Forced to become the boyfriend for a Dancer who buffs everybody Ch.16 (Patreon)

Naturally, we’ve been looking for a third party member, but the adventurers around town have proven useless time and time again, so the guard captain wasn’t exaggerating with his hatred. Today, though, is the open market, more of a town fair that’ll run a couple days, and everyone’s finally outside since the curfew’s been temporarily lifted. That also means people from out of town have arrived, despite the ongoing monster surge. 

It’s from a different caravan than the one we saw two weeks back, it’s also smaller and it was escorted by its own set of mercenaries instead of adventurers.

So with the new arrivals in town, we try our luck hiring one of them as a stand-in third member so we can bypass the dumb guild rule. But most of them end up asking for Sana’s body as payment up front, no… DEMANDING her body so they could considerate the notion.

Yeah, they got kicked hard in the gut for that or knocked a tooth or two because they even tried to touch her while giving their stupid demands. 

It caused Sana yanking her robe back on for the rest of the interviews.

That’s how we end up sitting across from one particular mercenary, a guy in a long mail coat with a few leather pieces strapped on his shoulders and arms, he kinda looks in his mid-thirties, a couple of ugly scars across his face, laughing and banging the table before he stops to take a long pull from his mug and let out a satisfied sigh. One would naively think that scars make you look badass, but with this guy I can tell that scars on your face will ruin you.

“You two ain’t never gonna find a sucker to take that job.”

“Umm, can I ask why, umm, mister?” Sana asks.

“ ‘Cause who the fuck’s gonna fight an owlbear? Leave that to the high-rankin’ adventurers or the knight’s order.” 

“There are no knights, and the adventurers here are useless, in case you haven’t noticed,” I point out.

“Not my fuckin’ problem. Ain’t riskin’ my arse gettin’ eviscerated; especially by a whole pack o’ those things. Not for all the G in the world would I or any take that job.” 

“You wouldn’t actually need to fight,” I clarify. “Just be a stand in for my party so the guild rule stops blocking us. Sit in the back, shoot an arrow if you feel like it, worst-case scenario. Sana and I handle the actual fighting.”

The mercenary shakes his head. “Still way too damn dangerous. Those monsters’d just rush past you two an’ get me and tear me ta pieces instead.” He points his mug at me. “Lemme tell ya somethin’ about folk like us, kid. We only take jobs we know we’ll walk from. Riskin’ our lives? That’s for ilk like you… or fools.” 

“But isn’t that basically what mercenary companies do? Form up and fight monsters? Or whatever their new boss pays them to?”

At least, that’s how I figure it works, based on general fantasy-world logic.

The man makes a strange face, wobbling his hand in a so-so gesture. “That’s other kingdoms, kid. Adventurers ain’t as common out there like they are in these lands. Did hear ‘bout a company that took on a single injured owlbear once, though.” 

“And?” Sana asks, ears perking up in curiosity.

“Lost thirteen bastards outta twenty-one. So yeah me ain’t takin’ my chances, ‘specially against a whole pack o’ ‘em.” 

Well, fuck.

I let out a long sigh and slump in my chair.

Is this the universe just forcing me to take Fief as the third member? Seriously bullshit, though I can’t really blame the guy or anyone with as much brain as him. That good enough reason to refuse and one that basically applies to everyone in this cursed town.

Owlbears are just too fucking dangerous.

And yeah, maybe I could dodge that quest entirely, but the captain’s slapped the same three-member rule on all the mine quests too, and this same mercenary rejects those as well. 

Mines are dangerous, better left to dwarves, apparently.

“Anyway! Thanks fer the free drink!” And just like that, he gets up and leaves the table.

“What do we do now, honey?”

“Honestly? At this point, let’s just enjoy the fair. We can worry about the rest later.”

“Okay! Can I dance too?”

Right. Sana hasn’t gotten to dance this whole time.

“Sure, why not.” I smile at her.

