DD 204 Ch 6

Chapter 6

Our party celebrated being home deep into the morning.

Crimson and Des had rallied us all and took us to a fantastic adventurer's club. We partied like we had never partied before. Ultimately, the night was about reminding ourselves that we are alive and living life to the fullest. It was a strange experience, but one I would not forget.

The club had been packed with other harems; male leads, female leads, and full-on poly-adventurer groups. They all shared the same sentiment, having just emerged from the dungeon and ready to leave it all behind for a night of celebration.

Champagne bottles were constantly exploding in various corners of the room, surrounded by a laughing and cheering crowd.

As I woke in the morning, I cracked my eyes open, regretting it immediately and reached to the side. However, Crimson was already gone, having woken earlier with me and heading off to find a path to the elves.

That left me to plan a perfect day with Fayeth and Elysara to show them how important they were to me. This wasn't going to be the last time I saw them, but it was a temporary farewell, and I really wanted to do something special.

I fiddled with a notepad, trying to brainstorm a few ideas. After jotting a few down, I looked up as Charlotte poked her head into the room, Bun Bun's ears scanning the area and checking to see that Crimson wasn't there before the rabbit became more lively. 

"Can I have a moment?" Charlotte asked. 

"Of course, Charlotte, you don't have to be so formal," I waved for her to come in before I pulled a carrot out of my CID and tempted Bun Bun off her head.

The gluttonous rabbit abandoned her in a heartbeat, allowing me to pet him as he happily munched on the carrot.

Charlotte scowled briefly at Bun Bun before straightening up. "Well, it's not for me, Ken, it's for my father. I wanted to make sure he had a chance to talk to you before we went back to Star City," she said. 

I nodded seriously. "Of course. Anything for family, right?" 

She bobbed her head, a subdued expression on her face. 

"You know what it's about?" I pushed, if Marcus DuVell wanted to see me then it must be serious. 

Charlotte's shy expression cracked, and she jumped into my arms, sending Bun-Bun flying. 

"It's my sister.” She told me.

“Rachel?" I asked, having met that one. Charlotte had two others, she was the youngest of the family.

"No, the oldest. It's Alice," Charlotte said with a gloomy look on her face. "She hasn't been found since the dungeon shuffle." 

I blinked, gasping, and then grabbed Charlotte by the head, pulling her into a fierce hug. "Charlotte, I'm so sorry. Of course, your father doesn't even have to ask. If your sister is missing, I'll happily help look for her." That answer was easy. 

While I held her against my chest, I activated [Eyes of Wisdom], asking where Alice DuVell was at the moment. A path trailed away towards the dungeon entrance. That told me the most important fact; she was alive and in the dungeon.

Charlotte squeezed me even harder. "Thank you, Ken. I'm not particularly close to Alice, but she's still family." 

"You don't have to explain it at all," I said, rubbing the top of her head and causing her to look up into my eyes. "As long as my lovely Charlotte needs it, then there's no reason that needs to be given. We're simply going to go look for your sister." She’d survived this long. Everyone in our group needed a few days to settle their own affairs and we’d go find her after.

She bobbed her head again before burying her face back against my chest and wrapping me in a suffocating squeeze.

I didn't even know the shy druid had that much strength in her. 

There was a loud crunch to the side as Bun Bun watched on, nibbling his carrot. He had a smug expression on his face before taking another incredibly loud crunch. 

"Really, dude?" I said, tossing another carrot off of the bed to bribe him.

He grinned and flipped off to the side, his eating thankfully becoming far quieter as I took a moment to hold Charlotte and snuggle her. 

"What about you? What were you working on?" She glanced at the pad of paper that I had discarded for her. 

"Ah, I just feel like I need to make today perfect with Fayeth and Ely," I gestured to the pad. "Those were a few silly ideas." 

Charlotte snatched up the pad of paper before situating herself so that she was sitting in my lap, facing me with the pad of paper between us. To make sure she didn't fall off, I found myself holding on to her hips and my hands wandering a little curiously on her curves. Despite her shyness, Charlotte didn't even react. We were just that comfortable with each other now.

"Ken, what is this list?" Charlotte held it up, wagging it at me. "This is not a good list, Ken."

"What do you mean?" I frowned.

Charlotte raised an eyebrow and read off the list. "Rent a yacht? Rent a Ferrari?" She held back a bigger smile, giving me a knowing look.

"Yeah, well, some of that is me trying to make it nice and impressive," I fumbled, having felt the pressure to make this memorable also meant making it expensive. It wasn’t like I could take them on some sort of epic assassination job to make it memorable.

Charlotte shook her head and sighed. "No, Ken, if you want it to be memorable, you need to speak to both of their love languages and to your experience with them. Honestly..." She shook her head. "Fay would probably love to get some authentic Italian food before she disappears off into the elven world. That's something she can't get there."

I nodded to myself, taking the notepad back and writing that down quickly. "And what do you think Elysara would want?" I bit my lip. Of course I'd been overthinking the whole situation. It would be silly for the princess to really care about wealth. She could get anything she wanted in that regard herself. 

