A soft, warm body shifting against mine drew me from my slumber. My eyes blinked open and I yawned, making to raise my arms up and stretch them out.
Though I only managed the one.
Because the other was being used as a hug pillow by Hestia, both her arms wrapped around it, while her legs were encircled around one of mine.
It was a bit awkward for my body since I was basically a body pillow for her right now, but I'm not complaining.
Especially feeling those huge breasts of hers smothering around my arm. I have no idea how a pair of tits as big as my head, can be so perky, yet so soft at the same time, it should almost be near genetically impossible for natural breasts that large not to sag at all.
Yet, despite their size they stood high, proud, and everlastingly perky on my goddess's chest.
Still, there are no complaints to me, praise be to the divine and all that, I'm quite, no, immensely happy that Hestia is so overly affectionate with me and very clingy in her sleep.
Though I'm glad she hasn't ended up rolling on top of me and waking up. For…specific reasons.
I glanced at my morning wood tenting out my boxers massively, as if I'd crammed a spear down there.
…Perhaps my only complaint really was that with how small our current living space is, I've not really got much privacy unless Hestia is working to crank a few out and take the edge off.
Two days have passed, this would be the third since I took my second trip into the dungeon, and I've managed to jack off only once since then. Between my frequent trips to the dungeon and strolling through the city to get a feel for the layout of it all, I wasn't alone in here much, and while I could do it in the bathroom, Hestia would probably start asking questions if I was in there for too long.
Sometimes, not being a one-pump chump could have its drawbacks.
I gently eased myself out of Hestia's grip and swung myself off the small bed. I was clad only in my boxers.
Thanks to one of the skills I got from the Infant Dragon's magic stone I devoured a few days ago, I could regulate my body temperature as I pleased, so I didn't really need anything to keep me warm.
I poked at my abs.
No pain.
I felt no pain at all actually, despite the fact that I'd been working out quite a bit before bed. I don't have any healing abilities, but with just the base Falna alone, my recovery rate is far superior to what it was before I got it.
Delayed onset muscle soreness from a standard workout, wasn't a thing for me anymore it seemed.
The gains are real.
In just a bit below a week since I got here, my muscles have bulked noticeably and my abs, while slightly noticeable before and decently defined, stood out proudly. I think I've even grown about an inch.
…I wish I could say that was all my own efforts, but while my base physique was pretty great before this, the progress from there was because of my skill.
'Evolving physiology towards a pinnacle body, huh?' I mused, glancing over at the piece of paper sitting on the rickety nightstand beside the bed. It had my latest falna update from last night just before I went to sleep.
Caelan Odhar
Level: 1
Strength: D538
Endurance: D535
Dexterity: D512
Agility: D514
Magic: D522
Skills
Typhon: Rising Monster King. The power to devour the magic stones of monsters, growing stronger from doing so, and gaining the abilities of monsters. Evolving physiology towards the pinnacle of the body. Enhanced teeth. Monstrous combat instinct and the power to break through all limits.
Monster Abilities
Night Vision: The ability to see clearly even in total darkness.
Crystal Armour: The ability to generate crystal armour over the body to enhance durability.
Enhanced Senses: Vastly enhanced eyesight, hearing, and sense of smell.
Flame Breath: The ability to breathe out a torrent of flame from the mouth.
Temperature Control: The ability to raise and lower the body's temperature.
Flame Resistance: A resistance to heat and flame.
Magic Resistance: A resistance to effects of a magical nature.
Magic
In the last two to three days, my stats have practically doubled. It was a stupendously fast growth. I think it took Bell a bit over a week to get stats like this after he got his special skill.
Then again, I've been making over ten pieces of crystal armour and selling them at the guild for ten thousand a pop. I've got one hundred and twenty or so thousand valis right now, but I would have had over three hundred thousand worth if not for the fact that I'd been buying magic crystals of Infant Dragons.
I'd eaten six of them in the last few days, and spent a total of one hundred and eighty thousand valis on them. That made a total of seven Infant Dragons I'd eaten.
