On our way back to the mansion, we check some usual notice boards and other spots where our posters are located. I notice some people pointing their fingers at our trio as we replace the old ones with the updated versions. Looks like the main poster girls got recognized. That’s good. More word of mouth marketing.

Afterwards, we return home without anything major happening. Walking through the entrance, we meet our new canine maid waiting with Roseni in the lobby.

“Welcome back, Master. And you too, Safi, Emi,” the elf lady makes a slight bow and Rene follows the motion.

“We are back. Are you two waiting for us perhaps? What’s in that box?” I point at the small package in Rene’s hands.

“Yes! It’s for you, Master!” she replies cheerfully while her tail swishes energetically behind her back. “A cloaked man came to deliver it. He said it’s from your noble friends. Where should I put it?”

「Oh? Something from Ross? Interesting.」

“I can take it from you. I’m sure you are busy with the preparations for the night. There’s no need to hand me my mail directly. Just drop it into my chambers in the future.”

Stepping closer, I receive the package from Rene and ruffle through her hair with my free hand, evoking a blissful smile from the adorable dogkin. She got comfortable with our home very quickly after arriving here and I can now even enjoy some pleasant petting like this. 

“We’ll return to our responsibilities then, Master,” Roseni says with a soft smile. “That is if you release Rene from your affectionate prison. I’m not sure she can break out from this pleasure by herself, fufufu~”

I chuckle seeing the melting expression of the girl experiencing my caresses and draw my hand back. A very quiet whine accompanies the motion. Gods… She’s just so pure and adorable I can barely hold back from petting her more…

Fortunately, Roseni doesn’t miss the opportunity and takes Rene with her, heading into one of the corridors. Safi and Emi receive some more parting mana-tickles and I walk to my room to check the contents of the package.

Using a small dagger, I carefully cut it open. The wrapping was very soft, pretty much without any solid parts, so I assumed that I’m dealing with something made out of thread, and that guess proves to be right as I pull out a set of clothing from inside.

Arranging all the parts on my bed, I’m met with something akin to scholarly robes in the colours of the kingdom, which are mostly blue, grey and white. It looks similar to some outfits I’ve seen people wear around the castle, especially the library. 

「Looks like we are going full undercover. Alastair the Court Scholar, heh. I guess this will make my identity more believable. My F-rank won’t raise any suspicion with this getup. I’m sure not many of the castle’s researchers have time to raise it or even register.」

I throw the clothes into my storage ring for later use. I’m looking forward to this already. It’s been so long since I roleplayed. And I’ll even be in cosplay this time! This will be fun. Should I prepare a fake personality? A backstory? Should I write a character sheet like in the good, old times? Man, I miss playing D&D. Maybe I should host a session with the girls someday. I wonder if they would be interested.

Anyway, it’s past afternoon and I shouldn’t be wasting time. Without any further ado, I start my usual routine of checking on all the girls and seeing if they need any help. Everything seems to be fine and all the rooms are good to be used too. 

The time to open arrives and we dive into the usual. It’s getting really lively with all the girls around now. Of course, with those who want to show themselves in the lobby or accompany the guests. Almost everyone from the working cast is present in the main hall and the sight of so many different and colourful ladies in one place is just breathtaking.

Even some girls from the maids' department show themselves up from time to time, drawn in by the almost party-like atmosphere. They don’t need to do so, especially since they themselves aren’t on the menu, but it’s fine nevertheless. It’s a good way for them to grow more accustomed to the good Humans.

While the snacks and beverages are mostly for the clients, I didn’t forbid them from taking a bite either. Thus, a sneaky Rene can sometimes be seen, making her way through the hall and picking up a cookie while supposedly just crossing from one side of the mansion to the other. Just adorable.

The night passes quickly and without any qualms. Our progress is quite steady. New faces show up now and then, but it isn’t something substantial. At least we rarely attract any troublemakers. Very rarely. I have a feeling someone might be watching over us.

