Chapter 11: Negotiations

 Augustine: Song weaver, self-proclaimed Life Skiller. Advocate for respecting the elderly. 

Vincent and I break apart the two dungeon cores. I am the one who is holding the frail-looking old lady, while Vincent is holding back Atha. They both have fire in their eyes. I wonder how much it hurt Atha, to be kneed in the balls. I mean, don't his scales protect him from the impact?

"We have to be reasonable here. Ma'am," I smile down on the old lady in my hands. "We come for your honey." 

She gives out a loud pitch squeal, and knees me in the balls. Or tries to. I jump away just in time. 

"How dare you!" She yells, her hands balled into fists. "I am old enough to be your great-great-great..." 

I tune her out, as she keeps on listing the greats. Using the time to think on a good strategy about what we could do about the lady who doesn't want for us to ever have children, I collect all the information that I know. 

She has flies, which collect honey. 

Blue Bell honey...

Wait a sec, Blue Bells grow on turtles, not in caves!

I glare at Atha, who is too busy glaring at the other dungeon core to notice. Ah, I have been had before. I wonder if all of my harem members are going to lie to me about food, before they get me to come out for quests with them. Should I write a sign: If you lie, I...

Can't say I'll be angry. I mean, I let Vince get away with it. I am not really all that angry at Atha either. 

I still can't let the word spread, that I am easy to lie to!

"What is your name, fair lady?" I ask the dungeon core, who is still saying the word great. I wonder if she is really as old as dirt, or has simply gone senile with age. 

"Drusila," she says, and I smile. 

"Ok, Drusila, have you ever had a honey cake?" I ask, and watch as Atha pales. 

You lying bastard, I have you now!

She opens and closes her mouth a couple of times, and then pats her stomach. 

"Go on," she urges, and I decide to dig Atha's grave. 

"I know, from a reliable source, that you have jars of Blue Bell honey," I begin. She nods energetically, and both I and Atha gape at her. 

"I have mini turtles, yes," she says, and I blink at her. 

"Wait, what?" Atha takes the time, to slither next to me, and pat me on the shoulder. 

"She feeds them with my slimes," the probably is left between us, but not spoken out loud. 

"I do," she agrees, and I gape some more. 

"Why would you feed slimes to turtles?" I ask. Is it healthy for the turtles? I mean, the biggest turtle grove with Blue Bells is as big as a small lake. They need sunlight, and air, and water. Tons of water. 

"Come, come. I'll give you some honey, you'll make me cake, and then you will stay still, while I knit and tell you stories," the total change in the mood surprises me. Still, I follow her. She leads us to a cavern, where there are a lot of small turtles going around the places, with a single bloom each, growing out of their shells. 

"The slime goo keeps the turtles small. I like cute things," Drusila says, picks up one of the turtles, and proceeds to have a conversation in baby talk with it.  

"Your worst enemy is a cat lady," I hear Vincent tell Atha. I can't help it; I chuckle at that. 

"Her flies are excellent fighters," Atha retorts. 

Vincent snickers at that, and Drusila pauses in her conversation. 

"Something funny?" Her eyes are narrowed, and her mouth is set in a straight line. 

"I was just praising your flies," Atha says. I am surprised that he spoke the truth, and didn't attempt to bullshit his way out of the situation. 

"My flies? You mean those vermin, that harass my turtles?" She asks, and we all blink. 

"You mean, you don't control the flies?" I ask. Surely, the flies are fed on her mana. If she didn't summon them, then who? 

"They were in the cave when I moved in. Although, they did get bigger. It all happened because of that cursed hat. Made out of witch skin, it was," she says, and spits on the ground. I share a look with my two partners. 

"If we get rid of the cursed hat, will you give us as much honey as we need?" I ask.

"Sure, but I doubt that you lot can do it. I have been trying for years, with no success," she says, and then opens her bottomless bag, and fishes the ugliest human skin stitched hat, that I have ever seen. It is even growing human hair. Atha slithers to the dungeon core, and takes the hat. Then, he takes out his dungeon core crystal, and places it in the hat. 

I watch, as he pours mana into the crystal. There is a ghostly hat, next to the hat, after a minute of the constant mana stream. Then, a yell is heard, and the hat catches flames. 

"Well, that is another mana crystal down the gullet," Atha lets the hat fall down on the ground, and it is soon a pile of ash. Drusila gapes at him openly. 

"You mean to tell me, that I could have done this, and gotten rid of the flies centuries ago?" She asks, and Atha chuckles. 

"You couldn't have done it because you are a second-generation dungeon core. But for me? Why, there is no problem. I am generation Z," that reminds me that, with his twenty-five years, he is by far one of the youngest cores out there. 

"Well, the honey is yours," Drusila says, and then pulls out a jar with honey out of her bottomless bag. "Now, sit still, so I can knit you sweaters."

"We really should," Atha says, but I stop him with a look. 

"We'd love to, grannie," I tell the dungeon core. She giggles, and leads us into a different cavern, where the fire is crackling in the hearth.