<Nocturnal Harmonia>

[Bloodedge]

Makima may have had actual understanding of the white-haired man's words this time... but in truth, she hadn't the foggiest idea how much he meant those words. The Players had left behind the bag. Be that a bag of imaginary money by Gojo's own power-scaling terms, a bag of new tricks, or... a body bag, all possible meanings applied. She'd find out soon enough, but Gojo wouldn't be the one to tell her a thing. No, this was yet another thing the chairwoman would be more excited to see herself.

Instead of giving the full story, however, Yugi became distracted by two late System notifications. Finally having daily quests available was nice, though it could have come much sooner. Being able to give Concubines their own gold and the like was also nice. He'd have to get in touch with Tae to ensure she stopped wasting her time by opening those many bags. While Yugi thought that over, Gojo was asked about something he... unsurprisingly understood the meaning of. "It gets lonely at the top. You'll probably never be able to understand that, but I'm almost minus the wait," Gojo chattered. At that point, Yugi quirked one brow and shifted his gaze toward Makima. What sort of 'field trip' was she rushing for? "Quickly isn't really gonna cut it. You're gonna want a demonstration, and that tank we were talking about. It'd be better if we just did whatever thing you're talking about first, but... here's a sample." With that said, Yugi snapped his fingers, and from his shadow came one of the Normal-grade soldiers. "We've become... the Monarchs of Shadows. Feel free to draw your own conclusions if you think they're right. So what's the trip?"

[Apollymi]

Gojo's power-scaling aside there were quite a few things going on in the minds of the Players. Their new Daily Quests was something to think about, but beyond that there was the idea of spreading spending money around and the like. Beyond that Miko was questioning whether or not Gojo had the dreaded 'sennin-itis'. His words on the matter was actually quite sad, Miko sighed gently, "I suppose I do have an in-built out to that kind of problem. Still, I'll do my best to make sure you have something to do with your spare time♪~" Miko offered the man rather easily. She had no intention of stopping her climb for power.

Ah, but while the pair were ready to share a tale likely to send Makima into a fit of orgasmic bliss. It seemed she was pressed for time. She never seemed particularly rushed, which made Miko curious about their 'field-trip' as well. According to Yugi this explanation couldn't come quickly, she had faith in that based on her own understanding the pair they were always outrageous. What Makima received initially was a sample. Out of the pair's shadow came a summoned soldier of some sort. They gained the title Monarch of Shadows... so their job change was to some sort of summoner of creatures out of their shadows. "Well, after some of the other things I've seen you do... that's impressive but not quite the bucket level I expected. Still if there's more to it, I suppose we can wait to hear the rest of it. We're going to sub-basement four," Makima mentioned standing up, a phone in hand to report to a private elevator which opened in a nearby wall. They didn't have time to waste given the urgency of the situation below. Beyond a vaulted door on sub-basement level four, there were a series of reinforced rooms more like cages, and several dead bodies spread around already. The stench of blood permeating the air, as a certain green haired young man had... started having fun in one of the most aggressive ways possible.

[Bloodedge]

The field trip Makima spoke of wasn't going to be much of a trip at all. She only wanted to take them to one of the association's basement levels. Their display of new powers could wait, though what small portion of it Makima saw couldn't be considered as orgasmic as they purported. "Teasers are teasers for a reason. Bring the tank," he suggested. That soldier would be returning to Yugi's shadow without any fuss, and so began the trip down a long elevator.

Gojo kept himself nearby, occasionally glancing at either the Players' shadows or Makima herself. His placement was quite specific, though. Though he should have been standing high above everyone else in the elevator, he was the lowest head inside... because he was crouching for the entire trip, jokingly holding that bucket next to Makima's crotch. Eventually, they were all surrounded by the smell of death. Yugi and Miko however, would have already heard those familiar screams of souls on the way down. All those rooms... This was a dungeon of the criminal underground variety. He could assume a crazed man they'd been indirectly introduced to earlier was responsible; he seemed the sort. "Lost control of one, huh?" Yugi questioned before the elevator door even opened. "Still missing the point. What do you need us down here for? I'd say I have no interest in being your clean-up guy, but... I'd probably be lying."

[Apollymi]

Makima was given a teaser for a reason. A tank was still necessary apparently and she found that rather interesting. Whatever the case, she simply chuckled, "Still so certain. That's always nice~" Makima murmured. But as they went down that elevator shaft, Miko could hear it again. The noise that death made, a symphony of screams just slightly out of the happy noise. By the time their descent was made, Yugi was commenting about the nature of the beast that caused the death they could currently hear, and Miko was smirking at Gojo, giving her nod of approval. It'd be Makima who spoke. "Oh, no I didn't lose control of this one... this is how he, unwinds..." Makima said choosing those words carefully. "It's the green haired guy isn't it? He has not-so-secret Yandere written all over him. And for the record there are way easier methods to work off stress," Miko muttered quietly.