"Elysara likes homey, intimate things," Charlotte prodded me in the side for not coming up with it.

I frowned. "So, a homey Italian place? Authentic Italian?" I raised an eyebrow, trying to think about where I could find that before my eyes went wide with understanding. "Alright, alright, I think I at least know where we're going."

"Well, that’s half the battle," Charlotte said, pecking me on the cheek. "I have a feeling you're going to be on a far better track with whatever's on your mind than continuing to follow this initial list of yours." 

I looked at my list of expensive and extravagant activities and realized part of me was just trying to show off. "Thank you for helping. Would you be willing to run an errand for me, Charlotte?" 

"Always," she spoke without missing a beat, smiling softly and scooping Bun Bun out from under my bed.

"Also, Charlotte, you can tell your father that Alice is still alive." I activated [Eyes of Wisdom], this time in front of her. "If they haven't been able to find her in their search from Earth, perhaps we would have better luck if we all started from Star City. After all, it already feels like we're going to be at somewhat loose ends. I'd love to hunt your sister down and bring her back." 

Charlotte blushed furiously before giving me an eager and exuberant kiss. "You don't have to worry about it too much, Ken. Knowing she's alive is wonderful. Alice was always rather tough. Far more like my mother than I," she said, and I could tell there was a lot of history tied to those simple words. 

But Charlotte stood back up from kissing me, clearly not wanting me to press further. "Well, Ken, you'd better get to work, because I doubt Elysara and Fayeth are going to wait much longer for your date." She was right, of course, and I had a few favors to call in before we got going, some of which I wasn't entirely sure would come through for me. 

***

I got myself ready in a sharp but casual outfit. I was going to take the two lovely elves on a date they wouldn't forget. Accomplishing that goal meant putting in a little extra effort on my part.

Once I was ready, I walked out to find my ladies. Fayeth and Elysara came out of the house into the main field at the Nagato estate. Both of them looked absolutely adorable. I had told them to dress casually and to prepare for cold weather. It was now the end of January, after all.

Fayeth wore a pair of light pink, skin-tight jeans and a suede jacket, the white fluffy lining peeking out at the collar where her scarf didn't cover. A beanie hat on her head did little to hide the waterfall of blonde hair that spilled down her back. She looked adorable and cute, like the girl next door heading out for a date. 

Elysara joined her, opting for more human clothes rather than her usual breezy elven attire. The princess had her red hair done up in an intricate bun, with several locks dancing around her face. A pair of large earmuffs kept her elven ears warm without disturbing her carefully styled hair. Instead of a coat, she wore a soft green sweater dress that pulled tight around her waist, paired with white leggings to protect against the cold. 

While Fayeth had chosen practical boots, Elysara had stuck with a pair of high heels. 

"Where are we off to?" Elysara asked, stepping up to me, grabbing me by the collar, and planting a long, lingering kiss on my lips. 

I checked my CID nervously, waiting for a response. "Well, I have a plan," I said, my CID dinging with a message. "Ah, there's our ride," I sighed, turning to Fayeth. "Both of you look absolutely wonderful.”

“We don't normally get to go out in the cold." Elysara smiled. “Des helped me pick out my outfit.”

"Of course she did," I chuckled. "Well, shall we get going?" I held out an arm to each of them as a portal opened up in front of us. 

Crimson and Neldra were off searching for the elven world amid the dungeon, which meant I had to find someone else to portal us to our destination.

The headmistress scowled at me. "What's so urgent?” She asked.

“Could you portal us to Italy?" I asked, giving her a broad smile. "Preferably somewhere out in the country." 

"This is why you called me here?" she asked, her scowl deepening.

"If it helps, I'll owe you a large favor. You can call it in before we go back to Star City, or even after." I offered.

The older woman narrowed her eyes, thinking it over. "Fine. You will fully support getting everyone to go back to a classroom setting and learning how to navigate the dungeon in earnest, rather than throwing themselves recklessly into it. Do that, and I'll give you a portal to Italy. There's this lovely vineyard in Tuscany that I used to go to that might be nice." She waved her hand and a portal opened.

I bowed repeatedly to her. "Of course, everyone should go back into the classroom setting. We didn't learn the fundamentals of how to survive in the dungeon." I flashed her a practiced smile, trying to ooze charm.

"Good enough," she rolled her eyes, shooing me away.

I smiled and grabbed my elven ladies, bringing them through.

"Ken, I don't think you had to promise that much. You may not realize it yet, but with you being the de facto leader of all of those that came back, not to mention your own level, most of humanity will respect whatever you say, and happily do a small favor to earn your appreciation."  Elysara told me, kissing me on the cheek.

I squeezed her tight to me.

There was a light dusting of snow on the red, clay-shingled roofs of Tuscany. Even from where we had portaled in, we were on top of a hill that overlooked hill after hill of vineyards. Even in the heart of winter it was stunningly beautiful.

Fayeth must have been thinking the same thing as she cuddled into me. Something about being in the cold made pressing together all the more heartwarming.

"Beautiful," they had breathed, looking out over the vineyards. Her eyes glanced at the buildings before they shot back at me. 

"This is Italy?" she asked in awe. 

