WIEDERGEBURT Act II: Chapter 23

Immediately after traveling through the mountain pass, our group made it to the Demon Beast Mountain Range, named such only because the mountains surrounding it and not because it was actually a mountain range. We first traveled through a forest. It was the same one I had gone through with Fay, Lin, Kari, and her brothers when we journeyed to Nymph Lake.

The bridge that spanned the chasm had been repaired. I didn’t know how, but I guessed there was a Spiritualist capable of leaping the nearly 20 meter distance to fix the other side. It was still the same rickety bridge as last time, but the planks and rope were at least brand new. At Catalyna’s command, we crossed over the bridge in groups of two. When it was our turn, Fay and Lin went first, followed by me and Kari.

“Everyone! We’re going to be traveling north-east,” Catalyna informed us. “We’ll be using the same formation as before. Be sure to keep your guard up.”

“This woman is a really talented leader,” I admitted as our group walked in the rear.

“Do you like strong women who can lead?” asked Fay.

“If by that, you mean: ‘am I attracted to strong women who can lead?’ Then I would have to say not particularly.” Not only Fay, but also Kari and Lin were staring at me with questioning eyes, causing me to shrug. “I don’t dislike women who are also brilliant leaders. It’s just not a prerequisite or a particular part of my preferences one way or the other. Honestly, the women I like happen to be the ones right here.”

I stared at all three girls so there could be no question as to who I was talking about. While Kari and Lin both appeared inordinately pleased by my response, Fay flushed a light pink and looked away. That was amusing. She’d gone after me with such confidence and passion when I wasn’t courting her, but now that we were finally together, she was acting kind of meek.

This was probably what it meant to be all attack and no defense. Fay, for all her bravado, couldn’t respond to someone giving her affection very well. Even last night, when I’d held her in my arms and kissed her, she’d been hesitant and shy, only responding after I’d been a little forceful.

“You really know how to make a girl feel wanted,” Kari said, fluttering her eyelashes in a manner that I was positive had been purposefully silly.

Chuckling just a little, I tried to sound nonchalant as I responded, “We’ve been together for over a month now. If I didn’t at least know how to do that, I would be a failure as a man, wouldn’t I?”

“Hm. This is true.” As she giggled, Kari walked close to me and touched my arm. She normally would have hugged it to her ample chest, but since we were in the Demon Beast Mountain Range, she was holding herself back to just this.

However, as she stared at me with those warm, loving eyes, I felt a hard stare drilling into my head. It caused me to look away and seek out the source. Of course it was Finn Søkere. When he realized that I was looking at him, the ugly glare vanished and was replaced with a smile. He nodded as though acknowledging me and then turned back around.

I frowned.

“Is something wrong?” Lin asked as she came up to my other side. Kari was also staring at me in concern.

“Nothing big,” I replied. “It just looks like someone might be jealous. That’s… well, it’s really nothing new.” Tilting my head, I looked at each of the girls in turn. “The only thing I’m wondering is which one of you is making him jealous.”

Kari, Fay, and Lin were all gorgeous in different ways. Kari was the classic beauty with her lovely hair that looked to be spun from threads of liquid golden, large breasts, a thin waist, and wide hips. She was like those innocent and pure maidens spoken of in old stories of heroism and romance. Meanwhile, Fay was her opposite, a seductive firebrand with narrow eyes and fiery red hair. People would have described her appearance as being passionate and highly sexual, though her personality was nothing like that.

While the two of them had bodies I’m sure most men would have called erotic, Lin was a little different. Kari and Fay were both possessors of large breasts, thin waists, and wide hips. On the other hand, Lin’s bust was quite small. She was by no means flat, but her chest was just enough to fill my hand and then some. They were incredibly charming. Combine that with her dark skin, long and scaley ears, snake tail, and exotic features, and you had a woman who easily matched Fay and Kari in terms of being a peerless beauty.

This was how I thought of it at least. I would admit I was somewhat biased.

“Should we keep our guard up?” asked Fay.

I thought about that for a moment, but slowly shook my head. “I don’t think there’s a need to. No one is going to be stupid enough to try something during a dangerous expedition through the Demon Beast Mountain Range. That’s just asking for trouble.”