And it told me a lot about my skills. Well, a lot that I generally already confirmed from the Crystal Mantis magic stone I'd eaten, but the Infant Dragon ones had highlighted it.
Simply, I didn't get even close to the full strength of the monsters I ate the magic crystals of. One Infant Dragon had the strength of a level two adventurer, and a Crystal Mantis was above even them.
And the higher my stats went, the less I got out of them.
Granted, not that I'm complaining at all, just because there were some limits to my overpowered skill, does not at all mean it's not overpowered.
It's the best skill for sure.
Putting my falna out of mind, I grabbed my clothes from where I left them folded on the couch and got ready for the day.
It was time to hit up the dungeon once again.
So far, I've only gone down as far as the fifth floor, but today I'm going deeper.
There are a bunch of monsters between the sixth and ninth floors with abilities I want to get my hands on. Two specifically have rather powerful abilities that if I can get my hands on…well I'll be jamming.
Just as I finished getting ready, there was a yawn behind me and I heard the smacking of lips together. I looked over to see Hestia rubbing her eyes and giving me a bleary look, "…Caelan are you heading to the dungeon already?" she asked sleepily.
"Aye, while cuddling with you is amazing, today's the day I head a little deeper in the dungeon, there's a few monsters I've been wanting to get my hands on," I replied with a smile.
"Muu, you keep saying you want me all to yourself but you spend more time in the dungeon than with me," Hestia pouted cutely, "Couldn't you just make more crystals, sell them, and then buy the monster magic stones you want to get their abilities like you've been doing with Infant Dragon's?"
"I could, but if I do everything like that while I'll get strong, I'll be a shit fighter without any experience," I pointed out, the dungeon was the best place to test out the practical use of my abilities in combat and get better with them, plus I wanted to save the valis I spent for Infant Dragon ones just for the raw stat upgrades, "And the dungeon is the best place right now for me to make a lot of cash so we can get a sweet place to live in." there is a limit after all to how much crystal armour I can make in a day.
It's made from my mind after all, my magical energy.
Like a place with a swimming pool so I can get Hestia in a bikini.
Her cute pout deepened, "When you're all logical like that I can't argue."
Heh.
"How about once I finish up with the dungeon, we go out later on? I've got plenty of cash for us to enjoy a night out with." I asked.
Hestia blinked before her eyes went wide, "Like a date!?" she asked excitedly.
"If you want, you already know I'm all for it," I grinned at her, "We can make a day out of it, pick out some more clothes and stuff for you."
"Hehe, alrighty then!" Hestia woke up fully and bounced up to her feet on the bed, her large round breasts bouncing and jiggling noticeably, which drew my eyes, "A date it is then! Actually, wait, what about clothes for you?"
"I do need some, which should be easy, I'd rather see you in a bunch of different cute outfits though," I replied with a shrug.
Hestia's eyes followed mine before I managed to pull my eyes away from her breasts and she grinned widely, "Heh, I see I see." She nodded knowingly, crossing her arms under her bust and intentionally pushing her cleavage up.
I pointedly didn't look, it took a great deal of effort and her grin got wider.
"Right, well I'm off then." I coughed. While I'd love to push the issue here with her, I didn't want to force it too much and just let it develop more.
Even though I'd love nothing more than to rail my busty goddess into the bed hard enough to snap it.
"You're so cute Caelan!" Hestia laughed, jumping off the bed, landing on her bare feet easily, and prancing over to look up at me.
Knowing what she wanted, I bent down and Hestia wasted no time in pressing her lips against my cheek, "Good luck today." she chirped as she pulled back, giving me a beaming smile.
Ah, I felt my cheeks heating up. She really was gorgeous. That was a goddess for you.
==================================
Hestia couldn't wipe the smile off her face as Caelan left for the dungeon. What a good child she had, and so cute too!
"Ah, my heart feels all cozy hehe." Hestia cupped her cheeks. A date! A real date with her first child and he wanted to buy her lots of presents.
