[DCI] Chapter 79 - The Gathering of Heroes (Patreon)

After getting over the initial shock, I gently drew the ladies back so their heads didn’t poke out of the apartment and slowly closed the door. We could still hear some noise from outside, just extremely muffled. Ignoring that for now, I turned to face my friends and mates, finding their gorgeous eyes all on me.

“That doesn’t look like a Dungeon.” I chuckled wryly. “What now?”

Aisha snorted, a playful smirk curling up her lips. “Maybe not, but we should still explore it, no? In the end, we received an invitation. And that kitty girl wasn’t too surprised to see us staring at her like she’s grown a second pair of ears.”

The same answer could be read on the faces of Shuri and Levia so I nodded.

“Thought so. Just wanted to get your opinion on this.” I clasped my hands together. “Alright. Let’s dress up and see what’s all of this about. We don’t have an entire day. Especially since we’ve already spent quite a bit of it on various activities.”

She set her hands on her delicious hips. “Dress up? In my eyes, we are ready to go.”

Taking a long look over her tight shorts and an immensely strained tank top with two rather noticeable protrusions in the front, I challenged her gaze and tilted my head to the petite Witch.

“Maybe. Maybe not. But at least one person here lacks pants and would greet our new colleagues with a thrilling flash of white the moment we sat down,” I replied, watching as the person in question gained a delicate flush over her light blue cheeks. “Besides, you saw the waitress. We should make ourselves at least a little bit presentable in case the source of all those voices proves to be some high-class restaurant or club.”

Aisha rolled her eyes but offered me a small nod in response. Stepping closer to her, I slid my palm over her soft cheek, the other hand lovingly grazing her magnificent tail as we stared each other in the eyes.

“It’s not my intention to restrict your clothing choice, and I don’t mind if you want to go out looking like the stunner that you are, knowing how much you would enjoy making everyone feel jealous over who gets to be your mate, but let’s first make sure we aren’t going to offend some bigshots from our employer, shall we?” I smiled at the drakan beauty affectionately.

“Fine.” The dazzling Berserker sighed lightly, though I could spot the tiny hints of a pleased grin from the compliment. “Under one condition. I pick the spot for our next date and you won’t say a word about my appearance.”

It felt like a trap. It had to be a trap. But, I didn’t really have much of a choice there.

Okay, maybe I had, but I was equally as curious about what she had in mind as I was having a bad feeling about it.

“Sure.” I shrugged. “As long as you don’t pull out the painted clothes card. I saw you looking at some of those videos. Contrary to what you might think, that’s not normal.”

She actually pouted, confirming that she had at least kept that option in mind. Then, she smiled like the cat who ate the canary.

“You lose some, you win some.” Aisha winked at me. “Give me just a moment and I’ll make myself more appropriate for business meetings.”

With a cheeky peck on my cheek, the draconic lady sauntered over to her dresser. Levia stood on her tiptoes to copy her from the other side, skipping to her own section. Shuri’s eyes wandered between the girls and me with slightly raised brows.

Right. She was still not exactly in the know considering the fact she had been so engrossed in our mineral supplies that she missed us almost breaking the bed from how hard we went on.

I would need to fix that later.

“Would you mind checking with Levia if she can lend you something for now? I’d rather let you order stuff you like or bring you out shopping but I don’t think these two can wait any longer before diving in.” I snickered while glancing after my mates.

“Can do.” The oni princess nodded. “It shouldn’t be a problem since our general figures aren’t that different. Just… It might not work with underwear… As our sizes aren’t as compatible…”

Her glowing amber eyes escaped slightly to the side in a show of faint shyness, but also from catching a peek at the lithe elf woman changing. It was true that their chests differed a little, with the actually shorter scarlet girl being able to boast about her bust a bit more.

“Good you have at least one set given by the System, then,” I pointed out. “It will be the first thing we take care of after coming back from this trip. The ladies will surely be glad to assist you.”

“Thanks.” She showed an appreciative smile, a trace of relief washing over her noble face as she most likely had thought she would need to bring that matter up to me. “I’ll see what we can come up with for today. Worst case scenario, I have my armor. I can pass as your personal bodyguard or something. All important people have at least one, right?”

Chuckling cutely, she jogged after Levia. I wasted no time either and went through my own options. We didn’t know what to exactly expect, so I decided to go with something semi-casual. My black denim pants were there just for moments like these, paired up fairly well with also black shirt adorned by a vertical striped pattern. Tucking the bottom end under the belt and rolling up the sleeves a little finished the overall look that had worked well in the past for both meetings and parties.

As for the ladies, I was pleasantly surprised after turning towards them.

Levia jumped into the same gray skirt and black stockings she had put on during our first outing just earlier, but combined it with a simple white shirt, leaving two top buttons unhooked. She always looked almost effortlessly pretty, no matter what she wore. Not to mention when she wore nothing. Her blue skin and white hair both stood out and complimented the getup extremely well.

