Compared to other system users, I’m a bit of a weirdo. While the majority attempted to reconnect and form groups, started their own jihad, or started adventuring, I tried to integrate myself with the locals. As a former citizen of the United States, most would expect me to brashly attempt to reestablish my country. However, I had more than enough personal power to start my own group. Few could stop me, or so I thought at the time.

I had long ago found the truth of my country and the world. Those more intelligent than I had already paved the way to learn, and I came out the other end of the grief cycle whole using those systems. If I had stayed in touch with King, I might have saved him.

Hindsight was always 20/20.

Killing Ito Rin was something I wasn’t ready to commit to. While she burned me for attention all over Reddit, the people of Flank Town weren’t aware of it.

But that wasn’t what kept me from shoving my sword through her chest. I had just killed King, another system user, which made me hesitant to kill again so soon.

…

Night had fallen, and in two days, we’d leave with Salithe’s daughter. I didn’t know how I felt about an escort mission. The more people who joined us, the more dangerous it would be. For all, I knew it was a suicide mission to take some of the heat off of Flank Town. That’s the only reason I could see them waiting two days for us to leave.

Kale busied herself eating a slew of leafy green vegies from green onions to romaine, cabbage, carrots, and a bundle of hay. Stacked atop her lush green meal were three roasted chickens and a greasy pile of bacon. She stomped her hooves with every bite, moaning and munching away at the platter of food given to her.

Some of the lamias stared at Kale in a mix of shock and fascination as the centaur slowly tucked away hundreds of pounds of greens.

My meal had been more subdued with half a goat dry rubbed in basil and roasted over an open fire. It was served on a bed of tomatoes and mushrooms.

Not even the two-toed hooved survived when I was done. To my teeth, the bones of a goat were soft as cheese dip.

There was a knock on the door. All the lamias tensed before the door shot off its hinges.

Fang Mei stomped in the room while lamia guards held onto her arms and legs. They didn’t seem to bother Fang Mei in the least.

When she spotted Kale and me and marched forward.

“Where have you been? I left for a day to make sure all the clones were dead, and when I came back, you were gone? I had to question so many people. Then when I finally got here, the guards wouldn’t let me in.” Fang Mei said.

She flexed her QI, throwing the guards aside.

“Well, I woke up, and they asked us to see the Governor for an escort job,” I said.

Kale seemed to teleport to the cultivator’s side. “Fang Mei, you’ve got to try these carrots they’re so good. Come, we have a long road ahead of us, and the Governor is paying for our food while we’re in town. We’re going to escort her daughter to Bridle.” Kale said.

That explained everything. Kale didn’t like spending extravagantly with her own money and only bought ration bars for her journey. She probably only bought me because I was 5 coppers.

Fang Mei took a bite out of the carrot and glared at me. “Why does she need us to escort? Is the countryside filled with bandits?” Fang Mei asked. She turned her head to the side. “Would they really be stupid enough to attack with Red and me together?”

Kale reached into her mouth and pulled out a piece of parsley stuck between her teeth. “Bandits are almost always desperate. But no, we have to sneak by the scouts of the Audi Federation and warn Bridle Town. If they can get the word out of the invasion, then Taur’s city-states can join together and mount an offensive.” Kale said.

“So it’s a suicide mission then.” Fang Mei said.

I pulled a hunk of meat from between my teeth and swallowed it. “Only if you choose to see it that way. Think about it from my perspective. I get to go on a trip with at least two of my favorite girls, see the countryside, and visit a new city on someone else’s coin.” I said.

Kale nodded, chewing a mouth full of bacon and romaine before swallowing. “I like that point of view better. Do you think they’ll pay us well?” I shrugged.

“Yes, how much are we to be paid for this?” Fang Mei said.

It seemed Fang Mei and Kale had both come on board with the idea of walking a lamia to a new city.

“I’m supposed to meet with the council of four later tonight to negotiate that part. Though I have no idea how much I can ask from a ruined town. Some of the destruction was my fault.” I said.