I’m pretty sure our renown and popularity won’t make a big jump unless we release something new to the public. The major increases all came after the roster was expanded, which is quite obvious. The next thing might be the pleasure rooms which are almost ready. They will most likely open while I’m gone. Cornelia and Elea should be able to handle that easily

But naturally, we can’t really speed things up with just internal changes and effort. The most limiting and suppressing matter is—and for a long time still will be—the common perception of non-humans. We need to reach a level high enough where we can somehow rope the King into it or not much will change. Small steps. Rome wasn’t built in a day. 

We close again and everyone heads to rest. Well, almost everyone. Our tiefling trio has been very popular tonight and they demanded a reward for their hard work. Thus, I end up in the bath with them. Needless to say, bathing isn’t the only thing they are after and it’s my turn to work hard this time.

Afterwards, I take a quick nap with Cornelia by my side in the bed. When the time to wake up comes, we cuddle affectionately for a bit and then I pick up my dazzling, naked Ice Queen to carry her princess-style to her room with the accompaniment of loving kisses on my neck.

Today, being the last day before I meet up with the party of adventurers, only the planned shopping trip for consumables and herbal things with Dhosk remains. During breakfast, the satyr sisters express their wish to help us with these things too and I agree to let them come along. They are still too fresh to leave the mansion alone so this is a good opportunity for them. 

And there’s a new rule I added to the previous one of going out in pairs—at least one person in the group has to be in an intimate relationship with me. Or they just would need to have had sex with me once. The reason is obvious—all the bonuses and enhancements coming from being my intimate Partner and not just a registered one. Even at Bond Level 1, the difference is starting to be big.

Before the four of us leave for the city, Cornelia approaches me and says that she will join us for a brief moment as she is heading to the castle again. It’s a good thing as I remember my thoughts from yesterday and ask her about viagra-like boosts while we walk.

“I’m pretty sure meds boosting one’s libido do exist, but there’s a catch.”

“What catch?”

“Only products of low quality and effectiveness are available on the public market and in most of the apothecaries.”

“And why is that so?”

“All the good stuff is controlled by… brothels.”

“Ah. I think I can see where this is going.”

“It’s most likely like you think. The best products are offered in these establishments, often only to customers. Some might run a shop with inflated prices as an additional source of revenue, but the main focus is to boost their own services while limiting anything that happens outside.”

I nod my head while rubbing my chin. “That’s quite smart. Even if someone comes just to buy the product, I bet they do everything they can to lure the man into the services too. And even if they fail, the customer will definitely come again after experiencing the greater effects of their meds than what the apothecaries can offer. But, why not do the same with anti-conception drugs if they are already pressuring this part of the market?”

“It’s actually more beneficial for their business for it to be widespread. Fewer kids, fewer reasons for men to find an excuse not to go to a brothel. I’m not saying that every guy suddenly changes after getting a kid and stops going there, but from some old surveys, I know that quite a few do.”

“And the government is fine with all that manipulation, right?”

“Of course. Brothels are a major part of the kingdom’s taxable income. Don’t underestimate that segment just because of public opinion dominated by angry housewives. It’s just beneficial to give the owners some privileges. And if we make it big, you can expect even more of them, considering that we have quite the connection to the government.”

“Hahahaha, that’s true. I just hope we can ease the tension between Humans and non-humans along the way.”

“I’m sure we will.” Cornelia gives me a gentle smile and squeezes my hand as we have been holding them since we left the mansion. “Anyway, why the sudden question?”

“During my visit at the Monster Tamer’s Guild, I came to notice that people might not know about certain fruits and vegetables having this kind of effect on a person’s body when correctly mixed together. My conversation partner seemed quite surprised so I started wondering if it’s even a thing.”

“Ah, so natural aphrodisiacs, huh. I’m not surprised there. Most fruits like this are considered exotic so they appear more commonly in the noble class. Which ones do you have in mind?”

“Pretty normal ones actually, like apples, oranges, lemons, watermelons, strawberries and such. During that little chat, I recalled a few recipes for drinks with the use of these and some other ones. About ten I think.”

