94 Chapter 8 (1/2)
I was using a tablecloth to wipe the lust off my hand after giving Min a quick handjob in the middle of the common's room. There really wasn't too many people around to notice. The previous night of the pink moon had left most people in their rooms far into the afternoon. Plus, the table we picked was a corner table, and the innkeeper was still distracted thinking about her previous night of lust. Suffice to say, a seductress could pleasure her man in an open room without too much issue.
He was now breathing hard, his body pressed against my arm while he recovered from my machinations. After wiping most of it off on the tablecloth, I licked the rest off my fingers while planning out the rest of our day. We had fifteen gold coins now, so I figured I could send him out to buy the supplies. After he sold the cart, we might even have a little extra bargaining money.
We probably didn't need to buy an entire group of Adventurers. Even if we could find one extra person to reduce the danger of the trip, it would significantly take the strain off of Min. Just having someone else to watch the fire at night would allow the pair of us to get proper sleep.
This world had skills and statuses that resembled a video game, but the people and creatures of this world were normal. People wouldn't throw their lives away unless they thought they could win. The same rules applied to monsters. Therefore, most monsters wouldn't randomly attack a group of alert people. Baring the addition of seductress pheromones, most bandits, and monsters of this world would act rationally, avoiding groups of strangers unless desperate.
Situations such as the one that led to our capture by goblins were rare. The very fact that a group of adventurers cleared out their nest only shortly after our capture was a testament to the fact that goblins rarely became bold enough to attack merchants. In fact, my capture at the hands of Denova could also be considered a rare event. My luck since I had come to this world had never been good.
”Mm?” Min had noticed that I was frowning as I was thinking.
I shook my head and gave him a reassuring smile. ”To be safe, I think we'll want the strongest companions we can find. Wait, companions…”
With that, another switch seemed to click in my head and I gave Min an even richer smile that caused him to blush just a little.
”What?”
”I came up with an even better idea!” I stated, lifting my chin. ”Why hire adventurers at all?”
Min frowned a little as he thought. ”We must…”
”Right, but they're also unreasonably expensive to hire.” When Min continued to furrow his brow I continued. ”How about we find a group already heading north, and then just join them as companions? Instead of baggage they're escorting, we can be teammates that strengthen them and add to their resources.”
”What about the Cambions?”
”We'll sneak away when we get close enough. Even if we hired someone to escort us north, it's not like we could take them straight into succubus territory, anyway. We don't even know how they'll receive us. This mission always had a certain level of risk. I'm hoping they'll see me as one of them, but I don't know how a group of monsters would treat others. In fact, it'd be best if you returned with them and left me at the colony-”
”Denied.”
”Min…” I frowned as he stared back at me, his face not giving a single centimeter.
”No more arguments.”
I gave a sigh and turned away. It wasn't that I didn't want Min there with me. However, I feared what would happen. The Incubus and Succubus were a race of beings that procreated with humans to continue their species. They were known as dream demons, and all the information we found on them couldn't properly classify them between demon, monster, or demi-human.
As the stories told, Demi-humans were created by the gods as a failed attempt to create a being better than humans, generating the various beastmen, the elves, and the dwarves. Monsters were created when magic accumulated in animals. Some of these monsters felt compelled to **** women of the demi-human and human species. Once in a blue moon, this fertilization would succeed, leading to first generation demons. After a few generations, the bloodlines would even out with human mates and you'd find the more traditional demons like vampires, dracons, dryads, and lamia.
Seemingly, the more human-like monsters such as goblins and kobolds I believe are a result of magic-induced convergent evolution, although, that term doesn't exist in this world except in description.An alternative theory offered in some books that I couldn't make up if I wanted to suggested they were created eons ago by dark wizards. Once I had heard that theory, I couldn't stop laughing and Min was deeply confused about why I felt something as dangerous as ”dark wizards” was amusing. That reminded me that when we spoke of this world where magic was a reality, it very well could have been dark wizard's experiments carried out to create monster armies. My humor quickly diminished after that.
While Min seemed to be watching the changes of expression on my face as my mind wandered, I finally decided to get things over with. We only seemed to be burning daylight at this point. I handed Min a smaller portion of the available gold to buy supplies and then took the rest. She gave me a worried look. Ten gold coins and some change was not enough to make a reasonable request at the guild.
However, my goals had changed, and I was feeling pretty good about it. I left the inn and headed my way towards the adventuring guild. Most people didn't enter an adventuring guild unless they were looking to make or take a request, so even though I didn't have a card no one would stop me at the door. I was relieved to see that Jerard and his women weren't present. Well, I didn't expect the women to enter the guild at all. Even I found myself drawing many uncomfortable looks as I walked over to the receptionist. Adventuring guilds still had the mentality of an all-boy's club.
The receptionist was a man with a beard. He looked unfit to be out adventuring himself with a large gut and lame eye, but he seemed at home in a job standing behind the desk.
”Hello, miss, have a request?” he asked gruffly, but politely.
”No,” I took a deep breath and continued on, ”Actually, I was looking to see if there were any requests heading north.”
”You don't look like an adventurer, you got a card.” He spoke with disbelief while giving a nod to the request board on the other side of the room.
The room seemed to quiet down and I could hear some whispering behind me. I ground my teeth in annoyance. This was much like the conversations I had in the past.
”A woman, huh?”
”Fresh meat?”
This was the bane of all women in the adventurer's guild. Jerard's party was a bit of an abnormality. In general, there were very few woman adventurers at all. I had no doubt that Jerard handled this kind of stuff while the girls avoided the guild.
”No, um… actually, I was hoping to offer my services to any group heading north. My companion and I are heading in that direction. I was hoping you could point me to any adventurers heading in a similar direction.”
”Services? What kind of services?”
”Ah, well, my companion is an accomplished swordsman. I can make potions and know a bit of healing magic.” I was stretching out my own usefulness, but to try to sell it I added. ”I can offer a bit of money, if…”
The look on the receptionist's face immediately caused me to realize I'd said the wrong thing.