"Knew you were coming. New room for you. Take." Barely did Keyaruga and his three lovely companions cross the threshold of Tidir's inn, the innkeeper, unfriendly as always, greeted the man by tossing him a numbered key.
"What about our luggage?" Freia wondered, glancing around. It had been but a day, but there was no trace of the destruction left by raging bulls.
"All there. Room's good. Mama asked." The blue bird replied. And although his speech did not sound proper, his choice of words and unusual interest in Eve's cloaked figure betrayed the identity of this `mama`. At least the healer had a thought or two about it.
"Ehm… Thanks." And after the pink-haired magician carefully expressed her gratitude to the host, the party had nothing more to gain on the first floor. And so, all four of them ascended to the third floor, considering the key had a batch with the number three-one-three on it. The premise was even higher than before, both in terms of position and luxury. And yes, indeed, all the possessions the trio left behind before fleeing with Eve were carefully put on the table in the center of the room. All the alchemical tools, ingredients, preserved food, cosmetics, trinkets, even gold, remained untouched.
"Here's good." Setsuna practically danced around, inhaling that sweet aroma of clean freshness.
"M-m-m!" And Freia just burrowed her face into a soft pillow. It was understandable after two rough nights in the slums. There were two beds and three doors in the room. Exit, bathroom, and…
"This is some nonsense! How can there be another room exactly like this? How is that even possible?" The rattling was Eve's. Even in the corridor, she noticed the lack of correspondence between the volume of the room and the intervals between the doors in the corridor.
"Dimensional magic, my dear. We've got a good deal here. Now you have your own space." While the girls got used to their new apartments, Keyaruga took off his gloves just to have a better touch on the walls. He may have seemed crazy, but the whole place radiated magic. "By the way, the wards here are just divine. Literally."
"I wonder why, though? He didn't even ask for money." The kokuyoku scion mused, walking back and forth through the twinned room. "It's really weird. It's like the windows here and there are in the same place."
"Because this is exactly how they are. Entangled space, the experimental stuff, mastered only by gods. We're being bribed here, Eve." Looking through the glass, the hero admonished. The view was not anything special, but at least it gave a nice view of Buranikka's main square.
"Of course! I'm so important, the heavens just can't help but shove their gifts in my hands! Su-u-u-ure…" The maiden remained distrustful of such statements, attracting Freia's blue eyes, although this time around the sorceress was rather amused than offended.
"Regardless of your skepticism, you shouldn't take it for granted, Eve. No free gift comes without a price." The man warned, remembering his meeting with Kali, her attempt to sway the healer to take her side in the war on gods.
"Of course, you're right, Keyaruga. Hey, who wants to go back to that shack?" Still, the queen-to-be took his caution with a great deal of sarcasm.
"Not Setsuna." Slouching on the empty bed, the she-wolf said. The huntress would follow her master to the end of the world, but even she liked to enjoy comfort from time to time.
"Please, spare us the torture." So could the princess' response be any different? "Let's just enjoy it while we can."
"Then it's settled. For better or worse, this feels like the safest place in the city." Keyaruga admitted, although with a fair amount of suspicion. He saw their host's true face that night. A two-headed monster armed with illusive cerulean flames. What do I do with him? This bird seems like a good man, I have nothing against him. Yet I can't trust him either. I wonder…
"What should we do now?" Eventually, Eve decided to ask the lad a deceptively simple question. Something to which he could and could not confidently respond.
"Hmm. We still have a job to do, but now we're free to do whatever we want. Gather some info, repay a debt. Also, we'll need additional weapons and tools for our conquests. Then, after we make sure Buranikka is safe, we'll head on towards Caladrius and make sure Eve tames this beast. After that — we'll see."
"Keyaruga, I… I wanted to thank you for the dagger, but I still need a staff. Also…" As she approached the lad, the princess said. She walked near him; she had so much to say, so much to admit, so much to apologize for. And yet, she couldn't do so much as open her mouth. She was so shaken, so fearful of ruining the brittle balance in their relationships, that the girl couldn't help but… "I think you'd look nice with a cuirass." …retreat. For now.
