"I want... I want to show you something," Dowmy says to the soldiers guarding the core room's doors. The imp offers a smile, interlocks her hands near her chest, and shows the biggest, most tender eyes her facial features will allow. She follows the instructions given by Jimbo.
"You look different..." one of the soldiers comments, unable to decide exactly what is weird about the imp. Until now, he hadn't paid her much attention; low-level demons like Dowmy are despised and usually go unnoticed until they commit some evil deed or prank.
"What do you want to show us, little devil?" the second soldier asks.
"The crystal wants to give you a... gift."
The soldiers exchange glances. Dowmy continues speaking:
"The crystal knows that you fought valiantly against the dark elves, and that you now work hard to protect it. The crystal is grateful. The crystal is good."
The soldiers exchange glances again. They aren't there to safeguard the core, but to warn in case they notice any dangerous signs, or to arrest the curious who want to know what is kept in the basement. But for the moment, the guards decide to play along with Dowmy; they ask what exactly the gift is, and the imp points to the doors behind the soldiers.
The men frown and mutter words of suspicion. One of them reaches out and opens the door. Immediately, heat and vapor escape into the laboratory.
The soldiers stare slack-jawed at the hot springs that now occupy the place of the core room. They were about to turn around and run to sound the alarm, but Jimbo beats them to it and summons the beings he had prepared.
It took him a lot of tedium and many hours to gather the necessary ether to begin his plan. But it wasn't dead time; Jimbo took advantage of it to study the summoning catalog and discover exactly what he can bring forth. He found out that, just like with the objects, he has a series of 3D models, and what's better: if he concentrates, he can change the shapes of the summons, just like he modifies and designs battle units in Kard10k.
Jimbo has no talent for modeling 3D figures; when he competed in Kard10k, he preferred barking instructions at the AIs to get more or less what he wanted. But now he no longer has AIs. The good thing is that he can modify the appearance of the summons with his thoughts.
He can't turn the caveman into a six-meter-tall giant, but he can change their gender, enlarge certain parts, and shrink others. There are traits that resist him and are impossible to replace, for example, the bulkiness of the muscles, the roughness of the face, or the primitiveness of the clothes. Age limitations, Jim assumes.
Jimbo feels a knot in his non-existent stomach. If the soldiers don't fall for the charms of his creation, or if by chance one of them is gay, his plan could fail and even hasten his predicted end.
He crosses his ethereal fingers and summons.
As the guards prepare to run and alert their comrades, they find two women of peculiar but enchanting appearance, their generous flesh covered by scant pelts of mysterious beasts. The men hesitate, especially when the women grab them by the arm and pull them into the vapor. They stand dazed, not understanding what is happening. Dowmy follows behind and tries to bring some clarity.
"This water is special. It will relax your tired muscles and eliminate stress. Like I said, the crystal is good, it's generous. There is nothing better than the crystal, yes."
«The skin, Dowmy. Don't forget the skin.»
"Huh, it's also excellent for the skin, yes. You will rejuvenate!"
Within a minute, the men are already in the water, leaning back with their arms outstretched on the edge of the shore, enjoying the water's massage and the rustic but attentive hands of the beautiful women with their eyes closed.
Jimbo maintains a wide smile, not directed at the scene, but at his status screen. He nods slowly as he watches the ether points adding up one after another.
Using Dowmy as a messenger, Jimbo asked them to keep the existence of the hot springs away from the king's ears. The excuse he gave was that the place is unfinished, but he granted the guards the possibility of inviting their friends.
In less than three hours, all the squads in the castle were aware of the existence of beautiful women and miraculous waters in the basement.
With the ether obtained, Jimbo created a second and third area, connecting them using cavernous tunnels to the main chamber. He was even able to inject more ether than necessary into his green area, so the plants would grow faster. The first fruit to appear was the mango, perhaps because deep down Jimbo longed to eat one. But since he couldn't, he settled for offering it to the soldiers. At first, the guards hesitated, but after taking the first bite and being surprised by the sweetness, they gladly accepted all the fruit that came after.
Tasty food is a source of happiness, and happiness for Jim is a source of ether.
Jimbo was determined to level up, and everything pointed to him achieving it in a few days. But then Arrax's disciple appeared, who, after peeking through the doors, fled as if she had seen a ghost.
«Uh oh. This is going to get complicated.»
Just in case, Jimbo sent Dowmy to gather more mangoes and have them ready to sweeten up whoever showed up looking for trouble.
Dowmy hands a linen cloth to Lynel so he can dry himself off. The captain is sitting on the stone bench, unable to raise his head out of the shame caused by being subdued by the beauty of some strangers. Hilda remained serious, glaring at Dowmy with her only eye. The imp tries to communicate, amid stammers, Jimbo's words.
"There are male cavemen too."
"That is not the problem!" Hilda explodes, leaving no room for jokes. Although Jimbo was completely serious about the males.
"The master just wanted to help," Dowmy says, speaking of her own volition.
"And how would something like this help my troops?!"
«For crying out loud, those guys were exhausted. I'm trying to boost these people's morale! Not everything has to be training and patrolling!»
In reality, what Jimbo was trying to do was flood himself with ether. But if he can satiate his greed and help people, it's a two-for-one. Dowmy transmits the words, though without the same intensity as Jim. Upon hearing the argument, Hilda's face softens slightly, though her lips remain curved downwards in a displeased grimace.
The shame in Lynel dies down enough to allow him to look up and speak.
"The Dungeon Core is right. Our soldiers are very tense because of what happened; we all are. But even so, he should have asked before bringing... these young ladies."
"And above all, ask before modifying the castle's basement!" Hilda says, and Lynel nods in agreement with her.
Jimbo rolls his eyes.
«Oh, please. Would you seriously have let me do all this if I had asked?»
Dowmy blurts out the question. Hilda and Lynel exchange glances; Lynel offers a bitter smile.
"Possibly... No."
"Obviously not, and for serious reasons," Hilda says. "The king must be notified. Go return these women to wherever you got them from."
Jimbo urges Dowmy to proceed with the next step they discussed to convince the captains. The imp steps in the middle, preventing Hilda from leaving the hot springs area. The woman shoots the girl an unfriendly look.
"There is another place... Another place the crystal wants you to see."
It is evident that relaxation is not a language Hilda speaks. But a challenge...
A challenge might convince her.