CH 178: Tempting Offer
Jasmine could barely move the next morning, even with Ana’s healing. Claire carried the sore assassin back to her home and to her bed. It was awkward for Claire when Daphne greeted them. The blacksmith wouldn’t meet her eyes.
After Claire dropped Jasmine off in her bed, she returned downstairs, only to be greeted by Lyn and Jessie Carpenter. The two were sitting at the dinner table, looking worn out. Lyn was the younger of the two brunette sisters; she had more defined arm muscles from stone and woodworking. Jessie was thinner and paler than Lyn, though the two were quite tan compared to the rest of the village. The whole family had freckles and matching dimples when they smiled.
Daphne pulled Claire aside and tried to swallow her embarrassment.
“Th-they just woke up,” Daphne stumbled over her words. It was hard to focus with Claire around now. “Haven’t talked to Lyn yet. They… just want to know what caused their…”
“Trance?” Claire finished the words for her. Jasmine shared her “tells” with her sister. The two were far more similar than she realized. “Okay. Probably best if you keep an eye on your sister.”
“N-no, I ca-” Daphne shook her head. She caught the attention of the two women.
“Shh,” Claire shushed her. “I promise I will only explain my Goddess. Nothing more. And, my aura is clearly affecting you.”
Daphne swallowed. She could feel the guilt creep up. She glanced at Lyn, who was tilting her head. She took a deep breath and agreed. “Yeah… probably best not to be around you.”
She lowered her head and walked straight to Jasmine’s room. Claire watched her enter before turning to the Carpenter daughters. She pulled a chair out and sat, studying the two. They look like she did after the Troll fight.
“Can I ask something before we start?” Claire finally spoke. The two nodded. “Do you have a status that has jumbled letters and symbols?”
Their eyes widened, and they glanced at each other. Jessie was the first to speak. “Yeah. Jumbled letters next to a fatigue…”
Claire exhaled. It was just the Divine Fatigue, nothing else. “Okay, that’s good to know. The cryptic word is Divine.”
“We figured it was something like that,” Lyn chimed in. “We all had the same dream the night you gals left…”
“What was it like?” Claire asked. She worried about whether the Goddess forced them or not.
“Euphoric?” Lyn said, searching for a word.
“Probably the best way to describe it,” Jessie nodded. She grabbed her sister’s hand. “Like euphoric inspiration. We all had epiphanies and started working…”
“So you weren’t forced?”
They shook their heads. “No, probably would have rested more if we were.”
Jessie laughed at her sister’s statement. “True. I was working well into the night on the schematics of the building.”
Claire’s shoulders relaxed. She didn’t have to worry about that. “Can I continue, or do you have questions for me?”
“Why did she have Daphne’s eyes?” Lyn asked immediately. Claire tilted her head. “The Goddess. She had her grey eyes.”
Claire pursed her lips. “They’re Jasmine’s, actually.”
“Still, why?” Lyn pressed. “And your red hair.”
“Right. That is the Goddess I’m sworn to.” Claire nodded. She took a deep breath and glanced towards Jasmine’s room. She found two pairs of grey eyes watching her. “She’s… new.”
Lyn exhaled sharply. “That explains the statues. I thought they were unfinished, and it was bugging me.”
Claire shook her head. “She doesn’t have a complete form yet.”
Jessie scratched her head. Something wasn’t quite adding up. “Why not? Was She not born from other Gods?”
Claire stopped for a moment. She never thought about that, she just took Her at face value. All she could do was shrug, ”No idea. I didn’t even know you were building her a church until I got here.”
“What are her virtues then?” Jessie asked, leaning forward.
“Parenting, Childbirth, intimacy are He-,” Claire listed them off.
“So y’all are fucking?” Jessie cut in.
Claire sighed. She just nodded. “Yes. My Goddess encouraged it.”
The two exchanged another glance, their faces reddening. Lyn asked because her sister couldn’t. “Even Elsie and Ana?”
Claire felt her face heat up, too. She nodded. “Even them.”
She watched the color drain from their faces. Lyn glanced towards Jasmine’s room, a look of fear on her face. Jessie was staring at the table, unable to speak.
“I understand it is hard to swallow,” Claire sighed. She tried her best to keep her composure. “My Goddess… She has a noble goal. One I wish to see completed. Each of my party members believes the same.”
“Wh-what’s the goal?” Jessie swallowed hard. Lyn was looking at Daphne. The blacksmith carried her sister out of her room so they could hear better.
“Free men of their shackles,” Claire declared. Lyn’s attention snapped back to her. “I intend to get Ryley back.”
“Right, it’s starting to make sense why you agreed to…” Jessie muttered.
“Not only that,” Claire continued. “I think the nobles have abused commoners for far too long.”
She looked to Lyn. The woman was watching her with wide eyes.
“She also wants to make it easier for us to conceive.” Claire declared. It was close to the truth, even if she was leaving out her gift for now.