“At least the agreement orgy will be interesting,” Kale said.

I blinked at the centaur. “The, what now?” I asked.

Fang Mei burst out laughing. “That’s one way to seal a deal.”

Kale swallowed a lump of pig fat. “What?” Kale asked.

“Why is there an agreement orgy?” I asked.

“To ensure you’ll keep your end of the deal. It’s a tradition among the matriarchal council of four in the event of a wartime agreement with male dark lords or heroes. Especially with humans. I understand this custom might seem strange to you but think of it like the hostages taken by rulers in the human kingdoms. Only these will either be imprisoned or raised to hate you. Those who show no care for their kin aren’t trusted in the Taur kingdom, and talk of such people travels far and fast.” Kale said.

“What if he refuses, and we leave now?” Fang Mei asked.

“Then they will get hit hard by the Feds with no hope of reinforcement. Even if I stayed, I can’t beat an army for them. Golems aren’t the same as King’s clones.” I said.

Kale stared at me in alarm. “What is that supposed to mean?” Kale asked.

Fang Mei nodded her head as if she completely understood what I was getting at but didn’t speak her mind. So that left me to explain my embarrassing realization.

“I’m specialized for killing flesh mages. Don’t get me wrong, I’m fast, strong, and tough as hell. But my offensive spells are all focused on flesh and spirit-based entities. Even my sword won’t be as effective against golems. That being said, if I had enough time, I’d adapt to fight the golems eventually. But I doubt they’re here for a long siege. Flank Town isn’t in a position to force them into a long siege either.” I said.

Fang Mei chose that moment to chime in. “Basically, we have to get out now anyway, and suicide mission or not, we’d face the same dangers. So, you might as well get paid and risk revenge babies.” Fang Mei said.

Ding!

10th Quest

Deliver the Governor’s daughter safely to Bridle

Reward: 3 Silver Skill Dice 2 Bronze Skill lvl Dice

Failure: Silent’s death, the destruction of Flank Town, Ito Rin’s death, and users will believe you destroyed Flank town and silenced Ito Rin.

I closed the message and rubbed my face. Of course, that’s what would happen. Why would I ever believe there wouldn’t be overreaching consequences for failing? Basically, I had to do the escort mission now. The rewards weren’t even worth it. Why would I need more skills now? I could barely control my strength and the skills I had now.

Then there were the golems. If my strength wasn’t enough for whatever reason, I’d have to get more skills. I had enough skills for now. More power wasn’t what I needed.

I stared down at my body.

My parameters had done their work well. Lean, powerful muscles lined my oversized body. After a night’s sleep, I grew a few inches, and my bones hurt because of it. My knees looked strange, almost armored, my feet were more angular, and my shoulders were massive. Even my fingers and toes were larger, longer, and almost delicate. This was all because of the balance of my parameters. I picked up a carrot and marveled at my muscular control.

“Are you going to eat that?” Kale asked.

I raised my hand to her, and she quickly devoured the carrot until my finger rested on her lips. They were incredibly soft but tough enough that grass couldn’t cut them. I rubbed some grease from the corner of her mouth and brought it to my mouth to taste.

Her eyes widened at my actions then her ears dipped. She leaned in and pecked me on the lips before blushing a deep crimson. Kale raised her hand to her lips in utter surprise. I raised an eyebrow as she shifted her back legs, moving her rump as far from me as possible.

Ding!

Kale RP+1

Kale 35/100 While she isn’t against deepening her bond with the user, she is torn. Kale is a virgin centaur maiden who has never known the love of a man. Those who have tried to mount Kale in the past have met the end of her iron-shod electrified hooves. She gave you her first kiss and wants to wait and see if it's safe to deeper your relationship. The rumors of human males being unable to satisfy centauresses also give her doubt. Surprisingly she doesn’t feel any jealousy towards the council of four. To her, it's just a custom that needs to be respected.