“True.” Kari nodded. “If they attacked us, or even just you, not only would it cause discord within our ranks, but it could attract the attention of Demon Beasts.”

“Even if you say that, perhaps this princess should keep an eye on whoever is glaring at you.” Lin looked over at the group of people in front of us, her golden eyes narrowing, and I wondered if she actually knew who’d been glaring at me despite me not saying anything.

“You can do that, but there are other things we need to focus on that are more important.” I placed a hand on her shoulder. “We’re currently on an expedition, so we need to make sure we’re at the top of our game and not getting distracted.”

While she looked like she wanted to argue, Lin reluctantly nodded. “This princess understands. You have a good point.”

“Right.” I smiled and removed my hand. “Now let’s catch up to the others. We’re lagging behind.”

***

We ran into a number of Demon Beasts. Most of them were small fry, however, and easily dealt with. In fact, I didn’t even need to do anything. The few Demon Beasts that attacked our rear guard were mere D and C-ranks, which Kari, Fay, and Lin could take care of on their own. Once they realized how easily they were able to defeat the Demon Beasts that attacked us, the three of them rotated who would fight.

After crossing the bridge, our group had been heading north-east, which took us into a large valley surrounded by tall mountains. There was no set path through this area. Our group was reliant on Catalyna and the map she’d discovered. I wasn’t completely sure of her map reading skills, but the woman appeared confident as she decisively led us without a hint of hesitation.

By the time we had reached the valley, the sun was growing dim. I could just barely see it disappearing behind the mountains. Still at the head of our procession, Catalyna turned to all of us and began barking out orders.

“We’ll be setting up camp here for the night. Everyone, prepare your respective tents. Once you’re done, I’ll send a group of you to gather food and another to make a fire.”

“I guess that means it’s time to get out our tent.” Kari was beaming as she stared at the pack strapped to my back. “I can’t wait to try it out. Sleeping in a tent sounds like a lot of fun.”

“This princess thinks it sounds cold,” Lin muttered, frowning as she crossed her arms.

“That’s because you’re cold-blooded.” Kari chidingly wagged her finger at Lin, her smile still in place. “And you don’t have to worry about getting cold. That’s why we bought the large futon instead of several smaller ones. All four of us are going to be sharing body heat with you, so you shouldn’t get cold.”

“That does sound pleasant,” Lin admitted.

“Before you begin talking like that, why don’t you two help out?” Fay said as I took the pack off and set it on the ground. I pulled out the two smaller bags that contained the parts needed for the tent. One bag had the tarp all rolled up, while the other contained the stakes, metal poles, and cord that would be used to tie the tent down.

The tent came with a ground sheet that we needed to spread across a patch of flat land that was well-drained and had enough soil to drive our stakes into. After spreading out the ground sheet, we placed the canvas on top, and then drove the first support pole into the ground. After which, we anchored the guy line by having one of us hold it down, and then drew the guy line tight over the top of the first pole, hooked it with the tent stake, and drove the stake into the ground. Then we repeated this process with the other support poles.

It had been a long time since I set up a tent, which I hadn’t done since Kari and I were members of the Explorers Guild in my previous life. However, it didn’t take too long to set up, about twenty minutes, I’d say. The time went by even faster because the four of us kept a constant stream of chatter going, though it was mostly the girls talking while I listened.

“Huh… there are a lot more steps to setting up a tent than I thought,” Kari said.

“Well, it is a big tent,” Fay replied. “It looks like we’re actually the last ones to finish too.”

Lin sighed. “This princess is beginning to wonder if we needed such a large tent.”

“We do if we want all four of us to fit inside!”

“You have a point, Big Sister. Urg. This princess has a very long body.”

“Don’t look so depressed. I think your snake tail is cute.”

It was true that everyone was already finished by the time we were done, and it looked like Catalyna had already handed out orders to a lot of the people present. In fact, I only now realized after we finished that the camp was a little empty. We walked up to the woman after noticing this and asked her what she wanted us to do next.

“So you four are finally finished setting up, huh?” She eyed the gigantic tent that literally towered over the others. Most of the tents were meant to fit, at most, two people. They weren’t very big. “You four… are planning on sleeping together?”

