Once Dungeon Boss, N Chapter 148: The Fourth Commander

Around seven years after the dungeon was officially recognized by the world, a very different kind of presence entered its depths.

Unlike many who arrived with fear, greed, or ambition, she ca with a smile.

She was the kind of person who never seed weighed down by the world. No matter the danger, no matter the tension around her, she carried herself with an easy confidence. Being near her felt warm, almost comforting, as if problems simply mattered less in her presence.

This was Lissy Drakara.

She would later be known as the Fourth Commander of the Dungeon.

Her title would be whispered with curiosity and caution alike.

Deadly Temptation.

Lissy Drakara was a shapeshifting incubus, a race born with beauty, charm, and desire woven into their very being. From a young age, she had learned one harsh truth, people never looked past her surface.

She had been abandoned as a child. Left behind without explanation, without comfort, without love. There were no gentle hands, no warm voices, no one to tell her she mattered. She grew up alone, learning to rely only on herself.

Strangely, this solitude did not break her.

If anything, she adapted.

As she grew older, attention ca easily. Too easily. People wanted her smile, her body, her presence, but never her heart. They admired her, desired her, and then moved on. To them, she was sothing to enjoy, not soone to know.

Lissy learned to laugh it off.

She flirted. She teased. She played the role the world expected of her. It was easier that way. But deep inside, there was a quiet emptiness. A wish she never spoke aloud.

She wanted sothing real.

Not desire.

Not obsession.

Love.

When the dungeon began to gain fa, stories spread far and wide. Tales of a Dungeon Boss unlike any other. Calm. Cold. Powerful. Unmoved by fear or temptation. To Lissy, it sounded almost amusing.

Curiosity led her to the dungeon.

At first, that was all it was. She wanted to see this legendary figure for herself. To et the being everyone feared and admired. She expected intrigue, maybe excitent.

She did not expect what followed.

The mont she t Zortheus, sothing shifted.

It was not lust. Not the shallow pull she had felt countless tis before. It was deeper, quieter, and far more unsettling. His presence was calm, heavy, and distant. He did not look at her the way others did. There was no hunger in his eyes. No interest.

And for the first ti in her life, that unsettled her more than attention ever had.

She found herself drawn to him.

His silence.

His restraint.

The weight he carried without showing it.

She stayed.

At first, she told herself it was just curiosity. Then she told herself it was a challenge. But soon, she stopped lying to herself. She liked him. No, she loved him.

Being an incubus, Lissy followed her instincts. She flirted openly. She teased him with words and smiles. She offered help whenever she could, staying close, hoping he would notice her presence in so way.

He never did.

Zortheus remained polite, distant, and unmoved. He accepted her help when it was useful, acknowledged her existence, and then turned away as if her charm ant nothing.

She tried harder.

She beca bolder. More playful. She laughed louder, leaned closer, pushed boundaries others never dared to approach. At one point, she even went as far as bathing openly before him, confident that no one could remain unaffected.

Zortheus did not react.

Days turned into weeks. Weeks into months.

Her confidence began to crack.

She had never been ignored like this before. Never felt so unseen. The more she tried, the more invisible she felt. Confusion slowly turned into frustration, and frustration into pain she did not know how to handle.

Then, one day, it slipped out.

"Do you even have a heart?"

The words left her mouth before she could stop them.

The mont they did, she knew she had crossed a line.

Zortheus did not raise his voice. He did not lash out. He simply looked at her, eyes unchanged, and said nothing. That silence hurt more than any anger could have.

Sha washed over her.

Who was she to demand his feelings? Who was she to expect love simply because she wanted it? The realization struck hard, and without another word, she ran.

She did not stop until she was far away.

That was when Grog found her.

He did not tease her. He did not mock her. He sat beside her and let her cry, even when she tried to hide it behind laughter. He spoke gently, patiently, and when she finally cald down, he told her the truth.

He told her Zortheus's story.

Not all of it, but enough.

Enough to explain the walls around his heart. Enough to show that his coldness was not rejection, but survival. That the weight he carried left no room for love, not yet.

For the first ti, Lissy understood.

It was not about her.

And strangely, that realization did not lessen her feelings.

It strengthened them.

If his heart was empty, she would not force her way in. She would wait. She would stay. She would love him without expecting anything in return. Even if it took decades. Even centuries.

That was the choice she made.

She did not leave the dungeon.

Instead, she offered herself, not her body, but her skills. Her loyalty. Her presence. She joined the dungeon not as a visitor, but as part of it.

That was how she beca the Fourth Commander.

As a commander, Lissy was unlike any other. Her beauty and charm were undeniable, but she did not use them cruelly. She lifted spirits. Lightened tension. Made even dark monts feel bearable.

In battle, she was playful and dangerous all at once.

She shifted forms freely, confusing her enemies, mocking them, drawing their focus away from strategy. She teased, taunted, and laughed as she fought, turning combat into a ga of minds as much as strength. Many underestimated her because of her smile.

They did not survive that mistake.

Her seductive aura affected everyone around her, regardless of race or gender. Yet despite the attention, her heart never wavered. It remained fixed on one person alone.

Zortheus.

Over ti, her playful nature remained, but sothing deeper grew beneath it. She beca more patient. More understanding. She learned that love was not about winning or being chosen, it was about staying, even when it hurt.

She did not demand.

She did not push.

She simply existed beside him.

Lissy Drakara, the Fourth Commander, was temptation wrapped in warmth, danger hidden behind laughter. And beneath it all was a heart that refused to give up.

Deadly Temptation, not because of desire alone, but because her love was unyielding.