[A/N: This chapter includes sexual themes. Read with caution]
{ Welcome to the 3rd Floor, The Coral Labyrinth! }
The boat abruptly stopped in front of a water barrier, which seemed to have breathable air, despite the surrounding ocean water.
But, they couldn't be too careful. If they just carelessly waltzed in without thinking about themselves, they would probably die horrible deaths. Of course, everyone thought that except...
"Let's go," said Victor as he jumped off the boat and dove straight into the barrier.
"Hey! That's careless!" Nico warned, albeit a little late because of Victor's quick movement.
"Please tell me no one's dumb enough to do what he just did," Nico said as he face-palmed.
Right behind him, Sophia jumped off and landed inside the barrier. She then turned to look at Nico and smirked, making him roll his eyes in annoyance.
'I guess if those 2 are confident that nothing bad will happen, I might as well join them,' he said to himself as he jumped off the boat and went through the barrier.
As he did, time seemed to move in slow motion. His body felt both wet and dry at the same time as if the elements had been shifting and playing tic tac toe on his skin.
In addition, it felt as if an invisible plastic barrier was slowly pulling him into the barrier, while simultaneously locking him outside. Then, he set foot on the sand and held his breath.
{ Water Breathing affinity granted!
Time Remaining: 47 hours, 59 minutes and 50 seconds }
"So, we're being given water breathing?" Nico inquired as he looked at Victor.
"Yeah. And, according to the time remaining, it shouldn't take any longer than 24 hours to go through this entire level," said Victor.
'24 hours?' Nico had 48 hours. 'Must be the effects of this mask. If it can allow me to grow stronger faster, there's no reason it can't double my effects on water breathing as well...'
Despite the menacing appearance of the coral leaves that were scattered across the area, their bright colours had an allure to them.
They branched out unevenly, spreading themselves around and creating a forest of themselves with one clear path, allowing the players to walk in that direction.
With no other path to take, Nico and the group ventured down the pathway, making sure that they avoided the coral leaves that seemed hostile.
After trekking through the environment for a handful of hours, the group came across a cave with bright lighting from glowing stones.
The girls in the group looked at them as their eyes lit up, slowly being enchanted by the colourful luminescence of the illuminating stones.
As they ventured into the cave, the system chimed and relayed a message.
{ Water Breathing Affinity will be recharged!
Time remaining until full charge: 4 hours, 12 minutes and 10 seconds remaining}
"I guess this means we can rest here for a while," said Jax as he looked around the cave carefully. "Hey, this junk has a bunch of rooms here! There are even beds!"
"Would you count this as a safe zone?" Nico inquired from Sophia.
She crossed her arms. "Not at all. The fact that there are beds here means that there's something or someone who clearly owns this cave; someone smart enough to know what a bed is."
"There's no water in this cave either. Guess that's how we're getting that water-breathing affinity recharge," Nico added. "We might as well take turns looking out, just in case something does show up."
Sophia nodded.
"I'll take the first watch," Victor suggested. "The next cave we encounter, anyone else can watch over."
"Thanks, Vic," said Nico.
"No sweat."
Sophia then walked away, but before she could get too far, Nico grabbed her wrist and stopped her from moving further.
"Can I have a moment of your time?" he asked politely.
"You sound like a salesman," she retorted.
"Just a couple of minutes."
Sophia sighed. "It's about Genesis, isn't it?"
Nico swallowed his spit in nervousness and nodded slowly. Sophia furrowed her brows slightly and walked away.
"Follow me. We can't talk here," she said, encouraging Nico to follow behind her.
They went to the furthest part of the cave and found a room with dim lighting and a clean bed, which was suspicious to Nico.
Nonchalantly so, Sophia sat down on the bed and felt it. "Quite soft. I expected it to be harder..." she said as she scanned the bedding. "We've got dangerous people owning these caves. We need to make sure we don't come across them when we're unprepared."
