บท 17: Finally Home (UPDATE)

(*): I will either give more explanation to this paragraph or give you a picture. So please check it!

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"Now let's get out of this dungeon and head back to the village!" declared Cassius, leading the way.

"Wait, this place is a dungeon?" Lucien asked, trailing behind his family.

"Isn't that clear? Look at all of these stone hallways. Do you think this is a palace or something?" Seren retorted sarcastically, still engrossed in her mobile, fretting over her Utube account that might be banned forever.

Lucien rolled his eyes. "How can you still be busy with that thing? And how did you even recharge it?"

"I used my mana to do that. Stop talking to me, alright? I'm still pissed at you!" Seren snapped.

Lucien sighed, feeling the urge to protest that they were the ones who disturbed him in the first place.

'Aren't common courtesy and knocking on doors still a thing?' he muttered to himself as they continued on their way.

Lucien shifted his attention to the dragon beside him. Brigantiea had donned her 'dress', a black garment that hugged her curves tightly.

The dress left little to the imagination, with a gap from her breasts to her stomach, revealing her navel and tattoos.

The only coverage it provided was for her nipples and private parts. Although the dress was long, slits above the knee level exposed her thighs.*

Lucien was glad that the halo horn was gone. At least her appearance didn't scream "dragon".

"Are you sure you want to wear that dress? You're basically naked," Lucien remarked, feeling a bit uncomfortable with the revealing attire.

"Why? Don't you like it?" Brigantiea asked, genuinely puzzled. She had little understanding of human clothing norms.

"Well, I do. But in private." Lucien didn't deny it, she looked sexy in it. It's even better if she was naked.

Brigantiea simply smiled, a hint of mischief in her eyes, as she wrapped her arms around Lucien's, pressing her ample bosom against him. He tried so hard not to get hard.

"I think that dress is splendid," someone chimed in suddenly, making Lucien startle and glance behind him. It was the old man.

"Who is this old man?" Lucien furrowed his brows.

"Oh, my name-"

"I'm not asking you." Lucien redirected his attention to his father in front of him. "Where did you find this old man?"

"We found him behind the throne room. He was asleep, like a fucking corpse" Cassius said, halting his step.

"We actually wanted to kill this old man, but we ran out of mana," he added, stretching his chin before turning back.

"Should we kill him now? Is he even a monster?" Amane asked, unsure of what to do with the old man.

"Wait! Don't do that! I'm a human, my name is Rowen, a wizard from Euclair village," the old man exclaimed, taken aback. Sweat started to trickle down his temple. "I mean no harm. I just like to explore this dungeon."

"Wow, you must be a freak to sleep behind that undead king," Seren sighed, crossing her arms.

"Well, I actually got cursed," Rowen explained, looking depressed, likely because he didn't know how long he had been asleep there.

"Oh yeah, you're that annoying old man who kept coming in and out, making the floor guard annoyed," Brigantiea nodded, recalling this particular old man who had disturbed her house.

"I'm sorry..." Rowen looked down, his cheeks reddening in embarrassment. "But please, let me follow you to the village. I just want to go home," he pleaded, looking sad now.

"I don't mind. He doesn't look like a threat either," Lucien said, starting to walk again.

The rest of them followed as they didn't care much about it.

"Anyway, your dungeon sure is a boring one. The guard floor wasn't even that strong." Seren felt strange since the owner of the dungeon was a dragon.

Wasn't the dungeon should be more challenging?

"No one dares to come in. So why bother?" Brigantiea answers nonchalantly.

She was right, since everyone knew that the dungeon owner was a sovereign dragon, they wouldn't dare to challenge this place.

"Lucien... I'm glad you're fine," Cassius suddenly said, making Lucien furrow his brows.

Did he hear wrong? Was he dreaming? It was unbelievable that his father suddenly said something like that to him.

"Uh... Thanks?" Lucien said awkwardly, unsure how to respond to his father's unexpected concern.

But deep down, he was glad that his parents cared about him.

Amane then hugged her husband's arm and smiled at him. All of them walked toward the light, heading to the exit gate.

"Wow, so I'm really inside the dungeon, huh?" Lucien mused as he looked at the forest surrounding him.

