The first and most important safeguard is MirageLink, a net of satellites orbiting the entire Earth, packed with powerful artifacts tuned together to apply a light suggestion to the minds of the unaware. Courtesy of a very innovative investor and tech enthusiast with lots of money and visions of the future.

  What it means is that those uninvolved will be less likely to notice things like unusual skin colors, textures, body shapes, structures, etc. For example, horns, tails, wings, and so on. Their brain will be encouraged to perceive such things as normal human elements and see them as such, or won’t notice them at all, unless more direct contact is made.

  Thankfully, we are in the XXI century, and this is now much simpler to achieve with things like cosplay, roleplay, and such around. People often convince themselves that whatever they saw is part of a costume, making it much easier for the magic to assure them that they are right.

  That’s not all, of course, but you can learn more on the web now that you have access to the paranormal side of it. Not every mind is weak enough to be susceptible to MirageLink, however, so there are organizations watching over specific communities. They often work with companies like ours to minimize the effects of a slip-up.

  Anyway, I’m already starting to ramble, so I’ll end it here. Thanks for your hard work. You are making my coworkers so jealous with all the bonuses you rain on me, but I ain’t giving you away to no gold digger. Those thots care only about money.

  I wish you luck, and hope we can speak more directly soon. You are on a good way there already.

  Peace!

  P.S. Burn this letter in the Eternal Purgatory just like the previous one.

  P.P.S. Thank you.

  ~ * * * ~

  “That person is going to get themselves fired, if they keep on doing this while knowing it is prohibited.” Aisha chuckled over my shoulder

  “Yeah. Hopefully, it doesn’t come to that. I would miss them.”

  Then, our wrists buzzed, and we knew that the rewards were here. We shared a grin, and I brought my holographic display up before us. Even Rose noticed the excitement and tension in the air, stopping to hover next to my face. Before we dove into the rewards, I passed the letter to Aisha, and she got rid of it the same way as last time.

  ★━━━━━━━━━━★

  Your clear rewards have been fully calculated and approved by your supervisor!

  Thank you for your hard work, Lucas King!

  ★━━━━━━━━━━★

  Congratulations!

  Your dedication to the cause and magnificent performance pleased the management greatly! You have been hereby promoted!

  Position: Intern -> Junior Representative

  ★━━━━━━━━━━★

  Congratulations!

  Finishing the job netted you enough experience to raise your levels!

  Lucas King: Level 9 -> Level 10

  Gained Attribute Points: 7

  Aisha Erlivyre: Level 9 -> Level 10

  Gained Attribute Points: 7

  ★━━━━━━━━━━★

  “I can’t believe we got another double level-up. And congratulations. I’m not sure about the difference between those two positions but a promotion must be good, right?” Aisha smiled at me kindly.

  “I too, technically, don’t know much about them in this company, but I’m now a somewhat verified employee, which is nice. But that also means they are most likely going to throw at us much harder tasks, since we have proven ourselves,” I replied with an appreciative nod.

  “And we are going to breeze through whatever it is, like we always do.” We both chuckled after her comment. “But it doesn’t necessarily mean that all of our future Dungeons will be hard. There’s definitely plenty of smaller ones too. There are more Dungeons than Defenders in all the realms counted in.”

  “Right. Let’s move on to the juicy part. I can’t wait.”

  ★━━━━━━━━━━★

  Clear Reward: 700 D$

  Bonus Objective Reward: 1300 D$

  Perfect Clear Bonus: 350 D$

  Time Remaining Bonus: 120 D$

  Total Currency Earned: 2470 D$

  Current Account Balance: 12143 D$

  ★━━━━━━━━━━★

  “Holy fuck we are rich, hahaha!” I shook my head. “Last time we got like seven hundred in total? This is three times that. Our little swindle earned us quite a haul, too, so the sum is almost breathtaking.”

  “Truly, our Pixie friends keep bringing us gifts. This is really a lot of money. Naturally, it can be gone in a blink, but for someone who is just starting, it’s very inspiring.” Aisha hummed in satisfaction. “What about the non-monetary rewards?”

