Lewd Dungeon, Chapter 360

Chapter 360 – Domestic

I smiled as Felicity led Catalina through the portal. I’d sent Felicity to welcome the LA Guildmaster, and bring her to the ‘guest area’ because of how well she’d done in some of her recent fights. She had given the pilgrims a run for their money, despite the level difference, and the Azure Flames were pressed hard, despite knowing the fight, and having learned the Lightning Palm technique.

Balancing the boss fights for the dungeon was a matter of give and take. I couldn’t let them remain static, or people would turn them into a cakewalk. However, if you made things too hard, or changed things too much, then that started to move into the deliberately unfair category, which was how the path to going rogue began. And I wasn’t going to let myself go the way of Freedomland.

Catalina Zorita

Godtouched Greater Succubus Female

Level 20 Unholy Breaker of Wills / Divine Courtesan

Titles: Virgin’s Bane, Maneater, Ladykiller, Guildmaster, Devout, Godbred

Market Value: 25,340,893 gp

Despite being a guildmaster, Catalina had obviously found time to grow her levels in the five years since she’d last graced my halls. Not that we hadn’t seen each other in that time, of course. But there were limits to how often I could just ‘pop by’ the LA guild without causing trouble. And she did have to actually run the local guild. Still, it was impressive that she’d managed to get that many levels in such a comparatively short time.

The Greater Succubus was not dressed for fighting. Well, that wasn’t really true. Given her class and profession, she could be naked, and still dressed for a fight. But her clothes were all well-made, but the enchantments on them were for mending and cleaning, not protection, and she did not have a weapon in hand, or allies at her back.

Lucia Zorita

Godtouched Greater Succubus Female

Level <Locked> Battle Dancer / <None>

Titles: Divine Blood, Virgin, Virgin’s Bane

Market Value: 9,000 gp

Which was not to say that she was alone, of course. There was one other person with her, a young succubus, just four years old, dressed in kids’ clothes that had similar enchantments to her mother’s, though I also saw she had bracelets on either wrist, enhancing her defense. I doubted the girl was actually getting in any fights, so this was, undoubtedly, a way for her mother to help ensure her safety.

Lucia’s eyes were darting around all over the place as she entered the ‘living room’ area where I entertained guests to the dungeon. She was smart, and inquisitive, that much was obvious. Probably liked asking questions more than her mother or those around her were happy with. Not a bad thing to have in a child, to be honest.

Stepping forward, I smiled as all eyes turned to me. “Ah, Catalina. It has been some time since we last got to chat. But then, we’ve both been busy. You’ve gained thirty levels since that first time we met, and I, well, I’ve been doing a few things here and there.”

The guildmaster melted into my arms as I gave her a hug, and eagerly returned my kiss. With my dungeon senses, I saw Lucia looking on, with interest. Catalina wasn’t hiding anything from her, it seemed, which was good. Considering the ‘dietary requirements’ of a growing succubus, it was fairly important for them to be raised in a sex-positive household.

I’d done some research on the succubus/incubus line of demons. Or, rather, I simply asked the two succubi that I had as bosses in the Black Temple, and they were all too happy to tell me everything about what family life was like in one of their households. Even when they were young, a succubus or incubus needed to feed on sex and sensuality. However, how much they actually needed changed as they developed.

It was a common misconception that a succubus had to be directly involved in an act to feed from it. Even a newborn succubus could get a trickle of energy from adults in their vicinity enjoying a healthy sex life, something that continued as they grew older. It was just that a full-grown succubus’s needs were much greater, and so trying to live off a ‘contact high’ was like a human living on bread and water. They could do it, but it was not pleasant, and definitely not healthy.

A juvenile succubus enjoyed skinship with family members. Nothing sexual, but they were a very ‘touchy’ group. Around puberty, they started requiring more energy, but it wasn’t until their late teens that they started actually engaging in more than kissing or petting. A succubus’s first experience would likely be with a family member, but it wasn’t seen as being taboo in their culture. To them, it was basically like a family sitting at the table and eating dinner together.

Breaking away from Catalina, I knelt down to be at eye level for the girl. “Hello, Lucia. I am Kuronoth. It is a pleasure to meet you at last.”

The girl blinked once, and then said, “You know my name? Did you do that, um, System thingy?”

Catalina chuckled, and said, “[Appraise], dear. And I told him about you a while ago. After all, he is your father.”

I chuckled, and said, “Yes, I used a skill like [Appraise] on you, to confirm your name. But your mother did tell me about you, even though we haven’t had much chance to talk in person. Your mother and I are both busy people, after all. She runs a big guild, and I have this dungeon to run, on top of being a god.”

Lucia’s eyes grew wide, and said, “You’re my dad? And you’re a god for real? For real, for real? Mommy wasn’t kidding?”

I smiled at her, and said, “Yes, I am your dad. And I really am a god. Your mother wasn’t kidding with you. I’ve looked in on you and her a couple times, but there are limits to how much I can interact with people who aren’t gods, outside of places like this.”

“Say, my Lord, when you used your [Appraise] on Lucia, did you happen to see anything? I’ve only gotten her name, race, and ‘Level Locked’, with no information after it.”

I arched an eyebrow at Catalina. “Come now, pet. Don’t tell me you brought your daughter all this way just to try and find an end run around the System.”

