Chapter 226: Fermaton Water Bomb (2)
Chapter 226: Fermaton Water Bomb (2)
The basement of Count Fermaton’s castle.
In a warehouse separate from the dungeon, a single grave had been erected.
"Rest well, Paladin Sonata. Your sacrifice will never be forgotten."
After Avantgarde, Paladin Sonata had been a major contributor to conquering up to the 25th floor, but his life(?) had ended in a self-destructive explosion.
The only thing recovered was a fragment of his armor.
As the tides ebbed and flowed, only a helmet, mangled by the blast, had washed up on the shore.
"You did good. Truly."
Until now, Paladin Sonata had done his absolute best to protect his allies as a lewd man.
Ruji Fermaton would not forget Paladin Sonata’s sacrifice.
"Isn't it just because the armor was waterlogged?"
"Hey now."
Serica poked at me from the side, but I certainly hadn't made Paladin Sonata self-destruct for such a reason.
"Paladin Sonata was stained with my blood. I blew him up because I didn't know what kind of ripples that would cause if it entered the depths of the Infinite Labyrinth."
The self-destruction wasn't just a physical explosion.
It was a magical blast, and its primary purpose was to sever the connection with me.
In other words, even if someone possessed a fragment of the armor, the Infinite Labyrinth wouldn't go berserk or anything like that.
Probably.
"I could have dragged him along for at least five more floors."
"But you were bored of him, weren't you? Didn't you just want to forge a new set of armor to celebrate becoming a Count?"
"You think I blew up Paladin Sonata on purpose? That’s nonsense. It was a noble sacrifice."
I definitely didn't blow Paladin Sonata away for some materialistic reason.
"Talking like that is an insult to him. He’s already gone; let’s send him off on a good note. Right?"
"If you say so, Count, then I suppose that’s how it is."
"You’re being awfully prickly. Is it just my imagination?"
"No, it isn't."
Serica still wore a pouty expression.
"Hey. You’re not sulking because I ended up using the Mythstone myself after handing them out all over the place, are you?"
"Not at all. Just as your decision to boldly discard the armor once it got soaked in seawater wasn't for materialistic reasons, I am also not the kind of materialistic person who would sulk just because I had to give the Mythstone to you after barely getting to use it a few times."
"......."
She was definitely sulking.
"I'll give you the next Mythstone I find."
"You say that, but you'll probably just give it to someone else later. I don't believe you."
"Ahem. We can share if we need to."
"But right now, the two of you are using them exclusively, aren't you? Commander Laura’s has never belonged to anyone else from the start, and the one we got recently ended up being yours."
Serica looked me up and down.
"...It’s certainly nice to see your physique improve, but it’s still a shame not to be able to use equipment made from Mythstone."
"I like your honesty. Fine. You can use me instead."
"What on earth are you..."
I spread my arms to embrace Serica, but she pushed me away with her hands and slipped under my arm.
"I’m being serious. The deeper we go into the Labyrinth, the more important equipment becomes. It’s a matter directly linked to survival."
"Hmm...."
This wasn't the Serica who craved sleep play while drinking; this was Serica, the Knight Order’s advisor.
"Fine, Serica. What do you think is our team's current problem?"
"There are no problems. Aside from our defense being a bit flimsy, we're perfect."
"And can that defense be supplemented with a Mythstone?"
"Of course. To put it bluntly, even Commander Laura goes onto the battlefield wearing nothing but a bunny girl outfit and a battle coat now."
As Serica said, Laura was now using the power of the Mythstone to protect her body.
She occasionally pulled out a bow and arrows of light, but those were manifested through her own magic; the mana she drew from the Mythstone was balanced at a 1:9 ratio between offense and defense.
"If I had a Mythstone, I could cut down enemies while wearing a swimsuit too. If only I had a Mythstone."
"So you're telling me to go find one?"
"Not necessarily, but I’d like you to consider it."
Since there was no one else in the warehouse, she was openly soliciting me.
Of course, it wasn't as if I disliked such requests, so I answered by giving Serica’s butt a pat.
"Understood. Not just for the sake of taking you down into the Infinite Labyrinth in a swimsuit, but for the day we have sex while you're wearing one, I will definitely find a Mythstone."
"I’m counting on you. Really... the cutting sensation is top-tier."
Ah.
"Th-that was the reason?"
"Yurdias and I both know because we've tried it. We can no longer be satisfied with equipment that isn't made of Mythstone. It’s just like how a woman who has tasted your cock can never think of another man's again."
"I understand perfectly now."
