With all my goals accomplished I used my understanding of the ancient emojis to lead everyone to the exit just as our food began to get low. As I read the signs I had to wonder what other people were seeing, because I assumed a smiley face or a thumbs up would be universal to the point that you don’t need an intelligence of 21 to crack the code.

“What does this look like to you all?”

Laaen looked at it blankly. It was a smiley face, so it should not have been that hard. He had a mouth and a face. Everyone does. As soon as he responded I got it.

“It looks like some sort of rune. I know it's an ancient script, I just don’t know what it’s supposed to be.” I was about to ask if he was joking, then he added a helpful detail.

“Just a bunch of straight, intersecting lines and shallow curves. What’s that supposed to be to anyone?”

“Straight?” I questioned.

“Yeah.” He shrugged.

`I see. That seals it.` What they were seeing was not a smiley. A smiley had shallow curves but zero straight lines. That meant that on some level the emojis were representing some type of language that I had a simple and direct understanding of. It was an understanding that even the gods' own learned followers did not have.

`The advantage of this is far better than I think even the co-author would understand. If there are whole books or scrolls or whatever written with this script woven in it gives me info that no one else would have. Context matters. If I have a ticket that tells me if something is a smiley face or frowny face or poop emoji I can decipher intent.` The typical formula for a dark power in games is that it is a risk return proposition. Being evil tends to be more cost effective and evil magic is no different. You get the benefit, but then there is a cost. Having clear cut emotions tied to these things basically makes it cheating. I had to wonder if it was another edge or something that the co-author never intended.

`There’s another important context clue. I actually messed up at the start and got lucky. If these ‘runes’ were associated with the co-authors exclusively I would’ve had to explain that. The fact that these two siblings know the look of some symbology from this cult from experience, and  don’t see it that way means that it either is more evergreen than I thought, or they just don’t know.`

“How do you read these runes, Van?” Niddy asked me. I could tell it wasn’t out of suspicion. She wasn’t trying to put me on the spot. She was just curious. That did not change how annoying it was to think up an answer. So, I decided not to. A put a dower look and let out a subtle huff. I looked away to hide my expression but they caught it.

“It’s honestly just a long story. Not one worth repeating.” Inhaled broodingly and stared up as I walked ahead.

“My past is like these symbols and this whole damn maze. Not worth exploring at all.” I pretended to come back to my senses and blinked. I smiled and hastened my tone to lighten the mood.
    “Sorry! I didn’t mean to bring everyone down.”

Looking around, the women were both hooked in their own way with Niddy fretting a bit for being the one to bring it up and Laeen seeming incredibly intrigued. They were drawing their own lines around what I said and shaping it to their thoughts and experiences. Even Laaen grew a bit solemn and offered me a nod at the bullshit I spouted. He spoke up before anyone else could.

“I’m not interested in your bullshit past. No one is, so don’t bother telling us and we won't bother asking.”

`Oh my god, that’s so cute~ He’s telling me I don’t have to explain myself, but is masking it in an extremely standoffish way. This elf’s attitude screams tsundere. I wonder if it would be even easier to get into his pants than Niddy’s. He’s got a good build to let me imagine I’m fucking a girl if it’s from behind.` I looked at him gratefully. He looked away.

“Brother!” Laeen chided.

`You don’t understand, honey. Your brother’s already smitten with me. You can interpret it however you like. This girl must be a little thick, anyway. I don’t just mean what’s under her armour.`

Niddy fretted over me. “Laaen’s right! Sorry, I didn’t mean to bring up something you don’t want to talk about, Van.” She gave me a concerned look. I turned and stared down into her light-brown eyes. She was a half-foot shorter than me. I made sure to pause for enough time that it was a bit uncomfortable before smiling and reaching up to tussle her hair.

“You’re fine, Niddy. It’s honestly a breath of fresh air to have someone worrying about me.” She got everything a woman could want. She was given something to worry about with me before immediately being given the satisfaction of solving some of it. But my eyes told her with no words that there was so much more, and if she was as naive as I thought, Niddy would believe that she was the cure. After a second, her face became bright red and she let out a short breath. She did not know what to do with her hands, but I did not leave the question hanging long and removed mine from her head. I just started walking.
    `Bingo. You go ahead and stew a bit more, girl.`

Gradually the maze of stone corridors gave way to a yawning grey cavern with water dripping down from the ceiling. I thought that it would be difficult, but there were no forks. The thing that worried me was that I had seen quite a few ‘caving gone wrong’ videos on the internet so I was ready for the risk of getting lost or separated would be high. It was just a straight shot. The cave actually widened continuously until finally showing a thin light that was the wide cave entrance. Moss hung down over the entrance and I could hear the sounds of running water outside. I thought of something fun and began running.
    “Van!” They shouted, following close behind.

As I got outside I slowed and looked up, shutting my eyes and basking in the natural light. “It’s so good to be out.” They followed close behind. Laeen chuckled. Niddy walked up next to me and seemed to naturally share my relief. Laaen came up last, walking. He did not want to show excitement or relief, but I could tell he was glad to be out. I looked over and began to pull my tunic up over my head.

“There’s the stream.” I pointed out.

“Great place to take a shower.” I was acting like I’d been here before, as I should have if I entered this place before them.

“H-hold on!” Laaen complained, trying to keep my shirt pulled down.

