My Dungeon Daddy System: Raising Monsters and Waifus Underground-Chapter 79 – The Morning Ledger & The Rumor Mill

Chapter 79: Chapter 79 – The Morning Ledger & The Rumor Mill

Reed woke up feeling suspiciously fantastic.

Usually, waking up as a Dungeon Core avatar involved a five-minute diagnostics check to see which limb was numb or being crushed by a monster, followed by a groan of existential dread regarding the bank account. But today, he felt light. His mana channels were humming with a smooth, frictionless flow. His muscles, which had been turned to jelly by Elara and Luma the night before, felt remade.

"System," Reed whispered, staring at the obsidian ceiling of his office. "Status."

[STATUS: OPTIMAL] 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

[Buff Active: THERMAL EQUILIBRIUM]

[Effect: Void Mana Costs -20%]

[Time Remaining: 14 Hours]

"I love the spa," Reed muttered, sitting up and swinging his legs out of bed. He was still in the temporary quarters of the Office Suite while the Master Bedroom was being de-slimed from the ’Pollen Incident.’

The door clicked open. Maira entered.

She didn’t knock. She didn’t need to. She was the schedule.

"Good morning, Sir," Maira said, her heels clicking on the polished floor. She looked terrifyingly fresh, her uniform pressed to a razor’s edge, her glasses gleaming. "It is 0600 hours. The sun has crested the mountain. The Revenue Spike is active."

Reed winced. "Do we have to watch?"

"It is mandatory compliance, Sir."

She held up a crystal slate. It showed a live feed of the Dungeon Core in the room next door. The massive violet crystal was pulsing. Suddenly, a beam of blue light shot out of the top, bypassing the ceiling and arcing straight into the sky, heading toward the capital city.

[SYSTEM ALERT: TAX SIPHON ACTIVE]

[Authority: THE SILVER FLAME]

[Rate: 40% of Generated Blue Mana]

[Draining...]

Reed felt a phantom tug in his chest, like someone reaching into his wallet and taking a twenty-dollar bill.

[Blue Mana: 300 MP -> 180 MP]

"Robbery," Reed grumbled, buttoning his shirt. "Legalized robbery."

"It is the cost of doing business, Sir," Maira noted, marking the deduction in her ledger. "However, the ’Mullet Strategy’ appears to be solvent. The Blue Mana generated by the Rookies in the trap room yesterday covered the daily tax. We are net positive."

"And the Gold?"

Maira’s lips twitched upward into a microscopic smile.

"The ’Pollen Event’ was highly lucrative. Guests tipped generously in their confusion. Combined with Madam Vesper’s down payment and the Slot Machine revenue..."

She turned the ledger around.

[Daily Income: +1,850 Gold]

[Current Treasury: 2,850 Gold]

"We have liquidity," Reed exhaled, feeling a weight lift off his shoulders. "We can buy pizza ingredients. We can buy oil. We can pay the skeletons."

"The skeletons work for calcium and vibes, Sir," Maira corrected. "But we can now afford the alchemical reagents Grika needs for the... special project."

Reed nodded. "The Weed Whacker. Right. We have a garden to kill."

He walked to the crystal screen, looking out over the bridge. The morning mist was clearing, revealing a steady stream of carts and travelers on the road. The world knew they were here.

"We need to secure the perimeter," Reed said, his eyes glowing faintly. "Because if Vesper found us, others will too."

A few minutes later and the team was called in for a meeting, the atmosphere was significantly less subtle.

Reed stood at the head of the table. The entire harem was assembled. And they were all looking at him with hungry eyes.

"We have a problem," Reed announced. "The Garden is waking up. The roots are pushing through Floor 3. If we don’t prune it back within 48 hours, the Casino becomes a salad bar."

"Burn it," Seraphine said immediately. She was polishing her spear with a cloth that looked suspiciously like one of Reed’s shirts. "I will lead the charge. We scorch the earth."

"We can’t just burn it," Grika argued, hopping up on her chair. "The plants eat kinetic energy! And fire just makes the spores pop! We need surgical destruction! We need my weapon!"

"I can help!" Luma raised a hand, wobbling in her seat. "I can absorb the sap! I’m immune to acid! Plus, I’m very good at holding things!"

"I AM ROCK," Terra boomed. "PLANTS HATE ROCK. ROCK SMASH ROOT."

"Observation," Maira cut in, adjusting her glasses. "The Raid requires coordination. If you let Grika and Seraphine go unsupervised, they will destroy the structural supports of the mountain. I must attend to ensure the asset is not liquidated along with the flora."

