The other other important talk (then the god’s game (part 2)).

Slowly, I open my eyes. I am back in camp, sat in the chair I was sitting in before I left, in my own body. Feeling a little stiff, I stretch languidly, the movement of which draws the eyes of the rest of my family. They all turn, looking at me blankly. ‘Oh gods, not thirty minutes into a relationship and I’ve already messed around with another woman! I had permission, and it was a goddess, but still! Well, time to face the music.’

I look each of them in the eyes, expecting to find looks of scorn or accusation. Whilst their faces aren’t accusatory, they are very much sombre. More than a little off balance and feeling like a colossal piece of shit, I gather my thoughts before speaking. “I owe you guys an apology.”

I glance between them again, eyes flicking over to mum as she says, “go on, we’re listening.”

“I just want to say that I’m really sorry. I let my… desires get the best of me. I know you said I could… well, you know, but I still can’t help but feel horrendously guilty. You shouldn’t have been put into that position in the first place. I love you guys, I truly do, and I am more than willing to do whatever it takes to make it up to you all.”

They let me stew in silence for a time, wallowing in feelings or remorse and regret. The earlier mirth is most gone, their expressions now serious, resigned. Eventually, Lisa sighs, then speaks up. “Adam, whilst you were… away, we spoke with Abby, as well as that System Admin you spoke with before. We’ve… been told some things, things that we aren’t supposed to know, things we have only been told due to mitigating circumstances.”

“There’s a bunch we all wish we could tell you, but we all swore oaths not to tell anyone outside of our Party any of this, and to keep you in the dark as well.” Lisa stops talking, her expression troubled, only for Ash to take up the slack. “We've been put in a difficult position and have been asked to make a tough choice, something that none of us really want to do. We… love you, Adam. We love you just as much as you love us, but you need to promise us something.”

“You need to promise us that, no matter what happens, we’ll always have a place by your side. That we will always be first in your heart. We… just got what we’ve always wanted, with you, with each other. Please, don’t…” She stops suddenly, grasping at her throat. Whatever ails her passes a moment later, but the warning is plain. I can only know so much. My heart breaks as I see the anguish on the faces in front of me, tears streaming down more than one cheek. Standing up, I corral my family until we all stand together, arms wrapped around each other in a fierce group hug.

I’m not stupid. With what has been said, and what hasn’t been said, I have an inkling of what they've been asked to do, or, more accurately, let me do. For the life of me, though, I can’t work out why. Whatever the reason, it's clearly important enough that my family is taking it seriously, despite what they all personally want. ‘I need to say something. The silence is beginning to drag.’

I had another shot with the big guns today, and I couldn’t think of a more appropriate way to use it. Activating Words of Power, I say, “You guys know I love you, and you mean the world to me, right? Despite what some goddess and/or all-powerful being may want, I refuse to do anything to hurt you. I’m no saint, today is proof of that, but I refuse to do anything that you don’t explicitly tell me is ok.”

“I vow, not only to the System, but more importantly, to all of you, that you will always have a space in my heart, and by my side. Even if… things don’t work out between us, I promise that I will never cast any of you away and that I will always love you, if not as lovers, then as family.” I wave away the notice telling me I’d made an Oath to the System. I was well aware. Instead, I look around at the members of my family as we hold tight to each other.

The tears have stopped, in their place is stoic acceptance. ‘I am going to do everything in my power to make these women happy.’ The silence is broken by Em, who sheepishly asks, “Hey, Adam?” looking into her red-rimmed eyes, I see the acceptance there, the resignation, but also a little hope. I gently ask, “Yes, Em?”

“I just want to say that what I’m about to ask is about food, and nothing else, ok?”On the last part of her strange comment, Emily pitches her voice in a way meant to carry, whilst looking up at the sky. I share confused looks with the rest of the family before replying. “Eeeeerr, ok?” Now blushing, Em breathes in deeply, peers up at the sky one last time, then speaks.

