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Erin couldn’t remember the last time she had a moment to herself that wasn’t surrounded by perilous circumstances. But that was all in the past. Not to say she didn’t care about the past or the future but the present was too tempting to not give her utmost attention. She was currently soaking herself in a natural hot spring. It reminded her of the hot baths of Maven’s Respite in Quinteburgh but this was a thousand times better. She could already feel all of her fatigue and exhaustion leaving her body. Most important of all, she could finally give her tails a good cleaning. They were dirtier than she realized but that was only to be expected considering all that she had been through.

As she closed her eyes and sat on her knees in the pool of hot water, Erin began to meditate and reminisce about the clangour just minutes ago. By fate’s whim or intention, it had brought them together. She couldn’t believe she would cross paths with Aedan within such a short frame of time. More than that, she was thrilled to have finally met Nivia again. They embraced together, feeling the touch and warmth the two had been craving for. But what was surprising was Nivia’s reaction as she tried to kiss her on the lips. The Elf shirked away with a horrified face. Erin immediately apologised for her behaviour but the deed was done and the reunion quickly turned awkward. Fortunately, Lilian, a Dryad from the same forest and travelling with Nivia, approached Erin and kissed her full on the lips. Although this led to some protests and complaints from Lyra, the awkward mood was dispelled.

Before the reunion could turn into a full-blown exchange of adventuring memoirs, Aedan proposed that they should set up camp first. Everyone agreed and got to work. They found a nice clearing just ahead of them and that was where they set up their camp. Aside from the weird air that lingered between Erin and Nivia, there was also the strange mood between Aedan and Olivia. The latter had greeted the former on one knee upon meeting each other but Aedan said nothing and simply ignored Olivia’s reverent greeting. Olivia didn’t press her case either but the two gradually became the centre of attention of the group. Everyone was wondering what happened between them and Erin was no exception. It was supposed to be a tearful reunion but as they sat around the fire and ate their supper, barely anyone spoke a word.

Everyone was tired. It had been a hectic and strenuous day. Not to say they weren't relieved or happy, they were simply too exhausted to be celebrating the reunion.

Having enough of the bleak atmosphere, Erin excused herself from the group and headed into the woods for a stroll. It was then that she stumbled upon the hot spring in a small glade. She didn’t have any reservations and stripped herself down to the bare and entered the water. She wasn’t afraid of anyone trying to sneak a peek. She was past caring about something trivial like that. She couldn’t help but laugh as she lounged in the hot spring, thinking of how the reunion had transpired. She thought there would be laughter and smiles but all she got was a heavy air of gloom. Besides that, everyone was tired. Everyone here had faced countless obstacles in various forms. Even if there was no such awkward mood, she doubted the reunion would have been festive. She herself wasn’t an exception. So much had happened and so little time she had to organise her thoughts.

Her gaze finally fell on her new-ish skill, Lust. It had once been Lust Deviant but now it was just simply, Lust. Aside from the old description carried over from its predecessor, the new lines of descriptions caught Erin’s interest and curiosity.

User can entice others to do their bidding, so long that the order is not overly defiant of the victim’s disposition and nature. User no longer loses their sense of self-control when entering carnal starvation but they will still feel compelled.

In summary, Erin had better control over her Divine Gift but it was a shame that she still couldn’t trigger that stat boost effect on demand. She wondered why her Divine Gift evolved. She tried asking Nyx but there was no response. She imagined Nyx must be enjoying the hell out of the current circumstances.

There was a sudden rustle in the bushes but Erin wasn’t startled. Unlike before, she now always had her weapon with her. Strangely enough, she was calm and her shoulders were slumped all throughout the meal. It was unlike how she usually was where she kept constant vigilance of her surroundings. And she knew why. It was because of Aedan. It was because he was there that she could unwind and be at ease.

“Truly reliable,” Erin mused. Throughout her past life and this one, she was always the one worrying about others’ safety. She was the one responsible for others’ well being. But in Aedan’s presence, she didn’t need to be that kind of person. At those thoughts, she felt her heart thumping. She felt her cheeks flushing but she didn’t deny the feeling. She couldn’t. She didn’t think her disposition had changed but when she thought about Aedan, her heart would race.

