Chapter 23

The next day, Siwang felt really, really, really great. He loved his monster girls, but there was something special about Anji. She loved him because she chose to. His monster girls were all versions of them who could love him. That was how Leo explained it.

Siwang’s real mother was back in the other world grieving his death. She would never have sucked his dick or rode his cock. She would never have crossed that taboo line, but somewhere in the vast possibilities of the multiverse, there was a version of Xiongbu who could cross that line.

Who could have an incestuous relationship with her son? And it was the same for Lei and Guang.

But the Anji that he had spent the night with was the only version of Anji there was. And she loved Siwang. That made her special. Siwang’s heart sang as he entered his Vault. The Soul of the Void Crystal perked up at the sight of him.

She was like a dusky-skinned version of Siwang’s mother. The Soul didn’t have the same face, but the same figure. A sexy MILF. She quivered atop the black gem humming as it swallowed the power from the one Mana Vein Siwang possessed.

He needed more.

He had to find Mthunzi’s dungeon. Leo didn’t know where his first enemy’s dungeon lay other than a vague direction. Siwang would find it. He would search even farther away into the hills than he had. He gripped the gem and closed his eyes.

With Anji’s love and his monster girls’ support, Siwang felt invincible.

There was nothing the young builder couldn’t do.

So he started extending his tunnels. He didn’t have the power to lay out a large grid, so he was constantly extending tunnels, waiting to feel the mana, then destroying the few he made and shifting them. It was tedious work, but he kept at it.

With his mind sunk into the mental interface of the Void Crystal, he hardly felt the ache in his feet and lower back from standing in one place for so long. He just kept a hold of the gem and moved in a methodical pattern.

He concentrated on finding it. He had to get more powerful to help Leo. He had to find the— Power flooded through him. He gasped as he himself grew stronger. He had just hit Level 2. He could make even stronger monster girls. The words to new spells, ones he’d seen Leo cast, now rose in his soul.

“Lord Siwang, you are amazing,” the Soul said, her voice full of motherly warmth.

“I did do it,” Siwang said, a large grin spreading on his lips.

It was an incredible rush to find it. The tingle of power rushed through him. He clutched the crystal, his mind razing with the possibilities. He felt the rush. He could make new monster girls to roam his dungeon and guard it against...

What? He released his Void Crystal. What does my dungeon need to be guarded against?

Siwang had long since moved his dungeon’s entrance within Astovin’s walls. Yes, that death dragon had come straight for him, but he didn’t have to worry about adventurers. Anyone who could attack him wouldn’t be slowed down by traps.

He could streamline his dungeon. Just have his living area and Vault hidden using illusions. It was simple. Where his dungeon intersected with Leo’s, if he concealed the paths that led into his dungeon, intruders would flow into Leo’s dungeon and have to face his far, far, far stronger defenses.

Then Siwang could have the power to extend his dungeon even farther. He could keep going past where he found the Mana Vein in Mthunzi’s old dungeon and just drive his dungeon southeast toward the next Shrine.

Help Leo out. If they were both reaching out for shrines, they could combine efforts. So he reached toward the Shrine that was next after the Light one that Led had found. He drove his dungeon and he got maybe halfway there.

It was a start.

He smiled. “Well, let’s make some new monster girls.”

“Yes, Lord Siwang,” the Soul said, all bright and cheerful.

I watched the preparations of King Thanitis’s army. They would be marching in a few days. The king had reassembled his men, many of who had fled into the nearby hills in terror. A lot had been injured. He was letting them recuperate before marching south.

Our treaty was signed. I was his ally officially. That felt good to have the support of a king. Myreman was a large kingdom, too. A powerful one from what I was learning. There were parts of the world where the land wasn’t even claimed. Just left abandoned save for clusters of city-states who just controlled enough land around their cities to keep them fed.

That was such a shame that the world was in this state. I wanted to fix it. So much work to do. I needed to reach toward the Water Shrine. Siwang had told me his plan. I liked it, and it made sense. I hoped he could reach what Fara thought might be the Life Shrine.

