“This is all I ever wanted,” Reysha groaned, planting face first onto their bed. An actual bed. With four wooden boards making up a frame and a large, thick cotton sheet covering a bedding of bundled hay. A peasant’s bed, many would say and a considerable upgrade from sleeping on the stone tiles with only a few travelling blankets underneath them. “How did ya afford it, big guy?”

“I did hard labour while keeping my Martial Arts up,” Apexus responded. “It also earned me some favours.”

Korith’s head popped out of a pile of new cushions. “Money?” she asked, eyes sparkling.

“No money.”

The blonde kobold let out a long, disappointed grumble and placed her chin back on the mattress. “Why would anyone work for no money?” she asked, to the backdrop of Reysha wildly cackling at the entire display. “Where were you anyway? Haven’t seen you in three days.”

“Got busy learning my ultimate moves,” Reysha said and got off the mattress, to strip and to claim some of the water that was sitting beside the fireplace. Proximity made it nice and lukewarm, a good temperature to dunk a washcloth into and start scrubbing herself down. She had just lived in the woods for three days and was consequently dirty. A corner of their one-room house was reserved for people that were cleaning themselves like that. “Where’s Aclysia?”

“She went out to gather herbs. Should be back soon,” Apexus answered and watched Reysha rub herself all over with the washing cloth. It took no time at all for the cleaning to become a show, from one three-day starved, needy tiger girl to one humanoid chimera with an urge to make good use of his break.

Reysha gasped, her skin turning more sensitive by the second. Hips wiggled seductively, while the cloth spread a line of glisten over her smooth skin. Ragressians, as a species, grew very little hair and what there was, between her legs, had been removed recently enough to not have made a return. Having a partner that largely consisted of acid had its advantages.

Once the most offending areas had been scrubbed with water and soap, Reysha’s cleaning continued as a dance. One hand trailed soap and warm wetness over her, the other explored her curves. Decently sized breasts, one after the other, were cupped, the nipples teased, and then dropped in a display of moderate jiggle.

Apexus and Korith both stared at the indecent motions the tiger girl so shamelessly displayed. Always, she flaunted something about her curves, whether it was her bubble butt, her flat belly, her breasts, her shapely thighs, or her red lips. In the flickering light of the fire, her brown skin looked even more exotic, the dark stripes were nearly black.

“Ah,” she moaned, when curving two fingers into her. She had masturbated these past three days. Whether Mai saw or heard, she had not and did not care. That had been to take the edge off. This was to get the dick into her.

Apexus let his dick grow erect and then, only partly to Reysha’s disappointment, made a demanding motion towards Korith. The shortstack obediently crawled over and soon her tiny frame was bouncing in the slime’s lap. Reysha fingered herself quicker, watching the bulge in the kobold’s abdomen advance and retreat with each thrust. Her massive tits were consistently fondled by the slime.

When Reysha was done cleaning herself, she came over, and the two of them got to enjoy Apexus together. Stacked on top of the bed, pussy to pussy, they got double dicked by the amorphous slime. About thirty minutes later, Reysha was generally satisfied. Korith lay next to her, breathing just as heavily as herself. Cum was leaking from their agape cunts.

“Now I feel like a person again,” Reysha purred.

“Worrying statement.” Even though he meant that, Apexus could not help indulge her proclivities by pressing a sensation point. Reysha shivered all over, as another, albeit much weaker, orgasm quickly ran through her.

“It’s not a -mhhhm- problem as long as I have you,” she purred, basking in the afterglow. The only thing she cared about at the moment was to not leak on their new mattress. “Do we wait for Aclysia before I start boasting or-“ The question became suddenly unnecessary. They first heard her, then watched the door open. “Oh nooo!” Reysha cried, dramatically. “What will we do, dear, our secret love affair will be revealed!”

Aclysia did not bat an eye at the weird greeting, nor the scene she saw first upon entering. “You would be incapable of keeping any kind of affair secret.”

Rather than give a response, Reysha blinked several times in confusion at Aclysia’s outfit. Rather than a priestly garb or the casual dress she usually wore in the hours past training, the Guardian Angel was clad in a dress as enticing as it was nostalgic.