Erin scoffed at herself. “Damn… I really have fallen, huh…” she muttered to herself as she scrubbed her tails gently.

“In what way?” A voice came in the form of a question from behind her.

Erin chuckled. She was surprised. She had smelled him coming. Yet, she made no attempt to cover herself up or ask him to leave. “Fallen in love, I suppose,” she calmly answered, casting Aedan a sidelong glance. “Would you like to know who?”

Aedan recoiled a little. “You seemed different.”

“People and time change, especially after so much has happened.”

“And how much did you change?”

Erin grinned and beckoned Aedan to join her. “Come,” she said, patting the spot beside her. “The water is hot. A nice hot bath will do you some good.”

“You’re starting to sound like Iris.”

“Oh, my, Aedan.” Erin tittered. “You have a beautiful and lovely lady in front of you and you dare talk about other women?”

Aedan shot her a startled look. “You’re truly different now.”

Seeing his frown, Erin felt a small sense of triumph in her heart. It felt good seeing him flustered after how much he had pricked her with his sharp tongue. She had been looking forward to get back at him.

“Well, fine then. If you say so,” Aedan said and took off his garbs. He folded them neatly and placed the pile a few feet away from the hot spring before joining Erin by her side.

“F-fuck!” Erin swore in her heart. She didn’t think Aedan would actually listen. Perhaps it was the heat that fuelled her audacity but that excuse would only work if Lyra or Nivia were the ones who stumbled upon them in their current state, which they would eventually.

Aedan had most likely left the camp at roughly around the same time as her, she reckoned. The ones back at the camp would definitely get suspicious and come to look for them. She didn’t want to raise cain when she had just begun to loosen up. Moreover, this was the first time she saw him naked. He wasn’t as brawny as she thought but considering this form of his was made up by magic, she didn’t think it mattered if he was muscular or scrawny.

Aedan simpered. “What’s the matter? Like what you see?”

Erin turned away. “You’re imagining things,” she said in a fluster. It was her turn to blush. Though she turned her face away, it was futile. Her tails and ears were giving her emotions away.

Aedan stifled his chuckle. “Truly adorable, you are.”

“I’m sure you have met women or girls more adorable than me.”

“Well… I can’t deny that.”

Anger flared up in her as she heard his retort. She turned around and pierced him with her glare.

Aedan smiled. “Are you jealous?”

Realising her response was too exaggerated, she mellowed and squirmed away from Aedan. “So what if I am?” she found herself saying before she could filter her thoughts in her mind.

“Oh…” Aedan muttered. “I see…”

Erin wanted to retort but she knew anything she said in defence would only implicate herself. She decided to change the subject instead. Faking a cough, she asked, “Anyway, I didn’t expect we would cross paths.”

“Fate is whimsical, indeed. Maybe we’re meant to be together.”

“In your dreams.”

“Perhaps but I digress. You lost your sword.”

“Sorry about that.”

“No apologies needed, Erin. I expected that, knowing your nature. Anyways, are you in need of another sword or—”

“I have this,” Erin said and conjured up a sword with Bespoke.

“A new spell? Or a new Magic Art?”

“Unique Talent,” Erin answered proudly as she dispelled the sword.

“Can’t say I’m surprised.” Aedan shrugged.

“... So, you’re heading to Sephrodia Valley too?” Erin asked, meekly.

“Just passing through,” he answered. “I’m heading further east. It will really be a long time before we see each other again after Sephrodia Valley. If you have any more questions, now’s the best time to ask.”

There was a load of questions she wanted to ask but she picked the one that was more recent. “The mountains behind us, I found a cavern within. Know anything about it?”

Aedan raised an eyebrow. “You went there? How?”

“It’s a long story and it wasn’t intentional. Judging from your response, you know something about it?”

“I know enough. I know this place, the whole valley, it used to be one vast plain on top of a single large mountain. There was a city upon that plain, a small kingdom of sorts. Sephrodia was the city’s chancellor. She was essentially the king. She had a string of lovers, all men. She was greedy. She could never bear to part with her possessions even if had no use of them anymore, her lovers included.”

