Chapter 3
Training Day
Preacher woke up the next morning, Iris was still sleeping next to him. It was still very early; the sun hadn't come up yet. Preacher got up to go to the bathroom, but Iris grabbed his hand and pulled him back in bed.
"Bathroom first, I promise I'll be right back," Preacher whispered, trying to gently extricate his hand from Iris's grasp.
Iris murmured something unintelligible, but she loosened her grip. Preacher slipped out of bed, feeling the cool air against his skin as he made his way to the bathroom. He couldn't help but steal another glance at Iris, bathed in the soft moon light filtering through the window. She was beautiful, even with the foxlike ears perched atop her head and the sleek tail curling at the edge of the bed.
Preacher finished his business in the bathroom and came back to bed. He lay there with his head propped up with his arm looking at her as she lay next to him.
"Are you thinking about my ears?" Iris said, her voice husky with sleep.
Preacher looked at her, surprised. "I was just..." He stammered, not knowing how to explain his fascination.
Iris chuckled. "Don't worry, I can hear you thinking. They work just fine, thank you very much." She stretched, the movement emphasizing the curve of her back and the length of her tail. "But I have to admit, the human ears are a bit useless."
Preacher chuckled. "Useless? But they look so..." He paused, realizing he was about to compliment her human ears, which made him feel a little silly.
"So beautiful?" Iris finished, her eyes sparkling. A thoughtful expression appeared on her face. "It's a reminder that we're not so different after all."
Just then, the first rays of dawn splashed through the window, illuminating Iris's face. "Good morning," she said, her voice a melodic purr. "It's time to start the day."
Preacher started to get out of bed, but Iris grabbed him and pulled him back in and rolled him over on his back.
"I'm not done with you yet," she purred, her fingers trailing down his chest.
Preacher groaned, surrendering to her playful demand. "Fine, but I really do need to train today."
"I know, I know," she said, her voice laced with a hint of disappointment.
"Only a little while longer, then I'll be a good little servant. I promise."
Preacher smiled, knowing she meant not a word of it. He was sure she would have him where she wanted him all day if she could, servant or not. But he didn't mind.
"Alright, just a little while longer." He pulled her down and kissed her deeply.
Afterwards Iris got out of bed and put on her servant's dress. "I'll be right back master."
"Yeah, I'm definitely going to have to fix that." Preacher thought to himself. "She's definitely going to need new clothes."
"Morning, Master," Iris chirped, when she returned from the restaurant downstairs, a smile playing on her lips as she entered the room with the tray of food.
Preacher smiled at Iris as he let her into the room. "You know you don't have to keep calling me Master. She smiled at him, "I know but I still have to keep up the pretense".
He glanced at the tray as she walked in, his brow furrowing slightly. "Iris, what...what exactly is that?"
She laughed, a light, tinkling sound. "Oh, that's just some wild boar I picked up from the restaurant downstairs. It's a real delicacy here. Very good for you."
Preacher picked up a fork, and touched it hesitantly, prodding the meat. "It smells...interesting."
Iris chuckled. "Don't worry, I only chose the best parts for you. No chewy bits." She winked.
Preacher took a bite, chewed thoughtfully, then looked at Iris. "You know, that's actually better than I expected. It's...quite flavorful."
Iris beamed, pleased with his reaction. "See? I told you. Now, eat up. You need your strength for the day ahead."
Preacher took another bite, enjoying the rich, gamey flavor of the boar. He might be in a strange place, but at least the food was good.
As Preacher ate his breakfast Iris went into the bathroom and drew his bath. "Come on, come on" she urged him, " you haven't got all day. They'll be here any minute to get you, and take you to the training grounds."
Preacher hurriedly finished the last bite of the wild boar and drank down the last sip of his tea then walked over to the bathroom.
"You know I can wash myself," Preacher said as Iris quickly undressed him.
"Yes, I know you can but even though you took me as your mate last night it is my honor to serve you. I don't know if I can explain it to you any better than that but what you did for me yesterday taking that slave collar off of me and freeing me was a gift I never thought to imagine. I always thought I would end up as some plaything for some Noble to be mistreated and abused. But now I get to choose whom I want to be with.
