After a quick bath and drying off, we gathered our equipment and left the inn’s room. When I knocked on Mari’s door, she didn’t even open it, just told me she’d join us for breakfast in a moment.

  However, when I knocked on Tori’s door, she opened almost immediately, and before I even had a chance to say anything, she was pressed against me, pushing her tongue into my mouth.

  “Well rested?” I asked, licking my lips as we broke the kiss.

  “Yeah,” Tori hummed, heading toward the stairs, but she stopped abruptly when her gaze fell on Azura. Or more precisely, on her neck. Tori turned back toward me, raising her brows.

  “Azura wanted that,” I said. “We took care of it yesterday, after you went to your room.”

  I suspected that didn’t answer the question she had in mind—whether I’d done it myself or hired someone. But the sve owner who sold me Mari had said there wasn’t a single person in Ortas who could do it.

  So if Tori knew that, then I’d basically revealed what my css might be—or at least that I had a skill capable of creating magical bonds. Even if rare, it wasn’t as abnormal as my Sex Mage css.

  Tori just turned and walked down the stairs without saying a word. She already knew I had a css and that I came from another world, and she didn’t really ask questions about those things. Just like she didn’t ask about the boratory I was searching for. So I figured she wouldn’t ask about this either. She’d just let it be. And I couldn’t change the fact that she already knew a lot.

  We ordered food and were already eating when Mari joined us.

  “Seriously? You don’t have enough?” Mari hissed, stopping next to the table and staring at Azura’s neck.

  “You have the same,” I said calmly, still eating.

  Mari scoffed. “My master loved me. I wanted to be his.”

  “I don’t recall you talking to Azura. So how could you know whether she wanted it or not?” I asked. “She did,” I added immediately. “Just like Zoe. And even you wanted to become my sve.”

  Mari gred at me, pressing her lips into a thin line, her eyes shooting daggers—but she didn’t say anything else. She just sat down and started eating the food we’d ordered for her earlier.

  We still had to talk about healing her body, even if I wasn’t sure I really wanted to do it. It felt like the right thing to do—to help her fix her body and maybe even her life. But on the other hand, I’d be giving up a chance to earn a lot of money that I needed.

  And with how she’d been behaving, I was starting to wonder whether I really wanted her to stay by my side any longer. Everyone’s patience has its limits.

  I decided to talk with her after we returned from the dungeon. I had no idea how she’d react to the conversation, and I didn’t want to risk pissing her off right before we entered.

  She might think I was doing it just to take advantage of her and keep her close longer—which was true. But she’d be getting something truly valuable in return. I just needed to make sure she understood that.

  After we finished our meal, we left the inn and headed toward the arena, where we were supposed to meet Cassia.

  She was already there, waiting—fully geared up in shiny, thick armor. Add to that some solid pants, a longsword, and a big shield. She even had a helmet attached to her belt. She looked like a knight and seemed really well-equipped.

  Without any unnecessary chatter, we set out toward the city gate and then to the dungeon—at least after Azura shifted into her wolf form just past the gate.

  Nothing really happened on the way. Cassia, Tori, and Mari discussed battle tactics. Mostly learning more about Mari’s abilities and sharing their experiences from Level 2.

  I mostly listened, occasionally adding a comment here and there, but I let them take the lead. They knew way more about dungeons than I did, so I focused on soaking up as much knowledge as possible.

  From what I gathered, Level 2 had the same types of monsters as Level 1—just stronger versions. It was still a byrinth, where we could encounter skeletons—possibly better equipped and more skilled. Faster, tougher demons. And more dangerous wraiths, which posed the greatest threat if they managed to ambush someone.

  I did mention that st time Azura sensed the wraith moments before it appeared, so we hoped she could do the same this time and give us a warning. At least that way, she’d have an actual role in the dungeon, rather than just tagging along because she didn’t want to be separated from her pack.

