《Stonenanny》 Prologue It was early in the morning; the sky was clear after yesterday¡¯s storm. Many gathered for today''s event. Today is the day he thought as two guards drag him in the mud. No more tricks, no secret rescue, no more allies in the dark. The angry crowd slowly split apart as he passed them, they were shouting like a mob at him, but he didn¡¯t care. His rags were soaked wet and dripped from mud as they reached the bench and put his head on it. The crowd became quiet as the old mayor stepped forward. A scroll in his hands. He didn¡¯t open it, he already knows his lines, they all know it. It was the fourth one today and the sun still laid low on the horizon. ¡°In the name of King Ronbal, you Louret from Raveneye found guilty in theft, murder and high treason. The penalty is¡­ death! May Mourteen find mercy in your soul. Executioner, carry out the judgment!¡± It was just a slight nod towards a minotaur next to the bench, the orders were clear. The silence was piercing. Rows could hear as the monstrous beast grip tightened around the axe¡¯s handle. Many elves would have sworn that the wood died again. A swift cut, all it took and the world was rolling for Louret. The sharp pain slowly faded as consciousness failed him. ------------------------------ A white room, here where everything started. Empty, bright, infinite. Well, mostly empty. A lonely chair in the present of a comfy sofa, each with one rather practically not well suited for conversation occupant. On the sofa was lying a mostly humanlike creature in shape. A creature made of black and purple flames and only he knows what else. His flames defying gravity following the being upwards and not the law itself. On the other furniture, a ragged clothed old man with pen and paper in hand only his partner knows why, shifted his weight continuously trying to find reassurance, occasionally looking around like a trapped prey. This was not meant to be. He was not Meouteen, nor this was her domain. This was worse, worse than death. Every sane person would be nervous in the presence of the god of change. ¡°The mad god¡±, this is how most people far across Neloresh called him. A wrong answer or simply bad luck was enough to be rewarded with eternal torment. His existence was at stake and he was aware of it. Every muscle stiffened in his body as the mad god began to speak. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it, it been days since I scattered the last bunch of outsiders and they still haven¡¯t done anything, even worse three is already dead.¡± He squirmed and hit the couch as a bad-tempered child. ¡°I even give them a head start, but nooooo¡­ They rather try to blend in and make a living in the new world.¡± He stopped and took a deep breath, or it looked like it. ¡°Every second feels like an eternity. Do you know what I¡¯m talking about? I¡¯m slowly losing myself as I see ¡®the day¡¯ further and further away.¡±Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. Silence. It felt like an eternity. Louret had to break it or risk the god childish wrath and its consequences. A former assassin yet his voice felt weak. ¡°I might understand it. But¡­ how could it be helped?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know!¡± he shouted. Silence, there was no echo. ¡°I need someone who¡­¡± The being slowly rose from the sofa ¡°lead¡­¡± A wide red grin was forming on its face ¡°them.¡± ¡°And that person would be?¡± He already knew it, but he feared not to play his role. It stepped closer and closer towards Louret and slowly passed him. He didn¡¯t dare to turn toward it. ¡°I might have found the perf¡­ HEY!... You didn¡¯t write anything! What kind of therapist are you?!¡± Louret broke a sweat, the cold mud becamea pleasant memory within seconds. ¡°What?¡± his voice was shaking. ¡°What what? You WERE supposed to write down a well-constructed diagnosis about¡­ never mind.¡± The paper and the pen disappeared with a hand gesture. ¡°I haven¡¯t sent you on your way and you already failed me.¡± Louret wished he spilt the beans and took the deal when he had the chance back then. A few moments and It continued. ¡°Sigh¡­ You going to gather them, train them, make them fulfil their purpose.¡± It placed his hands on Louret shoulders. ¡°Am I clear?¡± ¡°Ye-es.¡± ¡°Good, now let¡¯s discuss the new you.¡± As it reappeared sitting on the sofa. ¡°My what?¡± He felt as the years of training and skill grinding failed him as the words just slipped out. ¡°Gash, you are really slow, aren¡¯t you? You have just been removed from the living, head first. So, you need a new you, it is that simple.¡± He would and could not argue with that. ¡°Usually I use dice for this kind of stuff, but luck is on your side today. Be my guest for your first time¡­ Don¡¯t worry I will be gentle. Gender?¡± A bolt from the blue, it made Louret baffled. ¡°Um¡­¡± ¡°Times up. Female. Race?¡± This was getting ridiculous fast, he had to choose or prepare for the worst. ¡°Human.¡± ¡°Booooring. Let¡¯s go with Gem-gargoyle, 7¡¯9 feet, c-cup. Done, now comes the dice.¡± And a dice formed on Louret lap. ¡°Would you kindly?¡± A seal of fate, a dice from a god. Countless sides yet a preferable outcome. As the legends said. Louret took the dice, there was no going back. Slowly stood up from the chair, glared one last time into the distance and threw the dice. It went too far, he couldn¡¯t see the outcome, his legs were too stiff to move right away. But he could see in the corner of his eyes as the grin slowly formed again on the mad god''s face. ¡°Sorry kid but the game was rigged from the start.¡± Everything went black for Louret and he disappeared. ------------------------------ He took a last peek at the dice. ¡°Hero.¡± it said. ¡°The first good roll over hundreds of years. I better start collecting a few more clich¨¦ or I would be out before ¡®the day¡¯.¡± 1.00 Party, forest, action! Louret was slowly waking up, from what it felt like a thousand-year slumber, yet she wished she were dead. She felt the world and the world made sure she felt it. Like a failed cure attempt on hangover with cheap wine while being seasick. This was the closest she could get to describe what she really felt. Tall trees passed one after another as she gazed at the darkening sky between the greenery. She lied still, motionless surrounded by hay. Stepping of a horse, the rocking of a cart could be heard as it was dragged on the forest path while a small group talked. ¡°And ye said, it wouldn¡¯t wort our time, it been already looted.¡± A low male voice laughter filled the forest ¡°Even a blind could tell, whoever were there first their group was missing a key party member.¡± ¡°Really and who?¡± Asked a silked voice one. ¡°A decent dwarf, with a nose for treasure, what else?¡± ¡°How foolish of me. I thought you were going to say a decent sized rouge.¡± ¡°Oh, ye numb-nut, one more word and I gonna send you into tomorrow.¡± ¡°It won¡¯t be necessary if you continue to breathe in my general direction.¡± ¡°That¡¯s it! You asked¡­¡± He couldn¡¯t finish it. ¡°Shut up back there! You not even helping me pull the cart but now you even jumping around on it. Sit down or get off.¡± Said the centaur on the front. A few moments of awkward silence, a few moments of heaven for the seasick Louret. ¡°Still, I have to acknowledge, it was a decent find from a low-level dwarf.¡± Said the elf. ¡°I know, right. And not even a bland one, it¡¯s a Gem-gargoyle. Its wort could be higher than a smaller treasure golem.¡± Like the anger never existed, excitement took its place. ¡°But how we gonna sell it?¡± Louret mood couldn¡¯t get worse, or so she thought. ¡°One piece. As. We. Should. or risk it and grind it down for gems?¡± ¡°If you asked me. Breaking it down would be the clever thing to do. Human law enforcement weak on the roads and we are far from any city. It certainly not safe to travel with something valued this high.¡± ¡°I¡¯m with Lienc on this one and I wouldn¡¯t mind the ease our load.¡± Louret mood got worse. ¡°How dere ye even thinking about destroying something this remarkable?!¡± Raised his voice the dwarf, which was awarded two heavy gazes from the rest of the party. ¡°Sigh¡­ Fine. For the party.¡±
A few minutes passed and the cart stopped. The sun waved its last ray for the day. The party¡¯s camp was ready before the night greeted them. Lienc took the first watch, it was rare that they were this close to nature and he just couldn¡¯t get enough of it, so he said. The forest was quite only the cracking of campfire broke it time to time. As two fell asleep, one saw the chance. One not exactly well suited for stealth towering grey statue to be precise. Louret carefully sat up in the hay and slowly tried to climb over the edge of the cart. The moment she shifted her weight over the edge, the cart¡¯s axle gave in and snapped with a loud crack, she and the rest of the cargo rolled out to the ground. The elf did not have to alert the party, Louret heard as they were getting up as the elf jumped down from the tree.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Louret could not see in the dark, not without a potion or spell. She had to come up with something and fast. Fighting was not an option not without any equipment. She had to do what a gargoyle did best¡­ ¡­ ¡­ She froze in place on the ground covered with the supplies of the party. The high on alert low-level party got around the broken cart and took a glare at the scene. Broken kegs and spilt out bags and a grey gargoyle covered with their content. The air was filled with the smell of the cheap alcohol. ¡°And you said it could bear it. Now I¡¯m sure height is not the only thing you are missing.¡± As he turned around went back to sleep. ¡°Even if it''s early it seems you have to take the rest of the night since you have some repairing to do.¡± said Lienc leaving the dwarf alone. ¡°And how I¡¯m suppoz to do it alone? Do you really think I can lift the cart and replace the axle?¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sure you are more than capable to do so, since as you say. ¡®Your might is fitting for legends.¡¯¡± -------------- The forest was quiet, once. Now it was filled with what it sounded like a team of woodworkers and woodcutters running up and down drowned in work, with a pinch of dwarf swearing which made the sense for the whole picture of ¡®How can so much noise come from a small camp?¡¯. Louret was placed in the shade where she would not be in the path of the fire filled dwarf. And thus, round two on want to be at large and not in grinder came. She was patient, waited for the perfect moment, lying on the grass motionless. The only thing was out of the picture for her was that it was rather comfortable being still and not a problem. She wasn¡¯t even sure at this point if she had to watch out for the rising of her chest each time she took a breath or even she had to take a breath. The dwarf was in the trance of work fuelled by his rage and the need of sleep. Louret took her chance and began to move toward the dwarf¡¯s weapons which lied next to a tree. A mace, not her preferred choice of weapon, but she had to work with what she had. She took the mace; the dwarf sat facing toward the campfire repairing the wheel. The mace was surprisingly light and as she stood she found the sitting dwarf small even for a dwarf. One swing in style of a golfer and the once working hands slipped down on the wheel, as he became motionless. The momentum of the mace didn¡¯t stop and painted a good part of the camp with blood and brain, even the fire flickered as the dwarf''s head exploded from the impact. The sound was unnatural and ill-fitted for finishing work. Lienc woke up and rolled to his other side to peek at the fire. He wished he didn¡¯t. His friend body felt back headless as the naked statue of an amazon bathed in the raining blood. Crimson, with one word the scene could be summarized. Lienc shouted and jumped up with a wand ready in his hand. And attacked the Gargoyle. ¡°[Ice arrow]!¡± The good manners, composure become meaningless, rage formed from its corpse. He pointed toward the monster and a moment later the spell formed and lunch toward its target. Louret was still stunned by the sheer force her arm displayed with one swing. Her thought just raced to understand what just happened. Her meditation came short. As the projectile forced her to reclaim her balance and took a step back. She didn¡¯t felt anything, she turned toward the elf while the centaur reached toward his longsword. ¡°[Ice arrow]!¡± Clear hit, Louret look down only to find the marks of the spell on her skin as a frozen chunk of blood fallen down. A grin started forming on her face and charged toward the spellcaster. ¡°[Ice arrow]. [Ice arrow]. [Ice arrow].¡± his rage and confidence shifted toward fear after each spell, as the monster charged toward him. The mace swung toward the elf from above and stopped as the centaur stepped between them with a longsword in hands. Lienc fallen to his knees, he felt the greetings of Mourteen. ¡°Don¡¯t just sit there, do something!¡± Snapped at him as he used his backside to gain the upper hand and push away his foe. Louret felt back, the centaur legs were stronger than her. As she stood up the sword hit her left side cracking the skin and taking a smaller chunk out of her torso. She kept her balance, constricted the sword''s blade to her side with her arm and swung the mace towards the centaur¡¯s horseback. Like the sound of thecracking wood on the campfire, it was similar. The centaur dropped his weapon and felt over onto the elf. The cry out wan unbearable. Louret swung the mace two more times and the forest could welcome her old friend, silence. 1.01 Me time She stood there, blood-soaked and motionless, it was a pleasant, calming feeling being still, and she needed that after the recent events. Her life turn upside down and she fell quickly. Drip. That¡¯s it, she thought. Rock bottom. She had been betrayed, tortured, executed, played by the mad god, changed and employed by it. Without lead or hint where to start and without knowing¡­ the deadline. It terrified her, the game just started and she was already losing. Drip. A moment of clarity in the ocean of madness. The rush of adrenalin slowly died down as she became relaxed, but she had no time to waste. The fire was already weak, she had to feed it or be blind till morning. Drip. And also clean herself. The blood was already cold, she didn¡¯t feel it, she knew it was from experience. She bent a little, the pain shocked her to cramp from the hit she just got before. She fell to her knees and fought against the agony, silently. Drip. A minute passed by or so. As she reached the fire crawling on all four and fed it. The blood dried on her skin and started to slowly to peel down in chunks. The pain didn¡¯t fade. Crawled back to the spellcaster and searched him. Potions, that¡¯s what she needed, or at least some kind of painkiller before the pain kills her. Luck was on her side, yet she felt lucky. A small pouch, inside some labelled vials. That was enough, it had to be. Opened the first one that said anything health related and blindly trusted its content. The taste was unfamiliar, either it was a bad-grade potion or she just drunk poison. She couldn¡¯t keep it together, she had to laugh. She did it without a sound. Nothing happened, she drank the potion yet there was an effect. She tossed away the pouch and leaned against the tree next to the elf. ¡°And they say Dullahan doesn¡¯t exist, yet I sit right before one. The headless horseman.¡± There was no voice she just gaped the words despite that she felt she just told the joke of her life and laughed again. The lack of moving and support helped with the pain as time passed, while she eyed her only companions, the corpses. A short wand with a small piece of abright blue gem at it tip caught her eyes. Hunger, it reminded her. She felt the instinct that talked to her, while she eyed the candy-like gem. It must be a cruel joke, she giggled as took the wand. The wand was crude and cheap, no enchanting rune of any kind. It reminded her what it was like in the beginning, when the world seemed to be full of wonders in her eyes while she joined her first party. She took the candy and throw the stick into the fire. ¡°I must be mad.¡± she said it without a voice and put the gem into her mouth. She played with the blue stone in her mouth and out of curiosity she bit it. A small piece of candy, her mind didn¡¯t trick her. Its sweet taste was wonderful, her tastebuds exploded, as she ground it into smaller pieces, its taste became more instance. It was a small piece of heaven, joy justradiated from the smile on her face, until the gem lasted. Until it lasted. The fire was flickering again, but she felt like she just fed it a few minutes ago. She got up and put some more on it. Something was missing, like a distant memory as she ranher hand down on the place where the sword hit her, thinking about what was missing. It had to be a joke she thought, the pain was gone, and she felt alright. A small piece of sapphire wort more than a dozen health potions. This was a shocking discovery and an unpleasant one as well. The pain freed money grinder, had no more obstacle in front of her to get going with her well out thought improvised plan. Clean body and loot corpses. She felt young again, it was like looting from bandits and thugs while competing for low-level village quests, but the well-trained hand and her immense body strength didn¡¯t give nostalgia a proper time it deserved, within minutes she stood before three naked headless corpses in the blood-soaked grass.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Naked. It ran through her mind and as she looked down. She was naked. Unfortunately, nobody alive was there to unravel the myth that it is possible for a gargoyle to blush. May the future generation find luck this kind. She was not sure to be proud or embarrassed by her body. The raw power and resistance were narcotic, the power of youth as she described it, while the problem still stood, that he became a she. A minute past as she just stared at herself by looking down, and become ashamed of it and looked away. Hard truth it could not be denied, and she had no power to solve this, unless a mason is capable such a task without killing her there was little to no chance to change, and she wasn¡¯t even sure it was possible. Not much what she had collected from the want to be rich by grinding down the poor gem-gargoyle party. A few flasks, an intact small keg, blood-soaked clothes and leather armour, a lint-free robe, mace, longsword and of course a coin pouch. It was not much by any standard, but still more than nothing. With the little water she had from the flasks she decided to clean herself and the centaur¡¯s armour, since nothing else seemed to fit better. As the water poured down on her, resolving the blood, she followed it with her hand down, slowly passing by her breasts down after her abs to the nethery parts as her hand caught up with the flow of water she closed her thighs enclosing her hand between them. The shock-like bliss caught her off guard, she bitten her lips, dropping the flask from her other hand to the ground and taking a handful of her own breast. The sensation was unknown to her, she felt her legs weak, to keep herself, she pressed her back against a tree and slowly lowered herself to the ground. Her hand slipped and reached deeper into the flesh like softer parts. The motion was natural as she massaged her inner part in accelerated paste while groped a handful of herbreast like a stress ball. The build-up was too fast, the climax was unexpected, her eyes rolled back, her thigh stiffed locking her hand in place. The fire was flickering again, the sky started to brighten, she got up, the recent pleasure was new for her, but the shame, the loss of dignity that followed made her feel guilty. It felt good and she wished it didn¡¯t. The fire lost its meaning as time passed and the cleaning continued. The shadows of the trees were visible and the campfire became a pile of ash by the time she was ready. Makeshift skirt out of the robes, the centaurs leather armour, a coin pouch on her side hanging on the belt next to the vials. She felt like a rundown grey jester with slightly blood tainted clothes. She took the small keg under her shoulders. Wondering if hunger or thirst ever going to creep on her again.
It was a nightmare, it had to be, nothing else would make sense. The world pulled a big one on her and it filled her with rage. It didn¡¯t even surprise her at this point she felt anger, she lost every skill she had. No more calm mind or any useful tricks. A large part of her life was just gone with the smoke. The cracking of the small keg could be heard as she stiffened her arm, while she shouted in her mind [Status] over and over again, it mattered little, it was the same every time she called for her [Status].
Classes
Gem-Gargoyle 1.51 Warrior 1.07
Perks Titles
Race-related Hero
Ageless
Peace in solitude
Poison immunity
Racebound
Resilience of stone
It just made things worse, as she had to train a group of greenhorns soon. Let alone finding them would be a challenge, but now helping them train seemed Impossible. She stood still for a while on the forest path without realising it, like a safe space it felt for her, it slowly calmed her rage. Then she was on her way again, not knowing where the path would lead. Asthesun reached its peak between the clouds, the shadows were small and lacked in detail. The forest became sparse as the bushes claimed the view. The path seemed endless. She had little to do and didn¡¯t felt tired. Questions started to rush her. Why didn¡¯t she have a voice? What other gems taste like? What made her body resistant to the sword but become soft to touch? What the outsiders will look like or where to find them? Why she had the hero title? Why didn¡¯t she have to breath? Will she bleed gem-glitter once a month? And the list went on without aim just to fill the time she had, to hide her depression. 1.02 Village It didn¡¯t take long before the flow of questions slowed down to the point where it was no longer enough to shield her mind from the problems of the present and the ones that she going to face. The urge to just stop for a century, to wait until time washed them away, seemed like the perfect solution. But she couldn¡¯t do that, she feared what would come. She was certain, it would be a death sentence at best or a one-way ticket to the mad god¡¯s playground, not like she didn¡¯t feel that way already. Just the mere thought alone about what else could be worse gave her the chill as she folded her arms around herself and shivered a little. The sound of creaking wood beneath saved her temporally from the thoughts as it pulled her back to reality. She stepped on something with her bare three-toed clawed feet as she walked through the bushes following the path. Old planks, which belonged to the beginning of an old bridge. A bridge that went alongside a pond following its edge slightly curving with it for a while, then it ends at the other side. The water caught her attention. It was smooth, almost perfectly still. It reflected the surroundings while the light danced on its gentle waves. The mirrored world draw her closer, the sparkling looked like thousands of joyful fairies fooling around in the forest having the time of their life. The scene infected her, and curiosity took over, there was a lot more about her new body that she didn¡¯t know. She approached the edge of the bridge, the cracking became louder. Slowly leaned over the water, doubt in her hearth. She was prepared, the worst already happened yet she wouldn¡¯t dare to bet on it. An unfamiliar face began to outline on the surface of the water. To her surprise, it was a face of a woman and not one that belonged to a monster, an oval base with smooth skin, a snub nose under it wide lips. Her ears were pointy like the ones the half-elf usually have, and the greyish overall colour gave her a grim, almost sinister look. Her eyes were green and bright. She was fine with it, it could have been worse, much worse. Viewed herself there for a while, checked the sides, tilted her head, then a smile escaped and ruined the picture. It was wide, too wide and she could stretch it even more. But the teeth took the crown, they were sharp and looked terrifying. ¡°It¡¯s not that bad.¡± No voice come out, but she said to herself and took a closer look, drawing herself nearer to the surface of the water. ¡°I still don¡¯t have to hide all the time, just have to watch out for the smile.¡± Something was not right, her eyes looked too bright. ¡°Almost, like gem-stones.¡± They were gem-stones. The realization hit her and the pile of problems grow once more. ¡°For any keen eyes, these are dead giveaways!¡± She reached for one with a hand just to see if they were solid as well. CRACK. The old planks just gave in as the stone statue in weight heroine took one last deep breath and went into the water head first with a roll. She knew how to swim, but it didn¡¯t matter, she sank to the bottom like a rock. It was not a deep pond at least not near at the edge. She slowly stood up without any difficulty, the pressure of water had no chance of slowing her down in the process. Her surprise vanished as the built-up anger broke to the surface. The moment her head poked out of the water a shout burst out from her. Like a new-born, for the first time, she cried out which sounded like a dreadful battle cry. She finally had a voice.
A few minutes went by, she had to get around it, since she couldn¡¯t climb back to the bridge. Every attempt resulted only with more wood pieces. The water was smooth, almost perfectly still, only a small keg in the middle of the pond created waves. In the mirrored world the fae danced around their new treasure. But she didn¡¯t care, there was something more important at the moment. Voice, her voice. It just slipped her mind since she didn¡¯t have to breathe. She took a deep breath and hesitated. What if she couldn¡¯t form words or worst she could only growl, the question started to form. She shooed the ill thought away and started with a small step. ¡°Hello.¡± she whispered. She did it, silence had¡­ ¡°YEAH, one step a time and I beat you assho¡­ mad god.¡± She started it with confidence, pointing at the sky and finished it slightly differently. ¡­lost. Happiness, her weights lightened and confidence replaced it as she begone to run. It was like nine, ten big happy steps and she found herself in one newly made hole which was oddly shaped just for a leg of our heroine, she hatted her new body so did the bridge.
A few more hours left before dark. Light yellow wheat farms, animals mainly cow, small houses and people started to detail the horizon one after the other. She had it coming, a little self-doubt formed and made her check the weapons as an insurance policy. ¡°Confidence and act like everything were normal, just like back then, she reassured herself. The plan is simple, had to the local inn get a room for the night, find a merchant, get armour or at least fitting clothes and a map. If someone asks about me and where I¡­¡± She was lost in her thought when someone stalled her. ¡°Hello there¡± A man in simple clothing stood up from the wheat. ¡°Gah!¡± The stored air escaped and she jumped a little, while reached for a weapon. ¡°Sorry for that, I didn¡¯t mean to scare you.¡± He didn¡¯t give her time to collect herself.¡± Say, did you come across a party in the woods? The elder just found a job for them and it would be urgent.¡± The memories were still fresh of the blood fest. ¡°No. I come across nobody.¡± ¡°Shame.¡± He shook her head. ¡°Well that¡¯s it then, I can no longer wait here as the night falls.¡± A short awkward silence as they looked around. ¡°Well, would you mind a little company while we head back to the village?¡± He was bad at hiding his intentions, he couldn¡¯t make proper eye contact and it was not a hard guest what was the reason.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°Only if you don¡¯t mind a few questions.¡± One hand on the hip and a tiny smile. This was a familiar ground for her, she saw many of her collages gathering information and find out gossips about the locals this way. The village was not far, thanks to her size, the slow walk and the upper hand she felt as the man blush and looked away sometimes was pleasant. The conversation was one sized the tone was light, questions were asked and the answers just flowed as a response. A little comment here and there to reassure the men was all she needed. Until a certain gossip come up. ¡°¡­And you must believe it if I say, she just appeared out of thin air and fallen on the top of the dinner table a few days back. The Miller, of course, was furious because of the broken table and rouse the whole village that night. But I still say it is usually a good sing to be blessed by the appearance of an outsider, even if she is a weird looking and a scourge time to time, but she is slowly learning and¡­¡± He was forced to stop as the two heads taller women grabbed him by the shoulder. ¡°What did you say?¡± ¡°Whaa?¡± ¡°About the miller.¡± ¡°He roused the village because an outsider broke his table.¡± A hint of fear filled his heart, he felt he was looking at a monster with green bright eyes. ¡°Where is this girl now?!¡± ¡°She stays at the barn. Please don¡¯t hurt me.¡± His legs gave in but she held him in place. The realization hit her, for a moment she forgot about herself and her mood took over her actions, again. She embarrassed herself, slowly let the man¡¯s shoulders and turned away. ¡°Sorry about what just happened. It¡¯s been hard for me for the last few days¡± She didn¡¯t care about the men¡¯s feeling, but a whole angry village certainly would not be good. ¡°I¡­I think I go now.¡± as he took his steps faster. Gaining distance as she stood there. ¡°Great, there goes my future reputation.¡±
The village was not that small as it appeared for the first glance. It was built on a plateau and on its light slope next to a river which likely came from a nearby cave since it was at least a few feet wide. The houses had stone foundations and most of them were pise houses with hay roofs. It was easy to get around and tell which household did what since most of the house had a sign for their trade. Only a few of the building was built of wood and they had more than one floors, the inn was one of them. In the far distance there were other groups of houses, but no sign of a town or a trade road of any kind. Overall it was a nice village with a good view of the valley. She saw the barn where she would find the girl at night. But till then she had other goals to take care of. The inn, people here were already good in numbers as most of them were done for the day. The laughter and smell of ale were inviting. She had a great image in her head about renting a room for the night and get hammered like never before. As she entered, people stared at her for a while before they went back to the drinks. At the counter, the innkeeper, a bulky balding man with a long moustache was well aware of her intentions as he held a big iron key in one hand. ¡°7 copper for one night and the ale cost 2 for a mug as for dinner it varies.¡± Told her from behind the counter with a low alcohol trained voice. ¡°A night and a mug of ale would be enough.¡± She said putting down 9 coppers on the table. There was no free table, she just stood there, a key in one hand and the mug in the other. She took a sip and tried not to cough. Her drink was disgusting yet its smell was not far from what she usually had. ¡°Is there something wrong?¡± The innkeeper raised an eyebrow. ¡°No, nothing. Is just seems I can¡¯t handle ¡®strong¡¯ drinks no matter what.¡± As she slowly put down her almost full mug back to the table then left the inn, putting the key away. ¡°Shame.¡± She heard it from behind her back as she left. There were still a few hours before the forced meeting that she planed in the barn and the shops were nearby. The party¡¯s pouch didn¡¯t contain much, if the prices are not that high it will be more than enough, since the potions were no use to her thanks to the [poison immunity]. An old rugged leather shirt nailed to a board, this was the sign on the house she entered. In there a man sitting in his chair measuring the hide in front of him and mark it with a chalk. ¡°Good afternoon.¡± Louret said. ¡°There, sixty-two and here eighty-seven.¡± He didn¡¯t realise someone entered his shop. ¡°Cough-cough. Good afternoon.¡± ¡°Oah, Good afternoon miss. How may I help you?¡± It was a generic way most shopkeepers greeted their costumer. ¡°Oh bugger, it''s already this late?¡± As he glared out the door the way Louret entered. ¡°I could use a new set of leather clothes lightly patted with cloth beneath it.¡± ¡°I see, well then, I can take your measures now, and got to it tomorrow. Of course, if we come to a deal.¡± ¡°How much it usually cost?¡± ¡°A set is around 3-4 silver with a few coppers if someone wants it padded, but yours would be around 6 with the pads.¡± ¡°Why? For that much, I could buy two sets and I only need¡­one¡­ Right.¡± Compare to others, she was tall as a tree. ¡°Maybe 560?¡± ¡°580 and a little favour.¡± ¡°What is on your mind?¡± ¡°Take this and change the one that is on the board outside.¡± As he took a badly made leather shirt from the rack by his side. ¡°At least this junk will have some use.¡± ¡°Deal.¡± She took the shirt and went outside. The first time she entered she didn¡¯t notice that she had to bend to use the door. She was much taller than others here and the looks she got while the villagers passed by made her uncomfortable. She didn¡¯t have to stretch her whole arm to take off the sign. The nails were a little rusty and the board was rot on one side. She was halfway through pulling the nails out using only two fingers when the lack of tools come up in her mind. As she was amazed by it, she noticed that others were too. She turned away from the newly found viewers like an envy child and continued it. It went smoothly, nobody bothered her or dared to do so. Her confidence growna little and it made her feel proud about what she can do now as she hammered the nails back on the new leather shirt with light swings of her fist. ¡°I¡¯m done.¡± She said while she entered. ¡°It took longenough totake off that piece of wood. Next to you, there is a hammer and a leather punch to make holes on the shirt.¡± He didn¡¯t look up. ¡°I said I have done it.¡± She puffed out her chest a little. The tools were as he left them. ¡°You are kidding.¡± As he went outside. ¡°Magic?¡± He asked Louret. ¡°Yeah¡­ What else could be¡­heh.¡± The lack of skills was shouting in her head, back then she was precise and always calm with a plan in mind. He got himself a stool and took her measures with a little help since he couldn¡¯t reach her around. Louret handed over the coins and left the shop for the day. An hour or so left before sunset, she headed to the barn and waited. The refreshing feel of being motionless took away her sense of time. It was already dark when she heard sobbing from the barn. 1.03 two sides of a coin (pre) It was in the news tonight. Beware of the icy roads was in the background. A school bus headed downhill. The students were excited, it was their first ski trip and yet it became their last one. When the bus slipped in a turn and crashed into another car. The guard rails were not strong enough. There was nothing to be done. The two-vehicle joined as their passenger''s faith, while gravity took the wheels as it was the only one who knows where they headed and led them for the one last time among the living.
