Chapter 20 – Truth of the Night (1/2)
With Alicia securely sleeping on top of my body and the bear fur blanket covering us, my mind went back to researching the skill system.
There was the [Appraisal] skill I had found before. Learning it for myself was nice, but I wanted something more, that could be used for more than just regular objects. The skill itself could be used as a basis for a skill that fit my desires better.
So, with that in mind, I scanned through the skill's source code and figure out how it roughly worked.
[Appraisal] worked through several steps. The first was to target an object. Next was to collate the user's experience in regards to similar objects. After that was to compare it against the world database and add some more detailed information. The final step was to display the information to the user.
It seemed like it worked based on the user's ability to identify and examine the targeted object, then supplemented that information based on the user's knowledge and the rank of the skill.
All four steps of the skill were useful for me, but the part that needed the biggest change was the script that referenced the world database. The skill itself only accessed the database for items, and didn't specify the databases for anything else.
I couldn't find the information for those other databases yet, and without the names of them, I couldn't access them using a modified version of this skill.
It wasn't enough, but it was a good start. I made a copy then removed the acquisition method before saving the draft.
Next was to find skills that accessed other databases. But this was the hard part, since the skill list was so massive. There were over a hundred skills in just the 'A' section, and many of them had nonsensical names.
It was virtually impossible what their purpose was without looking into the source code, and it was difficult to imagine that many of them were even used. Quite a lot of the skills that had more reasonable names had quite dubious purposes.
On one hand they felt like padding, but on another, they might've had a reasonable reason to exist. Or perhaps they once had a purpose, but now lost that purpose?
Scrolling through the skills, occasionally checking the source code, I continued through that night until a familiar sensation disturbed my concentration.
I glanced at Alicia from under the blanket and wondered what would happen if by body reacted and started to produce because of this little girl's unconscious nightly activities?
(Maybe I wouldn't have to feed her as much during the day?)
I let off a wry smile at the thought, then worked at distracting myself as I gently held Alicia's body.
”Mmmm...Scarlet...”
(Just what kinda dream are you having to be suckling while calling out my name?!)
”Mmmm....good morning Scarlet...ha?!”
It seemed like this too had become a part of our daily routine. The moment Alicia's min reached a certain degree of consciousness, she always reacted that way. I wondered if it was because she was aware she had some bad sleeping habits, or because she noticed something about me when she first woke up. I didn't think I was acting in any way aside from normal in the first few seconds of her waking up though.
”Did...did I do something strange...?”
”Hmmm...how about I ask if you had an interesting dream or not?”
As cute as ever, Alicia tilted her head to the side, forcing a smile onto my face. But a second later she quickly turned her head to the side as if she was trying to hide her expression.
”N, n, nothing! I didn't have any dreams last night!”
”Really? You wouldn't lie to me, would you?”
”Mmm...”
”You wouldn't, would you? Because you're a good girl?”
”Mmmmm!”
”You are a good girl, my cute little sister Alicia”
”...”
She put up a valiant effort, but in the end I successfully guilted her into telling me the truth.
”I dreamt...”
”Mmmhmmm?”
”You were carrying me, and I was hugging you forever...”
”...”
Alicia's face had turned red to her ears, but if felt like my own face was hot enough to boil water.
”Have you had dreams like that every night since we met?”
”cough”
That heat only intensified as Alicia slowly nodded.
Or rather, was I the cause for her nightly suckling?! Was I fated to suffer that until she was old enough to be independent?! Rather, she was already supposed to be old enough for a bit of autonomy, yet she wasn't, so would it be pushed even further back than that?!
”Did...you do anything...else in your dreams?”
The little girl's eyes turned into saucers as she covered her mouth with both hands. But I saw how she pursed her lips right before she covered them.
It was all connected. She hadn't been responding to my situation each time, but she'd been worried that she'd been acting out her dreams while asleep. The evidence that she found on my chest when she woke up was dubious, but to someone who dreamt such a thing, it only looked like proof.
”If...if you had been doing something strange in your dreams...then it's best to try to stop it. Just because it's in your dreams, doesn't mean that it won't effect your real life”
My face was hot enough to melt steel, and I couldn't look directly at the little girl sitting on my pelvis anymore. Even my words were starting to lose coherence.
”Umm...umm...do I have to?”
(Did she want to that badly?!)
If I was perfectly honest with myself, if she didn't sleep suckle, I had no problems with whatever she happened to do in her dreams. But the fact that there was physical results due to her dreaming was the real issue.
”You...you know that nothing comes out, don't you?”
”?”
From the corner of my eyes, Alicia tilted her head in confusion.
”From my breasts. No matter what you do, nothing comes out. You realize that right?”
”...really?”
”Yes really! Nothing's ever come out of them before!”
I was exasperated by her tenacity.
”...Scarlet really is a good girl, right?”
(Why was she so suspicious like that?!)
”That's right! I'm not lying...because I'm a good girl”
”...”
(Why was she hesitant?!)
”Here! I'll prove it! Try sucking on them right now!”
I pushed up my breasts towards her with my hands the best I could, but their size made it holding them that way awkward and difficult.
”I'm not a baby! I don't need to suck milk!”
But contrary to my expectation, she turned her head away and pouted.
”It's okay. I'm giving you my permission to do it this one time. Babies might be the only ones who suck milk every day, but there are times when even adults might suck milk”
I left it locked up inside that people who did that were typically known a perverts though.
”Really?”
”Really. I'm a good girl, aren't I?”
”That's right. Scarlet's a good girl”
Strongly nodding, Alicia finally agreed with me, and took a firm hold of one of my breasts. Being held in this way was stimulating in all the wrong ways, but it was for the sake of a peaceful night. I could suck up any amount of short term pain or difficulty if it was for that sake.
Timidly and cautiously, Alicia lowered her head to my chest, and tried to suck on my nipple. But as it should be, nothing happened. She tried sucking again, and even lightly bit it, but no matter how much she tried, no matter how many different ways she tried it, nothing came out.
Rather, if something really did come out, I was worried for what my life from that point would be like.
”Milk really didn't come out”
For some reason, Alicia seemed to be really surprised about that fact.
”Why did you even think that something like that would come out?”
”It comes out for all women?”
”...”
”Scarlet is still a little girl?”
”...”
(How did she come up with that sort of conclusion?)
I thought for a moment before answering.
”I'm...I don't know if I could be considered a little girl, but that's not the reason why milk doesn't come out”
Unsurprisingly, Alicia cocked her head cutely again.
”Women only start to give out milk when they have a baby. Until they get close to having their first baby, milk won't come out”
”So...milk will come out when you have a baby?”
”Yup, that's how it is”
”How do you have a baby?”