"Yes! This place might be the oldest dungeon in the whole world! There are many secret artifacts and stories inside, you know? That's why I keep coming back to this dungeon!" Rowan said excitedly.

"Don't do it again. Next time, I will be the one to burn you and tear you apart," Brigantiea said coldly.

Rowan nodded, sweat beading on his forehead and his body trembling.

"Artifacts? We just found a bunch of gold and diamonds," Cassius shrugged, seeming indifferent.

"What?! Where?! Did you all take it from the dungeon?!" Lucien asked urgently, thinking about the funds it could provide for the village.

"Huh? Of course, we left them inside. What's that gold and diamond worth in this world anyway? There's literally nothing here!" Amane sighed.

In her mind, this world was not like Earth, where technology was advanced and she could buy many things. There was nothing in this world that held value for her.

"Are you joking?! Let's go back inside and get that gold!" Lucien insisted, feeling frustrated.

"Nope, I'm out," said Seren, walking toward the forest.

"Same," Cassius and Amane chimed in, following Seren's lead.

"Seriously?! It's gold and diamonds!" Lucien stubbornly protested, but seeing his family leaving him behind, he finally gave up and followed them back to the village.

He promised himself that he would find a way to retrieve the treasure or convince Brigantiea to hand it over.

After arriving at the village, Gibson welcomed them near the destroyed wall. Gibson appeared older since the last time Lucien saw him, likely due to the stress of managing his family.

"My lord! You finally arrived," Gibson was overjoyed when he saw Lucien, approaching them and bowing slightly. "This village has been a mess without you, thank Goddess you're back early." he looks like he was about to cry.

Lucien just nodded and felt sorry for him.

Gibson's eyes then fell on the woman beside Lucien, his expression filled with puzzlement. "Who is this lady?"

Lucien hesitated for a moment, unsure of how to explain Brigantiea's presence. "Ah... That's..."

He wanted to be honest and reveal that Brigantiea was a sovereign dragon, but he ended up blurting out a lie instead.

"She is... My woman?" His voice wavered with uncertainty.

Brigantiea chuckled teasingly, "I'm your woman now?"

Lucien sighed and whispered to her, "I don't want to cause a scene."

Brigantiea shrugged in response, enjoying the charade of being his "woman."

"Oh... I see..." Gibson nodded, though his expression remained unreadable.

"We're going ahead," Amane and Cassius announced, walking off with Seren in tow. They were probably tired since they didn't make any scene or comment like usual.

"Gibson... You still remember me, right?" Rowen suddenly spoke up, his voice quivering and his eyes welling with tears.

Gibson's expression shifted from contempt to a stoic demeanor. "Ah, you're still alive?"

"Why are you still so cruel to me?!" Rowen's voice cracked with emotion.

Observing the reunion between the two old acquaintances, Lucien and Brigantiea decided to return to Lucien's family's cottage.

Before they left, Gibson reported that all the destroyed homes had been repaired and efforts were underway to fix the damaged roads.

Then, a notification popped up in front of Lucien.

[Congratulations, your path and skill levels have increased!]

[The Emblem of Shire lvl 5 -> lvl 8]

[All-Seeing Eyes lvl 3 -> lvl 4]

[Sound of Sovereign lvl 4 -> lvl 5]

'Huh? How did they increase? The quest isn't over yet,' Lucien pondered.

[The satisfaction and loyalty rates have increased due to your new tax policy and facility improvements!]

[Increasing satisfaction and loyalty will boost your skill and path levels!]

'Oh, right... I forgot about this system. I've been too busy having sex,' Lucien thought to himself with a wry smile.

As they arrived at the modest cottage, Lucien was ready to collapse into bed, exhausted from the day's events.

Meanwhile, Brigantiea had set up another gate behind his room, connecting to her luxurious chamber.

Just as Lucien sank into the soft bed, Brigantiea, already naked, crawled on top of him.

"Really? Now? Can't I rest for a bit?" Lucien sighed, feeling drained.

She lifted his chin with her finger, her gaze mischievous. "You're my sex slave, remember? You can't forsake me," she teased, her hand already unbuttoning his shirt.

"Just relax. I'll take care of everything," she added, her eyes glinting with desire.

Lucien surrendered, allowing Brigantiea to have her way. They ended up doing it all night long as his seed sucked dry.