Her eyes popped open, she sat up like her life depended on it and screamed. Like someone has woken up from a nightmare. She stopped as the unfamiliar environment didn¡¯t make sense to her. She was in a big white room and there was nothing else other than her as she looked around. She stood up and started looking at herself, no bruises, no bleeding, no pain what so ever. She relieved. Her fancy clothes were in their brand-new shape, her nails were perfect, and nothing seemed to be missing. Her attitude changed. ¡°Alright, enough of this I have a thigh schedule and I don¡¯t have time for this nonsense.¡± She said in an arrogant tone. Nothing, nobody answered. ¡°Heelloooooo!¡± A few seconds passed and she heard a yawn. ¡°I¡¯m coming.¡± She turned toward the source of the sound and saw a black and purple guy in its hideous costume in the distance heading her way. ¡°Come on, hurry up! I have an appointment at 5 in the beauty salon and cost me extra to get someone else¡¯s place.¡± She just looked down to check the time, when she looked back, the figure was already right in front of her. ¡°Better?¡± Ask the faceless-one. ¡°Geez, don¡¯t creep on me.¡± As she took a step back. ¡°Now. First, where am I and where can I find a phone. My purse must be in the car so I need one for a call.¡± Arrogant and demanding. This was by far not the best combination to talk to someone let alone someone which people named the mad god. ¡°Oh, your highness I don¡¯t think you will need a phone, it¡¯s not popular among the dead to call the living where you came from.¡± He said mockingly as he did a light bow and a hand gesture. ¡°Yeah, whatever. So, where is the phone?¡± ¡°Look, just to get the picture before I lose it, it¡¯s your first time and I played nice. You have died, this is my domain and I make the rules here.¡± She didn¡¯t pay attention, she was too busy with her nails. ¡°Ah, this room is too bright I can barely see the new nail polish and I am pretty sure this much light is not healthy for my skin. I am in a hurry, but just for you, I going to ask kindly. Could you show me where is the exit?¡± He lost it. ¡°Of course, it is right behind you.¡± She slowly turned around. A few feet away from her stood a grand door by its side carved wooden beams each with vines and colourful flowers. The door itself looked ancient but in top condition. The engravings made it look like a piece of nature itself. ¡°See, it wasn¡¯t that hard.¡± She headed towards the door as she pulled her fingers through her long blond hair in a proudful way. The door was surprisingly light despite its size.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. ¡°Say hello to Dahlia in my name. And just a tip, you may want to watch your manner in the near future.¡± He said as the door closed behind the girl. He was well aware of what going to happen and it made the mad god smile. ¡°Now, since I¡¯m up, it¡¯s time for the next one.¡± With a snap of his fingers, the door vanished and a young skinny girl appeared there instead. ¡°I welcome yououtsider to my domain!¡± Said it with his newly found great mood. The lean girl slowly turned around. She was scared. ¡°May I ask for your name, young lady?¡± ¡°Tia¡± She said it quietly. ¡°My name is Tia.¡± ¡°Say Tia, my name is Tia what brought you here?¡± He did a wide spin with both hands in the air. ¡°I don¡¯t¡­ I don¡¯t know. I was on a bus a moment ago, I was speaking with Cleo and then...¡± She tried but she couldn¡¯t remember. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it doesn¡¯t matter anymore.¡± Said it with a calm tone, then change back to the wide gestures. ¡°I, the god of change give you a second chance in life to born anew in our world, and fight and grow until ¡®the day¡¯ comes.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I don¡¯t get it.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± His mood was ruined again. No matter what he always had to explain everything, no wonder the other gods left the ¡®new guy¡¯ to suffer from this. ¡°Please, listen. You died. I¡¯m a god and this dice will help you get a new life.¡± As he pulled a dice out from his back and pushed it into her hand. ¡°But¡­ But I can¡¯t be dead, I feel fine! And I just got my chance for real this time to hang out with a cool girl on the bus. And after I helped them with the homework, Sabry was going to show me a few tips about how to gain a little weight and make my chest look bigger.¡± Her voice was despaired and not because of his presence. He was not sure which part did, but it made his gentle flames flicker. ¡°We would have so much fun together.¡± She was on the verge of crying. ¡°Oh, huh¡­ I don¡¯t want to look pushy, but how many times did you try joining them?¡± ¡°Well, there was a few times in the summer break, and before Abby¡¯s birthday¡­¡± The list went on for a while.¡± ¡­ But sometimes like Halloween, we did hang out, unfortunately, last time I had to carry the bags since their arms hurt after some cheerleader¡¯s practice, but it was for real this time.¡± He heard enough. ¡°So, it still all comes down to beauty.¡± He made a statement. ¡°Say, how about I introduce you to someone who can solve your figure?¡± ¡°It would be really nice, but I don¡¯t have much left, after renting the ski equipment for the four of us.¡± His flames flickered again. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, its free of charge. Not like you could use your money anyway.¡± He put a hand on Tia¡¯s shoulder and slowly turn her around. She couldn¡¯t believe her eyes. The door towards Dahlia was a masterpiece by nature. ¡°But you have to promise me one thing. Don¡¯t be scared and show respect to Dahlia. If you do that, she will help you out. Okay?¡± He led her towards the door. ¡°I can do that.¡± Her eyes were still a little red, but now she was smiling. The door open before them. ¡°And one more thing, don¡¯t be surprised, but she is big.¡± It was nothing like Tia ever seen before the view was breathtaking. A towering oddly shaped round cliff with two waterfalls with a few trees at the top, a pond breath with clear water which sparkled as the falling water filled it. The fruitful trees and greenery, exotic never seen flowers as far the eye could see around this sanctuary. The place was filled with animals running around and drinking from the water. And there she was, Dahlia. Tia had to look twice before she realized what she was looking at. A pair of brown hoofed leg hanged out of the water each as big and thick as redwoods. And in the pond, someone was sitting. The water only could hide so little as it only reached to her very pregnant looking belly that filled a fair bit of her lap. Tia followed the being with her eye and saw the rest of the mother like figure. Her round overfilled looking breasts continually leaked which seemed as waterfalls a second ago, rested on top of her grandiose middle while they mostly kept their shape. Vines hung from her head covering a little from her chest. She had two horns made from flourishing trees, and her head was closer to a cow¡¯s one than to a human. Overall Dahlia was colossal in size and not just in one way. ¡°I have sent back that girl shaped monster you just gifted me with.¡± Said the giant, while she covered her eye with a hand. ¡°Sorry about that.¡± He said it with a wide grin. ¡°It was a mistake on my part, this is one that I meant to send for your blessing.¡± He pushed Tia a little forward. ¡°Sign¡­.¡± A sudden breeze swept through the forest. ¡±Fine. But she better be grateful for it.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure she will.¡± Then he vanished in a puff of smoke. Leaving Tia within the company of mother nature. 1.04 A group of chaos (pre) Like a child before Christmas night, hurried to take a look at his new toy. He heard crying or something close to it, in the far-far away. He was so excited, he had to take a peek since it was his present. With a smile and great expectations, he appeared out of thin air right next to it. ¡®It¡¯ was the right description. A mix between human and a simple cow. a hairless cow tail, half hooved feet and hand with black nailed toes, out of portion legs and arms covered with bulky tumours. Her head was half bald and she had a muzzle cover with white fur, her clothes were in shreds she must have grown a little as well. The girl she just got back was now a mess, sitting on her knees and crying. An aberration of nature. ¡°Welcome back, I just knew you liked it here.¡± His said it with full of joy. The girl slowly looked up fighting against her own body to do so. ¡°Oh, looks like someone been naughty.¡± ¡°ChaNgE mE bAck.¡± It was hardly understandable. ¡°What, my dear?¡± ¡°ChAnGe mE BaCk!¡± She cried out and continued the sobbing. ¡°And gain the good old mother nature''s wrath. No, thank you.¡± ¡°PleAaaAAase.¡± She was begging as she tried to reach out for him. ¡°We will talk once you calmed down¡­ and you worked out your manners.¡± He turned a walk away.
Two outsiders back to back, it was a rare occasion and usually, it didn¡¯t stop at two. He rolled a scroll of names that were waiting for his presents and selected one after another with under a certain age until the name Rex. It didn¡¯t sound like a name from elsewhere. Just before he did his trick he hesitated. ¡°Maybe if I change the way I greet them and put a few things in here, then it will be faster to deal with them.¡± A short pause while objects appeared around him and change in rapid phase. ¡°It worth a try.¡± The objects stopped changing once they reach a form of a chair one by one. Hopes high he willed his new guests onto the chairs. Eleven young one appeared on the chairs sitting and looking around. He was about to start his well-outthought script, but they didn¡¯t give him the chance. ¡°Hi guys.¡± ¡°Hi¡± ¡°Ugh it''s Mark¡­ then it''s hell.¡± ¡°Hi¡± ¡°Heey!¡± ¡°Yeah, Gwen that was rude!¡± ¡°Do someone knows, where are we?¡± ¡°What about the bus.¡± ¡°Did someone see my bag?¡± ¡°This chair is not so comfy. I rather stand.¡± ¡°What about the brightness?¡± ¡°Say, do someone has signal here?¡± ¡°Can¡¯t check mine gone dead.¡± ¡°SILENCE!¡± His was ear-piercing, many cover their ears. ¡°Welcome to your next life, I am Bob the god of change and I will¡­¡± and that was all the time he got. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°What with the shouting, my ears are ringing.¡± ¡°No way¡± ¡°Mark are we thinking the same?¡± ¡°Bob.¡± ¡°Aha, Bob.¡± ¡°It that a rundown tv show around here?¡± ¡°A tv show, are we gonna be starts?¡±The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Damn, my hair must be a mess from sleeping on the bus.¡± ¡°Its fine, dear.¡± ¡°Where the cameras?¡± ¡°Cameras, I don¡¯t see a damn thing around here.¡± ¡°it¡¯s too bright.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± He was baffled. He needed a little time to collect his thoughts. He opened a door to nothing and stepped in. ¡°A black body with purple flames in a white endless space¡­ Just what more they need to pay attention?!¡± He sighed. ¡°Back to the old tools once again.¡± Fear, it always worked and he had just the right person to help him out in that.
She folded her arms around her knees and rocked back and forth while she stared into the nothingness. This is how he found her. ¡°Did you calm down?¡± He got no answer but the rocking stopped. ¡°Good. How about you help me out a bit and I help you a bit.¡± She was about to say something when he put a finger on her muzzle. ¡°tch-tch-tch. You don¡¯t have to speak. All you have to do is stand a while next to me and don¡¯t do anything.¡± Her eyes were still red, but he got a slight nod. ¡°Excellent.¡±
¡°Come on, where is the staff or anyone?¡± ¡°Dave, stop walking up and down, it drives me crazy.¡± ¡°Yeah and what else I should do?¡± ¡°You could come and play UNO with us.¡± ¡°I¡¯m passing on that, thanks¡± A wide door frame formed and the flaming figure stood halfway in the doorway. ¡°Guys, he is back.¡± ¡°Ugh, Finally.¡± ¡°Hey, don¡¯t just throw away my cards.¡± ¡°A little attention, before I snap.¡± They were already looking at him. ¡°Our world Neloresh is a world with magic, and let me show you what can happen to you if mess around the time and space¡­ Like NOW.¡± He took a step toward the other side in the doorframe and pulled her with himself. The effect was instant and the reaction was the same. ¡°Uuuugh.¡± Like a well-trained chorus and those how didn¡¯t say anything just covered their mouth. He leaned and whispered into the monster¡¯s ear. ¡°A few minutes, ok?¡± She nodded. The door closed behind him, hiding the thing from the rest. ¡°What, the fuck was that?¡± ¡°How, what?¡± He knew where this was heading already, only this time with a different topic. ¡°Alright, everyone! Sit back. we have a few dice to roll and a headache for me to deal with.¡± He got little to no response. ¡°Sit back!¡± The chairs with their newly added belt scooped them up and lock them tight, forcing their arms next to their sides, then the chairs flew back to their place. ¡°Hey, you can¡¯t do that.¡± ¡°ZIP it.¡± The girl''s mouth morphed and zipped itself. The playtime was over, he ran out of patience. Silence and horrified looks. Terror settled among them. ¡°Just to keep thing simple all of you going to roll a dice and get going with their new life. Simple, right?¡± A few seconds of wonderful silence passed. ¡°Before we start. Is there any question?¡± He saw two guys nod to each other than one began to speak. ¡°Mark and I have been thinking and since we are big fans of your work. So we would like to ask how the box doing right now.¡± He was expecting everything but that, It made his flames shrink. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I don¡¯t know what are referring to.¡± ¡°I mean how the box is doing afte¡­¡± Two trapdoors busted open beneath them, their scream faded as the two messing around the wrong time and space gained their distance from the rest. ¡°I hate spoilers.¡± He said while he shook his head. ¡±I am sorry for that, but I have to take a quick visit to Dahlia.¡± A deep polite bow then he had fallen into thousands of marbles each disappearing into the ground on impact.
The two knowing too much stood next to each other not far from the pond as they starred at the small mountain trying to make sense of it. ¡°Dahlia, mother of nature and god of fertility. It so good to see you again in such short time¡± The two slowly turned, while he walked closer. ¡°I don¡¯t remember when was the last time I shed tears for a human. Thank you, god of change, for that for remembering me how cruel their world could be. She will be a great priest of mine, now that I freed her from them.¡± She slowly wiped her eye with one wand while the other rest on her bosom. ¡°I¡¯m glad to hear that. I just bought two more ¡®willing¡¯ ones for your herd¡± They saw as a curved red shaped form on his face. ¡±They just bagged me to come here for your blessing, since ¡®Everybody loves large chests¡¯, right guys?¡± There was no time to answer the wind just blow him away like dust. The two stood there staring at the goddess. ¡°Mark, if make it out alive, I gonna kill you.¡±
There was only nine of them left, they sat on chairs in a half circle and fear ruled over them. He was in the middle everybody had their dice, no one asked a question and there was silence. Life couldn''t be better. ¡°Finally. And now¡­ Ouch¡± Something has fallen on his head which felt like a dice. ¡°Who did that?!¡± Nine hands, nine dices. ¡°Then whose is this?¡± He looked down at the dice and it said, ¡®Thank you.¡¯, the flow of his flames become gentle for a brief moment. ¡±I almost forgot about you.¡± He picked up the dice and asked. ¡°Whose is Sabry or Sabrina?¡± It took a while, but he got an answer. ¡°I, I am Sabrina.¡± Said one of the girls in a quiet tone. ¡°Could have guessed. Race, lizard. Bye!¡± Another trapdoor, another scream. Eight left and their fear became terror. If it weren¡¯t for the circumstances any mathematician gladly would have created a linear relation between the number of people and the amount of fear they have just to prove how inhuman and unjust it could be, so the paladins of Merlaw the god of law and justices and brother of the now dead, Merlin the wise adviser, would not lock them until every rebel was caught or they faced fair trial. ¡°Thanks, dicy¡± He said and bid farewell for it. ¡°Where was I? Right, Everybody, throw their dice.¡± And they vanished one by one as they scattered around the world beginning their new life. ¡°One last one and I call it a day.¡± He said and appeared next to the now sleeping monster. ¡°Ugh¡­ It¡¯s certain, that she is not a sleeping beauty.¡± He waited for a little, while watched her and reapportioned her future body in his mind. ¡°Alright time to wake up!¡± ¡°WhA?... HAve wE ArRived?¡± ¡°I am done with you, and It¡¯s my turn to take a little nap.¡± He snapped his fingers and he was alone. He made a gentle jump and floated in the air. The flames around his body change in shape to Z¡¯s as he fallen asleep. 1.05 A bad day (pre) It has been 673 years and 117 days since he got the job, but he couldn¡¯t get used to it. Sleeping was not necessary for a god to deal with their daily basis, but he preferred it over than watching as the whole continent did so. At night there was little to no action for him to observe. Crime, murder, theft brought little to no joy for him and there were other gods to deal with tease anyway. On the other hand, sleeping also had its own disadvantages sometimes, let¡¯s say bedtime accidents. Like this one. The last Z¡¯s popped and the flames come back, this was the normal way he usually woke up. But not today. He slowly regained his consciousness just to observe, that his body was replaying the well-known historical event the final battle of the Vaxolal underkeep where over twenty-one-thousand soldier took part, but instead of the historically accurate races, they were replaced by furniture. The chairs stood their ground in front of the tables last castle, they formed a defence line with their joined backrests where the three bridges met until the tables retreated. The tables climbed over their own walls to regroup and to know their stool children in a safe place. But the doors were already on their way wearing their powerful lacquer and riding their bed mounts equipped with impenetrable fluffy bedsheets and in the distance, the dreadful war cries of wardrobes could be heard. If the wardrobes reach the wall, the castle would surely fall. It already seemed as a losing battle for the alliance of the kitchen, when the worst happened that crushed their will. ¡°STOP¡± he shouted at his own body and the scene froze. ¡°It will be one of those days, isn¡¯t it?¡± The underground castle, the bridges and soldiers slowly collapsed into a black slimy material and flown towards the centre of him. ¡°Rex is next if I remember correctly.¡± He said while waited for his body to be ready. ¡°I wonder what he will be, that he was sent to me. An ancient being who is too stubborn, or a cultist of mine, maybe one of those mechanical people.¡± He was ready and his flames reappeared. ¡°Alright Rex, come to papa.¡± ¡°Woof!¡± said his guest as he stared at him. ¡°A dog? Rex, the dog.¡± It didn¡¯t make sense, why would a dog be here. Every living¡¯s souls in this world went to Mourteen. ¡°Woof!¡± ¡°Alright, alright. Just let the dice fall and be on your way.¡± He tried to place the dice on the dog. ¡°Grrr!¡± Rex dodged it. ¡°Oh, you.¡° It wasn¡¯t working he had to change strategy. The dice slowly deformed into a rounder shape and he gave it a reddish colour. ¡°How about a ball? You want the ball?¡± He waved the dice in his hand showing to Rex. ¡°Woof-woof.¡± He wagged his tail and lean a little forward. ¡°Fetch!¡± Rex ran as fast as he could, jumped and caught the ball in mid-air. Then since he was a good boy started to return it to the thrower. The plan is simple when he tries to give me the ball I will just let it fall through me, he thought. ¡°Good boy! Wanna do It again? Wanna?¡± He asked Rex, who was all excited and couldn¡¯t stay still. He crouched and reached towards the ball, but Rex looked away with the ball in his mouth. ¡°What do you mean throw the ball?¡± He heard Rex¡¯s intentions. He reached again and Rex turned away again. ¡®Don¡¯t take, only throw¡¯. ¡°But how I suppose to throw it when you don¡¯t give it to me?¡± It took a little while, before he came up with a plan. He conjured and other ball-shaped dice and started over. ¡°Hey, Rex. Wanna catch the ball? Do you want the ball?¡± ¡®Ball, ball, ball!¡¯ ¡°Then fetch!¡± He threw the ball and watch as his geniuses outsmarted the dog. He already watched his scroll of names when Rex reached down for the ball, turned and run back. ¡°Miss Snowy¡± Typical ice mage name among humans. He was about to act when he saw Rex returned with two dices in his mouth. ¡°No. Fucking. Way¡­¡± He was stunned. How is he going to deal with him now? He had two dices and he was only supposed to throw one. ONE. His flames disappeared he already could hear the yearlong speech from Merlaw about how unjust this is, since everybody could only throw one dice. He had to act and do it quickly.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°Rex. Stay and don¡¯t move.¡± Behind Rex a grand door started to take form. A door made of marble and black granite which looked old as time itself. The engravings represented a pair of a child facing each other and holding life between them. ¡°How about a walk in a ¡®park¡¯.¡± He had Rex¡¯s attention again. Rex was having the day of his life as he followed him. The door was serval times larger than both of them and deep stone grinding could be heard as it opened before them. Valleys as far as the eyes could see, with evergreening grass decorated here and there sparely scattered marble statue bases with checked black and white pattern on top. ¡°Valita, Mourteen!¡± He shouted. I didn¡¯t take long before a pair of small young elflike sisters one black, one white appeared before them, wearing nothing else than their colourful nightgown which was coved with cute symbols and animals. They were rubbing their eyes in sync. ¡°Yes, Bob?¡± They said it in union. ¡°I brought you someone who wants to play. Right, Rex.¡± He didn¡¯t have time to finish Rex couldn¡¯t keep himself he had so much fun. Rex¡¯s launched himself and jumped on Mourteen and pushing her to the ground. ¡°Ah! Stop, stop.¡± Rex licked all over the laughing Mourteen face, the two dices laid on the grass which gave the mad god relief. It didn¡¯t count as a throw was in another gods domain. ¡°A doggie!¡± Valita jumped on top of Rex, while Bob got the dices. ¡°Have fun girls.¡± He turned and quickly left their realm before Rex had a second thought. He closed the giant doors and leaned to it. ¡°I hate my job.¡± He said and slowly slid down to the ground. ¡°Prepare for your worst Miss Snowy, you have five minutes.¡±
Back in business, he was already over the worst, he almost forgot about the whole Rex thing, everything was in control as it should be. ¡°Alright, Miss it¡¯s your turn.¡± Another snap of fingers and another guest. It didn¡¯t take a split second and he wished back the historical fight from the morning. Before him a small, white, fuzzy, well recognizable, cute, adorable, soul-tearing-demanding-nightmare. This was how he described it. ¡°Meow.¡± Miss Snowy made her statement clear that she is very real. His flames grown legs and just walked away from him, as far as far they could from the cat. ¡°Where did I go wrong?¡± He sat down to his knees while the last blaze left. Miss Snowy the white demon with deep bright blue eyes in domestic-cat form approached him. ¡°Can¡¯t we just talk about it? Just a little dice throws and that¡¯s it.¡± ¡®Oh-hoho. Dear if you want me to throw your meaningless dice than I expect something return.¡¯ ¡°How about I throw the dice on you and if it touches you, we just say you did it.¡± He tried to get the upper hand even it was clear from the beginning who was the winner. ¡®What a pleasant idea. I¡¯m pretty sure Merlaw would be happy to hear it.¡¯ He felt as her eyes pierced through him. ¡®Paragraph 3 section 2. Equality in fate is a must.¡¯ How did she know, the question fogged his mind. ¡°But luck can mess with it¡± He was familiar with the rules thanks to a certain god. ¡®True. So how about this? You gave me the worth of my heritage and more appropriate body within this world and I throw you dice.¡¯ He didn¡¯t find anything wrong with this, she asked for a lot but if he sends her to Mourteen then she would enter the cycle of souls and lose everything. ¡°Deal.¡± He said it without hesitation and regained some of his confidence. ¡®Excellent. Now if you would be so kind and give me an appropriate form. It¡¯s hard to throw dices with paws.¡¯ ¡°Well, of course.¡± A grin formed on his face. The changes were fast the little feline quickly grown in size while her limbs reformed and her face restructured itself. Now she was around 5¡¯4¡± feet and looked like a proper member of the cat folk¡¯s society while she kept her soft white fur and sly look. ¡°Thank you.¡± She said it with a smile which gave him a chill for a moment. ¡°Now comes the dice.¡± He conjured a dice and Miss Snowy took it. ¡°Would you kindly throw the dice, miss?¡± He said it with his favourite tone which could haunt most of the living in Neloresh for life. ¡°What with the hurry?¡± She looked up from the dice and tightened her grip around it. ¡°I have an important meeting with Valita, since I have 8 more lives to go.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± It didn¡¯t make sense, why would she have more lives it was just an urban legend from another world. ¡°Be so kind and check it.¡± If anybody else but a cat told him this, he would have lost it. But it was a cat, and she made him doubt about what he knew. A scroll appeared and he started to browse it. He found what he was looking for, Miss Snowy¡¯s personal scroll. He couldn¡¯t believe it, she was right. The thought alone destroyed him and he froze as he stood. ¡°Satisfied?¡± The smile on her face said it all. I won. ¡°Dear, Would you kindly open the door to Valita. I very have an important meeting.¡± He opened the door towards their realm the was not much he could do, but he felt there was something off, the whole picture was missing something. Miss Snowy passed the door. ¡°The dice!¡± he screamed. It was too late. ¡°You mean this meaningless thing. Watch, I shall throw it for you¡± She dropped the dice. It broke his heart, he felt like the cat¡¯s plaything. The dice were not in his realm when it touched the ground. ¡°Satisfied? Oh and before I forget my heritage, I¡¯m a Persian cat.¡± The doors slowly closed behind her. ¡°The Persian empire.¡± He muttered. It was the last nail in the coffin. He was done for the day after an hour and slowly melted into a puddle. 1.06 The little red barn She had a perfect life, at least that¡¯s how she has seen it back then. Born into a rich family, being popular at parties and around her carefully selected few friends. She did fine in school, but it didn¡¯t matter to her. It didn¡¯t seem like she ever has to work what so ever. Even the biggest problem she ever faced was nothing more than choosing a dress from a fancy shop for a single event. But times changed. She couldn¡¯t accept the truth it was too hard for her. Each night she cried herself asleep. Each day when she woke up tears formed in her eyes. Day after day she told herself it was just a bad dream and she will eventually wake up, but every sense of hers betrayed her and told the opposite. Her hope giving lie slowly faded as days passed. Leaving her desperate. She was a miserable sight. This is how Louret described her. The barns door was halfway open, light escaped from the inside illuminating the dirt road. Louret was peeking into the barn from the dark, thinking about the best way to calm her down for the upcoming conversation. while she took a good look at the outsider. She looked unnatural almost exotic, a combination of a minotaur and a human. Half-breeds exited but it was nothing like this. She had separated parts of the races and not a combination of them. She had a cow like tail and below her waist, she was covered with light brown fur with white spots and it was completed with hooves at the end of her legs. Except for a pair slightly curved horns on the sides of her head, her upper body was human in every aspect. Brown hair, round face with a small nose. She seemed to be a little chubby and telling from her big round breasts it looked like she was blessed with a child at least once in her lifetime. Overall, she looked weaker than what Louret hoped for, but her height and build showed potential as a frontline fighter. Even better, if she had some minotaur blood in her veins, then the training will be easier. With a little muscle gain, she could easily knock off others. But if that didn''t work she could use her wide hips to it. The thought seeing someone being knocked to the ground by a cow ass made Louret chuckle a little and her stored air escaped, her cover was blown. ¡°Who''s there?¡± Th barn girl¡¯s voice was filled with fear. Louret cursed, her skills used to keep emotions at bay. There was no point to hide any longer, it only could make thing worse. She was not ready, she had no plan and it was the middle of the night. The odds were not in her favour and there was no such a thing like making a friendly smile, not with what she had. It would have made her look like a monster greeting its dinner. These thoughts filled her as she opened further the barn door. ¡°Clive, It¡¯s that you?... Did the neighbours *snip* complain again? I stop the crying, I swear, just don¡¯t make me sleep outside. Please!¡° This was the outsider, this wimp in rags was one of the many whose future achievements would save her from the mad god? It had to be a joke. Anger settled on Louret¡¯s face as she stepped into the light. ¡°You are not Clive.¡± The stranger''s weapons caught her eyes. ¡± Did they *snip*. Did they sent you to get rid of me?¡± She pushed herself into a corner and used her arms to cover her face and sobbed. Louret walked closer and closer, she knuckled her hands to release her tension somewhere. She tried to take a few big breaths, but it only made her sound like a rage-filled bull. A few moments passed by as she stood there. The girl¡¯s cries were quiet and high-pitched, her eyes red and she tried to be as little as possible while she crouched in the corner. ¡°Agh!¡± This was heading nowhere Louret thought. She crouched down and pated that pile of wretch¡¯s head. ¡°It¡¯s alright. I¡¯m not here to hurt you. I¡¯m here to help you.¡± She tried to make her best mysterious kind traveller impression. Sobbing died down a little, but Louret had to make her talk or she would be here all night in this messy barn instead of the cosy inn. ¡°Say, why the long face? If you tell me I might be able to help.¡± This was a mistake. Louret did not know what she just did. She messed around the wrong space and time, and now the box of Pandora was opened in a form of a pampered teenager¡¯s mouth.