The shock was evident on Erin’s face. “She’s that kind of person?”

“She was.”

“Were you one of her lovers?” Erin asked with a narrow gaze.

“I wasn’t,” Aedan answered, cackling. “Anyway, back to her greediness. Since she couldn’t bear to part with her possessions, she had vaults built around her territory. These vaults were stored with her possessions. You stumbled upon one of those.”

“I met the vault’s guardians,” Erin said. “They were some kind of remnant spirit of the dead or something. From the way they talked, they made it sound like Sephrodia was some chivalrous and benign person.”

“They’re probably her lovers and from their perspective, she is benign and chivalrous. I know, it’s a fucking irony. That's not the extent of her foul deeds. One of the vaults was a prison, a place where she imprisoned the men she no longer desired but she didn’t want to let them go. On certain occasions, she would come to the prison and lay with one of them or all of them at once.”

“No one did anything about her?”

“Plenty of people tried but you see, Sephrodia was an incredibly beautiful woman. Some say she was even the most beautiful. But of course,” Aedan looked at Erin, “I disagree.”

Erin rolled her eyes but she felt a little happy, though she didn’t show it.

“On top of that, she was resourceful and cunning,” he continued. “She sold her sheath to any men worth having and a lot of these men were willing to do anything to put their swords into her sheath. It was like they were under a spell but they weren’t. She was just that beautiful. I’m ashamed to say that even I was tempted. However, I saw her madness before anything happened between us.”

“What happened to her?”

“Nothing. It wasn’t exactly karma but maybe not karma specifically for her. The war with the Demons happened. The one where people started summoning heroes from other worlds. The valley it is today, is a result of that war. That war created a valley out of a single mountain. That was how devastating the war was.”

“But the city in the valley, it’s thriving.”

“That’s because of the aftermath. Magic crystal veins appeared in the valley. The land became fertile due to the magic exhausted from the countless battles. It became a den of prosperity. The ancestors of the current lord viceroy of Sephrodia Valley is the one who discovered all those richness in the valley. That’s the history.” Suddenly, Aedan’s expression turned sullen and solemn. “You’re heading into the city but not for leisure matters, aren’t you?”

“I can’t do it anymore, Aedan. I can’t keep turning a blind eye. The Covenant…”

“You knew about them… Well, of course, you do.”

“The Covenant sent two demons after me. One of them was someone I knew. They blackmailed a dying old man, a priest, to kill me or else they would raze his village. I had to kill the old man and I may have doomed his village. They’re responsible for the death of Aera’s family too. I can’t let all those deeds go unpunished. I don’t know if their base is in Sephrodia Valley but at least a huge portion of their operation is there. I will destroy them with or without your help, Aedan.”

“I would love to help you, Erin but…” He showed her the seal on the back of his left hand. “The seal is failing. I have to fix it before it completely breaks down. I’m sorry…”

“Why are you sorry?”

“Because I can’t help you, as a friend.”

“As a friend…” Erin mused quietly, a hint of bitterness spread across her tongue. “I don’t need your apology. This is my decision. You are not in any wrong for not being able to help me.”

“Still, I feel guilty, Erin,” Aedan said, laying his hand on top of hers while she was brushing her tails. “And I lied.”

“About what?”

“About you… as a friend.”

Her heart thumped again.

“The truth is... I don’t see you as a friend, Erin… You might not like it if you hear it but…”

“How do you know that I won’t like it?”

“Erin…?”

She stopped scrubbing her tails and laid her other hand on top of his. “I don’t see you as a friend either. After all that you have done for me, how could I still see you as a mere friend?"

"I see..."

"I can’t lie to myself anymore," she said, staring at him with not a hint of jest. "I don’t want to lie to myself anymore. I won’t deny it any longer.”

“Did your orientation change while we were apart?” Aedan asked.

“It hasn’t… maybe it has. I don't know. But the truth is… the feeling that I had for Lyra and Siv…. I realised…. I have those same feelings too whenever you surfaced in my mind.”

Aedan sighed. “My gosh, Erin… You really are a vixen,” he said.

“I know.”

Under the brazen gaze of the bright full moon, their lips and tongue found each other as they brought their lips together and pressed against each other.