Is it Wrong to Take a Chance in the Dungeon: XVIII

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And a special thank you to Joe, you absolute madman.

You’d think having the ability to transform into other forms would negate the rampant body dysmorphia, but no this shit still grinds at all the parts of my brain that remember I’m supposed to walk on two legs.

… That, and turning into a giant wolf makes me feel like a fucking furry.

‘Lili’, I reached back out to the Pallum currently sitting on my back with my Telepathy. ‘How many of the bats have you been shooting down?’

‘At least twenty, but there’s still way too many!’ Fuck. Considering the massive Monster Parade following us, I don’t know what else I expected, but a man can dream.

Seriously, what the fuck is this bullshit? I know intellectually that the Dungeon made every single monster itself and new ones can just show up at any time at any floor, but fuck if this shit doesn’t feel like fucking Overwatch 2 Patch Notes.

I’ve been constantly firing off pathetically weak curses, just to check how effective the birds are in no-selling my magic. Turns out, extremely effective considering  the ability activates the second any Mind leaves my body.

That loud cry is just a distraction- bait to think you could out-time the actual effect, when it’s closer to a nervous tick than anything. So, right now I’ve resorted to using the teachings of the Eminence in Shadow to try and fight this enemy.

What do you do when your energy is being drained/negated? Temper it until it becomes impossible to negate. Extremely brute-force logic, but it is coming from the guy whose one defense against a nuke is to just shoot a stronger nuke first.

The issue now… is that I have no fucking clue how I’m supposed to do that. Use a bunch of Mind at once? That’s practically every spell I have. Use it carefully? The Eldritch Big Brain I’ve been bestowed makes it so not doing so is practically impossible!

Turning my Mind into better, stronger Mind? How the fuck would you even do that?

So, while I work on plan A, I’ve relentlessly pursuing plan B and C at the same time.

You see, while I barely ever played Genshin Impact (Despite the multitude of ass on display), I still do have those leyline teleporters as a perk of the CG. The only downside is, the only place I can even think of a Teleporter being is around the ‘Boss Rooms’.

Boss Rooms are stuffed to the brim with Mana Crystals, and the Dungeon is practically another planet based on stories of its size alone! A natural gathering place for mana such as this perfectly qualifies for a leyline.

The only issue is, well, where the Boss itself will be in relation to the Teleporter. Whether it’s before the Boss Room, after it, or Anubis forbid inside?

It may be the difference between life and death… for Lili.

After all, I do have Personal Teleporters on me, but without the ability to make or hold any room myself… and even then, Lili can’t use the Personal Teleporters. It only works for me.

So I’m willing to gamble everything to save both of us. 

Is it Wrong to take that Chance here, in the Dungeon? Yes.

Do I even have a choice? Absolutely.

Would I choose anything other than this? No.

So, I continued running through the Dungeon, with all the strength and speed of a magic dog with a Level 2 Falna on his back could muster.

I never realized that the Guild Hall had a basement. Or that there was a God in Orario that had full reign and authority to use his Arcanum while he was down here.

To be far, it does seem like some of the setting mysteries you need to at least get past Season One to get to. Having a practically omnipotent and all-powerful being hidden beneath your feet the entire time is something most people would live and die without ever getting a hint towards figuring out.

And I was the lucky, lucky man who got to see him first hand. Yay.

Having dropped off the still-unconscious Advisor up top and being led down here by some elf girl (maybe Bell’s Advisor? Everything I remember about her comes down to ‘elf with glasses’, so it could be anyone), I was made to walk down the dark stone hallways with only the torchlight ahead to keep me from losing all sight…

If I couldn’t use magic, but I still respected the aesthetic.

Soon enough I was walking up a massive stone ramp where four burning torches reached up towards the unseen ceiling above, and just by looking at him made every bit of Divine Presence I’d ever sensed before feel like a watered down name brand in comparison.

This wasn’t a God. This was GOD. Unyielding power beyond mortal comprehension flowed out of him as easily as I myself breathed, giving off the slightest burning of my skin as I bore witness to truly Divine Power.

