Chapter 12
Chapter 12
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Beastkin Female (3)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The trait received from Arkan.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Male Pheromone] Not a bad trait by any means, but it wasn't some overwhelmingly great one either.
'Elisis has the Quartet of the Wind..., Morduin has the Soul of the Burning Artisan...'
Including the Male Pheromone he'd just received this time.
All of them were middling abilities among those possessed by the ancestors.
Even the Quartet of the Wind, which he was using to the greatest effect, was highly versatile among Elisis's abilities.
But compared to the rest of her powers, it was still on the weaker side.
"Is there some reason for this?"
He decided to just ask them outright while he was at it.
The sole ability granted to a mongrel.
The Feast of the Stars existed to communicate with the ancestors.
So if he had questions, the easiest and fastest way was to ask and get answers.
"......"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [......] But these guys.
No response.
"Hey..., hello? Anyone there? When I ask, say something!"
Politeness be damned.
He only needed to mind his manners when receiving gifts.
"What if the next opponent is something dangerous? What if it's a Draconian half-breed or a Giant mix? That'd be a problem!"
He kept pressing into the empty air without giving up.
And finally, a message appeared in the previously silent void.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Ancestor 'Eternal Teacher of the Fairies' lowers her head as if troubled.] [Ancestor 'The Creating Mortal' asks the opinion of Ancestor 'First King of the Beastkin.'] [Ancestor 'First King of the Beastkin' lets out a sigh.] "Troubled...?"
The messages they sent made it seem like they wanted to speak but couldn't, leaving them frustrated.
'There's a reason they can't talk...?'
Thinking about it, the reason they communicated with him was because they had a certain level of affinity for him.
That was the first condition for communication.
So if they had some circumstances, they'd want to explain the reason.
"Come on, no hints at all? Something to let me guess?"
Realizing they were frustrated like him, he asked a bit more carefully.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [......] After a brief silence.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Ancestor 'Eternal Teacher of the Fairies' ——ja] "......ja?"
It was a single character unlike their usual messages, impossible to understand.
But the meaning of that one character was immediately revealed by the following messages.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Ancestor 'The Creating Mortal' ——gyeok] ⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Ancestor 'First King of the Beastkin' ——bu] "Ja, ...gyeok, ...bu. ......Qualification?"
The characters sent one by one in messages.
As he rolled them around in his mind, he realized what they were trying to say.
"Insufficient qualifications...?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Ancestor 'Eternal Teacher of the Fairies' nods her head in agony!] [Ancestor 'The Creating Mortal' downs alcohol in pain!] [Ancestor 'First King of the Beastkin' wipes blood from his mouth!] Through the subsequent messages conveying the meaning of "insufficient qualifications," he could see the ancestors suffering.
Why was that?
Probably because they forced the messages out, or because they said something they weren't supposed to.
He personally thought it was the latter.
"Well, insufficient qualifications, huh..."
Seeing the ancestors' messages reframed the traits they'd given him.
It wasn't that they'd deliberately given him mediocre ones—they couldn't give anything more.
And the reason was his lack of qualifications.
'Come to think of it..., before possession, the trait description mentioned achievements or something.'
The one and only trait given to him from the start.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Feast of the Stars] The description of that trait went something like this.
He could communicate with the ancestors and receive gifts from them.
And—the higher his achievements, the more interest the ancestors would take in him.
"I see..., it was achievements."
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Ancestor 'Eternal Teacher of the Fairies' nods her head!] Thinking back, that made sense.
It wouldn't be fair if just maxing affinity with ancestors let you get any ability—that'd be too overpowered.
As a mongrel by birth, he needed to rack up achievements as a mongrel.
'Achievements..., achievements, huh...'
He realized that to grow stronger, he needed not just the ancestors' help, but his own accomplishments too.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Hmmm..."
The second morning after Number 17 became her direct slave.
Karga woke up a bit earlier than her usual time.
"......"
The reason was the incident from yesterday morning.
'Is he coming again today...?'
Karga focused her senses intently on the door to her room.
'And somehow, that distinctive scent of his has gotten even stronger since yesterday...'
The unique body odor of the Number 17 slave that had been stirring up her heart.
It had suddenly intensified around lunchtime yesterday.
To the point where stepping outside now would fill the air with his fragrance.
