LOGINWhile we were sitting on the platform in the park and the guards were sharing their stories with the tipsy men from the village, women in revealing and provocative outfits slowly began to approach the king’s sentinels. Some shamelessly sat on the men’s laps, wrapping their arms around their necks, while others moved seductively in front of them, pressing their bodies together, kissing openly, and giving the warriors meaningful looks. The men quickly grew distracted — their hands wandered toward their belts as they forgot about their conversations.
One of these women approached Kays as well. She gracefully sat down on his lap, wearing a very short and daring dress. Turning her back to him, the dark-haired beauty began to move her body sensually, rubbing herself against him. The brown-haired man didn’t mind the attention at all — his hands began to explore her curves with clear interest. He leaned closer, kissing her neck and whispering something that made the woman breathe heavily and smile with pleasure. In response to Kays’s words, she arched her back and spread her slender legs wide, revealing to us her bare and glistening-from-moisture intimacy beneath the short red dress. Kays, his expression now harder, roughly gripped her breast with one hand, then slid the other along her body, caressing her hips and rear. Then, suddenly, he looked straight at me. Without breaking eye contact, his hand moved lower and he slowly plunged two of his fingers into the whore, from which she moaned protractedly, rolled her eyes and began to push herself onto his phalanges. Unable to bear such an explicit sight, I turned my gaze away, my heart pounding. Heat rushed to my face, the air felt unbearably suffocating, and a betraying wetness flooded my underwear. Damn it! That scene will stay before my eyes for a long time — the way that girl was writhing, begging the mage for more, and that sinful, wicked smirk on Kays’s face at that moment… Glancing at Vasmiya and Nufira, I saw them sitting in complete shock — their faces red as tomatoes, eyes lowered to the ground, breathing unevenly. Clearly, I wasn’t the only one affected by what we’d just seen. What a night! It looked like a full-blown orgy was about to begin among the soldiers and that... idiot. I stood up and decided to take a walk around, to find a toilet and, at the same time, cool down my thoughts and my body. Having easily found a restroom nearby and taken care of my needs, I washed my face and neck with cold water. What were all those strange preparations for — for me and, apparently, for the girls too? After all, it’s still several weeks to the capital of the kingdom! And traveling in such an outfit is completely inconvenient and could even be dangerous. Pure show-off in front of the higher-ups! Same as everywhere... It seems that the desire to please the superiors doesn’t depend on the world at all. After refreshing myself, I leave the restroom and head toward the tents, where the sounds of some rather entertaining activity can already be heard. While I was away, there seemed to be more tents set up, and I became a bit confused and lost track of where exactly I should go. Rounding yet another stretched canopy, I noticed ahead of me Kays walking with that same girl toward one of the tents. She was cooing something seductively to him, pressing herself against his body, while he kept his face completely impassive. I really didn’t want them to see me here, so I hid behind the screen of one of the tents — however, curiosity got the better of me and I... yes, I admit it, I started watching! I can’t explain the wild urge to watch that bastard. After escorting the satisfied and heated girl into his tent and giving her a smack on her juicy butt, Kays remained alone outside for a while. Carefully glancing around, he took off his upper clothing and appeared bare-chested. In the moonlight, his body looked utterly unreal and damn seductive. Saliva filled my mouth as I watched how provocatively and sensually his muscles rolled beneath his tanned skin, outlining every curve and line. However, what immediately caught my attention was that there were no karpits on Kays’s body! From his arms, across his torso, up to his neck — there was a continuous black tattoo, without any patterns! But I didn’t even have time to think about it, because in the next second, Kays was covered with a faint glow and appeared in his usual form for this world — with bright and curved karpits on his strong arms and abs. An incredible body, if only not for his sharp tongue and vile character. I must admit, I’ve always gone weak for guys with tattoos. Even though Anton had more conservative views, not understanding this “vandalism” on the body. But I really liked the energy of beautiful patterns combined with a well-groomed physique. While I was pondering the differences between Anton’s and my worldviews, I lost sight of where Kays had gone. Suddenly, a huge hand grabbed my shoulder deftly and sharply spun me around to face him. From fright, I thought my soul would leave my body before its time. However, I didn’t even manage to scream before my mouth was rudely silenced, as he only looked at me with his furious gaze.“You almost died today, and I decided to treat you to something unusual,” he shrugs indifferently, throwing me into a bit of disappointment. “And I still can’t figure out where you’re from. Your aura is nothing like the locals’, and I’ve seen plenty—trust me.” The watch-mage looks at me unexpectedly seriously. “Maybe you’ll confess on your own?”Ah, so this turns out to be the ‘good cop’ routine, where I’m supposed to spill everything during a casual interrogation.“And what do you do here with people who aren’t locals?” I counter with a question of my own, meeting the man’s clear gaze.“Nothing, if they don’t pose a threat,” Kays knits his brows sternly. “Do you pose a threat?”“To whom?” I snort. “I almost got flattened by the gorts on the road, and you’re asking if I’m dangerous. If I had any powers or skills at all, I would’ve dealt with those giants—at least in self-defense.” I look away. It’s unpleasant to be suspected of something.“There’s some truth to your words. But sometim
