Ok, hm. This isn't something to voice to her, but I feel like the imp's behaviour is reflecting Moriko's own worries, just filtered through that imp's- impness. Moriko is worried about not progressing compared to others, and the imp is looking for a get better quick option by bullying Doyle. I'd remind Moriko that a lot of your other denizens recent advancements have come from unexpected places so it might just be circumstances haven't aligned yet for her. We should probably take her with us on our next excursion though, it might help.

As far as punishment goes, restitution by doing something for Doyle is an option, but I think what would work better is to try and treat the root cause of the misbehaviour. The imp wants to get better, although what is a bit of a mystery since they just babbled off a bunch of stuff. The punishment should push them to get better but still clearly be a punishment. For example, if the imp wants to get real good at hitting things with a hammer, the punishment could be breaking rocks and/or extra hammer tutoring. Basically to impress upon the imp that they shouldn't seek out quick shortcuts etc.

Mainly I'm thinking the imp's punishment should in a way try to help with the worries Moriko has that the imp is expressing- plus resolving the reason behind the imp's bad behaviour will probably help prevent future occurrences.

For the slime, there is a trick you can do to maybe get them to spill the beans: Threaten to tell her mother. Punishment I'm not sure though, maybe leave it up to Alkaline?

>>1059791
>Sit on the slime, bad and naughty slimes get put in the Deem crusher.
I'm not sure that's a punishment, some people pay good money to have that sort of thing done to them.

>>1059803
So because some people get off on it, we can’t whip anyone anymore? Don’t be silly. Besides, she’s a slime.

>They're both sleeping. Fitfully in Alkaline's case.
That sounds like a nightmare. Nightmares can be distracting and reduce productivity. You should wake her up gently and comfort her.
>There'll probably be eggs soon. When am I going to lay mine?
Hopefully after your crack is repaired? The alternative sounds painful...

>>1059826
>nightmare
Oooor, there's some measure of feedback from this rogue slime, and she's having a weird trippy dream or feeling the anxiety of being caught.

Alkaline is going to want to be involved in deciding a punishment for her slime, I think. Not that we HAVE to go along with what she wants, but she's been very defensive about being taken seriously and having responsibilities lately, so she's likely to get pissy if the whole thing gets decided completely behind her back. Involve her in the conversation, maybe, unless she's still too messed up from those curses to participate.

As for the Imp... I'll second those who've suggested Moriko administer some rather intensive/brutal training as a punishment. It's appropriate to the nature of the crime, since if it wanted to get harder it can do so the hard way. And it could conceivably help Moriko too, in that they say teaching something is a good way to understand it better yourself. Granted I don't think anyone who says that was talking about teaching an Imp, but with Moriko at such an... open to influence stage in her development every bit helps. If the Imp reminds Moriko of her younger self, let it do what the younger Moriko did: learn.

>>1059791
I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure trying to deliberately amplify Deem's influence over Moriko right now would be a REALLY bad idea. Back when Mana Vacancy was first chosen, Deem told Moriko she'd need to be careful around her and her Heart because her essence could be "overwhelming." And that was BEFORE Deem went all nature goddess and got a boost to spiritual weight. Influencing Moriko is great, but we don't want what makes her Moriko to be completely overwritten.

>>1059779
Make em clean Doyle with a toothbrush

Huh, wonder who the other one could've been.

Stargazer?

Maybe Char.

Certainly not Stargazer...

Regardless, I like the idea of brutal training for the imp. It's themed, it might have payoffs, and it might let Moriko work through some of her own issues with her disapproving family/mentor.

Also, don't lay it on TOO thick with Moriko. Yes, she's probably looking to "feel the earth pulse" again if you know what I mean, but even with her being more impressionable we don't want to mistakenly rub off a bunch of fecund on and cause some unintentional change in her.

How about "Be sure to come to me when it's time to start looking for what you desire." Deem level vague while still enough to get her mind wandering.

A couple thoughts occur:

1) Deem's new False Idle ritual ability requires "a large offering" to start up. And we have this huge dramatic feast planned for tomorrow. Is that going to count as enough of an offering to trigger it?

2):
>"By the way Reisarf." I say to my alienist. "Hin's started experimenting with her Gelforging, so if you have the time could you trying merging some of her products with other material?"

>"Oh that sounds perfect! A lot of potential!" Reisarf says, nodding at Stargazer who nods back for reasons that escape me.

Reisarf and Stargazer are going to try to use those abilities for cooking tomorrow, aren't they?

1/2 Deem 2023/06/02(Fri)07:06 No. 1065015 ID: b4e2d6
File 168571479413.png - (36.73KB , 600x800 , deem_crusher.png )

>This isn't something to voice to her, but I feel like the imp's behaviour is reflecting Moriko's own worries, just filtered through that imp's- impness. Moriko is worried about not progressing compared to others, and the imp is looking for a get better quick option by bullying Doyle.
>I think what would work better is to try and treat the root cause of the misbehaviour. The imp wants to get better, although what is a bit of a mystery since they just babbled off a bunch of stuff. The punishment should push them to get better but still clearly be a punishment.
True, part of the imp's misbehaviour seemed to be be fueled by a desire to become more capable. It seemed to be a mix of hammer skills and random magic that imp was interested in. Perhaps a hint Moriko would like to widen her focus? Hammering in hammer skills is easy enough, but I might have to think on the others. Secondment to Reisarf and Merud's work and using magic tools such as the waterbearer's wand perhaps.