It was important to get the Shrines. Siwang could make Level 2 Monster Girls, and I wanted him to get more glyphs. Soon, I would support him in attacking rogue dungeon builders. It was the best way for him to gain in power.

A stronger Siwang would only help us all.

I trusted him.

And I was glad that he had Anji. She was cute, and he looked so happy with her.

“Hey, Leo,” Usiku sent to me.

I blinked at being contacted by my fomorian. “Yeah? Is there something wrong?”

“Why else am I calling,” she said with wry amusement. “A new dungeon builder has appeared near Sharithin. Raided a few of the farms. The halflings are a tad spooked. They’re just getting over Sulanga’s raid, getting back to normal, and now this.”

“I’ll be right there,” I told her, letting my scrying sensor go.

I made the arrangements.

“Wow, haven’t seen these in a while,” said Kassie as she stood in the Teleport Hub staring at the three zombified horses I had. I’d made these to travel over long distances in my tunnels before Kassie figured out how the teleportation circles worked.

“Yeah, they’re not the most comfortable,” I said.

“I can handle this, Lord Leo,” Halia said. She had joined us with her new sword on her hip.

“I’m sure you can,” I said. “But this isn’t about killing a rogue dungeon builder. He just appeared. He hasn’t killed any of the farmers, just raided their grains. I want to talk to him. When your adventurers are a tad more capable, we’ll start sending you out into the world.” I didn’t like Halia going out. “So keep training them. If we start implementing the Watchtower Plan, then we’ll start encountering more of these rogue builders for you and your adventurers to kill.”

“Okay, Lord Leo,” Halia said. She didn’t sound happy.

“I’ll be right back,” Kassie said. She stood on the teleport circle to Sharithin with all my werewolves and phoenixes around her. The six monster girls crowded the circle. There wasn’t room to fit the three horses on there. “Asud Gu.”

They all vanished in a burst of light. In about ten seconds, the light flared again and Kassie appeared by herself. I led my horse onto the circle, the zombie placid. Uncaring. It didn’t stink. I had zombified them right after killing them, so they had no time to decay.

Mom and Hagane led the other two horses. Halia watched, looking annoyed. I would have to make it up to her. Eventually, I would have to just unleash her on rogue dungeon builders. She wanted it, but I was afraid for her.

I loved her.

I didn’t want her to die.

“Asud Gu.”

Light burst and when it faded, Usiku was standing there. She smiled as I stepped off the circle and threw my arms around her. My purple-skinned fomorian kissed me with passion. Her lips melted on mine. I grabbed her ass, our tongues dancing.

She was such a gorgeous thing. I was glad she had served me after I killed Mthunzi, her owner. Usiku had fought me, tried to kill me, but I had prevailed. Now she was mine. It was strange, I supposed, but I had become used to it.

I had too many lovers who used to be my enemies.

Like Halia and Hagza.

I broke the kiss and said, “Do you have any idea where his dungeon is?”

“The pixies are scouting,” said Usiku. “Mala!”

“Yes, Lady Usiku,” one of the pixies said. She fluttered up on her diaphanous wings. Her light-blue hair swayed in a cute bob around her adorable face. “I’m ready to serve, Lord Leo, in any way you need.” She winked.

“Just lead me to the dungeon,” I told her. “We can worry about that stuff later.”

She threw her arms around me, her wings fluttering fast. “Yes, Lord Leo.”

Mala had hot lips and a very agile tongue.

Mom had an amused smile on her lips. “You should visit here more often. Your poor monster girls are getting so lonely.”

“Yes, yes, I’ll host an embassy orgy, Mom,” I said.

“That’s your responsibility,” she said, looking at me so seriously like she was telling me to clean my room or something.

We led our horses out of the embassy into the heart of Sharithin. The halflings glanced toward us. A cheer went up through them as they saw me mounted on my horse in my gray robes and breastplate. I held my spear like a lance, the tip crackling with energy. Mom and Hagane mounted up while the werewolves stayed in their female forms.

