It took Gabriel a few seconds to tear his gaze away from her pert breasts, and his face flushed when he saw the smug grin on her lips.
“I can agree to that as well, Sthuza.”
“Excellent. Would you care to perform the ritual tonight, or would you prefer to rest first and attempt it after a good night’s sleep?” she asked, concealing her preference.
“The sooner, the better,” he said, evoking a nod from the slim gorgon.
“A wise decision, Dungeon Master. It is crucial for you to be decisive in your actions.
“I understand that you must be feeling some concern after your recent trials, but I am pleased you can still step up and move forward,” she said, smiling at him.
***
It took Sthuza almost an hour to prepare the ritual. First, she drew the most elaborate spell circle he’d ever seen in the center of her room.
Then she darted about, looting the various piles of discarded treasures, wincing and glancing back at him every time one of them started to clatter and spill out.
Once she finished setting everything up, she invited Gabriel to join her. Due to the intricacy of the glyphs, he had to stand right next to her in the center of the circle. Such proximity to the gorgeous woman had him eager for the distraction when she began leading him through an intricate invocation.
The last of his lingering worries faded away as Sthuza began walking him through the spell itself. He quickly realized that every step established a binding relationship between the two of them. But with him clearly defined as the master, and her the servant.
The unfamiliar casting took more mana from him than any spell he’d ever cast. When the ritual finished, he felt an impressive tugging at his mana pool, similar to the drain of circle casting. But without a circle leader to harness it.
Then he felt a similar surge of power rush back into him. It matched the siphoned loss perfectly but carried a distinctly different flavor.
Wiser, composed, proud. And horny?
A cascade of emotions followed the transfer of energy. Gabriel shuddered as a wave of pleasurable sensations coursed through his body. Warmth and love enveloped him. The glowing presence wrapped him in an intimacy he’d never experienced, and he felt more at peace than he’d ever imagined.
Then a whirlwind of regret and soul-aching loneliness struck him. Dark emotions clawed at his mind, smothering his psyche. After a few minutes, gratitude and devotion broke through the darkness and wrapped him in a warm, tender embrace.
As quick as it started, the overwhelming presence retreated. Once it was gone, Gabriel still felt a hint of the strange happiness in the back of his mind.
“What was that?” he gasped, barely able to breathe as he collapsed to the stone floor.
Sthuza responded, eager but breathless. “Congratulations, Master, you have bound your first monster, and a portion of my power is now your own.”
“Wait, what?” he asked in shock.
“The bonding transfers some of the monster’s abilities and traits to their DM in addition to connecting them. We receive back some of your energy, which keeps us from becoming weaker. But you are the only one strengthened by the initial process.”
“Does that mean there are more processes?”
“There are many ways that you can improve both your bonded, and dungeon monsters in general, but that will need to wait. I believe we are both in dire need of sleep now,” Sthuza said, barely suppressing a yawn.
Gabriel failed to fully resist a yawn of his own and nodded wearily.
“That sounds like a good plan. But it brings back my original question, where would you like me to sleep?” he asked, keeping his voice neutral.
She blushed intensely but maintained eye contact this time.
“As I said, my nest is large enough for both of us as we are.”
When Gabriel blushed in response, she smirked. “I promise not to bite,” she said, her tone teasingly seductive.
He swallowed, but nodded and joined Sthuza next to the massive pile of covers and pillows.
“What about emotions? Can the bond trigger any weird feelings?” Gabriel asked. He hesitated to mention more of what he’d experienced.
Her eyes widened before she turned away. “It could. By bonding with a monster, you come to know them… intimately. It is a joining of souls. Sometimes, the emotions of one party might become noticeable to the other.”
Great. So, that must have been Sthuza’s emotions I felt, and she doesn’t want to talk about it.
A snap of green fingers extinguished all the magical lights at once, and he marveled again at how vivid his new darkvision was.
He quickly turned away when he noticed Sthuza stripping off her white gown. To avoid the temptation of peeking at the nude woman, he followed her lead, pulling off the ass-hair robe and wrapping himself in one of the numerous silken blankets.
They both sighed in relief as they snuggled into the luxurious bedding.
“Goodnight, Master.”
“Goodnight, Prime-bonded,” Gabriel whispered, eliciting a pleased purring from the other side of the cushions.
First time I sleep with a woman, and she’s a gorgon. I can feel her presence in my mind, and nothing is going to happen.
He chuckled and wondered how he would get to sleep, knowing the beautiful woman was naked just inches away from him.
Seconds later, darkness washed his consciousness away.
CHAPTER NINE
The aroma of bacon brought Gabriel fully awake. His eyes snapped open and he lifted his head to check on Sthuza. Her covers draped flat over the pillows, but he could hear soft singing coming from the kitchen.
He grabbed his ratty garment and pulled it back on, tying the coarse belt about his waist. It took him only seconds to form the glyphs needed to clean the hideous outfit.
Need to find some better clothes. No amount of cleaning can take away that ass-hair texture. At least it helps with the smell, a little.
Sthuza entered the room carrying the golden tray from before. “Ah, you are up. Excellent timing.”
