LOGINAt first, I didn’t believe it and started checking my own body. And sure enough, my skin is several shades lighter than usual. My legs even look slimmer, and my chest is bigger—which couldn’t help but make me happy since I’ve struggled with a tiny bust my whole life.
My hair really surprised me. It had grown past my shoulder blades, and my peroxide blonde was now almost white, with a slight lilac tint. Quite unusual and beautiful, I must admit. But what surprised me the most were my hands. From my wrists all the way up to my shoulders, they were covered in some kind of black tattoos! Examining my limbs, I realized it didn’t really look like typical tattoos. It was more like a design on my skin—very clear and detailed, with delicate, precise, and refined patterns. Usually, tattoos blur over time; the outlines aren’t as sharp as when first done, and the colors fade slightly. But here… everything was perfect, incredible! I actually liked the design. It consisted of a beautiful, intricate ornament intertwined with flexible stems of some plants and flowers. Although there were no actual flowers—only closed buds, one of which stood out especially large. Looking myself over more carefully, I discovered another tattoo at the very bottom of my stomach, starting just below my belly button and trailing downward, crossing over my pubic area and… oh gods! Down there! What a scandal! And those buds again! Though honestly, in the overall design, it was actually quite pretty. So there I am, standing awkwardly with my panties and pajama shorts pulled aside, inspecting my newly upgraded feminine assets, when I hear a distinct whistle. Spinning around sharply, I see two huge men watching me, whispering to each other and quietly chuckling! I flushed red as a tomato. How embarrassing! But all shame vanished the moment those two hulks gave me a predatory grin and started approaching, mumbling something in a language I couldn’t understand. I didn’t need a translator to guess their intentions—judging by their rapidly adjusting pants, the way they kept glancing at each other, and laughing. I’ve never felt this kind of fear and panic—not even when I first found myself in this strange new world. Well, damn, Isabella! You barely got to know this strange, wonderful new world, and now two big brutes are about to violate you! Looks like my everyday life is about to get a lot more interesting... and my sexual experience too. Not sure I’ll survive this, though. I suddenly spin around and bolt, trying to escape. But my attempt is cut short before it even really starts—I crash painfully into the broad chest of another man. Like running full speed into a tree, it knocks the wind out of me. With horror, I look up—and panic and fear freeze me solid when I see his eyes: red irises, studying me closely. Oh my God… could he be… some kind of demon?! I try to pull away from this monster, but grasping hands hold me tight in place. Flashing me an angry glare, the man growls something. “I don’t understand you! Let me go!” I start struggling, but it’s useless. The two men from behind approach us and say something to the big guy. After listening to them, the brute—not exactly pleasant—grabs me by the chin and begins turning my head from side to side, inspecting me closely. Then, shamelessly, he lifts my pajama shirt and looks at my stomach, slightly pulling down my shorts. “Hey! Don’t get fresh with me, you bastard!” I protest, grabbing the idiot’s hand and pushing it away. Growling, the man eyes me up and down, then with a satisfied smirk mutters something to his men. It’s clear who the boss is—those two guys lower their heads, looking disappointed and obedient. Suddenly, my feet lifted off the ground, and in a rude, barbaric way, I was tossed over someone’s shoulder and dragged off to who knows where. My struggling, kicking, and heavy swearing lasted about twenty minutes. After that, completely exhausted, I just dangled on the man, whose strength didn’t seem bothered at all by my weight—he didn’t even miss a breath. He kept walking, chatting with his friends. It seemed my fate was clear and sealed. Despair gripped my entire being, and tears were ready to burst out in a flood—when I saw we were approaching some settlement. It looked like the one I had seen from the ledge. Before I could even feel a flicker of hope or get a good look around, they started dragging me to a shabby hut on the very outskirts—without even entering the settlement itself. The man carrying me barked something to his friends, who laughed and walked away while I was shoved into the lair. That’s it! They’ve assigned me! Apparently, this huge moron will be first in line to violate me, and there’s no one to save me…“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