"Sou ka, you have a very interesting understanding of people. No matter, I brought you down here so you could check any of the ones here for routes before they're disposed of... no extras necessary. If either of you pop one I'll release them to your custody..." Makima offered the pair that kind of openness. "After that you can finish telling me about your new upgrades..." Makima stated. She was willing to leave the young man who was happy killing to his devices, since he'd worked himself up so thoroughly. Miko couldn't help those little sways she seemed to be enjoying the sounds she was hearing, just a bit... perhaps them being the Monarch of Shadows had changed something about her just a bit? Or maybe when music was involved she simply couldn't help herself.

[Bloodedge]

Certainty was feeling more like a minimum at this point in time. "Still not seeing a tank~" Yugi stated in a calm, yet flirty tone. Beyond that, there were dead souls screaming ─ something far more interesting to Yugi at the current moment, though he was currently hearing the least corpses. It seemed Makima didn't quite 'lose control' of the green-haired man. Clearly this was his method of unwinding, but there was another implication. "So you let him have access. That's fun," Yugi commented.

Yugi noticed cells had been opened and entered individually. Any who were dead and worth their weight in salt were absolutely tortured to death within the privacy of their final resting chamber. Whatever the case, this trip was initially about routes. Anyone they didn't check and find an available route for, Makima would have disposed. The underground was a ruthless place, and she clearly had a strong hold on it. "It doesn't exactly work like that. Well... it depends, really. Sometimes... most times, interaction is required. You've got a lot of people to sort through down here," he chattered. Even while slightly entertaining the idea of fishing for routes in a dungeon, which he'd do mostly for the rambunctious sort of woman he could find in such a place, Yugi had a greater focus. "What do you do with the bodies?"

[Apollymi]

That ever present joking nature between certain people and Makima was something the general population wouldn't understand. At the same time, there would be plenty of time to blow Makima's mind but for now they needed to get a bit more done with this group. Among the more casual things to be figured out surrounding this situation, it was the fact that the green haired man from earlier was granted access to this place for his 'unwinding purposes'. A smirk came to Makima's face, as he pointed out the facts of this situation. "Yes, I grant him access, and we can't keep everyone... this particular block has some oddities we can't really allow to roam," Makima pointed out. Kyo was a rare individual, completely raised within the Underground, going straight hadn't appealed to him. He preferred torture and murder not of creatures but of people, as such this was a past-time of his Makima chose to allow when the overflow got a big out of hand, or when a job had worked him up a bit too much.

Apparently, routes didn't pop as easily as they seemed. That may have been the case, but she thought it might have been worth it to give a few the chance. "Hm, well if no one pops it isn't a problem but I figured this would be better than allowing a clean swep. These ones have a decent amount of potential," Makima said mostly because of the oddity of powers found her, they weren't allowed outside, but if they could be controlled or brought into the fold of some more powerful individuals she could consolidate power, instead of simply letting it die. That being said an odd question was being asked of Makima, one which made her pause in her track, her head slowly turning towards the lad her eyes showing confusion and intrigue. "That is a very odd question," Makima said. Still, she had every intention of answering. "They are usually finger printed and burned. Why are you asking a question like that?" Makima quizzed directly, her brain not making the connection between their new power, the shadows and corpses. The connections were too tenuous. Meanwhile among the screams of the dead, Miko was hearing something else... whispers....

[Bloodedge]

"I can tell. It feels... varied here," Yugi noted about the oddities on this level. There were some strange visuals of mana in the chamber ─ even in a couple of corpses. Yugi was most interested in the latter case, and Makima only confirmed how much potential was to be found here. "Well... it'd suck to waste good potential~" he commented. Whether by bond routes or by Shadow Extraction, the Players could now make use of that potential in ways no others could.

Speaking of realizing potential, Yugi questioned the treatment of corpses. The real waste would be burning corpses after fingerprinting them... or at least, it would be a waste to do so before calling the Players in. So, why was Yugi asking what she did with the bodies? Makima wondered, and she'd get her answer along with the answer to something else. "Get out here," he demanded. A dozen Shadow Infantry emerged from his shadow then, awaiting orders. "Bring us everything dead you can reach. And don't be dumb enough to kill someone. I want them dead when you find them, and only from here," he specified, having little faith in Shadow Soldiers following orders after the spider debacle.