>Any special perks or goodies the imp enjoyed besides being Moriko’s charge - or wishes to enjoy - in the Dungeon it’s henceforth going to have to earn by helping others with tasks they set it - tasks to be approved by Moriko. Now it’s GOTTA care what others think.
"From now on." I say to Moriko. "I think the imp is going to need to do some chores if she wants any more privileges than the basics of food and shelter. I'll have the others come up with things they need help with for you to approve, and if she wants anything from them she'll have to work for it."

Moriko nods at this.

>They say teaching something is a good way to understand it better yourself. Granted I don't think anyone who says that was talking about teaching an Imp, but with Moriko at such an... open to influence stage in her development every bit helps.
>If the Imp reminds Moriko of her younger self, let it do what the younger Moriko did: learn.
"But as punishment for Doyle, I think you should push her harder. A bit of time spent running her ragged and keeping a closer eye on her will probably mean less getting in trouble and she would benefit from developing her hammer skills. What do you think?"

Moriko nods again, looking less overwhelmed at the thought of imp management now I've laid out some advice. "I think I can manage that."

>The imp should have to compensate Doyle somehow, like giving him a polish or making him a pot of snake and spider stew for him instead of in him.
"I think some act to apologise to Doyle would be good as well, but I'll have to check what he might like once we find him again." He ran off to hide and does look like he'll be coming out any time soon.

>Sit on the slime, bad and naughty slimes get put in the Deem crusher.
We return to the others and I take a seat.

>Get a confession from the slime too, see if she'll fess up as to who the extra person was. Alkaline needs to punish her... hmm.
I'm not getting one, just increasingly desperate claims from my new cushion that she doesn't know anything about anyone. I must admire her commitment to playing dumb, even if it is frustrating the investigation.

>Punishment for the slimes could be to make them water haulers. They want to drink so much, they can fill their guts with something less tasty for a while.
>Alkaline is going to want to be involved in deciding a punishment for her slime, I think. Not that we HAVE to go along with what she wants, but she's been very defensive about being taken seriously and having responsibilities lately, so she's likely to get pissy if the whole thing gets decided completely behind her back.
That seems like a good idea, we have been steadily emptying the dungeon's water reservoir and it could stand to be topped up. I'll check with Alkaline once we wrap up here.

>Odd that one of Alkaline's slimes could have such divergent ambitions. They're not under her direct control at all?
They're a slime colony, not a hive mind. Alkaline can respawn the slimes making up her colony and they have ways to disperse information throughout a colony, but it's perfectly possible for something to only be known to a single slime or for a slime to have specific interests.

>Huh, wonder who the other one could've been.
>Stargazer?
>Maybe Char.
>Certainly not Stargazer...
>I wonder if Hin is the missing culprit here? She has a bit of a self-control problem when it comes to potions.
It would have to be another slime, Hin, Merud, Chakarchelou, Reisarf, Stargazer or perhaps some outside monster that's somehow sneaking in. Chakarchelou sleeps inside the dungeon and I haven't noticed him sneaking out in the middle of the night. Most of the others seem unlikely, but since they sleep in the valley (or wander all over the place in the case of the slimes) I can't eliminate any based on their comings and goings.

Since I have passed the duty of investigating to Moriko, I relay this reasoning to her.

2/2 Deem 2023/06/02(Fri)07:07 No. 1065016 ID: b4e2d6
File 168571486658.png - (19.12KB , 650x750 , asking_for_a_favour.png )

>I'd remind Moriko that a lot of your other denizens recent advancements have come from unexpected places so it might just be circumstances haven't aligned yet for her. We should probably take her with us on our next excursion though, it might help.
"And don't worry if your growth seems to be slow right now." I say to Moriko, making sure her imp is listening too. "Building a good foundation matters, and trying new things so you can pick a good direction to develop in. Things haven't lined up just right for you yet, but they will. I'll make sure you come on our next expedition in case opportunity knocks."

"Thank you." Moriko says, seeming to appreciate my effort to put her more at ease.

"Mow!" Moriko's imp says.

"Yes, maybe you'll get taller too." I say to the imp.

"More baths might help." Moriko says, which immediately curbs the imp's enthusiasm.

>Remember to cycle your mana with her soon, mana circulation has positive effects and in this case the fecund magics will rub off on her.
>I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure trying to deliberately amplify Deem's influence over Moriko right now would be a REALLY bad idea.
I want to give her space to develop in her own direction, not force her down my path.

>Tell her she doesn't have to seek your heart, it's right there.
It's in my dungeon actually.

>She's probably looking to "feel the earth pulse" again if you know what I mean.
I do not. I refuse to.

>Is it a material she's craving? Or a certain type of object? The former could be she wants other types of valuable metals, or gemstones. The latter, perhaps she wants... more weapons? Does she have a craving for magical food? Or monster parts?
I return to asking her about her progress with the Covetous Ring. If it's driving dragonish impulses, what exactly is resonating with her as something she should hoard as another base of power?

