"You'll be needing this if you plan on having your way and takin' her, or she will tear you to pieces. Get over to her new master and listen to him, ya, Molly!"
Grestamorkaka raised his hand, but Seradashitha hurried over to me quickly, with fear in her eyes. She cowered in front of me, kneeling. Gone was the strong and silent girl from before. Now she was just another abused and scared girl.
I kneeled in front of her and leaned into her ear. Her body was shaking in fear.
"Let's get out of here, shall we?" I asked quietly.
The shaking slowed, and I stood, offering her my hand. Hesitantly she reached up and took my hand. Claws dug into my hand as I pulled her up, but I used every reserve of concentration I had not to change my expression.
When Seradashitha let go of my hand, and her claws retracted, I let a sigh of relief go unintentionally. Seradashitha had looked to me in alarm and then fear, taking a step back. Jill stepped beside me and took the hand blood poured down, while I caught Seradashitha by the arm before she could back away further.
"It's ok, I'm fine. I barely felt it, you didn't hurt me, and I won't hurt you. Things will change now, so you needn't be scared anymore."
As I spoke, Jill used her Water magic to heal where Seradashitha's claws had pierced. Seradashitha's eyes went wide at this, and I felt some of the tension leave her body. When I looked up, Grestamorkaka had already gone back inside.
We left and never looked back, then after a short while of walking, we stopped, and I turned to Seradashitha.
"Seradashitha, hmm? Did you have another name your friends would call you?"
"Friends? No, umm, my father called me Molly, but," Seradashitha's voice trailed off as she looked at the ground.
"No, that won't do. We will be your family from now on, so you need a name that is easy to say."
Jill pushed me out of the way with a shove, giving Seradashitha a warm smile. She took both of Seradashitha's paw-like hands in hers and looked into her eyes as she spoke gently to the scared tiger girl.
"Dave tends to be a bit too straightforward. My name is Jill. Why don't we call you, Sasha? Hmm?" Jill pulled her into a hug, and I walk away a bit to give them space.
After that, Sasha was always the reliable one to find us work at the oddest jobs. Even though I tended to make us broke in the name of justice ninety-eight percent of the time, I was usually the one left doing the work. The scales of balance needing correcting or something, according to the girls.
Sasha's six eyes opened, looking into my two, and nuzzled in closer, but that also sunk her claws in deeper.
Blood squirted, and I let out a groan of pain.
Sasha's scream after her realizing she had mortally wounded me woke Jill out of her death sleep. Jill sealed me up while Sasha kept apologizing. Maxine made sure to point out that it was my fault and that I should know better.
"Dave, I'm really sorry."
"It's ok, really. I just forgot the shirt, though we might need to get a lighter version."
"So, Sasha, what's this job?" Mikota peeled herself off the bed and slid over to Sasha's side.
She started to tickle Sasha but had to dodge when Sasha grabbed for her.
"Naughty kitty, no claws now. That's very impolite." Mikota giggled as she moved away.
That was a point, literally. Sasha's claws were crazy sharp. Maybe I could find some sort of night covers. I put a hand on Sasha's shoulder to stop her as she tried to advance on Mikota.
"Alright, let's go find Kyrina and get out of this small room before something gets broken."
I led our party down the stairs and out the inn door, waving to Karman, the Dark Elf bartender, still washing a cup. The girls had said that Kyrina or Kyrin was practicing just outside of town. They didn't want to be disturbed and said they would meet at the inn for lunch.
"So, lead the way then," I gestured to Sasha once we were outside.
Chapter 39: Jill The Spymaiden
Smiling, she turned and started leading us along. My mind was still on Kyrina, Nemicoramus, and the fight they had just had. Was Victoria, ok? This world dragged me in before I could do anything or check on her, but I remembered something about that world pausing.
I hoped that was the case as we turned another corner to walk out on the town's edge where a farmers field lay. I looked out to see many rows of potatoes that were ripe with weeds. I was up in front with Sasha and Mikota looking at the farm, and then I looked at Sasha with questions in my eye.
"He says he will pay good money, so don't look at me like that. You two get this done, and I will make sure there is a treat for you guys," Sasha patted Mikota and me on the heads before continuing towards the farmhouse.
"What does she mean by, you two?" Mikota asked as we both turned around.
Jill and Maxine were gone, missing in action. If this were a manga, there would be chalk lines and question marks where they stood only moments before. The smell of hard work must have made them disappear.
Both of us sighed, turning around and walking towards the house after Sasha. We caught up as she was talking to the human farmer about us helping him. The man gave us a quick look over and passed us each a pair of gloves that fit perfectly.
Sasha waved us off as the farmer grunted and waved his hand to follow him. That was his form of communication all day. As the farmer showed us what needed picking and gave us pails to put our weeds, we got to work. Mikota and I worked on the rows together, one on either side, not talking very much.