“That much should be obvious,” I said. “We wouldn’t have gotten such a large tent if that wasn’t the case.”

“I suppose so.” Shrugging her shoulders, Catalyna turned back to the four of us, placed her hands on her hips, and handed out our orders. “Since you guys are the last to finish, I’m going to have you all cook for us. Marko is leading a team to catch some food. You’ll cook whatever he catches.”

“Fair enough,” I replied.

“I guess we’ll leave this to Eryk,” Kari added.

Fay nodded. “Eryk can cook for everyone.”

“This princess has faith in your cooking ability,” Lin said with an imperious nod.

“Gee. Thanks for expressing such confidence, even though I know you three just don’t want to cook yourselves.” When they gave me an innocent look, I ran a hand through my hair and smiled despite myself. “Well, you three did take care of all the Demon Beasts on the way here, so I guess it’s only fair that I at least do something to carry my own weight.”

Since it was apparently my job to cook, I went back to my pack, grabbed the seasonings I’d brought with me, and wandered over to where someone had lit a fire. A person was already sitting there. Finn Søkere looked up at me when I approached. There was a brief flash of killing intent that burst from him, but then it was quickly smothered, and he smiled as I crouched down.

“Come to warm yourself up?” he asked.

“No. I’m on cooking duty,” I said with a shake of my head.

Finn looked startled. “You know how to cook?”

“A person can’t live on their own and not learn at least the basics of cooking.” I shrugged.

“Yes, I suppose that is indeed true.” Finn stood up. Maybe it was just the light from the fire playing off his face, but his smile seemed distorted. “Well, I’ll leave you to it.”

He didn’t even wait for me to respond before about facing and walking off. Feeling a frown tug at my lips, I watched where he was going, and the frown now on my face only grew when I saw him head over to Kari, Fay, and Lin.

***

“Princess Kari.”

The greeting came from a handsome man with broad shoulders, blond hair, blue eyes, and the leather armor of a Nevarian Spiritualist. He’d come from the direction Eryk was in. As Kari turned her head and stared at the man, recognition flashed through her.

“You are… Finn Søkere, yes?” Kari asked.

“That is correct.” Finn offered a traditional bow from the waist. “I’m happy to know that you recognize me, even though we have never spoken until now.”

While she was unsure of why this man had decided to greet her, she put on the polite smile she always wore when dealing with people she didn’t know. “You battled against Fay during the Spiritualist Grand Tournament. It is only natural that I would remember you.”

Perhaps she had said something wrong. For just a moment, the man’s eyes flashed in a way that seemed strangely menacing, but it happened so fast before disappearing that she wondered if she’d just been seeing things. A kind smile appeared on his face.

“That is indeed correct.” He then glanced at Fay, the smile growing. “Even though I did my best, I was soundly trumped.”

“I was merely lucky,” Fay replied with a slight smile of her own. “You had completely negated my ability to use the Flash Step. It was only thanks to mere chance that I managed to become the victor.”

Finn rubbed his chin in a way that seemed philosophical or perhaps studious. “The Flash Step is that Spiritual Technique that lets you move at high speed, right? It is quite the fascinating technique.”

“Thank you. Eryk taught it to me.”

“Is that so? How nice of him.”

While Finn engaged Fay in conversation, Kari looked back toward the fire, where Eryk was talking to Marko and a squad of three others. It looked like they had managed to catch several rabbits. Eryk took the food off their hands and began the process of removing the fur, organs, bones, and other parts that couldn’t be eaten. He was using a flat stone for the process. After removing the guts, he began rubbing seasoning into the meat.

“Big Sister,” Lin suddenly said.

“Yes?”

Leaning over, Lin cupped a hand to her mouth and whispered into Kari’s ear. “Maybe this princess is just imagining things, but it seems like that man talking to Fay has been eying you this whole time.”

“Eying me?” Kari muttered, glancing quickly at Finn before turning back to Lin. He wasn’t looking at her and seemed to be deeply engaged in his conversation with Fay. “You think so? He seems to be more interested in talking to Fay than me.”