Moriko touches a brooch she has. "I helped Hin with some of what she was working on and in exchange she's made the gold I've found into something wearable. That felt right. I've worked some with Merud as well, with those worn puppet-ribbons."

"Mow!" the imp says.

"And been trying my hand as a teacher as well, yes." Moriko says. "I think," she continues, "That is what I want. To be well regarded. Having things like this, is possessing recognition of virtue. And so," she looks aside, "if I am to act as your knight, might I have a token of your favour?"

Moriko rarely asks for anything and judging by her flushed face, she's embarrassed to be making the request.

The problem is I don't have very many belongings that are appropriate! She might take my choice of token as an indication on how I want her to develop as well.

My current outfit is a few sheets of cloth and my more formal wear was made by her.

There's a few minor items that were made directly by me, but they're not ideal. From the night on the town, there's still a leftover golem-making potion and enlarging potion. It's at least a showcase of ability and a useful item to have in an emergency. The deemimic eggs made that night make things more like my golem body, which is the same problem of too much influence. I need to try something with them eventually, but this isn't the right case.

I'm not touching the flowers.

My Focus Medallion might help her. The resistance it imparts to spell channels should translate to helping inure her Mana Vacancy against unintended influences but this is a tiny benefit compared to using it properly. Also I've been wearing it to help stabilise my Heart fragment's broken spell channels.

I could try to quickly make her something? Or some other sign of favour. We're having the big lunch today with the ingredients obtained from the Orange Crags, perhaps a special meal for her?

Yes, perfect. Invite her to a dinner you made just for her. You should try some dishes from her homeland in case she feels nostalgic, like jelly donuts or hamburgers.

Why Deem, nobody had even mentioned flowers yet…
A meal (with delicious curse slime for dessert!) is a proper way to thank her, but not something you’re supposed to wear. Give her the enlarging potion as a sign that you wish her to embiggen her heart. The bottle will stick around and can be engraved with a symbol, hers or yours, as well as refilled from the bath. Surely, something you created in a drunken haze of hedonism will carry the purest, raw feelings of your heart.

I'm leaning towards making something. You could ask for 24 hours, then make something while the others sleep (or whenever works).

>>1065019
This seems sorta in the right direction, though maybe a little shoehorned. I guess she did only ask for a token, not a major artifact.

She mentioned Merud’s puppet-ribbons, and her first boss iteration had ribbons, didn’t it.

Why not make her a scarf or a ribbon in your colours, with some beneficial effect added to it? Token of respect, of your authority and useful to boost. Only trick would be what you could manage to imbue into it.

Or maybe you can enchant it later, make it a promise, so there isn’t any risk of bleed in her current state. She could then also offer her input on what she’d want the effect to be.

>>1065019
>>1065016
I think fancying up the bottle sounds like a good idea. Give it some flair, and maybe reshape it so she can keep it on her regularly.
Also, from what Moriko is saying, it sounds like what shes craving is really respect, or prestige. Surprisingly non-tangible, and thus harder to quantify, but at least it wont cost us anything to feed. I think everyone already respects Moriko a lot, but the issue might be showing it sincerely in a way she can actually recognize.

>slime won't spill the beans
That implies it's Alkaline. The slimes shouldn't have any other strong loyalties. Was it possible that when she saw you in the forest, she ran back to her room as fast as possible, and faked sleep before you checked? A faked sleep while nervous about it would certainly look like what you saw.

>token of favor
Well, it has to be something she can possess. A meal would only temporarily satisfy her desires. The potion idea is nice, especially refilling the empty bottle afterwards- perhaps you could skip to that part? An empty, or partially filled bottle is symbolic of her mana void... You have empty bottles in your alchemical supplies. Partially fill one with meaningful minerals. Colored sand would look very nice. You could choose the colors in a symbolic way or you could match her outfit's colors.

Pat imp on head.
I'm curious what Moriko would do if you just took off your outfit and handed it to her, but- Potion. The potion is good. It represents how you empower your servants, serving as a practical example of it. When it's used up, it could be filled with colorful sand art, raw mana like your heart, or even a tiny terrarium.

You suspect Stargazer? What was she annoyed about?

A token of favor for you champion would be something of a trifle that's personal too you. I'm not sure you own anything that's really personal, you have tools, you have wealth, but your wealth isn't in jewelry or trifles you can show off.

Do you still have the scarf you used to defeat Moriko in your first battle? It might work as a reminder of your bond.

>>1065032
>Do you still have the scarf you used to defeat Moriko in your first battle? It might work as a reminder of your bond.
That's a great idea

>>1065050
>Do you still have the scarf you used to defeat Moriko in your first battle? It might work as a reminder of your bond.
Yes! That's a really good idea! Let's do that!

>>1065050
A token of favor, in my opinion, is the kind of keepsake that gives you courage when your faith wanes. Since you two have this shared experience, I believe it would be a great choice, but I'm concerned it might be a memory of you winning her.

Perhaps you could create the token out of the scarf in a way that still makes it recognizable as that particular scarf while still symbolizing your relationship (as lord and knight, of course ¬¬).

Perhaps with some imbuement it could be a golem under her control. Some gold threads to appease the rings curse, and an enchantment so she could use it like Deem did in that battle? If such a thing is possible.

