Chapter 96 – Like a Mother Spoiler: Chapter After the short but eventful talk, we all agree to pay the King a visit together and ask about Shino’s idea. She and the others go outside to wait for me while I grab a few more bites of the breakfast that’s been interrupted by their visit and then change into my adventurer getup with the help of my lovely girls. Without further ado, we leave the premises of the mansion and head to the castle as a group. I walk on the front with Shino and Marcia on my sides, both actively chatting with me about random things. Natalie joins us too and hangs out by Shino’s side, as expected. She doesn’t really join the conversation but you can tell that she’s listening. I was a little anxious about this weird development of all the girls in the party walking around me, but glancing back at Kamil and Paul doesn’t really confirm any of my fears. The former doesn’t look annoyed or anything while the latter isn’t paying that much attention to anyone in particular, lost in his thoughts about who knows what. Shino feels a little guilty for disrupting my meal and we stop to grab some snacks in a small bakery. The scent of various freshly baked goods is just incredible and each of us gets something to slowly consume for the rest of the trip. No surprise I get seduced by a very enticing garlic baguette and share half with Shino. I swear these things make nothing of my godly Charm Resistance. I don’t think anything exists that could potentially fight against their unimaginable power. For the rest of our trip to the castle, the four of us—three if we don’t count the silent Natalie—chats about the stuff that happened to me after we had split initially since Marcia is extremely curious about the details of how things came to their current state. We did talk some about it during our past meetings, but she drills me for much more details this time. I manage to cover pretty much all the important parts before we reach our destination. Of course, simplifying some bits or skipping the more sensitive information that should stay only in my close circles. I do consider them quite close, but they don’t really reach the level of my very close girls or a few friends. Additionally, as we walk through the city, some people naturally recognize the Heroes they must have heard about a few times or seen here and there. The more surprising thing, mostly for the others, of course, is that more passersby seem to know me. For an obvious reason. While it’s possible to spot when someone figures out their identities, with mine there’s no need to assume it. Some customers, both male and female, throw verbal greetings at me as we pass them, often nodding their heads in a polite way. I’m getting recognized even in my adventurer gear now. It’s quite a step forward. Marcia looks very intrigued by these quite common happenings. We are let through the gates without any issues and one of the guards runs off to inform the servants about our visit and request for an audience if the King is available. In the meanwhile, we wait in the practice area. Shino wanted to spar with me and I don’t have a reason to refuse. I’m obviously nowhere near her level, but we spend around twenty minutes clashing against each other—me with my mesmerizing blade, shaped into a nodachi, and Shino with her signature katana. Knowing a few of her abilities, I’m able to react in time after noticing the cues of their activation thanks to my heightened senses. This allows me to put up at least some resistance. Fortunately, Shino isn’t aiming for a complete beatdown or testing her limits on me but openly shares pointers and tips as we spar, stopping from time to time to speak uninterrupted. During these brief pauses, I catch the others staring at us slightly in disbelief. Especially Kamil. I think we might be moving a little bit fast and it’s the first time he can properly observe those moves. During our duel, he might have perceived it a little differently. All that adrenaline and battle rush. Anyway, we continue until a maid comes to get us, informing us that the King agreed to the meeting and awaits our arrival. I notice that my mastery of katana-like blades has risen by a humongous three levels just from trying to incorporate Shino’s teachings into my movements. I wonder if she’s that good of a teacher or I just have quite decent compatibility with it. We fix our appearances a little, I ease our fatigue with Rejuvenate, causing a blissful smile to appear on Shino’s face as the pleasant mana does its work inside her body, and then follow the servant to the meeting chamber. Shino stealthily sneaks a peck on my cheek as we walk behind everyone, with a faint blush covering her face as she glances away. I don’t think she is aware that both Marcia and Natalie have noticed the action but let’s leave it at that. After the maid opens the door for us while courteously bowing, we enter the room with Ross already inside, dressed in his more casual but still royal clothes and sitting in a comfy armchair. “Welcome again! Looks like we are seeing each other quite frequently recently. And everyone is present this time. That’s actually rare,” he speaks first as we sit down around the coffee table. “Almost everyone. Vanessa-san is now part of the party too,” Shino corrects him. “Ah. My apologies. I hope she can rejoin you soon then.” He shows a wry smile. “I’m fairly sure there won’t be a problem with that. It’s not like I’m exactly coming back as a core member of the Heroes group.” I nod at him and Ross seems to catch my drift, remembering that I have clearly taken some actions regarding the issue with Vanessa. He rubs his chin while nodding back. “Good. That’s good. I mean, the no problem part, of course. It would be even better if you were to reunite completely, but I’m not going to force you into anything.” “It’s fine. Perhaps if not for all the responsibilities I have accumulated over the last few months, I would have considered properly coming back to the team. Things are also a little better between us than in the past.” I give Kamil a brief glance and he makes a slightly uncertain nod. “But, we are here partially regarding that. What are your plans for them currently?” “Hmmmm… Not much to be honest. There aren’t any critical reports about any serious outbreaks and we have even managed to close two small gates thanks to your intel so it’s just a few ideas of locations they could visit to gain some more experience or just travel around to relax a little. Why? Do you have something in mind?” I peek at Shino and she smiles at me softly before turning to the King. “If it would be okay, I wanted to suggest something.” He nods. “Of course. Go on.” “We have learned that Sensei is going to travel soon to escort someone and I thought it would be a good opportunity to go together. It would be our first quest with everyone from the old party present. And I’m sure we would be able to gain from it too.” Shino presents her request with a little hint of anxiety on her adorable face. I gently grab her hand and brush her skin with my thumb. There’s no need to get so nervous. She most likely gets my intention through our bond and a bit of rosiness surfaces on her cheeks as she still stares at the King, somewhat less tense now. Ross moves his gaze onto me and I nod, confirming that everything is fine on my side. He also seems to notice my little gesture and smiles knowingly. I slightly squint my eyes at him. He better not be thinking anything silly or we’ll see who will be the smug one after he pays us a visit again. The King shudders visibly and clears his throat before facing Shino again. “I don’t see any reasons to not agree to this. I would be happy to give you a chance to spend some time together. I also believe this can be beneficial for both sides. If Alastair is fine with your company during that operation, then I have nothing to say here. It’s his own expedition and I’m only lending a hand with some small bits.” Shino instantly glances at me with a wide smile and I wink at her. “Alright. We’ll most likely depart tomorrow since most of the things on my side are ready. I was going to come to you to ask if we could get some accurate maps of the kingdom which would be a great help to our guides,” I inform him. “Not a problem. I store a few good ones in one of my personal chambers. We can get them after the meeting if you don’t mind. They aren’t anything special so I can lend them to you if you would like.” I nod. “I appreciate it. There’s something we need to talk about anyway so let’s do exactly that.” Ross notices my knowing smile this time and his eyes widen for a second. “Ah, yes. We should make sure to discuss such important matters in a suitable environment.” He definitely knows what I want to talk about just from this. What a pervert. And a man of culture. Paul saves us from any uncomfortable questions by joining in. “We have received a slightly bigger magical storage from Alastair now and I wanted to ask if it would be possible to request some more supplies and gear. We can now store more of them and I think we could use more practical equipment and consumables.” The King glances at me curiously and I just shrug. It’s not like I have to report to him about all the little things I get. And I might have forgotten to mention those. “How big exactly?” he asks Paul. “Around a three-story building.” Ross’ eyes almost bulge out from surprise. I don’t think even his personal artifacts have so much space inside. These were quite rare since they aren’t that easy to make in the current age. Mostly due to the scarcity of the proper material and the fact that it can be found in quite dangerous places. One could say that they are high-level areas, considering the strong beasts and monsters. So far, both I and Shino’s team had it quite chill with the exception of the few strong Abyssals. The King fixes his expression in a flash and nods. “We’ll naturally see what can be done. If you have anything in mind, please speak freely. We are obliged to provide you with as much support as we can.” “Thank you. If it wouldn’t be too much, could I perhaps ask someone to show us, or just me, around the storages and warehouses? It would be easier to make a list while knowing what can be actually picked.” “I will see to it. Someone will pay you a visit soon after we end here and guide you through the items we can provide you with. Don’t be afraid to ask them about anything. They will let you know if something isn’t available to be taken.” Paul courteously bows his head. “Thank you again for this opportunity.” Ross casually waves his hand at him. “No need to be so official.” “Alright. To not prolong this unnecessarily, let’s wrap this meeting up if no one has anything else to mention or ask.” I look over everyone present in the chamber and then refocus on Ross after only silence answers me. “We all still have some preparations to take care of on our respective sides so let’s set the departure date as tomorrow around eleven in the morning.” Everyone nods and we start getting up. Paul, Kamil and Marcia leave first. A little less shy with just her best friend and Ross present around, Shino steps closer to me and I lean down to leave a tame kiss on her adorable lips. She then hastily escapes with Natalie in tow. After the two of us are left alone, Ross turns to me with his brows slightly raised. “So… That thing we need to discuss…” I chuckle and shake my head while bringing a certain big and thin album with a fancy golden text on the black leather cover, showing the name of a certain place. I throw it at him and Ross opens the thin book after a moment of uncertainty, tinged with a note of expectation. He flips through the pages one by one and stops at a certain section, which causes his brows to rise even more. A smile gradually makes its way onto his lips while he is clearly attempting to fight against it, failing miserably. “I hope that your friends will be satisfied with the selection. It’s not that wide, but it’s something at least.” Ross moves his eyes off the pictures of a few Beastkin ladies and closes the menu card abruptly, clearing his throat again. “I can assure you that no one will find anything to nitpick on with such an incredible lineup. You are open tonight, right?” “Yeah. Feel free to come at any time. I’ll let the girls know.” He glances to the side. “Whatever could you mean? But, I’ll definitely pass this information onto the interested people.” “Come on. I’m pretty sure everyone and their mother knows who those people are. It will be easier if we just drop this. Really.” I throw in a little hint but it doesn’t look like he has noticed the subtle clue. Ross sighs and scrunches his face. “Eh, fine. It was fun though, no?” “Maybe at first. The longer the joke runs, the more cringy it gets. I believe we’ve had enough. It’s not like I will rat you out to some random people. Or your mother.” An awkward smile makes an appearance on his face. “Yeah. Definitely. Thanks.” Oh well. He still suspects nothing. I guess this is the equivalent of a teenager making himself believe that his parents still don’t know he watches porn or takes a wank during the horny phase. He most likely still thinks Lianne isn’t aware of him knowing about her condition. Let’s leave both of these things at that then. “Anyway, before you get your highly anticipated dose of catgirls, we still have a few other things to take care of. First, let’s start with the actual issue—Lord Jericho’s drug and the consequences of his son’s actions.” Ross gestures at me and we sit down again. He places the menu card aside and supports his chin with his joined hands. “I assume you spoke to the man. Do you need me to do something about it? I can already tell you that it will be troublesome, but I can start figuring some things out slowly.” I shake my head. “No need to take any action against him. Lord Jericho is a good man. Perhaps a little neglecting when it comes to raising his son, but his intentions weren’t that bad. He did turn a blind eye on a bit too much though. Nevertheless, I don’t want you to put any pressure on him just for me.” “Alright. Anything else then? I don’t think you would just bring him up randomly.” “Yes. We managed to find common ground and agreed to work together on finding a cure for the drug his son fed to the few girls he had randomly picked from the various brothels. At the same time, he will be trying to help his son too, who, as you should be aware, ended up in quite a serious state for a man to be after his attempt in our establishment.” Ross squeezes his thighs together while smiling wryly. “In the end, we have joined forces and some of my girls that know a thing or two about alchemy or medicine agreed to participate. They will be working on that while I’m gone most likely, cooperating with Jericho. I only wanted to let you know and perhaps ask if there’s anything you could help with in terms of support, either to him or me, but I think it would be better if any supplies or other things were sent to him.” “Jericho can be considered a Court Alchemist to some extent so I should be able to help out here and there with a few things. I will send some people to consult with him then. Is that fine?” I nod. “I have already told him that could happen so yes. And I’m sure Cornelia will be in touch with him and your men too, as our representative.” “Great. I hope this succeeds then. I’m sure you won’t mind if we make use of this research to incorporate any beneficial byproducts, and the final solution if it gets properly developed, into our alchemical systems.” “Of course not. I don’t even have a say in this, hahaha. You are the King. I’m just borrowing the knowledge, resources and such. It’s only natural to make use of any helpful discoveries. Especially if they would be useful in the field of medicine.” “Thank you anyway.” Ross smiles and we shake hands over the table. “Then, is there anything else?” “Just the maps.” He stands up and I follow suit. “Let’s move to my office chamber then. I keep lots of them there.” We then walk through a few corridors and arrive in front of wooden double doors with the main continent carved into their surface—the one currently occupied mostly by Humans, with just the sides belonging to other races. After stepping through them, we find ourselves in a spacious chamber filled with documents and various other paper products of many different sizes. Plenty of furniture meant to hold onto tall rolls of big sheets that show their age through the colours decorates the walls. You can literally taste the atmosphere by breathing, which is filled with that very characteristic aroma of old books and paper. I glance around, looking at a few maps hung over the whole room while Ross goes through a few wardrobes full of sealed tubes and stacks of parchments. A few minutes pass and he brings out a number of leather envelopes, placing them on a big round table in the middle. “These should cover most of the kingdoms in quite a detail. And they are foldable so there’s no issue with carrying them. But, I guess it doesn’t matter to you now.” Ross raises a brow at me while opening the thin material pockets and pulling out the maps stored inside. “If you want one, I can give it to you. I still have a few.” “Well, it isn’t necessary since mine are around the size of this chamber, but it would be nice…” Black mist flows out of my chest and Ailish materializes in front of me, spooking Ross a little. He isn’t yet used to that ability. “You called?” she asks after finishing fully forming. “How many rings do we have?” “Including the one that the sweet dwarf studies sometimes and the one you have gifted to the samurai girl, five in total. Who are you proposing to this time?” Ailish grins at me seductively and I shake my head with a smile. She then follows my gaze and glances over her shoulder, spotting the King. “Oh. Hello there. I see now. This one would fit well, don’t you think?” With some more dark and mystical smoke, a ring made out of dark gold shows up between her fingers and she passes it to me. I look it over and nod at her, flicking the fancy piece of jewellery at Ross. He catches it and immediately attempts to probe the insides. How do I know that? From the way he almost slams his face on the table after losing balance from the initial shock of diving into such a spacious artifact. Fortunately, he regains enough control to fall onto his elbows instead and raises himself up, still visibly dizzy. “Ugh… That thing is quite incredible…” he says while holding his head. Ailish chuckles at him. “It’s nothing to be proud of, but it serves its purpose.” Ross gives her a weird look for a moment. “Thank you, Ailish.” I give the base of her tail a little squeeze and a tug, hidden from Ross’ sight due to her butt facing my way now as she has moved to my side and turned towards the King while we have been speaking. She bits on her lower lip while giving me the look. “Anything for you…” she whispers in a very seductive voice and makes an exit in a similar way to her previous entrance. ~Fuck… Now I’m itching for a cock…~ Not a second later, I hear her again, in my head this time. I try to focus my mind on a specific thing while circling mana through my body just like we’ve been practising with Ailish for some time. If I’m doing it correctly, it shouldn't take long before... ~Ah! Did you just make a small dick-shaped tree grow under my ass?~ ~Maybe. Maybe not.~ ~Mhhhhhhhhhhmmmmm… So fucking goooooood… I love it, thank you.~ ~Have fun.~ With a fading giggle surrounded by a few amorous moans, I retract my consciousness from the Soul Realm and return my attention to Ross. He finished exploring the ring in the meanwhile and set up all the maps on the table. We examine them together, with Ross explaining to me how to read them properly and what areas they show. I must say, he picked great ones. They aren’t cluttered with things completely pointless to us and focus mostly on all routes and registered locations. “Thanks, Ross. These will surely be of great help. I’m sure my companions will love them too. We should have no problem finding the elven settlement.” “Don’t mention it. Are versions in Common alright? I should have them in a few other languages too.” I wave my hand at him. “It’s all fine. Both the Wood Elf and Dragonewt know Common so there’s no reason to look for any additional copies. Speaking of which, I don’t think I’ve ever asked about what happened to that idiot who held a self-righteous public execution back then. Care to share some news?” Ross furrows his brows and rubs his chin while thinking. “Hmmm… Ah. That guy. Funny story. I had him investigated and it turned out he had some ties with illegal slave dealers so he got beheaded. And most of his accomplices too. They actually confessed that the whole thing was a ruse and those Dragonewts were pursuing them to retrieve stolen goods. We managed to crack a quite old circle of criminals thanks to that man’s stupid display. I’m sorry for the deceased.” So, just like Teffith said back then. Not like I had any reasons to doubt her words considering the circumstances. But, it looks like the whole thing ran deeper than we thought. Good that it’s been taken care of. “Thank you. He did seem like an ass so I’m not that surprised he was in shady stuff. At least he got what he deserved.” Ross nods. “Yeah. The fact that we found some dirt on him made it easier for me to request capital punishment. If it will help your friend in any way, you can let her know that he’s been put through a lot during the interrogation.” “Thanks again.” We pack the maps together and I shove them into my ring. Each of us goes our way shortly after to return to our own responsibilities. I’ve taken quite a bit of his time now and I also have a few things to do before the working night. I return to the mansion through the city. The first thing I do after arriving home is speak to Teffith. Even if she has said in the past that she isn’t going to seek revenge, I’m sure it must still have been eating her from the inside. And that assumption is proved to be at least somewhat correct as I can notice the slight change in her body language after I relay to her what I have learned about that noble from the past. Some of the proverbial weight has clearly gotten off her shoulders after hearing the news. I give Teffith a brief hug and we agree to host a meeting with her and Ghilerie to discuss the maps. Our temporary resident joins us in my chamber after we head there together and I mostly observe how the two of them go through the maps, charting most likely what will end up as our course through those lands. Ghilerie manages to pinpoint the supposed location of her settlement after around twenty minutes of working. According to her, it’s located near a big waterfall not that far from the northern border of the Human kingdom before the main nation of Elves, on the side of the former. After we finish talking about the details of this small adventure, I pay a visit to Cornelia and the girls who will be working on the cure to pass on to them what we have agreed on with the King. Everyone looks to be very determined to succeed, as far as I can tell from the expressions of those who actually show those. At some point, Elise comes in and informs us that her friend found some time to meet with me if that would be possible, to discuss working here as an accountant. We are not that far from opening for the night, but Cornelia urges me to meet with her while she mans the reception. I have no reason to argue and go to change into my better clothes after showering my number one receptionist with a myriad of loving kisses until she has to shoo me away with flushed cheeks. I ain’t leaving without showing her my appreciation. A few minutes later, I’m in the city again and following Elise to where her friend should be waiting for us. She keeps talking about the other girl a lot, trying to present all of her best sides and experience in the field before the actual candidate has even a chance to speak for herself. They must be really good friends for her to try so hard to help. We stop by a coffee bar. It’s already getting quite late and I have to admit that the lighting created by the iron lanterns hanging over the facade of the shop creates an incredibly charming atmosphere. I can see why there are barely any spots left at such an unusual hour. I need to take my girls here one evening. Nevertheless, Elise leads us through the graceful wooden porch in front of the fancy bar and we reach a table with a single woman sitting by it, calmly sipping on a coffee while having two notebooks open in front of her. She’s looking between them and constantly scribbling something in the thinner one. “Ria! We are here! Thanks for waiting!” Elise waves her hand at the woman as we move closer, bringing her attention to us as she raises her gaze. A soft smile answers the younger girl’s call. And yes, you can clearly tell who is the younger one. I could describe Elise’s friend in a single word. MILF. I don’t think I have ever seen a woman fitting the term so perfectly. Ria emanates a clear aura of a perfect MILF with every ounce of her being, starting from her beautiful mature face and ending at her quite voluptuous figure. And that delicate smile. Oh, man. She has wavy dark brown hair, ending around somewhere behind her shoulders. A bigger lock of slightly longer threads is tied by a rubber band decorated with a navy blue flower pin and rests on the left side of her chest. Dark green eyes peek from behind classy glasses that adorn her mature face. As for Ria’s clothes, she wears a stylish white shirt, barely holding her impressive breasts inside. And I really mean it. With some effort, you can spot the outlines of her lacy bra of a dark colour, getting heavily pushed into the material of the shirt that’s strained from the pressure it's subjected to. These buttons might be more impressive than her breasts actually, holding onto their lives like heroes. For her bottom, she has chosen a dark grey pleated skirt, which reaches her knees, more or less. These clothes could fit the whole office dress code to some extent if they were made of more modern materials. Somehow, I have no doubts Ria truly is an accountant with her being the prime example of dressing like one even outside of the working hours. She stands up and gives me a professional smile after nodding at Elise as we finally reach her table. “Good evening to the both of you. If I’m not mistaken, Mr Carter, right? I’m Ria Therisson. Thank you for agreeing to give me a chance. And I apologize for Elise. I’m sure she has been quite insistent on this.” I smile at her and pick Ria’s palm extended for a handshake, bringing it up to leave a kiss on the back of her hand. “Please, just Alastair is fine. It’s my pleasure. And I don’t mind it. It only shows how much she cares for her friend.” Ria smiles back while Elise glances away with a slight blush. “Call me Ria then too. Let’s sit down. Give me just a second to clean up my notebooks and we can move straight to our matters. I don’t want to take too much of your time, Alastair. From what Elise has mentioned to me, you have work to do tonight.” The person in question sighs while taking a seat. “Seriously. Can’t you spend even a minute without working on something during your free time? You are such a workaholic. Even worse than Alastair and he needs to have insight in almost everything himself.” Ria chuckles softly while I smile wryly. “Now, now. It’s very relaxing working on some numbers so why not combine business with pleasure. Maybe you will understand it better after you get older,” she comments at Elise while hiding away the two notebooks and her utensils. “You aren’t even that old! Forty-three is like the prime—” Ria squints her eyes at Elise, who quickly covers her mouth with her hands, looking between me and the mature woman in concern. Shivers run through the younger girl’s body when she notices the overly kind smile of her friend. “Well then. Let’s ignore Elise’s slip up and maybe move onto something more important than that,” Ria says while moving her eyes onto me; the icy aura that surrounded her for a brief moment is completely gone. “I see nothing against it. How much did she tell you about our establishment?” I ask. “A lot actually. I’m aware of what it is and how it functions. Without the sensitive details, of course. Elise didn't divulge any of your secrets.” I nod. “Not that I would suspect her of anything like that. So far, I think she is a very diligent girl when it comes to her responsibilities.” Elise’s gaze drops down as she blushes again a bit. It seems that she’s even weaker at compliments when around her friends. “I agree.” Ria smiles at her sweetly. “Alright. I guess there’s no reason for me to repeat all of it again. Considering everything, you are fine working with us, right?” “If you mean the environment, then yes, I have no issues with working in a brothel. I was more surprised for Elise to agree so quickly to your offer. It doesn’t really matter for an old woman such as myself, but some nasty rumours can have a bigger impact on the life of someone this young.” “It was just that good,” Elise joins in. “And I don’t care about that stuff. People say whatever they want anyway. Many of the guild’s receptionists were said to be complete sluts behind a professional mask they wear for the work, servicing high-ranked adventurers at their every beck and call.” “Damn. That’s terrible. I’m sorry to hear that.” I glance at Elise and she smiles back. “Doesn’t matter. And it’s in the past now. Anyway, with what Alastair has offered me, I’m pretty much set for life if I don't get fired too soon. Ah, but it’s not like I plan on quitting after collecting enough money either or anything like that. I really like it there. I would like to keep working for you for as long as I can.” Ria assumes a thoughtful expression while tapping her fingers together. “I see. I’m happy for you then. It was painful at times to listen to how much effort you put into your previous work and how ungrateful it was. I was afraid it would gradually wear you down and I would hate to see you become completely burnt out.” “I know. That’s why I’m thankful for your help. Always. I wouldn’t have survived this long without your support, both emotional and financial. I really appreciate it, Ria. You didn’t really gain anything from helping me but you still did.” I think I’m starting to notice the exact relationship here. If I’m not mistaken, Ria has been taking care of Elise for some time already. She most likely stumbled on the struggling girl and couldn’t leave her alone. Almost like a mother and daughter. “Anyway, this is not about me but you. And I know that your boss is terrible too. You always trash talk him when we drink together. When I heard that Alastair could use a good accountant, I thought that I could finally pay you back somehow. Utopia is definitely a much better place. And Alastair is a great boss. The others are awesome too. It feels like one huge family. An actual one, not just because the owner says it is.” A very faint blush surfaces on Ria’s cheeks when Elise mentions their drinking nights but it quickly disappears. Unfortunately, I can notice much more things like that due to the help of my quickly growing numbers. It’s really starting to feel like a cheat now. I decide to interject at this moment. “Elise might be right. I don’t know your circumstances, but I can assure you that we value our employees greatly, placing their comfort in the first place on our list of priorities. If you have any salary expectations, feel free to speak openly. We can discuss them until both sides are satisfied.” Ria shakes her head. “No, that’s not necessary. Elise did mention how lucrative the salary is and I would be more than satisfied earning even half of what she is getting.” “Well. We can start at exactly what she is getting. I don’t see a reason to cut it in half. If neither of you feels wronged with that offer.” “I think Ria should earn more. Her work is much harder than mine. Or we can lower my pay. I’m getting much more than I deserve anyway.” “I won’t agree to that. You are not going to get your pay lowered only because I am going to join,” Ria counters her friend quickly. I raise my hands to stop them before this evolves into a back and forth between the two ladies. “Alright. Let’s agree on the same pay for now. Before we move any further, let me just ask if you are truly considering switching jobs, Ria, or if it’s Elise trying to convince you. I don’t want you to do anything under someone’s influence when you have your life set up by yourself. I’m sorry, Elise.” The younger girl shakes her head. “No, it’s okay. I might have been a little too pushy on this, actually.” Ria joins her hands together and places them on the table. “Don’t worry about it. Yes, I thought about changing places after listening to everything that Elise had to say. It’s not just because of her lively character.” I nod. “Then, is there anything you would like to confirm? I can openly admit that I am interested in hiring you so it’s in my best interest to tend to your needs. Would you also like to move into the mansion or are your living conditions satisfactory?” “I think I’m fine with everything that Elise has spoken to me about. We would figure things out over time. It’s hard to tell at the moment. As for the last part…” Elise stands up and lightly slams her hands onto the table from above. “We could live in the same room if you moved in! And I told you how amazing the whole mansion is! I doubt that even the King has better baths!” I chuckle at her. “That’s an exaggeration. They are… similar.” Ria ponders over Elise's suggestion, definitely thinking about the matter quite intensely. That reminds me of something else that we haven’t considered yet. “Pardon my rudeness but that’s a quite crucial aspect in our predicament. Are you living alone or with someone? I’m asking because I would hate to invite only you, but the girls requested that only other women live with us in the mansion.” “That won’t be a problem. And it’s not really a secret or anything. Yes, I’m currently single. I was married but my husband left me long ago. He… couldn’t stand my workaholic nature.” Ria shows a wry smile. “It was what brought us together at first, but with time, it turned out to be too much for him. My daughter is already a full adult and has moved to the Kiryas Kingdom in the north with her boyfriend. And don’t apologize. It was just not meant to be.” I nod respectfully and don't say anything just as Ria has requested. “Well then. Our personal lives aside, would you like to work with us then, Ria? We could use someone with your experience. I can tell that you have plenty of it.” She takes a deep breath, causing her voluptuous mountains to rise and fall, and smiles at me sweetly. “Yes, I think I would. Elise is right. I should follow in her steps and switch jobs before it gets to me. Honestly, I’ve been feeling very tired recently. Maybe this will help a little.” I clasp my hands together and smile. “Great. Feel free to take your time with anything you need. There’s no rush anywhere. I’m sure Elise will gladly help you settle in if you join us while I’ll be gone. And my wives have the same authority as me, even knowing much better how this worl—ekhm… kingdom works.” “Yes! That’s great! I always wanted to work with you!” Elise pumps her fist on the side, causing the two of us to smile. “Ah. One more thing.” Both women turn to look at me. “You mentioned our bet, right?” Elise’s eyes open as wide as it’s physically possible. “What bet?” Ria asks, glancing at her friend with one brow curiously raised. “Uhhhhhh…”
Chapter 97 – A Peculiar Quarrel Spoiler: Chapter “You see… It’s a little bit complicated…” Elise smiles wryly while glancing away. “How so? Did you already get yourself into something troublesome?” Ria asks, slightly squinting her eyes at the young receptionist. Elise quickly starts shaking her head and hands. “No, no, no! It’s not about me! Well, okay, it is partially about me, but not in the way you think!” “Perhaps you should explain it to me then. Since Alastair has brought it up, I’m pretty sure it is somehow connected to my work there, right?” “I can explain it if it’s too much,” I interject, trying to save Elise from the embarrassment. She glances at me and smiles. “No, it’s fine. I should have spoken about it with Ria anyway. I completely forgot. I’m sorry.” She lightly bows her head. “Alright. No need to apologize.” Elise nods and turns back to her friend, sitting back down on her chair. “You see, there’s that other person who was working at the reception before I came, Cornelia, and she is a beautiful mature lady with an aura of a scholar. She’s been a great help to me. She’s also part of the girls that call themselves Alastair’s wives and is very close to him. She and Alastair often argue with each other jokingly, or more like bicker and tease each other, both knowing it’s just for fun. And… she can be a little stubborn…” Finally getting to the important part, Elise chuckles to herself and starts rubbing her hands together as she continues. “Not that long ago, she said that my arrival was good since most men like cute girls at the reception and Alastair countered that by saying that there’s plenty who love mature women. They made a bet and we started asking our customers about their preferences. But… one of Alastair’s other wives suggested that the loser would have to walk naked inside the mansion for a week… So… Yeah… A lot of girls really want him to lose, hahaha…” Elise finishes with some crimson surfacing on her fair cheeks, what was to be expected. The unexpected part is the little spark in Ria’s eyes that I notice when the younger girl explains the consequences of losing the bet. I’m not sure if it was just me or what, but I swear there was something there for a split second. Ria softly clears her throat and smiles at her friend. “While I admit that it’s quite a surprising bet, I don’t think it will be an issue. As you can imagine, Elise, it wouldn’t be the first time I get to see a man naked. I would be more concerned about how the other person would feel with all the gazes on them.” “We might learn about that soon.” I sigh. “But, don’t worry about me. I’ve been through a lot. And I do mean it. It’s not even half as crazy as a thing or two that I’ve already done.” “That sounds like a very interesting story.” “And embarrassing.” She chuckles a bit. “That makes it even more interesting. It’s always those stories that end up the best.” I smile wryly and nod at her. “Perhaps I’ll share one day. It’s not a talk for tonight though. It would take way too long.” “But of course. Let us return to the original topic then. As I said, I don’t think I have any problems with that. Something that I can’t confidently say about Elise.” “Hey! What is that supposed to mean?” “You are doing amazing keeping your persona at work but we both know how your dating experience looks. The last time, you almost fainted when a guy was just fixing his belt, showing a bit of his lower abdomen.” “AHHHHHHHHH! Don’t tell him that!” Elise tries to swat Ria to stop her from saying anything else, sending me some side glances in the meanwhile. The older woman chuckles again with a teasing smile. “And now we are even.” Elise retracts her hands and pouts at her friend, still slightly blushing. “That’s not fair. I thought he was getting into it. They always want to get into my panties.” “Being such a beautiful girl must be hard.” I throw in a casual comment that brings some red back onto Elise’s face. “I’m sure a handsome man such as yourself has his own share of struggles,” Ria responds with a teasing smile. “Well… Possibly. But, anyway, I will just have to avoid running into Elise so as not to inconvenience her and it will be fine. Assuming that I lose, of course.” “There’s no need to do that! That accident happened long ago! I’m now much better, especially thanks to working at your place!” Elise defends herself.” “Alright, alright. We will see when the time comes. Now then. I assume that you have things to take care of before joining us, just like Elise did, so don’t rush anything. And, Elise, can I ask you to help Ria with whatever she would need?” She quickly regains her composure and nods happily. “You don’t even have to ask. I would do it anyway. I’ll make sure to introduce her to our establishment better than anyone.” “Great. Just don’t try to handle everything yourself. Cornelia will gladly back you up, especially with all the accounting stuff. Now, if you don’t have anything against it, I would like to take my leave.” Ria stands up at the same time as I do and extends her hand for me to shake it. “Of course not, Alastair. There are people waiting for your return. Thank you for the opportunity and I hope we’ll meet again soon, as colleagues this time.” “With pleasure. Have a good night, ladies.” After making a light bow, I place a hand on Elise’s shoulder and push her back down onto her seat. “You stay. Cornelia is already there so there’s no need for you to hurry back.” She glances at her friend and then up at me. “Thanks. See you tomorrow then.” With one more nod, I walk away and leave them alone, catching the beginning of their conversation with my slightly improved senses. I manage to hear Ria starting to tease Elise about me before I tune out to not eavesdrop on them. When I get back to the establishment, the business is booming. There are plenty of people socializing around, both on the top and bottom floor. A few of the non-working maids are moving amongst the guests with silver trays that hold various drinks, brought from the bar on the upper level. As expected, there are also groups of noblewomen waiting for their turn. I join everyone and help wherever it is needed, lending a hand to whoever asks for it, or who doesn’t, like a certain Dogkin maid that is still a bit too shy after our brief intimate meeting to do so. She’s a real hard worker. I give her ears some additional scratches while opening a bottle of champagne for her. At one point in the night, Nebu shows up on the railing of the upper balustrade, grabbing onto it with her claws and perching on it. She naturally catches the attention of almost everyone after one person points out her appearance. She’s wearing dark green shorts and a tank top, looking as cute as ever. Spotting me in the crowd, she waves my way with her wing and takes off, making a few circles under the ceiling. The people sigh and gasp in admiration of the unexpected show. I can tell that she’s enjoying the attention a lot. Nebu got very proud of her feathers after a few of our intimate sessions. Gently so as not to damage my suit, she perches down on my shoulders and engages in a short conversation with the guests that I’ve been talking to before her arrival. It must look comical seeing her just sitting on my shoulders and hugging my head with her wings. After getting enough fun, she leaves in the same way, disappearing into the upper west corridor, making sure that the guests get a good view of her wings spread wide. I chuckle at her antics while shaking my head. I’m glad she’s having fun. Time passes quickly while we are all working hard. Everyone does their best as usual. It might be weird coming from the owner of a brothel, but they really make me proud. Things are doing great thanks to their incredible efforts, both during and outside of the working hours. Around two hours from closing, I’m engaged in a friendly chat with a customer post service, telling me how glad he is our establishment exists in this city. He’s actually a quite regular visitor and someone who was a bit sceptical about non-human girls at first. But, that changed after a few meetings with our playful Tieflings. “Thank you for all the compliments. I’m really happy to hear that you are enjoying yourself in our company.” I bow lightly after listening to his praises. “Sir Carter, please, you and your girls have never let me down. In fact, every time I come here, I’m always more and more in awe. I can’t believe I was missing out on so much due to my views.” “Hahaha. It do be like that. Don’t let it get to you too much, dear customer. A man can never know when he stumbles onto something enlightening.” “True words, sir Carter, true words. And that’s why I’m doing what I can do help my friends understand—” “Excuse me, sir Carter. I apologize for rudely interrupting you, but I just wanted to ask how long is the queue to—” “Rose?” “Pablo?” Shortly after a pretty, middle-aged woman wearing an elegant dress that still can be considered something a decently wealthy commoner would wear steps closer and brings forth her inquiry, my conversation partner raises his eyebrows in surprise, clearly recognizing her. She turns to him with a frown and responds with the same. “So that’s what you have been doing when going out with friends, you damn scoundrel! I knew something was off when you were returning from those meetings barely tipsy while Roger and Peter would be dying from a hangover the next day!” the woman puts her hands on her hips and shouts at the person named Pablo. “What the hell are you doing here? You are always asleep at this hour! And who is staying with the kids? Did you leave them alone?” he barrages her back with questions, making me realize that they might be more than just friends. Rose scoffs at him while scrunching her face. “The kids now? Why do you suddenly care? Marie is helping me out when I want to have some time for myself too! And don’t you dare to try to change the topic! Oh, I wonder what will your mother say when she learns that you’ve been sneaking out in the night to go on a fucking spree in a brothel while leaving your wife alone with all the work!” He opens and closes his mouth a few times, completely flabbergasted. After a few short seconds, he gets his bewilderment under control and raises a finger at Rose. “And why are you here? No. I know exactly why you are here. You would never follow me into the town at night. I wonder what your mother and all those conservative friends of hers will think after they learn that you’ve been leaving the kids under someone else’s care to ride on a fake magical dick instead of your husband’s! No headache tonight?” It’s the woman’s turn to open her mouth in shock for a brief moment. Then, she mirrors his gesture and leans forward with her finger pointed at him too. “Listen here, you rascal! I’m not the one cheating on my wife on the side! Don’t you even dare!” “Not the one, eh? Real or fake, cock is cock. You are still getting your cunt pounded by one that’s not your husband’s!” “Alright, alright. Let’s all calm down and not cause a scene. People are starting to notice.” I place my hands on their shoulders and glance each of them in the eyes. “I’m sure we can find a common ground here.” They take a look around and slightly shrink under a few curious gazes turned our way. A little less heated, they glance back at me with the woman blushing a little and the man showing an anxious smile. I take this chance to resolve this sudden conflict. “It’s very sad for me to see two of my best customers fighting with each other. I admit I was a tiny bit surprised to learn about your relationship, but so what? Pablo, Rose, both of you come here to get rid of some stress and frustrations, or to enjoy some good time. Both of you certainly deserve that. There’s nothing bad in looking for different experiences if it’s not exactly working out with your partner, but you should always let them know about it.” Both of them look slightly away, glancing at each other occasionally. “Now, let’s forget about the past. Everyone makes mistakes. Let’s focus on the present instead. I would be even sadder to lose such interesting customers as you. Your excited and fulfilled expressions after spending time in our establishment always bring a smile to my face.” The woman blushes slightly again while the man tries to force the rising corners of his mouth to stay put. I turn to her. “Rose. Do you really care if your husband spends some intimate time with another girl or are you just angry at him for not telling you the truth, potentially him not mentioning this place to you earlier? You are always enjoying yourself greatly with our equipment, right?” She bits on her lower lip and shakes her head after taking a deep breath. “I guess I don’t.” I move my eyes to the man. “Pablo. Do you really care if she has some fun with a toy or two or are you just trying to argue back because you’ve been caught in an uncomfortable situation? You’ve never left dissatisfied either, right?” He sighs heavily. “I guess I don’t.” “Then, I see no problem here. Both of you would definitely hate to lose the ability to come here, isn’t that right too? Why inconvenience yourselves when you can just continue having a good time, now without any unnecessary sneaking and lying. It will be your little secret. Doesn’t this sound exciting?” They visibly ponder over the idea, going through a few different facial expressions, but, in the end, they give a faint nod together. “But, the others have definitely heard our names…” Rose says in a slightly uncertain tone. I straighten my back and glance around. “Oh my. It seems that we’ve made way too many vouchers for a whole night of fun free of charge. If only there were some people who didn’t notice my blunder during my conversation with two customers to give those away to,” I speak with a voice loud enough to reach all the nearby people. A brief silence follows and… “What conversation? Do you maybe know what the owner is talking about?” “I have no idea. Did something happen tonight?” “I don’t know either. I’ve been too busy admiring that beautiful fox lady over there. I hope I haven’t missed anything important.” “Damn. I should have been listening instead of talking with this cute Catkin maid.” “I know right? I really should stop spacing out while gazing at his handsome face.” A bunch of people quickly catch on and the whole bottom floor begins chatting with each other, asking about the events of the current night that they were so unlucky to have missed. I return my gaze to the married couple in front of me. “And on that note, why don’t you two stay for a moment and relax a little bit, also free of charge, getting rid of all that stress and negative emotions. I will throw in a small bottle of our precious revitalizing drink so that you can enjoy the service to the fullest, Pablo, since you look slightly tired,” I wink at the man and he cocks his head back in understanding. “Well… It would be rude of us to decline such a thoughtful gift, don’t you think, dear?” He glances at the woman. She rolls her eyes. “You just want to screw another girl. But, I can’t disagree with your statement.” “We will gladly take you up on the offer then, sir Carter.” Pablo smiles at me. “I pity whoever you choose. She’ll have to live through the most boring five minutes in her life, barely able to feel anything from your lame moves,” Rose throws a jab at him. “Yeah? Maybe if your vagina wasn’t like a bottomless well that even a Minotaur’s dick can’t handle, you would be able to feel something too,” he quickly counters. “You are asking for it!” “No, you are!” “Erm…” I raise my finger. “One room!” they shout at me together, suddenly turning their faces my way after I attempt to interrupt them, and then go back to their staring contest. “I’ll show you how good I can make a woman feel!” “Too bad I will be too busy moaning to the heavens from something that can actually pleasure me!” Completely ignoring me, the bickering duo departs together towards the reception. I quickly relay to Cornelia what has happened in case she didn’t hear everything. I’m pretty sure they won’t stop arguing the whole way to their assigned room. I just hope things will work out somehow. With the incident resolved, at least for now, I return to the usual. There are still other guests and I need to make a visit to Neira. Only she can save me with some quick design for the impromptu vouchers. Fortunately, she isn’t mad at me for suddenly bringing something like that out of the blue. Quite the opposite, rather. She is thrilled with the task, saying something about the time limit being very helpful at gaining inspiration. For the next twenty minutes, I accompany my very dedicated artist and lend a hand in whatever I can. Neira doesn’t disappoint. What she has created can’t even be called a draft or first iteration. With a few suggestions from me, she ends up producing pieces of paper closely resembling movie tickets from the '90s. Just amazing. I give her a loving kiss and promise to model for any of her ideas when I return from the upcoming expedition. I’ve been of course fulfilling the wishes of my artist wife now and then, but I know she’s been holding back to not look too needy. They are too selfless. The ticket-vouchers quickly gain admiration from the crowd. I don’t think there’s anyone who doesn't like their design. And I can understand that easily. I love them too. Around half an hour later, I’m just standing in the lobby and courteously nodding my head at the passing customers when I spot the bickering duo again. But, this time, it doesn’t look like they are arguing. At least I don’t think walking with entwined arms and smiling at each other can be considered arguing. I don’t know what exactly happened but I’m smart enough not to interrupt the moment and I make sure that they don’t notice me on their way to the exit. Pablo escorts Rose through the whole lobby, supporting her slightly unsteady step. She must have gone quite hard with the toys. Shortly after the married couple disappears, I rush to the reception desk. Cornelia lets me know that she has given them a Pleasure Chamber and Vii accompanied the pair inside. Checking the foxkin’s location, I find the fox lady in my chamber, most likely taking a shower. I let everyone know that they can use my bathroom whenever they need it, especially during working hours if they don’t want to visit the public one. She must have sensed me coming because the door opens shortly after I reach the place. Vii shows up on the other side, only partially covering her nether regions with a towel she’s holding in one hand. I can hear the sound of water coming from the still activated shower in the background. “Would you like a report, Alastair?” she asks with a beautiful smile, not making anything out of the fact that her voluptuous breasts are on full display. I give her alluringly chubby body a glance, taking in the sight of her wet and covered in droplets fur, and shake my head with a wry smile. “It could have waited until you were done.” “I can also give it to you in the meanwhile. Unless you wouldn’t like that?” “If that doesn’t bother you, who am I to decline?” Vii chuckles softly and makes space for me to enter. After closing the door, she starts walking back to the open bathroom, swaying her wide hips and very plump butt as seductively as she can while I follow after her. She throws me a glance over her shoulder with a knowing smirk. After getting inside, she places the towel on the sink and jumps back under the shower, sighing contentedly as hot water washes over her body again. I lean over the wall with crossed arms. She’s clearly giving me a show with how her hands roam over her fur and I might as well fully enjoy it. “I was a little worried at first. I wasn’t sure if I would be able to handle the situation properly without having it escalate into something dangerous. But, fortunately, I didn’t have to do much. It somehow worked out.” I raise a brow at her. “Interesting. Can you tell me what exactly happened?” “But of course.” She nods at me and grabs a bottle with shampoo from the nearby shelf. After a second of her looking at me, I get her intentions and move closer. She pours some of it onto my hands and turns around, letting me apply it on her back. Vii releases a few dreamy sighs as I spread the gel over her fur, taking great care of her adorable tail. “They were still arguing when I brought them to a free Pleasure Chamber. The man came with me to the bed while the woman pulled a rocking chair and a few additional toys of various designs closer to it. They were quick to get into it but thoughtful enough not to rush things, which was certainly surprising. She began pleasuring herself while I was with him.” Done with the back, Vii turns around again, as expected, and gives me a soft smile while waiting. She’s not going to continue until I start doing the front, isn’t she? And just as predicted, Vii resumes speaking the moment I begin applying the slimy shampoo on her impressive breasts. “For the whole time, they were really going at each other with insults and snapbacks. The woman was getting more and more ferocious with the toys, mostly focusing on the model you said was designed to resemble a Dragon’s genitalia, moaning very ostentatiously, while the man kept trying to make me feel better and better. It was… a weird situation to be part of.” “I’m sorry to put you through something like that,” I apologize while taking care of her thighs. “No, it was fine. I didn’t mean that it was bad. Just unusual. And I guess even a bit interesting or intriguing.” She quickly shakes her head, spraying my face with some droplets from her soaked hair. We both chuckle and I wipe them off, standing up as I’ve been hanging in front of a very stimulating sight for quite a few moments now. Vii winks at me and steps under the running water again, rinsing her fur while continuing. “Then, things got even weirder. I thought they would just keep at it until both of them ran out of steam, but I was mistaken. The insults continued until the man told the woman to look how amazing he was doing, making my body shiver from pleasure, and she responded by saying that his tiny prick would never be able to make her orgasm so many times in a row while she was thrusting the stylized toy into her pussy quite fast.” With a very mischievous smile, Vii takes the cordless showerhead, with a few gems embedded into its top, off the holder and steps a bit closer to me. She places one foot on a side shelf at the height of her knee and slightly spreads her legs in front of me, starting to delicately take care of her precious place with her hand and properly aimed streams of water. She’s having way too much fun from this. “Somehow, he took it as a challenge. Leaving my side, he started walking towards her. She stood up and did the same. After meeting in the middle, they exchanged a few more insults and suddenly kissed. Moments later, they were at the bed together, having quite intense sex by my side, completely ignoring my presence. I just watched over them for the remaining time while they shared quite an extraordinary moment, even using a few vibrating toys in their play.” “That’s… unexpected. At least.” Vii chuckles and turns the water off. I pass her one towel while holding another for her hair, earning myself a peck on the cheek. “Afterwards, the atmosphere between them has changed completely. I guess it was the best sex of their life? They forgot about me—it was hilarious watching them dress up while talking like normal people—and left the room. And that’s all.” She finishes the story as I’m helping her dry those long mesmerizing threads on her head. “I’m not really sure what to say to that. Thank you for seeing through it to the end. That sounded like one hell of a ride.” “No worries. It was a fun experience. Something I would have never expected to take part in. And I wouldn’t have gotten that chance if I wasn’t here so thank you for that. And for going with my silly request.” I stop using Livelihood Magic to create hot air that helps dry Vii’s hair and smile at her. “The pleasure is mine. I would never say no to witnessing your beautiful body.” She puts her hands on my head, standing on a slightly raised shower platform, and pulls me into a hug, placing my face right between her soft and mushy breasts. Vii wiggles her chest a bit while chuckling adorably and causing her impressive mountains to jiggle against me. I’m released after a few short moments and manage to glance up while still lightly pressed into her incredible fur, now dry, warm and releasing a pleasant fragrance. “Just so you know, I only shivered because I was a little cold. I don’t think there’s anything that could make my body tremble other than you, Alastair. That night back in the Community was unforgettable.” She winks at me. I pull myself higher and use one hand to caress Vii’s fluffy ear, making her close her eyes while enjoying the pleasant rubs. “Now comes the part where I say that I guess I should take the responsibility for it, right?” She releases a lovely moan, followed by a sigh of pleasure. “That would certainly be wonderful.” “You always know where to find me. Just, let’s not initiate it like Hari did.” “She got what she deserved.” We both laugh. “Don’t worry. Such actions aren’t really my style. I’ll happily approach you through some more normal means.” “Much appreciated.” We share a laugh again and I help Vii dress back up into her uniform. We return to the lobby together and part ways after she notices her furry friends on the side, walking up to them, most likely to share the funny story. It’s certainly something, mending an almost broken relationship with minimal effort. Soon, the hour to close arrives closer and closer. People slowly leave the establishment, with just a few small groups of enthusiasts I have mentioned earlier staying behind until the last moment. It was quite a night. Forgetting about the whole incident with Rose and Pablo, we also had another peculiar visitor. Ross showed up while I was gone to talk with Elise and her friend. Supposedly, he had a great time after choosing Feriha, the half-blood Catkin. Cornelia has told me that he was slightly anxious about going with Hari after reading her bio and I’m not really that surprised. All in all, a great night. We host a quick debriefing as usual and everyone heads back to do their own stuff. Of course, I mention Ria’s employment during it and also bring up tomorrow's departure again. Garrena really wants to take over Teffith’s position for the time we would be gone and I agreed. Not that it was necessary to appoint another bouncer since pretty much anyone could step forward if something was happening, but she looked quite excited about the idea so why not. Any change in their life here is welcome. There’s nothing worse than getting bored of the monotonous routine. So far, no one said anything when I asked, but some of them surely just don’t like to speak up. With everything wrapped up, I head to bed just like everyone else. Safi and Emi are already waiting for me on top of it. Even though they aren’t technically my wives and those were usually part of the rotation, no one had the heart to kick them out of it as they are quite attached to me as their master. And well, they were here first so I guess that should give them at least some privileges. We chat for a short time about various topics, mostly brought up by the cheerful Emi, while I share my mana with them, released through my fingers that stroke their warm cores. It’s been their favourite activity since forever. I think only getting mana through a bit more tiring means is above that, carried by a certain liquid instead of fingers. Closely snuggled together, we drift off. But, it doesn’t seem like I’m going to get much sleep, unfortunately. I constantly wake up from time to time, with the two colourful blobs resting soundly on my sides. After the sixth time, I give up on attempting to catch some more z’s and decide to spend that time doing something useful instead. Well, it can partially serve as a rest since I jump into the few meditation techniques that Ailish has shared with me to train my mind and soul. It feels slightly different today for some reason. I can’t really pinpoint how but there’s no doubt there’s a change. Choosing to look out for any hints, I continue to apply Ailish’s teachings to my exercises. My consciousness flows through my body, my very being, much easier and I have every intention of using this opportunity to the fullest. Suddenly, I hear a feminine gasp coming from not that far ahead. One that I’m quite familiar with. Opening my eyes, I find Ailish’s face right in front of mine. But, with a certain detail that makes me frown in confusion. “Why are you upside down?” “Rather than that, why are you floating in the air in a lotus position while upside down?” Her words make me realize that I’m no longer sitting on my bed and I glance around, spotting a pinkish sky that should be above instead of beneath me. That causes another realization which breaks my concentration and results in my body crashing headfirst down onto the dark rosy grass. Ailish chuckles at my pained groan and shows up above me. “So, you’ve finally made it. That was really fast.” I take her hand and sit up. There’s no doubt that we are inside my Soul Realm. All the shades of the pink present in everything are enough to prove that. And Ailish herself too. “I guess that’s why I was having a hard time going to sleep. Did anything change? I felt like it did.” “You are now in full control of your Soul Realm, which is amazing. It’s not that easy controlling one’s soul. Anyway, you can now do pretty much anything here, like in a dream. You are the god of this small world which will expand as you grow stronger. You should be able to enter and exit this space at will.” I focus my mind once more and notice that it’s definitely much easier to even think about things than when Lumina brought me inside. In a flash, a lump of violet earth rises a bit to our left and shapes itself into a cosy log cabin with a nice veranda. “Neat,” Ailish comments with a smile. “This place could use some upgrades. Permanent ones. All previous changes would disappear after you stopped focusing on them. It should be different now.” “Just let me know if there’s anything you’d like to see and I’ll have it done. This is pretty much your home now, isn’t it?” Ailish bits on her lower lip while giving me a glance over. “There’s certainly something I would like to see but I don’t think it’s part of the environment.” I chuckle and she squeals in surprise when her body suddenly gets pulled towards me through the air, landing on my lap while facing my way. Ailish wraps her arms and legs around me and laughs too. "I've made you wait for quite some time. Would you like me to carry you to our newly built house to receive your reward for helping me figure all of this out?" I ask while brushing my fingers over her long and thin tail, evoking many quiet sighs from my violet-skinned Succubus. "Grass is fine. Just do me. Hurry up!" And she pushes me down with her body, diving for my lips like the lust-filled demon she is.
Chapter 98 – Descent into Lewdness ❤❤ Spoiler: Chapter After pushing me to the ground, Ailish starts brushing her slender fingers all over my chest, shortly reaching my underbelly now and then. She teasingly stops moving down just before she reaches my crotch. Her musical sighs accompany the motions as she plants a myriad of lusty pecks on my neck. I let her play with me like that for a brief moment before grabbing her wrists and rolling us over on the pinkish grass, evoking a giggly squeal from my Arch Succubus. Having her hands pinned to the ground with me on top of her waist, Ailish seductively bites her lower lip, giving me a very enamoured look. “May I know just one thing?” I ask, making her raise a brow at me. “Why is it that it’s only me who shows up here completely naked?” Yeah. It’s pretty much a pattern now. From the very first time I’ve been dragged into this Soul Realm, to the very last time I have spoken with the Goddess, I appeared inside without a single piece of clothing. Including now. My precious jewels are currently resting on Ailish’s slim belly alongside my fully erect member. She does have her demonic apparel on her, covering parts of her skin and her private areas. She giggles after glancing down at my penis, which is pointing straight at her face, and licks her lips. “No idea. But I hope it stays like that forever. There are only so many chances to see your delicious cock in its full glory. I so hope you lose that bet~” I sigh and shake my head. “I shouldn’t be surprised that's on your mind all the time.” “Well then. Why don’t you rip my clothes off just like back then to make us equal?” I can clearly distinguish a glint of expectation and excitement in Ailish’s eyes as she sinks her teeth in her lower lip again. Gods. It looks so damn seductive. Leaning forward close to her face, I arrive by her ear and whisper to it. “Why do I have a feeling that it’s not the only thing from back then that you would love to experience again?” I give her earlobe a long lick and bite its tip a little. Ailish’s body shivers as she moans openly. After raising myself, I meet her eyes again. They burn with so much desire it makes me shudder in turn. If released, pure lust of this intensity could consume anything on its path. “No,” Ailish responds in a tone dripping with yearning. “I want it harder. Much harder. Don’t just break me. Demolish me. Pulverize my pussy. Obliterate my asshole. I beg you. Fuck my soul out of my body.” Another shudder passes through my body. She really must have been holding back during this time I have been training my control over my soul. Or I might have gone a bit overboard back in the cave. I lean myself forward again, this time stopping above Ailish’s lips. She waits patiently, drilling holes in my skull with her intense gaze as we stare each other into the eyes. I can see how much she craves for my mouth to reach hers. Yet, she leaves everything to me. She wants me to do it. She wants me to dominate her. And I will very much oblige. “You look very thirsty,” I say in a sultry tone. She nods. “Almost dehydrated, I would say.” She nods again, even faster. “Good thing I have just the perfect liquid to satiate it.” Her head moves so fast it’s closer to vibrations than insanely quick nodding. “But…” She freezes. A tiny bit of anxiety is visible in her pretty eyes as she awaits the rest of the sentence. “You have to earn it.” I dive in for the kiss while shooting my right hand towards her breast. Our lips connect the moment I rip off the material covering her delicious mountain, jiggling up and down from the sudden motion. Ailish moans into my lips and quickly starts reciprocating the rough kiss. She answers with her tongue to every little movement my own muscle makes, inviting it for a wild dance while completely surrendering the warm insides of her mouth to the invader. I squeeze her marshmallowy hill as we ferociously make out, making sure to give its stiff peak a good rub and pinch now and then. Ailish’s free hand instantly moves to my head and starts brushing through my hair as she pulls herself more into my mouth, yearning for more and more. Since she knows very well what to do, I release her other wrist too and rip off the material covering her left breast. Ailish continues gripping my hair with both hands now as I violently play with her exposed tits. She moans fervently each time I pull her nipples, shivering a little. She loves it so much. After a few moments of such rough caresses, I pull my lips back and sit up. Ailish whimpers, already missing the pleasure that has been spreading through her mouth. But, I have something better for her. Feeling something rubbing over her skin, she glances down and her eyes widen for a brief moment. Ailish licks her lips again while her gaze is locked hard on my dick slowly making its way up over her belly as I move my waist. Before reaching her face as she must have been expecting, I stop between her beautiful and springy breasts. She glances up at me with slight confusion. I grin at her. “You have to earn it.” She immediately understands my intention after I repeat my previous words again. Her hands quickly grab her breasts and she pushes both of them to the middle, embracing my cock that is lying in the heart of the Sacred Valley. Supporting myself on the ground by her violet-skinned sides, I start moving back and forth. It already feels damn amazing as my dick rubs against her squeezed tits, making me sigh contentedly. Ailish even adds to it by trying to press them into my rod with different motions. She is doing her best to make me feel good, not without some quite pleasant sensations on her side, judging by a few quiet moans that escape her lips. But, the sight of the tip of my penis repeatedly popping out from her breasts’ embrace just short of her mouth clearly pains her. She attempts to catch a lick of the appetizing glans as it reaches the furthest point but fails each time, releasing a defeated whimper afterwards. Especially after noticing drops of precum leaking onto her skin. Hearing my chuckle, she glances up at my sighing face. If Succubi can make puppy eyes, then this is it. My heart skips a beat the moment our gazes meet. “Please…” I almost give in but barely manage to hold back. Quickly recollecting myself, I smirk at her. “Not yet. But, I guess we can switch it up a little.” Pulling myself out of the fluffy heaven, I move a bit up and finally reach Ailish’s face, with my legs pressing her arms to the ground, restricting them again. Grabbing my rock-hard cock with one hand, I lower myself bit by bit. Seeing my two hanging orbs descend onto her, Ailish pushes her head forward to meet them with her extended tongue. I halt my movement the moment she can fully wrap it around them, starting to lovingly suck on one of the precious balls. She keeps eye contact with me while working her tongue and lips over my sack as I pump my cock up and down above her face. She does everything to look as alluring and seductive as possible. “Good… That’s a good girl… Hoooooh…” Ailish continues to tickle and suck my balls for around a minute. I can feel her desire growing stronger with each passing second. It’s all fun and games but I don’t want to torture her, and therefore, I finally decide to reward Ailish for acting so obedient. Letting go of my penis, I place both of my hands on her onyx horns growing from the sides of her head. She instantly senses the change and stops extending her face forward to tickle my sack, letting her head fall back onto the pink grass. Her mouth is now wide open, even though it twitches regularly from her trying to fight back the smile that’s trying to creep onto her lips from knowing what comes next. As the time to fulfil Ailish’s wishes comes, I place my tip on her tongue, slowly sliding it just a bit into her mouth. She wraps it around my member and closes her eyes with a blissful expression that overtakes her face after she finally gets to taste my cock. Her tongue swirls all around the glans, lovingly embracing every part of it. I let her enjoy the sweet warm stick for a few moments until Ailish opens her eyes again. Meeting her gaze, I immediately understand that she’s ready for the next step. More than ready. She craves it. Not wanting to disappoint her, I thrust my hips forward while simultaneously pulling on her horns and smack my underbelly against Ailish’s face as my dick rushes deep into her throat. She jerks from the impact and moans into my cock while her eyelashes flutter. Not sensing any discomfort from her, I begin fucking her throat repeatedly. Shortly after I start, Ailish shoots one of her again free hands to her breast and the other to her crotch. What follows is obvious. Her fingers play with the erect nipple and viciously rub her pussy through the remaining material that still covers her slutty slit as I keep pounding her mouth, which is releasing quite erotic noises. “Fuck… It seems like I can’t control it here as well as outside… Guuh… I’m going to burst soon if you keep it so tight…” As a response to my words, Ailish brings me even more pleasure by introducing additional movements and squeezes of her incredible throat. At the same time as she is getting herself off to my violent treatment, she still introduces new tactics to make me blow a load inside her mouth. What a girl. With the unexpected change which quickens the process of my body arriving at its peak, I let go of her horns and place my hands on the ground above Ailish to support myself, starting fuck her throat even stronger while pushing her head into the grass with each slam. She fails to keep her gaze on me as her eyes start partially rolling back from the pleasure she is receiving. Ailish’s back makes an arch while her fingers speed up over her covered pussy. Strong vibrations hit my rushing cock from a muffled moan and her eyelashes flutter alongside the shivering of her whole body. Her own orgasm brings me to a climax too and I make the last shove as deep as I can, finally releasing the torrent of white into her amazing throat with a grunt. We both ride our respective highs until they fade down. I pant slightly with my dick still lodged in Ailish’s throat. Looking down at her face, it doesn’t seem to inconvenience her in any way as she gives me a loving look of a very satisfied Succubus. I slowly pull myself out of her mouth and she carefully licks my shaft all around during the motion, releasing the tip with a loud pop and a soft kiss. She giggles at it towering over her face and plants a peck on my sack too. Stepping off her, I help Ailish up. “You good?” She beams a wide smile at me. “That was fantastic. And as delicious as always. I fucking loved it!” I chuckle after she gives me a light kiss. “Glad to hear that. But, I’m afraid this wasn’t exactly what you asked for, so…” She jumps at me, squeezing her warm breasts into my chest. “Oh fuck yes! If you plow me so fucking good I will fly off!” “That’s actually… not a bad idea.” Ailish draws her face back to set it in front of mine and raises a brow. “What do you—AH! Aaahnnnnnnnnn~!” Our surroundings suddenly change and Ailish gasps in surprise as we appear literally in the middle of the sky, hundreds of meters above the pink-shaded ground, and immediately moans in pleasure as I nail her flooding pussy from behind after ripping off the drenched demonic material, starting to piston through her wet tunnel while holding onto her waist. Her magnificent wings involuntarily spread to the sides. “Ahhn~! Ahhh~! Ahhh~! Waaait~! Ahhhn~! How are we… ahhh… staying still? Ahhnn~!” “You said it yourself. I’m the god here. Would gravity be above god?” She looks at me over her shoulder as I take her doggy style, showering her lusting crevice in violent affection, releasing loud slaps of flesh hitting flesh into the air, surrounding us from all sides now. “What? Would you prefer to have it back?” “AHHHH~!” Ailish lets out another scream of surprise when her body starts getting pulled down by the force of gravity again, being the only one subjected to it. I still remain in the same spot while grabbing her sides and thrusting into her leaking honeypot, dripping with lots of love juices that fall down to the ground, almost like a very scarce rain. “Fuuuuck! Ahhh~! Ahhnn~! This feels so weird! Ahh~! But good! Ahhnn~! Ahhn~! It’s like I’m falling! Mhhhnnn~! But not!” Looks like she is enjoying sex in the sky quite a bit. It certainly feels different. And the sight is breathtaking. I expected this whole place to be something, but it’s only after you see it from high above that you get to understand how beautiful it is with all those landmarks painted with different shades of pink. But, I will have time to marvel over it later. There is a much more important thing to focus on right now. I reach out and grab one of Ailish’s wings, making her body shiver as they are quite sensitive. Especially during sex. I pull her into my embrace from behind with her back pressing into my chest while she still receives affectionate pokes from below. She quickly turns her head towards me and we enter a deep kiss. “Mhhhnnn~! Nnnhhnn~! Mhhhnnn~!” Ailish keeps moaning into my mouth as we pursue each other’s lips. They increase in intensity after I move one of my hands to a little bump placed just above her precious place and give it some rubs. Her body pretty much hangs down limply as she holds onto my arm which is now wrapped around her chest while I assault her pussy with all I have. Releasing her lips, I grin at her. She obviously notices it. “Ahhh~! Ahhh~! What are you—OOOHHHHHHHHH~?!” Without a warning, we begin falling. For real this time. Wind starts whizzing in our ears as we gain speed during our descent. But, even so, the intense lovemaking session doesn’t stop. I nimbly rotate us into something close to a missionary position and grab Ailish’s wrists. With her upside down, turned towards the ground, I keep pulling myself into her pussy from above. “Oooooohhhhhhhhh, fuuuuuuuucckkkkkkkkkk! Ahhhhhhhhhh~! Thiiiiissssss issss toooo gooooooood~!” Ailish’s internal walls give my cock a good squeeze, increasing the pleasure for both of us. The sensation of falling that our bodies are subjected to just adds to the equation, bringing that a step further. She gets so tight I’m starting to have trouble holding back as my tip rubs her sucky insides with each thrust. And the faster we fall, the more Ailish’s incredible pussy narrows on my cock as she stares towards the ground that’s slowly getting bigger and bigger with each passing second. If we don’t do anything in around half a minute, we are going to crash into the pink grass with quite the force. “Ahhh~! Ahhh~! Ahnn~! It’s coming! Ahhh~! Alastair! Ahhhhh~! My wings… ahhh… don’t work!” “I know. I disabled them myself.” She stops looking at the incoming ground and turns her eyes to me, filled with excitement, confusion, lust and a bit of anxiety. But, her lewd nature clearly overpowers whatever shadow of fear has started surfacing in her heart and Ailish relishes in the intense mid-air pleasure. I’m pretty sure death while fucking is the best possible way out for a Succubus. Nevertheless, I’m obviously not having us slam into the ground and turn into a puddle of blood and love juices. Just moments before we hit the surface, I turn us around to place myself below her and stop our descent. Dead in tracks. Ailish’s body retains the whole momentum and my cock impales her pussy as it comes crashing down onto it in a cowgirl position. That mighty pierce reaching her deepest depths brings her from the edge of her climax into a full-blown orgasm. “AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH~!” She screams in delight to the heavens while digging her nails into my chest with her whole body spasming like crazy. I shoot another load of milky delicacy, this time sending it exactly where it belongs, flooding Ailish’s drenched pussy and yearning womb. Wave after wave, it gets filled to the brim with my seed. After around twenty seconds of uncontrollable shivering, she finally falls down onto my chest while wheezing for air. I gently brush over Alish’s back, slowly letting us float back onto the soft grass. She raises herself on her trembling elbows and continuously releases heavy breaths into my face. “Haaaah… Haaaah… You are fucking crazy… Haaaaahhh…” I chuckle at her. “A man has to get creative when asked to pulverize his partner’s pussy.” She giggles back at me after taming her breathing and pecks my lips. “Please, never run out of your creativity. It was awesome. How did I never think of having sex in the air?” I softly rub the dark crimson membranes of her beautiful wings. “Sometimes, we need someone completely outside of the area of our expertise to show us their way of thinking, unobstructed by what we have been taught.” Ailish releases a delighted sigh and snuggles more into me. “So… Are we going to obliterate my asshole too?” “With pleasure.” I give her juicy bottom a hearty slap, making Ailish squeal happily. “Give it to me like you hate me. There’s no need to worry. Nothing bad will happen in here unless you wish for it.” She pulls herself up, making my penis pop out of her ravished hole. A steady stream of white instantly flows out of it. Ailish scoops some of it with her fingers and brings it to her mouth, licking it off with an expression drowned in desire. She then falls onto her back and spreads her buttcheeks to showcase her alluring anus, twitching invitingly. I also raise myself and move above her, joining our lips for a brief kiss. Then, I make a trail of pecks to her perky breasts, stopping at their peaks to play with them with my tongue. In the meanwhile, my fingers travel further south and scoop our mixed juices, bringing them to the unexplored yet today passage. “Mhhhhmmmmm~” Ailish releases a dreamy moan as my digit slides into her anus and starts to wriggle around, spreading the slimy lube over her tight hole. I know that this is my realm and it won’t really hurt unless I allow it, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn't follow the more realistic steps. They still can bring her some pleasure. To save the actual sensation for the proper thing, I limit myself to just one finger exploring Ailish’s narrow ring as I tease her breasts. To not drag it out for too long, I prep her up in just around a minute. She brings her legs to her chest and spreads herself open even more, urging me to finally do the thing. I point my penis at her back entrance and let the glans poke her a few times, making Ailish bite her lip in anticipation. “OOH!” With a light tap, I plunge my glans inside and it’s instantly met with incredibly pleasant pressure from all around. The tight ring squeezes the shaft as if wanting to decapitate my cock. Ailish’s mouth opens in the shape of a circle as the weird sensation assaults her body too. Bit by bit, I stretch her insides with gentle thrusts. She smiles at me alluringly in between the faint moans coming from each push. It takes just a moment for me to finally bottom out and slap her tender bottom with my hips, burying my whole hilt in her ass. Ailish’s body trembles a little from the pleasure as I draw my hips back and I can see her toes curl. She then moans loudly as I shove myself back inside in one go. Hugging her legs to my chest, I start thrusting in a slow rhythm at first, staring Ailish straight into the eyes. Her perfect breasts jiggle with each powerful slam. “Nhhhh~ Mhhhhmmm~ Nhhnnn~ It’s been a while… mmmmhhhhnnn… since I’ve done anal… Mhhhmm~” “I’ll gladly refresh your memory then.” I push her legs to the left, causing Ailish’s whole body to turn onto her side too. Moving my hands to her waist, I switch into a bit higher tempo than before, starting to really plow through her ass after it has loosened just a little. She lets herself be pushed back and forth from my fervent assault, grabbing the pink grass to steady herself just a little. “Ahh~! Ahh~! Ahhh~! Mmmhhhmmm~! Yes! Ahhh~! Drill that ass! Ahhhh~!” For a moment, I do exactly that, enjoying the uneven texture of her tight insides and giving Ailish a good pounding. But, it’s still far from how rough I’ve been in the previous two attempts so I think we should turn it up a notch now that she has gotten used to getting her other love hole explored. Naturally, without spoiling the surprise, I say nothing and at some point sneak my hand closer to her tail. When Ailish notices it, it’s already too late. “OHHHHHHH~?!” I quickly twirl her thin tail around my whole forearm and yank it up and towards myself. Ailish’s ass gets dragged into the air and I start thrusting into her anus while pulling her body into me with the use of the warm black rope ending with a heart-shaped spade. “Ohhh~! Ohhhh~! Ahhhh~! Like that! Ahhhhnnn~! You are making me come with my ass! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh~!” It really seems that she feels it much more in the ass as her flailing legs tremble a little and a bit of love juices squirt out of her pussy as she reaches an orgasm, much quicker than before. Taking the hint, I grab her wing too and continue giving Ailish a good pounding while pulling both on her tail and wing at the same time. Her back ends up arched from the assumed hold, with her chest and face pressed into the ground and her ass hanging up in the air while getting ravaged. I was a little scared at first about hurting her tail with how strongly I yank it back with each thrust, but just as she said, no matter how rough I get with her body, Ailish seems to be taking it more than just fine. I know that part of it comes from her being an Arch Succubs and not just the fact that we are fucking in a space over which I have full control. For the next three orgasms, I continue to violently drill through Ailish’s tight anus, turning less and less resistant to my advances over time. She still enjoys it as much as in the very beginning, or even more when I’m able to speed up a little bit more. Not wanting to overload her systems with pleasure like the last time, I finish in her ass while she starts spasming for the fourth time, screaming in pleasure, effectively flooding her every hole with my cum. I drop onto her back after we both end together and embrace Ailish from behind as we slowly regain strength to do anything else. She hums happily, stroking my arms now wrapped around her belly. “Can’t believe I get a whole day of this for myself…” I chuckle with a wry smile. “I know that’s what I have promised you, but I’m not sure if we have this much time.” She looks back at me with a wide smile. “Don’t you know that time works differently here?” I roll my eyes. “But of course…” And therefore, we get back to our quite violent activities a moment later. ※ ※ ※ I wake up before my slime beauties and catch them still hibernating in their round forms. These are always incredibly cute and fascinating to observe. But, nevertheless, just as Ailish said during our long session—definitely the longest I will ever hold for many days—I don’t feel even a tiny bit exhausted. On the contrary, I feel extremely well-rested. It’s something about the benefits of fully assimilating the Soul Realm for the first time. I already didn’t need a lot of rest due to my race, but it seems that it will now be brought a level higher. Ailish’s soul received quite a lot of energy from all the creampies and she will have to assimilate it properly, spending the next few days inside my Soul Realm while doing exactly that. I wonder how much it will affect her growth. Since we have quite a few things to do before departing today, I give Safi and Emi a few mana-filled slaps on her bouncy membranes and watch them morph back into humanoid shapes. We cuddle together for a few brief moments and dress up to head for breakfast. Our cooking enthusiasts and chefs have already started preparing some very enticing dishes even though we woke up early. Of course, Sirgia is amongst them. I assist my adorable dwarf a little to pamper her a bit and we share a meal together as many other people begin showing up in the dining area. While eating, I check on Shino through our bond and talk to her through Whispers after making sure that she’s not sleeping to not disturb her. She confirms that they are slowly getting ready and will meet up with us by the gate in a few hours. I agree with that but suggest that she pays us a visit with Marcia so that we can get her some supplies as promised. I can feel her grow a little bit flustered but Shino has nothing against it. After breakfast, I exchange a few words with Elise, who seems to have a slight hangover which I get rid of with my Rejuvenate. She thanks me for that while explaining that they celebrated a little yesterday after I left. I don’t blame them. They had a good occasion. Next, I get some simple supplies from our alchemy specialists—Dhosk, Meiya and Neiya. We will have Natalie around, who can use Healing Magic, but since I do have quite a bit of space in my storage rings, it would be stupid not to take some more traditional potions and healing salvos. Or even bandages. With that covered, and after speaking with them some more about the upcoming research and upgrade of our lab, I move to check on Teffith and Ghilerie. Both seem to be the type that gets ready to go in a flash and they have already finished pretty much all of their preparations. Well, nothing surprising here considering their background. Both of them are to some extent born travellers. Teffith is finishing the maintenance on her naginata when I pay her a visit. She has already gotten dressed in light leather armour that doesn’t restrict her movements but still offers decent protection. I can see that it’s been tweaked by Sirgia with just a single glance. Ghilerie is lacking a weapon so we are now heading to my precious dwarf’s domain to see if we can get her something or if we should visit a weapon shop on our way out. She has already received light clothing with a leather breastplate, dressed even lighter than Teffith. She is a bow user so it matches her style, pretty much. On our way down, we talk about my connection with my Partners and Ghilerie actually suggests getting registered as that would allow us to communicate mentally later after she would split from us and stay in her settlement. She would like to remain in touch with us in case she or we would be passing by or something. And well, it will also be helpful on our way there with all that sensing each other stuff. It's not like she has to sleep with me for everything else. We enter the underground forge and find Sirgia already working on something from the very morning. I’m not even trying to monitor her with this anymore. This little workaholic. Guess we will soon have one more in our team. She notices me quickly and jumps off her chair, trotting to us adorably. “I was waiting for you, Master. Do you need anything for your journey?” she asks while looking up. I plop my hand on her hair and ruffle it a bit. “You are spot on. I wanted to ask if we could get a bow for our friend here. Or at least some shortsword I guess.” “Not a problem. We have a few.” She smiles faintly and moves her gaze to Ghilerie. “Short or long?” “Long if possible. But anything is fine. I promise to return it after we reach my settlement.” Sirgia shakes her head. “It’s fine. You can keep it. Is it okay if it’s a little improved or does it have to be a pure one?” Ghilerie furrows her brows a little. “I’m not sure what improved means but I think it will be okay?” My little dwarf nods and runs off to one of the nearby storages. She comes back after a minute, holding a black quiver with a bow and arrows of the same colour sticking out of it. She holds it up for Ghilerie to receive from her. The elf picks it up and examines the quiver. “It doesn’t have any straps?” In the meanwhile, Sirgia jogs around us and I watch as she pats Ghilerie on the back, surprising her a bit. There’s now a small metal rectangle on her clothes, with some runic inscriptions. “Try putting it on your back now,” Sirgia suggests. Albeit a little confused, Ghilerie does as she has been told and the quiver somehow firmly attaches itself to… nothing. I’ve been expecting it to get pulled to the metal patch through some magnetic force or something, but it literally floats in the air a bit over it. When Ghilerie moves around, it follows her perfectly. “I installed a few circuits that always hold the quiver in the perfect spot for the wearer to reach. It will rotate itself while you use the arrows to make it easier to grab them fast. Same with bringing out or putting away the bow.” “That’s quite amazing. If I understand it correctly, I won’t have to search for arrows with my hand and they will always be positioned in a way that I can grab them without any issues?” Sirgia nods. “Yes. But, that’s not all. It will move around your back during movement too. If you try rolling, it will switch more to the side, allowing for a more seamless movement without potentially damaging the bow and arrows. Additionally, after you touch the bottom part and fill it with a bit of mana, the spent arrows that are present in a hundred-meter radius from the quiver will fly back to it. Unless they are lodged in something really hard.” I can see Ghilerie’s eyes widening in shock and I can only smile at the sight. Pretty much anything Sirgia lays her hands on ends up a small treasure. And… “Would you like me to explain the bow too?” “There’s more?” The elf doesn’t even try to hide her surprise. Sirgia brings out the stylish black bow with some very nice angles and hands it to Ghilerie. Even though it’s quite dark, it has a fitting nature design. Ghilerie attempts to draw the bowstring and immediately glances at Sirgia, clearly due to how easy it is. “The bowstring is made out of an elastic metal. There’s a runic plate in the quiver that attracts it, making it very easy to draw if you wear it. If you look back now, the quiver has moved behind your elbow.” She is correct. I was able to watch it travel through the air from the side. Ghilerie notices its position only now, after having it pointed out. She slowly releases the tension in the bowstring and we observe how the quiver moves back to its proper place. “And that’s all for this one. I wanted to add a few offensive functions too but they would interfere with the utility ones due to how many inscriptions are already there. Of course, arrows retain their sharpness much longer than any normal ones.” Ghilerie looks between me and Sirgia in turns. “I… I don’t know what to say… I can’t accept such an incredible gift… I really should hand it back after we reach my village. If I’m not mistaken, you do have someone who uses bows too. Wouldn’t it be useful for her?” “Filue has a better model already. Don’t worry. This was one of the prototypes.” She smiles wryly while glancing at the ridiculous bow in her hands that has been called a prototype. I pat Ghilerie on the shoulder. “You heard the master artificer. Feel free to keep it. I’m sure it will be hard to part with it after you get to use it a little, hahaha.” She puts it back into the floating quiver and bows to us. “Thank you. I will definitely return this favour. On top of the one that I already owe you, Alastair.” I wave my hand at her. “It’s fine. But, I appreciate the thought.” She then walks away to finish whatever preparations she has left and I spend some time with my lovely dwarf wife before I have to leave for another expedition, making sure I shower Sirgia in tons of kisses and pats. Afterwards, I head back up and help the others with a few things while waiting for my duo of ex-students to appear. They show up half an hour later, already dressed in their adventuring outfits. Well, at least in Marcia’s case since Shino wears her white shirt and black skirt pretty much everywhere. The redhead is very eager to finally fill her ring with inappropriate toys so we get to that straight away. I lead them to the storage housing all of our lewd devices and appendages and Marcia practically melts on the very sight while we just glance at each other with Shino with wry smiles. The tanned beauty rummages through whatever she can and points at various things, asking each time if she can have a copy. It takes us around twenty minutes to finish. She amasses quite a collection, I must say. Mostly myriads of dildos of different shapes, but Shino has to throw into her more spacious ring a few bigger things like magical sybians, rocking chairs and such. Including three piston machines. Finished with her shopping trip, Marcia drowns me in friendly hugs for a good few minutes. I accept her gratitude and we move back up to the other duo waiting for our emergence from the mansion’s sex dungeons. With the five of us all ready to go, we exchange goodbyes with everyone and head out to meet up with the others at the northern gate. The King has supposedly prepared the best horses for us and that’s where we will pick them up. It’s time to visit a real elven settlement. I really can’t wait. I hope at least a few of them will let themselves be convinced to come back with us. And that nothing unexpected happens on our way there this time.