It was black in its entirety and shimmered in that particular way only fine silk did. Tight to her curves, it sat, covering the entirety of her midriff, all the way up to the upper edge of her petite breasts. Only a bit of cleavage was visible, between a strand that ran around the back of her neck, keeping the dress nicely in place. Much of her pale back was visible, none of the dress getting anywhere close to the base of her wings.

The skirt was long and straight, with two slits at the front revealing not only a scandalous amount of leg with every step she took, but also the semi-translucent stockings that belonged to the dress. Same went for the deep dark gloves that went from her shoulders to her fingertips, covering all. A pair of black, elegant shoes rounded out the look of a monochrome noblewoman. The only colours beyond black and white were the pink of her lips and the striking green of her almond-shaped eyes.

“Where did ya find that?” Reysha asked, continuously inspecting the metal fairy.

“Deep inside me,” Aclysia responded and sighed when the tiger girl started to giggle. “Do I dare ask what you interpreted that as?”

“Some metaphorical soul searching stuff… tehehehe… that’s not why… pffff… I’m laughing.” Reysha barely bit back the brunt of her amusement for long enough to explain. “I just remembered that you had to fly around stark naked after… after you lost that outfit! Bwahahaahahahaa!” Unable to hold back any longer, Reysha threw herself backwards onto the bed and started to laugh loudly.

Aclysia added red as a third colour to her exterior. This dress she wore was the divine garb that she had been created with. She had worn it when she served Apexus as a mere guide and had lost access to it upon becoming unbound from the will of her creator by the wish of her beloved. “Recent training has allowed me to regain touch with some of my divinity.”

“Ya know that dress turns every head in a thirty kilometre radius, right?” Upon Reysha’s question, the metal fairy looked down on herself. “Raise a leg.” A thick thigh protruded. “Turn around.” Reysha got a nice view of Aclysia’s ass, the derriere too sizable and too voluptuously defined to be hidden properly. “Ya will make wives jealous everywhere.”

“That is…” Aclysia took a deep breath and crossed her arms. “This dress was given to me by my divine father. Its modesty is secondary to its holiness.” Having said that, the angel concentrated on it for a moment. The black fabric all over unravelled, the strands dissolving into glowing particles. Naked, she stood there.

Reysha grinned, “Neat, now you’re as naked as the last time ya lost it.”

“Would you stop?!” Aclysia stomped once. The fit of anger only made the tiger girl giggle harder. “It appears you are in high spirits…” The angel tossed a handbasket full of gathered herbs onto a clean segment of the floor. They hadn’t yet bought a table, neither were they sure if they would. Their plans beyond the Deathhound were still uncertain. To make plans beyond an obstacle so seemingly insurmountable was difficult. “Were you taught Martial Arts of note in your absence? Mehily told me some, but I would inquire to learn it all.”

“Oh yeah, do I have a tale to tell.” Reysha recounted what she had learned about Combat Tricks, Underplays and Overplays to the group. The way Rogues exploited their Martial Arts was not a secret kept between members of the Class. Like most Class-specific abilities, they seeped out due to communication between various adventurers. As they worked with varying teammates or other parties, most individuals came to have a rough idea of all base Class capabilities. Advanced Classes rarely discovered a set of unique abilities on their own. Most of them either mixed several characteristics to suit their needs or heavily specialized in a certain aspect. That was, if they didn’t follow the generalist path.

“I dislike how much she torments you,” Apexus stated, at the end of explanations.

“Bigger the ass, bigger the bounce.” Nobody in the room really understood what Reysha meant with that. They had just enough of an idea not to ask. “What about y’all? Anything notable learned recently? Besides ‘Clysia figuring out her emergency wardrobe and all that.”

“My primary learning remains limited to increasing my mana reserve and deepening my understanding regarding Smiting, Miracles and True Miracles.” Aclysia’s hands were in steady motion, sorting the herbs by their type. “I would enjoy additional reading time. Research of the Omniverse and its flora and fauna are, at this juncture, not of import, however.”

“Similarly, I’m working on the Ironskin, Featherstep, and Rippling Palm,” Apexus reported.

“Can ya show me the feather thingy?” Last time they had all caught up on each other’s progress, Apexus had been unable to properly do it. Considering what his charge had been for the last few days, she figured this had changed.

