It is Saturday morning. It is now two days since the dungeon failure.

  Yesterday, I sent Carl and Anna out to call the rest of our group for a meeting today. There are some things I finally need to get off my chest.

  But before that, I want to blow off some steam on the flood monsters.

  Before the st spell, I reach enough exp for the third level in Dread Lord.

  NameJared DecroixStatusdisguisedAge18 (frozen)CssesWizard 15, Survivor 9, Blood Mage 9, Summoner 10, Lore Seeker 7Dread Lord 3RaceSilver Elf 10ExtraVampire 10, Noble 8, Lord 8, Progenitor 8DivineTBDTitleWorld Resident, World Navigator, Noble, Vampire Progenitor, Daywalker, Demon Lord, Regenerator, Title Holder, Demon, Fortress Lord, Fate Breaker, Happily Married, Master Crafter, R???u???l???e???r??? ???o???f??? ???F???a???m???i???l??i???a???r???s???, S???u???m???m???o???n??? ???M???a???s???t???e???r???, Summon MasterTitle Level 7EXP23HP2327/2358 [2948]MP254/3088 [3860]SP1493/1920 [2400]STR354+75 (staff) or +174 (cws)DEX393VIT396+55MAG665+47FTH570+2WIL541+20CHA503EquipmentTopaz Staff, Book, Apprentice Headband, Robe, Sun Cloak, Defense Ring, Sun Guard RingSkills - WeaponSpear Training 9, Unnatural Cws 8Skills - MagicBlood Burst 9, Cure Magic 10 (Rank 1), Dark Magic 15 (Rank 1), Earth Magic 15 (Rank 1), Ice Magic 15 (Rank 1), Lightning Magic 15 (Rank 1), S???a???n???g???u???i???n???e??? ???W??a???v???e? 9, Summon Spirit 10 (Rank 1), Titanium Magic 15 (Rank 1), Water Magic 15 (Rank 1)Skills - StatusCharm Eye 8, Disguise 10, Intimidation 16, Stealth 10Skills - SpecialEmbrace 8, Familiar 8, Greater Vampiric Bite 8Skills - PassiveAffinity Magic 15 (Rank 1), Ageless 8, Beast Killer 8, Enhanced Regeneration 8, E?x?t?r?a? ?A?f?f?i?n?i?t?y? 15, Keen Perception 7, Legion of Doom 3, Magical Secret 7, Mana Boost 10, Mana Regeneration 15, Sleepless 10, Supernatural Toughness 8, Trap Lore 9, Undead 10, Vampire Hierarchy 10WeaknessFire, Light, HolyJust increased stats, nothing else got messed up, so at least adding levels seems to be safe.

  Ah, wait, CHA got past the 500-point barrier so the spirits also gained another level, only half a dozen or so more before they become useful.

  Anyway, I continue bsting.

  Your Ice Bst has inflicted a total of 30360 damage and 29 status effects.Slightly better than before.

  Next to me is a lone soldier throwing stuff at the monsters below, "Dang, out of throwables..."

  Wait, I can now create certain things for free with my magic. Ice cubes or rocks should work as projectiles.

  "Want so-", but before I can offer him some throwables, he jumps off the wall, "-me rocks. HEY, that is no reason to end your life!!"

  I can only watch in shock as he falls down the about twenty-meter-tall wall. And then nds on the ground and walks on as if nothing happened...

  So much for gravity... But then that matches up with Elly having absolutely no problem carrying me around.

  No, wait, [Appraise] reveals he took a whole 1 damage from the stunt. Only another mere two thousand repeats and it becomes a health hazard!

  I wonder what happens when you do that often enough, could maybe the pnet could level up?

  While wondering about that, I finish using my remaining [Blood Burst] skills.

  I look down the wall again, should I risk it? The soldier had roughly the same VIT stat as me and no skills that seem relevant. Can't be hidden plot armor either, Lucia with her [Dark Lord] skill is too close-by.

  Well, here goes nothing, GERONIMO!

