NOVEL WEB Volume. 3: Chapter 4: Working for a… Because I want to?
Chapter 4: Working for a... Because I want to?
*Erika’s POV*
For the first time in my life, I had a fight with my lovers…
Well, if you could call it a fight. I just had some trouble with them letting me actually go back to working. The only ones on my side of letting me work, were Sofiel and Nadia. Not even the one who originally gave me this job, Victoria, had wanted me to go back to work…
Everyone else just wanted me to stay here with them. Going by all that I’ve learned so far, I really, really need to get stronger. Once this update is finished and released, a lot of things will change.
I need to work and get stronger, as well as build up resources before then. By the time it’s out, any wars will be easily won by us. Work hard early, and we will be rewarded with an easy future. At least, I hope so.
The girls are fine with staying here. With me being marked by them, as proven with Sofiel, when I get stronger, so do they.
Realizing this, I suggested to Victoria to let the rest of her wives and lovers mark me so that they could also get stronger. Her response was, “I am not whoring you out just so my lovers can go down the easy route.” With a stern tone.
I mean, point taken. For some reason, I had taken them marking me as a useful utility but, in reality, they didn’t mark me for that reason. They marked me out of love. I have to respect that. Me helping them via the mark is just a bonus.
I didn’t want to run away this time so, I had to take a few days to convince them all. By convince, I mean pampering them a lot. Alice was the hardest to convince. She just got me so, it’s understandable that she would be upset to let me loose so soon. Not like I wouldn’t come back to them. I totally didn’t jinx myself again…
Another reason for me to stay for a few days, was because of what Lilith had informed me of. A new update was going to be pushed, and she told me that I should wait for it.
Going by her useful habits, I was concerned that she was messing with me. I ask Nadia for confirmation on the update being released, it was going to be released soon. It seems like that cheeky girl has turned over a new leaf. Hopefully…
By released, I mean, just to me. If this update was released to everyone right now, even in its uncompleted state, all hell would break loose…
On top of waiting for the update, I was sitting down on a couch in my room, just sipping on some tea. The new update came, and it was… surprising. I almost spat out my tea… My Status now looked like this.
:General:
Name: Erika Ardent.
Race: Part Human, Part Angel, Part Demon.
Sex: Female
Physical Age: 18
Real Age: 158
:Stats:
Available Stat points: 0.
HP: 495,000/495,000
MP: 126,000/126,000
INT: 1000
STR: 1000
AGI: 950
MAG: 1000
DEF: 1000
LUCK: 1000
:Skill list:
Knife Mastery: Level 10 (MAX).
One-Handed Sword Mastery: Level 10 (MAX).
Two-Handed Sword Mastery: Level 10 (MAX).
Spear Mastery: Level 10 (MAX).
Bow Mastery: Level 10 (MAX).
Scythe Mastery: Level 10 (MAX).
Hand to Hand Combat Mastery: Level 10 (MAX).
Magic Combat Mastery: Level 10 (MAX).
Inspect: Level 5 (MAX).
Deep Understanding: Level 25 (MAX).
Supreme Cooking: Level 50 (MAX).
Water Magic: Level 10 (MAX).
Earth Magic: Level 10 (MAX).
Dark Magic: Level 10 (MAX).
Fire Magic: Level 10 (MAX).
Space Magic: Level 10 (MAX).
Cleaning Magic: Level 10 (MAX).
Healing Magic: Level 1.
:Titles:
Dark Savior: S.
System Update Tester: X+
Polyglot: S
Knowledge Seeker: S+
Richest Woman: SSS
World Controller: SS+
Demon Goddesses Lover: SSS+
Leader of the Angel’s Lover: SSS+
Darkness Creator’s Lover: SSS+
Administrator’s Lover: X+
Supreme Lover of Women: S+
Stats were no longer marked by Rank. Instead, they had a numeral value. SSS+ only actually being 1000 thousand, and that being the max on the current System version, no wonder they said that people would get even stronger with this update.
With the knowledge I got from playing games, these Stats are actually pretty low… In one game I played, it let me get my stats up to almost a trillion…
According to Lilith, each Stat Point would increase a Stat by one. As for MP and HP, each Stat Point increases them by a thousand. One downside is that the Stat points you get from Monster Cores have been drastically reduced.