“Well, not just…”

I laughed, and nodded. “Good. As for what I saw, as a God, there is information available to me that is not available to mortals. However, there are limits to what I can say, without breaking some of the rules. Free will, blah blah blah. You understand.”

Catalina nodded. “So, you did see something more?”

“Yes, but I can only tell you about a couple things.” I stood, and motioned towards the couches. “Perhaps we can sit, and talk about it?”

The two succubi were all too eager to comply. There was a quick argument about seating arrangements, but eventually they were settled with Catalina sitting on my left, and Lucia on my right, and both girls leaning against me as I stroked their hair. Little Lucia definitely took after her mother in some respects.

“All right, then,” I said, as everyone got comfortable. “First, I need to explain why the System locks certain things in a young person’s status, while leaving others open to view. Name and Race are unlocked, but restricted. If someone tried to [Appraise] Lucia without the approval of one of her parents, or as the divine servant of the god she worships, then they would just get something like ‘Child’ and the Race, without anything more than that. Parents get the Name, for obvious reasons. On the Race side, that is actually important, especially in mixed-race settings, so that the parent knows how to properly care for the child. Obviously, a half-dragon is going to need different care from an elf, just to use one example.”

“Makes sense,” Catalina said. “But isn’t it supposed to be rare for a mixed-race child to have the same race as their mother? Actually, she was born a Godtouched Greater Succubus, and I didn’t gain that ‘template’ until after I broke through to Tier 2.”

“That gets into divine shenanigans, and is actually something I can talk about a bit more freely. It also ties into the Titles you both have, which, yes, I can see. Your new ones, Catalina, since I first met you, are Devout, and Godbred, which make sense. You’ve proven your devotion to me as your god, and Godbred is a title that goes to any mortal who gives birth to a god’s child. The male equivalent is Godbreeder, by the way.

“Now, because I was the other side of the coin in producing our little Lucia, here, my half of the genetics is pure magic, for want of a better term. So, the racial bits are copied from you, and modified by my contribution, giving Lucia not just the Godtouched template, but also the Divine Blood title, which will confer more bonuses upon her, when her System unlocks.”

“You can see her titles?” “What are titles?”

The questions came at about the same moment, but I just gave a quick nod to Catalina, before looking over to Lucia. “Titles are something special that the System gives out. Some titles are earned, and some can be won, but some are just part of who you are, from birth. Do you understand?”

“Like how Uncle Billy has green eyes, and Tía Jazmín has brown eyes?”

“Very good,” I nodded. “So, you have three titles. Virgin is a title that most people are born with. There are some exceptions for those born as really weird creatures, but most people are born with it. That title basically gives you some resistance to disease and other things like that, as well as making it so adults are more likely to help you if you’re in big trouble.”

“Really?” Catalina asked, shocked.

“Yes, it is a small boost, but it is there. The System wants children to live long enough to reach maturity, after all. After the System unlocks, it allows those who have the title to engage with certain special profession and class upgrades, or some enchanted gear. There’s a subset of the Healer class, for instance, called the Healing Maiden.”

“So, you have to keep the title until you reach Tier 2 for those?”

“No, they are ‘side-grades’, you might say, instead of upgrades. You can find trainers out in the wider galaxy, or get class books from the System Shop. But those side-grades offer more power, with more restrictions to go with it. So, if one ever, say, runs afoul of Captain Hentai in the dungeon, then they would lose both the title, and much of their class abilities, possibly permanently.”

“Ah, I see.”

I turned back to Lucia, and said, “Now, back to your titles. One is Divine Blood. This title goes to anyone who has a god as a parent. When your System unlocks, you’ll find that your Attributes are higher than a normal person’s. Your mommy can give you a more general explanation, but in Tier 1, it will give you a five-point bonus to all your attributes, and an additional plus 1 per level after that.”

Catalina’s breath sucked in, showing that she understood just how big a boon that was, but I continued looking Lucia in the eye. “Now, your last title is a complicated one, but it is one your mommy shares, Virgin’s Bane. Basically, when your System unlocks, you’ll be able to easily defeat anyone who still has the Virgin title.”

Lucia nodded, wide-eyed. I wasn’t sure how much of that she understood, beyond the part about her being really special, but I figured that Catalina could fill in the gaps when she was older. Patting the young succubus on the head, I continued. “Now, that is the limit of what I can tell you plainly. However, as a god, I do have some information on the class you will have. But I can’t tell you outright, because that breaks the rules.”

“But I thought adults didn’t have rules!”

“Haha! Oh, no, Lucia. Adults have even more rules than children do, but that’s because they can do more. And Gods are no exception. I have rules that I can’t break, or other gods will try and take me down, before I become a danger to everyone.”

“Oh,” she said, her dreams of a rule-free future dashed.

“What can you say, my Lord?”

I smiled at Catalina, and said, “All I can say is that you should see if she can get some experience with dance or gymnastics, and maybe some self-defense course? And, as she gets older, and approaches her System unlock, work with her to try and guide her to a profession she enjoys.”

Catalina nodded slowly, and I could practically hear the gears turning in her head as she was trying to work out what those clues meant. I left her to it, and turned to look at Lucia. “So, how much do you know about dungeons, Lucia?”

“Mommy’s told me about them, but I’ve never been in one before. Well, not until now.”

“That’s good. Dungeons are dangerous. You’re safe, in this space, but in the rest of the dungeon you would be in danger. Would you like to learn more about this dungeon?”