  Thunk

  You have taken 1 fall damage.That had about as much impact as getting out of bed.

  Truth be told, I half expected there to arrive a system update mid-fall that 'fixes' gravity...

  While I start to walk home, I look around but no one behaves as if I did anything out of the ordinary. Does that mean stairs are considered one-way in this world? What a drag...

  Well, I guess that makes pit traps useless... Scratch that one from the list.

  Maybe the fall damage is subject to defense stats? I have a hard time believing that gravity is strong enough to pull down with roughly the same strength as in my old world, but not enough power to inflict any actual damage. That should've left at least some impact.

  ...

  A bit ter, everyone has gathered again for the pnned meeting at my house again.

  "-and that's the recap from my side. Anyone wants to add something?"

  Iris asks me, "No, how are you feeling with those glitches?"

  "Mostly fine", I point at the pool of grime sitting in the corner, "If it wasn't for Lydia over there I wouldn't even notice anything being wrong."

  The moldy pudding wobbles around, "D'I eb yppah fi I reven dah ot tis hguorht taht parc niaga. Ti saw gnirob."

  I frown, "And she's still as unintelligible as ever."

  "I have nothing new", says Geoffrey, "So how do we continue now?"

  I tell them, "The next few times we visit the dungeon I'll stay a few weeks longer than the rest of you."

  "I'll stay with him, too", adds Lucia.

  Elly asks, "Can you two just get a room and spare us the mushy scenes?"

  "That's exactly what I just said", answers Lucia.

  Elly is exasperated, "TMI."

  I stop them, "Anyway, I still got enough documents to comb through, so the waiting time for regeneration won't be a complete waste. As for you... you can try to add csses. The glitching gave us Lydia, a spirit with seemingly five csses, and according to one of my titles that means you as my familiars can take csses without Css Cores until you have five csses as well. But seeing how you are connected to me... I've no idea how that could affect you with my current state. As such, if you want to take a css now, please do it only while we're together, one at a time and then let us check if all went well. If it doesn't, we'll postpone further css additions until the 'year' is up. Objections? Other suggestions?"

  Iris responds, "What is the worst that could happen if we went ahead with it now?"

  Way to jinx it, Iris...

  "No idea. In the best case, you just gain the css and its skills like normal. Worst case... you get a different css with non-existent stats and unusable or even detrimental skills."

  For all, I know it could also forcibly turn you into a monster... Well, technically I'm one as well, so you'd be in good company at least. Your dear friend Lucia might even appreciate the company.

  Chloe cuts in, "If we can take up to five csses then I can take a css as well, so I'd like to volunteer for the first test."

  Marca asks her, "Chloe, are you sure? You already have the most csses out of us, if it goes wrong you may never get a second chance."

  She hesitates for a moment, "...Yes, I am. As you said, I already have four decent csses. I had already accepted that I may never get a fifth css. If this doesn't work out it isn't really a loss to me, but most of you still need more csses to at least cover your bases. So I'm fine to take the risk on me."

  Lucia addresses her, "Well, in that case, the stage is yours, Chloe. Please, proceed. Though may I ask which css you want to take?"

  Chloe tells us, "I'll take the changeling race-specific elite css Deceiver."

  Deceiver? It is just a name. Just a name and totally not ominous at all, nope.

  DeceiverElite cssGrowth Rates36 HP, 29 MP, 44 SP, 6 STR, 8 DEX, 7 VIT, 4 MAG, 3 FTH, 5 WIL, 3 CHA Disguise WeaponPassiveAs part of the [Disguise] skill, you can also change the appearance and type of your equipped weapon.It keeps its stats and properties.You still gain benefits from your skills as if the weapon was in its original form.For purposes of active skills, it counts as its new form.E.g. you can turn a sword into a nce, then still profit from [Sword Training] but use nce-exclusive skills like [Impaler] with it. Anna asks, "What's the point of that skill?"

