《Isekai Harem Trope(WIP)》Chapter 17: A boring delve[SImon]
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BOOM!
I, Audrey, and Brianna were sitting on a blanket with an empty food basket nearby chatting around. I looked bored whilst Audrey and Brianna looked pained, kitty was having the time of her life splayed out on my lap as my hand idly scratched behind her ear and at the base of her tail, purring like an engine. When I entered the dungeon there were so many emotions going through me, despite all the books I read the fantastical scenery of a floating island ecosystem tickled my fancy. Both Audrey and Brianna shifted to their combat modes and even my lazy cat acted with caution, I was probably the only one brimming with excitement.
How quickly that died. The main reason: none of us realized just how overpowered Barbiel was. The main threat of the dungeon, the monsters, were reduced to a minor inconvenience because of her. We were already on the third floor of the dungeon and she had yet to show any sign of fatigue.
In the beginning, when we got our first encounter I was excited despite the risks. This was a forest-like environment and our 'ambush' came from the trees. We were attacked by a group of goblins led by a female and male hobgoblin aka the succubae and incubi of the group. Audrey and Brianna got ready with their blades and Kitty's fur fluffed up as she went on all fours ready to pounce hissing in a warning. I was going through the list of buffs I could apply half thrilled half worried about what was about to happen.
Unceremoniously spear-like beams fell onto the group of goblins like torrential rain accompanied by a series of explosions, that almost deafened the three of us. Kitty had it the worst as she smashed into my chest her normally erect ears laying flat on top of her head very scared.
In a matter of moments, the group of goblins was reduced to a pile of what looked like vegetables and fabric. Confused and disoriented all of us looked around for the source of this madness only to find the angel had materialized and looked satisfied with herself.
Audrey and Brianna immediately went on a tirade about how wasting such a powerful ability on such small fry was such a waste. I had the same accusation though there was no venom in my tone like the two of them. Kitty for her part was still sticking to me in fear and pain.
She in her gracious and angelic voice said.
"That is my basic magical attack. You need not fret. I was simply dispatching them quickly as I do not wish for my lord to have to suffer such weaklings. In addition, my lord wants more pets to complete his team. He need not consider these weaklings. We will quickly go to the later floor where he may find better monsters which may not need arduous grooming to be worthy of him." her gaze was at Kitty, not an accusation but a mere statement of fact.
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My easy self accepted that reasoning but neither Audrey nor Brianna was convinced treating Barbiel as another woman who was pushing herself to show off in front of her harem master but they too let it go claiming they would pick up the slack once she inevitably got tired.
But that has yet to come to pass. After a dozen fights to the first-floor boss, Audrey and Brianna were convinced it would there where she would fall giving us plans on how to deal with the giant minotaur that was the floor's boss showing their veteran combat experience. Their plan was very solid taking into account the loss of Barbiel, my inexperience, and Kitty's lack of intelligence. This would be my first boss fight and the gamer in me rejoiced even as trepidation wracked my body at looking at the 10 feet tall overly muscled bull-like monster. The only reason I was not worried about Barbiel was my ability to simply resurrect her.
All that was for naught as Barbiel simply decapitated the incubi in a single stroke of her blade with an ease that said even that was no more than a trifle. All of us looked in shocked amazement. The boss was in this massive stone room at the center of the forest. We had planned for about half an hour as Barbiel tried to convince us it was unnecessary but gave up very quickly and let us be. When we walked through the massive stone double door that opened as we entered and closed with a massive thud when all of us were in. The monster roared at us stomping his foot with so much force that the stone beneath his feet shattered like glass and there was loud whirring as he swung around his massive double-sided war axe. Then Barbiel moved, and in a blink, she went from next to us to behind the incubus and in anime fashion, the monster stopped as his head slid off his torso followed by his whole body dissipating into small glowing particles transforming into our loot.
Even after that a small part of me still thought we would get some action but after clearing the second floor with the same blazing quickness and halfway through the third the experience was in a word dull. It went from a fantastical adventure filled with danger and excitement to a sightseeing picnic. I had half a mind to tell her to just take a break so we could do something but at the same time, her reasoning was very hard to question, other than the fact I was an easy bitch who only agreed with women.
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She surmised that if we were here for getting me some new succubae pets the best option would be the final floor. She claimed she could finish this dungeon within 24 hours if we let her. I thought Brianna and Audrey but to my surprise, they did not, there shined when they heard Barbiel could climb the dungeon within the minimum time limit.
That brings us here to now, with me asking why they agreed so readily.
"Well, this is not well-known because of how hard it is to achieve but if you can solve a dungeon within 24 hours you get a special reward the first time you do it. The thing is you also get the first time you beat the final boss of the dungeon. Even that is increased in orders of magnitude if it is your first time in that dungeon." said Brianna.
"Don't forget you get one the first time you complete any dungeon. Also as a reward for surviving your first delve. Those shi-ahem... Those can be very juicy" added Audrey.
"Damn." is all I could say. I was no stranger to stacking rewards, gacha games did it all the time and to my shame, I played a few of the more popular ones on the regular. The only difference here is that I don't think gods would be skimpy about their rewards like the greedy companies.
"So, how good can the rewards get?" I asked now genuinely curious.
"Getting a new innate class good," answered Brianna.
My eyes widened in surprise and my jaw dropped. People can have a limited number of classes: 5 regular and 4 unique. The only exception to this was innate classes. Everyone is born with one putting the max level at 50. In the game version, there was a total of 6 ways to get innate classes 4 of which were exclusive to one another pushing the max level to 65. Hero classes were without exception a birthright and only they could reach the pinnacle of level 70. to find another way to gain innate classes was astounding though I should not be surprised. I got a new innate class, as broken(in a bad way) as it was, from a random experiment proving that this world was much more vast.
"So how many people got that reward and can you get an innate class multiple times?" I asked my curiosity through the roof. Audrey could not hear me as my words were drowned out as we heard another BOOM! in the distance. Kitty was extremely adaptive already tuning out that sound. So, I asked again.
"Sadly no. The class is called delver and the couple thousand people that have that class all have the same one," answered Brianna. Audrey just nodded along.
At this time Barbiel just whisked into existence right next to me saying loudly so everyone could hear.
"The path to the boss is open. Please enter the boss room so we may ascend"
She did not even acknowledge the fact that we had yet to fight the boss but who was I kidding if it went as I thought it did we would be done with the boss in moments even if we all did nothing but suckled her teats.
I understood the reasoning but I still voiced out.
"Next time we go on a delve can you not act unless you are ordered or you believe we will not able to come out of an incident without your help. I am new to all this and if you solve our problems for us we as a team will not have a chance to grow." even channeling all future damage she was doing to our whole team it was hard to get those words out. Even using my technique to talk back to women was hard because Barbiel could only have the best of intentions.
"I understand," she said simply. There was no hurt in her tone and her demeanor did not shift one bit keeping that pleasant maternal vibe. I, however, was in anguish, she was just trying to help in a way she thought was best and instead of thanking her I had said she did something harmful even while reaping the benefits. She like the angel she was, noticed and projected.
'I understand my lord. You find it difficult to argue. So you have created this special mantra but it has some drawbacks. Do not worry. Think of me as one of your limbs. I am a part of you and like how you expect your limbs to perform their functions without gratitude, I too am the same. For all the gratitude I need is simply being by your side.'
I cried. Then we probably wasted more time assuaging me than to clear the first two floors. I hate myself sometimes
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