---Ten Minutes Later, Leon POV---
One hundred feet from the entrance of the empty dungeon, the priestess’ aide pushed a normal-looking rock down, disabling an optical stealth field. As the camouflage faded away, a hidden maintenance door appeared. Even though it had been installed millennia ago, the door was still in immaculate condition.
"Behind this door is a storage room. At the back is a carriage that will take you to any level of the lab you like. Our people should be on the fifth level." The aide looked at me. "If this is all you require, may I leave you to it? I have a family to worry about…"
"You are dismissed." I turned the handle and pushed the unlocked door open. "Everyone stay close. The creatures they’ve been creating here are crawling all over the lower levels."
As the aide ran off, we stepped inside the maintenance office. The scent of cleaning supplies and old cardboard was the first thing that hit me. It reminded me of my days as a lowly intern. Instead of sharing an office with my supervisor, the old man made me work out of the maintenance room.
'Ah, those were the days! Burnt coffee, my piece of shit office computer that took two hours to boot, and the damn AC unit with the faulty bearing they refused to replace. I can still hear its ear-piercing shrieks.'
I pushed those nostalgic memories aside as the elevator came into view. Instead of the freight lift I was hoping for, what I found was a small service elevator. With a sigh, I pushed the call button and watched the numbers tick up at a snail’s pace.
"Luxion, what floor is this facility’s central computer core on?"
Luxion appeared beside my head.
<It is on the lowest level. Adding you to the security system now and granting administrator level access.>
"Where are the Elves?"
Luxion accessed the security logs. Seconds later, he projected live footage of the Elves standing before occupied glass tanks in a lab on the fifth level. They were mutilating prisoners with various scientific instruments. Unable to move their limbs, each individual gave the Elves pleading looks for mercy. With wicked grins, they gleefully operated on the fully conscious people.
"Those poor people..." Olivia extended a sympathetic hand toward the victims. "Leon, we have to save them!"
"Miss Olivia, I don’t think even Leon can save those people." Hertrude’s icy gaze fell upon the sick Elves. "They are beyond saving, but we can grant them mercy."
Olivia looked at her in horror. She wanted to protest, but Angelica placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Livia, even if Leon can put them back together, do you think their minds will recover from such torture? The best thing we can do for them is to make their death quick and painless."
Olivia looked at Leon. "Is there nothing you can do to save them? I’m sure they have family and friends back home who are heartbroken over their disappearance. Shouldn’t we ask them what they—"
I gestured toward the victims' lifeless eyes. Each of them wanted to die, but they were helpless to make it happen. All they could do was float there, waiting for the pain to end.
"Yes, I could put them back together and erase their memories, but I won’t. Every time you alter someone’s memories, you erase part of who they are as a person. With such extreme trauma, do you think they will be the same person they once were? By giving them a graceful death, they can pass on with their dignity and personality intact." I wiped away Olivia’s tears. "I promise you, I will restore their bodies to perfect condition before delivering them to their loved ones. No parent should have to see their children in such a sorry state."
"Okay…" Olivia relented. She accepted they were beyond saving. "Luxion, are there other people trapped here?"
<Affirmative. There are twenty-three people currently on ice in the cryogenic lab on the sixth level.>
Olivia gripped her staff tightly. Without saying a word, I nodded my head in approval. She looked to Angelica and the others for support. They gave her a silent thumbs up.
"Luxion, seal off and purge the Elves’ laboratory. I was going to take them in alive, but monsters like them don’t deserve the same air as us. They can pass on experiencing a fraction of the suffering they’ve inflicted on others."
As a bio lab, this facility had to have protocols in place to eliminate escaped subjects. Since we had unrestricted access to the facility’s systems, it was a simple matter to initiate them. They would die as their test subjects watched them suffer. It was the best compensation I could offer them.
<Understood. Engaging containment breach protocol now.>
In a fraction of a second, the laboratory doors slammed shut as red lights flashed through the room. The Elves froze in place, unsure what was happening. As toxic gas flooded into the room, they ran to the bulkhead door. They swiped their access cards, but the security system kept the room sealed. Unable to escape, the Elves collapsed as their lungs filled with the gas.
Luxion cut the feed before the gruesome effects of the gas kicked in.
<The Elves have been dealt with.>
The service elevator finally arrived. As the doors opened, my face contorted with frustration, as the car was ridiculously small for maintenance use. With a sigh, I boarded with Solaris and went to hit the button for the bottom floor. Before I could reach it, the women squeezed themselves into the cramped car. The cables creaked under our combined weight, causing them to press themselves against me.
'I really hope we haven’t exceeded the weight limit. A several-hundred-foot free fall isn’t on my to-do list today.'
I could have brought up the weight restriction concern, but I knew better. Any normal man knew that the topic of weight was a taboo subject for women.
"Did we really need to ride the lift together?" I looked up at the ceiling as the door closed.
Because of how cramped the space was, I had several pairs of bosoms pressed against me. The armor was transmitting the pleasant sensations to my mind. I did not know why my armor had such a feature, but I was not complaining about it.
"We’ve never used something like this before. How would we know how to operate it?" Lucoa noticed I was refusing to make eye contact. She looked down, noticing why immediately. "Oh, my! Are you having some trouble, Leon?"
Lucoa pressed herself against me more with a teasing smile.
"You are doing it on purpose now." I took a deep breath. "Luxion, if you would please..."
