WIEDERGEBURT Act VII: Chapter 17

The meeting room I had chosen was located inside of the Mayor’s mansion. The mansion itself, which I had taken as my own residence now, was a three-story building with glass windows, several balconies, and a flat roof that we could travel up to. Vahn used to have a lot of parades. I learned in my previous life that the flat roofs were actually designed so people could watch the many parades from the rooftops to avoid the need to travel into the crowded streets.

Everyone I had called was sitting along a rectangular table with me at the head. Raul, Aliya, Earland, my wives, Alexis, and Ashten were all present. None of them knew what I had called them for except Kari. She stood at the other end of this table, her expression still grave and filled with negative emotions.

“Thank you all for coming,” I said. “Kari has discovered the truth behind what the Sekbeist were doing here. Kari?”

Kari took a deep breath. “What I have right now is just a theory. I cannot prove it without being able to watch the ritual they were enacting down in that basement, but… it seems the Sekbeists were draining the life of our people in order to create more Sekbeists.”

I had been prepared for something big, something dark, but even I was shocked by what she just said. Everyone else had similar dismay on their faces. It couldn’t be helped. Kari had just said something unfathomable.

“I’m afraid I don’t understand,” Fay said, biting her finger. “Can you please explain what you mean? How are the Sekbeist draining our people to create more Sekbeists?”

Kari nodded as if she had expected this. “I’ve always found it odd that the Sekbeist are an entirely male race. There’s not a single female among them. For the longest time, I suspected they raped women and forced them to carry their children, but the ritual in the basements of the Paladin Sect and Merchant Guild suggest otherwise.”

Kari was carrying several leaflets in her hand, which she passed out to the rest of us. I studied the parchment when she handed it to me. A strange diagram was drawn onto it in a thick, black ink. It was very intricately drawn. Symbols that I vaguely recognized as belonging to the Sekbeist language covered much of the surface, but there were also a few drawings of the tube-shaped cylinders and other devices we had discovered.

“Some of you know that I have been studying the Sekbeist language for a number of years. I believe that if we can learn their language, we may be able to decipher some of their techniques and the counter the devices they used. We can also create our own devices. The control collars I made to tame Demon Beasts were reverse engineered using my understanding of the Sekbeist language.”

Several of us nodded, though not everyone was aware of this. Alexis and Ashten did not know that Kari was studying the Sekbeist language. We rarely interacted with Ashten since he was often busy with his duties as the commander of the Midgard Spiritual Knights, and Alexis had a lot of work on her plate as the last of the Six Great Sects. I think after the Six Great Sects Tournament, the number of times we spoke with either of them became minimal. Then Kari, Siv, and I had been sent to another dimension and couldn’t talk to them even if we wanted to.

“The diagram I gave everyone is what the Sekbeist had created down in those basements,” Kari continued. “My theory is that the Sekbeist enact a ritual using those devices to suck all the Spiritual Power from people of other races and feeds it into those cylinders, which then uses the Concept of Negation to create a Sekbeist.”

“Hold on right there,” Alexis suddenly said, raising a hand to forestall my wife from continuing. “I thought the Concept of Negation was the ability to negate everything else. That’s what Eryk’s been saying. Are you telling me that is incorrect?”

“No.” Kari slowly shook her head. “Eryk is correct. However, the Concept of Negation still relies on Spiritual Power to use. In that regard, it is no different from any other concept.” She paused to consider her words. “Have you never wondered why even the lowest among the Sekbeist Slaves are able to infuse the Concept of Negation into their attacks?”

“Well, sure.” Alexis crossed her arms. “But what’s that got to do with this?”

“Everything. The Sekbeist Slaves are able to touch the Concept of Negation but not use it like the Lords can because they are creatures created from the Concept of Negation,” Kari explained. “My theory is that they aren’t real Sekbeists. This is why Sekbeist Lords get upset when you compare them to slaves. They are literally just creatures that the true Sekbeists have created to serve as canon fodder for their wars.”

