43 Devil's Advocate

Waking in his room at the Rainy Day Inn, Cairn smiled when he noticed Elle sleeping peacefully atop him, hugging him with a silly smile on her face. He could have done without her drooling, but he had gotten used to it.

"Four hours and fifty-three minutes," said a familiar voice emanating from Cairn's left. Looking over, he found Vira seated atop a chair with her legs crossed, drawing attention to her naked legs and thighs. She was wearing a skirt and a long-sleeved blouse, but since she had been wearing stockings every other time Cairn saw her, the sudden absence of the black fabric was stark...

Without Cairn asking, Vira explained, "That's how long it took your Health and Mana to recover using that amusing little bed set. Since your starting Health was roughly 50% of your base, that's a recovery rate of 0.17%. That means we have approximately fourteen minutes and twelve seconds until Elle awakens of her own accord."

"Are you trying to make a point, or are you just showing off?" asked Cairn.

"I was simply informing you of my observation," replied Vira, adjusting her position in a very deliberate manner, removing her right leg from its place atop her left, providing a momentary view of the contents of her skirt, and then shifting her left to be on top of her right.

"Very classy..." droned Cairn, his voice layered with sarcasm. Then, even though he wasn't tired, he closed his eyes, placing his right hand on Elle's back, intending to wait until she awoke before getting up to carry out his morning routine.

Undaunted by Cairn's attempts to ignore her, Vira asked, "Are you fine not being able to satisfy your woman fully~?"

Furrowing his brows, Cairn opened his eyes and stared at Vira with a side-long gaze, asking, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You know very well what I mean," asserted Vira, pointing to Cairn and then to Elle as she stated, "You, Cairn, are not able to please your lover, Elle. It's no wonder she has such a hard time remembering you."

"You're starting to piss me off..." muttered Cairn, keeping his voice low, but his anger was apparent.

"The only time the truth stokes anger is when the person hearing it knows they're at fault," mused Vira. "It's even worse when you know the solution to a problem but lack the capacity to correct it..."

"And you removing your panties and stocking is supposed to help?" asked Cairn. "Seems to me like you're just horny..."

"You possess Insight and live under the roof of someone who possesses the Bedroom Arts Talent," said Vira, adopting a faint but cheeky smile as she teased, "You expect me to believe you've never used your Insight to ascertain its effects and acquisitions requirements?"

"..."

Instead of responding to Vira's words, Cairn closed his eyes, inhaling a deep breath through his nose before exhaling. Of course he knew what the Bedroom Arts Talent did. He used Insight on virtually everything he encountered. However, while it was definitely the solution to his problem, the acquisition and training methods of the Talent were the antithesis of everything he believed in. Well, not really, but he had to put his foot down somewhere, or he would be no better than a beast...

"I'm not Alfred..." asserted Cairn, opening his eyes and meeting Vira's gaze as he added, "I'm not going to run around sleeping with everything that has a conscience..."

Crossing her arms and shrugging, Vira replied, "No one said you had to. But, suppose you plan on making that multi-year expedition of yours a success. Or, better yet, suppose you decide to build a settlement in the Frontier. Everyone has wants, needs, and desires, Cairn. How do you think the other expedition members will feel when you and Elle are cohabitating like a married couple while they're trapped underground, unable to find an outlet for their desires? If you aren't willing to resolve things 'personally,' you need to prepare someone who is."

Hearing Vira's plainly spoken but incredibly biting words, Cairn was at a loss. He had plans for food, water, and other necessities but hadn't even considered the need for something like an 'outlet.' It wasn't the kind of thing that jumped out as 'important,' but there was a reason pleasure was regarded as one of the pillars of mental wellness.

"You're saying...I need to recruit a gigolo?" asked Cairn.

"Even the Kingdom prepares 'support' for the Knights when they go on protracted expeditions," replied Vira. "When you're risking your life daily, the drive to procreate is greatly intensified. It's one thing if everyone in a group is refraining, but if the leader can alleviate their stress and tension whenever they please, resentment will invariably take root in those who cannot."

"..."

Unable to refute Vira's words, Cairn fell silent and stared at the ceiling for several minutes. The last thing he wanted was to create a harem, but if he had to choose between having sex with the girls in his Party or employing some random guy to serve as their sexual outlet...the former wasn't ideal, but just imagining the latter pissed him off...

Extending Cairn a lifeline, Vira eventually remarked, "The simplest thing to do is recruit couples out the gate. That would save you a lot of headaches and effort, but it only addresses the issue partially. That Karakut with you, for example, goes into estrus near the end of winter."

Pulling out her tablet, Vira exuded the aura of a proper teacher as she explained, "Like most Felidae, Karakuts have a sexually charged nature. You have probably noticed how 'heated' she gets after intense exertion, particularly during and after combat. Once Spring comes, she will suffer extreme chills and fever without consuming a special medicine. And that will be her baseline for 3-5 weeks. If she gets particularly riled up during that period, she could suffer a mental and emotional breakdown."