The humanoid chimera nodded and looked around the room for something to demonstrate. Deciding on the bedframe, he took a deep breath and focused his ki inside his ankles and the muscles of his soles. Then he stepped onto the edge like someone climbing the stairs.

Balancing on a bedframe was impressive for a man his size, yet not exactly supernatural. What actually was notable was the total lack of creaking from the wood. It carried his weight without any complaint, as he casually walked along the edge. Even when he squatted down and then launched himself off in a straight jump, the wood remained silent.

“Mine’s cooler,” Reysha declared. “What about you, squishy? Nothing interesting, like always?”

“Stop teasing me!” Korith cried. Grabbing Reysha’s arm with both hands, the kobold started shaking her teammate. The strength behind the shortstack’s motions was actually enough to make the Ragressian feel some serious vertigo from the back and forth. “So, what if I learn nothing interesting?! I’m a Warrior! We… we’re all purpose knives… w-w-w-weeee….”

“Gonna be honest, Korith, between your stammering and you throwing me around I can’t catch any of that,” the redhead said and suppressed her presence. Confused, Korith loosened her iron grip so that the Rogue could pull her arm out. “And this is why we’re the slipperiest daughters of whores in the business. Seriously though, just more Warrior Control?”

Warrior Control was a specific technique that embodied, more than anything else, the difference between the explosive powers of a Rogue and the reliable strength of a Warrior. In essence, it was a mental state that focused on a constant flow of ki into a Warrior’s muscles and bones. The advantage of this was obvious: Warriors were stronger and sturdier than other Martial Artists. Optimally, Warrior Control went so far that ki always moved in accordance with physical exertion. That was to say, when muscles tensed, they would simultaneously experience a further boost of ki-influx, increasing the power of every strike.

The ultimate consequence of this was that Warriors were, in a direct confrontation, stronger than people even of their equal level. They needed this reliable power because they had to pose a threat in the frontline, to attract the majority of enemy heat, and to withstand said heat. With the boost to general strength came the certainty that every hit of the Warrior had to be taken seriously.

Disadvantage of the Warrior Control was that this constant flow of ki left less of it open for the kind of intense usage Martial Arts demanded. In other words, they exchanged a constant presence for the ability to use tide-turning powers.

“V-vulk says to be a warrior is to be an avalanche in a world of lightning storms and volcano eruptions!” Korith recited what her teacher had told her. “Yes… you can totally see it coming… and what you see is what you get… but we’ll still run you over!”

“I totally believe you,” Reysha stated with an extra ounce of sanctimony in her voice. She pat the kobold’s golden head. Under the glare of the shortstack, even her sarcasm crumbled. “Alright, I actually believe you! Hellroots, don’t take me so seriously, haven’t ya learned by now that I am the issue?”

Aclysia perked up, “Is that self-reflection I hear?”

“Ya better be happy that I’m the greatest thorn in your side, bubble butt, ‘cause it could be way worse.”

“I-in any case… yeah… just more Warrior Control…” Korith looked over to Apexus, who had sat back down on the edge of the bed. “I’m confused you aren’t learning that, actually.”

“It’s not part of the Ready Waters Style,” Apexus told her. “We only use ki with deliberation.”

“Typical monk stuff,” Reysha remarked. “Y’all are boring. I’m awesome. Simple as.”

Apexus grabbed the tiger girl by the thigh and kneaded absent-mindedly. “A Warrior’s need for reliability comes from the need to be the frontline. Without Korith’s ability to create space, you would not be able to take advantage of your own Martial Arts.”

“Y-yeah!” the kobold took that logic and ran with it. “I’m being… standard so you can be flashy! You should… thank me or something.”

“Ya say that like being a Warrior is a sacrifice.”

“Your words imply such a view on the matter,” Aclysia engaged the redhead. “It is undoubtedly the case, however, that a party consisting entirely of Rogues would have glaring weaknesses. Your ability to take advantage of windows of opportunity relies on your party members creating those windows.”

“Can ya stop ruining my boast parade with your logic?”

“No,” Aclysia denied.

“Oooh, short and snappy, I like it!”

The metal fairy sighed. ‘Whatever I say she will just twist it into her amusement,’ she thought, with a smile on her face and a hum in her throat. “Let me prepare dinner, then we can enjoy the evening. Gods know when we will have another one to the whole of our party.”