Yes, she knows when I smile behind the helmet.

We leave the bar after another failed interview, and yes, it was done at the bar and not the inn this time, and head for the center of town, following the road until we find a wide stretch of green and open space where the fair’s been set up.

It’s bigger than I initially expected for a mining town this size. Rows of stalls line the field in loose, crooked lines, banners strung between poles snapping in the wind, farmers hawking baskets of root vegetables and dried herbs, someone roasting corn over a barrel fire filling the air with smoke and butter. A juggler’s drawn a small crowd near the well, dropping half his pins more than he’s catching them, and a group of kids chase each other between the stalls with wooden swords, shrieking with laughter. 

It’s really loud, chaotic, and honestly the most alive I’ve seen this town look since we arrived.

We wander the stalls a while, mostly farm produce and artisan work, and pick up a pair of meat skewers to snack on as we walk.

“Oh, these are tasty.” I comment, earning a nod from the fox girl beside me, cheeks already stuffed.

Then I stop at a stall selling clothes, my eyes catching on a small display of accessories. A pink ribbon.

“Something wrong, Anon?”

I shake my head and point at the ribbon that stands out the most. “How much?”

“Twenty G.” The seller answers.

I pay without hesitating, take the ribbon, and turn to Sana, who’s watching me with confusion, before calmly tying it around the base of her right ear.

“Thought it’d look nice on you.”

Sana blinks, then breaks into a smile, reaching up to touch her new accessory. “Thanks, darling! Ehehe, how’s it look?”

“Adorable.”

“It’s so cute! I’m never taking it off, ever!”

It’s a fair, so a small gift feels appropriate for the occasion.

We keep walking after that until we reach the center of the fairground, where most of the crowd has gathered. Sana wastes no time shrugging off her robe, grabbing her chakrams, and starting to dance, just like before, weaving her bracelets and accessories into the rhythm, except now her weapons flow into the routine too, spinning and catching the light between steps, thrown, caught, spun around her fingers without ever missing a beat.

People gather quickly to watch, and Sana’s performance is beautiful, as always. I can say that Sana is even better than those professional artists who performed at the circus back in my old life.

The crowd is quickly captivated by the spectacle, kids especially, wide-eyed and clapping along.

But the beauty of her dance doesn’t blind me. I don’t lower my guard for a second, and just as expected, I catch a handful of lecherous, disgusting looks scattered through the crowd.

Disappointingly predictable.

Sure enough, once she finishes and starts collecting coins tossed her way, a few of those same men try to get close to her. However, I intercept every one of them, shoving them back with enough force that all they fall on their asses and quickly understand how outmatched they are.

Should be grateful they didn’t end up like curb stomped like those assholes back in Beginera.

So I let my girlfriend do another round, because of popular demand. (Also, more pocket change)

Afterward, we find a quiet patch of grass away from the stalls and the crowd and sit down for a break. I comb through Sana’s tail, something she usually does herself, but I help with now and then, mostly to pass the time and unwind.

And obviously to get a perfect excuse to floof it.

Floof floof, forever floof. I can’t believe how amazing floofing is.

“Hey, guys!”

I take a slow breath the second I hear that voice and tear my attention away from the tail floofing.

Yep. No other than Fief, holding a fistful of meat and vegetable skewers, two speared between each finger like some kind of trophy.

Definitely stolen.

“What do you want?”

“Whoa, what’s with that tone? I just came to say hi.”

Liar.

“Oh, hello, Fief.” Sana greets with a simple smile.

“Hey there, foxy.” Fief drops down onto the grass beside us without waiting for an invitation, folding her legs and immediately biting into one of the skewers like she owns the spot now. “Ooooh, tail-combing time, huh? Can’t relate, looks like a drag.” She flicks her own big but scaly tail, nothing like Sana’s fur. “Mind if I join for a bit? Got snacks.” She raises the fistful of skewers for emphasis.

Is she serious?  

Alright, getting angry or annoyed won’t help here time for plan B.

