After the second AAA-*Splat!* his DP's were twice replenished. They had gone down to 4 after placing the traps. But with the 'Intruders' killed, they shot back up to 77.

He considered using Swallow to make the corpses disappear but reconsidered as they'll eventually come to investigate. He could move them later to 'whatever trap killed them.' Instead he just capped the latest pit for now like the other one.

[Ugh, that skill name makes it sound like I'm going all cannibal.] {Can that Swallow thing be renamed to 'Recycle'?}

Skill Name has been Updated

{Thanks}

The cover over the pit-stairs was removed. Partly out of fear that they could suffocate. Mostly to have more options, with the danger over for now.

Then he Inventory-ported a rope to tie on the stone beam over the third pit trap, so that his mother's new slave can pull herself out. Placing it so each end fell down opposite the other.

[How do I talk with her right now? Being a "Hero," I was given 'Universal Translator', but I don't know if she can read. Or even which language to use. I'll have to try with pictures instead and hope I'm understood.]

By now the fox had re-entered the storeroom. Not ready for her to make her escape, he popped a stone wall into existence blocking the door to the stairs. {Tile: Alter}

On it were engraved 3 small murals. From the top, the first showed a beastkin that may have been a fox-type emptying a chamber pot into a soup bowl. The second depicts the same beastkin offering a soup bowl to a human with one hand. Said human kneeling, the fox's other hand holding a leash, attached to a collar upon the human's neck. The third shows the beastkin leading a crawling human to some stairs, pulling her along with the leash.

When the fox woman finished studying the murals, she clapped her hands "Oh, that's a great idea! Thank you, whoever you are."

Having noticed the down-turned bowl of evening gruel earlier, she grabbed it. Took it over to the near left corner where a chamber pot was left 'just in case' and . 'refreshed the bio-weapon.' Then poured its contents into the bowl. Her face half a smirk, half a grimace.

[Oh, her sense of smell is too sensitive for this type of attack. I'll just top it off then.]

With a bit of Inventory-shuffling, the porrige that was spilled across the floor some time ago, was placed atop the mess in the soup bowl. The spoon retrieved as well.

¤

Matron Jodie was indignant at being left in the trap by her unruly slave. Luckily a rope somehow appeared, draped across the beam that crossed over the pit she was trapped in. She tied one end with a quick and simple knot, leaving a hole to thread the other end of the rope through. Once complete, she pulled until it reached the top, then it would let her out. In her hurry to leave, she decided not to tie the rest of its length into knots she could use to enhance her grip. Although that probably wouldn't have worked anyway, as she'd have had to pull the whole rope down first and toss it back over the beam after.

By now, the matron's fury had reached its peak. She was now more irate than she'd ever been in her whole life. Her rage fueled her strength, already boosted by her level-ups to be comparable with a female athlete from Earth. (You know, the tennis star) With this much power, she had little trouble pulling herself up the rope. Despite the fact that her injured feet were worse than useless right now. In this instance they were simply a dead weight slowing her down. But the hole was only a few meters deep, so it still didn't take long for her to work her way out.

Waiting for her was a sinisterly grinning fox woman. Her former slave, though she still denied the 'former' part of the label. Along with a full bowl of dinner gruel. Marked by a bit of meat to keep the slave stock healthy enough to work for their owners without degrading.

"Ain't ya gonna help me up?" the matron demands indignantly.

"I'm having too much fun for that."

"Wit what?"

"Watching you struggle. *giggle* By the way, didn't I tell you to shut up earlier? Why are you still talking?"

"You can't tell me wha ta do! Yer mah proper- GADDAMIT!!"

The return of the mana burnout stunned her enough to loose her grip on the rope. Causing her to fall back in. Landing on her already injured ankles.

"BWAHAHAHA!! HEHE! OH I WISH I COULD SEE THAT EVERY DAY! But first, you need to get your skank ass back up here and eat this here bowl o' gruel I got for ya!"

The raging headache from mana burnout was competing with the pain of sitting on her two twisted ankles. Made worse by falling on them once more. And losing, but just barely.

She didn't even regard the order as such. Of course she pulled herself off from them as quick as she possibly could. It was just common sense not to cause yourself excruciating pain by making extremely painful wounds even worse.

As she pulled herself up the rope once more, her ankles' ache settled back into a dull roar. Hanging just 10 cm up, she took a minute to refocus her mind.

"Hurry up an get back up here, now!"

