We were all standing in front of the shop early in the morning, though, in Niva’s case, it’d be more apt to say she was sitting comfortably in her comfy wheelchair. Even though I said we were leaving at 7, it just so happened that everyone was up and moving two hours before then. It was funny how things worked out like that, but I wasn’t complaining about getting an early start. That only meant we’d be back sooner, and I couldn’t wait for my date with Sekh.  

The early morning purple sky was a rare occurrence, but I wanted to look at it as an omen of good luck as it blessed a traveling group of four with good luck. Ichiha, dressed in her robe, handed me a stack of sandwiches wrapped in parchment paper. I thanked her for the food and stored it, then took the backpack she had in her other hand. We talked earlier, and she quipped it’d be strange to walk around without pouches or gear. Sekh slipped hers on, and Niva had one resting across her lap.  

“Be careful, okay? Is that enough food? I can make something else if you’d like. What about some soup for Niva?”  

“Thank you, but we’ll be fine. I know how to stew and soup from watching you all the time. I planned to do a little bit of hunting along the way,” I replied. She asked if we had enough water, and we probably had more than enough. 16 canteens full of water sat in my storage, and even if we didn’t hunt, I had 8 lbs of meat left.  

“Still, be careful, okay?” Irisa asked, repeating her mother’s sentiment. “I know you have your map and that AI thingie, but I can’t help but worry. People are nasty out there.” Irisa grabbed my hand and led me about ten feet away, then she whispered in my ear. “It’s four girls traveling alone. One’s a fairy, one’s in a wheelchair... Yeah, it’s only 3 days away, but—” 

“I understand your worries. Trust me, we’ll be alright. I’m just Lv. 9—the same as Sekh—but we’ll be fine. Besides, there haven’t been that many reports of bandits attacking, right?”  

“Yeah,” Irisa said, nodding. “Then promise me you’ll return safe and sound, okay? You won’t not come back, right?” 

Irisa cares so much, doesn’t she? 

“Here, how about this?” I pointed towards my head and set a waypoint on myself, then shared that with Irisa. She stared at the glowing blue pillar. “You’ll always know just where I am. I wish I could share [Map] with you."  

“The waypoint’s good enough. Thanks, Mila.” Irisa put her hands on my upper arms, and I hugged her. From behind, I heard her mother and father comment on this exceptional display of affection. 

But... I want to be more than friends. I’m sure she does too. But then there’s Sekh... I love her with all my heart, but loving a second woman the way I love her? 

We broke off from the hug, and I walked back to Sekh and the others. Ichiha slyly hid her grin behind her hand while her husband smiled brightly. 

“Mom! Dad!” Irisa whined playfully. Her parents shared a look and just laughed, and I joined in. This fun, fresh, familial atmosphere was cheesy, but it was...enjoyable. But before too long, it really was time for us to leave. I grabbed the push handles of Niva’s wheelchair and began to walk. Sekh was faithfully beside me with her shield hanging off her back. Her mace swung from her hips. And when she was in her armor, she looked so powerful and striking. 

But in regular clothes, she’s so pretty and beautiful. 

Before we reached the corner of the road, I turned back and waved. Seconds later, the family of onis returned to the shop. With the thought of acquiring power at the forefront of my mind, we resumed walking and made our way to the northern gate. 

---

“My liege? You’ve been in deep thought for the last hour. Are you okay?” Sekh asked about an hour after we left Ria. We’d been enjoying the beautiful morning in silence, but her inquiry caused Niva to look behind her.   

“Oh, sorry. I was going over some information about Gloria. The AI has a notepad function where I can pen my thoughts down,” I replied. “I wish there was more to it, but... It's a challenge for Arella to get worthwhile information. Gloria’s getting upset by the day, and in anger, she blew up the boss’s chamber again. Arella managed to sneak off to the dungeon and talk with her. An actual face-to-face talk and not through telepathy. Then the two of them spoke to the council. I’m not a mind reader, so I don’t know what was said. But Gloria seemed happier, so I suppose the funeral went off without a hitch.” 