Maybe combine the scarf with glossid lacquer and gelforging to turn it into a laminated girdle, with a big bow on the lower back. Could still extend golemetry tentacles from the bow, but seems like a better fit overall for both magical-girl and samurai-formalwear aesthetics. Symbolically evokes core strength and support, rather than resembling a leash and collar, or the demonic prehensile hair she previously objected to. Also, belt is a more convenient mounting point for future trophies or upgrade trinkets, so, foundation.

1/2 Deem 2023/08/24(Thu)05:01 No. 1070681 ID: 3f7da0
File 169287847926.png - (20.52KB , 800x550 , a_token_of_appreciation.png )

>Do you still have the scarf you used to defeat Moriko in your first battle? It might work as a reminder of your bond.
That was just some cloth Merud found for me somewhere in the Golemeter's Guild. I didn't really keep track of-

Wait.

Moriko started tying her hair back after that. With a red piece of cloth...

She's beaten me to the punch.

>Yes, perfect. Invite her to a dinner you made just for her. You should try some dishes from her homeland in case she feels nostalgic, like jelly donuts or hamburgers.
>Well, it has to be something she can possess. A meal would only temporarily satisfy her desires.
I doubt those are authentic dishes. Still we're having a banquet tomorrow and it would be a good gesture. I'll see about preparing something for her.

>I'm curious what Moriko would do if you just took off your outfit and handed it to her, but- Potion.
Nothing, because I am not going to do that.

>Surely, something you created in a drunken haze of hedonism will carry the purest, raw feelings of your heart.
No.

That's stupid.

>Why not make her a scarf or a ribbon in your colours, with some beneficial effect added to it? Token of respect, of your authority and useful to boost.
I worry it would be reundant with what she already has. Still, something practical might be good.

>I think fancying up the bottle sounds like a good idea. Give it some flair, and maybe reshape it so she can keep it on her regularly.
>The potion is good. It represents how you empower your servants, serving as a practical example of it.
Yes, a flask I think. Something more convenient that these clunky stoneware potion bottles we're currently using. Two chambered, and I'll put what remains of the golem-making and the enlarging potions in it, as those are both expressions of what I can make, and will give her options in a pinch.

"I've had a thought of something you might appreciate," I say to my hammerai, "but I fear I'll need a little time to prepare it. I'll have to give it to you after today's lunch."

"Thank you." Moriko nods solemnly.

>Pat imp on head.
No. The imp has been very naughty and will not be receiving pats or pets of any kind from me this night.

>Also, from what Moriko is saying, it sounds like what shes craving is really respect, or prestige. Surprisingly non-tangible, and thus harder to quantify, but at least it wont cost us anything to feed. I think everyone already respects Moriko a lot, but the issue might be showing it sincerely in a way she can actually recognize.
"And thank you, Moriko." I say. "You've been a pillar of strength as we've fought to establish ourselves here. You've been there for us - for me - against all our greatest threats. It wouldn't have been the same without you."

Flushed again, Moriko excuses herself as her imp becomes rambunctious.

I will make a gift in the small hours of the morning now, but first I need to drop a somewhat squashed slime off with its progenitor and ask for Alkaline's opinion on appropriate punishment.

2/2 Deem 2023/08/24(Thu)05:02 No. 1070682 ID: 3f7da0
File 169287853105.png - (31.60KB , 720x720 , chew_the_fat.png )

>>slime won't spill the beans
>That implies it's Alkaline. The slimes shouldn't have any other strong loyalties. Was it possible that when she saw you in the forest, she ran back to her room as fast as possible, and faked sleep before you checked? A faked sleep while nervous about it would certainly look like what you saw.
She's been in her room in the dungeon the whole time. I elect to knock and she eventually answers. Her Toxic Shroud has been thickened up again, although so has the rest of her. She's more like a snowman than her regular self, complete with a rather substantial nose. Her hair and hands seemed to be hardened, more like drying tree sap than normal slime.

"What happened to you?" she asks.

I suppose last time we talked I was much less substantial, and possessed of much less vegetation. "I might ask you the same."

Alkaline hiccups. "You know why!" she says. "I took all those curses so I can get all strong and cool!"

Unusually forthright of her. "Well maybe I wanted to be strong and cool too." I joke.

"Nooo! You're so uncool!"

I bite back on the words 'I am very cool' because I haven't existed for thousands of years only to lose an argument with a sulky adolescent slime.

I sigh instead. "I warned you about going overboard." I say. "But you didn't listen."

"You just left me, and then you did this to yourself? So experimenting is fine if you're the one doing it?" Alkaline shoots back.

I am trying to juggle a lot but maybe I was hasty leaving her to deal with the consequences of her actions. I should have been more patient. But she keeps trying to race ahead and it's going to keep getting her in trouble. "Alkaline, I just don't want you to hurt yourself. You don't have anything to prove. What were you expecting to happen?"

"I want to be hot!"

I am rapidly losing track of this conversation. "I thought you wanted to be cool?"

Alkaline flushes greener. "You just don't get it!"

She goes to slam the door. I hold it open.

"We should talk about this properly later, but Alkaline I came here to tell you I caught one of your slimes up in the valley forcing Doyle to make potions."