“Wait…” Cornelia stops for a moment to think. “This is great!”

“Huh? How so?”

“We can introduce your ideas to the menu and also serve these mixes as free drinks and appetizers! The cost wouldn’t be as high as all the aphrodisiacs and pharmaceutics the other establishments use!”

“So, you want to drug the customers with these to make them even hornier than how just our enchanted painting makes them already?” I ask with a chuckle.

“Hey, it’s not drugging. These are just natural fruits, right?” she replies with a sly smile.

“Alright, alright. As long as it’s not anything that gets into their heads, I’m fine with it.”

“Well, it certainly gets into a different kind of a head though.”

“Pfffffft.”

We laugh together for a brief moment. Looks like my cringy humour might be starting to rub off on Cornelia.

Reaching our parting point, we split up and go our respective ways. Cornelia heads further towards the castle and I venture towards the herbal markets with Dhosk, Neiya and Meiya in tow. The two sisters stick close to me. I must say, the cute sound their hooves make on the stone roads is just so captivating.

There are some stares, which is natural with three demi-human girls in maid outfits and a single Human in a suit, but we, fortunately, don’t come across any hostility during our shopping trip. 

All three of them are a huge help in picking useful things for my upcoming journey. Dhosk points out herbs and plants that can be used for concocting some simple potions she can make for me overnight, and for other purposes like detoxification bandaids or healing salves.

Meiya and Neiya focus more on suggesting which flowers and houseplants would be nice to have in our environment and help me pick out the seeds or saplings. We don’t purchase many of the latter as our spatial storages aren’t that big yet. Mine is almost full with various adventuring stuff already—and some other weird items—and their collar badges are filled with necessities and means of self-defence.

We also visit the artisanal district to order some alchemical utensils and all that is necessary for Dhosk’s work. I should put a lab on my to-do list. There might be more girls with experience and knowledge in such areas, and even if they decide to leave after a year, the lab would be ready for the next ones in the future.

Not gonna lie, it looks like I’m slowly turning that brothel into some kind of a sly cover for an all-purpose base of operations. Which is kind of true in our situation. Brothel on the top, training and crafting grounds on the bottom. As the Goddess said, raising a small army of women. Who would have thought it would turn out like this.

With our storages and hands stuffed to the brim, we make our way back home. Some of the girls help us unload all the stuff straight from the entrance. It’s good to have many hands on board.

Next comes setting up the makeshift lab for Dhosk and other girls. I’m sure a few of the elves and the satyr sisters are looking forward to it too. With a group of ten, we finish everything in a few hours. It doesn’t look as impressive as Sirgia’s workshop, but that was granted. None of our herbalists has anything bad to say about it, which doesn’t surprise me anymore.

I leave those who wish to have some fun in there alone and hold a small meeting with Elea and Cornelia to discuss the pleasure rooms and how to handle them when I’m gone. Sirgia surprisingly comes out of her forge and joins us, taking place on my lap, receiving lots of my gentle caresses. I can feel her slight anxiety, most likely coming from the thought that I will be leaving tomorrow.

We extensively cover the main topic and the duo of managers don’t leave me any reasons for worries and doubts with how good their understanding of the topic is. It’s not even sure that we’ll get any female customers during the time I’m away anyway, but they have all the means to conduct and develop the business in that area.

Afterwards, I start making the last preparations for tomorrow, still accompanied by Sirgia, who is dutifully assisting me with everything she can. You rarely see her this active outside of her workshop. It just shows how nervous she is.

Thus, with everything ready as much as it can be, I move my whole attention to the distressed dwarf and we take a bath together during which we talk a little. I do my best to reassure her as much as I can and shower Sirgia with lots of affection.

Then, before going to sleep, Sirgia snuggles to me tightly and suggests that we share a more intimate moment together. Her reasoning for this being activating the effects of our Bond, so that I can be buffed as much as possible for the next three days.