With Stats displayed like this, it’s far easier to gauge how powerful someone or something is. Items, enemies, dimensions, etc. Are fine to be ranked via… uh… Ranks. Stats are better displayed via numbers. At least, in my opinion.
Also, now there is a new Rank tier, X. I wonder if there are any more than that? I guess that I will just have to find out.
By far the most interesting addition in this update was a new tab in the System.
It was the Evolution Tab. Do I really need to explain what it’s for?
You’re surely curious about what I have available to evolve into, right? Well, they go like this. Lilith’s extra cheeky information included.
True Angel: SSS+
All Requirements Met.
*Hint: It’s the same race that Sofiel is.*
True Demon Goddess: SSS+
All Requirements Met.
*Hint: It’s the same race that Victoria is.*
True Human: SSS+
All Requirements Met.
*Hint: This is stupid, don’t choose it!*
She’s right, it’s really stupid. Why would I choose to revert back to just a normal human? Albeit a pure one. What the hell would that even entail? I feel like I don’t need to know…
The last Evolution is the one I am most interested in.
Angelic Humanoid Demon Goddess: X+
All Requirements Not Met.
Be Part Human: Met.
Be Part Demon: Met.
Be Part Angel: Met.
Consume 50 SSS+ Grade Monster Cores: Not Met.
Consume 5 X Grade Monster Cores: Not Met.
Consume 1 X+ Grade Monster Core: Not Met.
*Hint: Choose this one, you fool!*
Erika: “Do the Monster Cores that I’ve already consumed not count?” I ask in my head with a curious tone.
Lilith: “You didn’t consume them, you converted them into Stat Points, don’t you remember?” Lilith explained.
Erika: “Oh, right.” I say with a sigh.
Lilith: “No need to sigh, look, I removed the limit that I’ve placed on you. You can now go to higher risk dimensions to do tasks.” Lilith said with an excited tone.
Erika: “You did what now?” I ask with a head tilt.
Lilith: “Now, now, don’t blame me. Nadia was the one who asked me to put a limit on how risky of a dimension that you could go to.” Lilith said with an annoying tone.
Erika: “How risky are we talking about here?” I ask.
Lilith: “I’ve filtered out all of the easy ones that you normally do. The remaining ones are world locked.” Lilith said.
Erika: “Meaning?” I ask.
Lilith: “You can’t leave, not until all of your Tasks are complete.” Lilith explained.
Erika: “So, same as usual?” I ask with a head tilt again.
Lilith: “No. Remember, we changed it so you can leave at any time. This doesn't include higher ranked dimensions. And none of us can rip you out of that dimension. Unlike the ones you have been to, they will have many, and I mean MANY different powerful beings all vying for control of the dimension.” Lilith explained with a serious tone.
Erika: “So I won’t just be having to fight with the Saviors?” I ask.
Lilith: “Like we already said, the Saviors that you’ve dealt with so far have just been grunts. Will you be fighting other groups? Yes. But the Saviors will now be an actual problem you have to deal with.” Lilith said.
Erika: “I assume it depends on the dimension?” I ask again.
Lilith: “Yeah, not every dimension will even have magic, let alone Gods and Goddesses. Keep in mind, your new Tasks won’t usually involve saving a dimension.” Lilith said with a sigh.
Erika: “Oh, right. If I remember correctly, only the low ranked dimension where ones to be captured.” I said with a thinking pose.
Lilith: “Right. It’s mostly just helping out whatever group that our side aligns with, and then dipping when the Tasks are done. No need to take over the dimension.” Lilith said with a laugh.
Actually, that sounds easier than usual. I looked at my phone once again and tabbed over to the Task Tab.
Current Available Dimensions for Tasks: 43582.
Current Tasks User, Erika, can complete with their current Status: 51.
There was way more than my usual number of dimensions to do Tasks in.
Eh, I’ve been lucky so far. With my newfound confidence, or maybe ignorance, in this case, I filtered them by only showing X Rank Dimensions.
As luck would have it, there was only one dimension available for me with my current Status at that Rank.
Showing Available tasks.
Task dimensions.
Dimension 1:
Dimension Name: Holy Land.
Planet Name: Solily.
Main sapient Races: Humans. Elves. Demons. Demihumans. Gods. Goddesses.
World State: Normal.
Available Main Tasks:
Kill or Convert two Saviors.
