“The Stone Golem’s Cave has what!?” A young man’s voice questions shockingly.

“SHH! Don’t yell like that, you idiot!” A gruff man’s voice whispers back in frustration.

There are two seasoned adventures conversing at the center-most table of The Wererat. One of them is rather small for a man of his age, while the other one is nearly half as large as Drezzan. The two chat to one another about a recent incident. An incident that shocked low, mid and even high-level adventurers.

The Stone Golem’s Cave had collapsed.

The reason it was so surprising was due to the dungeon being known as one of the most menacing dungeons in the area. It was basically a trap for inexperienced adventurers. They would be lured in by the promise of a low-level dungeon, but once they got to the final boss, no one ever returned. After a couple dozen poor souls were lost in the dungeon, the Baricka government sent a party of five level 50 adventurers to clear it and close off the entrance but much to their dismay, they never returned. Of course, this caught the attention of many other boneheaded mid-level adventurers who set off thinking that they would be the ones to finally clear it themselves and get first pick at any of the loot it offered. I doubt I have to tell you that no one came back, let alone with a purse full of gold.

This frightened everyone, including high-level adventurers. It has been a year since this dungeon was discovered, but just a couple of days ago, the capital city of our region, Lansa, has declared they’ll send 5 max-level adventurers to the dungeon, making everyone in Baricka cheer and celebrate. Heck, they were already preparing a banquet for the max-level adventurers’ arrival. But… that all went to dust when the dungeon collapsed.

This proved two things:

One: The dungeon was actually a single-run dungeon or as they’re also referred to, an Artificially Created Dungeon. These are man-made dungeons made by someone after the birth of the world.

And two: There might already be max-level adventurers within their midst.

But, one question still remained, who were the adventurers that cleared it?

Little did they know the answer was right next to them.

I sit at a table next to the whispering adventurers, listening to everything they are saying thanks to my Natural Senses ability.

Your Natural Senses has ranked up to Rank B! +3 PER

Oh nice, a rank up.

Anyways, what they were saying was true. After I somehow defeated the stone golem with Morph Overtake, the dungeon suddenly began to collapse. Of course, Lilith was there with us the entire time, so not only did she rescue us from our impending doom, but she was also able to take the rewards we’d gotten from the dungeon.

That was one of the reasons why we didn’t really buy any gear for Charles, except clothing of course. We only got a new staff for him. To our credit though, it was apparently a legendary staff. Or so I heard from Lilith.

You cannot inspect a weapon unless you’re either a Blacksmith, a Scribe, or any other similar class. It really depends on what you’re inspecting. A Blacksmith can inspect warrior-based weapons, Scribes can inspect pretty much any weapon type, Alchemists can inspect potions/poisons, and so on.

Luckily for us, Lilith happened to be a Scribe. This allowed her to inspect Charles’s legendary staff, known as the Staff Of The Ancients: Hysteria. Here is the layout of what she told me.

Staff Of The Ancients: Hysteria

Description: The original staff was created by the ancients long ago. It was a weapon used by the princess of the ancients, known as Project Eve. A princess created for the sake of saving the god realm and a tool for destroying Project Armageddon, the god-killing disaster.

Weapon Grade: Legendary

Physical Damage: C

Magic Damage: S

Durability: SSS

Abilities: Silent Cast, Automatic Mind Meditation.

Bonus: All magic damage is increased by 10%

The history of this weapon really sparked my interest. I even asked Lilith if she knew anything about the ancients, but sadly, Lilith said such knowledge was lost to history and that even monsters struggled to find any of the buried truth. Weapons like Hysteria are collected and put together with other ancient weapons to be researched and used to help expand knowledge on the history of the Ancients.

Which made it kind of weird to gain such an amazing weapon from an Artificial Dungeon. An Artificially Created Dungeon is a dungeon made by a person other than a god. As mentioned, a dungeon created by a person can only be completed once. A dungeon created by a god can be run over and over again without a limit. Apparently, it costs a lot of materials, so they aren’t very common.

“Are the max-level adventurers still coming?” The small armored adventurer asks.

“Yea, I think there was another reason why they’re still on their way, but might’ve just been a rumor,” the larger adventurer responds with his mouth still full of food.

“What’s the reason?”