“Sure. Since you’re already here.” I go back to combing the fluffy tail.. “Though I figured a girl like you’d have better things to do at a fair than mooch food and third-wheel a couple.”

“Ohhh, look who’s got some bite today.” Fief grins around her mouthful. “What, jealous much?”

“Not really. Just surprised you’re not off scouting your next victim.”

“Rude. I prefer ‘target of opportunity.’” She points a skewer at me. “And for your information, I already got my fill for today. Figured I’d come bother you instead since I missed the sexy dancing. Better use of my time.”

“Bothering us is a better use of your time?”

“Depends on the view.” Her eyes cut down to Sana, slow and obvious, then back up to me with a smirk. “Some things are worth more than coin, y’know.”

“She’s taken. Keep looking at her like that and I’ll start charging you.”

“Ohoho, big talk from the guy who won’t even take his helmet off.” She leans in, elbow on her knee. “What, scared I’ll like what I see too much? Might steal you next instead of her.”

I decide to meet her at her level. “You couldn’t afford me. And even if you could… I’d bend you over that bench right here, make you take every inch while your smug little mouth finally shut up for once.”

Fief’s grin turns sharp. “Bend me over? Please. I’d barely feel it. Might fall asleep waiting for something bigger than a pinkie. Death by boredom isn’t how I want to go.” She sticks her tongue out slowly, revealing that it is long, and deliberately curling the tip before pulling it back with a wet sound. “See that? Even my tongue’s got more length and skill than whatever you’re hiding under all that armor. Pretty obvious you are compensating.”

Fuck you. Time to escalate.

“H-Hey, that’s enough, you two are being—”

“Keep talking shorty.” I lean forward a little. “I’ll make sure that tongue of yours has something better to do than wag. Hands on the table, tail in the air. I’ll fuck the smug right out of you until you’re dripping and begging instead of running your mouth.”

Fief merely laughs as she spreads her legs. “Ooh, orders already? Cute. I’d still fall asleep. You’d be panting and done while I’m still waiting for the good part. Meanwhile, I’d be thinking about how much better your foxy and her tail would feel wrapped around me instead.”

“G-Guys! Stop it, this is getting really weird!”

“Very funny.” I gesture loosely. “But if you can only sit at the corner and watch us instead, maybe you would learn something instead.”

“Package deal sounds perfect.” Fief’s eyes glitter as she leans even closer, tongue flicking out again in another slow, lewd curl. “I’d take her first, nice and slow, make her moan my name while you watch. Then I’d let you try to keep up. Or maybe I’d just use both of you. I don’t discriminate when the view’s this good.”

“Sana will never be on the menu for you bitch.”

‘Fucking whore.’

“Yet.” She winks. “One night and she’d forget you even exist. I’d have her on her back, legs up, begging for more while you’re still trying to figure out how to wrap a condom, can teach you tho.”

“Okay, seriously, s-stop! Both of you, c-cut it out right now!”

“Mmm, tempting.” I match her smirk behind the helmet. “But I don’t come cheap, and I definitely don’t come without dinner first.”

“Oh, high maintenance. Fine. I’ll buy the whole damn meal course. Anything for the right merchandise and the cute beast girl that comes with it.”

I won’t let her win.

“Careful there, you have seen her being a bit possessive.”

“Ooooh, right, wouldn’t wanna repeat that night.” Fief cackles, delighted. “Though for the record, cutie, if you ever get tired of guarding him so closely, my offer’s always open. Package deal. I’d treat you so but so much better than a walking tin can ever coul-”

“I SAID THAT’S ENOUGH!” Sana finally snaps, ears pinned flat, cheeks fully red, swatting both of us hard with her tail in quick, angry succession. “Stop being disgusting! I don’t like where this is going and you’re both ignoring me!”

Ouch… No, seriously, my ears are ringing.