She spaced out a couple of times in the solid half an hour lecture about how she missed the beauty salons, the clothes, the parties, her friends and so on. She was about to start a new topic on magazines when Louret stopped her out of fearing her own sanity. ¡°Alright, alright I got the picture. But what happened in the recent days? What are you sleeping in a barn on hay and how come you aren¡¯t started polishing your ¡®welcoming gift¡¯ as an outsider?¡± Louret had quite a few questions that needed answers and on the other hand, it helped to calm her down. ¡°Well¡­ People were nice to me and tried to help except the miller whom I still own a new table.¡± She chuckled a bit. ¡°But at the end, nothing seems to go my way.¡± She hugged her legs and laid her head on her knees. ¡°Each day, they offered me a job or two here and there, after they found out that whole system thing doesn¡¯t exist in my homeworld. ¡± It caused a hiccup for Louret, but she didn¡¯t stop her. ¡°But each day I made more trouble than good. It¡¯s hard to get used to these legs. The first day I lost my balance and dropped some eggs, then later afternoon I stepped on a bucket¡­ poor bucket it didn¡¯t have a chance against these.¡± She made a light stomp. ¡±The second day they offer me some work where I don¡¯t need to move around but before noon the old leatherworker told me it¡¯s better for both of us if I find something else to do. So that day I watched the cows.¡±Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. The list went and the mistakes just pilled on each other. At the end, Louret had a pretty good idea why she was crying when she heard a growl from her. ¡°Sorry. I didn¡¯t eat much today. I couldn¡¯t get myself to ask for food after today.¡± She made a weak smile, it was heart-breaking to look at. ¡°I know its sudden but I have to ask you something. Something that is really important to me.¡± She looked at her, waited for a response which she didn¡¯t get, so she continued. ¡°Would you like to travel with me?¡± This seemed easier than asking her to train, fight, level, and embrace a challenge from the mad god that she had no idea what it was. ¡°No.¡± The answer was instant. ¡°No? Why?! The village hate your guts, you have nothing to eat, you wear rags and you have no coins on hand. Let alone you sleep in a barn. Then why?¡± Another outburst. She changed her tone, back to the little princess ¡°First I don¡¯t know you, second I¡¯m not stupid I¡¯m not going to end up as a sex slave and Third Din told me about you and how kind you are as you almost strangled him.¡± She stood up and back away from Louret. ¡°He is one of the few who is still kind to me in this place. Now I if you would, leave me alone or I scream.¡± The barn door creaked as both doors opened. A small group of men stood in the dim light. ¡°Don¡¯t worry princess, you don¡¯t have to the cavalry is here for your rescue, hehe.¡± Said the man in front holding a metal coved cudgel as the rest. They wore crude leather shirts, the rest were just rags. ¡°Thanks, Din. But she was about to leave anyway.¡± ¡°This is Din, this perv? He could have drowned me in his own drool.¡± Said Louret. ¡°Oh, Lookie-lookie this one has sharp tongue boys. How about we give a free lecture on manners?¡± Said Din. The group entered the barn and formed a half circle around Louret. Arrogance on their faces. ¡°Guys what are you doing.¡± She had a bad feeling about this. ¡°Don¡¯t worry dear, after we took that monster¡¯s eyes we will live as king and queen.¡± Louret placed her hand on the longsword, aiding the sheath with the other. ¡°We?¡± Asked the barn-girl while she tried to cover herself with her arms. ¡°Yeah, we. I¡¯m not picky, you will do just fine.¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t want to be with you.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You will learn to like in time.¡± Five on one. If they grappled her it¡¯s over. The barn didn¡¯t have much room to dance around. It would come down to the first strikes and winner take all. Louret waited. Din turned back to Louret. ¡°How we gonna do it the easy way and let you go blind or the hard way.¡± ¡°I choose the hard way if it makes you shut up.¡± Louret rolled her eyes. Din face went red from anger. ¡°Get her!¡± He shouted. The four men launched themselves at Louret while Din stayed back. She unsheathed her weapon and with that momentum, she slashed down into the right one from above. The sword stuck him between his neck and left shoulder, cut through the leather and went deep into his body then stopped in his chest midway. She quickly tried to raise the sword to block something at least but the sword became heavy. It stuck. Flashed into her mind. She released the sword and the first one felt forward dead with his newly acquired weapon in his chest. It was too late, they going to hit her, there was no space to move backwards. She raised her right arm above to shield herself while she bent her knees little. The three reached her and swing after swing they chippered her right arm piece by piece as her stone like body gave in. She reached for the mace on his side, took a good grip on it and lunch herself forward. She miscalculated in the heat of battle, she used too much force, she hit the middle who lost his balance and she landed on him. His bones broken like dry twigs, the sound of cracks was followed by a huge splatter as her weight and momentum combined into deadweight and quizzed him, like slush under a boot. The atmosphere froze, the heat of battle was replaced by disgust and terror. The lightly swinging lantern hanged on a beam, it¡¯s made the hay shine in the barn as it wore its new fresh colour, red. Both men stepped back a little as their nightmare stood up from her gore-fest. Bone pieces and bloody chunk felt from to the ground while she had to force some off as it almost fused with her clothes. ¡°What the hell are you waiting for, don¡¯t let her just stand up.¡± Din shouted at them, but it was too late. The damage was done, their will was not strong enough. They dropped everything at hand and run. ¡°Useless fucking bunch. Do I have to do anything?¡± He charged at her. Louret turn to her side, the mace was on the ground. She took a stable position with her clawed feet and with one kick sent Din flying. ¡°Aaugh.¡° Din hit the wall next to the girl and managed to keep himself from falling. He coughed some blood up. ¡°Fuck¡­ Good kick there.¡± It seemed to over. He slowly reached to his stomach and pulled a dagger out from his belt in a flash. He grabbed her future wife, put her head in a headlock and place a dagger to her throat. ¡°You monster just had to ruin my day. How about this? You let me go and she can keep her life.¡± Everything was just too fast for her, she was scared. Louret didn¡¯t seem to be moved by this, she picked up the mace and started walking towards them. ¡°Do you think I don¡¯t remember how you acted back then, I knew she is precious to you in some way.¡± Louret halted. It was true and she couldn¡¯t afford to risk it, she had to keep the girl alive. ¡°Ha-ha. Better.¡± ¡°That poor bucket.¡± Louret said and the girl looked at her. ¡°Wha?¡± Din said. ¡°That poor-poor bucket.¡± She said it again. She slowly lifted her leg. ¡°Shut up. Do you think you can buy som¡­.¡± A loud stomp interrupted him which sloshed his foot, the pain was immense. He stooped and the girl broke free from his weakened grip. Louret didn¡¯t need more, she made a full smile and with two big steps, she closed the gap. Din didn¡¯t have time to look up when the mace appeared in his vision before everything went the dark. His head splattered and covered a wall behind him with his last thought. 1.07 Repressed feelings She couldn¡¯t stomach it any longer. she waited outside, trying to remove her share of blood on the grass. She was sure the feeling of squashing meat would haunt her forever. She hasn¡¯t eaten all day, but she didn¡¯t feel hungry, probably it was for the better, after what she was she would have thrown up already. The sky was clear and a slice of the blueish moon shined alongside the starts. It was the middle of the night and she just lost her bed. A tear formed in the corner of her eye and slowly run down, she thought she had a friend here. Louret tried her best to get rid of the blood, she threw away her leather shirt and the improved skirt. ¡°Well that solves a part of the problem, but I¡¯m nude again.¡± She looked around but only hay and a few tools were in the blood-soaked barn. Without any more place to look for clothes, she picked up the weapons a belt and accompanied the outsider outside. ¡°Beautiful isn¡¯t?¡± *snip ¡°It is¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry about how this turned out. Maybe your word is not like this, but here you have to be on your foot all the time.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have feet.¡± They stared at each other, then they broke out laughing. ¡°I give you that, we don¡¯t... Since I messed up your bedroom, how about I lend you mine, if you help me out with a little thing.¡° ¡°You don¡¯t have to ask it again I will go with you. After this am not sure the village would bear me any longer.¡± She wanted to be as far as far she could be from that scene. ¡°That¡¯s great. But to be honest I have something else on mind.¡± She gestures at herself. ¡°Oh, riiiight. Sorry I don¡¯t have spare clothes at hand.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, this is where these come in.¡± Louret pulled out 3 keys and made a playful smile. ¡°Just out of curiosity, you don¡¯t happen to know where they lived?¡± ¡°You want to rob them? But¡­ but that¡¯s against the law!¡± ¡°And attacking someone doesn¡¯t?¡± Responded Louret. ¡°Fair point, but I still have my spine. But I can tell where they lived for a small favour.¡± Louret rolled her eyes. ¡°Fine. Out with it.¡± She stood up, Louret was a little taller. ¡°Your name.¡± Louret went pale, she totally forgot it. ¡°My what?¡± ¡°Ah come on, I just wanted a proper introduction or you want me to call you the mysterious stranger?¡± ¡°My name is¡­¡± Come on, think of something. ¡°My name is Loren.¡± Louret wanted to punch herself. ¡°Well, nice to meet you, Loren. I¡¯m Isabella Framuntar. But my friends just call me Isabel.¡± Loren giggled. ¡°Fitting name, cowgirl.¡± ¡°Hey! You want some clothes or not?¡± ¡°Alright, alright. Sorry¡­ Isabel¡± Just saying it made it harder to not laugh. ¡°Please don¡¯t make fun of me.¡± She played with her tail hair to ease the nervousness and looked away. Loren needed a second, just to be sure she no burst out laughing. ¡°Huh. That was tough a one.¡± ¡°Can we go now?¡± Asked Isabel. ¡°Just a sec.¡± Loren went back to the barn and brought out the lantern. ¡°Now we can.¡± They headed back to the inn together but only Isabel went in. Loren had other plans for the night. There was only a dim light which helped Isabel to navigate herself through the inn. She tried to be quiet but for some reason, tiptoeing didn¡¯t help her. Each step she took made the plank under her hooves crack a little. It seemed like they compiled about the cow that was walking on them. Isabel blushed about this thought. The key she got, had a number carved into it. Fortunately, she didn¡¯t have to climb the stairs. Her new room was on the ground floor. She placed the big key into its lock and turned it. With a loud clink, the opened. She went in and closed the door behind her with its key. ¡°Huh, I hope no one woke up¡± She whispered. There was no light source in her room only the moon gave a dim shine which helped her to see the bed¡¯s outline.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. Walked towards the bed and sat down on it. ¡°Finally, a bed.¡± Isabel smiled a little as she ran her hand on the sheet. There nor a blanket, neither a pillow but it didn¡¯t matter. She laid down on the bed, watch the starts through the window until slumber took her on a ride. She didn¡¯t cry herself asleep tonight.
The dried blood was not the only thing she forgot yesterday. Isabel woke up and she fell a little better than usual. The room was not a decent one but it was room and it made her littler happy than the barn. A little stretch and she was ready, she turned the key and the door started towards her. She took a step back as Loren rolled in, on her back with a bag in her hand. ¡°Ups, I forgot, sorry Loren.¡± Isabel chuckled a bit. Loren had less cover than yesterday now she only wore rugs that was too small for her. Her body shined like chiselled stone. ¡°Yeah, I can see that.¡± She said while got back on her feet. And she started to explain today plan. ¡°We will head out around a little after noon and we have plenty of things we need to cover till then. We need a map or at least some directions, two bedrolls, a blanket, a rope¡­.¡± Growl complained Isabel¡¯s stomach ¡°and food¡­¡± Stopped Loren with an annoyed look on her face. ¡°Sorry.¡± Blushed a little Isabel. ¡°Never mind. I just explain it than during breakfast.¡± The two sat down at an empty table, each with a full plate of food. Loren didn¡¯t touch it, she talked to Isabel instead about what they needed. Isabel finished her share and eyed the one before Loren. ¡°Would you like it?¡± Asked Loren in a kind tone. ¡°Yeah¡­ I mean, no. It¡¯s yours and you have to eat as well. I would feel ter¡­¡± Growl. Isabel''s face went red. ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯m not hungry. I just bought it because I had a hunch you will need more.¡± Loren pushed the food toward her. ¡°Thank¡­ you.¡± Isabel felt ashamed and took the other plate. Loren had questions towards Isabel but she ate with such delight on her face that it made her wait until she finished. ¡°Done?¡± Ask Loren. ¡°Yes, thank for the meal.¡± Responded Isabel along with a smile. They stood up. Isabel returned the plates and as they walked outside Loren asked her. ¡°You said yesterday, that you don¡¯t have any systems back, from whatever you came from. How much they told you about it?¡± ¡°Well, they told me I can ask for my skills and stuff if I say [Status] and¡­ Woah¡± Something surprised her and she stopped. ¡°they do change over time.¡± ¡°Yes, they do if you use them but it will slow down the higher they are. But don¡¯t call for it, by saying it out loud. It is not necessary and its better if others don¡¯t know you are not paying attention. And this brings me to the second question. What classes do you have and what did you get as awelcoming gift?¡± Loren asked while gestured for her to follow her. ¡°No, now I have one that says [Warrior]. Also, the [Farmer] went up a little, but the [Tailor] dropped.¡± ¡°They are low, aren¡¯t they?¡± ¡°All three is level 1 it says.¡± Sigh. ¡°Well, they told me you only showed up in a few days ago. But I hoped for a little more than that.¡± ¡°I told you, I new to this.¡± ¡°Never mind. What about the gift, it¡¯s below the titles?¡± Loren hoped she got something good at least. ¡°I have [Outsider].¡± Isabel stopped and bitten her lips. ¡°And?¡± ¡°That¡¯s it.¡± ¡°You¡¯re kidding?¡± Ask Loren, but Isabel shook her head. Loren got angry for a brief moment, but it quickly faded. ¡°You know what. I am not even surprised if the mad god greeted you.¡± Said Loren. This topic made Isabel uncomfortable. They visited the first two shops before she got over it. ¡°Can I ask you about this system?¡± Isabel rarely played games back then, but it seemed to be a common subject among the people here. ¡°Of course. I thought you would never ask.¡± Loren answered in her kind tone. ¡°How the system work?¡± ¡°Ugh.¡± She hoped for something more specific and less robust. So, she gave her the quick version instead of hundreds of scrolls worth of speculation about it. ¡°It all comes down to skills. They represent how good you are within its range and also help you with it. Every 5,10 or 15 levels, it varies, you get a perk from it. But under 5 they come and go. Second there are titles. These are rare and they can help you a lot through skills and perks.¡± Loren took a deep breath and continued. ¡°The last are perks and there are lots of them. The passive and activatable ones. These are the basics in nutshell.¡± Isabel blinked a few times. ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry you will get the hang of it. Say would you mind if I gave you this mace and we will pair it with a shield later?¡± Loren handed over the mace and she took it. ¡°But why?¡± Yesterday bloodshed where still vivid in her mind and it showed on her face. ¡°To defend yourself if you must. Isn¡¯t that oblivious?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t even know how to use this.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why we will spare and train together on our way.¡± Isabel tried to object, but Loren continued it. ¡°Or would you rather stay here?¡± It was a gamble, but she saw no other choice. ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ But I can¡¯t stay here, but I don¡¯t want to hurt others.¡± Isabel was on the verge of crying she dropped the mace and raised her hand toward her face. Loren pulled Isabel close to herself. Hugged her with one hand and patted her head with the other. ¡°Ths-ths-ths. It alright. Cry if you must, don¡¯t hold it in.¡± Said Loren, tried to calm Isabel down. ¡°Everything happens so fast. I can¡¯t keep with this up.¡± ¡°Everything will be fine, I am here to help you. I swear.¡± This cuddling made Loren uncomfortable. Isabel had a soft body and make things worse their breasts pressed against each other. Isabel had serval times larger ones, which made her feel like theirs tried to swallow hers as they almost cover them. They spent a while there until Isabel calmed down. It made Loren petrified after a while. Snip. ¡°You are hard.¡± Said Isabel. ¡°Wha. Me?... No, I¡¯m not.¡± Loren blushed and looked away. ¡°Yes, you are. Your body is hard as stone and even shines like one.¡± Loren quickly released Isabel and stepped away. ¡°Oh that... hehe¡­ It is. It becomes like that if I don¡¯t move.¡± Loren scratched her head. ¡°Are you alright? Can we go?¡± Isabel slightly nodded and the two went on their way, preparing for their journey. 1.08 Consequences of the past They were almost done with the shopping. But Loren knew they had only a few hours left before an uproar. A newcomer who asked for a specific location and it became filled with dead bodies the next morning was certainly not a good combination. Either the smell of the rotting corpses will be discovered or if they were unlucky, someone finds them before it. Since no one started a scene in the morning, she guessed the barn was not that important. So, she placed her bet on the first one. ¡°Loren, I am not sure if this round pile of planks is sturdy enough to be called a shield.¡± Said, Isabel, while she curiously examined the shield. ¡°Trust me, as long the metal band is on the shield it will hold for a while.¡± Said, Loren, while she hurried her steps. ¡°We have one more stop and we are good to go.¡± ¡°Our backpacksare bustlingly full what else do we need? Also, they become heavy.¡± Said, Isabel, while adjusted her bag. ¡°Nothing else, but yesterday I ordered a leather armour and it should be ready by now.¡± ¡°Armour? Hey, I don¡¯t need one as well?¡± Asked Isabel. ¡°Yes, we will have to get one for you.¡± Loren turned around. They were in a hurry and the words slipped. ¡°I would give you the armour but it wouldn¡¯t fit with those.¡± Pointed at Isabel¡¯s chest. ¡°Hey! You are just jealous.¡± She puffed her cheeks while she crossed her arms under her chest. Not jealousy, but Loren had something else on her mind seeing them. Cough ¡°Let¡¯s go, I don¡¯t want others after as.¡± Said Loren. They reached the leatherworker and no one shouted yet. It was a good sign. It was in the late summer and a little after noon, most of the farmers usually take a break in the hottest hours in the days. But it also meant that the barn would turn into a sauna for the bodies. The clock worked against them. ¡°Look Loren. That is the shirt I patched.¡± Isabel stopped for a moment. ¡°But it is doing on that board?¡± ¡°Ah, just hanging around. Wait here a second.¡± Said Loren. She put her bag down and went to get her armour. The old man held a leather bracelet in his hands and threaded a leather strip into it. ¡°Are you done with my armour?¡± Asked Loren, but the man didn¡¯t look up. Cough ¡°Is my armour ready?¡± ¡°Woa¡­ Yes-yes, almost. I didn¡¯t have time to fold it and these strips just don¡¯t bend to my will.¡± He put it down on the table with an annoyed look. ¡°Ah, the sun is still low and my hands are already hurt.¡± He rubbed them together. ¡°It¡¯s already afternoon. Can I get the armour, I can put the strips in later?¡± ¡°Afternoon? Already?¡± He sat back on his chair. ¡°Time just flies nowadays.¡± ¡°Sorry, but I¡¯m in a hurry. My armour.¡± ¡°You are tall as a tree yet you see the valley.¡± He pointed to the ground next to Loren. Loren turned and on the ground, she saw the leather pieces. She leaned forward and picked up a piece, It was made of dark crude leather and the padding inside was wool, but it seemed it will be good enough. It was just afternoon but the old man already saw the rising moon. Loren thrown of her rags. He sat on his chair motionless with mixed feelings, but he couldn¡¯t complain. Loren piece by piece put on the armour and tightened those with strips in it. She was in a hurry, she didn¡¯t notice what she had just done, nor would have cared her now. The leatherworker in his chair pulled himself closer to the table, he was nervous alongside other things. Loren stepped closer to the table to take the bracelet and the remaining strips when her eyes stopped at the old man. The sings were oblivious it was all over his face. Loren suddenly felt confident and with a smile she said. ¡°I hope, we will have the pleasure next time. I appreciate the fast working hands.¡± It was not her lines. One of her old party members used to tease others this way. Now she understood why. It was fun. Loren stepped outside with her new outfit. She found Isabel, sat on the ground and ate an apple and other six apple-core around her. Isabel looked up and giggled. ¡°Nice outfit. Back home you would have earned a lot with it.¡± She said it in a sarcastic tone. ¡°I can imagine that.¡± Loren picked up her bag from the ground. ¡°But, It is time to go, we are running late.¡± ¡°Agh. Can¡¯t we wait until the sun passes a little?¡± ¡°Most certainly not.¡± Frowned Loren. They went through the village one last time. They reached the small bridge which went over the stream. Loren gulped, she didn¡¯t trust the wooden evil. Isabel was already on the other side. ¡°Loren?¡± She turned around. ¡°Did you forget something?¡± Asked Isabel. ¡°No, we are fine.¡± She took a deep breath out of habit. A cautiously walk over the bridge. It creaked but held her weight.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. ¡°It didn¡¯t sound good. Just how much heavier are you than me?¡± Asked Isabel with a smug. ¡°Just a few stones heavy.¡± She said jokingly, but the saw Isabel¡¯s face.¡± But with your appetite, you will able to tell it in weeks if not days.¡± She said it mockingly and grab a little fab around Isabel¡¯s stomach. Isabel blushed, she never had problems with her weight back home. Even if the village didn¡¯t give her much food, she munched the fruit from the trees most of the days, when she didn¡¯t have work. She had a greater appetite since she arrived and it showed in her frame. Loner saw she went too far with the joke. ¡°No worries, it will be gone within a few sparring.¡± She said trying to lighten her mood. They were just started walking when they heard a man shouting. Both turned back. ¡°Isabel, what do you think where are you going?! You still owe me a table!¡± It was the miller and he was angry. ¡°Should we run?¡± Ask Isabel. ¡°You bet.¡± Loren said it with a playful smile. The miller shouted a few times more, but the distance just grew between them. They just left the village on the side of the valley called Trona and they headed towards northwest on the dirt road.