“From what I’ve heard, there might be another group of really strong half-breeds coming towards here.”

“Again? Didn’t they stop those weekly invasions years ago?”

“Apparently those rebel boys have been asking for help from other high-level creatures, but most of them ain’t even half-human.”

“Who exactly?”

“The only one we've seen so far was some foxy thang with eight tails. They called it a Kitsune.”

“Kitsune? Aren’t those the demi-humans from the eastern region? Like as in the United players?”

This caught my attention. I turned to look at the smaller adventurer, curious about the eastern region.

Players? Isn’t that word used for people who try to get it on with a few people instead of just one? No, it probably had a different meaning here.

“Yeah, I’ve heard the kitsunes have it real nice with the players, which means we’ll probably see a couple of players helping in the invasion.”

“T-that doesn’t sound good at all! A max-level adventurer doesn’t even compare to a player. I mean, didn’t you see the fight with General Marcos against a player? He was defeated with a single swing. A single swing! How are we supposed to fight something like that!?”

“Hey! Quiet will you!?” At this point, everyone in The Wererat is looking at the two adventurers as the couple glanced around frantically. Beneath my mask, I too stare at them in shock.

The thing that shook me most… was General Marcos being put down by one swing. Was that even possible? General Marcos was given the title of ‘The Strongest Warrior in the Western Region.’ He got the title by defeating fifty wyverns by himself. That was a feat no one could’ve managed on their own, but… for him to be put down in one swing… I… just can’t imagine it. Guess I’m really behind on the news.

If the players are this strong, I wouldn’t dream of charging into battle against one.

The names these easterners have are a bit odd though. I feel like I’ve heard the words before… but I can’t really recall what it means.

“Anyways… where do you think the invasion is coming from?” The smaller adventurer questions.

“Probably where it always has, at the eastern wall and forest.”

I stand up from my table and begin to walk outside.

This is enough info. I have to say, had I not known demi-humans like me were invading this slave-trading shithole, I would have done everything myself. I probably sound rash, but I can’t stand being here and do nothing.

At least I still have a sense of justice. I’m happy about that.

I walk out of The Wererat and right next to the front door is Lilith, waiting with her usual smile. “So? How was it?”

“To be honest, I’d prefer talking to them myself instead of eavesdropping.”

“It’s good practice though, isn’t it?”

“Yeah. I went up a level on Natural Senses.” I say as we walk into an alleyway - a place I knew that there would be nobody to listen in on us. “By the way, how did you know those guys had the information we needed?”

“I happened to stumble by and hear them talking about the same topic. It was mostly guesswork that led me to believe they knew.” I nod in agreement then look up at the night sky.

It still feels weird being right next to Lilith. Whenever I’m near her, I get this weird chain of emotions. At first, I get pissed off, but at the same moment, I get confused before calming down. I know, I’ve already talked about this with Charles, but I really need to fix these conflicting emotions.

“So… want me to tell you the information I’ve gathered?” I ask Lilith as I look at her.

“Sure. Why not?”

Five minutes later…

When I finished explaining what I’d heard from the men at The Wererat, Lilith nodded her head in agreement.

We are sitting on the side of a fountain in the town square where joyous laughter and small talk could be heard coming from all around. There is a gentle breeze blowing by and the shining moon lighten our view of the entire surrounding of the, most likely, central hub. I decided to spread my legs out and calm my nerves for a bit. As expected though, just as I start to relax...

“Aden! Are you ready to do something that will probably get you killed!?” Lilith asks me with a smug grin. I slowly turn my head towards the source of my displeasure and give her a face that says something along the lines of, you’re already doing something that will probably get me killed.

This can’t be good.

“What… is it?” I try to make a smile, but I doubt my expression came out looking very delighted.

“Let’s explore the east!”

I freaking knew it.

Ten minutes later…

I sigh as we ventured deeper into the Eastern Baricka forests.

This is a terrible idea. I freaking knew it would be. Like seriously, why the hell are we walking straight into enemy territory? Well, enemy-occupied territory at least.

I would have at least liked to try making contact with the demi-humans first. Not go straight into enemy territory expecting them to think I’m friendly! Even if I were to go there in my morphed state, they might think I'm a random brainwashed slave and kill me anyway!