Difficulty: SSS+
Reward: 15 SSS+ Grade Monster Cores.
Kill or Convert all Saviors.
Difficulty: X
Reward: 38 SSS+ Grade Monster Cores.
Bolster Demon Queen’s Group.
Difficulty: X+
Reward: 2 X Grade Monster Cores.
Available Side Tasks:
Recruit 5 New Dark Saviors.
Difficulty: X+
Reward: 3 X Grade Monster Cores.
Stop Calamity. (Completely optional.)
Difficulty: XXX+
Reward: ???
Number of Tasks required to return from dimension: All.
Restrictions: No outside help of any kind.
Dimension Difficulty: XX
Oooh, finally, a challenge! That last side Task is very interesting. There is no assigned reward. That is basically telling me that they have no hope of me actually killing or stopping whatever the hell it is.
It’s nice that now there is a kill or convert option. Rather than there just being kill as the only option. Sure, I could just convert them instead but, the System didn’t reflect that converting was even an option in the first place.
Without even warning my lovers about me going to a stupidly dangerous dimension, I hit the accept button and was whisked away.
I will never get used to the feeling of being teleported somewhere. The first few times, I felt like I was going to die, now I just feel sick when going to a different dimension. I assume that it’s similar to how you would feel being sucked into a giant whirlpool. Well, at least I survive.
When I opened my eyes, I was standing in a forest with huge trees. Nowhere big as the ones in Avicia’s dimension, though.
I was literally in the middle of the forest, or at least, I think I am. I had no choice but to pick a direction and walk. What better way to ask for directions than to ask the “Angel” on my shoulder, Lilith?
Erika: “Lilith, which way should I walk?” I ask in my head.
Except, there was no response at all…
Checking every other form of communication, I couldn’t contact anyone at all. When it said “No outside help.” It really meant that.
Darn… It’s been a while since I’ve truly been alone. Though, oddly I feel like something is watching me…
Ignoring that clearly not hostile gaze directed at me, I did the old fashion thing and picked up a thin stick, I then throw it up in the air. It fell down, because, you know, gravity and all that. The thinnest part pointed to the east.
Acting like a girl scout, thus that was the direction I chose to go in.
Before leaving, I had my sword and knife equipped on my person. Rather than just having them appear when I need them. Don’t know when something or someone will attack me. It’s better to have them close by.
No. I don’t have a strap or holster for them. They just sorta float there. The knife on the right of my waist, and my sword on the opposite side.
If I was wearing like, normal adventurer gear and armor, most people wouldn't bat an eye. But there is just a sheathed sword and knife hanging onto nothing. Keep in mind, I am wearing a dress…
*Twelve hours later.*
Well, shit. I’ve been walking so damn long, and yet, I haven’t found shit. I know for a fact that this dimension isn’t empty like Avicia’s… Where the hell even am I?
Seeing no other option, I sat down on a log. Or rather, a root of one of the trees. Like I said, they’re really big. I then took out some food that Nadia lovingly made for me.
Much to my chagrin, she had “forced” me to empty out my inventory of the old food I had stored in it. Saying that those meals weren’t fit for me. I'm pretty sure that some of that food was food that Nadia had made for me. Not that I told her that.
It’s not like she dumped my old food and then gave me a few meals. She gave me enough food to last for maybe an entire year. Even if I eat three times a day.
The reason why there was no other option was simple, it was pitch black out. Before eating, I had got a few “twigs” together in a pile and lit them on fire with my magic.
Now, yes. I could use magic to light my way but, I don't see a reason to risk walking around in the dark. Even with a light close by.
Not even been in this dimension for a day, and I already love the fact that I have magic. Speaking of magic, no one knows why I suddenly got healing magic for no reason.
Sofiel begged me to test it for her. Even at level 1, Victoria was perfectly fine after a session with Sofiel. Though, I did feel weird about being a part of the aftercare…
It’s not like healing magic is a flick your wrist and then you're done, kinda thing. Downside: I had to message Victoria’s entire body. Plus side: I got to touch Victoria’s entire body.
I’m assuming that the higher the level, the easier it will be to heal things. Maybe when it is max level, I can just flick my wrist to like, I don’t know, regenerate someone’s missing limb. Or something cool like that.
Ah, I’m rambling… Shit. How could I regress from being a cold hard loner to someone who can’t stand being away from their lovers?