Chapter 99 – Proper Hospitality Spoiler: Chapter In the beginning, we just walk in relative silence while heading towards the meeting place. But, it doesn’t stay like that for long. Marcia quite quickly starts pulling everyone into various short conversations, including of course Ghilerie and Teffith. Even though the majority of our current group consists of people who rarely speak, for whatever reasons, be it due to their shy nature or being silent introverts, for example, she never backs down and exchanges a few words with all of us. And no one seems to be especially bothered. She is really talented at being social and it shows clearly. I have no doubts that this quite colourful group was able to somehow become friends with each other thanks to her influence. Many of them are visibly different and it’s honestly a miracle they managed to stay together for so long without any major conflicts in their ranks. It also seems that Marcia was an important factor in Kamil at least trying to look at things differently. I honestly wasn’t sure if he would ever change even slightly ever, or if he wouldn’t at some point dig himself even deeper into that pit of negative emotions. But, fortunately, things are starting to look a little better now thanks to this truly incredible girl. I hope everything will only keep moving forward just like that, without any more misunderstandings and hostility. This journey together is a great opportunity to be the first step on that new path. Well… One thing I’m pretty sure everyone can agree with me is the fact that Marcia is very open with herself. I would say… a little bit too open. Open enough to voice her quite indecent thoughts out in the open, in the middle of a crowded street. Many people turn their heads towards our group when they hear quite vivid descriptions of Marcia’s intimate plans with the toys she has received from me, and not only. Pretty much no topic is able to make her embarrassed or ashamed to any extent. What can’t be said about the four of us accompanying her. Finally, after around fifteen minutes, we reach our destination and notice the rest of the party tending to their chosen horses. I must say, each animal looks strong and majestic like from some tale. Fortunately, the King didn’t throw any flashy caparisons on them, aiming to flaunt our affiliation, and the horses wear only the necessary equipment on their backs, like saddles and bags. Now that Shino has a sizable storage ring, they don’t need as many of them as previously. Paul comes to greet us when we get close enough. “I see that you still like to show up early no matter which world it is, Alastair.” “Old habits die hard. But, I’m not the first one this time. Anyway, you are the leader here, right?” He nods with a wry smile. “Damn, it still feels awkward calling your teacher by name. But yes, I ended up taking that position. Thanks to my Class, I can observe the others from a distance so it was the best choice. You are fine with that, right?” I chuckle. “Trust me, it feels as weird to me as it does to you. And yeah, no issues here. I’ll fill you in on what I can do after we depart so that you can put me wherever you think will work the best. Don’t expect too much from that little show we had a few days ago. There are some limits and restrictions for me to go that far.” “Not to sound rude, but I’ve already considered that with just your Class’s name. Still, that duel was impressive and I’m sure our party will only get stronger and safer with you around.” Marcia leans into me from the side and winks at him. “Our party will certainly get much stronger. Especially the female half.” She chuckles while grazing her hand over my chest. I roll my eyes at that. “I hope you don’t expect me to sleep with everyone every three days, forgetting the fact that only one person here has gotten intimate with me before. Teffith and Ghilerie aren’t like that.” Shino drops her gaze to the ground and blushes a little, knowing well who I'm talking about. Marcia pouts at me, rubbing herself into my side even more. “That’s not fair~ Shino said you agreed to help us grow stronger~ We can’t waste this opportunity after finally reuniting~ Am I not right, Nat?” Natalie turns her head around as she has been caressing her white horse and rolls her eyes at the redhead. “Do whatever you want but don’t casually assume I want to get into Mr Carter's pants as much as you do.” She returns to her previous activity and Marcia leans closer to my ear with a snicker. “Don’t worry, she’s just a bit shy. There’s nothing more fun than some group intimacy within good friends~” I sigh and shake my head. Shino slides her petite hand into mine and I glance at her with a soft smile. She reciprocates it with the same as her cheeks turn a bit rosier. It would be too much for me to expect nothing sexual happening during this trip, wouldn’t it? I bet Shino’s head is already full of countless outdoor plans. In any way, we move past this slightly awkward conversation and get to finishing the preparations. That’s when I notice that something is not right. There are eight of us in total but I can only see seven horses. Just as I turn around to walk up to Paul again to ask about it, I notice Shino standing behind me while cutely digging her foot in the ground and glancing half to the side, with her hands joined behind her back. I put mine on my hips and squint my eyes at the adorable shortie. “This is your doing, isn’t it?” Shino doesn’t say anything but her fleeting gaze as she attempts to look at me is enough of an answer. “Ummm… It looks like the King didn’t have enough horses to spare… So… I think we have to ride together, Sensei…” But of course. And I was wondering why this saddle seemed a bit bigger than the other ones. This little sly devil planned this from the very start. I should have expected something like this. “Seriously… You seem to be perfectly fine with showing our relationship to everyone now. If you have prepared yourself for the consequences of this decision, then I will gladly oblige,” I answer with a mysterious smile. She blushes even harder and nods very faintly, making me chuckle. I brush through her beautiful black hair and we continue tending to our horse together. No one else has any issues during the preparation and we soon bring our valiant steeds out of their temporary shelter, walking with them through the gate. After the guards bid us farewell, I help Shino up and jump behind her with ease. She immediately leans more into me, giving me a shy glance over her shoulder. This damned adorable thing wants my heart to explode. We move out in a previously discussed formation. Kamil and Marcia take the front, Paul, Natalie and Ghilerie ride in the middle, and our teacher-student duo closes the back with Teffith, effectively putting our archers and bard in between all of us. From time to time, when we are riding through big and safe trails, Paul switches with Teffith so that the two of us can talk a bit easier. As promised, I fill him in on my abilities and stats while he shares with me everything useful about all of them and their usual strategies. Naturally, I do mention all of my stuff so the petite girl sitting right in front of me grows very flustered at least a few times, knowing well that Paul’s intelligent enough to connect most if not all of it with what the two of us might have gone through. That’s what you get for trying to act sly. Now suffer in shame and my affectionate hugs. We do have some distance to cover as the supposed location of Ghilerie’s settlement is quite far, near the very border of the Human lands. For the most part, we will be moving through simple and comfortable routes with some smaller towns on the path so there shouldn’t be many dangers awaiting us. That is unless our group of isekai protagonists on an escort quest doesn’t miraculously stumble on a group of completely oblivious bandits or some kind of a Demon Lord taking a stroll through the Human lands while undercover. I’m low-key expecting something to happen even though I would prefer things to stay normal. And the highest chance of anything going off the rails is when we will have to travel through a landmark called the Barren Valley. There’s a short but wide mountain range on our path that separates us from the almost completely devoid of life desert that looks like a dried-up lake all over. We could go around it but that would delay us by at least a week or two depending on the circumstances and isn’t exactly that much safer either. So, considering our decently strong party, we’ll just go straight through. I mean, merchants do that all the time with their escorts so we wouldn’t be able to? Past the Barren Valley, we will be around two-thirds into our journey, arriving semi-close to the border. We’ll have to start looking around more at that point, perhaps trying to gather some information from the locals too. Maybe we will be able to track down the bandits that captured Ghilerie. I’m sure she would appreciate an opportunity for payback. And the less scum in this world the better for all those monstergirls. The first day of our great expedition passes uneventfully. As it starts getting darker, we move off the path and set up a camp for the night. Since we do have quite some cooking equipment and utensils in one of my storage rings, prepared of course by Sirgia, we are able to fix a decent meal instead of relying on travelling supplies. Marcia and Paul take care of the dish and I quickly learn that they are good cooks. The former boasts about her skills the whole time while preparing the food and the latter lets his actions speak louder than words. They cooperate well together so I assume it’s something common. From what I know, Shino isn’t that good at it and I could bet Kamil knows jack shit about cooking. I have no idea about Natalie, but considering how busy her past life should have been, I would assume she didn’t have time to study that too. She already was putting a lot of it into the school subjects. Unless it’s her secret hobby. Who knows. Naturally, both of my other companions can handle it by themselves, having plenty of experience surviving in the wilds and just generally on the go. And Marcia notices that. They agree to take turns in preparing food during our journey so that we can cycle between different cuisines. This should be fun. Today though, we end up with white borscht from the Human duo. Some potatoes, eggs and sausages. A really good one. It tastes like back at home, which is surprising considering that they used ingredients only from this world. They know what they are doing. After the meal, we spend some time over the maps to discuss what paths to take while moving forward and then head out to our respective tents, deciding on the order of night shifts. There’s enough of us to cover them pretty comfortably. I did suggest taking care of that since staying up a single night is not even worth mentioning for me after all the changes and upgrades, but most of them, especially the girls, didn’t want to agree to my offer. Marcia was leading the opposition and I can guess why. That would give her fewer chances to sneak into my tent. Therefore, I end up taking only the first shift and then getting replaced by Shino after my time ends. For a while longer, I chat with my girls back at the mansion as I relax in my tent. Just some random topics and how both sides are doing. We agreed to have such brief meetings to talk before I left. Mostly thanks to me noticing that I got proficient enough with Whispers to join us together in the form of something akin to a conference. A very lewd and sensual-sounding conference, but I digress. It’s fun. At some point, I hear footsteps closing onto my location. I sigh to myself while resting on my back with my hands behind my head, waiting to see who is the one going to show up at the entrance. Or if they will announce themselves. They stop shortly before the front of the material and just wait there for a few moments. I’m not sure if they are hesitating or are trying to figure out if I’m asleep. Well, considering the fact that I haven’t yet turned off the small lantern by my side, I guess it’s the former, but you can never know. I could have dozed off with it still on. Finally, after around three minutes, a hand pierces the slit of the entrance, which is held together by magnetic mana flowing through a set of vertical runes, and a familiar face peeks inside. As expected, it’s Shino. Who else would be this indecisive? She must have finished her shift just recently. Our gazes meet and I raise a brow at her. “What brings you to my humble abode at this late hour?” She smiles shyly, clearly holding back a giggle and blushes a little. I chuckle at her reaction and extend my hand forward, still lying on my back. “Come in. You don’t need an invitation or a specific reason to be here, do you?” Sino nods and walks inside, closing the entrance properly. She then turns around and just stands there slightly embarrassed like the adorable thing she is. “Ummm… Do you mind if… we slept together, Sensei?” I shake my head. “Of course not. I was wondering how long you will last before sneaking into my tent, but I honestly thought it would take a little longer than just a few hours after we departed.” Shino turns a shade redder from my remark. I gesture at her with my still extended hand while smiling warmly. She clutches her shirt for a brief moment and her clothes disappear a few seconds later, leaving her just in underwear. Dark purple this time, huh. It matches her charming eyes perfectly. She slowly walks closer and uses the help of my hand to lie by my side after I make some space on the comfy mattress. I cover us with a thin blanket and turn towards the lovely little lady, meeting her gaze. Shino stares at me for a second and gently pecks my lips before snuggling closer to me. I thought that would be all, but after ten minutes, I realize that her heart has no intentions of slowing down its quite raised tempo. “Say, Sensei…” She finally decides to speak, raising her eyes to meet mine again. “Are you tired?” I chuckle at her. “Me? Tired? You should know me well enough to understand how good my endurance is. I could get up now and spend hours exercising before having to rest." Her cheeks grow even more flushed after she realizes that I’ve seen through her intentions. I move my face a bit closer and we join our lips in a tame kiss. “Then… My instructors always told me… that if I don’t feel spent before going to sleep… I should train more… So…” “That won’t do. You should always listen to the advice of your elders. Should I make sure that you are properly exhausted before we fall asleep then?” I smirk at her and draw the Hall of Serenity sigil between us, letting Shino watch how it comes to life around us. Recognizing the spell after it activates, she gives me a faint nod and I can sense her slender fingers beginning to brush over my chest. My hand ventures over her smooth belly too and arrives at the piece of material down below. As expected, my fingers run over a very damp spot quite quickly. She’s been thinking about it for a while. Just as Shino wishes, we spend two hours making sure that she gets completely exhausted, trying out countless exercises in the form of numerous positions. Unfortunately, or fortunately, thanks to the boost from my stats, Shino doesn’t tire as easily as before, thus such a long practice time. Naturally, as her instructor, it would be a shame if I wouldn’t be able to match her stamina, but there’s nothing to worry about in that aspect. I could train with her for many hours more if the need arises. Although, maybe in a different place. This tent limits our options substantially and we have to be careful not to tear through the material walls by accident. After around seven rounds of intense exercise, Shino finally tires out enough to peacefully doze off in my embrace with a dreamy smile, snuggled to my chest. I deactivate the sound-cancelling barrier and follow after her shortly, placing a kiss on her forehead. In the morning, I wake up to a weird sensation that is already familiar enough for me to instantly recognize what is happening. And, of course, I find Shino under the blanket, bringing me from the dreamland in a quite indecent way. She explains herself by saying that she always wanted to wake me up with a morning blowjob. I wonder what else is on her to-do list. Some tent action can already be crossed out. We fix each other up, exchange a few good morning kisses, and head out, lured by the scent of already prepared breakfast. As we sit together and enjoy our portions, I catch a few people glancing our way, including my travelling companions and the very ostentatiously pouting Marcia. 「Do they know? I’m pretty sure that I’ve laid the silencing array down properly. Kamil doesn’t look any different, focused on his meal, and Paul’s usual, calm nature prevents me from making any accurate guesses.」 Natalie, sitting on my other side, leans closer to me and whispers to my ear. “I would suggest turning the lamp off for the next time.” 「Ah, shit.」 I chuckle inwardly, realizing that we have turned it off after we were done. I can only imagine the shadow theatre that took place last night. Shino shivers a little, managing to hear Natalie’s message, starting to grow redder and redder while dropping her gaze. After breakfast, we continue our ride through the safe trails. A few days pass without much happening. We meet some caravans and other people heading both ways and stop by three small villages. Since we aren’t in an extreme rush, we take our time, letting the horses rest properly. We are making good progress nevertheless. I expected Marcia to try and sneak into my tent next, or at least act a bit more implicative, but she surprisingly doesn't press too much on the case. Maybe it’s because Shino keeps sleeping by my side. Marcia's always been very understanding and considerate of others. That or the girls are scheming something. Because nothing is actually happening on the way to our destination, we don’t yet get a chance to practice our cooperation or properly fight together. Due to that, we all agree to check if the next village or town isn’t in need of some help. I’m still surprised we haven't stumbled on bandits on the first day. Where are all the cliches when you need them? Therefore, three days later, we arrive in the decently-sized village of Novum. It’s closer to a town but the people living there keep calling it a village so why should we argue with them? The good point is, there’s a small Adventurer’s Guild branch here and that means there should be some tasks. We leave our horses at the stables and book a few rooms at the local inn before heading out for some job hunting. Some villagers give our group uncertain looks and I’m pretty sure that’s because of Teffith and Ghilerie. I’m glad there’s no open hostility. As I’ve heard, the further from the big cities and capitals, the less friction between the races. With everything set, we enter the guild’s building. There are more people inside than I thought there would be. But, judging by the quest boards, there’s not that much work to be done, at least for the lower ranks. While passing by, I catch a few pieces of papers with ranks above and including C. Guess this bunch either doesn’t care about those due to the risk or they are just all low ranks. It’s not like this village is specifically on any very crowded travelling routes so the number of higher-ranked adventurers might not be that high. We stop in front of a free receptionist, a mature woman with long copper hair and amber eyes. She smiles while swiping with her gaze over each of us, most likely trying to pinpoint the leader. Her eyes remain on Kamil the longest since he wears the most flashy armour out of all of us, but Paul makes a step forward before she addresses him, capturing the woman’s attention. “Welcome to Novum’s Adventurer’s Guild! Considering that I don’t recognize your faces, I assume that it’s most likely your first time here. How can I help you today?” “Hello. We are just passing by and decided to check if there’s anything we could help with while taking a rest in the village,” Paul replies. “I’m glad to hear that and I hope you will enjoy your time here. As for work, are you all one big party?” she asks, glancing at the non-human members. “You could say that we are two parties temporarily working together,” I answer. “These five are one while I’m with the Dragonewt and Elf ladies. They aren’t adventurers. Is that a problem?” She quickly shakes her head. “No, of course not. I was just curious after seeing the collar.” Right. Teffith chose to wear hers even though I told her that it isn’t really necessary. I remember her usually taking it off while not working in the past, but it seems that she got used to it and started keeping it on most of the time. And well, the fact that it’s a spatial storage might be another reason. “I’m a registered combat slave. This collar was a gift from my master,” Teffith surprisingly joins in, glancing my way. “I see. I honestly think it looks very lovely, like a very well-thought piece of jewellery. But, anyway, there’s no problem as long as at least one person in the group is a registered adventurer. The guild has no issues with them employing more help but they have to remember that the reward will be paid out to the person who registered for the quest and we don’t have any say in what happens after that.” “That doesn’t really concern us since we are all good friends here,” Marcia comments, throwing her arms around Paul’s and Kamil’s necks. “Then, could I ask about your ranks? I will check if we have anything fitting it. But, I can already tell you that most lower-level tasks are gone so quickly people even make queues and reservations for them.” Paul takes over again. “The five of us are B-rank. We are a party from Evaneheim called The Five Chosen.” Interesting name. Looks like Kamil didn’t manage to push through them with something too cringy, which is good. It does hint about them being Heroes but just smartly not enough to be too obvious. I kind of like the sound of it. Wonder who came up with it. The receptionist moves her gaze to me and that’s when I realize that it’s our turn. 「Hmmm… We don’t have a name... Should I come up with one? Considering that we might be a mercenary force in the future, I guess I should... Oh, I know.」 “I’m an E-rank and the leader of Utopia’s First Regiment, Eden Alpha. The Dragonewt lady is my companion and we are escorting this Elf traveller to a certain destination.” Ghilerie nods her head towards the receptionist. “I’m unaffiliated and unregistered.” “And do you plan on taking the quest together? I’m pretty sure we have something for a B-rank if the last subjugation hasn’t been withdrawn since no one was able to pick it up, but I don’t think it’s a good idea to drag an E-rank around, especially with just a single combat slave. I can’t stop your party from taking the quest and then doing it together, but I would strongly advise against bringing any unnecessary dead weight to high-ranked tasks,” the receptionist says to Paul, giving me a slightly unamused look. A snicker reaches our ears somewhere from behind. “Looks like we got another leech here, heh.” 「Oh boy. Are we finally going to get into the Typical Random Guild Encounter Number Twenty-One? Nah, I know better than to respond to some idiots trash-talking behind our backs. Like I care whatever any of you think. We’ll just—」 “Who said that?!” Shino turns around and scans the room with an angry glare. “I dare you to repeat that! Sensei is not a leech! He is stronger than everyone in this hall!” 「Typical Random Guild Encounter Number Twenty-One it is then...」 Some buff, bald dude in leather armour chuckles again. “Yeah? Why is he an E-rank then? Got too stressed during the examination? Or maybe his slave-nanny wasn’t allowed to carry him through it?” A few other people laugh at his words and they certainly don’t make Shino happy. I make a quick prayer in my mind, barely squeezing it in before Shino’s figure disappears in pure-black shadow and plunges itself into the ground. A loud crash follows and the guy flies through the window after Shino shows up right in front of him with an already prepared kick, of course, shattering it into pieces. The guys sitting with him stand up and reach for their weapons. “You bitch—” As I snap my fingers, ominous purple chains shoot up from the floor in a blink and bind the four men, completely restricting their movements. “Sit down if you don’t want to end up torn into shreds,” I say to them after they turn their heads my way, leaking out quite a bit of killing intent, which is just pretty much condensed mana properly aimed at somebody. The whole hall falls silent from the previous murmuring and I don’t see anyone intervening. After squinting my eyes at the four men, they nod nervously and I retract the chains. Surprisingly, they don’t follow the Standard Thug Protocol and sit back down instead of throwing themselves at us while shouting expletives. Shino walks back to us and stops in front of the receptionists. “I demand a reevaluation. I will not let anyone slander Sensei’s name.” Under the intense glare of the girl who has just sent a massive man flying, the receptionist sweats a little. “Uhhh… I’m sorry but our branch is too small to be authorized to hold those… There’s no one with their rank high enough to be an instructor…” “And you still pick on random adventurers of low rank?” Paul sighs while shaking his head. “This shithole sucks. Should we just go to the next one?” Kamil asks. “No need.” I plop my hand on Shino’s hair and ruffle through it. “I don’t care about this stuff. Do you have any jobs for them or not?” I ask the receptionist. “Ah. Yes. Please, give me a moment and I’ll check!” She runs off to the back room and leaves us alone in this silent hall. I glance down at Shino. “There was no need to do that. Just ignore them. But, thank you. I appreciate you standing up for me.” “I’m sorry… I will try…” I chuckle seeing her blush with that lowered gaze. The receptionist soon comes back and hands us a B-ranked quest with a wide smile, acting very polite and cooperative, even to me. The task is to subjugate a big group of Kobolds that has made the nearby cavern system their den and is sometimes harassing the village. From what I know, Kobolds aren’t that hard to handle and they should have been able to deal with them if they grouped up even half of the people currently present in this guild, but maybe the number is really too high for that. The receptionist informs us that the scouts noticed Kobold hunters moving out at five in the evening and strongly suggests striking at that time to assure the highest safety with their forces split. There are still three hours until that time so we accept the task and walk away to wander through the village a bit to discuss our approach with whatever information we have received. This should be a decent opportunity to practice together and showcase our abilities to each other. We move out of the village a bit earlier to arrive at the marked spot before the mentioned time to see the Kobolds leaving with our own eyes. Gotta make sure that the info is accurate or if their habits didn’t change. Half an hour before their supposed departure, we arrive at our destination. The bottom of a rocky cliff indeed enters our sight. But, there’s one small problem. There’s no entrance to any cave anywhere near. I’m sure we are at the right place. It’s impossible to make a mistake with a map and at least three experts at reading it and guiding others through the woods. “Maybe that chick gave us the wrong map because she got a tad nervous?” Marcia suggests. “It even has handwritten notes on how to get here on it so that’s very unlikely,” Paul comments. I walk closer to Teffith, who is kneeling to the ground on the side. “Found any tracks?” “Yes, I did. They even look fresh. But… I don’t think these belong to Kobolds…” “I agree,” Ghilerie joins in and turns around towards the forest. “There are people around us.” “What? Who?” Kamil asks in confusion. “Come out! It’s pointless to keep hiding anymore!” she shouts into the woods. Just when Shino opens her mouth to ask something, people start walking out of the trees. 「Ahhhhhhh, fuck.」 I quickly recognize at least a bunch of faces from the Adventurer’s Guild. Many adventurers make their way closer, all of them dressed in armour and armed, with their weapons already drawn. There’s at least twenty of them, if not more. And the guy with the smashed face is amongst them too, of course. “What is the meaning of this?” Paul asks as all of us reach for our weapons too. Some random dude steps forward. “This? This is just our little village showing you guys proper hospitality. We have failed as hosts previously so it’s only natural to fix that mistake, isn’t it? Hahahaha!” A few other people laugh with him and I sigh while rubbing my temples. “So, there were no Kobolds from the start, weren't there?” “Oh, there were. I can see them very well. They are standing right in front of us, aren’t they?” “For fucks sake…” They laugh again until Kamil interrupts them while pointing his fancy sword at the crowd. “You fuckers! Why would you even do this?!” “It’s simple. Our village is like one big family. And a family takes good care of its members. We don’t take kindly to outsiders who harm our people. Well, we don’t take kindly to outsiders in general since they disrupt our workflow and steal our quests, but that’s another thing.” “That means it’s not just us receiving such hospitality.” I look at them with disdain. “Whoops. We have a perceptive one here. Good thing you guys caused a scene. It made it easier to gather folks for this. They are usually quite lazy.” The men around him laugh. “We can’t risk some smartypants snooping around our village, can we?” “Typical Human scum…” Ghilerie curses by my side. “I can’t even refute that...” I sigh again. “Alright. Enough chit-chatting. Let’s get it done. Millie is already preparing a round of beer for our return.” The adventurers cheer and get ready to charge us. “Are you guys completely retarded?” But, my question stops them in their tracks before they even make a single step. “What did you say?!” the man who got himself beaten by Shino responds. “I asked if you guys are completely retarded. Did I fucking stutter?” I can spot veins bulging out on the bald guy’s head. Some other dudes get a little riled up too. “These guys on my side are all B-ranks and you know it well. You even saw one of them wreck your guy in a flash. Do you really think a band of lowlifes below C-rank stands a chance against them?” “Ha! So what? We outnumber you guys three to one. Do you really think there’s such a big gap between B and D-rank? It’s as close as D is to F-rank. We are all adventurers here. Who do you think your friends that you are using to hide behind their skirts are? Some battlefield heroes?” 「You have no idea...」 “Listen. This is your last chance to reconsider it. You are making a huge mistake.” I make one last attempt. The self-proclaimed leader rubs his chin while tilting his head. “Hmmm… Maybe you are right...” 「There’s no way they will back down with just this, right?」 “You have a quite pretty face. Killing you straight away would be a huge waste. Little Willy has been sulking for like two months already. He could use a new boyfriend after the last one kicked the bucket. I’m tired of taking baths with my ass constantly clenched.” I shiver when a wave of killing intent much stronger than what I have emitted earlier washes over me from behind, crashing into them too. 「Aaaaaaaaaaaand they are dead...」
Chapter 100 – Danse Macabre Spoiler: Chapter I glance back over my shoulder to locate the source of the paralyzing killing intent. As expected, it’s coming straight from Shino. She has her head cast down, effectively hiding her expression behind her black bangs, but the ominous aura seeping out of her body and her hand resting on the hilt of her katana should be enough for anyone to guess what her face looks like at the moment. Even the others seem to be surprised by the clear hostility she is emanating, especially Ghilerie. I get it. You wouldn’t really expect such an adorable girl to assume such a mood, but unfortunately, these idiots made a grave mistake. I turn my eyes to the front and sigh to myself. “Fine. We’ll do it your way. Don’t come crying to me later. I warned you.” Shino walks closer and stops by my side with a serious expression. “I’m going to erase them from existence.” “Want to do it together?” I ask. She glances up at me, relaxing her face a little and showing a faint smile. “I would love to, Sensei!” I smile back and reach out with my hand, placing it on Shino’s cheek. She blushes a bit and rubs it into my palm. We both lean towards each other and share a brief but affectionate kiss. Shino closes her eyes to enjoy the moment before we part ways. “Oi! Did you forget about u—” “Teffith, please make sure none of them gets any ideas about the others. Ghilerie, assist her if you could. You guys, leave this to us.” I give everyone simple instructions and my demi-human companions nod, readying their weapons. Paul’s party looks a tad confused by my sudden declaration but he doesn’t show any signs of objection. We share a quick thought with Shino and I quickly bring up my skills to activate a certain ability. After my mind receives a brief flash of understanding, I nod at her and we both look forward at the perturbed adventurers. They have figured out that something is going to happen and started preparing themselves for battle. The moment I activate Shino’s borrowed skill, my body gets filled with a wave of pleasant energy. My skin starts itching a little and I notice with the corner of my eye how it changes colours from the usual one into a silvery shade. Two slightly painful points surface on my forehead and I can tell without looking that those are definitely Oni-like horns. After all the changes take place, my mana spikes up and creates a small explosion. Exactly at the same time, another one occurs to my right and the two forces clash with each other, causing the nearby grass to shake wildly and our clothes to flutter. Glancing towards it, I meet Shino’s eyes, which are now glowing charmingly and emanating an intimidating aura with their vertical pupils and dark grey sclera. Just like mine, her skin changed too and turned almost pitch black. Onyx horns decorate the sides of her head, rising vertically in a demonic style. Darkness and Light. Yin and Yang. As weird as it sounds, just looking at her makes me feel like we complete each other. Judging by Shino’s gaze and the emotions flowing into me through our bond, I’m sure she feels the same. What an incredible ability her Demonification is. “What the fuck?! Those guys were demons!” someone shouts amongst the adventurers. “Don’t just stand and watch! Kill them!” the leader commands while pointing his longsword at us. We completely ignore the cacophony of shouts and screams as they all start rushing towards our position with their weapons raised and turn towards each other. Without any words, we step closer and enter a hug, staring deep into each other’s eyes as our foreheads rest against each other. I can tell that our friends are beginning to freak out from the enemies charging at us with obvious intentions, but nothing really matters to us right now besides each other. We join our lips together once more, in a much livelier fashion this time, actively pursuing each other’s tongues. The first thug reaches our position and his greataxe soars through the air towards our entwined bodies. I hear a few of my current party members shout at us and my vision plunges into darkness in a split second. After a forceful pull, I lose ground under my feet and quickly create a platform out of mana to serve as a foothold. The light returns a moment later when the darkness recedes and reveals us in the same situation, still going after each other’s lips. But, instead of down on the grass, we are now mid-air, standing on a silvery-white platform resembling a moon a few meters above the crowd that has just noticed our shift in position and raised their gazes up in utter confusion. Especially the man who tried to hack us is completely puzzled, with his axe lodged in the ground. We break the kiss and I smile at Shino. “Care for a dance?” She giggles and pecks my lips. “With pleasure, Sensei.” We lean backwards towards our respective sides and fall off the silvery platform. Shino disappears in a puff of black mist and I turn myself around to face the ground. With a few quick thoughts, I start creating more footholds around me and use them to change the trajectory of my fall, gaining more speed with each push. Bringing my draconic hilt from behind my waist, I shape a magnificent greatsword in no time and fill it with mana just moments before I come crashing down into the crowd of adventurers. My blade splits one of the men in half and causes a powerful tremor when it hits the ground, cracking the earth around me. Shino jumps out of my shadow already in a drawing stance and I watch as she suddenly blurs and disappears. *SHIIIIING* She reappears a few meters forward after a loud metallic noise resonates through the air. A bunch of guys who were on her path end up mutilated, losing their arms, legs, heads, or all at once. Shino sheathes her katana with a distinct clink and elegantly swipes her long hair aside while shaking her head. “Attack them together with your skills, you idiots!” the leader attempts to organize the group. Two spear users follow his orders and their slightly glowing weapons surge at Shino from her side. Before the tips manage to reach her, I’m already there and take them onto my greatsword, blocking their assault completely. “Thank you, Sensei,” Shino whispers to my ear and pecks my cheek, disappearing into the shadows again. “Try to leave some of them alive,” I say to the air, sure that she can hear me. Five guys don’t waste any time and throw themselves at me from all sides, kindly requesting me to die. But, unfortunately, I’m unable to grant their wish. There exist things and people I do have to live for. And they are worth much more than them. Sending a chunk of mana into the crystal at the end of the artifact’s hilt, I invoke one of the first skills I have unlocked with it. After hastily shoving the blade into the ground, tens of gigantic copies surge back out of it in circles all around me. Everyone who has been any close to my position ends up dead on spot. I look around. We took care of ten of them so far and I’m currently standing in the middle of our enemy’s formation. Quite a number of mutilated bodies litter the ground in my close vicinity. “I’m not as graceful and nimble as Shino so keeping the greatsword would be disadvantageous for me.” I guard against an incoming ice lance, accidentally sending it towards some random dude standing slightly behind me. “Whoops. My bad, bro,” I apologize after glancing over my shoulder to check out the pained scream, realizing that its owner is not going to have kids anymore, granted he somehow survives the fight. “Frank! You bastard! I’m going to fuck you up!” the poor man’s friend shouts at me angrily. “Well, you can at least try. Not like your friend over there. I don’t think he can fuck anything anymore.” “Raaaaaaaaaaaaah!” He throws himself at me with a loud shout. The man’s halberd glows crimson and he starts spinning around his own axis, forcing his comrades to duck or jump aside to avoid getting hurt. What an asshole. I reshape my weapon in a flash, having it assume the form of a whip-sword. Honestly, it’s one of my favourite modes. And perfect for situations like these, with a crazy mad opponent hurling themselves at you with a range advantage due to his much longer weapon. Taking a quick glance to the side to check on the woman that launched the ice spell at me earlier, I catch her being skewered from behind by Shino, effectively preventing her from making any follow-ups. With that out of the way, I strongly flick my wrist and the bladed whip wraps itself around the man’s ankles. His spins cause it to tie him up almost to his waist before the elastic rope tenses almost solid and stops him in his tracks. He looks at me in shock, most likely not believing that I was able to stop his momentum with just a single hand without getting pulled towards him. I smirk at him and yank the whip back, throwing him into a reverse spinning motion and lacerating his legs with the little blades. He completely loses his balance midway and lets go of the halberd, which flies into another poor bystander. “Hey. You can’t reproach me for something if you are going to do it next. Look. That dude is literally breathless at your actions.” I point at the man with the halberd in his chest, slowly dying on the side. I hear a snicker in my mind and a gust of wind hits my back. Glancing over my shoulder, I find a decapitated body behind me, with both arms raised above its missing head in an attempt to strike me down with a mace. It drops to the ground a second later. ~Thanks.~ ~You are welcome, Sensei.~ “Catch that fucking bitch, for the love of Goddess!” the leader yells. “We can’t! She is and isn’t there at the same time!” someone answers in a frightened voice. I chuckle to myself. My adorable schrodinger samurai girlfriend is wreaking havoc in their pretty much non-existent backline. And the guys around me aren’t looking too thrilled to face me after quite a few of them went down with no resistance. Honestly, nothing unexpected. Their highest ranks should be around D, with most of them at E or even F. Even if they have developed their Classes to some extent, they are still small fries. And they are Humans too. The advantage of numbers works only if these numbers are ten times greater or of a decent quality. Scummy trash like them who abuse the guild’s system to only complete easy tasks and get rid of any ambitious people that could prove to be dangerous to their plan has no chances against any of us. I crack my whip once and walk towards the man whose legs I have recently ripped into pieces. He is screaming in pain while tears cover his eyes but manages to notice me coming and figures out the reason in a flash. “No… Please… I promise to quit… I’m sorry…” “Don’t be sorry. Be better.” Assuming that I’m going to spare him, he starts hastily nodding his head. “Yes! I will—” My whip coils around his throat with a single flick of my wrist and shreds it instantly with a single pull. “Next life. And you better keep your promise. I’ll ask Lumina to keep an eye on you.” Some people who have been watching from the sides gasp at the scene, finally realizing that there’s truly no mercy. Their existence will get completely erased, just as the short black-haired girl said in the beginning, now annihilating them from the shadows without batting an eye. At that moment, complete chaos descends onto the small battlefield. Pretty much everyone throws away any shred of tactics and strategy and they all surge at me as one mass of bodies, weapons and abilities, not paying attention to any of their comrades. I quickly activate another skill and the little segments along the whip’s core come flying off it, starting to circle my person at high speed. I haven’t used that one in a while. A tornado of extremely sharp blades surrounds me and a few people run into it, unable to stop due to the pushing of others behind them. A very unpleasant sound follows that makes me slightly wince. I guess it wouldn’t be far to compare this to throwing a piece of meat into a quite powerful blender. I can only imagine the bloody rain on the other side. They quickly learn that my cloud of blades is very deadly and the pressure stops when everyone takes a step back. I recall the tiny swords back into the whip and whistle at the bloody carnage around me. These idiots did force at least a few of their men face-first into my defensive blade storm, getting splattered with their blood all over. Shino materializes by my side. “I took care of the mages, Sensei.” I plop my hand on her hair and ruffle through it. We are the only ones moderately clean amongst this crowd. “Good job. Ready for the finale?” She nods with an adorable smile and wraps her free arm around my waist. Noticing a few attacks coming our way from the remaining thugs, I change my weapon into something I haven’t properly used yet outside of practice. A purplish-crimson polearm shapes itself in my hand—a very demonic-looking naginata. With its support, I lean both of us to the back and we avoid a horizontal slash aimed at our necks. Shino kicks the woman’s weapon out of her hands and I straighten us up, bringing us close enough for her to behead the assailant with ease. A vertical slash cuts through the air at us and we throw ourselves to opposite sides, grabbing each other’s hands during the motion. Both of us quickly swing our weapons and cross them under the incoming attack, stopping it with no issue while leaning to the sides, upheld by our hands. We deflect the blow and our blades pierce the man attempting to kill us at the same time. Things quickly grow much more hectic and we enter a much livelier dance. I pull Shino towards myself to help her dodge another swing and she makes a few pirouettes while letting herself be reeled in. Her skirt lifts up a little as she spins while her arm wraps around her own body. She ends up in my embrace, cutting a few people during the motion by sending arcs of sharp darkness into the crowd. We exchange a peck and I shove the bottom end of my polearm into the ground. Turning myself around with a lot of strength, I fling Shino towards the same direction and she makes a few much faster spins as she unravels herself from my embrace. After reaching the furthest point, she makes a powerful dropkick while still holding onto my hand, sending some poor dude flying with the accumulated force. I start running in a circle before she falls to the ground and Shino proceeds to kick all the bastards that have ventured a little bit too close in their ugly mugs while I pull her around the dancing pole in the middle. Finishing a full turn, I throw her towards the sky and we finally let go of each other’s hands. Shino makes a few spins in the air while curled into herself and stops abruptly. Black, ominous, demonic-looking wings sprout from her back and cause an ear-piercing shriek to travel through the air. Being somehow immune to her technique, perhaps thanks to the Demonification, I pull my naginata out of the ground and rush towards the stunned enemies, who are trying to frantically cover their ears. Only seven of them are left, excluding the leader. I jump from one to another while spinning my polearm and killing them off with minimal effort. One, two, three, four and I finish my danse macabre, bringing my naginata horizontally above my head and extending it to the side as I grab it closer to the bottom end. Shino comes down and catches onto it with one hand, using it like a sports bar from all those athletics competitions. Making a few flips, she sends herself forward and plunges her blade into the fifth opponent, crouching on his chest. I quickly follow her and swipe horizontally, cutting him in half. Shino does a back somersault and lands behind me. With the last of the enemies in front of us, already recollected from her previous ability and trying to make an awkward swing, I hit him with the butt of my weapon and lean forward. Shino rolls over my back and slices through him diagonally with no resistance on the path of her pitch-black blade surrounded by dark ominous mist. She sighs softly and so do I. We chuckle together after glancing at each other. A weak thud reaches our ears and we turn towards the source. The leader of the completely annihilated band is down on the ground on his sorry ass. His face is fully drained of any blood and his expression is filled with anything but understanding. A quite sizable wet spot is visible above his crotch, expanding gradually. Shino scrunches her nose. “Ewww. That man was the leader?” I chuckle while plopping a hand on her hair. “Well, at least he is still consci—” The moment I aim the tip of my naginata at his throat, his eyes roll to the back and he drops onto the ground. “Nevermind…” Now that everything is finished, we take a glance around. Blood. Flesh. Corpses. Mutilated body parts. And a few damaged trees in the distance that suffered from our ranged abilities. I'm most sorry for them. They did nothing to deserve that. What about all that carnage around us and tens of fragmented Human bodies? Honestly, not much. I’ve already resolved myself to fight seriously against anyone who would dare to threaten my life or the life of my close ones. The girls helped me with that a lot. And it’s not like this is the first time I have killed someone in this world. Judging by Shino’s neutral gaze that attentively sweeps over the battlefield, it definitely isn’t for her either. Just to be sure, I step closer to her and brush over her cheek with my thumb, wiping away a bit of blood that found its way onto her pretty face. She glances up at me. “You okay?” I ask. “Mhm.” She nods. “You don’t have to worry about me, Sensei. I know what you are thinking. It’s not my first time. Don’t forget that the King helped us a lot to prepare for such situations. And we did encounter bandits twice during our travels. My hands were already stained with blood before today.” I smile at her and lean down to peck her lips. “Then let’s make sure to wash them properly after we are done here. I prefer my food without any exotic spices.” Shino giggles while shaking her head. She kisses me back. “I thought it would be harder for you instead, Sensei. But you seem fine. Not that I would want you to not be okay. I’m glad.” “What can I say? I’ve gone through the same training as you guys and also stumbled on my fair share of scum after we split up. And besides, I’ve never been normal. Something might have broken in there when I was little.” I knock on the side of my head a few times. “That’s not true! Everything is in the right place in your head! I know it!” I chuckle and brush through her hair a little more. “Thanks. Now, let’s wrap up this flirting. Don’t forget that we aren’t exactly alone.” We glance towards the rest of the team standing on the side, near the rocky cliff. All their faces are painted with different expressions but at the same time very similar. It's mostly surprise and shock. They did witness us decimate like thirty people with minimal effort, even if they all were trash level-wise. Especially Ghilerie looks the most amazed and I can’t exactly blame her. She’s the only one who didn’t see any part of my strength or abilities yet. We deactivate the skill with Shino at the same moment and our bodies revert to their original states. “How do you feel?” I ask. “Only a little bit spent, Sensei. Your Class is truly amazing. Previously, I always pretty much collapsed after using this ability for a short time. Now, with your support and stats, it’s so much stronger and much less draining. It’s incredible.” “I’m glad to hear that. The stronger you grow, the less I have to worry about you. Not that you were weak without my bonuses. You are an incredible warrior on your own.” Shino blushes slightly and nods. “Thank you, Sensei. But it’s true that I can go this far only thanks to you. I feel like I can stay demonized for so long.” Her eyes then widen a little and Shino shifts her face a bit to the side, whispering to herself while rubbing her chin. “I wonder if… if it can last long enough… for me and Sensei to have s-sex without it deactivating…” I shake my head and approach her from behind, leaning towards her ear. “We can test that later,” I whisper. She jumps a little, most likely surprised that I heard her. I smile at her and leave a quick peck on her rosy cheek before walking towards the others. “Everyone okay? Did any of those bastards try to run?” I ask while sweeping over them with my gaze. Teffith points to the side with her own naginata and I spot two corpses a bit further. “Right. Fewer than I expected, honestly. Good job. And, thank you, Teffith.” She blinks a few times. “Me? For what?” “For all the training and practice. Almost everything I know about polearms came from you. I truly appreciate it. As you have seen, it proved to be quite useful. I look forward to more of our lessons.” A faint but still discernible blush surfaces on her cheeks, perfectly fitting with the sporadic crimson scales around the edges of her face and Teffith nods. “You are welcome, Master. I’m extremely proud to see you doing well with my guidance. This fight was incredible.” “I had an incredible dance partner.” I glance over my shoulder at Shino and wink at her. “Now then, what do we do with all of this?” Natalie steps closer and raises her hand. A small flame appears above her palm. “I can burn the bodies so that no trace is left and no monsters get lured near the village.” “Thank you, but that’s not what I meant. I’m pretty sure all of you have already caught on.” “What do you mean? Can’t we like grab our horses and get the fuck out of here?” Kamil asks with one brow raised. I sigh and Shino reaches my side. “It definitely won’t be that easy, Kamil-san. When we were going around the village, I felt like the people’s stares weren’t exactly welcoming. I think Sensei means that they are involved in the actions of the guild and the adventurers too. It would be hard to hide something like that from this many people. So, just us showing up back there alive could be an issue.” Paul rubs his chin. “I see. I noticed the not-so-friendly glances too. That would mean the whole village is rotten to the core. Assuming the common people weren’t coerced to comply and keep silent.” I shake my head. “I’m pretty good with people and emotions. And my senses are much sharper now. I’m sure I would have noticed at least one person looking like they were in need of help just from their eyes. Instead, they all had the same scheming gaze.” “Ah, fuck me! Just our fucking luck! Do we have to wipe the whole place clean now?” Kamil groans while flailing his arms around. “Considering that Al and Shino must have taken care of the majority of their forces, it shouldn’t be a problem now, right? Especially if all of us joined,” Marcia comments. “These thugs are fine but would you be okay with raising your weapon against common folks even if they are wicked and corrupt?” I ask the redhead. Marcia scrunches her face a bit in slight indecision. She’s always been a happy and friendly person. Killing thugs armed with swords and axes is completely different from going after peasants armed with pitchforks and hoes even if both are cases of self-defence. I should be fine if they give me just the smallest reason, but I don’t want to force them to do the same. Especially Marcia and Natalie. The latter meets my gaze and I swear there was the faintest smile on her lips for a fraction of a second but her expression is back to neutral when I try to catch it with my eyes. “You want the two of you to go back alone. Or with your companions. Right?” she asks. “I thought about suggesting something like that. You guys are accompanying me on this journey and it’s naturally my responsibility to make sure you all are fine. But, anyway, I have something else in mind first.” “Which is?” “I can get in touch with Cornelia and she can let the King know about our unusual encounter. I’m pretty sure he would like to get to the bottom of this. Who knows how deep this disease runs. Wiping out the village could alert others. There’s only so many of us and we can’t be sure that someone won’t escape our attention.” Paul ponders visibly. “Hmmm… If we chose to wait for the King’s men to arrive here, that would delay us quite a bit. Is that fine with you and your companions?” “I don’t mind. I’ve been away from my home for months. A few more days or weeks can’t hurt,” Ghilerie answers before me. “Besides, even if they are Humans, I can’t just walk away without doing anything after learning about this. They were committing atrocities towards their own kind. It’s horrible.” “Same here,” Teffith agrees with her. “I appreciate that, girls, but staying here and waiting for them to arrive wasn’t part of my plan. The other people will realize something went wrong after their comrades don't return anytime soon.” “What are we supposed to do then, Sensei?” Shino asks. “In my opinion, two things. First, interrogate that guy over there to learn as much as we can about the village’s situation. Second, make them aware that we have barely survived their ambush, grab our horses and run away. If they are at least somewhat smart, people at the guild should brand us as criminals in the interguild system to keep their cover safe.” Natalie nods. “I see. And the King should be able to clear our name pretty quickly so our journey shouldn’t be hindered by it. And just to stay safe, we could always avoid towns and villages until then. Out of all the choices we have, from just running away, through wiping out the village, to faking our escape, the last one seems to have the highest chance of going according to the plan.” “I agree. And it would be a waste to abandon the horses. I vote for the last option,” Paul joins in. His opinion starts a round of voting and everyone unanimously supports my initial plan. “Alright. We need to get some info from that guy and clean up the bodies first,” I say after we wrap the voting up. Ghilerie and Teffith exchange glances, nod at each other and step forward. “We will take care of the interrogation if you allow it,” the former suggests. “It should be easier for us considering that you are all Humans. Torturing your own people might be too tough for your friends.” I look at the others but no one has any objections. I help the girls drag that fucker out of the sight and place Hall of Serenity at the interrogation spot to make it a bit easier for them. They thank me and I return to the rest of the team. We check the pockets of all dead adventurers, which proves to be a little bit difficult with the level of fragmentation of most of the bodies. Those pockets aren’t exactly near their owners anymore in some cases. Shino’s initial lunge was quite devastating. We finish after around half an hour and then pile the bodies in one spot to get rid of them. Natalie uses her Fire Magic to completely incinerate the mass of flesh and bones, turning it into dust. We show proper respect to the deceased with a moment of silence and a nod. There is nothing of importance in their possession. Medium-quality weapons that survived the onslaught, some trinkets, jewellery and a bit of money. We don't bother taking off their armour with how bad its state was and it ends up burnt to ashes too. A few more minutes later, the interrogation squad returns and the girls share with us what they have managed to squeeze out of the leader before he went out. As we have suspected, the whole village seems to be in this scummy operation, including the higher-ups like the chief. All the guild’s staff is filled with corrupt members too. They have effectively chased out any new delegations to keep their ranks clear from outsiders. I quickly contact Cornelia through Whispers and explain the situation to her, passing onto her all the details we have gathered. She agrees that our current plan seems the best and rushes to speak with Ross about the situation, assuring us that we can move on to the next step without worry. She will make sure Ross takes appropriate action immediately. So, we do exactly that. To make this situation as believable as possible, only Paul and his party will return to the village. They are the B-ranks. They have the highest chances to survive a mob of thugs. Our party will be counted as casualties. Poor E-ranks that died in the brawl. Before they leave though, we apply proper stylization. Some cuts in the clothes, some holes in the weaker parts of armour, some blood all over their bodies and the damaged parts of equipment—courtesy of our last remaining blood bag—and some dirt and dust to imitate bruises. Just the perfect image of a heavily wounded party after a fight for their lives. We briefly discuss the plan and split up. They will run into the village, head straight towards the stables and attempt to get our horses, showing off their state to whoever will be around. Possibly, acting quite angry and aggressive. I’m sure Kamil will have that part covered with no sweat. Then, with some struggle, they will ride the horses out of the village while Nat sets a few buildings on fire to give them something to do instead of trying to chase after them and we will meet some distance from the settlement to regroup and fuck off towards the setting sun. My party reaches the meeting point without any issues. Then we wait. I’m really curious and eager to watch the whole play unfold but that would be very irresponsible. We need to be ready to run away exactly as planned. A little bit later than we have initially assumed but the Five Chosen show up with all our horses in tow and big smiles on their faces. They let us know that there should be no pursuers since Kamil went out of his way to topple two of their wheat silos and completely littered the roads leading to the gate they used. He looks so damn proud of himself. I’m sure he would love to cause more chaos if he was given the chance. We take a small detour to a nearby river to wash up, led by Ghilerie, and continue with our journey. The further from this cursed village the better. Who knows if they will act according to our expectations. Cornelia later informs me that Ross was furious and went straight to the highest guild officials to confront them, mobilizing a small army at the same time. They will reach the village in a few days since it’s some kind of magic-boosted cavalry unit with super horses. Two days later, we reach the vicinity of another town and choose to gain some intel on our current situation. I go alone to minimize the risk. My kit should allow me for an easy escape and, according to our fake story, I was already dead so there should be no reason for them to even think about me. And I’m proven right after spending a few moments in the local Adventurer’s Guild. I ask about some quests and bounties in the region and learn that a group of cold-blooded murderers, arsonists and anarchists is on the run after slaughtering the good-natured people of Novum, ruining their storages and setting countless homes on fire. They even have their own mugs shown on posters like in those old-school wild west movies. Neat. We have convinced Cornelia and Ross to leave that as is since it could alert those bastards if the guild had suddenly taken their bounty down moments after it had been submitted and approved. Not gonna lie, this whole on the run theme is making it at least a bit exciting. Chatting about how far we have fallen, from heroes to criminals, we continue further for a few days while not dropping our guards, of course. I keep checking the villages and towns as we pass them until I learn that the bounty has been revoked. A short conversation with Cornelia lets us know that the village has been taken care of. Most people have been captured, some judged and executed on the spot, but Ross wanted as many of them alive to investigate it thoroughly. They have quickly learned about any relationships with other people like this from other places and the cavalry battalion swooped over the whole region while clearing out the criminal organization to the roots. Good stuff. Ross lets us know to visit a guild when we will be near a bigger city to receive our rewards for the valuable help in cracking down that criminal circle of extreme xenophobes. Supposedly, our ranks might jump up a little from that. I’ll gladly welcome that. First tale-worthy deed on the account of Utopia’s mercenary forces. Unfortunately, according to the map, the closest big settlement is on the other side of the Barren Valley. We reach its vicinity a few days after our last talk with Cornelia and the King. Before we dive into the dangerous lands, we all agree to take a good rest in favourable conditions and set up a camp. As I’m lying on my back in my tent and chatting with my girls about their progress on the cure through the Whispers, I notice a shadow closing onto my tent, cast by the fire in the middle of our campground. After reaching the entrance, a hand slightly covered in crimson scales on its back splits the material and Teffith peeks inside. “Hello there. Please, come in. Can I help you with anything?” I ask the slightly hesitant dragonewt. She nods and enters my tent as I lift myself up to a sitting position. “I made up my mind,” she says. “Oh?” “After seeing how you and that short girl handled the adventurers with ease, I was, simply speaking, captivated. Especially the part where you used a naginata to control the battlefield and act as a support for your partner. I have to admit that with my current strength, I would have a hard time against so many opponents.” I nod. “And that’s natural. Don’t forget that I’m slightly broken and Shino is a Hero too. I might be powerful but I certainly lack a lot of skill when compared to you.” “Of course, what you are saying is true, but skill that is not supported by adequate power can’t show its full potential. That’s why, if your offer is still available, I would like to become one of your intimate partners, Alastair. As I have mentioned before, this promise of strength and growth is very enticing and still my main reason for it. I apologize for that. But, that’s not the only thing I feel towards you and I wanted to let you know about it again. I will be happy to become your mate.” I smile at her. “I’ve already told you that it’s fine for your main reason to be the pursuit of strength. Relationships can be built on countless different things, not just pure romantic love. And yes, my offer still stands. I would be as happy as you to become closer with you.” She then reciprocates the smile and nods softly, stepping aside a bit. I curiously raise a brow at her and a moment later notice that there’s another shadow silhouette in front of the tent. I must have missed their arrival while focusing all of my attention on Teffith. Another hand slides into the gap and parts the cloth entrance. Ghilerie steps inside this time, with a visible blush and a slightly embarrassed expression. I glance at Teffith, expecting her to explain the arrival of another guest, but the elf speaks by herself before that happens. “Ummm… I spoke with Teffith about this… and after we talked a little bit… she kind of convinced me that I should ask too… We are soon going to enter a very dangerous place and I feel like I would be dragging you guys down after what you have shown earlier… Back then, you said that you can make your partners stronger, so… If you would be okay with it… I would like to join too… I know that we are going to part ways at the end of this, but I can promise you that I will always come to hel—” “It’s alright. I’m not necessarily forcing anyone to stay around so you don’t have to feel bad about it, or like you are receiving something from me and then running away. Are you sure though? I know that Dark Elves are quite openly intimate, but aren't Wood Elves and High Elves a bit more dedicated to their partners?” “Yes, but that doesn’t mean that we don't split up and then find new ones during our lifetime. A lot of pairs do remain together, especially amongst High Elves, but there’s nothing in our cultures against switching partners. Anyway, that doesn’t really matter. If you would like, I can make a vow to remain yours.” “That’s not necessary, although I appreciate your words. If you are okay with a Human like me, then I have nothing against it. And just as I said to Teffith, it’s nothing bad to want to get stronger. I can tell that both of you consider how I feel about this and it already shows that neither of you is doing this purely out of greed or malicious intentions.” She glances at Teffith and then back at me. “Thank you… I will be in your hands then…” I nod. “So, any more visitors?” I joke and chuckle to myself. “Actually…” Teffith captures my attention. “That girl, Marcia, was going to come with us, but after we talked for a bit, she said she doesn’t want to intrude on our first times and that she will sneak into your tent another day.” “That’s just so like her…” I shake my head. “Anyway, don’t just stand there awkwardly. Come, sit down with me.” They nod and sit on their knees in front of me. Oh, boy. This is going to be something.