Well… at least Lilith and I got to review what all the stats do again while we were walking.

Strength - Strength is an attribute that affects your physical body. It affects your overall damage with strength-based weapons and allows you to carry much heavier objects. Also Increases maximum Hp by +5 per level.

Intellect - Intellect is an attribute that affects your learning speed, complexity of thought, and ability to come to conclusions faster. Affects the damage of spells, ability to retain knowledge and maximum mana by +5 Mp per level.

Dexterity - Dexterity is an attribute that affects your precision and accuracy. Increases damage with dexterity-based weapons and ranged weapons. Allows you to penetrate armor with less effort. Increases accuracy with ranged weapons. Allows for greater hand-eye coordination and the ability to use items with more precision.

Agility - Agility is an attribute that affects your movement, reaction, and attack speeds. Also Increases maximum stamina by +5 per level.

Perception - Perception is an attribute that affects your situational awareness and allows you to detect traps, clues, enemies and the intentions of those around you with more ease. All 6 senses become more sensitive as levels increase.

Endurance - Endurance is an attribute that affects your entire body's durability. Allowing you to deplete less stamina while sprinting, continue on when badly wounded and hold a greater resolve to continue fighting in dire situations. Increases health by 2.5 Hp, stamina by 2.5, defense by 0.1 and regeneration speeds for health and stamina by 0.1 point per second.

Willpower - Willpower is an attribute that affects the endurance of your mind. Improves resistance to negative mental status effects, psychological damage and magic damage. Increases willingness to learn, understanding of social concepts and patience when dealing with others.

Faith - Faith is an attribute that improves one’s sanctity if positive and sinful nature if negative. Positive Faith will increase the effectiveness of all holy spells and abilities. Negative Faith will increase all unholy spells and abilities.

Charisma - Charisma is an attribute that affects how attractive you are perceived by others and determines your physical appearance as you age. Allows you to speak to others with more fluidity, confidence and lowers the chances of tripping on words or stuttering.

Luck - Luck is an attribute that can affect one’s surroundings and situations for the better. This attribute also increases the chance of finding rare items and/or chances of creating higher-quality items.

To be honest, I have a hard time trying to remember these things. Apart from the charisma, of course, I usually just saw higher stats as a good thing and not much more. Now that I’m starting to realize how every stat has relatively equal value in its own way, I should probably be working on agility, strength, and dexterity if I want to get stronger.

The three statuses that did the most to get me this far were dexterity which somehow increases a blade’s sharpness, strength which allows me to deal more damage, and agility which helps me in terms of speed, reaction times, and reflexes. I’m going to need to work on them more in order to make them increasingly better.

“Lilith, are you sure we can’t just join them in the middle of the invasion?” I ask her with the palm of my hand resting on the hilt of my blade, as if ready to take anything on.

“It would be more fun if we joined right at the start. Besides… I want to meet with the kitsune.”

“The eight-tailed kitsune?”

“Yes, she is a very important person to me. I want to meet her again.”

“By the way… what does kitsune mean again?” Lilith turns with a smile, as if always ready to answer my questions.

“‘Kitsune is a foreign word for fox.”

“So, that means they’re demi-human foxes, right?”

“...Not exactly. They look like they’re demi-humans, but most of them aren’t half-human. The word originated from a language spoken in the eastern region. The eastern region they came from was originally nothing but desolate forests and empty grasslands but one day, a massive boom was heard that shook the entire continent. When adventurers went to investigate what the source was, they found a whole new civilization with strange, otherworldly-looking people where there was previously nothing. We don’t know where they came from, nor do we know how they got here, but from what we’ve discovered so far, they said parts of their world were somehow transferred here, which unleashed many new things into our world for better or worse. This included new types of diseases, new enemies, new species, new weapons, and so on.”

“The kitsunes are a part of that?”

“Yes, they are one of the five eastern beings. One of which is a nine-tailed kitsune named Tamamo. The five transferred into this world as well and the power they possess is unimaginable. It even rivals that of the ancients.”

“That strong, huh?”

“Yes, but it doesn’t end there. There are 13 types of kitsune.”

“Thirteen!? Like fire, water, and earth or stuff like that?” I begin to get excited. Probably one of the reasons why Charles and Lilith like teaching me things.