“What?” I acted oblivious as the two women stared at my back. My body was toned. Not like a body-builder but like a runner. I did have back muscles and my stomach showed definition that I’d never had before. I actually had a six pack. I pretended not to notice that they were staring as I addressed Laaen, then slowly I let it dawn on me and looked at the two women, blushing.
    “Oh!”

Laeen smirked while Niddy let out a short, cute giggle. The Knight pointed up the ridge. “There’s actually a pool at the top and bottom, as we found out the first time.”

I acted surprised. “I didn’t realise there was one at the top.”

“Why would you?” She nodded to me.

“We can go wash off up there while you two do so down here.” She paused and gave Laaen a look.
    “Satisfied?”

“That… works.” He admitted.

I waited for them to go up. The cliche was for me to try and sneak a peek but Laaen was not the type to allow it and there would be plenty of time to see the two women in the flesh later. At the moment I could be satisfied to see just how much of a twink Laaen was as the elf removed his padded clothing. I removed my own and made sure to walk up next to him, looking down into the stream. I wanted him to draw the comparison. That guy was probably better than me in every way, since I was a weak guy that only had my mind after refusing the free powerup from the co-writer.

For the first time since I arrived I saw my face. It was a bit blurred by the clear water providing an imperfect mirror in the light, but I could make out that I had strawberry-coloured hair, of all things. It was messy and a little longer on one side, but that gave my face, which was something between pretty and handsome, a more rugged frame. Though my face was not as overtly chad-like as I would’ve hoped, my jaw was decently squared. The real detail that I liked was my body. My shoulders, my arms, my stomach and finally my cock. They were all pretty well in line with how I’d expect a tailor-made body to look.

On the other hand, as I intended, Laaen was already comparing himself to me. The elf had some tone, but not enough to fill his slender waist, or bulk up his narrow shoulders. I leaned back subtly and gave him a glance. His back had a nice line to it from beneath the shoulders down to the curve of his ass and hips. It was soft. He was so soft that I actually had no clue how this man functioned as a warrior. I had no idea how to broach the subject, but I wished I could. I wanted to leverage it into a hint-finding session about the power system in this world. He became flustered as his eyes found my member. He was covering his, but I could guess. To mask it he rushed into the stream and immediately took the spot under the waterfall. The foam hid his body well enough.

I smiled and just casually walked into the shallow, clear pool, shovelling water over myself. I made it a point to stand further from the cliff. If any of the girls wanted to accidentally or intentionally pass a look down at me I didn’t mind. To my surprise, as I was minding my own business not advancing any of my plans whatsoever, Laaen argued.

“H-having muscles doesn’t mean anything! It’s your Power, and how you use it!”

I could’ve used that as a jumping off point, but instead I just looked at him as he stared at me, smiled and nodded encouragingly.

“Aye.” I agreed. His face flushed a deep red.

Laaen tread out from under the waterfall a few steps, still covering himself. I began to walk towards him and he shrunk a bit, but inflated as soon as I walked past to place myself under the falls for show. I washed the water through my hair, mostly ignoring him.

“Come to think of it, we haven’t even seen how strong you are? What do you use? Aura? Internal Energy?”

“Relax.” I held out a hand, waving him down.
“I’m far weaker than you.” I added assuringly. My tone had a tint to it that only insecure people could hear, like the sounding of a dog whistle.

He frowned and puffed out his underdeveloped chest, pointing a thumb at himself. He wore his insecurity like a cloak.
    “I practise both.”

I whistled. “That’s amazing.”

He smirked, showing me how he was easily won over by flattery. “I know. My strength doesn’t come from my body. My body draws strength from my power. The physical side allows me to augment myself while the magical allows me to do things devoted muscleheads simply can’t.”

I let out a sigh and walked from the falls with my hair soaked, flattened down. I shook my head so that it would have a bit more volume to it as I approached him. He gulped as I stepped towards him. Regardless of what he said about himself, no matter how true it was, there were lines between all his boasting and blustering. He saw me. That I was taller by a few inches. That I looked stronger and bigger in the arms and chest and shoulder. That I wasn’t hiding my cock because I was proud of being upgraded from my own little partner from my previous life, rest his soul. Laaen was a tightly wound ball of insecurity. I rested my hand on his shoulder, as if ready to plush a string and pull. I smiled at him warmly.

“You don’t need to prove yourself to me, Laaen. You need to know that you’re excellent. I’ve seen it.”

“I don’t-”

I leaned closer, eying him. I was staring through him, through to the person beneath. “You do. Because if you thought you were as great as I see you, you wouldn’t feel like you need to tell me about it.” I patted his shoulder and turned around. Before I fully turned I smiled to myself, seeing his stunned, smitten expression.

I waited, counting down in my head and nodding to myself as he raised his voice and asserted himself.

“Th-that is such bullshit! Of course I already know!”

A shout came from the ridge above. Laeen boomed her disapproval. “HEY!”

Laaen gulped and lowered his head. He cleared his throat, took a breath and fixed his posture quickly. He looked at my back and muttered.

“B-but, even though I do know already. Thanks.”

As he was warming up to me in a heartfelt manner I was redressing his naked body in my mind in all sorts of cute little outfits while wondering if they had something similar to hormone therapy in this world. They do. I nodded without looking back or saying anything and walked out of the pool to get dressed.