CHAPTER 477: REWARD

For a moment, silence.

Nyx leaned into Kaiden’s shoulder and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you..."

And just as Kaiden turned his head toward her and their lips brushed...

[Ding.]

A metallic chime rang in Kaiden’s mind.

[Main Quest: Space Valkyrie’s Tormentor, Completed!]

[Reward: ...]

The familiar mechanical tone of the Demonic Pornstar System followed.

[Processing performance evaluation. Result: Exceptional.]

[Reward calculation in progress.]

His heart began beating with excitement. The last time he had a quest that had a reward based on how well he finished it, he got the Silent Casting skill. While he’d not been using it a lot until now, keeping it as a trump card, it was no doubt beyond awesome.

’What’s it gonna be...?’ he whispered inwardly.

[Ding!]

[Evaluation complete.]

[Under normal parameters, completion of this quest grants a Random Skill Card with a guaranteed A-tier skill or higher.]

[However... this result has been overruled.]

Kaiden straightened. "Overruled? What do you mean by overruled?"

[Clarification:]

[The Successor has exceeded projected performance indices. Not even the Heavenly Demon predicted such growth in this timeframe.]

[The Heavenly Demon granted this system limited autonomous authority. Within that authority, this unit may alter reward distributions.]

[For the first time since activation, this system has made an independent ruling.]

Kaiden leaned forward, despite the screen appearing in his mind. "And what ruling is that?"

[The Successor qualifies for a different reward.]

He didn’t even try to hide his grin. His eyes lit up like someone had just handed him a wrapped present.

Across the sofa, Bastet stretched and yawned before saying, "That look gives it away. Master is definitely getting something good."

Luna chuckled beside her. "The greed in his eyes says everything."

Alice, a bit confused, looked around. "Wait, what? What’s going on?"

Aria tilted her head, thoughtful. "I wonder if the good news comes from the Demonic Pornstar System or the Dungeon Master one. I can’t believe Kai basically has two systems while I’m pretty sure no other human has even one."

Pride and love for the awesomeness of her man were clear as day in the Moon Valkyrie’s sparkling eyes.

[Awaiting Successor confirmation. Proceed with custom reward initialization?]

Kaiden’s grin didn’t fade. ’Yeah. I can’t turn you down after you gave it so much dramatic flair. Let’s see what you’ve got for me this time.’

[Command received.]

[Initializing Overrule Protocol: Integration Pathway.]

[Explanation:]

[The Heavenly Demon, creator of the Demonic Pornstar System, was not only a conqueror of worlds. He was also a Dungeon Master.]

[His dungeon stood as one of the strongest in existence. To reach true supremacy, a foundation of creation and control was required. That was his philosophy.]

Images flickered through Kaiden’s mind, showcasing towering citadels of obsidian stone, legions of demonic constructs, stars orbiting a colossal dungeon-core like satellites.

[However, a dungeon of that scale required constant maintenance and the presence of the Dungeon Master. Management became a burden even for him.]

[So he created an assistant: the Supreme Demonic Sovereign System, or, to be more accurate, its first prototype version, the ’Dungeon Management Fucking Sucks System’.]

[That system was the direct ancestor of this unit.]

"The what system?!" He sputtered, nearly choking on his laugh.

He was ignored.

[The Sovereign System’s prototype’s purpose was simple: handle the tedious parts of dungeon management.]

[Over many millennia, the Heavenly Demon refined it, giving it better autonomy, reasoning, and many, many upgrades. Soon, it became much more than a system for helping with Dungeon Master chores. But at its core, its duty remained: to make its master’s empire thrive.]

Kaiden rubbed his neck. ’So... you’re telling me you’re going to become my super-efficient secretary?’

[Affirmative. This unit’s function set was designed for precisely that purpose.]

[And by chance, or perhaps destiny, the Successor has acquired a dungeon far earlier than projected in the Demonic Path framework.]

[Therefore, this system will not restrict its original utility any longer.]

[The Successor has displayed sufficient talent, luck, and desire to make it clear; he is not only striving for utmost supremacy, but he has the framework of what’s required to do so.]

Kaiden blinked as new lines of text began scrolling through his mind.

[Integration Pathway: Complete.]

[Beginning assimilation of parallel management framework.]

Kaiden frowned. "Parallel what?"

[Notice: The Dungeon Management System detected and targeted.]

[Permission override granted by Supreme Demonic Sovereign Authority.]

[Initiating... Devour Protocol.]

A low, rumbling hum filled Kaiden’s head. This was not a physical sound, but something deeper. Like a vibration in his core. The familiar, clean blue interface of the Dungeon Master System flickered in his vision. The neat menus. The management grid. The list of monsters, traps, resource outputs... It all started to distort.

"What the hell?" Kaiden gasped, watching as the Dungeon Master Interface warped before his mind’s eyes like melting glass.

[Devour Protocol engaged.]

[Sub-system resistance detected.]

[Counteracting.]

The lines of data on his mental screen twisted, digits spinning wildly as another overlay, a slick black with crimson edges, began swallowing them. The blue interface was being eaten alive by the darker one. There was no screaming, but Kaiden felt the tension, the compression, as though two AIs were wrestling in the shadows of his mind.

[Absorbing resource-management framework.]

[Assimilating core stabilization functions.]

[Overwriting obsolete interface protocols.]

Kaiden clutched his head as the hum intensified, then... silence. The dungeon’s presence in his mind went dark as if...

"... Did I just lose it?"

[Dungeon Management System: Offline.]

[Subsumed into Demonic Pornstar System architecture.]

Kaiden finally understood. ’Devour, huh... You ate it.’

[Affirmative.]

[Assimilation successful.]

[All dungeon control, growth metrics, and internal visualization capabilities are now integrated into this system’s core framework.]

A rush of data hit him like a tidal wave. He could suddenly feel his dungeon again, but not as before. This time, it wasn’t through clunky menus. It was instinctive. He could sense the flow of mana through every hall, the heat of his magma veins, and the distant movements of his monsters miles away.

[The Demonic Pornstar System has consumed the old structure and rebuilt it according to demonic optimization.]

[Dungeon Core access upgraded.]

[Features unlocked:]