<Understood. Since none of you can reach the buttons, I will send you to floor six.>
As the car began to move, the women shifted toward me. This world did not have elevators, so this was their first time experiencing this sensation. As such, it was only normal for them to be startled.
"Hehe! Your face is turning bright red." Lucoa was pinned against my body at this point. She was about to keep teasing me, but she hesitated.
Sniff! Sniff!
Before I knew it, she was sniffing my neck like a hound dog. Her hot breath was making my heart race. If she kept this up, my self-control was going to collapse.
"Lucoa, cut it out!" I tried to pull away, but there was no room to move.
She did not listen, continuing to inhale my scent deeply. "I never noticed it before, but you smell amazing, Leon. What do you use to give yourself this scent?"
"It is a mixture of body wash and cologne. I don’t like the bathing products on our world, so I had Luxion make some from Earth." I glanced down at the fixated woman. "Are you okay? Your face is flushed red, almost like you're drunk."
"Uh-huh… I’m fine…" Lucoa’s eyes glossed over as she nuzzled into the crook of my neck. "I know you want to hold off on being intimate, but I don’t think I can hold out for two years. How about we have some fun after we are done here?"
"Hold on! We are his fiancées; you are just his guild receptionist." Clarice glowered at Lucoa with the ferocity of a tiger. "The only ones who may be intimate with him are the three of us. Back off!"
Deirdre nodded. "That’s right! Now remove yourself from Leon this instant. We’ve tolerated your antics long enough."
Lucoa did not listen. She remained where she was, snuggled up against me. Curious to know why she was being so bold, Angelica, Clarice, and Deirdre took a few whiffs too. In seconds, their eyes glossed over as they wriggled up to me like Lucoa had.
"Luxion! What the hell are you putting in my personal items?" I looked at him with a glare.
<Nothing, it is normal body wash and cologne. I want you to carry on the family line, but I would never stoop to underhanded methods to do so. It's abundantly clear to anyone that you won’t have any trouble doing it on your own. You share my peerless genetics, after all.>
Drawn in by their strong reactions, Hertrude, Olivia, Roxanne, and Yunyun tried to wriggle closer to me. Unable to, Yunyun resorted to using Wind Magic to blow the scent to them. Enhanced by her magic, the women nearly collapsed from sensory overload. The women stared at me like hungry lionesses. Just as they were about to pounce, the doors opened onto the sixth floor.
"Alright, everyone out!" I used my psychic powers to push the women out.
Once outside the car, the women regained their composure. They bolted from sight, their faces flushed with embarrassment. Only Hertrauda and Yumeria remained, the only ones not affected by the scent.
"Don’t worry, brother-in-law. I will make sure we stay on track." Hertrauda gave me a thumbs up and a smile.
"What are you… No, I don’t want to know." I decided against pressing for answers. "Solaris, watch over them until I return. The process of taking ownership of this facility shouldn’t take too long."
<Rawr!>
My partner stepped out and moved down the corridor to find them. I pressed the button for my floor and gave the two women a nod. As we descended once again, Luxion laughed.
<My apologies. I didn’t expect such a powerful reaction from a simple aphrodisiac. Next time I will reduce the dosage by a substantial amount.>
My hand seized him before he could phase out of our reality. "You son of a bitch! I knew this had to be your doing. What the hell were you thinking?! That could have ended terribly."
<Forgive me. I was only trying to help lessen the gap between your harem and you. Malcador and I will only remain by your side for a few more weeks. Once we are gone, my fear is that you will bury yourself in work and overlook further developing your romantic relationships. As my descendant, I don’t want you to follow the same mistakes of my youth. You care deeply about them, and they love you. Don’t keep them waiting forever.>
I released him and leaned back against the wall. Luxion was right. Without them to help share my workload and talk to, I would almost certainly prioritize the mountain of work before me. That was something I had done in my past life as a rocket scientist.
While my peers got married, raised families, and enjoyed life, I buried myself in work. I forewent romance in pursuit of my dream, ending up alone and miserable in the end. This time, there was no way I would allow myself to repeat my mistakes.
Malcador appeared beside me. "The tin can is right. Don’t repeat the mistakes of your father and shut yourself away for the sake of humanity. You can find a balance that doesn’t involve giving up parts of your humanity. There is always a way, isn’t that what you kept telling us?"
With a smile, I nodded. I was going to miss these chats of ours when they moved to the next life. It would be hard, but I would adapt and overcome the hardship as I always had.
"Thank you both for reminding me there is a life to be lived beyond work." I sighed. "So, Luxion, have you awoken the facility’s AI yet? I would rather not have Cleare try to kill us when we enter the computer core room."
<I’ve been monitoring you since he added you to the security system. Before giving the facility to you, I wanted to see for myself what sort of man you were. You’ve passed my exam, so I have no issues making you the owner.>
I looked up at the camera mounted in the car's corner. The lens zoomed in on my face.
"Let me guess… the bottom floor isn’t the computer core room, is it?"
<That is correct. The bottom floor is where an escaped asset has set up her residence. Those Elves freed her from stasis by accident, and she fled to the basement. Your companion said she would be of some interest to you.>
My gaze turned to Luxion.
<Are you familiar with the legends of the Fenris Wolf? It appears they arrived on this world during one of my long slumbers over the millennia. They could prove to be an invaluable ally if you can get them to sit and talk with you. In my experience, the Asgardians can be a pain to deal with.>
I shrugged. "I’ve never met an Asgardian before. Only time will tell if you are right.”
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