“So you know that when it comes to ‘sweet food’, and ‘savoury food’” (both said in air-quotes) “you only like ‘sweet food’, but we quite like both? What if, as a family, we were about to start an extremely restrictive diet that severely limited the amount of ‘savoury food’ the rest of us could enjoy, but allowed you to have all the ‘sweet food’ we felt comfortable letting you have? Would you be willing to share any ‘sweet food’ with us that happened to quite like ‘sweet food’ too?”

‘What the bloody hell is she talking about?’ Clearly, she wants to ask something, but can’t ask directly because of her oath, but for the life of me, I can’t work out what it is. Lisa is first to get it, drawing our attention with an “ooooooooh” of dawning understanding. Now the centre of attention, Lisa thinks for a moment, before she turns to mum and, after sparing a glance at the rest of us, plants a quick kiss on her lips. Mum raises an eyebrow at her, but before she can ask questions, Lisa says, “I really like your lip gloss, Mum. It’s very sweet…, like you.”

“…”

“…”

“…”

“Ooooooooooooooooooooh.”

Suddenly very embarrassed, I reply, “Well, you guys know I am perfectly happy with the ‘sweet food’ I have now, and I am incredibly luck to have it. But, if I needed to… acquire more, I’d be more than happy to share.

0----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------0

You guys are cuuuuuuuuute! <3

Totally normal conversation about food, nothing to see here!

Just as an FYI, the System has picked up on some teeny-tiny loopholes in some of the Oaths you guys have sworn, Weird, riiiight? These things take a few minutes to fix, so if you lovely ladies want to ask any more ‘food’ based questions, now’s the time to do it!

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The girls take the offer seriously, racking their brains for questions they want to ask whilst they still can. Each of them eventually shrug, unable to think of anything to ask. That is, until I feel a tap on my arm, and an incredibly flustered Ash leans towards me and whispers in my ear. “So… you know how back on earth certain made up stories had, ‘sweet food’ that was sweet, but also a little bit savoury too?” I take a moment to think about it, then nod, grinning. “Well, if such a food type was real here… would you be willing to try it?” Chuckling wryly, I reply, “I’m sure I’d be willing to give it a go, and, i'd be happy to share.”

Ash grins sheepishly at me, then moves off to whisper to Em. Chucking under my breath, I wander over to Mum, who has been watching the exchange with clear curiosity. I shrug in response to the unasked question, then say, “Just a small question, and one that doesn’t currently affect us. If it comes up, we’ll talk to the group about it.” Mum nods, content to leave it alone for now. I open my mouth, intending on continuing the conversation, but stop myself as a notification opens in front of me.

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I’m being such a gracious game host, waiting until every is ready to carry on with our game.

Hint hint.

Oh, you’re all ready? What perfect timing! Adam, the girls have picked another Branch to be judged. I’m going to go ahead and assume you want to see what they’ve chosen. Here it iiiiiiiiiis!

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Branch name: Incubus Lord.

Branch focus:

• Harem Empowerment.
• Nation/Guild/Organization Management.
• Sexual Prowess.

Requirements:

• Have an established harem (A polyamorous relationship meets the minimum requirements for ‘harem’ in the context of this requirement. Status: Complete).
• Established harem contains at least 3 combat focused members (Status: Complete) OR 5 non-combat focused members (Status: Incomplete).
• Meet the minimum requirements for System Nobility (Status: Complete).
• The holder of the Profession must Identify as male.

Active Quest changes:

• The Quest objective ‘Lose your virginity,’ becomes ‘Lose your virginity to someone outside of your harem.’

Branch pros:

• At least two upgrades per level, with a third available if the Harem contains both a combat arm and a non-combat arm.

1. An upgrade from the standard Hedonist Branch (upgrades based upon desires of the user).
2. An upgrade focused on empowering the combat arm of the Harem (requires a combat arm). (Communication upgrades, Team coordination upgrades, etc.)
3. An upgrade focused on empowering the non-combat arm of the Harem (requires a non-combat arm). (Crafting and Gathering upgrades, Community based upgrades, Pregnancy, Birth, and Child-rearing upgrades, etc)

• Attribute increases in Charisma and Constitution.
• Patent of System Nobility (Rank: Knight).