After lecturing my silly dwarf again that she doesn’t need any reason for us to make love, I agree with her suggestion, but just because we both want to embrace each other and not because I’ll get some good benefits from it. We end up having a very tame and loving session of a bit more naughty cuddles during which each of us just relishes in the warmth of the other, finally falling asleep closely snuggled together.

In the morning, Sirgia helps me dress up in my new clothes. And it takes a moment. I’m not used to wearing something like this. Like what exactly? Like dark grey pants; partial vestments or robes of the same colour, reaching a bit lower than knees; a thick belt holding them together, adorned with a big and heavy book on the right and a plethora of potions and little pouches alongside its strap; and a two-part shawl of sapphire and white with a hood resting on my shoulders, joined together with a silver badge portraying the royal emblem.

Shortly after we finish, Cornelia strolls into my chamber from her room.

“Pfffft. You could now pass as one of my assistants without a sweat, hahaha.”

I ruffle through Sirgia’s hair for her to let me go for a moment and approach the laughing magician in two quick steps, pulling her into my arms by her waist.

“Would I then get to do something like this during your research?” I ask and tilt her body a little to be the one above her, sealing Cornelia’s lips with a deep kiss. 

She quickly wraps her arms around my back when sensing a possible fall, only to push her mouth more into mine, completely submitting herself to me for a moment. Our tongues dance together with passion until we get short of breath.

Cornelia then glances at me with flushed cheeks, still in my hold. “You beast. What would the others say?”

“Do you really care?”

She chuckles softly and connects our lips once more. “Not in the slightest.”

I help her up and step away to show my new outfit to her and Sirgia in all its glory, assuming a few stereotypical poses. While doing that, I perceive something peculiar and a big smile makes its way onto my lips as I glance at my beautiful magician.

“What?” Cornelia raises one of her eyebrows.

“Are you getting turned on by this?”

“What?! Of course not! What are you even thinking?” Her eyes widen and she avoids my gaze.

“Really?” I take a step forward.

“Really.” She takes a step back.

“Then,” I cover the remaining distance in a quick jump and slide my hand into her panties, making Cornelia squeal in surprise; a shirt and undies are the only things she is currently wearing after waking up recently, “why is this place so hot?”

“Al!” She hits my chest lightly. “You… You… Ahhnn~”

“Yes?”

“Stop rubbing it when I’m trying to speak!”

I chuckle and pull my hand back, clearly covered with a bit of slimy liquid. Cornelia’s cheeks flare up even more after seeing the coating on my two fingers between our faces.

“What exactly… did make you like this?” I ask with a grin.

“That’s just sweat… I barely got up and it was hot under the covers…”

“Is it really? Are you not lying to me again?”

She looks at me with a side glance and bites on her lip a little. Seeing that I won’t let it go, she hangs her head down and murmurs barely understandable words, “—in these clothes…”

“I can't hear you~”

“I thought you looked hot in these robes, okay?! I have a thing for handsome, young, smart scholars, alright?! I imagined you boning me in these in my old lab and got wet!”

A quiet giggle reaches our ears shortly after Cornelia finally admits to her desires.

“Pervert.”

Our gazes land on Sirgia smiling on the side.

“Oh, you little—”

Before Cornelia rushes after the cheeky dwarf, I seal her lips again while pushing her against the wall.

“Man, that’s really hot.” I smile at her. “We should try it after I come back.”

She only nods faintly while staring me straight into the eyes with that completely red face of hers. I then turn to the side and look down.

“And I don’t think you have the right to criticize her on that, hmmm? Should I remind you about a certain accident in your workshop?”

Sirgia averts her gaze with rosy cheeks too. “N-No…”

It’s Cornelia who chuckles then after seeing her reaction. I release my charming magician and we return to the actual preparations. Dhosk, Meiya and Neiya bring me the potions and salves they completed and I throw them into an additional storage ring Sirgia made for me just recently. Its capacity is small, but enough to hold a few bottles.