For now.

The phoenixes and Mala took to the air, flying above us.

The halflings weren’t afraid. They did look so tiny when I rode past them on horseback, but they cheered and clapped. They waved at me. I grinned and nodded to them, trying to be lordly and friendly. It was wonderful to see the city getting put back to right. The halflings were cleaning up their city. Lots of new construction marked where old buildings were destroyed.

Including a few that I had wrecked by thrusting up my dungeon exits around the city.

I had come to these people’s rescues. I had liberated them from oppression. I held my back straight as I rode through them, a huge smile on my lips. I felt such pride for what I had done. I had accomplished something important here.

I had done something to improve their lives. I was proud of what I had done.

I nodded to the halflings that we passed. None of them were afraid. It was amazing. This was my dream for the world. Where the normal people and dungeon builders could work together. Where monster girls were seen as friends, not foes.

“Hey!” Mala called. “Things are going so well here.”

“They are!” a builder called to the pixie. He waved to her as she swooped over, her wings buzzing. “We’ll be finished next week.”

“Awesome!” Mala said. “Lord Leo, this is Verin. He’s one of the best builders.”

“Lord Leo,” the halfling said, pulling off his cap and bowing. “Thank you so much. My family and I’d be dead without you. Terra saved my life.”

“Of course, she did,” I said. “I’ll let her know, Verin. And you have all you need?”

“We’re doing fine,” he said. “Sharithin’s learned to be self-sufficient. Our king ... well, the king doesn’t like to leave Analim.”

“I’ve heard that before,” I said, shaking my head. Like with Myreman, the king of Anoshorie didn’t bother to lift a finger. In fact, Kassie didn’t even go to the king. She came to me. I had no idea Sharithin wasn’t the capital of its own country but just one of several cities.

It seemed like the world really was just city-states with some kings claiming to rule land that they didn’t do much but maybe send tax collectors to. It was sad that the world had come to this. That the people were so isolated from each other.

It took some time to ride through the crowds. Word quickly spread, and it became a parade as more and more halflings gathered to cheer us on. One woman gave my mother a bouquet that she smelled. Smiling, she wove the flowers into her hair.

I wouldn’t be surprised if those flowers just lived on Mom. She was a dryad.

Hagane just watched it all dispassionately as she sat astride her zombie horse. The werewolves moved around us, grinning. They had the sort of joyful look of a dog, but far sexier. They were enjoying the praise, too.

And, I was certain, the young halfling males were enjoying ogling their naked bodies.

Finally, we reached the city wall and the north gate. The damage here was also being repaired. Beyond the city was a small market town where farmers would sell their crops, so it was also bustling. But that was a good sign.

The farmers, largely, had hidden in their farmsteads and root cellars. Sulanga hadn’t gotten around to them, so he hadn’t touched their fields. Sharithin wouldn’t face starvation. I could help with that, but I didn’t need to.

So that was a relief.

It was a lot of effort to enchant land to grow crops swiftly. That was what the Astovinian farmers were doing. There were vast fields in my dungeon that were growing food fast. I would soon have to start exporting it.

That was another thing my dungeon could be used for. Transporting goods swiftly across the world. I mean, I could move any trade goods with a thought from one end of my dungeon to another. I could also “store” items in my Void Crystal to later pull them out.

Excess grain could rot, but if it was kept in stasis in my dungeon’s “inventory,” I could withdraw it at a later date when it was needed. There were a lot of ways that dungeon builders could be the allies of this world and not the enemies.

They just had to stop thinking of things selfishly.

After we left the bustling marketplace behind, my werewolves changed into the wolf forms while my phoenixes spread out to scout. The bird-women soared across the blue skies, standing out thanks to their fiery-red plumage.

“This way, Lord Leo!” Mala cried as she fluttered ahead of us, leading us toward hills on the horizon.