  “I’m getting there. Don’t rush me.” I chuckled and scrolled down.

  ★━━━━━━━━━━★

  ADDITIONAL REWARDS

  ★━━━━━━━━━━★

  Residence Upgrade Permit x01

  Subordinate Token x01

  Dungeon Shop Discount Coupon -10% OFF x03

  Dungeon Shop Discount Coupon -25% OFF x01

  Lesser Recovery Potion x05

  Lesser Mana Potion x05

  Lesser Energy Potion x05

  Set of Stylized Armor: Woodman Theme x01

  Weapon Type Selection Box: Woodman Theme x01

  ★━━━━━━━━━━★

  “It’s similar to what we got for a perfect clear of the Tutorial Dungeon, but slightly better,” I commented with an exasperated sigh. “But there is a thing or two that makes it worth it.”

  “Subordinate Token, for sure. This one is big. Plus, we got a selection box for a weapon this time. It is still somewhat random, but we should be able to choose between magical, physical, and ranged types, if I’m not wrong. I can’t wait to do gacha again.”

  My lips curled up at the memory of Aisha opening her first loot box. I wasn’t going to miss another opportunity to see her get so excited over such a little thing.

  “We’ll finally be able to get more help. I think we should save those boxes for after we summon a new companion to see if we can pick something good for them.”

  “Right. As long as I get to open them, I can wait.” She winked at me, and I knew she was into it as much as I’d thought.

  “First, there’s one more section. I don’t think there was anything else the last time.”

  ★━━━━━━━━━━★

  TIME OFF

  ★━━━━━━━━━━★

  Clear Rewards: 1 hour

  Bonus Objective Rewards: 3 hours

  Currently Available Time Off: 4 hours 0 minutes 0 seconds

  ★━━━━━━━━━━★

  “Yes!” I pumped my fist and we hit a strong high-five.

  “Finally!” She laughed. “It was so worth it helping the Pixies. One hour feels like nothing but four is good enough.”

  “I still think it’s nothing, but there’s no use complaining. It’s better than zero.”

  “So, is that it, or are there more surprises?” Aisha glanced at me curiously.

  “None. We are officially done with this Dungeon. Well, except for some more scavenging, perhaps, but only if you feel like it.”

  My charming drakan mate sprang to her feet, extending a hand to me.

  “For you, anything. All this excitement is making me buzz with energy. I’ll gladly spend all of it doing some more heavy labor.”

  I accepted her hand and stood up slowly. “Well, we can do that, or…”

  “Or?” Aisha raised a brow at me.

  “The Seed’s corpse should stay there for quite a while, so… What do you say about… celebrating our success with a little outing first?” I asked, getting a little uneasy.

  I knew she was literally my mate and lover, but it still wasn’t easy asking such an amazing woman out. I hadn’t been so giddy inside when inviting my ex-girlfriend anywhere, but something about Aisha just brought my anxiety to the fore. She just had that effect on me.

  But, a dazzling, wide smile appeared on Aisha’s lips right after I had asked, washing away all of my fears and anxiety in an instant.

  “Is that a date?” she hummed charmingly.

  I stepped closer, wrapping my arms around her waist. “You know well it is, so don’t you dare fucking tease me,” I answered with a bright smile of my own.

  Aisha chuckled softly and pecked my lips. “Let me grab a quick shower, then. My kind might be barbaric at their core, but I’m not going to accompany my mate all sweaty and sticky after being asked out so nicely.”

  “Well, then. I think we share the same views on that.” I smirked.

  We quickly jogged to the bathroom and jumped under the hot shower. No mischief, no teasing, we eagerly washed each other from head to toe. Aisha all but shivered with excitement at finally getting the chance to see more of my world. We didn’t waste our time, and I made sure her hair was perfectly cared for too.