Chapter 101 – An Elf and a Dragonewt Walk Into a Tent ❤❤❤ Spoiler: Chapter After the girls sit down, a brief silence falls onto the tent. Only a tad awkward, I would say. Teffith seems pretty calm and composed as usual and smiles softly when our gazes meet. Meanwhile, Ghilerie is often shooting short glances at the dragonewt while trying to avoid my gaze. A noticeable blush covers her light skin. She didn’t strike me as someone that shy when we spoke about my Class and other stuff back at Selina’s place, but talking about it and actually going to do it is different, for sure. Or, there’s another reason for that. I move my gaze onto the elf and reach out to place my hand on hers as she is sitting on her knees and resting her palms on her thighs. Ghilerie’s eyes snap to me and she smiles a little shyly. “If you feel uncomfortable with other people around, there’s no need to force yourself to stay here with us. I can always properly give you all my attention alone a bit later,” I say. Ghilerie’s eyes widen slightly for a brief moment, which confirms my suspicions, and she gently shakes her head. “No, it’s fine. Sorry for getting a little embarrassed. And thank you for your consideration. I’ll be fine after a moment, I’m not that shy. I’m just still a bit surprised that I’m actually going to do it.” Teffith chuckles. “I’m sorry for dragging you into it, Ghilerie.” “Please, don’t be, Teffith. To be honest, Alastair’s story from back then made me a little curious. You didn’t pressure me into anything and I actually appreciate you reaching out to me. I guess it feels a little different since I’m an outsider and to some extent intruding on your time.” “You shouldn’t look at it like that. I’m sure you’ve already realized that Alastair is a very kind and open person just from our recent exchange. He has that weird fetish of trying to understand everyone as best as he can and then help them however he can, especially with being comfortable. Of course, that applies only to those without any malicious thoughts, but I’m fairly sure you don’t hold any.” I smile wryly at her remark, partially unable to refute these claims. Certainly, I do like to help when I can, but I wouldn’t go as far as calling it a fetish. And hey, I started thinking more about myself recently. To some extent. I guess. “And on that note,” Teffith turns her gaze to me, “I think we should proceed with what we both have come here for instead of boring Alastair with all that unnecessary talk.” “I’m pretty sure talking about your thoughts on this can’t be called unnecessary if it lets you be even a bit more comfortable. I’m in no rush anywhere, you know?” I comment. She glances back at Ghilerie. “See?” They both chuckle together and I roll my eyes. “I guess you are now comfortable enough.” Teffith scoots closer to my side, still facing me, and pulls my hand into hers. She leads it to her face and softly brushes my palm over the mesmerizing scales covering the external areas of her neck, chin and partially cheeks. “And? Does the sensation meet your expectations?” She asks with a smile. “You’ve always wanted to touch them, haven't you?” I move my fingers over the crimson plates, taking in the bizarre feeling from grazing them. Teffith’s scales are smooth and delicate yet at the same time, I can tell that they are quite sturdy. They are slightly colder than her skin, but not by much. Truly, an amazing experience. “They are as incredible as I thought,” I answer, bringing a bigger smile onto her lips. “There are other places covered with them that you were curious about, aren't there?” She guides my palm down, onto her shoulder, over her arm, then onto her side while brushing it by her breast, and towards her waist, where she moves it to her thigh and then stops at her underbelly. It’s been a journey over the clothes, but I could still feel the faint difference in texture at the areas that she led me through. She knew exactly what she was doing with that sensual trip. “You are just something else,” I say to Teffith with a smile and move my other hand to her face to brush her cheek with my thumb. She answers with a smile too as we look each other in the eyes. Feeling brave, I start leaning forward while judging her reactions. Teffith doesn’t run away and closes her eyes as our lips meet after I cross the whole distance separating us. She lets me pepper her mouth with tame kisses as I ruffle through her hair. I withdraw my hand a little after bumping into something hard and realizing that it has to be her horns. Teffith chuckles into my lips, interrupting our sweet exchange. She moves back and gazes into my eyes with a soft smile still present on her now slightly flushed face. “You can touch those too if you want.” I raise my brow at her. “You sure? Weren’t they reserved only for mates?” “Am I not going to become your mate in a moment?” I chuckle this time. “Fair enough.” Teffith closes the distance herself this time and joins our lips again while tilting her head enough for her horns to land in my palm. I delicately wrap my fingers around those twin vertical spikes and curiously examine them. As my fingers move up and down the warm crystal-like structure, she releases a few tender sighs into my lips. No wonder they are a no-go territory for strangers, those beautiful horns of hers are definitely a strong erogenous zone if she’s almost moaning just from having them touched. I catch a glimpse of Ghilerie with my right eye as we continue to make out with Teffith and she notices it. But, even if her face is slightly brighter with a shade of crimson, she doesn’t stop looking my way while biting on her slender finger. The tips of her long ears are so damn red they look like they are glowing. And I’m pretty sure she didn’t clasp her thighs together for no reason. Teffith obviously notes my brief switch in attention and pulls back after one more strong peck. She turns towards our elf friend and extends her hand to Ghilerie with a warm smile. “Come. Don’t just sit there like that’s all you are allowed to do. Join us.” She turns a notch redder but follows Teffith’s offer and hops closer to me from the other side. I move my hand which is still on the bold dragonewt’s underbelly to Ghilerie’s thigh and rub it reassuringly. “Let me know if I’m going to do something improper. Most of the things I know about your people come from books. And a slightly unusual fiction.” Ghilerie nods and I raise my hand to her cheek, aiming to present her with an equal opportunity to what Teffith has received. She quickly catches on and brushes it against my palm while staring at me. I play a bit with her long blond hair and rosy cheek before bringing the golden strands over her ear, uncovering more of her beautiful light skin. She nods again, figuring out my intentions. I approach her blushing face at the same time as my fingers reach for her long and soft ear. Our lips connect and Ghilerie closes her eyes to enjoy the kiss. She shivers faintly when I brush over the entire length of her ear, from the base to the tip. “Hnn~” A muffled moan escapes her mouth after I gently twirl the tip. As expected, it wasn’t so red for no reason. The tips of Elf ears must have so many nerve connections bundled up there, paired with countless thin blood vessels. I knew it would feel good for her after seeing it just once. Our lips part with a faint string of saliva and Ghilerie glances at me with crimson cheeks. Surprisingly, she doesn’t look as embarrassed and shy as before. I’m fairly sure this rosiness is more about her getting turned on and hotter. She does exude some more confidence now. A quiet rustling captures our attention and we both turn our gazes towards the source, catching Teffith in the middle of getting rid of her top. I watch as her supple breasts jiggle in front of my eyes seductively. She notices my stare and smiles, placing her clothes on the side. “What? You’ve already seen me naked plenty of times,” she says with a faint smirk. “That doesn’t mean your body is any less magnificent.” I catch a barely noticeable blush on her cheeks. “I guess we should turn off the lantern before we dive further.” Teffith grazes over her skin with her fingers, stopping at the red surface covering the areas under her breasts, cupping them up. “But, I’m afraid you won’t be able to properly admire those mesmerizing scales as you have called them if we do that.” She winks at me. “Are you embarrassed about the others?” I make a thinking expression for a second and place my hand on her side, brushing over the crimson plates gently. “You are right. It would be a real shame to not have them shine so beautifully. Although, I’m sure they look equally breathtaking as they shimmer in the darkness.” Teffith leans in and leaves a peck on my cheek. “Smooth talker. And you are still wondering why almost every girl you speak with falls for you.” I chuckle. “Isn’t that because of my Class?” “Hardly.” She chuckles too. Another rustling noise reaches my ears and we find Ghilerie half-naked too after turning towards it. I immediately notice that her breasts are around a size bigger than Teffith’s, even though I quickly admonish myself in my mind for making such comparisons. Both girls are immensely alluring and dazzling. “Damn. I’m so slow. They say women hate men who are slow.” They both chuckle and I quickly proceed to take off my vest and shirt too so that I’m not the only one with their chest covered. Teffith moves closer the moment I finish getting rid of them and presses her body into mine, blessing my skin with the heavenly sensation of her soft breasts smushing my front. She strategically leaves enough space for the other person to join in and Ghilerie soon cashes in on that, hugging me from the other side. The girls glance at each other and giggle together. I wrap my arms around them and rub their backs. “I can’t believe I’m holding not one but two so gorgeous beauties in my arms.” Teffith brushes over my chest with her hand. “And that’s only the beginning.” Her fingers slide down my stomach and reach my underbelly, where another hand joins her. I glance at Ghileire and she keeps looking into my eyes as they both arrive at the slightly strained material of my pants and start rubbing the tent down there. She breaks eye contact to exchange glances with Teffith and they nod at each other. In the next moment, they are raining kisses on my chest while fiddling with my belt. It’s obvious what they are after and I don’t interrupt the duo, deciding to enjoy their kind offer while leaning a little bit to the back and supporting myself with my hands. In the meanwhile, I lay down Hall of Serenity around us. They get rid of the annoying obstruction in a flash and bring my fully erect penis into the open. Teffith is the first one to wrap her slender fingers around my shaft and caress it delicately. Ghilerie keeps brushing my underbelly while occasionally moving a bit lower to tickle my orbs. I catch her gaze and she accepts my invitation, pulling herself up to join our lips together. As we start exchanging sensual kisses, Teffith leans down and brings out her tongue out to lick my member from the bottom to the top. I relish in the pleasurable feeling of her muscle teasing my cock while trying my best to respond to Ghilerie’s kisses properly. My lovely dragonewt takes my tip into her mouth a moment later and focuses her careful attention on my glans, applying weak suction onto it along with the brushes of her hot tongue. I sigh in contentment, breaking my long kissing session with the elf beauty. To compensate her for that blunder, I leave a trail of pecks over her cheek towards the side of her face. She leans herself closer onto me, pressing her soft chest more into mine and trembles again when my lips close over the edge of her long ear. “Ahhnnn~ It’s so tingly~” I chuckle to myself, sending some faint vibrations into her tender flesh and continue nibbling on the lengthy earlobe of this pretty elf. Ghilerie attempts to give back with kisses on my neck but quickly learns that my advances render her attempts fruitless as she is reduced to an irregularly trembling mess, sighing and moaning openly from my caresses. Doing my best to please Ghilerie, I glance down at Teffith and our eyes meet. She keeps staring into mine while lovingly working over my cock, doing her best too. I move one of my hands to her head and brush through her crimson hair with affection. Teffith increases her own efforts with the clear intention of making me cum. But, to my surprise, Ghilerie escapes the clutches of my teases and pulls herself back. She pecks my lips with a smile and moves down to join the hardworking dragonewt. Teffith releases my penis from her mouth and the two begin to lick it together, with Ghilerie focusing on the tip now. I take my hand to support myself again and lean my head back while enjoying the coordinated actions of these incredible girls. Teffith caresses my length and jewels while leaving the tip to Ghilerie, clearly allowing her to catch up on the sucking she missed while being under my care. “Haaaah… I’m going to burst at any moment… You girls are great…” Hearing my words, they double or even triple their efforts. Ghilerie pulls back a bit and Teffith shows up by her side, with their faces literally touching. They approach my glans together and start swirling their tongues around it while one pumps my shaft and the other gently kneads my orbs. I groan a little as they bring me to climax and launch a full load at their entwined tongues. The girls cover my tip completely and move it around just so slightly for each of them to receive a few serpents of my creamy seed as they suck on it in tandem, draining the whole supply to the very last drop. They back away while scooping some of the milk that got onto the edges of their mouths and lick their lips. Ghilerie glances at Teffith with a surprised glint in her eyes. “It really tastes so sweet… That’s so mysterious…” The dragonewt chuckles softly. “I told you. All the girls can’t get enough of it. And it’s supposedly extremely nutritious.” “Really? How much? Could you survive in the wilds with only this? That would be amazing. You wouldn’t have to worry about food if you could get a meal’s worth with just a single blowjob.” “I have no idea. I heard about that from our Slime friends. The others did say that it was energizing, though. Well, we can always test it, can’t we?” Ghilerie turns her eyes to me, brimming with curiosity, and I smile at her wryly. Why do I have a feeling that I'm going to get sucked three times a day from now on? I chuckle at them while shaking my head. “If you are really that curious, I guess I could oblige.” “See? Even though it’s clearly weird for him, he still agreed because of us,” Teffith comments, smiling at the elf. Ghilerie moves her gaze to me. “I don’t want to force you into something uncomfortable just because I found it curious. It does sound weird now that I thought about it.” I laugh a little and rub her thigh. “It’s fine. I like how you immediately thought about how to utilize my cum in your usual environment.” She blushes heavily. “We did some tests back in the day, but a lot of things have changed since then so I can’t say I’m not curious to see what it’s like right now. And don’t worry about my prowess. I could go at it for days with my peculiar skill set.” “Should we turn it into a group experiment then?” Teffith asks with a slight smirk. “I’m sure Shino would love to join.” “Okay, slow down a little. Let’s not turn this into nine or twelve blowjobs a day, alright?” They both chuckle and I laugh with them. After the short intermission, I lean forward to exchange a few deep kisses with Teffith and then Ghilerie, gently grazing my fingers over their exquisite skin. The latter guides my hand to her soft mountains and lets me squeeze them a bit as we make out. The girls then nod at each other again and step back, standing up in front of me. They slowly unfasten their belts and sensually slide down their pants, revealing their underwear to me. From a single glance, I can tell how drenched it is, and surprisingly, Ghilerie's fabric is almost leaking, so much wetter than Teffith’s. Next, they wedge their fingers under the straps of their panties and pull them down too, completely in sync. Their magnificent slits appear before my eyes after they straighten up. Teffith moves her hands behind her back to show her everything to me while Ghilerie hides her nether regions with some uncertainty. I immediately pick up on why. “There’s no need to cover it like that. You are a fine mature lady, Ghilerie.” “But… I’ve been in captivity for so long… There’s so much… It’s shameful for an Elf to be so hairy down there…” Teffith steps closer to her and slowly takes Ghilerie’s hands away, smiling at her, and reveals the patch of golden hair above the latter’s pussy that she has been hiding bashfully. It’s not even close to as bad as she is making it sound and looks extremely arousing like their bodies were designed to grow hair in the most alluring way. A decoration more than something extra and unnecessary. “See? It’s so sexy and beautiful.” A faint trickle of love nectar escapes her lower lips and trails down Ghilerie’s skin for a brief moment before she clasps her thighs tightly together, making her even sexier in that pose. Man, she really is so damn wet, isn’t she? I stand up, shoving my pants into my ring, and move closer to them, staring at Ghilerie’s face. “And besides, it’s not like you are the only one. Even Teffith wears her own tempting crimson patch with pride.” Reaching them, I move my hands to their bellies and sensually slide my fingers down, stopping slightly above their slits to brush over the soft threads down there. Both girls lean their bodies onto me and enjoy the tender caresses. I don’t torture them for long and reach their lower lips soon after, rubbing against their heated mounds with my fingers. They start releasing sighs of pleasure as I gently massage their pussies back and forth. Ghilerie is incomparably wetter, instantly covering my fingers in her love juices. As they begin to plant kisses on my neck, I sneak a finger into their eager holes and stir them up a little. My digits explore their hot insides in an unhurried manner, aiming to bring them a slowly rising pleasure. Teffith glances up at me and we enter a deep kiss. Taking it as a sign to go a bit harder, I slip another finger into her amazing pussy and start rubbing her clit with my thumb. Her breathing quickly grows more heated and ragged but she focuses her all on taking my tongue for a dance. Seeing us going at it, Ghilerie starts moving her hips on her own, slapping her waist against mine as she drives my fingers deeper into her leaking honeypot. I present her with an additional finger too and she begins moaning into my ear while masturbating herself with them. After a few moments, the elf is the first one to reach her climax and she quickly wraps her arms around me as she starts to shake a little and a bit of love nectar gushes out of her convulsing passage. “Ahnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn~!” I bring some mana to my fingers to not make Teffith wait too long for her own orgasm and she joins Ghilerie, entering a bit more controlled climax but I can tell she feels as good from it even just by how her eyelashes flutter adorably. “Mhhhhmmmmmmmmmm~” They rest in my embrace after I pull my fingers out and hold them close. Then, with a joint peck on my lips, the girls step back and look at each other. “You go first. I’ll wait,” Teffith says. “What? No, you should go first. You’ve known each other for much longer and it’s me who is interrupting your fun.” “It doesn’t matter. I can smell how aroused you are. Is the prospect of having intercourse with a good-natured Human turning you on so much?” Ghilerie instantly clamps her thighs together again with a wet slap, turning a shade redder. She hastily avoids my gaze. “N-No… I’ve always been sensitive, you know? That’s just how my body reacts and… it felt really good so far…” Teffith chuckles at her. “Then you should see how much better it gets.” “I insist. Please. You invited me here so you deserve to be before me.” “I waited for quite some time so a few more minutes won’t make a diff—AH!” As they are in the middle of their friendly argument, I grab Teffith’s wrist and pull her into me, causing her to release a yelp of surprise. “If it’s so hard to decide amongst yourselves, I choose scales then.” I smirk at her and Teffith smiles back at me sweetly, following that with a quick peck. I move my gaze onto the elf lady and extend my other hand towards her. “But that doesn’t mean I will leave you out to only watch.” She takes my hand and steps closer with a nod and a smile too. I bring the two ladies back down while we exchange a few kisses and they caress my cock with their fingers. I lay on the ground on my back and bring Teffith over my body. She looks at me curiously. “Sit up and turn around. I want your magnificent tail on my chest as I do you from below.” She chuckles. “A reverse cowgirl, right? A perfect choice allowing you to admire both my tail and back. “That’s right, but I might not be able to do exactly that.” She raises her brow at me but then turns around and sits on my stomach in front of my penis. I can feel it rubbing against her underbelly, brushing against those incredible scales that create an arch at her waist. Teffith glances over her shoulder at us. I pull Ghilerie onto my chest next, having her face my way, and support her thighs with my hands as I lift them a little. “Feel free to take a seat if you want,” I say to her with a mischievous smile. She understands immediately and blushes. Looking back at Teffith, she receives a nod from the dragonewt. After that, I feel a palm around my shaft, setting it on the path towards a certain pussy that has been brought above it just recently. After rubbing my tip against her pink lily for a brief moment, Teffith slowly lowers herself onto my cock. Her insides part gradually, making space for my dick, getting swallowed by the unimaginably pleasant warmth and pressure. We stumble on a little bump but quickly move past it as Teffith releases a louder sigh. I made sure to give her some of my special saliva to get rid of any pain since it’s her first time. She finally takes me all inside and her pussy. “Mhhhhhmmmm… I would never think it could feel so good having something spread me from inside… It’s incomparable to fingers…” I chuckle a little. “I’m glad you are enjoying it. It’s all yours for now.” Teffith grinds her hips around while sighing some more and starts slowly raising them up and moving them back down, bringing lots of pleasure to both of us. It’s so damn hot inside her pussy and it wraps itself around me so comfortably. Judging by her quiet moans, my cock rubs some good spots for her too. “Mhnnnn… Nhhhhnnn… Mhhhhmmmmmnnnn…” I bring my attention back to Ghilerie and prompt her to join in on the fun with my eyes, basking them in the glory of her slim belly and perky mountains towering over my face. She swallows nervously and moves up on her knees a bit, bringing her drenched slit above my lips. Unsure what exactly to do, she touches her folds and spreads herself, revealing the pink flower to me in its full bloom. The moment my tongue makes contact with her delicate, precious lily, she shivers strongly, accidentally bringing herself down and pushing her pussy more into my mouth. “Ahnnnnnnn~!” I get to work instantly and lovingly explore her insides with my muscle, tickling her internal walls with the tip of my tongue and giving her inner folds a few long licks from time to time. She quickly starts releasing regular moans and moves her hands to my hair, grasping a handful, times two. Since my hands are free, as Ghilerie learns how to ride my mouth, I gently stroke Teffith’s lizard-like tail that’s resting on my chest. She keeps bringing her pussy down onto my cock by herself. This amazing girl. Assuming that tails work more or less the same in general, I lovingly brush my fingers under it, close to its base, where it connects to her body. When I press them a bit more into the skin there, her pussy squeezes me harder and Teffith releases a louder moan. Bingo. I gotta thank my tiefling friends. “Mhhhnn… Mhhhhmmm… You even know of my weakness… Mnnnnn… I should have expected that… Mhnnnnn…” She chuckles amidst the amorous moans and raises the tempo a little. Loud slapping sounds fill the air in the tent as our bodies meet each other when she slams her bottom into my underbelly, accompanied by faint wet noises from her love juices spreading over our nether regions. I leave my precious dragonewt to her own fun for a moment and refocus on the elf whose movements have grown quite ferocious in the meantime. Ghilerie has quickly picked up on what feels the best for her and she is currently grinding her pussy into my lips and tongue back and forth, stopping just for a fraction of a second to let me suck on her clit. “Ahnnnn~! Ahhh~! Ahhhh~! Ahnnn~!” I bask in her sweet and fragrant nectar while enjoying the blissful view from below and her heated gaze. Ghilerie tries to keep eye contact with me, which proves to be a challenge. When we do gaze each other into the eyes, I can’t help but get lost in the feverish glint in them. She is slowly stopping holding back her yearning and desire. When she looks at me pretty much begging for more, I wrap my tongue in some mana and focus on the spots she has been giving the best reactions to so far. The sudden spike in pleasure sends shivers through her spine and she accidentally brings her clit to my tongue. “Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh~!” It brings her to climax instantly and she pulls on my hair with lots of strength, pushing her juicy pussy into my lips with all she has. Trembling, shivering, leaking with love nectar, she rides her high with her back arched and head aimed towards the hidden sky. After the initial burst of heavenly pleasure, she begins to fall forward so I quickly catch her and gently place her down on the side. Ghilerie pants roughly and smiles at me, still basking in the afterglow. I peck her lips and glance forward. Teffith notices the disappearance of the elf wall that has been separating us and she meets my gaze while glancing back over her shoulder. With an alluring smile, she makes herself look as charming and bewitching as she can, accentuating her sexy back, tempting bottom, incredible pussy, and most importantly, mesmerizing scales. I can tell that she’s been trying to hold back her orgasm while waiting for this and I smirk at her. For a few moments, I watch her ride me seductively, grazing my fingers over her captivating scales. She still enjoys my touch even though she must be receiving quite some stimulation from our passionate exchange down there. “Mhhhnnn… Mhhhhmmm… Nhhhnnn… I’m almost there, Alastair… Mhhhhnnn… Mhmmmm…” That’s exactly what I have sensed but I appreciate her sharing it with me. I move both of my hands to Teffith’s tail and stroke all around it while joining them into a ring and repeatedly bringing it over its whole length. She glances back at me with a curious gaze and I smile at her while squeezing it a bit harder around midway this time. Her eyes widen in realization and I immediately begin pulling on Teffith’s tender tail, slamming her pussy onto my cock with a lot of force, pushing my hips up at the same time. “Ahhh! Ahhh! Ahhh! Alastair! Ahhnn! Ahnn! Ahhh! Cominggggggg!” I make the last thrust while bringing her down and explode into her snug tunnel as it constricts around my member. Waves of white delicacy flood Teffith’s insides, shooting far into her depths. She shivers while holding onto my legs to steady herself and we ride our highs together. After getting ahold of ourselves, I sit up and embrace her from behind, wrapping my arms around her waist. Teffith holds onto them and turns her head to join our lips in a post-orgasmic kiss, a tender exchange of affection with my member still in a loving hug of her insides. “You were amazing. Apologies for leaving you by yourself till the end,” I whisper to her. “I hope you enjoyed the show because I certainly did feel great with that,” she purrs back. “More than I could ever hope to. I’ll return the favour soon, but first…” We both glance at the Elf lady awkwardly raising herself from the ground after her intense orgasm. Ghilerie smiles at us and scoots closer, leaning into my back. “But first what?” she asks while resting on me. “First, it’s time for a certain elf lady’s turn.” She chuckles softly. “I can’t wait. It’s already been so amazing.” “You know nothing yet.” Teffith smiles at her and pecks my lips, pulling herself up. A faint stream of white escapes her folds as she moves aside, making her chuckle to herself. “There’s no way I wouldn’t have gotten pregnant with this much if not for your special body.” I smirk at her and turn to the blonde beauty. “How would you like your first time to be?” She looks aside. “Ummm… Can you… pull on my hair while doing me from behind?” “As much as you want, my elven princess.” Ghilerie’s eyes widen a little and some more crimson surfaces on her recently calmed cheeks. I release a soft sigh and she notices Teffith cleaning me up. “I could have done that,” she says to the dragonewt. Teffith finishes with a soft pop. “It’s basic manners to clean up after oneself. It’s all yours now.” Ghilerie turns to me and I shrug my shoulders. She laughs a little and pulls me with her as she turns around, falling onto all fours. Her slightly parted pussy is leaking so much love nectar from our previous fun that my dick could drown inside her. Since it is her first time too, I slide myself into her folds gently, embracing Ghilerie from above and giving her a long kiss during the whole process. A trickle of blood travels down her thigh but she doesn’t show any discomfort and smiles at me charmingly after our lips part. “Other girls always said it stings like hell but I barely noticed anything. Thank you.” Teffith scurries to my side and pecks my cheek. “He’s just a little bit special.” I chuckle and shake my head. My new dragonewt mate pulls me into a kiss while I slowly move my hips back and forth for Ghilerie to grow accustomed to my movements. She starts releasing heavy sighs of pleasure pretty quickly and looks back at me with pleading eyes. As promised, I reach out with my right hand and twirl it around her golden hair to get a good hold of it. She returns her face to the front and our little fun begins. I increase the strength of my thrusts a little while gradually pulling her hair more and more to judge how much force I should use. “Ahhhhn~ Ahhhh~ Ahnnn~ It feels weird~ Ahhhh~ But my pussy tingles~ Ahhh~ Each time you pull~” “I can tell. It feels so good inside. You squeeze me so nicely. Where did this idea come from, hmm?” “Ahhh~ My friend~ Ahhh~ Said it feels great~ Ahhhnn~ Ahhhh~” This elf has some lewd friends back at home. I haven’t had my girls ask me to pull on their hair this much yet, even though we’ve gone through a few interesting things with Cornelia. As long as it feels good for her, that's great. I continue giving her pretty lily a fierce pounding while switching my grasp over Ghilerie’s hair from time to time. With the other hand, I bring Teffith closer and caress her butt, waist and tail as we make out on the side to the accompaniment of amorous elven moans. “Ahhhh~ Ahhhnn~ Ahhh~ So good~ Ahhhh~ Stronger, please~” Just as she asks, I reaffirm my grip on her blond hair and pull with more force, bringing Ghilerie’s body slightly into the air with each cycle. Her impressive breasts sway from the pistoning her needy slit receives and her cries grow even louder. Getting one more feel of Teffith’s marvellous butt, I move my fingers to her warm folds and slip them inside. She moans into my ear and I start showering her hole with some affection too, getting a decent idea on how to return the favour of taking care of my member earlier. She watches me curiously as I leave a trail of pecks over the scales around her face and arrive at her horns. The moment I give them a lick, she shudders heavily and her pussy squeezes my fingers. I start lapping my tongue over their length and sucking on their tips. “Mhnnnn… Al… That’s incredible… Nhhhhnnnn…” I continue doing my best to please the two incredible girls that have visited me tonight, with a handful of golden threads in my right hand and a slightly metallic taste in my mouth. Both Teffith and Ghilerie let out musical moans and cries in my arms, fully focusing on enjoying what they are receiving. “Mhhhnnn… Suck on them more… Al… Nhhnnnn…” “Ahhh~ Ahhh~ You can~ Ahnnn~ Go rougher~ Ahhhh~” My fingers start moving quicker inside Teffith’s snatch and I start lightly bobbing my head up and down on her horn, sucking it as strong as I can. At the same time, I pull Ghilerie’s hair almost to my very chest and thrust into her with my all, plowing her through the air as she flails her arms in the front, not knowing what to do with them while pleasure overwhelms her body and mind. Both girls raise their voices even more and soon reach climax around the same time. Teffith grabs my forearm and pushes my fingers deeper into her convulsing pussy as I try to suck off her horn while giving Ghilerie the last slap of my hips and bursting inside her leaking honeypot which is coiling around my shaft tightly. “Mhhhhhhhhhhnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!” “Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh~!” I quickly wrap my arm around the elf and bring her to my chest as she is spasming and receiving loads of my cum in raging waves, supported by a few small thrusts. Leaving Teffith’s horn alone, I embrace her closely too and the three of us enjoy our highs together. After our orgasms die down, I pull out of Ghilerie and lean both of them onto my chest, stroking through their hair lovingly. They breathe heavily while resting on it. Teffith grazes my muscles while looking up at me. “I can’t believe no one told me having your horns caressed like that can feel so good.” I chuckle and give her a small peck. “And I’m glad. It’s always fun to discover things like this on your own.” She nods with a smile. “True.” “It’s still so lively…” Ghilerie says while poking my erection. “I can bring it down at will if it’s bothering you. It’s quite impossible for it to do so by itself with just this much,” I respond. She glances up too and blushes. “I wouldn’t mind a little more if you would like…” “The night is still young,” Teffith hums, starting to leave kisses on my neck. “That it is...” I smile at them warmly.
Chapter 102 – Timbeeeeeeeeeeeer! ❤❤ Spoiler: Chapter I wake up to a sensation that is already plenty familiar to me. The small pressure weighing down my chest as it moves up and down during my breathing accompanies quite a few of my mornings recently. And the two soft objects squished into my warm skin give no doubts about it either. Opening my eyes, I expect to find Teffith on top of me but the actual sight surprises me a little. It's not the dragonewt who peacefully sleeps on my chest but our Wood Elf Tracker, blissfully snuggled to my neck with her beautiful face. Her golden hair flows down around it in a mesmerizing way. Glancing to the side, I find Teffith hugging my arm and already awake. She shows a small smile. “I didn’t expect her to climb on you either, Alastair. I still remember both of us falling asleep by your sides.” “Morning, Teff.” I brush a mischievous strand of hair behind her ear. “Would you like to be in her place instead?” “Teff, hm? That’s a first. But, I don’t dislike it. It has a nice ring to it.” Her smile grows a bit more. “I hope I’m not getting too familiar with you after we spent one night together.” She gently shakes her head, as much as lying on her side allows it, and leans a bit closer to peck my lips. “We have known each other for much longer than that, haven’t we? I was a little opposed to this for most of the time but if you really don’t mind my ulterior motives then I would be glad for you to have me.” “I’m fairly sure you wouldn’t be such a sweet and understanding girl if it was only that.” I kiss her back. “I’ll make you so strong Garrena won’t be able to make you budge.” Teffith chuckles quietly as we stare at each other. Faint rustling noise accompanied by an adorable yawn captures our attention and we watch how the sleepy elf slowly leaves the land of dreams while rubbing her eyes. Opening them, Ghilerie looks at me with a slightly absent gaze for a moment. They widen in flash and a tinge of rosiness covers her cheeks after she realizes our position. “Morning. Did my Sleeping Elf Princess have a good rest?” I ask with a smirk. I’ve expected Ghilerie to get all flustered but she slowly lifts herself up to sit on my waist while covering her magnificent breasts with her arm. She looks away with slight embarrassment but handles herself pretty calmly. “Y-Yes, thank you. Sorry for falling asleep on you.” Ignoring her words of apology, I reach out and trace over her slim belly with my fingers. Ghilerie shivers faintly and turns her face to me. “You are so gorgeous…” I whisper while adoring the exquisite figure in front of me. I hear Teffith chuckle on my side and I glance up, catching the tips of Ghilerie’s ears turning full crimson. She unhurriedly moves her arm away and displays her alluring chest to me, which naturally attracts my gaze instantly. She places her hand on my abdomen and brushes over it with her palm. “You are not so bad either… For a Human…” I grin at her and sit up to bring us to the same level, more or less, and leave a quick peck on her supple lips. “Thank you for the compliment. Remember just one thing, don’t feel anxious about us because you are now my registered Partner, okay? I can now sense some of your thoughts. If it will make you feel more at ease, just treat me like a long-distance boyfriend. Or even a friend with benefits. Just don’t overthink it too much.” Ghilerie nods after a brief moment of us just looking each other in the eyes. She then gasps adorably and glances back over her shoulder, noticing something hitting her butt. “I can’t believe it’s still so lively after all we have done…” she comments in awe. I snicker a little. “It’s morning so that’s natural.” Teffith raises herself by our side. “Would you like me to take care of it?” I take in the sight of her dazzling crimson scales for a few seconds before shaking my head. “No need. You girls know that it would change nothing as it can still stand strong for hours if not days. But, I appreciate the gesture. As for the body, how are you feeling, Ghilerie? Things have gotten pretty intense near the end.” The elf beauty blushes a little. “I’m fine. Just a little bit sore, perhaps. But, I’ve been worse.” I nod and place my palm on her toned stomach. She watches me curiously and soon releases a delightful sigh as I activate Rejuvenate and my warm energy spreads through her insides. She bits her lower lip gently while filling the air with a quiet, long, pleasurable groan. Finishing the treatment, I turn to Teffith and she scoots closer without me having to utter a word, allowing me to repeat the process for her too. “Better now?” I ask. “That’s actually incredible,” Ghilerie exclaims in awe. “It’s as shocking as always, no matter how many times I experience it,” Teffith comments. I playfully shrug my shoulders. “Perks of being a Sexmancer, I guess.” They glance at each other and giggle together. We then rise and dress up to leave the tent. Outside, the others are enjoying a meal prepared by Marcia. She waves at us with a wide smile and we join them for breakfast. As we are consuming our respective portions, I catch Kamil sending me some occasional, weird glances, causing me to smile wryly. Considering that we literally spent almost the whole night getting to know each other better, it’s safe to assume that some portion of that happened during his night shift, and we didn’t turn off the lantern as Teffith had suggested. We discuss our plan of action while eating and sitting in groups split by gender. Girls huddle up together and often chat happily amongst themselves, of course, led by the always enthusiastic redhead, while we exchange just a few words from time to time. The entrance to the Barren Valley is right in front of us and we should reach it in around an hour or two after we pack up. I mention what I know about possible monsters and beasts we can encounter while passing through it to let Paul’s strategic mind start assimilating that information already and work on our tactics and strategies. From what I've heard, he’s quick to react and come up with a plan on hand. “Mhnnnnnnnnnnnn!” Marcia moans openly as she stretches after she finishes eating, disregarding everyone’s presence. We are all used to her very unrestrained way of being so it doesn’t really bother anyone. “Man. We’ve been on the run for days now. I’m so damn sweaty. I would kill for a good bath. Shame we had to avoid all the towns until now. I hope the one on the other end of this valley has a giant public bathhouse. Can you do your magical cleaning trick on me, Nat?” “Ummm… Actually…” Shino quietly butts in and we all glance at her. “I did some scouting after waking up and there’s a shallow river not that far from here…” Marcia’s eyes shine in excitement. “That’s so perfect! I fucking love you, shortie!” She hugs Shino tightly to her bountiful chest. The two of us make eye contact and I can clearly spell ‘save me’ from hers. Chuckling to myself, I speak up. “I’m sure we all would agree a short dip to refresh ourselves is a great idea. Let’s pack things up and move there. Ladies first. We will stand watch while you enjoy your time, making sure that no random monster pops up from nowhere.” “Awwwwww! You are so sweet!” Marcia purrs at me, releasing Shino from her clutches. “You heard the man! Fuck gender equality, being a girl is the best!” We all laugh a little, knowing that back at home, the whole gender equality was usually related to slightly different areas of life, but Marcia has her own take on it as always. Since she’s brimming with energy, we don’t dilly-dally and wrap things up fast. Shino leads us to the riverbank and we take a deep breath, taking in the calming and refreshing ambience this impressive glade emanates. The water is crystal clear without a sign of pollution, letting us gaze at the lovely riverbed made of countless flat stones in various shades of grey. We leave the horses and all our stuff with the girls and our male half of the party spreads out in different directions to make sure they can safely take a dip with no surprises. I head towards the west and stop after I can’t hear them anymore. Thanks to my sharpened senses, high stats, and plenty of training with my amazing girls, I’m able to easily perceive everything in the distance between me and the river. I could even expand my coverage a bit and possibly take a little peek at them but I’m not that kind of man. Why would I do something so silly when my wives or girls would be thrilled to make a show for me if I asked? A quiet snap of a dry branch not that far from the river brings me out of my thoughts and I immediately focus on it, getting a little anxious at the fact that something managed to get that close without me noticing. But, just a moment later, I realize that the cause of that sound is actually moving towards me. After it takes a few more steps, my senses report with complete certainty that it’s a person. When they move closer, I peek over the side of the tree I’ve been leaning on and raise a brow at the sight. Unexpectedly, Marcia is walking my way while looking around. She spots my face amongst the trees and grins, increasing the speed of her steps. As she covers the distance separating us, her robust chest heaves up and down, bouncing around inside the sports bra she is wearing. That and skin-tight shorts is all she has on. Droplets of water sparkle over her strongly tanned skin. “Finally found you! You are damn good at hiding your presence!” she says after reaching me. “Well, I had a few great teachers.” I chuckle. “Did something happen?” Her smile grows wider and she plants her palm on the bark of the tree behind me while stepping closer. “More like, something didn’t happen.” I immediately pick up on the mischievous glint in her emerald eyes and things become obvious in a blink. She notices that I caught on and presses herself into me, squishing her impressive bosom into my chest while throwing her wavy crimson locks behind her back to uncover more of her shoulders. My eyes involuntarily jump towards the created cleavage. “Like what you see?” She giggles. “Want to have a peek inside?” “You do realize everyone is just a stone throw from here, right?” I smile wryly. “Yet you have walked quite a bit further away from the river than all the other guys. I’m sure it was for a good reason.” She snickers while trailing a finger over my chest. “Yeah. To give you girls some space and privacy.” “What a fine gentleman,” she coos. “They often make the most passionate lovers, you know?” “I don’t mind your playful teases but I think you should make full use of this opportunity. We don’t know when another one will show up in that desert-like land.” “I know and I’m doing exactly that. It would be a shame to waste such a perfect opportunity they have presented me with.” She bats her eyelashes at me. “Time isn’t exactly in our favour and I’m sure you would hate to rush things. The girls will soon finish and everyone will notice the two of us missing.” “You don’t have to worry about that. We talked a little and they will make sure to enjoy themselves to the fullest back there. And I’m sure Shino would love to have a long chat about last night with your charming companions.” “But, of course.” I shake my head with a chuckle. “You should be enjoying yourself with them too. Shino brought this up specifically for you.” “Oh, I know that too. She played her role perfectly. Leave it to the shortie to come up with such an elaborate plan. She even predicted you going further than the others.” “What?” I furrow my brows while blinking a few times. Now that she has said it, I start noticing a few small details in Shino’s expressions and behaviour that seem a bit awkward and unusual. I disregarded them initially, thinking she was a bit shy about the last night, but she was nervous for a different reason, which is a refined plan to get her friend laid. Marcia releases a lively chuckle. “Got you good, didn’t she? I already owe her so much and the pile just keeps increasing. Anyway, you don’t have to worry about anything. All the girls know exactly what’s going on. So? Would you like to explore something more than just this forest?” “Right here? In the open?” “Doesn’t the thought of wild outdoor sex make you even more excited?” she asks with a feral glint in her eyes and a wide smile. “Come on. You’ve done so much for me already. I love those toys you’ve given me so much. And that little plate to silence the surroundings is perfect. I can go wild every night and no one knows. You should see Shino’s face when I ask her to bring out the bigger ones for me.” Marcia laughs openly. I roll my eyes and smile. “Please, don’t bully Shino too much.” “I won’t. She’s too precious. And so are you. I really want to thank you properly. Well, that and I really want to finally get fucked by your legendary cock. But, only if you agree, of course. Will you? Or should I head back?” I catch a bit of sadness in Marcia’s gaze but there’s no doubt she would leave without taking it against me. She’s always been like that. Straightforward and open, very playful and seductive, but understanding and respectful. I met a few of her male friends back at our school. They never said a bad word about her and all of them knew exactly what they were signing up for. No small print. Well, it’s not that I’m against it or anything and I did promise both her and Shino already. All the recent chaos and the girls visiting me during the night, especially a certain samurai girl, delayed our meeting a bit. Marcia could have even joined Teffith and Ghilerie but decided to wait patiently. It would be rude if I told her to wait even longer and I guess she could use a little boost before we head in. With a playful smirk, which makes her raise a brow at me, I spin us around and push Marcia against the tree this time, evoking a giggling squeal for her. My right hand moves to cup her chin up and support it while my left sensually traces over her exposed thigh. “You have been really looking forward to this, haven’t you?” I ask in a sultry tone. “Yesssssssssssss… Fuck meeeeee…” she purrs at me while wriggling in my grasp. “I assume you are fine joining my Partners?” I throw a prompt at her. She answers it in a blink and it takes me a few seconds to register that fact while she stares at me with a wide smile. I respond with the same. My fingers traverse over the material of her shorts and arrive at her slim tummy. She peers deep into my eyes, her smile widening more and more as they descend lower and dive into her panties. Passing through a ticklish patch of hair, they finally reach the sacred mound and I let my middle finger make a few circles around her hot labia. “Ohhhhhhh, Yesssssssssssssssssss… Mhnnnnnnnnnnnn…” Marcia sighs at me amorously. She releases a quiet whimper when I recall my hand and bring it between our faces. I rub my thumb and middle finger together as we both glance at the slightly slimy substance covering their tips. “Hmmm… I don’t think that’s water…” I ponder playfully. She showcases her perfectly white teeth to me in a feral smile and chomps at me seductively. “I’m so fucking wet for you, Al... I’ll drown your dick in pussy juice the moment you shove it in… Come on… Fuck me good… Use me…” I lean forward and she lunges at my lips after figuring out my intentions, pulling me into a wild kiss. She wastes no time to ferociously assault my mouth, pushing her tongue in from the very start, beginning to explore my insides like a parched animal. Obviously, I stand my ground and even show a bit of dominance, pushing her back strong enough for Marcia’s head to bump into the tree and causing her to moan into my lips. She is strong but she is no match for me. We cop a feel of each other while continuing this feral exchange. She slides her hands under my clothes to graze over the muscles on my abdomen and chest while I rub and squeeze her beguiling waist and bubbly but. To make it a little easier for Marcia, I shove everything except for my shorts into my storage ring, giving her easier access to my skin. She doesn’t show any signs of stopping so I break our battle first and watch her chase after my escaping lips with yearning. Marcia then shows a wide smile and alluringly angles her head. “Show me how good you are… Show me what a Sexmancer can do… Make me cum buckets…” “With pleasure.” I start heading down while leaving a trail of sucky kisses over her skin. Marcia squeals in delight, realizing what’s coming. On my way to her shorts, I don’t forget to place Hall of Serenity somewhere on the bark behind her. We might be far from their sight but our surroundings are anything but suppressive to the sounds of violent clapping that might soon fill the air. With the black material in front of my face, I wedge my fingers behind Marcia’s panties and slowly pull them down, allowing her to temptingly wiggle her butt to help me. A lush and tidy dark ginger bush enters my sight, decorating the land above her slightly parted feminine crevice. I rub my nose into the twirly carpet while passing it, evoking a shaky giggle from Marcia. A slightly floral, natural scent fills my lungs. She might have not spent a lot of time with the girls at the river, but she certainly made sure to take care of herself thoroughly and it’s noticeable. Without delaying it, I pass the crimson forest and plant a kiss at Marcia’s humid lower lips from below. She releases a faint gasp into the air and leaves her mouth open. “Mmmm… You really are a fine gentleman, opening with a little bit of service without being asked… Guys usually demand to be sucked first…” I chuckle into her folds, causing another sigh to escape her lips. “You might want to grab onto something.” “Hm? Who do you think I a—ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, myyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy…” My tongue dives into her wet tunnel before she manages to finish her sentence and I immediately start tickling the upper part of her internal walls. Marcia’s hands shoot to my hair in an instant and she trembles lightly. “Ooooooohhhhhhhhhhh… Looks like you know some gooooooooood spots…” This time, I don’t answer but fully focus my attention on her charming pink lily. Marcia keeps releasing fully open moans of pleasure as I go through various cycles of actions and movements to keep her sensations always fresh. First, I focus on applying some pressure and circular rubbing on that upper spot for a few laps. Then, I pull my tongue back and caress her entrance from the bottom to the top, barely tickling that little shy pearl slowly turning more erect. With a gentle parting kiss to it, I plunge my muscle back into her uneven tunnel to assault a few other places inside, of course, never forgetting to brush my lips against her delicate flesh too. “Fuuuuuuuuuck… You really know what you are doing… Mhhhhhmmmmmmm…” Knowing that it’s just the beginning, I chuckle internally. Under my passionate caresses, Marcia keeps releasing musical moans but also slowly regathers her composure from the initial surprise when she has been taken off guard. She moves her hands to her chest and flings her sports bra off over her head, causing it to catch onto some random branch above us. Glancing up after not seeing it fall, she notices what happened and giggles cutely amongst the sighs of pleasure. Oh well. We’ll somehow get it down later. While enjoying my tongue exploring her leaking snatch with increasing intensity, Marcia starts rubbing her breasts and occasionally twirling her nipples between her fingers as I watch from below. She smiles at me gorgeously, clearly telling me to enjoy the view. “Ohhhhhh… Mmmmmm… Just like that… Bring me up, baby… Mhhhhhhmmmm… Bit by bit…” I withdraw my lips for a brief moment, using my moistened thumb to gently rub her clit in the meanwhile. “I warned you.” “Wha—hooooooooooooooooolllllllllllyyyyyyyyyy fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!” The moment I shove my tongue into her delicious honeypot again, with some extra spice in the form of condensed mana on its tip this time, Marcia’s eyes bulge out from shock and she violently bends forward while her thighs slap my cheeks in an attempt to suffocate me. She releases a loud scream into the open air as her whole body trembles like jello which gets continuously slapped with no end in sight. “Oh fuck! Oh fuck! Oh fuck! Ahhhhnnnnnnnnnnn!” She orgasms in no time since she has been slowly approaching her peak already and my mana-boosted tickles push her pleasure meters off the charts in a blink. I can feel her convulsing vagina clamp on my tongue as she keeps cumming. I tone it down a little but still keep rolling my muscle inside her lewd hole. Near the end of her high, still moaning fervently and shivering, Marcia finally takes my advice seriously and slams her back into the tree, quickly shooting her right hand up to grab it above her head and her left down behind her butt. She pulls her body into the bark as much as she can while her chest heaves up and down from her intense panting. “Don’t stop! Ahhhhnnn! Keep going!” Receiving such a lively green light, I step up my game and start putting more effort into assaulting her bewitching slit. I push my lips into her folds repeatedly, smooshing her labia with them as I dive deep into her depths with my tongue. With its enhanced tip, I caress her warm and wet passage all around, reaching far and then pulling back as it grazes over her walls. “Yessssssss! Ahhhhh! Ahhhhh! Dig that pussy like a fucking jar of Nutella! Ohhhhhhh, fuuuuuuuuuck!” I snicker internally at her words. It’s not like I often get a chance to please a girl back from Earth. It makes me wonder what other colourful cries she has in store. A person with such a vibrant personality must have an adequately vivid vocabulary. Just as she wishes, I try my best to bring a mental image of the mentioned action and recreate the movements with my tongue. It starts repeatedly going in and out of her fine chamber while ferociously scooping out the nonexistent chocolate from the pink container filled with love nectar instead. Marcia keeps shaking the whole time, not stopping for even a second after her first orgasm. “That’s it! Ahhhh! Ahhhh! Fuck! Fuck! Ahhhh! I’m cumming againnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!” She explodes again and enters a wave of much stronger shivers that rock her whole body so much it bangs into the tree repeatedly as she clenches her teeth with incredible force and holds onto the bark to not fly off to the heavens. A few trickles of warm liquid escape her lower lips as I still keep tongue-fucking that pussy. After around ten long seconds of a silent scream that gets lost in her tensed throat, Marcia starts slapping my head from above with her left hand and I take it as a signal to ease it up a little and stop before I really help her soul cross over. One more intense tremble passes through Marcia’s body as I rise up and hug her to the tree, allowing her to relax all her limbs for a moment. She keeps spasming while staring me in the eyes with incredible passion. “Ohhhhhhh myyyyyyyyyy fuuuuckinnnnnnnng goooood… What was that…?” she finally speaks after somehow calming her heavy panting, still hanging limply in my embrace. “A Sexmancer’s cunnilingus as requested.” I smirk at her. She laughs heartily in between the breaths and lays her forehead on my shoulder. “Fuck me…” I chuckle. “That comes next.” She giggles back and we wait a moment for her to regain enough control before we continue. Marcia then leans back onto the tree with her own strength and gazes into my eyes while her hand starts brushing over the heated bulge in my shorts. “I would love to return the favour but I sooooo need that big, hard, magnificent cock in my tight cunt right fucking now. Please, make a mess out of me.” With a thought, I get rid of my underwear and my hot erection springs into her hand. Marcia’s eyes sparkle instantly and shoot down to my member as she begins to delicately brush over my whole length with her fingers. “It’s so pretty…” “Pretty? That’s an unusual one.” I smile. “Just looking at it makes me want to shower it in affectionate kisses.” “Let’s do that later. We should move onto the main dish now.” “Oh, yesssssss. I agree.” Marcia giggles and joins her hands behind my neck. We exchange a few quick kisses while my hands roam over the inner side of her soft thighs and stop near her knees. With one swift motion, I swoop her off the ground by raising her legs by the joints and slightly spreading them to the side, opening up Marcia’s inviting pinkish entrance a bit more. She smiles enticingly as I push her knees by her body and start poking her folds with my glans. “Come on, shove it in me so hard you will make a nailgun blush!” This time, I openly burst out laughing while shaking a little, almost slipping myself inside her. “Hahaha. Do you always use such gaudy analogies?” She smiles a bit wryly. “Does that bother you?” “No, not in the slightest. It’s just funny. But I think it suits you.” We chuckle together. “Well, you have waited long enough. Here’s the fuck of your lifetime.” Before she gets a chance to answer, I thrust my hips forward and pierce through Marcia’s slippery insides in one mighty push, slamming my pelvis into her bottom and our bodies into the tree with a loud echoing slap. Her mouth opens wide as an amorous mix of a gasp and a moan escapes her lips, followed by a single shiver. “Ffffffffffffuck!” She curses and trembles again. “So hot… So thick… So… gooooood…” “Enjoy the ride.” Pulling my waist back, I start hammering her pretty folds with all I have from the get-go. Marcia follows up with fervent moans and cries of pleasure. We both can stare at her exposed privates, spread open and tensed from my hands holding her knees by her sides, getting pistoned by my hard cock repeatedly. Powerful, wet slapping noises permeate through the air and the tree starts shaking from the continued impact. A few leaves fall while spinning around us. “Ahhh! Ahhh! Fuck! Ahhh! You fuck so good! Ahhh! Ahhh!” “Ugh... And you are so pleasantly tight… and vocal…” She giggles in between the moans. “I train… ahhh… my pussy… ahhhh… ahhh lot!” And as if to prove that, she squeezes me even tighter in a manner that clearly points out her control over the correct muscles. She notices that I noticed and beams at me impishly. This woman… I’m supposed to fuck her brains out so I better step up my game… With a grin of my own, I push myself more into her body and switch from strong, full slams into quicker and more shallow thrusts, aiming at specific spots inside her leaking honeypot. It’s immediately met with a proper response as Marcia’s mouth opens wide and her voice rises a level higher. Her body keeps jerking up and down at a fast pace as I hammer her pussy with my unrelenting rod. Marcia clenches her teeth and cries in pleasure in turns while her hands jump from the tree above her head to my shoulders repeatedly, not knowing where to stay for longer. Her head turns to all sides as she relishes in the intense lovemaking. And I can fully adore her bouncing tanned tits right in front of me. “Oh, fuck! Oh, fuck! Oh, fuck! This is just someeeeeeeething elseeeeeeeee! Ohhhhhhhhhh!” She’s so damn vocal and it’s so sexy. I think it’s my first time having sex with someone talking this much and it hits so differently. It kind of makes me want to go even harder to hear more of her shaking voice as she attempts to quickly form words. I can tell that she has come a little already but still hasn’t entered a full orgasm. Marcia holds herself pretty well. She has great stamina. Naturally, it can’t be compared to mine, but it’s still impressive. I’m going as hard at her as I can without risking hurting her, focusing on her possible best posts. She takes my cock like a champ and even meets my eyes from time to time to show me more how good she feels. To bring her even higher before she reaches her peak, I spread her legs to the sides as much as I can and lean into her, catching an elusive nipple into my mouth. “Ahhhhhh! My fucking tit! Ahhh! Ahhh! Ahhh! Suck on it! Suck on it! Ahhh!” She doesn’t have to repeat it twice, or thrice in this case, and I suck on her nipple like my life depends on it. Of course, the primal thrusting never stops and Marcia starts writhing in pleasure in my grasp. If I wasn’t holding onto her legs, I would grab her other breast and give it a good squeeze but you gotta work with what you have. “Yes! Yes! Yes! Ahhhhhh! I’m cumming soon! Ahhhh! Fill! Fill! Fill me up, Al! Ahhhhh!” “Guh! Take it all, then!” Feeling her coil around my shaft, I let go of her nipple and push my mouth into Marcia’s at the same moment as I slam my waist into her bottom and shove my cock as deep into her snug tunnel as I can. She moans strongly into my lips while squeezing my twitching dick and spasming herself. A few streams of milky white liquid surge from my tip and flood her furthest depths. I make a few gentle pumps while unloading fully in Marcia’s hot embrace as she enjoys her peak. I stay inside her until her shivers gradually fade down and she withdraws herself from my mouth. We both breathe heavily in each other's faces. She smiles at me warmly and I pull myself out of her with a very quiet plop that I’m sure only I notice thanks to my keen hearing. A steady stream of white unhurriedly escapes her lower lips. “Damn. You released so much. Such a beast. Under normal circumstances, you would have definitely knocked me up.” She giggles while glancing down and rubbing her fingers above her womb. “Yeah. Fortunately, we don’t have to worry about that.” She glances at me, slightly surprised. “Shino already told you?” “What?” I raise a brow at her. “About me.” “Uhhh… I’m not sure what you mean.” “If not then why don't we have to worry about it?” she asks in confusion. “Because my Class lets me decide if I want to get a girl pregnant?” Marcia cocks her head back and opens her mouth. “Ah.” “Seems like she didn’t tell you either. What was that about, then?” I ask, curious what she meant. I immediately notice Marcia’s mood change into a slightly somber and uncertain one. For a moment, she avoids my gaze but returns to look at me in a few moments. “It’s just… I’m infertile…” Even though it has nothing to do with me, my stomach tenses along with the bomb she drops on me. It’s impossible not to feel bad for her and her anxious expression is explained instantly. A few images my brain creates on the fly flash through my mind, showing the heartbroken Marcia in various times and states of depression and I have to blink a few times to force myself not to let any pitiful tears out in front of her. Fortunately, she seems to take my blinking as pure shock and smiles wryly. “Damn. I’m sorry to hear that. I apologize if you felt forced to bring that up because I asked.” She shakes her head. “No. It’s fine. I let my partners know anyway. I would be a bitch to keep something like that to myself. And don’t make that face. I’m long past it already. I’m just always a little worried about how others would react.” It’s still hard to believe that someone this bright and happy is shouldering such a heavy burden. That thought reminds me of something and I quickly make a few strokes with my fingers over Marcia’s belly. She watches my movements a little confused but doesn’t interrupt them. After casting Fertility Scan, a little symbol appears on her skin and it’s a negative just like she said. I try to use the spell that changes this state but nothing happens after the light fades out. The symbol remains negative. Just to make sure, I try a few more times but to no avail. “Alastair?” Marcia speaks up after seeing my tense gaze aimed at her stomach. “Ah. Sorry. I just had to try something. Give me one more second.” Not giving up yet, I place my palm over her womb and fuel my Rejuvenate with as much mana as I can. Marcia gasps when immense energy flows into her body, accompanied by a pleasant warmth. After a few short moments, I withdraw my palm and repeat the state-changing magic. And yet again, the status remains infertile. I sigh heavily and pull up my status window, starting to scroll through my Partners in search of something. Perhaps Elea’s Healing Magic could work. Marcia gently shakes my shoulder. “Hey, Al. I can tell that you are trying to think of something to help me but it’s okay. I really appreciate it and I will obviously not reject it but I just wanted to say that there’s no rush anywhere.” I glance at her soft smile and sigh, realizing that I kind of ignored her in the heat of the moment. “Sorry. It’s just…” “I get it. You always try to help others when you have the means to. I think it’s really sweet of you. But, I don’t think it will be this simple. We have already tried various Healing Magic at the castle. We came to the conclusion that it can be hard to heal since it’s something that’s been with me since birth.” “Ah. Genetics it is, then.” I respond to her smile with my own and move a lock of her crimson hair behind her ear. “Well, not exactly…” “How so?” I raise my brow. “Ah, please, don’t answer if you don’t want to. We can drop this topic at any moment. I kind of killed the mood with it. Sorry.” She shakes her head with a wider smile. “It’s good. As for how… You know that my father is a bigshot. Some idiot threw acid at my mom when she was having me. Something must have gone and fucked up back then. Doctors were unable to find a cure.” “Son of a bitch!” I throw a light punch at the tree with my fist that has stayed near Marcia’s cheek, causing her to yelp in surprise. Well… I say light but the bark cracks loudly, splintering to the sides, and a deep imprint of a fist remains in the trunk. A moment later, the tree starts creaking and cracking and I pull Marcia into a hug while turning around to shield her from any incoming debris from the falling log. The massive trunk lands on the ground with a loud thud, fortunately, still in the range of my Hall of Serenity, which I have quickly expanded in the meantime. “Wow… You really pack a punch…” Marcia gawks at the obliterated tree. I chuckle awkwardly. “I’m really sorry…” “Nah, dude, that was cool!” She beams at me. “And you got angry for me, which makes it even cooler! But… Uhhh… Do you think they heard it?” “Heard? No. Felt the impact? Ehhhh, possibly.” “Right. The anti-moan barrier.” She chuckles and I follow. “So… Your magic kind of revitalized my whole body… Do you think they will come or can we…” “Ahhhhhh, I don’t fucking care!” I grab Marcia by the waist, causing her to squeal in delight and giggle, and throw her over my shoulder. “I killed the mood so I need to fix it like a responsible adult and I can already sense how much you want to get wrecked more.” I put her down on her back on the fallen log and lean over her body. “If they want to fucking watch how I nail your wet cunt then let them fucking do so!” She giggles at me coyly and opens her arms wide. “Shred that pussy, you precious fucking stud!” And I proceed to do exactly that.
