Chapter 5: 5 – First Menagerie Member

[ Level 1 -> 2 ]

[ Skill gained! [Charm] ]

[Charm]: Cement target’s transformation as permanent and add to Menagerie. Charmed targets contribute a small portion of their adventuring experience to Menagerie Owner.

Ari forced herself out of her post-orgasm bliss to pay attention to the level-up notification. Lori was pressed into her side, basking in Ari’s heat in the same way she did the catgirl’s. To think she’d lost her virginity to a random forest monster … though the thought felt demeaning, considering just how amazing Lori, and the experience, had been. Not a bad first time at all.

Charm? she thought, focusing on more practical matters. Add to menagerie?

She could make Lori’s transformation permanent? And any of Lori’s adventures—presumably of the normal sort, but maybe the not-normal too—would have Ari gaining experience? That was … a skill that seemed extraordinarily powerful at first glance. And second, third, and fourth glance, too.

But would Lori want it?

“I leveled up,” Ari said. They’d been laying together for several minutes, enjoying each other’s warmth. For all Lori’s apparent hostility, she had cuddled up to Ari with no complaints. She even vibrated against Ari, purring in slow, muted satisfaction. Ari suspected if she pointed it out, Lori would vehemently deny the fact.

“You did?” Lori asked.

“[Charm],” Ari said. “I can make your transformation permanent, if you want to join me.” Saying ‘join my Menagerie’ felt way too demeaning, as if Lori were some object. She didn’t like how the skill phrased it.

Lori opened her eyes, and they studied each other. Ari was entranced by bright, yellow eyes, and the hard, fierce edges of her cheekbones. “Hmph. I guess I would accept, if you insisted.”

A grin split Ari’s face. “I do insist.” She gripped Lori’s waist and pulled her tighter. “I had a lot of fun with you. Rounds two through nine over the next few days sounds pretty amazing.”

“You were … I also …” Lori couldn’t work herself up to returning the compliment. She sniffed, glancing away. “Join you. What does that mean?”

“I have no clue,” Ari admitted. “I got my class two days ago. And it’s pretty weird.”

“You’re telling me. This form is … strange.”

Which broached the topic of Ari’s curiosity earlier. Half an hour ago, Lori had been a jungle monster, a prowling beast of the forest. Now, she was an intelligent being, a woman indistinguishable from a person. Not that some monsters weren’t already intelligent … but those exceptions refused to, or couldn’t, interact with sapient life—the sapient life Ari knew, elves, humans, orcs, and so on—in a meaningful way. Unlike Lori, who was sharing casual conversation with her.

“What’s it like?” Ari asked. “You were, um, a leopard before, right?” And wasn’t that weird to think about? But seeing how Ari’s entire life was weird now, she was learning to accept the strange faster than before.

Lori sniffed. “I’m not sure. I remember my life from earlier, but …” her brow furrowed. “That doesn’t seem like me, anymore.”

Well, Ari could sympathize with strange circumstances. And Lori seemed uncomfortable talking about it, so she dropped the topic.

She’d been given permission, so she focused her attention on Lori and thought, [Charm].

Lori shivered as the skill took effect. “Oh. That’s, mm, odd.”

[ Added to menagerie: [Lori]. 1/5 Filled. ]

Five? I guess it makes sense there’s a maximum. Seeing how Ari would receive a portion of Lori’s adventuring experience, if Ari went around sleeping with and charming any creature she came in contact with, she’d have a veritable army to be gaining experience for her. Her skills seemed strong so far, but not that overpowered.

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“I need to give you this,” Lori announced suddenly. She held her hands out, and Ari watched with fascination as mana coalesced in her hands, forming a tooth necklace. “You, um, won. So. Here’s your reward.”

Ari inspected the item, turning it side to side. It had a simple thin leather string, with an impressively large—and sharp—leopard tooth hanging from it. 

===

Necklace of Impassioned Biting

— Uncommon

— +2 Stimulation Cap

— +1 Skill

— Effect: Lovebites deal double stimulation damage.

===

Ari couldn’t help the grin that crept across her face. No way. The items are weird too. That made sense considering her class, but it was still funny—and kind of awesome. 

She should have paid more attention to the {Stimulation} and {Pleasure} statuses of Lori, but she’d been way too caught up in things. To be fair to Ari, it was her first time. She’d been overwhelmed. Her entire body had been melting under Lori’s touches.

Next time, she’d be better about treating the encounter seriously. Rushing her partner to orgasm was an easy way to win, but if she wanted to maximize rewards, she needed to get the {Pleasure} bar as high as possible. She had no clue what Lori’s had been. She’d seemed to be enjoying herself, and the twitching, spasming way she’d come apart under Ari’s fingers indicated pretty high, but system stats and statuses didn’t always line up to physical reality.

“What’s it do?” Lori asked.

“Can’t you [Inspect] it?”

“[Inspect]?”

Huh … Ari supposed with Lori’s newfound sapience, she didn’t know how some things worked that Ari took for granted. Like [Inspect]. Monsters must not have that ability.

But rather than explaining—at least right now—Ari grinned.

“Here,” she said, clasping the necklace around her own neck and rolling atop Lori, who squeaked in surprise. “I’ll show you what it does.”

Maybe ‘rounds two through nine’ would be happening faster than she thought. Because how could she help herself?

Especially when Lori was making such loud, embarrassed protests to Ari’s nibbling?

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