"I wanted to go!" my royal jelly bursts out.

I look at Alkaline. She looks at me.

She tries to close the door again.

"Alkaline." I say. "Have you been bullying Doyle?"

The somewhat squashed slime I brought with me repeats she doesn't know who she is or where she is. I give her a look and she shrinks back into a puddle.

"He, he - Making potions are what he's for!" Alkaline protests.

It looks like I don't need to get Alkaline's opinion on how to punish her slimes because now I need to punish her as well. although perhaps I should wait for her to be less cursed and more able to do things like scrub Doyle and haul water.

Something in the pile of curses she's acquired seems to have loosened her tongue. I could likely uncover all the details of this secret potion party conspiracy by asking Alkaline some more pointed questions. I don't think she'd forgive me for abusing her vulnerability like that.

I certainly would not if it happened to me.

Still, how should I handle this spoiled slime princess of mine?

>>1070682
she must be punished.
>put her in the jar.<

Abusing Doyle is most uncool. Punishment: Diet and exercise, and being compelled to do so against her will. Or so she’s told, until she realizes that’s what she has to do anyway to become hot.
Just following orders is not an excuse for her slime, however. Assign her the tasks of helping Doyle until Alkaline is fit to take over.

> I could likely uncover all the details of this secret potion party conspiracy by asking Alkaline some more pointed questions.

It doesn't seem like there's much more to this than a bratty princess here doing what she knows she's not supposed to. Moriko's imp is involved probably just because it tagged along. There could be something more serious like an outsider meddling with your minions to weaken you, but there's no evidence of that to be the case yet.

> I don't think she'd forgive me for abusing her vulnerability like that.

Tell her that one of those curses seems to be keeping her from lying. You're not going to take advantage of that, but it should impress upon her that more is not necessarily better. She can be strong and cool, and hot, but not by hiding in her room and cursing herself.

Her punishment should involve... getting along with others, something that doesn't let her hide away like this. Definitely publically apologizing to Doyle, once you find out what Doyle thinks of all this. The curses should be their own punishment until you manage to remove the less flattering of them.

I don't think you could squeeze her into the jar like this.

>>1070689
This seems like the best solution. Ask alkaline what she thought would happen after you inevitably found out she was being a shit.

"I (still) look like this because I am putting the needs of others before myself. You look like this because you’re putting your needs above others. The similarity is only skin deep."
Don't push her on the truth curse. Do take a more proactive role in slime development moving forward. It's difficult but don't let her push you away.

>How do I deal with spoiled slime princesses
You sigh, kneel down and give her a hug or at least a gentle pat on the back and apologize for leaving her alone to deal with these curses, while you help loosen the worst ones. You say you could at least have offered some comfort and support, even if she willingly went in over her head despite your explicit advice. You lost your patience. You should not have.

But so did she, no?

Assert that fast growth tends to come at a cost more long-term approaches do not - unless one's lucky. For better and worse: she's a lucky gal, and never had to learn that lesson. She has been making great headway and taken risky bets that have paid off - but she must realise luck never holds up forever. Risks must be calculated, not rushed. She's a monarch in the making and needs to think of those around her, and of the consequences of her actions. The way she's acted - it's hurt her and others around her needlessly. You don't want to see your mistakes repeated those hurts turn into truly serious mistakes, or worse.

Does she know she was weakening her minions by serving them diluted random mixed brews from Doyle? Both spiritually and physically, they were becoming dependent on bullied brew for their strength and confidence. And random assorted potion ingredients would randomize their growth (right?), make it far more scattershot than it need to be. Luck would not favor all of them in what they absorbed from this.

The scheme also involved weakening Doyle's brew regularly, making him less able to contribute with a more properly potent brew. That hurt both his own growth and the dungeon's chances to make decent use of his more potent product. Yes, brewing's what he's good at, but brewing is oft a product of patience. There was such a needless waste from this - all done to hide the fact they were improperly using him so.

Moreover, she's broken trust. She's very clever, so knew well you would not approve of this treatment of Doyle. He is bound to this place too and deserves a chance to grow and find his place and strength. Did she really think you would not try to help him grow? You get that she might have felt... something about his regular act, maybe felt he was not pulling his full weight. But there was time still for him to come into his own. And the trust she broke? More so than just yours, she's broken the trust of Doyle, who is still also one of your charges and will remain so.

For now he's scarpered again, and you're not sure where he's gone or what he's thinking, and you're wondering when he'll pop out again. He's probably fearful he'll be punished for having kow-towed to the potion gang's schemes. Or punished by a vengeful slime princess thinking he tattled, rather than the random chance you discovered the truth. That's quite unfair on him.

Nudge her gently and ask her, leader to leader, how she'd make up for neglecting a minion of hers and letting them be bullied by foolish folk, some who ought to know far better. A ruler of a domain ought to think of such things, for when they mess up - or their underlings do - they're the ones who stand responsible and have to clean up and make amends.

Fortunately, it does help to have... a voice or two of reason around. Someone to bat ideas off of.

Now then.

Ask her how she would unfudge this mess. If she had to. You don't expect miracles here, just her honest assessment. She's young, naive, upset, cursed and wroth, sure - but challenge her mettle and see if she can use her glob for more than whinging or blaming.

