Just like three weeks ago, a feast was held to celebrate Erik’s victory. This time Erik arrived earlier than agreed and thus prevented a similar situation from last time occurring where he was made to drink an exorbitant amount as ‘punishment’ for being late.

But before he went to the Great Hall, he had to tend to some things. He had numerous small cuts across his arms, legs and torso from where he had barely managed to redirect Rokar’s spear and the bruise on his side had fully formed and made him a bit uncomfortable.

And of course he had gained rewards for beating the second Trial. He would check Rokar’s belongings tomorrow, when they were organized, but right now he could check the Favour he had gained.

Player Favour:
Khorne:               101 (+25)
Slaanesh:            135 (+6)
Nurgle:                103 (+32)
Tzeentch:            26 (+1)

Khorne was pleased with the macabre ending of the fight. Slaanesh approved the excessive nature of the last strike. Nurgle appreciated Erik’s perseverance. Tzeentch did not care much, but could see the cleverness in using Rokar’s momentum against him.

All in all, Erik now had a huge amount of Favour piled up. It was to the point he started wondering if there was a limit to the amount he could store or whether the Favour could expire over time? But he was still reluctant to spend it, not willing to lose control of himself.

If he remembered correctly, obtaining stat levels of 30 would unlock certain things, but Erik currently did not feel the need to rush towards this milestone. And the 10:1 Favour to stat point ratio would remain until he reached the 30 points milestone.

‘Maybe I should save enough Favour to reach the 30 points in 1 go and spend the Favour in a remote, safe location?’

To do this, he already had enough Khornite Favour to hit 30 points in STR and he already had 30 points in WIS naturally. To reach 30 points in DEX, he would need 20 more points or 200 Slaanesh Favour and for CON he needed 180 Favour to exchange for 18 CON points.

‘I have the means to reach Slaanesh Favour, I just need to sleep with those bedwarmers, act intimately with women or have lustful delusions. So that won’t really be a problem to reach.

The Nurgle Favour is tougher. To earn his Favour I needed to…. Bring death, be patient, persevere, become disease ridden or… survive?’

At the mention of survival, Erik immediately thought of the upcoming Winter Hunt.

“Yes, the Winter Hunt will be where I can most easily farm Nurgle’s Favour by surviving. Living here is comfortable, but it also impedes my development in this regard.”

‘And as for Slaanesh, well, maybe I should try and go for it with Sigrun. We’ve practically been inseparable these past 6 weeks, so it’s about time I act according to my affection and desire…’

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As he had set out to do, Erik arrived on time for the feast this time, to the dismay of many of the attendants who had hoped to drink him under the table again today.

But halfway through the party after filling his stomach and working up a light, pleasant buzz from the alcohol, Sven came up to him. He took the horn of mead from Erik’s hand and told Erik to follow him further into the hall, past the doors leading into the Jarl’s inner quarters.

Seeing the serious expression on Sven’s face, Erik sobered up a little. Grabbing and eating a small slice of tender meat from a passing servant girl, resisting the urge to squeeze the inviting ass, and went after Sven.

During the six weeks he had been here, Erik had only been inside the Great Hall for a total of eight times. And this was the first time he got invited to the inner quarters past the feasting hall.

Sven lead him through winding corridors, outside through two separate courtyards and finally entered into a cosy looking, 1 story bungalow.

Once inside, Sven took a seat at the door while gesturing for Erik to head further in. A fire was lit in the fireplace and a small table was setup with three chairs around it.

Facing the door and looking at Erik were Jarl Ingolf and Helles. Ingolf gestured for Erik to take a seat.

Complying, Erik took the offered seat and directed a questioning gaze at the couple. He could somewhat guess what this was about, but which direction it would take was still a mystery to Erik.

“Haah, I’m not one to mince words Erik so I’ll go straight to the point. You can’t marry Sigrun.”

Ingolf released a bit of pressure as he said those words, but when Helles placed her hand on his that pressure was immediately taken back. But even just that short moment nearly gave Erik a heart attack.

For a short moment the buff middle-aged man felt more frightening than anything Erik ever experienced. It was akin to facing a mad beast waiting to rip his throat out and devour him.

