The city was remarkable in its ability to return to apparent normalcy after an event like the almost disastrous tide it had just withstood. At least on the surface, I considered, because even I, with all my inability to read social cues, could feel that things were brewing under the surface.
Well, I had help picking up cues. Ted pretty much told me he had big plans, starting with a personal revenge against a certain Chasmer elf I saw loitering about. Also, within the Bonded, some girls were gifted at reading people and things, and most importantly, when we put our minds together, the result was always more than the sum of the singular parts, so even their abilities were improved to almost mind-reading levels.
We could also be very dense when it came to certain things, or so some people said, but whatever. Not important.
There were other matters we were focused on. The strange melody that had begun playing during the tide was back, muted and distant, but it was there. It was one of growth and future, and while it hinted at harmony and a level of connection unfathomably deeper than the Bond as it was right now, it remained frustratingly elusive.
Eve was also silent again, resting after nudging the bond level up to grant us the stats at level-up. It was frustrating because I really wanted to have her here with us, but instead we were all forced to wait without anything that we could do to help her. Vespera was still getting used to her wings, and her new improved looks. I caught her winking at me several times, her darker skin catching the twilight of the city in strange ways, making her look absolutely delicious. The melody in my mind rose with each meaningful look we exchanged, and I realized that she was at the center of what was happening.
I checked the status, and noticed that she was still listed as a normal Demon. That was a clue. She should have evolved, but didn't. Perhaps re-routing all the energy of the last level-up into stats halted the process midway, after she came out of the cocoon. Who knows?
What I know is that I'm going to be shunting energy into her until she evolves.
I knew she could hear my thoughts, as did the others. I expected a joke or something silly, but she just blushed and looked away when I sought her eyes. Silly demon. My demon.
As we walked the streets of Perseverance's End, we were almost grateful when we had finally been summoned to the guild to receive compensation for our contribution during the tide. Suffice to say, money was not going to be a problem anymore. I thought we were loaded before, but now?
"Don't grow too comfortable," Bib said in his usual growl. His eyes held actual respect for me given the recent events, strong enough to overpower whatever might have emerged from our complicated relationship. "You are rich now, but things only get more expensive on the path of adventuring."
"Hah!" Vespera jabbed a finger at him, her mood back to her usual self. "You called it adventuring!"
He frowned for a moment, looking at the other people in the big common room. There were eyes on our backs, but there had been ever since the tide. What was a few more?
"And now," the man said, changing topics. "Here. Welcome to D-rank. You are the hero of the week, Sol Nightguard. You saved a whole block from getting run over, helped repel a whole beast tide, upgraded the walls and let us harvest a lot of rare resources."
"That's it?" I asked.
"What?" he said, laughing. "You expecting a celebration? You stepped on a lot of toes with your stunt. Don't get me wrong, the other workers and I here are very glad you saved our sorry asses. We know the truth. And I can see the look on your face. Where were the truly powerful people? Why did an E-ranker have to step up and save this fucking city? Well. I see a lot of shit where I'm at, and there's a strange air lingering around here, these days. Everyone can feel it. Everyone knows it has to do with you. Workers are getting injured. Chasmers aren't protecting us upper siders anymore. People are leaving in droves. It reminds me of what happened in Twilight's Shadow, makes me wonder if there's a conspiracy going on."
"Bah!" Ted said. We went to find the dwarf at his warehouse after we were done at the guild, and his reaction to our retelling of the recent events left him amused—his default mood. "Don't listen to that worrywart. He'll have proper reason to worry when he finds that letter I had you deliver to him."
"Speaking of," Vespera said. "What was it about?"
She had given it to him when she pretended to jab a finger at him, enjoying the performance even though we could have just… given it to him normally?
"An invitation he will not refuse," the dwarf said with a grin.
"Oh. You are inviting the pretender to the club!" Zery matched his grin. "So that his namesake may not be for naught."
"He's useful," Ted said. "As for you. People saw you pull aspects from your girls. It's unusual but not unheard of. However," he paused. "Couple it with everything else. Your closeness to them."
"People bang their slaves all the time," Vespera argued.
The dwarf gave her the stink eye. "Ya know that's not what I'm referring to. You act cute together. That's something very unusual for a master and his slaves. Especially when they are all eye-catching hot women who all also happen to be very powerful."
He looked at Elyra right there at the end. She shrugged, borrowing confidence and defiance from Vespera as the demon went to literally shield her with her body and grabbed her hand.
"I'm not saying you should stop," the dwarf continued. "Nuts and bolts, with all the waves you are making, you are distracting everyone from me, and my plans are proceeding swiftly! Now the marriage, though?"
He sighed.
"You pull aspects and magic from the girls, unusual but can be overlooked. You are overly familiar with them. Again, unusual but you might just be a smitten poor fool who's gonna get mauled by the girls eventually when they break free. Already we are at two oddities, together. The marriage? There's a reason nobody is doing it anymore. And that's because the marriage is an Oath and Oaths don't work no more around here.
"Well, Ted," I said. "I recall you being all in on the idea of marriage. In fact, it was you who proposed it."
"I fucking am all in, lad," the dwarf said with a smirk. "Coup fuel for me, then you get the fuck out of here in a side quest, and the ripples from your waves help me rise to the top. By the time you return, this city will be ours. Now, the Oath. Something tells me this time it will work just fine. Will it not?"
I nodded. "It will, yes."
The dwarf grumbled. "Do you have the System on your side or what? No. Don't answer that. You do."
He looked at Calla, while I smiled inwardly. If only he knew about Eve. I considered dropping that bomb on him, but refrained from doing so.