"Oh, come on! I'm not that easy to put down." Keyaruga snarled, turning his back to the sorceress, as she did the same. And with good timing, one might notice. "Now, what're you doing there, birdie? You know, it's not your money." That's right, the black-winged cutie puzzled over the question of how to put a bag full of gold in her dress.
"I'm one of your companions now, if you've forgotten." And with that reply, the maiden comically dropped the poach on the floor. "That means I can…"
"No."
"What?"
"No! It's mine. I earned it. You think I'd just let you steal it?" The hero lamented with his hands on his hips.
"O-oh? You call it stealing? How about the army you want me to provide? All of your assistance in bringing peace? You think it's not worth anything?" Eve once again got overwhelmed by her stubbornness, making the two other girls sigh at such childishness. "Look, I only want to be alone for a while! Nothing bad will happen if I just go and buy something."
"Finished?" And what of the man? His face was hard to read, along with his emotionless voice.
"Yes! Now let me go!" She snarled, trying to walk past the healer. Would he allow it? Of course not.
"Now listen to me, woman! Everything you need, I'll buy myself! Wanna go out? I'll be right with you! Think I'm being cheap? How about your safety? Is that cheap for you? Is that why you're so impatient to die?!" Keyaruga yelled, ravaged by fury and fear. He was reliving his last moments from the first world. "I promised you the throne! The new future! I'm fine with being stabbed to death a dozen times, just for you to be safe! All I ask you…" At this moment, the hero slouched so that his eyes met Eve's. "…is to trust me. To…" Then the lad let his instincts guide him. Eyelids closed, mouth opened. The direct continuation of Keyaruga's revelations had to be sealed… with a slap in the face.
"Keep your hands away from me! W-we…We haven't even had our first date, you bastard!" And with that, Eve fled to her half of the room and slammed the door.
"He-heh… A date?" And the Hero of Healing remained standing. Rejected yet not forbidden, he felt conflicted now. A date? Yeah, an act before the marriage. Should I look more into my memories? Could it be that I was so indulged in practical skills, I forgot how to actually speak to girls? How to flirt?
"If she doesn't want…" That was the time when somebody else reminded them of their presence there. "…then you have Setsuna." The wolf girl whispered tenderly as her furry hands hugged the man from the back. "Setsuna wants you."
"He-he-heh, I know."
…
Flare Arlgrande Jioral. She was but sixteen when her position in the kingdom, named after her dynasty, was rivaled only by her father. An influential princess with the promise of becoming the strongest magician in the entire world. But her downfall was swift and rapid. And by whom? The very same man, who now was comfortable enough to have sex with another woman right in front of her eyes.
Freia did not join them. It was not about her. Keyaruga, Setsuna, and the broken amulet on his neck. The sorceress blamed herself for not being there with him. No matter how irrational it was, how inconsequential the wounds were for the Hero of Healing, the girl couldn't help but imagine how different it would be, if her powers assisted these two.
The man received the amulet as Setsuna's dowry. A powerful source of mana, which carried him through the battle with Bloodbringer. Now it was nothing but a silvered chunk. And yet the man did not even think of tossing it away. Was there something similar to connect him to Freia?
The kidnapped princess could only speculate, but her hypothesis about time travel was so reasonable. What if he was so pushy toward Eve in light of her being his companion prior, and now the lad desired to recreate their intimacy? What if Kureha was the one to teach him swordsmanship on that level, which allowed him to confidently parry her lunges? What if…
"No… No, that's impossible. I…"
All that time, Freia sat, hugging her knees. Now she covered her face. Her conclusion was both joyful and terrifying. Was it possible that they too shared a similar story? Then, how must it have felt to be incarcerated and tortured by her?
"Ugh, that was nice." While the princess drowned in anxious melancholy, Keyaruga finished with his spouse. Setsuna looked positively ruined, drooling on the bed sheets, both from up and down. The man, though… "Hey, Freia! Wanna be next?" His sweaty back brimmed in the daylight. He radiated his vividness so brightly that Keyaruga looked like the sun amidst the princess' depressing gloom.