Pretty much everyone gathers in the lobby to say goodbye and we talk for a brief moment before I leave. Of course, I don’t forget to give each of my lovers a sweet kiss. Sirgia, Cornelia, Elea, Neira and Astrea each get an affectionate peck and a tight hug. With a sea of waving hands, I head out towards the Adventurer’s Guild.

It’s honestly weird going around the city in different-than-usual clothes. I mean, it’s like all the time I have this uncomfortable feeling that something is wrong with some part of my clothing and I glance all over myself every minute or so. I should get used to it or my cover will be blown before we even start.

Entering the guild, I realize something after seeing Elise behind one of the counters. She knows me. What the hell do I do if she notices me? I would come out as rude if I went to another receptionist and she spotted me. Well, shit. Either way could end up in rumours so let’s just have a go at it.

I approach the black-haired girl with a soft smile. “Hi there, Elise.”

“Hello, Al! Welcome! Oh? A new getup? I must say, it looks great on you.”

“Hahaha, thanks. It’s part of a job I took. I didn’t want to stand out. Anyway, there should be some instructions on it for me so I would be glad if you could check that.”

“Of course! Give me a minute.”

She dives into something on her side of the counter and raises her brows shortly after.

“Huh? You are joining an A-rank party? As an F-rank? And it’s an A-rank subjugation quest too? Ermm…”

I scratch my head. “Yeah, something like that. They needed an expert on the monster’s subject and I was somehow roped in. I’m pretty strong myself, just didn’t have time for any quests, so it’s better than taking a fully inexperienced scholar.”

“But… It says here…” she glances to the sides and leans closer to me, “that you are part of the Royal Lore Keepers. That division works almost directly under the King if I’m not mistaken. Or at least under the Court Magician.”

“Well… I have some old ties with the government. It’s one of these cases of the past catching up to a retiree. I kind of couldn’t decline a direct request, you know. And I didn’t want this news to spread when I registered. I wanted to start with a blank slate. Some people might think unfavourably of me if they knew.”

Elise nods a few times in quick succession. “I get it. Don’t worry! Your secret past is safe with me! We are forbidden to share internal affairs with outsiders anyway and I can promise you that I won’t bring it up with my coworkers too! But you seem quite young for someone in retirement, hahaha.”

I chuckle too and wave my hand. “I know, I know. I actually quit, but my accomplishments were significant enough to grant me a small pension. Nothing amazing, but you can live off it.”

“Oh, how lucky! I’m so envious!”

“Struggling with finances?” Elise turns her gaze away with a wry smile. “Are receptionists underpaid that much?”

“Well… You can make ends meet… somehow… Most of the pay is based on the number of adventurers you handle in a month and their accomplishments so it’s a bit unstable.”

“Hmmm… If it’s that bad then why are you still here? Is this perhaps your dream job?”

“No, nothing like that. I like this line of work but I’m not especially bound to it. The truth is, I’ve been looking for a different job for some time already, but… my only redeeming qualities are a pretty face and a nice voice. There are plenty of girls like that. I have experience only in customer service and these positions are usually filled with the business owner’s family or friends since almost anyone can do it.”

“I see…” I rub my chin while glancing at the definitely pretty receptionist in front of me. “If you are not bound to this place, I might have something for you then. And the pay should be pretty good. Just not sure if you’d be fine with the environment.”

Elise looks straight at me with expectant eyes. “Really? I honestly ran out of options and I’ve already been considering some shady places so it should be fine. Especially if it’s you who is recommending it.”

“Hahaha, it’s nothing shady. Uhhh… I think... Anyway, want to grab a bite with me after I return? I’ll fill you in on details then.”

“A date for a job opportunity? I’m in! Oh, this made me realize how much of your time I’ve wasted! I’m sorry!” Elise suddenly bows to me.

“It’s fine. I was the one to bring all of this up. Let’s continue it later. So, what do you have for me?”

“Alright. Let’s see… Looks like everything is filled in and there are no further actions needed to be taken. The A-ranked party Ephemeral Aegis was instructed to wait for you in one of our VIP meeting rooms. I can see that all of them have already checked in so let’s go and meet them. I’ll lead you there.”