Fief bursts out laughing before hissing in pain, nearly dropping a skewer in the grass. “Owww, come on, w-we were just messing around, Sana.”

“Well, mess around somewhere else! Or keep it PG for once!” Sana huffs, tail curling tightly into her own lap, refusing to look at either of us now. “Especially you, Anon!”

I open my mouth to brush it off, and the words die in my throat before I get them out.

Because she’s right. 

I just sat there and did literal erotic talk with another woman, back and forth, while Sana was right beside me the whole time. I made her the punchline of it too, like her feelings didn’t matter.

That’s not banter. That’s just me being a total ass to my girlfriend’s face.

I turn toward her properly and completely ignore the ninja, trying to reach for her hand but she yanks away. “Sana. I’m sorry. T-That wasn’t messing around, that was me being a total shithead to you. That’s on me. I should’ve known better instead of playing along.”

Sana doesn’t answer right away. Her ears stay flat, arms crossed tight and looking away from me.

“No excuse for it. I got caught up trying to one-up her and didn’t think about how it’d look and it wasn’t fair to you.”

She finally looks at me, giving me an angry pout.

“...Fine.” She uncrosses her arms slowly, though her tail stays curled defensively in her lap instead of anywhere near me. “Just… don’t do it again.”

“I won’t.”

“And you, Fief?” Sana snaps towards the ninja, glaring at her.

“Yeah, yeah.” Fief waves a hand, grimacing, popping the last of a skewer into her mouth. “Killjoy. But… ugh, fine.”

“Okay, let’s start again.” I hold up a hand before things spiral further out of control. “What do you actually want, Fief?”

How many times have I asked this same question already?

The thief shrugs, popping the last bite of a skewer into her mouth. “Told you already, didn’t I? Things are really boring in town lately. What’s the point of borrowing stuff if nobody even reacts to it anymore?”

“You mean stealing.” Sana rightfully corrects.

“Permanently borrowing.”

“Pretty sure that’s stealing.”

“Whatever.” Fief waves a dismissive hand, then claps once. “So yeah. Looking for fun here and there, and happened to find you two again.”

“Don’t you have friends already?”

I mean, her ninja clan.

Fief scoffs. “They’re not my friends, and those guys are boring. Nothing fun about sitting in a room gambling or drinking till you pass out. Fun for the first few days, sure, but it gets old fast. You two are new in town, so right now, you’re the most interesting thing around.”

“That’s a really strange reason,” I comment.

“Oh, shut up. You asked, I answered. Not my problem you don’t like the answer.” She points a finger at me. “That means I get a question now!”

“Ask away.” I shrug.

“Why are you helping that fat bastard?”

She asks that?

“He’s the guard captain who asked for help, and he happens to pay well? Also, there’s an ongoing monster surge, who knows what else is roaming the roads killing innocent people in horrible ways, people have gone missing the past few weeks, and the guards are stretched thin as it is trying to push back the monsters. Also, we’re adventurers. Helping out is kind of the job description.”

“Yeah, that’s what adventurers do!” Sana adds, nodding along.

“Wait, you’re serious?” Fief just looks at us with wide eyes before bursting into laughter.

I roll my eyes and wait for her to finish.

She wipes a tear from her eye after a moment. “And you even say the fatso pays well? What are you, piss poor or doing charity? He barely pays jack shit, can’t even cover a simple weapon repair since he pays not even a thousand G, and he expects you to go kill monsters for that? Pffft, and acts like he’s doing you a favor on top of it.”

What? He paid us twelve thousand total over a week of continuous quests. The worg hunt alone got us four thousand.

“How much for a simple giant rat hunt?” I decide to ask.

“A team got three hundred for that same job. Split five ways.” She answers.

I blink in surprise. “Supply runs? Patrols?”

“Some guy got a hundred fifty for a patrol.”

We got 250 and 450.

“Recon’ quest?”

“Ummm, I think it was a hundred G.”

Ours was two hundred.

Something’s strange here.