Branch restrictions:

• Membership of the inner harem is restricted to individuals who match the Incubus Lord’s sexual gender preference.
• Members of the inner harem may only sleep with those matching the Incubus Lord’s sexual gender preference, or the Incubus lord.

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‘Well, this is certainly something!’ Reading over the new option, I can’t help but feel much more enthusiastic than I did with the last. ‘The restrictions on the girls suck, but by the sounds of things, the bonuses are incredible!’ The idea of building up an organisation sounded interesting, and my mind already spiralled with ideas.

The incubus thing was more than a little concerning, but it sounded like the girls had access to more information than I had here. I made a mental note to drag as much information as i could get out of the girls later on. I did not want to turn into a demon. I trusted my family, however, enough to assume that I was missing a vital piece of the puzzle that definitively stated I would turn evil if I accepted this path.

In all likelihood, this was probably what they had been discussing earlier when Abby and I were… asking for permission to fool around a bit. I shake my head, still feeling bad for that. Sighing, I reminded myself that if I chose this option, it would probably involve sleeping with other women. Five, at the very least, the minimum number required for a non-combat arm. The thought was more than a little daunting.

Still, the girls, whilst clearly unhappy, were apparently willing to accept some… new additions. Part of me felt like a royal asshole. Here I was, practically moments after gaining what I’d secretly always wanted, and I was already looking for more. The other part of me, the part that was kinda grubby, and exceedingly horny, revelled at the prospect, and was already well underway justifying why we ‘just simply had to take this Branch and run with it’. ‘It could be worse… expanding things by five people could be manageable, as long as they were they right people.’

With that, and other such thoughts running through my mind, I move onto the next section, the words of which crush my flimsy self-justifications with all the **** of a sledgehammer.

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Levelling restrictions:

Profession Exp may only be gained if either of the following is true:

• Both the emotional, romantic, and sexual needs of the inner harem are maintained to an acceptable level (determined by both parties), and the basic survival needs (food, water, shelter, etc) of those members of the outer harem dependent on the Incubus Lord are met or exceeded.

OR

• Every harem member (inner and outer) has sworn a lifebound oath of absolute loyalty to the Incubus Lord.

Please note that, whilst Exp can be slowly gained from sexual encounters with inner or outer harem members, sleeping with people outside the harem will be gain considerably more Exp.

Would you like this choice to be judged now? (Y/N)

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‘Weeeeeeeeeeeeell, fuck.’ The girls, when I push the notification away, have gone back to looking downcast. Still, there is a weary acceptance there. Whatever they’ve seen, and whatever they’ve heard, it’s bad enough to push me towards this. I sigh, shaking my head. Whilst selecting yes wouldn’t change anything now, it would put me on the path. “I’m going to spend so much time showing you all just how much I love you.” The words come out as more of a growl than I intend, but my tone of voice doesn't make the statement any less true. My attention returns to the notification (causing me to miss more than one deep blush), and I select yes.

0----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------0

Aaaaaand it’s time for round two! Is this the option better than the last? Or will we be enjoying another forfeit? Lets find out!

Results:

1. Pick a Branch that you, as the holder of the Profession, would put as one of your top three. (PASS)

2. Pick a Branch that will eventually allow you to have children with your family members without the risk of genetic complications should you so choose within a reasonable timeframe (which, I’ve arbitrarily decided, is within the next ten years). (PASS)

DINGDINGDING!! WEEEEEEEE HAAAAAVE A WINNEEEER!!!

Your quest has now been updated! If you complete the new objective, you will be granted access to this incredible Profession Branch, aren’t you lucky!

The first round is over, which means it’s time for round two!

Adam, you’re surplus to requirements for this one. So… don’t get into too much trouble whilst us girls are busy, yeah?

...

...

K BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

0----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------0

‘Well, that was rude.’ Rolling my eyes at the goddess’s antics, I close the notification. Taking a brief look around the camp, I can see that the girls are still reading something. I perk up when I see Mum’s lips move, only to sigh again as I realise I can’t hear a word she’s saying. Still, I can hear myself sigh, as well as the sounds of the forest. So, minor improvement?

With time to kill, I plonk myself down in a chair and eagerly open the rest of my notifications.