Not that he hadn't been doing so already. She had a bunch of new books thanks to him to read in her spare time and…
She glanced over at the nightstand where the bell hair ornaments had been left before she went to bed.
He was such a good boy, trying to spoil her all the time now, and was always happy to listen to her talk, or just sit with her when she was reading.
Though he tended to spend a lot of time when he was here exercising. "Hehe, not that I'm complaining." Hestia wiped a bit of drool from her lips.
He always did it shirtless and his muscles were really nice to look at. She'd have to make sure none of those skanks like Aphrodite saw him without a shirt on!
Not that Aphrodite could coax him anyway, for a goddess of love she sure had some pitiful Loki-tier boobs. And she knew Caelan had a thing for big boobs like hers!
He after all could barely keep his eyes off of her breasts, "Kahahaha!" Hestia laughed victoriously, crossing her arms and throwing her head back.
Aphrodite had always been envious of Hestia's bust. She hated her on principle because she was a virgin goddess, alongside Artemis and Athena, but it was made all the worse because each and every single one of the three virgin goddesses from their area up in Tenkai…all had better figures than Aphrodite.
Feh, no wonder she was so proud of that silly little charm ability of hers. She'd never be able to attract a man otherwise hehe!
"Right, enough thinking about that slut," Hestia slapped her cheeks and focused, "I've got a big date with Caelan! I need to go get ready before he comes back from the dungeon!"
He'd be in there for a few hours at least, so it gave her enough time to head to the divine bath house and get nice and squeakily clean.
…And!
She pranced over to the small closet and opened it up, looking over her clothes.
It was pitifully barren, most of her clothing being a few coats, a single formal dress and blouse combo….and!
The best piece of clothing she had, a casual white dress with long sleeves that came down to her thighs had a purple hem and neckline. The neckline is specifically quite plunging.
"Caelan will like this!" she grinned, pumping her fist and pulling it off the hanger.
=====================================
W hen I left the ruined church behind, I didn't head immediately to the dungeon. Rather, I headed to a small out-of-the-way place Hestia had introduced me to the other day.
It was a small run-down building, located behind a general market area. The Blue Pharmacy it was called, a building even smaller than the church I currently lived in and just as decrepit.
The home and base of the Miach familia.
I entered the building, finding myself in a cramped main room lined with old wooden shelves, mostly barren with sparse vials of different potions lining them here and there.
I found Naaza, the only member of the Miach family behind the counter, poring over a small cauldron. The furry brown canine ears atop her head twitched as I entered and she looked over at me, an impassive look on her face, "Ah, Caelan." she greeted simply.
"Yo." I greeted the chienthrope, approaching the counter.
"Can I help you with something?" she asked, bored purple eyes staring straight into my own.
"Yeah, I need to buy some potions, specifically antidotes, let's say five of them and five mind potions while we're at it," I replied.
Naaza blinked and just stared at me for a moment, and it took her a second to get her bearings properly, "Alright." she nodded and turned around, bending over at the waist and reaching into a small storage chest.
I took the time to admire her full backside stretching out the confines of her long blue skirt like a shelf while she was at it, fighting off the grin that threatened to spread across my face as I noted her tail swishing back and forth excitedly.
It was too bad she was in love with Miach who would never return those affections. I definitely wouldn't mind making her lose that impassive look she always had and putting a delirious smile in its place.
A second later, she was done and stood back up, turning around and placing ten vials down on the counter, five of them a light green and the other five a light blue, "The green ones are the antidotes," she informed, while running a hand through her short light brown tresses and giving me a bit of a deeper frown, "Not sure why you would want them, or mind potions. You've only been an adventurer for a week and you're human while poisonous monsters don't start appearing until the seventh floor."
"Which is where I'm going before, and let's just say I'm a little special." I winked at her.
"It usually takes an average adventurer over a year to reach the seventh floor," she replied, voice monotone, "Don't over reach, you'll die, once something is taken down in the dungeon, won't get it back," she warned, eyes briefly flickering to the one long sleeve her top had, over the only hand wearing a glove.