There will still be consequences - but make her realize why they will exist. Get her started on realing she needs to make up for her rushed, rude, attempt at growth for, uh, hotness' sake.

>>1070689 and >>1070716 +1

You know Deem, your approach with Alkaline has failed so badly because you flip flop between coddling her and running away from the more emotionally engaged solution.

And that largely is our fault, an approach that balances the fact that children and teenagers are vicious little shits who constantly test their limits, while not being the oppressive tyrant that demands constant obedience and quashes any personal expression.

You haven't been a tyrant at all, and that's a bit of a problem. You can't impart years of wisdom to a vicious little shit with simple words. So you either let them make the mistakes and deal with the consequences. That's this. This worked. She's suffering for her hubris. It's not serious or permanent, she'll be more normal as she digests the slew of curses, it's the perfect lesson for her to learn.

For Alkaline, with Doyle it's different. Doyle is also a bit of an asshole but it's not good to treat your equipment poorly. I'm not... entirely sure we want to discourage this. We need to find out what she was doing.

If lets say she was getting the Imp and her slime to feed Doyle random ingredients to make into potions, and then testing the effects on the easily replaceable slime minion, and then upon finding it's not going to be immediately fatal or ruinous then tests efficacy of the resulting potion on Moriko's shadow imp...

I mean, that's just genius and great and you should be proud of that.

If she was just coercing Doyle into making strength potions or something stupid like that then punish her for real. I mean, I don't know what corporal punishment would be when were talking about a slime queen, so maybe just something directly embarrassing instead.

Kids don't really learn until you actually explain why they've done something wrong. They need to understand it. With Alkaline... I'd say press her for what she was hoping would happen, setting aside the specifics of what she did. Then you can go in with how badly she accomplished it and how much better it would have gone if she hadn't gone behind your back with it. Making it obvious how Doyle felt about it, like showing her how it reacts to her, might make her feel guilty as well.

Laying down the law on a rebellious teen just backfires every time. Gotta play it smarter than that

1/3 Deem 2023/09/22(Fri)20:32 No. 1072932 ID: ea6fca
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>she must be punished.
>>put her in the jar.<<
>I don't think you could squeeze her into the jar like this.
What jar?

>It doesn't seem like there's much more to this than a bratty princess here doing what she knows she's not supposed to. Moriko's imp is involved probably just because it tagged along.
Maybe I'm just being paranoid then, assuming there has to be something more to it.

>For Alkaline, with Doyle it's different. Doyle is also a bit of an asshole but it's not good to treat your equipment poorly. I'm not... entirely sure we want to discourage this. We need to find out what she was doing.
I'm not going to change the punishment based on whether whether her mistreating Doyle produced something potentially useful for me. That's disgusting.

>Tell her that one of those curses seems to be keeping her from lying. You're not going to take advantage of that, but it should impress upon her that more is not necessarily better. She can be strong and cool, and hot, but not by hiding in her room and cursing herself.
"All these curses seem to have given you a flapping tongue, Alkaline, so I'll keep this short. If you just try to pile more questionable magic on, the results will be lukewarm at best."

>Ask Alkaline what she thought would happen after you inevitably found out she was being a shit.
"I will ask though, what did you think was going to happen when I found out?"

"You barely even noticed..." Alkaline says in a surly tone. She hiccups and then rallies. "You'd stop me having fun, because you don't want me to have any fun!"

"This was fun, was it?" I say. "Strongarming Doyle into sneaking out to brew up some party drinks for you, because that's 'what he's for'?"

This seems to have some impact, Alkaline shrinks into herself at my words.

>Her punishment should involve... getting along with others, something that doesn't let her hide away like this. Definitely publically apologizing to Doyle, once you find out what Doyle thinks of all this.
"You'll need to apologise to Doyle as well." I say. "And once you are feeling a little better, there's work to be done replacing some of the ingredients you've used up, and getting other things for the dungeon. I'll be expecting you to work under the others' supervision and to not try to rush in by yourself next time."

She stiffly nods in acknowledgement.

>She's suffering for her hubris. It's not serious or permanent, she'll be more normal as she digests the slew of curses, it's the perfect lesson for her to learn.
"Since you seem so determined to make your own fun, then you can suffer some of the consequences!" I prod her rubbery shroud with one finger. "Are any of these curses hurting you?"

"No!" Alkaline says, though she does raise one hand to cover her nose. "I could deal with a lot more!"

"Then dealing with those curses until they digest seems like an appropriate punishment."

"I could fix this if I got the right curse!" she says.

"Alkaline, doing something again and again in the hope it'll pay off this time is what leads gamblers to ruin."

2/3 Deem 2023/09/22(Fri)20:33 No. 1072933 ID: ea6fca
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>She has been making great headway and taken risky bets that have paid off - but she must realise luck never holds up forever. Risks must be calculated, not rushed. She's a monarch in the making and needs to think of those around her, and of the consequences of her actions. The way she's acted - it's hurt her and others around her needlessly.
I sigh. "You can't keep rushing things, and taking risks." I say to her. "You should only move when you're prepared, if you can."

"You would say that." she sniffs.

"Alkaline..." I say warningly.