“Guess that explains why nobody wants to work with him, or the blatant hostility.” I comment, rubbing my chin.

But the adventurers couldn’t do anything since the guy seemed very strong. Especially how he mangled that adventurer.

Fief nods. “That, and the fact he lied straight to a few teams’ faces and got ‘em wiped out. Like, come on, man, what happened to you? He used to be kinda cool.”

In the games the two knew each other well, after all, so he is the one that changed for some reason.

“But they got wiped out because they lied. Lying is dangerous.” Sana points out.

“I mean, maybe? But if you already know they’re lying their asses off, why send them anyway? He knew exactly what he was doing.” She spreads her hands, mock-innocent. “Oh no, consequences of my actions, woe is me. Seriously, what did he expect after all of that bullshit? That people would just take it in the ass and nod along?”

I frown because that’s strangely fair. There’s some credence to it too, considering Sana and I got sent after the worgs and ran straight into an alpha he never warned us about, something he clearly either knew or had strong suspicions about beforehand.

Why not give us a heads-up? Or about the other monsters lurking around, even if it was common knowledge.

“Alright. I get your point. He’s a fucking asshole.” I raise both hands in mock surrender.

“HA! Knew you’d come around!”

“But that still doesn’t change the fact that I need money to put food on the table and a roof over our heads, and I can’t just ignore that people have gone missing in this town to the point he imposed a curfew. You know anything about that?”

Fief frowns, actually thinking about it for once. “Kinda? Like, I know it started a while back. Women, a few kids. However, I’m pretty sure most of the women just went off to have some fun at the barbarian outpost, if you catch my meaning. Plenty of ladies like that ROUGH treatment, you know? Can’t blame ‘em either, since lots of guys around here are total wusses and small. But with the monster surge messing with travel schedules, they’re probably just stuck over there and there waiting it out. So there’s not really much to worry about. Captain’s just being overly dramatic about it or using it as an excuse to try to throw his weight around.”

I blink and glance at Sana, who is looking away and blushing a little. Given the nature of this hentai world, that’s not actually an unreasonable explanation. Women slipping off to have lots of wild sex because they are way more sexually open or slutty.

“What about the kids, though?”

“Yeah, that’s kinda common. Kids wander a little too far from town, and poof, gone. Not much you can do about that, honestly, it’s on them or their parents for not teaching them to stay close. One bad step, and boom, you’re wrapped up in a spider cocoon somewhere in a dark cave.”

I’m taken aback by how casually she’s talking about children’s deaths. Is that just her, or is that common sense in a world like this? 

I remember reading that even on medieval Earth child mortality was brutal but… Still, kids died.

Maybe that’s just the baseline here, but I just cannot push that thought aside like the weather. It just wouldn’t sit right.

“Okay, okay just forget about it. I guess I got some answers, but you sound like you know your way around this town pretty well.”

“Pretty much, yeah.”

“So you know where the goddess statue is? We might need to level up after all this questing.”

“Also, cash in our monster boss kill!”

“Oh. That...” Fief winces. “We kinda trashed it. It was an accident, I swear.”

Figures. At least that event is still consistent.

“And the guy who broke it got struck by lightning.”

That… wasn’t in the game. 

Or, well, it was in the sense that OG Anon was the one who trashed Europa’ statue when he threw a temper tantrum, and the goddess nearly killed him for it. He only survived out of pure spite toward Europa.

“Is there another one?” Sana asks.

“Eh, you go east, follow the road, there’s a small shrine about a day’s walk from here. But who wants to walk all that?” She grins. “Just use the skill trainer instead, REALLY cool guy. If you tell him I sent you, he will give you a DEEP discount.”

Oh no, you don’t.

“I think we’re better off walking to the shrine, we love stretching our legs after all.”

Fief clicks her tongue.

Ha! Knew that was her plan.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

I am seated on the bed, polishing my helmet, a faint smile tugging at the corner of my lips as I pull the cloth away to admire the shine, which is strong enough that I can partially see my own reflection. 