Gabriel’s mouth watered when he saw the huge pile of bacon and several fried eggs on the platter.
She smirked. “Hungry, Master?”
“Starving apparently. But you don’t need to call me Master.”
“Of course not… Master,” she said, her smirk growing wider and revealing sharp fangs.
“Now, eat up before it gets cold.”
He was a little surprised that the two of them ate the entire pile of food, but when he finished the final piece of fried pork, he found himself pleasantly sated.
Wait, was that pork, or some crazy monster meat? Are there any porcine monsters in the dungeon?
Not sure I want to know. Dinner last night tasted like beef. That line of thinking doesn’t sound appealing.
“So, should we head back to the Core now?” Gabriel asked, wondering what her plans would be.
Sthuza smiled at him and shook her head. “Before you say anything, I am not suggesting that we avoid returning or hoping to induce conflict between you and the Core. Doing so would undermine your authority and power, which is the last thing I want.
“At the same time, you need to establish your relationship with Lady Merideva as quickly as possible. I do not wish to see you dominated by a young Core. Even more so, one who has not established herself well enough to handle losing a Domain Crystal.”
He nodded. “So, if we aren’t going back now, what do you have planned?”
She smiled proudly and stood up, crossing over to the stylish wardrobe on the far side.
“First, we get you something better to wear than that hideous robe. I simply will not go out in public with you dressed like a destitute murder hobo,” she said, snickering.
“Do you have any men’s clothing in there?”
She didn’t turn around. Instead, several of her head-snakes twisted about to watch Gabriel. One of them winked a tiny green eye at him.
Sthuza�
��s voice was light and filled with laughter when she replied. “I believe I might have a few things that will suffice for now.”
Gabriel swallowed at her amused tone, then nodded and stood up to join her.
It took her a few moments of digging through far more clothing than should have fit within the large wooden cabinet, but at last, she nodded her head, causing the snakes to dance.
“This is perfect,” she said, turning to present a dark-gray gambeson with vibrant green accents. “It belonged to Mistress Iylara, but I would like for you to have it.”
He took the proffered coat and tried to conceal his doubt.
This isn’t even big enough to fit her, let alone my enhanced body.
A smug grin tugged at her lips, and she watched him for a while. Unable to restrain herself any longer, Sthuza broke out chuckling and waved at him placatingly.
“My apologies, Master, it was most amusing to see the look on your face. Please attempt to wear it, the enchantments on it will alter it to fit your body.”
Nodding in understanding, he removed it from the cedar hanger and slipped one arm into a sleeve. Immediately the entire coat grew in size, and he pulled it on. He spent a moment adjusting the collar and cuffs, before accepting that it fit exactly as she had said it would.
Perfect.
“That looks much better on you,” she said excitedly. “But you still wear that nasty robe underneath, which is unacceptable.”
By the time Gabriel looked to her again, she had stuck her torso back inside the wooden closet.
His restraint lasted for a good ten seconds before he caved and allowed his eyes to focus on her tight butt as she bent over to reach something deeper within.
Sthuza wore another silken gown, though this one was a stunning gray-and-green ensemble that accented her slim figure and clung to her firm, round bottom. The dress left most of her back exposed, revealing sleek muscles, while the hem ended over her toned calves.
Gabriel couldn’t tear his gaze away as Sthuza shifted and wiggled about, her posture and the tight dress doing amazing things to her backside. At least, not until his eyes traced up her lean back, and he spotted several green-eyed snakes watching him as intently as he had been staring at her.
Embarrassment turned his face beet red, but Gabriel willed himself to meet the unblinking stare of her serpentine hair.
“There is no reason to be embarrassed,” Sthuza said, her amused voice muffled from within the wardrobe.
“I didn’t mean to stare,” he said, then paused as he realized how weak that sounded. “That dress just looks so good on you I couldn’t resist.”
That seemed to give her pause as the snakes watching him froze in place, and something thumped into the cabinet, followed by a muffled curse.
“Are you all right, Sthuza?”
“Just fine, Master,” she replied, her voice still muffled, but amused.
“Ah, here we go. I knew it was in here somewhere,” Sthuza announced a few minutes later.
She pulled back from the wardrobe and turned around to present a vibrant green silk shirt draped over a pair of dark-gray trousers. In her other hand, she had a well-worn pair of leather boots.
She offered the clothes to him as he stared at her latest gift. “These should fit just as well.”
“How much clothing do you have in there?” he asked, accepting them.
“A lady can never have too many clothes,” Sthuza said, and he glanced up to see if she was joking.
Her face looked as solemn as he’d ever seen.
He shrugged, then removed the thick quilted coat and shucked the ass-hair robe, excited to be putting on some comfortable clothes again.
I will never underestimate the value of quality clothing ever again.
“You are quite an impressive male specimen. Especially for one who started as a human.”
He froze at her words, his face flushing again. His blush deepened as he realized what she was referring to.
“I did not mean to offend, Master.”
That broke Gabriel out of his shock. He grinned, slipping the clean pants on. “None taken, I just got so excited about the clothes, I forgot I had an audience.”