¡°Huf-Huf. Loren, I think we ran enough.¡± Said Isabel and she took a deep breath. Loren didn¡¯t feel tired, but it was not much that people known about gargoyles in the first place. Only legends talked about the ancient culture and building that the gargoyles built. But nowadays most of the alive ones were feral and they were kept as beasts for arena fights. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s take a break, we still have a few hours before the night, but it¡¯s essential to find a good place early, near a watercourse.¡± Loren looked around and listened. She heard the panting Isabel, but now water splashing. ¡°I look around for a bit, please stay here and shout if someone coming.¡± This was not the best way to avoid danger, but she couldn¡¯t ask her to climb a tree or hide with her body. ¡°I will.¡± Isabel dropped her bag and waited till Loren went away. She was tied, but more importantly, she was hungry. She searched the bag and started to munch on the food she had. Loren walked a while, but her search came sort. She reached the edge of the forest and had a view into the valley. She saw a few houses alongside a river in the distance but it was at least half a day walk. She admired the scene and headed back to Isabel. Isabel felt great after the snack and loosened her belt. Loren was still away, so she decided to make a few swings with that mace to pass the time. She remembered how fast Loren swung the mace and she made it look easy. I was harder than it looked. ¡°If you going to use your whole arm as a sling. Then you will dislocate your shoulder.¡± Said Loren. Isabel jumped a little, she was too busy with her weapon when Loren came back. ¡°Ugh. Um¡­ Would you show me then?¡± Asked Isabel. Loren nodded with a smile and she handed over the mace. The lesson only lasted half an hour. But It was enough to make Isabel''s arms hurt. ¡°Just what are you made of?¡± Asked Isabel as she wiped her sweat away. ¡°Mostly stone¡­ I think.¡± Loren was not sure, and till now it didn¡¯t occur to her. ¡°You think?¡± Isabel asked with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Since I¡¯m a gargoyle, I would make sense. And I also have a perk that is related to that.¡± ¡°A gargoyle? But you seem like an elf but with dark skin¡­ A dark elf.¡± Stated Isabel. ¡°Why? In your word elves have clawed feet and teeth like this?¡± Asked Loren. She showed her teeth with a smile so wide that would make every dentist shed a tear. ¡°Waa.¡± Isabel took a step back. ¡°Oh, sorry, I forgot to show you it. I didn¡¯t mean to scare you.¡± ¡°Scare? You are kidding, that is so cool!¡± She stomped around in excitement. ¡°Back home, there are only humans. And I just missed my chance to meet a centaur and an elf back in the village, but I spoke with a dwarf and..¡± Isabel jabbered. ¡°Woah, slow down.¡± Loren took a look at Isabel. ¡°You said there are only humans?¡± ¡°Yeah, why?¡± ¡°But you are half-minotaur, aren¡¯t you?¡± Asked Loren pointing at her lover half. ¡°I don¡¯t know if I am. I just got these.¡± Said Isabel and look at her legs. ¡°From who?¡± Loren had a suspicion. ¡°I¡­¡± She remembered what it was like back then within the present of the goddess. She bent a little and player her tail hair again. ¡°I got it from some nature goddess.¡± She said it quietly. ¡°Goddess? Dahlia? But you said that the mad god greeted you.¡± Something was off, Loren just felt it in her guts. ¡°The mad god is the black with purple flames?¡± ¡°Yeah, so you meet him.¡± Stated Loren. Isabel was quiet, too quiet. ¡°Isabel.¡± Said Loren and it gave the chill to Isabel. ¡°Why did you meet two gods?¡± Ask Loren and it made Isabel¡¯s hearth shrink. ¡°Because I was not nice.¡± She said it with a vague smile. ¡°Isabeeel?! Why you met two gods?¡± Loren patient was coming to an end. ¡°I¡­ I¡­¡± Isabel stuttered. Loren saw the discouraged girl in front of her, so she changes tone before it¡¯s too late. ¡°Isabel. Just tell the truth. I won¡¯t get mad.¡± Said Loren. ¡°You won¡¯t?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t.¡± Isabel took a deep breath and jabbered the response. ¡°I pissed off the made god, so he sent me to the goddess in the jungle. I also made her mad and she started to change me and kept shouting at her, then she threw me back first one and¡­¡± She looked down. ¡°She also might have cursed me.¡± Her voice was almost silent, but there was nothing else to around them to repress it. ¡°She, what!¡± Loren cried out. ¡°I knew you would be mad.¡± Isabel turned away. Loren walked next Isabel while inside she fought against her emotions. She put her hand on Isabel¡¯s shoulder and said in a calm voice. ¡°It is fine, Isabel. Curses from gods can be revoked if you please them. It¡¯s not the end of the world. But first you have to tell me what she gave you, so I can help.¡± Isabel called for her [Status]. ¡°In the title I have [Cursed of Dahlia] and in the perks, it says [Racebound (cow)] and [Body of plenty].¡± ¡°[Body of plenty] ¡­ I see.¡± Loren turned Isabel around. ¡°Isabel. Gods here will punish you if they see fit, but they almost always do in a way that would benefit them.¡± Loren tried to keep Isabel calm. ¡°This is what made me hungry? But why?¡± ¡°She is the god of fertility and nature. If I have to guess, she wanted you to be more, much more appealing to other beast folks since she made you one.¡± Loren tried to be the least harmful with her words. ¡°She wants you to be an ideal mother figure in her eyes to help grow her herd.¡± Snip-snip. ¡°And how can we remove it?¡± Ask Isabel. The easiest way was out the window. It was oblivious for Loren, that she didn¡¯t want to have a child or two. So, they had a few options left. They could ask for forgiveness at the deity¡¯s temple, but she had no idea where is the closest one and it rarely worked. There were known challenges that could be overcome to please a deity, but Loren was not fond of the idea to plant a forest. They could also ask for such a challenge which was the favoured way to go and they were usually easier than the rest. And finally, she could offer herself to the deity to become her priest, in this case, her druid. But it would only delay the problem. ¡°We have to find a temple of hers and ask for a challenge to remove the curse.¡± Said Loren. ¡°But until then you have to¡­¡± Growl Loren knew what was coming she hugged Isabel as she started crying. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I am here to help you.¡± 1.09 Body limits Loren kept watch at night, she seemed to be tireless. Or just there was too much to dwell on. She couldn''t decide it. Things didn''t go as she has planned it, the outsider was no more than a mere child in her eyes. The problems just pilled and the list went on and on, about what there should be done. They had to find a temple to get a challenge for Isabel, a group of crazy cult members to get guidance from the mad god, she had to train and teach her on their way... And this was just the beginning of the list. Loren sat there motionless. She stared at the small campfire as she went on with her list. The dancing flames bewitched her and it made anger to grow inside her. The list in her mind slowly twisted inside-out and the memories of her past conquered her mind. She wanted it. She wanted to find and massacre all who betrayed her or even just thought about it. She wanted it with all her might. She wanted each and every one of them, to see as despair swallows them whole to the point where they even fear the daylight. To saw as madness become their second nature and make them beg for their end. Just so she could tear them into shreds until nothing left. She wanted it. The fire took her on the ride and brought her back as well. The flames shrank as they lived up their fuel. The now dim light made Loren shook her head. She felt for it, again. It must have been her perk, or this was how gargoyle slept she thought. But being motionless was so inviting time-to-time. She stretched her legs, then fed the fire for one last time that night. ---- ------ "Isabel. Isabel, wake up." Said Loren. Isabel turned to her other side. "It is still dark, let me sleep some more." Murmured her. "A few minutes and sun will be up. And I want to be ready to go." Explained it Loren. Isabel didn''t respond to that. Loren got an idea, an idea that made her grin. "If you don''t wake then we have to skip breakfast." She said. "Growl" Complained Isabel''s stomach. "Catch ya!" Said Loren. "You are a real jerk. You know?" Stated Isabel with a sleepy and grumpy face. "Put me on the court if you have to, but we still have to go. I want to reach that hamlet before dusk so we can train you a little at least." "Train? Ugh... At least it will just lecture, right?" Isabel knew what Loren meant, but she had to ask. "Yes." Isabel couldn''t believe her ears what she just heard. It made her brighten up. "I will lecture and you will excise." "Oooh." Before breakfast. Loren showed Isabel how to properly wrap and bind the sleeping bag. It wasn''t exactly a sleeping bag in Isabel''s opinion, it was just a leather sheet, with a thin cloth stitched to its side to use it as a blanket. Loren then gave Isabel a smaller portion of food and then she picked her bag up. "Is that all?" Asked Isabel. Just looking at the just handful of dry crackers made her sad. "Yes. I figured it would help if you eat your share in more piece than in a few large ones to keep your cravings at bay." Explained Loren. Then She turned toward Isabel and said it in a serious tone. "And don''t think I haven''t found out your snacking from yesterday." This made swallow to Isabel, Loren reminded her one of the drill sergeants from a movie and she felt like she just signed up for one of those fat camps. The path in the forest they follow had a slight downward angle. It made them slow down on the tempo. Isabel was still not comfortable with her new feet. "One of the first things will be that you learn how to walk properly." Mocked Loren Isabel as she walked backwards. Loren had no problem to get a good grip on the ground, which made her wonder. She stopped and before she notices Isabel passed her.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. "Whats wrong Loren?" She looked back at her. "It been a while, and I don''t know what is the limit of my body. Would you mind, if I go ahead? I want to run and jump around a little. And maybe punch a tree or two." Loren seemed a little embarrassed for some reason. "Sure?... Go ahead." Said Isabel. It was unusual to ask something like that, but this word was already out of place. "Just stay on the path and we will meet later, okay?" It made Loren a little uneasy to leave Isabel alone, but this valley seemed harmless enough. "Jeez, Loren am not a child. Just go already" Isabel rolled her eyes. Loren passed Isabel, looked back one last time, then ran down the path. Isabel walked for a while and watched as Loren disappeared from her sight. She waited a few minutes then stopped. "Finally, just in time." She took off her bag and opened it. "What? No, Nononono. It''s gone, she took it. All of it." Isabel felt betrayed and defeated, Loren must have put all the food in her bag. "That witch." She puffed up her cheeks and put her bag on. She walked for a while until the angle of the path eased. "Huh. A quick break seems appropriate." She looked through the greenery to tell the time, but she only could guess it. It seemed it was a little before noon. She looked around for any proper seat, but a tree caught her eyes instead. She knew at the very moment that Loren would be mad. She saw a tree that size was just right, its branches were within her reach. And the tree possessed the bane of her curse. Growl. "Oooh. Loren going to kill me."
She just ran and ran. And she felt she could run forever, away from the problems, away from the gods, and away from Isabel. This last thought made her slowly stop. She was worried for a moment and looked back. "Focus!" She slapped her cheeks with both hands. "My stamina is like one of those machine people, and I don''t get hungry and thirsty just like them. With comes down to that, that I ran on mana." She stated it. "Which means I can do little to none magic." She bit her lips, I was worse than a curse. Magic was an important role for most classes. It was the base of his kit back then, illusions, body enchantments and detect spells. If she was right then she couldn''t use most scroll or rune that high-mages prepared for adventurers. "Then all is left are magic items, but they are expensive." Sigh. She looked around and walked next to an older taller tree. "Alright tree. Bear with me for a little." She said it with a smile. She marked her height on its bark with a dagger. She stepped away from the tree and looked at the mark. She looked up once just to be sure there were no branches. Then jumped a few time cutting a new line in front of her into the bark. "Could be better. It''s not even the half of my height. A decent Rouge could jump serval feet up, but even the worst could jump their height with light gear." She looked down feeling a little defeated. On the ground, there were now a few at least six-inch deep clawed feet marks. "Yeah, it not gonna happen any time soon." She said and made a weak smile. "No magic and no acrobatics in the future. Well, my endurance good for sure, but there is still one thing left." She looked up and jumped into a fighting position. The tree didn''t stand a chance. She punches her way through its bark with ease and damaged the wood as well in a few punches. Seeing her progress made her blissful. "Haha. No mace needed for the softies!" She was satisfied. Her body was fitting for being called a monster. She stood there for while observing what she was capable of even at low levels and it made her feel confident in her power. But she ran out of ideas and breaking stone with stone didn''t seem like a good idea. "Well, time to head back, she must be close by now." She peeked at her bag and grinned a little.
She made a mistake, a big one. Since there were no farmers to shout at her for eating the various fruits and no Loren to watch out for her, she ate more than she should have. Two became three as she reassured herself that fruits were healthy then it became five, six, a dozen and a little more. Her roundish stomach ached while she rubbed it. She couldn''t believe her eyes when she saw it, but she surely felt it. She cleared a quarter of that tree in one sitting when she left the scene of her crime. She walked back to the path and followed it for a while. "I''m so done for. Loren surely could tell that I found food, but even if not.." She looked down at her middle and frowned. "...she will surely notice it if I don''t ask for it." These though were on her mind as the guilt settled. "Isabel!" Isabel looked up and saw Loren running in her way while she waved her hand a few times. "Gods save me." Said Isabel quietly. As she waited till fate couth up with her. Each step Loren took made Isabel uneasy. By the time Loren stood before her she played with her tail hair. "Good to see you in one piece." Loren seemed excited. "Yeah, good to see you as well. How the limit testing wen?" Asked Isabel trying to hide her guilt. "Not exactly as I planned, it looks like being sneaky will do no good for me." Loren was careful with her words, it was for the better if she didn''t know about her past. "But it''s not that important. I might have lost my sense of time, but I still want to reach the hamlet before dusk. So, how about we walk for a while and you may snack twice while we reach it?."Asked Loren. "Okay." Isabel looked down with a small frown, she couldn''t look into Loren''s green eyes. Loren sensed there was something off, but she didn''t want to push it. Isabel had a good share of grief in the recent past and breaking her meant an end for herself as well. "Alright then." Loren had to cheer her up. So she did the unthinkable. "How about while we walk, you tell me about those places you visited in your homeworld." She said it, while she put on a fake smile. Isabel nodded. The memories brought great joy to her, she cherished them well. And thus pandora''s box opened once again. 1.10 Sparring is spare time The greenery cleared away from their vision as the tree spared. The houses of the hamlet were not much farther away. Loren cursed every single moment of the past few hours she spent with Isabel. She wished she could just erase all the meaningless information she just heard during her torture. The shops in the mall, the beauty salons, he beloved pet, the mansion she lived in and all the parties she was present. It seemed like an endless hell for her. And for the first time, she felt tired. The only good thing about this was it made Isabel entirely forget about herself, which let her dictate a faster tempo. Sigh. "Finally." Said Loren, as they reached the edge of the houses. "Wierd, I thought you said it was farther away." Hearing that, Loren turned towards Isabel with a grim smile. "Since we are here so early, we have more time to train. Right, Isabel?" The reminded Isabel what Loren was holding for her. The worst, excises. There was not much to see around here, most of the building looked like warehouses and many paths met here. It was common for folk around here to build outposts like these. Such places were used as collective trading posts, so the merchant didn''t have to climb the hill-sides. It was better for everybody this way. Since the villages around the valley gather here once or twice around a year to trade. It made the process safer, and also they didn''t have maintained that many roads for such purposes. "Loren, why there is nobody around here?" Asked Isabel. "Trades usually happens around middle spring and fall. Otherwise, only hunter and foresters show up time to time." Explained it Loren. "But can we stay here?" These question started to annoy Loren. She had to change Isabel''s view on the world or it will swallow her whole. "Yeah. Just don''t set the thing on fire. Lets set up a camp inside one of them and begin your training with a little running." Isabel frowned, but the puppy eyes didn''t move Loren. The buildings were placed around a wide circle so markets could be set up in the middle. They chose a smaller one with fewer windows since Loren was sure Isabel couldn''t climb a ladder just yet. But first, she had to walk and run properly even if the ground was not flat. After they prepared for the night and dusk was at least an hour away. The training could finally begin. First, she made Isabel run a few laps around the buildings. It was fun for a minute, but Loren got bored with the heavily panting girl. So, while she did the remaining laps, she picked up her longsword and examined its blade. "Rubbish. This needs to be reforged. There are too many spots where it chipped." She ran her eyes up and down on the sword. "Hey, this one was made by me!" She said and laughter outburst from her. Seein the big piece the sword was missing on that part made Loren feel superior over it. "Hah, no match for me." The self-admiring stoped when Isabel dropped by and used the sitting Loren back as support. Loren felt as two large soft orbs pressed against her back. "Isabel?" "Yeah?" She gasped for air. "Are you sitting on me?" "M-hm." "Girl, you just made a grave mistake. You rump is huge." "Hey!This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. "Do a few more rounds." "Don''t want to. I''m tired." Whined Isabel. "Either this or you get fewer portions." Growl "You are not helping." Said Isabel to her stomach. She slowly stood up and started jogging. Loran attention went back to the sword. The sun reflected on the sword alongside her skin which gave her an idea. She was not sure if it was a good one, after what she did to the tree, she thought it could work. The fixed the blade of the sword with her legs in an upward angle and she put her on the back of the sword. She pressed her arm down heavily as slowly run her arm on the back of the sword. The grinding of the metal was unique and unmistakable. She was sharpening the sword. "Loren?" Isabel was back, but Loren was lost in the process. "Loren?" The feeling was somewhat pleasant almost ticklish. "Loren!" Isabel shouted. Her hand finally stopped. She looked up, and she saw the frightened Isabel. Loren stood up and hugged her. "I am so sorry. I didn''t mean to scare you." Said Loren in a calm tone. "How about a snack and we spare a little?" Isabel nodded. --- ---- They stood in front of each other in the circle that the houses made. Isabel had a shield and a mace at hand. Loren uses her sword with its sheath on it. Isabel seemed nervous since this was her first time sparing. "I''m going to hit your shield. All you have to do first is to make sure you have a good grip on it. If you just hold it then you arm will twist and if you are lucky only the shield will hit you. You can holt the shield closer to yourself, but then it will block your view." Loren finished her short lecture. She wielded the sword with one hand and took a swing at Isabel. The sword met the shield and Isabel felt the force it put on her arm. Her grip was good enough to keep the shield from turning, but she lost her balance and fell on her back. Loren was worried for a moment, till she saw she started to stand up. "At least you put you behind a good use." She mocked her. "Very funny." Isabel frowned. "Second, you have to keep your balance and watch out for your footwork. Others would say this in the opposite order, but with your height and weight, it''s not likely that a human will knock off your feet." "I get it. I have to lose weight." She rolled her eyes. "And what about other races?" Asked Isabel. "Good question." It made Loren happy to see some sense in Isabel. "It comes down what weapon your foe uses and not what race they are. But there some favoured tactic. Giants go for crushes and heavy attack, Elves tend to use fancy footwork while they jump around to find a weak spot, centaurs favours charges, and dwarves... Dwarves go to kneecaps." This statement made Isabel giggle a bit. "Of course there are other races, but these are the well known." "What about you?" The question made straggled Loren a bit. "Ugh. Well, it''s not much they know about gargoyles, they are mostly savages." Loren looked down on herself. "You don''t look like one." Isabel tried to cheer her up. "Thanks. Oh, right almost forgot. Beastfolk savages too alongside minotaurs." Said Loren, with a playful smile. "Hey!" They looked at each other and laughed. "Shall we continue?" Ask Loren and she got a confident nod from Isabel. "Good. Now come and try to hit me with the mace. And if I''m close just push away with the shield." Isabel walked up to Loren, she didn''t feel like running or charging at her. Loren already shook her head seeing her attitude. But then out of the blue, the mace appeared in her sight and head towards her face. She bearly had time to react, she leaned backwards just in time when the mace reached the just where her head was. Loren tried to step back to regain her balance but Isabel pushed her with the shield. Loran landed on her behind. She was shooked, she knew she lost her skills, but the difference it made in reaction time was baffling. She looked up to Isabel how stood there a cocksure smile as she looked down on her. "Looks like someone is not using her weight?" Isabel mocked Loren. "Yeah-yeah. I am a little rusty, that all" Loren stood up, she felt her cheeks red. She dusted herself and turned to Isabel, who just burst into laughter. "What?" Ask Loren and Isabel pointed with the mace where she felt. In the ground, there were two small sized bowl holes. Loren felt embarrassed for a moment, but Isabel''s laughter made her happy somehow. "Maybe you should drop a few stones as well." Said Isabel between to laughs. "Alright, that''s enough. Let''s do it again, but now I will swing a few times as well." The two traded hits and blows for a few minutes and ended up with a few bruises before the sun hides behind the mountain range. --- ---- They didn''t start a fire tonight. Isabel finished her meal and went to sleep, Loren sat down not far from her covered with the blanket she was supposed to keep watch, but she felt into her meditative state before Isabel. "Loren?" Isabel quietly asked. The silence was her answer. Isabel couldn''t wait any longer. She pulled her bag closer to herself and pick out the two snack she got earlier in their way here. --- ---- 1.11 Louret and Loren "Louret?" ... "Louret?!" He heard someone shouted his name. He shook his head a looked around. He was in a cellar room, their safe room. A table in the middle with a paper on it. The layout of Lord Realvar''s residence. Everbody in the Raveneye''s guild were present and they looked at him. "Sorry, lost in thought." Said Louret and rubbed his eyes. "For fuck sake Louret. Don''t space out now. This is the first real job in a year, and I had to pull quite a few strings to get it." Trezzu their fence snapped at him. He had same dwarf blood in him, a balding old trustworthy guy, with more pockets than one could count. "See kid, this is your mentor... This old wolf." A woman in the corner of the room sat on top of a barrel with crossed legs insulted him. "Shut it Kina. Time worked on you as well, without your magic you would be a hag." Responded Louret. "But I have it." Said Kina with a playful smile, and adjusted her breasts. "Done?" Asked Trezzu and looked at them with an annoyed look. He got no answers. "Good. So, the job is simple. You four have to remove Lord Realvar and steal his new law proposition on the mechanoid matter." "Steal? But I thought we only take targets." Said Hubard the youngest member of the group. "Times Change." Stated Trezzu. "Alright, back to common thieves. But then why not get some jewellery as well?" Said the disappointed Hubard with wide gestures. "Shut it, kid. That very paper you speak of, worth more than some shiny rock on cold metal." Trezzu explained. Waited for the others till they looked back and continued. "According to servants of the mansion. Their dear lord keep every paper in a chest inside the office. Louret, Hubard clear the way to the office. And Mitra this is very you come in. The lord must have put a few spells on it. You dispell them and relocate the chest outside the mansion as close to the ground as close you can." "Don''t you think the patrol will not find it curious that a chest popped out next to the mansion." Asked the young half-elf Mitra who managed to get a cat tail after she got drunk in wild party. "Don''t worry about it. I got a chariot and placed teleport trap in it. I will be waiting outside on the chariot and drive away once the chest is in there. But then comes the hard part. Kina, you put illusions on Louret and Hubard. I got two servants pictures who work in the night shift in there." "That''s all, I will do?!" Asked Kina in shock. "Do you find it much." Mitra teased Kina. "Not now! Back to the plan, we don''t have much time." and pointed on the layout. "Second floor, far right window. This is your best chance to get in. Two turns and you find the office at the end of the hallway with two guards. Once they are gone, Mitra goes in and do the rest. In the meantime, Kina puts up the spells. After that, you girls get out before it gets ugly. The Lord most likely arrive at the estate before the moon hides Barga''s shine in the sky. His escort won''t follow him after that point. You just have to wait for your moment in the main room where they greet the lord, then escape." "Wait, why we don''t just take the lord out elsewhere?" Asked Hubard. "Ha. Since he wrote the paper, the tinfoil soldiers just swam him around like ants the queen. His escort consists of about fifty soldiers." "Make sense. No other lord stood up for their freedom, no wonder they jump him around." Said Mitra. "Exactly. This is why once the lord is gone and the law is stolen, its value will reach the stars. And the highest bidder takes all. Those mindless tin toys would kill each other for that and rest of the Lord here use them for most of their labour. If the machines get it which I highly doubt, then the Lords will uprise against the king. But if the Lords win, that means those screwed together brain have no other choice but to revolt for their freedom in the capital. Either way, it will be a mess and the jobs for heads will roll in one after the other. This place is a powderkeg and I want to be sure we take the first shot. I want us to be at the top in our trade once again. For Raveneye!" "For Raveneye!" They cheered together.
The group of four reached the side of the mansion after the last city patrol passed. The moon was still far away from Barga''s shine. But in the capital, most merchants had to remove their goods way before that. Also, this was the time when most families join together for their dinner. "Hurry up Mitra. We don''t have much time." Said Louret. "Just give me a sec, my hair is a mess." Responded Kina as she pulled leaves out of her hair after they hid in a nearby bush. "I swear, Your obsession with beauty will be our end." Snaped Mitra at her. Kina took her time, while the others waited. Then she looked up at the second floor''s window. "Give me the rope." Kina reached toward Louret. "As you order your royal hagness." After a short focus to drawn power from her ring. "[Rope trick]" She cast the spell. The rope started to move as it had its own will. One of its and started to crawl toward the sky next to the wall. "You know Louret, we could spend some fun time together." Said Kina with a playful smile as she controlled the rope. "Ask Mitra, she might into this stuff." "Like hell, I am! I like a few weird stuff but bondage is not one of them." "Are you sure kitty-cat?" Her playful smile became sinister. "Save me, Louret." Mitra hid behind Louretand glared at Kina. "You know she is just joking?" Asked Louretthe hiding Mitra "How do you know? You are talking about Kina." "I don''t." Said Louret with confidence. The rope became stiff as it reached the edge of the window. Louret climbed first and opened the window with ease. The hallway they found themselves was two chariot wide and its floor was covered with carpet. Pictures of the lord''s ancestors alongside with a few busts here and there decorated it. After the first turn, they stopped at the corner and Louret took a peek.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. "Alright, Hubard info was right this time there are only two heavily armoured guards. Kina silence the hallway." Said Louret. Kina looked at Mitra "Any barriers?" "None, but the mansion must be reinforced. I sense awful lot bonded magic here." Kina didn''t need to know more she cast the spell. "[Area Silence]" Louret noded at Hubard and they pulled out the daggers and used [Blured Edge] a low-level perk which was commonly used by most dishonest classes. The two guards put their back against the wall, nights like this hold nothing interesting. Their shift was somewhere around midway when two dark blurry figures stepped out from the corner ahead of them and ran towards them. Louret saw as one of them tried to shout, but it was a futile act. The guard realized this. Drawn his weapon while tapped his mate who still watched the ceiling out of boredom. The intrudes already closed the gap by the time the second guard tried to draw his weapon. Louran took on the guard on the right and dodge his attack with a roll and passed by him. The guard turned but it was too late. Louret stabbed the guard in the back of his leg between the plates of his armour. His leg went limb and he was forced to kneel on it. The [Blurred Edge] made Louret a hard target. The guard tried to stab him where his foe was sure to be, in the middle. Louret was well aware of this and reflected the blade with his dagger. He stepped closer to the guard and sliced his throat. Meanwhile, Hubard reached his target and stabbed the hand of the guard while he tried to pull his weapon out. The dagger went in deep into the gauntlet just above the fingers. The guard hand was paralysed in an instant. He tried to push away Hubard with his other hand to gain a preferable distance, but he stepped aside grabbed the guard arm and pulled it. The guard was forced to take a few steppes forward then he turned around, quickly reached for his weapon only to see that it was in his opponent''s hand. The [Blurred Edge] ended only so he could see the cocksure smile on Hubard face before everything went black. The two waited until the girl caught up and the silence ended. "Stop playing with your foes." Louret snapped at Hubard. "Why? They seemed and were lower-lever." Said Hubard with a shrug. Louret didn''t answer just shook his head, he knew too well what could happen if you give others time. "Guards dead. Check. It''s time for you two to be the manservant of the house." Said Kina "You are enjoying this too much." Stated Louret. "Who, Me? Don''t be ridiculous." Giggled Kina. "Alright stay still. [Disguise Person]" She compared the pictures and their new look. "Good enough, but try to limit the contact you make with others." Mitra went into the so-called office and found the chest next to a cupboard. She cast [Detect Magic] and frowned. "Kina. Hide the guards, it will take a while to break this." The spell on the chest was a fine example of a high mage''s trade. The everflowing lines of magical runes crossed each other multiple times and completed each other every time they met. "It''s Time to greet out lord, right Louret?" Hubard had a sinister look on his face. Louret knew that the kid got too cocky. The two new servants of the house walked to the main room and waited in the dark making sure they were not the first who got there. The moon was close to Barga''s shine when the chariot arrived at its destination. The automatons bid farewell to their saviour and stood their ground till Lord Realvar disappeared behind the doors. The servant of the house stood in two lines at the edge of the carpet the lead upstairs. Louret and Hubard were in the middle of the two lines. The doors opened a Lord Realvar stepped inside his residence. He walked alongside the two line on the carpet with confidence. The servant bowed one-by-one as their lord past them. Something was off but Louret couldn''t tell what was it. Hubard and Louter faced each other and they were next in line, they bow as the rest. Hubard waited for a few steps and reached for his dagger. He launched himself at the Lord and aimed for his neck. The moment the point of the dagger touch him, the Lord''s ring shined up and the gem inside shattered. From the Lord''s aura, a shockwave exploded outwards and send Hubard across the room. The power of the shockwave was immense and Louret felt back as well a little. The two line of servants didn''t move an inch. "Good evening, sirs. I''m sorry to inform you, but your arrival was expected and it is most certainly not welcomed." Said Lord Realvar, and with a snap of his fingers the servants disappeared and in their places automatons stood. "Please do not object and let the guards help you rejoin with your friends."
