Getting Hot

Soul spread a blanket on the floor near Lore's bed and settled down. Unlike Key's room, Lore's was completely dark, with only a sliver of light coming in from under the door.

Lore faked a cough and turned to her side, looking at Soul.

"Goodbye – I mean, goodnight." she said, fumbling with her words.

Soul's expression remained unchanged. "Hmm."

Lore shifted in her bed, trying to find a comfortable position. She could feel the stillness in the room, punctuated only by the occasional creak from the bed frame. It was impossible to sleep.

Soul, equally restless, adjusted his pillow, turning from one side to the other. For him, sleep wasn't coming easy, either.

Neither spoke, and the silence grew increasingly uncomfortable. Lore's mind raced with thoughts – she wondered if Soul was experiencing the same tension, so she turned to the left, where his bed lay.

Soul's gaze unintentionally drifted to Lore's cleavage, the loose nightdress revealing more than he expected. The moment she noticed him looking, he slowly turned away.

"You can…" Lore began, "You can look at them. I don't mind."

'Wait…'

At first, Soul didn't move, pretending to sleep. But her words bounced in his mind, compelling him to turn toward her again. The loose nightdress left her cleavage visible, and he couldn't help but notice the distinct mole near her collarbone. A red bra, which appeared to be a G cup, was draped over the side of her bed; she probably felt uncomfortable and removed it.

He realized he had been staring at her breasts for almost ten seconds, he felt like he had to say something.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly.

"It's fine," she replied with a slight smile. "People often say my – my breasts tend to grab a lot of attention since they're… well, big."

"It doesn't matter what people say, I shouldn't have stared at you. With The Topple after you, you must already be feeling on edge, I just made it worse."

"I… umm – it's okay." She slightly moved, unintentionally making her nightdress slip even more. "I'm used to it."

"Yeah – again, I'm sorry."

Lore glanced at Soul, her eyes reflecting the faint light in the room. "You really don't need to apologize," she said, her voice a bit softer now. "It's not like you're the first person to look." She shifted again, her movements slow and deliberate, as if testing his reactions. The nightdress slipped a little more, revealing the edge of her left areola.

Soul felt his heart rate increase. He was used to being in control, but this was different. He struggled to maintain eye contact – his gaze kept drifting downward, drawn by the slow reveal of her skin. The warmth in the room seemed to rise, or maybe it was just the heat from his own body.

Lore noticed the shift in his expression, the way he looked at her and then quickly averted his gaze. It gave her a sense of power, a feeling she wasn't used to. She ran her fingers lightly across the bedspread, creating a faint rustling sound.

"I get it," she said, her tone mixed with a touch of playfulness. "You don't have to be so tense around me. You're not going to break anything by looking."

Soul swallowed, trying to focus on the ceiling, but his eyes had a mind of their own. The way the light played across her skin, casting soft shadows that highlighted every curve, was impossible to ignore. "I'm just trying to be respectful," he said, his voice quieter than before.

Lore's smile widened a fraction. "Respect is nice," she replied. "But sometimes, a little curiosity isn't such a bad thing." She leaned back, letting the nightdress fall further, exposing more of her shoulder and the beginning of her chest. The slight shift in her posture made the bed creak again, but the sound seemed louder, more suggestive in the quiet room.

"Hmm." He turned his back to Lore. "We should… sleep. Goodnight."

Lore's smile faltered as Soul turned his back. The abruptness of his movement made her question if she'd crossed a line, but the room felt different now.

"Yeah, umm – 'night."

Soul woke up with the first light of dawn, already feeling refreshed. His injuries weren't as severe as they had seemed. However, his left eye was swollen and bruised from the punches The Topple had rained on him. To fully heal, he knew he'd need blood. And there was only one person who'd offer their blood without expecting anything in return.

He stood up and walked over to Lore's bed. It seemed that, in her sleep, she had accidentally thrown the blanket onto the ground. The weather was snowy and cold, so Soul picked up the blanket and carefully draped it over her, making sure to cover her fully – or so he thought.

What he didn't know was that Lore had intentionally tossed the blanket aside to see what he would do. She was curious whether he'd show concern and take the time to cover her – or be a pervert. It was a small test, and Soul passed without even realizing it.

"Agh..." Lore groaned softly, pretending to be waking up. "Soul? Morning."

"Morning," he replied, pausing as he was about to leave the room. "Did I wake you up?"

"Hmm? Oh, no, the sunlight woke me," she said, rubbing her eyes. "Where are you going?"

"It's still early for the class. You should sleep."

He didn't answer her question, Lore understood that he must have had his reasons.

"Okay. See you at the Academy?"

'If possible, no.'

"Sure. See ya."

"Great… and, thank you again. Really."