The room isn’t dark; the oil lamp still burns low on the table.

With this I can be satisfied with the work.  

And this is necessary too. Doing it every night keeps me from having to scrub hardened filth weeks later, and this armor cost far too much for that kind of headache.

I set the helmet down carefully on the nightstand.  

Alright, time to sleep.  

Tomorrow it’s back to questing. Finding a third party member is apparently going to take a few more days. Might as well grind some levels before we head to Europa’s statue.

That’s about as far as my thoughts get before a pair of soft hands grab my shoulders and yank hard, sending me sprawling backward onto the bed.

“Whoa!”

I blink up to find a pair of green eyes glaring down at me, framed by an extremely pronounced pout. Both of her hands are planted on either side of my head, pinning me in place. Yet I give a quick glance down to notice that she is naked, the soft weight of her full breasts pressing against my chest as she straddles my hips, bare thighs warm and smooth on either side of me.

“Anon, you big jerk!”

“Y-Yes, Sana?”

“Don’t think I forgot! You’re still in deep trouble, mister!”

“Ummm… is this about earlier?” What a dumb question.

“Yes, it is!” She huffs, tail lashing behind her. “Right in front of me! Talking about naughty and all that filthy stuff!”

“Technically, she started it. I just returned the favor.”

Okay, that sounded bad.

“That’s worse! That means you’re good at it!”

“I have a very charming and beautiful girlfriend. I’m bound to pick up a few things, eventually.” I try to butter my way out of it.

“Don’t try to butter me up, it’s not gonna work!” Her cheeks are already turning pink despite the scowl she’s fighting to hold. “You told her you don’t come cheap! And that you needed dinner first! And then you two kept going despite me sitting right there!”

“Look, I’m sorry again. I really didn’t mean to take it that far or talk about you like that. It was never my intention to insult you or make you feel bad.”

Her pout somehow deepens further. “Do you have any idea how weird it is, watching your boyfriend one-up a girl who’s ummm…. Naughty stuff with both of us?”

“She wasn’t going to steal any of us, wouldn’t have allowed it.”

“ANON!”

“Alright, alright.” I raise both hands in surrender as much as I can manage while pinned flat on my back. “I take full responsibility.”

“Good!” The scowl breaks instantly, flipping into a triumphant little grin, entirely too pleased with herself. “So as your punishment, you have to pamper me lots tonight!”

“Okay?”

“Yes! A very serious and terrible punishment! You should be very scared!”

“I’m shaking.” I laugh.

“You should be!” She leans down, nose nearly brushing mine, ears flicking forward. Her soft chest presses harder. “Lots of kisses. And floofing my tail. And y-you are allowed to touch me everywhere. And no complaints, mister, because you have to mean every single one or it doesn’t count…and then I get to add more!”

“Sounds unfair.”

“Ehehe, that’s the point~”

And then she closes the distance and captures my lips. I bring a hand up to cup her cheek; she makes a small, satisfied noise against my mouth, tail curling contentedly around my leg.

She pulls back just far enough to whisper. “Again.”

I press a kiss to the tip of her nose instead.

“Hey! That doesn’t count!”

“You didn’t specify where.”

“ANON.”

“Fine, fine.” I chuckle and pull her properly back down.

This time the kiss is deeper as her lips part under mine and our tongues quickly wrestle for control. I let my other hand explore her beautiful body, first along the curve of her waist, until I reach the soft globe of her perfect ass, squeezing firmly enough that the plush flesh yields under my grip. I dig my fingers in, kneading slowly, spreading her cheeks just a little as I pull her tighter against me. She shivers and presses closer, thighs tightening around my hips as she grinds down, the heat between her legs already noticeable through the thin cloth of my underwear.

“Mmm… more,” she murmurs against my mouth, already kissing me again before I can answer. 