Mikota was in love with Jill and rarely gave others any of her attention. Even now, I could see in Mikota's eye's that she was picking weeds on autopilot, daydreaming about Jill. Memories started to pour into my mind again, and I began to remember how we had found Mikota.
Sasha and I had been outside the town we had stopped at, taking on a request. It was from the local lumberjacks to get rid of some giant centipedes in a nearby forest. Jill was in the market at the time, and she overheard some women talking about a snake girl. She had heard the Duke used the snake girl's Dark magic to execute the people he didn't like, whether they had committed a crime or not.
Jill being the person she was, disguised herself as a maid and infiltrated the Duke's manor where Mikota was rumored to stay. Jill found and talked to her, explaining who she was and that she had friends that could help get her away. Later that night, Jill met us back at the inn, and when she walked in, she noticed us in the corner.
"Over here!" Sasha called out, waving.
Both of us still had some green ichor from the bugs we had slain, and Jill looked hesitant to come near us. The rest of the people frequenting the inn gave our corner a wide birth as well when passing. The innkeeper was still getting water heated for each of us to soak and get cleaned, so he allowed us to sit in the corner and eat in light of our appearance.
"Did you two roll in the carcass after you killed them?"
"No, Sasha had said there were only five of them, except there was more than that, right, Sasha? You just forgot to tell me about the other twelve reported, right?"
Sasha shoveled food into her mouth with fervor and refused to make eye contact with me, keeping her face to her plate, only coming up for air and drink. I scoffed at her and turned back to Jill.
"What were you up to that got you out so late? Did you find the Dark user we heard about in the town back? Nevermind, don't answer that right now. I had your tub drawn as well, so you can join us, and we all can have some privacy there."
Jill nodded and took the furthest seat from us as we finished our food and drinks. Soon, a Dwarf by Rudnick's name showed us to a room with three one and a half meter deep tubs. There was also a two-meter tall standing blind that we each used to strip down into towels.
We each slid into the water wearing the towels, only taking them out after sinking deep into the wooden tubs. Each one of us let out relaxed sighs and soaked for a bit in silence. Finally, Jill spoke up and told us about the girl and how she had found her.
"You snuck into the Duke's house while impersonating a maid? Are you crazy?"
"Oh, don't go acting high and mighty just because the stupid idea wasn't your's this time. When I heard about what the Duke was making that poor girl do," Jill's voice bubbled as she slipped under the water in frustration.
She wasn't wrong. I usually was the one doing the stupid thing and getting all of us into trouble. I looked over at Sasha, but she just smirked at me and slid under the water. I had this coming, scales of balance and all.
Both girls came up from the water, and we tried to figure out a couple of different plans, none of them I liked. First was for me to piss the Baron off and then kill him and take over this tower, but that conflicted with our end goal. The next was for us all to put on maid costumes, sneak in and take her out in a rolled-up carpet.
I took the cloth from the side of the tub and dipped it in the water. I pulled it up and over my face as the girls talked more about different ideas. After a while, the girls got out, and I decided to soak for a longer.
I thought I had heard them leave, but suddenly, I felt a smooth, cool body slide into the tub with me. I tried to take off the cloth on my face, but the distinct feeling of Jills scaled hand stopped me. I felt her lips on my neck, and my hand fell away. When her lips reached my ear, she whispered, "what's the rush?"
In the morning, we settled on trying to break out this Mikota, but the Duke would still be a problem. Even if we got away, he would always come after us. So our real problem was how to kill the Duke and get away with it or figure out another way. We all we at a loss until I smacked my hand to my head.
Of course!
"Who are we going to rescue?"
"Ummm, her name is Mikota," Jill told me straight-faced.
"No, No, No, I mean, who is she to the Duke?"
The girls both stopped for a second, and it hit them about at the same time.
"Do you think she would do it?" Sasha asked Jill.
"Better question. Can the Dark user do it? Or is there a safeguard in place to prevent that from happening? What do you know, Jill?"
"She never had any marking or brands, but I'm not sure what to be looking for," Jill replied.
"I guess we will have to go with it. It's not like we can leave our new Dark user there."
With that, we headed into the sewer that led under the Duke's home. Sasha had created balls of light to allow us to see, but the smell alone was bad enough. Seeing the refuse that we waded through made it worse.
"Ugh, this smell," Sasha complain through her arm as Jill led us.
I could see all of her eyes watering from the disgusting smell, so I asked. "How far do we have left to go, Jill?"
It had already been forty-five minutes, and the water in these sewer aqueducts was starting to get higher the deeper we went. I felt especially bad for Sasha. I would have to help bathe and clean up her fur or be forced to wake up beside this smell. No matter where we fell asleep, I always needed to put on the heavy chainmail Sasha's father had given me because she still woke up next to me, claws digging into the metal rings.