"You don't want anyone to do anything without your say so!" Alkaline bursts out. "And you never want to do anything! Hin was sick for so long because you wouldn't commit to anything for treating her cough. The only time you talk to Stargazer and Reisarf is to tell them to stop doing whatever they're doing! With that goo glade, I got all the stuff the last time, and Hin came back super-strong the time before that and you didn't like that either!"

"I want you all to stay safe." I say.

"You don't want anyone to live! You got all huffy when Merud asked my friend Ophelia to come without asking you too!" Alkaline presses on.

"Friends?" I say. Now that priest girl is trying to corrupt her? "When did you become friends with that girl?!"

"You slept through it!" Alkaline shouts back.

I can't let myself get distracted by the machination of the sky-power. Alkaline's upset and lashing out. I try to get my own emotions under control.

"You keep making Moriko all mopey too!" my royal jelly continues. "You never know what you want for her! I've seen her giving you the look!"

"What look?" I say.

"The look!" Alkaline repeats. "You just keep leading her on!"

"I'm not about to start courting anyone, Alkaline!" I splutter. "And even if I did, it would hardly be appropria-"

"Who cares!?!"

Alkine pants, a little wild eyed. I stare at her in silence. Maybe you were right. Maybe those smutty books have been ruining her brain.

The silence draws out too long.

"We're not discussing this. You're taking too many risks and it's started hurting people Alkaline. I'll see you in the morning."

I close the door.

>You know Deem, your approach with Alkaline has failed so badly because you flip flop between coddling her and running away from the more emotionally engaged solution.
Shut up.

3/3 Deem 2023/09/22(Fri)20:33 No. 1072935 ID: ea6fca
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Despite the hour, I notice Merud's still in the Golem Totem, with a number of the golems. I go to check in on him. Hopefully I'm not about to discover there's some sort of golem fighting ring that has been started here too.

"Merud, it's the middle of the night." I say.

"Mmmm," Merud says, sipping from his mug. A slight jitter seems to be running through his entire body.

"How much cacoffee have you been drinking?" I ask him.

"Some!" he says brightly.

I sigh. "I'm fun aren't I?"

"What's brought this on?" Merud says.

"It's - no, never mind. It was a stupid question."

"You're certainly interesting." Merud says, looking me up and down. "And I think Alkaline might just have reached that difficult age - in record time, no less."

"Mmm." I agree noncommittally. Damn his wizard ears. I spot Centaur. "Why is that golem active again? I thought I told you to keep her dormant."

"Ah well I'm trying to understand the cooperative cores in the mixed golem we're trying to fix up." Merud says, pointing to the stick-and-mud golem. "Especially since I'm having trouble integrating clay into it, since the base composition is different. I hoped that Centaur's two cores and parastic golemetry might spark some ideas." He points at the sitting woody golem and gardening golem behind him. "And the green-thumb spores have caused a lot of growth of the woody parts so I'm having to reinforce other parts of the golem to accomodate it."

He nudges the golem-suit for the orange slime on the table. It's next to the slime itself, which is burbling happily in its pot. "And hopefully that will help for the new version of this. I wouldn't recommend frog leather as an export material by the way."

"And of course we haven't fully replaced golem losses from these last few attacks and expeditions." he says, running a hand down his face. "Though now I've got some burning questions for you! What have you done to yourself?"

I briefly explain my experiments with the locus fluid and incorporating vegetation into my golem body that has awakened a modified ritual spell.

"You seem to be changing things a lot more frequently since you've gotten your homunculus body." Merud nods along. "Do you think it's because you have more raw mana leaking out of your Heart fragment and encouraging changes, or are you just experimenting with your image?"

I blink. "It must be the first one." I say.

Merud looks at me for a moment and then nods. "I suppose it must be. I do wish we'd set aside some of your clay after you got cursed though. This'll add another factor on top." he sighs.

That's true. I have been ingesting the occasional piece of clay to allow some to be removed to discover if the inherent abilities and raw mana saturation my golem body has been building up might be reflected in other golems but... I haven't extracted any yet.

"Then we'll do it now!" I say, and immediately discover that my cursed state stops me from losing weight by pulling off excess clay like I did to provide clay for Centaur. Now my own body is defying me?!

"It's fine, it can wait." Merud says.

"No, we've missed one chance already." I say. "Don't get distracted, I'm committed to this now!"

"Deem..." Merud says.

How can I extract some clay?

get pregnant. funnel spare mass into child. objectionable enough to you that the curse is likely to cooperate. simple way to shed clay.

>>1072935
Well, you've got a pair of lumps on your chest that don't do anything. Could just pull those off.

>>1072935
remove the lumps

>>1072935
>"Then we'll do it now!" I say, and immediately discover that my cursed state stops me from losing weight by pulling off excess clay like I did to provide clay for Centaur. Now my own body is defying me?!
Deem? You look fine. Don't feel obligated to lose weight.

-A hot bath to soften your clay up
-Hug Centaur
-Add a Curse of Formlessness from Reisarf on top of the other curses
-Making more of those Deem eggs
-Chewing a piece of clay like gum to contaminate it instead of extracting yours

>>1072935
Well if you can't just pull it off yourself, could merud isolate a patch of it somewhere magically? Is there some sort of magical way a handful could be constricted into a ball and fall off on its own? Either way you might have to get damaged

Wait, Deem, what about Gigant Mode? Or Disperse Mode? Are either of those active right now?