"I…" For a moment, the pink-haired girl was lost in thought. What made her worthy of all that love and affection? Was it because of some other Flare from another time? Or was there something she did not take into account? "Norn…" Was it Freia's intention to call upon her sister? Certainly not, and yet Keyaruga gave no indication of being touched by it.
"My offer still stands, dearie." Neither did that halt him from throwing his brightest smirk.
"Yes, Keyaruga. On my way." Freia said with a restrained smile. She walked slowly, unleashing more and more of her skin with every step, up until nothing remained on the princess when she reached the hero.
"One fast fuck, and we'll be off to the market. Anything particular you wish of me?" The lad wondered, twirling the girl's pink pubic hair with visible smugness.
"Y-yes. I…" As Freia sat on the healer's knees, she let her hands rest on his chest. Those massive muscles were nothing short of imposing, but the sorceress saw only the bloodstains, which she herself washed off during the night. Only she, out of all the women in his life, knew how he looked at first. Did Keyaru change his whole body to be more of what he looked like before? Was his choice dictated by the sheer advantages of having longer limbs? Or was it Flare who made him hate himself?
Whatever the case truly was, the magician hugged the man's neck and got closer to his ear. Every passing moment felt like eternity, as Freia struggled against her own hesitation.
"Fuck me hard, Keyaru! As if there's no tomorrow." The princess whispered, feeling the shudder of fear go through her entire body. She knew all too well what calling that name would mean.
"As you wish, Your Highness." Having replied with toxic self-confidence in his voice, Keyaruga spared no time twirling around, just to toss the girl on the belly, grab her ass, and...
"A-A-AH!!!" The magician yelled as the hard rod entered her insides. Right there, no foreplay or tenderness. only brutal, animalistic pounding, accompanied by the creaking of the bed.
Freia gasped and screamed, unable to take the sheer aggression of her partner. The whole process was just as painful as it was ecstatic.
"A-AH! GH-H-H!!!" Although, it was more tormenting in the end. The sorceress couldn't help but wriggle in pain, fighting in a pointless battle against her own self-preservation instinct. Keyaruga was genuinely a scary person. Despite his enormous pain threshold, he never forgave or forgot. Every little bit of suffering inflicted on him he returned, every grudge was avenged.
And as the cruel princess, responsible for the worst that happened to him, received the painful pleasure, she could only theorize what her men felt. Her body was shaking, her nipples and chin were forcefully rubbing against the bedsheets, and her arms barely held on but still. There was nothing. No Setsuna, lying nearby, no Eve, peeping through the door, only two of them.
And so, mustering all of her remaining vigor, Freia raised her torso, lifted the arm, and took Keyaruga's head… She failed. The girl's own body would not listen, and all she achieved was a scratch on the lad's cheek. He did not stop, and neither did the man express anything.
"I… AUGH!.. I'm…" The sorceress struggled with her words. The hero's sheer relentlessness was proving to be just too much for her to bear. And yet, this was exactly the point of revelation — the great reveal in itself. Two of them wore masks of caring companions for each other. And both knew how much pain was tucked under those personas. Freia, whether she wanted it or not, only revealed their true faces. Flare and Keyaru. For all it was worth, that was the best moment to…
"Keyaru!.. I'm sorry! A-A-AH!!! I FAILED YOU! ALL I DO… IS FAILING THOSE I LOVE!!!" The princess screamed, pounding the bed with her small fists. The sheer regret and pain in the yell, the vividness and candor melted in her tears — Freia could not be more genuine than that. So much so that Keyaruga… just stopped in a moment. Driven by suppressed trauma, he hurt the pink-haired girl almost as much as he did so with Kailia.
