"I think we're halfway through the valley." Lena turned her head toward me, wearing a charming smile on her pretty face.

However, her charm was slightly overshadowed by the sight of the bloody sword she held, standing atop a huge carcass.

The lifeless body beneath her was that of a Steel Rhino, a ferocious beast standing as tall as two grown men, now ghastly with its head missing.

My mother gazed at the scene, her expression blank, much improved from earlier when she almost threw up her breakfast. Though she still seemed a bit pale.

"Yeah, at this pace, we should be out by tomorrow," I agreed with Lena's analysis, as Steel Rhinos typically appear in the middle region of the Rockfall Valley.

"Continue forward," I urged, catching Lena as she gracefully jumped down and placing her on the ground. "We should at least leave this region before taking a break," I suggested.

"Yeah, let's do that," Lena agreed, making a funny face at my mother. "We wouldn't want a bunch of those big guys jumping around us while we're resting, right?"

My mother smiled slightly and nodded, showing her agreement with Lena's logic.

And so we pressed on, delaying our rest slightly to ensure we were completely out of the rhino-like beasts' range. Riding my mount, Bert, my mother, Lena, and I cleared the path until we finally found a suitable spot to rest.

After having lunch and taking a short break, our group resumed our journey. The road was a bit bumpy, but it was also filled with excitement and joy.

...

"Ah, I'm beat!" Lena exclaimed as she plopped herself onto the soft bed inside the tent, voicing her exhaustion.

"Don't forget to analyze today's fights and see where you could improve," I reminded her while helping my mother collect the empty dishes.

"Ugh, I thought I could escape Master's teachings," Lena groaned playfully. "But how could I forget about the teacher's pet here!"

"Give her a break, will you?" Mom shot me a teasing look while smiling at Lena. "Our hardworking Lena deserves some proper rest."

"Mother is the best!" Lena grinned, sticking her tongue out at me.

"You'll spoil her like this," I teased back, but I couldn't reject my mother's suggestion.

Soon, my mother and I joined Lena on the bed.

"You know, I can sleep on a different bed. I know you have one," I said as Lena rolled over me and ended up on my side, putting me between her and my mother.

"Really?" Lena looked surprised. "But mother told me you liked to sleep by her side. How could I ever dare to separate you two?" She had a playful glint in her eyes.

I turned to my mother, giving her a blank stare.

"Uh, well, it's okay with me," she said, avoiding my gaze and looking a bit awkward. "Let's sleep! I can't wait to leave this barren valley tomorrow!"

Pulling the blanket over her head, Mom pretended to sleep.

I shook my head with a smile at their antics, feeling grateful that my mother and Lena got along so well. It was comforting to see them bond like this.

I closed my eyes, thinking about the journey ahead. Just as sleep was about to claim me, something caught my attention, pulling me back from the awaiting arms of slumber.

I felt a tug at my pants before a slender arm slithered its way inside. Before I could react through my stupefied state, the cunning burrower reached its target.

Lunging forward, it grabbed the sleeping beast in its jaw, making me groan.

"What in the world are you doing?" Before things could escalate, I hurriedly grabbed Lena's hand and turned to her with a scathing glare.

Fortunately, I had suppressed the noise by utilizing my mana, or it would have been enough to wake Mom from her sleep.

"What?" Lena replied to my glare with a calm gaze of her own. "I was just feeling a bit frisky; I thought you might be the same." At the end of the sentence, she bit her bottom lip while giving me a look that worked every time.

But not today.

"No way!" I still refused. "Is your brain adelled by lust? Can't you see Mom is sleeping right beside us?"

"So what?" Lena argued, but curled her lips upon seeing my intense glare. "Fine. Fine. I was just messing with you."

Just as I heaved a sigh.

"Even I'm not that shameless, you know," she continued. "But don't worry, I won't leave you hanging tonight. I have this after all."

A small red crystal bead was held in her palm, glimmering in the dim light from the mana lamp inside the tent.

"Is this..."

"Yep. A mini barrier." Lena smiled, finishing my words.

She waved her hand and infused a bit of her mana into the small crystal bead, making it shine a little before a wave was exuded from the seemingly tiny crystal.

The wave extended all around the two of us. Just as I was worried about it touching my mother's back, it stopped.

"Now there won't be a need for us to worry about disturbing Mother." Lena gave me a cheeky smile as she saw my dumbfounded expression.

"We can't!" After collecting myself, I shook my head and once again rejected her suggestion. "Barrier or not, we can't do that with Mom near us. What if she woke up?" My stance was firm, but Lena seemed to have made up her mind.

"Is that so? Then, don't you remember the time when we joined some adventurers on their journey and someone kept me 'awake' all night because he was drunk? Weren't there many people around who could have heard us?"

An awkward laugh escaped my mouth as I remembered the event she mentioned.

Fortunately, the others present at the scene were all dead drunk as the wine was provided out of my collection; hence, nobody heard the noises we both made till the sky brightened.

I opened my mouth to form a retort, but Lena beat me to it.

Grabbing my collar, she pulled herself over me.

"Listen, Mr. Daniel. You better surrender to this missy's wishes or I won't mind removing this barrier and making Mother hear some noises."

"Really?" I smiled, giving her a provocative look. "You can try. I also want to see how you'll retain your innocent image in front of Mom after doing that."

But Lena was not deterred. She chuckled coldly. "How Naive! Won't it be simple after I claim it was you who couldn't keep your hands to yourself and made a move on your sleeping girlfriend?"

"She won't believe you!" I exclaimed after getting over my shock at her words.

