Osaria guides us to the edge of the Nobles' Quarters, and we enter a building formed from a dozen white-barked treehouses. The Amor Brando Inn.

Elven interior design in Glorampina prefers tall ceilings and ample room to keep the air fresh and the temperature cool. From the short time that we've spent in the streets and under the sun in this region, we understand very well why it does and how most elves become tanned like Osaria.

We reserve our rooms and pay a good amount of silver for them. Fortunately, their largest room was unoccupied, so we'll be able to have everyone sleep together tonight.

Osaria and Klein go into the bathroom to change their clothes and quickly [Clean] themselves. After that, we head down to the dining hall and have some drinks while we wait for Rande and the others. Osaria and Klein are very curious about the dungeon, so we start to tell them about our adventures. They want to know more since they've heard about how nobody has been able to progress in the dungeon, but also about all the riches that might be just beyond the next door.

We reach the part about how we cleared the Looping Winds station, and they both seem very surprised.

"This is like a story dungeon, then," Osaria comments.

"It's a mix of gauntlet, story, and puzzle," I say.

"I just didn't expect it to have so much Chimera influence in it," Klein says.

"Arreira was very curious about the other races," Lina says.

"Do you think that there are more, then?" Osaria asks.

I shrug and reply, "No idea, really." And the girls reflect my sentiments.

Osaria's eyes shine with anticipation. "You know, that sounds rather exciting."

"That's why adventuring will always be a popular occupation; we're all searching for our own mysterious dungeon to explore," Ciel says with a gentle smile.

"I've had my share of adventure already. I prefer to listen, so I'll eagerly await the next time that you return from the dungeon," Osaria says.

"I prefer to stay close to my parents," Klein says with a hint of shame in her voice.

Roxanne adjusts her oval glasses. "There's no shame in listening to your heart," she says and smiles smugly.

Klein gets a little surprised by Roxanne comforting her, of all people, then blushes slightly and repeatedly nods.

Then we tell them about the Chimera spirits, and now they get really surprised.

"Are you sure that they're… dead?" Osaria asks with a frown.

"The Threads of Fate do not lie. Theirs have been cut, and only a few random strands remain," Yunia says.

"And yet, they're still interacting with you."

"It's why the Gods dislike having spirits linger for too long, it's unnatural," Ciel says.

"What about nature spirits?" I ask.

"They're a fusion of so many spirits that their strands form a Thread. But even so, their Thread is fragile and slowly deteriorates over time," Yunia says.

"Gih."

"So, you're a leech attached to my Thread?" I ask with a smirk.

Gify pinches my cheek gently, then snaps her beak threateningly.

"Gih. Goi gih geeh."

"Heey, I'm not a leech, I'm a warrior," Aoi complains.

"Gih."

"To be honest, she literally drains him," Roxanne says with a mischievous smile.

"Boo!" Aoi boos.

I grab Gify and place her on the table, then I start petting her head with my finger. She's both fluffy and squishy, making it quite entertaining to touch her, for some reason.

"Gih."

"Oh, I do not abuse you. It's merely banter, right?" I say with a grin.

"Gih."

"As you wish, my Lady." I pet her harder and let my fingers run down along her spine. She tucks her wings and cutely lays down, then closes her eyes. Her lion tail lazily sways about in contentment.

"Anyway, I still can't believe that there are humanoid spirits chained to the dungeon," Osaria continues.

"Sounds like a miserable life," Klein says.

"Considering how one of them is about to be boned by Wolfy, at least one is definitely not miserable," Hana says.

"Considering how much they like - doing it in public, they're all living happy lives," Lina says.

"Oh, so these Chimeras are of the more 'free' kind?" Osaria asks and raises her eyebrows suggestively.

"Yep," Alissa answers with a nod, making her ears bob. "They all like to walk around naked and - do it in public, - and the men like to keep their things erect -. Though, they never touch strangers, only people that they're familiar with."

"Sounds like a good place to have an 'adventure,' but I'd certainly miss dressing up," Osaria adds.

We smile wryly, but Ciel turns serious and says, "What concerns me is that they don't know that they're stuck inside of a dungeon."

Roxanne nods and says with a frown, "The way that they froze when we mentioned the lack of children creeps me out."

"Their lives are a lie, and even their food isn't actually farmed by them, it's all conjured food, for some reason," Lina says.