"Yeah, actually I do get it." Preacher told her. "Even in my world we still have sex slavery, beautiful women from around my world are kidnapped and often sold off for their bodies."
"But you don't have any demi-humans in your world, why would they do that to their own kind?"
"Because evil people exist in all worlds, all they think about is themselves. They don't think about the lives they destroy or the people they harm, only about their own personal gain and pleasure to use and abuse others."
Iris was shocked by what Preacher just said. She found it difficult to accept there were other worlds with the same evils as there were here. She always believed there were other worlds out there where humans and demi-humans coexisted peacefully together."
Preacher reading her facial expressions could tell she was disturbed by what he just told her. "I can only speak of my world. I can't speak of other worlds that may be out there but obviously there must be other worlds. Until waking up in this world yesterday I would have never believed in the existence of other worlds."
Preacher and Iris had moved out to the balcony and were having second morning tea. The morning was getting on and the city was coming alive. The noise from the street became more pronounced as shops and street venders were opening up. At that moment they heard a carriage pull up in front of the Inn. Preacher and Iris looked over the balcony.
"Oh, they're here for you darling." Iris said, smiling at Preacher.
Preacher watched as the Royal Guards opened the carriage door for Elias to get out. It was barely midmorning, and the sun had only been up for just couple of hours, Preacher could see Elias was needing help walking to the front entrance of the Inn.
"Hmmm Looks like someone's suffering from the hair of the dog this morning" Preacher said, commenting on Elias's obvious condition.
Iris shot a look at Preacher, "Hair of the dog?" Iris asked Preacher with a puzzled look on her face.
"It's an old expression from my world," Preacher explained to her. "It means he went out last night and had too much to drink and now he's suffering the consequences." Iris understood, she stood next to Preacher holding on to his arm smiling at the thought that the Royal Mage was suffering from overindulgence. Of all the Nobles, Iris hated him the most. Since she was twelve, Elias would violate her and abuse her. Sometimes he would come to the infirmary and pull her off into a private room and force her to fondle him or perform oral sex on him. Then he would tell her after each occasion, that when she became of age, he was going to purchase her from the infirmary to be his future play toy. But now that wasn't going to happen. Now she was Preacher's not only his servant as given to Preacher by the King but now since he had freed her from the curse of the slave collar, she had chosen to give her body and heart to him as his mate. They were mated according to beast tribe custom; she had bitten him and drawn blood and mixed her spit with his blood. Normally both parties would perform this act with each other in order to bind themselves together, but Preacher wasn't from this world nor was he a beastman and he's not familiar with the customs of the denizens of this world.
"You go now." Iris playfully teased Preacher. "They're here for you. Go show them what you can do."
Preacher looked down at Iris and smiled then leaned in and kissed her on the forehead. Iris pouted only getting a kiss on the forehead. As preacher turned to walk out, Iris grabbed him, spun him around and planted a full mouth kiss on Preacher. "I'm your mate, not a child, from now on kiss me like you mean it," Iris playfully scolded Preacher. Preacher looked at her, smiled and said, "Ok I will."
Preacher walked out of the Inn and saw Elias standing waiting for him. "You certainly took your time coming down." he snarled.
Preacher stood there watching Elias who was barely able to stand apart from the assistance of the coachman. "Yeah, well I had a late night breaking in my new slave." Preacher replied. He knew this would irritate the Royal Mage to no end, but he didn't care. At this point from what he had seen of this world Preacher was already making up his mind on whose side he was going to support.
In the opulent carriage, Elias slumped against the plush interior, his eyes veiled by his trembling fingers. The coachman's steady steps echoed through the streets as the carriage rumbled towards the majestic castle.
Across from Elias, Preacher sat, 'You don't look well, brother. Are you certain you'll be able to manage?' he asked, his voice tinged with a hint of sarcasm. Elias's response was a muffled grunt, his features contorted into a grimace.