>>1072935
Well, the golem sitting on the table seems to have two large spare globes of clay you can extract for yourself.

>>1072933
That curse was making her say things she thinks are true. Doesn't mean they are true, but if you've been giving her that impression then you have been doing something *like* what she's accusing you of. I know you've had some conversations with Reisarf that didn't involve scolding the two of them, but... maybe you should talk to them more often?

Just how much do you hate the idea of dating Moriko? If you are asexual then you need to tell her that.

>>1072935
>How to extract clay?
Have Merud do it. Just cut some off you or something like that. It's not like you're going to reflexively attack him in retaliation, right?

Hmm. Do you know what's wrong with Centaur? Why you can't keep it under control?
I wonder if you can just keep feeding golems to it forever, or if there's a limit to how much it's going to eat. Does it cost more energy to keep active the more it eats, or does it just generally get stronger when it eats golems? Maybe you could use it as a boss monster in either case?

Oof, that baby option would probably work, it follows the principle of forms golemetry seems to like and would probably allow you to bypass the curse. Would certainly be a price to your dignity and who knows what kind of unholy abomination your homonculous golem offspring would be.

Seems like it's a mental block though, if you lowered your defenses a bit you could probably let centaur leech some of it out of you. Merud might be able to if you let him too, and that'd probably be a tad safer.

And you don't need to take Alkaline so seriously. Hin is fine now and wasn't worried then. The independence of Stargazer and Reisarf is a good thing, they can get along without needing to be managed or direct all the time which is great. And Moriko?

Moriko is a hot blooded warrior and frankly, any relationship with you isn't going to be something any humanoid would be accustomed to. I'm never sure if you actually feel anything for her like she clearly does for you, but if you really want to give her something more what you need to do is what left such an impression on her in the first place.

Find a good earth pulse locus, cast reinforcement magic, and engage in glorious battle. If you desire a stronger connection, connecting through the earth pulse is the only way to do it without the layer of conscious bullshit you engage in to keep your mannerisms acceptable to the humanoids.

Alkaline is going through those rough teenage years. As much as you can't have her impugning your authority or outright rebelling like this, her self confidence and aggressive hubris are necessary traits for any queen. I think she really just needs to learn her limitations by outright failing a few times, hopefully in a context that won't cause any permanent harm.

You are Reisarf's boss and telling him no is part of the job. That's not to downplay the times you've said yes, however. His research, his abilities, and Stargazer's too are valuable to you and you might just want to reaffirm that with a conversation for your ego's sake.

You're plenty fun, Deem. Why do you think we stick around?

But maybe not so fun for a child wanting to explore her boundaries. It can be no fun being the parent either, for sure. But it is necessary work, if underappreciated. Rest assured most of Alkaline's words were those of a youth throwing perceived flaws back in the face of the guardian irritating them. The curse just meant she thought there was truth to all of it.

And honest feedback is... well, let's make what use we think we can of it, no?

*You could check with Reisarf and Stargazer if you're being overly nosy or fussy-careful, and holding them back or something. And TRY to socialize a bit more with them, though that do be hard.

*You could ask Hin some time if she thinks you could've moved faster with her cough. I strongly doubt she holds a grudge, but it might be interesting to get her perspective. Is it so wrong to be careful?

*Alkaline's choice of friend... makes sense. She's only met so many people in her entire life - and she's innocent of grudges. Just think about it: around here her only contemporary in relative youth is Reisarf and Reisarf is Reisarf. It is a given that Alkaline would find another youth interesting while they were here. So, to broaden her horizens and let her have some of that 'fun', once her punishment is done you could consider allowing her the freedom of a trip to town. Out of your original batch of minions, she and Doyle are the only ones who have yet to go, no? Giving them access would probably require some finessing, but neither should come off as too threatening or wild to the townsfolk.

*Moriko has seemed a little taken with you. Whatever Alkeline has read into it it is not something that's come from thin air. While I disagree with the 'stringing her along' bit, you have arguably taken an interest in turn in a way you have not with the others. You two share a... connection, be that as main boss and dungeon, or Moriko and Deem. What that is, means or could come to mean will be up to the two of you to figure out, mutual respecting tight-knit dungeon duo, or whatever - but one should certainly try to prevent situations in which Moriko (or you) becomes 'mopey'.

Good luck~

As for the clay: Merud cutting, twisting or tearing some off will probably work - it's not a curse of stasis or invulnerability, so "attacks" should work. Right?

>>1072933
>"I want you all to stay safe." I say.
That's a perfectly understandable reason for doing the things you've been doing. You had a previous group of denizens before you got sealed away, so now that you have a new group of denizens, you want to make sure nothing happens to them!

>"Who cares!?!"
She's got a point. Who cares? Nobody will judge you if you did start to court Moriko.

>>1072935
Deem, listen to Merud. He's right about this, it can wait.

Honestly, you already have several projects running right now, you don't need to be adding another one onto the pile! You're only stressing yourself out from trying to do all of these projects at the same time!

Just relax for now and focus on your current projects first before you attempt to do whatever it is you're trying to do now.