This was an Arcanum in use- something that demanded I bow, kneel, or otherwise submit to this… this Almighty Being before me. I had to- I needed to. Out of fear, out of reverence.

It didn’t help that he was also damn near seven feet tall.

The intimidating figure looked at me, and despite my every mortal instinct, my spine straightened and I stood tall. 

Piercing blue eyes that seemed to see right past my flesh and into the truth within my soul, which honestly wasn’t that new for me, were met by whatever was reflected in my own eyes.

Ouranos was a massive God, faces withered and wrinkled with stark white hair trailing off of his head and out of the hood of the black cloak, contrasting the white robes he wore beneath the hood.

But in spite of all this, the thing that bore down on me most was the fact that he was seated. The figure he cut, the power he radiated, came from him as he sat down passively.

“... So did you call me here just to stare at me, or is there something you need me for?” I asked the God, uncaring of his overwhelming divinity, if he was just going to stare at me like a weirdo.

A gruff chuckle fell from his mouth at my words, causing him to shake his head at me. “Ah, looking at you now I can’t believe I thought all of this was some master plan.”

“... Some of us aren’t omniscient.”

“Why, the Flames of Liberation of course.” My hackles rose- no, that was the original being a fucking dog. “Or the Burning Law. The name doesn’t particularly matter, compared to the curse itself, and the man behind it. In truth, I believed that your curse was part of some master plan. A strange man comes into the world, becomes ‘allies’ with two goddess that aren’t worth mentioning-”

My Villainous Aura flared, but we both decided to ignore it, considering the knowledge that I wasn’t about to do anything so drastic after everything was plain to see. “- that were somehow involved with the largest group of assassins in the city, that you caused the entire criminal underground in Orario to practically implode into war against it, all so you could cast that curse with almost no repercussions whatsoever.”

… Okay now that he says it out loud I sound so absolute suspicious it’s almost comedic.

“But if you actually thought that, you wouldn’t have placed a gag order on my curse, would you?” I stated, and the God raised a questioning eyebrow at my conclusion. “Well, I know a room full of people that were probably silenced to keep everyone from immediately knowing it was me, or at least becoming suspicious. That does explain why certain people are aware, but not why no one else even suspects me.”

I considered making a joke about being so dark no one could actually make out my crimes considering it was practically midnight when everything went down. Then I remembered how, before I’d even begun my magical adventure, people would regularly be surprised by me when it was dark, and suddenly people not recognizing me became more reasonable.

Also I turned into a bird.

“You are only partially correct. We have been keeping a tight lid on what mortals are allowed to know of your actions, but the Gods have been free to discuss that information amongst themselves, as long as they are discrete.” Huh? “In truth, I myself wouldn’t have gone this far if your spell hadn’t proven to be effective against the Divine.”

Ah, then this entire issue was going to be inevitable then? I could practically feel myself relax at that fact, guilt long ignored melting off me.

“So your only problem was the fact it can send gods back to Tenkai?”

“As a God, I know that the judgment of men among men is outside of my authority. Those that do have that right will speak to you of their own accord. Instead I speak to you as the man who has cast judgment on the divine- Who Gave You The Right?”

The force behind his words made his mere presence multiply a hundred fold, enough for my legs to quiver as the world itself attempted to crush me like an insect. “I Have Guided The Very Gods For The Centuries I’ve Lived Down In Genkai. I Have Witnessed The Sins of Man Time And Time Again, Yet Have Chosen Mercy. Who Gave You The Right To Cast Judgment?”

Roll Delayed. Additional Roll Added. 750 points banked.

I was forced onto all fours before Ouranos, feeling the weight of Divine Authority crushing me like Atlas trying to lift the sky- That’s where Ouranos is from!- and feeling my bones creak as God questioned my own arrogance.

There was only one response to these words, this pressure.

“Shut the fuck up you raging hypocrite!” My Villainous Aura raged like a bonfire, the sheer condescension turning into the greatest fuel imaginable as his very Authority was pushed back by pure malice. “I know that you all are on a higher existence than me, but that doesn’t mean our lives are lesser! My hate doesn’t need to be justified to you!”

