Chapter 76 — Bloodscar Temptress · Penny
The setting sun spilled across the dunes of Zul'Farrak, carrying waves of heat and dry desert wind. A five-man party advanced deeper into the dungeon.
Ethan: Priest (Healer)
Sheldon: Night Elf Rogue
Leonard: Dwarf Warrior (Main Tank)
Raj: Elf Hunter (Pet: Owl "Little Curry")
Howard: Gnome Mage
At the very heart of the instance, inside the grand temple, the one waiting for them was Zul'Farrak's final boss—
Bloodscar Temptress · Penny.
---
The five cautiously approached the hall.
When Penny's figure finally appeared, everyone froze for a moment.
She stood at the center with her arms folded, smiling. Her lazy voice carried a dangerous charm.
"Welcome to my lair.
The sands of Zul'Farrak will not remember your names…
But I will remember every handsome face."
Howard's eyes instantly went wide, his gnome body leaning forward slightly.
"That outfit is incredible!
This boss has to drop a transmog piece, right? I must get that chest armor!"
Raj opened his mouth, but faced with such a beautiful boss, he still couldn't make a sound. He only nervously stroked the owl perched beside him.
Sheldon spoke up calmly.
"Just a reminder—her equipment clearly boosts Spirit attributes. Bosses of this type usually possess powerful charm or mind-control abilities.
I recommend shifting your attention from 'loot' to 'survival.' After all, your armor rating is roughly comparable to parchment."
Leonard raised his shield.
"Enough chatting! Let's go, guys!"
---
The battle began.
Leonard held aggro steadily.
Ethan focused on healing.
Sheldon landed precise backstabs.
Howard spammed Frostbolt casts.
Raj fired arrows from a distance.
The boss's health dropped quickly, and everyone relaxed.
Howard kept casting while bragging loudly.
"How many times have I said it? Mages are Blizzard's favorite class! Damage, crowd control, sustain—we've got everything! I'm the peak of this team!"
Sheldon poured cold water on the excitement.
"Do not celebrate prematurely. The boss has not entered Phase Two."
Ethan nodded.
"Right. She hasn't used any charm-type skills yet…"
---
When the boss's health dropped to 50%, Penny crooked her finger.
"Little tank… I'm quite interested in you."
[Charm Kiss] activated.
Pink hearts appeared above Leonard's head. His eyes went blank.
He raised his shield and stood protectively in front of Penny like a knight guarding a queen.
"I… must protect her… she is my queen…"
Ethan shouted in shock.
"Wait—Leonard's charmed?! Break the control!"
Sheldon analyzed immediately.
"This is not a standard stun or curse. It is a high-level mental control effect. It cannot be dispelled."
Howard panicked.
"Then what's he going to do?!"
The next second Leonard turned around and attacked his teammates.
"For the Queen—die!"
Sheldon, who stood closest, was cut down instantly. Even as his health bar emptied, he was still analyzing.
"As expected… charm prioritizes the target with the lowest mental resistance… predictable… however—"
"I am now dead."
---
Howard was smashed away by Leonard's shield.
"AHHH! Why wasn't I the one who got charmed?! Why not me?!"
Raj tried to retreat but Leonard charged straight into him. Little Curry bravely swooped in to block the attack—only to be swatted out of existence in a single hit.
Raj held Little Curry's body, eyes red, saying nothing as tears streamed silently down his face.
Ethan desperately spammed heals, but his teammates were dying faster than he could cast.
Howard shouted from the ground:
"Ethan stop trying—we're wiping! I'll cast Frost Nova to hold him—run!"
Before he finished speaking, Leonard casually chopped him down.
The gnome's body landed flat on the ground, limbs pointing straight upward.
Howard wailed:
"This makes no sense! How does a charmed tank deal more DPS than me?!"
---
In the end, everyone except the charmed Leonard fell.
Only Ethan remained alive.
Penny slowly approached him, a victorious smile on her lips.
"What a resilient priest.
You're not the first one to stand here… but you are the only one who happens to be so much to my taste."
Ethan gripped his staff, breathing hard.
"I… won't surrender."
Penny gently touched his face, magical light flickering at her fingertips.
"But you're the only one left.
Life, sometimes, is not about resistance… but about choosing."
Ethan gritted his teeth.
"What choice?"
Penny smiled and leaned close, whispering in his ear.
"Serve me."