So my free hand slides up cupping one heavy, soft breast completely, feeling the giving weight of it fill my palm, then roll my thumb over the stiffening nipple in slow circles until it hardens further under the touch. 

This is heaven.

She arches her back, pushing her chest further as her hips rock in a slow, delicious rhythm. The friction between us is maddening, a teasing promise of more to come. My own arousal is a hard, insistent pressure against her.

“Darling…” She breathes, her head thrown back. “You’re… you’re being a very good boy accepting your punishment.”

“Anything for you.”

She grins, a wicked, playful glint in her emerald eyes. “Then you’ll do everything I say?”

“Everything.”

“Good.” Her grin widens. “Then… touch me more.”

I don’t need to be told twice.

My hands roam her body with a newfound urgency, exploring every inch of her soft, olive skin. I trace the curve of her spine, the dip of her waist, the swell of her hips. I always make sure to squeeze her ass, my fingers digging into the yielding flesh, pulling her flush against me.

My mouth trailing a hot, wet path down her neck, nibbling and sucking at the sensitive skin.

“A-Anon…” she gasps, her hands tangling in my hair as she pulls me closer.

My lips find the hollow of her throat, my tongue darting out to taste the salt on her skin but after a while of that, I decide to turn the tables and quickly sit up to flip position so I’m on top.

Sana’s eyes go wide in surprise, but then she giggles.

“N-Not fair,” she pouts, her legs wrapping around my waist.

“All’s fair in love and punishments,” I retort, a smirk playing on my lips as I lean down to capture hers again.

The kiss is hungrier this time, more demanding. I pour all my longing into it, my tongue exploring every corner of her mouth, my teeth nipping at her lower lip. Her response is just as fervent, her hands roaming my back, her nails digging into my skin.

I break the kiss, panting, my forehead resting against hers.

Let’s just say that I learnt my lesson that night.

------------------------------------------------------

By the next morning Sana and I take a patrol quest. Once again we’re promised four hundred fifty G as reward. I still don’t know what to make of that because Fief’s a liar in general, but she wasn’t lying about the reward rates. I asked around a few other adventurers and they all quoted roughly the same numbers.

Maybe it’s simple supply and demand. Too many adventurers and the rewards drop. Too few and the quests pile up so the captain has to raise the pay to clear the backlog. 

Whatever the reason, we’ll finish the job and claim the coin either way.

We’re already halfway through the patrol when Sana suddenly grabs my arm.

“Honey, look!”

I follow her pointing finger and frown. A thin column of smoke is rising above the treeline.

“Do you think it’s a fire?” The dancer asks.

I think it over. A fire in a forest could explain why the smoke. Fires spread fast in a forest, and once they hit dry brush, they can take half the treeline before anyone notices.

“We should check it out.”

“Yay!” She spins on her heel, does a little graceful hop forward, and casts her special spell. “Allegro!”

Her speed buff floods through both of us and we take off toward the smoke.

We’re closing in when we hit the dirt road, and we both hear it at the same time.

Screaming.

We skid to a halt.

That’s definitely screaming. People are in trouble.

“Sana.”

She nods.

I pull my shield off my back and draw my sword.

“Frost Armor.” I touch my chest plate and a layer of ice spreads across my armor.

Sana’s already casting her buffs on both of us, making us as ready as possible to face the chaos.

We nod once and charge into that very chaos.

It doesn’t take long to reach the source, and we both come to a full stop. And Sana gasps in horror, covering her mouth.

It’s a guard outpost. What’s left of the outer guards is scattered across the ground in front of the wooden gate; arms and legs torn off, entrails steaming in the morning air with a wet, coppery stink.

That becomes secondary the moment we see the thing at the palisade.

A massive, furry shape is slamming its whole body into the wood again and again. Then it stops what it’s doing and its head snaps a full hundred eighty degrees causing us to flinch. An owl’s face locks onto us, golden eyes catching the light.

It hisses, twisting upright onto two legs. Half-feathered wings unfurl from its front legs almost looking like feathery bats wings.

