Chapter Thirty-Seven: Triumphant Return

I had a vague recollection of waking up long enough for them to load me onto the back of a wagon. Other than that, one second I was passing out on a stool and the next I was jerking awake when the wagon bounced suddenly. The buildings of Anford were around us, and the sun was already dipping towards the horizon. Blearily, I took in our surroundings.

Serena was wrapped around me, but considering her skill and my state that was hardly a surprise. Someone had thrown a blanket over us though, which allowed her to dismiss all of her armor. A fact that made a part of me rather excited despite how battered the rest of me felt.

Good gods, I don’t remember being this horny all the damn time before. Oh how things changed when you had a beautiful girl or two in your life. Tiana was on my other side with her head leaning on my shoulder, but a quick glance through lidded eyes from her told me that she wasn’t fully asleep either. She held my gaze for a moment, then when I said nothing she just closed her eyes and settled back into me. Elisa was on the opposite side of the wagon curled up around her bag, snoring away, while Rhallani sat next to her writing furiously in her notebook.

It took me a minute to track down Noelle. She was sitting on the edge of the wagon, her axe balanced over her thighs, scanning the buildings around us. I smiled at the sight. It seemed she was taking her job as guardian seriously.

As if she could feel my eyes, her head flicked towards me. I saw her shoulders relax when she realized I was awake, but she still went back to scanning the buildings once again. I looked to Rhallani and cleared my throat.

Her head jerked up. “You’re awake!”

I winced. My head was already pounding, and her exclamation hadn’t done much to help. “I am. Seems like I’ve been out most of the day.” And I was still exhausted.

She nodded gravely. “It took them a while to get some transport arranged, then it took them longer to get the carcasses loaded up.”

“Carcasses?”

A proud smile spread across her face. “I negotiated. The guild can send some people to confirm all our other kills, but I convinced the guards to help us load the queen and the royal Tiana exploded to take straight to the guild. I didn’t want scavengers to mess with the really big payday.”

I nodded and leaned my head back against the bouncing carriage. I knew from the way her breath tickled my neck that Serena wasn’t really asleep, but if she wanted to pretend then I wasn’t going to stop her. “What else did I miss?”

Rhallani closed her notebook. “Well, there were levels all around, but we agreed we’d worry about that after we got some sleep. They brought some healers and one took a look at you. They put everything back where it’s supposed to be, but none of them have ever seen a burn like the one on your arm.”

None of them had ever seen anything like my sword either. “Not surprising. How is everyone else?”

“Well, scrapes and bruises mostly.” She risked a glance up to where Noelle sat above me. “Noelle took some licks, but with her health she’s doing fine. At least that’s what she keeps insisting.”

I chuckled. “I’ll bet.”

She smiled. “Serena being a beacon of healing means she’s fine, if a little shaken up. I could only see from a distance, but I know you got…hurt.”

Didn’t I know it. I could still feel the stiffness in my stomach from the injury. Even with magic something like that was going to take time to heal. I didn’t want to think about how close Serena and that healer had cut it pumping health into my destroyed body long enough for the worst of the damage to heal. I moved my ruined arm to Tiana’s knee. Or, at least, I got as close as I could manage. Feeling was still a little iffy.

“And you?” I asked her.

She blew air out of her nose. “Rekindled my old phobia of getting buried alive, but other than that I’m okay. Just don’t expect me to be of any use for the next few days. My skill gives me a big damage boost, but it costs mana regen. My pool won’t fill up anytime soon.” Her cheeks were also rather rosy, but with how tired she looked I didn’t point that out.

I did my best to give what I hoped was her knee a reassuring squeeze. “I can hardly hold a sword right now, so I plan to spend the next few days getting some much needed rest.”

I felt Serena relax a fraction next to me, and I turned a raised brow to Rhallani. “If my math is correct, then someone hit level twenty.”

She beamed, then hid behind her notebook. “After we get some sleep.”

“I know you’ve looked at the choices. Give me something.”

“Nope.” She reached across the wagon with her foot and gave my leg a nudge. “That’s what you get for scaring us so damn bad. You can wait.”

I raised a brow. “I could think of a few ways to wring the answer out of you.”

Her cheeks darkened, and Tiana chuckled next to me. But there was still one member I hadn’t asked about.

“And Elisa?”

Rhallani sobered, then brushed a lock of Elisa’s hair out of her face. “She saved the day. She started chucking those false daylight spheres into the air until the guards sent to see why the mine was exploding saw them. If it weren’t for her, reinforcements wouldn’t have arrived in time.”

I let out a whistle. Smart and resourceful. “We’ll have to find a way to properly thank her, then.” Rhallani bit her lip, and I gave her a chiding glare. “A non-sexual way, Rhallani. She’s got a girlfriend. I think.”

Rhallani pouted, but I could tell her heart wasn’t in it. I looked around at all of them. Noelle was clearly listening, so I said, “you all did amazing. I couldn’t ask for a better group to call family.” I gave both Tiana and Serena a squeeze since they’d both saved my life a few times. Tiana’s lips quirked upward, and Serena made a soft noise between a hum and a gasp. Her brows furrowed, but she didn’t stop feigning sleep.