“Thanks. Appreciate it.”

I then follow Elise through the restricted section of the guild and we stop in front of a door with the number 69 on it. There’s no way this is a coincidence. It’s not some novel written by a cringy-ass kid. I bet a different kid is behind this. One with very high standing.

We enter inside after she knocks on the door and we are greeted by the sight of four adventurers in their full gear, sitting on two sofas around a coffee table. Elise guides me in and leaves after bowing to everyone.

“So, you are the brainiac with expertise on Succubi sent by the gov, huh? Weird thing to specialize in, that’s for sure,” a middle-aged man with short, dark red hair says. He wears heavy leather armour and a giant axe lies by his side next to the couch. That’s the Berserker.

“Much younger than I expected. He’s still wet behind the ears, how is he supposed to be the man with the most knowledge on the topic?” an older dude with long, black beard and hair comments. He is dressed in dark violet robes and holds onto a staff. He’s the Lightning Wizard.

“Hey, at least he should be able to run fast! We could have gotten some senile geezer who can barely move. I’ve heard the castle’s research labs are full of them. He could make a good bait too,” the last of the men joins to comment. A young adult. He wears light leather and cloth armour and a long cape with a hood in whitish shades. I can see a magical focus in the form of an amulet hanging around his neck and a mace by his side. The party’s healer, a Battle Priest.

“You guys! How can you be so rude right from the start! And towards someone sent by the kingdom too! They surely wouldn’t choose someone at random for such a dangerous task!” Finally, the tank speaks up; the only woman in this group. A gorgeous brunette with straight waist-long hair and a slightly freckled face. She’s covered with a heavy, steel armour, but a quite unusual one.

The light silver metal protects parts of her body in the form of gauntlets, bracers, shoulder pads, chest piece—ending shortly under her breasts, leaving her slim belly exposed—waist piece and high greaves. Most of her thighs and arms are uncovered for some reason. There’s something looking like a very tiny buckler strapped to her left forearm and a huge flail by her side. She’s the Holy Crusader and supposedly the leader of this party.

The men laugh and bicker between themselves for a while longer until the woman finally manages to calm them down. She walks up to me and extends her armoured hand forward.

“Please, ignore their comments, they are always like that towards everyone. Nice to meet you, Mr Carter, if I remember correctly. I’m Kyrie, a Holy Crusader, leader of the Ephemeral Aegis.”

I grab and shake it. She seems to have forgotten she is supposedly dealing with a scholar and squeezes my hand a little too hard, quickly noticing it, but ends up slightly surprised by my unconcerned smile.

“The pleasure is mine, Ms Kyrie. Feel free to drop these formalities. I’m here to temporarily join your party. Unnecessary things like that only get in the way during battle. Just call me Alastair or Al.”

She smiles back and nods. “Will do. These three are Alan, Crawford and Edgar,” she introduces the members in the same order they spoke earlier. I obviously knew their names like they knew mine, but you gotta do the greetings.

“Hey, twerp. What’s your Class?” the Berserker asks.

「Huh? It wasn’t listed in my portfolio they received? Ah, that’s quite logical actually. I’m so slow. Hmmm… What should I go with? Perhaps Ice Mage? Nah, what if I’d needed to switch my borrowed skill and couldn’t use Ice Magic in a situation? Let’s go with this.」

“Spiritual Weaponmaster,” I answer.

“I’ve heard of Weaponmaster but not a spiritual one. What does it do?” Kyrie asks this time.

I move my hand behind my back and grab the bladeless hilt strapped to my belt there, bringing it forth. They must have recognized it as an artefact of some sort because their eyes get instantly glued to it.

“It does something like this.”

Drawing on my mana, I create a connection with the crystal. The purplish helix is now barely visible. I think it will be gone after I tier up once more. Maybe something will be revealed finally. 