Chapter 103 – Chillin’ in the Desert Spoiler: Chapter When we are finally done fixing the mood, Marcia is reduced to a trembling and slurring mess while her body hangs over the thick fallen tree like a piece of clothing thrown onto a drying line in a strong wind. Maybe with the difference that freshly washed clothes wouldn’t be so dirty all over and leaking a suspicious white substance from their openings. As the gorgeous redhead rests on the log while belly-down, her ass is on full display to the slightly winded me. Precious creamy filling drips from both of her love holes in copious amounts, leaving trails on the bark and ground under her. Her pussy still twitches occasionally in this post-orgasmic bliss. I lost count on how many times I busted in her after like the sixth load. I must say, she’s a real beast. She kept egging me on and on and we ended up fucking like wild animals all over this piece of the forest. Especially all over the fallen log, in countless positions involving throwing her onto it on both her back and stomach to achieve some mind-blowing angles with the cylindrical trunk. She has insane stamina. Even with my quite bloated stats and the whole demigod thing, Marcia managed to tire me out a little bit before she couldn’t take it anymore. I bet that if she could speak coherently, she would have begged me to continue plowing into her but it’s not really my style to get off with a half-conscious girl. It just feels kind of rude. As I look at the mess we have created, I can’t stop a smile forming on my lips. The amount of scratches and red marks on our bodies, and smudges of various shades of brown reminds me of our fun times with Astrea. I was a little worried at first that I would hurt Marcia if I went as hard as she was asking me to, but even as we were getting ourselves roughed up by fucking like mad on the not-so-soft-and-velvety bark, she showed nothing but extreme pleasure. It’s a miracle we are not covered in blood but I guess we both are kind of resilient to some extent. But, anyway, we took just a little bit more time than we should have and it will be better to return before the other guys start thinking that something happened for the girls to not come to get them. So, I walk closer to the ragdoll of a woman with a silly expression and slap her slightly reddened juicy ass. “Ah!” “Wake up. It was fun but you need to get back soon or the others will catch on.” Marcia releases a blissful sigh without moving even an inch. “Mhhhhhmmmm… So what… You said they could watch…” I chuckle while shaking my head and high-five her other buttcheek. “Ah! I can’t move anyway! You fucked my brains out! Look, my grey matter is literally spilling from my ass and pussy! I can’t even lift a finger!” She throws some accusative remarks my way but her constant giggling completely gives away her playful attitude. “It doesn’t look grey to me,” I reply with a smirk and move to the other side of the log, crouching in front of her. Contrary to her statement, Marcia immediately lifts her head up when my feet arrive in front of her lowered eyes and glances straight at my still standing member bobbing in front of her messy face. A wide smile paints her lips and she tries to extend her neck forward as much as she can to steal a lick of the enticing cock but it’s just barely out of reach of her tongue. “Fuck… Just a little more anddddddddddddddd…” I chuckle again and bonk her on the head. “You had enough. You swallowed like three full loads. What are you, a Succubus? Even Ailish isn’t that thirsty.” “But it’s so damn delicious!” she whines. “Come on! Just one more! I know you like it! Just shove it in, ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.” She opens her mouth wide until I use my hand to close it from below. “Later. I have a feeling you will be able to drink quite a lot of it from now on.” I smile at her and start channelling full-power Rejuvenate while brushing my palm all over Marcia’s roughed-up body, starting from her freckled cheek, moving over her slim back and plump butt, and ending at her ankles. All the little scratches and bruises disappear gradually until only the dirty smudges remain. I fix myself up too while Marcia lifts herself up to sit on the log and checks me out from shoulder to toe with a seductive smirk. “You are such a hottie that all this dirt and stuff makes you even sexier.” “Thank you for the compliment. You are no less attractive in your current state either. I would bang the fuck out of you if I hadn’t already.” She bits on her lower lip while dropping her eyes to my dangling boner. Marcia then takes a deep breath while closing her eyes. “You are right. We should go. I already overused their kindness a lot. I promised the girls a quickie and not all-you-can-fuck buffet. I loved every second of it, though. I hope we can do some more, Al.” I help Marcia stand up and slip two fingers up her flooded snatch and one into her backdoor, making her gasp faintly. “Definitely,” I whisper to her ear while stirring her insides a little and using magic to clean them up. “Nooooooo…” Marcia whines into mine. “I love feeling so full inside…” “I wouldn’t mind leaving it there for you, but let’s think of the others.” “Right. Thank you.” She pecks my cheek and I get rid of the dirt on me with the same spell. Marcia catches my hand before I do the same to her skin. “Wait. I’ll clean myself back at the river.” “If you say so.” We then collect Marcia’s underwear, which has gotten a bit easier with the tree on which her top landed on resting toppled on the ground now and begin heading back. She asks me to escort her so I resummon my gear and wrap my hand around her waist to help her walk through the woods. When we reach the riverbed, the other girls are waiting on the grass while snacking on some jerky, already fully clothed. They spot us coming and stand up to meet us. Natalie notices Marcia walking with a slightly unsteady and wiggly step while supporting herself on my body. “You okay?” she asks. Marcia beams a wide grin at our blond actress and I can’t help but smirk. “I healed her muscles but I think her brain has some issues believing it after what we’ve done.” Shino giggles with a flush and the two of them take Marcia from me. “Alright. I’ll get back to my post. Let me know when you finish here, Marcia, and we’ll switch.” “Nah, Al. You can go in. It’s the guys’ turn now. I can clean myself up with all of you. Unless that makes you uncomfortable?” Marcia raises a brow at me with a teasing smile. I shrug my shoulders. “I bathe with women on a daily basis at home and you can bet they don’t do so in swimwear so why would it? What about you girls, though? You fine staying around or are you going to walk away?” “We can stay,” Natalie responds with her usual calmness and both my travel companions nod. “Ummm… Actually…” Shino chimes in while shooting me a shy glance. “Yeah?” “Can I… join too? To wash your back, Sensei?” “You sure about it?” I ask, knowing how embarrassed she gets just with the thought of being affectionate with me in front of them. She makes a cute nod. I guess she is trying to overcome that shyness. I mean, we already fucked in front of the others even if all they saw were shadows on the walls of our tent so maybe it’s not that surprising she is feeling braver. Marcia explodes into a hearty laugh and slams my back. “Hahaha! Good for you! I’ll team up with Kamil then! Now, if only we had someone who could lend a hand to our handsome archer…” She turns to Natalie and their gazes meet. Our almost emotionless bard squints her eyes at the frivolous warrior without changing her expression even a bit. You can feel the icy atmosphere. Marcia shoots her hands into the air. “Chill! Chill! I’m just joking, hahaha! Not like Paul would agree anyway. So big yet so shy. We really need to find him a girlfriend.” Natalie ignores her and turns to me. “We will grab Paul and Kamil. You guys can go in.” Shino lets go of Marcia and allows Natalie to walk away with the giggling redhead in tow. Teffith and Ghilerie head out towards the other direction after the former smiles at me softly. I follow them with my eyes for a bit and then glance at Shino. She blushes even more when our eyes meet. I extend my hand to her. “Let’s go. It will be less embarrassing if we go in first.” She takes it and we get into the water together, shoving our clothes into our storage rings first. Naturally, both of us leave something to cover our privates. Shino wears a black matching bra and panties while I stay in my dark grey shorts. She looks just so stunning I can’t help but pull her close and peck those dainty lips of her a few times. Without taking it too far, we stop after a few loving kisses and I start washing myself. As she suggested, Shino helps me a little both with the back and front. Kamil and Paul soon arrive and join us. I guess the girls let them know beforehand because they show no special reactions to Shino taking care of me. Paul washes himself in relative silence while Marcia keeps chattering with Kamil all the time. No surprise that she’s the only one completely naked as he does his best to scrub all the dirt off her tanned skin with the help of an appropriate for this world sponge. We don’t use any soap or other detergents to not poison this clear stream. The two of us finish before the others and I pull Shino onto my lap so we can both relax a little bit while still in the pleasantly cold water, submerged to our shoulders. She leans her back into me and I wrap my left arm around her lean waist, using my right hand to summon my system. This is a good time to check on things and I don’t need to hide it from Shino. First, I pull up my Partners menu and look for three specific entries. Thankfully, Lumina was smart enough to add a filtering function and it can order them according to the time of the last update so I don’t have to scroll a lot just to get to Teffith’s info since she partnered up with me a long time ago. A big purplish rectangle appears in front of our eyes. “I didn’t think Teffith would start at the third level. I would bet on the second,” I comment, grazing over Shino’s soft tummy. “She likes and respects you, Sensei. She is a little awkward about it because she thinks it’s not true and her desire to grow stronger is the actual reason. Teffith-san is a kind person who thinks about others more than herself. Just like you, Sensei.” I brush my cheek against Shino’s and leave a peck on her slightly rosy skin. “Thank you. I already knew she felt insecure about this but even the system calls her out on it. I will have to do something about that warped perception of hers. ” “Marcia-san is at the second level, huh. I thought she liked you more, Sensei.” “It’s not just about that, Shino. This system rewards stronger feelings and you can see from the Bond Type that she is attracted to me more physically than romantically. I don’t mind, of course, but from what I know, much clearer feelings of affection or love are necessary for higher levels.” “I see… That makes sense…” She nods gently. “I wonder what my Bond Type says…” As she wishes, I add one more entry to our cluster of Partners and Shino’s own rectangle shows up on the bottom. Her cheeks quickly grow rosy and she turns her head to glance back at me with a slightly confused gaze. “Reunited?” I smile at her and gently peck her lips. “According to a certain Goddess, we were already a couple back on Earth. A stupidly oblivious one, but we were. We held feelings for each other for quite some time, it seems.” She turns a shade redder but a precious smile forms on Shino’s face. She leans forward to join our lips in a tame exchange again. She closes her eyes, be it from her shyness or just to enjoy the warm affection, but I keep one open and catch almost everyone looking our way, with just Paul turned with his back to us. I can already tell Marcia won’t let such a perfect opportunity to tease Shino slip by. After my samurai princess pulls away with completely crimson cheeks, we turn our attention back to the purplish windows. “Shall we take a peek at Marcia’s status? I won’t lie that I’m not curious even though we talked about her abilities,” I ask. Shino nods and I tap the ethereal button. “The skill names fit her Class so well,” I comment. “It’s the same for Natalie-san. Her abilities are named after various pieces of music,” Shino responds. “Some of her stats tripled thanks to you, Sensei. She will be stronger now.” “She can’t even hold a candle to how strong you are with that Bond Level at five. You were in triple digits if I remember correctly, right?” I pull up part of Shino’s status to compare their numbers. “Damn, girl.” I whistle at the numbers. Shino turns red again after just taming her blush. “It’s all because of you, Sensei… Thank you…” I peck her crimson cheek. “Your feelings played a huge role in this so it’s not just me. Thank you too. I love you, Shino.” She smiles adorably and then shyly glances back at me again. “What about yours, Sensei?” “Hm? Stats? One second. I’ll bring up my whole status.” “Oh wow…” I gasp in surprise. “Looks like we’ve passed the two hundred bonus mark from all of this…” “Incredible…” Shino whispers. “Sensei is so strong… And you can utilize a lot more of them than us, right?” “All of it if I’m not wrong. I really need to be careful now. No surprise I toppled that tree so easily back there.” Shino looks at me with her charming purple eyes turned wide. “That tremor was you guys? Did you really break a tree… having sex?” I chuckle and shake my head. “No, no, no. I punched it accidentally. But… I guess it would be possible if I set my mind on it… At least with someone who is quite durable.” “Am I… durable?” I snort at her question and start tickling Shino’s sides underwater, causing her to wriggle, kick and flail while laughing energetically. “Hahahahahaha! Sensei! Stop! Hahahaha!” “Is my adorable short girlfriend interested in getting roughed up by her big bad boyfriend? Aren’t you afraid I would break your tiny body in half?” “Hahahahaha! Stop! Please! Sensei! Hahahaha!” I stop the hellish torture and wait for Shino to catch her breath. She then looks up at me with a flushed expression, both from the little exercise and her timidness. “I wouldn’t mind… you being rough with me… Sensei…” I peck her forehead from the side. “Whatever your wish is, don’t hold back and feel free to let me know. But, I think it’s time to get back on track.” She nods. “Yes. It was fun. Thank you, Sensei. Let’s help Ghilerie-san get back home.” Shino stands up and extends a hand to me with a sweet smile. I let her help me up and we walk together to the grassy land. After everyone dresses up, we resume our journey, preparing mentally for what’s to come. Half a day later, we reach the high mountain range that separates this lush and green environment from the harsh and sandy desert. We can’t see any of it yet, but it’s obvious with the hill peaks being more withered from the other side. We follow a crude road leading up and towards something looking like a keep or a sizable gate. After arriving closer to the massive structure, we notice that it lacks the grating and only the arch made of dark brown bricks remains in place. We can spot the first signs of the desert atmosphere when glancing through the huge gate. Warm air hits our faces and the winds carry trails of dust and sand behind them. As for the keep itself, it seems old and abandoned, if it ever was manned in the first place. I think it serves more as a shelter for those going both ways and also a landmark. It’s visible from quite the distance so people can head towards it instead of looking for another entrance through the steep mountains. Since nights in the desert back in our own world can’t be counted as extremely pleasant and safe, we decide to camp inside the brown walls and continue in the morning. There’s no doubt this Barren Valley is much worse than the baddest deserts back on Earth. It has the fantasy element to back it up. Beasts and monsters and such. I share a tent with Shino and wake up to some shuffling in the morning. Teffith, Ghilerie and Marcia walk inside and Shino shyly covers herself up to the very eyes at the sight, making me chuckle at her adorable act. She’s not fully naked, just in her underwear, but I guess that’s still too much. But, that actually proves to be nothing when compared to what happens next. It looks like my companions had a talk with the feisty redhead and brought her into the whole plan to feast on my milk. Thank the Goddess at least Natalie wasn’t dragged into this. I really hope she doesn’t feel uncomfortable with all this degeneracy surrounding her. The visiting trio pretty much ignores the blushing samurai girl and lays down in front of me to take care of my morning wood together. Three girls shower Alastair Junior in their warm affection while their timid friend watches from the side. But, somehow, Shino gathers enough courage to scoot closer and they happily back away for her to have the honour of receiving the first load of the day. I can tell how much she is struggling against her shyness to actually do it so I grab the blanket we slept under and create a division between her and the other girls, shielding Shino from their gazes. It does seem to work and she relaxes enough to take me into her mouth and bob her head up and down until she finishes me while looking up with those mesmerizing purple eyes of hers. I thank my lovely samurai girlfriend for her kind service with a peck on the cheek and she steps aside. The other girls show barely any reservations while working for their share. Even Ghilerie looks pretty comfortable but she did spend a night with me and Teffith at the same time so I don’t think she has any issues with others being around. Nevertheless, we take a few minutes since I don’t want to make it feel too fake with the fact that I can shoot pretty much one after another a few times in a row due to my abilities and quite strong body. They could feel weird with that. Instead, they can enjoy the satisfaction of actually bringing me to the edge by themselves and kind of earning the breakfast pudding. I can tell they appreciate it. As weird as it sounds. Trying to ignore the hilarity of this situation, we leave my tent in turns to make it a little less suspicious. The girls do get some confused stares from the guys—but not from Natalie, so I guess they did explain it to her—when they all mention that they will be skipping on meals from now on to test some experimental rations my cooks prepared. Kamil and Paul don’t hide their uncertain expressions but it looks like the girls manage to fool them by explaining that I wanted to do it on my own when they learned about it and insisted on participating so much that I had no other choice but to agree. And supposedly, I have only enough of those rations for the four of them to participate for long enough to get valuable results and even one more person would be too much. These scheming vixens. So, we depart towards the scorching lands with the prospect of my cock getting sucked at least eight more times today if we stop for dinner and dessert. What the fuck is even happening? The moment we step out of the shadow the dark brown gate casts on the ground, we immediately realize the sun wants nothing else but to murder us. The heat is so strong it feels like we have stepped inside an oven at half power or more. I can already see Kamil boiling under his full plate metal armour after a few seconds in the light. I have no fucking clue how that’s even possible. Yeah, I know, scorched earth, no trees, cracked and completely dried up ground don’t assimilate heat as good as the green regions and that’s why deserts are… deserts, but holy fuck, can there be such a huge difference literally one step from the edge? It’s like you could almost stand in the centre of the keep and feel cold and hot on your arms extended to the sides. “Oh, fuck me… I feel like one of those baked potatoes you wrap in aluminium foil and throw into the fire…” Kamil curses while trying to make some space around his collar. “This is bad,” Natalie comments. “It’s much worse than what we have been told. We will be struggling to survive, not even mentioning fighting in such an uninhabitable environment.” “I hate to say this with how much I love the tropics but I have to agree,” Marcia chimes in. “This is some hardcore stuff. How do people even handle it? Besides going around, of course.” Shino glances up at me as I rub my chin. “Sensei?” “I’m thinking. Does anyone have any ideas? Or do we really have to circle this whole plot of land?” “If it’s too much then I can go around it alone for the rest of the way. I don’t want to impose on you for many more weeks, Alastair,” Ghilerie suggests with a smile after placing a hand on my shoulder. I shake my head and look her in the eyes. “That won’t do. I promised to escort you all the way and I’m not going to chicken out at half-point. This path is the shortest, but… Hmmmm…” As I dive into my thoughts, the others start discussing it amongst themselves and the noise reaches my ears in a muffled state with how focused on finding a solution I am. I bring my menus up and stare at my abilities. When my eyes land on What’s Mine is Yours, I raise a brow at it and tap the skill. The familiar catalogue of abilities that I can borrow from my intimate Partners shows up, sorted by the names of the owners. I check one by one to make sure I don’t miss anything important even if a person with physical specialization might not have the highest chances of holding a useful skill for this situation. You never know. After going through tens of them, I stop at Cornelia’s list. This should be the best place to look for a solution. She’s a powerful Frost Magician. For a few moments, I consider borrowing her Ice Magic or Glacial Breeze but the first is just a broad compendium of quite offensive ice element spells and the other is a defensive hailstorm swirling around the user, which could possibly be harmful to allies. Ice Prison, Ice Manipulation and Ice Cathedral won’t work either. The last one could be good but it would only let us drop a big and fancy igloo to cool down inside from time to time. The heat is so unimaginable we would need to summon it every few minutes. That only leaves Coldblooded, a passive ability which she has used in the past in front of me, just after we spent our first night together. I more or less know how it works. I’m not sure if it will be enough but it at least doesn’t consume mana or a minuscule amount of it. Worth a try. I steal Cornelia’s skill for myself, making a mental note to shower her in earnest thanks after we return and turn to the others. “Alright. I have an idea.” I clap my hands a few times to interrupt their heated discussion. “Sensei?” Shino tilts her head cutely. I wink at her and activate the skill. Starting from my heart, my body temperature drops drastically and keeps decreasing as if wanting to race towards sub-zero for a shot at a Guinness record. My skin turns light blue and an extreme frost spreads through my whole being. If I’m not mistaken, my hair should have turned completely white and my eyes crystal blue. I exhale with a shiver and a white cloud escapes my lips, quickly dispersing in the intense heat. Everyone stares at me with wide eyes and chins resting on the floor. “What? Never seen someone turn into a fake Ice Elf?” I chuckle. “Damn. That’s one way to look hot and cold at the same time.” Marcia snickers. “How does this help us?” I extend a hand to her and strongly pull her into myself after she takes it, wrapping my hands around Marcia’s waist. She shudders instantly. “Oh! Oh. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh…” In a flash, she snuggles to me with as much body surface as she can, nuzzling her face into my neck and wrapping her legs around mine. “This is blisssssssssssss…” Marcia purrs. “I call dibs on Mr Ice-Cream…” The others stare at us in confusion. Shino is the second one to step closer and she places a hand on my cheek. “Oh. Sensei’s skin is so cold. It really is like ice.” “So, are we supposed to walk around while hugging you in turns?” Paul raises an uncomfortable brow at me. I snicker and shake my head. “This is not the end. I want to try something more. But, first, someone has to pry this hot girl off me before she freezes to my skin like a tongue to a metal pole.” Ghilerie and Teffith take the task on themselves and pull Marcia away as keeps playfully flailing and begging to stay in my arms like a small child getting forcefully separated from her doting mommy. Then, I close my eyes and focus. There’s no doubt that I’m technically stronger and more powerful than Cornelia in many aspects. I don’t want to sound like a jerk here, but that’s just the truth with the whole Primordial thing and other stuff. Thus, I should be able to go a little further… After around three minutes of intense willing for this normally unbearable cold to emanate from my body even stronger, I open my eyes to a quite peculiar sight. The ground around five meters in diameter from my position is covered with visible frost. I can tell that it’s not just the cracked earth but the air has gotten colder too. Occasional wisps of white frost swirl around me at various heights and distances. “This should work. I think,” I comment while watching everyone else look around inside my frosty bubble. “Amazing! It’s so pleasantly chilly here!” Marcia shouts joyfully and then snaps her gaze onto me with a mysterious grin. “Hey. Your whole body turned winter cold, right? Inside out?” I raise a brow at her. “Uhhh… Yeah?” “Does this mean that is a literal ice cream now?” She seductively licks her lips. I snort and swipe down my face with a wry smile. God-fucking-dammit… Now I’ve been turned into a living ice cream dispenser? Really? Plug-and-fucking-play? Or rather, plug-and-fucking-suck? Gods… This won’t end well... “Can you uphold it for the whole day?” Natalie asks, bringing me back from the unexpected revelation. “This must be an extremely draining magic.” “It barely consumes anything. And my mana reserves feel almost bottomless. Not to boast, but I have 238 points in Intelligence and can utilize 100% of it so that definitely helps a little bit.” “WHAT THE FUCK?!” Kamil screams in confusion while I catch Natalie’s brows rising almost to the top of her forehead for the first time in my life. “How can you have so much?!” “I’m pretty sure you know exactly how.” I shrug. “Perks of being Sexmancer and things like that. Being surrounded by a few strong and loving wives does help a little.” “He is a fucking god, that’s how!” Marcia laughs. “I’ll tell you all about it while we walk if you want. I’m quite fresh myself since Shino explained it to me just recently, but I got the gist of it. Come on! We shouldn’t waste more time! We have a pretty Elf to deliver home!” Ghilerie blushes ever so faintly and smiles at the lively redhead. We slowly get into a proper formation and move out. As she promised, Marcia chats with Kamil about the details of my Class, my powers and everything else as they walk side by side. Surprisingly, I don’t receive any nefarious stares from the man in question. He only rolls his eyes from time to time and groans at his friend. With my boosted hearing, I catch Marcia teasing him about a different kind of skill and prowess a few times. I would have expected Kamil to get at least a little angry that I banged his friend under his nose but it looks like he really did change to some extent. We journey through the scorched land which looks like a completely dried-up bottom of a river or lake—perhaps one existed here hundreds if not thousands of years ago—while keeping our guards up for any signs of danger. The chilly atmosphere in the five-meter radius around me helps our concentration a lot. And it’s not like monsters have that many spots to hide and ambush us. Besides the different elevation of the terrain and occasional rocks of various sizes—and bones, lots of bones—there’s nothing around, really. A no man’s land. Maybe more like dead man’s land. It will be a pain travelling through this repetitive scorching hot and damaged earth. We take a break for dinner. Obviously, as much as Marcia would love to, the girls decide not to consume their meal straight from the dispenser in front of everyone and agree that bringing out a tent to hide the process would be awkward. Besides, everyone wants to stay near me and chill. Literally. Thus, our experiment changes from three meals a day to two and they skip dinner. I argue that it’s not exactly the best idea in our current situation but Marcia somehow manages to convince the rest that they will be fine and that they will stop immediately when one of them feels like it affects them negatively. In the end, I surrender and eat my normal portion with the others. The rest of the day passes uneventfully and we set up a camp. I disable my borrowed skill since it won’t be of any use during cold desert nights and we all go to sleep after spending some time chatting together around the fire. Of course, not without the girls showing up in my tent for their share. In the morning, I wake up before everyone else—excluding Paul, who held the last shift—and get my chill vibes going to save my sleeping friends from the suffering of having to wake up drowning in their own sweat from the unbearable heat. I have spent a night alone this time since the girls didn’t want to wake me up when switching shifts. Marcia shows up in my tent as the first one while mumbling something about being unable to wait anymore to taste my frosty cream for breakfast. She proceeds to do exactly that after caressing the winter-cold south pole with her tongue for a few moments, relishing in the chilled popsicle. She keeps sighing in bliss while consuming what she calls the sweetest iced whipped cream ever. Teffith, Ghileire, and even Shino agree with her after showing up for their meals and the four dazzling beauties start openly discussing their individual impressions of my delicious, snowy cum. What a time to be alive… After packing up the camp, we continue forward. Nothing special happens in the next three days. The occasional dog-sized scorpions and snakes that show up mostly during the night or around the early and late hours are dealt with by our rangers. Ghilerie is more than happy to make use of her new bow and boosted stats. There are also no issues with my plan. I don’t feel drained by Coldblooded, even with how much the girls drain me every day, and they actually seem fine too. More than fine, I’d say. It’s a weird thought but my seed really makes them full and energetic. And, of course, a bit stronger with the temporary buff. On the fourth day, we are still making our way through this dead land when the ground starts suddenly shaking out of nowhere. “What the fuck is this?” Kamil shouts, surprised, trying not to fall down. “No idea but stay alert!” Paul replies and we all look around, battle-ready. Then, one by one, giant pillars emerge from the scorched ground at various spots around us and then dive back into the brown dirt. Five enormous Sandworms start circling us, each with jaws wide enough to swallow three people at once. “Ah, shit…”
Chapter 104 – Secrets of the Sands Spoiler: Chapter With the appearance of five giant worms that could easily swallow a school bus whole, everyone immediately switches into battle mode. We look around as the monsters go in and out of the ground, circling us like a bunch of thirsty sharks that have just stumbled on fresh prey. I quickly grab my draconic hilt and send a wave of mana into the purple crystal serving as the pommel. In a flash, mesmerizing pinkish smoke forms a long line from the dragon’s jaws which soon takes the shape of a girthy pole with the actual hilt and purple gem at the very bottom. Since our opponents are Sandworms, the nasty, tough, persistent bugs with bodies protected by incredibly durable chitin armour, I pick the best possible weapon that has any chances of doing anything to them without aiming specifically at their insides through their round maws filled with rows of sharp teeth. An impressive double-sided hammer forms at the top of the violet-purple pole, revealing its function as a massive war hammer. Its size is nothing to scoff at and I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t be able to wield such a heavy-looking thing if I was my past self, without the help of my high stats, new body, and the subservience of the artefact. And, fortunately, even though it’s quite sizable, it’s still believable without looking utterly stupid. “We should split up and have each group focus on one!” Kamil shouts while activating a few of his defensive abilities. “No!” Paul immediately shoots him down. “Group up and stay together! They can’t attack all at once if we are all in the same spot! Only one will be able to come at us at a time!” At least one person is using their brain properly. No surprise he ended up as the team’s leader. I’m not sure how much he knows about Sandworms from this world but his decision is the best possible one in the current situation. He always could quickly pick up on the tiniest details and make great use of them. Something covers my body in the form of a sapphire layer that quickly disappears into thin air. Feeling magic flowing into me, I glance behind my back and find Natalie on one knee while playing her acoustic guitar. Her music is lost in the rumbling the worms create but it doesn’t seem that we need to hear it perfectly for the magic to settle in. One of the Sandworms finally grows tired of just watching and surges out of the ground, making an arc with its massive body that clearly is going to close the circuit exactly where all of us stand. A deafening roar reverberates through the air as the hideous mouth looking like a multi-levelled, rotating meat grinder descends onto us. “All dodge right!” Paul commands and we move as a group. The monster’s movement isn’t incredibly fast and we have more than enough time to jump to the side before it plunges itself into the dried-up earth, continuing to dig forward as it disappears into the hole it creates like a slow train entering a tunnel. Everyone tries their best to make use of the Sandworm’s short moment of potential vulnerability and a myriad of attacks surge at its dark brown body. Shino, Kamil and Marcia activate a skill each, covering their weapons in colourful hues, and slash at the monster’s armour from up close. Teffith prepares a thrusting technique and follows after them. Ghilerie and Paul both seem to use Arcane Arrow and send the projectiles forward with a loud whizz while Natalie calls on multiple instances of Wind Blade from her magical repertoire. As all the attacks hit the monster’s body almost at the same time, I slam my war hammer into its fleeting side shortly after them. We then observe as the Sandworm gradually disappears into the scorched earth with just a few shallow cuts in its exoskeleton and a small cracked pit created by my blow. We move away from the hole it leaves behind itself and group up again, watching the other enemies with the utmost attention. “What the fuck are we supposed to do?” Kamil shouts into the open. “We’ve barely scratched that fuck’s back!” “They have incredible Tremor Sense and it’s a double-edged sword for them!” I reply. Paul catches on within a second and draws his bowstring back in a blink again. The tip of his arrow starts buzzing and trembling the longer he holds it back. “Thumbs into ears and mouths open!” Everyone follows without hesitation and he releases the arrow high into the air, doing the same as he has advised us to immediately after the feathers leave his fingers. The projectile whizzes through the air and explodes with a powerful seismic shock that passes through our bodies with a pressure strong enough to be comparable to getting hit with a wall of wind, forcing a few people to take a step back to remain standing. It then hits us again. And again. And again. Totalling at seven pulses, the shockwaves finally stop. We look around and notice that all the worms have hidden away under the ground after getting hit a few times. The earth is still rumbling so they haven’t run away and are just circling under us for now. But, that gives us some time to discuss the strategy. “Their receptors are located around one meter away from the maw’s edge. A solid hit in that area can give them an insufferable concussion. Slashing and piercing weapons will take ages to push through the armour so bring out the most heavy-hitting skills you have,” I quickly continue where I left off. “How are we supposed to hit them there when they are moving all the time? Their heads are almost permanently underground unless they come out to attack,” Teffith asks after stepping closer to me. “The insides of their mouths should be vulnerable. I can try preparing a spell and having them lured into swallowing it,” Natalie chimes in with a suggestion of her own. “That could work,” Paul agrees. “I assume that after we succeed in incapacitating one as you said, Alastair, we then all have to attack the same spot while it’s unmoving to cut its head off?” I nod. “That or slice through as much of its mouth from the front, chucking spells and arrows inside too, and hope to deal enough damage for it to run away. You can also try to pierce the brain through there but it’s not that easy to figure out which side is up and down. Both of these tactics are much more dangerous than the beheading one.” “I can make short work of its gums with our Dragonewt friend while our archers and Nat butcher it from a distance,” Marcia adds. “Kamil-san and I have the strongest single-strike skills so we can try cutting its head off in the meanwhile. It would be too crowded in front of its mouth anyway,” Shino comments next. Kamil nods. “I’m going to turn these worms into a fucking fish bait!” Marcia snorts at him. “And what are you going to use it on? A leviathan?” “We can figure that out later. First, let’s get past the fish bait stage.” I chuckle and shake my head. “I’ll let you guys have the first strike while I check something.” Right on time, the worms begin resurfacing again and drilling through the ground towards our new position since we have moved slightly away from the previously created tunnel to avoid getting pushed in. Everyone puts their guards up and awaits the next attempt to swallow them whole. Dividing my focus between watching our opponents and pulling up my system windows, I hastily navigate to the What’s Mine Is Yours skill and open the catalogue of abilities I can kindly borrow from my Partners. The chilly aura won’t be of much use in our current predicament and the cooldown has already finished. While fishing for something useful, I watch how another Sandworm surges from the ground and soars towards our group with a similar arc to its sibling, if any of them are actually related. Natalie has been ready and an impressive Fireball forms above her head after she raises both hands up. She calmly calculates the trajectories of the worm’s mouth and her projectile and launches the giant ball of swirling flames straight into the Sandworm’s fully open maw. The spell explodes on impact and covers the monster’s front with a fierce inferno. Unfortunately, the Sandworm continues on its path like nothing has happened and pushes through the cloud of fire to continue falling on the people it has targeted; its mouth singed only a little bit, without any more serious damage visible. We manage to jump away in time and the giant locomotive of flesh and chitin buries into the ground, causing it to tremble strongly. The others try a few attacks that don't cost them a lot of mana or energy but, as everyone expected, don’t cause their opponent any harm. “Looks like fire isn’t the best choice here,” Ghilerie comments. “I should have known considering how hot it is around here,” Natalie responds in her usual calm manner but with a hint of disappointment hidden in her melodic voice. “Don’t beat yourself down, Natalie-san. I would have tried the same. In games we have played together, monsters with high fire resistance from the outside were usually vulnerable to it on the inside,” Shino tries to cheer her best friend up. “Unfortunately, this is not a game, even though we do have an RPG-like system,” I join in and pat Shino and Natalie on the shoulder. “But, fortunately, I found what I’ve been looking for. It’s my time to shine now.” Marcia snickers. “Haven’t you been shining constantly since we left the capital? Any more and I’ll need some quality sunglasses.” I chuckle. “Sorry if it looked like that. I did not plan on stealing the spotlight from any of you. I just can’t sit back when I have the chance to help.” “Do whatever you need,” Paul nods at me. “None of that will matter if we end up dead. And another one is coming.” Shortly after Paul finishes, one of the worms that have arrived closer, tightening the circles it has been making around us, surfaces with obvious intent. But, almost immediately, another one does the same from the opposite direction and we watch how they crash into each other above us, screeching in what we assume is frustration as both worms bounce to the sides and burrow into the ground having completely interrupted each other’s attacks. “Glad to see that the strategy is working,” Teffith comments. “Fortunately, they are as smart as a rock,” I add. “Here comes another one. Be ready to jump in.” I fix my grip on the hilt of my heavy war hammer and take a comfortable position on my feet as a single Sandworm soars towards us this time. Focusing my senses to their utmost limit, I wait for the perfect moment. I have only one shot. They are big and stupid but the chances of them noticing what I’m after aren’t that low. The massive maw filled with rows of teeth descends onto us and the rest of the group jumps away, leaving only me in the spot. I can feel the confusion coming in through my bond with the girls that have become my Partners but I don’t let it disrupt my concentration. Just shortly before I end up swallowed by the hideous beast, I activate Crushing Fury that I have borrowed from my lovely dwarf wife and a powerful burst of energy surges from within the depths of my body to every corner of it. A savage war cry escapes my throat as I push myself to my right strong enough to break my footing while also reeling my weapon behind my back from the same side. Arriving outside of the edge of the Sandworm’s mouth, I dive my feet hard into the ground, creating two small craters under my soles, and redirect the whole momentum I have gained into my war hammer by suddenly stopping. The wide and extremely powerful swing connects with the side of the monster’s head just moments before it reaches the scorched ground and a deafening impact shakes the air, sending a mighty shockwave around. Amongst loud screeching and cracking of its almost completely shattered chitin armour, the Sandworm’s head is sent flying to the side, tumbling over the sand and earth, before it stops moving completely. Only weak shivers plague its body as it tries to slither away. The rest of the party waits for no signal and they all dash past me to take their positions before another worm decides to have a go at us while its sibling is knocked out of the competition to eat as many people as possible. Just as planned, Marcia, Teffith, Natalie, Ghilerie and Paul assault its open maw while Shino and Kamil both charge a powerful ability side by side. The samurai girl takes a drawing stance with dark energy gathering around her sheathed katana and the Hero raises his sword in both hands above his head as a swirling golden mist surrounds it. She attacks first and starts repeatedly making a slash and bringing her sword back to the sheath which is ominously leaking with black smoke. One after another, violent arcs of pure darkness slam into the monster’s neck, digging deeper and deeper through its armour with each impact. After cutting through about one-third of the Sandworm’s body, she stops and falls on one knee while breathing heavily. Kamil takes it as his cue and makes a step forward. His longsword suddenly shines like a sun and gains in size enough to make the incapacitated worm look like a carrot lying on a chopping board, waiting for the inevitable. The extremely sharp pillar of light slams into the Sandworm from above just at the spot where Shino has been cutting into it and immediately dives almost halfway in. But, unfortunately, it doesn’t go completely through and Kamil struggles to push it down any further while the enemy is starting to slowly stir, somehow still not dead with such an enormous cut. With the aggressive energy of Crushing Fury still coursing through my veins, I push myself forward and arrive at their position in two quick strides. I lunge into the air with a loud shout much higher than I would have assumed I ever could and slam my war hammer into Kamil’s golden blade of light from above. Another earth-shaking impact sends off a shockwave in every direction as my blow finishes what the Hero has started and buries the holy sword into the ground, beheading the Sandworm completely. The bottom end of the monster keeps spasming and writhing after breaking free from the top end but the beast is effectively dead. I quickly deactivate Sirgia’s skill before I launch myself at the rest of the enemies in blind rage and craving for a battle that fills my mind to the brim. It’s an unbelievably powerful surge of strength on top of my already high stats but, just as she said, it’s hard to control yourself in this state. It should be great for short bursts of power, though. “Sensei! Are you fine?” Shino’s voice reaches my ears and I walk out from the small patch of bloody carnage behind the monster’s head. “I’m good. Don’t let your guards down. There are still four of them. Can you guys do that again?” I ask. “It’s a bit draining to continuously use that skill, but I’ll do my best,” she answers enthusiastically while catching her breath. “Group up!” Paul’s orders travel through the air and we all nod at each other. Summoning the best of my mana and energy potions from my storage ring, I walk closer to the duo on my way towards our leader’s voice. After reaching Shino, I throw them at Kamil and pick her up from the front, causing the timid girl to quietly yelp in surprise before wrapping her legs behind my back and throwing her arms over my shoulders. “Sorry, but we do not have the leeway to mind the place,” I say to Shino and pull her into a kiss while still walking forward. A little bit startled and shy at first, she quickly catches up on my intentions and pursues my mouth actively as I try to pass her my supposedly energetic saliva while we passionately make out. Supporting my short Japanese girlfriend’s soft butt with my free hand, I cast Rejuvenate too, which results in Shino releasing a few quiet moans into my lips. Paul spots the three of us coming to join them and looks at our group in confusion as Kamil walks shortly behind me and Shino fervently kissing each other while he chugs the potions I have handed to him. Marcia grins at me and I can spot a few smiles from the other girls, except for Natalie. She has the same calm and neutral expression as usual while… giving me a sneaky thumbs up by the side of her waist. This girl… Best friend Shino could dream of, for sure. “Do I also get the free recharge package of kissing and groping or do I have to earn it first?” Marcia asks with a playful undertone. “And I sure hope I can choose a different place to place a kiss on.” I roll my eyes at her while letting the crimson-faced Shino down. “My saliva works like highest-grade potions for my Partners. That would be pointless.” “Saliva isn’t the only liquid your body can produce,” she answers with a mischievous smile. “You are not going to suck me in the middle of a fight and in front of everyone to recover a little. And we have no time. The last thing I want is getting caught with my dick in someone’s mouth when another worm bursts out.” I can see Teffith opening her mouth to say something on the side and I quickly point a finger and squint at her, forcing her to remain silent and not speak those words that I know exactly what they would be. I don’t need everyone knowing that I can bust a nut whenever I want. She smiles at me softly, catching the attention of others. We do not continue this banter because one of the Sandworms makes a move and we focus fully on the battle again. Thankfully, it doesn’t look like they have figured out the reason why their friend has died by our hands and keep trying to bite into this dinner squirming in front of them. Making use of the same strategy as with the first one, we manage to bring down two more worms in a similar way before the remaining ones increase the distance but still circle around us without showing the signs of abandoning this encounter. I have, of course, helped Shino recover the same way and shared a kiss with both Teffith and Ghilerie to rejuvenate them too. Marcia has theatrically shown her exhaustion and extorted a kiss too, greedily sucking on my lips. “What now? They don’t seem eager to attack anymore,” Natalie asks after around three minutes of nothing but the worms traversing underground around us. “We need a way to lure them out or we won’t be able to safely—” *CRACK* Interrupted, I immediately shoot my gaze towards the source of the loud and earthy crack, noticing a branching fracture coming from the edge of one of the tunnel openings the worms have created while attempting to swallow us. *CRACK* *CRACK* It starts widening and traversing towards us while another hole joins it in sending those fissures in various directions. *CRACK* *CRACK* *CRACK* “RUN!” Paul shouts and we all do exactly that. One of the worms surges out of the ground and starts diving in and out repeatedly on the same path as us, chasing our party from behind while creating more pitfalls. “What the fuck is happening?!” Kamil yells as we dash forward. “They have burrowed underneath us and are trying to collapse the surface!” I yell back, realizing why they haven’t resurfaced for three minutes straight. “Where’s the other one?” Ghilerie asks, looking around. A powerful trembling, gradually increasing in intensity, almost makes us trip. “Below!” Marcia shouts and, exactly at that moment, the second Sandworm bursts out from the ground under our feet. We are sent into the air and I can see parts of the ground collapsing all around us, uncovering a dark abyss that spans wide and deep. While soaring through the sky alongside chunks of hardened, dried-up earth and the giant worm, I notice that the others have somehow managed to find each other in this chaos and fly closer. Everyone except for me, Natalie and Shino. The three of us fall in different directions. I make a decision in a split-second and activate Crushing Fury again, rotating myself just right to land my feet on a jagged block of sandstone. With a powerful squat, I thrust myself towards Natalie, who is struggling to manoeuvre around the debris with her Wind Magic. She notices my approach and tries to keep her face on mine as I arrive closer to her position. “Alastair! We need to get to the othe—ugh?!” She isn't able to finish her sentence as I slam into a big chunk of earth just by her and immediately hit her in the side with a spinning kick that sends her body soaring towards the grouped others. I will apologize for that later. She will be fine. She’s a skilled healer. Shino has her movement skill so the choice was obvious. Before I can do anything else, all of us plunge into the underground depths created by the Sandworms. And not only, I think. They wouldn’t have been able to dig out so much earth in that short moment. We’ve been unlucky enough to fight above a natural cave system. I hit many shelves, corners and protrusions while falling, avoiding getting impaled or cut into two by anything any close to sharp. Both the still active Crushing Fury and my body’s own toughness save me from any serious injuries and I only get some bruises now and then. After around fifteen seconds, I spot a flash of someone’s skill and attempt to get closer to that. It seems that luck is on my side because I tumble into everyone falling together and the light was Natalie’s skill to cushion the landing. They notice me and quickly form a human ladder to grab my hand before we are split by a wall or something. Shortly after I get pulled to them, we reach the bottom and Natalie’s ability creates something akin to an ethereal pillow that puffs air to the sides as we hit it. Deflating completely, it drops us to the stone floor from up close. ~Sensei! Sensei! Where are you?!~ Shino’s voice rings in my head, surprisingly, without the seductive tone. I glance around and notice that she’s not with us and the only one currently absent. Everyone else is here. ~Calm down. I’m fine and I’m with the others. What about you?~ I ask. ~Thank gods. I saw you get pushed away from me and I didn’t get to you in time. I’m okay. In some dark cave currently. I’m going to use my Shadow Step to find you guys by following the path to your position, Sensei.~ ~Wait. That’s not exactly the best idea. You might end up in the middle of some monster’s den while jumping ahead. We don’t know what we can find down here.~ ~But…~ “Alastair?” Teffith’s voice brings me out of my mental conversation and I notice that everyone is staring at me. “Ah. Sorry. I’ve been speaking with Shino mentally. We can more or less feel each other’s positions. She’s quite far from us.” “That’s bad. She’ll be alone in an unknown land,” Ghilerie comments. “Shino is strong. She can handle herself. And Al said she can feel him too so we just need to regroup,” Marcia joins in. I rub my chin while they start exchanging thoughts about our situation. “I will bring her here,” I finally make a decision and interrupt the conversation. “What? How? Why?” Kamil furrows his brows in confusion. “I can switch places with one of my Partners once per… twelve days now. No matter the distance. As you said, she is strong, but I know more about this world and I’m currently the strongest amongst us, by a huge margin. Plus, I can summon a friend to help me out in a crisis. She’s a Tier 5 Arch Succubus. Shino will be able to fight better alongside all of you.” Silence falls onto us as my words slowly sink in. I didn’t mean to sound like I’m putting myself above them, but that’s just how things are, without sugarcoating anything. I have the highest chances of coming out of this unscathed when going alone. I can feel the faint worry and anxiety from Teffith and even some traces of it from Ghilerie so I smile at them to reassure my companions. Teffith smiles back with a nod while my new elf friend still seems a little uncertain. “Since I don’t hear a no, please, explain the situation to Shino after she appears here. She will definitely reject the idea if I run it by her.” Everyone nods and I dive into my connection again. ~Sorry for suddenly going quiet. We had to discuss something. Are you in a safe spot right now?~ ~No problem, Sensei. Yes, I think I am. Why?~ I invoke the Heart Swap skill and experience the familiar pull but much stronger this time. In an instant, my vision returns from the pitch-black darkness and I find myself in a different place, immediately bringing up a small flame above my finger through Livelihood Magic. A light brown tunnel spans around me. ~Sensei! Why did you do that!~ Shino’s voice rings in my head and I can sense her slight worry through our bond. ~You are the strongest after me. They need you. I’ll manage. Ask them to explain the rest. Let’s try to regroup and find an exit. Don’t worry about me.~ She doesn’t answer for a few moments and then I perceive something akin to a mental nod. ~Thank you. Take care.~ ~You too, Sensei.~ With that resolved, I turn my attention to the place where I have landed after the transfer. First, I get rid of that little flame and send some mana into my eyes. Most of my senses have been gradually increasing since the big change in physique and sight hasn't been lagging behind. After a moment of adjusting, I start to be able to see everything quite comfortably. I’m pretty sure part of that is thanks to my Primordial heritage. I don’t think they had perfect Darkvision but they surely had great sight. Since I don’t know what I could be facing, I leave my artefact in the war hammer form. The tunnels seem wide enough to take a proper swing and the ceiling is so high I can’t see it in the darkness. And, it’s not like you can only take swings with such a weapon. People forget you can still partially use the long grip like a stick and the sharp purple crystal should be decent for stabbing. Therefore, I take a few short minutes to fix my bruised skin with Rejuvenate and head out, trying to follow a path leading towards the position of the girls I have Partnered with. Thanks to the fact that there are four of them in the same spot, the signal is pretty clear. Shino’s presence feels the strongest, of course. Around fifteen minutes in, I begin hearing light skittering somewhere ahead. Many sharp tippy-taps hit the stone ground in a steady rhythm. “Oh gods… Please, don’t let it be what I think it is…” The skittering clearly heads towards me so I move closer to the nearby wall and raise my hammer, hiding behind the corner. In just a moment, something walks into my range and I mercilessly bring the weapon down after recognizing the creature’s shape. A faint splat echoes through the corridor and a quiet, low screech of a dying entity follows after it. “Because of course, we had to fall into a cave with giant fucking spiders! This one was almost as big as a dog!” I quickly notify the girls connected to me about my findings and focus on the upcoming battle. A myriad of those tippy-taps is now speeding my way after I reduced one of their kin to a puddle of dark blue liquid. Assuming that the other spiders will be as soft and squishy as the first one, I reshape my weapon into a sword-whip form and prepare for combat. This will give me more movement and better chances versus multiple enemies than that war hammer. Three of the not-so-little spiders dash into my tunnel and hiss in dissatisfaction after noticing me. I don’t give them a chance to act first and swing my flexible whip-like blade at the skittering bunch looking like black widow spiders with white legs, black abdomens and dark blue patterns over their trunks. The deadly rope cuts through one of them before the spiders react and jump aside, landing on the opposite walls. Their determination to get me doesn’t diminish even slightly and they work their eight thin long legs to their limits. Of course, I don’t just keep stepping back while doing nothing and guide my weapon through the air like a coiling snake into the left attacker. It jumps to the ceiling to avoid the strike but half of its legs get caught in the swipe and it drops onto the ground while hissing. Reeling my whip-sword back, I mutilate the fallen opponent which is lying belly up and swing towards the last enemy. Already witnessing me killing two of its companions, it does a better job at avoiding getting cut by the rows of blades moving in a seemingly chaotic and uncontrolled fashion and lands just in front of me. Unfortunately, it must have assumed that my sword is the only way I can attack and defend, which proves to be a huge mistake as I drive my heel straight into its thorax from above with enough force to rival the hammer. It splatters against the ground in a similar manner to the first spider I have bested, screeching wistfully until all life fades out of its body. "Ugh. Even with magic, that will be a pain to clean up." I don’t have time to even send a silent prayer its way as a bunch of its kin skitters into the corridor decorated with the four spider corpses. “Oh, boy. Here I go killing again.” I’m fairly sure they won’t just let me pass through their territory peacefully so I begin the massacre. Spider fragments, intestines and corpses fly around and crash into the walls as I dance in the middle of the swarm while leading my whip-sword through the air. They start spitting some dark sapphire liquid at me but none of that lands, fortunately. I bet it’s poison. After ten minutes of uninterrupted slaughter, the skittering stops. I’ve murdered around fifty spiders, I think. Sorry, little ones, but it’s you or me. I just hope you weren’t like some weak-ass grunts standing guard to something bigger. I can live without meeting this world’s equivalent of Shelob. Confirming that nothing else seems to be lurking around, I resume my journey through the tunnels. There’s much less webbing than I would have expected. I’m pretty sure most species do produce it in this realm. Unfortunately, I don’t think I read about this particular kind. I would remember such an appearance. Noticing the increased presence of thicker and more voluminous webs, I decide to do the smart thing and head through corridors with the least of them or those looking like they are leading away from this underground lair of unfamiliar spiders. I’m still walking towards the others, which is good. Unfortunately, after walking through a few passageways with fewer and fewer traces of white silk, I step into a bigger chamber and immediately notice that I’m standing on a shelf by the ceiling of a wide and tall cavern. And, just my luck, it’s not empty. 「No freaking way…」I think to myself after starting to recognize the shapes moving down below. To get a better view and additionally reduce my visibility, I slowly lower myself to the ground and quietly move closer to the edge of the shelf, peaking over it just a little bit with my eyes. Down there, on the ground, a bunch of horse-sized spiders of the same colour scheme as the ones I have encountered earlier walk around the chamber while clearly handling certain tasks. But, the shocking part is the fact that in place of their heads, naked, blue-skinned female bodies rise up. Arachnes. There’s no doubt. We fell into a den of Arachnes. And from what I know, they aren’t exactly the warmest and most welcoming community. While they are sapient and intelligent, most of their kind is simply speaking… vile and ruthless. Of course, not every single subspecies, but the vast majority. And especially those living this deep underground. I dislike the idea of having to slaughter spider women but they will label me as prey the moment they notice me. They have zero interest in interacting with any other race or species. Well, besides killing and eating them. I was really sad when I learned that the majority of Arachnes are considered monsters by the inhabitants of this world. You can find peaceful tribes living on the surface, and even some individuals in the towns outside of the Human lands, but that’s very rare. And my first encounter with these fascinating beings just has to be a kill or die situation. My ear twitches a little when it catches something peculiar. I quickly focus more on my hearing and my brows rise in surprise. “I brought the Sklyaghven the hunters found in the Hrajaki a few hours ago. What to do with it?” “Put the carcass down at the far end. We will bring it to the Ljugu swarm soon. Their feeding time is nigh.” I can understand them! I’m not sure which language they are speaking exactly, but it’s definitely one that I have learned or it’s a dialect similar enough for me to process it decently well. I wonder if the Ljugu swarm was those dog-sized guys. The Arachnes won’t be happy after they find out that I slaughtered their foot soldiers or border guards. “Ah!” “Watch where you are going, you abomination!” A quiet cry of pain catches my attention and I move my eyes towards the source. One of the spider-women is currently using her thin legs to hit… a normal woman? It’s hard to see this far in the darkness even with my enhanced vision and the big abdomen of the Arachne obscures the sight but I’m pretty sure that’s a fully humanoid girl. Is she a prisoner? I almost let out a gasp when the Arachne finishes bludgeoning the poor girl and starts walking away, letting me clearly watch how the very thin, pale-skinned woman with short shining silvery hair uses her legs to raise herself back up from the ground. And, no, even though she has normal human-like feet, she uses six black spider-like spikes that clearly come out of her back similar to a certain spider-themed superhero when he activates instant kill mode in the suit he received from a certain billionaire who has a lot to do with ironing jokes. She plops herself back onto her human feet and begins collecting something from the ground that must have fallen out of her hands after she collided with the Arachne. Another spider-woman passes by her and slaps her in the face with one of her white spider-legs for no reason. “Filth,” she throws at the humanoid girl with noticeable disdain. The abused girl takes it like it’s nothing and continues with her task, whatever it is. I observe her for a little longer, catching words like monster, freak or fiend when the actual spider women mention her between themselves. “Hmmmmm…”
Chapter 105 – Home Makeover Spoiler: Chapter I keep myself low and hidden while observing the spider women moving around the cave and thinking about the current situation. The best choice would be to avoid any contact if possible and sneak past them, continuing on my path to meet the others. Additionally, they are most likely heading my way too, which means they are about to run into the Arachnes at some point. But, that humanoid-looking girl keeps bothering me. I think it’s fair to assume that she’s something that could be considered an albino amongst her kind. Many of them aren’t treated too well in nature back on Earth and are often ostracized due to their differences. While it’s mostly about being a danger to the group as those differences might make it easier for predators to spot them, I don’t think it’s that in this case. I wouldn’t be surprised if she is hated so much only because she looks different from them. In any way, call me a fool, but I want to go down there and help her. But, even so, I’m not as stupid to just charge straight at them and valiantly save the damsel in distress. First of all, I need to know if she even can or wants to be saved. Even if the girl is treated like dirt and waste, she was most likely born into this community and is still a part of it. The other spider women can still be considered her family, her nest, her home. If she held no attachments to this place, she would have definitely tried to escape the abuse. But, no matter how skewed and forced onto her they might be, she could very well believe herself to be truly a lesser being and accept her slave-like role for the community. Unfortunately, I can’t confirm anything without actually interacting with the girl, which could prove to be extremely dangerous. I’m pretty confident in handling the number of Arachnes in this chamber but who knows how many more there are and what’s the hierarchical structure of their den. The women present here are clearly workers or something. Noticing that most of them are slowly beginning to leave the stone room through various exits after finishing their tasks, I make a quick decision to use that opportunity if it actually presents itself to me. To not waste this chance, I get in touch with Shino while observing the movements down below. ~Hey. How are you guys doing on the other side?~ I ask. ~We are fine, Sensei. There were some lizards or other monsters on our path but nothing too dangerous. We are slowly moving your way.~ ~I’m glad to hear that. Now, I have to take care of something here so I will stop heading your way for a moment. As for you, I need you to do something. When you stumble onto tunnels with many spiders, do not engage them if possible, and stay away. Do not go further on that path. You can still try to look for an exit around or another way or just stay near them while waiting for me.~ ~Why?~ ~How do I say this… I might possibly be somewhere in the centre of a quite dangerous spider nest. I do hope to avoid direct confrontation but it might not be possible. It would be risky if you attacked it from the outside or were spotted going in so I would rather you stay near. If things go to shit on my side, I’ll run towards you and we’ll regroup to handle the enemies together while retreating.~ Silence answers me for a moment and I can feel Shino’s worry through our bond even though some distance separates us. I didn’t want to lie to her about my situation. That would only make her worry even more and could lead to her making rash decisions when she would learn what I have gotten myself into. ~Alright, Sensei. But, please, be careful. I know that you are strong, but still. We will be waiting for you as you requested.~ I smile to myself and focus my mind on reaching with my consciousness through the bond we share and bring my presence to Shino, just like I did with Cornelia long ago, letting her feel like I’m giving her a gentle hug from behind. I can sense her smiling back and I return to the situation below. Most of the spider women have left and the rest looks like they are preparing to do the same. Two of them drag a cocoon each behind their backs as they skitter outside. I’ve already seen another pair wrap the lizard-like monster one of the Arachnes has brought earlier with their webs into such form so I’m pretty sure they are all going to eat or deliver food somewhere. A big part of this chamber is storage for their captured supplies. As expected, the humanoid-looking girl keeps doing her job without paying attention to the bigger spider women leaving and they don’t bring her with them either. From what I can see, she was tasked with expanding the storage and is using her six spike-like legs to dig through the stone, which is clearly exhausting and not that easy, even though she is able to make okayish progress. Her spider legs must be incredibly durable and sharp. I’m fairly sure I won’t be getting a better chance to approach her than this so I hastily shape my weapon into a long whip and coil it around a nearby stalagmite, starting to rappel myself lower and lower over the steep wall of the cavern. She either doesn’t have too great hearing or the noise she is creating chipping away pieces of rock masks the sounds of my descent well enough for her not to notice it yet. I have to reel the whip back two times while somehow hanging onto the protruding parts before I hit the solid ground. Going down is always much more nerve-wracking than going up. Especially without any safety equipment. Glancing around, I get the feeling that I can see a little better in this darkness. Led by it, I check on my status, and surely, Darkvision has appeared under my Common Passives. Be it from the fact that I have used mana to slightly enhance my eyes or the fact that my race can see much better, or maybe both, my ability has been acknowledged by the system. Good timing. No new Arachne has appeared in the room while I made my way here and only the humanoid girl keeps striking the hard stone on the other side of the chamber. Still very careful, I slowly move closer and closer, thinking about how to approach her and which language to use if she even can understand me. From the conversations of the other women, I think they used Terrerian. That’s my safest bet. I stop some distance from the busy Half-Arachne. Arriving much closer, I can finally see some more details about her. She seems to be quite short, perhaps around Shino’s height, more or less. Besides the six obvious onyx spikes that extend from her back and are currently stabbing the stone in front of the girl, nothing else breaks the image of just a normal humanoid woman. Her ears are short but slightly sharp, just like Sirgia’s, and she has very short silvery hair. Just a single glance tells me the other Arachne grabbed, tore, cut, and mistreated it a lot with how unusually short, messy and jagged it is. She could be taken for a boy from behind if not for the lack of the necessary dangly bits to be called one. Most of the women had quite long hair, often reaching their spider abdomens, but they must have kept ruining not only this girl’s body and have gone for her hair in their spite too, to make her look even less than them as much as it was possible. Her beautiful almost pure white skin is dirtied by countless bruises, blemishes and scars pretty much everywhere. It pains me so much from just moving my gaze over her wounded and hurt body. It’s just another reminder that every world is a cruel place that cares not for its inhabitants and who they are. But, I don’t really have time to think about unnecessary things like that right now. If I manage to get her out of this hell, I’ll make sure to slowly but surely teach this poor girl about care and affection, something she has clearly never experienced in her life. To do that, though, I need her to agree to come with me. I should not let my hopes and expectations get ahead of me. I need to steel myself for the possible rejection or even instant hostile reaction. I can’t bring her back forcefully and risk her hurting anyone I hold dear as much as it would pain me to leave her here alone or have to hurt her in self-defence. Priorities must be kept. So, silently reshaping my artefact into a sword, I try to assume the least threatening posture I can while holding a weapon in one hand. Chances that she doesn’t recognize the sword as a weapon even if she had never seen one in her life are quite low. Instincts are a thing. “Hey,” I speak calmly and in a quiet voice, using Terrerian. She immediately jumps forward towards the stone while spinning around and presses her back into the wall that she has been excavating. Rough breaths escape the cute lips that decorate her adorable face, which would be much more charming if not for all the bruises and cuts staining it. Calming her breathing from the arduous exercise of chipping the stone away, her six black spider legs point my way and slowly move around while her eyes scan my figure. All six of them. Again, just like her back, her front has just a single feature that clearly differentiates the white-skinned girl from any other humanoid woman of petite stature. At the back, it’s the six onyx spikes coming out of it. At the front, it’s the six eyes filled with darkness as deep as an unending abyss. She has two big ones at the same height as most of the humanoids but there are two more pairs of tear-shaped eyes above her silvery brows, on her forehead, each smaller than the previous one. As for her figure in general, she is very petite just like I have said earlier. I’m pretty sure some of that is due to her being literally starved and exhausted almost to death, but I have a feeling that even with proper nutrition and care she would be quite small and thin. Regarding her chest department, she’s quite flat, although not completely. You can still make out the two tiny mounds that surround her small nipples. Again, it’s possible that she’s extremely malnourished and her body would gain some umph after getting on the right track of recovery. But, not that it matters. Another small detail that I catch is the fact that she seems completely hairless except for her head. Her white skin glistens alluringly even in this darkness and proudly presents its smoothness to the observer. At least at the parts that aren’t damaged. Needless to say, not even a tiny silver strand can be found around her girly parts, looking just as petite as the rest of the body. It somehow reminds me of Lianne for a moment. Considering that I had the time to completely check her out from both front and back without getting impaled by the sharp onyx spikes instantly, I can assume that the first part of the plan to get in contact has succeeded. Now, we need to somehow proceed as smoothly. I have noticed her deep obsidian eyes focusing on my hand most of the time while she was analyzing me just like I did, so I try to very slowly—keeping my gaze on her face—shove my sword into the ground by my side. The tip of the blade sinks into the stone floor with a quiet shiiing and I leave it there. The girl moves her three pairs of eyes back to my face and observes me attentively, with a bit less tension now. Her spider legs keep hovering in the air while aimed in my general direction. There’s some space between us and someone would have to step closer to get in range of the other person so I think she feels decently safe with this. But, I am mistaken. She is actually the first one to begin closing the distance between us, with a slow and very attentive step. One of her top spider legs extends forward much more than the others as she walks towards me and it soon arrives at my neck, pointing its extremely sharp tip at my throat. Watching me carefully, she comes to stand in front of me with that safety measure hanging just millimetres from piercing my skin. She’s almost a head shorter than me, now that I can fully confirm that. With faintly noticeable curiosity, she starts looking me over from up close while the five remaining legs poke my clothes at different spots. I have no idea why it feels like the right thing to do but I vanish all my attire into my storage ring and slowly extend my hands to the sides. The sudden change spooks the girl a little and the five spikes jerk back as she takes a step backwards. The one at my throat presses into my skin more, without puncturing it though. She tilts her head adorably after a moment and moves closer again. The surprise and curiosity are now even more apparent in her deep black eyes. The girl’s sharp spikes poke all around my body very gently, with me experiencing just a tiny prickle when she cautiously stabs me with some uncertainty. Her gaze wanders over my front until it locks on a certain place. I swallow my saliva while watching four of the spikes head down and thank the Goddess that I can control that part even with how much my heart is pounding right now and pumping the blood through my system. As if inherently understanding that she is dealing with something extremely sensitive and delicate, the girl doesn’t use the tips of her sharp limbs to poke my junk like the rest of my body and, instead, brushes against it with their edges, nudging my member and family jewels with even more curiosity. I’m pretty sure it's the first time she sees male parts considering how normal Arachnes reproduce. Maybe I’m even the first male that she has met in her life. The threatening leg gradually withdraws from my throat and I raise a brow at the petite girl. Very hesitantly, she steps even closer to me, bit by bit while observing my face for any reaction. Feeling like she has deemed me safe to approach, for now, I let her do so. Getting in range of her humanoid limbs, she hesitantly extends her small hand towards my torso and stops before her fingers touch my skin. Not seeing any reaction, she places her slightly chilly palm on my solar plexus and her small mouth opens a little. She unhurriedly drags it over my pecs, ribs, stomach and other parts of my front. I think the temperature and low heat that my body emanates has surprised her a little. From her touch, I can assume that her kin is a bit more cold-blooded in not just character. I don’t really mind letting such a dainty girl cop a feel or two of me, but we aren’t exactly plentiful on time. I have no idea when her big sisters will come back and interrupt her curious examination. Therefore, very calmly, I start moving my right arm lower. She obviously notices it instantly and watches me intently, still keeping her hand on my stomach. I try to mirror her previous actions and lazily bring my hand closer to her while observing her facial expressions, which are quite lacking and stuck at very neutral. I stop in front of her skin just the way she did and wait for a moment. Not seeing any reaction, I gently press my palm between her small breasts and confirm that her skin truly is a bit colder than mine and it isn’t just her fingers. Just like I let her touch me, it seems that she has nothing against returning the favour and letting me graze my fingers over her slightly chilly torso. I avoid getting any ideas unfit for the moment and just gently rub her tummy, skipping over the bruised spots, hoping this little amount of mutual skinship will be enough to prove the lack of malicious intentions. Then, after a moment, I take a step back from her and smile softly as the girl watches me curiously. “Can you understand me?” I ask calmly in the same language as before. She tilts her head a bit, making me think that perhaps she doesn’t and only has reacted to my voice earlier, but she follows that motion with a faint nod a moment later. My smile grows a little bigger. This will make things much easier. “Does it hurt anywhere?” I place my right palm on my chest. She stares at it for a moment and four of her six legs bend towards her body. Each spiky tip points at a different bruise over her alabaster skin. “I can make it not hurt if you let me,” I say and sit down cross-legged on the cold floor while glancing at her face. After a brief pause, the girl steps closer to me and tries to join me on the ground in the same manner. She has some trouble weaving her legs together like I did and sits on her butt instead with her knees to the front and slightly to the sides. Accidentally, it gives me the perfect view of her precious little mound with how it kisses the ground. Ignoring that little detail, I extend my hand towards the girl and she curiously places her palm into mine. Squeezing it gently, I activate Rejuvenate and gradually heal up her wounds. Bit by bit, most of the blemishes, bruises and scars fade away from her snowy skin. Her eyes dart to various parts of her body during the treatment. After finishing, I keep holding her petite hand while she starts examining herself and touching the healed places with the other one. Then, she looks at me with that completely neutral expression of hers, glancing at our joined hands a few times. “Do you like my warm body?” I ask. She nods. “Want to get closer?” I pull her hand just a little and wait to see if she will let me bring herself to me. There’s some hesitant opposition for a few seconds but it soon disappears. She awkwardly stands up and steps into the space between my crossed legs as all of her six spider limbs coil around her waist like a bunch of armoured belts or a protective corset. Turning around, she slides into my lap and I gently hug her from behind. Her hands hold onto my arms while I brush her thighs with my fingers. It’s hard to get a read on this emotionless spidergirl but I hope she is comfortable. She feels safe enough to at least allow for this so I think we are on a good path. Thank the Goddess she is a curious type rather than a kill-on-first-sight type. While we sit like that, I summon a waterskin from my ring, of course, making a few motions with my hand in front of us first to not spook her again. The spidergirl jumps a little when it materializes out of thin air and unravels one of her spikes to poke it. Before she accidentally makes a hole in it, I pull the cap and spill some of the crystal clear liquid into my other hand, bringing it closer to her face. She stares at it for a brief moment, leans in to sniff the water, and dips the tip of her tongue in it. Realizing what the liquid is, she starts to slowly drink it from my hand. Her tongue tickles my palm as she keeps awkwardly kissing it to scoop as much water as she can while I pour more. We keep it like that until she stops and leans back into me. Some droplets travel down her chin and fall onto her small chest, trailing even further, but I don’t think she cares. Next, I bring some of the most easily digestible foods and rations I have on me and let her pick a few to snack on since I don’t really know what fits her diet. Besides meat, I guess, if she is any similar to the other Arachnes. I wonder if they make a soup of you like some spiders before sipping on your insides. Afterwards, I just keep rubbing her thighs and arms, enjoying her slightly colder skin as much as she seems to enjoy my warmth. Since a few long minutes have passed already, I’ll, unfortunately, have to move forward. “Did the others capture you and force you to do tough things on your own?” I ask calmly. She shakes her head quite soon after hearing the question this time. Perhaps she has warmed up to me a little. “But they did force you to work hard while hurting you, right?” She nods faintly. “So, you were born here?” Another small nod. “Will you get in trouble because I stopped you from working?” A moment of pondering before a nod follows. I feel kinda bad now. “And if you could somehow leave this place, to get away from the people that hurt you, would you do it?” I get to the point. She turns her head around and stares at my face from below with all six of her jet-black eyes, most likely figuring out the hidden insinuation in my question. This spidergirl might be a bit smarter than I first assumed. But, before I get an answer, very easily recognizable noises reach my ears. Tens of sharp spikes poke rhythmically into the hard stone ground. The skittering ladies are coming back at the worst possible moment. And, it seems that I’m not the only one to notice as the girl’s head snaps to the side a moment later. Her spider legs unravel from around her tummy and I lean back a little to make it easier for her to dig herself out of my lap with their use. She raises her body with those mobile black spears and plops onto the ground in front of me as I stand up too. Taking a step back, she looks between me and the nearby entrance to a tunnel. She seems hesitant and I’m fairly sure I know why. The moment the other Arachnes arrive here, we will be enemies. She will have to take their side and face me if they order her to. It’s how things have been here so far and it’s not that easy to suddenly change everything. I resummon my gear and pick up the sword. “Don’t worry about this. I won’t let them know you met me. Just tell me one thing. Would you like to come with me? To my own nest? My family is just like me. They won’t hurt you. If you promise that you won’t hurt them too, I can take you with me and let you stay by my side. Nod if you want that. Shake your head if you would like to remain here.” While the skittering grows louder, I keep stepping back from the spidergirl and waiting for her response. She stares into my face with that neutral expression of hers. Our time starts to run out and I sigh somberly. Figured she would find it hard to make such a decision. But, before I turn around to jump away from her, my eyes catch the faintest nod of her silver-haired head. A small smile finds its way onto my lips and I nod back at her. “Leave everything to me then. If they order you to attack me, don’t hesitate. I’m strong. I can protect myself. We’ll see each other later. Better get back to work before your big bad sisters will have a reason to hurt you more. I would hate to see more scars on your pretty face and body, you know?” And with that, I push myself towards the other side of the chamber, as far from the spidergirl’s position as possible. Stopping in front of an entrance to a side passage, I switch my artefact into a greatsword and prop it on my shoulder while facing the hole. Soon, the silhouettes of many blue-skinned and white-legged Arachnes with black abdomens start showing up in front of me. The first three come to a halt and make the others stop too. Their impressive breasts jiggle seductively. All of them have long hair in dark colours and shades. “What?!” One of the leading women furrows her brows and squints her six eyes. “An intruder!” The second gasps in shock. “A prey has come to us!” The third one cackles. “We will see who is the prey here,” I say coldly. The crowd of Arachnes falls silent, most likely surprised that I can both understand them and even talk back. The first one opens her mouth to say something but the third woman lunges at me with her massive spider body. That’s the one that said I was prey. Oh well. Six void chains burst out of the walls around her and catch each of the Arachne’s legs while she is still in the air. They quickly retract and pull the white limbs to the sides, stretching them to their limits. I snap my fingers and the sound of torn flesh echoes through the stone corridor. Six big spider legs hit the walls around the same time as the spider woman’s abdomen falls onto the ground with a thud. A loud screech follows, naturally. With a single step, I show up in front of the legless Arachne, spurting blue blood from the six holes in her black lower body, and behead her in one swift strike of my mesmerizing violet blade. The corpse stops moving a moment later. The other women hiss at me and spread out. I plop my blade back on my shoulder, standing in front of their dead friend. “Bring me to your queen. Or I will find her myself. I can’t guarantee how many of you will be left alive if you choose the second option. I have a tendency to get distracted when surrounded by many enticing women.” The other two Arachnes at the front charge at me too. I sigh and shake my head. Why can’t they ever learn with just the first casualty? This time, one of them shoots a stream of acid my way from her spider ass while the other launches a webbing to follow. I dodge the dangerous liquid, using more Void Chains to tie her whole body to the ground and block the sticky thread with my greatsword. Before its owner has a chance to react, I twirl the blade around the white rope and yank the Arachne towards me. She tries to fix her posture in mid-air but I rush forward and slice her vertically in half while passing under the monster woman. I glance at the incapacitated one and throw my weapon towards her. The huge blade soars through the tunnel while spinning and lodges itself in the chest of my target. The Arachne screams for a moment, grasping the hilt, but life escapes her body before she can do anything regarding it. Snapping my fingers again, I bring the sword back into my hand as it obediently returns to its master. A neat function that hasn’t seen a lot of use recently. I have practised launching even greataxes with my new strength and I guess I should make use of that more. It feels cool. “So.” I glance around, spotting a few spider women now also behind my back, coming here after hearing the turmoil. “Should we get this party started or will we meet the host first?” Seems like seeing three mutilated bodies of their kin is enough to make them waver and one of the Arachnes steps forward. “Follow us.” Nodding, I do as told. Around seven women besides that one escort me. They keep quite a bit of distance from my position and I can’t blame them for that. I’m almost certain they are just workers like I have thought earlier. And my guess is proven right just a few short minutes later. Our group walks into a different cavern where two similar Arachnes stand guard but they wear chitin cuirasses over their humanoid torsos, chitin helmets on their heads, and wield big bone spears. Their spider parts look a bit different too. Definitely tougher. But, not tough enough to stop my sword. One of the guards launches herself at me after the worker woman explains the situation to her and I have no choice but to defend myself. One swing, one less spider. There are no more surprises and the other sentry takes the duty of escorting me through their nest. We go through a few different chambers. Mostly storages but also sleeping quarters, some crude and primitive workshops, and even what looks like a small underground hot spring. I do not see anything resembling breeding grounds though. I’m pretty sure it’s close to the queen or something. I can see her wanting to keep an eye on all the eggs. Finally, we reach a giant room with what looks like a throne carved out of a big slab of rock, fitting an Arachne. How does a throne fitting an Arachne look? Well, Just imagine a wide enough normal royal throne without the armrests. The queen is currently perched on that fancy stool with her legs underneath her spider body. As for the queen herself, she doesn’t look as much different from the other Arachnes. She might be a tad bigger, has a bit thicker legs and a little more noble edges to her face, but that’s pretty much all. She does pack an outstanding fucking rack, though. These things clearly defy gravity with how huge yet perky they are. But, there’s another small difference that makes me squint my eyes at her. And it’s not the painted tattoos over her whole front but what rests against her stone throne. Instead of a spear or other melee bone weapon, it’s closer to a staff or something. We might be dealing with a magician and she might be trouble. The queen awakens from her slumber or whatever she has been doing and her eight eyes open when the sentry brings me in front of the stone chair. “What is the meaning of this?” she asks her subordinate in a cold tone. The warrior Arachne bows. “My Queen, this thing appeared in one of our food storages and killed three of our workers and one guard while demanding to speak with you. It’s strong.” “Oi. Never seen a Human down here?” I glance between them. The queen furrows her black brows at me. “You are bold, Human. And no, we haven’t ever seen your kind in our domain. Now, what are your last words before my Royal Guard dismembers you for this transgression?” Two rows of Arachnes form behind me. All of them are armed to their teeth. Their black chitin armour is in the form of a full plate rather than just cuirass and there are additional layers of protection on all parts of their bodies, not just on the humanoid section. They also wield various big bone weapons, from halberds to greataxes. No magicians, I think. I sigh heavily and pinch the bridge of my nose. “Does it really have to go like this? Can’t we perhaps not murder each other for no reason? I did intrude on your territory but it was your people who attacked me in the first place.” “What do you propose then, Human?” the queen asks with a smirk, most likely thinking that I’m just playing for time to delay the inevitable. “A deal.” “A deal?” “Yes.” I nod. “You will give me one of your Arachnes as compensation for the rude conduct that your subjects have shown to me and I will leave without pursuing any further actions, forgetting everything that happened.” The queen’s face switches into a scowl and she roars, “Tear this Human to shreds!” “Oh well. I tried, right?” I jump back to avoid getting impaled by the spear of the sentry woman that has been escorting me and land in the middle of a group of the elite warriors called the Royal Guard, starting to launch themselves at me. “It’s showtime!” I smile, activate Crushing Fury, and shape my weapon into a big double-headed warhammer again, slamming it into the ground in front of me with all my strength. The whole cavern rumbles and bits of the ceiling fall off as I create a shallow crater in the queen’s throne room. Most of the warrior Arachnes lose their footing and I quickly cash in on that. Pushing myself off the ground from one spider woman to another, I swing my hammer down and mercilessly crush their abdomens with powerful strikes. A cacophony of loud splats fills the air as I end one enemy after another, getting dirty with their blue blood in the process. With all five Arachnes that fell into my pit already gone, I get out of it with a strong lunge and land on the edge of the shattered hollow. Immediately, a bone greatsword swings at me diagonally downwards and I dodge with a spin. *THUD* My hammer slams into the side of the attacking spider woman and sends her flying with a mighty impact caused by my boosted stats and the effect of Crushing Fury, alongside the noise of chitin breaking into pieces. *SPLAT* She crashes into the wall of the chamber and turns into a big blue stain. “Looks like your den has truly been destined for a makeover, dear Queen. Let’s not let it wait any longer then!” I chuckle loudly while a powerful urge to obliterate my opponents runs rampant through my whole body. Avoiding another slash aimed at me, I dive under the attacker this time and slam my hammer into their abdomen from below. Just like before, the Arachne is hurled into the air, vertically straight this time. Contrary to her friend, though, she hits the stalactites that cover the ceiling like the ugly popcorn decoration some gods of home design deemed to be a popular thing back in the ’50s and ’60s. The poor warrior falls victim to a slightly more deadly version of that trend and gets skewered by tens of sharp spikes, dying on the inside. Just like the people who moved in after those who thought it was an epic idea to use popcorn ceiling decoration. As the blue liquid drips onto the ground from high up, I begin a dance of death with the other members of the Royal Guard. One by one, each Arachne is sent flying towards some random direction and either splatters on a wall or gets impaled on something sharp. In no time, I deal with about fifteen of them. Not without receiving some occasional grazes here and there, of course, but I’m clearly doing better than the spider women. By accident, one of the bodies is flung towards the queen and she barely ducks under the living projectile. Not for long, though. It soon turns into a dead one after painting the wall behind her blue. Seeing some space around me, I place the long handle of my weapon behind my neck and hang my arms over it. A wide smile paints my lips as I pant roughly. Oh boy. I almost turned into a Hobsmurf with all this blue over me. I glance towards the queen, who is clutching her staff to her body now. “I can do this all day.” With another deep chuckle, I lower my posture and prepare myself to lunge towards another Royal Guard warrior. “Wait!” The queen’s voice reaches my ears and I stop. “About that deal…” I stand up straight and nod my head with a big grin. “A wise choice indeed.”