"Yes, Tuscany to be exact. I thought, for our last date, I'd take you somewhere different," I said.

Ely glanced at me out of the corner of her eye.

"As for you, I wanted to keep it low-key. Somewhere we wouldn't be disturbed." 

My thoughtfulness only made Elysara grin wider. "Thank you," she said. 

"You're more than welcome. Both of you are beyond special to me. And to be honest, there's nothing I could do to make this date as special as you." 

"Aww," Elysara teased, but still squeezed into my side.

Fayeth, who was still excitedly looking out over the surroundings, gave a slight bounce like she was bursting with energy to get moving.

"How about we go for a walk? The time's a little off here," I said, glancing at my CID. "So let's enjoy an afternoon, and then perhaps settle on a place for dinner." 

"That sounds lovely," Elysara said, pulling us forward as a unit, her arm firmly linked with mine. "So, Fayeth and I came to a little decision of our own." 

I raised an eyebrow, curious what words would follow.

"For today, we want to be your arms," she said, squeezing more tightly where she held mine. "I'm not letting go of you until after dinner.” She gave a firm nod.

I paused, but figured I could go with that concept. Seeing I wasn’t going to fight her, Elysara lit up. “Perfect. Now, let's go see all of the cute little shops I imagine are in a place like this.”

The two of them held onto me as we strode through the shops. We did not have any specific outcome we were trying to achieve, we were just making memories as we moved. 

The three of us strode arm in arm through a number of shops. The two of them were so ridiculous that when spaces became cramped; they refused to let go. We just turned and shuffled sideways rather than let me go and walk normally. 

I apologized profusely to more than a few of the shop owners, though all of them had giant smiles on their faces as if they were all in on a secret that only others knew.

We eventually wound down from the shopping as the sun dipped lower, finding an out-of-the-way restaurant for the three of us to cozy up in a booth together where we had a window view of the rolling hills beyond. 

"This food is incredible," Fayette mumbled as she ate another giant bite of her fancily named pasta.

"And this wine is great. We'll just buy a few dozen cases. It's something we can't get back home, so we might as well stock up." Elysara tipped back her glass before going around and pouring all of us another class.

I chuckled, rolling my eyes. "You just want an excuse to buy a bunch of wine, don't you?" 

"No," Fayeth said, glancing shyly at me. “We want something to remember you by every time you're not with us." 

A slightly sour mood overtook me with those words, and I nudged Ellie, "Arm please." 

“This is your one exception.” Ely told me firmly.

I nodded and stepped to the side.

Charlotte had come through with what I needed.

I opened a portal only for her to stick her hand through and hand me two small boxes. 

I cleared my throat and got down on one knee in front of Fayeth. "When we met, the moment like this one was not intended to be anything formal," I said slowly, opening the ring box and showing her a lovely engagement ring. "I had been told you should offer elves a gift when you meet them. And in my quick thinking, the piece of loot I had just picked up became the perfect gift. Meanwhile, you thought I was proposing." 

Fayeth stayed quiet, biting her lip.

"So, before you leave to the elven world, I want to make absolutely sure you understand that there is no mistake this time. Fayeth, I want you to be my Fiore. I always have. And now that we are Adrel, I am beyond happy. But I thought maybe before you leave, I should at least do this properly. Fayeth, will you marry me?" 

I sat down on one knee. The elven saintess swept me up in an embrace, kissing me fiercely, only to break away and decide she wasn't done yet, coming in for more. 

"Of course, of course," she said, kissing me several more times. 

Elysara sat in the booth, a wry smile on her face. "You're doing this a little out of order, Ken," she said. 

"Yeah, but sometimes you have to circle back around and make sure you've done it properly," I replied. 

She sighed. "Fayeth's opinion on this is the only one that matters." 

"This is perfect," Fayeth said, her gaze shifting to Elysara as if daring her to contradict. 

"Oh, it's perfect. I'm not saying that," Elysara said, continuing to grin. "Just making it clear it is very out of order."

"Alright, your exception is up." Elysara teased me as she beckoned for me to give her my arm. "Sit back down. I'm going to provide you with a little more wine before I show you why you should always come back to your two favorite elves."

"Oh?" I raised an eyebrow at her. "And how do you intend to do that?"

Her lips brushed against my ear as she leaned over. "By keeping you sealed inside me for the entire night." She glanced past me to Fayeth. "With the time difference, we can start the night here, and if it gets too early, we'll just go back to the Nagato Clan for night to continue a little longer," she promised.

The server came by with a cake with candles in it.

They had seen my proposal. I grinned and thanked them as they set the cake in front of Fayeth. She dug in, taking a bite herself, before swapping over and feeding me. The cake disappeared between the three of us, as did several glasses of wine. Time was spinning away as we laughed, touched, and kissed in a blissful evening.

AN - Timeline for Late Jan

DD 200 Timeline

201 - 1 month in, several weeks of training and then 1 week off. 1.5 months total.

202 - 1.5 months.

203 - 2 months in the raid grinding, 2 weeks before. 2.5 Months

5.5 Months since the start of school.

204 should start early Feb or late Jan given August start.