For the first time in his life, Puppy woke up with two women in his bed. Arivarea was sleeping with her mouth open and dribble slowly leaked out onto the pillow. Vale was sleeping on her back with the duvet pulled all the way up to her neck. Puppy was in the middle with very little room. He desperately needed to stretch but found no space to do so.

He pushed with his legs and slid out the top of the bed, then crawled on top of the bed to the end where he finally got off it. He wiped his brow, that much exertion was far too much first thing in the morning.

He remembered what Arivarea said about having a harem and shuddered. How was he going to get out of bed with even more women, just the thought was making him claustrophobic.

He fetched enough water for the three of them downstairs then set about cleaning himself. The other two woke up at their own pace and did the same.

“You’re something else, Puppy,” said Vale as she wiped her armpit.

“You were quite impressive yourself. Especially your mouth.”

“I’m quite confident in that area,” she smiled sweetly.

“With good reason,” he said. He had finished washing and was getting dressed. Not forgetting to admire the view of the two beautiful ladies before him.

“You’re just going to stand there and watch?” asked Arivarea.

“Yep,” he said. Arivarea’s short muscular body was dripping with soapy water, her usually curly hair was soaking wet and straight. She claimed that this would be the last good wash they would have in a while, he had to admit that she could be right.

“Well, it’s not like I mind,” said Vale. She bent over slowly and washed her legs, allowing Puppy full view of her goods. Fully knowing what she was doing she giggled as he looked hungirly towards her.

“Calm down doggy, I don’t think I could handle another round with you,” she said, only half jokingly. Her legs were sore as anything, just making it through the day was going to be tough enough.

“What did I say, I told you he was good,” said Arivarea smugly.

“You did… I’m very jealous that you will have him all to yourself on your journey.”

“Only for a bit, we plan on expanding our group eventually,” she said. It sounded normal but the way Arivarea said it made it sound like there was a plan, and a lewd one at that.

“Sounds exciting,” chuckled Vale. The idea of asking to join sounded wonderful but she had family to take care of. “I hope one day you find your way back to my town and rescue me from boredom.”

Arivarea took the hint well, she was not in a position to join the gang. It would have been nonsensical if she did considering even the two adventurers had no idea where they were going. Before they left the room, Vale gathered the two of them and kissed them both once. It was a better goodbye than just saying goodbye, Puppy thought.

They headed downstairs, Vale was immediately lectured for being late so she could only watch enviously as the other two ate breakfast. Then they disappeared upstairs again to pack. Puppy had to admit he was curious about what was in those shopping bags and why they were so heavy.

His questions remained unanswered as she walked out of her room with maybe a slightly oversized backpack but nothing surprising considering it contained all her belongings. In comparison it was only slightly bigger than his own.

Not only that but it seemed she had no trouble carrying it so there was no way she’d packed whatever it was that was so heavy.

“Did you pack that heavy thing from last night?” he asked, worried she may have forgotten.

“Of course,” she said mysteriously.

They continued downstairs and after one final goodbye to Vale, they left town.

They both knew where they were heading now. North East of Vale’s town was a city. Considering their need for information regarding the person who stole Puppy’s Master’s weapon, they decided a large city was a good place to start. Information would be aplenty.

“What kind of dog are you, Puppy?” asked Arivarea, it seemed like a question she’d been wanting to ask for a long while. The track they were walking down was well worn and overgrown so much that it looked like part of the forest.

“I don’t think I’m any kind of specific beast-kin. I have a lot of mixed blood in me,” he said. He was genuinely unsure as both his parents had similarly ambiguous genetic make up.

Arivarea hummed. “Has that ever caused you trouble? You know how beast-kin are about pure blooded breeds.”

“No, what about pure blooded breeds?”

“You don’t know?” she asked, a little shocked.

“Know what? Almost as soon as I turned five I was whisked away from my village by my Master. I barely saw anyone except my parents until three days ago.