While everything she said made a horrifying amount of sense, it was also shocking. I had never once questioned the difference between the Slaves and Lords. I knew there were differences. Not only did Lords look different, but they were far more powerful and could control multiple concepts. The Slaves, on the other hand, only seemed capable of using the darkness element and could crudely infuse the Concept of Negation into their attacks, making them more powerful than the average Spiritual Technique.

However, if the Slaves were artificially created like Kari was suggesting, then their abilities and everything else made sense.

“So all this time, these monsters we’ve had so much trouble with were just artificial creations that are used as fodder?” Alexis gave a hollow laugh. “What kind of joke is that?”

No one said anything to her. I wasn’t sure anyone could say anything.

“This does beg a lot of questions,” Ashten said after a moment. “What are these Sekbeists? Where do they come from? Why are they waging war against us? The Sekbeist came here five thousand years ago, were defeated, and their leader was sealed away. But why did they come here five thousand years ago?”

Kari sighed. “Those are not questions I can answer.”

“I don’t think we’re going to get any answers to your questions right now,” I said after a moment. “The most important to take away from this right now is that they can take our Spiritual Power and use it to somehow create members of the slave caste. This is probably how they have been able to bolster their ranks for so long. It also means it’s imperative that we rescue everybody we can before they can be used in this manner. I’m going to begin sending patrols further into the Northern Plains with the goal of locating other people and bringing them back to Vahn so we can protect them. Ashten. Alexis. I will be relying on you and your battalions to get this done.”

“I guess I’ve got no choice,” Alexis said with a tired sigh. “I can’t very well let my own people be sacrificed like this.”

“I’ll do everything I can to help,” Ashten added.

The meeting soon ended. Ashten, Alexis, Earland, and Aliya filed out of the room, but Fay, Siv, Kari, Lin, and Raul remained behind.

“This is a lot to take in,” Raul said into the silence.

“It is, but I also think it makes a lot of sense.” I tugged on the bangs of my hair as I thought about everything I already knew about the Sekbeist. “I had always wondered how the Sekbeist were able to bolster their ranks so much. How was it that they could have such overwhelming numbers? I could never figure it out at the same, but now that Kari has proposed her theory, I get it. They’ve been capturing various races and draining their Spiritual Power to create artificial beings. This also explains why Sekbeist Slaves feel so different from any other creature I’ve ever faced.”

Those of the slave caste felt a lot like a negative presence… like they were a gap in my perceptions, which was how I could discover them so easily when they had infiltrated Ásgarðr. Now that I thought about it, they felt very similar to the Concept of Negation itself. Those who used the Concept of Negation felt like a void within my perceptions. That was where the term the Void had come from. However, while the Sekbeist Lords only felt like this when they used the Concept of Negation, the Sekbeist Slaves felt like this all the time.

“What should we do about this?” asked Siv.

“What do you mean? It’s not like we can do anything differently now that we know all this.” Lin crossed her arms and leaned back. “All we can do is keep doing what we have been doing. Nothing has changed even with this knowledge. The Sekbeist have been and always will be our enemies.”

“Lin is right,” Fay added. “Knowing this now doesn’t change a thing. It just means that it’s even more imperative we protect our people so they can’t be used.”

“Guess that means this princess should get to work,” Lin said, standing up. “There’s still a lot of work that needs to be done. This princess is going to draft a proposal to shore up our defenses.”

“I’m going to take a team of Spiritualists to some of the more remote locations so I can gather ingredients for more advanced alchemy pills,” Fay added. “We’re going to need more Spiritualists to reach the Third and Fourth State of Spiritualism if we want to have a chance at defending our people.”

“I’ll go with you,” Raul said.

Fay accepted her sons offer of aid and the two of them left together, leaving just me, Siv, and Kari. Siv and I sat in our chairs, silent, while Kari offered what could only be an apologetic smile.

“I am sorry. I know this isn’t pleasant news,” she said.