"At least it seems to be peaceful there," Ciel says with a shrug.

Yunia becomes a little serious as she says, "I've studied [Trap Soul]. The few rare times it was used was to extend the time that a normal spirit could remain in the realm. That way, they could talk to their ancestors or powerful God-Rulers to teach them whatever they needed. But an entire town of trapped spirits? I've never heard of such a thing."

"What about their flesh? You said that you touched them, but how could that be possible?" Osaria asks.

"Now that isn't completely new," Yunia says, then looks at me.

I lift my hand and extend a simple tentacle out of it, then I cast the normal [Materialization]. My soul starts to glow the usual light blue color.

"This is the normal [Materialization] spell. And now, I'll show you the same spell, but altered with the help of Gify," I say and form a tail from my soul, then cast my custom [Materialization]. My soul stops glowing and becomes indistinguishable from Roxanne's dagger-tail.

Osaria lets her mouth hang in wonder while Klein smiles wryly. I start creating other things, like furry ears, horns, scales, and changing the color of my skin.

"Using [Materialization] like this isn't a new idea, though it was only used with dead spirits. Wolfy's control over his own soul is very impressive," Yunia says.

I create a slimy, purple tentacle -. Klein blushes while Osaria salivates.

"My, oh, my, that's incredible," the dark - elf whispers.

"A-anyway, the Chimeras, they seem to be quite friendly," Klein changes the topic.

"Except for the Marshall of the Lands," Roxanne says.

"What's her name? They're all so weird," Hana asks.

"Wahinui," I answer.

"It figures that you would remember her name," Roxanne says with a smirk.

"Oi!" I complain and send a quick glare at her.

"Be careful with those Chimeras. Spirits that persist for too long can become evil," Klein says in a serious tone.

I smile at her, and reach for her hand, then give it a loving squeeze. "We will," I say.

"They don't seem evil, but it's not like we can just cast [Detect Evil] on any Chimera that we meet," Ciel says and shrugs.

"Well, at least we can be sure that they aren't hiding a weapon under their clothes because, well… they're naked" Alissa says and chuckles.

"Uh… I've seen many women and some men hide things in certain… unlikely places," Ciel says and smiles wryly.

"Ooh…" Hana murmurs.

"Like Darean," Lina says.

"Y-yes, him, precisely," Ciel awkwardly says.

The conversation dies down to some casual chatter until Rande finally arrives with everyone, except for the guards. They all sit down at our long table and go silent, waiting for me to start. With the help of [Bind], we scan over the dining hall and make sure that there's nobody here that seems a little too curious about our conversation.

There's no one nearby that can eavesdrop on us, so I start, "Well, what I'm about to tell you all shouldn't leave this table. It isn't a huge secret, but if rumors spread, then other parties trying to exploit us like Katasko will come after us."

"Ah, since we're talking about Katasko, what happened to them? You had a trial, right?" Rande asks.

"Lord Confiel gave us a letter of commendation, and the Judge decided to drop the case due to the lack of reliable evidence," I answer.

He smiles warmly. "That sounds great!"

"Yeah, they can't fuck with us anymore. Moving on, do I have the word of everyone here that you'll keep our secret?" I give everyone a look, waiting for their nod. Their faces become serious, but no one hesitates from agreeing, so I continue, "Okay. What we wanted to say is that I'm a hero who possesses a Gift."

Rande and Osaria react with surprise, but the others stare blankly at us.

"Gift?" Krysta asks.

"In all of the real adventure stories, the hero always has a powerful ability that nobody else has. That's a Gift," Klein explains.

Anton raises his eyebrows in surprise and asks, "You knew?"

She nods solemnly. "Yes. He told me when we were in the Innocent Nymph."

"As you might've realized, the attack on that inn may have been targeted at us. So, for some reason, heretics could be after us," I say and wait for their reactions.

Rande and Osaria look at each other, still surprised. She suddenly bursts into a fit of laughter, earning raised eyebrows from us.

The mirth quickly fades away, leaving only a sad and tired face. "Why do I always attract men like you, Wolf?" She asks in a whisper and keeps her eyes down.

"I'm sorry?" I say, confused.

"Rico was not the only lover that I've buried. For some reason, the men I love all have a tendency to die," she says in a monotone.