Aisha slipped her muscular legs into tight-fitted jeans that clearly emphasized her powerful thighs and majestic ass but joined it with a well-matched plain white t-shirt that only barely displayed the bottom of her chiseled abs past its edge, this time also hiding a bra underneath. On top of that, she threw on a denim jacket the same color as her pants. She looked deadly and breathtaking in anything too.

That left only Shuri, who ended up in smooth dark gray pants and one of Levia’s personal hoodies that hadn’t yet seen the light of the day because their owner preferred to steal her boyfriend’s clothing instead. This one was black without any text or artwork on it. Judging by the small smile on the wearer’s lips, she liked it. Perhaps enough for the article to change owners before the end of the day, giving Levia even more reasons to pilfer my wardrobe.

“Black fits you so well.” My drakan mate whistled wolfishly. “I bet you make a fine Overlord.”

Shaking my head at her, I gestured at the entrance. “You better pray we don’t meet any. Those are not the circles I would like to be recognized by.”

“Should we take our weapons?” Shuri asked.

“I don’t think we have to.” I scratched my head.

“I certainly won’t be able to but you two can just hide yours underneath your clothes, no?” Aisha tilted her head at the shorter girls.

Levia patted the deck holder attached to her belt while Shuri rolled up her sleeve to reveal the thin metal bracer decorating her forearm.

“Let’s do that just in case, then.” I agreed with our Berserker. “Come on. Time to introduce ourselves. If anyone asks, I’m a Commander and you are my recruited units.”

As we walked to the door, Rose zoomed around our heads, stopping over my shoulder. I patted the adorable orb and smiled kindly. There was no reason to leave her behind, of course. She was a member of our little family too and deserved to have some fun with everyone.

Moving past the doorstep, we ended up in the same wooden hallway. Glancing at both sides, we picked the direction where all the noise was coming from. We didn’t have to go that far to reach our destination. Just around the nearby corner, there was an open archway and everything grew louder.

Curiously peeking over its edge, we checked what was going on in this unfamiliar place.

We were met with a considerable hall straight from a fantasy inn or guild. Numerous tables in various shapes and sizes sat atop the rough floorboards, filling up the middle of the chamber, while a few long counters stood at the edges. There were no windows here, only sconces with warm amber crystals and hanging chandeliers full of candles topped with the same gems. Several exits led out of the room, most likely to similar corridors as the one we were in, and I could also spot a few staircases.

Naturally, the decorations and tapestries were set in the recognizable theme of DCI, revolving around blacks and dark greens.

As for the people inside, there were two distinguishable groups.

The first one was the obvious staff. People who stood behind the mentioned counters and who glided between the tables. The former wore butler outfits while the latter strolled in maid costumes like the one we had witnessed on the catgirl. Both positions were filled mostly by elves and beastkin, with the maids being dominated by the more feline species.

The second one was the patrons. In their case, the races were much less limited and we could spot a plethora of known and unknown species hanging around together, though quite a lot of them were humans. You could tell right away that those were the Defenders because their attire and gear varied like nothing else. Some individuals had donned casual clothes from their respective realms while others came in their clearing gear, even full armor in some cases.

Nevertheless, the hall was packed with humanoid entities eating, drinking, and chatting. The counters were split into food, beverages, and entertainment from what I could tell. The shelves behind that last one were stacked with what appeared to be board games, card games, and so on.

All in all, a place one could truly call a Community Hub.

“Looks like we overdressed.” Aisha chuckled next to me. “Can I go back and get my armor so that I can show everyone the beautiful gear you got me?”

“Next time.” I snickered too. “We’ll fit well like this. Let’s see if we can find a free table in this chaos.”

But, before we began looking, Rose suddenly got even more energetic than usual. The speed at which she circled me left an afterglow behind her, making me pause and blink in surprise.

“Rose, girl, what got you so excited? I can’t see anything when you blind me like this.” I laughed and waited for our tiny companion to slow down.

She finally did so and floated up to the high ceiling. That was when we spotted the one thing we had initially missed. Pixies were flying in every direction up there. I wasn’t sure what role they served, but they seemed to move between the employees and the guests from time to time.

Regardless of that detail, the implication was obvious.

“Of course, you can go and greet your friends.” I patted the buzzing orb as it returned to my side. “We’ll wait for you here if we finish first, or you can wait for us by the apartment’s door if you do so and don’t find us here.”

Rose flashed bright pink and bumped into my cheek, zapping me gently in a way that definitely felt like an appreciative peck. She was gone the next moment, lost in the sea of colorful spheres. Hopefully, she would make some friends here. It would do her good to spend some time with her kin after she had gotten separated from the family she had back in the Dungeon where we met.

