The mission screen floated in the air between them, its serene blue light violently contrasting with the chaos boiling in their minds. The words "Eternal Solitude" and "-50% to Charisma" seemed to glow with a particular malice, a sentence dictated by a god with a twisted and cruel sense of humor. The silence that took hold of the chamber was so dense it seemed to have its own weight.
Ari was the first to break it. He brought a hand to his chest, his face a mask of piety and triumph. "Well…" he said, his voice echoing with false solemnity. "It seems the universe, or whoever is in charge of this… 'system'… agrees with me. It's fate. The will of the gods, manifested in a clear and concise user interface."
Thalassa turned to look at him, her new red eyes with their intimidating vertical pupils were bloodshot with sheer disbelief. "This isn't fate, it's blackmail! It's divine coercion! Look at that penalty!" she snapped, pointing at the screen with a trembling finger. "'Eternal Solitude'! How melodramatic! And a fifty percent drop in Charisma! Do you know what that means? I couldn't convince a thirsty man in the desert to accept a glass of water! This system is a damn manipulator!"
Vespera, who was still trying to process the fact that she had bat wings and a gravity-defying figure, stared at the screen in utter confusion. "'Confirmed Consort'? 'Bonding Abilities'? What does all that mean? Is it like with the Templars, an oath of loyalty?"
Ari sighed, the sigh of a martyr about to ascend the funeral pyre for a noble cause. "It means, my dear, confused friends," he began, his tone paternalistic and condescending, "that the path to your salvation, your only escape from a life of persecution and fear, requires my noble sacrifice. A path that, apparently, the system itself considers a heroic feat worthy of a 'Side Quest.'" He shrugged. "Who are we to question a power so great and with such excellent taste in rewards?"
The mission screen flickered once and vanished, but the decision was left hanging in the chamber's charged air, as palpable as the mission itself.
Thalassa began to pace, her new, elegant figure moving with a predatory grace. The strategist in her, the Captain who had led battles and planned sieges, was at war with the reincarnated otaku now facing the most absurd cliché of all. She stopped abruptly in front of Ari, her red eyes locked onto his. "This is the most ridiculous, selfish, egocentric, and absolutely insane plan I have heard in my two lives."
"Two lives?" Vespera asked, but no one paid her any attention.
"Precisely," Ari replied, taking a step toward her, closing the distance until she could feel the heat radiating from his body. His voice dropped to an intimate, playful whisper, a tone that made the hairs on the back of Thalassa's neck stand on end. "It's so insane, it has to work. Besides, my dear future wife, don't play hard to get. You and I both know we were going to end up exactly like this sooner or later."
"I don't know what you're talking about," she hissed, though a faint blush began to creep up her pale neck.
"Don't you?" he purred. "Then let me refresh your memory. A barn. The smell of hay. A decent bottle of wine. A very tense captain who needed to… confess. Does that ring a bell? Because to me, it sounds like we've only fast-forwarded the inevitable. This 'system' just made it official."
Thalassa's blush deepened to a furious crimson that contrasted spectacularly with her marble skin and silver hair. Vespera stared at them, her mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water as the pieces of the puzzle clicked into place in her mind with an audible snap.
"The barn?!" Vespera exclaimed, pointing from one to the other. "You and him… in the barn?! The night before the patrol! That's why you were late! Oh, by the Flame!"
Ari, without missing a beat, turned to Vespera. His face shifted instantly; the predatory smile was replaced by an expression of humble and understanding priestly piety. The transformation was so quick it was comical. "And as for you, my dear Vespera…" he began, his voice soft and reassuring. "Don't think I've forgotten about you. I have heard your confessions in the darkness of the church. I know the needs of your heart… and of other parts."
Vespera turned as red as her hair. "What—?! That was… that was the secret of confession!"