Freia knew what she was dealing with. She wished for martyrdom, believing that it would somehow ease the agony of her consciousness. It… did not. Her internal struggle just got worse with external pain, nothing more. She grabbed the pillow, tucked her face into it…
"U-U-U-U-UGH!!!" And screamed all she could. Once, twice, with each consecutive unleash, the pillowcase got more and more wet. Freia got desperate and fearful. But not for her wellbeing, but for what awaited her beloved, her sister, their…
"Don't cry."But in all that hysteria, the screaming both inside and outside, the heroine… and the hero too, actually, missed a single crucial point. Obviously, they were not alone. "Setsuna's here. For you."The she-wolf sat between the two heroes. She took Freia's head and let it rest on her knees. She would also give her gentle pats, no matter what. Even if her fur got all sticky and damp. Even if Keyaruga stood there on his knees. The man suffered too much from the inner conflict in him, that's why the gray-haired keeper turned her torso to him, grabbed his nape, and smashed his face into her small breasts. Setsuna spoke little, but when it came to action, nobody could match her resolve. Nobody, who had more love and warmth to give.
Keyaruga did not cry. Neither did he shudder. He was much more of a cold rock at that moment. A traumatized child, unexpectedly caught in the trap of old wounds. Not only did he nearly fall into that pit, he would also take Freia with him, for sure. Would do something he would utterly regret if not saved by his wife's heartwarming acceptance.
"Thank you… Setsuna." Keyaruga whispered, listening to the princess' gruesome wailing. He did not see her face, neither did the lad want to. People look ugly when they cry. But now… Nobody would blame him for shedding a tear or two, now, would they?
…
Finally, the Hero of Healing confidently strolled on Buranikka's market streets. With his attire returned to its former glory, the man felt better than ever. He and Freia finally felt much better after what happened. Freia strove to keep closer to the lad. Did he forgive her sins? Alas, even the man himself found it impossible to give a proper answer. Not right now. Not with the remaining black dogs spying on him.
"Master, look! Tent!" Setsuna, though, walked close to Eve. She and the black-haired maiden (the latter was covering her wings under the rag she used as a cape) stopped near the good-looking stand. The huntress, being the survivor, grabbed what suited her best — a light tent, made from the bat monster's skin and bones and held together by literal tendons.
"Hmm, a product of cultural exchange, I see. All right, we're buying it." The man spoke, giving a brief glance on the queen-to-be, avariciously glaring at battle daggers.
"Keyaru… ga. Hey, Keyaruga, look." And that was Freia. She briefly left his side to fidget with some of the sorcerer's staves. The beast man of a vendor just watched from afar as the magician presented her man with the polished crimson branch. "I like how it feels."
"Give it to me. Hmm, interesting. Bloody tree with the feather of the three-legged crow as an amplifier." The hero spoke, appraising the weapon in his hands.
"Bloody tree? Never heard of it."The princess mused, contemplating her new potential weapon.
"It's a rare breed, raised only by the most zealous mages, who're willing to nourish it with their own blood." Keyaruga admonished, laying both the staff and the tent on the countertop.
"You have a good eye, my dear fellow! You won't find better anywhere but here, so take it while it's still here! Only thirty golden coins! And ten for the tent, by the way." The merchant, whose inhuman nature was visible only by the bestial ears, protruding from his green hair, tucked under the ashen keffiyeh, declared to his customers.
Certainly, for many, such a high price was off-putting, but Keyaruga knew a treasure when he saw it, and this one was really underpriced.
"We're buying it!" The man stated, slamming the poach filled with Jioral's cadmi on the counter. He didn't even bother counting the money, he just knew that it would be enough.
"Thanks. Use it well, my friend!" The trader smirked, methodically counting the payment.
"You heard him, Freia. It's yours now." With that said, Keyaruga handed the purchase to the heroine. At least, he tried to.
"Are you sure… you can trust me with this?" The girl asked, lowering her eyes. The trace of guilt was still there. Possibly, will always be with her. And yet…
"You and I have a lot to talk about. But I trust you, Freia. Now take it."
"T… thanks! I will cherish your gift! Forever!" The princess spoke with barely concealed awe. Just as Keyaruga foresaw, the first thing she did was pump a great chunk of mana into the tool of sorcery.