In a few hours, we left the farms behind and entered plains that were uncultivated these days. There were hints that the halflings used to farm out here. Traces of fences. Of fields that were a tad ... square. Ruins of houses or barns poking out of the tall grass, which looked like wheat or other cereals that had gone wild.

The phoenixes were joined by the other pixies out scouting the hills ahead. They began scouring it as we reached the outcropping. The sun was high overhead. I drank from my waterskin, feeling the day’s heat.

“Aren’t you roasting?” I asked Hagane.

“Because I’m made of metal?” she asked. “No. I don’t appear to be absorbing the heat the way I should be. Perhaps the exact metal I am has a low heat capacity, or it’s magic.”

“Probably magic,” I said.

“Probably,” she said.

“It is warm,” Mom said.

“We found it, Lord Leo,” reported Dosaya, another of the pixies. “Isn’t that wonderful!” She squeed in my ear like a schoolgirl seeing her favorite boy band in person.

“We’re heading your way,” I said, passing the word along.

In another hour, we found an outcropping of stone with a cave reaching into the darkness. My werewolves sniffed around for any dangers while the phoenixes and pixies circled overhead, looking for signs of danger.

“No hiding monster girls, Lord Leo,” reported Chaandi. “It’s safe.”

I dismounted my zombie horse who just stood there like nothing mattered. I patted its flank. It didn’t so much as flick its tail. Of course, it didn’t have to deal with flies or anything. They just buzzed around me.

I was alive.

I stepped up to the cave. The moment I did, I could feel this was a dungeon builder’s territory. I stepped just inside and reached out with my mind.

“Hello, I’m Leo, a Dungeon Builder, and I am just here to talk,” I said to the Soul of the Void Crystal. “Please inform your lord. I am not here to do him any harm.”

I felt the acknowledgment then waited.

“Hello?” a new voice said. “Uh, you’re a builder, too?”

“Yeah,” I sent. “I just want to talk to you. I swear by my Void Crystal that I, Leo Baldwin, and my vassals, Zoe Baldwin and Hagane, shall not harm you or yours. I ask to leave to enter your dungeon and be granted safe passage to your presence.”

There was a moment of hesitation. I smiled, remembering that day that Fuegin had shown up on my doorstep. It had freaked me out. Then I thought he was my friend, but now ... Now I wasn’t sure about Fuegin.

He was a dangerous man.

“I swear by my Void Crystal that you shall have safe passage to me and be allowed to leave unmolested so long as you do nothing to threaten or harm myself or my vassals,” said the voice. “Uh, yes, I’m sending a guide.”

“Thanks,” I said. “Bhediya, form up a perimeter. Keep the phoenixes and pixies in the air scouting for danger.”

“Yes, Lord Leo,” growled the wolf, the words coming out a tad strange.

I moved into the cave, Hagane and Mom flanking me. I looked around for the exit when a will o’ wisp stepped into view. Her gorgeous body was made up of roiling plasma of various hues of blue from sky to azure. They all mixed and swirled to form the shape of her figure.

“Greetings, Lord Leo,” said the will o’ wisp, her voice crisp and polite. “I am Zvaigzde. I will lead you to Lord Munjan.”

“Sure, sure,” I said, feeling a tad surreal. “Boy, I wish I had brought some of my own will o’ wisps.”

“Lord?” she asked me, her brow furrowing.

“It’s just I started with Lightning, too. Will o’ wisps were the first monster girls to serve me.”

“Oh, well, that’s nice.” She shifted. “This way.”

She turned and headed into the dungeon. Beyond, it was what I expected. Tunnels made of large, stone bricks. There was no light, but thanks to being guests, I could see. It was familiar and alien all at the same time.

Zvaigzde moved with grace ahead of me, her blowing ass swaying. She definitely was sex. Munjan was a lucky guy to start with Lightning. I remembered those early days when I spent so much time with my will o’ wisps.