"I agree. But, we've got Victor keeping watch. Nothing bad will happen on his watch. If anything does happen, I'm just hoping that Veronica will be protected," Nico replied earnestly.
Sophia looked at Nico and scoffed. "I didn't think you were the type to care about a type of girl like her," she said as she smirked. "Admit it, you actually don't want anyone here to die."
Nico slightly furrowed his brows, trying his best not to grunt, but he did.
"It's not about that," he said as he crossed his arms. "Veronica is useful."
"Sure thing," said Sophia as she crossed her legs and leaned back against the bed frame.
She then unbuttoned one of her top buttons, showing off her D-cup cleavage. Nico cleared his throat and quickly averted his gaze.
"I wanted to talk about Genesis. Is there-"
"Sshh..." Suddenly, as if possessed, Sophia appeared in front of Nico and placed her finger on his lips, shushing him.
"Look... My information on that man... comes at a cost..." she whispered in his ears as she smirked.
Then, she slowly ran her hands on Nico's chest and then onto his butt, where she pinched one and chuckled.
Nico slightly jumped and grabbed Sophia's hand, his cheeks turning red.
"If it's money you want, then name your price," he said as he stared at her intently.
Sophia's smile grew wider, proving that she was amused by Nico's response.
"I have over æ1,300,000 coins on my account. Safe to say that I won't be needing any money from you, Nico. I want something more... intimate..." she replied as she brushed her lips against Nico's, allowing her breath and his to pass through each other.
"You have something I want... I have something you want... What do you say...? Trade?" she suggested as she bit Nico on his neck.
Nico felt his manhood harden for a second but managed to compose himself. Then, he placed his hand on his mask and removed it, revealing his face.
{ +10 Charisma has been added! }
'Just from removing my mask? Vortex must've been popular...' he said to himself as he looked at Sophia.
Then, he placed his hands on her waist and pulled her closer to him, lowering his head to kiss her. As he got close, she moved her head back and chuckled.
"Uh-uh," she shook her head. "You're not in control here."
Nico smirked. "Nice try."
Without warning, his hand moved towards her buttocks and he squeezed them graciously. Then, with his free hand, he forcefully grabbed Sophia's chin and kissed her.
{ +3 Charisma has been added! }
After twisting their tongues, the two began undressing each other and lied on the comfortable bed, with Nico being at the top.
Sophia placed her hands on his cheeks and brought his lips closer to hers, allowing them to touch passionately once again.
Then, they smiled at each other...
***
Nico sat on the bed and began dressing up wearing his hoodie while Sophia got dressed up as well. The challenge was trying to make sure they didn't make noise; they succeeded.
"So... Did you get what you wanted from me?" Nico inquired.
"... What are you, really?" Sophia curiously asked as she hugged Nico from behind.
"Huh?" he raised an eyebrow as he put his mask back on.
"Your mana... I've never tasted anything like it before..." Sophia responded as her pupils turned into hearts, a smile forming at the corner of her lips.
"... You're a succubus, aren't you?" Nico asked as he stood up.
"Only half. There's a bit of a switch on my head. When I go 5 days without sleeping with someone, my demonic side takes over. I was fortunate enough to have gotten you," she said as she smiled softly.
Then, as if a literal switch had been turned on, she ceased smiling entirely and stood up from the bed, fixing herself.
"So, you want to know about Genesis?" she returned to her normal self.
Nico nodded, wondering how she hadn't gone crazy. 'She's probably just like Veronica...' he assumed.
"Just so you know, Genesis is an awful man. I lost my sister and my comrades because of him. The last thing I want is to get involved with him again. I want to live," explained Sophia.
"I completely understand. That's why I'm willing to take in your burdens for you; let me do what you and your comrades couldn't."
"What's that?"
"Avenge those Genesis took away."
Sophia smiled genuinely and crossed her arms as she leaned against the doorway. "Alright, playboy. I'll tell you how we killed Ares."