That made me frown. My paranoid mind suggested she was pretending to be out so that she didn’t have to participate in the conversation, and it was hard to come up with an alternative reason for her to be avoiding me. I wished I knew what was bothering her, but the list of possibilities was so long it was hard to pick one out.

Noelle hopped off the side of the wagon. “We’re here. They must’ve sent someone ahead, because there are people waiting.”

I placed a kiss on Serena’s temple and said loud enough for the others to hear, “time to wake up.”She waited a beat, then opened her eyes. There was a hint of gratitude on her face that I hadn’t outed her, but it was nearly hidden by worry and guilt. She definitely had something she wanted to talk about. Whatever it was, she must want to do it in private. She summoned her armor and I tossed the blanket into the corner.

The wagon came to a stop and we all climbed out—some a little more unsteadily than others, though Serena was quick to catch me—and turned to where men and women in robes were already heading towards the bulky bundle under a large tan tarp that occupied the wagon in front of us. One reached out and grabbed the corner.

“Oh, no, I wouldn’t—” I tried to say.

Too late. They threw the tarp aside and someone screamed. The queen’s face stared out the side of the wagon with dead eyes around the gash I’d left in her head. One of the scribes fainted on the spot, and two more went running inside. Another, in a much more tactful manner, took a peak under the other tarp at the royal. They paled and quickly replaced it, then the scribes were all talking hurriedly among themselves.

“How are you feeling?” Serena asked in a strained voice.

I grinned at her. “Better than I should, that’s for sure.”

She glared at me, but the skin around her mouth had loosened. Whatever was bothering her was separate from my health, it seemed. “Your arm?”

I lifted it, then opened and closed the fingers a few times. “Hurts like a bitch, but I’ll get over it. It’ll heal. Probably. A small price to pay, all things considered.” Though when I checked my status, I winced.

[Health: 93/220]

[Mana: 102/140]

[Soul Essence: 43/100]

Whatever kind of injury I bore, it was seriously fucking with my health regen. Serena’s healing should have me much closer to cap, but it seemed it was all going to my arm. The Soul Essence remained though, which was interesting. Maybe it acted like Stamina, always there as an invisible resource, and I’d just been affected in a way that caused it to show up in my status menu.

Questions for after I’d gotten some sleep. The scribes were still running around and I wasn’t quite ready to try and fight my way through the crowd that had gathered. Tiana mentioned something about checking in, then she was gone. I followed her with my eyes, trying to keep my gaze from drifting towards her hips that were definitely swaying more than normal, when my eye was drawn to where several people were being pushed aside, and Cynthia walked out.

Her eyes were still red-rimmed and there were bags under them. Her long, dark blond hair was messy and dull, only tied back as an afterthought. I wasn’t sure, but it looked like she was wearing the same clothes as when we’d talked early yesterday morning.

Someone tried to grab her arm, but they weren’t willing to get close enough to the giant spider to do it. She headed straight for me, only stopping long enough to look at the queen’s face and turn a shade of green. She clenched her fists, then walked up to me with her eyes fixed on a point in front of her.

“I—I know you didn’t officially take the job, but you didn’t find any trace of her, did you? Maybe something to suggest that it was…quick?” She nearly choked on the last word, but she forced it out.

Serena looked up at me with a poorly concealed smile. I didn’t bother hiding mine. “I found a couple things, but nothing really struck me as a decent memento. Instead, I found something better.”

Her eyes rose slowly to mine uncomprehendingly. Her brows drew close enough together that they were touching, and tears started to build in the corners of her eyes. Then her gaze flicked to something behind me and she swayed on her feet.

I glanced to where Rhallani was helping Elisa out of the wagon. It seemed her leg was still bothering her. “She’s a little worse for wear, but I figured—”

Cynthia sprinted past me with a sharp cry. Elisa had just enough time to widen her eyes before Cynthia practically bowled over her. They would have ended up in the dirt if Rhallani hadn’t caught them. Cynthia clutched her friend with trembling arms, her face buried in Elisa’s shoulder.

Elisa looked at me in surprise, then a smile crept across her face. I inclined my head and she wasted no time in embracing Cynthia right back. Cynthia let out a sob, then pulled back. “I didn’t—Camden said—”

Elisa, it seemed, was done wasting time. She pressed her lips to Cynthia’s and that was all it took. There were smiles all around as the two melted into one another, and I squeezed Serena’s shoulder. “I’d like you to go collect the twins,” I told her. Her gaze snapped up to mine, a frown on her beautiful face. “They trust you, and I’m sure they’re worried that we didn’t come back last night. Besides, it looks like you could use some time to think.”

She paled. “Zaren—”

“It’s alright.” I put a hand to her cheek. “I know the feeling. Whatever it is, we can talk about it later, okay? You’ll have my full and undivided attention. I’d just feel a lot better with everyone under the same roof as soon as possible, and I’m not sure I’m up for the journey to Korey’s warehouse.”