With that out of the way, we navigated through this maze of tables while trying not to obstruct the job of the diligent waitresses. They proved to be as nimble and agile as their animal features suggested, flashing us cute grins while flowing around us like professional dancers. Some of the girls felt rather mischievous as their tails accidentally brushed against my nose and I barely avoided sneezing multiple times.

Great. It wasn’t even fifteen minutes and I was already being hit on by cheeky catgirls. All most likely because of the two exquisite females pretty much hanging off my arms as we squeezed through.

This must be one of the places where being seen with multiple partners made you look more attractive.

Or that was just the tendency linked to the beastkin.

“Hey! You finally made it here! I was starting to get worried!” 

Speaking of beastkin, a rather recognizable voice reached our ears and we stopped, trying to single it out amidst all the other ones. I frowned in some confusion as my eyes landed on a nearby U-shaped side booth against the back wall. Out there, a feline with full black fur and rather unique silver markings waved at us with a big smile adorning her adorable muzzle.

“Aurora?” My brows rose in surprise.

“Glad you still remember my name.” The Celestial Saber laughed. “Are you guys going to join me or not?”

Exchanging slightly perplexed looks, we made our way to her small table and squeezed into the booth next to the Scavenger, now dressed in a well-kept tunic that didn’t look like she had patched it up from scraps.

“Honestly, I was beginning to think that I might not have been clear enough on intending to celebrate together after the job,” she said with a slightly awkward chuckle. “I’m not the most social person as you might have figured out. But it felt nice working together with you, like I was exactly where I should be and I did exactly what I was supposed to do as my Class. Usually, I’m more of a third party as others take the brunt of it.”

“Really sorry if we made you wait long or something, but frankly, I had no idea we could even meet like this,” I admitted honestly, and I bet my expression mirrored my belief.

“How so?” She frowned a little.

“We were not aware a place like this existed,” Levia joined in, looking around with her calculative gaze. “None of us has ever met with other Defenders outside of Dungeons. Save for rare cases in our homeworlds.”

“What? But that’s…” Aurora’s eyes widened to the brim. “Wait. I’m sorry if this comes out as rude, but what is your position in the guild?”

“Right now? I’m a Senior Representative. Just got promoted and received an invitation to check out this Community Hub or whatever,” I replied, understanding that randomly asking about one’s rank might be a bit improper here.

“Does that mean you were a Junior Representative back then?” The furry girl blinked at me in disbelief and I nodded in confirmation. “No way. I had no idea I was paired up with a total newbie after we worked so well as a team. Not like it should even be possible in the first place.”

“What do you mean?” Aisha glared lightly at the catgirl.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to offend.” Aurora waved her hands apologetically. “I’m an Intermediate Agent, which is two ranks above you. The way it’s supposed to work here, you can only be selected for Emergency Assignments after reaching the position of an Agent, achieving a confirmed track record of being reliable and capable. Anything before that is basically training.”

That was news to me, but honestly, a lot of things were right now. Judging by the looks on my companions’ faces, they had no idea about such a requirement either. Perhaps it was unique to the guild we were working for. Which brought up another question…

“Where exactly is here?” Shuri voiced it out before the rest of us could.

“Ah. Right. Allow me to introduce you to the shared meeting place of all the Defenders under the care of Dungeon Cleaners Inc. called The Community Hub.” Our new friend grinned proudly. “No one knows in which particular realm this building is located, but nobody really cares with it being a safe zone and the mountains outside being just so pretty.”

“All the Defenders?” I raised a brow at her. “Everyone here? Including you?”

“Of course. How else would I be sure to meet you after?” She snorted cutely. “Emergency Assignments are a special case where a wiped-out Dungeon attempt is made available for the guilds to be picked up in exchange for additional rewards. Therefore, you always find yourself shoulder-to-shoulder with a fellow member or members when assigned to one. It would be risky to leave the crisis in the hands of a group of random people the second time.”

“That… kind of makes sense,” Levia commented thoughtfully. “I have never been made aware of such a thing in my previous… Ummm… Employment. And neither have I been part of any gathering spots.”

“From what I know, not every guild has those,” Aurora added. “It’s not exactly cheap and easy to maintain. They use the same principle to transport people here as they use for the Dungeons. That’s a lot of spiritual energy being consumed on a daily basis. Oh, and before I forget, spending time here counts the same as going out in your realm, so I would advise you not to drink yourself to sleep.”

I flicked my wrist to manipulate my watch, and surely, the amount of our Time Off was a tiny bit lower than I remembered. The number was still freshly burned into my memory since we had just seen it increase before receiving the invitation.

“Thanks. That’s an extremely helpful tip.” I smiled gratefully at the catgirl, who looked a tad like she might have offered the last bit out of her own experience. “Now I owe you two mugs of milk. Can I get one with a free meal ticket?”