[Apollymi]

"Sounds varied," Miko murmured. Why... well, a certain kind of distraction had started and when she became that... she began looking for the source of the distraction. A gentle whisper was what she heard and it would be that, she'd eventually wander her way towards. But it would be a moment or two before that happened. Makima didn't like to waste potential, which is why these people had been locked up initially and not just killed. Besides needing a few bodies to make sure she didn't die for any reason understanding a few of the odder qualities here would definitely be helpful.

Soon enough there were demands being made by Yugi of the shadows. he wanted them out, he wanted them to find bodies, but not kill anyone he wanted to make a show of it. Makima watched and was confused, just a bit. The noises coming out of Yugi's mouth initially weren't ones she understood. "Summons, no obvious sacrifices. Can't understand what you're saying to them but complex dialogue options apparently exist," Makima was thinking it through. "Also way more summons than normal people can create," Makima mentioned as well. As things happened Miko had wandered down... far enough to where the whispers would have become audible even to normal people. "They speak the language. We have to get out of here," the almost male voice said tauntingly. "Hush, running won't help and we can't outrun all of them," a white haired young woman said. She had a bob and was mostly relaxed back against the farthest wall of her cell eyes trained on the door, as if she fully intended to defend herself against whatever came in. "We can if you give me control of your body. Full control though... I can't overpower them with you holding me back," the creature said. Miko paused looking into the cell her head tilted to the side.

[Bloodedge]

While Yugi summoned and commanded a fragment of their army, Miko let distraction lead her deeper into the dungeon. He didn't pay it much mind; she'd make it clear what she was hearing eventually. In whatever time she took to do that, Yugi had those Shadow Soldiers move out to gather the corpses. One by one, bodies were already being dropped at the male Shadow Monarch's feet. Makima seemed a bit confused, as expected; there wasn't much to go by. Strange though, was her claiming she couldn't understand him. "... Huh. That's weird. You know what? Box it," he said to borrow a concept from Miko for the moment. Whatever the reason for Makima's lacking comprehension, they'd work that out later. There was one thing she'd understand though...

Unbeknownst to even the Players, there was a phrase as old as death itself, beyond even this world's version of passing. A single word could raise an army of millions, using that same army to topple another. For many throughout time and space, it was the last word heard in life... and also the first heard in the next stage. "Terminate," Yugi said to erase one of the dozen soldiers, and possibly some others resting in his shadow. Then, that word would be spoken once more in this new era ─ an era yet to know the absolute might it would one day carry again. Corpses would tremble and exude dark auras similar to that of the already-summoned soldiers. Those auras would become bodies bound to the will of Yugi and Miko alike, all because of one word...

"ARISE."

[Apollymi]

Miko maintained a strange habit of wandering off when something attracted her attention. It was one of the things, most often attributed to her sensitive hearing and ADHD. At this point though, it might as well have a background in magical oddity. As she stood outside of one these cells listening to a woman talk to a creature that was in-tune with her body enough to sound similar but off just enough to sound distinct. "Onee-san's right, you'll definitely get both of you killed trying to run out of here," Miko asserted to the creature she could hear. An immediate shift occurred as a pair of strange eyes looked up at her furrowing. "You can hear him?" she asked her voice soft and her visage cautious. "Yes, I can, he sounds really close to you, but also a little off. You don't feel dangerous. Well no more than a regular killer does, is it him?" Miko wondered as a point of sheer curiosity.

Of course, while that conversation took place, Yugi was doing quite a lot. And Makima was watching. Her gaze had drifted to Miko for just a moment, if only because the girl's oddity seemed to require a bit of thought. She'd mentioned not understanding the lad while he spoke and he'd chosen to 'box it'. As his female partner often did with her extraneous thoughts. "You are becoming quite the matched pair aren't you?" Makima mused almost teasingly. Ah but then that tease couldn't continue. Why? Well, those corpses were gathered a command was given, a shadow was banished seemingly permanently and then a word was spoken. There was so much power in it, Makima felt it. And what she saw directly afterwards had her face showing shock and then... "Uuahaha..." the start of a laugh stifled while her brain processed, the information. "Hope that bucket is ready♪~" Miko chirped from where she was, of course... that creature inside that woman flared, glowing. "NOOOO! WE MUST GO! THIS IS DANGER! TRUE DANGER!" the creature within the woman quaked from the word spoken as if triggering some old memory. "Chii♪~ Are you scared of us?" Miko asked directly staring at the creature with the glowing blue eyes that marked her as the Monarch of Shadows. At the same time there was a spark of interest in that woman's eyes, something resembling a calculating nature. She'd willingly walked into this cage because the creature attached to her wouldn't submit even while being at least a bit afraid of Makima, but this... this pair with just a word had him wanting to flee with everything he had. That was... interesting.