She bit her lip, then nodded. She stepped out from under my arm and Noelle took her spot. It was a little awkward since she was much further from my height than Serena was, but she now had as much strength as the two of us put together, so she was more than sturdy enough to lean on.

Rhallani took my other side and we made our way into the room. People inside were running around in a near-panic, and I saw at least six different adventurers grilling the captain. Likely trying to see what kind of loot they could get their hands on. We picked our way to a flustered looking receptionist who turned the color of parchment when we told her who we were.

She disappeared and returned with an older woman who got our information and started the process of calculating the reward. She told us that it would probably take a day or two to calculate—especially since most of the corpses we’d left underground—but she anticipated a rather large payday and an elevation to at least C-rank. That was as high as we could get without jumping through a number of hoops that went straight in one ear and out the other.

I wanted to split the funds between all of us, but Rhallani jumped in and saved me from making a fool of myself. In the eyes of the guild, Noelle and Rhallani were simply extensions of me. She manged to convince the receptionist I meant the human members of my group, and I agreed with her. As much as it irked me, this wasn’t the time or place to make a stink.

She did give me an odd look when I mentioned sending a part of the payout to the guards who’d been injured. She all but flat out refused me, citing that it simply wasn’t done. The guards had been doing their job, no less, no more. I could tell arguing would get me nowhere, so I thanked her and pulled Rhallani aside.

“Alright, talk to me. How do we get those guards paid? I’m not leaving the people who saved my ass out to dry.”

But she just shrugged. “I’m an Arelim, remember? I know as much about the inner workings of the guild as you do.”

Right. Spending a day in the bowels of a Valax nest had been shitty enough to make me forget that the world was still currently awful. I rubbed the bridge of my nose. Then I realized I did know someone who was familiar with the guild. “Come on, we’ve got a debt to collect on.”

They followed me back out to where Elisa and Cynthia were sitting on the back of the wagon we’d rode in on. Elisa’s head was resting on Cynthia’s shoulder while the blond ran her fingers through Elisa’s hair. Both were teary eyed and smiling from ear to ear.

Cynthia lit up when she saw me. “I don’t know how I can ever thank you.”

I crossed my arms, which sent pain shooting up the burned one. I resisted the urge to wince. “Actually, I’ve got an idea for how you can do just that.” I briefly told her what I wanted to do, and she frowned.

She opened her mouth to say something, paused, then said, “Normally, it doesn’t work like that.”I quashed the heavy sigh that was fighting its way out. Still, I got the feeling she was holding something back. “Forget conventions, can it be done?”

She leaned her cheek on Elisa’s head, twirling her finger in Elisa’s hair. “Well, I suppose you could make it a conditional donation. You’d have to have someone on the guard to make sure the funds went where they were supposed to, though.”

The captain had already said she’d do that, even if she’d been clearly skeptical I could pull it off. “Think you could get it done?”

She opened her mouth, then closed it. Then she looked away. “I could have, but I don’t work for the guild anymore.”

Elisa shot up. “What!?”

Cynthia flinched. “Well, I might have maybe attacked Camden a bit when he mentioned he’d abandoned you down there. His uncle is a count in the capital, so the guild basically had no choice but to fire me.”

Elisa’s face fell. “That’s bullshit! You loved your job! How can you transfer to the capital now?”

Cynthia’s shoulders slumped, but I smelled opportunity. “Cynthia,” she looked up at me, “what would it take for you to be able to get money to those guards’ families?”

Her brow furrowed. “I told you, I don’t work for the guild anymore. I’m pretty sure the only reason they haven’t kicked me out completely is because they knew I was—” she cut off, glancing at Elisa. “Grieving,” she finished. Elisa’s bottom lip trembled, and she wrapped her arms even tighter around Cynthia. “You’d have to hire me for something like that and give me access to your funds.”

Her tone suggested she didn’t believe I’d do something like that, but I smirked. “What exactly did you do as a guild receptionist?”

“Dealt with adventurers, mainly. Handled payouts, cuts for guilds and companies, dealt with insurance policies, calculated payouts for impromptu jobs, handled postings and mediating deals and grievances between adventurers,” she rattled off.

I whistled. “That’s quite a bit. You’re good with numbers, then?”

“She’s the best!” Elisa jumped in. “If it weren’t for her, I’d have never been able to scrape together the money for my gadgets. She also helped me negotiate the loans I took.”

“Ever do any work in the Pens?”

She grimaced. “Of course not!” Then her gaze flicked to where Rhallani and Noelle stood behind me and she paled. “Um, I mean, I never had the opportunity,” she amended in a forced tone.

I took a good look at her. At the person behind her steel gray eyes. I decided I liked what I saw. “Two more questions. First, your opinion on demi-humans. And I’d like the truth, please. I won’t be angry with whatever you’ve got to say.”

Her gaze flicked to my companions again and she swallowed. “Well, I haven’t dealt with many personally, but I’ve never had a problem with the few I’ve met. I think this world can be unnecessarily cruel to them, but it can be pretty shitty to just about anyone.”

I nodded. “You’d have no issue working with them, then?”