“It’s not, but I think it’s necessary.” I ran a hand through my hair. “Now that we know this, we can make saving our people an even greater priority.”

“Well, I guess that is a good thing,” Kari began, though she quickly changed topics. “Given everything that’s happened and what we learned, I think it would behoove us to take a break. Eryk, how about we take a bath together? It’s been awhile since we have done that.”

“I suppose it has,” I allowed. “But are we really just going to take a bath?”

Kari’s mischievous smile was all the answer I needed.

Because she didn’t have anything to do and didn’t want to be left out, Siv followed us as Kari led me to the bathroom. After we removed our clothes in the changing room, we wandered onto the tiled floor. This bathroom contained both a tub and a shower. The shower was just a several meter cubic space, while the tub was a large stone basin built into the ground. Perhaps because of that, the bathing room was also located on the first floor.

“Since it was your idea to take a bath, I think you should let me clean you off first,” I said to Kari.

Wearing a broad smile, she wandered over to the shower and turned it on. “Very well.”

“Siv, are you going to help me?” I asked.

“Okay,” Siv said.

It wasn’t long before steam began rising from the shower and Kari stepped underneath the hot spray. I paused just for a moment to marvel at how gorgeous she truly was. Hair like spun gold stuck erotically to her skin as water dripped down her bare body, creating glistening trails along her breasts, shoulders, arms, and legs. My breath was stolen from my lungs, though that did not stop me from grabbing the soap and walking over.

Siv followed just a little behind me.

I came up behind Kari and pressed myself against her. Kari moaned as she ground her backside against my pelvis, but I wrapped one arm around her stomach as though to keep her from moving and leaned forward.

“Hold still or I won’t be able to wash you,” I whispered into her ear before taking it into my mouth.

Kari’s breathing hitched. “How can I hold still when you nibble on me like that?”

“Well… I guess you can’t, but this is what you wanted anyway, right?”

“Mmm. Yes.”

I pressed bar of soap to Kari’s stomach and began lathering her up. White suds formed on her skin, though it was all washed away by the spray from the shower. I traveled up her stomach, enjoying the way it twitched. Looking over her shoulder, I saw how her hitched breathing caused her breasts to bounce and sway.

What I wouldn’t give to take one of those nipples into my mouth right now…

Patience.

Lifting up her left breast, I gently cleaned the sweat from her underboob. Kari sweat there a lot since her chest was so big. While cleaning her off, I teased her nipple, listening to the gasps and moans she released.

Kari arched her back against me, until her head was resting on my shoulder, and with her neck bared before me like this, I couldn’t stop myself from leaning down to place several kisses along her neck. At the same time, my eyes were still drawn to her breasts, which heaved whenever my lips touched one of her weak points. Hundreds of droplets were spilling onto her chest and creating glimmering trails of water.

My mouth felt dry.

Losing all pretenses of washing her, I spun Kari around until she was facing me, pushed her against the wall, and leaned down to suck her nipple into my mouth.

“Aah! N-not so—mmm—not so hard!”

While Kari complained that I was sucking on her nipples too hard, she still wrapped her arms around my head and pulled me deeper into her chest. I swirled my tongue around her nipples, tasted the slight saltiness of her skin, and inhaled the scent that was unique to her.

“Mmm! I-if you suck on them like that… I’m gonna go… insane!”

Kari buried her nose in my hair and released heaving gasps as I switched from her left nipple to her right. Both nipples were already hardened to fine points and quivered in m mouth.

While I was sucking on her breasts, I ran my hand down her stomach and between her legs. I didn’t know if the wetness I felt was because she was aroused or the water from the shower. I liked to think I was the cause for it. I rubbed her netherlips, moving ever so slowly, and Kari, perhaps unable to deal with the slow motions, began grinding her crotch into my hand.

I would have smiled if my mouth wasn’t full of nipple.