Now they just guarded one of the rooms that led to my dungeon. They probably weren’t needed. Adventurers had stopped attacking my dungeon. I could probably just do what Siwang did, and move my dungeon entrance permanently into Astovin. Streamline it. Reduce the levels of defenses so I could drive my dungeon farther across the world to reach more shrines.

But...

I liked having a big dungeon. Siwang was using mine for protection. He was gambling, of course, but I liked having my entrance where people could attack it. A way to draw attention from Astovin. I wanted to keep it safe as much as I could.

Zvaigzde led us through a trap room. It had a checkerboard floor with every “white” tile crackling with electricity. You could move through it, but I had a feeling that this was where the will o’ wisps would be waiting to throw their ball lightning and knock people off the black squares onto the deadly whites.

It was a nice trap room.

Beyond, we reached the throne room. Zvaigzde pushed open the double doors onto a room shaped like an octagon. In the center was the dungeon map. Beyond that was a throne where a young man sat in robes of brown. He had tan skin and dark hair.

Standing beside him was his companion, a Lightning monster girl, but one I had never seen. She looked like a cat girl with ebony skin with white tiger-like stripes adorning her body. She was a slender thing with small breasts and not one, but two cat-like tails that crackled with electricity.

“I’m Munjan,” the builder said, rising from his throne. He was tall, over six feet. Sweat gleamed on his brow. “I, uh, hi. I don’t really know what is going on. I’ve only been here for a few days.”

“He’s learning, though,” purred the cat-girl.

“Right, this is Macka,” said Munjan. “Well, uh, if you’re a builder, I suppose you know what she is.”

“Your companion,” I said. “These are two of mine. Mrs. Baldwin and Hagane.”

“A pleasure to meet you, Munjan and Macka,” said Mom, her voice pleasant.

Hagane just nodded.

Macka stared at us with her golden, cat-like eyes. Her two tails twitched, lightning arching between them.

“I really, really don’t know what I’m doing,” Munjan said. “This is all so much. There’s this whole world, and I have to guard...”

“The Soul of the Void Crystal,” I said. “We all have one.” I chuckled. “I’ve been here months, and it’s very different from our world.”

“Yes, there’s no cable,” Macka said. “No TV. No internet.”

“Worse, everyone in this world hates us,” I said, giving it to him straight. “They despise dungeon builders. They want to kill us. You’ve already spooked the local halflings with your raids on the farms.” “For food!” Macka glared at me. “Munjan has to eat.”

I raised my hand. “I’m not here to judge you. I get it. The world hates us, and for good reason, but I’m trying to change things. Those halflings that you spooked, they’re my friends. That’s why I’m here. They were frightened of you.”

“Of me?” Munjan looked stunned. “I just stole some food. I know my will o’ wisps were seen. They sort of stand out. But I wouldn’t hurt them.”

“They don’t know that. They think we’re monsters by default. A lot of dungeon builders have taken advantage of their power to prey on them. Others become jaded. When you have to defend your family from adventurers, it wears on you.” I felt that weight. “It can warp you. Change you. And, well, like I said, some builders are just dicks. Get off on the power. Want to flex on them.”

“They really think I’m a monster?” Munjan shook his head. “I’ve never hurt a fly. I wouldn’t. I know about monsters. I’m Serbian. My family fled the wars in the ‘90s. It was bad.”

“We’ve earned this reputation, sadly. There are plenty of builders who have conquered their own empires. They rape, pillage, and destroy. It’s nasty. Just a few weeks ago, I had to liberate the local halflings from a brutal builder named Sulanga who had occupied their city and turned them into slaves. The moment a builder appears, adventurers will start hunting them down. They like to kill us before we can get powerful.”

“Fuck,” Munjan said, sinking down into the chair.

“But, like you said, you were just raiding for food. You haven’t attacked the halflings. You’ve shown yourself to be a good guy.”

“And they already hate me?” Munjan glanced at Zvaigzde. “They killed her on the last raid. One of the farmers. She died. She suffered just so I could have food to eat. And you’re saying, because of that, I’ll have people breaking in here to kill me?”