"So the marriage will work," Ted said. "In old times, marriage with slaves was more common than you'd think. It was fetishized, even. Guess among who, though? Chasmers! Nobles and the such who could afford to be this idiotic. And even then, it was with one girl max. You are going to do it with four!"
"Five."
We all looked at Calla who broke the silence with her timid voice.
"Okay who's the fifth, lad?" Ted sounded exhausted. "Who is she this time? A god or some shit?"
"More accurate than you'd like, broski," Vespera said.
The dwarf just gaped at her. Frowning at me, he asked: "What did she call me?"
I shook my head and decided that okay, I could have fun with him. "So the new girl is, how do I put it, the local System?"
"You are bullshitting me." Ted deadpanned.
"She's very weak and doesn't manifest out here, yes, but she's in the bond."
"Naw," he insisted. "I don't drink it."
"You better," Vespera teased him.
"Nope. Gonna pretend it ain't real till I see her," Ted said. "I will sleep much better that way. She be tired and weak and not here, now, right? If I don't see her, I can pretend what you said ain't real. Now," he said, demonstrating a staggering ability to overlook what had just been said. "Tell me you ain't planning to announce the girls aren't your slaves at the wedding."
"Uh," I hummed. "Now that you mention it—"
"Good!" he cut me off. "If you didn't think bout it already, then I can convince you to wait. Waves is fine, but too much is too much."
"Chaos is a ladder," Elyra said.
"Lad," Ted grumbled. "I feel like your girls are too irreverent for their own good. Only the demon used to be like that, why are all like that now?"
"Bond bleed-through," I said with a shrug. "Affects me as well."
He huffed. "At least you are aware. Listen. If chaos is a ladder then I at least need the ground to be solid and not be shakin'! How about you wait until you come back for that? The city will be under new more progressive management. And you make your big announcement. Now the Oaths, though. Do they work for you only or have you found a way to restore them for everyone?"
"Just me," I said. Seeing his face, though, I added: "do you have anything in mind?"
"The marriage, of course," Ted said. "Do you have any way to make them work if say, I were to administer them?"
I grinned, thinking about the Three-letter Club induction dinner, when the System asked me if it should enforce Oaths. Now that I had Eve, I could simply ask her to make Oaths work when Ted was around.
"If you have the energy," I said in response.
He grinned back. "Cores aren't a problem for Chasmers."
"Then yes."
"Shiet," he said. "With that, the Chasmers will be at my beck and call in no time. They are quite fond of their stupid traditions. Ah, nothing against marriage, of course. It just ain't for me."
I chuckled. "Alright. Anything else? Info on that trip away you keep trying to sell me?"
"I found that damn ritual you asked me about," the dwarf said. Suddenly, the weight of all our gazes was upon him as we listened in rapt attention. "You know what it's called? The Wandering Wife's Collar." He shook his head. "Sol, are you serious about all this shit?"
I shrugged. "Just gonna have to not call it that, and we'll be fine."
Vespera was licking her lips. "On the contrary, Sol mine." Her eyes glowed red. "I think the name is perfect."
"It is rather apt," Zery confirmed. "It's almost as if Elyra has prepared for it beforehand."
All eyes went to the angel girl's collar, although only we knew what was written inside it. She blushed. "This is Sol's collar. It is special. I hope the ritual will add another, though. Maybe a brand on my skin…"
Ted sighed as her mind clearly went into the gutter. "Whatever. I found a lead, at least, someone who knows someone. It is far from the city, which is exactly where I need you to go, near the sea. There's even a rumor of an Abyss there. Ya know lad, for your Abyssal Dragon? No reason not to go, really."
"Now you have my attention," I said.
"Really? 'cause it didn't look like it," he snickered. "Listen. You are going to need to either go with a merchant caravan or use your newfound wealth to hire a guide who knows the lay of the land. The token will tell you in case there is a flash tide, but you might have less than ten minutes to find suitable shelter."
"Girl guide, no men," Elyra immediately said. "What?" she asked when we all looked at her. "Males are obviously out of the question. Imagine! Surrounded by women as they would be, they might get strange ideas."
"Right," Zery said. "Then we'd have to kill them."
"Slowly," Vespera added, then chuckled. "Break all their bones first. Then step on their balls. Cut off their dicks. If Sol doesn't tear them apart first for having looked at us too hard, that is. It's a crime in his eyes, you see. Very cute."
"Alright," I conceded. "Males are a no-no. Too risky."
"That's right," the demon said. "With girls? The worst that can happen is that they join the harem. Or we have a quickie with them. In fact, why not add a new race and get an elf guide?"
"You're getting far too into this whole thing," I said.
The demon shrugged. "Sol," she said. "Sol mine, my love, my blazing radiant star. Have you perhaps not noticed just how quick you are gathering girls? We have all accepted the fact that you have a magic dick and you will use it. Some of us," she looked at the other girls pointedly. "Even like the idea of you using it on someone outside the bond."
Zery snorted, looking at her. "As if you weren't among them."
Vespera shrugged harder.
"HAHAHAH shit, lad! I got the perfect guide in mind." Ted said, rubbing his hands together. "How about Brigitte Slyzarik? You know, Fredrick Slyzarik's sister? Them waves just never stop coming! Leave it to me lad, I'm gonna put you in touch with her no worries!"
"And he was complaining that we were irreverent?" I muttered, watching his retreating form. "He left us alone in his workshop just to make sure we couldn't argue against hiring Brigitte…"
I paused, and then the expression on Vespera's face registered. She was licking her fangs. I looked at the others, and swallowed. They were perhaps even scarier.
Yeah. Arguing with Ted was never gonna happen anyway.