"Don't worry, I won't die," I shrugged, "So how much do I owe you?" I asked.
"Three thousand valis," she replied blankly, not missing a beat.
What a scam. Most potion places sold them for one fifty to two hundred and healing potions for a hundred since they were the most common. And that wasn't taking into account that I know Naaza waters down the potions she makes so she can get more from each cauldron.
Not that I really blame her, what with her familia being massively in debt to the Dian Cecht Familia and Miach always giving out free stuff…and the debt being because she lost her arm and Miach begged Dian Cecht to make her a silver arm to replace the one she lost.
…Dian Cecht who kept adding on to their debt because they were having trouble paying it.
Honestly, without any help, they really were fucked. And not in the good proper way I'd like to give Naaza.
But while I don't blame her, it doesn't mean I won't take advantage of it, "That's way more than most places," I pointed out, "And from the looks of it, these potions are weaker than average, the colours are too light on them."
Naaza froze.
That was all the tell I needed, "A scam huh?" I raised an eyebrow at her, "You don't give off that incompetent feel, so did you water them down then?"
"…Yes…" she admitted, grimacing, showing off the first glance of emotion I'd seen out of her, she sighed in defeat.
"Where's Miach?" I asked, looking around, "He's too kind to scam people like this, so I'm guessing this is all on you."
Now Naaza scowled, "He's out and that's exactly why," she replied, clenching her one normal fist, "We hardly make any money because he's always giving stuff away."
"Which doesn't help your debt at all." I pointed out knowingly.
Her purple eyes widened, "…You know?"
"I heard some people talking about it at the Dian Cecht familia's store," I shrugged, "It's why I decided to come here instead, figured you guys could use the business and our gods are good friends, course I wasn't expecting you to try and scam me."
"…Sorry, but this is one of the few ways I can help make a little extra for us," the dog woman apologized, "If you're unhappy with me that's fine, but please don't tell Lord Miach."
"Hmm, alright," I shrugged before leaning over the counter and grinning at her, "If you do a little thing for me, I'll keep quiet about this."
She stilled, looking at him warily before swallowing heavily, "…What kind of thing?" Naaza asked.
"How about giving me a smile?" I smirked at her, "You've got such a pretty face but it's dragged down by that frown you always have on your face."
Naaza blinked, "…A smile, that's it?" she asked slowly, confused.
But there was a slight dusting of red on her cheeks at my request.
"That's all I want," I confirmed with a nod, my smirk growing, "Beautiful sales clerks are supposed to be eye candy you know, so you can drag in easy idiot guys."
Naaza's cheeks grew ever so slightly redder and she sighed, "…If that's all, fine." she agreed, and her lips quirked up into a smile. It looked good on her.
Her eyes were still blank though.
"Yeah, we'll have to work on that." I snorted, before reaching for my valis pouch and taking out three thousand and placing it on the counter, before gathering up my potions.
Naaza blinked, "…You're still paying for them?" she asked, looking confused.
"They'll do, I'll only really need the antidotes this one time anyway I think," I shrugged, the mind potions were another story for now, "Though, sell me proper ones next time, I don't mind paying the same price."
Her smile returned, a soft genuine thing now and gratitude shone in her purple eyes, "Thank you." she bowed her head lightly.
"…See, now that's a killer smile, get a shop out on the front streets, a smile like that and a bit more revealing clothes and you'd have guys coming in by the bucket loads," I laughed, shaking my head, "But say, let me ask something."
"What?" she asked.
"The drop items for the Purple Moth's and Blue Papillo's, they're worth a decent bit because they have some of their powders in them, right?" I asked.
"Yeah, you can make about twenty antidotes for poison from the amount of powder in a single Purple Moth wing, and you can make around ten or so high potions from the powder of from a Blue Papillo's," Naaza replied and explained, "It's why the guild generally buys the Purple Moth wings for a thousand five hundred each and ten thousand for the Blue Papillo's."