Predictably, Niva flinched at Gloria’s name. I didn’t notice until Tilde whacked me on the head. I apologized, but she shook her head as if to say that I didn’t have to say sorry.  

A thought came to my mind.   

“Niva, I don’t want to be insensitive, but you understand us, right? I haven’t asked that yet.” She turned around and nodded, and while I felt like a jackass, I had to make sure. Maybe it was stupid—Tilde certainly thought so because she looked at me like my IQ was below freezing. But I felt relieved when Niva nodded when I asked if her name was, in fact, Niva.  

It meant she was here in the now and not some imaginary personification to take the brunt of reality while her true personality was sheltered in the safety of her mind.  

Over the next four hours, we conversed through a series of yes or no questions. I learned Niva wasn’t born blind. She was illiterate and couldn’t do math, but she understood I was a chimera. When asked if she was afraid, she immediately shook her head no. Furthermore, I was correct in assuming that she believed the night she woke was a dream. Now, she understood it wasn’t. When asked if she understood everything, Niva rightfully shook her head and nodded when asked if she wanted to know more.  

I took a second and thought it over. We were traveling to the northeast on the outskirts of a great forest. My map indicated the closest person was about 3,000 feet behind me—a wagon, it was, and it was carrying food and supplies. Since I hadn’t been to the northeast, the area wasn't indexed on my map. But my eyes saw nothing but a well-traveled dirt road with two distinct wheel lines. 

And so, I thought there was no better time than to let it all out. Starting from the beginning, I told Niva my whole life story since I wanted to be honest with someone under my protection. If she was going to be loyal to me, then there had to be no lies. I had a lot to cover, so it took me the rest of the day to explain it. We stopped twice before the night fell to eat some lunch while giving Sekh and Niva a chance to answer the call of nature. Being a chimera came with some nice perks, the inability to piss or defecate being one of them.  

But I was still telling my story when the night descended, and we needed to find a place to stay. Luckily, we’d passed an empty cave, and we only had to retrace our steps for about ten minutes. But when we took refuge in it while I prepared dinner, Niva was still emotional. I didn’t know why, but she took the tale of Shuuta and Mila harder than I thought. While we walked, Niva constantly looked at my voice with thick, fat tears in her eye. Her mouth opened, and I knew she was struggling to speak. The cause wasn’t physical, so I’d hope we’d get to the bottom of it soon.  

For that reason, I sat next to her while I cooked a steak, making sure to cut it thin and small for Niva to eat. After eating, the four of us relaxed against the cave’s wall and enjoyed the quiet nature.  

It was atmospheric and pleasant. The windy breeze made it cool, even if it was supposed to be in the middle of summer. Before I knew it, Niva had fallen asleep leaning against my shoulder. Seeing her totally trusting me warmed my heart. She was a far cry from that abused girl who screamed and cried at just the lightest of touches. 

“Congratulations, Master,” Tilde said, hovering in front of us. “You successfully acquired her heart. Not just any girl would lean against someone like that if they didn’t undeniably trust them. Especially someone like Niva. It’s too bad she’s like literally right there.” I asked why, and she pointed to my crotch. “You haven’t banged Big Tits in like three weeks. The breeze could give you a literal blowjob. I suppose she could always stroke you off. Also, wasn’t it a waste for Irisa to make those spider-leg holes in the back? It probably was. Same thing with the slits on the elbows for you to web dodge. Seems like totally useless modifications. Eh, but that’s life. Better to be prepared than be caught with your cock out.”  

"You’re the horniest goddamn thing I know,” I replied.  

“I take a lot of pride in that! Thank you very much!” Tilde stuck her tongue out at me, then produced a flirty smile. 

I turned to Sekh to see her smiling adorably at me. She grabbed my hand with both of hers while leaning her head against me.  