“You Dare Speak Against-”

“Yes I do!” The words snapped back, pure raw emotion pouring out of me despite myself. “I know that my actions were wrong, but fuck you for ever suggesting that the lives I’ve taken aren’t even a footnote compared to the divinity! Did you think I fucking like knowing that everywhere I go, countless people are dying, slavers or not? No, I’m not completely fucking insane!”

This place hadn’t corrupted me completely.

“How dare you sit here, removed from even the idea of something like this happening at all let alone to you, and say they’re above judgment? That I don’t have the right to condemn them?” For an amateur writer, speaking the right words tended to be extremely hard for me. Unless I was so absolutely pissed off and frantic that I don’t even have time to second guess what I was about to say.

Also, my voice is really loud, to the point it was echoing in the underground chamber we were in as I pulled myself up off the ground solely to shout at the motherfucker using his damn Conqueror’s Haki to try and intimidate me into apologizing.

“My actions were hasty, irrational, and will haunt me for the rest of my life! But fuck you for saying anyone should’ve been spared- that anyone is above judgment!” I could practically feel my bone cracking at this point, muscles straining as the unrelenting pressure was increasing even as I stood on my own to feet and screamed in God’s face.

I could’ve accepted his words if it came as an opinion. That as a mere man I had no right to condemn the very gods, especially as one not native to this land. I wouldn’t have agreed, but I would have respected it.

But he came to me not as an equal, or a superior, but as God and proclaimed that they didn’t deserve what they got for the sheer fact of what they were?

Fuck off-

I stopped for a second, feeling my heart racing and my entire being begging for me to unleash my hatred as a curse, and let out a sharp hissing breath.

I remembered Anubis, Bast, Lili, Ryu, Tiona, and everyone else. I remembered how this exact same scenario got me into this fucking situation in the first place, and let my inherited rage cool for a moment.

“I know you were playing me for a test or some shit, but God or not, never let me catch you saying dumb shit like that again. The gods who fall to my curse are those who profit off the suffering of us mere mortals, so of course every mortal gets to cast whatever judgment they want on the divinities who directly benefit off their suffering.”

Agh, I had to rub my forehead as I could feel a headache come on from how angry I’d gotten. Shit like this is what makes it clear I could never be part of a military- blind trust in an authority I can’t question doesn’t fit my blood.

Fuck, I wish I could copy the Maiden’s Prayer right now, at least to heal the raging headache. Oh sweet Anubis, I hope the Original learned Reverse Curse Technique soon.

One of the worst parts of this chase sequences was not being able to look behind me. Now, usually, I’d be grateful for any opportunity to not look at the disgusting faces of the unending monster horde.

But with the massive Monster Parade behind me, and the fact monsters are still spawning as we run… well, there’s only so much room in the path we’re rushing on. The monsters behind us regularly trample over one another, or even begin killing the one’s in front for a chance of murdering the pair of us.

It was unlike anything I’d ever experienced down here- the sheer desperation they all had for the opportunity to spill our blood. Combine that and the mysterious creature that would hard-counter me if I didn’t have like two spells that don’t leave my body, and I can safely say I don’t believe anyone’s had such a well thought out murder attempt by the fucking Dungeon before.

Lucky me.

But at this point, based on the fact Minotaurs have been naturally spawning for a good minute, along with my ability to count the staircases I’ve had to leap down, we were on the Seventeenth Floor.

With the Boss- sorry, ‘Monster Rex’- Room here, which Lili was leading me directly towards. Wasting no time, I rushed along the path Lili gave me-

-Only to encounter pack of the single worst monsters to block my path. Hellhounds.

The all black, red eyed pack of wild dogs were physically the weakest monsters that could spawn around here, but they more than made up for that weakness by their ability to breath fire hot enough to burn a Level Two to a crisp.

And guess who was a giant, fluffy, flammable target right at that moment?

The dogs stopped and began spraying streams of fire at me, and I was forced to dodge and weave through the fire to make my way towards them all. I don’t think I’d be fast enough to revert the transformation, kill them all, and go back to another rideable form before the Parade caught up to us-

But Lili proved why she was no one’s damsel by firing several bolts straight into the dogs’ eyes, killing most of them and leaving the rest in enough pain for me to crush them with my claws/jaws.