Loren took a deep breath and cover her face. It was just a dream but her memories were still vivid in her mind about the fight in the main hall. Hubard was impaled by a tin soldier, they captured her. "If I had this body back then... Hubard... and the rest..." The sorrow filled her, but she couldn''t weep. Gargoyle couldn''t. Loren eventually calmed down and looked up, the rays of the sun found their way between the plank and through the few windows and brighten up the inside. "So the formed stones sleep as well." She looked at where Isabel slept, only to find her bedroll ready but every other content of her back next to it in a pile. "Isabel?" Loren was worried. She stood up and looked out the window. Nothing. "No, nononono." She ran outside and looked around a few times. Nothing. "Isabel!" She shouted as loud as she could, she got no answer. She ran back to the house and searched her back. It was still intact, nothing was missing. "So it wasn''t bandits. But then." For a moment Loren thought she grabbed the food and went back to the village. "She would have grabbed the food." Only one option left. "Wildlife." She felt despaired. Maybe if she is fast enough she could save her, she thought. She ran outside and looked for footprints, but she found nothing the dirt was dry and cracked. "Isabel, Isabel!" She shouted, and leaned against the wall and sat down. "Isabel..." Isabel has grown on her and she lost her. "Loren!" Loren heard a faint sound, someone called her. She jumped back up and looked around. She saw Isabel in the distance stepped out from the wood and headed her way. Loren couldn''t contain herself and run, run as her life depended on it. Isabel wore the bag in the front and held something in her hand. Isabel saw Loren and had a bad feeling, she put down the bag which was overfilled with fruit and took one last bite from what she had in hand. She took a stable position and waited for Loren. "Isabel!" Loren shouted out of joy and jumped towards Isabel. She tried to stop her but she had too much momentum. They spun two times then Isabel lost her balance and they both felt on the ground. Loren reached the ground first and Isabel was top on her. Loren smiled and pulled Isabel closer to herself. "Isabel, I was so worried. I woke up and found you bedroll empty and all of you stuff was on the ground and..." Loren jabbered but stopped when Isabel tightened her hug and she felt her plushy body pressing against hers. "Ths-ths-ths. I tried to wake you up but I couldn''t. You slept too deep." Said Isabel, as she slowly loosened her hug. She held herself with her hand on the ground above Loren and looked her in the eyes. Loren couldn''t keep the eye contact and looked away blushing. Isabel read Lorean as an open book. "That''s cute." Said Isabel and sat back onto Loren''s lap. "Looks like my saviour was charmed by my beauty, maybe the goddess made a mistake and blessed me instead." Isabel teased Loren, who could felt Isabel''s behind pressed down on her groin. "Could it be this?" She ran her hands through her hair. "Or maybe these." Then she crossed her arms and lifted her heavy breasts. "Alright, alright. Maybe I do... a little" She gently pushed Isabel away and stood up. "But what of it?" She asked as she stood back to Isabel. "Oh, nothing." Responded Isabel then stood up and dusted herself. "But, who knows. Maybe we should know each other better." Said Isabel and picked her bag up and took another fruit from it. Loren was overflown with vivid visions of the two of them together, with the reborn her youth wasn''t the only thing that returned. Her visions come short when she heard the crunch of the fruit. She snapped back and look at Isabel. "Are you eating?" Loren asked with crossed arms her arousal died down. "Oh... Yes?" Isabel asked humbly, with a full mouth. "Isabel." "It''s not my fault. I had to find food since you slept for a week." Objected Isabel. "I''m what?" "You don''t believe me? Look!" She pushed out her belly as hard as she could and pointed at it. Loren''s jaws dropped. She couldn''t believe her eyes, even if Isabel stuffed herself all day it still couldn''t be possible, her belly stuck out at least half a feet and it looked tight as a drum. Seeing Loren astonished face she couldn''t hold it out any longer and burst out laughing. Loren''s face went red. "Just joking. You only slept like half a day. And I also ran this morning to make up for it." Loren was amused how Isabel played her around her fingers. "Alright, Miss prized cow. It''s my turn to laugh. How about we spar a few hours maybe that way we get to know each other better." Loren looked at Isabel who frowned for a moment with her head down. Isabel looked back up with a bright smile and the two headed back to the warehouse. 1.12 Carrot sisters (part 1) The moon hid Barga''s shine on the night sky. The empty streets echoed the clopping of a horse''s hooves as she headed towards the gates with her small rider on her back. It became a habit of theirs. Every day after their overstretched shifts they left the city of Irontop and headed towards the nearby forest for the rest of the night. Folks around here avoided visiting the woods, and they had a good reason to do so. The local wildlife was famous for their various wolf packs, and for the deadly iron-clawed bear. The safety of the city walls kept the wildlife at bay and its resident safe. But neither were strong enough reason to stay behind the walls for them. The odd duo left the city as they passed the gate and bid farewell for its guards. The temperature quickly dropped as there was nothing left to shield from the icy wind. Even in summer, it was cold on the mountain range. And there was a good half an hour walk even on horseback between the walls and the first trees. The first breeze waved the centaurs blanket on her back and shivered her little fuzzy equestrian. "Can''t you hurry a little more? I''m feezing here!" Asked the rider, a fine example of the rabbit beast folks. No taller than 4 feet... well... 3 with flattened ears, covered from ear to paw with fluffy brown fur, except for a black patch around her left eye. She still wore her waitress outfit from the inn, and on top that a wool blanket against the wind. The centaur¡¯s upper torso turned just enough, so she could point to her side at a heavy looking bag which also held their lantern. "Tom. Those bags were expensive, and they might rip if I start to canter." "I don''t care! I don''t want to turn into a bunny flavoured popsicle... And don''t call me that this close to the city." She jumped onto her paws and shouted at her. "Then what should I call you. Tomboy?" Asked back then she released a quiet giggle. "Agh... Get off your high horse, just because I flat as a plank." The rabbit hoped back to her behind facing backwards to her and crossed her arms. "And call me Amy." Finished her sentence sulking. "You fat flanked f..." She muttered. "I can hear you!" A few moments of awkward silence followed, but then she asked. "Why the sudden new name?" she asked. "Because Mark unlike you, I work in a tavern which often visited by drunkard miners and if they found me out then I not only can say bye-bye to the tips but also lose my job." Stated Amy. "Gess, alright. Hold your hors..." She realized too late, her words slipped out. "Haha, you did it!" Amy jumped up and turned towards Mark and pointed at her. "I didn''t... You misheard." She tried to protest while her face went red. "Ha, Nice try Bambi, but these radars are sharp" She pointed at her with a victory smile. She tried to make her use a phrase with a horse about a week now. "Bambi?!" "Yeah, if you don''t get a new name than I gave you one." "I''m not going to be Bambi." She felt humiliated, she couldn''t imagine being called after a fairy tale character. "Why? I don''t think anyone knows it¡¯s a male name." "That not the point." "Alright... then... Ji, Jal, Jul, Jil, Jel, Jen.. That is! From now on you are Jenny!" "No, I am not." "Sorry Jen, the auction is over, the horse been sold." Jenny stopped and turned towards Amy as much as she could. She was furious. "Look. My day was a hell as a cart horse, and I don''t want to be reminded of what I am. They ordered me up and down all day long without a break. I tried to be nice, but one more word and you sleep on the tree. " "Noooo, I would freeze! I need my Jenny bed." Amy flattened her ears, grabbed the end of them and brought them close to her face with puppy eyes. "I... I..." Jenny muttered, he just couldn''t get mad at her, the look on her innocent little fuzzy face was enough to melt most hearths. She dropped the act and pointed at Jenny with a mean look. "Ha, I knew I am too cute for you to resist." Amy realized too late, she stepped over the line. Even a child could have read Jenny''s expressions. Anger. "That''s it. You are not sleeping with me tonight." She turned away and started walking on the road. "But...It''s cold at night... I will die! Jenny? Jenny, please! Jeeennyy, please!" She didn''t turn back, nor she gave an answer. Jenny gave a harsh treatment for her little friend.
Inside the forest not too far from the edge, stood a lonely old patched up tent, hold by frayed ropes from the nearby branches. A smaller cauldron was placed before it, on top of a burn out fireplace. By any means would anyone call this place suitable for living. But they called it home. Amy hoped down an walked inside the tent. "T... Amy. After you change clothes, please start the fire while I unpack." "Alright..." Amy felt terrible, the thought she had to sleep on a tree horrified her. Jenny took off the lantern and place on a branch, then she lowed her backside and let the bag slide down, so she could start her everyday routine, cooking. Within minutes the fireplace''s flames brighten their surroundings and Amy found herself with nothing else to do. She couldn''t stir the cauldron from a safe distance and they had nothing for her to stand on at hand, which wouldn''t catch aflame after. Maybe she could have chopped the vegetables but they only had an old table to prepare the ingredients on which was taller than her. And pouring water into the cauldron was out of the question. She just sat down wearing her warm blanket next to a barrel of water. She was too small to help Jenny. Just seeing the towering centaur picking up the barrel with ease beside from her, which was roomie enough for Amy to sleep in it, made her feel insignificant. She couldn''t watch Jenny any longer, she stood up, folded her pillow sheet sized blanket a few times and did what rabbits were best of. Multipl... Cough-cough... Jumping! With just one hop she was top on a branch 13 feet from the ground next to their secret tree hole where they kept their savings. "Amy?" "Yeah?" "Why did you put up there your blanket?" "I will sleep here." Amy said with her ears flattened. Guilt settled in Jenny¡¯s heath. "I... It was not your fault. I did not mean it. Please come down. You can sleep with me, I don''t know what would I do if you..." She looked away embarrassed holding one arm with the other. "Really?" Her ears rose up in an instant as she brightened up. "If you come down now, I might have a carrot or two waiting for you." She didn''t need more, she jumped down, landed on Jenny¡¯s back and looked around a few times "Where?" "It''s still in the bag. Wait, I will get it for you before you dive into it." Jenny calmed the carrot powered bunny while she stepped closer to her bag and pulled out a bunch of carrots and placed it on the table. Amy followed the orange treats and even before Amy could have put them down she was already on the table. "Aaaa, yes. You are the best!" She was in heaven, the taste of this one particular vegetable erased all of her problems, well as long as they lasted. If the carrot''s tasted even just a bit better, she was sure her taste buds would have exploded. Seeing the happy rabbit sitting on the table made her giggle a bit, knowing who she really was, a sports maniac womanizer at school and her best friend since kindergarten. "Don''t eat all of them the soup will be ready soon." "All of it? There is like a dozen of it. I should be the one saying this to you." Amy looked around herself as the cloud of carrot heaven surrounded her. "Right..." Sometimes it was hard to tell when Amy was sarcastic or meant something. Within minutes the dinner was ready. Jenny took the cauldron next to the old table. It was far away from being called a soup by their home standards. But here it counted as one. A fast to make and easy to master simple recipe. Grated vegetables, boiled in water with a pinch of salt and wait until it became somewhat thick. The only trick was the proper amount of water so the ingredients don''t fall apart completely, once the water boiled away. Jenny used two wooden bowls, and placed a leaf of lettuce in it, then poured the cooked veggie mush into it. Done. If they were at back home, they would not have touched this so-called meal, but they changed, and their new body carved for different dished. What was a lavish feast for a rabbit, it was a small bowl of food for a horse. The small cauldron was emptied mostly by Jenny, and by her standards, she ate lightly. The day-long manual labour brought out her hunger, but they had to spare the coin. Leaving little to none what had to be cleaned they retired to their tent. A few planks, a bunch of straw, a sheet. They called it a bed. Jenny covered the entrance and slowly lower herself onto the bed. She grabbed her blanket and covered herself. And so, Amy''s self-rocking bed with built-in heaters was ready, she jumped on Jenny''s side a lied down on it. She could feel the bones under her hand and over Jenny''s blanket, but thanks to her fur and her favourite cotton blanket it wasn''t really an issue. Jenny turned off the lantern. "Hey, Jenny. Remember what carrots tasted like back then?" "Faintly, why?" "I wish they tasted this good back home as well." "Yeah, me too. Do you think we can get back?" "No doubt, but first we have to find the others and then worry about going home." Said Amy with confidence. "How much is missing to find them?" Asked Jenny. "Well... We have around 84 silvers and a few coppers. And the local mage guild said they do one searching spell for 2 gold coins so 18 gold coins... A lot is missing." "We been around 2 or 3 weeks? We have a long way to go." This statement was clear as daylight and the facts created a heavy silence. But eventually, Amy broke it. "You know, maybe we should spend a little on yourself. Yesterday I saw a decent sized table leg at the woodworker, maybe if we ask him nicely, he would form it into a dildo for you." "Aaaamy!" Jenny snapped at her. This was the last thing she wanted to hear. "Just imagine, finally you can experience the pleasure of being female as well. As a stallion sized shaft slowly making its way up and then..." "Careful Amy. I just became too aroused and it may force me to turn to my other side during sleeping." Jenny interrupted her, she had to, ever since they arrived the pressure built up inside her, and day by day it just got worse. "What? Noooo, you are joking." Amy cried out.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. "Good night." "Jenny?... Tell me you are joking... Jenny, please... don''t roll over me... Jeeeennyy! Tell me you are joking." Amy''s voice eventually died down as she fallen asleep, but Jenny couldn''t. She bit her lips as she fought against the urge, she rubbed her back legs together, but she achieved nothing.
They were early up in the morning, they had a lot to do. Making breakfast out of leftovers, heating water to somewhat clean themselves and they also had a long walk to reach the city. Amy''s words still haunted her and hearing the rabbit having her time behind the tent didn''t help either. She shook her, trying to break free from her thoughts, and focus on the breakfast. "Aaaaagh!" Amy''s cried out of pleasure. That''s it... She had to find a way to release the pressure or she would go crazy. She will look up that woodworker today that Amy mentioned and put an end to this, even if it is embarrassing. Back in the city, the two, bid farewells as Amy entered the tavern and Jenny went on her way to help moving thing around. The Forge, the heart and blood of Irontop. This beauty provided easily over 70,000 jobs which were more than half of the city population. From all around the nearby countries, they ordered from here if they had a chance. Did you want top quality, had a special request or just needed a few thousand things made from metal within a week? Then you just found the place you were looking for. The never-ending requests for tools, weapons but even for nails, piled on, fighting one against another for Irontop''s priority. This mountain range never had volcanos, but even if it had it would be dwarfed by The Forge. The hammers never stopped in the smeltery, and their rhythm dictated the tempo for the workshops, as the bright liquid metal flown like a never-ending river from the crucibles. Jenny found it mesmerizing, she was fond of them. She always chose dwarf is she could as a playable race in video games and she was a self-claimed master in Dwarf Fortress, and seeing many of them workings here always give her a morale boots even if they order her around as a mule. But today, something was off with this place. More workers were at the grindstones and the production seemed to be weapons and armours oriented. She curiously looked around what they were doing as she headed to one of the directors of the warehouse section. A dwarf with an ashen full beard braided into two and bracketed at the end each with a bronze cylinder that hung over his chest. His body was old and his face wrinkled, but his eyes still held the ember of his youth. Bleawboru was his name. And currently, he held a small lecture to others, with a shield on his arm. As Jenny stepped into the warehouse, he stopped speaking and gave her a mean look. She wasn''t sure what she did to deserve this treatment but nevertheless, the old dwarf look made her feel guilty. She slowly made her way closer to him looking away with lowered head. But then Bleawboru and the rest burst out laughing. "Hahaha. See! Told ye she is innocent as the fresh snow on the mountaintop." His looked at her with a smile. "Come Markina, we are looking into a busy day." He gestured her toward a loaded cart. "I hope you are familiar somewhat where the city gates are. A small army camping not far away from Irontop and this is for them." He stepped next to the cart and admired one last time the weapons. With a sigh, he turned back to Jenny. "Just follow the road after the west gate and you be there within an hour." Jenny went ahead of the cart and waited till they someone bind the car to her. Bleawboru approached her behind and out of the blue, he gave a big smack on her ass. Jenny out of reflex shifted her weight, raised her backside and responded with a powerful kick toward the dwarf. Bleawboru kept the shield in front of himself when the kick came and forced him back a few feet. "Hey!" Jenny shouted, but then realized what she just did and turned around worrying. "I..." She couldn''t say anything, the laughter of Bleawboru interrupted her. "Hahahaha. And this is how you test the Irontop''s quality. Not even a dent." He admired the shield, then turned toward the rest. "Alright lads, the lecture is over, you now know what the standards are. Now back to work, with you lazy bunch." The other dwarves left. Seeing this Jenny''s face went red and in her mind, she wanted to stomp Bleawboru a few times, just for the sake of good manners. The old dwarf stepped toward her. "Thank for lending an ass there. Those stone brains just started a few months ago, and today on they gonna work alone." "You could have just asked then!" She snapped at him. "And miss a good laugh?! Never." Jenny went back to the cart which Bleawboru bounded after her. She still felt betrayed as she left the workshops, that her favourite race made fun of her, but the more she thought about it the funnier got. She took a quick peek at her flank to help herself imagine the flying dwarf after the kick, but her mind shifted toward a something else. Something that made her bit her lips.
As Amy entered the room, the scent of frying meat filled her muzzle as it suppressed the smell of alcohol soaked planks. She greeted the owner and since she already wore her outfit, she began to work. She and the few others only had minutes before the first ones arrive, and there were so much to be done. Those who dared to take the night shifts always left the tavern in mess, but how could one ask for more from them after they served hundreds of mainly thirsty dwarves alongside with other races. Only once had Amy the misfortune to experience the madness and it burnt deep into her memory. The chanting for constant refills that would easily surpass the hammers rhythm at the forge and the barfights at closing times was just the tip of the iceberg. She was told that the dwarves release all their stress at once, they gathered during the day and that''s why they became savages. And yet, none of these was the reason she didn''t take the nightshifts. Soon the tavern was full of people who sought a filling breakfast to start their day. Amy hopped back and forth with orders and sometimes with empty plates, while the other took care of the drinks which were too heavy for her to jump around with safely. The first part of the shift was the same as usual, the morning went without a hiccup. After some refreshment and quick breaks. They started to prepare for the next wave of costumes they expected during lunchtimes when the owner said that they were expecting soldiers or some sort from a nearby camp. Knowing there will be more people than usual brought joy to Amy because it meant more tips as well. They were in the middle of the lunch block when a large group around 30 soldiers arrived and took seats, Amy didn''t need more with her cheerful attitude she jumped towards them and with a big smile she asked for their orders. "What can I bring for the sirs?" Amy looked up to of them and waited. It took a few turns for him before he looked down. "Aah. Look, guys, its family-friendly place. Even the owner''s daughter is helping out." He got the taverns attentions. "I have no hearth to ask drinks from a child, please bring someone taller." Most of the costumes just looked away, but the soldiers had a great time chuckling. Amy didn''t know where the conversation headed. "I''m not a child, and I am more than capable to handle your orders." She responded politely even if she felt humiliated. "I see, so you are not a child." He leaned closer to Amy with a grin, she took a step back, the soldier was huge compared to her. Then he stood up from his chair and turned toward one of his mates and shouted while pointed at Amy. "Hey, Travis! I found someone for you, so you can feel big once." The soldiers burst out laughing while he mimicked the fucking. Amy flattened her ears and waited until the laughter died down. "Your orders, sir." She asked him again in a humble tone. She got the orders and handed over it to the kitchen. Until the orders were done she didn''t go to get more of them, she rather crouched behind the counter and waited. The food was on the plated and she had no other choice, she picked one up and hopped toward a soldier. She eventually delivered all of them, she was about to jump back when someone smacked her ass and shouted. "Dips on the bunny¡¯s ass." And they laughed again. For them, these were just jokes, but by the time they were done and left. Amy was on the verge of crying and took out the rest of her shift. She couldn''t do this today, the soldiers reminded her what was that one night was. Those drunkard dwarves picked her up and thrown her into the air a few times like some kind of mascot one after another. The feeling of the grips every time one of them picked her up, like a shark''s mouth that enclosed its prey. It still haunted her to this day. And more they drunk the more the dreadful games followed. She cried that night.
Jenny was at her last turn as she was dead tired, pulling all that metal on the dirt roads for hours took a toll on her. The sun was gently falling behind the mountain range, but she could see the first tents ahead of her. She reached the camp and panted. "There... the last one." Looking at the boxes and weapon racks she pulled today made her a little proud, she didn''t lead an active lifestyle back then, but the feeling what she could accomplish was incredible. "Great work lad, two more days and we are done here. Go grab a drink, you deserved it." Said one of the members of the workshops, who counted the goods at the camp. Jenny just nodded and headed toward the barrels, she was no stranger for alcohol, and since they arrived she hadn''t had the chance to drink here. She grabbed an iron tankard and poured herself a drink. The smell of the honey mead was unmistakable, she licked her mouth and took a sip or so she tough. Her mug was empty when she finished the ''sip''. She looked around to see if anyone watched her and poured and another one. This one lasted longer than the first as she walked around a little in the camp. The soldier walked up and down, they seemed to be in a hurry, but Jenny didn''t mind them, it not was like they could knock her off. The ground started shaking, and cheering of the soldiers filled the air. Jenny faces towards the voices and saw in the distance as some kind of dust storm headed in their direction. The cavalry arrived. Horses and their rider alongside a few centaurs. It was a great sense even worthy to be painted in Jenny''s opinion. Medieval age cavalry just had something indescribable that always grasp her. Seeing the raw power, that a unit like this could weld in a battlefield had its own charm. Eventually, the soldier dissipates who its own way and the centaurs mix up with them. There was nothing else to see and Jenny turned to leave the camp when someone stepped next to her. "I don''t remember having a female in my cavalry." The voice halted her and slowly turned around. A male centaur without his armour stood before her. He was slightly taller than her and muscular. That was all she saw before she looked away. "I... I just wandered around a bit after I finish the hauling and then I saw the cavalry heading this way and I... I just couldn''t, not to take a closer look at it." "You hauled all day?" Compare to him Jenny looked underfed. She nodded and tried to turn around but she bumped into someone with her behind. "Hey watch it!" An angry soldier shouted at her and went on its way. "Maybe you should take a quick rest before you go back. Collapsing on the road would achieve nothing." He stepped next to Jenny and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Come, let''s have a drink a maybe we can still find something to eat as well." Jenny didn''t have the strength, nor the will to refuse it. She followed around the cavalry''s captain and after a few more mugs of mead she ended up in his private tent. She didn''t think it through what she was doing. She just let the stallion take the lead and brake her free from the bounds of pleasure.
little rabbit girl left the tavern, she needed a little time alone. She walked up and down around the markets, eyeing the goods. She was looking for something. Something that would lend her strength in the time of need, but even a dagger here was too large for her to have a good grip on it. It didn''t surprise her, everything here was made mostly for the dwarves, it just made her feel... "Just today. Get a runestone for half its price! Grab one while you have the chance!" A vendor in purple robes stood next to a wagon and shouted into the crowds. ''That''s it, what I need is magic!'' With her newly gained will, she ran towards the vendor. "Hi, How much a rune cost?" Amy asked with sparkling eyes. "Oh. Hello, there little one. The cost depends on the runes, of course, had anything in mind?" Asked the men with a silky voice while stroking his pointy black beard. "Umm... No... But I know what am looking for. I need something that gives me strength or scares others away." "I''m in no position to turn away a customer, but I''m afraid, you are looking for a scroll of fortification or illusion which sadly I don''t have." He took a small flat stone out of his pocket and for a brief moment, he focused on it. The symbol on the stone brighten up in a bluish light and above it, a small orb of water formed. "But how about a rune that helps to start your way on the path of magic?" He was well aware that Amy had little to no idea how magic worked. All she needed was a little p... "How much?" Amy couldn''t contain herself. "For this piece, I usually ask 2 gold coins but since I said half price..." He carefully observed Amy and saw her ears lower. "... and since it''s your first purchase from me I say 80 silver coins, for the sake of our future trading. How''s that sound?" "Deal!... Wait here. I go and grab the money." Amy shouted and started to run. "Too easy" He mumbled and watched with a smile as the rabbit ran away. "Just today. Get a runestone for half its price! Grab one while you have the chance!" And continued his routine.
It didn''t take an hour she was back with a pouch of silvers on her back. "Here." She lifted the pouch toward the merchant. He took the bag and lifted near to his ear and gave it a shook. "80 silvers. Well, congratulation little one. You just stepped on the path of magic to become as powerful as you desire." "Wait. You not going to count the coins?" Amy raised an eyebrow. "Oh, nonono. I passed that level long ago." He put the pouch into his wagon and handed over the runestone. "Using such a stone is simple. Focus on it, let it draw power from within you, and shape it. These are all the basics you need." Amy just happily nodded and turned around. "Thanks." Said Amy and walked back to work with her newly gained confidence.
