Tensity

Though he had missed out on the 2,904 Experience awarded upon Lagia's defeat, Cairn wasn't too upset as it had all gone to Kaia. Besides, it wasn't like he didn't receive 'any' rewards. His Shadowflame and Pain Tolerance had also improved considerably, and due to immersing himself in acid for several tens of minutes, he had even acquired the Acid Resistance Talent.

Unfortunately, while Cairn had retained his Ookami's Visage and Training Necklace due to their unique/bound properties, he had to do a death run to recover Elle's Mr. Boomy. When he finally found it, half-buried in soot, a shiver ran through his body as the tip had been ruined, and nearly 80% of the pickaxe's Durability had depleted...

Seeing Cairn drag himself lifelessly from the now ordinary pool of water, Kaia hurried to his side, placing a blanket over him as she asked, "Are you okay? Were you not able to find the pickaxe...?"

"No, I found it..." replied Cairn, subsequently materializing Mr. Boomy so that Kaia could see its state directly. Her eyes widened when she saw it, but she quickly regained her usual smile, patting his shoulder as she said, "What's important is that you managed to recover it. I don't think Elle will

fault you for its condition. Rather, as a Dwarf, she might be excited by the prospect of repairing and upgrading it."

Supporting Kaia's case, Vira appeared out of nowhere, sitting atop what looked like a floating beanbag, casually eating an apple as she appended, "She's right. Dwarves are not so sentimental that they would agonize over the loss or destruction of a tool. As it was able to fulfill its purpose, that's the only thing that matters."

Though he knew Vira had been following them, Cairn exhaled a tired sigh when he heard her voice and saw her current appearance. Had she been eating popcorn, he might have thrown something at her...

Rising to a seated position, Cairn used the blanket Kaia had provided to dry off, his gaze focused on Vira as he asked, "Is there a reason you came out?"

Pulling up her right leg provocatively, Vira narrowed her eyes and teased, "I considered rewarding you for your hard work and quick thinking. Shall I not...?"

"That depends..." replied Cairn, narrowing his own eyes as he asked, "Will I owe you anything in return...?"

"No, but since you're annoying me, I think I'll have you retrieve the reward yourself..." responded Vira, materializing what looked like a sizeable clump of bright red rock candy, placing it between her pale, well-toned thighs as she said, "Your move," with a devilish grin on her face.

Having recognized the clump as a cluster of Experience Crystals, Cairn's left brow twitched. He had learned that red Experience Crystals only gave between 100-1000 Experience each, but there were at least a few dozen in the cluster Vira had concealed between her legs. Thus, after a moment of silent frustration, he rose to his feet, approaching the black-and-white-haired Elder Dwarf before kneeling, reaching between her legs, and taking it from her.

"If you had acted any slower, you might have been able to enjoy a unique flavor," teased Vira.

Ignoring Vira's remark, Cairn used Insight to determine the value of the crystal cluster, his eyes widening ever so slightly when he realized it was worth 4,492 Experience. That was enough to put him just a few hundred Experience short of Level 15, but if he passed it to Kaia, she would reach Level 21 instantly.

Earning a slight frown from Vira, Cairn turned to Kaia, holding out the clump of Experience Crystals as he asked, "Want to try eating this? I'm getting nauseous just thinking about it."

Interjecting before Kaia could respond, Vira asserted, "It's a reward I prepared especially for you. Do you truly intend to give it away right in front of me?"

Snorting, Cairn defiantly retorted, "You really are crazy if you think I'm going to eat something that's been between your legs. My pride is worth a hell of a lot more than 4500 Experience..."

Narrowing her ebon-black eyes, Vira's smile became more prominent as she noted, "The implication being that you 'do' have a price. How much?"

Raising her hand, Vira promptly appended, "Keep in mind that if you're too greedy, my inclination to reward you might disappear entirely. A bit of gall is cute. Too much is annoying."

Crossing his arms, Cairn resisted telling Vira she could take her offer and shove it up her ass. Grinding Experience was much more 'involved' than he imagined, so if he could earn a sizeable amount in one go, enduring a bit of shame was easy. At the very least, it was better than having his eye eaten by rats and his body dissolved in acid...

"50,000..." replied Cairn, observing Vira's expression closely to determine if his offer had been too low or too high.

Exhaling a scoffing chuckle, Vira countered, "Sure, but you'll have to wash me as thoroughly as you do your beloved Elle."

Shaking his head, Cairn asserted, "That statement is too vague, and you know it."

As the magical contract between them obliged Cairn to follow through on his promises, he needed to be careful to avoid being entrapped. Elle often asked him to 'clean her insides' using a very specific part of his body, so if he agreed to Vira's counteroffer as it was, she could compel him to do the same.

Clicking her tongue, Vira remarked, "You're going to slip up one of these days...". Then, after deliberation, she proposed, "Fifty-thousand, but you'll have to fish them out of me using your fingers. A hundred thousand if you use your mouth..."

"Just how pent up are you...?" asked Cairn, staring slackjawed at Vira with a mix of pity and incredulity.