Preacher stifled a smile, his amusement evident. "Serves you right, you arrogant bastard," he thought to himself. Preacher could tell Elias was a proud man, but now he found himself humbled by a case of over drinking.
As the carriage approached the castle, Elias's complexion turned an alarming shade of green. Panicking, he lurched forward, desperately searching for something to ease his discomfort. Preacher leaned over and offered a comforting hand.
"Come on, Elias, don't let this get the best of you," he said, a hint of mockery in his tone. Elias glared at him, his eyes narrowed in anger. "Shut up, Preacher," he growled, his voice weak and strained.
Preacher chuckled softly. his amusement growing. As the carriage halted before the castle gates, Elias stumbled out, his legs wobbling beneath him.
A group of guards rushed to his aid, but Elias waved them away. "Leave me alone," he hissed, his pride wounded. With unsteady steps, he made his way towards the grand entrance.
Preacher followed closely behind. "You may be a powerful mage, Elias, but it seems even you are not immune to the laws of nature," he thought to himself, with a mixture of mockery and pity.
As Elias and Preacher stepped through the grand entrance, a wave of nausea washed over Elias, causing his stomach to churn. However, the unpleasant sensation gradually abated, replaced by a dull throbbing headache that pounded relentlessly in his temples.
Determined to conceal his weakness from prying eyes, Elias stumbled forward, leaning heavily on his staff, his steps were heavy as he made his way towards the training grounds, every movement seemed to amplify the agony in his head.
Finally, they arrived at the designated training area—a vast expanse of open ground. A group of knights and mages were already assembled, waiting for them.
Elias motioned to one of the mages waiting there, "Instruct Sir Michael how to use magic and chants to call upon his mana and focus his spell casting. I'm going to lay down, I'm not feeling well." With that Elias walked back to the castle accompanied by a knight to steady him.
The young mage was speechless as he looked at Preacher who towered over him.
The young mage started explaining to Preacher the Fundamentals of spell casting
"Uhh, ok Sir Michael this is how we do spell casting."
"First, we need to direct your focus towards the practice targets over there by the wall."
"Understood." Preacher said
"Next, you need to focus your mind and gather your thoughts.
"Then, you need to speak the magical words that will invoke the spell."
"Are these words specific to each spell, or is there a general formula?" Preacher asked.
"It varies. Some spells require specific incantations, while others are more flexible."
"I see." Preacher replied.
"Finally, you need to visualize the spell's desired effect."
Over the remainder of the day Preacher showed immediate progress with all forms of magic from healing to water to fire wind and earth magic. After they ran through the paces in all magical elements the young mage then turned to the captain of the royal knights. Sir Nikolai he's all yours.
Sir Nikolai looked at Preacher. "Have you ever fought with a sword?" he asked Preacher.
"Only in practice." Preacher replied, but he was being deliberately evasive. Preacher had had extensive training in Martial Arts back home as well as Kendo and Kenjutsu training.
"Practice Huh? Well just so you know this is a way of life for us. This is our weapon of choice. We live by the sword and if necessary, we will die by the sword."
"Well just so you know Sir Nikolai I've had more of my fair share of battles in my life as well."
Sir Nikolai tossed Preacher a sword. "Just so you know these swords have blunted edges, they won't kill but they can still break bones."
The two faced off with each other. Dust swirled in the sun-drenched clearing. Sir Nikolai charged forward, a whirlwind of leather and metal. His sword, a gleaming blade, roared down, aimed at the head of the man standing opposite him.
Preacher, his face a portrait of calm, met the attack with a simple, practiced block. The clang of steel on steel echoed in the training ground, sending shockwaves through the air. With a flick of his wrist, Preacher spun, his own blade, whistling through the air, aimed for Nikolai's neck.
Nikolai, however, was a seasoned warrior, ducked, his body a blur of motion, and rolled away from the deadly strike, a snarl escaping his lips. He scrambled to his feet, his eyes narrowed, and took a fighting stance, one that spoke of years of training and countless battles fought.