Inserting a single finger up to the knuckle, I began pumping in and out, then added a second finger. Kari’s hips bucked against me. They jerked a second time when I used my thumb to work out her clitoris and began rubbing that. It was already hard, but it twitched as I stimulated it.

“Haaa… mmmm… ahhh… Eryk… that feels… it feels… mmmm…”

Kari tried to speak, but it was stifled by her moans, gasps, and groans. Her lyrical voice was so sexy when she moaned into my ear like this. I couldn’t get enough of it and longed to hear more. I wanted to make her cry out in pleasure.

I bit down on her nipple.

“Ahhh! You’re being… being bad! I think that… deserves some punishment!”

Delicate fingers grabbed my cock and began stroking me. I was already at full-mast. My body cock shivered at her touch. Streaks of pleasure travel from my dick to my brain, and I bucked my hips against her as a result, but Kari just smiled as continued to lightly stoke my shaft with super delicate touches, like a feather brushing over me.

This woman really knew how to drive me insane.

I eventually decided not to let her even try to set the pace, dropping to my knees in front of her and moving between her legs. I set her legs on my shoulders, pressed her back even further against the wall, and pressed my tongue to her aroused pussy. The taste of her puffy lips was divine. I felt nothing but bliss as I ate this magnificent woman out, probing her insides with my tongue, dragging it along her clit, and doing all the things that made her scream.

“Eryk! I’m! I’m!!!!”

Kari’s entire body went rigid as she came, squirting her juices all over the lower half of my face. I leaned in again to lick the juices still leaking from her pussy and trailing along her inner thighs. Kari continued to shudder, but she eventually recovered, and I set her feet back on the tiled floor. Her legs wobbled as I stood up.

“Are you ready?” I asked.

Kari smiled mischievously at me. “I would say yes, but aren’t you forgetting someone?”

I looked at her, then looked at where she was pointing, and found Siv sitting on her knees. Her legs were spread as she rubbed her little pussy. Her breathing was labored and breathless, sweat glistening down her body, shoulders and chest heaving with every intake.

“You’re right.” I went over, knelt next to Siv, and scooped her into my arms. “I’m sorry. It seems I was neglecting you.”

“I… I’m—”

I was certain Siv was going to say “I’m fine” or something to that effect, but Kari came up behind me, pressed her chest against my back, and whispered in my ear. “If you’re really sorry, you’ll make up for it by making her cum. That’s your duty as her husband.”

“You make a very good argument,” I said. Looking down at the tiny woman in my arms, I asked, “how about it? Want your husband to make you cum?”

Siv nodded. “Yes. Please. I can’t… seem to get off with my fingers.”

Since Siv asked me, I really had no other choice—not that I was ever reluctant to please my wives anyway.

I sat down under the shower, grabbed the bar of soap I had dropped, and began running it over her chest. Unlike Kari, who released wanton moans of lust because she knew it drove me crazy, Siv’s soft mewls and delicate gasps were a different beast all together. She sounded so demure and shy that it made me want to tease her. At the same time, I also felt this desire to protect her. It created an odd dichotomy within me.

“Kiss…Eryk… I want a kiss,” Siv said in between soft moans.

“Mmmkay,” I said, leaning down to hamper her lips with my own.

The moment I was kissing her, Siv wrapped her arms around my neck and pulled me down. Her wings folded around us as though to hide our kiss from Kari’s view. It served to block out the light from monster core lamps embedded into the ceiling.

As Siv’s tongue pushed its way into my mouth, I released the bar of soap and slid my hand between her legs, teasing her entrance. Siv’s quim shivered under my touch as I traced her outer lips with a finger. I soon reached the small treasure chest hiding her pearl and rubbed it before revealing the treasure inside. Her little nub twitched when I stimulated it with a single finger. Siv’s legs spasmed a little and her tiny chest shook.

Then I added just a small trace of the lightning element.

“AAH! AAAH! AHHHHH!”