"I'm not," contended Vira, materializing a large crystal that emanated a violet glow on the tip of her right finger. "We simply have a limited time to interact, so I need to impose stressors on you to better understand your character. Even a thousand years is too short a period to understand the 'essence' of a person completely, so I have little choice but to force it out of you under intense pressure..."

Punctuating her statement, Vira spread her legs and pressed the sizeable crystal between her awaiting lips, 'devouring' the violet gemstone, valued at 103,441 Experience, without issue. The sight was enough to give Cairn a half-chub, but while he was willing to wash Vira in the bath, he wasn't at a level where he was prepared to fish Experience Crystals from her pussy with his mouth. Using his fingers wasn't completely out of the question, but Cairn suspected that once they crossed that line, it wouldn't be long before he was fingering her regularly...

Putting Cairn on the spot, Vira shifted her gaze to Kaia, the smile on her face becoming borderline sinister as she questioned, "How about it, Ms. Flagbearer? Would you like to show this fool what true 'conviction' looks like~?"

"Leave her out of this..." warned Cairn. However, as Kaia had also signed a magical contract with her, Vira had no reason to retract her offer. Instead, she doubled down, spreading her legs and leaning back as she mused, "If it's you, I'm certain you'll be very thorough..."

Raising his right fist, Cairn seriously considered punching Vira in her smug face but restrained himself. At the same time, Kaia supplied her response, surprising him by stating, "I will not besmirch the trust Cairn has placed in me. A hundred thousand Experience might be significant at present, but so long as we work hard and continue to support one another, it's only a matter of time before we acquire much more."

Nodding in approval, Vira affirmed, "That's the correct answer," before shifting her gaze to Cairn and teasing, "Though, it is a shame. If you had delayed your response or consented outright, this fool might be eating me out right now..."

"You're so full of shit..." accused Cairn, not buying for a moment that Vira was just 'testing' him. Well, she was, but not in the way she was implying.

"How can you know without checking for yourself~?" asked Vira, exhaling a light chuckle. Then, before Cairn could get too upset, she materialized an indigo-colored Experience Crystal, running her tongue along its length before handing it over and saying, "Enjoy."

Snorting through his nose, Cairn carried the crystal to the nearby pool and thoroughly washed it and the red Experience Crystals. By the time he was finished, Vira was nowhere to be seen while Kaia had made her way over to his side, plopping down and leaning into him as she whispered, "If you stop reacting to her in such an exaggerated fashion, she won't feel as inclined to tease you..."

"..."

Though he was tempted to protest and assert that Vira wasn't simply teasing him, Cairn couldn't deny the possibility it might be true. He still knew very little about the peculiar Elder Dwarf, so there was at least a tiny chance she had good intentions. After all, she usually helped when asked. More pertinently, she had just handed him an Experience Crystal valued at 63,117 Experience...

Staring at the brilliantly glowing crystal, capable of getting him to Level 20, maybe even Level 21, in a single go, Cairn sighed. Consuming it would save them at least a week of grinding in the Den of Greed, but as even his acid bath hadn't upgraded his Fledgling Hero Title, reaching Level 20 in a single could come back to bite him...

Making up his mind, Cairn placed the violet Experience Crystal into his Inventory, stating, "We'll save it for a rainy day—"

Hearing what he had just said, a thought entered Cairn's mind. Though he wasn't beholden to Reine, if he gave her the violet Experience Crystal, it would benefit her tremendously. If he presented it to her daughter, Fleur, the latter's chances of earning a scholarship would increase to 100% in a single go...

Realizing that the incredibly valuable Experience Crystal didn't 'need' to be used by them, Cairn felt as though a burden had been removed from his shoulders. He hadn't decided to gift it to Reine or Fleur, but he would keep the possibility in his mind. A much better use for it would be to give it to a monster with incredible potential, but the most important thing was that he had options. For example, if he gave the crystal to Elle, she could empower his shield or another piece of equipment to Level 34 in a single go...

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After a few hours of rest, Cairn and Kaia resumed their exploration of the Den of Greed, the latter now Level 21 after consuming the cluster of red Experience Crystals.

"I smell smoke and can hear the sounds of people conversing..." revealed Kaia, less than half an hour after they had resumed their journey.

"Can we go around...?" asked Cairn, prompting Kaia to shake her head and assert, "The path just came from was a dead end. Unless we wait for the Dungeon to change, we'll need to pass through the corridor or next to the room they're likely camping in..."

"Well, if they attempt anything, I'll instill in them the fear of picking a fight with someone that can revive endlessly..." murmured Cairn, feeling a little 'desensitized' after his acid bath. He ordinarily tried to avoid trouble, but if trouble found him, his current mentality was something along the line of, 'I wish a bitch would...'

Nodding in affirmation, Kaia took a few minutes to ascertain the number and types of people they would potentially have to fight. From what she could deduce, at least three women and a single man were present. Such an amount was the benchmark for an official Party, but their composition was somewhat unusual. Generally speaking, a four-member Party would have all men, all women, an even split down the middle, or a single female among a group of three men. When the reverse was true, it almost always implied a certain dynamic...

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(A/N: Sounds like it's time for a Riajuu to die...)