"Glad you like it. Now, would you let me take another look?" The healer asked, catching the two pairs of eyes on his back. Setsuna and Eve, one was now integral to the balance of his relationship with Freia. Another remained a silent spectator, trying to unravel the mystery of Keyaruga's small harem.
"Ah? Of course, here!" The pink-haired girl once again offered her weapon, glowing with yellow, to the hero, whose right eye now shone with green.
"Let's see. Unrefined, huh? Your power creates inner swirling. If left unchecked, you will break this one as well." The healer admonished before calling on one of his `borrowed` skills — magic of alchemy. The golden light of transmutation radiated from his hands, it formed formulas, lines, multi-dimensional geometric figures. With such power, Keyaruga not only refined the inner structure of the branch; he reinforced it.
"Now, try again." With everything done, the hero once again handed the sorceress her staff. And oh boy, was it a spectacle to see. She had barely taken it when the weak glow changed. It wasn't just a tool now; Freia turned her amplifier into a shining obelisk, bright enough to illuminate the entire city if hung above.
"That's honestly better. I think I can start learning the seventh circle now." The princess spoke smilingly. Keyaruga shared a bit of her enthusiasm, after all, that was a long-term plan, meaning she was ready to carry on.
"I'm glad for you. Girls, it's time we move on!" The lad yelled, calling Setsuna and Eve. Those two were busy packaging the tent. Fortunately, they were almost done. But…
"Hey, fellow! You forgot your change!" The vendor called, waving with eleven coins in his hand. And while Keyaruga didn't want to bother, he still approached the beast-man, just so he wouldn't attract unwanted attention to the group. And while the merchant was true to his principles, this was a bait all along. "Would you be so kind as to show me the staff?"
"Why ask me when it's Freia who owns it now?" The lad gave the seller his boldest grin before facing the heroine.
"I don't mind, actually. As long as you return it." Well, the girl didn't really mind. And why would she? After all, she too shared her smile with the vendor. It was her blue eyes, sparkling with lightning, that made him gulp, though.
"Hum-m… Now this is something only a true archmage is capable of. You're good, my friend, especially with your age. I know only one kid of your level of mastery, and he's practically the next king of Franrachia!" The merchant shared his praise. Unfortunately, the man was unable to recognize the true value of the compliment, owing to the slaughter of nearly all crimson dragons in the first world.
"Thanks. Now, care to return the staff? My pretty companion has been a bit nervous lately." The man warned, making the trader return the purchase in a hurry. Did that discourage him from further meddling? Certainly, not.
"I will. Here. But I don't recommend being so hasty. You see, I have a deal for you. I have two more staves just like that. Tinker with them, and I might just pay you one-third of what you paid for this one thing.
"So that's why your prices are so low? Defective goods? The worst from the best?" The lad pondered, giving a knowing grin to the merchant. The latter did the same, although he groped the bags with gold and jewels under his desk. "All right, I'll handle it. Provided you pay me the half."
"Are you robbing me here, fellow?" The merchant smirked, resting his elbow on the counter.
"Maybe you're the robber here? Listen, pal, even if you return me all my coins, your overall profit will cover it twice. Think about it, some feeble twenty cadmi are not so much for me, but are they worth your missed incomes?" Keyaruga inquired, looking back at Eve. It seemed like she abandoned the idea of buying a weapon. Reason? She had no belt to strap the sheath on. She called Freia to help her with that. After all, the sorceress hid her dagger on the back, under the bolero.
"Oh well, a clever head, are we? All right, let's make it your way." In the meantime, the vendor made only a single shrug before handing the man two more staves, each slightly different from the one Freia now carried, but only so much.