"The tunnel to the Kitchen area is just ahead. Everyone knows the plan, right?"
Oh yes, Sasha and I knew our jobs. Live bait, it was our job to make a scene in the castle to distract the guards. Then we had to lead them away while Jill sneaked off in the other direction. This way, the two of us would distract the Duke long enough that he shouldn't be able to pick up their tracks and follow them.
"The plan seems good, but how will we meet up?" I grubbled
"You two will have to come to find us, but you should wait a month or two before coming to try. I will leave bread crumbs for you to follow."
There was no point in talking about it further at that point. Jill had made her mind up, and Sasha and I were just following her orders. Somehow this is how it always went if Jill wanted something, come hell or high water, she would conscript anyone close, to achieve it. We just happened to be the unlucky two that were closest.
After climbing up a crumbling ladder laid into the tunnel wall, we pushed through a trap door and into a dark cellar. Instantly we could smell food being prepared for the Duke's lunch, and we knew we had come to the right place. Quietly pulled ourselves up, and Jill hugged us both before changing into a maids outfit she had stored in here yesterday.
"Everyone ready?"
Chapter 40: Dishonorable Escape
In response, Sasha and I booted the cellar door down into the kitchen. Screams from the staff arose as we ran into the kitchen, knocking over pots and prepared food and grabbing anything we could eat on the go. The kitchen staff cried out for the guards, but we were already running out into the halls.
"What way do we go?" Sasha asked.
"I don't think it really matters. We just have to make a big scene and then get out with the guards on our tails,"
I kicked a table over that held a large vase as I spoke but noticed Sasha scowling and her tail twitching.
"Didn't like my tail joke?"
In response, Sasha walked away, scratching every picture on her way, turning to look at me as she did, which made ice creep into my veins. Soon the sounds of metal armor and footsteps got closer, and then a group of men in plate appeared behind us. They looked out of breath already, and I looked at Sasha with a wry smile.
"STOP DESTROYING THE PLACE!" Bellowed an enormous three-horned guard that was running down the hall after us.
This man was a Rhino-Kin, his three horns poke from his custom helmet as we could see the spit flying out the visor as he yelled. Sasha threw a vase that was sealed, and when it hit the Rhino man, it exploded in a cloud of grey dust. The guards wanted to gasp, but that left them all coughing in the grey cloud.
We ran from the angry shout and continued our rampage through the house, later to be accused of defiling the Duke's great grandfather's ashes and destroying countless and priceless works of art. According to Jill, it was good that we had gone through with this plan rather than the other one. Mikota had a particular type of magical torture device inserted inside her that Jill had to get pretty personal about to remove, so killing the Duke might have been bad for Mikota.
Sasha and I led the Duke and his head knight around the countryside and through many dangerous areas. After losing more than half his force, the Duke was forced to give up, but we had ended up getting so lost that it took us over six months to find Jill and Mikota. By that time, Mikota had attached herself to Jill like a parasite.
Since then, I haven't got any alone time with Jill. The Duke had forced her to do some pretty nasty thing and forced himself on her while using the torture device he inserted into her. Jill took good care of her to help her get back to a state of normal, as she does with all the girls and me.
"Hello? Did you hear anything I just said?" Mikota's voice cut in.
The sun had moved, and we were standing at the end of the field. I looked back to see multiple piles of weeds and bare rows, save the potato plants. I turned around to Mikota, and she had her smooth and long fingers covering her face in frustration.
"We are done now! I got the chips from the grunting farmer, so let's go find Miss Jill."
Mikota grabbed my hand and dragged me forward. When we finally made it to the center of town, we found Jill and Maxine talking to a woman. We moved over closer to them to hear, but not wanting to disturb them, we waited and listened.
"I've heard of Gnarled Bear Trees down there. The third level is no joke. Be careful going down there, and if you do decide to go down, take a good and strong man with you."
Jill smiled at the old lady but then noticed us walk up. She waved at us, and the older woman turned to look at us. She looked me over and screwed her face up, turning back to the girls.
"I hope this isn't what you call a "good and strong man," is it? This one barely has hair on his pecker!"
Before I could argue, the old hag turned and hobbled away. I turned back to fix the laughing girls with my own screwed up face, but the gir
ls just burst out in more intense laughter at me.
After their laughter had died down, Maxine came over and attached herself to my arm, pressing her chest into me. Mikota noticed Maxine display and slid around Jill's arm, making the same pressing motions. Jill and I both sighed and then laughed together, sharing a quick private look the other two girls didn't see.
"So, Did you girls learn any valuable information while we were working?" I eyed Maxine as I asked the question, who was still squeezing into me with her eyes closed. Instead, Jill spoke up.
Harem Reborn c1-297 Page 22