Lyn looked back at Daphne. “Yo-you told them?”
“I had to,” Daphne said, her voice cracking.
Claire held her hand up. “Don’t blame her. We approached her with the intention of recruiting her. She declined due to being in a relationship with you.”
Lyn slammed her fist onto the table. “You tried to sleep with her?!”
Jessie grabbed her sister, the woman was threatening to attack Claire. Claire tried to stay dignified. Just another thing she’d take the blame for.
“Before I knew you two were together. I apologize.” Claire bowed her head. “I never would have approached her otherwise.”
Jessie clamped her hand on Lyn’s mouth. “I fucking told you to come out with it!”
Daphne handed Jasmine to Claire before running to her lover’s side. She grabbed her hands and tried to calm her anger.
“Listen to Claire, honey,” Daphne whispered. “She was horrified when she found out.”
Lyn’s anger soothed. She was still breathing rapidly and her arms were still flailing, but the fire was gone in her eyes. Jasmine clung to Claire tightly.
“I owe you,” Jasmine whispered. “This was all my fault.”
“Shh,” Claire whispered back. “Maybe it’ll help us recruit the rest of the village. And, I got a lot of my anger out last night.”
They did their best to hold back their smiles. Lyn was still not completely calmed down yet, but she was manageable.
“Why do you need to fuck?” Jessie asked. “What purpose does it serve? Like, I’d understand if you and Jasmine were fucking. Or maybe one of the twins, but why all of you?”
“Daph, now’s a good a time as any,” Jasmine said. Her smile was gone, and she stared at her sister.
Daphne squeezed her girlfriend’s hand. She was trying to work up her courage to explain it. “Honey, listen to me. We may not need to save up anymore.”
That stopped Lyn cold. She pried her sister’s hand off her mouth. “Why?!”
Daphne opened her mouth to speak, but couldn’t find the words. She glared at Claire. “I-I can’t…”
“It’s okay, Daphne,” Claire said. She found her confidence and decided to be out with it. “Her last, and main, virtue is Virility. Male version of Fertility.”
The sisters opened their mouths to speak, but lost their words.
“Yes, I get it. She is the Goddess of Virility. Not He.” Claire continued. “She bestowed upon me a divine gift. One I could give to others.”
“You’re kidding,” Jessie muttered.
“I’m not,” Claire sighed. “I’d show it to you, but… it affects you quite severely. Daphne’s been struggling with it.”
Daphne squeezed Lyn’s hand. “It’s like I’m drunk around Claire. And something is tempting me…”
Claire nodded. “It’s my aura as a Paladin. Lily confirmed its effects.”
“So y’all aren’t just fucking? You’re fucking with cocks?” Lyn asked through clenched teeth.
“Yes. Claire gifted us with male genitalia.” Jasmine confirmed. “Though my sister refused.”
“B-But it doesn’t require sleeping with her,” Daphne added. “We could have our own kid. One without needing to spend.”
Lyn finally made the full connection. “Wait… Claire could give us… and we could.”
“Yes, without needing to spend a fortune.” Daphne insisted. “I-it’s the only reason I entertained the idea of joining Claire... Or let her speak to you.”
Daphne kneeled before Lyn, holding their hands up to her forehead.
“I get it. It’s a lot to process, but we could save money for a ceremony or a house,” Daphne continued. “But I leave it up to you. Allow it or don’t, I’m with you either way.”
Lyn was too stunned to speak. Jessie was deep in thought. The two had a lot of information thrown at them.
“I-is it open to me too?” Jessie asked sheepishly.
“Um, yes,” Claire said. She hadn’t thought about bestowing it on either Carpenter, just Daphne. But it made sense for all three. “We went to Daphne because we may need armor or weapons made… but She wants me to recruit the entire village.”
“H-how would this work?” Lyn asked hesitantly.
“Only need to consume my essence. Nothing more.”
“Then will we need to join you?” Lyn continued.
“No, we originally were going to have Lily stay here… However,” Claire glanced at Jasmine. “We had a change of plans.”
“We don’t need any more fighters or travelers. Toni and his knight will already be joining us.” Jasmine affirmed. “You are free to stay here.”
Daphne tugged on Lyn’s hands. “See. We could start that family you always wanted.”
“W-would Lyn and I have to…?” Jessie asked.
Claire shrugged. “It felt natural for the twins. No guarantee, sadly.”
“Fuck.” Jessie muttered. “Why does it sound so appealing?”
“My aura.”
Lyn cleared her throat and pulled Daphne to her feet. “You’re right, Daph. This would save us so much money. And… it seems it would be inevitable, given Claire said she’d be recruiting the entire village.”
Daphne hugged Lyn tightly. Jessie scratched her head, still contemplating the whole conversation. Claire was just glad Lyn wasn’t angry anymore. She could relax for now. It was one major thing going her way, besides gaining Toni as an ally.
“Do we do this now?” Jessie mumbled. “Or what?”