Reborn In A Perverse Monster World! My System Adapts To Everything!

Chapter 136: [DNO! NOT YET FIXED!]

Jason stood at the window of the cottage, staring out at the rolling hills. The sun was beginning to set, casting long shadows across the grass, painting the sky in shades of amber and rose. Lirael was asleep in a crib Jason manifested out of thin air, her tiny chest rising and falling with each peaceful breath, her mismatched eyes closed, her small fingers curled around the edge of her blanket. Ylva and Mae were in the kitchen, their voices drifting through the walls like a gentle melody, punctuated by the occasional clatter of pots and the hiss of cooking.

Jason didn’t know what choice to make in the moment.

Ylva and Mae were so close to conception. Their bellies were swelling with new life, their bodies changing to accommodate the children they carried. Jason wanted to be there when his children were born. He wanted to hold them, to see their first smiles, to watch them take their first steps. He had missed so much of Lirael’s early days. He didn’t want to miss any more. The thought of not being present for the birth of his children filled him with a profound sense of dread.

But he had a different shift in terms of perspective now.

He had no interest in the outside world. The politics, the guilds, the endless battles—none of it mattered to him anymore. His world had shrunk to the walls of this cottage, to the women he loved, to the children who would carry his legacy forward. He didn’t plan to have either Ylva or Mae join him again either. He couldn’t risk his children growing up without their parents. The thought of them becoming orphans, of his children growing up in a world without him, was unbearable.

This was his life now. A quiet existence, far from the chaos of the Marrow, far from the council’s schemes. He had earned this peace. He had fought for it, bled for it, killed for it. And he would do everything in his power to protect it.

But the council’s words echoed in his mind. Something was happening. The dungeons were awakening. The world was changing. And if he did nothing, the world his children would inherit would not be safe. The council had not been bluffing. They had seen the signs, felt the tremors, heard the whispers of things stirring beneath the surface. And they had come to him, not to threaten, but to warn.

Jason kissed his teeth in irritation. He had spent so long running from danger, hiding from the forces that wanted to use him. Now, he was being forced to confront them head-on. It was not a choice he wanted to make. It was a choice he had to make.

He made his decision.

He would go to one of the reported dungeons that had emerged a few miles away from him. It would take three days to travel for the average adventurer, but for Jason, it would take less than an hour at full speed. He would investigate, assess the threat, and return before anyone even noticed he was gone. He would not engage unless absolutely necessary. He would observe, learn, and come back with information.

But of course, Jason wasn’t going to leave without informing his wives.

That was what Ylva and Mae had become at this junction in their lives. They were his partners, his confidants, the mothers of his children. They deserved to know where he was going and why. He would not repeat the mistakes of the past, leaving without a word, causing them to worry.

Jason walked into the kitchen. Ylva was stirring a pot of stew, her belly round and full, her fur matted from the heat of the stove. Mae was sitting at the table, her hand resting on her own growing bump, her brown eyes soft and tired. The properties of her milk had grown far stronger since she became pregnant, and she had been using it to heal the minor aches and pains of the household. She looked up as Jason entered, a question in her eyes.

"I need to go out," Jason said.

Ylva glanced up from the pot. "Where?"

"There’s a dungeon that’s emerged a few miles from here. The council just came her to tell me about the strange occurrences going on ever since The Marrow ceased to exist. I need to check it out."

Mae raised an eyebrow. "How long will you be gone?"

Jason shrugged. "A few hours. I’ll be back before dinner."

Ylva snorted. "You always say that."

"And I always come back."

Mae laughed, her voice warm. "He has a point."

But Tauriel, who had been sitting quietly in the corner with Lirael, looked up sharply. Her eyes were wide with concern. She had been silent for most of the conversation, but Jason’s words had struck a chord.