Ugh, monster blood and dog smell in my mouth.

Spitting out their remains, I continued running, only for my heart to drop as I saw what was ahead of us.

The Monster Parade.

Lili-

‘They split up and pincered us.’ FUCK!

The fire dogs were just a distraction! I assumed they’d still be killing each other to get at us, but they’d split up while we’d been slowed so they could go on the other end of the path.

“Directions, now.” I quite literally barked at the Pallum clinging tightly to my back, and I already knew her answer by the way she was trembling.

“All the other paths here are dead ends. We need to get past them to get over to the Boss Room.”

“Shitbirds?” If Lili had shot down enough of them-

“T-they kept spawning as we ran, and I used the last of my ammo on the dogs.” FUCK!

“Do you have anything at all that could get us out of this?” I asked desperately, hearing the blue songbirds that had forced this situation into existence continue to chime as my attempts at making a spell that’d get past all their singing failed utterly.

“N- YES!” I heard Lili shuffling through her massive bag before pulling something out. “I have a Magic Sword for emergencies, I don’t know if I can get all the birds, but maybe I can carve a path for you…” She said, hope sputtering out the longer she talked, but I didn’t particularly care.

“Better than nothing. How fast can you swing that sword?” I planted my paws (By Anubis I hope all of this furry shit doesn’t stick) onto the ground, preparing what might be the most important sprint of my fucking life.

“No idea. Faster than you could before you got your Falna, maybe?”

“Hah. Good enough. Swing as often as you can, and aim as far in front of me as possible. Don’t bother with kill confirms, just get them out of the way.”

850 points banked.

Divination - Clairvoyance - Kara no Kyokai (200 points)

Roll Success! Purchased! 650 points remaining.

The mind’s eye was opened to you during a particularly dangerous situation. You desperately needed to see the danger that approached you from a place you could not see and found that, almost like a miracle, the image would appear in your thoughts. With some practice, you’ve learned to move your senses and perceive locations within thirty meters of your physical form. It’s difficult to move while doing this, keeping track of your normal senses at the same time as your clairvoyance is quite disorienting, but you can learn to adjust with more practice. In time, your range might even expand to cover several city blocks and allow you to pierce some magical wards too. Should you have some sort of magical power or other ability that requires line of sight to work, you’ll be able to use it through your Clairvoyance as if you were actually looking at the target normally.

Lore - Family Library - Lord El Melloi Case Files (100 points)

Roll Success! Purchased! 550 points remaining.

A collection of several dozen mystical texts and hundreds of notebooks which contain all the information necessary to learn common magecraft, and a great deal of information about your family’s magic and research in particular.

… I may not be the most faithful fan of the Nasuverse, but I recognize the terminology of both of these abilities.

Truly, UBW has graced me with all I need to make it through this- oh shit Clairvoyance comes with a movement debuff.

A movement debuff I need to take to the chin, because what’s the point of going full speed completely blind?

“Swing on my signal, alright?”

“Just fucking run already-”

And I did. I ran as fast and as hard as I could, Mind flooding my skull as the spell reached out and Clairvoyance didn't let me predict shit.

I’d forgotten for a moment, so I needed to just hard-read everything all at once. A full frontal charge into a horde of creatures with nothing more than a particularly close look at the area to guide me.

Thankfully the Shitbirds couldn’t cancel this spell. “Now!” 

A thin piece of metal swing from the corner of my vision, and suddenly a burning explosion appeared right before me, incinerating the monsters caught in the blast and knocking away the others. 

In a rush of movement I began taking the free space that was once filled while the rest were still reeling from her attack. “Again!” Lili did as commanded and erased a patch of monsters in front of us, and I leaped over to the freshly burned spot.

I could feel the heat of the burning red stone on my paws, but I ignored it to give Lili another command. “Again!”

One of the few things I knew about from the actual show that I saw complained about often was Welf and his irrational hatred of Magic Swords. They were extremely powerful and useful weapons that could clear hordes of monsters in a single swipe. But he hated making them because they were so unreliable that they’d always break the second you needed them most.