"And it remains so," Ari soothed. "A secret between a priest and his parishioner. A secret that we will now share with your future co-wife. But think about this," he continued, his tone growing more solemn. "With a devoted and understanding husband by your side, you will no longer have to worry about satisfying your… impulses… using only your imagination and your own fingers. You can, and indeed must, leave that sacred task to your beloved husband." He looked at her with a seriousness so profound that for a moment he seemed sincere. "It will be a heavy burden. An exhausting duty. But it is a cross I am willing to bear for you. No matter if the Church condemns me, if the world crucifies me, I will always, always do what is best for my two beloved wives."
Now it was Thalassa who was staring, dumbfounded, at Vespera, who looked like she was about to faint from sheer embarrassment. Despite the public humiliation, Vespera felt an undeniable and treacherous tingle in her private parts. The image of Ari, her perverted yet loyal friend, taking on that "sacred duty" was a dizzying mix of shame and a secret, overwhelming anticipation.
Thalassa looked at Vespera, who was red as a tomato. She looked at Ari, who held his martyr's pose with an award-worthy conviction. She looked up at the fleshy ceiling of the cave as if asking for help from the gods she didn't believe in. Finally, she let out a long, deep sigh of total defeat. "…Alright, you idiot," she said, the words coming through gritted teeth. "We'll do it. I accept. Your plan." She moved closer to him until their faces were inches apart, her red eyes glowing with a lethal warning. "But if you get cocky even once, if you use this to get fresh more than you should, I swear you'll get a taste of my new horns where the sun doesn't shine."
The instant the words of consent left Thalassa's mouth, a new system screen erupted before them with a triumphant fanfare, complete with a flash of light and digital confetti.
[Side Quest Completed: The Consort's Sacrifice!] [Loyalty, sacrifice, and shameless audacity have been rewarded!] [Applying rewards to linked subjects...]
A small window appeared in front of Ari.
[For Subject «Ari»:]
· [Title changed:] [«Potential Consort» -> «Confirmed Consort».]
· [New Ability Unlocked:] [[Consort's Bond (Passive)] - Allows for basic telepathic communication (simple images and emotions) and sensing the general emotions of linked wives.]
· [New Ability Unlocked:] [[Mana Transfer (Active)] - Allows transferring his mana pool to linked wives through physical contact. Transfer efficiency increases with the intimacy of the contact.]
Ari read the last line and a slow, wicked grin spread across his face. "'Increases with the intimacy of the contact'?" he read aloud. "Oh, this system really knows how to reward true sacrifice. My dears, I'm afraid I'm going to have to 'recharge' you very often. And in the most… 'efficient' way possible. What a terrible duty has been imposed upon me."
Two other windows appeared before the girls.
[For Master «Thalassa» and General «Vespera»:]
· [Bonding Ability Unlocked:] [[Consort's Call (Active)] - Allows knowing the location and general status (health, mana, emotional state) of their consort at all times.]
· [Bonding Ability Unlocked:] [[Mana Receptacle (Passive)] - Allows receiving mana from their consort via [Mana Transfer].]
"Shut up!" Thalassa snapped, her face blushing again as she read the description of Ari's ability. "Don't say things like that!" But a part of her, the strategist part, was already calculating the tactical advantages of an instant mana recharge in the middle of combat.
"Sense his emotions…? Consort's Call…?" Vespera whispered to herself. The idea of being so connected to Ari terrified and thrilled her in equal measure.
With the pact sealed, the atmosphere changed. Resignation settled over the group. Thalassa, reluctantly accepting her new role, began to actively explore the system interface in her mind, now that it seemed more cooperative. A new, larger and more complex main screen appeared before them.
[DUNGEON MASTER'S MENU]
· [Dungeon Status]
· [Creation Catalog (Level 1)]
· [Dungeon Upgrades (Locked until Master Level 5)]
· [Minion Management]
· [Nexus Configuration]
Thalassa mentally touched the "Dungeon Status" option, and it expanded with more details.
[Name: The Forgotten Labyrinth (Click to rename)] [Level: 1] [Dungeon Points (DP): 9,700 / 10,000] [DP Generation: 1 DP / hour (Passive Maintenance State)] [External Ecosystem Status: Stable. The life drain from the forest has ceased and entered a slow regeneration phase.]