  We were nearing the guild building surrounding the dungeon entrance when Mari caught up to me. She walked beside me in silence for a moment, and I didn’t push her. If she had something to say, I’d let her be the one to start.

  “Stay close to me,” she murmured. “I’ll protect you with my ice bolts. Or an ice wall.”

  I looked at her, raising my brow. But it wasn’t really surprising that she wanted to protect me.

  “I’m not going back to the sve market,” she said, quickening her pace and moving to the front of the group.

  No matter how hostile, spiteful, or aggressive she was, she had strong reasons to not want me hurt. Maybe it wasn’t the best kind of trust—but I believed she wouldn’t let me die. And after seeing how she handled those bandits on the road, I felt reassured. In the dungeon, I wouldn’t be in much real danger.

  Once again, the guards stationed by the guild let us through without charging any fees—thanks to Tori. We had to sign the registry so they could track who entered with whom, and then we stepped onto the ptform that would transport us into the dungeon.

  “Do we have to do anything special to get to Level 2?” I asked as Tori approached the crystal in the center.

  “No,” Cassia replied. “She chooses the level. If someone in the group can’t access it, no one gets transported.”

  Tori just nodded, and at the same time, the crystal lit up. A dome closed around us, trapping me for a moment in the dim glow of crystal light, surrounded by five women.

  When it opened again, we were already in the room where we’d ended our st exploration—right at the transition between Level 1 and Level 2. We headed toward the corridor that led to Level 2, but Cassia stopped us and pulled a map out of her small backpack.

  “I know the way to Level 3,” Tori said.

  “It’s still good to double-check with the map,” Cassia replied.

  Tori just shrugged and stepped in to take a look—same as I did. Level 2 was a byrinth just like Level 1. The map was fairly rge, and the entire yout was marked out. A red path had been drawn through it, starting at the Level 2 checkpoint and ending at the Level 3 checkpoint.

  “It’s the same route I know,” Tori said, turning and heading down the corridor.

  I quickly snapped a photo of the map, just in case, before we continued deeper into the dungeon.

  I was still keeping my css hidden from both Cassia and Mari. The former couldn’t detect me using my skill, and if the tter had been able to sense it, she would’ve figured it out during the fight with the bandits. Still, I needed to be careful not to slip up.

  That was another reason it might be better to free Mari sooner rather than ter. The longer she stayed around me, the greater the chance she’d discover that I had a css. As long as she was my sve, that wouldn’t cause any problems, but ter?

  Actually, I realized I didn’t even know what kind of trouble that could bring—besides the obvious fact that it made me special and might attract the wrong kind of attention. But real risks? If any? Hard to say.

  My thoughts were cut short by Azura’s growl.

  “Two demons ahead,” Tori said a moment ter.

  Not long after, two demons came charging down the corridor toward us—almost identical to the ones we’d fought before. Gaunt purple skin, wide maws, glowing red eyes, and horns on their heads. Maybe a little taller than the previous ones, but just like before, they held tridents and sprinted at us with deadly intent.

  Mari summoned three ice bolts and unched them at one of the demons. All three pierced its body, the force sending it flying backward. Dead in an instant. Just a flick of her wrist—that was all it took.

  Tori and Cassia moved in on the second one. Tori reached it first, knocking its weapon down, then sshing across its gut with her sword. Cassia, using the opening, dashed in and cut its thigh. When the demon tried to retaliate with a sideways sweep of its trident, she blocked it with her bde—just as Tori drove her sword through the back of its neck, piercing the skull clean through.

  [Level up!][Demon: Azura][Css: Shapeshifter (Level 4)][Stat Points Gained: 1][Unlocked new skill: Wolf’s Cws]

  [Wolf’s Cws – Level 1 (Active): Creates enhanced cws that deal increased damage and can tear through flesh and armor.]

  The entire fight sted only a few seconds before both monsters y dead, dissolving into bck sludge. Our team was clearly too strong for Level 2 dungeons, however, only the strongest fought, and me, Azura and Zoe were just watching.