But the pain of mana burnout wouldn't budge. If anything, it was getting worse. What's more, her arms were starting to get tired. She can't stay where she's at much longer. If she does, she won't have the strength to climb. But if she goes back down, there's no room to properly rest her aching feet. So she decided to climb up in a hurry. And punish her disobedient slave later.

While these two were playing around, the dungeon bought out the whole second floor of the brothel. 25 meters square, though not purchased as a square. Why pay more for the same results? Leaving only 13 DP's as an emergency fund.

As she hurried up once more, the headache started to subside. Slowly enough that the difference might not even be noticed for several minutes. Eventually, she pulled herself the whole way up. Settling upon the edge further into the corridor, feet still hanging down into the pit.

"Tha fuck's wrong wit yer emty fool head ta-day?"

"Nothing's wrong with me anymore. It's so, so right. Now that you're wearing my slave collar."

*TUG, TUG* "How in all the hells did ya pull it off?"

"I didn't. My mysterious benefactor did. After digging out these tunnels for me to hide in. And capture whoever came to find me."

"Jus b'cuz ahm wearin tha collar ain't make me yer slave."

"You really think so? What about those punishments you've already recieved for disobeying my orders? What else could've caused them?"

"It can't be that. Ev'ry fool knows tha slave runes don' work that way."

"I order you to slap yourself, hard."

"HA! Tha wo- AAGH!! GAH! *cough cough* RRG!"

"It will never let up. Each minute will be worse than the last. Until you do as you were told. BY. YOUR. OWNER."

. . (grunt) . .

. . (groan) . .

*slap*

"It dinnit work!"

"My order was to slap hard."

*SLAP!*

"This is how you made us live. Humiliate ourselves, sell ourselves for your profit. Or else feel like we're dying. All these years of abuse. Every time any of us saw your face, we wanted to peel it off from your head. And now, this is how you'll live the rest of your life. You earned it, so I hope you like it. Now. Eat. It. All.

Finish this whole bowl-full before you leave this place. That's. An. Order."

And with that, she left. Taking the magic torch with her. Her former owner left alone. In the dark.

¤

When she reached the storeroom this time, there was another example of the wondrous meal awaiting her. Along with some metal 'glasses' of water pilfered from the kitchen upstairs.

[I hope she appreciates it, I'm just about tapped out again.]

¤

While the fox was having the best meal of her life, and for the second time in one day, the matron was wondering about the gruel. Enough time passed that her eyes adjusted to the near-blackness as best they can.

"It's jus dinner porrige, no need ta fret ov'r it. But why 'as she so insistant on it? Ah can't leave til ah finish it all? Den wha's wrong wit it? Hells. No matta wha, it won' get betta wit age."

Having finally convinced herself to try, she starts shimmying across the stone beam. Carefully, so as not to fall in a third time. To make her way closer to the mysterious gruel. Her agility stat was high enough, in the forties, that this simple task was almost easy. But it's still not normal for a human to walk sideways using only their palms and asscheeks.

Having made her way to the other side of the pit, she still left her damaged feet dangling inside it. She grabbed the bowl and spoon. Then with another show of reluctance, paused. Before making a grimace and finally putting some in her mouth.

The first bite wasn't as bad as what she was expecting. No, she really had no idea what she was expecting. So a second and third went quickly down the gullet. But now she noticed a strange after-taste. Nothing she could put a name to. But the fourth spoonful stopped midway to her mouth, as she saw some . . thing revealed from behind it. Curious, she cautiously took the bowl up to her nose to smell it.

"Oh SHIT!"

Now that she had put a name to it, she wanted nothing at all to do with it. In fact the previous mouthfuls started trying to come back up.

But now that she was actively rejecting her order to 'eat. it. all.' the mana burnout came back in full force.

"NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!

OH GODS NO!!"

.

The echoing lamentations of her new woman felt as good to the fox as her wondrous meal tasted. Well, almost as good. *chomp* Maybe half.

. . .

Eventually, the new slave managed to finish the bowl of mostly food. Though not really by choice. Every time she decided to just stop, her head felt like a blacksmith's hammered ingot for at least a dozen minutes. Even when she changed her mind soon after. Also, whenever her stomach threatened to empty itself, the fire burning within her mind blocked out all ability to do so. She might have suffered more in this one night than in her whole life up until that same evening.

Thinking that, she also remembered what her new owner had said: 'And now, this is how you'll live the rest of your life. You earned it..'

And that's when she broke down ugly-crying.