Chapter 21: Chapter 17: Another Day Another Dollar

Day 9(38) - Morning

Fort Matthew - Royal Residence

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♪D, G, A, C, G, A♪

♫The first time I met Alicia. Yes she took us to a boudoir show, and I could have sworn I saw her reaching. Dark movements in a dark red glow…♫

Yep, I'm playing again this morning. There's even more ladies watching from the condo. And I'm even more naked! Well, no, not really. You can only get so nude. More like same naked. 

♪D, D, E, D, D, E♪

♫It’s my skinny jeans, with my chuck t’s on. It’s those ruby red lips, and that black lace thong. When the police hem me up, and I ain’t done no wrong…♫

Hadn't planned to wake up early today. Wanted to sleep in. But Chen decided to make up for yesterday so started early early. And, again, that's not a wake up call you can really sleep through. Nor would you want to.

♪E, E, E, E, A, A♪

♫Well I’m packing up my game and I’m a head out west. Where real women come equipped with scripts and fake breasts. Find a nest in the hills…♫

Damn, feel like I could rock all day.

“Master?” A sultry voice from inside. “Your bath is ready.♡”

And that’s all, folks.

“Good morning!” Point at the condo and smile. “Oh, and in case I don’t see ya! Good afternoon, good evening, and good night!”

Strut back into the bedroom with seventeen ladies, also in the buff, spread across it. Most still passed the fuck out. Seventeen? Yep, the Heartbreaker six, Carly, two Minutewomen, four Club debutantes, and then four new recruits from the Commune.

The Commune was created for women by women. Occupying a system purchased apartment building. I'm not even welcome there. Though I've buzzed the place with thopters a few times. Just to make sure they're safe, of course. 

Was kind of hoping, and still am hoping, for the Club girls to be a cum and go. But the debutantes were acting pretty committed by the end. Well, more like, by the time I finished with their ends. Kind of blew my mind that all four were virgins.

Oh they've had training. According to Ely there's even classes. But the hymen is preserved. Still it does make the whole virgin thing seem less, uh, virginal. 

I understand that sex helps keep me grounded. Invested. And if not for all the fucking? Might have turned myself into a lich ages ago. Not stopping until I became an omnipotent undead god.

So I'll keep fillin the willin. Because fuckin does the body good. And finding diamonds in the rough I really connect with? Like Ce. Puts a pep in my step.

• [ Mana: 38,267/50,000 ]

Speaking of pep. The reverse gangback last night burned up a lot of mana. Checking the numbers, I'm still injecting around 100 mana per load. Plus it takes around 25 mana in skills to maximize the intensity and release of their orgasms.

And since they cum a lot more than me? Carnalist hanky panky can be a real magic gas guzzler.

Last night, each of the girls got around 500 mana from me and I spent another 500ish getting as much as possible out of them.

But since what I got back was just a fraction of that? Even with multipliers like interest, humiliation, domination, and others? Without the endorphins, oxytocin, serotonin and prolactin I also get. Low rankers wouldn't be worth fucking.

Which wouldn't be an issue if the regeneration rate was better. Only a thousand per hour? And only runs when I'm not using mana? What the hell? Was a couple times that in steam land.

Had done some experiments with Nina, Ce and Lez figuring out Carnalist. It's basically this system's version of dual-cultivation. 

A passive that gets her body to squirt mana when she orgasms during sex. Another passive that makes me do the same. How much they give is a percentage based on mana cap and rank difference. Same for me but the modifiers are lower. A lot lower. Like 0.2%. While I may get up to 10%. 

Afterwards we start digesting each other's magic fuel. An automatic process. For me it's pretty quick. For them it can take hours.

Now there is some danger. Yes, my skills set up intense orgasms. But I'm also squeezing them dry at the same time. In just ten squirts she might reach mana exhaustion and fall unconscious.

Since all active class skills, including spells, need mana? The more magic centric classes, like sorceress, can be vulnerable for some time afterwards.