"Wait, wait, wait wait... it's not shadows. You're reviving the dead with powers as your servants? And... what they can level up too?" Makima made connections while trying to keep the excitement out of her soul, but she couldn't. "Uwahahaaha♪!~" there was something crazy happening in that woman's mind. She might have been broken, it might have been too much to see. "How many?" she wanted to know immediately. As if this pair wasn't game breaking enough...now they had something like this, just on hand. A win condition had been discovered and this pair was only just barely weaker than S-ranks, of this Makima was certain... it may have been time for that more pressing conversation with the children to make sure they didn't move too closely to a similar line of danger as the people locked up here.

[Bloodedge]

The Players were indeed becoming more alike. In fact, one could say it was happening in record time, as they'd only known each other for a couple of days, maximum. "It was kind of forced. But... I don't think I'd take it back," he said about becoming 'matched' with Miko. Shortly afterwards, that big, dangerous, deep word was spoken to resurrect a group of Normal and Elite-Grade Shadow Soldiers... and Makima completely lost her cool. They were resurrecting the dead, in a way. Ah, but Yugi had some specification to offer when Makima finally calmed down a bit ─ if that would ever happen. He'd leave her to her fit of laughter, unabashedly watching her chest bounce throughout while the new soldiers kneeled where they once stood.

Miko called back about the bucket, which Gojo had at the ready. "Bucket!" he said excitedly, holding the item beneath Makima. He'd been waiting for this. He'd have to wait a moment longer though, as Makima's questions required more than just their own answer. "You might want to unequip your panties. They'll just make more of a mess," he warned, willing to grant whatever time the chairwoman needed before continuing. "We're not exactly resurrecting the dead. It's more like... we grab the soul that's still in their corpse. It doesn't cost a thing; we just grab their essence and give it form. They can level up. Everything we've done since getting these items that link our extraction attempts to limbo has been level 5, except Igris who's level 7," he explained. Then, it was time for the big answer ─ one whose details spoke of future growth even in the number of Shadow Soldiers they had access to. "And currently... we can extract 115 without having to terminate extractions to make space."

[Apollymi]

The Players were indeed gaining likeness to each other as they spent more time together. Whether a function of the System or a function of their natural similarities was mostly an unknown. But for now... Miko could hear everything in this area... and as such a happy little smile crossed her face when he mentioned not thinking he would take back their current bond even though it was forced. "Is that so, good to know~" Makima said, if the two were closely bonded it only worked better for everyone involved, if they didn't mind the circumstances that brought them together, then they could move forward as they surely kept doing. Upon being questioned directly by Miko, that creature attached to the white haired woman in her personal cell seemed to quiet. Trying to whisper further to make its point without alerting the brunette. "Those beings can end worlds. They will make their enemies forcefully submit and become their allies. We do not want this... don't let them take us!" the creature seemed more worried than the white haired woman thought. Miko's head simply cocked to the side that blue power behind her eyes flashing for just a moment. "You still heard that... didn't you?" the white haired young woman asked studying the small girl's face. "Hai, I heard. I don't really get what he's so upset about, but I can tell you don't necessarily need to be imprisoned... you want him quiet don't you? To be fully in control? We might be able to help with that..." Miko offered calmly. "No! Don't listen. Sweet words mean nothing. They'll enslave us. They'll kill us!" the creature within seemed terrified. "Oh, you mean they'll kill you? If they do will I be free? If that's the case..." a cheeky smirk came to her face.

Ah but it wasn't just that... While Miko investigated a less than stellar version of symbiosis, Yugi was still speaking with Makima. That red haired woman had something of a fit, before she was able to calm down enough to have a regular conversation. Soon... she managed, but once she did, there was a note that she might want to unequip her panties. Unbeknownst to anyone else, Makima wasn't presently wearing panties, after making a mess of the pervious pair she'd gone full relaxation mode assuming she'd just have a shower when the teens returned for debriefing. "Not a problem. Go on." she said. That bucket on standby there was no way this information was going to be so good. This pair of teens could snatch souls from corpses, force them back into the shape of their original bodies and bind them to their shadow and will. Those raised did have levels and the gear the pair had on, made it so that the resurrected were level 5 at base, and 7 in the case of that boss they'd killed and raised. Ridiculous. And they could currently hold more than a hundred of these things! The win condition was achieved, these children would be National Level Hunters. The strongest she'd seen in quite a while, absolute in their own right and they didn't have a ceiling she could see. "Hehe..." the break was starting. "Waaahaaa..." Makima's insides were coiling before an orgasm overtook her. "Bwahahahaahaha!~" It was too much. Miko shivered, "That's a great fucking sound♪~" she chirped. It would be a moment before Makima could speak again but in that time. "Omen-kun, when you get a minute I found something interesting..."