That was the single most extended info dump about relationships the system ever gave me. Kale’s emotions and background information were deep. I didn’t know she was a virgin, but it wasn’t too surprising. As free as their culture seemed to be with sex, there were limits.

“Ah, so is Kale your concubine or wife, and how does that work. Can humans and non-humans interbreed in this world?” Fang Mei asked. I’d actually forgotten she was present.

“Yes, though it’s a coinflip of which species the resulting progeny will take after. Human females often get the short end of the stick in that regard. Those few who survive mating with stallions often die of organ failure if a centaur quickens in their womb.” Kale said in a very clinical voice.

She smelled sweet. I stuffed some basil in my mouth to drown her scent out. “I think it’s a bit early to tell from our first kiss. What about you? Are you someone’s bride to be back home?” I asked.

“For your information, I am to marry Meng Chao when my cultivation reaches an appropriate level. He’s in the late stages of the core realm.” Fang Mei said.

I nodded as if that meant anything. Meng Chao was literally lightyears away. The system made it clear that this was an omniverse. There are different time zones which might mean different universes stacked together in some way. Our earth more than likely already existed within this stretch of infinite space.

“Oh, what kind of man is Meng Chao? From your tone of voice, he must be strong. Does he have any great deeds to his name?” Kale asked.

“Oh, Meng Chao is amazing. He’s strong, beautiful, and a true genius. He conquered numerous territories in the royal family's name, fairly divided the land, and raised countless foot soldiers to lower nobility. While he’s the fourth prince now, I’m sure he’ll outlive his other three brothers. And my future mother-in-law is so conniving, I hope to be as bloodthirsty and merciless as her one day. She’s already started poisoning the third prince through a whore he favors.” Fang Mei said.

“I know the feeling I have a rival as well, and she has already lain with Red more than once. There is even the possibility she’s pregnant. But it was taught by the dark lord Zeron to treasure all children of the herd while your husband lives. Only after his body cools can the hunt begin. That lesson has kept many families together and allowed most dark lords a stable rein.” Kale said.

“But if you wait, then you’ll lose the element of surprise, and what about the royal eunuch and generals? If the next in line isn’t secure, they will attempt to install a puppet.” Fang Mei said.

“My father’s father was the son of dark lord Zeron himself well one of many. Zeron had the first pick of all herds and didn’t shy away from his duties. That’s where my high mana capacity and electrical affinity come from. Well, Zeron was known for sticking his dick in nearly anything with four legs. However, his reign was stable while he lived. He died when one dumb mare put a sword in her cunt; it split my great grand sire’s dick down the middle. As it happened, the weapon was cursed, and he was never the same after that. When he died, my grandfather was forced to flee with my great-grandmother and a few attendants. The geldings raised my great uncle to be the new dark lord, and the great herd fractured into city-states.” Kale gave a rueful smile. “The republic collapsed in less than a decade. We haven’t had a real dark lord since. Since then, we’ve been at peace traded with the rest of the world, and life has only improved.” Kale said.

“But wouldn’t it have been better if the line was secure?” Fang Mei asked.

“That’s the thing about dark lords; they aren’t born; they're made by hard times. If a new dark lord had risen, then we’d be at war with the whole world.” Kale shrugged. “Our way is natural, and it works for us.” Kale turned to me. “If you decide to marry more than one wife, I’ll allow it while you’re alive. But the second you die, then I’ll wipe out all my rivals.” Kale said.

I tuned out the girls’ talk while I thought about what I could possibly ask. While multiple wives and the rules of Taur society were attractive, I had shit to do. It was good to know that she wouldn’t try to kill anyone I fucked, no she said wives specifically. That sounded like a loophole to me. I shook my head. If she ended up killing the council of four afterward, I wouldn’t care.

The sound of minotaurs stomping into the room got my attention. “Red, the council is ready to receive you. Please follow us.”

I sucked in a breath and followed them. This was going to be a long night of negotiations and fucking.