"There's no way..." replied Cairn, arguing, "If that were the case, she would have told me..."

Turning around her tablet to reveal the display, depicting a t-posing Karakut with a veritable wall of text, Vira countered, "None of what I'm saying is a secret. The Karakut Tribe has been around for nearly 3,000 years. There is very little about their culture and society that hasn't been documented. After all, they lived alongside the other people of Cliabhaan until just a thousand years ago."

Tossing the tablet onto the bed, Vira rose to her feet, stretching her body in a way that caused her skirt to hike precariously as she said, "Anyway, I have told you everything you need to know. Mull and brood over things as much as you want. When you finally reach the obvious conclusion, let me know. My Nurturing, Grooming, and Instruction Talents have all surpassed the limit of mortals, so I'll be sure to teach you plentily."

Punctuating her statement with a playful wink, Vira promptly disappeared, leaving Cairn to contemplate her words in silence. At least, that's what he would have done. Instead, less than twenty seconds after Vira vanished, Elle began to stir, eventually opening her distinctive pink eyes to meet his. This time, however, there was no pause as she adopted a smile and said, "Good morning, Cairn~" before kissing him...

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Unable to disregard Vira's words, especially after reading the ecology report on Karakuts, Cairn waited until after breakfast and Kaia's return from escorting Fleur to confront her about what he had learned. When she realized what they were talking about, Kaia did her best to maintain her usual smile, but Cairn could tell she was uncomfortable as her ears lay flat and she kept shifting on her hind legs.

"Why didn't you tell me?" asked Cairn, feeling apologetic about making Kaia uncomfortable but also annoyed she hadn't told him something so vitally important.

"I didn't want to trouble you..." replied Kaia, avoiding Cairn's gaze as her ears drooped even further. "You have a penchant for worrying, so I was going to wait until we set out for the Cave of Wonders to request we make a detour for the central plains. I have enough medicine to get me through the upcoming season. And if things got particularly bad..."

Averting her eyes even further, Kaia faintly added, "I could visit a brothel or hire an escort..."

Feeling indescribable exasperation, Cairn reached up to rub his forehead, allowing his hand to slide down the side of his face before permitting it to fall to his side, simultaneously exhaling a sigh. He couldn't imagine taking care of Kaia's 'condition' himself. Well, he could, but as fond as he was of the faithful Karakut, she was what he would classify as 'too furry.' In other words, before they ventured into the Cave of Wonders, he needed to find a solution to ensure she didn't collapse in a situation where he would have no choice but to act...

"Sorry..." muttered Kaia, shrinking into herself and hanging her head even though she hadn't done anything wrong.

Making that point clear, Cairn extended his hand to caress Kaia's head, asserting, "You haven't done anything to apologize for. Let's just...let's work together to discover a solution. Is there anyone back in your Tribe you had a close relationship with? We could always ask them to join us..."

Shaking her head, Kaia revealed, "No. Because of my appointment as a Neophyte, those that would have sought my favor knew it was futile and gave up. I plan to devote my life to Lady Restia, and I would not be able to take the Sacred Pledge if I have children..."

"So, there's no one...?" asked Cairn, furrowing his brows as he made a mental note to discuss the matter with Restia directly...

"Not from my tribe," affirmed Kaia. "It might be possible if we encounter a Nomad, a Karakut that has chosen to walk the path of a wayfarer, but it could take months tracking one down, and I would need to defeat them in single combat..."

Crossing his arms, Cairn began to feel increasingly helpless as he asked, "Then, do you have any other ideas? We could be in the Cave of Wonders for years. I don't want you to have to suffer..."

Though it wasn't visible to Cairn, a faint blush developed through Kaia's face as she hung her head to avoid his gaze. She would have preferred resolving this particular issue without Cairn learning about it. Now that he had, she felt embarrassment beyond anything she had ever experienced...

Feeling the heat radiating from Kaia's body, Cairn's left eyebrow started to twitch. He didn't believe she was entering her 'active' period right then and there, but the possibility made him anxious. Kaia had become one of the people most important to him, so if push came to shove, he would do what he had to protect and preserve her well-being. The thought caused the color to drain from his face, but he would rather 'endure' than watch someone he cares about suffer...

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Quest Name: Cool Your Head

Quest Rank: F-B

Description: The two of you are beginning to stress me out. Just ask that smiling demon to refer someone or provide medicine. This doesn't need to be as big a deal as you're making it.

Objective(s): Ask Maa Viraja for assistance(0/1)

Optional Objective(s): Recruit a Therian to accompany you on your expedition to the Frontier(0/1)

Rewards: Peace of mind for everyone involved in this fiasco.

Failure Condition(s): Therians have powerful senses and strong sex drives. If you recruit one to your Party, they will get excited whenever Kaia does. Then you just need to give them some space, and the issue will resolve itself. Stop stressing over nothing.

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(A/N: Restia be like, "Just fuck already...!" while pulling out her hair...)