"So I was basically in the novel I was reading, with a system that's forcing me to become a breeding equipment?" Roxy questioned.
The logic was just not making sense. Neither did she believe this was real.
With everything she had experienced outside, and after pinching herself several times, she had come to believe that she wasn't in a dream.
She was stuck here.
The clock pulsed in front of her.
[Time Remaining: 7:58:42]
Roxy scrambled to her feet, wincing as her bruised knees protested. "Okay. Okay, Roxy. Panic later. You need a man. A male. Anyone who fulfills this stupid ass system."
The pig was gone, scared off by whatever was in here.
Great. So whatever was in here is definitely worse than a moving van-sized boar. And I have to find it, seduce it with my charming face, and get knocked up by it in less time than it takes to work a full shift at a shitty retail job.
I was not turned on by the thought one least bit.
"System," she hissed, taking steady steps deeper into the gloom. "Define suitable partner. Can it be a bear? Because I'm not doing a bear. I draw the line at fur."
[Target must possess a high-tier bloodline to counteract the curse. Keep moving, Host. He is close.]
"He?" Roxy paused. "Well, at least it's a he."
She rounded a corner, and the darkness suddenly gave way to a blinding, shimmering light. Roxy threw her arm up to shield her eyes.
When her vision adjusted, her jaw dropped so hard it nearly hit the floor.
"Holy mother of...."
The cavern opened up into a space the size of a football stadium. The walls were studded with crystals, massive, jagged spikes of amethyst, quartz, and weird, glowing blue stones that pulsed like heartbeats.
They cast a shimmering light over the cavern.
Roxy walked through the piles of uncut rubies the size of her head and a lot more things that she couldn't put a name to; her lips remained open.
"Okay," she muttered, stepping over a diamond. "So the guy is a rock collector. A very intense rock collector. Like, how much is all of this even worth?"
[Time Remaining: 7:28:10]
Roxy sighed in a frustrated snarl. "Okay, fine, fine. Your mission comes first."
Her hopes were immediately shattered when she saw him.
Curled up on the massive stone was a monster. Her eyes bulged, and the air in her lungs was snuffed out.
"Oh, fuck no!" She shook her head fervently.
It was a dragon. A literal, scales and wings, fire-breathing dragon.
He was massive. His scales were a deep, obsidian black that seemed to drink the light of the crystals. His folded wings were large enough to blanket a small forest. His body moves with his breath.
He was sleeping.
[Ding! Prime Tier-1 Mating Target Acquired: The Dragon King!]
I was not blind.
Roxy rolled her eyes as she stared at the pop-up. Then she stared at the dragon before she looked back at the pop-up.
"System," she whispered, her voice trembling with rage and exhaustion. "You want me to get pregnant... with Godzilla?"
[Affirmative. High compatibility detected.]
"Compatibility?!" Roxy shriked in a whisper, gesturing frantically at the sleeping behemoth. "Look at the size of him! How exactly is the physics of this supposed to work? Do I just... climb on top of him? I'll die! I'll be split in half like a loaf of bread!"
I don't want to even imagine how big he was going to be.
[Physical contact is required to initiate biological assessment.]
Make it make sense...
Roxy looked at the timer, taking steady breaths. 6:55:42.
"If I touch him, he wakes up. If he wakes up, he eats me. If he eats me, I die. If I don't touch him, the timer runs out, and I die." She let out a jagged breath of frustration.
Why am I even trying so hard?
She crept forward. Her heart was hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird.
Fuck it anyway, the worst that can happen is that I die.
The heat coming off the dragon was intense, like standing next to a furnace. Up close, he was terrifyingly beautiful. Dangerous.
Roxy reached out a shaking hand, her fingers hovered inches above a massive scale on his flank.
"Please don't be ticklish," she prayed in a soft tone.
She touched him.
Almost immediately, the dragon shrank. The scales receded, the wings folded in on themselves, and the massive body compacted.
Once everything was done, Roxy wasn't looking at a dragon anymore.
She was looking at a man. And he was naked.
He was sprawled on the stone, fast asleep. He was huge, easily six-foot-five, with broad shoulders and muscles carved as if molded by a god. His skin was bronzed and gleaming with sweat, his hair a wild cascade of midnight black spilling over the stone.
Holy fuck, he is beautiful.
But when Roxy saw the rest of him, her brain short-circuited. Her eyes, possessing zero survival instinct, immediately drifted downward.
"Jesus Christ," she choked out, her legs shaking. "Does he have a permit for that thing?"
[System Scan Complete.