  Chloe expins, "Simply put, flexibility. I can focus on increasing my spear skill and only need to maintain one weapon. I wouldn't have to get stronger versions of multiple weapons, I can just focus on one but still can change this spear into whatever weapon I need at a moment's notice. Just imagine a fast weapon like a dagger but with the greater power of a nce behind it, then morphing it into a whip or bow when I need range. Of course, I would still need arrows for the tter."

  I add, "She would also be able to better practice with users of different weapon types than just spears like you. Depending on the limits of the skill she could possibly also just turn a spear into a much longer spear to catch an enemy off-guard, there are many possibilities to it."

  Anna responds, "Uh-huh, okay, that sounds cool!"

  Chloe warns us, "Anyway, I'll try to add it now."

  NameChloeStatusdisguisedAge20 (frozen)CssesSentinel 15, Survivor 18, Captain 13, Scout 12, Deceiver 1RaceChangeling 17ExtranoneHP3667/3704MP1623/1652SP1696/1740 [3740]STR559+133DEX571+5VIT617+95MAG316FTH302WIL424+15CHA390EquipmentReinforced Spear, Half Pte, Iron HelmSkillsArmor Training 15, Spear Training 18Create Food&Water 18Opportunity Attack 15Battle Order 13, Guard Order 13Disguise 17, Low Profile 17Ageless 1, Danger Sense 12, Dexterity Boost 12, Disguise Weapon 1, Health Boost 15, Sleepless 1, Tracking 17, Trap Lore 18WeaknessWindShe takes out her spear and changes it to a sword, then to a dagger, and swings it around a few times. It is clear that its new shape is 'true'. If it was just an illusion she would've easily hit the wall or table during her experiment. Finally, she changes her weapon back and puts it away.

  She concludes, “It seems to have worked without a problem."

  I double-check her status, "Yeah, looks like it. Anyone else wants to try?"

  Iris answers, "Well, you wanted me to become a healer, and with Elly's help I decided on the Druid css for that. I might as well take this opportunity to add it. In the worst case, I can still try two more times ter."

  DruidGrowth Rates31 HP, 48 MP, 28 SP, 3 STR, 4 DEX, 6 VIT, 7 MAG, 7 FTH, 5 WIL, 6 CHA Earth Magic (Rank 1)Able to use generic earth spells at rank 1.Basic projectile attack costs 100 MP per use.Alternatively, you can modify the attack with the following options.Avaible shape modifiers: spread, pierce, bst, rainAvaible extra modifiers: status Cure Magic (Rank 1) Able to use curative spells at rank 1.Basic cure magic costs 500 MP per use, single-target only.Healing effect can freely be split between HP and status damage.A???b???s???o???l???u???t???e???l???y??? ???u???s???e???l???e???s???s??? ???f???o???r??? undead. Not what I expected from a druid. No nature magic, no wildshape... Well, it serves our purposes.

  Attack magic and healing by level 5, can't really ask for me, "No objection from my side. With [Earth Magic] you can even help with the flood and catch up exp-wise. You should reach level five to unlock [Cure Magic] quickly that way."

  Chloe adds, "You should count yourself lucky you can even take magic-using csses. For example, Geoffrey will never have a chance to learn magic. Marca and I might be able to if we settle for one of the weaker mage types. As for Anna, not sure, probably not either."

  Anna says, "I don't really care about learning magic. Where I was from magic didn't exist either, I'm just happy that I can move around at all, I'll leave the magic stuff to others."

  Marca pats her, "Don't worry, you'll be able to do that plenty."

  Iris waits for them to finish, "So can I take the css, or are there objections?"

  Lucia tells her, "No, I like this one. At least it cks constant reminders of the church..."

  "I have no objections either, so go for it", I gesture at Chloe and Marca, "And if the others have magic envy we can look for a suitable css for them ter. Well, Geoffrey might be a lost cause in terms of magic, but as seen with Elly there are good enough alternatives."

  "Understood", Iris affirms, "It seems I have enough exp for level two right from the start."