Chapter 106 – The Art of Deception Spoiler: Chapter “Well then. What are we going to do now?” I ask with the war hammer still resting on my shoulder. The queen eyes me attentively while clutching her bone staff. I wonder what kind of magic she can use, but I will also be happy if she doesn’t get the chance to show me. Overcoming her soldiers is not a big deal. With magic, you never know what to expect. “Do you swear to leave our lair in peace after I fulfil your demand?” the big-tittied spider woman asks with a note of uncertainty. “Yes.” She nods as some of her muscles slowly relax. “Good. I will bring you a—” “No.” All the tension returns immediately after I interrupt her. The queen looks at me warily, either unsure of how to proceed or waiting for me to continue. I smirk at her. “You rejected my initial offer. It is only natural that I come up with another after factoring in the hospitality you have shown me.” The chamber stays silent for a brief moment. Only the occasional scratching of the pointy legs of the many Arachnes present around us breaks it. Not seeing her objecting, I move on. “Don’t worry. I’m not an unreasonable man. The essence of my request remains the same. I want one Arachne for all the trouble. But, I will be choosing which one. I can’t have you throwing at me some weak, handicapped slave worker to get rid of them, right?” The queen’s ladylike lips form a thin line as she keeps drilling into me with her eight pitch-black eyes. She clearly isn’t happy but also doesn’t seem to be stupid. I grin at her. “Call everyone here. And I mean everyone. If I find out that you hid even a single person from me, I’m going to collapse this whole cave system with all of you still inside. And don’t think you can escape. There are seven more people just like me waiting for my return at the edge of your territory. We don’t want them here, do we?” Her biggest pair of eyes widen considerably and a faint shiver passes through her big body. The queen starts to shout orders immediately after I finish. Many worker and soldier Arachnes skitter to multiple exits leading out of the throne chamber. I hope it’s big enough to fit all of them. In the meanwhile, I walk away to give the queen some space and take care of my appearance. I shouldn’t leave all this blue on me for too long. I can’t get everything off me with Livelihood Magic, but most of it is enough. The worker spider women clean up the room too, dragging away the mutilated corpses and even trying to scrub the dark blood off the floors and walls with a fluffy version of their webs. It’s fascinating to watch them walk over the vertical surfaces or hang in the air from their spider halves while working. If only this tribe wasn’t so aggressive. Slowly but surely, the spacious cavern fills with various Arachnes. I can more or less notice the division of roles thanks to that. Workers make up the biggest chunk of this community, followed by soldiers, elite soldiers, sentries, and the queen. Then, a whole avalanche of tiny skittering noises echoes into the throne room from a few exits. I turn my eyes towards one, and at that moment, a flood of the dog-sized guys I have murdered earlier pours into the chamber. I shudder at the countless little spiders running out of the tunnels and climbing up on the walls, covering them more and more with their creepy arachnid bodies. The numbers are insane. She really is bringing everyone, including what I think are the grunts or pets. Ten minutes is what it takes for the commotion to finally come to a still. No more spiders or spider women walk into the throne chamber. It’s filled almost to the brim, including the walls and ceiling. It gives me serious creeps to be literally surrounded by so many of the skitterers but I try not to show it. “Huuuuuuuuuman,” the queen calls to me. “As you have asked, this is everyone. Even the injured have been brought here. Make your choice. One of us, as per your demand.” “Won’t they try to attack me the moment I leave your territory?” I ask. “The one you choose will become your slave for the sake of our tribe. I swear on my name, Schie’nhada’raa the Queen of Abyss Eaters, to uphold that word.” “That’s a long one,” I mutter to myself and then smirk at her. “What if I choose you?” The queen is taken aback for a moment, clearly not anticipating such a turn of events. Seeing an utterly gobsmacked spider woman is enough for me though and I laugh a little. “I’m jesting, Your Majesty. As I said, I’m not an unreasonable man. Let me have a look.” A fragment of an awkward smile forms on her blue lips as the corner of her mouth rises faintly. Let’s not push it too far. It is fun playing with her like this, but I would rather not have all those spiders drop on me after she gets done with this. With my hands on my hips, I take a glance around. So damn many. I’d say around a hundred of just the Arachnes. Perhaps double or more if we include the critters. I can see the Royal Guard at the far back. She’s trying to hide them from my sight, most likely. Clever. But, I already know what I’m going to pick. Unable to spot my target in this mass of giant spider abdomens, I launch myself into the air and jump on the back of the nearby Arachne. She turns her humanoid half at me with some anxiety in her deep ebony eyes but I smile at her, taking a moment to admire her perky blue breasts. “Don’t worry. Not you.” Without wasting too much time, I start bouncing off their spider asses and running around the chamber. I must say, this is fun, as wrong as it looks and sounds. There’s just one problem. Tits. Something like two hundred tits of various sizes all around me. It’s hella distracting when they suddenly make waves as the Arachnes turn their humanoid halves to look after me. Hundreds of bouncing globes sway as one sea of blue. Finally, in that ocean of salacity, my eyes catch on a flash of difference. A big smile quickly finds its way onto my lips. She’s here. Dropping onto the ground, I walk up to the fully humanoid girl with pale white skin and silvery hair sitting on the side of her thighs on the stone floor. My smile turns into a faint scowl as I notice fresh bruises and wounds on her malnourished body. In just this short time they have already hurt her again. I crouch in front of my new friend as she stares at me with that neutral expression of hers. I gently cup her chin up to look as if I’m examining her and whisper, “Do you still want to go?” We gaze into each other’s eyes for a brief moment and she nods softly. Brushing my thumb over her cheek, I stand up and turn towards the queen. All the Arachnes between us clear a path and make it possible for the two of us to see each other. I start slowly walking forward. “You hid her pretty well. I must applaud you, Queen Schie’nhada’raa. Normally, one would try to keep their most valuable asset far from sight. You instead, dropped it somewhere in the middle. Smart. And it would have worked if it was anyone other than me.” Clear confusion takes over the queen’s face. I smirk at her. “That one.” I point behind me at the albino girl. “I can tell she is special. Did you think I wouldn’t notice? She’s the only one like this around here. She’s unique. And strong. You shouldn’t have left her scars, bruises, and wounds unattended like that. They make it too obvious. She’s the most experienced warrior here. She must be very important to you, right?” Schie’s facial expressions shift a few times from the aforementioned confusion to curiosity, then slight disbelief, and finally end at happiness. She immediately tries to hide it, but the big grin is almost impossible to force down as the corners of her mouth keep twitching and spiking up. “Oh, Human, does it really have to be that one?” She brings both of her hands to the middle of her chest and makes an attempt at an anxious expression, which fails miserably. “Are you thinking of going back on your word?” I raise a brow at her and cross my arms over my chest, now standing before the throne and looking up. “Ah, how could I dare. I made an oath. Oaths have to be upheld, no matter what.” She makes a supposedly sad bow. “Since it doesn’t look like I would be able to change your mind, Human, I hereby announce that she is now no longer part of our tribe. The moment the two of you leave this chamber, she becomes your rightful slave and dishonour will fall on both her and me if she disobeys her master even once.” I make a pretentious nod. “I hope so.” She then looks towards the albino girl. “You heard my command. This Human is now your master. Your new queen. You know what that means, right?” The poor Arachne must have responded with some kind of confirmation because the queen’s smile grows bigger in a flash. I can pick up a small chatter slowly rising amongst the other spider women and it clearly doesn’t sound unhappy. She really had it rough here. Schie turns to me again. “Is there anything else, Human?” I shake my head. “No. I will not bother you anymore. The agreement has been fulfilled. I no longer desire to involve myself with your kind. If there’s nothing you might need from me, Queen Schie’nhada’raa, I will take my slave and leave.” “I do not wish to hold you back, Human.” And with that, I turn around to walk toward my new friend. I can tell that it will take some time before she perceives me like that too, but there’s no rush anywhere. I’m sure though that she will find some common ground with Sirgia. They both are the quiet type and suffered a lot in their lives. And perhaps Astrea too. Arriving in front of the hated girl, I kneel down and carefully pick her into my arms, observing if she will let me. Not only does she not resist but even joins her hands behind my neck and helps me out by pulling herself up, ending in a princess carry. Well, maybe it won’t take that long before she warms up to me, perhaps. I walk with her towards one of the exits while casting Rejuvenate to take care of her fresh bruises. The big Arachnes make way for us and I leave the throne room. To the queen, I must look like a loser, picking the worst trash her tribe had to offer, but I wonder who is the real winner here. The thin girl in my arms keeps staring at my face the whole time. I try my best not to ogle her chest and feminine mound. Even though she is clearly malnourished, she’s still a beautiful woman. With extra six black spider legs, but nevertheless. They are currently wrapped around her tummy like a protective corset, most likely not to inconvenience me. “Do you have a name?” I ask as we make it through the caverns. She shakes her head. “I see. Do you mind if I give you one?” After a moment of pondering, she responds with a negative again. “Hmmmm…” A few decent names float through my mind but I don’t really want to slap some cliche ones that are often used for Arachnes or similar women in fiction. It never felt exactly right to me. Something more unique would be nice but it’s not always as easy as with Safi and Emi. Perhaps I could ask Shino since Japanese is kinda nice and has a decently meaningful construction of names. At the same time, I can’t really get rid of one specific name that keeps popping up in my head repeatedly. I sigh to myself and glance down at the emotionless girl. “What do you think about Hecate?” She nods immediately, making me chuckle. “I didn’t even get to explain the meaning, hahaha. Well, I guess we’ll go with it anyway. I thought of it because Hecate is associated with a goddess ruling over darkness, the underworld, but also revenge. That’s just one of the images but she was portrayed as an avenger. Do you still think it’s okay?” Without giving it too much thought, Hecate nods. “It’s settled then. As I might have mentioned, I’m Alastair. We are going to meet a few of my friends soon. They won’t hurt you. They might be surprised a little, but I will always protect you, alright?” It looks like the whole situation has started to finally come to her as Hecate shows signs of her fatigue. I lean her skipping head onto my chest. “Rest a little. You have earned it. I won’t make you overwork yourself like the women back there. We can talk more later. I’ll wake you up if anything happens.” She tries not to fall asleep, but in less than a minute, all her jet-black eyes close as she succumbs to her weariness. Her head adorably rests against my neck while her petite fingers have moved to grasp my vest. I follow the path toward my Partners while trying not to wake her up. She is so exhausted though that I’m sure there’s almost nothing that can achieve such a feat. So precious and adorable. We’ll bring you back to full health soon. The good side of walking the corridors now is the fact that there are no scary spiders anywhere yet since they have all been called to the throne room. It makes this trip a little easier and less tense. It takes me a while to find the proper exit leading out of this cavern system. In retrospect, I should have asked for a guide, but I didn’t really want anyone else from the tribe accompanying me. So, after around an hour and a half of exploring, I can feel myself getting closer to the presence of the girls and no more thick stone walls seem to separate us again. Perhaps sensing the others or something like that, Hecate stirs a little and her pretty eyes open up. “Hello again. We are going to meet my companions now so don’t feel scared, okay?” After she nods at me, I pick up the pace a little and soon notice traces of light coming from around the corner. Slightly squinting my eyes and shielding Hecate’s with my hand, I walk into it. I sure hope she isn’t ultra-photosensitive or something. Otherwise, I’ll need Sirgia to make her some classy shades. “Look! He is back! Told you he was close! I could feel it!” Marcia’s voice reaches my ears. My eyes quickly grow used to the levels of light and I find all of my travel companions by one of the stone walls, either standing or sitting. They all look slightly battered here and there but generally unharmed. I certainly am not the only one who got into a big fight. “What took you so lo—” Kamil stops his complaint midway after noticing something in my arms. Marcia snickers and elbows his side. “See? He can’t even go for a walk without returning with a girl in his arms. In the middle of nowhere.” Kamil groans and rolls his eyes, looking away. Shino, Teffith, and Ghilerie step closer as my new friend watchfully observes them. “Who is this, Sensei? She looks so pale…” Shino is the first to speak. “It’s a long story, but this is her natural skin colour. I think. Anyway, this is Hecate. She is an Arachne. I think.” “Arachne?” Ghilerie raises her eyebrows at us. Glancing at the spider girl in my arms, I meet her black eyes and realize that she most likely can’t understand them. There’s at least one fix to that issue. A partial one. I send out the prompt to Hecate and brush over her hands clutching my vest. “Would you mind becoming my Partner? Nothing much would change but you would be able to understand my other Partners and sense where I am,” I speak to her in Terrerian. She stares into space for a few seconds and I soon get the prompt that she has become my Partner. Then, she stirs a little and I help Hecate down onto the floor. The girls gasp quietly after the six onyx spikes unravel from around her torso and hang in the air by her sides. “Yep. An Arachne.” I plop a hand on her damaged silver hair. As I mentioned earlier, she is around a head shorter than me, perhaps a bit less. “While going towards you guys, I stumbled on a cavern with literal spider women as we know from back home. I saw this girl being abused by the more spider-like people and just couldn’t look another way after that.” “That’s so like you.” Teffith smiles warmly and I chuckle. Noticing the spark in Shino’s eyes, I turn to her. “They are hostile and aggressive. Unless you don’t mind indiscriminately slaughtering them in self-defence, I would advise against it.” Shino deflates a little after I have read her intentions so I step closer to peck her lips a few times to cheer my lovely samurai up. “Besides… All of them are completely naked…” I whisper to her ear, causing a beautiful rosy flush to appear on her cute face as I pull away. “Did you kill them all to save her then?” Ghilerie glances at the pale spider girl standing by my side. “No. There are hundreds of them. Not sure I would be able to obliterate an army even with my strength. And I would have to worry about the location too.” “You snuck her out then? How romantic!” Marcia giggles from the back. I smile wryly. “Close. I killed a few of them until they listened to me. They brought me to the queen. I killed a few of her elite guards after she ordered to get rid of me. She then surrendered and I told her I want an Arachne as compensation. I picked Hecate and walked away. You should have seen the queen’s face. She tried so hard not to show how happy she was as I chose Hecate, thinking that I thought she is the most valuable.” Marcia whistles. “That’s a story I would like to hear in detail.” “Yeah,” Teffith agrees with her. “Maybe later. We’ll have time. First, we need to discuss what to do.” Paul stands up from the wall. “I think we might have found a path leading up and outside. Should be fine to check it out.” I sigh. “See, there’s one small problem. I switched my ability into that super boost you have seen when we fought the worms. I need a day or two to be able to become Mr IceCream again. So, the surface might not be the best option.” “Noooooooo…” Marcia whines dejectedly, clearly for a reason other than our inability to continue over the scorched earth. “Hmmm…” Paul ponders visibly while stroking his chin. “That leaves us with two options. We either set up a camp and wait it out, or we try to continue under the surface in the meantime.” “We aren’t going to sit on our asses in this dark cave for almost two days, are we?” Kamil asks with a deep sigh. “I gotta agree with him,” I reply. “We should at least try to do something rather than waste time. And, we better get away from this tribe. I don’t want the queen thinking that we are scheming something on the edge of her domain. Trust me, so many spiders give you unimaginable creeps.” “Yeah. We’ve met some. And I always hated fighting Jungle Spiders in the woods. Ugh.” Ghilerie shudders a little. “There are obviously other dangers lurking in the darkness but we can’t be safe anywhere as the worms have shown us before. We move on then?” Everyone nods and our next course of action is decided. Kamil stands up and glances at Hecate before looking away. “Is she going to stay naked forever?” Marcia snickers and slaps his butt. “What, are you getting a little heated from seeing this alabaster-skinned fairy with slightly deadly wings?” He covers his crotch with his hands and groans, making her giggle again. “I’ll gladly help you out with that issue if you would like. It’s definitely much safer than trying to bone a girl with more spikes than you have holes in your body. Besides, she’s Al’s.” I shake my head with a smile. “She’s not mine but I agree. Try not to give Hecate any reasons to doubt your intentions, everyone. And I’ll think of something regarding her attire.” Marcia drags Kamil behind the corner while I take a few steps away with my mute spider girl. Natalie and Teffith stay with Paul while Shino and Ghilerie join the two of us. “I assume you haven’t ever worn clothes, right?” I plop my hand on Hecate’s head and ask while gently brushing through her dishevelled hair. The spider girl faintly shakes her head. “Would it bother you to wear something on your body?” After a few moments, she tilts her head a bit. I assume it means that she doesn’t know or isn’t sure, and the faint intentions I receive from her do seem to match that. “Hmmm…” I rub my chin and then glance at my short girlfriend. “Ummm… Shino?” “Yes, Sensei?” She glances up at me. “Could you… You know…” She follows my eyes as I repeatedly glance at a certain point on Hecate's body and she blushes instantly, realizing my unspoken question. A moment later, after a faint flash of light, she extends her hands to me with a piece of neatly folded black fabric on top of them, trying not to look my way. Clearing my throat, I pick up the fresh piece of panty and unfold it while kneeling down in front of Hecate. I hold it open in front of her legs. She looks at me curiously while tilting her head. We stay like that for a few awkward seconds. Before I get to explain, I hear Shino’s shy voice. “Ummm… Hecate-san…” My spider friend glances at her. Shino timidly raises the front of her short skirt while her face resembles a ripe tomato. She reveals a matching piece of black panty with a cute little purple ribbon on top currently covering her privates. Hecate glances a few times between the two pieces of clothing and soon raises and slides her slender leg into one of the holes. After getting both of them in, I pull the sexy lingerie up until it covers her precious place. Letting it go, I nod to myself after seeing it stay in place. I turn around after standing up and pat Shino’s head. “Thank you. You didn’t have to do that and I very much appreciate it.” Shino moves her red face to me and I pull her in for a brief kiss. “I love your sexy underwear as much as the lack of it,” I whisper to her ear afterwards, getting a timid giggle from her as she clamps her thighs together. Since Hecate’s body is very skinny due to her state, including her chest, we skip the bra for now and only throw at her a thin white t-shirt, making six holes for her spider legs first. I don’t want her to get overheated under a pile of clothes if she really prefers it chilly. Shortly after we are finished, Kamil and Marcia return; the former glancing away with a very faint blush. I didn’t know he could get this embarrassed. She, on the other hand, is as happy as ever and strolls straight to us, throwing her arm around my shoulder from behind. “You have ruined the taste of men for me, Al,” she whispers to my ear sensually. “I hope you will take responsibility for that.” I look at her with raised eyebrows and she giggles at me. “Just joking. Giving head is still as enjoyable as ever. But it’s hard to forget how tasty yours is. You’d make a fortune if you worked alongside your girls.” “Hmmm…” She raises a brow at me next. “What? Considering it now?” “Not exactly, but you gave me an idea. We could try to make some extracts that influence the taste. Earth had flavoured condoms. With a bit of magic and alchemy, we could possibly make flavoured cumshots. It could sell.” Marcia stares at me blankly while blinking and suddenly explodes into a hearty laugh, slapping her thing. “Bwahahahaha! Brilliant! I can already imagine it! ‘Honey! I’m going to nut in you today! Which one do you want?’, ‘Strawberry, please!’, ‘Alright! One strawberry creampie coming right up!’ Bwahahahaha!” I can't help but chuckle with her while shaking my head. What the hell are we even talking about? After she calms down, we group up and hold a short talk about our direction. With a neat magnetic trick from our magical Bard Natalie, we are able to identify which way is which and set off towards the other end of the Barren Valley while staying underground. Paul suggests a new formation and we head towards the path that they think could take us a bit higher at least. Who knows what other monstrosities lurk deeper in this abyss. Arachnes certainly aren’t the only inhabitants of this forgotten realm. And my ex-students did encounter some overgrown lizards and such while I was gone. Shino and Kamil take the front while I and Natalie follow shortly after them. Our duo of archers, Paul and Ghilerie, walk in the middle. Marcia and Teffith cover our backs. As for our new monstrous addition, Hecate keeps very close to me at all times. I can’t fault her, it’s all new to her. As we travel through the dark brown tunnels, Natalie keeps us in the light with her pretty fireflies. Shino and I can peer into the darkness ahead so she keeps them behind us to not inconvenience our abilities too much. I bet Hecate sees even better considering that she was working in an almost fully dark chamber. In a bigger cavern, we stumble on a small group of hostile monsters. They look like stone crocodiles, simply speaking. Unfortunately, I don’t really recognize them amongst the monsters that I know so we have to tread carefully. Our front guard engages first and takes on three of the crocs. Shino and Kamil quickly realize that they don’t only look like they are of stone but are also equally tough. Their weapons barely scratch their armour which has only thin cracks around the joints. All the melee fighters with slashing or piercing weapons focus on kiting the four-legged flat tanks around while Natalie rains various elemental magic at them to figure out any weakness. Our archer duo does their best too and Paul showcases the might of his powerful arcane abilities by shattering much more of the stone armour with his shots than Ghilerie. Naturally, as someone with Crushing Fury equipped and a weapon that can form almost any shape I want, I bring out the war hammer again and jump around while playing whack-a-gator. Recently, I've been doing that quite a lot. But, contrary to the spiders or Arachnes, they don’t go down that easily. My powerful slams do some damage and crush their tough surface almost into bits, but these suckers are damn tough even on the inside. Their muscles must be amazing from carrying all their weight since birth or whatever brings them to life. What I start, Hecate quickly finishes, though. The white-skinned thin beauty follows my side with only a bit of struggle and I’m certain she would have no issues matching my enhanced movements if she was in her proper physical condition. Nevertheless, she tries her best to never leave my close vicinity. Whenever I damage one of the crocs enough, she steps forward and skewers it with her incredibly sharp spikes. She repeatedly stabs the poor monster so many times it starts looking like those soft green blocks of something where you stick fake plastic flowers after years of use. I shouldn’t be too surprised, honestly. She was literally excavating stone walls with those when I met her. These monsters have nothing on her and I bet she could even solo them if she was in her peak condition. Now, just two or three of such combos with me tire her out visibly. I must admit, the constant skittering sounds just behind my back as she moves her body around using those nimble and sharp spider legs has scared me a few times in the beginning, but I have started getting used to it slowly. And she can move so well with these, so nimbly, agile, in almost any direction and angle. It’s very impressive. We manage to win the battle without any serious injuries and without spending too much of our resources and strength. That’s what’s important in the long run. We are going to constantly be in a danger zone where any moment of rest is a blessing. And so, we take a short one to take a few gulps of water and tend to smaller wounds after we wrap up the stone crocs. I sit by one of the walls cross-legged and pat my lap at the tired spider girl. With less hesitation than before, she snuggles herself into it with her back to me and I embrace her like earlier. She very quickly dozes off in my arms while I stroke her ruined silver hair. Shino, Teffith, and Ghilerie send me sweet smiles after noticing our position and I respond with the same. We decide to take fifteen minutes of a break. Curious about my new, quite unique friend, I pull up my menus and check Hecate’s bond while slowly sipping on water. I barely hold myself back from doing a powerful spit-take when I see the window. Fourth level?! Unwavering Loyalty?! What the fuck is going on?! We’ve just met a few hours ago! This is basically one step away from True Love or some equivalent if there’s any! Maybe it’s because of her nature? She has been serving in that tribe as a slave without ever standing up for herself and her deep loyalty could somehow explain that. Although, I wouldn’t be surprised if it has been ingrained in all of them from birth. Perhaps even hard-coded in their genetics. So, it’s basically the highest level of affection that doesn’t involve any romantic love. I’m pretty sure she would go and sacrifice herself if I ordered her to do so. Is that because of what her previous queen said? That I’m her master and queen now? Well, I can’t completely deny any other positive feelings Hecate could be holding in her heart, like some gratitude for reaching out to her or such. In the end, it doesn’t really matter. It doesn’t change how I view her. I will just have to be careful with my wishes and make sure to either teach her how to split her own wants with wanting to fulfil my wants or remind her about how to do it. This also partially explains why she is trying so hard and staying close to me all the time. If she views me as her queen, it’s only natural she goes out of her way to assure my safety and remains by my side all the time as the only subject if she doesn’t count the others in. I will really need to pamper her lots and lots to show her that I care for her much more than those evil bitches. Now, super curious about her stats, I tap the Status Details button. Good thing I have been ready this time and didn’t take a sip of water because HOLY FUCK WHAT THE HELL. She could slaughter almost everyone here who isn’t boosted by my dick and even so I have no idea how high are the values of her race. And she is weakened at the moment too. Lumina was right. Hecate is only at the first stage of her advancement, which kinda looks like unlimited to me, perhaps due to her unique Evolution Stage, but she is a damn monster when compared to most humanoid races at Tier 1 or even higher. This world still has a lot to offer. I’m now really glad I didn’t pick up a fight with the queen. Even the elites in her Royal Guard weren’t too squishy. I did use Crushing Fury and my huge stats but my weapon was barely able to kill them. Most died from the high velocity and powerful impact. Good that I went all out from the start. And man, if we actually got intimate, both I would get quite a chunk of stats and she would receive a huge package from me. But, again, this changes nothing. If that ever happens, great. I’m not going to start viewing women as walking upgrades, though. If she somehow grows to like me and makes a conscious decision without the influence of her deep loyalty, we will see. I don’t even know if she knows what sex is anyway. Her reactions to my privates were full of curiosity. Common Arachnes in this word are born from the queen’s eggs and she needs no man to inseminate them. When she dies, another Arachne’s body undergoes some small changes and she becomes the next queen, possibly through evolution or advancement. At least that’s what I’ve read in the castle. Anyway, that’s a thought for the future. Before anything, we gotta turn this malnourished girl into a beautiful and curvy little woman. I wouldn’t be surprised if she gained a few more centimetres during the process too. Although, I don’t mind either way. Shorter girls are sexy and cute too. After our break time runs out, everyone starts prepping up to continue and I gently wake up my sleeping spider princess. Hecate takes a deeper breath and her six eyes open all at different times, blinking adorably, making me smile from the mesmerizing sight. She stares at me, waiting for any words or orders most likely. “Let’s continue a bit further today and find a good place for a longer rest, okay? I’ll let you sleep in my arms. You like my warm skin, right?” Hecate’s slightly chilly fingers brush over my neck and she nods faintly. I wonder if I will ever get a smile from her.
Chapter 107 – Jackpot ❤❤ Spoiler: Chapter Wrapping up our short break, we get into the formation again and move out. It would be great if we found a decent spot for the night before we get too tired and exhausted. We’ve been fighting for quite some time and we’ve also been walking on the surface for a bit before the worms sent us into the abyss. Granted, pretty much all of us are tougher than common Humans, and the other, non-human girls do have my support, so we can go for a bit longer than normal people. Still, that doesn’t mean we should. Especially when constantly in a hostile environment. We should take any rest we can. Therefore, while following the path leading up from time to time, we mostly focus on checking the caves and chambers to find a nice place to set up a small camp. There’s no doubt the hour is quite late as of now. Again, it doesn’t impair me even a little yet, but better safe than sorry if we do stumble on a decent spot. The underground passages aren’t exactly completely empty. Fortunately, we do not walk into the territory of another subspecies of Arachnes, like a different tribe that is hostile to the other one, I don’t know, like red spiders this time, so there’s that at least. I’m honestly starting to think in cliches and such. I can see them around every corner. I’m not exactly sure about the ecosystem of this underground area but we can spot some flora too, not just the usually very aggressive fauna which attacks first and asks questions later, or just feasts on your corpse. I guess it is survivable here or there wouldn’t be so many different monsters snooping around. My guess is that most of them lived on the surface in the past or something. My lore senses are tingling. I could bet that the Barren Valley wasn’t so barren originally. Or at least not so deadly. All the scorpions, spiders, lizards, and other species must have evolved a lot to fit in the spooky, dark underworld. So, as time passes, we move forward, slowly continuing our journey while fending off the occasional ambushes or straight-up attacks from various monsters. Our party is decently balanced so there’s not much of an issue dealing with any opponents. We almost always have something acting as the enemy’s weakness. It is quite creepy, though. As one would expect, there are more spiders and each species looks even creepier than the other. I’ll omit the details as it’s really easy to imagine with just basic knowledge about arachnids from back on Earth. They come in all sizes, shapes, textures, and such. Thanks to our duo of amazing archers, most of the light-armoured enemies are turned into porcupines before they can react or reach us. Ghilerie is having a lot of fun with her new weapon and I catch her smiling at it at times, surprised with the amount of power she can now put into her arrows thanks to that clever magnetic system Sirgia came up with. Shino is in her own world down here. Fighting in darkness is a boon for her. All her shadow-based abilities and skills work twice as efficient and good. She turns into a literal angel of death, teleporting from place to place and beheading or mutilating her targets. I can also tell that Teffith enjoys herself at least a little bit. A good thrill of battle was certainly what she needed after sitting at the mansion since she has been freed from that public execution. She’s a magnificent fighter with her naginata. And her tail is just as deadly as her polearm. I know that from experience, though. Four hours later, we’ve made some decent progress, definitely moving closer to the surface but still not close enough. I’m pretty sure we’ve come across everything this place has to offer in terms of its fauna. And man, there’s a lot. Great training place. We are visibly getting better at fighting together. Our front guard gradually slows down in front of an intersection and Shino starts glancing around. We stop and also examine our surroundings. Nothing out of the ordinary catches my attention. “Can you feel it or is it just me?” Shino asks, looking back at us. “The air seems different… From one of the paths, I think,” Kamil replies. The rest of us come closer and try to catch whatever our friends noticed. After arriving at Shino’s side, I realise that they are right. One of the tunnels gives off a warmer feeling. It’s now easily noticeable. And perhaps… more humid? “That one is clearly different from the others.” I point at the tunnel with the less-cold air. “What do you all want to do? Check it out? Skip?” “I’d say check it out. Maybe it will be less dangerous and hostile than the middle of these tunnels,” Marcia answers. “Or it could be a lair of something even worse,” Ghilerie adds. Marcia shrugs. “Then we’ll just kill it. Or run away. Or, if it’s a female, Al can just seduce it.” I roll my eyes as she giggles to herself. During a few fights, I have naturally tested various skills and abilities, including Charm Magic. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t. Sometimes it worked too well and the enemy threw itself at me with a different purpose than to mutilate me. Although, considering the builds of a few of them, the end result would be pretty much the same. I do seem to be compatible with other races quite a lot, but I’m pretty sure it isn’t the same with monsters or beasts. And I would rather not try. Everyone else agrees to at least take a peek and we walk into the suspicious tunnel. Step by step, the atmosphere grows warmer and no one is left unaware of that fact. Just as I have initially observed, the humidity of the air rises gradually too. I’m starting to get an idea of what is in front of us. We reach the exit after a few long minutes and stop close to the corner. Small and faint clouds of steam float into our corridor like a charming, magical mist. Shino nods at us and takes a peek inside. Her eyes widen instantly. “Woaaaahhhh…” After a few seconds of glancing around, she steps into the open and we follow after her. Kamil whistles in awe while Marcia jumps in excitement. “Fuck yes! Jackpot!” In front of us spans a decently wide and tall stone chamber. The floor is made of a pure-black rock with streaks of white wherever a crack follows. A few pools of various sizes litter the ground, catching everyone’s eyes with their white colour and hot, steaming liquid filling them to the brim. Most of these have at least one small waterfall falling into them from the holes in the also black-white ceiling. “An underground hot spring! Just what we needed!” Marcia shouts happily. “Calm down. We need to check if it’s water first and not some acid or worse,” Paul shoots her down instantly. Marcia deflates a little with a sigh but nods, knowing well he is right. We walk inside while looking around and examine the natural cavern to make sure we are alone and there are no surprises hiding somewhere. With the whole place scanned thoroughly, Ghilerie and Teffith move to check the hot, crystal-clear liquid with the other girls. “Seems to be water and not much else. Should be fine to take a dip. I think we could use a little bit of relaxation to get rid of the tension in our bodies,” the dragonewt says. “I agree. This could be nice after so much time in the desert,” the elf adds. Marcia grins, grabs her top and prepares to yank it off when Teffith catches her wrist. “Why don’t we let the guys go first this time?” she asks. “Eh? Buuuuuuut…” Marcia pouts a little but stops after glancing at the other women. “Ohhhh. I guess that’s only fair, hahaha. Well then, boys, do us a favour and check if the water is nice for the ladies. We will take the first watch.” She winks at us and walks towards one of the two exits with Natalie in tow. Ghilerie and Teffith choose the other one. I stop Shino for a moment before she follows either of the groups and plop my hand on Hecate’s hair. “This person here is my mate, alright?” I ask the silent spidergirl. She nods faintly. “Now, I would like you to go with her for a moment, okay? You can rest in her lap just like in mine. I will be safe so you don’t need to worry. Is that fine?” She glances at Shino, who smiles at her warmly, and then back at me. After a short moment, she nods again. I brush through her short silvery hair with a bit more affection and turn her around to my samurai girlfriend. Shino slowly takes her hand and they walk away together towards my other companions. Hecate sends me a few glances over her shoulder as they increase the distance but obediently accompanies Shino just as I asked her. It pains me a little to kick her out like that but I don’t want the other guys to be uncomfortable with a naked girl on my lap as we take a dip together. Not wasting any time, we choose the biggest pool with white flooring and step in after getting rid of our clothes. The depth is varying at different spots and most of the area has water reaching slightly above our waists, more or less. It gives us the perfect opportunity to sit down almost fully submerged and throw our arms over the edge while leaning back. Sighs of pleasure and relaxation, accompanied by a few groans, fill the quiet atmosphere, broken only by the pleasant hum of the small waterfalls. Paul positions himself under one and the cascading water pours onto his back to his delight. After a few short minutes of just lying or sitting there doing nothing, we switch to washing ourselves from all the dust and dirt to not forget it later. Just like the last time, I don’t bring out any detergents so as not to poison this underground spring. “Fuuuuuuuck… I would kill for a cold one…” Kamil groans after we enter full chill mode again. Paul nods silently, sprawled over the edge just like all of us. I think for a few seconds. Hearing the sloshing of water accompanying me standing up, they open their eyes and look my way. I move a bit closer, stopping between them, and wave my hand. A sealed wooden barrel pops into existence and drops onto the black ground behind their backs. With another wave, three wooden mugs materialize between my fingers. “While I would rather not indulge in any alcohol in our current predicament, even if we do have a few spells or abilities to clear out any intoxication, I think this should be a good choice too.” I bring the mugs under a small tap mounted on the barrel’s side and fill them to the brim with golden, bubbly liquid. Then, I dismiss the chilly container so it doesn’t lose its frosty temperature, turn around, and slide down the pool’s uneven white wall back into the water. Kamil and Paul grab a mug each after I hold them out towards them and take a sip. The former’s eyes turn literally into saucers. “Holy fuck, dude! This is not beer?” He looks at me in shock. A small chuckle escapes my lips after I also taste the quite similar-looking beverage. “No alcohol in this one. We’ve tried to come up with a plethora of drinks for the establishment to match everyone’s tastes. This is just one of the byproducts. Quite a lucky one.” Kamil chugs his whole share in a blink and sighs in bliss. I chuckle again and resummon the barrel behind me so that he can easily reach it for a refill whenever he wants. We sit and chill like that, sharing a pleasant dip with a good cold drink together. “Damn. Marcia was kinda right. You don’t really seem like a bad guy…” he mutters while swirling the beverage in his mug. I shoot him a glance and he avoids my gaze by downing the rest of his drink. Look at that. Someone is getting shy? “I would honestly have thought you would be a bit angrier at me now,” I reply. He refills his cup again while furrowing his brows a bit. “Why?” “Well. Marcia.” I shrug. “I’m pretty sure I noticed her talking a few times about our last dip in the water.” Kamil rolls his eyes and groans while sitting back at his spot. “She can’t stop talking about the fuck of her life and how you railed her so hard you toppled a tree and proceeded to destroy all her holes on the trunk.” I chuckle and shake my head. “That’s not exactly what happened.” He looks my way while tilting his mug, raising a brow at me mid-sip. “I can’t deny the last part but the tree came down because I slammed my fist into it. We somehow ended up talking a bit and she mentioned her troubles and how they most likely came to be. I got a little riled up.” Kamil snarls into his cup and slams it onto the black ground by his side. “Fucking piece of human trash! I would have gutted that shit-eating cocksucker if he was still alive! Taken that fucking acid of his and shoved it up his ass and dick until his head popped off from pain! I fucking trashed half of my room when she told me!” With a groan and a few more slams into the floor, he breaks the wooden mug, leaving only the thin arc in his hand. “Fuck. Sorry about this.” I smile while already filling up a fresh one and pass it to him. “It’s fine. Just a piece of wood. And I get you.” He takes a big swig and sighs afterwards. “That man. Did something happen to him? I’m not sure if there’s capital punishment there or something,” I ask, picking up on his outburst. “Nah. Fucker got jailed. It didn’t take long before he slipped on a bar of soap and splattered his brains over the floor. They said he must have been running to hit the floor so hard.” “Right. Unlucky.” I smile wryly. A brief silence follows before Kamil sighs again. “There was a time when I got a bit… too far ahead of myself.” He returns the conversation to its proper tracks. “We both fucked around all the time back on Earth and knew about it. But when she said she had hots for your cock, it kind of irked me a lot. I even lashed out at her in front of everyone. If it was anyone else, they would have certainly been mad but she turned the situation around into a lecture. She’s always been like this.” I nod while sipping on my own drink. Paul just sits in full relaxation and chill like the man of few words he is. “So… it still feels a little weird… but I don’t really care. She’s purposefully bringing that up a lot just to fuck with me. That’s nothing new.” He then looks my way. “Well… Sorry again for… all of the shit. It was… kind of stupid…” I raise my mug towards him. “It’s in the past. We all make mistakes. The only way is forward. And it’s more fun when everyone is on board.” He hesitates for a moment but brings his forth too and we hit a small toast. Paul joins in for another and we all take a sip after tapping our mugs together. We chill in silence for a few minutes longer. “Alright. I gotta get out before I turn into a dried plum. I’ve always been bad with water,” Kamil says as he raises himself. “I guess we should let the girls have their turn now. This was nice.” Paul also stands up. “I agree. You can let each side know they can start preparing. I’ll join one of you in a second,” I add. They nod, get out, dry themselves up and put their gear on. Meanwhile, I take a few more blissful moments while listening to them shuffling around, aiming to jump out when they finish. But, in what feels like a second, I begin hearing a multitude of footsteps heading my way and open my eyes. All the girls are walking towards me, soon reaching the edge of the pool with crystal-clear water. “Aw, shit. I dozed off, didn’t I?” I groan and swipe down my face. “I’ll get out imme—” *SPLASH* Opening my eyes, I notice Natalie catching leather shorts falling from the air and a completely naked Marcia emerging from under the surface of the water after she has jumped in at a deeper section. She lies down on her back and floats around with her impressive tits standing tall and proud like mighty mountains. “Mhhhhhnnnnnn… This hits right in the spot…” She almost moans into the open air. Shino, with the sleeping Hecate in her arms, comes closer to the wall by the side of the pool. She summons a comfy-looking sofa from the storage ring I have given her and places the peaceful spidergirl on the cushions. Taking out a thin blanket, she covers her before turning towards the steaming pond. All the girls start slowly undressing, helping each other out. My gaze shoots towards a certain blonde beauty, who is also following suit. “Wait. You too?” I ask, slightly surprised and unsure. Her calm blue eyes meet mine. “It would be suspicious if one of us stayed behind. Besides, it’s not my first time appearing naked in front of others. Neither is seeing others naked.” She faintly glances down towards an obvious spot in full display under the clear water. As composed and collected as usual. No doubt she was an incredible actress back at home. Although her appearing naked or half-naked on screen is a little doubtful considering her age, what the hell do I know about the industry? “I still should get out, nevertheless. Both to not make you uncomfortable and so that the guys won’t notice me missing.” I start raising myself up. “They won’t,” Natalie answers me again. “Each of them will think you are with the other. As long as no one lets them know.” She glances at Marcia, who dives underwater and comes out in front of me with a big grin. I look at the others. They are already naked too and either sitting on the edge, dipping their legs in the hot water, or standing by it. My gaze lands on Natalie’s perfect figure, especially her shapely chest. I quickly look away not to ogle her and catch Teffith smiling at me. They planned this. That’s why she stopped Marcia earlier. In just that brief moment, they came up with this whole operation. Damn. Women are scary. And impressive. The girls enter the pool one by one and take various spots around the edges, swim a little, or just walk while pouring the hot water over their beautiful bodies. The redhead in front of me brushes her hand up my thigh while moving closer, almost pressing herself into my chest. “Do we add some more liquids to this spring now or later?” she asks with a beguiling tone, her hand lazily sliding towards its target. I look past her once more and catch most of them glancing back at me. Figured they didn’t aim for this just to take a bath together as I did with the guys. And I don’t really mind having some quick fun in a charming underground hot spring, but… My foot touches Marcia’s underbelly and her grin grows bigger as I smile back at her too. My toes brush against her toned stomach, tracing a few circles over it, and trails up. She bites on her lower lip as my foot slides between her breasts and… suddenly launches her backward with a light kick. She is sent flying a bit and crashes into the water shortly after. Emerging from under the surface, she whips her hair to the back while giggling. “You brute! Is this how you treat a lady?” She shoots me an enamoured gaze but I ignore her for now and pass by her side as I slowly make my way through the waist-deep water. I can literally feel her raising a brow at me but I stop in front of Shino, who is standing in the centre of the pond, gingerly covering her girly parts. I pull her closer to me and brush her cheek with my thumb as she looks up into my eyes with a crimson flush covering her pretty cheeks. “You okay?” I ask quietly. She gives me a faint smile and a nod. “I’m fine, Sensei.” She fumbles with her petite hands a bit. “Don’t force yourself into something uncomfortable. I know you aren’t the best with others around.” She moves her hands to my neck and brings me down to join our lips together for a brief and affectionate kiss. “It will be hard to always be alone. I want to try doing it with everyone. And this place is really charming. Very… romantic. And we could use a bit of boost for a few days,” she replies timidly. “Damn. How can you keep it soft in a situation like this?” Marcia’s voice arrives from below as she pokes my junk with her finger. Shino giggles adorably, pecks my lips one more time, and slides down to kneel in front of me, quickly arriving face-to-face with the sleeping beast. She starts raining loving little kisses on it while gently cupping up the dragon’s precious jewels. Naturally, I let it gradually wake up from its slumber. My gaze lands on Natalie again, sitting submerged in water to her perky nipples a bit further in front of me, supporting herself over the edge. “Ermmmm…” “Don’t mind me. I’m not some sheltered, pure maiden with no knowledge about the world or who hasn't ever watched porn,” she speaks before I say anything. “Well, yeah, but… If I remember correctly—” “I turned eighteen a month ago. I know of your principles, Mr Car—Alastair. You don’t need to feel uncomfortable.” “Ah. Late happy birthday then. I’m sorry I missed it.” She nods with a tiny smile. “Thank you.” I smile wryly while rubbing the back of my head. Not wanting to push it too much, I glance down at Shino, who is doing her best to caress my member with her tongue now, looking up at me. She still seems embarrassed but I can also discern a bit of pride in herself, perhaps from overcoming that little shyness. I brush through her black hair to show my appreciation. Something soft presses into my back and two arms partially covered in crimson scales wrap themselves around my waist. Teffith’s head appears over my shoulder and our eyes meet after I turn my face towards her. She smiles warmly and we enter a kiss as her fingers run all over my chest. Some weak slushing follows and an elf with golden hair and rosy cheeks shows up at my side. Ghilerie peeks at my face, then down at my crotch, and finally moves closer while lowering herself a bit. Her hands join Teffith’s over my front but she also brings her face to my skin and starts to tickle my nipples with her tongue, carefully observing my reactions. “You girls! What am I supposed to do now? You left me no space!” Marcia groans from somewhere behind me. “I don’t think Al is into some strap-on action, is he?” My butt clenches a little and all the women around me giggle or chuckle, including Marcia. I would appreciate not being attacked from behind while unaware. It might be fun to test a thing or two out, but this isn’t the best moment for that, honestly. And I do prefer giving over receiving. My muscles tense again when someone’s hands land on my behind but soon relax as Marcia’s head squeezes between my legs to deliver a multitude of pecks to my sack from below. And so, four girls work me all over with great effort. Shino’s blowjob is really giving me pleasant chills as she swirls her tongue around my glans, stroking the shaft gently with her fingers. I don’t intend to prolong this too much so the pleasure coming from all the angles slowly builds up in my core as I use one hand to brush through her hair and the other to caress Ghilerie’s pointy ear. I let my precious samurai girlfriend know about an upcoming explosion and she proceeds to receive my everything with clear determination, sucking me dry to the very last drop. She happily drinks all of the creamy delicacy like many times recently, with our little experiment still ongoing. She’s been getting better at it too, definitely doing her best to learn my good spots. All the other girls step back, leaving only her in front of me. I bring Shino up by extending a hand to her and we share a loving kiss before separating. I quickly summon a wooden plate with Hall of Serenity already drawn on it and throw it aside. It will let Hecate sleep peacefully and mute out our fun here. “My turn now,” I say while grabbing her hands. She stops me and smiles sweetly. “It’s okay, Sensei. I’ve been… ready for some time now… We can move on…” I nod and walk with Shino to a bit shallower part of the pool so that water doesn’t inconvenience us too much. She leaves a peck on my lips and turns around. Looking back at me over her shoulder, she spreads her buttcheeks to the sides, revealing her cute butthole and pretty slit. With such an invitation, I step closer and very gently enter her to the very end. She sighs contentedly from my cock filling her up as I wrap one arm around her slim waist and grab her wrist with the other hand. We both lean a bit forward when I make the first thrust and stop, realizing we have arrived quite close in front of Natalie. “Sensei?” Shino glances back at me. “Nothing,” I answer her questioning gaze and begin moving again, slowly increasing the tempo of our tender lovemaking as both of us gradually feel better and better. I guess she doesn’t mind getting pounded in front of her best friend that much. It would be hard to believe that she hasn’t noticed where we are. I’m pretty sure they have locked their gazes at least a few times. Well, as long as Natalie doesn’t look uncomfortable or bothered by it, I don’t mind either. As usual, though, I can’t get a clear read on her. I just hope she would say or show if watching her best friend getting railed from behind wasn’t up to her alley. “Ahhh… Ahhhh… Nhhhhh… Sensei…” Shino’s adorable moans fill the air inside the barrier as I slide myself in and out of her finely tight pussy. Her petite body jumps back and forth from my rhythmic pounding as I shower her beautiful neck with loving kisses. “Ahhh… Sensei… Ahhhnn… More… Please…” I speed up a little and pull Shino’s wrist to the back, using it to draw her onto my rushing cock as I push my hips forward. Her cries grow a tone louder and she grabs my arm wrapped around her belly with her free hand to steady herself. Regular clapping of my waist against her petite bottom resonates through the pool as we fuck passionately. “Ahhh… Ahhh… Ahhhh… Ahhhnnn… You can… Ahhhh… Stronger…” Knowing that her high is slowly building up, I let go of Shino’s wrist and move my arm to her small chest, joining the other one coiled around her slim waist. Hunching us together just a bit more, I pull her body into me. “Ahhh! Ahhh! Ahhhh! Sensei! Ahhhnn!” Shino’s feet lose contact with the ground and flail a little as this change brings her a bit up. I hammer her pussy relentlessly while she holds onto my arm wrapped around her navel like onto the safety bar of an extreme rollercoaster. And with how much her small body shakes from my pounding, she could pretty much be riding one. “Ahhh! Sensei! I’m coming! Ahhhh! Ahnnnnnnnn!” As Shino quickly approaches her peak, my eyes briefly jump onto Natalie again. The sight surprises me a little. With slightly parted lips, she looks straight at her best friend’s climaxing face while her hand rubs her girly mound up and down below the surface of the water with a moderate speed. I guess even she isn’t immune to this much stimulation. With my eyes locked on that view, I release an abundant load inside Shino’s snug passage shortly after it constricts itself around me from her own orgasm. The waves of creamy seed fill her up one after another as she trembles in my arms with an adorable moan leaving her dainty lips. I pull myself out of Shino’s incredible insides and bring us down into the water. She smiles at me adorably with that flushed face of hers and giggles as Natalie scoots closer to help me support her. I leave my filled and happy samurai in the hands of the reliable bard and turn around after winking at the black-haired princess. Teffith and Ghilerie walk my way side by side with a seductive sway of their hips and curvaceous bodies. Seems like they have grown to like double-teaming me together. “Step aside, bitches!” They are suddenly shoved aside and fall into the water with a loud splash as Marcia rushes ahead in full sprint, as much as the knee-deep water in this segment allows for it, forcing her to make comically high water-spitting steps. She throws herself at me and I grunt as she slams into my waist, wrapping her legs behind my back. She snickers at me and hastily wiggles her butt until her craving snatch finds the tip of my spear and she plunges her thirsty pussy down without hesitation, impaling herself on my cock before I push her away again. “Yessssssssssss…” Marcia whines into my face as her nails scrape over my chest, her eyelashes flutter from the pleasure this mighty penetration brings her. Again, with no warning, she leans to the back, almost causing us to fall into the water, but I manage to react in time and grab onto her plump sides. She hangs from my body like the little line from the letter L, with my dick buried deep inside her frivolous folds. She puts her hands behind her head and grinds her pelvis around with a cocky smile. “Come on, strong man! Can’t destroy my pussy in mid-air?” I smirk at her. “Careful what you wish for.” Squeezing my hands on her waist more, I draw back and thrust into her with pretty much everything I have, smashing into her bottom with an incredibly loud smack. Her mouth opens wide and her eyes widen to the brim. Before giving Marcia any chances to react, I start pounding her insatiable cunt like a madman. She quickly loses all her bravado and starts flailing around as my powerful thrusts throw her body into a state of pure chaos. “FUCK! OH, FUCK! OH, FUCK, FUCK, FUCKKKKKKK!” She comes in a flash and starts shivering on my dick. I don’t stop even for a moment and keep drilling her tightening insides with no mercy. You act cocky and rude to others, dicking around all the time, I dick you down back to the proper manners. “AHHH! AHHH! AHH! FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK! AHHH! AGAIN!” It doesn’t take long for her to reach another peak under my intense care. Plenty of love juices splatter onto our navels from her flooding honeypot. Each time I shove myself deep into her, another wet, squelchy splash lands on us. She keeps wriggling and flailing around without any control. Her legs have lost their strength quite a moment ago and it’s only thanks to my strong hold on her waist and my dick lodged in her pussy that she’s still in the air, receiving the dicking of her lifetime. We went hard back in the forest the last time but not as much as now. “FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, AHHHHHHHHHHH!” Marcia orgasms again and goes almost completely limp, thrashed around by my mighty strikes. I finish in her quickly and toss her aside. She lands in the water with a loud splash and soon resurfaces, floating on her back just like in the beginning. Her spasming, shivering body drifts away, leaving behind a white trail coming out from between her legs. Somebody chuckles by my side and Teffith hugs me with her mesmerizing body, brushing her bouncy breasts against my skin. “You really showed her.” She smiles proudly and I offer her a tame kiss. Ghilerie shows up on the other side with similar action and I put my arms around them, giving their plump butts a little squeeze. “You girls in for a little fun together or…?” The dazzling elf answers first. “Teffith wanted to embrace you a little more passionately… while I…” She blushes quite heavily. “So… I think she should go first…” I brush through her long hair and kiss the tip of her adorable, long ear. “Alright. Wait a little for me, please.” She nods and steps away. I turn my focus to the charming dragonewt and pull us closer. Starting an intimate kiss, I bring Teffith up and she latches onto my waist. I carry my crimson-scaled companion to the edge of the pool and sit her down at a place that lets our lower halves align perfectly. Teffith gives me a warm smile as I lean into her and tenderly slide inside her soft pussy. We stay connected for a few seconds, making out lovingly. Then, I begin to move very slowly, aiming to explore her coiling insides with the utmost attention. She holds onto me dearly, releasing melodic sighs and tiny moans into my ear. I do not hurry. I give every little movement as much attention as I can. When my mate wants to do things in a loving way, I’m very much going to oblige. “Alastair… Mhhhhhmmmmm…” She moans some more. “Is this good, Teff?” I whisper back. “I love it…” she purrs into my ear. “Can you play with my horns?” “Always.” I move my mouth to the twin crimson spikes and run my tongue over their lengths from the bottom to the top. Teffith shivers instantly and her fingers curl a little, leaving some marks on my back. Her moans grow a tad louder and steamier as I lap my tongue over the sensitive spikes while making tender love to her precious place. “Nhnnnn… It feels so good… It’s slowly building up… Mmmmmmm…” She finds my lips again and we enter a delicate exchange of pecks, broken by the occasional sighs and moans she releases into my lips. To increase her pleasure even more, one of my hands slides over her beautiful tail and starts rubbing its underside close to her butt. Teffith’s eyelashes flutter a little as she gasps. I chuckle and keep tickling that spot, joining all the efforts into one machine of carnal satisfaction. Her peak starts approaching faster and faster until she lets out a beautiful cry and tightens on my cock. With our mouths joined together, I let my semen fill her up unhurriedly. We stare each other in the eyes while coming down from our respective highs. She smiles at me softly and brushes over her womb. “It’s really a pleasant feeling receiving your warm seed deep there. Thank you for this passionate ride, Alastair.” “I enjoyed it greatly too.” I smile back at her. “I hope you didn’t forget about our Elf friend.” She chuckles. Glancing to the side, I spot Ghilerie standing close while playing with her long blond hair. She blushes a little when our gazes meet. She’s been waiting for quite some time. I need to reward her for her patience. With one more peck between me and Teffith, I walk to Ghilerie and hug her from the front. “What is your wish, my dear elven princess?” I kiss her forehead. Her face flushes red even more and she steps away, moving closer to the edge of the pool. She leans over it and sticks her butt out. Giving me an uncertain glance over her shoulder, she twirls with a lock of her shining hair. “You really love doggy, don’t you?” She escapes my eyes, making me chuckle. But, the fingers of her other hand show up around her pretty pinkish slit and spread her precious place fully for me to see. Damn, girls. You are really killing me today with these views. I approach the cute elf, place my hands on her bubbly butt, and drive myself into Ghilerie’s open crevice, knowing she will enjoy a rougher start. She whines in a pleasurable tone and rests her body on her elbows in the front. “Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah!” Short and quick moans soon fill the quiet air as I moderately assault her alluring slit. We fuck passionately for a brief moment while I wait to see if she voices her wishes herself or will be too embarrassed with others present. Ghilerie does shoot me a few glances as I rail her from behind but says nothing. Already having picked up on the signs she gave me earlier, I lean into her, arriving at her long ear, and speak up, not wanting her to miss a good time everyone else had. “You could have always asked me telepathically, you know?” I whisper to her ear and bite gently over the sharp edge. She whines quietly and a smile forms on her lips. Taking that as a green light, I lift her right thigh, placing it over the edge too, spreading her elf pussy a bit more, and reach out to grab a fistful of the golden threads lying on her slender back. “AHHHHHH! AH! AH! AH! AH! YES! AH! AH!” Ghilerie instantly turns much louder when I yank her head back by pulling on her hair. I also increase the force of my thrusts a little and pound her in sync with the actions of my hand. She really loves having her hair pulled, for some reason. Not that it’s any bad or shameful. “AH! AH! AH! AH! AH!” Her insides tighten and coil around my shaft more as I keep shoving my cock repeatedly into her love nest. Rhythmic slapping accompanies our carnal pursuit of pleasure. I throw in a few ear bites into the loop and Ghilerie’s orgasm builds up decently quick. She finds my eyes in this lewd battle and I understand her intentions just from a glance. Smiling at her, I ramp up the tempo even more, getting us closer to the finale. She prepares herself for the grand finish by rolling her fingers into fists and turning her face forward. Even her toes curl a little. Just shortly of her peak, I drive my cock deep into her while pulling on her golden hair with a lot of force. “AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!” Ghilerie orgasms with a loud cry and her tongue lolling out of her mouth. I hastily support her body with a hug while she rides her peak, filling her snug tunnel with my seed. After she becomes a bit more stable, I fall to the back, throwing us both into the water. “Ah, fuck!” I curse in surprise immediately after we resurface, floating on our backs. Not that far above our heads, a certain spidergirl hangs down from the ceiling while suspended upside down like a particular popular superhero. All six of her deep black eyes observe me attentively. From what I can see, something extremely thin, almost unnoticeable, is coiling around one of her thighs, creating a spiral of slightly plump flesh. That hard to perceive wire is most likely how she hangs in the air from the ceiling. And, weirdly enough, I swear it leads towards her girly mound, currently uncovered with the black panties slid to the side. Sitting up by the girls who have grouped up on the other side of the pool, I wave at Hecate. She rappels herself down, grabs the thin, unperceivable wire, unravels it from around her thigh, and descends until she reaches the steaming water. After touching it with her toe, she falls into the pool as if the rope suspending her suddenly snaps. She slowly walks to our spot and stops in front of us. “So, I kind of expected something like this after checking out your skills, but this was your thread, right?” I ask. She nods. “How do you make it?” She points at her girly parts. “I see.” I glance around, checking if any of the girls want to pick up the conversation since they are a bit more experienced with genitals of this style but their eyes seem to tell me that it’s all on me. I turn my face back to the humanoid Arachne. “Well, I’m not sure I understand it correctly.” She ponders for a moment. Then, she starts walking closer. Arriving just in front of my face, she turns around, leans forward, and uses her fingers to spread her pale slit, mirroring Ghilerie’s motion. I wonder how long she’s been peeking at us. Marcia shuffles closer to me. “I don’t know why but I kind of expected something… weirder. She has pussy like any of us. Maybe besides a single detail.” “Which is?” I raise my brow at the redhead. All I can see is a pretty vagina of a quite pale colour palette. Matching her alabaster skin, Hecate’s insides are light grey, looking just as alluring as in any other colour. Natalie’s finger moves closer to Hecate’s privates. “Here.” She points at a certain spot. “Just below her urethra, there’s another small opening. I guess that’s where the web comes out.” Hecate closes her folds and turns around to face us again, nodding. That pretty much confirms things. I gently grab her hand and pull the spidergirl into my lap, starting to pat her head as she leans into me. “Looks like we’ll have to figure out something special for your underwear when we get back home. Although, I’m pretty sure you would love going commando nevertheless.” I chuckle lightly. A few of the girls laugh too and snuggle closer to me. We stay in the pool for a few more minutes, enjoying the blissful warmth and the presence of each other.
Chapter 108 – The Hunt Spoiler: Chapter The girls chat with each other while we chill in the hot water. Hecate is seated on my lap with her back leaning into me, eyes closed. She’s slowly catching some quality rest over the course of the last day. Shino is the next person closest to me, hugging my left arm from the side with my palm between her slim thighs. She sneaks a peck on my lips when I glance at her with the other girls not paying attention. Truthfully, I think she’s the only one not realizing that they are acting like that just to give her a little push. As much as Marcia would love to be on my other side, Teffith has taken that spot, currently observing the pale-skinned spidergirl with a warm smile and occasionally exchanging a few words with Ghilerie just next to her. They seem to be growing on each other. They do have some similarities. My eyes wander over everyone’s exquisite figures. It’s just impossible not to stare at all these alluring breasts of various sizes and shapes or the many different bodies just dripping with sex appeal. And hot water. Natalie notices my gaze lingering over her for a brief moment as she is chatting with Shino and our eyes meet. Our samurai princess notices that and turns to me too. Both of them are now glancing at my face and I smile at them. “Sorry for earlier. I didn’t notice we have gotten so close to you. I just wanted to make sure you know that it wasn’t intentional.” Shino immediately realizes what I’m talking about and turns into a freshly boiled tomato as usual. “I can’t believe I had sex in front of my best friend…” she mutters quietly, covering her reddening face with her petite hands. A very faint blush surfaces on Natalie’s cheeks which clearly isn’t caused by the temperature of the pool and she nods faintly. “It’s okay. I wasn’t really bothered by it. It was… an unusual but a little interesting experience, to be honest. I’m just glad Shino wasn’t uncomfortable with me watching you two make love to each other. And… with you know…” She drops her gaze for a fraction of a second, letting me know that she has noticed that I have noticed what she was doing during our sexy time, which somehow escaped the attention of our mutual best friend. But, it’s not that surprising, actually. Shino’s mind was clearly focused on something else. I wink at the blond-haired bard. “No worries. If you didn’t mind us, then I surely didn’t mind you. And I’m sure Shino didn’t mind either. I know she wouldn’t mind that.” The person in question uncovers her face, still blushing furiously, and looks at Natalie. “Of course, I didn’t mind, Natalie-san. I was worried… what you would think of me after… this…” Shino adds, definitely not getting what the two of us are talking about. Natalie rolls her eyes. “You drew porn in front of me, sometimes even with three or more videos paused in front of us for references, and even ran your ideas and sketches through me. Surely, you don’t think me watching you do it with the person you love could make my perception of how lewd and shameless you are increase even more.” Shino drops into the water with a loud splash, most likely to hide from the world. I can imagine that the part about them watching porn together to use it as reference material wasn’t supposed to be revealed to me or others. I raise a brow at Natalie and the very corner of her dainty lips rise into the faintest little smirk. Looks like even she can have moments where she just can’t stop herself from teasing her best friend a little. Smirking back at her, I reach under the water and pull our timid companion by the nape of her neck back into the open air before she suffocates herself. Shino takes a deep breath and looks at me with a completely flustered expression, constantly running away with her eyes. I pull her a bit closer to me and whisper, “That’s hot.” She smiles weakly and we share a tame kiss after I let go of her, exchanging loving pecks with our faces turned towards each other. Shino breaks it first after noticing a certain spidergirl looking at us from my lap, getting too embarrassed to continue. Something brushes over the inner side of my thigh, soon poking the sleeping beast resting in between them. I turn my face to the other side and bonk Marcia on the head. “No horny.” “Ow! Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut…” Sprawled over Teffith’s and Ghilerie’s laps while on her belly, she gives me an upturned gaze just from above the surface of the water. “Should have been nicer to the others if you aren’t satisfied now.” She whines playfully while making puppy eyes and puckering her lips. “What if I apologize very, very honestly to them? Can I get just one more fuck? It was amazing when you did me so savagely but please, just one more, a bit slower this time?” “You are an adult. Suffer the consequences of your actions.” Marcia looks down with exaggerated hopelessness but soon glances back up with a mischievous spark in her eyes. “You are right. I’ve been a really bad girl. Bad girls should be punished. You should spank my butt really hard.” With a few quick movements, she ends up pointing her behind straight at my face while standing over Teffith, flashing both of her holes for me, Hecate, and Shino to see from up close. “Come on! Spank me!” She wiggles her butt. “Spank me so hard it will stay red for a week! I need to learn my lesson! And then, it will hurt even more when you slam your hips into my ass while fucking my pussy! It’s the worst punishment, right? Come on!” I sigh heavily while some of the girls chuckle at the scene. Placing one hand on Marcia’s plump asscheek, I give it a good squeeze, grabbing as much of her tender flesh as I can. She giggles excitedly when a second hand follows with the same for the other half of her juicy ass. Then, with my fingers firmly holding onto her bottom, I quickly lift her above the water and throw her forward, towards a deeper part of the pool. “Ahhhhhhhhhhh! You chea—” *SPLASH* Everyone chuckles again as I ostentatiously dust my hands off. Marcia resurfaces in the middle of the small underground lake and crosses her arms under her impressive tits, spitting a mouthful of hot water and pouting at me. She soon laughs too, shaking her head, and jogs back to us, without causing any more trouble. Her antics have a great effect on the people around and she knows it well. She’s always been perceptive and knew what to do to bring out a fun atmosphere. “Alright. Let’s get our new spider friend all cleaned up and get out. We’ve been here for a while. If we set everything up properly, this should be a decent place to take a longer rest. It’s both warm and safe, with just two easily blockable entrances,” I say while brushing over Hecate’s slim tummy. She quickly complies with my intentions without me even having to ask and sits up. I give her some pats and start carefully washing her body from behind, starting with her shoulders, back, then arms and legs. Shino moves to Hecate’s front and takes care of her hair in the meanwhile. “Hecate-san's hair is so damaged and mistreated it’s making me so sad…” she comments with a sorrowful expression. I lean over Hecate’s shoulder to give her a peck on the cheek. “We’ll fix it. She will be a new woman in a flash. But, I think short hair suits her, personally.” Shino nods. “I think so too. She will definitely look beautiful in her own way after it heals. Not like Hecate-san isn’t beautiful already.” She then proceeds to wash Hecate’s front with her delicate fingers. Shino doesn’t leave a spot behind and gently takes care of the spidergirl’s body, including her intimate parts, blushing a little bit during the motion and shooting me occasional glances. Hecate shows no reaction to any of our actions, most likely leaving herself in my hands without a shadow of doubt or hesitation. Wrapping things up, everyone leaves the pool and gets dressed. Natalie goes to grab Paul while I leave to bring Kamil here. The two of us arrive back in the chamber second, just after the other duo walks inside, making it look like I was with Kamil the whole time to Paul, and like I was with Paul but went to grab him to Kamil. It doesn’t seem like anyone has realized something is not right. For now, at least. We slowly set up a camp by one of the black walls, as far from the water pools as possible, and share a meal together while chatting a little. Hecate doesn’t leave my lap as I feed her some of the tasty but not too heavy pieces of our rations. Better safe than sorry for a bit longer. When we talk about securing the exits properly, my new companion looks at me intently and I nod at Hecate after sensing what she is thinking about. After the meal, she walks up to each of the entrances and we watch her weave a barely visible wire in her hands and all six spider legs. In just a few moments, a complex web is present on each exit, barely noticeable without a close source of light. We check the thin threads and realize how sharp they are. If somebody were to walk into them, he would end up with some shallow cuts. And if somebody was pushed or pressed into them, it could get much worse. Incredible. Afterwards, we set up the guarding duty and decide to get some proper sleep. This time, I join in on the watch and take the first shift with Hecate. The two of us sit together with her, no surprise, still on my lap. She seems to be taking her new role very seriously. Soon, Marcia takes over and we head to my tent. No other girls ambush me inside so I quickly prepare the bedding and bring Hecate with me to snuggle together for the night. I’m pretty sure she wouldn’t want to leave my side anyway. It’s pretty hot around so we both strip naked and lie on the mattress. After I invite her, Hecate wiggles closer to me and embraces me from the front, nuzzling herself to my body with her arms wrapped around my torso. As she drifts off to sleep, her black spider legs gradually curl around my body, pulling us more into each other. It does seem a little spooky at first, seeing six sharp and durable spikes tightening around you, but it doesn’t reach uncomfortable levels and just stays as a tender hug. I can move her spider legs away with no effort, but of course, choose not to do it. So, we get a good night of sleep in this interesting hug and wake up shortly before breakfast. Somewhere along the way of the upgrades to my skills and body, I have gained the ability to be able to wake up exactly when I mean it. Some people back on Earth have this power but I didn’t count in that group. Nothing much has happened while we rested and the web seals seem untouched. We go for a quick breakfast and prepare to depart. Hecate is already starting to look a little better after the night. She’s recovering fast with just a bit of proper nutrition and rest. We gear up, check everything, and resume our journey through the dark tunnels of the abyss under the deadly desert. Hecate joins Shino and Kamil at the front to scout and peeks ahead with her eyes perfectly fitting this place. She’s really good at silently and sneakily gathering intel and navigating through the maze of caverns and passages. In a few hours, we reach a crevice leading to the surface and jump out to check where we are. After Natalie does the same trick with her magic to point the directions of the world, we notice that we are now not that far from the other end of the scorching hot valley of death. Perhaps a day or two of travel, depending on the presence of any obstacles. Since we have been doing fine underground, we all agree to continue just below the surface, getting rid of the unbearable heat. With the additional safety of Hecate’s sharp senses primed for detection in dark places, it’s not that bad of an idea. Hopefully, we won’t run into any more worms. Our new spidergirl member shows a bit more active approach during the few encounters we stumble on. She still keeps herself relatively close to me but fights alongside everyone else more freely. She has clearly regained some of her lost vitality and stamina. These six obsidian spikes move with a deadly speed and force, impressing everyone around. I’ve lost count of how many times one of them has suddenly appeared out of nowhere to block an attack aimed at me before I could respond to it myself. It’s not like I haven't been able to avoid or counter it, she just doesn’t give me the chance to even do so, protecting me from almost everything that ends up moving towards me. I guess it will be a tad harder to get through this protect the queen mentality than I have first assumed. She most likely still sees herself as an expendable pawn even though she allows herself to receive some affection. Perhaps she’s only doing that because it would be impossible to refuse anything coming from her queen, which is me at the current moment. Nothing much I can do about that right now besides showing Hecate that I care about her more than just about her being my tool and talking to the silent spidergirl with a warm tone. She certainly enjoys snuggling up to me a lot with her chilly body so there’s that at least. We are traversing the caverns and tunnels at a surprisingly quick pace thanks to Hecate and Shino working in tandem to scout ahead. My samurai girlfriend is certainly warming up to our new companion too. She often trots to Hecate to wipe some blood off her face or help with something minor. They are of a similar height more or less so it looks like they are sisters with completely opposite looks and elements, like darkness befriending light. It’s extremely cute at times. Hecate was wary of her a bit in the beginning but she seems to have acknowledged Shino as my companion, or perhaps mate after she peeked at us in the bath, if she even understood what was happening. Thus, in less than a day, we notice a change in our surroundings. The brownish stone and hardened sand take a darker, greyish shade. Pure rock starts dominating the caverns and passages. We look for a way up to check the surface and find ourselves past the mountain range dividing the Barren Valley from the forest biome just outside. Everyone sighs in relief from finally getting out of that hell with both above and under the surface almost equally inhospitable. “So, what now? We don’t have horses anymore. Are we walking to the closest town or village to find some or are we not that far from our destination?” Marcia asks after we stretch a bit and take a short rest. I glance at Ghilerie while making sure that being outside doesn’t have any uncomfortable effects on our new party member. Hecate did squint her eyes for some time after we resurfaced but she seems to have gotten accustomed to the lighting now, fortunately. I was a little worried the lands above would be troublesome for her to traverse. “I’m not yet exactly sure where we are, but I don’t think we are too close to my settlement. Finding any town marked on the map would be the best plan, for now, I think,” the blonde elf answers. Paul nods. “It should allow us to precisely pinpoint our location and also to ask locals about the region. I’m all for it.” We all agree and Shino walks up to me and Hecate. “Is Hecate-san okay on the surface, Sensei?” I smile at my considerate partner. “Seems like it so far. Let us know if you feel any discomfort or anything else, alright? No hiding any pain or other things,” I say to the spidergirl. Hecate nods obediently and I brush through her still slightly damaged hair. It will take a short moment for the missing bits to regrow. I tried speeding it up with Rejuvenate but that took quite a bit of time to slowly regenerate hair so we decided to postpone it for now. “Also, as much as I hate throwing more clothes onto you, we’ll have to dress you up a bit now, Hecate.” I kneel in front of the pale-skinned beauty. “I’m afraid you running around in just panties and a shirt will gather more attention than your eyes or legs, which I would like you to wrap around your stomach when they aren’t needed, if possible. Could you do that for me or is it too inconvenient?” As usual, Hecate doesn’t answer but her six spider legs instantly move to coil around her waist and tummy, creating a black corset or a piece of chitin armour that covers her stomach. Funnily, it neatly accentuates her breasts, slowly regaining their proper proportions. “Thank you. Now, for the clothes, hmmmm…” “Sensei. Maybe we can let Hecate-san wear a cloak with a hood. She could have it down or up depending on the situation and just a cape won’t inconvenience her legs and… ummm… down there… too much…” Shino blushes a little, not knowing how to mention Hecate’s precious place, where the thin and deadly wire-like webs originate from. I chuckle at her and ruffle through her soft black hair. “That should work. Thanks for the suggestion, Shino.” We choose a fitting cloak for our new friend and Hecate accepts it without a word of protest. Or rather, without a sign of protest since she hasn’t given us any words yet. She tries it out a bit after I ask her to and confirms that it doesn’t restrict her movements and senses. Great. In the meanwhile, the rest of the squad has been analyzing the maps we have and the path we took to more or less deduce where we are by the edge of the Barren Valley. From what they tell us, we don’t seem to be too lost and there is supposed to be a village two days' worth of walking from our position. After getting ready, we depart towards it. Ghilerie and Teffith take the lead, much more experienced in traversing through forests and wilds in general. It’s already been long past afternoon when we have surfaced so we don’t cover much distance before setting up a camp for the night, the first time in a less deadly environment in quite a bit. Besides Hecate, Teffith joins me for the night. While the snuggly spidergirl ends up as my little spoon this time, the dragonewt lady nuzzles her face into my neck from behind, with her arms gently wrapped around me. It always feels amazing to be in the middle of such a warm and beautiful sandwich. Without delay, we rush forward soon after breakfast, which for quite a few girls consists of very nutritious milk they have given up on for the time we were in the caverns. It was a little too awkward and suspicious to continue the experiment down there, but now, they can again enjoy the benefits. And I can enjoy something else at the same time. Hecate only watches from the side with her calm and neutral face. It’s pretty obvious she has no idea what the other girls are doing. I will hold back from explaining things properly until she becomes more accustomed to us and me in general. I have a feeling that she would jump into it instantly if I told her it’s mostly for my pleasure or the pleasure of both sides. The first part could touch on that deep loyalty of hers and unnecessarily push her to do it just because I’m her queen. Deep inside, I am aware that it could be impossible to completely get rid of that strong subservience and reliance on her superior, but I would want to at least try to work on it a little. I’m just not expecting fireworks to not get disappointed. I’ll accept her nevertheless. It would be unkind to try and push her away with how dedicated she is, forcefully changing her nature. Nothing notable happens during the day. We just move through the dense forest in search of any roads, walking in the general direction of the nearby village. Everyone gets a tad livelier now that we are back on the proper surface and Ghilerie clearly feels at home between the trees. It’s somehow mesmerizing watching her stride around with a light step, bow in hand. On the second day, we encounter some wild boars. They are much bigger than their Earth cousins and have six tusks in total, looking quite scary. Certainly, if a dumpster-sized boar with six sharp spikes rushed at me, I would be quite terrified back then. “Why don’t we hunt them down?” Teffith suggests as we observe the herd from afar. “We could bring them to Ghilerie’s settlement. They would surely appreciate more supplies, right?” I glance at our hunter elf and she nods. “I think it’s a good idea. Thanks to Alastair’s generosity, I should be able to store one or two in the necklace he has gifted me with so it’s not a bad idea. The meat won’t turn bad before we arrive at my home.” “We have much bigger storage artifacts on us so there will be no problem keeping all of them if you want. We are going there too, anyway. Even if we wouldn’t enter the settlement, we can always drop them close,” I add. Ghilerie gives me a nice smile. “I would appreciate it a lot. I have no idea what the food situation looks like back there, and while it shouldn’t be bad, some more wouldn’t hurt.” “Alright. How do we do it, then?” Paul joins in. “Please, leave it to me. I didn’t show you much in the past weeks so I would like to tackle it alone. This is what I’m best at in the end.” I exchange glances with the rest of the squad and everyone nods. “No problem. We’ll jump in if things go south,” Paul replies. We back away and spread out a little. I thought Hecate would be more hesitant to split for me, but she complies with my request and takes position a bit further to my side. If any of the huge boars somehow escapes our professional hunter, we’ll catch them before they can run away. I have a feeling it won’t be necessary, though. Ghilerie approaches my position before going after her prey and I raise a brow at her. The beautiful elf blushes ever so slightly while fiddling with her fingers around the bow’s grip. I smile and extend a hand to her. After she takes it, I pull her closer and join our lips in a tender kiss. She leaves the lead to me and I take her warm tongue for a short and slow dance while brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. With a soft smile, she breaks the kiss. “Thank you. Now I feel fully revitalized.” I chuckle and peck her lips once more. “You are welcome. Good luck out there.” She turns around and quickly paces away. It would be nice to have a decent viewing spot to watch her efforts instead of trying to pinpoint everything amongst the trees but there aren’t any hills or rock formations in the near vicinity. I look at the nearby tree while thinking about it and an idea dawns on me. I shape a whip with my artifact weapon and shoot it at the very top of the closest and thickest pine. The rope extends mid-air and coils around the top part exactly as I wish for. Starting to reduce its length, I jump towards the tree and begin running up the wooden trunk, getting pulled upwards by the retracting whip. Reaching the end of the rope, I cast Void Chains in the form of leather straps to attach myself to the tree. Now, I have a decently better view of the boars below and the stalking Ghilerie. It’s not perfect but the density of the forest isn’t high enough to completely obstruct the vision and the prey is hanging around a small clearing. Ghilerie seems to be setting something up at a few spots around that glade. Most likely traps of some sort. This is getting exciting. I knew she should have some tricks up her sleeve since she’s been a hunter for a long time, but I tried not to get my expectations too high. This might actually be a better show than just her headshotting each pig. After around ten minutes of silent sneaking around, Ghilerie finishes her preparations and takes position to the south of the herd. I’d say, around fifty or so meters away from it. It’s quite a bit but I’m sure it’s nothing to her. She draws a single arrow from the quiver and nocks it against the bowstring. The magical magnets Sirgia wove into it cause the artifact to float towards Ghilerie’s elbow and help her draw the bow almost as much as its durability allows. I can feel the tension just by looking at the magnificent black weapon. Without even the faintest swish from the bow, the arrow gets launched forward, whizzing through the air at an incredible speed, whistling faintly. It hits the smallest boar out of the six present in the clearing right in the knee. It releases a high-pitched pained cry and the whole crew raises their heads to look around. I honestly expected them to run away immediately after what I assume is a failed shot, but the wild boars do something completely unexpected. They quickly turn their backs to the injured member and start trotting backwards until it’s surrounded from all sides. This has somehow turned into the ‘Get down Mr President!’ situation out of the blue. I take a glance at Ghilerie but don’t find her at the previous spot. She must have moved immediately after firing. A few quick looks around while following her presence through our connection allows me to find her soon. She’s crouching down from the west now, with another arrow already nocked in. She releases it and the projectile whizzes past the group, piercing into a random tree. Another one follows after it almost immediately, hitting another tree. This far into the hunt, I realize I have no idea what’s happening anymore and what to expect. I’m no hunter and know shit about the craft or profession, especially in this world, but her actions are just so weird to me. It makes no sense. But, they do have some effect on the boars. Two of the biggest and meanest wild pigs break off the circle and rush towards the direction where the arrows came from. The rest of the squad tightens the ring to protect the smaller one again. The two attackers charge through the trees. They notice Ghilerie standing up and gain even more speed after locking onto her. I can tell that they have gotten furious. But, before they can reach her, both boars trip over something and tumble forward as one mass of bodies. After finally stopping, five small green formations light up on the ground and around ten slick wooden branches shoot out of them, completely binding the beasts and pinning them to the ground. This time, I catch her changing positions and Ghilerie returns to the south with a very quick step, preparing another arrow while running. She stops after reaching around a hundred meters from the herd, launches an arrow into the sky, and instantly starts running again. She circles the pack, arriving at the north, and repeats her previous motion, this time drawing the bowstring only around halfway. She lets go of the arrow and takes a deep breath, staying still with her eyes closed. With a simultaneous thunk, both arrows she has fired into the air hit the ground at the same time, one in front of each of the two boars facing the directions they have been shot from. Both beasts immediately lunge forward just like their brothers or sisters. And they both end up restrained in the same way. At the moment when the arrows came down, Ghilerie jumped into her next move and is currently rushing at the last remaining boar, excluding the smaller, wounded one. With her completely silent and quick steps, it only manages to notice her approach just before she slits its throat in a slide. The giant beast drops onto the ground. The air is filled with squeals and groans coming from the four restrained boars and the injured one. Standing over the smaller boar, which is clearly limping away from her in fear, she nocks another arrow and fires it straight up. It explodes silently with a bright green flash, a signal for everyone that the hunt is completed. I jump down my tree and arrive at her side pretty much at the same time as the others. Ghilerie is just finishing slitting the throat of the smaller and hurt boar, kneeling by its body. “That was certainly something. Although, I have to admit, I understood nothing from what I saw,” I begin. She glances up at me with a sweet smile. “Would you like me to explain while I take care of the other four?” Everyone else nods with me. Looks like I’m not the only one curious about it. Ghilerie stands up and we walk with her to the first trapped pair. “These are Steelhide Boars. People tend to use another name for them though. The Harem Boars.” “Harem Boars?” Shino asks, furrowing her brows adorably. Our elf specialist chuckles and points at the dead body of the smaller beast. “That one is a female. It’s smaller and has no tusks. There’s always one at the center of the herd. The males gather around her and try to court the female to join her pack.” Marcia snickers. “A reverse harem of boars. What a ridiculous thought.” “I know, right?” Ghilerie smiles at us, kneeling down to slit the throats of the two bound animals. “The males become the female’s bodyguards after getting accepted, pretty much. They will sacrifice themselves without a second thought to protect her. That’s why the best strategy to deal with them is to prevent the female from running away.” “What do they get out of it, though?” Kamil asks. “Sex.” Marcia giggles. He rolls his eyes and groans. “You are not wrong,” Ghilerie replies with a soft chuckle. “It’s in their nature to find a female to copulate with. The males have quite a high libido. And the urge to leave an offspring does play a role in it too. But, in general, that’s just how their little communities work. There are some species with a reversed situation too.” “Yeah. We even have the prime example of one right here.” Marcia elbows me a few times with a grin. Shino giggles cutely by my other side and I squint my eyes at her. She looks away with a faint blush. The other girls chuckle at us. “Humans and other humanoid races are well-known for it so it’s not that surprising,” Ghilerie flashes us a soft smile, making Shino even redder. “As for the Steelhide Boars, their male to female ratio is completely skewed, which is believed to be the reason behind them grouping up like that. Only one in like fifteen or twenty is born female.” “That could explain it. It’s nothing new for species to evolve under some special circumstances and adapt to their situation or environment,” Teffith comments. We move to the last two while Ghilerie continues her explanation. “Getting back on track, after their female is injured, the males get a tiny bit angry and tend to rush towards the attacker to take them down as quickly as possible. They are really strong and heavy so splitting them up is advised.” “Big and stupid,” Kamil sneers. “True. But if someone would suddenly shoot an arrow into your mate as you are casually having a picnic, wouldn’t you be furious too?” She glances at him. As much as he would love to say no, we all know how hot-headed Kamil can be. He would most likely lunge towards the direction of the attack even faster than the boars if it hit Marcia or someone he considers close. So, he just keeps his mouth shut while scrunching his face. After dealing with all the boars, we help Ghilerie store them and take a short break before resuming our journey. She shares some more knowledge about them with us while we rest and explains what parts of the boars are the most valuable. No surprise she aimed at the throats, the skin seems to be a popular material for durable leather armour. And fewer arrows in the body means both fewer holes and less damaged meat. Not giving them a chance to fight back allowed Ghilerie to leave their tusks pretty much undamaged too. We depart an hour later. Before the day ends, we manage to find a road and follow it straight to the village we have been aiming for. Asking Humans about an Elven settlement isn’t a good idea so we don't do that but we now know where we are at least. Ghilerie decides to sell the tusks to the local hunters. While Elves mostly avoid Human settlements, their hunters sometimes trade with the nearby villages. It’s nothing but beneficial to them if they manage to befriend their neighbours. The hate towards non-humans seems to be the strongest in the more urbanized regions, which isn’t that surprising. I’m glad to know this is a thing. We spend a night at the local inn. The owners don't seem to have any problems with my non-human companions and are a really sweet older couple. After waking up, we stay shortly in the village to gather some possible intel and to listen to a bit of gossip. Fortunately, we don’t learn any disturbing rumours like a raid of a certain Elven settlement somewhere in the area. But, at the same time, nothing too helpful reaches our ears too. We surely aren’t that far now so we’ll manage. Eager to finally reach our goal, we depart to cover this last remaining bit of distance and start looking for the signs leading to Ghilerie’s home.