“No, of course I wouldn’t—” then she processed what I’d said. “Wait, are you offering me a job right now?”“I’m definitely considering it. I’ve got no head for finances, so I’m going to need someone who does.”

Elisa straightened, then leaned in close and started whispering rapidly in Cynthia’s ear. Her brows rose with every word, but she just looked at me and adopted a businesslike manner. “Cards on the table, I suppose. I remember you from when you brought in those Maleks.”

“Maleks?” Rhallani burst out.

“Ah, yes, that’s what we’re calling them. Someone in the capital passed along the information.” I heard the sound of frantic scribbling and smiled, then gestured for her to continue. “You were only E rank. I’m sure you’ll get bumped up to C rank for this, but that’s hardly something you need a bookkeeper for.”

“No, but as a lord I’d be a fool not to find one.”

Elisa’s jaw dropped and Cynthia’s nostrils flared. “A lord?”

“I own some land in the capital,” I said offhandedly.

She stood abruptly with her hands clasped in front of her. “A lord,” she repeated. “And you’d just…hire me? You don’t even know me,” she pointed out.

Her hesitance only made me feel like I was doing the right thing. Someone untrustworthy would have leapt at the chance. “I know you were willing to spend your life’s savings just to get something to remember the person you care about.” Elisa started at that. “I also know you’re plenty intelligent just by talking with you, and you were clearly good enough to get a job at the guild.” I shrugged. “If it helps, consider this situation with the guards an interview.”

She folded one arm across her stomach and brought the other to her face, biting down on one crooked finger. “You’ll be heading to the capital, then?”

“I will, but it sounds like that was already your plan.”

She glanced back at her friend. “I won’t leave Elisa, and we don’t have enough to pay off her debts. Not yet, anyways.” Her eyes flicked back to mine, almost daring me to offer.

But I didn’t need to. “Actually, I had her listed as part of the group that killed the queen. Her gadgets were invaluable, so she’ll get a sizable cut.”

Cynthia looked like the wind had been knocked out of her. She sat back down hard, reaching out blindly for Elisa. Elisa just looked up at me. “Wait, am I rich?”

“I don’t know about rich, but you’ve definitely got money now.” She gripped Cynthia’s hand tightly. “And if it isn’t enough, then I’d be happy to employ you, too. I’ve got some ideas for commissions I’d like you to make, and if they work half as well as I’m hoping I’ll keep you on as a member of my household, too.”

Cynthia took a breath. “Then it sounds like I’d better get started. Wait here, I’ll run and get the necessary paperwork.” She gave Elisa one last squeeze and strode off towards the guild with a renewed sense of purpose.

We left a slightly shell-shocked Elisa on the wagon after she’d assured us she’d be fine there until Cynthia returned and started back towards the guild. Once we were inside, though, my gaze was drawn to a certain someone in alluring black and red robes. Tiana sat on a bench with her head in her hands, her elbows resting on her knees.

I exchanged a glance with Rhallani and Noelle, then immediately headed for her. I sat on the bench close enough that our legs were touching, but she didn’t react until I’d put a hand on her back. Rhallani plopped down on her other side and Noelle sidled up to me. “You alright?” I asked.

Her eyes were red-rimmed, but it was hard to tell if it was from fear, sadness, or anger. “What? Oh, yeah, I’m fine. Just dealing with shit.”

I didn’t remove my hand from her back, and she made no move to pull away. “Anything I can help with?”She let out a long breath. “That asshole Camden told everyone I was dead. They sent death notifications to my family. I’ve already sent out letters to correct them, but I don’t have the luxury of being able to afford the same speed of communication as the guild.” She sniffled.

I slid my hand to her shoulder and pulled her to me. She let her head fall onto my shoulder and sniffled again. “I’m sorry.”

She shrugged. “Shit happens. I still remember the day I got my class. My mom cried her eyes out. My dad was an adventurer who never came home, and her biggest fear was that I’d do the same.”

“Not if I can help it.”

That brought out a small smile, but it didn’t last long. “That isn’t even all of it. Since I’m legally dead until the guild can correct the mistake—something that won’t happen quickly, let me tell you—my funds are all locked up, my rank is suspended, and they’ve even canceled the room I booked. It’s all a fucking mess.”

Rhallani grabbed Tiana’s hand. “That’s alright, you can just stay with us!”

I was under no illusions as to what she hoped would happen, so I shot her a glare. “Tiana, you literally sacrificed yourself for me. Making sure you have somewhere to sleep tonight is the absolute least I can do.”She sat up and looked from me to Rhallani. “I—I don’t know. I’m not sure if that’s a good idea.”

Her thighs rubbed together when she said it, so I raised a brow. “You don’t have to share a room with me. We’ve got two, and I can easily afford another one if you’d like one to yourself.”

“It’s not like that,” she said. “I just…oh, fuck it. You remember the skill I mentioned that boosts my power but guts my regen?”

“I do.”

“Well, I’ve got another one. One from my other class.”

I leaned away. “Ah, I see.”