I nodded.

“And it’s over for me if I die. I don’t come back.”

“We don’t come back,” I said. “Our monster girls do, but not us. And if we die, they die with you.”

“Shit.” He took Macka’s hand. “Shit, what do I do? How do I defend myself.”

“Well, that’s why I’m here,” I said. “I and the protector of the local halflings.”

Munjan swallowed as he stared at me in my armor. Then at my two companions. “You have two glyphs.”

“No, I have all twelve.”

“Fuck,” Munjan muttered, the sweat growing.

Macka’s lips curled back in a hiss, her tails bristling.

“I also have Level 3 Monster girls,” I said. “They’re outside your dungeon right now.”

He stared at me, fear in his eyes. I didn’t like doing this. “What are you saying, Leo?”

“I need to know if we can be allies, or if we’ll be enemies,” I said. “I protect those halflings. I can’t have you raiding them and maybe getting one of them killed. I don’t want them to die attacking your dungeon out of fear.”

“Allies?” he asked.

“There are two ways this can go,” I said. “That’s why I’m here.”

“I don’t want to be your enemy,” he said and glanced at Macka. He smiled at the catgirl. “I have the girl I always wanted to date in school. She never gave me the time of day back then, but here...”

“I love you here,” she said and she crawled onto his lap. She snuggled up, looking so cute.

“I have her here,” said Munjan. “That’s so amazing. I don’t want to give her up. I don’t want to die, either. What do I have to do to be your ally? I mean, I have to eat. You can’t ask me not to feed myself.”

“I’ll make sure you have food,” I said, smiling. “I just need you to swear to be one of my vassals. A baron under me. Like Siwang. He’s another dungeon builder that is my ally.”

“A ... baron.”

“Like Game of Thrones,” I said. “It’s a little feudal, but if you swear to serve me, there’s power in that for us builders. You’ll be bound to me. I can use my powers to help protect you. I can get you two more Glyphs, as well. Glyphs you won’t have to kill another builder to get.”

“I never did watch that show,” said Munjan.

“Once you’ve sworn, I’ll have you extend your dungeon entrance to come out inside the city of Sharithin’s walls right next to my embassy. That will help defend you.” I smiled. “They’d have to get through a city and my defenders are nearby. You’ll be able to get food. Have friends. You’ll like Siwang. And, like I said, you’ll have the Thunder and Light Glyphs by the end of the day.”

Munjan stared at me. “And if I don’t swear.”

I hardened my heart. I hated doing this, but... “I can’t have a hostile dungeon builder so near to the people of Sharithin.” I closed my eyes, not wanting to say it. “I know this feels like an ultimatum, but...” I opened my eyes. “The moment I leave here, I’ll attack. My monster girls will kill you. I’m sorry. That’s just the way this has to be.”

“Submit or die,” said Munjan.

Macka stared at me with such hatred in her eyes.

He stroked her thigh. His eyes flicked to Zvaigzde. I knew he had other will o’ wisps he cared about. “It’s fine,” said Munjan. “I’ve never been much of a leader. I always followed. You don’t get bullied if you befriend the bullies.”

It hurt. A bully? I didn’t like that, but ... I was bullying him. Serve me or die. It wasn’t the best, but what was my alternative? This world wasn’t ours. I couldn’t afford to let him stay and grow stronger. I swore to protect Sharithin.

“Then just swear to serve me,” I said.

Munjan nodded to Macka. She sighed and slid off his lap. He rose from his throne and knelt. I tried to stop him as he said, “I, Munjan, swear to serve as your, er, vassal, Leo. You’re my lord now.”

He gasped as the magic fell into place. I closed my eyes and gained my second builder. I hoped I could be friends with Munjan. Siwang had seen that I wasn’t a bully. I didn’t like it at all. But it was better than...

Mom put her hand supportively on my shoulder.

She was amazing.

Chapter 24 »