Soon, she closed her eyes after I told her I’d do the first watch. But did I have to do that? I asked the AI if it slept. 

This unit does not require sleep or nourishment other than the mana in the atmosphere, my lord. 

“Good. Keep watch. Wake me if something seems out of the ordinary or someone is within 60 feet of the cave’s entrance.” The AI understood my command, and after waiting just a few more minutes, I grabbed Sekh’s and Niva’s hands and drifted asleep. 

---

We hit the road early the following morning after a quick breakfast of scrambled eggs. I didn't need a refrigerator because the items in my storage were frozen in time—a type of stasis, Tilde called it.   

With another long day of traveling ahead of us, we naturally turned to conversation to pass by the time. I was thinking of what we could talk about when Sekh spoke up.   

“Niva?” Niva looked towards Sekh’s voice with a puzzled expression. Her hood was slightly oversized, but it looked cute with it pulled over her head. “Would you...like to hear about my past? We’re allies—serving the same liege.”  

“Not serving,” I said, correcting Sekh. 

“Geez, Master, you need to read the room,” Tilde interjected. “Big Tits calls you ‘my liege’. Anyone who hears that would obviously think she serves you. And she does, I mean, especially in the bedroom. Trust me, I’ve been a front-row witness to her service. Hehehe... She sure can work a—”  

“You can call it what you want, but you are my allies. I want to stand side-by-side. If you want to call that ‘serving’ then fine.”  

“Don’t be a sourpuss. People would love to have the fabled Dark Lord of Tyrannical Big Tits serve them. Even more so when she’s a submissive little kitty. Besides, you’re the Transcendent Dark Lord. Even in training, it’s only apt for you to have a dedicated circle of servants and loyal bodyguards.”  

“Tilde, we’ll talk about this later, okay?”  

“Fine,” she whined and rolled her eyes so hard I thought they were looking into the back of her head. Tilde flew to the pouch in Niva’s lap and sat down to enjoy the ride.  

After glaring at the annoying fairy, Sekh began to tell the long, arduous tale of a woman cursed to end the world. When I told my story yesterday, I spared no expense or detail, and Sekh was much of the same. She’d reincarnated at least a hundred times, so she couldn't remember the details of her earliest lives. Still, it was quite a graphic and tragic recantation to the point where she grabbed my arm for emotional support. When it seemed like the recollection was getting too vivid, we stopped for lunch to let her emotion simmer. It also allowed Niva to come to terms with what she was just told.  

But soon enough, we were back on the journey. I checked the chair’s wheels to make sure they were fine, and they were. Niva nodded when I asked if she was still comfortable.   

By the time Sekh had finished her life’s story, night had fallen upon us for the second time. We didn’t have the luxury of a cave, but there was a nearby lake with plenty of space underneath the lakeside palm trees. The water’s surface was so still and pristine that it perfectly reflected the starry heavens shining upon it. With the mystical glow of a campfire to provide warmth on this rather chilly summer night, I’d taken it upon myself to hold a small class after eating some beef soup I’d made.  

I pulled out the .45s gainfully acquired from Noelia and laid them on the grass before taking them apart. Thanks to [Firearms] and [Weapon Creation], I learned faster and quicker than I would if I was still Shuuta. Sekh sat opposite of me and stared intently, her quizzical silver eyes staring at all the little parts.   

“My liege?”  

“Hmm”?  

“If you don’t mind, could you tell me a little bit about this gun? I assume there’s something like it in your world.” 

“There is. It looks remarkably like the Colt 1911, a gun that, as you can probably tell, was made in 1911. At least, it was in my world. It was used by the United States for over 190 years before finally being retired, though it does see use in retro gun circles,” I said. Sekh just looked at me with genuine intrigue and asked me to keep going. Niva was looking my way and nodded. “Really? It doesn’t bore you two?”  