It was a system where you could use the ultimate items from the 1st floor, so why would anyone risk using low-quality gear?
Eventually, I might be able to have a full Mythstone set where both weapons and armor utilized its power.
Not right now, though.
Anyway.
"Until the new armor arrives, we'll just have to stick to the routine in the Infinite Labyrinth for a while."
"Are we not going to secure any more of 'those'?"
"The number we have now is enough, and it’s dangerous."
Paladin Sonata, the lewd man, had died.
It could have been someone else.
"I have no intention of pushing people to their deaths just to secure Sirens. Now, shall we go meet them?"
After all.
They were right next door.
"Charlotte. Thanks for coming personally."
"...Hello, Count."
Charlotte, who should have been in the middle of the Sirens' mental training, pointed toward the inner part of the dungeon with a weary face.
"I’m glad you’re here. I was just thinking about sending someone for you."
"Is there a serious problem?"
"Yes."
Charlotte pointed ahead as if she were truly annoyed.
"Take a look at that."
"What is... ugh."
The floor was drenched with water.
And it wasn't just ordinary water; it was the tide of love juice the Sirens were spraying in their heat.
"Since there’s no ocean, they’re making one themselves. The smell is fine for humans, but I think it’s a real ordeal for the other beastkin. Shiro couldn't even bring herself to come inside."
"Is that so? At least it doesn't smell like fish."
"Aaaahhh...."
The 42 Sirens, all wearing Bitch Collars around their necks, were writhing on the floor like slugs.
"Look at that. Right now... the females are biting and licking each other. Ugh."
In a situation full of females with no cocks and no males, their sexual desire was exploding.
"Women having sex with each other. It’s a bit much."
"Is it? Well, I suppose it’s the same as me watching men do gay stuff and you watching women do lesbian stuff."
"Well... it’s not like I can't turn them into products, but it’s certainly a bit difficult. Everything would be solved if we just introduced a cock."
"We can't do that."
Whether they were kissing, licking pussies, or rubbing their crotches together.
"Are you planning to throw the virgin premium in the trash?"
Since they had all been verified as 'virgins,' I couldn't just recklessly turn the Sea Elves into non-virgins.
"Of course not. I know better than anyone that virgins sell for more. But to verify their abilities, we first have to bring them back to their senses...."
"Try bringing them back. Let's see how you do it."
"...I'll switch them to Awakening Mode."
Zzzzt.
Charlotte used the management magic tool to switch the Bitch Collars on the Sirens to Awakening Mode.
"Ah... Aaaagh!!"
"Ugh! To think I was kissing you, I want to die...!"
"Please, please stop this! I’d rather be gang-raped by men!"
As soon as their libido dropped, the 'slugs' immediately pulled away from each other and began to gag.
It seemed that for the Sea Elf race, homosexuality was held in about the same regard as my own loathing for gay acts.
"Sirens. It is a pleasure to meet you. I am the Lord of Fermaton, Ruji Fermaton."
I stepped in front of the gagging Sirens.
"If you are willing to work for Fermaton, for me, and for humanity—if you become my subordinates—I will let you out of here. But if you refuse to be my subordinates, I won't kill you; I'll make you spend the rest of your lives here having lesbian sex with other female prisoners."
"Ugh...!"
"What will it be? Will you work for humans, or will you have sex with human women? If you work for me, I will give you the best treatment."
Despair and bewilderment simultaneously crossed the Sirens' eyes.
"You don't seem to realize your position, but you are currently semi-slaves. One wrong step and you'll immediately become scissoring slave elves for the prisoners."
There was only one choice.
"I will count to ten. If there are any among you who wish to become the Sirens of Fermaton, stand up on your own two feet."
Would they become the property of a human?
"If not, stay face down on the floor. I'll make sure you live the rest of your lives doing nothing but scissoring."
Or would they live as scissoring elves until they died?
"I-if we become yours... what happens after that...?"
"It’s simple. You'll wear new uniforms and live like the other elves already out in the world. Your duties are already decided."
"......?"
"What... do you intend to use us for...? Are you going to use us as sex slaves, like other humans do...?"
"If anyone wants that, I can arrange it, but we already have a massive number of prostitute succubi."
As elves, there would certainly be a demand for Sea Elves, but I had no intention of running them as prostitutes.
"If you become my subordinates, your first task won't be soaking this dungeon. The place where you need to set off fountains is somewhere else."
I had already finished verifying the abilities of the Sea Elves.
All that remained was to actually confirm those functions.
"Will you set off love juice fountains here, or will you become officials?"