"I knew it," Thalassa said, fascinated despite herself. "It says the reason the forest was dying was because the dungeon, without a master, was in an emergency mode, chaotically consuming life energy to sustain itself. Now that I'm in charge, it has stabilized. The forest should recover."
"That's great!" Vespera said, relieved. She approached the screen and opened the "Creation Catalog." Her eyes went wide. "Thalassa, look! Scavenger Slime - 5 DP! Giant Cave Bat - 10 DP! Shadow Rat - 2 DP! We could build an army of rats! Hundreds of them!"
"An army of rats. Such noble ambition for a demon general, my future wife," Ari commented dryly. "You're really shooting for the stars."
Thalassa closed the catalog with a mental gesture. "We don't need rats right now. We need a way to get out of and back into this place without anyone seeing us. Looking for options…" Her gaze stopped on the last option of the main menu: "Nexus Configuration."
She touched it. A new screen appeared, detailing a key ability.
[Master Ability: Create Nexus] [Description: Allows linking a permanent dungeon entrance to an existing door in the outside world that the Master considers 'Home'. The nexus will be invisible to everyone except the Master and her linked subjects (Consort and Generals).] [Cost: 500 DP.] [Limitation: Only one active nexus can be maintained at a time. Changing the nexus location has a cost of 1,000 DP and a 24-hour cooldown.]
Ari's eyes lit up, this time not with lust, but with genuine brilliance. He took a step forward, his mind racing. "Wait, wait, wait. Rewind. You mean you can connect the entrance of this… thing… to my basement door? The one that smells like damp and spilled wine?"
A genuine smile, the first since her terrifying transformation, lit up Thalassa's face. Her red eyes shone with excitement. "Yes! That's exactly what it says! We could live a normal life upstairs, in your house, and come down here to… well, to rule our own little private hell!" Her eyes met his. "Ari, it's the perfect plan! Your stupid marriage plan suddenly makes sense!"
"Of course it makes sense! I'm a genius!" he exclaimed.
Vespera, for the first time, felt a wave of real hope. "We could get in and out without anyone seeing us… We could switch to our human forms before leaving… We could pretend to be normal…"
Thalassa touched the option on the screen. A new dialog box appeared, asking for final confirmation.
[Confirm Nexus creation. Cost: 500 DP.] [Link to the 'Home' location designated by the Master in her memory records?] [Designated Home: "The Priest's House, next to the Old Oak, Town of Quietgrove"] [WARNING: This action is irreversible for 24 hours.] [CONFIRM]
"This is the last chance to back out," Thalassa said, looking at Ari and Vespera. "Don't you dare!" Ari said. "Think of my charisma! Confirm!"
Thalassa smiled and said the word that would change their lives forever: "Confirm."
[DP deducted. Remaining DP: 9,200. Creating Nexus...]
One of the fleshy walls of the chamber began to swirl and glow. The organic matter twisted and opened, forming not a monstrous mouth, but a bright, swirling portal. On the other side, they could see the stone steps of Ari's basement. They could smell the dust, the damp, and the comforting scent of cheap wine. It was the smell of home. The three of them looked at each other. Their lives had changed irrevocably. They were no longer just templars and a priest. They were something new, something strange.
Ari, ever the showman, extended a hand with a cheeky grin. "So… do we have a marriage contract, my dear, demonic future wives?"
Vespera, adapting to her new confidence with astonishing speed, gave him a seductive, playful smile that showed a hint of her new succubus nature. She placed her hand on his. "Contract accepted, husband. I hope you're ready to fulfill your… conjugal duties. All of them."
Thalassa let out a sigh that was a complex mix of defeat, resignation, and an undeniable spark of excitement for the adventure that lay ahead. She placed her hand on top of theirs, her pale skin against theirs, sealing the pact. "May the gods forgive us," she murmured. "Or, at the very least, may Valerius never find out about any of this."
They looked at each other: a perverted priest with the title of "Confirmed Consort," an otaku Demon Queen with memories of another life, and a buxom, kind-hearted Succubus. Their strange, dysfunctional, and terrifyingly powerful family had just been born in the heart of a living dungeon.