Niva shook her head while Sekh spoke. “It seems like you enjoy tinkering with guns, so why wouldn’t I be interested in it?” Sekh’s reply touched my heart, and I began to talk about them. Truth be told, I didn’t remember why or how I became fascinated with them. All I know is that one day I woke up and wanted to do research, so I waited until the family had left me alone to get on the computer. I was forbidden from doing so, and I was caught, beaten for my insolence, and left to starve for three days.  

During this, I took one apart as much as possible because I needed tools to break it down further, then put it all back together. The .45s were from the same monster, yet they were different colors, had varying attachments, and the magazines were different sizes. One held 8 rounds, another had 15, and all were fully loaded with bullets.  

Since we had plenty, I split them into  groups of four and added and removed parts until I had a pair of ‘optimal’ guns. One went to Sekh, and it was all gunmetal gray with a red dot sight, a 14-round magazine, and a muzzle break to help control recoil. Mine had black grips with a metal finish that held 15 bullets. Her eyes sparkled when she raised it, but I stopped her because her finger was on the trigger.   

When it came to firearms, there were rules to follow.   

Vital rules. 

Important rules. 

“Treat every gun as if it’s loaded. Even if I took one apart and handed you the frame with none of the internals, it’s loaded. The gun is always loaded. Always.”  

“It’s always loaded… Got it.” 

“Always keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction and never point it at something you do not wish to destroy.” I waited for Sekh to nod, then I continued. “Keep your finger off the trigger until it is time to fire your gun. If you can, keep your index finger extended and lay it above the trigger guard. Or you can fold it in and place it below the guard. The choice is up to you.” 

“Of course. Right, I think I got it,” Sekh whispered. “Thank you for the gun.” She kissed me, and we shared a nice moment. Tilde said she wanted a ‘strap’ to blast some ‘fools’ asses,’ and I assumed she meant a firearm. The last thing I ever wanted was a psycho fairy with a loaded gun. And Niva couldn’t get one for obvious reasons. 

I need a source of bullets. 

My holster was destroyed in the monster train incident, so I used [Nature’s Workshop] and the AI to build some using the vines and palm leaves from up above. Some quick work later, I made fifteen in just a few minutes since it was all simple. Sekh modeled for me and decided she wanted hers on her back, just above the hip. I preferred having it on my side. With the two of us armed, we settled to chat for a while.  

Before anything interesting happened, Tilde almost outright demanded something on my mind. It concerned [Enchanting]. With enough effort, a ballroom dress would offer more defense than a suit of full-plate armor.  

“You’d like that, wouldn’t you, naughty Master. Imagine seeing Big Tits’ mommy milkers in a nice blouse instead of armor. Or seeing her curvy backside in a skimpy skirt, even while knowing that even a sniper wouldn’t pierce her skin because it’s been enchanted to kingdom fucking come? Or you can enchant {Mana Link} onto her armor. She can wear whatever she wants and change into combat mode when shit gets real.”  

“My armor in my previous life was like that,” Sekh said. 

“Oh? Is that a hint to your Divine Armament’s true power?”  

“Mmm, it could be,” she playfully said. She took my hand in hers and leaned in close for another kiss. A passionate, hot, wet kiss that flipped the switch inside her. She placed my hand against her cheek, and I caressed her so sweetly. I believed I could stave off the growing erection, but Sekh had to pop my thumb in her mouth and suck on it lewdly while giving me that look. 

After fishing my finger from her mouth, I stood up and swept her off her feet.  

“AI, keep an eye on things and let me know if people get close. Tilde, stay here and watch Niva.” 

“Go on, y’all go have some fun,” she said with a flicker of her wrist, aiming towards the second nearest tree. Sekh wrapped her arms around my neck. She gingerly licked my throat, and I heard Tilde say something to Niva. “Alright, you gotta understand something about our Master...” 

She better not say anything stupid... 