She followed, barely letting any space grow between us, then practically growled before pushing away from me. “See? This is why I can’t stay with you, no matter how much I want to! It makes me so godsdamned—” She took a breath. “It becomes difficult to make rational choices, and I’m not sure if I could last the night without doing something we’d both regret.”

Rhallani scoffed. “The only thing he’d regret is not getting into bed with you.”

“Rhallani, not helping,” I scolded. I put my hand on Tiana’s thigh, and she had to stifle a moan. “If you need relief, I’m more than happy to help. We don’t have to go all the way.”

Tiana covered my hand with her own and slid my hand towards her inner thigh. She was starting to breathe a little heavier now. “Fuck, I can’t—you don’t understand, I—” She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. “I don’t want to fuck you just because of a skill, okay? But in my current state, it’s getting harder and harder to remember why that is.”

She grit her teeth. “I’ll start justifying things, making concessions, and the next thing I know I’m waking up in the morning walking bowlegged because I couldn’t handle my own fucking skill and I’ve ruined whatever chance we might have had at—” she clamped a hand over her mouth.

Rhallani’s eyes had gone dangerously wide, so I cleared my throat. “I think I’m beginning to see the problem.” I tried to remove my hand from her thigh to give her some breathing room but she just pushed it closer to her core. I ran my thumb over the sensitive flesh and she sucked in air. “This debuff, is it time based?”

“It’ll go away eventually,” she panted, “but orgasms help. A lot. Unfortunately, dealing with it myself is basically impossible.”

“Rhallani is good with her tongue.” We all looked at Noelle in shock, who just shrugged. “Serena seems to enjoy it.”

She wasn’t wrong, though she was the last person I’d have expected to say as much. I patted her head and turned my attention back to Tiana, who was biting down hard on her lip. “If I may make a suggestion—”

“Please do, because It’s getting hard to remember why jumping you in public is a no-no.”

“Go back to the inn with Rhallani,” I said. Rhallani beamed at me. “Let her help you get to a point where you can think straight, then you can make a decision. Worst comes to worst, we can always get you something to help you sleep off the strongest of the effects.”

Her lips were slightly parted, and from the way her gaze kept flicking between my eyes and my lips I worried she might actually pounce on me in the middle of the guild. “Rhallani. Yes. That’s a good idea. I can—I should see if the guild still has my things. But I should do it soon, because having you nearby is really making it tough to think.”

I extracted my hand. She whimpered, but she let me go. “That’s probably smart. I’ve still got some things to take care of. Rhallani, will you go with her?”

Rhallani wrapped her arms around Tiana’s waist, and the taller girl shuddered. “Damn right I will! At this rate, we might have to stop at an alleyway on the way home or something.”

“Or a bathroom,” Tiana breathed. “I could use a bathroom right now.”

Rhallani’s grin widened. She mouthed I love you so much at me, then she stood. She leaned down and whispered something else in Tiana’s ear, and Tiana shot to her feet. “See you at the inn,” she said hastily, then she dragged a beaming Rhallani off and out of sight.

I shook my head. “I worry we’ve created a monster,” I told Noelle.

When I glanced at her, she was looking at the ground. “Should I go to the inn as well, then?”

“Of course not. I’m crippled right now, remember?” I held up my damaged arm. “I need my fierce protector for when I inevitably find trouble.”

The corners of her mouth curled upwards ever so slightly but her face remained angled downwards. A happy hum started in her chest. “I suppose you are pretty helpless when you don’t have Rhallani and Serena babysitting you.”

My brows rose. “Is that so?”

Her lips kept creeping upward. “Yes. Without us, you can’t help but get into bad situations. You are a magnet for misfortune. Just look at me, for instance.”

I laughed. “You certainly are trouble, I’ll give you that.” I wrapped an arm around her and hugged her tight. “Luckily for you, trouble is the closest thing to a home I’ve ever had.”

Her hum rose in volume and we sat there until Cynthia came and found us. She gave me a stack of papers and had me fill them out while she went to retrieve Elisa. By the time we were done, the sun had nearly set. She gave them a professional once-over, then nodded and confirmed she’d now have temporary power over the money granted to me by the guild and nothing else. If I wanted to give her more access after she’d proved herself, she’d take care of it.

Elisa was more than happy to stay with Cynthia, so I told them to meet me tomorrow afternoon at the Swallow’s Tail to discuss next steps and we bid them farewell. On the way to the inn we passed the store where I’d bought the potions that had gotten us through the caves and an idea occurred to me. Something I remembered seeing and mentally marking for a future occasion.

“You know,” I said to Noelle, placing my hand at the nape of her neck, “we’re going to have to celebrate.”

Noelle’s pupils expanded. “Celebrate what?”

A gentle tug was all it took to pull her into my side. “Take your pick. Rhallani’s got a new class, you’ve got a class that fits you, Tiana will be joining the household in some capacity, we survived an angry Valax queen.” I shrugged. “Either way, I know something that’ll make Rhallani happy. If there’s anything you want, be sure to tell me.”

