There is No Epic Loot Here, Only Puns

104: Spring of the Soul

Delta left the deliriously happy Renny to whip his new performers into shape. She walked past a snoozing Wilhelm and back into the jungle in time to see tiny scampering Pygmy Mushrooms running by with the new popcorn in their hands.

She cleared her throat. The three little creatures froze and looked up at her with wide round eyes. Their masks turned to the side to allow them to better rub the popcorn against their faces.

"Are you lot causing trouble again?" She asked, voice intentionally blank. One squeaked and hopped a few times. The middle one squealed as well. Delta knew while they didn't have mouths, they were able to sort of toot the air in their caps out compressed spaces to make noises. It was like passing gas but done conversationally.

"And you have no intention of luring poor folk off the path with the popcorn?" She asked as their words translated to her mind.

Be it cute farts or mind-numbing teeth-clicking horror... Delta could hold conversations with any of her monsters at this point.

The Pygmies explained how they wanted to collect the 'golden balls of deep desire' for the tribes and share it with their new friend. That raised alarm bells until they described 'He of golden fibers and fire'.

Delta's alarm bells turned into whistles of groans at the thought of Quiss interacting with her adorable little devils. These little guys were the biggest troublemakers in her Dungeon - and she had goblins!

But... the fact they were bonding with Quiss showed a remarkable improvement over their previous behavior. Delta guessed it paid to be firm with them at times. She let them go and they vanished into the distant underbrush with more singing of their caps.

How could something so cute cause so much trouble?

Delta honestly wasn't sure she'd ever make something that would rival their cuteness and their penchant for mischief again.

---

Mule watched as the foaming murderous giant wolf bared its teeth at him. The Domain it had set up gave it power and minions to control like puppets. It had yet to form proper intelligence but Mule gurgled at it.

It was fluffy! Delta would have liked fluffy. He was picked up and flung about as the Master Wolf tried to rend him blob from blob. Mule waited until he was sure the creature was confused, and then formed two black eyes that blinked right into the wolf's red eyes.

He gurgled.

No, this fluffy was no good. It had too many seeds in it. Another Domain gone wrong. That's why Dungeons were so much better! Delta would have made a much cooler wolf that was nice. Mule's orange body shifted and he left the happy piece of himself that Delta had created to be overtaken... protected by his true nature.

Something he hoped to slowly introduce to his Delta pool of Mana.

It was definitely odd to have two 'selves' but it was also a new experience. Mule didn't get to feel a lot of those.

The thought faded as a new emotion surged forward. His black beady eyes snapped open and a red slit cut its way down the black orbs.

The eye of a king stared at the beast holding him. His body turned red and grew, breaking the wolf's fangs with sheer mass as it went.

Danmulecus rose and rose until he was a king once more.

Then he removed the small forest.

A few moments later, Mule chirped as he hopped out of the sizzling wasteland of heat and blackened trees. His shrinking form orange once more. He had a new goal now.

Find a fluffy.

One that was nice.

It was good to have goals!

---

Delta was glad the Pygmies were the worst of her troublesome creatures besides Wyin. While the tree woman seemed calmer, that bloodlust of hers seemed to bubble to the surface a lot.

She froze as her stores of Mana and DP sharply rose and Nu popped into existence.

What did you do? We just got energy from kills!

Delta gaped at him.

"I didn't do anything! I only made supernatural popcorn and created the circus of the damned! I'm innocent!" She cried in her defense. Her Mana was pumped into making more random rocks and hanging vines with blossoming flowers nearby to make sure she didn't get too close to the upper limit.

Mana Maxing sucked.