At least this food tastes good…
With my food done, I took out a tent and sleeping bag from my inventory. I'm pretty sure that I made the right choice, in not walking around aimlessly in the dark. That would be stupid, and do I ever do stupid things?
Don’t answer that.
*Six hours later.*
Oddly, my body woke me up earlier than it usually does. I guess that I have a separate internal clock for when I’m in the field, and when I’m at home.
I decided to eat in my tent. My morning meal was ramen. I’ve actually never had it before. I’ve always assumed that it wouldn’t be better than an MRE.
And I was DEAD wrong! Or maybe, it was just because Nadia had made it. Because, goddamn, does this taste amazing!
The System really was a cheat. I could have separate tabs in my inventory to sort things. They even have sub tabs. I guess I am more of a cheat, being the only one who can use these features.
Nadia had organized my inventory for me. Even the food was organized by Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner. No need to think, just pick, and eat. How wonderful!
This feels more like a camping trip rather than a dangerous, and most likely suicidal mission…
Climbing out of my tent and then putting it away, the sun had just started to come out. More walking it is then.
*Hours later.*
I could tell that I was at least getting out of the forest. I mean, the trees are getting smaller after all. It’s gotten to the point where the trees weren’t that big at all.
Just normal sized trees. All of a sudden, a rock smashed into my head. I was gravely injured… Just kidding! The rock didn’t even leave a mark on me at all.
I still pretended to be hurt, though. I purposely fell to the ground. To catch my assaulters off guard.
Four little green men appeared in my vision. No, not aliens. Just stupid smelly Goblins. In respect for the System, I decided to inspect them first before killing them.
Goblin Grunt: E+
A Goblin who has recently reached adulthood.
Drops: E-D Grade Monster Core.
Drop chance: Low.
One of them got closer, while the others stayed behind, then he reached for my head, I took my knife out from its sheath, and then I stabbed it into the green man’s head. He died, as you would expect.
The other three brandished their shabby and rusty weapons toward me. I just tilted my head and lunged at them with my knife.
In minutes, two more were dead. The last one I left alive. He is clearly scared out of his wits. As per my intention.
Hahaha! These tiny green creatures that are the size of children are no match for me!… Am I a bad person?… A rhetorical question.
The last one, fearing for his life, took off in a sprint. I followed along closely. The stupid little one was going to lead me right to his nest. I almost feel bad for him.
Though, if the Goblins here in this dimension are anything like their fantasy depictions, there are just raping and murdering little shits, who I should feel no remorse for killing. And in any way I please. Much like those zombies.
That group must have been scouts. The little dude ran for over thirty minutes before he got to their base. It was a cave. Before running into the cave, he talked to the Goblin guards in a quick manner.
I don’t speak Goblin so… Ah, wait. I actually understood what they said. It was along the lines of “This crazy human bitch nearly killed me! She was still chasing me as well! Be on guard!” huh, I didn’t realize that they could actually have conversations.
That would mean that they’re sapient. I guess I shouldn’t assume that every Goblin is a bastard but, to be fair, that group attacked me first.
I still pierced the guard’s heads via ice magic. Kinda gory. With them pinned to the cave wall and all that…
Going inside the cave, I didn’t take my sword out. It’s far too long, and my dagger would be the best weapon to use in an enclosed space.
I should look into getting a short sword and a few other weapons. Sofiel never let it slip where she had my sword made. I had to borrow some of her weapons while training, since I don’t own any other weapon than a knife and a sword.
Before you ask, yes, the knife I am talking about is the kitchen knife…
I really shouldn’t be distracted like this. Some stupid Goblins were hiding in a small hole to my left, they threw some kind of oil onto me, and then it got set ablaze. Due to a Goblin mage.
Being on fire, as you might have guessed, it’s not very fun in the slightest. I quickly doused myself with water magic. No lasting burns and even my clothes are fine.
Now that I think about it, I didn’t take damage at all. The oil was on fire. Not me. I still took out my anger on the six cheeky little Goblins. I heard them laughing while I was still on fire.
I decided to pay it forward and set them ablaze myself. The Goblin mage, or rather, it was probably a shaman, didn’t seem to know any water magic so, he burned with the rest of them.
Burned Goblin smells like chicken. I doubt their meat would taste like chicken, though.