I kept my hand on her shoulder and guided her into the store. Noelle didn’t say anything while I went and bought the item in question, but I could tell that she was thinking hard. Once we were done, we headed straight for the inn. There was a hot bath that was calling my name.

# # #

Despite how long it took us to finish with Cynthia’s paperwork, we still got back to the inn at the same time as Rhallani and Tiana. The latter looked like she was in better control of herself already with a frayed canvas bag over her shoulder and the former was grinning so widely it left no question as to what had taken them so long.

We all went up to the rooms where Serena was waiting with the twins. Ryoko launched herself at me with a barrage of hugs and elated thank you’s. The others watched with plenty of amusement while she gave me a rushed and frantic rundown of the many things Garm had shown her over the last day and how much she liked the alchemist’s kit I’d bought for her to use. Even Tsuki couldn’t hide her smile while she watched her sister gush.

But once the excitement died down I saw her nose wrinkle. I laughed and told them we could talk more after those of us that had spent the last day underground had some nice long baths, which earned me more than a few appreciative glances.

I summoned our packs and everyone got spare changes of clothes and started towards the Swallow’s Tail’s extensive baths. On the way, Rhallani pulled me aside. She gave me a quick hushed rundown of her discussion with Noelle yesterday morning. My brows rose drastically when she told me about the deal she’d worked out with Noelle. That Noelle was willing to be the one to push the boundaries, and that whatever she did to me she was comfortable with me doing to her. Suddenly her actions in the cave made a little more sense.

I had more than a few questions, but she just gave me a peck on the cheek and hurried off towards the womens’ side of the baths. I shook my head and made my lonely way to the men’s side. Next time we stayed at an inn, I was going to find one with mixed bathing. I was pretty sure the others would enjoy that even more than I would, but bathing alone left me entirely too much time with my thoughts.

Just the thought of a nice hot soak made me want to cry a little, but I knew better than to climb into the communal bath while covered in so much dirt, grime, and spider guts. That was a quick way to get banned from the baths, so I stripped down and found my way to the washing area. There were a few other men around, but they paid me no heed past some curious glances at my messed up arm while I found a stool, a bar of soap, and a container of washing powder and got to work cleaning.

It wasn’t long before I ran into a problem. While I could move it with relative accuracy and my feeling was starting to come back in full, my injured hand was in no shape to keep hold of a bar of soap. That meant cleaning anywhere my left hand couldn’t reach was going to be a serious pain. After I’d nearly dropped it a third time, I simply let my hands rest on my thighs and closed my eyes with a tired sigh.

I was just beginning to build up the energy to start again when I felt a presence behind me. Small, warm hands touched my shoulder, then slid down my arm until they were gently prying the soap from my hand. I opened my eyes, rather surprised that the hand wasn’t the light gray of my Arelim. Rather, it was a dark bluish gray, belonging to a completely naked Noelle, already starting to lather up my back.

“You know this is the men’s side, right?” I asked her.

Her hands paused. “You do not want me to help?”

“I didn’t say that.”

Her expression relaxed and she continued cleaning my injured side, slowly and hesitantly. “You are injured. I am simply a servant ensuring her Patron is properly taken care of. It is well within the rules of the establishment so long as there is no penetrative sex. According to Rhallani, at least.”

She moved around my back to start on my left side, the one I’d struggled to reach. “I can only wonder how long she’s been wanting to use that excuse. Did she tell you to come?”

Noelle didn’t answer right away, and I closed my eyes to simply enjoy the feeling of her soapy hands sliding along my aching muscles. “She suggested it.” She thoroughly cleaned my arm, then my shoulder, then started working on my back and side. Going lower and lower. “After I asked her, at least.”

I chuckled. “I see. Well in that case, I can hardly tell you to leave now. Especially not when you’re doing such a good job.”

Her hum returned and her hands picked up their pace. She kept going lower until she was thoroughly cleaning my backside, which earned more than one surprised grunt from me. It was hardly uncomfortable, and I was more interested in seeing how far she was willing to go without any prompting from me one way or the other, so I didn’t tell her to stop. That meant when she finally finished behind me and started around towards my front, a certain part of me was standing at attention.

“You don’t have to clean anywhere that makes you uncomfortable,” I said softly. “You’ve gotten all the parts I can’t reach. I can take it from here. If you want.”

She just knelt wordlessly between my legs and started at my calves, working her way up. I reached down into a container that had powder for hair and put some in my hand, then I started to gently massage it into her scalp while she worked higher and higher up my legs. Her hands came to a stop and I worried I might have caught her off guard, but then I saw how her eyes were rolled into the back of her head and smiled. I kept massaging, being careful to keep the soap from her face, and she let out a soft gasp.

She slowly came back to herself and continued her work. I washed her while she washed me, working around my groin and up my stomach. She slid her hands up my chest then paused, looking up at me with wide, uncertain eyes. I slid my own hands up her sides and gently cupped her breasts, working the soap trailing from her scalp into her chest with gentle, but firm movements.

