Reason Restoration

Today was truly an exhausting day. Facing an opponent like Juniel, who was on a completely absurd level, opening the gate to the Underworld, barely managing to defeat her with the help of a great soul, and then recruiting new subordinates on top of it all. Tired. So damn tired.

The physical wounds had all healed thanks to the level-ups, but mental fatigue was another matter entirely. I had zero desire to move my body any more today. So I decided to rest. Though calling it "rest" was a bit of a stretch—there was still plenty I needed to do. I had to distribute my skill points, and the girls were filthy from battle and needed a proper wash.

Even though Siphon Hand and Shape Restoration had cleaned up their appearances, the clothes they wore were in absolute tatters. Si-eun, who had been inside the Cradle of Rest, hadn't bathed once since slaughtering those thugs the day before yesterday either. She was in a pretty nasty state. I needed to find a decent spot and start by getting everyone cleaned up.

Let's settle down somewhere suitable. Where would be good?

My eyes landed on a small building with a sign that read "Hall of Loyalty." Should I check inside? Ji-yun mentioned people had gathered here, but I don't sense any presence at all. That means one of two things. Either they're all dead, or they all ran away.

I decided to inspect the interior of the Hall of Loyalty. If it was packed with corpses, I'd look elsewhere. If not, we'd spend the night here. I walked into the building, with Ji-su, Si-eun, Ji-yun, and Juniel trailing obediently behind me.

At least there wasn't any foul odor. That was a good sign. The sun was starting to set outside, so the interior of the building—which had no electricity—was quite dark. Together with the four women, I explored the Hall of Loyalty.

There are definitely traces of people having stayed here. But...

There were no people. No corpses either. Which meant...

They all fled somewhere. That's fortunate. At least Ji-yun won't be sad.

They must have spotted the massive horde of monsters approaching and escaped together. Come to think of it, the monster corpses outside were probably all Juniel's handiwork. Honestly, no one short of Juniel's level of strength could have pulled that off. But why had she massacred monsters that should have been on her side?

Once I obtain the Reason Restoration skill, I'll have to ask her.

I found a suitable classroom and stepped inside. Several gym mats were laid out on the floor, along with blankets and pillows. It looked like the space had been used for sleeping.

There's quite a bit of useful stuff here. I should take some with me.

I closed the classroom door and summoned the Gate of Rest. After storing the blankets, pillows, and mats inside the Cradle of Rest, I installed a shower booth in one corner of the classroom. Once I set up lanterns both inside and outside the shower stall, our shelter for the night was complete.

I led everyone into the Cradle of Rest.

With four of them now, it's starting to feel pretty cramped in here.

The Cradle of Rest was packed with clothing, food, and supplies. The fact that it was even this manageable was thanks to Si-eun organizing everything during our travels. If she hadn't, there wouldn't have been room to stand.

I laid the newly acquired gym mat on the floor and spread a blanket over it. This would be the space where I'd be rolling around with my four women from now on.

Alright, preparations for tonight's rest are done. That means now it's time for...

I sat down on the mat-covered floor and ordered the four women to sit as well. They settled down with tired, languid movements. First, I decided to handle the skill point distribution.

"Status window."

My flashy status window. After the massive level-up from killing Juniel, my skill points had shot up to 89. Raising Rise two levels had brought it down to 77.

As you reach higher levels, the skill points required keep increasing. I shouldn't raise levels all at once. I'll raise them one by one and keep track of how many points each increase costs.

I began investing points into Rise.

The benefit from leveling up was an additional subordinate slot. The most common reward. Six points consumed. So raising it from level 6 to 7 costs 6 points. Next.

Ugh, the least useful effect possible. Tsk. This time it consumed a whopping 10 points. Ten points to go from 7 to 8. Hmm. I was happy about having so many points, but they're disappearing fast.

Even at level 9, the only effect was another subordinate slot. Ten more points consumed, leaving me with 49.

I invested more points into Rise again.

"Hell yeah!!!"

A cheer burst out of me involuntarily. Reaching level 10 on the skill had finally granted me the long-awaited Reason Restoration. I clenched my fist and looked at Juniel.

"Hey, you crazy bitch. Looks like I get to start ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠treating you nicely sooner than expected. Isn't that great for you too?"

My heart raced as I imagined restoring Juniel's intellect and then spoiling her properly. Checking my status window, I had 39 skill points remaining.

Since I'd invested enough in Rise to get the skill I wanted, it was time to spend the rest on other skills. I used 21 points to raise Gate of Rest from level 3 to 7.

When it reached level 5, the Cradle of Rest's space had expanded to roughly ten meters in both length and width. Thanks to that, the once-cramped pocket dimension felt incredibly spacious again despite the increased number of people and supplies. I'd need to reorganize the interior later.