The sunset began by the time she arrived at the tavern. The waitresses were on their toes, the last wave of costumes could have arrived at any second for dinner. Amy pocketed the stone and helped them out. Her shift was over before she realized, now she sat there happily on the tavern''s veranda and admire her new toy. But her joy didn''t last long. Five soldiers of the last group showed up, they were drunk. "Traaaavis. I shell make up for the mourning. I gonna hire dat bunny for you." Amy stood up and watch the bunch getting closer to her. "Heeel *burb* bunny. Heare a silver to fuck Travisss." He pointed at Travis. "I won''t fuck him." Amy stepped back and watch Travis in disgust. "How bout two?" It took a few tries but he managed to show two with his fingers. "I said, no." "Traaviss, you gonna like her." He grabbed Amy''s arm and pulled out a rug from his pocket. "Take your hand off me." Amy tried to pull her hand out of his grip, but no use. "Help! Hee..." The soldier stuffed the rug ball deep into her mouth and held his hand there. "Tsh-tsh-tsh. Don''t wory I got a carrot too." He laughed at Amy. She tried to put up a fight, but the two were more than enough and there was five of them, they picked her up and headed to the nearby alley. Mare words could not describe what she felt at the moment, seeing those giants tearing away her clothes and pulling down their pants to show off their pride. One kneeled on Amy¡¯s arms and with his hand pulled the bunnies legs apart. They were about to start. But fate or maybe just pure luck, the nightguard walked that way on that night. "Who''s there!" One of them shouted into the dark alley. The soldier knew better than getting arrested, they grabbed their pants and ran away, into the darkness. The guard walked into the alley, only to saw a rabbit folk lying on the cold stone tiles, crying, broken. Around her on the ground the remains of her outfit while she holding to her strength. A piece of stone. 1.13 Carrot sisters (part 2) The sun just barely peaked over the horizon. The faint echoing sound of a horn could be heard even from the city walls. The soldiers in the camp had their wake up call and within minutes they were expected to be in formation. The loud sound of the horn startled her out of sleep, only to see the cavalry captain centaur, her prince charming on a white steed leaving the tent. Her vision cleared as she slowly grasped her surroundings. An empty small barrel on a cupboard, an empty armour stand, a wide bed which still felt warm from her partner. Each of these objects helped her regain pieces of the last night. Then the realization hit her with what she had just done. "I forgot about Amy!" She shouted and grabbed her shirt. Jenny rushed out of the tent and with the speed of lighting she galloped out of the camp, dodging soldier left and right. She heard as the angry obstacles shouted after her but she couldn''t care less for them now. She ran as fast she could, the wind ruffled her hair, her hooves dug deep into the soft dirt and tore chunks out with each step, while her breasts played the rhythm of a war drum. The distance that took her an hour yesterday now she done it in mere minutes. The guards couldn''t even respond to her morning greeting as she left them in the dust. In the city, she took a sharp left turn, jumped over Amy and continued to... "Amy!" Jenny stepped on her breaks and slid a good 30 feet as she shaped the muddy road into a tsunami behind her. Fortunately, it was still early in the morning and the streets were empty... Fortunately... Despite what she felt, Jenny turned around and for the sake of good manners and for the few clean spots on the house walls, she slowly walked down the street towards Amy who stood in front of a guardhouse. Amy was alive and she looked fine, the sweat relief put a smile on her face. "You didn''t come." Hearing these words erased her momentary happiness and guilt settled instead. "Sorry." Silence, the two watch each other until Jenny had to turn away. "Are you mad at me?" Jenny asked. "Of course, I am. Do you know how hard it was to find shelter? And I had to sleep without my fluffy blanket." Amy didn''t want to tell her what happened, so she joked a little and put on a fake smile to ease Jenny''s guilt. "And how was your night, miss responsibility?" Amy poked fun. "You wouldn''t believe it! After the last cart, I felt the ground shaking and when I turned, I saw them. A real cavalry! Soldier on horseback with plate armour and..." "Alright, alright... I don''t need another lecture on medieval times. But speaking of which, I see a mare that has no rider and I happened to be far, far away from the tavern." Sigh. "Alright... I drop you off there." Amy hopped on her back and the two went to start their daily routine as the mud still oozed on the nearby buildings. ---- ----- Amy watched and waved as Jenny disappeared between the houses. The happy face that concealed her feeling faded. She was about to open the door and enter the tavern when her hand stopped. She couldn''t do it, the memories flashed before her eyes as that five drunk bastards grabbed her and dragged her into the alley. Her hand shook and her eyes filled with tears. She took a step back and watch in horror as the tavern morphed into a nightmare. Her nightmare. Even if she goes inside it wasn¡¯t save, those were here yesterday. She turned around and ran. Ran away from the tavern, the buildings, the people and eventually left behind the city. She ran to the only place which felt safe, home. In the tent, she found solitude and peace. As she watched the carved stone, she meditated on what she just did. She couldn''t understand what came over her, she had a job to do and goal to achieve and Jenny was working hard for it. Yet, she couldn''t overcome it to return to the tavern. Sigh. "The guys in the inn will not be happy." She picked up the stone and observed it. "Maybe if I get stronger..." She mimicked the merchant from yesterday. The so-called rune in one hand and she repeated the three basic. "Focus, let it draw, shape." She muttered the words and began to concentre on the stone in her palm. The world shrank and darkened in her eyes as only the stone seemed constant. Every second she struggled against her instincts to stop what she was doing. As the stone drawn power from her, eventually she became too dizzy and dropped the stone as she fell on her knees, sweating. The casting failed, but she was determined. She had to get stronger. She spent minutes staring at the stone. Trying over and over again while it drained her own power. The more she lost herself to it, the easier it became to let the rune take what it needed. The engraving in the stone slowly pulsed out light, then. *POP* The sound of a bursting bubble broke her focus and pulled her back to reality. The stone was a bit wet. "That it! After all the hard work, this is all it can do!" Amy became furious seeing what the stone did. She left the tent and stared in the city''s direction. "Once I''m back, you are done for lying bastard!" She shouted into the forest. Panted a little and headed back to the merchant. ----- ----------- The long walk she just did ease her anger, and all she wanted was a refund to the last coin. Amy reached the market, but the wagon was nowhere to be found. "No... Where is he?" She muttered. It was devastating. She spent most of their money they worked for so hard... on a piece of rock. Her ears flattened. "I have to tell Jenny." She made a mistake and she was ashamed by it, but she couldn''t betray her. The sad little fuzzy money spender with flattened ears reached the Forge, the heart and blood of Irontop. This beauty prov... *rattling paper* ... She stood at the edge of the facility and waited. Time passed and she became unsure as she doubted herself, maybe Jenny won''t forgive her. But she ran out of time, she just saw Jenny as she entered a warehouse while she dragged a large cart. Amy slowly walked toward the building but stopped at its doors and peeked. Jenny seemed overworked, a mere shadow of her former self, and the once empty cart behind her slowly became packed as the seemingly endless stream of heavy creates filled it. "This is what she was doing the whole time?" Amy sniffed a little, seeing her friend like this tighten her heart. "And she earns less than me?" The world is not fair, it never meant to be and Amy just learnt it, the harder way. Seeing someone you care for suffer under a burden and you know you just made it worse. Amy fought against her tears while she gripped the fur on her chest. She just stood there, she couldn''t do it. In her mind, it was not possible for her. She turned around and was about to leave when she heard over the rhythm of the hammers the distinctive sound of coins, and thus the idea born. Her ears popped up and like a radar, scanned for it. "There." Amy found him. A black bearded dwarf with pouches on his side and scroll in one hand. Due to her size, it was a piece of cake to follow one of Jenny''s slave-driver as he entered a three-story height building farther away from the workshops. It was a piece of dwarven art which was carved into the side of the mountain. Two statues towered by the entrance of the building and reached to its second floor. Amy hid behind the nearby crate pyramid and eyed the building. "Guards at the front door. and only this side is not inside the mountain." It looked hopeless to enter thru the door. And the windows in each floor were barred vertically, so a normal sized thief couldn''t fit in. Amy didn''t need more, she carefully climbed the crates to get closer to the highest floor. She hoped over the few feet gap and landed on the statue''s shoulder then she climbed on its head. She was just below one of the third floor''s window. She pressed her ear against the wall and listened. Clanking of coins, a pen scratching a paper, dwarf mumble, wood creaking, heavy steps on stone, closing door, lock. Silence. Amy grinned. She slowly peeked over the windows edge. The room didn''t offer much, a bed next to the wall, a chair and a table above it a picture of an old rich looking dwarf as he poured gold from his palm with a wide smile. Under the table on the stone floor a safe and left to it a sturdy looking iron door. Amy grabbed the bars and pulled herself up to the window. "Huh, no going back." She muttered and slipped inside between the bars and entered the room. Her heart beaten faster than ever. She hurried over the table and jumped on the chair, thanks to her lightweight and the thousand hammers in the neighbour, almost none of her actions were hearable. The table was full of rolled up and sealed scrolls, feathers, ink pots, and at the back of it where they were, the pouches. It was hard to choose and harder to take one, her moral codex fought against such an act. She hesitated and was about to take one of them when she heard it... Steps. Amy went into a full panic mode, and like a good scared rabbit should do she hid under the bed. The turning of the key gave her the chill, as the door opened she shivered and when the dwarf entered Amy was about to faint. The same dwarf she just followed sit down to the table and put his pouches on it. "Should have thought about it early... Centaurs... They feed and take care of themselves on their own expenses and we can pay less for their work than for a carter." The dwarf''s speech turned Amy''s panic into hatred. The dwarf looks up at the painting. "See, father. I am doing it for you and for our people. I swear on my name I will reclaim our land under the mountain range and restore our families name." He made a cup lifting gesture towards the painting. "For the Iron clans." And then left the room. Amy crawled out and dusted herself. "For the Iron clans... My ass." She muttered, then jumped on the chair and without hesitation, she took the heavies looking pouch. Back to the window, down the statue and hopped back to the crates while she snuggled the pouch to muffle the coins inside. Behind the crates, she loosened the leather strap and opened the small bag. Its content made her smile. 7 gold and a few silvers. "One or two more trips and we can go home." She said it with ill intent as she looked back to the window. Leaving the Forge was easy, people came and go, and nobody suspected anything. She hauled the loot home and hid it in the tree hole. "Huh, hard work and good payment." Saying these words reminded her of Jenny, how she still pulled that cart most likely. Even so, she wanted to ease her suffering she couldn''t risk it to tell her, maybe Jenny would tell the dwarves because she is so fond of them, or maybe some overhear them. She was on her second trip to the piggy bank when she saw Jenny arriving. With her newly gained confidence, thanks to their financial, she decided to tell Jenny she had plans for the night. Jenny was on her way back to the warehouse when she felt a sudden weight on her back. "Hey!" She turned around surprised, only to see Amy with a wide grin. "Amy!" "Hey, Jenny! Working hard?" It was an oblivious question, Jenny was sweating heavily. "Yep. But how come to pay a visit, aren''t you suppose to work?" "Heh-heh... The lunch wave just died down and I took a long break, to tell you... Wait for it... That I have plans for tonight!" Amy all excited jumped a little on Jenny back with arms in the air. "That wonderful, but guess what. I have too." Jenny said and return a happy smile to Amy. "You, do?" "I know am not that type of a guy... girl... But remember how you always talked about what is like being a girl, the sensation and all that?" Amy raised an eyebrow and waited to see what was her point. "The cavalry I mentioned, have centaurs as well! And last night I had sex with one of them and he invited me for the night."The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. "Alright..." Amy''s enthusiasm died down, but Jenny just continued. "You were so right about it. First, I was disgusted by the thought and seeing that arm long dong. But the feeling." Jenny bit her lips and closed her eyes. "As It slowly entered all of my doubt gone and it felt like there was no end to it. Then he started to move his..." Her explanations came short when she felt a sudden continuous shaking on her back. She saw the little rabbit pulling her ears down and shiver with closed eyes. "Amy? Amy?!" Jenny shouted at her, worried. Amy slowly looked up. "What¡¯s wrong?" Jenny asked. "I..." She couldn''t talk about it, she looked around and saw the working dwarves outside. "The hammers are too loud for me. I think I go now." It was an oblivious lie, but Jenny was too worried to realize. Amy hopped down and left, she heard Jenny calling her name one last time, but she didn''t turn back. "Those assholes... Snip... It''s all their fault." Amy needed a few moments to calm down, then she returned to her target. The size of the bags mattered little to nothing. The second one Amy stole had no more than a few silvers and a bunch of copper. The first bag corrupted her because now she felt disappointed, all the waiting and risk and the reward was too little for her taste. She was on her way back to the hideout, but at the market seeing and avoiding heavily geared dwarves and other adventures left and right struck her with an idea. "That''s it! I need equipment." She stated and made a reasonable conclusion about how some pockets and a tight-fitting bag would help her with the hauling. She was familiar in the market, she and Jenny usually shopped together. But she had to hurry because only a few hours left before dusk. Amy arrived just in time to the leatherworker, but there was another problem. The door was closed and the handle was beyond her reach. But she knew better then ask someone for help. She hated to be small and she hated it more if she had to admit it, so she had her own ways to handle thing. She jumped a little and grab the handle, she was heavy enough to pull it down. Then comes the tricky part. One paw on the door the other on the wall and jump just enough to open the door and have time to get off before it smashes her to the wall. It happened before... Amy entered the shop with her newly found wealth to outfit herself. Inside a young woman in her mid-20s, started at the doorframe and shocked as the rabbit folk entered. "Hello? Did I come at the wrong time?" Amy was not sure what to think about the woman''s expression. So, she just stood there. "A rabbit folk!" The woman stood up and ran over to Amy. Amy took a cautious step. "May I?" Asked her. "Y-Yes?" Amy was not sure what she meant, but she found out quickly. The leatherworker picked her up and gave her a hug. "Ohhh. You are so adorable!" Amy usually avoided this kind of contact. But this was different, the person who picked her up, was not a drunk dwarf, but a gentle young beautiful woman. And now she was between her breasts, but all good things came to an end and she put her down. Amy was still in the pillowy heaven in mind. "I-I don''t know what came over me. I... Sorry." She blushed a little. Amy shook her head and seizing this opportunity she asked. "Discount?" "Well, my father may not ap..." "And you may pet... hug me without guilt." Amy already experiences this scenario, but now she was on the other end. "I don''t know..." "Alright, I sit on your lap while you work." "Deal!" ''Easy'' thought Amy and with that, the work began. ---- ---- Her outfit was done with hours, could have been less, but the fluffiness got in the way of the leatherworker''s attention. Three customised belts sewed together into a harness with two leather patches, one back and one front which had a few tight pockets. The belt that Amy wore on her waist had a few slots for smaller vials. Amy didn''t need that, but the girl was relentless. And she also got a backpack with two belts on it to tighten it if needed. "Aww... I wish I had a cloak with two holes on the top for you" Despite the fact that Amy got pampered, the act to be adorable started to annoy her. "Yeh, It would be so good." Amy replied as she flattened her ears down with her hand then let them snap back up. "But you already did a lot for me." Amy went closer and handed over the 2 silvers they agreed on. "Will you came back sometime?" Asked the girl, with a wistful look. "I might." And with that Amy left the shop. Sigh. "Finally..." Amy shook her head. "And I wished to be popular among them." She pocketed a few coins from the bag and headed on her way. After a quick snack and a trip back home to get rid of the last pouch, the night already fell and the full moon was up in the sky when she reached the now silent Forge. The number of guards became troublesome and she had to spend more time getting around then she wanted. It wasn''t far from the first workshops where she headed but the constant waiting for the dwarves to stop talking about booze and other less important topic felt like an eternity. She was just one corner away from ¡®her first step towards home¡¯ when her dreams shattered as she peeked around the corner. The crates are gone, every single one of them been hauled away. She hid in a dark corner and waited. It was so close, she only had to do one or two trips to get the money, but she got greedy. And instead, she got herself a gear, which was useless now. It took her a few minutes, she needed it. And now, since Jenny was away, she couldn''t just go home and sleep through the night. She had to find an inn if she wanted no to freeze during sleep. An inn without drunk dwarves and soldiers. She left the Forge and walked in the dark moonlighted streets. As she passed one noisy tavern after the other she saw them, the soldiers from yesterday. They were heading towards the west gate, most likely back to the camp. Amy''s instincts screamed for revenge. She followed them thru the night back to their camp. She hid in the tall grass till the moment was right. She was next to the camp and the noises slowly died down and she could tell only a few guards patrolled from the moving light. It didn''t matter to her who or how got punished, she hated all of them. She observed the camp a little from afar. And eventually, her eyes got caught on a big tent. A wicked smile formed on her face, the bigger the better she thought. The guards around the camp were much clumsier than the dwarves, it was painfully easy to reach the tent. No light came out from the inside, but it had a large entrance without guards at least. Amy went in and looked around. A big table on the middle and two chests by the sided. ''A horse could fit in here, why they need all the space'' Amy thought and tiptoed closer to the table''s end, climbed on it with the help of one of the chests. On it, she found nothing less but a map with a few odd-looking arrows on it, but it still seemed readable. She pushed aside the stones in the corner and let the Amy sized map roll up. She folded the map twice and was about to put it into her bag when she heard steps approaching while the light of a torch brightened the side of the tent. She jumped down and lied down behind the chest. The guard passed by the tent''s entrance, but fortunately, he didn''t stop. Amy with flattened ears peeked over the chest and calmed down when she saw no one. She put away the map and went on with her search. The table has been cleared, but now comes the juicy part. Amy stepped in front of the chest and tried to open it, but that stubborn lid wouldn''t budge. She lied down in front of it as close as she could and put her paws against the edge of the lid. And with a powerful kick, the lid gave up and banged onto the table. The sound was well audible in the silent night. "Shit." She whispered as more and more light sources illuminated the sides of the tent. ------ ------ Jenny''s legs gave in and she collapsed on the ground, while her lover slowly pulled out his tool, dripping. "It''s already late. Will you spend the..." His proposal for the night got cut short by the sound of a horn. He stepped away from Jenny and reached toward his gear. He couldn''t put on a single piece of it when a soldier rushed into the tent. "Captain!...¡° There was a short pause. Jenny lied on her stomach while she lifted up her behind and the captain¡¯s Jenny slayer still twitched a little time to time. ¡±An¡­An intruder, a [Spy] rabbit from the beast folk''s on the loose." He looked back up and tried to focus on the top of the tent in front of him. "Alert the [Scouts] and the [Rangers]. I want the spy before dawn!" The captain responded. "Yes, sir!" The soldier saluted then ran, to fulfil his orders and to escape that scene. Jenny slowly got up while the captain was about to leave. "Stay here. I will be back shortly." Jenny found herself alone and satisfied, yet she was worried. It couldn''t be Amy, she said she had plans for the night... Jenny walked up and down it the relatively small tent. She couldn''t contain herself and the more the noise grow outside so did her patient faded. "That it! I must find Amy." She snapped and left the tent. The chaos ruled over the camp, people with torches search every viable spot they could find. Barrels, crates, night houses. It was the opposite of what Jenny admired about the medieval times. There were too many people running up and down, she had to walk to get out of the camp, but the moment she saw the opening, she seized it. She dashed and left behind everything. ----- ---- The moon was halfway on its routine when Jenny was near to their hideout. She didn''t go closer, she knew Amy was in trouble. Angry shouts and bright lights filled the surrounding. The soldiers searched the place for the rabbit as their home was in ruins. Jenny waited in the shade of the trees, she didn''t fear what could be there alongside with her. She also had a hunch where the so-called rabbit be. The soldiers eventually gave up on this area and went on their way. She stepped out of the shades and called for her. "Amy?" Jenny asked in a soft voice, she feared that the soldiers might come back, but she didn''t get an answer. "Amy?!" She raised her voice a little. Silence. Jenny relieved, she wasn''t here, but when she was about to leave, she heard a pouch of coin hitting the ground. She turned back and approached the source of the sound. Each step she took became heavier and heavier, she knew which tree was ahead of her. She was in front of the bag, but she didn''t pick it up instead she looked up with tears in her eyes and called for Amy again. A there she was. An outline of a rabbit as she slowly emerged from the tree hole. Jenny pressed her horse side to the tree. "Amy, jump." It sounded more like a begging. Something was not right, it didn''t look like Amy jumped from Jenny''s perspective. But never the less the little rabbit landed on her back... and slide down on her side, leaving a cold wet feeling on her. "Amy!" Jenny stepped back a few times and picked her up. "Amy, you are all wet." She was on the verge of crying, as she held her Amy''s limp body, the stench of blood hit her. "It''s not water." A single statement, yet it held more emotions than it should have. Jenny was crying. Jenny leaned ahead and grabbed their pouch then Amy''s wool blanket and warped her in it. She didn''t bother with anything else, she galloped toward the first place they visited in this world. A tavern, just few miles from the city. It was closer to them, and Jenny knew the people there. They helped the odd duo out until they got their job at Irontop. --- --- A lonely 2 story height building in the middle of the plains next to a crossroad. A sweet old dwarven couple owned it. It was not a busy place but occasionally adventures and travellers visited it if they just passed by Irontop. It was late in the night and they were about to close for the day when they heard the galloping of a horse. "A messenger this late?" Asked a low male voice. "Nah, a horse this light wouldn''t last the nearest city." Said his wife. "Jenny?" "Most likely." "Haha, she must be back to hear the end of the story about my army days." "Here we go again." She rolled her eyes and headed towards the kitchen, she knew him too well. "Vanny, put some water up..." "I know, you want tea." "What a thoughtful fine woman." He watched with a wide smile as his love slowly disappeared behind the walls. "Can''t you just drink mead like the rest?" "Was." He corrected himself and looked back out the tavern''s doors. Jenny could already see the old dwarf standing in the door. She was out of breath, but she forced a shout. "Amy is dying!" His smile faded. "Vanny forget the tea. And bring me some strong spirit!" He shouted toward the kitchen. He took a few steps towards the nearest table and grabbed the edge of it, and lifted it up. All the chairs on top of it fall. "Are you starting a barfight alone?" He heard Vanny asked him from the kitchen. "Not now, and get me a few rags! Jenny said Amy is dying." Jenny reached the tavern and handed over Amy to the dwarf. She just ran a few miles twice this night, her legs were shaking. She sat down outside, leaned to the doorframe and watched since she couldn''t do more for her. Amy was put on top of the table and he unwrapped the blood-soaked blanket. Her body was not in a good shape. Deep cut on her side where there was no leather, bruises and a broken leg. Vanny started to clean her body while her husband prepared a potion. Once she was done she poured a little spirit on the wound, then he stepped closer. Turned Amy on her side and pour a little from the vial on the cuts, then he pressed the edges of the cuts together. This was not the best way to use the potion, but the fastest to mend the flesh. He repeated the process with the other four wounds as well. But there was one last thing. "It is for the better that she is not awake for this." Said the dwarf and pulled out a knife. He poured a little spirit on it and pressed the tip of the blade into Amy''s broken leg. Once the blade reached the bone, he grabbed the vial again and poured a little onto it. The blade guided the healing potion to the broken bone. He pulled out the blade, straightened Amy''s leg on last time and with only one hand he fixed the leg with his strong grip. He spent a minute or so before he released Amy''s leg. He stepped away, his work was done. He walked toward Jenny while he wiped his bloody hands. "If she has a will to live, then she can continue to annoy you thru the decades." He put on a smile to ease Jenny pain, but it didn¡¯t stop her crying. ----- ----- Did I die, these were Amy''s first thought. She was in an unfamiliar room and she lied on a comfortable bed. She watched the wooden ceiling for a while and out of boredom she reached toward it. Her arm got her attention as it entered a vision, and saw a bandage on it. The slight turn of her head was just enough to get a reason why she wanted to leave the bed. Jenny laid next to her. Her head was top on the bed with her hand crossed underneath it and snoozed. She had to take is slow, the lack of strength made her feel dizzy. She used her arms to turn on her side and reached toward her. "Jenny." Amy called for her and patted Jenny¡¯s head. The last night was too much for Amy, she wanted to talk to her, to tell what she did, to tell what they did, to tell what happened. She needed it, to speak about it. She needed her friend¡¯s company, she felt alone too long without her. She needed her because she knew she took care of her. She needed her, to say. "Thank you." These were the words Jenny heard when she woke up. The little all patched up rabbit looked at her with a bittersweet smile. She reached toward her and brought her closer to herself. They shed a few tears in the moment of relief, but Amy had to break the moment, she didn''t felt like she deserved that. "Jenny, you going to suffocate me these close to your bre... heath." She said it in a muffled tone. Jenny chuckled a little and give Amy a last strong hug, then let her go. Amy lied back to her side and watched as Jenny got up. "The old grumpy said, you need to eat to replenish all the blood you lost." She pointed at the cut marks on Amy''s side. "But once I''m back we need to talk about that." She gestured toward a coin pouch on the table in front of the window. She was about to leave the room when Amy called after her. "Jenny, if anyone asks about, how I got these scars, just say I fought an iron-clawed bear." Amy said with a painful smile. "Sure, you little hero." "Jenny." "Yes." Said Jenny and stopped before the doorframe and turned toward her. "Thank you." 1.14 What a forest could offer Isabel was dead tired after the sparring with Loren in front of the small warehouse, and top on that even she barely caught her breath Loren asked her boy scout''s questions. How to knot a rope, start a fire, search and follow track and so on. She tried her best to answer them, but it only raised more questions, like what is a lighter or a matchstick. By the end of the quiz, Loren did not seem satisfied and Isabel already could see what was coming. More training. The Hour-long lecture only resulted in bruises, blisters and headaches when it came to repeating what she just heard minutes ago. But as they reached the end of survival for dummies 101, a particularly Isabel-interested topic came up. Finding food. But as all the other lessons before this one became boring as well. Isabel''s enthusiasm faded word-by-word as Loren talked about the countless ways on how to find food, such as observing the freshness of animal footprints and matching it with the animal''s eating habits to determine that if it is worth it to backtrack the footprints or not. Isabel tried to speed the process up, but each time she asked the plain oblivious like ''why not we follow the animal footprint to hunt it down?'', she usually got a death glare and an overused answer like ''And with what bow?'' or ''And with what trap?''. After getting a few of these answers and seeing that it only stretched the already unnecessary long explanations, she just gave up on Loren''s teaching capability and challenged her head on. They already wasted most of the day already, and Loren was most certainly against the idea to begin their journey towards the mountain pass to leave this enclosed valley this late. And for Isabel''s surprise without any shouting and further explanation, she accepted the ''Who gets more food before dusk wins'' challenge with a cocksure smile. But what a challenge would be without a proper bet. Even if it was oblivious to each other what the other wanted as a prize, it had to be told. If Isabel won she can eat all the food they gathered as pleased, but if Loren won, then Isabel had to carry both backpacks until the next settlement and her diet would be updated with fasting as well. The preparations were made, each of them had their empty backpack and a spot where they would collect their food. Loren counted back and once she hit zero, the race began. Loren ran into the wild, back to the spot where she explained the mysteries of tracking on a few footprints to Isabel and followed them where she thought the animal¡¯s food source would be. On the other hand, Isabel was not in a hurry, she casually watched as Loren disappeared in the dense forests and went back into the warehouse to pick up a bedroll. Finding food in the forests are never an easy task. Animals roam the wild day after day and they live up everything they can reach and if they have the time to do it. Also finding the food is just one part of the problem, one wrong turn could lead to a deadly encounter against a predator or in a better scenario you just get lost. Loren was on her third trip and Isabel''s spot was still empty, an hour or so left before dusk. She felt this petty challenge in her pockets and now all she had to do is wait and come up with the new ration sizes that Isabel is going to use. Loren lied on the grassy meadow that surrounded the warehouses and watched the clouds passing by, but all she could see in the sky was the food that Isabel going to miss. The sound of a leather sheet as it was dragged on the grass became more and more audible as Isabel approached. Loren didn''t look up, she could see the scene before her eyes, it was Isabel frowning and she dragged her bag on the ground, defeated, just listening to the noises made her smile. "Are you ready to hear your new diet?" Asked Loren with great confidence. "Don''t bother, I just eat what I want." Isabel responded casually and walked past the laying Loren. "Ha! You wish. I''m sorry to burst your bubb...le..." Loren stopped, she just saw something that went beyond her wildest imagination. It wasn''t Isabel with her large bouncing breasts, but what it followed her. Loren had to get up to take a better look at it. Behind the sizeable men-luring bums, there was it, a food stand''s worth of various fruits in a pile that she dragged on a bedroll. Loren was confused and amazed by this achievement at the same time, Isabel just brought more food under a few hours than a large sized party could eat. And for Loren''s best knowledge she did not possess any viable class or perk at all. She was spaced out and watched her with an open mouth, not knowing what to say, as she put the bedroll into her spot and hopped down next to it. "Victor goes the spoil, Loren." Isabel said it with a big smile while she took the first fruit and toasted toward her. The scene was just too surreal for her, she couldn''t hold it any longer, Loren bust out laughing and lied back to the grass. She let Isabel have a ''cheat day'' as she called it, knowing the fact that they only had two bags to carry.