A soft sound of encouragement slipped past her lips and her hands continued moving over my body. I could tell anytime I hit a sensitive spot from how her fingers would dig into me and took note. I washed her front, my large hands on her tiny frame covering ground much quicker than hers, and slid my hands down her body. I avoided her nethers, just as she had mine, but I washed everywhere else I could reach from where I sat. Her narrow frame and my longer arms meant there wasn’t much that was out of reach, especially when she pushed in closer as I got lower.

Even though I was sitting, her face wasn’t much further up than mine. I’d thought we’d gone as far as we would until I looked up at her and realized just how close she was to me. Her hands slid back up my chest, then over my shoulders, then around the back of my neck. Her lips parted slightly, and her alluringly crimson eyes stared into mine unblinkingly.

Slowly, giving her plenty of time to react, I leaned in. It was all she needed to hesitantly press her lips to mine. It was brief and soft, hesitant and chaste compared to many of the other kisses I’d shared in the last three weeks, but it was a massive step forward for her.

Almost as massive as her hand wrapping around my still-hard length and giving it a single, slow stroke. “I—it seems I missed a spot,” she breathed.

I chuckled. “You’ve been spending too much time with Rhallani.” But I knew what her action meant. I slipped a hand over her thin belly and slowly lowered it until I could gently press a finger against her lower lips. She gasped and her hand tightened around my member to the point where it was almost painful, but her hips bucked towards me ever so slightly.

I began to gently rub circles around her outer lips with two fingers and she leaned into me, burying her face in my neck. Her hand started stroking faster and faster, and when I shifted my fingers to touch the nub at the hood of her sex I felt her sharp canines rake against my flesh.

Her hand froze, and I put my other hand on her upper back, massaging the tender muscles around her regrowing wings. “It’s alright, I can take it. Promise.”

She resumed, pumping even harder than before, and her teeth pressed into me. Her other hand sunk into my hair and she used to to pull her body into mine with as much force as her newly enhanced strength could manage. I rubbed faster and faster and she bit down as hard as she could without breaking skin. It wasn’t long before I felt release wash through her body, and her hand around my length gripped me so tightly I feared she might rip my member off.

But my discussion with Tiana earlier and the thought of what she and Rhallani had been up to had me more than a little pent up before I’d even reached the bathhouse. Noelle’s presence and ministrations had built me up further, and feeling her climaxing while pressed against me, her hand wrapped around the base of my cock, was enough to push me over the edge.

I pressed her into me and came with a grunt, shooting ropes of seed onto the bathhouse floor. Once I caught my breath I threw a pail of water over the pools, washing them away before anyone saw them and got upset. Noelle stayed pressed into me, her face buried into the crook of my neck and her chest heaving, so I grabbed more pails and began to rinse us off.

She reluctantly withdrew from my embrace when I had nearly all the soap gone, then she went to stand behind me and started working the washing powder into my hair. Her fingers on my scalp felt nearly as good as her hand had around my cock, so I closed my eyes and just enjoyed it.

“I was very upset earlier,” she said finally. “When you went off alone to fight. It made me…it made the ache in my chest hurt very badly.”

“I’m sorry,” I told her. “If I’d have been able to think of any other way, I wouldn’t have.”

She grunted. “I know. I thought about it the whole way back. What I could have done differently. What any of us could have done differently. I could think of nothing.”

Her hum had lowered. She was more upset than I’d ever seen her. “Sometimes the only way to make it through the day is to find the least shitty option,” I said.

Water rushed over me while she rinsed the soap from my hair, then her front pushed against my back. Her arms snaked over my shoulders and wrapped around me while she pressed her forehead into the nape of my neck. “I know.” Her voice trembled with emotion. “I know that, but it just makes the ache hurt worse. I know you did the best you could, but I’m still angry. Angry at you, but also happy you’re okay, and other things I don’t know how to make sense of.”

I put my good hand on her arm and ran my thumb along it. “Emotions are rarely logical. You feel the way that you feel, and understanding why is only a part in dealing with those emotions. You spent so long too afraid to feel anything it’s no wonder you’re a little confused now. That’s okay. Good, even. It means you’re growing. Healing. You’re frustrated by events that were out of your control, and that’s a completely natural reaction. All we can do is look at what we did and how we can do better next time.”

I gently pulled her arms apart enough that I could turn and look up at her. She was angrily blinking back tears, and her lips fought to curve downward despite her best efforts. I gently caressed her cheek and leaned in to give her another soft kiss. When I pulled away, her lips were much closer to neutral than before. “And that’s my promise to you. To all of you. I’ll do better next time. And I’ll do better than that the time after.”

“The best version of ourself is a goal we’ll probably never reach, but as long as we’re better than we were yesterday, we’re doing pretty damn good. Wouldn’t you agree?”

She gave me a curt nod and I stood. “Good. Now, would you like to join me in the bath? I don’t know about you, but I could really use a good soak after all that.”

She nodded again, this time a little more eagerly, and we made our way to the large tub that had a few other guys in it. I couldn’t help but pull her close while the others stared daggers at her body, but she seemed unbothered. She had eyes only for me. There was plenty of space for us to claim a corner to ourselves, and soon I was climbing in with my back to the wall.