Lin shook her head. “He only looks like he is interested in talking to Fay. If you pay attention, you’ll see that his eyes are consistently on you. This princess suspects the only reason he is talking to Fay is because it provides him with an excuse to be near you.”

Kari bit her lip as she wondered whether or not Lin’s words were correct, but just glancing at Finn didn’t reveal any of what Lin was saying. At the same time, she trusted the Lamia’s words. Of course, if Finn really was watching her, then it also meant he might be the person who had been showing hostile intent to Eryk. She would never forgive this man if that was the case.

The scent of sizzling fat and spices filled the air soon enough, providing Fay with an excuse to grab Kari and Lin and drag them away from Finn, who’d been talking her ear off. Kari was wondering if Finn had really been interested in her or Fay. However, those thoughts fled from her mind when Eryk handed her a bowl of braised rabbit. It looked like he had made a stew. The scent of the rabbit mixed with several herbs, spices, and vegetables caused her stomach to grumble.

After thanking him, Kari found a place to sit down with Lin and Fay that was far removed from the other people. Her hope was to eat with just the two other girls. Those hopes were soon dashed when an armored figure sat down next to her. Fortunately, it wasn’t Finn, who she first suspected. It was Catalyna.

“What are you three doing so far out?” she asked.

“This princess was hoping for some peace and quiet,” Lin responded. It was a comment that sounded kind of snide, but Lin was talking the same way she always did, leaving Kari to believe the words weren’t made out of malice.

Catalyna smiled. “You’ve got something of a mouth on you, huh?” When all Lin did was give her a quizzical look, she waved it off and gazed at all three of them “Do you mind if I ask you girls a question?”

“You may,” Kari said for them all.

“What exactly drew all of you to Eryk Veiger?”

The question caused Fay to blush a bit, but Kari had grown past the point of blushing about every little thing people said about her and Eryk. She wasn’t sure how to answer that question, however. It wasn’t exactly something she thought about.

“This princess loves Darling’s strength and kindness,” Lin said, answering the question with ease. She picked the rabbit out of the stew and popped a piece into her mouth. After swallowing, she continued. “Darling is very strong, but he never uses that strength to do horrible things to others. He’s protective and caring. Even when this princess had been stuck in the form of a snake, he didn’t treat her like something to be feared. This princess grew to love that caring side of Darling, which persisted even after he learned that she was a Lamia.”

“So it’s because he’s strong and kind.” Catalyna seemed to consider that for a moment, and then looked at Kari and Fay. “What about you two? Is that also why you love him?”

“N-not completely, no.” Fay stuttered a little, but she coughed into her hand and tried not to blush as she answered next. “Certainly, his strength and kindness were what originally drew me to him, but if I had to say what I liked about him, I suppose it would be his determination and hard working attitude. Having trained with him for three months, I’ve come to really admire how hard he’s willing to work himself to the bone to achieve his goals. His determination and courage are also something I love about him.”

It came as something of a shock to her, but Kari realized she had never spoken about Eryk with Fay or Lin, nor had she asked them about why they loved him so much. If she was being honest, Kari had been having so much fun with them that their reasons simply hadn’t mattered to her.

“And what about you, Kari?” Catalyna suddenly turned to her. “What made you fall for him?”

Knocked from her thoughts, Kari composed herself, brow furrowing as she carefully thought about what she wanted to say. Her feelings for Eryk were not something she’d ever analysed before. She’d fallen in love with him over the course of a month, and it had been a slow realization rather than something she instantly recognized as love.

“I don’t think there was any specific thing that made me fall in love with him,” she began slowly. “When he and I first met, we just sort of clicked together. It felt like we were two pieces of the same puzzle. The days I spent with him in the library were absolutely blissful. Eryk is someone who makes me feel comfortable and safe, but just thinking about him also makes my heart race. I just… after getting to know him, I know he’s the one I want to be with for the rest of my life. That’s really all there is to it.”

It wasn’t until she met the wide-eyed stare of Catalyna that Kari realized she’d said too much. While she’d gotten over her blushing fit a while back, thanks in no small part to Eryk’s constant stream of physical affection, she suddenly felt acutely embarrassed by her own words. At the same time, she didn’t take them back. They were the truth, after all.