“I think you need to finish your sentence, husband. And that trick you pulled was also uncalled for.”

“… fine. Just needed to give a stern warning and we should have had this talk weeks ago but we never had the time.”

Internally, Erik was screaming ‘Who are you fooling?! This was obviously premediated by you two! I’m being framed!’ but externally he was still trying to get his expression back under control.

“Ehum, okay. So, I won’t let you marry Sigrun. YET. I’m not against you two being together. I’m not even against you two showing affection. But I will not allow you two to be intimate. If your dick itches, you deal with it however you handled it until now. But you keep it away from my daughter until I can safely allow your marriage!”

Towards the end Ingolf was becoming increasingly animated and a vein was visibly pulsing on his forehead.

Then Helles took over from her husband.

“We as her parents have little say in Sigrun’s matters, but as her parents we must also look out for her.

We are aware you are special, Erik. But the Gods can be fickle and take away as swiftly as they give. They gave you these Trials for a reason and surviving them will prove your worth, but I will not allow my daughter to become a widow before officially marrying!”

Despite her pretty much saying Erik could die at any moment for the foreseeable future, she also acknowledged and gave their support for Erik to be together with Sigrun.

“But, there is something we should have asked you before we said this:

Do you love our daughter Sigrun and will you love and respect her for as long as you live, no matter how complicated or extensive your inner residence becomes?”

Suddenly put on the spot, Erik was momentarily lost for words. But upon seeing Jarl Ingolf’s rapidly darkening face he quickly replied.

“Yes! I swear to cherish her always and respect her! Father-in-law, mother-in-law!”

A smile formed on Helles face, adding to her mature charm, but Ingolf exploded.

“Who is your father-in-law?! Have you listened to a word we said? Nothing is set in stone until you pass your Trials! And even then, if Sigrun changes her mind before then all this talk was wasted anyway!”

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Soon after, Erik was sent out the same way he came. They had continued talking about certain details for a short while and at some point Sven had disappeared.

But in his place a very red-faced Sigrun leaned against the wall outside the building. It was unknown when she had gotten there, but she had evidently heard enough to know why Erik was talking with both her parents.

Awkwardly, Erik decided to bite the bullet.

“So Sigrun, will you go out with me with the intention to marry once I finish my Trials?”

There was a Norscan custom for proposing marriage which included the payment of a bride-price. The concept of being together with a promise to marry, in other words an engagement, was an unusual thing and often not done one equal terms but rather as a punishment where a victor lay claim to the loser’s wife, sister or daughter.

No tears fell, but Sigrun’s large green eyes became visibly moist as she happily agreed to Erik’s proposal.

“Yes, I would love to!”

Receiving the answer he had already expected but still feared wouldn’t be heard, Erik tightly embraced Sigrun who hugged him back in kind.

And after they let go and gazed into each other’s eyes, they slowly leaned in closer.

At the last moment before their lips touched, Erik and Sigrun both closed their eyes and enjoyed a moment of bliss as they kissed. Whether or not they had kissed once three weeks ago, they would forever remember this moment as their first.

Again they separated, gazed deeply into the other’s eyes and leaned back in for a second kiss.

This time they were rougher, more passionate. Erik pried open her mouth and invaded with his tongue, wrestling with Sigrun’s and exchanging saliva.

At times slowly sucking, at others violently coiling together by the end of it they were both out of breath and had to stop due to lack of oxygen.

After regaining their breath, this time Sigrun gave Erik a light peck on the lips as her smile seemed to become a hundred, no, a million times more brilliant. And all Erik could do was sheepishly smile back as she took his hand in hers and they walked back towards the Great Hall, where Erik’s victory feast was still ongoing.

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Watching the new couple return inside, a pair of sinister eyes filled with a malicious gaze turned around a far off corner, a slight purple haze trailing behind where he stood a moment ago.

‘So I am not good enough for you, but you willingly throw yourself into a stranger’s hands you’ve only known for less than six weeks just like that? Let’s just see what kind of expression you’ll show me when I piss on his corpse and claim you by force!’