Now, I wasn’t a die-hard part of the fandom, but a lot of people continued to say that Welf’s complaints came across as complete and utter bitching since he never once tried to make a Magic Sword that didn’t break.

But now, I understood exactly why he hated them so much he refused to ever make one again.

Because as we were in the middle of the dazed horde of monsters and needed to murder our way out, Lili’s Magic Sword completely and utterly shattered the moment we needed it the most. And in that moment, I hated that sword with all my heart.

My Clairvoyance was active as I landed on my feet, but there were a lot of monsters- more that were still alive than we’d killed. They all rushed towards us, and I got the luxury of seeing it from every angle possible.

They were rushing for my legs, jumping on my back, sending poisons and creatures of all kinds our way.

I had no magic, and I very much doubted Maiden’s Prayer could heal us faster than they could kill us.

I could feel my life flashing before my eyes as everything rushed into place to kill us. I remembered people and places I’d long forgotten, and that had forgotten me as well. Family, friends, loved ones…

I remembered the people and places I’d encountered here. My girlfriends, my friends, my favorite restaurant. 

My student, who would die here. Alone. Because I knew without a shadow of a doubt my soul would find it’s way into one of my clones before the end finally came.

My student, who had the unfortunate luck of having the same name as one of my baby cousins, who I swore to look after and protect. Who already had a shitty older brother, so I had to step up for her.

Who I’d never see again, even after I survived this. And if I did, would I see Lili in her place like I do now-?

I hated this. Defeat, surrender… hesitation. My path to victory was blocked off, the odds were stacked against me, and I didn’t have a way to save both of us.

Memories flashed before my eyes, faster and faster as I regretted my actions. The ones I was proud of, and the one’s I wasn’t. Regret washed over me like a tide as I felt my skin tear apart at the hands of these creatures. I apologized from the depths of my soul to everyone I knew and loved, for my mistakes. My cowardice. My failures.

And then I saw Lili, thanks to that ability of mine, and saw her hand reaching out for mine. My name on her lips as she called for help.

I couldn’t hear here, but I reached out anyways-

A shiver went down my spine as the world twisted until I was surrounded by sand, hand still reaching out. Cold yet familiar hands poured sand into my own, and squeezed them shut.

Oh okay, spiritual journey time. Better than watching my student die in front of me, I guess.

“There are two things I must tell you. A lesson untaught, and a lesson unlearned.” Her voice poured into my ears like warm chocolate, comfort on the edge of my demise. “First, the truth. This sand is all that remains of a beautiful, luscious forest. The most beautiful creatures I’ve ever seen had once lived there, joyous in their own little slice of paradise. Like paradise, it faded in the morning fog, Death overtaking it all.”

I-

“You know all about death. You’ve accepted it, me, into your heart. I’d never let you doubt that when your story ends, I will embrace you for all of eternity. What you have yet to realize, is that this death is not the end.” Those cold hands wrapped around my own, squeezing it and the sand within tightly before letting go. I opened my fist, and what was once coarse and lifeless dirt was now a single seed.

It tumbled out of my hand and into the shifting sands. Before my very eyes, a small plant sprouted out of nowhere, unfurling and reaching out towards the sky. New life in a wasteland, no longer wallowing in grief and regret.

“Next, perspective. You have learned to fear your initiative.” She spoke again, bringing me back to that declaration I made against the Infant Dragon oh so long ago. “You made one bad decision, and regressed. Waiting for someone to come and absolve you. Judge you. Give you a reason to act, the same way you did before all this. Are you content with that?”

“No.”

“What will you do about this?”

“Fight, win, get back home.”

“And then? After this, what will you do with the life beating in your veins? Will you move on? Will you seek repentance?” Will you continue half-assing this chance you’re taking?

“I’ll give everyone who deserves it an apology and an explanation. And then I'll go back to Mama Mia’s and order their special. And then I’ll go back to the Dungeon and get rich, start a technological revolution, and take you and all of my friends on a roadtrip through the universe for shits and giggles.”

“Why?”

