“Hey, what’s going on here?”
Nina raised her voice at the Brown Slaves. It was understandable. In the area on the 37th floor underground, where there were enemies that couldn’t be flown past, a rug they had acquired from somewhere was spread on a rock. On top of it sat two Princesses, relaxing and sipping fruit juice.
“The, the Princesses are just taking a short break.”
“No, this is right after our lunch! And what’s this for?”
“Well, we sold the magic stones we earned this morning and bought this…”
Seeing Mother’s flustered expression, I suspected something was amiss. Hadn’t she used the lunch money to buy this and let the Princesses rest right away? Perhaps the Princesses had reported to their inner circle that I, a Succubus, had been assigned to protect them with VIP treatment.
“Nina, creating rest areas and having people take turns resting isn’t such a bad idea, is it?”
“What’s this, Deles? Do you have something on them? Are you feeling guilty about something?”
I flinched.
“N-no, what I mean is, you shouldn’t let only the Princesses rest!”
“Right, hurry up and switch.”
“…Princesses, prepare yourselves.”
Mother told them, and they finally got off the rock. Baraka and Camilla helped them… Ah, Mother *is* Baraka. Yes.
“Honestly, those Deru Deru Ecstasy guys.”
“Nina?! Anju-chan just came up with that name herself!”
“What, then are they the Passion Liberty Lovers? That’s too long, how about Pa Ri Ba for short?”
Anju-chan, I wish you had reported it properly when you named them. How much do you love Deru Deru Ecstasy?
“Um, then who’s next for a break?”
“No, it’s fine. From here on out, we’re serious.”
Mother showed her fighting spirit. Though I thought it was probably just for show, she was diligently fighting with her twin hand axes. Apparently, it’s her personal skill to have them return to her even when thrown. I vaguely recalled their introduction at an auction.
“Hah!”
Sexy swordswoman Camilla also swiftly cut down enemies before they could approach the Princesses. Her sword, a common silver sword bought at the market because she had all her previous country’s swords confiscated, was slicing through enemies with ease. It showed her high base stats and considerable experience.
“Where are Nataira and Lyra?”
At Nina’s words, I hurriedly cast Fire Dance and Fire Dance 2. Red and blue flames flew towards the enemies, burning them, but even on this floor, they couldn’t be taken down in one hit.
“What, they’re weak. They can’t even burn a mere Heavy Rat.”
“Their magic levels are probably low due to infrequent use. It can’t be helped after only half a day.”
They probably felt that way because we, whose magic power and EXP surged frighteningly, weren’t around. I should give them proper instructions here.
“Even if you let the Princesses rest, please do so after your magic is depleted. You could have safely cast magic from on top of the rock, couldn’t you? You should AT LEAST do that much.”
Perhaps they misunderstood my earlier remark, during the time I was protecting them as a Succubus, that they could observe for now. Did I need to tell them, like during the tutorial dungeon, to fight properly themselves?
“Understood.” “We’ll do as you say.”
The two Princesses seemed to have accepted it, but I hoped they would actually follow through.
“Alright, let’s go. You may return when you are confident that Nataira and Lyra’s levels have increased.”
In other words, don’t come back until then. Nina was indeed harsh.
“Understood.” “We’ll try.”
This definitely requires an unannounced check. While thinking that, I moved to another hunting ground. Huh? Clarice didn’t say a word this time either, but she looked a little angry, didn’t she?
“Clarice?”
“That woman, Camilla, she was flirting with me when Deles complimented her.”
“You don’t have to get angry about something like that now!”
“Deles, you were strangely taking their side. Could it be that you’ve already been…”
“I haven’t! I won’t! It’s not like that!”
While making excuses, I headed for the next slave site. On the 96th and 97th floors, they weren’t there, but on the 98th floor, I finally found a group surrounded by plant-type monsters.
“Hee-hee-hee!” “Buhin!” “Buhahaha-hee-hee-hee!!”
The Kelpies, crying, clung to me! Were they that happy to see me again? It hadn’t even been that long.
“Things seem to be going well here.”
“Yes, the Succubi are working hard for us.”
At Helen’s voice, the Succubi lined up. But that was only for a moment before they returned to dealing with the continuously spawning enemies.
“Mm, that’s good.”
“This way, Helen’s companions should be able to level up easily too.”
“We got a good amount of seeds, boss.”
Let’s see, a quick appraisal…
“Eat the Attack Seeds and Magic Seeds. These delicious seeds are souvenirs for Anju-chan.”
Five seeds in total. This is how it usually is.
“And Master, I can’t Taming an Alraune.”
“What’s the reason?”
“Is it simply that my magic power is insufficient, or is it because I’m already Taming Kelpies?”
I wonder if there’s a limit to how many other creatures I can Taming simultaneously, in addition to the Succubi.
“Understood. For now, try dismissing one Succubus and see.”
“Understood.”
Well, even if I dismiss a weak Succubus, it probably won’t make much difference.
“Also, it seems there’s an area boss on the 100th floor.”
“That’s too soon. I understand that the Succubi are excellent and eager to rush ahead, but first, gain experience.”
“Understood.”
And so, we left the area, with the Kelpies seeing us off reluctantly.
“So, Clarice, what’s wrong?”
“Earlier, one of the Succubi was flirting with Deles.”
“No, that’s definitely a misunderstanding!”
(Why is she suddenly in jealous mode?!)
Meanwhile, Bauer and Pero were basking in the sun at a park on the ground. And so, the storyteller concludes. Now, it’s time to level up Clarice in the afternoon too!