After changing into clean clothes, I stepped in front of the mage. He looked me over silently, then walked deeper into the cave, telling me to follow. And we were definitely not heading back to our camp—we were going in the opposite direction, lit by a torch that had appeared in his hand from who-knows-where.“Where are you taking me?” I finally let curiosity win. “This cave is so deep… like a real labyrinth.”“The Shinir Caves are a chain of interconnected caverns,” the brunette explained. “Long ago, the ancient Shinir lived here—a short people with highly developed trade. They connected many caves into a complicated labyrinth of rooms and tunnels. They did this so that thieves wouldn’t be able to reach them and steal the wealth their settlement earned. Plenty of those seeking easy profit died in here, because the Shinir themselves were not a warlike people at all. In battle, they posed no threat whatsoever. They were as defenseless as children. But thanks to their intelligence, they
“Yafi! Yaro!” I called to the guards in surprise, but they didn’t even turn, as if they hadn’t heard me at all.“It seems those sentries forgot why they’re here, what they’re supposed to be doing, and whose direction they should never be looking in,” Kays’s voice echoed sharply, his lips pressed in anger.“They were only showing me where I could wash up,” I tried to defend the twins—after all, they hadn’t done anything wrong to me.“And why are you defending them so much?” Kays’s brow arched in furious disbelief. “Your mind should be focused solely on how to please the king right now, not on flirting with his subjects.”“You’re such an ass!” I hissed at the rude bastard. “I never asked to be anyone’s bride! And if your king wanted a wife, he could get off his royal backside and go look for a woman he actually likes, court her like normal men do, instead of waiting for girls to be dragged to him like sheep to the slaughter for some very questionable fate! Or is the crown squeezing his
As Kays had said, we met up with everyone at the Shinir Caves, where our overnight stop was planned.To my surprise, they were glad to see us and greeted us quite warmly. I also noticed how relieved Nufira exhaled upon seeing Kays. However, almost immediately, a rather hateful scowl was thrown in my direction.Oh, for heaven’s sake! It seems the blonde forgot who was bringing her here and with whose help.Sighing heavily, I made my way to the place the men had prepared for us to sleep—something like a separate tent for the girls. Fatigue made itself felt, and I had an intense desire to wash off the road grime and all the dust.Entering our tent, I simply collapsed onto one of the sleeping spots prepared for us. Around the other beds were the girls’ belongings, so it wasn’t hard to guess which one was mine. I was surprised to see something resembling a little night lamp.My legs ached, my backside too—fortunately, that pain was gone thanks to Kays.“Hey, Iza! Not asleep yet?” I heard Y
Once most of the stones had been collected, the smaller gorts moved aside, while the colossal giant stepped closer. Pressing his enormous hands against the pile, he let out a strange grinding sound, and we saw a red, fiery glow.From the titan’s head and body, through his arms, molten streams flowed—lava-like energy pouring directly into the gathered stones. It seeped into them, filling them, and within a few minutes, the shapeless mound… started to move.The giant stepped back. And then something unbelievable began to happen with the stones he’d infused! They twitched, clattered, scraped, shifting and rearranging themselves until… they formed another gort.This one was slightly smaller than the others, but still enormous— and I simply couldn’t believe my eyes.“Incredible, isn’t it, Prepedollie?” the brunette murmured thoughtfully with a grin, watching me try to lift my jaw off the floor.“It’s… something else entirely,” I breathed in astonishment— and for some reason, a warmth bloss
“And now what?” I ask, my heart about to punch a hole through my ribcage from the whole situation—and from having this man so unbearably close to me. “Can you kill them?”“I can,” Kays replies, “but I won’t, for many reasons.”I stare at the brunette without understanding.“Well, first of all, there are too many of them. And while I’m dealing with one, there’s a decent chance another might reach us. I can’t defeat them all at once,” the mage explains, studying my face. “Second, killing them would release an enormous amount of free mountain energy and force. I can’t absorb that much, and it could be destructive for everything alive nearby—including you. Third, I simply don’t kill living or magical creatures without extremely dire necessity.”“And right now isn’t that dire necessity?” I breathe, unable to tear my gaze away from his lips, which curl into a mocking smirk.“No. We’re hidden. It’s not their fault we ended up in the path of their migration. Natural processes of this land. Th