Lilith giggles as we progress deeper into the forest. “Yes, like those but they have their own way of saying it.”

“Own way?”

“Every kitsune is broken down into 13 categories. One of them being fire, or as they like to call it, Kasai.”

“Ka… what now?” I was ready for Lilith to spell it out for me… but instead of Lilith’s voice, I heard a feminine-sounding voice coming from behind me.

“It is Ka-sai.” In one quick motion, I draw my rusty sword and used the momentum of unsheathing it to swing it over my back and into the sneaky creature with all my might but the blade paused dead in its path. The creature managed to stop it using only its pinky finger.

Your attack has been stopped by the opponent! Attack resisted! 0 damage!

My eyes widen beneath my mask just in time for me to notice eight big, green, and fluffy tails surround me. I try to jump back, but I reacted too late as the fluffy green tails had already caught me. I struggle a bit, but I knew immediately that there is no way I'm going to break free.

What the hell are these things!? They’re fluffy but more durable than a rope!

The next thing I notice is that one of the green tails approaches my face to remove my mask. From there… I see the creature. It's a woman. I suppose she has what you would call an attractive-looking face but it isn’t like anything I’d seen before. The woman has long, green hair and a clear complexion. Her skin is just a bit paler than Lilith’s but her bright green eyebrows and eyelashes look longer and fuller. Her nose might have been a tad bit longer than Lilith’s as well, but one thing that separated her from Lilith for certain is the wide, innocent smile that she couldn’t resist making when she looks at me through her narrowly opened eyes, despite the fact that I tried to kill her only moments ago. That part could probably be deducted down to my charisma but something told me she isn’t wholly incapable of curbing the expression.

The best way to describe her face would be Chinese I guess. And her clothing looked like a loose, green kimono.

Wait, didn’t I just say I’ve never seen anything like her before?

Anyways, it has this big wrapping in the middle, which is surprisingly large in size. Is it a big belt? No… It didn’t really look leathery.

As I continue to examine her a bit further up, I notice one feature which 1000% did not resemble Lilith. Her breasts are colossal and absolutely transcended practicality in every sense of the word. Such an abnormality in nature shouldn’t even be considered lega-

And as fate would have it, my face is slammed between her breasts.

“WAAAAAA!!!” I scream within the strange woman’s behemoths as she wraps her arms around me and jiggles her body from left to right.

“S-S-SO KAWAIIIIIIII!” The woman shouts as she hugs me tightly.

I-I can’t breathe! HELP!

I struggle like a fish out of water and try to the best of my abilities to escape, but my efforts proved futile when she refused to budge.

What the hell!? Why is she so strong!?

I make an attempt to scream out “Lilith, help me!” but in space, no one can hear you scream and there is a similar lack of oxygen in my given situation.

It’s remarkable how you can recall information you’ve never even learned when on the brink of death.

Lilith notices my suffering and may or may not have cared that my body seems to become limper and limper as time went on. Either way, she eventually let out, “Alright Nisuki, please let go of my entertainer.”

“OH!” The eight-tailed fox turns to see Lilith as if she just noticed she was there. “Princess of Destruction!” She lets go of me as my body flops to the ground and jumps straight at Lilith. “Lilith-chan!”

But when she is about to touch Lilith, she went through her body, as if it were just a hologram. Nisuki slams face-first into a tree trunk, then pauses for a second before pulling her face out and turning to see Lilith looking down at my lifeless body.

Lilith sigh. “Oh goddess of love… looks like Aden has already suffocated.” After Lilith says this, a ghost-like apparition left my body and slowly but surely starts its journey towards the heavens. As it did, it started in a ghostly voice…

I blame my Charisma for this…

You have suffocated from your enemy's breasts!

Good job you fucking pervert!

Congratulations! You have unlocked the title: Death By Breasts

Death By Breasts

Description: You have died in the breasts of a woman.

Requirements: Die in the breasts of a woman.

Note from Goddess of Love: Well… it could have been worse.

Charisma +10

Lilith grabs my ghostly, wayward soul and slams it back into my body like she is dunking a basketball.

I take in a deep breath as my lungs finally get filled with air for what felt like the first time in ages.

You have been revived!

I couldn’t help but gasp for more air a few more times before saying, “That… was hell.”