Avivarea was fully shocked this time. She stopped in her tracks with her wide open eyes staring at the odd dog.

“You mean to say your Master never took you anywhere?”

“Not really, we did everything we needed to do to live by ourselves.”

“What about having fun?”

“Well, we had sex for that…” he said as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

Arivarea, who had just started walking again, stopped… Again.

“Who with?”

“My Master.”

“Excuse me!?”

“I mean, only after I turned seventeen. Before that I was having enough fun just fighting her every day.”

“That explains why you’re so good despite being a loner.”

“Hey,” he said with a pout. “I’m not a loner.”

“I’m not bashing being a loner. I was a loner too, up until I met you. My Master only ever let me go to town very rarely, not nearly enough to make any friends. I’m just surprised you were fooling around with your Master.”

“She said that it was a vital skill to learn and that she would not have been doing her job if she did not teach me. But, I could tell she was just bored and horny.”

“I’ve never met your Master but she does sound like an interesting person.”

“You could say that… You could also say crazy,” he smiled. “But I’m glad she’s interesting. Otherwise I would have been very bored.”

“And you turned out pretty well so she can’t have been that bad,” they laughed a little and continued their conversation.

As the sun went down on the first day of travelling they found a nice area to set up camp and began to unpack what they needed for the night.

Puppy was about to make his usual tent with pole and a tough cloth but Arivarea commanded the forest to make a perfect den for them to sleep in. He looked at his measly tent and laughed at the comparison.

Instead he threw the tent cloth over the forest den to make it more waterproof and went about preparing a meal. But, Arivarea stopped him before he could start.

“You know, since I fought you last time I can’t stop thinking about all the ways I could have beaten you.”

“Oh, were you? Can’t have been many.”

“No you’re right, there weren’t many when I was taking into account your magic. But, just regular you should be manageable.”

“You know, if we fight with me not being allowed to use magic…”

“Of course, I won’t use mine either.”

“Then that’s fair.”

“Who do you think I am?” she asked as if she'd been insulted.

“My Master would always tell me to fight her without using my magic meanwhile she’d use hers unreservedly.”

“That’s dirty.”

“It is…”

“So, are you up for it, Puppy?” she asked with her hands already resting on her dagger’s grips.

“I don’t think you’ll be so perky after I plant you in the ground like the tree you are.”

“You’re all bark and no bite.”

They squared off. Arivarea in her rogue stance with two daggers and Puppy with his spear.

They fought three times, Arivarea won two and Puppy won one. Total duel score: 2-1, advantage Arivarea. They decided not to count the duels that involved their magic.

They eventually slid into the tent, Arivarea had climbed on top of Puppy before he could even close his eyes. He decided she was getting cocky so he dicked her down so hard she came in minutes and passed out immediately. He finished himself off again, somewhat missing Vale’s sloppy mouth.

With the fire burning outside and the traps surrounding their camp that Arivarea had planted, Puppy felt the safest he’d ever felt whilst sleeping outdoors.

Having a product of the forest as his companion was already coming in handy. She had even asked the forest if this area was safe for them and it had replied with a resounding yes.

Puppy shook his head, if she was surprised by his spatial magic then he was just as surprised at her odd ability to converse with and manipulate plants.

When they woke they quickly began moving again, this pattern of wake, walk, fight, fuck and sleep carried on for several days. Eventually they could see the city in the distance.

“Wait,” said Arivarea, then without explaining anything sat down and connected herself to the ground again, like when she was searching for the mushrooms.

They were on top of a reasonably big hill that gave them a nice view of the area, which was why they could see the city. From where they were they could also see the forest that they had come from and the grasslands that littered the country-side. Home to the herbivorous beasts. In-between them and the city was acres of farmland for feeding the city.

“What is it?” asked Puppy.

“Over there,” she pointed further East. “There’s something going on.

“What kind of thing?”

“A bad kind of thing.”

“How can you tell?”

“The grass is soaked in blood.”