Yesterday became a nightmare for Loren, letting Isabel eat freely was a grave mistake, the curse of hers knew no bounds. Like a hardworking bee, she constantly returned to the ever-shrinking pile of food only to add its mass to her ever-growing middle, and no matter what they did the rest of the day she always took a bite every so often or if she had nothing else to do she just sat there and worked hard on her future frame. It looked entirely hopeless that she would just get sick or too full which would stop her stuffing herself, as each time she checked, the only difference there was that her belly looked rounder and rounder as time passed. By the night she decided to spar with her just to keep her away from the food and to tire her until she fallen asleep with her newly grown food baby. Loren could swear she still heard her chewing after the morning feast of hers when she realized they had to leave the rest of it behind. Just the sight of the amount she saw her consume made her sick and swore under her breath to never bring the wrath of a god on herself. It was around late afternoon when the narrow mountain passage appeared in their vision as the dense forest grow thinner. The path in the distance didn''t look wide. Any caravan that would use it had to break their favoured formation and form a straight line to pass. And once a wagon entered between the cliffs it would block the two sides of the valley. She wished she had such a luck back then to work with a death trap like these in her golden days. But her drooling on such working conditions came to an end when someone had to ruin her mood.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. "Loren. Your diet is not working, I am hungry again." Isabel crossed her arms around her middle as they walked. "How can you be hungry again, it''s only been an hour or so you had a meal." "Yeah, like a few bites." "It was half of a normal sized meal a human eat!" "Yeah. Guess what, A human is not around 7 feet and just for you to know, with a fixed proportional size change represented as percent, the volume of the object changes according to that percent on the power of the object''s dimension." "What?!" Loren had to stop for a moment, it was all gibberish what she heard yet she said it with great confidence. "A bigger body eats more!" Isabel snapped at her. *Angry growl* "Yeah, tell her tummy." Isabel said it enthusiastically as she got the encouragement. "That''s one more reason you shouldn''t eat more if you don''t want to eat more in the future!" Loren stepped closer and said it directly into her face. Once she finished and she got no response, she turned away and carried on. Isabel tried to think of a comeback to that, but what Loren said made perfect sense according to her own simplified explanation earlier. And since the argument was over, heavily on Loren''s favour, she couldn''t do much else but to follow the mad grey fitness dictator and endure the hunger. A few minutes passed by in awkward silence and the mountain passage was just an hour away when a camp of some sort outlined between the trees with its half-finished palisade around it. Loren didn''t need more, she turned around and put her hand on Isabel''s mouth. It was far from polite or understandable, but she rather not risked any chances. She gently led the startled girl off the road and crouched down with her. "No sudden movements or loud noises. I think we found the village elder''s urgent task and by that, I mean there are bandits or thugs nearby." Loren whispered, then looked around to check if there was any movement nearby, and once she was sure it was clear, she took away her hand. "Bandits? We saw nobody on this road, why are they here?" "Most likely for the next caravan in fall and until then they prepare themselves." ¡°How we going to pass them?¡± "I don''t think we can, they must have a clear vision on the path." "So, we have to turn back..." "I had something else in mind." Said Loren with a sinister smile. "Are you crazy? You want to fight them?" Looking at her, it became oblivious, what she had in mind. "Of course not. WE are going to fight them, but not head on. We will cherry-pick them. Do you remember what I thought about traps?" Loren asked as she remembered all the basic she taught her and she seemed to be thought about them, but then she shook her head. "Great..." Loren rolled her eyes, there was no way to retell her all the basics again. It didn''t take more than a minute to find footprints and other signs of men in the forest. It seemed like an often-visited path and the perfect place to set a few traps. The two started to prepare nearby as they hid away from plain sight. It could have been faster, but Loren had to stop occasionally to give Isabel further instructions. Even before they could have finished the first of many, steps and talking, human noises halted their work. The two nodded each other and carried out their plan. It was simple Loren hid and Isabel stood still near an old sturdy oak tree and waited in plain sight for her new heroes to arrive. She used a few tricks in her book, to compensate for the half beast folk look she had which in her opinion was anything but appealing. The cheap shirt she had turned it into a tight ill-fitting bra as she knotted and tucked under her cleavage, which made it seem like it could rip open in any moment. Her lower side was a problem, but her pants covered the most of it and she had more than ever to work with. Only using two stings that she tied tight on her legs just under the butts gave her something close to a bubble-butt. The only thing she couldn''t change was the little tummy she started to gain recently and without a mirror, she only could feel what she had ongoing. It was not a great feeling being a bait, even so, she prepared to do so it was for the first time she wished she would not turn the men''s head, but she had to play her role because the other one was way worse in her opinion. Isabel nervously waited not far away and without she realised the not well-groomed duo entered her sight and kept going on the path, not taking a notice of her presence. Isabel''s eye twitched a little, this was the last drop in the glass. They took away her perfect life, a crazy deity turned her into a monster and even cursed her, top of that she had to go on a journey with an overly anxious thing that clung to her for God knew what reason, and all for that so she could remove this bullshit or it will force her to completely ruin the rest of her body as well. She did know when but she had her mace at hand behind her back and she was only a step away from the men as they turned back. "Hi, guys!" Isabel cheerfully greeted them, but as the two looked each other confused for a moment she swung her weapon towards the left on and restructured his face. The man on the right only could watch in horror as his mate''s head twisted into a bloody mess as he dropped dead with spin. "Don''t worry I gonna turn your head as well." She gave him a cheeky look. He quickly stepped back, with his sword ready in hand, the monster in front of her started her attack from above. He had to dodge it sideways or he would never get a chance to attack due to their reach difference. Her attack missed and it made an opening by her side. He wasted no time, he stepped forward with one leg to give a boost to his weapon''s trust and aimed at her middle. The upcoming mace parried his attack, but it was way off to reach him and thanks to its momentum she would not be able to lower it in time to parry and another one. As Isabel parried his sword she shifted her weight and raised her right leg, while she turned to her side as she let her body to follow the mace''s way. That uncultured swine who couldn''t appreciate her beauty just pulled her sword away to make a trust again. With a well-aimed powerful kick and full body weight, she folded back the bandit''s knee with ease as she stomped on it. The mace was in position, the target was pinned and the only action he could do before the end, was letting out a high-pitched scream as he oddly kneed on the ground. "Should have worked on your footwork." And with that Isabel job was done as an entertainment. She put the mace down and readjusted her clothes into a more comfortable position. Loren was on her way towards her with a blank look on her face, she couldn''t tell if she was in trouble or not, but in Loren''s case she would found it out in a matter of seconds. "Isabel." Loren stopped before her and waited for "Yeah?" "You know that it never was a problem to deal with just a couple of lowlife. But it would have been better if they didn''t alert the rest and we could wait them out without leaving..." "a mess." "Yeah. There goes one of your rations." More noises became audible and it sounded like a smaller mob. The only thing that was louder for a moment than the preparing bandits in the distance was Isabel''s stomach on Loren statement. *Sad growl* 1.15 Improvisation "Is this really a must?" Asked Isabel as Loren stood behind her trying to buckle a piece of leather armour they took off from a bandit. "Yes..." Said Loren, but despite all her affords there was still a good inch between the two ends. "Are you even shucking it in?" "I do." Isabel said embarrassed and blushed a little, for the first time in her life she felt like she outgrown something in the waistline. "It¡¯s no use... Grab the belt from this one and go back to the oak." Loren picked up the other guy with two intact knees and hauled him towards the tree. "Are we going to try it again?" Isabel asked while she extended the belt with an another one and put on the armour piece. She felt relieved and made her smile for some reason when she managed to buckle it. "Yeah, but this time he will be the bait." Loren put down the body and leaned it to the tree. "And what will I do? I can''t climb that tree." There was some doubt in her voice, but Loren seemed like she knew what she was doing for once. "Hid among the bushes and what till I attack." And with that, Loren climbed back up to the tree while Isabel found herself a large enough bush to hid her alongside with a mace and a shield. The bandits took their sweet time and Loren was about to give up on them when between the greenery she saw a group of 8 figure approaching the first corpse. They didn''t show any feelings towards their fellow member''s death, one of them looted the body while the others patrolled their surroundings. Judged by their equipment 6 of them seemed like some kind of fighter and one was obliviously ranger, but the last one was a mystery. He wore robes but he had no weapon or wand at hand or within his reach. For the first time, Loren didn''t feel the comfort of the motionlessness, but rather it annoyed her as she fought against the meditative state the usually followed it. The two minutes seemed like an eternity before one of them dared to approach the second body. Loren was keen to act but she had to wait a little more just to be sure that at least one more of them will be in her reach after the jump. But the opportunity didn''t come. The robed one gave a clear order, that he wanted the bunch to return back to the camp. It was now or never, let them regroup back at their camp was a sure dead end for their adventure. She couldn''t wait any longer, as the bandit under her stood up, she let off the branches and as a dead weight, she fell. It was for the better that Isabel did not saw it. Approximately she fell 26 feet before she landed directly on her target''s shoulders with her clawed feet. The force she gathered had a devastating effect. In the moment of the impact, both of his shoulders snapped and it didn''t seem to stop there. Loren was an unstoppable force and the bandit''s body worked like a gel. She ground him down to his waist where her feet slipped under the bloody goo. Only the head and the spine remained intact as the mutilated body fell forward. The sound of sploshing meat and breaking bones turned everyone''s head. Only to saw a bloodied grey monster with a longsword on the spot where their fellow mate once stood. The momentary silence was broken by the robed one as he shouted his new orders, ¡®kill the monster¡¯. The bandits outnumbered Loren, so without fear in their hearth, they charged toward her, not knowing there was one other person in the bushes not far away from them. Loren parried the first sword attack which let the second bandit hit her. She couldn''t pull back her sword in time, she had to use her arm to block the attack. The sword clanked on her stone skin and left a cut on the leather. With her free hand, that she used to deflect the attack, she grabbed the bandit by his throat, pulled him closer to herself to make him serve as a shield while she clenched her hand with all her might. The third bandit cut toward her only to hit her new shield on the shoulder, while the first got behind her back and landed a powerful attack on Loren''s waist. The sound of cracking stone was audible but her part did not fall out as her armour kept them inside. They were about to surround her when Isabel finally arrived, and run over the last two bandits who still ran toward Loren. She didn''t hesitate to stomp on one of the bandits as he tried to get up, but in the heat of the battle, she only hit him on his chest which caused him to cough up blood continuously as his lungs ruptured. The other one was on her feet and did not give Isabel a chance to stomp his mate again. He used his momentum and trusted toward her side. She couldn''t defend against it as her shield was in her other hand, so she raised her arm high and let him hit. The sword went deep into her since she didn''t wear armour on her side.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. Her weapon was ready and before he could have done anything else she smashed his head with a powerful blow. His skull cracked open and the mace worked the bone pieces into his brain. The other one tried to crawl away but Isabel smote him before he got too far. Loren had to change tactic since the meat shield only seemed as a burden. It was good enough to keep one''s attack at bay, but it made it impossible to fight with the other. She turned her body toward the one in front of her shield and ran towards him. The bandit jumped away from her and delivered a hit on her back as she passed by. Loren let the corpse go once she passed him and with a wide swing she turned back. Her longsword caught the bandit''s arm and stuck in it. The attack was not strong enough to cut his arm off through his armour but what it did was enough for her. She changes hands on the weapon and pulled her next meat shield closer to herself. He tried to trust her but the stone body didn''t give in. She grabbed his throat, tightened her grip and watched as his eyes slowly turned back into his head. The robed figure said something to the ranger next to him. He nodded and ran towards their camp. The robed one turn back towards the battlefield raised his hands toward the sky and let out a war cry. His voice swept through the area like a shockwave and left Isabel''s ears ringing. She watched him as a shield and a mace materialized in his hands. His orangish weapon and shield vibrated, and occasionally they let out a spark of lightning. Isabel raised her shield, and as fast as the sword in her side let her she backed away. Loren had to end this quickly or the [War Priest] would kill Isabel. She tried to free her sword from his shield¡¯s arm, but after the first pull she gave up. She let the lifeless body fall and charge the last one head on without weapons. The bandit had only one chance and he knew it, he prepared himself and waited. In his mind, he could see how Loren''s head would fall off after his stroke, but she gave him something unexpected. Halfway towards him, Loren jumped. She landed on his hip with even feet, swiped him away and once they reach the ground, the gargoyle weight tore him half as they slid a few feet. There was no time to admire the beauty of what momentum and weight could cause. She grabbed the sword that he had and rushed to aid Isabel. The priest grinned as he closed the distance with Isabel. In the least few feet, he jumped forward and smashed his mace against her shield. On impact, the mace busted out a small shockwave that cracked Isabel''s shield and pushed her away. It was an unnatural force he displayed, it struck fear into Isabel''s heart. He was way stronger than her. He was about to attack again when he noticed the charging gargoyle. He took a step back and stuck his own shield. The outburst halted Loren''s charge and forced Isabel to kneel. Loren lost her momentum and the distance was too short to charge again. Judging by the priest look, he couldn''t be more than 10 in levels. Neither his war cry aided the others, nor his body radiated the holy power. That meant he only had three or four [Outbursts]. Isabel tried to get up but as the adrenaline cleared out of her system, the pain that the sword caused kept her in place. She supported herself with the mace, and watch the events unfold. Loren had the upper hand when it came to weapon reach, but a clear hit from the priest could easily shatter her. She had to bait out his remaining charges to ensure her victory. They started to slowly circle, as they waited for an opening in each other defence. Loren gave him a test with a quick trust towards the priest, but his shield blocked it. The nerve-racking waiting continued, and Loren gave him a few more blows to keep his attention on herself. They almost made half a circle when Isabel grabbed the priest''s ankles a pulled them out. The priest fell on the ground and quickly turn on his back before Loren first attack reached him. She kept hammering his shield, but it showed no progress. But Isabel had her ways, as Loren kept the priest busy, she gathered her strength and smote his groin with the mace. The conjured weapons disintegrated, and Loren attacks finally hit the target. Once the weapon wedged into his skull, Loren rush toward her bag, and return with a potion, she got from the first party she encountered. She laid Isabel on his side and place one foot on her torso close to the sword. She grabbed sword''s handle while Isabel clench her teeth and with a quick pull she took out the sword from her side. Isabel shouted and grabbed her side where the sword was. But Loren didn''t give her a chance to endure the pain, she made her drink the potion before it was too late. Once the bottle was empty she pressed on her side to limit her blood loss. A few minutes passed before Isabel let Loren know that she felt as her pain faded, it warmed Loren''s heart to hear that and in her relief, she smiled. Once Isabel was strong enough to stand, Loren spoke what was in her mind. "We have to face them today, before dusk." "Have you lost your mind? Minutes ago, a sword hanged out of my side." "Listen, we have to leave this valley the sooner the better, and we can''t camp anywhere nearby because of them." "A sword, Loren... I was stabbed with a sword!" Isabel was rightly upset, but Loren had to push her toward their goal. "If there are more than four of them then we ran, okay? You already saw me fight against four." "Fine. But I''m doing it to revoke the curse and not because of your inspiring words." "Thought so.¡± 1.16 Last loose ends before the journey The aftermath wasn''t pretty, the earth slowly sucked in the blood of men and combined into a bloody mess as the two girls casually walked around to collect anything usable from them. Loren saw the progress or rather the adaptation that Isabel showed. This time she didn''t throw up and even she took a part in the battle. The worst still could be ahead of them as they lack the information what they would face at the camp, but in Isabel growth as a future warrior, Loren found inner strength that helped her to gain reassurance at least. It wasn¡¯t an impossible task to train her. But of course, there was still a long way ahead of her, but the faint light of hope gave faith to Loren. After Loren extended a few belts on armour pieces for Isabel to be able to wear them, she left her to finish the looting of the bodies while she got a closer look at the enemy¡¯s camp. Back then when she roamed the land with her own party, she was a good scout, but as time passed and she changed trade to a more profitable one, she got used to it to have someone else gather the info for her. It felt like her past haunted and mocked her the more she roamed the wilderness. With her new body, it was impossible to get anywhere near to that agile what she once was, but to lose against a pampered child in food gathering and only be able to hide serval feet above to surprise the enemy, was kind of embarrassing. But never the less she was out of practice and this was not the right time to get back what she lost. She reached the edge of the forest, the path that she followed continued on a meadow, but seeing the tower inside the camp discouraged her to walk forward without any cover. The palisade blocked a clear view of the camp, she had to walk alongside the meadow to get to a better position where it was missing. Three smaller houses or rather sheds in a circle, a few handcarts here and there. For the first glance other than the short watchtower they lacked defences, there could be traps around, but if they stuck to the path they should avoid them most likely. The camp offered so little visually that even a mere headcount would have been enough for her. Loren stood behind a tree and watched them for a while as the one who most likely was the bandit chief ordered angrily two guys around to reposition the carts to fill a few gaps around the wall. It was hard to tell from this far for sure, but a woman in tighter robes stood and cling to him... either that or the chief had some questionable taste... Loren tried to figure out the robed one when the sun''s rays were reflected for a brief moment from the tower. And before her eye could have focused on it and an arrow hit its mark. The arrow''s shaft snapped as it took a piece out of her cheek. She touched the place of the impact. The once smooth stone skin became rough as a bigger flat piece was missing. Whoever made this shot was way over in levels than other guys. The curious gargoyle got her message, they didn''t like if someone was stalking them, and before she got another friendly reminder that she should leave. She left.
Isabel was not far from the previous fight scene where she left her, she sat beneath a tree and held her bag between her legs, she was still armed and wore more armour now. It looked like she finished her job as a pile of weathered leather and a pack of folded rugged clothes were next to her, alongside with a few battered swords. Even in their current state the swords worth a pretty money and a potion or two for them were still better than nothing. It crossed Loren''s mind to just out of fun scare Isabel, but she didn''t have the heart as she saw her snoozing so peacefully. Instead, she sat down next to her and gently run her hand thought Isabel''s hair while she called her name. "Isabel... Isabel, wake up." Loren tried her best as far being gentle went, but it didn''t work. She was about to ''gently'' shake her up when Isabel slid down toward her and landed on her lap. "Alright... you get five more minutes."
They were in a hurry. They overslept, and nightfall already began. They had to at least reach the end of the forest before it became too dark to move around without a light source. Loren carried a mostly intact corpse and marched forward in hasty pace, while Isabel tried to keep up with her but unlike someone else, she had a finite stamina and with the extra armour''s encumbrance it was a hard challenge. The distance between them grew steadily which made Isabel worried. "Loren, slow down! You are moving too fast." Isabel panted heavily. "Agh... First, you fell asleep then you ask me to give you even more time. We don''t have this kind of luxury. If you want to sleep tonight, we have to deal with them first." "Then why didn''t you wake me up?" Loren couldn''t answer that, it was too embarrassing to tell Isabel that she fell asleep as well while she enjoyed the moment. She just kept marching forward instead. "And why you are carrying that?" "Shield against arrows." "They have archers?" Isabel sounded worried and doubtfully looked at her battered shield. "Only saw one, but he is high-level. I was careless, and he landed a shoot over a hundred yards without the arrow lost any of its strength. The fact that..." "What? Are you hurt?" "It not that bad, it''s just my cheek itching a bit. But let me finish. So, the fact that I still have my head means that he doesn''t have an enchanted arrow, nor he has [Power Shoot]. That drops out the [Archer] class, so he could be an [Assassin] with ranged weapon preference or a [Ranger] with [Snipe]... Or just a lucky bastard with an enchanted bow." "Why is it, so important what kind of archer is he?" Loren stopped and look Isabel in the eyes. She changed to a more serious tone, that gave the chill to Isabel. "If he is a [Ranger] you still have a chance to survive a clear shot but if he is an [Assassin] with this skill, he might as well have [Vital vision] or [Deadly Aim]. The moment he releases the arrow, you just had your last thought." Isabel swallowed one and before she realized Loren was far away again.