“Because I want to, so I will.” And suddenly I understood exactly what went wrong with my attempts with enhancing my Mind. And with the Reverse Curse Technique. “Oh my you, I’m so fucking pissed that this Yoda bullshit was right…”

“No clue what that is, but next time you have a near death experience I’m shoving sand down the back of your shirt.” I gave the Goddess a side glare, while she gave me the largest smile I’d ever seen on her face. Her normally cold eyes melted with warmth, and I could feel the heat of her hand in my own.

“... I’m not making the reference.”

“You’re lame. Have fun killing monsters, and try to sober up by the time you get back!”

Before I could ask what she meant-

I was suddenly back in the Dungeon, my animal form melting off of me as I reached out for Lili.

Ah, that’s what she meant. With nary a thought, I felt the massive amounts of CE flowing through my body suddenly slow to a crawl as the portion up in my skull began flowing the other direction.

And I suddenly understood.

650 points banked.

Benevolence - The Phoenix Is Consumed By Flames And Emerges Again - Out of Context: Disney Princess Supplement (600 points)

Roll Success! Purchased! 50 points remaining.

You have an innate connection to the concept of rebirth allowing you to once per Jump or once every ten years burst into spiritual flames of Phoenix Fire and return to your optimal state. Mechanically this will function as a 1-UP.

Boosted: Phoenix Orbs

Your control over rebirth is no longer limited to yourself and once per day you are able to select someone who is recently dead or currently dying and engulf their body with the spiritual flames of Phoenix Fire restoring them to an optimal state.

Boosted: I can handle Flames

At the start of each jump you will gain a list of every method of rebirth and immortality native to that Jump you will also gain access to a list of every type of Spiritual Flame and how they can be integrated into your Phoenix fire.

Phoenix Orbs Boost Requires Even Miracles Take a Little Time to Activate

I can handle Flames Boost Requires I can handle this to Activate

I can’t even be bothered by that wall of text, or the fact I spent 600 points on an ability I can only use once a decade. All the hate, rage, sorrow, and every negative emotion I’d ever felt was melting away- like a drop of honey on the tip of your tongue.

I could feel every bit of CE in my body fading, transforming into something so completely opposite to everything I’d defined myself as that I couldn’t help but laugh. I laughed hard and loud and proud, hearing the sound of my jubilation echo off the walls.

The monsters had stopped their assault on us, my newfound Presence undeniable to even the living flesh golems that couldn’t want anything save our demise.

My eyes flickered over to the blue song bird that had pushed me this far, to the point I’d broken through the limits of my perception. I spread my arms out and felt the stagnant air around me rush as the ethereal white glow of the Reverse Cursed Technique filled the air- so powerful and dramatic that even the uninitiated could witness it.

A part of me wanted to make an epic quote on the level of the Honored One’s declaration, but to be honest only one thing came to mind right now.

“I haven’t felt this good since crack hit the streets!” I laughed, the first joke to come to mind spilled out of me without second thought. I brought my hand in front of my face, suddenly realizing how little I actually knew about it’s shape, and contemplated exactly how I’d get out of this mess.

God I wanted to go fucking sunbathing, feel the ebb and flow of the earth’s life on my bare skin… and fuck Anubis into a coma.

I refocused my attention on the bird, and realized no one had been moving for a while since I finally got this technique right. Ah, I must’ve accidentally sent my brain into overdrive with all the excess energy flooding it.

“Sorry, got distracted. What did I need to do- right.” All the stress before that prevented me from doing anything other than beating my head against the wall was gone, so I could finally analyze the songbird itself.

Honestly, the real issue about it was the fact almost every spell I had was so overwhelmingly complex that any Mind disruption would cause the whole thing to fizzle out instead of just making a weaker version of the spell. If I actually had a spell that was simply ‘Aim, Pour Mind, Fire’, this entire situation wouldn’t have happened.

Ah well, you can’t be angry at your own luck, right? By Anubis and Bast, I feel good right now.

Right, dead bird time… well, why waste the effort when I could have fun with it?