Siv’s orgasm came fast and hard. Her love juices splashed against my hand as her entire body stiffened like her muscles had become locked, but almost as soon as she came, her orgasm subsided and she slumped against me. Her body was practically limp as I shifted her on my lap to make it more comfortable. As her head tilted back, bearing both her breasts and throat, leaned forward and trailed my tongue from her chest to her chin.

Siv shuddered against me.

A presence appeared behind me seconds before soft hands began roaming across my back. I didn’t need to turn around to know who it was.

“That was good,” Kari whispered in my ear, her hot breath washing over me. “I think Siv is ready now. Shall I help you get her into position?”

“Would you be so kind?” I asked.

I thought I could feel Kari grinning behind me as she said, “Of course.”

Kari stood up and moved around me, took Siv from my arms, and then laid down on her back with Siv on top of her. Blood swelled inside my cock as Kari hooked her legs around Siv’s and spread both their legs apart, giving me the perfect view of their pussies as they rubbed together. It was interesting to see the contrast like this. Kari’s pussy was puffy and leaking juices. While Siv’s was also a bit puffy from arousal, her vagina was so much smaller.

“We’re ready for you, husband dear,” Kari said to goad me on. “Make us feel good.”

“With pleasure,” I growled as I got on my knees and crawled over to the pair.

As I leaned over, casting both my wives in shadow, I grabbed Kari by the hips, lined myself up, and thrust my cock inside of her with a single go. Kari cried out as I impaled her.

“Yes! Just like that! Fuck me, Eryk! Fuck me hard!”

“That. Is. The. Plan,” I grunted with each thrust of my hips. I wasn’t going soft either. The moment I thrust into her, I pulled out and thrust back in just as quickly, just as hard. I set a fast and relentless pace that caused Kari’s and Siv’s bodies to shake and rock against each other. I wondered if maybe their clits were rubbing together because Siv was also moaning as I thrust inside of Kari.

Just as I felt Kari’s pussy tighten, I pulled out and thrust my juice-covered cock inside of Siv. The Drakvarian screamed in pleasure as I pushed in until I was buried to the hilt. I groaned as I struggled to pull out, then grunted again as I thrust back inside. Siv was a lot tighter than Kari. The difference between the two was more clear now than usual. I was also on the verge of cumming, so it took a lot of willpower to not release my load right now.

Pulling out again, I switched back to Kari just when Siv was about to orgasm. She moaned in complaint and wiggled her butt at me. She even wrapped the end of her tail around my leg, but I didn’t let that stop me as I began filling Kari with my cock.

I didn’t know how many times I changed between the two. I had completely lost track of time. I kept switching between one and the other, until Kari came first and Siv second. Only after they both orgasmed did I allow myself to cum, and the blessed relief I felt as I shot my load inside of Siv’s tight pussy had never been sweeter.

“I can’t believe Siv got your cum,” Kari complained.

I shrugged. “You should have held on longer.”

“Ugh. So not fair.”

“Um… I’ll try to cum first next time,” Siv said in a small voice.

Kari smiled as she stroked Siv’s hair. “Oh, no. It’s all right. I’m just messing with our husband here.”

“It does seem like you enjoy teasing me quite a bit,” I said.

“That’s just my personality,” said Kari with a smile.

After we finished having sex and washing off, the three of us moved to the bathtub. I was lounging against the lip. Kari was leaning into my side like usual. Because Siv had her dragon wings and tail, she could not rest with her back against the tub, so she was sitting on my knees.

“So, do you feel rejuvenated now?” asked Kari.

“I do feel better,” I replied, rubbing her shoulder. I thought she might start purring as she closed her eyes and rested her head on my shoulder.

The three of us continued to relax in the bathtub, but then the door slammed open and two people barged in. Lin was in the lead. Her pouty expression as she stood naked in the doorway amused me more than I thought it should. Tears leaked from her eyes as she glared at us. Unlikely Siv, who gave me a strong desire to protect, seeing Lin like this made me want to tease her for reasons I didn’t understand.

I thought like I could understand Kari just a little better.