*An hour later.*
Good lord… how deep does this cave go? I mean, I’ve been exploring it for an hour. I still haven’t even found the end of it yet.
Thankfully, apart from the one shaman, I haven’t seen any powerful type of Goblin. Just the basic kind.
Eventually, I made it to a wide open area. There was a huge hole in the ceiling of this cave that let the light in. Looking around, their base seemed to be an old military outpost. Or something along those lines.
I doubt that they could have built these advanced human like structures. The buildings all looked old anyway.
Much like when I fight a bunch of zombies, I now have a horde of Goblins facing me.
My rough guess is around 300, to 500 of them. Hard to say, lots of buildings that they can easily hide behind. The annoying little creatures.
Not like they would actually give me a challenge. I do wonder what Grade, and how many Monster Cores I will get for killing them. I didn’t check my spoils from killing any of them yet after all. Oh, I did that on purpose. I would rather see big gains than just small ones.
*Another hour later.*
Weaklings, they may be but, damn dealing with a horde is hard. I’ve gotten a few wounds. Being stabbed with a rusty sword or knife sucks! Luckily, I have op items that heal me really fast. I don’t even have to use my healing magic.
By now there are only 30 of them left alive. None want to fight. They can’t run either since I’ve blocked off their only exit via earth magic.
Now here is the problem, I can’t kill them. All that’s left is an old looking Goblin, and some child Goblins. I can’t kill children even if they’re from a different race than me.
Goblin Child: “Are…are we going to die, Elder?” The child said through tears.
Elder Goblin: “It’s all right, my son, just close your eyes, it will all be over soon.” The Elder said with a reassuring tone while patting his head.
Erika: “Tell me, would I regret letting you all go?” I ask with a serious tone.
Elder Goblin: “You… you understand our language?” He asked with a confused expression.
Erika: “Look, I am not in the business of killing children, or the weak. Just answer my question, please.” I say with a sigh.
Elder Goblin: “You won’t regret it. I swear! These children haven’t done anything wrong yet, I can still lead them to have good lives.” He pleaded.
Erika: “Then why haven’t you done so already?” I ask with a raised eyebrow.
Elder Goblin: “I could never get away from the horde with them in tow. We used to have more civilized groups but, when I was young, a certain kingdom took it upon themselves to eradicate my people. Though, that kingdom is long gone.” He explained.
Erika: “Won’t you and them just be killed after you leave this cave?” I ask.
Elder Goblin: “Our race is no longer hunted for no reason. The ones you’ve killed were already a lost cause. I can speak the human tongue, and so can these children. We can go to a city that doesn’t discriminate against non feral Goblins.” He explained calmly.
I don’t have high hopes for them succeeding but, I won’t be the one to spill their blood.
Erika: “Fine. Go, I hope your plan works out.” I say with a flick of my wrist. Getting rid of the wall of rock that I made earlier.
Elder Goblin: “Thank you! Kind soul! There are female captives being held captive in that builder over.” He said, pointing to a building behind me.
Erika: “What state are they in?” I ask.
Elder Goblin: “They’re a new batch of captives. None of those animals had a chance to touch them.” He said.
Erika: “That’s good, thanks.” I reply with a smile.
Elder Goblin: “Wait!” He yelled.
Erika: “What?” I ask with a head tilt.
Elder Goblin: “Could I ask for your name?” He said.
Erika: “It’s Erika, Erika Ardent.” I reply.
Elder Goblin: “Ah, a wonderful name. I will tell all I know, and will meet in the future, of the kindness that you’ve shown us on this day.” He said with a smile.
I know that he meant it to show that he was happy but, honestly, a smiling Goblin is still creepy looking…
Heading into the building, it was clearly an old jail cell. Maybe to hold deserters in?
Inside were 25 women in a single cell. A round number, how fun. It was clearly cramped for them. I don’t know why they didn’t use the other cells…
Let’s see… 15 humans, 8 demihumans, and the rest were elves. They all looked at me like I was their savior. Oh, right. I actually am in this case.
Oops, there wasn’t a key anywhere. I don’t know if that Elder had it, or if it was on one of those Goblin bodies. No way in hell am I searching 500 different bodies…
Erika: “Hey, step out of the way of the cell door, please.” I ask and say while gesturing for them to get out of the way of the door.