Reed rubbed his temples. "Okay, pause. We can’t all go."

The room went silent.

"Why not?" Seraphine narrowed her eyes. "Are we not your vanguard?"

"You are," Reed said. "But you’re also my staff. We have a Casino to run. Maira, the highrollers are coming back tonight. If you aren’t on the floor, who calculates the odds? Who stops Valerius from cheating?"

Maira frowned. "The Bone-Maids are competent, but... they lack the nuance of financial domination."

"Exactly. We need a Home Team and an Away Team."

Reed looked at the map of Floor 4. It was a green hell. He needed damage. He needed tech to counter the regeneration. And he needed a tank.

"I’m taking three," Reed decided. "Just three. The rest stay here to protect the gold."

"I volunteer!" Riva screeched from the chandelier. "Riva fights leaves! Riva eats bugs!"

"Riva, you’re on security," Reed pointed up. "You watch the shiny. If anyone steals a chip, you swoop."

"Aww," Riva pouted.

"I need a tank," Reed looked at Terra. "Terra, you’re immune to thorns and poison. You’re in."

"GOOD," Terra nodded. "I PACK SNACKS. ROCKS."

"I need tech," Reed looked at Grika. "You built the weapon. You have to fire it."

"Yes!" Grika punched the air. "Operation Weed Whacker is a go!"

"That leaves one spot," Reed said.

He looked at Seraphine. He looked at Luma. He looked at Maira.

"I am the General," Seraphine hissed, standing up. Her tail lashed behind her. "It is my right to bleed for you."

"I am the Healer!" Luma argued, turning a darker shade of blue. "If you get hurt, who fixes you? You can’t put a band-aid on a soul!"

"I am the Manager," Maira stated. "And you are prone to reckless decision making. You need oversight."

Reed sighed. This was the problem with having a high-loyalty staff. They were all too eager to jump into the meat grinder.

"Kaelen is gone," Reed muttered. "She’s still at confession. So we have no Paladin. No Healer means high risk."

He looked at Luma. "Luma, I need you here. The Spa is our biggest earner besides the tables and Terra is already coming with me. If Valerius comes back and you aren’t there to squeeze him, we lose thousands."

Luma drooped. "But... I want to adventure."

"You are adventuring," Reed smiled. "You’re adventuring into capitalism. Make me rich, Luma."

Luma perked up slightly. "Okay! I will squeeze them until coins come out!"

"Maira," Reed continued. "You’re in command of the facility. If the Authority comes back, stall them. If Vesper comes back, tell her the potion is brewing."

Maira nodded slowly. "Understood. I will hold the fort."

That left Seraphine.

The Lamia smirked, crossing her arms over her armored lingerie. "It seems I win by default. You need a blade, My Lord."

"I do," Reed admitted. "But Grika and Terra are... chaotic. I need someone to watch my back, not just kill things."

"I will watch your back," Seraphine purred, slithering around the table until she was looming over him. "I will watch it very closely."

The tension in the room spiked. The "Void Resonance" flared. They were stabilized, yes, but they were still monsters. And they were competitive.

"Okay," Reed said, feeling the heat rise in the room. "The team is set. Reed, Terra, Grika, Seraphine. We leave in two hours."

He stood up.

"Riva vetos!" Riva squawked. "I have the high ground!" She flew up.

Even Maira couldn’t hold back, the Void Resonance pulsed in the room. "Yes, I think we need to engage in a morale boost meeting to clear our heads so we can think right, would you say team?"

They all had the hunger moving towards Reed.

"Private meeting. My quarters. Now." Reed demanded. If this was going to happen, it would be on his terms.

Seraphine’s smile widened into something predatory. Grika vibrated so hard she blurred. Terra simply stood up and blocked the door to prevent escape.

"Oh my," Maira murmured."I shall... verify the votes and logistics of this team, Take your time, Sir. Ensure the ’morale’ is absolute."

Stonebridge: The Rusty Keg

Five miles away, the town of Stonebridge was waking up.

The Rusty Keg was the kind of tavern where the tables were sticky, the ale was watery, and the information was priceless. It was the hub for every low-rank adventurer looking for a job or a place to complain about their party healer.

At a corner table, Brin the Rogue was currently the center of attention.