Not like this is the first time someone has seen me nude. Seems to be a recurring theme since I died. I need to be careful that it doesn’t become a habit.
Silence reigned for the few minutes it took him to finish getting dressed and adjusting the clothes until everything fit, most of which he spent trying to work the odd buttons.
Fits better than anything I’ve ever worn. Are all enchanted clothes this comfortable?
“Now, you look the part of a Dungeon Master.”
He glanced over to see a beaming smile on her face. “Thank you, Sthuza.”
“It is my pleasure to assist, but now, I believe you need a better conduit than that ridiculous club you brought with you.” The gorgon pointed to his ugly conduit propped against the wall.
“I assume that you lost yours during your betrayal, and Lady Merideva gave you that distasteful implement,” she said, wrinkling her nose.
“Yeah, not that mine was anything special, but it was better than this one. Though the few spells I’ve cast with it have been far easier.”
“That is no doubt a result of your higher affinity with mana and has nothing to do with that disgraceful tool. Your Soul Essence is no longer that of a normal human now, which means your magic has received an indirect efficiency boost.”
“That’s good to know. Still, I imagine that club was the best Meri could make.”
“Ah, then it is most serendipitous that you have bonded with me, is it not, Master?” Sthuza said, a crooked smirk on her face as she waved a gleaming silver sword in front of him.
The elven-crafted weapon was almost too long for him to wield comfortably with one hand. Inside the dragon’s maw pommel, a dark emerald sparkled. It matched the eyes of the twin serpents lunging out to form the graceful weapon’s crossguard.
He started to weave a simple spell to activate Magesight, blinking when his vision blurred and then recovered into the telltale tint of the enhanced sight.
Canceling the spell he’d barely begun, Gabriel inspected the magical item she’d presented. The mithril blade was hard to study. The empowered runes embedded within the object gave off an incredible glow which all but blinded him.
“That has to be worth a fortune,” he muttered, his jaw and eyes slack as he struggled to perceive the full might of the enchantments.
Selling this one item could fund a life of luxury for decades.
I became an adventurer hoping to find such a treasure and retire back to my studies. Now that I’m bound to the dungeon, she’s waving it in front of me like it’s nothing.
Sthuza shrugged. “I suppose so. To be honest, coins and wealth hold little interest to me or most dungeon-related beings. The Core, and you, as DM, can create almost anything one could desire via DE, so what use would we have for coins?”
Gabriel nodded, more to keep her from noticing how hung up on the casual display of opulence he was than from a real understanding.
What would happen if I took that up to the city and sold it, then traveled somewhere far away to live a life of decadent luxury?
Could I do it? Or am I stuck in the dungeon for life?
“Please hold it for yourself and see if you can attune it,” she said, holding the sword out to him.
With trembling hands, he accepted the arcane conduit and immediately felt a tug at his mana pool.
Damn. I’ve heard stories about high compatibility, but I always figured it was bullshit.
He took several deep breaths to calm himself. When that didn’t work, he even ran through a quick focusing meditation before he carefully inserted a tendril of power into the eager enchantment. It soaked up every trace like a sponge, but the slight connection widened. Within seconds Gabriel felt his entire awareness seep in and claim every bit of enchanted mithril and the dragon’s blood infused within.
The look of genuine satisfaction on her green face was almost too much for him to handle.
Yep, no way I can steal this and run off on her. I’d be just as bad as Estrial and those other assholes.
Or Kelith, that arrogant shit.
Despite his attempt to keep his thoughts to himself, Sthuza must have seen something in his face. Or perhaps she could feel something of his emotions like he’d sensed hers last night.
“Are you all right, Master?” she asked, peering at him. “I was certain that you would be able to command the sword without issue.”
“Sorry, my thoughts tracked back over the past few days, and I guess I let it get to me a bit.”
She nodded, her expression softening.
His short distraction had given the conduit sufficient time to finish attuning to his mana, and he felt a soothing coolness from the ornate sword. Having first focused on its arcane presence, he released his Magesight. Then spent a minute inspecting the exquisite engravings which decorated the polished blade.
Either in homage to the dragon’s blood used as a catalyst or because it belonged to Iylara, who seemed to have a thing for reptiles, intricate carvings of serpents covered the weapon.
His hands still shaky, Gabriel took a deep breath, squared his shoulders, and gripped it tightly before taking a practice swing. The leather-wrapped hilt, embossed texture keeping it from slipping in his hand, shifted and morphed until a perfect match for his grip.
“I don’t know what to say, Sthuza. It’s…” His throat clamped tight.
No one has given me anything since Mother died. And with all the secrets she kept, I never felt this comfortable with her.
She laughed lightly. “You already said the perfect words.”
That caused his head to jerk up, and he stared at her.
“You said, ‘thank you,’ which is all I needed,” she explained.
“Well, that just seems so underwhelming, but thank you.”
She nodded, setting off a symphony of hisses as head-snakes shook and writhed in surprise.
“Now that you are better equipped, I thought before you return to the Core, perhaps you should check and see exactly how many bonded you can manage?” She smiled and raised an eyebrow.
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