They all quickly got out of the way. Then I kick the door off its hinges. It fell to the ground with a loud thud… Or I wish that it did…
Instead, I accidentally sent it flying into the wall in front of me, completely destroying the said wall and leaving a big hole…
Human: “What was the point of kicking the door when you could have just smashed the wall?” She asked in an aspirated tone.
Erika: “Sorry. I accidentally used too much force. Hey, you try holding your strength back after you have to deal with 500 hundred Goblins.” I say with a shrug.
Elf: “She… she is very strong. Maybe she could help us?” She asked her fellow elves.
Erika: “And what would you need help with?” I ask.
Hearing her talk a just a little bit, was enough for me to realize how to speak their language. See, I didn’t waste my time learning all of those languages!
Elf: “Um… You know our language?” She asked her rhetorical question.
Oh, that’s the second time I’ve heard that today…
Erika: “That I do.” I reply.
Demihuman: “Hello? We can’t understand what you’re saying. Could we please leave this place before we converse longer?” The clearly foxkin woman asked.
I relayed her request to the elves and they agreed, and so did I. On the way out of the cave, looking at the women. None of them was the average villager. They were all warriors to some degree. The Goblins had not taken their armor or even their weapons away from them.
Probably just herded them into the cell, which was why they were still armed. A quick question confirmed my guess. Much to their chagrin. The males were not as lucky since the Goblins had no use for them.
Once again, this cave went on for a long time. Leaving it took just as long as getting to the end of it. Which makes me think, what even was the point of having that outpost in this kind of location? The ruins were very old so, it’s unlikely that I would ever get an answer to that question.
Since we had nothing but time, I took to chatting with them. One of the most interesting humans was a woman named Petra.
Petra had brown hair down to almost her shoulders. Her eyes were also brown. She was wearing a generic looking female adventures outfit. She was shorter than me by a head, and her breasts were about the same size as mine. Or I would guess. Her leather armor might be concealing her full breast size.
All in all, she was pretty cute. I think that normally I would call her beautiful but, my lovers seem to have tainted my eyes with their beauty…
Petra: “You said that your name is Erika, right? How did you even kill all of those Goblins anyway?” Petra asked with a curious tone.
Erika: “Hm? Yeah, that’s my name and, it wasn’t easy. It did take me an hour to kill them all, you know.” I reply with a shrug.
Petra: “We know, we could hear you fighting them the entire time. I guess my real question is, how did you come out unscathed?” She asked with a thinking pose.
Erika: “I didn’t.” I reply.
Petra: “You look completely unarmed, though. Even your dress is spotless.” She said with a look of disbelief.
Erika: “My dress is self cleaning and repairing. I also have healing and cleaning magic. And a few of my accessories heal me as well.” I answer.
Petra: “That’s… I don’t think that’s something that you should have told us. What if we decided to kill you to take your stuff?” Petra asked with a nervous tone.
Erika: “Doesn’t matter. No offense but, none of you could really hope to harm me, let alone kill me. That reminds me, I forgot to heal and clean you all. Sorry, I was still lost in thought.” I say before flicking my wrist.
They all had a magical glow form around them. And then all of their wounds were healed, and they were clean, like they had just taken a bath and deep cleaned.
Petra: “Thanks! You can’t even tell that we were held captive for many days.” Petra said with a laugh.
Though cleaned and healed. All of them were still hungry and most likely tired out of their minds. As such, we mostly just walked in silence.
Finally out of the cave, the elves informed me that they would go to their kingdom and then contact me later. Petra and the rest were going to just head back to their city. I told the elves that I would be in that city for a decent bit, and that they could find me there.
According to Petra. There was a mission listed in the Adventures Guild to deal with those Goblins. No one who took it came back alive so, they didn’t have any information on what they would face.
That number of Goblins would be a nightmare to kill even with a decent number of members in your party. This cave was only an hour away walk from their City.
The city was called Timbervein. The main city of the kingdom of Cosian. A mainly human kingdom. Though they don’t discriminate between races and slavery is illegal.
Those elves sure were pretty… I kinda miss them already. Maybe I should try to hook up with an elf while I’m in this dimension? I mean, I do have a lot of lovers already but, surely one more wouldn’t hurt? I would later come to regret this conclusion…
Spoiler! I have no idea if I will regret this conclusion or not. I am not a fortune teller. That being said, more wives, ahoy!