The air fell silent for three seconds.
Then Ethan roared:
"I refu—"
Before he could finish, Penny unleashed her ultimate skill:
[Forced Recruitment].
Ethan's body lost its strength, though his mind remained conscious. Penny lifted his chin and looked into his eyes.
"My domain has no need for priests.
What I need… are followers."
"And someone to keep me company when I'm bored."
She leaned closer, her voice warm with teasing, almost burning with flirtation.
"So you want to defeat me and take my equipment?
Why go through all that trouble?
Follow me instead—"
Her lips curved into a slow smile.
"You could lie on purple velvet cushions every day.
Eat well. Sleep well. No grinding quests, no waiting for dungeon queues.
And whenever you want…
you can take off my equipment yourself."
Ethan stared at her in disbelief.
"Y-you—this is forced sponsorship! I want to resurrect my teammates!"
Penny gently lifted his chin.
"You only need to worry about me here.
I'll give you the best room, the best bed…
and the most gentle master."
Ethan was dragged deeper into the boss chamber.
Behind him, the massive gates slammed shut with a thunderous boom.
Only his desperate scream echoed through the hall.
"LET ME OUT!! I don't want to be a male consort! I want freedom! I want to run dungeons!!!"
---
"Ethan, you're sitting in my spot."
Ethan jolted upright from the "throne of the great hall," hair disheveled, collar crooked, arms still flailing as if trying to escape something.
There were no desert dunes.
No purple velvet carpets.
And certainly no Final Boss Penny.
Only the living room.
The couch.
And Sheldon's serious face staring at him.
Ethan froze for three full seconds.
"…Did I just have a dream?"
Sheldon repeated calmly,
"Ethan, you are sitting in my spot. This is the second reminder. According to clause three of the roommate agreement—"
"Oh. Right, right." Ethan slid over groggily and rubbed his face. "What time is it, Sheldon?"
Sheldon glanced at the clock.
"Six thirty-six."
Ethan blinked.
"I slept the entire day?"
Leonard, wearing pajamas and holding a mug of coffee, poked his head out from the kitchen.
"No. It's six thirty in the morning. You fell asleep on the couch last night?"
Seeing Leonard, Ethan suddenly felt an inexplicable wave of resentment.
It's you, you little dwarf. Weak willpower. Got charmed by Penny and wiped the whole team.
Meanwhile Sheldon was still complaining.
"You not only occupied my seat, but also disrupted the temperature equilibrium of the sofa cushion. More importantly, my cereal has now exceeded the gelatinization threshold due to excessive waiting time."
He held up his bowl.
Inside was a sticky, mushy mass.
"Okay Sheldon, I've moved. You can sit again."
"Yes, but this bowl of cereal is beyond saving now," Sheldon said gravely. "The molecular structure of the milk and oats has bonded excessively. It has lost its proper texture. What I now possess is… cereal paste."
Ethan shrugged.
"Then make another bowl. And while you're at it, make one for me too. Thanks."
Sheldon glared at him.
"Do you realize this means I must remeasure the cereal-to-milk ratio, recalibrate the soaking time, and—due to your sudden request—extend my process by an additional three to four minutes?"
Still, he carried the bowl back to the kitchen, muttering:
"…which is still preferable to consuming gelatinized carbohydrates."
Leonard sat on the other end of the couch and asked curiously,
"Why did you sleep on the couch? Where's Penny?"
Ethan rubbed his eyes.
"She's sleeping in my room."
Leonard frowned.
"I know that—but I already offered her my room yesterday. She insisted on sleeping on the couch. Why didn't she insist when it was your room?"
Ethan replied automatically,
"I have no idea, Leonard. Maybe it's because my willpower is strong enough not to be charmed by a single glance from her."
Leonard blinked.
"…What charm?"
Only then did Ethan realize he had mixed up the dream and reality.
"Nothing. Forget I said anything."
Just then, Penny's voice exploded from the hallway.
"Why are you guys all awake so early?!"
She shuffled into the living room wearing slippers, her blonde hair messy, eyes half-closed with sleep. She yawned widely.
"Morning, everyone… huh? Why are you all staring at me?"
Sheldon poked his head out of the kitchen and immediately delivered the question.
"Hi, Penny. Leonard has a question—why did you choose to sleep in Ethan's room last night instead of his?"
Ethan & Leonard: "…???"