“That was pretty powerful,” Catalyna said at last, calming down enough to give her an appraising look. “I had no idea he meant that much to you. So you plan on marrying him, then?”

“I don’t know,” Kari answered in a soft voice. “The future isn’t set in stone. But what I can say is that if he asks for my hand in marriage, I certainly won’t say no.”

“And you two?” Catalyna turned to Fay and Lin. “You two feel the same way?”

“This princess is already married to Darling,” Lin said without hesitating.

Fay’s response was a bit slower. “I… certainly, I love Eryk a lot. But if you ask whether or not I would marry him? Well, I mean, it’s not as if I wouldn’t marry him… but… well…”

“I’m fairly positive that Fay would also marry Eryk if he asked her,” Kari said for her. Fay didn’t say anything, mouth freezing while it was halfway open. She closed it as a deep redness slowly spread across her cheeks and ears. However, while it was obvious that she was embarrassed, she didn’t deny what Kari said either.

“Hmm…” Catalyna hummed thoughtfully as she gazed at Eryk, who was now serving himself food after having served everyone else. “I don’t suppose you three would be willing to let me join you?”

“Not a chance,” Kari, Fay, and Lin responded with an immediate shut down.

***

Catalyna assigned people to take watch after everyone had their fill of food. There were 20 people, and the camp was spread out to cover about 12 square meters of space. She selected two people for each watch. Watches would be done in two hour shifts. If they slept for a standard eight hours, that meant eight of the 20 people would be taking watch. Shifts would be rotated each night so no one had to watch the camp two nights in a row.

Our group had been spared from having the first night watch, which meant all four of us could pile into our tent and sleep. While I was a little leery about having people I didn’t know or trust keep watch, I was at least comfortable enough with my own ability to sense danger that I didn’t request taking first watch myself. I’d know if we were under attack.

We spread out the large futon. It really was large at nearly one meter across and five meters long. That was more than enough space to fit all four of us. Even though we had plenty of space, we still snuggled together, our primary purpose being, supposedly, to keep Lin warm. The Lamia was in the middle of our body pile, surrounded by us.

Lin was lying on her side, just like I was, and since we were both facing each other, she had snuggled her body against mine. Meanwhile, Kari was spooning Lin, while Fay spooned me. I could feel the elastic springiness of the redhead’s breasts pushing into my back. Lin’s tail was also coiled around my legs.

I think I had fallen asleep for a while, but something woke me up. It took me a moment to figure out what I had woken up for. Then my bladder informed me of the reason.

I needed to take a leak.

After switching places with Fay, I stood up and stretched my arms. Fay was now frowning as she realized the warm back she’d been snuggling against was gone, but then she wrapped her arms around Lin and buried her face in the Lamia’s hair. I couldn’t see exactly what was happening underneath the covers, but from the large bulge, I could tell Lin had wrapped her tail around either Kari or Fay.

We had gone to sleep wearing clothes, so I didn’t need to get dressed. I grabbed my Dragon’s Tail Ruler and stepped outside.

Wandering away from the camp, I found a good place to relieve myself behind several trees, undid my belt, and pulled my pants down a bit. I pulled my pants back up after answering nature’s call, but I paused just as I was about to head back.

The hairs on my arms were prickling.

Someone was watching me.

And they had ill-intent.

Just as this thought crossed my mind, a dark shadow fell from above. I lept to the side, away from the tree I’d been using to relieve myself, and was just in time to avoid a sword impaling the ground where I stood. The figure who’d fallen with the blade stood to their feet. Covered from head to toe in black, I could see nothing of this person.

“I don’t suppose you’ll tell me who you are if I asked?” I said. The figure didn’t respond. “Figured as much.”

The figure held their sword in one hand. The blade was long and narrow, the guard circling around the wielder’s hand to protect them. I recognized the sword as a rapier, a relatively long-bladed weapon characterized by a protective hilt. It was a weapon used primarily for thrusting as opposed to slashing.

Observing what I could of this cloaked figure, I could tell from their posture and stance that they were male. His center of gravity was near his solar plexus, obvious in the way he stood, and his hands were larger than the average woman’s. That said, I couldn’t tell who this person was. All identifying features had been carefully concealed.