I brought my hands together, and used the Cursed Technique Reversal on my Cloning Technique, decided the Clone currently bargaining with Ouranos didn’t really need all that Mind right now, and activated the new technique.

“Cloning Technique: Two-Fold.” 

And suddenly my Mind was Twice itself, and I could almost feel it all begin to shift into the CE so it could be Reversed. But I held off, and instead began my Domain… oh well there’s an idea!

Wait, no, an actual Domain Expansion would catch Lili in the middle of it. Well, save it for next time. Or the Boss? Ah, I’ll see what happens.

“Domain Expansion: Night Parade of a Thousand Demons.”

As my jury-rigged Domain began encompassing as much of this hallway as possible, I smiled as I picked up the thought process that I’d almost subconsciously used to figure out the CTR.

In Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance, Riku says a line about the difference between quantity and quality as he’s charging a horde of not-Heartless (Dream Eaters). My Clones operate off of creating a greater quantity of me, so why wouldn’t the inverse be creating a me of a greater quality?

I watched with a gleeful smile as everything that dared to harm my student was rendered into twitching, bleeding dust before my very eyes. Huh, I wonder why my technique defaulted to sand?

… And why do I want to make out with Anubis like forty percent more than usual?

Ah, I’ll figure it out later. I just need to glaze myself for immediately coming up with my Reverse Technique- 

Oh, they’re already dead.

I dropped my Domain after that realization, and immediately went over to hug my student who’d looked dumbfounded and slack-jawed from the very moment I’d begun glowing. “Aw, Lili! Are you okay? Did you see all of that? It’s the Reverse Curse Technique, where- oh I already told you all this, sorry!”

I laughed to myself, feeling weirdly giggly. That feeling only got worse when Lili gave me the weirdest look of her entire life, actually giggling at that expression.

“Uh, Selah? Does the Reverse Cu-”

“RCT, that shit’s a mouthful on a good day.” The thought made me remember Bast giving me a blowjob, which made me remember Bast, and I hugged Lili closer to me as I hummed at the thought of my beautiful girlfriends for a moment. “Oh, sorry for interrupting you, go on.”

“... Does doing that mess with your head?” Brown, adorable eyes looked up to me with a mixture of embarrassment, annoyance, shame, and contentment as I held her close to me without a hint of reservation. I paused for a moment before explaining.

“Oh, considering the standard usage of Cursed Energy necessitates an abundance of negative feelings that would normally drive one made with despair and along with that the immediate mental resistance most sorcerers gain to negative emotions flooding their brains constantly… the technique naturally transforms that negative energy into positive energy, so on the first usage my lack of control over excessive positivity makes it so every thought is brimming with jubilation no matter what, to the point existence itself brings me unparalleled ecstasy.”

“... in real words, please?”

“I am so unbelievably fucking high right now you could drill a hole into my skull and get a contact high so overpowering you’d try and huff the hole.” I said cheerfully, squeezing the adorable little Pallum into my chest, idly petting her hair and doing whatever I could to comfort the poor trauma baby. “Do you want me to put you down anytime soon? My Clone says I need to turn on the teleporter thing so Ouranos can’t tax us for murdering like three Familias.”

“...no.” Lili said oh so adorably that I remembered my baby cousins and how much they looked up to me when they were younger, so I kissed her on the forehead and carried her like my own precious little baby. “This is the weirdest form of hate I’ve ever felt.”

“Ain’t a curse more twisted than love, and don’t you ever forget it.”

150 points banked.

Roll Failed.

I laughed to myself, amused at how completely fine I was with not getting anything right now, enjoying the moment as I walked to the Boss Room with a song spilling past my voice.

“Live in Life, and leave the dying to the dead…” Such a good song. Shame it’s from a Gacha Game… that I never played.

AN: SI has officially run out of fucks to give about the situation, and has defaulted to bribing government officials and getting high off his own supply.

Oh yeah, we’re so fucking back.

Hope you all are sufficiently weirded out by how huggy and affectionate RCT makes him, because it’s gonna take him a while to recent back to neutral.

By which I mean he needs to murder the boss to get his murder-boner going, which is technically a negative emotion.

Thank you all for reading, Peace.