Hmm… maybe I should start a schedule? Or have Ce create one? I usually leave harem management to the haremites. Since I have other issues to deal with.

*splash* *rub*

"Does this feel good, master?♡"

Nipples, nature's loofah.

"Oh yeah, it feels great Ce."

Like the "Land Grab." If my calculations are correct? In nineteen days Phase 4 begins and Earth will be invaded. No, not by monsters this time. Aliens. 

Now, I'm not saying they'll be aliens. But they'll be aliens. 

Elves, beastkin, demonkin, lizardman, mermen, non-Earth humans, lions and tigers and bears, oh my!

In seventeen days the next dungeon break should happen. Unleashing the C-grade monsters. Starting a new wave of monster vs monster and monster vs human battles. Then two days after that, aliens will emerge from the portals. Tens to hundreds strong. Depending on their ranks.

The system auctions off “early access” passes to new integrations. Since the starter dungeons are still pumping out mana, leveling and looting are both a lot better here than on most worlds. How much they pump out will continue to drop though. Until they switch to eating mana in Phase 6.

So Phase 4 presents a limited window of opportunity that the most aggressive and ambitious groups will be keen to take advantage of. According to birdbrain they’ll enter through unowned, usually remote, dungeon portals. Dominate and purchase some land. Then found a system community.

At the same time they’ll be going buck wild attacking everything. Dungeons, monsters, natives, other aliens, even each other. For eight weeks they can pretty much do whatever the fuck they want too. Though there are a couple of conditions.

First, it's a one way trip. They can’t leave until the integration is complete. Permitting interplanetary portals. Second, they cannot bring any money with them nor sell anything they bring on the system store. So have to raise all the scrips and chits they need after they get here.

Now some are sneaky and trade what they brought to the natives. Then sell what they get back, to the system store. Most don’t bother though. The invaders are almost always a lot stronger than the still adjusting locals. So it's easier to just plunder settlements and enslave the survivors.

Fortunately only a limited number of passes are offered. So enough natives survive to rebuild their species. Usually. And the Phase 5 Land Grab is more for actual settlers. So they tend to be less… genocidal.

Nineteen days.

Carlton Heights is running but their output is small. Hundred-ish small arms a day. Few thousand rounds. Their focus now is prototyping heavy weapons anyway.

Damn, my onhand inventory is down to two hundred guns. Most of them being 20s and 30s. At least the tower replacement with 30 cal Badger LMGs is on track. They will give the wall teeth again.

Arsenal should begin production tomorrow. Day after at the latest. Within a week the factory should ramp up to a thousand-ish small arms a day and tens of thousands of rounds. Half of its output reserved for the new army.

As long as the recycler and smelter can keep it supplied with enough materials that is. A whole lot of scavenge, salvage and scrap quests have been added to the guild and hall. Same with actual mining quests.

Ugh. So I might not even have ten thousand small arms by Phase 4? It will have to do I guess.

Graybeard scrambled and was able to get his people to the arsenal in time for my training and machinery installation.

The Club seems to be going all in. Jeremiah expects to register a factory in Fort Matthew within a week. Opening a couple more in other enclaves within two weeks. Maybe more after that. This will put a few more thousand in circulation by Phase 4. The downside being I won't control who gets them.

Need to buff the dungeon's perimeter. Just in case. Aliens are not supposed to be able to use "owned" dungeons to invade. But catwoman's existence makes me think there's a loophole. And she still refuses to say how she got here.

"Master… you look so handsome.♡"

Adjust my tie. "Thank you, Ce, you look beautiful." Blush. "Shall we go?"

My seductive pryo isn't dressed in body armor today. Nor her adventuring gear. Instead she's wearing a green skirt suit with black gloves and high heel boots.

She's even carrying a purse! With a 30 cal pistol and magic wand in it but still. And then there's the dagger in one boot and wand in the other. Still they are all out of sight.