Noelle wasted no time in sliding onto my lap and laying her head just underneath my chin. I let out a breath and just relaxed into the water. It was scalding hot and felt fucking wonderful against my skin, especially the parts of me that were a little worse for wear. I used my good hand to rub slow circles on Noelle’s back and she hummed sleepily into my chest.

It was wonderfully peaceful and perfectly serene, so naturally it couldn’t last. We were hit by a wave of water as someone large slid into the bath just next to us. Noelle’s fingers curled against me, but when I opened my eyes I found Pierce sitting next to me, eyes forward.

“You know,” he said after letting the water settle, “if you’re trying to keep a low profile, you’re not doing so good a job at it.”

Noelle nestled deeper into me with what could only be described as a growl that I couldn’t help but agree with. I sighed. “It wasn’t my idea to get attacked by a Valax queen, but getting eaten was out of the question.”

He laughed humorlessly. “Korey is going to be worried. Someone who can survive a tangle with a beast like that isn’t someone he could usually afford.”

“Well you can tell him not to. I care more about the company than the money. I’d rather travel with those I trust.”

He inclined his head. “Fair enough. I’ll pass it along.”

I readjusted so that I could throw my injured arm over the side of the tub while holding Noelle with the other. His eye was drawn to it, but he glanced away quickly. “Pierce, tell me you didn’t ambush me in the bath just for that.”

He didn’t answer right away. He just leaned his head back and sighed, giving me a good look at an old puckered scar that took up most of his chest. “I hate adventuring. If my sister hadn’t asked me to look out for Yen, I wouldn’t be here.” He scratched absentmindedly at the scar. “Rhallani was lucky you stumbled across her in that tower. The caravan is lucky you were around to deal with those blightwolves. Now this kingdom is incredibly lucky you were around to deal with that queen before she was well and truly entrenched.”

I didn’t like where this conversation was headed. “And?”

“And a wise man once told me that three times is a pattern.” The fact that he only felt the need to say the last part spoke volumes. He was guessing I already knew the first half. “Patterns rarely stop at three. If we’ve got more queen-sized problems on the horizon, I’d like to know.”

“The world is a cruel place, Pierce. I can hardly tell you the future, but I can tell you that bad shit happens every day. I just tend to be a magnet for it.”

He grunted. “Maybe. But then so were the Seven. Every trial they persevered through prepared them for their fight with Grimsbane. If they hadn’t fought their way to his doorstep, he’d have swatted them down like flies.” His eyes drifted towards me. “Makes me wonder just what the gods are preparing you for.”

I snorted. “I think you’re putting a bit too much faith in the gods.”

He shrugged, disturbing the water that had finally started to still around him. “Perhaps. And yet, here you are. Barely more than a kid, but you know shit that suggests you probably never were one. Things that nobody talks about since the war ended.” His expression sobered. “The ones doing the Neko-baiting, they’re related to you, aren’t they?”

Noelle tensed against my chest. I glanced down at her. She was glaring daggers at Pierce, no doubt ready to jump to my defense if the need arose. “If you think I’m affiliated with someone capable of that, then we might have to rethink our tentative partnership.”

He didn’t so much as flinch, though that was hardly surprising. “Then you’re telling me they’ve got nothing to do with you? I’ve seen how you are with your women, so I doubt they’re friends of yours, but in my experience when too many things happen that are out of the ordinary, they’re connected somehow.”

I leaned my head back and closed my eyes. The blightwolves. The Neko-baiting. The thugs hunting for the sword. Noelle’s class. A fucking Valax queen. All independent threads, yet my instincts were screaming at me that all of it was connected. I just couldn’t see how. “There’s a pretty good chance we run into them before all is said and done.”

He exhaled through his nose. “I thought as much. Any other dangers I should be aware of?”

“Apparently there’s a gnoll problem between us and the capital.”

He barked out a laugh. “Isn’t there always?”

“It’s not too late, you know,” I told him. I lifted my head enough to search his expression. “Get you and yours as far from me as possible while you still can.”

He shook his head and stood. The scar on his chest wasn’t the only one he bore. Pierce had seen more than his fair share of combat. “People are always so quick to blame the heroes for the times those heroes are born into. In my experience,” he tapped his thumb to the scar, “dark times will come whether we want them to or not. Best to be at the side of the ones who can actually do something about it.”

He scooped up a towel and headed off. As soon as he’d left the water I turned my attention back to the girl half-asleep in my arms. Once Pierce had left, the tension had fled her body. The moment she started to relax, her eyes drooped. I brushed a thumb against her cheek, and she mumbled something unintelligible.

“What do you say we get some real food in us?” I asked her.

She blinked away the sleep tugging at her, then put a hand on either of my shoulders and pulled her face up to mine. I met her halfway and pressed my lips to hers. A soft, sleepy kiss that carried more affection than anything resembling lust, but it was still enough to make a shadow of a smile pull at her mouth. I could already tell she wasn't going to get tired of tasting my lips anytime soon.

“Yes,” she said simply.

Despite our rumbling stomachs, it was still a good while before we finally climbed out of the bath.