Either way, to make them truly shine, the Hero of Healing required no help from the sorceress. She tried offering her assistance, but he silently refused. Certainly, he wouldn't go as far as making them worthy of the Hero of Magic. Freia was a demigoddess of sorcery, and so he just couldn't imagine any other caster requiring a nearly indestructible tool. Still, the process of inner transmutation, tempering, and reinforcement of reddish branches was no less spectacular. So much so that the beastman behind the counter couldn't help but gasp. And should he take his goods from Keyaruga's hands…
"Fellow, you're a true goldsmith! Who are you, exactly?" …The seller was astonished by the sheer quality of the man's work. Because the mana leak was minimal, they could glow for days, attracting knowledgeable customers. It was a miracle, at the very least.
"Just your friendly alchemist, nothing more." Even if the healer himself tried to keep a low profile, his humble bow resulted in nothing but a raised brow.
"Yeah, sure as shit, friend." The beastman swore with barely any trust. Oh, no, he saw something more in his enigmatic customer. "I know, you must be one of the dreamers!"
"The hell are you talking about?" The man asked with a great deal of suspicion.
"Come on, you must've heard! Some folk say they dream of the future. Like, literally. With confirmable details, believable proofs, and so on. Even some astronomers say the stars are somehow misaligned. As if they shifted on…"
Four years.
"Bullshit. Never heard of it." Keyaruga rudely interrupted his interlocutor. "I'm waiting for my money, friend." And not to drag on, the lad demanded his payment. At the same time, Freia left Setsuna's and Eve's side to listen to the vendor's tale. It did fit her hypothesis after all.
"All right, your payment." Ultimately, the merchant gave a small poach of jewels, more or less equaling fifteen of Jioral's cadmi. But that wasn't all. He offered yet another gift, which Keyaruga was more than happy to appraise.
"Hmm? Mythril dagger?" The lad mused, taking the blade out of the narrow leather scabbard.
"What? You think I'd leave you hanging? I have a reputation! My benefit is much greater than yours here, so this is the least I can do." The trader declared with pride. Would that help him?
"Reputation? Don't give me that bullshit. You tried to shortchange me here." Quite doubtfully, after all, if Keyaruga was naturally good at something, remembering grudges was that trait.
"Nonsense! You fool a green novice — you give him a lesson. Try that with a veteran, and you're nothing but a fool yourself. Come on, take the gift and be happy about it." The vendor spoke with friendly mirth. Unfortunately for him, Keyaruga seemed like he would go and never come back. He already moved toward his girls without so much as saying `thanks` for the purchases. "Hey, wait! You said you're an alchemist!"
"That's right. Why?" Despite the Hero of Healing's apparent grumbling, he couldn't help but get curious. Memories of Leda Goldman were still fresh. "I'm brewing potions in my free time. Invigorating or lethal, potent or not. Whatever you wish, as long as you pay and do not question the recipe."
"That sounds promising! I'm Karman, and I want us all to be rich! We can…" Alas, before the enthusiastic beastman could share his undoubtedly grand plan for their long-term working relationship, something else completely stole their attention. The sound of calling horns came from the north. The man knew that signal — it was Norn's, after all.
"Ugh, what is that? Hey, Keyaruga, what's going on?" Eve asked her defender. She lacked manners in that regard, but it was of no consequence.
"She's here… You!" He pointed at Karman. "Meet us at Tidir's inn tomorrow. Freia!" The hero tossed the sorceress the pack of jewels and the mythril dagger. "Go home, I'll be back later!"
"Is that her?" The princess asked the healer, still hesitant to just flee. He had a reason, after all.
"Yes." With that said, he turned to Setsuna, his most trusted ally. "Can you get Eve back to safety?"
"Uh-huh. We'll do it." The she-wolf reassured him by patting the lad's shoulder.. "Go, if you must."
And so he did. The man ran away, leaving behind his companions, the astonished green-haired merchant, and all his troubles and concerns. There was only one goal, only one aim to pursue. Something worthy of dashing through the crowded streets, climbing the roofs, and getting to the nearest watchtower. An army of a thousand men marched into Buranikka with no resistance. But among the mounted knights in shining armor, Keyaruga saw only one carriage, pulled by a couple of unicorns. After all, it was Norn Clatalissa Jioral who resided there.