“I can’t believe… that you three took a bath without this princess,” Lin muttered.

Kari smiled as she raised her head, looked at Lin and Fay, then shrugged her shoulders. “I would have happily invited you, but you and Fay were so quick to leave that I never got the chance. Did you two finally realize you can’t do any of your work today?”

“Mrg,” Lin groaned.

“I know I can’t gather a squadron to travel right now, but I wanted to create a list of all the Spiritualists I’m bringing with me,” Fay said. “It will be easier to leave early tomorrow morning if I know who I’m taking with me.”

“That is true,” Kari agreed.

I trailed after the naked Fay with my eyes as she went over to the shower and began washing off. The way she ran her hands along her body, over her hips and the swells of her breasts, made me wonder if she was doing it because she was aware of my eyes on her. Her ears and cheeks were red. However, she didn’t stop and even squeezed her chest together after covering it in soap suds.

Lin also washed herself off, though she seemed less interested in getting clean and more interested in joining us in the bath. The moment she came in with a splash, she cuddled up to me.

Now with five people in the tub, the bath was beginning to feel crowded, but I didn’t think this was a bad thing. I could not say I minded one bit.

“I know we now have the goal of saving all the people who have been enslaved by the Sekbeists, but what else do you think we should do?” asked Fay after a few moments.

I sighed. I didn’t really want to think about what we needed to do, but it was necessary. We could not afford to waste any time.

“We need to discover where Fay and her Valkyries are,” I said. “If we can link back up with them, then we’ll have an added layer of protection from the Sekbeists. Even if a member of the Zehn Todesharr shows up, it will be harder for them to attack us with so many Guddomelig with us.”

“You also wanted to check in on the dragons, right?” asked Siv.

“Yes.” With a slow, deliberate nod, I decided to reveal something I hadn’t before. “In my last life, I tried to steal the dragon’s sacred treasure. I thought it would help me grow strong enough to kill the Great Overlord of the Seventh Realm. I failed, of course, and I was forced to flee. However, I did manage to get into the temple at the very top of Westfang Mountain.” I studied Siv’s back as I spoke, the way her dragon wings protruded from her shoulder blades and shifted from skin to leathery scales. “I believe Tiamat is sealed away inside of that temple, so its imperative we go there and make sure the Sekbeists haven’t broken in.”

I wasn’t certain of this, of course, but I often wondered why a temple had been built in such a far out place of the continent. And why were the dragons guarding the temple? The only thing I could think of that made sense was Tiamat, the Great Overlord of the Eighth Realm, was sealed there.

“Should we send people there?” asked Kari.

I shook my head. “The journey there will be long and dangerous—too dangerous to send someone who has no comprehension over a concept. I’ll have to go myself once the situation here stabilize. I’m really hoping it won’t take more than a few days.”

Leaning my head back, I closed my eyes and tried not to feel overwhelmed by everything we needed to accomplish. I was sure we could complete all our goals if we just focused on each of them one at a time. We just needed to take each task as they came to us.

***

Two figures could be seen walking along the dirt road that led to Vahn. They were both dressed in cloaks with a hood that concealed their face from view. Their pace was slow, measured, and confident. However, one of them felt the need to complain about their pace.

“Why the fuck are you going so slow? Hurry the fuck up.”

“You need to learn some patience. There is no rush. Enjoy the fresh air.”

“I’ve had enough fresh fucking air to last a life time! I just want to get to that city! What was it called again? Vahn?”

“Yes, Vahn.”

“Right. I want to fucking get there now.”

The taller cloaked figure sighed. “You know that impatience of yours is what has caused you so many problems. If you want Eryk’s wives to accept you, you’re going to need to curtail that impatient attitude of yours.”

In most other cases, the woman beside her would have told her to “fuck off,” but mentioning Eryk got the foul-mouthed woman to shut right up.

Despite the woman’s complaints, they reached Vahn within less than an hour. There were hundreds of guards out front and a long line had formed by the currently open gates. It looked like the guards were inspecting people before letting them in.