  Chapter 33

  Towards a New Beginning

  Drying off, we returned to the bedroom and dressed up. I wore fashionably faded jeans, a gray t-shirt with a military design which I liked a lot, and threw a thin beige jacket over it. It was still warm outside but we were slowly nearing the autumn season so you could never know.

  I wasn’t sure what exactly Aisha had grabbed because all I could see were her denim shorts and one of the black hoodies she had ordered for herself in the past. A black cap rested on her head, with holes in its sides to fit her horns. It certainly wasn’t what you would usually find in any store.

  “Ready?” I asked with a smile as we stood just in front of the door.

  She took a deep breath and nodded. “Let’s go.”

  As my hand moved to the knob, I realized that I didn’t know how to properly convey my intention to go out. But I thought about it really hard before turning the knob, hoping that would be enough. And sure enough, instead of a large cavern, we were greeted by the sight of the stairwell.

  “Ladies first.” I bowed slightly, waving my arm towards the entrance.

  She smirked at me and obliged. Just before I closed the door, Rose bolted outside and we both chuckled. We had almost forgotten about our little friend.

  Aisha kept looking around as we moved down, admiring the modern architecture. Five minutes later, we reached the bottom floor, and I held the door for her again, letting my drakan mate out into my world for the first time.

  A little gasp escaped her lips as she took in what she had previously only seen from above and afar, and perhaps on the Internet too. A few people traversed the sidewalk in either direction and cars zoomed ahead of us in the early evening sun. She didn’t know what to look at, clearly fascinated by all the little things.

  I stood beside Aisha and took a deep breath. This was the first time I’d left my apartment in two weeks or more. Rose floated next to my head. I worried briefly about other people spotting her, but it seemed that no one could even see the pink orb. I chuckled as she whirled around the body of some lady walking past us.

  “This is… quite something,” Aisha breathed with a wide smile. “Dwarven metropolises can’t hold a candle to this monument of… stone and steel?”

  I chuckled a little. “Oh, boy. I can’t wait until you see the city center, then. This is just the suburbs, more or less.”

  “I’ve seen those weird… carriages… a lot from your balcony. How do they move?” she asked a question I had fully anticipated.

  “Those are called cars. They are mechanical devices, perhaps similar to dwarven artifacts or such. There’s an engine inside those weirdly shaped boxes, which makes the wheels turn as fast as the person steering them wants. Of course, proper fuel is required—an easily combustible liquid, in this case,” I explained automobiles as simply as I could.

  “I see. Anyway, not to waste your precious time, what would you like to do? Visit some shops?” She shook her head to clear her thoughts a bit and glanced at me.

  “Oh, no, no way. I’m taking you out to have fun together, not to go shopping. And I don’t care if we waste all of our time doing nothing. I can buy anything from my apartment, so I have no worries about it.” I waved my hand dismissively. “Although… I guess I know a few shops which could be okay for a date…”

  Aisha stepped closer and linked her arm with mine. “I’ll gladly accompany you wherever. I’m sure I’ll have a blast venturing out in this new world, no matter what.”

  “For sure. That doesn’t mean I should be a lazy boyfriend, though. I guess I should have planned something out before stepping beyond the doorstep but I got way too excited. Let’s just grab a ride, and see where we end up.”

  I pulled out my phone and ordered a car through an app. I didn’t have my own vehicle, unfortunately. My office wasn’t that far so I could just commute easily, and some work could still be done remotely. I marked the nearest big mall and some guy picked up the route in a flash.

  Seven minutes later, our chauffeur arrived, and I held the door for Aisha before squeezing into the back of the vehicle with her. The ride was quiet, for the most part, with my lovely girlfriend turning her head in all directions, like a kid at the zoo or a tourist, and that quickly caught the attention of our driver.

  I chuckled lightly after we made eye contact. “Her first time in a big city. Hardly ever left her father’s farm. You would not believe how enclosed some of their communities are. On TV, they only show all those super modern ones financed by the government or some bigshot.”

  The guy cocked his head in understanding as he glanced at Aisha’s rather muscular figure.