[Bloodedge]

Makima's panties weren't going to be an issue, according to the chairwoman herself. Hearing that, Yugi looked down her body briefly, both brows rising. "Goddamn you're too hot for this planet," he murmured. Then came Yugi's explanation. One tidbit of information after another was settling in Makima's mind. If the moments before could be considered a break, one could say she was absolutely obliterated by the new information. Gojo remained at the ready with that bucket, as though he actually meant to catch flowing fluids. The way things looked, there might actually be some amount entering the bucket by the end of Makima's latest laughing fit.

Gojo wasn't the only one ready, though. Yugi himself stepped toward Makima, who hadn't offered a single word about what she'd been told. No, she was too busy laughing... and leaking. He could once again see how mana was gathering around her lower half. This time, he aimed to take it upon himself... to reach down toward Makima's inner thigh, aiming to swipe some of that leakage for himself. "... Testing purposes. Or something; I don't know," he'd say while going for a taste from his own finger. Makima had a strange effect in her mana before. He try a new sample with his recent ascension, and find it... far less oppressive and commanding, though still as such. The flavor was notably present now, but he couldn't figure out what the taste itself was. "A little sweet, acidic... slightly bitter background. I like it," he commented, gaze shifting down the hall thereafter. According to Miko, there was something of interest to him. He'd be taking some steps toward the brunette for the sake of finding out. "What? Is it something obscenely thick? With a dance routine? Is it your newest dance routine?"

[Apollymi]

Makima was apparently too hot for the planet? She was aware of that, but something about having the clever pervert boy say it, was amusing to her. It wasn't like she had self-esteem issues, but who didn't enjoy being talked up earnestly. "Good boy~" she said in that lightly teasing way she said everything. Praise deserved praise in kind. That was the kind of person Makima was. Beyond that she was becoming a broken laughing orgasming mess. Any one of those things, would have been dreadfully overpowered in the hands of a pair of teens, who had been approximately C-rank when she'd first met them less than 10 hours ago. Now they had the full ability to amass an army of the dead which could grow even further and had all the potential in the world of adding not just monsters but also mana filled humans to it. She couldn't help but be hysterical. And as she did that something else happened.

That bucket did gain a bit of fluid, more than would be considered normal. Her thighs were also wet by the time Yugi approached her directly. She didn't even bother stopping him, she was too busy trying to wrap her head around the amount of ridiculousness this pair of Players had ended up with. Test purposes was the claim he gave, Whatever, "Save me some♪!~" Miko chirped randomly. While still staring at that prison cell. While Makima suffered hysteria she found that the lad's senses had been enhanced in more than just his eyes. He had a idea of what she tasted like and claimed to like it. As for his question to Miko she smirked, "Iia, well I am working on something. I could use it on you first before I show anyone else♪~" Miko flirted easily. "There is something odd here and I need to know if you can see it... This lady is also hot!♪~" Miko answered earnestly. All the while that white haired woman was on the look out for whatever else. They'd have a few moments before Makima was capable of normal human speech again. While if Yugi could see, he'd see a creature connected to the young woman, some kind of chimera of energy floating around her person frantically whispering.

[Bloodedge]

That sample of Makima's mana had such a distinct taste Yugi couldn't grasp. Miko called out that she wanted some saved, but that hand was already being cleaned by Yugi's tongue. Oh well. He went toward Makima's other thigh to take a second 'sample' before making the trip over, giving the chairwoman a minute to recover. "Hai hai," he said about the shared sample. Upon reaching Miko, he'd ever so casually raise two fingers aimed straight at her mouth. It seemed he wouldn't be getting a dance routine from Miko just yet, but he was at the top of the proverbial waiting list. "Best idea. Do that," he decided.

So then, what did she bring him over for? Something strange she wondered if he could see, connected to a lady who was apparently hot. He looked into the cell, stunned. "Who the fuck locked-up Roze? Oi!" he exclaimed without hesitation. As for the primary cause for calling, there was something Yugi could see. It looked like the head of a lion peeking out from behind the woman, trembling. Yugi was interested... but also disappointed. "Maybe I should have been more specific. I wanted to see a dance from a human woman, not some lion head. The fuck are you shaking for?"