Soul looked at Lore and… smiled.

A gentle smile spread across his face, but something was wrong with his eyes – they were devoid of any glimmer. There was no emotion, no spark of life. They looked empty.

'If I'd seen you getting attacked by The Topple, after hitting my 'help' quota for Ruby, I'd have just kept walking, Lore.'

He exited the room and shut the door.

Esvor shot his arrow, striking a fox in the head. It was a clean kill.

He walked over to the fox, retrieved his arrow, and tucked the animal into his pack. Yuki, following behind him, also shot her arrow. It soared upward and struck a bird in midair. Esvor was impressed, giving a silent clap to avoid scaring any nearby wildlife. Yuki, with a playful flourish, moved as if she were on stage, bowing to her imaginary audience.

"You're getting good with the bow, Yuki," he whispered.

"Yes, King," she replied in the same hushed tone as Esvor. "I practice with my older sister, Tamiko."

After Yuki retrieved her arrow and placed the bird in her pack, they continued walking.

"How's she feeling?" Esvor asked.

"My sister? She misses Snow Fallen just like I do." Yuki replied.

"Why? Is Redhaven not cold enough?"

"The weather is terrible, King! One day it rains, another day it snows, and then there's days where the sun feels like it'll scorch everything."

"Yeah… I agree."

The forest where they hunted was still cloaked in darkness. The early morning sunlight wasn't enough to penetrate the thick tangle of branches above, leaving the forest floor in shadow.

"My mother told me you brought a Lindworm scale to the blacksmith. Are you planning to make a sword out of it?"

"Probably. I let Gale take care of that sort of thing."

"Slaying a Lindworm – I wish I was there to watch you both in action." she said, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Yeah – right. And you two got lost in the forest while we were fighting the thing."

"Do… do you think we have enough, King?" She tried to change the subject. "I've hunted two birds, and you got a fox."

"Yeah, we should be set. I sent Tamiko and Gale foraging in the opposite direction from our camp. We've essentially gone in a half-circle – they should be nearby."

"I still don't get it, why didn't we just go straight into Redhaven? People already know we're here. There's no need to be 'sneaky' like you said, King."

"Because Redhaven's guards are too busy sucking the high elves' pointy cocks!" he snapped, his anger boiling over. "Sorry. What I meant was – they wouldn't let us in."

"So what's the plan?" she asked. It wasn't common to see Esvor this angry, his outburst caught her off guard.

"I know a secret passage. Planning to use that, but we're missing something."

Yuki slowed his steps and turned to him. "Missing what, King?"

"A key," he answered, "it was in my pouch. Lost it while fighting the damned Lindworm."

Yuki raised an eyebrow. "We could just... bust through the door, King – just saying."

He shook his head, looking at her like she'd suggested something impossible. "It's guarded by a god-blessed, mindless, monstrous troll. If you have the guts, go ahead, break it down. It's nearby here."

Yuki's eyes widened in disbelief. "A blessed troll? Like, actually god-blessed? A god blessed it? How?" She took a step back, her shock impossible to hide.

"He was cursed by the High-Priestess. I knew the guy, too… he was a human once! He had blue eyes and..."

Just then, Esvor saw a blue-eyed man staggering around in the distance, completely nude.

"He... had really long and curly hair," Esvor continued.

The nude man had hair so long and curly, it looked like it was trying to form dreadlocks on its own.

"And... he had lost his left pinky finger while fishing..."

And sure enough, the blue-eyed man's left pinky was missing.

"Wait, what the..." Esvor wondered if he was hallucinating. It wasn't every day one saw a wandering naked guy who matched the exact description of a troll.

"Umm... Is that the man, King?" Yuki asked, her voice hesitant as she squinted at the blue-eyed, naked guy. "Because... he kinda looks like it."

Esvor shook his head, but his eyes stayed on the figure. "Nah – curses don't just disappear like that."

Before he could convince himself, a voice rang out from behind the naked man. "Oi, King!" It was Gale. "I found Zorra and brought him here! He was cursed by the High-Priestess, remember?"

"Yeah!" Esvor shouted back, his eyes narrowing as he saw Gale's and Tamiko's distant figure. "Are we sure that guy is him?"

"Yep. Small dick, no pinky, long hair, blue eyes."

Esvor's brows furrowed. "Wait, small dick?"

"You're losing the point, Esvor! That's him!" Gale shouted. "The curse is… the curse is gone!"

"Fuck…" He shook his head. "What is happening in this city…"

Yuki smirked. "Do you think we should get him some clothes? Or is he more comfortable in his 'birthday suit'?"

Esvor sighed, unable to hide a faint grin. "Yeah, let's get him something to wear. Otherwise, we're gonna be the ones cursed with this image stuck in our heads forever."