It's a very mature professional look for the 23 year old. At 5'8" she's tall for a woman. Though well under my 6'1".

Ce really, really, wanted a date day. And since today is her day off anyway. I said yes. Of course I still got a bunch to do. I'll just go out and take her with me!

The four debutantes are up but still a bit loopy. Getting their cherry popped and a massive mana injection in the same night? Their brains could still be misfiring. All four asked to leave.

Hooray.

All four also asked to come back.

Sigh.

Jet took the four Commune recruits to train downstairs. Carly, Bry and Lez went to visit family and friends. So it's me, Ce, Kas, Chen, Ali and Ema walking down Matthew Pl. The last four armored up of course.

We hang a right onto Cropsey. Passing the always busy public kitchen on our left. Then a right down 14¾ Ave. power plant, water treatment, and… here.

• [ Purchase Facilities… ]
• [ Refinery I ]

The ground trembles a little as a shadowy box drops in and expands until it covers over 300,000 square feet. 330 x 110 yards. Twenty four hours from now we’ll have a plant that, well, refines stuff.

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Like mana stones.

“Master?” Ce looks curious.

“It's a refinery. There is a lot you can do with mana stone.” Squeeze her hand. “But to get the most out of it? You need to refine it first. That will happen here.”

Tilts her head. “Mana stone?”

“Yep.” Nods. “When enough mana binds with rock it turns into mana stone.” Shrug. “Not a very imaginative name but it's accurate.” Point north. “Most dungeons have veins of it. Ours does too.”

“In the dungeon?” Kas asks.

“Uh-huh. You can process anything that enough mana has bonded with naturally. Even monster cores.” The cores that have been growing in humans too. But I'm not touching that topic with a ten foot pole. “Mana stone, called Orgon, is just a lot easier to mine commercially. Refining it into a solid, liquid, gas, or even plasma. Replacing other fuels. Like coal, oil, etc…”

“We could have cars again?!” Ema, who still has a picture of a convertible as her phone's home screen, catches on first.

Nod. “It will take time since they’ll use different engines but… yes.”

“I love you!” Ema is staring at me like a carnivore at a porterhouse steak.

Another product I started developing on steam planet. [Manoline], hey, I think it sounds good. Was going to power a new generation of vehicles with it.

Yeah, steam land has old, really old, timey cars. They're just all steam powered.

[Barton Manoline] was going to be a revolution for power generation. Whether car, airship, or even power plant. Was just waiting for the right time to introduce it. When the last ingredient I needed for the reverse summoning ritual suddenly appeared. 

Yeah, suspect a goddess was fucking with things but I'm not one to look a gift horse in the mouth.

…

Yes, I came up with the name. I think it sounds cool. Thbbbt!

Guess I'll just be introducing it, like the magearm automatics, on Earth first too.

"Um, is this all we needed to do?" Asks bashfully. Holy shit, Ce can be so damn cute.

*chu*

Pull her in and give her a quick kiss. “Sorry love, have a few more places to go.” Grab my lady’s hand and turn north.

…

*burble*

“Place room here.” The fish face speaks in guppy, but I also hear english, and points at a wall. “Ten meters by ten meters. Pick ‘Dentist’ room class.”

• [ Purchased Facilities… ]
• [ Clinic II… ]
• [ Add… ]
• [ Room… ]
• [ Standard 10x10… ]
• [ Dentist ]

Now if this was the exterior wall of a Clinic I? I would get an error. It’s pretty automated. The system will even shift any relevant windows. Yes that means two windows can appear flat from the outside but be at ninety degrees from the inside.

More messing with that inner ear.

…

“You’re creating an army from scratch!” Dude, breath mint. “So I need more room to train them!”

I’m being yelled at, by an orc. A seven foot tall wall of green muscle with tusks in what looks an awful lot like a drill sergeant’s uniform. One that's worn for all occasions. Everything from marching to etiquette to bludgeoning ogres to death with his bare hands.