Anyway, the violet mist spills from the silver dragon’s maw and forms a shortsword in purple, metallic hues. I make a few test swings with it and turn the blade ethereal, showing them that it can pass through my body and Kyrie’s, who is still standing by my side. To finish it up, I form a longsword shape, and then something new, the shape of a fully operational longbow. I only lack arrows if I wanted to use it.

“Damn. Doesn’t that mean you can fight with pretty much anything?” Alan asks.

“Fight? Yes. Do great? No. Don’t take me for a warrior or something. My proficiencies with many weapons are decent, but this Class doesn’t really operate on many skills. Its main selling point is the element of surprise. I can quickly change my weapon mid-fight to confuse the enemy,” I try to make them believe that I’m nothing much for now. 

“That’s right. We are supposed to protect him, not have him fight on the frontlines,” Kyrie says while placing her hand on my shoulder. “Don’t worry, you will only have to do so if the worst happens or something pushes past our defences, which basically never happens. We are pros at this.”

I hide my hilt and nod at her. “I’ll be in your care then. I’m quite knowledgeable about monsters and other entities so I’ll do my best to throw tips and hints at you whenever possible. I’ve also prepared a few things that should help against our target.”

“Oh? That’s nice. You might not be as much of dead weight as we assumed,” Edgar comments.

「I wonder who will be the real dead weight when push comes to shove. I’m fairly sure I can snap your neck with a single hand.」

“Alright, no more rude comments. We are now comrades. I’m sure Alastair will prove to be plenty useful. We don’t get a chance to work with a kingdom’s researcher often. We might be able to learn from each other,” Kyrie adds and everyone stands up.

We head back to the main hall together and let Elise know that we are leaving. She wishes us good luck and informs us that there are horses waiting for us at the stables by the south gate, rented by the kingdom. The men in our party cheer loudly, slowly starting to enjoy the preferential treatment that comes with me.

After getting the horses, Crawford and Edgar take them to their inn to pack their necessities. Kyrie and Alan brought everything with themselves and I have all my stuff in the spatial storages. Asked about it, I say that one has been leant to me by the head of my division just for this quest and the duo seems impressed.

Without delaying it too much, we depart as soon as the other two come back. Fortunately, during my time in the castle, I've gone through horse riding practice and don’t have to completely embarrass myself during my first ever actual journey on this kind of transportation animal.

Our formation is simple and I take the spot in the middle, for obvious reasons. Kyrie takes the front, Alan rides in the back and the other two cover my sides. They do seem professional with escort quests, even though I’m not an actual escort target. I hope I can see them in action before we dive into the Succubus’ Den. Perhaps I should suggest going on a little hunt if nothing happens on our way to the village of Turna.

Three days pass in a flash and nothing notable happens. 

During breaks, we talk about our past experiences. It's mostly me listening to the great tales of their party. One thing I noticed, Kyrie isn’t that great with compliments herself. She can shower others with them, but the moment one of the guys mentions how amazing she is, she averts her gaze shyly.

Whenever I have the chance to talk—although I usually keep my social distance like a good, shut-in scholar would do—I share some fun and interesting trivia about various monsters with them. At one point, they finally recognize my knowledge and start asking about the ones they met in the past or the ones they have the highest chances of coming across again.

We, of course, cover the Succubi too, as one of their kind will be our main worry during this quest. They share most of their skills and abilities with me and how they usually use them together when fighting to give me some more insight into possible strategies I could come up with when clashing these with my knowledge. Not all of this was mentioned in the data I received from the King.

Thank the Goddess they also prefer not to show their statuses or I would most likely have to take a huge trust hit for being overly secretive. But, I guess Kyrie would support my decision, coming up with something like me having to be vigilant because I’m one of the kingdom’s men.

During these three days, I obviously keep in touch with my amazing girls through the Sweet Whispers. Just, after the first night, I had to introduce a rule saying that I will be the one to initiate the conversation unless it’s something crucial or an emergency. Suddenly shivering or flinching at random moments when we sit by the firepit is a little bit eye-catching.

Then, on the fourth day of our journey, something finally happens.