  Still, with how easily they handled it, I started wondering if Level 3 might not be a problem either. But first, we had to get through Level 2 anyway, and then we could decide whether to go deeper or prepare first.

  I checked Azura’s new skill again. It seemed simir to one Mari had shown me before, with which she could create magical cws herself. I wondered whether Azura could use them in both of her forms. But as long as she stayed in wolf form and didn’t announce her level-up, I couldn’t acknowledge it without raising suspicion from Mari or Cassia.

  We only got a demon horn from one of the monsters, which Tori quickly packed into her bag before we moved on, leaving behind only two bck puddles soaking into the ground.

  Not long after, we encountered three skeletons. Like the demons, they looked almost the same as the ones from Level 1—except this time, they had better gear. For the first time, I saw one wearing actual armor, even if it wasn’t in great condition. And they definitely moved more smoothly and quickly than the previous ones, who often limped or looked stiff.

  The first skeleton dropped when Mari bsted its head off with a single ice bolt. The second blocked her shot with its shield, but Tori was on it in a fsh—cutting off its arm, then stabbing through its spine, reducing it to a pile of bones.

  Cassia blocked the third one’s strike, kicked its knee—which cracked as the bone broke—and when it colpsed, she finished it off with a clean decapitation.

  [Level up!][Demon: Zoe Drazantis][Css: Succubus (Level 4)][Stat Points Gained: 1][Unlocked new skill: Tail Ssh (Level 1)]

  [Tail Ssh – Level 1 (Active): The tail stops functioning as an erogenous zone and becomes covered in hardened skin with a sharpened tip, turning it into a deadly sshing weapon.]

  “I leveled up!” Zoe said cheerfully, looking at me.

  “New skill?” I asked, just to keep up appearances.

  “Tail Ssh,” she replied. Her tail slid between us, and right before my eyes, it started to change—starting at the base, its surface grew rough and hardened, covered in toughened skin. By the time it reached the tip, it no longer ended in a soft nub, but in a bone-like point that looked sharp enough to stab with.

  “Doesn’t look very cute anymore,” Zoe muttered, frowning as she grabbed it with both hands, feeling the texture.

  “It’s not supposed to be cute. It’s supposed to be a weapon,” I said, reaching out and running my hand along it as well. Before, it had been extremely sensitive to touch. Now, she didn’t seem to react at all. The tip felt like bone—bck instead of white, but just as solid.

  “You’ll need to train with it properly,” Cassia said. “But if you learn to fight using both your tail and your sword, you’ll have a huge advantage.”

  Zoe nodded, slipping her tail from my hands and swinging it a few times in front of her. Then she followed up with a series of stabs, jabbing at imaginary enemies—striking from the sides and above. She moved the tail with surprising precision.

  “Now’s not the time for that,” Tori said. “Let’s keep moving.”

  We didn’t get anything from the skeletons, so we pressed on. But seeing how easy the fights were going, I figured maybe I should try fighting one of the monsters myself. I’d have to eventually anyway—better to get some practice while we were still on the lower levels.

  “Maybe if we run into more skeletons, I should take one on?” I asked. “To get some practice fighting monsters.”

  Tori just shrugged, while Cassia and Mari gave me more focused looks.

  “You should be able to handle it,” Cassia said.

  Mari only pressed her lips into a thin line and said nothing.

  “If there’s more than one, you handle the rest and leave one for me, okay?”

  Cassia agreed, and I began mentally preparing myself for a fight. I’d already been attacked by a wraith once, but I still needed more practice. I just had to stay calm and focused, and it’d be fine.

  We first ran into a lone demon. I didn’t want to fight that—it was stronger than a skeleton. Mari pierced it with ice shards before it could even get close. It left behind a trident with three bdes, which Cassia immediately attached to her backpack before I even got a chance to Inspect it.

  Then we encountered two skeletons. Both wore chest armor. One wielded a sword, the other an axe.