Preacher, meanwhile, had settled into a more traditional stance. His feet were planted firmly, his body relaxed yet alert, his eyes locked on his opponent. His blade held high.
The clash, a ballet of steel and will, Sir Nikolai attacked with extreme ferocity, his sword a blur of silver, each swing aimed to end the fight with a single, decisive blow. Preacher, however, remained steadfast, his movements deliberate, each parry a testament to years of honed skills and a quiet understanding of the flow of battle.
The clearing became a whirlwind of clashing steel, the air filled with the rhythmic clangs and the guttural grunts of the two combatants. Sir Nikolai, though relentless, began to tire. His swings slowed, his breathing becoming ragged. Preacher, however, remained unfazed. His movements, precise, each strike aimed with deadly accuracy, pushing Nikolai back, inch by inch.
The fight reached its climax as Preacher unleashed a flurry of attacks. Nikolai, his strength waning, could only parry desperately, his heart hammering in his chest. He knew he was losing.
Suddenly, a flash of silver caught his eye. Preacher's blade, aimed directly at his throat, hung poised, inches from its mark. Nikolai froze, he knew he had lost.
Preacher then lowered his blade, a flicker of a slight smile crossing his face. He lowered his sword, sighing. "I win, Sir Nikolai," he said, his voice low, his eyes glinting with a mixture of triumph and humor.
"Thank you, Sir Nikolai, I haven't had a good mock battle in years, and I appreciate you not holding back"
Sir Nikolai was in shock, he had been bested by a man whom he believed had never really held a sword in real combat before. Preacher extended his hand, Sir Nikolai dumbfounded weakly took it. As Preacher started to walk off, Sir Nikolai stammered out to him "What? How? How were you able to defeat me?"
Preacher looked back at Sir Nikolai, "You underestimated me. Did you believe yours is the only world that ever-used swords? We may not use swords as our primary weapons but that doesn't mean we don't have them."
Preacher then gave a wry smile. "You forgot rule number one in any combat situation, never underestimate your opponent."
"Ok I'm headed back to the Inn, tell Elias when he gets to feeling better that I would like to be taken to my bike." At that Preacher tossed the sword he had been using over at the rack, its blade burying itself into the wood, Preacher then turned and headed back to the Inn and to Iris.
Dressmaker's Delight
As Preacher got into the carriage, he requested the coachman to take him to the merchant district. "I need to buy some new clothes for my servant." Preacher explained.
The coachman grunted at Preacher and gave him a look of disdain but did as he was asked.
After a few moments the carriage arrived at a clothier shop. "You can buy some new servant clothes here if you need to." The driver said.
Preacher got out of the carriage. "You don't have to wait for me, I can get back to the Inn from here myself."
The coachman snorted at Preacher as he drove off. "Man, what's with these people I really don't get this hatred for demi-humans." Preacher thought to himself.
Preacher looked in the shop window, "Yeah these won't do, she doesn't need to be wearing burlap. She needs real clothes." With that Preacher headed down the street looking for a shop that dealt exclusively in women's readymade clothes.
As he continued, the air thickened with the approaching dusk. The sun, a fiery ball of orange, dipped below the horizon, casting long shadows across the cobblestone streets. Finally, tucked away on a side street, he saw it: a shop with a bright awning painted a vibrant shade of turquoise, a sign proclaiming 'The Dressmaker's Delight' in bold, swirling script.
He pushed open the door, the scent of lavender and freshly cut fabric washing over him. The shop was a riot of color, fabrics in every shade imaginable lining the walls, bolts of silk and satin whispering against each other. Two women, one younger, Lily with long flowing hair and sparkling eyes. The other one older, Emily with her kind eyes and silvery hair, she was the embodiment of this place. stood behind the counter, their faces lit up with smiles.
"Good evening, sir," Emily greeted Preacher, her voice as warm as the shop itself. "Are you looking for something for someone special?"
Preacher hesitated for a moment but then noticed two tuffs on top of Emily's head under her headscarf. "I'm going to take a stab in the dark here and ask, Do you have clothing for non-traditional humans?"
