an odd look. She was strangely izant of her own thought processes, for being so clueless. Surely she knehat she'd said was … a bit much. Even for her.

  Then again, this robably one of the situations where she ying into her own cluelessness, iionally. It was certainly w to fluster Sofia and Liz—though that wasn't a hard task.

  "Well. I mean. If everyone's okay with it," Natalie said, "I guess it is just part of how the dungeon works for us, these days." Her heart rate sped up, despite the casualness she tried to portray. Sure, she'd been growing closer with all of her teammates, but helping bring Ana tasm in front of everyone else?

  Sofia pinched her nose and turned away. "Just, hurry up," she said, waving her hand. "We're wasting exploration time."

  Ana faatalie, looking at her expetly.

  Natalie's face heated up.

  A good teammate did what a good teammate had to dht?

  Though … maybe Sofia could help out too. Join in. Her colr did o be traihey could kill two birds with oone.