Chapter 109 – The Forest Is Feeling Spoiler: Chapter According to the maps, it shouldn’t take us more than a day or two to reach the vicinity of Ghilerie’s settlement. She’s already starting to recognize some parts of the terrain here and there. It would be weird if she didn’t. She has lived around here for quite some time, even if she actively avoided unnecessarily getting in touch with Humans. If she manages to stumble on a track leading to the place where she was captured, we plan to visit it first to check if that was just an unlucky encounter with some bandits or if there’s something bigger going on. There’s always the possibility that she wasn’t the only one kidnapped. Or that these people started doing it actively after that unfortunate day. Ghilerie and Teffith take the front and lead us forward. Most of the time, we travel by the roads but stray away once in a while to let our Elf friend examine the surroundings. The atmosphere in our party is quite good. That’s in huge part thanks to Marcia and her very social nature. It’s been a fun ride so far. I thought it would be much worse. We’ll see about the journey back. I better get in touch with Cornelia and have her ask Ross if there’s something we could possibly do for him while we make the returning trip. It should be nice to have some kind of objective in mind. From what I know, thanks to the mental exchanges with my wives and other girls, the business is doing fine. More than just fine. It’s starting to get more and more recognition. Elea said they even had some guests that have travelled to Evaneheim to check Utopia out. That certainly gives us hope. After we deal with the charmed women and the whole situation caused by Jericho’s son, we need to step up our game a little bit and gradually start pushing more of our agenda onto the public. I will have to talk with Ross about what he can do. I already have a few ideas. As for the research itself, it’s progressing decently well. Jericho kept his promise and took care of our lab in a flash. Dhosk told me it required two underground chambers to set up so they had to get rid of one of the walls. It was worth it, from what she said. The Court Alchemist is leading the project from his own mansion while they support him and exchange their findings and notes. He often sends them various samples with detailed descriptions about everything so they can pitch in with their own comments here and there. I think that’s pretty smart. He is clearly the better alchemist there—not taking away anything from the ladies at our home, full respect to them—so doing things like this instead of just trying to ‘work together’ at the same level makes it much more effective. I’m kind of sad I’m not there to witness our team tackling the task. Additionally, this research aimed at producing a cure brings us quite some information about me. Specifically, on the special liquid that has been left in the care of Jericho and the girls. What it means is that they have pretty much scientifically confirmed it to be extremely nutritious, possessing regenerative qualities, expiring at a much, much slower rate, and I don’t even have to mention the potency. There will be an extensive and detailed report on my swimmers waiting for me back at home when we finally return. I guess I should have expected that. Especially since Cornelia had quickly picked up on it and pretty much forced Jericho to spare some time and effort to research as much about it as he can. Which clearly wasn’t that hard to achieve with the man already willing to do everything to achieve results. Elise contacted me a handful of times too. Mostly to mention how she is doing and how her very mature accountant friend is feeling at her new job. From what she told me, Ria was super quick to fit in. I’m not even surprised she befriended Elea in a flash. It honestly feels like something I should have anticipated. And she’s as much of a workaholic freak as Elisa made of her. Cornelia can’t stop raining praises at our new accountant every time we have a little chat through our connection. They pretty much gave Ria free reins over that part of our business after the few first days. She supposedly not only organized everything in a week but also spotted plenty of little mistakes that, after getting fixed, improved quite a few things for us in the dealings with the governmental bodies. It all sounds like I’ll have to come up with some kind of a bonus for her at this rate since, as I have heard, she has been rejecting anything Cornelia tries throwing at her for so much insane effort. According to Elise, this doesn’t even compare to how much work and how many responsibilities Ria had at her previous workplace. She says that her friend is going so far because of how nice it feels to be working at our residence. And because they can now host their friendly drinking nights pretty much at their workplace if Elise is not on shift. It took Cornelia and Elea a few days to convince Ria that our alcohol supply is not just on display or for the customers and guests, but after she finally accepted it, that’s where things took off. Ria seems to be a sucker for a good drink and that’s clearly something I have noticed during our first meeting. Her rate of consumption spiked a little after she stopped holding herself back, but the amount of effort she puts into her work most likely out of appreciation pretty much matched it. We do have quite a few nice deals on alcohol so I’m not that worried about our supply. Besides, how much can two women drink every other night, if they even host their lady-meetings so often? As long as both Elise and Ria are happy, then everything is great. And we are surely saving tons of money thanks to the latter’s help. Anyway, things are going well back at home and that’s all that matters. I’ve also heard that there are no issues at the Beastkin Community under Evaneheim. Astrea went to check it out alone since I’m away. People have adapted decently and it’s slowly improving. She did have to kick some idiot’s ass who had challenged her but that was someone freshly taken under their wing so he knew nothing about Astrea’s strength. Thanks to the elders and other Community's leaders, the rules were kept and he had to wait for one of us to show up before trying to take over. Seems like things should be safe down there. But, back to the actual present, we are currently taking a rest after a day of travelling. Hecate already looks way better than she did a few days ago. She’s still as silent and protective as ever, but her movements and overall bearing have gotten a tad livelier. And that’s why I have decided to see if she would be against a light spar with me. I can sense her faint hesitation after I ask but she agrees with a tiny nod. Since I don’t want to hurt her spider legs by accident, the sword I shape with my artifact has blunt edges. I invite our new spider companion to show me what she can do and Hecate barrages me with fierce stabs and swipes of all her six onyx spears. She has gotten much faster after recovering enough and each strike packs quite a punch. If it was only these, I would be doing decently fending off her attacks and defending myself, slowly getting more fighting experience from our little trip and slowly getting more used to my boosted performance in general. But, besides stabs, jabs, and cuts, Hecate has something else to utilize. While a few of her black legs are making her opponent busy, she can use her humanoid hands and the free spikes to weave her almost invisible thread however she wants. And she is damn smart with it. I’ve lost count of how many times she has put down tripwires and other traps during our mock battle, pushing me straight into them with her attacks and movements. It honestly feels like a cheat. You can see her hands and spider legs doing these weird motions but you usually can’t spot exactly what is happening. Even with my quite sharp sight and senses, I have a hard time noticing the extremely thin thread. Additionally, she can use it to defend herself too, tying it to two or more spider legs and catching an attack onto the unnoticeable net. You think you are finally going to land a hit on the agile spidergirl but your sword suddenly stops mid-air and you realize it was a trap all along. Somehow, I have gained a powerful warrior and an ally. I can’t imagine what she could be like after getting more experience fighting humanoid opponents and receiving some actual training and guidance from some of our experts back at home. She’s already one hell of a deadly spider. I kind of wanted to reward Hecate a little for agreeing to my request by showering her in pats and cuddles overnight, but a few of the girls have a different idea on how to spend most of it. Seemingly unbothered by the noise and the show, she obediently sits on the side and observes as Marcia and Ghilerie tackle me together. The former was trying to sneak into my tent when she walked into the latter. Our Elf friend wanted to spend some more time together now that we are not that far from her home and also decided to pay me a visit. This has led to the current predicament of me doing my best to reassure Ghilerie a little, who has gotten a little anxious and uncertain. She has clearly grown to like our company at least a little bit, and I can tell she feels grateful for my help and what we have done for her, but her strong sense of responsibility towards her settlement is more than just apparent. I don’t want her to hesitate after coming this far. I haven’t been sure how much fucking her brains out would help in that, but she’s gotten partially past these worries during our intense lovemaking. Albeit a little hazy, I can tell she’s listening to my comforting words about her following her duty without worrying too much about me. It certainly won’t be the last time the two of us meet. As for Marcia, all she wants, and the reason behind her coming here, is anal. Nothing more elaborate, just her craving for a cock in the backdoor. Surprisingly, Kamil is not a fan of that and she doesn’t like guilt-tripping him into doing it for her. You learn something new each day. Although, I could have lived without that knowledge. In the morning, the lively redhead wakes us all up with a shout, fortunately, not from my tent but her own lodging since she has returned to her bedroll after her ass couldn’t take any more drilling. It seems that she has finally advanced. It was a matter of time, honestly. They all should be pretty close now and she got a few injections on our journey. It would have been great if it was another double advancement but it’s not that easy to jump from four to five, either for me or Ghilerie. Marcia unlocks a few new abilities, which again sound like dances and artistic moves to match her Class, and gets a small passive boost to endurance. I wonder what’s the reason behind that, heh. I can tell that the guys are at least slightly jealous of her but there’s nothing I can do for them, unfortunately. I do get how it looks, though, and how it can be a little demoralizing. First Shino and now Marcia. It only leaves Natalie untouched by the growth-enhancing serum. Otherwise, all the girls would have taken them over now. They shouldn’t be that far from Tier 3, anyhow. After the celebration dies down a little, we make our way further into the wilds. According to Ghilerie, we should be close to the general area now. She should have no problems finding her way back from this point if we would like to leave but everyone insists on helping her out as far as we can, bringing a warm smile to her lips. Teffith strategically resigns from leading the group with Ghilerie and somehow orchestrates things in a way making me end up in pair with our Elf friend at the very front. We traverse through the forest with Ghilerie spotting little details known to her, chatting casually now and then. “We are on a good track,” she says at some point. “I’m pretty sure the hidden markings should be appearing from now on.” “How do we spot them, then?” I ask, glancing her way. “I’m not sure if any of you will be able to tell, but some of the trees are different from the others. It’s hard to explain to the members of another race. We, Wood Elves, just kind of can tell. Those trees are often where the hints are left so it’s easier to find for our own people.” I rub my chin while nodding. “I see. I guess we won’t be able to help much. We could still try, though. Anything you could say about this difference? Perhaps explain how it feels if it’s too difficult?” She scrunches her face a tiny bit while clearly trying to figure out how to put things into words. “Well… When I’m looking at trees, it’s kind of like I’m looking at people. I can discern their mood by just looking at the bark and the tree in general, just like you can notice the same thing by looking at someone’s face or body. The trees holding the markings give off a sleepy, tired aura. I don’t know what else to say.” “I wonder if part of the greenies back on Earth are secretly Wood Elves, heh,” Marcia comments with a smirk. “Greenies?” Ghilerie glances back at her curiously. “Environmental Activists. Our realm has organizations and people who try to protect nature and spread awareness about how humanity's progress is hurting it more and more. There have been individuals or groups claiming they can feel the trees or even speak to them. Most are branded as insane since our world is pretty bland, with nothing magical in it," I answer. “I haven’t heard of Humans being able to imitate our special sense without using magic but who knows.” She shrugs. “Maybe there have been Elves living on Earth a long, long time ago and some people still are able to activate something from their ancestry. Wouldn’t that be cool, Sensei?” Shino muses with sparkling eyes “The only way to check that would be to return first.” Marcia chuckles. “Wait. If we will actually be able to return, do you think we could keep our Classes and abilities?” Everyone glances between themselves, suddenly pondering over this little thought from the energetic redhead. Then, all of the gazes land on me. I can guess why. I shrug my shoulders. “Don’t you think that would be a tad OP? If there’s no secret society of superhumans that keeps the secret part a secret from the common folk then just one of us would technically be able to overthrow countries at the end of this journey, more or less. But, if you really want to know, I can ask the person in charge.” Marcia whines a little. “That would suck. I’ve already gotten used to this and don’t know if I can go back to being… normal. And I would certainly miss the new endurance boost.” Kamil scoffs at her. “You haven’t even seen how much it changes. You got it like a few hours ago.” She grins at him and slides her arm under his elbow. “Do you want to help me check it out? I wouldn’t mind getting to understand it better as soon as possible.” He rolls his eyes at her but lets Marcia stay by his side. I’m kinda glad things haven't gotten sour between them, or worse. Still, how much she teases and picks on Kamil makes me very, very anxious every time. Each of her remarks always feels like it’s going to be just the one to take it a little bit too far. But, I guess that’s just my point of view as an outsider. I don’t know him as well as she does. “Anyway,” I try to bring the conversation back onto its tracks, “regarding the tired trees, would that one over there match the description?” I ask, pointing at a seemingly random tree around twenty meters ahead. Ghilerie finds it with her eyes after a few seconds and stops. Her brows rise and she turns her surprised face to me. “How?” I spread my arms to the sides. “It just feels sleepy to me when I look at it.” She stares at me dumbfounded but it’s not like there’s anything else I can say. It’s just like she explained. The tree just feels sleepy. No idea if it’s the bark, branches, leaves, or whatever else, but I do understand what she meant earlier. Shino giggles behind us. “Don’t forget that Sensei is quite special.” The gears in Ghilerie’s head turn visibly for a moment before she cocks her head back in realization. “Right. I completely forgot about that. I guess you are like my really distant ancestor, aren’t you?” I chuckle at that and we move closer to the tree I pointed out. Ghilerie uses some kind of a spell and a glowing mark appears on the bark. “Looks like one of the hunters responsible for resupplying these with mana has forgotten about this sigil. A week or two more and it would have faded. Fortunately, it’s still working.” She somehow reads the direction from the glowing pattern and starts leading us with a confident step. We quickly find the next marked trees thanks to the two of us working together in spotting the tired ones. For some reason, the sigils are as drained as the previous ones, making Ghilerie slightly uneasy. “Maybe they changed the rotation period after you have been captured,” Paul suggests. “It’s possible. There weren’t that many hunters in our settlement so I can see that being the case if they are all busy with something or their numbers fell due to some special circumstances. It’s not exactly an easy and risk-free profession,” Ghilerie responds. I plop a hand on her golden hair and ruffle through it a bit. “No point worrying about things now. Let’s just get there and see for ourselves what’s the real reason.” She nods and we resume walking. After around twenty minutes, I spot something. Just like the sleepy trees, there are now ones seemingly… shy and timid in front of us. “Looks like you noticed these as well,” Ghilerie says, glancing at me. “Wards have been placed on the cautious trees, which surround the vicinity of the settlement. The barrier is almost unnoticeable, but when someone uninvited crosses it, they will feel lost and want to quickly back away. An illusion is applied just a few meters ahead of them to hide it from sight, but… the wards are weak. I can almost spot shimmers in the veil.” “Clearly.” I glance around. “Let’s go in together, just in case. Would that be fine?” “Of course. If anything, I will take the blame on myself. Thank you.” We pass the line of shy trees and walk through an invisible and immaterial barrier that ripples like water during the motion. Just after stepping through it, a wooden palisade, many houses, gazebos, and bridges enter our vision at around one hundred meters ahead. Ghilerie sighs heavily, releasing the air trapped in her lungs from holding her breath. There’s no clear smoke, fire, or damage visible from our position. The village doesn’t look like ruins either. I’m sure that’s a huge relief to our Elf comrade. Without further ado, Ghilerie brings us closer and leads us toward one of the main gates. But, after we turn a corner around the palisade, reaching the gatehouse, she freezes. The huge ornate wooden doors are heavily damaged. And, most importantly, they are open wide. Ghilerie breaks out of her daze and rushes forward without waiting for us. I jump after her and the rest of the group doesn’t stay idle for too long either. We run into the silent settlement while looking around. Not a single person enters our sight. I catch up to Ghilerie first, who stops in the centre of a small plaza, next to a well. Many wooden houses and structures show signs of battle with a monstrous enemy. Cuts, claws, and other damage are visible over plenty of wooden boards. It’s possible to spot already dried-up blood here and there. “No… This can’t be…” she whispers to herself as her eyes jump around in distress. “Sensei…” Shino’s tense voice reaches my ears from behind. “I know!” I throw myself forward, crossing the remaining distance between Ghilerie and me in a flash. Grabbing her by the shoulders, I switch our positions to shield her from the huge shadowy cat which has jumped out of the well straight at her back. Surprisingly, it doesn’t crash into us and I look behind. Hecate is standing between us and the well, with the misty creature impaled on all six of her spider legs, hanging from them in the air and quickly dissipating. “Abyssals!” Paul shouts from ahead. “Get into the formation!” I quickly drag Ghilerie back to the others while she gets out of her stupor. Hecate follows us closely and I nod at her as thanks. She nods back and we regroup with everyone. Various purplish, shadowy creatures surface on the roofs of the wooden structures and come out from hiding behind buildings and corners. The majority resemble beasts of feline and canine species, perhaps a half or so bigger than the common animals of this kind. There are quite a few of them. Hell breaks loose almost instantly. Everyone knows what their job is and gets straight to it. Natalie drops down to the ground immediately, bringing out her buffs by using her acoustic guitar to play a few quick tunes. She has truly mastered it, being able to swiftly juggle between the different pieces of music. Shino has already disappeared off to somewhere, most likely decimating the Abyssals on her own while abusing her broken Shadow Step and other abilities. I don’t need to worry too much about her. She’s pretty much the strongest one here. I order Teffith to stay close to Ghilerie and the others while bringing Hecate and Marcia slightly forward. She and Kamil should be enough to protect our backline while the three of us take a more offensive approach, just in front of them. Paul doesn’t waste a second and skewers the rushing demonic beasts with plenty of arrows from above, firing off various abilities that clearly multiply his projectiles after reaching a certain altitude. With those active, he tries to snipe the further enemies off the roofs and ramparts. With the fierce spidergirl by my side, I shape my artifact weapon into the sword whip form due to the overwhelming number of opponents around us and we dive into the fight. I get to witness how pretty much every single spider leg of hers works separately, almost like they all have a mind of their own. She stabs and swipes in all directions while keeping relatively close to me. With just her efforts, the Abyssals have it almost impossible to reach us. But, it’s not like I’m just idling and watching the show. Whatever she doesn’t manage to down with her sharp spikes, I finish off with the sword whip, in either of the forms. I can confidently keep up with their movements as well as she can. Fortunately, these seem to be just grunts and nothing else. “There’s a chieftain!” Natalie shouts from somewhere behind the two of us and I peek at her. A bigger enemy has shown up. Bipedal and as tall as a single-story house, something resembling a werecreature steps into the battlefield. Well, I guess it’s close to some race of pure-blood Beastkin in this world but much more beefed up. Anyway, let’s just say it’s an oversized werewolf. It releases a loud howl and charges at the group in the centre of the formation. Marcia shows up in front of it with a melodic step and tries to stop it by landing a few good slashes at its right leg but it ignores her completely and keeps rushing forward like a big and heavy locomotive. Its wounds are healing at an insane rate. I remove a few more of these four-legged creatures from existence to not overburden Hecate too much and quickly prepare to shove my retracted sword into the ground. But, before I can do that, a flash of light catches my attention. Kamil bitchslaps the running werewolf with his shield covered by a golden radiance and sends it flying to the side, crashing into one of the wooden houses as a loud song of a gong resonates through the air. “Stay put, you fucking mutt!” he trash-talks the enemy a moment later. Marcia chuckles while reaching him. “That’s my boy! Show it who is the real alpha here!” I shake my head with a smile and refocus on my side. I don’t think there’s a need for me to steal the spotlight there. I’m already far ahead due to my unusual way of growing stronger so it’s better to leave the battle experience to them as much as possible. A few Flaming Javelins pass by my side and hit the Abyssals trying to leap onto me and Hecate. Glancing back, I see Natalie giving me thumbs up. She has switched from support to offence for now. I nod at her and get back to the little dance with my charming and deadly partner while observing the battlefield attentively. The grunts don’t really pose a threat to the two of us, and with our performance on this side, Shino can easily cover the other one by herself. She barely shows up from time to time and only the poof of killed enemies announce her presence when she mutilates some poor kitty or pup out of nowhere. That leaves the big guy to Marcia, Kamil, Paul and Natalie. Teffith stays close to the bard and archer, prioritizing their safety as per my orders, intercepting a stray enemy occasionally. Of course, we can’t forget about Ghilerie, who after recollecting herself, started raining death at every purple-furred entity in her sight with a newfound passion. She doesn’t have any flashy spells like Paul but she’s clearly more skilled with the bow than him. The sheer speed and power with which she launches her arrows are incredible, and I don’t even have to mention accuracy. I bet she hasn’t missed even once. The number of intentional collaterals is crazy high too. She’s angry. Very angry. Our party of Heroes fights against the big werewolf with more than decent coordination, but the monstrosity regenerates faster than all of them can wound it together. Its attacks aren’t super elaborate and consist mostly of chomps, swipes, slashes and such, but it packs a punch and is quite nimble for its size. “Fuck! We won’t be able to take it down like this!” Kamil yells while shielding Marcia from a powerful backhand. “You girls have fought a chieftain!” Paul shouts, looking at Natalie. “How do we deal with it?” “I don’t know! Shino was the only one able to wound it!” she replies. I behead another panther or something close to it and turn my head towards them. “They are weak to Holy and Light! Just let Kamil nuke that—” A crack filled with darkness appears in the air above the monster with a seeping abyss filling it. Shino suddenly flies out of it with her demonic Dark Mode on, holding her katana with both hands and aiming the tip downwards. The black blade leaves a trail of equally dark flames behind it. She crashes into the werewolf from behind, pinning it to the ground, and explodes in ebony fire, swirling in a sphere that completely envelops the two. It rotates ominously for around five seconds before dissipating, revealing our samurai girl with her sword shoved deep into the dirt and no trace of the Abyssal. She’s panting roughly. “Or do that…” I smile wryly. The other monsters seem to lose their motivation to fight and start to flee. Many of the retreating beasts don’t make it too far, though. They run into countless invisible wires Hecate has set around the battlefield as we fought and either mutilate themselves or end up entangled in them, serving themselves to us on a silver platter. Our archers decimate the other ones. Not many should have run away. I quickly jog to Shino and kneel in front of her. She gives me a pretty but strained smile and lets go of the katana’s hilt, knowing that I will catch her. She sighs heavily. “Even with all your stats, Sensei, this black fire is a little bit too draining, hahaha.” I chuckle while bringing her to my lap. “I would be surprised if it wasn’t. You left nothing of that sucker.” She giggles and glances up at me. Not minding if the others are looking at us, I lift her chin up a little and join our lips in a tame, loving kiss, casting Rejuvenate on her at the same time. Shino sighs contentedly into my mouth as we gently make out for her to recover. I break the kiss first and stare at her slightly flushed face. Shino’s eyes skip past me for a brief moment and I turn around. Ghilerie is standing further back while looking around the empty village. Her hand is gripping the bow so hard it causes the skin on her hand to turn almost white. Shino brings my face to the front again with her petite fingers. “Go to her.” I nod and stand up after softly setting my lovely girlfriend on the ground. Ghilerie doesn’t even notice my presence until I gently place a hand over her shoulder, making her jump slightly. She turns her face to me and shows a forced smile. “Thank you for—” “Shhh,” I shush her down and move my palms to her tensed fists. Ghilerie notices the state of her fingers and relaxes her grip a little. We stare at each other in silence for a few long seconds. She’s the one to break it first again, with a determined expression. “I talked a little about you with Teffith. When we were sitting in that slave merchant’s office, you joked that you already have the destiny to save the world from destruction. Your mission is to stop these abominations once and for all, right? Then, I want to join—” “Hey, come look at these.” Paul’s shout interrupts Ghilerie and we both glance his way. “It seems like someone dragged quite a few crates or other heavy stuff that way.” She jumps forward, yanking her hand out of my grasp as a result. I quickly follow her. The others gather up soon too. Everyone agrees that the traces on the ground match what Paul has deduced and we start following them immediately. Of course, Ghilerie rushes ahead of everyone, but I can’t blame her. We haven’t been wounded too much so we have no issue following her quick pace. Just to make sure though, I carry Shino in my arms so that she can rest a little longer after that stunt. Ten minutes of running later, we reach the bottom of a rocky cliff. The trail led us to a dead end. The drag marks disappear when the earth switches into stone. Their direction seems to be pointing straight at the rock formation in front of us, but whoever was pulling these, could have turned either left or right after reaching this point to eliminate the traces. Before anyone asks which direction we should go, the wall in front of us ripples and gradually changes opacity until it fades completely, revealing an entrance to a natural cavern. Two people armed with spears and bows walk out of it. “Ghilerie? Is that you?” the Elf man with long dark brown hair asks. “Vezir! You are alive!” Ghilerie lunges at him and hugs the man. He chuckles and accepts the embrace, hugging her back. The other man, with shoulder-long black hair, eyes us up suspiciously. “Why are you with these Humans?” he asks. “Don’t be rude to them, Achiel. The silver-haired one saved my life and the rest are his friends.” She steps away from Vezir and looks between the two elves. “Why are you here? What about the others? Is everyone okay?” She barrages them with questions. Achiel looks away while Vezir shows a sad expression. The initial rush of happiness from finding her brethren fades a little after seeing their reactions and Ghilerie sighs heavily, knowing well that the answer won’t be a reason for joy. “I don’t mind explaining everything if you don’t mind getting inside. We are at risk of being discovered if you remain standing in the entrance like this.” A woman’s voice arrives from behind the two sentries and another person walks into the light. “Elder!” Ghilerie struts to her and falls onto one knee. The woman of exquisite, mature beauty with waist-long dark green hair and similarly green eyes chuckles softly. “Stop these pointless rituals, child. This is not the time to follow empty courtesies.” Our Elf companion stands up and nods. “Yes. Of course. Let’s quickly get out of sight.” She looks back at us and then again faces the woman. “Can my friends enter too?” The man named Achiel opens his mouth, most likely to protest, but the Elder stops him by raising her hand. “Of course. We are in no position to reject any kind of help. I can tell they are strong and just the presence of such individuals means a lot. They can’t be bad if it’s you who calls them friends.” Ghilerie answers with a warm smile and gestures at us. We quickly step through the entrance so that the illusion or whatever it is can be activated again. She pulls me with her after I let Shino down and I end up walking beside her and the Elder. “Answering your first question, dear child, we are here because we are hiding, taking refuge. Considering the direction you came from, I assume you know why,” the woman starts speaking. “Abyssals. They attacked the settlement,” Ghilerie answers with a note of anger. “Indeed. Our people fought bravely, but you know that our community is not made of fighters but gatherers and artisans. We retreated before the losses became too great, making it to this cave.” As she finishes, we walk into a spacious natural hall and immediately spot plenty of people loitering around the lit-up torches. A picture-perfect refugee camp with bedrolls, firepits, and folks huddled together in rags, clearly without a proper amount of nutrition and other necessities. “It’s been over a month already. Our bravest hunters risked their lives to procure a few crates of supplies two weeks ago, but we are again starting to run low. We have been waiting for the Abyssals to go away, but the scouts still report their presence in our old settlement. We can’t go back until they are gone.” She sighs wistfully. “The Abyssals occupying our home are dead. They ambushed us the moment we walked into the settlement. We have killed their leader and the lesser monsters have scattered,” Ghilerie informs the Elder. The woman glances at her with slightly raised eyebrows. “That’s… a very promising piece of news. But, I’m afraid that’s not all of them. You must have defeated a small squad waiting for our return. We might be able to bring more supplies but I don’t think we can go back with them still around. Especially since there was more than one commander.” Ghilerie lightly bites on her lower lip. She has most likely thought we have dealt with the majority of them. After a moment of silence, her gaze falls on me, and her eyes widen a little as if she has just remembered my person. She turns to look at me with a slightly anxious expression. “Alastair, I—” I put a hand on her shoulder and smile. “It’s my destiny, right?” A dazzling smile answers me back and Ghilerie launches herself at me, pressing her lips into mine. I catch her in my arms and let the golden-haired elf delicately join our mouths together as the Elder’s brows rise even higher.
Chapter 110 – Unlimited Thread Works Spoiler: Chapter After a few seconds, Ghilerie turns a bit more conscious of her actions but tries her best to back away naturally, with a visible blush covering her fair cheeks. Still, with a wide smile, she keeps staring at me. “I don’t know how I will be able to pay you back,” she says. I smile back at her. “Just whisper a good word or two about me to your friends and we’ll be even.” She chuckles and shakes her head. “I was already going to do that. Anyway, I’ll definitely think of something. I really appreciate your help. And yours too.” Ghilerie glances at the rest of the squad and makes a small bow. I turn around to face them. “I assume everyone is on board?” I ask. “Do you even have to ask, Sensei?” Shino trots closer and looks at me adorably from below. Marcia slaps Kamil’s head from the back. “This guy needs to beef up so duh. Unless your powers started working on guys and he changed his preferences after you took a dip together.” “Fuck you,” Kamil retorts and slaps the redhead on the ass, causing Marcia to giggle. While Natalie sighs and shakes her head, Paul acts as if nothing is happening. Just your typical day in the Hero party. A small smile paints Teffith’s lips as she observes them. “Alright. First, the situation here seems pretty dire. We’ll help you bring whatever you might need from the settlement. Before that, though, I don’t mind sharing some of my own supplies. Not sure about the others.” I glance at the rest again. “We should be fine halving ours,” Paul answers. “How are we doing in that regard, Shino?” The samurai girl closes her eyes for a brief moment and dives into her storage ring. “Won’t be a problem, Paul-san. We’ll still have enough for a month or so before we’d need to restock.” “Good. That should do it.” He nods. The Elf Elder steps a bit closer with a slightly perplexed expression. “Are you really going to share your own provisions with us?” Ghilerie smiles at her softly. “They are not bad Humans, Elder. Please, lead us to the storage.” The woman nods and guides us through the caverns. We walk as a group. It’s better to stay together than to split considering the fact that we are inside an elven refugee camp. I’m pretty sure not everyone is as understanding as the Elder and we didn’t come here to spark a conflict. As we pass through a few stone chambers, we notice quite a number of wounded and sick people. I take a peek behind me. “Natalie?” “I don’t mind,” the quiet bard answers immediately. The Elder looks at us curiously and I explain. “She’s proficient in Healing Magic and I have my means too. After we drop some supplies, take us to your most heavily wounded. We can at least help stabilize them and distribute some potions.” “You are even going to give away your medicine?” She raises her brows at me. “Sensei’s wives and friends made a lot for him so we can spare some,” Shino answers before I do. Right. The girls insisted we take a ton of different healing salves, bandages, potions, and all the other useful stuff for our journey. It wouldn’t be an over-exaggeration to say that half of my taken storage space is meds and healing items. We soon arrive in what looks like a makeshift underground warehouse. Shino and I nod at each other and we start bringing out stuff from our massive storage rings. One by one, crates, barrels, boxes, items and many other things appear in the organized cave. The Elder’s eyes go wide the moment she sees the rain of supplies, making Ghilerie chuckle. We fill the space as much as we can and leave around half of everything in our artifacts. “This is so much…” the Elder whispers to herself in awe. “It might look like it but you have tens of people in here, don’t you?” I reply, surprising her by the fact that I heard it. “Hopefully, you won’t have to burn through all of this if we manage to get rid of the main problem.” “I… don’t know what to say…” “Then don’t say anything, Elder,” Ghilerie joins in. “Save your thanks until the very end or you will keep expressing them and nothing more all the time.” “Let’s take care of the wounded, then,” Natalie suggests. “We should be able to finish before the night. We’ll rest to replenish mana naturally instead of relying on potions and then head out.” “Good plan.” Paul nods. Marcia elbows her gently with a smirk. “You can always ask Al to help you recover, you know? I, for sure, will be doing that.” Our bard rolls her eyes and I glance at the Elder. She nods courteously with a smile and gestures at us to follow her again. As we walk, Shino arrives at my side, looking ahead with a tiny blush. Her fingers find mine and our hands end up joined together. I have a feeling Marcia won’t be the only one looking for some replenishment tonight. We enter a small cavern with makeshift beddings on the stone floor. A few Elves are tending to their brethren with wounds of various magnitude. They are clearly working on scraps when it comes to bandages and other utilities. A woman quickly breaks from a group of Elves doing something in a corner and jogs up to us. “Elder. What can we do for you and…” She frowns after recognizing us. “Don’t make such a face, Alahriela. They are charitable enough to offer help while expecting nothing in return. Make sure they don’t lack anything they might need.” “But, Elder—” “I don’t care about their race. Anyone who dares to inconvenience any of them will be punished. Are we understood?” The Elf woman quickly bows and runs away, most likely to pass the news. The Elder turns to us and also enters a deep bow. I can see quite a few people starting to whisper between themselves in shock at such a scene. “Please, help whoever you are able to. I won’t ask you to treat everyone. Act as you see fit. Every single saved person is enough.” I walk up to her and place a hand on the Elder’s shoulder. She’s truly a respectful one, asking us only to go as far as we want instead of begging us to push ourselves to the limits even though she must be suffering seeing her people hurt so much. “Raise your head, Elder. While I can’t promise to save everyone, we’ll do everything in our power to help as many as possible.” Shino accompanies Natalie to give her a hand in whatever she would need and I walk between the wounded with Ghilerie by my side. The rest of the party stays near the entrance with the Elder. There’s no need for them to act, potentially making some Elves anxious or uncomfortable. I spot a quite sickly-looking woman with a very heavy breath. I’m not a medical expert or anything, but considering the fact that she doesn’t have any visible critical wounds, she might be suffering from some kind of infection. My Rejuvenate should be perfect then as it boosts recovery rate by a huge margin while also enhancing it. Bigger wounds aren’t its speciality but anything that can be potentially solved by strengthening the body is right up its alley. And it has gotten much stronger now anyway. Gesturing at Ghilerie, I arrive by the woman’s side and kneel down. There’s a man sitting by her, wiping her forehead, and he raises his gaze at me after noticing movement. His face twists in a scowl. “A Human?” “Calm down. As per Elder’s request, he will help her condition,” Ghilerie quickly explains. She then nods at me to continue. I guess bringing up the Elder is enough to vouch for people. Unfortunately, both of us are wrong. “Get your filthy hands away from he—AGH?!” The man leans forward while shouting, aiming to grab my throat, but a black spike pierces his palm, pinning it to the ground. Hecate is suddenly by my side with the five other spider legs of hers aimed at pretty much all of his vitals. “M-M-Monster!” he screams again, looking up. Ghilerie gasps in surprise. “I didn’t even sense her coming…” I have to admit, neither did I. Only just now have I noticed that I kind of lost Hecate’s presence the moment we entered the shelter. I did not see her anywhere around and neither did the Elves. She’s extremely proficient at remaining undetected, especially in environments such as this one. Back under the desert, she was hard to keep track of too and got a drop on her enemies a lot. With her three-dimensional movements, she’s one damn scary spidergirl. And additionally… It looks like I might have picked up a silent yandere by accident… I quickly plopped a hand on her silvery hair. “Withdraw your legs, please. I understand that you were protecting me, but let’s avoid hurting the people here. If you do have to act, incapacitate them instead.” The onyx spears retract as Hecate nods obediently, with no emotion on her blank face. The Elder runs up to us and pauses for a moment after noticing the unique Arachne. She pushes through her anxiety, though, and arrives by my side. “I’m sorry for my companion. She’s very overprotective of me. I will make sure—” “She did nothing wrong.” The Elder shakes her head and looks down at the man. “Did you not hear the message?” “He’s a vile Human!” he cries out. “Did you not hear the message, Lyhfen?!” she repeats with a mightier tone. “I did, but—” “You have raised a hand at our benefactor,” she says with a cold voice and glances up. “Take him away and cut his hand off.” “What? Elder, I—” “Now!” Three of the Elves from the group we have interacted with earlier quickly come rushing to us and carry the protesting man out of the medical chamber. I look at the Elder. “You didn’t have to—” “One of our people wronged you. If we want to prevent it from happening again, we need to send a message,” she explains with a slightly sad expression. “Besides, he was poisoned. It might actually save his life,” she then adds in a whisper. I raise my brows and try to glance at Hecate, but she’s already gone. I didn’t even feel her moving away. She’s a true silent predator. Oh well. I’m glad the Elder is so understanding. I hope this guy isn't’ the woman’s husband or something. Forgetting about the commotion, I quickly move on with the treatment, placing a palm on the sick Elf’s chest. Without any indecent motives. After activating Rejuvenate, my mana fills her body and I spread it around, doing whatever I can to help her. In less than a minute, her state gets visibly better. Her breathing slows down a bit and she stops sweating so much all the time. I keep the ability on for two more minutes to be sure and walk to another patient, catching the Elder’s soft smile in the passing. We spend around three hours helping the injured. Natalie takes care of the heavier wounds with her Healing Magic. We don’t manage to bring everyone to full recovery, but there should be no people at the risk of losing their lives anymore as long as they are properly tended to. No one causes any trouble after the initial hiccup. It seems that the news spread fast as most Elves step aside to make way whenever we go somewhere as a group or individually. We leave some meds and potions for their healers and move to a cavern looking close to a simple logistics chamber with a few Elves present inside, most likely other leaders, including the Elder we have met. “We are unspeakably grateful for your assistance,” she thanks us again. “I truly hope we’ll be able to somehow reward your selfless effort.” “Well, technically you might be able to, but I’ll leave it to Ghilerie to explain,” I answer. The few figures glance towards our friendly Elf and she nods at me. It will be better for her to bring the topic of the brothel up instead of me dropping it randomly. She has bigger chances of convincing them that this isn’t some elaborate ploy to gain their favour and force them into repaying it by selling their kin into slavery. “So be it.” The Elder nods too. “Now then. You are planning on going after the Abyssals, right?” I glance at Paul and he steps forward. I’ve already stolen his spotlight for long enough. “Yes, we do,” he replies. “It’s part of our mission to thwart the outbreaks and we do want to get stronger too, so we’ll naturally take this chance, which was unfortunately brought to us by your misfortune.” “Whatever reason you have for fighting these evil creatures, we do not care or mind,” a male Elf joins the conversation. “We will wholeheartedly appreciate your support in dealing with them.” “Is there any information about them that you could give to us, then?” Paul asks. “We aren’t sure about their exact numbers but it looked like there were four packs that assaulted our settlement. Each of them consisted of around twenty to forty monsters plus a commander. I assume you took down one of them,” a different woman replies. “So, three more big guys.” Paul rubs his chin. “We’ll have to try and split them if possible.” “It seems that each pack stays close to its commander. Which one have you killed?” the Elder asks. “A big bipedal wolf and most of its canine or feline beasts,” Shino informs the woman. “Then what remains are a huge, four-armed ape, a Wyvern, a giant rat, and their minions, of course,” the male Elf lists. Paul enters his thoughts so we wait to see what he comes up with. The Elves observe us curiously, not sure if they said something wrong or what’s the cause of the sudden silence that descended on the chamber. Our strategist nods to himself after a while and turns to me. “Can you handle the monkey with Hecate?” “We should at least be able to last long enough for you guys to finish off the others,” I reply. He then turns towards the rest. “Me, Ghilerie, Natalie and Kamil would take the Wyvern and its group. Shino, Marcia and Teffith, you guys should be enough to get the rat.” Everyone looks at each other. Except for my team of two, it’s a pretty balanced composition, taking into consideration each person’s capabilities and overall strength. I don’t think there’s a better way to do this. Paul and the ranged squad are the best for the Wyvern. Kamil will be their shield. Shino should be enough to corner the rat but both Marcia and Teffith will be able to support her with their agility too. Then, Hecate and I have to either overpower the ape or buy enough time. “Sounds good.” Marcia nods and everyone else follows. “Are you not going to ask for our cooperation?” the Elder asks what seems to be on the mind of all of them. “With all due respect, can you spare any able-bodied warriors that won’t drag us down? You said that this was an artisanal settlement. I’m not going to pull civilians into this just to raise our success rate by a minuscule amount,” Paul answers, fixing his glasses a bit. The Elves present in the meeting room whisper between themselves and I can see Ghilerie with a warm smile. The faint commotion quickly passes and they all lower their heads a little. “Thank you for your consideration,” the Elder says for them all. “Anything about their possible location? The way they came from if you were able to notice?” I ask. The male Elf scrunches his face a bit. “North-west, possibly. I think that’s the direction of the first wave. We don’t know where they retreated as we were focusing on running away to this shelter.” Natalie steps closer and everyone glances at her. “Has anyone reported something weird on the ground anywhere? Like a crystallized lake of mesmerizing purple or something similar?” They whisper between themselves again and we can see a few people shake their heads at each other. “We will ask around to make sure but I don’t think so,” the Elder answers. “Is that important?” “That’s the portal through which they come here. It needs to be destroyed or it won’t be safe,” Shino replies and some gasps follow. Immediately, one of the Elves rushes outside, most likely to gather information from their people. No one asks any other questions as we have covered the most crucial parts and the Elder steps forward. “Let’s end this strategy meeting for now. I’m sure you are very tired after fighting the Abyssals and then helping our people. We have prepared a modest banquet in your name if you would honour us with your presence before taking a leave for your well-earned rest.” Kamil snorts. “A feast made from our own provisions. How hospitable—ugh!” Marcia immediately elbows him so hard that he collapses onto the ground with all the metallic noise from his heavy armour obviously accompanying his fall. “Read the fucking mood, you idiot.” I catch her spell it to him almost silently by reading her lips. “It will be our honour, Elder,” Paul lowers his head, trying to salvage the awkward situation, and we do the same. We move to a clean cavern, clearly tidied up specifically for this small banquet. Since they obviously lack any furniture and are saving their magic in case of emergency, just some big pieces of material have been set on the ground in the imitation of tables. As Kamil said, they might have used what we have provided in the majority of the dishes and appetizers, but you can’t deny their effort to make it look noble and presentable. Various beautiful Wood Elves scurry around with wooden trays to serve, and there’s even a trio of musicians filling the chamber with a pleasantly light ambience. We are seated down on cushions or neatly folded stacks of cloths, depending on your luck, and each of us receives one or two stewards who serve food and drinks. It’s quite easy to notice that the girls get very handsome Elf men while the guys are tended to by beautiful Elf women, with quite revealing clothing but nothing too indecent. They either are taking their tonight’s task extremely professionally after being threatened by the leaders or they truly don’t mind acting respectful and kind towards Humans. Marcia even manages to pull her waiters into some teasing and fun, often sneaking in a bit of physical contact and watching their reactions. I enjoy the good food with Hecate in my lap and Ghilerie by my side. She insisted on accompanying me as a representative of their people delegated by the Elder. We chat a bit more about their life here. Well, more like how it was before the Abyssals came. Then, after getting our fill, everyone starts standing up not to overstay and cause too much inconvenience for our hosts. The Elder walks up to my and Ghilerie’s spot. “Thank you for this little banquet. It was something unique,” I speak first. “Also, I hope whatever is left will be shared with your people instead of thrown away or resealed.” A dignified smile shows on her face. “I assure you that we won’t let a single breadcrumb lay to waste. I appreciate the concern.” She then glances at my Elf friend. “I would like to speak to you, Ghilerie. Would you mind accompanying me for the night?” “Ummm… Actually… I wanted to spend it with Alastair… and the others…” Ghilerie blushes a little but acts respectfully towards her superior. “Ah. Follow with your plans, then. We’ll talk later when the time is right.” The woman nods and walks away. I might be imagining things, but a few male Elves present in the chamber who might have possibly overheard our short exchange give me quite intense stares as we exit the stone chamber. I wonder why. We are shown a few small rock cells and everyone picks one. Shino goes to visit all of her friends to bring out some comfortable beddings and such from her ring for them while I do the same for my own bedroom, with Hecate, Teffith, Ghilerie and Marcia following me inside. As expected, their intentions are clear. Almost everyone is here for the buffs before the battle. I can sense bits of gratitude and similar feelings from Ghilerie. She must be happy about my involvement in her case. And Hecate, she’s just clingy. She will most likely watch everything from under the ceiling again. Before anything actually begins, even Shino shows up at the entrance. I wasn’t sure about her participation. I thought she would stay with Natalie or something, but she’s clearly trying her best to fight her shyness to join us, and Ghilerie makes it her sacred mission to make the short samurai girl feel as comfortable as possible. As a result, I spend some quality time with those two first. A decently big-tittied blonde Elf in one hand and a petite black-haired Human in the other. They somehow feel great matched together. Then, Marcia and Teffith take me for a spin while the previous pair takes a breather. I can never get enough of my dragonewt’s mesmerizing scales and tender tail. Thankfully, that part hides most of her weak spots so both of us can get something from it. For a few hours, everyone takes turns. Shino grows a bit more accustomed to the crowd. Still visibly embarrassed and never stopping blushing, she doesn’t seem uncomfortable anymore and openly enjoys my affection, even letting Ghilerie caress her a little while we embrace each other. After we finish, I end up under a huge pile of bodies on the bed I have brought out from my storage ring and which we have used for our little recovery session. Shino steals my chest while Teffith and Ghilerie take ownership of my sides. Marcia happily delegates herself to a free spot between my legs, fortunately, without any mischievous intentions. I sometimes really wonder if she doesn’t have any Succubi genes or something. I wake up to a quadruple blowjob and Hecate snuggled to my chest. She must have somehow fit into the pile of bodies beside Shino. The girls finish me up in a flash and we get up to join the others for breakfast. After the Elder points out Ghilerie’s quite heavily dishevelled hair at the entrance to the cafeteria chamber, she makes a hasty escape with a fierce blush to fix her appearance. We did make a mess of her hair last night, that’s for sure. While eating, we discover that Shino has advanced. She has reached Tier 4 now. Everyone checks their statuses and it’s revealed that Teffith did too, jumping from Tier 4 to Tier 5. While Shino has now caught up to me, Teffith is one step ahead. Unfortunately, Ghilerie didn't get any higher. Technically, she started receiving my boosts quite recently, and she is at Tier 4 so the requirement is definitely much higher. Even I’m still at Tier 4 with all this sex and new Partners, and Teffith was at it before she joined us. The lucky girls check the changes as we eat to make sure that they know as much as they can about their new skills. I thought Ghilerie would feel a little down but all I can sense from her is excitement. She’s truly happy for them. And I guess a little expectant for herself too. Any boost in strength is welcome just before the big battle. Shino’s team will have it much easier with the rat now. Honestly, reaching Tier 5 feels like a huge achievement. It’s pretty much half the scale, no? Incredible. But, before heading out to hunt the army of Abyssals, we actually band up with a few small squads of Elves and depart to their abandoned settlement to check if any monsters came back and to guard them while they gather some crucial supplies, mostly medical. We don’t find another chieftain in the close vicinity, just a few stray grunts, the remains of the werewolf’s wannabe pack. Shino and Teffith chase them around to get a feel of their advancement while the others watch over the Elves. Since they find some bodies here and there, we help them collect the corpses in one place and Natalie turns them into ashes with her Fire Magic. As one of the women explains, this is the most respectful form of burial in their current situation. They gather the ashes and will later bury them under various special trees. A slightly melancholic mood accompanies everyone during this brief operation and it’s not that surprising, honestly. They did lose like half of their kin. So unfortunate. If not evil Humans then evil Abyssals. After making sure that the last of the Elves return safely to their current shelter, we finally move out for good. Starting from the village, we try to track the Abyssals back to their gate. Fortunately, they do not care about the environment and the tracks are quite obvious. And even if they weren’t, Ghilerie is hell-bent on using every single trick and ability in her repertoire to bring revenge to the creepy, shadowy monsters. Fully on guard, we follow the trail of destruction leading through the forest. Only after a good few minutes of running does one of us realize how much bigger of a problem this outbreak is than we have first assumed. We don’t know if Ghilerie’s home is the only one that has been invaded by these Abyssals. There are a few Human villages not that far from here, including the one we have stopped by before reaching this place. A month is a lot of time and who knows if Elves were the first casualty. No use worrying about it now, though. We get rid of the vermin, and then make a full sweep of the surrounding area to check for any damage. And contact Ross after that, most likely. It might be too far for him to act directly, but he should be able to spread the news through whatever means to the nearby towns and settlements. Before long, I notice a faint wave of dark energy pass through my body. Shino seems to catch on to it too and steps closer to me. “That’s the sign of the gate being used, Sensei. We are not that far now,” she explains. “What’s the exact plan?” Kamil asks. “Let’s first check the surroundings,” Paul replies. We huddle up closer together and proceed with caution. After a few more minutes, the regular pulsing grows much stronger. We end up in front of an earthy grotto coming out of the ground. The entrance is something like ten meters wide and tall. “We can’t barge inside straight into their nest. We’ll be at a huge disadvantage.” Paul rubs his chin. “Do you think fuckers are home?” Kamil raises a brow. “Only one way to know,” I respond. “Alright, people. We need to lure them out into the open. Then, somehow capture the attention of the chieftains and split them up. I’m hoping that enough damage will make do,” Paul suggests. “Not like we can do much more,” Natalie comments. “How do we get them out?” Marcia ponders. A loud shriek hits us, coming right from the ominous cave. A second later, Shino emerges from the ground as shadows slither away from her body. “Like this.” She smiles adorably. The very earth starts shaking under the thunderous stomping of who knows how many and how heavy monsters. A never-ending flood of Abyssals rushes from the depths below. Ignoring their lesser comrades, which end up squashed into a paste, the big three make an appearance. I spot my target and nod at everyone. “Good luck.” With a strong push, I launch myself forward, bringing out my draconic hilt. Hecate shows up at my side, having no problems keeping up with my speed. Her neutral, emotionless face gives off very reliable vibes. We are going to wreck this party. Switching my weapon into a greatsword, I cleave through the grunts left and right while making way towards the giant, four-armed monkey. It’s around three times my size, if not more. And it seems to have noticed our approach. But, so did the Wyvern, which hurls itself into the air with its sidekicks following it like a creepy tornado of smaller Drake-wannabees. It dives down to intercept me alongside its banana-brain companion. Fortunately, I don’t have to do anything about it as a hail of projectiles and spells crashes into the big shadowy bird, pushing it off the course. It definitely doesn’t make it happy and it immediately switches its attention to our ranged squad. Meanwhile, I charge toward this overgrown ape with Hecate by my side and our opponent does exactly the same, shaking the ground with each small leap. I instruct my spidergirl through Sweet Whispers and she disappears from my sight. Shaping a mighty, double-sided battlehammer, I activate the skill which is still in my catalogue, Crushing Fury, and grin to myself. Making a heavy jump forward, I break into a side-slide while rearing back my weapon. At the very same time, the giant primate suddenly stumbles over nothing and begins falling forward shortly after making its final lunge at me. I come to a stop and swing my hammer diagonally upwards with everything I can physically and magically bring out. Two opposing forces collide, the head of my hammer and the chin of the huge falling ape. A thunderous explosion follows, bending the trees in the vicinity and sending the nearby grunts flying, and the big dumb monkey ends up yeeted into the horizon, who knows how far behind the entrance to their lair. “Homeeeeeeeeeeeee ruuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun!” I chuckle to myself and take a quick glance at the battlefield behind me. It seems that the rat has been lured away too. Things are looking good. Picking up a bit of the purplish blood that came from the ape, I activate Lascivious Hunt, experiencing the feral rush which comes with it. It comes as a little surprise since I wasn't sure if it will actually work but looks like we have found ourselves a female warrior. A distinct pink trail leading me forward takes up most of my black-and-white vision. “It’s time to hunt.” I smile at Hecate and we rush ahead. As we have assumed, the minions quickly follow us to their boss’ location. Many sizable, purple-skinned monkeys try to get to the crash zone before us or make attempts to slow us down. Hecate doesn’t take kindly to those and mutilates each monster that tries to get any close to me. She’s a real killing machine. A beautiful, charming, pale-skinned killing machine. And well, my killing machine now. We make our way to the ruined part of the forest and find the giant ape regathering its wits. It looks like it hit a huge rock when falling from the sky. How sad. “Let’s make this quick. I’ll handle the big guy, you handle the little ones. Agreed?” Hecate gives me a tiny nod and goes on a rampage. I don’t know if she’s showing her true murderous self just now or if she’s trying really hard to show her usefulness to me. Either way, you go girl. The big guy, which turned out to be a big girl, makes a wide swing at me with its two left fists, making it so much harder to avoid when jumping over the attack is almost not an option now. But, still having the hammer in my hand, I slam it into the ground, sending myself into the air just high enough to achieve that. “Go to horny jail.” With an overhead strike, I bonk the chieftain right on the top of its head. It doesn’t seem to do that much damage to the very sturdy Abyssal, but at least it smashes it into the ground. I will have to switch tactics, though. Rolling off its flat back, I switch back to a big sword again. “Shame. I was starting to really enjoy using hammers. Might be my new favourite weapon.” The giant ape raises itself while grunting in disagreement. At least, I think it does. I would be, for sure, if I was in its place. Six massive Void Chains surge from the ground before it can do anything more than that and I jump towards one of its restrained arms, which are almost two times as thick as my torso. Unfortunately, I underestimate my opponent a little and the chieftain brings forth enough pure physical strength to pull the chains more than I intended for them to be pulled and my heavy slash hits one of the links, sliding off it with a loud clang and some sparks. “Ugh!” The ape somehow lands a knee hit on me right after and sends me tumbling back. I quickly shove the sword into the ground to stop myself. “Damn. I might have gotten a little overconfident after my recent battles. Time to wake up back to reality.” Four of the summoned restraints show bright cracks in the spiritual metal and soon shatter under the pressure. I can call for more of them but each new chain takes quite a bit of mana if I want to bring them out at their full strength. “I guess we are doing this the old way.” I prepare myself for the upcoming attack after my opponent has finally gotten rid of all the chains and launched its massive body onto me with a ferocious roar. Gathering mana in the crystal at the end of the draconic hilt, I shove it into the ground. Four gigantic blades surge from the earth, aiming straight at the Abyssal commander from below. It somehow retains enough manoeuvrability while being mid-air to twist its torso just the way to avoid two of them. One manages to cut off an arm and the other grazes its cheek, creating a deep wound. As it comes crashing down by my side, I slice off one of its wrists on the opposite side, jumping away instantly. I’m not going to get cocky twice in the same fight. While retreating, I take a glance around to check on Hecate. She’s doing way better than me. The overbearing ape roars again, this time most likely more in pain, and swings one of its healthy fists at me before I create enough distance between us. Unfortunately for it, I’m one step ahead. Its fingers hit a cloud of tiny blades whirring around my body. I have quickly switched into a sword whip shape moments after stepping away, anticipating its quick reaction time and resistance to pain. The tornado of spiritual steel shreds the monkey’s digits at an incredible pace. It hastily tries to draw its fist back but I send the blade-less whip forward, causing the screen of death to part for it, coil it around the monster’s wrist, and pull as hard as possible. Before the chieftain manages to overpower me, I grind more than half of its arm to bits. Then, I continue putting more distance between us and recall the activated ability. My opponent now has only one operable arm. It doesn’t look like it can heal. Suddenly, intense dark energy surges from it, putting pressure on the surroundings. With an explosion of newfound strength, it lunges at me thrice as fast as before. There’s no doubt it hits six times as hard now. I grit my teeth and reach for the Void Chains to interrupt it as much as possible, but I don’t have to fire even a single one. The giant monster comes to full stop mid-air in an awkward position with its one last arm raised for a slam, aiming to turn me into a paste, looking kind of like a still-frame of an NBA player going for a single-handed slam dunk. I notice multiple lines over its purplish body, cutting into its weird, shadowy flesh like fishnets but with horizontal stripes instead. Purple blood is dripping from the gashes. Following some of the weird strings, I spot a massive number of trees around us leaning towards the monster’s place. It looks like the whole forest is bowing towards us all at once. Then, I notice a truly uncountable number of barely visible thin wires coiled around these trees and travelling to the Abyssal. I have no idea when and how but there’s no doubt that it's Hecates work. Literally, hundreds of lines bind the gigantic primate, not showing even the tiniest trace of getting under too much pressure. Her thread is much more durable than my Void Chains, for some reason. “Well. Sucks to be you.” I shrug and quickly jump close to the chieftain, beheading it in one strike, making sure that I swing between Hecate’s threads. To be perfectly sure, I dismember its body completely. I ain’t taking any chances. The creator of this surreal exhibition shows up by my side, almost completely covered in Abyssal blood. I chuckle while shaking my head and gently wipe the adorable mass murderer’s face. After waiting for a little bit by the mutilated corpse, we decide to head back and check on the others. No one has sent me any distress messages so they should be doing pretty well. Otherwise, my Lover’s Intuition would have been triggered by any form of danger. We enter the vicinity of the entrance to the underground at the same time as Shino’s team. Paul’s squad has dealt with the Wyvern and its herd too. Burning quite a bit of the surrounding forest in the process, but that’s a necessary sacrifice. They have stopped the fire from spreading, at least. “Everyone alright?” Paul asks after we gather. We all confirm. Just minor scratches here and there. Natalie is already on it. “What now?” Kamil cracks his neck. Looks like he tanked some heavy hits. “We find the gate and get rid of it,” Paul replies. Since they have experience with it already, I follow their lead. Only a few Abyssals that have escaped into the cave are left inside. They are in chaos after their leaders have been disposed of and we easily fend off the unorganized ambushes. Soon, we reach a spacious chamber with a sparkly, galaxy-like surface on the stone ground. It truly looks like a lake, as Shino has told me. “Do we check or study it more before destroying it?” I ask. “You can use Abyssal blood to go through. Watch out for Hecate, Sensei,” Shino reminds me. I quickly clean everyone up with Livelihood Magic to avoid any accidents. Natalie and Teffith carefully walk onto the surface of the gate to see how sturdy it is. Others soon follow them. “Will you do the honours this time too, shortie?” Marcia asks Shino after they examine it for a short moment. “I can. Do you mind… helping me out with… mana recovery… Sensei?” The shy samurai girl glances at me with an upturned gaze and rosy cheeks. “With pleasure.” I step forward to join them on the mesmerizing, swirling, crystal floor. But, the moment my other foot makes contact with the ground, a wave of dizziness washes over me and a weird pulling force scrambles my insides in a very uncomfortable way. A second later, I lurch forward, almost throwing up but holding it in somehow. Raising myself back to a proper position, I notice the ominous, bare, dark grey terrain surrounding me. The sky is even darker. ~You… How did you go through?~ A bone-chilling voice echoes in my mind, making me shudder. My eyes snap towards the source by pure instinct. A five-meter-tall humanoid, as thin as a skeleton, with no face and six arms enters my sight. It wields a demonic-looking blade in each hand. “Fuck.”