When we were obscured, it seemed all our libidinous emotions poured out like the waters of a broken dam. I saw her, she saw me, and the two of us were alone in our lascivious world.  

After we returned to the campfire after our much-needed tryst, Tilde had a lewd smile while she rubbed her greedy little mittens. She wanted to know what I did to make Sekh moan so loud and passionately, but I wanted to keep some secrets. The fairy flicked me off. Ignoring her, I sat beside a sleeping Niva, patted her head, which caused her to reach out to grab onto me with her remaining hand, and laid down with Sekh. She was gleaming— a glowing, radiant beauty that I embraced under the cool moonlight.  

She turned to her side. Even though she was back in her armor, she hugged my arm as best she could. “I know your thoughts on what I’m about to say, but I wish to serve you with all my heart,’ Sekh whispered.  

“I know,” I whispered back. “If that’s what you want... Just know that you mean so much more to me than that. I will never think of you as a servant. You're my adorable Sekh. My lovely Lionfolk that's captured my heart...”  

“I love you, my liege,” Sekh quietly said with a smile.  

“I love you too,” I replied. 

 

---

It was the third day of our trip. After lunch, we packed our gear and set back on the road. From Kokan’s map, we’d been arriving sometime after sunset. After last night’s midnight fun, I was thinking more about our date. The moment that world left my mouth...  

“DATE?!?!?!” Tilde exclaimed so abruptly Niva almost suffered whiplash from turning her head so fast. “I WANT—”  

“No, you’re not invited,” I told the annoying fairy. We had a playful argument where she tried to bribe me for permission to join us.  

The conversation turned to Irisa. “Wow, okay? Isn’t it kinda rude to talk about another girl when you’re discussing date specifics with someone else? I see you’re trying to balance two chicks on the side. Never thought you had it in you.”  

“It’s not that. Sekh, how do you feel about her?”  

“Hmm... She’s very kind,” Sekh said after putting a finger to her chin. “I’m happy when I see her, and I’m glad we found her store. She had no reason to make this armor for me, but she did it anyway. Eating with her and her family? It reminded me of my previous existences before the curse took over.”  

“You’d say you like her?” I inquired.  

Sekh nodded. “I want to remain allies with her. So, yes, I do like her.” She smiled. I returned it, and we spent a few hours talking about Irisa. We hadn’t seen anyone in about four hours, and [Map] said no one was behind us for about 3 miles, and we just took our sweet time. It warmed my heart to know she felt the same way. I wanted to be in a committed relationship with Sekh, but I couldn’t hide what I felt for Irisa. Nor did I want to push it away. Polygamy was supposed to be illegal in my world, but those with money and power sidestepped the rules to do what they wanted.  

I didn’t have any of that... I supposed I’d have to have an in-depth talk with Sekh, but I was dreading it because I didn’t want to be an asshole and flat-out ask to sleep with someone else. 

There’s always the possibility my impotence will return for her. That's a very real fear. 

We continued until reaching a fork in the road. All the other times, we just had to continue straight. If we’d done that here, we’d still be on the outskirts of the tree line. Our destination, in fact, was to branch off to the left and enter the forest clearing. It was a forest village, after all. There weren’t any signs, and I rightly didn’t care for the reason.  

The terrain wasn’t that hard to get a wheelchair-bound girl through, so we traveled down the forestry path with little to no trouble. Thanks to the numerous amounts of large trees and even larger leaves overhead, the entire trail was nicely shaded and cool. The colorful flowers dancing from the tree limbs range from cool blues to spicy crimsons and elegant purples. Before long, I found myself smiling and started to tell Niva what I saw. Her face changed with my ever-increasing detailed descriptions.   

After a certain point, it was like we were in a tunnel made of trees. The only light came from white mushrooms that acted like lightbulbs to illuminate the way. It was wide enough for three wagons to comfortably travel side-by-side, but it was empty. At the end of the tunnel, however, was a wall of thin vines that led to the village proper.