"Mother, don't say it like that," Rande says with a frown.

"But it's the truth."

"I don't have any plans to die anytime soon," I say and smile confidently.

She looks at me and gives me a smile, but there's no sign of happiness within her droopy, red eyes. "That's what they all say," she replies, then starts laughing again, but quickly stops and sighs.

I feel like boasting, but it catches in my throat, and I hesitate. She's said in the past that she didn't like me getting involved in dangerous business like helping to depose Lord Mavel. Her fear doesn't come from paranoia or caution, it comes from experience. But I haven't lost enough in my life to be able to fully understand what she's been through, so I won't try to empathize with her.

"I'm sorry, Osaria, but my Thread of Fate has already been entwined this way," I say and stare at her with earnest eyes. Her face becomes anguished, tightening the knot in my throat, but I find the resolve to continue, "I have no way to change my Fate, so all that I can give you is the promise that I won't throw my life away."

I get up and walk around the table so that I can stand beside her. I grab her hand and kiss it, then I keep it close to my heart as I say with conviction, "Osaria, I'm a selfish man, as you might've realized since no man with seven wives wouldn't be-…"

"Seven…?" Krysta whispers a question.

"- so I'll be selfish once again and ask you this: even with all of the danger surrounding me, I want you to be my concubine."

She bites her pouty red lip, and her face warps in anguish. She interlaces her fingers with mine and gets up, then runs her fingers through my hair as her face mellows. "You're certainly one of a kind," she says and giggles softly.

I swing an arm around her waist and pull her into a warm hug. "You know what I can do; things will get even better in the future."

She smiles mischievously. "A life as a Lady alongside you is certainly hard to say no to, but your Fate tells me that things won't be so simple."

I shake my head. "They won't. Even if you live inside the castle all day, despite the protection of the knights, you might still get involved in whatever the Gods need me for."

Her lips tremble, but she quickly gets it back under control and smiles again. "Then you'd better make it worth it."

"I will," I respond with confidence, then I pull her face close to mine and savor her lips. Her tongue invades my mouth, hungry for comfort.

"Yaaay! Lady Osaria has been born," Alissa cheers.

"Congratulations!" The others cheer and exclaim.

Our lips part, and I look around. Rande is about to cry from happiness, Oura dries the corner of her eyes, Nito smiles like a pretty girl, Anton looks surprised and amused at the same time, Krysta and Klein give us a nearly mirrored smile as they clap for us, and the girls cheer with wide smiles, even Roxanne seems happy for Osaria.

"You still have to conquer that dungeon, right?" Osaria asks.

"Yeah, but once we do, we'll instantly be made into Crown Lords," I answer.

She gently caresses my head again. "Then, I'll be waiting for you." She sits back down in her chair and pulls me down into her lap. I'm not that much shorter than her, but I still fit quite nicely on her thighs.

I turn towards her so that I can kiss her -.

Seven wives, two concubines. Their numbers continue to grow.

I hold myself back from presenting a public show to the others and break our kiss, then lightly nibble on her pouty lips.

"You're mine," I whisper to her.

She licks her lips and responds in a sultry tone, "I'm yours."

Our foreheads touch together, and I drown in her sensual smile.

The celebratory mood picks up, but Anton still has his doubts. "So… you're saying that getting involved with you might be dangerous?" He asks in a serious tone, his permanent frown significantly deepened.

The others quickly quiet down, and I answer, "Yes. I'm not sure how, but my Fate will lead us to danger."

He turns to Klein and asks, "And you still want to be his knight?"

"Yes," she answers immediately.

Anton sighs, then turns to his wife, who shrugs with a smile. "You can't control her anymore," she says.

He swallows heavily and turns back to me, showing firm resolve in his gaze. "No, but I'll never abandon her. For as long as you'll have us, Wolf, we'll support your family and Klein," he says and nods respectfully.

I smile proudly and return the nod.

"We're grateful for your offer. We'll always treasure your loyalty," Alissa says.

"I know that your family is reliable. We'll do well together," Hana says and gives him a fearsome smile.

I turn to Rande and ask, "What about you? Do you still want to do business with me?"

He grins, creating deep dimples on his face. "Absolutely."

Nito nods gently, and Oura shrugs while smiling wryly.