Damn, that was pretty good.
And it could work out well for me.
According to the book my advisor Ron gave me, Purple Moth's were just really big purple moths with large wings about a foot and a half in height. Blue Papilio were basically the same in every way…except being blue in colour.
Going by their sizes, if I can gain their abilities, producing their powders in much greater abundance will be much easier.
"Why do you ask?" Naaza questioned.
"If things go right for me, I'm gonna be in a position to get a ton of their powders," I explained, "How would you feel about making a deal with me?"
Naaza blinked slowly, "…What kind of deal?" she asked.
"A deal that will make that debt of yours a thing of the past," I grinned widely, "It'll take a little bit to get everything ready and you'll need to talk to Miach about it first, but how about you guys work for me?"
I really couldn't care less about the Hestia Knife. I don't really need it. But, it was priceless, worth much more than say…a store in Babel store.
"What do you mean?" Naaza asked, the confused look she was giving him becoming deeper.
"I've got plans for getting a store in Babel Tower, and it'll be selling a bunch of things, one of those will be potions," I explained, "I'll be able to supply tons of powders daily from both Purple Moth's and Blue Papilion's, I'll have you guys work for me to turn them into potions and sell them."
I'll have them selling not only Antidotes and Hi-Potions from the powders I'll be able to make, but also tons of ready-made Crystal Armour. And leave most of the sales up to Hestia and Naaza, get them in some cute outfit, and boom, they alone as salesgirls will draw in the sweaty meat heads all around.
And Miach, I'll put him in some butler outfit and put that bishonen face to good use, make him draw in the females.
"…That's quite big talk, but an enticing offer, depending on the pay," she replied simply.
"Fifty percent of the profits from all the potions." I offered.
Her mouth dropped low and I got to see the usually impassive dog-eared beauty gape at me.
=====================================
It took a while for Naaza to regain her bearings at my offer. After all, what I did offer, was a premium sales location, free access to materials needed for potion creation, and fifty percent profit on the potions themselves.
The amount of valis she would make then would blow what she was making now out of the water and off into the horizon never to be seen again.
I left not long after she went back to normal. She was all for the offer, but needed to run it by Miach first.
And before all that, I needed to see about getting that store in Babel Tower. And I would need to rely on Hestia using her friendship with Hephaestus for that.
That would be something to discuss with her tonight.
For now, though, it was time for me to put into action what prompted me to buy mind potions in the first place.
Once I left the Blue Pharmacy, I made my way through Daedulus Street and down into an empty alleyway.
Once I was there, I stopped and took a deep breath, before focusing. Moments later, thick crystal plate armour formed over my body, not only over my feet and arms like before, but this time, forming into a full set of body armour that covered me from head to toe.
When I finished, I almost toppled over, my head feeling a bit light. 'Nearly hit mind down.' I grimaced.
Despite my magic stat now being in the D-tier, it took pretty much everything I had to form this set of armour.
Exactly why I bought mind potions in the first place.
I popped the face guard on the full crystal helmet open and wasted no time in downing one of the mind potions. It wasn't the nicest tasting out there, almost like a mint that had gone off, but I breathed a sigh of relief as I felt my magic reserves fill back up by nearly a half.
And then I downed another bringing me back to full magical capacity. 'Three left.' I noted.
That should do me well enough.
I grinned as I looked myself over. It was a bit rough, but it looked good. Shiny and impressive looking and would draw many an eye. "Free advertisement, heh." I chuckled.
I was confident and cocky, not stupid.
Any singular monster I come across, won't be a problem for the floors I'm going to. But Killer Ants could be a problem. They could form swarms of hundreds thanks to their pheromone generation ability.
They were known as the rookie killer. They tended to kill more early adventurers than any other monster.
With this armour of mine, even if that many formed, they would have a hell of a time actually damaging me.
"Now let's go have a party." I grinned excitedly and made my way out of the alley, my crystal blue armour gleaming brightly under the shining sunlight as I did.