“How do you even? Well nevermind, let’s go,” he said but Arivarea was already running. He sprinted after her.

They arrived at a farm house, it smelt horrible as Puppy approached he grimaced at the sight of blood and bodies. He noticed there were prisoners chained to the wooden wall where horses would usually be shackled.

Puppy whipped around and smacked away an oncoming sword with his spear. He quickly sized up the attacker. It was a very serious looking back haired woman.

“What are you doing here?” she asked.

“What? I can’t… What did you say?”

“This fucking dog can’t speak Rinean, fuck.”

“Arivarea, do you understand her?”

“Not at all.”

“Shit, what do we do?”

“Puppy, there are bodies all over here and she attacked us, put two and two together.”

“No,” he said but Arivarea had already charged at her.

“Fuck,” the woman cursed as she backed away. She had no idea what they were saying and they couldn’t understand her either. She wasn’t about to pull innocent people into her business so she ran.

Arivarea tried to follow but Puppy caught her by the collar.

“Don’t”

“What?!” She swung around angrily.

“She didn’t do it, she didn’t kill anyone.”

“Okay,” she relaxed and adjusted her collar. “How do you know?”

“Simple, she smelt clean,” said Puppy as if it was the most convincing argument on the planet. Arivarea looked displeased.

“Look,” he said, gesturing to the bloodbath around them. “Look around, if she had done even half of this she’d reek of blood, but she was spotless.”

“Okay, let’s suppose you’re right. Then, who’s done all this?”

“Why don’t we ask them?” he said pointing toward the chained up prisoners. One of them was barely conscious, Puppy tried to rouse him but before he could communicate anything meaningful he died. Puppy checked the rest but they had shared the same fate.

“Or not,” said Puppy.

“Well, what do we do now?” asked Arivarea, looking around at the gory scene before her.

“Now we get out of here before anyone thinks we’re a part of this.”

“Yeah, that makes sense,” she agreed and they hustled out of the farmhouse. They made their way hastily back to the path, Arivarea kept wiping her feet on the grass to get the blood off the soles.

Puppy just dragged his feet a little, he went barefoot so it came off quite easily. His legs and feet were vaguely human-like but his feet were hairier and he had claw shaped nails. He kept them well maintained though.

“Are we just going to ignore what we just saw?”

“What would you like to do?” asked Puppy.

“I think I want to get to the bottom of it.”

“Thought so,” laughed Puppy.

“What do you mean?”

“No, it’s just you come across as that sort of person.”

“The idiot kind?” she frowned.

“No, the curious kind. Also the kind that can’t sit around when there’s evil afoot.”

“Like a hero,” she said smugly.

“Exactly!” Puppy said it with such enthusiasm it made her blush a little.

Eventually they got to the gates of the city. Walking inside took their breath away. There was a large paved walkway, Puppy had only ever seen dirt paths. Citizens were riding all sorts of large animals as modes of transport.

Talking and shouting filled the sensitive ears of the dog and there were so many smells that he had to hold his nostrils closed.

Arivarea was looking around with sparkly eyes, she had never seen anything like it before. Some of the buildings were as tall as four stories and she couldn’t see the other end of the city from where they were standing.

They understood that this was a port city and accommodated a lot of travellers but they both felt like bumpkins in the overwhelming city streets.

They walked on, determined to get their bearings somehow. Behind them, a woman in a straw hat followed.

She was taken aback when they had left the farmhouse untouched. She thought that they might have misunderstood the situation and pursued her, either that or they were working for her enemy and were there to clear up the mess.

She followed the dog and the green-haired woman, she made sure to trail far behind in case the dog managed to sniff her out. Luckily for her Puppy was pinching his nostrils tightly shut.

Arivarea, however, was a trained rogue. Her perception was far beyond even capable combatants. Again, luckily for the woman in the straw hat, Arivarea was very distracted by the city sights.

The woman followed the two for two hours, before being shocked by a sudden realisation. These two were lost, completely lost.