And I quickly understand what we are facing… An owlbear.

Shit.

“BEHIND ME!”

I plant my foot forward and bring shield and sword up.

“Burning Blade!”

Flames race along the edge of my sword just as the owlbear leaps. A heavy swipe crashes into my shield. I deflect the vicious attack, try to drive the burning blade into its ribs on the follow-through, but it yanks back too fast and I miss clean.

Sana’s chakrams whistle past my shoulder, slam into its front legs, then boomerang back to her hands. It didn’t do any damage, regrettably, but the owlbear’s eyes narrowed. And I recognize that the beast has decided she’s the priority threat.

I react instantly, charging in the second I see the shift with my own roar. A quick swing grazes its beak. That actually pisses it off since it hisses harder and charges with no wind-up; straight at me.

All I can do is brace myself.

The impact hits like a battering ram. I’m shoved backward, boots skidding through dirt, the whole shock rattling up my arms and into my teeth. However, I grit through it and keep stabbing, anyway. But much to my dismay, my weapon barely doing any damage, revealing way too late that its hide is shockingly tough.

dismay,

Even the fire does almost nothing.

I finally manage to shove it off, sending it stumbling to the side. That’s when Sana strikes again and her chakrams slicing across its face this time, actually drawing a bit of blood. 

I smile faintly because that means that its face is soft, a weak point but that small victory vanishes when its eyes flash red as it lets out a chilling roar.

It’s enraged.

Not good, not good at all, now this monster is tenfold more dangerous than it was.

I need to hinder it somehow to give us an advantage no matter how big or small. Then I remember the pepper bombs Esme gave me, those were meant to be used against mages but it’s the best thing I can think of. I yank one from my pouch, drag the match across the striker in my belt, and hurl it straight at the monster’s face.

“Take this!”

The bomb burst right in its eyes. The beast rears back with a deafening roar and starts thrashing, clawing at its own face.

It… It worked!

I’m not wasting this opening. “Burning Blade!”

I rush for the soft underbelly, too late realizing it can still swipe blind. A massive claw catches me dead on and sends me flying. I hit the ground hard and roll, pain exploding through my side and back.

“ANON!”

I groan as I roll onto my back. 

I think something…. I think something is broken… SHit, shit shit, it hurts, it really hurts…

“Healing Rhythm!”

It hurts.

“Healing Rhythm!”

Finally, the welcoming warmth floods through me. The pain vanishes entirely, and I scramble back to my feet. But I don’t give my thanks to Sana who is now by my side since the owlbear is still screaming and thrashing, blinded but no less furious.

Getting close again is suicide. If it wasn’t for my armor it might have torn my head off. Another swipe like that and I’m done.

“OVER HERE! OVER HEREEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!”

I look toward the screaming voice and it’s coming from the wooden gate. It’s partially open now since a guard is waving frantically at us.

“QUICKLY!”

“Sana!” I shout, and she understands immediately. We sprint for the gate, leaving the owlbear stumbling and roaring behind us.

Thankfully, we made it through. Together with the guard, we haul the heavy doors shut and drop the thick wooden bar across them, locking the gates tightly.

Only then do we both drop onto our butts, panting and gasping for air.

A moment later the banging starts again accompanied by an enraged roar.

We made it...

“S-So that’s an owlbear.” Sana breathes, still wide-eyed as she hugs her tail for comfort.

I nod and suddenly remember where we are and look up. At least seven guards are staring at the two of us. Each of them looked worse for the wear, one clutching his bandaged leg while another holding his stomach, his gambeson tainted red.

“Oh. Hey….” I give a small, awkward wave. Sana copies it beside me.

Only one of them waves back with a forced smile, equally awkward.

I take a slow look around the outpost, then at the gate where the monster is trying to break in, at the surviving guards who look like they’ve had the worst week of their lives, and finally give the one million G question.

“So… care to tell me what the fuck is happening?”