Name: Zarek.
Species: Ancient Dragon.
Assets: S-Rank.]
"No shit, Sherlock," Roxy muttered, her face heating up. "That's not an asset, that's a blunt weapon of destruction."
And it was not even half hard yet....
She crawled closer, unable to help herself as she gulped. He was breathtaking. He looked like a savage god. Chiseled abs, strong thighs, and a face that was unfairly handsome even when slack with sleep.
But there was a problem. A big one.
He was asleep. Like, dead to the world asleep. How was I going to do the deed if he was asleep?
Wait– that actually works in my favor.
"Okay, System," Roxy whispered, afraid she would wake him. "He's hot and definitely equipped for the job. But how am I supposed to do the deed without him waking up and turning me into a snack?"
[Alert! Target is in 'Deep Slumber'. Arousal levels are currently at 0%. Insemination probability: 0%]
"Well, obviously!" Roxy hissed, rolling her eyes. "He's sleeping!"
[Mini-Task Triggered: 'Wake the Beast'.]
[Objective: Raise the Dragon King's arousal level to 50% to activate his primal instincts.]
[Reward: 'Deep-Sleep Potion' x1 (Guarantees target remains docile during the mating process).]
Roxy stared at the screen, feigning innocence. "You want me to... start him up? Like a car?"
She held in her laugh, though it was hysterical.
[...]
[Correct. Without the 'Deep-Sleep Potion', the target will wake up fully upon penetration. Given his current aggression levels, this will result in: Immediate incineration.]
Which means I turn into a roasted chicken ready to be devoured.
Roxy swallowed hard. She looked at Zarek, making her choice. He looked peaceful. Dangerous, but peaceful. Not looking like a person or a beast that could destroy you in one breath.
"I can't believe I'm doing this," she muttered, crawling between his spread legs. The heat radiating off him was intoxicating. It smelled of musk and raw masculinity.
"I'm basically assaulting a sleeping dragon. I am going to hell. Straight to hell." She groaned.
She reached out, her hand hovering over his thigh. His skin was burning hot to the touch.
"Hey, big guy," she whispered, her voice trembling. "Don't wake up. Just... enjoy the dream."
She laid her hand on his thigh to test the waters.
It was as hard as rock. The muscle jumped under her palm, and a low growl vibrated in his chest.
Roxy froze. But the system bar above his head flickered.
[Arousal: 1%]
"One percent?" Roxy scoffed, her shamelessness overriding her fear. "Is that an insult? I have cold hands, sue me."
She moved her hand higher, her fingers trailing over the scorching skin of his inner thigh. It was smooth and inviting.
Zarek let out a sharp intake of breath in his sleep. His hips bucked upward, just once, an instinctive reaction to her touch.
Roxy bit her lip, swallowing. Damn.
She wasn't just scared anymore. A heavy, wet heat was pooling in her own belly. She hadn't been with a man in... well, too long. And this wasn't just a man. This was a beast, a dragon.
She wrapped her hand around him.
He was heavy. Warm. And twitching against her palm.
[Arousal: 5%... 8%...]
"That's it," she whispered, finding a rhythm. She stroked him, her thumb rubbing over the tip. It was leaking pearlescent fluid, slick and hot. "Come on. Get excited for me."
Zarek groaned, a sound so deep it vibrated through me. His brow furrowed in his sleep, his head tossing back against the stone. His hips began to move, grinding up into her hand, chasing the friction.
I bet he has never chased pleasure like this before.
[Arousal: 15%]
"Almost there," Roxy panted. She was sweating now, the heat in the cave stifling. She used both hands, twisting her grip, teasing him with a shameless expertise she usually reserved for her vibrator.
Zarek let out a snarl, his hands clutching at nothing at his sides. Roxy gulped, his hips snapped up, thrusting blindly into her grip.
[Arousal: 50% - Threshold Reached!]
[Ding! Mini-Task Complete!]
[Reward Added to Inventory: Deep - Sleep Potion.]
Roxy let go immediately, scrambling back as a small vial materialized in her hand. Her hand was slick with his fluids, oozing a thick masculine scent.
Zarek let out a whine of loss, his hips searching for her touch even in his sleep. He was fully hard now, standing at attention, twitching and leaking onto his stomach.
Roxy stared at him, her chest heaving. I can't say I wasn't turned on too...
She popped the cork off the vial.
"Sorry to leave you hanging, big boy," she whispered, climbing over him to straddle his hips. "But the real fun starts now."
A/N: Italics are for her inner thoughts.