  “Aim for the skull or the neck,” Mari said to me just before unching an ice bolt that shattered the axe-wielding skeleton’s head.

  I advanced, shield raised, spear ready. The remaining skeleton raised its sword, but I lunged forward, aiming for the head. I hit it—but not cleanly. The bde sheared off a chunk of the skull, knocking the skeleton back, but it didn’t fall. It staggered, then came at me again. I quickly retreated—just out of reach.

  Staying focused, I struck again, aiming for the skull. The skeleton managed to parry with its sword, knocking my spear aside. It stepped in to close the distance, but I’d already backed off—just like Mari had taught me.

  I thrust again, this time nding the hit under its jaw. The tip of my spear punched through its skull, which stayed impaled on the bde as the rest of the bones colpsed forward in a ctter across the dungeon floor.

  My heart was pounding, breath quickened. It hadn’t been physically demanding—but standing face-to-face with a monster trying to kill me had definitely spiked my adrenaline.

  “Not bad,” Cassia said. “You need to work on your aim, but your movement was solid.”

  “Thanks,” I replied with a smile, though she wasn’t even looking at me. She was checking out the armor left behind by the skeleton.

  I could’ve Inspected it, but I decided to save my mana and check everything ter when we got back. No point wasting time and resources now.

  Cassia picked it up. “Looks pretty solid,” she said, examining it before strapping it onto her pack.

  “I know someone who can appraise gear,” Tori said. “Only basic stuff, but they’ll do it for free.”

  Cassia gnced at her. “Alright, that would be great,” she replied.

  Tori didn’t even look at me—didn’t want to give anything away—but it was clear she meant me. Or at least I thought she did. She could be hard to read—closed-off and mysterious. She could vanish for a few hours without saying where she was going, then came back to have sex. Or not. I wondered if she’d want to sleep with me tonight. That kiss in the morning had been promising.

  “Ready to move on?” Tori asked.

  “Yeah,” I said. The tension from the fight was fading. It hadn’t sted long, but those few seconds had felt like minutes, stretched out by adrenaline. In the end, it had been just three quick thrusts.

  As we walked, I gnced at Zoe, wondering if maybe she should try fighting too. Maybe when the right opportunity came—but I didn’t want her getting hurt. It was probably better to let her keep training with Cassia for now.

  We ran into a few more groups of skeletons and demons, which Mari shattered effortlessly with her ice magic. If anything slipped through, Tori and Cassia finished it off with their swords.

  Even the wraiths we were supposed to be cautious of turned out to be no threat. Azura warned us with a growl, pointing out exactly where it would appear. The wraith hadn’t even fully emerged from the wall before a storm of ice shards tore it apart mid-phase, killing it instantly.

  Watching her fight, I realized just how powerful Mari really was. Tori and Cassia had no problem handling the dungeon’s monsters, but Mari didn’t even let them get close.

  We were collecting loot, but aside from bones and demon horns, there wasn’t anything particurly special. Only two swords from skeletons and another trident from a demon.

  We’d already been in the dungeon for a few hours, most of it spent walking through the dark, empty corridors of the byrinth. The fights were quick with three well-trained women wiping out enemies with ease.

  According to Tori and Cassia, we were getting close to the checkpoint between Level 2 and Level 3. That’s when we ran into the rgest group of monsters I’d seen so far—twelve skeletons appeared in front of us.

  “Stay back and watch your surroundings. Don’t let anything fnk you,” Cassia said, gncing at me before stepping forward to the front line.

  The skeletons charged, but even in those numbers, they weren’t much of a threat.

  Three dropped before they could even reach us, pierced by Mari’s ice bolts. She kept moving backward while casting more spells, as Tori and Cassia charged into melee, slicing through the monsters. One skeleton broke off and ran toward me—but before it could strike, Zoe darted past it, her tail sshing across its legs sending it to the ground. I jumped in and drove my spear into its skull before it could get up.