  NameIrisStatusnoneAge23 (frozen)CssesNun 16, Weaver 15, Druid 2RaceDark Elf 15HP1848/1910MP1630/1726SP1632/1688STR123+423DEX270VIT215+65MAG344FTH366+15WIL284+15CHA338EquipmentZatzaknoife, Reinforced Suit, HabitSkillsDagger Training 15Earth Magic 2 (Rank 1)Ageless 1, Luck Boost 15, Sleepless 1, Stealth 15WeaknessEarthOur earth mage is weak to earth, ironic. Just watch out for mirrors.

  Iris adds, "All works as expected here as well."

  Lucia pats her on the back, "Congratutions, Iris. With that, one of your dreams will soon come true."

  Iris nods, "Yeah, you're right."

  Not a problem here either, "Seems like it is two for two then. Before we continue, Chloe, you said that you're unlikely to ever be able to take a magic-using css, but wasn't the Magic Initiate an option I showed you a while ago?"

  She shakes her head, "I asked Therese about it, and she tried to expin to me why it doesn't work the way you think it does. There was a big problem with the final skill it gains. You'll have to ask her yourself if you want to know in detail."

  Of course, I would have to deal with that b... person again, "Fine, I'll go and visit her ter. I have to ask her about some discrepancies in her documents anyway. Ignoring that, does anyone else want to try adding a css now?"

  Anna responds, "You told me to take the Wild Fang css but I don't have the stats for it yet. So, uh, I'll have to pass for now."

  "Sorry, I've no pn for my next css yet", says Geoffrey.

  Marca says, "I guess that means, I'm st. Truth be told, I'm torn. I wanted to take Arcane Archer next but you asked us to look out for a css that would help with our food shortage, for that, I think I could take Forager."

  I have heard of neither of them before, "Let me check those csses quickly."

  Arcane ArcherGrowth Rates38 HP, 17 MP, 45 SP, 7 STR, 8 DEX, 4 VIT, 5 MAG, 3 FTH, 4 WIL, 4 CHA Bow TrainingPassiveCan use bows without attack penalty.Increase effective STR by (skill level) for equipped bows. Mana Arrow 20 MPCreate an arrow that sts for up to 10 seconds.It has +(skill level) STR. She expins, "A regur arrow has +25 STR, so that would only prevent me from worrying about our ammunition situation. Better arrows would still be preferable but that is a long-term issue for me."

  I concur, "You already had bow skills through the Ranger css but no ammo, so that makes sense. Well, if it wasn't for a ck of gunpowder you could copy Elly's pn and aim for Bombardier for [Explosive Shot]. Have you pnned any other css for ter?"

  She dismisses the idea, "No, why would I? There's no guarantee I'll ever get enough csses for any bigger pns."

  That was then, this is now, "That should change soon, Marca, so you should actually think about a long-term pn. Now, what is the other css you considered..."

  ForagerGrowth Rates43 HP, 15 MP, 49 SP, 6 STR, 9 DEX, 7 VIT, 2 MAG, 3 FTH, 5 WIL, 3 CHA Stamina BoostPassiveIncrease max SP by 5% and (5 x skill level).Also, increase SP regeneration effects by 5%. Create Food and Water Once per dayCreate one meal's worth of bread and water. Marca asks, "So, what do you say?"

  "In the end, it is your decision, but in my opinion, you should start with the Arcane Archer. Take the Forager ter."

  She adds the css, "Got it. There, done."

  NameMarcaStatusnoneAge16 (frozen)CssesRanger 16, Knight 18, Arcane Archer 1RaceGrey Dwarf 14ExtranoneHP3026/3064MP540/557SP2780/2825STR433+78 (sword) or +67 (bow)DEX472+25VIT466+118MAG183FTH181WIL270+28CHA254EquipmentShortsword, Shortbow, Buckler, Chest PteSkillsBow Training 17, Sword Training 18, Armor Training 18First Aid 16,Earth Resistance 14, Poison Resistance 14, Hard Worker 14, Tracking 16WeaknessWindShe's satisfied, "Also worked as expected."

  Another success, "I guess with three out of three successes you seem to be safe to take csses and the only ones with corruption-reted issues are myself, Lucia and our summons."