  “Ah, yeah, I get it. I had a few customers like that, although much younger. Moving in, or just visiting?”

  “I moved in just recently.” The person in question joined the conversation, pressing herself into my side. “It’s our first proper date together.”

  “Well then, I hope you guys have lots of fun because we are here. T’was a pleasure.”

  He cleared his throat after seeing in the front mirror how Aisha’s ample peaks pressed into my arm as she pecked my cheek, visible even through the material of the hoodie, and I barely held in a snicker.

  Such a tease.

  We got out and I led my drakan mate and Pixie companion into the mall.

  “Woah. This is the biggest enclosed market I’ve ever seen. So many shops.”

  Aisha slowly turned around a few times before walking forward, roaming her gaze over all the glass fronts of the many shopping cubicles. Rose zoomed everywhere, even more excited than my partner. I caught up to my beautiful lady and took her hand in mine.

  “Come on. Let’s find a clothing store you’ll like.”

  “Clothing store? Why? I can buy clothes through your PC.” Aisha’s brow rose in mild confusion.

  “Trust me, it’s way different doing it live even if it lacks half of the features of our improved online version.”

  She nodded, still a little uncertain, and I only hoped that what I had learned from a few dates with my ex, trying to ensure she enjoyed our outings, would at least be somewhat useful. Aisha and my ex weren’t anything like the other, but I figured the odds that she would have fun doing some of the same stuff was decently high.

  We strolled through the mall, gazing into different shops, but most of them displayed all those elaborate dresses or summer-autumn transition phase clothing that all the popular girls wore. I knew well that none of this interested my proud Berserker, but I remembered at least one store which might work.

  And we finally reached the place after another fifteen minutes of walking. My anxiety disappeared the moment Aisha caught sight of the place. With a smile on my lips, I led us inside a shop with plenty of denim, leather, and other tanned hides. Many of the mannequins were dressed in a badass style, like bikers.

  From then on, everything unfolded by itself. Aisha sauntered from section to section, touching and checking the texture of almost everything. I listened to the awed compliments she gave to many cool jackets and coats. The looks the clerks gave us were a little weird, but I only smiled at them wryly, hoping they would let us be. Given Aisha’s reactions, I was sure we would be leaving a bunch of money with them tonight.

  Before we had left the apartment, I’d exchanged some Dungeon Dollars for my world’s currency. Not much, only like two hundred, but that was a whopping twenty grand in Earth money. I wasn't planning to splurge, but I didn't want to worry about prices either. For the first time in my life, I just wanted to have a good time taking my precious person out.

  After like half an hour, we headed to the changing rooms, my arms filled with a bunch of stuff for Aisha to try on. She teasingly invited me into the veiled partition, but I politely declined, saying that I preferred to have her surprise me with a little fashion show. It wasn’t a lie, but I was mostly worried about getting kicked out if we got a bit too frisky in there.

  Various pieces of clothing went through my hands and into the dressing room, until I heard a pleasant hum from behind the curtain. Aisha peeked her head around the edge and smiled at me. When I raised a brow at her, she pushed the material aside in one swoop and revealed her entire figure.

  And man, I had no words.

  She switched her denim shorts for a longer pair of jeans, but artfully cut and torn over her thighs just a little bit. I spotted tiny flashes of her toned legs through the slits. They weren’t overdone, for which I was glad, because I honestly hated clothes that had more holes than material.

  As for her top, she had donned a short-sleeved murky white crop top that hugged her chest and shoulders tightly, leaving part of her toned stomach bare for all to see and admire. A skull logo of some most likely non-existent or even fake biker gang, decorated its surface with a catchy motto and some patterns. That would already be quite the look, but she wore a fitted black leather jacket over it, with a similar motif on the back, just without the text.

  All in all, the smoking hot badass redhead with ferocious horns shot me a proud and fierce smirk. She relished seeing my stunned expression, I could feel it. I couldn’t think of anything more fitting for my drakan mate, except maybe for her armor, which was even more badass.