“It seems they’ve set some intelligent policies,” the calm woman said. “They know the Sekbeist can disguise themselves as humans and are checking to make sure there aren’t any trying to infiltrate the city.”

“That’s probably one of Eryk’s policies,” the other woman said. “He’s fucking smart like that.”

“He is,” the other woman agreed.

Since it looked like they had no choice but to wait, the two moved into the line. They also pulled back the hood of their cloaks.

Luxurious locks of blonde hair spilled out of the left woman’s hood. She shook it back a little, causing it to catch the light. Her fair skin contrasted with the robes but complimented her light blue eyes. She had a small nose, soft pink lips, and dimples on her cheeks.

The other woman had dark hair that trailed down to her butt, though it was tied into a ponytail that ended in a fishtail. She had similar pale skin to the other woman’s, but hers was several shades lighter, making it look like she spent all her time indoors. Her blue eyes were much sharper than her companions. Her face was similarly harsh and contained a cold beauty that made her seem unapproachable.

They drew attention the moment their hoods were let down.

“Whoa! Who are they?!”

“Have a pair of angels descended from the heavens?!”

“They’re almost as beautiful as Lady Fay!”

Tora snorted as the people whispered about her and Chloe. Did she think they couldn’t hear them? She was about to tell those people to shut the fuck up, but then Chloe pinched her in the side. It was hard enough to make her jump.

“The fuck was that for?!” demanded Tora.

“Don’t cause a scene here,” Chloe said. “If you do, then Eryk will know we are here, and aren’t you the one who said you wanted to surprise him?”

“Yeah. I fucking remember. Still…” Tora rubbed her side. “That hurt.”

“It wouldn’t serve its purpose if it didn’t hurt,” Chloe said in a mild voice.

Tora grumbled a little more, but she did eventually settle down. There was little she could do against Chloe. The woman was far stronger than her, after all.

The line moved slowly as the guards continued to check each person who entered, making sure they weren’t Sekbeist in disguise before allowing them inside. It took at least two hours before Tora and Chloe were able to step up.

The person who was checking everyone was a young man who vaguely reminded Tora of Eryk. His hair was red instead of green, but his eyes and the shape of his face was very similar. He bore enough resemblances to the man she loved that she was almost tempted to ask if he’d dyed his hair.

“Er… you two… can you hold on while I check to, um, make sure you’re both… not Sekbeists?” the young man asked with a stutter. Tora almost smirked. It seemed this man wasn’t Eryk, who would have never been so enamored that he stuttered like that, but it was nice to know she could fluster someone like that.

“Of course,” Chloe said with a gentle smile.

The boy blushed bright red as he raised his hand, palm pointed toward them. Tora felt something wash over her. The Spiritual Power from this boy was oddly comforting and familiar, but it felt a lot weaker than she thought it should. What was this feeling? It only lasted for a moment, and then the boy lowered his hand.

Tora shrugged the feeling off.

“You two are free to enter,” he said with a smile. “Welcome to Vahn.”

“Thank you,” Chloe said for them both before walking past the gates and into the city.

This was the first time Tora had visited a human city on Miðgarðr. It didn’t look too different from their own cities, but it was a lot smaller, didn’t use telepads to transport people, and only had one level. All the buildings except a few featured flat roofs, columns, and a lot of them had motifs depicting strong warriors. Several buildings were under construction.

What really surprised her was that there weren’t just humans, lamia, and beastfolk here.

Tora gawked at the Lightning Giant that walked past her, carrying what looked like a mountain’s worth of supplies. There wasn’t just one either. She could see several more, though they were located closer to the mountain in the city’s center. What the hell was one of their kind doing on Miðgarðr?

“I’m sure Eryk will tell us when we see him,” Chloe said with a smile.

“He’d fucking better,” Chloe grunted. “I want to know just what the fuck he’s been doing this past year and a half.”