She finally gave up on her stealthy approach, she was always more of an act first think later kind of person anyway. She approached the two odd companions.

“Hey!” she shouted.

“What? Her again?” Puppy heard the shout and swivelled round, holding the hilt of his spear but hesitant to take it out lest he attract the attention of a passing guard.

“You two idiots… Are you lost?”

“She must know we can’t understand her, right?” Puppy asked Arivarea.

Eventually the woman just gestured for them to follow her.

“Let’s go,” said Arivarea.

“Sure,” nodded Puppy, he understood she wouldn’t want to lose this lead. The fact that she had turned her back to them so easily after being the first one to attack at the farmhouse gave the duo a good idea of her personality.

They followed her to a house on the outskirts of the city. It was significantly more rundown than the city centre, so much so that it did not look to belong at all. There was no wall around the city so it was easy to see from where they were now that it was very close to the farmland.

They followed her into one of the dilapidated houses, the woman took her shoes off as did Arivarea. Puppy felt a little sheepish and tried to wipe his feet as best he could on the rough door mat.

“Roh Ten, is that you?”

“Yes, father. I have guests with me.” The woman shouted.

“Hold on then, I’ll get out of bed.”

“You shouldn’t, don’t worry,” she said in a panic. When she hurried off to stop him, Puppy and Arivarea were left standing awkwardly in the doorway.

“What are you doing Roh Ten, ask them to come in!” he scolded her as he walked out of his room and saw them looking very confused.

“I can’t, they don’t speak Rinean…”

“Ah, so that’s…” The old man cleared his throat. “Please, come in,” he said in wobbly Fillish. Fillish was the language most popular in Fillian, the country they were currently in.

“Thank you,” said Puppy.

“I not know why daughter bring you here but she made you trouble, I’m sure,” he said.

“Not at all,” assured Puppy. Meanwhile the daughter was looking at her father with a very confused face.

“Please, sit. Sorry house no good.” He offered the nervous duo somewhere to sit. They both quickly accepted favouring that over milling around in the miniature hallway.

“So, why have you brought them here?” he asked his daughter sternly. He was a little embarrassed about the state of his house.

“The dog is a warrior and maybe even the girl. I found them at the Egra farm, poking around.”

“And…?”

“If they’re involved, I want their help.”

“What if they’re not?”

“Then we will ask anyway.”

“We have nothing to offer them Roh Ten, no one helps for free.”

“I will offer my services as a mountain blood warrior.”

“You are not a mountain blood, you idiot. It’s high time you understood.”

“Then I will offer my services as a soldier.”

“What are these two going to need a soldier for?”

“I… I don’t know.”

“Sorry for this, but I was wondering if you could tell us about the farm?” Arivarea spoke up when she noticed a lull in the conversation between the father and the daughter. The daughter looked especially disappointed.

The father looked at Arivarea with wide eyes.

“What did she say?” asked Roh Ten.

“She asked me about the farm.”

“Tell her then!” exclaimed the girl, almost pushing her father onto the chair opposite the confused duo.

“It is difficult story.”

“Easy stories don’t involve that much blood,” nodded Puppy. “Please, tell us.”

“They are insistent.”

“I told you, they will help,” said Roh Ten triumphantly.

“Then, I will tell you.” The old man began. “We are from Rinea. Land far west. Not good for us there, tribe collapse push… No, ahh… What word? Chased! Chased away, had to go far away, so come here. Had nothing. Work on farm years time. Finally buy own land. Not work for long time when old hag woman, white ygar woman, like you.” he said pointing towards Puppy. “She want my land, say no of course. Now she threaten and kill so get what wants.”

They got the picture, a white ygar beastkin was pressuring farmers for land. Arivarea thumbed her chin.

“So all those dead bodies?” she asked.

“Yes, a message. Give land, or die.” He confirmed.

“What about the city guards?”

“Of course, no care. Ygar hag more important.”