"Wouldn't she?" Lena gave me a look, making me remember all the times my mother favored her over me during the trip.

"W-well..." I tried to think of a reason to get out of my stuttering situation, but the teasing look Lena was giving me pissed me off.

"Damn it!"

"Kyaa!"

Grabbing her hands above her head, I stared into her eyes as she was stuck beneath me.

"What? Did I awaken the beast?" She smirked, not at all scared by my fierceness.

"You did." I nodded.

"Then, is the beast going to devour me?" Once again, I marveled at her expression as she gave me a pitiful look.

But it only served to arouse me more.

"You bet!"

Tearing sounds echoed within the small barrier as I tore open Lena's top, exposing her smooth breasts out in the open.

Not wasting a moment, my hands moved to her bottom before grabbing onto her snug pants.

"Ah, not these!" Lena suddenly shouted as she grabbed my hands. "These are imported from outside; I only have two of these."

I gave up on tearing open her pants, but my gaze made Lena understand what she needed to do.

So she hurriedly shimmied them off, now lying clad in only her black and sexy panties.

But those too were not staying for long.

Rip!

Lena gulped as she watched me remove her final line of defense and realized she was about to receive a severe "punishment." She felt both nervous and excited about the idea.

"Ah~!" Lena bit her lips again as my fingers began to open the petals of her pink flower.

Too bad, though; she couldn't hold it in for long and began to let loose a series of seductive moans that sounded pleasing to my ears.

As I felt the juices gushing out as a result of my actions, my hands stopped.

"Ngh- Ummh~!" Lena grunted in dissatisfaction, but her moans went back into circulation as my tongue took the place of my fingers.

Slurping on her delectable juices, my tongue worked with a commendable speed that a swordsman would surely want in their movements.

Flicking left and right before turning up and down, my tongue left no crease or fold unattended. Even the small dot above her ravine received attention—the special kind.

"Oh!" Lena arched her back as her hands grabbed my head when my teeth bit into her clitoris.

But that was just the beginning.

With my face buried in her crotch, I moved my tongue deeper inside, feeling her insides convulse and try to pull me in.

Too bad it wasn't the organ her lower half thought it was, but I didn't want to make it wait either.

While increasing the pace at which I ate her out, my hands reached upwards and grabbed her peaks that were jumping along with her quivering body.

As I pinched the cute, pink dots atop the majestic mountains on her chest, Lena experienced a wave of pleasure overflowing through her body as her body arched forward, almost sitting up. Her hands dragged my head further in while she twisted her neck and moaned in pleasure.

My actions had her painting my face with the wet result of my hard work, and I didn't waste any of it, slurping it all down.

"Hmmm..." Lena lay weakly on the bed, trying to savor the feeling.

Her toned legs were laid open around me, her chest rising and falling as she took in the necessary breaths to calm herself. Her eyes, still glazed, were staring upward.

As if feeling my hot gaze, Lena turned her eyes downward and matched my eyes. Her lips quivered as I thought she would ask for a break, but instead she said,

"Do me... huff... Now."

My mind blanked for a moment, but my body was more honest.

Minding the tightness I felt within my pants, I decided to free myself of them with a swift movement.

Springing forth with vigor charged to the fullest, my member quivered in eagerness as it freed itself of the bindings.

Lena sat herself up and helped me get rid of the rest of my clothes before placing her hand on my bare chest.

Her hand traced all around my torso before reaching down and going for its real aim. Her other hand was also in sync as she pulled me down.

Aiming my burning rod at her flooding entrance, Lena gave me a look that required no words to go with it.

"OOH!"

One thrust, and I was inside her, making us both realize the thirst we felt for each other.

With her arms open wide, Lena invited me into a sensual embrace that I was not going to reject. Grabbing her by the waist, I pulled her closer with my knees supporting both our weights.

One slow thrust after another, I forgot my initial aim of punishing her and just let myself get lost in pleasure with her.

Her soft moans and light squeals echoed directly in my ear as her chin was pressed against my shoulder. Each of our hands explored what we could of each other's bodies without disturbing our pace as our sweaty bodies melded together.

I grabbed the back of her head and brought her in for a kiss.

Our tongues initiated a battle, contrasting the slow and sensual movements we were going through.

From what I have experienced over the course of our relationship, I knew Lena liked this position the best when I embraced her. Kissing at the same time was like a cherry on top.

Her eagerness could be felt as she sucked on my tongue, as if trying to grab it within her mouth. But I was not to be outdone, and I also responded in kind.

"Dan! HmM! I... Ah!"

I felt her hot and wet cave convulsing and tightening around my girth, signaling the arrival of her eruption.

With rapid movements, I lowered my hands to her bottom and lifted her upwards before releasing her on my shaft.

An ecstatic moan escaped her lips, but that was not the end.

While she lost herself in the sudden thrust that went to her core, I lowered my mouth and bit one of her sweet dots that stood erect atop her jiggling mounds.

"DAANNN!"

Lena seemed to have lost control over herself as her body arched back violently, her hands clinging to my back for support while her nails tried to dig into my skin to express her joy.

As she breathed heavily, releasing her love juices as they slid down my length and fell on the bed, I kept holding her in my embrace, letting her recover her stamina.

"Dan," Lena said after calming her heaving bosom.

"Hm?" I gazed into her eyes with a loving expression as I raised my hand to caress her face.

Lena looked at me for a moment before averting her gaze as a guilty expression came over her face.

"I forgot to turn on the soundproofing."

What?

My expression froze as I turned my head to the side.