“You got the Free Community Meal Ticket?!” She raised her voice while slamming the round desk with her furry palms, her ears then flopping down as she looked around in a hurry to check if anyone heard her. “Damn. Those are so rare. But I guess it’s not impossible to get one either for a promotion or an Emergency Assignment.”

“Are they that big of a deal?” Aisha asked curiously.

“Like you wouldn’t believe.” Aurora sighed dreamily. “You can get basically anything and as much of it as you want during a single stay here since the submitted ticket applies until you leave the Hub.”

“Now, that sounds interesting.” My drakan mate grinned wolfishly as she eyed the counters manned by the butlers.

“Well, if not today, then when?” I chuckled quietly. “I say we celebrate our successful clear, lucky promotion, and the making of new wonderful friends with a small feast on me. What do you say, ladies?”

“Count me fucking in.” She licked her lips hungrily. “Can’t promise I won’t bankrupt them if it’s truly an all-you-can-eat buffet.”

“I would not mind trying out a few of the local specialties,” Levia said.

“Now that you mentioned it, I’m suddenly famished. I don’t think I ate anything properly filling since we met,” Shuri pointed out, her stomach releasing a starved rumble as if hailed.

“Me too?” Our feline companion pressed a hand against her chest.

“Order to your heart’s content.” I winked at her. “How does this work?”

“Just bring it out and signal one of the Pixies. They pass messages and take orders,” she instructed me.

Scrolling through the watch again, I found the ticket in my Inventory, alongside the other rewards. For a moment, I wondered how it would work with our packages usually delivered by the mysterious mailman, but this item had an additional button that said Activate. I tapped it and watched a message pop up mirroring what Aurora had said about its use, also wishing us a good meal.

So, I looked up at the highway of rainbowy orbs and tried to politely gesture down with my fingers as if I were signaling a waiter. In an instant, a considerable chunk of the cloud broke off and rushed our way, led by a certain pink sphere. Aurora managed to get out a gasp before they all flooded our booth to the brim, making it feel like we were drowning in a kiddy ball pool.

“Gods!” The black-furred lady giggled in amusement. “I’ve never seen anyone attract this many! It’s usually just one!”

I laughed too as a single sphere zoomed in circles to clear up the air by shooing the crowd off.

“I’m fairly sure it’s that little rascal’s fault.” I pointed a finger at Rose. “This one is mine.”

“Yours?” Aurora tilted her head as we could finally see again, just two Pixies staying behind. “Ah. I thought it was just a temporary summoned familiar or a guide. You have quite a unique pal.”

“Don’t I know it?” I caressed my little pal affectionately. “You start. We’ll follow your lead.”

“Okay.” She turned to face the other, blue Pixie. “I would like a Mega Mug of Yseran’s milk, lightly chilled, with a frosted rim. Then, I want today’s fish special with all the priciest options, followed by a Hammerfish paste from the northern range of the Hoyodou Archipelago alongside baked rolls specifically from the village at its foot.”

Finishing her order in a single breath, the excited cat woman turned to us. Since we had not thought ahead of time about what we would want, and we hadn’t asked for any menus, we just went with things we already knew for the first round. The girls requested dishes from their homelands, and I decided to just try out their local cuisine. Our options were endless so I could always add something from my place if they wished to try it.

Our floating waiter bobbed a few times and took off. Aurora fell back onto the cushioned backrest and wiped off her muzzle, already salivating at the thought of a massive feast. She met my eyes, and I bet she must have blushed a little under all that fur as an embarrassed smile curled up her lips.

“I still can’t believe you have been given that Assignment with your position. No offense. It was a quite close one so I expected another Intermediate, or even an Advanced Agent as my pair.” She attempted to make some small talk while we waited for our meal.

“Lucas is just that special.” A smooth, silvery voice suddenly joined in and we all turned to the open edge of the booth.

At that moment, we become aware of the eerie stillness and silence filling the previously boisterous lounge, all the attention unexpectedly on us.

Or the person standing in front of our seats.

We were met with a human woman of a light carnation and beautiful shoulder-long blond hair woven to the back and tied up into a short low ponytail, save for two thin bangs framing her face. She wore a perfectly fitted black suit clearly designed for the female form as it hugged her body incredibly well while retaining a professional image. It bore the same emerald details as the outfits of the staff but felt like a step or a few higher than those. Especially with the exquisite green tie, elegant black leather gloves, and fairly unique sunglasses in the form of a long thin rectangular visor with just a single triangular notch for the wearer’s nose, completely opaque and set pretty much against their skin.

And, on the side of her fair chest, she had a neat silver nameplate.

Which, in bright green letters, read Justitia.

★━━━━━━━━━━━━Author's Notes━━━━━━━━━━━━★

Here are some refs regarding the suit (One, Two, Three), and the glasses if someone didn't get the reference, just slightly altered (John B.)