That was why Karga sat on her bed, waiting for him with an even more trembling heart than yesterday.
And shortly after.
Knock knock.
"Karga? Are you awake?" The knock she'd been waiting for echoed through the door.
"......I'm up. Come in."
"Yes, excuse me." Creeeak.
The door opened, and Number 17 entered the room carrying her wash water, his familiar figure in tow.
And at that moment.
"Eek...!!"
——Whoosh.
The moment the door opened, a dizzyingly thick male scent wafted in.
It wasn't a foul stench that hurt the nose or caused headaches.
Quite the opposite.
'W-what is this...? This guy..., is he in heat or something...?'
The brain-numbing fragrance awakened only Karga's sexual instincts intensely.
A temptation so strong it might make her pounce on Number 17 the instant she lost her reason.
A seductive aroma that made her want to hold him close and roll around in bed all day.
"......"
"Then, Karga, excuse me." After finishing her face wash with the water Number 17 brought.
Karga, having wiped her face, entrusted her hair grooming to him.
...Truth be told, it was the very next day after yesterday's incident.
Normally, she would've firmly refused him and done it herself.
'It's all... because of this scent...'
But Karga couldn't refuse Number 17's touch, defeated by her instincts.
And then.
"Karga, the top part... excuse me for a moment." "Uh, uh...?"
Smooth.
"Kyaa...!"
"Sorry. I warned you just in case..., was it uncomfortable?" After Number 17's warning, his hand gently brushed her ear.
It could pass as part of combing her hair.
But on the other hand, it felt laced with lewd intent.
"I-it's fine.... As long as you warn me ahead..."
"Glad to hear it. Then I'll continue." But unlike yesterday, Karga neither got angry nor scolded him.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh...
"Haa..., haa..."
Drunk on the thick scent, she simply craved his touch.
Unlike yesterday, she now wished he'd openly fondle her ears.
And as Number 17 groomed such a Karga's hair.
'......Is this okay?'
He watched her reaction with a precarious heart.
'That pervert wolf just had to give a quest like this...'
The reason he was struggling to act natural while combing her hair.
It was all because of the daily quest Arkan had presented.
📜 QUEST: PATH OF THE PLAYBOY 📜 ☑ Subtly touch Karga's ears.
□ Subtly touch Karga's hips.
□ Subtly touch Karga's tail.
The easiest one, the ears, had just been cleared.
Now the remaining issues were the hips and tail.
'...The tail got me in huge trouble yesterday when I touched it.'
Number 17 clicked his tongue inwardly as he pondered methods.
Ways to naturally touch her hips and tail.
'The Male Pheromone trait is debuff-type, not super strong..., but having it right now is definitely a huge advantage...'
Male Pheromone wasn't overwhelmingly powerful, but it was quite useful.
Beyond applying debuffs in combat.
In daily life, when persuading others, the presence or absence of this trait made a world of difference in difficulty.
So no matter how sketchy the quest.
Number 17 had no choice but to proceed with the pervert quest right away.
'Ah..., already finished combing her hair...'
By the time he thought that.
The comb in Number 17's hand had already finished the ends of Karga's hair.
Before he could decide on the tail and hips.
"......"
"......"
A brief silence.
Unable to help it, Number 17 decided to step back.
"All done, Karga." No need to rush now.
The day wasn't over yet.
'After the forge work ends..., somehow...'
He planned to think of a way by then.
But then.
"W-wait..." "Yes?" An unexpected remark slipped from Karga.
"There's still... a part that hasn't been combed, right...?" "Uncombed part, you mean...?" Swish swish.
"The tail...?" "......"
It was the unexpected order to comb her tail.
From Karga's own mouth, no less, who had been so furious about it yesterday.
'W-what am I doing, telling him to do that...!!'
Karga was screaming in confusion inwardly too.
For beastkin, a werewolf entrusting her tail to another male.
By mongrel standards, it was like a woman asking a man to massage her inner thighs.
"You grabbing my tail yesterday! It was just panic from the suddenness!" "Yeees..." "But I judged your combing decent enough! S-so! Having a slave comb my tail isn't that weird! Especially for a werewolf! Got it?!" Karga raised her voice in hasty excuses, her rising shame overwhelming her.
Worried her aroused heart might be exposed.