  Lucia rubs it in, "See? You were worried for nothing."

  "Yeah, yeah. Still better than turning them into Lydia 2.0", I dismissively point behind me at Lydia.

  Our dear little blob is offended, "Taht hcihw si gnihton lhs elur revo taht hcihw sniamer."

  "Case in point... Did you want to everyone turn into such a gibbering, slimy mess, Lucia?"

  Lucia hesitates, "No, not really. I prefer them the way they are."

  Chloe asks, "What else can we do for now?"

  "For now, we just proceed as before and outst the flood. Speaking of simple, has Ephran talked with you, Chloe? When I delivered the dungeon spoils he mentioned that he wanted to talk to you."

  She answers, "Uh, no, he hasn't. Why, what did he want?"

  "He didn't say", I'm not getting involved there. I made my point clear to Ephran. If he wants to get together with Chloe he has to make the first step himself. I've given him that chance now, everything else is up to him.

  Chloe is a bit confused, "Okay? Well, I'll try to contact him ter and see what he wants."

  "Then that is taken care of. Back to the topic of csses. You can choose and take them on your own terms, the current limit is five csses. If you need help with searching for the right css, Elly is usually avaible to help with that."

  "That I am. Just ask me if you need help!", says Elly cheerfully.

  I remind the rest of the group, "I'd prefer it if everyone had at least one skill that allowed us to endure longer in the dungeon. As you know our food supplies are very limited. It could be [Create Food and Water] or something else, I leave that up to everyone individually."

  Marca asks, "Admittedly I'm still not entirely comfortable with the whole familiar business but wouldn't it be better to turn more people into familiars? How many can you even have? Is there a limit?"

  Lucia answers, "Currently, we're limited to sixteen, so we can make eleven more. Normally, we could only make one person per skill level a familiar to a maximum of twenty but we don't know how exactly that interacts with our marriage. For us, the ultimate cap might be either twenty or forty. Why? Do you have someone that wants to volunteer?"

  Marca responds, "No, just curious. I assume that once the flood is over we'll travel around? I think I could rest easier if we had another group or two that was stronger than the current average and could secure this fortress in our absence."

  "Yeah, we'll have to do something like that. As long as the demon artifact isn't taken care of nothing we do matters for long. We can invent all the soaps, recreate all the Japanese cuisine, and build all the bath houses we want, if the world goes up in smoke it would have been pointless. But I don't think a single group would make much of a difference, this fortress has held on without that help for years. I'd rather have at least a second group that accompanies us on that travel."

  Marca urges, "Then do both. You have eleven left, I assume one of them is reserved for our final party member. We still have several months before this flood is supposedly over, getting your relevant css to ten and thereby the familiar cap to twenty should be easy for you. With that, you can turn two whole groups. We take one group with us on our travels and the other guards the fortress."

  Chloe chimes in, "I think the same. Making more familiars is something you should take care of soon."

  Something is fishy. Wasn't Chloe against the whole familiar business before? "And do you have someone specific in mind? As you know, once someone becomes a familiar it can't be undone. So we have to think about this carefully."

  Chloe nods, "Yeah, I have a suggestion, kinda. We have a lot of soldiers that are seriously injured and therefore out of commission. For many, it isn't even certain if they will ever be able to fight again. But with the superior regeneration we as your familiars get... "

  "I see where you are going with this."

  Marca adds, "Also you should rather take volunteers that have fewer csses, that way we can compensate for a few more Css Cores overall."

  Lucia asks, "What is the point? They would be too weak."

  I answer, "Doesn't matter. These are still a dozen soldiers we wouldn't have otherwise. And in the long term, we have to worry less about the baggage of previous poor css choices. I'm more concerned about who would whip them into shape. Though I do have an idea for that."

  Lucia puts her foot down, "Fine, but at least make sure they are not complete deadweight. Like, they should at least soon take a css with a skill to generate their own food supplies and some ranged attack options."

  "Yeah, that is a given."

  After that, we discuss a few more minor things and then end the meeting.

  3QGN73