"Jason," she said, her voice tense. "I’ve heard about that dungeon. A few adventurers attempted to cross into it, but they couldn’t even reach the entrance. It’s an island, isolated in the middle of the sea. That’s the only reason the monsters haven’t crossed into the world yet. But you’re about to breach it."

Jason met her eyes. "I know."

"The dungeon is ranked unknown," Tauriel continued, her voice rising. "That means the dangers are not fit for anyone who isn’t among the top five. You could be walking into something that even you can’t handle."

Jason walked over to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "I’ll be fine. I promise." The way he spoke to her softly like they have always been close.

Tauriel opened her mouth to argue, but the words died in her throat. She had seen what he could do. She had heard stories about him conquering the Marrow, and do so much more in that space.

She knew that he was no longer the man she had met in the castle.

"Just come back," she whispered as she knew the others here might accept the baby but there was no way they would accept her if Jason didn’t return.

Jason smiled. "I always do."

He kissed Lirael’s forehead, then Ylva’s, then Mae’s, but of course didn’t extend that same affection to Tauriel. He turned and walked towards the door.

"Don’t wait up," he said.

Then he disappeared in a blur of shadow, and he was off. The wind howled past him as he soared across the landscape, the world blurring beneath his feet. He was faster than he had ever been, his body moving with a fluid grace that felt almost like flying.

The island loomed in the distance.

Jason landed on the shore, his feet sinking into the sand. The dungeon entrance was visible ahead—a massive archway carved into the rock, its surface covered in runes that pulsed with a faint, ominous light.

He took a deep breath and stepped forward.

-

The council member stood at the edge of the ridge, her silver hair whipping in the wind, her eyes fixed on the horizon where Jason had vanished. The sun had fully set now, casting the world in shades of deep purple and black. Behind her, the mages had recovered from Jason’s display of power, their pride bruised but their bodies intact.

Commander Vex approached her, her tusked jaw tight, her eyes burning with barely contained frustration. She had been humiliated. Her guild, the Dungeon Drifters, had been brought to its knees without a single blow being exchanged. And the council member had done nothing to stop it.

"You knew," Vex said, her voice low and sharp. "You knew this would happen."

The high elf did not turn. Her gaze remained fixed on the distant horizon. "I suspected."

"Suspected?" Vex’s voice rose. "You brought thirty of my best mages to threaten the most dangerous creature in existence, and you only *suspected* he would react like that?"

The high elf finally turned, her eyes calm and unreadable. "I knew exactly how he would react, Commander. That is why I brought you."

Vex’s jaw tightened. "Explain."

The high elf smiled—a thin, knowing smile that did not reach her eyes. "Jason is an abnormality. Yes, he is incredibly powerful. But more importantly, he is predictable. His strength is matched only by his attachment to those he loves. His children. His wives. His home. When I mentioned them, I knew he would not be able to refuse."

Vex’s eyes narrowed. "You used his family against him."

"I used his love to guide him." The high elf’s voice was soft, almost gentle. "He needed to investigate that dungeon. The threat it poses is real, and he is the only one capable of facing it. But if I had simply asked him, he would have refused. He has no interest in the outside world. He wanted to disappear, to live in peace with his family. So I gave him a reason to care."

Vex was silent for a long moment. The wind howled across the ridge, carrying the scent of distant rain. She thought about the power she had witnessed, the casual ease with which Jason had brought her guild to its knees. He could have killed them all. He could have erased them from existence with a single thought. Instead, he had let them go.

And now, he was heading straight into the dungeon.

"He is the perfect scout," the council member continued, her voice barely above a whisper. "Powerful enough to survive whatever lies within. Motivated enough to see it through. And if he succeeds, we will have valuable information about the threat we face. If he fails..." She paused, her smile fading. "Then we will know the danger is greater than we imagined."

Vex shook her head. "You are playing with fire."

"I am playing with the only piece on the board that matters." The high elf turned away, her robes billowing in the wind. "We have bought ourselves time, Commander. Let us hope it is enough."sssSSss