He looked rough. He was nursing a bruise on his cheek and sitting gingerly on a cushioned pillow he had brought with him. But on the table in front of him lay a dagger. It wasn’t a rusty goblin shiv. It was a sleek, steel blade with a brass handle shaped like a laughing skull.

"I’m telling you," Brin said, taking a long swig of ale to numb the memory. "It’s not a dungeon. It’s a machine. A meat-grinder with a sense of humor."

"You got that from a chest?" a grizzly veteran asked, eyeing the dagger. "Rare drop?"

"It wasn’t a drop," Brin shuddered. "I won it. I pulled a lever. I got three cherries. And then a mechanical hand came out of the wall and high-fived me. It gave me the dagger and a coupon for a free drink."

"A coupon?" The veteran frowned. "Dungeons don’t give coupons."

"This one does," Brin insisted. "And the traps... gods, the traps. They don’t kill you. They just... judge you."

At the next table, a silk-clad merchant was speaking loudly to a group of jealous peers.

"Forget the traps," the merchant waved a hand, his skin glowing with unnatural health. "The Spa! Gentlemen, I tell you, I was encased in living blue jelly! It squeezed the gout right out of my toes! And the massage therapist... a woman made of magma! She cracked my back like a dry twig and I thanked her for it!"

"Expensive?" one of his friends asked.

"Ruined me," the merchant laughed happily. "I spent a month’s profit in an hour. I’m going back tomorrow."

In the darkest corner of the room, shadowed by the hood of a heavy travel cloak, a figure sat alone.

They weren’t drinking. They were listening.

A gloved hand rested on a map of the region. A red circle had been drawn around the mountain peak marked "D-0731."

The figure listened to Brin talk about the mechanics. They listened to the merchant talk about the luxury.

"A Two-Tier system," the figure whispered, the voice feminine but sharp. "Clever. Sustainable."

She reached into her cloak and pulled out a badge. It wasn’t the Silver Flame of the Authority. It was a gold crest depicting a dragon coiled around a rose, a high rank clans badge.

"Scarlet is going to hate this," she murmured, a smirk visible beneath the hood. "But the rest of the team is going to love it."

She rolled up the map, dropped a gold coin on the table, and slipped out the back door, vanishing into the morning crowd.

Two Hours Later

The door to the private quarters opened.

Steam rolled out.

Reed stepped into the hallway. His hair was a mess. His shirt was buttoned wrong. He had a faint, reddish mark on his neck that looked suspiciously like a bite, and a smear of engine grease on his cheek.

He looked exhausted, but his mana aura was blazing.

[BUFF APPLIED: HAREM VANGUARD]

[Effect: All Raid Party members gain +10% Stats.]

[Status: Calibrated.]

Behind him, Seraphine slithered out. Her scales were glowing with a healthy, deep emerald sheen. She looked smug. She patted her hair, checking her reflection in her spear blade.

"Excellent briefing," she purred.

Grika stumbled out next, looking dazed and happy, her goggles askew. "The torque," she mumbled. "So much torque."

The others stumbled, blobbed and flew out.

Terra walked out last, looking exactly the same as always, because she was a rock. Though she did give a thumbs up to a passing Skeleton. "BOSS IS STURDY."

"Right," Reed said, clearing his throat and trying to look authoritative despite the lipstick on his collar. "Team assembled. Gear check."

He looked down the hallway.

Today they were going to Floor 3. From there, they would breach the seal to Floor 4.

"We don’t have a healer," Reed reminded them, his voice serious. "So don’t get hit. Kaelen isn’t here to burn the poison away. If you get infected by the Garden... I have to cut it out."

"We will not fail," Seraphine promised, her eyes hardening. "I will cut the grass. You just point the way."

"Grika," Reed asked. "Is the weapon ready?"

"Almost" Grika laughed, a manic sound that echoed off the stone walls. "Boss, when it’s ready, It’ll also be hungry. Come to the workshop later. I want to show you my baby."

Reed nodded. He touched his chest.

Elara? he projected inwardly. You with me?

Always, the banshee whispered, her presence a cool anchor in his mind. I am the radar. I am the shield... and I am living vicariously through you. I. Felt. Everything. She giggled.

Reed blushes, he didn’t know how to respond to that. "I’m... glad you liked it?" He felt embarrassed. "Let’s go," he ordered.

He walked towards the casino, his coat billowing behind him. The business was running. The money was flowing. Now, it was time for violence.

[QUEST STARTED: THE WEED WHACKER]

[Objective: Retrieve the Anti-Regen Weapon.]

[Objective: Breach Floor 4.]