The new skill, Portal Shift, allowed me to move the Gate of Rest I had entered. In short, I no longer needed to exit through the same place I entered. If I entered the Cradle, closed the gate, and then created a new one on a different wall to exit, to anyone watching from the outside it would look like I had vanished and reappeared elsewhere—like teleportation. It would be extremely useful in combat.

I had 28 skill points left. Time to dump them all into Siphon Hand. I poured 24 points into it, raising Siphon Hand to level 7 just like Gate of Rest.

Heh, now that's what I call flexing.

Most of the effects were reductions in mana cost, but I gained another ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠derived skill: Remote Siphon. It allowed me to use Siphon Hand within a one-meter radius around my body without needing physical contact.

One meter... That's pretty awkward. Too short. It should increase if I raise the skill level more, right?

If it could reach at least three meters, it would be quite useful. With that, all my skill points were distributed.

Alright, the big tasks are done. Now the next thing is...

I opened the status windows of my thralls. I wasn't the only one who had leveled up massively from killing Juniel. Ji-su, Si-eun, and Ji-yun, who shared experience with me, had all gained enormous levels as well. Si-eun had gone from level 3 to 11, while Ji-su had risen from 5 to 12.

I distributed their skill points evenly among their respective skills. Si-eun's Fireball skill rose to level 6, and her Flame Wall reached level 5. Ji-su, who only had one skill to upgrade, was able to raise her Wide Swing all the way to level 8.

After sorting out the two of them, I opened the status window for Ji-yun, the newest member of my undead legion.

Ji-yun's stats were impressive too. Well, I'd raised her stats quite a bit through my piston-like thrusting before she died. And her skill was Provoke. That must be an aggro-drawing skill for monsters. Between being a Shielder and having Provoke, Ji-yun clearly seemed to be a tank-type. Maybe I should look for a shield for her.

I dumped all 24 remaining skill points into Provoke, raising it to level 7. Seven points left. I'd save those for later.

And finally, the long-awaited last one—Juniel's status window.

Whoa, look at those stats. They're only slightly lower than the combined stats of me and that great soul. But her level is lower than I expected. Stats usually rise by about 1 to 2 per level, so at level 41 her average stats should be in the 80s. Is there another way to raise stats besides leveling up? Well, I have my sub-class that raises stats regardless of level, so it's possible. Still, Axe Warrior doesn't sound particularly impressive. That Berserk skill must be what let her show those insane movements for a brief moment earlier. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠It's a good thing it had risks; otherwise I would've been attacked and killed instantly.

Anyway, she was terrifying in battle, but now she's mine. I looked at Juniel with satisfied eyes and closed her status window.

Skill point distribution was finished, and I'd checked the new subordinates' statuses. It was about time to get washed up. To burn through the night properly, we all needed to be clean.

I commanded the four women standing before me.

"Strip."

At my order, the four women began sliding their clothes off. The outfits they were wearing now would be impossible to wear again anyway, so we'd just discard them all. We had plenty of new clothes.

Ji-su, Si-eun, and Ji-yun quickly undressed, but Juniel was struggling and groaning, unable to remove her own clothes. I looked at her with a pitying gaze.

"You stupid bitch. Why did you crawl out wearing clothes you can't even take off by yourself?"

Couldn't be helped. I'd have to assist her. I approached Juniel and helped her out of the cumbersome dress. It didn't come off easily. Whatever. I was planning to throw it away anyway. Rip. Riiip. I tore the dress to shreds. That was better.

With the dress removed, Juniel's body was revealed. Haa, what the hell is that? I'd only seen it in movies before. Juniel was wearing cute white panties and an undergarment called a corset.

How the hell do you even take this off...

The strings on the back crossed in an X-shape. I had no idea how to untie it. When in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠doubt, what do you do? You cut it off. I applied force, and the corset strings snapped with a dull sound. Seriously, why wear something so restrictive?

Once the corset and panties were removed, Juniel's naked body was finally exposed. Her breasts were smaller than Si-eun's but still quite large. The pink nipples at their tips stood out cutely, as if begging to be sucked. Her smooth abdomen, elegant waistline, and tightly lifted buttocks. Her body, toned from being a warrior who wielded her body as a weapon, was fantastically beautiful.

To think she'd been hiding such a magnificent figure under that frumpy dress. Beneath the red pubic hair that matched her hair color was a tightly closed vertical slit.

Ah... I'm getting hard.

Juniel's body was utterly captivating. My cock had grown rock hard at some point, straining so fiercely against my pants it felt like it might burst through. I wanted to pounce on her and thrust inside right this instant, but... no. I had to hold back for now. I'd promised her the best time of her life separately.

I forcefully hummed the national anthem in my head to calm my arousal, then led the four women to the shower booth and washed them thoroughly.