Back at the end of the forest path, they went through one last time the plan. "Corpse in front and you stay as close to me as possible behind me. Once we reach their wall we follow it around until the tower. I climb up to take out the archer and then you can join the fight as well. Clear?" Isabel just nodded, she still seemed to be still terrified after what Loren said back then. It wasn''t Loren''s real intention to scare her, she just wanted her to know how dangerous one skilled person could be. But she might have done too well on that. Never the less, the damage was done and dealing with the fear of death required more time to settle, which they didn''t have. The once peaceful green meadow where the breeze could dance botherless change its colour in the setting sun. Like the blaze in a forest fire, the bright orange colour swept through it. Creating an image of a razed country before the final siege. Loren was disturbed and the farther they walk along the path the more her current position became unsettling. The picture that the meadow painted couldn''t care her less, but the two soft overspreading orbs on her back was a different question. Isabel hugged her as hard as she could to stay as close to her as it was humanly possible. The constant pressure change that the walking caused was nothing compared to how much Isabel shivered in fear. The knock of the meat shield¡¯s head on the wall was a sigh of a god for Loren. The distance felt longer than it should have, and she remembered none of it as her focus was on other things. She even had to check her shield to see if they were targeted or not by the archer. "No arrows." Stated Loren and tossed aside the body. She tried to carry on with their plan, but Isabel still clung to her. "Isabel." "Can I open my eyes now?" "Your eyes... Yes?" Loren was not sure why Isabel had her eyes closed, but she was relieved when she felt as the two pillows from her back disappeared. The two changed an awkward smile and followed the log-line until the tower. The logs weren''t as tall as Loren thought they would be. Maybe 10 feet or so above the ground. She could reach the top of them easily if she wanted to. Isabel stopped as Loren told her, she was a few feet away from the tower where it didn''t have a line of sight on her as she crouched next to the wall. There was too big of a silence on the other side, but even if it was a trap, it was too late to turn back now. Loren faced the tower, put her hands on top the logs and with a light jump she pulled herself up. The moment her feet got its grip on the log she leaned toward the tower in front of her and slowly peeked over it. It was empty. Loren''s plan to deal with the archer right away, fall apart. As She stood on top of the wall she thoughtfully observed the buildings, but there was nothing that gave away where the rest of the bandits could be as only two of them were outside guarding the single entrance on the other side of the camp. But even with her plan just failed, Loren was once top in her trade, coming up with another one was part of her kit. ''Deal with the guards silently. Isabel takes the left, mine is the right. Once it''s done, we barricade the entrances and set them on fire.'' In her mind, she gave them no chance to respond in any way, the more it restricted them the better the plan was. Now she only had to tell Isabel the plan and they finally could leave this valley in peace. Loren leaned and shifted her weight backwards to jump off the log she stood on, but history repeated itself as the heavier of the two demonstrated the destructive force of what almost 926 pounds of stone could do from that high. The poorly buried log got out of the ground and with the gargoyle on top, it began to fall. The surprised Loren pushed herself away from the log as the grinding of wood could be heard, but it was too late. After she landed on her feet, the wood slammed on the ground. Their cover was blown. "Loren?" Isabel asked worriedly, this wasn''t part of the plan. "Agh!... We attack, now. And I will find the archer during the fight." Loren snapped at her with fury. As there was now a new entrance to the camp, she grabbed the opportunity and stepped through the narrow space sideways, leaving Isabel outside. "But?... What if he finds me first?" Isabel asked, but Loren was already gone. Two guards with spears, she already faced bigger threats with her new body, the question was not who, but when will win. Loren charged towards them, with her sword in her right hand. Each step sounded like a war-hammer smitten the ground, leaving the dry dirt cracked behind her. The guards shouted for help while they prepared to halt the charge with their long weapon. Loren aimed at the left one as the two bandits stood next to each other. It seemed like she would pass by them and not collide with them head-on. The closer one trusted his weapon towards the gargoyle''s chest, he could fell the counterforce that the hit caused, but it shifted into friction as Loren turned herself around. The spear reached her and split open her leather, but it only scratched her stone-skin. She made a full turn with her sword arm stretched out. The sword drew a circle in the air around Loren and reached his target by the end of it. It would have required a skilled [Fighter], but in what Loren was missing she made up for it in weight and brute force. It wasn''t a clean cut, it didn''t need to be. The bandit collapsed in place as her skull leaked out its remains. Loren slid a few feet on the ground after her spin, and by the time she stopped the other one already back away with fear in his face. She ran out of time, a door slammed open and two others seemed to be eager to join the fight. The chief with a tower-shield and with a mace, the other was the archer who stepped outside. Loren lost interest in the guard and her focus narrowed on the archer. It wasn''t just personal, that he managed to land a shot on her, but her ''get out of the mad god''s grasp card'' was at stake as long as he was alive. Speaking of which, thanks to her voluptuous top-heavy frame, Isabel was stuck in the gap between two logs. Loren shouted to Isabel to take on the last guard while she dealt with the other two as she began to sprint toward them. The archer took the initiative, drawn his bow and in a rapid paste, he shot three times before Loren could reach the chief who stood with his shield. The arrows bounce off her, but each took a piece with itself. The chipping didn''t slow her down, but the chief slammed down his shield which raised an alarm. [Shield wall], even if he was alone it could stop her. A step and not before, Loren jumped, grabbed the top of the shield and aided herself over it. She passed the chief and it seemed she would land on the archer. But to her surprise, she passed through him and landed on the ground instead. Now she was sure, he was an [Assassin]. She gave her no time to move around, the moment she landed Loren used her long reach and swing her longsword around. Luck was on her side tonight, even so, he blocked most of her attack, the bow didn''t survive the strike and his brief invisibility after [Miss Position] broke. But her wide move was a grave mistake, the chief slammed the tower-shield into her. Loren lost her balance and fallen on the ground, the follow up didn''t late. His skill still lasted, and the shield was on its way to strike the earth. Loren rolled away, but it got her left arm. The crack shocked her out of her furry, a hand and bit of her forearm was the price of the recklessness. The guard was on his way to deal with the easy prey, but Isabel managed to free herself from that evil narrow gap. She repeated Loren''s teaching about fighting. ''Keep the distance advantage that came with her height and when the opportunity comes, use all her weight if she can.'' The basics were simple, but there was a problem. An eight feet long pointy stick, to be precise. Isabel eyed the error of Loren''s teaching as it ran toward her. The solution was simple... Run and ask for support. "Loren!" Isabel almost screamed her name, as she ran for her life. "Busy." Loren just lost an arm and stood before two healthy foes. "How to deal with a spear?" Isabel asked as they almost finished their first lap inside the camp.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. "Parry, step in, smash." Loren couldn''t take her eyes off the [Assassin] as he pulled out two daggers. Isabel needed a little time to process what she just heard and before she could have put her new instruction into motion another door slowly open ahead of her. She finished the visualization just in time to notice the now open door. She had to stop either way why not do it with a little style she thought. She jumped a little, turned around in the air and gave away a good bit of her force with her rump. The door slammed shut and a loud knock could be heard way before it closed. Isabel felt a little proud as she managed to pull off her ''trick''. The bandit fell behind a bit and she only noticed it now as she faced him. The bandit used his momentum and trusted toward the cowgirl. It was too quick for her to parry it. The spear hit her weakened shield and broke through its planks, her amour stopped the remaining force of the attack before it would have penetrated her shoulder. Isabel was baffled, for her, it was unthinkable to witness such act. Her shield was destroyed, which almost cost her life. The spear was stuck in the remains of the shield. The bandit tried to pull it out a few times, but the frozen Isabel only made it harder as she held the shield in a weird angle for him. He was desperate to get out his only weapon, he braced his leg and tried to kick her away. The pain snapped her back as the little man struggled in front of her. She pulled him closer with the shield and introduced him, her mace. The men who tried to take her life grabbed her arm as the mace left a deep first impression on it, but not the last one. Even with two arms, it would have been hard to deal with them. Loren waited and slowly back away. She had to keep the [Assassin] interested in herself, while the bigger threat had an iron curtain. She passed the first house and parried a few blows, but his shield didn''t leave an opening for her to respond. It was only the matter of time before the other went for Isabel, they left her no choice, she had to gamble. Loren quickly hid behind the corner and got ready to jump away from the wall. The chief was cautious, he turned his shield than with a side step he stood before her. Loren pushed herself away from the wall with all she got and swing at the chief from the side. With a wide move, the shield deflected her weapon with ease. A big smile was on his face as his hammer already risen to make the last smite on Loren. And there was the opening she sought. Loren stepped forward and trusted her splintered arm into the chief''s face, widening his smile even more. The chief''s body limped, the shield fell over and she pulled back her bloody arm, now she could finish off the [Assassin] as well. Loren face distorted the fear, it was only a moment and now he was gone. She was aware of his trade, but he had to be more than a mere [Assassin] in the middle of nowhere. Loren saw no viable place to hide and Isabel sat peacefully next to a bloody puddle while she learned at the house wall. She couldn¡¯t wait, she shouted for her. "Isabel, come here. Now!" Isabel dragged herself towards Loren without a shield, she looked fine, but something must have happened, that made her look so empty. The door behind Isabel open once more and that mysterious woman stepped out with a broken nose. Her face was an emotional rollercoaster. Anger, sorrow, then rage again. "Noooo! You killed him. He loved me, and you killed him!" She shouted at them. A quick twist and an inviting gesture. "[Seduction]!" She cast her spell. Loren jaw dropped, she was a [Witch], but if she could think straight then it meant. "You will feel my pain! Come to me." She commanded her. Isabel let out a heavy sighed, turned around and walk up to her. "Isabel. Isabel, wake up! Please!" She was not good with words, let alone with influence spells. The witch just laughed as Loren desperately cried out for Isabel. "You have to fight her! Isabel!" Loren didn¡¯t give up, but her words didn¡¯t seem to reach Isabel. A few steps and all her hope would turn into ash. "You can eat anything. Please! Break free!" Isabel stood before her. The witch eyes her new toy, but she still had a problem before she could play with her. Revenge. "Kill her." She commanded Isabel. Isabel didn''t move. "Are you deaf? I said, kill her for me!" Her grip tightened around the mace''s handle. All she wanted to call it a day and leave this place. Isabel looked down on the witch and risen her mace. "What are you doing? [Seduction]." Her eyes held no emotion, her face was blank. The mace came down with all of her might before the witch could have turned around to run. Loren was stunned, she had no idea how Isabel broke the spell, but the witch was twitching on the ground. Loren walked up to her by the time Isabel turned back. "Are you alright?" Loren asked, something was not right with her, she felt it in her guts. Isabel stared at the ground and just nodded. Loren was not convinced, but she didn''t push it. "How about I search the bodies and you look around in the building." It seemed like a good idea in Loren''s opinion. She barely grasped what kind of word Isabel came from but fights and battles were never mentioned. It was a blood-filled day already, she didn''t want to stretch it further for her. Isabel just nodded again. Loren started with the witch. Tight blueish robes with yellow embroidery at the edges. Rings on her fingers and a necklet around her neck. She removed her jewellery and before she knew it she already chewed on her jewels. She was about to eat a small garnet, but she couldn¡¯t remove the gem with one hand. Other than that there was only a smaller potion of purple liquid in the witch position. While Loren finished the witch, Isabel checked the first building of her choosing. A smaller house with no windows and with a flat chimney on top, it seemed it was built on ruins as part of the house was made of old mossy stone while the rest was just bland planks. She opened the door and her eyes started to shine, her mouth made a wide smile as she started to drool, just like she found some fabulous treasures inside the old ruins. A fireplace on it a cauldron within boiling soup, a table with full of bread, vegetables, fruits and cheeses, on the wall sausages hanged alongside with a few kitchen tools, under it a few full bags of grain or some sort. Only a part that she just saw but it made her shout out of joy and forget about the recent events. "Haha! Yesss! Look at all these! No more hunger for me!" Isabel jumped up and down which caught Loren''s attention as well. She walked over to the bag of joy and took a peek at what she found. "You are really some kind of witch when it comes to finding food." "Bon Appetite!" Isabel was about to dash toward the foods to dig in when Loren grabbed her arm. "Sorry Isabel, it''s not going to happen, you have to cut back on eating. Come, time to go." Loren tried to pull Isabel away from the house, but she found her resisting for the first time. "Get your hand off me!" She snapped at her as she tried to pull away from Loren. Her grip was strong, and she didn''t release her, Isabel turned back with overflown emotions. "I almost died back there, Loren. That spear almost reached my head¡­¡± She hesitated, she couldn¡¯t finish it. She fought against her tears and she opened another wound. ¡±Do you have any idea how much it hurts to feel this hunger or even to feel hunger at all? Since as far as I can tell you do not eat. It''s like having a monster inside me who squeeze and twist my stomach every time he gets the space to do so and the more he has the stronger the pain became with it. I was almost in constant pain in the last few days, most of the time I sat down it wasn''t because I was tired but because the pain cramped me, and yet I waited until my ration. And despite all that, I still haven''t said anything about how much I suffered from your helpful ideas¡­¡° There was a moment of silence, but it was not the end. Isabel lost, her tears began to fall. ¡±But the worst was¡­ Snip¡­ a part of wanted to end it all at that moment the spear came close to me.¡± Loren let go Isabel¡¯s arm as she sought now way to calm her down. ¡°Now if you may, just go and fuck yourself and let me eat as I''m already behind by two rations even by your standards." Her tone steadily changed toward anger, and Loren did not know how to answer. She had no idea what Isabel felt. After they left the village, she never talked about them, but neither did Loren asked about it. She just accepted that Isabel would do always as she told her to do so, but she was wrong, she wasn''t a soldier, she was a child. She backed away and Isabel slammed the door. She could think of nothing to help her, and what is worse, up until this point, she thought that what she did helped her, but it wasn''t the case. She found solitude on the watchtower. Her arm and torso started to reform as she waited for the sweet relief that came with her motionlessness. But what she heard still haunted her. She was right, she saw her before as she ate an inhuman amount of food, and Loren couldn''t, nor dared to imagine what she felt that made her do this to herself. All she knew that Isabel needed her support and she failed to help her. She crouched on top of the lonely tower. Her guilt slowly settled as she eyed the only thing that her body craved which helped her to understand a little of what Isabel felt all the time. A piece of gem. [Nanny reached level 5, class fixed] [Perk added: Boo-boo Healing] ¡°Fuck¡­¡±
Isabel stood before the closed the door until she dealt with her tears. She was still pissed at her, but she had other more urgent problems at hand. It felt like the hunger was killing her, but now that she was alone she could start her meal that would ease her pain. She rarely cooked for herself but she knew about the basics and seeing all these ingredients all around her it just shouted for¡­ burgers. After she checked on the cauldron and determined that whatever was it, it was ready and she pulled it away from the fire. She began to work on her project without knowing how much she would actually need. She missed two meals already and she was around seven feet with a big appetite, so a healthy five burgers seemed reasonable. At first, everything went according to the plan but as she made progress on slicing things up, the ingredients started to mysteriously disappear one after and other. And by the time she finished making her first burger the parts of the other four were already eaten. Making food felt like a chore and what it was worse it was a slow process. Her stomach still ached, but it was not so appealing to just eat raw ingredients when she had a better option. After that lonely burger, she needed something that would last longer than a few bites and she just had the perfect solution. She pulled the table closer to the cauldron, grabbed as many bowls as many she found and filled them with soup. She took her seat and like a machine, bowl after bowl she ate. It was hard to tell the time around here without an actual clock. The pain disappeared without her notice, but she lost herself in the process long ago. The bowls she prepared were cold now and her thoughts were on what she just said to Loren as she gulped down one. She might have been too harsh with her, it didn''t feel like she harmed her on purpose, nor she was the caused her current state. The bowls pilled on next to her and the clothing she had, felt tight around her waist. The more she thought about her the more she worried if Loren was alright. She didn''t know for sure if they got every bandit, and if the sorrow she caused brought Loren into slumber she would stand no chance. The contemplation came to an end as she finished one more and with it, a different pain shocked her. She overindulged. The pain forced her to lean forward, in response she rested her head on the table to submit to the demands and let her middle hang over the chair. With the little extra room, that she created the pain slowly faded, while she waited her eyes caught upon the leather armour she wore as it lied on the ground now. She didn''t remember when she threw it away. The realization hit her, it was not the armour she felt tight. She ran her hands on her sore belly and under her fingers, a large orb-like shape started to outline in her mind. She had to sit back up to confirm what she felt, but just as unreal it felt, it looked like one as well. Like she hid a balloon under the cheap fabric shirt that stretched around her waist. The scene was so cartoonish that out of curiosity she had to take a closer look at it. She pulled up her shirt with a childish giggle, but what she saw crushed her. A slightly pinkish drum tight large belly that''s what greeted her. She was almost as big as a full-term pregnant woman, and it didn''t matter how many times she ran her hand around it, it felt real. It was real. It was the undeniable truth, she lost control and it got out of hand quickly. No diet or self-restraint could compete against this. She felt trapped and her body was the prison. The only hope to escape this torture was to get rid of the curse before it was too late. As she eyed the food demanding monster it awed her, while the words of Loren and the deity swirled in her mind. ''The bigger you get the more you will eat'' Loren words became true in their own twisted way. Isabel saw herself over the days as she could fit in more and more each time she thought she reached her body¡¯s limit. And it seemed that the continuous stretching resulted an undesired increase in her hunger as well. But on the other hand, what the deity said was tragicomically gave her hope. Hope that this won''t kill her. Back then when she bagged to restore her body to its former glory, she said that she will reach her beauty. Now it made sense to her what she meant. Even so, her current state was still far away from the deity¡¯s proportions, who was a blimp in her opinion. It still meant that for her that there was a desired goal which had to be before she stuffed herself to death or she wouldn''t be able to ''grow her herd''. Now that she was full and almost pain-free, she had to find Loren to at least apologize to her, but more importantly, she wanted to leave this torture chamber. She tried to stand up and leave as fast as possible but she had to fight to keep her balance since her centre of gravity shifted greatly in less than an hour. Eventually, she found the sweet spot. She only had to lean back a little to counter her front. The only problem was now that her belly stuck out more than enough to enter her vision, like a constant reminder of what she had done to herself, even if it relieved her from the hunger, it still embarrassed her. Her walking became wobbly as her belly shifted side-to-side with each step, but what was worse, that she had to lean one side or turn her body away just to see what was in front of her hooves. A few minutes passed by, but she got the hang of it. She left the kitchen and stepped outside into the night with a larger piece of cheese in hand. The darkness ruled over the camp and only the moonlit shined her way in it. Finding Loren was a piece of cake as the watchtower''s bright top was out of place. But in front of the watchtower, Isabel met her new archenemy who stood in her way to reach Loren. A ladder. It became oblivious that climbing from frontwise was out of the question as she patted her middle. Isabel turned sideways and grabbed the ladder with both now empty hands. She put her hoof on the first spoke and set it between her two toes, it felt really uncomfortable, but with this technique, she climbed just high enough to be able to rest both of her arms on the top of the tower. Loren held a gem between her fingers as she sat against the lantern. She seemed so focused that she didn''t even notice her, but Isabel was eager to get off the ladder, she had to distract her. "Loren." She called out for her, but she didn''t move, and Isabel lost her patients. "LOREN!" She shouted as loud as she could. It startled Loren so much she had to put her recently healed hand down to avoid falling over. Now that she had Loren attention, she jabbered her monologue. "Loren, I want to apologize, please come down. The ladder hurts." She hadn''t even finished the most of it she was already on her way down. Loren needed a few seconds to understand what just happened, but Isabel wanted to talk and that was enough for her. She pocketed the gem, took the lantern and climb down by the side of the tower. She was about to turn around the tower, but she hesitated. She spent a good while thinking about what she should say to her, or how to tell her that it wasn¡¯t her intentions to hurt her. ¡°Loren?¡± ¡°Coming.¡± Loren looked at the night sky, took a deep breath¡­ which she needed to talk not to calm herself¡­ and turned the corner. ¡°Isabel, I¡­¡± Loren eyed the flame in the lantern she couldn¡¯t look at Isabel, her guilt didn¡¯t let her. ¡°Please, stop.¡± Isabel kindly, but interrupted Loren. ¡°I want to apologize. It was by far the worst day of my life and what I said was the opposite I should have said. You save me back then in the village, bought me a proper meal, thought me so much about this world and you even work on it to remove the curse which I only can thank myself... Loren. I am very grateful that I met you, and I hope you can forgive me.¡± Loren slowly turned her head towards Isabel. It was a moving moment even for an ex [Assassin]. But it quickly faded as Loren took a good look on the glutton. Isabel sat cross-legged and leaned at the tower¡¯s pillar. Both of her hands embrace her middle, but they couldn''t hide it and with a guilty childish smile, she giggled a bit out of embarrassment as their eyes met. Loren needed a few moments, Isabel just apologized, and shouting would only send back the contestation to square one. She sat next to Isabel who was surprised by Loren¡¯s act and put a hand on her belly. Isabel didn¡¯t act on it, which Loren found odd, her hand just grew back, but Isabel said nothing on that matter. The situation started to become awkward as she felt Isabel¡¯s tight middle rising and falling which each breath, she had to say something funny to break the moment. ¡°Even an ogre chieftain would be proud to see you this way after a month, but you made this in an hour. Your only luck, that the skin is not greenish, or I would have stabbed you in the gut.¡± Jokes were not her strong side. ¡°I guess ogres are bad.¡± Isabel expression very well represented an innocent child who reached too deep into the cookie jar and couldn¡¯t tell if she was in trouble. Loren couldn¡¯t hold back her emotions. She was happy that Isabel wasn¡¯t mad at her and her face just gave her the last push. She busted out laughing. ¡°What so funny?¡± Isabel was confused, she expected much more radical things. ¡°Nothing¡­ Nothing.¡± Loren stood up and dusted herself. ¡°Isabel. I also owe you an apology. Is should have treated you more thoughtfully, but let¡¯s talk about that later. I go and get our bags and call it a day.¡± Isabel returned a friendly smile and without any other word, Loren left the camp with the lantern.
Loren was away for a good while, but Isabel couldn¡¯t recall the trip¡¯s length. She sat there and admired the alien stars on the sky. It was mesmerizing, it didn¡¯t matter how many times she saw it, it still grabbed her attention. Like an endless jewellery box padded with the finest black silk, the stars like gemstones sparked as they tried to outshine the others. She wished she could have sat there longer. But her demon called for her again. She ate all that food, yet she felt peckish. It made her clear that there were no loopholes in the curse. Most of what she consumed was just water, which filled her up, but it didn''t give her much else in a long run just a bloated belly. What she needed was real food. She slowly got up with the help of the tower¡¯s beams as she let out a heavy sigh, watered the plant in a nearby bush. then entered the kitchen, again. 1.17 Departing Isabel woke up as the light passed between the poorly place planks and landed on her eyelids. She wasn¡¯t sure when did she fell asleep, but she sat next to the table and her head rested on it. Her memories were a little hazy, but she remembered that Loren was supposed to bring her bedroll back from the forest which obliviously didn¡¯t happen. It was too early for her to panic about thinks and what is more important, the table still had some food on it. Faint ideas about a viable diet that could slow done her progress on ¡®body building¡¯ clung in her head, but they could wait after the most important meal in the day, breakfast. Cheese pieces, dried meat or even stale bread. It didn¡¯t matter for the zombie Isabel, she ate what she reached. After a few handfuls of hunger-pain painkillers, her brain finally turned on and its commands rushed in. Find Loren or die cursed. Isabel''s eyes widened, out of reflex she grabbed a shorter sausage chain and ran outside. The sudden brightness was blinding. Isabel covered her eyes and hastily looked around in panic. Her vision was still blurry, she still felt dizzy, but she had to find Loren. So, she did the only reasonable action that one can do in a bandit camp. ¡°LOREN!¡± Isabel shouted. She called for her a few times as she took a few steps in the yard. *Crack* The yard was mostly blood-soaked mud and dirt. She saw no bodies around, yet she stepped on something hard. Rocks. Isabel''s face went pale when she saw the broken stone hand on the ground. She knew whom it belonged to. It was a dreadful moment, tears gathered in her eyes and fall on the limb as she picked it up with shaking hands. ¡°Loren¡­¡± She mumbled and hugged the hand tightly. ¡°Isabel.¡± She still could hear as Loren called for her, from beyond. ¡°Isabel!¡± Loren¡¯s voice echoed in her mind. ¡°Loren!¡± She shouted for her friend for the last time. ¡°I never forget you.¡± ¡°Isabel, for fuck sake. Turn around!¡± She turned her head toward the source of the faint sound. In the distance on the other side of the meadow, she saw Loren waving her hand and walking toward her.
It was hard to believe. She stood before her with intact limbs and with a cocky smile on her face. ¡°So, your arm.¡± ¡°It grew back.¡± ¡°Just like that.¡± ¡°Yep.¡± Isabel broke the silence with a sigh. It seemed that there were more to this world then first meets the eye. ¡°Alright, then. But where have you been, I waited all night for you.¡± ¡°Fall into a crypt, couldn¡¯t climb out. I had all the time at hand, so I follow a passage underground, blind. But once I was out I had to wait till sunrise. Oh, and there was a dart trap as well.¡± She spoke of such events like they were a day-by-day occurrence around here. It would have been harder to believe her story, but after she saw Loren¡¯s hand, it just couldn¡¯t leave an impression in her anymore. ¡°Fine by me, miss casual. Since you are fine, I need your help.¡± Isabel waited, but Loren didn¡¯t answer. For Isabel¡¯s surprise, she was listening. ¡°I want to load a cart with as much food as possible with vegetables first. After that everything else.¡±The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. ¡°Why, to stuff yourself on the way? No way. You are on a di¡­¡± She couldn¡¯t finish it and Isabel sized the opportunity she created. ¡°Yes, but not on yours. Not anymore. I¡¯ve read once in a beauty magazine that food with high fibre can help to keep one¡¯s shape. Combining that with a light workout and with the sparing, I should be fine, fit and well fed.¡± Loren just shrugged and follow Isabel¡¯s lead. She wasn¡¯t sure what these fibre filled foods were. She only knew one plant but that wasn¡¯t food, it was for making clothes. The cart slowly filled up. Two crates of veggies that¡¯s all they found. If it were properly rationed it could last up to two weeks even with Isabel¡¯s appetite. But they didn¡¯t stop, once one food group was out another one followed. Dried meat, smoked fish, cheese, bags of grain and fruits, they even stocked the lard at the end. The bandits were too well prepared on food in Loren¡¯s opinion. The cart was only half full when Isabel started to bring out more stuff from the houses. Wool filled bags, kitchen tools, an empty cauldron. As the list went on the more absurd it became. Loren excused herself and went for the weapons they left in the forest. It didn¡¯t make sense for her. But as she went through what she saw, she got the picture. Low level and untrained bandits with a few higher level one, five carts, lots of food in big variety alongside with spare clothes, wool, tools and so on. The last piece of the puzzle was the witch who also happened to be the only female in the camp. Loren gave it one last thought as she entered the camp with the bundled weapons, but she settled on not telling Isabel that the bandits they killed might have been local villagers before the witch and her party. After Isabel¡¯s breakdown, it was for the better to keep her away from anything even remotely unsettling for a while. Isabel leaned to the loaded cart and watch Loren as she returned with their last packet. Once it was on the cart they could finally depart. ¡°Anything else?¡± Asked Isabel as Loren put down the swords. Loren just shook her head while she observed the cargo. ¡°You know that we have to leave this behind if it comes to fleeing?¡± ¡°Most likely, but let¡¯s worry about it then.¡± Overconfident and takes serious matters lightly. It was a bad combination already, but it only made it worse that it reminded Loren of her past. ¡°Loren?¡± That cursed mansion that sealed her fate. She felt the urge to find out who set her up. ¡°Loren?¡± Her grips tightened as she saw herself gutting that rat. ¡°Loren!¡± Isabel shouted at her as Loren continued staring at Isabel¡¯s middle. ¡°It wobbles.¡± She said. ¡°What?¡± Isabel looked down. Even over her chests, she saw the out sticking belly. ¡°Oh¡­ Yeah.¡± She grabbed a handful of that dough mass, it was already too big to just suck it in. That it she thought, she was out of shape. ¡°It¡¯s not just food anymore.¡± Loren¡¯s words hurt her, yet she only stated a fact. Sigh. ¡°Shall we depart?¡± ¡°It would be the best.¡± Loren glared at the full cart and smiled. ¡°But you going to pull this. It will be a good ¡®Light¡¯ workout for you.¡± ¡°I was planning to.¡±
The sun was low when the two reached the end of the mountain passage, the last cliffs bid farewell to them and the world opened before their eyes as they stood on the side of the mountain. Trees, as far as the eyes could *yawn* see. The gentle summer breeze waved the foliage. The road they followed disappeared at the foot of a mountain, but its way was clear it headed toward the azure coloured lake at the edge of the horizon. But despite all the beauty that nature could offer, they stood no chance against the ancient tree in the far away. A tree that loomed over the clouds and reached toward the stars. ¡°Well, could have been worse.¡± Loren put her hands at her hip. ¡°Never been this far in the south, but at least we knew where we are heading.¡± ¡°Let me guess. Big tree?¡± ¡°Yeah. The home of elves, faired, dryads and beast folks like you... Mostly, they are more beasty, but you got the picture.¡± ¡°And we are going there because?¡± ¡°Big tree and mother of nature who course you. Do you need more? But jokes aside, over there you can ask Dahlia for a challenge to remove your course and I also can ask for guidance for myself.¡± ¡°Guidance?¡± Isabel asked, and Loren just realized her mistake. Isabel must not know what the mad god was holding for her and the others. ¡°Um¡­ I am kinda a religious type. But enough talk, we should reach the first trees and set up a camp for the night. We have a long journey ahe¡­¡± The crunch of a vegetable caught Loren¡¯s attention as Isabel started her new diet, maybe with a little too much delight. She nibbled on a single carrot, satisfied. If Isabel assumptions were right, her diet would halt the curse¡¯s effect on her and yet she could eat freely. Walking side by her gave Loren a good view on the growing girl¡¯s frame as the first signs of overly wellbeing left their undeniable burdens on her. She only could hope that Isabel¡¯s mumbo-jumbo about these fibres where at least a little true or soon enough she will have to roll her towards the Forbidden Forest. Not a chaper, but a map. Congratulation, you just read the first part of the novel. But if you haven¡¯t and you just here because you were curious or just miss clicked, then I say, fate just offered you a ride and if you have time to spare you could as well gave it a chance. And I¡¯m not saying this because I wrote it¡­ But because it¡¯s¡­ good¡­ enough¡­ Yeah¡­ This is how we reach the next part. Quality and quantity. I¡¯ve reread my creation and there is a noticeable drop in style and frequency in released chapters. Some point I even ¡®felt¡¯ the significant difference. This is the first time I am writing, but roller-coasting in style is not a good sign. Before I¡¯ve started (and recently) I asked around other authors, and according to them, it will improve in time if I put the right effort in it. *Obliviously* While others swore on a good story and the passion to tell it. So, they were telling the same. All I need is time. Time. When I started it, the plan was to write my story in less than a thousand pages. With this speed and due to other factors, it will not be possible, and I will not rush it to make it so.Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. On the other hand, I will also speed thing up a little, minor jump here and there to shorten the travels and with more retrospect from the characters view about recent events. And, less time ¡®consuming¡¯ Isabel. *Should have given her another curse¡­* But the gained time might be ending up as descriptions in scenes. But it is a win-win right? Characters. Seeing my note about the future. I might have overdone it on characters. I have only introduced four so far and there is around seven to go and they are just the main characters that this story is about. I am not saying I will leave them out, but they will need more than a thousand pages¡­ It sounds a lot¡­
Summary: I am not sorry for myself and it¡¯s not the point of this. It was just a lengthy apology about the novel¡¯s recent quality and topic. *Staring at Isabel*¡­ I thought I was aware what I¡¯ve stared. It will take longer than I anticipated, but at the end, the credits will roll, and the actors will bow, but until then the show go on. Oh, before I forgot here is an early version of the map. Spoiler: Map