And he speaks english just fine. If with a distinct smashing boulders together accent. He’s probably from Philly.

Wipe a bit of spittle from my suit. “How’s recruiting going?”

“Bah! Only two hundred.” Grumbling? But that sounds great for only a couple of days. “Tch! What is wrong with you Earthlings? Getting trained and even paid to kill things? Paid!” Hands on hips and shakes his head. “Would be thousands lined up on a proper world!”

Sigh.

• [ Purchase Facilities… ]
• [ Upgrade Barracks I > II ]

…

“Mi amigos! This new apartment building has units for three hundred familias!” The most interesting man in the world hands me oversized scissors. Where the hell did they find these? “Your majesty, please open these homes for your gente.”

*snip*

“Thank you, Mr Romano. Your Housing Department is making good progress.” Turn to the applauding crowd. “We have a long road ahead but humanity will keep moving forward!”

Yeah, I suck at public speaking. Always been better at public threatening. 

This is more horse trading with the Club. They scrounge up the cash for ten five-story apartment buildings with 300 thousand square foot units each. And once done. I let them get large single family homes.

Forty of them. That they'll pay for too. After which the condo's will be empty and I'll delete them. 

Yes, I know there are supposedly only 20 families here now. And yes, it would be easier to assign them the authority to purchase and edit buildings. But considering what the council did with it? I'll be keeping that power to myself, for now at least.

…

"Master!" Oomph!

A short Latina leaps. And clings to me like a koala.

Earning a shout from my sorceress date. "Lez!"

A questioning scowl from Alessandra's brother Pedro. "Master?"

And a shy wave from Carly. "Hi…"

"Ugh." Max facepalms.

We are at the church Po and friends registered with the system. And have been busily cleaning up plus holding services in. Even though it was catholic, it's now officially non denominational.

It's also very busy. Faith can be a strong light in dark times. We're in the back. Here for a favor.

• [ Upgrade Church I > II ]

Po bows. "Thank you, your majesty. This will give us some much needed room." Rooms which I'm also adding.

“Are you guys done recruiting?” I notice three new faces chatting with Max.

The cleric nods. “Yes, this will bring us up to eight. We’ve voted on them all.” Sideyes Ce. “Though some of us chose to vote by text.”

Who sticks her tongue out at him and then goes back to prying Lez off me.

[Identify]

• [ Maxwell "Max" | Male Adult | Spellblade 28 | Iron… ]
• [ Pedro “Po” Malave | Male Adult | Cleric 27 | Iron… ]
• [ Cecilia “Ce” Devereux | Female Adult | Sorceress 25 | Iron… ]
• [ Alessandra "Lez" Malave | Female Junior | Assassin 22 | Iron… ]
• [ Carly Molander | Female Adult | Fighter 13 | Copper… ]
• [ Ashraf Aswad | Male Adult | Knight 16 | Copper… ]
• [ Mason Russell | Male Adult | Summoner 14 | Copper… ]
• [ Luke Fisher | Male Junior | Ranger 11 | Copper… ]

Interesting.

…

“So yummy… Thank you, I… I love you.♡” Hides her face behind my shoulder. 

After a few more stops we are finally in Matthew Plaza. The bank is now a [Bank II] and we are taking a break at "Chiangi's," think I'm pronouncing that right. A cute little [Cafe I] run by some kind of octopus lady.

Ce is really loving the ice cream.

“I know.” Can't stop the Han.

Which gets me a frown and a punch in the arm. “Bully.” Before my pyro goes right back to snuggling. And suggestively sucking clean the spoon I'm feeding her with.

We’re sitting in the shop’s patio but not attracting much of a crowd. Though a few are recording with their phones. My well armed and armored Blackhearts are convincing most to keep their distance. And for those that don’t? A muzzle to the face and, “I’m on a date,” has been sufficient so far.

*decompress*

Sometimes you just gotta stop to smell the roses.

*grab*

“Master…♡”

And squeeze a titty.

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