Chapter 111 – First Interaction and a Suprise Spoiler: Chapter The dark-skinned giant eyes me up from a distance. At least I think it does since it has no face. It slowly walks closer while tilting its creepy, bald head. The six demonic weapons in its hands can be a problem. ~Was I mistaken?~ Its voice echoes in my mind again. ~You feel like one of us but… different. You don’t look the part either.~ The nightmarish monstrosity doesn’t seem to show instant hostility and expresses something closer to confusion. This might actually be a good chance to learn more about them. Unless someone interrupts it. I quickly try to send a mental message to Shino through Sweet Whispers, hoping that it can reach her. She is the first one who would jump right after me, for sure. If I’m not wrong, we are now in that sealed realm Lumina mentioned, where her sister is trapped. This could be very far from Naharren. But, my skill does say that no boundaries can stop it so let’s just hope it’s not just part of the flavour text. Well then. How do I now make this thing spill the beans while not turning it against me? I hit the side of my head a few times with the butt of my palm. “I’m not sure how I went through that… lake... either. All I know is that it has been calling me. Something told me to return here. To return home. My memories are fuzzy. Something is messed up.” ~Hmmmm…~ The high-ranked Abyssal circles me while pondering over something. It gives me chills. It couldn’t have looked any creepier than this, could it? “From what I can remember… I… came out of here? I was in a fight… big fight… My… chieftain? Boss? Leader? Was defeated by… Humans? Or it was Elves?” I act as if I’m trying to remember things but it gives me a lot of trouble, releasing some grunts and groans as I tap my head. “I woke up amongst many corpses of them and our… brothers? I looked different. I looked like this. Like a Human. No one was around. I didn’t know what to do. Only one order remained in my mind, return home.” I really hope this thing believes me. Since no one else burst in through the gate under my feet, I can safely assume Shino got the message. I have felt something recently so I guess it’s a bit harder for them to get in touch with me from back there. ~Hmmm… Weird… Our echelon lost? That’s unfortunate… But, you survived. Naharrenians can’t use the Rifts. I sympathise with your cursed change, defeated one. I do not possess the knowledge to turn it back.~ “Thank you. It is pitiful that I now look like them but I’m at least still alive. Even if I’m damaged, I can continue to serve our Queen. What does she require of me?” ~Queen?~ the entity questions, tilting its head. 「Shit.」 “Is that the wrong term? I think some of my memories mixed with Human ones. That’s what Humans call their leader. Is it different? Who do we serve? I’m so confused.” ~Oh, poor defeated one. I can only imagine how horrible it must feel. Here. I will help you. I will remind you of Mother.~ A painful prickle assaults my mind and I decide not to fight it. There’s a possibility that my cover will be blown, but it’s worth taking the risk. This thing seems to be repulsed just by the thought of coming in contact with Human memories. After it pierces into my head, I start receiving flashes of various images. I see countless different Abyssals obediently forming full armies and heading in different directions. Chieftains are present amongst them, and gatekeepers too, like the current entity currently sharing its memories with me. There is a lot of them. These outbreaks are surely happening all around the world. The only comforting thing is the lack of calamity-sized monsters and purplish, smoking beasts. I can recognize a few entities bigger than the chieftains that we have faced, but they are sparse. No Godzilla or King Kong in sight, thank Goddess. Then, I receive a different vision. The scene shifts to a plain with rivers of purple glowing energy pulsing like veins filled with radioactive blood. The terrain still looks all grey, dark, dead. These paths of weird dark violet liquid flow towards a huge hole and fall over the edge into what looks like a gigantic basin. This liquefied Void energy travels towards it from all directions, creating a net, or something akin to a circulatory system with it as its heart, kind of. Just one-way. A moment later, it zooms in and I spot a person. Taller than this giant by my side, a woman with onyx skin stands on the edge of the dark purple pool and recites various chants in some ancient tongue filled with powerful magic. I think I can recognize it. It’s possibly Primordial. With just a sash made of some black material sparkling like the Abyss itself covering her hips, she continues waving her hands and weaving mana. If not for the fact that evil seems to be oozing off her, I might have thought of her as quite a handsomely-gifted woman with dark skin and black hair, but just her aura is the perfect definition of the ‘don’t stick in crazy’ rule. Most likely due to her actions, the glowing pit pulses now and then, giving birth to more creatures. They often resemble various monsters and beasts with a more demonic spin to them. I recognize a few enemy types we have already faced. But, there are also some new ones. That includes humanoid entities like the gatekeepers, chieftains, and such. Some normal grunts resembling humanoids more advanced than gorillas or monkeys show up too. Fortunately, the rate of their birth isn’t fast. Watching it, though, makes me realise another thing. She uses Primordials as a kind of template for these monsters. They were her creations back in the day, in the end. And that could explain why this gatekeeper felt that I was familiar. Or why I stepped through the gate this easily. I receive a few more flashes of its memories and try to act as if I’m attentively examining all of them, but they don’t give me as much useful information as the initial ones. Luck seems to be on my side as the entity doesn’t dive into my mind, only feeds it images and thoughts. Betrayal might not exist in their dictionary so it might not be concerned about me lying. After a few more moments, the show ends and I regain full control of myself. The gatekeeper has sat down by the edge of the Rift and shoved its swords into the ground. ~Do you remember now?~ “Yes, brother. Thank you for lending me your memories. It made me feel much more comfortable with myself.” The monster nods and returns to doing… nothing. Just sitting there like a statue. Gatekeepers have no other orders than to watch over the Rifts. All Abyssals seem to be content with their simple tasks. It’s to be expected from the mindless grunts who can only think about destruction, but even the smarter and more intelligent forms are completely loyal to their mother, Umbra. Because that’s her real name. Honestly, I should have expected it. Umbra and Lumina. Darkness and Light. Quite fitting for the two sisters. I kind of wonder if they gained their personalities and qualities after their names, if the names came second, or if someone gave them to the god-like entities. Guess I’ll have to chat a bit more with Lumina whenever she is willing to share such secrets with me. Now, I need to get out of here without looking suspicious. Normal Abyssal wouldn’t want to leave this realm unless ordered otherwise. I have no orders right now. I should return to Mother and receive new ones. But, I’m not a mindless thrall. “Say, brother. I feel like it comes from these weird Human memories inside my mind, but I think I have an idea.” ~An idea?~ “There are those things called politics, scheming, and sabotage that I have learned of just recently. These Human thoughts tell me it would be a good idea to make use of my pitiful transformation instead of showing this unsightly body in front of Mother.” The entity clearly ponders over my words. I’m not sure if it’s considering them or if it should get rid of a faulty grunt behaving weirdly. I felt some connection between the Abyssals so I hope they don’t kill their own kind. ~I am unfamiliar with these thoughts, defeated one. What do they tell you to do?~ “They tell me that I can use how I look and think like a Human to go back to Naharren and mix in with them. That I can work amongst them to raise my rank in their hierarchy. And, when I get enough influence, I can secretly prepare a big Rift in the middle of their biggest settlement. That would be very helpful to Mother’s plans.” ~Hmmm… You look like a Human… but you are not… This… idea… It’s a good idea.~ The gatekeeper stands up. ~We should inform Mother about it.~ “No, no, no! Let it be a surprise!” ~Surprise?~ “Humans do some things in secret when they know it will make someone grateful and then show what they have been doing when it’s finished! That’s a surprise! Mother will like it very much!” ~Hmmm…~ I sigh in relief as the gatekeeper sits down again and starts pondering the new information. Thank the Goddess they are so easy to manipulate. Well, I might have an advantage in that due to my race and the earlier bluffs. ~Very well. A surprise, then. You returned without a problem but can you still use the Rift properly?~ “Uhhh… I think so? I only stepped onto it on the other side. Do I do something else?” ~In your mind, a willingness to ‘come’ is necessary to return through the Rift. To traverse it outwards, you need a willingness to ‘go’. Circulate your energy for a more seamless transition.~ “Thank you. I will now try to travel back to Naharren. Should I mask the Rift somehow now that no one is on the other side?” ~Unnecessary. A new platoon will arrive soon.~ I knew things were too good to just end up here. “I see. How long do you think it will take them? Maybe I should stay and watch over it.” ~By Mother’s measurement of time, ten days.~ That’s not exactly soon to me but I guess for timeless beings it’s like a grain of sand in the desert. Works great for us. “That is soon. I didn’t see any of the Humans or Elves around when I was coming back so I think it should be safe for me to quickly move to the preparations of my surprise. I shall take my leave now, gatekeeper.” The monstrosity nods at me and remains unmoving. I glance down at the swirling ground beneath my feet and fill my body with mana. Then, I try to will to go. Since not much is happening, I assume it might be connected to Primordial and will it harder but in Primordial in my mind. I begin experiencing the familiar pulling sensation but much smoother this time. It still swirls me a little and tugs into every direction but I don’t feel like mashed potatoes on the inside after finishing the transfer. “Sensei!” Shino’s anxious shout reaches my ears a fraction of a second after I pop up back in Naharren. I brace myself for impact but nothing happens. Opening my eyes, I find myself still in the very middle of the Rift. Everyone else has moved away from it and stands some distance from the edge. Natalie is currently holding Shino back from jumping ahead to lunge toward me. My samurai girlfriend has quite some Abyssal blood on herself. “I’m all okay. Let me just step off this portal.” With a quick jog, I walk up to the two best friends and Shino slams into my chest the moment I leave the swirly surface. I hug her closely, brushing through her black hair as she tightly clutches the back of my coat. Teffith and Ghilerie step closer too. My dragonewt bouncer grazes over my cheek with her palm and smiles warmly as I glance at her. “You gave us a big scare, Alastair. I’m glad you are back.” “Sorry. It was not my intention.” I lean in to give her a peck. “Are we safe? Are they coming after you?” Ghilerie asks anxiously. I shake my head at her. “No. The gatekeeper won’t leave its post and we have about ten days before reinforcements arrive.” “Let’s blast this gate to oblivion, then!” Kamil suggests. “Wait. That might look suspicious and ruin everything.” “What do you mean?” Paul joins in. Still caressing my petite samurai, I explain. “I managed to trick the gatekeeper into thinking that I’m one of them but weirdly changed after a fight here. It seems they have a thing or two common with Primordials and that fooled it. I got some information out of it and suggested sabotaging Humans with my current looks so it let me go freely. If we get rid of this Rift too soon, it might grow suspicious.” Marcia snickers at me. “Just admit it, it was a girl and you seduced it. What was it? A purple Minotaur with six giant tiddies?” I chuckle a little while shaking my head. “I don’t think gatekeepers have genders per se. The only actual woman in there might be the other goddess. She did have a hefty pair, at least.” “Damn. And you haven’t added her to your harem? You could have ended the whole war already!” She sniggers even more. “I saw her only through the gatekeeper’s memories. I wouldn’t risk capture just to take a peek from up close. With her size, I could end up as her personal Human-shaped dildo,” I answer with a little joke to play along with her a bit. Marcia explodes into a hearty laugh and wipes off a tear or two. “That would have been a sight! And story! A Hero imprisoned by an evil goddess to be used as her fucktoy for eternity! Imagine how many men would be envious!” “Unless she is into anal.” The unexpected comment coming from the most unexpected person in the calmest and most neutral voice turns the cave silent. Everyone glances at Natalie, who keeps her usual poker face, and Marcia suddenly drops onto the ground while holding onto her sides and starts rolling amidst her roaring laughter. I sigh and shake my head again. Glancing down at Shino, clinging to my chest, I pat her head a few times with some gentle affection. “You good down there?” She looks up and reveals her tear-stained face. “I’m… I’m so sorry…” I frown at her. “What for?” “B-Because of me… and my selfishness… S-Sensei almost…” Releasing one more sigh, I cup her cheeks into my palms and kneel down to bring us on a similar level, more or less. I slowly pull her closer and connect our lips in a loving kiss. For a few long seconds, I pursue Shino’s mouth with gentle passion, peppering her lips with a myriad of loving pecks. After we part, I stare deep into her charming, purple eyes. “Stupid. You had nothing to do with this. It would have happened no matter if you asked me to come to you or not. So, forget about it. Alright?” She makes the tiniest nod and her eyes skip to my lips. I lean forward again and let Shino lead the tender barrage of pecks this time. The faint flush over her fair cheeks rises gradually as she lets go of her worries and starts getting more conscious of our position and actions. When we finally part, I smile at her, leave one more peck on her forehead, and stand up. Then, I look around, ending at glancing up. As I have felt, Hecate hangs upside-down from the cavern’s ceiling on her thread, watching us attentively. “Come.” I wave at her and hold my hand in the air. Hecate slowly descends while turning her body and steps onto the ground with the help of my palm. She doesn’t show any emotions on her pale face as usual, but I can feel a big deal of guilt and anxiety in her mind thanks to our bond. Shino realises my intentions and steps away, freeing me from her affectionate clutches. I plop a hand on the spidergirl’s short, silvery hair and ruffle through it as her six black eyes stare at my face. “And the same goes for you. You did not fail to protect me, alright? This was much above any of us to prevent. You don’t deserve punishment for allowing this to happen. Look, I’m all fine, not hurt at all. So, you did a great job so far. And I hope you will keep at it in the future. Alright?” I look into her main eyes which seem to suck light in, making you lost in them. But, they are more charming than creepy, honestly. Like you are staring into a deep, mysterious abyss that holds countless secrets. It fits her quiet, mute personality. Hecate finally answers me with a nod too and my smile grows a little. Her melancholic emotions dissipate to some extent. I’m glad it has worked. “Now. Care to explain why you look like you took a dip in a pool filled with Abyssal blood?” I turn around and raise a brow at Shino. The timid samurai blushes fervently while looking away. Natalie arrives at her side. “The moment you disappeared, she lunged towards the closest corpse, that Wyvern over there, launched it into the air, slashed into pieces, and stood right under it as the waterfall of purple blood crashed onto her.” Shino starts fidgeting with her fingers as her hips begin to sway a little. This little murder machine. “She managed to avoid all of us trying to stop her and almost jumped into the gate, but paused just before, fortunately. I caught her then.” “Thank you, Natalie.” I nod my head at the blond-haired bard. “My message must have gone through just in time.” “It did…” Shino admits, glancing at me with an upturned gaze. “So, what now?” Paul asks. “I don’t think we are ready to even scout the other side.” “Not in the slightest.” I glance at Ghilerie. “I think we should try to hunt any remaining Abyssals that could have potentially scattered around and help the Wood Elves clear the surrounding forest.” A small smile grows on her lips. “Thank you.” With a nod, I turn to the others. “After a few days, we’ll get rid of this Rift before reinforcements arrive. Since we have to wait a moment, why not help them out a little in the meantime? I bet they could use a pair of hands after we reclaim the settlement.” Marcia appears in my vision, back up from the floor. “I’m all in.” “Sounds good,” Natalie agrees too. I glance at Paul and he shrugs in approval. Not much else we can do besides starting our journey back and quite a few people would most likely be discontent with leaving the Elves in their current state. Including me, of course. So, we first split and look around for any possible survivors in this underground complex. I don’t think the grunts will be able to ruin my plan but it’s safer to make sure that nothing can slip back through the gate. I have already announced that the force has been wiped out. An hour later, we regroup again and begin heading back to the settlement. One thing I have noticed is the fact that when I use Lascivious Hunt through the blood of the grunts, I’m led not just to a single monster but many of them as if they are a collective. Thanks to that, we have a decently easy time tracking the survivors and getting rid of them as we move through the woods. Chasing after all of them right now would take a bit too long so we just pick up those that are more or less on our path. It's a little curious since I have earlier assumed that the skill worked since it was a female ape but they might have something of both genders in their DNA or whatever runs inside those freaky monsters. I don't really care as long as it allows me to track them effortlessly. I step back whenever we fight one or more to let the others gain the experience from dealing with them. Teffith, Ghilerie, Shino, and Marcia usually stand back too as they are quite high in their Tier or advanced just recently. As for Hecate, she just focuses on protecting me, as usual. We arrive back at the old village of the Wood Elves at around three in the afternoon. A few lone Abyssals are still wandering around so the Heroes quickly dispatch them. After securing the perimeter, we move to the hidden refugee camp. The same guards greet us, Vezir and Achiel, uncovering the entrance. The latter seems a bit more hostile towards us than before. Or maybe it’s towards me, I’m not really sure. I have a feeling it might be related to our mutual friend who is a beautiful Wood Elf with golden hair and green eyes. He doesn’t make any trouble for us, though, and Ghilerie quickly leads us back to the meeting room. Traversing the rocky tunnels, we can notice a minimal improvement in the state of the refugees. Almost everyone has now something to snack on and there are a bit more fabrics and materials for them to cover themselves. The Elder welcomes us alongside the rest of the leaders. All of them wear hopeful expressions after seeing us return more or less unscathed and in full number. “How did it go?” she asks, looking between all of us. Ghilerie steps forward and makes a respectful bow. “We have successfully gotten rid of the three remaining chieftains and most of their forces. Some Abyssals have scattered into the forest but we will slowly hunt them down.” Smiles break onto the lips of the attendees and the Elves start nodding at each other, murmuring in relief. The Elder places her hands on Ghilerie’s shoulders and slowly pulls the Tracker into a warm, grateful hug. “We have also located the gate through which they have arrived in this world. But, we will need some time to prepare the means of closing it,” Paul adds. “While we don’t think there’s a risk of another wave coming out anytime soon, it would be wise to station a scout nearby to keep an eye on it.” The two women break the hug and the Elder nods at him. “We will of course arrange it. Thank you for your hard work. It certainly must not have been easy to achieve. I can see it by the state of your clothing. You should rest for the rest of the day. If you are planning to return already, I suggest doing so tomorrow at the first signs of dawn. You are always welcome to spend a night here.” “But, Elder, they are not going to leave yet.” Ghilerie takes the woman’s hands into hers. “They agreed to help us reclaim our home and rebuild what has been destroyed whilst they wait. They will need a few days before they can get rid of the gate anyway.” “Oh.” The emerald-haired Elf turns to us. “Will you really?” “As Ghilerie-san said, we have to wait so we might as well do something useful in the meantime,” Shino answers with a nod. Some more murmurs break through the Elves in the meeting chamber. I can catch some parts of it. They seem surprised we are going this far. A few are a little doubtful if it’s really all without hidden intentions. Others feel ashamed about our initial reception. “That would bring our debt of eternal gratitude even further.” The Elder strokes her chin. “And it was already very hard to imagine how we would be able to repay even a fraction of it.” “Such worries can be left for the future,” I join in. “I can assure you, though, Elder, that we won’t ever ask for anything unbecoming or harmful for your community.” “So be it.” She bows her head and the others followed. “And please, as friends of our people, call me Elyari. We are truly honoured to have met such benevolent Humans.” Teffith chuckles from behind me. “They are quite special. Especially the one with grey hair.” I glance back at her with a smile. She just winks at me. Looks like someone is starting to get more comfortable with her ulterior motives of getting stronger through sex. We then leave it to Elyari and the others to spread the information and organise their people while we move out to get ourselves cleaned. She directs us to a nearby pond for that since the lands around should be pretty much safe thanks to our input. Under Ghilerie’s lead, we find it quite easily, without stumbling on any lost Abyssals or other monsters. We don’t intend to take a long dip like on our way here so everyone just jumps out of their clothes, staying in underwear, and we wash them together. Natalie and I give others a hand with some magical means too. “So, did you manage to learn something new or useful on the other side, Alastair?” she asks at one point of our casual chatter. “Quite a few things. I have already mentioned the Primordial thing. Umbra is creating monsters out of something looking like Void energy and growing an army.” “Umbra?” Shino tilts her head. “The other goddess, Lumina’s sister from the story,” I answer, giving her a few pats. “How bad?” Paul glances at me. “Big in numbers but not that world-ending yet. It definitely takes a lot out of her. I didn’t get to know much about the gates, called Rifts, and how exactly they are opened, though. Maybe Lumina will be able to provide some hints next time I speak with her.” “I’m still wondering how we are supposed to go against that. Compared to you, our growth seems slow, lacking,” Natalie shares her thoughts. “Don’t worry so much, Nat.” Marcia grabs her around her slim waist. “That Goddess said to Al that her vision of the huge outbreak was still far ahead. I don’t think we can use Al’s abnormal advancing speed as a good way to measure ourselves.” “For sure…” Kamil groans. Marcia giggles. “And well, you know, you can always get faster too.” Natalie sighs and puts her leg between the mischievous redhead’s knees, pushing her lightly. With an overdramatic squeal, the Brazilian beauty falls into the water. She resurfaces with one titty out of her bra and intentionally makes nothing of that fact, flashing her tanned peak at everyone. At least until Natalie topples her again and fixes her clothing under the water, earning herself a pout from Marcia afterwards. Seriously. It has never really looked like that but they must all be really great friends to not get annoyed by Marcia's constant mischief. “Also, if I can get a map after we return, I might be able to point out the locations of a few possible Rifts. Not sure how accurate, though. I would be judging the position depending on the one we will close and what little hints of distance I have received from the gatekeeper's memories,” I add while helping Hecate wash her slim body. “Then, we will be able to find those and close them,” Shino says. “I’m sure Rossberg-san would be happy to hear that. We might have to split again, though…” “Honestly, why do we even have to care?” Kamil whips his wet clothes and puts his hands on his hips, looking my way. “He will most likely reach god-like level before we get to anything semi-decent and will be able to handle this whole Cataclysm alone.” “We should still help people if we can.” Paul walks closer to him. “We did agree to deal with the outbreaks in the kingdom.” “And besides.” Marcia throws herself at Kamil’s back, wrapping her arms around his chest. “What else are you going to do? Sit on your ass in the capital? You would get bored as hell in a flash. He has shit to do after coming back, a whole business to run. You? I’m fairly sure you have higher chances of seducing some royal pussy outside of the capital rather than inside, where the only one is, for sure, interested in only one person.” Kamil groans at her much louder for some reason. I’m not sure, maybe there’s something more about what she said that only they can understand, or the insinuation that the Queen is after me rubs him wrong. While they start bickering between themselves, I glance at Shino. She notices my gaze and smiles sweetly. “I’m okay, Sensei. As before, I don’t think I’ll leave the party to stay around you all the time, as much as I would love to. I don’t want to act too clingy, too.” I pull her for a brief hug. “You can be as clingy as you want. But, I agree. You are a smart and responsible girl. I’m not sure I would be able to do the same if I was in your shoes.” She giggles adorably, embracing me back. “There’s no doubt about it, Sensei. In the end, you have been my role model since the moment I’ve seen you.” A weird, warm feeling starts filling my chest for some reason. I have no idea why these exact words coming from her triggered it but they did. It’s the first time I heard somebody say it to me. I guess it’s some hidden teacher’s dream or something. “Thank you, Shino. We’ll always be able to talk whenever you want. And my cooldown on Heart Swap is getting lower and lower. Since Marcia is now a valid target too, I can switch us now and then. She would surely be happy to take a few days of a break in our Pleasure Chambers while I enjoy some time with you guys.” Shino pulls herself away a bit and shows a lovely smile. “That’s actually a good plan, Sensei. Too bad Natalie-san doesn’t seem to be interested in you. You could swap with her then too. At least I think she isn’t. I’ve never seen her show any signs of that. Maybe it’s my fault because I always kept talking about you to her.” I chuckle a little and brush through her hair. “Not everyone has to be into me. But, I guess I should add her to my Partners, at least. She would be able to talk mentally not just with me but with you too. If she wouldn’t mind.” “I’m sure she wouldn’t. Let’s ask her now.” Shino quickly walks to her best friend with me in tow. Natalie notices our approach due to the loud sloshing of water, of course. “Natalie-san! Would you like to become Sensei’s Partner?” Natalie’s brows raise a little, showing a rare sign of surprise. “Ah.” Shino giggles shyly. “Not that way. Just so he can sense you and we can talk mentally.” “Sure. That’s certainly useful. And the situation in the underground caverns only proved that. If Alastair and his companions weren’t there, we wouldn’t exactly be able to sense you.” “Fair point,” I agree. So, we add Natalie to my Partners list and test the connection out for a few moments, laughing together at how unusual her lewd Sweet Whispers sound when compared to her normal, calm and collected tone. An even rarer faint blush covers her cheeks for a few seconds. Then, we return to the cave and get invited to another feast, with much more traditional dishes prepared this time. They must have used some of the supplies that have been brought from the settlement. This one, though, doesn’t end up with another orgy like the last time. We peacefully rest without jumping at each other, to my surprise. Thanks to that, I’m able to pamper Hecate a little as she sleeps in my arms. The next morning, we get to work. Since I’m currently the best person to track Abyssals after we locate at least one, I’m assigned to the hunting squad, which includes Kamil, Natalie, Paul and Ghilerie. We are going to be scanning through the woods in the next few days. The rest of our group decides to help the Elves reclaim their settlement and fix whatever can be fixed. There’s a lot of cleaning and repairs at their old home. But, Shino, Marcia, Teffith and Hecate can handle it. It takes me quite some time to convince the spidergirl to agree to this division, though. I believe her mobility, strength, and versatility of her webs can be a huge help in construction and other things around the village. Very reluctantly, but she receives her orders with a nod, in the end. Even if she seems hesitant, I can tell she won’t ever go back on her word. She’s still deeply affected by that loyalty towards me. It is good that she is starting to ponder longer over my orders before accepting them, though. So, each group focuses on their task. In the next five days, we, the hunters, manage to track and eliminate around thirty loose Abyssals which have scattered from the three groups we have fought earlier. Most of them have rat-like shapes so I guess Shino destroyed the big one so fast that the others in her squad back then didn’t even get to thin its small army. I’m really glad she is on my side. I pray Ross never does anything to annoy her ever, hahaha. Might be hard to be a king without a kingdom. In our search for enemies, we actually travel quite far, visiting two nearby villages to check on them. Elyari has tipped us about their location as we discussed the routes to take around the forest. There seems to be some light damage but coming from nothing more than just a scouting attempt from the Abyssals. We have already informed Ross about the situation so there’s not much we can do on this front. Hopefully, no other villages were attacked. As for the cleaning and construction team, they are doing great too. We see big improvements each time we return from the hunt. It was a good decision to put Hecate in it. With her threads, rebuilding some destroyed houses in the trees goes smoothly. It’s all slowly starting to look as if nothing has happened. There are some small changes caused by the damage, but that’s inevitable. No one is really worried about that as everyone is banded together and focused on restoring their former home. The Elves even start acting openly friendly with us. So, on the sixth day, we finish on both sides. Our group doesn’t find a single monster and the other team is left with just minor adjustments. Elyari offers to share her knowledge about magic with Natalie, who aids the Elder in restoring the wards around the village back to their full power. I’m sure this will come useful. Since we are set to begin our return journey tomorrow, another big feast is held. This time, in the renovated settlement, of course. Everyone celebrates its restoration, getting rid of the Abyssals, and us as their saviours. A pretty huge party. I still can’t shake off the feeling that quite a few men are giving me glares when I’m not looking but let’s just ignore that, shall we? I’m fairly sure that will be a common occurrence at some point in the future. As we are all sitting around beautiful bonfires and enjoying the cuisine of Wood Elves, a pretty girl with light brown hair approaches me. “Dear Saviour. I was instructed to bring you to one of the abodes in the trees as someone wishes to meet with you.” A little confused but also curious and intrigued, I agree to follow the guide. We walk through a few wooden bridges and end up in front of one of the treehouses which are visible from below. There’s nothing really special about it that differentiates it from the other ones. Urged by the woman, I enter inside and she closes the door behind me, not accompanying me any further. Glancing around, I spot a few sets of quite charming, wooden furniture, fitting the lovely home. The windows are closed shut and it’s enveloped in a dim light coming from a few small crystal lanterns. My gaze lands on a figure of a woman in extremely alluring elven robes. I instantly recognize her elegant, youthful face and long, dark emerald hair. “Elder…” Elyari smiles beautifully and her robes suddenly drop to the ground, revealing her splendid, curvaceous body. I could tell she hid quite the weapons under her garments from the very first moment, but her impressive breasts do not lack perkiness at all. My gaze jumps down for a brief moment, catching on a little bit that’s clearly standing out on her fair skin. “Green too, huh.”
Chapter 112 – All Wood Elves Love… ❤❤❤ Spoiler: Chapter With a gentle, ladylike smile, perfectly fitting her mature and wise aura, Elyari starts unhurriedly walking toward me. Before I get to speak again, someone’s hands slither onto my chest from behind and another person presses themselves into my back. The soft squish accompanying the hug, and the appearance of dazzling, golden hair by the side of my face, reveal the second unexpected figure to be Ghilerie. She gives me a sweet smile as I turn my head to face her as she sensually traces her palms over my front, with one clearly heading towards my belt. This little devil. She must have tried her best to stay unnoticed with her Tracker abilities. I let my guard down. She got me damn good. Albeit a little reluctantly, I return my gaze forward, letting my eyes wander over the other, approaching me, beauty. “What exactly is the meaning of this?” I ask while curiously raising a brow at the Elder. Elyari’s smile grows a little. “As I have mentioned before, I spoke with our dear Ghilerie. She told me a lot. Especially about you.” I glance at the person in question and spot a faint blush on Ghilerie’s cheeks but she doesn’t run away from my gaze, meeting it bravely. “I hope it was good things.” I chuckle while focusing back on the emerald-haired Elf. “Oh, certainly, it was not just good things but great things.” Elyari sways her hips a little more after crossing half of the distance separating us. “She helped me a lot. I was in a real pinch about what to do to even start returning all the favours. Then, she told me how you can grow stronger from becoming one with women that view you positively.” Again, I take a peek at the other Elf, still embracing me from behind. Ghilerie’s cheeks turn a shade redder. She doesn’t run away this time either but I can discern a faint trace of anxiety in her gaze, clearly due to the worry about revealing specifics of my Class to others. To make sure she is reassured, I place a quick, soft kiss on Ghilerie’s dainty lips before Elyari’s words steal my attention again. “If I’m not mistaken, the stronger the individual you bond with, the greater benefits you reap,” the Elder continues and finally stops in front of me, gazing straight into my eyes. “While I can’t speak for other women in our community, I certainly have a positive image of your person in my mind. And, I am quite strong myself.” Elyari wraps her arms around me and presses herself into my chest, effectively trapping me between her and Ghilerie’s naked embraces. A pair of heavenly breasts push into me from both front and back. The urge to instantly dematerialize my clothes and feel them on my skin is almost unbearable. “Also, from what I know, you are able to communicate with those partners of yours no matter the distance. Therefore, this could serve as a means to secure a reliable form of contact after your leave, whenever the need arises.” Admiring Elyari’s dazzling visage from up close, I smile at her softly. “It seems you have figured it out, then.” “Thanks to Ghilerie’s input, yes.” She nods delicately. “But, this is just the first step.” “Oh? There’s more?” The Elder’s smile grows into an even more charming one. “I’ve heard that you are in need of people. And it so happens that I know of a few Wood Elves that could use a change in environment. They lost a lot in the Abyssal raid. Their life’s work, home, relatives, friends, or other things they held dear.” A solemn sigh escapes Elyari’s lips and I can sense a slightly somber mood from Ghilerie too. Instinctively, my hand moves to the Elder’s cheek and brushes over it gently, receiving a thankful smile. “Those people are unsure about their future. Instead of trying to rebuild what has been lost, they might want to start completely anew. I consulted with them. They do not mind working as helpers, maids, or even service girls, in a few cases.” I turn to look at Ghilerie. A wide, proud smile adorns her lips. She says nothing, only leaves a chaste peck on my cheek. “Amongst them,” Elyari still continues, “is one person with a passion for fabrics of all kinds. She might not be the most skilled artisan of our settlement, but she would certainly be of help to you.” So, Ghilerie even mentioned that, huh? “Therefore, will you accept these gifts as part of our repayment for your immeasurable favour?” the Elder finally finishes her speech. Without a moment of hesitation, I nod. “It will be my honour, Elder.” The mature Elf lets out another sigh, this time of relief. “Thank you. And, please, just call me Elyari. My position is way below you, our Saviour.” I chuckle. What’s with various Elves ending up calling me their Saviour? “We seem pretty equal to me.” I smirk at her. Clearly catching on to the fact that I meant our height, Elyari shows a captivating smile while retracting her hands back to her sides. She then lays them on my chest and very unhurriedly moves down to a kneeling position, starting to unfasten my belt. I chuckle again, shaking my head. “Alright. Now you are below me.” She quickly deals with my pants and lowers them alongside my shorts, releasing the expectant beast from its cage, already fully ready to go for quite a bit. In the meanwhile, Ghilerie begins raining tender kisses over my neck as she unbuttons the pieces of clothing covering my torso. Elyari places a palm on my thigh and waits for her younger friend to finish while staring at my cock with a motherly smile. As soon as Ghilerie throws my purple shirt away, the older Elf moves her hand to my shaft, giving it a few delicate brushes. I take a deep breath as the two begin their performance. The golden-haired beauty keeps peppering my neck and shoulders with loving pecks while grazing her fingers over my torso, especially my navel, strategically avoiding touching my member. Whenever her palm reaches low enough, she splits her slender digits around my groin before trailing back up again. At the same time, the emerald-haired goddess affectionately caresses my member like it's the most precious thing in the world. She strokes it tenderly with one palm while either placing slow, tame kisses over my whole length or leaving a prolonged lick from the base to the very tip. All of that while looking at me from down below, just increasing the sensuality of the situation. After a moment, Ghilerie stops and walks to the front, stepping over her elder. Since her waist is more or less at the height of Elyari’s head, she has to lean forward a bit, arching her back to reach me. She takes my hand into hers, leads it to her perky breast, and joins our lips in a passionate kiss. As I begin to gently knead and rub her marshmallowy peak, Elyari switches her approach too and slides my tip inside her mouth. She becomes a little more offensive but still remains calm in her noble movements, swirling her tongue around my glans while lazily moving her head up and down. “Mmmmmm…” Ghilerie lets out a quiet moan and I sigh in bliss too. We occasionally glance into each other’s eyes as we make out. I can tell she wishes for more so I slide my free hand down her smooth belly and arrive at her secret valley, already leaking a fair amount of love nectar. She notices my arrival and impatiently thrusts her hips forward, aiming to bring my fingers over her warm folds already. With that motion, she achieves her objective, but also bangs her navel into the back of Elyari’s head, pushing her more onto my cock. As a result, my hard member drives into the Elder’s throat. “Mmmmm… Mmmhnnnn… More…” Ghilerie begs quietly while humping my fingers stronger and stronger. It’s clear she is trying to make them slip into her love hole, at the same time, completely unaware of what she is doing to her friend. If Elyari is bothered by it in any way, she doesn’t show the tiniest sign of it and allows Ghilerie to slam her head onto my cock repeatedly. I can feel the change in pressure around my erect shaft, clearly announcing that it’s getting shoved into the Elder’s throat time after time. She is taking me to the very balls already. I can feel Elyari’s nose poke my navel and her chin tap my sack. Trying to take a glimpse at the emerald-haired Elf to make sure she is fine causes me to notice a visible blush on Elyari’s cheeks as we lock gazes. A faint spark can be discerned in her green eyes. It seems that the respected Elder of Wood Elves is quite a bit into getting throat fucked. She’s clearly anticipating my orgasm so I don’t hold her hostage for too long. Slipping two fingers into Ghilerie’s leaking pussy, I bend them towards myself and rub against a nice spot. The younger Elf moans fervently into my mouth and thrusts the hardest, beginning to shiver. I grunt openly as Elyari takes me the deepest into her mouth as of yet. She ends up trapped with my cock lodged in her narrow, constricting throat as Ghilerie doesn’t bring her hips back while she climaxes. With so much pleasure assaulting my senses, I release a bountiful load down that tight tunnel, groaning into Ghilerie’s soft lips. Wave after wave, serpents of cloudy liquid crash against Elyari’s throat and windpipe, travelling straight to her belly. She controls her gag reflex perfectly, gulping down on my cock to milk it out of all the seed. After the blonde beauty finally finishes riding her high, staring at me with hazy eyes, I push her underbelly back with my palm while smiling. Ghilerie regains some clarity in her gaze and curiously glances down just in time to watch as my penis springs back into existence from the depths of the Elder’s throat. Elyari coughs a few times before looking up at us. “That was mostly… cough… unexpected.” Ghilerie’s face pales instantly. But, before she can start apologising, the other woman is already up and places a finger on her junior’s lips “I didn’t say it was bad.” She smiles softly and glances at me. “You taste splendid, Alastair.” I chuckle a little. “So I’ve been told.” “Elder…” Ghilerie shows a bit of anxiety. Elyari puts her hand behind the younger Elf’s neck and pulls Ghilerie into a sudden kiss. Shocked at first, the recipient of it quickly starts reciprocating it until the Elder backs away with a trail of saliva between them. “We are both here to serve him. You have done exactly that, my dear Ghilerie. Do not worry about me. I can handle this much.” Elyari leaves one more peck on her subordinate’s forehead and turns to me. “Now, then. Shall we proceed?” I look between the two stunning women directing their gazes at me. Ghilerie glances at me a little shyly after her recent stunt while Elyari smiles confidently at me. “I might be having it a little tough to decide who to start with,” I admit honestly. My golden-haired friend drops her eyes to the ground, blushing even more fiercely. She would most likely tell me to embrace the Elder before her, like during their first time with Teffith, so I turn to Elyari. The mature leader opens her mouth but doesn’t manage to do more than that. “Me first…” Ghilerie suddenly says in a hushed whisper. Both of us look at her and Elyari raises a brow at the younger Elf, clearly surprised by the unexpected exclamation. She chuckles softly and nods at me while stepping away. I notice a small wooden token in her hands, recognising a certain very useful rune on it. With the issue of the order resolved, I walk closer to my precious companion. Ghilerie enters my embrace and we kiss each other dearly. I slowly twirl her long hair around my forearm. Obviously noticing it, her body shivers in anticipation. Not betraying her expectations, I pull on the gathered golden threads, sending her head to the back. “AH! Yesssss…” Ghilerie purrs into my ear after screaming in pleasure first. “Aren’t you shameless?” I whisper back into her long ear, causing another tremble. “Is this the side you want to show to your Elder?” With her head angled to the back from my grip, she can only glance to the side, trying to find Elyari. She succeeds and another shiver travels through her body as she notices two raised brows on her superior’s forehead. “Yesssssss…” Ghilerie replies in a sultry tone, not dropping eye contact with the other woman. I chuckle in amusement and thrust myself inside her naughty snatch from below as we are both still standing. “OH! Mmmmmmmmm…” She bites on her lower lip, trembling once more. “So be it,” I whisper again, rolling my tongue over the whole length of Ghilerie’s ear. She quickly wraps her hands around me and I use my other, free palm to lift her left thigh, locking it over my waist and behind me too. With much better access to the lewd Elf’s pussy, I start slamming my hips against Ghilerie’s belly, firmly pulling on her hair. “Ahnnn… Ahhh… Yessss… Ahhhh… Stronger, please… Ohhhhhhhh!” As I yank her mesmerising hair even harder, Ghilerie’s face ends up positioned completely towards the ceiling. Her eyelashes start fluttering a little as I make a mess of her insides under her favourite sensation, which, obviously, is related to what the fingers of my right hand are doing. “Ahhhh… Ahhnnnn… That’s it… Ahhh…” With a very beautiful and enticing neck right in front of me, I suddenly get the urge to sink my teeth in it. I’m starting to understand why Vampires in the movies love exposing the necks of their prey like that. It’s so damn sexy. But, instead, I decide to start tenderly kissing Ghilerie’s alluring neck and it proves to be a good decision. Her amazing pussy tightens on my cock each time I leave a sucky peck on her skin. As if answering my caresses, her insides coil around me lovingly, allowing me to time my thrusts better. “Ahhhnnn! Ahhhh! Ahhhhh! Alastair!” Knowing that she’s getting close, I suddenly get an idea. Before Ghilerie perceives my intentions, I plop myself out of her snug passage and spin her around. “AH! What?” Amidst the confusion, I nail the pretty Elf from behind, spreading her plump cheeks with my hands to better see my target, resuming the pounding she deserves. “Ohhh! Ahhnnn! Ahhh! Why?” Ghilerie asks, a little confused, as she peeks at me over her shoulder. I grin at her and recapture the hair that I have let go of, pulling on the collected threads once more. “AHHH! Ahhnnn! Ahhhh!” She then shivers. “Oh. Mnnhhhh! Oh no. Mhhhnnn! Wait, please! Ahmmmm! Mnnnhhhhh!” With her pussy receiving my rough affection and her back arched from the tug on her hair, Ghilerie ends up with her face right in front of the Elder. I fuck her from behind in a standing doggy while holding onto her hair like onto the reins. And she feels incredibly good from it. So good her love juices create wet sounds as her pretty flower slams into my cock, trickling down her legs and even dripping onto the wooden floor. “Ahhhnn! Ahhh! Ahhhhh!” Ghilerie quickly covers her reddening face with her hands after she fails to stop her loud moans from escaping her throat. For a moment, I keep hammering her leaking honeypot to the muffled accompaniment of noises. But, she’s already on the edge. Timing my last thrust with the best possible moment, I reaffirm my grip on Ghilerie’s hair with my right hand and prepare my left. When her snug pussy starts squeezing me even more, I shove my cock deep into her the last time while quickly catching her wrists and pulling them behind her. “NO! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!” Ghilerie manages to fit a quick scream before I pull on her hair and wrists, exploding inside her incredible channel. She enters a huge, trembling orgasm as her face twists in pure pleasure. She clenches her teeth and her eyes roll a bit to the back, centimetres away from her esteemed Elder. With a faint grunt, I fill Ghilerie’s furthest depths with the warm, milky delicacy, enjoying her convulsions stroking my erection. A few very faint squirts escape her lower lips, sending some more love nectar onto the floor and right between Elyari’s feet. I hold Ghilerie close, hugging her dearly as she trembles on her way down from her climax, breathing heavily myself. My eyes jump to the face of the mature Elf in front of me and I notice a gaze of strong longing in Elyari’s emerald eyes. Her slender fingers keep slowly rubbing her wet folds. Chuckling, I pull myself out of my precious companion and carry Ghilerie to the nearby bed, leaving a kiss on her forehead as I lay her down. She needs a moment to recuperate and she’ll be back up in a flash. Meanwhile, I turn to the respectable Elder and approach Elyari, who is still playing with herself, perhaps unaware of that fact. She gazes into my eyes as I reach down and bring her fingers up, seductively putting them in my mouth and licking them with great care. Her eyes widen and she glances down, realising what she has been doing, and how wet she is. It’s not just Ghilerie’s cum down on the wooden planks. Her own nectar is continuously dripping from between her sealed lower lips, adorned by a thin bundle of dark green hair. I pull Elyari’s fingers out of my mouth and kiss her palm, starting to travel down her forearm, at the same time, sending her an invitation to my Partners. If she accepts it, we don’t need any more unnecessary words and can move forward. She spares it only a second before accepting with that soft, ladylike smile. I smile back from under her forearm and continue the path towards her shoulder, wrapping my other arm around her incredible waist. Soon, my lips jump onto Elyari’s front and the pecks start heading down, climbing over the left of the two awe-inspiring mountains. She watches my movements intently, awaiting my arrival at the very peak with silent anticipation. A quiet, noble sigh leaves her dainty lips the moment I gently nibble on her hardened nipple. Elyari closes her eyes and focuses on enjoying my pleasant squeezes and rubs as I repeatedly close my mouth around the dark areola. To not leave the other breast sad and alone, I bring my fingers to the massive tit and start tracing circles over the sensitive nub. All my efforts are rewarded with barely audible but slightly heavier and irregular breathing. Giving each nipple a stronger, suckier, parting kiss, I continue the journey towards the valley below. My hands move with a slight delay, arriving at Elyari’s heavenly, plump butt the moment my lips stumble on the fragrant carpet making the forest before her sacred elven crevice. I bring my nose closer to the velvety, jade threads to take a small whiff off them when my face bumps into Elyari’s skin and I instead kiss them. Looking slightly around with just my eyes, I notice that we are now against a wall. She must have been taking subconscious steps back this whole time. Incidentally, that little accident brought something curious to my lips. While my sense of smell has registered the alluring scent of clean, fresh, forest grass before, there is something stronger now. I bring my mouth lower and place an extremely slow and chaste kiss on Elyari’s tightly sealed slit with a quiet smooch. My eyes widen instantly. “Oh, my great Goddess…” Elyari shivers from the ticklish sensation of my breath over her secret place. I gaze up and she gazes down. Our eyes meet. I place three more quick pecks on her closed entrance. A faint trail of love nectar connects us as I draw back just a little without losing eye contact. “You taste so… intoxicating.” I instantly spread her pussy with my fingers and lap my tongue over the inner pink of her folds, scooping as much of the divine liquid as I can. Elyari’s mouth shoots open with a gasp and her back hits the wall with a soft thud. One of her hands moves to her hair as her fingers brush through the emerald threads from her bangs towards the back while the other scratches against the wooden surface by her hips. “Sweet Mother of All Forests…” Elyari whispers sensually. “Forgive this foolish—OHHH!” Her hands jump to my hair and grasp it strongly. I keep rolling my tongue over the mature Elf’s petals, absorbing the scarce amounts of the incredibly refreshing morning dew. I have no idea how morning dew tastes but this has to be it. My new Partner’s breathing quickly grows ragged and Elyari’s titanic chest starts heaving strongly. But, all my focus is on her glorious pussy. I dive further inside to bring out more of the liquid delicacy, in turn, stimulating a lot of spots inside the Elder’s snug, fragrant tunnel. “Mhhhhmmm~ Mnnnnnn~ This is inconceivable~ Ohhhhhhh~” Elyari’s thick thighs trap my head between her legs as she suddenly shivers. I might have tickled a very good spot. That’s most likely. With my nose buried in the fragrant forest above and my tongue exploring the leaking cavern below, I’m trying my best to please the elven beauty, in turn, increasing the release of the nectar of the gods. As more mature moans escape into the air, I start noticing the little trembling and squeezes of the Elder’s vagina, already arriving at her first climax. That’s pretty fast but who am I to judge? I add some more energy to my efforts and Elyari’s hands return to the wall, again scratching it with her nails each time I thrust my tongue into her leaking honeypot. This time, they leave actual marks on the hard surface and it’s very much audible. “Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh~!” An orgasm finally arrives and Elyari bangs her juicy butt against the wall, which cracks a little under her palms. Her constricting pussy pushes my tongue out and a faint jet of crystal clear liquid squirts right onto my cock as she moans into the air. I sigh blissfully at the unusual feeling of refreshing chilliness in my groin. For some reason, it makes my cock even more eager than before, and me extremely curious what it would be like to dip it right in the very source of the mysterious liquid. Finished with her high, Elyari’s body starts sliding down the wall so I support her over my own and set us in a lotus position, with her back still against the wood. We stare each other in the eyes as she calms down her breathing. She gives my rock-hard member a single glance and then nods at me. A woman of few words, huh. Very well. I press Elyari into the wall, moving to my knees, and begin peppering her neck with kisses as I aim myself at her pretty slit. “Wait!” she suddenly speaks and I stop, complying with the request. Showing an unusual, a bit ashamed smile, Elyari blushes faintly. “Let’s not make haste if we can,” she suggests. “Oh.” I instantly catch on. “I apologise. After that amazing blowjob, I assumed you had lots of experience.” She chuckles softly with a gentle smile. “When you live as long as I do, you pick up quite a few skills in your free time.” I chuckle back. “Will others be fine when they learn that you took a Human as your first?” “They don’t need to know. Besides, no one dares to covet an Elder. Only other Elder would, and that’s already rare in small settlements like this.” “I see.” I nod. “It must have been lonely.” Elyari shows a warm smile. “You are a very sweet Human, do you know?” “I do have a small hint of an idea.” I slowly lean closer while observing the Elder’s response and gently push my lips against Elyari’s. Just like down there, the upper ones give off a delightful and refreshing taste reminding me of the chilly grass sprinkled with the tiny droplets of fragrant water of the morning dew. As we sensually pursue each other’s tongues, I place my hands on Elyari’s juicy bottom and raise it a little, just enough to bring her over my member, standing at full attention. Carefully, I gradually lower her onto myself and my tip unhurriedly splits the respected Elder’s humid insides for the very first time. Elyari sighs joyfully into my lips as I push deeper and deeper until she lets out a yelp of surprise when I bottom out. “I didn’t feel anything?” I chuckle. “Looks like Ghilerie forgot a detail or two.” She glances at me questioningly and I lift her up again just to lower her pussy onto my cock once more, a bit faster this time, evoking another gasp from the dazzling, emerald-haired beauty. “My saliva has pain-numbing effects,” I admit, starting to drill through her perfect folds, already splashing my cock with the fragrant nectar. “Ohhhh~ So mysterious! Ohhhhh~ Ohhhhh~” Elyari places her hands on my shoulders for additional support and changes her position into a crouch. With that, she offers me some effort from her side while I only lightly lift her butt now. Her fragrant lily slams onto my cock from above and I can observe her titanic breasts bouncing in front of my face. Loud, wet noises fill the charming abode as our waists slam against each other, accompanied by the loving slap of flesh against flesh. Elyari doesn’t hide her moans and lets me listen to her noble voice as my member repeatedly invades her sweet pussy. I can tell she will be reaching an orgasm pretty much as quickly as earlier from how her body shivers now and then after my cock strokes her hot internal walls on the way inside. She keeps her emerald eyes on me, trying to judge my reactions. So, to give her a much better time, I thrust a bit stronger, causing her to raise her voice by an octave, and bump Elyari’s body slightly into the air. Before she descends again, I press her into the wall, spreading her legs to the side. Without a break, I keep hammering her pink flower relentlessly. She notices my intentions and takes her hands away, raising them up above her, where a closed window is located. She grabs onto the wooden frame and keeps herself above the ground, dangling from it with all of herself fully open to me. “Ohhhh~ Ohhhh~ Ohhhh, my~” I slide my hands almost to her shins and pin them to the wall on the side. Her extended butt now bounces back between my navel and the wood behind her. Loud thudding accompanies our intense lovemaking and little spurts of fragrant nectar splash over our nether regions. Elyari pants roughly as I hammer my cock into her, staring at her from up close. She smiles at me sweetly for a brief moment, igniting something else in me. The need to bring her even higher. I call onto Void Chains in the form of leather straps, surprising her a little, and bind her ankles to the wall, freeing my hands. I place them on her thick thighs instead and pull her more into me as I thrust myself inside. And, when I bend myself forward a little to catch her voluptuous tit in my mouth, Elyari screams louder again. I give her pretty nipple some loving kisses and sucks to add a little bit to her pleasant time, enjoying myself greatly too. “Oooohhhhh~! Oooohhh~! I’m almost there~!” Her head tilts to the back as she screams into the ceiling. I increase my pace a little, starting to worry if the wall is durable enough to endure this violent pounding. Elyari surely is. Hopefully, no one is resting their backs on it either. She then releases a loud moan as her tight passage constricts on my member and I lightly bite on her nipple. We both come together in an intense orgasm. I buckle my hips one last time, burying myself balls deep in the dazzling elven beauty. Shortly after I spend my load, my cock gets pushed outside by her convulsions and a faint trickle of the refreshing nectar splashes over my chest. A steady stream of white soon follows it as Elyari remains pinned to the wall by my chains, looking at me with a slightly distant gaze. A pair of perfect breasts press into my back and Ghilerie’s smiling face soon appears over my shoulder. “I would have never thought I would get to see the Elder in such a shameful position,” she says with a teasing tone. Elyari’s eyes regain some clarity and she looks over herself. She’s completely messed up. Sweaty all over, stained with her own fragrant liquids, and with a constant waterfall of white dripping onto the floor from her slightly spread pussy upheld in the air. Not even mentioning the chains. She gives me a glance and I smile gently, recalling the restraints and helping her down. “Thank you.” “Don’t mention it.” I bring some water from my ring and we take a few swigs from the waterskin. We stand up and I guess it’s time to clean up a little. But, Ghilerie then drags Elyari aside and they start whispering about something. Out of respect and decency, I avoid eavesdropping on them with my sharpened senses. They glance a few times at me in the process, causing me to raise a brow at them. I’m starting to get a feeling that it’s not exactly the end yet. Not like I mind, though. Banging the refreshing pussy of the mature Elf made me quite energised. After a moment, the duo nods at each other and Ghilerie waves at me with a smile. I walk to join them but they move to the bed so I follow after them. The younger Elf then crawls onto the mattress on her knees and sticks her butt out. I assume they are going to set up a buffet to choose from but miss the mark again, to some extent. The mature lady climbs onto the junior and lies down on her belly on top of Ghilerie. She also sticks her butt out and they both spread their cheeks to me, creating a small tower of bodies. “Teffith said it works better with more women but I hope the two of us are enough,” Ghilerie says as they glance back at me expectantly. “And… While we are at it… Why don’t you… use everything we have to offer?” I glance curiously at Ghilerie’s clearly embarrassed face. “What’s with the sudden invitation?” She blushes even harder. “I was just… curious… We are both cleaned up with magic, so…” I chuckle while shaking my head and take a peek at Elyari to make sure she’s on board. With a soft smile, she nods at me. “Alright. But not without preparation.” Coming closer, I give Ghilerie’s butt a playful slap, evoking a faint yelp from the pretty Elf. Then, I bring our prized product just for such situations out of my ring and spread some of the slimy substance over my fingers. Elyari watches me curiously while Ghilerie follows my hand expectantly, clearly knowing about the process. She must have learned much more during her short stay in the mansion than I have assumed. I wonder which one of the girls corrupted the pure Wood Elf. Now, even their Elder has fallen. Soon, the whole village will follow. Since she is the one who brought the idea, I decide to start with my dear companion. Ghilerie squeals a little again as I nudge her tightly shut entrance. Or exit, however one prefers to call it. I chuckle a bit. “You know it’s better to relax, right?” She nods timidly and does her best to follow that advice. After a moment, I gently slide a single digit up her butt. “Oh! Oooooooohhhhhh…” Ghilerie shudders as my finger pushes forward. She then trembles again and goes completely silent as I yank it out. The Elder watches curiously how I clearly do something to the younger Elf which evokes quite unusual reactions from her friend but can’t exactly get it from her position. So, I use the other hand to invade the tightly sealed anus on the upper level too. “Ooooooh deaaar Mooother…” Elyari sighs in shivers too as I penetrate her with a finger. “What is thissssss…” “Anal, ohhhhhhhh…” the more knowledgeable Elf answers. “It feels so… weird… Ooooohhhh… And incorrect… Oh… But also… funny…” I keep smiling to myself while observing the first-time response to anal from the duo of differently aged elven ladies. They keep shuddering and sighing from my fingers. I can see their love juices dripping from their leaking snatches, quivering with delight. “Let’s get started with the real thing, then.” While still teasing Elyari’s anus with a finger, I spread some of the lube over my member and press it over Ghilerie’s back entrance. She looks back at me while biting on her lower lip. I smile at her and begin slipping inside. “Oh. Oh. Oh, oh, oh, oh!” She starts shuddering as I begin spreading her ring. “You are so big! So much bigger than in my pussy!” Then, my tip slips inside, getting tightly choked by Ghilerie’s virgin anus. “OH. OH ELDER IT’S SO BIG. OHHHHHHHH!” Ghilerie suddenly lifts one of her hands from the bed and grabs Elyari’s forearm, squeezing it strongly. That causes her to lose balance and fall forward onto her chest, tilting the pile of pussies and anuses a bit, effectively, pulling me more into her ass. Elyari’s eyes widen as she stares at me and I can only smile wryly, making slow movements to gradually reach deeper and deeper into Ghilerie’s butt. Constantly moaning and shuddering, the younger Elf fixes her posture and soon starts properly taking it in the ass. “Ohhhhh… This is so different… Ohhhh… Wait… I think I’m already… Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh!” Suddenly, she quivers quite strongly and her anus squeezes my cock like mad. A small squirt hits the sheets under Ghilerie’s waist as she orgasms shakingly. Even so, I keep moving, raising the tempo a little. “Wait! Ohhhhh! Mmmnnnn! I just came! Please! Ohhhhh! I already…” I finally slap my waist against her bouncy butt and she climaxes again, with another spurt of liquid shooting from between her pink folds. It seems to be affecting the Elder as Elyari starts gently chewing on her lower lip while looking at my pelvis move. Giving Ghilerie some tender thrusts until she orgasms for the third time, I then plop out of her ass with a loud pop and position myself in front of the mature lady’s anus as the younger one rests from the constant highs. With a small smirk, I push forward. “OH SWEET MOTHER OF ALL THAT'S GREEN IT’S HUGE!” I instantly chuckle at her reaction. Elyari then proceeds to curse quite a bit for the first time since we started. It’s the good cursing, though. I can easily tell by her facial expression and bodily reactions. Are all Wood Elves into getting their ass drilled? “OH MY~ OH MY~ THIS IS UNPRECEDENTED~ I’M COMING JUST FROM—OHHHHHHHH~!” Before she gets to finish her sentence, and around half of my length deep in her backdoor, Elyari arrives at her first orgasm. A much more violent jet of love nectar squirts out of her again sealed folds and hits Ghilerie’s butt, splashing off it everywhere around. Additionally, her muscles tense so much that they lift her body up for a few seconds and then drop it back onto Ghilerie’s back with a mighty, wet slap. Damn, they are really sensitive in the ass. I stop for a brief moment. “You good?” Elyari flings her head to the side to push away her dishevelled, emerald hair and locks her eyes with mine. “Please… More of this…” Seems I was worried for nothing. Theory confirmed. Wood Elves are anal sluts. So, complying with the polite request, I start moving again, this time a bit more violently, and Elyari explodes into loud moaning instantly. “OHHHHH! OHHHHHHH! YESSSS! OHHHHHHH! SO MUCH BETTER! OHHHH! DEEPER! MGHNNNNNNN!” She drops all the noble pretence and succumbs to the pure pleasure of butt play, arriving at another peak after just seven more thrusts. “KEEP THRUSTING! DON’T STOP!” she cries out as she orgasms. I have to hold her ass from flying up to do that and keep banging the mature Elf even as she squirts intensely at the younger one below. Elyari keeps moaning and grunting like an animal as I continuously slide in and out of her butt. The fragrant streams coming from her slit rarely stop for a few short seconds as she jumps from one orgasm to another. She’s clearly having lots of fun but there’s another girl wanting on it too. Ghilerie is looking at me with puppy eyes as my fingers clearly aren’t enough. So, I deprive the mature Elf of her dose of cock for a moment and shove it back into the younger one. “YESSS! PLEASE, DO ME THE SAME, AL!” Ghilerie shouts at me with a wide smile. For the next ten minutes, I keep hammering their tight insides in turns, switching from the bottom to the top girl each time they arrive at orgasm. Easy to imagine, it turns into a constant, non-stop flood of love juices squirting out of their quivering pussies. After that time, they become slightly unresponsive, shaking like featherless chicks in the middle of winter. I decide to stop there, already finishing a few times in their butts in the meanwhile. I don’t think they even noticed amongst all that pleasure. The cleaning duty falls onto me, of course. Afterwards, I plop the unconscious girls on the bed and lie down between them. Before I close my eyes, I catch a glint in the darkness of the ceiling, making me shiver. But then, I chuckle lightly, recognizing more than just one glint. I will never be alone again, won’t I?