Lily looked at Emily, a hint of fear crossed her face. Emily looked back at Lily then back at Preacher, studying him for a moment, she then motioned him into the back of the store.
In the storeroom Emily turned to Preacher and asked. "Are you the hero that was summoned the other day?" Preacher nodded. "And did you complete a mating ritual with a demi-human last night.?" Again, Preacher nodded. "We saw the Blue Afterglow. We knew a summoned hero had mated with a demi-human. But how did you know we were demi-humans?"
Preacher pointed to the top of the older woman's head "Your scarf gives you away, I can see the outline of your ears on top of your head."
Emily was shocked "Y, Y, You can see them!" she exclaimed.
Preacher again nodded.
"But no one is supposed to see them, that's what the spell is supposed to do, it's concealment magic. It's supposed to hide our physical attributes. How is it you can see them?" Emily asked, shocked.
Preacher shrugged. "I can see two small bumps on top of your head about where your ears should be if you were a demi-human. Your magic may indeed hide from sight your physical attributes but throwing over a scarf on top of them would make them stand out. It would be like throwing a sheet on someone that's invisible. The sheet would give away they're presence."
"Oh, I hadn't thought of that," Emily said. "Thank you for letting me know." She bowed before Preacher.
"Now sir what can we do for you this evening?"
"Well for one you can teach me about this concealment magic you just spoke of. Also I need some new clothes for my mate. I need two-day dresses and three adventure outfits as well as one casual everyday wear and one elegant wear."
"About what size is the young woman?" Emily asked.
Preacher looked over at Lily. She's about her height and physical build." Preacher said. "But a few kilograms smaller but definitely the same chest size."
The women brought out several outfits for Preacher to judge, he ended up picking out a couple extra outfits as well as undergarments and asked them to wrap them up. As Lily wrapped up Preacher's purchases Emily taught Preacher the concealment spell.
Now this will conceal parts of your body if you need it too or conceal your whole body. You can cast it on other objects or people as well.
Preacher thanked the two ladies, paid for his purchases and for the spell casting tutorial and assured them that he would keep their secret. He then asked them to tell the beast king he would like a meeting with him soon. "You're here in hiding, therefore you must be spying on the kingdom for the demi-humans. Don't worry I'm not going to sell you out, but I would like to sit down with your leader."
"What's your name?" both women asked in unison.
Preacher looked back at the two of them, "Preacher," he said, "Just tell him to ask for Preacher."
With that Preacher left the store and headed back to the Inn.
Back in their room at the Inn, Preacher carefully unfurled the bundles of purchases he had brought back for Iris. Iris, her eyes wide with anticipation, couldn't contain her excitement as she eagerly reached for the first package.
With trembling hands, she peeled back the wrapping paper, revealing an exquisite collection of silky-smooth and lacy undergarments. A soft blush crept across her cheeks as she marveled at their delicate beauty. her eyes sparkled with delight.
Moving on to the second bundle, Iris discovered two hand-embroidered cotton dresses. The intricate patterns and graceful silhouettes sent a thrill of joy through her. But it was the third bundle that truly captured her heart.
Within lay three adventures outfits, each crafted from sturdy leather. Iris couldn't help but admire their practical design and rugged charm.
Finally, she came to the last and most extravagant package. As she carefully lifted out a shimmering blue evening gown, her breath caught in her throat. The sapphire-encrusted embroidery sparkled like a thousand stars, casting an ethereal glow upon the fabric.
Iris held the gown up to her body, admiring its perfect fit. The silky material flowed over her curves, making her feel both elegant and alluring. Preacher, stood watching her from the doorway, felt a surge of adoration.
Iris ran and embraced Preacher tightly, her eyes filled with tears of joy and love. "Thank you, my love," she whispered in his ear.
"First you free me," she murmured, her voice trembling with emotion.
"Then you take me as your mate, and now this... I could never have imagined wearing such extravagance."
Preacher leaned in as he pulled Iris close to him as they engaged in an intimate embrace as night fell over the city.