I lift up my cup with [Telekinesis] and raise it above my head. "Where I come from, there's something called a 'toast'…"

Ciel casts [Refresh] and [Purify Body] on everyone, allowing them to walk unassisted. I still don't like alcohol, so I only drank the bare minimum that's socially "required" of me, which left me only slightly tipsy.

I walk with Osaria holding my arm while Klein holds Hana's. We take them to the bathhouse since they didn't have time to do that yet.

"I forgot to say it earlier, but no other man will sleep with you, understood? You're mine alone," I say.

"Clearly," she calmly replies and kisses my hand. "Rande only comforted me when I didn't have a man to satisfy my needs. We don't view each other romantically."

I swallow heavily.

I feel two smug smiles growing inside my soul space. "Wolfy~… I know that you'd love t-…"

"Do not finish that phrase," I interrupt Alissa and shut her up with [Bind], then I turn to Osaria and grin evilly as I say, "Alissa has the [Washing] skill. Since you're now officially my concubine, you may make use of her skills and body as you wish."

"Her body?" Osaria asks as she blinks blankly.

"Her body… as you wish," I repeat, then her expression instantly mirrors mine.

"No fucking, for either of you," Hana says, and Osaria giggles while Klein's tail stiffens. "I hope that neither of you needs to wake up early, because I've been seeing cocks all day long without being able to touch any of them, so I'm quite hungry."

"You're all such teases," Osaria says and slaps her shoulder playfully.

"Look who's talking," I shoot back.

We split up, and I feel the world become a little less vibrant when Alissa's Blessing fades.

Our room only has a harem-sized bed. Though it's large, it isn't wide enough for everyone. I store it in my "Items" and pull out our own beds, completely filling the room.

We crawl onto our beds and spread out. It's cuddling time until Alissa returns. I spend my time taking care of Yunia's hair, Hana polishes her and Aoi's scales, Lina maintains our equipment, and Roxanne and Ciel play tag with their Spirits while petting Gify.

"We should meet with your brothers once we've dealt with the Chimeras," I say to Yunia.

"They don't like you," she responds.

I sigh and ask, "Why?"

"They're young and stupid," she answers in a tired tone.

I chuckle lightly. "Well, can you elaborate?"

"Envy. You look like you're close to their age, yet you're going to be a Crown Lord. Even I am weaker than you, and I had all the resources of a Chosen Descendant."

"Would telling them that I have a Gift help with that envy?"

"I don't think so. They love epic stories, so, knowing how far a true Gifted is from them would only make them feel even more inadequate."

"Emotional youngsters with something to prove. We'll have to be careful with them once we're Lords."

She chuckles. "Yes, we will."

I stop brushing her hair, then I hug her from behind and kiss her neck.

"I don't know how family dynamics are supposed to be here, but I want a friendly relationship with them. I want your family to stay together."

"Considering your relationship with Osaria, we'll certainly stay 'together,'" she says in a teasing tone.

"Oh, if only you had sisters instead of brothers…" I return the tease.

She smiles and shakes her head, then caresses my cheek and jokingly says, "Wolf, The Insatiable. I agree with Lina, it's rather pleasing to see others bend to you."

"Lina finds it amusing, not pleasing. You're the sadist that likes to see others lick your feet."

"I sure do enjoy that. Now, please, continue brushing, my hair won't do that by itself."

"As you wish, my Queen."

She snorts. "When did I get crowned?"

"You'll be my Queen once we become Lords."

"And what about the others?"

"A man is allowed to have more than one Queen." I kiss her neck again and continue brushing.

"I'm sure that you'll bond well with the Emperor."

Alissa comes back smiling. My two concubines have been perfectly cleaned, and perfumed -. Osaria is wearing a thin, silvery Snow Weave robe, ironically covering more of her curves than her usual clothes do. Klein is wearing a similar robe that was gifted to her by Osaria after my milf claimed Klein as her plaything.

Osaria raises an eyebrow as she looks around the room filled with beds. "I can see that I'll never sleep alone while I'm with you," she says.

"You won't," I reply in a husky voice -.

Alissa clears her throat and gently pushes them forward through the threshold so that they come in from the hallway, then closes the door.

- We show them how much we missed them-.

I still have to give Alissa her reward, but that'll have to wait until tomorrow.

Once everyone is satisfied -, we pile into a cuddle puddle and go to sleep.