Chapter 113 – An Unexpected Development Spoiler: Chapter When I wake up, it already looks to be morning. I’m not even sure at which point I dozed off while admiring the Elf beauties sprawled around me on the bed after we finished. Besides sunlight sneaking into the house through small cracks in the shutters, some noise outside can also be heard. It seems that the party is still on. The Elves must have celebrated the whole night and made it pretty much to breakfast. I feel kind of sad that I snuck out to bang their leader and never returned to join everyone at the epic banquet hosted in our name, but I couldn’t have known where I was being led. Something stirs next to me and I glance that way. Ghilerie is already awake, lying on her side, and smiles at me softly as she stares at my face. Her hand moves to my chest and trails over my skin gently. I take in the sight of her magnificent, naked body for a brief moment before throwing my arm around her waist and pulling the charming Tracker into myself, stealing her lips in the process. Ghilerie chuckles quietly as we enter a tame kiss. Her decently sized breasts press into me pleasantly. “Did you enjoy yourself last night?” she asks with a faint blush after we separate. “That should be my question.” I smirk at her. Some more rosiness surfaces on Ghilerie’s cheeks and she hides her face from me by resting her forehead against my chest. I chuckle and brush through her golden hair, leaning over to reach her long ear. “I loved every second of it. And, I hope you did too.” She draws her head back and looks straight at me with a smile. “I didn’t think it would feel so good… in there. But, it was amazing. Thank you for taking care of us afterwards.” “It’s nothing. I’m glad then. I hope Elyari enjoyed it too. I remember going a little hard on her near the end.” “Oh, I certainly did.” Another pair of breasts, much bigger this time, press into my back and the Elder shows up hugging me from behind. “You have forced my eyes open for ways of pleasure I would have never thought of.” Ghilerie giggles softly. “Your eyes weren't the only thing he forced open back then.” Elyari squints at the younger Elf but then smiles charmingly. “True. I still feel a little loose in there. In a good way.” I shake my head. “Are we really talking about this?” “Why not?” Elyari raises a brow at me. “I don’t know. It’s a little bizarre listening to a respected Elder of the Wood Elves casually chatting about how she got her ass destroyed last night so much she can still feel it.” She lets out a very noble chuckle and presses herself more into me from behind. “There’s no one else here besides us…” “And my spider friend.” “And your spider—what?” Elyari blinks a few times and glances at me confusedly. I point at the ceiling without breaking eye contact with her and the women soon look up. The Elder gasps while Ghilerie squeals adorably after they both notice Hecate nestled comfortably in the upper corner of the cosy house. She’s still awake and observing us attentively. “I didn’t feel her…” the older Elf admits. I chuckle. “I’m certain no one can. She’s been here since the beginning, most likely. She’s very clingy.” Elyari stares at my Arachne companion for a bit longer and moves her gaze back down, clearing her throat. “Anyway, as I was saying, there’s no one else here besides us, and we are just talking about natural things like physical pleasure. I see nothing inappropriate for an Elder here. Now, if we spoke about such things in the middle of a crowd…” “I would get instantly chased away or worse.” I laugh, imagining an angry, envious mob of male Elves chasing me after learning that I tainted their Elder. “Possibly.” Elyari chuckles again and her hand snakes down my navel, almost reaching my member. “You and Ghilerie showed me an incredible thing. It’s a little sad that I have just learned about it and have to say farewell to it already.” “I think you are forgetting what kind of place I run.” With a wave of my hand, I summon a row of stylized toys between me and Ghileire, causing the younger Elf to flush red at the sight of a plethora of dildos of various sizes and shapes right in front of her face. “Oh.” The Elder brushes her fingers over a common, male-themed one as her eyes jump from one toy to another. “I can always leave you something more automated if you would prefer to be fully on the receiving end without much effort on your side. Or also…” With another wave, a bunch of strapons and empty harnesses without a fake cock yet slotted into them drop onto the mattress. There’s not enough space to bring out a full machine but that can be arranged later. Elyari brings one of the strapons up into the air and stares at it with a raised eyebrow. “Fascinating. What about the weird substance you used? It’s necessary, isn’t it?” “I’ll obviously leave you a decent stock behind.” “I was supposed to be repaying you yet I’m the one receiving gifts now. This doesn’t feel exactly right.” Elyari smiles at me. I shrug. “You gave me a lot already. I now have access to your skills, you give me some stats, we can communicate mentally in case I would need something, and I can even swap places with you. A few toys are nothing compared to that. Oh, and you mentioned women willing to go with us.” She nods. “Yes, that I did. We should meet them after getting cleaned up properly and having something to eat.” “Alright. Let’s not waste any more time. Do we have a bathroom here?” Elyari nods and points at an empty door frame on the far side of the hut. I move over Ghilerie, jump off the bed, and scoop the elven beauty into my arms as she gasps in surprise. The Elder smiles at me and then proceeds to lead us to the bathroom as I princess carry Ghilerie behind her. We enter a charming cabin with everything still made of wood or trees, literally, and jump under a shower. Not sure how this one operates but Elyari makes it rain fresh and pleasant water. It feels like all the sweat and the other waste are perfectly cleansed from our bodies as we stand under the magically refreshing stream. The two women quickly begin taking care of me even before I can suggest lending them a hand with their hair or such and I end up getting grazed all over with their hands as they rub and scrub me gently while smiling alluringly at me. It doesn’t take long before their hands arrive at a certain spot and they give it way more attention than necessary. Before I realise, Ghilerie is already down on her knees and sucking me off while I chase after Elyari’s lips and massage her impressive chest, pretty much absorbing my fingers into the fluffy comfort. We wrap things up pretty quickly, fortunately, and I help the beautiful Elves with their hair before we get out to dry ourselves up. Afterwards, I drop a few piston and gear devices onto the ground in the bedroom and let Elyari choose a bunch of things she would like to receive from me as a parting gift. Then, with all of that out of the way, I call Hecate to me to shower her in some pats and thanks for watching over me, even if a little creepily. I know she means well and it will take a bit of time before she stops taking her role as the Queen’s guard so seriously. If it will ever change, honestly. The four of us leave the charming hut and head down the wooden bridges. We join a group of Elves chatting happily around the remains of the bonfires and a few nice girls bring us something to snack on from yesterday's leftovers. I can easily spot a bunch of drunk, asleep people sprawled around the village, over the benches, fences, and even window frames. It makes me chuckle. They really partied hard after I was led away. “Sensei.” Shino materialises out of my shadow while we are eating and I smile at her warmly. “Good morning. How are you guys doing?” She trots closer to me and I move a bit to make some space on the bench I’m sitting on. Shino plops down next to me and rests her shoulder against mine. So adorable. “I’m okay, Sensei. Kamil-san and Marcia-san, not so good. They might require some Healing Magic or your Rejuvenate before we depart. They drank a lot. They even pulled Paul-san in.” I chuckle, patting her head. “That must have been a great sight. Too bad I missed it. Also, sorry about suddenly disappearing.” She blushes a little. “Don’t be. I know you had… something important to attend to…” A little surprised, I raise a curious brow at her, making my cute samurai even redder. Then, I glance at Ghilerie and she escapes my eyes with flushed cheeks too. Looks like she had consulted with more people than just Teffith about last night. That little pervert. Natalie soon walks into the area with her own plate of food and sits not that far from us. They must have been walking around together with Shino but the latter jumped right to my side after sensing me around. We talk a little while eating. Some Elves that pass by as they begin to clean up the stuff after the big banquet still stop to show their gratitude for our help with the Abyssals and the reconstruction of their village. It does feel nice. After getting our fill, we follow Elyari. Teffith stumbles onto us as we stroll through the village and joins our procession. She and Ghilerie connect gazes for a brief moment and the Dragonewt smirks while the slightly embarrassed Elf looks away. She knows well what went down a few hours ago. The Elder leads us to a bigger treehouse and introduces seven women to me. They are all very charming and beautiful Wood Elves of various hair colours and styles, heights, and obviously figures. They all smile at me sweetly even though they surely are the ones that suffered the most from the Abyssal attack. I take some time to talk with each of them alone, both just to chat a little to learn more about them and to make sure that they fully understand what’s going on and that there are no misunderstandings or misconceptions anywhere along the way. But, it seems that Elyari and Ghilerie properly mentioned all the crucial things and my short conversation with the women doesn’t change anything regarding their decision to follow me back to my place. A few of them even show signs of great curiosity and interest after I give them some more details about our base of operations. Out of these seven, four are already openly admitting that they are fine joining the services department from the get-go so it looks like our catalogue will grow quite a bit with the addition of these almost eternally stunning ladies. The other two aren’t yet completely sure about it and that’s obviously fine. I promise them they won’t have to join that department if they don’t wish to and that we are always in need of maids or people to accompany the recently more common social gatherings. And, the third one is the person Elyari said was interested in fabrics. From my brief chat with the bronze-haired woman named Nyfile, she isn’t a professional tailor or anything like that but she has picked up some experience over the years from others and her own self-study. Nevertheless, she will surely be a great help, even if she won’t become the core of our cosplay production department. It’s always good to have someone proficient in sewing and such on hand. And, from how she dresses, I can already tell that she has a more than decent fashion sense and creative personality. So, these seven charming ladies decide to accompany us back to Evaneheim. The Elder takes it on herself to deal with any possible formalities or people questioning their leave and urges the women to start preparing for the trip. Before she tells them to pack light, I assure them that I will easily be able to store anything they might want to take with them. They already accept my Partners connection for easier communication and we leave the building for now. It would be good to deal with the leftover Rift before we somehow forget, even though it’s been on my mind all the time. But, you never know. What if Elyari or someone else decides to distract me again before we leave? But, it will be good to gather everyone for that. And almost half of our group is suffering from hangovers from what I’ve been told. Therefore, I ask the Elves to take us to them so we can ease their suffering. And, surely, we find Kamil, Marcia, and even Paul, almost dying on the comfy, elven beds in one house. What the hell did they drink to get wasted so much? Actually, maybe I don’t want to know. It was definitely some special elven alcohol they brought out to celebrate. I take care of the guys with my Rejuvenate while Natalie uses her Healing Magic on Marcia and we gradually bring the drunk trio back to an operable state. Kamil curses and swears something about never doing it again and Marcia just keeps giggling while poking fun at him. Paul remains silent, clearly a tad embarrassed about the state he got himself into. With everyone ready, we depart towards the cavern hiding the Rift. Besides our current team, Elyari joins us temporarily just to take a peek at it and generally accompany us on this errand. She’s back to her respectful robes and noble aura of a mature lady. My eyes still keep jumping to her massive rack hidden under the material, unable to get their nude image out of my mind. She knows and sneaks a soft smile at me now and then. We arrive at the grotto without an issue. The guards that have been placed in front of the entrance don’t report anything suspicious as we confront them. It doesn’t look like the gatekeeper lied about the time it will take for the reinforcements to come. To not tempt fate, just in case, we quickly move underground and find the swirling surface. As we have initially planned, we leave its destruction to Shino. The last time, we were interrupted, but this time, I properly bring the short samurai into my arms and make sure she receives all the energy she needs through a passionate kiss. Even if she doesn’t need it even a little bit. Shino then trots away with rosy cheeks and we watch her transform into one of the demonised forms, the black one, and she summons a giant katana blade out of a tear in the realm, stabbing it into the Rift. Loud cracking follows and the portal explodes into dark particles before disappearing completely. We wait in suspense for a few minutes just to be sure that nothing went wrong and then relax. Elyari thanks us for closing the Rift and I pamper my powerful samurai girlfriend lots and lots to reward her. After returning to the settlement, we get together and sit down by a big, round table. I bring out the maps and we take a look at them. “So, what are we doing? Crossing the desert again? With a bit more luck this time? Or going around,” I ask. “Not that we are in a hurry anywhere, but going around would take us a bit,” Paul says while rubbing his chin. “We shouldn’t forget that our group will be bigger now, with seven additional people,” Natalie adds. “We might be forced to go around for safety reasons, then. It will be harder to protect all of them in the desert,” Marcia shares her opinion. “We could travel under the surface like last time, no?” Shino glances up at me. “It should be a bit safer than going through the sands and easier to camp for the night.” I ponder for a moment and look up. A certain spidergirl gets my intentions clearly and descends from the ceiling on her thin thread, turning herself from upside down to a correct position and stepping onto the ground in front of me. With a smile, I brush through her hair as she snuggles into my lap. “Do you think you could lead us through the tunnels just below the ground?” I ask my loyal guardian. Hecate nods almost instantly. “From one side to the other?” Again, she confirms with no hesitation. I keep playing with her hair, now in a bit better shape, and look at the others. “I think we should be fine with our pale-skinned guide. And I agree with Shino. It will be a bit easier to defend with just two directions to split our attention to, most of the time. Unless we run into Sandworms. But, we should be able to notice their movements early through tremors and structural damage.” Everyone looks at each other and we decide to go with that in the end. I would like to return through the shortest route if possible. Even though I know my girls are doing fine, it just feels weird for me to leave them for so long. I should be there to look over them and help them out however I can as the boss of Utopia. So, with our maps now updated with the information from the nearby villages and Ghilerie’s settlement, we chart a new route, keeping in mind that we will be travelling with a group of Wood Elves. We’ll bring unnecessary Human contact to a minimum just in case. Then, we wrap the meeting up and start preparing to depart. No need to delay it unnecessarily. We did what we had to, gave the Elves a hand with a few other things, and received our rewards. It was fun to stay here for a few days but we aren’t settling down with the handsome forest people. Everyone meets up in the middle of the main square. Or is it the main circle if it’s round? We need more shapes for these. Anyway, I pick up all the luggage from the seven Elves and we slowly get ourselves ready, talking a little about the journey with them. Some other villagers surround us, with the Elder at their front. Ghilerie stands by Elyari’s side with a slightly anxious expression, looking away when I glance at her. With a small chuckle, I split from the party for a moment and walk up to the two beauties. Elyari nods at me with a ladylike smile while Ghilerie keeps awkwardly looking to the side. I stand in front of them and wait. The blond-haired girl finally meets my gaze and shows an uncertain smile. “Alastair… I… Back when we first entered the settlement… I know that I said that I would go with you… But… Many hunters lost their lives during the raid and it’s just two more besides me now… So—” I place a hand on Ghilerie’s soft cheek and lean in to tenderly peck her lips. Surprised a little at first, she smiles warmly and lets me pepper her with a few small kisses. Drawing myself back, I brush through her golden hair. “There’s no need to explain yourself this deeply. You thought your home and your family were gone. This has changed. It’s only natural for you to stay with them just like you initially intended to. So, don’t feel awkward about it. You should feel proud instead. Proud that you resisted my seduction and still were able to choose your people.” I smirk at her. Ghilerie chuckles adorably at my little joke and places a kiss on my lips. “I’ll definitely miss you. It was a fun journey. From the very beginning, out in the streets.” I wrap my arms around her waist. “Should I leave you something special then or are you going to share with Elyari?” A stronger blush shows up on her cheeks and she drops her gaze to the ground. “I… I already received something… from Shino…” I raise my brows at the blushing Elf and quickly realise what she might be talking about. A single glance at the samurai shortie confirms my suspicions as her face turns beet red the moment I look her way. Shino slowly walks up to us. “It’s my dick, isn’t it?” I ask her openly. The shy samurai nods while fiddling with her hands. I chuckle and run my fingers through her marvellous black hair. “How many replicas of my cock do you carry on yourself?” “Well… Ummm… Usually… it’s three… The spare, which I gave to Ghilerie-san… and two main copies… One for the front… and one for the back…” “Oh? You double-penned yourself with those?” I ask in a bit of a surprise. Shino immediately turns into a tomato at her little secret getting out. I chuckle again and lean down, arriving at her crimson ear. “Let’s replace one with the real thing next time you get in the mood for some double action,” I whisper to it sensually. A shiver runs through her whole body and I can literally feel the heat coming off her with how embarrassed she has gotten. And, perhaps a little turned on, judging by the faint emotions flowing into me through our connection. Leaving the steaming girl to cool off, I raise myself to look at Ghilerie again. She’s possibly even redder than before due to her overhearing our brief conversation with Shino. “Call me to chat whenever. Not just when you want to report how you girls are doing or such,” I say to her. “I will. Thank you for everything again, Alastair.” She nods politely. “I thank you too for the goodwill all of you have shown towards our community,” Elyari joins in. “And a very valuable lesson.” A bit of a playful smile pierces her professional mask for a second. “Always happy to be of help.” I make an overdramatic bow and the women chuckle softly. Then, we share a few farewell pecks and the two of them escort us to the edge of the newly repaired wards. The atmosphere was starting to get a little tense amongst the male half of the population due to how close I seemed to hold myself around their Elder. With the last goodbyes, we promise to be in touch and move out. Paul assumes the leadership of our big group and we travel on foot. As we slowly cover the distance, I finally take a peek at Elyari’s Bond Level and her status. She is registered at level two out of five, pretty much as I expected. The relationship revolves around Appreciative Friendship. I’m fairly sure it jumped from the first to the second level after our little discovery about her and Ghilerie’s unusual likes and our exploration of them. As for her status, Elyari is a Forest Witch at Tier 5. She didn’t feel that powerful when we spent time around each other so I assume she’s more of a knowledgeable type with her Class getting this far mostly due to her longevity. She’s supposedly over four hundred years old. And just only discovered the wonders of anal. Perfect time for new experiences. Her skillset revolves around Nature Magic more or less. I’ll study it closely as we walk just in case there’s something that could prove useful at some point in the future. It’s unwise to underestimate any ability. You never know when it can save your life. In around a week, we reach the mountain range separating the Barren Valley from the lush forests. It doesn’t take us long to find the same grotto through which we surfaced previously and we descend under the ground with its help, assuming a slightly different formation, fine-tuned to the number of VIPs amongst us. Just as promised, Hecate skillfully navigates through the caverns and passages, often scouting ahead with Shino by her side. They are the stealthiest members of our party, allowing them to eliminate most threats before they are even noticed. This environment is also Hecate’s home, pretty much. With the hard work of the sneaky duo, we move through the underground tunnels with relative ease. The Elves were a bit scared at first but they quickly realised how strong we are and that we can definitely keep them safe. Just the uncomfortable, characteristic darkness remains as the anxiety-inducing element of this small delve beneath the surface. Still, it’s much safer here than there. In a week more, we reach the border without any major incidents happening. Fights were unavoidable and it’s good they occurred since it meant more experience for the Heroes. But, everything was dealt with quickly. The effects of our trip could be clearly seen in how they handled themselves. After escaping the unending darkness, we take a full day of a break to get accustomed to the light again and to get rid of some stress accumulated over the last week spent underground. We relax together by a river and spend some casual time doing various activities. Including some more tiring ones on my side, of course. Then, we resume our journey back home. Two days later, we stumble on a merchant caravan. It seems that luck is with us after the few good deeds that we have done and they are actually nice people who aren’t straight-up hostile towards other races. With some negotiation from my side, and a bunch of discounts and free night vouchers, I manage to secure a ride for all of us since they are heading to the capital anyway. We spread ourselves over the waggons and join the merry group of merchants on their way to do business. I’m fairly sure the fact that they do know of Utopia and that I am the owner played a big role in them agreeing to give us a lift. It’s a hot topic for about four days before the chatting related to my place dies down and gets replaced with other discussions about random stuff in random places around the kingdoms. The merchants are kind enough to avoid stopping by any villages on our way to Evaneheim due to our Elf friends and we arrive at the capital in nine days of travel. We jump off the waggons shortly before we reach the gates, just in case there would be some trouble entering. Better safe than sorry. No need to complicate things for our benefactors. I let Cornelia and Elea know that we are about to enter the city and she actually tells me to wait after getting in. She avoids giving me any details and mysteriously says that I will see for myself soon. Very curious about her secret plan, I relay the request to the others and we move past the gates without a problem. Well, the sentries did stop us but that’s because they recognized me and wanted to say hello. Seriously, my heart rate spiked for a brief moment. I got baited so hard into thinking that something was wrong. Anyway, we wait past the gates just like Cornelia wished, looking around for signs of anything happening. Then, ten minutes later, four, black, fancy carriages enter our sight, driving in a single line. I immediately spot a golden logo on the back section as they stop in front of us. A heart with two small Succubi horns and a pointy tail. Holy fuck these are ours. Everyone else is as stupefied as I am as we look at each other in pure confusion. Most gazes get directed at me and I shrug heavily because what the fuck else am I supposed to do? The drivers step down and open the doors for us, making a courteous bow and gesturing with their hands towards the inside. So, we split as equally as we can and hop in. I hope four of these are enough to carry the fifteen of us. But, they surely are enough. The inside can easily fit three people per side, maybe even four if they are skinny, so it’s around six per carriage. And, the inside is incredible. The extremely comfortable cushions are made of dark purple material, which also was used for the thick curtains covering the windows. There’s even a simple, flat, crystal lamp on the ceiling. For now, we remove the curtains and enjoy the ride in these spacious carriages while wondering what the fuck is going on. I don’t remember ordering these or anyone mentioning anything regarding such a thing before our departure. I can literally feel the smug smile on Cornelia’s face right now. The carriages take us straight to the mansion and we jump off at the little roundabout with the marble statue in the front yard. Cornelia and Elea stand together in front of the entrance with proud smiles, watching us step out of the fancy transport. The drivers then take their leave, returning somewhere. A bunch of girls in maid uniforms come out of the mansion and approach everyone, inviting them inside for some refreshments after the trip. Everyone glances at me and I nod. We’ll have to follow whatever these two have set up for us for now. They have clearly put some work into it. With the others being led by the beautiful women of various races, it’s just me, Teffith, Hecate, and Shino left behind. We step closer to Cornelia and Elea. I cross my arms over my chest and raise a brow at my charming magician. “So. Care to explain what the hell did we just go through?” Cornelia mirrors my actions. “Is that how you greet your hardworking wife after weeks of separation?” I catch her wrist in a flash and pull her towards myself, evoking a yelp of surprise from the hazelnut-haired mature beauty. After her body crashes into mine, I initiate a deep kiss, going hard after Cornelia’s tongue. She moans a little into my mouth as I ferociously pursue her lips. Backing away, I grin at her slightly flushed expression. “I planned to greet my hardworking wife properly later in the bedroom, but if she is so eager, we can exchange our greetings right here, right now.” More crimson surfaces on Cornelia’s light cheeks and she chuckles softly. “I missed your teasing so much.” She pecks my lips. “And I missed you so much.” I peck her back. She then lets me go and I share a brief kiss with the silent Elea. Perhaps silent, but as happy to see me again as the other woman, sneaking a little squeeze at my crotch when nobody's looking. “Well then. Will I learn about these carriages or are you planning on leaving that for later?” I ask. “It’s just a small side project we came up with during your absence,” Cornelia admits. “Ria did an amazing job with our finances. Everything is so clear now. We could spot a steady flow of profits and decided to expand a little.” “We brainstormed some ideas and the carriages popped up during one of the sessions,” Elea continues. “It quickly became a hot topic and everyone was on board with developing the idea.” “I see.” I nod at them. “What’s the main purpose, then?” “We now offer an additional service. Seven carriages in total wait for the guests in the front yard during the open night. They can order or reserve one to be brought back home after their time in our establishment.” “Oh. It’s like Taxi service,” Shino comments with faint excitement. Elea chuckles. “In the core part, yes. But, that’s not all.” “What else is there?” I raise a brow at the smiling women. “The guests can be accompanied by a girl of their choosing, who will escort them home to make the trip even more pleasant. Naturally, just sitting there with a glass of wine and chatting casually is not all that’s allowed in the completely soundproof carriages,” Elea explains. “With a similar fee as for a room, the interested guest can enjoy a very exciting and pleasant ride back home as they partake in obvious activities,” Cornelia ends the explanation with a sly smile. I remain silent for a brief moment before exploding into a laugh and dropping my hands onto her shoulders. “You, girls, are geniuses! This is fucking brilliant! Passionate sex in a moving carriage is one of the staple fantasies! Gods, I love you girls so much, hahaha!” I shower both Cornelia and Elea in kisses for a few long seconds. The Dark Elf lady smiles proudly while my slightly shy magician blushes heavily under my assault. To not embarrass them too much, I soon step back. “And? How is it going so far?” I ask, very curious about this new service. “We are considering doubling the number of available carriages even though this has been fully introduced less than two weeks ago,” Elea informs me. I whistle in awe. “Damn, they are selling like hotcakes.” Cornelia chuckles while shaking her head a little. “That’s mostly because the girls are so damn excited and thrilled for the ride that they themselves keep approaching the guests to convince them to take it. You would be surprised how many of them love to bang on the move, or just enjoy travelling back and forth in the night afterwards.” “I can imagine. Even I’m now very eager to have a go at it.” A stronger blush surfaces on Cornelia’s cheeks. “We can always reserve one next time…” I peck her forehead and smile impishly. “Anyway, great work. I totally didn’t expect this. Damn. You are doing so amazing without me. I’m soon going to be useless.” “We just got lucky once.” She fixes her rectangular glasses. “Your ideas are still the best. Anything you introduce, people love unconditionally.” “Thank you very much.” I nod my head. “As for the carriages, where do they stay?” “We have rented out a stable with a small warehouse. They are tended to at that place during the day and drive here for the night,” Elea explains. “So. Who is the silent, very pale girl with quite unique eyes behind you?” Cornelia inquiries. I glance at the person in question and nod. Six spider legs unfurl from around Hecate’s body and the women gasp in surprise. “This is Hecate. Our new friend. She’s an Arachne, a unique variant. She doesn’t talk so don’t overwhelm her too much, please. And, she’s very clingy to me. She pretty much considers me her Queen.” Then, I turn to Hecate and kneel in front of her, staring deep into her pure black eyes. “Hecate. Every person you will meet inside my home is very important and precious to me. Do not hurt them, alright? That’s an order. No one will want to harm me and even if it will look like that, we will be just playing or acting. Understood?” The silent predator stares back at me for a few seconds and then nods. I smile at her sweetly and kiss her forehead. I had to make sure with her slightly yandereish tendencies. I can’t let her mistake Nebu’s sudden dive or Garrena hitting me as hostile acts. “Alright. Enough standing at the front door. Let’s get in and greet everyone properly.” I stand up and look over the women around me. “Man, I can’t wait to finally learn the results of the bet.” Cornelia pales a little as I chuckle and we walk inside as a group. There’s so much to check on and so many people to meet. The following days, or even weeks, are going to be very busy. I can’t wait.
Chapter 114 – Through the Eyes of Another: The Princess’ Quest for the Truth Spoiler: Chapter Somewhere near Evaneheim, shortly before Alastair departed in search of the Beastkin Community. King Rossberg was kind enough to lend me one of his fastest horses after our brief conversation. I was honestly really mad at him for blatantly lying to our family about the death of my brother like that, but now that I left the capital and rode the horse for a bit, I’m beginning to see things more clearly. It might not have been long, but I spent enough time with Natalie and the others to notice how they view Alastair as a person. It’s pretty much only Kamil who often shows pure hostility towards him while the others usually stand up in his defence. The more time passes as I travel back to Ronerulle, the more I’m starting to realise that there’s a huge chance of me not knowing my brother as good as I thought I did. From the way the others spoke about Alastair, and from my brief interactions with him too, I can tell that he doesn’t seem like a bad person. He didn’t have to tell me about anything. He could have chosen to keep the lie up and just observe our movements to assure that we would never discover the truth and his connection to the whole thing. He could have taken additional measures against that considering that he’s so close with King Rossberg that the King covers him up willingly. Yet, he confronted me face to face and did his best to present the events of what supposedly is the circumstances of my brother’s death in full detail. He calmly explained the case and even thought about bringing in a witness. Yes, he did tie me up but I can’t blame him for taking some safety measures in such a risky situation. I'm pretty sure I would have done the same in his place. Almost anyone would react strongly to the revelation that the murderer of their relatives is sitting right in front of them as they chat while having some tea. It’s really hard to accept, but I might actually be the one in the wrong. I regret a little trying to attack him and acting coldly towards the King, but even now, my emotions are still not completely calmed down. Compared to back then, it is like heaven and earth, though. And, the worst part is, the longer I think about everything I knew about my brother, the more small inconsistencies pop up in my memories related to him. Things I somehow missed, signs I ignored, situations that might not have been what I thought they were. With each hour passing, my stomach tightens more and more. If Alastair really is right, how much evil have I overlooked over all these years? I want to still believe in my brother’s innocence but it gets increasingly harder to remain in that belief. Halfway home, I’m already hoping more for whoever might be locked behind that extremely secure set of doors in the castle’s dungeons to still be alive after so much time rather than for my brother to be who I thought he was. I’m pretty much convinced that there are people down there. Women, most likely. If Alastair really is right, I’ll think about my apology later. Right now, I need to figure out what to do to bring the best magicians and experts to the castle as quickly as possible. I really hope Sir Vehrien isn’t absent. He’s our best bet. But, considering how often Father sends him out, the chances are actually quite low. Nevertheless, if we gather all the mages under our rule—no, everyone present in the city willing to help us—we should be able to break through all the arrays and barriers. I should not forget about people who can protect others from offensive enchantments. It’s really going to be hard. In just a few days, I arrive in Ronerulle. The horse I borrowed is barely holding up. My conscience is hurting every second I look at it but I can’t stop now. I have to prioritise the life of people over animals even if it pains me. Thankfully, I manage to somehow make it through the streets at a full gallop without my horse falling down from exhaustion. I can easily tell it’s on the verge of collapsing, stubbornly doing its best to fulfil its role to its utmost abilities. The stable master catches his head when he sees us dart into the area he oversees. As I stop in front of the entrance to one of the well-kept barns and jump off the horse, it trembles violently and drops to its knees before fully hitting the ground, panting heavily. I crouch down by its long neck and graze it gently. “Thank you. I wouldn’t be able to make it here so fast without you. If you make it, I promise to buy you out from the King and make sure that your life is as comfortable as it can get until you peacefully die of old age.” The horse neighs at me, maybe somehow getting the meaning of my words and actions, staring into my eyes with its beautiful irises. I stand up the moment the stable master shows up by my side. He looks at me in shock and confusion but I wave my hand at the man to shut him up. “If you manage to save this horse, I will be sure to reward you handsomely. Do everything you can to help it. I’m really sorry I have brought it to this state but every second counts.” He blinks a few times and then nods in quick succession. “I swear I will do everything in my power to aid this poor animal. Please, don’t apologise, Princess. I know you wouldn’t have done this if it wasn’t something extremely important.” “Thank you. I have to go now. I’ll be back at some point.” Without looking back, I rush towards the inner section of the keep. Many people recognize me and stop to respectfully share greetings but I completely ignore them and keep running to the royal quarters. As I said, there’s no time to waste. I will apologise to everyone later. If some noble guest gets offended by my behaviour, I will deal with them personally. It’s nothing compared to what possibly awaits me in the castle’s underground. Countless servants, butlers and maids jump aside when I make my way through the narrow corridors leading to the lounge where Mother and Father often spend most of their day at. Hopefully, they aren’t busy with some official matters. But, considering that no one stops me to inform me about their request to not be interrupted is a good sign. I soon reach the decorative wooden doors and pause in front of them to catch my breath. I must look like I ran for my life, which isn’t technically wrong. I ran for someone’s life instead, if I want to be precise. Taking a deep breath and fixing my appearance as much as possible—which is quite hard to achieve with how drenched in sweat and dirty all over I am—I knock on the door a few times. A few seconds pass but nothing happens. I choose to knock again, stronger this time. Perhaps they didn’t hear me before or they are taking a nap. It’s shortly after lunchtime right now so it wouldn’t be that unexpected for Mother or Father, or both of them, to fall asleep on the sofa or something. Unfortunately, no one responds after the second try either. I notice a servant heading my way from the side and approach the woman with a quick step. “Princess.” She bows while lowering her head. “With all the respect, you look horrible. Should I call for someone to prepare a bath for you?” “Not now.” I quickly shake my head. “I need to speak with Father and Mother as soon as possible. Are they not in the lounge?” “They should be. We delivered a bottle of wine to them about an hour ago. I didn’t hear anything about either of them leaving or calling a servant to ask for something else,” she explains. “I see. Then it’s possible they have really fallen asleep. Thank you. Please, continue with your responsibilities.” The woman bows again and walks away. I hastily approach the doors and slam my fists into the wood with a lot of force, making both wings jump slightly while releasing a lot of noise. I will have a lot of apologising to do after this gets resolved. “Father, Mother, it’s me, Vanessa! I really need to speak with you!” I shout to wake them up. “It’s extremely urgent! We really need to talk right now!” Nothing but silence answers me again. I groan in frustration while clenching my fists. I can’t keep this up any longer so I reach toward the knob and push it down. As expected, the doors are locked. With one quick motion, I bring my staff out of my ring and take a few steps back. “You can punish me later if you want but I’m taking the door down!” Aiming the tip at the ground, I begin condensing mana. I don’t want to risk hurting my parents with a projectile spell so this should do just fine. The floor will need repairs but that’s a price I’m willing to pay under current circumstances. The beautiful tiles with complex patterns crack and shatter, getting pulled towards my staff. A makeshift great hammer forms up in a flash. I couldn’t care less about its quality or even efficiency so it looks like a bunch of rocks glued together in the general shape of a hammer. With a loud grunt, I drag it over the floor while helping myself with my control of the earth element and start to swing at the door from below. But, before I even reach half of the motion, something clearly slams into them from the other side as the whole thing silently trembles from impact. “Wait! Don’t!” Father’s panicked voice comes out slightly muffled from the inside. I groan while shifting my weight to one side in an attempt to hastily change the trajectory of the attack. The stone hammer barely misses the wooden door by a few centimetres and slams into the wall just next to it. A loud impact echoes through the hallways as I fall to the ground from having my balance completely broken. “Father! Do you have a death wish?!” I shout while getting up as fast as I can. “I almost sent you to the Goddess! Why would you do that?!” “I had to disable the silencing arrays!” he replies with a trace of anxiety in his voice. “You can’t enter right now! We look terrible! Just give us a few minutes and we’ll meet in the conference room!” “I can’t wait! People’s lives may be at stake here! And you guys surely can’t look worse than me after a small nap! I’m literally dripping with sweat and haven’t bathed in days!” A barely audible chuckle coming from my mother makes it through the door. “If only sweat was the worst thing you could be dripping with.” “Honey!” Father shouts, causing Mother to chuckle again. “Just a minute, Vanessa, please! Wait in the next room and we’ll be there in a flash!” I sigh heavily. “Fine. But make it quick. It’s really a matter of life and death.” Not sure why he is so insistent on it, I follow Father’s request and enter the next room, giving them a moment to fix themselves up. I don’t get it. It’s just me, not some guest or even a servant. I thought they were already at the age of not caring about appearances. Three minutes later, Father and Mother enter the chamber. They look a little flushed and their skin has a faint shine to it. They must have fallen asleep under a blanket or something. Considering Mother, it’s not that unusual, but it’s quite a warm season right now. Mother raises her brows after she spots me. “You look like you haven’t slept for a week. Is everything alright?” she asks with a lot of concern. “You aren’t that far off, Mother, but it’s not important right now. I need your help. We have to gather as many people who can cast offensive and protective magic. The stronger, the better. If we can find them, then masters of arrays, seals, formations and other things too. There’s no time to waste. We need all the messengers on their feet.” Father frowns a little. “What has you so worked up, dear? Did a gate open somewhere nearby for us to gather an army of magicians?” I shake my head. “No, nothing like that. The city is safe. But, we need to break through the protection cast on Brother’s workshop as soon as possible.” “Why though? Didn’t we decide to leave it be?” “There might be people inside.” Mother gasps faintly and covers her mouth with a hand while Father frowns even harder. “How do you know that?” he asks. “As much as I want not to believe it too, someone trustworthy in the eyes of my friends suggested it. I will explain everything after we set things in motion. There really is no time to waste if he is right.” “But… After so much time…” Mother makes a sad expression. I grimace a little. “I know. But, there’s still a chance. And I have to get inside anyway due to a promise I made. Please, do me a favour this one time. I swear I will compensate you for trouble in any way possible if it turns out that he is wrong.” Father and Mother look at each other for a brief moment and then back at me. “Sweetie, you don’t have to go so far. We’ll always listen to your requests. You are our precious daughter. But, I guess you aren’t used to this since you have never asked much for yourself.” Mother smiles warmly at me. “Alright. Let’s start to act and talk about this later.” Father stands up. “We will take care of everything. You go and at least rest for half a day or more. It really pains me to see you in such a state, dear. I will do everything I can but this will take time anyway. It’s too dangerous to try something with only a few people as we have already learned.” I raise myself too and make a slight bow. “Thank you very much.” Father chuckles and ruffles through my hair as he passes me, walking towards the door. He soon disappears and leaves us alone. Mother comes up to me and places a hand on my cheek. “Do as your father said. You look as if you are going to collapse at any moment. Head to your personal bath first. I’ll send your maids there immediately.” “Yes, Mother.” She smiles at me and places a gentle kiss on my forehead. “Always so respectful. You and your late brother; both putting others above yourselves. I was so lucky to receive children this kind. Although, I would love for you to think a little more about yourself. I’m afraid that I will one day lose you in a similar way to your brother, sacrificing yourself for the masses.” I try my best not to wince at her words. I know how badly Mother will take it after she learns the truth about Brother if it really is as Alastair says. We were always her precious children which she could be proud of. Her image of him has always been impeccable. But, I have to explain everything to them, from start to finish. There’s not much I can do here. I don’t want to lie to Mother and she would learn the truth herself in just a moment. I still hope a little that nothing is down there. At the same time, a small part of me hopes otherwise, just because I know how hurt Shino will be if Alastair ends up executed. She and all his women. Even if justifiable, we would make many powerful enemies. In the worst-case scenario, the heroes could completely turn on us. And their power is nothing to scoff at. We leave the room shortly after and Mother escorts me to the closest servant, worrying that I will fall over before I reach the bath. She then quickly scurries away to arrange things before I arrive there. With how much she mingles with servants, people could take her as one if they knew that side of hers. I let myself be led to my private bath after things are finally prepared and a group of three maids waits for me inside. They always help me bathe when I’m at the castle, no matter what I say. Well, I can’t exactly complain. I didn’t manage to convince them that they don’t need to do that, but I have at least succeeded in making them not wear their uniforms while they take care of me, under the pretence of them not having to change or dry their clothes afterwards since they would always get completely wet in the process. It took around a month but they grew comfortable around me enough to ditch their underwear too. So, I am taken care of by three naked, pretty girls each time I take a bath at home. They say otherwise but they just lack self-confidence because I’m a princess. Unfortunately, one of them managed to figure me out after just a few times. I guess my staring and compliments on their bodies were too obvious. I might have forgotten myself once too and brushed my fingers over her private parts by accident before quickly taking my hand away. I guess that was it. Fortunately, she wasn’t mad or uncomfortable about it. Instead, she kept it to herself and started to actively tease me while avoiding being found out by the other two. She often brushes her body against mine, angles herself clearly to give me a good view of her charms, or even sneakily touches me a little inappropriately right under their noses as she washes me. Therefore, just like always, the four of us enter the prepared pool to soak up a little and talk about things around the castle. It’s always fun to listen to their stories and how the servants are doing in general. You wouldn’t believe the things that are happening behind the scenes. ※※※ The sound of footsteps reaches my ears. With a small sigh, I open my eyes just as someone walks inside, trying to be as quiet as possible, and I immediately frown in confusion. “Oh. Seems like I woke you up. I apologise.” I turn my head and see Mother walking towards me. Sitting up, I look around. “Why am I in my bedchamber?” Mother smiles warmly at me, sitting on the edge of the bed. “You were so exhausted that you fell asleep just moments after walking into the bath.” She chuckles softly, shaking her head. “Your maids quickly tended to you and brought you to your room.” I can feel my cheeks growing warmer. That’s a first. I’ve never fallen asleep in a bath before. And in front of so many people even. “Wait.” I quickly regain my composure after remembering everything and look at Mother with concern. “How long have I been asleep?” “Around fifteen hours. You must have been really tired. I’m sure you would keep sleeping if I didn’t interrupt you.” “It’s good that you did then, Mother. Thank you.” I throw the covers aside and hastily jump off the bed, heading towards my dressing compartment. “I want to say that you should rest more but I know you won’t listen to me.” She chuckles again. “I’m sorry, Mother,” I reply, quickly putting on my bra. “Oh, don’t be. Just promise me to take it easy after things get resolved.” “I do. I promise. I just need to verify this.” I’m ready in a flash and stand in front of Mother in my usual clothes and gear. We’ll be trying to take down these formations anyway so it’s better for me to use the enchanted robes and equipment. No one should mind too. “Father is in his study at this moment,” Mother informs me, reading me like an open book. “Thank you. I’m off then.” Without a second wasted, I quickly jog towards Father’s study, passing by a lot of servants and maids going both ways. It’s early morning so they are preparing everything for breakfast. Father always drinks coffee in his study before he joins Mother to eat, or us all together when everyone is home. This time, he answers after a light knock and I walk inside the small library. “Did we manage to get anyone?” I ask right from the doorstep. “Yes, we did,” he answers with a smile. “But, not yet enough. I don’t want to risk your safety and knowing you, you would want to be amongst these people too.” “Of course. I’m quite strong myself.” I nod. “That you are,” he agrees. “Can you wait a few more hours?” I scrunch my face a little. It would be best to move as soon as possible but I obviously know that without a decent number of people we won’t be able to do anything anyway. There’s no point in risking everyone’s lives to rush things. “Alright. I will come to find you around seven in the evening, Father.” He nods, taking a sip of his coffee. “Try not to think too much about this. There’s no use worrying about things out of our reach.” I excuse myself and leave the study. A little lost about what to do, I decide to visit the stable master in the time I have before breakfast. Hopefully, the horse is okay. I’m starting to feel really bad for pushing it to its limits after all the adrenaline is gone out of my system. The kind, elderly man smiles at me the moment we see each other. I take it as a good sign and quickly approach him. Without further ado, he lets me know that the horse is doing okay, resting in one of the stalls. I don’t know what magic he used to save it, but I’m really thankful for his help. I really thought I took it too far on my way here. Just as promised, I tell him to inform me about his wish and I will see if there’s anything I could do to fulfil it. He tries to worm his way out of it, saying that it’s nothing and that he was just doing his job, but I’m not going to back off this easily. To not argue unnecessarily, putting too much pressure on him, I tell him to think about it for a bit and that I’ll visit him some time to hear him out. After checking on the horse itself, I head back to the castle and join Father and Mother for breakfast. We eat in silence for a short while but they soon begin shooting me glances and I know they are holding back from asking me to explain everything. Therefore, just like Alastair, I try to present the story from start to finish, putting my own thoughts into it while bringing their attention to the crucial elements. No matter how much effort I put into it, though, the sudden reveal comes out as a shock. In the beginning, Mother is hung up on the fact I came so close to Brother’s killer and keeps saying how dangerous that was, but she quickly switches into denial just like I did back then, disagreeing that there’s even a chance Brother would have done anything bad. It’s not like I want to believe it, but the more I think about it, the less confident I am in defending Brother. Since there are no sides in this conversation to try and convince the other one to their right, the dining hall soon falls silent. I really ruined the mood with my story but it had to be done. Right now, I think I can understand a little how Alastair must have felt when he was in my position. No. He definitely had it worse. I’m not my brother’s murderer letting his parents know that the one who killed him was me. They aren’t looking at me like the filthiest criminal, wanting to strike me down at once. It must be incomparable. To ease the atmosphere up a little, I leave early and head to my room. On my way there, I step into the servant quarters of my personal maids and meet with the three women from yesterday to apologise for falling asleep and to thank them for taking care of me without waking me up. As usual, they say that it’s nothing and I shouldn’t even bother myself with coming here specifically for them and that I should have just called for them instead. But, while that’s how the two of them behave, the third one, currently cooking a soup, dips two fingers in it while smiling at me impishly and then very seductively licks them off behind the backs of her friends. In the end, they accept my thanks and we share a quick hug each. The third maid leans a bit more into my ear and squeezes my butt without the others noticing. “Now no one will know how far I’ve gone yesterday. Not even you, Princess,” she whispers into it with a sultry tone. I clamp my thighs together as a little shiver passes through my body, quickly turning my lips to her ear too. “Careful or I might order you to show me exactly what you did that day by making you do it again but slower.” When we separate, I can spot a faint blush on her cheeks. I was really hesitant about going further than this, afraid that she might only be teasing me a bit now and then after the atmosphere between us has grown more relaxed, thinking she could feel pressured due to my position if I took another step toward her, but I’m now really considering calling her to my bedroom now. Unfortunately, it’s not the time to think about such things and I know I wouldn’t be able to enjoy it with all of the things in my mind. So, I leave them be for now for their short break while Father and Mother eat and move to my own study. I thought I would be able to pass time in the books, but I was wrong. I can’t focus at all. My thoughts keep jumping to the dungeons under the castle and my brain makes up a lot of very negative possibilities. Since I can’t stop thinking about it, I decide to do something connected to the case to ease my mind. The simplest and quickest option is meeting with the women Brother hooked up with in the past. A few of them should hopefully still be working in the same places. With that goal, I leave the castle and head to the nearest restaurant where I clearly remember one of the women agreeing to his propositions. It seems that I’m in luck because I quickly recognize someone from the barmaids and approach her when she’s free. But, when I mention Brother and ask about their time together, she immediately shakes her head and refuses to talk about it. No matter what I say, she requests me not to ask her about it, growing more uncomfortable the more I try to press her on. Since I don’t want to force her to talk, I apologise and walk out to try another location. After I visit a few of them, though, I still get nothing. Surprisingly, the pattern repeats. The moment I ask for some details about their time with Brother, they instantly back off and avoid the topic, not wanting to even mention it. During the seventh time I’m refused, by a sweet, young girl with dark ginger twin braids, I sigh heavily while rubbing my forehead. It finally gets to me and I place my hand on the wall by her face, leaning closer with a serious expression. “Listen. I understand that you don’t want to talk about it, or perhaps you were threatened to stay quiet by my brother or someone else, but I assure you that you are completely safe with me. As much as it hurts me, he is dead. Besides me, no one even knows the two of you ever met. I swear I won’t tell anyone else. I’m only asking because of my selfish curiosity. I need to know if the brother I loved was real.” We stare at each other for quite a moment. She chews on her lip the whole time, still extremely hesitant about this. I can tell that she’s scared about this going out, for whatever reason. But, after a while, she finally makes a tiny nod. “Let’s come to my room,” she suggests timidly and I withdraw my hand. After arriving there, I place a rune on one of the walls. “Nobody will hear us now.” “It’s okay,” she replies with a weak tone. “I don’t think I will need to speak.” Leaving me a little confused, she starts to undress. In an instant, I realise just why she is the only waitress in this popular restaurant wearing a full dress with long sleeves. And it's not just because she's the owner's daughter. The moment her arms are revealed, I spot countless old wounds from cuts and plenty of other marks and blemishes. I gasp a little when she exposes her back to me. It’s horrible. I’ve seen such scars. She was whipped. Hard. And it certainly wasn’t done with a toy used in the bedroom. Such deep and chaotic cuts must have clearly come from a whip with sharp, metal endings. The more clothes she takes off, the worse it gets. Finally, she stands before me in full nude, without showing a sign of embarrassment or shyness. Her face is full of anxiety, though. And I can understand why. Her whole body is scarred all around with a plethora of old wounds coming from various different sources. Burns, cuts, scratches and whatever else you can think of. It’s like a tortured convict is standing right in front of my eyes, months after intense interrogation. “I… I’m so sorry…” is all I can say. She smiles weekly, rubbing her arm. I take a step forward, reaching out with my hand, and she flinches, taking a step back. But, I catch up to her and pull her into a hug, apologising to her repeatedly. She soon slowly embraces me back and starts crying, which soon turns into heavy wailing. I can’t even begin to fathom what she must have gone through. The others must be just like her, scarred both mentally and physically. They were clearly forced to keep quiet about this. And I haven’t noticed a single thing. No. I ignored all the signs. I brushed all of them away, too blind and ignorant to even consider that they truly meant something. We have never visited the same place again after a certain day. He never mentioned any of the women from them again. He always took control of the conversation and guided it off anything connected to them. And there’s more like that. I stay with her until she gradually calms down and apologises for causing a scene in front of me. At first, I wanted to offer her anything in compensation, but I quickly realise that she definitely wants to have nothing to do with the royal family and anyone else now. It would only bring her more pain and stress. That’s not what I want her to experience so I leave soon, apologising wholeheartedly again while bowing low and handing her a small pouch with a few platinum coins inside. I feel horrible giving her money for what she has gone through but that’s the least uncomfortable option for her and I would feel even worse walking away doing nothing. For the next few hours, I visit the places I can remember and hand the women my brother mingled with a small sack too, without mentioning anything else besides how sorry I am for everything. I don’t want them to try to refuse. Afterwards, I rush back to the castle. People jump away from my way, seeing how tense my expression has become as I stomp forward at a very quick pace. It’s not even noon but I can’t wait anymore. Hope is gone. There’s only dread now. I storm into the chamber Father is currently in, surprising him greatly. “I don’t care how many people we have, we are doing it now. I. Need. To. Get. In. There. Right. This. Instant.” Seeing my mood, he only nods and uses an artefact bell to call for his butler. He quickly tells the man to bring everyone to the basement and we head there in silence. I can barely walk as slow as he does, catching myself overtaking him a lot. Not five minutes pass before we reach the entrance to Brother’s workshop. With a quick glance, I can easily tell there are over thirty people here. Father said they have been told that we are going to test the strength of some new protective enchantments and they will be rewarded greatly for help but there’s a risk of dying since the arrays won’t be limited or stopped. “Alright, everyone, let’s begin,” I say loudly and receive a bunch of affirmative grunts in response. First, a group of experts approaches the thick metal gate about four metres tall and two wide, with two massive wings. Brother said it was made like that because he was secretly crazy about entrances in such style but I don’t think I believe that excuse anymore. They try to tinker with the arrays and formations while weaving their own magic into the play. A bunch of mages focusing on protective spells accompanies them just in case. And, it’s good that they do because after just a few minutes, something activates and violent, blue fire engulfs all of them. One magician reacts too slowly and two people by his sides die alongside him as they scream while burning alive. I wince a little. We did that to them. We brought them here and caused their deaths. Even if they all agreed to this knowing that is a possibility, it still feels wrong to me. But, I can’t back down now. I will remember to compensate their families if they have any. The other experts withdraw immediately, agreeing almost unanimously that they have no way of getting through this complex amalgamation of spells, saying that only its creator can do anything here. Or someone way above that person, which is higher than the peak of what people can do in the current age according to them. We are so unlucky that the person that made this seems to have disappeared from the surface of Naharren with completely no trace. I don’t believe they are gone just like that, hiding somewhere or something. It’s now obvious to me that Brother silenced them soon after they finished their work. Then, our turn comes. Those who are best at casting shields and similar techniques line up in the front while the rest prepares their strongest penetrative spells. At my command, we simultaneously barrage the numerous barriers with a rain of magic so intense the air gets as thick as syrup from all the mana. The noise is deafening and the whole place shakes violently. After a full three minutes of this, we stop and wait for all the particles to disappear, which takes quite a bit of time with how much mana is in the air now. Everyone curses the moment all the dust settles down, revealing faint scratches on the metal door. Barely any spells managed it through. In the meanwhile, we lost seven more people from countering spells. Taking a short break, we agree to hold one more attempt, hoping that we have drained the formations enough to weaken them. Unfortunately, nothing changes and only faint scratches appear on the gate and the walls surrounding it again. “Aghhhhhhhhhh!” I groan loudly, hitting the ground with my fist as I pant heavily alongside others. They look at me weirdly, most likely wondering why I look so defeated and frustrated while the formations are clearly working great. People start to slowly withdraw, accepting the payment for helping out. They don’t want to risk their lives in an impossible task even if the rewards are much greater for breaking the barriers. We again lost five more people. Soon, it’s only me and Father left in the room. He walks up to me, who is still kneeling on the ground, and places a hand on my shoulder. “I don’t think we can do anything here. It’s too powerful. Just look at that wall. It’s barely touched.” I stare for a moment at the completely ruined floor under me and raise my gaze at the metal and stone in front of me in almost perfect condition. “That wall…” I mutter to myself as realisation dawns on me. “Just that wall…” Startling Father a little, I stand up in a flash. I turn to him with a serious expression again. “We are currently under one of the big baths used by the guests, right?” He frowns. “Yes, we are. They are directly above this chamber, between them and the surface. Why?” “Tell everyone to get away from any chandeliers and furniture. Or leave the castle, preferably. I apologise. I promise to fix things up later.” “Vanessa!” Without sparing him a second more, I rush outside the moment I finish speaking, hearing him shout after me. In less than a minute, I burst into the mentioned bath, fortunately, empty inside. I scan the spacious hall while visualising the structure of the underground areas and jump into the pool at a certain position. Ignoring the water, I begin to dance in it while casting an extremely long spell. Walls begin rumbling as an immense magical circle appears right above my head, glued to the ceiling. Parts of them crack or shatter and bits of the ceiling fall down onto the floor, which also doesn’t avoid getting heavily damaged. I fill the spell with as much mana as I can muster, going all out. Finally, finishing the dance obstructed by the hot liquid, I raise my staff high into the air. “Thousand Tonne Pound!” I shout while driving it down. The circle glows and a giant hammerhead surges out of it, made from the stone behind the formation. It slams the floor of the pool faster than I can blink and causes a small earthquake for sure, also turning the shaky waters into a literal tsunami. But, it does its job properly. The ground ends up shattered into bits and caves under the immense impact. I begin to fall down alongside all the debris and hit the ground again in just a moment. There isn’t much space between these levels and I have successfully broken into the workshop from above. After the chunks of stone stop falling onto the barrier I have quickly erected around myself, I cancel it and look around. The metal gate stands untouched behind my back. A long corridor of white stone, fitted with a royal red rug and decorations spans in front of me. “It’s time to learn the truth.” I immediately begin to run.
Chapter 115 – Through the Eyes of Another: The Princess’ Journey Through Her Brother’s Past Spoiler: Chapter After just a short moment, I slow down my run when the white hallway changes. Big paintings join the fabric and cloth decorations hanging on the walls. The moment I notice the first one, it makes me frown a little and I stop to observe it and the ones further behind. Each picture shows a beautiful woman of one of the humanoid races. The issue is, all of them are presented in full nude and often in very suggestive poses. They are drawn leaning onto a wall, putting one foot on a chair, which reveals their privates, or even straight-up bending over furniture and exposing themselves to the viewer. Ignoring the fact that there are plenty of races other than Humans in this long passage, I would have thought that they would be a bit more covered, perhaps with various styles and designs of underwear and lingerie. But, I guess this supports the assumption that Brother wasn’t so passionate and shy about it. I continue through this suggestive and erotic gallery until my eyes catch on to something familiar. If there still have been any doubts in my mind, I’m pretty sure they are completely gone now. The painting hanging right in front of me depicts the timid, scared, anxious girl I visited just recently, who finally agreed to talk about Brother with me and showed me her scars. The image portrays her naked just like the other works. There are no bruises or even scratches on her petite body and she wears a cute smile, twirling a lock of her hair while standing in an adorable pose. As I stare at her figure, the memory of her current state flashes through my mind, overlapping itself with the image in front of me. I blink to get rid of it but the harder I try the more realistic it becomes. A scene of my brother whipping the poor girl suddenly surfaces in my thoughts and I turn my head aside, closing my eyes. My fingers grip the metal staff stronger and I take a deep breath before opening them again. Trying not to look at that particular painting anymore, I leave its spot with a quick step, refocusing on exploring every corner of this so-called workshop to learn the truth. Which might be already known to me. As much as I truly wouldn’t want to be right this time. I don’t get to cover much distance before something catches my attention again. Without stopping this time, I glance to the side and find another painting of a woman I recognize from an inn we stopped at to eat a few times with Brother in the past. Getting the same uncomfortable feeling in my chest as when looking at the previous person, I increase the pace of my steps to get away from it as soon as possible. Unfortunately, the familiar figures don’t end there. As I walk faster and faster, various women I suddenly start to remember flash through my mind as their paintings appear in the far corner of my vision even though I’m trying my best to look only ahead. Soon, it can’t be called walking anymore. I break into a run as even sounds and noises of their suffering begin echoing in my head each time I pass by a woman I saw somewhere at least once when spending time around Brother. Desperate to get rid of it, I sprint forward, hoping to reach the end of the display. Perhaps it takes just a few seconds for me to enter a rectangular chamber with a coffee table, four sofas around it, and various furniture placed by the walls, including a heavy desk, but it truly felt like hours. I stop at the entrance to the room and try to catch my breath, leaning onto the nearby desk. “Damn it!” I slam my fist into its surface, panting roughly. “Why did you have to be like that…” After a short while, I regain my composure and take a closer look around the chamber I just entered. There isn’t anything special about it. Dark brown furniture with royal red cushions dominates the sight, just like on the entire way here. There are two exits leading out of it, with no doors either. Expecting to see more paintings and drawings of naked women inside the desk, I pull out one of the drawers just to wince and instantly close it. I don’t have to look for long to understand what I have just seen. This wasn’t any close to anything erotic. Utterly sadistic would be a better term. “How did it come to this? When did you become like that, Brother? Why?” There are countless questions floating in my mind as I try to pinpoint any specific moment in our past when something could have changed. Unable to do so, I shake my head to clear it of pointless thoughts and look between the two passages going out of the room. There is no indication of where they might lead. Since I have wasted enough time already, I don’t waste any more of it hesitating about which way to choose and quickly jog towards the closer hallway. Fortunately, this one doesn’t have paintings so I can move through it pretty much undisturbed. After about fifteen seconds, I stumble on the first door since the very entrance. A quite sizable single gate blocks my path. Pushing the knob reveals that it’s locked, as expected. I don’t think I will be able to easily find the key so my only option is to get through it. Even though it doesn’t look to be enchanted or riddled with defensive arrays like the main gate, I decide to take a safe distance before sending a weak spell towards it to probe the metal door. The sharp rock I send at it hits the surface with an echoing clang and nothing happens. Trying to destroy or push it in might be a little dangerous in this narrow passage so I first choose to try scanning the surroundings with a very useful spell. Standing right in front of the door, I raise my staff up a little and hit the floor with its butt. Multiple waves of yellow energy are released in circles from the point of impact and disappear into the walls surrounding me. With each passing ring, the structure of the nearby bedrock is revealed to me in a much clearer mental picture. It looks like there aren’t any adjacent rooms by the sides of this corridor which I could easily break into and the only options are to either dig out the ground or dislocate the door. Since I won’t be able to gather much more from my scanning, I cancel it and glance at the obstruction in front of me. “Let’s try this with precision, then.” I start a simple dance while spinning my staff. Grazing its tip over the floor in an arc, I condense part of my mana to draw in some of the material from the ground. A small ball of marble forms at the end of my weapon, leaving a shallow trench behind. With a quick turn, I fling the projectile towards the keyhole. It changes shape mid-flight and turns into a spike that lodges itself in the tiny breach. This much isn’t enough to deal with the lock and I’ve been quite aware of it. That’s what the next step is for. As I make some more stylish movements, the marble nail begins to thicken and expand, reforming itself into something akin to a wedge with a flat head aimed towards my side of the door, taking up as much space inside the keyhole as it’s physically possible. After it’s finished, I put much more mana into my magic and attract a huge chunk of marble to the tip of my staff this time. It soon takes the shape of a big and beautiful hammer of white stone. If I wasn’t so pressed on time, I would love to examine it carefully and marvel over its looks. But, the longer I am here the more the urge to discover everything rises in my heart. Something pushes me forward, telling me to not stop until I get to the bottom of this. Perhaps some tiny part of my consciousness is still hoping to find an explanation and proof that it wasn’t my brother who hurt all those women. With all steps prepared, I set myself near the door and pull the hammer to the side. “Alright. I hope this works.” With a loud shout, I swing the marble hammer towards the created wedge, assisting myself with the application of magnetic enchantment I can apply to the ores and minerals under my control. The chunk in the door attracts the hammer strongly, giving my strike even more power as I smash the hammerhead into the thick nail. A deafening clang echoes through the passage, accompanied by the noise of metal relenting under the heavy pressure of the received blow. The part around the keyhole gets heavily dented, with the wedge pushed into the hole almost the entire way through. It was enough. While the blow wasn’t able to completely dislocate the lock, it pushed part of the door back just enough to create a gap between it and the door frame. To increase it further, I pummel the wedge a few more times. Destroying this sturdy mechanism could take quite a long time so it’s not exactly what I’m going for. I just need a bit more space and we’ll be good. After achieving a satisfactory result, I squeeze my staff even stronger and make another swing. This time, though, the hammer doesn’t fly towards the nail stuck in the lock but part of the wall just by the door frame where the metal gate was pushed back enough to show an opening. Having a clear strike at the edge, I hit it without an issue and it breaks off easily. I could have tried that with the door present in its original position, but this way is just much less tiring. With a few well-aimed blows, I create a hole big enough for myself to fit through, without having to spend a lot of mana on stone-manipulating spells of bigger calibre. I throw my staff in after releasing the gathered marble and climb through the gap, watching out not to injure myself by accident. It takes a bit of effort since the hole isn’t too wide and comfortable but I manage to wiggle my way through into the next room. The moment I drop onto the ground and raise myself to a knee, I finally notice the sudden change in style. This part of the underground complex isn’t made of marble anymore. Dark grey stone blocks make up the walls, ceiling and floor. There are no decorations here except for dim torches with orange crystals, glowing much weaker than their counterparts from the other side. Having a really bad premonition, I quickly recollect myself and run towards the only tunnel leading out of this small chamber with nothing in it. The monotone corridor continues for about fifty metres before it starts splitting to the sides at regular intervals. Picking the left turn at the first intersection, I slow down and move forward while paying attention to my surroundings. Then, it hits me. “Ugh. Urp.” I drop my staff and barely hold myself back from throwing up as an unbearable stench fills my nostrils, forcing me to use the nearby wall for support. I have noticed the faint unpleasant smell in the main tunnel but thought it was just from not having anyone clean the place up. Unfortunately, the powerful repugnant odour present in this branching corridor can be associated with only one thing. Something I had a chance to experience now and then during my life as an adventurer. As much as I don’t want it to be true, another explanation is just too improbable right now. Spending a minute getting accustomed to the powerful smell and bringing a handkerchief to my face, I walk forward. Not forgetting to pick up my staff, of course. And, with just a few more steps, the first room shows up on my right. A metal gate with thick vertical bars serves as a door to what clearly is a prison cell, just as I partially expected. I gag again when my eyes fall onto a body in a late stage of decay, forcing me to look away in a desperate attempt to avoid emptying my stomach right here. I’m fortunate enough to have experienced a fair share of such sights and smells not to instantly vomit or faint but it’s still difficult to handle. “Damn it!” I curse again, hitting the bars. “We should have opened it just like Dad wanted! Damn it, damn it, damn it!” Accidentally inhaling a bigger chunk of the rotten air, I fail to control myself in time and quickly crouch down by the cell to let the rushing liquid out, too late to stop it anymore. Wiping my mouth, I stand up again and look around. If every single path leads to these cells, there’s no way anyone survived to this day. Even so, I still continue forward in hope of a miracle. Perhaps someone was left with access to some more food and water than the few small bottles I notice in some cells now and then. Unfortunately, only decomposing bodies fill the metal cages. It’s not hard to identify all of them as women. They are of different races, thus varying in their state of decay. This whole section of Brother’s workshop isn’t that big but the cells can be counted in tens for sure. What a tragedy. After checking the last one, I return to the empty room with the damaged metal door and climb through it again. Nothing else to see in this part of the workshop. I sigh after getting through. “I’m worried what terrible things I might find in the other section…” Reaching the main intersection, I stop for a moment and hesitate. I’ve seen enough already. I understand that I was wrong, that I knew nothing about my brother. 「Is there a reason to continue this? Father and the knights will soon start entering too. They can deal with it instead.」 Glancing to the corridor in front of me, I shake my head. 「No, I can’t stop halfway. There’s still a chance someone might be alive on the other side, where the second hallway leads. I shouldn’t assume things but act while I can.」 Preparing the handkerchief again, just in case that for whatever reason, there would be two prison blocks in this place, I rush towards the only other path. After a brief moment, it turns right and runs far, far straight. Tens of wooden doors are present on both sides. Slowing down, I examine the first one. Contrary to the previous, metal gate, this door is made of simple, dark wood, similar to the furniture in the main lobby. It’s locked too, obviously. But, wood is much simpler to deal with than metal and I easily punch the whole lock inside with a well-aimed hammer strike, creating a small hole where the knob and keyhole are. With nothing holding it in place anymore, I carefully push the door inside. A small, well-decorated bedroom enters my sight. There’s a single sofa on one side with a coffee table in front of it, a few bookcases, and a big, king-sized bed on the other side, with fancy canopies in dark red colour. No one is inside and the room looks pretty much untouched. It’s possible to spot a layer of dust here and there but it has been unoccupied since the day Brother left this place for the last time. Unless he wasn’t the only one with access to it. Managing a mansion-like underground complex surely couldn’t have been easy with so many rooms, cells, and people inside. I don’t remember ever seeing him smuggle food or other supplies down there more than what is a normal amount for a single person. Well, there’s no use thinking about this right now. If he had any accomplices, we’ll definitely need to find them and punish them for all those atrocities they committed toward the women imprisoned there. And not only them. Ronerulle is very strict with its law and the royal family isn’t completely above it. If this had leaked out to the public and we had learned about this vile place, I’m not so sure if Brother would have avoided capital punishment. And that thought brings up another problem. People wouldn’t care if he did everything alone, without us knowing about a single thing. He was a prince, part of the ruling family. There’s no doubt we could even see a revolution to overthrow Father and Mother and hold them accountable for his deeds. Myself included, most likely. As much as it pains me, we can’t reveal the existence of this complex to the people. It could end badly for everyone. I hate lying to them but we have no choice here. They wouldn’t listen to our explanations. It saddens me greatly but I can’t risk the safety of my family even if I know it was our negligence that led to this. I need to quickly inform Father to bring only trusted men in here. He is surely on his way already, perhaps even inside the first hallway. Fortunately, there are books in this room. I quickly move to one of the bookcases and smash the glass panel to gain access to it since it looks to be locked. Bringing one tome out, I quickly open it and tear off a partially blank page at the very beginning of the book. The paper is here but what about something to write with? That appears to be a bit more complex issue. I have no time to search every cupboard and drawer. My eyes fall onto the shattered glass and I sigh heavily. “I’m already going to suffer for the sins of my brother.” Picking up a sharp-looking piece, I stare at it briefly, contemplating the choice. Before using it, though, I get another idea inspired by it and use a simple earth manipulation spell to create a small knife out of the marble wall, with its other end as closely resembling a quill as possible. I create a tiny cut on my forearm and let the blood drip onto the nearby dresser without hesitation. Using the quill-like end, I try my best to write a message to Father. It’s not easy and the script comes out as jagged and horribly awful. But, it’s not the time to think about finesse and style. After finishing my note, I address it on the back and fold it into two. Leaving the room in a hurry, I return to the main chamber and approach the desk. Placing the piece of paper on its surface, I stab the knife I made earlier into the wood next to it. This should be enough to grab someone’s attention since nothing else stands out in this room. After that, I run back to the long hallway with many doors and start checking every room one by one. Not a single door is open, for whatever reason. I could understand why he or someone else would want to lock those with people inside, but why have all the rooms locked throughout the whole complex? Seven rooms after the first one don’t look that much different from it. They are all bedrooms at the core, with slightly altered colours, decorations, furniture, and the general atmosphere. Unfortunately, in the eighth one, I finally stumble on a deceased person. The smell hits me the moment I break the lock and it just gets worse afterwards. That bedroom is utterly demolished and the door has countless scratch marks from the inside. It’s clear that whoever was left here to die, tried whatever they could to escape. But, considering that they might have been a slave, or at least had a mark on them, their strength must have definitely been limited. Those poor women. My heart aches every time I think about what they were going through here. Shaking my head, I leave the damaged room and continue further. The colour of the doors changes at this point. They become lighter, assuming a bright shade. They clearly stand out from the previous ones and there has to be a reason for that. My assumption is proven correct the moment I break into the first chamber with a different door. I wince at the sight. There are no bodies inside but much worse things stand all around the room and by its walls. Plenty of different contraptions and devices which could easily rival those meant for torture or interrogation are set up here, ready to be used at any time. Even though I really wanted to ignore it, I had a feeling that something like this would be found here. That adorable girl from earlier definitely didn’t get her scars and bruises through normal means or a bit rougher play between two people. With this, it’s pretty much confirmed. There will be no studio meant to produce lingerie anywhere in this hidden dungeon. It was a lie, from the very beginning. We’ve been fed nothing but misinformation for who knows how long. I grip my staff harder, clenching my teeth. So much pain and suffering right under our noses, right under the royal castle. I slept above these people’s heads, unaware of anything that was happening here. Alastair was right. He knew Brother much better than I did while speaking with him just for a brief moment. There’s no lingerie collection. The only things Brother was collecting were those women in the cages. He might be a better judge of character than I thought. First, figuring out my brother’s true nature at a moment’s notice, and second, knowing that I would definitely keep my word and wouldn’t attack him right after being set free. His last words ring in my head. ‘Life for a life. Remember that.’ What if it’s not one but countless lives? What happens then? Will he demand our lives? I shake my head to clear my thoughts. I've been led astray by my emotions since the moment I left his mansion, and even more since setting foot in this place. I should stop getting distracted all the time and leave worrying about the future for later. The few next rooms with the same shade of wood have various contraptions inside too. I’m fairly sure they served as storage chambers. Unless Brother really used them with everything present inside. It’s hard to imagine but there’s nothing about him that would surprise me anymore. Then, the doors change back to the dark wood and continue until the end of the hallway. I keep making my way through them mechanically now, with all the faintest traces of hope already long gone. I won’t find anyone alive. This place is a graveyard. Breaking another lock, I push the door inside and enter another bedroom. The stench of decomposing bodies hits me much harder than in any previous chambers and I quickly cover my nose and mouth with the handkerchief. Looking around, I spot four bodies, with more hidden behind the bed and the furniture, possibly. This room is completely devastated too and it’s not a surprise. I can’t even imagine what the thoughts of these women were when they starved to death here. As I’m leaving the room, something makes a noise, instantly catching my attention. My head snaps towards the nearby wardrobe which has just released a wooden squeak and my eyes widen to the brim. Barely in time, I manage to dodge aside as something leaps at me from its top, screeching loudly. Spinning around, I ready myself to defend against the unidentified monster and freeze on the spot. This is no monster. A half-blood Beastkin woman stares back at me from near the ground. She has cat-like features so I assume she’s some kind of a Catkin. But, that’s not the reason behind my reaction. Her skin is ghostly pale and her eyes are completely bloodshot. A feral expression paints her face as she growls at me ferociously. Dried-off blood stains her mouth, the skin around her entire body, and the skimpy clothes. “Wait! I’m here to help—” I try to speak but she launches herself at me again, aiming for my throat with her long nails. Forced to defend myself, I redirect her attack to the side with a spin of my staff and increase the distance between us. “Please, listen! I will free you! Everything will be fine no—” Again, she completely ignores my words and comes at me slashing her hands through the air. It’s no use. She's clearly lost her mind. If I’m not mistaken, she might have actually been forced to eat her own flesh, judging from the marks and wounds on her body. And, before that, she might have been forced into cannibalism by her instincts to survive. Only now I begin to notice that some of the damage on the walls and furniture seems different than in other rooms. There’s much more old blood and claw marks. Instead of an attempt to escape, it’s more probable that a fight broke out here. A fight to the death. She doesn’t give me any room for breathing and keeps violently throwing animalistic attacks at my vitals, without any clear thought behind them. I would have no problem defeating her, but even if she’s exerting quite some strength, she’s clearly weakened and I could kill her in the process. I really don’t want to do that but she’s not giving me a choice. With just a single mistake, I’ll be dead. There’s not much space to dodge here and she will catch up to me if I try to run for sure. Another swipe passes just right by my throat. I step aside but she's already after me again, mouth wide open, lunging at it once more, aiming to sink her teeth in my skin this time. I dodge to the back, leaning away from her face. Then, the moment I attempt to block another attack, my foot runs into something which I quickly recognize as a deceased person's body. My eyes widen as I watch my staff swing with an altered trajectory due to the loss of balance, missing the woman's hands and hitting her in the side of her head. A quiet crunch follows and she falls to the ground with a thud. “Oh no…” I poke her a few times just to be completely safe before kneeling by her side. A quick check confirms the worst. Her skull must have grown really weak during the time she was locked here, forced to do everything she could to stay alive. “I… I killed her…” I stare at the poor woman, lying dead in front of me, knowing that it was me who took the life of an innocent person. It wasn’t the first time I faced humanoid opponents or members of other races, but I’ve never raised a hand at someone undeserving. No, I had. Back in Alastair’s mansion. I let my emotions control me and almost hurt him without even listening to what he had to say. He was the real victim and I almost struck him down. Did I start changing for the worse too before I noticed? A few minutes later, Father arrives in the room with me still kneeling by the woman’s body. He tells me to return to the surface and leave everything to him. I want to protest and finish what I have started but he stares me down until I no longer look like I’m going to argue with him. He assigns someone to escort me back and I slowly leave my brother’s workshop. We stumble on Mother shortly after getting out of the castle’s dungeons. She has been waiting for either of us to return. Noticing my expression, she quickly pulls me into a hug and tries her best to console me without even knowing anything. She’s always been this kind and caring. She leads me to my bedchamber and I explain everything to her, from start to finish. As expected, she often shakes her head, saying that it’s not possible for Brother to do such things but falls silent the moment I reach the part with the Beastkin woman and what happened to her. Ignoring the problem of my brother, for now, she keeps rubbing my arm and repeating that it’s not my fault and that everyone has the right to defend themselves. I know that, obviously, but that woman must have gone through so much. She was in a state so bad it shouldn’t even count as self-defence anymore. I killed her. Her and all the others. With my blindness and negligence. That’s not how the future ruler should be. Still within my mother’s embrace, I don’t even notice when I fall asleep. I wake up the next morning, already changed into my pyjamas and lying under the covers of my bed. Sitting up and looking around, I notice a note on the nightstand. It asks me to come to speak with Mother and Father when I’m well enough. A little afraid of the discussion that awaits us, I remain on the bed for around half an hour more before finally regathering my wits. I can’t stay here forever. I knew we would be having this conversation sooner or later. After asking a servant in the hallways, I’m led to my parents. They both have grim expressions and it looks like Mother has accepted the truth in the end. We sit together in silence for a few minutes before she starts to speak, surprising both me and Father. Even though it’s visibly extremely hard for her, Mother tries to think about the well-being of our kingdom and its people in the current situation. We all agree that revealing the information about this unfortunate incident could end badly for everyone and should be avoided at all costs. We talk for hours, jumping between the topic of Brother, his true nature, how we could have let all of this happen, and what we should do now. Father didn’t find any other survivors in the other rooms I haven’t explored yet when he arrived. In the end, just like Mother said and acted, we will have to somehow move on while thinking about our people. It won’t be easy. Especially for her. I can already tell she is going to blame herself for all the atrocities Brother committed. Days pass quickly as we try to focus on recovering the bodies and giving everyone a proper burial. All we can do for them is to dedicate some space in the castle’s royal graveyard for the nameless tombstones in their memory. There have been some mentions of names amongst the papers and notebooks Father and his trusted men found in Brother’s dungeon but it wasn’t possible to identify anyone with just that. We have no idea if they had any families or living relatives. Although, almost everyone was a slave. After a few more days, we finish cleaning the place up and decide to seal it again. Burying it would be too dangerous and risky. Our Court Magician takes care of it, putting a simple barrier around the new entrance we set up. The promise I made with Alastair can’t leave my mind. I have to return and apologise, but the more I think about it, the worse I feel. No matter what, the future queen can’t let such mundane things scare her. Without Brother, that’s almost certainly going to be me. I return to Evaneheim and head straight for Alastair’s mansion. They start work in the evenings so it shouldn’t be a problem for me to pay him a visit during the day. Afterwards, I will meet with King Rossberg too to apologise for my rude behaviour. The gates to Alastair’s estate are open so I walk to the main entrance. Before I can even knock, the doors open and Lady Cornelia shows up in front of me. She smiles warmly. “You don’t look so good, Princess Vanessa. Alastair is unfortunately out of the city at this moment, but please, come in and stay with us for a moment. You are welcome to remain here until he returns.” I nod at her hesitantly and enter the mansion. I can now only wait for his judgment.