I glanced from the figure to my Dragon’s Tail Ruler. It was behind this person. I’m guessing my attacker wanted to separate me from my weapon. He probably wrongfully assumed I wasn’t as powerful without it.

As if the man had been waiting for some unspoken signal, he bent his knees and shot forward. I could pick up a slight Spiritual Pressure emanating from him. Light blue arcs of Spiritual Power danced under his feet, accelerating his body. It looked like he was using the lightning element to skate across the ground.

I twitched my right index finger.

A wellspring of power suddenly surged out from me as water congealed around my finger, turning into a long whip, which I sent forward. The man jerked his body away from my attack. He stumbled, but then he caught himself, danced across the ground, and swung his rapier now coated in lightning. His weapon sliced right through the water whip.

That would have normally been the end of my attack. Indeed, had I been a normal Spiritualist, I would have been forced into close range combat because Spiritual Techniques required movements to properly channel Spiritual Power. His Spiritual Lightning Technique was the same. It was activated by the act of skating across the ground, which directed lightning outward from the feet.

My attacker was probably under that impression.

He turned back to me and prepared to charge.

I twitched my finger again.

The water that had been flying through the air after it was cut suddenly turned into a long spear. With another twitch of my finger, the spear shot toward my attacker’s back. Sadly, it wasn’t as fast as lightning, and the cloaked figure must have had an incredible spatial awareness. He stepped to the left, spun his blade to coated in lightning, and then turned and thrust it at the spear. His blade struck the tip and forced the water to disperse.

However, in doing so, he left his back open.

I used the Flash Step to appear behind him before he could turn back around. My original intent was to punch a hole through his back and kill him, but I was forced to change it when I saw his rapier coming at me from underneath his left arm. It looked like he’d spun the blade around and was attempting to impale me from behind.

Clicking my tongue, I knocked the blade aside with my left hand, and then struck the man with the open palm of my right. My original intent to pierce his heart from behind was disrupted. Even so, the loud, thunderous boom! of my attack slamming into his back was a satisfying sound. That it was mixed with the strained cry of pain made me feel even better.

The sound of the man’s spine snapping was drowned out as my attack lifted him off his feet. He flew forward through the air and crashed into a tree, snapping the large trunk in half. The sound of the tree crashing into the ground was even louder than my strike to his back. He disappeared behind the now fallen tree.

As I was just about to walk over and confirm his death, shouting reached my ears. I stopped walking. Looking in the direction the shouting had come from, I found several lights getting closer to my location. A second later, Kari, Fay, and Lin appeared alongside Catalyna and several others.

“Darling!”

“Eryk!”

“What happened?! Are you okay?!”

The three girls each shouted at me as they rushed over, peppering me with all kinds of questions asking about my health and demanding I tell them what happened. My lips twitched as they fussed over me. I would admit I took some guilty pleasure in their worry. It was… nice. Seeing them fret over me made me feel wanted.

I raised my hands and gestured for them to settle down. “I’m all right. Please don’t worry about me.”

“What happened?” asked Catalyna as she walked up to our group alongside Marko, who was glaring at me again. Great.

“I was attacked by someone dressed in a black cloak,” I said.

“What?!” Kari shouted. “You were attacked?! By who?!”

“I don’t know.” I shook my head. “I didn’t get to see their face. And I didn’t think to use Spiritual Perception on them either. I only know that he had a lightning element.”

While Catalyna cupped a hand to her chin, Marko gave me a strange look that was half-glare, half-confused frown. Kari, Lin, and Fay, meanwhile, were coming up with their own theories on who might have attacked me.

“Do you think it’s someone in our group?” asked Fay.

“It could be… but I’d prefer not to think about that,” Kari said. “Casting suspicion on someone from our group could cause unrest, especially since we have no proof.”

“But if it really is someone traveling alongside us, then we should do something. Letting someone who would attack Darling go free does not sit well with this princess.” Lin crossed her arms as her long tongue flickered through the air. Her golden eyes were narrowed as she looked over at the fallen tree.

I also turned to the tree. Moving toward it, I looked at where the person who attacked me had fallen, but just as I had suspected, there was no one there.

My attacker had escaped.