  “Thanks,” I said to Zoe, who blew me a kiss and smiled before immediately turning toward another skeleton coming our way. It raised a mace and swung at her, but she jumped back, and the weapon smmed into the ground. I rushed forward and stabbed it. Unfortunately, I didn’t hit the neck—my spear struck too low and pierced through its arm.

  I dashed back, getting out of its range. A split second ter, an ice bolt flew past me and exploded through the skeleton’s head, killing it.

  None of the remaining skeletons came my way, and a moment ter, Tori and Cassia finished off the st two. Once again, the fight didn’t even st a full minute—Mari was eliminating them with a single spell, and the other two women barely needed more than one or two strikes.

  [Level up!][Css: Mage (Level 4)][Stat Points Gained: 1][Unlocked a skill choice.]

  Once again, I hadn’t nded a perfect hit with my spear. It wasn’t bad—I still hit it—but if I’d aimed better and gone for the neck, I could’ve taken it out in one blow. I definitely needed more training with the spear ter today.

  “Everyone alright?” Cassia asked as she walked up to us.

  “Yeah,” I said. “It wasn’t even close.”

  I opened my status screen, added the stat point into Strength, and then checked the skill selection.

  [Choose one of three skills.][Heat Resistance – Level 1 (Passive): Increases resistance to heat and guarantees reduced damage from fire magic.][Aqua Synthesis – Level 1 (Active): Converts mana into clean, drinkable water.][Increased Luck – Level 1 (Passive): Increases Luck by 2 points.]

  That was… disappointing, to put it mildly. I wasn’t expecting anything particur, but I was hoping for something useful in combat. All three of those skill had their uses, but I was hoping for more.

  Heat Resistance wasn’t terrible. It could save my life one day. If I ever had to fight a fire mage. Or a dragon? Were dragons even a thing in this world? A trip to the library was definitely needed.

  Increased Luck might help with loot drops in dungeons, but it was just two points. At Level 1, at least. That also made me wonder. Aqua Synthesis was Level 1 too. What exactly could be upgraded in a skill like that?

  I needed more information. So I closed the skill selection screen. None of them felt worth choosing right now. Once again, I’d wait and ask Gemma for advice.

  After picking up chest armor, a sword, and two bones, we continued exploring. We ran into two more small groups of skeletons and two lone demons before finally reaching the checkpoint between the levels. It looked exactly like the one between Level 1 and Level 2.

  “Are we going back?” I asked, gncing down the corridor leading to Level 3.

  “I’m running low on mana,” Mari said.

  “Then let’s return,” Cassia agreed. “We’ve already spent a good amount of time in here, and we’ve got some loot.”

  We stepped onto the ptform and returned to the guild building, then headed back toward Ortas.

  “Are we going again tomorrow?” I asked.

  “Yes,” Cassia replied immediately.

  “Fine by me,” Tori said when I looked at her.

  “To the third level?” I asked.

  Cassia let out a slow breath. “I think we can. We could still use a healer, but Mari, you’re strong and well-trained. I don’t think we’ll have any real trouble.”

  I gnced at Mari, who, as usual, just scoffed and looked away.

  “Alright. I have to head to Atranth tomorrow, but I’ll leave in the evening after we explore,” I said, already pnning the trip. Comparing Gemma’s map, the road from Ortas to Atranth wasn’t very long. We should be able to make it in two to three hours.

  “What for?” Cassia asked.

  “I’ve got something to take care of. But I pn to be back the next day. If I get back early enough, we can hit the dungeon again. If not, we’ll just take the day off.”

  Cassia nodded. “Training today?”

  “A short break to eat first, then let’s meet at the arena?” I suggested. There was still time left in the day—and I wanted to get in more spear practice, work on my mana control, and hopefully visit the library too.

  “Sounds good,” Cassia agreed.

  We returned to Ortas and parted ways with Cassia after taking all the loot so I could appraise it ter. Then we headed back to the inn for some rest and something to eat.