But contrary to her worries, Number 17 didn't care about Karga's feelings at all.
'Jackpot.'
He simply beamed with joy at the unexpected luck.
"Then I'll groom it with utmost care! Karga!" "Krr...! C-carefully...! Gently...!" Afterward, Number 17 took the comb and began carefully grooming Karga's tail.
"Hng...!"
Hearing Karga stifle her moans.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Quest: Path of the Playboy has been completed!] 'Done!'
While combing the tail—and while Karga bit her finger—he subtly brushed her hips with his fingertip too.
Thanks to that, the quest was complete.
'Don't know why, but this makes daily quests a breeze.'
If he combed Karga's tail every morning as routine, he could clear Path of the Playboy effortlessly.
"Heut...! Hng...!"
And Number 17, in high spirits, continued grooming her tail while lost in thought.
'Now I've met three ancestors...'
Elf Elisis.
Dwarf Morduin.
Werewolf Arkan.
Having met three ancestors, he was starting to get a feel for how to encounter them.
It was predicting the ancestor's disposition based on their race and acting in a way to draw their interest.
For Elisis, strength training.
For Morduin, handling dwarves with elven abilities.
For Arkan, honoring his name.
The conditions for receiving traits from them afterward varied by their dispositions too.
And those dispositions were determined by how players acted with them back when they were game characters.
'Then maybe I can draw out other ancestors the same way...'
And at that moment.
A certain character popped into Number 17's mind.
"......"
Draconian ancestor.
Rahart.
Definitely as strong a character as Arkan.
'But... if dispositions are based on player actions from back then...'
He pondered his playstyle from those days.
And soon, Number 17 shook his head.
'Rahart..., let's put him on hold for now...'
Recalling that playstyle brought a wave of unease.
Rahart was undoubtedly powerful.
A character with martial prowess comparable to Arkan.
But he felt far more dangerous than Arkan—impossible to compare.
'Yeah, for now, focus on achievements. Even if I meet other ancestors, with achievements like this, the abilities I get won't amount to much...'
Shaking off thoughts of Rahart, Number 17 refocused on grooming Karga's tail.
"Haaaang...!"
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The gladiator city, Parion.
Honored guests visiting there didn't usually stay just for match day.
Some stayed a few days, others several months.
And that included pureblood elf Elena Silbaren and pureblood dwarf Nikia Rubiak.
However.
For pureblood ladies of the elf and dwarf races, who got along poorly.
It was extremely rare for them to sit amicably in the same room.
"Sometimes, isn't elven tea better than you dwarves' harsh liquor?" "Hmmm~, the aroma is niceee~, but I still prefer booze? Tea's too bland." "Hehe, with some refinement, Lady Nikia, you could enjoy it fully." "Ahaha, refinement's fine, but it'd make me gloomy." The two sipped tea together, subtly dissing each other beneath their smiles as usual.
And during that.
Clink.
Elena set down her teacup, dropped her smile, and looked at Nikia with a serious expression.
"Lady Nikia..., you said your goal was that mongrel's weapon?" "Yeees~, well, that mongrel's wielding a weapon blessed by Lord Morduin? Shouldn't a dwarf reclaim it?" Clink.
Catching Elena's words, Nikia grinned and set down her teacup.
"And you..., say that mongrel's using a lost ancestral power?" "Yes, not powerful..., but highly symbolic."
"That muuust be utterly humiliating, ahahaha!" "Yes..."
Unlike Nikia's bright laugh, Elena thought of the mongrel with murderous eyes.
"For a filthy mongrel to dare use the power that spread the Great Teacher's name..., I can't allow it." At first, she'd planned to somehow verify that power and extract info on the lost technique.
But Taira, the head of this place.
Her interference had made that impossible.
"Lost techniques are lost anyway..., more importantly..., it can't get out that an elf's lost technique is being used by a mongrel." "Ooh, it's been ages since I agreed with an elf so much? So? What's the plan?" To Nikia's question, Elena smiled sweetly.
"There's a newly discovered labyrinth." "Ah, heard you've been hunting labyrinths like crazy lately." "Just a run-of-the-mill labyrinth found along the way." Smooth.
Click.
Elena lifted her teacup again and took a sip.
Then, with an elegant and seductive smile, she murmured.
"But more than sufficient for killing one mongrel."